No Gentleman On The Pitch

26^th minute, score is 1-0 Shakhtar winning. The soccer match is about to be resumed after the referee stopped it due to a collision between two opposing players.

In an effort to apply the FIFA fair play rule, one of the Shakhtar’s players kicks the ball out to the Nordsjaelland’s defense so they can start playing from the back, but wait a minute -I cannot believe my eyes- Luiz Adriano from Shakhtar ignores the intention of his teammate, runs after the ball, gets it and scores while everyone else on the field is not moving.

To make the match even more unforgettable, the referees get together and do not cancel out the goal.

Call it however you want… shameful, cheap shot, dirty, unfair, illegal, etc. I just think it is crazy how soccer plays out sometimes. On one hand, there are super honest players like Miroslav Klose, who called off his own goal with Lazio after scoring with his hand. And on the other, there are shameless and disrespectful players like Luiz Adriano who dishonored the FIFA fair play rule at its worst.

I had never witnessed such a pathetic behavior in soccer before. And I hope I never will again -not only for the love I have for the game- but for the reputation and future of the most popular sport in the world.

Like my friends said “they should create an anti FIFA fair play award and give it to Luiz Adriano... Maybe that way he will be embarrassed of his actions. Shame on him!”

- Y gracias por no fumar! 

 

Luiz Adriano right after scoring his controvertial goal. Picture from guardian.co.uk

Bad Choice

Honest question: Who is watching the Kansas City Chiefs vs. Pittsburgh Steelers tonight? …yeah, me neither. This may be one of the worst Monday Night Football games ever in the history of MNF.

Out of so many good match-ups this weekend, why this game? Seriously! This makes me wonder, what was the league thinking when it scheduled this boring game? Or maybe a better question would be: what does the league try to accomplish with this?

No disrespect, but this is one of the most unappealing games of the regular season, and yet it was chosen to be a MNF game… wow! Is this a marketing strategy by the league to promote teams or something? If it is, I do not understand it.  

To make a long (and boring) story short, Roethlisberger will have a great performance. Cassel… not so much. Pittsburgh will not only crush Kansas City, but they will remind them of the problems that they have been carrying over throughout this season. And, the ratings of the NFL on tonight’s Monday Night Football will drop drastically.

Luckily for the NFL, football is America’s favorite sport, so tomorrow’s game will not have a negative impact on the next Monday’s match-up.

Tonight’s game is so pathetic that even NFL.com could not come up with a better description about the match-up than this one to promote it.

“Why this game is intriguing: A Monday Night Football game ranked this low? Say it ain't so. But so it is. Ben Roethlisberger and his merry band of burly running backs are rumbling along, while the Chiefs are doing just the opposite. Kansas City coach Romeo Crennel fired himself as defensive coordinator after last Thursday's loss to the Chargers, but is that cause for optimism? We'll see. The storyline to watch here is Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley, former Chiefs coach, taking on his old team. If Pittsburgh gets up big, will Haley rub it in? That is to say, how much will he rub it in? Bad blood still runs deep.”

So, what else is on TV tonight?

- Y gracias por no fumar!

 

Steelers defenders tackling a player of the Chiefs. Picture from steelers.com

 

Jets Got Nothing

I got news for you New York: with Mark Sanchez as quarterback the Jets are never winning a Super Bowl! It does not matter how many more opportunities Coach Rex Ryan gives him, or how much support Sanchez receives from the team in general… he is just not a winning quarterback. Period!

Honestly, it is a shame for all the real talented players on the team because I believe that if they were being led by a better quarterback, this group of players would have won a Super Bowl already, and would be championship contenders this season, too.

It is sad to think that the team that has had one of the toughest defenses in the NFL for the past four years has not found the results they have been seeking since Coach Ryan took charge of the team and created a winning mentality within the organization.

Clearly, the Jets are missing just one piece to get the puzzle together. But, unfortunately for them, it happens to be the most important piece out of all. It is just surprising to me to notice that Coach Ryan and/or the Jets organization have not realized this yet, or just do not want to admit it.

In my opinion, this is not only an insult to super star players like Revis, Holmes, Cromartie, and Greene, but also to the team's fans. Oh, and if it has even crossed your mind that Tim Tebow is the solution to the problem, then you are headed to some big disappointment because I doubt that the miracle that happened in Denver last year will repeat itself in New York all over again.

- Y gracias por no fumar!

QB Mark Sanchez sitting on the turf after a play unfolded.
Picture from espn.go.com