Saif's been the one doing most of the work, I'm not a hilal fan so I don't watch him as often as he does.
We have found by chance lee youngpyo twitter great thing is he responded to hilal's fans He even speaks some Arabic you can watch his news from here http://twitter.com/#!/fromtheline
http://news.naver.com/sports/index....&mod=read&office_id=076&article_id=0002120752 LYP rejected contract extension and is coming back to Korea while working on move somewhere else. He's entertaining offers from european and middle-east teams. He's looking for a place where he can start. Guess he had enough of Saudi Arabia. I wouldn't mind living in UAE for a while if I was him.
I wouldn't say a ton but they do have I think two left backs other than LYP right now. They have by far the best defense in the Saudi League so I think they're looking to invest more in the midfield.
http://kr.sports.yahoo.com/news/soccer/view?aid=20110725110600831d8 LYP getting wooed by FC Seoul. Good club, i think, and he would be total hero there. Not a bad way to end his career.
Comcast finally has a K channel in Chicago now and it shows one K League match every Sunday night. I'm watchin the DVR of last weeks match, FC Seoul vs Sangju. So maybe its a sign? Kim Jung Woo with a nice chip PK in the first half after getting the FC Seoul keeper to commit to the ground too early. Of course for selfish reasons I would prefer to see LYP in MLS so I can see him live.
I think the MLS made a bad move playing this many games against EPL sides. Its just showing what a shitty league it is. The disparity is wider than I imagined.
from a sporting perspective, sure. but it brings people into stadiums and lots of revenue. and even though they've been getting destroyed by some of the bigger teams, they've held their own against the likes of city, everton, etc. and it brings more publicity to the league and allows players to experience soccer in the u.s. and perhaps, eventually guage interest for their future here. of course the disparity is wide. but wouldn't you expect that from the likes of man utd or real madrid? my only concern is that the league clearly has made this a priority over the league schedule.
I should probably check but has the MLS beaten 1 Euro club? Im not even talking about the United shallackings. And the revenues this league stands to get from this "session" is fairly miniscule in a relative sense of what it could potentially glean seasonally. Of course its being done for financial reasons but the impact of these games on the league in the long term is what Im focusing on. For an on the fence guy like me, the chances of me going to an MLS game just got a bit worse after being subject to some of the shoddy football thats been displayed. Its not been pretty. Its all spillt milk by now but the MLS, imo, got really greedy with this. I think it does more harm than good.
i enjoy watching highlights of Thierry Henry score for the New York Red bulls. It's pretty cool that he moved there. From what i've seen LA and Red Bulls play a decent game.
The problem with the MLS isn't necessarily that the league itself is shitty. The problem is that the institution of futbol/soccer in the United States itself is shitty compared to other countries. My roommates and I have had extensive conversations about this topic a few of the things that we tend to agree on are that: 1. The financial reality of soccer in the United States means that the MLS cannot offer the wages necessary to retain talent and a finite number of Designated Player (DP) spots means that the talent that stays isn't always the "best" a la Becks. 2. This lack of finances also means that a system of youth academies resembling Euro counterparts has not developed to the degree that is necessary. This is probably partially due to the fact that academies that have a pro affiliation didn't exist really for any sport in the United States prior to the adoption of an academy structure by the MLS. 3. The lack of a youth system and a centralized development model for all prospective talent (not just the kids fortunate enough to get scouted by the USNT) means that you see a ridiculous amount of variation in the technicality and skill of soccer players throughout the country. 4. MLS players (I'm speaking exclusively of US players) are very athletic, but technically scatter shot. Teams in the MLS tend to favor physicality over technical ability, which is why the teams always get torn up by more technical opponents from overseas (and Mexico). One of the biggest contributors to this problem is probably the NCAA. The NCAA has the most bat shit retarded rules for soccer on the face of the planet. They don't exist in any professional league anywhere else, but in the NCAA and are honestly idiotic. NCAA teams also favor physicality over skill also, and soccer teams also tend to have less access to scholarship funds then other popular sports in the United States. 5. Leading from the last point, the biggest problem the MLS and soccer faces in the United States is that it is not the most popular sport. The NBA, NFL, NHL and the MLB rake in a lot of revenue. Main point is that soccer has a lot of obstacles it still needs to overcome in the US, but the MLS is not the only problem. It's a problem with the whole damn system./end rant God, I hate lacrosse though. I really wish the MLL would just die already.
nice interview from Duerden: http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story/_/id/939416/more-to-come-from-lee-young-pyo?cc=5901
John Duerden's latest interview with Lee Young Pyo. Here are some direct comments from LYP on the benefits of going to Holland and his commentary on England and its style of play/tackling. (Now watch me get attacked for posting this by the kid who should stick to hockey instead of leading the devil's advocate brigade and the idiot from the 2nd largest state in the US)... http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story/_/id/939416/more-to-come-from-lee-young-pyo
^ Was the one where LYP was attacked along the sideline by the corner kick flag? I remember LYP being stretchered off once too.
LYP's competitor from his days at Tottenham who would have thought Asous Ekotto would be still there?? Good grief. Stalteri is in Bundesliga. Chimbonda just got released from QPR.... Lee really deserved better. What a farce.