The Beautiful Chip Shot

While there is something to be said for a goal that is a rocket from outside the box, there is nothing quite like a beautiful chip shot. Maybe not as "exciting" but as demonstrated by David Villa yesterday in Valencia's 2-1 win over Getafe, it can be such a magnificent goal . As always, the play is started by a wonderful pass from David Silva - Villa's constant partner in crime. Villa has a breakaway, the goalie comes out to cut off the angle and challenge the play, Villa sizes up the situation and without taking a touch first he just gracefully lofts it over the goalie's head and into the back of the net. Calm. Smooth. Effortless.

The beautiful chip shot.

Read more »

Offside Goal and a Straight Red Card in Bayern Munich v. Fiorentina

Bayern Munich come away with a 2-1 victory over Fiorentina in a very controversial way. First, Massimo Gobbi is given a straight red card for a body check on Arjen Robben. Now, I'm not saying Robben is a diver, but he does a nice job of rolling around on the ground in agony. The official probably saw that Gobbi's elbow was raised and seemed to catch Robben in the neck. So Robben is sent off.

Fiorentina played admirably well with 10 men. Then, in the 89th minute, Miroslav Klose is three yards offside as he puts the winning goal into the back of the net. The linesman completely misses it. This is one where it would be very easy to overturn the goal with video technology. A very quick look by an official in a booth will let everyone know that Klose was way, way offside.

Read more »

Paul Scholes - Luckiest Goal Ever?

The knock out rounds of the Champions League started up on Tuesday. While there are many interesting story lines and thoughts about the games, the biggest storyline isn't Wayne Rooney's continued dominance or Real Madrid's continued failure in the knock out rounds, it has to be the incredible goal scored by Paul Scholes in Manchester United's 3-2 win over AC Milan. Check it out in the video below. It comes at the 1:10 mark. It's the opposite of a golazo.



That has to be one of the luckiest goals ever. He tries to kick the ball with his right foot, completely whiffs like an 8 year old in AYSO, yet miraculously the ball deflects off his left foot which is planted on the ground and rolls into the side of the net. Anyone could have scored that goal. All you need is a shin. Not even a shin or a leg that can move. If you have a stationary body part, you too can score a goal in the Champions League.

There were other interesting observations from Tuesday's games. Since I'm already discussing the Manchester United/AC Milan game, I don't know how you stop Wayne Rooney. We might be witnessing one of the greatest individual seasons ever. I don't know how his season stats actually compare with single season records, but the way in which he is carrying Manchester United is incredible. Everyone expected somewhat of a drop off for Man U after C. Ronaldo left over the summer, but it hasn't happened. And it's not because some player stepped up and filled in Ronaldo's shoes. It's because Rooney decided to make up the difference on his own. Love or hate the guy, you have to admire his efforts this season and be impressed with how well he has done with the parts around him. Granted, we are talking about Man U here, the players around him aren't chumps; but they are when you compare them to the players at Chelsea who only maintain a 1 point lead on Man U in the standings. It's impressive.


Real Madrid v. Lyon

For the past 5 seasons, Real has failed to advance out of the round of 16 in the Champions League. 5 years, 5 different teams, 1 result: Juventus, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Roma and Liverpool. This year, it looks like it might be Lyon's turn.

Now, Lyon only won 1-0, and it was at Lyon. It's not like it's over for Real by any means. If Real Madrid does lose after the second leg, it will be interesting to discuss the true value and impact of C. Ronaldo. Granted, you can't pin all of this on him, especially since Real has had the same result over the past 5 seasons. But Man U seems to be perfectly fine without Ronaldo and Real actually seemed to be playing better as a team when he was out for a couple games with a red card.

I guess the main issue for Real though, is what do you do if you are yet again knocked out in the round of 16? Real Madrid spent over $250 million this past offseason purchasing various players - most notably, C. Ronaldo, Kaka, Benzema and Xabi Alonso. $250 million! It's completely absurd to spend that money in the first place. But when you spend that type of money, anything short of a championship would be a disappointment. You know what would be even more disappointing? Spending that money and not improving - which is what has happened thus far this season. Real finished second in La Liga last season behind Barcelona. Currently, they are in second place in La Liga right behind Barcelona. Last year they were knocked out in the round of 16 of the Champions League, they are currently down 1-0 after their first game with Lyon in the round of 16.

Well, it makes for good drama. Not to mention the fact that Zidane is disappointed with the team. You can't disappoint Zidane.

Anyways, Real and Lyon play again on March 10 in Madrid. Love them or hate them, Real Madrid always makes things interesting. I don't know why March 10 will be any different. If you ahve $250 million on hand, you'll find out if it's enough to buy win, or at least advance to the quarter finals of the Champions League.

Read more »

Derrotado - Invicible Barcelona Finally Loses

Barcelona was defeated (derrotado) at the hands of Atletico Madrid on Sunday. It was their first loss of the season in league play. Going undefeated would be an awesome achievement and quite the exclamation point on Barcelona's dominance over the past two seasons. Although it's quite a bummer for Barcelona fans they didn't complete the undefeated season, there are actually some positives to losing.

1. No more pressure

Going undefeated is an extremely difficult feat. While it clearly would be historic, it can almost have a negative affect on a team. As the season wares on, the pressure to go undefeated can become unbearable. It can overshadow everything else and become a hindrance. In the end, it would be better to win a championship, than go undefeated. Sure, both would be ideal, but sometimes the continued pressure of remaining undefeated can be the team's toughest opponent and actually cause the team to lose. The added pressure and discussion of the undefeated season is now removed. Now the focus can shift back to discussing how it is that all of your star forwards and midfielders are under 5'7" yet completely dominate the world's game.

2. Perfect time to lose

The loss couldn't have come at a better time. The second half of the Champions League starts up this week. The last thing Barcelona wants is to lose prematurely in the Champions League because they are thinking and focusing on upcoming La Liga games and remaining undefeated. While winning La Liga and being undefeated would be great, it's not worth the opportunity to be repeat Champions League winners. They of course want to win La Liga as well. But they are in the driver's seat for the La Liga title. It's theirs to lose at this point. Now they can focus just on winning and repeating as both La Liga and Champions League. Not that it's an easy task, but being repeat champions in both instead of just one because you were too focused on the one, is worth the loss.

3. Better Atletico than Real

If you have to have your first loss come at the hands of a Madrid team, better to have it be Atletico. This is obvious not only because Real Madrid and Barcelona are bitter rivals, but also because its been a tough year for Atletico. It's been fraught with disappointments and underachievement. They aren't the rich white boys (los blancos) from the north part of Madrid, they are the poor stepbrother team that rarely gets any attention or recognition. When they finally do, like this season when they qualified for the Champions League, they self destruct and embarrass themselves and the rich, white boys laugh and mock at the embarrassing younger stepbrother. This win will help Atletico much more than it will hurt Barcelona. Barcelona is fine. They will continue to steamroll and crush future opponents. Atletico on the other hand needs a lot more help to save their season and finish near the top of the standings. They needed this. Consider it a charitable act of service to the poor stepbrother who constantly gets abused by your enemy, as opposed to a loss for your team.

4. El Clasico will be better

Of course there is always some Real Madrid aspect to the loss. But admit it, even as a Barcelona fan, you are more excited for El Clasico now. Even with the loss Barcelona is still in first place. So if Barcelona hadn't lost and both teams continued to win, then when the two teams play each other (El Clasico) later in the season, the game would have been meaningless. The game would have been highly contested of course as both teams hate each other and want the bragging rights. But ultimately, win or lose, Barcelona would have remained in first place. If they would have won, all the fans would have bragged about the dominance. If they would have lost, all fans would have argued that the players didn't care because win or lose, they were still going to be in first place. But now, assuming neither team has any unexpected losses, the league title will essentially be on the line on April 11.

Bonus

A little added bonus of the loss for the Barcelona fan. If Real Madrid didn't have a chance to overtake first place with a win on April 11 (which they wouldn't have if Barcelona had remained undefeated) then the victory wouldn't nearly be as sweet. But now, you can go into Madrid on the 11th and rip the league title away from Los Blancos right in front of all of their fans. THEN, you can follow that up by going back to Madrid for the Champions League final (at Real Madrid's stadium) and really put a dagger in the heart of all Real Madrid fans by winning that title and having your fans celebrate on their streets of Madrid. There could be no better way to win the two championships.

So you may be derrotado right now. But enjoy the highlights below, they may be the moment you look back upon at the end of the season as the moment that led Barcelona to a fantastic finish.

Read more »

Weekly Salute: U.S. Expatriate of the Week: Landon Donovan (Again)

Landon Donovan of Everton (and the USMNT) gets our Weekly Salute for his outstanding performance against league leaders Chelsea. I wish that I had seen this game live so that I could have done an analysis as in-depth as this one. Donovan was again playing out on the right wing, wreaking havoc on Chelsea's defense. He kept Ashley Cole pinned back for most of the evening until he took him out by breaking his foot! Now, I'm not saying Donovan did it on purpose but having Ashley Cole out injured for three or four months would go a long way towards helping the U.S. take out England in the World Cup this summer. Back to the game, Donovan was cut down in the box, drawing a penalty, that Louis Saha summarily missed. It was a terrible penalty by Everton's forward and the announcers discussed whether or not Donovan would take PK duties in the future. Donovan is generally very good at penalties but recently missed a big penalty. Next, Donovan put a perfect corner kick into the path of Saha, who buried it into the back of the net. Overall a great performance. Well done, Landon.

Landon's highlights are at 3:51, 5:19 (perfect pass), 5:49 (draws a penalty), and 7:34 (Cole walks off injured).


Watch Everton v Chelsea in Sports  |  View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Read more »

La Liga Preview

Even though there are no English Premier League games this weekend, the chicos to the south still have some games going on. Here are some games worth interrupting your Valentine's weekend:

Real Madrid v. Xerez - There is always drama with Real Madrid. The drama queen, C. Ronaldo is back from his two game red card suspension. Although lowly Xerez is in last place and Real should easily beat them, it will be interesting to see how Real plays with Ronaldo back in the lineup. They were actually playing better without Ronaldo and had some incredible chemistry the past couple of days. Everyone looked like they were actually having fun.

Well, except for Raul. Looks like he's on his way out. This will deserve a future post of it's own. For now, I'll continue to pretend like it's not actually happening, even though I've known for awhile that this day was coming.

Also, Sergio Canales, an 18 year old star agreed to play with Real next season. He should fire his agent. Doesn't he know that if you want to play for Real, you first have to go to another team and become a huge star and then come over? He'll ride the bench for a year and then go out on loan.

Sporting Gijon v. Valencia - La Liga is essentially a two dog race. It's probably too late for Valencia to catch either Real Madrid or Barcelona, but they continue to do well despite having financial difficulties. I'm not sure how exciting this game will be, but if Valencia wants any chance to keep their star players, they need to keep winning and finish in the top three of the league.

The game of the weekend:

Atletico Madrid v. Barcelona - When these two teams met earlier in the season, Barcelona thumped Atletico 5-2. The games between these two teams are notoriously high scoring which is always entertaining.

A Barcelona game is always worth watching because of their dominance and their amazing team play on the field. Plus, they have Messi. The 5'7" beast that leads the leage in both goals and assists. Amazing. Plus, Barcelona is still undefeated in league play, so every game is compelling. I don't really think Atletico can beat Barcelona. Atletico has had quite a disappointing season. But they are playing at home and Barcelona is struggling with injuries so an Atletico win is possible. I wouldn't bet on it though.

Here is the little man doing his thing:

Read more »

Weekly Salute Honorable Mention: U.S. Expatriate Footballer of the Week: Brad Friedel

Manchester United 1 - 1 Aston Villa

Brad Friedel seems to step up his game when he plays against Manchester United and this week was no exception. The former goalkeeper for the USMNT was fantastic in preserving the draw for Aston Villa. His calm saves and quick reflexes belie his 39 years of age. He played an excellent game and if it weren't for that Landon Donovan guy, he'd be the U.S. Expat Footballer of the Week. Well done, Brad.


Aston Villa v Manchester United
Uploaded by retropool72. - Check out more sports and extreme sports videos.

Read more »

Adebayor - True Beauty in Manchester City's Win

Manchester City beat Bolton Wanderers on Tuesday. Emmanuel Adebayor showed why soccer is often called the beautiful game. More on that goal in a second.

I continue to struggle with the penalty kick given to Manchester City which led to their first goal. I've blogged about this before so I don't want to be repetitive or a broken record. I understand that a penalty is a penalty and that you can't foul someone in the box, otherwise it results in a free kick from the spot for the other team. But I hate when a player is fouled and gets a penalty even though it's unclear if he could have made a play even if he wasn't fouled. I understand you can't foul someone in the box, but if they are dribbling the ball out of bounds and can't make a play anyways, why should they deserve a penalty kick? Granted, it's difficult to tell if Adam Johnson would have kept possession of the ball even if he wasn't tripped. Regardless, the penalty is given and Tevez makes a lucky shot and Manchester City goes up 1-0.

But the real highlight of the night is the second goal scored by Adebayor. It's such a beauty. It comes at the 2:00 mark in the video below. I think the pass is actually from Vieira. Looks like Vieira is turning out to be a decent player for Man City despite the opinion to the contrary by illustrious soccer experts. Not sure what to say about the Adebayor goal. It's one of those goals where you appreciate it whether or not you like soccer. True beauty, no matter the form, rings true with everyone. Receiving that long pass on his chest, turning on the ball before it hits the ground and rocketing it into the back of the net is just magnificent. Golazo? No. Not a big enough moment or stage. But highly skilled and truly beautiful.

Read more »

Salute to Jozy Altidore: American Overseas Player of the Week

This week, four Americans (all members of the USMNT) played in big games in the Premier League. Landon Donovan and Tim Howard of Everton played a part in their team's loss to Liverpool. Howard didn't get in front of Liverpool's Dirk Kuyt on a corner kick. Kuyt planted himself feet from Howard, who should have stepped in front of Kuyt but ultimately failed to take care of the threat and conceded the goal. Donovan was largely ineffective this game, but had flashes of brilliance when he cut through two defenders to put a nice cross into the box, where absolutely no one in blue was available to receive it.

Aston Villa drew 0-0 with Tottenham Hotspur. It was a boring game. Villa's goalkeeper is Brad Friedel kept a clean sheet with his highlight coming near the end of the first half when Spur's Peter Crouch headed a free-kick to his teammate, Ledley King, whose shot headed for the upper left corner of the goal. Friedel managed to flick a sure goal away from the net. Friedel's teammates accounted for 17 blocked shots.

However, the Overseas American Player of the Week is Jozy Altidore, who helped Hull City to a 2 - 1 win over Manchester City by scoring his first Premier League goal.

Well done, Jozy. Hopefully this is the first of many more goals to come.

Watch Hull City v Manchester City in Sports | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Read more »

Arsenal: A True Pretender

On Sunday, Arsenal suffered another defeat at the hands of Chelsea. It's hard to fault them for this loss as the game was at Chelsea and Chelsea has yet to lose at home this year. However, the loss was somewhat convincing. Arsenal really only had two good opportunities. One was off a beautiful cross from Cesc Fabregas and the other was from a free kick taken by Fabregas (remember I said he was the player to watch during the game? The guy is legit. He's going to make himself a ton of money after he dominates this summer in the World Cup). Two weeks ago Arsenal was in third place and still within striking distance of Chelsea and Manchester United, now they are seven points behind Man U and nine points behind Chelsea. There is still a lot of soccer yet to play, but the bottom line is that those two convincing losses solidified Arsenal as a true pretender this year, and not a contender.

Now that their place is established, I think it will be interesting to see how Arsenal responds fo the rest of the season. They are a great team, but have almost been over performing. I wonder if these two back-to-back convincing losses will be a reality check and if Arsenal will start to slide a bit, or if they will be able to bounce back for their next game.

Speaking of which, their next game is actually on Wednesday since the players' wives all banded together and forced the league to suspend play on Valentine's day weekend. That may or may not be true as no player is willing to admit that he is upset about it and would rather play soccer versus take his wife out for the evening. Regardless, their next game is at home against Liverpool. Talk about a gauntlet. Not sure who made their schedule but they clearly had it out for Arsenal. In three consecutive weeks, Arsenal will have played the first, second and fourth placed teams (they are in third). Just ridiculous. I think they are better than Liverpool, but coming off two brutal losses, it may be hard for them to rebound in such a short period of time and against a team that has some momentum.

Win or lose this week against Liverpool they will still be in third place; which is why I think they could have motivation issues and lose some future games that they should win. It's tough to come out and play each week when you know that they best you can do for the season is finish in third place. Such is the harsh reality of a team that at one point looked like a contender, but in reality, is just a true pretender.

Read more »

Jozy Altidore of Hull City and USMNT: Premier League Golazo

It's been a long time coming and it was a massive goal for Hull City's (and USMNT) Jozy Altidore. His was the first of two great goals from Hull City, who are fighting a relegation battle. He is looking like the Overseas US Player of the Week.

Read more »

Weekend Games Preview

Sorry to all four of our readers for the lack of posting this week. Sadly this isn't a full time job yet. We'll revamp things next week and provide more posts. For now, here's a preview of some of the interesting games going on this weekend:

Liverpool v. Everton

Why do we care about this game?

1. It's the Liverpool derby. Whenever two teams from the same city play each other, you can expect something great. This game is at Anfield, Liverpool FC's stadium, but don't be surprised if Everton comes out on top.

2. Liverpool is currently in 5th place and Everton in 9th. Liverpool has had an up and down season and struggled to get in the top 4 of the League. They need to win this game, and pretty much every other game as there are 3 other teams that are within 2 points of each other and trying to get that 4th spot. Although in 9th, Everton has been playing some of their best football of the season.

Footballer to follow?

While I would like to give that to our American hero Landon Donovan, the player to watch is Everton's Marouane Fellaini. You can't miss him on the field. He's 6'4" not including his hair. He's Everton's sideshow Bob. He's been an absolute beast the past couple of games. He's a serious threat on offense, especially on corner kicks where his height is clearly a huge advantage. Plus, he's been a dominant force in the midfield, controlling the defense. If Everton wins, it will likely be because of this man.


Tottenham Hotspur v. Aston Villa


Why to care?

1. Because the nicknames for these teams are the Cocks and the Villans respectively. What's not to love about that? Both are awesome. If someone said you could either be one of the Cocks or one of the Villans, you would struggle with the decision.

2. These two teams are part of the aforementioned 4 teams that are all vying for that 4th position in the standings (top 4 teams at the end of the year qualify for the Champions League - which is a big deal). Currently the Cocks are in 4th place, but the Villans are only 2 points behind them. Thus, if the Villans can overtake the Cocks if they win this weekend. But beware the mighty Cocks.

Footballer to Follow? Jermain Defoe. The Cock has 15 goals this season. He's only 5'7", but he's a beast at forward. If Tottenham wins, it will likely be because of his heroics up top.


Chelsea v. Arsenal

Why to care?

1. Chelsea is in first and Arsenal is in 3rd in the standings. Arsenal was blitzed at home last weekend by Manchester United (that Rooney goal is still so fun to watch. Love him or hate him, that dead sprint down the field is fantastic). This game is at Chelsea. If Arsenal cares to overtake Chelsea, they have to win this game. Chelsea won't lose many more games this season, if any at all.

2. Because the teams are a complete contrast in club strategies. Chelsea is owned by a Russian billionaire who buys all the best players in order to win a championship. Arsenal still believes in their youth system and player development and relies on having along term coach that can piece together the many young players and make the sum greater than its parts. It's brilliant to watch him do it every season.

Footballer to follow?

This is tough because there are so many incredible players on the field. Whenever Arsenal is playing, I can't help but watch Cesc Fabregas the entire time. That is probably because of my Spain bias, but the man is incredible. He's a phenomenal playmaker. I don't think Arsenal can actually win this game, but if they do, he will need a strong performance.





So there is your preview. There are of course other games going on in La Liga. None quite as compelling as the three mentioned above. But don't think there isn't plenty going on in the promised land. Barcelona has yet to lose. They are almost playing too good if that is possible. They are so comfortable and the chemistry is so good that it's almost as though they are due for a let down game. Speaking of chemistry, Real Madrid is slowly piecing the puzzle together (is it a coincidence that this seems to happen when C. Ronaldo is out? When does his contract expire again?). The two teams are setting the table for a potentially amazing "El Clasico" in a couple of months.

Read more »

Guti-ful!

I went off in the last post about beautiful fastbreaks, but didn't even mention "El Tacon de Dios" or "The Heel of God" that happened on Saturday in Real Madrid's game against Deportivo de la Coruna. I didn't quite realize it was a fastbreak because of the assist that overshadows everything else that transpires, including the goal. Not sure if you will find a more selfless move than what Guti did. Few players in the game would ever turn down the goal scoring opportunity that Guti had. An even smaller percentage of those players would actually have the huevos to make that pass in that moment. It's just brilliant. Phil Ball provides a great commentary and analysis of the goal and Guti (he also coins the term 'taconazo' - the heel pass version of 'golazo').

Here is just an excerpt:

"If you were at all conscious this weekend and vaguely interested in football you will have seen the back-heeled pass that Real Madrid's Guti conjured up on Saturday night for Karim Benzema to score against Deportivo de La Coruña, up in windy Galicia. If not, take a look now. This is because, to return to the point that Ken Loach was presumably trying to make in his film, it's the unexpected that causes the greatest impact in your life - perhaps a moment where you dared to take a risk and it came off, and then you remember it for ever as a life-changing decision because you know you could have taken the safer option. But if you had, your life would have been the poorer somehow.

The wonder of Guti's 'Tacón de Dios' (Heel of God, dixit Marca) is that it has changed in an instant the player's image, from burned-out waster outliving his time in La Liga and entertaining us only with his weird declarations to the press - the latest that he intended to retire to Bangkok - to reconfirmed genius."

As always, Phil Ball is spot on. If Guti had just scored the goal, it would have made the highlight reel for the games this weekend. Instead he took the other option, the one that isn't nearly as safe, but etches the goal in soccer highlight history. Who knows what will happen with Guti this season. He's always been all over the map. But if he continues to play like he has in the past couple of games, he could be the piece that relaxes the team and also brings them together and makes Madrid a dominant force again.

Check out the goal. It's at the 1:20 mark.

Read more »

Manchester United - Pure Fastbreak Goodness

Manchester United went into Arsenal yesterday and came away win an impressive 3-1 victory. The first goal by Nani can be seen here. It's a beauty. Just a flashy, amazing goal. It's so good that his teammate Darren Fletcher can't think of any way to congratulate him other than trying to get a piggy back ride. Which I'm sure is exactly the way Nani wanted to celebrate after scoring a goal in which he single-handedly abused 3 Arsenal defenders.

While it was an amazing goal, the second one was my favorite. Arsenal was actually controlling the first part of the game. They were creating opportunities and they had many opportunities. Even after the Nani goal, Arsenal still seemed under control. Their demeanor made you think that they were still confident and knew that if they continued playing their game, that they would eventually score. Even though though they were playing Manchester United, you still got the impression that they were confident and knew that they could easily come back from down 1-0 and win the game.

Then the fastbreak happened. And it was a classic. What is a fastbreak goal? In my opinion, they are the most exciting types of goals in soccer - hence the name of the site. I realize that "fastbreak" is a term that is usually synonomous with basketball. "Counterattack" is the term that is usually used in soccer. Counterattack doesn't work as well because 1. it doesn't start with the letter "F" and 2. it doesn't quite capture how fast the goal happens. Regardless of the term used, the goals are so exciting and Manchester United's goal was a textbook example. Here's what it is and why Man U's goal was a great example:

1. The opposing team has to be threatening or about to score.

The goal isn't nearly as exciting if the team turns that ball over in the middle of the field. They have to threatening and thinking that they are the ones that are going to score. Plus, this is why the goals are so exciting. The team goes the entire length of the field for the goal.

2. It has to be an all out blitz from the start.

This is the key that links 1 and 3. The goal can't be a build up where the other team sort of sees it coming or where the team makes a few short passes once they gain possession. From the moment they get the ball they are running to goal. This is why these goals don't happen that often. It's literally within seconds of turning the ball over, the other team scores. Just watch the Man U highlights below. From the second Man U gets the ball, they are thinking score. They aren't thinking possess and build up an attack. They are thinking goal. Wayne Rooney's run is incredible. He's like a bat out of hell. Just sprinting the full length of the field to receive the pass and finish it into the corner of the net. Watch Rooney in the video below. He barely stays in the frame during the run down the field. But as quickly as he could sprint down the field they had the ball in the back of the net. Arsenal was down 2-0 before they could even realize they had turned the ball over.

3. The goal has to be a stomach punch or the knock out blow.

This is exactly what happened on Sunday. Although the second goal was still early in the game, it was a huge blow to Arsenal. As mentioned, Arsenal was playing with a lot of confidence. So much that the first goal didn't really seem to faze them. They knew, or at least played like they knew that they would come back from being down 1-0. Right after the first goal they were already threatening and everyone watching was just as confident as the players that they would come back and win. Literally 13 seconds later, Manchester United goes the full length of the field and scores another goal. I can't say it was entirely a knock out blow, but it might as well have been. Rarely is a team going to come back and beat or tie Manchester United after being down 2-0. It's not a knock out blow because Arsenal was at home and it was still in the first half. Still though, it was a brutal stomach punch that completely took the wind out of the entire stadium.

So that's a fastbreak goal. The full game highlights are below. The second goal and the fastbreak goodness starts at the 3:24 mark.

Read more »