Tag: Champions League

  • Yet Another Tottenham Hotspur Blog

    Tottenham beat Chelsea on Saturday.

    Let me say that again.

    Tottenham beat Chelsea on Saturday. At Chelsea! And Tottenham looked good pretty good out there, as in they were the better of the two teams. It did help that Palmer got a Red Card, but Spurs were going to win the match no matter what. It was the kind of game that made you get some hope back.

    Which is like the worst thing that I can say right now. I know that. I know.

    But for 90 minutes, it was just fun to watch the team play like a good team. Smart set pieces, good passing, working together like, you know, a team. It was like I had been waiting a whole year for Tottenham to show up. And come to think of it, I have been waiting a whole year for this. And I loved every second of it! Spurs played like a team that expected to win, not hoping that they’d win.

    Yes, yes, yes… I know I shouldn’t get ahead of myself. It was only one match after all. (But it was a win at Chelsea, which is where Spurs NEVER win.) There is still a bit of work that needs to be done, and everyone needs to stay healthy. (Looking at you Madison.) Saturday’s lineup was good, but something in my gut tells me that they still haven’t worked out the kinks and will continue to try different formations and combinations of players.

    Look, if Tottenham ends the season somewhere in the top 10, I think they should consider the year a resounding success. And I should leave it at that.

    But I won’t because they won one huge match, so clearly Tottenham is going to win the Premier League and then return to the Champions League next season!

  • ODDS and ENDS: Who Are These People?, I Have Hope Again, and NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament

    ODDS and ENDS: Who Are These People?, I Have Hope Again, and NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament

    (Of course you’re not shy…)

    I don’t spend much time on Facebook anymore, ever since my nieces and nephews told me that only old people go on that site. As I am clearly not an old person, I have stayed away from Facebook. Except for the daily check in I do, because I need to check in and see what the other old people are up to. There is a section on Facebook I generally skip over and it’s the “People You May Know” part. Today, I decided to flip though it to see if I might know any of them. And I get what the algorithm is trying to do, which is connect people to me that my other “friends” know, so inherently, most of these people I won’t know. But, going through the list, I started to play the game of “Do I know this person, because they look familiar?” I would see a face, then ask myself, did I take a class with this person in college? Or, did I do a show with this person? Or, did I work with this person? Honestly, I can’t remember anymore, which made me feel old. Which is fitting as only old people go on Facebook.

    Stupid Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday went on beat Atlético Madrid at Tottenham. Sure, they did lose the on aggregate and are out of the Champions League now, but they won a match at home. And the whole team looked like they gave a shit. Which now means that they went out and gave all of us supports the feeling that hope was alive. That on Sunday when they face off against Nottingham Forest, another team fighting not to be relegated, that we have a Spurs team to root for. A team that doesn’t want to be embarrassed. A team that is willing to dig deep and fight to the final whistle. And just when I had written the club off, now I have to go back to caring again.

    Oh, my bracket is shot to hell. Not awful, but I did make some really bad picks. My problem with making a bracket for the tournament is that I will always pick the underdog. Sometimes it works out really well, making it look like I knew something that everyone else didn’t. Like how I picked TCU, VCU, Texas A&M, Texas, and Saint Louis. Of the first 16 games, I had picked 7 upsets. Maybe not the most logical system for picking winners, but I can’t deny who I am. I like giant killers.

  • Okay, So I’m Going to Talk About Tottenham

    I know what I said on Friday, and I don’t care. I need to talk to someone about Tottenham Hotspur after their match with Liverpool, and it looks like it’ll be the four of you who read this.

    So, I had written off the team as of Friday, being that Tottenham had a bit of a meltdown in their Champions League match (I don’t think they will make it past this round) and looking ahead, I saw that they were playing Liverpool on Sunday. And though Liverpool isn’t the same team they were last year and they have they issues of their own, Liverpool is still sitting at the top of the table while Spurs are swimming around the bottom. AND the match was going to be IN Liverpool also lead to my feeling of dread.

    But who knew that a couple of guys on Tottenham actually gave a shit? I’m talking about Richarlison, Tel, and Porro. From my perspective, Richarlison threw himself into this match, and had at least three solid scoring chances in front of the goal, all headers that were either blocked or were just outside. Tel also seemed to be digging and working for it. His play was improved and created several scoring chances. And the last was Pedro Porro, who was severally tested by Rio. I do have to admit that Rio might be someone to keep your eye on, as that guy looked like he was fearless out there. BUT, Porro kept up with him and stopped him, though it was close.

    I know that the one point they received from this draw didn’t change anything in the standings; it’s still a fight between Spurs, Nottingham Forrest, West Ham, and Leeds to see who will be relegated. Yet, getting a point for a team who hasn’t won anything in 2026 was like a weight being taken off their backs. (Mine too.) Also, Spurs got that point against a way better team on that team’s home pitch. So yes, going to Liverpool and getting a point does feel like a win.

    I shouldn’t get ahead of myself. Spurs still have a ton of injuries, and time is running out on the season. Lots of things can and will go wrong from now to the end of May. Yet, on that 90th minute on Sunday, just for a second, all did not seem lost. Hope showed up. Stupid and unfair Hope.

  • ODDS and ENDS: In the car with the Dog, Talking The Beatles, and Tottenham Update

    (Must be the clouds in my eyes…)

    Not a bad Autumn morning. Took this while doing the Alt Side Parking dance.

    I brought the dog with me. Everyone loves dog pictures, right?

    Had fun talking and playing Beatle songs with the kid last night. Right now, she’s have fun with “I Am the Walrus” and the lyrics “Coo Coo Ca Choo,” as she’s heard them referenced in other songs, TV shows, and movies. I think for her, it’s like decoding a mystery from the long ago past. She also finds the “Paul is Dead” stuff really weird and funny as well. She wanted me to play my favorite songs, and tell her why I liked them so much. When I got to “Your Mother Should Know” I was struck with how melancholy it made me. Part of it was thinking about my mother, and the music that was popular before she was born, and then thinking how The Beatles are now music that was around before my kid’s mother was born. I felt like I was grasping for a moment that had already passed me.

    How do I feel about the state of Tottenham’s season so far? That’s a good question, that I’m still not sure how to answer. They are doing better than last season. BUT… they are having trouble winning at home. And the Champions League matches haven’t been awful, but it does feel like they can’t get out of their own way. Like, they are playing better, but not smarter. I do believe that if Maddison was out there, then it would be a different story, and they would be top of the table. Yes, I might be delusional.

  • ODDS and ENDS: Stupid Victorious Tottenham, Paint Swatches, and Fuzzy Brain

    ODDS and ENDS: Stupid Victorious Tottenham, Paint Swatches, and Fuzzy Brain

    (Don’t know where I’m going cuz I don’t know where I been…)

    Well, stupid Tottenham Hotspur went and won the Europa League. I am very happy about this development. Happy that this team won a trophy. Happy that Son hoisted that trophy in the air. Happy that Tottenham has qualified for the Champions League next season by winning the Europa League. What I am annoyed about is that I, and the collective Spurs fan base, had to got through this whole shit season in the Premier League. 17th place?!?! It’s the worst that you can do without being relegated. And yet, somehow, Spurs won a trophy and gets to play in the Champions League. So, I really shouldn’t complain because it is true that the team accomplished its two goals; win a trophy and qualify for the Champions League. But, I’m still going to complain. #COYS

    You know what I’m doing this Memorial Day Weekend?!? Me and the wife are going to Home Depot to look at paint swatches and try to figure out what color to paint the living room. And this color needs to define who we are for the next ten years. See, the last time we painted the living room was right before the kid was born. At that time, we thought a blue-ish gray was the color that played to our strengths. This time around, not so sure. I believe that we are going to paint all of our trim white, while most of our furniture will also be white, or a natural wood color. Maybe a blue? A green? Odds are that I will go with what color the wife picks out. She’s much better at this stuff than me.

    And to end with, I want to say that this morning… I have had the fuzziest brain fog. Not so fuzzy that I couldn’t function, but more like walking through sand. Everything felt slow, or better yet, I felt slow. I got an okay amount of sleep, so I don’t think this is because I’m tired. I would hate to think that this is what getting older will feel like. OR, maybe all of this is due to gray skies? Maybe it’s mood. The lighting has affected me. The gray muted tones are making me want to go back to bed, or at least curl up on the couch. Or maybe it’s Friday, and I don’t feel like doing a damn thing.

    Oh, and seriously, WTF is up with the AI suggested image this week…