A Beautiful Thread for the Beautiful Game

West Ham supporter reporting in, even if I haven't been following this season as closely as most

Things are... interesting. Of all the times to finally stop being absolutely godawful, now is a pretty good one. We're out of the relegation zone now, but not out of the woods yet, not by a long way. Although there are still games we can take points from.

Man Utd next... can has another 5-1 win, please?

I have relatives in the London area who always tell me about a friend of theirs who is a die hard West Ham supporter and follows the team almost religiously through thick and thin (but mostly thin, yes?). He's got a season ticket package at Upton Park and even follows the team to most away games.

That said, I'd hate to see the Hammers relegated as I do have a bit of a soft spot for them. It's just a shame that while they have such a wonderful reputation for bringing up a lot of future stars through their youth program that they can't have a good reputation for other things, like winning trophies, for instance.

edited 25th Mar '11 11:15:45 AM by SeanMurrayI

Yes, I'm a Seattle Sounders FC fan.

I don't pretend to understand some of our supporter groups. Half the time they really rally our crowd. Half the time I facepalm.

I watched a few MLS games on the TV and they are atrocious. Football is a good game when played well, but there's a certain tedium to it played badly. Last game I saw in person was Oxford United against, I think, Leicester City, which was a tawdry nil-nil affair. Ugh.

A brighter future for a darker age.

Just came from the game tonight and I didn't hear that chat that you referenced before.

Of course, sometimes I just can't understand the chants but I just don't recognize it at all.

Good match though, Sounders vs Houston Dynamo. Sounders dominated but damn Houston's keeper kept them in it and they pulled out a tie.

^Last I heard it was during the season opener against the Galaxy on an ESPN broadcast. I happened to come across the match while channel surfing and decided to leave it on just because of the Seattle's devoted fans... then I managed to hear that one fucking chant, and it bugged me for the rest of my evening.

edited 25th Mar '11 10:09:45 PM by SeanMurrayI

Probably didn't use it tonight most likely. Our supporter groups like to be showy during national broadcasts...

British troper signing in.

I'm a very casual fan of football, I'll take interest in the World Cup (although not to a flag wearing extent) although if england has a lacklustre team like last time I'll be disappointed. I mean really the majority of the papers were hyping up big time all the top paid players (Rooney et al) and I'm sure the players started to believe their own hype. That or they just don't care as they get paid anyway.

In the leagues I'm a casual Aston Villa fan although I will through in support for Birmingham City, due to family as they were local teams before moving across the UK.

@Sean Murray
As you said you are a yank through and through do you support Chelsea for a particular reason?

By the powers invested in me by tabloid-reading imbeciles, I pronounce you guilty of paedophilia!

Are you sure the US is the strongest team of North America? Mexico might not be among the very best, but it has a consistently better World Cup and Copa America track record than the US. Also, while it's true that the best teams are usually the ones which have enough money to get the best players, when you reach the highest level leagues (Spain, Italy and Great Britain), the teams that usually stand on top are not the ones with the most Star Power (Chelsea, "Galacticos" era Real Madrid), but rather the ones that are built better as a team, like Barcelona and Inter (even if they have their good share of stars themselves).

edited 26th Mar '11 6:52:33 AM by Noimporta

I became a Barcelona fan because I hated the galacticos.

Oh Jesus, that... first the Euro Cup, than the World Cup, we'll really be developing a Spain trauma if that goes on. But what can one do, it's really a case of a Worthy Opponent , in both cases Spain was simply better, and always played fair, too. Unlike, ehem, certain other national teams...

Yeah, football really is my favourite team sport, but even so I only watch it on the level of national teams. Though I guess the German league is at least a tad less "big teams"-orientated than in Italy or Spain, but still I don't find it as interesting on the level of single professional clubs.

edited 26th Mar '11 7:34:00 AM by Octo

Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken. Unrelated ME1 Fanfic

Yeah, I prefer Barcelona. They have better teamwork than Real Madrid. Then again, it's been a long time since I watched a Spanish league match.

It's not exactly naive. And it can happen. But it's tough. And definetly worthwhile.

Family ties, first and foremost. I got relatives living in the suburbs surrounding London, and they support Chelsea above all. That means I support Chelsea above all, too.

I should've probably better specified, "US has the strongest team in North America at present time." Historically, no, US soccer wouldn't come close to having that honor.

edited 26th Mar '11 9:49:59 AM by SeanMurrayI

I was a massive Sheffield Wednesday fan while I was in England, We used to go to sheffield to visit relative and watch them play(well lose) but seeing as they're not premier league it's kind of hard to follow them here

Now I go for Either Melbourne Victory(for the A league soccer) or Blackpool

edited 26th Mar '11 9:53:49 AM by faradayangel

Humour, where would we be without it? In Germany, probably

I always liked Sheffield Wednesday. I was never sure why, but I always liked them. Although these days I do have a reason to support them - that reason being the fact that they're not Sheffield United.

@Sean - yeah, we're the "Academy of Football" and not much else, sadly. We should at least be rolling in cash from selling so many successful players, but a squirrel could do a better job of financially running the club than the people we've had the past few years, and our club being bought by Iceland's biggest bank precisely three seconds before the entire Icelandic economy imploded certainly didn't help. It's not like I particularly like our current owners either, but hopefully they won't a) go spectacularly bust, or b) dubiously bring in two stars who unsettle the entire changing room to the extent that the team starts playing absolutely horribly.

Oh well, at least we beat Man U 5-1. That is never going to get old...

I remember hearing last summer that Sheffield Wednesday was on the verge of folding up entirely. I remember being very saddened by that news, especially when it really sounded then like they were going to be closing up for good. Though, somehow, they keep trudging along through League-1.

edited 26th Mar '11 10:12:36 AM by SeanMurrayI

I heard that I'd be quite saddened, we came 22nd(of 24 I beilieve) last season last which is abysmal

edited 26th Mar '11 10:19:35 AM by faradayangel

Humour, where would we be without it? In Germany, probably

^Indeed, Wednesday was relegated from the Championship division, and relegation is a pretty depressing for anybody's club, but the threat of liquidation would just be devastating. I don't know how they narrowly avoided that when it seemed almost certain for them last July, but damn is that club lucky.

edited 26th Mar '11 10:21:23 AM by SeanMurrayI

Foreign Owners now I believe, A serbian business men or something

I'd like to see Plymouth Argyle Make it to the premier league seeing as they're probably the only team from a major city never to have done so

edited 26th Mar '11 10:32:39 AM by faradayangel

Humour, where would we be without it? In Germany, probably

I will choose to pretend this is about me and my privately funded soccer team.

I spread my wings and I learn how to fly....

So you employ Ice Man?

^^^ Above all, the one team I'd want to see make it all the way to the Premier League is AFC Wimbledon, but knowing how that club came into being, who wouldn't want to see them reach the top table (let alone see them pass MK Dons along the way)?

Agreed that'd be good to see

Humour, where would we be without it? In Germany, probably

So the USA-Argentina friendly just wrapped up, ending in a 1-1 draw. The second half was the much more entertaining of the two halves, though Argentina's dominance in the first half wasn't that bad, either. It's a shame Lionel Messi couldn't find the back of the net.

Way to fake injuries people...I was disappoint. Nice no look pass by the US though.