Just sit back and enjoy this awesome goal by U.S. international Clint Dempsey.
His delightful 82nd-minute goal Thursday capped a phenomenal comeback for Premier League club Fulham against Italian side Juventus and sent them into the quarterfinals of the UEFA Europa League.
Fulham trailed the two-game series 3-1 after the first match and fell behind 4-1 overall in the second minute Thursday, but stormed all the way back to win 4-1 on the night and 5-4 on aggregate.
"Nine out of 10 times, a shot like that would not have made it," said Dempsey, who recently returned from a knee injury. "But sometimes, you have to go for it."
UPDATE: Former University of Wisconsin women's assistant coach Nick Carlin-Voigt, now an assistant men's coach at George Mason, saw Dempsey's goal from front-row seats at Craven Cottage, Washington Post soccer writer Steven Goff reports.
ESPN has been criticized lately for reducing its coverage of Major League Soccer on its Soccernet site, but the network did produce a nice video preview of the upcoming season.
Of course, that is if there is a season, considering the continuing labor strife that could lead to a strike.
MLS is scheduled to kick off its 15th season on March 25, with the expansion Philadelphia Union playing at the Seattle Sounders (8:30 p.m., ESPN2).
Top Drawer Soccer released its latest Players to Watch lists for the Class of 2011, and three Wisconsin players made the Web site's recruiting rankings.
Defender David Caban (Kenosha Tremper/Chicago Fire) is 10th in the boys rankings, while forward James Weber (Hartford/Cedarburg SC) is 34th.
On the girls side, defender Amy Kauffung (Hartland Arrowhead/FC Milwaukee), who has verbally committed to UW-Milwaukee, is 41st.
With an eye toward finances and the potential to create a "festival-type atmosphere" at a "true soccer event," the NCAA's Division I Championships/Sport Management Cabinet is considering holding the men's and women's College Cup championships at the same site in 2011.
Currently, the College Cups – the final three games of the Division I tournaments – are at different sites on consecutive weekends, with the women's semifinals and final first on the calendar. However, the Division II and III tournaments hold their men's and women's championships at the same site.
There are some concerns about the impact inclement weather could have on such an event, tentatively scheduled for the second weekend in December. Another potential issue concerns the impact of changing the women's schedule.
The NCAA report indicates that if a combined College Cup event is approved, it likely would be on a trial basis for 2011.
It looks like the creation of the newest National Premier Soccer League Midwest Region team, the Minnesota Kings, will have an impact on the division's two-time defending champions.
Midfielder Igor Stosic, last season's Midwest Region MVP and a three-time all-region selection, will play for the Kings in the men's amateur league this summer, according to Inside Minnesota Soccer.
The Kings have several other strong connections to the Twin Stars: The team was founded by former St. Paul goalkeeper Tim Haselberger, and its first coach is former Twin Stars midfielder Jason English.
St. Paul won the Midwest title the past two years, falling to the Pennsylvania Stoners in the NPSL national final in 2008 and falling to eventual champion Sonoma County Sol in last year's semifinals at Breese Stevens Field in Madison.
I don't mean to turn this blog into "At the Movies," but I think it's safe to say that 2010 will be a big year for soccer documentaries.
Earlier this month, I blogged about Pelada and One Goal. Today I was reminded about another upcoming soccer flick, Gringos at the Gates.
This one focuses on the U.S. and Mexico and their connections to the sport and their national teams.
The Web site Culture of Soccer interviewed Pablo Miralles, one of the three filmmakers working on the documentary, and has a good overview of the movie, which is expected to be released just after this summer's World Cup.
Here's a very well done video that looks at one fan's night out at last week's Premier League match between Arsenal and Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium in North London.
I think it gives a good perspective for those of us who have never been to such a game. Or if you have, maybe it's a nice reminder. Either way, it's worth a watch – even if you don't support Arsenal.
