2013 was a relatively quiet year on the pages of CultFootball. A mere 20 posts (which is actually more than I would’ve guessed), and the majority of those in Q1. Keeping us afloat with quality content, to a large extent, was Tyrannosoccer Rex‘s ongoing (we hope) Dictators and Soccers series.
We have grand plans to pick things up in 2014, in particular in preparation for our 4th anniversary, which happens to coincide with a little footy tournament to be played in Brazil this summer (or should we say winter? That’s going to be confusing)
But for now, here’s a group-post–our best and worst of 2013:
Via PoliticalFootballs:
Best moments of the year I will send over soon, but I’d be able to give you the worst ones much quicker.West ham 3-0 at the laneLiverpool 5-0 at the laneCity 6-0 at the EtihadOne of the best was bale last minute winner versus west ham. Pure class.
My memorable moment was this morning when J sassed S in the liga fabulosa thread.
Backstory: too long to recount here.
But Liga Fabulosa, and in particular it’s email listserv, is the source of one of my personal memorable moments of the year: when a woman we’d never heard of or from wrote our weekend game listserv with the following link: http://thevillager.com/2011/
Worst of 2013:Getting Baled in Spurs match before Bayern match that turned everything around. Followed by June, July, most of August. Learning we did not succeed in ridding ourselves of Bendtner. Learning we bid on Suarez (this is complicated–he is incredible, but we were never going to get him, I wish we hadn’t been seen to be wanting to sign him, there is to me definitely principle involved…), dithering about on Higuain, learning Higuain dived face-first into submerged rocks (ok, this I just found painful to think of, but didn’t affect me much).Best of 2013:Discovering AVB’s “negative spiral” was an accurate prediction, just about the wrong North London club.
Learning Ozil signed.
Successfully enduring the 2 wk intl break to see if Ozil would survive to play for Arsenal and seeing he was even better than I thought he was.
Ozil masterminding Napoli blitz, his goal for the 2nd (goal, not match).
Ramsey.
Actually, miraculously in first not only at year’s end but for 90 days or whatever. Unheard of, in my fanship.Random medium 2013: Chicago bartender diss yesterday unwitnessed by me.To timed perfection, I’ve been an Arsenal fan since fall 2005, which makes me the same as the 8-year Arsenal veteran douchey suds purveyor Larry encountered yonder morn.
Best of 2013? Best of the decade?Or if everyone has seen enough of it, how about the audio? The collective awe as it unfolds, the cheer, and the satisfaction of the replay.
Suarez staying.
NBC doing a good job, even showing low table matches on NBC itself.
and of course, Port Vale promotion! Up the Valiants!Snow Game
Ah, good one. Forgot about that–seems like more than nine months since then.I was just showing pictures of the snow game to my 8 year-old niece during Christmas. She was confused: the dry field when I arrived, snowplows to keep the lines visible, grown men in patriotic spandex at the concessions, Alexi Lalas being paid to speak…
My best of 2013 is the departure of Ken Bates. There is an optimism in the air and it shows in the support from the fans and I think even from the players. An injection of investment from the new new owners may go a long way in the promotion fight.