#365sprots

Man U/Hull City English League Cup Semifinal - First Leg 1/10/17 So much English football going on at the moment. This weekend we saw FA Cup action, we are in the heart of the Premiere League season, and today we got a midweek English League Cup semifinal game between the mighty Red Devils of Manchester United and the Tigers of Hull City. I love that Hull City took on the Tiger name, mostly because it was done a couple years ago and there fans lost their minds over it. So every time I see them play or hear the name, I quietly whisper to myself "Rawr, I'm a tiger." I have issues, I'm aware... With games like these, it is so easy to cheer against the likes of Man U, because you want these smaller clubs to get the opportunity to have that moment they don't normally get. It's also very interesting for a team like United, who are also dealing with balancing the FA Cup, the league cup, and Europa League. Hull City started the EPL season barely able to field enough players, and that has reflected on the team's lack of success on the pitch. United got the attacking started very early. As Juan Mata put a great effort on net, and shortly after Wayne Rooney was just out of reach of putting one in the back of the net. The Red Devils controlled the action throughout the first half, and the Tigers were forced into an early sub due to injury. The one thing that stood out about United today was there inability to finish without Zlat on the pitch. They had at least 5 or 6 chances where guys just completely botched the attempt. Mkhitaryan was the winner of the can't finish game, as he was responsible for most of the terrible misses. United manager Jose Mourinho saw enough of the first half before it was even over, as he headed to the locker room before stoppage time even began. Manchester United finally broke through in the 56th minute. Valencia started it with the cross, Mkhitaryan headed it across goal, and Juan Mata was there to finish. You could sense the relief in the stadium at the moment, because when you are dominating a contest without leading it can lead to mistakes. Wayne Rooney was subbed out in the 59th minute, and was not able to find the net to make him stand alone atop the United goals scored leaderboard. Rooney has always been a fascinating player to me, and I equate him to a Matt Ryan. Everyone is quick to point fingers at him when his team struggles, and yet he continues to perform well. Rooney is one of those players who I have had the chance to actually follow a good portion of his career, and he is a joy to watch. And no, I'm not just saying that because he is a Toffee through and through. Speaking of Toffees, another familiar face to me came on for Mata late and scored in the 87th minute. Mario Fellani scored by using his giant hair to power the ball in, and gave the Red Devils the 2-0 lead. United held that lead until the final whistle, and they will take that advantage into the second leg at Hull City next week. United will have a much tougher test this weekend, as they get back into EPL play with a huge battle against Liverpool. Should be a good one. One last though: screw Manchester United.

Anaheim Ducks/Minnesota Wild 1/8/17 After a great morning hike and a little bit of football, I got the chance to sit down and watch my Anaheim Ducks take on the Minnesota Wild. I almost missed the start because I am not used to Anaheim being on a national broadcast. The Ducks were without captain Ryan Getzlaf for the third straight game, and his absence was felt on the power play. Minnesota capitalized on another sloppy second period for Anaheim holding onto the 2-1 victory. The Wild are now 9-0-2 in their last 11 road games. The game felt lifeless early on, but as things picked up it was Ryan Kesler who got the scoring started for Anaheim. Anaheim lead 1-0 after one, but the nightmare that continues to be the second period continued. Anaheim was outshot 16-6 in the period and were outplayed by the Wild. Anaheim had some great opportunities in the final minute, but the Wild played some great defensive hockey and were able to escape with the win. That was an incredibly frustrating game to watch for me, as the Ducks really had trouble getting shots on net throughout the night. But the Ducks remained tied with San Jose at the top of the Pacific Division. It's going to be fun to watch this team in the coming months, as some young names are starting to emerge as contributors. It's been great to see it start in San Diego with the Gulls.

Barcelona/Athletic Bilbao Copa Del Rey - 1st Leg 1-5-17 I don't really get the chance to watch Barca play live very often. But when I do, I just sit back and enjoy the show they put on. So today I was limited in my times I could watch a game, and this Copa Del Rey battle fell right into the window. I got to see flashes of that Barcelona brilliance, but today three minutes were the difference. This game was very chippy throughout and Bilbao felt the most of it, getting two players sent off in the second half. In the end Bilbao survived with Messi hitting one off the post in the final seconds as Barca fell 2-1 in the first leg of this quarterfinal match. Aritz Aduriz was a centerpiece in this game for Bilbao. It was Aduriz starting and finishing the first goal, but later in the game appearing to punch a Barca defender in the face on a corner. No card was given, but it set the tone for a physical game. Bilbao got the scoring started in the 25th minute. Aduriz started the run and found space in the box to put the header on net giving the home team the early advantage. Just three minutes later, a Barca turnover was turned into a quick strike from Inaki Williams. While Barca controlled the possession battle, they just could not score on multiple chances throughout. We did see a flash of brilliance from Lionel Messi on a perfectly placed free kick in the 52nd minute. Messi put the ball in the top corner, and even with a hand on it the Bilbao goalie could not keep the ball out. It is moments like that from Messi that make him what he is. The second leg will be next Wednesday as Barcelona looks to overcome the 2-1 deficit at Camp Nou. Since 2008, the only side to eliminate Barca from Copa Del Rey has been Real Madrid. Athletic Bilbao has a tough challenge ahead, but they should go in with some confidence. I don't watch enough Spanish league, but it is a very fun style to watch. Look forward to watching more throughout the year!

Chelsea/Tottenham 1-4-17 The one thing about this challenge that makes it more doable is these weekday soccer matches, and we got a great English Premiere League match today. Chelsea is on top of the table, and on a 13 match winning streak. The Spurs sat in 5th heading into this game. Both teams are so great in the attacking half, and it makes for a very fun game to watch. Within the first 10 minutes Hazard and Kane both had chances on net. But through the first third of this match it was Tottenham with the scoring chances. Danny Rose was impressive early, as he made some great runs and created some chances. Spurs are just a damn talented team, they are deadly on the break. After a tightly contested 45, the Spurs took the lead right at the break on a brilliant header by Dele Alli. Chelsea started on the attack coming out of the half. Getting some chances but not able to get the equalizer. Well moments later, a Spurs run was finished off by a great cross from Erickson to Dele Alli. Credit to Dele for finishing it but Erickson set that up, with a great hesitation move which helped create the space. As great as Chelsea is, the Spurs were just the better squad today. It felt like Tottenham had more than 11 on the pitch, because they seemed to have someone around the ball at every moment. In the end it was a festive White Hart Lane singing for their Spurs, as they leap into 3rd after this very impressive performance. Chelsea was going for history tonight, but their match winning streak ends at 13, tying them for most all time. This had to be a tough one for the Blues, as they really were outplayed on both sides of the ball. Chelsea is still top of the league, and without any European obligations they should rebound from this nicely. It's going to be a fun few months watching the Top 6 battle this out, as each team has the ability to put a run together to take the league title. This was a damn fun game, but in the end it showed me how far off my Toffees are.

Another thing that was great about the game was seeing Keith Jackson in the booth. It has been 11 years since he called his final game, but he is still the voice of college football to me. When I was growing up, you knew it was a big game when Keith was on the call. Though it was sad hearing him struggle with his voice, we did get little glimmers of that legendary voice throughout the segment. When I think of the Rose Bowl, Keith Jackson is one of the first things that comes to mind. The Rose Bowl itself is still one of my favorite venues in all of sport. It is not state of the art, parking sucks, but it is timeless once you walk inside. There is something about big games in this stadium just living up the hype. There have been some legendary ones, but this game is going to go towards the top of the list. College football is wild, unpredictable, and fun as long as your team isn't playing.

Los Angeles continues to suffer from the growing pains, but that is expected given all the changes this year. The team did shoot the ball well, shooting 40% from the field and 47% from three. Nick Young did Swaggy things, as he was 7-9 from beyond the arc. The bench players continue to surprise me, and Sunday night it was Thomas Robinson that put together a nice night. Robinson only played 17 minutes but he complied a nice line of 12 points and 9 boards. Brandon Ingram continues to show flashes of what is to come, and he brought the house down with a thunderous dunk in the second half. I am really looking forward to watching this team over the next coming years, if the Lakers stay in tact they will be a force. I still think the Lakers can make the playoffs this year, and at 12-25 they only sit four games back of the 8th seed. If they can put the pieces together, who knows what will happen come May and June.

After the game my friends and I stayed in the stadium until security started clearing people out, and it was tough to take it in. The PA played a bunch of cryptic songs and it seemed to fuel the chants of the people who stuck around to keep the team in San Diego. At this point I don't know what else can be said about the future of the San Diego Chargers. We will find out the teams fate in the coming weeks, and my gut tells me this team will stay for at least 2 more years. As much as I have prepared myself for the team leaving, I'm not sure I still truly believe it could happen. Give me closure one way or another Dean Spanos, I think it's the least we as fans deserve.