Can someone confirm that this story really is in USA Today and that they are serious? http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,1563,1010183,00.html Look, I am a Metrostars fan but please tell me that the like of USA Today do not actually believe that the Metros are better than Man Utd. Before anyone trys to mention Bayern Munich, one match does not make Metros one of the best teams in the world. I do believe that Man Utd should have played the Metrostars (or one MLS team)but MLS will have to learn that to play with the big boys that you have to invest the money. If they want to coverage of playing with Man Utd then they ahve to pay. Its also a risky game. If you win, the MLS is given a boost. If you lose, then everyone says that MLS is just not good enough. Sponge.
Two things really, I think: #1 - U.S. media and MLS are angry with ManU and the whole Champions World tour because they were not able to capitalize on any of it's success. #2 - ManU did not want to play the Metrostars or another MLS club. Call it arrogance but what it comes down to is that they probably feel the level of competition is not up to par but more importantly, if (gasp) they LOST to a lowely MLS team, it would be a blow to their confidence and seeming superiority to U.S. soccer. Oh, and by the way...I'm not sure I agree that MLS would have been good for the Champions World tour. If the Metrostars played Manchester United last night at Giants Stadium, would we have packed 79,005 fans in the seats???
#1 What success? Selling out four matches. No way that helps MLS in any way. #2 ManU had nothing to do with this. Charlie S. did not want ManU playing MLS sides. And it's just a friendly afterall. I am sure their Ego could handle the loss. Just like Bayern and Sampdoria did after the Metros beat them. #3 If ManU played a u-12 side they would have sold out the place. Opposition does not matter for them to sell tickets.
Humor First, it's the Guardian. They might be messing with you. I mean, these are the guys who had half of England laughing at U.S. style sports journalism -- only the laugh was on them, because the Guardian made up all the "quotes." Second, if it was in USA Today, the guy was kidding. There isn't one person in America who thinks that MetroStars are better than Man U. Just as there isn't one person in America who would claim that England is better than Brazil.
I'm glad the Metros didn't have a match scheduled against ManU. We've been struggling with injuries for months now. I want them to rest and heal up as much as they can rather than play a meaningless friendly. Make the push for the rest of the season and then the playoffs. ManU vs Juve was fine. chris...
#1 - U.S. media and MLS not being able to capitalize due to lack of involvement. #2 - But would they have put the same team on the field against the Metros as they did against Juventus? If memory serves, we did not face a full Bayern Munich side. #3 - Personally, I don't believe that a Metro v. ManU match would have sold over 79k tickets. It would be a good (50-60k) crowd, but not almost 80,000.
I would never like to see a MLS team play a world soccer power, even in a friendly. But what I would like to see is an MLS All-Star team (who has been given like 2 weeks to get some cohesion) play somebody like Man U.
US media has been the beneficary of this tour. More soccer articles in the paper than normal. MLS is mid-season. I am happy that they are not involved. And who is to say they aren't. I personally think we would see the same team. Why not. Ferguson is using this to get his players ready. Not to put on some freak show. And why not? If 20K people who week in and week out show up for Metro show up for the game. Do you not think there would not be 60K Manu fans show up if no other Metro fans did. I was at the game last night. There was easily 60K ManU fans in attendance and if the stadium held 120K there would have been twice as much. These people who are either Euro-Snobs or real Manure fans would not pass up a possible once in a generation chance to see Manure in person. This is the same team that sold 5K tickets to a traning session in Rutgers a few days earlier.
I'd love to see this match....but not this year. Can you imagine what van Nistelrooy would have done to Pope and Jolley who aren't at full-strength? He would have had a field day. A 5-0 match wouldn't have exactly helped prove that MLS has a decent product.
Does anyone out there really think that ManU or any of the other ChampionsWorld Tour teams care one lick about MLS or American Soccer? They tell you they do in the interviews, but that's only because if they didn't then the PR of those teams would plummet. These teams did this tour for only a few reasons: 1- To challenge themselves in the offseason and to get a leg-up on the other teams when the season starts 2- To make money for THEIR OWN TEAMS AND PLAYERS 3- To get a free vacation to the states. Think of it this way: Who is the MLS to challenge any of these teams? The biggest challenge MLS has yet to face was the Peace Cup. And Galaxy laid an egg there. They tied Nacional and 1860 at nil, and get thumped by PSV, a team probably on the level with a mid-table Premier League team. MLS as much as I like it is not in the same category with ANY of the ChampionsWorld teams. If the San Antonio Spurs, Lakers, Nets, Pistons, etc all went on a European tour, do you think that they would take time to play London Lions or BC Barcelona? Why don't any of the NFL-Europe teams play any American Football club teams in Europe (yes they exist)? Because those sports (European Basketball especially) are not on the same level as the American counterparts. USA Today calls Man Utd: "Manchester United - wimps, cowards, pretty boys taking the easy road like a champion boxer ducking the top contender." Can anyone really admit that Metro or any MLS team is a "top contender" to challenge Man Utd? MLS and American Soccer has done nothing to prove itself to the rest of the world. The league is 8 years old and has done nothing to establish itself as a major player in the eyes of World Football. This is all part of the American arrogance (and this is coming from an American) that we have to be the best at everything and we want it now now now now and don't want to have to work for results. Maybe 30 or 40 years down the line MLS will be on the level with Premier League and La Liga and Serie A, but you have to work for those goals. USA made it as far as England did in WC because it was blessed with a mediocre group and a fortunate win against an unprepared Portugal. Man Utd is looking out for Man Utd, not American Soccer
I'll Try Again It was a joke It was a joke It was a joke It was a joke It was a joke You guys got that yet? Geez.
Well, we'll never really know until the MetroStars play them. But because of old preconceptions, a Premiership club is always better than an MLS club, so why bother having a match? It's quite convenient, I would say. The big clubs can brag all they want without ever really being challenged. I mean, I would love to be in that position.
That's because a Premiership club IS better than an MLS club (save for a few bottom-table teams). You just don't go and challenge a Premiership club. Why should Man U or Arsenal or L'pool play an MLS club? MLS is not ready to play those teams, it would be a thorough embarrasment on both sides. I haven't heard big clubs brag and not be challenged. These teams put in first a League schedule that is several games longer than MLS's as well as a Champions League schedule. It all takes 10 months also, a bit beyond the summer days of MLS. Not challenged? Give me a break.
You're making my point for me. I mean, why bother to play games for real anymore? We can just settle things on paper. Or maybe we'll put all the data into a computer and have it sort it out because, hey, this club is ALWAYS going to beat that club. We have no real evidence, they've never really played each other at full strength, but trust me on this one. Really. I mean it.
Man Ure should have played the MLS All stars instead of Chivas. Of course it would be a lose-lose proposition for them instead of the MLS the way it stands now...
DC United is undefeated against teams from the EPL. But still, I know we aren't on the same level. that's why I'd like to see an All-Star team who has been given a couple of weeks to prepare to play a Champions World team.
You're right, of course. And our national team would have no shot against the likes of Portugal or Germany in World Cup play as well. We'd get blown off the field.
Probably. All the tickets used by the Juve fans last night would have been grabbed up by the ManU supporters. Same story, different chapter.
I mentioned the US before, even though I shouldnt have brought up the national team. The national team (by that I mean the WC '02 squad) had established stars of European leagues (Friedel, Sanneh, Berhalter, OBrien, Regis, Lewis, Stewart, Moore, Reyna, Cherundolo). Sure if you field that team, I'm sure they could handle a European club, but the fact is an MLS club would be embarrased if it played a Man Utd or a Juve. Would I like to see Man U play Metro? Of course. Would I cheer for Metro? Absolutely. In fact, I'd probably cheer for any MLS team if they played any team from another league, solely on the fact that I'd like to see MLS succeed and achieve the level of popularity that Premiership has achieved. It's just not happening anytime soon...maybe in a few decades.
Well, how do you know when the right moment is? Is it when the Metros beat ManU? Oh wait, that's right, they're not good enough. We don't really know why, we're just going out on a limb here.
I don't think MLS teams would be embarrased playing Man U or Juve in a friendly. Metros have played friendlies before and they have done pretty well. Bayern and Boca should be embarrased not us.
I LOVE THIS QUOTE: "Ruud van Nistelrooy knows he can't put any shots past Kevin Hartman and Adin Brown. These aren't the second-rate Scandinavian goalkeepers he faces in England, where the only star is the former MLS player Brad Friedel. And the Neville brothers would rather shank the ball into the third row 20 times a game than try to contain Carlos Ruiz or Taylor Twellman."
The irony is that Beau wrote his column in December, presumably out of frustration with the planning and scheduling choices of Mau U's tour, and it's just now catching fire. Praise the google abilities of some Guardian intern. In any case, this is reasonable frustration on Beau's part and has been echoed elsewhere on this board. Would you send the baseball Yankees to Japan to play the SF Giants in baseball? No, you'd play a Japanese team. They have a credible league, even though it's easy to acknowledge it as a cut below MLB. What's wrong with giving an MLS team a crack, since they have "cultivated the market" that Man U is trying to "exploit." Does 3-1 over Club America or 3-1 over LA Galaxy make all that big a difference??
I'll just choose this part of the post, Big Euro clubs play small clubs ALL THE TIME in pre season warm ups. I've read some of your stuff on the YA boards, and now here, so I have one question, what on Earth are you on about? Though feel free to tell us your tittilating stories of flirtations with beautiful Latinas. That woudl be fine.