The [Horribly Unpopular] Soccer Thread

[Talgrath]

The league trophy will be presented to them Sunday.

Yes, but he doesn't have to play for them to win it, it's already won. I'm not sure Fabregas deliberately tried to get that red, but if he did I can't really blame him for it. Start the party early in Monaco and then head back to Chelsea on Monday to party some more.

 

[aygov]

I've always said that Spurs would do really well if they stopped worrying so much about Arsenal. They treat every NLD like a cup final and then drop points to west brom the next week. All the while, most of their supporters have more to say about Arsenals performance than their own failings.

Hey man, I'll have you know that they went 1-0-1 in the NLD this season. That entitles them to one poorly made trophy from the same people that do trophies for pub leagues. If they go 2-0-0 they get an open top lorry parade!

 

[Qhrumphf]

Hey man, I'll have you know that they went 1-0-1 in the NLD this season. That entitles them to one poorly made trophy from the same people that do trophies for pub leagues. If they go 2-0-0 they get an open top lorry parade!

I could go for an open top lorry parade...

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/footb...cio-pochettino-tells-tottenham-bosses-5730570

Well, Poch is mostly smart, but partly an idiot. Not sure why he wants to keep Lamela around. Although he's better than Roberto "The White Flag" Soldado.

 

[hoppyhoppyhippo]

Well, Poch is mostly smart, but partly an idiot. Not sure why he wants to keep Lamela around. Although he's better than Roberto "The White Flag" Soldado.

Soldado and Paulinho were total wastes of money, and the biggest recipients of Bale money IIRC. Thankfully for them, Eriksen was a fantastic bargain it makes up for those 2 bum signings.

 

[Qhrumphf]

Soldado and Paulinho were total wastes of money, and the biggest recipients of Bale money IIRC. Thankfully for them, Eriksen was a fantastic bargain it makes up for those 2 bum signings.

While I completely agree with you, even if his performance has been slightly (marginally somewhat) better, Lamela's price tag was also a huge waste of money.

Of course this muppet has to blame it on the club, not the players: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...eeper-Heurelho-Gomes.html?ito=social-facebook

I really do need to avoid the UK football press. Either makes me panic or makes my blood boil. Of course, the US press does it too.

 

[Qhrumphf]

Well that's disappointing. Wish Vorm had stayed "sick" and Friedel given a last hurrah at least on the bench...

 

[Qhrumphf]

Wow. Liverpool is having a wonderful afternoon it seems...

 

[Qhrumphf]

And that's it. Looks like 5th place, guaranteed Europa League. Come On You Spurs!

 

[Laughing_Gnome_Invisible]

Well, no surprise that my lot couldn't finish higher than 7th...... Still having a great day though laughing at Brenda Rogers!

 

[Qhrumphf]

I won't be surprised if he gets sacked over it, and it sounds like he won't be surprised either.

 

[Qhrumphf]

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.

 

[Laughing_Gnome_Invisible]

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.

Yeah....I'm trying to look all cool and relaxed about them while doing cartwheels in my head. :cross:

 

[Talgrath]

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.

 

[Qhrumphf]

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.

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.

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.

 

[Brew_G]

Union and Spurs wins. Money...

 

[Talgrath]

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

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

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.

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.

 

[hopstupid]

Norwich is back up

 

[Grannyknot]

Norwich is back up

alex neil is from a town in Scotland where some of my family is from. they are really pumped about his success.

 

[botigol]

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!

 

[HoppyDaze]

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!

Swiss Police confirm that, when arrested, all seven FIFA officials threw themselves on the ground and pretended to be injured.

 

[Talgrath]

http://www.foxsports.com/soccer/story/uefa-calls-for-fifa-presidential-vote-postponement-052715

Well folks, I finally get to use this 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!

 

[Talgrath]

http://www.sport24.co.za/Soccer/International/FIFA-office-raided-documents-seized-20150527

And it gets worse and worse for FIFA, particularly of note: "The collection of relevant bank documents had already been ordered beforehand at various financial institutions in Switzerland," the statement said.

 

[Talgrath]

Well, if you were hoping the NASL would beat out MLS, this isn't a good sign:

http://www.socceramerica.com/article/63932/nasl-suspends-its-board-chairman.html

One of the men arrested who wasn't a FIFA official was a chairman and one of its head marketing guys, Aaron Davidson.

 

[Grannyknot]

Yesterday wasn't a good day for NASL.
Between the FIFA bust up & the open cup results....

 

[Qhrumphf]

A more humorous bit on the FIFA scandal.

I love the Onion.

http://www.theonion.com/article/fifa-frantically-announces-2015-summer-world-cup-u-50525

 

[Opiate42]

A more humorous bit on the FIFA scandal.

I love the Onion.

http://www.theonion.com/article/fifa-frantically-announces-2015-summer-world-cup-u-50525

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.

This is as usual for The Onion... priceless

 

[Laughing_Gnome_Invisible]

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.

USA winning 1-0 then!

Edit: 3 minutes is long enough for Southampton's Sadio Mane to score a hat trick! (Yes, that's three bananas.)

 

[Talgrath]

Yesterday wasn't a good day for NASL.
Between the FIFA bust up & the open cup results....

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.

 

[Talgrath]

Sepp Blatter has been re-elected as FIFA president, that's going to make things real awkward when he is arrested in a month.

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/may/29/sepp-blatter-reelected-fifa-president-fifth-term

 

[hoppyhoppyhippo]

Emerson Hyndman and Maki Tall both netted goals for USA U-20 en route to a 2-1 Victory.