European Football, aka "The Beautiful Game"

[Dr.Strangelove]

Henry signs for NY.

On behalf of all honest europeans I would like to say good riddence to the f%^kin' git.

Overpaid, Over-rated and now thank god.... Over there.

Henry you cheat, you'll always be a C*@t.

[kenoneill]

Henry signs for NY.

On behalf of all honest europeans I would like to say good riddence to the f%^kin' git.

Overpaid, Over-rated and now thank god.... Over there.

Henry you cheat, you'll always be a C*@t.

has he signed for the jets or the giants

[Major]

Henry signs for NY.

On behalf of all honest europeans I would like to say good riddence to the f%^kin' git.

Overpaid, Over-rated and now thank god.... Over there.

Henry you cheat, you'll always be a C*@t.

has he signed for the jets or the giants

Him and Lebron both signed to the Yankees for multi-year deals.

[Barefoot]

Henry signs for NY.

On behalf of all honest europeans I would like to say good riddence to the f%^kin' git.

Overpaid, Over-rated and now thank god.... Over there.

Henry you cheat, you'll always be a C*@t.

Must be Irish. They aren't known for being forgiving people.

As for the American perspective, we finally landed a world-class player that's not solely a publicity stunt (Beckham). Henry can actually give New York some production on the field. With Juan Pablo Angel alongside him, these two may give LA's Donovan and Buddle a run for their money for best striker tandem in the league.

[Dr.Strangelove]

Henry signs for NY.

On behalf of all honest europeans I would like to say good riddence to the f%^kin' git.

Overpaid, Over-rated and now thank god.... Over there.

Henry you cheat, you'll always be a C*@t.

Must be Irish. They aren't known for being forgiving people.

As for the American perspective, we finally landed a world-class player that's not solely a publicity stunt (Beckham). Henry can actually give New York some production on the field. With Juan Pablo Angel alongside him, these two may give LA's Donovan and Buddle a run for their money for best striker tandem in the league.

Lol, yes i am Irish.
But seriously, this was the only move that the slimey git could make money from. His reputation is in tatters in Ireland,Britian, France and Spain. He couldnt sign for a big premier league club as they all have big Irish followings. Only 2 clubs in Scotland could seriously court his signature. Rangers and Celtic. He wouldnt get in the door at Celtic as its majority following is from the Irish republic. Rangers would be a terrible move for him as they are the most hated club in Ireland (not my view but that of my piers) and to move there would further antagonise the situation.. He failed in Italy and feared going back there and outside of the big five or six clubs in Spain, the rest are poor.
Its my belief that Henry, like Beckham, see's his future after he retire in some form of ambassador role for FIFA, UEFA or the FFF. What happened against Ireland has damaged this prospect.
The PR damage combined with his age and possibe earnings left as a top professional is the reason he has signed in the US. He will have a clean slate and will try to rebuild his image whilst winding down his career.
In my opion US Football is on the way up. they have a nice physical but still tecnically sound league. Theyr youth development is second to none and with the right push there is an unlimited fan base for both the domestic teams and national side. But the American public have yet to be sold on "Soccer". I get the feeling the the current fan bases are from the immigrant communities, but both black and white america just dont get it. No offence, but even when I listen to passionate american fans, they seem to be talking about a different game. Theyr commentators make me laugh. In fact I would say that Football is the one thing that when talked about with people from either side of the oceans, shows how culturely different we are. America, Isolated from the rest of the world for so long invented their own games, great games full of history and tradition like baseball, Basketball and American football. But in these sports you can see the differences in culture. Football is not friendly to the American networks. 45 minutes without a break! Possiblility of few goals! you dont see this in American games which are usually more free scoring with lots of little breaks for the networks.
But back to Henry...this is a good move for the MLS, more than its a good move for him. its the high profile players like him that give leagues credibility. I wish the MLS all the best and hope it evolves and reaches its potential....but as for Henry, I hope the feckin' plane he's goin to America in, crashes and burns.

[Barefoot]

I agree with you that he gets a clean slate over here. None of us Americans really care about reputation as long as it doesn't affect his play. We're not the ones who got screwed over, and our media doesn't cover foreign sports stars for the most part. To be honest, I think the whole thing will eventually blow over. Maybe not for the Irish, but everyone seems to have forgiven Maradona by now. I don't see him being a hated figure forever. He did some amazing things in his prime, and in the MLS he's going to score - probably a lot. He's no longer fast, and he's old, but MLS defenders generally don't have the pace and quickness of the top European clubs.

Soccer in the US has taken off at the youth level. It's one of the most popular sports to play. It's just going to take another decade or two for that generation to mature and dominate the media in the country. For example, I played soccer since I was a tot and continued competitively until college, and it's a game I play a couple times a week recreationally. I follow international soccer. On the contrary, my parents could probably name 1 or 2 players off any national team in the US's history, and they probably couldn't name a single club team in the MLS or abroad. It just wasn't around growing up. They didn't even have the option to play the sport in school. There were no leagues, no friends playing it. If you don't grow up with it, it's tough to like it. (Kind of like NASCAR).

[Dr.Strangelove]

Anyone up for a bit of Fantasy Football? I wouldnt mind playin in a Starporters league!

[Moleman]

No-one outside of the South of Ireland cares about his handball, the reason he didn't move to the premership is that none of the top-4 clubs wanted him and any other club would have been a step down for him, he also genuinely seems a fan of Arsenal so would find it strange playing against them.

His last season in Spain didn't go that badly, scored a lot of goals and won La Liga again, hes still a GREAT player in my opinion and will be head and shoulders above most of the other talent in the MLS, great move for them I reckon.

Would be up for a SGE fantasy league, I've won my league for the last 3 years running

moleman

[Dr.Strangelove]

No-one outside of the South of Ireland cares about his handball

Would be up for a SGE fantasy league, I've won my league for the last 3 years running

moleman

I know of a few anti Henry Facebook pages from France that would beg to differ with ya Moley. Combined they have over a million followers so not sure if your entirely accurate there, but I take your point that the Southern Irish as you call us, are the most hostile. But put yourself in our shoes for a sec and think if it happened to N.Ireland. I think you'd have a different opinion. By saying no-one outside of "Southern Ireland", you are localising the issue, when it simply isnt the case and just comes across as sour grapes because we fall under arch-rival federations. But its not just him, FIFA themselves must change. To much pressure is put on referee's, players and non playing staff. And as Rome burns, Nero does didily squat and it cant continue. When will it stop...when a World Cup final is decided on an error. Too much cash and prestige is involved these days.

The FAI and the fans of the Republic are not just upset about the Handball, but more about a combination of cloak and dagger shenanigans that make America's adventure in Iraq look like a just and noble cause.
1. After coming through a tough group undefeated, which included the current world champions Italy, FIFA, with no prior notice decided to, not only seed the playoff, but use the world rankings from a date that suited France, Portugal and Russia.
2. Henry's handball.
3. The lack of discretion shown by Sepp Blatter to the FAI. The Irish Idea of a 33 team WC was stupid. I'm the 1st to admit it, but there was no call to openly joke about it to the world media. This is not the actions a FIFA president should take and he should never belittle any federation, no mater how small.
4. The Fact that the FFF hid behind FIFA and refused to meet with the FAI or make any statement until FIFA first made one. And after the seeding debacle, it was obvious what was going to happen.
5. The fact the it was obvious that it was a handball and not ball to hand, and yet the player faced no ban or punishment.
6. The fact that Henry, always tried to be a role model and an ambassador for fairness in the game and had the bare faced cheek to sit beside Richard Dunne at full time and try to pass it off as ball to hand. How Mr. Dunne kept his composure and didnt hurt Henry is beyond me.

It is obvious that the problem falls with FIFA.

I myself, a fan of the game all my life have a theory to improve the game and remove any doubt of cheating. I think its a sound idea but before I tell you let me highlight some things.
1. FIFA are unwilling to change for fear that TV replays will change the game and slow it down, essentially losing its fluidity.
2. By not taking any action, FIFA are putting players, Referees and Managers under an unsolicited spotlight, which taints their careers forever. Some good ref's have resigned in recent yrs due to this and this is not progressive.
3. The vast majority of fans want change. They might not know exactly how or what they want done, but nonetheless want change that brings more clarity and accuracy in the game.

So my concept keeps all these aspects in mind.
In American Football, the coach of the team, can at anytime, ask the umpire to review the play. I know AF is alot more stop start than our version, but a manager can notify the 4th official. Once play has stopped he can then notify the ref to review the play on camera. The rules in AF is that a coach can only do this twice in a game. If he's right, the play is reversed. if he's wrong his team lose a timout, from the 3 they start with. I kno we dont have timeouts in football, but we do have 3 subs. if u get the call wrong u lose a sub. this will insure its not abused and play reviews are used only in near certain situations. So if the ball crossed the line but the ref says it didnt, then the press, fans and whoever cant blame the ref if the manager didnt object. It'll also add an interestin aspect to the game as managers would tend not to use the last sub to insure they still have review calls. It might need a bit of ironing out but the concept is sound.

[Major]

No-one outside of the South of Ireland cares about his handball

Would be up for a SGE fantasy league, I've won my league for the last 3 years running

moleman

I know of a few anti Henry Facebook pages from France that would beg to differ with ya Moley. Combined they have over a million followers so not sure if your entirely accurate there, but I take your point that the Southern Irish as you call us, are the most hostile. But put yourself in our shoes for a sec and think if it happened to N.Ireland. I think you'd have a different opinion. By saying no-one outside of "Southern Ireland", you are localising the issue, when it simply isnt the case and just comes across as sour grapes because we fall under arch-rival federations. But its not just him, FIFA themselves must change. To much pressure is put on referee's, players and non playing staff. And as Rome burns, Nero does didily squat and it cant continue. When will it stop...when a World Cup final is decided on an error. Too much cash and prestige is involved these days.

The FAI and the fans of the Republic are not just upset about the Handball, but more about a combination of cloak and dagger shenanigans that make America's adventure in Iraq look like a just and noble cause.
1. After coming through a tough group undefeated, which included the current world champions Italy, FIFA, with no prior notice decided to, not only seed the playoff, but use the world rankings from a date that suited France, Portugal and Russia.
2. Henry's handball.
3. The lack of discretion shown by Sepp Blatter to the FAI. The Irish Idea of a 33 team WC was stupid. I'm the 1st to admit it, but there was no call to openly joke about it to the world media. This is not the actions a FIFA president should take and he should never belittle any federation, no mater how small.
4. The Fact that the FFF hid behind FIFA and refused to meet with the FAI or make any statement until FIFA first made one. And after the seeding debacle, it was obvious what was going to happen.
5. The fact the it was obvious that it was a handball and not ball to hand, and yet the player faced no ban or punishment.
6. The fact that Henry, always tried to be a role model and an ambassador for fairness in the game and had the bare faced cheek to sit beside Richard Dunne at full time and try to pass it off as ball to hand. How Mr. Dunne kept his composure and didnt hurt Henry is beyond me.

It is obvious that the problem falls with FIFA.

I myself, a fan of the game all my life have a theory to improve the game and remove any doubt of cheating. I think its a sound idea but before I tell you let me highlight some things.
1. FIFA are unwilling to change for fear that TV replays will change the game and slow it down, essentially losing its fluidity.
2. By not taking any action, FIFA are putting players, Referees and Managers under an unsolicited spotlight, which taints their careers forever. Some good ref's have resigned in recent yrs due to this and this is not progressive.
3. The vast majority of fans want change. They might not know exactly how or what they want done, but nonetheless want change that brings more clarity and accuracy in the game.

So my concept keeps all these aspects in mind.
In American Football, the coach of the team, can at anytime, ask the umpire to review the play. I know AF is alot more stop start than our version, but a manager can notify the 4th official. Once play has stopped he can then notify the ref to review the play on camera. The rules in AF is that a coach can only do this twice in a game. If he's right, the play is reversed. if he's wrong his team lose a timout, from the 3 they start with. I kno we dont have timeouts in football, but we do have 3 subs. if u get the call wrong u lose a sub. this will insure its not abused and play reviews are used only in near certain situations. So if the ball crossed the line but the ref says it didnt, then the press, fans and whoever cant blame the ref if the manager didnt object. It'll also add an interestin aspect to the game as managers would tend not to use the last sub to insure they still have review calls. It might need a bit of ironing out but the concept is sound.

we call the "umpires" referees in NFL.

in baseball we refer to the officials as umpires.

...but i get and like your point. can't see why there isn't a review policy along NFL lines already.

i lil off your point and back to mine. Go Redbulls!

I'll be at the home opener and will post pics here. As moley said Henry is by far a superb talent and hopefully will jump start the rest of the world to see there is money and glory to be had in American soccer. If nothing else he brings prestige to our "isolated" hemisphere.

[Dr.Strangelove]

For anyone interested, I have started a Starporters fantasy league for the upcoming English premier league. Its free and the website itself gives prizes for it's best teams. To enter goto http://fantasy.premierleague.com and use this code to enter the "Starporters League". 416748-103988

[Mensio]

Henry signs for NY.

On behalf of all honest europeans I would like to say good riddence to the f%^kin' git.

Overpaid, Over-rated and now thank god.... Over there.

Henry you cheat, you'll always be a C*@t.

Henry was a great player when he was in arsenal but when he moved to barcelona everything started to go downhill.
He is still a good player in my point of view.

[Major]

http://www.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter-recap/richards-kandji-lead-red-bulls-past-man-city

totally meaningless game as they are both out of Barclays.

[Dr.Strangelove]

Henry signs for NY.

On behalf of all honest europeans I would like to say good riddence to the f%^kin' git.

Overpaid, Over-rated and now thank god.... Over there.

Henry you cheat, you'll always be a C*@t.

Henry was a great player when he was in arsenal but when he moved to barcelona everything started to go downhill.
He is still a good player in my point of view.

OMG Gooner Alert!!!!! Ken get the shotgun! there's an Arsenal fan on the forum.

[kenoneill]

locked and loaded

[Mensio]

Henry signs for NY.

On behalf of all honest europeans I would like to say good riddence to the f%^kin' git.

Overpaid, Over-rated and now thank god.... Over there.

Henry you cheat, you'll always be a C*@t.

Henry was a great player when he was in arsenal but when he moved to barcelona everything started to go downhill.
He is still a good player in my point of view.

OMG Gooner Alert!!!!! Ken get the shotgun! there's an Arsenal fan on the forum.

Actually I am a fc barcelona fan La liga FTW!

[Dr.Strangelove]

The Late Thierry Henry!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxprvrFQpiE

[Moleman]

For anyone interested, I have started a Starporters fantasy league for the upcoming English premier league. Its free and the website itself gives prizes for it's best teams. To enter goto http://fantasy.premierleague.com and use this code to enter the "Starporters League". 416748-103988

Moleman Utd FTW

[Dr.Strangelove]

Rankings after 1st day of the season.

# Team Manager GW TOT
1 Kings Road Dandy's Khronic 36 36
2 Google Unknown 33 33
3 Moleman Utd Moleman 26 26
4 Caine's Bitches Caine 17 17
5 stevyg ken 12 12


Game open to anyone who wants to enter.

Can team Google let me kno who they are plz.

[-nox-]

be afraid of team FCnox and my absolute lack of football knowledge!

[Dr.Strangelove]

Fantasy league rankings after round 2.

1 Khronic 82
2 Google 79
3 Moleman 60
4 Caine 59
5 ken 51
6 nox 15

[-nox-]

Fantasy league rankings after round 2.

1 Khronic 82
2 Google 79
3 Moleman 60
4 Caine 59
5 ken 51
6 nox 15

are you telling me I suck? Is that what you're trying to say here?!!

[Dr.Strangelove]

Fantasy league rankings after round 2.

1 Khronic 82
2 Google 79
3 Moleman 60
4 Caine 59
5 ken 51
6 nox 15

are you telling me I suck? Is that what you're trying to say here?!!

Lol, no. Considering you didnt get any points for week 1, as u only joined in week 2 and also the fact that your American and not as familiar with the English league as most of us, I'd say your right about where u should be.
Try to watch the form of players as you can have one free transfer per week. Also if you have a defender or goalkeeper from a poor team and theyr due to take on a form team, then maybe you should trade them or rest them.

[-nox-]

Lol, no. Considering (...) your American.

Clearly you're suggesting I suck. I bloody loathe you.

[Dr.Strangelove]

Lol, no. Considering (...) your Dutch.

Clearly you're suggesting I have my finger in the dyke. I bloody wear cloggs.

[-nox-]

en zo is het.

[Dr.Strangelove]

:lol:

en zo is het.

Is het echt hoewel?

[-nox-]

:lol:

en zo is het.

Is het echt hoewel?

with the fear in my heart of going slightly off topic: that's completely wrong.

[Dr.Strangelove]

:lol:

en zo is het.

Is het echt hoewel?

with the fear in my heart of going slightly off topic: that's completely wrong.

I'll take your word for it as I was using a translator. Soz for assuming u were American.

[Dr.Strangelove]

Fantasy league standings after round 3.

1 Khronic 162
2 Google 143
3 Caine 129
4 Moleman 125
5 Ken 107
6 Nox 57

Biggest points earners of the week were Google and Moleman, with both earning 52 points.