Blackburn Rovers: perpetual turmoil

One can hardly blame Blackburn Rovers fans for growing very, very tired with the shambles that their once proud club has become under the ownership of Indian poultry conglomerate Venky's. There's hardly any need to rehash everything that has happened at Ewood Park over the last couple of seasons in the greatest of detail at this point, such as the mysterious sacking of Sam Allardyce and the bemusing, if not fatefully disastrous, hiring of Steve Kean as his replacement, puzzling squad selections and transfers, and the subsequent relegation that would eventually befall Rovers at the end of last season. Life in the Championship this season has hardly offered much of a reprieve from the head scratching and bizarre behind the scenes.

NWSL: Will this league last?

Though some of the framework about the NWSL, the USA's third attempt at a women's soccer league in just over a decade, had been out to some extent in various corners of the internet, the recent national television debut of the league's structure and founding members at halftime of the US Women's win over China served to confirm that this league is seemingly a bit better thought out for some semblance of longevity, owing in large part to the lessons learned through the respective demises of the WUSA and WPS.

The Ryan Martin Show: an update on things

As some of you may know, I'm working on a master's degree in addition to being a bit of a soccer pundit. Sadly over the course of the last couple of months, the requirements of my academic pursuits have kept me from blogging as much as I'd prefer to, and the daunting task of post-first year qualifying exams, which would determine my eligibility for the second and final year of the program, have especially kept me occupied. Needless to say, studying for these took a bit of precedence over my soccer chatter. Thankfully, or perhaps even mercifully, these exams are finished and I've made it through them unscathed, so I'll be able to get back to business as usual once the holidays have passed.

The show schedule is going to be somewhat erratic in the weeks before the new year. I'll be back on air on Monday the 17th, but I'll be out of the studio on the 24th for Christmas and the 31st due to my travels to New Orleans for New Year's and the Florida v. Louisville game. With my girlfriend being a Louisville fan/alum, I'm all but obligated to go! Following the holidays, however, I'll be back to my usual Monday morning, 10am show schedule. I can't wait to get back to that more comfortable routine.

Additionally, I've got an idea for my third book that I'm throwing around, though this book is going to be a bit of a departure from the works of fiction I've penned prior. Rather, this one is going to be non-fiction and soccer related, so it could be quite interesting for some of you! I'll keep you all posted as this little project develops.

Ryan