John Terry announces his readiness for MLS!!!

The big news in the football world is that English superstar John Terry has announced he is leaving Chelsea, a club battling relegation. Said Terry: "It's not going to be a fairytale ending -- I'm not going to retire at Chelsea. It's going to be elsewhere, which it took me a couple of days to get over."

Terry is wrong since he could have a fairytale ending in MLS. The 35-year-old has met the minimum age requirement, similar to former Blues teammate Ashley Cole.

Terry previously stated that he was open to the possibility of moving to the United States to join MLS and prove himself on the biggest stage in central North America. 

Terry has been with Chelsea since he was 14 years old but the IMOTGP blog thinks his experience and footballing ability are right up the alley of MLS. We welcome John Terry to the league which has become known for beating top European teams by swooping in for major talent.

The Bremen Curse strikes again!!

Why is newly minted Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber pictured on the site of the top football humor blog in Northeastern Illinois?  Well it's because she is a Bremen native, whose victory thrilled the locals in the a.m. as they got ready for the visit of Hertha BSC to the Weserstadion to face Werder Bremen. And her success in stunning the tennis world clearly may have been a bad omen for a Berlin side looking to end a run of seven straight defeats up north to Angie's favourite team.

Things looked different this time. Strikes by Vladimir Darida and Marvin Plattenhardt put the visitors up 2-0 at half-time. That stretched Hertha's run of not allowing a goal to 462 minutes of competitive action, including 386 minutes in the Bundesliga.  It was so easy that the Berlin police department was joking about an invasion in the Bremen penalty area (below). I made some pancakes to settle in for the second half.

PolizeiBerlinEinsatzVerified account‏@PolizeiBerlin_E

Einbruch bei @werderbremen. Täter kam durch den Strafraum. Keine Sofortmaßnahmen durch uns. Der Täter ist bekannt: @HerthaBSC. #Keinbruch

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7:14 AM - 30 Jan 2016

What could go wrong?

Hertha were on the verge of setting a club-record streak of not conceding when Fin Bartels raced in and sliced the Bremen deficit in half moments after the visitors nearly made it 3-0.  Still, Pal Dardai's substitution of Johannes Van den Bergh proved to be a master stroke when his pinpoint cross found Salomon Kalou for a 3-1 lead in the 71st minute.

Alas, this is the dreaded Weserstadion.  Fabian Lustenberger took down Anthony Ujah in the area, and Claudio Pizarro slotted home the penalty in the 75th. In quick succession, Werder won a corner kick and Santiago Garcia's goalbound header was headed in anyway before Pizarro struck in to claim a second and level the match. That's how it ended as Hertha's lead on third place was sliced to three points.

The news wasn't all bad since United States superstar John Anthony Brooks pledged his allegiance to the club through 2019. That, however, wasn't enough to prevent your faithful blogger from drinking himself into a stupor to lament the missing two points from yet another failed trip to Bremen.

The MLS swoops in for another superstar!

King Cole!

We last reported the rumours that former Manchester United star Nemanja Vidic was making his way to MLS. Well it turns out his 35th birthday isn't until October so he won't be eligible to come over till then, it looks like.

Thankfully, Ashley Cole has already celebrated his 35th birthday, thus signalling his readiness for MLS, and LA Galaxy have swooped in and beat out plenty of heavyweights for his services. Cole played for foreign clubs like Arsenal, Chelsea and Roma before his skills finally "progressed" enough and he gained enough "experience" to allow him to reach the MLS level.

Don't believe us?  Well Cole once tangled with a MLS legend and paid the price. Cole may have to wait two years for revenge against that opponent, who is 33 and eligible to re-join the league in two years.

Can Hertha End their Weserstadion hex?

The IMOTGP blog is always proud to draw attention to some of the more insightful football writing out on the blogosphere.

Our staff has found another gem about Hertha BSC, courtesy of our friends at STATS. The team at STATS - a bunch of stat geeks who no doubt live in their parents' basement and pore through the most inane statistical data - have found out how poor Hertha have been at Werder Bremen. And at Bayern. And at Schalke. And at Leverkusen.

Anyway give it a read and thanks to STATS for this terrific analysis. 

Why the IMOTGP blog loves Pulisic

It's no surprise that the United States soccer fandom went nuts when Christian Pulisic was in the 18 for Borussia Dortmund and played a key role from the sideline in a 3-1 thumping of Fabian Johnson and Borussia Monchengladbach. He didn't get in the game but showed great enthusiasm on the bench.

Here at IMOTGP, we like Pulisic and not because we think he will be a star since probably won't. But as ESPN reports, there is one impressive thing about the youngster.

"After impressing at Dortmund's winter training camp, the 17-year-old cracked the matchday 18 for Saturday's 3-1 Bundesliga victory against Fabian Johnson's Borussia Monchengladbach. On Sunday, he scored in a friendly versus second-tier Union Berlin."

There you have it. Pulisic scored against Hertha Berlin's arch-rival - Union Berlin featuring U.S. superstar Bobby Wood.  Anybody who hurts Union is a friend of Hertha - and the IMOTGP blog - and we invite Pulisic to watch us play in the Champions League next season!

A Conversation with Brad

Credit to long-time IMOTGP reader Adam Belgeri for spotlighting an illuminating interview with former USA star goalkeeper Brad Friedel by the great Will Parchman. The previous link is to Part 1.  You can link to Part 2 here. If that's not enough for you, then move along to read Part 3 here. 

Friedel is the first under-19 coach in U.S. history and he is trying to rebound our program since the idiot in charge is trying to ruin us. That idiot gave another blah-blah-blah interview, the critics don't understand me, blah-blah-blah. You can read that if you want to bang your head against the wall.

Once again, 
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

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TBT: Oldie but a goodie!

A Special Night!

Here at IMOTGP, we like to think we are into the social media conventions of the younger, hipper generation. Anyone on social media knows that Thursday is time for TBT: Throwback Thursday to the uninitiated.

Our TBT pays tribute to the man above, former U.S. star Freddy Adu. Adu memorably started in the 2011 Confederations Cup final against Mexico but since has fallen off the radar - until this blog spotlighted him last year.

We know the former star is training hard as he looks for a new team to play for. So congrats to Freddy Adu, the IMOTGP TBT!

Does anyone care about U.S. Soccer? AN IMOTGP commentary

So 2016 is upon us and another January camp has begun for the United States and controversial boss Jurgen Klinsmann. Anyone following along may know that former Real Salt Lake and NYCFC man Jason Kreis is reportedly there to serve as an assistant during this critical period as the United States builds up to Copa America Centenario 2016 - the biggest tournament on U.S. soil since the 1994 World Cup.

The obvious question is whether Kreis - a man who has designs on eventually coaching the team - was there because Klinsmann wanted him or whether he was forced upon the coach? It's not clear at all and our outstanding U.S. soccer media hasn't bothered to find out whether Kreis is there to possibly take over if Klinsmann goes down in flames. Heck the U.S. soccer site hasn't even mentioned Kreis and only this picture with Kreis on the outskirts confirms that he is actually there.

Is there any footballing nation worth a damn where the national team bringing in one of the most qualified people in the country as a temporary assistant is not a story?  Where is the soccer media? Oh that's right, they are too busy listening to this Brazilian guy complain about the man in charge.

Well no one has asked Klinsmann about Kreis but the comments in the previous link got his attention and he fired back - with venom.  And there is certainly enough to be disturbed about in his response.

Start with this one: “Aside from the Gold Cup, I feel we’ve been pretty successful." Where is the soccer media to call him out on this? What has he achieved as manager? The 2013 Gold Cup was won because Landon Donovan was the best player in the tournament. The 2014 World Cup was acceptable but hardly successful. The 2015 Gold Cup was horrendous. This looks like a downward trend, rumblings are there is pressure on the man in charge and if you read the tea leaves, that's why Kreis is there.

Then there are the comments about Jermaine Jones and Mix Diskerud which can only make me assume these guys are still integral players to the U.S?  Why is that the case?

But again, this is just random speculation from the top football blog based in the ultra-rich northern suburbs of Cook County and I am just your humble blogger. I can't go to the U.S. camp and ask the tough questions and besides I don't understand the game based on where I was born anyway. 

Yet there are other questions to ask about the camp besides Kreis' presence. Are there reports on what is going on there? Would such a daily report be an issue for U.S. soccer to dole out? Why can the U.S. fan not get this information?

NFL teams have training camps open to the public and so you don't think this is just an American thing, in Klinsmann's native Germany, fans are allowed to attend training before important matches like the Ruhr derby. Surely seeing these U.S. players train in January before meaningless matches against Iceland and Canada wouldn't reveal anything - except the possibility that the people running the program are too insecure about what they are doing or even worse, don't know what they are doing. Instead, the U.S. Soccer official Twitter account posts meaningless Tweets like this one.

Football fans, all I am asking for is a little transparency for this team. It was over 20 years that your humble blogger watched the U.S. train in our nation's capital just days before a rousing 4-0 win over Mexico. I remember it like it was yesterday, Claudio Reyna kicked the ball near some cars and I went to retrieve it. There were about 200 spectators there at Georgetown University. After the session, coach Steve Sampson did interviews - some in Spanish - and then talked to this low-level, no-name U.S. fan on the field. That was always what the U.S. team was about - the connection to the people, the connection to the working class, the connection to those of us kicking it around in a over-35 Sunday league.

Well that's been lost to the point that we have no idea what is going on anymore over there. Where's the outrage? Where's the concern right now? Is it going to be seen only when the big Copa America matches get here? But most importantly, where is the soul of the United States national team?

Thanks for listening, blog followers. This has been an exclusive IMOTGP commentary.

Make it another U.S. superstar to the Bundesliga!? (UPDATED)

It's official folks! Reports are surfacing that none other that the Mexico-killer himself Jordan Morris is headed to Germany to turn pro and join Werder Bremen. The former Champions League outfit has stumbled upon hard times in the relegation zone in the always-tough Bundesliga, and a Jan. 30 matchup against Hertha Berlin figures to be difficult for them.

As you can imagine, the American soccer fan is giddy with anticipation for the chance to see Morris possibly help Werder climb up the table to maybe 14th or 13th place. On the flip side, the MLS fan is unhappy and would like to see him become one of the league's current stars along with Robbie Keane, Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard.

What's clear is that Morris has a tough decision and numerous thinkpieces are debating whether he should join Seattle or go to Bremen. In Seattle, he has the chance to become a superstar along with players in the city like fellow Stanford products Richard Sherman and Doug Baldwin of the Seahawks. In Seattle, he'd make a much higher salary eventually.  In Bremen, he can play with Clemens Fritz and Jannik Vestergaard. In Bremen, he'd be playing in the city that produced German tennis star Angelique Kerber and astronomer Wilhelm Matthias Olbers.

Watch this amazing pass by Morris to beat Inter Baku in a critical friendly!

It's a difficult decision for sure but I know which one I would choose. The IMOTGP staff wishes J-Mo the best.

UPDATED: It looks like Morris has made the wise choice to play in obscurity in the low-pressure MLS. Now he can't be relegated ever!

Ohne Hoffnung gibt es keine Träume!

Ohne Hoffnung gibt es keine Träume!  Those are the words from Salomon Kalou as Hertha get ready for the ruckrunde as play begins next weekend in the second half of what has simply been a fabulous Bundesliga season.

What Kalou is saying is 'Without hope, there are no dreams!' Hertha are in third place and dreaming of the Champions League. The fun begins for the Berliners on Saturday at home against Europa League round of 32 outfit FC Augsburg.

Kalou used this wide-ranging interview to discuss more than football, particularly what it means to be a role model to Africans as a Champions League winner. We will provide his words to those who do not speak German.

Said Kalou:  "You must bring a great openness. Generally, one would like to retain his habits when you come to a new country. You want to eat the same thing and do things in the same way as before. But you have to learn how people are and how they like things. That's the same in any country."

Now the Ivorian star is being coached by Pal Dardai, the Hungarian doing wonders in the nation's capital. Kalou discussed his philosophy on coaches.

Said Kalou: "Each coach has his way of seeing things. Of Jose Mourinho, I have learned to adapt myself and to be diverse. Carlo Ancelotti has taught me the efficiency, and Luiz Scolari, it was the dribbling, the technique, the little things. Under Guus Hiddink you had to be exact in every matter or you were embarrassed. Pal Dardai has another brushstroke added: We play together, we are a block. When we have the ball, we know what to do, and if we lose it, we know how we have to position ourselves as a group. He told us his philosophy again and again."

United States fans will be happy to learn that Kalou has flown in a fitness coach and a yoga instructor from the U.S. to help him train for Hertha. It speaks to his commitment to the game and to Hertha and to how the U.S. is fueling the club's stunning rise to prominence.

Ohne Hoffnung gibt es keine Träume! Words to live by from Salomon Kalou. 

Schalke embarrassed in the United States!

Wrong sport, stupid!

 

Schalke 04 are one of the teams chasing powerhouses like Bayern, Dortmund and Hertha for a coveted Champions League spot. IMOTGP reported earlier how they and fellow pretender Bayer Leverkusen are in Florida not just spending time on the beach, but also playing some football.

The focus on basketball has apparently hurt the Royal Blues since they were crushed 3-0 by Brazilian club Atletico Mineiro.  In front of 2,504 diehard fans,  Schalke fell behind in the eighth  minute, missed a penalty and were then promptly blown out of sight.

In other news, Leverkusen played a 3-3 draw with Brazil's Internacional. Do you think these teams look ready to unseat Hertha?  We think not based on these displays.

Another star is coming to MLS!!!

We here at IMOTGP are thrilled that the MLS rumour mill is heating up now that the Super-Important Super Special MLS SuperDraft is over.

A key transfer could be coming statside since former Manchester United star Nemanja Vidic could be coming to the league. 

The 34-year-old is in excellent physical condition and comes over in good health from Inter Milan. Obviously he fits the MLS target age perfectly.

Do you have any thoughts on Vidic? Will you scalp your tickets to see him or attend the match and lose the hefty profit instead? Will you buy his D.C. Utd jersey or wear a Man Utd one to the match?

Let us know and be sure to click on our Google ads to the right so you can support this site's growth as well as the growth of MLS!

The IMOTGP Comeback Player of the year is ...

We would like to highlight the the excellent work of our colleagues in the football reporting business and today is a good time to point out reporter Sid Lowe's excellent piece on former Swansea striker Michu.

Remember Michu? A former Spain international who led the famed Prem in goals during the holiday programme three years ago, Michu has fallen on hard times in terms of his football. As Lowe points out, numerous ankle problems have him playing with Unión Popular de Langreo, a Spanish amateur team coached by his brother.

Credit Michu for rebuilding his career as he helped Langreo beat Club Deportivo Covadong 3-0 in his first game back. This, my friends, is what football is about. On a day when the world's stars were in Zurich celebrating how great they are and winning public adulation, let's remember that the heart of the game is in these small clubs with players hoping and dreaming of better days.

We award Michu the IMOTGP comeback Player of the Year award! We miss you!

Great football in the United States!!!

Tired of the cold weather? Looking for some warmth? Wanna get away?

Maybe you should have headed down to Florida to watch some top-notch football from January 10-20 or maybe you follow this blog from down there and weren't aware that the Florida Cup - featuring German clubs Schalke and Bayer Leverkusen - is going on to showcase top-notch football on American soil.

That's right, as a supporter of the third-best club in Germany, we keep close tabs on the competition. Well two teams chasing Hertha BSC have snuck into the United States and Donald Trump hasn't even said a word about this Mexican invader.

The Bundesliga knows that there is top talent here in the United States since Germany keep losing friendlies to our national team! They want to market the league and took advantage of the winter break to come here. 

Both Bundesliga outfits produced easy shutout victories on Sunday in front of thousands. a few people.  The action continues Wednesday when they meet Brazilian clubs - and may bring up this this humiliation from the last time clubs from these countries met.

The Florida Cup is great for football, great for the United States and great for the Bundesliga. Let's hope the training matches don't go too well as these teams try to catch Hertha BSC. 

It's football on your phone!

Show it to your friends!

Now you can access the IMOTGP blog on your mobile device at no additional charge (data charges excluded)! Simply copy and paste our handy shortened link - http://goo.gl/447LpT - into your browser and you have all the exciting football gossip with a humourous bent from our bloggers on the go! Use it when you are in the train, in your car, in the loo or at the beach!

It's football on your phone, just listen to these guys ...

A Black Eye for Football

Fox News is reporting the important story of a woman in California who had her credit-card information stolen by a Starbucks barista. What does this have to do with football?

Well the teenager was caught on camera and started making excuses for her theft. Said the crook: "I am a good child. I swear. I go to school. I'm 19. I play soccer."

There you have it. She plays soccer! Is this what the effect we want our championship United States women's soccer team to have on young girls? To commit crimes and say 'I play soccer' as a defense because of how our women always steal the ball from their opponents! We think Sunil Gulati should be fired for perpetuating this behavior!

It's an outrage and thank you to Fox News for once again covering the stories the mainstream media is too scared to find!

We Are the Champions!!!

As any football fan knows, it's a thrill when your national team brings home a trophy.  From a United States perspective, I used to know that feeling when this guy was around.  Now that he isn't, we've got the coach who ditched him giving us memories like this. And this. 

But we digress since luckily for me, I have another national team in my blood and our history has stalled since we opted to skip the 1950 World Cup and since we became a dominant force at this stupid sport invented by the Brits.

But yes, India still has a football team and are moving into the top 30 in the world in Asia. Well we just captured our record seventh South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) championship by knocking off defending champions Afghanistan 2-1 on Sunday. That's right, seven.

Well it wasn't easy as you can see from these exclusive match highlights obtained from IMOTGP below. We fell behind when a player from famed German club FC Bayern put Afghanistan ahead. We got an equalizer before winning in extra time in front of the home fans! What drama!
 

It's a great victory and since many of you have not seen your national team win anything lately, feel free to join our bandwagon as SAFF champions! Comment below and you may win a free T-shirt!

The 2016 event we are all waiting for!

Greetings football fans and welcome to the New Year! We know you are waiting for  the world's biggest football event this year. No not that one!  This one.

Many of you are anxious to see Jurgen Klinsmann take the next step after another year in which he delivered on his promises to make us into a world football powerhouse. Well the Copa America represents exactly that chance. And we conducted a mock draw and here's how it turned out:


Group A                    Group B                         Group C                                  Group  D
USA                          Brazil                             Mexico                                    Argentina
Ecuador                    Chile                              Uruguay                                  Colombia
TNT    Haiti              Panama                        Costa Rica                               Jamaica
Peru                           Venezuela                     Paraguay                                 Bolivia

So there you have it folks!  We predict that the United States will advance out of Group A and Klinsmann will be hailed as a genius!

Any comments or questions? Will you be at any of the matches? Respond below and you may win an autographed picture of an autographed Hertha BSC football!