Deuce

fret not, I'm sure they'll see us again soon. Was just looking at the stats for the rivalry, we didn't beat them once between 1937 and 1980

Apropos of nothing in particular, but Chicharito is a terrific player and was woefully under-appreciated at ManU.

we owned them for a while, but that likely has as much to do with their disfunction as our being good for a time.

He basically did for Ighalo what Ulloa/Okazaki did for Vardy, only he's more of a goal threat than those two. I read that somewhere and it sounded right so I'm gonna agree with it.

Not much Austin can do on that challenge that brought the red. He clearly gets the ball and the dude puts his leg in front of Austin's foot as it comes down. No one could've avoided that.

They're both mint. Under Armour bringin the ruckus

Come on you Reggae Boyz

They probably should've scheduled a lot of the group stage matches for smaller parks. Some of the MLS stadiums would've worked a lot better. Any idea why they didnt? It's doesnt make the tournament look good this way, would have thought empty stadiums would have been something they'd try and avoid. Looks instead like they're trying to show off massive stadiums It's really an indictment of the business behind the tournament. It's been marketed horribly since the beginning (I doubt the average U.S. sports fan knows that it's going on, unlike the WC if that were to be held here again) and tickets are way overpriced. I assume there is a minimum capacity requirement for stadiums to host the tournament (maybe 40k, or whatever FIFA normally requires) and none of the MLS soccer-specific stadiums make the cut. Edit: min. capacity is 50k only U.S.-Colombia and Brazil-Ecuador have hit that mark so far

it's the matter-of-factness that brings a Baba post to life

They probably should've scheduled a lot of the group stage matches for smaller parks. Some of the MLS stadiums would've worked a lot better.

I like to hedge my bets on the "a football team is/are a single/plural noun" debate.

Couple of interesting games today. Jamaica-Venezuela, Jamaica's a surprisingly decent team. Showed well at the Copa America last year and were arguably the best team at the Gold Cup, unfortunately losing to Mexico in the final. Good mix of English football veterans (Morgan, Mariappa, McCleary, Austin) and youngsters (Lawrence, Mattocks, Hector, Blake). They beat Chile on the road in a pre-tournament friendly last week. Mexico-Uruguay should be a very good game. Mexico have won every match since appointing their head coach Osorio last October (7-0-0) and haven't lost a match since dropping their group stage finale 1-2 to Ecuador last June at the Copa America. Uruguay won't have Suarez for this match but they're also in great form, currently top of the table in CONMEBOL WCQ.

Lack of interest/development/infrastructure really. It's just not a dominant sport over here. There are tons of great athletes in the States just not enough playing the game. Pretty much this. It's getting better, but our youth development system has been comically shit for years. We're able to routinely scrape together a semi-competitive team simply because we can pull a few diamonds in the rough from such a massive population base.

He's only 34 too. Next manager will have him back for Russia 2018. Not adequately replacing LD has been one of the biggest shortcomings of this team and still is. Only half joking. The US lacks a Donovan type player at the moment. Closest thing they got is Zardes, but he's all huff and puff and no real end result. Donovan with Dempsey off him, or a big striker with Donovan off him is what the US needs currently. Not saying it needs the actual Donovan, but a player like him that's speedy, agile and know how to finish off the scraps given to them. Klinsmann has the US playing a style of football that they don't have players suited for, it's idiotic. As much as you guys may hate it, the US is a workhorse team given their player pool at the moment. They need to play like a workhorse team, not a wannabe tiki-taka bullshit wankfest team that keeps not playing its best players in their normal formations. Klinsmann is a German Pardew tbh. US have all the same issues as Norway currently does with continuing with a style of play the players are not suited for whatsoever just because their managers are egocentrical wankers. I agree completely. This is the deepest player pool we've ever had and arguably the strongest team since the 2002 WC. There's no excuse for not playing well. At the end of the day, it's about holding Klinsmann to his own standard. He came in and said, "This is what our identity is going to be. This is how we're going to play." U.S. fans don't demand free-flowing 4-3-3 tiki-taka: we want a competitive team that's defensively solid and keeps opponents honest. Our strengths as a team remain athleticism, speed, and strength...why not utilize them ? We've always been a counter-attacking team and there's nothing wrong with that. Costa Rica made the WC QFs playing good football as a defensively-strong, counter-attacking team. Italy is the godfather of that kind of football. Klinsmann would have us believe that style of football is beneath us. And what have we gotten from him? Countless line-up changes, a revolving door at CB, leaked goals, and the most dangerous opportunities coming off the counter-attack as always, not from a high-backline, high-possession side breaking teams down. And that last bit is fine, but Klinsmann has the audacity to assume he's far superior to his predecessors as a tactician and coach and he's never fucking backed it up. That all being said, he deserves a fraction of credit for getting a lot of things correct against Colombia. Cameron-Brooks is our strongest CB pairing (and minus Cameron getting picked on the corner, both played very well), Yedlin at RB instead of RW, Bradley finally at #6. U.S. fans have been screaming at him to make these changes for years and he's finally come around, whether by choice or just the pure luck of landing on them in yet another squad shuffle. Fab Johnson is being wasted at LB, but he played well at fullback at the World Cup (on the right side no less) and I see the logic behind it. With this current squad, I'd consider bringing in Castillo at LB and pushing Johnson up to LW, where he belongs. Go for broke on that left side. Otherwise, I'm not sure why Lichaj has been completely iced out, despite playing LB week-in and week-out for Forest. Ream as well is capable of playing there and I'd like to see Villafaña brought in too, starting LB for Santos Laguna in LigaMX. Dempsey is being isolated at striker and dropping way too deep to pick the ball up. He remains our most important attacking player and we need him on the ball a hell of a lot more. So you have to consider giving him a strike partner, which is either Wood or Zardes. Those two are CFs, not wingers (though Zardes can play as a 4-3-3 wide forward decently), so they're being wasted out wide in the current set-up as well. Costa Rica is not nearly as good as they were at the World Cup and played like crap yesterday. Paraguay is a decent team on their day and they have some dangerous players. But we just beat Ecuador, a better team, and crushed Bolivia. Anything less than 4 points, and it really should be 6, from these two matches has to be seen as a complete failure for this team and it lands on Klinsmann. I'm a massive fanboy, but Bob Bradley would have done wonders with this US player pool. Looking at how he made average workhorses at Stabæk play like they were champions of the world, defensively solid and well organised counter attacking football. It's exactly the way the US should be playing with its current players. Klinsmann does deserve a lot of credit for expanding the pool in a way I don't know that Bradley would've been able to, particularly to coax the German-American contingent into coming aboard. I can't see the likes of Johnson, Brooks, or Green coming out as easily for Bradley. But who knows, Bradley was the one who brought Jones into the fold back in '09 after all. Would I take Bradley back now to capitalize on JK's hard work? For sure. I'm pretty sure that Kreis is being groomed as JK's eventual replacement, though I think Porter would be a better choice if we were go the American route. I'd prefer to go after someone with a bit more pedigree and who's actually had success at the international level. Pekerman or Sampaoli would be a dream, as would Bielsa. Whether or not they'd take the job is another question.

Gulati has consistently backed him, including after the absolute farce that was the Gold Cup and Confed Cup playoff last year. He should've been gone after that IMO. Followed by a pathetic loss on the road to Guatemala in WCQ. You get the sense that the only way he's let go is if we fail to qualify for Russia. Don't even think U.S. Soccer would blink if we failed to get out of the group in this tournament. Fans are starting to turn against him and the Twitterati has been pretty damn critical over the past year. Which includes Lalas, but he's a fucking idiot who likely believes he himself could do a better job.

WINNER: France RUNNER UP: Spain TOP SCORER: Thomas Muller TOTAL NUMBER OF RED CARDS: 3 AT WHAT ROUND WILL ENGLAND BE ELIMINATED: Semi-finals Group Stage 1 Friday 10th June 1 20:00 France 2-0 Romania Saturday 11th June 2 14:00 Albania 1-1 Switzerland 3 17:00 Wales 1-1 Slovakia 4 20:00 England 1-0 Russia Sunday 12th June 5 14:00 Turkey 1-1 Croatia 6 17:00 Poland 2-0 Northern Ireland 7 20:00 Germany 3-0 Ukraine Monday 13th June 8 14:00 Spain 1-0 Czech Rep 9 17:00 R. of Ireland 1-1 Sweden 10 20:00 Belgium 0-0 Italy Tuesday 14th June 11 17:00 Austria 2-1 Hungary 12 20:00 Portugal 2-1 Iceland

Newcastle to cool interest in French market as Rafa Benitez {lays rebuilds} recruitment system

I don't think we have the luxury of labeling him a "sell at all costs" player just because we don't like him, which is to say, if the price isn't right, he stays. He's clearly talented even if his attitude is shit.

so much hatred towards the US trying. it's just so forced. We're not Europeans, stop trying to be Europeans. Guaranteed this asshole was at the front of the pack too:

He'd be a great veteran addition to what's supposedly going to be a young defense. Going to this: from this: Who'd you rather learn from?

A midfield three of Kante-Xhaka-Ozil would be tasty. Spunk the cash for Higuain and they're rolling. Higuain Alexis Ox/Ramsey Ozil Kante Xhaka

What do you mean if it's true he's pushing 30? Do you doubt his age?

He's only 34 too. Next manager will have him back for Russia 2018. Not adequately replacing LD has been one of the biggest shortcomings of this team and still is. Only half joking. The US lacks a Donovan type player at the moment. Closest thing they got is Zardes, but he's all huff and puff and no real end result. Donovan with Dempsey off him, or a big striker with Donovan off him is what the US needs currently. Not saying it needs the actual Donovan, but a player like him that's speedy, agile and know how to finish off the scraps given to them. Klinsmann has the US playing a style of football that they don't have players suited for, it's idiotic. As much as you guys may hate it, the US is a workhorse team given their player pool at the moment. They need to play like a workhorse team, not a wannabe tiki-taka bullshit wankfest team that keeps not playing its best players in their normal formations. Klinsmann is a German Pardew tbh. US have all the same issues as Norway currently does with continuing with a style of play the players are not suited for whatsoever just because their managers are egocentrical wankers. I agree completely. This is the deepest player pool we've ever had and arguably the strongest team since the 2002 WC. There's no excuse for not playing well. At the end of the day, it's about holding Klinsmann to his own standard. He came in and said, "This is what our identity is going to be. This is how we're going to play." U.S. fans don't demand free-flowing 4-3-3 tiki-taka: we want a competitive team that's defensively solid and keeps opponents honest. Our strengths as a team remain athleticism, speed, and strength...why not utilize them ? We've always been a counter-attacking team and there's nothing wrong with that. Costa Rica made the WC QFs playing good football as a defensively-strong, counter-attacking team. Italy is the godfather of that kind of football. Klinsmann would have us believe that style of football is beneath us. And what have we gotten from him? Countless line-up changes, a revolving door at CB, leaked goals, and the most dangerous opportunities coming off the counter-attack as always, not from a high-backline, high-possession side breaking teams down. And that last bit is fine, but Klinsmann has the audacity to assume he's far superior to his predecessors as a tactician and coach and he's never fucking backed it up. That all being said, he deserves a fraction of credit for getting a lot of things correct against Colombia. Cameron-Brooks is our strongest CB pairing (and minus Cameron getting picked on the corner, both played very well), Yedlin at RB instead of RW, Bradley finally at #6. U.S. fans have been screaming at him to make these changes for years and he's finally come around, whether by choice or just the pure luck of landing on them in yet another squad shuffle. Fab Johnson is being wasted at LB, but he played well at fullback at the World Cup (on the right side no less) and I see the logic behind it. With this current squad, I'd consider bringing in Castillo at LB and pushing Johnson up to LW, where he belongs. Go for broke on that left side. Otherwise, I'm not sure why Lichaj has been completely iced out, despite playing LB week-in and week-out for Forest. Ream as well is capable of playing there and I'd like to see Villafaña brought in too, starting LB for Santos Laguna in LigaMX. Dempsey is being isolated at striker and dropping way too deep to pick the ball up. He remains our most important attacking player and we need him on the ball a hell of a lot more. So you have to consider giving him a strike partner, which is either Wood or Zardes. Those two are CFs, not wingers (though Zardes can play as a 4-3-3 wide forward decently), so they're being wasted out wide in the current set-up as well. Costa Rica is not nearly as good as they were at the World Cup and played like crap yesterday. Paraguay is a decent team on their day and they have some dangerous players. But we just beat Ecuador, a better team, and crushed Bolivia. Anything less than 4 points, and it really should be 6, from these two matches has to be seen as a complete failure for this team and it lands on Klinsmann.

Yup. I didn't really care at all that we lost the other day. Felt nothing. In that sense it felt worryingly like Newcastle over the past couple years.