The Cover Story: NFL Kickoff Sunday

The Monday after the first Sunday of the NFL season can only mean one thing usually: the front pages of newspapers in NFL city are dedicated to the opening days games. This year was different, with the 10 year anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, only four of the NFL cities had the games on the front pages of their newspapers. The only paper go completely with the NFL theme was the Philly Daily News, not surprising given the passion of the Philadelphia fan base.

Chicago Sun Times

Tampa Tribune

The Baltimore Sun

The Philly Daily News 

How can you keep Choppin if there is no stump

So what happens when you go 5-7 in college football, well they start taking things away and at Rutgers that is no different. For the last couple of years, the theme at Rutgers has been "Keep Choppin" and this year its the same, but there is one difference. How can you "Keep Choppin" if there is no stump. According to the Rutgers athletic twitter page, the team decided to go in a different direction and not put the stump out for games. I was shocked to hear the news, it was almost heart breaking.

What could be

With talk of Real Madrid and Barca destroying Spanish soccer and leaving for a European Super League, I talk you back to a post I did two years ago on what a European Soccer League would look like. The League would feature 24 teams and could be really interesting. It could work, but I would hate to see the current structure destroyed.

A must have for soccer fans

All soccer fans love transfer deadline day, but no one loves it more then Sky Sports'  Jim White. This DVD honors the closing of the transfer window and the fans that enjoyed it.

The Fall of BJ Wallace is complete

In 1992 BJ Wallace was the talk of college baseball, the tall left hander was expected to be a good major league pitcher. The Expos thought so and took him with the third overall pick in the 1992 draft, but ever since that day things have gone down hill.

First he flamed out in the minors and now Wallace has been charged with making meth near an Alabama school. Maybe the Expos should have taken Derek Jeter or Jason Kandall or Johnny Damon in that draft and things might have been a little different as a franchise.

Professional Tailgating: What's the name of this place

After a couple of months away, the OTWT Tailgating Crew returned to Rutgers for a football game, but many things have changed since we where there for the spring game. 

The RAC has turned into an active construction zone

 It's no longer Rutgers Stadium. It's now High Point Solutions Stadium 

 Nothing beats a live mascot 

Rutgers take the field for the first time 

True freshman Savon Huggins score his first, of what will be many, touchdowns

Is there such a thing as college sports reporting anymore

Have major universities and colleges made it too hard to cover college sports? Around the country it's becoming harder and harder to cover sports at the college level. Programs have started to restrict access to players and coaches. The journalism site, When Journalism Fails, take a look at what is happening around the country.

StrasMas Part 2

Its the second coming. Stephen Strasburg of Washington Nationals set to return to majors on Sept. 6. This is the best news Nationals fans have had since they signed their four top picks in this years draft.

Is Ross Barkley the New Wayne RooneyEverton rising star Ross Barkley | Mail Online

While Everton might be a mess, when it comes to come money, they do have something to smile about: Ross Barkley. Everton's rising star Barkley is the best come out of their academy since Rooney. Over the last couple of years, Everton's academy has produced a ton of talent over the last couple of years and is starting to look like the West Ham Academy that produced so many great players in the '90's.

An Unlike Dream

For some the Europa League means nothing but to Irish club Shamrock Rovers it might as well be the Champions League. After fighting extinction, Shamrock Rovers are savouring their chance to play European football. While some kill the Europa League, I can not wait to the see the small little club that could play Spurs in the group stages.

A new Premier League Transfer Policy

Things are changing in the Premier League, gone are the days of clubs spending $14 million on a 26 year old players, now its all about the kids. The Daily Mail's Matt Barlow takes an interesting look at practice.Clubs are looking at the resale value of a player kind of like what happened with Ronald at Manchester United.  

Such a sad story

For years she has been most dominating coach in college sports, but now Pat Summitt is fighting a different battle. The Lady Vols head coach has been diagnosed with the early onset dementia. Such a sad story, I hope that she is able to battle through and coach as long as she wants.

Prospect Watching: Harrisburg Senators

The original reason for making the three hour drive to Harrisburg was to see Bryce Harper play in Double A, but that did not happen after he got hurt and was ruled out for the rest of the season. But that did not stop me from scouting a couple of other Nationals prospects.

After Harper, the next best ranked player in the system is catcher Derek Norris. During game Norris struck out twice and did not look doing it against a left handed pitcher. Norris was the second ranked player in the Nats system coming into the season by Baseball American, but that is going to change after the season is over. My only question is what positions does he play, Wilson Ramos appears to the be the catcher of the future, so does that mean Norris moves to first base. I know he has impressive stats, but I think that he will never make the grade in Washington

 

Professional Tailgating: A trip to Expo's Mecca

For Expos fan, a trip to see the Harrisburg Senators is a like a trip to mecca. For years the Senators have played a key role in player development and that appears to be continuing with Strasburg and Harper suiting up for the them over the last couple of years

Senators = Championships

 Brandon Phillips once part of the doomed Bartolo Colon deal

 You know its Minor League Baseball when the kids are warming up with the players

 Vlad near I say anything else. The banners around the stadium show how many great players that have come through Harrisburg

 Somewhere Phillies rookie pitcher Michael Stutes is smiling 

 Downtown Harrisburg

Also during the game the Senator's gave out t-shirts honoring their 25th anniversary team, later in the look we will take a look at that, I do have some issues with their picks.

It's not the Yankees and Red Sox anymore

In the past teams like the Yankees and Red Sox dominated the signing bonus list in Major League Baseball, but this year that all changed. Instead of the Sox and Yanks, the list is topped by the Pirates and Nationals. This shows that other teams are willing to invest in young players.

The New Fab Four

During the last two drafts the Nationals have shown they are willing to spend money and this year was no different as the Nats splashed the cash. The Nats spent $16.5 million to sign Anthony Rendon and other top Nationals draft picks at the signing deadline last night. Who knows if the Rendon, Meyer, Goodwin and Purke will work out, but for Nationals fans it shows the organization is willing to spend for top players.

Professional Tailgating: Cars Go Fast

While NASCAR is not something we focus on, I could not help but post these videos my brother sent me from his trip to The Glen for the race.

Cars go flying by his seat
 
 The power of a restart
 

Professional Tailgating: Seven Unearned Runs, Yes Seven

The OTWT Tailgating Crew made their final regular season trip to Citizens Bank Park to see his beloved Nationals play the Phillies. The only thing that we learned was that defense is something that the Nationals don't care about. They gave up seven unearned runs, yes seven. 

Ground crew takes the tarp off before the game.

Phillies honor alumni that included Tommy Greene and Mark Leiter

 As a rookie, pitcher Michael Stutes has to put up with a lot include carrying this pink backpack to the pen. 

 Since we have had these seats we have seen a variety of different right fielders from Jayson Werth to Dom Brown to John Mayberry Jr. and now Hunter Pence. Hope it ends there. 

 Fans behind us showing their love for Chooch. 

Before the game started, I was able to hook up with my friends over at Sox and Phils and they filled this report.

No One is in Charge

New York Times College Sports Reporter Pete Thamel gets to the heart of the ongoing conference reshuffling. It's basically football run Anarchy.

Premier League A to Z

The Premier League season is here and here is a look at league from A to Z. Should be a fun and interesting season, can not wait for opening kickoff in a couple of hours. Seems like it has taken forever for the season to return.

Professional Tailgating: Rutgers Ticket Day

Like a scene out of Fever Pitch, today was season ticket. My season tickets for Rutgers came today and I love this years theme. Theme is a countdown to kickoff, starting with five hours before with tailgating and ending with the chop. This years theme is a lot better then last years.

MLS deal shows NBC/Comcast is ready for primetime

I know a secondary Major League Soccer television package is not a big deal, but for NBC/Comcast it shows that they are ready to get involved in all sports.

On Tuesday Major League Soccer announced games will be televised by NBC's networks starting next season, doubling the number of homes that dozens of games will be available in.    The package currently on Fox Soccer Channel will move mainly to the NBC Sports Network, Versus' new name beginning Jan. 2. The cable channel will air 38 regular-season games, three playoff games and two U.S. men's national team matches each year. NBC will broadcast two regular-season MLS games, two playoff games and two national team appearances under the three-year contract announced Wednesday.

In addition to the Major League Soccer deal, NBC/Comcast has been rumoured to get involved in the bidding for the Big East football rights package that is up after the year. I know its only the Big East, but it shows that these two giants are ready to really get involved in big time college football and challenge the ABC/ESPN group.

Anytime you create competition for something its a good thing and in tv its no different and these two moves show that NBC/Comcast is committed to being a player in sports television. 

Move Over RVP, Stevie MBE is taking over

Stevie MBE might not win a league title anytime soon, but he is at the top of another table. Gerrard was voted 'hottest player' by gay men. I hope the Kop salutes him for this accomplishment.

It's gotta be the shoes

The Premier League season is about to kick off, and here is a look at the boots that the players will be wearing.

Kobe shows his skills

Kobe Bryant, an avid soccer fan, takes a PK during half time of Manchester United vs. Barcelona game on Saturday in Washington DC.

Professional Tailgating: Wembley Revenge

It might not have been the Champions League Final but Manchester United and Barcelona faced off in Washington DC on Saturday as part of the World Football Challenge. Manchester United won the game, here are some of the sites and sounds from the game. 

The scarfs are hung 

All types of jerseys where on display, even Afellay 

 Game was part of the World Football Challenge

Manchester United and Barcelona take the field

Teams ready for battle

PSG outguns Chelsea with Money

PSG has outgunned Chelsea in the race for Javier Pastore. The $62 million move is more then a move to acquire a top rated creative midfielder, its shows that PSG is set to become a huge force in the transfer marker for years to come.

Turning unwatned QBs into Gold

This is why the Eagles are so good at what they do. In the last 18 months, the Eagles have traded two QB's for two 2nd round picks, a 4th round pick, and a 25-yr old CB with 13 career INT's. Some people thought the franchise would go down the drain after McNabb left but that is far from it. In Andy and Joe we trust.

Not the Greatest way to earn respect

While European teams look at the World Football Challenge as a way to get ready for upcoming season, Major League Soccer have looked at it as a way to show Europeans how far the league has come. This year the league has done nothing but embarrass itself. Through the first six games that have featured MLS teams vs. top European clubs, MLS teams have been outscored 16-6 and lost all five games.

Here the list of results

• Manchester United 4-1 New England Revs
• Real Madrid 4-1 LA Galaxy
• Manchester City 2-1 Vancouver
• Manchester United 3-1 Chicago
• Real Madrid 2-1 Philadelphia Union 
• Manchester City 1-1 LA Galaxy

After a couple of years of closing the gap, MLS has appeared to fallen behind again. Something needs to be done so this does not continue. 

College Football: The Cover Story 2011

The start of the College Football season is right around the corner. So here is a look at all of the preseason magazines from the Sporting News. Note that TP is still on the cover of the Ohio State one, very interesting.

More Money Please

It's not like Manchester City have not spent a bunch of money over the last two years, but that is not enough for their manager. Roberto Mancini claims Manchester City need to sign more players in order to challenge Manchester United for the title. Wow now Mancini is crying poor, I feel bad for someone who regularly throws down $30 million for a player. Come on cry me a river.

A September Return?

Stephen Strasburg rehab from Tommy John surgery appears to be going so well that he could be back on the mound for the Nats by September. National's manager Davey Johnson is optimistic about Strasburg progress after watching him throw a simulated game on Monday.

Five Clubs to Watch this Season

Teams are returning to preseason training around Europe and there are ton of story lines. But here are five clubs that I will be keeping on a close eye during this upcoming season.

• PSG: I have highlighted them in the past, but they are the team to watch in France this year. They are closing in on QPR's Adel Taarabt, that should be the first of many big money signings at the capital city club. 
• Maluga: They are turning into the Manchester City of Spain. Sheikh Al Thani purchased the club on June 11, 2010 and became president on July 28. Jesualdo Ferreira was brought in as coach but was sacked after a series of bad results. Chilean Manuel Pellegrini, who had previously been in charge of Villarreal and Real Madrid, took the reins while the club was in the relegation zone. He oversaw a revival thanks to five consecutive wins later in the season, a historic first for the club. With several new signings, which included Maresca, Martin Demichelis, Ruud van Nisterlrooy (above) and Julio Baptista, the club managed to finish in 11th place.
• Manchester City: It's one thing to make it to the Champions League, it's another to deal with the demand. They have a big enough squad, now the fan base is going demand that they contend for the league title and not just qualify for Champions League.
• QPR: Once the richest club in the world, now the club is going to face a tough return to the Premier League. Will the owners spend enough to keep them there and how much is the pending loss of Taarabt going to effect them. 
• Bayern Munich: Last years was a disaster in the league finishing third. How does the big spending club bounce back. 

Twitter 100: The Sports Figures to follow

A great list of the Top 100 sports people to follow on Twitter. From Chad Ochocinco to Dana White

How not to take PKs

If you where a fan of the art of taking penalties kicks then Sunday was not the day for you. In the Women's World Cup Final, the United States butchered their attempts, while at Copa America Brazil put on a performance that was fitting of a under-8 game, it may have been the worst display of pks ever.

United States in the Women's World Cup



Brazil PKs at Copa America

A Local Legend

As the United States Women Soccer Team gets ready for World Cup Final tomorrow, we take you back to a time when their captain, Christine Pearce now Rampone, was just a young high school player. One of my former colleagues Mark Blumenthal take a look back at her freshman year at Point Pleasant Boro High School.

Futures Game Notebook

The MLB Futures game was held on Sunday and here a couple of thoughts on the some of the players.
• For once it looked like Bryce Harper was nervous. Did not look like himself at the plate.
• Phillies prospect Jarred Cosart most impressive of U.S. pitchers. FB all 96-97, got strikeouts w/curveball and change.

• For all of the people who are still killing the Rays for taking Tim Beckham number one overall a couple of years ago it finally appears to be paying off.
• I can not believe that the Futures Game is 13 years old. It was a brilant idea when it started.
• I know it was only one inning but Brad Peacock looks to be a good piece for the Nats. 92 to 94 mph not bad.
• Everytime I see Shelby Miller I think that he is ready to pitch in the majors and today this no different.
• Tampa's Matt Moore might have the most effortless delivery I have ever seen. Hitting high 90s with that little effort is unfair.

News of the World says Good Bye

The News of the World is set to close its doors and here are some of the back pages of sports coverage over the years. There are some great headlines and telling stories that mostly ended up being true, including Manchester United selling Ronnie.

What to expect from Strasburg next year

Our friends at The Nats Blog tell us what Jordan Zimmermann's pitch limit means for Stephen Strasburg return next year. I guess we should not expect more then a 160 innings out of Strasburg next season.

Professional Tailgating: Rain Rain Go Away

The OTWT Tailgating Gang was supposed to head the BlueClaws game tonight but Mother Nature would not allow that. The game was called and rescheduled so we got there and hand no game. So here is a some of the sites of sounds of  a rain out.

Check out the kid on the left, Cole Hammels. He was on the cover of the 2004 BlueClaws preview magazine along with Gavin Floyd and Taylor Buchholtz

The Star of the Show: The Tarp

Some rain delay entertainment: The Lion King 

The only running we saw all night


 The field look like a lake 

No More Crazy Rumors?

Now that James Murdoch has closed the NOTW, where am I supposed to get my crazy soccer transfer rumors.

A different kind of sports language

Sports are full of different types of terminology. Some of its stupid, while others are fun and interesting. Nascar has its own type of terminology, when it comes to superspeedways like Daytona. Nascar's superspeedways terminology sounds like a gay porno.

If a newcomer to the sport tuned in for the first time on Saturday, they would think that announcers were reading a script for a gay porno instead of calling a race. Every other word out of commentators mouth was either "hooked up", "from behind", or "pushing." At one point one of the commentators said that "Mark Martin like to be the pusher", now that sounds really gay.

What could make the race sound gayer, the talk of lube and yes the race on Saturday night had that too. The commentators said that the front and backs of the cars have grease on them so they don't get stuck together. Its ok to laugh, cause I was all night as the race was going on.

For all of the talk of how macho NASCAR, their superspeedway terminology is a little on the gay side.

A far fall for Hargreaves

Former Manchester United midfielder Owen Hargreaves has turn to YouTube in order show people he is healthy. Its a far fall for one of the best holding midfielders in the world.

A mid-table corner

I was at a BBQ today and the house was located at the corner of Everton Place and Fulham Street, now that is what you call a mid-table corner.

Is PSG the Manchester City of France?

Two years ago, the fate of Manchester City changed when a big money group purchased the club. Fast forward to this upcoming season and all of the money that was spent in the transfer market has paid off as the club will be playing the in Champions League. The same might be happening in France with Paris Saint-Germain.

Taarabt to PSG?
.

On 31 May 2011, Paris Saint-Germain announced that Qatar Investment Authority bought a controlling 70% stake in the club. Colony Capital and Butler Capital Partners, who bought the club from television channel Canal+ in 2006, remained as minority shareholders with 30% and 4,2% of the stakes. QIA is estimated to hold in excess of $60 billion of assets, an amount that will significantly increase by 2011 as the state completes its expansion projects to become the world's largest LNG exporter with 77 million tons output capacity. The Qatar economy has been one of the most dynamic, where the GDP has risen from $8 billion in 1995 to an estimated GDP of $52 billion. The groups has been rumoured to put in a bid to buy Manchester United. 


Now the group is rumoured to be sinking a lot of money into the club in this transfer market. After years of being an after thought, PSG has been linked with Manchester United Dimitar Barbatov, Juventus's Mohamed Sissoko and QPR's Adel Taarabt. In the past the team would not be able to spend this much in a transfer window but with the funding in place they are more than happy to spend.

Now this is pitch movement

Check out the movement on this wiffle ball pitch, simply amazing.

Phil Jones: United's new midfield enforcer?

It looks like its going to be a summer of rebuilding for Manchester United, but it appears they may have already addressed a huge issue, a holding midfielder. With Owen Hargreaves injury issues over the last couple of years, United has been lacking at this spot. But their first singing on the season may have addressed. On 13 June 2011, United confirmed that they had reached an agreement to sign Blackburn Rovers' Phil Jones for £16.5m ; the deal would be finalised upon his return from international duty.

While most people view him as a defender, Jones might be able to slide into United's holding midfield roll. According to Football-Lineups.com, Jones started 24 games in the Premier League last year: 6 games at CB and 18 CM.

Some people view Jones as a defender, but I'm in favor of letting him play as a holding midfielder. One of the things that is lost on people is that Sir Alex likes bigger center backs and Jones does not fit that bill, being only 5ft 11in. With that in mind, I have a feeling that Sir Alex brought him in to be the next Owen Hargreaves.

So the rebuilding has begun and it looks like Phil Jones is set to be a one of the building blocks for both the present and the future.

Beltway Family Fued

For the next decade, the Harpers and the Bundy's are set to battle it out on the baseball field.

Last year, the Nationals selected Bryce Harper with the first overall pick and we all know how that is going. This year the franchise used a 30th round pick on his brother, Bryan Harper. Bryan Harper is a left handed pitcher at the University of South Carolina. Bryan Harper has a 5.40 ERA and 18/17 K/BB ratio as a reliever this season.

Down the Beltway, the Orioles are putting together their own family, the Bundy Family. In 2008, the Orioles selected righ hand pitcher Bobby Bundy. This year the Orioles used their first round pick to select his brother Dylan (pictured below).

The Bundy brothers have already come outswining against the Harper family.  According to the Washington Post, Dylan Bundy (below) said he we would hit Harper if he blew kisses at him after hitting a home run. 

“Well, if I was pitching the next game, I’d hit him all four at-bats,” the high schooler told Steve Davis on Baltimore’s 105.7 The Fan.

Dylan's brother joined in the fun.

“Same thing,” the other Bundy said. “The kid can’t do that. You know, that was a little over the top. I mean, I guess he did get hit in previous at-bats and maybe he felt like it was for nothing, but still, in baseball etiquette you don’t blow a kiss to the pitcher like that. It’s just not something you do.”

If all four of these prospects meet up in the next couple of years it could be fun, the only issue is that Bryce is the only one that swings a bat, which could be dangerous for him.

MLB Draft notebook

The first and sandwich round of the MLB Draft are in the books and here a couple of quick thoughts on what happened.

• Welcome to Major League Baseball in 2011, its all about pitching and that showed with the top four players selected all being pitching, including three college pitchers that are going to move fast through each of their systems.
• I guess Gerrit Cole choice to turn down the Yankees after they selected him in the first round in 2008 turned out well for him. Cole was the number one overall pick in the draft. 
• At the start of the season Anthony Rendon was the number player on most people's board after a season that featured injuries Rendon dropped to the Nationals at six. It was a dream for the Nats front office. 
• MLB Network coverage of the draft is getting better each year they do it, love seeing Gammons on the show. He has always loved the drafted.
•  People are going to kill the Giants for taking St. John's SS Joe Panik, but they usually do some weird things in the draft and more times that not they turn out well.
• Both Massachusetts high school pitcher Tyler Beede and Texas high school outfielder Josh Bell sent letters out saying that they were not signing and attending college, it worked out well for Beede who was drafted by Toronto in the first round, while Bell slid out of the first round.
• The draft needs to get more players at the draft, it would make it g

OTWT Mock MLB Draft

The Scouting Staff of OTWT has been locked away in the its bunker for the last couple of days, going over the top prospects in the upcoming baseball draft and coming up with its annual mock draft. Last year, we did it and it did not turn out that well. So here goes.

1 Pittsburgh Pirates: Gerrit Cole, RHP, UCLA

2 Seattle Mariners: Danny Hultzen, LHP, UVa

3 Arizona Diamondbacks: Anthony Rendon, 3B, Rice

4 Baltimore Orioles: Sonny Gray, RHP, Vanderbilt

5 Kansas City Royals: Tyler Jungmann, RHP, Texas

6 Washington Nationals: Alex Meyers, RHP, Kentucky

7 Arizona Diamondbacks: Dylan Bundy, RHP, Owasso (Oklahoma) HS

8 Cleveland Indians: Jed Bradley, LHP, Georgia Tech

9 Chicago Cubs: Bubba Sterling, OF, Gardner-Edgerton (Oklahoma) HS

10 San Diego Padres: Trevor Bauer, RHP, UCLA

11 Houston Astros: Francisco Lindor, SS, Montverde Academy (Fla)

12 Milwaukee Brewers: Taylor Guerrieri, RHP, Spring Valley HS (SC)

13 New York Mets: George Springer, OF, UConn

14: Florida Marlins: Archie Bradley, RHP, Broken Arrow HS (Okalahoma)

15 Milwaukee Brewers: Larry Green, OF, Berrien County HS (Georgia)

16 Los Angeles Dodgers: Tyler Anderson, LHP, Oregon

17 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: Brandon Nimmo, OF, East HS (Wyo)

18 Oakland Athletics: Mikie Mahtook, OF, LSU

19 Boston Red Sox: Matt Barnes, RHP, UConn

20 Colorado Rockies: Kolten Wong, 2B, Hawaii

21 Toronto Blue Jays: Josh Bell, OF, Dallas Jesuit HS (TX)

22 St. Louis Cardinals: Javier Baez, SS, Arlington Country Day HS (Fla)

23 Washington Nationals: CJ Cron, 1B, Utah

The front pages sum it up

The front pages of the today's Winnipeg Free Press and the Atlanta Journal Constitution sum up the plight of the Atlanta Thrashers franchise. In Winnipeg, news of the franchise coming to the Canadian city was the whole front page. While in Atlanta, the story of the franchise leaving was a front page story below the fold and seemed unimportant. That sums up the whole situation in a nut shell, no one in Atlanta cares about hockey.

Winnipeg Free Press

AJC

Maybe OTWT was right

Back in May 2008, OTWT spotlighted Max Scherzer when he made one of his first starts in the big leagues as a member of the Arizona Diamonbacks. In the post, I said that Scherzer has the ability to become a top of the rotation type of pitcher.
After struggling with Arizona going 9-15, Scherzer was traded to the Tigers and has continued to grow. This year he is 6-2 with a 3.68 ERA. So he seems to be starting to be the player that OTWT thought he would be, hey its a take a couple of years longer, but he is finally starting to come around.

Professional Tailgating: Maybe I should have stayed longer

It all started as a normal baseball game between the Reds and Phillies but little did I know that it would end well after I went to sleep

Nothing beats some trivia

 Bull's BBQ

 It all looked normal

We left in the ninth inning and after getting home I went to bed so I had no clue what happened until after I put on MLB Network and for one I was glad I did not stick around.

This sums it up

Barca are the kings of Europe again and maybe a team of a generation.This is the front page of a Spanish delay and its sums it up.

One Word: Believe

While the book makers have Barcelona the favorites, I for one "believe" that United will make us proud in the Champions League final. This is the mosaic from the 2008 Champions League in Moscow and it brings back good memory for any United fan. Glory Glory Man United.

Will Sir Alex go 4-4-1-1

The countdown is on until Saturday epic battle between Manchester United and Barcelona in the Champions League Final. While Barcelona formation appears to be set, Manchester United's formation appears to be up for debate. Will United play two up front, will Giggs make the starting 11. So here is what I would do if I was Sir Alex

Van de Sar

Rafeal                    Vidic                             Rio         Evra

Valencia             Carrick                      Fletcher             Park

Rooney

Hernandez

By going with this formation, Carrick and Fletcher could be supported in the middle by Park Ji Sung if its need and Rooney could then move out the wing. The bench would feature: Berba, Smalling, Giggs, O'Shea, Nani, Scholes, and Kuszcak. I would go with 4-4-1-1. This would be the formation that gives United the best chance to lift Mr. Big Ears again.

Please be nice to your trophies

As the European soccer season winds to a close, people are collecting trophies all over the place and some players are having a hard time handling the trophies.

Ajax goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenberg drops Dutch title trophy


Sergio Ramos drops the Copa del Rey


While its not a soccer trophy, the Spokane Chiefs break the Memorial Cup in 2008, classic, one of my favorites