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Executive Vice-Chairman Ed Woodward is saying that Manchester United has carte blanche; or “price is not an object,” a “blank check,” “money ain’t a thang.” Speaking in Los Angeles while the team is on their preseason tour in the United States, Woodward said he’s more than willing to break the British transfer record if new manager Louis van Gaal thinks it’s in the best interests of the club.
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It’s just an international friendly, but the biggest star on each side want to participate. Wayne Rooney said he hopes to start the very first game of the Louis van Gaal era as Manchester United begin their preseason at the world famous Rose Bowl to take on the L.A. Galaxy. Landon Donovan, the leading scorer in MLS history and ESPN talking head said that he hopes he gets the chance to take on United.
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Twenty year old forward Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur will throw a ceremonial first pitch this Thursday at Wrigley Field before the Chicago Cubs of MLB take on the San Diego Padres. The event is leading up to Spurs’ international friendly against the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park Saturday, July 26.
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Some experts believe the Chicago Cubs now have the best farm system in all of baseball. So I decided to see how much those who bleed Cubbie blue really know about the blue chip prospects who might be headed to Wrigley Field one day. I anagrammed a view names and gave each fake name a faux biography as well.
Then I teamed up with the Chicago Tribune’s RedEye edition for a typical man on the street piece outside of Wrigley. The results were even better than I expected. One fan even claims to have seen the non-existent prospect play in person.
Here’s a sample of the reaction we got from a few Cubs fans:
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The following is a statement from Tony Dungy, regarding the comments he made about Michael Sam, and the controversy that ensued. (For more on the backlash against his remarks go here).
The statement begins:
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Time to talk NU football. Yes, it’s not too early. Would you rather someone talk more Chicago Cubs storylines that have been BEATEN TO DEATH? Yeah, the current Cubs are in last place, but they have best farm system in baseball…yeah, got it. We’ve heard that enough. Since Chicago sports talk radio pretty much never talks college football, or at least they never discuss Northwestern or the Illini…well, I talked some NU football on 1620 The Zone this morning.
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The Qatar World Cup in 2022 is the most preposterous idea in the history of sports. You saw there were a couple cooling breaks in Brazil during this past World Cup when the temperature was in the mid 80s. Imagine the Qatar World Cup, where the temps reach 115-120 on average.
The game LITERALLY CANNOT BE PLAYED. That’s how morally depraved FIFA is. They took the bribe and signed on for this. Oh, and then there’s that whole thousands of people dying during the construction phase of the stadium thing.
So we give you “HBO Real Sports: The Price of Glory in Qatar”
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Update: player who will throw out first ball has been chosen!
The Chicago Fire of the MLS welcome Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur to the Windy City for an international friendly on Saturday, July 26. It will be televised on ESPN2, and it kicks off at 7 p.m. CST at Toyota Park.
Spurs who drew with the Seattle Sounders 3-3 last night, will play Toronto FC and then arrive in Chicago at noon on Thursday, July 24, will kick off their tour of the city by joining in a ceremonial bell-ringing at the Chicago Board Options Exchange.
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According to The Sun, Steven Gerrard reckons Wayne Rooney should succeed him as England captain. So again, that’s what is so special about playing for country over playing for club. National loyalties always trump commercial. Gerrard believes the Manchester United striker should assume the leadership role with Three Lions now that he’s stepping down.
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UPDATE: Tony Dungy releases statement in response to backlash against his remarks
“I wouldn’t have taken him,’’ said former Bucs and Colts coach Tony Dungy, now an analyst for NBC. “Not because I don’t believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it.
“It’s not going to be totally smooth … things will happen.’’
Michael Sam as member of the St. Louis Rams had actually ceased to be top of mind for me a while ago, and as news representation goes, it would appear the same for most of the sports media consumers. That’s a good thing. Normalizing the first openly gay NFL player via apathy of the general public is a step toward making an athlete’s sexuality a non-issue.
Tony Dungy feels otherwise. Besides being a noted homophobe, the former coach, current analyst, and guy tapped for tapioca public speaking and life-coaching books decided to make it known that coaching a player who is different or who he feels has potential to create a problem just isn’t worth it.
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It’s time to stop to talking about Northwestern football being good by Northwestern standards. You know, standard cliches about what Pat Fitzgerald has done, despite the limitations. This discussion needs to end. No need for qualifying statements anymore. No more “given the…”
It’s now just Big 10 standards; now plain and simple. This past year should have taught you that Northwestern football has arrived to the point where you can hold them to the same standards as the rest of the teams in the conference. I know that sounds bizarre given that they finished 5-7, missing a bowl game for the first time since 2007, but it’s true. They have hosted ESPN College Gameday not once but twice in the past four seasons.
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So what are the San Francisco 49ers getting this year in Northern Illinois safety Jimmie Ward? He became just the second Huskie ever to be drafted in the first round when he was chosen with the 30th overall pick. Ward made an impression during 2014 Reese’s Senior Bowl Week in his hometown of Mobile, Ala., and followed that with an impressive performance at the NIU Pro Day in March.
Ward measured in at 5-10 ½ inches and 197 pounds, ran the 40 yard dash in 4.45 seconds, had a 38-inch vertical jump and a broad jump of 10 ½ feet.
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