The 2013-2014 Football Thread

[Kariya]

Cracking game. A draw just about right although Germany edged it just.

I see what people are saying about Ozil now. He has that tired, lethargic look after 60mins and always looks like he's about to cry if something goes wrong or doesn't quite come off.

Still a very good player and another good performance today.

Masterful subs by Low

 

[Bug-Creator]

World cup with no nada zero favourites sofar.....

 

[Jaffa Cake]

I quite enjoyed that game.

I do love a good World Cup.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

That was a real classic.

Germany drove me nuts, they created lots of chances but absolutely refused to shoot. They always looked to cross it, square it or lay it off. Both teams had some iffy defending. Ghana were everywhere and only sloppiness kept them from scoring a winner, especially that late offside call when they had a 3 v 2 counterattack.

On this evidence, USA really, really need to beat Portugal tomorrow. We can't expect Ghana to drop any points against Portugal. Personally, I am very nervous. This is one of those games where I can see Ronaldo exploding to life and hauling his team back single-handedly, like in the qualifier against Sweden.

This World Cup is absolutely made for Suarez. So much bad defending, and he is precisely the player to capitalize on it. Too bad the rest of his team seems a bit of a shambles.

 

[takao]

On this evidence, USA really, really need to beat Portugal tomorrow. We can't expect Ghana to drop any points against Portugal. Personally, I am very nervous. This is one of those games where I can see Ronaldo exploding to life and hauling his team back single-handedly, like in the qualifier against Sweden.

you heard it here first:

if the US manages a draw vs Portugal then the USA just has to get a draw vs Germany
which also would be enough for Germany

a possible very Gijon-esque situation especially with Löw and Klinsmann at the helm

 

[Kariya]

By the skin of their teeth. That said, Nigeria actually showed up unlike the opposition. And that defending would've made Mou smile.

Enyeama also looks a top keeper, wonder why he hasn't been picked up in Europe.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

Bosnia gave a good account of themselves, though we didn't see enough from Dzeko.

I see, Mr. Cake, that Hull have signed Livermore permanently. Looks like he and Huddlestone will remain the core of the midfield. Was Koren a regular starter? I seem to remember him coming off the bench a bit.

 

[Happybunny]

you heard it here first:

if the US manages a draw vs Portugal then the USA just has to get a draw vs Germany
which also would be enough for Germany

a possible very Gijon-esque situation especially with Löw and Klinsmann at the helm

OMG I hope not, for the sake of football. Just thinking about 1982 Gijon

 

[Cox Orange]

Cox Orange - Andy Carroll -

Isn't he the guy with the short cut full beard (where you can see the skin shining through) and his hair bound to a tiny knot?
I just looked up, what match I could have been referring to, but only found, that he was used in friendlies and as an under-21 player.
I thought I had seen him at a tournament, maybe the EuroCup, 2 years ago or was it maybe (though I think less so) that he played in team GB at Olympia?
Btw. in my memory the EuroCup 2012 was a tournment, where I thought England had gotten a little better (still lacking something, of course) in contrast to the years before.

(...)

I see what people are saying about Ozil now. He has that tired, lethargic look after 60mins and always looks like he's about to cry if something goes wrong or doesn't quite come off.

Still a very good player and another good performance today.

(...)

Yesterday, I was about to write "our teenage mutant ninja Turk(-le)" smiled. I also didn't see him looking like not-caring-suicide-candidate-like after 60minutes. For my eyes, it was the first match he even after the match looked somewhat better (mood-wise).

(...) Both teams had some iffy defending. (...)

After the Portugal match I was thinking, if playing with 4 CBs helps to not create situations like in 2010, where Balotelli, Lahm and Neuer were the only one in 30m area in front of the German box, but after yesterday...

 

[Lord Blackadder]

OMG I hope not, for the sake of football. Just thinking about 1982 Gijon

I think it more likely that the USA draw or lose to Portugal. If they do Ghana will be in a great position to advance because I just can't see us getting anything against Germany, despite their defensive frailties.

 

[Jaffa Cake]

I see, Mr. Cake, that Hull have signed Livermore permanently. Looks like he and Huddlestone will remain the core of the midfield. Was Koren a regular starter? I seem to remember him coming off the bench a bit.

No, he wasn't a regular starter last season, your Lordship - in fact, he's now a free agent after the club decided not to renew his expiring contract.

He'll be 34 in the autumn, and his on pitch powers have waned over the last year or two - he always had a bit of a tendency to ghost in and out of games, but was more often ghosted out than in last year. Still, he'd been an important player for us as we rebuilt after relegation to the Championship and it was something of a coup that we got him at all considering the state we were in.

I don't know where he'll end up, but hopefully he'll get a good club somewhere.

 

[SactoGuy18]

I think in the end (based on what I saw on the World Cup message thread), association football will become a lot more popular in the USA. I cite the following reasons:

1. The recent class-action lawsuits over head concussions and the illegal use of painkillers to keep what should be injured players on the field has scared a lot of mothers from allowing their sons to start participating in American football (participation in Pee-Wee and Little League football has fallen off a lot in recent years). And that could start the decline of American football.

2. Baseball is losing a lot of its allure because the game is too slow by American standards. A nine-inning game that used to take about 2.5 hours to complete now can stretch to nearly four hours!

3. Hockey is way too niche a sport to be popular in the USA. The fighting common in the sport doesn't help things, either.

4. Basketball is still popular, but poor quality of new American players coming into the league (no thanks to the AAU circuit and only one season of college basketball for many college players) will eventually start to hurt to sport. With the ban on hand-checking since 2004, foreign players who grew up playing basketball in European-style sports academies are now a lot more viable in the NBA with the right coaching (read: the San Antonio Spurs). In short, we could see basketball become a increasingly populated with non-American players, and that could hurt its popularity among core fans.

5. Young people are starting to gravitate towards non-traditional sports beyond baseball, basketball, American football and hockey like lacrosse and the extreme sports movement. Association football as such is starting to become more popular among Americans, especially when young people are quite interested in the EA Sports FIFA 2xxx series of video games (the most popular video game sports franchise in the world right now).

6. The increasing economic/political power of the Latino community--most of whom have parents who grew up loving association football--means association football could really take off in popularity over the next 20 years. You can see it in the increasingly-heated rivalry between the Mexican and US national teams during the CONCACAF qualifying rounds.

7. NBC Sports' three-year, US$250 million contract for the English Premier League means a lot more Americans are exposed to the perhaps the most popular association football league in the world. And that has elevated public awareness of the sport at its highest level in the USA. Interestingly, the very early start times for Premier League games (based on US time zones) has actually helped its popularity, since it generally does not interfere with the start times for the majority of American football games at the college and NFL level.

In short, these changes--plus the fact you can complete a game in around two hours on average--will make association football a sport that will make it more popular in the USA over the next 20 years.

 

[Kariya]

Fabregas and Del Bosque don't seem to be getting along.

 

[Tilpots]

Nice post sactoguy18. The snowballing popularity of soccer in the US is apparent more and more every year. It's so much more visible now than even a few years ago. People who once thought they were alone watching matches at home have begun to connect with others and are discovering networks of fans once unknown to them. It's fun to watch and be a small part of it.

As for the US's chances tonight, I like them. A lot. Klinsmann has this team fired up and believing in themselves. He's called out Portugal and Ronaldo in the national media telling them we're going to put them in their place. That Ghana win is looking better and better after yesterday's result. We have to play much better defense and complete so many more passes in the midfield, but I think the boys are up for the challenge. Bradley better bring his A game and Dempsey needs to maintain possession up front. Whomever gets the start alongside will be huge, too. Hoping it's Wondo and hoping Zusi starts too.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

No, he wasn't a regular starter last season, your Lordship - in fact, he's now a free agent after the club decided not to renew his expiring contract.

He should shoot his resume to Columbus. Cleveland has the biggest Slovenian population outside Slovenia, he'd feel right at home.

I think in the end (based on what I saw on the World Cup message thread), association football will become a lot more popular in the USA. I cite the following reasons:

I think we have finally reached the obvious tipping point. The sport is still behind others in terms of revenue and TV viewership - but it has a lot more growth potential than all other sports do. MLS is maturing and we have passed the point where we worried about the league failing like the NASL did. It's here to stay, and it will continue to grow. I can't wait till the next time we get to host a World Cup - it will be massive.

As for the US's chances tonight, I like them. A lot. Klinsmann has this team fired up and believing in themselves. He's called out Portugal and Ronaldo in the national media telling them we're going to put them in their place. That Ghana win is looking better and better after yesterday's result. We have to play much better defense and complete so many more passes in the midfield, but I think the boys are up for the challenge. Bradley better bring his A game and Dempsey needs to maintain possession up front. Whomever gets the start alongside will be huge, too. Hoping it's Wondo and hoping Zusi starts too.

I'm still pessimistic, or maybe just really nervous! If we fall behind I worry that we don't have enough offensive weapons to get back in the game.

Having said that, this is a winnable game. Portugal are overrated in the FIFA rankings, their best player may not be 100% fit and their defense is a bit makeshift. If USA goes out there and plays their best, we can win this match and seal a spot in the last 16. That would shut up all of the (reasonable) Klinsmann doubters.

Bradley looked off his game in the Ghana match. A lot depends on him today, and Dempsey needs to stay tough despite his smashed face, go out there and put in a top performance.

I still don't rate Wondo, but there could not possibly be a better time to prove me wrong. If he can do on the world stage what he does in MLS, I'll stop doubting him. Ditto Johannsson.

 

[oscillatewildly]

Cox Orange - Andy Carroll,

He is that guy and you did see him at Euro 2012; didn't play v France, scored v Sweden, subbed on v Ukraine and Italy. Injury/form plus maybe the style of play were against him for selection this time.

...

2. Baseball is losing a lot of its allure because the game is too slow by American standards. A nine-inning game that used to take about 2.5 hours to complete now can stretch to nearly four hours! Image

3. Hockey is way too niche a sport to be popular in the USA. The fighting common in the sport doesn't help things, either.

...

2. Cricket has shorter forms of the game, does baseball? Would it be considered?

3. Ice hockey - still, good video game.

Flicking around there was a US college station - pleasant surprise to see lacrosse. Native American, or is that bunkum?

---

USA and Germany fix; was wondering what would happen if Chile drew with Spain.

Dzeko offside .

Cheers,
OW

 

[SactoGuy18]

2. Cricket has shorter forms of the game, does baseball? Would it be considered?

3. Ice hockey - still, good video game.

The problem with cricket is that in the classic sense, a single match can last up to five days (for example the Test match series such as The Ashes between England and Australia). Small wonder why they invented the limited overs and Twenty20 styles to make the game a lot more palatable to modern fans.

A big problem in ice hockey in North America is that given the small size of the hockey rink, rough play is quite normal, and fights between players are just about daily occurrences in the NHL. If the NHL could adopt the rink size used by international rules, I think the game would be a lot more exciting to watch and there would be a lot less incentive for fighting--look at Olympic hockey.

But getting back on topic, one thing I do like about association football is the fact a full game (outside of a knockout stage game that requires a winning result) is only 90 minutes plus around 4 to 10 minutes of stoppage time per game. Because there are no timeouts, time is very much of the essence, and when a losing team tries for the "equalizer" things can get quite hectic on the field especially near the end of each half.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

Cox Orange - Andy Carroll,

He is that guy and you did see him at Euro 2012; didn't play v France, scored v Sweden, subbed on v Ukraine and Italy. Injury/form plus maybe the style of play were against him for selection this time.

It was a choice between him and Lambert, and Lambert was the flavor of the month. Certainly a more experienced player, albeit mostly at a lower level.

2. Cricket has shorter forms of the game, does baseball? Would it be considered?

In a word, no. Baseball has a lot of dead time in it that can't be eliminated. Batters walk slowly to the plate and take a few warm-up swings. Pitchers stand around between pitches. When a new pitcher comes on, he takes a few warm-up throws. Also, there is no such thing as a draw - play continues until someone wins. Plenty of timeouts. Commercial breaks between innings. Just last night a handful of games went into extra innings - and these can nearly double the length of a game in exceptional circumstances. The longest game ever went 33 innings and was over 8 hours long...

Oh, and Lacrosse was indeed invented by native Americans.

 

[Happybunny]

Again Belgium just edge a win, but so far they are a disappointment, I really thought they were going to set this tournament alight.

 

[Kariya]

The Americans are so so open at the back.

 

[mojolicious]

And the Portuguese are so ridiculously incapable of taking advantage of it.

EDIT: nearly added that the US could nick it, but now it appears they may well have.

 

[Kariya]

The Portuguese only have themselves to blame. Their passing has been shambolic. Try too hard to force it to Ronaldo who is clearly unfit.

EDIT: Bradley has to be one of the most precarious midfielders i've ever seen. Gave the ball away time and time again. Just keep it neat tidy!

Oh well, thats why Ronaldo is on the pitch, only needs one moment of magic.

And with that the group is now wide open. All 4 can qualify.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

I haven't felt this awful since Gerrard slipped against Chelsea. Sickening.

Portugal were there for the taking. USA made a couple big mistakes and were punished. With Bradley in a funk I don;t see us going through. We will surely be beaten by Germany, and all Ghana have need to crush our hopes is a 2-0 win against Portugal.

Howard and Jones were massive. Dempsey drifted out of the game a bit but came up big in a key moment.

Football, you break my heart.

 

[Kariya]

I want the Americans to qualify with Germany but i just don't quite see it playing out that way.

I don't see them getting past Germany who won't want to leave anything to chance.

Hence the best hope is for Ghana and Portugal to play out a draw which is unlikely since the African teams seem to have woken up from their initial slumber and Portugal continue to look abysmal.

 

[Cox Orange]

What a game! I was so thrilled... and yet in only 30sec. before the end disappointed. I was feeling for the US as, if I am myself trying to balance an egg to keep it from falling and was always just before letting it fall. (weird picture, I know. ).

In the first match and in this match's first half and beginning of the second half I was thinking, that Beckerman is not really that good, but in the end he seemed to really helped out with defense actions, shooting the ball far away, when needed or sometimes stretching his leg out and in the air right into a pass that looked to come through in the first place - I know, better is pass it to the next player and start a counter attack, but in some situation I was just happy to see the ball being as far away from the US half as possible.
Puh!

------------------
Did no one of you hear, that FIFA send one of the assistant referees home, that didn't give those two goals in the Mexico-Cameroon match? Big move by the FIFA, I would have never exspected. I read this 3 days ago or so, but was reminded about it tonight, when they mentioned it on TV.

-----------------
Tomorrow.
This will be so exiciting. NED-Chile or Aus-Spain? I think it is the first time I will, record one match and watch the other (other than switching). I guess NED-Chile will be a power play, but it might be interesting to see how Spain even looses against an aggressive and willing Australia.

And later the one with Brazil or the one with Mexico. I tend to believe Croatia-Mexico will be more interesting...