Soccer (Football)

Im gonna try to get into soccer and i need to know what/who to watch, and why the rest of the world likes it so much. Ive never been able to get into it (probably cuz ive had no team to root for) so any tips or advice would be helpfull.

Also is MLS any good??? Toronto has a team and if im going to root for anyone it would most likely be them.

Thanks.

Soccer is awesome. MLS is not but oh well.

Arsenal in EPL. MLS is still cool to go to games and what not. TV I'd just rather watch the euros.

champions league is the most "accessible" to watch, its the best teams from Europe competing. I'm not rly sure when it starts this year..

new season starts on Sat in England. Get watching - its the best league in the world.

I would say support my team West Ham - but I'd only do that if you're a sadist and enjoy watching your team play like a bunch of tosspots everyweek.

Please, please don't support Man Utd - this will just make people hate you. Arsenal is prob the best choice. Good football and from London.

Thanks guys.

I really dont want to support another shitty team and heres why.
Teams i root for now:
Leafs
Raiders
Bulls
Blue Jays

It would be nice to pick a team that is decent at least since im clearly way to loyal.

Choose Arsenal, we're cool

PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER 6

OMG watching clips on youtube and that Ronaldo dude from Man U is sick.

rooting for man u is like rooting for the yankees, don't be a fgt

*Last edited by wesrman on Fri, 15 Aug 2008, 3:27pm; edited 1 time in total*

teams to watch:

Real Madrid

Barcelona FC

Internazionale di Milan (my favourite)

AC Milan

AS Roma

Chelsea FC

Manchester United

Arsenal FC

Ajax FC

What league are they from Jack???

This dude is sick. I had no idea people make moves like this or i would have been watching before this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-MlJ8KLzEY&feature=related

*Last edited by Jack Sawyer on Fri, 15 Aug 2008, 3:57pm; edited 1 time in total*

Search for the league names, since those teams are from every big league out there

and if you liked CR, check out Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and Ronaldinho

o and Zidane, definetely Zinedine Zidane

Im leaning towards Man U, but im going to wait and see before i make a firm decision. I kind of like it that everyone will hate me for it and they look fun to watch.

Ive seen some cool vids on youtube of Toronto FC fans and its looks like it would be fun to go to a few of their games, although i dont know if they're good or not. The fans look crazy, which i like. Ill definatly be supporting them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrBbJUPVkm0&feature=related

Why do so many love it? Because it's the best game, most exciting and full of skill. And different skill.

Points/goals aren't scored every other second like in basketball but the premise is to out think and outscore the opponent. And the beauty is seeing it done, like when a defender breaks rank and steams forward to score a goal, seeing the move no one else can. Franz Beckenbauer in his prime was magnificent at this.

You have your no nonsense midfielders, who tackle and make simple passes. Others reply on breathtaking skill and vision.

Sure, score lines are 2-0, 3-1 and never 23-56 but you only get one point per goal. The score line has no reflection on the quality of the match/nor the number of attacks. There have been intense, action filled 0-0 games as well as dull 4-3 games.

Stay away from the MLS and stick to either the Spanish or the English. I'd recommend the English for it's pace and emphasis on attack. It's not the most watched league by accident. The Italian league is technically & tactically superior but also slower and is hard to stomach or appreciate - even for many purists.

You also need to understand the many nuances of football to fully appreciate it. I am a regular on the sport board at IMDB and every day it seems, the Americans keep generating the same myths and misunderstandings so if you suffer from them, this next bit may help.

1) It's not physical/brutal.
For a start, neither is tennis but it's still enjoyable. However, it is. It really is. The difference is, the body parts involved are wildly different to NFL and rugby. The torso can withstand far much more pressure and so can take a massive hit, full on.

In football (soccer to the philistines) the body parts involved are far smaller and more fragile and so the physical aspect may, at first, appear somewhat tame. The lower legs & ankles are the main target. It may not look tough on camera, but you have one of yoru friends hurtle in at full speed and then launch himself, two footed, at your ankles, whilst he wears studded boots.

The head is the other main body part - and is constantly being cracked by other heads and flying elbows. The game may look like it's no contact but it isn't (despite FIFAs attempts to water it down).

2) It's a game of skill not raw power.
One of the oft repeated myths by those across the pond is that it's all down to physical strength and height and that any NFLer would be great footballers. In actual fact, this isn't the case and the bigger/taller guys usually struggle. And they are often seen as lumbering powerhouses rather than skillful and effective.

The common argument is "get XXX, 6' 8" and 350 pounds in the goal area and no one will stop him." Yeah, but he's got to have the skill to score. To get on target. To use poise as much as power. No amount of size and strength can overcome a terrible first touch, or aid to control a ball, or to develop the vision to see and make passes no one else can.

That's why Marco van Basten (usually rated as the greatest striker of all time) was so stunning to watch - as was Zinedine Zidane - because he was 6' 2" yet had the grace and balance of a ballerina.

Touch and finesse are exalted skills. Which is why some of the most impressive goals and moves may not be the most eye catching. For example, a lob is hard enough to perform but when done when off balance, or with the outside of the foot, it is even more astounding. It will take you a while to appreciate but as you get an understanding of the game and what is seen as "normal" you will begin to complement the extraordinary.

Quick examples (should be in the clips below) would be Beckham's laser guided pass to Ronaldo, cutting out the defence, Zidane digging the ball from out of his feet to find a pass that no one else could see & Berhgkamp's goal against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup.

The Bergkamp goal exemplified a number of these key but oft overlooked skills: control (by killing a speeding ball) agility (to spin on a dime and deftness (to curve the ball with the outside of his foot - placement over power).

Another good example would be Beckham's freekick for Man U against Real Madrid. becks has scored loads of free kicks but that was arguably his best - but this may not be so obvious as it wasn't the fastest or the longest kick. But it was close to the area, he had to get it up, round and down and at a tight angle too. And he still sent it in with the precision of a Smart Bomb. When you've seen many people miss, and get an idea for the physics of a ball in flight, then you begin to appreciate the artistry involved.

I mentioned before about people doing the unexpected and the really skillful players, the once in a generation types, make these moves their hallmark and even though the rest of the players are world class, they still cannot operate on the level of these guys. Such as:

Gheorghe Hagi
Maradona
Johan Cryuff
Dejan Savicevic
Hristo Stoitchkov
Marco van Basten
Roberto Baggio
Paolo Maldini

And all of these guys blow away Cristiano Ronaldo. I won't make a big song and dance about it now but Man U should have taken the money for him because he has very little to his game. Find vids of these true creative genuises and then watch Ronaldo - you'll see the difference. He runs and does step overs. Wow. Big deal. His end product is usually naff, he goes missing in big games (even in the CL Final against Chelsea) and harldy any of his goals have been great. The compilation of Beckham blows him away and even without searing pace, Becks was a far better winger, crosser, shooter,passer and free kick specialist.

And differing types succeed too. Hagi, Maradona, Baggio & Zidane were the most skillful players ever. Van Basten and Alan Shearer less so, but as strikers go, these two were the complete, unstoppable package. Left foot, right foot, heading, power, positioning - you name it, these two were lethal and you'd put your house on them to score.

These clips are of the skilful attackers. Newbies to football find it harder to appreciate defensive skills. Otherwise Paolo Maldini would be in this list.

Zidane
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAk2DrAFVf4&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5xhkYysH8U&feature=related

Bergkamp
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCEXkik6Iuk

Baggio
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u55kayQpxvk&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXsJC4UDgC4&feature=related

Beckham
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF9Pahclz3Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMlGuOG5g54&feature=related

Le Tissier
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSsdfe4Z69g

Gazza
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXuXu-jDN1E

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nOt6zFNuL0&feature=related

Van Basten
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpJna4-OAJ0&feature=related

Poker Forum

Poker Forum Index

FTR Community

Soccer (Football)