The [Horribly Unpopular] Soccer Thread

So did ESPN have some kind of contract issues with FOX? ESPN3 had about every soccer game available last year or the year before and I would wake up at like 5am to watch AC Milan play live.. now i just get updates on my phone :-/

hatedheretic said:

So did ESPN have some kind of contract issues with FOX? ESPN3 had about every soccer game available last year or the year before and I would wake up at like 5am to watch AC Milan play live.. now i just get updates on my phone :-/

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Not an issue between ESPN and Fox, its the fact that Fox got outbid for the rights to Serie A, La Liga, Ligue 1, and the Champhionship by beIN sports last year.

Did a little reading last night on what to expect with NBC's coverage of the EPL next season.
I'll miss eating breakfast on saturday mornings with Ian & Macca, but I'm very excited about what NBC has planned.

Grannyknot said:

Did a little reading last night on what to expect with NBC's coverage of the EPL next season.
I'll miss eating breakfast on saturday mornings with Ian & Macca, but I'm very excited about what NBC has planned.

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Its hard not to be. Every single game to be live on TV? Its quite a plan they have.

hopstupid said:

I think Fellaini is going to Chelsea to shore up their midget midfield. No way in hell is Everton making Champions league.

Will Chelsea give fat frank a new contract?

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A couple of sides could be looking at Q-Tip (Fellaini) He's more of an attacking mid so not sure f clubs would look to him as a defense minded addition. I think Moyes's decision will have more impact on Fellaini moving more than anything.

Scuttlebutt is that Frank is headed to the Galaxy. Chelsea stated they wouldn't renew his contract a couple weeks ago. Of coarse they can always reverse that and who knows what the new manager will say or have input on that situation.

My personal take is that he should follow Carragher and hang it up. He's not been in form and hasn't really been up to par this season. He's had a couple moments of brilliance among a sea of blah.

Schlimly said:

My personal take is that he should follow Carragher and hang it up. He's not been in form and hasn't really been up to par this season. He's had a couple moments of brilliance among a sea of blah.

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Definately not worth the wages he's currently on, but I wouldn't say he's had a bad season by any means.

That statement did come out pretty harsh as I re-read it, but I still say his season hasn't been what it could be. Not bad, not good just blah with shiny spots here and there.

Could be atmosphere as well. The owner switching managers, morale on the squad could all be factors I have no idea about.

I know you're all waiting with anticipation for my update on the Chicago Fire's season to date. The most succinct summary is the goals scored to games played ratio, which is 5:6

Ugh.

Pappers_ said:

I know you're all waiting with anticipation for my update on the Chicago Fire's season to date. The most succinct summary is the goals scored to games played ratio, which is 5:6

Ugh.

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Yeah dude, the Fire are having a rough start. But then again, up until SKC topped the East last night the standings have been looking very out of the ordinary. Anybody who called Montreal being a strong playoff contender at the beginning of the season looks like a soccer guru right now.

Stupid Timbers always give up late goals. Should have come away with three points...instead only one

Reno_eNVy said:

Yeah dude, the Fire are having a rough start. But then again, up until SKC topped the East last night the standings have been looking very out of the ordinary. Anybody who called Montreal being a strong playoff contender at the beginning of the season looks like a soccer guru right now.

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Better weekend - hopefully this is the turn around needed by the team.

No comments on Suarez? Pretty amazing stuff. The Liverpool fans seem to tolerate anything this man does - even if it tarnishes the reputation of the team.

FlyDoctor said:

No comments on Suarez? Pretty amazing stuff. The Liverpool fans seem to tolerate anything this man does - even if it tarnishes the reputation of the team.

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Inexcusable in anyway shape or form. I mean who f***** bites someone?

I know the club fined him, and he should be banned just like the last time he did (which raises a whole other topic).

He should be done for the season and he’ll lose any chance for Player of the year. Now what happens next season that’s up to the club and owners if they want to keep him, I don’t know. He can be brilliant when he just plays.

That’s coming from a lifelong LFC supporter.

Schlimly, whats your opinion on a sale of Suarez?
All the media keep saying, "they have to retain Suarez at any cost", but I'm thinking, if they can get 35 or 40 million pounds for him, why not sell him?

Sure he's scored a ton of goals this season, but its not like he's put them in a position to play in a european competition... So whats the point of keeping him around?? Sturridge has been good, let him play up there, and use the funds from the sale of Suarez & Carroll to strengthen elsewhere.

Just my opinion, although, i've never understood LFC's transfer policies.

Liverpool is screwed because of some bad buys. Wasted too much money on Carroll and Downing and Suarez is a disctraction.

Cut Suarez stick Sturridge up top and try to find some crafty wingers and a support striker.

Winning the league with a hat trick from RvP..... I'm going to go crawl under a rock now....

aygov said:

Winning the league with a hat trick from RvP..... I'm going to go crawl under a rock now....

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we definately could have used a few of those goals this year.
horrible performance saturday v. fulham. hard to watch.
aaron ramsey makes me want to pull my hair out sometimes.

Before Sunday I would have said there is no way Rodgers or the owners would sell him off. He was a fairly cheap buy, he just signed a four year extension, and he was the most productive player this season.
Now after Sunday…. If AC, Inter, PSG, or someone with that kind of cash came knocking I don’t think they would reject them out of hand, but not closing the deal in the end.

The question is this thought. Who would want to pay 30/40 mil for a #10 that has brilliant skill, but continues to cause incidents that the club has to pay for and you lose him for large numbers of games due to the bans? His last bite cost him 8.

Hoppy has the right idea though; if I could I’d unload Suarez, Carroll, Downing, and Assaidi to clear wages and get some cash. Then go looking for one solid attacking player either mid or striker and bring up Sterling and Henderson into a more active role. Then with what I had left go find two big strong defenders to swap in and out for Skrtel and Agger get some competition for those slots.



Of coarse that's all my own BS, and LFC usually makes the wrong decision

Grannyknot said:

we definately could have used a few of those goals this year.
horrible performance saturday v. fulham. hard to watch.
aaron ramsey makes me want to pull my hair out sometimes.

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Yep, queue the summer of much anticipation where we potter around aimlessly until all the worthwhile buys are off the market and then we have to rush to get someone in who doesn't quite fit what we need....

Also, apparently Usmanov is Britian's wealthiest person.... we got the wrong millionaire in as well.

aygov said:

Yep, queue the summer of much anticipation where we potter around aimlessly until all the worthwhile buys are off the market and then we have to rush to get someone in who doesn't quite fit what we need....

Also, apparently Usmanov is Britian's wealthiest person.... we got the wrong millionaire in as well.

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To tell you the truth, I'd rather be pottering around aimlessly than selling off our 2 best players. I can't think of a summer that we didn't sell one if not two of our best players since the early 2000s.

After they posted that big profit windfall a few months ago, the owner and wenger came out and said they'll be throwing down 70million. Lets just hope its not on a bunch of Chamakhs, Arshavins, & Gervinhos.

aygov said:

Winning the league with a hat trick from RvP..... I'm going to go crawl under a rock now....

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It's basically a 3 horse race for player of the year.

RVP
Suarez
Bale

No way Suarez gets it considering how Liverpool isn't going to Europe and he just bit someone.

I think it sshould be Bale.

aygov said:

Winning the league with a hat trick from RvP..... I'm going to go crawl under a rock now....

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On the upside they won't be clinching it at the Emirates this Sunday. That would have been terrible.

Grannyknot said:

To tell you the truth, I'd rather be pottering around aimlessly than selling off our 2 best players. I can't think of a summer that we didn't sell one if not two of our best players since the early 2000s.

After they posted that big profit windfall a few months ago, the owner and wenger came out and said they'll be throwing down 70million. Lets just hope its not on a bunch of Chamakhs, Arshavins, & Gervinhos.

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Fortunately we don't seem to have anyone going out of contract that's in demand that I can think of. We should be safe for another season...

As far as splashing 70 million... I'll believe it when I see it. We've supposedly had some huge war chest for the last 2 seasons but did we spend that? Nope.... I think Wenger is like that rich guy that goes to the Mercedes dealer and ends up not buying a car because he thinks the mark up on the interior is too high. He could easily afford to buy 6 of these cars, but he won't because of what he perceives they're worth. Instead he rides his bicycle back home and tries again another day.

Rubes said:

On the upside they won't be clinching it at the Emirates this Sunday. That would have been terrible.

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Thank god for that. Of course we will have to give them the guard of honor when they come out of the tunnel, but I'd much prefer that to them celebrating at The Emirates.

Barca got thumped today 4-0 but 2 shouldn't of even counted

hopstupid said:

Barca got thumped today 4-0 but 2 shouldn't of even counted

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And there were 2 penalties that should have been called against Barca for handballs that weren't.

Also I only saw one that was questionable (though I admit I may have missed an offsides) and that was on the Muller pick, but to me that's good futball. That's on Alba's teammates for not being there to pickup Robben. And while it was close, Muller had both feet down before Alba hit him. If I'm the ref I'd have let play continue as well, but then again I love German/English styles of fastpaced hard nosed soccer.

Bayern was far and away the better squad. More chances, and because of that, more goals.

hoppyhoppyhippo said:

And there were 2 penalties that should have been called against Barca for handballs that weren't.

Also I only saw one that was questionable (though I admit I may have missed an offsides) and that was on the Muller pick, but to me that's good futball. That's on Alba's teammates for not being there to pickup Robben. And while it was close, Muller had both feet down before Alba hit him. If I'm the ref I'd have let play continue as well, but then again I love German/English styles of fastpaced hard nosed soccer.

Bayern was far and away the better squad. More chances, and because of that, more goals.

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Yeah, from the angles I saw, it certainly appeared that Gomez was offside on the second goal. That said, Bayern did thoroughly outplay Barca, and I agree on at least one handball that should that I thought should have been called (don't recall a second, but I also wasn't paying 100% attention the entire game). The only time I remember where it looked like Barca really had a chance at goal was on the free kick where Bartra was clear through on goal and then promptly demonstrated why he's a defender.

BrewKnurd said:

Yeah, from the angles I saw, it certainly appeared that Gomez was offside on the second goal. That said, Bayern did thoroughly outplay Barca, and I agree on at least one handball that should that I thought should have been called (don't recall a second, but I also wasn't paying 100% attention the entire game). The only time I remember where it looked like Barca really had a chance at goal was on the free kick where Bartra was clear through on goal and then promptly demonstrated why he's a defender.

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I couldn't tell with Gomez because TBH only way to truly tell if someone is offsides is to be level with him. Cameras can lie based on their angles.

But the first handball was on Pique when I think it was Lahm fired one on net it just hit Pique's arm which is why it didn't look like a normal deflection. Second was the bad one which was the Alba one. That was just bad, far bigger miss than Muller's pick or whether Gomez was a hair offsides or not. And with Gomez it's hard to tell cause the guy you have to watch is Alves, not Pique. Also Alves got away with a pull down on Ribery but to me that's like the Muller pick, just part of the game.

In the end I think you're left with 2 things. 1 both Muller goals were things of beauty and he was an inch from having his hattrick (got to ggive Valdez props for beating Muller one on one) 2 Barca are a bunch of babies. They got beat by a team who played through the whistle like your'e supposed to. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw defenders giving up on the Ribery goal cause they thought a foul was being called. If I was Valdez I would have smacked someone. Alba throwing the ball in Robben's face was classless BS, I hope someone sends him a message next time around. Maybe Muller's can throw a hard pick at him that leaves Alba in a real heap, not a looking for a card heap.

hoppyhoppyhippo said:

They got beat by a team who played through the whistle like your'e supposed to. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw defenders giving up on the Ribery goal cause they thought a foul was being called. If I was Valdez I would have smacked someone.

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ABSOLUTELY. I was quite happy to watch them pay for the "throw my hand up in the air and stop playing" strategy.

hoppyhoppyhippo said:

And there were 2 penalties that should have been called against Barca for handballs that weren't.

Also I only saw one that was questionable (though I admit I may have missed an offsides) and that was on the Muller pick, but to me that's good futball. That's on Alba's teammates for not being there to pickup Robben. And while it was close, Muller had both feet down before Alba hit him. If I'm the ref I'd have let play continue as well, but then again I love German/English styles of fastpaced hard nosed soccer.

Bayern was far and away the better squad. More chances, and because of that, more goals.

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you did miss it


it was offsides

Well the 2 arguably 3 if you're gonna call every borderline call missed penalties more than make up for 2 questionable goals.

And I still dont' know for sure if Gomez was offsides. I've watched the replay over and over again. And it's really hard to tell, I think Alves may have played him on, and when in doubt, you are supposed to give the advantage to the attacking team.

hoppyhoppyhippo said:

Well the 2 arguably 3 if you're gonna call every borderline call missed penalties more than make up for 2 questionable goals.

And I still dont' know for sure if Gomez was offsides. I've watched the replay over and over again. And it's really hard to tell, I think Alves may have played him on, and when in doubt, you are supposed to give the advantage to the attacking team.

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what replays are you watching?

Various ones from Youtube or 101 goals. I watched a gif of the goal over and over again and didn't see it as 100% offsides.



I just can't 100% say for sure he's offsides. I'll gladly let the assistant refs judgement go over mine. Maybe his right foot was offsides but it's too hard for me to tell

BTW was Pique involved in every goal? Like could he have stopped all of them? I guess not the Robben one so much but certainly the Muller ones.

hoppyhoppyhippo said:

Various ones from Youtube or 101 goals. I watched a gif of the goal over and over again and didn't see it as 100% offsides.

I just can't 100% say for sure he's offsides. I'll gladly let the assistant refs judgement go over mine. Maybe his right foot was offsides but it's too hard for me to tell

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They showed a replay during the game that i felt made it pretty clear he was offside. It was from a much better angle then that. Not quite square, but quite close.

Suarez got a ten game ban.

Hopefully Man City can get him on the cheap

Suarez + tevez + aguero = thing of beauty going forward

Who on this earth would be stupid enough to give City anything for cheap? The club basically prints its own money.... Of course we are talking about Liverpool here.

I hope FFP reams City to the point they wind up in non-league football.

HAHAHAHA, Real getting rinsed by BvB 4-1. Lewandowski with FOUR goals! All German final?

I would have never thought Dortmund could hammer Madrid like that.
The Goetze announcement apparently didn't phase them one bit.
I'd love to see them win it all. I have a ton of respect for how BvB handles their finances every year.

I'd also love to see Lewandowski in a red emirates shirt next year.

I am shocked - though given that the top German team wiped the floor with the top Spanish team, I suppose the same should occur with the number 2's

Kind of crappy though...if Real Madrid win 1-0 at home, they go through.