WVHooligan - Soccer Blog

1 | JOE T

July 18th, 2008 at 2:15 pm

Sure lookes like a guy that I imagine would came out in a gay porn movie!!!

2 | Kaiser

July 18th, 2008 at 2:21 pm

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!

3 | Cannon Girl

July 18th, 2008 at 5:40 pm

The Galaxy’s not my team anymore since they traded my Joe but Abel was one of my faves back then. It’s a pity because he’s a very talented player who made it close to impossible for an opposing team to score goals when he was on his game, but his play has been quite uneven for a good while now. Maybe it stems from last season’s long injury leave. Hopefully he’ll get back on track and get signed up with a good team. I wish him well.

4 | Kaiser

July 18th, 2008 at 6:05 pm

He’s old, slow, and gets caught of position all the time…good riddance!

5 | Cannon Girl

July 19th, 2008 at 3:10 am

Hey Skippy—maybe you should check the MLS roster for the ages of current players. Some of this sport’s finest are nipping at the heels of Abel in the age dept and can hardly be called ‘old’.

6 | Josh

July 20th, 2008 at 6:52 pm

Not related to Xavier, but I read that Gullit is selling his home. Please say he’s not leaving!

7 | Kaiser

July 20th, 2008 at 10:29 pm

I can handle the “old” if a player is smart and makes positive contributions, but Xavier is neither of those. He’s good for at least 3 big mistakes a game, and has cost the Galaxy several victories this season…4th of july comes to mind when he was owned by Cristman. He’s a liablity! If you don’t like the term old, so be it. He’s a player with nothing left to contibute, but yellow cards and defensive giveaways…good riddance!

8 | Cannon Girl

July 21st, 2008 at 4:02 am

I’m sorry Skippy — did you say something?

9 | Kaiser

July 21st, 2008 at 12:09 pm

Cannon Girl,

You said Xavier is talented. What are said talents? Please enlighten me.

If you were to ask Joe Cannon how he felt being in goal behind Xavier, Cannon would probably say he sucks, too. I felt bad for Cannon all of last year for having to play behind suck a pitiful defense.

10 | Cannon Girl

July 21st, 2008 at 3:45 pm

I’m assuming you followed both MLS and Superliga last year Skippy. Up until his injury leave, Abel played well. I do not and cannot speak for Joe but I do know that he’s MLS’s finest player, he’s always fair and honest in his assessments of the performances of players on his team, and he never points fingers nor is he ever mean-spirited (ie — doesn’t take cheap shots at others to make himself look good). Joe is always harder on himself than anyone else. Given the fact Joe always accepts responsibility when his team loses when it’s almost never his fault, I do believe he’d be the last person to call Abel out for not playing well. Not in this forum anyway. He didn’t do it to Vagenas for scoring a goal for the opposing team in last year’s Superliga final which by the way Skippy, cost LA the win, so no, I don’t believe he would say Abel as you put it ’sucks’ behind his back now. Joe was hands down LA’s MVP last year and what did he get for it? Traded. Is he assigning blame or feeling sorry for himself? No. He’s risen above it and is currently playing his heart out for San Jose. Joe’s loyal and a gentleman that way. If you’re unfamiliar with the word ‘gentleman’ it’s in the dictionary Skippy—look it up. MY loyalty will always be to my Joe and WHICHEVER team he’s on, because I’m Cannon Girl—GO QUAKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

11 | Kaiser

July 21st, 2008 at 5:11 pm

Joe may not say Xavier “sucks”, but I’m pretty sure he thought it when he kept having to get the ball out of the back of the net.

I follow every Galaxy game, so yes, I did see last year’s MLS and Superliga. (I have a team, and I don’t switch just cause my favorite player gets traded. When Hartman got traded I didn’t become a KC Wizards fan, though I still like to see him perform well.) I’ll give you the fact that Xavier had a decent start to his Galaxy career, but it quickly deteriorated. Now you may be right that it was due to injury, but even if it was, when a player declines and starts hurting the team, he needs to be benched or released. The move to cut Xavier was long overdue. His level of play this year was aweful!!! If you had been following the Galaxy games this year (instead of San Jose) you would see that he’s lost it.

By the way, in your first post you put that Xavier was “talented”, but these are the only talents I could come up with for him.
-slow
-bad passer
-doesn’t hustle
-constantly gets beat in the air
-gets silly yellow cards
-should be a veteran leader, but isn’t
-has a knack for giving the ball away to the other team in dangerous situations

That’s a talented defender!

12 | Cannon Girl

July 21st, 2008 at 7:31 pm

Skippy, Skippy, Skippy—I followed the Galaxy BECAUSE of Joe—not the other way around so when the powers that be there were clueless enough to trade Joe after all he’d contributed, watching a Galaxy game ceased being an interest of mine unless San Jose is who their playing against. Sorry if you have a problem with that but that’s just how I roll. Don’t get me wrong I still have much love and respect for David, Landon, and Chris K. but my loyalty will ALWAYS be to my Joe. I’ve watched Abel upset s-e-v-e-r-a-l shots on goal by opposing teams and help keep the Galaxy in the game in the past so that’s what I’m basing my opinion of him on. But in YOUR first post you agreed with someone who made an ambiguous comment about Abel’s sexual orientation and then turned around yourself and attacked Abel’s age. It’s a free country and you had every right to do so but it’s also my right to find it tacky. This is WVHooligan not TMZ but I guess that’s just how you roll Skippy.

13 | Kaiser

July 22nd, 2008 at 12:37 am

I wasn’t making a comment about Xavier’s sexual orientation. The article was about the Galaxy cutting Xavier…a move that I thought was long overdue, and when I wrote “YES!!!!” I was expressing my happiness that the team can move on and give more playing time to some of the younger guys on the team and thier new player Dominguez. Who cares about the gay porn reference!?!

I am just a true soccer fan who loves his team and voices his opinion on the subject. You get on a soap box and start preaching about “loyalty” and being a “gentleman”. Lighten up! Go root for your crush, Cannon, wherever he goes, I don’t care, just know what you’re talking about…you clearly don’t know much about soccer! That’s how you roll!

GOOD DAY!

14 | Cannon Girl

July 22nd, 2008 at 5:24 am

Skippeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, I thought we were friends—why are you getting your boxers in a bunch? You obviously have some deep Abel Xavier issues going on there. Has he been ignoring your fan letters and autographed picture requests or something? It’ll be ok. I’m sure if you go to a Galaxy game David will be more than happy to give you his jersey. He’s great about things like that. I don’t know if I buy your claims of loving soccer and being a true soccer fan who loves his team. If you were you’d know that despite being hot enough to melt the state of Alaska, Joe Cannon aka MY Joe is the best soccer player there is and THAT’S why I root for him. Look at how well he carried YOUR team last season. I may brag about it but he doesn’t because that’s how he rolls. And from looking at this season’s stats, I guess I knew what I was talking about when I said that IF the day came when the Galaxy stopped being star-struck by David, started paying attention to the actual game, and started playing as a team they’d start winning. Pete Vagenas jokes about sticking close to David in the locker room in hopes of picking hundred dollar bills he might drop. He needs to stick close to David on the soccer field to pick up some knowledge. The key is to support your strongest player Skippy, not let him carry you. It won’t always result in a win but it does make for a better and stronger team, one that you can be proud of. And I’m going on record to say that I couldn’t be more proud of MY Joe and his Quakes! Now it’s been fun sparring with you Skippy but I gotta roll. I need to take my “I LOVE JOE” panties out of the dryer—I had them custom-made—but don’t tell anybody ; )

15 | Kaiser

July 22nd, 2008 at 1:17 pm

Oh, I still consider us friends. Friends should always be able to argue about soccer and insult each other - that’s what me and my old buddies from college spend half our time doing (that and drinking beer). I just feel that your soccer judgement, especially when it comes to the subject of the Galaxy, is affected by your love for Cannon. We really are discussing 2 different topics here, so let me break them down:

1. Yes, I do have “Abel Xavier issues”. They stem from the fact that he is a subpar defender and is a key reason why the Galaxy have been at the top of the league in goals allowed almost the whole year (I know you will say the loss of Joe has something to do with that, too, but I will touch on that in a moment). Xavier wasn’t cutting it, so the team cut him…and I still say good riddance! Lalas was nice enough to hold on to him until his salary was garanteed, so Xavier will at least get paid for the rest of the year (I would have cut him long ago), but now Xavier is ripping Gullit and the organization (talk about not being a gentleman). I think Gullit is a great coach and is the main reason LA is now “paying attention to the actual game”, as you put it. I saw Xavier play back when he was with Liverpool, and from the moment the Galaxy signed him I thought it was a mistake. I am happy to see a poor defender go, and if that means I am a schmuck…then I’m a schmuck.

2. It also appears that you still have some issues with the Galaxy letting your boy go. Let me help you out. Joe was not traded because of performance…it was $$$$$$. The salary cap has the Galaxy’s hands tied. They are one of the few teams that consistantly makes a good profit, but the ridiculously low salary cap won’t let them spend that money on players. With Beckham and Donovan and thier high salaries on the team, thier simply wasn’t enough room for Joe’s salary (especially after they got Ruiz). Joe is a good MLS keeper, but the team wanted to give the young guy Cronin a shot, and his salary is a fraction of Joe’s. Cronin has made some mistakes, but he is learning a lot, and becoming a better keeper with every game. The reason LA allows so many goals is not the keeper, its the defense and defensive midfield. Other than rookie Sean Franklin, they simply don’t have much talent at those spots. Lalas has done a horrible job of putting this team together defensively, and his brining in Xavier and shipping out guys like Sturgis, Marshall, and Ihemelu is a big part of that. Back to Cannon…I have been critical of Alexi Lalas’ decisions in the past, but I can’t fault him for trading Cannon. The team just couldn’t afford him under the cap. It wasn’t a personal thing. Plus I think Joe wanted to play for Yallop again. I hope I have helped resolved some of your Joe vs. Galaxy issues. If you need some more help let me know.

By the way they’re not boxers that are in a bunch. Its a bright yellow Galaxy speedo with a strategically placed Galaxy logo…well I’ll stop right there.

GOOD DAY!

16 | Cannon Girl

July 22nd, 2008 at 2:53 pm

How’s my pal Skippy doing today? I agree with you that if a player is hurting a team and consistently failing to pull his weight he should be let go if it appears he won’t improve. I just don’t like counting people out when they have potential—at any age. You’ve been following him this season and I haven’t so I’ll respect your opinion, but as I stated previously, I hope he can get back on track because in my opinion, something’s just been off since his leave last season. As for Joe’s trade, on some level I do believe it was personal but I do realize how salary caps and allocation money factored into the decision—at the end of the day this is still a business but I think there was actual dead weight LA could have waived instead of trading Joe, who I felt was just as valuable to the team—if not more so—as David and Landon. I felt Ruiz was a bad move then and I feel the same now. However the only thing I take personally is that Joe left the Galaxy blaming himself for their poor showing last season and we all know nothing could be further from the truth. Like I said, that’s the kind of man he is and whichever team he’s on will always be my team because a man like that deserves that kind of loyalty. I’m thrilled Joe’s back home and with Yallop. I like this team—talk about potential—and I hope Joe stays with them but if this ever changes and he leaves the Quakes, they won’t be my team anymore either. I caught part of a Galaxy game a few weeks ago and tried to watch it but for me there was just a big hole there. Steve is doing a very good job but it’s just not the same. Alexi’s name is fitting because he seems to be in ‘La la’ land (pardon the pun) when it comes to decision making but hey—not my team anymore though I’ll always wish them well. By the way Skippy, I’d never call you a schmuck for having a valid gripe about any player—unless it’s my Joe of course—but I might have to call you one for wearing a Speedo—an unappealing look for ANY man—unless it’s my Joe of course ; )

17 | Drew Epperley

July 22nd, 2008 at 2:59 pm

would you two just like to exchange emails already? lol this has gone back and forth since Friday…very impressive

18 | Cannon Girl

July 22nd, 2008 at 3:06 pm

Me? Give my email address to another man? Never—I’m CANNON Girl—GO QUAKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

19 | Kaiser

July 22nd, 2008 at 6:01 pm

One thing we all can agree on - Lalas’ decisions haven’t been good.

I’m told the speedo is very “European”, and I am the Kaiser.

20 | Cannon Girl

July 22nd, 2008 at 7:31 pm

Let’s ask Drew—Drew, what is your opinion of the Speedo and since this is supposed to be about soccer who do you think will next be given their walking papers in MLS? Oh and do you think Skippy will still have access to your site when he moves to Europe? If he won’t I’ll have to go back to sparring with you and I don’t think you’ll have the time because you’ve got to get busy on those sextuplets aka Future Quakes’ Fans.

21 | Xavier Fan

July 26th, 2008 at 6:14 pm

ruud has no brfromain, for cutting Xavier a.k.a the best defender in the mls from 2007-2008