ah like boxing you mean. this is how things get confusing. cuz cronaldo "took a dive" (dived, dove, whatever) in the penalty box trying to ectract a penalty kick but got himself a yellow card instead

he's really an expert in diving you see, and the world knows it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ixxt3nVORVs



no way portugal threw that game. they left everything on that field.

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ps- threepeat: i kinda figured out the word but didn't know the source-- basketball lingo is like chinese to me

It was literally patented by Pat Riley, which I find hilarious!! In regards to Portugal taking the dive, I just didn't see enough offensive urgency, consistency, or strategy to really believe that they were playing at top form, and whenever top-tier teams play shitty I am skeptical that its a coincidence, but like I said, in regards to sports I am an avid conspiracy theorists ;) I treat professional sports like cinema, I know movies and novels are not really, but I enjoy them just the same, and so I feel that way about sports. That it may not necessarily be real does not take way the fun for me, especially then the rigging looks to go my way

El Symbols is right that there's 'diving', falling down to look like you've been fouled in an attempt to get a free kick or penalty and maybe get the opposing player unfairly booked or even sent off. and then as you say say, there's the boxing association where, you're right, it means throwing a fight. I don't see any evidence of the latter going on during the tournament but the former is a real problem. Although some are better at it than others.

Have to agree with symbols again, re the Portugal game. No way was it 'thrown'. I'm sure it's happened in the past and I remember hearing stories a few world cups ago of pressure being put out on some South American side by big organised crime affiliated gamblers but I don't think anything actually happened. The only really high profile instances of it that I know of for sure have been in Italy, which is currently going through a big scandal about it, but that only effected its domestic league. Maybe I'm being naive but I really don't think it's that widespread a concern.

If Spain had been playing their usual level that game, I would have believed it a fair match, and if Portugal and been playing their level of offense, I would have also believed it a fair match, but Spain was playing half-assed and Portugal simply looked lethargic on offense (their defense was sharp though).. I'm not buying it.

Also, you guys are taking the word "dive" way to literally. It was only literal in boxing, when fighters dived to fake getting knocked out. However, in the concept of match fixing, the term is not literal. It could happen a number of ways, but I believe this match was fixed in favor of Spain.

"Shit. He's rumbled us!"

suchfriends, as an angelino you probably have encyclopedic knowledge of the game of basketball, which i'm never going to question. if you say lebron james is the son of jesus i believe you.

when it comes to football, however, and by this i mean the game you grew up knowing as "soccer", you're a very uninformed gringo. sorry!

to cure this condition, let me recommend a couple of resources:

1) http://espn.go.com/watchespn/index/_.../channel/espn3

^^ if you have the right internet provider, you'll be able to watch shit for free clicking on it. otherwise, sorry.

if you can watch: skip altogether the fucking MLS and go for the spanish, italian, and german games (there's also some dutch and french).

2) http://www.foxsoccer2go.com/

^^ $15 a month will buy you a subscription to this website. you can stream matches from the english premiere league plus some extra others and, for some weird reason, rugby (though i've never seen those as i don't understand the sport). best thing is no commitment: i am letting my subscription go dormant during the summer and it will be reactivated august 6 when we have fresh games to watch again.

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it shouldn't be hard to get the hang of things. i know you love conspiracy theories and all but if you keep saying the portugal spain match was fixed all you're saying is that you really know a lot about basketball.


ha ha-- this is one of those unusual times when tone is perfectly conveyed on the internets.

!@#$%!, when you're done patronizing me, remember, I am an Angelino, and we tore up all our baseball diamonds and turned them into futbol pitches yo!!

I follow carefully the World Cup, the Americas Cup, I admit, I don't really like the Euro, but I am not exactly as woefully ignorant of the ins and outs of futbol like you may suspect, even if I am more adept at basketball. That being said, is stand by my initial suspicions, I have watched PLENTY matches with Portugal, and plenty of matches with Spain, and even one or two of them playing each other, and I say, this was a dive. Spain played meh, without their usual force, and Portugal equally was meh, albeit their defense was playing a bit bitter, but I can't really say what was more impacting, Spain not really showing up on offense or Portugal only showing up on defense, but either way, I think Portugal could have played better, and *gasp* even have beat them ;)

by the way, you know I am already an ESPN3 junkie, but again, I think your patronizing tone was more innocent than condescending, so I won't take it personal..

also, I am only half-serious, half-trolling. Was the match necessarily fixed? Who knows? Really, who the fuck cares? Those assholes don't pay any of my bills, so I could care less how they pay theirs. However, I think it was obvious that both Spain and Portugal played lethargic, half-assed, urgency lacking futbol. Whether it was a dive or not then is irrelevant to the fact that I don't think either of those teams really showed up. I think the entire Semis were the same. Perhaps it was exhaustion then? Maybe teams played a bit too hard in the group matches and ran out of gas a bit down the stretch, either way, I was disappointed with the Semis, and also with the final.

So UEFA has named Iniesta its player of the tournament and named its 23 man 'dream' squad.

http://www.uefa.com/uefa/mediaservic...d=1838241.html

Not much to argue with over the 23 but I'm not sure I'd agree that Iniesta was the tournament's best player. I'd have to give that to Pirlo.

i guess if i had to choose a single superhero of the tournament, pirlo stands out as a single-man team. but here's the thing-- was pirlo really the best? or did he just stand out because he was so central to italy? because iniesta was amazing but you could take him out & spain wouldn't collapse the way italy wouldn't work with pirlo under pressure.

still though the two players that made the greatest impression for me were pirlo and buffon--the way buffon commanded his team, damn!!

btw someone already put together iniesta's reel:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNgNmaOHg4U

(you might wanna play that on mute, but the visuals are amazing)

(wow, that guy is really extraordinary)

It's a difficult one. As you say, Pirlo stood out but had a team built around him, while Iniesta was very much a cog in a bigger wheel. Given Spain's system, to award an individual player almost seems to deny the very point of what they 'mean', in a footballing sense. But these awards exist and if it goes to the player who really shone in a tournament, I'd still have to go with Pirlo, even if Italy's set up made it easier for him than Spain's did for Iniesta. Actually, in terms of isolating one Spanish player who I thought was most key to their success throughout the tournament, I'd maybe even go with Xabi-Alonso over Iniesta.

Saying all that, I then watch that youtube clip you linked and find myself immediately agreeing with you. Yes, Iniesta is just extraordinary.

So, John Terry, racist or just deeply unlikable?

i tried reading about this a bit the other day

they can sue you for "offensive language"?

It's a criminal offence here to make what's considered a racially abusive remark, although I'm not sure how that works in practice. Anyway, Terry admitted to calling QPR's Anton Ferdinand a "fucking black cunt" during a match but insisted that he said it out of sarcasm and the court couldn't decide on whether it was or not, so he got off.

so leeds could be 'sheiking all over' pretty soon. i really hope that it means the end of master bates.

Anyone looking to invest in a sleeping giant has to put Leeds quite high up the list. I don't know if they've still got massive debts but if they're sorted those out (and putting aside the fact I think anyone who invests in a football team is a bit daft) it seems like a no-brainer. Although I'd say the same about Newcastle, which Ashley still can't find a buyer for (assuming it's still even on the market).

And yet when I make obscene phone calls to the childrens hospital they miss the sarcasm in my voice every time. Double standards, thats what it is.

real sarcasm or just mere irony? anyway, speech police reeks of newspeak--sorry! i mean if the club suspends him for giving everyone a bad image, sure-- but prison or whatever? yikes! then again, every country copes differently with shit.

anyway, another 2 weeks and this whole show starts again, yes? my football website resumes charges on august 6th so it must mean something. anything i should look forward to? i'm new to your league...

I'm not sure Terry would know the difference between real sarcasm or irony. Personally I can't stand him but I don't think he's any more racist than any other footballer. The courts would've found things a lot more straightforward had they just charged him with being a total cunt.

As for the Prem, it's all just transfer stuff right now. Will Van Persie leave Arsenal? Will Modric leave Spurs? And where will they go? That kind of thing. The first games are on the 18th August. Prior to that, there's a charity match, the Community Shield, on the 12th, a fairly pointless annual fixture, played between the previous year's winners of the Prem (Man C) and the FA Cup (Chelsea). I don't know anyone who bothers with it, though.

Before all that starts, and while I said I wouldn't give a shit about the football in the Olympics, I can't help getting a little bit interested in them, especially seeing the South American sides that apparently take it very seriously. Plus we have the circus that is Team GB that'll at least provide something to laugh at. The real action doesn't start until the 18th, though.

The newspapers here tend to do quite detailed previews in the week leading up to the first games so I'll link them when they start coming out. They'll give you a better overview of the key players and an overall picture of the individual teams. And if you're that way inclined, I can also link some great weekly Prem-centric podcasts that run throughout the season.

I hope Paulybee revives his Fantasy Football league but haven't seen him around in ages and, if not, I know of a couple of other ones starting up on other forums that I go to, that we can all use.

hey, i thought van persie was going to juventus, now i find out that maybe not-- ha ha, thanks for the heads up.

i might be watching the olympics final maybe if they show it but not really crazy about it.

and thanks for the heads up on the dates! i'll reschedule my automatic reactivation for the 18th cuz i'm not crazy about friendlies.

speaking of which--- there was an england-brazil friendly the other day but i didn't recognize any of the names from the euros... people are probably on vacation. so i didn't watch just scrolled to see it ended 2-0. but meh.

keep me posted on leagues! i'm ready to go down in flames just like i did with the euros ha ha ha!

I've not joined a league yet but most are played on the official Prem League site (same as we used for the Euros) so you can always set your team up now and join a league closer to the time. It's the same set-up, 100m with unlimited transfers up till the first deadline. players will obviously change as transfers take place but you can at least work on building some kind of spine to your team. Good luck.

http://fantasy.premierleague.com

thanks man. i'll take some time to study this at some point-- not sure i can keep the year-long commitment, but i just might. i barely know the teams-- you got some favorites i should look into? (teams, not players, that is. i only know the 2 manchesters + chelsea really).

Some teams/players you might want to consider:

I imagine most points will come from Man City and based on last season I imagine lots of people will pick some variation of Hart, Aguero, Silva and Kompany, although slightly cheaper but very high scoring last year were Ya Ya Toure and Lescott.

Man U are difficult because their midfield was crap last season but they pick up lots of clean sheets so any regular starting defender should be a good steady bet. Jones might be a good affordable option and when he's fit Johnny Evans. Up front, Rooney always gets points but at 12m he's not cheap, and can go through periods when he does nothing (FF wise).

Arsenal seems to be losing all its best players but they've just signed Podolski which might be interesting. But for me things are too unsettled there and most of their players are too expensive to justify the gamble. At this stage anyway. I generally feel the same about Spurs players right now, too, and for similar reasons Liverpool's (although they've still got some bargain defenders like Jose Enrique).

Chelsea are another one that could be good for clean sheets. Terry's expensive but a solid bet to start (assuming he's not banned by the FA) and gets the odd goal which bumps up his FF score. Cahill's another decent bet in defence.

One team that may have flown under your radar is Newcastle, who have some great defenders that're still quite cheap. Simpson, R Taylor and Collicini are particular bargains you might want to consider. And Krul is an excellent keeper. They were good up front too but their strike force now isn't the bargain it was last season.

Some players from other teams who had great seasons last year are Clint Dempsey for Fulhum. Immense. Maybe my favourite player last season. Liverpool and Man U want him and he's expensive but he plays a lot and can score like a striker (while gaining the extra points as a midfielder). Love Love Love him. Also, from the newly promoted teams (and therefore exceptionally cheap) Mark Noble isn't even West Ham's best player but he takes 99% of their penalties and is lethal at them so could potentially pick up a lot of points that way. Also, if you're running out of money, Kembe for Reading is another solid cheap midfielder while Ricky Lambert for Southampton is a good cheap standby up front.

But it's all guesswork. Players you've never heard of suddenly emerge as must haves after a few weeks, while plenty of last season's bankers inevitably fall by the wayside.

Damn! After such a great cheat sheet, how can I say no.

I didn't know your favorite player is an American. What has the world come to!

Cool man, thanks. Some names there I like, but I don't know the teams (wtf is a "west ham"? ha!). But I'll put it together.

Many thanks.

I'm convinced that if Dempsey came from Europe instead of America he'd be far more highly regarded. Great player.

Haha, West Ham are the team I support. They're pretty dreadful and i wouldn't touch any of their defenders if you're looking for clean sheets but you know, they're cheap and they've got a player whose head steams up when it's cold. Not even Barcelona can claim they've got one of those.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7F7bUrZstyg

UAU

i used to be like that in high school, but from the shoulders... except we didn't get cold weather. buw WOW. looks awesome! he should make train noises.

He should score more goals is what he should do, but yeah.

I watched some of the olympic football but it's pretty hard to really care about it. Brazil look awesome but they're about the only major team there with a really credible squad. That Neymar fella looks pretty decent, though. Can't be long before the uber-European clubs start offering him blank cheques.

For Fantasy purposes, if you end up looking for a medium-priced player when you finaly want to transfer someone, take a look at Sunderland.
They were mid-table last year, after a poor start. They sacked the coach, and brought Martin O'Neil, who helped them a lot.
He's a manager who doesn't rotate his teams as much as Man City (or Man U at the back their last season), and he did really well with Aston Villa in the past.
Keep an eye on their results, it could be good.

they have been doing for a while, but a consequence of Brazil being a growing economy is their clubs can afford to keep their superstar players for longer. He will likely end up in Europe eventually though

yeah but for the first time ever you didnt win the league this year so why should we follow your advice :p

As a Spurs fan im well excited about AVB, even if Modric goes. If Van Persie leaves Arsenal and we dont finish above them next season that will be a colossal failure

Modric really needs to get fucked off. You can't have a player who is clearly desperate to go and expect things to be harmonious in the changing room. I think he'd be nothing but a drag for morale.

Take the 30mil and buy someone else.

Well there was the same speculation last summer and he ended up playing superbly last season. He was a professional about it and didnt sulk or moan, which i certainly respect alot. The problem is losing him will mean a TOTAL overhaul of the system, i dont think people really appreciate how fantastic he is at virtually every aspect of midfield play, his skill is exceptional and he works hard too.

If we can hold onto him i reckon he will still give his best over the season, he seems to be someone with that kind of hard working attitude to his craft, and thats what makes him such an attractive buy. Chelsea might go and win the league if he was in their squad.

Ouch!

There's no doubting Modric's quality or Levy's desire to keep him, but I wonder how keen AVB is. As you say, replacinging Modric would require a total overhaul, but I imagine that's precisely what AVB wants, even if he could never say that publicly, or even to Levy. His "angry" comments strike me as being those of a man who'd secretly love to see Modric go. I'll bet he's privately gutted that Bale renewed his contract, too.

avb did try to sign modric at chelsea so i think he'd want to keep him.

Pelé has been hyping him up as the greatest player in the universe for some time now, but what I've seen of him is a big fucking pussy. Maybe it's the young age but the moment someone puts a foot on him he disappears. Compare vs. the tiny but indestructible Messi, Neymar would get eaten alive in Yoorop. But we'll see...


Thanks! You gonna play? I still don't know if I can play. I got me a side job and I'm fucking swamped these days. Sucks, but the money is nice. Anyway, maybe I can just copy your team. Hmmmm....

If there's a SYG league I'd prolly join though. Just becuz I'd already know everyone. Could you start one?

I forgot about that. You're right. Although the way he talked about him in the press hardly sounds like its from someone wanting to keep him. That may be that's just the way that AVB communicates, though. Uncertain times ahead for Spurs fans, I think.


I like him. He's looked good during the Olympics and his record in Brazil speaks for itself. He goes down easily but i wouldn't mistake that for fragility. Drogba used to go down at the first hint of a breeze and he's not exactly delicate. We'll have a better idea in the World Cup, assuming he's not already a well known quantity by then, playing at one of Europe's mega-clubs. But as Ikari Cult says, the days of Brazilian clubs financially unable to compete with Europe may be over.

It's all irrelevant, obviously, compared with the vague possibility that Andy Carroll could be a West Ham player by the end of the month. He has his critics but I love the fella and I honestly can't think of any manager in the Prem right now more suited to Carroll's style than Big Sam. It won't happen because Carroll doesn't want it to but fuck, I'd love to see him in claret and blue.

This is the ongoing feud:
http://www.espn.co.uk/football/sport/story/145861.html

Anyway I saw Neymar puss out big time last year during the Copa América as some comentator predicted he would. Kinda like Gomez. Then again, he's only 20.

Pele's argument is obviously more fueled by national pride than common sense. No disrespect to the Brazilian league but unless he has an absolutely blinding World Cup he'll have to compete in a top European league before we can even start to compare him with the likes of Messi or CRonaldo. Right now he's just an exciting prospect - something Brazil has a habit of producing, then hyping to the hilt only to see them struggle when they try and establish themselves in Europe. I remember Pele declaring Robinho his heir apparent a few years ago, but he's had a really patchy career outside of Brazil. (Not to say the hype always falls flat: Ronaldo; Ronaldinho, etc.)

Just saying, maybe the England team should consider swapping footballs for boats and bicycles. We seem to be rather good with those.

And Hope Solo for the women's USA football team. A resounding "good God yes!"



EDIT: Incase Paulybee doesn't revive his Fantasy Football league this season, I set one up on the usual Premier league site.

Entry code is: 247166-167937