What the fuck is that thing on Pablo's face?

Pablo's gone total hipster! WTF?

Donovan

I'm just gonna put this here.

Great piece by Wayne Drehs for ESPN as Landon closes out his career.

You've done lost your damn minds.

Next time you redesign your league crest, don't let an student trying to make a name for themselves do it.
The blank "second half" make the whole thing look unfinished, and the slash past the perimeter looks like the crest's erect penis. It makes the eye look downward as opposed to your claim that the slash is rising upward.

I'm down with the idea of tailoring the colors to fit the teams, but you need something in that second half.

Next indeed.

David Testo is gay

The big news isn't that he announced to the media that he is gay (considering he was out to his friends, family, and teammates, I wouldn't call it "coming out"). It's the blasé response.

It's still very important that people come out. It can save lives. Being in the Bay Area makes me kinda immune to it, but it's still important.

However, the "eh" response from the US soccer community gives me hope for the future.

"Winning Time"

I just re-watched the ESPN 30 for 30 piece "Winning Time" about Reggie Miller vs the New York Knicks. If you get the chance to see it, do so, cuz it's an absolute hoot. It gives you great insight into Reggie Miller, a player who was, to say it kindly, one of the great mindfuckers of all time. He made you hate him to the point of forgetting your own game, and boy did the Knicks and their fans hate him.

Watching it made me think of the latest kerfuffle involving Mr. Landon Donovan. I saw him say something to Henry after he scored, and apparently thanks to Luke Rodgers we know what he said. Here's the thing. He seems to be pulling these stunts only in MLS games, and he seems to be getting more animated the older he gets. It's kind of a Bizzaro World Wayne Rooney.

I think it's an act. I think it's an attempt to mindfuck his opponents. He didn't pull this shit at Everton, and I don't see it at the same level when he's playing for the U.S. (I might be blinded by Red, White, and Blue glasses since Mexican fans love to hate him). I think he's clearly aware of what he's doing, and the fact that he can get away with it. He wants you to hate him. He's good at it, too.

The best way to counter it? Laugh that shit off.

The new season

MLS begins
Two new teams with shiny hopes
and serious fans.

My beloved Quakes
Going up and down, again.
Lather, rinse, repeat.

San Jose Ultras
Getting in trouble again.
Oh you rascals you.

The new Casbah flag
has advertising on it.
Times are a-changin'.

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.
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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.

Hey Becks! Sign my book!

I just finished reading The Beckham Experiment by Grant Wahl and I gotta say Posh Boy gets off lighter than I expected. The LA Galaxy were the zoo I expected they were the previous two seasons, but Becks seems more like the guy who was handed the reigns of a golden elephant and that bad boy just took off stampeding wherever the hell it wanted to. Davy's just holding on for the ride. I don't think Beckham's smart enough to be the man behind the curtain.

It's more like he's the puppet with some pretty powerful puppetmasters.

Either way it's a good read. Great insight on the inner workings and string pulling behind the scenes.

Now where did I put those shoes?

"This has to be a marathon, not a sprint."

This oft used sports cliché is usually used to describe the philosophy a team takes over a season to help win a championship. Steadily building up the team over months to peak at the end of a season.

In this case, Lew Wolff is using it to explain the struggles he's had in running the Earthquakes. For me, this cliché doesn't quite work. It really hit home for me as I watched the Seattle Sounders take home the Dewar Cup as U.S. Open Cup champions. This team in it's first MLS season is already successful on and off the field. Yet, my dear Quakes struggle on and off the field in its second season back. If this is a marathon, the gun went off last year, and the Quakes are still at the starting line.

What's the answer? If I knew, I'd have a job. Toronto FC showed that you didn't have to have a winner out of the gate to bring in fans. Chicago and Seattle showed that you can have a good team on the field right from the start. Are soccer fans in the Bay Area that fickle? Are we that poor? I know I couldn't afford season tickets this year. Could it be a combination of all of the above and more? Again, I wish I knew the answer.

That Becks thing

I've never been a huge fan of Beckham coming to MLS. The whole thing smacked of bringing in the pretty show pony, except that this pony had his eyes focused elsewhere and not with the rest of the herd.

It was with great glee that I saw Grant Wahl's continued questioning of Beckham and his commitment to MLS at a press conference. Beckham didn't help himself with the snarky beginning to his answer referencing Grant's book. At this point, I think it's best if MLS cut ties with the man, and let him on his merry way. Despite what news pundits said when Beckhamania first hit, MLS didn't need him to save the league. The bump in awareness for the league has been nice, but as with most fads, this one is waning.

Oh, San Jose.

A man up with a one-nothing lead in stoppage time.
Way to snatch defeat out of the jaws of victory.

You'd have thought that the Quakes were the ones playing a man down. They couldn't string together passes to save their life towards the end of the game. It was like watching the Brazilian onslaught during the 2nd half of the Confed Cup final.

C'mon guys you can do better.