USA! USA! USA!

Okay, I would have to say that this World Cup has been pretty awesome so far. There have been plenty of goals, just the right amount of drama, and great world spirit. I will post  a lot in the coming days to cover the past few days of action (and future games), but this post will be for we, The United States of America (also know as 'murica).

We all know that I have had my doubts about the US national team. Sometimes I am even on the border of not supporting them, luckily for the US, they did a good job leading up to Brazil to get me interested in their cause. Putting on programs like Inside the March to Brazil and always giving us a behind the scenes look at the team made me like them a lot more.

Going into Ghana tonight I knew we had to get 3 points if we wanted to get out of the group. I couldn't even make a prediction as to who would win because I just really didn't have an idea. I knew the US had improved from 4 years ago but I didn't know if we could stand up to a team like Ghana who had also improved. When Dempsey scored his goal in 32 seconds (34 if you are a FIFA worker) I was bamboozled. I was very happy and very surprised. I thought, "Hey we might have a good chance now". That's when Ghana really came to life. The African nation looked faster, stronger, and had most of the possession. Then one of the worst possible things happened, Altidore when down grabbing his hamstring. Even though he is not my favorite player, he's Premier League built and is so strong that he can create chances for himself. We held a 1-0 lead through half time but we had to pull Besler off who picked up an injury. That might have the best thing possible in the sense of a result for the USA. Ghana tied the game in the 82nd minute. I was pretty sure it was all over in terms of a win, which would mean that our chances of getting out of the group would be pretty slim. Then John Brooks saved the day for the USA. Brooks came into the match as a sub for the injured Matt Besler. Brooks was quoted on twitter as "the greatest American since Abraham Lincoln". He headed the ball just like you're supposed to, down low and hard. It bounced past Ghana's keeper (this was off a corner) and hit the back of the net. He is now a true American hero.

Jurgen Klinsmann was asked at his press conference after the match why he subbed in Brooks instead of Omar Gonzalez. The answer was that Brooks is the sub for a left center back and Omar is the sub for a right center back.

Now to individual player reviews. Michael Bradley who looked so good in qualifiers just played terrible tonight. I expected great things from him tonight and maybe they'll show up against Portugal and Germany but he was majorly disappointing. He couldn't make a right passing decision, he didn't seem to put in many tackles, and for some of the game he disappeared. At the end of the game he did play a little better. Jermaine Jones on the other hand, was absolutely the man of the match. He worked really hard, made some excellent passes, and always seemed to be in the right place. Playing in the Champions league for so much of his career and just playing in the Bundesliga really paid off tonight. I've always liked him and have
 always thought he's a hard worker. Although Tim Howard didn't have to make a bunch of saves tonight, I though he played very well and he maybe the best player on the team. It's hard to compare outfield players to goalies sometimes. I asked us to bring Zusi in, and we did. He put in a great ball on the corner to help John Brooks give the US 3 points. I have seen him take some great set pieces at Sporting KC and he proved he could do it on the biggest stage.

The support over here in the States was giant for our National team. The hype was big and we got the win. Twitter was blowing up with USA chants, along with Instagram and the like. Hopefully soccer will continue to grow over here. Overall I wouldn't say it was a great performance from the United States, we weren't pretty but we got the job done and at the end of the day that's all that matters. Going into Portugal with 3 points, with Portugal being Pepeless, we should have some tremendous momentum.

For more World Cup coverage come back and read more in the following days. Also check out Google's World Cup Hub, they have some interesting stuff comparing trends on Google, like searches between the USA National team and Chuck Norris, along with other stuff.

Sao Paulo could've had a much worse day...

Well a day where you run 4 miles, go to Starbucks, and watch the World Cup is pretty awesome day. You Best and Worst Jersey people, don't worry, it will be out later tonight or later tomorrow. For now, lets focus on the first game of the World Cup.

The biggest stage in the world, this is it, especially as the host nation with so much weight on your shoulders. The worst possible thing that could happen for Brazil would be for Marcelo to score an own goal and put the Croatians up 1-0. But surely that was impossible, Brazil is a much better team. Well that is exactly what happened. Croatia started the game much better than Brazil and looked like they had a goal in them. I was only semi surprised when the first goal went in, I was more surprised that it was an own goal. The OG didn't deflate the hopes of Brazil, the poster boy as they're calling him, Neymar, didn't really get ahold of his left footed shot, but it snuck past the keeper, hit the post, and went into the goal. Some people are questioning the goalie and asking why he didn't get to it quicker as the shot rolled pretty slow across the pitch, but he saw it late and it was expertly placed. If one person was going to start a comeback for an entire nation, it would have to be Neymar, and that's exactly what he did.

Now to the most controversial part of the game, the penalty call in the second half. Fred dived. I love Fred and I think he's a good player, but it was clearly a dive. The past Premier League season I have seen many defenders pull on the shoulders of the attacker and as the striker went down the ref just waved his arms no. Even if it was a clear foul the ref would never point to the spot, but in the world cup, as the Croatian defender tugged slightly on Fred's shoulder, his legs flew up and his arms flailed in every direction. He clearly sold it to the ref and that's probably what gave Brazil the 3 points. I am not saying that announcers or experts are always right, I usually do not agree with them, but not one of them said the penalty call was a good call. Anyways, Neymar put it in, just barely though as the Croatian keeper got his hands to it.

After that Croatia still put up a very good effort. They didn't give up and created more chances. Julio Cesar made a few saves but Croatia couldn't find the back of the net. After a Croatia chance Brazil went on the counter and Oscar slid one past the keeper. Again, the keeper was questioned. I think on this one he might have been able to save it, but it wasn't as easy a save as some people are making it sound.

Overall Brazil might be looking at the match as a bit of a disappointment but they got the three points and that's what matters. The outcome could have been much different and I think Croatia will be at least a little happy with their performance. Of course, they wont be thrilled, no one should be after losing, but they should carry the good performance into their matches against Cameroon and Mexico.

World Cup Predictions: Part 2

Yesterday I told you what would happen in the group stage, today I tell you what will go down in the knockout stage and who will be crowned world champions. By the way, I haven't been able to play soccer in forever because of this rain, IT NEEDS TO STOP. Hopefully it wont rain this much in Brazil, even if it did, they probably have world class pitches. Anyways...

The knockout stage of any tournament is scary, if you lose you go home and your hopes of winning are over. First off, lets say I predicted everything right in the group stage. The knockout matches would start off like this:

Brazil vs. Spain! What a spectacle to have in the second round, not even the quarterfinals! This is a final worthy matchup happening in the round of 16. Spain is a great team, but Brazil is quick and flashy, two things Spain needs to catch up on. This will be a re-run of the confederations cup final of last summer, Brazil will dominate, and Brazil will win. The Ivory Coast and Uruguay will be a great game to watch if it actually happens. Even though the Ivory Coast should have a dominating group stage performance, Uruguay edges this one out. France and Bosnia will also be a very interesting game. As long as the French do not lose their minds I think Bosnia's Cinderella run will end there. An upset could be lurking though. Germany and Russia should be a pretty easy game for the Germans. Russia is a European team but their footballing talent is not what it once was. The Netherlands and Croatia might be a pretty physical game. The Dutch will pull out the win with their "total football". Italy and Columbia should be a fun game to watch. Without Falcao, the Columbians wont have enough power to get past Italy. Argentina and Switzerland, unfortunately for the Swiss they will not have a chance. Look for Argentina to slice through them like chocolate. Belgium and Portugal, doesn't get much better than that for a Round of 16 match (except Brazil vs Spain of course). The young Belgian squad will face their toughest opponent yet and it will not be easy at all. It might go into extra time, but Hazard and the rest of the Belgium squad can pull out a win.

Now into the quarterfinals. By now most of the mediocre teams are out and it all gets pretty exciting. Brazil vs Uruguay, a South American matchup. Uruguay has some great attacking quality and their defense isn't as bad as one might think. Although they stack up nicely against Brazil, Brazil's overall talent and momentum they will carry from beating Spain will push them through into the semifinals. Next up, a European match up, France vs Germany. France has plenty of talent but unfortunately for them they will meet up against a team that has even better talent. Germany advances to the semis. Another thrilling quarterfinal matchup is possible. I hope it happens because it will be very entertaining. The Netherlands vs Italy. This game could really go in either teams favor but I have the Italians advancing. Argentina will end Belgium's run. The Belgians will be even more dangerous in 4 years.

Ahh, the semi finals. Now you are so close to final you can taste it. No matter if the semi final games turn out to feature the same teams I have in them or not, they should be great games. My first semi final game involves two teams that are top favorites to win the whole tournament. Brazil vs Germany. This should be a cracker of a match. It could go deep into extra time or even into penalties but the home team, Brazil, will pull out the win under immense pressure. The other semi final has two big teams in it, not exactly favored teams to get that far, but still very good teams. Argentina vs Italy. Argentina has great attacking players and Italy just wont be able to handle it on South American soil. Argentina advances to set up an all South American final. Doesn't get much better than that.

Brazil vs Argentina. The atmosphere in Rio would be absolutely crazy. Whether this final happens or not, one of those teams will definitely be in it, Brazil. That's because Brazil will hoist the World Cup trophy on home soil. Playing at home will give them a huge boost of confidence. They have plenty of talent in all positions. Goalie, defense, and of course the midfield/forwards. Argentina is great up front but that can only carry you so far, that's why Brazil will win the 2014 World Cup.

Tomorrow I will post the third edition of the best feature on this blog: Best and Worst Jerseys. Of course it will be World Cup Edition so come back and read!

World Cup Predictions: Part 1

This is it. What we have all been waiting for. My World Cup predictions. While slugging down some coffee I will tell you all you need to know about what I think will go down in Brazil. Since starting this blog this will be the biggest tournament I have covered yet. No need to fear though, I would say I did pretty well covering the Euro's two years ago, so how different could it be, wink wink.

The World Cup does not really have a clear favorite this year, well in my opinion. Many nations will travel to South America with plenty of star power along with the occasional young gun stepping up. The eyes will be on the host nation, Brazil. Having home field advantage and having a good pool of talent, they are expected to do big things. The pressure will be immense and Neymar is the key to their success. Last season at the Confederations Cup, although not the biggest and best tournament out there, Neymar proved that he was more than just fancy street skill moves. Now on a much bigger stage he can lead his country to the most valuable prize possible.

The group stage, the key to the knock out rounds, the path to the final starts there. The group stage should be filled with some pretty interesting matches. I don't see many upsets taking place in any of the groups, or at least not any big upsets. Group A gives the host nation a pretty easy ticket into the second round, playing Cameroon, Mexico, and Croatia on home soil might secure them 9 points. With Brazil easily advancing, the battle for second will be much more interesting. Many of the so called experts favor Mexico but I think Croatia will advance. I just can't stand Mexico and I think they are a horrible team that does not deserve to be in the World Cup. Although star power doesn't mean everything, they just do not have the power that Croatia has. I am looking for Modric and Mandzukic to lead them on the next round, along with the support of Olic, Jelavic, and Eduardo.

My group B predictions might be surprising to some, well a lot of people actually. Yes I have Holland and Spain advancing, but the Netherlands will win the group. Spain's ticky-tacka football can only work for so long. I think they are aging and their style of play is getting left behind. Although Holland's defense can be shaky at points, their power going forward is tremendous. Arjen Robben and Robin Van Persie can lead the Dutch to a first place finish in the group. Chile could have made the group interesting but I think the injury to Vidal totally eliminates their chances (although there is a chance Vidal could play, but they still will not advance).

In Group C I have the Ivory Coast finishing first with Columbia in second. Yaya Toure had a great season at Man City and the team will look to him for leadership. Yaya isn't the only player on the team with a good amount of talent, Drogba maybe old but he can still finish. Gervinho usually impressed at Arsenal and I hear that he had a great season at Roma, so hopefully for the African team he can continue that form. Wilfried Bony is not a bad back up to have in case Drogba tires out. Columbia might have won the group but without Falcao it will be tough for them. Greece and Japan are not the strongest opponents out there but they can pack a punch every now and then.

Group D is a very interesting group with three teams that really feel like they have something to prove. One of those teams being England. I like England a lot and I think they have some great talent, but their problem is that they always do not use their talent to their full potential. Unfortunately I do not have the English advancing. Italy wins the group with Uruguay battling hard for second. Italy is another team I like. If Balotelli doesn't lose his mind and the rest of the Italian team plays to their full potential, they will impress. Uruguay is playing on South American soil and will need to play smart to advance in this group. England will make it hard for them but with players like Cavani and Suarez (Suarez could miss one or two games) along with Forlan and Godin I think Uruguay can pull off the second place "prize".

France should handle Group E easy. Playing against the Swiss, Honduras, and Ecuador should not be a test for them at all. They have looked great in friendlies and have two very good strikers in the Arsenal man, Giroud, and the Real Madrid man, Benzema. Ribery will miss out on Brazil which is deeply saddening to see a player with his quality get injured. The back line for France also has some key players like Koscielny and then Lloris in goal. Switzerland will finish second in the group but Ecuador could surprise them.

I expect great things from Argentina in Brazil. In group F they do not have a tough challenge. Nigeria might bother them a bit, along with Bosnia, but they should advance easily. The second place prize in this group will be awarded to Bosnia- Herzegodzeko. They are an underdog really but they could be very surprising. There is really no pressure on them because no one knows who they are. When they put a few up on Nigeria and Iran the world will definitely know who they are. Along with the star stirker from City Dzeko, the Stoke giant Begovic guards his goal like an oven door guards freshly baked cookies. Also look out for the St. Louis native Ibisevic.

Group G is what my country will be watching with hope. The USA got pretty much the worst possible group they could get. Their old foes from Ghana will be their best chance to get 3 points. After that it just gets harder and harder. Portugal and Germany will be next to impossible to beat and maybe even to tie. THE USA WILL NOT GET OUT OF THE GROUP  STAGE! Germany and Portugal on the other hand will. Many people have the Germans lifting the trophy in Rio, and they will win the group, possibly with 9 points. Their squad is just too good and full of talent, although Reus is out. I really like Reus and he is a fun player to watch so I'm sad he won't be there. The group will be a little harder for Portugal but they should advance.

Finally, Group F. This group should belong to the Belgians and the Russians. Belgium has a squad overflowing with talent, but lacking in experience. Some people are picking them to go very, very far in the tournament. Their lack of experience could hurt them in the later rounds but having a group with Russia, Algeria, and South Korea should guarantee them a spot in the next round. Russia will finish second in the group. Although Russia is not as strong as they once were, they got a nice draw so they should slide into the next round.

Well that's it for tonight. Tomorrow I will tell you what will go down in the knockout stages, and of course, who will lift the world's biggest prize in Rio. Come back and read please.

Well 4th place trophies aren't everything...

Okay, its been awhile since I wrote. But now it is summer and you know what that means, or what it should mean. More time to post. The last time I wrote was May 4th and since then many things have happened. Trophies have been distributed, injuries have happened, and a witch doctor from Ghana has affected the world cup.

WOO! That is right people... SUMMER! First off, lets get out of the way what happened last month. Although Arsenal did win another fourth place trophy, we actually won a real trophy too, the FA Cup. After we got down 2 nil in the first 9 minutes I thought we had blew another chance to lift the silverware, but with an excellent free kick from Santi Cazorla the rally started. Koscielny, who doesn't score a lot of goals but when he does they're big, scored another goal late on to send it into extra time. "HE'S BETTER THAN BALE, HE'S BETTER THAN BALEEE, AARON RAMSEY, HE'S BETTER THAN BALE". Ramsey scored off a fantastic strike off an even better pass from Giroud to let Vermaelen undeservingly lift the cup at Wembley. Vermaelen played like 3 minutes the whole season but since he's the "captain" I guess he has the right to lift the trophy.

On a much sadder note Atletico did blow their chance at trophy, the champions league trophy. After getting ahead 1-0 over their cross town rivals they just could not hold on in stoppage time. They ended up losing 4-1. But Atletico fans should not be disappointed with their season, or really the past few seasons at all. Winning the Copa Del Rey last year and the WHOLE LEAGUE this year, I would be very proud of a team that used to live in the shadows behind Barca and Real. By the way, those horrible guys on ESPN FC (not all of them are horrible, just most) said that the way Simeone ran on the field twice just ruined everything he had achieved the past few years. That might be the dumbest thing I have ever heard. I'm sure people will always remember him as a great coach and still love him.

Now that the most important stuff from the club season has been covered, it is time to switch our focus to Brazil. The World Cup that is. The most popular sporting event in the world. There has already been plenty of drama leading up to the world cup, which unfortunately I haven't written about at all. From Donovan getting left behind, Marco Reus getting injured, to Ronaldo getting injured due to some crazy magic, the build up to the world cup has been very exciting. Come back and read over the next few weeks... it is going to be fun.

One Crazy League and Arsenal wins another trophy!

Before writing a paper for geometry, writing a script for English, and doing some crazy calculations, I decided to write a blog post, because that's more entertaining than school anyways. My fingers will be busy typing the next few hours so why not get them warmed up by starting with the Premier League action this week.

At the beginning of the season I picked Manchester United to win the title, probably the worst prediction I could have made. Even a few minutes after I hit publish, before Man U even stepped on the pitch in August, I knew I had made a bad decision. Although I did not think it would turn out the way it has for the club, I did think they would not win the title back to back. Unfortunately I couldn't go back and edit the post, well I might have been able to, but anyways after I made the click of destiny I thought, "hey Mourinho is coming back to London, surely Chelsea will win the title, or wait maybe the money flowing Manchester City will win", never did I think that Liverpool would come in first and lift the trophy. They haven't yet, and right now its in City's hands.

I did however pick the Reds to come in 5th which is higher than some people might have chosen. I got fourth place right, or well I should. Arsenal secured their Champions League spot on Saturday when City defeated Everton 3-2, which means another 4th Place Trophy! Man I love winning that title every single year. Although, this year we do have a chance for a real trophy, the FA Cup. I'm glad we qualified for the Champions league so quickly (well with 36 games played) so that way Wenger and the team can focus on the Final at Wembley. Hull City is not the scariest opponent out there, but as we all know a final can pump the smallest of teams up to greatness, ask Manchester City how they've dealt with Wigan lately.

The title race is very exciting going into the final week of Premier League action. Liverpool takes on Palace tomorrow in what should be a win for Liverpool, but going to South London can be tricky for some clubs. Even if Liverpool wins out, because of City's great goal difference, they will not win the title if City wins out. City plays Aston Villa on Wednesday in Manchester and I just don't see them losing that one. They play once again at the Etihad stadium on Sunday against West Ham. Liverpool better be pulling for West Ham to hammer out a miracle because City at home are almost invincible. On the other side Liverpool has Newcastle at Anfield on Championship Sunday which should be very winnable. It will be very exciting to watch how the week plays out. With Arsenal already qualified for the Champions League I wont have to worry much on Sunday, all I have to do is hope we don't have any injuries to any big players with the FA Cup final on its way.

Chelsea sunk their title hopes today with a draw at the bridge to Norwich. Being mad at Hazard and for some strange reason not playing Oscar, Mourinho set his team up for a hard day. Chelsea has the summer to improve, which they will. I'm sure the money will be pouring out and new players will be shipped into London. The chances of Courtois and Lukaku coming back should give them promise. Depending on how Atl. Madrid do in the Champions league final and how Belgium perform in the world cup, demand for Courtois and Lukaku could be very high by the end of summer. Next year, Chelsea could be very, very dangerous.

My prediction for who will be lifting the trophy on Championship Sunday is *drum roll* Manchester City. They are just too good at home, have amazing depth, and play great attacking football. I'm going to be sad after Sunday, the Premier League title race and just the league as a whole has been filled with great games and amazing plot twists this year. Now every weekend I'll be missing the soccer filled mornings while drinking my coffee. At least we have the World Cup this summer...more on that later.

Moyes, Magical Madrid

The footballing world has really changed since the last time I wrote. It has had some crazy flops, flips, and fouls the past few months and many of the competitions have been thrilling to watch. I went to an FC Dallas game in person which is the closest I've been to a professional pitch in a while. It was a pretty entertaining game in which Dallas secured 3 points against the Timbers by winning 2-1. Right now Dallas is tied for 1st in the Western Division with Seattle. In more Europeanish news Man Who... Oops Man U has fired their coach David Moyes and the Madrid Derby will take place in Lisbon. 

"Glory Glory Man United" is not a song that should've been heard at Old Trafford this year unless United fans support boring, tasteless, and bad football. Whether it was Moyes fault or not, the former Everton and now former United boss is gone. Fired by the club for a season which will end with Manchester United out of the top four. There are many Moyes haters out there, and whether I think he should've have been fired or not, I think Sir Alex left Moyes with a sinking ship. Yes they did win the EPL last year but that does not mean the next season you can be mediocre. A lot of players at Manchester United seemed to be getting a little old, Ryan Giggs, Rio Ferdinand, Patrice Evra, and Darren Fletcher were a few names. On the other end, there seemed to be a lack of experience from a few players. Mostly young players like Januzaj and Buttner are not quite Premier league level yet but might be in the future. A person that I would've like to see Ferguson get into the line up more was Kagawa so maybe he would've been ready for Moyes to use. Kagawa was always exciting to watch in the Yellow and Black, but maybe he was not cut out for the more challenging English game. Not everything can be blamed on a "sinking ship" left for Moyes. He had opportunity to spend big bucks in both transfer windows but only brought in Fellaini and Mata. I'm sorry, but Fellaini was never a Manchester united player. I thought that before United bought him  he would never work out. Of course he would've already known Moyes coming from Everton, but he wouldn't fit in on the field for the Red Devils. Mata on the other hand might work well in the United system later, but for now I cant see him making much of an impact. Although, the first game he played for United he made some good passes and looked like he was ready to play. Other things we don't know about could have affected United's football, like if the players got behind Moyes' messages and coaching or if they didn't like anything he said. For a while at the beginning of the season Wayne Rooney seemed like the only player interested in winning at all. Robin Van Persie has only participated in 18 games out of the 35 United have played due to injury. They probably needed the services of the Dutchmen very bad. In the end, I probably wouldn't have fired him because most managers need more than one year, but oh well, I don't like United anyways, hopefully they'll keep falling.

A manager that I would like to see fired is everyone's favorite Pep Guardiola. I hated him when he was at Barcelona (a team I don't really care for so it didn't matter then) and I hate him even more at Bayern (a team that I actually like). Why would Munich fire Jupp Heynckes, I think that story about early retirement is just partially true, when he won the treble is crazy. Yes they had made the agreement to let him go before he won the Bundesliga, German League Cup, and Champions League, but they should've given him till the end of the season. Now look where they are, out of the Champions league. You know who I blame it on? That's right everyone's favorite, Guardiola. He went into Bayern, changed their interesting, entertaining play to ticky-taca, possession ball. Yes they have won the Bundesliga title but they just haven't looked as good. This can be highlighted by their Semi Final exit. Real Madrid defeated Bayern Munich on a 5-0 aggregate score to advance to the finals in Lisbon. I was really hoping the German Giants would win back to back Champions league trophies but Real was just too good for them. After an impressive performance in the first leg at the Bernabeu, Madrid pulled off an even more impressive second leg at the Allianz.

Something I am thrilled about in terms of the Champions league is that Atletico Madrid knocked Chelsea out of the champions league... AT STAMFORD BRIDGE. "Oh they'll never beat us at the bridge, we are too good there." HA! A quick note about the last game: Many people criticized Mourinho for playing the way he did, not because they got a bad result out of the game, but because it was boring. Who cares if it was boring, yes I want a match to be fun to watch too, but if that's the best strategy for a team, then let them do it. They are here to win and if they think that's the best way well let them do it. With Chelsea there are many more things to complain about, trust me.

A year after the all German final, this final will not only be all Spanish, but both teams are coming from the same city. A derby for a final!  The atmosphere should be tremendous and absolutely deafening. I'm pulling for Atletico although Real are the favorites. Atletico manages to surprise us over and over again with thrilling victories. It should be an exciting match. Both mangers are very good at what they do and both teams have attacking players that should create many chances. Atletico better win this year, because like Arsenal, I have a feeling a few of their players will be departing next year.

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