The Morning Rekrap: June 27, 2017

This morning I’m giving everyone a break from my usual musing and have a list of writing from around the internet over the past week about soccer that I found interesting.

One of the things that I’ve found interesting is the obsession American soccer fans have with developing an American no. 10. It is a position that has evolved a lot since Pele made the number legendary and Maradona made it almost holy in the sport. The modern no. 10 fills a much different role in modern soccer with tactics that don’t allow for luxury players as much as in the past. Here’s a piece about Juan Ramon Riquelme, the inspired and maddening Argentine no. 10. The title is “Argentina’s Last Number 10” by Marcus Bliss from In Bed With Maradona but he may almost be the last one ever.

Speaking of American no. 10s, this recap of the Fulham vs. Juventus, a match that featured Clint Dempsey scoring the decisive goal, match during the 2010 Europa League round of 16. Fulham vs Juventus: the Old Lady and the Cottage by Harry Collins, These Football Times.

One of my first memories as a soccer fan is of the 1994 US Men’s World Cup victory over Colombia. Being just 9 at the time, I of course had no idea about the security situation in Colombia and the gravity of the loss for the country from both a sports and national psyche perspective. Howler briefly recalls the game in an article by Brian Seal called “When the U.S. beat Colombia in the World Cup.”

I have a little news too. Video Assistant Referee is coming, MLS will debut it after the All Star game and it is being used in the Confederations Cup that is going on in Russia. The system isn’t perfect and I have ideas about it that I will share later, but this article from Four Four Two discusses the work still lacking before the system is fully ready.

Finally, there is this bit of odd news about ESPN sideline reporter Caleb Porter lobbying for the Timbers starting coaching position from the Nutmeg News.