Cult Football - Commentary

main

More on the who’s and what’s later today and early tomorrow before the afternoon game in South Africa, but for now here’s the official roster (includes a couple local boys for the NY Red Bulls who are getting their first senior team call-ups, and rightly deserved).

Players	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Birthdate	Hometown	Club/College	Caps/Goals
Agbossoumonde, Gale	D	6-2	185	11/17/91	Syracuse, N.Y.	Estoril Praia (Portugal)	0/0
Agudelo, Juan	F	6-0	180	11/23/92	Barnegat, N.J.	New York Red Bulls	0/0
Bedoya, Alejandro	M	5-10	160	04/29/87	Westin, Fla.	Örebro (Sweden)	5/0
Borchers, Nat	D	6-2	175	04/13/81	Tucson, Ariz.	Real Salt Lake	2/0
Bornstein, Jonathan	D	5-9	145	11/07/84	Los Alamitos, Calif.	Chivas USA	35/2
Bunbury, Teal	F	6-2	175	02/27/90	Prior Lake, Minn.	Kansas City Wizards	0/0
Carroll, Brian	M	5-10	155	07/20/81	Springfield, Va.	Columbus Crew	7/0
Cervi, Dominic	GK	6-6	205	07/09/86	Norman, Okla.	Celtic (Scotland)	0/0
Diskerud, Mikkel	M	6-0	150	10/02/90	Oslo, Norway	Stabaek (Norway)	0/0
Findley, Robbie	F	5-9	165	08/04/85	Phoenix, Ariz.	Real Salt Lake	10/0
Gaven, Eddie	M	6-0	165	10/25/86	Hamilton, N.J.	Columbus Crew	7/0
Goodson, Clarence	D	6-4	170	05/17/82	Alexandria, Va.	Brondby (Denmark)	16/2
Guzan, Brad	GK	6-4	210	09/09/84	Homer Glen, Ill.	Aston Villa (England)	18/0
Lichaj, Eric	D	5-11	160	11/17/88	Downers Grove, Ill.	Aston Villa (England)	1/0
Pause, Logan	M	5-10	155	08/22/81	Hillsborough, N.C.	Chicago Fire	5/0
Ream, Tim	D	6-1	165	10/05/87	St. Louis, Mo.	New York Red Bulls	0/0
Rogers, Robbie	M	5-10	180	05/12/87	Huntington Beach, Calif.	Columbus Crew	12/1
Spector, Jonathan	D	6-0	180	03/01/86	Arlington Heights, Ill.	West Ham United (England)	27/0

Africa Commentary Video

Asamoah Gyan Dances at Stamford Bridge–and So Does Bolo Zenden

November 15, 2010 — by Suman — 2

Up until a couple weeks ago, it seemed as if Chelsea were going to run away with the Premier League title (even the Special One chimed in all the way from Madrid to that effect!), as they rolled through the first 10 games of the season: 8 wins (a few of them blowouts), a draw, and a hard-fought 1-0 loss to Man City. Then came a surprising 2-0 loss to Liverpool. Perhaps that could be explained away: the game was away at Anfield Park, Liverpool is actually a “big club” (according to tradition if not the current table), and Fernando Torres suddenly rediscovered his scoring touch. But after yesterday’s shocking result–a 3-0 loss at home to Sunderland!–Chelsea no longer looks invincible, and we have at least a 3-horse race for the title.

Sunderland had performed doggedly but modestly through their first 9 games–2 wins, 1 loss…and 6 ties. Then came an embarrassing 5-1 loss against their rivals Newcastle. That’s the kind of loss that can derail a season–but they bounced back with a win against Stoke City and a draw against Spurs last week. Still, no one expected them to go into Stamford Bridge and dominate the mighty Blues.

An odd Sunderland stat: all of their mere 10 goals in the 12 games prior to yesterday had been scored by only 2 players: Darren Bent and Asamoah Gyan. But that changed yesterday, as Nedum Onuoha waltzed through the Chelsea defense to score first for Sunderland, and Danny Welbeck finished nicely for their third. (Onuoha, incidentally, is a 24-year-old defender, born in Nigeria and raised in Manchester, on loan to Sunderland from Man City. Welbeck is a 20-year-old winger/striker, born in England to Ghanaian parents, on loan from Man Utd. Both have appeared for England’s U21 team–we may see them in the future for the senior squad.)

But in between those two goals, Gyan got his fourth goal in the past three games–he’d scored all of Sunderland’s goals in their games against Stoke and Spurs. (In fact, these have been the first three starts of Gyan’s nascent Premier League career, as Bent had been starting ahead of him until he went down with an injury. It’ll be interesting to see if Sunderland manager Steve Bruce finds a way to get them both on the field from the beginning, once Bent recovers.)

And so Gyan did his dance at Stamford Bridge–a dance we may be seeing in England with some regularity in the future, if Gyan can keep up this sort of finishing. See all three goals here:

Commentary Italy News

Rafa Benitez is a Twat

November 15, 2010 — by Sean

Milan beat Inter yesterday in the 175th Derby della Madonnina, 1-0 from a penalty taken by Ibrahimovic in the 5th minute (or around the 5th minute, very early at least). It was a rough game, with both sides playing very physically. The Rossoneri were more determined to sit in defense and disrupt Inter’s attack, though they did put together some dangerous movement in the final third, while Inter never looked like they would score, their attack fizzling consistently before reaching the danger area. This was in no small part due to Gattuso’s doggedness and complete disregard for personal safety.

There were plenty of points to consider in the game: Ibrahimovic sending Materazzi to the hospital, the bench-warming skills of Ronaldinho, the speed and strength of my new favorite Milan player Kevin-Prince Boateng…but let’s focus on Inter’s coach instead.

Benitez took a team with no changes to the side that won the Serie A title and the Champion’s League title last year, and has them 6 points off the lead and currently out of a Champion’s league qualifying position. His response, (I paraphrase) “I need new players in the transfer window.”

Let’s take one of his strikers, Diego Milito, who last year was Serie A’s top goalscorer. Under Benitez, he’s been total shit. What’s Benitez’s take on this?

Last season this team won lots of games in the end because Milito scored lots of goals while now he has problems.

Brilliant stuff, Rafa. Hey are you thinking maybe that your team, the team that won it all last year, isn’t good enough, and you should buy a bunch of new players in the transfer market this January? That seems to have worked well for you at Liverpool, where you left a flailing side after having spent millions dollars over your time there on players not worth a damn, then blamed it all on the owners. Oh, here’s a quote from you:

Who could arrive in the next transfer window? All the players expect someone of quality to maintain the level of the side, a side that in the past season won a lot and therefore got tired and has struggled to start again.

I seem to remember one of your excuses at Liverpool was that the owners didn’t know anything about football. Well your new owner does, and this is what he thinks of your side’s performance.

I did not like it at all, as we didn’t do enough to deserve to win. It seems difficult to move forward playing like this. It doesn’t seem to me like we suffered against Milan’s play. The problem is that we actually didn’t play. It’s a different thing entirely and much more grave. I didn’t like anything. One can understand losing a derby, but this time I didn’t like the approach or the aftermath. We didn’t do enough to think about winning. This won’t do at all. It was an ugly game and we did nothing because we became different.

Not good, Rafa, not good. You blame your players, the staff and your former owners, and never yourself. Soon you will be exposed as a fraud and run out of Italy.

Commentary News

Real Madrid Squeak Past Gijón

November 15, 2010 — by Sean — 1

Preciado — Yo tengo una tía que toca la guitarra!

Madrid kept their season motoring along with a determined win against a stubborn Gijón over the weekend. Gritty defending from the team ranked just above the relegation zone made Madrid work hard to find entry, and the goal only came late in the match, with Higuaín tapping in a deflected Benzema header right at the goal mouth.

Notable absence at pitch-side was Jose Mourinho, who is serving a two-match ban for abusing the officials in his last outing. The camera occasionally focused on him high in an executive suite, where he looked generally unhappy. He’ll be back in time for El Clásico, no worries.

Otherwise it was a plain affair, made a bit livelier by some guardian insight on facial hair:

For those who don’t know him, Manolo Preciado has the most magnificent moustache known to managers. The kind of thick, bushy facial foliage you could hide a family of badgers in, a tache that completely covers his lip. And that’s saying something because the Sporting Gijón coach has a lot of lip. He’s also got a lot of heart; he probably would hide a family of badgers in there if he thought it would help. He could hardly be earthier if he swallowed soil daily, lighting up a crafty fag on the back row of the dugout before steaming up and down the touchline like a wind-up toy, punching the air. But not before he’s turned it blue. And this weekend he helped turn it bluer than ever before.

Commentary

Joey Barton Highlight Reel

November 11, 2010 — by Sean

The Telegraph has a nice list of Barton’s misbehavior over the course of his professional career, which we reproduce here:

Dec 2004 – stubbed a lit cigar into the eye of young team-mate Jamie Tandy during Manchester City’s Christmas party. Fined six weeks’ wages by City. Forced to pay four weeks’ salary – approximately £60,000 – immediately, with a further two weeks suspended for a year.
Barton says: “If I was to do something similar, I’d be the biggest fool ever.”

May 2005 – breaks leg of 35 year-old pedestrian while driving his car at 2am in Liverpool city centre.

July 2005 – involved in an altercation with a 15-year-old Everton fan at City’s team hotel in Bangkok, where the team are playing in the FA Premier League Trophy. Fined eight weeks’ wages by City after being found guilty of gross misconduct. Accepts punishment and agrees to undertake a programme of rehabilitation.
Says: “When people talk about my dark days, when I sit down and think about it – the misdemeanours I’ve had, with the things that go on in the real world – the things I have done are stupid and foolish. But they are not war crimes.”

Sept 2006 – drops his shorts in the direction of Everton fans following City’s 1-1 draw at Goodison Park. Charged with improper conduct and/or bringing the game into disrepute by the Football Association and fined £2,000.
Says: “The shorts thing was only intended as a light-hearted joke but some people didn’t take it that way unfortunately. I don’t know whether the fans see me as the Evertonian that got away or what. I was there when I was a youngster and have had a couple of chances to go back and it’s never been right.”

Feb 2007 – wins his first international call-up despite public criticism of the England team’s performance at the World Cup and subsequent releases of autobiographies.
Says: “England did nothing in the World Cup, so why are they bringing books out? ‘We got beat in the quarter-finals, I played like s**t, here’s my book’. Who wants to read that? I don’t.”

March 2007 – arrested on suspicion of assault and criminal damage in an incident involving a taxi driver. He is later charged with criminal damage, which he denies.
Says: “He (the taxi driver) didn’t seem to be in control and seemed to be going really mad. I said ‘Let’s forget about the money and get out of the cab and get to safety’, but he wouldn’t stop the cab.”

May 2007 – suspended by Man City for the rest of the season after a training ground altercation with Ousmane Dabo. He is charged with assault and appears in court but is spared jail.
Says: “I am very thankful to the media of this country. If it was not for them vilifying me I may have p****d my career up the wall. ”

Commentary News Video

Real Madrid best Atletico

November 8, 2010 — by Sean

Carvalho drives to goal. Real continue their 11-year unbeaten streak against their city rivals.

Los Blancos eased passed city rivals Atletico yesterday with the glamor side firing on all cylinders. Strong in defense and quick in attack, Real put Los Colchoneros (an odd name, yes) on the back foot early. The score ended 2-0 but really should’ve been more.

Sadly, Forlan, a favorite from the World Cup, hasn’t scored since September, and while Atletico did look like they’re capable of stringing together potent attacking movement, nothing actually came off in their favor.

We’re about brevity this week, so here’s one audacious play that somewhat sums up the afternoon — outrageousness from Ronaldo, followed by a near miss. (Ps. Benzema, who looked like crap earlier in the season, appears much fitter these days, and has been doing very well coming on in later stages of the game). And as we’re not actually all about brevity, following the video is some public domain description of el derbi madrileño.

Historically, Real Madrid have long been seen as the establishment club. On the other side, Atletico was always characterized by a ‘sentimiento de rebeldía’ (a sense of rebellion) although, during the early Franco years, it was Atlético that was the preferred team of the regime, being associated with the military airforce, until the regime’s preferences moved towards Real Madrid in the 1950s. Franco sought to make political capital out of Real Madrid’s European Cup titles at a time when Spain was internationally isolated – “Real Madrid are the best embassy we ever had”, said one minister. Thus, Atleti fans regularly chanted that Real was “el equipo del gobierno, la vergueñza del país”–the team of the government, the shame of the country—and adopted a more left-wing slant (tempered by the rise of ultras culture and Rayo Vallecano‘s presence as the “true” leftist club) to combat the conservative Real fanbase. Bernabeu, Real Madrid‘s stadium, is majestic, alongside banks and businesses on the classy andaristocratic Castellana, while Calderon can be found beside a brewery along the river; Real Madrid draw greater support because of its successes, while Atletico has a more working class fan base, which comes particularly from the south of the city.

Chalkboards Commentary

Newcastle Impose Their Will on Arsenal

November 7, 2010 — by Sean

carroll — Man of the Match: Andy Carroll (please cut off your ponytail, thank you)

Newcastle came into their game at the Emirates significant underdogs, though in good spirits coming off a strong win last weekend against aggressive long-time rivals Sunderland. The first half was one of frustration for Arsenal, with Fabregas’ strike against the crossbar the only time the 22 year old Dutch goalkeeper Krul let a ball past (a triumphant return against the team who put 4 past him in recent Carling Cup play). Walcott was unlucky against the woodwork in the second half, but overall Krul made some top-notch saves to kept Newcastle in the lead.

Arsenal tried and tried, but couldn’t penetrate a compact and organized Newcastle defense. The team in black and white collapsed around the Arsenal playmakers as they crossed midfield, cutting off distribution through the center. They also did well to quickly pressure the Gunner’s wingers when they had possession, isolating them and forcing turnovers.

Of particular note was Andy Carroll. The big leaping forward who scored the winning goal for the Magpies was all over the filed, winning balls in defense and forcing the issue in attack.

For this week’s chalkboard project, let’s take a look at the first 17 minutes of the second half. A crucial period for Arsenal (for any team really, ahead or behind), if they’d come out a changed, charged team they might have turned the game then and there and gone on to win. Pity to the home fans, their team were worse after the break. This little slice of the game is a fine example of how most of the match played out–in Newcastle’s favor.

As Newcastle plugged up the middle, then the wings, then the middle, and so on, Arsenal were forced to pass the ball laterally, with very few forays into more dangerous areas. They did try (132 total passes attempted) but Newcastle upset them enough to force 26 turnovers, concentrated dead in the center of the pitch where Fabregas’ magic would have otherwise been crafted.

On the chalkboards, Arsenal is moving left to right, and Newcastle right to left.

Commentary News

Mancini Running Man City Players into the Ground

November 5, 2010 — by Sean

Manchester City have been on a lovely little losing streak of late, and the only player capable of dragging them out of the doldrums has flown off to Argentina to hide in his mom’s house. There have been all sorts of rumors flying about over Mancini’s lack of control in the dressing room. Now with an ever expanding injury list the gaffer is looking to lay blame on his physio, Jamie Murphy.

Mancini has won a key battle in his attempt to impose his authority, with the club’s head physiotherapist set to lose his first-team role. Jamie Murphy, whose relationship with Mancini is understood to have become strained, was absent from last night’s trip to Poland (ed note: refers to the embarrassing loss to Ekstraklasa minnows Lech Poznan).

Anyone remember how Tevez and others were complaining of Mancini’s training practices at the beginning of the season (double sessions, resultant joint injuries)? Remember Mancini’s fallout with his trainer at the start of the campaign, when he fired the man who kept Man City the healthiest side in all of English football though the 09-10 season? I do, though I’ll be damned if I can find the post we wrote on this a few months back.

Mancini is looking for a scapegoat, again. City used his name (and lots of cash) to attract top players from all over, but now that he can’t do anything but destroy the bodies of the multimillion dollar squad, he’s sure to be out the door. Who’s next in line at the helm of Man City?

Newer Posts Older Posts