Supercopa, the First of the 2011-2012 Clasicos

Last Sunday evening Real Madrid drew 2-2 against FC Barcelona in the annual preseason Supercopa. A two-legged tie pitting the winners of the Spanish Liga and the winner of the Copa del Rey, this is the traditional kick-off to the season in Spain.

The game was entertaining, but it clearly showed, to me at least, two teams in different stages of their development for this season. The Madrid players seemed to be revving at near top speed, building upon a successful preseason. The Barca players, on the other hand, were clearly not running well at all, in part due to a choppy preseason.

Both teams had players out for the Copa America in Argentina this summer. Di Maria, Higuain, Messi, Alves, Mascherano, Milito, Adriano, and Alexis Sanchez all represented their country in the games, altering their training schedules for the summer and preseason. Both teams also acquired a few new players, some of whom will become first team regulars if not starters.

My impression is that this preseason Pep, has been more lax with the most senior players, allowing them more down time and not being so strict about training regimes.

For the game, Madrid started what appeared to be a first choice team. Pep, the FC Barcelona manager, however, sat Pique, Xavi, Pedro and Busquets, all reportedly suffering from minor injuries. Personally, I think they just needed more rest.

In the first half, the irregular squad for Barcelona had a hard time dealing with the speed and diligence of the Madrid attack. When Barcelona possessed the ball, Madrid pressed hard and regularly won the ball back. Barca played a large number of long balls in hopes of relieving the pressure -- a sure sign that the squad was not yet firing on all cylinders.

In the midst of this, four great goals were scored, and it is worth having a look at the highlights.

A couple of positives to note: Alexis Sanchez looks pretty good. He is a definite asset to the team.

Also, even under intense pressure, all of the Barca players kept their cool, defended well (Alves and Mascherano were great) and showed considerable skill in their one touch, twenty-yard passing moves. Once they get settled, which will take considerable time on the training pitch (this strike may be a good thing for this), they should be quite dangerous.

Tonight's game will resolve the Supercup, and it should be a sight to behold.

Come on you Barca!

The Klinsmann Era

So it begins --
Tonight's friendly against Mexico in Philadelphia marks Jurgen Klinsmann's debut as US Mens National Team manager. I have high hopes, but tempered expectations. The problems with the USMNT are easily identifiable, but they are not easily fixed. The two most immediate problems are a lack of technique in the squad, and a lack of unity. Technique is something learned at a young age over an extended period of development. Klinsmann cannot be expected to improve this in his players, especially because he will only work with them for a few days per year. What he needs to do is to uncover the technical gems that we do have, somewhere in the United States, and give them a chance in the national side.

I think he can do something about the latter issue. In Germany in 2006, Klinsmann (JK) was able to successfully galvanize his squad into a incredibly cohesive unit, one that combined work ethic with attacking flair. If JK can find the right combination of players, I belive he can bring them together in common purpose to deliver a reasonably successful World Cup campaign in 2014.

Three Things I Like about the Preseason

There are many fans who couldn't give a toss about preseason friendlies. They say they are meaningless and boring. I disagree.

The three things I like most about the preseason are this 1) we get to see debuts 2) we get to see youth players from a team's academy mix it up with first-teamers and 3) we get the occasional anomaly.

I have watched a lot of preseason games this summer and was lucky to be in the stadium for three of them -- USA vs Spain (ok, technically this was not a preseason game, but a friendly -- I'm still counting it), N.E. Revolution vs. Manchester United and FC Barcelona vs Manchester United. In each game I have seen at least something interesting and remarkable.

New signings are always eager to please and it was no different for Ashley Young when he stepped onto the pitch vs. New England. I think United are glad to have him.

Barcelona brought a large number of their youth academy to the US, and a few have left an impression. Thiago, a regular for Barca B, looks the real deal, though as Sid Lowe argues, he has some developing to do. Fontas, brought into the first team along with Thiago fairly recently, looks a great replacement for Puyol.

Real Madrid have signed multiple players to try to cope with and overrun Barca in La Liga this year. Devastating for Barca's other rivals, Espanhol, Jose Maria Callejon could be even more of a pain in the neck for Barca with Madrid. If the Merengues call upon Spurs striker Adebayor again, they will probably have the deepest attacking bench I have ever seen.

As for anomalies, the one that stands out the most would be Mario Balotelli's attempted back heel from eight yards out vs. L.A. Galaxy. Outrageous and a bit disrespectful, even if it is only a friendly.

The upcoming season should be interesting.

N.E. Revolution 1 - 4 Manchester United

Over 50,000 fans turned up on a Wednesday night in remote Gillette Stadium to watch Champions League finalists Manchester United play the local MLS squad, the New England Revolution. All were treated to a fascinating and competitive match. Man U started the game with a strong side that included Nemanja Vidic, Nani, Wayne Rooney, Michael Carrick and new signing Ashley Young. Young was looking to impress -- he was certainly the most dynamic United player in the first half. Here is how I thought the rest of them did:

Anders Lindegaard: 5
Not much action for the newish Man U keeper. New England's deflected goal was not his fault.
Fabio: 7
Lively throughout. Worked well with Young on his wing.
Jonathan Evans: 6
Didn't have much to do all game with the Revs' toothless attack.
Rafael: 7.5
A bit more adventurous than his brother on the other wing. He had a few good turns and looked dangerous throughout.
Ashley Young: 8
Put in a few good crosses and was willing to take his man on in attack. Solid debut.
Anderson: 6
Created a few opportunities and held possession well.
Michael Carrick: 7
Provided solid protection for the back four whenever the Revs ventured into their territory, and was purposeful in attack.
Nani - 5.5
Didn't create much, but made no errors either.
Dimitar Berbatov - 4
Berba and Rooney were not in sync.
Wayne Rooney - 5
Along with Berba, looked like he'd prefer to still be on vacation.
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Key Subs:
Park Ji-Sung - 8
Easily cut apart the Revs' subs in the second half. His 1-2 with Giggs at the end was brilliant.
Michael Owen - 7.5
Got a good goal, and put in a decent effort.
Frederico Macheda - 8
Back from loan and eager to please, his goals were very good.
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Several European teams are doing mini-tours of the US throughout the summer. Manchester United played here, FC Barcelona will play in Washington DC, Real Madrid will play in Philadelphia, Juventus will play at Citi Field in New York. For those of us who are unable to make it to Europe to watch these players in action during the regular season, these mini-tours are great, even if each game is technically a friendly.

Cesc Fabregas, the Copa America and the WWC

Mr. Wenger, Cesc Fabregas has done all he could do for you. It is time to let him go.

The scouts at Arsenal were astute in spotting Cesc's talent over eight years ago when they initially signed him. Since then, Cesc has been an integral part of the team, helping them to maintain consistent top four status. He has started 266 matches, scored 57 goals and enhanced Arsenal's reputation as a team that plays attractive football. He's put in a good shift for you.

I understand it is Arsenal's job as a business to get the best price for him, but the directors should strongly consider the work he's already done, and allow him to leave as soon as possible.

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Copa America
Thank you for helping me get my football fix this summer, Copa America. Univision and Telefutura here in the US are broadcasting it, and the few games that I have caught have been incredible. Last night's match between Argentina and Columbia was excellent in it's competitiveness.

Both teams were highly motivated. rigorous in their challenges and sharp in their passing. I can't believe many of these players have just finished long seasons in Europe and still play at this level.

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A Word about the Women's World Cup in Germany
My guess is that the US team is expected to do well, we usually do. From what I saw yesterday, in the 2-1 defeat to Sweden, we do not deserve to. The Swedes were much sharper and deserved the win. In the second half, the US attack was pathetic -- Route 1, long ball tactics to chase an equalizing goal. It was painful to watch. We couldn't control the ball at all, or put together 3 passes.

FIFA is a Mess

I am trying to think of a good acronym for FIFA, the Federation Internationale de Association Football, but am having a hard time keeping it clean.

With the resignation of Jack Warner, cleared of all charges of corruption by FIFA's internal ethics committee, a spot has opened up on the executive committee. My hope is that it is filled by someone who is worthy, someone who really cares for the game and has no ulterior motives. The cynic in me suggests it will be filled by another kowtowing Blatter crony.

Leadership should change at FIFA, but who should be in charge? How can one get into a position to represent, for example, American Soccer on the international stage? If time were abundant I would research the answer, but alas, this blog is for asking questions about that which I do not know, hoping some person somewhere can provide an answer.

Thanks for reading.

USA vs. Spain -- Int. Friendly

I was at the game. It was so nice out that day, tailgating was great, the atmosphere was incredible (pre-game), everyone was stoked to see two great national sides compete.

We knew Xavi and Puyol were staying home, but this was a primo Spain team to catch, regardless of the cast -- enough quality was on show to give an improving US side a great game.

Unfortunately the US looked completely lost or inept throughout, even though Spain were practically navigating on autopilot. Certainly put off by the pitch (don't get me started), the hung over Spanish players were very professional, playing some class ball and making a game of it. The best the US could do was to play kick and run with the kids. Bradley should have played his best squad from the start -- who cares if we beat Guadeloupe in the Gold Cup, or even Canada.

Bob Bradley embarrassed us by putting out this side. It was an insult to the Spanish players that made the journey.