World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

[Jimjamesak]

Honestly, it is a silly rule.

Sillier than penalties? Hard to say. Probably not. But still silly.

I dunno, it just doesn't jive with a playoff concept and "home field advantage" but, MLS won't ever go to the old Mexican rule of "highest seed advances in a tie".

[Jimjamesak]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

Of course, I think they should just be single elimination games anyway.

[Jimjamesak]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

BTW, is there a more easily hateable team than the Galaxy? I know folks like to complain about Seattle benefiting from MLS rules, and we do, but LA is the master of it. Winning MLS Cup despite having losing record (2005), winning MLS Cup on a Golden Goal (2002), landing Landon after he came back, keeping Landon because he didn't count as a DP when they signed Beckham. Donovan's smug "we deserved this" is the icing on the cake, I *ing hate LA.

[Jimjamesak]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

If you thought the MLS Playoffs were bad now, they're getting worse!

I don't mind having 6 teams per conference really, I'd just like to get rid of the two game series'. I'd prefer play-in round then a Page Playoff in each conference then MLS Cup.

[ExileOnDaytonStreet]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

Blech.

[Jimjamesak]

Blech.

My idea or what the league is doing? (Or both?)

[ExileOnDaytonStreet]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

My idea or what the league is doing? (Or both?)

Expanding playoffs.

[Jimjamesak]

Expanding playoffs.

Yeah. Me thinks this a move to satisfy some of the clubs in the new Western Conference next season...

[jmh]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

Is there anyone here who watches the Bundesliga regularly and can shed any light on what's going on with Borussia Dortmund this year? I know they lost Lewandowski to Bayern, but he was their only loss of note, and to balance him out they brought in Adrian Ramos (16 goals in the Bundesliga last year, only a handful behind Lewandowski) and Ciro Immobile (top goalscorer in Serie A last year), plus brought Kagawa back from Manchester purgatory and signed a couple of solid prospects in Ginter and Ji. And that's on top of what looked to be a really solid squad with Reus (albeit coming back from injury), Hummels, Sokratis, Subotic, Weidenfeller, Gundogan, Bender, Sahin, Piszczek... Is it just all the injuries? Players taking time to gel? I feel like that team should be sleepwalking to a place in the top half, and finish comfortably second (as they did last year) on decent form.

[FreshFish]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

If anyone cares, Tim Howard has been nominated for Sports Illustrated "Sportsman of the Year."

You can vote for him here if you want:

http://www.si.com/sportsman/2014/12/...l?noroute=true

[HumRsky]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

Heard a snippet this morning of Taylor Twellman talking about why there is a good chance that the Twin Cities will be chosen for expansion. One of his reasons, seriously, was, to paraphrase, "there's a lot of hipsters."

[ExileOnDaytonStreet]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

Is there anyone here who watches the Bundesliga regularly and can shed any light on what's going on with Borussia Dortmund this year? I know they lost Lewandowski to Bayern, but he was their only loss of note, and to balance him out they brought in Adrian Ramos (16 goals in the Bundesliga last year, only a handful behind Lewandowski) and Ciro Immobile (top goalscorer in Serie A last year), plus brought Kagawa back from Manchester purgatory and signed a couple of solid prospects in Ginter and Ji. And that's on top of what looked to be a really solid squad with Reus (albeit coming back from injury), Hummels, Sokratis, Subotic, Weidenfeller, Gundogan, Bender, Sahin, Piszczek... Is it just all the injuries? Players taking time to gel? I feel like that team should be sleepwalking to a place in the top half, and finish comfortably second (as they did last year) on decent form.

I don't watch enough (that'll change when Bundesliga is finally available for me to watch on FS1 next season), but I will say that it's a good question. It's hard to understand how they can be so low on the table right now.

[Bob Gray]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

I don't watch enough (that'll change when Bundesliga is finally available for me to watch on FS1 next season), but I will say that it's a good question. It's hard to understand how they can be so low on the table right now.

That is a good question that I've been wondering myself, especially given that Borussia have been top notch in the Champions League, topping their group.

[LynahFan]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

Of course the US Women get Winnipeg - goodness knows that nobody else will travel there....

Edit: Ha ha ha. After they realized that they had mistakenly put Columbia with Brazil and had to move them to a different group, the commentator, "this just in - FIFA admits it made a mistake."

[joecct]

Re: World Soccer XXV - the run up to the World Cup

USWNT gets the Group of Death.