Football has long been obstinate in its opposition to video technology, going so far as to appoint fifth and sixth officials to stand behind the goals doing absolutely nothing as opposed to implementing any kind of instant replay system.
Goal-line technology has, in recent times, been successfully used at the highest levels of the game, but this only came about because of legitimate instances of robbery at the pinnacle of the sport.
If you are a Real Madrid or Club America fan you better fear the deer, and I’m not talking about the Milwaukee Bucks.
Since the dawn of the FIFA Club World Cup over a decade ago, there have seldom been semi-final upsets. In most Club World Cups, the decision of who takes the trophy has featured the UEFA Champions League winner and the Copa Libertadores champion.
Still, Japanese side Kashima Antlers just joined Congo’s TP Mazembe and Morocco’s Raja Casablanca as the only three teams to knock out a South American representative in the semifinals.
According to The Telegraph, Chelsea’s Brazilian attacker Oscar is on the verge of completing a historic transfer to Chinese Super League club Shanghai SIPG. SIPG made waves back in June by signing Hulk for a record fee of £47.5 millionNea, but Oscar looks set to join his fellow Brazilian and smash that record in the process.
Here’s the latest from from the Qatar Stars League: Xavi Hernandez is still unexplainably good at football. The 36-year-old Catalan scored a preposterous volley for Al Sadd, the difference in their 1-0 victory over Al Khor.
With his entire being facing the touchline, the midfield maestro allowed the ball to run across his body and onto his right foot. He then somehow managed to contort himself just enough to direct a right-footed volley inside the far post.
Melbourne City defeated Sydney FC in the FFA Cup final thanks to a goal from Australian demigod Tim Cahill, but the real story on the night was one of intimacy and the tenderness shown between a seagull, Sydney goalkeeper Danny Vukovic and a sideline avian masseuse — E.L. James, I hope you’re taking notes.
Beginning with the USWNT’s infamous defeat to Sweden at the quarterfinal stage of the 2016 Summer Olympics, proceeding to the Under-17’s inability to advance from the group stage of the U-17 Women’s World Cup and now ending with the U-20’s defeat to North Korea at the sem
Kim Jong-Un wants North Korea to have the most powerful national soccer team in the world, and, if he and his youth academy coach are to be believed, that will happen sooner rather than later.
They say they're creating players better than Messi. Really.
From Marca:
"We train our youngsters to become more talented players than even Lionel Messi," said Yu He, coach of the International School of Pyongyang Football.
Life is a cruel, cruel mistress. One second you’re rolling nothing but sevens and 11s at the craps table, your fellow bettors chanting your name as you bestow precious monetary gifts upon one and all. The next you’re crapping out, broke as the cellphone that you’ve just managed to drop into the toilet, and boarding your flight home from Vegas with nothing but a scant recollection of what personal pride feels like.
Andre Villas-Boas has never lasted more than two seasons at any particular club, but he’s just landed another monster paycheck out in China with Shanghai SIPG, becoming the third highest paid manager in the world.
The Chinese club will pay him almost $14 million a year for two years, and that’s following a contract with Zenit Saint Petersburg that earned him over $23 million for two years of service.
Tim Cahill can’t stop, and he won’t stop. The 36-year-old returned to his native Australia to finish his career, but it looks as if he’s only just getting started.
His storied career includes successful stints with Millwall, Everton and the New York Red Bulls, and his return to Australia with Melbourne City has been one of the major talking points of the new A-League season.
Cahill has collected 94 caps and 48 goals for Australia, including clutch 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying goals against Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.