It didn’t live up to the billing of two of the best attacking teams in the world but in the end only one goal separated Barcelona and Manchester United.
That a 14 minute stunner from Paul Scholes after a poor Barcelona clear. You had to admire the way Scholes prepared the ball and then hit it leaving no chance for Victor Valdez.
No it wasn’t pretty and that is what happens sometimes as you get deep into the Champions League as teams become gripped by fear.
Stages of the match were open and Deco and 2nd half substitute Thierry Henry came close but in the end Manchester United were determined and Old Trafford was good for a goal.
Paul Scholes scoring was fitting as he missed the 1999 Champions League win over Bayern Munich as he was suspended.
United defeated Barcelona without Wayne Rooney and Nemanja Vidic while Barcelona were without Rafael Marquez and Ronaldinho.
Frank Rijkaard’s managerial career at Barcelona is expected to be over . MAN OF THE MATCH- Lionel Messi who was one pass away from it.
MEANWHILE DOWN IN RIO DE JANIERO
This is jaw dropping. Ronaldo out for a night of fun with what he assumed were prostitutes of the female persuasion (prostitution apparently is not illegal in Brazil) found out their were transvestites who they tried to extort money from him threatening going to the media. Ronaldo went to the police and explained on Globo Tv that he was a victim of extortion.
Sad but true. Ronaldo is re-habbing his knee in Rio and decided if his career is over……I prefer to have my last image of Ronaldo playing for Inter Milan in the Serie A or Brazil…
DYNAMO PREPPING FOR CHIVAS USA
Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear put his team through a heavy work-out today ahead of the Chivas USA match this Saturday at Robertson Stadium. Fans are encouraged to come early as the Dynamo will be presented with their 2007 Championship rings.
At training today the Dynamo did extra finishing work and the Chivas USA game should bring out some fans of the opponent on Saturday.
After Chivas got hit for five goals on Saturday agains LA this game takes on a bit more pressure for both teams who are in need of a win…….The game is live on HDNET at 7:30 central time.
THE DYNAMO SOCCER REPORT WITH GLENN DAVIS this Friday night on Channel 55 includes interviews with Kinnear and Pat Onstad.
The youth profile is of the Texas Rush Soccer Club and the show includes rumors , rants and raves plus viewer emails and international highlights plus much more.
Tune in or set your vcr.
OSCAR TO WEAR “DYNAMO FOREVER” AND CLUB LOGO IN FIGHT
Dynamo owner Oscar De La Hoya will wear the Dynamo logo and “forever orange” on his boxing trunks this weekend as he takes on Steve Forbes at the Home Depot Center.
LIVERPOOL AND CHELSEA AT STAGS HEAD PUB
Catch the Champions League at Stags Head Pub at 1:30 pm Wednesday when Liverpool take on Chelsea for the right to face Manchester United in the Champions League Final in Moscow, Russia. Stags Head Pub is also the host site for Dynamo All Access with Glenn Davis on 790 The Sports Animal.
MAN WHO COACHED PELE AND BECKENBAUER PASSES AWAY
Former New York Cosmos coach Gordon Bradley passed away yesterday at 74 years of age.
Bradley coached both Pele and Franz Beckenbauer and was a pioneer for the game of soccer in the United States at all levels.
Former Cosmos goalkeeper Shep Messing passed this on to me.
The game of soccer will miss Gordon Bradley and our condolences to his family. Bradley had suffered from Alzheimers disease.
Glenn,
Messi had a good game but I thought Tevez was absolutely outstanding for United. Barca enjoyed more of the possession again without creating clear chances, but so often in the second half they were denied the chance to build up moves or win the ball back due to the Argentine’s bullish, unselfish play up front.
Comment by Ian Thomson — April 29, 2008 @ 8:55 pm
Not every game turns out to be what everyone is expecting, last week we had the chance to watch one of the best Champion´s matches in a long time, but today we had a so so match, I wonder if the MLS game next Thursday turns out to be above average, if certain soccer writer of the Houston area will still claim that watching the MLS is painful after watching CL games.
The English league is certainly turning out to be the dominat league in Europe, so long are the days when the 2 greatest leagues were “Serie A” and ‘La Liga”, nowadays Italy´s big league is just a good league and the 2 big boys are the “Premiere League” and ‘La Liga” but Barcelona was no match, the only Spaniard team left among 3 English teams could not stop an all English championship game.
Talking about international competition Glenn, you like to remember everyone that MLS should do all in their power to have that elusive win in Mexico or at least Costa Rica, I´m 100% with you and a little bit sad to see “Primera Division” league teams winning important games of Copa Libertadores in South American lands, I just saw Atlas of Guadalajara achieve a very important win in Argentina, winning their away match against Lanus in “Estadio Lanus” 1-0 with a beautiful goal from Marioni, getting them closer to the quarter finals, and Pachuca tied last week in Costa Rica (Saprissa had to tie the game in the last minutes of play) their away game in CCC in the same field in which our Dynamo lost, getting them close to be again the Champions of CONCACAF.
Why are Mexican teams winning in tournament conditions in countries like Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay, etc, etc and we can´t seem to get pass from “very close to”, we almost did it”, is “Primera Division” that much better?, Mexican teams have indeed increased their level in astounding quantities, but MLS teams are probably the teams with the biggest percentage of improvement in the last years in the whole world.
MLS can not be that far away from Mexican teams, how else could we explain the fact that the teams have really been close to get that first very important away win? Is it mentally? Is it something similar to what happens with the Mexican National Team?, losing against Mexico and then winning against Brazil in Copa America and winning against many other SA teams?, is it the style of play?
And if the MLS is like I believe not that far away from the Mexican league, what does that tell us about the MLS?, Mexican teams after all are having great results against some very important leagues, MLS can´t be that far away from the level of some of the very best leagues in the world, Argentinian and Brazilian leagues are not the “Premiere League” or “La Liga” but they are still elite leagues, are we really there?, very close to a more than respectable world level?
Comment by Jarrambide — April 29, 2008 @ 10:19 pm
On Manchester United, man that is a great accomplishment! Congrats to them. On De La Hoya, man, it will be great watching him repping our home team. I think this is the first time ever seeing anything Dynamo on HBO
On Ronaldo in Rio, man oh man…oh man, oh man, oh man…
Comment by DJ V — April 30, 2008 @ 3:24 am
I wouldn’t take this year’s results in the Champions league to mean the demise of Serie A or La Liga. Certainly they were outplayed by the PL this year, but I don’t think their quality decreased (with basically all the same players) in the one year since ACMilan won it all. A bit too dramatic, I would think. Congrats to ManU.
As for the Ronaldo story, I don’t know if prostitution is legal but it is certainly accepted in Brasil. He made an honest mistake; sometimes it is very difficult to tell the difference. No, I won’t elaborate on that!
Shame on the tranny who attempted the extorsion; I hope (s)he pays for it.
Go Oscar, Go Dynamo!
Comment by Bro — April 30, 2008 @ 8:40 am
Dear Glenn,
This is really more of a message to you than a comment about your blog.
First and foremost, I am a big fan of your reporting. You analyze interesting and polarizing topics from a well reasoned perspective without devolving into pure commentary. Sports media is overcrowded with opinionated talking heads, and you provide relief. Also, you cover my home town team, the Dynamo, so I am indebted in many ways.
I have a few questions. Can your programming be seen or heard live on the internet? I live in Austin, and so far this season I have only tuned into your podcasts. This past week I found myself wishing to pick up the phone and add my two cents.
The dialog I hoped to inspire centers around the importance of a solid center back tandem. For me, this position is the most delicately balanced on the pitch. Mistakes that would never be noticed in the midfield determine the fate of games when you make them at the back. In order to avoid a number of those potential mistakes, the two center backs must work in concert with a clear understanding of personal responsibilities, and the tendencies of the partner in crime. When a team loses a Terry, Carvalho, or Vidic you can see how it throws the side into disarray even when they have top quality replacements available. (Yesterday Manchester persevered, but I was worried.)
Therefore, I rate the loss of Ryan Cochrane to the expansion draft as the Houston’s biggest hurdle to overcome. This process has been further hampered by injury and suspension. We have platooned Robinson, Ianni, Boswell, Waibel, and even Mulrooney at center back if I’m not mistaken. I am hoping Robinson and Boswell can find some chemistry together, but this cannot happen when our most important player is foolishly suspending himself from play. I hate to pile on, and I know Robinson must be sick watching games from home, but his action was unconscionable and stupid. He has cost the team dearly. You did mention Robinson briefly during your conversation with Coach Kinnear, but I think he deserves more attention. Or perhaps we need to spend more time discussing his potential partners. What are your thoughts on Boswell and Ianni? I heard one caller mention that they lack the pace of Cochrane, which is unfortunate, but what of their positioning, composure, and game sense? I have not been able to watch the last two games, so I don’t feel qualified to properly criticize, but from what I have seen in previous matches going back to February, each seems caught unawares far too often. (As a side note, what sort of quality could I expect from MLSLIVE.tv? Have you ever used it? Do you know any place in Austin where Dynamo fans gather?)
I am pleased to have Clark back from suspension and resuming his duties at holding midfield. When you couple his absence with our defensive shuffling and the injury at keeper it is easy to see why we might struggle. By having him on the field the other midfielders are so much more free to play and run into spaces. Likewise for Onstad’s return; a tried and true keeper gives peace of mind.
I’ll look for the Dynamo to really pick things up once Robinson gets back on the field to make our defense whole.
As for our offense, I am not too worried. As many have mentioned, we have enjoyed the majority of chances in our games. De Ro is a shooting machine, leading the league in that category. Now he just needs to get those on target. Caraccio and Davis are producing many shots on target as well. It is just a matter of time till they find the net with frequency.
Here is a tangent: One of the aspects of our game that I am most fascinated with is the monopolistic system of MLS, its similarity with other American sports leagues, and its differences with the European football system. I could go on for hours about different aspects of this issue, but I’ll focus on the topic that comes up most frequently in your own discussions: player salaries and soccer specific stadiums.
What do you know about MLS finances? I have done a bit of looking on the internet and found very few credible sources of information. Where can I find the salaries of each player for each team? Can I find accounting information for each team and the league itself? I’d like to know how much the team takes from the gate at a park like Robertson Stadium, and how much it pays to UH to use the field. How much is made on Memorabilia, and broadcast revenue (TV, Radio, and Internet). With such information, I hope to understand why there are starting players making less than $20,000. Can you help me out with what you know?
Thank you so much for your time, and please keep it up,
Steven Alford
Comment by Steven — April 30, 2008 @ 3:28 pm
Stevem go to www.790thesportsanimal.com their feed has a delay of only seconds.
Comment by Jarrambide — April 30, 2008 @ 7:04 pm
Steven,
I don’t know about MLS finances, but you can find player salaries here: http://www.mlsplayers.org/salary_info.html
Comment by M@ — April 30, 2008 @ 10:57 pm