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.

Waiting For the Puff of White Smoke

It's not overly dramatic to say that the most important piece of off-season business for Newcastle is to get Rafa Benitez a new contract.  Thus, The Chronicle's suggestion that waiting for the news that a deal has been inked is similar to waiting for the well-known signal that a new pope has been selected is apt.

Other than updates that Ashley and Benitez have talked face-to-face and electronically, news is frustratingly scarce.  The good news is that although we hear Benitez linked to other clubs like Celtic or Milan or Marseille, it's usually accompanied by a comment that Benitez really wants to stay and these are only possibilities if no deal is forthcoming.  The consensus seems to be we could likely hear that he's been signed before the end of the week but if that doesn't happen, we should be worried.  Very worried.


Leave Our Longstaff Alone

Man United may be preparing a bid for Newcastle's holding midfielder Sean Longstaff.  Magpie officials insist he is off-limits but I wonder what would happen if Benitez doesn't stay.  With Hayden, Diame and Shelvey not likely to be around next season, we really need to be keeping players of his quality and age.

Juan Mata's name has come up as a Newcastle transfer target.  His price will be right - he'll be a free transfer and his salary doesn't sound excessive.  But he certainly doesn't fit the strategy of acquire young, sell old.  He's just one of a dozen names being thrown around but at this point, we really can't expect anything until the Benitez contract issue is resolved.

On other fronts, we might see a bidding war between the Manchester clubs to acquire Leicester's Harry Maguire.  City need to replace the retiring Vincent Kompany and United need to put together a better team.  A price of £75 million might not be out of the question.


The Kompany You Keep

And it's time to wave goodbye to Vincent Kompany, who announced he's heading to Belgium side Anderlecht as a player-manager.  He goes out a winner but he would have done that regardless of his team's final results.  Just a quality player who lost more than his share of time due to injuries.  We wish him well.


Domestic Triple

For those who spent any time on the FA Cup Final, condolences.  It was a match for about 20 minutes, with Watford actually having better early chances than Man City.  But after goals at 26 and 38 minutes, you knew it was over.  The Citizens added four more in the second half and the 6-0 final is a fair reflection of the match.  I will say that things seemed to stall early in the second half until Guardiola switched in DeBruyne for Mahrez and the onslaught ensued.  So Man City become the first club to accomplish the domestic triple - the EPL title, the League Cup and the FA Cup.  No mean feat.


A Good or Bad Draw?

Two markers was usually not enough to keep Ilsinho under wraps

Going into the match, I would have been happy with a Union draw, even at home, with Seattle.  Afterwards not so much.  Seattle, tired from a midweek match and resting seven starters, parked the bus.  With Panamanian international Roman Torres anchoring the middle of the defense, it was more like parking the Mack double semi.  Geez he's huge.  So the Union had the run of play and almost all the chances.  Good on Sounder keeper Frei for a few good saves but bad on the Union for not putting more on net.  Aaronson missed a sitter, shuhBillko had one just miss while Monteiro and Picault were regularly well wide of the mark.  Great excitement when Ilsinho entered the match before the 60th minute and regularly shredded the Seattle defense; the anticipation of the crowd when he got the ball was audible.  And a good crowd it was - over 18,000 fully engaged.  A fun place to be even if the end result was mildly frustrating.  The 538 metrics suggest it was a rout but the Union need to be better finishers for that to become a reality.  And it's not like this hasn't been an issue.  Yes, they've been scoring a lot but they've been missing a lot too.

This was the first time I can remember the Union taking the play so directly to a club like Seattle.  Sure they were slightly undermanned but it's a pretty deep squad.  If they can handle a good side like that, the Union should do well in the Eastern Conference.  Results elsewhere were very kind to the Union.  DC lost, Montreal drew at home to New England, Toronto lost and Atlanta lost.  So they sit in first on goal differential with a game in hand.  Awesome.


Schedule

The Union continue a West Coast home stand, taking on Portland at Talen Energy on Saturday night at 7:30 and I get to go for the second week in a row.

Still some European action to finish.  Aston Villa (remember, Dennis's old team?) face Derby County for promotion to the Premier League on Monday at 10 am (ESPN+?).  Then the Europa League final between Chelsea and Arsenal is on Wednesday at 3 pm on TNT.  And we close out the club season with the Champions League Final a week from Saturday (6/1) with Liverpool-Spurs, at 3 pm, also on TNT.

We'll be taking the week off and will report back after the Champions League Final.  Our focus will include the Women's World Cup and the CONCACAF Gold Cup, plus continued tracking of the best Union season evah.

As It Stands Now...

...Man City are EPL champions.

The goal that would fermez Laporte on Liverpool's title hopes

On Sunday we heard that phrase more than "to the best of my recollection" during the Watergate hearings.  Man City were facing Brighton while Liverpool were taking on Wolves.  For the first 17 minutes - with both matches scoreless, as it stands now meant Man City were the champions.  At that point Mane scored for Liverpool to give them a 1-0 lead over Wolves.  So for the next 21 minutes, as it stands now, Liverpool were top of the table.  During that time Brighton made things real interesting by going up 1-0, meaning City needed two goals.  Aguero got the first quickly and at 38 minutes, Asymmetric America Aymeric Laporte (right) put Man City in the lead for good and as it stands now was how it would stand at the end.

No doubt that City deserve to be champions but what of Liverpool, who amassed 97 points only to finish second?  This is the most for a second place side in EPL history, far surpassing Man United's 89 in the 2011/12 season.  Liverpool didn't drop a point after a 0-0 draw at Everton on March 2nd.  But City didn't drop any points after a 1-2 loss to, ahem, Newcastle, on January 29th.  How do you beat that?

13th Is All Ours

Two thirds of the Three Amigos - hopefully both Perez
and Rondon will be back next year.

Well on goal differential anyway.  Newcastle finished the season with a 4-0 thumping of Fulham despite having the minority of possession.  They settled it early with goals at 9 and 11 minutes from Shelvey (making his final appearance for Newcastle?) and Ayoze Perez (making his final appearance for Newcastle?).   The points brought the Magpies level with Bournemouth but with a better goal differential, Newcastle claim 13th place.  Though the place was worse than last year (10th), they did manage one more point and a slightly better goal differential (-6 versus -8).

The season did feel like a step forward, though just a small one.   Now we must wait to see if Benitez is coming back.  Ashley, Charnley and Rafa are meeting today (Thursday) in London.  Things still seem up in the air though there is growing sense that Rafa will stay.  Let's hope so because Plan B, whatever it is, will be a giant step backward.

And the Winner of the Golden Flip Flop Is

Man United.  Okay, maybe that's harsh.  They had 74% possession, 26 shots, and 10 on goal.  Still the result was an 0-2 loss at home to Cardiff City.  Two points in the final five matches?  Sixth in the table?  If Watford beat Man City in the FA Cup Final on Saturday (long odds I realize), United won't even automatically qualify for group stage play in Europa League but will enter in the second round of qualifying.  Let the inquest begin.

Best Performance By a Newly Promoted Side

Wolves did not win their final contest but did finish 7th with 57 points.  Checking the EPL history books, we conclude that this was the 6th best record by a newly promoted side.  We have them behind Newcastle 93/94 and Nottingham Forest 94/95 (3rd place and 77 points for both), Ipswich Town 00/01 (5th place and 66 points), Blackburn 92/93 (4th place with 71 points [42 game season]) and Sunderland 99/00 (7th and 58 points).  The other two newly promoted sides - Fulham and Cardiff - did not fare as well and are now newly relegated.  Brighton managed to stay up despite not winning a match since March 9th.  Chris Hughton, Brighton's manager, was not so lucky, getting sacked the day after the season ended.

Best Value

From The Chronicle, we get the following table:

Recognizing that wage bill is different than the transfer fees involved in putting a team together, this still seems instructive.  Cardiff City may have been the "best value" but they are also no longer in the Premier League so is that really value?  Anybody could take the best value award easily if staying in the top division is not a requirement.  Michael B offered to do our kitchen for a much much lower price per square foot than any other bidder but would the kitchen be acceptable?

One would likely reach a common conclusion for teams 2-7 in this table - they did reasonably well given how much they spent.  Spurs in 8th would say we got a top 4 finish with a much lower wage bill than any of the other biggies.  Man City and Liverpool spent a lot but also got a lot.  Arsenal and Man United, not so much.  Chelsea may not have been good value but at least they'll be playing in the Champions League next year.  

And why did I choose to follow a cheap ass team?  The only clubs with a lower wage bill than Newcastle were Cardiff, Huddersfield, and Burnley.  

Good But Lucky Too

The Union went north of the border and actually took all three points from Toronto.  They did not look all that great and were carved up more times than is healthy but Toronto fortunately failed to convert many scoring chances.  The Union were much more efficient and came away with a 2-1 win.  Fabian looked rusty and Aaronson's entry into the match improved things.  Coronel made some great saves but also looks to be having some communication issues.  He was pretty much wiped out by Trusty when both went for the ball.  Fortunately, Coronel picked himself up and made a save before collapsing back to the ground.  Elliott and Wagner continue to do little wrong.  Same with Medunjanin - unspectacular but steady.  Monteiro also continues to impress; his goal was the game winner. 

DC United slipped back into first with a mid-week 0-0 draw with Toronto but the Union's points per game is better with the game in hand.  After a slow start, Atlanta are playing much better now, winning five straight and six of the last seven, all with clean sheets.  Nice that we got to play them down south when they were still struggling.  There's such a long way to go but this is so much better than recent seasons when we needed a strong June/July to make up for dreadful starts.

Dialing Back

With the EPL season over, viewing gets lighter but there are still things to watch.  On Saturday at noon, Man City, with the EPL title and League Cup in hand, will seek the third part of the domestic triple as they take on Watford at Wembley Stadium.  Surely such a momentous match will be on live TV in the US.  No, it won't, and stop calling me Shirley.  You'll need ESPN+ to catch this contest.  

The Championships division playoff final for the last promotion spot will be Monday May 27 at 10 am.  My guess is you'll need ESPN+ for that too.  Aston Villa return to the final after beating West Brom on spot kicks and will face Derby County, who took the measure of Leeds United in a marvelous back-and-forth contest that wasn't settled until the 85th minute of the second leg. 

The Europa League final (Chelsea - Arsenal) is Wednesday May 29th at 3 pm.  Spurs and Liverpool will square off in the Champions League final on Saturday June 1 at 3 pm.  We can see both on TNT.

The Union face Seattle at home on Saturday, the first of three straight home matches versus Western Conference opponents; they'll take on Portland on 5/25 and Colorado on 5/29.  The Sounders are tough as usual but the Timbers and the Rapids aren't exactly tearing the league up.  We should be thinking about a good point haul in this home stand.

In June we have the CONCACAF Gold Cup which kicks off the new World Cup cycle for the USMNT.  Group stage matches start 6/15 and the final is July 7th.  This is a reasonably robust competition that will provide some meaningful information on where the US team stands after the failure to make the World Cup.

The Women's World Cup will also take place over roughly the same time frame.  The first group stage match is June 7 with the final scheduled for...July 7th.  Well that's a crowded Sunday.  The USWNT is in a group with Thailand, Chile and Sweden.  They are expected to advance out of group stage and are the favorite to win the whole thing at 5-2 odds (France are closest at 7-2).

So it's not like we're going to face withdrawal.
   

Seven Days in May

A remarkable week in England and not just because the country went a week without coal power for the first time since 1882.  No, I mean the four days of EPL action that sorted out most of the important stuff, two incredible Champions League semi-finals on Tuesday and Wednesday, and two EPL teams grabbing the Europa League final berths on Thursday.  I'll cover it in chronological order.


Who's Wearing Flip Flips?

The short answer is not too many.  The expression "playing with their flip flops on" refers to that time of the year when there's nothing left to play for and the players are winding down for the summer.  One might have expected many to be in that particular style of footwear this weekend but surprisingly this was not the case.  Let's take a look at those who had little to play for but showed up anyway.

On Saturday, Bournemouth, heading for somewhere between 12th and 15th in the table, put what coulda/shoulda been a huge dent in Tottenham's top four chances with a 1-0 win.  Though a draw wouldn't have been great for Spurs, the loss meant they were no closer to clinching a CL spot.  That the winner was in stoppage time was also a killer.  We all stayed away from Michael B for a while.

This play could have been a real problem for Liverpool
had Newcastle not scored anyway

The late afternoon Newcastle-Liverpool match was even better.  Like Bournemouth, the only thing at stake for the Magpies was maybe a 12th place versus 15th place finish.  Newcastle rallied twice from a goal deficit and only Origi's goal in the 86th minute kept Liverpool's title hopes alive.  The hosts gave them all they could handle, which was more than we could say for Barcelona midweek (see below).  Three side notes.  Liverpool probably lucked out in that before the referee could whistle defender Alexander-Arnold for DOGSO, Rondo had put away the rebound.  Had Rondon not scored,  Newcastle would have had a PK and Alexander-Arnold would have been sent off.  The referee was correct in not sending him off but we are still puzzled why there was no yellow.  Second, Liverpool did not luck out as Salah sustained a head injury that was serious enough that he was taken off on a stretcher.  He missed the CL match versus Barcelona (spoiler alert, Liverpool scored four without him) but will be back for Sunday's final EPL.  Lastly, there was a disturbing amount of fan violence which has been attributed to Liverpool fans infiltrating Magpie sections and the Saturday evening start.

Huddersfield had sewed up not only relegation but last place in the table weeks ago yet there they were giving Man United fits on Sunday.  There was a bit of bad luck there too, as Pogba hit the woodwork twice.  Mbenza's goal in the 60th minute to earn a 1-1 draw came off a Luke Shaw mistake.  And thus endeth the fairy tale for Ole Gunnar - no CL for you, come back one year.

Did we really just draw with Brighton at home?

Brighton did the same thing to Arsenal later Sunday, grabbing a 1-1 draw from the Gunners.  The Seagulls' safety had been assured by Cardiff's loss to Crystal Palace on Saturday but no flip flops here either.  Arsenal did push them around quite a bit but could only manage a spot kick from Aubameyang.  That was matched by Murray's PK in the second half and the picture at left tells the implication of the draw for Arsenal.  Absent some incredible (impossible?) swings in goal differential and goals scored, they will not be finishing in the top four either.  At least they have one additional shot to next year's Champion's League via winning the Europa Cup final against Chelsea.  So Tottenham lose but basically clinch the fourth spot anyway.

On to Monday where Leicester faced Man City with nothing to play for except maybe protecting a top half of table finish.  So of course they played their hearts out and gave Man City a real hard time.  It took a wonder strike from Vincent Kompany in the 70th minute for Man City to get the 1-0 win.  We've always appreciated the fine work of Kompany and have watched as things maybe haven't gone the way he would have liked in recent years.  So though we are pulling for Liverpool for the title, there were no hard feelings here to see him help his team with a goal like that.  An easy pick at the time for this week's YouTubeableMoment.  Look how his foot cuts across the ball to put the proper slice on the ball that takes it away from Schmeichel and how it fits into the upper right hand corner of the net.  Fabulous stuff made better by the context.

I was going to award Watford the golden flip flop for their 0-3 loss to Chelsea but game accounts suggest that Watford were actually the better side in the first half so apparently they came to play.  Fulham lost 0-1 to Wolves but outpossessed them so they appear to have played hard too.  Everton-Burnley wasn't awful and didn't see West Ham's 3-0 win over Southampton but it's possible that the flip flops stayed in the locker room last weekend.

To sum up, the title is still on the line but Chelsea and Spurs look good for the Champions League and the relegation trio is Cardiff City, Fulham and Huddersfield.


Superlatives Fail

Hope you got to watch both the Champions League semi-finals because there is no way I can do either justice.  Barcelona took a 3-0 lead to Anfield and seem poised to step into one of the final spots; I mean there's no way they surrender four unanswered goals, right?  But this is not your father's Barcelona.  Origi got the first at seven minutes.  Wijnaldum got two in three minutes (54 and 56 minutes) and Origi got the game winner at 79 minutes.  As Dennis pointed out, what are the chances that Liverpool score four and Mane' or Salah aren't involved?  Within minutes of the final whistle, Michael B wondered if Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde was on the chopping block.  The answer looks to be yes.

Pochettino looks for lost contact in the aftermath of
celebrating Champions League semi-final win

As incredible as that comeback was, Wednesday was even more unbelievable.  Recall that Spurs had fallen behind 0-1 to Ajax in London last week, not a good result but certainly not irretrievable as they headed to Amsterdam.  Apparently the task wasn't challenging enough so Spurs allowed two first half goals.  Walking into the locker room at half time, Ajax must have thought it was over.  Pochettino made a key adjustment, putting Llorente up top and having his players send long balls to the Spaniard, who was able to control and distribute them most of the time.  Took a little while to work but Moura scored twice in five minutes (55 and 59).  With the second away goal, an aggregate draw would be enough to send Spurs through.  But, after a long period of Spurs dominance, Ajax grabbed momentum back and seemingly had done enough to survive.  Then, one more long ball to Llorente, which he volleyed off his leg to Dele, who slipped a clever pass to Moura, who slotted the ball passed two defenders and the keeper and pandemonium ensued.  Did I mention it was in the 96th minute? We make it this week's  year's  millenium's   YouTubeableMoment.  Back in the studio, Stuart Holden and NBA great Steve Nash (long time Spurs fan) go beserk, this week's Bonus YouTubeableMoment.  Dennis asks what are the odds that Tottenham score three and Kane or Son are not involved?

So we have an all EPL Champions League final on June 1.


EPL Sweeps European Semis

With the two CL final spots sewed up, all that was left was for Arsenal and Chelsea to take their Europa League semis.  Which they did.  All four European competition spots go to EPL.  Chelsea had to go to spot kicks to take Eintracht but Arsenal took Valencia 7-3 over the two legs.  The London rivals will meet on 5/29 for that final.


First Place Union

After a dud of a first half that saw them lucky to escape with a 1-1 draw, the Union let loose on visiting New England with a five goal barrage in the second half.  Ilsinho got it started quickly, Santos added two, then shuh-BILL-koh and Accam each got in on the action.  Good to have Wagner back and third string keeper Carlos Miguel Coronel has done more than well enough in Blake's absence.  Toronto's mid-week loss to Atlanta means the Union are truly in first place.

The glass is one quarter empty side reminds me that New England are not very good and that this not very good side was carving us up for the first 45 minutes.  Happy to have the romp but we need to stay grounded.  Cory Burke it turns out is not in Jim Curtin's dog house but is having work visa issues.  He's out for at least three months, maybe longer.  Also, the Union sold David Accam to Columbus for $500k and an international roster slot and sold Derrick Jones to Nashville for $175,000.  The company line is that they need money and flexibility to do things like keep Monteiro for longer than a few months.  I'm okay with that rationale but do wonder what this means for the depth of the squad.  This is the first time I can remember Jim Curtin having multiple options within a game if things aren't going well and coverage when injuries (or visa problems) keep players out of the line up. 


Silly Season

With most matters wrapped up, teams can proceed immediately to the crazy/puzzling things they do in the summer transfer window.  Newcastle are out in front as they:

- haven't finalized a contract for Benitez
- look likely not to sign Rondon to a contract when his loan expires because Ashley doesn't like signing players 30 or older
- could easily lose Ayoze Perez to a "bigger" club

Other fun news is that on the heels of their down-up-but-ultimately-down season, Man United look poised to break transfer spending records.  We also hear that Eden Hazard may leave Chelsea for Real Madrid; this could be especially problematic for the Blues if the proposed two-window transfer ban for violating rules is sustained after appeal.  Yeah, should be a fun summer.


Only Two Matter

The upshot of last weekend's action is that all that's left to decide is the title.  Man City enter with a one point edge over Liverpool.  City travel to Brighton while Liverpool host Wolves.  Who knows what's left in the tank for Liverpool after Saturday's and Tuesday's matches.  Plus Wolves are a handful anyway.  Hard to imagine Man City not taking care of business in Brighton.  But a loss or draw would open things up.  Theoretically, a tie is still possible.  City would have to lose by four goals and Liverpool would have to draw Wolves but score four more goals than whatever City got in their match at Brighton.  In the words of Lloyd Christmas "So you're saying there's a still a chance."  If it does happen, there would be a one game playoff to decide the EPL title.

Newcastle will finish at Fulham, looking for a win that could yet net them 13th in the table.  Every other match (except the two noted above) is for similar stakes.  All matches kick off at 10 am.

The Union now have something to defend and will be tested this Saturday afternoon (3 pm) at Toronto.  On opening day, Toronto smacked the Union around pretty good in Philly.  This will be a tough match. Fabian is likely to return but probably not Blake.  Aaronson may be out as well.

Who needs a sports bar for multiple TV viewing?

Gonna rain all Sunday so plenty of time to watch.  With concurrent matches, viewing is a bit more tricky.  Fortunately, with kitchen renovation in full swing, our temporary set up may be perfect.

Thursday Night Football?

If you make the top four in the EPL you play in Champions League on Tuesday or Wednesday nights.  Finish 5th or 6th and you get Europa League (the NIT of soccer) on Thursdays. Tottenham, Chelsea, Arsenal and Man United have recently been playing like they prefer the latter for some strange reason.

Arsenal are the worst offenders so far, as the Gunners' 0-3 loss to Leicester was their third straight defeat.  Man United haven't been much better.  The 1-1 draw with Chelsea was their only point in the last three matches.  Chelsea have managed two draws in the last three.  Tottenham are the only side with a win in the last three but blew a chance to punch their CL ticket with a 0-1 loss to West Ham.  For those of you keeping score at home, that means of 36 points on offer, the four sides have managed to garner six.  Spurs remain in the best position; in theory with their goal differential, draws in the final two matches get them in.  With a two point cushion over Arsenal, Chelsea control their own destiny; neither Watford at home or Leicester away would be considered a slam dunk at this point.  Arsenal and United basically need to win out and hope for stumbles elsewhere.  The Gunners host Brighton then travel to Burnley so that's not impossible.  United close at Huddersfield then home to Cardiff so that is likely too.  Could go down to the wire.

A quick note that Arsenal and Chelsea have a back up route to the Champions League via winning the Europa League.  Both begin their semi-final ties today.  If I read the rules correctly, should one of them win Europa and finish in the top four, that does not open up an additional CL spot for the 5th place side.

These are not radar maps of the two storm cells that delayed
action at the Penn Relays on Friday.

Liverpool and Man City held form so no changes at the top. Burnley bunkered in but City still managed to nick a 1-0 win. The heat map on the left shows how densely the Clarets packed their defense.  Liverpool made hash of Huddersfield in a 5-0 win.

Newcastle went to Brighton for a match that was of serious consequence mostly to Brighton, who remain in the relegation battle.  But the Magpies looked the much more interested side and took a 1-0 lead on another goal from Perez.  Brighton came out in the second half a bit more focused and did manage to level things.  But then they again seemed to dial everything back, like the single point was too precious to lose.  With Cardiff's loss to Fulham, maybe Chris Hughton figured the point was going to be enough; they are four points up on Cardiff. 


Disappointing Champions League

Spurs had an off night and missing Son didn't help.  Their crosses were either overcooked, straight to the keeper or easily cleared.  They were a bit lucky not to surrender more than one.  A 0-1 scoreline for the home leg is not great but they are still in this tie.  Not so much for Liverpool, who played well enough but were undone by the master, Lionel Messi.  Check out this week's YouTubeableMoment - multiple angles to appreciate how good it was.  Coming home to Anfield down 0-3 was probably not the plan for Liverpool.


The Ultimate In Sportsmanship

Leeds United played Aston Villa this weekend in the Championship Division.  Villa in 5th were assured a spot in the playoff for the third promotion spot while Leeds were in 3rd, assured of a playoff spot as well but also with an outside shot at 2nd place and the automatic promotion.  A Villa player went down with an injury and the Leeds players appeared ready to kick the ball out for a stoppage.  Except they didn't and went on to score.  This naturally inflamed the Villa players - to the point where one got a red card.  But Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa told his team to let Villa score from the ensuing kickoff.  Except his center back didn't get the memo and tried - unsuccessfully - to prevent the goal.  Glorious chaos which you can view here.

Union Spring

The Union grabbed four more points with a 1-1 draw in Vancouver and a 2-0 over Cincinnati at home.  That makes 17 points in the first 10 matches compared to just 11 at this point last year.  To be fair, they got two wins and a draw in the next three matches so they had 18 after 13.  So they sit in first place though note that Toronto actually have more points per game (and why have they only played seven matches to this point - an annoying point about MLS?).

Sure Vancouver are not great but for me any points garnered from matches played in the Pacific Time Zone feel like a bonus.  Plus they were missing Blake (injury), Fabian (injury) and Wagner (suspension).  But Freese looked fine as replacement for Blake and Mbaizo did well filling in for Wagner.  Last season's late acquisition - Kacper Przybylko (pronounced smith KATS-pehr Shuh-BILL-koh) - got the start and his first goal.

Check out defender's back leg - no offside

It used to be that we would think it's only a matter of time until the Union surrendered a goal.  Now we are thinking it's only a matter of time before we score.  Such was the case on Wednesday at home versus Cincinnati.  Good possession in the first half but just 2 shots on goal.  Second half they were peppering the Cincinnati keeper.  Finally at 63 minutes, Smith Przybylko deposited Mbaizo's beautiful cross into the old onion bag.  Note to Cincinnati fans - he was not offside.  Ilsinho helped add to the lead with a very deft outside of the foot pass to set up Picault, who did well on the finish to get his first goal of the season.  So instead of spending the summer making up for a terrible spring, the Union have something to build on as opposed to chase.


Four Day Weekend

So we have matches Friday through Monday plus Champions League on Tuesday and Wednesday.  Probably not too many will be following Everton-Burnley on Friday at 3 pm but you never know.  But seven of the 10 weekend matches do matter in one way or another.

Early Saturday match is the chance for Tottenham to clinch CL spot on the road against Bournemouth.  Just two 10 am matches - the other two without notable implications.  Cardiff host Crystal Palace for the 12:30 NBC match, fighting for survival.  Newcastle host Liverpool in a special 2:45 match on NBCSN.

Sunday brings three more important contests.  At 9 am we have Chelsea-Watford (CNBC) and Huddersfield - Man United (NBCSN).  At 11:30 NBCSN will have Arsenal - Brighton.  Monday rounds out the schedule with Man City - Leicester at 3 pm on NBCSN.  No room for error for any of the favorites in those matches.

The Union will try to keep things moving with a 7:30 home match on Saturday night against New England.  Don't want to get cocky here but the Revolution do sit at the bottom of the table.

Don't forget CL matches on Tuesday and Wednesday as Liverpool and Tottenham try to dig out out first leg messes.