OT: Futbol chit chat

[trancemeister]

I figured that since there were quite a few soccer fans within our little Niner community, I might start one master thread where we could throw in all our soccer chit chat. That way we don’t have multiple OT threads running around on this board and we can keep all our discussions in here.

So for starters, what team(s) do you folks like/support? That way I know who to talk trash to

I follow multiple leagues but if I had to pick just one team, it would be Juventus. Unfortunately for me, much like the Niners, they seem to be stuck in the rebuilding phase for the last several years! Calciopoli (don’t even get me started on the scandal behind that scandal) really did us in and we just haven’t recovered from it.

1(b) on my list is Arsenal and for the past several years I have been following them more closely and watch their games a whole lot more than Juve.

Lastly, I have always been in awe of the game (show) that Barcelona has put out. If there was one team that I had to pick to watch and appreciate the sheer beauty of the sport, the current Barca squad would be my unanimous pick! I have followed the team since the days of Koeman, Laudrup, Kluivert, and the De Boer brothers.

Looking forward to the Premiership kicking off this weekend, and plenty of discussion with all of you…

 

[tallglassofwater007]

I don't follow as closely as some of you guys to the regular clubs... I follow more the national teams. Aside from Team USA I like Italy (or else my grandmother would kill me) and watching Argentina. I like how aggressive they are on the attack. Watching Messi dribble through crowds is pretty amazing.

Big game for USA tonight.

 

[CalamityX11]

Ah yes...

Club wise Real Madrid tops it for me... Been a fan of theres for a Longggg time. I stand strong during the Messi era though! I luv the old Chelsea squad from 2 years ago, that's when Drogba was on his game!

National teams, got to stick with my families in Colombia y Uruguay. Uruguay won the Copa and now the U20 Colombian team has a chance to make something happen in the U20 World Cup.

 

[trancemeister]

As far as national teams go, I've always pulled for Italy. No ancestral connections like some of you ... just a preference

 

[Heathbar012]

I've been a big Chelsea fan for the last five years, mainly because of Michael Essien. His speed, strength and touch are everything that a great midfielder should be. Unfortunately, he is also made of glass, Roman Abramovich is the George Steinbrenner of the EPL and the Blues seem to have a revolving door set up in their manager's office.

I like Arsenal's youth movement, but it looks like Cesc and Nasri are going to ruin that with transfer demands, and even though I have no territorial allegiances, it wouldn't sit right to jump from Chelsea to Arsenal. Same goes for the Manchester teams. It doesn't make much sense to root for an EPL team outside of the top 5, I like Liverpool's blue collar image, Johnson is one of my favorite right backs (my favorite position to play) and Carroll and Suarez are great, young finishers, so as horrible as it may be, I'm switching my allegiances to Liverpool. This will be my first and only switch from a favorite team in my lifetime. Ironic that the money for Torres is likely what will make Liverpool better than Chelsea in two years. Plus, "you'll never walk alone" is the coolest slogan ever. Now, if they only had a little more depth at the back.

Agreed on the Barca sentiments. They're the team I root for in La Liga, and will likely root for in Champions League, since Liverpool didn't qualify (wait til next year!).

I root for Palermo in Serie A because of the Sicilian heritage and Werder Bremen in Bundasliga because that is a friend's local team. They don't really have the money to compete, but I have to have a couple of underdogs if I'm going to be a Liverpool and Barca fan. Can't wait for Saturday!

 

[clyde_carbon]

For Serie A I'm big on Juventus. For EPL I'm with Manchester United and I have a soft spot for Arsenal. The Spanish league is a two-team league, so I don't pay much attention to it. I used to root for Valencia because I was a huge David Villa fan, but obviously that has changed.

 

[Ray_Dogg]

Klins is a breath of fresh air.

 

[trancemeister]

Klins is a breath of fresh air.

I agree, and I think he will do good things for US soccer. He will bring a wealth of experience from the European game and hopefully be able to blend it with the American style that he should be familiar with now having lived here for so long.

It will be interesting to see what transpires in the squad though. Will be nuke it and rebuild it to suit his system or will he go with the players already part of the squad and try to re-train them for his ways?

Btw - Klinsmann was one of favorite German players along with Matthaus and Voeller

 

[CalamityX11]

I'm interested to see the "new" players that Klins will eventually bring in to fit his style and/or international style of play.

 

[trancemeister]

For Serie A I'm big on Juventus.

Nice, Clyde! Didn't think I would have any company in my misery over the Juve performances but looks like I do

 

[Yoshi]

Because of my Spanish roots, I am by default a Barca fan. Definitely not a fan of Real Madrid because if you guys know the history of Franco and the whole Spanish Nationalism vs Catalan Nationalism, it just doesn't bode well for me to root for a team like RM. With that said, Barca is the best team on the planet. All of the news reports have Cesc leaving for the Catalan side within the week. While that hurts Arsenal, this transfer would be bittersweet for me because Cesc would most definitely give Barca another magician in the midfield, and if you ask me, one of the top 3 creative midfielders in the EPL right now. Mind you, it wasn't til recently til I started rooting for the Spanish National team because of what I said above.

As far as other teams I root for, it's all about Arsenal in the EPL eventhough I absolutely loathe Wenger's practices in regards to his youth policy. There was a coach who mentioned "you can not win titles with kids". Sure enough, you can not. They need some experience players but for whatever reason, Wenger has yet to add a DM and a CBT to the squad? I can see why Cesc would want to leave, but in Nasri's case I believe it's more money and glory hunting with him. The guy had one heck of a first half of the season last year, and was almost non instrumental in the second. Arsenal built their reputation with signing players amongst the shadows back in the day and it's Wenger's way of running an "economically healthy" football team but you have to pony up somewhat to get quality. Now that he's waited this long to presumably selling Fabs just hurts Arsenal because it's getting rather late in making additions to the team. What good is it to sell Fabs for 40 million pounds and to not use it because the transfer deadline already passed?

 

[Yoshi]

I forgot to mention - I used to root for Ajax but they're more of a feeder club lately. Back in the day, the dutch side was ridiculous.

As far as men's national teams, - Spain, England, and Brazil.

 

[Yoshi]

I agree, and I think he will do good things for US soccer. He will bring a wealth of experience from the European game and hopefully be able to blend it with the American style that he should be familiar with now having lived here for so long.

It will be interesting to see what transpires in the squad though. Will be nuke it and rebuild it to suit his system or will he go with the players already part of the squad and try to re-train them for his ways?

Btw - Klinsmann was one of favorite German players along with Matthaus and Voeller

Klinsman needs to start from scratch in certain areas. If you look at the USMNT and the under __ squads (i.e. 21, 20, 19, 17), there's something those teams lack - fundamentals, defense, and creative flair. A friend of mine was joking with me about how the women's team would beat the men's and although I gave him a pretty hard time about it, there's some truth to it. Klinsman's hiring is off to the right start, but the US Soccer Federation needs to look into what kind of players they want to groom. Some of the kids just lack that extra quality that you see on the pitch from Spain, Brazil, and other world class teams. Not sure if you guys follow the under 21's, et al, but I'm about young players such as Thiago Alcantara from Spain (whose father was Mazinho from Brazil's 94 world cup winning team).

Btw trance, I'm really liking Ozil and Mueller from Germany's current squad.

 

[CalamityX11]

Because of my Spanish roots, I am by default a Barca fan. Definitely not a fan of Real Madrid because if you guys know the history of Franco and the whole Spanish Nationalism vs Catalan Nationalism, it just doesn't bode well for me to root for a team like RM. With that said, Barca is the best team on the planet. All of the news reports have Cesc leaving for the Catalan side within the week. While that hurts Arsenal, this transfer would be bittersweet for me because Cesc would most definitely give Barca another magician in the midfield, and if you ask me, one of the top 3 creative midfielders in the EPL right now. Mind you, it wasn't til recently til I started rooting for the Spanish National team because of what I said above.

Not from Spain, do have friends there, but nonetheless I do know what you mean with the bold and understand the whole Nationalism debate/topic.

Barca's time is now...that's for sure.

 

[CalamityX11]

Ozil and Mueller from Germany's current squad

Ozil is so underrated and Mueller will be a gem for Germany for Cups to come.

 

[Yoshi]

Not from Spain, do have friends there, but nonetheless I do know what you mean with the bold and understand the whole Nationalism debate/topic.

Barca's time is now...that's for sure.

I hear you bro. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to bad mouth anyone who roots for RM because that team is looking better and better with the players they're signing. Just the other day they signed a 7 year old kid from Argentina. They are committed to winning so their fans should respect a club such as RM for that.

Soccer is rooted in deep history. There's a documentary called International Rivalries and Football Rivalries which provides information about rivalries between clubs and countries. Outside of the pitch, that's another thing that draws me into the beautiful game. If you look at professional teams here (NFL, NHL, NBA, MLB, etc) teams have rivalries, but it's hardly about culture and politics. Soccer on the otherhand...

 

[trancemeister]

Not sure if you guys follow the under 21's, et al, but I'm about young players such as Thiago Alcantara from Spain (whose father was Mazinho from Brazil's 94 world cup winning team).

Btw trance, I'm really liking Ozil and Mueller from Germany's current squad.

Ahh! Memories of "three men and a baby" celebration That was such a solid Brazil squad!

Yosh - Germany definitely is going to be a team to look out for in the near future (maybe Euro2012?) They got a great crop of youngsters like the two you mentioned who should be a little more seasoned now and should be hitting their prime in a few years. Looks like all the other national teams have nice mix of youngsters but all my Azzuri have left is people fit for the retirement home! Ugh!

 

[trancemeister]

Yosh - I couldn't have stated the sorry state of the Gunners better than how you put it above. You hit all the right points, and as much as I like Wenger and what he has done with the youth at Arsenal, I would not be too disappointed to see him to go. I don't how the upper management don't give him any direct instructions to make certain experienced purchases. I guess they are the exact opposite of Juventus who have had the worst directors who call all the shots. I miss Moggi and his shrewd ways!

A good blend of youth and experience is the winning formula regardless of the sport and I just don't see how Wenger hasn't learned that lesson after all these years falling short.

 

[spacedoodoopistol]

I like to think of myself as totally neutral.......zero allegiances to speak of. Of current teams, I like watching Milan maybe the most because they combine so many great players with so much potential catastrophe given the ridiculous collection of personalities. I like Ibra more than most I think, he's a unique talent and has a crazy run going (8 straight titles with 5 different teams!). Another team I try not to miss is Porto, who has a crazy roster way too good for their league, and if they can withstand the loss of their genius coach should make noise in Champions League this year.

US was a bit more fun and compelling than usual last night......usually they completely bore me, but some of these young players do bring way more energy. I'm tempted to say that Shea will be great, but I'm also aware that as an American I'm way too dazzled by physical freaks when that isn't as important in soccer.

And German national team.....anyone who wants to see an impressive performance check out their dismantling of Brazil yesterday on ESPN3. A team full of 20 - 23 year olds absolutely ran circles around Brazil, which admittedly looked pretty pathetic and basically uncoached. But Gotze, Hummels, Muller are awesome, and Ozil wasn't even playing. They seriously could be #1 team in the world in 2 or 3 years.

 

[spacedoodoopistol]

I don't pay as much attention to Arsenal, but I do think the endless criticism of Wenger is a bit unfair. Arsenal is the only team to sustain success in the EPL without an unrealistic budget. If he had $50 million to spend on transfers every year like each of his competitors does, it would surely be a different story.

Seems to me, though I don't really know enough about the situation to comment, that the board and front office of Arsenal is more to blame for taking profits in this environment where every dollar is needed to compete.