New England Revolution vs. Chicago Fire
For those that do not know what a bicycle kick is, it is a kick that passes over the head of the kicker while the kicker is in the air and lying flat (his or her back is towards the ground) in the prone position. As the ball is kicked, it has the trajectory of being sent parallel to the flattened body as it goes backwards—sort of from the feet to the head. Also the face of the kicker is pointing upward (looking at the sky) instead of at the goal. It is often labeled a dangerous play due to other faces and heads being near the ball at the time the foot strikes the ball. I do not
The game was played at Foxboro Massachusetts on November 8, 2007. It started off poorly, but got much better as time went on. In the early part of the first half, New England had trouble keeping the ball within bounds of the field and their play was sloppy--with long balls and little trapping. With the constant interruptions of the ball going over the sidelines, I thought, here we go again with another poor soccer match. There were too many long kicks from the goalkeepers and others. In my opinion they were trying to emulate controlled long ball English Soccer, but without the control
After about a quarter of the game’s time, both teams began to settle down to play a better passing game. I am always interested in seeing controlled ball soccer and hope that North Americans begin to see the value of controlled passing on the ground. To me this is much more interesting then just watching goals scored in a kickball game. After all, one, two or three goals scored takes only a fraction of the ninety minutes of play.
Then the only goal came from Taylor Twellman #20, just after 37 minutes of play. It was a fan-pleasing goal. Revolution’s Twellman flanked by two Chicago defenders in about midway from either side of the goalposts was facing up-field at about ten yards from the goal. The ball popped up and dropped down in the direction he was facing. He then made a well executed bicycle kick and the ball went back into the net. The defenders had no chance of stopping this goal. It was as good as Pele`‘s famous bicycle kick goal. However, there was controversy surrounding the goal, being that it could be considered a dangerous play: It was just a close call and fortunately there was no danger to the two defenders from being injured with this kick. That goal then put spirit into New England who then went on to play a better-controlled game. However, in the first half, it is my opinion that Chicago still outplayed New England.
In the second half of the game, the quality of play improved both with New England and Chicago. I might add, as good as the play became, both teams still have a way to go to match the play of the top soccer teams of Europe and South America. But, both teams had good passing and trapping and it became an enjoyable game to watch and even exciting at times as both teams endeavored to get the next goal. Only a few serious fouls occurred, so this lack of them also added to the enjoyment of the game. Another goal never came however, and New England went on to win the Eastern Conference Final Championship. This was the semi-final of the MLS cup. And, this game and Twellman's goal will be talked about for a long time.
The game was played at Foxboro Massachusetts on November 8, 2007. It started off poorly, but got much better as time went on. In the early part of the first half, New England had trouble keeping the ball within bounds of the field and their play was sloppy--with long balls and little trapping. With the constant interruptions of the ball going over the sidelines, I thought, here we go again with another poor soccer match. There were too many long kicks from the goalkeepers and others. In my opinion they were trying to emulate controlled long ball English Soccer, but without the control
After about a quarter of the game’s time, both teams began to settle down to play a better passing game. I am always interested in seeing controlled ball soccer and hope that North Americans begin to see the value of controlled passing on the ground. To me this is much more interesting then just watching goals scored in a kickball game. After all, one, two or three goals scored takes only a fraction of the ninety minutes of play.
Then the only goal came from Taylor Twellman #20, just after 37 minutes of play. It was a fan-pleasing goal. Revolution’s Twellman flanked by two Chicago defenders in about midway from either side of the goalposts was facing up-field at about ten yards from the goal. The ball popped up and dropped down in the direction he was facing. He then made a well executed bicycle kick and the ball went back into the net. The defenders had no chance of stopping this goal. It was as good as Pele`‘s famous bicycle kick goal. However, there was controversy surrounding the goal, being that it could be considered a dangerous play: It was just a close call and fortunately there was no danger to the two defenders from being injured with this kick. That goal then put spirit into New England who then went on to play a better-controlled game. However, in the first half, it is my opinion that Chicago still outplayed New England.
In the second half of the game, the quality of play improved both with New England and Chicago. I might add, as good as the play became, both teams still have a way to go to match the play of the top soccer teams of Europe and South America. But, both teams had good passing and trapping and it became an enjoyable game to watch and even exciting at times as both teams endeavored to get the next goal. Only a few serious fouls occurred, so this lack of them also added to the enjoyment of the game. Another goal never came however, and New England went on to win the Eastern Conference Final Championship. This was the semi-final of the MLS cup. And, this game and Twellman's goal will be talked about for a long time.
All of the above information is the author's opinion. This article in no way is meant to degrade, discredit or defame any team or person. Its sole purpose is to improve the skills of young soccer players, coaches and the game itself.
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