"Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton + Chelsea rumors?

Marko72 · Feb 22, 2010

Arteta's Girl said: ↑

Mate, I love the foreign support for us. It shows that they have looked past the "Big 4" and actually done some looking (not saying that you guys who pick the big 4 clubs aren't real fans but it is SO much easier to support them...) into things. You know that they are real fans. When I go abroad and people comment on my jersey or I see other people wearing one (I see another one wherever I go it seems!) it really warms my heart and you feel an almost instant connection, and you can talk to them straight away almost as if you know them already. It's crazy. Happened to me quite a bit.
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I think I've told you this, but just to open it up for the fans in Liverpool (and Americans who want to disagree): the game in the US has existed for a long time. (American-style gridiron football actually began as a fusion of soccer and rugby rules for inter-collegiate play before the game went off on its own tangent; American football plays with 11 men on the field as opposed to the 13 or 15 of rugby for that very reason. The USSF--the American soccer-code FA--has existed since 1911.) But for most of that time, the game was almost purely recreational in this country, with almost every kid playing it since the 1970s but until the late 90s (almost) nobody watched the professional game on TV or in stadiums. (There is a whole aside about the NASL for a period that I'm omitting, but that's largely an aside, which did build some of the framework but little of the fan base.) Our history as a national fanbase as it exists today (which is based much more around the national team itself rather than the MLS clubs) is founded primarily upon these events:

1989 - Paul Calagiuri scores a goal from distance against T&T to secure World Cup qualification for the first time since 1950. (We field a roster full of amateur college players and a couple of nationalized foreign pros for Italia 1990 and are thoroughly played off the pitch.)

1994 - The USA hosts the World Cup. Our squad is now 100% professional, as the guys who don't have professional contracts overseas (still a minority, though at this point some are actually American born/trained) were temporarily paid by USSF as their "club" and train together full-time, which played a very heavy schedule of friendlies to offset the cost of being a "club" and to raise awareness. As hosts they play decently and manage to make the round of 16, losing 1-0 to Brazil. Many of us, myself included, begin following the professional game at this time, as this time the WC actually gets network TV and regular newspaper coverage. We naturally coalesce around the national team, as we don't have a "club" yet, and that's where most of our loyalties continue to stem from. A number of the players from that 1994 USA team are now or have recently been MLS/USSF coaches, general managers, TV commentators, etc.

1996 - MLS begins play. (One of the relative few American born/trained US national team guys who had previously been playing professionally in Europe--Eric Wynalda--scores the lone goal in the league's opening match for the San Jose Earthquakes against DC United, who go on to win the first league title and the first 4 out of 5, coached by our 2002 and 2006 WC coach Bruce Arena. The first game gets nationwide network TV coverage and is actually widely watched, though few continue to watch through the season.)

Late 1990s - ESPN begins televising most US national matches and many key MLS match-ups nationwide. They begin televising the Champions League. Some EPL and other European and South American top-flights begin to be available on specialized soccer-or-European-sport-centric (ie rugby, cricket, F1 coverage) cable channels, which you generally have to subscribe to, or else go to a bar (often a British or Irish-styled pub) which subscribes. A lot of US Nats/MLS fans begin mixing with the European ex-pat fans at these pubs, and that's where a lot of us begin following European club football.

(Around the same time period, lots of Spanish-language cable networks appear in the States and begin televising lots of football, which we also tune into as an alternative, though it's aimed at the Spanish-speaking immigrant population primarily, with its own distinct culture that rarely mixes much with the "mainstream" American culture that follows the sport.)

2002 - We beat Portugal and Mexico and draw the hosts on our quarterfinal run in Korea. 100% of the WC matches (not only the American matches or the "big matches") are televised nationwide and get a reasonable amount of newspaper coverage, though the coverage pales in comparison to the amount of press in Europe or Latin America.

The bulk of the American fanbase is based around these things happening, directly or indirectly. Not surprisingly, for most of us, except in some cases of Americans who are/were ex-pats, or say strongly culturally-identifying Mexican-American or Italian-American families and such who follow their old homeland's team/league/players, our core loyalty is to the national team first, and to an MLS club and/or a European club(s) second.

In the late 90s, pretty much all the EPL I could watch was either following Man U or Arsenal, plus a bit of Liverpool. Choosing Arsenal was easy, especially since the guys I was watching in the pub with were Gooners from London. Now it's different. Most of us have been watching the sport regularly for over a decade, so we have quite a bit of background, and there's enough TV/internet coverage that we can watch what we want, even if we have to go out of our way to get it, which ANY American fan of the sport is VERY used to by this point. After all, we follow a sport that is not one of the "big 3" (gridiron football, basketball, baseball)...

arkjayback · Feb 22, 2010

"Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

Whaddya think?

Marko72 · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

arkjayback said: ↑

Whaddya think?
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Timmy should be in the title as well.

ctoa23 · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

Timmy gets his own thread.

Honore de Ballsac · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

Selma Hayak please.

Bradley's Glare · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

lets spice up this thread with some Donovan Articles

http://www.epltalk.com/moyes-continues-everton-midas-touch/16094

http://goal.com/en-us/news/1614/ame...d-beckham-pleased-for-landon-donovans-success

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/sport/...t-david-beckham-is-la-galaxys-brightest-star/

Friedel'sAccent · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

Honore de Ballsac said: ↑

Selma Hayak please.
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Did you misread the thread title and think it said "Red, White, and Boobs"?

StillKickin · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

Here's some new t-shirts they're selling.

ctoa23 · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

Link to where I can buy one of those?

soonertony · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

StillKickin said: ↑

Here's some new t-shirts they're selling.

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Those are clever, of course, but wouldn't it make a whole lot more sense if Everton was located in London?

Principal Firebush · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

Honore de Ballsac said: ↑

Selma Hayak please.
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Now don't all rep me at once, I don't think the bigsoccer servers could withstand it.

StillKickin · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

ctoa23 said: ↑

Link to where I can buy one of those?
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http://www.teeandcrumpets.com/

vponce75 · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

soonertony said: ↑

Those are clever, of course, but wouldn't it make a whole lot more sense if Everton was located in London?
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Thought the same thing at first but it actually says "Landon Calling" - FYI

mbar · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

vponce75 said: ↑

Thought the same thing at first but it actually says "Landon Calling" - FYI
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I don't think he misread it.

thedukeofsoccer · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

I really think Moyes has done an excellent job managing the pressure Landon would be under, thus giving him the best opportunity to succeed.

Initially, there was a lot of hype surrounding the move. But Moyes was quick to state publicly that Landon wasn't going to be some savior who would aid Everton and their rabid fan base in going from the outhouse to the penthouse. Yet, in part, that's what is in the process of occurring. If Landon was under the impression going in that it would be the expectation, he might let every bad first touch fester in his mind and beget more bad touches because he'd feel the need to be nearly perfect.

And yet, in spite of downplaying the significance of the loan, Moyes handed Landon the starting role from the beginning. That let him know that he was believed in by his own coach, relative to the competition. That was ultra important because he had to be concerned about how short of a leash he'd be given based on his experiences in Germany. At Germany he wasn't believed in and in the doghouse for every mistake he made, whereas at Everton he was and thus he could relax because he could make a mistake here or there.

Good managing of player psyche by Moyes. He deserves some credit for Donovan's success in the Premiership.

soonertony · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

vponce75 said: ↑

Thought the same thing at first but it actually says "Landon Calling" - FYI
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Well yes, but the point of the shirt -- I assume -- is not to say that Landon is calling, but as a play-on-words of the album/song "London Calling," something that seems to break down when you think about the fact that Everton is in Liverpool.

Not that it is a big deal of course. Like I said, it is clever.

vponce75 · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

soonertony said: ↑

Well yes, but the point of the shirt -- I assume -- is not to say that Landon is calling, but as a play-on-words of the album/song "London Calling," something that seems to break down when you think about the fact that Everton is in Liverpool.

Not that it is a big deal of course. Like I said, it is clever.
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Oh, my bad. And I agree.

Great album though.

Arteta's Girl · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

thedukeofsoccer said: ↑

Good managing of player psyche by Moyes. He deserves some credit for Donovan's success in the Premiership.
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Moyes is one of the best man managers in the world. The players respect him immensely and he works the psychology with them to a tee. He knows his players inside out, trust me he will have done files full of research on Donovan before he arrived. We have lost out on some good signings through Moyes rigourous research into his players.

One of the first lot of players he looks for are those who have something to prove. Whether they were at big clubs and lost form (e.g. Howard, Saha, Pienaar, Arteta, Heitinga) or from lower leagues eager to prove themselves at the top level (e.g. Cahill, Jagielka, Lescott). He wants that hunger and desire. I think Landon had a point to prove too...

thedukeofsoccer · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

Arteta's Girl said: ↑

Moyes is one of the best man managers in the world.
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I can't attest because I've only been following the club closely for a short period, but from what little I've seen I've been impressed. Managing personalities, building chemistry, building conditioning, and utilizing tactics; all appear to be relative strong suits of Moyes. Mind you though I've only been closely observing during the height of Everton's success.

The next move Moyes should make is to expand Rodwell's role and maybe transfer Donovan to the middle. Arteta has obviously still not recovered from his injury, Fellaini's going to be sidelined for a while, and Bily is somewhat limited. The youngster is flourishing. Give him a look. As for Donovan going inside, he's always expressed that CAM is his most dangerous position, and he gave more evidence in a stint against Man U.

FirstStar · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

thedukeofsoccer said: ↑

I really think Moyes has done an excellent job managing the pressure Landon would be under, thus giving him the best opportunity to succeed.

Initially, there was a lot of hype surrounding the move. But Moyes was quick to state publicly that Landon wasn't going to be some savior who would aid Everton and their rabid fan base in going from the outhouse to the penthouse. Yet, in part, that's what is in the process of occurring. If Landon was under the impression going in that it would be the expectation, he might let every bad first touch fester in his mind and beget more bad touches because he'd feel the need to be nearly perfect.

And yet, in spite of downplaying the significance of the loan, Moyes handed Landon the starting role from the beginning. That let him know that he was believed in by his own coach, relative to the competition. That was ultra important because he had to be concerned about how short of a leash he'd be given based on his experiences in Germany. At Germany he wasn't believed in and in the doghouse for every mistake he made, whereas at Everton he was and thus he could relax because he could make a mistake here or there.

Good managing of player psyche by Moyes. He deserves some credit for Donovan's success in the Premiership.
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Sometime luck plays a part too. Don't underestimate the importance of Landon's corner-kick in the Arsenal match. It's always a bit of luck (and a lot of skill) to get a kick in that well to lead to such an easy goal, and it must have done wonders for Landon (his confidence, his teammates' confidence, etc).

StillKickin · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

soonertony said: ↑

Well yes, but the point of the shirt -- I assume -- is not to say that Landon is calling, but as a play-on-words of the album/song "London Calling," something that seems to break down when you think about the fact that Everton is in Liverpool.

Not that it is a big deal of course. Like I said, it is clever.
Click to expand...

vponce75 said: ↑

Oh, my bad. And I agree.

Great album though.
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Y'all think too much. Do you analyze commercials too?

Arteta's Girl · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

thedukeofsoccer said: ↑

I can't attest because I've only been following the club closely for a short period, but from what little I've seen I've been impressed. Managing personalities, building chemistry, building conditioning, and utilizing tactics; all appear to be relative strong suits of Moyes. Mind you though I've only been closely observing during the height of Everton's success.
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Our team spirit is almost unrivalled I would say, certainly in the EPL. The players are so close, they are all one big group of best friends (which is crazy with so many cultures, languages, etc) but they all work to the same goal and have the same hunger and desire to succeed for themselves, for the team (their friends) and for the club. It's kind of an all for one, one for all approach. He is big on the psychological side of things. He knows all the little tricks to bring the best from his players. The sum of the team far outweighs the value of the individuals.

Also, I don't think their is many clubs were the players and fans are so close, as if they share an emotional connection. Thats why it seems to hurt our fans so much more if a player leaves before "his time" as we say, e.g. Rooney, Lescott, etc. The amount of players who leave but come back to watch games, or come back to live in the area is amazing.

On the conditioning, Moyes has always been at the forefront of the fitness and conditioning approach. That's why he loves heading to the States because the faciilities are top class. When over in LA they contacted a sports fitness agency, who sent coaches - most used to working with NFL teams - over to the training base and both parties (the agency and Everton) were impressed. Everton ended up hiring one of the guys from their who is now doing fitness and conditioning at the NY Jets. Since then they have hired 2 other Americans - one who's name escapes me totally, Ryan something and the other was at Columbus Crew I think, Steve Tashjian. They still work here now.

I should add, it's not always been plain sailing for Moyes, under other chairman he might of been sacked 3 or 4 times over in the past, but he's been given time and progress is evident now every year.

I'll hold my hands up, at times I was totally fed up and wanted him out on a few occasions. Then about 3 years ago, just under, it hit me where we would be without him, and we were expecting too much, too soon. The guy performed miracles and I'll be utterly devastated the day he leaves.

Tony in Quakeland · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

vponce75 said: ↑

Oh, my bad. And I agree.

Great album though.
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Saying London's Calling is a great album is like saying Hamlet's a great play...Kind of stating the obvious....

Back on topic, the biggest difference between Everton and B Munich is that he is being used properly. In the winter break warm up games last year, Donovan was successful playing out of hte midfeild. As soon as the season started up again, Luca Toni was hurt and DOnovan was moved up top. It was preposperous misuse.

Everton uses him in a more natrual role in a midfield that very much plays to his strengths. It's the perfect spot from a manager that respects him. I'd love for him to stay there, but this is not the only place in the EPL where he can be effective.

Arteta's Girl · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

Rumours on a very well known Everton fan site says we've agreed a deal for German Marko Marin. Dunno how much substance there is to it, but considering he is a winger...don't look good for any Donovan deal. As I say though, could be total BS.

He'd probably cost a hell of a lot more than LD too, really can't see this myself but felt it was worth passing on.

Oh and this from another guy:

Was at the Lisbon match on Tues and met Donovan on the way in. Asked him was he going to sign on a longer deal with us. He smiled and said "ya never know what might happen. Stranger things have happened" and gave a good smile.

strago · Feb 22, 2010

Re: "Red, White, and BLUES" Donovan at Everton

Arteta's Girl said: ↑

Rumours on a very well known Everton fan site says we've agreed a deal for German Marko Marin. Dunno how much substance there is to it, but considering he is a winger...don't look good for any Donovan deal. As I say though, could be total BS.

He'd probably cost a hell of a lot more than LD too, really can't see this myself but felt it was worth passing on.
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I have no idea why Werder would sell him. Between Marin and Ozil they were supposed to replace Diego. They splashed a large chunk of change on Marin from Borussia just this past year. You would be looking at a transfer fee of 10+. One of the reasons Marin went to Werder was to be better seen for the National Team. You might ask Lascho, he would know better because of his connection to Borussia. I doubt it though.