Caution!, The girls U-12 team I coach with Eddie won the Burbank championship yesterday. We had two matches, a semi-final and final.

In the first match, we found ourselves down 3-0 at half-time and our goalkeeper was crying as she walked off the field. Things looked bleak although we were controlling the match like we usually do.

I was watching FC Barcelona's match yesterday against Recreativo Huelva. Barca was dominating the match, but not scoring due to Huelva's remarkable defense. It took this genius free kick to open up the game:

That reminded me of Argentina's second goal against England in the memorable 1998 World Cup match, fourth goal in this clip.

June 14 - LA was in first place, we had the league's leading scorer, and we had just beaten San Jose away, 3-0, without Landon Donovan. Everyone was happy.

Today - LA is in 13th place out of 14 teams. We still have the league's leading scorer, but we've also given up 60 goals in 29 matches.

.....but I will.

LA hasn't won in 11 matches. The last time we tasted victory was a couple of weeks before I left for Spain! We were in first place at that moment. Now we're tied for last. Our coach Ruud Gullit quit the team because the American system was too restrictive for the way he wanted to coach.

Yesterday, Euro 2008 concluded with Spain's deserved win over Germany. The match was very technical and tactical and I really enjoyed it. Any soccer player would have loved how precise and skillful the game was, and any sports fan could have appreciated the action.

The opening five matches of the tournament were boring, including some snoozers with Austria, Switzerland, and France vs.

My beloved LA Galaxy had to make their way to the slums of Oakland this weekend for a match against the San Jose Earthquakes. Normally San Jose plays in their own slums but they decided since Beckham was coming, they'd play their match in a bigger stadium. I suppose that paid off for them because 40,000 people showed up.

Go to channelsurfing.net. It's genius! Scroll down to the match you want to watch, and click the link. Wait about 2 minutes for the stream to buffer, and you can enjoy some fine European Soccer in lieu of boring old work!

Original post blogged on b2evolution.

The second most popular national tournament in the world kicked off on Saturday. Euro 2008 is the three week competition to determine the best European national team. This year, Switzerland and Austria are co-hosting. If you missed the matches this weekend, don't feel bad. They weren't very good from a neutral perspective.

My friend Carlo was in Poland to do some charity work. When he wasn't building homes, he spent 99% of his time looking for a gift for me. He found a great one in the form of a bootleg Polish soccer jersey. While my allegiance is already split for the European Champions that start next Saturday, I'll have a soft spot for Poland.

..everyone is happy.

Beck's goal

Original post blogged on b2evolution.

The UEFA Champions League final was played yesterday. Manchester United beat Chelsea 6-5 in penalties after a very intense match that ended 1-1. This game will be be remembered for some great misses. Chelsea hit the post twice, and the penalty misses were dramatic too. Here are the highlights.

I must say that Manchester United slept through the semi-finals and final.

I was at BigSoccer.com yesterday, reading the only thing worthwhile on the site, Dan Loney's blog.

By chance I happened to see another blog by Bill Archer who happened to have the Euro 2008 commercials that ESPN is using to promote the tournament. I'm pretty much stealing his links and posting them in my own blog for your viewing pleasure.

In the past week, this commercial for Nike has made its debut. Guy Ritchie directed it, and it's brilliant.

In honor of the brilliance, here are my other favorite soccer commercials of all time.

Original post blogged on b2evolution.

After Landon completed his hat trick for LA on Saturday, the Chivas bench was greeted by this.

If you don't like me jumping to celebrate, then don't let me score--Landon Donovan

Original post blogged on b2evolution.

There's only one team in LA! We beat the scum 5-2 last night. It was a good game, and while it was 2-2 with 15 minutes left, all the fans knew more Galaxy goals were coming. Not only was the match significant because we whipped the Goats, but it was the first time in a long time the team looked so good.