Hey @TimbersFC fans, I am currently and will be speaking with Eddie Johnson and we will work 2gether to help him @ThinkTaylorORG #noworries
A Tweet from Taylor Twellman and a real classy thing to do and say.
3 months ago
Ryan Gates
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Twellman > Wynalda
Not that we all didn’t know that already.
When I write, I write for the Timbers. Contributing Editor of Stumptown Footy
most of what wynalda says is...
100% correct
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 10, 2012 4:43 PM PST up reply actions
?
Can you explain that statement for me.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
well
if you haven’t been following he has been on a bit of a campaign over the last year to speak out against the reclusive (or refusal to participate in the int’l aspects of the game) nature of mls. his basic argument is that we need to shift to a german style calendar starting in early august, take a 2 month winter break, and then finish up in may – making it easier for mls to participate in transfer markets, respect nat’l team dates, and play our games that matter most (the stretch run and playoffs) in optimum weather. he also has issue with the way we develop players in the u.s. (send rich kids to regional clubs, then elite soccer universities) is not a good way to develop players- he’s part owner of the san diego flash and has several youth teams that are focusing on individual on the ball skill instead of classic american physical play.
this has made him stand out and provided fodder for mls centric thinkers who like to say things “we don’t have to be like europe,” “dont be a eurosnob,” and “the reality of soccer in this country is we have to do x,y,z.” but if you listen to his entire theory and dont pick and choose stuff out of context to make witty quips about it is spot on.
this is fascinating stuff guys. the culture of the sport is on the cusp of huge change in this country and i encourage you to pay attention…with an open mind.
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 10, 2012 6:26 PM PST up reply actions
MLS respected FIFA dates this year, it's the teams that broke the dates.
The weather? see below.
You must not be aware of the USSF youth leagues and scholarships to 150+ kids right now or MLS teams giving academies free of charge.
Claudia Reyna is doing more than just the San Diego Flash, he’s the head of ALL youth development.
My open mind recognizes that NFL since the 1960s has done the same thing MLS has been doing in the last 16 years. That’s a successful league.
Football money league 2012: scroll down to Around the World in 90 minutes. The world is noticing. Without Wynalda.
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
yea
that whole generation is working its way up the system, and most of them agree in principal with wynalda, they just not as reckless, you can see it on lalas during his halftime shows, he chooses he words very carefully to not let any “non mls approved talking points” slip out.
its funny this whole thing started with twellman – the guy who they stonewalled from going to europe because then they wouldn’t have anyone else to put in commercials, what about donovan? how good could he have been had he been in complete control of his career? geoff cameron needs to go now, and he probably could if all it took was some mid table team in need of a CD to make a 1 million offer. how many more players are we going to let not reach their full potential?
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 10, 2012 10:40 PM PST up reply actions
This may now seem like I'm piling on, but this is today's news
Starting in September, the U.S. Development Academy will operate on a 10-month schedule, mimicking the development systems of nations around the world. The new system creates a situation where players will be training multiple times a week and playing games over an extended, stretched-out period of time as opposed to the current format that had a shorter, more compressed schedule that limited growth and development.
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
you're talking about the ussf
wynalda’s main gripes are with mls – which currently in a bit of power struggle with ussf – because he believes its current format and processes are counterproductive to having a good national team
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 10, 2012 10:16 PM PST up reply actions
Here is the thing
I am not going to say Eurosnob nor will I say anything about doing it how they do it in Europe because the USA is not Europe. However I will say this: In Cities like New York, Chicago, LA, Philadelphia, San Jose, Houston and any other city that has more than 2 other major professional sports going to a August to April schedule would kill any momentum the MLS has gathered in the last 16 years. Going up against the huge Monster that is the NFL and College football during their pivotal months would kill the middle of the season. A lot of sports experts don’t even talk about the NBA until after the Superbowl. MLS can not compete with that if it wants to be more main stream. If it only wants to be a niche sport than they should make the switch.
Yes you are right Soccer could be on the verge of a major break through but doing what Wynalda says would only destroy what little headway MLS has achieved in the last 16 years.
Finally if he really wanted to be listened too and people to think about what he has to say he needs to say it in a different way. “Why hasn’t anyone called me to coach, all the MLS coaches are idiots. I could coach” is not the smartest thing to say if he actually was looking for a job.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
Thanks you for pointing out the elephant in the room
Football is king and trying to compete with it is insanity. Until every team has their own stadium and is regularly filling them with season ticket holding fans then it would be suicide to switch to the international calendar.
Exactly
Competing with the NFL and College football would be suicide. The Sounders would have a tough time competing against UW Football and Seahawks.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
Seriously though...
Am I wrong to think that this is actually pretty bad? Like career ending bad?
As we know, once you get a couple concussions, it’s much easier to get them again in the future. I don’t know if we know what exactly happened on Monday, but it feels like it’s not taking much for EJ to get concussed again. If it’s really gotten this bad, and I hope it hasn’t, I have to think that he’s going to at least consider calling it a career. Brain injury isn’t something you wan to screw around with.
I'm gutted for him
But yes, EJ has to think about what’s best for him. Primary is EJ’s health, secondary is the interests of the club. But both need strong consideration in the coming days. Three concussions in one year is scary. That should be of extreme concern to EJ and the club. Actually, two in one year should have been of extreme concern to the club. I have come criticism of how they handled this but I’ll save it for another time, if the subject comes up again.
Concussions are awful. I’ve had a couple. Dizziness, nausea, seeing stars… it sucks. It’s hard to describe unless you’ve been through it. Once you’ve had a couple of concussions contact sports becomes part of your history, not future. It’s hard to walk away from playing but it’s in the best interests of his health.
That's what she said.
by yepyou'reright on Feb 10, 2012 5:48 PM PST up reply actions
http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showpost.php?p=25142600&postcount=489
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
"I’m American! Does everybody know how this country was founded? It’s not only our right, it’s our obligation to challenge what’s wrong," he said.
http://aol.sportingnews.com/soccer/story/2012-02-07/eric-wynalda-is-the-icon-turned-iconoclast#ixzz1m2K6mXb4
Yes, but bringing the bludgeon to the negotiating table is not going to win the battle of persuasion.
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
He has argued that just two changes would "make the product better in 10 minutes." The first is to create a significant link between compensation and performance. Bonuses for appearances, starts and wins would create the sort of cutthroat competition and accountability that will improve, and harden, players and teams.
The second is to shift the MLS schedule to the fall-to-spring format favored by the leagues in Europe. Not only will the MLS Cup playoffs move to the late spring/early summer, out of the long shadow cast by football and the World Series, but players will be more accessible to European teams looking to buy during their own offseason.
- maybe. But show me the money.
- ……….. Feb 10, 2012:
It’s 15 in Chicago?
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
He's arguing that the schedule should be longer
when he also blows out his mouth to shorten the schedule to accommodate fall-spring alignment. Not to mention the off-season will be shorter than the winter break.
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
BTW this is the first year MLS is playing in December.
And is the longest schedule ever. We can accommodate FIFA dates (there is no such thing as the International schedule, doesn’t exist).
1996: 4/6 – 10/20 (168 days, 24 weeks) <—- Shortest
1997: 3/22 – 10/26 (219 days, 31 weeks)
1998: 3/15 – 10/25 (225 days, 32 weeks)
1999: 3/20 – 11/21 (247 days, 35 weeks)
2000: 3/18 – 10/15 (212 days, 30 weeks)
2001: 4/7 – 10/21 (198 days, 28 weeks)
2002: 3/23 – 10/21 (213 days, 30 weeks)
2003: 4/5 – 11/23 (233 days, 33 weeks)
2004: 4/3 – 11/14 (226 days, 32 weeks)
2005: 4/2 – 11/13 (226 days, 32 weeks)
2006: 4/1 – 11/12 (226 days, 32 weeks)
2007: 4/7 – 11/18 (226 days, 32 weeks) <—- Noticing something?
2008: 3/29 – 11/23 (240 days, 34 weeks)
2009: 3/19 – 11/22 (249 days, 35 weeks)
2010: 3/25 – 11/21 (242 days, 34 weeks)
2011: 3/15 – 11/20 (251 days, 35 weeks)
2012: 3/10 – 12/1 (267 days, 38 weeks) <—- Longest season ever.
MLS 2012 has more FIFA dates recognized, longer schedule, and is only now 1 week shorter than the EPL (39 weeks), Bundesliga (39 weeks); exact with Ligue 1 (38 weeks); longer than La Liga (37 weeks), Serie A (37 weeks, if you forget the work stoppage), Brazil Serie A (28 weeks, May-Dec).
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
Maybe the fahrenheit/celsius thing is throwing him off.
When I write, I write for the Timbers. Contributing Editor of Stumptown Footy
by Andrew Wheeler on Feb 10, 2012 6:41 PM PST up reply actions
About the pic, I just noticed it updates right along with the weather.com website.
So the temps will be changing over time.
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
my bad
saw this after i posted above, but its largely a small issue, we’re always going to have to play some games in less than optimal weather, chicago in feb/mar in no less pleasant than houston/dallas in july/august. isnt mls cup shifting to being hosted by the highest seeded team? what if toronto/chicago/philly/nj/ne/mtl hosts it – the potential for bad weather in late november is equal to the potential in march. did anyone see the conditions for the lag/nyrb playoff game last year?
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 10, 2012 10:54 PM PST up reply actions
And as I've stated elsewhere
You’d have to literally shorten the league’s off-season to ridiculous levels if we keep the 38 week game schedule.
August 15 to Christmas is 19 weeks. (19 weeks left)
Christmas to March 1 is 10 weeks.
March 1 to mid-July is 19 weeks.
Mid-July to August 15 is 4 weeks.
I’m going off my normal regimen of being courteous and will say that long of a break blows chunks.
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
thanks for being courteous
because is not like a serieis of short snide curt responses isn’t disrespectful or anything.
this is what happens every time this comes up. someone will say “look, its 15 in chicago right now, no way we can play soccer there.” – while not acknowledging that the games right after the proposed break could be played in the southern cities while the weather is turning good. or “the season will be just be way too long.” – not acknowledging that a 2 month is in fact a 2 month break (so it shouldn’t count as part of the length of the season) and that mls has a super inefficient schedule with teams having idle weekends for seemingly no reason, an all star break, “wild card weekend” which could go away, and pointless midseason friendlies.
this is largely a philosophical debate, do you think mls should take steps to align itself with the rest of the world’s leagues so its teams can participate (largely as a seller, but also giving itself the ability to take in a great player down on his luck trying to re-prove himself) in european transfer markets? or are you happy with things the way they are?
be careful with the way you ingest things that comes out of the mls media machine. be skeptical. they are doing what they want (modeling the league after the nfl) so they can better sell merchandise, tv rights to “rivalry” games, etc. – and all these objections they spout are just rationalizations – they haven’t taken the alternatives seriously. their first concern is not the quality on the field, its to their business plan. personally, i’m not interested in whether merritt paulson and the other owners can get the ROI that nfl owners do.
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 11, 2012 8:13 AM PST up reply actions
You are absolutely right.
Their bottom line is the most important thing.
That is why they schedule mid season friendlies.
That is why they have random idle weekends (venue conflicts, mostly).
That is why there is an all-star game in the middle of the season.
In a league where most teams are not yet profitable, in a country where the sport has failed multiple times, it absolutely needs to be driven by the bottom line. The AEGs of the world are not going to prop MLS up forever.
“Media Machine” or no, a two month break in the middle of the season anywhere that the sport is not already the dominant form of entertainment seems suicidal to me.
Contributing Editor for Stumptown Footy
by William Conwell on Feb 11, 2012 8:29 AM PST up reply actions
What's working
Looking at league trajectory for the past ten years, not sure why they would abruptly change course. With the exception of a couple markets, some of which could be turned around with a new SS stadium, the league is growing financially and talent-wise.
basically
because the national team is falling behind, our players that are good enough to test their skills overseas, like geoff camero or taylor twellman (and a slew of others), can’t make the personal career decision to advance their careers, their stuck in mls and dont have a say about it. we have kids coming up that, if they think they may one day be good enugh to play in europre, have to decide should i go to mls and risk getting stuck, or go now and risk not making it. that’s bad for the league, bad for our players, and bad for the natl team.
the schedule is a minor point for me, its largely a means to an end, we have got to open our league up to easier movement of players
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 11, 2012 9:48 AM PST up reply actions
But doesn't it help
that players can go to Europe during the offseason for trials with EPL teams and such? That way they can ply their trade with the big European teams, increase their exposure and improve their game, while still being able to fall back on the MLS gig if they don’t score a transfer. I’m not necessarily arguing for one side or the other, but it seems like there’s a trade-off…
When I write, I write for the Timbers. Contributing Editor of Stumptown Footy
by Andrew Wheeler on Feb 11, 2012 10:18 AM PST up reply actions
not sure what your saying...
I’m not claiming it’s ideal for transfers, but just a few—Ream just signed with Bolton. Shea was being shopped around. Dempsey started in MLS. Donovan could go to Europe.
Also, I’d rather see our league improve and it be an option for guys to stay here. Not because they are stuck, but because they get more playing time and more exposure.
As our league improves, our national team will improve. As our league improves, there will be more back and forth with Europe.
by Kracken2011 on Feb 11, 2012 10:20 AM PST up reply actions
Easier movement of players will hurt MLS
(Disclaimer: I do not care about the national team as I find international tournaments dull)
If you make it easier for good players to leave MLS, they will – MLS’ salary structure guarantees that. If a guy can make as good or better money in any number of European leagues against better competition, why would he stay in the US? There is absolutely no reason a Brek Shea-type player would stay here if he were offered decent-to-good money from even a Championship team in England.
There is no "stuck in MLS"
It is teams that can’t pay the transfer fee.
Twellman is from 2006-7, this is 2012.
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
Europe does not equal better national team.
How is it good for a player to go over to Europe just to get reserve minutes? I am looking at Buddle, Eddie Johnson, Dominic Cervi, Brad Guzan, and a slew of other talented players who have stagnated in development. Playing games helps you get better not sitting on the bench.
Europe is not the answer and not going to Europe is not the reason why our national team is stagnate. The US has the BEST athletes in the world. Most of those Athletes play something other than soccer and usually end up playing either Basketball or Football. The reason soccer is lagging is because the kids, up until recently, had no one to look up to on a daily basis. Having a strong league in the USA, which means not competing with the big boys of sports in the US, is going to help the national team more than anything else.
PS making snide comments about a commenter is really respectful too, especially when said commenter is brother of one of the managing editors.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
er...
I know you’re kidding about that last part, but with everyone piling on Leverage right now I just want to make sure nobody takes that the wrong way.
When I write, I write for the Timbers. Contributing Editor of Stumptown Footy
by Andrew Wheeler on Feb 11, 2012 11:44 AM PST up reply actions
Yeah
Sorry that was a bit much.
I was trying to lighten the mood with that last commment :)
Leverage I understand what you are trying to say and I appreciate your views and I was just trying to be funny but it fell flat.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
i think this is a red herring
this gets thrown around a lot but most of the best soccer players in history were not prototypical athletes. lionel messi is a scrawny dude, xavi and iniesta are weaklings, ronaldinho was the farthest thing from athletic.
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 11, 2012 4:52 PM PST up reply actions
Every Sport
Every Sport is about the Bottom Line. Every Single One. Not a single owner in sports will ever tell you they are in it to lose money for the good of the game.
Oh and by the way European teams lost about 2 Billion dollars last year. The NFL made 2-3 Billion Dollars in revenue last year. You wan MLS to follow a broken financial model?
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
Oh and by the way European teams lost about 2 Billion dollars last year. … You wan(t) MLS to follow a broken financial model?
This is the question I keep asking people who argue for following the international schedule, and copying Europe 100%. How many previous attempts at a first division league have failed because of rampant spending?
Blazers win!
This is not a philosophical debate
This is a Money issue. It will always be a money issue. Why do you think MLS is set up the way it is? Because the NASL showed them that being like the big clubs in Europe will doom Soccer in the US. However creating a league structured like the NFL will ensure the league exists to become an amazing league.
One final question, Have you read “Soccernomics”?
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
its sitting on my bookshelf with about 15 other soccer books
a bit behind, yes it should be about profit..for the owners. i’m a fan of the league and the sport. firstly I want mls games to be free flowing displays of skill and I want out national team to succeed on a long term basis. secondly i want the owners to make enough money to keep their teams solvent so that the first objective can be maintained.
when was the last time you sat down and watched an entire nfl game without losing interest, getting up to go do something else for awhile? following the nfl model will ensure windfall profits for the owners, but it will also, i believe, lead to a less interesting and less entertaining league, and sacrifice. opening the league up would not ensure every team “loses money for the good of the game.” in fact it dont understand how they could earn less. they’d still be earning all the same revenue they are now, with the possibility to earn more by selling players. if cameron was sold to say, a french or dutch team for 1 million, would houston fans stop going to the games?
yes, a few major english and italian clubs have been losing a lot of money for a long time, but that’s because they’ve been buying their talent instead of developing it. the clubs in the business of developing for profit in places like holland, france, and belgium are doing well. the german clubs are also run very responsibly. no one is saying we’re going to turn into the epl, dishing out 40 million for big time strikers. i’d like to see us position ourselves where we can better capitalize on our home grown talent. we have good players here, but we’re such a pain in the ass to deal with teams with player needs don’t both with us, they’ll just go get a kid from africa or bosnia or wherever.
if one of my comments were taken as snide, they weren’t. this is the best soccer board in pdx, i wouldn’t insult anyone here and talk down to them with smug replies like i am some sort of expert and you’re an idiot because we don’t see things the same way. one of the things i love about the sport and that two intelligent fans, sitting right next to each watching the same game can see two totally different thing. i’m just a guy with a different perspective because i’ve lived all over the world and followed the sport for a long time. i watch a little college bball, but i don’t really care about football, baseball or nba – they’re filled with hype and pundits but the actual competitions bore me. the recent steps mls has taken to put an american stamp on the game (wild card round, adding divisions, etc) after about 5 years of moving towards the world’s practices has conflicted me.
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 11, 2012 4:49 PM PST up reply actions
All valid points
The only snide comment was :because is not like a serieis of short snide curt responses isn’t disrespectful or anything.
Kejsare being in law school usually posts a lot of short things with links to get his point across so just grin and bear it. We all do :) Also sometimes even I, his brother, get annoyed with him. I in know way thought you were talking down to anyone nor putting yourself out there as an expert. Like Kejsare points out you are being logical and giving reasonable arguments. Sorry if my comment came off like I was saying you were.
I just want to clarify one thing, I don’t want MLS to be like the NFL by making the product less interesting and maximizing ad revenue. I want MLS to control the growth and use the Salary cap model unlike the rest of the world. NASL failed because it let spending get out of control and as you said spending is getting out of control for some big clubs in Europe. I guess what I am saying is I want the hybrid of the European system and the NFL Cap/parity. One of the biggest reasons I don’t follow the European leagues is because of the lack of parity. Yes I watch a game if it is on but I prefer MLS over the EPL because it is more like the NFL in terms of parity.
Yes America needs to change to be more European in it’s academy system and less pay to play like it is now. I agree with Wynalda in that respect but I also don’t think moving to a different schedule will have any change other than to put soccer in direct competition with the biggest sports in the US. MLS is not ready to challenge the NFL and College Football. Especially if it wants to continue to raise the cap so we can gather a lot more talent.
Happy to have you on this board and thanks for saying it is the best. I was just curious if you had read Soccernomics as I haven’t yet either and was wondering if this had any influence on your ideas on US soccer. I just got it myself and it is ready and waiting to be read. I also just got “We are thugs” (I think that is the title) but my favorite soccer book is probably “Gaza” the Paul Gascoigne autobiography.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
dude
if you’re not watching uefa champions league you’re missing out! plus, i would think following the major issues over there (and SA and Africa for that matter) could help you add more big picture perspective to your writing here. financial fair play is coming, so they’ve learned from us (and their mistakes) in that regard. they have parity – but it just happens in longer cycles. la liga is largely written before it starts, but italy, england and germany especially are very competitive competitions.
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 11, 2012 5:50 PM PST up reply actions
When I say I don't follow
Doesn’t mean I am not watching the games. What I mean by that is the fact that I am not looking up their rosters and their transfers. Nor am I checking the scores every weekend :)
I watch the games that come on and watch the UEFA CL and I do read about the Match Fixing and debt problems. All of that put together does help with the bigger picture and what goes on with the Timbers I just am more MLS centric and Timbers centric than most.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
speaking of the culture of italian match fixing
check this out, its a quick read
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 12, 2012 8:31 AM PST up reply actions
It is already on my list
I saw this and have put it on my to read list. Funny enough so is Soccer for Dummies as I want to see what they say.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
My time is money
It must be curt, clear, and concise.
And I often need to get back to paying attention in class/work.
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
so is mine (and everyone else that gets paid off how much they sell/work)
which is why you see me post (mostly!) before 7 am, after 6 pm and weekends. in my opinion,
if you’re posting about serious topics while you’re that distracted it makes me wonder how much your “listening” to what others are saying or just waiting for an opportunity to restate what you already think. this game is played all over the world in different cultures and there are a whole lot of smart people covering it and watching as fans, its may be advantageous to listen to what they say rather than wait for an opportunity to “prove them wrong” with a quick swift brush of the keyboard.
now i must get back to the villa city game.
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 12, 2012 8:44 AM PST up reply actions
He is a Law Student and a Marine
So it is just a little different (not worse nor better just different). Being a law student and a marine does take up time but he is very well read and has his pulse on a lot of things. Also he has lived/visited a lot of countries around the world.
I on the other hand am a online school teacher so I sit in front of my computer all day and get to check this site a lot more often than others :)
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
And as my brother said
Fy sjutton du läst mig som en bok!
Je suis d’accord.
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
fair enough
this all got started with some sort of assumed consensus that we all think wynalda is a joke, i was trying to encourage everyone to not base it solely on mls handles him. you need to take their “media” with extreme skepticism because their motive is to discredit him because it doesn’t mesh with their marketing/business plan, quality of the play and career achievement of its players be damned. his surely is a “twitter train wreck” but this is not a topic that should be debated in 144 character posts. here’s is an example of what mls’ media machine is doing to him.
listen to the first one (a pretty fair interview without prejudicial overtones):
http://www.beyondthepitch.net/podcasts/edition/index.cfm/beyond-the-pitch/2011/10/31/eric-wynalda/
now listen to this one (tons of underlying disdain, you can almost cut the tension with a knife, it seems like they only invited him on to stonewall him with a lack of debate – it starts around the 30th min):
http://extratimeradio.buzzsprout.com/947/39263-extratime-radio-eric-wynalda-fsc
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 12, 2012 2:35 PM PST up reply actions
Catch the reactions before the "MLS media" machine kicked in
http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1882790
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
last i heard
he said we should take a break after x-mas and start up sometime after march 1st, this i what i meant by fodder, people can snap a screenshot of the temps at midnight (its supposed to by 34 and sunny tomorrow in chicago – which sounds a lot better than houston in augustto me), or chuckle under their breath like the extra time radio guys did, while entirely missing the point….if nagbe turns into a fricking superstar, which i think he will, we largely won’t be able to cash and put the money back into the club, like a team in holland or belgium could
by #1 Leverage Fan on Feb 10, 2012 10:22 PM PST up reply actions
http://www.stumptownfooty.com/2012/2/10/2790808/hey-timbersfc-fans-i-am-currently-and-will-be-speaking-with-eddie#91555236
should be here.
Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.
A two month break
in the middle of a season just wouldn’t fly. Maybe two separate campaigns like the Mexican league, but again, I don’t see why you would make such a drastic change unless the ship was taking on water. Things are going in the right direction.
Although I’m not a big fan of the unbalanced schedule (except the reduced travel wear is a positive), that can be adjusted if it proves undesirable.
And who knows, maybe the rest of the world will move towards our schedule after the snowy weather in Europe.
by Kracken2011 on Feb 11, 2012 10:30 AM PST up reply actions
I'm more talking about
“Can somebody explain to me how a kid who never practiced once needs surgery, out for a year? uh, medical? Valencia in Portland,”
When I write, I write for the Timbers. Contributing Editor of Stumptown Footy
by Andrew Wheeler on Feb 10, 2012 6:39 PM PST up reply actions
He said this about MLS
"Our league is a joke," he told Sporting News. "I want soccer to continue to flourish in this country, but there’s a whole other level we’re just excluding ourselves from. We’ve cheated the American public out of a better product."
Read more: http://aol.sportingnews.com/soccer/story/2012-02-07/eric-wynalda-is-the-icon-turned-iconoclast#ixzz1m2u7w6vx
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
A joke?
Really. MLS is 16 years into its existence. Also the EPL, which was the First Division before it became the EPL, had only 18 teams in it’s 16th year of existence, which was in 1904. 1904! How long did it take the EPL to finally get the academies going and start actually developing amazing players? Even looking at the NFL it really did not take off until 40 years after it was a league, since it’s first season was in 1920!
So apparently the MLS is supposed to of over come 50+ years of the train wreck we called soccer in the US?
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
It's sad that a guy who got a chance to
play professionally here feels safe ragging on it now that his employer won’t broadcast MLS. It’s obvious that Wynalda is just trying to appease his Euro Fox Soccer colleagues and the eurosnobs who watch Fox.
Wynalda is a hack and he was an average footballer, nothing special. A mediocre player like him probably wouldn’t make an MLS team now or even sniff Klinsmann’s a$%.
Can we stop talking about him now?
That's what she said.
by yepyou'reright on Feb 11, 2012 12:22 PM PST via mobile up reply actions
LOL
What I will get the other side.
Wynalda was a great soccer player who has amazing things to say about American Soccer and the way it should be run. He should be a coach in MLS and maybe even national team coach.
(by the way this is not a jab at you Leverage Fan just saying everything opposite of Yep to move on and talk about concussions/Eddie Johnson)
Okay now that is over with too bad Eddie Johnson may have to retire now. I wonder what Twellman can do for him?
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
I have the same question about Twellman
My understanding is there is no “cure” for concussions, correct? Twellman can’t set him up with a specialized rehab plan, can he? (100% serious here, I know very little about concussion treatment). The only thing I can think of that he could be helping with, is finding him a position in MLS that doesn’t involve playing. I think EJ had a lot of potential, but I’m sure I’m not alone in thinking he’s done.
"I'm not blind, I'm deaf, I'm halfway to a ref!" (Well technically I'm 1/3rd of the way since I can properly call offsides, but that doesn't sound as catchy..)
Depression
I think Twellman can help with the psychological side, especially with the fact that Johnson may have to hang em up.
Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.
It is more than that.
http://thinktaylor.org/concussion-main.html
Think Taylor works with athletes on all issue pertaining to concussions. Check out heir site for more exact info.
Contributing Editor for Stumptown Footy
by William Conwell on Feb 11, 2012 2:29 PM PST up reply actions
I did read the site
It’s all kind of generalized, with no real specifics, “Education, support and fundraising”. Even the concussion info link goes to a bunch of external sites. Don’t get me wrong, I’m really happy this organization exists, I’m just curious as to what they actually do.
"I'm not blind, I'm deaf, I'm halfway to a ref!" (Well technically I'm 1/3rd of the way since I can properly call offsides, but that doesn't sound as catchy..)
There are specialists that Twellman can refer him to, but I agree with Ryan
The psychological side of things is where he can be most helpful.
Oklahoma State will beat LSU in the National Title game by more than 7 points.
Time to Come Clean
Come on and admit it #1 Leverage Fan, your Wynalda in disguise aren’t ya?
by Pandora Bacchus on Feb 10, 2012 9:48 PM PST up reply actions
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