Tottenham Dominate Dinamo Tbilisi 5-0

Thursday saw Tottenham Hotspurs get their Europa competition begin as they traveled to the Republic of Georgia to take on the countries top club, Dinamo Tbilisi. Your guess is as good as mine in how to say it.

It was competition number two without Gareth Bale as he nurses his foot injury, which we all know means as he sits on his ass thinking about what he's gonna do with his big new Real Madrid contract.  And once again, no Bale, no problem.

The Spurs trounced Dinamo 5-0 in the home leg of the Europa qualifier playoff.

Andros Townsend, getting the start for Aaron Lennon who did not make the trip with the team, started off the scoring on a counter attack off a Dinamo corner.  He was all alone on the attack, so he had one option and he buried.

Paulinho then scored his first Spurs goal, finishing a header from point blank on a ball from Townsend.

Next goal went to Soldado, who had an easy tap in goal from inside the 6 yard box.  He would later put in the 5th goal for Spurs.

The fourth goal went to left back Danny Rose, who put in a beautiful shot from outside the box upper 90 far post.  IT was a Bale-esc Strike.

Andy Townsend's play today should light a fire under Aaron Lennon, showing that perhaps his spot in the starting 11 isn't safe.  And two goals from the Spurs new striker Roberto Soldado shows that he is worth the club-record transfer

Match Day One Thoughts

Match Day one in the Barclay's premier league has come and gone, and here's some quick thoughts from the bearded one:

• Not Missing a Beat: Top Three teams all win impressively with new managers
• Manchester City, Manchester United, and Chelsea all came into this season with new managers, and all three teams impressed in their debuts.  Man City arguably looked the strongest, but all three teams are poised to fight for the top spot in the league.
• No Bale? No Problem
• Tottenham actually won a game without Gareth Bale.  Granted it was 1-0 verse one of the premier league new boys.  However, they showed signs of a promising offesne even without the Welsh Wizard.
• I might be wrong about Everton...
• Everton did not look strong in a 2-2 draw against Norwich City.  But credit the Canaries for tying the game back up after losing the lead in the second half.  Draws are acceptable on the road, but if I'm gonna be right about Everton, they gotta steal some road wins.
• Arsenal and Arsene are in trouble
• Arsenal did not look strong at all, losing 3-1 at the Emirates to Aston Villa.  It's one game, but if Wegner doesn't open up the books, the fans will mutiny and I suspect some of the players will question the direction of the club.  Their matches against Fenerbache and Fulham are going to be very important as the transfer deadline looms closer.
• Speaking of transfer windows...
• They need to close the window before the season starts.  Managers are calling for it and it's not fair to players.  Players whose futures are in doubt are "injured" or not featured because they are "unsettled" by looming moves.  Who cares if they sit for preseason but managers shouldn't be forced to sit key players in important league games because the window doesn't close for two weeks.

Check in every week for my match day reviews!  I love that America gets full coverage now, I'm all in for premier league!

Spurs Win Season Opener 1-0

Match day one was finally here for Tottenham and we traveled to one of the premier league new boys, Crystal Palace.  While I won't complain about three points, I do wish we would have buried a couple more of our chances.

Spurs looked the better side for most of the game, dominating possession and opportunities.
A victory is a victory that's what's important here.  Going on the road in the premier league is always tough.

The new arrivals looked very strong for Spurs in their debut.  Paulinho looks like a very comfortable playmaking central midfielder, while Nacer Chadli showed great speed along the wings and wasn't afraid to cut in and create his own shot.  Coupe, another big guy brought in, looked very strong in the defensive midfield.

I was most impressed with Roberto Soldado.  The 26 million pound man from Valencia looks to be worth every bit of it.  His first touches were on point all game; he showed great ability at corralling long balls with a soft first touch.  He also demonstrated great ability passing the ball and he seemed very instinctual  in the box, knowing when and where to make the run.  Plus he also scored the game winning goal in his debut from the penalty spot.

But for me, Man of the Match honors have to go to Hugo Lloris.  He stood on his head late in the game to preserve a 1-0 lead.  He made plenty of good saves throughout the game to secure his clean sheet.  He even got his FIFA on, coming out of his box and making a successful slide tackle on a man who had gotten behind the back line.

Moving forward this Spurs team has some work to do, but once they start to click as a unit, talent wise this team is top four.

Premier League Predictions... Yupp I love Soccer, what of it?

*Note:  I wrote this Friday night before the season started and it's been sitting in my queue. Whoops.

Premier League is just around the corner, and as someone who admittedly has not been following the league full-heartedly for very long, I am very excited for NBC's coverage of every game.  In recent past, I had been forced to follow by keep track of scores aaaaand by playing FIFA.
 (That's how I came to like Tottenham few years back.  The Dempsey signing made them my full-fledged team over Fulham aaaand now he's gone... But hey, I'm hooked now, Come on You Spurs!)

Yeah sure I haven't been a "Spurs fan" for long, I've always liked the team, especially when they had Robbie Keane.  This is neither here nor there, the point is I've been following long enough to blog a predictions blog and now I'm all in because of NBC.

So here we go! Barclay's Premier League Predictions from your beloved Bearded Blogger

I'll start in reverse order for the Europe spots:
5th place: Everton.
Going with a surpriser, but this is 100% contingent that they maintain Marouane Fellaini and Leighton Baines.  If they lose either, that's enough to drop them.  The Toffees finished 6th last season, but with a new manager will they be able to get that Europa spot?  I'm going bold and saying yes.  Tim Howard is a stalwart between the pipes and will lead them to European Competition.

4th place: Tottenham Hotspurs.
Tottenham finished 4th two years ago but missed out on champions cup because Chelsea won the whole tournament.  Last year the team set a record for points, but finished 1 point behind arch rival Arsenal and missed champions cup again.  This season, Andre Villas-Boas and the Spurs are poised to qualify for Champions Cup.  Spurs have opened up the checkbooks to make this possible (and to try to keep superstar Gareth Bale at White Heart Lane.)  The biggest is the 26 million pound striker Roberto Soldado from Valencia.  Spurs needed desperately a true striker to score with Bale last year, now they have it.  The other additions make this a Champions Cup squad and will qualify this season.

3rd Place: Manchester City.
New management for Man City this year, but it won't cause them to drop much this year with the talent this team has.  After struggling for years, the big-spending policy of late has finally paid off for Man City and they now have a cohesive squad that's even won a premier league title.  The addition of Negredo gives Man City another scoring option and the new management should mean a fresh start for striker Edin Dzeko, who fell out of favor under Roberto Mancini.  Dzeko is a stud and should be their number one scoring option.  Expect big things.

2nd Place: Manchester United.
The other Manchester club... Actually that's Man City.  The main Manchester club is coming off another premier league title.  Number 10000 it seems like.  They had the leagues golden boot winner in Robin Van Persie and the whole squad is back.  But is Rooney going to stick around?  I think he will, but it won't be enough to repeat.  Why?  Well... becaaaauuusee...

1st Place: Chelsea.
Jose Mourinho is back at Stamford Bridge, the last manager to actually last more than a season since the new ownership took over ten years ago.  He enjoyed much success his first stint and is poised to continue where he left off.  Lampard appeared out the door until Mourinho was announced.  The players love him and he is a brilliant manager.  Juan Matta and Eden Hazard are two of the best midfielders in the premiership and new additions like Kevin De Bruyne make Chelsea my prediction for the title.  Mostly the return of Mourino though...

You may have noticed... No Liverpool, No Arsenal...
I predict these two major clubs will miss European play, unless one of them wins the domestic cup.  Liverpool because I think their garbage and Suarez is a cancer, although at least they try to improve their team...
Unlike Arsenal.  I have Arsenal in 6th.  Why? They have the same team that finished 4th...
They'll drop because Tottenham is better this season and because I think more and more people involved with the team are becoming disgruntled with the nonspending philosophy of Wegner and the ownership group... Wegner's time is up at Arsenal.  He's losing his grip on the team and the fan base.

I encourage you all to enjoy some of the "beautiful game" on NBC this year!  You'll get hooked... or some good sleep.  Both are good though...



Gareth Bale please stay I need you in my life..........

Why Gareth Bale Transfer would be BAD for Everyone

Gareth Bale. He's young, he's talented, he's Welsh.

 Bale is the man at Tottenham, winning premier league player of the year last year and netting 23 goals for Spurs.  After the season he had, suitors would be calling for sure.  But he (initially) pledged his commitment to fulfilling out his contract extension he signed just one summer ago.

Oh what a difference a few months make...

A day hasn't gone by since the July transfer window opened that Bale's name hasn't come up.  And it's all rumored with Real Madrid.

As a Spurs and Bale fan, I selfishly don't want him to leave... But after I actually took the time to look at everything as a neutral member of the "media," I think it would be in everyone's best interest if Bale stays at White Hart Lane.

Let's start with the obvious.  It's in Spurs' best interest to keep Bale because he's so damn good, the best player on the team, the face of the club, the revenue generator, and he pretty much was the entire team last season, scoring one third of the teams goals.

They need him.  The times Bale didn't play, Spurs looked lost and unable to generate anything.  Now the team has improved with the additions of Soldado, Paulinho, and Chadli, but that's not enough.  They need Bale.

But what about Real Madrid, Dave?  You said it would be in everyone's best interest if he stayed, how would it be in theirs to not get such a talented player?

Good question, I'm glad you asked.

First of all, they want Bale because they want to flex their muscle.  Tottenham isn't a brand like ManU or Chelsea or Barca.  Players can and have been lured away from there.  So just like Luka Modric, Real want to force Tottenham into selling one of their best.

No, they don't just want to flex muscle Dave, teams don't do that.

Real Madrid does.  Real has been about acquiring the best talent regardless of fit or team chemistry for years now.  While Barca develop moreso and bring in guys that fit perfectly, Real will just throw money at individual talent like an ADD kid playing FIFA.

You sign Bale, where does he play?  He plays the same position and style as Christiano Ronaldo, so do you move CRon?  Do you move Bale?  How can CRon and Bale gel?  What about Ozil, Benzema, amongst many others?

The pricetag is so enormous on Bale right now only a team with the priorities of Real Madrid would be dumb enough to pay it.  I love Bale, but he's not worth what Real will have to pay.  But all Real want to do is spend huge, absurd dollars, euros, pounds, whatever, to prove that they are a powerhouse.  They still won't beat Barca.

Why should Bale stay?  For the same reasons Tottenham need him and why Real shouldn't buy him.  

White Hart lane is perfect for him.  He's beloved, he's the star, he's turning into a brand.  At Real I have no doubt that he will struggle to catch fire.

The enormous price tag will come with enormous expectations and enormous pressure.  Bale is only 23 and probably not ready for it.  Real will give up more for Bale than they did to get CRon.  

He has a perfect situation with Tottenham.  Yes, they're not as alluring as Real or Barca, but he is the face of a team on the rise, that can and would pay him a HEAFTY amount to stay.  If he wants to continue to brand himself like he has lately, he'll stay at White Hart Lane

(at least for one more year)

Dombrowski Owns Deadline Day

He did it again.  Dave Dombrowski has once again gone out and made a good team better before that trade deadline hit.  He may not draft that well, but Dombrowski can sure wheel n deal with the best of em.

It started with the acquisition of Jose Veras from the Astros for outfield prospect Danry Vasquez.  Danry has potential and he's only 19, but outfield prospects seem to be a dime a dozen, especially in our system.  So ignore the fact he's ranked 4th in our system, it's worth parting ways.

In return, the Tigers get a veteran righty who will help solidify the back end of the pen.  He closed all year with Houston, so we know that if Benoit is unavailable, Veras can step in no problem.

But the big deal came around midnight.  In what is technically, two separate, two-team trades, the Detroit Tigers received young shortstop prospect Jose Iglesias from the Red Sox for the "two-pitch wonder" Brayan Villareal and little Miggy Avisail Garcia.  The Sox then shipped Garcia and a handful of prospects to the White Sox for Jake Peavy.

Technically not a three team trade, so DD technically did not send Garcia to a team in the division... buuuuut He probably knew all the pieces of this deal. And it's not a three-team trade because the ChiSox gave nothing to the Tigers, in case you're wondering why I'm being a stickler.

But back to the main point, Iglesias is such a snag by DD.  This kid can straight up play the position.  Oh and he can play third and second too.  The kid flashes leather like a drunk chick at Mardi Gras.

The bat isn't there, it won't ever be there.  He's hitting .330 by the sheer grace of God.  With development, he could be a .260-270 hitter.  But his defense will more than make up for his ineptitude at the plate.

Peralta will get suspended.  Everyone in the league knew we needed a SS and yet DD got us a pretty damn good one who's locked up for five years.

Bravo, Mr. Dombrowski.