The [Horribly Unpopular] Soccer Thread

CornyKegs 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Also Saints had an absolutely phenomenal run considering all the other circumstances. For quite a while looked like they were top 4 material. I'd have no shame whatsoever.
 
An odd weekend in MLS...

1. These Two Coaches are Jerks
In the midweek match up between the New England Revolution and Sporting Kansas City we got to see two coaches behaving badly in MLS. For KC, after a contentious call by the ref that resulted in some home fans booing the refs, Vermes gestured and shouted for the fans to boo louder; on the other side of the ball, Jay Heaps had a hissy fit and stormed into the tunnel after a penalty call. Normally, I'm not the sort of person that believes sports figures should be saints, but both of these guys act liked class A jackasses. Vermes encouraging the fans like that can be dangerous, referees all over the world have been assaulted and sometimes killed by both players and fans, if you're mad at the ref, shout at the fourth official but don't encourage fan rancor. For Jay Heaps, whether he's mad at the ref for the penalty (which was a little soft, but not that soft) or mad at your players, through a fit in the tunnel is not the way to go; shout at the fourth official or at your players or both, but by just walking into the tunnel you turn your back on your team and its fans, literally.

2. What is Happening to the Revolution?
After the contentious midweek match the Revs absolutely imploded at home against DC United, two of their key players received red cards and both were entirely legitimate. First, Chris Tierney buried his studs in the knee of Chris Pontius for a straight red, then Lee Nguyen drove his elbow into another player's face for his second yellow of the night. What's more, Jermain Jones "chest bumped" Gieger, a move that might see him get a suspension from the disciplinary committee, the Revs could be down three of their top players for their next match (and perhaps beyond). Whatever has gotten into the Revolution they need to stop it and fast.

3. Sounders Could Take Top in the West
Dallas lost to the resurgent Montreal Impact while Vancouver lost to the struggling Rapids, leaving the table set for the Sounders to take over the top spot in the west. While the Sounders couldn't take first after Sporting KC parked the bus in Seattle, they did take over 2nd in the west on goal differential. With two games this week, one against Colorado and the other against the Red Bulls, both at home, the Sounders will feel disappointed with anything less than being top of the west at the end of this week.

4. Wondo Gets 100
Chris Wondolowski got hit the century mark today against Orlando City SC on a penalty kick, making him the 9th to do so in MLS history. While it's unlikely Wondo will beat Landon Donovan's record at 144, he's almost certain to exceed Twellman (101), De Rosario (104) and Kreis (108), maybe even beating out Antre Rostov's 114. Beyond that, the list gets a lot steeper, 133 for Moreno, 134 for Cunningham and 144 for Donovan. Orlando will feal good about getting a point from the game after Brek Shea got a stupid red for a studs up tackle in the 51st minute and San Jose will feel they should have won, but if nothing else Wondo should feel good about the statistical company he finds himself in.

5. Did Philadelphia Douse the Fire?
Philadelphia now has two wins in a row after I called them a tire fire, I thought their win against DC was a fluke brought on by a red card and a lot of luck on the goal, but they legitimately took it to the Red Bulls today, beating them 2-0 in a win, although there were a lot of panicky moments in there. Philly fans shouldn't feel too confident though, while the Union are now a mere two points outside the playoffs (they need to exceed 13 points to overcome that still horrible goal differential) they're also a game ahead of everyone in the east and six games ahead of Montreal who has won two in a row as well.
 
Talgrath said:
2. What is Happening to the Revolution?
After the contentious midweek match the Revs absolutely imploded at home against DC United, two of their key players received red cards and both were entirely legitimate. First, Chris Tierney buried his studs in the knee of Chris Pontius for a straight red, then Lee Nguyen drove his elbow into another player's face for his second yellow of the night. What's more, Jermain Jones "chest bumped" Gieger, a move that might see him get a suspension from the disciplinary committee, the Revs could be down three of their top players for their next match (and perhaps beyond). Whatever has gotten into the Revolution they need to stop it and fast.
Click to expand...

The sad part is, despite spending much of the match up 2 men, DC United could only squeak out a draw.

5. Did Philadelphia Douse the Fire?
Philadelphia now has two wins in a row after I called them a tire fire, I thought their win against DC was a fluke brought on by a red card and a lot of luck on the goal, but they legitimately took it to the Red Bulls today, beating them 2-0 in a win, although there were a lot of panicky moments in there. Philly fans shouldn't feel too confident though, while the Union are now a mere two points outside the playoffs (they need to exceed 13 points to overcome that still horrible goal differential) they're also a game ahead of everyone in the east and six games ahead of Montreal who has won two in a row as well.
Click to expand...

I caught the vast majority of the first half while I was at the gym, where it seemed to me that Red Bulls were pretty dominant. But it was still nil all when I left, so I take it Union turned it around in the second.
 
Qhrumphf said:
The sad part is, despite spending much of the match up 2 men, DC United could only squeak out a draw.
Click to expand...

Very true, United's attack looks horrible right now, they've been winning and drawing on the strength of their defense and midfield, primarily.

Qhrumphf said:
I caught the vast majority of the first half while I was at the gym, where it seemed to me that Red Bulls were pretty dominant. But it was still nil all when I left, so I take it Union turned it around in the second.
Click to expand...

For the first 30 minutes or so it looked like it was going to be Red Bulls, but then it became sort of back and forth with the Union counter punching quite effectively.
 
botigol said:
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/arrested-fifa-officials-face-extradition-u-ny-times-050005366--sow.html



Yeah! Somebody is doing something! However, I know that this doesn't change anything and even if tangible proof comes out, 2018 probably wouldn't be affected, because it is relatively close and it will take time for prosecutions to occur. We can still hope for 2022 to be changed!
Click to expand...


Swiss Police confirm that, when arrested, all seven FIFA officials threw themselves on the ground and pretended to be injured.
 
http://www.foxsports.com/soccer/story/uefa-calls-for-fifa-presidential-vote-postponement-052715

Well folks, I finally get to use this gif:

7drHiqr.gif


If UEFA drops out of the vote this could be a major blow to any sort of legitimacy for Blatter, the fact that they're even threatening is interesting, to say the least. For the last decade or so UEFA has been shouting about the terrible decisions FIFA has been making and now things may be coming to a head. If UEFA drops out of FIFA, FIFA Is dead, the question is whether the US and other wealthy nations might follow suit. This day feels so great right now! I'm so happy!
 
Opiate42 said:
At press time, the U.S. national team was leading defending champions Germany in the World Cup’s opening match after being awarded 12 penalties in the game’s first three minutes.
Click to expand...

USA winning 1-0 then! ;)

Edit: 3 minutes is long enough for Southampton's Sadio Mane to score a hat trick! :ban::ban::ban: (Yes, that's three bananas.)
 
Grannyknot said:
Yesterday wasn't a good day for NASL.
Between the FIFA bust up & the open cup results....
Click to expand...

Yes, when I heard the results I said to myself "Why is NASL the US 2nd tier again?" And it's not like this is entirely a fluke, about 50% of NASL teams bombed out in the third round (the round at which NASL teams are added) last year too, sure the Cosmos, Railhawks and Silverbacks went on to beat some MLS teams, but overall NASL and USL are a lot closer than MLS and NASL are in terms of quality.
 
So Jack Warner, the indicted former CONCACAF executive, held up an article from the Onion in a video released defending himself.

http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2015/5/31/8694339/indicted-fifa-executive-jack-warner-fooled-by-an-article-from-the

The article he is holding up in the video is this one:
http://www.theonion.com/article/fifa-frantically-announces-2015-summer-world-cup-u-50525

Looks like Warner is aiming for "not guilty by reason of incompetence" here. I wonder what he'll say if he's convicted.
 
Talgrath said:
So Jack Warner, the indicted former CONCACAF executive, held up an article from the Onion in a video released defending himself.

http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2015/5/31/8694339/indicted-fifa-executive-jack-warner-fooled-by-an-article-from-the

The article he is holding up in the video is this one:
http://www.theonion.com/article/fifa-frantically-announces-2015-summer-world-cup-u-50525

Looks like Warner is aiming for "not guilty by reason of incompetence" here. I wonder what he'll say if he's convicted.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's the article I posted the other day.

I still have a hard time believing just how many people think The Onion is an actual news source.

Some idiot on Facebook, sure. But this is a whole knew level of :smack:
 
US Lineup for upcoming friendlies

GK: Guzan, Rimando, Yarbrough
DF: Alvarado, Brooks, Chandler, Evans, Orozco, Shea, Yedlin
MF: Beckerman, Bradley, Diskerud, Ibarra, Johnson, Jones, Morales, Williams.
FW: Agudelo, Johannsson, Wood, Zardes

Assuming Jozy is healthy he'll be on the roster, and I assume Ibarra is out. Interesting that Beckerman and WIlliams are getting looked at.
 
I feel like Beckerman is in there for defensive support, given there's no real strong experience in the back four. Williams, I think, is there because of him doing very well at Reading after coming back from injuries. Jozy would have to get healthy really quickly to get to the first game on Friday in the Netherlands, but it's possible for him to make the second game. With Jones out injuried, I'm assuming Beckerman will be starting.
 
This week in MLS has held relatively few surprises, here's what I think:

1. Sounders Take 1st Overall
With their win over the Red Bulls today in Seattle, the Sounders are not just a definitive top in the west, but first overall. The Sounders have a game in hand against both of the teams closest to them in the standings, with 1 point over DC United and three points over Vancouver in the west. Whether or not the Sounders can keep up the pace is a big question though, teams are beginning to figure out their pass heavy style and they'll almost certainly be without Clint Dempsey in the upcoming Gold Cup. For now at least, though, the Sounders are on course for a second straight Supporter's Shield.

2. FC Dallas Has Trouble on the Road
FC Dallas is having some major issues on the road, losing first to Montreal Impact 2-1 and now feeling the pain of a 4-0 beat down by Sporting KC. Things get worse for the struggling Texas team though, they have three more games away before they're safe and snug back home, and it's a bit of an obstacle course, playing at San Jose's new Avaya stadium, Seattle's Century Link Field and then finishing off with an away game against the Rapids whom they've struggled against this season. Dallas needs to find both their scoring and their defending boots and soon or they'll slide down the standings.

3. NYCFC Are the New Tire Fire
NYCFC may have picked up a point after tying Houston, but thanks to their recent loss to RSL they're sitting dead last at the bottom of the Eastern conference standings. I should note they're sitting below the Montreal Impact, who have played five fewer games than them, and the previous tire fire Philadelphia Union. NYCFC has the second worst goal differential in the league, behind only Philadelphia and most teams in the east have 1-2 games in hand against them. Jason Kreis' new team could be in serious trouble here.

4. The West is The Best...Again
The western division is once again the most competitive, the difference between 1st and 5th is a mere 5 points and the difference between 2nd and 8th is 6 points. The top of the east is (for the moment) a two pony race between New England and DC United while the Red Bulls trail by 8 points from the top, the difference between 2nd and 8th in the east is 9 points by comparison. Of course, the east might point to the two recently added expansion teams, but this isn't too different from last year's results right now. The west also has taken a lot of points from the east at this point in the year.

5. MLS Enters the Open Cup
With the Open Cup in the Fourth Round, the eternal question involved in such a tournament begins: do we take it seriously or not? While MLS Cup is the big prize for MLS teams, the Open Cup is a welcome feather in the cap. If nothing else, there's a few matches in the fourth round that most definitely won't see "B" teams fielded and could be worth watching:
NYCFC vs NY Cosmos: The biggest team in NASL will face off against the team that probably took their spot in MLS, this will be anything but cordial.
Sounders vs Timbers: Does this one really need to be explained?
San Jose Quakes vs Sacramento Republic FC: San Jose and Sacramento might be in USL, but Sacramento was champion of USL last year and are gunning for an MLS franchise. Sacramento will be looking to make a statement and this could be the start of a rivalry between two California teams.
SC2 vs Real Salt Lake: Losing to a conference rival is bad enough, but losing to the feeder team for your rival? That's a bad look. RSL will bring their A team for this almost certainly, while SC2 hopes to steal one.
 
Talgrath said:
I feel like Beckerman is in there for defensive support, given there's no real strong experience in the back four. Williams, I think, is there because of him doing very well at Reading after coming back from injuries. Jozy would have to get healthy really quickly to get to the first game on Friday in the Netherlands, but it's possible for him to make the second game. With Jones out injuried, I'm assuming Beckerman will be starting.
Click to expand...

Jozy probably sits out the friendlies but should be back for Gold Cup.
 
Sure it goes both ways. To what extent on either side, I don't want to speculate.
But, my point was that Spurs would be much more successful if they didn't pay so much attention to Arsenal.
 
Grannyknot said:
Sure it goes both ways. To what extent on either side, I don't want to speculate.
But, my point was that Spurs would be much more successful if they didn't pay so much attention to Arsenal.
Click to expand...

I think they'd be more successful if they stop selling all their top players and then using the money to buy high priced flashy named sh***
 

Similar threads

Reno_eNVy
The World Cup Approacheth
19 20 21
Replies
828
Views
33K
Gremlyn
Gremlyn
U
If nothing else, be a USA soccer fan today...
Replies
20
Views
2K
Laughing_Gnome_Invisible
Laughing_Gnome_Invisible
SSBrew 300

Latest posts

Back
Top