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2010/2011 Season Soccer Thread (incl. ECL and Europa League)

Discussion in 'Sports Board' started by Durbanite, Jul 20, 2010.

  1. jets22

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    Absoutlely ridiculous that he made the squad over Charlie Davies. Only one of them has shown any semblance of talent and potential over the past three years and it's definitely not Adu. Even if Davies is only back to 75% (and by the way he's looked for DC this season, he's already better than that), I'd rather him over Freddy the massive disappointment. Bradley lost his damn mind with this one.

    Any thoughts on the CL final this Saturday?
     
  2. FreeCorps

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    Figured I'd revive this since there's some tournaments going on you white people probably care zero about (Copa America, Women's World Cup)

    First off, this Copa America has been quite entertaining. I'm actually proud of the motherland (Peru) at this point, tying 1-1 with Uruguay and beating Mexico 1-0. Although to be fair, Mexico sent a lot of younger players due to the Gold Cup final, but still, fuck Mexico. Every World Cup they get in thinking they have a good team even though they're grabbing a spot in possibly the easiest group in the world (CONCACAF). And then they always get bounced. Peru should've hung 4 goals on them, and it's nice to see some life after the debacle that was the 2010 World Cup qualifying, when they finished in the bottom of the CONMEBOL.

    Also, huge props to Japan for knocking out the Germans in the Women's World Cup. Even though the Germans were bigger, faster, and played at home, the Japanese women were just as tough, and their goalie easily played a 10 out of 10 game. I have to say, it's enjoyable watching top level soccer where the players are toughing it out trying to shoulder past one another and not diving like they've been shot once another player comes within 5 feet.
     
  3. Durbanite

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    I have no wish to deride the womens' game, but, the matches I've seen in the WWC (in particular the Germany vs. Canada match), the goalkeeping has been appallingly bad, grade-school-type stuff - lots of fumbles and poor quality, 50-50* saves - the Canadian goalie in that match looked useless. I really hope they can obtain better goalkeeping coaches or possibly employ more rigorous training or different training methods, since this is the only area that lacks behind the mens' game. Some of the outfield play has been world-class stuff.

    Sadly, I've seen none of the Copa...

    Maybe we should have a permanent soccer/football thread, maybe encompassing futsal and womens' soccer too?

    *meaning you have no idea if the ball is going in the net or not after the "save".
     
  4. JWags

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    Hope Solo wants to hear none of that. Incredible game. Beating a team of Brazilian bitches who put forth some of the most shameful diving and time wasting I've ever seen and an officiating crew who at best was incompetent and at worst anti-American. What a finish.

    "Ali Krieger. Fluent in German and fluent in the language of penalty kicks"...Ian Darke is pure class.
     
  5. Kratos

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    Those were some of the worst PKs I have ever seen. Going over the bar? Completely telegraphing which way you were going? Come on, that is a World Cup final, you don't do that.
     
  6. jets22

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    And in the best news I've heard all day, Bob Bradley was just fired.

    No word on a replacement yet. I'm not sure who's available right now, but hopefully they wind up bringing in someone with a long-term plan for a change.
     
  7. dense

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    I have mixed feelings about the firing, not that I'm upset that he was fired, but just the timing of it. If it had happened right after the game against Ghana I would have had no complaints, but to wait until a month after the Gold Cup is kind of shitty for the team. They first have to find a coach, which will take some time and leave the team in limbo. Hopefully they will get Klinsmann to take over, which I think would instill some discipline, but I'm not holding my breath.

    The bottom line is that the team had some great moments under Bradley, but they were always tempered by mediocrity. The team beat Spain in the confederations cup, but we barely got out of the group stages. Then the first half leads against Brazil and Mexico in the confederation/gold cups, which were great for 45 minutes but resulted in a huge letdown. But it's not like Bradley really had the talent on the field to be a top 10 team. Our top players are Dempsey and Howard (both great), Cherundolo has been really good in Germany for years, Donovan was good in his stint for Everton but seems content to play in the MLS (and his team wants to keep him there). There are a few other players who have played well abroad, but when compared to teams like Spain, England, France, Germany, etc, the United States are not in the same ballpark.

    Bradley should be remembered for some great moments, but in his final year things got stale. How in the fuck do you lose to Panama? In the finals of the Gold Cup it seemed like he was basically grasping at straws, Freddie Adu in the lineup, really? National team coaches generally don't last as long as Bradley did unless they win trophies or they are just adored, Bradley was neither a champion or adored, so it was time for him to be removed.
     
  8. Durbanite

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    I think a lot of it comes down to not enough Americans playing soccer, and not enough players at European clubs playing top division competitive matches (IMHO, this is where your players selected to represent your country should come from).

    Just looking through that squad that played at the Gold Cup - Eric Lichaj? A handful of matches for Aston Villa in 3 years and he gets a national call-up? Really?

    I think some daft call-ups and injuries to some key players (Holden, who was in great form for Bolton Wanderers before his injury) cost Bradley his job. As an aside, I think the U.S. team will improve on its performance sooner rather than later.

    Am I the only person who thinks Michael Bradley is vastly overrated as a player?
     
  9. JWags

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    Don't let his father's ineptitude and misuse of him taint your perception of him. He isn't a Landon Donovan type playmaking, but he is a fantastic holding midfielder and one of the few US players who has competed at a high club level his whole career. And he's young. He's had some off games, but he is one of the top 5 talents on this US squad if you ask me.
     
  10. dense

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    Bradley (the player) isn't bad, but top 5? In no particular order, Howard, Dempsey, Holden, Donovan, Cherundolo, Spector, Friedel (although he isn't on the U.S roster for some reason). Bradley is what he is, he's a decent player who gets loaned out and does reasonably well. That being said, he's 23 years old, and while that may be old for an Brazilian prodigy, he certainly has time to develop. He's generally solid, but at least from what I've seen from him on the national team, he needs to work on playing the ball forward, but that really does apply to most of the team.

    Beyond Bradley, I just wonder what on earth happened to Onyewu, yeah I know he got hurt in the lead up to the 2010 WC, but fuck, he signed to AC Milan, and he's just sort of floated around and done seemingly nothing since. The guy is built like a safety and is good in the air, one would think he'd have picked up a starting spot for a team by now.
     
  11. Durbanite

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    The U.S. has an embarrassment of riches in terms of goalkeepers. Friedel is an excellent player still at 40 years of age with 13+ seasons experience in the English Premiership - but being 40 years of age is precisely why he isn't in the national side anymore. Bradley realised the need to bring through at least one more younger goalkeeper, which in this case means Brad Guzan, since, for some reason, the U.S. didn't call up Boaz Myhill when they had the chance (he was born in Modesto, CA). I think Guzan will provide good competition to Shay Given at Villa, and this should be his make-or-break season.

    Why isn't Bocanegra in your list? He's still a decent player and probably the best left-back available to the U.S. at the moment. I. for one, was surprised when he wasn't offered a new contract and Konchesky was used instead (that one made me nearly piss myself laughing, since Konchesky is consistent but not nearly as skilled as Bocanegra - this can be proven by Konchesky's poor spell at Liverpool, where he was horribly out of his depth) and Bocanegra is still playing decent football in a strong league (Ligue 1 in France).

    I really hope Jon Spector finds a new club in the top flight in England - he was released by West Ham, probably due to them being unable to afford to keep him following their relegation to the Coca-Cola Championship. I hope Arsenal take a punt on him, since he'd be a good addition as a defender or holding midfielder, both of which are positions that urgently need addressing. Although, I would not be surprised if he turned up at Aston Villa, with an American owner and at least one other American player there (Guzan) and who also have a dire need for experienced players.

    I think perhaps Michael Bradley may be more suited to Ligue 1 in France or Bundesliga in Germany (he's already been a Mönchengladbach player for some time). As for Onyewu, he's had some terrible luck with injuries and with on-and off-field incidents (with Jelle Van Damme and Ibrahimovic) - he's just joined Sporting Clube de Portugal to end his poor stay in Milan, so we'll see what happens.
     
  12. dense

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    When I first read your post I didn't think Arsenal would really be too interested, I could have seen Aston Villa, but jesus, Birmingham City? WHAT THE FUCK. I understand that West Ham was awful last year, so it's not as if Barcelona was going to be seeking his services, but to sign as a free agent to a team that's not in the premiership? If he had not gotten much playing time at West Ham and was simply looking for a team where he could see time of the field, that would be understandable, but he played over 100 times for West Ham. This move makes zero sense to me.

    On another topic, a few months back Clint Dempsey said that it was his dream to play for a Champions League team, which I doubt Fulham will be in the near future, but aside from the rumors with A.C Milan and Liverpool nearly a year ago, there hasn't been anything that I've seen regarding a possible transfer. Has anyone heard anything more recently?
     
  13. Durbanite

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    With regards to Spector, he may have just joined a team who got relegated, but the team's owner, Carson Yeung, has pretty deep pockets and they have already appointed Chris Hughton to manage the side - he took Newcastle United back into the Premiership on the first attempt and led them mostly to safety in the top flight before he was fired and replaced by Alan Pardew - I'm pretty sure Hughton was only fired because he wanted to build the best team possible, which conflicted with Mike Ashley's (Newcastle United's owner) overwhelming "buy low, sell high" policies - just look at the signings that Newcastle have made this season: Sylvain Marveaux (free), Demba Ba (free), Yoann Cabaye (not a lot of money there, either)... Birmingham City may be out of the Premiership this season, but I'm about 75% sure for the 2012/2013 season they will be back in there - Hughton is simply too good a coach to not get them there. Also, there have been a number of defenders that have either left the club or been linked with moves away (Johnson, Scott Danns), so Spector goes into a team where he knows he is likely to start games, and goes into a team with a decent manager running it.
     
  14. dense

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    Just finished watching the Manchester City v. Swansea match on the DVR. Holy shit, City may have struck gold with the signing of Aguero. In the first half they looked anemic and Swansea controlled possession, and for long stretches they did so convincingly, although City did have the better opportunities. Then the second half comes around, and City breaks through with a ball dropping to Dzeko that he puts in. Then Aguero comes in, and holy fuck, the team transformed. It wasn't only the two goals he scored in 30 minutes or the one amazing assist he had, but the team looked dangerous every time they took possession. It's one thing to kick the ball around and hold it in the middle 2/3, but when City got the ball with Aguero on the field I got the feeling that they were going to put a shot on goal.

    City really may upend MU this season, especially given that the heart of MU's defense is injured and their GK has proven to be shaky, although Vidic is only going to be out for two weeks. It will be interesting to watch though, because I've always felt in prior seasons that MU was just better than City, and to the end, MU did with the CC just last week, but I definitely think City will be a top four team this year at the least.

    Also, what the fuck is Arsenal going to do? They finally lost Cesc, and Nasri may be out the door as well, but I really haven't heard any rumors of potential transfers to come in. They're going to have shitloads of cash to spend, and even if they don't sign anyone they don't have to worry about relegation, but it seems to me that their fans are going to have a disappointing year.
     
  15. Durbanite

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    Arsenal is fucked. Wenger is not likely to sign a single player until next season, Nasri will probably leave for Manchester City for free at the end of the season (since Wenger is stubborn and won't sell him due to the sale of Fabregas) and Arsenal will be shown the door from the Champions League tonight by Udinese since Wenger is banned to the stands and Van Persie and Nasri are also suspended. Hello Europa League, nice to meet you. I also give it 18-24 months until another moneybags club comes in for Ramsey or Wilshere, or both...

    The only way any of this will change is if Stan Kroenke takes ownership of the club completely and, frankly, I don't think that will happen this season, since the current board are only interested in lining their pockets as fast as they can (witness that NO money from Fabregas' sale will be put towards player transfers). Maybe next season, if Arsenal drop out of the top 5 and his shares lose some value... one can hope.

    This season will suck donkey dick for every Arsenal supporter, including me. Every Man City / United / Chelsea fan can pipe up now and say "How my ass taste?" Fuck.
     
  16. Durbanite

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    I can breathe a small sigh of relief. Carlos Vela has disappeared on loan to Real Sociedad in Spain, and Emmanuel Eboue was sold to Galatasaray. I am FUCKING ECSTATIC at this news. Eboue isn't fit for the PSL here in S.A. let alone in Turkey, due to some serious lack of consistency and general insanity in his play and "defending". Turkey can enjoy Arsenal's turkey... As for Vela, he will not be missed. This also means more chances for the recently signed defender Jenkinson, which will be good for his development.
     
  17. dense

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    Watched the first leg of Arsenal in the Champions League match, if they play like that again they will lose in Italy, they did keep a clean sheet but it wasn't so much the fact that they were amazing defenders as much at is was that Udinese didn't really take advantage of their opportunities. There's also the fact that Wenger is probably going to get disciplined by UEFA for either texting using a third party to communicate with the bench while he had to sit in the stands. That being said, Arsenal will get some players back for the second leg that weren't available for the home game so they might win.

    I wish the good folks from La Liga weren't on strike because the EPL only has a handful of interesting games this week. Liverpool/Arsenal, MU/Hotspur, Sunderland/Newcastle should all be fairly entertaining, and if I had to pick winners I'd go with Liverpool, Hotspur, Newcastle. The rest of the slate just doesn't do much for me this week (Norwich v. Stoke might be worse to watch than a college game).
     
  18. Idiot Wind

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    Some thoughts from Liverpool perspective on the game:

    For the first 70 minutes, LFC did well to build attacks in the middle third, but the final delivery, usually targeting Carroll aerially, was lacking. Carroll did have one excellent header on goal, but there wasn't anybody close enough to him to exploit space and pick up his knockdowns. He was a terminus of attacking moves, but offered little creativity, and it made play more predictable and containable. Granted, the change-up coincided with Arsenal going one man down, but in the final stage a lot more chances were created by keeping the ball on the floor and playing short passes into the box, which was how both goals occurred.

    Personally, I'd like to see Carroll dropped and a narrow front 3 playing with Suarez and two of Kuyt/Downing/Meireles/Maxi (this may sound like knee-jerk reaction after two games, but last season's excellent spring performance was achieved mostly with the more mobile Kuyt playing upfront).

    Enrique is an excellent signing, very composed on the ball under pressure.
     
  19. Durbanite

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    Arsenal are completely fucked. Koscielny out injured means there will be no meaningful defense - Vermaelen cannot carry all the weight on his own. Arsenal will get battered straight out of the Champions League by Udinese on Wednesday. Yet Wenger STILL says he will not spend - either the board do not trust him to spend wisely, effectively saying they lack confidence in him, or there is simply no money there. Where the fuck is all the money from the sales that've been made? They cannot keep using the stadium as an excuse - that was supposed to have been paid off already.

    Losses like this will continue unless players are brought in. I wonder if Arsenal will be the first team in Premiership history to forfeit a match this season simply because they have no fit players?

    This is going to be a horrible season.
     
  20. guernica

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    I think Arsenal will miss out on the top 4 this season too. My prediction is:

    Man United
    Man City
    Liverpool
    Chelsea

    (in no particular order). I really like City for the title this season, particularly now that they've signed Nasri. United need a central midfielder in my opinion, especially if they want to challenge Barcelona in the Champions League. Sneijder would have been tremendous signing, but it looks like they've missed out on him.

    Blackburn to be relegated I think.

    On the La Liga, I really like some of the signings Madrid have made. Barcelona are still a class above though.