The AFR Team convened once again to talk the footy. This week we were lucky enough to be joined by Brentford FC’s David Hunt as we preview his club’s midweek Carling Cup match against Birmingham City. We also talked about Wayne Rooney, the week that was in the Premier League and the Champions League, Barcelona’s recent membership changes, and the recent dark side of football including racism and hooliganism.
Contributors: Oliver Sparrow (London), Ulysse Pasquier (McGill University), Eric Beard (Emory University), Amy Quinn (Dublin), Darshan Joshi (University of South Wales), Nick Lichtenberg (Brooklyn), Dominic Vieira (Lancaster University)
Special Guest: David Hunt of Brentford FC
Be sure to check out David Hunt’s blog and follow him on Twitter.
What are your thoughts or comments? We’d love to hear them.
As a little extra feature after we recorded our first ever Podcast, which you really should listen to, AFR’s Nick Lichtenberg, who works for an American law magazine, broke down Tom Hicks’ $1.6 billion lawsuit against Liverpool in the context of the American legal system. Nick made sense of how punitive damages could account for $1.6 billion, as well as where the terms “epic swindle” and “conspiracy” come from. It’s only a four minute clip, but definitely worth a listen. Did this help clear things up?
Oliver Sparrow (London), Eric Beard (Atlanta), Ulysse Pasquier (Montreal), Darshan Joshi (Sydney), and Nick Lichtenberg (New York City) of the A Football Report team talk about everything in the world of football ranging from the 2018/2022 World cup Bids to the new change in ownership for Liverpool to EURO 2012 to the De Jong dilemma.
Our first ever podcast was incredibly enjoyable and in its entirety lasts a little less than an hour. So grab a cup of tea, get some work done, and relax while the AFR team talks the footy.
Here’s the breakdown of our conversation:
0-5:00 (Introducing ourselves and our background in football)
5:00-16:00 (Liverpool Takeover, NESV, Red Sox, Hodgson, New Stadium, Merseyside Derby)
16:00-21:00 (The Spanish mindset, Liverpool vs. Manchester commitment, Rooney vs. Fergie, The tax situation in England, Chicharito as a replacement for Rooney)
21:00-31:00 (2018/2022 World Cup Bids, Joint-bids, New locations, Qatar, Technology in 2022, Australia, the fall of Russian football attendance)
31:00-37:00 (England, Lack of #10, Miserable evening at Wembley, Capello becoming a joke, Kevin Davies, Adam Johnson could be world class)
37:00-40:00 (The French Revival, better team spirit, the Laurent Blanc difference, upcoming friendlies against England and Brazil, Valbuena and other young players)
40:00-50:00 (Hatem Ben Arfa, Nigel De Jong being sued by Marseille, Bert van Marwijk’s exclusion of De Jong, Newcastle and French outrage, “Street Fighter 2” challenges, dirty vs. strong in challenge, Stuart Holden at Bolton, Karl Henry, managers promoting poor sportsmanship, has the Premier League become more dirty recently?)
50:00-55:00 (English straightforward style, leads to physical play, Wolves and Mick McCarthy, Scotland and the 4-6-0 formation, Spain vs. Scotland)
We’d love to do this again, but we’d love it even more if you could give us feedback because we want to more our Podcast as enjoyable to listen to as possible. Cheers!
by Nick Lichtenberg, writing from a couch in New York City (okay, Brooklyn) 1) Dimitar Berbatov reminds me of Steve Nash. Nobody would mistake Dimitar Berbatov for an inspirational league MVP. But a few years ago, Phoenix Suns’ point guard (and Tottenham supporter) Steve Nash was still in search of his first NBA title. So he cut off his trademark long hair, as if it were symbolic of so many playoff failures. Alas, Nash still has not won the championship he so richly deserves, but his Scholesian/Giggsian longevity and consistency have long since dispelled any doubts as to his true greatness. In Manchester, a similar long-haired paleface has shorn his locks as he seeks to prove his worth. Of course, this would be Dimitar Berbatov, the bashful Bulgarian himself (or, in Mancunian terms, the great Bulgarian bust). The striker’s emphatic volley against West Ham capped off another excellent effort, as the laconic one laid off a number of excellent balls for on-rushing attackers throughout the game, mostly Nani.
by Nick Lichtenberg, writing from a couch in New York City Somehow, my love of English football has turned into a weekly, or even daily, quest for meaning, as each result forces me to revisit previously held opinions about what this game means, even if the question is why I persist in watching yet another 0-0 Stoke-Blackburn result. So please enjoy, the meaning of the Premiership’s Week Two: 1) Young English players were notably absent from the World Cup, but they are already running riot in the Premier League. Theo Walcott for Arsenal and Andy Carroll for Newcastle both notched hat tricks and young English keepers were impressive all over, from Joe Hart at Manchester City to David Stockdale at Fulham to Ben Foster at Birmingham City. I also must mention the talented wingers Adam Johnson and Gareth Bale, two excellent left-footed players who have become virtually undroppable for their teams in the season’s opening weeks (admittedly, Bale is Welsh, a fact of which every England fan is ruefully aware). Naturally, England Manager Fabio Capello concluded the week by relegating Arsenal’s young gun Jack Wilshere to the Under-21 squad. England’s national squad has a problem integrating young players, but so far this year the English Premier League has not.
In the third of AFR’s four part Premier League preview series, Nick Lichtenberg (writing from New York City) looks at his Premier League’s Wild Cards: Aston Villa, Birmingham, and Newcastle. (Part One: Contenders. Part Two: Middle Men)
Aston Villa Football Club
“The Villans” … “The Lions”
American counterpart: a club from its country’s “second city,” with a long and storied history but last true success occurring in the 1980s, since when it has waited in vain for a new generation of stars to realize their potential. Also, its uniform/kit is steeped in tradition and harkens back to the earliest days of the sport. Aston Villa is … the Chicago Bears.
For the third June running, bohemian sports hero Steve Nash (Canadian, Tottenham supporting basketball star for the Phoenix Suns) hosted the Showdown in Chinatown at the Sara D. Roosevelt Park on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The fun of the event is seeing what surprise guests turn up for the soccer match that pits international footballers, basketballers and celebrities against each other. So everyone’s favorite Lichtenblogger, myself, braved the heat and humidity to cover the event.
Showdown stalwarts (and organizers) Nash and Captain America Claudio Reyna were on hand again, as was ESPN’s City-supporting Marc Stein.
The ballers on hand had a desert vibe, as the Southwest was represented by current Sun Jared Dudley (right) …
former Sun Raja Bell (who heard chants of “Come play for the Lakers!”) …
