Everything Soccer

[dublinirish]

Yeah because the NFL is the marquee league. Do you think two flailing teams in the SPL would sell out?

you could have Celtic play any SPL team in Fenway and get a decent crowd if you marketed right. You only need one marquee team to make a game like this abroad work.

 

[ACamp1900]

I don't think the other leagues could have done it for a few reasons but mainly because no one would go to the matches that are going to be here.

La Liga can do it because they don't have to use their marquee matchups of El Classico to attract fans. Barca and Real fans would united revolt if an El Classico was in the US. However, Real Madrid playing Real Betis or Celta Vigo is still selling out. Same as Manchester City vs Watford. Same as Bayern vs Hoffenheim. Same as PSG vs Caen. Same as Juventus vs Genoa.

Celtic vs Hearts of Midlothian is not coming close to a sell out. Benfica vs Vitoria Guimeres is not selling out. Ajax vs AZ Alkmaar is not selling out.

You can't do Celtic vs Rangers or Benfica vs Porto in the US. The fans would revolt. The second tier matchups would attract no interest here.

Completely disagree with all of this short of fans in the home country's being upset... these teams play meaningless exhibitions here and draw good crowds... Celtic and Lisbon played in couple of second team friendlies in Boston to a packed houses not too long ago. I will say this... if things keep going like they are, in about ten to 15 years... you may have a point, which only stresses mine.

 

[Rogue219]

https://www.socceramerica.com/publi...eijn-and-ryan-mooney-on-us-soccer-coachi.html

Mixed bag, at least for me.

 

[ACamp1900]

So for like the fifth straight Euro match (honestly I think it's like the fifth straight one) Rangers fans clash with police in the streets and cause havoc in and around the stadium. British media refers to them over and over and over as, "Scottish soccer fans" not 'Ranger fans'. Meaning almost all the reports are "Scottish soccer fans clashed with police again"... "Scottish soccer fans bring mayhem with them yet again." That kind of stuff... Last week (during the fourth said riot) Rangers brass even stated openly that it's all caused by Celtic fans turning up at Ranger games and pretending to be Ranger fans and then just breaking shit... lolol. Okay, Celtic fans can be SUPER tinfoil hat types. Full disclosure they can be way over the top with it. Everything is a grand conspiracy against them,... but this one even gets me. Celtic get fines and leveled major penalties for one guy making a random gesture or for one supporter group putting out a banner. Rangers have now ducked ANY penalty from anyone for a long succession of violence by their fans and a large portion of the British media refuses to call them Ranger fans... it's pretty surreal.

 

[fightingirish26]

Boyata refused to play (he said he was injured and BR has openly refuted him) either leg and all three goals we gave up were really chintzy that he prob could have prevented. After this I doubt he has any future with the club. With or without him Celtic has needed upgrades on defense for at least three years... with the widening gap between the big four and everyone else though it's getting harder and harder to find CBs of any quality.

Boyata out, Denayer in?

 

[ACamp1900]

Boyata out, Denayer in?

Sounds like it... I would have loved to have had both together but whatever....

 

[notredomer23]

Sounds like it... I would have loved to have had both together but whatever....

Thought I read Denayer rejected the Celtic move to stay at Gala..

 

[fightingirish26]

Thought I read Denayer rejected the Celtic move to stay at Gala..

Think he wants Gala but they aren't offering enough

 

[ACamp1900]

Came out today that Gala is tightening up as Turkey's economy hits hard times so it's really only Celtic with the money and need to have him. Thing is he didn't really seem to enjoy playing in Scotland, was rather open about it so we will see.

 

[notredomer23]

Came out today that Gala is tightening up as Turkey's economy hits hard times so it's really only Celtic with the money and need to have him. Thing is he didn't really seem to enjoy playing in Scotland, was rather open about it so we will see.

This is something that mid tier leagues should take advantage of... Turkish lira has lost 43% of its value in the last year. lots of decent talent in there.

 

[ACamp1900]

Denayer is like England's answer to Patrick Roberts...........

 

[fightingirish26]

Denayer is like England's answer to Patrick Roberts...........

Wish Paddy would have gone to Leicester this year. Oh well, off to Girona, hope he can help them stay up.

 

[Rogue219]

Kevin DeBruyne is out three months.

In looking at City's first month of fixtures, one would think they're going to be fine initially.

 

[ACamp1900]

I see it as an opportunity lost by the smaller leagues. This will be followed soon by the EPL and others. The Dutch, Portuguese, Scottish and other leagues with history that are struggling to keep up with the massive money influxes...

I agree with you. I love a "big money team" in Arsenal. But even that is debatable about Arsenal anymore. How a club like them cannot afford to compete is sad, and horrible for the rest of Europe. Having those other leagues you mentioned would actually be really cool. Instead, it goes to the big money leagues...

Right on cue:

https://www.givemesport.com/1372426...e-share&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=1372426

I kind of touched on this last year with the below post, talk about ruining a pretty cool thing. It reminds me of what happened to cfb in the last 30 years in many ways. Anyway, I know some here simply don't care and that's all good, I appreciate the ability to vent a little bit...

Felt nostalgic and looked at some older Champions Leagues from my lifetime... I'm not a fan of the way they are expanding it to include more and more of the bigger leagues and less and less of the rest of Europe.

1982:Aston Villa won the cup
1983: Something called Widzew Łódź made the semis before Hamburg won the cup
1984: Dundee United made the semis
1985: Panathinaikos and Bordeaux both made the semis
1986: Steaua Bucharest won the cup
1987: Dynamo Kyiv made the semis
1988: PSV Eindhoven won the cup
1989: Galatasaray and Steaua faced off in a semi
1990:The quarters was mostly teams that would never make the groups now
1991: Red Star Belgrade, Marseille and Spartak made the semis; with RSB winning the cup
1992: Sampdoria took Barcelona to extra time in the finals
1993: A completely different format with the groups coming after the knockouts if you will and the two top teams from the groups playing in the final.
From there you had:
AJAX then won back to back titles
Dortmund won their lone title
Man U had their miracle run...

Times have sure changed... now it's the same four or five teams year after year with no end in sight. I'm also not a fan of expanding it further to allow more and more teams from a few select leagues while making it more and more difficult for teams not from the big four/five to get in the groups to begin with. I know nothing will change any time soon as the money drives it. Anyway, just sharing/thinking out loud.

 

[notredomer23]

Weah starting alongside Neymar and Di Maria today... I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t fully erect

 

[Rogue219]

Newcastle gets a chance to win with a PK and they let the player on the pitch who was probably having the worst day take the kick. Keeper saves it. 1 point instead of 3.

Officiating in the Premier League is really bad. No getting around it. It seems to get worse by the week. People are human, but there has to be some level of competence. More VAR would help.

The situation at Manchester United isn't looking good. Jose is saying morale is low, Pogba saying they don't have the right attitude. Two matches into the season. This all started during the preseason, however, and Jose Year Three usually follows this script. If he's not the most miserable, arrogant person in sports he's near the top of the list.

Arsenal fans need to relax. This transition hasn't been helped by hosting City Match One and going to Chelsea Match Two.

This City team doesn't look like they're going to let much get in their way. I have to assume, however, they have eyes for Champions League more than ever before.

Liverpool could have everything in place for the first time in years only to have a generational team in City standing in their way. Timing.

 

[GowerND11]

Arsenal fans need to relax. This transition hasn't been helped by hosting City Match One and going to Chelsea Match Two.

If you told me Arsenal would be down 2-0 within the first ~25 minutes AT Chelsea, and they'd be tied up until the 80 minute? I would have said no damn way. How dangerous they looked creating space in the final third, running down to the endline and those crosses was fantastic. Never in 100 years would someone think Auba would miss those chances (let alone Micki and Iwobi).

 

[NorthDakota]

Naby Keita is a boss

 

[Rogue219]

If you're going to compete with City for a title, be it Liverpool or anyone else, those are the kinds of matches you need to grind out. You get 3 points for a win, none of them for style. Liverpool went down to London and put in a 2-0 victory that was hard fought. That is what keeps you near the top of the table.

Michael Oliver was not his best yesterday, though neither was Liverpool. Still, if that is the best referee in England, he had a rough day. There seems to be a recurring theme with the officiating week after week in the Premier League, and it isn't a positive one.

Liverpool could have probably won by more. Key chances in both halves but ultimately they were the better side. Townsend hit the woodwork, but consider who in Europe has hit the woodwork more than Liverpool in the last decade? Allison had a great save on the free kick. Van Dijk and Gomez were tremendous. Lovern has given Gomez an opening the way Clyne did to Alexander Arnold last year.

Keita is going to be a force. Scary good player who is just getting started. Nothing more to say there.

This boils down to all the people who thought Liverpool spent too much an Van Dijk in January. Including Liverpool supporters. When you see the way he played yesterday, you have to wonder if maybe they didn't pay enough.

Short week for LFC. Brighton Hove Albion up next. They slayed the Special One this past weekend, the Stable Portuguese Genius. Should be interesting now that BHA have some confidence.

 

[ACamp1900]

Celtic just gave up yet another TURIBLE goal in Euro play. Man, they are really bad in the back four right now...

 

[ACamp1900]

Soon:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="und" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/8rpECxs9IY">pic.twitter.com/8rpECxs9IY</a></p>— LA Galaxy (@LAGalaxy) <a href="https://twitter.com/LAGalaxy/status/1032729595663941633?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 23, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[ACamp1900]

I'm so fucking sick of the Green Brigade. Can we just go ONE YEAR without them putting up some stupid banner that embarrasses any rational Celtic fan, the players and the club in general? Just thought I'd throw that out there.

 

[notredomer23]

I'm so fucking sick of the Green Brigade. Can we just go ONE YEAR without them putting up some stupid banner that embarrasses any rational Celtic fan, the players and the club in general? Just thought I'd throw that out there.

context?

 

[dublinirish]

context?

they displayed a banner saying wantaway defender Boyata is "not fit the wear the jersey"

 

[ACamp1900]

they displayed a banner saying want away defender Boyata is "not fit the wear the jersey"

In a game he scored the only goal in too... lol. They put up banners and such that are fine 9/10... but sure enough once a year or so they'll put up something so over the top or in such bad taste I'm having trouble overlooking it. It's usually over the top political garbage... this was just very poor taste. He's still on the squad, scored the only goal... leave these things to the board and manager. Kid couldn't even celebrate his goal much as their end was booing every time he touched the ball.

 

[gkIrish]

AEK made it. I am speechless. I don't really even remember when they made it 12 years ago.

Just for a little perspective AEK was bankrupt and relegated to the THIRD division of the Greek Super League 5 years ago.

 

[ACamp1900]

AEK made it. I am speechless. I don't really even remember when they made it 12 years ago.

Just for a little perspective AEK was bankrupt and relegated to the THIRD division of the Greek Super League 5 years ago.

You guys were in once you beat Celtic... You wern't going to get past us and then lose to Vidi

 

[Rogue219]

Clint Dempsey is hanging them up. Quite a career.

 

[ACamp1900]

I know he's been beat up this year but it would have been nice to be able to finish up the year on the field... get a proper send off and such... kind of sucks he won't get any of that.

 

[ACamp1900]

I am seeing a few threads where Dempsey is being beat up for "missing that wide open net against Belgium"... US 'soccer fans' everybody.....