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News Thread ... 2018-19 Season

Now ... does Kroenke feel like winning, or does he just want to make money?

According to Men in Blazers, he’s moving the team to St. Louis.

I think we know the answer to your question. Despite his 30% stake, Usmanov didn’t have a seat on the board, so despite the statement from KSE that “taking the club private will help to further Arsenal's ‘strategy and ambitions’", I expect more of the same. They splashed out about £75 million in the summer window after breaking the bank for Aubameyang in January and Özil’s new contract, but they still need to add a couple more players. But Emery supposedly had a £50 million budget so there will be some sales in the next few days.
 
I suspect that their strategy and ambition will remain basically the same ... finish in a Champions League spot and remain profitable. That requires investment in players, coaches, facilities and support staff but I've never got the feeling that they would really care about that Champions League spot so much if there wasn't such an obnoxiously large check attached to it.
 
ESPN has reached a multi-year agreement to broadcast Serie A matches across their platforms. They’ll have up to 9 matches per week on ESPN + and 1 match on either ESPN or ESPN2. I suspect the match of the week will be played on Sunday or Monday because during football season because of ESPNs college commitment on Saturdays. Any games on Sunday would probably be on ESPN2 because of the NFL pregame show on ESPN.

https://espnmediazone.com/us/press-...ar-u-s-rights-agreement-for-italian-football/
 
I hope the game announcers are in-country. I don't find games called from a studio very watchable for some reason.
 
I hope the game announcers are in-country. I don't find games called from a studio very watchable for some reason.

Yup. Not even Ray Hudson's histrionics can make up for the announcers not being there in person.
 
Spurs move to their new stadium is delayed until October. There are issues with certain safety systems. They hoped to have their first match on September 15 against Liverpool but it and the match against Cardiff on October 6 have been moved to Wembley, as has the NFL game scheduled for October 14. Their next home match after that is October 28 against Man City and there is no word on where that will be played. That also carries them through the first 3 UCL group stage match days.

http://www.espn.com/soccer/tottenha...elay-move-to-new-stadium-amid-safety-concerns
 
La Liga will bring one match per year to the US or Canada after they signed a 15 year agreement with Relevent, the company behind the International Champions Cup. Relevent is owned by Steven Ross, owner of the Miami Dolphins and part owner of Hard Rock Stadium, so you can guess where most, if not all, of the matches will be played. The agreement is all-encompassing; Relevent will represent the league in all business and development activities in the US and Canada. That includes negotiating their next TV deal after the deal with beIN Sports expires after next season.

http://www.espn.com/soccer/spanish-...united-states-or-canada-in-new-marketing-deal
 
Hmmm ... La Liga beat the Premiere League to the punch on US games that actually count. Interesting
 
Hmmm ... La Liga beat the Premiere League to the punch on US games that actually count. Interesting

And since there are really only a few teams that matter in La Liga, you can pretty much guarantee Barca and Real Madrid making frequent appearances. I don’t think they’ll get much of a crowd in Miami for Espanyol v. Celta Vigo.
 
You don't think it will be like the NFL games in London with whatever the La Liga equivalent of the Jacksonville Jaguars becoming the main team of the US?

We'll see. The US organizers have always talked openly about that approach being a loser. They know full well that only recognizable clubs playing in games that matter will really move the needle in the US. Now ... knowing something and doing something about it are two very different things.

And hey ... I'd extend one of my Orlando trips by a day or two to see Villareal play Bilbao ... or whatever.
 
You don't think it will be like the NFL games in London with whatever the La Liga equivalent of the Jacksonville Jaguars becoming the main team of the US?

If they keep it in Miami, maybe. If they move it around, no. Because the drop off in quality between the haves and have nots in La Liga is greater than that in the NFL.
 
Because the drop off in quality between the haves and have nots in La Liga is greater than that in the NFL.

True. If nothing else a few matches featuring bottom dwellers in La Liga might put chase to the semi-myth that MLS is so freaking horrible. It's not. People routinely watch the best of the best from England and Spain and compare MLS teams to that. That's not the whole story.
 
According to multiple fairly reliable outlets, Juan Carlos Osorio is pretty deep into serious contract negotiations for the USMNT job. If it falls apart, it will likely be over money.

Tentative reaction ... fine. They could certainly do worse. There's no perfect, obvious and available candidate, really. People speculating about big European names are either high or in love with the sound of their own keyboards.
 
According to multiple fairly reliable outlets, Juan Carlos Osorio is pretty deep into serious contract negotiations for the USMNT job. If it falls apart, it will likely be over money.

Tentative reaction ... fine. They could certainly do worse. There's no perfect, obvious and available candidate, really. People speculating about big European names are either high or in love with the sound of their own keyboards.

Supposedly David Moyes expressed interest in the job too. First reaction...no. Second reaction...hell no. He might be looking at the reputation salvage job that Roberto Martinez did with the Belgian team and figure that’s his way back into club soccer. But Moyes is 55 and has basically been a failure at his 3 stops after Everton, getting relegated with Sutherland and 13th place with West Ham with 37 points in 31 matches.
 
I dunno. National team jobs are completely different beasts and I fail to acknowledge that a couple of really crap stops invalidate the good work Moyes did at Everton for a long freaking time. His teams didn’t thrill, but they consistently competed in a rugged, rugged league.

That said, I fail to see why the US would need to even consider a foreign manager without International experience. If you’re going to do that, just hire a home grown guy who doesn’t have the learn the culture. This isn’t as hard as everybody wants to make it. Just don’t hire another putz
 
Alright ... took a bit more time to review the reporting on both Moyes and Osorio and it would seem that in both cases the "news" ends up starting with speculation in the respective home markets of the two men. Then it's been repeated by outlets like NBC, etc.

That tells me that their respective agents want to get those two guys jobs and they're using potential interest from the US to generate at least some press accounts with their names in them. Not that either manager wouldn't be on the US' list, but I do think that the US press and engaging in some public gullibility and/or wishful thinking ... depending on the writer's point of view. If you'll recall, Jurgen Klinsmann's agent did the exact same thing with him several times after the US sacked him ... and he's STILL waiting for a call.

This is where I think Earnie Stewart need to earn his paycheck as GM a little and step out in public and manage this situation a bit. Instead we're still getting mountains of silence from US Soccer on the whole situation. They barely even made a ripple when they decided to extend Stachan's interim deal few months ago and are starting to look bit scared of their own shadow IMO.
 
...That tells me that their respective agents want to get those two guys jobs and they're using potential interest from the US to generate at least some press accounts with their names in them. ...

No different than how transfer windows work.
 
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