All the coverage about the position of soccer in the US, and whether Beckham moving there will have any impact, had me thinking. If his new home ground is only half-full, he’ll still be playing in front of about 13,000 fans. It’s true, that’s not very many compared to the Bernabéu or Old Trafford, but [...]
Posts tagged with ‘football’
Related tags:
Summer days driftin’ away
14 August 2006 – 3:54 pm
Flicking channels the other day, I was horrified to come across ‘Live Champions League Football’ – a pre-qualifier between Arsenal and Zagreb. Much as I like football, the start of the season marks the start of winter. It always seems especially grim to see football before the end of the cricket season.
Despite the realities of the [...]
Today’s big question
9 July 2006 – 10:38 pm
What did Materazzi say to Zidane to provoke such a violent reation?
EDIT: I’ve had a bit of a spike in traffic because this blog is the top-ranked result on Google for “what did materazzi say to zidane.” Welcome to my blog, but I’m afraid I don’t know the answer. I’ve seen people confidently claim it [...]
Bookings, red cards and the sin bin
27 June 2006 – 10:49 am
Having seen several matches at this World Cup mucked up by sendings off, I’m increasingly persuaded that it’s time to reform the yellow and red card system.
I just don’t think the progression of punishments is very well worked out. The free kick for minor fouls makes perfect sense. Sending a player off for genuinely dangerous [...]
World Cup food blogging – Sweden
20 June 2006 – 11:28 pm
I’ve been trying to keep optimistic about England’s chances in the World Cup, but it’s not easy. Michael Owen was the only forward in the squad with a history of scoring lots of goals, so that injury is a real blow. Crouch actually did OK today in midfield areas, but I just don’t think he’s [...]
Argentina, Angola, and Africa
17 June 2006 – 11:56 am
Argentina played the most beautiful football yesterday in thrashing Serbia and Montenegro. That’s the kind of play that you watch the World Cup to see – great individual flair combining in a great team performance. Great goals, great skills. It was like a highlight reel. The only thing it lacked to be a true all-time [...]
Amusing football thing
14 June 2006 – 10:53 am
Zlatan Ibrahimovic juggles chewing gum.
(via Släpkoppel)
Cult of Brasil
13 June 2006 – 10:17 pm
I wish the BBC commentators wouldn’t be quite so uncritically fanboy when they talk about Brazil. Yes, they have produced some brilliant players; yes, Ronaldinho is the world’s best player at the moment; yes the current squad is extremely talented and deservedly favourites to win the tournament. But they aren’t superhuman. Today, they looked pretty [...]
Togo vs. South Korea – live blogging!
13 June 2006 – 3:11 pm
With their glowing pink shirts and white shorts, the South Koreans look like they’re starring in a washing powder advert. The dazzle effect hasn’t stopped Togo taking the lead, though.
EDIT: the Rutherford kiss of death comes into play: almost immediately the Togolese have a man sent off and the Koreans score with a cracking free [...]
FIFA London Cup 2006
12 June 2006 – 11:00 pm
I was thinking the other day that it’s surprising and slightly disappointing that, while London is covered in England flags for the World Cup, you don’t see many flags from other countries. Something like 25% of people resident in London were born outside the UK, so there must be plenty of people supporting just about [...]
Peculiar subtitles
10 June 2006 – 1:08 pm
it’s still Michael Allen – and he scores a girl!
I was watching the football build-up with the sound off and the subtitles on.
Sport on YouTube
5 June 2006 – 3:27 pm
A flukey goal; a flukey hole in one; and a freakish cricket shot.
countdown: 6 giorni, 16 ore, 24 minuti, 41 secondi
3 June 2006 – 12:34 am
You will have noticed my incredible self control in not yet mentioning the World Cup.
But I was just watching a program called ‘World Cup Goals Galore’ featuring, well, lots and lots and lots of goals (top 10 free kicks; top ten goals scored by defenders; top ten goals scored by players with moustaches etc etc). [...]
Don’t mention the war
25 May 2006 – 12:56 am
Because the World Cup is in Germany, yesterday the Guardian decided to theme a whole section of the newspaper around the subject of “our peculiar relationship with Deutschland”.
It’s certainly true that the British have a generally negative idea of Germany. But these days I don’t think it’s particularly deeply felt or deeply held. And the [...]
Arsenal
29 March 2006 – 10:29 pm
Arsenal looked pretty damn good against Juventus last night. I’d love it if they won the Champion’s League, not just because they’re a British and London team but because it would be a bit more sand kicked in the face of Roman Abramovich.
Ashley Cole and gay footballers
9 March 2006 – 2:31 pm
Ashley Cole, who plays at left-back for Arsenal and England, has sent his lawyer to complain to Google because at the moment, if you search for ‘Ashley Cole’, it says:
See results for: ashley cole gay
Possibly even more bizarrely, from a legal point of view, he’s suing the News of the World over a story that [...]
Shaolin Soccer
31 January 2006 – 10:44 am
I watched Shaolin Soccer on DVD the other night. The box is covered in recommendations from the Sun, FHM, Nuts, and similarly blokish publications, which was a bit off-putting, but actually it was the most entertaining film I’ve seen in ages. It uses the classic structure of a ramshackle team of outsiders who finally have [...]
Michael Owen breaks his foot
1 January 2006 – 12:07 pm
Which means that in a four-year period, out of eleven first-choice members of the England team, six have suffered broken metatarsals. Is anyone else wondering if their boots are sturdy enough?