Some News for Tue Aug 31, 2010
STARTERS
In less than a week AC Milan has signed two very talented misfits - Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Robinho. Wow. Add them to Ronaldinho & Pato and you have a lot of goals pouring into the oppositions net.
BOB BRADLEY WATCH
Here is today's press conference announcing Bradley's new contract. You can listen to it, or read it transcribed.
dN
With Bradley now officially at the helm for Team USA, what are the initial reactions from our punditry friends:
Kyle McCarthy of Goal.com
Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated
Frank Dell'Apa of the Boston Globe
Paul Kennedy of Soccer America
Ives Galarcep of Soccer by Ives
Steven Goff of the Washington Post
Martin Rogers of Yahoo
Superliga 2010
Final Match & Score:
-Wed Sep 1
New England Revolution v Monarcas Morelia
Venue: Gillette Stadium - Foxborough MA
US OPEN CUP
Stay on top of the Open Cup.
dN
Semifinal Matches & Scores:
-Wed Sep 1
Seattle Sounders FC v Chivas USA
Venue: Starfire Sports Complex - Tukwila WA
DC United v Columbus Crew
Venue: RFK Stadium - Washington DC
PODCASTS/VIDEOCASTS
The boys of Stjarnan who brought us the brilliant "deep sea fishing" goal celebration, now take us on a trip to the shitter. Great videos!
DO YOU REALIZE
I have waited until I've seen the first 3 episodes of Fox Soccer Channel's new show Soccer Talk Live starring Kyle Martino to comment. And I don't have to use a lot of words to describe what I think of the show - It really stinks.
I have no idea who the show is directed at. Me and other hardcores? I hope not, because if they are shooting for me to watch then they have missed so badly that they are truly clueless about what hardcores might want. Maybe they are going for the teen market. Okay. But I can't imagine they are gonna check this out either. And if its for lite-soccer fans who dig celebrity, then they have to get a real production to pull that off.
Here are my real issues with the show:
-Kyle Martino is decent when used as a commentator on a live game broadcast. But he is not nearly quick enough on his feet to carry an off the cuff, loosely scripted monologue or interview.
-The sidekick. Who is that dude?? Wow. He is not camera friendly. Slouchy, slurry, and not witty enough. And again, who is the guy? Regular FSC guy Keith Costigan was on the 3rd episode, and was at least more comfortable in front of a camera.
-The babes. Please, stop with the lame ass pandering.
-The guests. Yeah. OK. The guy from the soccer documentary Pelada, Luke, could have been a great guest, but Martino had no questions to ask him. And the clip they showed was so vague that someone who was not already familiar with the movie would have been confused as to what it was about. Cobi Jones appearance on Week 1 was obviously last minute, and no topic was brought up. Week 2 guest was Landon Donovan, and there was a little relevancy to that one. But both guys are from the LA Galaxy so it was pretty easy to land them.
-The celebrities. Please. Not even remotely interesting. And who are they anyway?
-Finally, they show some highlights and talk a little soccer, but you would be hard pressed to know there were any other leagues on the entire planet other than the English Premiership. FSC's ignoring of other things they broadcast like, hello, Serie A, is insulting to the viewer. Hell, you would barely know that MLS even existed watching this show.
I am not offering any proper ideas on how they can make it better, but its not that tough. Or maybe for some production teams it is. Remember I have met Nick Webster and his gang, and whoa....
I won't be watching again, and will be shocked if two things happen - 1, the show lasts more than a few more episodes, and 2, if someone says to me down the road, "You really gotta see this show, they pulled it together and its become very good."
HMMMMM, VERY INTERESTING
Noticed this one on the European transfer list today:
-Adam Clayton – Manchester City to Leeds, undisclosed
I had no idea the bass player from U2 was a football man. I would figure that his age would be a factor, but skill is skill.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
Herculez Gomez got his big award last night for being the co-leading goal scorer in the Mexican Primera last spring. This shot is from his very own Twitter feed.
OOF
The Kansas City Star reports that Wizards head coach Peter Vermes was arrested last week for Driving Under the Influence. Not good at all.
TWITTERVERSE/FACEBOOKING
@SoccerByIves: "Major change to CONCACAF qualifying will be in final rd. 2 groups of 8 instead of Hex. Group winners qualify, 2nd place teams play off."
MLS WEEK 23
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Sep 4
Philadelphia Union v Kansas City Wizards - 2:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: PPL Park - Chester PA
Chicago Fire SC v Los Angeles Galaxy - 3:00pm Central on Telefutura
Venue: Toyota Park - Bridgeview IL
New England Revolution v Seattle Sounders FC - 6:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Gillette Stadium - Foxborough MA
DC United v Columbus Crew - 6:30pm Central on FSC
Venue: RFK Stadium - Washington DC
FC Dallas v Toronto FC - 7:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Pizza Hut Park - Frisco TX
Colorado Rapids v CD Chivas USA - 8:00pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Dick's Sporting Goods Park - Commerce City CO
Real Salt Lake v New York Red Bulls - 8:00pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Rio Tinto Stadium - Sandy UT
-Sun Sep 5
Houston Dynamo v San Jose Earthquakes - 7:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Robertson Stadium - Houston TX
MLS TEAM & PLAYER NEWS
Shawn Mitchell of the Columbus Dispatch tells us about hi-jinks at Crew training involving stealing Guille's car!
dN
Sebastian Salazar of CSNWashington checks in from the latest DC United practice session.
MLS PLAYER MOVEMENT
Kansas City has signed their first academy player to a senior contract today - 17 year old goalkeeper Jon Kempin.
-The team has provided a video clip of Kempin in action.
dN
Philadelphia has signed former USA U20 right fullback Sheanon Williams.
MLS INJURY REPORT
Shawn Mitchell of the Columbus Dispatch with a Crew injury update.
MLS YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
LE Eisenmenger of the Examiner fills us in on the league's first ever residential academy Grande Sports World, run by Real Salt Lake in the Phoenix AZ area. Wow.
-Former USA, international and MLS veteran Greg Vanney is the director of this Academy. A further Q & A with Vanney.
-A few photos from the academy.
MLS EXHIBITIONS
Match & Score:
-Wed Sep 1
Philadelphia Union v Guadalajara (Mexico)
Venue: PPL Park - Chester PA
USL-2 NEWS
A couple of former long time D2 stalwarts Charleston Battery and Richmond Kickers faced off in the USL-2 championship game on Saturday with Charleston winning 2-1. Huge congrats to them.
USA U-20
Yanks Abroad talks to right fullback Emilio Orozco who is headed with the team to Peru this week.
AMERICANS IN EUROPE
The Vancouver Sun talks to Cody Arnoux who got a shot, but failed, at Everton, and is now going after a spot on the Whitecaps MLS roster for next season when they join the league. (from last week)
ENGLAND
Simon Kuper of the Financial Times wonders why Arsenal just can't seem to get the whole goalkeeper thing right.
dN
Asamoah Gyan, the Ghanaian who smoked the USA in the World Cup round of 16, has signed with Sunderland in England.
dN
Here is England's roster for upcoming Euro qualifiers against Bulgaria (home Fri Sep 3) and Switzerland (away Sep ):
G:
Scott Carson - West Brom
Ben Foster - Birmingham
Joe Hart - Manchester City
D:
Gary Cahill - Bolton
Ashley Cole - Chelsea
Michael Dawson - Tottenaham
Kieran Gibbs - Arsenal
Phil Jagielka - Everton
Glen Johnson - Liverpool
Joleon Lescott - Manchester City
Matthew Upson - West Ham
M:
Gareth Barry - Manchester City
Michael Carrick - Manchester United
Steven Gerrard - Liverpool
Adam Johnson - Manchester City
James Milner - Manchester City
Theo Walcott - Arsenal
Shaun Wright-Phillips - Manchester City
Ashley Young - Aston Villa
F:
Darren Bent - Sunderland
Carlton Cole - West Ham
Peter Crouch - Tottenaham
Jermain Defoe - Tottenaham
Wayne Rooney - Manchester United
GERMANY
Stuttgart has signed Mauro Camoranesi from Juventus.
ITALY
Milan has cleared more room on their roster and financially by selling striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar to Schalke.
dN
This leaves the door wide open for Robinho to join the ever growing cast of misfit forward at Milan.
dN
Phil Minshull of the BBC sees the job Rafa Benitez has at Inter to be nearly impossible to succeed in.
BRAZIL 2014 WORLD CUP
Tim Vickery of the BBC on Brazil's tough road ahead in preparing for the World Cup. Things are not looking good at all.
GRATUITOUS DIEGO FORLAN PHOTO
The good folks at the Houston Chronicle suggested that maybe the Dynamo should try to sign a guy like Diego. So they put him in the orange shirt. What do you think?
In less than a week AC Milan has signed two very talented misfits - Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Robinho. Wow. Add them to Ronaldinho & Pato and you have a lot of goals pouring into the oppositions net.
BOB BRADLEY WATCH
Here is today's press conference announcing Bradley's new contract. You can listen to it, or read it transcribed.
dN
With Bradley now officially at the helm for Team USA, what are the initial reactions from our punditry friends:
Kyle McCarthy of Goal.com
Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated
Frank Dell'Apa of the Boston Globe
Paul Kennedy of Soccer America
Ives Galarcep of Soccer by Ives
Steven Goff of the Washington Post
Martin Rogers of Yahoo
Superliga 2010
Final Match & Score:
-Wed Sep 1
New England Revolution v Monarcas Morelia
Venue: Gillette Stadium - Foxborough MA
US OPEN CUP
Stay on top of the Open Cup.
dN
Semifinal Matches & Scores:
-Wed Sep 1
Seattle Sounders FC v Chivas USA
Venue: Starfire Sports Complex - Tukwila WA
DC United v Columbus Crew
Venue: RFK Stadium - Washington DC
PODCASTS/VIDEOCASTS
The boys of Stjarnan who brought us the brilliant "deep sea fishing" goal celebration, now take us on a trip to the shitter. Great videos!
DO YOU REALIZE
I have waited until I've seen the first 3 episodes of Fox Soccer Channel's new show Soccer Talk Live starring Kyle Martino to comment. And I don't have to use a lot of words to describe what I think of the show - It really stinks.
I have no idea who the show is directed at. Me and other hardcores? I hope not, because if they are shooting for me to watch then they have missed so badly that they are truly clueless about what hardcores might want. Maybe they are going for the teen market. Okay. But I can't imagine they are gonna check this out either. And if its for lite-soccer fans who dig celebrity, then they have to get a real production to pull that off.
Here are my real issues with the show:
-Kyle Martino is decent when used as a commentator on a live game broadcast. But he is not nearly quick enough on his feet to carry an off the cuff, loosely scripted monologue or interview.
-The sidekick. Who is that dude?? Wow. He is not camera friendly. Slouchy, slurry, and not witty enough. And again, who is the guy? Regular FSC guy Keith Costigan was on the 3rd episode, and was at least more comfortable in front of a camera.
-The babes. Please, stop with the lame ass pandering.
-The guests. Yeah. OK. The guy from the soccer documentary Pelada, Luke, could have been a great guest, but Martino had no questions to ask him. And the clip they showed was so vague that someone who was not already familiar with the movie would have been confused as to what it was about. Cobi Jones appearance on Week 1 was obviously last minute, and no topic was brought up. Week 2 guest was Landon Donovan, and there was a little relevancy to that one. But both guys are from the LA Galaxy so it was pretty easy to land them.
-The celebrities. Please. Not even remotely interesting. And who are they anyway?
-Finally, they show some highlights and talk a little soccer, but you would be hard pressed to know there were any other leagues on the entire planet other than the English Premiership. FSC's ignoring of other things they broadcast like, hello, Serie A, is insulting to the viewer. Hell, you would barely know that MLS even existed watching this show.
I am not offering any proper ideas on how they can make it better, but its not that tough. Or maybe for some production teams it is. Remember I have met Nick Webster and his gang, and whoa....
I won't be watching again, and will be shocked if two things happen - 1, the show lasts more than a few more episodes, and 2, if someone says to me down the road, "You really gotta see this show, they pulled it together and its become very good."
HMMMMM, VERY INTERESTING
Noticed this one on the European transfer list today:
-Adam Clayton – Manchester City to Leeds, undisclosed
I had no idea the bass player from U2 was a football man. I would figure that his age would be a factor, but skill is skill.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
Herculez Gomez got his big award last night for being the co-leading goal scorer in the Mexican Primera last spring. This shot is from his very own Twitter feed.
OOF
The Kansas City Star reports that Wizards head coach Peter Vermes was arrested last week for Driving Under the Influence. Not good at all.
TWITTERVERSE/FACEBOOKING
@SoccerByIves: "Major change to CONCACAF qualifying will be in final rd. 2 groups of 8 instead of Hex. Group winners qualify, 2nd place teams play off."
MLS WEEK 23
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Sep 4
Philadelphia Union v Kansas City Wizards - 2:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: PPL Park - Chester PA
Chicago Fire SC v Los Angeles Galaxy - 3:00pm Central on Telefutura
Venue: Toyota Park - Bridgeview IL
New England Revolution v Seattle Sounders FC - 6:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Gillette Stadium - Foxborough MA
DC United v Columbus Crew - 6:30pm Central on FSC
Venue: RFK Stadium - Washington DC
FC Dallas v Toronto FC - 7:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Pizza Hut Park - Frisco TX
Colorado Rapids v CD Chivas USA - 8:00pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Dick's Sporting Goods Park - Commerce City CO
Real Salt Lake v New York Red Bulls - 8:00pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Rio Tinto Stadium - Sandy UT
-Sun Sep 5
Houston Dynamo v San Jose Earthquakes - 7:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Robertson Stadium - Houston TX
MLS TEAM & PLAYER NEWS
Shawn Mitchell of the Columbus Dispatch tells us about hi-jinks at Crew training involving stealing Guille's car!
dN
Sebastian Salazar of CSNWashington checks in from the latest DC United practice session.
MLS PLAYER MOVEMENT
Kansas City has signed their first academy player to a senior contract today - 17 year old goalkeeper Jon Kempin.
-The team has provided a video clip of Kempin in action.
dN
Philadelphia has signed former USA U20 right fullback Sheanon Williams.
MLS INJURY REPORT
Shawn Mitchell of the Columbus Dispatch with a Crew injury update.
MLS YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
LE Eisenmenger of the Examiner fills us in on the league's first ever residential academy Grande Sports World, run by Real Salt Lake in the Phoenix AZ area. Wow.
-Former USA, international and MLS veteran Greg Vanney is the director of this Academy. A further Q & A with Vanney.
-A few photos from the academy.
MLS EXHIBITIONS
Match & Score:
-Wed Sep 1
Philadelphia Union v Guadalajara (Mexico)
Venue: PPL Park - Chester PA
USL-2 NEWS
A couple of former long time D2 stalwarts Charleston Battery and Richmond Kickers faced off in the USL-2 championship game on Saturday with Charleston winning 2-1. Huge congrats to them.
USA U-20
Yanks Abroad talks to right fullback Emilio Orozco who is headed with the team to Peru this week.
AMERICANS IN EUROPE
The Vancouver Sun talks to Cody Arnoux who got a shot, but failed, at Everton, and is now going after a spot on the Whitecaps MLS roster for next season when they join the league. (from last week)
ENGLAND
Simon Kuper of the Financial Times wonders why Arsenal just can't seem to get the whole goalkeeper thing right.
dN
Asamoah Gyan, the Ghanaian who smoked the USA in the World Cup round of 16, has signed with Sunderland in England.
dN
Here is England's roster for upcoming Euro qualifiers against Bulgaria (home Fri Sep 3) and Switzerland (away Sep ):
G:
Scott Carson - West Brom
Ben Foster - Birmingham
Joe Hart - Manchester City
D:
Gary Cahill - Bolton
Ashley Cole - Chelsea
Michael Dawson - Tottenaham
Kieran Gibbs - Arsenal
Phil Jagielka - Everton
Glen Johnson - Liverpool
Joleon Lescott - Manchester City
Matthew Upson - West Ham
M:
Gareth Barry - Manchester City
Michael Carrick - Manchester United
Steven Gerrard - Liverpool
Adam Johnson - Manchester City
James Milner - Manchester City
Theo Walcott - Arsenal
Shaun Wright-Phillips - Manchester City
Ashley Young - Aston Villa
F:
Darren Bent - Sunderland
Carlton Cole - West Ham
Peter Crouch - Tottenaham
Jermain Defoe - Tottenaham
Wayne Rooney - Manchester United
GERMANY
Stuttgart has signed Mauro Camoranesi from Juventus.
ITALY
Milan has cleared more room on their roster and financially by selling striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar to Schalke.
dN
This leaves the door wide open for Robinho to join the ever growing cast of misfit forward at Milan.
dN
Phil Minshull of the BBC sees the job Rafa Benitez has at Inter to be nearly impossible to succeed in.
BRAZIL 2014 WORLD CUP
Tim Vickery of the BBC on Brazil's tough road ahead in preparing for the World Cup. Things are not looking good at all.
GRATUITOUS DIEGO FORLAN PHOTO
The good folks at the Houston Chronicle suggested that maybe the Dynamo should try to sign a guy like Diego. So they put him in the orange shirt. What do you think?
posted by brucio at 17:04
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