nick wrote:Roy Keane, former Man U captain, said it was the right card.
nick wrote:http://abcnews.go.com/ABC_Univision/New ... d=18404867
guess this Turkish ref was reffing all these games too..
the sport is dirty, no wonder its such a shit sport.
July 8 - The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) has been implicated in the match fixing scandal engulfing Turkish football, whilst champions Fenerbahce facing the prospect of relegation and having their title from last season stripped if found guilty of the allegations levelled at them.
Turkish daily Radikal reported that Fenerbahce chairman Aziz Yıldırım had called the TFF prior to a derby game against Besiktas and asked for referee Cüneyt Çakır to be appointed to officiate the game, which subsequently happened.
Fenerbahce's 4-2 win in that game was a crucial point in their march to the title.
But, but Manchester United lost! It had to be the ref's fault.Uuaww wrote:So I held off until now but jsence, read this thread:
http://www.bigsoccer.com/community/thre ... l.1983661/
Most of the people who go on that board are referees themselves. Nani Red is actually winning. Is it a judgement call? yes. Now if we turn it around and this happened to a RM player and they got a yellow, everyone here knows you'd be screaming it should have been a red.
Also that bullshit that you say Cakir is fixing matches and shit or biased is just distasteful. He is a FIFA Elite level ref. I am sure they did 1000x more research on the guy then you ever will so don't be bringing in that crap.
Soccer refs are continuously trashed and the list that people accept as good is literally like 5 names long.
Uuaww wrote:So I held off until now but jsence, read this thread:
http://www.bigsoccer.com/community/thre ... l.1983661/
Most of the people who go on that board are referees themselves. Nani Red is actually winning. Is it a judgement call? yes. Now if we turn it around and this happened to a RM player and they got a yellow, everyone here knows you'd be screaming it should have been a red.
Also that bullshit that you say Cakir is fixing matches and shit or biased is just distasteful. He is a FIFA Elite level ref. I am sure they did 1000x more research on the guy then you ever will so don't be bringing in that crap.
Soccer refs are continuously trashed and the list that people accept as good is literally like 5 names long.
LetsGoPeay wrote:All I know is that virtually anytime one your favorite teams loses a game you get on here and start complaining about officiating. It never fails.
Not called into the squad:U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION (World Cup qualifying Caps/Goals)
GOALKEEPERS (3): Brad Guzan (Aston Villa - 5/3 SO), Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire – 0/0), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake – 0/0)
DEFENDERS (6): Tony Beltran (Real Salt Lake – 0/0), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City – 0/0), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City – 6/0), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy – 1/0), Clarence Goodson (Brondby – 5/0), Justin Morrow (San Jose Earthquakes – 0/0)
MIDFIELDERS (9): DaMarcus Beasley (Puebla – 26/6), Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake – 2/0), Michael Bradley (Roma – 20/5), Joe Corona (Club Tijuana – 1/0), Maurice Edu (Bursaspor – 10/0), Jermaine Jones (Schalke 04 – 6/0), Sacha Kljestan (Anderlecht – 13/0), Brek Shea (Stoke City – 2/0), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City – 4/0)
FORWARDS (5): Jozy Altidore (AZ Alkmaar – 18/6), Terrence Boyd (Rapid Vienna – 2/0), Clint Dempsey (Tottenham Hotspur – 27/11), Herculez Gomez (Santos – 6/2), Eddie Johnson (Seattle Sounders FC – 12/10)
•Captain Carlos Bocanegra has been excluded from the U.S. Men's National Team roster due to his lack of match fitness, as manager Jurgen Klinsmann named an inexperienced defensive corps for this week's round of World Cup–qualifying matches. This won't be a problem, as the U.S. has a relatively easy home match against Costa Rica, for which they'll still be favored, and a road match against Mexico, for which an inexperienced back line will provide Klinsmann with a ready-made excuse for what promises to be a gruesome defeat.
Yeah, any time you send central american teams to some place freezing they do not do well. The US really planned this one out well.LetsGoPeay wrote:Grantland had this to say about it, and it's pretty accurate.•Captain Carlos Bocanegra has been excluded from the U.S. Men's National Team roster due to his lack of match fitness, as manager Jurgen Klinsmann named an inexperienced defensive corps for this week's round of World Cup–qualifying matches. This won't be a problem, as the U.S. has a relatively easy home match against Costa Rica, for which they'll still be favored, and a road match against Mexico, for which an inexperienced back line will provide Klinsmann with a ready-made excuse for what promises to be a gruesome defeat.
Carlos Bocanegra went to sleep on the evening of Feb. 5 in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, expecting to play his 111th game for the U.S. national team the following afternoon.
Entering his seventh year as captain, the 33-year-old center back had been training with most of the projected starters and was by far the most experienced defender at U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann’s disposal.
The next morning, however, Klinsmann announced a starting 11 that, according to one source, left Bocanegra in “disbelief.”
Geoff Cameron and Omar Gonzalez, who never had played together, would partner later that day in central defense. Fabian Johnson and Timmy Chandler, two German-born defenders with minimal World Cup qualifying experience, would man the flanks with scant support in front of them.
Bocanegra’s omission wasn’t the only surprise (starters Cameron and forward-turned-midfielder Eddie Johnson had been training with the reserves), but it was the most dramatic. The squad was unsettled.
“It was one of those things where Jurgen woke up the next day and wanted to try something we weren’t familiar with,” a player said.
According to multiple sources, Klinsmann appealed to Bocanegra—now relegated to the bench—for his support during the pregame pep talk. It was described as an awkward, tone-deaf move that surprised several U.S. players and deeply hurt the long-time captain.
“He already broke Carlos’ heart,” another source said. “Why drive the knife in and twist it?”
Over the past several weeks, Sporting News has spoken to 22 individuals with ties to the U.S. national team or its members—including 11 current players based in MLS or abroad. The remaining sources make their living in American soccer and have reliable relationships with players, coaches and executives. Sources were offered anonymity in exchange for their anecdotes, observations and opinions. Those identified by name are Klinsmann and three players who spoke shortly before Sporting News commenced reporting this story.
What emerged over the course of these discussions was near unanimity regarding the players’ flagging faith in Klinsmann, his staff and his methods, along with the squad’s absence of harmony.
In conversation after conversation, the same themes emerged:
— Klinsmann and chief assistant Martin Vasquez either lack the tactical acumen and game-day chops to successfully lead the team or fail to communicate their wishes effectively.
— Too much time and too many resources are spent on initiatives that don’t translate to the field.
— Constant lineup changes and building resentment over the perceived importance and attitude of the German-born players are harming team chemistry.
This group isn’t on the same page with its coach or each other, and the World Cup campaign might be in peril unless that changes. Sources painted a picture of a coach whose big ideas might not fit a team he could be in danger of losing.
“Several things about the lineup didn’t work,” one of the players told Sporting News. “Sometimes a coach’s biggest mistake is trying to get in who he sees as the best 11 players on the field. But they don’t have to be. You have to have 11 players on the field who are going to work well with each other and be good for each other.”
It was a miserable day that highlighted the disconnect between the team and its manager.
Speaking to reporters immediately following the game, both midfielder Michael Bradley and goalkeeper Tim Howard offered comments that a pair of former national teamers told Sporting News amounted to “cries for help.”
“I think we need to find a way to get a better rhythm,” Howard said. “It’s OK if you have to sit in and form a shell. That’s OK. But even when you do that, you still need to get about the ball, close it down and get out to the flanks.”
Regarding the makeshift defense, the goalie told New York’s Daily News, “They never played together in any game, let alone a Hex. The back four is all about jelling. It’s a frying pan. We don’t have time to learn.”
But the trouble with the national team goes beyond a disgruntled player or two. According to sources, there is a lack of understanding and confidence in Klinsmann’s message and method, even among those who get regular minutes, which is worthy of concern considering what’s at stake for American soccer. That disconnect can be boiled down to two fundamental questions: How long should the transition take and who is expected to conform to whom?
“Have you read Philipp Lahm’s book?”
That was the response from a U.S. national team player when asked about the tactical issues the U.S. is experiencing under Klinsmann and Vasquez.
Lahm, the German national team captain, wrote an autobiography two years ago in which he criticized several former coaches, including Klinsmann. The pair worked together when Klinsmann managed Germany from 2004 to 2006 and Bayern Munich in 2008-09.
“We practiced little more than fitness (at Bayern). Tactical things were neglected. The players had to get together before (games) to discuss how we wanted to play,” Lahm wrote. “After six or eight weeks, all the players knew it wouldn't work with Klinsmann. The rest of the season was damage limitation."
Klinsmann, with Vasquez in tow, failed to last the 2008-09 season at Bayern and didn’t coach again until hired by U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati in the summer of ’11. He responded to Lahm’s criticism shortly after taking the U.S. job, telling ESPN, “It's basically a player's perspective that never has the coaching perspective. He doesn't see the big picture.”
