The Twin Cities have seen 32 years go by since one of the big sports franchises in town won a title.
There have been smaller victories: college teams that top the land, minor league titles in baseball and soccer, and a truly dominant women’s basketball team.
But ask most fans to talk about Minnesota Sports and the story they tell you is one of pain and defeat: with phrases like, “the Cuzzi Call”, or “Gary Anderson’s Wide Left”, or “Bountygate” sure to bring a rueful sigh and a wince of emotion. Heck just say “New York Yankees” and your mom and I may let loose very un-parental profanity.
Part of doing this writing project for the last three years has been to put some of those defeats into context. To write about how sports are not better or worse because you win or lose. To try to raise you boys up to accept the defeats with grace and good humor rather than embittered angst that you see in the sourest local fans.
But it’s also to appreciate the great moments for what they are: truly special.
Dear Boys,
Most years, there’s not much to cheer for as a fan. In 2020 none of our teams took a trophy. In 2021 two of them (Emelec and Montana) picked up three between them. 2022 saw another round of positive performances that never included a golden trophy. This year was only 61 days old before one of our teams won a trophy.
Chencho, Brandon, and Lallawmawma in a more desperate defensive position (view19.in)
That victory, that trophy, that triumph is undoubtedly special. We’re thrilled for the players, coaches and extra staff that work for Roundglass Punjab. It’s worth while just to sit and savor it for a moment. But it’s also a great opportunity to learn a lesson from it as well.
While Emelec ran away with their league and the Griz took one tournament title through grit and another by default. But Punjab’s triumph was less secure.
In fact, just a week before their triumph hopes were fading.
They trailed a rival (Sreenidi Deccan) by goal difference, and Punjab had arguably the harder schedule ahead. They couldn’t just win, they needed to win by wide margins AND get help if they were going to take the title. A glaring defeat to Deccan seemed to loom bigger and bigger as the matches passed.
And then, it all seemed to fall into place.
No championship is won without a clear plan and organization: chaos does not yield results with any consistency. They went unbeaten in their last ten games. Punjab had one of the most impressive attacking trios of the league. Their goalie has conceded only 1 goal in the last 540 minutes of play. Powerful offense and stingy defense…that’s a pretty easy way to win games. They built a team to do it, developed a plan for it, and executed it perfectly.
Ashish Pradan before a decisive bit of good luck. (view19.in)
At the same time, no championship is won without a sizable amount of good fortune and Punjab’s title certainly shows that too: Deccan’s 4-0 loss to 10th place Mohammadan SC was a huge boon to the cause. The availability of Chenchyo Geltshen to create a three-headed monster at the front of the attack was not expected but extremely welcome. An own goal scored by Gokulam FC accounted for a game that might have been a draw to give Punjab all three points.
Some people will tell you that it’s better to be lucky than good. Punjab is certainly good, and they might be a little luckier than most. But their victory shows an honest reality: the best results come when people make the most of the luck they get.
Success isn’t just about a plan, and it isn’t just happenstance.
Success is a combination of good planning and good fortune.
And as Minnesota sports fans know: success is truly special.
It seemed for a while like Freiburg would get a draw against one of the legendary teams of Europe in that team’s legendary stadium. But Juve did what has made them a legendary team and found a way to win. Not all hope is lost, if Freiburg wins at home (and doesn’t allow Juve to score) they can advance.
There was some joy in continental competition, as Emelec snagged another spot destined for an Ecuadorian team in the Southamerican version of the Europa league. Miller Bolanos capitalized on one of the best dummy runs you’ll ever see by Samuel Sosa. Bolanos also netted the winner after Cuenca had equalized from the penalty spot. It’s becoming a habit for him.
After some underwhelming results, Grenoble got a key victory in the battle between the best sides in the French Alps. Mathias Phaeton made the most of his start up top, finding a way to work free and clear when the ball bounced into the box. Jordy Gaspar pegged an assist and a few crucial bits of defending to help Grenoble top their regional rivals.
Minnesota 1 – 1 NY Red Bulls
Bongokuhle Hlongwane got the Loons first goal in the snowy confines of St Paul, and after New York got even after a pressurized attack at the start of the second half, Minnesota had most of the opportunities to win. But as the score line shows…they didn’t.
Radnicki Nis 2 – 3 Vozdovac
The Dragons love clean sheets. They either take one (usually against the best teams in Serbia) or they enforce one (on pretty much anybody else). This marked only the fifth time in 26 matches this season that both teams scored. Given that they’ve won three, drawn one, and lost one, maybe they could play a little more aggressively and trust that the defense will see them through, especially as Milos Krunic was superb in goal throughout the first half. Mihajlo Neskovic continued his strong form with another goal, and Niska Vujanovic notched one that was drilled so hard he got offered a carpentry job.
Punjab FC 2 – 0 TRAU
It was a triumphant homecoming for Punjab as they finished off the I-League campaign lifting the trophy that they so richly deserved. They did take a little time to trounce their opponents before the party got underway, with (who else) Luka Macjen netting twice (including once from an “I dare you” chip shot) to complete a superb 12 match unbeaten run for the Warriors. (Enjoy the highlights and do stay for the award ceremony celebration)
Freiburg 2 – 1 Hoffenheim (M)
The best of the Black Forest looked to be heading for another underwhelming result in a week full of them, when Ristu Doan slashed a volley on a low cross and snatched a late winner. Freiburg continues to linger on the outer edges of the German title picture, so hopefully whatever happens against Juventus, they’ll be playing meaningful football for the next several months.
Saint Etienne 4 – 0 Grenoble (F)
The ladies of Grenoble struggled against an undefeated Saint Etienne side, as you might expect. Franny Arpine helped solidify the win for the top team in the table with an own goal. The loss drops Grenoble to 10th place in their league, but only 4 points separate them from 6th place…so…who knows.
Berekum Chelsea 1 – 0 Legon Cities
The Royals know…that things are really bleak. Another loss for Legon sees them drop into the relegation zone for Ghana’s Premier League. A year of refocusing may not be the worst thing, but we would sorely miss some of the elite talent that would likely look to leave as soon as the final whistle blows. (Of course there are still 13 matches to go, so things can change, it just doesn’t feel very optimistic around the Royals right now.
SGS Essen 2 – 1 SC Freiburg (F)
Adding to the pessimist punch bowl, the Frauen from Freiburg lost their perfect record against lower table teams when Essen broke out at the start of the second half. Worse there was also an early departure for Hasret Kayicki and general disarray for the attack.
Viking 2 – 0 Rosenborg (M-Cup)
Yes our Norwegian friends are back in action! And they’re also immediately out of it! Truthfully, the fact that Rosenborg’s last round of the Cup came back in June 2022, raises the question of how reliable any of this is. After all, they had time to sign a prolific striker, and sell him between the two rounds.
Emelec v. Tecnico Universitario (M): Postponed
The entire Ecuadorian league was put on a pause this weekend. (See the note below for more information and some total fiction)
Alebrijes 2 – 2 UDG
The first half was pretty tame, but when the skies opened up and rain started to fall in the second, the goals poured in as well (which isn’t too surprising given how poor both team’s defenses have been this season) Alebrijes took the lead, twice. They gave it back, twice. Julio Cruz and Ernesto Reyes got the goals and Octavio Paz (not the poet) gave them back. Still a point is a help for Alebrijes.
News & Notes
More interesting reasons Emelec’s game got cancelled
Choose for yourself the reason why Ecuador’s league was cancelled this week:
The League went on a special Turtle watching expidition in the Galapagos Islands (to learn your boys favorite spanish word: Tortuga!)
A truly terrible round of farts went through every locker room and no one could be near eachother.
The tv broadcasters asked for a rescheduling for undisclosed reasons
Queen Elsa of Arandelle froze every field and the league had to call in the super hot laser blasts of Iron Man to thaw it.
One of those reasons is true (hint: it’s the boring business one), the others should amuse my children. I know which I prefer.
Speaking of TV
For the first time in…well…ever…I watched the Loons on our TV downstairs. This was made possible by the Loons league making a new and stunning deal to put all their games on a computer streaming service rather than regular TV (which your mom and I stopped having). This is a new move in sports TV, while you can get some matches for some leagues in other countries on line (as we sometimes do with Freiburg), this is a big local league wide gamble. If it pays off you boys will probably never know another way of doing it. If not…well…this will be an odd bit of trivia.
Punjab Wins all the Awards
Most movie awards this weekend went to a oddball movie that involved hot-dog fingers, body slams, and googly eyes.
Best Ensemble (From Roundglass Punjab on Twitter)
Most Indian Hero League awards went to Roundglass Punjab, who celebrated their status as the top team in the league with awards for Best Goalie (Kiran Limbu), Best Midfielder (Juan Mera), Best Coach (Staikos Vergetis). And with his two goals Luka Macjen won both the Golden Boot (for most goals scored) and the league MVP (since they’re sponsored by Hero motorcycles, they named the MVP the “League Hero” award…because they’re clever)
It’s hard to settle on a player of the week. While Punjab can rightly lay claim to another trophy, their win was more matter of fact than inspiring. Vozdovac got a great showing from their goalie to keep them in a tightly contested match, but I’m going to give the edge to Ritsu Doan who’s late goal made a huge impact on the mood around Freiburg (despite his goalless drought, he’s been so fundamental to making space for others–and for inspiring in the World Cup that I think he’s overdue for some recognition)
Ritsu Doan in action (from Kyodo Times)
Standings
Rosenborg broke the streak of starting seasons with wins, and in so doing saved Ross County from dropping to the bottom of the table (just six more months until Montana kicks off!). Meanwhile Punjab again claimed the top spot but they won’t be resting on their laurels as the Indian Super Cup will kick off in April with more drama afoot and a chance to see RoundGlass against their future Super League rivals.
Team
W
D
L
PPG
GFA
GAA
Punjab
11
2
1
2.50
2.64
0.79
Emelec
2
0
1
2.00
1.67
1.00
Minnesota
1
1
0
2.00
1.00
0.50
Freiburg
6
3
6
1.40
1.53
1.87
Grenoble
7
4
9
1.25
1.00
1.20
Vozdovac
2
2
3
1.14
0.71
1.71
Legon Cities
2
5
4
1.00
0.82
1.09
Alebrijes
2
4
5
0.91
1.27
1.45
Ross County
2
3
5
0.90
1.10
1.10
Rosenborg
0
0
1
0.00
0.00
1.00
Montana–b
0
0
0
—
—
—
Table Updated 3/15/22 b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Thursday, March 16th
Freiburg v. Juventus (M-European Cup–Freiburg trails 1-0)
Armando Gonzalez gave us reason to hope that Oaxaca could be on to a winning streak, but a penalty in the 66th minute gave it all back. So let’s keep rooting for an unbeaten streak!
Eintracht Frankfurt 4 – 1 SC Freiburg (F)
Fresh off their stirring Cup performance, the ladies of Freiburg struggled to connect against Frankfurt and suffered a disappointing defeat. Hasret Kayici netted an equalizer, but the Griffins continue to struggle against anyone above them in the table: (better than most, not at the same level as the others)
Rajasthan United 0 – 4 Punjab FC
Punjab put it beyond all doubt in their game against Rajasthan (who, for some reason, played their game in Delhi?). An early own goal (originally attributed to Chenchyo Geltsen) gave way to more and more from the attacking trio: Luka Macjen and Juan Mera got their own and there was no doubt that the Warriors would win the match and take the title!
Borussia Munchen Gladbach 0 – 0 Freiburg (M)
Mark Flekken did everything he was asked to do and more, as Freiburg got a point on the road. Gladbach was a little extra physical, and even though they went down to ten men before the end of the game, Freiburg couldn’t capitalize.
Ross County 0 – 2 Motherwell
Eomonn Brophy followed his sterling showing without doing much of anything. And when center back Jack Baldwin saw red with twenty minutes to play, it was not terribly promising. Sure enough Motherwell brought forward more attack and got the goals they needed to deny the hosts any points.
Dijon 1 – 0 Grenoble
Les Alpiners also had a bit of a hangover from their cup trip to Lyon last week, giving up a first half goal to Dijon and being forced to chase the match from there.
Legon Cities 1 – 1 Real Tamale
Any point is a positive point for Legon Cities, but losing the lead that Samuel Armah gave them with just seven minutes to play stings. They now sit above relegation based only on goal difference. Last time things were this close, it took a major penalty to a relegation rival to survive. Fingernails are getting short in Legon.
Yzeure Allier 2 – 0 Grenoble Foot (F)
There was little to enjoy about Grenoble’s match against their neighbor in the standings. Several ugly errors cost them dearly as Yzeure grabbed three valuable points, and the offense seemed unable to do anything against one of Ligue Deux’s worst defenses.
Vozdovac 0 – 0 Vojvodina
This was a soccer match. It happened. And, it kind of didn’t.
Orense 2 – 1 Emelec (M)
Despite going a man up within 5 minutes, Emelec could not find a way through Orense. In fact, they ended up being out maneuvered by their opponents and coughing up all the points to a shorthanded opposition.
Raya2Expansion 1 – 1 Alebrijes
Oaxaca was first off the mark (again). Armando Gonzalez provided the first half goal (again). But the defense faltered (again). hmm…is there a Time Machine about?
Note: this match is not included in the standings posted below
News & Notes
Boys Weekend!
Your mom went out of town to a yoga retreat for the weekend, so it was boys time! We had a nice time watching superhero movies and you were mightily impressive at cleaning up the house and packing your bags for a sleepover with grandma and grandpa. Once we were there, Alex built some daring marble races out of my old train set, and Owen hit grandpa’s soft toss all over the house (which is more than he let me do). Then you finished your Soccer Shots training program and celebrated both having medals! (HUZZAH Medals!)
The Conquering Warriors
There will be much more to say about Punjab FC’s victory in the I-League (trust me I’ve been writing a piece about it to post later this month), but suffice to say it feels pretty darn good. And I just watch the team!
The victory comes with hardware for the trophy case, yes; but it also comes with the promise of more exciting days to come. First in April, Punjab will be guaranteed a spot in the Super Cup (an event kind of like the World Cup, but only for Indian club sides). Then, next fall, they’ll join the top flight of Indian soccer: the Indian Super League (as long as they prove that they can financially manage it).
Not So Luck of the Draw
Freiburg’s cup opponents are…uh…good. First, the men step into the last 16 of the Europa League against a little team named Juventus: a team with 3 Europa Leagues already (as well as 9 Champions League finals). Then, in the German Cup, they go into the quarter final against Bayern Munich (the team that has 9 straight League titles and twenty cup titles). And the ladies, well, they’ll face RB Leipzig’s women side in the Semi-final of their tournament (the same Leipzig organization that beat the men last year in the final).
But Freiburg did win the second division. When has Juventus done that?!? (Never, they play in Italy…but still, I’m looking for hope)
Player of the Week
It wasn’t a great week for almost all our teams, but when it was good it was down right great! So let’s give a nod to a great goalkeeper well worthy of being the first keeper named this year: Kiran Limbu of the Punjabi champions: this one is for you.
Standings
Emelec’s stay at the top was brief, but Minnesota is still blocking Punjab’s path to the top…for now. (There is a match at home, but having seen them play in sub-zero snowy weather before, I’m not eager to repeat that experience.) Next week we’ll see if Rosenborg continues the trend of strong starts as the men have their first match of the year in the Norwegian Cup.
Team
W
D
L
PPG
GFA
GAA
Minnesota
1
0
0
3.00
1.00
0.00
Punjab
10
2
1
2.46
2.69
0.85
Emelec
1
0
1
1.50
1.50
1.00
Freiburg
5
3
4
1.50
1.67
2.00
Grenoble
6
4
8
1.22
1.00
1.06
Legon Cities
2
5
3
1.10
0.90
1.10
Ross County
2
3
5
0.90
1.10
1.10
Alebrijes
2
2
5
0.89
1.22
1.44
Vozdovac
1
2
3
0.83
0.33
1.67
Rosenborg–b
0
0
0
—
—
—
Montana–b
0
0
0
—
—
—
Table Updated 3/8/22 b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Thursday, March 9th
Juventus v. Freiburg (M-European Cup)
Emelec v. Deportivo Cuenca (M-South American Copa)
The Dragons staged an impressive comeback thanks in part to a great goal from youngster Mihajlo Neskovic who netted after a perfectly placed headed pass from Borisav Burmaz.
Alebrijes 4 – 0 Correcaminos
Oaxaca found their scoring shoes at last! A full 40% of their goals this term came from the second 45 minutes of play, their best showing since the first half against Dorados a little under a month ago. The best of the bunch was probably Ernesto Reyes’ volley smash, but that might leave out the sensational play of Cristian Canozales who notched the first goal and two assists on absurd little fakes that seemed to break ankles and hearts in equal measure. (We’ll post Reyes’ goal below, but enjoy Canozales’ celebration as well)
Grenoble 0 – 0 Le Havre (M)
Ordinarily I make a “and that happened” joke, but this was a pretty fraught nil-nil. Le Havre tops Ligue 2 and hadn’t lost since August. But they couldn’t get past Brice Maubleu even on a penalty chance.
Dallas 0 – 1 Minnesota United
Coming into this season there was plenty of talk about how the Loons were so dependent on Emmanuel Reynoso that the Argentine’s absence would be the death knell of any Minnesota opportunities. Enter: Mender Garcia. The Colombian rampaged around Dallas’ area, providing a trap that set up one blast and hitting the rebound even harder. He might have had a second if not for a late tackle that truly looked dangerous to me. Add in Kervin Arriaga’s free kick blasts and the Loons were showing strong shots even without their talisman.
Ross County 4 – 0 Dundee United
Eamonn Brophy hasn’t exactly set Dingwall alight since he arrived on a loan in January, but this might have changed that, as two goals, an assist, and some absolute blasted attempts made the Stags look better than they have in ages over fellow relegation battlers Dundee United.
Punjab FC 8 – 0 Sudeva FC
Not to be out done, Punjab FC utterly smoked lowly Sudeva FC featuring a Juan Mera hat trick and five other goals to boost their point total and their goal difference.
Grenoble Foot 0 -2 Nice (F)
It might have been a bit of a hangover for Nicholas Delpine and his Haitian contingent coming back to a hard grinding league match after clinching World Cup qualification.
Freiburg 1 – 1 Bayern Leverkusen (M)
The Griffins always seem to struggle against Leverkusen, and with Vincenzo Grifo’s early goal to back them, they were quite happy to hunker down and soak up the pressure. Still, Bayern worked their way back into the match and split the points.
Volta Rangers 1 – 2 Legon Cities FC (CUP)
The Royals took the early lead thanks to Adu Medier, but sloppy defending gave Volta a life line in the second half. As is the way when tournament games end in a tie, they turned to Penalty Kicks and Legon got the results they needed to advance on to the next round.
Emelec 2 – 0 Libertad (M)
Miller Bolanos returned to Emelec and swiftly notched his first assist and his first goal for Los Bombillos since February 2016 (he had gotten 42 goals across Brazil, Mexico, and China in the interim.) The cheeky heel flick and the confident goal in stride made it clear, we’re going to like this going forward.
Lyon 2 – 1 Grenoble (M-Cup)
Les Grenobloises had an uphill climb to knock out the Lions of Lyon including a number of world class players. Matthais Phaeton and Jessy Benet didn’t look intimidated, but they also didn’t run the back line, and Lyon capitalized with two first half goals that led to a rare goalkeeping substitution in the second half for Grenoble. A consolation goal for Amine Sbai gave Grenoble a small lifeline, but even biased folks like me have to acknowledge the better team won.
FK Radnik Surdulica 2 – 0 FK Vozdovac
Borisav Burmaz’s second half red card turned the tide and gave Radnik the advantage it needed to push up and get not just one, but two goals to tame the dragons.
Carl Zeiss Jena FC 0 – 4 SC Freiburg (F-Cup)
The Frauen brought their A game to Jena and spread the wealth around ensuring that three different scorers (and one very ugly own goal) notched some credit in the Quarter final victory. The team’s incisive passing and clear communication gave them a big advantage on the unsteady and unsafe hands of Jena’s defense.
Punjab FC 3 – 1 Churchill Brothers
The Warriors rolled through the toughest match remaining on their schedule. Again the dynamic attack of Macjen, Mera, and Gyeltshen was formidable. Each one netted a goal, and the win vaulted Punjab even farther up the standings.
Legon Cities 1 – 1 Tamale United
Kofi Kordzi continues to have the best form of anyone on the Royals roster, but after years with with one of the best defenses in Ghana, Legon’s suspect back line has let them down. There’s nothing wrong with getting a point in a match, but it’s also disappointing after what they wanted to get.
News & Notes
Soccer Shots Shoot-out
For the first time MacKenzie boys took the field for the first time. Okay, the field was a gym and, by Owen’s account, Alex played and he hung out on the sideline dancing around. But still! You had fun, and that alone is celebration!
Immediately after that we got bombarded with snow and over the ensuing 5 day mini-vacation you discovered lots of other ways to play together, in particular fighting mummies (me) and throwing snowballs (at me). I’m awfully proud.
I-League Update
The biggest shift in the I-League didn’t come in a Punjab match. Instead, Deccan’s loss to Mohamadan SC in an absolute wild match, created a vital opening that Punjab promptly capitalized on. The monstrous 8-0 completely erased the goal difference deficit and put them firmly in the driver seat. As if that wasn’t enough, Deccan dropped more points by only getting a draw against 10 man Aizawl FC, and another win puts Punjab up by 5 points with two matches to play.
A win against Rajasthan, and Punjab can be sure of taking home this year’s trophy…set your alarms!
Electric Loons!
Emelec and Minnesota both kicked off this week, giving us 9 of the 11 teams in action. Both teams are in an unusual position to start the year. Emelec, having spent last season outside of the top tier of challengers, they have brought in a host of veterans to bolster their claim to the crown. Meanwhile Minnesota, operating without Emmanuel Reynoso, will need to try to find a way to win without having one man run the show.
Player of the Week
Jiminy Christmas! When it rains it absolutely pours great performances. Cristian Canozales, Kervin Arriaga, Eomon Brophy. But the huge week for Punjab puts them in the pole position for the award, and while I’d like to give it to Kiran Limbu’s dominance in goal, you can’t ignore the fact that Juan Mera scored as many goals ON HIS OWN, as every other team in our competition scored TOGETHER. So, Juan Mera, take a bow, and a plethora of points!
Standings
The early going of the season can often flatter folks. Emelec and Minnesota shouldn’t get too fond of their top of the table position, just ask Vozdovac who went from the top to the bottom in a few short weeks. After all, Punjab is clearly determined to top their own league, and maybe ours too.
It took a second half equalizer from Ahmed Rahman to salvage Legon’s final match of 2022. There was a clear break down for Karela, but part of the challenge is taking advantage when those moments come up.
Grenoble 0 – 1 Metz (M)
Grenoble was unable to pick a path through Metz, and ended up paying the price as they slipped farther away from promotion spots.
Adventure Bay 4 – 3 Foggy Bottom (Paw Patrol Derby)
The soccer match you were most invested in was a random one in a Paw Patrol episode you got to watch over the weekend. I’m not very clear on how well anyone understands the rules of the game…but Rubble the Bulldog managed to score a pair of goals with his Rocket kick, and Foggy Bottom’s strategy of cheating and using robots made the game closer than it looked.
Aberdeen 0 – 0 Ross County
While I usually laughingly leave these recaps at on sentence, I have a few more things to say this time. First, Aberdeen actually gave our old Minnesota United pal Christian Ramirez a start even though he didn’t get anything too dangerous around the goal, and Alex Iacovitti shut down almost everything (crosses, goal line taps…everything.
News & Notes
Bring in the reinforcements
When January starts so does the time for clubs to restock their rosters. There hasn’t been too much movement for the teams that are in the middle of their seasons, but Minnesota United has done quite a bit to fortify their side (even if it doesn’t seem like anybody they added was a true game changer) with winger Cameron Dunbar, center back Doneil Henry and right back Zarek Valentin most likely to fill in gaps.
Emelec’s Homecoming Duo
Rosenborg to look overseas to build up their case for an overdue title in Trondheim. Ulrik Yttergard Jennsenn has been in Denmark (and started in the lofty heights of Lyon), and Morten Bjorlo knows the league after joining from HamKam. But the big name is the young and gifted Finnish midfielder Santeri Vaananen, who has been lighting up his local league and is only 21.
Freiburg faces an unusual challenge, up at 2nd place in the league, trying to solidify their spot, but still sending out strong players for deals they know they need to do. So, Keven Schlotterbeck is off to relegation battling VfL Bochum to get more playing time and Kevin Schade is off to Brentford in the premier league to get more money.
Other teams are busy as well: Vozdovac lost a reliable defender but gained three foreign attackers; Emelec has been frantic, but bringing in older domestic veterans to bring leadership (including Miller Bolanos, and Brayan Anguelo who started with Emelec and now return with a world of experience under their belt)
Alebrijes Anew
From NVI Noticias
Alebrijes had a tremendous Clausura in the spring of 2022 and may be hoping to “spring” a similar surprise and vault themselves into the competition for the Expansion title (even if that’s the only reward that they can get).
The squad did say goodbye to three strong performers from the fall with Hedgardo Marin and attacking machine Alfonso Tamay packing up for Cancun, while second stringer Alonso Hernandez headed off for Leones Negros. Meanwhile they brought back loanee Julio Cruz from a middling return to Costa Rica (he did score two goals in his last match) and added another veteran in Jorge Mora (the 31 year old is certainly in the substitute stage of his career). The younger additions (Left Back, Edson Santos; and Midfielder, Emmanuel Quezada) are more development projects than well-prepped starters. So it seems likely that Oaxaca will require another big showing from forward Armando Gonzalez to provide the goals and Octavio Paz to stop them (and maybe write some great poetry).
Player of the Week
We could make it the last player of 2022, but let’s think about what’s to come and give it to the best player of 2023, even though there’s only one team that qualifies, and given the way it turned out, really only one candidate. But don’t worry Alex Iacovitti, there’s plenty of celebration to bestow on you.
Standings
Our first table of 2023 sees Ross County invert the table to go from worst in the last week of 2022, to best in the first week of 2023. They are also the only team to play so far in 2023…but standings are standings.
Last year I thrilled at how I was able to have a normal-ish routine through this writing….then I absolutely lost all sense of routine. Still and all, I’m glad to look back on the year that was and the fates of our favorite 11 sides on the planet.
Final Standings
Team
W
D
L
PPG
GFA
GAA
Rosenborg BK–b
36
11
17
1.86
2.23
1.2
Minnesota–b
28
8
15
1.80
1.84
1.27
Freiburg–b
26
14
14
1.70
2.41
1.54
Punjab
12
6
7
1.68
1.52
1.36
Alebrijes–b
14
14
8
1.56
1.28
0.83
Vozdovac–b
14
9
12
1.46
1.03
1.14
Montana–b
7
7
6
1.40
1.25
0.85
Legon Cities
12
14
10
1.39
1.06
0.61
Grenoble Foot
21
10
22
1.35
1.25
1.19
Emelec–b
17
13
18
1.33
1.50
1.27
Ross County
13
9
21
1.12
1.12
1.46
Table Updated 12/31/22 b–Team is between seasons
None of our favorite teams won any hardware this year, but while no one hit the heights of last year, there was some impressive consistency up and down the table.
Rosenborg takes home this year’s sippy cup, built on a consistent run from both the men and the women. Minnesota came close to matching them, but the Loons couldn’t maintain their mid-summer surge leaving Aurora carrying the load for our local sides.
Freiburg and Punjab put together great runs as well, and the Griffins came away with the most heart breaking outcome of the year losing the German Cup on penalties to more of a money bag team. Punjab’s rotating managers and star players makes it a little hard to build consistency, but clearly they have a strategy that has worked well for them.
Alebrijes de Oaxaca had the greatest improvement from the last year, jumping half a point per game, while Montana had a disappointing turn dropping from dominant to merely good. Still with the Griz seeing tremendous showings from a lot of underclassmen, the future is bright again.
At the bottom of the table, Emelec had a great showing in the Copa Liertadores, but couldn’t keep the same form in Ecuador, meanwhile the ladies became the first team we follow to be relegated out of their division after a dismal campaign, Even so, they still out showed Ross County whose strong finish to the 2023 season has been washed away in an underwhelming fall.
Players of the Year
Coming back with another year of favorite players was again difficult, but we’re noticing that there are some players who are pretty much always on the team sheet. Hats off to Romario Caicedo, Hasret Kayici, and Jonah Attaquye for being in the starting line-up two years running, and welcome back Vincenzo Grifo.
Grifo’s former defensive teammate, Nico Schlotterback, also made the starters. Even though he moved to Dortmund during the summer, his showing with Freiburg left no doubt that he was deserving. The only other team to get multiple players in the starting XI, was Minnesota Aurora off their undefeated regular season with Mackenzie Langdock, and Sarah Fuller.
Antonio Portales’ captaincy and leadership of the vastly improved Alebrijes made him their first starter, and Sarah Kanutte Forness took the Julie Blakstad endowed chair in the midfield (I’m going to bring up Julie Blakstad once a year, so help me goodness).
And at the front of the attack, we put Casper Tengstedt, who led Rosenborg, despite only playing for them for half the year, and the golden boot winner in Scotland: Regan Charles Cook.
We also expanded our bench (if 9 subs is good enough for the World Cup, it’s good enough for us!). This helped us to find spots for every team in our list including Laliz Tenorio for las Electricas, and our favorite Haitian international: Sherly Jeudy. Allie Larsen reps the Grizzlies, while Milos Pantovic, and Kurtiss Guthrie get the nods for Vozdovac and Punjab. Minnesota United also contributed two members to the bench as Robin Lod and Dayne St. Clair had great years, but not quite great enough to take starting jobs from the others.
What’s Next
I can and will be more consistent in writing, and after the fun of having you boys contribute ideas and messages to the videos after matches, I want to plan on taking you to more games (Minnesota Aurora for sure, maybe we can find a plac eon our family vacation in Mexico.
Last year I also tried to set a standard of talking to reps from each team, but only got two done before the move consumed my life. We’ll try again this year.
Not in a world shaking, business shuttering, economy crashing, global pandemic way.
But it was a hefty change in the way we lived and the work that was needed.
We bought a house.
My waking hours shifted from leisurely repair projects punctuated by writing inspiration, to an incessant to do list of packing, repacking, scheduling, painting, rescheduling and suddenly recalling undone tasks.
I had hoped that when we moved in, I could return to writing more. I neglected to notice how the minor house issues you put off become a lot more vital once you move in.
I’m under no illusions now. This project sits firmly to the side on my list of hustles (in the non-profitable category). But I remain dedicated to that idea, that if you show the world how you play, it will show the world who you are.
If we look at and cheer for eleven teams around the world, it can show us how to live. This year, we cheered more than we watched. But we can still see how to live.
How did they do, while life forced us to make other plans? What can we learn from it all…here are their results and our thoughts
Rosenborg
Women’s Record: 9 W-2 D-6 L// 30 GF-20 GA
Men’s Record: 16 W-4 D- 5 L//75-GF 38-GA
Story: as has been the routine, Rosenborg has all kinds of attacking strength. They spent most of the summer pouring in goals. Émilie Nautnes and Sara Kanutte Forness led one line while mid season acquisition Casper Tengstedt set the other one on fire (15 goals in 14 matches…yikes!)
But each side also faced some serious challenges. The men couldn’t seem to hold a defensive shape, scoring and ceding goals in droves en route to another distant third place finish. Meanwhile the troll kvinner got knocked down by Real Madrid’s ladies side and seemed to end an otherwise stellar season in a rotten funk losing three of their final four to miss out on another crack at the Champions League next year.
Lesson: balance yourself, neither your strengths nor your struggles define you.
Minnesota
Women’s Record: 13 W-1 D-1 L//39 GF-10 GA
Men’s Record 9 W-4 D-9 L//34 GF – 41 GA
Story: Locally we had some absolutely marvelous moments this summer. I say that not only because I had you boys with me at a few matches, but because the quality of the games was superb.
For a stretch, no one was playing better soccer than Minnesota United. Dayne St. Clair was stopping everything hit his way, Emmanuel Reynoso was connecting with everyone around him. Robin Lod had made me look utterly foolish by becoming someone people around the world were eyeing hopefully.
It all came undone of course. The Loons ended up squeaking into the playoffs and then bowing out quickly, but it was still wonderful while it lasted.
Likewise the first season for Minnesota Aurora was practically perfect. The team went unbeaten throughout the regular season and combined superb defense with a dynamite attack. Sarah Fuller anchored the defense in the goal, and Morgan Turner poured in the goals, and the team became a vital part of the larger community connecting players, fans, coaches, and staff. Even though it ended in defeat at the final hurdle (seems to be a theme for our favorites), it was a marvelous way to spend a summer.
(As an added bonus, the youngest member of Aurora, Bayliss Flynn, signed to join the Montana Grizzlies, so she is the second athlete to play for two of our favorites)
Lesson: There’s no place like home.
Freiburg
Men’s Record 15 W – 5 D – 3 L// 42 GF- 22 GA
Women’s Record 6 W – 1 D – 3 L// 25 GF- 14 GA
Story: Janina Minge has emerged as a leading innovator offensively for die Freiburg Frauen. But, they have continued to lack a decisive element that would vault them up into the Bundesliga’s top tier alongside Wolfsburg, Bayern, or Frankfurt. (Maybe they could use some of Minnesota Aurora’s squad…just saying)
But that’s exactly where the men’s team has found a new stride. Christian Stretch’s steady presence has been a model for players who bring out their best every week, even with an extra competition in the Europa League to challenge them, the Griffins are having another tremendous season, with Mathias Ginter and Christian Günter leading the defense, and newly adopted Ritsu Doan joining Vincenzo Grifo to lead the attack.
Lesson: much as we want the shiniest trophies, being your best, regardless of the result can be the greatest reward
Round Glass Punjab
Record: 4 W- 1D-1L//7 GF-5 GA
Story: While most of the world turned their attention to the World Cup in Qatar, Punjab’s season got started, but with a different look than usual. Gone is last year’s dominant scorer Kurtiss Guthrie (off to play in Scotland against Ross County), in are a host of eastern european veterans. Gone are the run of British coches, in is Greek manager Staikos Vergetis. But best of all, Nepali keeper Kiran Limbu Chempjong (though, he hasn’t been as unbeatable this year as he was in his previous run with the club).
Still the special winter season on the subcontinent has a long way to go before we’re done, so we’ll sit back and enjoy what is rather than wonder about what was.
Lesson: Whatever else you focus on, life carries on.
Alebrijes de Oaxaca
Record: 4 W-9 D-5 L//22 GF-18 GA
Story: Alebrijes closed out the spring season with a sterling showing. They seemed to have everything well handled in attack and defense. But then they were undone in the playoffs, and come the fall campaign seemed to have lost all their mojo. The departure of Juan Portales made the defense less stable, and the crucial finishing touch to turn draws into victories. And then they lost in the playoffs.
Lesson: what seem like your best days and hardest days all end in the same place.
Vozdovac
Record: 9 W-4 D-6 L//17 GF-22 GA
Story: The Red Dragons continue to methodically build their team and their identity the hard way. Match by match, game by game, step by step. After saying goodbye to a raft of their regular talents, the team got significantly younger during the offseason, bringing in a raft of under 21 talent to nurture and grow on their own. Even though the team still hasn’t hit the top of the table (thanks again Partizan and Red Star), they are consistently a team to challenge you, and Milos Pantovic has proven himself (at only 20 years old) to be a dynamic scorer. (I’m still hoping for some more break out showings by Bogdan Jocic, and Borisav Burmaz.)
Lesson: Hope is a thing with dragon wings.
Montana
Record: 7 W-7 D-6 L//25 GF-17 GA
Story: The years we’ve kept track on this blog have been a consistent study in the excellence of the Griz. So much so that it started to seem like a forgone conclusion. The Griz were certainly prepped to bring another conference title home after holding their own against non-conference opponents (including ties against much more prestigious schools including Creighton and close defeats to Pitt and Portland).
But every year is different, and it seemed as though the other teams found a path through the vaunted Griz defense, or at least that there was more pressure than usual on Camilla Xu. Maysa Walters and Delaney Schorr were a solid goal scoring combination, but ultimately there was more depth and diversity in attack from Northern Arizona and Idaho (whose goalies also managed to stop more shots than Xu). The Griz did what they do well, other teams just did it better.
Lesson: Game Recognizes Game.
Grenoble
Women’s Record: 4 W-1 D-5 L//18 GF-13 GA
Men’s Record: 7 W-5 D-3 L//16 GF-12 GA
Story: The records don’t tell the whole story for the Alpiners. Nicolas Delpine’s side continued to showcase the skills and talents of Sherly Jeudy week in and week out, but (as we’ve seen before) the defense has been more suspect, giving up about three goals per game. But, things have turned around well the last couple of weeks and the team heads into the break with two wins in a row (three if they win in the Cup this Sunday)
Meanwhile, the men dusted themselves off after a lackluster previous season and are well positioned to, once again, put themselves in contention for promotion during the season’s second half. The team has been on a seven match unbeaten run with a trio of new attackers leading the charge. Pape Meissa Ba, Jordan Tell, and Abdoulie Sayang are all new to the squad in the year 2022, and they have led the scoring. But the team has been Matthias Phaeton, the Guadeloupe player who has featured in every match as a sub or a starter and has bopped everywhere there’s grass in pursuit of the game. Add this to our beloved backline squad and you have a strong team that may just get stronger in the spring.
Lesson: Never underestimate the element of surprise
Legon Cities
Record 3 W-8 D-5 L//8 GF-8 GA
Story: I love Legon as much as I love Nkatekwan, and as you boys seem to have inherited my zeal for all things peanut buttery, I think you’ll know that’s a lot of love. Legon loves Jonah Attaquye as well. He’s only 22 and he has fast become their talisman. And yet, Jonah can’t do it all on his own. The increasing pressure of carrying the load for the team, distributing the ball to scorers who struggle to connect and running the show. This season, he and defender Suleman Mohammed have missed a total of 5 minutes across all their games.
Lesson: Love is Love, but dependency is dangerous.
Ross County
Record: 7 W-4 D-10 L//25 GF-31 GA
Story: A year ago, the fall campaign was anything but kind to the Staggies. The team looked to be every bit as shaky as it was when it faced relegation, but then the ship was righted and they got their best final table position in about a decade.
But that was with Reagan Charles Cook playing chef du’jour. With his departure for Belgium, County had to try to fill in with a raft of other players to match his same creativity and finishing. While midfielder Yan Dhada brings an impressive resume and strong creativity, we’ve yet to see either Jordy Hiluwa or Jordan White dominate the game the way Regan did. So it’s a lot like last season…but that turned out pretty well so lets be patient.
Lesson: Enjoy the comfort food of home cooking while it lasts.
Emelec
Women’s Record: 1 W-1 D-4 L//4 GF-11 GA
Men’s Record: 7 W-5 D-5 L//23 GF-17 GA
Story: Los Bombillos and Las Electricas had a little less productive campaign than in prior years. The goals seemed to dry up and there was no clear answer in goal. Laliz Tenorio, the woman who is older than your Uncle Simon and twice as powerful, led the attack (as best she could). Unfortunately, things were so ineffective, that Emelec was dropped out of the top Women’s League in Ecuador and will now need to earn promotion again. I’ve been looking for where I can find coverage of the amateur women’s leagues in Ecuador, but I may not be able to find it…hopefully we’ll see Las Electricas again soon.
Likewise, the men who offered such dominance in prior years, could not break through to the upper echelon of the league. In the past they might have been able to pull some surprises against opponents in knock-out stages, but this year it was only the champion of each half of the season. The team did break through into the knock out stages of the big continental battle of the Copa Libertadores, bowing out to former Brazilian boss “Hulk”. Even though his career in Guyaquil looks to be over, Sebastian Rodriguez closed out his three year career with the club as a leader and definitive goal scorer. And as ever, Romario Caiceido continues to be the air raid master in his dangerous balls.
Lesson: Part of the journey is the end, and that’s beautiful too.
Standings
There are two more weeks of relevant matches, but the standings are pretty clearly set. Grenoble and Legon Cities could reach the mid-table and Punjab could climb as high as 3rd. But Rosenborg BK has set themselves up for their second Sippy Cup in three years.
Legon grabbed the lead in the first half as Michel Otou converted a penalty and Atte Youssifou got his first in the black and blue and orange (particularly impressive given the absolute blitz that this ball is on).
Minnesota 1 – 1 LA Galaxy
It took a very late equalizer from Robin Lod to save the day for the Loons who were on the verge of shuffling farther from playoff contention with their recent run of form. Increasingly the question is being asked: why do the Loons hire really expensive strikers when they don’t play and the Finnish midfielder scores the most goals?
Palmeiras 1 – 0 Emelec [M- Continental]
Again, it wasn’t much of a surprise to find that Palmeiras cruised to victory, they didn’t need much and it showed against Emelec.
Verdal 0 – 6 Rosenborg [M-Cup]
Verdal plays in the 4th division of Norwegian soccer, so this would be a little like a major league baseball team like the Twins having a game against the Cedar Rapids Kernels. An upset was possible, but not likely. Fortunately some rarely seen players did well in their first action of the year: two claps for the two goals from Marius Broholm!
Freiburg 1 – 2 RB Leipzig [M–Cup Final!]
In what was an absolutely wrenching 2.5 hours of soccer to watch: Freiburg had the lead and seem to land fortunate break after fortunate break. And still, foreboding sense of impending doom could not be erased. Every Mark Flekken cover, every Nico Schlotterbeck save, every Rolland Sallai run into space, every ounce of it seemed tantalizing, and yet, doomed. At one point, my stomach in knots, Alex said to me: “I’m not worried. We always win.” My sweet summer child, nothing could be further from the truth. Freiburg didn’t do anything badly, but they were second best on the day.
Emelec 0 – 1 Universidad Catolica [M]
Emelec continues to struggle as they near the end of the league’s first stage. Being torn between domestic and continental competitions definitely does not help.
Quito FC 2 – 0 Emelec [F]
Half way through the season, las electricas are struggling to get any form of momentum together
Red Star Belgrade 3 – 1 Vozdovac
Nemanja Milojevic netted the last Red Dragon goal of the campaign to cap a solid 5th place showing for the boys from Stadion Mall. They might be frustrated to have wound up two points outside of European qualification, but facing the Duopoly of Belgrade in your last two games leaves absolutely no room for error….so let’s focus on the good and applaud the best season we’ve seen yet from the Red Dragons.
Avaldsnes 1 – 3 Rosenborg BK [F]
The Trolljenta aquitted themselves well on the road. Midfielder Emilie Bragstad continues to be the iron woman of the side, having played every moment of all 10 matches, and netting twice during this game to make the difference.
Bechem United 0 – 0 Legon Cities FC
Rather than recall this match, I just want to take a moment to shout out Pebbles Candies. A Ghanaian treat that would utterly crush peanut M&Ms in a head to head contest.
HamKam 1 – 1 Rosenborg [M]
An overloaded midfield helped to stymie HamKam for much of the day, but it didn’t do a heck of a lot for Rosenborg’s lackluster offense. The best bit of this is that American Samuel Rogers was the goal scorer, so WOOT for Americans in Trondheim.
Dallas 1 – 2 Minnesota United
The Loons grabbed all three points against an awfully talented Dallas team, courtesy of some stout defending and an absolutely blast from fullback DJ Taylor who also led the Loons in tackles and helped to hold off many Dallas attacks.
ASPTT Albi 0 – 2 Grenoble [F]
It was a fine way for les Grenobloises to end their season. Claudia Febre connected with Sherly Jeudy for the first goal. And a strong set of defensive substitutes shut down the opponent in the second half, and set up a late headed goal to put the win (and sixth place) on ice.
Emelec needed a win to advance to the next round of the Copa Libertadores, a win they were clearly banking on given their showings in recently league games. But boy did they ever get that result Tuesday night. Petrolero has struggled this year in Bolivia, and Emelec only compounded the pain with Alejandro Cabez and Sebastian Rodriguez each grabbing a pair of goals. The knockout rounds await, and fingers crossed, Emelec can make a run for it.
News & Notes
Aurora Dawning
It’s time for another team to debut on our page, this time it’s Minnesota Aurora, representing our state (and hopeful college kids across the mountain/midwest) in the USL-W. They’ll play their first match this week and we can’t wait to shout them out as they go along.
Last glimpse of Europe
Don’t worry, it’s not sinking into the sea or anything, but with most of the European leagues shutting down for the summer months, it seemed wise to look back on how teams fared in our competition.
Obviously, Freiburg has much to be proud of, in addition to a strong showing in the Cup final, they did qualify for the Europa League meaning they’ll have some fancy foreign affairs to handle next season. But they weren’t alone in contending for continental glory.
FK Vozdovac and Ross County were both able to keep themselves in the conversation for the old continent’s biggest competitions until the very end of the season. That may not seem like much, but given that we’ve spent the first two years of this blog worried about their survival, it was awfully nice.
Emelec will continue to look for glory in South America, but our other major club title to watch for is Rosenborg’s next crack at going for Champion’s League football at the end of August.
Player of the Week
There were plenty of big wins and noble defeats this last week. Amongst all the chatter, we want to take a moment for Emilie Bragstad, who has been invaluable to Rosenborg all year long.
That was not exactly a thrilling week. Outside of the Guyaquil derby, my fun day at home and Rosenborg’s Syttende Mai celebration, there was a whole lot of losing going on. It’s a bitter way for several teams to start their summer break, here’s hoping that Grenoble’s ladies and Freiburg can end their seasons with a win.
Team
W
D
L
PPG
GFA
GAA
Alebrijes de Oaxaca–b
10
5
3
1.94
1.3
0.7
Freiburg–b
15
8
7
1.77
2.1
1.5
Rosenborg
9
4
6
1.63
1.5
0.9
Legon Cities
8
5
5
1.61
1.3
0.7
Minnesota
6
2
5
1.54
1.2
1.0
Punjab–b
7
4
6
1.47
1.8
1.7
Emelec
8
7
8
1.35
1.6
1.4
FK Vozdovac–b
5
5
5
1.33
1.2
1.0
Ross County–b
6
5
8
1.21
1.1
1.4
Grenoble–b
9
4
13
1.19
1.1
1.4
University of Montana–b
—
—
—
—
—
—
Table Updated 5/18/22 b–Team is between seasons
What’s Next
Wednesday, May 25th
Minnesota v. Union Omaha [M-Cup]
Rosenborg BK v. LSK Kvinner [F]
Thursday, May 26th
Rosenborg v. FK Haugesund [M]
Minnesota Aurora v. Green Bay Glory [F]
Friday, May 27th
Saturday, May 28th
Valerenga v. Rosenborg BK [F]
Legon Cities v. Bibiani Gold Stars
Minnesota v. NYCFC [M–and the first game I can actually attend in person]
Raise your hand if you’re surprised by that result…good news, I’m not writing some creepy blog that watches you through your camera so I have no idea if you raised your hand or not, but rest assured, it’s not at all surprising.
Barcelona SC 1 – 1 Emelec
This was a biggie. The stadium was the most crowded one I’ve seen for any of our highlights and the mood was tense. The biggest match in Guyaquil ended in shared points…but Barcelona and Emelec hate sharing as much as two brothers with a Paw Patrol brand squirt pack. This match was almost as testy with Emelec using a lot of physicality to hold off Barcelona’s attacks, and capitalizing on occasional miscues (as with Alexis Zapata’s goal).
Minnesota 2 – 1 Colorado [Cup]
In a game played over 18 hours (with a tornado warning in between), the Loons managed to pull off a solid win despite losing the lead and playing the last ten minutes without center back Brent Kallman. Credit goes to Emmanuel Reynoso who again proved that asking him to play the hero isn’t a bad strategy when he has his hero boots on.
Punjab FC 3 – 3 Neroca FC
It was hard to watch the Warriors squander a lead like they did…fortunately I didn’t find any clips of it so I didn’t have to watch it happen. Still, it’s a rough ending to what started out to be a promising campaign for Punjab. Clearly Kurtis Guthrie can’t do it all the same way Emmanuel Reynoso can (please don’t take that as a suggestion anyone)
Bayern Leverkusen 2 – 1 Freiburg [M]
While Freiburg started great guns this year they didn’t finish that way. Leverkusen showed their endurance all year and did it again by winning in stoppage time here. Still, no need to cry for Freiburg there’s still European competition next year and a trophy to play for next weekend.
Ross County 1 – 2 Dundee
From Fitba on Twitter
The Tangerines denied County any comfort of coming close to European soccer by beating them at home, and also throwing stuff on the field. (Granted it was an inflatable palm tree and beach ball…but who brings that stuff to a match? Other than Dundee people for some reason.)
Paris FC 2 -0 Grenoble [M]
A year ago, Grenoble and Paris were in a pitched battle for playoff survival. This year, Grenoble just gave them a game to warm up for the playoffs. Sigh…I still miss Jessy Bennet.
Nanas 2 – 0 Emelec [F]
Pleae don’t leave us Hasret!
Something may need to change for las Electricas. 1 point per match isn’t dreadful (they’re still solidly mid-table) but it seems like they’re being passed up by other sides
FC Koln 0 – 0 SC Freiburg [F]
Freiburg wrapped their women’s season too. There were great scorers emerging this year, here’s hoping they stay. (Looking at you Hasret!)
Seattle Sounders 3 – 1 Minnesota United
The Loons seem to turn in their worst performances in Seattle. Maybe because Seattle is the best team in North America, or maybe because the Loons are secretly 11 pumpkins who revert to gourd form when they get too close to Starbucks: come back to Caribou boys!!
Orense 2 – 0 Emelec
In a rarity los Bombillos never looked a threat in this one. Rarer still they were outclassed despite Orense being a significantly softer side. Perhaps thoughts of Palmeiras mid-week were overwhelming
Rosenborg 3 – 0 Sandefjord [M]
Stefano Holmquist Vecchia came thorugh big time for Rosenborg. The front of the troll’s attack hasn’t been awe inspiring this season, but abrace from Vecchia and some good interplay with Noah Holm up top was good enough to get Rosenborg their first win in 4 tries. (Not a bad way to kick off Syttende Mai/Norwegian Independence Day)
Vozdovac 0 – 3 Partizan Belgrade
Vozdovac definitely got the fuzzy lollipop from the schedule makers. Their last two matches come against Partizan and Red Star, the Serbian duopoly, and teams they have only scored two goals against in the 7 combined matches since the pandemic started. Worse, with European leagues expanding, Vozdovac is hitting the hardest stretch just before they had a spot clinched.
The newest team in our galaxy of stars took the field to begin practicing this week. Minnesota Aurora has started to prepare for the upcoming season. It won’t be long, but it should be fun, and in the end. That’s what matters.
Trophy Alert!
There’s a big opportunity awaiting Freiburg this weekend, but it’s one that most folks have written off. The DFB Pokal is one of the most prestigious and longest running tournaments in Europe, and Freiburg has looked good in the run up to the final. However, in the final they’ll meet RB Liepzig, the highly funded squad with several stars and a history of coming close. The season saw a pair of 1-1 draws with Phillip Leinhart and Nico Schlotterbeck stopping the Liepzig attack before it could get going. They’ll need to do it again on a bigger stage this weekend if they’re going to grab Freiburg’s first trophy as a top division team.
Self-Care
Entertainment!
The recent surge in COVID cases, and the vicious bout of cold I came down with did come with a small consolation: I was able to get a treat of a lunch with spicy Nashville Coop Chicken and watch two matches simultaneously! You didn’t get to…but I promise if there’s a point where I can get you a treat like this, I absolutely will.
Player of the Week
Maybe Norwegian Independence has me in a mood, maybe absolutely no one else distinguished themselves, but this week’s honors will go to Stefano Holmquist Vecchia. And I’m ok with that.
Standings Update
That was not exactly a thrilling week. Outside of the Guyaquil derby, my fun day at home and Rosenborg’s Syttende Mai celebration, there was a whole lot of losing going on. It’s a bitter way for several teams to start their summer break, here’s hoping that Grenoble’s ladies and Freiburg can end their seasons with a win.
The Trolljenta aren’t looking to break their record for most season losses any time soon. Synne Bronstad was the hero this day getting the winning goal just five minutes after she came on as a substitute. Rosenborg has had to get creative, but the deeper the bench goes the better for everyone.
Punjab FC 0 – 2 Sreenidi Deccan
I’ve had a hard time finding recaps on this, but suffice to say, it didn’t go great for Punjab. They’re fully out of the running for hardware this year, but acquitted themselves well despite the changes in season and in management.
Freiburg 1 – 4 Union Berlin [M]
That one wasn’t even close. Despite having 71% possession and at least 2 expected goals, Freiburg got nearly nothing, while Union Berlin made the most of each of their chances against a clearly tiring Freiburg back line. Freiburg heads to their last league match needing a great showing against one of the best teams in the country.
Ross County 0 – 1 Motherwell
The Staggies also came up short in a vital game at home, but can’t count themselves quite as unlucky as Freiburg. The lost points stem from Alex Iacovitti’s foul in the box and the ensuing penalty. It was unfortunate but, so it goes.
Grenoble 1 – 1 AC Ajaccio [M]
Loris Nery put Grenoble in front early off a lightning strike of a free kick. However, Adrien Monfray’s two yellow cards (within 5 minutes of each other) put them right back in jeopardy. While Ajaccio got a goal back, Brice Mableu kept things tight at the back to snatch a point and with it safety in Ligue 2 for another year.
Minnesota United 0 – 1 Cincinnati [M]
The Loons looked poor and again required Dayne St. Clair to save the day. Romain Metanire’s absence continues to create trouble for our fullbacks, and the struggles of the offense to find a plan beyond: Reynoso does something magical, isn’t helping the offense either.
Emelec 1 – 0 Macara [F]
Las Electricas got a win again! Captain Maria Jose Colonel netted the winner late on in the match to give Emelec a boost on their way in to Mother’s Day.
Emelec 4 – 0 Mushuc Runa [M]
Sebastian Rodiguez could have had a penalty kick hat trick, but mercifully ceded the honors to Jose Cevallos at the end of the game as los bombillos plagued Mushuc every step of the way. (Alexis Zapata must have a protractor to hit the angle of goal he did…oof)
SC Freiburg 3 – 0 SGS Essen [F]
It wasn’t the well known stars who boosted Freiburg to victory, but a well rounded game can be exactly what the doctor called for. Three goals came with three combinations of scorers and play makers. I’m a little partial to Jana Vojtekova’s cross, but that’s me.
LSK Kvinner 0 – 0 Rosenborg BK [F]
Sa, det skjedde (that’s “So that happened” in Norwegian)
Stromsgodset 3 – 0 Rosenborg [M]
That also happened. The only thing to say is that Erland Dahl Reitan’s goal was nice…but into the wrong net. Rosenborg’s normally reliable performance have dropped dramatically and they now sit in 12th place. (one point above relegation area…granted it’s early but still…yikes…)
Grenoble 3 – 1 Le Puy [F]
Les alpines got a much needed dose of home cooking after two lack luster losses in a row. And with Sherly Jeudy and Claudia Fabre were phenomenal in tandem setting up and knocking home all three of the Grenoble goals, including this one just three minutes into the match
Accra Lions 1 – 0 Legon Cities
Legon is awfully close to Accra, but the Royals continue to stumble in the closest things they have to local rivalries. They have won one match against the trio of Lions, Hearts of Oak, and Olympics. Here’s hoping Liberty Professionals come back for a little extra aggression next year.
Cukaricki 0 – 0 Vozdovac
That also happened. (Side note: Milos Milovic’s red card will likely hold him back from the next match against Partizan Belgrade…I’m sure Milos is a serious professional, but I wouldn’t blame him if he wanted a break from the fascist pigs that cheer at Paritzan.)
News & Notes
Mother’s Day Mania!
We celebrated your mom the best way possible on Sunday: sweet treats and Star Wars (those were her requests which again reminds us that she is truly awesome). We also got to see the Women take center stage with all the women’s teams in action and every single one of them picking up a point.
— Club Sport Emelec Femenino (@ElectricasCSE) May 8, 2022
Champions League
Where attention is at…
I don’t really talk about the major soccer scene that much. There are other, better known websites for chronicling other, better known competitions. But suffice to say, it was fun to see a crowd of students chattering and buzzing during the biggest game of the year (so far). It also reminded me that exactly 0 learning will be done on November 21st, 22nd, 29th, and 30th (as Mexico and Ecuador are in action over those two days…and most of my students have families from there)
C is for Catchy Song
I have no further notes, just enjoy this Ross County version of a Sesame Street Classic.
It’s not all about Mothers day, but the simple fact is the men went 1-1-6 this week and the women went 3-1-0. We already wanted to recognize the awesomeness of the women but, as always, they made it easy. This week we’ll give it to Claudia Fabre who had a hand (or foot) in everything that got the ladies of Grenoble into the winner’s circle (also, if my research is to be believed she’s also a radiologist…so…wow…and possibly a big Bitcoin enthusiast).
Standings Update
It’s a great time to be a fan, as all but one team has a winning record this year, and even they (Grenoble) are in fine form lately. I can’t remember the last time Vozdovac was this high on the standings…they must be carrying the mythical flying creature flag…sorry Oaxaca.
MacKenzie's Boot Room 