Sunil, “Dozy,” and Where in the World is Malawi?

Start your morning off right…as in grab a Blue Bottle coffee and realize David Beckham is a non-story.

P.S. TSG is feeling a little snippy this morning–like about the 2:30 mark of this clip here:

♦ TSG has just requested a Sunil Gulati interview, but the New York Times has a Q&A with the Soccerman-in-Chief this morning. You can be sure

that we won’t let him off the hook on the Honduran media rights issue like Jack Bell did.


SG: Let us explain how watching a USMNT match is not just about economics...

♦ We’re getting ahead of ourselves, but which Danish Superliga American slots in next to Boca in Danishland on November 18th: Michael Parkhurst or Danny Califf….or is it Chad Marshall with Califf and Parkhurt deputizing? We say Coach B throws a roster invite out to Parkhurst first. Your thoughts?

♦ Too funny: Jozy, or “Dozy” as the English press is calling him, will be the player focused in the Q&A in the November issue of ‘City’, the Official Hull City monthly rag. The Q&A was “recorded” one day before JZA slept through and past warm-ups against Portsmouth.

Meanwhile, Skipper Phil Brown has challenged Jozy to “earn a spot” assuring JZA that his disciplinary stain can be wiped clean. We don’t often call out bloggers at TSG, but please disregard severely erroneous and sensational “reporting” elsewhere–Altidore’s days are “not numbered.” He’s on loan for a year, he’s 19, he’s cheap and he was brought to the Tigers at the behest of Brown.

Likewise, reports of Brown’s demise–as we commented a few weeks back (final paragraph)–are greatly exaggerated with a vote of confidence from none other than Paul Duffen, Hull City’s chairman.

♦ Next up for the American U-17 squad in group play is Malawi, who succumbed to the United Arab Emirates 2-0 on Monday. We know absolutely zero about the U-17 Malawi squad and we’re okay about this. See our review of the Spain match here.

♦ Well fresh off our “Ten National Team Trades We’d Like To See” column, it looks like one of the “players” in trade #6 (Sweden-Argentina) might be moving, in well, real life. Sergio Aguero London bound? Are Chelsea prepared to offer $42 million reasons for the  21-year-old La Liga to relocate in January?


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22 responses to this post.

  1. I like the potshot at Ives, he (or whomever wrote that) did deserve it for the “numbered days” comment


    • Posted by matthewsf on 2009/10/27 at 6:40 AM

      We try to keep it on the up-and-up here despite personal opinions.

      However when you “report” something as erroneous as that without sources it does go against the rules of journalism. It happens quite a bit — this time I didn’t have my coffee yet :> and worse it was beyond egregious.

      Okay, I’ll settle down now.


      • I completely agree. If I were to post something along those lines, it would just be someone spouting erroneous blather. Since Ives is a true journalist (not sure about your profession) we do hold his blog to a higher standard, plus he has some of the highest readership numbers so more people are exposed to it. One commenter did actually call the writer out on the sensational nature of the comment, but SBI stands by it…for what it’s worth.

        As for keeping it on the up and up despite personal opinions, I do appreciate that and that those who read this blog aren’t as clannish as some out there. It makes for great posts and lively discussion that steers clear of the “your a moron for having that thought and committing it to a comment” discussions that go on elsewhere.


  2. Posted by matthewsf on 2009/10/27 at 7:03 AM

    Well said and thank you for the compliment Nick. It’s of course our reader commentary that aids in our endeavor to be above personal commentary.

    My brother and I try to observe all journalistic principles.

    Only since you asked I graduated from the top sports journalism program, Newhouse at Syracuse university.

    I’ve worked at CNBC and ABC News and was once a fact checker for Peter Jennings.


    • Posted by kaya on 2009/10/27 at 9:21 AM

      I didn’t know what your background was, but given your endeavors to pick through the mess that was the Honduras/US WCQ distribution, I was pretty sure you work in media in rl =)
      Good to see it being put to use for a real sport :-P
      (sorry, but I know you two are fans of those “other sports.”)
      On the subject of Blue Bottle… if you ever see Barefoot Coffee, give it a shot. They don’t get a lot of recognition because they’re based in SJ, but it’s cheaper and (IMO) better than Blue Bottle.
      Jozy just seems like such a respectful kid. I’m guessing he sent that tweet thinking he was doing Phil Brown a favor by making sure “everyone” knew it was his fault he wasn’t on the roster.


      • Posted by matthewsf on 2009/10/27 at 10:46 AM

        Thanks, I work on the business side of media now, but obviously love writing and interacting in this community of soccer fans for sure.

        Barefoot Coffee — San Jose — really? Doesn’t make sense. :>


  3. Posted by sfshwebb on 2009/10/27 at 8:07 AM

    Ah the “dreaded vote of confidence”…Phil Brown will lose his job in two weeks! Google it…its funny


    • Posted by matthewsf on 2009/10/27 at 8:42 AM

      Touche Shaun — With Brown leading them to the promised land last year and keeping them up, I think all he has to do this year is keep them above relegation.

      Getting Bullard and improved Altidore on the pitch should allow that.


  4. I think you can tell from Jozy’s twitter posts that he tends to stay up rather late most nights. Michael Essien he is not. Go to bed earlier Jozy, they’re paying you to play actual football, not PS3 football.

    That said, I think at about age 19 I slept through one of my finals at Uni after a wild night in.


  5. Posted by dallen on 2009/10/27 at 8:48 AM

    That Ives post was laughable. From the sensationalist headline, to the sensationalist lede about Jozy’s days being numbered, to the actual post with a link to a source that you’d think actually supports the whole numbered days assertion but in reality is little more than a stock statement release about how when you break team rules you get punished.

    If Ives wants to start reading way too much into that article, he missed the obvious story. These statements from Brown, “It’s unacceptable behavior, full stop,” Hull manager Phil Brown said. “You prepare all week for a match day, mentally and physically. To ask a player to arrive an hour and a half before a game is not too much to ask, is it?” sound defensive to me. As long as were pulling big stories out of thin air, wouldn’t the actual assumption you could leap to be that Brown defending his choice to bench Jozy means that either the fans and media think it was a potential mistake to leave him out of a relegation 6-pointer, that they are at the point where they question everything the beleaguered Brown does in general or both?

    Then of course the obligatory closing graph where Ives asks a bunch of strange, obvious questions as an attempt to prod people to comment.

    So, am I being too harsh on Ives? Do you wish that Ives would have put a little more effort or thought into that post? Is Ives soccer blogging giant only because he posts at an almost Perez Hiltonian rate or is it because he got in on the blog game relatively early? Are there anymore pointless questions I can ask to fill some space at the end of my post?


  6. Wow, I know I am late to the conversation, but that is absolutely shocking that Galarcep would post that Altidore’s days at Hull are numbered. The kid has such a great personality that you know that he was humble and apologetic to Phil Brown and didn’t fight the decision he made. That kind of attitude will not lead to Altidore being driven from town… in fact, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he starts this next game because what the heck else do Hull have going for them offensively? Venegoor of Hessilink has a freaking sweet last name, but that’s about it. He has no skill with the ball at his feet and can’t hold up the ball or create space for himself. Also, Geovanni looks much more suited for the midfield with his skill set. It just seems like a no-brainer to give Altidore a shot, even despite his recent fumble.


  7. Right on time… Galarcep updated his blog to say that Brown “gives Altidore a lifeline.” What a bunch of garbage… the writing insinuates that the opposite was actually a likely possibility at one point.


    • Posted by matthewsf on 2009/10/27 at 10:44 AM

      I agree that there could have been a better selection of wording in the follow-up.

      If your Phil Brown and you have Kamil Gilas (decent talent), V of H (30 and never a stud athlete), are you really going to give up on Jozy that quickly, especially after he at least showed a glimpse of what he can do.

      In the EPL, you have Heskey, Drogba, Carew, maybe Crouch, Kenwyne Jones and Ricardo Fuller and that’s your extent of bruising, hulking, talented strikers — they’re at a premium — as a bottom rung club worrying about relegation, you definitely give Jozy more of a chance.

      Am I missing any big guy strikers?


      • I wonder what Brown was thinking when he inked V of H. The guy has only succeeded for PSV back when they were dominating the league and had Beasley (good Beasley not bad Beasley) and Farfan playing the wings in a 4-3-3 giving him ample service while providing distraction for defenders so V of H could find some openings. Hull City have Stephen Hunt who is a hard trier but not striking fear in the hearts of Prem Defenses. V of H was also released by Celtic because the prolific, I say that with as much sarcasm as one possibly can, Georgios Samaras was on the books and they didn’t need two lanky strikers who score only sporadically in the SPL…

        Sounds like the resume of good veteran that you’d want on your team to bag about 15 goals and keep you afloat.

        Maybe the Ghilas and JZA partnership hasn’t blossomed in training, but it looked damn good against Bolton during Altidore’s debut, and the other game that I recall seeing them paired together in Jozy was off his game and lost. Call me nuts but I’d think that the Ghilas-Altidore pairing offers more upside than V of H playing up top with only Geovanni supporting him.


      • Posted by Antonio H. on 2009/10/27 at 7:26 PM

        Cant’ believe you forgot about Zamora, you even add Fernando Torres in a sense. Anelka? Adriano?(to Tott’nham in Januray most likely)


  8. It’s interesting to note in this whole Ives saga that Franco Panizo wrote the initial yellow journalism post (though anything on that blog is considered to be from Ives since his name is in the blog title), but Ives is the one who posted the update. While I don’t know Panizo’s credentials as a sports journalist versus regular internet blogger, the fact that Ives is backing him by posting the follow-up discredits him as a journalist even more. If Panizo was the one who posted the follow-up then I don’t think Ives would’ve been discredited as much in my mind.


  9. Posted by matthewsf on 2009/10/27 at 1:22 PM

    Since I’m commented on Malawi up top, here’s just a little bit of what I could figure out:

    1 – The senior team is ranked 90th by Fifa

    2 – Their nickname–we have to get back to that piece– is the Flames


  10. Posted by dallen on 2009/10/27 at 1:47 PM

    Re: Nick’s comment

    Not only the tacit endorsement of the post, but the thing that bugs me most about Ives is that he offers next to nothing in terms of analysis. Every one of his posts is just a summary of some second hand news. For example from today:
    Who Do You Think Will Win MLS Cup: A couple paragraphs listing what teams made the playoffs, a poll and the only analysis offered is his MLS Cup pick, the Galaxy. His reasoning? Donovan, Beckham, Ricketts, Berhalter and Gonzalez are good. Thanks for really breaking it down for me!

    Next up we have the post entitled “Which defender will step up to fill the USMNT void?”
    The analysis of this article is basically that Jimmy Conrad, Chad Marshall, Clarence Goodson, Michael Parkhurst and Geoff Cameron all play center back much like injured regulars Oguchi Onyewu and Jay DeMerit. No scouting. No analysis of current form. Just: Goodson was good in the gold cup except for the final. Never mind that was months ago.

    Of course at the end there are the ubiquitous questions where he asks people what they think should happen.

    Then there’s the post entitled: “Brown gives Altidore a life-line” in which he just links to a blurb of Brown talking about the situation. Thanks for the scoop/in-depth analysis.

    So I guess my problem is that he isn’t a reporter because he usually just links to other articles and he isn’t an analyst because he doesn’t analyze anything. What’s the point then?


    • The guy behind the resurgence of the Free Beer Movement and I have discussed this at length. The only analytical items that he does are for ESPN Soccernet, and he’s rarely critical enough in his assessment of the USMNT performances. While those of us in the blogosphere are usually a little too critical due to expectations that may be too high, Mr. Big Shot ESPN reporter usually comes across as a puff piece or cheerleading for the USSF. Which makes me wonder whether he’s getting paid by the USSF PR Department??? Sorry for the conspiracy theory innuendo, couldn’t help myself.

      The reasons that you describe above are the reasons I rarely visit his site anymore and led me to discover this blog as my place for discussion on the days topics.


  11. Posted by dallen on 2009/10/27 at 2:11 PM

    I don’t know if he’s on the payroll or if he just doesn’t have sophisticated, critical knowledge of the game.


  12. Nick and I have discussed late into the night what the attraction to Soccer By Ives is. Its been said in this discussion that I think Ives established himself early as one of the few major soccer writers in the US and then one of the first places where soccer news and discussion could take place (alongside Big Soccer).

    That being said much of the site (which looks like a blog) rings like a boring discussion board where Ives (or his minions) posts a discussion point and everyone shares their opinion because that’s where opinions go to be heard (give his early entry into the soccer internets and high readership). Vary rarely is constructive discussion going on (unlike here where I’ve read or participated loads, begun by insightful articles, fueled by solid and intelligent readers, and continued by those original solid writers). Just go to one of his” (insert day) matchday commentary” to see the asinine and useless posts and opinions that occur on that site. What’s the point?

    People go to Ives to be heard, whether or not their opinions make sense or have merit. Intelligent conversations go else where. I don’t know the last time Ives had something of value that I didn’t find elsewhere first.

    That being said… keep up the good work boys.


  13. Posted by Antonio H. on 2009/10/27 at 9:18 PM

    I guess noone heard that Real Madrid got blown 4 nil by THIRD DIVISION Alcocorn in the Copa del Rey. On a scale of 1-10. .how much of a fail is that considering they’re most recent transer adventures?


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