Stafford for Goff Investment

 

LA Rams

The GameStop of Football

 

            The Los Angeles Rams finally got an answer at the quarterback position. Jared Goff along with two first-round draft picks and a third-round pick were traded to the Detroit Lions in exchange for Matthew Stafford. There is no surprise that a trade happened. The surprise might stem from the draft picks the Rams traded away, but not on the fact that they needed someone else under center for the next season. As a Rams fan who like most fans around the country tend to have an unwavering support of players on their favorite franchise. I for sure fall under that category.

            To clarify, I did not believe that Jared Goff was the next Joe Montana, but I watched this past season gutted every snap he took. Before the thumb injury it was obvious to me that Goff was terrible. If I, a sit on the couch eating pizza and chips fan, can see this than I have no doubt McVay and the rest of the team’s coaching staff were well aware of their quarterback situation throughout the season.

            Goff is heading to Detroit and Stafford is coming to Los Angeles. The obvious is that Stafford is a better quarterback than Goff. The issue the Rams have was that they had a contract that no team would be willing to take on a simple player for player trade. The Rams pulled it off with Detroit. Yes, they pulled it off.

            As previously mentioned, I am a Rams fan and my bias will always show. The view of some sport radio and shows I have listened to break it all down on who won the trade, how much the future may impact the Rams or the Lions and the usual stuff that follows a blockbuster trade. Some say the Rams lost because they gave up so much for a soon to be 33-year-old quarterback who has on resume not really accomplished much. In fact, if one lays out a few select stats Goff can easily be portrayed as the better player. I do not care.

            I am excited that the Rams have a new quarterback! I can’t say that I have had an interest Stafford but like most fans around the league I know of him. A good quarterback with a really bad team. One of the knocks is that the Rams have no first-round draft picks until 2024 and I do not share the same sentiment. I have seen this franchise go from Kurt Warner to Marc Bulger to Sam Bradford to Jared Goff. Having Matthew Stafford for a couple seasons is not that bad. To address the draft picks, the Rams have disappointed on the offensive side when it comes to picking young talent. I am still furious that the front office thought Tavon Austin was better than DeAndre Hopkins.

            I am in support of this all-in win now approach. I am aware the team in the future may be limited on their moves, but I am fine with that. I lived through the Jeff Fisher era. I will be fine. I may regret having this thought process, it may attribute to the GameStonks movement in me where I disregard for the conventional wisdom and caution. TO THE MOON!

Arsenal is in top 4 hands

     Arsenal lost their first two games of the season against Sarri's Chelsea and Pep's Manchester City, two teams that are in realistic contentions to win the league this season. Since those two defeats Arsenal has won 7 straight matches in all competitions, they went undefeated for the month of September. Arsenal are in good hands.

     I had a few friends, Arsenal supporters, ask me about Unai Emery. I responded with a stereotypical safe answer "That he is a good coach and will play more structured than his predecessor, Wenger. To expect more emphasis on wins and points over style." I was asked, I am assuming, because most of my inner soccer circles know that I support the Spanish club Valencia, and wondered who Emery really was. I reassured them that he is good coach that can work within limits and punch above his team's weight every season.

     A quick Recap on Emery's career, he started coaching Almeria who he took to the first division in Spain and finished in the top 10 the following season. Valencia hired him as the club needed fresh ideas and a coach that would not burden their already dire financial situation. In his four seasons leading the helm in Valencia Emery finished 3rd three times following a 6th place finished in his first season.

     Why does this matter? Because there a similarities that might bring hope to Arsenal fans. Take a historical note for some context, when Emery was in charge of Valencia for those four years (2008-2012) it was during Pep's dominance with Barcelona and Real Madrid's acquisition of Cristiano Ronaldo. This means that Emery with a cash restricted budget and forced to sell players such as David Villa, David Silva, and Mata guided Los Che to win the "other league"- the Spanish Media dubbed the 3rd place team as the "other winner" due to Barcelona and Real Madrid's dominance.

     The similarities I see with Arsenal are clearly mental fabrications with the only focal point being Unai Emery, but humor me. The English Premier league at the moment has two really good sides in Pep's Manchester City and Klopp's Liverpool, with Sarri at Chelsea having a really good start to the season as well. But the first two are the one's who have had time to mold their team and anything less than winning the league will be considered a failure. Where does this leave Arsenal? Well to Emery, in a very familiar situation.

     I am not disregarding Emery's other past work, in fact he replicated his understanding of coaching in La Liga when he returned from a horrible Stint in Russia to lead Sevilla to Europa League dominance while finishing in the top 5 in two of his three full seasons in charge. His time at Paris Saint-Germain is what probably exposed him to the rest of the footballing community that didn't follow La Liga aside from Barcelona and Real Madrid. I considered his time at PSG as an enigma due to the ridiculous expectations of a club attempting to splash their way to a Champions league with no real soccer foundation to sustain it.

    Arsenal will definitely not go undefeated for the rest of the year, but I wont be surprised if they can clinch a top 4 finish. At the start of the season, I was excited for the English Premier league more than usual due to the top 6 teams' managers. Pep at Manchester City, Klopp at Liverpool, Sarri at Chelsea, Pochettino at Tottenham, and Mourinho at Manchester United. In my mind Emery at Arsenal was the biggest improvement in relative terms as I consider him a top manager.

     Unai Emery doesn't have the budget restrictions at Arsenal he has had in Spain or the over the top expectations implemented at PSG. He acquired two young center midfielders that fit his approach to the game. Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi, who will work hard in the midfield of the pitch and that is what Emery wants. Emery is meticulous in his approach to managing the game and expects his team to work just as hard. With this approach Arsenal may not be the same free flowing stylistic team most fans associate with the badge, but they will be in the top 4 competing every year Emery is in charge.

    I know this may not be good enough for some Arsenal fans, but believe me when I say, it is better to have a ship navigated by a captain that can complete the voyage than a captain that will sink that ship to the depths of the ocean pretending to know where shore lies. Still not good enough? (Please see Manchester United.)         

World Cup Quarterfinals July 7 Quick Guide

      The round of 16 concluded two days ago with England breaking their world cup curse and defeating Colombia in a penalty shootout. The 2018 World Cup has been exciting to watch, the drama is unmatched and it seems as if this world cup is scripted, the writers have no idea of continuity. There are 8 teams left after the round of 16 and the matches will only become more tense and dramatic. Russia, Croatia, Sweden, England, Uruguay, France, Brazil and Belgium are among the 8 world's best international teams in the 2018 world cup edition.

July 7

     Sweden vs England

     Saturday will be an all European affair. The first quarterfinal match of the day will be between Sweden and England. Sweden with their defensive approach to the game has taken this side to the quarterfinals. I see Sweden as a poor man's Italy and I don't mean it as an insult to either nation. Sweden defends tight and compact with 11 players, but lack the quality to create anything threatening to their opponent. The counter attack and pouncing on their opponents mistakes is what Sweden does well and have been doing since the qualifying stage. 

    England has finally one a penalty shootout in a World Cup! The curse is finally broken. Now to "bring it home." As mentioned earlier post I am not really sold on the idea that the English national team is one of the best in the world even in historical contexts. They are a footballing nation that has everything to be the best from money, infrastructure, and great players. They just are not the best. However, I like this English side and think the their coach, Gareth Southgate, has done a great job managing the English national team. I want England to go through. Yet, they have a poor record against teams that defend well (Italy) and haven't necessarily dominated Sweden in recent history either. England are favorites, but I am going to use my upset call on this match. I wouldn't be surprised at all if  Sweden win sending home the English side with only their luggage in hand.

    Russia vs Croatia 

    The host are still in it. Russia will attempt to beat Croatia to reach the semifinals of the tournament. I do not see that happening as I rank Croatia as a much better team than the awful Spanish side that the Russians defeated in the round of 16 on penalties. Russia can go through, this is why the game is played, however, the only way I can confidently say Russia will go through is if they hold the Croatian side for 120 minutes and force a penalty shoot out. From their I will favor the Russian side to go through due to the Croatian sides poor display in shooting penalties against Denmark.

   Croatia are one of the better teams in this World Cup. They have a very talented midfield that can control the tempo of the match and dominate the other side. The only sides to score against Croatia in this world cup were Iceland and Denmark with a goal a piece. Croatia are clear favorites and I don't see any reason why they shouldn't be. The only way I will jump ship is if this match does to a penalty shootout.        

Round 2, The Quarterfinals 2018 World Cup Quick Guide

   The round of 16 concluded two days ago with England breaking their world cup curse and defeating Colombia in a penalty shootout. The 2018 World Cup has been exciting to watch, the drama is unmatched and it seems as if this world cup is scripted, the writers have no idea of continuity. There are 8 teams left after the round of 16 and the matches will only become more tense and dramatic. Russia, Croatia, Sweden, England, Uruguay, France, Brazil and Belgium are among the 8 world's best international teams in the 2018 world cup edition.

July 6

     Uruguay vs France

     The first match of the quarterfinals will be Uruguay and France facing off. This is an enticing match due to the quality of the teams. France destroyed the Argentina side to reach the quarterfinals. Kylian Mbappe demonstrated to the rest of the world that the next footballing star is here. The French side has talented players across the field from their veteran captain goalkeeper to Paul Pogba and Antoine Griezmann. I can understand why the sports websites I visit tend to favor the French. 

     

     Uruguay may share a border with Argentina but that's the only similarity that I can think of that their soccer teams share because of how far these two national teams are in terms of structure and consistency on the pitch. Uruguay is a team that is well organized and that can tactically defend any opponent that they face. Uruguay's head coach, Oscar Tabarez, has been in charge since 2006 and has implemented from the youth to the national team level on how he wants his side to perform. Do not let this confuse you into believing it's due to lack of quality. This is done with purposeful intentions and following their game plan. Uruguay's first goal against Portugal was the longest one-two between Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani that resulted in a beautifully executed goal. This match is worthy of a semi-final, but only one will advance. I do not understand the numbers I see in the sports websites that I visit in having France as clear favorites. Uruguay have a game plan and a coach who can adjust his team accordingly. I personally want and think Uruguay will win, but France are the favorites here. But the odds should be closer to 50-50 than 63-37. 

     Brazil vs Belgium 

     The next match later that day will be between two early tournament favorites, Brazil vs Belgium. Any time Brazil enters an international competition they can be easily be penciled in as tournament protagonist. The 5 time world cup winners pride themselves in their footballing abilities and their approach to play the game in a Brazilian fashion. That being said this Brazilian side share a very good defensive record this tournament. The Brazilians have only conceded 1 goal this world cup. The only other team left in the quarterfinals to do that is their South American neighbors, Uruguay. 

     Belgium has an insane overabundance of talent in their squad. Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard, and Kevin De Bruyne are the three intelligent and talented players that easily stick out on any roster sheet. This Belgium side is considered by some a "golden generation" that should be challenging to win the tournament and I can understand why. For me this talented Belgium side have not clicked or found a unison rhythm in their play. However, this team can definitely challenge tournament heavyweights. I don't have a clear bias in this match and can see Brazil winning the match. However, Casemiro is out for Brazil due to suspension. If Marcelo starts over Felipe Luis in this match I can see Brazil getting easily countered by the Belgium side. It won't be a 7-1 humiliation or necessarily a defeat, but I see it as a tactical mishap that increases Belgium's probability in winning the match.

               

     

     

2018 FIFA Men's World Cup (Group H)

Group H

Poland (10)

Senegal (28)

Colombia (16)

Japan (60)

              Group H, the last group of the 2018 World Cup. To clarify, the letters have no correlation with the strength of the teams that make up a group. Teams are picked on random based on which pot they were assigned to. Yet, this group is fitting to be drawn into Group H. This isn’t to say there isn’t world class quality players, but the group has no traditional powerhouse team. Poland, Senegal, Colombia, and Japan are the four national teams that make up group H. Japan has been the most consistent, this will be their six consecutive world cup appearance. Poland will be the historically more experienced team as this will be their 8^th world cup appearance. To use those fun facts as a perspective, Japan is the team that will most likely finish last in the group while Poland is the highest ranked team according to FIFA rankings. Yet, the best performance of any of the four teams belongs to Senegal and Colombia. Senegal in their first world cup appearance reached the quarterfinal stage in 2002. 2018 in Russia will be Senegal’s second world cup appearance. Colombia were eliminated in the quarterfinals by the host in 2014.

              The amazing aspect of this is that this group will have two teams that will reach the round of 16. I am aware that each group will have two teams reaching the latter stage, that’s how it works, but my excitement is two national teams that are not house hold names will make the round of 16! That being said my predictions for this group have shifted from day to day. Colombia will finish 1^st while second will be Senegal. Poland has a great striker in Robert Lewandowski and can finish in second, but I am going with the unpredictability of Senegal over the predictable Poland. The top 3 teams can all interchange which is why I keep switching on which teams will advance. Japan is the only team I can clearly see not making it out of the group. This is a Japanese national team that isn’t as strong as their predecessors and from the players that I have been able to keep up with have not played well, often, or are sidelined with an injury. But, I could be wrong and I actually enjoy those moments.

              I will stick to these two national teams. Colombia and Senegal.  

2018 FIFA Men's World Cup (Group F)

Group F

Germany (1)

Mexico (15)

Sweden (23)

South Korea (61)

                Unlike the past groups, group F is one that I have a personal investment in. Mexico is the birthplace of my parents and where I get my food, traditions, and language. Most of the time I have temporary bias when I support a team or player. At times I enjoy watching Spain then get tired of them and watch Brazil and the same goes with club teams. I enjoy watching football in general. But, Mexico is different. It is a personal bias. Fans will understand when I speak of my team it is with passion and emotion. However, as I went through academia and studied sports I learned how to separate myself momentarily to critique the teams I support in a more honest manner.

                Germany are not only clear favorites to win the group, but they are perceived to be favorites to lift the world cup again. The German national side has quality all around and what makes their dominance frightening or admirable is that plenty of their younger players are already playing significant amount of minutes in big clubs around Europe. The issue German coach, Joachim Low, will have is who will have to leave out of his 23-man roster for the 2018 World Cup. That being said, Germany is beatable. Die Mannschaft lost to Brazil in a friendly 1-0. One could state that a friendly isn’t always the best method to judge a team which can be the case. Germany did lose when it mattered. They lost to France by a score of 2-0 in the semi-finals at the Euros. This isn’t to diminish the German national team in anyway. They are favorites to win the World Cup and justifiably so. I would just shed light to those that are not aware that the mighty can fall.

                Mexico is a team that if you want to make a safe bet on getting out of the group stage you will definitely earn that money back. The issue with Mexico is that after the group stage one could double their gambling earnings by betting against Mexico winning their round of 16 match. Since the 1994 World Cup Mexico has been eliminated in the round of 16. That is six, SIX times! In Mexico there are talks of superstition and a curse of the fifth game. However, even though I love the stories I do not who heartedly believe in them. Mexico is a talented national team where players have the speed and technical ability to match anyone of the favorites, yet they do lack tactical discipline to beat the favorites. Mexico will finish second in the group which means they will face the winners of group E in the round of 16. Chances are that BRAZIL will win group E. So, is it really a curse or just bad luck? Why not just finish first?

                Sweden in certain newspapers are perceived as finishing 2^nd in the group. Which is not unrealistic, the games still have to be played, but I don’t see Sweden making much of a run this summer in Russia. They did beat Italy in a play-off to earn a spot at the World Cup. But, that was an Italian side that was tactically handicap due to their coach and a national team that has not been playing up to its name for the past decade. Sweden has a chance to finish second, but to me that chance is very minimal. The Swedes play compact, pragmatic, and disciplined football. I don’t think they have the talent upfront to beat even the likes of Mexico.

                South Korea is a team I wish was a lot better than they currently are. I want to cheer for them simply because of Son Heung-min. He is the winger/forward who plays for Tottenham Hotspurs in the English Premier league. I enjoy watching Son play, but his supporting cast doesn’t have the quality to make a serious run to finish second in the group.   

  

                For group F Germany are the clear favorites to finish first with Mexico in second.  

2018 FIFA Men's world Cup (Group A)

Group A

Russia (66) FIFA Rankings

Saudi Arabia (70)

Egypt (46)

Uruguay (17)

Russia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Uruguay make up the four teams that make up group A in the 2018 men’s FIFA World Cup. For most viewers, this group as a whole seems dull and other than a few singular story lines can be deemed as a group that won’t be fondly remembered. The host, Russia, aren’t necessarily exciting to watch and don’t have the same structure as they did under Guus Hiddink. South Africa beat Russia to it, but Russia has a high probability in joining them as the one of two teams to host the tournament and not make it out of the group stage.

The two main reasons why I see Russia having a disappointing summer is because of Egypt and Uruguay. Egypt has not made a world cup appearance since 1990 and to add to the unimpressive record the Egyptian national team has never made it past the group stage. The past doesn’t determine the outcome of present or future performances. At the moment, Egypt have a player that is having an incredible season. Mohammed Salah, who plays his club trade in Liverpool, is a winger that is on his way to win the golden boot in the English Premier League.  As a whole Egypt isn’t a team that can disturb any of the traditional powerhouse teams, but the Pharaohs should have enough to beat Russia and Saudi Arabia.

Uruguay is a safe pick to finish first. The Celeste finished second in the CONMEBOL world cup qualifying region which is regarded as one of, if not the most rigorous region to qualify from. Uruguay has won the tournament twice, but their latest triumph has been well over sixty years. In 2010, led by Diego Forlan, Uruguay finished fourth in South Africa. As mentioned before, the past does nothing to win in the present or future, only create shackles of failure or success. Uruguay has strikers that can score and cause problems to any back line. Luis Suarez, Edinson Cavani, and Christhian Stuani are strikers who are scoring goals for their respective clubs and if they can replicate their form for their national team Uruguay could be a dark horse in this summer’s tournament and challenge the favorites to win it.

Saudi Arabia isn’t much of a threat to any one in the group and the only news from the national team was when a handful of national team players went to Spain in January to play football in the first and second division.

Group A is the group of the host, but unfortunately for them fixing results won’t be enough for them to get through. Uruguay is a team that can reach the further rounds and Egypt have a scoring machine in Salah to get them by.