It seems like it's an annual thing now, which I guess it is. What's the saying about twice being a coincidence and three times a pattern or something?
Anyway, for the third year running a Mexican team has reached the final of the Copa Sudamericana. Pumas lost to Boca Juniors on '05 and Pachuca beat Colo Colo in '06. Now, it's America's turn to go against a South American giant... um, well, okay, a South American lightweight. I'm guessing a few people think America is playing an English club.
America will play Arsenal de Sarandi tonight in the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana final. Tonight's game is in Azteca and Wednesday's return leg is in Argentina.
When this has come up before, I wonder what other fans do. For instance, when Cruz Azul reached the 2001 Copa Libertadores final, it seemed like there were suddenly a lot of Cruz Azul supporters. I think that Cruz Azul gained a lot of attention and a lot of support from non-Cruz Azul fans because they were a Mexican club and were competing against a South American team in an historic event.
Now, that novelty has worn off. But the fact that a Mexican club will meet a South American team in the tourney final has not changed. So is there a feeling of support among non-America fans simply because they are from Mexico?
I would guess not. Any Chivas fan worth his/her salt is not going to support America under any circumstances, and if they do then you've got to question their mental sanity. Pumas fans, well, Tenoch and Julio summed it up best with their "Puto el que le vaya al America" mandate. I think Cruz Azul fans too would not necessarily pull for America.
But those teams have bitter rivalries with America. What about fans of Morelia or Tigres, who don't necessarily have America on their hate lists? What about Atlante fans, Tecos fans (El Guero and the five other UAG supporters) or Santos fans?
Honestly, I think that there is still an element of Mexican fans who would put country before club and support America. There are others who would not be upset if a Mexican club won Sudamericana (especially at the expense of an Argentine team) and there are others who will root hard against America. I wonder, though, which of those categories has more fans.
WARNING *** thin-skinned MLS fans might want to stop reading here ***
I guess this is one area where MLS and Mexico differ. I'm guessing if it was an MLS team, be it Houston, New England, New York or L.A., most MLS fans would get behind that club, whether they pull for that team during the season or not.
If you ask me where I stand on the topic, I think America fans should root for America and non-America fans should not. How would an America win benefit Monterrey? How did Pachuca's win last year benefit the rest of the 17 teams? I'd say the same thing if DC would have made it this far.
What's good for the goose isn't necessarily good for the gander.
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Friday, November 30, 2007
Bummer for Bease
DaMarcus Beasley is done for the year. After hurting his knee in a Champions League match on Tuesday, Beasley will have surgery and will likely miss the remainder of the SPL season.
How does this affect his standing on the USMNT? In the first half of next year, Beasley probably won't play any role on it. He'll miss the Mexico game on Feb. 6 and whatever other friendlies the US schedules afterward. He could be healthy by the June qualifiers, though the US won't need him to get past Barbados/Dominica. He should be healthy by the fall and could see action in the semifinal qualifying round which starts in August.
Obviously, this is a much bigger blow for his club career. Beasley went through some tough times before settling in with Rangers and was faring well for himself. Though he won't be starting from zero once he gets back, he's going to fight another uphill battle to establish himself whenever his knee allows him to play again.
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How does this affect his standing on the USMNT? In the first half of next year, Beasley probably won't play any role on it. He'll miss the Mexico game on Feb. 6 and whatever other friendlies the US schedules afterward. He could be healthy by the June qualifiers, though the US won't need him to get past Barbados/Dominica. He should be healthy by the fall and could see action in the semifinal qualifying round which starts in August.
Obviously, this is a much bigger blow for his club career. Beasley went through some tough times before settling in with Rangers and was faring well for himself. Though he won't be starting from zero once he gets back, he's going to fight another uphill battle to establish himself whenever his knee allows him to play again.
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En fuego
Chivas USA lost to Fresno 3-1 on Thursday night. Don't have lineups, though I do know Lawson Vaughn played since he was in the picture accompanying the story from the Fresno Bee.
Not sure if Jesse Marsch played. I hope he got the night off to watch his beloved Packers go down in flames in Dallas. That would have been better than playing a meaningless game in Fresno. It's kind of ironic that Marsch played for so long in Soldier Field being the big Packers fan that he is.
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Not sure if Jesse Marsch played. I hope he got the night off to watch his beloved Packers go down in flames in Dallas. That would have been better than playing a meaningless game in Fresno. It's kind of ironic that Marsch played for so long in Soldier Field being the big Packers fan that he is.
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Perfect Pumas
When the InterLiga calendar came out, I was excited that Pumas UNAM would finally be a part of the tournament. Since I began covering the tournament in 2005, Pumas hasn't been a part of the field because of their league results, both good and bad.
Now, though, they may again evade InterLiga once again. Pumas destroyed Santos by 3-0 on Thursday in the first leg of their semifinal series. Pumas need only to avoid a three-goal loss to advance to the finals, where they'd face the Chivas-Atlante survivor.
Pumas upset Toluca in the quarterfinals with a win-at-home-tie-on-the-road formula that they'll try to follow up with on Sunday in Torreon. Pumas, though, wasn't content with settling for just a win. They wanted to take care of business at home, which they did.
All season long, Pumas hasn't been one of the flashier clubs. They certainly weren't as flashy as Santos or Toluca but now they are poised to return to the final for the first time since Hugo Sanchez guided Pumas to consecutive league titles in 2004.
Pumas, incidentally, would qualify for the CONCACAF Champions Cup by winning the Mexican league and thus would be ineligible to participate in Copa Libertadores, for which InterLiga serves as a qualifying tournament. No Libertadores, no InterLiga. Nimodo.
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Now, though, they may again evade InterLiga once again. Pumas destroyed Santos by 3-0 on Thursday in the first leg of their semifinal series. Pumas need only to avoid a three-goal loss to advance to the finals, where they'd face the Chivas-Atlante survivor.
Pumas upset Toluca in the quarterfinals with a win-at-home-tie-on-the-road formula that they'll try to follow up with on Sunday in Torreon. Pumas, though, wasn't content with settling for just a win. They wanted to take care of business at home, which they did.
All season long, Pumas hasn't been one of the flashier clubs. They certainly weren't as flashy as Santos or Toluca but now they are poised to return to the final for the first time since Hugo Sanchez guided Pumas to consecutive league titles in 2004.
Pumas, incidentally, would qualify for the CONCACAF Champions Cup by winning the Mexican league and thus would be ineligible to participate in Copa Libertadores, for which InterLiga serves as a qualifying tournament. No Libertadores, no InterLiga. Nimodo.
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Thursday, November 29, 2007
Subjective judgment
All the Houston Dynamo fans who screamed at the injustice of Khano Smith's "headbutt" in the MLS final - take a moment to think back to Nate Jaqua's elbow in the Western Conference final. Both were fouls that I thought deserved a red. Not surprisingly, I didn't get any emails from Houston fans about how the refs missed the call on Jaqua - they were fine with that one.
Basically, that's the way I feel about the outcry over the DP grandfathering of players making DP money before the DP rule. It's funny to think that so many people grouse about how cheap MLS can be, but then want rules enforced to punish the clubs that were willing to spend money.
What I also find amusing is those who say that MLS should have just instituted the grandfathering rule permanantly from the start.
Well, the reality is that if the guys ran MLS had that much foresight, the league would be further along. Because they're not infallible prophets, they didn't make a decision without first seeing how the designated players would actually affect the league. Instead, what they did was give themselves a one-year window to see whether or not having a DP and a DP-like player would give teams too much of an advantage.
They soon discovered that in MLS, the whole is more important than the DP parts. No teams with DP players made it to the final. Teams are often better off with players who are slightly second-tier, at least as far as the national team level, because then they won't be missing as much time from their teams.
Yet for the league to say that DP players don't matter would be foolish. The fact is, MLS received more attention this year than any other in its existence because of players like Blanco, Beckham and Angel. If team owners had hesitated in going after those players because it might mean disrupting the chemistry a squad had because of perhaps being forced to give up stars they already had, the league, fans, and other players themselves would suffer for it. Increased exposure is good for everybody in MLS - well, except for perhaps the refs, because it just seems to make more people complain about them.
That doesn't mean that I was really in favor of the grandfathering extension. I was hoping the league would add another DP slot to everyone in the league. Chivas USA could have made good use of that. I understand, though, that it might be premature to add a DP when so many teams haven't even made use of the one they have.
Anyway, I asked Landon about it, and had to give credit that he immediately recognized his own impartiality.
Read more...
Basically, that's the way I feel about the outcry over the DP grandfathering of players making DP money before the DP rule. It's funny to think that so many people grouse about how cheap MLS can be, but then want rules enforced to punish the clubs that were willing to spend money.
What I also find amusing is those who say that MLS should have just instituted the grandfathering rule permanantly from the start.
Well, the reality is that if the guys ran MLS had that much foresight, the league would be further along. Because they're not infallible prophets, they didn't make a decision without first seeing how the designated players would actually affect the league. Instead, what they did was give themselves a one-year window to see whether or not having a DP and a DP-like player would give teams too much of an advantage.
They soon discovered that in MLS, the whole is more important than the DP parts. No teams with DP players made it to the final. Teams are often better off with players who are slightly second-tier, at least as far as the national team level, because then they won't be missing as much time from their teams.
Yet for the league to say that DP players don't matter would be foolish. The fact is, MLS received more attention this year than any other in its existence because of players like Blanco, Beckham and Angel. If team owners had hesitated in going after those players because it might mean disrupting the chemistry a squad had because of perhaps being forced to give up stars they already had, the league, fans, and other players themselves would suffer for it. Increased exposure is good for everybody in MLS - well, except for perhaps the refs, because it just seems to make more people complain about them.
That doesn't mean that I was really in favor of the grandfathering extension. I was hoping the league would add another DP slot to everyone in the league. Chivas USA could have made good use of that. I understand, though, that it might be premature to add a DP when so many teams haven't even made use of the one they have.
Anyway, I asked Landon about it, and had to give credit that he immediately recognized his own impartiality.
"I’m probably biased. It’s hard to say, under one set of rules, you go get a player and then all of a sudden you can’t have that player unless you trade something away for him. I don’t think that’s a good thing to do to teams. The teams that went out and got players shouldn’t be punished. I think it was the right thing to do. I’m sure that other teams may not agree."
Also, I got confirmation from a Galaxy official that Landon does indeed have a no-trade clause in his contract. It's also likely that Landon isn't the only one in MLS with such a stipulation.
Read more...
Pan-Pacific Championship
Yes, it's in Hawaii. What a perfect excuse to go, no? Unfortunately, it's probably a no-go. Anyway, here are more deets.
Major League Soccer (USA), the J.League (Japan) and the Hyundai A-League (Australia) today announced an unprecedented and innovative partnership in the creation of a new international soccer tournament to be hosted in Honolulu, Hawaii: the Pan-Pacific Championship (PPC), which will crown the top club from the Asian and North American soccer confederations.
The four teams to participate in the 2008 tournament are: reigning MLS Cup champion Houston Dynamo and Haleiwa, Hawaii native Brian Ching; the Yamazaki Nabisco Cup Champion Gamba Osaka, with 19-year-old Japanese sensation Michihiro Yasuda and J.League star Yasuhito Endo; the 2007 SuperLiga finalists Los Angeles Galaxy, whose international roster includes English superstar David Beckham and perennial MLS all-star Landon Donovan; and a club to qualify from the Hyundai A-League Final Series, which concludes in February 2008 ahead of the Pan-Pacific Championship.
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Tuesday, November 27, 2007
A-league versus MLS
Sydney FC won, but there's nothing about the Galaxy going down to nine men in the AP article. The Galaxy blog has more details.
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Five alive
In many ways, this upcoming two-week stretch will be a unique one in Mexico.
The Apertura season is down to four teams as Santos will play Pumas and Chivas will meet Atlante in the Liguilla semifinals. But those aren't the only clubs alive in the quest for glory. Club America will play Arsenal de Sarandi of Argentina in the Copa Sudamericana final.
It's not every week that a Mexican club has the opportunity to capture South American glory. Of course, it's happened three years running now in this tournament as Pumas and Pachuca reached the Sudamericana final in 2005 and 2006 respectively.
At least one Mexican club will add to its mantle in the coming weeks. My money's on Santos simply because how dominant they have been all season long. But I also think that America has a great chance of walking away with international glory. Arsenal is a strong opponent - their 2-1 win over Boca Juniors on Sunday and run to the Sudamericana final will attest to that. But America should have as motivation the chance to claim its first-ever South American championship.
Read more...
The Apertura season is down to four teams as Santos will play Pumas and Chivas will meet Atlante in the Liguilla semifinals. But those aren't the only clubs alive in the quest for glory. Club America will play Arsenal de Sarandi of Argentina in the Copa Sudamericana final.
It's not every week that a Mexican club has the opportunity to capture South American glory. Of course, it's happened three years running now in this tournament as Pumas and Pachuca reached the Sudamericana final in 2005 and 2006 respectively.
At least one Mexican club will add to its mantle in the coming weeks. My money's on Santos simply because how dominant they have been all season long. But I also think that America has a great chance of walking away with international glory. Arsenal is a strong opponent - their 2-1 win over Boca Juniors on Sunday and run to the Sudamericana final will attest to that. But America should have as motivation the chance to claim its first-ever South American championship.
Read more...
Planning ahead
With the announcement of the recent World Cup qualifying draw, the USMNT learned its upcoming path to the 2009 Hexagonal and ultimately the 2010 World Cup.
But what was also learned should benefit Major League Soccer as well. Whether it actually translates into a beneficial scenario to the fans is another thing, but given the league's track record it probably will mean more logjams ahead for the American soccer fan.
The US will open with either Barbados or Dominica on matchdays in June with specifics to be determined. But the semifinal round will be played on the following days:
Wednesday, Aug. 20
Saturday, Sept. 6
Wednesday, Sept. 10
Saturday, Oct. 11
Wednesday, Oct. 15
Sunday, Nov. 19
While the MLS schedule won't be announced until sometime in late January or February, whoever makes up the league schedule should go ahead and avoid scheduling games on those specific days.
Shutting down for entire weekends, especially in September and October, is probably out of the question. But for sure MLS can avoid scheduling midweek games in August, September and October. While that won't prevent MLS teams from losing key players to the national team, it would at least let fans follow the international game without having to ignore the domestic product.
For years, MLS has done nearly everything wrong when planning its calendar with accordance to the international fixture dates and international tournaments. How MLS can continue to play during the World Cup is beyond me. MLS commish Don Garber told us before the 2006 season that the league wouldn't play through the 2010 World Cup. I'm going to hold him accountable for those words when the World Cup comes around next time.
Anyway, the US has now a series of important dates spread out over the latter part of 2008. It's not the federation's responsibility to try and avoid scheduling games that would conflict with the league. It's the other way around, and typically other countries just shut down. Again, the league would likely never consider simply not scheduling dates on weekends in during the season. The least they could do is to not schedule any games on USMNT matchdays.
And while we're on the topic, here's the calendar for Hexagonal matchdays in 2009:
Wednesday, Feb. 11
Saturday, March 28
Wednesday, April 1
Saturday, June 6
Wednesday, June 10
Wednesday, Aug. 19
Saturday, Sept. 5
Wednesday, Sept. 9
Saturday, Oct. 10
Wednesday, Oct. 14
There you have the matchdays. No excuses, MLS.
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But what was also learned should benefit Major League Soccer as well. Whether it actually translates into a beneficial scenario to the fans is another thing, but given the league's track record it probably will mean more logjams ahead for the American soccer fan.
The US will open with either Barbados or Dominica on matchdays in June with specifics to be determined. But the semifinal round will be played on the following days:
Wednesday, Aug. 20
Saturday, Sept. 6
Wednesday, Sept. 10
Saturday, Oct. 11
Wednesday, Oct. 15
Sunday, Nov. 19
While the MLS schedule won't be announced until sometime in late January or February, whoever makes up the league schedule should go ahead and avoid scheduling games on those specific days.
Shutting down for entire weekends, especially in September and October, is probably out of the question. But for sure MLS can avoid scheduling midweek games in August, September and October. While that won't prevent MLS teams from losing key players to the national team, it would at least let fans follow the international game without having to ignore the domestic product.
For years, MLS has done nearly everything wrong when planning its calendar with accordance to the international fixture dates and international tournaments. How MLS can continue to play during the World Cup is beyond me. MLS commish Don Garber told us before the 2006 season that the league wouldn't play through the 2010 World Cup. I'm going to hold him accountable for those words when the World Cup comes around next time.
Anyway, the US has now a series of important dates spread out over the latter part of 2008. It's not the federation's responsibility to try and avoid scheduling games that would conflict with the league. It's the other way around, and typically other countries just shut down. Again, the league would likely never consider simply not scheduling dates on weekends in during the season. The least they could do is to not schedule any games on USMNT matchdays.
And while we're on the topic, here's the calendar for Hexagonal matchdays in 2009:
Wednesday, Feb. 11
Saturday, March 28
Wednesday, April 1
Saturday, June 6
Wednesday, June 10
Wednesday, Aug. 19
Saturday, Sept. 5
Wednesday, Sept. 9
Saturday, Oct. 10
Wednesday, Oct. 14
There you have the matchdays. No excuses, MLS.
Read more...
Monday, November 26, 2007
Presto change-o
I was mildly relieved that Preston Burpo was not snatched up by San Jose in last week's expansion draft. Now, I'm scratching my head trying to figure out why Chivas was so quick to ship him out of town.
Preston Burpo is now with San Jose after the expansion team dealt its fourth-round SuperDraft pick next year to Chivas in exchange for the 35-year-old goalkeeper. With Brad Guzan linked to a move abroad, it seemed like Burpo was a valuable player to keep around. Now, if Guzan does make a move to Europe, Justin Myers and Sam Reynolds are next in line to play the position.
Surely Burpo is more valuable than a fourth-rounder. Chivas struck gold in 2006 when taking Jonathan Bornstein in the fourth round but more often than not fourth-round picks struggle for playing time and are non-factors with their teams.
Either Chivas is certain that Brad Guzan is not going anywhere next year or they have other plans to fill the goalkeeping position.
As far as San Jose goes, now Frank Yallop need not worry about a starting goalkeeper. Burpo is a solid goalie and will provide some grit back there. He knows Jason Hernandez and will have an instant connection with one of his central defenders. And Yallop can go out and get a young goalkeeper and groom him if he pleases or he could choose to focus his attention on other positions. Another upshot is that Burpo used to play for Seattle for so long the Sounders might be interested in bringing him back when they join MLS in 2009 and might give up more than the fourth-rounder San Jose did to get Burpo from Chivas. Yeah, Kasey Keller and Seattle have been linked for years but Burpo nonetheless was a popular Sounder for many years.
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Preston Burpo is now with San Jose after the expansion team dealt its fourth-round SuperDraft pick next year to Chivas in exchange for the 35-year-old goalkeeper. With Brad Guzan linked to a move abroad, it seemed like Burpo was a valuable player to keep around. Now, if Guzan does make a move to Europe, Justin Myers and Sam Reynolds are next in line to play the position.
Surely Burpo is more valuable than a fourth-rounder. Chivas struck gold in 2006 when taking Jonathan Bornstein in the fourth round but more often than not fourth-round picks struggle for playing time and are non-factors with their teams.
Either Chivas is certain that Brad Guzan is not going anywhere next year or they have other plans to fill the goalkeeping position.
As far as San Jose goes, now Frank Yallop need not worry about a starting goalkeeper. Burpo is a solid goalie and will provide some grit back there. He knows Jason Hernandez and will have an instant connection with one of his central defenders. And Yallop can go out and get a young goalkeeper and groom him if he pleases or he could choose to focus his attention on other positions. Another upshot is that Burpo used to play for Seattle for so long the Sounders might be interested in bringing him back when they join MLS in 2009 and might give up more than the fourth-rounder San Jose did to get Burpo from Chivas. Yeah, Kasey Keller and Seattle have been linked for years but Burpo nonetheless was a popular Sounder for many years.
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Sunday, November 25, 2007
First date
The Galaxy are getting checked out by their new coach. "He enters a room, he’s a presence," said Chris Albright of Gullit.
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Attention on Alexi
If anyone thought that having David Beckham on a team that Ruud Gullit was coaching meant no one would pay any mind to Alexi Lalas, they'd be wrong.
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CONCACAF draw
And here are the results from our neck of the woods, well, at least for many of us.
Group 1A
Dominica v Barbados
United States v Winner
Group 1B
Turks and Caicos Islands v Saint Lucia
Guatemala v Winner
Group 1C
Bermuda v Cayman Islands
Trinidad and Tobago v Winner
Group 1D
Aruba v Antigua and Barbuda
Winner v Cuba
Group 2A
Belize v Saint Kitts and Nevis
Winner v Mexico
Group 2B
Bahamas v British Virgin Islands
Jamaica v Winner
Group 2C
Dominican Republic v Puerto Rico
Honduras v Winner
Group 2D
Canada v Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Group 3A
US Virgin Islands v Grenada
Winner v Costa Rica
Group 3B
Suriname v Montserrat
Winner v Guyana
Group 3C
El Salvador v Anguilla
Panama v Winner
Group 3D
Nicaragua v Netherlands Antilles
Haiti v Winner
The US could send a third-string side and still beat Barbados or Dominica. Ditto for Mexico and Belize but St. Kitts actually put up a fight the last time they met in qualifying (in 2004) so they'll need at least a couple of first-teamers.
So if form holds, these will be the following groups for the semifinal phase:
United States
Guatemala
Trinidad & Tobago
Cuba
Mexico
Honduras
Jamaica
Canada
Costa Rica
Panama
Guyana
Haiti
The US would have an easier go at it than Mexico. Honduras and Jamaica, those aren't exactly walkover wins.
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Group 1A
Dominica v Barbados
United States v Winner
Group 1B
Turks and Caicos Islands v Saint Lucia
Guatemala v Winner
Group 1C
Bermuda v Cayman Islands
Trinidad and Tobago v Winner
Group 1D
Aruba v Antigua and Barbuda
Winner v Cuba
Group 2A
Belize v Saint Kitts and Nevis
Winner v Mexico
Group 2B
Bahamas v British Virgin Islands
Jamaica v Winner
Group 2C
Dominican Republic v Puerto Rico
Honduras v Winner
Group 2D
Canada v Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Group 3A
US Virgin Islands v Grenada
Winner v Costa Rica
Group 3B
Suriname v Montserrat
Winner v Guyana
Group 3C
El Salvador v Anguilla
Panama v Winner
Group 3D
Nicaragua v Netherlands Antilles
Haiti v Winner
The US could send a third-string side and still beat Barbados or Dominica. Ditto for Mexico and Belize but St. Kitts actually put up a fight the last time they met in qualifying (in 2004) so they'll need at least a couple of first-teamers.
So if form holds, these will be the following groups for the semifinal phase:
United States
Guatemala
Trinidad & Tobago
Cuba
Mexico
Honduras
Jamaica
Canada
Costa Rica
Panama
Guyana
Haiti
The US would have an easier go at it than Mexico. Honduras and Jamaica, those aren't exactly walkover wins.
Read more...
Far east draw
Here's the Asian results. The top two teams in each group advance to the final stage, which will feature two groups. The top two in those groups qualify directly to the World Cup and another team will face the Oceania winner for another spot.
Group 1
Australia
China
Iraq
Qatar
Group 2
Japan
Bahrain
Oman
Thailand
Group 3
South Korea
North Korea
Jordan
Turkmenistan
Group 4
Saudi Arabia
Uzbekistan
Lebanon
Singapore
Group 5
Iran
Kuwait
United Arab Emirates
Syria
Read more...
Group 1
Australia
China
Iraq
Qatar
Group 2
Japan
Bahrain
Oman
Thailand
Group 3
South Korea
North Korea
Jordan
Turkmenistan
Group 4
Saudi Arabia
Uzbekistan
Lebanon
Singapore
Group 5
Iran
Kuwait
United Arab Emirates
Syria
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Grim stuff
So I'm waiting with mild anticipation to find out the preliminary draw results for the 2010 World Cup.
I ran across this to remind me that while the tournament should feature good soccer, it's one that I'm definitely watching from afar.
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I ran across this to remind me that while the tournament should feature good soccer, it's one that I'm definitely watching from afar.
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Two in, two to follow
Chivas beat San Luis 1-0 and Atlante beat Cruz Azul 2-1 as each team advanced to the semifinals of the Mexican Apertura 2007 liguilla.
The two will now wait for today's results to see who they face next. Santos leads Morelia by a 2-0 aggregate and will host Monarcas today while Pumas visits Toluca also up by 2-0.
Anything can happen in the playoffs, but I'd like to see Chivas and Pumas cross paths at some point. For that to happen in the semis, Morelia would have to upset Santos and I don't see that happening. In fact, I'm not so sure Pumas will hold on to their lead heading to Toluca. Nemesio Diez isn't exactly the easiest place to come away with a result, but then again they need only to lose by one goal, draw or win to go through.
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The two will now wait for today's results to see who they face next. Santos leads Morelia by a 2-0 aggregate and will host Monarcas today while Pumas visits Toluca also up by 2-0.
Anything can happen in the playoffs, but I'd like to see Chivas and Pumas cross paths at some point. For that to happen in the semis, Morelia would have to upset Santos and I don't see that happening. In fact, I'm not so sure Pumas will hold on to their lead heading to Toluca. Nemesio Diez isn't exactly the easiest place to come away with a result, but then again they need only to lose by one goal, draw or win to go through.
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Saturday, November 24, 2007
Getting it
The Galaxy are off in Australia now, where new coach Ruud Gullit has a chance to see his players in action. They, in turn, have the opportunity to work with their new coach and learn from him. I asked Chris Albright before he left for the trip about what made ex-players effective coaches.
"They get it," Chris explained. "They just get it. I can’t explain it to you guys, because you don’t get it. To be fair, I don’t get reporting. They understand the experiences [of players]."
Just as I was thinking that there wasn't that much to understand about reporting, since we're really not that complicated, Billy Witz chimed in.
"We make it up," he told Chris.
Chris nodded.
"I know man. They fabricate."
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Friday, November 23, 2007
First legs complete
The respective first legs of each quarterfinal series in Mexico are over. There were some surprising results...
Santos 2, Morelia 0. Okay, so this isn't one of them. But it's particularly significant because Edgar Castillo scored a goal for Santos. Can't say for sure but he might be the first American to ever score a goal in a Mexican league playoff game. It was also significant because it was the first goal of Edgar Castillo's career.
The goal is about halfway through this clip. It's about 8 minutes of game action. The goal is in the 19th minute or so, and it's pretty much continuous action.
As for the rest of the games:
San Luis 1, Chivas 1; Chivas just need a draw at home to go through.
Atlante 1, Cruz Azul 0; Atlante played without top scorer Giancarlo Maldonado and get to go home for the second leg. Looks like it's lights out for blue cross.
Pumas 2, Toluca 0; Toluca needs a massive effort at home.
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Santos 2, Morelia 0. Okay, so this isn't one of them. But it's particularly significant because Edgar Castillo scored a goal for Santos. Can't say for sure but he might be the first American to ever score a goal in a Mexican league playoff game. It was also significant because it was the first goal of Edgar Castillo's career.
The goal is about halfway through this clip. It's about 8 minutes of game action. The goal is in the 19th minute or so, and it's pretty much continuous action.
As for the rest of the games:
San Luis 1, Chivas 1; Chivas just need a draw at home to go through.
Atlante 1, Cruz Azul 0; Atlante played without top scorer Giancarlo Maldonado and get to go home for the second leg. Looks like it's lights out for blue cross.
Pumas 2, Toluca 0; Toluca needs a massive effort at home.
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Thursday, November 22, 2007
Rolling heads
In 2006, I pointed out to Landon Donovan that after his club team and national team suffered disappointing losses, both of his coaches had lost their jobs.
"It's my fault, now?" asked Landon.
I'd actually meant to lead into a question about the difficulty of starting over on both levels at the same time.
These days, David Beckham is facing the same situation now that his England coach, Steve McClaren, has been fired.
David played well against Croatia, registering the assist on England's equalizer, but then the team conceded yet another late goal. We saw a lot of those watching the Galaxy this year.
Read more...
"It's my fault, now?" asked Landon.
I'd actually meant to lead into a question about the difficulty of starting over on both levels at the same time.
These days, David Beckham is facing the same situation now that his England coach, Steve McClaren, has been fired.
David played well against Croatia, registering the assist on England's equalizer, but then the team conceded yet another late goal. We saw a lot of those watching the Galaxy this year.
Read more...
Admitting the obvious
One coaching change and a couple months after the actual event, USWNT midfielder Leslie Osborne states what seemed clear to many observers, no matter how many members of the team denied it at the time.
The change in goal before the Brazil game definitely had repercussions that took a toll on player performance.
It shouldn't be such a landmark moment that someone on the team finally just says the truth of that, but it is, because no other member, (other than Hope Solo) has done so. Part of me sympathizes that at any point, the squad was trying to sell this, "We were fine, it was no problem at all," line like they were some super-human roster completely untouched by something that would throw any team around the world, male or female.
There's solidarity and then there's denial. One shouldn't have to lead to the other. That's why Osborne's other statement puzzles me a bit, about how the players should be able to overcome the coaching if need be. That's not the way it should be. Coaching should be an asset to the team, not a handicap. If a coach's moves are an undeniable impediment to the team's performance, then it shouldn't be only one member of team standing alone in saying so.
Read more...
The change in goal before the Brazil game definitely had repercussions that took a toll on player performance.
It shouldn't be such a landmark moment that someone on the team finally just says the truth of that, but it is, because no other member, (other than Hope Solo) has done so. Part of me sympathizes that at any point, the squad was trying to sell this, "We were fine, it was no problem at all," line like they were some super-human roster completely untouched by something that would throw any team around the world, male or female.
There's solidarity and then there's denial. One shouldn't have to lead to the other. That's why Osborne's other statement puzzles me a bit, about how the players should be able to overcome the coaching if need be. That's not the way it should be. Coaching should be an asset to the team, not a handicap. If a coach's moves are an undeniable impediment to the team's performance, then it shouldn't be only one member of team standing alone in saying so.
Read more...
Out of nowhere
Back in 2005, Herculez Gomez went from playing indoor soccer to a developmental spot with the Galaxy, to a starting roster spot, to being considered for the U.S. senior national team. He moved on to the Colorado Rapids before he earned his first cap this year. That accomplishment marked the first time he'd represented the U.S. national team at any level.
It's not quite the senior team, but Mike Randolph is looking to do something similar. The young Galaxy defender came on strong at the end of this year and now won't make the team's trip to Australia. That's because he's been named to the U-23 (Olympic team) provisional roster.
As the Galaxy's press release says:
"Randolph will remain in Los Angeles after having been named to the U.S. Under-23 National Team’s provisional roster for their upcoming camp. The U.S. roster is expected to be announced next week and if Randolph is named in the squad, it will be his first career call-up to the National Team at any level."
Read more...
It's not quite the senior team, but Mike Randolph is looking to do something similar. The young Galaxy defender came on strong at the end of this year and now won't make the team's trip to Australia. That's because he's been named to the U-23 (Olympic team) provisional roster.
As the Galaxy's press release says:
"Randolph will remain in Los Angeles after having been named to the U.S. Under-23 National Team’s provisional roster for their upcoming camp. The U.S. roster is expected to be announced next week and if Randolph is named in the squad, it will be his first career call-up to the National Team at any level."
Read more...
What I'm thankful for
I have a lot to be thankful for. Of course, what I’m most thankful for is that my family is faring well, that my parents are taken care of and my brothers are finding nothing but success.
But I’m also thankful this year for myself. Typically I don’t like to look back at my accomplishments, either professional or personal, and revel in them. I just like to go about my work as best as I can and let everything else go from there. But this year I do have to be a bit selfish and be thankful in myself.
Over the last 20 months or so, I’ve undergone an extreme change. In March of 2006, I weighed 308 pounds. After my workout on Wednesday, Nov. 21 I weighed 192. I’m up to 116 pounds that I’ve lost, and I still have more losing to do.
I’d been heavy for so long it got to the point where I didn’t care anymore about my weight because I figured it would be way too hard to lose it. But in March of 06 after some prodding from my wife and some serious soul searching I decided to sign up for a personal trainer at the local 24 Hour Fitness.
It was hard at first. In my first session with the trainer, he asked me what my goal was. I told him the most pie-in-the-sky thing I could imagine, that I wanted to weigh 199. Just having a 1 in front of my weight seemed impossible but screw it. That was what I wanted. I quickly realized it would take some time. After my first session, in which I did eight minutes on a stationary bike and seven minutes on an elliptical machine, I was sore for days.
I was the typical sports writer: watch sports, write about sports, don’t play sports, don’t exercise. So this whole working out stuff was new to me. My trainer ran me hard every time we met but I was up for the task. I busted my ass every time I went to the gym and stuck to my meal plan. I eliminated hamburgers, pizza, sodas, cookies, candy… all the crap that was keeping me heavy.
The first month I dropped 10 pounds. The second month I dropped another 10. The third month, I lost 13. Once I got going, I felt better and better about myself.
I stopped seeing my trainer in November and was at about 255. It wasn’t until February of this year that I got serious again. I basically told myself that either I was going to keep losing more weight or I would put it back on. So on my own I continued working out, developed a workout schedule and routines and exercises and all that. I stuck to my food intake, which incidentally I don’t consider a diet and never have. A diet is short term and I don’t plan on going back to eating the way I did. Ever.
In early June, I weighed 232. By August, I was down to 216. In October, I finally got down to 199. I hope to get down in the 170s or so. I’ve come this far. Who is going to tell me that I can’t go a little further?
I feel the best that I have now than I ever have in my life. I went from size 44 pants and XXL shirts to size 34 pants and L shirts. My wardrobe is tiny. Most of my old clothes are long gone. I enjoy working out. I enjoy playing soccer now, even if it’s just with my brothers and cousins on Sunday morning.
When people ask me how I did it, I tell them ‘the easiest plan to come up with but the hardest to execute: eat right and exercise.’
Anyway, I just wanted to share this with our readers.
Read more...
But I’m also thankful this year for myself. Typically I don’t like to look back at my accomplishments, either professional or personal, and revel in them. I just like to go about my work as best as I can and let everything else go from there. But this year I do have to be a bit selfish and be thankful in myself.
Over the last 20 months or so, I’ve undergone an extreme change. In March of 2006, I weighed 308 pounds. After my workout on Wednesday, Nov. 21 I weighed 192. I’m up to 116 pounds that I’ve lost, and I still have more losing to do.I’d been heavy for so long it got to the point where I didn’t care anymore about my weight because I figured it would be way too hard to lose it. But in March of 06 after some prodding from my wife and some serious soul searching I decided to sign up for a personal trainer at the local 24 Hour Fitness.
It was hard at first. In my first session with the trainer, he asked me what my goal was. I told him the most pie-in-the-sky thing I could imagine, that I wanted to weigh 199. Just having a 1 in front of my weight seemed impossible but screw it. That was what I wanted. I quickly realized it would take some time. After my first session, in which I did eight minutes on a stationary bike and seven minutes on an elliptical machine, I was sore for days.
I was the typical sports writer: watch sports, write about sports, don’t play sports, don’t exercise. So this whole working out stuff was new to me. My trainer ran me hard every time we met but I was up for the task. I busted my ass every time I went to the gym and stuck to my meal plan. I eliminated hamburgers, pizza, sodas, cookies, candy… all the crap that was keeping me heavy.
The first month I dropped 10 pounds. The second month I dropped another 10. The third month, I lost 13. Once I got going, I felt better and better about myself.I stopped seeing my trainer in November and was at about 255. It wasn’t until February of this year that I got serious again. I basically told myself that either I was going to keep losing more weight or I would put it back on. So on my own I continued working out, developed a workout schedule and routines and exercises and all that. I stuck to my food intake, which incidentally I don’t consider a diet and never have. A diet is short term and I don’t plan on going back to eating the way I did. Ever.
In early June, I weighed 232. By August, I was down to 216. In October, I finally got down to 199. I hope to get down in the 170s or so. I’ve come this far. Who is going to tell me that I can’t go a little further?
I feel the best that I have now than I ever have in my life. I went from size 44 pants and XXL shirts to size 34 pants and L shirts. My wardrobe is tiny. Most of my old clothes are long gone. I enjoy working out. I enjoy playing soccer now, even if it’s just with my brothers and cousins on Sunday morning.
When people ask me how I did it, I tell them ‘the easiest plan to come up with but the hardest to execute: eat right and exercise.’
Anyway, I just wanted to share this with our readers.
Read more...
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Times like these
When qualifying is over in Europe, be it for a World Cup or a European Championship, I'm always left with a bit of dismay.
I wonder if USMNT fans realize how lucky they are that their team is in CONCACAF.
England, with all the talent and resources imaginable available, cannot qualify for a major tournament. But the US is virtually guaranteed of qualifying for each and every World Cup. With the gap between the US, Mexico and the rest of CONCACAF, to me it is unimaginable that the US would ever miss out on qualifying for a World Cup.
England enjoys no such luxury. Like all other European nations, England must contend with a very strong field just to get to a major tournament. In Europe, it happens all the time. England did not qualify for Euro 2008. Ukraine, quarterfinalists in the 2006 World Cup, are out. Ireland, Denmark, Norway, each of whom has had success in recent World Cups and have plenty of talented players, can't get a sniff of this tournament either.
I've touched on this topic before but with the field for Euro 2008 finalized today, I feel for those fans from countries who do not qualify consistently for important tournaments. I guess they're geographically challenged. The US is not in the same position as Norway or Denmark or Ireland or any of those fringe European nations because of where the States lie on the globe.
Now, US coaches and players always talk about how difficult qualifying is and how each and every game is important. Well, the only nation who should even come close to beating the US on American soil is Mexico, and look at how good its gone for El Tri this decade. Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Jamaica, Trinidad, none of those teams should ever pose a challenge to the US. Costa Rica has the talent to play better but they can't ever score against the US here for some reason. Let's see, off the top of my head there was the 3-0 game in Utah in 05, the 1-0 game in KC in 01 and the 1-0 game in Portland in 97. So a 5-0 record in the hexagonal gives the US 15 points. One road win and one road draw mixed in should be sufficient to see the US through. That's not exactly a Herculean task.
Anyway, this isn't meant as a bash of the US. It's to their credit that they've achieved such lofty status in a short amount of time. Just think, in 1986 Canada qualified for the World Cup while the United States did not. When will that ever happen again? As far as I see it, the US and Mexico are shoo-ins for each and every World Cup, unless CONCACAF gets stripped of all but one spot.
So while the seemingly impossible task of winning a World Cup is still out there in all USMNT fans, at least one thing is certain: their team will have a shot of that goal, however realistic or unrealistic it may be, every four years. You can take that at least that part to the bank.
Read more...
I wonder if USMNT fans realize how lucky they are that their team is in CONCACAF.
England, with all the talent and resources imaginable available, cannot qualify for a major tournament. But the US is virtually guaranteed of qualifying for each and every World Cup. With the gap between the US, Mexico and the rest of CONCACAF, to me it is unimaginable that the US would ever miss out on qualifying for a World Cup.
England enjoys no such luxury. Like all other European nations, England must contend with a very strong field just to get to a major tournament. In Europe, it happens all the time. England did not qualify for Euro 2008. Ukraine, quarterfinalists in the 2006 World Cup, are out. Ireland, Denmark, Norway, each of whom has had success in recent World Cups and have plenty of talented players, can't get a sniff of this tournament either.
I've touched on this topic before but with the field for Euro 2008 finalized today, I feel for those fans from countries who do not qualify consistently for important tournaments. I guess they're geographically challenged. The US is not in the same position as Norway or Denmark or Ireland or any of those fringe European nations because of where the States lie on the globe.
Now, US coaches and players always talk about how difficult qualifying is and how each and every game is important. Well, the only nation who should even come close to beating the US on American soil is Mexico, and look at how good its gone for El Tri this decade. Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Jamaica, Trinidad, none of those teams should ever pose a challenge to the US. Costa Rica has the talent to play better but they can't ever score against the US here for some reason. Let's see, off the top of my head there was the 3-0 game in Utah in 05, the 1-0 game in KC in 01 and the 1-0 game in Portland in 97. So a 5-0 record in the hexagonal gives the US 15 points. One road win and one road draw mixed in should be sufficient to see the US through. That's not exactly a Herculean task.
Anyway, this isn't meant as a bash of the US. It's to their credit that they've achieved such lofty status in a short amount of time. Just think, in 1986 Canada qualified for the World Cup while the United States did not. When will that ever happen again? As far as I see it, the US and Mexico are shoo-ins for each and every World Cup, unless CONCACAF gets stripped of all but one spot.
So while the seemingly impossible task of winning a World Cup is still out there in all USMNT fans, at least one thing is certain: their team will have a shot of that goal, however realistic or unrealistic it may be, every four years. You can take that at least that part to the bank.
Read more...
Puzzling situation
Needing just a draw before nearly 90,000 fans at Wembley Stadium, England instead lost to Croatia 3-2 and crashed out of Euro 2008.
For a nation like England to miss out on a tournament of that scale, it is nothing short of catastrophic. But there is no shortage of problems many point the finger at as to what is wrong with England: the FA is rubbish; Steve McClaren is rubbish; the players are rubbish; too many English clubs rely on too many foreigners and thus stunt the growth of England footballers.
Whatever the problems are, the FA has plenty of time on their hands in order to try and solve them. Well, solving those types of ills won't happen overnight so some damage control is in order.
In cast you missed the goals, here is a highlights package followed by the raw scene after the match:
Sorry, no commentary from the goals as they happened. Would have liked to have seen that. Here's the other video:
Read more...
For a nation like England to miss out on a tournament of that scale, it is nothing short of catastrophic. But there is no shortage of problems many point the finger at as to what is wrong with England: the FA is rubbish; Steve McClaren is rubbish; the players are rubbish; too many English clubs rely on too many foreigners and thus stunt the growth of England footballers.
Whatever the problems are, the FA has plenty of time on their hands in order to try and solve them. Well, solving those types of ills won't happen overnight so some damage control is in order.
In cast you missed the goals, here is a highlights package followed by the raw scene after the match:
Sorry, no commentary from the goals as they happened. Would have liked to have seen that. Here's the other video:
Read more...
Mexican liguilla
I'm getting ready to watch the Mexican league playoffs. First up is Cruz Azul-Atlante on Azteca America at 5 p.m. SoCal time, then it's San Luis-Guadalajara over on TeleFutura at 7 p.m.
In case you want to follow along and don't know the league too well or want to read up on how the teams are entering the liguilla, check out my SI.com preview.
Read more...
In case you want to follow along and don't know the league too well or want to read up on how the teams are entering the liguilla, check out my SI.com preview.
Read more...
Quakes redux
And here's how they'll look... or the players they'll trade away to get to Opening Day 2008.
Ryan Cochrane - Houston
Clarence Goodson - FC Dallas
Ned Grabavoy - Columbus
James Riley - New England
Joseph Vide - New York
Ivan Guerrero - Chicago
Brian Carroll - D.C. United
Jason Hernandez - Chivas USA
Gavin Glinton - Los Angeles
Chris Pozniak - Toronto FC
Some pretty serviceable players, if they stick around.
Read more...
Ryan Cochrane - Houston
Clarence Goodson - FC Dallas
Ned Grabavoy - Columbus
James Riley - New England
Joseph Vide - New York
Ivan Guerrero - Chicago
Brian Carroll - D.C. United
Jason Hernandez - Chivas USA
Gavin Glinton - Los Angeles
Chris Pozniak - Toronto FC
Some pretty serviceable players, if they stick around.
Read more...
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Stocking rosters
Now, this isn't what I think Frank Yallop would or should do. This is what I came up with when trying to figure out a 10-man list. And I tried to stay away from Jaime Cardenas' 10, which follow mine, just because I want to compare our teams so he could see that my time wasting was better spent than his.
LB's list
G Kevin Hartman - Kansas City
D Kelly Gray - Galaxy
D Jason Hernandez - Chivas
D Mike Petke - Colorado
D Chris Gbandi - FC Dallas
M Corey Ashe - Houston
M Andy Dorman - New England
M Joe Vide - New York
M Diego Gutierrez - Chicago
F Andy Herron - Columbus
Jaime's list
1- Brian Carroll (D.C. United)
2- Josh Tudela (Galaxy)
3- Clerance Goodson (F.C. Dallas)
4- Ryan Cochrane (Houston)
5- Preston Burpo (Chivas USA)
6- Connor Casey (Colorado)
7- Chris Pozniak (Toronto FC)
8- Ned Grabavoy (Columbus)
9- John Wolyniec (New York)
10- Chris Loftus (New England)
Okay, now getting back to Frank Yallop...
I think he'll take Pat Onstad as his goalkeeper. He obviously can't get Joe Cannon and went to Onstad the last time that happened, and it worked out well for him.
Perhaps we'll see him go after Kevin Harmse as well because Frank brought Harmse in himself.
I wouldn't be surprised if he took Laurent Merlin from Chivas. Frank didn't seem like he wanted to have parted ways with Merlin, that it was just a numbers game, so he might be willing to give the Frenchman a shot at San Jose.
Really, though, the pickings are slim. Some teams have some good players to choose from (Houston, Kansas City, Chivas, Galaxy) but some don't (DC, Chicago, RSL, Toronto) and you can only take one player away from each team, so that's that.
Read more...
LB's list
G Kevin Hartman - Kansas City
D Kelly Gray - Galaxy
D Jason Hernandez - Chivas
D Mike Petke - Colorado
D Chris Gbandi - FC Dallas
M Corey Ashe - Houston
M Andy Dorman - New England
M Joe Vide - New York
M Diego Gutierrez - Chicago
F Andy Herron - Columbus
Jaime's list
1- Brian Carroll (D.C. United)
2- Josh Tudela (Galaxy)
3- Clerance Goodson (F.C. Dallas)
4- Ryan Cochrane (Houston)
5- Preston Burpo (Chivas USA)
6- Connor Casey (Colorado)
7- Chris Pozniak (Toronto FC)
8- Ned Grabavoy (Columbus)
9- John Wolyniec (New York)
10- Chris Loftus (New England)
Okay, now getting back to Frank Yallop...
I think he'll take Pat Onstad as his goalkeeper. He obviously can't get Joe Cannon and went to Onstad the last time that happened, and it worked out well for him.
Perhaps we'll see him go after Kevin Harmse as well because Frank brought Harmse in himself.
I wouldn't be surprised if he took Laurent Merlin from Chivas. Frank didn't seem like he wanted to have parted ways with Merlin, that it was just a numbers game, so he might be willing to give the Frenchman a shot at San Jose.
Really, though, the pickings are slim. Some teams have some good players to choose from (Houston, Kansas City, Chivas, Galaxy) but some don't (DC, Chicago, RSL, Toronto) and you can only take one player away from each team, so that's that.
Read more...
Diversity Decoded
One of our regular readers directed us to a new gender and ethnic diversity report on MLS.
I have to say, I was a little surprised at the report. Among head coaches, it mentions Fernando Clavijo as the only person of color in the league - then it adds that the recent hire of Ruud Gullit doubles that. Excuse me, but why was Juan Carlos Osorio overlooked - or counted as white? He's Colombian-born.
On the other hand, I'm glad someone is keeping tabs on these kind of issues. Frankly, there are so many soccer-knowledgeable females in the U.S. today, that I'm surprised that more aren't involved in the league. It could be, like Don Garber posits, a temporary blip because it's a relatively small organization. I'm still glad someone is tracking it, though, because it's easy for institutions to slip into a good ol' boy network without even realizing it sometimes.
Read more...
I have to say, I was a little surprised at the report. Among head coaches, it mentions Fernando Clavijo as the only person of color in the league - then it adds that the recent hire of Ruud Gullit doubles that. Excuse me, but why was Juan Carlos Osorio overlooked - or counted as white? He's Colombian-born.
On the other hand, I'm glad someone is keeping tabs on these kind of issues. Frankly, there are so many soccer-knowledgeable females in the U.S. today, that I'm surprised that more aren't involved in the league. It could be, like Don Garber posits, a temporary blip because it's a relatively small organization. I'm still glad someone is tracking it, though, because it's easy for institutions to slip into a good ol' boy network without even realizing it sometimes.
Read more...
Exercise in futility
Another year, another expansion draft.
A year ago, Toronto FC pillaged from around the then-12 team league to form the basic foundation of its club. Now, it's San Jose's turn to scour from the 13 existing teams.
San Jose coach Frank Yallop will have this list of players to select from. It's quite an expansive list. There are some MLS Cup winners on there, former league award winners and all-stars and high draft choices - there's even a World Cup winner on there!
In the end, though, this draft won't mean much. In fact, it won't mean anything. There may be some serviceable players who come out of this draft, and some of them might even do well for San Jose. But if the last three expansion teams' draft history is any indication, San Jose's opening day lineup will not consist of many of the guys on the aforementioned list.
A quick review of the 2004 and 2006 expansion drafts:
2004:
Chivas USA and Real Salt Lake entered the league with different philosophies. Chivas wanted Hispanic players while RSL just wanted players. The two teams stockpiled their respective first-ever rosters with old players, young players, American players, foreign players but looking back most of those guys were simply marginal players.
Here's what happened with the expansion drafts:
Chivas
Arturo Torres, quit
Orlando Perez, with team
Ezra Hendrickson, traded early 06
Francisco Gomez, cut early 06
Antonio de la Torre, cut preseason 05
Matt Taylor, cut mid 07
Craig Ziadie, vanished
Jamil Walker, cut preseason 05
Thiago Martins, traded preseason 06
Jeff Stewart, vanished
RSL
Andy Williams, with team
DJ Countess, gone
Pablo Brenes, gone
Brian Kamler, gone
Nelson Akwari, gone
Chris Brown, with team
Matt Behncke, gone
Rusty Pierce, gone
Kevin Ara, gone
Erick Scott, gone
I went into detail with Chivas USA because I've literally been there from the beginning, from the first-ever expansion draft at the ESPN Zone in Anaheim in November 2004. Thomas Rongen was all smiles, Arturo Torres was all smiles and everything seemed good. The only players who made any sort of impact, though, were Orlando Perez and Ezra Hendrickson. Torres and Matt Taylor played significant minutes during their respective Chivas careers but neither did much except run a lot.
RSL has Andy Williams and Chris Brown still around but some of those other guys are just scary, like when you pull out some stinky brown and dark green mush that used to be food from your refrigerator scary.
2006:
Toronto coach Mo Johnston tried a different approach. Instead of stockpiling a team, he stockpiled players he could trade away. He selected some good players last year but their contributions for Toronto FC were nonexistent.
Toronto FC
Paulo Nagamura, gone
Danny O'Rourke, gone
Jose Cancela, gone
Adrian Serioux, gone
Nate Jaqua, gone
Rod Dyachenko, gone
Jason Kreis, gone
Tim Regan, gone
Ritchie Kotschau, gone
Will Hesmer, gone
Not one player is still with the team. I don't know if any one of these guys even made it past May. Honestly, I think that was an absurd way of going about things but whatever.
Anyway, if you are trying to guess what San Jose's first-ever roster will look like based on the expansion list, forget it. Now, that doesn't mean we all can't play the role of GM and try to piece together a roster from it, not at all. In fact, I'm probably going to do that later myself. But it'll ultimately be as pointless as the real draft itself.
Read more...
A year ago, Toronto FC pillaged from around the then-12 team league to form the basic foundation of its club. Now, it's San Jose's turn to scour from the 13 existing teams.
San Jose coach Frank Yallop will have this list of players to select from. It's quite an expansive list. There are some MLS Cup winners on there, former league award winners and all-stars and high draft choices - there's even a World Cup winner on there!
In the end, though, this draft won't mean much. In fact, it won't mean anything. There may be some serviceable players who come out of this draft, and some of them might even do well for San Jose. But if the last three expansion teams' draft history is any indication, San Jose's opening day lineup will not consist of many of the guys on the aforementioned list.
A quick review of the 2004 and 2006 expansion drafts:
2004:
Chivas USA and Real Salt Lake entered the league with different philosophies. Chivas wanted Hispanic players while RSL just wanted players. The two teams stockpiled their respective first-ever rosters with old players, young players, American players, foreign players but looking back most of those guys were simply marginal players.
Here's what happened with the expansion drafts:
Chivas
Arturo Torres, quit
Orlando Perez, with team
Ezra Hendrickson, traded early 06
Francisco Gomez, cut early 06
Antonio de la Torre, cut preseason 05
Matt Taylor, cut mid 07
Craig Ziadie, vanished
Jamil Walker, cut preseason 05
Thiago Martins, traded preseason 06
Jeff Stewart, vanished
RSL
Andy Williams, with team
DJ Countess, gone
Pablo Brenes, gone
Brian Kamler, gone
Nelson Akwari, gone
Chris Brown, with team
Matt Behncke, gone
Rusty Pierce, gone
Kevin Ara, gone
Erick Scott, gone
I went into detail with Chivas USA because I've literally been there from the beginning, from the first-ever expansion draft at the ESPN Zone in Anaheim in November 2004. Thomas Rongen was all smiles, Arturo Torres was all smiles and everything seemed good. The only players who made any sort of impact, though, were Orlando Perez and Ezra Hendrickson. Torres and Matt Taylor played significant minutes during their respective Chivas careers but neither did much except run a lot.
RSL has Andy Williams and Chris Brown still around but some of those other guys are just scary, like when you pull out some stinky brown and dark green mush that used to be food from your refrigerator scary.
2006:
Toronto coach Mo Johnston tried a different approach. Instead of stockpiling a team, he stockpiled players he could trade away. He selected some good players last year but their contributions for Toronto FC were nonexistent.
Toronto FC
Paulo Nagamura, gone
Danny O'Rourke, gone
Jose Cancela, gone
Adrian Serioux, gone
Nate Jaqua, gone
Rod Dyachenko, gone
Jason Kreis, gone
Tim Regan, gone
Ritchie Kotschau, gone
Will Hesmer, gone
Not one player is still with the team. I don't know if any one of these guys even made it past May. Honestly, I think that was an absurd way of going about things but whatever.
Anyway, if you are trying to guess what San Jose's first-ever roster will look like based on the expansion list, forget it. Now, that doesn't mean we all can't play the role of GM and try to piece together a roster from it, not at all. In fact, I'm probably going to do that later myself. But it'll ultimately be as pointless as the real draft itself.
Read more...
Monday, November 19, 2007
Serving it up
The Galaxy Foundation had their annual Thanksgiving dinner for underprivileged kids in the community.
I don't give a roll about being left unprotected in the expansion draft!
We're manly men in aprons.
Gravy goes with everything - or over everything - same thing.
Weren't these guys serving us food just a minute ago?
You can sell this on Ebay later on.
Read more...
I don't give a roll about being left unprotected in the expansion draft!
We're manly men in aprons. 
Gravy goes with everything - or over everything - same thing.
Weren't these guys serving us food just a minute ago?
You can sell this on Ebay later on.
Read more...
New kid on the blog
The LA Galaxy get an official blog going. Justin Pearson, who helped start up the FC Dallas blog, works for the Galaxy now, so he's set up an LA blog. Just in time to keep up with the team during the Australian/New Zealand tour.
I tried to get Justin to promise to take pictures from the beaches of Australia - we'll see later if he complies.
Justin and I also argued about the definition of "most popular club". He noted that in terms of overall attendance and team merchandise, it's no contest. The Galaxy are ahead of the rest of MLS by a large margin.
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I tried to get Justin to promise to take pictures from the beaches of Australia - we'll see later if he complies.
Justin and I also argued about the definition of "most popular club". He noted that in terms of overall attendance and team merchandise, it's no contest. The Galaxy are ahead of the rest of MLS by a large margin.
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Dreamin' on
When Jorge Flores was selected as the Sueno MLS winner, I didn't pay much attention. I thought that tryout was a gimmicky at best and Jorge Flores or whoever else won wouldn't be much of anything.
After signing a developmental contract and even playing for the club, I figured it was more because of his work ethic than his talents that he landed both.
But now, Flores will take the next step toward becoming even more of a success story. Flores will be called into the US Under-20 squad, a source told me.
Now, the US might be trying to cast as wide a net as possible and calling up as many players as possible so as not to leave any stone unturned. But not every MLS-based teenager gets a call to the U.S. U-20s. So Flores has caught someone's eye.
Whether or not he sticks around is up to him now. He's got to put forth the same effort that got him to stick around at Chivas. But at least he's got the chance.
Read more...
After signing a developmental contract and even playing for the club, I figured it was more because of his work ethic than his talents that he landed both.
But now, Flores will take the next step toward becoming even more of a success story. Flores will be called into the US Under-20 squad, a source told me.
Now, the US might be trying to cast as wide a net as possible and calling up as many players as possible so as not to leave any stone unturned. But not every MLS-based teenager gets a call to the U.S. U-20s. So Flores has caught someone's eye.
Whether or not he sticks around is up to him now. He's got to put forth the same effort that got him to stick around at Chivas. But at least he's got the chance.
Read more...
No longer
Well, that's officially an outlet where I'll no longer be covering the West Coast MLS beat. Print media may be scaling back coverage and articles, but that doesn't mean online media gets more respect. Far from it.
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All-time great
There have been many outstanding players who have competed in Major League Soccer and several of them have led their team to MLS glory.
Houston's Dwayne De Rosario is certainly that category. He scored the game-winning goal in MLS Cup 2007 on Sunday with a timely header late in the second half. It's actually his second such goal as De Rosario scored the match-winner in MLS Cup '01.
If you were to compile an all-time MLS Best XI right now, De Rosario's inclusion would be a must.
Sometimes, you take De Rosario for granted. Other players like Christian Gomez and Landon Donovan get a lot of publicity and sometimes De Rosario is overlooked. I'll admit that I did not consider De Rosario much for my 2007 Best XI voting while I included Gomez and strongly considered Donovan.
But maybe that's because De Rosario is more about performing when the lights are on the brightest, when the stakes are the highest and someone needs to step up and perform. That seems to be when De Rosario is at his best.
De Rosario has now won four MLS Cups, a figure few others have reached. From his first one, when he came off the bench to bury the Galaxy in golden-goal extra time, to Sunday's, when before the game he was the catalyst to the defending champions' attack, De Rosario's game has improved immensely. He's got a lethal shot and produced one of the best free-kick goals I've ever seen in person when he ripped a 30-yarder against the Galaxy late in the '05 season. But he also showed his ability to finish however necessary on Sunday by whipping that header into the corner of the net.
If there is one flaw in De Rosario's game, it's clearly his post-goal celebration. That little herky-jerky chicken dance has got to go. Aside from that, though, De Rosario is hands down one of this league's all-time great players.
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Houston's Dwayne De Rosario is certainly that category. He scored the game-winning goal in MLS Cup 2007 on Sunday with a timely header late in the second half. It's actually his second such goal as De Rosario scored the match-winner in MLS Cup '01.
If you were to compile an all-time MLS Best XI right now, De Rosario's inclusion would be a must.
Sometimes, you take De Rosario for granted. Other players like Christian Gomez and Landon Donovan get a lot of publicity and sometimes De Rosario is overlooked. I'll admit that I did not consider De Rosario much for my 2007 Best XI voting while I included Gomez and strongly considered Donovan.
But maybe that's because De Rosario is more about performing when the lights are on the brightest, when the stakes are the highest and someone needs to step up and perform. That seems to be when De Rosario is at his best.
De Rosario has now won four MLS Cups, a figure few others have reached. From his first one, when he came off the bench to bury the Galaxy in golden-goal extra time, to Sunday's, when before the game he was the catalyst to the defending champions' attack, De Rosario's game has improved immensely. He's got a lethal shot and produced one of the best free-kick goals I've ever seen in person when he ripped a 30-yarder against the Galaxy late in the '05 season. But he also showed his ability to finish however necessary on Sunday by whipping that header into the corner of the net.
If there is one flaw in De Rosario's game, it's clearly his post-goal celebration. That little herky-jerky chicken dance has got to go. Aside from that, though, De Rosario is hands down one of this league's all-time great players.
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Liguilla
And now the matchups are set in the Mexican Apertura 2007 liguilla:
Santos-Morelia
Toluca-Pumas
Atlante-Cruz Azul
Chivas-San Luis
The most appealing series at first glance is Toluca-Pumas because of tradition mostly. Pumas hasn't been one of the best teams in the league but watching them go up against Toluca is still enticing. Atlante-Cruz Azul could produce some good games and might be the most even matchup.
You would expect Santos to take care of Morelia simply because of the nature of their seasons but typically things don't go well for the number one seed in the playoffs, last season notwithstanding.
The topic of my SI.com column for this week will be the playoffs so keep an eye out for that.
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Santos-Morelia
Toluca-Pumas
Atlante-Cruz Azul
Chivas-San Luis
The most appealing series at first glance is Toluca-Pumas because of tradition mostly. Pumas hasn't been one of the best teams in the league but watching them go up against Toluca is still enticing. Atlante-Cruz Azul could produce some good games and might be the most even matchup.
You would expect Santos to take care of Morelia simply because of the nature of their seasons but typically things don't go well for the number one seed in the playoffs, last season notwithstanding.
The topic of my SI.com column for this week will be the playoffs so keep an eye out for that.
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Sudamericana or nothing
Turns out three goals were too much to overcome, even at home.
America lost to Morelia in their repechaje series by a 3-1 aggregate. America won Sunday's game 1-0 but was eliminated nonetheless. Perhaps the worst moment for America on Sunday was when Rodrigo Lopez missed two penalty kicks within minutes of each other. First, Moises Munoz dived and blocked Lopez's attempt but the linesman penalized Munoz for leaving his line early and Lopez got another chance. However, he launched it over the crossbar.
A goal would have made it 3-2 in the aggregate and could have given America more life but it wasn't meant to be. Now America will have only Sudamericana to play for while Morelia moves on to face Santos.
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America lost to Morelia in their repechaje series by a 3-1 aggregate. America won Sunday's game 1-0 but was eliminated nonetheless. Perhaps the worst moment for America on Sunday was when Rodrigo Lopez missed two penalty kicks within minutes of each other. First, Moises Munoz dived and blocked Lopez's attempt but the linesman penalized Munoz for leaving his line early and Lopez got another chance. However, he launched it over the crossbar.
A goal would have made it 3-2 in the aggregate and could have given America more life but it wasn't meant to be. Now America will have only Sudamericana to play for while Morelia moves on to face Santos.
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Sunday, November 18, 2007
Dynamo Dynasty
Ok, who is going to be the first to say it at the Houston Dynamo victory party, and send a royalty check to Pat Riley?
Three-peat! Three-peat! Three-peat!
I have to add that I think our readers (and I) did a pretty good job on our little poll. Three out of the four I picked scored. Of course, you, our readers, rated highest the players who actually ended up scoring.
Another addendum: the post-game quote sheet gets Pat Onstad (or the reporter who asked him) using the "three-peat".
“This group of guys are up for the challenge. To be down one nothing and come back to win shows the heart of the team, and how much winning means to the guys. We are definitely up for the challenge of a three-peat.”
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Three-peat! Three-peat! Three-peat!
I have to add that I think our readers (and I) did a pretty good job on our little poll. Three out of the four I picked scored. Of course, you, our readers, rated highest the players who actually ended up scoring.
Another addendum: the post-game quote sheet gets Pat Onstad (or the reporter who asked him) using the "three-peat".
“This group of guys are up for the challenge. To be down one nothing and come back to win shows the heart of the team, and how much winning means to the guys. We are definitely up for the challenge of a three-peat.”
Read more...
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Chivas beats Chivas
El Rebano Sagrado beat El Rebano del Norte by a 2-1 score in Guadalajara on Saturday.
Sergio Santana and Edgar Solis scored the goals for Chivas while Claudio Suarez scored via a penalty kick for Chivas USA. Alex Zotinca picked up two yellow cards and Chivas USA finished with 10 men.
Here's the lineup for Chivas USA:
Preston Burpo (Sam Reynolds, 78); Alex Zotinca, Bobby Burling, Claudio Suarez (David Paladin, 62), Shaun Higgins (Jorge Flores, 74), Rodrigo Lopez (Erasmo Solorzano, 65), Lawson Vaughn (David Arvizu, 89), John Cunliffe, Francisco Mendoza (Desmond Brooks, 62), Anthony Hamilton (Matt Taylor, 46), Calen Carr.
Chivas, meanwhile, used different lineups per half. Go here for the lineups.
The game was held as a benefit to flood victims in Tabasco.
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Sergio Santana and Edgar Solis scored the goals for Chivas while Claudio Suarez scored via a penalty kick for Chivas USA. Alex Zotinca picked up two yellow cards and Chivas USA finished with 10 men.
Here's the lineup for Chivas USA:
Preston Burpo (Sam Reynolds, 78); Alex Zotinca, Bobby Burling, Claudio Suarez (David Paladin, 62), Shaun Higgins (Jorge Flores, 74), Rodrigo Lopez (Erasmo Solorzano, 65), Lawson Vaughn (David Arvizu, 89), John Cunliffe, Francisco Mendoza (Desmond Brooks, 62), Anthony Hamilton (Matt Taylor, 46), Calen Carr.
Chivas, meanwhile, used different lineups per half. Go here for the lineups.
The game was held as a benefit to flood victims in Tabasco.
Read more...
Solo quedan los recuerdos
I'd like to dedicate this next song to los Tuzos de Pachuca.
Yes, the once-grand Tuzo empire came crumbling down today in glorious manner. Like most empires, the fall of the Pachuca dynasty was epic. Cruz Azul did Pachuca in by a 4-0 second-leg win and a 6-0 aggregate victory in the repechaje round of Mexico's Apertura 2007 season.
Truth is, Pachuca's dynasty was in tatters since the fall of Miguel Calero. But now it's finally over and Pachuca are mere mortals once again.
Anyway, here's one of my favorite depressing songs.
Amor Limosnero:
Yo no quisiera hablar de despedida
me duele mucho, me parte el alma
pero que puedo hacer
ahora recojo mi arrastrado orgullo
hoy me marcho de ti
no lo vas a creer
Yo no quisiera provocarte pena
pues se de sobra que tu alma es buena
por no verme llorar
podias quedarte sin abrir las alas
y en tus alas se ve que ahora quieres volar
Y aqui se termina, aqui se termina
este amor limosnero
me voy de tu vida
porque te quiero
te doy la libertad
de que vueles en voz de tu felicidad
Yo no quisiera provocarte pena
pues se de sobra que tu alma es buena
por no verme llorar
podias quedarte sin abrir las alas
y en tus alas se ve que ahora quieres volar
Y aqui se termina, aqui se termina
este amor limosnero
me voy de tu vida
porque te quiero
te doy la libertad
de que vueles en voz de tu felicidad
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Yes, the once-grand Tuzo empire came crumbling down today in glorious manner. Like most empires, the fall of the Pachuca dynasty was epic. Cruz Azul did Pachuca in by a 4-0 second-leg win and a 6-0 aggregate victory in the repechaje round of Mexico's Apertura 2007 season.
Truth is, Pachuca's dynasty was in tatters since the fall of Miguel Calero. But now it's finally over and Pachuca are mere mortals once again.
Anyway, here's one of my favorite depressing songs.
Amor Limosnero:
Yo no quisiera hablar de despedida
me duele mucho, me parte el alma
pero que puedo hacer
ahora recojo mi arrastrado orgullo
hoy me marcho de ti
no lo vas a creer
Yo no quisiera provocarte pena
pues se de sobra que tu alma es buena
por no verme llorar
podias quedarte sin abrir las alas
y en tus alas se ve que ahora quieres volar
Y aqui se termina, aqui se termina
este amor limosnero
me voy de tu vida
porque te quiero
te doy la libertad
de que vueles en voz de tu felicidad
Yo no quisiera provocarte pena
pues se de sobra que tu alma es buena
por no verme llorar
podias quedarte sin abrir las alas
y en tus alas se ve que ahora quieres volar
Y aqui se termina, aqui se termina
este amor limosnero
me voy de tu vida
porque te quiero
te doy la libertad
de que vueles en voz de tu felicidad
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Shocker
Wow - just watched Russia versus Israel. What a crazy game. After Russia reel back an Israel goal in the first half with a goal of their own in the second half, fortune swings wildly in the space of a minute. A Russian shot goes off the post in the last minute of the game, then Israel nets the winning goal on a counter soon after.
All England need versus Croatia now is a draw to qualify for Euro 2008.
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All England need versus Croatia now is a draw to qualify for Euro 2008.
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USA-South Africa running blog
Memories
Light the corner kicks of my mind. . .
Ok, that doesn't even make sense. As I wait for the game to start, I'm looking back a little. I was talking to another reporter yesterday about how difficult it is to interview players these days when the media is so monitored and controlled and get anything but a canned, robotic, rote response.
Of course, it's a little easier to get players to open up and chat when they trust you or at least know you a little bit. It takes time to build that relationship, though. Scott French, for example, whenever we cover the USWNT, points out that he's known some of the players on the squad since they were on youth teams, trying to decide which college to attend. He usually can get better quotes from those players than anybody else would, because they're comfortable just talking to him like he's an old friend.
In general, there's also a bit of prophetic pride when a player who you noticed doing well in the past and thought was special makes good. So I was reviewing my reporting history with the latest group that makes up the USNT
Brad Guzan (Chivas USA) Chivas USA is of course our local team, and I met Guzan before that disasterous 2005 season started. He seemed so incongruous, a big, tall fresh-faced goalkeeper pushed into the starting lineup of mostly Latinos in place of the injured Martin Zuniga. What really impressed me that season was Brad's capacity to take abuse. Not just the incredible amount of shots he faced, but the turmoil and discouragement of that first season. It didn't break him - it made him stronger and more determined.
Tim Howard (Everton FC) Tim I didn't meet and interview until he'd already been abroad. He's polite to the media, though, so he's fine to interview.
Carlos Bocanegra (Fulham FC) Same as Tim, though I noticed that Carlos seems more comfortable with interviews lately - maybe the captaincy helped. He seemed more impatient before.
Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA) Jonny B is another local boy. I knew of him in his UCLA days, but I didn't interview him until he was on Chivas USA. It was great to see him break out as a defender, though I still laugh when think how I was grilling him about the change early on. "Is this move going to work for you?" I actually asked.
Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96) Never spoken to him. He wasn't one of the players scheduled at the press conferences in Germany and I didn't have a credential for the mixed zone after games. He's not come out to camps or games in LA since I've been covering the squad.
Dan Califf (Aalborg BK) Danny's a cool guy. I first interviewed him before he made the jump to Europe. It was fun to hear him talking a little smack about his Danish teammates early this year, about how he wanted to earn bragging rights.
Oguchi Onyewu (Standard de Liege) Gooch has been in Europe for a long while - I think I first interviewed him after the US clinched the World Cup berth versus Mexico in Columbus. He'd had a memorable duel with Jared Borgetti there and he was pumped up.
Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock) Heath is another Euro-based guy, but one of the most candid interviews I've met. He'll tell you what he really thinks, almost every time.
Jonathan Spector (West Ham United) Jonathan scares me a little. Ok, not really, but he's just serious sort of guy and he speaks like someone much older than he is. He says things in a formal manner; hardly uses any contractions, for example. It's a bit unusual.
Freddy Adu (SL Benfica) Freddy I met back when he was 14 and playing with the U20 team. He was such a happy kid, confident and in love with the game of soccer. He's matured, sure, but I hope he never loses that joy in the beautiful game.
DaMarcus Beasley (Glasgow Rangers) Bease I also inteviewed first in Columbus. He'd scored there, and he was the big hero. I was really happy he stopped to talk to me, as a bunch of reporters were trying to get quotes from him and he could have called it a night in the mixed zone earlier than he did.
Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen) I was there when Michael scored his first MLS goal in 2005. His obvious pride was still tinged with disappointment over his dad's firing, but look at both of them now.
Maurice Edu (Toronto FC) Never spoken to him. When he was in LA, I was interviewing other players and when I asked about him, he'd already left and boarded the bus.
Benny Feilhaber (Derby County) Brazilian-born Benny - I talked to him in 2005, when Sigi Schmid was fending off accusations of UCLA favoritism on the U20 team. Benny shut that talk up with a breakout performance in the qualifying tournament.
Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA) Sasch, his teammates call him, is another Chivas USA regular who quietly had an impressive season this year, improving on his excellent rookie year. I interviewed him first back when he was still a U20 player. He didn't get that much playing time with that squad, but I was pointed in his direction when I asked the team's media officer which players were particularly well-spoken (monosyllabic answers are no fun). Kljestan's a smart guy, and that comes acgoss in his interviews.
Josmer Altidore (New York Red Bulls) Jozy was in Peru with the U17 team when he was only 15, still growing into those big feet of his. He had a good game as a sub versus Italy and I interviewed him after that win. Nice to see him with the senior team today.
Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC) My favorite Dempsey interview was after he scored against Japan in San Francisco. I was there in the mixed zone and asked him about his celebration dance. He demonstrated it again (lean wit it, rock wit it) for all the press. But I first interviewed him back in 2005 when he had long hair and was known as "the other Clint".
Game on! After a little message from Nelson Mandela - which gives a great sense of occasion to this match. I love the stadium announcer - he sounds like a boxing or WWF guy.
1- South Africe controls early on, but Heath Pearce gets the ball back for the U.S. Wow - the picture just jumped to image of an empty room with computers. It looks like a security feed. Max Bretos apologizes.
3- South Africa gets possession back and generates a corner kick - the U.S. deals pretty well.
5- Ex-Metros and Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parriera is shown on the bench. He raises his arms and complains about something. I think he's directing ire at the ref already.
7- Adu with a clever little turn sends a ball up to Dempsey on the run, but he can't quite reach the pass in the box. Where's Eddie Johnson? He's fast enough to chase a pass like that. I'm surprised he's not at least on the bench. Maybe the European team that wants to buy his contract objected.
10- Tim Howard kills an attack by catching the incoming cross. Adu is playing well, gets a corner for his team. The corner gets cleared, then Adu gets the ball back for a good cross, but a defender from South Africa clears that out as well.
12- Nice run of attacking possession for the U.S. here. Dempsey with some footwork in the corner but he loses the ball trying to nutmeg his defender and then gets called for a foul.
13- Adu nearly slips a ball through to Jozy Altidore's run, but an SA defender gets a foot on it.
15- Beasley's speed gets the better of him; he races out for a pass and gets flagged for offsides. The crowd in Jo-Burg is great, a constant buzz of noise, even if quite a few seats are empty.
20- Corner kick for SA - this leads to a shot that Howard saves well near the post.
22- It's SA's turn for a good run of possession. They have a bit of momentum generated.
23- Dempsey, active on the counter attack, gets a corner kick. Adu takes and serves into the box. Bodies go down in a scrum. SA clears, but the U.S. has regained a measure of control in the game.
25- Dempsey is physical and active - I think he's looking to match SA physically and intensity in their defending. Demps just shoved an SA defender out of bounds trying to reach a long pass. The guy shielded the ball well for a goal kick and doesn't seem to mind taking the shove.
27- GOAL! Cherundolo! Stevie C! He's off on an overlapping run and Maurice Edu feeds him a nice little pass, the defense hangs back a bit, anticipating a cross, but Stevie keeps going and takes the shot past a flatfooted Rowen Fernandez. Nice.
32- The crowd rallies after pouting in near silence for a while. Now they're encouraging their team again. The U.S. is still possessing well, though, pressuring SA territory.
34- Adu nice run to the edge of the SA box, but can't beat last defender.
36- CAP looks grimly quiet on the sidelines. Bease on a counter catches up to a long pass from Cherundolo, takes the shot, but this time, Fernandez is on his toes and makes the save.
39- Pearce goes to ground to tackle a ball, and continues to play even while sprawled when the rebound comes back in his direction. He's having a good game so far.
43- The U.S. is keeping a high defensive line, and SA is having trouble breaking it. They're hoofing hopeful balls long over the top. Oh, a little team play gets the ball into the box for SA, then the U.S. clears for corner.
44- Crappy corner from SA. Missed everyone.
45- Pearce with a long, long pass upfield - to no one. Sheesh.
45+- Adu on a breakaway! He races with the ball into the box, showing off good speed for nearly halftime. Though Bease is coming into the box, Adu tries a tricky far post shot though he's got practically no angle. He misses. Beasley is probably thinking, "Dang, Landon would have put the ball on my toe."
Oof. Stevie C, hero of the game, goes down after a tackle from behind. He limps into the locker room. He might not be able to continue.
Halftime - The U.S. is managing the game well, though they're not overwhelming SA. Still, it's smart road team soccer to wait patiently for opportunities.
2nd half
Spector, Califf and Guzan are in for Cherundolo, Bocanegra and Howard, respectively.
48- Dempsey! Could have had the second right there, as he catches up to a ball headed back to the goalkeeper in the box. Dempsey gets a foot on it, but Fernandez is determined to make up for his earlier indecision. He snags the ball well.
52- Spector with a pass to Bradley, eek, poor decision as Bradley was surrounded by three SA players and has to fight to keep possession. He manages to pass back to Spector, who wisely goes in another direction.
53- The U.S. forget to cover the far post and Modise connects on a header that luckily for the U.S. is off. He was open though, as the U.S. defense got tangled up covering the near post and the incoming run from the otherside.
56- Delron Buckley nice dribble into the box, sends a quick pass back into blonde-haired Subusiso Zuma, but the there's a ton of traffic in the box and he can't slot his shot in past that.
58- The U.S. defense has lost composure. SA is pushing hard for the equalizer. Howard comes out for another ball in the box. The crowd is amped again.
60- Zuma and Pearce go down but, Zuma pops back up and carries his dribble into the box, where the U.S. look clueless right now. Zuma passes, but Spector clears the ball out just before Modise gets it.
61- CK goes to Modise at the corner of the box, but he tries to cut in looking for a shot and loses the ball.
62- Coach CAP looks more animated on the bench.
64- Bafana Bafana, with some great attacking play, can't quite breach the last line of U.S. defense. Spector blocks two shots in a row, just inside the box. Bradley looks grim now.
65- Jozy is in! Dempsey comes out.
67- The U.S. has barely moved out of their own half in this second half. CK cleared by Jozy.
68- SA regains possession, Zuma lays ball back for Macbeth Sibaya, whose low shot is wide, but not by much.
70- Pearce has trouble clearing a high bouncing ball in the box, and his attacker pounces, getting the ball and a cross to Benedict McCarthy off, but the header is weak and Guzan catches easily.
71- Sibewe Tshabalala is in now, I guess it was Delron Buckley earlier.
72- McCarthy in the box, Edu crashes into him, but ref waves play on. Interesting, but the replay shows the contact, while physical, was likely incidental.
74- Kljestan on for Adu.
77- Zuma was down for a god while, but he's back up now and in the game.
80- Modise with a shot from the top of the box between two defenders. It's way high.
82- Guzan with a little time-wasting move, taking his time on the goal kick. His kicks are about the only time the U.S. get into SA territory this half. Two crosses into the box in a row just miss Zuma. He's frustrated.
83- Guzan is out to snag another cross.
84- SA is mad. They want a handball in the box, but the ref gives a corner. Feilhaber, who had defended hard, even while contributing very little offensively, had a ball kicked into his bicep.
86- FK to SA. Feilhaber is out for Bornstien. Interesting. Pearce has been playing well, though, and Jonny can play in the midfield. Guzan catches the FK.
88- The crowd won't give up, and neither will thier team. One mistake could spoil the U.S. victory.
90- FK to SA, not far outside the box. Good chance for them. Modise hoofs it over the bar.
90+Edu and Kljestan work the ball well into the corner. The U.S. has its best moments in the second half holding the ball there a good long while, working short passes together to pass time.
Final whistle!
When did the U.S. become mini-Italy? Not that I'm complaining about the win, because 1-0 still counts in the wins column.
Rising like cream: Edu, Adu (Anyone heard Black Eyed Peas' song "Bebot"? That's the tune that gets stuck in my head when I think of those two), Guzan,
Holding steady like superglue: Howard, Cherundolo, Bocanegra, Bradley, Beasley
Sliding slightly like players on a wet field: Dempsey (to be fair, not his ideal position, to be a lone forward; he's not really fast and being the only one up top negates his opportunistic movement), Spector, (dogged defending, but could make better decisions going forward), Califf (never looks good when you come in and the defense starts to fall apart) Pearce (really tired in the second half, though he hung tough on the last line)
Falling like concrete in the river: Feilhaber (lack of playing time at Derby is probably to blame) Onyewu (it's his job to hold the defense together, be the leader),
Drifting like dust in the wind: Didn't see enough of some players in action to really judge: Kljestan, Altidore, Bornstein.
Read more...
Light the corner kicks of my mind. . .
Ok, that doesn't even make sense. As I wait for the game to start, I'm looking back a little. I was talking to another reporter yesterday about how difficult it is to interview players these days when the media is so monitored and controlled and get anything but a canned, robotic, rote response.
Of course, it's a little easier to get players to open up and chat when they trust you or at least know you a little bit. It takes time to build that relationship, though. Scott French, for example, whenever we cover the USWNT, points out that he's known some of the players on the squad since they were on youth teams, trying to decide which college to attend. He usually can get better quotes from those players than anybody else would, because they're comfortable just talking to him like he's an old friend.
In general, there's also a bit of prophetic pride when a player who you noticed doing well in the past and thought was special makes good. So I was reviewing my reporting history with the latest group that makes up the USNT
Brad Guzan (Chivas USA) Chivas USA is of course our local team, and I met Guzan before that disasterous 2005 season started. He seemed so incongruous, a big, tall fresh-faced goalkeeper pushed into the starting lineup of mostly Latinos in place of the injured Martin Zuniga. What really impressed me that season was Brad's capacity to take abuse. Not just the incredible amount of shots he faced, but the turmoil and discouragement of that first season. It didn't break him - it made him stronger and more determined.
Tim Howard (Everton FC) Tim I didn't meet and interview until he'd already been abroad. He's polite to the media, though, so he's fine to interview.
Carlos Bocanegra (Fulham FC) Same as Tim, though I noticed that Carlos seems more comfortable with interviews lately - maybe the captaincy helped. He seemed more impatient before.
Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA) Jonny B is another local boy. I knew of him in his UCLA days, but I didn't interview him until he was on Chivas USA. It was great to see him break out as a defender, though I still laugh when think how I was grilling him about the change early on. "Is this move going to work for you?" I actually asked.
Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96) Never spoken to him. He wasn't one of the players scheduled at the press conferences in Germany and I didn't have a credential for the mixed zone after games. He's not come out to camps or games in LA since I've been covering the squad.
Dan Califf (Aalborg BK) Danny's a cool guy. I first interviewed him before he made the jump to Europe. It was fun to hear him talking a little smack about his Danish teammates early this year, about how he wanted to earn bragging rights.
Oguchi Onyewu (Standard de Liege) Gooch has been in Europe for a long while - I think I first interviewed him after the US clinched the World Cup berth versus Mexico in Columbus. He'd had a memorable duel with Jared Borgetti there and he was pumped up.
Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock) Heath is another Euro-based guy, but one of the most candid interviews I've met. He'll tell you what he really thinks, almost every time.
Jonathan Spector (West Ham United) Jonathan scares me a little. Ok, not really, but he's just serious sort of guy and he speaks like someone much older than he is. He says things in a formal manner; hardly uses any contractions, for example. It's a bit unusual.
Freddy Adu (SL Benfica) Freddy I met back when he was 14 and playing with the U20 team. He was such a happy kid, confident and in love with the game of soccer. He's matured, sure, but I hope he never loses that joy in the beautiful game.
DaMarcus Beasley (Glasgow Rangers) Bease I also inteviewed first in Columbus. He'd scored there, and he was the big hero. I was really happy he stopped to talk to me, as a bunch of reporters were trying to get quotes from him and he could have called it a night in the mixed zone earlier than he did.
Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen) I was there when Michael scored his first MLS goal in 2005. His obvious pride was still tinged with disappointment over his dad's firing, but look at both of them now.
Maurice Edu (Toronto FC) Never spoken to him. When he was in LA, I was interviewing other players and when I asked about him, he'd already left and boarded the bus.
Benny Feilhaber (Derby County) Brazilian-born Benny - I talked to him in 2005, when Sigi Schmid was fending off accusations of UCLA favoritism on the U20 team. Benny shut that talk up with a breakout performance in the qualifying tournament.
Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA) Sasch, his teammates call him, is another Chivas USA regular who quietly had an impressive season this year, improving on his excellent rookie year. I interviewed him first back when he was still a U20 player. He didn't get that much playing time with that squad, but I was pointed in his direction when I asked the team's media officer which players were particularly well-spoken (monosyllabic answers are no fun). Kljestan's a smart guy, and that comes acgoss in his interviews.
Josmer Altidore (New York Red Bulls) Jozy was in Peru with the U17 team when he was only 15, still growing into those big feet of his. He had a good game as a sub versus Italy and I interviewed him after that win. Nice to see him with the senior team today.
Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC) My favorite Dempsey interview was after he scored against Japan in San Francisco. I was there in the mixed zone and asked him about his celebration dance. He demonstrated it again (lean wit it, rock wit it) for all the press. But I first interviewed him back in 2005 when he had long hair and was known as "the other Clint".
Game on! After a little message from Nelson Mandela - which gives a great sense of occasion to this match. I love the stadium announcer - he sounds like a boxing or WWF guy.
1- South Africe controls early on, but Heath Pearce gets the ball back for the U.S. Wow - the picture just jumped to image of an empty room with computers. It looks like a security feed. Max Bretos apologizes.
3- South Africa gets possession back and generates a corner kick - the U.S. deals pretty well.
5- Ex-Metros and Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parriera is shown on the bench. He raises his arms and complains about something. I think he's directing ire at the ref already.
7- Adu with a clever little turn sends a ball up to Dempsey on the run, but he can't quite reach the pass in the box. Where's Eddie Johnson? He's fast enough to chase a pass like that. I'm surprised he's not at least on the bench. Maybe the European team that wants to buy his contract objected.
10- Tim Howard kills an attack by catching the incoming cross. Adu is playing well, gets a corner for his team. The corner gets cleared, then Adu gets the ball back for a good cross, but a defender from South Africa clears that out as well.
12- Nice run of attacking possession for the U.S. here. Dempsey with some footwork in the corner but he loses the ball trying to nutmeg his defender and then gets called for a foul.
13- Adu nearly slips a ball through to Jozy Altidore's run, but an SA defender gets a foot on it.
15- Beasley's speed gets the better of him; he races out for a pass and gets flagged for offsides. The crowd in Jo-Burg is great, a constant buzz of noise, even if quite a few seats are empty.
20- Corner kick for SA - this leads to a shot that Howard saves well near the post.
22- It's SA's turn for a good run of possession. They have a bit of momentum generated.
23- Dempsey, active on the counter attack, gets a corner kick. Adu takes and serves into the box. Bodies go down in a scrum. SA clears, but the U.S. has regained a measure of control in the game.
25- Dempsey is physical and active - I think he's looking to match SA physically and intensity in their defending. Demps just shoved an SA defender out of bounds trying to reach a long pass. The guy shielded the ball well for a goal kick and doesn't seem to mind taking the shove.
27- GOAL! Cherundolo! Stevie C! He's off on an overlapping run and Maurice Edu feeds him a nice little pass, the defense hangs back a bit, anticipating a cross, but Stevie keeps going and takes the shot past a flatfooted Rowen Fernandez. Nice.
32- The crowd rallies after pouting in near silence for a while. Now they're encouraging their team again. The U.S. is still possessing well, though, pressuring SA territory.
34- Adu nice run to the edge of the SA box, but can't beat last defender.
36- CAP looks grimly quiet on the sidelines. Bease on a counter catches up to a long pass from Cherundolo, takes the shot, but this time, Fernandez is on his toes and makes the save.
39- Pearce goes to ground to tackle a ball, and continues to play even while sprawled when the rebound comes back in his direction. He's having a good game so far.
43- The U.S. is keeping a high defensive line, and SA is having trouble breaking it. They're hoofing hopeful balls long over the top. Oh, a little team play gets the ball into the box for SA, then the U.S. clears for corner.
44- Crappy corner from SA. Missed everyone.
45- Pearce with a long, long pass upfield - to no one. Sheesh.
45+- Adu on a breakaway! He races with the ball into the box, showing off good speed for nearly halftime. Though Bease is coming into the box, Adu tries a tricky far post shot though he's got practically no angle. He misses. Beasley is probably thinking, "Dang, Landon would have put the ball on my toe."
Oof. Stevie C, hero of the game, goes down after a tackle from behind. He limps into the locker room. He might not be able to continue.
Halftime - The U.S. is managing the game well, though they're not overwhelming SA. Still, it's smart road team soccer to wait patiently for opportunities.
2nd half
Spector, Califf and Guzan are in for Cherundolo, Bocanegra and Howard, respectively.
48- Dempsey! Could have had the second right there, as he catches up to a ball headed back to the goalkeeper in the box. Dempsey gets a foot on it, but Fernandez is determined to make up for his earlier indecision. He snags the ball well.
52- Spector with a pass to Bradley, eek, poor decision as Bradley was surrounded by three SA players and has to fight to keep possession. He manages to pass back to Spector, who wisely goes in another direction.
53- The U.S. forget to cover the far post and Modise connects on a header that luckily for the U.S. is off. He was open though, as the U.S. defense got tangled up covering the near post and the incoming run from the otherside.
56- Delron Buckley nice dribble into the box, sends a quick pass back into blonde-haired Subusiso Zuma, but the there's a ton of traffic in the box and he can't slot his shot in past that.
58- The U.S. defense has lost composure. SA is pushing hard for the equalizer. Howard comes out for another ball in the box. The crowd is amped again.
60- Zuma and Pearce go down but, Zuma pops back up and carries his dribble into the box, where the U.S. look clueless right now. Zuma passes, but Spector clears the ball out just before Modise gets it.
61- CK goes to Modise at the corner of the box, but he tries to cut in looking for a shot and loses the ball.
62- Coach CAP looks more animated on the bench.
64- Bafana Bafana, with some great attacking play, can't quite breach the last line of U.S. defense. Spector blocks two shots in a row, just inside the box. Bradley looks grim now.
65- Jozy is in! Dempsey comes out.
67- The U.S. has barely moved out of their own half in this second half. CK cleared by Jozy.
68- SA regains possession, Zuma lays ball back for Macbeth Sibaya, whose low shot is wide, but not by much.
70- Pearce has trouble clearing a high bouncing ball in the box, and his attacker pounces, getting the ball and a cross to Benedict McCarthy off, but the header is weak and Guzan catches easily.
71- Sibewe Tshabalala is in now, I guess it was Delron Buckley earlier.
72- McCarthy in the box, Edu crashes into him, but ref waves play on. Interesting, but the replay shows the contact, while physical, was likely incidental.
74- Kljestan on for Adu.
77- Zuma was down for a god while, but he's back up now and in the game.
80- Modise with a shot from the top of the box between two defenders. It's way high.
82- Guzan with a little time-wasting move, taking his time on the goal kick. His kicks are about the only time the U.S. get into SA territory this half. Two crosses into the box in a row just miss Zuma. He's frustrated.
83- Guzan is out to snag another cross.
84- SA is mad. They want a handball in the box, but the ref gives a corner. Feilhaber, who had defended hard, even while contributing very little offensively, had a ball kicked into his bicep.
86- FK to SA. Feilhaber is out for Bornstien. Interesting. Pearce has been playing well, though, and Jonny can play in the midfield. Guzan catches the FK.
88- The crowd won't give up, and neither will thier team. One mistake could spoil the U.S. victory.
90- FK to SA, not far outside the box. Good chance for them. Modise hoofs it over the bar.
90+Edu and Kljestan work the ball well into the corner. The U.S. has its best moments in the second half holding the ball there a good long while, working short passes together to pass time.
Final whistle!
When did the U.S. become mini-Italy? Not that I'm complaining about the win, because 1-0 still counts in the wins column.
Rising like cream: Edu, Adu (Anyone heard Black Eyed Peas' song "Bebot"? That's the tune that gets stuck in my head when I think of those two), Guzan,
Holding steady like superglue: Howard, Cherundolo, Bocanegra, Bradley, Beasley
Sliding slightly like players on a wet field: Dempsey (to be fair, not his ideal position, to be a lone forward; he's not really fast and being the only one up top negates his opportunistic movement), Spector, (dogged defending, but could make better decisions going forward), Califf (never looks good when you come in and the defense starts to fall apart) Pearce (really tired in the second half, though he hung tough on the last line)
Falling like concrete in the river: Feilhaber (lack of playing time at Derby is probably to blame) Onyewu (it's his job to hold the defense together, be the leader),
Drifting like dust in the wind: Didn't see enough of some players in action to really judge: Kljestan, Altidore, Bornstein.
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Friday, November 16, 2007
Looking up
Things went pretty well for a couple of the Galaxy's best players today. David Beckham got an assist on Peter Crouch's winning goal in the friendly versus Austria, and Landon Donovan got a reprieve from the league - which voted to extend the "grandfather clause".
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Wind it up
Galaxy players going through their paces at the HDC today. Landon Donovan was inside, getting treatment for a calf strain. From here on out, practice will be optional until the team leaves for Australia, where they will meet up with their new coach, Ruud Gullit.
Josh Tudela dribbles in versus Carlos Pavon and Kelly Gray.
Pavon puts a shot past Lance Friesz in a practice scrimmage.
Goalkeeper coach Ian Feuer puts Joe Cannon (far right) and Friesz through a drill.
Chris Albright defends while Mike Randolph considers a pass.
Kelly Gray, who scored multiple times in the scrimmage, puts another one away.
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Josh Tudela dribbles in versus Carlos Pavon and Kelly Gray.
Pavon puts a shot past Lance Friesz in a practice scrimmage.
Goalkeeper coach Ian Feuer puts Joe Cannon (far right) and Friesz through a drill.
Chris Albright defends while Mike Randolph considers a pass.
Kelly Gray, who scored multiple times in the scrimmage, puts another one away.
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Thursday, November 15, 2007
Same time next year
For all the excitement that infused this MLS season as a new frontier for the league, it strikes me as almost funny how much of a throwback year it's really been.
I'd crack more deja vu jokes, but let's take a quick inventory instead.
The Galaxy sign the biggest name in world soccer, and miss the playoffs. Again.
Chivas USA goes out in the first round of the playoffs. Again.
The Columbus Crew miss the playoffs. Again.
Sigi Schmid stays on as Crew coach. Again.
Fernando Clavijo hangs on to the Colorado Rapids coaching job. Again.
DC United loses to the Chicago Fire in the playoffs. Again.
The Fire lose to New England in the playoffs. Again.
FC Dallas melts down in the playoffs due to a player red card. Again.
Chivas USA's coach wins Coach of the Year. Again.
The Houston Dynamo claw back from a deficit in the playoffs to make the finals. Again.
New England makes the finals. Again.
A DC United player wins the MVP. Again. Hopefully, Luciano Emilio, if he goes to MLS Cup like Christian Gomez did, manages to look a mite more cheerful at the event. Gomez looked miserable that his team wasn't there.
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I'd crack more deja vu jokes, but let's take a quick inventory instead.
The Galaxy sign the biggest name in world soccer, and miss the playoffs. Again.
Chivas USA goes out in the first round of the playoffs. Again.
The Columbus Crew miss the playoffs. Again.
Sigi Schmid stays on as Crew coach. Again.
Fernando Clavijo hangs on to the Colorado Rapids coaching job. Again.
DC United loses to the Chicago Fire in the playoffs. Again.
The Fire lose to New England in the playoffs. Again.
FC Dallas melts down in the playoffs due to a player red card. Again.
Chivas USA's coach wins Coach of the Year. Again.
The Houston Dynamo claw back from a deficit in the playoffs to make the finals. Again.
New England makes the finals. Again.
A DC United player wins the MVP. Again. Hopefully, Luciano Emilio, if he goes to MLS Cup like Christian Gomez did, manages to look a mite more cheerful at the event. Gomez looked miserable that his team wasn't there.
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Catching up with the Ochoas
Riverside Poly High has produced some quality soccer teams over the years and the Ochoa family has contributed to their success.
Jesse Ochoa was a standout at Poly before going by the name Jesus (though everyone around here still calls him Jesse) and playing in MLS and Mexico.
Sammy Ochoa went to Tecos UAG of Mexico and made the U.S. 2005 World Youth Championship squad.
So where are they now?
Jesus was with Chivas USA in 2005 but was cut in the preseason of 2006. He vanished. His wife had just given birth and apparently soccer wasn't an option. Not sure where he's latched onto full time but he's giving high school refereeing a shot. One of his less-famous brothers has reffed in the Inland Empire before and now apparently Jesus aka Jesse is giving it a go.
Yanks Abroad, meanwhile, reports that Sammy might consider joining MLS instead of staying with Tecos' reserve side at year's end. Sammy's got some talent but he's not playing at all for Tecos. He wasn't part of their InterLiga team in January 2007 which I took as a sign that they didn't think highly of him and hasn't played in the top flight since February. If it's between MLS and Tecoman of the second division, MLS is the better option.
Younger brothers Armando and Norberto are still in high school, though I haven't kept tabs on their progress. But the high school soccer season is coming up soon so we'll have time to keep up with the Ochoas as the year progresses.
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Jesse Ochoa was a standout at Poly before going by the name Jesus (though everyone around here still calls him Jesse) and playing in MLS and Mexico.
Sammy Ochoa went to Tecos UAG of Mexico and made the U.S. 2005 World Youth Championship squad.
So where are they now?
Jesus was with Chivas USA in 2005 but was cut in the preseason of 2006. He vanished. His wife had just given birth and apparently soccer wasn't an option. Not sure where he's latched onto full time but he's giving high school refereeing a shot. One of his less-famous brothers has reffed in the Inland Empire before and now apparently Jesus aka Jesse is giving it a go.
Yanks Abroad, meanwhile, reports that Sammy might consider joining MLS instead of staying with Tecos' reserve side at year's end. Sammy's got some talent but he's not playing at all for Tecos. He wasn't part of their InterLiga team in January 2007 which I took as a sign that they didn't think highly of him and hasn't played in the top flight since February. If it's between MLS and Tecoman of the second division, MLS is the better option.
Younger brothers Armando and Norberto are still in high school, though I haven't kept tabs on their progress. But the high school soccer season is coming up soon so we'll have time to keep up with the Ochoas as the year progresses.
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All over the world
Nice to see clubs from parts unknown get some love in SI.com's Power Rankings. Actually, Jonah Freedman does well to give love to South American and Mexican clubs when they merit it and doesn't limit his rankings to the Old World.
But this time around, Japanese and Tunisian clubs joins those from England, Spain, Italy, Mexico and Brazil in his Top 10.
Urawa Red Diamonds! No. 9! I've actually been to their grounds, the Saitama Stadium. I was there for England-Sweden in the 2002 World Cup. At the time, I didn't really know much about the Urawa Red Diamonds except what little I saw of them via season highlights at a local eatery before going to the game. I saw the highlights of their Asian Champions League matches and how all the flags raise up behind the stands and thought that was pretty cool. They seem to pack 'em in there at that stadium. Go Red Diamonds!
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But this time around, Japanese and Tunisian clubs joins those from England, Spain, Italy, Mexico and Brazil in his Top 10.
Urawa Red Diamonds! No. 9! I've actually been to their grounds, the Saitama Stadium. I was there for England-Sweden in the 2002 World Cup. At the time, I didn't really know much about the Urawa Red Diamonds except what little I saw of them via season highlights at a local eatery before going to the game. I saw the highlights of their Asian Champions League matches and how all the flags raise up behind the stands and thought that was pretty cool. They seem to pack 'em in there at that stadium. Go Red Diamonds!
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Co-hosts
Add the Belgium/Netherlands bid as another obstacle for a North American World Cup in 2018.
The two European neighbors tossed their collective hat into the ring for 2018 as Belgium and the Netherlands will look to co-host the 2018 World Cup. England is the favorite but other countries including the US and Mexico have expressed interest.
After the difficulties of a two-nation World Cup that was held in 2002, I thought FIFA would no longer be open to co-hosting a World Cup. Japan/Korea had several of logistical problems that arose because of the co-hosting. I was in Japan, did not go to Korea but heard plenty of stories about difficulties in getting back and forth between the two nations.
Of course, you needn't hop on a plane to travel back and forth between Belgium and the Netherlands. I see that as more of a likelihood than USA '18 or Mexico '18.
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The two European neighbors tossed their collective hat into the ring for 2018 as Belgium and the Netherlands will look to co-host the 2018 World Cup. England is the favorite but other countries including the US and Mexico have expressed interest.
After the difficulties of a two-nation World Cup that was held in 2002, I thought FIFA would no longer be open to co-hosting a World Cup. Japan/Korea had several of logistical problems that arose because of the co-hosting. I was in Japan, did not go to Korea but heard plenty of stories about difficulties in getting back and forth between the two nations.
Of course, you needn't hop on a plane to travel back and forth between Belgium and the Netherlands. I see that as more of a likelihood than USA '18 or Mexico '18.
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No support
Pachuca has regularly played in front of raucous crowds during their magical year-plus run in Mexico. On Wednesday, los Tuzos set out in search of yet another title.
A couple of things happened, though, that haven't happened often.
Pachuca lost to Cruz Azul 2-0 and is now on the brink of elimination. Only a complete turnaround in Estadio Azul on Saturday will prevent Pachuca from crashing out of the Apertura 2007 season.
Perhaps more rare: the attendance for Wednesday's repechaje game was zero.
Following the regular-season finale against Pumas, Pachuca supporters threw objects at the officials. At least one object made contact with an official, and the result was a ban for one match. Supporters were banned from a playoff game and Pachuca lost.
Check out some pictures from the game in this gallery here, including shots of the empty stadium. Seems kinda strange.
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A couple of things happened, though, that haven't happened often.
Pachuca lost to Cruz Azul 2-0 and is now on the brink of elimination. Only a complete turnaround in Estadio Azul on Saturday will prevent Pachuca from crashing out of the Apertura 2007 season.
Perhaps more rare: the attendance for Wednesday's repechaje game was zero.
Following the regular-season finale against Pumas, Pachuca supporters threw objects at the officials. At least one object made contact with an official, and the result was a ban for one match. Supporters were banned from a playoff game and Pachuca lost.
Check out some pictures from the game in this gallery here, including shots of the empty stadium. Seems kinda strange.
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A dream final ruined
America held up their end of the dream Copa Sudamericana final but River Plate did not.
Arsenal de Sarandi beat fellow Argentine side River Plate in penalties to reach the Sudamericana final on Tuesday.
America, who beat Millonarios a day earlier, will host the first leg of the final on Nov. 28. Arsenal will host the second leg on Dec. 5.
This is the third consecutive year that the Sudamericana final will feature a Mexican team and the third time Mexican and Argentine teams have met in a South American club tournament final. Boca Juniors, though, took care of the other two Mexican teams, first beating Cruz Azul in the 2001 Libertadores final and then dispatching of Pumas in the 2005 Sudamericana final.
Arsenal, though, does not quite have the history of Boca or River, but that did not matter in the semifinals of this tournament.
Here's how the Argentine press saw the result:
"Cuenca's Crime"
Incidentally, Arsenal's goalkeeper, the player pictured above, is Mario Cuenca.
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Arsenal de Sarandi beat fellow Argentine side River Plate in penalties to reach the Sudamericana final on Tuesday.
America, who beat Millonarios a day earlier, will host the first leg of the final on Nov. 28. Arsenal will host the second leg on Dec. 5.
This is the third consecutive year that the Sudamericana final will feature a Mexican team and the third time Mexican and Argentine teams have met in a South American club tournament final. Boca Juniors, though, took care of the other two Mexican teams, first beating Cruz Azul in the 2001 Libertadores final and then dispatching of Pumas in the 2005 Sudamericana final.
Arsenal, though, does not quite have the history of Boca or River, but that did not matter in the semifinals of this tournament.
Here's how the Argentine press saw the result:
"Cuenca's Crime"
Incidentally, Arsenal's goalkeeper, the player pictured above, is Mario Cuenca.
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Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
America in the finals
America beat Millonarios of Colombia by 2-0 on Tuesday and reached the final of the 2007 Copa Sudamericana.
America can join Pachuca as the only Mexican clubs to win a South American club tournament.
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America can join Pachuca as the only Mexican clubs to win a South American club tournament.
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Hans gets hung
Hans Westerhof is done.
After returning to Mexico to coach Necaxa over the summer, the former Chivas and Chivas USA coach was sacked by Los Rayos after failing to guide the club to the Mexican league playoffs.
Necaxa was one of the worst teams in Mexico this season. The club' s defense was particularly lousy as Los Rayos' porous defense gave up 32 goals, a figure surpassed by only three other teams.
Westerhof led Chivas to the final of the Clausura 2004 tournament and jumped in to guide Chivas USA midway through the 2005 season. He returned to Guadalajara for the Clausura 2006 season but was sacked midway through that campaign and said upon leaving Mexico for his native Netherlands that he'd not coach again in Mexico.
That changed, though, and now he's out of a job once again.
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After returning to Mexico to coach Necaxa over the summer, the former Chivas and Chivas USA coach was sacked by Los Rayos after failing to guide the club to the Mexican league playoffs.
Necaxa was one of the worst teams in Mexico this season. The club' s defense was particularly lousy as Los Rayos' porous defense gave up 32 goals, a figure surpassed by only three other teams.
Westerhof led Chivas to the final of the Clausura 2004 tournament and jumped in to guide Chivas USA midway through the 2005 season. He returned to Guadalajara for the Clausura 2006 season but was sacked midway through that campaign and said upon leaving Mexico for his native Netherlands that he'd not coach again in Mexico.
That changed, though, and now he's out of a job once again.
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Bravo, bridge!
On second thought
Unlike most national teams around the world, Mexico does not play a game this weekend. The Mexican federation decided long ago that it would be best to allow the end of the season to play out with club rosters undisturbed during a crucial time of the Mexican domestic campaign.
I figured I'd look at the rosters of the eight teams whose seasons ended last weekend and try to piece together a roster.
Yeah, not so much.
At goalie, you'd have Jose de Jesus Corona, the lone bright spot on a lousy Tecos team. Monterrey's Jonathan Orozco has been called up recently as well so he'd be a go.
Defensively, uh, well, there's Omar Hernandez from Necaxa.
Jorge Hernandez from Atlas and Manuel Perez from Monterrey might make up part of the midfield and Tigres' Emmanuel Cerda would be an option up top.
But otherwise there's not much from the eight ousted clubs to put together a roster. I guess that's why those teams are terrible. Of course, it's an international date so the European contingent would be available but domestically, the pickings would be slim.
Any suggestions for a domestic Tri team from the eliminated eight?
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I figured I'd look at the rosters of the eight teams whose seasons ended last weekend and try to piece together a roster.
Yeah, not so much.
At goalie, you'd have Jose de Jesus Corona, the lone bright spot on a lousy Tecos team. Monterrey's Jonathan Orozco has been called up recently as well so he'd be a go.
Defensively, uh, well, there's Omar Hernandez from Necaxa.
Jorge Hernandez from Atlas and Manuel Perez from Monterrey might make up part of the midfield and Tigres' Emmanuel Cerda would be an option up top.
But otherwise there's not much from the eight ousted clubs to put together a roster. I guess that's why those teams are terrible. Of course, it's an international date so the European contingent would be available but domestically, the pickings would be slim.
Any suggestions for a domestic Tri team from the eliminated eight?
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Otra doble jornada
So much for the Bay Area InterLiga matches.
The two Northern California matchdays were moved to Texas and SoCal respectively.
As far as my neck of the woods goes, we'll get InterLiga doubleheaders on Jan. 8 and Jan. 9 as well as the finals on Jan. 12.
On the 8th - the matches originally slated for NoCal - we'll see Monterrey and San Luis and Pumas take on Cruz Azul. It's okay to show up late but do get there for the start of Pumas-Cruz Azul. That's quite an attractive matchup.
Then on the 9th we'll get Morelia-Toluca followed by America-Atlas. Please show up on time for this day.
The finals will be on the 12th and with any luck we'll get either America-Pumas or America-Cruz Azul. Of course, Cruz Azul commonly tanks in this tournament so the former matchup is more likely.
I know many of the players don't care much for InterLiga and some think it's a silly tournament but if I wasn't covering these games, I'd probably buy tickets for them even though I don't support any of those teams.
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The two Northern California matchdays were moved to Texas and SoCal respectively.
As far as my neck of the woods goes, we'll get InterLiga doubleheaders on Jan. 8 and Jan. 9 as well as the finals on Jan. 12.
On the 8th - the matches originally slated for NoCal - we'll see Monterrey and San Luis and Pumas take on Cruz Azul. It's okay to show up late but do get there for the start of Pumas-Cruz Azul. That's quite an attractive matchup.
Then on the 9th we'll get Morelia-Toluca followed by America-Atlas. Please show up on time for this day.
The finals will be on the 12th and with any luck we'll get either America-Pumas or America-Cruz Azul. Of course, Cruz Azul commonly tanks in this tournament so the former matchup is more likely.
I know many of the players don't care much for InterLiga and some think it's a silly tournament but if I wasn't covering these games, I'd probably buy tickets for them even though I don't support any of those teams.
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It's official
The United States and Mexico will play a friendly on Feb. 6, 2008 in Houston's Reliant Stadium. It became official when US Soccer announced the match today.
Here are some details: the game will start at 8 p.m. local time, 6 p.m. for us out here on the West Coast, and it will be broadcast on ESPN2 and Univision. Prices range from $35-165, with some "special" seats on sale for $275. According to US Soccer, the seating arrangement will be split into a US section, a Mexico section and a neutral section.
Initial thoughts: I wouldn't pay $165 for a friendly unless it came with a free iPod. $35 perhaps but then you'll be sitting in the last seat of the last row of the section farthest away from the field.
The seating arrangements are presumably to thwart any possible violence in the stands, I'm assuming. The US fans will likely take up a miniscule percentage of the seats, as always happens at US-Mexico games in Texas, California, Arizona, Illinois. Maybe they'll put the US fans in one of the end sections.
Still, the game probably will sell out despite the high prices. At that time of the year, fans will be dying to see their national teams in action. Mexico last played in October and probably won't play again until February. The U.S. will play Sweden a few weeks before but that will be with the MLS-based USMNT players. Plus, the usual fervor US-Mexico brings will help drive ticket sales as well.
As far as the revenue that will be generated from this match, I can't imagine it will be less than a million dollars. I may be way off here but when you add in the ticket revenue, parking, concessions, television advertising (from Spanish- and English-language networks), that's a shitload of money.
Both federations wised up to the fact that US-Mexico is a cash cow and both federations stand to gain quite a lot of money by playing each other regularly. Now, it's not to say that they haven't played each other because they have. But a lot of the US-Mexico games in recent years have been in official tournaments or World Cup qualifying matches. They played the friendly in Arizona early this year but the previous friendly they played was in 2004. They did not play friendlies in '05 or '06. It'll be interesting to see if they play a friendly to kick off 2009, being that they will play twice in qualifying during the year.
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Here are some details: the game will start at 8 p.m. local time, 6 p.m. for us out here on the West Coast, and it will be broadcast on ESPN2 and Univision. Prices range from $35-165, with some "special" seats on sale for $275. According to US Soccer, the seating arrangement will be split into a US section, a Mexico section and a neutral section.
Initial thoughts: I wouldn't pay $165 for a friendly unless it came with a free iPod. $35 perhaps but then you'll be sitting in the last seat of the last row of the section farthest away from the field.
The seating arrangements are presumably to thwart any possible violence in the stands, I'm assuming. The US fans will likely take up a miniscule percentage of the seats, as always happens at US-Mexico games in Texas, California, Arizona, Illinois. Maybe they'll put the US fans in one of the end sections.
Still, the game probably will sell out despite the high prices. At that time of the year, fans will be dying to see their national teams in action. Mexico last played in October and probably won't play again until February. The U.S. will play Sweden a few weeks before but that will be with the MLS-based USMNT players. Plus, the usual fervor US-Mexico brings will help drive ticket sales as well.
As far as the revenue that will be generated from this match, I can't imagine it will be less than a million dollars. I may be way off here but when you add in the ticket revenue, parking, concessions, television advertising (from Spanish- and English-language networks), that's a shitload of money.
Both federations wised up to the fact that US-Mexico is a cash cow and both federations stand to gain quite a lot of money by playing each other regularly. Now, it's not to say that they haven't played each other because they have. But a lot of the US-Mexico games in recent years have been in official tournaments or World Cup qualifying matches. They played the friendly in Arizona early this year but the previous friendly they played was in 2004. They did not play friendlies in '05 or '06. It'll be interesting to see if they play a friendly to kick off 2009, being that they will play twice in qualifying during the year.
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American fatigue
If Club America can pull off either the Copa Sudamericana title or the Apertura 2007 championship, they will only add to their already grand lore. But if the club can pull off the double, they will set a new standard that even Pachuca didn't achieve.
America is currently alive and well in two campaigns. Today, the Mexican club will host Millonarios of Colombia in the second leg of their Sudamericana semifinal series. America pulled out a 3-2 win in Colombia last week and need just a draw to go through to their first-ever Sudamericana final.
The club gets no breaks, though. America is in the repechaje of the Apertura and will play at Morelia on Thursday.
While Pachuca held both the Sudamericana and Mexican league titles at the same time, los Tuzos did not pull off the double when winning Sudamericana. America has a chance to top Pachuca's grand run to finish off 2006 when they won the Sudamericana and reached the semifinals of the Apertura 2006.
America might be running on fumes though. Since Sept. 22, America has played 15 games in 53 days. By Sunday, they will have played 17 games in 58 days. That's about one game every four days, and that calendar has included games in Colombia and Brazil and all over Mexico. In fact, here's how they've fared over that time:
Sept. 22 at San Luis (1-2 L)
Sept. 25 at Pachuca (4-1 W)
Sept. 30 Cruz Azul (2-2 T)
Oct. 3 Pachuca (0-2 L)
Oct. 7 at Toluca (1-3 L)
Oct. 10 Vasco da Gama (2-0 W)
Oct. 14 Veracruz (0-0 T)
Oct. 20 at Pachuca (2-1 W)
Oct. 24 at Vasco da Gama (0-1 L)
Oct. 28 Chivas (2-1 W)
Oct. 31 at Atlante (1-2 L)
Nov. 4 Necaxa (1-0 W)
Nov. 7 at Millonarios (3-2 W)
Nov. 10 Monterrey (1-0 W)
Nov. 13 Millonarios
Nov. 15 at Morelia
Nov. 18 Morelia
It's a taxing schedule to say the least but so far America has come away with excellent results.
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America is currently alive and well in two campaigns. Today, the Mexican club will host Millonarios of Colombia in the second leg of their Sudamericana semifinal series. America pulled out a 3-2 win in Colombia last week and need just a draw to go through to their first-ever Sudamericana final.
The club gets no breaks, though. America is in the repechaje of the Apertura and will play at Morelia on Thursday.
While Pachuca held both the Sudamericana and Mexican league titles at the same time, los Tuzos did not pull off the double when winning Sudamericana. America has a chance to top Pachuca's grand run to finish off 2006 when they won the Sudamericana and reached the semifinals of the Apertura 2006.
America might be running on fumes though. Since Sept. 22, America has played 15 games in 53 days. By Sunday, they will have played 17 games in 58 days. That's about one game every four days, and that calendar has included games in Colombia and Brazil and all over Mexico. In fact, here's how they've fared over that time:
Sept. 22 at San Luis (1-2 L)
Sept. 25 at Pachuca (4-1 W)
Sept. 30 Cruz Azul (2-2 T)
Oct. 3 Pachuca (0-2 L)
Oct. 7 at Toluca (1-3 L)
Oct. 10 Vasco da Gama (2-0 W)
Oct. 14 Veracruz (0-0 T)
Oct. 20 at Pachuca (2-1 W)
Oct. 24 at Vasco da Gama (0-1 L)
Oct. 28 Chivas (2-1 W)
Oct. 31 at Atlante (1-2 L)
Nov. 4 Necaxa (1-0 W)
Nov. 7 at Millonarios (3-2 W)
Nov. 10 Monterrey (1-0 W)
Nov. 13 Millonarios
Nov. 15 at Morelia
Nov. 18 Morelia
It's a taxing schedule to say the least but so far America has come away with excellent results.
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Playoffs Mexico style
Mexico's Apertura 2007 season is over, at least the regular season part of the campaign. Now, the playoffs are set to commence.
If you're new to the league or just a casual fan, the structure might seem familiar but it's got some haphazard elements unique to Mexico.
First, the teams still alive for the playoffs. The top two teams in each group get in automatically so...
Group 1: Toluca (34 points), Pumas (24)
Group 2: Santos (38), Atlante (33)
Group 3: Chivas (31), San Luis (29)
Now, the four teams with the most points afterward get into what's called the repechaje. One way to translate that would be the wild-card round, which is what I like to use because Americans would be familiar with the term and concept. Also, the play-in games are used or play-in round.
Anyway, the repechaje matchups are:
Pachuca (24 points) vs Cruz Azul (25)
America (26) vs Morelia (22)
Pachuca-Cruz Azul play on Wednesday and Saturday while America-Morelia is set for Thursday and Sunday. Once the round is over, the matchups will be set based on points. Santos, the superlider (the team with the most points) will play the team with the fewest points left so they'll face either Morelia, Pachuca or Pumas. The only quarterfinal matchup that is set in stone thus far is Chivas-San Luis.
The playoff system is a bit crazy in Mexico. There are 18 teams and 10 are still alive after the regular season. So while most leagues around the world are marathons, Mexico's is clearly a sprint.
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If you're new to the league or just a casual fan, the structure might seem familiar but it's got some haphazard elements unique to Mexico.
First, the teams still alive for the playoffs. The top two teams in each group get in automatically so...
Group 1: Toluca (34 points), Pumas (24)
Group 2: Santos (38), Atlante (33)
Group 3: Chivas (31), San Luis (29)
Now, the four teams with the most points afterward get into what's called the repechaje. One way to translate that would be the wild-card round, which is what I like to use because Americans would be familiar with the term and concept. Also, the play-in games are used or play-in round.
Anyway, the repechaje matchups are:
Pachuca (24 points) vs Cruz Azul (25)
America (26) vs Morelia (22)
Pachuca-Cruz Azul play on Wednesday and Saturday while America-Morelia is set for Thursday and Sunday. Once the round is over, the matchups will be set based on points. Santos, the superlider (the team with the most points) will play the team with the fewest points left so they'll face either Morelia, Pachuca or Pumas. The only quarterfinal matchup that is set in stone thus far is Chivas-San Luis.
The playoff system is a bit crazy in Mexico. There are 18 teams and 10 are still alive after the regular season. So while most leagues around the world are marathons, Mexico's is clearly a sprint.
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First year on the job
For my weekly Press-Enterprise column, I wrote about Bob Bradley's first year on the job. There is one game left on the calendar of course, Saturday's friendly at South Africa, but the year is pretty much over, to the point where I think you can reasonably assess his performance.
I didn't attach a letter grade but if I had to, I'd give him a B. He won the Gold Cup and had a couple of important friendly wins - the 2-0 win against Mexico and the 1-0 win at Switzerland. But I wouldn't give him anything higher than a B because of the United States' performance in Copa America.
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I didn't attach a letter grade but if I had to, I'd give him a B. He won the Gold Cup and had a couple of important friendly wins - the 2-0 win against Mexico and the 1-0 win at Switzerland. But I wouldn't give him anything higher than a B because of the United States' performance in Copa America.
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Finally!
I'll bet Kasey Keller is thinking the same thing as Seattle gets the next MLS franchise. It's probably too far for a road trip (Vegas MLS team, where are you?), but I'm excited nonetheless. That area of the country has produced too many good players to remain a blank on the MLS map.
Another milestone was the ownership announcement of Drew Carey. The last time I was in the pressbox at the Home Depot Center, I discussed this with a couple of reporters. I said the next step for MLS was for a fan to own a team. I pointed out that other top sports in the U.S. had owners who became wealthy and then indulged their love of the game by fulfilling dreams of owning a team in the sport they love.
"Soccer needs some owners who are soccer nuts - who care about the American game passionately, not just as a real estate investment or a venue for events, or an extension of a brand, or part of a portfolio. Of course, those other types of owners are important, but that new blood is needed to take this league to the next level. Someone in the power structure who loves the game for its own sake won't overlook the things true fans want and need from the game."
Voila. Carey comes along. Oh, he's been around for a while, and I'm not sure what this ownership with Seattle means to his long-held loyalty to the Galaxy (he's got his own box at the stadium), but this is involvement from a diehard.
Incidently, what the other reporters and I also discussed that day was how much more affordable it was to become an MLS owner than to try to own any other major sport franchise in the U.S.
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Another milestone was the ownership announcement of Drew Carey. The last time I was in the pressbox at the Home Depot Center, I discussed this with a couple of reporters. I said the next step for MLS was for a fan to own a team. I pointed out that other top sports in the U.S. had owners who became wealthy and then indulged their love of the game by fulfilling dreams of owning a team in the sport they love.
"Soccer needs some owners who are soccer nuts - who care about the American game passionately, not just as a real estate investment or a venue for events, or an extension of a brand, or part of a portfolio. Of course, those other types of owners are important, but that new blood is needed to take this league to the next level. Someone in the power structure who loves the game for its own sake won't overlook the things true fans want and need from the game."
Voila. Carey comes along. Oh, he's been around for a while, and I'm not sure what this ownership with Seattle means to his long-held loyalty to the Galaxy (he's got his own box at the stadium), but this is involvement from a diehard.
Incidently, what the other reporters and I also discussed that day was how much more affordable it was to become an MLS owner than to try to own any other major sport franchise in the U.S.
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No Scoop
The U.S. Women's National Team is naming their new coach today via a conference call. No, I don't know who it is.
Guesses? Predictions? Insider info?
I suppose I'm not going to budge from my early pick - Pia Sundhage.
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Guesses? Predictions? Insider info?
I suppose I'm not going to budge from my early pick - Pia Sundhage.
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No Landon
Landon Donovan suffered a calf strain in the exhibition match versus the Minnesota Thunder and has been ruled out of the game versus South Africa. Meanwhile, David Beckham has been recalled to the English national team for their upcoming couple of games.
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Bravo, Bulgaria
Our latest visitor from a country that hadn't clicked on our site until now is Bulgaria. I have fond memories of Bulgaria, because they were the Cinderella team of 1994, when the World Cup was held here in the United States. They had the classic "Golden Generation" of players that year and ended up in fourth place in the tournament. Everybody was fussing about Hristo Stoichkov, but my favorite player on that team was Yordan Letchkov. When his bald head scored that goal against Germany in the quarterfinals, I was thrilled.Stoichkov was the one who brought his intensity to Major League Soccer, playing with the Chicago Fire and DC United. He coached Bulgaria's national team for a while, but resigned in April of this year.
Turns out that Mexico isn't the only team nicknamed for the colors in the flag- Bulgaria's squad is known as the Tricolors, as well as the Lions. Bulgaria's national team is now captained by Dimitar Berbatov, the Tottenham Hotspur striker. Manchester City's Martin Petrov is also a top player for them.
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Monday, November 12, 2007
Steven Wells on U.S. sportswriters
Or heard the (white) cream of the American soccer press in Berlin groan and tut and mutter as US soccer player DeMarcus Beasley refuses to play the "polite negro" and lambasts Bush for his mismanagement of Hurricane Katrina. ("Totally inappropriate!" hisses one, red in the face with anger.)
Who is DeMarcus? DaMarcus, I know. When exactly did this Berlin lambasting of President Bush take place? Why can't I find anything about it? It's not simply that I find it a bit difficult to believe that not one U.S. sportswriter covering soccer (considered a communist sport by some Americans, seriously) would be thrilled if a player got political to any degree (and to their credit, players such as Beasley have spoken out strongly against racist incidents that they've experienced abroad), but what I really think is strange is that I can't find any foreign press mentioning this Beasley criticism of Bush and Katrina. It's hard to believe that any world press members would have hushed that up politely out of deference to Bush. I've been using search engines on the Internet for hours now trying to find any evidence of this lambasting. I've tried German, Spanish and French varients on keywords.
Hey, if anyone else has better luck finding what DaMarcus supposedly said, please let me know.
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Who is DeMarcus? DaMarcus, I know. When exactly did this Berlin lambasting of President Bush take place? Why can't I find anything about it? It's not simply that I find it a bit difficult to believe that not one U.S. sportswriter covering soccer (considered a communist sport by some Americans, seriously) would be thrilled if a player got political to any degree (and to their credit, players such as Beasley have spoken out strongly against racist incidents that they've experienced abroad), but what I really think is strange is that I can't find any foreign press mentioning this Beasley criticism of Bush and Katrina. It's hard to believe that any world press members would have hushed that up politely out of deference to Bush. I've been using search engines on the Internet for hours now trying to find any evidence of this lambasting. I've tried German, Spanish and French varients on keywords.
Hey, if anyone else has better luck finding what DaMarcus supposedly said, please let me know.
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Fan mail, kinda
After reading your article entitled "Gullit a bold choice for the Galaxy," I must admit that my opinion of you has drastically changed. Until this article I considered you a halfway decent writer whose muckraking tendencies ruined any chance of me enjoying the words you put on a page. I first came in contact with your work in late 2005 (I think) when you interviewed Eric Wynalda who said (most likely under the influence of alcohol) that “Bruce Arena has a love affair with Brian McBride" in an article where you and Mr. Wynalda defend the virtues of Taylor Twellman. That article made me think you were out for the quick, easy soccer story, where you can say something controversial and be rewarded for your emboldened opinions. But your most recent article has convinced me
that your polarizing write-ups are more than just random blabberings from an emotional fan. Your understanding of the state of soccer in this country exceeds the average reporter, and I look forward to reading!
!
your next article.
Thanks! I would like to note, however, that it's possible that I can find Wynalda's viewpoints interesting without actually sharing them. I also don't believe Eric was under any influence when he was talking to me, but I really don't know, because I interviewed him over the phone.
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that your polarizing write-ups are more than just random blabberings from an emotional fan. Your understanding of the state of soccer in this country exceeds the average reporter, and I look forward to reading!
!
your next article.
Thanks! I would like to note, however, that it's possible that I can find Wynalda's viewpoints interesting without actually sharing them. I also don't believe Eric was under any influence when he was talking to me, but I really don't know, because I interviewed him over the phone.
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Sunday, November 11, 2007
Traitorous Lance?
Today the Galaxy are playing the Minnesota Thunder - well, the Thunder and a few guest players - in an exhibition match.
What I found interesting when perusing the roster for the match was that a certain Lance Friesz was on the Thunder's list.
That's right - the Galaxy's third-string goalkeeper.
I don't know if the Thunder found themselves short a backup keeper and Lance is filling in, or if he's already been released from the Galaxy. Friesz played in goal during the team's match versus Hollywood United.
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What I found interesting when perusing the roster for the match was that a certain Lance Friesz was on the Thunder's list.
That's right - the Galaxy's third-string goalkeeper.
I don't know if the Thunder found themselves short a backup keeper and Lance is filling in, or if he's already been released from the Galaxy. Friesz played in goal during the team's match versus Hollywood United.
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Sad
Even as I rejoice over things like over 30,000 strong at the last playoff game for the Houston Dynamo, I hope the fervent following never progesses to something like this. Fan violence isn't something to emulate from the game abroad.
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No loan for Beckham
Question: Beckham mentioned going to England to play and get fitter - is a loan a possible option?
Alexi Lalas: We’ve discussed that and that’s not an option. That’s not something that we’ve contemplated, nor that we will in the future. He obviously has his international responsibilities and he’s done a good job here of preparing physically. We wish him well in his upcoming games with England, but the whole loan thing is not something that we’re contemplating at this time.
The possibility that Beckham raised about playing with an English club was apparently related to training with one, which quite a few MLS players do in the offseason. Eddie Johnson did it, Freddy Adu as well. Lalas said the Galaxy were open to that possibility, though he also pointed out that he felt Beckham could do with some rest. However, Beckham himself mentioned he doesn't like to take breaks and that he wanted to regain full fitness. In that case, Beckham could rejoin Man United, the club he obviously has the most ties with in England, but not for a loan. It would be for training purposes.
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Saturday, November 10, 2007
Wizards/Dynamo running blog
Hey, hey, ho, ho, here we go. Pre-game rounds up the usual suspects of plot lines. Now we're watching goals of the season. Nice stuff. Kerry Zavagnin may never score a better goal than that.
Houston's Stuart Holden looks like such a baby in in interview, but he is enthusiastic about the match. Craig Waibel is interviewed next - the tough defender admits speed is not his forte, but explains he is able to out-think most opponents.
I'm glad that DeRosario dances when he scores. I think that's a nice touch of flair more players should try. I wish I liked his dance better, though.
Kevin Hartman! The Wizards goalkeeper is interviewed. He gives a shout-out to his daughter, Chloe. He says that the team is ready for the pressure. EJ is on talking about how his team gets "no respect".
Word on the street is that EJ is moving to England. I hope he gets more playing time than Bobby Convey or Benny Feilhaber are getting right now.
Hey, it's Lalas at the Ruud Gullit presser. Now they're showing the Dynamo cheerleaders. Oh, and a Brian Ching interview. He says the team is excited. They should be. They have a sell-out crowd on hand. His playoff beard is still pretty sparse, but hey, it didn't matter last year.
Teams march out to the field. The crowd looks great - a lot of orange. Gullit would feel comfy.
Maybe it's just me pulling for the underdog, but I think that the Wizards could pull this game out.
Clips from the misty night where Kansas City held off Chivas USA. Hartman and Pat Onstad are being profiled. Onstad is a success story from the USL. Heartwarming stuff.
2- Wizards seem to have conceded the midfield. They have two forwards, but everyone else is back.
3- Mullan is on the ground - EJ's cleat caught his leg. He's back up.
5- Hartman with an acrobatic push of the ball from a corner - saving a goal, perhaps.
10- On both ends, teams have chances, but shots are blocked.
12- FK for Wizards - Johnson had a shot, because the deflection fell to him. He was wide of the goal by a few feet. He'll regret that one. Going the other way, DeRosario puts one over the ball that he'll aslo regret. Yikes. The goal was open on that one.
15- Houston working the ball around very comfortably. They don't seem panicked. Jaqua finally shoots, but it's wide.
16- KC the other way - EJ misses the sliding shot. A cross to Ching in front of the goal barely misses.
21- Hatman comes way off his line to punch a ball out - looks like he might have hurt his shoulder.
23- Ching had another shot - wide. He's mad at himself now.
25- It's weird to see Houston play without Rico Clark. I keep expecting to see him. Dom Kinnear is getting really chatty with the officials. He's not happy about something.
29-Crazy - Houston had seemingly six players in the box and couldn't get the shot off. Ching tries another shot, but this one is also wide. The Dynamo are all over the Wizards, but the scoreboard doesn't show that yet.
32- Dynamo players are doing a good job of pushing the ball up in front of the attack, but they hesitate in front of the goal and the Wizards keep poking the ball away. They can't keep getting away with that kind of last-ditch defending. Can they?
34- DeRosario shot - Hartman parries. Good on both counts, but again, it took too long for DeRosario to pull the trigger.
35- GOAL! Jaqua can use his his freaking head! Eddie Robinson distracts and Jaqua elevates to put the ball in.
38- Game opens up a bit. Kansas City is finally moving up - which leaves space for Houston to counter.
40- EJ should not be dribbling the ball upfield. Where is Carlos Marinelli?
41- Jair Marrufo pulls a yellow for Jaqua after he fouls Jack Jewsbury. That was a hard forearm- could easily have been a red and changed the game completely.
44- Jewsbury could be unconcious. He's been down for minutes. He finally walks off the field. Chris Sullivan diagnoses a tweaked neck from the booth.
45+ NO GOAL - Hartman spilled the ball from Mullen's shot, but DeRosario was offsides on the follow.
The game has nearly been all Houston, but I wonder - considering how the earlier series against Dallas changed so much after the Arturo Alvarez red card, what would have happened if Marrufo had pulled the red card on Jaqua?
2nd half
50- Marinelli is on. KC still doesn't look terribly dangerous, though.
54- Kansas City was really an attacking team early this season, but I simply don't see that now.
56- Nick Garcia gets a yellow. He argues with Marrufo, because it sure looked like he was the one who got kicked. In the but, no less.
57- Mullen comes in from behind on Harrington, but there's no call. KC is going to complain about the calls after this game.
58- Marinelli with a pretty pointless yellow. I guess KC figures they're not getting the calls, they're going to get revenge.
61- KC with a nice little sequence, but it doesn't quite cumulate in a shot on goal.
63- CK for Houston - finally ends up in a goal kick for KC.
65- KC can't get a touch on the ball in front of goal, though it's bouncing all round then.
69- Dvis crosses in front of goal, ball is loose, but it is finally corralled by Hartman. Ching is down on the grass, but he looks just shaken up. Actually, I was wrong. Ching limps off and Joe Ngwenya comes in.
73- FK from way out. Marinelli takes, it sneaks wide of the far post.
74- Apparently Ching complained of a "pop". It could be his tendon, which is bad, but it could be an exhausted muscle, which is no biggie.
77- Conrad nearly scores an own goal - he cuts off DeRosario's cross, and nearly puts it into net. The corner kick yields an awkward bicycle kick from Jaqua, but KC finally gets a goal kick.
80- DeRo nearly reaches a long pass, but it gets cut off.
81- GOAL! Houston gets the ball back and DeRo slots a low shot past Hartman. I'm watching the game with three other people. "Too slow," says one of Hartman. "Too old," says another. "Too lazy," says one. Any which way, Hartman's reflexes weren't up to snuff there.
84- KC is going for a goal of honor here.
86- Shot of KC's assistant coach looking super-pissed on the sidelines about the calls versus KC.
87- Columbano with a chip pass to EJ, but EJ can't connect. He's just not playing with confidence right now.
90- Weirdly, KC is dribbling away from goal. Oh, finally the ball goes in. And gets cleared out. Falls to Johnson outside the box and he fires over the goal.
90+ It's all over but the shouting. Holden on the break - Babyface gets fouled. FK. Davis doesn't even shoot for goal. They're just looking to secure the win, running out the clock.
Arnaud with a fed-up foul on Davis. Ngwenya takes the ball to the corner, running out the clock.
It's done!
REMATCH. NE and Houston for the Cup. It's deja-vu all over again in RFK.
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Houston's Stuart Holden looks like such a baby in in interview, but he is enthusiastic about the match. Craig Waibel is interviewed next - the tough defender admits speed is not his forte, but explains he is able to out-think most opponents.
I'm glad that DeRosario dances when he scores. I think that's a nice touch of flair more players should try. I wish I liked his dance better, though.
Kevin Hartman! The Wizards goalkeeper is interviewed. He gives a shout-out to his daughter, Chloe. He says that the team is ready for the pressure. EJ is on talking about how his team gets "no respect".
Word on the street is that EJ is moving to England. I hope he gets more playing time than Bobby Convey or Benny Feilhaber are getting right now.
Hey, it's Lalas at the Ruud Gullit presser. Now they're showing the Dynamo cheerleaders. Oh, and a Brian Ching interview. He says the team is excited. They should be. They have a sell-out crowd on hand. His playoff beard is still pretty sparse, but hey, it didn't matter last year.
Teams march out to the field. The crowd looks great - a lot of orange. Gullit would feel comfy.
Maybe it's just me pulling for the underdog, but I think that the Wizards could pull this game out.
Clips from the misty night where Kansas City held off Chivas USA. Hartman and Pat Onstad are being profiled. Onstad is a success story from the USL. Heartwarming stuff.
2- Wizards seem to have conceded the midfield. They have two forwards, but everyone else is back.
3- Mullan is on the ground - EJ's cleat caught his leg. He's back up.
5- Hartman with an acrobatic push of the ball from a corner - saving a goal, perhaps.
10- On both ends, teams have chances, but shots are blocked.
12- FK for Wizards - Johnson had a shot, because the deflection fell to him. He was wide of the goal by a few feet. He'll regret that one. Going the other way, DeRosario puts one over the ball that he'll aslo regret. Yikes. The goal was open on that one.
15- Houston working the ball around very comfortably. They don't seem panicked. Jaqua finally shoots, but it's wide.
16- KC the other way - EJ misses the sliding shot. A cross to Ching in front of the goal barely misses.
21- Hatman comes way off his line to punch a ball out - looks like he might have hurt his shoulder.
23- Ching had another shot - wide. He's mad at himself now.
25- It's weird to see Houston play without Rico Clark. I keep expecting to see him. Dom Kinnear is getting really chatty with the officials. He's not happy about something.
29-Crazy - Houston had seemingly six players in the box and couldn't get the shot off. Ching tries another shot, but this one is also wide. The Dynamo are all over the Wizards, but the scoreboard doesn't show that yet.
32- Dynamo players are doing a good job of pushing the ball up in front of the attack, but they hesitate in front of the goal and the Wizards keep poking the ball away. They can't keep getting away with that kind of last-ditch defending. Can they?
34- DeRosario shot - Hartman parries. Good on both counts, but again, it took too long for DeRosario to pull the trigger.
35- GOAL! Jaqua can use his his freaking head! Eddie Robinson distracts and Jaqua elevates to put the ball in.
38- Game opens up a bit. Kansas City is finally moving up - which leaves space for Houston to counter.
40- EJ should not be dribbling the ball upfield. Where is Carlos Marinelli?
41- Jair Marrufo pulls a yellow for Jaqua after he fouls Jack Jewsbury. That was a hard forearm- could easily have been a red and changed the game completely.
44- Jewsbury could be unconcious. He's been down for minutes. He finally walks off the field. Chris Sullivan diagnoses a tweaked neck from the booth.
45+ NO GOAL - Hartman spilled the ball from Mullen's shot, but DeRosario was offsides on the follow.
The game has nearly been all Houston, but I wonder - considering how the earlier series against Dallas changed so much after the Arturo Alvarez red card, what would have happened if Marrufo had pulled the red card on Jaqua?
2nd half
50- Marinelli is on. KC still doesn't look terribly dangerous, though.
54- Kansas City was really an attacking team early this season, but I simply don't see that now.
56- Nick Garcia gets a yellow. He argues with Marrufo, because it sure looked like he was the one who got kicked. In the but, no less.
57- Mullen comes in from behind on Harrington, but there's no call. KC is going to complain about the calls after this game.
58- Marinelli with a pretty pointless yellow. I guess KC figures they're not getting the calls, they're going to get revenge.
61- KC with a nice little sequence, but it doesn't quite cumulate in a shot on goal.
63- CK for Houston - finally ends up in a goal kick for KC.
65- KC can't get a touch on the ball in front of goal, though it's bouncing all round then.
69- Dvis crosses in front of goal, ball is loose, but it is finally corralled by Hartman. Ching is down on the grass, but he looks just shaken up. Actually, I was wrong. Ching limps off and Joe Ngwenya comes in.
73- FK from way out. Marinelli takes, it sneaks wide of the far post.
74- Apparently Ching complained of a "pop". It could be his tendon, which is bad, but it could be an exhausted muscle, which is no biggie.
77- Conrad nearly scores an own goal - he cuts off DeRosario's cross, and nearly puts it into net. The corner kick yields an awkward bicycle kick from Jaqua, but KC finally gets a goal kick.
80- DeRo nearly reaches a long pass, but it gets cut off.
81- GOAL! Houston gets the ball back and DeRo slots a low shot past Hartman. I'm watching the game with three other people. "Too slow," says one of Hartman. "Too old," says another. "Too lazy," says one. Any which way, Hartman's reflexes weren't up to snuff there.
84- KC is going for a goal of honor here.
86- Shot of KC's assistant coach looking super-pissed on the sidelines about the calls versus KC.
87- Columbano with a chip pass to EJ, but EJ can't connect. He's just not playing with confidence right now.
90- Weirdly, KC is dribbling away from goal. Oh, finally the ball goes in. And gets cleared out. Falls to Johnson outside the box and he fires over the goal.
90+ It's all over but the shouting. Holden on the break - Babyface gets fouled. FK. Davis doesn't even shoot for goal. They're just looking to secure the win, running out the clock.
Arnaud with a fed-up foul on Davis. Ngwenya takes the ball to the corner, running out the clock.
It's done!
REMATCH. NE and Houston for the Cup. It's deja-vu all over again in RFK.
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Landon may go
I've been fielding emails from fans about Landon Donovan and whether he'll stay in Los Angeles. They fall into two groups.
"Please tell me Landon isn't leaving! The Galaxy need him."
"Please tell me that whiner is on his way out."
Right now, I can't make either group happy. I asked Alexi Lalas (not going anywhere right now, stop asking that one) if Ruud Gullit has carte blanche on player decisions, such as whether or not to keep Donovan. Lalas said, "Of course."
Landon himself has spouted the line, "I'm not going anywhere." I don't think he is saying he can't be traded, though. He probably means he's not looking to move, he hasn't asked for a trade and that despite Yallop leaving, he'd like to stay. After all, Landon acknowledges here that he could be gone. "Or they'll get rid of me," and "I wouldn't doubt anything" are pretty telling statements.
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"Please tell me Landon isn't leaving! The Galaxy need him."
"Please tell me that whiner is on his way out."
Right now, I can't make either group happy. I asked Alexi Lalas (not going anywhere right now, stop asking that one) if Ruud Gullit has carte blanche on player decisions, such as whether or not to keep Donovan. Lalas said, "Of course."
Landon himself has spouted the line, "I'm not going anywhere." I don't think he is saying he can't be traded, though. He probably means he's not looking to move, he hasn't asked for a trade and that despite Yallop leaving, he'd like to stay. After all, Landon acknowledges here that he could be gone. "Or they'll get rid of me," and "I wouldn't doubt anything" are pretty telling statements.
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Off to see the Wizards
In 2000, the Kansas City Wizards won the MLS Cup championship, in large part on the strength of Tony Meola in goal.
The assumption from many is that Houston will win today and set up a rematch of last year's championship, but I've seen Houston start off slowly in both their playoff games this year. Maybe the rush of goals towards the end of the Dallas game got that out of their system, but I'm skeptical. I also think that Kansas City is building the kind of teamwork and momentum that a squad needs to pull off this kind of upset.
Their current goalkeeper, Kevin Hartman, talked about some of those aspects - guys stepping up to do the little things - after the series win against Chivas USA.
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The assumption from many is that Houston will win today and set up a rematch of last year's championship, but I've seen Houston start off slowly in both their playoff games this year. Maybe the rush of goals towards the end of the Dallas game got that out of their system, but I'm skeptical. I also think that Kansas City is building the kind of teamwork and momentum that a squad needs to pull off this kind of upset.
Their current goalkeeper, Kevin Hartman, talked about some of those aspects - guys stepping up to do the little things - after the series win against Chivas USA.
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Cobi's big hint
Sometimes in this job, I'm left just kicking myself (unintended soccer writer pun) when I fail to put together some fairly obvious signs.
This latest one is especially depressing because not only did I have a huge hint to help me along, but I also did put most of it together. After the Galaxy/Hollywood United match, I interviewed Cobi Jones for a brief period. I asked him about considering future options and he said that there were some within the next few weeks that he was looking at.
The news about Frank Yallop leaving the team broke around then.
I figured that it couldn't be coincidental, and wondered if Cobi was being interviewed for the head coaching position. Knowing how close he'd been with Mauricio Cienfuegos, another Galaxy legend who has also mentioned that he'd be interested in coaching, I thought maybe the two would team up. Cienfuegos was also at the match, by the way.
Then the rumor mill started heating up with word of Ruud Gullit - so I modified my speculation. I guessed Cobi would be an assistant.
I mentioned this to my editor when I was working on the Gullit piece, but he rightly pointed out that I needed to get confirmation before writing that into the article. Unfortunately, I couldn't get any confirmation, but I regret now that I didn't put a blurb up here at least.
I mean, all year long (until his Vegas trip) Luis has beaten me in predicting the outcome of MLS games, so here I had the chance to salvage some pride by prognosticating a big story, and I blew it.
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This latest one is especially depressing because not only did I have a huge hint to help me along, but I also did put most of it together. After the Galaxy/Hollywood United match, I interviewed Cobi Jones for a brief period. I asked him about considering future options and he said that there were some within the next few weeks that he was looking at.
The news about Frank Yallop leaving the team broke around then.
I figured that it couldn't be coincidental, and wondered if Cobi was being interviewed for the head coaching position. Knowing how close he'd been with Mauricio Cienfuegos, another Galaxy legend who has also mentioned that he'd be interested in coaching, I thought maybe the two would team up. Cienfuegos was also at the match, by the way.
Then the rumor mill started heating up with word of Ruud Gullit - so I modified my speculation. I guessed Cobi would be an assistant.
I mentioned this to my editor when I was working on the Gullit piece, but he rightly pointed out that I needed to get confirmation before writing that into the article. Unfortunately, I couldn't get any confirmation, but I regret now that I didn't put a blurb up here at least.
I mean, all year long (until his Vegas trip) Luis has beaten me in predicting the outcome of MLS games, so here I had the chance to salvage some pride by prognosticating a big story, and I blew it.
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Does it matter?
I don't think I made a huge deal of it in my espn.com article, but I did mention that Ruud Gullit is of African ethnic heritage, and that he is the first such head coach in MLS history.
Some people apparently didn't think that should even be a point. I got a couple of emails that basically told me that information should have been left out.
With regards to his African ethnicity, as you no doubt are aware, he is multi-racial. His real name is Ruud Dil. At the time of his birth in Amsterdam, his father, George, was married. Ironically, his current wife is the niece of Johan Cruyff.
I recall an interesting quote from his days at AC Milan:
"We all decided to speak Italian to each other to ease our transition." (Van Basten and Rijkaard).
While diversity in MLS is important, coaching quality, regardless of skin color or ethnic background, is more integral if the league is to develop and prosper.
Another emailed;
Just wanted to share that he is actually from Suriname (a country in South America and a former Dutch colony) and not of African descent.
yes, he has cool hair (and had awesome dreadlocks back in the 80s), but I think if you ask him, he would probably shy away from claiming himself as the "first African anything" in MLS.
As a fan, I am happy to see many players of African descent play and shine in MLS (e.g. Jozy Altidore (Haiti), Joseph Ingwena (Nigeria), Sharlie Joseph (Grenada). But sometimes it's nice not to think about the whole race thing....I mean america, we are just to hammered by it all over the place. It seems like a non-issue in MLS. we have south american (moreno, conde), asian (alex yee), jewish (jonathan bornstein) and many other ethniticities/cultural groups. it's great because the world of soccer has achieved this level of diversity because the passion for soccer runs in so many communities....but sometimes it's just nice not to make an issue of it.
The thing is, I do think it matters (Also, Suriname, like the American South at one point, had heavy African immigration for labor purposes). Gullit has never shied away from his African roots or his support of black players. There's nothing wrong with noting the league has reached a milestone that could one day become instrumental in attracting more minorities to soccer in the U.S. I'm not saying Gullit is going to change the fact that most African-Americans aren't very interested in soccer all by himself, but yes, I do think his hiring makes at least a slight difference.
What do our readers think?
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Some people apparently didn't think that should even be a point. I got a couple of emails that basically told me that information should have been left out.
With regards to his African ethnicity, as you no doubt are aware, he is multi-racial. His real name is Ruud Dil. At the time of his birth in Amsterdam, his father, George, was married. Ironically, his current wife is the niece of Johan Cruyff.
I recall an interesting quote from his days at AC Milan:
"We all decided to speak Italian to each other to ease our transition." (Van Basten and Rijkaard).
While diversity in MLS is important, coaching quality, regardless of skin color or ethnic background, is more integral if the league is to develop and prosper.
Another emailed;
Just wanted to share that he is actually from Suriname (a country in South America and a former Dutch colony) and not of African descent.
yes, he has cool hair (and had awesome dreadlocks back in the 80s), but I think if you ask him, he would probably shy away from claiming himself as the "first African anything" in MLS.
As a fan, I am happy to see many players of African descent play and shine in MLS (e.g. Jozy Altidore (Haiti), Joseph Ingwena (Nigeria), Sharlie Joseph (Grenada). But sometimes it's nice not to think about the whole race thing....I mean america, we are just to hammered by it all over the place. It seems like a non-issue in MLS. we have south american (moreno, conde), asian (alex yee), jewish (jonathan bornstein) and many other ethniticities/cultural groups. it's great because the world of soccer has achieved this level of diversity because the passion for soccer runs in so many communities....but sometimes it's just nice not to make an issue of it.
The thing is, I do think it matters (Also, Suriname, like the American South at one point, had heavy African immigration for labor purposes). Gullit has never shied away from his African roots or his support of black players. There's nothing wrong with noting the league has reached a milestone that could one day become instrumental in attracting more minorities to soccer in the U.S. I'm not saying Gullit is going to change the fact that most African-Americans aren't very interested in soccer all by himself, but yes, I do think his hiring makes at least a slight difference.
What do our readers think?
Read more...
Friday, November 9, 2007
Frank wants a job
No, not Yallop. Frank Leboeuf is interested in coaching an MLS team. He came to the Galaxy press conference, perhaps to get a glimpse as to how a foreign coach is treated in MLS.
"I called him; I wanted him to come, but it was his wife's birthday, so he couldn't make it."
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"I really want to be involved in any way – more as a general manager or perhaps as a coach. I do have some experience, which hopefully the MLS would realize that they might need."
Frank also cleared up the mystery of where Youri Djorkaeff was on the day of the Galaxy/Hollywood United charity match, since Djorkaeff was mentioned on an early list of participants."I called him; I wanted him to come, but it was his wife's birthday, so he couldn't make it."
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Taking on the media
Ruud Gullit answered a host of questions for the press. This one concerned David Beckham leaving the team to play for England.
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New coaching staff
Ruud and his new assistant, Cobi Jones, looking serious. Ruud was cracking jokes in the presser, though, about how hard it would be for Cobi to give up playing.
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Pick an international
MLS teams that may envy the Galaxy's new hire should be aware that other foreign coaches are available. Besides Bora, there's also Richard Gough, who had a brief coaching spell at a small team in Scotland. Anyway, Gough was at the Galaxy/Hollywood United charity game. He was direct in his opinions, telling me what he thought of Beckham coming to MLS, as well as what he thinks of MLS in general. Apparently, he's not doing much these days, either.
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Waltzing Wizards
I don't expect many KC fans to be happy with my latest SI column.
But facts are facts: KC's defense was bad all season long. Their playoff run has been fueled by a bunker mentality. KC hung on for dear life after winning their home leg 1-0. Funny thing how both Dallas and Chicago actually did something offensively in their second legs and didn't resort to dropping everyone behind the ball from the third minute on.
That's all well and good. Do what you can to get a win, right? Well, we'll see how that works against Houston when they can't hid all game long.
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But facts are facts: KC's defense was bad all season long. Their playoff run has been fueled by a bunker mentality. KC hung on for dear life after winning their home leg 1-0. Funny thing how both Dallas and Chicago actually did something offensively in their second legs and didn't resort to dropping everyone behind the ball from the third minute on.
That's all well and good. Do what you can to get a win, right? Well, we'll see how that works against Houston when they can't hid all game long.
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The latest
Hot off the press, folks! I love our little blog, but it's fun when articles make it into print. It just feels more solid, somehow. Plus, they pay better. Club America's new coach is the cover boy for Futbol Mundial here, but I've got some other info inside. Marcelo Bielsa, The Women's World Cup fiasco, and Mauricio Caranta (Boca Jrs) are also hot topics in this issue.
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Ruud reaction
An interesting email came in:
Andrea,
Gullit won't last more than a season in LA.
He's a larger than life character, very outspoken and with an ego to match his stature as
one of the best players of the past two decades.
He was a much, much better player than Beckham and infinitely better than that loudmouth Lalas, so you know who'll be governor of LA.
Don't be surprised if Ruud benches both Beckham and your favorite player Donovan.
He's very capable of doing that. Just ask Allan Shearer at Newcastle.
Gullit was outstanding at Chelsea but was ultimately sacked for bringing in too many Black players. At one point up to seven of his starting line-up was Black. The official line was that he had a falling out with the chairman over his contract demands. But Gullit denied that.
Ditto at Feyernoord where Solomon Kalou first flourished . Too many Black players by the former Dreadlocked icon cost him his job.
How do I know this? I'm African and know players who played for Ruud, who dedicated his 1987 World Player of the Year award to the then incarcerated Nelson Mandela.
Ruud is a Dutch freethinker who's not beholden to anyone.
Remember how he walked out on the Dutch squad on the eve of the 1994 World Cup finals? He won't suffer fools (read Lalas) easily.
LA is about to become a very exciting place!
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Andrea,
Gullit won't last more than a season in LA.
He's a larger than life character, very outspoken and with an ego to match his stature as
one of the best players of the past two decades.
He was a much, much better player than Beckham and infinitely better than that loudmouth Lalas, so you know who'll be governor of LA.
Don't be surprised if Ruud benches both Beckham and your favorite player Donovan.
He's very capable of doing that. Just ask Allan Shearer at Newcastle.
Gullit was outstanding at Chelsea but was ultimately sacked for bringing in too many Black players. At one point up to seven of his starting line-up was Black. The official line was that he had a falling out with the chairman over his contract demands. But Gullit denied that.
Ditto at Feyernoord where Solomon Kalou first flourished . Too many Black players by the former Dreadlocked icon cost him his job.
How do I know this? I'm African and know players who played for Ruud, who dedicated his 1987 World Player of the Year award to the then incarcerated Nelson Mandela.
Ruud is a Dutch freethinker who's not beholden to anyone.
Remember how he walked out on the Dutch squad on the eve of the 1994 World Cup finals? He won't suffer fools (read Lalas) easily.
LA is about to become a very exciting place!
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Almost a go
The US national team's roster for the final USMNT match of the year is nearly set as a 17-man roster was released this morning for the Nov. 17 match in South Africa.
Bob Bradley will fill out his roster following Saturday's game between Kansas City and Houston.
Okay, here's the roster and then my thoughts.
GK: Brad Guzan, Tim Howard
D: Carlos Bocanegra, Jonathan Bornstein, Steve Cherundolo, Danny Califf, Oguchi Onyewu
M: Freddy Adu, DaMarcus Beasley, Michael Bradley, Maurice Edu, Benny Feilhaber, Sacha Kljestan, Eddie Lewis
F: Jozy Altidore, Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan
The best thing about this roster is the inclusion of Jozy Altidore. Many - including myself - had clamored for Altidore to receive a call to the national team, and it finally happened. It's a deserving albeit overdue call. Now the hope is that Altidore can do enough in training to earn some playing time.
It's also encouraging to see Sacha Kljestan and Maurice Edu on the list. Kljestan had a standout campaign but hasn't been a part of the US since Copa America. Edu, meanwhile, did tremendously in the midfield against Switzerland.
It remains to be seen who else will fill out the roster though I've got to believe it will either be Eddie Johnson or Brian Ching. If it's more than an 18-man list, perhaps we'll see Chris Rolfe included in the team.
I don't really see any glaring omissions here. Everybody's favorite backup left back Heath Pearce isn't around to carry Jonny B's luggage around. But that guy is just filler anyway. I don't know, maybe it's because I haven't had my coffee this morning that I don't see any overlooked players.
Please feel free to leave your thoughts on the roster and who, if anyone, is missing.
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Bob Bradley will fill out his roster following Saturday's game between Kansas City and Houston.
Okay, here's the roster and then my thoughts.
GK: Brad Guzan, Tim Howard
D: Carlos Bocanegra, Jonathan Bornstein, Steve Cherundolo, Danny Califf, Oguchi Onyewu
M: Freddy Adu, DaMarcus Beasley, Michael Bradley, Maurice Edu, Benny Feilhaber, Sacha Kljestan, Eddie Lewis
F: Jozy Altidore, Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan
The best thing about this roster is the inclusion of Jozy Altidore. Many - including myself - had clamored for Altidore to receive a call to the national team, and it finally happened. It's a deserving albeit overdue call. Now the hope is that Altidore can do enough in training to earn some playing time.
It's also encouraging to see Sacha Kljestan and Maurice Edu on the list. Kljestan had a standout campaign but hasn't been a part of the US since Copa America. Edu, meanwhile, did tremendously in the midfield against Switzerland.
It remains to be seen who else will fill out the roster though I've got to believe it will either be Eddie Johnson or Brian Ching. If it's more than an 18-man list, perhaps we'll see Chris Rolfe included in the team.
I don't really see any glaring omissions here. Everybody's favorite backup left back Heath Pearce isn't around to carry Jonny B's luggage around. But that guy is just filler anyway. I don't know, maybe it's because I haven't had my coffee this morning that I don't see any overlooked players.
Please feel free to leave your thoughts on the roster and who, if anyone, is missing.
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Thursday, November 8, 2007
Who? Gullit!
The Dutch heritage in Los Angeles continues - Rinus Michels coached here, Johan Cruyef played here, and now the new guy, Ruud.
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Chicago- NE running blog
OK, I'm picking it up now. Sorry, was busy earlier.
33 - Blanco freekick. It's a bit far out and doesn't trouble Reis much.
35- Twellman gets a foul - he wants yellow, doesn't get it.
37- This is a fast-paced game so far. Back and forth. Wanchope missed the best chance earlier. The field looks cold. Believe it or not, it's not very warm in Los Angeles right now, but I'm sure it's nothing compared to New England. Kevin Stott with a late call on Jeff Lawrentowitz.
38- GOAL! Taylor Twellman! FOR FREAKING REAL. For once, it's not a toe-poke or a header. He bicycle-kicks it into the goal. Sweet stuff.
40- Wynalda complains about "dangerous play". MLS should be more dangerous.
41- If history holds true, that's the only goal New England should need. On the other hand, those Chicago teams of the past didn't have Cuauhtemoc Blanco.
44- Rolfe doesn't look the same since that earlier hit.
45- Juan Carlos Osorio looks grim on the sidelines. It's a bit early for the gloom, I think. Barret tries to head a pass in the box, but Reis corrals it.
45+ Twellman in the box, but he doesn't really shake free from his defender and his sliding kick is wide.
2nd Half
Attendance looks decent, but I'm sure it's freezing, so I think perhaps 11,000.
50- Blanco complaining about a non-call. He doesn't look happy in the cold weather of New England.
51- CK for Fire. Blanco's nose is red. CK gets cleared.
55- Barrett with an outside shot, Reis smothers. Going the other way, Noonan puts it over the bar.
66- Barrett, Wanchope miscommunication in the box led to a weak header.
68- Twellman with a chip attempt, but Matt Pickens is tall. On the other end, Wanchope's header is over the bar.
70- Conde is yelling at the ref. He's pissed.
72- Khano Smith's speed giving Logan Pause problems.
74- Wynalda is calling for a sub - I'm wondering where Calen Carr is myself. Oooh, Segares from outside. Surprised Reis, but he catches it.
75- NE fans wanted a handball there.
80- Twellman down in the box. He wants a call. He isn't going to get it.
82- Chicago is frustrated. I'm frustrated. Where are the subs? Oh, here comes James Riley.
84- Noonan in the box - but Pickens saves his shot.
85- Rolfe long shot - almost! Reis touches it for a corner, but NE clears. Adam Cristman is on for Pat Noonan.
90+ Chicago is out of time. NE holds the ball well. Reis had one last save to keep the result.
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33 - Blanco freekick. It's a bit far out and doesn't trouble Reis much.
35- Twellman gets a foul - he wants yellow, doesn't get it.
37- This is a fast-paced game so far. Back and forth. Wanchope missed the best chance earlier. The field looks cold. Believe it or not, it's not very warm in Los Angeles right now, but I'm sure it's nothing compared to New England. Kevin Stott with a late call on Jeff Lawrentowitz.
38- GOAL! Taylor Twellman! FOR FREAKING REAL. For once, it's not a toe-poke or a header. He bicycle-kicks it into the goal. Sweet stuff.
40- Wynalda complains about "dangerous play". MLS should be more dangerous.
41- If history holds true, that's the only goal New England should need. On the other hand, those Chicago teams of the past didn't have Cuauhtemoc Blanco.
44- Rolfe doesn't look the same since that earlier hit.
45- Juan Carlos Osorio looks grim on the sidelines. It's a bit early for the gloom, I think. Barret tries to head a pass in the box, but Reis corrals it.
45+ Twellman in the box, but he doesn't really shake free from his defender and his sliding kick is wide.
2nd Half
Attendance looks decent, but I'm sure it's freezing, so I think perhaps 11,000.
50- Blanco complaining about a non-call. He doesn't look happy in the cold weather of New England.
51- CK for Fire. Blanco's nose is red. CK gets cleared.
55- Barrett with an outside shot, Reis smothers. Going the other way, Noonan puts it over the bar.
66- Barrett, Wanchope miscommunication in the box led to a weak header.
68- Twellman with a chip attempt, but Matt Pickens is tall. On the other end, Wanchope's header is over the bar.
70- Conde is yelling at the ref. He's pissed.
72- Khano Smith's speed giving Logan Pause problems.
74- Wynalda is calling for a sub - I'm wondering where Calen Carr is myself. Oooh, Segares from outside. Surprised Reis, but he catches it.
75- NE fans wanted a handball there.
80- Twellman down in the box. He wants a call. He isn't going to get it.
82- Chicago is frustrated. I'm frustrated. Where are the subs? Oh, here comes James Riley.
84- Noonan in the box - but Pickens saves his shot.
85- Rolfe long shot - almost! Reis touches it for a corner, but NE clears. Adam Cristman is on for Pat Noonan.
90+ Chicago is out of time. NE holds the ball well. Reis had one last save to keep the result.
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Coach of the Year
It's the second year in a row that a Chivas USA coach has won Coach of the Year.
Last year, Bob Bradley didn't seem that thrilled to win - he was still unhappy about the loss in the playoffs. Preki probably feels somewhat the same way. Here's what he said the day the team's season ended.
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Last year, Bob Bradley didn't seem that thrilled to win - he was still unhappy about the loss in the playoffs. Preki probably feels somewhat the same way. Here's what he said the day the team's season ended.
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Wednesday, November 7, 2007
America over Millonarios
America took the first leg of their Copa Sudamericana series against Millonarios by 3-2 in Colombia.
Now, America needs just a draw in the return leg next week to advance to the final, which would be their first-ever in a South American cup tournament.
America has a league match on the weekend - a Saturday date in Monterrey - so the club will be quite busy in the coming days and weeks. Trying to play in both tournaments might be costly - it might knock the club out from both. But if America focuses on one tourney, they may have a shot of winning it at the expense of the other.
The domestic campaign is not a strong one, though America has a foot in the repechaje, or wild-card, stage. Going for domestic glory is always a must. However, if international success is within reach, it might not be a bad idea to go full guns blazing in that tourney either.
America has the roster to field strong teams in both tournaments. Playing the same 11 could eventually catch up to las Aguilas.
It's a quandary new coach Daniel "Ruso" Brailovsky must face. It may be best if Ruso plays his top players in Sudamericana and uses a mix of backups and those who can get away with playing every 3-4 days (Memo Ochoa, Juan Carlos Mosqueda) in league.
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Now, America needs just a draw in the return leg next week to advance to the final, which would be their first-ever in a South American cup tournament.
America has a league match on the weekend - a Saturday date in Monterrey - so the club will be quite busy in the coming days and weeks. Trying to play in both tournaments might be costly - it might knock the club out from both. But if America focuses on one tourney, they may have a shot of winning it at the expense of the other.
The domestic campaign is not a strong one, though America has a foot in the repechaje, or wild-card, stage. Going for domestic glory is always a must. However, if international success is within reach, it might not be a bad idea to go full guns blazing in that tourney either.
America has the roster to field strong teams in both tournaments. Playing the same 11 could eventually catch up to las Aguilas.
It's a quandary new coach Daniel "Ruso" Brailovsky must face. It may be best if Ruso plays his top players in Sudamericana and uses a mix of backups and those who can get away with playing every 3-4 days (Memo Ochoa, Juan Carlos Mosqueda) in league.
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Chivas vs Chivas USA
A friendly for a good cause.
According to MedioTiempo.com, Chivas and Chivas USA will play a friendly in Estadio Jalisco for the benefit of flood victims in Tabasco.
The Red-and-White against los rojiblancos. I didn't think it'd happen until they were forced to, like if they ever crossed paths in an international tournament, but it seems anything can happen when charity is involved.
I wonder if it'll be a true friendly or if players will mix teams, like you get Omar Bravo and Maykel Galindo on one team and Ante Razov and Sergio Santana on another. It'll be interesting nonetheless.
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According to MedioTiempo.com, Chivas and Chivas USA will play a friendly in Estadio Jalisco for the benefit of flood victims in Tabasco.
The Red-and-White against los rojiblancos. I didn't think it'd happen until they were forced to, like if they ever crossed paths in an international tournament, but it seems anything can happen when charity is involved.
I wonder if it'll be a true friendly or if players will mix teams, like you get Omar Bravo and Maykel Galindo on one team and Ante Razov and Sergio Santana on another. It'll be interesting nonetheless.
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Bruce in the booth
What I find interesting is that for someone who seemed convinced that he was an excellent coach, Bruce Arena doesn't appear that eager to get back into the coaching mix. When Bob Bradley was let go by New York, he didn't hesitate to jump at the next opportunity. Chivas USA turned out to be a smart move, because Bradley was able to rehab his resume just in time to take on the USMNT job.
Yet from what I hear, some observers believe Arena isn't even really looking - that he'd rather continue a broadcast career instead of coaching. Or maybe he'll become a soccer journalist. He sneeringly suggested at the World Cup that such a job would be very easy for him to do.
Part of me would like to see Arena try it - just like I was hoping he'd coach in MLS again, so his arrogance could have to deal with the reality that it's not as easy as he thinks.
However, the broadcasting career is more likely, because Arena's already done that before. I'm curious as to what readers who have heard him think of his talents in that regard. Should Arena go back to the booth?
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Yet from what I hear, some observers believe Arena isn't even really looking - that he'd rather continue a broadcast career instead of coaching. Or maybe he'll become a soccer journalist. He sneeringly suggested at the World Cup that such a job would be very easy for him to do.
Part of me would like to see Arena try it - just like I was hoping he'd coach in MLS again, so his arrogance could have to deal with the reality that it's not as easy as he thinks.
However, the broadcasting career is more likely, because Arena's already done that before. I'm curious as to what readers who have heard him think of his talents in that regard. Should Arena go back to the booth?
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Talkety Talk
Sasha Victorine on KC.
Klejestan on KC: We didn’t give them any respect? They sit back and defend the whole time.
Preki on KC: I know we’re a better team.
Marsch on KC: They do way too much talking and not enough playing. They have five or six guys who spent that series talking and talking. We approached this series in an honest way. We wound up losing, but I feel that the better team did not advance.
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Klejestan on KC: We didn’t give them any respect? They sit back and defend the whole time.
Preki on KC: I know we’re a better team.
Marsch on KC: They do way too much talking and not enough playing. They have five or six guys who spent that series talking and talking. We approached this series in an honest way. We wound up losing, but I feel that the better team did not advance.
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Nemesio's help
For America, the road to the Copa Sudamericana final won't go through Estadio Azteca. Instead, it will have to pass through Toluca's Nemesio Diez.
A religious event apparently has forced a change of venue for America's home leg of the Copa Sudamericana semifinals against Colombian side Millonarios.
The first leg of the series is tonight in Colombia, which has already caused some sort of violence. Apparently groups of fans were enraged that they were unable to get tickets and started some sort of fracas in which police had to intervene.
As for the game itself, America played reserves against Necaxa on Sunday in order to rest its players for today. Here are some probable lineups from MedioTiempo.com:
América: Guillermo Ochoa; José Antonio Castro, Duilio Davino, Ricardo Rojas, Oscar Rojas; Germán Villa, Alejandro Argüello, Federico Insúa, Juan Mosqueda; Rodrigo López, Salvador Cabañas.
Of those, only Mosqueda started on Sunday, and America still won, 1-0.
As for the Colombian side's potential lineup:
Millonarios: Eduardo Blandón; Andrés Salinas, Gonzálo MartÃnez, Andrés Mosquera, Alex DÃaz, Ervin González, Rafael Robayo, Gerardo Bedoya, Jonathan Estrada, Ricardo Ciciliano, Carlos Villagra.
Read more...
A religious event apparently has forced a change of venue for America's home leg of the Copa Sudamericana semifinals against Colombian side Millonarios.
The first leg of the series is tonight in Colombia, which has already caused some sort of violence. Apparently groups of fans were enraged that they were unable to get tickets and started some sort of fracas in which police had to intervene.
As for the game itself, America played reserves against Necaxa on Sunday in order to rest its players for today. Here are some probable lineups from MedioTiempo.com:
América: Guillermo Ochoa; José Antonio Castro, Duilio Davino, Ricardo Rojas, Oscar Rojas; Germán Villa, Alejandro Argüello, Federico Insúa, Juan Mosqueda; Rodrigo López, Salvador Cabañas.
Of those, only Mosqueda started on Sunday, and America still won, 1-0.
As for the Colombian side's potential lineup:
Millonarios: Eduardo Blandón; Andrés Salinas, Gonzálo MartÃnez, Andrés Mosquera, Alex DÃaz, Ervin González, Rafael Robayo, Gerardo Bedoya, Jonathan Estrada, Ricardo Ciciliano, Carlos Villagra.
Read more...
Back to normal
Frank Yallop's out of LA and thus out of the limelight and that seems to suit him just fine, at least according to Ann Killion of the San Jose Mercury News.
One of the highlights of the column:
"He is an experienced and popular coach who will, with the assistance of (John) Doyle, put together a functional soccer team.
"(Frank) Yallop never got that chance in two seasons with the L.A. Galaxy. He had to kowtow to the preposterous (Alexi) Lalas, the Galaxy's director of ridiculous thinking. And then he was handed an injured international superstar who effectively turned his team into
a three-ring circus. The low-key, no-nonsense soccer coach was ill suited to play head therapist for the traveling freak show."
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One of the highlights of the column:
"He is an experienced and popular coach who will, with the assistance of (John) Doyle, put together a functional soccer team.
"(Frank) Yallop never got that chance in two seasons with the L.A. Galaxy. He had to kowtow to the preposterous (Alexi) Lalas, the Galaxy's director of ridiculous thinking. And then he was handed an injured international superstar who effectively turned his team into
a three-ring circus. The low-key, no-nonsense soccer coach was ill suited to play head therapist for the traveling freak show."
Read more...
Pinch hitting
I got in on some Chicago Fire action yesterday for MLSnet.com. I wrote a story on the Fire as they look ahead to Thursday's semifinal against New England. Juan Carlos Osorio and Chris Armas were on a midday conference call and I jumped in on it. The call was supposed to start at 11 a.m. my time but then it was postponed an hour which really through me for a loop but I was able to get around my scheduling conflict and get this story out.
It should be a good game. I'm abstaining from making a pick because I want to enjoy it and not know the outcome before the match. This jinx is getting ridiculous. However, I did go on the record yesterday on Around the League in 90 Minutes and pick Houston over Kansas City. Sorry, Dom.
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It should be a good game. I'm abstaining from making a pick because I want to enjoy it and not know the outcome before the match. This jinx is getting ridiculous. However, I did go on the record yesterday on Around the League in 90 Minutes and pick Houston over Kansas City. Sorry, Dom.
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Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Smiles all around
It's really a bit difficult to believe how quickly everything went down between Frank Yallop, the L.A. Galaxy and the San Jose Earthquakes. I mean, just a few days ago Yallop was gainfully employed with the Galaxy, gearing up for a trip Down Under while the 'Quakes were coach-less and trying to fill the void before the Nov. 21 expansion draft.
Now, Yallop is gone as San Jose got their man. San Jose's gain is the Galaxy's loss, but just how much of a loss it really is depends on who you ask. All season long, players and Galaxy suits all said Yallop was one of the best coaches in the league. Coaches don't just become bad overnight so if nothing else the Galaxy lost a talented coach.
Seeing it, though, finally brought it home. Here's a picture of Frank Yallop with San Jose GM John Doyle after Yallop was introduced as coach of the expansion 'Quakes. Yallop in his familiar blue still seems eerie.
I was a guest on Around the League in 90 Minutes today and we talked about Yallop's move north a bit. Host Gary Richards said that Yallop seemed to have had the last laugh as he left the Galaxy pretty much hanging. And while I agree, it's also true that most of the blame for 2007 can be placed on Yallop without the coach having the chance to defend himself.
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Now, Yallop is gone as San Jose got their man. San Jose's gain is the Galaxy's loss, but just how much of a loss it really is depends on who you ask. All season long, players and Galaxy suits all said Yallop was one of the best coaches in the league. Coaches don't just become bad overnight so if nothing else the Galaxy lost a talented coach.
Seeing it, though, finally brought it home. Here's a picture of Frank Yallop with San Jose GM John Doyle after Yallop was introduced as coach of the expansion 'Quakes. Yallop in his familiar blue still seems eerie.
I was a guest on Around the League in 90 Minutes today and we talked about Yallop's move north a bit. Host Gary Richards said that Yallop seemed to have had the last laugh as he left the Galaxy pretty much hanging. And while I agree, it's also true that most of the blame for 2007 can be placed on Yallop without the coach having the chance to defend himself.
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Under-23s in SoCal
Home Depot Center will serve as site of the Olympic qualifying tournament, well, at least partially.
HDC will host three doubleheaders in a five-day span. On March 12, 14 and 16, four teams will play for the right to advance further in the qualifying tournament and possibly win a spot in Beijing.
Only the dates are certain but the US will be based in Tampa so the games out here will likely feature Mexico. The US will play their games in Tampa Bay's Raymond James Stadium.
The semifinals and final will be played in Nashville, Tenn.
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HDC will host three doubleheaders in a five-day span. On March 12, 14 and 16, four teams will play for the right to advance further in the qualifying tournament and possibly win a spot in Beijing.
Only the dates are certain but the US will be based in Tampa so the games out here will likely feature Mexico. The US will play their games in Tampa Bay's Raymond James Stadium.
The semifinals and final will be played in Nashville, Tenn.
Read more...
Yallop fall guy
I didn't really blame Frank Yallop for a lot of what went wrong this season. I felt he had a lot to deal with, with Beckham coming over, and virtually nobody to help him prepare for that. Plus, when you toss injuries into the mix it's asking a lot from anyone to survive that. Yes, he made a lot of deals and I think the Ugo-and-Herc-for-Cannon deal was not a good one but there was still enough on the team that had injuries not decimated the side could have gotten better results.
Anyway, here's my column on Yallop's resignation. I threw in Yallop's Top 10 Galaxy games which wasn't too hard a list to come up with, simply because there weren't many games to choose from. Sigi Schmid's top 10 Galaxy games, well, that might take some time to compile.
The one game that was probably number 11 that maybe should have been on there was the Galaxy's 1-0 win in Houston at Reliant on Aug. 9, 2006. That one probably should have made the list but I didn't see the game as I was in Mexico at the time and it just kind of faded away, unlike the 5-2 win in D.C. when I listened to it on the radio on the way to a Chivas USA game, goal after goal after Galaxy goal.
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Anyway, here's my column on Yallop's resignation. I threw in Yallop's Top 10 Galaxy games which wasn't too hard a list to come up with, simply because there weren't many games to choose from. Sigi Schmid's top 10 Galaxy games, well, that might take some time to compile.
The one game that was probably number 11 that maybe should have been on there was the Galaxy's 1-0 win in Houston at Reliant on Aug. 9, 2006. That one probably should have made the list but I didn't see the game as I was in Mexico at the time and it just kind of faded away, unlike the 5-2 win in D.C. when I listened to it on the radio on the way to a Chivas USA game, goal after goal after Galaxy goal.
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Anthony an owner?
Anthony LaPaglia was probably better in goal during the charity match than a lot of people expected. Not many can claim they've saved a shot from David Beckham - but LaPaglia can. He's a fan of the game in many forms and is part owner of a team in his native Australia, Sydney FC. He's also club president of Hollywood United.
Anyway, he answered questions after the game and confirmed he'd be interested in becoming an owner of an MLS team.
LaPaglia also plans to be in Australia when the Galaxy/ Sydney FC match is scheduled to take place.
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Anyway, he answered questions after the game and confirmed he'd be interested in becoming an owner of an MLS team.
LaPaglia also plans to be in Australia when the Galaxy/ Sydney FC match is scheduled to take place.
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Monday, November 5, 2007
Advance planning
Frank Yallop is gone and rumors are swirling that Steve McClaren will take over. The England coach was at Home Depot Center on Sunday presumable to scout David Beckham and gauge his fitness.
Still, if I had to speculate over a possible replacement, I'd hitch my wagon on Jurgen Klinsmann. The OC resident was spotted at Home Depot Center on multiple occasions this summer.
The Galaxy has a rich tradition of winning, but another tradition the club has is talking to future coaches while other coaches are still employed. Frank Yallop first met with the Galaxy in 2005, before the Galaxy's miracle postseason run that kept Steve Sampson around for the start of the 2006 season.
And Sampson's own hiring was rather questionable. Sigi Schmid was seemingly on solid footing until the club tied Columbus 0-0 and then Schmid was blindsided by the sacking. The next day the club suddenly hired Sampson. You don't bring in a coach like Sampson overnight. Naming an interim coach followed by a search for a coach would have been the norm, especially in the middle of the season.
And a fellow Galaxy writer recently told me, when I mentioned this topic, that the Galaxy met with Sigi while Octavio Zambrano held the job.
If Klinsi is hired, perhaps the Galaxy should change their motto to "Getting Our Ducks in a Row Since 1999."
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Still, if I had to speculate over a possible replacement, I'd hitch my wagon on Jurgen Klinsmann. The OC resident was spotted at Home Depot Center on multiple occasions this summer.
The Galaxy has a rich tradition of winning, but another tradition the club has is talking to future coaches while other coaches are still employed. Frank Yallop first met with the Galaxy in 2005, before the Galaxy's miracle postseason run that kept Steve Sampson around for the start of the 2006 season.
And Sampson's own hiring was rather questionable. Sigi Schmid was seemingly on solid footing until the club tied Columbus 0-0 and then Schmid was blindsided by the sacking. The next day the club suddenly hired Sampson. You don't bring in a coach like Sampson overnight. Naming an interim coach followed by a search for a coach would have been the norm, especially in the middle of the season.
And a fellow Galaxy writer recently told me, when I mentioned this topic, that the Galaxy met with Sigi while Octavio Zambrano held the job.
If Klinsi is hired, perhaps the Galaxy should change their motto to "Getting Our Ducks in a Row Since 1999."
Read more...
Seats are getting hotter
I'm constantly amazed by the never-ending turnover within the Mexican coaching ranks. One coach after another after another is fired during each and every season. Not sure what the count is up to this season but I think it was around five when I stopped keeping tabs.
It seems that high turnover ratio seems to be making its way north. In 2007, we've seen two of the three most successful MLS clubs as well as the league's richest team all change coaches.
This year alone, Chicago fired Dave Sarachan, New York (essentially) fired Bruce Arena and the Galaxy (didn't have to but also pretty much) fired Frank Yallop.
I don't know if it's just coincidence or whether certain teams have set their standards high or what but turnover is the word now with some MLS teams. Arena's successor will be the team's fourth (fifth if you count AB, I mean, Richie Williams) since the last part of 2005; Yallop's successor will be the Galaxy's third coach in that same time frame while DC and Chicago are each on coach number two in just the last 12 months.
And through it all, Fernando Clavijo keeps his job. Un-f-ing-believable.
Well, I guess some things never change.
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It seems that high turnover ratio seems to be making its way north. In 2007, we've seen two of the three most successful MLS clubs as well as the league's richest team all change coaches.
This year alone, Chicago fired Dave Sarachan, New York (essentially) fired Bruce Arena and the Galaxy (didn't have to but also pretty much) fired Frank Yallop.
I don't know if it's just coincidence or whether certain teams have set their standards high or what but turnover is the word now with some MLS teams. Arena's successor will be the team's fourth (fifth if you count AB, I mean, Richie Williams) since the last part of 2005; Yallop's successor will be the Galaxy's third coach in that same time frame while DC and Chicago are each on coach number two in just the last 12 months.
And through it all, Fernando Clavijo keeps his job. Un-f-ing-believable.
Well, I guess some things never change.
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Gato
When the Galaxy used to be the Galaxy, this was their 'keeper.
If there's one guy on KC I'm happy to see succeed on a personal level, it's Kevin Hartman.
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If there's one guy on KC I'm happy to see succeed on a personal level, it's Kevin Hartman.
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Becks and his battles
Some of the issues facing Beckham now include a new coach, a possible loan arrangement, and convincing McClaren to give him another go with England.
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Viv on HU
The guitarist Vivian Campbell (of Def Leppard), took part in the charity game. In this clip, he expounds on what Hollywood United is all about.
Points for anyone who can name all the Galaxy players who pass behind him while he talks.
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Points for anyone who can name all the Galaxy players who pass behind him while he talks.
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Charity begins at home
Lineups at start of game, which raised over $100,000. Frank LeBeouf is shaking Kelly Gray's hand. 
Anthony LaPaglia is shaking Beckham's hand. Lalas is shaking the hand of Kyle Veris.
David, perhaps subdued with the news of Frank's departure, conducts television interviews after the game.
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Two coaches
Both are gone from their present jobs, but one resigned to take another job, while another is unemployed after being fired.
You'd never know from the situations which coach made the playoffs. I wonder if Arena burned some bridges in New York.
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You'd never know from the situations which coach made the playoffs. I wonder if Arena burned some bridges in New York.
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Frank on Friday
Here's the little sound clip of when I talked to Frank on Friday.
(I'm out of breath because I'm in poor shape and there was some construction on nearby roads that held me up on the drive to practice, so I had to run to get to the practice before everyone left. When Frank started to talk to me, Landon Donovan was leaving, which left me torn, because I wanted to interview him, too. Landon agreed to wait, so I asked Frank one last question.)
It didn't sound to me like Frank was planning to leave the Galaxy then, but everyone knows what a difference a day makes.
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(I'm out of breath because I'm in poor shape and there was some construction on nearby roads that held me up on the drive to practice, so I had to run to get to the practice before everyone left. When Frank started to talk to me, Landon Donovan was leaving, which left me torn, because I wanted to interview him, too. Landon agreed to wait, so I asked Frank one last question.)
It didn't sound to me like Frank was planning to leave the Galaxy then, but everyone knows what a difference a day makes.
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Frank is gone
Frank Yallop has resigned from the Galaxy. He informed the players after the Hollywood United charity match in a meeting.
When the decision happened is another matter.
I talked to Frank on Friday morning, and he was still chatting about his plans for the team. Later that day, however, the Galaxy training session for Saturday was cancelled.
Some reporters with sources up north found out early Sunday that Frank had agreed to terms with San Jose. The story began leaking out from there, but many reporters, including me, only found out when David Beckham was asked in the mixed zone by one about the change. By the way, the press had to wait for Beckham for about as long as it took the entire match to be played.
Frank didn't appear for the media last night.
Speculation is high that the Galaxy allowed Frank to talk with San Jose about the coaching job because he wasn't in their plans. However, it's possible that it was a preemptive move by Frank - tired of the pressure in Los Angeles and perhaps aware that a firing could happen to him at any time with the Galaxy. With San Jose offering a comfortable three year contract, Frank could have decided to return to his old stomping grounds and forget his Galaxy days as a bad experience.
Beckham seemed genuine in his disappointment over the move, and that intersects with the one criticism he ever offered of his Real Madrid tenure, when he said it was difficult to deal with all the coaching changes the organization went through.
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When the decision happened is another matter.
I talked to Frank on Friday morning, and he was still chatting about his plans for the team. Later that day, however, the Galaxy training session for Saturday was cancelled.
Some reporters with sources up north found out early Sunday that Frank had agreed to terms with San Jose. The story began leaking out from there, but many reporters, including me, only found out when David Beckham was asked in the mixed zone by one about the change. By the way, the press had to wait for Beckham for about as long as it took the entire match to be played.
Frank didn't appear for the media last night.
Speculation is high that the Galaxy allowed Frank to talk with San Jose about the coaching job because he wasn't in their plans. However, it's possible that it was a preemptive move by Frank - tired of the pressure in Los Angeles and perhaps aware that a firing could happen to him at any time with the Galaxy. With San Jose offering a comfortable three year contract, Frank could have decided to return to his old stomping grounds and forget his Galaxy days as a bad experience.
Beckham seemed genuine in his disappointment over the move, and that intersects with the one criticism he ever offered of his Real Madrid tenure, when he said it was difficult to deal with all the coaching changes the organization went through.
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One more year
Good news for Chivas USA fans: Claudio Suarez said he wants to play one more year.
Bad news: He is uncertain if it will be in MLS.
Seems that Suarez has three standing offers to return to Mexico. He wouldn't divulge what clubs but said that he's mulling the offers.
It will come down to economics for Suarez. He said if he's in Chivas USA's plans and the front office wants him back, he'd be glad to play in MLS. But he could also stand to earn more money in Mexico, and money down there goes a lot further than money in Southern California, especially when you have a wife and children.
Suarez's contract is up so he has the freedom to negotiate terms.
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Bad news: He is uncertain if it will be in MLS.
Seems that Suarez has three standing offers to return to Mexico. He wouldn't divulge what clubs but said that he's mulling the offers.
It will come down to economics for Suarez. He said if he's in Chivas USA's plans and the front office wants him back, he'd be glad to play in MLS. But he could also stand to earn more money in Mexico, and money down there goes a lot further than money in Southern California, especially when you have a wife and children.
Suarez's contract is up so he has the freedom to negotiate terms.
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Sunday, November 4, 2007
Galaxy/United running blog
Hollywood United, that is.
This match is all for charity, folks, with the proceeds going to the ongoing efforts to help those displaced by the California wildfires.
HU starters: Anthony LaPaglia, Oliver Biaggi, Richard Gough, Frank Leboef, Alexi Lalas, Chris Henderson, Maricio Cienfuegos, Jorge Campos, Joe-Max Moore, Jason Boyce
Galaxy starters: Lance Friesz, Cobi Jones, Chris Albright, Troy Roberts, Kyle Veris, Ante Jazic, Kelly Gray, David Beckham, Israel Sesay, Carlos Pavon, Edson Buddle
3- nothing much so far - the Galaxy are actually in their own half a bit. Oh, wait, Pavon just passed to Buddle for a header attempt. Way wide. It was from way outside.
5- Cobi with a shot in the box. It deflects off a defender.
7- Beckham with a nice pass to Sesay- who wastes it with a soft pass to Buddle that is too weak and gets picked off. Galaxy flurry in United's box, but the crosses miss everybody. United clears.
9- LeBeouf tackles ball away from Cobi. HU counter get free kick. Gray clears. Sesay and Beckham lead counter.
10- GOAL! Sesay passes back to Beckham, who smacks a low shot towards goal from 25 yards. LaPaglia dives, but the ball beats him into the corner. Galaxy 1-0
13- CK Galaxy, gets cleared.
14- GOAL! Cobi still has the wheels to beat defenders to a free ball. He sends a through pass to Buddle, who breaks free of the defenders and scores calmly past LaPaglia coming out.
15- Bianchi with a hard shot towards goal. Friesz does well to catch it.
16- The Riot Squad are chanting "One more year" every tiem Cobi touches the ball.
18- Beckham serves a cgeat cross into the area, but his general manager calmly clears it out.
20- Cobi dribbles in, Beckham makes the overlapping run, but his cross overshoots Pavon.
22- GOAL! Long Beckham pass up to Pavon, who heads the ball down to Buddle, who beats Alexi and another defender and shoots from just inside the box.
23- Wynalda comes in for Campos.
24- Gray with a tackle at the top of the arc on Bianchi. FK goes over the bar.
26- Steve McClaren is here at this game, according to others in the press box. I can't see him from where I'm at.
27- GOAL! LeBeouf scores! Nice hard shot from way outside, but it got the benefit of two deflections that send Friesz scrambling and missing on his dive as the ball made it to the side netting.
29- Joe-Max takes a corner for HU. LeBeouf and Roberts go up for it, with Roberts being phycially agressive. LeBeouf wants a call, doesn't get it. Welcome to MLS soccer.
32- GOAL! Beckham and Buddle work the give and go on the counter. Buddle lays the ball back for Beckham, who is still outside the box when he hits it past LaPaglia.
33- Sesay is marking LeBeouf on a play - LeBeouf won the World Cup with France (1998 when Sesay was eight.
35- PENALTY! Wynalda goes down in the box. It was a very soft foul by Albright. I'm surprised it was called at all. Beckham argues with the ref. That's hilarious. LeBeouf puts away the PK to the left of goal.
37- SAVE! LaPaglia saves a shot from Cobi. Not too shabby.
39- GOAL! Buddle skins both Henderson and Lalas with a couple of moves, jukes a diving LaPaglia and puts the ball into the net. Hat trick.
GOAL! Jazic long pass on a counter to Cobi, who touches the ball down just inside the box and calmly chips LaPaglia. Nice touch.
42- Lalas header the other way gets saved by Friesz.
44- Galaxy corner. Becks takes.
45- GOAL! Joe-Max catches Friesz leaning the wrong way and smacks a 30-yarder into the goal.
Halftime - Galaxy 6-Hollywood United 3
Beckham and Gough walk off the field together, chatting. The press box is buzzing about how serious Beckham is for this match.
46- Harmse from way outside. LaPaglia dives for the save. Beckham, Veris and Roberts are the only Galaxy holdovers from the first half.
48- Landon Donovan is on, Josh Tudela is on, Kevin Harmse, Pete Vagenas, Chris Klein, Mike Randolph, Mike Caso.
51- HU lookig more organized this half. Donovan with a leading pass for Klein, but Klein puts his cross over the end line.
52- Beckham shot from way outside saved by LaPaglia. Corner taken by Becks
GOAL! Pete volleys straight into goal from the arc. WOW. GOAL of the night. That was amazing. The press box is arguing. Some say he volleyed the corner straight in. I think it took a deflection in the box, but we don't have the benefit of replay. It never touched the ground, that's for sure.
56- GOAL! Beckham with a nice lateral pass to Caso, who redirects the ball into the goal.
59- GOAL! Beckham pass to Klein, who smacks the ball past LaPaglia on the near post.
61- Beckham is wearing the armband, since Cobi left at halftime.
63- Beckham is playing on the right, by the way.
65- Alan Hopkins is on the field for HU.
68- Beckham is going the full 90 I guess to prove his fitness to McClaren. Of course, the pace of the game has slowed down.
69- GOAL! Peter Gail scores for United. He took the shot just at the edge of the penalty arc after a deflected cross popped out to him.
70- Wynalda comes off for Yari Alhutt. Lalas comes off for Viv Campbell. LaPaglia comes off for Brian Burde.
72- Donovan pass to Harmse's feet in front of goal, but Burde just gets to it.
74- Donovan overshoots Beckham on a breakaway pass. Beckham doesn't look happy about it. He'd have been in alone on goal.
75- GOAL! Klein off the crossbar, but Caso is there to clean up and put the ball in the net.
76- GOAL! Klein gets behind the defense - Donovan finds him with a nice lead pass and Klein picks his spot.
78- Beckham off the crossbar! This leads to a flurry in front of goal, and the Galaxy get a free kick near the box. Beckham finally cracks a smile as Vagenas pretends to want to take it, pleading for it. Beckham takes, but doesn't quite get it around the HU wall.
81- Donovan in the box - but Burde saves - well, Donovan kind of kicked it into him.
82- GOAL! Harmse works a nice give and go with Donovan, breaking into the box to score.
83- Beckham leaving the match. Sesay come in for him.
Sorry guys, work calls, can't blog the rest of the game.
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This match is all for charity, folks, with the proceeds going to the ongoing efforts to help those displaced by the California wildfires.
HU starters: Anthony LaPaglia, Oliver Biaggi, Richard Gough, Frank Leboef, Alexi Lalas, Chris Henderson, Maricio Cienfuegos, Jorge Campos, Joe-Max Moore, Jason Boyce
Galaxy starters: Lance Friesz, Cobi Jones, Chris Albright, Troy Roberts, Kyle Veris, Ante Jazic, Kelly Gray, David Beckham, Israel Sesay, Carlos Pavon, Edson Buddle
3- nothing much so far - the Galaxy are actually in their own half a bit. Oh, wait, Pavon just passed to Buddle for a header attempt. Way wide. It was from way outside.
5- Cobi with a shot in the box. It deflects off a defender.
7- Beckham with a nice pass to Sesay- who wastes it with a soft pass to Buddle that is too weak and gets picked off. Galaxy flurry in United's box, but the crosses miss everybody. United clears.
9- LeBeouf tackles ball away from Cobi. HU counter get free kick. Gray clears. Sesay and Beckham lead counter.
10- GOAL! Sesay passes back to Beckham, who smacks a low shot towards goal from 25 yards. LaPaglia dives, but the ball beats him into the corner. Galaxy 1-0
13- CK Galaxy, gets cleared.
14- GOAL! Cobi still has the wheels to beat defenders to a free ball. He sends a through pass to Buddle, who breaks free of the defenders and scores calmly past LaPaglia coming out.
15- Bianchi with a hard shot towards goal. Friesz does well to catch it.
16- The Riot Squad are chanting "One more year" every tiem Cobi touches the ball.
18- Beckham serves a cgeat cross into the area, but his general manager calmly clears it out.
20- Cobi dribbles in, Beckham makes the overlapping run, but his cross overshoots Pavon.
22- GOAL! Long Beckham pass up to Pavon, who heads the ball down to Buddle, who beats Alexi and another defender and shoots from just inside the box.
23- Wynalda comes in for Campos.
24- Gray with a tackle at the top of the arc on Bianchi. FK goes over the bar.
26- Steve McClaren is here at this game, according to others in the press box. I can't see him from where I'm at.
27- GOAL! LeBeouf scores! Nice hard shot from way outside, but it got the benefit of two deflections that send Friesz scrambling and missing on his dive as the ball made it to the side netting.
29- Joe-Max takes a corner for HU. LeBeouf and Roberts go up for it, with Roberts being phycially agressive. LeBeouf wants a call, doesn't get it. Welcome to MLS soccer.
32- GOAL! Beckham and Buddle work the give and go on the counter. Buddle lays the ball back for Beckham, who is still outside the box when he hits it past LaPaglia.
33- Sesay is marking LeBeouf on a play - LeBeouf won the World Cup with France (1998 when Sesay was eight.
35- PENALTY! Wynalda goes down in the box. It was a very soft foul by Albright. I'm surprised it was called at all. Beckham argues with the ref. That's hilarious. LeBeouf puts away the PK to the left of goal.
37- SAVE! LaPaglia saves a shot from Cobi. Not too shabby.
39- GOAL! Buddle skins both Henderson and Lalas with a couple of moves, jukes a diving LaPaglia and puts the ball into the net. Hat trick.
GOAL! Jazic long pass on a counter to Cobi, who touches the ball down just inside the box and calmly chips LaPaglia. Nice touch.
42- Lalas header the other way gets saved by Friesz.
44- Galaxy corner. Becks takes.
45- GOAL! Joe-Max catches Friesz leaning the wrong way and smacks a 30-yarder into the goal.
Halftime - Galaxy 6-Hollywood United 3
Beckham and Gough walk off the field together, chatting. The press box is buzzing about how serious Beckham is for this match.
46- Harmse from way outside. LaPaglia dives for the save. Beckham, Veris and Roberts are the only Galaxy holdovers from the first half.
48- Landon Donovan is on, Josh Tudela is on, Kevin Harmse, Pete Vagenas, Chris Klein, Mike Randolph, Mike Caso.
51- HU lookig more organized this half. Donovan with a leading pass for Klein, but Klein puts his cross over the end line.
52- Beckham shot from way outside saved by LaPaglia. Corner taken by Becks
GOAL! Pete volleys straight into goal from the arc. WOW. GOAL of the night. That was amazing. The press box is arguing. Some say he volleyed the corner straight in. I think it took a deflection in the box, but we don't have the benefit of replay. It never touched the ground, that's for sure.
56- GOAL! Beckham with a nice lateral pass to Caso, who redirects the ball into the goal.
59- GOAL! Beckham pass to Klein, who smacks the ball past LaPaglia on the near post.
61- Beckham is wearing the armband, since Cobi left at halftime.
63- Beckham is playing on the right, by the way.
65- Alan Hopkins is on the field for HU.
68- Beckham is going the full 90 I guess to prove his fitness to McClaren. Of course, the pace of the game has slowed down.
69- GOAL! Peter Gail scores for United. He took the shot just at the edge of the penalty arc after a deflected cross popped out to him.
70- Wynalda comes off for Yari Alhutt. Lalas comes off for Viv Campbell. LaPaglia comes off for Brian Burde.
72- Donovan pass to Harmse's feet in front of goal, but Burde just gets to it.
74- Donovan overshoots Beckham on a breakaway pass. Beckham doesn't look happy about it. He'd have been in alone on goal.
75- GOAL! Klein off the crossbar, but Caso is there to clean up and put the ball in the net.
76- GOAL! Klein gets behind the defense - Donovan finds him with a nice lead pass and Klein picks his spot.
78- Beckham off the crossbar! This leads to a flurry in front of goal, and the Galaxy get a free kick near the box. Beckham finally cracks a smile as Vagenas pretends to want to take it, pleading for it. Beckham takes, but doesn't quite get it around the HU wall.
81- Donovan in the box - but Burde saves - well, Donovan kind of kicked it into him.
82- GOAL! Harmse works a nice give and go with Donovan, breaking into the box to score.
83- Beckham leaving the match. Sesay come in for him.
Sorry guys, work calls, can't blog the rest of the game.
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Ramon at the ready
Whatever happens with Morales, Chivas USA already has a midfielder named Ramon who could develop into a solid contributor.
Kerry Zavagnin brought up Ramon Nunez on his own when I was asking him about Chivas USA's attack.
We had trouble with Nunez tonight, dropping into the midfield. He’s a very savvy player. We addressed that at halftime. He was dropping into our area of the field and was creating a numbers advantage.
Jesse Marsch interrupted the interview I was doing with him to shake hands with a departing Ramon and congratulate him on a well-played game. Ramon did look dangerous, though that one tackle on Victorine was ugly.
Here's some of Ramon's thoughts on the game and his future with Chivas USA.
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Kerry Zavagnin brought up Ramon Nunez on his own when I was asking him about Chivas USA's attack.
We had trouble with Nunez tonight, dropping into the midfield. He’s a very savvy player. We addressed that at halftime. He was dropping into our area of the field and was creating a numbers advantage.
Jesse Marsch interrupted the interview I was doing with him to shake hands with a departing Ramon and congratulate him on a well-played game. Ramon did look dangerous, though that one tackle on Victorine was ugly.
Here's some of Ramon's thoughts on the game and his future with Chivas USA.
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The original
Francisco Mendoza is the only player to come from Mexico in the first year of Chivas USA's existence who still survives (thrives, actually) with the team today.
Jaime Cardenas has the scoop on how Mendoza could be leaving.
I'm still skeptical about how this would all work out for Chivas USA without a DP slot (they sold theirs to NY Red Bull for three years for the Amado Guevara fiasco). I guess with Mendoza gone and with the salary cap room the team has now (Jesse Marsch alluded to it last night) the team might be able to offer Morales an impressive enough salary even without the DP exemption.
I told Billy Witz that for all the people who think an added designated player slot would be for the L.A. Galaxy's benefit, it would actually help a team like Chivas USA more. The Galaxy would basically use an extra slot to keep Landon Donovan and David Beckham. Essentially, it would be the same team they have now.
Chivas USA, though, after trading away their slot, could use an extra one to really transform their team - bringing in a big-name Mexican player and adding depth to the squad. Morales is a quality player, but the team really needs depth at forward. Razov isn't getting any younger.
I don't think the extra DP slot will happen next year, though. I do think those acting like it's a capitulation to the Galaxy's needs are missing out on the big picture of who else could really benefit.
Anyway, back to Panchito (oops, not supposed to call him that, sorry). I talked to him last night and asked how he felt he'd grown with the team. He smiled and said, yes, he's actually quite a bit taller than he was when he started with Chivas USA. I was tripping over myself explaining that wasn't exactly what I meant, but he was just joking with me.
Mendoza also mentioned that, despite some of his teammates complaining about the MLS playoff format, he much prefers it to the single table option. "It's just more exciting," he said.
Amen.
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Jaime Cardenas has the scoop on how Mendoza could be leaving.
I'm still skeptical about how this would all work out for Chivas USA without a DP slot (they sold theirs to NY Red Bull for three years for the Amado Guevara fiasco). I guess with Mendoza gone and with the salary cap room the team has now (Jesse Marsch alluded to it last night) the team might be able to offer Morales an impressive enough salary even without the DP exemption.
I told Billy Witz that for all the people who think an added designated player slot would be for the L.A. Galaxy's benefit, it would actually help a team like Chivas USA more. The Galaxy would basically use an extra slot to keep Landon Donovan and David Beckham. Essentially, it would be the same team they have now.
Chivas USA, though, after trading away their slot, could use an extra one to really transform their team - bringing in a big-name Mexican player and adding depth to the squad. Morales is a quality player, but the team really needs depth at forward. Razov isn't getting any younger.
I don't think the extra DP slot will happen next year, though. I do think those acting like it's a capitulation to the Galaxy's needs are missing out on the big picture of who else could really benefit.
Anyway, back to Panchito (oops, not supposed to call him that, sorry). I talked to him last night and asked how he felt he'd grown with the team. He smiled and said, yes, he's actually quite a bit taller than he was when he started with Chivas USA. I was tripping over myself explaining that wasn't exactly what I meant, but he was just joking with me.
Mendoza also mentioned that, despite some of his teammates complaining about the MLS playoff format, he much prefers it to the single table option. "It's just more exciting," he said.
Amen.
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Frustrating farewell
Chivas USA's loss in the playoff series was tough for the team to take.
A writer at the game last night asked me, "What could the team have done differently?"
It's easy to second-guess now, so I will, thanks.
1. Ditch the 4-5-1. Chivas USA could have come out with more confidence against Kansas City in the first road game. They are a classic 4-4-2 team, and they should have stuck with that.
2. Move Johnny Bornstein to forward. Bob Bradley did this to great effect in 2006, including times when Ante Razov was injured, but Preki didn't go for it. I'm not sure why. Bornstein scores goals, and he's comfortable working with his starting teammates, so there's more cohesion than bringing in a little-used bench forward. Plus, Orlando Perez covers the left back spot very effectively. He's not as fast going forward, but defensively very solid.
3. Sub in Laurent Merlin. I asked Preki why Hamilton got the nod instead and he said Hamilton had been training better. Training is a different animal, though, and Merlin has proven his coolness and ability to contribute in actual games. Hamilton has seen very few match minutes, and contributed nothing in them. I don't blame the youngster, but he was obviously nervous last night. Nothing dangerous came from Hamilton in the game - a late game sub should be a crucial threat.
4. Chivas USA was on fire late in the game, pressuring the Kansas City goal. John Cunliffe's header off the crossbar was the closest the team came all game. Yet the team lacked that urgency when the game opened. Without losing their heads or the lead, a more sustained attack mentality from the start of the match would have been useful. Instead, Chivas USA seemed surprised that KC was so defensive, which robbed Chivas USA of the space needed for their usual go-to strategy of quick counterattacks. Bottom line, if a team is bunkering, bomb the crap out of that bunker.
5. Don't count on calls. The handball on Jack Jewsbury was a credible call that was missed, but other calls went in favor of the home team. Chivas USA needed to maintain focus and score on their own, not argue calls or retaliate.
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A writer at the game last night asked me, "What could the team have done differently?"
It's easy to second-guess now, so I will, thanks.
1. Ditch the 4-5-1. Chivas USA could have come out with more confidence against Kansas City in the first road game. They are a classic 4-4-2 team, and they should have stuck with that.
2. Move Johnny Bornstein to forward. Bob Bradley did this to great effect in 2006, including times when Ante Razov was injured, but Preki didn't go for it. I'm not sure why. Bornstein scores goals, and he's comfortable working with his starting teammates, so there's more cohesion than bringing in a little-used bench forward. Plus, Orlando Perez covers the left back spot very effectively. He's not as fast going forward, but defensively very solid.
3. Sub in Laurent Merlin. I asked Preki why Hamilton got the nod instead and he said Hamilton had been training better. Training is a different animal, though, and Merlin has proven his coolness and ability to contribute in actual games. Hamilton has seen very few match minutes, and contributed nothing in them. I don't blame the youngster, but he was obviously nervous last night. Nothing dangerous came from Hamilton in the game - a late game sub should be a crucial threat.
4. Chivas USA was on fire late in the game, pressuring the Kansas City goal. John Cunliffe's header off the crossbar was the closest the team came all game. Yet the team lacked that urgency when the game opened. Without losing their heads or the lead, a more sustained attack mentality from the start of the match would have been useful. Instead, Chivas USA seemed surprised that KC was so defensive, which robbed Chivas USA of the space needed for their usual go-to strategy of quick counterattacks. Bottom line, if a team is bunkering, bomb the crap out of that bunker.
5. Don't count on calls. The handball on Jack Jewsbury was a credible call that was missed, but other calls went in favor of the home team. Chivas USA needed to maintain focus and score on their own, not argue calls or retaliate.
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Onalfo reaction
Bear with me. I'm trying to post my first audio clip. If it doesn't work, let me know in the comments, because I'm still learning about all this high tech stuff.
Yeah, I know I'm lame. Anyway, Curt Onalfo, folks.
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Yeah, I know I'm lame. Anyway, Curt Onalfo, folks.
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Poor Luis
Luis dragged himself to last night's game. He's under the weather and it was tough for him to be there. I hope he feels better soon.Send along any get well greetings you might have.
Here's a pic of Luis in happier times at the Honda Player award dinner.
With any luck, he'll be back to his usual chipper self.
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Kerry to explain?
I wanted to ask Eddie Johnson about the end of the game, but I didn't have a lot of time in the Kansas City locker room. EJ was still in the shower, so I asked Kerry Zavagnin about it instead.
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Saturday, November 3, 2007
Empty HDC
Personally, the local reporters are all bummed. Greg Daurio was chatting excitedly just before the final game of the season that if the Galaxy won, there would be a bunch of games here in Carson for all of us to cover. Most of us don't get traveling expenses to go anywhere that's not local. Even when the Galaxy failed to win, Chivas USA still held home field advantage, so we thought there would be a Western Conference final here.
No such luck. The HDC sits empty. Well, there is that little charity game tomorrow. It's not the same as the playoffs though, not by a long shot.
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No such luck. The HDC sits empty. Well, there is that little charity game tomorrow. It's not the same as the playoffs though, not by a long shot.
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CDCUSA/KCW running blog
It's about to happen folks -the last playoff game of the first round. They're just doing a quick firefighter tribute right now.
They get Chivas USA jerseys - the firefighters.
1 - Kansas City kicks off. All the reporters in the press box are watching Galindo closely. He didn't show his usual speed on that play right there, but he might be playing it smart and conservative.
3. Nunez is up top with Galindo. Kansas City nearly scored. Cross by Arnaud just misses Johnson right in front of the goal.
4- Eddie Johnson with a shot on goal, misses the far corner by a decent margin.
7- Chivas USA hasn't has a credible attack on goal yet, but they're establishing more possession. EJ with a long outside shot. Missed by a less decent margin.
9- Scott Sealy in the box - couldn't quite make anything happen.
11- Now KC with their own run of possession. They certainly haven't come out and bunkered. The crowd is furious that a foul wasn't called on KC just there.
12- Paulo Nagamura dribbles the ball near the arc and lets loose a shot. Hartmancovers pretty easily.
14- Nunez shoots, also from outside. Hatman stretches for this one, misses, but it goes wide.
15- First corner kick of the game goes to Chivas USA. Nunez takes it- Hartman misses the punch, but KC clears anyway.
17- Galindo can't get by Nick Garcia - that's proof he's hurting right there. A healthy Galindo blows by Nic Garcia.
19- Chivas USA regains the possession mometum. They're hitting more of their stride. It seemed like Conrad fouled Nunez with a tackle from behind, but he did get ball. The crowd boos, lustily, but Mark Geiger waves play on. Jesse Marsch fouls Kerry Zavagnin hard almost immediately after - probably retaliation. He gets a yellow card.
22- FK for CHivas. Marsch takes it quickly, but KC recovers. Chivas working the ball around well, though.
24- Conrad cuts the ball off from his own goalkeeper, but does get it out of trouble.
26- CHV with two shots on goalfirst Nunez, then Nagamura, Hartman parries but can't catch either. Nagamura waves his hands up and down at the fans thrying to hype them up.
27- Jack Jewsbury gets called for a hard foul on Panchito Mendoza. FK gets cleared for throw. Nunez into the box, takes shot into Jewsbury's arm. Crowd wants handball.
30- Sasha Victorine falls on the slippery grass, Lawson Vaughn races past him and sends a pass in front of goal. Galindo gets a head to it, but it's wide.
32- Kansas City has lost their previous attacking vibe. They're defending by their teeth now. Galindo in the box, passes to Nunez, who jukes a defender and shoots into Galindo's gut. Hope that didn't hurt the sports hernia any more than it's already injured.
34- EJ with a touch is into the box - where he falls down, probably hoping for that FIFA continuation call. Doesn't happen.
37- Even when Kansas City manages to knock balls loose, they can't maintain possession for any stretch - oh, they nearly got a counter coing there, but Shavar Thomas cuts it off.
38- Sacha slipped. The mist strikes again.
39- Offsides call, right when it looked Sealy got fouled.
42- FK for CHV. It's cleared, but the ball gets sent right back to Galindo, who is in the box with it, but the ball gets toepoked away.
44- The mist is doomy and gloomy for somebody here. Wizards finally have a little run, but blow the final pass bigtime.
45- Sacha has two great chances to put Chivas up. The ball came to him in the box (I thought it hit his hand, actually). Jewsbury looked like he was holding his jersey, but behind Kljestan, so the ref couldn't see, and Sacha had trouble striking the ball at his feet. When he did, it deflected off the bodies arriving in the box. Mendoza claimed the ball and sent it back in. This time Sacha fired faster, but he didn't hit the ball well and it blooped wide.
Halftime
I'm pleasantly surprised by how well Nunez is fitting in and helping Chivas USA be dangerous when Galindo is less than his best. KC started well, but now they seem content to defend. It will be interesting to see which coach manages to fire up the troops at halftime.
KC had four shots in the half, none after the 20 minute mark. Chivas USA had ten, eight coming after the 20 minute mark.
2nd half
Cunliffe, who I thought would be tougher given that he's from Manchester, has a huge winter coat on. It's not that cold.
Anyway, KC is 45 scoreless minutes away from the second round. Then again, we saw how well that thinking worked for FC Dallas. Ante Razov is on the bench, looking pissy. He wants to play.
46 No subs so far for either team.
47- Galindo on the run (this used to be deadly for opponents) seems to pull down Harrington, but he protests when the foul goes against him. "They are a snake without fangs, writhing helplessly in the grass," says a reporter in the pressbox of Chivas USA's attack with Galindo hobbled and Razov on the bench.
50- They don't look so hopeless to me, but that last shot to Hartman was pretty toothless.
51- CK for CHV, goes out for goal kick.
53- Yellow on Mendoza for a foul on EJ
55- Chivas attack stalls at the top of the box. Shot by Nunez bounces off KC defenders.KC remembered how to attack. Arnaud to EJ, who takes a shot at the top of the arc. He had to step back to set it up, so Guzan has time to prepare and smothers the ball nicely. EJ could have found more angle to that shot - made Guzan dive for it, perhaps.
58- A little bit more midfield play developing - KC isn't so far back. A foul on Nagamura gets CHV a FK near the box. Good chance here, but Shavar can't get to the service. CK.
59- Shavar does get to the the corner, but Kurt Morsink saves off the line with a header of his own. Close call for the Wizards.
62- Arnaud with the free kick. Sacha clears, but the ball falls for Morsink, who shoots just a bit wide.
63- Bodies on the field. Nunez with a bad two-footed foul on Victorine.
65- EJ gets a card - not sure why yet. Dissent, apparently.
68- First sub. Pore is coming in for Victorine.
69- The crowd is cheering and chanting, willing CHV to score. They're starting to feel the desperation a bit now.
Galindo and Mendoza answer with a dual attack. They're in the box. Galindo shoots, beats Hartman - Oooooohhhh, it's off the post. Yikes.
70- Another shot - this one Hartman catches.
72- KC counter, EJ to Arnaud. Arnaud shoots wide.
73- Galindo on the break, but Conrad chases him down and tackles cleanly in the box. Galindo is furious with himself and his body's inablity to do what it once did.
74- John Cunliffe in for Nunez.
75- KC on the counter - Nunez and Arnaud work the the ball into the box. Arnaud shoots, but right to Guzan.
77- Going the other way, Galindo gets side netting.
79- CHV working the ball around for another chance, but KC get a counter going first. EJ's cross into the box is cleared out, though.
80- CHV starting to looked gassed. They've pressed the issue all game long, and KC has been content to let them do the work.
81- Sub for KC - Burciaga coming on. Sealy off. Hope Burciaga doesn't do something silly. Mendoza is off for CHV. Anthony Hamilton on.
84- Poor touch by Hamilton, he kicks ball out of bounds.
86- The PA system is blasting "Chivas" trying to get the crowd going again, but they seem bummed. The Legion at least starts up - they are the faithful ones.
88- Shavar tells Claudio Suarez to go forward. Chivas USA are throwing bodies up. It's a three-man backline now.
89- EJ on the break, gets by Bornstein, who is no slouch in the speed department. Borstein pulls him down, and the ref pulls out the yellow.
90- Long balls over the top aren't working for Chivas USA. Things look dire.
90+ A corner for Chivas USA - almost everyone in the box. No go, it's cleared. Galindo toepokes a ball across the face of the goal - it looks so tantalizing, but no one from Chivas USA is able to reach it and it rolls across the end line.
Another flurry in the box. Nagamura collides with hard in the box chasing the ball, but he hit the Wizards guy as well, so no PK. He takes the corner and Cunliffe heads it against the crossbar. The crowd roars and dies. Another corner, but KC clears.
One last Chivas USA effort comes to nothing. Fulltime. KC moves on.
EJ is furious about something right as the whistle blows. Don't know what.
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They get Chivas USA jerseys - the firefighters.
1 - Kansas City kicks off. All the reporters in the press box are watching Galindo closely. He didn't show his usual speed on that play right there, but he might be playing it smart and conservative.
3. Nunez is up top with Galindo. Kansas City nearly scored. Cross by Arnaud just misses Johnson right in front of the goal.
4- Eddie Johnson with a shot on goal, misses the far corner by a decent margin.
7- Chivas USA hasn't has a credible attack on goal yet, but they're establishing more possession. EJ with a long outside shot. Missed by a less decent margin.
9- Scott Sealy in the box - couldn't quite make anything happen.
11- Now KC with their own run of possession. They certainly haven't come out and bunkered. The crowd is furious that a foul wasn't called on KC just there.
12- Paulo Nagamura dribbles the ball near the arc and lets loose a shot. Hartmancovers pretty easily.
14- Nunez shoots, also from outside. Hatman stretches for this one, misses, but it goes wide.
15- First corner kick of the game goes to Chivas USA. Nunez takes it- Hartman misses the punch, but KC clears anyway.
17- Galindo can't get by Nick Garcia - that's proof he's hurting right there. A healthy Galindo blows by Nic Garcia.
19- Chivas USA regains the possession mometum. They're hitting more of their stride. It seemed like Conrad fouled Nunez with a tackle from behind, but he did get ball. The crowd boos, lustily, but Mark Geiger waves play on. Jesse Marsch fouls Kerry Zavagnin hard almost immediately after - probably retaliation. He gets a yellow card.
22- FK for CHivas. Marsch takes it quickly, but KC recovers. Chivas working the ball around well, though.
24- Conrad cuts the ball off from his own goalkeeper, but does get it out of trouble.
26- CHV with two shots on goalfirst Nunez, then Nagamura, Hartman parries but can't catch either. Nagamura waves his hands up and down at the fans thrying to hype them up.
27- Jack Jewsbury gets called for a hard foul on Panchito Mendoza. FK gets cleared for throw. Nunez into the box, takes shot into Jewsbury's arm. Crowd wants handball.
30- Sasha Victorine falls on the slippery grass, Lawson Vaughn races past him and sends a pass in front of goal. Galindo gets a head to it, but it's wide.
32- Kansas City has lost their previous attacking vibe. They're defending by their teeth now. Galindo in the box, passes to Nunez, who jukes a defender and shoots into Galindo's gut. Hope that didn't hurt the sports hernia any more than it's already injured.
34- EJ with a touch is into the box - where he falls down, probably hoping for that FIFA continuation call. Doesn't happen.
37- Even when Kansas City manages to knock balls loose, they can't maintain possession for any stretch - oh, they nearly got a counter coing there, but Shavar Thomas cuts it off.
38- Sacha slipped. The mist strikes again.
39- Offsides call, right when it looked Sealy got fouled.
42- FK for CHV. It's cleared, but the ball gets sent right back to Galindo, who is in the box with it, but the ball gets toepoked away.
44- The mist is doomy and gloomy for somebody here. Wizards finally have a little run, but blow the final pass bigtime.
45- Sacha has two great chances to put Chivas up. The ball came to him in the box (I thought it hit his hand, actually). Jewsbury looked like he was holding his jersey, but behind Kljestan, so the ref couldn't see, and Sacha had trouble striking the ball at his feet. When he did, it deflected off the bodies arriving in the box. Mendoza claimed the ball and sent it back in. This time Sacha fired faster, but he didn't hit the ball well and it blooped wide.
Halftime
I'm pleasantly surprised by how well Nunez is fitting in and helping Chivas USA be dangerous when Galindo is less than his best. KC started well, but now they seem content to defend. It will be interesting to see which coach manages to fire up the troops at halftime.
KC had four shots in the half, none after the 20 minute mark. Chivas USA had ten, eight coming after the 20 minute mark.
2nd half
Cunliffe, who I thought would be tougher given that he's from Manchester, has a huge winter coat on. It's not that cold.
Anyway, KC is 45 scoreless minutes away from the second round. Then again, we saw how well that thinking worked for FC Dallas. Ante Razov is on the bench, looking pissy. He wants to play.
46 No subs so far for either team.
47- Galindo on the run (this used to be deadly for opponents) seems to pull down Harrington, but he protests when the foul goes against him. "They are a snake without fangs, writhing helplessly in the grass," says a reporter in the pressbox of Chivas USA's attack with Galindo hobbled and Razov on the bench.
50- They don't look so hopeless to me, but that last shot to Hartman was pretty toothless.
51- CK for CHV, goes out for goal kick.
53- Yellow on Mendoza for a foul on EJ
55- Chivas attack stalls at the top of the box. Shot by Nunez bounces off KC defenders.KC remembered how to attack. Arnaud to EJ, who takes a shot at the top of the arc. He had to step back to set it up, so Guzan has time to prepare and smothers the ball nicely. EJ could have found more angle to that shot - made Guzan dive for it, perhaps.
58- A little bit more midfield play developing - KC isn't so far back. A foul on Nagamura gets CHV a FK near the box. Good chance here, but Shavar can't get to the service. CK.
59- Shavar does get to the the corner, but Kurt Morsink saves off the line with a header of his own. Close call for the Wizards.
62- Arnaud with the free kick. Sacha clears, but the ball falls for Morsink, who shoots just a bit wide.
63- Bodies on the field. Nunez with a bad two-footed foul on Victorine.
65- EJ gets a card - not sure why yet. Dissent, apparently.
68- First sub. Pore is coming in for Victorine.
69- The crowd is cheering and chanting, willing CHV to score. They're starting to feel the desperation a bit now.
Galindo and Mendoza answer with a dual attack. They're in the box. Galindo shoots, beats Hartman - Oooooohhhh, it's off the post. Yikes.
70- Another shot - this one Hartman catches.
72- KC counter, EJ to Arnaud. Arnaud shoots wide.
73- Galindo on the break, but Conrad chases him down and tackles cleanly in the box. Galindo is furious with himself and his body's inablity to do what it once did.
74- John Cunliffe in for Nunez.
75- KC on the counter - Nunez and Arnaud work the the ball into the box. Arnaud shoots, but right to Guzan.
77- Going the other way, Galindo gets side netting.
79- CHV working the ball around for another chance, but KC get a counter going first. EJ's cross into the box is cleared out, though.
80- CHV starting to looked gassed. They've pressed the issue all game long, and KC has been content to let them do the work.
81- Sub for KC - Burciaga coming on. Sealy off. Hope Burciaga doesn't do something silly. Mendoza is off for CHV. Anthony Hamilton on.
84- Poor touch by Hamilton, he kicks ball out of bounds.
86- The PA system is blasting "Chivas" trying to get the crowd going again, but they seem bummed. The Legion at least starts up - they are the faithful ones.
88- Shavar tells Claudio Suarez to go forward. Chivas USA are throwing bodies up. It's a three-man backline now.
89- EJ on the break, gets by Bornstein, who is no slouch in the speed department. Borstein pulls him down, and the ref pulls out the yellow.
90- Long balls over the top aren't working for Chivas USA. Things look dire.
90+ A corner for Chivas USA - almost everyone in the box. No go, it's cleared. Galindo toepokes a ball across the face of the goal - it looks so tantalizing, but no one from Chivas USA is able to reach it and it rolls across the end line.
Another flurry in the box. Nagamura collides with hard in the box chasing the ball, but he hit the Wizards guy as well, so no PK. He takes the corner and Cunliffe heads it against the crossbar. The crowd roars and dies. Another corner, but KC clears.
One last Chivas USA effort comes to nothing. Fulltime. KC moves on.
EJ is furious about something right as the whistle blows. Don't know what.
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CDCUSA/KCW pregame
Hi folks!
There's no cold wet rain here in Carson, but it is a misty evening, which should make the field a bit slick.
Chivas USA players are out on the field first, warming up. Here come a few Kansas City guys.
Maykel Galindo is starting, folks. It remains to be seen how his injury will affect him.
The surprise on the Kansas City side is that Jose Burciaga is on the bench.
Oh, and Ramon Nunez is also starting for Chivas USA.
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There's no cold wet rain here in Carson, but it is a misty evening, which should make the field a bit slick.
Chivas USA players are out on the field first, warming up. Here come a few Kansas City guys.
Maykel Galindo is starting, folks. It remains to be seen how his injury will affect him.
The surprise on the Kansas City side is that Jose Burciaga is on the bench.
Oh, and Ramon Nunez is also starting for Chivas USA.
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NE-NY running blog
The weather in New England is wet, wet. Hurricane Noel is in town. I'm going to blog until I have to leave to go to the stadium for the Chivas USA-Wizards game.
Did anyone see Reading/Fulham? Clint Dempsey scored the second goal for Fulham, helping his team out in there. Let's see if his former teammates can put away the Red Bull threat.
Gritty Joe Vide has earned the start for New York, Francis Doe out - even as a sub. I'm not sure why, unless he's injured. I thought he looked dangerous last week, though he had trouble connecting with the other attackers at times. NE goes with their usual lineup.
The announcers are giddy reviewing the great playoff games on Thursday and Friday. Folks, that just doesn't happen with a single table. Shoot, that rain is coming down sideways. And people want to change the MLS season to play through the winter. Huh.
Shalrie Joseph is being interviewed - he's got a great island accent. He says the team is confident. Matty Reis pitches in his two cents. If it comes to penalties, he's a beast at taking them and stopping them.
What is with Christopher Sullivan's plaid tie? However, I like the details he adds to games - his background as a soccer trainer and former player probably helps him add informative tidbits.
Ralston isn't so excited about playing in this weather. Is that a playoff beard he's sporting? They're all the rage these days.
Streamers slowing kickoff. They fly more in a noreaster.
1- We're off. New England into NY territory first. Jozy and Angel are attacking together.
4- Neither team has much rythm - of course, the game just started. Nice attack for NE - but when Khano Smith crosses in, Taylor Twellman can't reach it. Announcers say that Twellman has a groin injury, while Pat Noonan is slightly hobbled by a gimpy hamstring.
6- High balls are victims of the wind. Both teams are trying to play the ball on the ground.
8- Well Thompson on a long run, but he can't pass to anyone and NY clears all the way back to Reis.
9- Latest NE attack gived up an NY counter that Angels holds up, drawing a foul. Free kick comes to nothing.
10- Ralston combines well with Thompson, but the shot goes wide.
11- Jozy down - he went up for a high ball versus Reis. That's dangerous, as Alecko Eskandarian will tell anyone.
13- Joseph bundles Jozy off the ball. Lengthy Red Bull free kick, and Angel can't put it on frame, though he struck it well.
16- More of a two-way game now - it's not just New England, but more back and forth from both teams.
18- Twellman and Noonan definitely don't look as effective as they normally do. Wells Thompson is trying to pick up the slack - a penetrating run leads to a short pass to Noonan, who crosses to Twellman, but it's too high.
21- NE earns free kick, Ralston hits long shot to goal, but Jon Conway catches.
22- Twellman flicks a ball on for Lawrentowitz, who shoots, beats Conway, but goes wide.
24- Heaps can't get a ball for a throw in. That's not cool, they're the home team.
25- Van Den Berg with a hard shoulder charge on Wells Thompson in the box. Abbey Okulajah is never going to call that.
27- Claudio Reyna out! Probably an injury flare-up. Mr. Metro, Clint Mathis, comes in. Reyna looks miserable, much like his season this year.
29- Angel gets Reis to give up a corner with a tricky header. Mathis takes it, but Angel can't quite make good contact.
31- NY is actually putting more pressure on now that Reyna is out.
32- NE get caught on the counter - Joseph takes down Van Den Bergh and gets a yellow.
33- NY CK, Reis collects the second header.
35- Vide returns the favor on Joseph, hitting him late with a yellow card tackle.
36- Chance for NY - Altidore crosses in front of goal and Van Den Berg nearly reaches it. Another corner for NY comes to nothing.
39- Mathis interchange with Freeman leads to nearpost shot from close range. He nearly makes it. NY just looks more dangerous with him on the field.
41- Shot just outside the box by Thompson, Conway parries. NE have their first corner. It gets cleared.
42- NE with a flurry before the break. Announcers mention the rain has stopped. Twellman nearly gets to a pass in the box.
43- NE with a CK, Ralston sends it too far.
44- Altidore in the box, crosses in, NE clears.
45- Reyna doesn't even look like he's watching the game. He's just staring.
45+ Wells Thompson earns a FK, Ralston hits the service too far.
Tie game still.
90+ Did you miss me? I'm at the HDC now. New England scored the goal that they needed. They are defending their lead with savvy.
Full time. Arena looks grim.
So New England awaits Chicago, while Houston will face the winner of this Kansas City/Chivas USA series.
The hard-core New England fans who weathered the storm were rewarded. It would suck to come out in to support your team in these kind of conditions if they lost.
Stuff I missed in while in traffic - Juan Pablo Angel left the match with a concussion. New England scored after he left.
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Did anyone see Reading/Fulham? Clint Dempsey scored the second goal for Fulham, helping his team out in there. Let's see if his former teammates can put away the Red Bull threat.
Gritty Joe Vide has earned the start for New York, Francis Doe out - even as a sub. I'm not sure why, unless he's injured. I thought he looked dangerous last week, though he had trouble connecting with the other attackers at times. NE goes with their usual lineup.
The announcers are giddy reviewing the great playoff games on Thursday and Friday. Folks, that just doesn't happen with a single table. Shoot, that rain is coming down sideways. And people want to change the MLS season to play through the winter. Huh.
Shalrie Joseph is being interviewed - he's got a great island accent. He says the team is confident. Matty Reis pitches in his two cents. If it comes to penalties, he's a beast at taking them and stopping them.
What is with Christopher Sullivan's plaid tie? However, I like the details he adds to games - his background as a soccer trainer and former player probably helps him add informative tidbits.
Ralston isn't so excited about playing in this weather. Is that a playoff beard he's sporting? They're all the rage these days.
Streamers slowing kickoff. They fly more in a noreaster.
1- We're off. New England into NY territory first. Jozy and Angel are attacking together.
4- Neither team has much rythm - of course, the game just started. Nice attack for NE - but when Khano Smith crosses in, Taylor Twellman can't reach it. Announcers say that Twellman has a groin injury, while Pat Noonan is slightly hobbled by a gimpy hamstring.
6- High balls are victims of the wind. Both teams are trying to play the ball on the ground.
8- Well Thompson on a long run, but he can't pass to anyone and NY clears all the way back to Reis.
9- Latest NE attack gived up an NY counter that Angels holds up, drawing a foul. Free kick comes to nothing.
10- Ralston combines well with Thompson, but the shot goes wide.
11- Jozy down - he went up for a high ball versus Reis. That's dangerous, as Alecko Eskandarian will tell anyone.
13- Joseph bundles Jozy off the ball. Lengthy Red Bull free kick, and Angel can't put it on frame, though he struck it well.
16- More of a two-way game now - it's not just New England, but more back and forth from both teams.
18- Twellman and Noonan definitely don't look as effective as they normally do. Wells Thompson is trying to pick up the slack - a penetrating run leads to a short pass to Noonan, who crosses to Twellman, but it's too high.
21- NE earns free kick, Ralston hits long shot to goal, but Jon Conway catches.
22- Twellman flicks a ball on for Lawrentowitz, who shoots, beats Conway, but goes wide.
24- Heaps can't get a ball for a throw in. That's not cool, they're the home team.
25- Van Den Berg with a hard shoulder charge on Wells Thompson in the box. Abbey Okulajah is never going to call that.
27- Claudio Reyna out! Probably an injury flare-up. Mr. Metro, Clint Mathis, comes in. Reyna looks miserable, much like his season this year.
29- Angel gets Reis to give up a corner with a tricky header. Mathis takes it, but Angel can't quite make good contact.
31- NY is actually putting more pressure on now that Reyna is out.
32- NE get caught on the counter - Joseph takes down Van Den Bergh and gets a yellow.
33- NY CK, Reis collects the second header.
35- Vide returns the favor on Joseph, hitting him late with a yellow card tackle.
36- Chance for NY - Altidore crosses in front of goal and Van Den Berg nearly reaches it. Another corner for NY comes to nothing.
39- Mathis interchange with Freeman leads to nearpost shot from close range. He nearly makes it. NY just looks more dangerous with him on the field.
41- Shot just outside the box by Thompson, Conway parries. NE have their first corner. It gets cleared.
42- NE with a flurry before the break. Announcers mention the rain has stopped. Twellman nearly gets to a pass in the box.
43- NE with a CK, Ralston sends it too far.
44- Altidore in the box, crosses in, NE clears.
45- Reyna doesn't even look like he's watching the game. He's just staring.
45+ Wells Thompson earns a FK, Ralston hits the service too far.
Tie game still.
90+ Did you miss me? I'm at the HDC now. New England scored the goal that they needed. They are defending their lead with savvy.
Full time. Arena looks grim.
So New England awaits Chicago, while Houston will face the winner of this Kansas City/Chivas USA series.
The hard-core New England fans who weathered the storm were rewarded. It would suck to come out in to support your team in these kind of conditions if they lost.
Stuff I missed in while in traffic - Juan Pablo Angel left the match with a concussion. New England scored after he left.
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Dynamo/FC Retroactive rb
Hi everyone! Relive (or in my case, live for the first time), Houston versus Dallas. Dallas is trying to break their hex of losing in the first round of the playoffs.
History Repeating: If you follow MLS tradition, you're probably aware that Chicago versus DC United, no matter how DC was number one in the regular season, means that Chicago will win. DC actually broke the pattern somewhat by even scoring. They have never beaten the Fire in seven playoff tries.
Meanwhile, Houston versus FC Dallas nearly always means Houston will win. Also, the playoffs versus FC Dallas means that Dallas will lose in the first round, usually on PK's.
So while DC United's one goal disadvantage looked deadly based on the Fire/DC history, the same FC Dallas margin didn't look safe at all versus Houston.
Houston has never lost against FC Dallas at home - they've never even tied. They've always won.
1-NO Goal - DeRosario puts the ball in the net, but he's offside. Sala is down for a good while.
4- Game gets going again. I love you, Robertson Stadium atmosphere, but I hate those football lines.
5- Shot of Richetti on the sidelines - he looked filled with Argentine angst. Ruiz is serious about his playoff beard. Speaking of MLS traditions, I'd like to point out that since 2005, the team sporting the playoff beards has won the championship.
8- Denilson looks useless - knocking a ball out of bounds, but reportedly he wants to stay in Dallas. I'm not seeing this happen unless a major pay cut is involved.
11 - Mullan misses a sitter in front of the goal, sliding and missing the pass, Dario Sala parries another shot, and the post pitches in to block the follow-up try. Wow. The Dynamo should have scored three times in that flurry, but instead, got nada.
12- Dave Dir is the color commentator for the broadcast of this game. This is actually an MLS trend, where ex-coaches call games. Thomas Rongen and Ray Hudson come to mind.
13- GOAL! Bobby Rhine doesn't waste time on the counter attack, sending a long pass up ahead to Kenny Cooper, who knocks it down via header, while Craig Waibel looks lost. The ball reaches Ruiz in front of the goal - and Ruiz is money from that spot with the ball in front of him. 16 playoff goals - which is pretty insane given that Ruiz and his team haven't made it out of the first round the past couple of years.
18- The Dynamo and their fans seemed shocked - their vaunted Robertson Stadium advantage could be in peril, though their team has had by far the better of play.
20-Corner kick for Dynamo- Mulrooney takes. Dallas clears.
22- Ray Burse is putting on a game jersey. Sala has looked hobbled since he went down early in the game. Dallas fans probably won't like this, but Burse has played well for them.
23- Sala gets a card for delaying game. He was coming off the field incredibly slowly.
27- Houston has recovered shape and movement in the midfield. Hey! Denilson with a nice defensive play on Brian Ching. Ok, he's not useless.
30- Waibel tackles Ruiz, who rolls about four times after the contact. Waibel gets a yellow, complaining about Ruiz and his antics the whole time. As much as people say they're tired of Ruiz falling over so much, I'm personally tired of people whining after they've actually fouled a player. Denilson sends in a nice free kick, but Ruiz can't quite reach it.
33- Dir needs to stop jinxing Dallas by talking so much about how he has a feeling about how this year could be different for Dallas and they could advance. Just call the game.
35- Houston CK. It pops out to Mullan, who tries an outside shot, high to the corner, but Burse leaps confidently for it.
36- Bobby Rhine shields Brian Ching off the ball, then goes down after contact with Ching. He holds his hand up for medical assistance even as play continues around him. Houston doesn't care. Heck, his own FC Dallas team has a run of possession and doesn't kick the ball out. The ref finally blows the whistle.
38- Ching with a knockdown pass from Jaqua has the ball in front of goal, but Burse challenges him and blocks the shot, which knocks free in the box, but Dallas finally clears.
40- Ruiz draws a foul from Eddie Robinson, who is furious and gets a yellow for dissent. A fellow LA writer believes Robinson is the best defender in MLS, but he will never see steady national team duty because his temper is so insane.
44- Gbandi with a pointless foul, he pulls on Mullan from behind. That's the kind of card you take when the defender is breaking alone on goal, but that wasn't the case here.
45+ Dallas works the ball around well for an attack, but blows the final pass in to Cooper.
Yi fouls DeRo in the final minute of the half for a dangerous freekick. Dallas clears. Burse punches out the ensuing corner.
Halftime: The Dallas announcers are gleeful that FC has survived the half with the 2-0 aggregate lead intact. 45 minutes from the second round, says Brad Sham. Rhine says the Dallas defense is strong in his halftime interview. He sounds confident.
However, the announcers do note that Dallas is missing three key starters now - Pablo Richetti has a leg injury. Clarence Goodson, suffered a stomach ailment, and then there's Sala, who went out early in the half.
46- Alvarez gets a red. The announcers are guessing, because it wasn't a clear camera angle, but it looks like Alvarez kneed Brad Davis in the groin. Davis may not even have been hit that hard, (I'd have to agree with Dir that Davis recovers far too well if the jewels were actually damaged) but he goes down and the ref pulls the red immediately. Really pointless and foolish of Alvarez.
51- Stuart Holden in for Waibel. Richetti, hamstring injury and all, comes in for Denilson.
53- Houston putting pressure on, but Davis wastes a chance with a high shot from outside. Ruiz wastes time with an ankle injury.
56- Ruiz, back on the field, gets a great lead pass towards the goal. He might actually have an ankle injury, because he doesn't show breaking speed and basically falls down in front of the ball, wasting the chance.
58- Toja with a pair of corners, the second one leading to an Onstad save.
61- Joe Ngwenya on for Nate Jaqua.
65- Burse kicksave versus Ngwenya. Nice.
67- GOAL! Another Houston flurry and Chings knocks down a long pass in front of goal. Holden sidevolleys the ball into the net - a strange bounce on the turf disoriented Burse a little.
70- Sham reviews the disasterous penalty kick history of FC Dallas. Houston, meanwhile, has new momentum and energy in their attack.
72- GOAL! Ching beats his mark to a nifty through pass by DeRo, and buries his shot. The aggregate score is tied.
78- Serioux gets knocked in the knee by Stuart Holden and then goes for payback, knocking Holden down and stepping on his back. He's lucky not to get a red card, though he's shown a yellow.
80- A still-limping Serioux goes out for Dominic Oduro.
83- Corner kick leads to a DeRo header that misses.
85- Dallas players look seriously bummed. They've lost the mental edge.
89- Ruiz with a good defensive tackle, but then he rolls around, delaying things.
90+ Not sure all the delay tactics helped. Ref adds six minutes of stoppage.
Burse with another impressive save - this time smothering a point-blank shot from Brian Ching.
Dallas actually have a deep FK in Houston territory. Bobby Rhine lines it up, serves it right in front of goal, but Onstad came out to punch it out.
Overtime!
What is it with red cards and Dallas in the playoffs? Speaking of tradition - Gbandi got a red card in last year's playoff game. That reminds me that yesterday, I was talking with a local writer about the Galaxy's streak and he pointed out, "How many times did the Galaxy need to go a man up before they scored?" On that logic - Houston doesn't deserve to win this game, because they were losing when both sides were equal. But that's not the game.
2- FC Dallas with an early freekick chance. Cooper sends it over the wall and the goal. Onstad untroubled.
5- Davis off the crossbar, and then Burse saves the point-blank follow from Ching. Wow. Houston isn't discouraged, though, they're attacking even harder. The Dallas defense looks tired.
7- GOAL! Ching scores! It looks like it was offside, but the ball reached Ngwenya by a deflection off a defender, so it wasn't called. It bounced off Ngwenya and then Ching tucked it in. The slo-mo replay shows Ngwenya and Ching even with the defense when the ball was played. Even is on.
8-Moor shoves Ngwenya, and a free kick and card is awarded. Rhine is arguing and gets pushed by DeRo. Finally the free kick gets set up and it's a beaut. Davis bends it around the wall and in. Magic from the left foot.
12- CK for Dallas. It's cleared but Mullan goes down holding his throat. No replay of the knock yet. By the way, I was wrong about Dallas being the only team with the playoff beards. Houston has them, too. Worked for them last year. It's just hard to tell on players like Ching, because his beard is so sparse.
16- Pat Ianni is on for Ching. It cracks me up to see Ianni. His chiseled good looks have turned caveman now with the dark beard.
17- Dallas still getting a chance on the counter. Rhine kicks a line drive toward goal, but Onstad dives to save.
19- Ngwenya's speed is torturing the Dallas defense. Then he gets up in Rhine's face, and DeRo apparently adds his two cents and gets carded for dissent. Rhine looks on the edge of either tears or total destructional meltdown.
22-Ngwenya breakaway on goal and the Dallas defense is too tired to chase him down.Burse comes out and Joe gets too fancy, missing the post by inches into the outside of the netting.
23- These yellow cards could really haunt the Dynamo in the next round. Either they have to play super-careful in the Western Conference final, or they have to risk losing a player for the MLS Cup. FC Dallas may lose versus Houston, but they may have also handicapped the Dynamo so much it will be incredibly difficult for the team to repeat as titleists. No MLS team has done that since DC United in the first two years.
26- Houston, with the lead safe in hand, is content defending. Dir's voice is so downcast and depressed - that is, when he's even saying anything. He's gone very quiet.
29- Rhine has not resigned himself. The frustration he showed earlier has turned to resolve and he is still battling, but the tired legs of all the Dallas players can't mount a credible threat on the Houston goal.
30- Moor shown a second yellow for a tackle - the whole Dallas team argues it, but Pablo Ricchetti probably said something especially insulting, as he is given a yellow for dissent. Dallas is done, and finishes the game with nine men. Final whistle.
Well, the higher seed won this one, and the homefield advantage did what it was supposed to do, but what a tease for Dallas fans to be two goals up on aggregate and then watch disaster strike. Arturo Alvarez had a great season for the team, but can fans forgive such an egregious mistake? I guess Gbandi is still with the team, though.
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History Repeating: If you follow MLS tradition, you're probably aware that Chicago versus DC United, no matter how DC was number one in the regular season, means that Chicago will win. DC actually broke the pattern somewhat by even scoring. They have never beaten the Fire in seven playoff tries.
Meanwhile, Houston versus FC Dallas nearly always means Houston will win. Also, the playoffs versus FC Dallas means that Dallas will lose in the first round, usually on PK's.
So while DC United's one goal disadvantage looked deadly based on the Fire/DC history, the same FC Dallas margin didn't look safe at all versus Houston.
Houston has never lost against FC Dallas at home - they've never even tied. They've always won.
1-NO Goal - DeRosario puts the ball in the net, but he's offside. Sala is down for a good while.
4- Game gets going again. I love you, Robertson Stadium atmosphere, but I hate those football lines.
5- Shot of Richetti on the sidelines - he looked filled with Argentine angst. Ruiz is serious about his playoff beard. Speaking of MLS traditions, I'd like to point out that since 2005, the team sporting the playoff beards has won the championship.
8- Denilson looks useless - knocking a ball out of bounds, but reportedly he wants to stay in Dallas. I'm not seeing this happen unless a major pay cut is involved.
11 - Mullan misses a sitter in front of the goal, sliding and missing the pass, Dario Sala parries another shot, and the post pitches in to block the follow-up try. Wow. The Dynamo should have scored three times in that flurry, but instead, got nada.
12- Dave Dir is the color commentator for the broadcast of this game. This is actually an MLS trend, where ex-coaches call games. Thomas Rongen and Ray Hudson come to mind.
13- GOAL! Bobby Rhine doesn't waste time on the counter attack, sending a long pass up ahead to Kenny Cooper, who knocks it down via header, while Craig Waibel looks lost. The ball reaches Ruiz in front of the goal - and Ruiz is money from that spot with the ball in front of him. 16 playoff goals - which is pretty insane given that Ruiz and his team haven't made it out of the first round the past couple of years.
18- The Dynamo and their fans seemed shocked - their vaunted Robertson Stadium advantage could be in peril, though their team has had by far the better of play.
20-Corner kick for Dynamo- Mulrooney takes. Dallas clears.
22- Ray Burse is putting on a game jersey. Sala has looked hobbled since he went down early in the game. Dallas fans probably won't like this, but Burse has played well for them.
23- Sala gets a card for delaying game. He was coming off the field incredibly slowly.
27- Houston has recovered shape and movement in the midfield. Hey! Denilson with a nice defensive play on Brian Ching. Ok, he's not useless.
30- Waibel tackles Ruiz, who rolls about four times after the contact. Waibel gets a yellow, complaining about Ruiz and his antics the whole time. As much as people say they're tired of Ruiz falling over so much, I'm personally tired of people whining after they've actually fouled a player. Denilson sends in a nice free kick, but Ruiz can't quite reach it.
33- Dir needs to stop jinxing Dallas by talking so much about how he has a feeling about how this year could be different for Dallas and they could advance. Just call the game.
35- Houston CK. It pops out to Mullan, who tries an outside shot, high to the corner, but Burse leaps confidently for it.
36- Bobby Rhine shields Brian Ching off the ball, then goes down after contact with Ching. He holds his hand up for medical assistance even as play continues around him. Houston doesn't care. Heck, his own FC Dallas team has a run of possession and doesn't kick the ball out. The ref finally blows the whistle.
38- Ching with a knockdown pass from Jaqua has the ball in front of goal, but Burse challenges him and blocks the shot, which knocks free in the box, but Dallas finally clears.
40- Ruiz draws a foul from Eddie Robinson, who is furious and gets a yellow for dissent. A fellow LA writer believes Robinson is the best defender in MLS, but he will never see steady national team duty because his temper is so insane.
44- Gbandi with a pointless foul, he pulls on Mullan from behind. That's the kind of card you take when the defender is breaking alone on goal, but that wasn't the case here.
45+ Dallas works the ball around well for an attack, but blows the final pass in to Cooper.
Yi fouls DeRo in the final minute of the half for a dangerous freekick. Dallas clears. Burse punches out the ensuing corner.
Halftime: The Dallas announcers are gleeful that FC has survived the half with the 2-0 aggregate lead intact. 45 minutes from the second round, says Brad Sham. Rhine says the Dallas defense is strong in his halftime interview. He sounds confident.
However, the announcers do note that Dallas is missing three key starters now - Pablo Richetti has a leg injury. Clarence Goodson, suffered a stomach ailment, and then there's Sala, who went out early in the half.
46- Alvarez gets a red. The announcers are guessing, because it wasn't a clear camera angle, but it looks like Alvarez kneed Brad Davis in the groin. Davis may not even have been hit that hard, (I'd have to agree with Dir that Davis recovers far too well if the jewels were actually damaged) but he goes down and the ref pulls the red immediately. Really pointless and foolish of Alvarez.
51- Stuart Holden in for Waibel. Richetti, hamstring injury and all, comes in for Denilson.
53- Houston putting pressure on, but Davis wastes a chance with a high shot from outside. Ruiz wastes time with an ankle injury.
56- Ruiz, back on the field, gets a great lead pass towards the goal. He might actually have an ankle injury, because he doesn't show breaking speed and basically falls down in front of the ball, wasting the chance.
58- Toja with a pair of corners, the second one leading to an Onstad save.
61- Joe Ngwenya on for Nate Jaqua.
65- Burse kicksave versus Ngwenya. Nice.
67- GOAL! Another Houston flurry and Chings knocks down a long pass in front of goal. Holden sidevolleys the ball into the net - a strange bounce on the turf disoriented Burse a little.
70- Sham reviews the disasterous penalty kick history of FC Dallas. Houston, meanwhile, has new momentum and energy in their attack.
72- GOAL! Ching beats his mark to a nifty through pass by DeRo, and buries his shot. The aggregate score is tied.
78- Serioux gets knocked in the knee by Stuart Holden and then goes for payback, knocking Holden down and stepping on his back. He's lucky not to get a red card, though he's shown a yellow.
80- A still-limping Serioux goes out for Dominic Oduro.
83- Corner kick leads to a DeRo header that misses.
85- Dallas players look seriously bummed. They've lost the mental edge.
89- Ruiz with a good defensive tackle, but then he rolls around, delaying things.
90+ Not sure all the delay tactics helped. Ref adds six minutes of stoppage.
Burse with another impressive save - this time smothering a point-blank shot from Brian Ching.
Dallas actually have a deep FK in Houston territory. Bobby Rhine lines it up, serves it right in front of goal, but Onstad came out to punch it out.
Overtime!
What is it with red cards and Dallas in the playoffs? Speaking of tradition - Gbandi got a red card in last year's playoff game. That reminds me that yesterday, I was talking with a local writer about the Galaxy's streak and he pointed out, "How many times did the Galaxy need to go a man up before they scored?" On that logic - Houston doesn't deserve to win this game, because they were losing when both sides were equal. But that's not the game.
2- FC Dallas with an early freekick chance. Cooper sends it over the wall and the goal. Onstad untroubled.
5- Davis off the crossbar, and then Burse saves the point-blank follow from Ching. Wow. Houston isn't discouraged, though, they're attacking even harder. The Dallas defense looks tired.
7- GOAL! Ching scores! It looks like it was offside, but the ball reached Ngwenya by a deflection off a defender, so it wasn't called. It bounced off Ngwenya and then Ching tucked it in. The slo-mo replay shows Ngwenya and Ching even with the defense when the ball was played. Even is on.
8-Moor shoves Ngwenya, and a free kick and card is awarded. Rhine is arguing and gets pushed by DeRo. Finally the free kick gets set up and it's a beaut. Davis bends it around the wall and in. Magic from the left foot.
12- CK for Dallas. It's cleared but Mullan goes down holding his throat. No replay of the knock yet. By the way, I was wrong about Dallas being the only team with the playoff beards. Houston has them, too. Worked for them last year. It's just hard to tell on players like Ching, because his beard is so sparse.
16- Pat Ianni is on for Ching. It cracks me up to see Ianni. His chiseled good looks have turned caveman now with the dark beard.
17- Dallas still getting a chance on the counter. Rhine kicks a line drive toward goal, but Onstad dives to save.
19- Ngwenya's speed is torturing the Dallas defense. Then he gets up in Rhine's face, and DeRo apparently adds his two cents and gets carded for dissent. Rhine looks on the edge of either tears or total destructional meltdown.
22-Ngwenya breakaway on goal and the Dallas defense is too tired to chase him down.Burse comes out and Joe gets too fancy, missing the post by inches into the outside of the netting.
23- These yellow cards could really haunt the Dynamo in the next round. Either they have to play super-careful in the Western Conference final, or they have to risk losing a player for the MLS Cup. FC Dallas may lose versus Houston, but they may have also handicapped the Dynamo so much it will be incredibly difficult for the team to repeat as titleists. No MLS team has done that since DC United in the first two years.
26- Houston, with the lead safe in hand, is content defending. Dir's voice is so downcast and depressed - that is, when he's even saying anything. He's gone very quiet.
29- Rhine has not resigned himself. The frustration he showed earlier has turned to resolve and he is still battling, but the tired legs of all the Dallas players can't mount a credible threat on the Houston goal.
30- Moor shown a second yellow for a tackle - the whole Dallas team argues it, but Pablo Ricchetti probably said something especially insulting, as he is given a yellow for dissent. Dallas is done, and finishes the game with nine men. Final whistle.
Well, the higher seed won this one, and the homefield advantage did what it was supposed to do, but what a tease for Dallas fans to be two goals up on aggregate and then watch disaster strike. Arturo Alvarez had a great season for the team, but can fans forgive such an egregious mistake? I guess Gbandi is still with the team, though.
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Friday, November 2, 2007
Without a Trace of JOB
Hollywood United insiders told me that John O'Brien played a game for them this year, and I treked out to a match hoping to get him to chat about what he's up to these days. No sign of him. He's not really an H.U. regular, though. LeBoeuf, is, for example, at almost every game.
O'Brien also wasn't one of the Hollywood United players mentioned in the pre-game list for Sunday's charity match. There's a lot of other players, though, including Youri Djorkaeff.
Release:
The Galaxy’s legion of stars, including David Beckham, Joe Cannon, Landon Donovan and Cobi Jones will line up for Frank Yallop’s squad. They will be opposed by actors Anthony LaPaglia (Without a Trace), Brandon Routh (Superman Returns), Costas Mandaylor (Saw IV), Jimmy Jean-Louis (Heroes), guitarist Viv Campbell (Def Leppard), and many other stars of stage and screen, as well as 1998 FIFA World Cup winners Frank LeBoeuf and Youri Djorkaeff, U.S. National Team stars Alexi Lalas, Joe-Max Moore and Eric Wynalda and Mexican National Team legend Jorge Campos, as well as Richard Gough (Scotland), Oliver Biaggi (Switzerland) and many more will represent Hollywood United.
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O'Brien also wasn't one of the Hollywood United players mentioned in the pre-game list for Sunday's charity match. There's a lot of other players, though, including Youri Djorkaeff.
Release:
The Galaxy’s legion of stars, including David Beckham, Joe Cannon, Landon Donovan and Cobi Jones will line up for Frank Yallop’s squad. They will be opposed by actors Anthony LaPaglia (Without a Trace), Brandon Routh (Superman Returns), Costas Mandaylor (Saw IV), Jimmy Jean-Louis (Heroes), guitarist Viv Campbell (Def Leppard), and many other stars of stage and screen, as well as 1998 FIFA World Cup winners Frank LeBoeuf and Youri Djorkaeff, U.S. National Team stars Alexi Lalas, Joe-Max Moore and Eric Wynalda and Mexican National Team legend Jorge Campos, as well as Richard Gough (Scotland), Oliver Biaggi (Switzerland) and many more will represent Hollywood United.
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Playoff Paramour
I'll be shameless and admit I love the MLS playoffs. Yep, yep, I'm having a good time these days. I adore competitive games where everything is on the line. The funny thing is how many people will send me emails saying "Such and such playoff game great! But I don't think playoffs should exist. Single table all the way."
I disagree, but that's nothing new. I've written a defense of the playoffs every year, it seems. OK, I didn't this year, but that's because I'd pretty much said everything before. I didn't want to repeat myself. However, if you missed my column last season, don't bother searching for it - the Soccer365 redesign wiped out all my old columns.
If you're curious as to how I could possibly defend the playoffs - well, here's the text of that article:
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I disagree, but that's nothing new. I've written a defense of the playoffs every year, it seems. OK, I didn't this year, but that's because I'd pretty much said everything before. I didn't want to repeat myself. However, if you missed my column last season, don't bother searching for it - the Soccer365 redesign wiped out all my old columns.
If you're curious as to how I could possibly defend the playoffs - well, here's the text of that article:
Playoff Haters (originally published Sept. 2006)
Ten points. 29 to 39. Four wins versus the same amount of losses. That’s all that separates the bottom of the Western Conference (LA Galaxy,
In the Eastern conference, with 47 points, DC United is still sitting pretty even after the ugly loss to the Galaxy. However, only three points separate the grouping of the next four teams – New England,
Folks, we’ve got playoff races on our hands. All fans who give a fig about their team should be nervous, fighting that slight heartburn which comes with both the anticipation and horror of what the future holds.
No one is safe.
Even DC, from its lofty perch in the standings, should be a bit anxious. Last year, the team just seemed to assume holding
No one else is even contemplating the postseason seriously yet. It’s going to come down to the wire, frankly. Every game from here to the last game has playoff implications.
Of course, every game back in April, May, June and July did, too. Teams are probably kicking themselves a bit, thinking, “Man, if we’d just won that one game, back in _______, we wouldn’t be so stressed right now to make the playoffs.”
To which I’d say (if these hypothetical words were ever spoken to me) “Ha!” A laugh of cold sympathy you’ll get from me if the “regular season matters little” line gets trotted out, but then you actually find yourself sweating to get your team to the battle for the hardware.
If it’s so easy to make the playoffs, why have no MLS teams completely assured themselves of it? Of course, one may look at the simple numbers. Eight of twelve teams make it, so the odds are actually in favor of arriving to the playoffs.
That’s simplistic reasoning, though, to take that percentage and then apply the adjective “easy”.
Instead, imagine a context with a goal that competitive people want – say, entrance into the country’s most prestigious med school. Everyone admitted to the premed program has impressive test scores and high grades. Yet there is a mandated attrition standard of 1/3 of the class being dropped from the program. So even if a student is one wrong test question below the line, that person is out, and told to reapply next year, no matter how much work has been already done that particular year.
Some may crack under the pressure and give up, making those who are left breathe a bit easier. In other years, not only are the students bright and hardworking, but they may all happen to be incredibly persistent. Everyone pushes each other, and the outcome for many might not be decided until the final exam of the year, when all the heartbreak and hope is on the line.
The truth about parity is that it hurts. It’s painful to realize that as hard as one might work, others are working just as much. It’s tough to face that the talent one has is matched by the ability of another. No one likes to leave things in the cruel hands of fate.
But that’s life, which is what makes sports such a thrilling metaphor of the struggle for achievement. It’s certainly more compelling than watching a bunch of med students take tests.
In a league where no team fears another overmuch, where so little is decided from top to bottom, it’s a wide-open race to the finish.
I think that drives some people a little nuts. Fans can’t decide who is the top dog or the underdog. Coaches attempt to divine a winning formula. Some believe the uncertainty is part of the excitement of the whole design. It does, however, leave others thinking there’s got to be a better way to structure the playoffs.
Some, of course, want to emulate
Others say that a single table should decide the playoff teams and the playoff number should be reduced to only six. As such, then, this season the Eastern Conference would be in danger of being represented solely by DC United. If people think that soccer struggles to get attention now, imagine the fallout after roughly half the country has no team to root for in the postseason.
Kansas City Wizards coach Brian Bliss couldn’t seem to make up his mind about the format.
“It’s easy to make the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean there’s less pressure to make the playoffs,” he claimed.
The statement seems contradictory because there’s usually less pressure involved in doing anything that’s easy.
“We create our own pressure, because we want to do well,” Bliss tried to clarify.
His proposed change?
“Reduce the amount of teams that get into the playoffs, and give the top teams a bye. Something of that nature would put more emphasis on the regular season.”
Yet Bliss immediately offered evidence that the regular season did have emphasis.
“I don’t think the teams that are fighting for playoff position are taking it any lighter, or thinking, ‘Oh, we can coast into the third or fourth spot.’ If you look at our division, everybody’s still in the mix, going to the last six or eight games.”
The Wizards are probably well aware of how a regular season lapse can hurt a team. The year after they won the 2004 U.S. Open Cup and made the MLS final with a better regular season record than their opponent, the Wizards failed to make the playoffs.
“One of the reasons that I think I got my job is because we didn’t do well at the end of the season,” explained Bliss, who was promoted to interim coach after longtime coach Bob Gansler, a former national team coach, was let go earlier this year.
“We had a good start and then a mediocre middle part and we slipped down in the standings,” recalled Bliss of 2005. “We’ve got all these guys in the locker room who know what happened. I think that’s playing a part in the fight that our guys are putting up in order to hang in there.”
The Wizard’s star defender, Jose Burciaga, apparently believed fortune was partly to blame for the team’s failure to make the playoffs in 2005.
“We’ve been unlucky,” Burgiaca stated. “You need some luck sometimes and I think that’s what we had in 2004. I think if we get into the playoffs, I think we’ll be fine. Teams have to watch out for us.”
Burciaga touches on what to me is a great aspect of the playoffs – the fact that any team who makes it that far then has a shot at the title. It gives every team left both hunger and hope.
Single table provides little incentive for the teams safely in the middle of the pack, but out of the running for the top. That’s not a problem for those who prefer that system, but there are many who do not.
For example, I’ve noticed that many who have experience with Mexican soccer prefer the playoff system – they’re used to it from the MFL. A lot of converted American fans used to playoffs in all the Major League Sports also are accustomed to having one big game at the end of the season.
Still, there are notable adherents of the single-table. Chivas
“In a perfect role, I’d be one who would love to have a single table,” he admitted.
Bradley listed off the needed modifications MLS would have to make.
“That would mean that we can’t have the schedule that we have. You can’t have a single table and have games that many games where you’re missing players, because every game is going to count for who is a champion at the end. You almost have to be on an international schedule. In terms of being on an international schedule, we have work to do in terms of building more stadiums. We have work to do in terms of how to play games when the weather is cold in certain cities.”
With time, though, Bradley believed his plan was possible.
Perhaps it’s all something of a distraction from the heart of issue, though. Maybe it’s easy to blame the system rather than admit where a team wilted.
Frank Yallop played for years under a single-table structure in
“We all know at the beginning of the season how it works,” he pointed out. “Everyone has to play under those same expectations. You either do it, or you don’t.”
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Not Again
DC fans may be upset about last night's handball call on Christian Gomez partly because they're used to something different. DC got the benefit of a non-call in another crucial game years ago. Alecko Eskandarian, in 2004, redirected a clearance from Jimmy Conrad with his arm to score his team's second goal in the MLS Cup final.
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The Law's way
Chivas USA’s Lawson Vaughn has a tattoo on his left wrist that reads “Win or Die.” I asked him about it recently. I hadn’t noticed it before (can’t say I’ve had reason to study Lawson’s wrists before) so when I saw it I asked him about it.
He told me he got the acronyms from Lou Holtz’s book “Winning Every Day.”
“Win” stands for What’s Important Now.
“Die” stands for Determination Is Everything.
“That’s kind of our team motto, our mentality,” Vaughn said. “The team has really taken to it, win or die, playing at home and improving on the road, we’ve actually done that.”
Vaughn wasn’t a part of the first game in Kansas City. He was suspended after his red card in the season finale. He’ll probably start against the Wizards on Saturday, likely in his usual right back role.
Certainly playing at home will be a plus, Vaughn said.
“The guys are all focused. The guys are all committed. We expect to have three games remaining. We expect to have a huge crowd, a lot of support. Just the mentality we’re going to have in this game is going to be ‘balls to the wall’ for lack of better words.”
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He told me he got the acronyms from Lou Holtz’s book “Winning Every Day.”
“Win” stands for What’s Important Now.
“Die” stands for Determination Is Everything.
“That’s kind of our team motto, our mentality,” Vaughn said. “The team has really taken to it, win or die, playing at home and improving on the road, we’ve actually done that.”
Vaughn wasn’t a part of the first game in Kansas City. He was suspended after his red card in the season finale. He’ll probably start against the Wizards on Saturday, likely in his usual right back role.
Certainly playing at home will be a plus, Vaughn said.
“The guys are all focused. The guys are all committed. We expect to have three games remaining. We expect to have a huge crowd, a lot of support. Just the mentality we’re going to have in this game is going to be ‘balls to the wall’ for lack of better words.”
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