Fighting Talker

This is a sign of how bad DC United’s defense has been at times this season (and especially in SuperLiga).

When I saw the news on Goff’s Soccer Insider that Abel Xavier had been let go by the Los Angeles Galaxy, my first thought was, “Oh, DC should go get him.”

Then I came to my senses, remembering how poorly I had seen him play when United routed the Galaxy, 4-1, late last month.

Then, for a split second, I had the “sign him” thought again.

Perhaps the heat and humidity are getting to me.

Carvallo had his debut and finale in the same game.

I just wanted to post some quick words of remembrance for Jose Carvallo. No, he’s not dead. But his D.C. United career is. He was waived by the club this week, unable to take the starting job away from Zach Wells - who you may remember doesn’t have a clean sheet in a league match lasting longer than 16 minutes yet this season.

Carvallo played one memorable game in a United uniform. He played the kind of game that those of us mere mortals really will never forget. The kind of game that the record books will note well into the future, and one that we will be telling our grandkids about way into the 2050s.

That game saw him give up a remarkable 4 goals on just 6 shots on target. It was a 4-0 loss to the long-time Western Conference power, Real Salt Lake. I think I can safely say that as a nation, and to a man, we all remember where we were the night Carvallo made his much anticipated debut, and finale, all in the same night. I don’t really remember it, but I’m sure you guys do.

Somewhere, somehow, Nick Rimando was laughing. … Well, of course he was, he was the goalkeeper on the other side of the field.

Yes, folks, the Jose Carvallo era in DC is over. He probably won’t make the Ring of Stars or whatever they call it now, but it’s still worth taking time to pause, pour some out for our now departed goalkeeper, and go forth into the future knowing we’ll never see one of his like again. But yet, we’ve got to go on with our lives.

God bless you, Jose Carvallo. God bless you, indeed.

Good evening.

Berbatov to Manchester United?

Took me a while to find the place tonight. Aaron changes the colors on here faster than Brett Favre changes his mind about retiring.

Indecision and confusion are about all I can think of regarding the rumored sale of Dimitar Berbatov from Spurs to Manchester United for a cool £28 million, which, with the way the US Dollar is going, equals roughly $353 million. Soccernet had the story this morning, though you can judge its accuracy perhaps by the fact you can’t find it on their home page as of 8 p.m. today.

As a Manchester United fan, I can’t say as I understand this move, if true. Some would argue, as a United fan, I don’t understand much, but anyway. It’s not as if goal scoring was the club’s problem last season - you know, one where they won a couple trophies. Does it signal the end for the Ronaldo saga? Hard to imagine Real Madrid would shell out the cash for an injured player (due out some 12 weeks), but who knows. It also would be a bit odd for United to be passing out their pence prior to any Ronaldo deal going through. It’s not as if they’ve hauled in the cash during the transfer season - and the folks across the pond keep telling me the club is in debt because of those alleged greedy American bastards. (more…)

Militant Nats fans want to do this to the Post

Of course, I am not shocked, sports fans always whine about the coverage of their favorite teams. I bet somewhere there are even Yankee fans complaining about their own network, YES, which covers them the same way Radio Havana covers Cuba. (All hail our Líder Máximo Derek Jeter!)

But at the urging of peeved Nats fans, Dan Steinberg over at the Sports Bog has investigated the matter of local teams (Part I, Part II) under served by the media and found that the Nats have nothing to complain about other than the team on the field.  (more…)

Paul Sherwen and Phil Liggett

I spend a lot of time trashing various elements of television sportscasting, but I wanted to just take a moment to pay tribute to the best sports telecast on American TV - the Tour de France.

It’s true. The single best broadcast in American sports broadcasting is Versus’ telecast of the Tour de France. (more…)

Worse website ever.

While searching the web for some Olympics-related sites to add to my blogroll, I attempted to access the official Beijing 2008 web site and found it to be the worst site for a major sporting event I have ever come across. Basic information about the competition is almost inaccessible, the site design is byzantine in its complexity and media/spectator/visitor information is all interspersed with no organization whatsoever.

As a certified Ring-Head*, I will be talking about the games quite a bit on here so be prepared. I am also adding a category to my blogroll with some of the better blogs devoted to the Olympics. Take a look, it’s good stuff.

* Ring-Head, \ˈriŋ\ˈhed\, a fan or journalist who likes and enjoys the Olympic games. Similar to Seam-Head, except doesn’t keep a poster of Peter Gammons above his bed.

I cannot endorse this enough.

We need to start the campaign to bring Georgetown Prep and Catholic U. alum Brian Cashman to take over the Nats as soon as possible.

The intro from last year’s race

The buildup has begun for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, one of the biggest motor races on the planet along with Daytona, Indy and Monaco and my personal favorite of the three. This year’s race features another battle for overall honors between the diesel-powered supercars of Audi and Peugeot. Other cars you’ll see during the race include Corvettes, Aston Martins, Ferraris, Porsches, Saleens, and Spykers. It’s always an amazing show and I encourage you to tune, even if just for a few minutes. (more…)

Soccer America’s Paul Gardner worked closely with Jim McKay when they commentated on the NASL for ABC. He wrote a kind remembrance this weekend.

But that’s not the word — serious — with which to end this short memory of Jim. He had a great sense of humor, quiet, non-flashy, like the man himself. In one of those studio sessions we watched a tape of a promo — where the voice over told us that “at halftime, we’ll feature an explanation of the offside rule, which you will find easy to follow, and an interview with Dr. Henry Kissinger …” and McKay, sotto voce murmured “who you will not find easy to follow.”