Football (Soccer) Thread

[Sheilbh]

And I assume the first player with the surname Braithwaite to ever play for Barcelona

[Liep]

20 minutes and 1½ assists in his first game.

[The Larch]

20 minutes and 1½ assists in his first game.

It's not as if the competition was fierce, though. 

This signed has caused a small controversy in Spain, btw, because Leganés are now unable to sign a replacement for him and now will almost surely get relegated.

[Admiral Yi]

Do you guys think those penalty kicks where the kicker takes a bunch of stutter steps and baits the goalie to commit before striking are in keeping with the spirit of the game?  Should that be against the rules?

[Josephus]

Do you guys think those penalty kicks where the kicker takes a bunch of stutter steps and baits the goalie to commit before striking are in keeping with the spirit of the game?  Should that be against the rules?

Yes. No.

[The Larch]

Montreal Vs. New England MLS game. Local fans attack their opponents'... maple syrup quality.

[Syt]

German football league finally set a sign against hate in stadiums, threatening to break off a running match.

The target of scorn? The billionaire owner of TSG Hoffenheim.

While I agree with the step, I wish they had done the same with the countless racist incidents against players of color or foreigners.

[Duque de Bragança]

Using the regulations about racism reeks of cynicism though, not to mention creating a precedent.
Of course, the protest was not really subtle "Hurensohn" i.e son of a bitch/whore (choose your favorite).
Opposition to artificial clubs such TSG Hoffenhein, circumventing 50+1 rules (preventing takeovers à la City or PSG) is fine but such a cause demands more skill.

Big news in Portugal, after the racist insults in Guimarães at Marega, was the dramatic debacle of Portuguese clubs in the Europa League in the round of 32 (!). 4 had some varying chances, none after the second leg. While Porto is having the worst European season I can remember and lost not so unsurprisingly against a good Bayer Leverkusen side, from a better league, the others like Sporting mostly (losing in OT after winning 3-1 in Lisbon) is more of a surprise against Erdogan's club. Braga, after a brilliant play-off and group phase, lost twice to Glasgow Rangers, and Benfica, out of the Champions' League, tied after leading against Shakhtar Donets.
That competion was the last won by Portuguese clubs in 2011, when the final pitched Porto vs Braga, the latter beating Benfica in semi-finals, to give some context. Tempus Fugit.

[The Larch]

Similar in Spain, where sanctions have only been imposed when a player was being called a nazi.

[Maladict]

Nations League draw:

League A

    Group 1: Netherlands; Italy; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Poland
    Group 2: England; Belgium; Denmark; Iceland
    Group 3: Portugal; France; Sweden; Croatia
    Group 4: Switzerland; Spain; Ukraine; Germany

League B

    Group 1: Austria; Norway; Northern Ireland; Romania
    Group 2: Czech Republic; Scotland; Slovakia; Israel
    Group 3: Russia; Serbia; Turkey; Hungary
    Group 4: Wales; Finland; Ireland; Bulgaria

League C

    Group 1: Montenegro; Cyprus; Luxembourg; Azerbaijan
    Group 2: Georgia; North Macedonia; Estonia; Armenia
    Group 3: Greece; Kosovo; Slovenia; Moldova
    Group 4: Albania; Belarus; Lithuania; Kazakhstan

League D

    Group 1: Faroe Islands; Latvia; Andorra; Malta
    Group 2: Gibraltar; Liechtenstein; San Marino

[Liep]

Will Liverpool win another game this season?

[Sheilbh]

I think this means they don't win the league at Goodison - thank Christ

[FunkMonk]

It's too bad they're so far ahead already. The regularly scheduled Liverpool bust would have made the league much more interesting at this point in the season.

[Duque de Bragança]

Using the regulations about racism reeks of cynicism though, not to mention creating a precedent.
Of course, the protest was not really subtle "Hurensohn" i.e son of a bitch/whore (choose your favorite).
Opposition to artificial clubs such TSG Hoffenhein, circumventing 50+1 rules (preventing takeovers à la City or PSG) is fine but such a cause demands more skill.

Speaking of artificial clubs in Germany, another RB Leipzig prowess :
expelling Japanese (!) spectators from their stadium due to coronavirus fears.

As for the League of Nations draw, UEFA reformed the competition to prevent Germany from falling into League B. Still interesting  though, with oppositions such as Netherlands-Italy, Belgium-England, Portugal-France and Spain-Germany in League A, plus outsiders wanting to cause a surprise.

[Josephus]

Nations League draw:

Yawn. This still a thing?