World Cup and European leagues

[Hoosier Titan]

Liverpool pay 20 mill for Keane?.........not that Keane in his prime the other Keane.  .........and they won't pony up for Barry?

Robbie Keane has always been one of my favorite strikers.  He's versatile--he can move with the ball as well as be a target.  He knows when to pass off and when to shoot.  He's got stamina, he's not fragile, and he's 28--not past his prime.    He's a 20-goal-a-year guy and he's also a leader.  What's not to like?  I'm absolutely thrilled.  He'll be great with Torres, Gerrard, Kuyt, and Babel.

There's no real comparison between him and Roy Keane--they are (were) different players.  But Roy was always a little over the edge toward thugginess for my taste (even before I was a comfirmed Liverpool supporter).  Plus, don't forget that Sir Alex flatly refuses to let players leave Old Trafford for Anfield--witness Heinze in recent years.

It's not a question of Liverpool not "ponying up" for Barry.  The last I heard AV wanted 18 mil and the offer was 16.5 plus some other negotiations (there were also possible deals for Xabi Alonso and Steve Finnan that seem to have fallen through.)  Barry told Martin O'Neill he wanted to go to Liverpool, he officially requested a transfer, and O'Neill has responded by not letting him report, rejecting several proposals, and blasting everyone in the press.  He seems determined that if Barry doesn't want to play for him, he won't play for anyone.  I can understand being annoyed, but if a quality player wants to leave, it seems it only makes sense to try to get something out of the deal and move on.

I'm absolutely thrilled that Liverpool have THIS Keane, and I hope that the Barry deal still goes through, for everyone's sake.

[sac]

I'm aware of THIS Keane and his prowess...........I just can't believe he's worth that much.  We shall see.


Given the circumstances surrounding the Barry saga, perhaps Liverpool just gave up and went for Keane.  Stay tuned I guess.

[Hoosier Titan]

I'm aware of THIS Keane and his prowess...........I just can't believe he's worth that much.  We shall see.

Given the circumstances surrounding the Barry saga, perhaps Liverpool just gave up and went for Keane.  Stay tuned I guess.

I agree about the amount of money being thrown about.  David Bentley to Spurs for £15mil?  Pavlyuchenko and Arshavin also to Spurs for £50mil???  The first is almost a done deal, the second a rumor from several sources. 

In this climate, for a proven, top-five or six striker with versatility and a great work ethic, I'm fine with £20 million for Robbie Keane.  But, as you say, only time will tell.

Meanwhile, the headlines this morning say "Barry's Liverpool move still on."  Stay tuned, indeed! 

[ScotsFan]

No opinions about the opening weekend of the EPL???

Chelsea looks like they made quite the statement with their 4-0 thrashing of Pompey.

Scolari looks to be making an immediate impact for the Blues.

ManU looked less than impressive in their 1-1 draw at home to Newcastle.

And it looked like Arsenal and Liverpool were both fortunate to come away with 3 points against lesser opponents.

[Hoosier Titan]

Too much Michael Phelps and gymnastics drama to watch much EPL, I'm afraid. 

Your take looks about right, SF.  The Liverpool match was the only one I saw.  Although the Reds narrowly deserved the win, I thought Sunderland played very well.  If not for a moment of brilliance from Torres, Roy Keane's side would have had a well-earned draw.

I am less than impressed with the choice of John Terry (again) as England captain.  I don't question his desire and resolve, but I think he's been the worst in the league at not showing respect for officials.  What do others think?

[WLCALUM83]

Here's my take on the German league after Week 1 action.

Hamburg and Bayern Munich played to a 2-2 draw. Hamburg ran into a banged up Munich squad which had several starters out, and took advantage.

Stuttgart looked good beating newly promoted Borussia Moenchengladbach.

Was hoping Werder Bremen would do better than draw in their opener.

[sac]

After qualifying by the skin of their teeth, Liverpool deserved a group like this one in the Champions league.

PSV Eindhoven, Marseille and Atletico Madrid.   Haven't they played Marseille 3 years in a row now?  No big guns, and surely even the slow starting Liverpool have to be considered favs but who knows.

Then there's Arsenal, who crushed their qualifying opponent and they get Porto and a trip to Ukraine and Turkey with Dynamo Kiev and Fenerbache.

Real Madrid and Juventus in the same group, won't matter much with the other opponents but still should be interesting.

........and I'll put money down right now ESPN gives us both ManU/Celtic games.

Here's what the BBC has to say about it.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/7584644.stm

[Hoosier Titan]

Actually, the BBC seems to think that the Liverpool group is a tough one.  At this point, they are just fortunate to be in the pool at all.  Sometime this season it would be great to score a goal before the 85th minute, let alone the 118th!  Maybe Gerrard's surgery, and the return of Mascherano from the Olympics, will help.

[sac]

Actually, the BBC seems to think that the Liverpool group is a tough one.  At this point, they are just fortunate to be in the pool at all.  Sometime this season it would be great to score a goal before the 85th minute, let alone the 118th!  Maybe Gerrard's surgery, and the return of Mascherano from the Olympics, will help.

Yeah, it just lacks the "oh my god they have to play (insert Italian or Spanish giant here)" factor.  At the very least my non-European football obsessed and less informed self has to believe its an even but competitive group.  No easy ones.   I hope we get to see a couple of those games.

The most interesting one has to be the one at Atletico Madrid........nice homecoming for Torres.

[Greek Tragedy]

The English teams are popular in the US.  Obviously, we'll get both Man U/Celtic games, and why not?  They'll get ratings, as would Chelsea and Liverpool.

If you don't like Man U., it's like getting Yankees/Red Sox on ESPN the 13 times they play each other during the year. 

I enjoy watching the pace and skill of the EPL on FSC...so much so that I don't even bother watching MLS, unless I need a nap.  It's sad that I say that because I should support MLS, but it's painful to watch at times.

[sac]

The English teams are popular in the US.  Obviously, we'll get both Man U/Celtic games, and why not?  They'll get ratings, as would Chelsea and Liverpool.

If you don't like Man U., it's like getting Yankees/Red Sox on ESPN the 13 times they play each other during the year. 

I enjoy watching the pace and skill of the EPL on FSC...so much so that I don't even bother watching MLS, unless I need a nap.  It's sad that I say that because I should support MLS, but it's painful to watch at times.

Didn't mean it to sound like a bad thing.  Just thought it would be a no brainer for ESPN.

[Hoosier Titan]

Another on-site report--this time from Chile.  Saw the first half of the Chile-Brazil WC qualifier on TV last night. (I'm an astronomer, and I'm currently sitting at a mountaintop observatory in the Andes, waiting for the clouds to clear).  I watched in a common room surrounded by fanatical Chilenos, so my sympathies will be obvious.

For the first 15 minutes, Chile completely outplayed Brazil.  Utterly.  Their passing was sharp, almost Spain-like in precision.  They had a great open shot when Mark Gonzalez (played for Liverpool a couple of years ago) took it down the left side and crossed to a wide-open teammate on the right.  He was almost too open--the shot went over the goal from very close range.  Brazil looked disorganized and thuggy.  They earned several fouls, and finally a yellow card was given for a high spike that caught a Chilean knee (it looked intentional).  Then, the Brasilenos complained so much that another yellow was given for dissent.  The refs didn't have headset mics, so the whole thing took a while.  As play resumed I was thinking "I hope Chile hasn't gone off the boil," and instantly a Chilean defender got beat and gave up a free kick right in front of the goal.  The wall shielded the keeper's view, and Ronaldinho's kick was deflected in.  No chance for a save.  A few minutes later another defender got beat, and there was an obvious penalty called against Chile.  Ronaldinho took one of the worst penalty shots I have ever seen--he started from the left of the ball, making it look pretty obvious not only that he was going right-footed but that he was going to try to bend it to the left--and he telegraphed the motion with his eyes.  Not to take away from the Chilean keeper--he made a great save, and my mates were cheering wildly.  But then, off a Brazilian counterattack, the defense got beat yet again and Robinho put it away.  Desolation in the room.  I left at the half to watch the skies--they never cleared--and the final was 3-0. 

If Chile had quicker defenders and a bit more size, they'd be contenders.  The skill level is very high.  And it's always entertaining to watch a match here.  Wish I'd seen them against another side.  And I hope it clears up!

[WLCALUM83]

9-10 Final:

Mexico 4, Canada 1.

Omar Bravo came on as a sub and scored 1 of the goals.

(Wonder what kind of milestone Mexico's C Blanco reached. After the match ended there was a huge banner produced in his honor, he was wearing a red wristband/armband, etc.)

[ScotsFan]

Other WCQ finals of note:

The US rolled over T&T 3-0.  Bradley, Dempsey and Ching were the goal scorers.

England thumped Croatia to the tune of 4-1!  Theo Walcott recorded a hat trick in the win!

[Hoosier Titan]

Re:  the performance by England against Croatia, on the BBC:

"The Large Hadron Collider has been turned on, and we're in a parallel universe, one where England are good at football.  There can be no other explanation." 

Chile beat Colombia 4-0 last night, but since it was clear, I don't know anyone who watched the match.  In the afternoon, the procession of the team bus to the National Stadium was carried on live TV, with an actual match (Uruguay-Ecuador) reduced to a tiny box on the side.  Interesting to see how other countries cover football.  I can call it that here, can't I?