It's the Big One!

Sure, most football fans will be drawn to the Merseyside Derby this morning to see if Rafa's side can bounce back from their latest disappointment. Me? All eyes on Kettering Town, who host the mighty Leeds United in Round 2 of the Cup. Oh, Chelsea and Arsenal are on as well....

FA Cup 2nd Round Live!

The world's oldest and most venerable knock-out competition continues this morning. Join me for all the magic.

Oh and there are some rubbishy Premier League matches on as well.

Ben Olsen retires

Something that got lost in the pre-Thanksgiving shuffle was the announcement of Ben Olsen's retirement. He'll be missed by the DC United faithful but the rumors are that when a new coach is announced, Ben will return as an assistant. It's the fervent wish of many a DCU supporter that he stays with the club. Here's a brief and touching video from when he returned from a long injury to play against LA. You can feel the affection we have for him and how overwhelming it was for him to be recognized.

A list of the defining records of the decade from NPR

Bob hipped me to this list and it's full of potential for discussion and debate.

Have a look and see what you think.

click! for the list

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to all of the LOB faithful out there!

Champions League - Gameday 5!

It's getting down to the end of the group stage of the Champions League and suddenly there are some meaningful games out there. Take Group E, for example where Liverpool have it all on the line, needing a win away to Debrecen and an away win for Lyon at Fiorentina. Group F has the match of the day between Barca and Inter, neither of whom are completely safe and could be pipped on the last gameday by Rubin Kazan.

Oh, and there is a full schedule of Football League matches as well. You're not really still in the office today, are you? Come join me on the LOB!

Shocker: FIFA Considers France v. Ireland Replay!

Shock news out of FIFA that Sepp "50 Bad Ideas an Hour" Blatter has decided to hold a hearing on whether to schedule a replay between France and Ireland after the contentious playoff ended in a "mano a dios" TH-14 goal. When the Irish FA first floated the idea last week, I thought it was a laughably optimistic idea - but here we are? I think it sets a tremendously dangerous precedent for world football. Anyone care to talk me down on the issue?

MLS Cup Final 2009 Live!

Okay, so it's not exactly a Saturday afternoon at Wembley in May, but it's the best we've got right now. It's Landycakes and his mate Goldenballs against the upstart Real Salt Lakers. And it's on live in a few minutes. Join me if you can be bothered.

Saturday Morning Live!

It's another big, big day in English footie and it all starts here in a moment with the tantalizing morsel of seventh placed Liverpool v. six placed Citeh from Anfield. Join me if you don't want a Liverpool "hot leg."

Wacko Jacko Seance on Sky TV

In one of the strangest stories of the year, Sky TV televised a live seance in which a group of "superfans" asked questions that were channeled through a medium. You'll notice that Michael has developed a robust (if whispered) Geordie accent since "passing over to the other side." Enjoy!

ZeitGeist!

One of the only elements of MSNBC's "Morning Joe" that I can stomach at this point is the "News You Can't Use" segment featuring humorist Willie Geist. Fortunately, Willie - who is the son of humorist Bill Geist who you may know from the CBS "Sunday Morning" show - is starting to get his own platform. He does a 5:30 am show on MSNBC, which is just a wee bit too early for my taste. However, many of those segments are collected on the vodcast "ZeitGeist." If you download it from iTunes, you'll get a few minutes of Vladimir Putin's latest appearance or the "Mug Shots of the Week." I find it the perfect complement to lunch at my desk. Enjoy!

Who Will Be on the Plane to South Africa?

It all ends today! The last five slots for 2010 South Africa will be sorted in a matter of hours. Here's where the sides stack up going into the second legs today:

Bosnia 0 Portugal 1
France 1 Ireland 0
Slovenia 1 Russia 2
Ukraine 0 Greece 0
Uruguay 1 Costa Rica 0

I'll be in and out as usual for a Wednesday but I'll look forward to hearing from you as you enjoy these last playoffs. Cheers!

More Women's Soccer Aggro!

Wow!

RIP Edward Woodward (1930-2009)

Sad news today that the great British actor Edward Woodward has died at the age of 79. Of course, most Americans remember him from The Equalizer series but my memory most vivid memories of him are as "Callan" in the early 70s spy series and especially in the brilliant historical film "Breaker Morant." Cut and paste the following link for The Guardian tribute:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2009/nov/16/edward-woodward-wicker-man-callum

He'll be missed.

Wish These Two Were Playing

A big day of footer today to follow.
On FSC, Slovakia vs USA at 10 followed by England vs Brazil at Noon.
Of course, there are the four European WC Qualifying games and the Mighty Leeds United looking to stretch their league at the top of the table with a trip to Swindon Town

Join me

UWS

Fergie v. The Men in Black

Has anyone else noticed that Fergie has been doing more than his fair share of whinging about referees this season? Here are a few of my favorite Ferg quote's about the men in the middle:

Re: Alan Wiley - "He didn't add on any time for the goal. He played 4 minutes and two seconds. He was also walking up the pitch for the second goal and needed a rest. He was not fit enough for a game of that standard."

Re: Andre Marriner: "It is a very difficult atmosphere at Anfield. I don't know if he had the experience to handle that match."

Re: Phil Dowd: "Paul Scholes should never have been sent off. How many late challenges were there in that match?"

Re: Mark Clattenburg: "Some referees don't like it. They don't like the truth but I just told him how bad he was in the first half." (Sir was given a two-match ban for his comments to Clattenburg).

Is Fergie losing the plot? Your comments, gents.

Women's Soccer Gets Nasty

What's going on in women's footie. Just months after Abby Wambach elbowed an English player in a World Cup match, here's more evidence that women's players have been reviewing Ron "Chopper" Harris and Norman "Bites Yer Legs" Hunter's tapes. Thanks to UWS for uncovering this gem from a recent BYU v. New Mexico match.

Does anyone else find this disturbing?

I'm not sure whether I should be glad that they composted the flower offerings, or disgusted that they're selling the compost by the bag. Something about this just... feels... weird...


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/8348144.stm

The Big One!

Chelsea v. Manchester United at Stamford Bridge. It's always one of the big matches of any season and it's on live this morning from 11 am. Join me!

Fire v. Revolution Second Leg Live!

The Revvies take a 2-1 lead thanks to a Shalrie Joseph strike into the second leg in Chicago tonight. All they need is a draw in order to move forward to the "Eastern" Conference final against Real Salt Lake. Join me if you're watching.

The Long and Winding Road to Wembley

It all starts here with Round 1 of the FA Cup featuring the non-league minnows and well, the slightly larger fish of English footie. First up - Norwich away to some outfit called Paulton. Oh, and there's the usual Saturday Premiership fixture list at 10.

Shatner Reads Levi Johnston's Tweets

Shatner is back! Enjoy!

Champions League Gameday 4!

The Champions League is back in effect today, with plenty of good games around. As usual, I'll be popping in and out but I hope to catch some of the action along the way. Join me?

Pythons Threaten to Sue Christie

It's obviously News of the Weird Monday, with reports that the Python troupe are threatening legal action against GOP numpty Chris Christie for using the classic "Deja Vu" sketch without permission in his latest attack ad. against Democratic incumbent New Jersey governor John Corzine. Read the story and watch the ad here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/martin-lewis/chris-christie-rips-off-m_b_341598.html

The Revolution vs. The Fire Live!

It's play-off time in the MLS and FSC is favoring us with the first leg of the Eastern Conference playoff between my beloved Revolution and the Chicago Fire. I've got my lucky Revvies t-shirt on so join in if you're watching.