I like him. He does a nice job of talking thoughtfully about the game, the tactics in it, what the coach might be thinking, bringing in bits of history, etc. without making himself the center of attention. He also is pretty positive, which I appreciate.
Can we get Steve McMananaman (sp) to do more for ESPN? I personally think he and Mike Tirico did well for this WC coverage.
West Coast Futbol just needs to admit that he's got a bias against NorthEast guys/players, and he he also knows that "West Coast Futbol'ers" are soft. I think Martino does a really nice job, again, some people are just not gonna be satisfied with anything.
Totally. Also, he knows the strengths and weaknesses of every player in the Americas. His width of knowledge about CONCACAF and CONMEBOL footie is astounding.
Agreed on McManaman...England = "we we we we". Didn't sound all that unlike Lalas, just with a different accent. WC dream team for me was Fowler as host, Martinez and Klinsi as commentators.
Surely, you jest. Harkes' public speaking level is only slightly above that of George W. Bush. And I'm not too sure being a great player alone is qualification for announcing. Harkes had a great career as a player, but that doesn't automatically make him a great announcer.
Harkes wasn't that great of a player either. A hard working left mid or fullback with some pace and skill but not exactly a Ryan Giggs or a Flourent Malouda.
can we get ian darke to commentate the us vs brazil game i hate john harkes, Ian makes it more "thrilling" and i love his voice tooooo!! http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1539944467017 [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jd25xaEIFPs"]YouTube- US Soccer Fifa World Cup Video: The Moment Tribute[/ame]
Re: can we get ian darke to commentate the us vs brazil game Would be great but if you get Darke you probably get Harkes as one does mostly color (Harkes), and one mostly play-by-play with short comments and questions for the color guy (Darke). Either way, I'd love to have Darke and Martino, that's my dream team.
Re: can we get ian darke to commentate the us vs brazil game It's gonna be Darke and Twellman hahaha!!
Re: can we get ian darke to commentate the us vs brazil game I personally would like Max Bretos and Ian Darke! Bretos was bad ass at Fox Soccer Channel but I really haven't heard him commentate on ESPN.
Go back and look at my post, he was saying that Martino was unqualified if I'm not mistaken, which is who I was talking about. ******** Harkes. I don't think any guys who were playing for us in 1990-1994 should be commentating, they simply don't know enough about the game for whatever reason, probably something to do with evolution.
btw, I picked up the latest Sports Illustrated edition (where are they now?) and in one of the letters, I almost had to start laughing out loud in the bookstore. The guy said that American soccer needs a distinct voice, and JOHN HARKES was the man to be it. "He brigns credibility becasue he played in a World Cup and he doesn't dumb it down for the new fans." I'm serious
John Harkes said some shit like "as many minimum injuries as possible" and "indecisive decisions". This can't be the best America has to offer. One of the most basic things in commentary is to speak well. Harkes is slightly better than Emmitt Smith.