GOBBI

Playing soccer my whole youth life until high school varsity, I know the game and I know intensity and creativity, and I also know bad coaching. Style of play has always been the issue for me regards to the U.S. National Soccer Team over the years. Most of all it is the federations mentality and American style of coaching that is has limited the U.S. game. The same-old, same-old just wasn’t cutting it anymore. We have good players, and the coaching well I feel was not ware it needed to be to meet the expectations of the American fan base. I think the coaches and staff did there best, but to me and other U.S. fans of the game that was just not good enough with the caliber of players we have at our disposal, but I thank them for their service. I have been calling for years that we need a European coach with a different style of approach to the beautiful game, so we can take our play to the next level. Finally someone was listening, and they made the daring decision to hire a great player in his day Juergen Klinsmann from the 1990 World Champion German National Team. About fucking time we got some one that will bring some fun, intensity and enthusiasm to our play.

Sometime things need to be shaken up a bit, aggressive changes need to be made and implemented. Making safe decisions creates predictable results, it take balls for a company whether it be a product or a brand, or an organization or U.S. federation to really make daring calls for change and actually to implement them without hesitation.

Regarding the U.S. team roster, sometimes players need to be placed in different positions and younger players need to be given their chance to step it up especially when the veterans are not delivering. We need a team of guys with desire and passion for the game to step it up on the pitch and be more agressive, and maybe it is time to look at other U.S. players that are not currently on the national team and bring them aboard. We can’t always wait to the last ten minutes of the match to finally score goals or make subs. The refreshing change at the helm is a welcome one, I think for once the U.S. National Soccer Federation has finally got it, lets hope good things are to come of the style change.

Maybe in the future if it is in the cards, I would like to see one of my U.S. soccer heroes Alexi Lalas coach the U.S. National Team one day.

Congratulations U.S. Women’s Soccer, much respect! You gals were the best team on the pitch in the Word Cup tournament by far. Your heart and grit was unmatched. Your team play advanced U.S. Soccer here in the states, now we just have to get the U.S. men’s team and coaching up to par. Winning is not everything, it is how you play and recover. Two back-to-back 1:20+ minutes games plus penalty shootouts is a lot to ask from any team, that’s why the use of subs are critical. Getting the ball in the net at all costs shoot, shoot, shoot at any chance, with no hesitation – be unpredictable. Just know that your team played better and were more deserving of the cup, but sometimes other things are at play. At least the refereeing in the finale was stellar and did not have any effect on the outcome as in other matches lately here in the 2011 Major League Soccer season.

Fellow New Yorker Abby Wambach you play offense like a defender, tough and full of grit – totally hard-core! Megan Rapinoe, I really like the rock ‘n’ roll energy you bring to the table what a difference it makes. And to Hope Solo this loss was not on you, it should have not been allowed to get to p-k’s. I only wish the U.S. guys could play with the quality and drive you gals displayed in this 2011 Germany Word Cup tournament. My hats off to you gals.

And on a design note, the 2011 U.S. Women’s Nike Soccer uniforms were sexy and had nice clean lines. Modern design, ergonomic with a less is more approach.

It is that time of year again for the one thing I really look forward to watching on the boob tube in the New Year, the Dakar Rally (formally known as the Paris-Dakar Rally) which is the world’s most grueling rally. The 2011 Dakar Rally is the 32nd running of the event. It is being held in Argentina and Chile for the third successive time, and runs from 1st to 16th of January 2011. The extreme race pits 600 teams, consisting of both amateurs and professionals, against not only each other but the elements, including those of the Andes Mountains and Atacama Desert. 2011’s Rally will mark only the third time the race will be held in the western hemisphere and without a stage that will not originate in the continent of Africa. Covering nearly 6,000 kilometers.

With that said, I am disappointed of the extremely short half an hour coverage by the Versus network in the past years. I lobbied hard to get the Versus network, channel 408 here on Cablevision in the greater New York area, to finally get to watch the incredible live coverage of Tour De France. I have to say Versus (originally know as O.L.N., Outdoor Life Network) does an amazing job with the overall coverage of the Tour De France and their use of the phenomenally shot international live feed; best sports coverage ever! However, I wish that was the case for the equally cool Dakar Rally, but I can’t.

First off, their is actually a two hour international live feed, but Versus has limited their highlight coverage to a brief half-hour broadcast, which if you edit out all the commercials during the broadcast, it probably only adds up to about 15 minutes of actual recap coverage. Also, Versus seems to only focus on the top five corporate front-runners of the rally. This is an amazing endurance motor sport rally with the blend of man and machine working in unison, and there are privateers that go to extreme lengths just to participate; these stories need to be told. It is compelling to just watch what goes on behind the scenes of the rally and the crazy logistics needed to just keep it up and running. This race to me is not just about winning, but about doing your absolute best while relying on your ride and team of mechanics to keep you going. These participants go all out during this endurance race with lack of sleep, risk of possible injury and not having a proper bath for two weeks. There is a lot of behind the scenes stuff, interesting teams and individuals that are not covered at all, and I find that disappointing. It is a disservice to the participants and down plays the unique hard-core stuff that takes place during the rally.

I am suggesting and requesting a full hour of daily rally coverage by the Versus network here in the States. I and other adventure enthusiasts would like to see more in depth coverage, and not just American football style highlights with play-by-play in studio coverage. But more like a live broadcast with more freestyle coverage with boots on the ground and with more on-board rider/driver perspectives camera shots, so you can feel the grit and the dust of the international rally. If you would like to see the actual live broadcast of the Dakar Rally or at least have it extended to a full hour and to include more in-depth coverage, please feel free to leave viewer feedback and programming suggestions by contacting Versus.

If you want to see what it takes just to get to the Dakar Rally and to actually race in this endurance event via motorbike, check out Charley ‘Bomber’ Boorman’s Race to Dakar in-depth entertaining DVD. I give it, two thumbs up!

2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa should be an unpredictable football/soccer tournament, as I currently don’t feel there is any one dominant national team this year, will Italy repeat with an older squad this time around? I only wish the Americans could play with the grit, the toughness, and the finesse as the Azzurri. The 2010 U.S. National Soccer Team squad has the talent, but like in the past World Cups I feel it will come down to leadership and coaching, and making the all important substations when necessary without delay. The United States Soccer Federation as a whole needs to update their mentality and their approach to the ‘beautiful game’, I think the trick is getting a good European coach with a creative, tenacious and tough coaching style. Or theirs two former American soccer stars that could possibly coach the U.S. National Team and bring an intensity that I feel is lacking, that is Alexi Lalas and New York’s own Shep Messing. The United States Soccer Federations upper management should not always favor veterans just because of experience, but should also focus on youth and their hunger and desire for scoring goals.

Team U.S.A. needs to shoot at every possible chance, with a one-touch rock-n’-roll approach, no hesitation! I wish the U.S.A. National Team all the best, and to kick some ass! Intensity – BRING IT!

Well, the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics is turning out to be an exciting memorable event. So cool to finally see the Olympic debut of Skier-Cross – let ‘er rip boys! My hats off to NBC and crew for the excellent coverage and camera work. My only complaint is that they are not showing all events live, and then again pre-taped for prime time as well.

The one thing that struck me was that I could not always tell which athletes were on Team U.S.A. due to the lack of continuity in the U.S. team uniforms from sport to sport. The one uniform that struck me as being creative and inventive was Vermont’s own Burton’s Olympic U.S. Snowboarding Team Uniform. The bold red-white and blue plaid Gore-Tex jacket was reminiscent of a flannel shirt, and the addition of a vintage looking Team U.S.A. shield and eagle crest added a cool retro touch.

But the star of the snowboarding outfit was the vintage looking denim Olympic snowboarding pants. When I first saw them, I was like “are those boot-cut jeans?” Eventually, the sportscaster mentioned that they were faux-distressed Gore-Tex pants designed to look like worn jeans. What a genius concept! How cool and how American! Well executed by Gore-Tex and Burton designers!

Another successfully designed U.S. uniform was Nike’s Swift speed skating and short-track skin suit, classically sleek and very recognizable as a Team U.S.A. I can’t say that for the U.S. Ski Team’s uniforms, which looked like pajamas that grandma would give you as a gift. They could have done better!