I know I've been a bit light lately in my posting. Hopefully this week will make up for that.
The last couple days I've put together a list of the ol' sports writer staple, a hot or not list.
Some folks may love it while others may not, whatever. I'm a list guy so I like writing them.
Anyways we are a month into the season now with most clubs having four games under their belts
(only one has two Columbus).
Brazil has not lost a match in which Robinho scores and he made the Dutch net bulge twice in the
first half hour. The first one denied as Alves was offside but on the half hour mark, Robinho
latched on to a through ball from Felipe Melo to bend one past Stekelenburg. Brazil one nil up and
looking menacing as they repeatedly danced round the Dutch midfield and defence.
By Ollie Irish
The Italian gossip rags claim that Italian striker Marco Borriello who is in the
form of his life for club Milan is dating Brazilian model Analu Campos. She looks
like this:
Do all Brazilian models actually have Brazilians?
This is the rumour I saw this morning....
Gourcuff is supposedly going to sign for us on Monday morning for £21.8M, he will be followed
by Subotic and Koscienly. It's even suggested that Diego Alves will also be joining us before the
end of the transfer window.
Coquelin (loan) and Traore are suggested to be part of the Koscienly deal and I just hope
Denilson is part of the Subotic deal or even the Alves deal, maybe Almería would like to swap
Brazilians?
The United States walked off the field in the Meadowlands with disappointment written on their
faces. The national team did not show well against a young and relatively inexperienced Brazilian
team. Although the game didn't mean much in the scheme of things, the US missed an opportunity to
gain a some respect in the soccer world.
By ADAM SERRANO
At this time last year, the Galaxy were a patchwork group, hoping to build off a last-place
finish, but in 2010, the Galaxy head into the season with much the same lineup that came within one
penalty kick of winning the MLS Cup.
Much like last season, Midfielder David Beckham won't be around for the first half of the year,
but the Achilles injury suffered during his loan with AC Milan could wind up forcing him to miss
much of the regular season.
International friendlies are taking over the globe. Days before the start of the English Premier
League. Obviously.
The Brazilians were in the Big Apple on Tuesday night for a friendly one with the Yanks. It went
about as the casual supporter would have expected. A comfortable 2-0 result for the new-look
Sambas, goals from The Duck and, of course, Neymar.
By ADAM SERRANO
In 2009, the Los Angles Galaxy were a penalty kick shootout away from winning the third MLS Cup
in the club's history. With a new season looming, the Galaxy will be looking to begin the road back
to the final.
The Western Conference Champions trained on Friday morning before heading to Arizona on Friday
afternoon for a training camp that includes matches against the Columbus Crew, Kansas City Wizards
and the Colorado Rapids.
This week's Video Of The Week takes us back forty years to one of the greatest matches in the
history of the competition the semi-final match between Brazil and Uruguay from Guadalajara in
1970. In some respects, this was the match that started to cement reputation of this Brazil team as
the greatest of all time.
What a fantastic crowd at the New Meadowlands Stadium as over 77,000 came to see the US National
Team take on a young and hungry side as Brazil is looking to get back to the flair and fun from
many sides that have worn those lemon shirts in the past. Tonight we see the start of the Mano
Menezes era and I have to say that Brazil is back in business.
Thumbs up from Ganso but not for Manchester City
Santos players Neymar and Paulo Henrique Ganso could end up as part of the deal
that brings Robinho back to the Vila Belmiro. But midfielder Paulo Henrique has already said that
he's not keen on heading to northwest England.
An odd headline right after the sides agree on the new CBA (details please!), but one thing that
was clear during the ordeal is that Single-Entity is here to stay, now we get that confirmed for
the next five years. This post is not about the new CBA, but instead is about how the lack of
tradition should help MLS compete with global soccer leagues/clubs, or it could be titled
Soccernomics isn't about statistics
That trip I took to Cabo feels like a month ago, really only 1 week, and during the flights, the
down time on a porch or pool I got to read the book that many claim is the reported entry of
performance analysis (statistics of the sabermetric sort) into the realm of soccer.
Saw three games today. Chelsea-Villa was one of those European games I'm going to point to as proof
that MLS isn't THAT bad.
Don't get me wrong, Union-United wasn't beautifully played by any stretch of the imagination. But
at least it was energetic and exciting. I guess they wanted to put on a good show for Joe Biden.
Sandro Ranieri and Inter make it to the semis of the Libertadores
Midfielder Sandro Ranieri will be staying put for the time being after Internacional knocked
holders Estudiantes out of the Libertadores on Thursday night. The Brazilians were trailing 2-0
away in Argentina and facing an exit from the competition until substitute Giuliano came on to
score a vital goal with just minutes remaining in the game.
Any soccer fan knows of the USA's historic 1-0 win over England in the 1950 World Cup (and if
you don't, you'll be hearing enough about it in the next two weeks to fill you in). But, 34 years
ago today, an American team of sorts played the English in a little-known, little-remembered game
that's but a footnote in US soccer history.
North Korea's national team, the Chollima gets its name from a mythical 1000 mile long
horse
A 2-1 scoreline is not one would expect from the 1st ranked team over the 105th team.
The North Koreans refused to be overawed by Brazil, football's superpower, and five time winners
of the World Cup.
(AP Photos)
We had to ask.
The vuvuzela is:Part of the soundtrack of South Africa, an enriching cultural
experienceSomething I can live withThey're irritating, but don't ban themDamn annoying! Ban
themWhat's a vuvuzela? Free polls from Pollhost.com
By the way, couldn't resist:
*Meet the Vuvuzela Symphony.
As always, Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has his own unique beliefs in regards to yet another major
topic in the football world this summer. The Frenchman, who is commentating in South Africa for
French TV, explained that the disappointing display of most European teams in the FIFA
World Cup can be attributed to the fact that most players do not possess any experience playing
club football in other continents.
I frequently refer to certain trophies as "majors" and others as "minors." I always build up the
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup as a major trophy that just doesn't get the respect it deserves. It is a
slot into the CONCACAF Champions League. The winner can call themselves the U.S. Champion. Those
things are a big deal.
Italy has been punished, thanks to their poor performances Italy has lost ground in the FIFA and
UEFA rankings. La Gazzetta dello Sport is reporting that Italy has fallen all the way down
to 11th in the FIFA rankings, behind Chile and Egypt. This is an anticipation that will most likely
be confirmed the 14th of July, when the FIFA rankings are updated.
Spain deserved to win. Completely dominant even in the game they lost. Also, here is my Best XI
from the world cup:
The formation has to be 4-2-3-1 since that's what most of the teams played. So:
Diego ForlanLeonel Messi-Xavi-Thomas MüllerMichael Bradley-Bastian SchweinsteigerGio-Simon
Kjaer-Ryan Nelson-Sergio RamosVincent Enyeama
bench: Keisuke Honda, Wesley Sneijder, Luis Suarez, Jorge Fucile, Diego Godin, Asamoah Gyan
Who'd have thought that a) Ryan Nelson from New Zealand would make my best eleven, or that b) he'd
be on the only team to leave South Africa undefeated?
Photo by Michael Janosz/ISIphotos.com
By ADAM SERRANO
While the scoring prowess of Edson Buddle and Landon Donovan and the stout defending of Omar
Gonzalez have been crucial ingredients to the success of the Los Angeles Galaxy, it is the play of
a newcomer that may play just as important of a role in the team's good fortune.
Rafael Benítez saw his Inter team beat Seongnam 2-0 in Abu Dhabi
At least one team called Inter has made the final of the FIFA Club World Cup this year. European
champions Internazionale FC did what their South American counterparts SC Internacional were unable
to do and reach the showpiece game of the tournament which takes place on Sunday.
Arsene Wenger picks up talented Brazilian.
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Arsenal have reportedly agreed a £3.
After Rafael's impressive display against Wigan last week, as well Fabio being one of the few to
give a good account of himself against Leeds, Sir Alex Ferguson has claimed the two Brazilian
teenagers are likely to be our first choice full-backs in five years time.
"Rafael was outstanding against Wigan and showed fantastic energy and desire," said
Ferguson.
Have you heard of the Samba Gold award? It's a (colourful, see picture) trophy given out by
sambafoot.com, a French website devoted to Brazilian football. They put together a shortlist of the
30 best Brazilians currently playing their football in Europe, and then voted on it. Luis Fabiano
of Sevilla (aka o'fabuloso) is the Samba Gold [.
photo credit: Crystian Cruz
He blew his big chance in the Premier League...
Robinho has decided he's going back to Brazil and will likely join Santos when he gets there.
It appears that Manchester City isn't the right fit for Robinho as they club struggles this Premier
League season.
Now, there is a reason why football is called the beautiful game. The English might have
invented it but the Brazilians definitely perfected it. This is evident in the case of Robson De
Souza better known as Robinho.
After making the worst career mistake in his life by joining Manchester City (this according
to me), Robinho seems to be getting back to what we all know and love him for, his killer side
steps that can leave any defender totally confused and disoriented.
All smiles for Brazil
Brazil take on the Republic of Ireland this afternoon in their last fixture before the World Cup
in South Africa. Coach Dunga has said that the time for experimenting is over and that he has
already decided the majority of 23 players he'll be calling up later this year.
Robinho on target
Goals in each half gave Brazil a 2-0 win over the Republic of Ireland in the Emirates stadium. A
Keith Andrews own-goal just before the end of the first period put the Brazilians ahead. But there
was nothing fluky about the second. A very well-worked move involving Kaká, Grafite and Robinho
ended in the latter sweeping the ball home.
Major quickie my bredren, I'm not in no fit state to ramble on about the plight of John Terry's
big I Am Untouchable shenanigans plus I deffo don't want to pipe up about Ashley I'm Sooo Depressed
Cole. It serves you both right. I want to dwell on the re-emergence of Leighton Baines, Warnock,
Carlton Cole & Stewart Downing, even if my heads banging after watching the Paddys and Brazilians
in a Guinness fuelled haze at the Emirates.
By ADAM SERRANO
Fresh off a triumphant trip to England, Landon Donovan spoke to reporters on Wednesday to
address his time in England.
Prior to the press conference, Donovan was back in action for the Galaxy today in a scrimmage
against PDL side Hollywood United. During 90 minutes of play, Landon scored two goals and set up a
pair, most notably rookie Michael Stephens for a brace from distance in the Galaxy's 8-0
victory.
The quick & dirty 2010 MLS preview, mostly so I can see how wrong I am at the end of the
season...
EASTERN CONFERENCE
1. Columbus Crew
Losing Alejandro Moreno could hurt more that the Crew are expecting, but they should be good enough
to win the East.
2. DC United
DCU has looked good towards the end of the preseason, but depth could be a major issue.
What is on paper a strong team could end up being a weak one when tested by a tricky opponent.
How the players gel and work together, how effective the coach is in bringing the best out of
players, the strength of the defensive line and often the rise of a relative unknown to help
carry the team can all influence who ends up winning.
The 2nd annual Kicking & Screening Soccer Film Festival, New York's first soccer film festival, has
announced the lineup for the 2010 installment of the event and I'm just going to go ahead and
co-sign on it now.
K&S/NY 2010 kicks off with the U.S. premiere of Fifteen Minutes That Shook the World and boasts a
total of five feature films and six shorts.
According to my friend Dennis, Argentina versus Brazil is the biggest rivalry in sports. Rangers
versus Celtic? Doesn't want to hear it. Barcelona versus Real Madrid? Doesn't want to hear it.
Yankees versus Red Sox?
"Who?" he asks. "You don't understand, my friend." He puts his hand on my shoulder and pauses,
like a priest granting advice to a troubled parishioner.
photo credit: oyosan
The Team: One of soccer's most famous sayings is "The English invented soccer,
the Brazilians perfected it." I think that saying is spot on with its analysis, and I also think
you could say the same about modeling. I wonder if any Brazilian Nats are disappointed that the
Pele of the catwalk, Gisele, ended up with that strange "foreign" type of footballer.
Rumour in the UK has surfaced that Chelsea are looking at AC Milan's roster and favouring to invest
in two brazilians at once: forward Alexandre Pato and defender Thiago Silva. Both have
international experience and are considered integral part of Brazil's next footballing generation.
The amount involved may be something in the order of £70 million.
Most countries are pretty passionate about the World Cup. Exceptions will made, corners will be
cut and surgical incisions will be left open each time Lionel Messi works himself into an inch of
space. And you can forget all 32 nations, it's a global festival.
Brazil, however, is another animal.
