Market Madness

So the transfer market has been in full swing almost everyone is linked to everywhere worth at a minimum 100 Million each. The most shocking thing to me has been the dramatically overvalued price tag put on players by club owners. For example Napoli president labeled Cavani as worth 100 Million Euros. In the official NYF opinion: that is a lot of money.

Another fun bit has been the outrageous buyout clauses in players contracts. For example: Neymar 45 Million Euros, Pastore 50 Million Euros, Hulk 70 or 100 Million Euros (depending on who you ask).



Final bit of the day.



In attempt to keep gossip from spreading Manchester United threw three sheets to the wind to hide David De Gea's medical evaluation from spying eyes. Nice try boys.

monkey business

There have been many allegations of FIFA's corruption in recent news. We at Not Your Football are here to clear up this web of confusion.

Yes, Sepp Blatter and his administration are currupt. Yes, they have been accepting bribes and showing nepotism through their "Ol' boy" network. And yes, Qatar did buy the 2022 World Cub bid.

Now that we have cleared this up for the world, we can only hope for a reconsideration from the committee to host the 2022 World Cup elsewhere, where it would be more progressive for the sport.

Any Questions?

There's No Worst in Team

The talk about United this season has been largely negative. "The worst United team of the century" was one quote I think I read at some point. Sure their season has been marked by periods of mediocrity. Are they really "the worst" thought, I doubt that.



Most fans of any time would regard a domestic league title, champions league final, and FA cup semi as a successful campaign. Yet still it brings the doubts and criticisms of commentators, haters, and supporters; at times almost pushing that United (and football) should be shameful that this team has done so well. Conversely in my opinion good teamwork and management is nothing to be ashamed about.

It seems that what these detractors are looking for in football success are stars and drama, two things United has stayed away from this season. Sure Fergie and Rooney have gotten flak for choice vocabulary, but when compared with the Real drama and Barca hype United may be seen as boring. Rooney has had a more supportive (yet still potent) role, Berbatov quitely shared top honors for goals in the Premier League, and the even the leagues MVP a United defender seems a football let down. The largest bit of excitement (or smallest depending on the context) has come from a mexican striker, although even this seems double edged as in the media it seems his nationality somehow has taken away from his football success.

Overall isn't this what the game is about? Playing as team, using all your options to consistently put out the best side each week, remaining modest despite monstrous success, and winning; these are things every team pines for. United should be heralded for this success, not diminished for not having the flashy, showy, $$$$, drama of some of its rivals. There is not worst in team success.

A Cure for Cancer (At Least Domestically)

Haven't won a domestic league title in a while? We have an answer for you. Get Zlatan Ibrahimovic. 

Despite rumors of an affair with the Wookiee (Gerard Pique), apparently Zlatan has won eight STRAIGHT domestic league titles with five different clubs. Surprised? Yeah we are too. AC Milan had not won Serie A since the 03-04 season. So they did what any intelligent club would do. Grab Ibra.

Man City, Chelsea, Arsenal, whoever is desperately in need of a league title, get out the checkbook. The Swede might be getting some serious suitors this summer, sorry Pique. 

A Win for Barca and A Loss for Soccer

So the third installment of El Clasico is finished with Barca coming away with a 2-0 away win. On face value this seems good for the sport, the best team in the world is likely to make the European final. Unfortunately the cost is the sports credibility, especially with fans in the US.

Fans in the US constantly complain that their "problem with soccer" is all the diving, and the first leg of the Champions League semi only confirmed their doubts. As the saga unfolded, it eventually looked more like a theatrical interpretation of the high dive at the olympics, then a tactical matchup between two titans of European football. The pivotal moment came as Pepe was sent off as Dani Alves played dead on the ground after being at most "grazed" by Pepe; an odd sight considering the amount of tattoo's and general badass appearance of the Brazilian. This red card changed the match as the keystone of Real's effort had been removed and the defense crumbled. Although this was not the end to the theatrics.

In the end Barca was the more culpable of the two actors, as Alves, Biscuits, and Pedro took turns vying for the top spot on the diving squad. Although Real was not immune from all blame, as Di Maria the shrew threw himself on the grass if a Barca player was even close to him. By the end the back and forth splashes into the pool created possibly the most disgusting display of top football ever. Capped by Mourinho's self-victimization claim and middle-school girl style sulking in the stands. With exception of Messi's brilliant second goal and Ibrahim Afellay's energizing performance, this was not a football match based on pride, professionalism, and football tactics, but ACT III in Shakespeare's 21st century drama.



If soccer is going to maintain any notion of credibility, especially in the states where contact sports are revered, this problem needs to be resolved. Players might start thinking twice about a leap into the pool, if it is promptly followed by a costly yellow card. UEFA use the power you have and get a handle or it, for the sake of the sport.

Vermin

We're not saying Luis Suarez is a chipmunk...
We're just saying he looks like a rodent.

Tie to Barça as good as a win for Real

The first of 4 El Clasico matchups we will see within the next month was this weekend. The game was as contentious as one could have imagined. The game ended in a 1-1 draw with both Messi and Ronaldo scoring from penalty kicks. It was CR's first goal against Barcelona.

Barcelona didn't look like themselves, especially during the second half. I think a lot of that had to do with Real essentially playing with with 5 defenders with Pepe as a holding midfielder. Even after Albiol left with a red card, Barcelona was not able to put the nail in the coffin with a 1 man advantage.

Also, Ronaldo wore the newest special colorway of the Nike Mercurial Vapor Superfly III. They appeared to be a cross between the CR safari shoes and a new pattern.