Bundesliga Wrap-up Matchweek 26 (1 Post-Corona)

How great was it to watch live soccer again?? It had been way too long without something to watch. It was a jam-packed weekend! Here are the results (Home-Away):

Saturday, May 16th

Borussia Dortmund 4:0 Schalke 04
RB Leipzig 1:1 Freiburg
Hoffenheim 0:3 Hertha Berlin
Düsseldorf 0:0 Paderborn
Augsburg 1:2 Wolfsburg
Frankfurt 1:3 Mönchengladbach

Sunday, May 17th

Köln 2:2 Mainz
Union Berlin 0:2 Bayern Munich

Monday, May 18th

Werder Bremen 1:4 Leverkusen

Because this is an American soccer blog and since Bundesliga has many American players, I'm going to focus on those players that did play this weekend.

Gio Reyna:

He was going to get his first-ever league start for Dortmund...until he didn't. American soccer Twitter exploded with excitement when the lineup was dropped but justtttt before the game started, he was scratched from the lineup with a minor injury he picked up during pre-game warmups. I didn't even realize he was out when the game started; I was trying to find him on the field and then I opened my phone and found the news. He was replaced by Thorgan Hazard, who ended up scoring a goal and an assist. The injury is believed to be muscle-related and not too serious.

Weston McKennie:

On the other side of the field, McKennie got the start for Schalke but his team was crushed in this derby. While he didn't have a terrible game (no one on his team really played that well, to be fair), there were moments where he could have done better. Unfortunately, three of these moments came in the build-up to three of Dortmund's goals. Here's the link to the highlights.

Disregarding the second goal, McKennie was not quick to react on the other three (he's #2). For this first goal, he can't catch up to Hazard and by the time he reaches him it's too late. The same thing happens with the second goal, as McKennie fails to read Hazard yet again (although Håland took a big hit in the build-up so you could make the argument that McKennie thought it would've been a free kick but you have to play on no matter what). Finally, McKennie is a little too slow in closing the distance on Håland before he notches the assist on the third goal. It seems like he has a lapse in thinking and in that split-second, Håland is able to make a great pass. Like I said, a lot of other players did poorly but he definitely could've done better in these big moments.

Tyler Adams:

Adams got the start for RB Leipzig but was subbed off in the 69th minute. It was an average performance, with nothing completely positive or negative happening during his shift (although I heard he improved during the second half). However, it was good to see him go for a long shift injury-free, considering his history.

John Brooks:

He has been a regular on the Wolfsburg backline, so his inclusion in the starting lineup came as no surprise. However, it was not a good game for him as he conceded an own goal off an Augsburg corner. While the official Bundesliga website has it as a goal for Tin Jedvaj, you can clearly see it go over the line after hitting Brooks and then the crossbar. Brooks and his team were saved by a stoppage-time goal, but it was still not a good look for him.

Josh Sargent:

Starting on the bench, he eventually was subbed on in the 71st minute of what was an embarrassing defeat at the hands of Leverkusen. To be fair, one team is fifth whilst the other team is in 17th  but that's still a pretty big loss. It was a quiet shift for the youngster with not much to talk about. I'm glad he got some playing time but I feel bad for his placement on such a shockingly bad team. At this point they are almost a guarantee to be relegated to 2. Bundesliga so hopefully he'll have better luck there next season.

And that's it for today's Bundesliga Wrap-up! Thanks for stopping by to read this first edition of the series and I hope you'll stick around! 

Bundesliga for Beginners

Live soccer is back!

On Saturday, May 16th, the first major European soccer league will return to play since the COVID-19 pandemic suspended all leagues. This will be the first match day in the German Bundesliga since Sunday, March 8th.  Even though there won't be any fans in attendance, these games will still be a pleasure to watch. To honor this, I figured I would post an introduction to this exciting league.

History:

The Bundesliga (BOON-des-ligah) was founded in 1963 after years of regional play. The original Bundesliga had 16 teams from West Germany which has since increased to 18 teams from throughout the country. During the German reunification, the East Germany teams were incorporated to fit the system in West Germany. Some of the founding members include Borussia Dortmund, Eintracht Frankfurt and Werder Bremen.

Structure:

Each of the 18 teams plays each other twice, with one match at home and one match away. A win warrants three points in the league table whilst a draw and a loss warrants one point and zero points, respectively. Whichever team is in first place at the end of the season is the Bundesliga champion, winning the league title.

The German system is one of promotion and relegation* where the bottom two teams are automatically sent to the lower league: 2. Bundesliga (the top two teams from this league are automatically sent up). The third-to-last team in Bundesliga and the third place team in 2. Bundesliga play each other to determine who will move up or down.

In terms of European competitions, the top four teams automatically qualify for the UEFA Champions League*, whilst the fifth place team automatically qualifies for the UEFA Europa League*. The sixth place teams qualifies for the playoff round of the Europa League.

In addition to the league title, there is the DFB-Pokal (the domestic cup*) and the DFL-Supercup. In the DFB-Pokal, all professional teams from all the different leagues play each other in one big tournament where the bigger teams join later. The DFL-Supercup is a one-off match between the domestic cup winners and the league champions.

Teams:

If there's one team that comes to mind when someone mentions the Bundesliga it's Bayern Munich. Not only are they the biggest team but they are also the most successful, winning 28 league titles and 19 and domestic cups in addition to a number of European competitions. In fact, they are currently in supremacy, having won the past seven league titles.

Borussia Dortmund is often considered the other big German team, but they only have five league titles and four DFB-Pokals. Other big teams include Borussia Mönchengladbach, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Schalke 04 and Red Bull Leipzig (who was only founded a decade ago!).

Style:

The Bundesliga is known for being an attack-heavy league, with goals coming quick and in great quantities. In fact, "since the start of 2018-19, Bundesliga matches have included 3.2 goals." These teams have a lot of firepower, making it an exciting team to watch.

American Connection:

The Bundesliga is known for being a haven for American soccer players, many of which have played in this league at some point in their career. This includes goalkeeper Kasey Keller, midfielders Jermaine Jones and Michael Bradley and winger Christian Pulisic (arguably the most notable name in U.S. soccer right now). If you're a fan of the U.S. national team or plan on being one, this makes the league even more interesting to watch.

Here are a couple guys currently in the league who you should keep an eye on:

Tyler Adams: At 21 years old, this midfielder is one of the top prospects for the U.S. and for RB Leipzig. Just a couple years ago, he was dominating for the New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer (MLS)* but he has since made the jump to a bigger stage. Although he has been injured for a good part of this season, here's one of his best games so far (number 14). The best part? Even after being injured for some time, he walked right back into the starting lineup without hesitation.

Weston McKennie: Another 21-year-old, this midfielder has been a big part of Schalke's lineup. However, it hasn't always been consistent. After finishing 2nd in the 2017-18 season, they drastically regressed the next season by ending in 14th place, under the reign of Domenico Tedesco. This coach used McKennie as a utility player by moving him position-to-position which 1) stunted his growth and 2) contributed to Schalke's poor form. Since David Wagner took over last year, Schalke have improved and McKennie is back where he belongs. He had a great game earlier this season, scoring a goal  (he's number 2) against Hoffenheim.

Giovanni Reyna: Despite being just 17 years old, this young forward has a bright future. Son of U.S. soccer legend Claudio Reyna, he recently transferred to Borussia Dortmund from an American academy. Although he has not played too much for the first-team, he became the youngest American to ever appear in the Bundesliga, beating the record set by Pulisic at the same team. A couple months ago, in their league cup game against Werder Bremen, Reyna scored his first professional goal and it was a beauty. There's a lot to like about him and he's in a great place to improve his skills.

Alphonso Davies: He's not American, but he did come from MLS. Despite playing as a forward for the Vancouver Whitecaps, this Canadian 19-year-old now plays at left-back for Bayern Munich. This youngster has shown tremendous speed and skill (number 19), despite playing a different position. He has done quite well so far in the Bundesliga and like the other players mentioned, he has a tremendous amount of potential. Plus, he just signed a contract extension until 2025!

Notable non-Americans:

- Erling Håland, striker, Borussia Dortmund
- Jadon Sancho, winger, Borussia Dortmund
- Timo Werner, striker, RB Leipzig
- Robert Lewandowski, striker, Bayern Munich
- Kai Havertz, winger, Bayer Leverkusen

And there it is, my (long) introduction to the Bundesliga! I hope this piques your interest because this really is a phenomenal league to follow. There are plenty of goals, it's easy to access (available through FOX and FOX-related channels) and there are plenty of American connections. Cheers to what will be a great weekend of soccer and hopefully other leagues can come back soon.

Auf Wiedersehen!

*future topics

Règles et Regulations: Partie 1 (FR)

Qu'est-ce que c'est le foot?

Pour comprendre correctement le sport et devenir un fan, on doit avoir une bonne base. Voyant les joueurs marquent et font des coups est fantastique mais il faut savoir les mécanismes qui aident le sport. C'est pourquoi les jeux vidéos commencent par des tutoriels et pourquoi les films commencent par des expositions ; pour établir les règles du monde que vous entrerez et vous donner une compréhension complète.

Structure du sport:

Le foot est un sport de deux, 45-minutes moitiés avec une pause de 15-minutes au milieu qui s'appelle la mi-temps. Pendant les deux moitiés, l'horloge ne s'arrête jamais...même si un joueur se blesse et doit quitter. Au lieu, le temps de ces moments (des blessures, des pauses, etc.) est ajouté à la fin de la moitié. Ce temps additionnel peut être un minute ou cinq minutes. Par exemple, si je me blesse et les entraîneurs m'aident quitter en deux minutes, ces deux minutes sont ajoutées à la fin de cette moitié.

Postes:

Le gardien est celui qui doit protéger le but, s'assurant que l'autre équipe ne marque pas. Il est le seul joueur qui peut toucher le ballon avec les mains, soit pour un arrêt soit pour faire une passe. Les défenseurs sont devant le gardien et bougent avec l'équipe. Même s'ils défendent surtout, ils peuvent aussi commencer une attaque ou prendre de la vitesse.

Les milieux de terrain sont au milieu de terrain, étant le maillon entre la défense et l'attaque. Ils font beaucoup de choses ; ils défendent, ils attaquent, ils prennent possession du ballon, etc. Leur poste a besoin d'un peu de tout. Enfin, les attaquants jouent au premier rang et guident l'attaque contre l'autre équipe. Ils portent la charge de marquer les buts et peuvent jouer avec eux-mêmes et avec les milieux de terrain. Il y a des autres postes plus précis, mais je les expliquerai dans un autre article.

Structure de l'équipe:

Chaque équipe peut avoir onze joueurs au terrain à la fois, avec un group choisi de commencer. Même s'ils peuvent avoir un seul gardien, les autres postes sont plus mobiles. Par exemple, les équipes peuvent jouer avec trois défenseurs ou cinq défenseurs et les équipes peuvent jouer avec trois milieux de terrain ou quatre. Ce sont toutes les formations qui les entraineurs peuvent utiliser pour organiser leurs joueurs. Quelques formations sont plus populaires que les autres.

De plus, sept joueurs sont choisis de s'asseoir sur le banc. Ils s'appellent les remplaçants. Pour le plupart des matchs, les entraineurs peuvent faire trois remplacements pour les raisons pratiques (une blessure) ou tactiques. Il n'y a pas des règles pour les remplaçants (leurs postes), mais il y a toujours un autre gardien.

Gagnant un match:

C'est facile, mais il y a des exceptions. Chaque fois que le ballon va au but, c'est un but. L'équipe avec la plupart de buts à la fin du match, gagne. Mais, si les deux équipes ont le même numero des buts, c'est un match nul. Il y a même des match avec aucun buts! Ces matchs sont des matchs nuls aussi.

Les exceptions se passent au certains tournois, matchs et compétitions (je les expliquerai au futur). Dans ces exceptions, un match ira à la prolongation si il y a un match nul à la fin de 90 minutes. Il y a deux moitiés de la prolongation (avec le temps additionnel aussi). Même si un équipe marque dans la première moitié, ils jouent encore l'autre moitié. Si le match est encore nul à la fin de la prolongation, il y a des pénaltys. Je les expliquerai plus tard.

Voici la fin de Règles et Regulations: Partie 1. Je vous remercie pour le lire et j'espère que vous resterez pour Partie 2 bientôt! 

Rules and Regulations: Part 1

What is soccer?

To properly understand the sport and become a fan you must have a good foundation. Seeing people score and make plays is great, but it's essential to know about the gears that make the game run. That's why the best video games start with tutorials and the best films start with expositions; to establish the basic rules of the world you are about to enter and give you a complete understanding. 

Game Structure:

Soccer is a sport composed of two, 45-minute halves with a 15-minute break in between known as halftime. During the game itself, the clock never stops...even if a player gets injured and must be taken off. Instead, whatever time was used during these incidents (injuries, pause in play, etc.) is added on to the end of the half. This injury time can be as short as a minute or as long as five minutes. For example, if I pull a muscle in the first half and it takes trainers two minutes to take me off the field, then those two minutes are added on at the end of that half.

Positions:

The goalkeeper is the person in charge of protecting the goal, making sure the other team doesn't score. He is the only person allowed to use his hands to touch the ball, whether it be to make a save or to pass to a teammate. Defenders are positioned in front of the goalkeeper and move up with their team. While they mostly defend, they can also start an attack and build momentum. 

Midfielders roam the middle of the field, serving as the link between the defense and the attack. They do a variety of things, such defend, attack, gain possession, etc.; their position requires a little bit of everything. Lastly, forwards play at the front and lead the attack against the opposing team. They carry most of the goal-scoring burden and can combine with each other and the midfielders. There are sub-positions among these general positions, but I will cover those in another post. 

Team Structure:

Each team is allowed eleven players on the field at once, with a group picked to start the game. While they can only have one goalkeeper, the other positions are more fluid. For example, some teams only play with three defenders whilst others play with four or five. Some teams only play with three midfielders whilst others play with only two. These are all different types of formations that coaches can use to organize their team. Some formations are more popular than others. 

Additionally, seven players are chosen to sit on the bench and are known as substitutes. For most games, coaches are allowed to make three substitutions for practical (a player gets injured) or tactical reasons. There are no guidelines for which players to have as substitues, but there is always another goalkeeper to serve as backup just in case. 

 Winning the Game: 

This one is fairly easy, although there are some exceptions. Whenever the ball goes into the net, it counts as a goal. Whoever has more goals at the end of both halves wins. However, if both teams have the same amount of goals it ends in a draw. There are even some games where neither teams scores a goal by the end of the game! These instances are draws as well.

The exceptions occur in special tournaments, games and competitions (all of which I will cover in the future). In these special occasions, a game will go into extra time if it is tied at the end of the first 90 minutes. There are two halves of extra time, each one being 15-minute (with the same injury time rule). Even if a team scores in the first half, they will play out the rest of the extra time. If it is still tied after extra time, then the game moves to a penalty shootout to determine the winner. I will explain penalties later on. 

That concludes Rules and Regulations: Part 1! Thanks for reading and I hope you'll stick around for part 2 coming soon!

Introduction (FR)

Bienvenue à « Four Score Soccer ! » Je m’appelle Vincent Giacalone et maintenant je suis un étudiant à Stony Brook University et je fait mes études en français et en journalisme. Ce semestre, j’ai commencé à écrire des sports pour mon journal d’université mais la crise de COVID-19 l’a ruinée. Donc, j’ai décidé de lancer ce blog un peu plus tôt que prévu. 

J’adorais les sports pendant toute ma vie et je voudrais poursuivre une carrière en journalisme des sports. Malgré grandissant avec le baseball, le foot est devenu vitement mon sport favori depuis que j’ai commencé à le suivre en 2015. Mes équipes favorites sont Arsenal en Premier League, Atletico Madrid en La Liga, Paris Saint-Germain en Ligue 1, Borussia Dortmund en Bundesliga, Lazio en Série A et New York City FC en MLS. 

Si la dernière phrase est confuse pour vous, ne vous inquiétez pas. L’un des buts de ce blog est de vous introduire à le beau monde du foot. Le centre de l’attention sera le foot américain mais on ne peut pas parler du foot sans mentionnant les meilleures ligues en Europe. J’essaierai de les inclure dans mes articles pour que même les fans européens puissent être accueillis aussi. 

Il y a aura trois niveaux des articles: un, deux et trois. Les articles de niveau un seront pour les débutants qui ne savent pas beaucoup sur le sport. Les articles de niveau deux seront pour les fans détendus qui ont déjà une compréhension de base. Enfin, les articles de niveau trois seront pour les fans inconditionnels qui savent déjà beaucoup. J’espère d’écrire une quantité égale de chaque niveau pour que tout le monde puisse avoir quelque chose à lire. 

J’espère que vous aimerez ce blog et considérerez supporter une équipe, soit une équipe européenne soit une équipe américaine. Dans tous les cas, je vous remercie d’être ici, j’espère que vous resterez pour longtemps et j’espère que vous aimerez ce sport autant que moi! Si vous avez des commentaires ou des suggestions, vous pouvez m’envoyer un email à vincent.giacalone@stonybrook.edu. 

Introduction

Welcome to Four Score Soccer! My name is Vincent Giacalone and I’m a recent Stony Brook University alum with a degree in French Language and Literature who minored in journalism. I wrote for the sports section of my university's newspaper, The Statesman, for about a year. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic gave me less opportunities than normal, but I was still able to write a lot. 

I’ve been a huge sports fan my whole life and my goal is to pursue a career in sports journalism. Even though I mainly grew up on baseball, soccer has quickly become my favorite sport after I started following it in 2015. My favorite teams include Arsenal in the Premier League, Atletico Madrid in La Liga, Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1, Borussia Dortmund in Bundesliga, Lazio in Serie A and New York City FC in MLS. 

If that last sentence is confusing for you, don’t worry. One of the goals of this blog is to introduce you to the beautiful world of soccer. While the focus will be on soccer in the United States, you can’t talk about soccer without mentioning one or more of the top five leagues in Europe. Even though it's still not as popular in the United States compared to other leagues (like MLB or the NFL), soccer is a global sport. 

Because I will be covering a myriad of topics, I'm looking into developing a system to split up articles for beginners and articles for experts. I would like to garner as big of an audience as possible which means I will have to introduce some people to the sport while appealing to those who are already familiar with the ins-and-outs.

I hope you will enjoy this blog and consider following a soccer team, whether it be one here in the U.S. or maybe one in Europe. Either way, I thank you for being here, I hope you’ll stay a while and I hope you’ll come to love this sport just as much as I do! If you have any comments or questions, you can always email me at vincent.j.giacalone@gmail.com or just head to the "contact" section of this website.