Are England's World Cup chances stymied by EPL foreigners?
Posted by Paul Gardner on Apr. 15, 1:21 a.m.
The lament of Bobby Charlton -- Sir Bobby Charlton if you prefer that sort of thing -- is one that has been heard before. Charlton has assessed England's chances of winning the World Cup any time soon, and has decided -- correctly, it seems to me -- that those chances are pretty slim.
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2013: A chance for MLS to look beyond the marketing
Posted by Paul Gardner on Apr. 8, 1:36 a.m.
Comparisons being, we are told, odious, here is a small slice of odiousness to get things going. On Saturday, there were five games in Spain's premier division, La Liga. Five games in which 28 goals were scored. Average, 5.6 goals per game. Also on Saturday, there were five games in MLS. During which 11 goals were scored - average, 2.2 ...
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Reckless goalkeepers, and heedless referees
Posted by Paul Gardner on Apr. 5, 12:15 a.m.
A couple of recent referee calls that are worth studying because they raise issues that the rulebook does not seem to accommodate. These are the details -- I'm leaving out the scorelines, as we all know that they are not to be considered when referees make decisions.
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Soccer goes overboard with star-wars system
Posted by Paul Gardner on Mar. 30, 2:09 a.m.
We know that Michel Platini doesn't think much of goal line technology. He prefers his system of using extra assistant referees, one at each end, patrolling the goal line.
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Klinsmann the salesman prolongs problem
Posted by Soccer America on Mar. 27, 5:48 p.m.
First, the unworthy farce of the snow-job against Costa Rica. Well, OK, three points is three points. But it would be better, somehow nicer, if those three points were hauled in by playing soccer, don't you think?
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And elsewhere, some real soccer, on green grass ...
Posted by Paul Gardner on Mar. 23, 3:49 p.m.
For those of you who stumbled into the mess that was the USA-Costa Rica World Cup qualifier, let me assure you that the sport of soccer still lives, in something like its intended form. Elsewhere, on other TV channels on Friday, there were real games to be watched.
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Why an English ref boss doesn't suit U.S. soccer
Posted by Paul Gardner on Mar. 20, 2:04 a.m.
Peter Walton. A pleasant man, soft-spoken, quick to smile, alert and intelligent. A nice guy. But the wrong guy.
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With Messi on the prowl, nothing's sure in soccer
Posted by Paul Gardner on Mar. 15, 12:45 a.m.
Quite a week -- with the European Champions League providing most of the excitement and the fun.
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Nice soccer from the U-20s -- but don't mention the Latinos
Posted by Paul Gardner on Mar. 12, 12:44 a.m.
Tut, tut, Alexi Lalas, naughty, naughty. On a recent ESPN telecast Lalas had the bad taste, or the attention-seeking gall -- or was it simply the courage? -- to bring up what has evidently become a thorny subject these days: the place of Latino players in American soccer.
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Timbers-Red Bulls deliver the thrills MLS needs
Posted by Paul Gardner on Mar. 6, 1:24 a.m.
Well, here we go again. The trusty Red Bulls get off to a flying start in Portland, storming into a 3-1 halftime lead. Then, you'll never guess what ... it all went wrong in the second half and those predictably fallible Bulls ended up hanging on for dear life to salvage a 3-3 tie.
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Nani red card reveals Fox TV experts are 17 years behind the times
Posted by Paul Gardner on Mar. 5, 11:13 p.m.
So it's the referee's fault again. A Turkish referee, Cuneyt Cakir, had the gall to red-card Manchester United's Nani --- at Old Trafford, no less -- and Real Madrid won the game. And a torrent of abuse has gathered about Cakir's head.
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The Problem with Soccer by the Numbers
Posted by Paul Gardner on Feb. 27, 3:48 p.m.
Spurs coach Andre Villas-Boas was no doubt overstating things when he recently condemned soccer statistics as "useless." But his opinion is refreshing, to say the least.
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Klinsmann and the Gurus: Weird is the Word
Posted by Paul Gardner on Feb. 25, 2:43 p.m.
Jurgen Klinsmann's coaching methods have always struck me as having a rather weird fringe to them. Remember the fitness gurus and the team chants with the German national team? Then the curious case of the Buddha statues at Bayern?
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The Decline -- and is it to be the Fall? -- of Arsene Wenger
Posted by Paul Gardner on Feb. 20, 9:02 p.m.
Sadness -- though the rather lovelier French word tristesse seems more fitting -- haunts me when I consider what is happening to Arsene Wenger.
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GLT still a blurry area for FIFA
Posted by Paul Gardner on Feb. 19, 5:20 p.m.
The GLT -- goal line technology -- saga has been going on for well over a decade now, with FIFA adopting a ludicrous chameleon mode, dithering between a flat-out no, a coy maybe, and a reluctant yes -- with many a backtrack along the way.
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