Rafael Nay-Dal

Stupid ESPN ladies. I hope you understand that. Anyhow, ESPN the website actually a pretty nice write up about Rafa. It is one of many articles that have been written (and will be written) about Senor Rafa, but I read it and thought I'd pass it on for no real reason.

Also, fucking Chelsea. They played well, it was about what I expected. Bellamy was a disappointment and then Crouch didn't do shit once he got put in except jump on a guy's back and then act like he couldn't understand why he got flagged. Gerrard's almost-goal was pretty amazing, but Cech came up with the goods on the save. Fuck. I hope they win the next leg...it will be tough, but I will be watching...

Liverpool d. PSV Eindhoven 3-0

So that was a pretty sick game. A buddy and I devoured some pre-match subs and watched the first half, and then I watched the first half after our match against Metro. The soccer game went well, our match did not. Everyone was tired and a little dinged up after playing 10 times in 4 days, but oh well. We will get healthy and have some days off and get ready to beat that ass at the conference tournament.

Back to Liverpool for a minute. I know PSV was missing some players, but man, Liverpool took it to them very convincingly. The first goal was efficient and exactly what they should have done, the second goal was an amazing bonus, and the third goal was just insulting. I agree with the PSV coach...this series is doneski.

Davis Cup is in just a few days, and Roddick says that he is going to play no matter what. I read that he has been getting "intense ice, laser and other treatments" on his strained hamstring What!? Lasers? As I sit typing this with a bag of ice on my foot, I have to wonder...wouldn't it be nice to play sports for a living? I could have a team of people making sure that my foot feels 100% right now instead of sitting in a computer lab with a bag of stolen ice draped over my foot. Oh well. I like this better.

LFC slips past Barca!!!

Sooooo Bellamy and Riise made up for beating the shit out of each other earlier in the week by scoring a goal apiece in Liverpool's stunning upset of Barcelona. That is just pretty freaking sweet.

I also hope this picture helps explain why I haven't updated much of anything recently. As you can probably see, I can't even sit on my chair because there is a glove on it...ummm...don't know how that happened. Someone should move it. Anyhow, I promise that by Saturday night...maybe Sunday --yes, definitely by Sunday, life will return to normal for a few days. Then it's off to Kansas.

Tomorrow the team will be traveling up to the USAFA for a match against Weber State. I wasn't looking forward to it until today. I made some remark to my coach about getting shot back down to Earth tomorrow and these were his exact words: "It doesn't matter!! Seriously, don't even think about tomorrow, it isn't important at all!" Now I really want to play. Don't even try to understand.

Also, I might start posting some of the amazing things my coach says to us during practice. Today's moment of zen came when this kid Kyle was playing this kid Beau..."Oh, and Kyle, if I ever see you throw your racquet like that again, regardless of what made you do it, I will cut off your testicles and sew them onto someone who knows how to use them." That is just such a nice burn...I wish I was a 57-year old tennis coach who could just talk shit to his players all day. He's a great guy though. Seriously.

I know I know, it's a tennis blog...

But SERIOUSLY, who can resist the EPL? MLS? SPL? Tired of the acronyms? The beautiful game? OK I'm done. This summer when I was in Boulder my friends got me really into the World Cup, and we played a lot of soccer when we weren't working (I was working at a Nike tennis camp). I was intrigued. I did what anyone would do who wanted to learn more about soccer in the laziest way possible...I bought Fifa 06 for the xbox, and then now with the 360 I got the new Fifa 07 and I can't stop playing it. All of my friends in high school and some in college now play soccer, and I was always an honorary "soccer boy," even though I never knew anything about it. That said, I love it now. I wish I didn't suck at it. It's an addiction. Watch a game and you'll find out how wrapped up you can get in it. It's starting to take over, though. I find myself juggling tennis balls with my feet at pratice, chesting balls to the ground when people hit them to me, planning my hw sessions around my next game of Fifa...it's getting out of hand. So in the spirit of that, I want you to watch this, because Steven Gerrard is God, and Liverpool is the only football club that matters. That's really all you need to know, because it's pretty much all I know, but I have been told by several reliable sources that I am 100% correct.


And if you absolutely need more tennis, check this one out - it seems as if the Williams sisters are putting fame to good use. For the record, I would be doing this all the time if I was a bad ass athlete. But I'm glad they're doing it. I might have to re-consider my anti-Williams stance if they keep surprising me by winning grand slams and being decent human beings.