No fancy titles for you. I'm tired, bitches. But I wanted to spout off about these three things.
I was at the Coliseum to witness Stanford, 40-point underdog, stun USCAs much credit as Stanford deserves, they had no business winning that football game. And as much heat as John David Booty (cracked middle finger on his throwing hand and all) is getting for his second half, I think the defense is just as much to blame (if not more so). Throughout the entire second half, Stanford was able to convert 3rd and 4th downs (4th and 20, anyone??!?!?!?!!?) at will. You won't win when your D plays like that, no matter who you play.
I was actually really surprised and somewhat disgusted at how quickly all the "die-hard" fans in the stands, decked out in their obnoxious Trojan garb, threw this team under the bus well before the game was over. And then afterward, all I could hear was, "We suck," "We're going to lose all the rest of our games," "I hate Booty," "Pete Carroll should've gone to San Diego when he had the chance." These people are idiots. USC has a great chance, provided the Pac 10 keeps up the high level of play and Cal and Oregon keep on track, to get into the national title game if they win out. But, I guess that's spoiled bandwagoning for you. Pretty dispicable, in my opinion. And here's another reason why college football needs a playoff: my friend at the game remarked, "Well, at least they can still get the Rose Bowl." To which I replied, "Meaningless."
Liverpool's sloppy draw versus Spurs marks the quarter-way mark in the Premiership"Sloppy and disjointed. Where's Gerrard?" This is all that was running through my head while watching Liverpool steal a draw at home against Tottenham. Several times, I wanted to vomit. Not from anxiety, mind you, but out of disgust. Still can't understand how, in the first half, we didn't score on that 3-on-1 break when Voronin opted to pass instead of shoot. Should've been 2-0 or 3-0 at halftime. El Nino bails us out and we're terribly lucky for it.
I miss Agger. This is the note the team ends on before the next international break. So, some thoughts on the season thus far...
Certainly, there are plenty of positives to draw from after the first quarter of league play. We're right in the thick of the title race and we haven't lost games that, in the past, we certainly would have (Villa, Spurs to name a couple).
On the flip side, I'm a firm believer that (no matter what sport) a team is only as good as it's last five games. The break comes at a very opportune time, but I'm a bit sad to say that I'm not sure it will bring about any changes in Rafa's team selection. There are players ON FORM who need to be starting as many matches as possible. Some people are quick to condemn anyone who criticizes Rafa's rotation policy, sometimes even going so far as to say it's a myth. But the fact is that this team, based on what we've seen during the last five or six games, doesn't have any cohesion. The players don't recognize each other on the pitch. But here's the thing (before anyone jumps down my throat for even suggesting that there's a connection between the side's disjointed play and the shifting lineups): rotation, aside from providing some rest, is theoretically meant to spark competition amongst players. Yet for most every match this season, we've seen
the same select few players consistently rising to the occassion. I wonder, then, why it is that Torres, Masch, Benayoun, and even Pennant, have not been elevated to automatic first team choice as is the case with Gerrard, Carra, and Finnan? Hell, even Arbeloa -- the team's most consistent player this season -- is sometimes less preferred to Riise who hasn't impressed at all, this season.
But it could all be psychological and, in fact, I would go so far as to say that the cause for our recent struggles is the Derby County match. Let's be honest, our competition up through that point, barring Chelsea, was not of a very high quality. And so we fattened up our egos before the real tests reared their head.
All this said, I believe there are two firm quick fixes: the returns of 1) Agger and 2) Alonso. If I had to make a wishlist for the rest of the season, the first wish would be that these two returned to the lineup ASAP.
Secondly, I wouldn't worry about not having a "true" left winger and just play Benayoun in that role with some regularity. He's shown that he can perform on that end of the pitch and, frankly, he and Pennant should be first choice wingers every match. Riise has brought little to the fray, as mentioned, Babel seems to provide more spark off the bench, and Aurelio... Don't even get me started on him. I just know that someone is going to ask, "What about Harry Kewell?" Well, forget him. He hasn't been with this team for 18 months. Time to move on.
Third, and this is related to my first wish, Stevie G returns to form. Having Agger in the back instead of statuesque Sami offers a little more leeway (sp?) to the midfield, allowing Alonso/Masch to take more chances opening up the game, as well as allowing them room to settle things down.
Fourth, Masch will always be preferred to Momo and Torres will always be preferred to Crouch.
Fifth, we buy a center back during the next transfer window. We've got cover at every position except for this one and it's killing us. Granted, we've only lost once this season, but my god have we looked anywhere between subpar and bad since thrashing Derby.
My goodness, this post certainly got bigger than I had originally intended. But I guess once you start ranting, it's hard to stop. I would like to note that while my thoughts might come across with a sense of bitterness, I'm firmly behind the club and all the lads on board this ship. If I seem frustrated, it's because I'm subconsciously mirroring the team's form.
We've got the talent! Now, we just have to trust ourselves (Rafa? Are you listening?) and solidify the chemistry of the team.
YNWA
Springboks are "prohibitive favorites," which means, "I'm scared"The only time I've ever rested easy about my favorite team being the goliath in a tournament were the '00-'01 and '01-'02 Lakers. Suffice it to say, I'm not put in this position often, and South Africa being the last of the Tri-Nation teams standing in the Rugby World Cup is no different.
I have to say, I'm a bit miffed that there isn't more of an uproar about New Zealand getting the shaft on that go-ahead try by the French -- what with that blatant forward-pass and all. As much as I'd like to consider the Boks to be favorites at this stage, you cannot deny the French at home. South Africa may be the better side, but I think they have a tougher semi against the Argies than the Frogs do against England, and you have to factor in the home field advantage.
Hopefully, for my sake, there are less surprises in the semifinal round. Although if England wanted a rematch with the Boks so badly that they upset France, I'd be happy about that.
Labels: College football, Daniel Agger, Fernando Torres, Javier Mascherano, Liverpool FC, Rafael Benitez, Rugby World Cup, South Africa, Springboks, Stanford, Steven Gerrard, USC, Yossi Benayoun
