March 31, 2008 by f4denz.

Lots of travelling fans do not equal a win, or even a decent performance

So much has been made of the hundreds of Toronto FC fans travelling to watch their club open the 2008 MLS season in Columbus, I love to see fans travel, but in this case one has to ask why. Toronto has made very few off season moves to upgrade their team, sure they got rid of a coach by moving him further up the food chain of the organization, but were the woes of 2007 really Mo’s fault? No it was a typical expansion team, they had some talent, but lacked any depth, they made some roster moves, but they never developed team cohesion. So having the best fans in the league, having a new stadium (why on god’s earth would you build a soccer stadium with fake grass- source of much of their injury issues last year), doesn’t result in a good team. The opening weekend has to be a very ominous sign for the Red Patch Boy’s, getting shelled by the Crew (MLS whipping child for the last decade), has got to have the fans already scratching their head in disbelief at the on field performance. Having their only real chance on goal a PK stopped had to be a dagger to the heart of the many TFC fans that crossed the border only to drag their butts back north with their tails tucked between their legs.

Champions get a wake up call

In a rematch of the MLS cup, the champions looked a lot more human. For the past two MLS cups, DeRo stepped up, put the Dynamo on his back and through guts, talent, and will lead them to two titles, but Saturday afternoon it was the New England Revolution that looked like the far superior team. Even without Taylor Twellman, the Rev’s dominated the match and got a small measure of revenge for their defeat in the MLS cup. Perhaps the Dynamo were looking forward to their midweek CONCACAF Champions Cup match against Deportivo Saprissa, but they looked very flat.

I am fine with Spanish broadcasts but

So the MLS has this agreement to allow some matches to only be broadcast on TeleFutura, which I would not mind but when I attempted to watch the Chivas vs. FC Dallas match on Sunday it was one of the most unwatchable matches I have ever seen. I can handle the matches being in Spanish, but when you can’t even see the score because the picture is so crappy, what is the point. I would blame the issue on the local channel, but no other program on 22 seemed to have this issue on Sunday and none of my other channels English or Spanish had the issues that TeleFutura had during the match. I also believe that MLS should be broadcasting these matches along with the HDNet exclusives on Direct Kick, what is the point of ordering a package to see all the MLS matches, when there are some that are either unavailable or others are unwatchable on the channel they are offered. I know this match ended in a 1-1 draw, but I can’t offer much else since the broadcast was so bad. I did notice that Atiba got a start for Chivas, but again I can’t tell you how effective he was since all the players were a blur of pixels.

Soccer in a baseball stadium

The KC move from Arrowhead to a small minor league baseball stadium, must seem like a brilliant move to their FO. I mean they have a match, the stadium, including the outfield berm appeared to be full and rocking with the KC fans, then add that they outplayed DC United (the pick of many to win it all this year). I watched about 30 minutes of this match, and it looks like KC is not suffering any great harm from the loss of Eddie Johnson to Fullham. DC United appeared to be looking for an on field leader, and lacked the vision and organization that the club is known for. Again, are they paying more attention to their midweek match against Pachuca?

Are they really that bad?

So the biggest question coming out of the first weekends matches has to be, are the LA Galaxy really that bad? They simply got handled by the Rapids, every aspect of the Galaxy play was weak, too few touches by Beckham, an invisible Landycake, in fact the only player that was impressive for the Galaxy was Ruiz. The Rapids on the other hand got great efforts from a number of players that no one had ever heard of before. With the vast majority of their players injured, they started 4 players that I have never seen before. The star of the match for Colorado has to be Terry Cooke, who not only scored the first goal but got assists on two others, also impressive was the play of Christian Gomez. I have to believe that the Rapids put forth a great effort and that should not be diminished by the horrible play of the LA midfield and defense. Before the all star break, the LA Galaxy will be so far behind the rest of the western conference teams that the wholesale changes will start again, the only question is how much further will the league allow them to bend/break the salary cap? Will we see the league grant all the teams a second DP spot, or will they rather allow LA to grandfather more top end players in without them counting against their salary cap?

Putting out the Fire for 90 minutes

So for our home opener we faced the Chicago Fire, and the 7-8,000 Blanco fans that show up to watch the Mexican diving champion, really the guy has more than enough talent left (super vision, and precision passing), it leaves me wondering why does he dive so much? He actually looks like a WWE superstar, when at the slightest touch, he is flopping flat on his back like he was hit by lightning, only to pop back up to his feet seconds later (if he is smiling then he has gotten the foul called, if he is yapping at the official- hard to tell since he never really stops, then most likely he did not get the call he wanted). Honestly, I have never seen a player who dives and then is in the ear of the official every second that play is stopped, and a lot of the time when play is going on, please Blanco just shut up and play, your better than this.

The match was truly dominated by RSL, which struggled again to finish their scoring chances 17 shots with 9 on goal and only 1 in the back of the net and it was a redirected own goal(it Soumare had not tapped it in, Findley was in place to do so), but from the start of the match RSL played attacking and controlling football. Impressive efforts by Nat Borchers, Ian Joy, and Fabian Espindola, and solid efforts by the rest of the line up, there really was not a single RSL player who put in a poor performance. You could tell that Kenny Deuchar was still suffering some jet lag and looked a little confused on the overall gameplan, but he showed some good football skills taking the ball to the corner to slow down the pace late in the match.

Giving credit where it is due, Blanco was in the right place at the right time and a big time player made a big time play and earned his team a point on the road. The effort from RSL was as solid from start to finish and I was impressed that in the 90^th minute with a 1-0 lead that the team was still attacking, it shows a very different attitude from the past, where we would have bunkered down and allowed the other team to crank up shots for the last 10-15 minutes. I think both teams have to be a bit upset with the officials who in the first half seemed to let everything go, and in the second half started calling every touch of players. I am not sure how a defender climbing the back of Yura in the box, isn’t called and the Blanco fall down with no one touching him can be, but we know that the big names get the calls, but once again the league showed that solid and consistent officiating is not a strong point of the league.

OFF MY SOAPBOX

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March 29, 2008 by f4denz.

Preseason Predictions

Individual Awards

MVP-Taylor Twellman- Tired of having his future ruined by the MLS power brokers who refuse to let him leave for a future in Europe, this year he burns up the league until other teams beg for the MLS to let him go.

Golden Boot- Kenny Deuchar- this new comer has beat the crap out of the back of the net in Scotland and now will do the same in MLS, in his career he has averaged a goal every two games, but as he showed in his last match in Scotland his form is improving. Two goals against Rangers, I say 24 goals in MLS.

Rookie of the Year- Julius James- Toronto did well to pick up a defender that should make an impact from first game to the last, on a team that still has a whole lot of issues.

Keeper of Year- Matt Reis- You should see a trend developing in my picks, but Matt has been solid for years and this year will be no exception.

Defender of the Year- Chris Klein- The move to try and shore up the defense of the Galaxy will be a horrible move for Chris, who will no be able to be as much of a part of the attack with Beck’s, Landycakes, and Fish boy, but for LA will be the best roster move all season long.

Coach of the Year- Preki/Kries- Preki takes Chivas to the MLS cup only to lose to the Revolution, on a goal that Guzan could have stopped but since he is in the UK by the MLS cup Preki has to share the honors with Kreis. Jason’s redesign of the RSL roster, leads to their first playoff appearance and another Rocky Mountain Cup title, RSL is the most improved team in the league, and a lot of it has to do with Jason pushing his team to become the fittest club in MLS, and his never say die attitude.

MLS Cup Champions – New England Revolution 2-1 winners over Chivas USA.

OK I am off to the RSL opener, I will post the results tonight

Crap I forgot to pick today’s match. I am going to pick a 2-1 RSL victory, with goals from Carr for Chicago and Movsisyan and Deuchar for RSL.

If you’re at the match swing by E-38 and say hi, or stop by the tailgate.

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March 26, 2008 by f4denz.

Intro to the 2008 dozen

So as part of getting a “Yellow Card” (the newsletter of the RCB), ready for the match this weekend I have put together the following very brief intros to the 12 new players on the roster of RSL:

So we have just a few new faces on the RSL roster as the 2008 campaign kicks off, OK it is not a few there are 12 names new to the opening day roster.

Tony Beltran 20 yr old defender/midfielder, He was our first round draft pick in 08 taken #3 overall. He was a member of the USA U-20 2007 World Cup team, and at UCLA he started all 21 matches in 2007. Most impressive stat, he played all but 4 minutes for UCLA in 2007.

Nat Borchers 26 yr old defender, Nat comes to RSL from Odd Greenland of the Norwegian league. Prior to that Nat spent 3 seasons playing for the Crapids, scoring 3 goals in 87 matches, and has one cap with the US national team.

Matias Cordoba 23 yr old midfielder, Matias is another addition to the RSL roster from Argentina. He played for both Argentinos Juniors and Tigre of the Primera Division of Argentina and had 5 goals in 38 appearances for the two clubs.

Kenny Deuchar 27 yr old striker from Scotland, he has scored over 100 goals in the 207 professional matches he has played in. In his last match in the Scottish First Division, he scored two goals against the mighty Ranger side as his Gretna lost 4-2. A most interesting fact is that Kenny is a medical doctor, which may have a lot to do with his willingness to play in MLS, and earned him the nickname of Dr. Goal

David Horst 22 yr old defender, David was RSL’s 2^nd first round pick in the 08 MLS Super Draft. At 6′4 and 215 lbs he will be a sizable force in the back four, he had 85 starts in his four years at Old Dominion University.

Ian Joy 26 yr old defender, Ian comes to RSL from playing the past 4 years in Germany. FC St. Paulie, was his most recent club and he played in 21 matches for them in the last two seasons.

Dema Kovalenko 30 yr old midfielder, RSL picked up Dema in a trade with the Red Bulls for a 2010 conditional draft pick. Dema is from the Ukraine, and is known as a hard worker and a force in the midfield. In his MLS career he has 36 goals and 36 assists in 198 matches.

Alex Nimo 18 yr old midfielder/forward, he comes to RSL from the US U-17 residency program and he played in the 2007 U-17 World Cup for the US team. Born in Liberia, Alex is now a US citizen.

Tino Nunez 23 yr old forward, from UC Santa Barbara, Tino helped his team to the 3^rd round of the 2007 NCAA Soccer tournament.

Jamison Olave 26 yr old defender, from Columbia continues RSL’s addition of South American talent to their roster. He is on a one year loan from Deportivo Cali, at 6′1″ he will add some size to the backline of RSL.

Kevin Reiman 22 yr old midfielder, Kevin was selected by RSL in the supplemental draft. Kevin most recently played for the Michigan State Spartans, and scored good grades at the 2008 Infosport Soccer combine.

Brennan Tennelle 21 yr old midfielder, Brennan is another product of US Santa Barbara giving RSL 3 Gauchos on their roster.

Well that is a quick introduction to the new faces of RSL, I have to say it looks like we have upgraded our talent in a number of spots. Dr. Goal should be a great partner for either Findley or Movsisyan and lead RSL to more than the 31 goals scored last season. The big shoes of Eddie Pope, will have a number of big guys trying to fill them, but Olave, Joy, and Borchers should be up to the task of helping Nick Rimando face fewer than 191 shots in 2008. I can understand why Fox Soccer Channel, picked RSL as one of the teams to surprise in 2008.

Stadium Update

So after the coaches corner radio show, the kick off of the 2008 season edition. RSL staff offered up tours of the stadium, which is looking good, the tour was a great thing for the FO to offer and was very enjoyable. The highlight was getting to see the section in the SE corner of the stadium, which will be the home of the supporter section. I believe the rumors of this section being right by the stadium bar may be just that a rumor. But the section being designated is a very large section

So this is the section that can hold 800 people, which I question, it seems a bit small for that. It sure will be a nice view of the matches, I could not find a bad view anywhere in the stadium. I plan on taking another tour once they begin actually putting the seats in.

OFF MY SOAPBOX

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March 23, 2008 by f4denz.

OK, one more live in match blogging attempt. I tried this during the US vs. Canada match, but had network issues, so hopefully this will go better today. The US roster is now missing their players from Europe, who have gone back to their teams, so no Freddy, no Spector, and Edu, Seitz, Dax, and Jozy on the bench. The first 5 minutes have been fairly typical of the tournament, the US controlling possession, even getting in the box, but having trouble finishing, and with most of the US goals coming from Freddy Adu, who will score for the US today?

15 minutes in and Honduras has actually looked like the better team, unlike the first match with them, this time the passing and attacking of Honduras looks more threatening, I do not believe this one will come down to a 1-0 result.

20 minutes brings us the first yellow card of the match to Molina of Honduras, and both Hunter Freeman and Gaven spending time on the pitch, it looks like Freeman may be done for the day. He is trying to tough it out, but not sure how long he will be left out there. Holden seems to be slower and much less involved than he has in prior matches. Freeman is out and Edu comes in, it was only a matter of time. Honduras is attacking again and a long ball in, but the US clears it out to the middle third and is trying to counter attack.

25 minutes Ah there is Holden, he attacks and takes a shot from just outside the box, but it is easily cleaned up by the moppet headed Hernandez the keeper for Honduras, who has been a star of the tournament. Based on the noise in the stadium you would think this match was being played south of the border, and not in Nashville, where is Sam’s Army, all I am hearing is cheers when Honduras attacks.

30^th minute Barrett gets off a shot, but it is just a bit off target and we are still knotted up at 0-0. The US attacks again and a good save by Hernandez again on a great shot by Edu, that results in a corner, and just headed over the bar, some good attacks but no goals to show for it so far.

35^th minute Another corner kick for the US, good ball in but the whistle blows for contact in the box before the kick and Honduras escape without a scratch so far, but the tide appears to have turned and the US is playing more aggressively, Edu puts a rocket shot towards goal, but again just wide.

40^th minute The US is still attacking but it appears that the lack of goals is going to be an ongoing problem in 4 ½ matches the US has 6 goals, with half that total coming against the Canadian team and 4 of the 6 coming from Freddy Adu.

45^th minute Two minutes of stoppage time in the first half and while both teams have had their chances and tried to attack, the reality is that nothing has been that impressive, except the Edu shot just after the 35^th minute. A foul on Edu (2^nd yellow for Honduras –Sanchez is booked) and a free kick that results in nothing, but a Honduras counter attack. It also ends up in nothing and we end the half just like we started 0-0.

2^nd Half Well I don’t notice any changes to either side to start the second half. Honduras get a long ball to drop in the box, but nothing comes of it except a US counter attack, which like the Honduras effort comes to nothing but a lost ball. I will give a bit of credit where it appears to be due; Dunny sure seems to be getting better with his announcing skills. Sturgis has looked good coming forward in the attack and that holds good hope for our season, Findley has been a disappointment, but I wonder how much of it is him trying too hard to impress? With Jozy as your major competition for striker, that has got to be a lot of pressure, but neither Jozy ,or Robbie have impressed me in this tournament, neither has Barrett or Davies.

50^th minute Well, Honduras has the best attack of the game, with a save on the line by Ianni to stop a sure goal, Honduras get 3 shots in a couple seconds but the US escape without giving up a goal. The US tries to counter attack, but again a wide shot from too far away and no real threat.

55^th minute Honduras free kick from 5 yards outside the box, hits the wall and the US counter attacks, but nothing comes of it again. Damm some great passes from the US and Barrett falls down when the ball comes to his feet, at least we get a corner out of it, and Hill takes a shot but far too wide. Wow I am betting both of these teams are going to have to bring in a real forward before the Olympics, if they want any chance of doing much in China.

60^th minute Some good play from the US, a good cross but no one can get a head on it. It leaves me wondering why our guys with some space at the top of the box are so gun shy on taking a shot? They keep on trying to get one more pass, but that really has not worked at any time in the tournament, so why not just put some shots on goal and hope for a either a lucky goal, or a bounce off the keeper and a second chance.

65^th minute More attacking from the US, but again nothing to show for it. Yellow card for Holden, for yelling at the official, the Honduras free kick results in nothing. Honduras almost puts a goal in, a great cross and a diving header as Hill loses his guy at the edge of the 6 yard box, the US is lucky to still be even in this match.

70^th minute It is another US attack, a header from Findley but it hits the bar and bounces out by inches. US corner kick is short and the US again fails to convert a golden chance. If anyone else had been on the attack with Robbie the US would almost surely have a goal from the last set of plays. The way it looks we may get 30 additional minutes of play and then to PK’s, because neither team appears to be able to get their chances converted into goals. US appears to be slowing it down a bit and trying to control possession and work the ball forward slowly vs. the Honduras long ball attack, another US effort ends up in the box, but results in nothing, not even a shot on goal as the defense of Honduras gets the ball clear and tries to counter attack.

75^th minute Honduras still is trying to set up their attack by launching long balls from the midfield and see what can happen, the US tries that and the defenders keep Findley at bay and nothing comes from it. The US is attacking once again, and a weak shot from the edge of the box by Gaven is stopped with little effort by Hernandez again. Well here comes Jozy who comes in for Barrett, who once again has been a ghost, how does he end up getting any playing time?

80^th minute Set piece for Honduras, and it results in nothing and the US tries to counter attack and a foul just a couple yards outside the box and another yellow card for Honduras. This may be the best chance the US gets, Holden is over the ball and can we get a ball into Jozy? Nope he gets the ball in, but too many US players on the far post and none on the near, and the ball gets cleared out, but the US press the attack again and Gaven puts a good cross into the box but nobody is there. Honduras counters and a weak effort and the US gets the ball back again.

85^th minute Honduras gets a good shot, but nothing, the US once again is on the attack and keeping good possession at this point, a cross into the box punched away by the keeper. I think everyone is anticipating extra time, will either team be able to step up in the final minutes? US brings in Wynne for Holden, and that is the final change the US can make, but going to extra time and possibly PK’s is it a wise move? Honduras makes a final attack, and gets a corner kick as the clock nears 90, and it is a horrible shot that goes out without every coming close to anyone.

90^th minute Time for a final US attack, a foul on Jozy about 30 yards out, as the 4^th official holds up 3 minutes of extra time, the kick is good but cleared and the US keeps the attack on in the Honduran third of the pitch, damm Sasha and Jozy both get the ball at their feet at the edge of the 6 yard box and neither one can get off a shot. That has been far too typical of the US attack in the entire tournament, they attack again and a foul at the very edge of the box, can the US do something here, nope Sasha’s shot hits the wall and we now go to extra time.

Extra Time I Well for a match that may not mean anything, we do not know if the results of this will impact the seatings when the Olympics start, but it could so I guess that is the motivation. The US attacks, and for once Hill doesn’t take the shot, but Sasha has no such hesitation and puts another one wide of goal. The US has got the ball into the box time and time again, but just can not finish it off, they have controlled the majority of possession and chances in all their matches, and considering they have no loses, one tie, and three wins it is hard to complain, but we have come to expect more and so far this team has not shown that they are really a world class side, with the exception of Freddy. A shot from Jozy, it is a rocket that is just wide by a foot or so, but the keeper had it covered, still it was nice to see the shot. Sasha takes another shot, but again it is too high, but he is getting closer this time it was only 3 feet over the bar. Some great shots of the fans supporting Honduras, they sure seem to be very festive, I know they are loud because I have not heard the US fans. So the US gets the ball in the box, Gaven gets taken down (it should be a penalty) but they Jozy tries to get a shot, bodies are falling all over but no shot on goal for the US. You have to wonder why a player who is taken down clearly in the box while he has possession of the ball, but nope, and at this point there is not anything that can be done about it.

Jozy dives in the box, on minimal contact, the US is really attacking with all they have, but still can not get a goal. Honduras is trying a counter attack and they get the ball into the back of the net, it is Georgie Welcome. 1-0 Honduras at the 110^th minute, want to bet he gets a couple MLS offers after having a good tournament. The US is trying to fight back, but can they do anything to get the ball in the back of the net in the last 15 minutes of extra time?

Extra Time II This is it the US has 15 minutes to get a goal or lose their first match of the tournament, and it is the first time I have heard the US fans make any noise. US corner kick, after once again the US fails to take a shot, when they have an opening, and once again nothing comes of the corner kick. The US keeps trying to attack, but they appear to be loosing steam, which give Honduras time to counter attack, but the US gets it back and once again coming on the attack, but another save by Hernandez. The US gets another corner kick, but nothing to show from it, but another Honduras counter attack. The play is breaking down as both teams get desperate to put this one in the books. The US has had plenty of attacking chances, but without Freddy and no PK’s called they have not been able to get anything really on goal, very little that has caused Hernandez to worry about. 5 minutes left in the match and the US does appear to really want to get a goal but I have a feeling it is too little too late. And now we get the players from Honduras spending as much time on their backs as they can, and who can blame them it has been a long hard fought match. A yellow card for Wynne on a push from behind on Welcome, as expected it is getting rough and perhaps a bit ugly and dirty. That is it, the whistle blows and the US goes down in the final match and Honduras wins the CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

That is it for now.

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March 16, 2008 by f4denz.

So I have watched all 3 of the US U-23 matches this week and will attempt to rate the performances based on my simple opinion, I am not an expert by any stretch it appears we have way too many of those in the blogosphere anyhow.

I do have to admit that I have been very disappointed so far, if not for PK’s we would have scored 1 goal in 3 matches and your not going to do much in the Olympics if you can’t score. I do understand the rigors of playing 3 matches in just 5 days, and the fact that Nowak has played almost everyone other than the keepers out of position at some point. It is a testament to the athletic ability of the players that they have been able to adapt fairly well. So the US won group A and will face the 2^nd place team from group B, which at this point could be Mexico, Canada, or Hati, depending on the results of today’s matches at the Home Depot Center. For a team grade I have to give them a B-, they won their group, but looked averaged at best doing it.

Rosters and Reserves

So much hype, and created controversy over what players teams put on the pitch against their opponents, and to be honest it is all a bunch of crap in my opinion, no team can control the players that are put on the pitch to play against them. Did the teams in Columbia play their best players against us, it appears to be no, but at the same time did we play our starting 11 against them, no in fact we did not. Friendlies tend to see players who may not be in the starting 11 for a team get a chance to play, if not start, then at least get significant minutes. This is the reason why 6 or more subs are allowed in these types of matches, does anyone remember who started and was subbed in during the RSL vs. Real Madrid match a couple years ago? Why is it only when we want to stir the pot, do things like this come up? Does it matter that the greatest attacks have been made against Garth and some statements he made about a match that he didn’t even attend? Does it matter that he was several hundred miles away watching other matches, and looking for talent, nope we must take every word, action, or thought of some people and place them under a microscope to attack. I still am not sure why some people feel the need to attack, if you have concerns or doubts ask the questions, get clarification, but how about you take a couple breaths and count to 10 before saying things that simply serve no purpose. I did not hear any crying when a less than normal starting line up for Liverpool, or Chelsea lost to Barnsley in the FA Cup, there were plenty who questioned the starting line ups, but I didn’t see anyone claiming the results shouldn’t count because the lineups were not the normal starting 11.

Don’t get me wrong, there is plenty to question about how RSL operates, and communicates to it’s fans and community, but questioning them about which players are put on the pitch against them seems to be the one thing that is far beyond their control. I think better questions, about the whole seat transfer policy, or lack there of, are fair fodder for attack. Or why RSL allowed MLS to schedule them for only 5 home matches after the all star break (the only other team with 5 is the Golden Balls US leg of their world tour). Do we not have a brand new stadium due to be ready for the last 3 months of the season, why not stack a home field advantage and shot for 7, or 8 like some teams in the league, or why not be real brave and shot for 9 home matches in the last 3 months of the season, like the NKOTB San Jose? Was this a deliberate attempt to not have to deal with seat transfer issues? Why does the FO still deny that they know how many seats will be in each section or row, despite the seats being ordered and virtural 3D images being prepared? Is there the standard “seat license” coming to try and get some cash into the RSL coffers? One could ask why only 2 weeks before the home opener has there been little or no marketing of the team to the community, last year we had almost no stop TV ad’s, billboards, buses and trains were covered with the faces of RSL players, this year, to say that the silence has been deafening would be a understatement. Now I am sure it could be that the team is a bit tight on cash, we have spent a lot on new players, and cash is still going to the stadium project, or could it be that we simply don’t have a team identity yet? Would most people know who Dr. Goal is if they saw him on a billboard? Only time will tell, but as the talent level on the pitch appears to be improving, when will we see the same from those in the FO? We have a lot of very nice, and some very talented people in the FO, but on the pitch people know who is calling the shots, does anyone have a clue who is guiding the course of the RSL ship off the pitch?

OFF MY SOAPBOX

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