The Phoenix

soccer

Hubris and Soccer

Hubris and Soccer

“The ambition of this club was presented to me by the chairman and the coach and I couldn’t have been more impressed. I have many dreams at QPR, to play well for the fans, the manager, the chairman and myself and eventually finish in the top four and qualify for the Champions League, and then [...]

May 2, 2013 James Ivey Out of Left Field, Sports 0

Rub of the green: Barca and Bayern Munich

Rub of the green: Barca and Bayern Munich

To all the Barcelona lovers out there: it may be time to give up your claim to being the best team in Europe. Barcelona was just shown how to play football by the new best team in the world, Bayern Munich. Some people may say that it’s a little soon to make such claims and [...]

April 25, 2013 James Ivey Columns, Out of Left Field, Sports 0

Politics and the Beautiful Game

Politics and the Beautiful Game

The appointment of Paolo Di Canio as Sunderland manager two weeks ago led to controversy due to his previous admission to being a fascist. Di Canio being appointed as Sunderland manager led to the resignation of former Foreign Minister David Miliband from his position as vice-Chairman of the club, which I don’t think anybody cares [...]

April 18, 2013 James Ivey Columns, Out of Left Field, Sports 0

The North London Derby

The North London Derby

North London Derby The game between Arsenal and Tottenham was built up this previous week as a test of Arsenal’s mettle and to see whether the Spurs under Villas-Boas had improved enough to beat their rival. In the end it seemed fair that Tottenham walked off the field with three points considering their fast flowing [...]

March 7, 2013 James Ivey Columns, Out of Left Field, Sports 0

Will The Clasico Be a Classic?

Will The Clasico Be a Classic?

What we have this week is really a treat, with Real Madrid fighting to save their season and to begin 2013 on the front foot. The match on Tuesday against Barcelona in the second leg of their Copa del Rey clash was a great start to a three game run that will decide whether Mourinho [...]

February 28, 2013 James Ivey Columns, Out of Left Field, Sports 0

The Rise and Fall of Paul Gascoigne

The Rise and Fall of Paul Gascoigne

The Man, the Myth, the Legend: Gazza was and still is the greatest mistake of English footballing history. The “Hand of God” incident ranks pretty highly, but that was the fault of a Mr. Nasser, a lovely man I’m sure but a terrible referee. Wayne Rooney not being given anger management training before playing Portugal [...]

February 21, 2013 James Ivey Columns, Out of Left Field, Sports 0

Guardiola Setting Bayern Munich Up To Be Powerhouse

Guardiola Setting Bayern Munich Up To Be Powerhouse

Controversial topics are usually my favorite and I was going to write about how Ray Lewis’s triceps were either repaired by a Christmas miracle or, more likely, by other man-made miracles that may or may not have been previously on the head of a deer in New Zealand. But the Ravens won, so they can [...]

February 7, 2013 James Ivey Columns, Out of Left Field, Sports 0

The Difference Between the Fan and the Businessman

The Difference Between the Fan and the Businessman

I was going to write about my obsession and skills at Football Manager, but that was during break and now I have found something else much more important to write about. The sacking of Nigel Adkins by Southampton came as a bit of shock since Southampton had been improving steadily over the season and have [...]

January 24, 2013 James Ivey Columns, Out of Left Field, Sports 0

Why Hasn’t Soccer Evolved Like Other Sports?

Why Hasn’t Soccer Evolved Like Other Sports?

There was a very interesting moment in the MNF game between the Redskins and the Giants when Bennett, having just caught a touchdown, went to the fans and was cheered on by both Giants and Redskins fans, despite the mutual dislike between the two division rivals. This is seemingly bizarre as both teams are happy [...]

December 6, 2012 James Ivey Columns, Out of Left Field, Sports 0

Garnet End Season in Penalty Heartbreak

Garnet End Season in Penalty Heartbreak

After a 12-6-1 season, the Swarthmore women’s soccer team earned the second seed in the ECAC South Region postseason tournament. In the opening round, the Garnet eased past Marywood 2-0 to reach the semifinals. As the highest seed able to host (No. 1 seed Stevenson had other commitments), Swarthmore played host to the tournament semifinals [...]

November 15, 2012 Daniel Duncan Season, Sports, Women 0