SSN is a digest of the day's soccer/football/futbol articles with a focus on the top European leagues and the United States National Team. Below, you’ll find links to articles and video, as well as additional features and commentary. We locate the top news of the day so you can stay updated with ease.
And...there goes another one! It's Friday and we're pumped! The Klopp era gets out of the gates early tomorrow at White Hart Lane, Internazionale host Juventus, and much more!! Check it.
It's all fairly quiet today as we prepare for the weekend festivities. We're itching with excitement for Saturday's and Sunday's fixtures, but, alas, it's only Thursday. We'll begin in Liverpool where the euphoria of the Klopp arrival has been tempered by the announcement that Danny Ings is out for the season after getting crocked in training. You feel the guy was just about to explode so it's certainly a bit of a wind out of the sails type situation all of a sudden at Anfield. Speaking of Liverpool, friend of The SSN Scott Murray over at the Guardian has been running some pieces to bring the USA audience up to speed - should they be unaware of certain aspects of footie history. Today, he's all Liverpool: A brief guide to … Liverpool's failure to recapture the glory days.
Back in Major League Soccer, Sebastian Giovinco continues to light things up. His sick strike last night means Toronto have made the playoffs for the first time ever. Here's a Recap from last night.
Belgium are now tops in the SPECTRE FIFA rankings. Andy Brassell is wondering if this generation can bag a big prize. On the flip side, without Messi, Argentina have been struggling. Sam Kelly reports from South America. Tim Vickery is also down there, and he's going to tell us who has been lighting up the CONMEBOL scene in World Cup 2018 qualifying. Frank Fabra, for one...
Since 2007, both Internazionale and Milan have won the Champions League, the pinnacle of club competition in football. At the end of the 2015-16 season, the Champions League final will be played at the shared home of the two teams, the San Siro. But, for the first time in 60 years, neither team is playing in Europe. Richard Hall of the Gentleman Ultra attempts to find out what Inter are doing to change matters.
What a fabulous Hump Day! The weather is glorious, the international break is OVER, and the water cooler at SSN Headquarters is so fresh and so clean. We'll begin stateside today. Specifically, Energy Drink Arena up in Jersey. The U.S. hosted Costa Rica and...lost. Can we please ditch the Diving German now? Please? The guy's a frickin' joke! Here's the fallout:
Meanwhile, over in Eindhoven, the Dutch lost to the Czechs and that means they will not be in France next summer. Ouch! The loss was compounded by this lovely own-goal courtesy of Robin van Persie. Here's all you need to know about next summer's showcase:
Interesting piece here on Barcelona and their kiddos not getting playing time. And some people getting upset about it. Interesting. But, we already said that.
Good grief, people. How long will this international break go? It's been ages, it seems. The light is barely visible at the end of the tunnel, but it is visible. Let's see. Where to begin? Well, eveyone's favorite gum-smacking, earplug-wearing, leader of ankle-kickers Big Sam Allardyce is a gaffer again. He's up at the Stadium of Light trying to right that sinking ship. Good luck with that.
It's Tuesday and that means it's time for Marcotti's Musings. This week, Gab is gabbing that Jurgen Klopp talks sense, Michel Platini must convince, Euro success.
The U.S. play again tonight, but we couldn't care less. Well, perhaps if they lose and The Diving German gets the sack, we'll care. Barf. Grant Wahl calls him out here for tossing Fab Johnson under the bus. The whole thing is just a complete mess.
Howdy! Not the greatest advert for CONCACAF that match, eh? Both the U.S. and Mexico were shit, frankly. We suppose that Mexico were less shit. They won the HUGE match 3-2 in extra time. Here's the fallout from the action in Pasadena, Caaaaaaaaaalifornia:
