Tag: Champions League

  • World Cup Dispatch: The Final

    Was it the greatest World Cup Final, ever?

    I would say so. Mind you, I have only been paying attention since 2002, which means I only have six Finals under my belt, but nothing in my memory compares to what happened on Sunday.

    Argentina controlling the match for 80 minutes, then France came roaring back to life. Then Extra Time drama; Goals and Fouls! All of it ending with Penalties – terrible, unfair, gut-wrenching Penalty Kicks. It was a show, and Messi and Mbappe didn’t disappoint. Those two guys played like the superstars that they are. And in the end, either outcome would have been impressive. France winning back to back Cups would have been amazing, and something to truly celebrate. But Messi winning it, that was the ending everyone was hoping for; what a cap to end a career on? (Though rumors are already flying that Messi has changed his mind.) At the end of that match, no one could say that both teams didn’t give it their all.

    And because of that, I was left feeling that FIFA and Qatar didn’t deserve that Final, let alone this tournament. Let’s not forget the bribery, the intolerable working conditions for the migrant workers building these stadiums, the authoritarian government, the lack of civil liberties, the inability of players and fans to wear a rainbow. I was left feeling that the bad guys got away with it. Like FIFA was saying to me, “You were entertained, so it wasn’t that bad to get here, right?”

    And I was entertained. Morocco was fun to watch, and made you think that anything was possible, like Brazil losing when they looked unstoppable. Don’t forget about Japan never giving up, and fighting for every ball. The drama of Team USA having to beat Iran to get into the Round of 16. I mean, I could go on and on…

    What I am left with is loving the show, and hating the producers.

    I’m still not happy about that.

    Yet, Tottenham picks up play again on the 26th of December, and there still is the Champions League. And, don’t forget that July 2023 is the Women’s World Cup in Australia/New Zealand.

    Lots of football left to play.

  • ODDS and ENDS: World Cup, Lawsuits, and Reading

    (I Believe That We Will Win!)

    So, the World Cup is almost here, and yes, I am excited about it. I have kept my promise of not blogging non-stop about Tottenham, (even though they have been playing like gash, yet still did make it out of the group stage in the Champions League – but that is a blog for another day) and as the World Cup is about to begin, I will be writing about it. The teams I will be watching are Team USA because you support your home country, Mexico as they have good teams that never deliver and their fans are the best, and England. In fact, The English National Team released a video announcing their team lineup that I thought was rather original:

    Now, I woke up this morning to the news that a Texas Federal has ruled the Biden-Harris Student Loan Forgiveness plan unconstitutional. The lawsuit was filed by a group called Job Creators Network Foundation, which is an organization that was founded by the billionaire and former CEO of Home Depot, Bernard Marcus. What I find the most interesting about Marcus, and this whole situation, is that if you read his bio, after graduating high school, he wanted to be a doctor, but couldn’t afford college, so he went to a state school – Rutgers – back when college was funded by the government, making it affordable for working class kids from Newark in 1947. Added on top of that, I can find no evidence of Marcus fighting against the Federal Government cutting his taxes back in 2017. I mean, Marcus owed taxes, but then Trump passed a law and forgave what he owed, in essence. I love how hypocritical the uber-wealthy are. And they wonder why no one likes them.

    Did you know the average American reads 13 books a year? I was actually surprised by that number, as I thought it would be much lower. I have a feeling there are a few people out there that are reading way more than 13 books a year, which is pushing the number up, and I would like to thank those people for helping make America seem more literate.

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  • ODDS and ENDS: Not a Tottenham Blog, Sweaters, and Call Your Mother

    (Don’t Believe the Hype)

    I lied. I will talk about Tottenham, because they beat Frankfurt in their Champions League Group match. It didn’t start off well, with Dier giving up a stupid pass in their own box which allowed Frankfurt to score a pretty easy and embarrassing goal. But, Spurs rallied and didn’t go down the rabbit hole of self-destruction. Finally, the Kane/Son Rainbow connection of goal scoring showed up, and Son looked back to true form with a goal in the 19’ and 35’ minute. Harry Kane scored on a penalty shot, but uncharacteristically missed a second penalty kick by sailing the ball over the goal. On the Conte front, I appreciated the amount of substituting he did, getting Gil and Lucas on the pitch. (I do have a soft spot for these two players and hope to see more of them, as they are aggressive and tenacious players that I think Conte would want out there more.) Now, Spurs did give up a late goal in the 86’ minute which did put the fear of God in me, as I started having flashbacks to their Sporting CP match earlier in the group stage, when they blew that game in the last few minutes. This time around, they held it together to get the three points. Tottenham is currently sitting on top of the stage with 7 points, but Sporting CP and Marseille are right behind them with 6 points apiece. I didn’t think this would be an easy group, and with two matches to go, any of these teams could still take this.

    As for Spurs in the Premier League this weekend, Everton comes to play at Tottenham Stadium. Being that Everton is middle of the table, and Spurs are playing good football, I expect Tottenham to win. AND, NBC is showing the match on NBC, so I might actually be able to watch this one live.

    *

    The majority of the sweaters I own are pilly. You know, the sweater material in certain spots has bunched up forming little spots, or balls. This is caused by too much wear or cheap fabrics, and when I looked it up on the internet, the word “unsightly” was used often. Funny, but in my dynamic vision, I see a pilly sweater as one that is well worn and loved. Not a thing of unsightliness, but a badge of many a survived Fall and Winters. Instead of calling these sweaters unsightly, I think they should be referred to as “active vintage.”

    *

    Don’t forget to call your mom. She’d love to hear from you.

    (It’s Friday, which means this will be my last blog post for the week. If you’d like to give me a good send off, please take a moment to like, share comment, or even follow this blog. If you do, I promise I will redesign it to look really cool and engaging.)

  • ODDS and ENDS: Apple Picking, I Like Teams that Frustrate Me, and Halloween Costumes

    (By Mennen!)

    It’s Fall, which means apple picking. This is the one stupid Autumn tradition we have that I cannot quit. It’s… it’s just dumb. We go to a farm and pay the farmer to go out and harvest his crop for him. It feels like such a con, but damn do I love doing it. And we do take it too seriously. We’ll get up at the crack of dawn and drive way out to a farm in upstate New York, so we can be the first people there. And we’re gun’na buy a pumpkin too, maybe pickles as well, because I think we did that last time. The dog will be with us, and we’ll wander around the orchard, picking, then sampling apples, and if they don’t meet our standards, we’ll toss the half-eaten fruit on the ground, like some inconsiderate Patrician. Then for a week afterward, we’ll find a way to work apples into every meal. But the wife will make a really great apple pie, so that does make it worth it. It is a little bit of a cliché thing to do, but aren’t stupid traditions the ones we love the most?

    Oh, I sure know how to pick sports teams that end up confounding and frustrating me. I will say this, Tottenham accomplished the bare minimum in their Champions League Group match against Frankfurt – They didn’t lose. At the half way point in the group stage matches, Spurs are in second place with four points, so they are not out of the woods, and could still blow this. And that is the thing with this team – they still don’t seem to have found their groove. The Kane/Son duo still hasn’t shown up this season, and I think without that threat up front, it gives opponents the confidence to try added pressure against Tottenham’s back line, especially in the final ten minutes. And this Saturday will be another test against upstart Brighton, who is in fourth place behind Tottenham in the Premiere League. With only a month left to go before the World Cup break in November, Conte has to get this club into some cohesive championship form. The goal this season wasn’t to just be good, it was to win trophies.

    And, I spent two hours this morning searching and ordering a Hermione Granger costume for my daughter. Not that tie and robes boarding school stuff, no sir! She wants a very specific version of Hermione from a certain scene from a movie. I didn’t mean to, but I think I am teaching my daughter how to Cosplay.

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  • It’s a Tottenham Blog Post

    I don’t know a whole lot about Premiere League football, but I am learning. And as a burgeoning Tottenham Hotspur fan, I am still taking in as much lore and history about the team as possible. One of the things I have down is that Arsenal is the chief rival, and when these two teams play, it’s a very big deal, and it even has a name; North London Derby. I got that much down.

    It does seem like every time that these two teams play, there is something very important on the line. Last year, the second match between them pretty much determined who was going to qualify for the Champions League. This year, it was to see who would lead the top of the table, as Arsenal was in first and Spurs were in third.

    The match didn’t go Tottenham’s way, and though Kulusevski was out with an injury, he wouldn’t have helped. Arsenal was clearly the better team and they were determined to prove it. And this is the part that makes me nervous about Spurs; they are a fragile team. When things start going bad in a match, it’s hard for them to right the ship. The second goal that Arsenal scored should have been stopped by Lloris. It was a fluke mistake, or accident depending how you look at it, but the end of the day, he shouldn’t have let that ball squeak by him. Which leads me to Royal’s foul. Did he deserve a red card for it? I don’t think so. But it was a stupid foul, done out of frustration. And Arsenal made they pay for it, scoring four minutes later. At the end of the day, Arsenal is still in first and Spurs are third, but instead of a one point difference, it’s now four.

    Tottenham have now suffered two losses in three matches, and in both cases a lack of focus has done them in. Sure, I understand the argument that Conte is putting too much emphasis on scoring, and the defense is lacking. Maybe that will get solved later in the season. Maybe.

    As for now, they face Frankfurt, in Frankfurt, for a Champions League Group match. I haven’t heard if Kulusevski will be back, but just as with the Arsenal match, I’m not sure he will be the key to their success. The team needs to come out swinging, and be that aggressive group that Conte keeps talking about. That’s what I will be looking for.

    Here’s the obligatory: #COYS

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