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The obvious solution was a shared sense of national identity. But what was Argentina?
So basically what I plan to do over the next few weeks is extract all of the Argentina-related snippets from The Ball Is Round and type them up, so we'd ostensibly end up with a detailed yet condensed history of Argie football.
( Part 1: 1914-1934, football tied to new notions of masculinity, fútbol rioplatense and the pibe ethos, El Gráfico, player migration, and professionalization of the domestic league. ) -
(Untitled)
Probably only niamh_x is interested in this, but I finally (HAH! A month later than I promised) typed up that snippet about the Gaelic Athletic Association. It mostly pits the GAA against the rise of football in Ireland, but there's some early history in there.
( Sports and politics would become inseparable ... ) -
adventures in literacy.
A month or so, and I've finally finished The Ball is Round, the last 50 pages of it in a sleepless fit two nights ago. It's ... staggering, is all I can really say, just the scope of the research that must have been involved, and how Goldblatt maintains the same level of passionate involvement throughout. The narrative never softens its grip, and ( Read more... ) -
sick, sick, sick.
Sepp Blatter/Cristiano Ronaldo SOMEBODY WRITE THIS. DOOOOO ITTTTTT PLEASE OMFG.
And Aguero providing one-half of the genetic code for Maradona's grandspawn is the scariest thing ever. Today is officially a day of trauma. -
no longer just a sighting!
I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS DAY FOR YEARS. My number one Liverpool cult fantasy for the past several seasons has finally emerged from occasional murky cameos on the pitch to reveal his mind and soul, and I am rejoicing with the force of a supernova. erjika, our dream has come true -- THE BIG INTERVIEW: ROB PRICE!!!!!!!!!!!
Rob, talk us through a ( Read more... ) -
I bet it was the most bizarre wedding ever.
Cañete signs forever ... with Mayte -- what a twee headline, seriously, guys, I love it.
( Read more... ) -
WORLDS COLLIDE, REMIX
I couldn't not post about this: Theirry Henry made HRO AHAHAHAHHAHA jesus christ, I might have just revealed my ill-fitting, wallflowering hipster blog consumption tendencies. I giggled forever, though -- I have no shame in that, at least.
Speaking of what the shit, LOLKEWELL. I wish him all the best, of course, but this seems like a move where he ( Read more... ) -
with bare hands.
Argentina's olympics squad has been posted!!
Goalkeepers: Oscar Ustari (Getafe), Sergio Romero (AZ Alkmaar)
Defenders: Pablo Zabaleta (Espanyol), Ezequiel Garay (Real Madrid), Federico Fazio (Sevilla), Nicolás Burdisso (Inter), Luciano Monzón (Boca Juniors)
Midfielders: Fernando Gago (Real Madrid), Ever Banega (Valencia), Javier Mascherano ( ( Read more... ) -
on planes and the balconies of old buildings.
Paul Anderson signed for another three seasons: YES, BUT WILL HE ACTUALLY GET TO PLAY FOR THE FIRST TEAM is what I want to know. I'm getting impatient with his situation, even if the kid sounds reasonably content to play the loan spell carousel ( Read more... ) -
four sides and an image.
Here, a small selection of my favorite photos from the match, the celebrations, and the aftermath. My great weakness is that no matter who wins, I will always look at the photos, the material rendering of unfettered joy -- the wild eyes and crazed limbs and colors and lights, the greatest sustained explosion in the world.
( +7 )