SPA Cup of Nations Pod: Gabon Upsets Cameroon

Gabon’s historic victory over Cameroon has the Cup of Nations podcast team – Richard Farley and Kevin McCauley – wondering how much of the Gabonese effort will carry forward. On the Thursday edition of the SPA Cup of Nations pod, Gabon’s defensive master class is discussed, with particularly focus on whether their next [...]

SPA Daily Pod: Hiddink at Juve, Rafa and Liverpool

On the Thursday edition of Set Piece Analysts’ daily podcast, SPAs Richard Farley and Johnathan Starling take a short tour of Europe.

They start in Italy by considering the fate of Ciro Ferrera (and what effect Guus Hiddink will have on it).

Then, they move to Spain and consider the legacy of a Barcelona team that, eliminated [...]

SPA Cup of Nations Daily: After Day #2

Over at Set Piece Analysts, Kevin McCauley and myself continue are daily look at the Cup of Nations tournament, today concentrating on surprise results from Malawi and Burkina Faso.  We also look forward to the next two day’s matches:  Groups C and D.

[podcast]http://www.pointoneohradio.com/pods/spa/spa_can_20100112.mp3[/podcast]

SPA: Did Coaching Matter This Weekend? This Cycle?

Wednesday, we will see the field for the 2010 World Cup completed, with invitations to be handed-out after the six matches spanning Africa, Europe, South America and (by extension) Central America. Each contest is a rematch of a game played on Saturday, and with the except of the Algeria-Egypt playoff in Khartoum, each is the [...]

SPA Podcast (11/16/2009, Part 1): Major League Soccer Review

In part one of Monday’s Set Piece Analysts podcast, Jeff Kassouf joins regulars Johnathan Starling, Kartik Krishnaiyer, and myself to talk Major League Soccer, with a little United States Men’s National Team talk mixed-in. We talk about the conference finals, the lack of scoring, the quality play that was on display, and what we [...]

SPA Podcast (Part 2, 11/13/2009): Costa Rica-Uruguay and Another Option for the Scottish Premier League

Part 2 of today’s Set Piece Analysts podcast starts with a discussion of the Costa Rica-Uruguay playoff: the challenges of Saprissa; the veterans Costa Rica’s recalled; Uruguay’s inconsistency; and the somewhat fragile state of Uruguay’s squad.

To close the show, we start by talking about the news that the English Premier League has closed [...]

SPA Podcast (11/13/2009, Part 1): UEFA Qualifiers and the Conundrum of Oceania

Friday’s edition of Set Piece Analysts’ daily podcast is broken into two parts. In this first part, Kartik Krishnaiyer, Johnathan Starling and myself walk through the UEFA World Cup Qualifying playoffs that start on Saturday. Before moving closer to home, to the CONCACAF-CONMEBOL playoffs (in part two), we try to tackle the conundrum [...]

SPA Podcast (11/12/2009): FIFA Rankings, Elo Ratings, and African World Cup Qualifying

Cote d'Iviore's Didier Drogba

Thursday’s edition of the Set Piece Analyst podcast features Johnathan Starling, Kartik Krishnaiyer, and myself talking about the flaws in FIFA’s World Rankings. That leads to a discussion of the Elo Ratings which, although much better, have their own way of being exploited. Eventually, we start talking [...]

SPA Podcast (11/11/2009): Enke, TOA, and Real Madrid

On the Wednesday edition of the Set Piece Analysts podcast, Johnathan Starling and I talk about the untimely passing of Hannvoer 96 goaltender Robert Enke, the news from the world of the United Soccer Leagues and Team Owners Association, and the unceremonious exit from the Copa del Rey by Galacticos 2.0 at Real Madrid.

You can [...]

Podcast: Krishnaiyer On the TOA’s Breakaway League (SPA)

Those interested in this podcast need no explanation of what “TOA” or “breakaway league” entail.

With today’s news that the TOA as decided to petition FIFA for approval of a new league. The league will be composed of seven teams: Miami, Atlanta, Carolina, Minnesota, Montreal, Vancouver, and a new St. Louis team. [...]