Dear Sepp Blatter,

Suck my dick.

(sniff)

Close beside Cuyahoga’s waters, Stream of amber hue,
O’er old Buchtel Summit’s glory, Waves the gold and blue.
Hail we Akron! Sound her praises, Speed them on the gale,
Ever stand our Alma Mater, Akron hail, all hail!

Fear the Roo, bitches!

Goddammit!

FUCK!

Quick shots

Well done, Quakes. You went much further than I thought you would. A few more offensive tweaks, don't overdo it, could bring greater results for San Jose.
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It was so nice to see the US ping the ball around instead of route 1 over the midfield. Breathtaking goal too. The youngsters have got some game. I've got some hope. Bradley, make the vets compete against the young'uns. They need that inspiration...including your boy.
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C'MON YOU ZIPS!!! BRING HOME THE CUP!!!
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Congrats to Mexico beating the USWNT. It's a good wake-up call for that team. Italy's gonna get stomped, though.
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Sporting KC? C'mon, man! At least Athletico KC or (the) Kansas City Athletic(s) would've had a nod to past history. Wiz and Wizards wasn't great, but it doesn't drip of pretentiousness like "Sporting" for an American team. Kinda like Real Salt Lake.
----
R.I.P. FC Gold Pride. Possibly the best women's soccer team on the planet. I long for the day when people get over their bias about women's soccer and women's sports in general. Look for something to love in those games instead of something to criticize. Thanks for for bringing another soccer title to the Bay Area.

They're just friendlies!

So I keep telling myself...

Gooch. Jozy. Please find teams that'll play you. You're both rusty.
Germany Jones (snort, I like the nickname), well done. Need to be a bit sharper, but right now he's the offensive cog in midfield that the Yanks have needed since Reyna retired.
Eric Lichaj, welcome aboard, please stay awhile.
Bob, can we please shitcan the 4-3-3? The defense just sucked.

Did he sleep with your sister?

Reading comments on the Soccer by Ives blog about the call up for the next set of U.S. friendlies, you'd think that Eddie Johnson had swine flu, herpes, and crabs the way people were talking about his inclusion in the squad.

I don't get the bias. The Grown Ass Man has obviously matured into a better professional from his earlier MLS days. Is he our best forward? No. However, considering Bradley was shying away from calling in MLS players due to the season being in full playoff chase mode, he deserved to be considered. The man started for Fulham this weekend along with Deuce (after the Ives post I linked to -- to be fair to those I'm questioning). Hasn't he done enough for you?

All we are saying, is give us more goals!

Wondo's exploits this season notwithstanding, the Quakes need a stronger finisher. Maybe the inclusion of Geo and Eduardo will pay dividends next season after they get a bit more MLS seasoning, but it's not quite clicking the way it should.

Now, I'm not saying this as if the Quakes suck, they don't. I'm talking about what it'll take to make the club one of the best in MLS. Wondo may be the answer. If his growth as a player continues, he might end up surprising us like DeRo did. For now we'll continue to grit our teeth as the Quakes continue to fight to hold onto a playoff spot.

I was at the WPS Championship a week ago. Maybe we can sign Marta. :)

Oh yeah!

There's still soccer going on, isn't there?

So many things have happened post World Cup, it'll take me a while to sort them out, but for now...

Bob, it's time to move on.
I watched the final 70 minutes of the US/Brazil friendly fuming at how timid the US looked. It's time for some new blood. Bob, you've done a wonderful job with the team, but I think they looked stagnant at the World Cup, and even worse against Brazil.

I'm not convinced Klinsmann is the answer, but I'm willing to give him a try.

Let the celebrations begin!

I stumbled upon this parade of Spanish supporters while I was driving around San Francisco the afternoon after the final.

Day 25 - The Final

You don't finish your chances; you don't win. Spain didn't give up many chances, bully on them for that, but Robben had two chance to beat the keeper and Casillas came up with big saves.

Not the most open game ever, and probably not a fun game to watch for the newbies, but it was gripping enough for those of us who had a rooting interest.

Congrats to Spain on their first World Cup. Dammit, I've cheered on the loser of the last three finals (2002 I barely leaned towards Germany...but just barely).

I guess I have to get back to job hunting now. :)

Day 24 - Karma, bitches!

Watching Forlán's free kick clank off the crossbar was pretty good redemption for Ghana (although, I'm sure the Ghanaians would have preferred to have been in that game. Well done, Germany. Well done, Uruguay.

Time for the main event.

Day 23 - Okay, didn't see that coming.

All hail the mighty Spanish defense.
You know I kept saying it'd be nice if we had a new country win the cup this time around, and so karma bit me in the ass and put a team I'm not fond of in the final.

Well, make no mistake, I have a rooting interest now. C'mon Dutch!

Day 22 - Way to keep it close

Any goodwill Uruguay had, evaporated with that goal line handball. However, I have to give them credit for staying with the Dutch and continuing to press the game.

Ruud's dick must be putting dents on the underside of that ESPN desk. Man, I can see why the Galaxy players hated him. What a fuckin' dork.

Wow, that was a surprise!

It was nice to see the boys in blue again. Although I'm not so fond of the current style of top.
Nonetheless, thanks to the front office for listening to the fans.

Day 21 - The German scoring machine (giggle)

Since when do the Germans out-Brazil Brazil?
I'm still amused and stunned at watching Die Mannschaft ping the ball around with counter-attacking prowess. Their defense did well to hold Argentina at bay. Especially in the final third.

Spain has yet to really impress me this tournament, but man what a second half with Paraguay. Trading penalties with two saves and one rightfully called re-take. Spain finally breaking through with a two-posts-and-in goal.

I still think the Germans will roll over Spain.

Day 20

You know I was all set to gloat about picking the Dutch, but then Uruguay/Ghana happened.

That was the cruelest ending to a game I've ever seen. Luis Suarez's desperate act paid off.

I think a Dutch/German final is on the way. The Dutch seem to do what they need to do to get it done.

Day 19 Quarters are all set

Could use a break, too. I realized the other day that I haven't done any walking or hiking since the World Cup started. :)

Maybe I'll even play tomorrow, we'll see.

Japan, I'm so sorry you didn't move on, but you gotta convert your chances. See what happened to the US.

I'm still a little bitter about the Luis Aragonés incident about Thierry Henry so I have trouble rooting for them, but it's still always fun to watch C. Precious Ronaldo pout.

Day 18

Games where pretty predictable today.

The Dutch spent a few minutes of defensive worry in the second half of their game, but still managed to shut down Slovakia. Still it shows a small chink in the armor of their defense. My pick to win is gonna have to be air tight against Brazil.

Chile went down swinging in their fight, but Brazil is a heavyweight to Chile's middleweight.

Day 17 - Ruh row

To the tune of Rule, Britannia!:

O dear England,
her fans too blind to see,
you're the Queen of Mediocrity.

Well, they might be seeing it now. At least we US fans weren't expecting them to win the whole thing. Missed goal call or not, y'all got your ass whooped.

Same with Mexico. I was cheering for ya, but damn, Argentina made you look like an amateur side.

Day 16 - The end for the US

South Korea gave it a go and pushed Uruguay, but in the end the Reds couldn't get it done.

Same with my beloved Yanks. They kept putting themselves behind the eight ball one too many times. I think this experience will make the 2014 team much, much stronger. We need some faster defenders, and an increase in overall team speed. Jozy, brother, work on your finishing.

Bob, take the hint. We played much more offensively in a 4-5-1.

Overall, I'm still proud of the guys.

Well done, Ghana.

It's the simple things

I had to drive to the post office this morning. After I got in the car, I scanned the radio stations for a Spanish broadcast of the Uruguay/South Korea game. I was shocked to stumble across an English broadcast of the game on one of the major sports radio stations. Props to ESPN radio and KNBR 1050 for broadcasting.

I was amused listening to Glenn Davis and Kyle Martino emphasize their own pronunciations of Uruguay (Ooo-rah-gwhy versus Your-a-gway).

Day 15 - Zzzzzz...

Now you know what happens when teams know the score. Brazil/Portugal? What a snoozer!
Spain/Chile? Boring!

At least Ivory Coast and North Korea went down fighting.

Well done.

John Oliver and the folks at The Daily Show do a piece on how they've wiped away the African culture away at this World Cup. Well, almost all of the African culture.

The Disneyfication of the World Cup, as it were.

It's just another instance of how you can't be too black. It scares the white people.

Day 14 - Away Auzzurri

Hahahahahahahaha.
Italy are out. Finito. Andato. Addio.
Not that I'm biased or anything. :)
The U.S. is now officially better than Italy, France, and (for the moment) England.

Good run Kiwis, sorry to see you go.

I think I'm back to the Dutch being my favorites to take the whole thing.

Day 13 - A Lucky Day

As my household watched the US/Algeria game, my partner started to believe the US was cursed.

For the first 90 minutes of that game, I couldn't say I blamed her.

Now the Yanks are through, and face Ghana (and all of Africa) next. I'm interested to see if the boys can get their focus, and beat this team.

Congrats to England and Germany (whew, we don't have to face them until the final), too.

I think the US has a chance to make it to the semis now. Uruguay is playing well and is the team to beat in our quarter of the bracket, and the US needs to finish better, but it's possible.

Clear! (sound of paddles)

I hate this fucking team.

You're trying to kill me, aren't you?

Day 12

Congrats to Mexico, Argentina, Uruguay, and South Korea for making it through. South Africa made Mexico sweat for a bit, but it was nowhere near the excitement of Nigeria/South Korea. Yakubu with the miss of the tournament. Even the penalty he scored moments later won't ever wash the taste of that miss out of his mouth.

As good as it looks for South America, is as bad as it looks for the African teams. I'm rather sad about that.

My focus now is trying to figure out the ways the U.S. can avoid Germany in the round of 16. :)

Day 11

Nothing to see here...move along.

Looks like scores stayed true to form.
Adios mi amigos de Honduras.
(hope I got that right) :)

Portugal...damn. Adios Ivory Coast.

Day 10 - Away Les Bleu

Figures the French would steal the spotlight from the Kiwis.

Great job New Zealand in holding off those other blues.

Day 9 - Yup, Koo-Koo for Cocoa Puffs

Harry it was a handball and a red. Get over it. The rest of your boys still ground out the tie aganist Ghana.

Sorry to see Cameroon crash out like that, but damn, what a game with Denmark. It was like watching Pulp Fiction, or some blacksploitation kung-fu shit. It action just didn't motherfucking stop.

The Dutch still aren't looking like world beaters, but they got the job done. Frankly, that might be what it takes to claim this cup.

Day 8 - The Soccer Gods Must Be Crazy

The only thing certain in this World Cup is that nothing is certain.
Are you kidding me with this stuff?

The US did their Jekyll and Hyde thing again. Someone needs to smack them in the mouth before the game starts.

Sorry Findley, the yellow card sucks, but I have to admit you're not quite ready for prime time. You ever get the ball like that again, in the box with just you and the keeper, you go in hard. Shoot the damn ball. It was like Landon in 2006.

The third games are gonna be interesting.

Day 7

Looking at how Group A and B are shaping up brought up an interesting point. Since Mexico and Uruguay are now tied with 4 points with France and South Africa only having 1 point, all Mexico and Uruguay need to do is tie their final group game and both are through.

However there is one reason for Mexico and Uruguay to be competitive...Argentina. Whoever finishes second in the group will most likely face Argentina in the Round of 16.

For a similar reason the U.S. needs to not just win their next two games, but score as much as possible to win Group C. If things fall into place, they'd avoid Germany, and have a reasonable chance to make it to the semis by avoiding the big dogs.

Day 6

Well done Swiss. It made me flash back to the Confederations' Cup and the upset by the US.

Pity poor South Africa. I personally think the guy dove to get the keeper tossed, but it's still a huge blow for their chances of getting out of the group. Then again France is imploding before our eyes. The France/Mexico match becomes much bigger in determining the outcome of this group.

Saturday June 12th

Me and the girls before England v US.

You see which side we're on.

Day 5

If you had bet me who'd have the bigger goal differential Germany v Australia or Brazil v North Korea, I'd have lost a lot of money. Good on ya, Il Boys for never giving up.


Now that I've seen Italy, the Dutch, Germany, Brazil, England, Portugal, and Argentina, I gotta say the Germans look the strongest thus far. We'll see how Spain does tomorrow.


Congrats Kiwis on getting the point. I apologize for doing the "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, oi, oi, oi" chant to future ex- Quake Simon Elliott once upon a time. :) Next time though, make sure you check to see if there's a moat around the pitch before you run around like madmen.

C. Precious Ronaldo damn near had the goal of the tournament though.

Day 4

(Yawn) Not much here...
Okay only partially kidding...
Good job Japan.

The Dutch weren't as good as I expected. They were my pre-Cup pick to win. That's changed now (Germany).

The teams are beginning to get use to the ball, finally.

Day (wait, did Germany just score again?) 3

Die Mannschaft whipped it out and smacked it across some Aussie faces today.

My man Dracula's a ref in the World Cup!

I was gonna talk about how good Ghana looked to...
(Germany scored again!)

The U.S. and England better go through after watching that hot mess of the other two teams in the group.

Day 2

I'm not going get any points for soothsaying without any proof, but once I learned yesterday that Jozy was starting against England, I just had the feeling that Findley would start with him up front. Bob likes him some holding forward, speedy forward combo long time.

Damn, I wish Jozy's shot had gone in. The was a great fucking run by him. Hopefully the team got their jitters out with this game.

Thank you Martin Tyler for reigning it in.

I'm happy to see South Korea still doing well as a team. On the flip side, can someone please tell me how the hell Greece won Europe once?

Watching Maradona on the sideline is pure entertainment. That man is all id.

Day 1 thoughts

South Africa/Mexico was a joy to watch. I usually cheer for Mexico against other teams, but because of what South Africa's been through, my heart was going for them. Fun game to watch. Watching Archbishop Tutu dancing after the fabulous goal by Tshabalala was the embodiment of that joy.

I see what they mean about the ball. That thing's lively. Lots of players were skying free kicks and crosses.

Watching Lalas and Ruud together during the breaks of the Uruguay/France game was entertaining in its discomfort. I don't think Lalas looked at Ruud until the post game wrap up (I bet a director pointed it out to Alexi). Read The Beckham Experiment to find out why. :)

Martin Tyler, just call the game, please. The moment you start waxing poetic about stuff other than soccer, it's kind of embarrassing. Your broadcast partner today was just as bad. There was some "African rhythms" comment that was just cringe-worthy.

Uruguay/France was the kind of game that soccer haters point to. I can't blame them here. What a slog of a game.

Gosh, I wonder what's on tomorrow?

;)

I don't normally believe in omens...

...but this one is a little too good to pass up. Nice one Woody!


C'mon U.S.!!!

Gangs in the Bay Area

I noticed it about a week ago. People have started wearing their colors. Hipster on a fixie wearing green and red. South American brothers in Adidas Sambas wearing yellow and green. Chicanos all over the place wearing green and white or black and green. Brits in all whites or all reds.

The mob up has begun, take your sides, choose your loyalty.

Seeing it so out in the open, so in my face, makes me want to stick my chest out. So I do...for my colors.
I know the rolling eyes, the snickers that come with my affiliation. You see, my gang ain't as cool as theirs.
I understand why, but I don't care. They are my people. They are my underdogs, and I'm right there underdogging it with 'em. My colors vary from red to blue to graphite to white, but the shield stays the same.

Time to show your colors.

Dear Robbie Findley,

We're sorry we underestimated you.

signed,
US Supporters

Seriously though, talk about a Jekyll and Hyde game versus Turkey. With the exception of Bornstein, who got burned at least twice, that second half team might need to be our starters versus Eng-gal-land.

Now the butterflies start

We're entering the final few weeks before the World Cup Finals start. This week will be full of friendies, team building exercises, and the last cuts before the World Cup squads are announced.


I know I'm getting excited because I just plunked down two-hunny on matching US home jerseys for myself and my daughters. I'm only temporarily employed, and have been previously unemployed for well over a year and a half. Sometimes passion makes you do stupid things.

I'll deal with the guilt after the Cup. :)

It's Preliminary World Cup Team Announcement Day!

It's like Christmas for soccer nerds!
Personally, I'd like to see Buddle, Herc, EJ, and Davies called into the US camp. I think the U.S. has enough forwards to afford bringing in Davies without leaving someone critical out if he's not fit.

We'll find out in a couple of hours. Then all the soccer boards will implode.

ETA: Davies was left off the squad. According to Bob Bradley, there were still some medical issues as relayed to him by Charlie's club. It's sad, but I understand. That's alright, it gives him time to get ready for the next World Cup cycle.

Off-topic

Mr. Barnes should take a tip from us responsible parents and put a leash on his ID.



My rebuttal, since the Revs won't post it as a video reply.

It's Getting Better All the Time

You know, I tore 'em one when they looked bad, but I gotta admit these past two games the Quakes have looked like they could be a playoff team this year.

Don't go getting the MLS Cup polish yet, but I will admit the boys in black and blue are looking much better than the train wreck of that first game. It's nice to see the crowds filling Buck Shaw too.

It's hard to tell from TV, and I sure as hell don't trust stuff I read from BigSoccer, but I'm wondering how the merged supporters sections are doing getting along side by side? Are you trading off chants? Are the Ultras dominating the cheering? Is anyone other than Sean reading this thing? :)

It was a thing of ugly.

Wow.
That was about as bad as I've ever seen San Jose look. Real Salt Lake might be reigning champions, but you made 'em look like Man U.

C'mon, you Quakes! Get this shit together!

It was a thing of beauty.

I yelled like Angelina Jolie stuck two fingers up my ass while she was deep-throating me.



Admit it. You did too.

Landon vs Jozy

Nice job, LD.



It makes me wonder if Jozy just hasn't found the right situation to thrive in. Landon had problems fitting in while in Germany, but now with Everton he seems to have found the glove that fits.

Jozy needs to be somewhere where he can get decent service from his midfield. Hull City ain't it.

Like a turtle

I have to agree with Bob and say that the boys looked a step slow against the Dutch yesterday. It was only late in the second half that they realized they could push forward.

Bornstein vs Robben? You gotta be kidding me! Traffic cone vs Porsche.

Beasley and Edu however deserve further consideration.

Waaaah!!!

I want my red kit!
Okay, I feel better now.
Moving on. :)

Togo

The attack on the Togo team bus was an absolute tragedy. My thoughts go out to the dead and wounded in this incident. I understand both their desire to stay and play as well as their need to head home.
It also saddens me when I see people using this incident to make negative comments about the World Cup being in South Africa. It's just the same shit I touched on in my previous post.

Some Nigerian tried to set his explosive underpants on fire on a flight into Detroit.
WE SHOULD MOVE THE OLYMPICS!!!

That's how stupid you sound.

There's a what? Where? Who?

For my first post of the new year I'd like to discuss the African Cup of Nations tournament starting this Sunday.

What? You've never heard of the African Cup of Nations?
Hmm, why is that?
Could it be that folks think of Africa as that land with jungles, monkeys, elephants, natives, and AIDS?
Was that too harsh?

Okay.

Maybe it's because it never gets any airplay, any print, any love outside of Africa.

What? The AFC Asian Cup doesn't get any airplay either? Well, except for Football Asia on FSC (or is it Setanta, or is it Gol TV?). I lose track with all these soccer channels now.

Hmm, with all these channels now you'd think there'd be room to broadcast some of these games. I mean who wouldn't want to watch Michel Essien, Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto'o, or the Touré brothers?

It's almost as if FIFA has something to hide by not showing off this tournament. The Europeans hate this tournament. It takes away star African players from their precious clubs during the month of January. "Play it in the summer!" they say! "Do it like us!" they exclaim. "We can't," they answer. Sepp and the boys don't listen.

It's a shame really. There's a lot of damn good soccer being played in the next month, and some damn good soccer players. I'll say this though. You can bet your ass that those same club teams that hate the African Cup of Nations are sending scouts so they can pluck the next Drogba out of that so-called jungle. Why would FIFA help build the African soccer infrastructure when it's much easier to give a player his big dream by leaving and going to the rich clubs in Europe? The last thing those European clubs want is that African pipeline to dry up. They've got a vested interest in making sure the player want to leave.

Yeah, it's a damn shame.
And before you answer...no the World Cup in South Africa doesn't make up for it.