All posts tagged Soccer

One. More. Day.

Baseball is back tomorrow! We’re so excited to finally get to watch our Redlegs again!

And where it’ll be incredible to have MLB baseball back, I’ve been enjoying the MLS is Back tournament so much. I’ve watched every match of the tournament either live or recorded or both. It’s been so much fun to watch. I’ve really looked forward to the matches with the 9am kickoffs every morning over the last couple of weeks. It’s been awesome to get ready for work and then be able to listen to a live soccer match while I settle in and start my workday. Today was the last day of the group stage play. And unfortunately, I think that means no more 9am kickoffs.

Now that the morning soccer matches are over, I’m probably going to go back to listening to the KBO baseball games as I start work each day. I’ve been missing my Doosan Bears baseball during the soccer tournament.

I’m really happy that sports are back. It makes the world feel a little more normal again. 😀⚾️⚽️🇰🇷📺❤️

Leave a comment

by Thadd F. on July 23, 2020 • Permalink

Posted in #SUMMERinCINCY, Odd & Ends

Posted by Thadd F. on July 23, 2020

https://tplusg.com/2020/07/23/one-more-day/

Cheers! It’s finally Friday.

Good morning from Northside…

This has felt like a really long week. But made it to Friday. And to celebrate this morning, we walked to Sidewinder to get coffee…

Cheers to Friday!

Our drinks were so good.

Genifer went with her sister to get pedicures. I cranked all day to get my work done.

And then we walked the dogs…

Good evening from Northside…

I stayed up to watch my Minnesota United play the 10:30pm late match to a 0-0 draw with Real Salt Lake. I’m probably going to be tired tomorrow. It’s a good thing we’re still in the middle of a pandemic and there really isn’t much of anything to do. 😀🌄☕️❤️

Leave a comment

by Thadd F. on July 17, 2020 • Permalink

Posted in #SUMMERinCINCY, Northside, Odd & Ends

Tagged 2020, Cincinnati, Clouds, Coffee, Good evening, Good morning, Home Sweet Home, Jul17, July, Look up in the sky, Minnesota United FC, MLS, MLS is BACK tournament, Northside, Odds&Ends, Ohio, Seen and noted, Sidewinder Coffee, Soccer

Posted by Thadd F. on July 17, 2020

https://tplusg.com/2020/07/17/cheers-its-finally-friday/

A Thursday pizza party.

Good morning from Northside…

It was grey and overcast start to our Thursday.

While we were working this morning, we watched FC Cincinnati defeat a 9-man Atlanta United 1-0. FC|C was kind of gifted the win with two Atlanta players sent off, one in just the 26th minute for a second yellow and the second a straight red in stoppage time.

We made it through Thursday. And a reward, we had an NYPD Pizza party…

I wonder what happened to NYPD’s awning. I placed our order online at 5:45pm. And at 6:05pm, I was heading back to the Audi with our pizza…

And at 6:10pm, I’m back at home and we were starting our NYPD Pizza party…

Tonight, we had a large pepperoni and sausage with banana peppers…

This pepperoni had five sausages on it…

It was the best bite of pizza I had tonight. We also ordered some cheese curds…

NYPD’s boneless wings are so good but they recently decreased the quantities of their wings but the kept the prices the same and they’re just not a good value any more.

Good evening from Northside…

And good evening from our backyard…

And that was actually our Thursday. I feel like can see the light at the end of the tunnel for my work projects this week. One more day to go. 😀🌄🍕❤️

Leave a comment

by Thadd F. on July 16, 2020 • Permalink

Posted in #SUMMERinCINCY, Northside, Odd & Ends

Posted by Thadd F. on July 16, 2020

https://tplusg.com/2020/07/16/a-thursday-pizza-party/

Today was Thursday.

Today was ~~Thursday~~ Wednesday. Good morning from Northside…

Genifer put the shelves back up in our bathroom. She did an incredible job painting…

It looks so good. I love this shade of blue, especially with the blue floor tiles…

Speaking of good, we had baked sausages with sweet potatoes and apples for dinner…

It’s one of my favorite dinners. And good evening from Northside…

There was this weird little leaf dangling from a strand of spider web in our backyard…

Tonight, we watched more of the MLS is Back tournament. It’s been a lot of fun so far. There have been a lot of really entertaining matches. And it’s been great to have live sports every night again.

And that was our ~~Thursday~~ Wednesday. 😀🟦🍃❤️

Leave a comment

by Thadd F. on July 15, 2020 • Permalink

Posted in #SUMMERinCINCY, Northside, Odd & Ends

Posted by Thadd F. on July 15, 2020

https://tplusg.com/2020/07/15/today-was-thursday/

And here’s what actually happened.

I had this really epic soccer Sunday planned. And as you know, very rarely does anything ever go as planned. This is what actually happened with my epic soccer Sunday. I watched all the matches. But the results weren’t as I would have liked them.

Last night, the start of the FC Cincinnati versus Columbus Crew match didn’t start until well after 11pm because the match before theirs had a weather delay. I stayed up to watch the entire match. I don’t know why. It was bad. Really bad. It was the first match in charge for FC Cincinnati’s new manager, Jaap Stam. And it looked every bit of it.

News flash… FC Cincinnati is still terrible and lost 4-0.

This morning we watched the second half of Wolves clinical 3-0 thumping of Everton. With the win, Wolves became the first English side to win competitive games in two different Julys in the same season. I was all set for the start of Toronto versus DC United. But the match was postponed because of COVID-19 concerns. I mentioned we might watch yesterday’s Doosan Bears-Lotte Giants KBO game but we actually watched it yesterday. My Bears lost 5-4. Jose Fernandez hit a two-run homer with two out in the ninth to pull the Bears within one. But then the next batter flew out to center and that was the ballgame. I was also going to touch-up my quarantine haircut but I did that yesterday too. I got new clippers when we were running around yesterday. And I wanted to give them a try. They worked really well.

So with that, we had to endure Aston Villa versus Crystal Palace in its entirety. I don’t know how Crystal Palace don’t get relegated every season. Every time I see them play, they play the most uninspired, uninterested, and just plain boring soccer. Even when we saw them play FC Cincinnati at Nippert Stadium, they were pretty boring. Palace beat FC|C 2-0. But today, Palace lost 2-0 to Villa. Again.

The North London derby started well for Arsenal with Lacazette’s absolute screamer. The Gunners took a 1-0 but then the defense. Sigh. Arsenal. After the match, I changed from one of my Arsenal polos to my Leicester t-shirt. I switched the channel to ESPN to watch a bit of Parma-Bologna so I didn’t have to watch the Jose Mourinho post-match interview on NBCSN. I’ve never liked him. I can’t envision a scenario that would cause that to change.

Leicester looked to be rolling right along after Jamie Vardy scored his league-leading 26th goal. But then the wheels came off the Leicester wagon after the referee awarded Bournemouth a penalty. Leicester was reduced to ten men after a red card and Bournemouth would go on to score three more times to win 4-1. What. The. Heck?

Lousiville City started their USL season hosting Pittsburgh Rverhounds as they opened their new soccer-specific stadium. Speedy Williams scored the first goal for City in their new home. But then they gave up three unanswered goals to lose 3-1.

Are you seeing a trend here? All of my teams took a 1-0 lead and then lost.

Minnesota was trailing 1-0 as the clock approached the 90th minute. And then United scored two goals in stoppage time to win 2-1. The first was a penalty kick at 90+2 and then the winner at 90+7. And with that, Epic Soccer Sunday was salvaged!

It would have been a real bummer if all my teams lost. Thankfully, Minnesota United saved the day. 😀⚽️❤️

Leave a comment

by Thadd F. on July 12, 2020 • Permalink

Posted in #SUMMERinCINCY, Northside, Odd & Ends

Posted by Thadd F. on July 12, 2020

https://tplusg.com/2020/07/12/and-heres-what-actually-happened/

It’s finally happening!

I can’t remember the last time we had an epic sports day. One of those days where there are so many good games on TV, you don’t how you’re going to watch them all. It’s been soooo long since we’ve had a really epic sports day. It’s been so long since we had sports. But today is truly an epic sports day! I’m calling it, EPIC SOCCER SUNDAY! This is what I’ll be watching during today’s massive football feast with the teams I’ll be cheering for highlighted in blue…

I’m not entirely sold on watching Toronto-DC United. I guess it depends on if I managed to stay awake until the end of last night’s FC Cincinnati versus Columbus match. The 10:30pm starts during the MLS is Back tournament are just a little late for me. I might also watch my Doosan Bears versus Lotte Giants KBO game that was on ESPN very early yesterday morning. We’ll see how it goes. I might also touch up my quarantine haircut first thing this morning.

Of the four matches I’m really interested in watching today, Arsenal seems to finally be finding their form after the restart. The Gunners are undefeated in their last five with four wins and a draw against Leicester. Spuds are doing their best Totteringham over their last five with two wins, draws at both Everton and Bournemouth, and a whopping 3-1 loss away to Sheffield United. Leceister City are currently sitting fourth in the league and hope to regain their pre-COVID-19 form against Bournemouth, who have lost four of their last five. My Foxes have just one win in their last five with two losses and two draws. But with Chelsea also losing to Sheffield United yesterday, a win could put Leicester back in third.

Leading up to Sunday’s USL Championship restart, two-time USL Champion Louisville City will be christening their brand new, $65 million state-of-the-art, Lynn Family Stadium at approximately 30% of the new facility’s regular 15,304-person capacity.

And finally, there’s my Minnesota United. Before the season was suspended, the Loons won both of their matches, 3-1 away to Portland and 5-2 away to San Jose. So I’m super excited to have them start playing again. I stocked up on MNUFC gear in the off-season, and I’ve been waiting all year to finally have the opportunity to wear it.

There are other matches on Sunday too. There are two early Premier League matches on Sunday. Wolves face Everton at 7am. Wolves have been in great form since the restart and hadn’t given up a goal until they play Arsenal last weekend. The second match is Aston Villa versus Crystal Palace. And it just sounds like it’s going to be a boring, lifeless draw. But watch it end up being the most exciting match of the day. AC Milan plays Napoli in Italian Serie A at 3:45pm on ESPN+. The Rossoneri stunned Juventus 4-2 midweek. And there’s also the late MLS tournament match between Real Salt Lake and Colorado Rapids at 10:30pm on ESPN. I don’t know that we’ll make it all the way through the late MLS match. But I’m pretty sure it’ll be on our TV as we’re heading to bed.

It’s going to be an Epic Soccer Sunday. And I couldn’t be more excited. 😃📺⚽️🤗💯❤️

Leave a comment

by Thadd F. on July 12, 2020 • Permalink

Posted in #SUMMERinCINCY, Northside, Odd & Ends

Posted by Thadd F. on July 12, 2020

https://tplusg.com/2020/07/12/its-finally-happening/

Timehopping.

Two years ago, I was recovering from my second hip replacement surgery…

Three years ago today, FC Cincinnati’s magical 2017 US Open Cup run continued as FC|C defeated Chicago Fire on penalties in the Round of 16. It was an amazing night that will forever be etched in Cincinnati sports lore…

Thinking about that night still gives me chills.

And four years ago, we officially moved into our house in Northside…

Unpacking is just the worst. I’m glad we’re all settled into our great big house now. And we said goodbye to our little apartment downtown…

Five years ago, Cincinnati was getting ready to host the MLB All-Star Game…

Thanks for all the wonderful memories, Timehop. 😀🦕🍕❤️

Leave a comment

by Thadd F. on June 28, 2020 • Permalink

Posted in #SUMMERinCINCY, FC Cincinnati, Northside, Odd & Ends, Sports

Posted by Thadd F. on June 28, 2020

https://tplusg.com/2020/06/28/timehopping-14/

MLS is back!

While I’m working, I really like listening to sports on Pluto TV. I usually bounce back and forth between four main channels: Surf TV, Red Bull TV, Bein Sports Extra, and the MLS channel. This afternoon on the MLS channel, we stumbled across the selection show for the upcoming MLS IS BACK tournament which will be held in Orlando…

They drew the groups for the east first. FC Cincinnati drew Group E…

Hilariously, Columbus Crew drew Group E as well…

So there will be a matchup of the Hell is Real derby in Orlando…

In the west, my very favorite MLS club, Minnesota United drew Group D…

Also hilariously, Group F contains both teams from Los Angeles…

And the best part is all the matches will be televised…

The best summers are always the World Cup summers, followed closely by the Euro Championship summers. More than likely, this tournament won’t have the same talent level or probably the same drama as national team tournaments but it should still be a lot of fun to watch. Especially after four months without any sports at all.

And I can’t wait! Come on you Loons! 😀⚽️🏆❤️

Leave a comment

by Thadd F. on June 12, 2020 • Permalink

Posted in #SPRINGinCINCY, FC Cincinnati, Odd & Ends, Sports

Tagged 2020, Cincinnati, FC Cincinnati, Ffffound, Hell Is Real Cup, Home Sweet Home, Jun12, June, Minnesota United FC, MLS, MLS is BACK tournament, Northside, Odds&Ends, Ohio, Pluto TV, Seen and noted, Soccer, Sports

Posted by Thadd F. on June 12, 2020

https://tplusg.com/2020/06/12/mls-is-back/

Four years ago OR Why I’m over FC|C.

Four years ago, our first FC Cincinnati booklet of season tickets arrived in the mail…

We reserved our season tickets on forty-five minutes after it was announced that USL soccer was coming to Cincinnati.

To me, these were the FC|C glory days, back when they were in USL. They were just this little upstart second division club from Cincinnati that drew 25,000+ fans to their home games. They were competitive on the pitch. They had friendlies with major European squads like Crystal Palace, Valencia, and Espanyol. It was all so exciting and soooo much fun. During the 2016 and 2017 seasons, we didn’t miss one home match. Every friendly, every scrimmage, every single match, we were there. The 2018 season we missed three matches because of my hip surgeries and one match because of a family vacation. The 2019 MLS season started off well but by the end we skipped some of the matches during the week because the team was so bad.

And before each season started, we would go out and each buy the new FC|C home jersey for the season and sweatshirts so we had new gear for each new season.

We were all in on FC Cincinnati. Until now.

Here comes the diatribe…

Fast forward four years, FC Cincinnati is the worst club in MLS. I mean, it’s not even close. in 2019, they earned just 24 points from 34 matches, and finished with a goal difference of -44. NEGATIVE FORTY-FOUR. They currently find themselves without a head coach. Again. Before the start of this season, they eliminated general admission tickets. And that drove the ticket prices up. Again. Every year it keeps getting more and more expensive just to watch a team that’s terrible. We decided at the end of last season that we were not going to be renewing our season tickets.

And we have YouTubeTV. On YouTubeTV, you can’t stream any of the FC|C matches…

We also subscribe to ESPN+. MLS enforces strict black-outs of even the on-demand replays of ALL FC Cincy matches…

The only way for us to watch any of the FC Cincinnati matches, home or away, is by using an over-air antenna.

And to top it off, I think their 2020 home kit is an absolute mess. But to be fair, their away kit is pretty sweet. Over the last four years, FC Cincinnati’s home kit has gone from horizontal blocks to hoops to stripes to halves. It’s ridiculous. I’ve watched a lot of soccer throughout the years and I can’t recall another side that has varied the overall design for their kit so dramatically. Usually just little details change.

With the rising ticket prices and the TV black-outs, what FC|C and MLS are telling me is this… we don’t care if you watch Cincinnati soccer matches. And I’m fine with that. I’ll wear the gear I have. But I’m not dropping another dime on this team.

I’ve really fallen in love with Minnesota United in MLS. They are a competitive side. I like their coach. Love their logo and kit. And I can watch all their matches on ESPN+. I’ve also begun really supporting Louisville City in USL. I can also watch all of their matches through ESPN+. As soon as the COVID-19 crisis is behind us, we’re planning weekend trips to both Minneapolis and Louisville to see their stadiums and watch matches. And to me, that seems like a much better use of my money.

I’m not saying I’m done with FC Cincinnati for ever. But I’m definitely over them for right now and into the foreseeable future. #AllForCincy 😐⚽️❤️

Leave a comment

by Thadd F. on March 30, 2020 • Permalink

Posted in #SPRINGinCINCY, FC Cincinnati, Odd & Ends, Sports

Tagged #Timehop, 2020, Cincinnati, COVID-19, FC Cincinnati, Four years ago, Home Sweet Home, Mar30, March, MLS, Northside, Odds&Ends, Ohio, Season Tickets, Seen and noted, Soccer

Posted by Thadd F. on March 30, 2020

https://tplusg.com/2020/03/30/four-years-ago-8/

A world without sports.

Last night, the NBA shocked everyone by abruptly suspending the remaining games of their season after a player on the Utah Jazz tested positive for coronavirus…

But at least, my Mavs are the 2019/20 Champions. This afternoon, Michigan was set to begin their 2020 B1G TEN tournament against Rutgers in Indianapolis at a Bankers Life Fieldhouse without any spectators…

And just as the game was about to tipoff, the entire tournament was canceled…

Both teams were on the floor, warmed up and ready to tip-off their tournament and then the plug was pulled on the whole thing.

Some things are bigger than basketball. This is a global situation and we need to make sure we follow the guidance and direction of the experts and health officials. While we are disappointed of not being able to play this event — especially for Zavier and Jon.

We need to stay bonded together during this time. We want everyone to stay safe and take precautions to protect yourselves and loved ones.

We are a Michigan family… forever.

— Michigan Head Coach, Juwan Howard

But on the upside, Michigan is still undefeated against Rutgers.

And less than an hour later, MLS postponed their season for 30 days…

No Minnesota United soccer for a while…

In a related story, I’m done with FC Cincinnati. Completely done. But that’s another post for another time. And not long after MLS, USL followed suit and suspended their season for at least 30 days as well…

Louisville City just completed their soccer-specific stadium before the beginning of this season, and now they’re going to have to wait a little while longer to christen their stadium. But it looks just beautiful…

A few hours later, it was baseball’s turn…

And then later this afternoon, March Madness turned into March Sadness…

Ha. And when I got home from work, I saw an update from England…

Apparently, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has been diagnosed with COVID-19…

The FA is scheduled to release a statement of the future of the English Premier League season. I’m guessing it will be postponed for the foreseeable future…

And there you go. Now we’re living in my nightmare, a world without sports. It’s a very sad day. And it’s going to be a really long month. 😭🚫❤️

UPDATE: The Premier League season has been suspended with the intention of returning on April 4. The League intends to reschedule the postponed matches.

And the NBA season is likely to resume. Games could return in April and possibly go straight into the playoffs, or the league could push the entire calendar back. But my Mavericks will always be 2019/20 NBA Champions to me.