0-0

f that.

1-0 Eng

we have learned nothing. england is supposed to win. they get it done. but there is nothing that says May Day for Team USA. a totally acceptable result.

1-1

american soccer ain’t nothing to mess with. prepare to see the british press start panicking. capello will call it a hiccup, and the english will crush the next game, but the us will be looking into the round of 16.

2-1 ENG

the most likely result. the three lions will have some confidence but the us will feel vindicated. nothing is in disarray for the americans. now they just need to win the next two.

2-1 US

totally possible. and it would be so glorious. the brits would start re-thinking their defense. maybe a goalkeeping change will be in order. and the pressure would build on the english. the americans meanwhile will have something to hang their hat on.

2-2

damn that would be a good game. i’d love it to be a 1-0, 1-1, 2-1, 2-2 progression. everyone (fans, players, coaches, pundits) would be content.

3-2 ENG

mmmmmm good. and acceptable for everyone. scoring won’t be the problem. the americans will be thinking about defense and endurance. so will team england.

3-2 US

capello will be flipping out. america will have some new offensive hero (even if it’s donovan/dempsey again). ratings for the rest of the american world cup games will be out of control.

ENG victory by 2 or more

ummm, ok, maybe england is a legit contender. everyone in the uk’s gonna be getting STOKED on that kinda result. buy your rooney jerseyz now.

US victory by 2 or more

england in roo-ins. the british press corps are about to go CRAZY. america will never let the british live this down. f*** bp. REVENGE OF THE GULF! t-shirts. tattoos. monuments. ESPN will be calling it an instant classic. i will call it SARATOGA 2 or SARATOGA IN SOUTH AFRICA.

3-3

well boys, that’s what we call soccer (unless ur british in which case that’s what you call football).

a bittersweet moment to be sure. the feeling that the summer has begun coasting down the hill to its end, and there’s nothing to do now about it save enjoy the ride.

part of enjoying that ride has been a rampant engagement with fifa 07 of late, the last installment of the legendary soccer video game franchise that was made for the gamecube (my only console system). a couple of weeks ago, i bought fifa 07 at the providence place mall, after searching for it all summer. until the purchase all of the fifa-playing in the mccune household (which is substantial) had been executed on fifa 2002, which is worlds away from the quality of 07.

with all this fifa-playing, with all the arsenal, chelsea, man united, and liverpool grudge matches between friends, imagine my excitement when upon flicking on the tv set in newport, i discovered that today’s opening premiership matches were being televised. as i write now, chelsea is concluding an epic 4-0 rout of portsmouth. the score was actually 3-0 with 5 minutes left in the game but deco scored a long distance drill to bring it to four. i knew this was going to happen, because i checked the europort scoreline halfway through the game.

up next, arsenal. and i have intentionally NOT checked this score line.

arsenal is my favorite premiership team. i not only have two arsenal jerseys, but also sport an arsenal scarf from about november to march every year. i caught the arsenal bug back in 2000, when I visited london for the first time. i was twelve, and when my brother decided that he was a manchester united fan, i decided to take up supporting their rivals who at the time (and from my limited american pre-teen perspective) appeared to be arsenal.

i remember telling people back in boston that arsenal was the red sox of the english premiership and that man u were the yankees. i now know that was a hilarious over simplification.

still, my love for arsenal has only grown by actually getting a chance to follow the team using various widgets and highlight reel rss feeds. this year, i am actually thinking of paying the £4.99 a month to get arsenal tv on my comp. this would give me all the games. then, for the first time, i could be a (more) legit fan.

it’s funny being a moderate american soccer fan. because it’s fairly difficult to watch soccer on tv (first there are time delays, then there’s lack of programming), it’s hard to be a “true” fan. the internet has certainly assuaged these difficulties (thank god for eurosport) but it hasn’t solved all the problems. indeed, being an american soccer fan must be something like being a british basketball fan, the grass is way greener on the other side.

speaking of global/local tensions and soccer, i once read a great book on the subject called how soccer explains the world.

3:42 – and there’s an arsenal goal. first of the day, first of the season, first at home. it’s a textbook goal, from a new player called narsi. see, it’s good to watch the team because you get a chance to reaquaint yourself with the team you support. i wonder if i dare to check the scoreline yet.

no. it’s so rare that i get to watch, i’ll just savor the experience.