Bruce Arena and Jurgen Klinsmann are two very different people both hung with the blame for failing to get the U.S. to the 2018 World Cup (because it’s easier to blame coaches than the players fans worship).
Last Friday, Istanbul Basaksehir slipped to a disastrous 1-1 home draw with Sivasspor, a result that almost certainly handed the Turkish Super Lig title to either Galatasaray or Fenerbahce with only two matches to play. Leading 1-0 heading into second half stoppage time, Istanbul Basaksehir goalkeeper Volkan Babacan surrendered this calamitous own goal to doom his club’s title hopes.
On Sunday, in a pivotal relegation match for his side, Florentin Pogba, Paul’s older brother, injured his knee. Pogba then decided to limp off the pitch in the 85th minute, only to be angrily confronted by his Genclerbirligi teammates.
It’s never a proper El Clasico without a bit of blood and thunder (coupled with some extremely cringeworthy theatrics), but a brilliant opening 15 minutes has been followed by some pretty pathetic (but extremely entertaining) bickering from both sides, culminating in a straight red card to Sergi Roberto just before the halftime whistle.
In the end, Bayern Munich only has itself to blame. If you want to get particular about it, it’s left back Rafinha and goalkeeper Sven Ulreich who deserve the most condemnation. The duo absolutely gifted Real Madrid two of its four goals, a devastating bit of self-sabotage against the back-to-back world champion.
Landon Donovan’s first season in Liga MX ended on Saturday with Club Leon defeating Guadalajara 2-0 in a match between two clubs already eliminated from playoff contention. Donovan played the game’s final 15 minutes, giving him a grand total of only 112 Liga MX minutes from only six appearances in the Clausura season.
Sergio Ramos is a crazy man. This is not a secret, but it takes a very special type of crazy to produce a 10-minute video of bad tackles and late challenges and elbows and the like. Ramos is nothing if not special.
In December, Ramos set the Spanish Primera Division record for red cards in a career after receiving his marching orders for the 19th time. This was not exactly a surprise. Ramos has earned 24 total red cards in his Real Madrid career, and has collected nearly 300 total bookings.
On the eve of a Manchester Derby that could decide the Premier League title, Pep Guardiola has revealed some pretty destabilizing claims concerning Paul Pogba’s past, present and future at Manchester United. According to Guardiola, Pogba’s agent, Mino Raiola, offered his client to the Citizens over the January transfer window.