The Rafalution Will Not Be Tyneside

Musical accompaniment Gil Scott-Heron

The first shoe has dropped in Newcastle.  Rafa Benitez is leaving the club.  They can bicker and argue about who left whom but for me this was clearly about owner Mike Ashley being unwilling to let Benitez run the club.  Now we wait for the other shoe to drop - will the club actually be sold.  And the third shoe to drop is who will replace Benitez.  Some of the sad details of the saga can be found in this article.

Ashley - in the words of NUFC blogger Ed Harrison
 "a bigger wretch than we thought he was"

A few silver linings types have tried to cheer me up suggesting that maybe this move will end up forcing Ashley out or that it simply means the prospective new owners have another manager in mind.  Either situation is acceptable but they feel rose-colored glassish to me.  I still fear the ultimate worst case scenario - Benitez gone and Ashley stays.  Hard to think of a manager that could duplicate Benitez's results with that owner.  Hilarious that the oddsmakers have Mourinho as the most likely candidate for the job but I can't see those two egos cohabiting the same space.  Other names include David Moyes, Claudio Ranieri and Mikel Arteta.  Sorry, but I don't think any of those name keep Newcastle up.

No, I'm not bitter at all...

Wednesday AM update: Things still suck.  Sean Dyche's name has surfaced as a possible replacement for Benitez.  He's managed under essentially the same conditions as Rafa - trying to stay up with limited funds.  But as long as Ashley stays, that will be the limited goal so forgot about competing for Europe or Cups or anything.

No, I'm still not bitter at all.


One of These Is Not Like the Others

Actually, maybe it is.  Check out the list of the WWC quarterfinal line up:

Norway        v     England  (Thursday at 3 pm)
France          v     USA (Friday at 3 pm)
Italy              v     Netherlands (Saturday at 9 am)
Germany      v     Sweden (Saturday at 12:30 pm)

Seven European squads and the United States.  While there were a few "surprises" along the way, given the rankings and the draw, this list is not dramatically different than we might have expected.  Likely quarterfinalists Canada and Australia were "replaced" by Sweden and Norway.  Italy is probably the biggest surprise.

The games themselves?  An odd mix.  Germany cruised.  Actually, England cruised too but the behavior of the Cameroon squad made it seem like a more difficult match. Details of that mess are here.  The timing did make it seem like the deck was stacked against Cameroon but the calls looked right to me and the ref could have called for another penalty on one play and a straight red on another.  I thought China and Japan outplayed Italy and the Netherlands respectively but don't have the results to show it.  Japan were hard done by a handball in the box; the defender was pulling her arms back and the shot was struck at close range. France had to go to extra time to vanquish Brazil (24 fouls? This is not my beautiful game) while Sweden slipped by Canada 1-0.

The US - Spain contest wasn't a thing of beauty either.  The Spaniards were not shy about being physical (18 fouls) and that disrupted the flow of the game.  It also cost them as two of the fouls were in the box and Meg Rapinoe converted both PKs.  The two calls in the box were not the hardest fouls we've seen in the tournament but they were probably fouls.  The US never looked all that confident but got the 2-1 win.

VAR continues to take a beating but I'm wondering if what people are really reacting to is how the Laws are written.  The sloppiest use I've seen was the first French goal against Brazil being disallowed and my problem has more to do with the explanation than the result.  We've been told that the French attacker knocked the ball out of the Brazilian keepers hands.  Really?  I didn't see that.  I did see the ball come off the French attacker's arm and under the new rules, there is no assessment of  intent needed.  That would have made more sense to me, though I don't really like the rule change. You can see the video here.  VAR is confirming or identifying initially unseen fouls in the box that, while there was contact, don't seem all that egregious.  But the rules don't allow for a different standard in the box; if it's a foul, it's a PK.  Sure, you could change the offside rule to require daylight between the attacker and defender but that won't eliminate close calls; it will just change which ones are controversial. 

If 538 is right (they got 5 of 8 right in previous round), the quarterfinal winners are England (69%), US (54%), Netherlands (79%) and Germany (63%).  If you're wondering how the US and France have to meet in the quarterfinals, it's basically the unluck of the draw.  Based on how the pots were set up for the draw, the US would have most likely had to meet one of Germany, France, Canada, England or Australia; there would have been a small chance that it would have been a Netherlands or Sweden or someone like that but the odds were high it was going to be a top six team.


Gold Cup Twist(s)

All those who had Haiti beating Costa Rica 2-1 to take the Group B, raise your hand.   That's what I thought.  Los Ticos punishment for that stumble is they get to face Mexico in the quarterfinals instead of the semi-finals.  That looks like a good one to check out on Saturday at 10 pm.  The earlier match will be Haiti and Canada.  Tuesday night saw Curacao tie Jamaica with a goal in stoppage time.  A cursory internet search did not provide me a nickname for the team.  Whatever they are, the players then gathered in the stands to watch the second match of the night and celebrated as Honduras thrashed favored El Salvador 4-0; that result meant Curacao took second in the Group C and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Speaking of the quarterfinals, a mighty contingent of five of us from NW Philly will head down to the Linc on Sunday night to see the USMNT take on Jamaica or Curacao, depending the outcome of tonight's match with Panama.  A win or draw versus Panama means they face Curacao, a loss gets them Jamaica. 


Remember the Union?

When we last saw them, they were coming back from an 0-2 deficit to beat the Pink Cows.  They return to action on Wednesday at 7 pm, facing New England on the road.  Think of it as a club/nation doubleheader; watch the Union at 7, then the USMNT at 9.  They then have a short turnaround to take on NYCFC at Yankee Stadium ( I can barely bring myself to say that).  They'll have to repeat that quick turnaround again next week, playing Orlando in Florida on Wednesday, then back home on Saturday. 

Andrew Wooten, a striker from a lower division in the Bundesliga, will be added to the roster once the transfer window officially opens in July.  This doesn't seem like a terrible move; we do hope it works out better than the last time we took on a player from a lower tier of European football - that would be Jay Simpson.


For the "off season" there sure is a lot of football to be had.  Constantly clearing my DVR to make room for new stuff.  This should be the least of my problems, right?
 

One Foot Still On the Line Sweet Jesus

Musical Accompaniment Courtesy Brewer and Shipley

Traveling in Maine this week.  I can report that you can still watch soccer but it's somewhat harder to do.  Not because they don't have TV but because there are so many other cool things to do - like eat lobster at every meal or gawk at the Bush compound in Kennebunkport.

I caught snippets of games here and there but did find a local pub to see Sweden - USA where at least three other patrons reacted to the US goals.  With limited viewing I'm forced to comment on highlights and random stuff.

Last minute drama looks to be a common theme.  Scotland were up 3-0 on Argentina but ended up with a 3-3 draw after surrendering a PK in stoppage time.  Chile had a chance to advance when they were awarded a PK in the 85th minute.  Unfortunately the shot clanged off the crossbar and the 2-0 final was not good enough to get a place in the knockout round.  In the Cameroon - New Zealand match either could advance with a win, both would go home with a draw.  With the match 1-1 late, both sides abandoned defense and Cameroon broke through in the 95th minute to get a spot in the knockout round.  We'll make it this week's YouTubeableMoment.


The Yankees Win

I'm left with two thoughts after the US comfortably beat Sweden 2-0.  First, the no offside call on Carli Lloyd seems to me consistent with the no call from the Australia - Brazil match.  People may not like the way the rule is being applied but everything I read says there is no offside on that play even though Lloyd was in an offside position. If she affected the ability of the defender to play the ball, you might have a call but not in this case.

Who's willing to tell Tobin Heath it's an own goal?

Second, I understand why Heath's goal was changed to an own goal except that I don't see it. Video here.  Yes, clearly the ball deflected off the Swedish defender.  But wasn't it likely to be on goal anyway?  Some argue it wasn't a shot but an attempted cross.  Hmm, maybe, but I'd still go with it as a shot that should be a goal for Heath.



VAR and PKs

By my count there have been three PK misses that were retaken because the keeper failed to keep at least one foot on the goal line.  Jamaica had to give one back earlier and in round three there were two more.  France's Fox Renard got a second chance and that was the goal that beat Nigeria 1-0.  Fortunately for the Super Eagles, results elsewhere allowed them to advance anyway.  Not so much for Scotland.  As we noted above, surrendering a PK in stoppage time meant no knockout round for them.  In every case, VAR has been correct, in that the keepers had clearly failed to keep at least one foot on the goal line before the ball was struck.  The problem is that this call can be somewhat simliar to holding in the NFL - you could call it on every PK.  Without VAR, referees could only spot the most egregious violations; VAR gets them all.  I like VAR but not sure this is the best use of it.  I also note that the EPL specifically noted this week that they will not be using it to determine keeper encroachment.


Knockout Phase

Four straight days with two matches per day, most of which look pretty good.  Also, no more of that concurrent match nonsense so you can watch them all.  Saturday has Germany - Nigeria and Norway - Australia.  At 538 they are saying a German win is 91% likely, while the Aussies are at 66%; not surprised at the former but thought Norway might have a better shot than that.  Sunday is England (85%) vs Cameroon and France (77%) vs Brazil.  Those seem about right.  Monday is Spain - US (78%) and Sweden - Canada (59%).  Thing wrap up on Tuesday with two pretty tight matches - Italy vs China (57%) and Netherlands (62%) vs Japan.


For the tournament, 538 has US with 24% chance of winning followed by France (19%) and Germany (15%).


Gold Cup

Saw the USMNT handle Guyana without much difficulty and Costa Rica struggle to beat Bermuda 2-1.  US play Trinidad and Tobago Saturday night which should be a bit more of a test.  Kind of hard to get real excited about this competition until the knockout rounds.


Silence on Tyneside

Every day I look at The Chronicle and every day the news is underwhelming.  Benitez's contract expires at the end of the month.  The sale may or may not be progressing.  Everything is still up in the air but the players report on 7/1 (I think).  Is this any way to run a football franchise?


Much Adu About Nothing

Jeff K sends along this article about the most ballyhooed US player ever.  Nothing worse than the burden of great potential someone once told me.  All I can remember from his Union tenure was the time he got a second yellow for simulation.  Kind of sums up his career.


Still on the road for the weekend so I'll be catching up via DVR and highlight videos.

A Full Plate

Combination of too much football and not enough time leaves me with the tried and true approach of making random observations.

Key moment in Australia vs Brazil - and a frequent scene
in this edition of the Women's World Cup

My vote for best match of WWC so far goes to Australia - Brazil.  The Aussies were trying to recover from an "upset" loss to Italy but fell behind 0-2 and looked in big trouble. A goal in first half stoppage time gave them a lifeline.  They leveled things in the 58th minute.  The match then turned on one of the most complex/controversial calls I can remember.  A Brazilian defender headed the ball into her own net but the call on the field was offside.  But that was overturned by VAR.  The video is here.  There is no doubt the Aussie is in an offside position at the time the ball was struck.  But she never actually touches the ball.  So the call hinges on whether you think she affected/was involved in active play when the Brazilian headed the ball.  I'm torn but probably would have ruled no offside.  I know it's hard to think the position of the attacker didn't affect the defender's decision but from the guidance I've heard and seen, it seems like that intentional playing of the ball means it's not offside.  For example, when a defender makes contact with a ball by deliberately sticking a leg out to block a pass to a player in an offside position, we are told that there is no offside.   A cursory scan of the internet didn't turn up any "informed" opinions; I really wish that the governing boards would tell us what they think so we know what we're supposed to do.  In any case, that was the deciding goal and Australia got a 3-2 win and three critical points.

In the other marquee matches, Germany dispatched, though not with ease, Spain 1-0 on a rebound goal.  France squeaked out a 2-1 result against Norway. Although the Norwegians had the majority of possession, they managed just one shot on goal and their lone tally was an own goal off French defender Renard.  

We saw a couple of nice saves on penalty kicks but only one stood.  Early in the Jamaica - Italy match, the Jamaican keeper made a stop but was adjudged to have come off her line too early.  VAR confirmed that.  The retake was good and Italy was off to a 5-0 rout.  At 0-0 midway through the first half, Argentina were called for a foul in the box but Correa stonewalled Parris (wait, England have a player named Parris?).  The kick was well-taken but the save was even better; video is here.  Very possible that Argentina encroached on the play but was glad to see no call.  A trendy pre-tournament pick to win the whole thing, England have not exactly wowed anybody yet and could only manage a 1-0 win here.  Argentina are probably better than we realized.

The US only managed a field goal against Chile but were never pressed in the match.  Ellis went with the squad rotation approach, making plenty of changes; by the end of the match, every player had an appearance except the back-up keepers.  Two good goals from Carli Lloyd but she did miss a PK.  

VAR continues to have a weighty presence.  The critics' arguments for me always lose credibility when they admit that it has resulted in referees getting the calls right.  I'll concede it's still taking too long but when the value of a single goal is so huge, you gotta get it right.  

Matchday Three  

With six third place teams advancing to the knockout stage, I can't find a third game in group play that doesn't have consequences one way or the other.  Things at stake could include first or second in the group (which affects who you play in the knockout round), second or third in the group (which affects whether you advance automatically) or third or fourth in the group (which affects whether you have a chance to advance or go home).  Many are already guaranteed a spot - France, Germany, Italy, England, Netherlands, Canada, Sweden and US.  I'd be inclined to check out China - Spain Monday at noon; both have three points right now.  Italy - Brazil could be interesting given that the South Americans haven't clinched a spot yet; that's Tuesday at 3 pm.  Wednesday's choice is Japan - England.  Thursday we'll go with Sweden - US though Netherlands - Canada looks good too.

Two other matches possibly worthy of consideration are Cameroon - New Zealand Thursday at noon (two teams with gritty performances but no points so far) and Scotland - Argentina on Wednesday at 3 pm (only one has a chance of advancing).   Given concurrent kick-off times for each group, you won't be able to watch each match without knowing the score of some of them.

No US Open Cup for U

You might have missed it but the Union lost to DC United in US Open Cup 1-2 on late PK from Wayne Rooney.  Frankly, while the Union's history of deep runs in this competition has been fun, they have largely distracted us from how poorly the team was doing in MLS play.  So I'll take the reversal in fortune - good position in the Eastern Conference table for an early exit in the Open Cup.

Gold Cup

Don't forget US - Guyana on Tuesday night at 10 pm.  The USMNT performance in friendlies against Jamaica and Venezuela do not exactly inspire confidence but we'll see.  Several of us have tickets to the two quarterfinal matches at Lincoln Financial on 6/30.  Hoping the US will be there too.

Copa America

The South American championships are going on as well.  BFS just doesn't have the bandwidth to cover this.  You can follow along at the CONMEBOL website here.

A side note - this is 300th post from Booked For Simulation.  Thanks for reading and commenting and we expect to continue indefinitely.  

The Ilsin-Show

An unprecedented comeback from the Union and a largely to form first round of Women's World Cup group stage play.

Wagner greets the conquering hero Ilsinho

At half time it was hard not to feel discouraged, like nothing had really changed for the Union.  Despite a modest possession and shot advantage, the Union were down 0-2 to the New Jersey Red Bulls because of two defensive lapses and a continued inability to put a shot on frame.  At 53 minutes Curtin switched out Aaronson (who exited to polite applause) for Ilsinho (who entered to an anticipatory welcome).  Things happened quickly.  At 60 minutes the Brazilian made a run down the right side and completed a pinpoint cross to Monteiro, who slotted the ball on frame to get the comeback started.  A bare minute later, Ilsinho beat two Red Bulls in the box and slipped the equalizer past Robles.  An easy choice for this week's YouTubeableMoment.  At that point, the crowd sensed that a win might be possible.  Indeed it was.  In the 70th minute, Isinho (again) fed a beautiful pass to Bedoya, who looked offside but wasn't.  Bedoya's cross was intercepted by the arm of a Red Bull defender in the box.  Monteiro's PK was stopped by Robles but there was Ilsinho to deposit the rebound into the "old onion bag." There were a few queasy moments before the final whistle but by and large they did a good job possessing the ball to protect the lead.

The win, a critical one over an Eastern Conference rival, puts the Union top of the table by four points heading into the US Open Cup break.  What a luxury that they can pull someone like Ilsinho off the bench for a jolt of energy like that.  Also not bad to bring in Picault late for a change of pace.  Now for a moment of the glass is 1/4 empty.  Both Atlanta and NYCFC have games in hand, which if they win, would be enough to overtake the Union.  Second, this Union team can go long periods without managing a credible shot on frame.  Third, as Graham R (BFS goalkeeper consultant) has pointed out many times, Andre Blake's marshaling of defensive resources and decision making skills are not necessarily the best.  Consensus is that he was late coming out for the ball on the second Red Bull goal.  There were other moments when it seemed like the communication just isn't what it needs to be, leading to some scary moments.  Lastly, the despite the recent bench play, the roster still feels thin.  Curtin only used two of his subs on Saturday and Jeff K and I were thinking that was probably right given his choices.

Okay, enough Debbie Downer.  Many things are going right.  Medunjanin hardly ever makes a mistake out there anymore.  You don't often see him on the scoresheet but his work as a defensive midfielder has been solid.  Wagner was a good pick up by Tanner.  So was Monteiro.  Santos has had his moments.  We can also hope that Fabian 1) gets healthy and 2) contributes.  The playoff format changed this year so only first place team gets a bye.  But, a top four finish gets you home field advantage for the first round.  That doesn't seem out of the question.


The Ugly Americans?

Mixed reaction to the USWNT 13-0 thrashing of Thailand.  Anyone who's coached knows how hard it is to keep a team from scoring against a hopelessly overmatched opponent.  Also, Dennis points out that merely toying with opposition by controlling the ball, making it clear you could score at will isn't that much less embarrassing.  However, the celebrations and choreographed bench dancing at 11-0 is unnecessary.  Acknowledge the goal humbly and move on. 

Early candidate for Best Hair-
Holland's Shanice van de Sanden

So far, things have pretty much adhered to form, though Australia and Japan would beg to differ.  France looked powerful in an easy win over South Korea.  Pre-tournament favorites Germany and England got wins over China and Scotland respectively but hardly looked overwhelming in the process.  Clearly the most excitement so far was Italy's last second game winner against Australia.  Argentina's 0-0 draw with Japan was pretty good watching.  So too was New Zealand's valiant effort in a 0-1 loss to the Netherlands.  Probably should include Sweden's late charge to beat Chile 2-0.

Maybe the second leading story has been the use of VAR.  Several PKs added based on video review.  Mostly we won't complain, except to say it still takes too long.  If you can't decide in 15-30 seconds, it's just not an obvious error.

Speaking of Netherlands, Shanice van de Sanden makes a strong opening statement for Best Hair of the Tournament with her ocelot (leopard?) dye job.  No, this isn't sexist because we comment on hair in the men's tournament as well.



No Jacket Required (musical accompaniment courtesy Phil Collins - yeah I know this song isn't from that album but this is the one I wanted to link to)

But apparently a waist coat (vest to us Yankees) is.  There was England manager Phil Neville (right) looking just like Gareth Southgate (below).  Must be standard issue for the England national teams.  Will Neville be okay with a fourth place finish like Southgate got in the 2018 men's World Cup?


















"All Good"

The two word message from the Bin Zayed Group is the only piece of information we got on the possible sale of Newcastle.  Apparently Benitez is back in Newcastle but not clear that it means anything.  The Chronicle is reporting that the transfer budget will be £60 million plus the proceeds from any transfers out.  That doesn't sound awful but feels irrelevant until the sale is finalized or trashed and Benitez is signed or departs.

EPL transfer news is mostly in one direction so far - players released - but Eden Hazard has signed with Real Madrid.  Some of the more notable releases:

Danny Welbeck - Arsenal
Peter Crouch - Burnley
Gary Cahill - Chelsea
Phil Jagielka - Everton
Shinji Okazaki - Leicester
Alberto Moreno, Daniel Sturridge - Liverpool
Ander Herrera, Antonio Valencia - Man United
Mo Diame - Newcastle
Andy Carroll - West Ham

Figure things will pick up soon as we would expect at least Man United, Arsenal and Chelsea to be very active.


European Qualifiers

Hopefully loyal readers will cut us some slack but we totally missed the UEFA Nations League action.  Portugal beat Netherlands 1-0 for the title while England bested Switzerland on PKs for third.  Somewhat of a beauty contest as a substitute for friendlies, the competition does have implications for the European Championships to be contested next summer.  Extensive reading on the subject still leaves me slightly confused but I think I have the basics.  All 55 UEFA countries have to compete in qualifying.  Teams were put into one of 10 groups - five with five teams, five with six teams.  If you were one of the Nations League finalists (Portugal, Netherlands, England and Switzerland), you were automatically placed in one of the five-team groups; I believe the advantage there is fewer qualifying matches.  Group play has been going on since March and continues until November.  Current standings are here.  First and second place finishers of the groups go to the Championships.  The last four slots for the Euro Champs used to be decided by playoffs between the countries that finished third in their group.  Now, the playoffs for the last four slots will be among the top four finishers in each of the Nations League groups.  So there was an incentive to do well in the Nations League, as opposed to simply playing friendlies.  There's some added complication in how all the slots will be filled if some teams are already qualified via group play but that's the basic picture.  Everybody clear on this?  Good.

By the time you read this, Matchday Four contests will have been played.   Matchday Five isn't until September.


Hardware!

BFS co-founder is back row, third from the left

BFS co-founder Dennis F saw his team come home with the league title up in Allentown. Taught him everything a lot of some of what he knows.


Schedule

Union have US Open Cup match on Wednesday night at DC United (TV?).  USWNT play Chile on Sunday at noon.  Other second match WWC fixtures of interest include Spain-Germany (Wednesday at noon), France-Norway(Wednesday at noon) and Australia-Brazil (Thursday at noon). USMNT play Guyana on Tuesday at 10 pm in Gold Cup action.

Reality Check

A full plate with MLS, European wrap-up, Women's World Cup, CONCACAF Gold Cup and the zoo that is Newcastle. For the Union, reality may be creeping in.


Finishing School Needed?

A disturbing trend was emerging.  Twice again the Union struggled to put the ball in the net against Western Conference opponents at home and fell 1-3 to Portland and could only draw 1-1 with Colorado.  Some borderline mind-boggling numbers from the Portland match:

Possession - Union 63% Portland 37%
Shots - Union 18 Portland 9
Shots on target - Union 5 Portland 7
Passes in the final third - Union 242 Portland 90
Crosses - Union 27 Portland 8
Crosses completed - Union 19% Portland 63%

Two of the Union shots off target hit the post so it's not quite as bad as it looks but it's still pretty bad.  The numbers from the Colorado match are basically the same except the Union also had more shots on target.  The numbers suggest a team constantly on the attack but seemingly confused as to how to actually score.   Too many shots off target or blocked and too many incomplete crosses.  I like what Monteiro does for the midfield play but he can't seem to direct his shots on goal.  Same for Picault; he works himself into good positions with his speed but also doesn't find the target.  shuh-Bill-koh is  better at getting his shots on frame but they often lack sufficient velocity to beat the keeper.  Ze Roberto summed it up by noting that in three home matches the Union outshot opponents 64-29 yet managed just two goals.  And two points.

Curiously, they turned things around on the road.  Outpossessed, outshot, pretty much outplayed but they took a 3-2 win at Minnesota.  They were regularly sliced open by the Minnesota attack but were spared by some Blake saves, defender blocks and Loon misses.  A PK from Monteiro (he got that one on frame!), a free kick goal from Medunjanin (shoot more often?) and a late game winner from Trusty accounted for the Union goals.

Though we rue the lost points on the home stand (should have gotten at least five), the rest of the conference mostly dithered as well.  The end result is that the Union finish the weekend back in first.  DC United only managed three draws themselves with New England, Cincinnati and San Jose - not exactly the stiffest of competition. Toronto, Columbus, Montreal and Atlanta all lost to Western Conference opponents along the way.  Montreal did get three by beating Real Salt Lake on Wednesday but were hammered at home by Orlando.  Atlanta is gathering steam and had home wins against Minnesota and Chicago after their loss to Real Salt Lake.  Many questions linger about this Union squad but this is way more fun than doing calculations about how many points below the playoff line they sit.


Return of the BFS Derby and Other English Football League Promotion News

All three of the EFL promotion finals were nailbiters of the highest quality intensity.  Tranmere waited until the 119th minute of their match with Newport County to slip in a goal to take them up to League One.  In the contest for promotion to the Championship division, Charlton scored with basically four seconds left in regulation to steal a 2-1 win from Sunderland (no Tyne-Wear derby for the fourth consecutive year).  Views of that goal are here and here, with the latter capturing the fans' perspective.

Two of Aston Villa's more notable supporters;
one of these two will be King of England some day

But from the BFS perspective, the best and most important result was Aston Villa's 2-1 win over Derby County.  Seemingly safe with a 2-0 lead (the second most dangerous lead behind 1-0), a goal in the 81st minute meant the final 10+ minutes were squeaky bum time. The Villans did hang on, which means the BFS derby - missing since the 2016-17 season - is back on.

In truth you wouldn't say the quality of the football was outstanding in these matches but the intensity and drama was.  For the players, promotion likely means about a 25% increase in salary.  For the teams, promotion to the Premier League is worth just under £200 million per year.  The stake aren't quite as high for promotion to League One or Two but they're still substantial.  So you can understand why the contests can be feisty.


European Wrap-up

Well those were two duds.  You may be forgiven for passing on the Europa League Final.  The stakes were likely higher for Arsenal, as a win here was their only route to the Champions League but Chelsea took the game by the scruff of the neck in the second half and cruised to a 4-1 win.  The first half was 0-0 but the Blues built a 3-0 lead on goals from Giroud, Pedro and Hazard (only one of these - Giroud - will likely be playing for Chelsea next year).  A goal from Iwobi offered faint hope of an Arsenal comeback but Hazard's second at 72 minutes put that idea to rest.  The most notable thing I can think of about the match is that it was a final between two English teams and yet there was only one Englishman on the pitch to start (Ainsley Maitland-Niles) and two made it in as subs (Ross Barkley and Joe Willock).

The main course, the Champions League Final between Spurs and Liverpool, was even more disappointing.  The highlight was the appearance of a scantily clad, busty Russian model on the pitch.  You think I kid but if you watched the match you know 'zactly what I'm talking about.  The match turned on a crucial handling call just 23 seconds in.  You can see the all the key talking points involved in the play in this GIF.  First, the ball probably did hit Sissoko's arm.  Second, his arm was definitely not at his side.  BUT, 1) he was not trying to make himself bigger, he was pointing instructions to another Tottenham player (that's why his index finger is extended), 2) the ball came off his armpit before hitting (maybe) his arm, 3) look how close Mane was to Sissoko when the ball was struck, 4) did it really hit his arm at all.  I get why VAR could not overturn the call but for me it never should have been made.

Whatever, the call had huge consequences for the tenor of the match.  Salah dispatched the PK and Liverpool seemed content - confident of their defense? - with a one-goal lead and slowed things down and sort of bunkered in.  Spurs didn't really mount credible challenges until after the 80th minute, with Liverpool keeper Alisson called on to make some key stops.  The Reds added a late goal to kill any excitement for the closing minutes.  The match had almost the air of a friendly (no yellow cards?) between two squads familiar and comfortable with each other.  Even Michael B was muted in his disappointment over the loss.  From our slightly more neutral perspective, we wished the match had been more entertaining but feel that Liverpool are certainly worthy of the title.  Klopp took a really good team and made it even better.  Yes, he got to spend over 100 million (pounds, euros, dollars whatever) to fix the keeper problem (adding Alisson) and shore up the defense (acquiring Fabinho) but he used the money wisely.  Should be fun to watch Man City and Liverpool go at it again next year. 


Women's World Cup Final

Matches start Friday with host France taking on South Korea.  Action picks up from there with two to four matches every day until group stage play ends on 6/20.  Knockout contests start on 6/22 and the Final is on 7/7.

Conceding that we are US-centric about this, we note that the USWNT play Thailand on 6/11 at 3 pm, Chile on 6/16 at noon and Sweden on 6/20 at 3 pm.  Looks like the Fox network will have the TV coverage but check your local listings to be sure (wait, here are your local listings).  The US are fully expected to make a deep run and are co-favorites with France to win the whole thing.  England and Germany are also mentioned.

I found this article at Huffington to be quite helpful in framing the issues.  Key takeaways include:

- this should be a competitive tournament with several favorites and possible dark horses
- non-USA group stage matches to check on include:
      o Australia-Brazil on 6/13
      o England-Japan on 6/19
      o Netherlands-Canada 6/20
- one major reason for a more competitive tournament is that other countries are  investing in their women's programs
- equal pay is an issue in this industry too

Should be fun.


CONCACAF Gold Cup

Running concurrently with the WWC Final (not sure this is a good thing) is the biennial tournament for the North American, Central American and Caribbean countries.  It used to have some meaning in that the winner had a chance to make it to the Confederations Cup, a pre-World Cup tournament that gave teams a chance to play in the host country.  But with the cancellation of that competition, the Gold Cup is now just for pride.  And hopefully assessing your squad for this World Cup cycle.

When we last left the USMNT, they were failing to qualify for the 2018 World Cup Final.  New they sport a new manager (former player Gregg Berhalter) and many "new" faces.  The final roster won't be announced for another week or so but it will come from the list included in this article.  Matches start 6/15 with the final on 7/7.  An attempt at handicapping the tournament is here; spoiler alert - they expect a US-Mexico final.

US group stage matches are Guyana (6/18 at 10 pm - watch for possible appearance of the Union's Warren Creavalle), Trinidad and Tobago (6/22 at 8 pm) and Panama (6/26 at 9 pm); all are on FS1.  Note that two quarterfinal matches will be played at Lincoln Financial on 6/30 that will likely (better) include the US in one of the contests.


Drama-on-Tyne

To our usual summer sport of tracking which transfer candidates Newcastle will fail to acquire, we add two new activities:

- Monitoring the efforts to re-sign Benitez
- Scrounging for details about a possible sale of the club to a Dubai syndicate

News on both fronts is being parceled out with an eye dropper, leading to wild speculation all over the place.  Initially, the prospects of a sale seemed legitimate but newer stories are casting doubt.  Also, everybody seemed to think that a sale would guarantee Rafa's return but the Sunday Mirror is reporting that the new ownership would replace Benitez with Arsene Wenger or Jose Mourinho.  Just shoot me now.  As I have long said, I don't support any serious football club, I'm a Newcastle fan.


The Week

The Union host the Red Bulls 7:30 Saturday night - I'll be at Talen Energy for that one and the Women's World Cup has matches all weekend.  If you can't find some soccer to ease your withdrawal symptoms, you're not looking hard enough.  Maybe we'll check back in after the first USWNT match.