wundergrape
Well-Known Member
LA won last night, 4-1. Houston lost 3-0.
MLS punches two tickets to the CCL semifinals. Club World Cup, here we come.
MLS punches two tickets to the CCL semifinals. Club World Cup, here we come.
T-Minus 1 Month Until MLS Starts
- Thread starter wundergrape
- Start date
wundergrape
Well-Known Member
Not as much as you enjoy validating a sport by going out of your way to post about it, apparently.
Amazing how some people consistently achieve the opposite of their goals. I bet you do real well in life.
hawktransplant
Well-Known Member
boo...can't cheer for LA.
Hawkeye11en1
Well-Known Member
wundergrape
Well-Known Member
I hear that. I used to feel the same way, but I've come around. They're a bit like the Patriots. I understand how someone can love them and hate them. They do everything right. To build a squad with Donovan, Keane and Beckham which played in such a team-oriented style...I just respect the hell out of that. They're the clear vanguard of the league, and it's not because of their location, or the hype. They're just good. Good and smart.
hawktransplant
Well-Known Member
They have a great coaching staff. Bruce has always been top notch. I remember following his Virginia teams back in the day. Had to have been the late 80's or early 90's.
wundergrape
Well-Known Member
You mean soccer leagues? Premier league a bit, Champions League.
Other than that, college basketball and football, NFL, and NBA and MLB casually. I follow golf closely too.
What ref decision are you thinking of?
Other than that, college basketball and football, NFL, and NBA and MLB casually. I follow golf closely too.
What ref decision are you thinking of?
ShadasRevenge
Well-Known Member
Get the ball in the net, duh. The only rule you really need to know/understand is offside.
LawVHawk
Well-Known Member
There were a couple of decisions drawing major criticism/comment the past week -- one a red card to Manchester United's Nani for sticking a boot out high to control a ball being played into the middle of the field. His boot collided with the chest of a Real Madrid defender who also was closing in on the ball. Nani likely didn't see the defender and the defender may not have been aware Nani was sticking his foot out high. The Turkish referee pulled out a red card, apparently for serious foul play. ManU ended up yielding two goals after Nani was sent off and getting knocked out of the Champions League competition.
The other was a very poor offside decision rendered by an assistant referee in a Swansea City-West Bromwell-Albion match. A Swansea City attacker brought the ball from near mid-field all the way into the West Brom penalty area to the right of the goal and attempted to pass the ball to a teammate in the middle of the box. The pass was blocked by a West Brom defender and the ball bounced back towards the Swansea City player, who now was the closest player to the goalline. The ball glanced off the West Brom goalkeeper and to the Swansea City player who shot it into the net for what should have been the equalizing goal. Except the assistant referee flagged him for being offside. Very bad decision and the center referee, who should have been in position to see, did not overrule him.
I still somewhat like the Galaxy. I think I had to switch to the Sounders because I'm not used to liking a pro team that wins championships.
wundergrape
Well-Known Member
I saw the Nani foul. I don't have a problem with the red shown in a vacuum, but in a game of that magnitude, it should have been a yellow. I didn't find it as egregious as some. You go spikes chest-high, you should expect to get a red if you hit a player. Still, in the second leg of a Champions League pair, the ref should have pulled the yellow.
I didn't see the Swansea/West Brom offside. There's no excuse for a sideline judge to miss a call like that. They have two jobs, and that's one of them.
wundergrape
Well-Known Member
If there ever were a weekend to get into MLS, this is it. Here are the games on TV, with wunder's rating:
Today:
DC United at New York Red Bulls, 12:30 ET. NBC (7/10)
Chicago Fire at Sporting Kansas City, 3:00 ET. NBC Cable (6/10)
Portland Timbers at Seattle Sounders, 8:00 ET. NBC Cable (9/10)
Sunday:
Houston Dynamo at FC Dallas, 1:00 ET. ESPN2 (8/10)
Best game if you have unlimited TV access:
Toronto at Montreal Impact, 4 pm ET, Saturday. (9/10)
What a weekend. Expect the goals of the week to be something special come Monday.
Today:
DC United at New York Red Bulls, 12:30 ET. NBC (7/10)
Chicago Fire at Sporting Kansas City, 3:00 ET. NBC Cable (6/10)
Portland Timbers at Seattle Sounders, 8:00 ET. NBC Cable (9/10)
Sunday:
Houston Dynamo at FC Dallas, 1:00 ET. ESPN2 (8/10)
Best game if you have unlimited TV access:
Toronto at Montreal Impact, 4 pm ET, Saturday. (9/10)
What a weekend. Expect the goals of the week to be something special come Monday.
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wundergrape
Well-Known Member
Darlington Nagbe does it again:
GOAL: Nagbe turns and scores | Portland Timbers vs FC Dallas - YouTube
I'm not saying he's going to be a savior or anything, but the dude scores some of the best goals in the world. Flat out.
GOAL: Nagbe turns and scores | Portland Timbers vs FC Dallas - YouTube
I'm not saying he's going to be a savior or anything, but the dude scores some of the best goals in the world. Flat out.
sportstalent
Well-Known Member
Sorry Wunder...soccer is epic fail in the US and I wish it would just go away.
Those guys that play, I give them credit, but just not a sport I will ever take any real interest in...how did Beckham work out in the US...the fans are insane.
Those guys that play, I give them credit, but just not a sport I will ever take any real interest in...how did Beckham work out in the US...the fans are insane.
Tmoney12
Well-Known Member
unlike
LawVHawk
Well-Known Member
Soccer continues to be the world's most popular amateur sport by participation. More US children participate in the various levels of soccer than in any other sport, including baseball, football and basketball. Lacrosse is rapidly growing in numbers but still has a long ways to go before achieving soccer's status. So it is hardly an epic fail.
At the professional level, it has not drawn NFL numbers in terms of warm fannies in the seats and especially TV viewership, and probably never will. Until, at least, the federal government steps in and imposes equipment requirements and rules changes to reduce the chances of concussion and other serious injury. At that point, football will be in a death spiral.
Be honest, professional baseball is boring and nearly unwatchable. At its most basic, it is a battle between the pitcher and the batter. Sixteen other players on the field have only a minor, supporting role. Your father and grandfather may have been willing to spend the time and money to sit through a three-hour game, buy an overpriced beer or soda and eat a dirty water hotdog. New generations are less likely to make that commitment.
The NBA? Beyond the finals, honestly, how many NBA games have you attended or watched in person? I'm betting nearly zero.
Professional soccer has much in its favor as a sport of growing attractiveness in the US: stadiums built specifically for soccer (fans closer to the field, real grass, no football lines and hash marks reminding viewers this is really a football stadium); a growing cadre of referees whose only jobs are soccer and who increasingly have experience with the international game; hard-core fan bases who drink hard, march to the stadiums, bring banners, drums and musical instruments to enhance the experience; better sense of marketing by MLS and the individual teams (loyalty rewards, souvenirs, fan engagement programs, fan blogs).
The MLS and member teams are doing a better job of telling their stories -- rivalries, acquisitions, team issues, the back story. Consumers like that and it builds interest. The Internet and the ability of individuals to become their own news providers increasingly cut mainstream media and their blind allegiance to the major professional sports out of the equation.
I still have problems with the level of play in the MLS and team owners' apparent willingness to think that on-field thuggery is attractive to the American soccer fan -- it is not. But the league is here to stay and IMHO is on the ascendancy, unlike the NFL, NBA and MLS. It is hardly a failure.
Get with it, dude.
wundergrape
Well-Known Member
1. Soccer is not an "epic fail" in the US.
2. Beckham worked out great in the US. Won 2 MLS Cups and the games popularity soared. MLS attendance by game is now higher than NBA and NHL.
3. You don't have to take any interest. Soccer will be fine without you.
hawktransplant
Well-Known Member
I only saw Beckham play once. It was a sellout crowd at stanford stadium. 50k fans.
Fun times
