Monday, November 29, 2010
Ramos and Alonso get themselves sent off, Jose works the system
Up 4-0 over Ajax on Tuesday and with advancement to the knockout stage all sealed up, Jose Mourinho and Real Madrid got a little sneaky in their yellow card management.
First, Xabi Alonso earned his second yellow card and was sent off in the 87th minute after wasting time on a free kick in a way that looked like some kind of running seizure (video above). Then, in the 90th minute, Sergio Ramos earned his second yellow and got sent off when he took his sweet time on a goal kick (video below). That rules both players out for Real's final, utterly meaningless group stage match against Auxerre and gives them a clean slate for the knockout rounds.
Though they would never admit that they did this deliberately, you'd have to still believe in Peter Pan to believe that they didn't. To some people -- Champions League commentators included -- this is an outrage and to others it's just another example of Jose Mourinho's genius. After the match, Mourinho had this to say (via the AP):
“I don’t think it was necessary to get those red cards because we were in control,” Mourinho said. “But this is a fantastic result and that’s the only thing that matters.”
And then he probably winked.
UPDATE: Marca thinks Jose used backup goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek in a game of whisper down the lane to pull this off.
The look on Sergio Ramos' face in that bottom right picture leads me to believe something may have been added to the original message.
UPDATE II: Well, it seems these guys weren't sneaky enough. UEFA has now charged Mourinho, Ramos, Alonso, and even Casillas and Dudek with "unsporting conduct." Their cases will be heard on November 30.
Fantasy Hoops: Week 1 Planner; The Adventure Begins
Filed under: Fantasy Basketball, NBA Lineup Planner
The NBA's regular season kicks off on Tuesday night with the Boston Celtics welcoming to town some under-the-radar team from Miami. With your multiple fantasy teams drafted and awaiting your lineup decisions, I figured I would put together a little post on what to look for in Week 1 of the NBA season. As if we haven't heard enough about the Miami Heat already this summer, they happen to be the only team in the league who plays four times in this opening week (@BOS, @PHI, ORL, @NJN). Well played, Mr. Stern. With the Heat on the docket for four, your early-round selections on LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are really going to pay off this week. Matchup-wise, the Heat should split the week with tough games against the Celtics and Magic, and two relatively favorable ones against the 76ers and the Nets. But aside from the 'Big 3' there are really no other must starts on the Heat, especially with Mike Miller injured. The one player I would keep an eye on in daily leagues, however, is Mario Chalmers. He and Carlos Arroyo are slated to split time at the point guard position, but I can see Chalmers winning out the job and becoming the more effective fantasy player. At the center position you are basically looking at three guys who are going to do their best fill the job of one player. Nothing more to see here.
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Source: http://fantasy.fanhouse.com/2010/10/25/fantasy-hoops-week-1-planner-the-adventure-begins/
Rain, faulty lights conspire to make goalkeeper look like a spaz
Nature and electricity can be cruel beasts. One goalkeeper found this out the hilarious way in a Copa Mato Grosso semifinal match between Brazilian lower-division sides Operario and Sinop. Between the rain and the poor lighting, the Sinop keeper really didn't have it as easy as he seemed to think when Operario launched a free kick into the sky from distance. So, he only gave a half-hearted jump to the side of the goal as he seemed to assume the ball flew a few miles over his head. Instead, it glided just under the crossbar and landed in the back of the net.
From now on, he will surely wear a miner's helmet and those glasses with windshield wipers whenever he plays.
Video via 101gg
Join us for the last in-season Marbles chat, Wed. @ 1 p.m.
It's the final 2010 season chat right here at The Marbles! (Not the last one overall. We'll be here all offseason.) Come hang here to talk Hamlin/Harvick/Johnson and make your best guess on who's going to take this race. We'll be here at 1 p.m. Eastern on Wednesday. Join us, won't you?
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Training and a trip to Thailand helps national columnist change his tune on MMA
Then, unlike most national columnists and scribes stuck in the 70's, Freeman actually took the time to look into the sport a little more.
The CBSSports' writer made a trip to a local training center to see what mixed martial arts was all about. Working at the same gym as the UFC's Miller brothers, the AMA Fight Club in Whippany, N.J., Freeman fell in love. In a recent column, he wrote:
I remember the first time I got punched hard. These are the things you don't soon forget.
It was during one of my first sparring sessions in New Jersey. The guy I was sparring was a bit of a bully, known for going hard at newer students. He hit me with a solid right cross. For a moment, I saw stars. They danced in my head and disappeared suddenly after he hit me hard again, this time with a left hook. The stars were gone, but the pain in my face wasn't.
That moment made me angry rather than fearful and I trained twice as hard. I wasn't going to be battered again. Sparring again about two months later, he and I got into it in the center of the mat -- a hardcore brawl exacerbated by the presence of his girlfriend, who he wanted to show off for. No technique, just punches and kicks thrown with abandon. None of his punches got through my defenses. My switch-kick and overhand penetrated his. He backed off. He never tried to bully me again.
That was it. I was hooked. It wasn't that I inflicted damage on another human being. Some people love that part of fighting. I'm the opposite. I enjoy taking another man's best kicks and punches and still standing.
Freeman took things to the next level with a trip Thailand where he trained with some of the best Muay Thai practioners in the world. He got a look at what truly drives most people to fight. It's certainly not the money.
Freeman joined ESPNRadio1100 in Las Vegas to recap his trip and talk about his column.
Rafael Nadal Defeats Novak Djokovic at ATP World Tour Finals
Filed under: ATP
The rematch of this summer's U.S. Open final between Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic started with a bang, but ended with a fizzle on Wednesday. Nadal defeated Djokovic in straight sets, 7-5, 6-2, in round-robin play at the ATP World Tour Finals in London. Djokovic struggled for the majority of the match with eye troubles stemming from his contact lenses and ascended during the early portion of the contest. After a competitive eight games, Djokovic took a bathroom break at 4-4 in the first set to change his lenses.
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Source: http://tennis.fanhouse.com/2010/11/24/rafael-nadal-defeats-novak-djokovic-at-atp-world-tour-finals/