Here is a detailed look at the Big West League that starts up this Wednesday, September 30th. We are doing a breakdown of team tactics, coaches, formations, players to watch, and of course the inevitable predictions. Note that in college soccer, this craft is a difficult one since it’s a crap shoot and at times […]
Archives for September 2009
Meet the Big West Men’s Soccer Coaches
Big West conference play opens up September 27, with UC Irvine at UC Santa Barbara. An attendance in the thousands is expected – I’ll definitely be there! The rest of the teams will have their openers on September 30. Here’s a couple of snippets on the coaches … UCSB – Tim Vom Steeg Head coach […]
Work Ethic – An Ellusive Player Trait
The main things to look for in a player when scouting, with the intention to recruit, were covered in the article about elite players. Now I want to cover one of the properties that is impossible to identify solely by scouting at games. That is, WORK ETHIC A player may currently have great qualities and […]
Inter Milan vs FC Barcelona Preview
The UEFA Champions League is under way and match day two has the most enticing match-up of the group stages. La Liga Champions FC Barcelona who won the treble (Spanish league, cup, and champions league) will visit Inter Milan who won the Scudetto (Italian League) last season. On any occasion this match up would be […]
Diving is Smart
Foul simulation says a lot about a player or team. It is a good indicator that they have “street smarts” on the field. Whether it is an attempt to give your team a free kick, waste time, or persuade the ref into giving an opponent a yellow card, the idea is to give your team […]
“Brazil take Super-Clasico”
Brazil proved to be too “EFFICIENT” for Argentina in the latest version of the superclasico clash of the titans in stealing a 3-1 victory in Rosario, Argentina. Argentina officials and players had hoped moving the game to the fortress in Rosario Central’s stadium would give a slight edge to them and heap more pressure on Brazil. Turns […]
Top Freshman to Watch in College Soccer
So many entities around the net publish their yearly list of “top 100 freshman” to watch during the college season. It’s really just a list of those players with impressive “pedigree”. Have you been in ODP or National player pools? Have you been on a high profile club or team that’s won big titles? Have […]
Argentina vs Brazil Preview
The two soccer powerhouses managed by two former World Cup winning players and captains are set to meet this Saturday, September 5th in a World Cup qualifier to be played in Rosario, Argentina at 5:30pm PST. When these teams meet, all bets are off! Current form usually means nothing. This clash promises to be as […]
Stop Making Excuses!
You know, this is one of our soccer problems in this country… EXCUSES! These things we use so often are arguably an instinctive property of humans. We think that by using them we protect our egos, self esteem, self worth. In the short term, it might work. We go on living our seemingly flawless lives, […]
The New Galactico Era Begins
Lights, Camera, Action!!! With the return of Florentino Perez to the presidency of Real Madrid came “the show” and spectacle he likes to offer the soccer world. With Florentino, every move he makes at Madrid needs to draw cameras and a big crowd. The presentation at the Santiago Bernabeu of new signings Kaka (over 50,000 […]