Wednesday, 6 December 2017

Liverpool score 7, and then ......

Day -190 WorldCup2018

First I have to get this out of the way. Liverpool, who needed a draw to make it out of the Champions League group stages, beat Spartak Moscow 7-0. How about that for making sure, without any doubt? The general message from the online commentators was that this is Liverpool. It's fine that they can score lots but now they will be up against better teams. Can they defend? In other words don't pop the champagne yet.

Now, who remembers when Manchester United beat Roma 7-1 in the quarter finals in 2007? The feeling then was that UEFA might as well have just handed the trophy to United that very night. Milan beat them in the semifinals, including a comprehensive 3-0 win in the second leg. Similar result to Liverpool's, different reaction.

Moving on. With all this excitement surrounding the World Cup draw, Argentina, Iceland, questionable opinions of Canadian sports writers, the IOC, Fifa, Russians, Vitaly Mutko, Toronto FC have barely had a mention. This Saturday is the big redemption, revenge match against Seattle in the MLS Cup. Last year it felt like more of an occasion because it was the first time TFC were so close to winning something after years of desperation. This year the excitement is a little more cautious because of what happened last year and even though they didn't win last year, this is still the second time in the final. It's not the novelty of it being the first time. However, it is still a massive occasion. The unspoken expectation is that this year TFC are ready, and there will be no repeat of the disappointment.

I don't normally make predictions but there are two I will confidently make, the first of which is probably emotion driven rather than rational.

TFC will win this year. Why? Because I'm not going to be there. Last year I felt I was going to see TFC history unfold in front of me. I was going to witness a momentous occasion. After years of backing losing teams, I was going to be present for my adopted team's greatest moment in their history to date. The emotion in the stadium was going to be amazing. Of course, none of it happened. Instead my lasting memory was of the deafening sound of silence the moment Seattle's winning penalty hit the net. So this year, with my luck, they will win. And I'll be watching on TV.

The second thing that will happen is that it will snow and the orange ball will be used. I'd like to say this is based on fact but it's actually coming from weather forecasters so, well, you know, it's really about somebody who should know what they are talking about making as much of a guess as I am about TFC winning. Last year in the days leading up to the match, I wondered whether an orange ball would be used. I reminisced about the matches I'd watched on TV in the past, played in snow with an orange ball. I felt it would add to the uniqueness of the occasion: the freezing cold, the snow and the orange ball. In the end it didn't snow and there was no orange ball. The forecast this year is for light snow late Saturday afternoon. It may not be much, but enough for the referee to potentially signal for a change of ball to the orange one.

This year the final is also at a more reasonable hour for European viewing, because of course that's important. Match time is advertised for 4pm, Toronto time. So if you are watching across the Atlantic and it's 10pm and you forgot to put the dinner leftovers in the fridge, don't worry and don't rush. You'll have about 15 minutes before the match actually starts.

Do watch, if you can. This MLS you laugh at is pretty good. And who knows you may see Seba Giovinco or Victor Vazquez score a spectacular winner.

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