What We Learned This Weekend

There were goals galore in the Premiership this weekend and after 11 games (for some teams), things are finally starting to become clear as we're roughly a quarter of the way into the season. The title chase will once again be a four-horse race with Manchester United, Chelsea, and Arsenal out in front right now and the relegation battle may not be much of a battle at all with Derby County, Bolton, Wigan, and Middlesbrough playing so poorly. Here it is then, four observations from the weekend:

1. Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez are the most lethal striking duo in the Premiership, if not Europe. After Rooney scored twice (and just missed a hat trick) against Aston Villa with the help of Tevez, it was the Argentine's turn to bag a brace this weekend against Middlesbrough in a 4-1 victory. Whoever said these two can't play together because they're the same type of "in the hole" player is dead wrong. The interplay between them is incredible, both players have a very strong work rate, but most importantly, these are two of the most clinical finishers out there right now. Rooney's backheel pass to Tevez, who then scored, was the number 1 play of the day on SportsCenter Saturday night, and if SportsCenter can make you number 1 on a day filled with college football, it shows just how much class and skill these two players have. Rooney has now scored 4 goals in 6 Premiership matches while Tevez has 4 in 10, though some of those games came without Rooney alongside him.

2. Chelsea are back and better than ever/Manchester City isn't for real. Chelsea's 6-0 thrashing of Man City was a showcase of attacking soccer from the West London club and an absolute embarrassment for the second team in Manchester. Micah Richards has all the tools and potential to be England's best defender ever but he looked miserable this weekend, caught out multiple times which led to Chelsea goals. Joe Hart was beaten through the legs on 3 or 4 occasions (I lost count, to be honest), but to be fair, he wasn't going to stop a couple of them no matter what. If you want to be one of the best teams in the Premiership, you have to do two things: win on the road consistently and beat the best teams in the Premiership ("Big Four"). City are now 1-1-3 away from home, which simply isn't good enough, and have been pounded by Chelsea and Arsenal, though the scoreline doesn't truly reflect that in the Gunners match. Yes, they beat city rivals United, but the game was at City's stadium and the defending champions played without Rooney, Ronaldo, and Anderson. City's next tough road test is at Portsmouth on November 11. Come away with a victory there and you'll open my eyes again, but right now, City look to be a pretender, not a contender.

Chelsea, on the other hand, are playing the attacking style promised by temporary manager Avram Grant. Grant is certainly making a case to be hired on a permanent basis, but I don't know if Henk Ten Cate would've left Ajax just to be a coach at Chelsea. Either way, it's good to see Joe Cole back in the lineup and contributing, Didier Drogba is doing his thing (whether he wants to stay with Chelsea or not, who knows), and even Shevchenko got a goal this weekend. I'm not convinced Chelsea can win the title yet; they have the players but the manager doesn't compare to Sir Alex or to Arsene Wenger, but we'll see.

3. Cesc Fabregas is really pushing for Player of the Year. As much as Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard put his club on his back yesterday (he was Liverpool's best player by far), the 20-year old Spanish midfielder did the same and got the tying goal for the North London side. A point on the road against Liverpool is certainly a point earned, and Cesc now has 5 goals in 10 Premiership games. This, of course, doesn't reflect what he's truly gifted at: passing and spraying balls all over the field. Fabregas is a quality, quality player and definitely the catalyst to everything the Gunners do on the field.

4. Gary Megson has a tough road ahead at Bolton. Megson has come out in the press saying he believes Bolton can stay up, and he has the players to do it..except for the fact that there's no way Nicolas Anelka will stay with Bolton come the January transfer window and if/when he leaves, I don't think this club will be able to score any goals. Megson has proven that he's not a Premiership quality manager (got West Brom relegated) and once again, Bolton hired a new manager too quickly after doing the same with Sammy Lee last year.

Why I Believe Playing a Premier League Match Will Happen in the US

Over at epltalk.com (a great site, by the way), the Gaffer came out with a post today with his reasoning as to why the Premier League won't play an official league match here in the US. West Ham's chairman, Eggert (Elf-Ears) Magnusson, did an interview with Sky Sports News and claimed it "would be good for the game" and he "could see it happening sooner rather than later."

Personally, I agree with Magnusson on this count. Playing a Premier League game in the US would be a big step towards expanding soccer here and would be, provided the right teams were involved, a welcomed, well-supported concept with fans in America. It's a perfectly feasible thing to schedule as well.

Without further ado, here's why I believe a Premier League game will be played in America:

1. The United States has the type of state of the art, fan-friendly stadiums that don't exist anywhere else in the world. If you want to play a game in a more cozy, soccer fan-specific atmosphere, you can play at Pizza Hut Park in Dallas, the Home Depot Center in suburban LA, or Dick's Sporting Goods Park in suburban Denver. If you want to make it a spectacle, you can play in any of the new, large NFL stadiums, like Reliant Stadium in Houston, Gillette Stadium in suburban Boston, Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, or the University of Phoenix stadium in suburban Phoenix. It all depends on the preference of the executives involved and how much money they want to make while not compromising the integrity and importance of the match. Either way, the fans will be treated to a show and in a stadium that has all the modern conveniences one could ask for.

2. The market in the US is there for the taking. The media bias towards soccer notwithstanding, there are plenty of fans in America who already support teams in the Premier League and the Premier League in general. When the United States hosted the World Cup in 1994 and the Women's World Cup in 1999 and 2003, the passion of the fans was clearly visible in the stands. As the wealthiest country in the world, Premier League teams should be itching at the chance to sell us their overpriced merchandise. Once you get Americans hooked on something, you have them at your mercy. An entertaining match with international stars that actually means something would go a long way towards enlarging our interest in soccer.

3. Teams would love to come to the US. Yes, one of the teams would have to give up a home game, but that would be offset with a share of the ticket sales generated by their game here combined with some sort of compensation given to them by the Premier League. As I said before, a chance to expand their network and popularity to the world's largest market is too great to pass up on, and I don't believe for a second that teams wouldn't want to come to the US to play a game. Teams like Manchester United, Chelsea, Manchester City, Arsenal, and Liverpool have countless supporters here in the US already and playing in front of fans who most likely haven't seen their teams in person before would be a great opportunity for the English clubs.

Top 20 Under-20

With England's present not looking particularly bright, possibly missing Euro 2008 and the inevitable quarterfinal exit in World Cup 2010, I've made another one of my "Best Of" lists. The following are my Top 20 English players currently 20 years old or younger. These players are the stars of the future and England's hopes for success down the road, especially in Euro 2012 (Poland/Ukraine) and World Cup 2014 (most likely Brazil). I've taken into account both their present abilities and their future potential; players don't have to currently be playing in the Premiership to be eligible, and the club listed is the club they're playing for at this moment, whether it be on loan or permanently.

1. Micah Richards (Manchester City; 19)
2. Aaron Lennon (Tottenham; 20)
3. Theo Walcott (Arsenal; 18)
4. Joe Hart (Manchester City; 20)
5. Tom Huddlestone (Tottenham; 20)
6. Mark Noble (West Ham; 20)
7. Michael Johnson (Manchester City; 19)
8. Fabrice Muamba (Birmingham City; 19)
9. Nedum Onouha (Manchester City; 20)
10. Daniel Sturridge (Manchester City; 18)
11. Scott Sinclair (Chelsea; 18)
12. Nathan Porritt (Middlesbrough; 17)
13. Adam Hammill (Southampton; 19)
14. Paul Anderson (Swansea City; 19)
15. Ben Alnwick (Luton Town; 20)
16. Adam Johnson (Watford; 20)
17. Danny Haynes (Ipswich Town; 19)
18. Tristan Plummer (Bristol City; 17)
19. Nathan Delfouneso (Aston Villa; 16)
20. Stephen Darby (Liverpool; 19)

Editor's Note: I completely forgot about Lee Cattermole (Middlesbrough; 19) and James Vaughan (Everton; 19) to be honest, but they definitely would've been on that list. Cattermole is going to be a solid Premiership midfielder in the future (though probably not for Middlesbrough) and while I'm still not completely sold on Vaughan, he would've made the list as well. Consider this an official editing of sorts; Cattermole slides in at 11th behind Sturridge and Vaughan 12th right behind him and ahead of Scott Sinclair. Unfortunately for Nathan Delfouneso, the youngest player on my original list, and Stephen Darby, they're bumped off my Top 20. As if they really care though, right?

Tottenham Needs a Change--Jürgen Klinsmann Perhaps?

Watching Tottenham's 3-1 loss yesterday to Newcastle at St. James' Park, it could not have been any clearer that Spurs need to shake things up in a major way. They've gotten off to a rough start this season (18th place after 10 games) and the players aren't really responding on the field; they look either disinterested or simply flat-out bad. Reports have surfaced that star striker Dimitar Berbatov didn't want to come on as a 2nd half substitute yesterday and had to be asked (or told) several times by manager Martin Jol to enter the match, which wouldn't be the first time that Berbatov and Jol have had a dust-up either. Some of the personnel decisions made by Jol and club executives have left many fans scratching their heads as well, not just this season but even in recent years when Tottenham had the most success they've ever had as a club.

One thing Tottenham has been consistently good at the past few seasons is scoring. Goals have come aplenty for the North London side, and when big money was splashed on Darren Bent this summer, questions were raised. Spurs conceded more goals (54) than any other team in the top 14 in the Premier League last season despite finishing 5th, and to break the "Big Four"'s stranglehold on the Champions League positions, Spurs needed to find a way to play better defensively. Many (myself included) picked them to finish 4th this season after they went out and signed Gareth Bale and Younes Kaboul this summer in an attempt to shore up the defense, but both of those players are attack-minded. Michael Dawson, as evidenced in the Newcastle game, is an average Premiership center back (above average on his good days), and captain Ledley King, while a good, good player, is always injured. Instead of spending money on Darren Bent, club executives should've realized their team's defensive deficiencies and gone out to get a quality center back or two, as well as help on the outsides.

18th place is unacceptable for a club like Tottenham; it just is and there's no way around it. This is a team with high expectations and European aspirations and the bottom of the table simply doesn't cut it. While Martin Jol is a relatively well-liked, well-respected manager in the domestic scene, it's time to cut ties and club owner Daniel Levy needs to make the move soon. We're already a quarter of the way into the season and Tottenham can't afford to drop any more points. It's become obvious that Jol has lost his players and they're not responding to him, so it's either make the move now or condemn yourself to a top-10 (at best) finish.

Jurgen Klinsmann, is, for me, the ideal candidate to replace Jol at Tottenham. The former German national coach and former star striker played at Tottenham during his club career (1994-1995 and 1997-1998), and more importantly, knows all too well the expectations and scrutiny surrounding a club like Tottenham, having led the German national team to 3rd in the World Cup as well as playing for some high-profile clubs (Inter Milan, Bayern Munich, AS Monaco, and Tottenham) in his day. The question is, is North London tempting enough to take him away from his cushy lifestyle in Southern California with his family? To be honest, I would say no, but Klinsmann has to be itching to get back in the game after a while away. What's more, Klinsmann speaks very good English (obviously; he lives in the US and has an American wife), which is important at Tottenham because they bring in young English talent left and right, and likes his teams to play the attacking style of soccer that Tottenham employs now. His German team was respected at home for the spirit and flair with which they played, and those are things Tottenham is lacking right now under Martin Jol.

Tottenham, without a doubt, need to invest in some defenders come the January transfer window. It's an attractive job in what is arguably the most attractive domestic league in the world and with a few significant changes here and there, Tottenham have the talent to compete with the "Big Four". When you break down their roster, Spurs are dangerous up top and solid in the midfield, shoring up the back four is what is holding them back from competing for a Champions League position, at least from a players' standpoint. Bringing a manager like Klinsmann in would be essential to keeping Berbatov at the club, which is an absolute must considering how shockingly poor Darren Bent has been, and would also be helpful in attracting new players as well.

David Beckham is Back..Who Cares??

David Beckham made his less-than-triumphant return from injury last night, playing 22 minutes as a substitute as his Los Angeles Galaxy drew 1-1 at home with New York Red Bulls, a game the Galaxy really needed to win to realistically have a chance at making the MLS playoffs. Every team seemingly gets into the playoffs (8 out of 13 teams, in fact), which is a joke in itself, but the more comical, and unfortunate, part of this story is that no one in mainstream America cares.

Beckham was officially unveiled as a Galaxy player on July 13, which would've been the perfect time for soccer in America to finally gain some positive recognition in the media. The Michael Vick/dogfighting issues were just unfolding and the Tim Donaghy refereeing/betting on games scandal was causing the NBA widespread embarrassment. More importantly, however, MLS had as little competition for publicity as it could get at any time during the sporting year. College football, college basketball, NFL, NHL, and NBA seasons hadn't started yet, and the only professional sport going at that time is Major League Baseball, but the regular season, especially in July, isn't exactly a top-drawing, casual fan-enticing time. David Beckham's arrival was the perfect opportunity for MLS to finally break its way into the top tier of professional sports in America (NFL, NHL, MLB, NBA), the largest sporting market in the world.

As we all know though, that's not how things played out. Beckham's ankle injury proved to be more serious than previously indicated and he didn't play a league match until August 9, against DC United. MLS backloaded the Galaxy's schedule so that they'd play in all the major markets (New York, DC, Chicago, Toronto, Dallas, Boston/New England) after Beckham got to LA so they could capitalize on high TV ratings and sellout crowds. Beckham missed the Galaxy's games in Dallas, Toronto, Colorado, Salt Lake City, Kansas City, Columbus, and New England, as well as the Los Angeles derby against Chivas. He did play in DC (as a substitute) and New York (undoubtedly MLS's match of the season). It doesn't take a genius to figure out that things didn't exactly go according to plan.

Fast forward to the present. Let's be honest; the only people that care about the MLS regular season are the clubs themselves and the most diehard of their fans. The fact is that the regular season means nothing; the league champion is determined in the playoffs. The league as a whole gets less and less interest as the season goes on, especially now with the NFL, NHL, and college football seasons underway, as well MLB's playoffs. The NBA preseason is here as well and college basketball is only about 2 or 3 weeks away. In short, the casual fan, the fan MLS is desperate to attract and the fan that they planned the Galaxy's schedule around, simply isn't going to watch MLS regular season games with all of these other sporting options. Sure, I'll watch the playoffs, but if they're on at the same time as Michigan Wolverines basketball or football or the New York Rangers, sorry, those games will be getting the most of my attention.

Were the higher-ups at MLS nuts to schedule last night's game between the Galaxy and Red Bulls for 11 PM East Coast time?? The East Coast makes up the majority of television viewership. If you want the casual fan to watch, start the game at a reasonable hour during primetime (7-9 PM ET); they can play in LA from 4-7 Pacific time and the stadium will still be sold out if David Beckham is there. It also was an unlucky break for MLS that ESPN's telecast of South Florida-Rutgers had national title implications and the baseball playoffs were on as well, a high draw when Boston is playing.

Also, according to who you believe, Beckham hasn't been doing much in the community, not in Los Angeles and not in the rest of the cities he and the Galaxy visit. Listening to World Soccer Daily, which is based in LA, hosts Steven Cohen and Howard Rogers have said repeatedly that Beckham doesn't do much in the way of signing autographs for the kids and doesn't do publicity events. People who call into the show say the same thing. A lot was expected of Beckham when he came to America; perhaps far too much. One thing for certain, however, is that he's failed miserably to deliver on the media hype and interest surrounding him.

Let me be clear that I support soccer here in America and across the world; I wouldn't be writing those blog if I didn't care about soccer. It's a shame that more people aren't paying attention to MLS because the quality of soccer is getting much better, and more notable international players than ever before recognize that and are coming here. David Beckham's injury woes certainly were a heartbreaker for MLS executives, who basically banked this season on him coming and being a success. He hasn't been this season, and maybe he will be next year and for seasons after that, but a prime chance for soccer in America to gain a foothold was wasted this summer. I'm not sure if it will come again.

Russia-2, England-1...Is Anyone Really Surprised?

England's hopes for Euro 2008 qualification were dealt a critical blow today as the host Russians came from behind to take full points in what was a must-win game for them at home. Wayne Rooney's volley put England up 1-0 in the 29th minute but two goals in four minutes from substitute Roman Pavlyuchenko gave Russia the 2-1 victory at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium.

No matter what England does in their final group match (at home against probable Group E winner Croatia), Russia can qualify for Euro 2008 simply by winning their next two games, at Israel on November 17 and at Andorra four days later. However, an English win over Croatia coupled with a Russian draw or loss at Israel would ensure the Three Lions a trip to Austria/Switzerland next summer.

Russia certainly had the home-field advantage in this game (and they'll sorely miss it in those next two critical away matches) with the artificial surface and hostile crowd, but we all know that individually speaking, England has better, more talented players by far and a true world power would've handled their business and picked up a tough road victory. Here's the difference-maker: England's manager is Steve McLaren; Russia is led by Guus Hiddink. Anyone who's followed international soccer in recent years knows that Hiddink is an extremely capable, skilled manager with a penchant for having success with teams not normally associated with achieving much on the world stage.

In 1998, Hiddink led his homeland Dutch national team to the semifinals of the World Cup, a squad full of individuals who didn't play as a team before Hiddink took over in '95, constantly racked by disagreements and arguments among the players. Four years later, Hiddink took host nation South Korea to the semifinals as well before they bowed out to Germany. South Korea certainly were boosted by the fact that they had the crowd support wherever they played, but there's no getting around advancing further than some of the more traditional powers with a much larger talent base from which to choose. In 2006, Hiddink took Australia to the Round of 16, where they lost to eventual champions Italy 1-0 (though Italy won the game on a 90th minute PK by Francesco Totti, and the penalty decision by Spanish referee Luis Medina Cantalejo was dubious, at best).

In short, this was a game won on tactical decisions made by Hiddink and lost by the ineptitude of English manager Steve McLaren, who probably should be reminded that Joleon Lescott is a good CENTER back, not a left back, not when Nicky Shorey and Phil Neville are available. Guus Hiddink opted to bring on another striker, Pavlyuchenko, and was rewarded when he scored twice. Though Wayne Rooney scored today, he and Michael Owen simply don't make for a good combination up top. What's worse is that Peter Crouch was the only striker on the substitutes' bench. Peter Crouch can't even get a game at Liverpool, a club team; how do you expect him to make a contribution for England when he hasn't been playing recently?

England could, and perhaps will, still qualify for Euro 2008 in spite of all this. They certainly don't deserve to and Steve McLaren certainly shouldn't be their manager if they do qualify. This upcoming Russia-Israel game will be a tricky one for Russia, but they have the added advantage in that they're playing to qualify and Israel have already been eliminated; they have nothing to play for other than pride. It'll be a long month for English fans and players, and make sure to mark November 17 on your calendar.

Game highlights can be found at http://www.megavideo.com/?v=2DG0UCV8.

Two-Referee, Four Official System

There is no single more important position on the field in any given game than that of an official, whether it be the center referee or his two assistants. Officials have the power to influence the result of any game with the decisions they make and their authority is final.

As a certified referee myself, I undertand how difficult it is for the man in the middle to do his job, and the same goes for the linesmen. It's impossible to officiate a game in which both teams involved are happy; every decision is questioned by either players or coaches and usually both.

In watching the Manchester United-Wigan game last weekend, there was one clear penalty waved away by referee Mike Riley and another that probably should've been a penalty but wasn't called either. Mr. Riley, to his credit, was at least in a decent position to be able to make an informed decision but when you watch other games, there are plenty of situations where the center referee either gives or denies a penalty kick when he doesn't have the proper viewing angle to make the right call, yet he makes a decision anyway because he has to.

The officials are professionals in other walks of life, yes, they get paid a good amount at the high levels to do games, but that's not their only job. These are middle-aged (mid 30's-mid 40's) men who aren't always the most physically fit individuals, yet it's their job to keep up with some of the fastest, most skilled athletes in the world. It's not fair for the teams involved in any given game or their fans to possibly have a game or a season decided by someone who's simply not able to be in the best position they should be to do their job. If the National Hockey League has enough sense to use two referees (and two linesmen) for a game that's even faster than soccer and takes place on a shorter, narrower playing surface than a soccer game does, surely soccer should use two referees as well.

This debate has been discussed, though nothing serious has ever come out of it, by the powers-that-be at FIFA and other major governing bodies for years now, and it's time something was done about it. Does it really make sense to ask one 40-year old to run up and down the field with men half his age? Referees run the diagonal system to cut down on the actual area they have to cover, but how often do you see a referee out of position when he has to make a call, yards away from the action and screened behind other players? Playing high school soccer, I can't tell you how many cheap shots and the like that have no place in the game occur behind the referee's back, when he's doing his best to keep up with the play.

Each referee would be responsible for his half of the field, more or less, with as little overlap as possible in between. Less ground to cover would lead to better positioning for the two referees and allow for a better called game. The linesmen's duties would remain the same (determining on/offside, goal kicks and corner kicks, and signaling for fouls and misconduct that the referee may not have been able to see).

The two-referee system would make for a fairer game for all parties involved, including the officials themselves. I'm tired of crucial decisions hinged on where the referee was positioned because chances are it wasn't the right spot to make the proper call. Middle-aged men have no business running up and down a 110-yard field with professional athletes half their age; they need help.

Best of the Rest--2nd XI and Honorable Mention

Following up on my Best XI team from a couple days ago, I've come up with my 2nd Team and Honorable Mention picks:

2nd Team:

GK: David James (Portsmouth; England)
RB: Lauren (Portsmouth; Cameroon)
CB: Sol Campbell (Portsmouth; England)
CB: Richard Dunne (Manchester City; Ireland)
LB: Gareth Bale (Tottenham; Wales)
RMF: Mikel Arteta (Everton; Spain)
CMF: Elano (Manchester City; Brazil)
CMF: John Utaka (Portsmouth; Nigeria)
LMF: Morten Gamst Pedersen (Blackburn Rovers; Norway)
ST: Benni McCarthy (Blackburn Rovers; South Africa)
ST: Nicolas Anelka (Bolton; France)

Honorable Mention:

Kanu (Portsmouth; Nigeria)
David Bentley (Blackburn Rovers; England)
Stewart Downing (Middlesbrough; England)
Robbie Keane (Tottenham; Ireland)
Marcus Hahnemann (Reading; USA)
Gareth Barry (Aston Villa; England)
Gabriel Agbonlahor (Aston Villa; England)
Mark Viduka (Newcastle; Australia)
Steven Taylor (Newcastle; England)
Robert Green (West Ham; England)
Nigel Reo-Coker (West Ham; England)
Tim Cahill (Everton; Australia)
Leighton Baines (Everton; England)
Yakubu (Everton; Nigeria)
Craig Gordon (Sunderland; Scotland)

Euro 2008--England's Prospects

Consecutive 3-0 victories at home for England over Israel and Russia last month have put the Three Lions in the driver's seat to qualification for Euro 2008, cohosted by Austria and Switzerland next June. With 3 group games left to play, England currently sit in second place in Group E, 3 points behind Croatia, 2 points ahead of Russia, and 3 ahead of Israel. The first and second place finishers in each group qualify for next summer's competition and for England, they've done a good job to this point of fighting through the immense media pressure and speculation they've encountered at home about manager Steve McLaren, his squad selection, and the team's overall play.

Let's face a few facts here. England host Estonia in three days' time, a basically guaranteed 3 points. Take care of business there and England would be 5 points ahead of Russia, though Russia would have a game in hand. It will all boil down to the match on October 17, where England will have to make the long flight to Russia and play on the synthetic field in front of a hostile crowd in Moscow (talk about home-field advantage here!). At best, I could see England getting a draw out of that game and if they can do that, that would pretty much stamp their ticket to the beautiful Alpine region for Europe's biggest tournament. The more likely result seems to be a Russian victory, however, considering the desperation with which the Russian squad will be playing.

If England beats Estonia (they will) and lose to Russia (real possibility), Russia would only be 2 points back with a game in hand. England's last group game is at home against Croatia, the leader of Group E. The two teams' first meeting was a 2-0 Croatian victory and England would absolutely need full points from this game as Russia play host to Israel and then go to Andorra, which could easily turn into 6 points for Guus Hiddink's squad.

It comes down to this: an English draw or victory against Russia would surely see them through to Euro 2008, but a loss would really put them up against it. England controls their own destiny and it'll be interesting to see how things play out.

Best of the Rest

When the 2006-2007 PFA Team of the Year was named at the end of last season, I was a bit shocked, to say the least, to see 8 players from Manchester United. The Red Devils won the Premiership last season; it made sense that they had the most players on the Team of the Year. That's how postseason awards work in every sport. The succesful teams, the teams that win something, usually receive the accolades and deservedly so. If you took a look at the recent MVP's, Rookies of the Year and all-league teams in the professional and college sporting leagues here in America, a large majority of the winners played for teams that either made the playoffs or won the title.

However, to have 8 players out of 11 was a joke. To be completely honest, I would argue that the only Manchester United players who earned a spot on the Team of the Year were Cristiano Ronaldo and Ryan Giggs. Each of the other players were/are good players in their own right, but to say that they had better seasons than some of the players from other teams who didn't finish in the top four wouldn't be true in my estimation.

I understand that awards like this are often based more on reputation than anything else. It's hard to judge center backs because they don't put up eye-popping statistics; they're just rock-solid and steady in the back.

It's time to recognize the players who have the individual talent but don't play on a team good enough for their performances to be honored. Remember, this isn't based specifically on last year or even this year, it's based on their entire body of work. Each of the players all currently play in the Premier League and not for a "Big Four" team; players who played in the Premier League last season but moved to another country this summer and players who played for one of the other 16 teams but transferred to one of the "Big Four" aren't eligible for my team. Give me these 11 players and I guarantee you'd have yourself a team to be reckoned with. With all of this in mind, the following is my Premiership Best XI (minus players from last season's top four).

GK: Tim Howard (Everton; USA)
RB: Vedran Corluka (Manchester City; Croatia)
CB: Micah Richards (Manchester City; England)
CB: Joleon Lescott (Everton; England)
LB: Nicky Shorey (Reading; England)
RMF: Aaron Lennon (Tottenham; England)
CMF: Pedro Mendes (Portsmouth; Portugal)
CMF: Kevin Nolan (Bolton; England)
LMF: Ashley Young (Aston Villa; England)
ST: Obafemi Martins (Newcastle; Nigeria)
ST: Dimitar Berbatov (Tottenham; Bulgaria)

Games to Watch--10/07

It's a relatively tame fixture list on tap for Saturday and Sunday, but two games stand out to me in Liverpool-Tottenham and Newcastle-Everton. These matchups are significant for each of the 4 teams involved and should make for entertaining soccer this weekend.

1. Liverpool vs. Tottenham (Sunday, 10:00 AM, FSC)

After Monday's exciting, come-from-behind 4-4 draw with Aston Villa at White Hart Lane, Tottenham face a tough test in a trip to Liverpool. Tottenham were 4-1 down in the second half but three unanswered goals, capped by a last minute equalizer from Younes Kaboul, gave Tottenham an unexpected share of the spoils. The manner in which Spurs came back showed the team's true character. They could've packed it in for the day after they faced a three-goal deficit but they never quit, they fought their way back and came away with a point. It was the type of game that could help turn around Tottenham's season. Already 13 points behind Arsenal, they need every single result they can get.

Unlike Tottenham, who are on the upswing, Liverpool have no momentum going for them. They've scored just one goal in their last three games, as they were held to a 0-0 tie at home by Birmingham on September 22, beat Wigan 1-0 at the JJB on the 29th (though they were held scoreless for much of that game and looked sluggish throughout), and most shocking of all, lost 1-0 to Marseille at Anfield in their Champions League group stage fixture this midweek. Manager Rafael Benitez has been under recent fire from the club's fans and media for his squad rotation policy (hindsight is 20/20; no one doubted him when it was working) and he'll need to put the right lineup out there for this game. Liverpool head across town to play Everton in two weeks' time and host Arsenal in three weeks, and I honestly believe that if Liverpool don't get a win over Tottenham this weekend, they'll be looking at 1 point from the three games.

It's not a must-win for Tottenham this early in the season, but they're desperate for points right now and I like them to pull off the upset on Sunday.

Prediction: Tottenham-2, Liverpool-1

2. Newcastle vs. Everton (Sunday, 10:00 AM, Setanta Xtra)

After coming out like a house on fire to start the season, Everton have cooled down as of late. Yes, they've won three straight games overall but one was in the Carling Cup (3-0 at Sheffield Wednesday) and one was in the UEFA Cup (3-2 at FC Metalist Kharkiv). In the Premier League, Everton have won just twice in their last six matches. The Toffees were expected to contend for a UEFA Cup spot this season and as of right now look to be favorites to do so. They're sitting in 5th place and that could likely be their finishing point. Manchester City are a likely bet to fall back to earth at some point and slide in somewhere behind Everton and Chelsea should leap back over Everton by season's end. Sooner or later, however, someone other than Joleon Lescott (3) is going to need to step up and score some goals for this club.

A casual fan of the Premiership might take a glance at the standings, see Newcastle in 10th place, and not blink twice about it. Newcastle have been a fairly mediocre team in recent years but new manager Sam Allardyce has legitimate European aspirations for his Tyneside club after four straight top-8 finishes with Bolton. Like Everton, Newcastle haven't been on good form recently (3 losses in their last 4 games) and need a rejuvenating performance in this game. Big Sam is one of the best managers in the Premiership and you can't underestimate that, but the fact of the matter is his team simply may not be good enough to finish higher than Everton, Blackburn, Portsmouth, and Aston Villa, the UEFA Cup contenders.

This is a big, big game for both teams. Newcastle really need to hold serve and win at home but I'm not sure if they can do it against Everton. A point gained on the road is a point earned, I always say.

Prediction: Newcastle-1, Everton-1

Tiebreaking Procedures

Any fans of Major League Baseball out there know what a wild, unbelievable month of September just came and went, particularly for the teams in the National League. The New York Mets were ahead of the second place Philadelphia Phillies by 7 games with 17 remaining and blew their seemingly insurmountable lead in one of the greatest all-time choke jobs in American sports history. Entering yesterday, the final day of the season, the Mets and Phillies had the same record (88-73). The Phillies victory over Washington, coupled with the Mets loss to Florida, gave Philadelphia the NL East division title and a spot in the playoffs. New York was left on the outside looking in, a game short of winning the division and a game short of being tied for the Wild Card. If the Mets would've won, there would've been a 4-team tie for 2 playoff spots, leaving a complicated tiebreaking scenario that has no place on a soccer blog.

"Hurry up, Michael, get to the point here." OK. Colorado will host San Diego in a one-off, winner-take-all game tonight to determine the Wild Card winner and the last playoff spot that comes with it. This is the proper way to break tie when the stakes are meaningful; an actual game (or games) between the team (or teams) that are tied.

The situation was different at the end of the 2006-2007 Premiership season, but the stakes just as high. Sheffield United and Wigan finished the season tied on points (at 38), yet it was Sheffield United who got relegated. We all know the reason why; the Premier League uses goal differential, of all things, to break ties in determining the higher-placed team. GOAL DIFFERENTIAL!!

This is a problem. When the stakes are that high, when there's that much money involved, something as semantical as goal differential simply shouldn't be used as the determining factor. Who cares how many goals a team scored and allowed over the course of the season?? Teams play different styles to fit their personnel. Some teams aren't ever going to score a lot of goals, though they can still be successful (Bolton), and some teams are going to give up some goals because they play an attacking style that causes them to be caught out at times (Tottenham). The way a team plays shouldn't be used to break ties; no, meaningful ties should only be broken by a playoff system.

It just isn't fair that Sheffield United were relegated and Wigan weren't, even though they had the same number of points. In 38 games, each team worked hard to accumulate their 38 points and at the end of the day, their respective destinies weren't even determined on the field.

Here's my solution for this, and it's an easy one. The meaningful ties, and by that I mean 1st-2nd place (champion), 4th-5th place (last Champions League place), 7th-8th (usually last UEFA Cup place), and 17th-18th (safety/relegation spots, should meet and determine their standing on the field, where it counts. Teams that are tied for those spots would play either a one-off game at a neutral venue or a home-and-home (two-leg) series to break the tie. In the single game format, it'd be the standard 90 minutes of regulation, followed by two halves of 15 minutes (golden goal) if necessary, then PK's if it's still tied. In the two-leg style, the ridiculous "away goals" system would be thrown out. Most goals wins. If it's tied after 180 minutes, then the 30 minutes of extra time and PK's would be employed.

Multiple-team ties would be a bit tougher to work out, but it's still feasible. Head-to-head results would be used first. Example: Team A, Team B, and Team C all finished with 68 points (3rd and 4th place in the Premiership last year). Team A took 4 points from their two games against both Team B and Team C, so they go straight through to the playoff game (or games). Team B only took a point from Team A but they won both games against Team C, so they would meet Team A in the playoff and Team C would come away as the worst-placed of the three teams based on their results against the others.

No more of this goal differential stuff, that's rubbish. It doesn't represent the better of the tied teams, it's just a useless stat. Last year, Bolton finished in a UEFA Cup spot with a negative goal differential. Does that mean they weren't a good team?? Get rid of the goal differential-to-break-ties-system!!