Football has been a big part of my initiation into English culture, from watching matches in pubs to chatting with people about their favorite teams (everyone's got one) and enduring good-natured ribbing from several friends for sporting my Aston Villa hat all winter long.
My colleague and I wanted to go to Fulham v Juventus tonight, but tickets at the legendary Craven Cottage, built in 1896 on the banks of the Thames in West London, were sold out. As fate would have it, Fulham pulled off the most memorable victory in the club's 130-year history. Having lost 3-1 in Turin last week, they went down 0-1 after just two minutes and looked certain to exit this year's Europa League.
However, a miraculous turnaround saw them equalize within 10 minutes and take a 2-1 lead into the locker room at half time. A penalty in the 49th minute levelled the aggregate score and set the stage for American Clint Dempsey to come on as a substitute in the 82nd minute. With just his second touch, he produced a moment of magic that will live forever in Fulham lore, and which you can click here to enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VeL1DXp-PuU
To me, Dempsey was the most exciting US player at the 2006 World Cup, and as this goal shows, his form is still superb. Landon Donovan, the US captain, has just completed a very successful loan spell with Everton, endearing himself to the English fans with precision passes and timely goals. With the scandals that have rocked the English national side in recent weeks, and the tragic injury to David Beckham at the weekend (note my British turn of phrase:-) the clash between the Yanks and our ex-masters on June 12 in South Africa is shaping up to be a cracker!
