It is not uncommon for teams to lose their composure when adversity strikes in a match. Whether it be conceding a goal at an inappropriate time in the match, an injury or a player being sent off.
The truly special teams are able to keep cool and stay in the moment when adversity arrives, and Barcelona's performance versus Real Madrid last week was a clear illustration of why they are the gold standard in world football.

Featured image courtesy of UNC/Jeffrey A. Camarati

NCAA College Cup

University of North Carolina defeated UNC Charlotte 1–0 on Sunday to win the College Cup. Ben Spea's goal was a cracker.

Soccer America's Paul Gardner has an interesting take on the final.

Philadelphia Union

UNC's win prompted a funny Twitter exchange that began with a tweet from UNC product Sheanon Williams:

Williams: "Want to congratulate @UNCmenssoccer.

Now this is interesting. According to SoccerAmerica -remember SoccerAmerica?-- the current iteration of the New York Cosmos front office is getting blowed up. Paul Gardner's latest, quasi-bizarrely written treatise for the old-school footie mag throws forth a tale of upheaval around the MLS expansion pretenders and leaves you with more questions than answers.

STARTERS
Rumors began pouring out this afternoon that Chuck Blazer would step down as General Secratary of CONCACAF at years end. Confirmation came a short while later. It will be interesting if we hear any story behind this move.-Bill Archer at Big Soccer with the story.
-Blazer will NOT step down from his FIFA executive committee post though.

Paul Gardner writes about the trials and tribulations of Arsene Wenger.
Is it OK to feel sorry for Arsene Wenger? That 8-2 rout by ManU was a humiliation that he surely did not deserve, a sad, sad moment in the history of Arsenal, a cruel game that I found it almost agonizing to watch.

Their Words I was adamant I would not speak to the BBC until the matter was resolved to my satisfaction so I am pleased an apology has been issued today. Rangers manager Ally McCoist Other Sources Player Dives. Is this the end of the world? - from Soccer America's Paul Gardner: This always puzzles me.

I know disparate opinions exist on mid-season friendlies that match MLS sides against the fancy-pants sides from Europe and Mexico. I'm on record as saying, essentially, they once held great value as MLS established its brand, they still hold some value ... but that the value will gradually diminish.

There is definitely a yin and yang to the idea of exhibitions squeezed into the Major League Soccer schedule.
Despite the large gate and fan interest, a condenced schedule and poor results haven't put MLS in the best light as the World Football Challenge continues.
Paul Gardner writes about the challenges that these one-sided exhibitions have brought to MLS, and it's perception in this country and abroad.

Their Words There is no use being expansive if you are losing games. We've seen that before. So we'll be organised and we'll make sure we attack with purpose but also that we keep the door shut at the back. Aston Villa manager Alex McLeish. Other Sources Remembering John Kerr and his gloriously genuine soccer emotions - from Soccer America's Paul Gardner: And that was the way he played.

Paul Gardner hit another home run in his 'The Barcelona Way - Part II'.
Aspects of 'the Barcelona Way' that I definitely agree with are:
* What are normally not associated with teams that stand out for thir ability to keep possession and ball control - work ethic and defending when the other team has the ball - are what makes Barcelona so unique.

Paul Gardner sums up the UEFA Champions League Final perfect in his rent piece on 'The Barcelona Way'-
Barcelona 3 Manchester United 1. How can a game between the champions of England, the legendary ManU, and the champions of Spain, the equally esteemed Barca, possibly turn out to be a mismatch?

Paul Gardner writes of the opportunity for us to finally see 'the beautiful game' in tomorrow's UEFA Champions League final between Manchester United and Barcelona.

It was only some 10 months ago that we were getting ready for the World Cup final -- a game between Spain and the Netherlands that promised to give us everything that such a game should -- the very best of soccer.

Can't decide if I hate this. Feel like I need to hear the full version because this sounds clipped & edited. Still it's DM; they could run recordings of Paul Gardner reading the obituaries through an analog filter and I'd probably still buy it.

Should coaches be held responsible for horrific fouls? Paul Gardner feels so, and after Colorado's Brian Mullan's 10-game suspension for his vicious tackle on Seattle's Steve Zakuani, is the main topic of his column in Soccer America.

So now we know. Brian Mullan, for his horrific foul on Steve Zakuani, gets a 10-game suspension.

Paul Gardner of Soccer America writes of the artist that is Lionel Messi, and the comparisons between Messi and Mozart.
The most poetic reference in the article is how Messi describes what soccer means to him (see below in BOLD).

Watching Lionel Messi play soccer gives me an intense delight.

Humility is an important trait for anyone to possess, especially if you are a leader of men.
Coaches need to have a little of humility as an example for their players as how to show respect to themselves, each other and the game.
Paul Gardner writes of a show of humility in defeat by three American coaches, including Los Angeles Galaxy manager Bruce Arena - who is not known for being humble.

I was a little shocked in Paul Gardner's post-match analysis of the friendly between the United States and Argentina. Not because he bashed Bob Bradley and the US team, but because of how much he was off the plot in his analysis.
Gardner's points:
* Frustration in the US relying in their goalkeeper against the top world powers - my guess is that any team up against the likes of Messi and Di Maria would need to have solid goalkeeping to get a result.

In recent interviews to kick off the 2011 season, Commissioner Garber stated often that he is pressing for referees to make more consistent calls on fouls. He seems to gloss over the matter of improving refereeing to cover up the bigger issue that there is not enough scoring. His position seems to be that hard-line refereeing is needed in order for the offense to open up and for more goals to be scored.

When it comes to the approach that MLS Commissioner Don Garber is attempting to take with developing and encouraging attacking play within Major League Soccer, I do think that Paul Gardner and I are on the same page on this one.

You hear a lot in NBA basketball about 'the star players being protected' by the officials, and even recently, Orlando Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy has been pretty outspoken about the lack of protection and support for his star player Dwight Howard.

I had always felt that the mark of a great coach was his ability to behave professionally, both in victory and defeat. A level of humility- as well as respect for the game, their team and themselves- are key attributes of anyone who is in a position to be a leader of men.

Where I usually debate the rants of Paul Gardner, as well as quickly come to the defense of Sir Alex Ferguson, I am on the opposite side of the fence from my usually support (or lack of, in Gardner's case) in Ferguson's behavior this past week.

In Soccer America today, writer Paul Gardner argued that The FA Cup just ain't what it used to be. While I agree with some of his points, I believe the magic of the FA Cup still exists based on Leyton Orient's marvelous comeback against Arsenal on Sunday, and Crawley Town's heroic challenge against Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Only Paul Gardner could find something critical in a match that pits Barcelona and Arsenal against each other.
I thought the game was a brilliant display for long stretches of the match, and didn't feel that Arsene Wenger's tactics negated the aesthetics that both teams have the ability to create.

Paul Gardner traditionally spends most of his column bashing what's wrong with the English Premier League, but even he would have a tough time criticizing the attacking play from the EPL this past weekend - producing 41 goals in 8 matches.

Gardner writes of the awesome attacking onslaught that EPL fans were able to witness this past weekend.

NOTE: The following is absolutely not a response from US Soccer President Sunil Gulati to supporters of the North American Soccer League after the letter they sent him yesterday, but it could be. If Gulati were inclined to respond. And exceedingly sarcastic. Read the faux-response after the jump.

Every now and again Soccer America busts out the awesome and reminds you why you read it twenty five years ago. This morning was one of those times, and you really have to read the whole thing. It starts out with Omar Gonzalez's assessment of the US Men's National team practices:

"The sessions are very high-paced, and [Bradley] has been sending home messages -- movement off the ball, once you give it, you keep moving to find new angles," Gonzalez said.

Paul Gardner of Soccer America wrote an interesting article about the US National team's training camp leading up to their recent exhibition against Chile, and about what players should know prior to arriving to play with the national team.

Among the more curious revelations to surface during the lead up to the USA's recent game with Chile were those attributed to defender Omar Gonzalez.