A few players that have played in England and MLS have said that the better MLS teams would be one of the clubs that yo-yo between the Championship and Premiere League, which I think is probably accurate. The biggest issue is it's tough to keep a team together in MLS, and when players leave a good team it's harder for them to replace them due to parity rules. The league has taken the stance that it's better for all of the teams to rise slowly than to have a few teams shoot to the top. I think the pace of improvement will speed up a little bit in the coming years now that more teams have their own stadiums and there are new owners willing to splash money around. We've still got a way to go though.
I can live with that, and that says the MLS has made significant progress. The championship is not a great league - but it is not bad either. Of course this is coming from a guy who has season tickets to the Austin Aztex developmental team. Watch out for their 17 year old forward:...here is a vid of Kekuta Manneh ...he is VERY fast and can change directions on a dime with the ball.....probably see him in the near future at a much higher level. He is my 9 year olds favorite player right now.... <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/O6BjXEVozeM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> DD
ESPN's ratings for Euro 2012 are up big compared to 2008. http://goal.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/26/euro-2012-espn-scores-big-ratings/ Interesting stat of what markets in the US have the highest ratings too.
Perhaps terrible was an exaggeration. However, he was benched for a lot of the big matches due to his performances and he was often criticised for not living for the sport and for his mentality. He was okay, but terrible considering the expectations that some had for him. I thought he would do a lot better anyway...
Very excited for today's match. I feel like Nani is due to break out but It's frustrating to watch him continually waste chances down the wing. I don't see Postiga's injury hurting the Portuguese much mostly because Almeida is a bigger body, better with his head, and let's be serious Portugal still lacks a deft center forward. Portugal's back line has played well to this point especially Alves and Pepe though these two seem to allow opponents open shots from just outside the box. Força Portugal!
Very excited as well. It's an obvious make it of break it for Spain and the hardest game of the tournament so far. These guys have nothing to lose and should leave it all out on the pitch! Animo Roja!
Austin has been high in the ratings for the last few major tournaments. Without pro sports of our own, a rapidly growing population, and, well, it's too f***ing hot to go outside (109°F yesterday), we watch a lot of soccer.
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Would it be cheating? I mean the ball would be resting on his head, and that is perfectly legal. I think it would be hilarious if someone used enough product to build a concave cone in the top in which they could capture the ball. Can you imagine how fast Fifa would outlaw it....lol...surprised it has not been tried already. DD
It certainly would NOT be cheating, but most people would find it funny and at the same a form of "retention." On the other hand, if I were a referee, I'd call that a foul and award the ball to the other team, citing LAW 12.
then why not just balance the ball on your forehead and walk down the pitch. because it wouldn't work. A shoulder check and it's done. And conehead couldn't head the ball....and, not to put to fine a point on it, if it rained, you'd have a birdbath on your head....
Bouncing the ball on your head while running is called the "seal dribble" and Kerlon is the most well known guy that does it. If you check videos the defenders get pissed 90% of the time and just tackle him to the ground. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/v9shQBBXd4A" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> This guy was supposed to be the next great thing outta Brazil but never made it.
My brain says 2:1 for Spain, heart says Portugal will somehow win this. Hope heart wins over brain tonight.
