Offseason offers room for improvement (June 2011)

The Offseason. Fans usually either hate this time for their favorite sport or love it because this is the time that championship teams are built. The English Premier League is similar to sports leagues we have here in America when it comes to the offseason. While we always hear about offseason incidents involving athletes (see: Wayne Rooney and Adam ‘Pacman’ Jones), the most exciting part of any offseason is the moves. Whether it involves a trade or simply a free agent signing, new players on new teams creates a buzz among fans of any team involved. For the most part, the moves are over-hyped and do not come to fruition (see: Lebron James), but they can change the dynamic of a team and of the entire league.

There is however, a downfall to transfers that occur in the offseason. This unfortunate aspect of the Premier League offseason is that usually the top teams add players and the bottom teams lose players who would undoubtedly make them better the next season. The most plausible comparison is Major League Baseball, where teams like the Yankees and Red Sox are able to add the highest ranked free agents because their bankrolls are seemingly bottomless.

Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and the like, continually add new players to fill gaps and strengthen weaknesses. However, for teams who are consistently involved in relegation battles, two factors seem to keep them in a never-ending cycle. Because these teams are not always in the EPL, they do not have the budget to buy star players; and any stars they do have usually leave because these clubs are in a relegation battle. So, it is tough to compete or even get into the top half of the table when a club's best players are consistently leaving for greener pastures and a lack of star players leads to less in-coming revenue. Even more, these teams cannot afford to turn down the massive offers they receive from the top clubs because they need the money just to stay afloat in the Premier League. The only chance, it seems, that these clubs have is to get into the middle of the table after a surprising season and keep players for a couple extra seasons; in addition, they may even have a chance at signing some desired free agents.

In the end, the teams in the top five are pretty consistent. Of course, there are always feel-good stories of teams avoiding relegation and even competing for a top spot. I hope that the EPL, and MLB too for that matter, recognize that their leagues will only stand to gain by making changes to allow for parity throughout the league.

One can argue that it may be too late for salary caps, and it probably is. However, putting monetary limits on acquisitions in an offseason, or giving some sort of arbitration protection to clubs may help lower end teams keep their young, rising stars. This will provide for a more balanced competition every season.

While I love watching Manchester United finish at or near the top of the league every season, I would love to see teams like Wolverhampton and Wigan play games that were not only to survive relegation. Hopefully, like replay technology, the people in charge will take a step back and accept suggestions for improving the top leagues of the world to make the beautiful game even more bonita.

European Club League Rankings (June 2011)

1.    English Premier League (England)—Manchester United, the English champion, and Barcelona, the Spanish champions, battled in the Champions League Final with Barca taking the title as best team in Europe (and the world). However, from top to bottom, England has the highest level of competition, with a fierce relegation battle ever season. The battle at the top of the league was exciting all year with any of five teams fighting for the championship at some point. Many top-level players from around the world call the Premier League home and for good reason.

2.     La Liga (Spain)—Though Barcelona was easily crowned the best team in the world, the Spanish league did not offer much after the top few teams. Real Madrid had a great season and finished with the coveted (but not held onto) Copa del Rey. There was a vast drop to the teams after second place and bottom of the table teams fared very poorly against the top of the table.

3.    Serie A (Italy)—In the past, Italian football has competed strongly in European competitions, but wasn’t very strong this year. Both Milan-based teams boast very strong lineups but strength is measured by the weakest teams and Italy has some bad ones. Last season, Inter won the Champions League and hopefully, less diving and more football play will help bring Italy back into the forefront.

4.    Bundesliga (Germany)—Last year, Bayern Munich reached the Champions League Final, but no other German teams had strong showings against the other leagues. With two new top teams this season, the Bundesliga looks to improve and throw more German teams into the European competition fire.

5.    Ligue 1 (France)—While the other top four leagues have had Champions or contenders in Europe the last few years, the French Ligue 1 has showed up to the Champions League knockout rounds as heavy underdogs and performed just that way. With a new champion this year in Lille, and with perennial contenders Marseilles and Lyon, the French league looks to start improving against the other European teams.

Other leagues in contention for this ranking included the leagues in Netherlands, Russia, Portugal, and Scotland. While these leagues occasionally have teams in the knockout rounds of European competition, they have not been consistent enough in playing up to par with the powerhouses of late. Ideally, soccer fans would like to see more parity not only up and down the tables of these leagues, but across the countries. Maybe one day there will be a serious Club World Cup that includes the likes of the MLS and other non-European leagues. This will allow for a true globalization of the beautiful game and for my dreams to become reality.

English Premier League: A Review (June 2011)

The 2010-11 club soccer season is over! Manchester United came away with the Premier League title but fell (well) short of winning the Champions League Final last Saturday. Either way, it was a very entertaining season with a lot of amazing plays by great players.

I set out to make an “All-Star” lineup to include the best players of the 2010-11 season in the English Premier League. It proved to be way more difficult than I thought. There were so many players with stellar seasons and it seems as though some players had great first halves then slowed down in the latter half and vice versa.

I tried to keep it fair without having any biases toward or against players that I personally dislike or love. Also, I tried to spread the love to as many different teams as possible. Some players, like Luka Modric, who was overshadowed by teammates, may have made it under other circumstances. Others, like Ryan Giggs, had good seasons, but were masked by great performances in other competitions like the Champions League. I didn’t include Jack Wilshere and Javier Hernandez; though they had excellent seasons, they fit into the “Newcomers of the Year” category and made it easier to include other players.

If you wanted to field this team, the formation would technically be a 3-4-2-1 but they would probably still lose to Barcelona. Please let me know your thoughts (@ankursbriefs)! Here we go:

Goalkeeper: Joe Hart, Manchester City; This was a three-way battle with Edwin Van Der Sar and Petr Cech. Why Joe Hart? He started every game for his team and had more Clean Sheets than any other goalie.

Center Back: Nemanja Vidic, Manchester United; Vidic was the best defender in the Premier League for most of the season and contributed on offense as well. Other contenders included Vincent Kompany and Brede Hangeland, but neither had the impact of the United captain.

Left Back: Leighton Baines, Everton; The Everton defense kept this team in the top half of the table (with some help by the great Tim Howard) as the Toffees didn’t score very many goals. Baines gets the nod over Ashley Cole and Patrice Evra because he also pitched in with 5 goals.

Right Back: Branislav Ivanovic, Chelsea; Ivanovic is a defensive stalwart who can always be counted on to lay down the law on opposing wingers. He can also be credited with helping David Luiz step in and have an immediate impact on this club.

Midfielder: Rafael Van Der Vaart, Tottenham; He had some great moments, and never let his team give up, even when down a couple goals. Van Der Vaart provides hope for Hotspur fans the world over.

Clint Dempsey, Fulham; Dempsey finally played a complete season and instead of dancing around and losing the ball so much, used his skills to create opportunities for teammates and get a few goals of his own. Things are looking up for the American (we hope).

Charles N’Zogbia, Wigan; The sole reason that Wigan survived relegation. Plus, his versatility to create on offense and play good defense was impressive. Yaya Toure, Luka Modric, and Samir Nasri are others who had great seasons but narrowly missed out.

Charlie Adam, Blackpool; It was very unfortunate that his team didn’t survive relegation, though Charlie Adam did everything he could to save his club. What stood out is that he didn’t disappear against the tougher competition and he kept his team in the hunt to stay up until the last day of matches. Hopefully he will catch on with a Premier League team so his talents remain in the showcase.

Wings: Nani, Manchester United; When Cristiano Ronaldo left two seasons ago, his fellow Portuguese countryman was looked at as the next playmaker for United. He finally came through, creating first for Berbatov then Chicharito and Rooney later in the season.

Gareth Bale, Tottenham; I was tempted to leave him off, but this team felt weird without the Player of the Year. Bale has a bright future ahead of him and can be even better than he was this year. Peter Odemwingie, Dirk Kuyt, and Florent Malouda, among others, made this perhaps the most difficult position to pick.

Striker: Carlos Tevez, Manchester City; So many players could be in italics here, but Tevez takes it because he was the most consistent out of all the candidates. Didier Drogba was hampered by the Fernando Torres acquisition and Dimitar Berbatov scored in bunches early, then mysteriously disappeared when Javier Hernandez emerged.  Chicharito may have been here, but failed to show much more than excellent finishing skills. Others considered but not included are Darren Bent, Luis Suarez, Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie.

Here are some made-up awards to recognize those who weren’t included above.

Newcomers of the Year: Jack Wilshere, Arsenal, Javier Hernandez, Manchester United, and David Luiz, Chelsea; Wilshere quickly planted himself in the midfield and helped Arsenal stay in the title-hunt all season; Chicharito showed he may be the most promising young goal-scorer in the world; Luiz proved that Brazilians can play soccer (duh!) by playing great defense and showing strong ball and goal-scoring skills.

The “Charlie Hustle” Award: Ji-Sung Park, Manchester United; Though he missed some time at the Asian Cup then had to work through a minor injury, Park never showed any signs of tiring. The South Korean runs harder than anyone else in the league, providing a spark of energy when his team needs it most.

The Easiest Sub Award: Rafael and Fabio da Silva, Manchester United; Identical twins, the two backs took turns being injured and showed that when one came out, the other could come in with no significant drop-off in level of play.

Worst Transfer Window Acquisition: Fernando Torres, Chelsea; Some critics thought that Torres would push Chelsea to the title, instead, the Spaniard went over 700 minutes in Blue before scoring a goal. In addition, he caused a rift in the team which led to less playing time for Drogba. In the end, manager Carlo Ancelotti got the undeserved axe, leaving Chelsea with an interesting offseason ahead.

Most Confusing Team: Wolverhampton; The Wolves boggled minds as they beat Liverpool, Manchester United (when they were undefeated), and Chelsea but barely survived relegation when Blackpool lost on the last day of matches.

Manager of the Year: Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United; SAF was the easy choice. His team started the season with a 24-match loss-less streak and held off Chelsea, Arsenal, and Manchester City to win the title. With three legendary players retiring (Van Der Sar, Gary Neville, and Paul Scholes) and a prolific scorer in Berbatov riding the bench of late, Sir Alex will have to show that he can keep this team’s mentality strong enough to defend the title next season.

Goal of the Year: Wayne Rooney, Manchester United; Off a deflected cross from Nani in a crucial game against rival Manchester City, Rooney adjusted and hit a beautiful bicycle kick into the top corner of the net to give United a 2-1 win. Even Sportscenter properly recognized it as a top play, especially since there was no outfielder to make a diving catch that February day.

Most Valuable People: People? The MVP award is usually earned when one has proven to have the most impact. The people with the most impact this season were the Premier League Officiating Crews. Rarely did a week go by without crucial missed calls or wrongly given penalties, and some of the top storylines of the year proved to be mishaps by referees. Hopefully, you read my view on officiating and next season we’ll see adjustments by the EPL to help officials make the right calls.

So there it is. While picking the starting XI, I realized how much talent is spread from the top to the bottom of the Premier League table. It was a lot of fun watching the games this year, and I am glad that the offseason isn’t too long. Not sure about all of you, but I can’t wait to see what happens this summer and how next season plays out. Stay posted, as we here at MyBriefs.com will have summer updates for you and previews to get you ready for the 2011-12 English Premier League!

Edwin Van Der Sar—One Fan’s Goodbye (May 2011)

This Saturday will mark the final game of one of the best goalkeepers in Manchester United history, Edwin Van Der Sar (also referred to as VDS). What’s the big deal about this particular goalie retiring? He may very well still be the best goalkeeper in the world right NOW. And he is 40 years old. Being 40 in soccer is like, well, being 40 in any professional sport. Not many athletes make it that far, and if they do, they’re more Jordan on the Wizards than Jordan on the Bulls.

The Red Devils have several players who reached their late prime this season: Gary Neville (who retired after just three games), Paul Scholes (who has been sub-par in limited appearances), and Ryan Giggs (who has carried this team at times). However, VDS has been perhaps the most invaluable asset to this season’s team. He has been the steady veteran that comes up with big saves when they are most needed, leading them to a Premier League title and an appearance in Saturday’s Champions League Final against Barcelona.

You can go to Wikipedia or a stats page to look at Van Der Sar’s amazingly long and productive career, both club and international. He was signed by United at the age of 34, with many critics thinking he was a temporary solution. Not only did he prove his doubters wrong, he blew them away with his long streaks without conceding a goal and his unbelievable ball skills. As a Manchester United and Premier League fan, what never fails to amaze me is how top shelf goalies are miserable handling the ball. I am hard pressed, however, to remember an instance where VDS not only didn’t mishandle a ball, or didn’t play one as well as any defender could.

I can only dream that Edwin Van Der Sar goes home for a couple weeks after Saturday’s game and decides that he is not done with the beautiful game. Maybe he has a conversation with Brett Favre and they both decide to come back; I’m OK with the non-stop coverage on ESPN if it means that VDS will be back for another magical season. But the logic in me (no matter how little I have) knows that Saturday is most likely the last time I will see one of the best goalies in history put on a Manchester United jersey.

Obviously, a win would just add on to what is already cemented as a great career. Beating the arguably best club team ever assembled would just be extra whipped cream on top of the cherry. And oh, what a fitting farewell it would be.

Champions League Final Preview (May 2011)

Well, it’s almost here! The Champions League pits the best club teams from around Europe against each other in a Soccer Battle Royale. This year, the top two teams were Manchester United and Barcelona, and both were expected to be in the Final. Truly a competition between the best, the dream Final is just days away.

Manchester United has nearly clinched the Premier League title after a clutch victory against second-place Chelsea last Sunday. Similarly, Barcelona wrapped up their La Liga title this Wednesday after running away from Real Madrid over the last few weeks. And while the Italian Serie A and the German Bundesliga are usually strong contenders, the Spanish and English leagues have been the strongest this season.

Barcelona has been touted as perhaps the best club team ever assembled, with an All-Star crew led by the amazing Lionel Messi. With most of the World Cup-winning Spanish team dispersed between the top two Spanish club teams, Barcelona has become a powerhouse.  With finesse and a possession-heavy style, Barcelona are fun to watch for soccer purists, and are rightfully the favorites.

Manchester United, on the other hand, came into this season trying to recapture the Premier League, as well as make up for a disappointing Champions League campaign in 2010. They had early magic from the likes of Berbatov and Nani, then Chicharito burst on the goal-scoring scene and Wayne Rooney re-emerged to his usual level of play. After a short struggle, United are back to their winning ways and are perhaps the deepest team in Europe.

Why Barcelona will win: They are the best team. Won La Liga with relative ease, have the best player in the world (Messi), stay cool under pressure and beat Manchester United in this very game two years ago.  Simply put, if they get an early lead, they can frustrate United into silly mistakes and take the title home.

Why Manchester United will win: They have the best manager (maybe ever) in Sir Alex Ferguson, who will not let his team falter on the big stage. Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney have played like veterans in leading young players Chicharito and Antonio Valencia into surprising stardom. The defense (Vidic and Ferdinand) is healthy. Finally, the Edwin Van Der Sar swan song will provide strong motivation.

Key Matchups:

Lionel Messi vs. Nemanja Vidic—Will the Serb keep the World’s Best Player under check? While that’s nearly impossible, Vidic will need to play strong defense without allowing too many close-range set pieces.

Barcelona backline vs. United set pieces—Perhaps the most glaring weakness for Barcelona is their relative lack of height, and against a taller, more aggressive lineup than they’re used to, Gerard Pique and company will have their hands full.

The Midfield Battle—Will Ryan Giggs, Michael Carrick, and friends be able to compete with Xavi, Iniesta, and Busquets? You may laugh at that, but United’s midfield and defense are rarely caught out of position and will have to be at the top of their game to disrupt the ball-controlling midfield of Barcelona.

Prediction: Since I’ll be rooting for Manchester United, this is tough. Barcelona are the favorites, and we see great soccer, but United take this one, 2-1, in regulation. Remember, you heard it here first (unless I’m completely wrong).

Doing the right thing—a novel concept (May 2011)

Recently, the news has been cluttered with accusations of doping against Lance Armstrong (again), the potential end of the world and some guy named Osama (or is it Usama?) bin Laden dying. Barry Bonds is also back in the news; but this time, for something way more awesome and refreshing than usual. Barry Bonds, as you well know, broke the single season Home Run record in 2001 then continued on to break the all-time Home Run record. Millions of fans and writers have criticized Bonds for less than convincing claims that he never used Performance-Enhancing Drugs.

Yet, that all is irrelevant right now. Earlier this season, Giants fan Bryan Stow had just attended a baseball game at Dodger Stadium with friends when he was attacked from behind and sent into a coma (in which he remains). A father of two, Bryan and his family have had the biggest possible wrench thrown into their lives. Plenty of people have reacted to this story by pouring in support; the Dodgers agreed to add extra security and law enforcement both outside and inside their stadium.

But the biggest news comes in the form of one Barry Bonds. Still beloved in the San Francisco area, it recently came out that he volunteered to not only make a contribution, but to pay for the college education of Stow’s 12-year old daughter and 8-year old son. I was blown away. By the time those two reach college, tuition rates could easily be around $150,000 for four years! So maybe $300,000 is nothing to Barry Bonds, but no one would have criticized him if he had just chipped in $10,000 or even nothing at all.

It is unfortunate that Barry Bonds’ career has been marred by allegations of steroid use; he could have easily been one of the best hitters of all time without them. But when we examine our distaste for athletes who cheat, it’s important to remember to separate their lives as professional athletes from who they are as people. This act of generosity is inspirational; so rarely do we showcase athletes who do the right thing that it seems they can only do wrong. Barry Bonds shows that it is possible to go above and beyond the norm no matter how much his public image has been damaged. A tip of the hat to you, sir.

Relegation allows for excitement all season long (May 2011)

With a huge final matchday coming up this Sunday, I figured it would be a great time to talk about how great relegation is for the sport of soccer. Relegation, you ask? For all you unfamiliar with the idea or how it works, let me explain. Every year in the English Premier League, teams fight not only for the top five spots (which qualify them for European competitions the following season), but fight to stay out of the bottom of the table. Each season, the teams who finish in the bottom 3 will be relegated to the League Championship (the AAA league of English club soccer). The top 3 teams from the League Championship then move up to the Premier League.

At the end of the season, while teams at the top of the table are vying for a title, the teams in the lower half have reason to field their best lineups and fight for every point. Staying up means a team can attract better players, play in front of larger crowds, participate in higher levels of competition, draw more sponsors and ultimately, make more money. And at the end of the season, instead of slacking off in hopes of a better draft spot, teams are playing at 100% effort, making for great sports viewing.

Every season, we hear accusations of last place teams in MLB, the NBA, and the NFL dogging it because they have no reason to perform well (with more of an incentive to finish poorly). However, if these teams were subject to relegation, you would see a full season of effort. The best matchups this season have not only included the Chelsea’s and Manchester United’s, but the Wigan’s and Blackpool’s and Wolverhampton’s as well. There has been no slacking off or questionable lineups to argue about on Around the Horn (not that Woody Paige knows anything about soccer).

Plus, next season when we see Queens Park Rangers, Norwich and one other team that is yet to be determined, the Premier League will experience new players, new fans, and new venues. Not only do the fans of these freshly promoted teams have a chance to see how they stack up against the top teams, but their players are also rewarded for playing hard all season.

While it is 99.99999% unlikely that American sports will ever adapt this idea, it would be easiest to incorporate into Major League Baseball. While the NBA and NFL would probably suffer due to a less-than-elite level of play, baseball already has a good structure to incorporate relegation (see ya later, Pittsburgh Pirates). There are levels from Rookie Ball all the way up to the majors, so the major hurdle has already been overcome. Obviously, MLB would have to do away with team-specific farm systems, but expanded regular season rosters would help to deal with this problem. Of course this is not something that could be implemented in a season; it would require a paradigm shift in sports thinking in this country.

Could relegation work in American sports? Sure. Will I or my children or my children’s children see it? Who knows. All I know is this Sunday will offer the most exciting relegation battle in recent history! Make sure to tune in.