It is always an honor, a pleasure, and a crowning achievement to contribute to Mediawatch on Football365. Although in fairness it was ESPN2 “analyst” (and I use that word in the broadest sense imaginable) Tommy Smyth doing much of the work…

For those who don’t follow the beautiful game, the joke here (besides the horrific incessant rambling—the commas were added for clarity) is that the Ronaldo who scored against Germany in World Cup 2002 plays for Brazil, whereas the Ronaldo who plays for Portugal and Manchester United is, of course, a completely different person.

My translation of what I think Smyth meant to say goes something like this:

“Ballack must be sick of hearing the name Ronaldo. In 2002, Brazil’s Ronaldo scored two goals against Germany in the final as Ballack watched from the sidelines, out on a yellow card suspension. This past year in club football, Portugal’s Ronaldo helped Manchester United beat Chelsea in the league and scored in their win over Chelsea in the Champion’s League final. And to make things more interesting, Portugal’s manager Big Phil Scolari will be managing Chelsea next season, so Michael Ballack has a lot of motivation to play well today.”

And also on the humor front, I love how Andy Gray smacks down too-happy frat boy Rob Stone on a regular basis. His desire to bang Julie Foudy is clear for all to see too, so it’s a massive understatement to say that Mr. Gray has been a welcome addition to ESPN broadcasts of Euro 2008.

Current Mood: Not A Bad Way to Start Your Friday |