The Mill Returns, The Joy Of Six, USA vs. Turkey, Driving From San Francisco To Salvador, AC Milan Mess, Arsène Wenger's World Cup Preview

And so goes another week. The Transfer Window is open and that means it's time for The Mill and all its various plusses to make a return. So, without further Freddy Adu, here you go:

The Mill. Plus One. Plus Plus One.

There are a slew of friendlies set to take place over the next few days. Quite wisely, Amy Lawrence has chosen to take a look at Italy and their match tomorrow against Ireland at Craven Cottage. There are more than a couple strikers in the Italy 30 who are desperate to make the Italy 23.

The United States will also be in action in one of those friendlies. The USMNT host Turkey on Sunday at 2:00pm EDT (ESPN2) at Red Bull Arena in lovely Harrison, New Jersey, and The Diving German claims that Deuce is ready to go!

It's going to be hot in Brazil. Tim Vickery is worried. Thank you FIFA for mid-day kick-offs.

Ahhh, the Dutch. Those crazy Dutch. Drive from San Francisco to Salvador to see Holland vs. Spain? Why not? At least that's what a certain Ben Oude Kamphuis thought.

The Joy of Six! What else but World Cup Classics? And let's satisfy the hipsters with Top 10 World Cup Beards.

There are three stadia that will host the Yanks at the World Cup. You're talking venues in Natal, Manaus, and Recife. Let's take a closer look. 

James Horncastle is taking a closer look...at AC Milan. Frankly, it's a mess. And here comes Inzaghi!

Arsenal's manager has graced us with a World Cup Group-by-Group Preview. It's actually pretty good. He doesn't even mention the U.S. or Mexico.

That'll do it!

Onward!!

-SSN

It's All A Bit Quiet

We're going to take the day off for some housecleaning. Not much is happening besides speculation and more complaints (justified) about the World Cup. Stand by for a full post tomorrow.

Onward!!

-SSN

USA Defeat Azerbaijan, Pochettino Take Over At Tottenham, The Sids, Phil Ball In Spain, Luis Suarez, More Brazilian Protests

What up, Hump Day? The United States played the first of three prep matches last night at Candlestick Park in San Francisco and it was a rather dreadful affair. The Yanks ended up winning 2-0 but the fare on offer was rather stale. Clint Dempsey was a late withdrawal because of a groin complaint but said in his classic style, "it's all good." Jeff Carlisle claims the diamond looked rough. Here are some Player Grades for you. And...Three Thoughts from Grant Wahl!

As expected, Tottenham have named Mauricio Pochettino as their new boss. Jacob Steinburg has a list of five things that Mauricio must do at White Hart Lane to improve the vibe.

Yesterday we had the Bandinis and everything that was Serie A in 2013-14 and today we're treated to The Sids and everything that was La Liga in 2013-14. For starters...From a flashing backside distracting Diego Costa to Carlos Vela presenting a match ball to his dog, it’s time for the annual end-of-season Spanish football awards.

Phil Ball is back, baby! He's been off the pages for ages after his Qatar confusion (scroll down to the last segment entitled, "Conflict of Interest") but returns not to ESPN, but to The Guardian. He's obviously still in Spain, and this is what he's got for us: Could Eibar’s astonishing rise to La Liga end before a ball is kicked? The smallest club to enter the top flight of Spanish football, described as a ‘model club’, could be demoted before the season starts due to ‘unfair’ regulations.

More protests in Brazil, this time in the capital. Good times.

We all know the World Cup is all about cash. So who's winning the brand war? Best commercials? Check it.

Wright Thompson is a damn fine writer and he's got a new piece out on Luis Suarez entitled, "Portrait of a Serial Winner." Enjoy. Sam Kelly is also down around the Rio Plata but he's more interested in Angel Di Maria than Luis.

And finally...Snoop Dogg sends his best.

Onward!!

-SSN

Champions League Final Aftermath, The Bandinis, QPR Promoted, Cantona On FIFA, Germany Problems, USA IN SF

Madrid fans leave Lisbon with some cleaning up to do...

Well, well, well. That match certainly provided a fitting end to a crazy season of club football, eh? Let's get right to some of the finer articles on the matter:

Ken Early: How Real Madrid's Superhumans Muscled Their Way to the Title

Sid Lowe: Gareth Bale proves he has a head for destiny

Miguel Delaney: Super-club supremacy: Real confirm UCL trend

Phil McNulty: Real Madrid's £86m man makes his mark in final

Thanks to a Bobby Zamora goal, 10-man QPR beat Derby in a brutally unfair result to return the Premier League. 'Arry's back, folks. Stuart James was at Wembley where Derby dominated but simply could not score.

Podcast! Real Madrid did La Décima, QPR did Derby and return to the Premier League, and Yaya Touré didn't get his birthday cake. AC Jimbo, James Horncastle, Michael Hann and Sid Lowe are here to tell you all about it, bringing to an end a sensational season of Football Weekly.

Team USA play Azerbaijan tonight (10pm EDT on ESPN2) at Candlestick in San Francisco. Here's a wee preview.

Madrid fans urinate on Lisbon...

Eric Cantona has been making a movie in Rio. A documentary. Here's what he's got to say about SPECTRE FIFA, "...the Frenchman views Sepp Blatter’s “corrupt” governing body as “so powerful, stronger than any country”. Couldn't have said it any better ourselves.

Are you going to Brazil for the World Cup? Are you going to Recife? Here's an article about that town.

Paolo Bandini is one of our favorite scribes. He's all over Serie A and at the end of each campaign he unleashes his awards. Here you go: The Bandinis 2014: An utterly exhaustive review of the Serie A season. From the best shinpads to the worst misses, via a referee-shaped dog chew toy, it’s our end-of-season Italian awards.

Another scribe favorite is Raphael Honigstein. He's a German expert, don't you know? Today, he's talking the national team and worrying that injuries and the team diaspora remain threats to success.

This guy...

Donovan is not invited to the Big Party. Donovan gets angry. Donovan breaks MLS scoring record. Here are Five Things We Learned from the weekend in Major League Soccer. Power Rankings? Yes. Power Rankings again? Yes.

While his rival Ronaldo is basking in glory and getting naked for Vogue, Lionel Messi is quietly preparing for the World Cup. What the deal with Messi, anyway? Why don't people in Argentina go nuts for him? In his hometown of Rosario he's hardly honored at all.

Spurs are said to be closing in on a new gaffer in the form of one Mauricio Pochettino. Richard Jolly is curious as to whether Mauricio is a Martinez or a Moyes?

That would appear to cover what we'd like to cover.

Onward!!

-SSN