A Very happy 35th Birthday to Paul Scholes

While he looks like funnyman Simon Pegg, Scholes has been anything but a joke to United's opponents. With ridiculous passing that tears through defenses all the while making it look simple, a niche for shooting long range rockets into the back of the net, and a surly temper (75 bookings in the EPL, 24 in UEFA CL play), Paul Scholes has wrecked havoc on any pitch he steps on.

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took 3 unanswered goals to the Columbus Crew tonight and the Crew (the best team in the league all season) is out. I only have one thing to say...MAN, did I pick the right team to adopt or what!?

There's something about this win for RSL that screams inflation and deflation. On one hand RSL is on top of the world, probably thinking (as is best) that they can run the table and win the MLS Cup.

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As mentioned before, I'm skipping the high school season; in this case because I've got other regularly occuring activies that happen the same days as high school games - and frankly sometimes I just need a year away (see many many rants about high school soccer). But I am working games at the same sport-centered school I've been fortunate enough to work for the last two winters. Click to continue reading...

Real talk 1: if this is the intense face Nemanja has when walking onto the pitch holding an innocent child's little hand, can you even imagine his other faces? Ahem.

Real talk 2: the hottest robot to play in the Premier League is now the most booked defender in the Premier League.

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Real talk 1: if this is the intense face Nemanja has when walking onto the pitch holding an innocent child's little hand, can you even imagine his other faces? Ahem.

Real talk 2: the hottest robot to play in the Premier League is now the most booked defender in the Premier League.

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In the summer, RoM offered you the opportunity to win a copy of Philippe Auclair's excellent book about Eric Cantona, 'Cantona: The Rebel Who Would Be King', which was won by Ged Hanley.

The biography documents Cantona's life from his time in France to his departure from Manchester United, describing the glory, the mistakes, the combat and the inspiration.

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So in these last two World Cup qualifiers, USMNT fans were raving about Conor Casey (Saturday) and Jonathan Bornstein (Wednesday)?
Yeesh. Quite the odd couple.
And I'm not sure hero is the right word? The 2-2 draw arguably didn't mean much, but winning the group is cool. Though it would have been nice to beat Costa Rica as a tribute to Charlie Davies, not scramble to salvage a point at home. Click to continue reading...

Wayne Rooney says that he has worked to improve his grip on his temper so that he can avoid missing matches because of suspension.

Rooney has picked up two yellow cards for United so far this season, but hasn't been booked in any of the eight World Cup qualifying games for England.

"There is a balance that you need to get right because if you go over the top, you will miss a lot of games through suspension," said Rooney.

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I am nearly over hearing that Brisbane decided to loose Tiatto for a week and Miller for 2 in retaliation for Kruse sending some text messages to them.
Gee how weak the Roar's state must be if someone like Kruse can put them off their game so easily?
Bit of a shame really.
A man in his mid/late 30s punching a 20 year old because they said things that they don't like isn't the way to get parents to take their kids to an expensive soccer match. Click to continue reading...

Why is everything so dodgy?
We were considering selling certain types of market information on E-Bay although the legalities are probably too daunting.
Having experienced the platform for the first time over this past week, we are surprised by the potential for market abuse in any blind auction bidding process on the site. Click to continue reading...

Jack Wilshere and Carlos Vela have done it again. And is anyone surprised? Wilshere controlled the match and was, by far, the best player on the pitch in last night's 2-nil victory over joint-leaders of the Championship, West Bromwich Albion, in the third round of the Carling Cup. The youngsters' Carling Cup campaign opened at the Emirates and though not sold out, there was a sizeable crowd there as always eagerly anticipating a look at the Arsenal starlets.

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Despite the Premier League's reputation for being the most exciting league in the world matches like Sunday's Manchester derby don't come around too often.
I am supporter of neither team but I couldn't help but be caught up in the breathless drama of it all. Local tussles such as this can often degenerate into passionate but scrappy affairs, with the fear of defeating leading to a drab draw. Click to continue reading...

When confronted with the accusation that she'd threatened to kill the line judge, echoing John McEnroe's mantra of complaint, Serena Williams looked at the officials and asked "Are you serious?"
Williams had lost her cool, that much is indisputable. This happens to many of the best athletes when things aren't going as they'd hoped and planned. Click to continue reading...

Phew, wow, hurray! A reminder that Roy knows what he's doing and that last season's magic didn't get lost over the summer. Today was classic Hodgson-era Fulham, solid, strong, hard-working and occasionally flat out excellent. A win to put smiles on faces.

The game started slowly, with some wonderful centre-back/centre-forward duels but few chances.

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By TRAVIS CLARK

There's plenty at stake tomorrow in terms of World Cup qualifying. Aside from the ever-important match for the U.S. down in Port of Spain, a quick look around the world reveals how desperate nations are as qualification nears conclusion.

Perhaps standing out above the rest is England's chance to seal qualification against Croatia.

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By TRAVIS CLARK

There's plenty at stake tomorrow in terms of World Cup qualifying. Aside from the ever-important match for the U.S. down in Port of Spain, a quick look around the world reveals how desperate nations are as qualification nears conclusion.

Perhaps standing out above the rest is England's chance to seal qualification against Croatia.

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Arctic Monkeys, The Temper Trap, Ian Brown, Faith No More, Crystal Castles, The Duke Spirit, Jamie T, Imperial Teen, Friendly Fires, The Horrors and Barry White. Topics include Arsene Wenger, Arsenal vs Man United, West Ham Millwall trouble, Super Clasico and Ronaldo's Tan and JeanClaude. http://www.

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Is this Rooney's year? As of today Wayne Rooney has 4 goals in 4 league games for his club, and 10 goals for 9 games including cup play and internatioanl games. Â That's a scoring rate one would not expect Rooney to maintain, historically speaking. If you have read the football pundits about Wayne Rooney in any of the last several years, it will have been hard to avoid glowing characterisations of his football. Click to continue reading...

It all started when Marcello Lippi said he thought Juventus would win Serie A this season. That was the spark that ignited Jose Mourinho's insatiable temper and has led to begin an all-out attack on Lippi that would make your dad cry. Even though Lippi was quick to apologize and say it was just his opinion, mind you, Jose has unloaded with some daggers:

Lippi passed judgment on television the other night," slammed Mourinho.

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It's been a slow process, but I am finally coming to terms with the events that will unfold next Wednesday. This has nothing to do with what will happen at the Azteca, mind you.
The problem is that I won't see it. Not one minute. I'll be on plane heading out to Oakland to work the Cowboys' first pre-season game. Click to continue reading...

One major challenge for any successful coach is to be able to manage the expectations surrounding their team, be it the players within the locker room or by supporters or the media outside the locker room.
In an effort to temper the hysteria that followed the Mexican national team after their 5-0 defeat over the US in the CONCACAF Gold Cup Final, Carlos Rodriguez of the AP reports how head coach Javier Aguirre has come out to contain the renewed country-wide enthusiasm in El Tri. Click to continue reading...

The match between LA Galaxy and Milan was always, in view of the recent goings-on between David Beckham and the Italian giants, going to be something of a powder keg, and the global media reaction to the events at the decidedly unromantically named Home Depot Center has said a lot about how Beckham has managed to control the public perception of him.

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Kaka has sought to temper any expectations that the big-money signings of himself and Cristiano Ronaldo this summer will instantly result in Real Madrid becoming an unbeatable side.

Madrid have undergone a huge overhaul after ending last season empty-handed, and following the return of Florentino Perez to the presidency the club have invested almost £200million on four new players, with the prospect of more to come.

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Faustino Hernan Asprilla Hinestroza, the former Colombian striker, has called time on his soccer career. He will be remembered by many as an undeniably talented soccer star with an unpredictable temper. He is nicknamed 'The Octopus' in his country for his flexible and fluid style. To the people in England and Italy, he was 'Tino', or '2 goal Tino', as his goals usually came in twos. Click to continue reading...

This is a tremendous entry from Dave Clark of Better Soccer Coaching - read the entry below, as well as a link to where you can see the video of a comedian's imitation of Fabio Capello's sideline antics.
It was funny this weekend watching the antics of the coaches. It started with Fabio Capello's fury in the first 40 minutes of the World Cup qualifier between Kazakhstan and England. Click to continue reading...

The biggest, most anticipated game on the calendar was played today, featuring a good portion of the game's greatest stars on one stage, and two of the world's most famous and beloved teams facing off for the ultimate prize.
So, let's talk about WPS. Coupla weeks ago, Grahame Jones of the LA Times was, I think, the first mainstream soccer writer in the country to point out that Marta has a temper. Click to continue reading...

Chivas USA will be without Paulo Nagamura tonight. Nagamura picked up a red card against the Galaxy a week ago and will be absent.
Nagamura will leave a gaping hole in the middle of the field. Nagamura's one of Chivas' best and most important players, both with his ability and leadership. I thought he got a bit carried away last week and that temper got the better of him as he kept yapping at the referee and that probably led to a quick yellow on his first booking. Click to continue reading...

Our midfield ace Xavi Hernandez launched his auto-biography, called "My Life is Barca", at Camp Nou yesterday. His family and representatives of the club, including president Joan Laporta, all attended the event.
Xavi explained that he had doubts about writing the book at first, but that everyone convinced him to go through with it in the end. Click to continue reading...

Galaxy thug midfielder Dema Kovalenko allowed his temper to get the best of him (yet again) getting a straight red card for an unnecessary midfield studs up challenge on Colorado's Mehdi Ballouchy in the 59th minute.

It was the 55th red card of his career (or at least felt like it); you'll recall Kovalenko got a yellow in the home opener when he caused the penalty that led to United's opening goal.

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First, the brutally honest stuff - I'd been suffering from a cold and hadn't been to the gym in more than a week, and I could tell. I'm not sure if it affected my decision making, but it did affect how fast and how well I ran. But it's winter - you deal with it. Overall, I wasn't disappointed by my performance - I know I could have ran better, but I felt good about the game I called. Click to continue reading...

With J Hutcherson -- Here's the problem with those trying to temper whatever enthusiasm anyone might have following the USA's 3-0 win over Trinidad Tobago on Wednesday. Most of us get that away games are still an issue, along with squad selection, substitution polices, and basic tactics. What some of us also get is there aren't a lot of choices. Click to continue reading...

Fortunately it didn't end up with cleat impressions on someone's chest, but at the 5:50 mark hot head Wayne's temper flared yet again, getting a little too excited as he first kicked out and then fired a ball off the Gamba Osaka player when simply moving the ball would do. Yellow card for Wayne, and [. Click to continue reading...

Fortunately it didn't end up with cleat impressions on someone's chest, but at the 5:50 mark hot head Wayne's temper flared yet again, getting a little too excited as he first kicked out and then fired a ball off the Gamba Osaka player when simply moving the ball would do. Yellow card for Wayne, and [. Click to continue reading...

Danny Guthrie was given a red card in the closing stages of Hull's 2-1 victory on Saturday, when he seemed to lose his temper and hacked down Craig Fagan, with the ball nowhere near. Craig Fagan - broken tibia The terrible news this morning is that it seems the tackle has broken Fagan's leg, and Danny could [. Click to continue reading...

Kevin Keegan may have to temper romance with pragmatism as safety remains the key on Tyneside.
Newcastle
Pompey are muscular, obstinate and experienced enough to compete for the Premier League's 'best of the rest' tag. Portsmouth Click to continue reading...