Below are the 8 most recent journal entries recorded in goingforgoal's LiveJournal:

Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
3:22 am	Real Salt Lake is dead Less then three years after the world's greatest game came to Utah in professional form, it looks like it is over. Earlier today Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon made it official, they will not invest $30 million into the development of the stadium area in Sandy, killing the deal for Real Salt Lake. Team owner Dave Checketts quickly announced his disapproval with the move saying he will sell the team and they will move after the 2007 season. Sandy Mayor Tom Dolan said he disagreed with Corroon's decision as his city had pledged $15 million to the project. Corroon did say the county will still build a parking garage across from the site and if Real decides to fund their whole stadium, he will work with the team to work out a "favorable agreement for parking." It looks as if the parking lot offer will not be enough as the league had promised MLS to get a stadium in the league's smallest market or move the team. With less then 200,000 people living in Salt Lake City, MLS took a major risk in placing a team there. The fact that this risk has failed them will probably make them very shy when it comes to placing teams in anywhere but the biggest markets. Now the question for Real is where will then end up? Contenders include St. Louis, San Jose, Philadelphia, Seattle, Cleveland and Minneapolis. Will one of the groups involved with any of these cities be able to raise the needed cash and get a stadium deal moving? The biggest losers here are the fans in Salt Lake. They were very loyal to their team and were an amazing display of how soccer can find supporters anywhere in the county. (Comment on this)
Wednesday, December 27th, 2006
2:03 am	Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and Thank God for England Forty games in eleven days! Now that's my kind of country. Good to see the Premiership folks have their priorities in order. Some leagues (read: Germany) stop for six weeks. And some leagues step it up and cram a ton of games into a week and a half. And seeing as this is the time of year when most people are home for the holidays, lounging around their living rooms, lapsing into food comas...and in desperate need of some good quality sports entertainment...I'd say they've got the right idea in dear ole En-ga-land. So for all you fine readers out there, wherever you may be, I hope the holidays find you healthy, happy, and somewhere near some good soccer. Merry Christmas, everyone! (Comment on this)
Thursday, November 2nd, 2006
1:47 pm	Sharapova Visits Real Madrid Soccer Club Maria Sharapova, the present no.2 tennis player in the women’s ranking, is now in Spain to participate in the Sony Ericsson Championships at Madrid which is the last tennis tour of this year. Sharapova is now on the verge of a great achievement ahead of this tournament. She can get back her no. 1 place in the ranking since 2005 winning the title of this tournament which would be her sixth in this year. Prior to this tournament Sharapova recently went at the Bernabeu to watch a Champions League football match between Real Madrid and Steaua Bucharest. After the match she met some of the great players of this famous club including Ronaldo, Beckham, Iker, Casillas and Robinho. She expressed her feelings regarding this visit to this popular cub of Spain. I am wuoting some from a Tennisnews website: “It was great to be able to go to a Real Madrid game,” said Sharapova, the 2006 US Open champion. “The crowd was fantastic and so passionate. It was great to meet some of the team after the game. They are players who I have followed as a fan and have a lot of respect for." Sharapova not is famous for her tennis skills but also a dream girl of many for her physical appearance. She can make this year one of the most successful year in her career winning the title and being the no. 1 in the ranking. (Comment on this)
Friday, August 18th, 2006
12:05 pm	SOCCER ROAD TRIP ! We'll be heading out this afternoon for yet another soccer tournament--this time in Ohio. The bad news is that it's supposed to rain all weekend. Oh joy. But I'm bringing my trusty blogging computer so there is likely to be some posting later tonight! Meanwhile, take a look at some of the fine blogs on my sidebar to stay occupied. Or, if you haven't caught the latest Sanity Squad podcast, give a listen. We'll be recording another show on Monday, so if you have ideas and suggestions for topics, email them to neo-neocon, ShrinkWrapped, Siggy or me. I understand that not everyone has a beautiful and talented daughter (who lives and breathes soccer) to spend time with! (Comment on this)
Friday, August 11th, 2006
11:27 am	Strippers and Soccer Mike and I produced a multimedia story for the Sunday Times online about how 2010 might inlfuence the sex industry. A rather light hearted story with some great text and interviews with strippers from Teazers... the interviewing process was a great experience too, I wrote about it here. I'm sure the story will generate quite a few hits. Sex. Nudity. Strippers. Boobs. Nude Schoolgirls? (Comment on this)
Thursday, August 3rd, 2006
6:21 pm	US U-20 Earns Chance To Defend Milk Cup Title... The US played to a draw against Denmark yesterday, earning enough points to finish second in group play, behind Paraguay. The US will face Paraguay in the final tomorrow. A win and the US is back to back Milk Cup Champions. Raise the Roof! The roster looked similar to the first match, but was not the same. This time around Blake Wagner was the only pro not to play. Robbie Rogers had a nice game getting on the score sheet as well as creating a goal. Looking at the numbers, which never tell the whole story, the US out played Denmark. The Yanks were up 2-0 by the 14th minute, but allowed the tying goal in the 78th minute. Robbie Rogers had a solid freshman year at the University of Maryland. In 1400 minutes of playing time, Robbie scored seven goals and made five assists en route to the NCAA Championship. He is one to watch for the 2007 Generation adidas class in MLS, especially if he has a strong sophomore season. Not much else to say on this one. Good luck to the US in the final tomorrow. (Comment on this)
Saturday, July 29th, 2006
5:11 pm	End Result of Switzerland-Ukraine: An NBA Draft Preview Great wingspan, huge upside potential, sky-high ceiling, and absurd pinstriped suit. It's the NBA Draft! ...(This is what happens when Switzerland & the Ukraine play 120 torturous minutes of scoreless footie in the second round of the World Cup - I mean, shouldn't the ref have awarded a completely non-existent penalty by now?)... With the World Cup at its approximate halfway point - when most of the lightweights have already boarded planes for home and left the heavyweights to square off against one another - it's time for a rare break from ripping FIFA, admiring the attacking verve of Germany and Argentina and Spain, suffering through more O'Brien/Balboa torture, and looking forward to a quarterfinal match finishing with both teams playing with seven men & a coach launching a grenade at the ref. And what better way to take some time off than to celebrate the arrival of one of the best American sports days of the year: the NBA Draft. This year, other than Knicks jokes & ridiculous, oversized suits, there are fewer 'sure things' than in recent memory. You can't count on much come Wednesday night, but here's what I'm looking forward to: 1. A plethora of first-round busts. Let's start with the Dookies. For a school with such a pristine reputation, the Harvard of the South has sure taken a big hit to its reputation this year. We won't get into the lacrosse fiasco, but one thing that everyone heard ad nauseum this spring was that Coach K never would've tolerated any of those shenanigans with the basketball program. Like what, maybe poster-boy JJ Redick getting hit with a DUI? I guess that would never happen. An ominous start to post-college life for Redick, who is destined to disappoint in the Association, too. His college teammate, Shelden Williams, might be even more of a flop. Sorry, but 6-9 and 270 sounds a lot like Sean May, another beefy, undersized forward who hasn't done and will never do much in the pros, other than join the ongoing battle with Mike Sweetney for most grotesquely overweight power forward. Fellas, it's one thing for Sir Charles to blow past the 300-mark - the guy's already had a Hall of Fame career - but you guys might want to hold off on that fifth triple-cheeseburger for a few more years. 2. Everyone picking the Pistons to finish third in the Central behind the Cavs and the Bulls, who - thanks to a generous donation from Isiah - have the second pick in the draft. Look for the Bulls, who scared the crap out of the Heat in the first round, to grab Aldridge. How's this for a starting line-up: Hinrich, Gordon, Nocioni, Aldridge, and Chandler, with Duhon, Deng, and the aforementioned Sweetney off the bench. Oh, and they've got the 16th pick, too. If they elect not to draft Aldridge and somehow swindel Shawn Marion away from the Suns, then they will be even better equipped to make some serious noise in the East next year. 3. An ESPN telecast with more BS than a White House press briefing. You never know who to believe at this time of year, other than not trusting a word out of Bill Walton's mouth (not that you should pay him any attention during the other 364 days either). There are just way too many rumors, but never have they involved so many big-time superstars. As well as the Matrix, rumor has it that KG, AI, Jermaine O'Neal, and Rashard Lewis are all on the block. For fans in Minnesota & Philly, you have to be on the verge of cardiac arrest at the prospect of Kevin McHale and Billy King trading your franchise player - if only the two would deal with each other, than the Twolves & Sixers might actually be able to make a fair trade. King is the one man who could even get less value for AI than the Sixers got for Sir Charles way back in the day (Hornacek, Perry, Lang...why not just throw in some used toilet paper?). One rumor that would help another team with a lottery pick poised to make some noise next season has the Hawks selecting Brandon Roy, at #5, only to send him to Houston for future bust (and possible #7 pick) Shelden Williams and Luther Head. Were Roy to end up on the same squad as T-Mac and Yao, the Rockets would have to enter the discussion of possible candidates to emerge from the West next year, along with the Mavs, Spurs, and Suns. Another lottery steal could be Randy Foye, who could also be a nice fit in Youston. 4. "When you talk about the best player in the draft, you have to talk about guys like Rudy Gay. You know that guys like Morrison, Aldridge, and Roy can play, but if you're a scout then you have to be drooling over Gay's upside. You should see this kid's wingspan - and that's what makes his ceiling impossible to even comprehend." See, it's insider information courtesy of ESPN's Hubie Ford like that that can only be found here at World Soccer Blogger. Here we do footie better than hoops, so it must be a sign of ignorance that we go on a clearly out-dated method of scouting: watch the guys play and draw your opinions based on their performances in big-time games. I'll take Morrison, Aldridge, and Roy any day before Gay even enters the discussion. Randy Foye, too. Heck, even Marcus Williams. Never before has there been such a plethora of atrocious GMs in the Association; combined with scouting departments that seem to place more emphasis on what you could do than what you can do, you've got a recipe for disaster. It's only a matter of time before a 19-year old 7-footer from Bulgaria with a 9-foot wingspan who averaged 4 points a game in the Belgian league gets taken ahead of All-Americans that dropped triple-doubles in the Elite Eight; we'll be watching grainy footage from a Cypriot exhibition match of the kid dunking over double amputees while Stephen A & Jay Bilas yell at the camera about the guy's upside. Sure, there are plenty of players that lit it up in college that will struggle to succeed at the next level for any number of reasons (see Redick, JJ), but that doesn't mean that the known should be ignored in favor of the unknown. Then again, there are zero rational reasons for an owner to employ Isiah, so at least these millionaire morons are being consistent. Just take a look at ESPN's draft website. Thomas is listed as the top prospect, but described as risky; Bargnani is second, but is called a gutsy pick; Aldridge is third, but might be slipping to no. 6; but Roy, fourth in the rankings, is described as a player that is 'the most complete' and 'does everything well'. And he's fourth? Huh? Me? If I'm kicking off draft night, Brandon Roy is the first man to shake Stern's hand. Aldridge would be up there, but I want a sure thing, especially one with more of a killer instinct than a passive streak. Morrison is a throwback that I stayed up past midnight for on a regular basis this past year, just to see him do his best Larry Legend imitation against Northeast Idaho Tech, but when you're getting abused by WAC swingmen, I'm not optimistic about your defense in the Association. Gay's a joke, Bargnani's a risk, Thomas is the definition of 'upside potential', and O'Bryant averaged 12 points for Bradley - 'nuff said. From U-Dub, give me the appropriately named Brandon R.O.Y. 5. More Isiah. Give me more. Mas y mas. And allow me to compliment myself on some remarkable self-restraint - only a couple Isiah comments in the entire post. Well done, me. Part of that is that it's all been said, part of that is that any Knicks fan had to know what to expect when the Holy Trinity of Basketball A**holes was formed around this time last year, and part of that is that if there's one area where Isiah is not a complete and total abomintion it is the draft. T-Mac, Damon Stoudamire, Marcus Camby, Channing Frye, Nate Robinson...hey, with all the damage done by Isiah in every other area - the man has the anti-Midas touch - Knicks fans can at least find some cause for optimism there. The biggest story of this draft will not be another Isiah Act of Idiocy, but rather some established superstars being dealt in blockbuster deals, the Bulls and Rockets going from pretenders to contenders, Rudy Gay ruining the foreseeable future of one team with a top-five pick, and more appalling designer suits than have ever been seen in one room since, well, this time last year. In the meantime, don't miss Spain vs France this afternoon. Fernando Torres has some serious upside potential...and any knucklehead know never to underestimate the importance of wingspan in soccer. (Comment on this)
Thursday, July 27th, 2006
11:15 am	A message to all Lebanese fans of Italian soccer This e-mail was sent to me by a dear friend who remains in Lebanon. It brought a smile to my face. Keeping the spirit high - In 1982, Italy won the world cup and Israel invaded Lebanon In 2006, Italy won the world cup and Israel invaded Lebanon Message to all Lebanese people: Next time Italy wins the world cup, we all go immediately down to the shelters!! (Comment on this)