Chicago and Evanston, IL

Monday, February 22, 2010

The Soccer Times

Joga Bonito's full squad was back!

Yes, we are very glad to announce that Joga Bonito's full squad was present yesterday! This is very rare! Some are still injured but were able to play and enjoy. We were very happy to see that Coach Carlos Quintero decided to include Captain Carlos Quintero back in the roster despite his rib injury. Carlos started on the bench but was able to enjoy some minutes playing. "I am feeling much better thanks," said an enthusiastic Captain Carlos who has not been able to play in 3 weeks, "I thought I was going to wait much longer, but the medical staff said I was ready to start playing a few minutes. I am so excited because I cannot live without playing soccer!"

Joga Bonito vs Buckeyballs

If you remember from previous seasons, Buckyballs has been one of the teams that gives good competition to Joga Bonito. I believe Buckyballs has defeated Joga Bonito twice in past seasons. Last season, was a different story. Joga Bonito dominated the game defeating them 5-1. With this history in mind, this was going to be a good game to watch. Joga Bonito struck first by the foot of Rolando assisted by Pablo. It seemed an easy game for them: 1-0. However, Buckyballs key player gave us a nice long shot that tied the game: 1-1. Just before half time, Pablo gave another nice pass to Rolando and he scores! 2-1. Coach Carlos Quintero was frustrated because he felt like we are working to hard and this was an easier game. Needed more accurate passing, more communication. Joga Bonito dominated most of the second half but could not find the net. Finally, Captain Carlos assisted Rolando again and he scores to make it 3-1. Shots from everyone were blocked by the keeper or went wide. Buckyballs had very few shots. Carlos made a nice pull and went around a defender and was able to find Rolando again. Rolando scores to make it 4-1. And the end Goalie Mauricio had a blooper that will surely end up on YouTube one of this days were he had an easy ball but then again he didnt: 4-2. We all made fun of our dear Mauricio and then gave him a pad on the back. No big deal. Game over. Joga Bonito wins 4-2!

Man of the match: Rolando

Rolando keeps impressing by scoring 4 more goals even with an injured knee. Captain Carlos & Pablo were able to make a couple of assists each. However, you could see both of them were very frustrated about not finding the net. We were very delighted to watch nice passing from the rest of the squad. Especially, we are very impressed by the ladies in the team. Emily Shand and Emily Lovejoy are the only two female players in the team. But dont be fool. On the field, they are mean outstanding soccer players!

Other results:

Rotary United 6 vs Team Lee 4

People's Republic 2 vs Chupacabra 3

Joga Bonito 4 vs Buckeyballs 2

Willard Warriors 2 vs Fish Keg United 1

Bye - YMCA

Next game: Sunday Feb 28 at 4pm against Rotary United!

Not quite sure what to make this opponent just yet. They got humiliated the first game by Chupacabras 11-3. However, they won yesterday 6-4 against Team Lee. So who knows? They might be a good opponent for Joga Bonito. By the way, I was able to see Chupacabras game against Peoples Republic 3-2. I wanted to see Chupacabras because after destroying Rotary United 11-3, I thought that they recruited better players since last tournament. Remember that Chupacabras was defeated by Joga Bonito 5-2 in the final last season. However, from what I saw, it is the same team as last season. I didnt see any new faces that can make a difference. To be quite honest, I have seen most of the other teams. I just dont see the talent that Joga Bonito has. If Joga Bonito is connected, very few teams can give them a good competition. Hopefully, I am mistaken. I want to see good competition for Joga Bonito!

http://www.mcgawymca.org/index.cfm?fa=prog.type&id=830

Follow my blog at:

http://carlosjquintero.blogspot.com/

Carlos Quintero

Joga Bonito Owner

El Presidente

Manager or Coach

Captain

Second Goalkeeper

Chauffer

Soccer Times Reporter

And even Water Boy!

Joga Bonito's promising start!

Chicago and Evanston, IL
Monday, February 15, 2010
The Soccer Times

Joga Bonito's promising start!
Ladies and gentlemen, Joga Bonito is back! We were concern finding out just before the game that Honduras international striker Rolando Paz and USA international Keith Veneziano both had knee injuries and wore knee braces before the game.

The good news came when we all found out that the Brazilian referee brough brand new FUTSAL balls from Brazil! Joga Bonito's players, specially captain Carlos, were so happy! Coach Carlos had been asking the YMCA football federation to officially play with futsal balls only. It took 3 years but now it is a reality! Joga Bonito is much more comfortable with the official futsal balls. Truly, it is ridiculous to play indoor soccer with outdoor balls!

Joga Bonito had a rough start and all seemed surprised when Willard Warriors opened the score leading 1-0. However, it did not take long for Joga Bonito to tie the game and even turn it around 2-1. Just before half time Joga Bonito added a two goal cushion making it 3-1 with a beautiful goal from Peru international Anthony Gamboa. But due to a misunderstanding in a corner kick Willard Warriors scored their second goal! The game turned interesting 3-2 in favor of Joga Bonito. The second half was a completely different story. Joga Bonito organized themselves and began displaying their signature game. It was so much fun to watch Joga Bonito passing the ball just like Barcelona FC. Joga Bonito dominated the second half completely and scored 3 more goals finishing the game 6-2! We all stood in awe and applauding their beautiful game.

Manager Carlos Quintero gave praise to their players after the game, "I am so proud of all my players. This is probably one of the toughest teams in the tournament. My players played fantastic! They played as a team." We were very impressed with Colombia international Pablo David who could not score but set up many of the beautiful plays during the game. The man of the match was Peru international Anthony Gamboa who had a rocky start playing defense but slowly added himself to the attack and scoreed 2 fantastic goals. Number One Goalie Mauricio save some nice shots. The Shand sisters also played an outstanding game. Ernesto has become an important midfielder scoring 1 goal yesterday. Keith was solid rock on the back and added a nice surprise attack once in a while. Finally, Rolando as always, despite injury, very impressive holding the ball and functioning as a playmaker and even scoring 2 goals. Truly, this is a very promising team. Looking forward to the rest of the tournament!

Other results:
Buckyballs (Team Andres) 3 vs People's Republic 0
Rotary United 3 vs Chupacabra 11
Team YMCA 5 vs Team Lee 5
Bye - J Barney

Next game: Sunday Feb 21 at 6pm against Buckeyballs (Team Andres)!
Well, we were wrong! The Buckeyballs are back! They disguised themselves with the name Team Andres but now they are officially using their old name Buckeyballs. We were able to watch the entire game they played against People's Republic. It was interesting to see this game for two reasons. One, People's Republic is back with their entire army! I am not kidding and I am not exaggerating. They had like 15 subs!!! Two, the Buckeyballs had zero subs when they started. It seems that they were missing some key players. Still, they have 2 interesting players that Joga Bonito needs to neutralize. Joga Bonito vs Buckeyballs. You do not want to miss it!


Follow my blog at:

http://carlosjquintero.blogspot.com/

Carlos Quintero
Joga Bonito Owner
El Presidente
Manager
Captain
Second Goalkeeper
Chauffer
Soccer Times Reporter
And even Water Boy!

2010 YMCA Indoor Soccer Tournament starts this Sunday February 14: Joga Bonito, 2009 Champs, play Willard Warriors at 4pm!!!

Chicago and Evanston, IL
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
The Soccer Times

Finally the 2010 season has arrived!

We are excited to be back in action! The YMCA indoor soccer tournament is starting this Sunday February 12. Joga Bonito, 2009 Champions, will play the first game against Willard Warriors who finished third in the standings and who were eliminated by Joga Bonito in the semi finals last season.

Willard Warriors
If this team is as good as last season, Joga Bonito is going to have a rough game this sunday. Willard Warriors were the only team who could really defende Joga Bonito's fierce strikers. Joga Bonito defeated Willard Warriors during the regular 2009 season 1-0 only! Both teams met again during a fantastic semi final and Joga Bonito defeated them 2-0. This Warriors team has an amazing defense! They are composed by Northwestern students who have much experience in the game.

The Usual Suspects
The complete 2010 schedule has been attached to this article. It looks like we will see familiar faces during this season: People's Republic, Rotary United, Chupacabra, and Team YMCA. The new kids in town are Team Andres, Team Lee and J Barney. Strangely enough looks like Buckyballs or Celtic Knot did not sign up this time. Hopefully, we will see some good competition!

Joga Bonito
The 2009 Champs will play at 4pm this sunday Feb 14 with their previous Adidas royal blue France jersey. They will also bring a white away jersey just in case. We are excited to announce that all the former players will come back! There were rumors about big teams like Manchester United was interested in Colombian international Pablo David but both parties could not come to an agreement before the transfer window was shut. The bad news come when we find out the Colombian international Carlos Quintero has been rulled out this Sunday game due to a rib fracture injury. Joga Bonito's medical staff has declared that it might take at least 2 more weeks to recover. The good news comes when we see the rest of the impressive roster! Joga Bonito has enough talented players that can get the job done even when one of their key players is out.

Here is the roster:
Carlos Quintero #10 - Captain and Playmaker (Colombia)
Pablo David #11 - Striker (Colombia)
Rolando Paz - Striker (Honduras)
Emily Lovejoy - Defense (USA)
Ernesto Pumarejo #9 - Midfielder (Colombia)
Anthony Gamboa #7 - Defense (Peru)
Emily Shand - Defense (USA)
Antonio Escalante #8 - Defense (Colombia)
Keith Veneziano #2 - Defense (USA)
Mauricio Pumarejo #1 - Goalkeeper (Colombia)

Here is the schedule for Joga Bonito:
2/14 Willard Warriors 4pm
2/21 Team Andres 6pm
2/28 Rotary United 4pm
3/7 J Barney 7pm
3/14 Bye (No game)
3/21 Chupacabra 5pm
3/28 Team Lee 5pm
4/11 YMCA Team 6pm
4/18 People's Republic 7pm

Fox Soccer Channel and ESPN were fighting for the rights to transmit Joga Bonito games. But we, The Soccer News, are proud to announce that we have come to an agreement with Joga Bonito's management staff and you will be able to see all the news right here in your favorite media: The Soccer News! You can check each post on my blog.


Carlos Quintero
Joga Bonito Owner
El Presidente
Manager
Captain
Second Goalkeeper
Chauffer
Soccer Times Reporter
And even Water Boy

Paranormal Activity: one of the creepiest movie ever!

Happy Halloween! Every October I celebrate Halloween by watching scary movies every weekend. I love scary movies. I love alien scary. I love slasher scary. I love zombie scary. I love monster scary. But probably the scariest to me will be the ghost scary movies! Now, let me clarify something that I didnt understand before. Paranormal is not a ghost movie. It is a demon movie! There is a huge difference between ghost and demons! I thought The Grudge and The Ring were perhaps the scariest movies. But they are ghost movies. Which means that someone who died is haunting someone else. Now, movies like The Exorcist and Paranormal treat something not human: a demon. Scary! I saw the trailer and I said "I must see this movie!"

The most amazing thing about Paranormal is that it was made with $11,000 dollars. I just check box office mojo today Oct 27 and it has made $63,433,879. Seriously? I just saw it last saturday and it is one of the creepiest movie I have ever seen! This director/creator is a genius! And it was so much fun to watch it with a horror fan crowd. Girls were screaming. Guys were saying "Is this for real?" Lots of suspense, lots of buildup. And very unexpected weird stuff.

Now, many might think this was not scary at all. Others might say that it made them laugh. Still others might say it didnt live to the hype. Let me tell you that it all depends if you are a fan of this movies. If you like ghost/demon movies, then this is your movie! It is very realistic. Filmed as a documentary. But I think is even better than the Blair Witch, Cloverfield, Quarantine and Diary of the Dead! And I love all those.

I want to tell you all about the movie but I dont want to spoil any fun. Just make sure you go to a movie with some friends who are into it. Screaming girls are a must! Back in the beginning of October, I stood in line for a free screening at midnight during almost 3 hours! And I couldnt get in because there were probably 1,000 people in front of me! I am so glad it finally made it to the theater and I could purchase a ticket. Watch the trailer. If you like it and you love ghost/demon movies, this will be a very cool ride. I guarantee you will sleep with your door shut and locked and the lights one. Heck, you might even have to sleep with someone!

Alicia watched it with me, and she loved it. And she doesnt even like scary movies that much! She told me that she was not sleeping by the door that night! I said "Ok I will sleep by the door but I am locking it!" Paranormal Activity is a MUST!

Soccer club FANS need to stop being so FANATICAL!

That's right. You heard me right. No, I didnt make a mistake in my title. Yes I am a soccer CLUB fan too. My favorite soccer team is my childhood home team "Atletico Junior" from Barranquilla, Colombia. I love them and I root for them above everything else. However, I am a "Soccer Fan" more than a "Soccer Club Fan." I think people who love the game should know the difference and should love the game more than their own club. I love the GAME more than a particular CLUB. You should love the game more than your club!

The inspiration for this article is the latest "Beckham incident" when the LA Galaxy played against AC Milan. In summary, Beckham signed a 5 year contract with the Galaxy but then had an opportunity to play with AC Milan in the MLS off season. When it was time for Beckham to come back to MLS, he expressed his desire to stay at Milan permanently. However, Milan was only able to keep Beckham until the end of the Serie A season and then he had to return to Galaxy since no purchase agreement was satisfied. When Beckham returned for his first home game with Galaxy against no other than AC Milan, many of the Galaxy fans boo him everytime he touched the ball. There were several signs criticizing Beckham saying things like "Go home fraud!" referring to his lack of commitment to the Galaxy.

Now, I understand that when you love your club team you want the players to love the team too. However, I think soccer club fans need to understand that we are in 2009 and we live in a competitive capitalist soccer world. Soccer players are trying to grab the best opportunity our there! Especially, football players in high demand like Beckham cannot give heart and soul literally to a particular club team! They might sign a contract. They might pledge their commitment. Hey, they might even kiss the club emblem and the jersey! It means nothing when a better team and more money shows up!

Let's make this more personal. Let's pretend you just got hired by a great company. They teach you many things. They treat you well for several years. You pledge your loyalty and express your gratitude always. You even say that you will retire in the company. Then a BETTER opportunity shows up! What? Better pay, better location, more vacation time. Now, you can spend more time with your family. You are not so stressed out. Wouldnt you take it? Who are you loyal too now? I am almost sure that your current employer will understand and if they dont then they need to wake up and smell the coffee!

Galaxy fans should be grateful they have someone like Beckham in their team! They should appreciate him while he is there because he wont be there for much longer. Trust me. Someone like Beckham is still in high demand. I love the Chicago Fire. I like how Cuahtemoc Blanco plays, but why should I be mad if he decides to leave? Or McBride? They are people like me who is always looking for better opportunities in life! Arent you?

So this whole thing about kissing the soccer club emblem and pledging your loyalty to the jersey is just flat stupid! Stop the madness! Love the game. Enjoy the game. Enjoy the players who are in your team for now because they wont be there for long. A player will say the love the team one season and then the next season moves elsewhere! It is sad to me that players cannot be honest with the press where they want to play for fear of the fans. Sure they need to be polite without disrespecting any team, but fear of fans? This is ridiculous! Soccer club fans stop being so fanatical! Enough is enough!

Love the game more than your own club!

10 Things I hate about The Dark Knight!

Yes you read it right. No, Im not crazy. I know that everyone loved The Dark Knight. I know is the second highest best selling movie in the US with almost $534 million dollars. Well, I dont care. I still like Tim Burton's Batman & Batman Returns better. And I thought Iron Man was way better than The Dark Knight. Why am I writing this now? Well, I saw The Dark Knight back in August 2009 in the movies. I wasnt impressed but it was such a lengthy movie that I couldnt remember much. HBO just showed it for the first time Saturday June 13 and I recorded it. Let me tell you why it sucks!

1. Gotham City looks like a regular city not a gothic city. Have you seen Tim Burton's Batman? That's Gotham City! It's an imaginary city, not a real city! The decoration should be dark and sinister. There were some scenes in The Dark Knight in broad day light! What the hell is that?

2. The Batmobile is suppose to be a sports car not a tank. The tank is cool but is just not batman. Check out Tim Burton's Batman when Batman tells Vicky "Get in the car." And then they show the car for the first time. Sick!

3. What is up with the mask in The Dark Knight? He looks like a monster! It has too many holes and dents. Why do they have to put so much stuff on it? Batman's original outfit was the best! Probably not the most comfortable but it looks the best. The yellow background behaing the bat logo you can remove if you want, but dont mess with the mask so much!

4. Bale loose the voice man! That sinister-wannabe voice is plain dumb. I know he wants to prevent people from recognizing him, but please. There is no need.

5. Ugly Rachel! Sorry guys but Tom Cruise's wife was not the hottest and best actress. And now they chose The Prince of Persia's sister! Not the pretiest cookie in the jar. She did better as an actress but come on. This is a super hero action movie. Guys want to watch good looking female leads! Dont you? If you dont agree with me, then go ask the tons of guys who went to watch Transformers just because of The Fox!

6. 2 and a half hours! Seriously? I was falling asleep man! Why does it have to be so long?

7. Where the hell is the action? This is a super hero movie, right? I saw some action, but I was falling asleep at the theater. If you are going to make a long movie, you better put some more action there! Why dont you follow Iron Man's example please.

8. Two-face! This guy was good for most of the movie! What's up with that? When his faced got burned and he became a bad guy the movie was almost over! I felt ripped off. I'm not saying that I prefer the Two-face in Batman Forever, but please bring out the badass villains!

9. Please someone tell me where the hell is the bat cave? Because the one in the movie sure wasnt a bat cave! Where are the bats? Where is the darkness? The guy had the bad cave lit like the 4th of July! You want to see a good batcave. Watch Tim Burton's Batman please!

10. The FANS! You know why I hate this movie the most! The fans make me sick! The guy at the Blockbuster asked me if I wanted to reserve The Dark Knight DVD for $5 to make sure I got a copy when it came out. I said " No thanks." He looked at me like if I was a crazy idiot. "This is the best movie of the year man! How can you not reserve it? Everyone wants a copy of the DVD!" What an idiot! It wasnt the greatest movie of the year dude! You can stop worshipping The Dark Knight now. I know many fans like the movie but do you have to be so fanatic! My favorite movie is probably The Last Crusade but I dont try to push down anyone's throat!

So there you have it. The Dark Knight sucks! Bring back Tim Burton please!

Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo?

This is the million dollar question. It has been a question for about 2 or maybe 3 years now since Kaka's reign is over. And now, that the Champions League final is coming and both players will try to shine, many are revisitting this answerless question. Personally, I like Messi more. Perhaps I like him more because I can identify with him more. He is South American. He is short. He like to dribble around people. I love that!

However, I think that you cannot compare them. I know is hard not to. But I dont think you can. I think that they are different players with different qualities. So how can you compare them? I would like to specify the qualities that I like from each player. Ronaldo can score from free kicks, long distances and with the head. Messi cannot do that. On the other hand, Messi can go around 2-3 guys easy and plays the one short touch passes with excellence. Ronaldo cannot do that. Can you imagine if they both end up on the same team?

I think Ronaldo deserved to win the FIFA player of the year in 2008 for all the trophies he won for Manchester United. However, I think this will be Messi's year to shine. He already brought 2 trophies to Barcelona. Many are saying that Manchester United will defeat Barcelona in the final. I love both teams. I love their soccer. However, my preference is Barcelona because I enjoy to watch Messi and company more. It is very disappointing that Dani Alves will not play. I am crossing my fingers that we can see Henry and Iniesta. I strongly believe that if Barcelona is complete (even without Alves), they can defeat Manchester United. I will predict a 2-1 game in Barcelona's favor!

Finally, I will like to end with this note. To be quite honest, if they ask me to select ONE player for my team, ANY player. I would have to reject Ronaldo and even Messi. It would be very difficult to do that. I must say that I would pick Steven Gerrard. Why? They guy does everything. He is Liverpool. He defends, blocks, creates, passes, headers, scores, free kicks beautifully. In my opinion, he is not recognized as he should be. He should've won the FIFA player already and many times over.

I want to see comments!

Dont miss the Champions League final May 27, 2009 at 1:30pm Man U vs Barca!