Szetela to Racing, not Roma

U.S. under-20 and Columbus Crew midfielder Danny Szetela has accepted an offer from Spanish club Racing Santander.

According to an article by Ives Galarcep for ESPNsoccernet, Szetela turned down Roma’s offer of more than €250,000 per season to sign with La Liga minnows Racing Santander.

Galacep writes, “Financial details of the Racing deal were not disclosed, but Szetela chose to take less money from Racing than Roma in order to have a better chance of seeing first-team action.”

His deal was brokered by obnoxious ass clown Shep Messing (see this post).

MLS received a paltry $150,000 transfer fee, as the article states, “[as] a result of Szetela's contract status (his current deal with MLS expires at the end of the year).”

MORE MLS TRANSFER NEWS

…The New England Revolution signed Gambian under-20 player Sainey Nyassi as a youth international. To make room for Nyassi, Arsen Oka and Ryan Solle were released. Who? Yeah, me neither.

…Columbus have signed Trinidad & Tobago defender Andrei Pacheco, 22, to a developmental contract to fill the spot vacated by Brad Evans who was placed on season-ending injured reserve with a torn left hip flexor muscle. Evans, a UC-Irvinem midfielder, was the Crew’s first selection in the 2007 SuperDraft.

Illinois derby for 2009?

St. Louis Soccer United, the group attempting to bring MLS to St. Louis, are moving on a proposal to build a soccer-specific stadium just over the Missouri border in Collinsville, Ill.

According to a recent article in St. Louis Business Journal, SLSU has submitted its "pre-annexation proposal" to the city of Collinsville. The proposal claims that the stadium would generate over $5.6 million annually.

With Beckham train derailed, fare stays same

Those MLS fans who already purchased tickets to ride the Beckham train when it rolled into their home station are being told that despite its recent derailment, the fare will remain the same.

According to a recent AP article, Real Salt Lake will follow suite with the rest of MLS when it comes to their Sept. 19 showdown with the Beckham-less Galaxy. Spice Boy is essential out for the season after sustaining a knee injury in the first half of Los Angeles' shootout loss in the SuperLiga final. There is some talk that he may be back for the Galaxy's final few matches (and anyone thinking that those matches will be in the playoffs is delusional).

RSL spokesman John Koluder summed it up succintly, "This will be our highest-attended game. We will not be offering refunds."

Most ticket prices for matches including Beckham were marked up between $5 to $10 extra for lower level seating, and many ticket packages were built and sold around the English gimp's visit. But what to do now when the main attraction will be reduced to benchwarmer (or maybe worse, luxury-box spectator).

Of course the answer is simple for MLS execs, do nothing and collect the extra cash. After all, the fans should have known that this was a possibility. No one can predict injuries (or I would have won every fantasy sports league I ever entered). Still, many of these ticket buyers are not MLS-fans, at least not yet. They are David Beckham fans. I agree that refunding the money entirely would be a stupid move, but perhaps MLS should consider refunding the difference in ticket price. Or maybe they could just send a coupon for a free beer or soda (which at current concession prices would be equivalent to the difference anyhow).

Why bother? Well, a gesture like this to the Beckham fans might take the sting out of missing a chance to see their favorite player and would hopefully put them in a better frame of mind to watch and enjoy the 22 players that are able to play. And it would surely cut down on the disgruntled, sign waving douchebags.

At the very least, if MLS went the coupon route, LA could throw a Beckham jersey on Peter Vagenas and the Sir Spicy fans might be to drunk to notice the difference.

TYH's Mock Promotion/Relegation Battle

Since MLS and USL do not have the infrastructure (or finances) to have actual relegation/promotion between first and second divisions, we here at TYH thought is might be fun to create a mock promotion/relegation battle, if for nothing else but to make the end of the year a bit more exciting for us. Plus, we're soccer geeks.

Promotion/relegation, a concept completely foreign in American sports, makes the final matches of the season much more exciting. Among the top flight, it's the desperation to remain in top flight football. For those successful second divisions squads, it's winning the chance to play with the big boys and the possible financial windfalls to come. I mean, besides the die-hard fans, who will really watch Los Angeles play Real Salt Lake on Sept. 19 when absolutely nothing will be riding on it?

Of course, given the "mock" nature of this competition, there still isn't anything really riding on that match, except for bragging rights (i.e. "My team is slightly less crappy than your team"). And after the years that the relegation targets have had, bragging rights might be enough. As for the USL.1, it might get their team's a bit more coverage, as we have virtually ignored the USL, outisde of US Open Cup coverage. Who knows, maybe we'll spot the next Maykel Galindo. Or maybe Portland or Seattle will make a stronger case for MLS expansion through their showings with their USL.1 clubs.

The competition is simple. At the end of the regular season, the two MLS clubs with the worst records will be "relegated" and the USL.1 regular season champ and the USL.1 Cup winner will be "promoted." If the same USL.1 club wins both honors, "promotion" will go to the second-place team during the regular season. Since USL.1 is nearing the end of their season, our first promoted club will be announced in a matter of weeks (see standings below). TYH's mock promotion/relegation competition will ignore divisions in both leagues and will tabulate a single table (using MLS tie-breaking procedures). Why? Because that's how it should be done.

TYH will post regular columns covering the mock promotion/relegation battle, along with single-table breakdowns of the current candidates in both categories. Questions? Comments? Feel free to stump for your team or to comment on who you think will be relegated or promoted. TYH might highlight your comments in future posts.

MLS Relegation Candidates (Week 21):

TEAM	GP	W	L	D	Pts.	Diff
Toronto FC	22	5	12	5	20	-17
RSL	20	3	11	6	15	-17
Los Angeles	18	3	10	5	14	-10

USL.1 Promotion Candidates (Week 15):

TEAM	GP	W	L	D	Pts.	Diff
Seattle	25	14	5	6	48	10
Portland	26	13	5	8	47	13
Montreal	25	12	5	8	44	10
Atlanta	25	11	8	6	39	9
Rochester	26	11	9	6	39	3
Puerto Rico	26	10	7	9	39	3

SuperLiga: LA lose final, Beckham injured

Despite a valiant attempt, a battered and bruised Los Angeles Galaxy lost 4-3 on penalty kicks to Mexican club Pachuca in the inaugural SuperLiga final at the Home Depot Center last night.

And just when you thought things couldn't get worse, the decision to play David Beckham, despite his recent glut of games and a nagging ankle injury led to fresh woe for a club that GM Alexi Lalas called "the gem of Major League Soccer," as MLS's most expensive signing was forced out of the match in the 33rd minute after sustaining a knee injury that he later called a "ligament strain."

The injury, sustained after a challenge by Pachuca's Fernando Salazar, could put Beckham back on the sideline for six weeks and keep him out of England's Euro 2008 qualification.

The Beckham injury was in keeping with the tone of the first half that saw the home side struggle mightily against the CONCACAF Champions Cup winners. And then things went from bad to worse, as L.A. midfielder Peter Vagenas put the ball into his own net, giving Pachuca the 1-0 lead.

One bright spot for the Galaxy was the play of Joe Cannon who was superb and managed to keep the Galaxy in the match during their dreadful first half.

In the second half, the Galaxy battled back with a few near misses of their own and Cannon kept things close. In the 86th minute, Los Angeles' hard work finally paid off, through a stunning 90th-minute equalizer. After launching an all-ouy attack, Mike Randolph's header his the crossbar and was clumsily cleared to Chris Klein, whose spectacular bicycle kick found the target to make it 1-1.

After a scoreless overtime, the match went to penalties. Pachuca keeper Miguel Calero saved the first shot attempt from Pete Vagenas, but Cannon brought the sides level by saving Gabriel Caballero's attempt. After Pachuca's fifth shooter hit the crossbar, Landon Donovan stepped up with a chance to win for the Galaxy, but the U.S. Nats best PK-taker was denied by Calero who dove right to make the save. Now in sudden death, Carlos Rodriguez buried his attempt and Abel Xavier, experiences Portuguese national stepped up needing to convert, but he missed the target.

Scoring Summary:
PAC -- Own Goal (Peter Vagenas) 28
LA -- Chris Klein 1 (Troy Roberts ) 93+

Penalty-kick shootout:
PAC -- Rafael Marquez Lugo (Goal)
LA -- Peter Vagenas (Saved)
PAC -- Luis Gabriel Rey (Goal)
LA -- Cobi Jones (Goal)
PAC -- Gabriel Caballero (Saved)
LA -- Chris Klein (Goal)
PAC -- Julio Mansur (Goal)
LA -- Edson Buddle (Goal)
PAC -- Marvin Cabrera (Crossbar)
LA -- Landon Donovan (Saved)
PAC -- Carlos Rodriguez (Goal)
LA -- Abel Xavier (Wide Right)

MLSnet.com's Match Report

Meet Jim Mike: USWNT PR manager

YA: Tough weekend for Yanks abroad

In an a weekend filled with embarassing losses for some of our Yanks (GK Adin Brown's Lillestrøm lost 7-0. Ouch!), there were a few bright spots, including a Clint Dempsey goal (finally) and another DaMarcus Beasley goal, as Rangers cruised.

Americans in England
Aston Villa 2 - 1 Fulham
Clint Dempsey got on the scorer's sheet for the first time this season in his first start of the season in Fulham's loss to Aston Villa. Dempsey scored off a deflected pass from Diomansy Kamara to put Fulham up 1-0, but Villa beat Keller twice in the second half to take the points. Despite Brian McBride's injury, there were still three Americans on the pitch for Fulham USA, as recently added goalkeeper Kasey Keller got the start between the posts. Carlos Bocanegra remained a starter and played the full 90, despite some inconsistent play to start the season.

Everton 1 - 1 Blackburn Rovers
Tim Howard and Brad Friedel shared the spoils, as their sides drew, but Howard seemed the shakier of the two American keepers. After allowing an early goal by the talented Paraguayan Roque Santa Cruz, Howard nearly gave the game away on making a mess of a David Bentley free-kick which should have been routine.

Derby County 1 - 2 Birmingham City
Eddie Lewis set up the only goal scored by his new side Derby County in their 2-1 loss to Birmingham City. Lewis' cross found Matt Oakley at the far post in the 51st minute. Fellow Yank Benny Feilhaber did not participate for Derby.

Americans in Germany
Hoffenheim 0 - 3 1860 Munich
Both Gregg Berhalter and Josh Wolff figured in 1860's 3-0 win over Hoffenheim in 2.Bundesliga action. Berhalter went the distance, while Wolff came out in the 74th minute after picking up a yellow card. The win keeps 1860 on top of the standings.

American in Scotland
Kilmarnock 1 - 2 Rangers
DaMarcus Beasley continued his stellar start with undefeated Rangers over the weekend, providing a goal and factoring in on the game-winner, as Rangers beat Kilmarnock in Scottish League action. It was a bit of an uneven performance by the American, but despite a subpar first half, Beasley put Rangers ahead in the 52nd minute, cleaning up a loose ball in the box. On Rangers second goal, a Beasley shot felt fortuitously to Jean-Claude Darcheville who finished well.

For a more complete description of all the Americans involved in this weekend’s action, check out Yanks Abroad.

LAG consider coach upgrade

It appears that Los Angeles have found their scape goat. And that goat is named Frank Yallop. Unconfirmed reports out of Los Angeles indicate that Yallop has been asked to step down to make way for L.A.-resident Jurgen Klinsmann.

Klinsmann, you'll remember, was also a target of Sunil Gulati and the U.S.S.F. when they were seeking Bruce Arena's replacement for the U.S. national team, but the two parties could not reach an agreement.

The news comes on the verge of Los Angeles' last realistic chance for hardware this season in the SuperLiga 2007 final, this Tuesday against 2007 CONCACAF Champions Cup-winners Pachuca at The Home Depot Center.

Although the Galaxy are not mathematically eliminated, they are sitting on 14 points with just 12 to play. The magic number to get into the playoffs will likely be around 40, which means that the Galaxy would have to be nearly perfect to make to the postseason as an eighth seed. Is it possible? Yes. Is it likely? No.

Yallop joined the Galaxy in June of 2006, when he replaced Steve Sampson (Lalas' first coaching hire) after his horrendous start to the '06 season (2-8-1). Yallop led the Galaxy to a 9-7-5 record and missed the playoffs by three points, not set-the-house-on-fire numbers, but respectable considering that he had to clean up the piles of Sampson that were all over the place. Those who question his MLS credentials any further need only look to his time with the San Jose Earthquakes where he won two MLS Cups in four years.

This season was really supposed to be the test for Yallop and it started rather well with a 3-1-1 in the first five matches (including US Open Cup), before turning south. The addition of Beckham (as well as the back-loaded schedule) was seen as a life preserver for the already drowning Galaxy, but it hasn't worked out that way.

Many critics have said that Yallop has been ill-equiped to deal with the circus surrounding David Beckham's arrival, and point to this as the main reason why he should be replaced. Putting aside that GM Alexi Lalas called Yallop the "perfect coach" for Beckham's transition into Major League Soccer, however, Sir Spice Boy has been the lone bright spot on a team that has struggled far more on the defensive side of the ball, than in creating scoring opportunities. And those defensive woes can't be entirely pinned on Yallop either, given the number of injuries the Galaxy have endured. They currently sport the longest injury list in MLS:

OUT: DF Chris Albright (R hamstring); MF David Beckham (L ankle); MF Kelly Gray (R calf); DF Ty Harden (R hip); DF Ante Jazic (R ankle); QUESTIONABLE: DF Quavas Kirk (L foot); MF Cobi Jones (R hip); DF Abel Xavier (L knee); PROBABLE: FW Edson Buddle (L Achilles); DF Troy Roberts (R ankle); DF Kyle Veris (R hip); MF Peter Vagenas (R quadriceps)

And seven out of the 12 injured players listed above are defenders. But I'm sure that the Lalas and the other Galaxy execs thought long and hard about all of these things before deciding that it's best to throw Yallop under the bus for the sake of their jobs and the wishes of their star player. And don't think that Beckham rose above the fray. If he wanted to keep Yallop, they would be keeping him. It is more likely that Beckham asked Los Angeles to go get a better coach.

And perhaps it will be a word from that same star player that convinces Klinsmann to finally sign for a league he has rejected so many times before.

TYH'S PICKS FOR MLS BEST 11 (Week 21)

GOALKEEPER

B. Guzan (CHV)

DEFENDERS

Jose Burciaga Jr. (KC), S. Thomas (CHV), M. Burch (DC)

MIDFIELDERS

B. Olsen (DC), F. Mendoza (CHV), J. Marsch (RSL),
G.B. Schelotto (CLB), T. Cooke (COL)

FORWARD

M. Galindo (CHV), C. Blanco (CHI)

Shevchenko to MLS? Dream on

Today's Mirror in the UK is reporting that MLS execs are after Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko. It is complete nonsense and you should not for a moment believe that MLS who mortgaged the farm for David Beckham would double down for Shevchenko.

While Shevchenko would be a spectacular addition and an instant superstar in MLS, his arrival would not be accompanied by the same hoopla that surrounded Spice Boy and therefore, it would also not be the financial boon that Becks has been. Shevchenko just doesn't carry the same cache as Beckham with the American public, and therefore, MLS would not be willing to shell out a hefty contract, examining the disparity of earning potential between Becks and Shevy on this side of the Atlantic. And it's a shame because Shevchenko would be accompanied by a much hotter wife, American model Kristen Pazik (pictured).

I feel bad for all the Real Salt Lake and Toronto fans that The Mirror is torturing with fiction like this. But before you allow yourself to be swept away dreaming of the Dneiper River (it's in the Ukraine), remember that his former club AC Milan, received 30 million pounds (about $60 million) for his transfer, but recently said they were "priced out" when they tried to get him back. Also, Dynamo Kiev is reportedly trying to reach a loan deal, so there's competition.

The Beckham signing was an aberration. And don't point to Blanco or Angel or Xavier as proof that MLS is now competing with the big boys because all three of those players were considered past their prime by their former clubs (whether that's an accurate assessment of their abilities is open for debate, but the financial depreciation of their value was clear).

Still, Shevchenko in Major League Soc...Dammit, now I'm doing it.

They couldn't score in a monkey brothel with a bag of bananas

Last night, Toronto FC broke Real Salt Lake's record for futility by finishing yet another match without a goal, bringing their goal-less total to 637 minutes. The old mark held by the 2005 RSL was 557 minutes. What are MoJo and TFC supposed to do?

Well one man had an idea, according to the Toronto Star. Sitting in MoJo's press conference, following TFC's 1-0 loss to DC United at BMO Field, a man weaing a TFC jersey raised his hand:

"Excuse me, sir," he said to Toronto head coach Mo Johnston. "I'm a Canadian resident. I'm a forward. I can hel-,"

But maybe MoJo should have gotten the young man's name before he was escorted from the room by security. TFC hasn't won a match since way back on July 4th, against ironically enough the former record holders RSL. Since that win, TFC has managed to score just once (a 1-1 draw with Chicago three days following the RSL win). They are 0-6-1 since the All-Star break and a possible playoff spot in their first year of existence is slipping away quickly.

So, how can they turn it around? Jeff "The douche" Cunningham, even when he's healthy, is not the answer. Danny Dichio is certainly capable, but Colin Samuel has been a complete bust as his strike partner. So, what is to be done? Unless the mysterious man at the press conference was Tomasz Radzinski ... not a whole lot.

Chivas USA humilate LA in Super Clasico

Video highlight provided by YouTuber noalcalciomoderno, complete with the scuffle following Jesse Marsch's tackle of Sir Spice.

Denilson's a done deal for Dallas

After lengthy negotiations, FC Dallas will announce the signing of Brazilian midfielder Denilson on Friday. Here are some quotes from the FC Dallas press release announcing the signing:

"We are extremely excited to be able to add a world-class player like Denilson to our squad," said FC Dallas head coach Steve Morrow. "We've worked hard to build a team with players that have exceptional ability and also have the right attitude off the field. Adding a player like Denilson will improve us further and give us a boost as we go into the final stretch of the season."

"First, I want to thank all the people that helped make this happen with FC Dallas," said Denilson. "It is something took many days, but in the end came out well, as we had planned. And now, I am anxious to get started playing, and to join a team that is in a good position in the league. I hope that through my work I will be able to contribute to this team and have success in this league."

Here is a previous post about FC Dallas' newest addition.

Click here for previous post.

The addition of Denilson, 29, with just about nine matches to play makes an already solid FC Dallas, scary-good. Dallas were virtually assured a playoff spot already, now a possible first MLS Cup is a real possibility, depending on how well youngster Juan Toja is able to work with Denilson. In any event, the TYH mid-season prediction of who would win the MLS Cup is looking better all the time.

The onlty question is, who will be the next winner in the DP wars? Will DC United be able to lure Juan Sebastian Veron to town? Is Patirck Kluivert a pipe dream for New York or Houston? These are heady days for MLS fans. I just hope the Don Garber and the club GMs are keeping one eye on potential DPs and one eye on a copy of "The history of the NASL."

Fulham USA buy American again

Fulham continued to add to their stable of American players by signing goalkeeper Kasey Keller today. The 37-year-old had been playing for recently relegated Borussia Moenchengladbach.

Fulham's starting keeper Finnish Antti Niemi was injured in Fulham's loss to Arsenal, and the back-up was awful, so the club decided to buy American once again. Currently, U.S. players Carlos Bocanegra, Clint Dempsey and the recently injured captain of the club Brian McBride are all on Fulham's roster

Keller played previously in the EPL for both Leicester City and Tottenham, so he should be able to step in and help them sort out their keeper situation. The real question is did Kasey sell his castle?

Here is a video of Kasey Keller leading some crazy Mochengladbach-ian (sp?) fans in some cheers:

Sweden blank Yanks, 1-0

USA 0, SWEDEN 1 (final)

Scoring Summary:
56 - Kalistrom (Bakircioglu)

Match commentary
1-15 min.
--so far, neither team seems to have found their footing in this one; sloppy play in the first 15 minutes; Bradley giveaway nearly leads to a goal; Beasley misses a sitter; Bornstein struggling early

16-30
--Sloppy play continues; fouls piling up (US 6, Swe 4); Beasley creates two scoring opps: setting up Dempsey, then Bradley, but to no avail

31-45
--Great Save Howard! (32) on Ibrahimovic 1v1 shot; first yellow to Swedes' Kallstrom; US finally maintaining some possession; pace slowed; Bocanegra clearing header prevents clear chance; 2nd yellow to Swe for dissent (Elmander); Yellow to Bocanegra for hand ball

46-60
--Convey in for Mastroeni; Swedes sub two players; another nice diving save by Howard off Andersson shot (50); Dempsey weak shot after nice Donovan dummy (51); GOAL - Sweden: Kalistrom near post strike beats Howard (56), Cherundolo, Bradley abused on Swede's goal, 'Dolo pushed off the ball

61-75
--Donovan with nice move centrally, but Bornstein cross kills play (63); US Subs: Spector for Bornstein and Hill for Donovan; Swedes sub Inrahimovic; Feilhaber gets shot on goal (70); Howard another save (72); US looks dreadful

75-90
-- US Subs: DeMerit on for Bocanegra, Zizzo on for Beasley (76); Former TYH Top 25 (Zizzo) gets first cap!; US Sub Davis on for Dempsey (86);

Wrap-up
A poor performance by the U.S., bringing their away record to 0-3 under Bradley. His experiment using three defensive midfielders (Bradley, Mastroeni and Feilhaber) did not work and the under-sized U.S. were pushed around. Still, players like Sal Zizzo, Kamani Hill and Charlie Davies got a bit of experience and the entrance of these young hungry players saw the U.S. attack 50-50 balls much more aggressively in the final 10 minutes. Overall, questions abound for the U.S. at almost every position, except goalkeeper.

USA Line-up

GOALKEEPER

Howard

DEFENDERS

Cherundolo, Onyewu, Bocanegra (DeMerit, 76), Bornstein (Spector, 64)

MIDFIELDERS

Feilhaber, Bradley, Mastroeni (Convey, 46), Beasley (Zizzo, 76)

FORWARD

Dempsey (Davies, 86), Donovan (Hill, 64)

Follow it on ussoccer.com's Matchtracker

Poor man's David Beckham

I thought this was funny so I thought I would share it with you Dynamo fans out there. Apparently, Paul Dalglish is the reason you're good, according to the Evening Chronicle in Newcastle, England.

He led Houston Dynamo to the Major League Soccer title last year, something Beckham is unlikely to get a sniff of in his maiden season.

Here I was thinking it was Dwayne De Rosario and Brian Ching who led you guys to the playoffs, a duo that accounted for 22 goals in 30 regular season matches and three goals and two assists in the playoffs. But apparently those two goals Dalglish scored in his six regular season matches made the difference and Houston fans should be grateful to the poor man's David Beckham. To be fair, Dalglish did score twice in the playoffs and played in all four matches. But is that enough to warrant this declaration:

Despite shining in the SPL for Hibs, perhaps even Dalglish junior could not have expected the unlikely move to the MLS to be such a huge success, with Beckham already one down when it comes to MLS medals.

Huge success? Those silly British. Dalglish has played in five matches out of 22, and Houston sits atop the west with 39 points. Forgive me if I don't think their season rests with Dalglish Jr.

Osorio adds familiar face to Fire roster

The Chicago have added another international player to a roster that already features Cuauhtemoc Blanco and Paulo Wanchope. And it's another familiar face...well, at least to Fire coach Juan Carlos Osorio.

The FIre signed Colombian defender Wilman Conde, who played for Osorio on Millionarios, to a four-year deal on Monday.

Making way for the 25-year-old Conde were Willian Oliveira, who was dropped Monday, and Thiago, who will be released when Conde received his VISA according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Seattle's Best

Since I was accused recently of hating on Seattle's MLS chances, I thought I would post a link to Steve Kelley's column on Seattle as a soccer city, entitled "Seattle worthy of another shot at quality soccer." It's a good read. Click here for the column.

DC United's magic pentagon?

Will he or won't he? According to The Daily Mail, Argentinean Juan Sebastian Veron is seriously considering a move to Major League Soccer.

The Estudiantes midfielder is considering an offer from DC United but said: "I've received a spectacular offer to join Beckham in this league but I have not yet decided my future."

The possibility of Veron suiting up for DC United just in time for the playoffs should scare the bejesus out of the other teams in MLS. United, who are 3-1 in regular season play since the All-Star break, would have a dangerous South American contingent in Christian Gomez, Luciano Emilio, Fred, the still dangerous (when not injured) Jaime Moreno and Veron.

Or this may all be a ploy to improve his market value. Stay tuned.

Watch this YouTube video compilation Of JSV from INTERstallion with the sound off (you've been warned).

DeMerit demands pay raise

The Mirror is reporting that American Jay DeMerit is demanding £10,000-a-week or he'll leave the club. According to the article, the 27-year-old has received offers from Middlesbrough and Derby County. His contract with Watford reportedly runs through the end of the 2008-09 season.

DeMerit earned his first call up to the U.S. national team last March in a friendly with Guatemala. The former University of Illinois-Chicago defender was a finalist for Watford player of the year last year. He will be on roster for the Nats friendly against Sweden this Wednesday.

YA: Hahnemann over Howard, Berhalter brace

A piece of YA news that I didn’t get a chance to blog about was Eddie Lewis’ transfer from crappy Leeds to less crappy Derby County. Talk about a lateral move. Derby got spanked by Tottenham 4-0 and neither Lewis nor Benny Feilhaber got any PT. Here’s a Cliff’s Notes version covering the rest of the Americans who made an impact in Europe over the weekend:

Americans in England
Reading 1 - 0 Everton
Marcus Hahnemann earned the 1-0 shut out over Tim Howard’s Everton in a match that saw the return of Bobby Convey for Reading. Convey played the final 11 minutes for goal scorer Stephen Hunt. Both American keepers performed well in the contest, although Hahnemann nearly surrendered the equalizer when he was caught off his line but Andy Johnson’s shot hit the woodwork.

Fulham 1 - 2 Middlesbrough
Brian McBride injured again. Click here for the post. Carlos Bocanegra played the full 90 and Clint Dempsey came on in the 25th minute.

Americans in Germany
1860 Munich 3 - 1 Kaiserslautern
Gregg Berhalter scored two goals and Josh Wolff added an assist in 1860 Munich’s thumping of Kaiserslautern. Berhalter’s first goal came in the 55th minute when he headed in a Danny Swarz free kick. Wolff dished the game-winning goal to Berkant Göktan. Berhalter added the third goal from the penalty spot. Maybe we should have been playing Berhalter at forward.

Americans elsewhere
Standard Liege 4 - 1 Cercle Brugge (Belgium)
Oguchi Onyewu played solidly for Standard Liege over the weekend, anchoring the defense in a 4-1 rout of Cercle Brugge. So much for Dr.. Evil’s homies in Brugge.

Haugesund 6 - 1 Nybergsund
Ex-Seattle Sounder Can Weaver scored a hat trick for Haugesund in their route of lower division Nybersund (try saying it like Jerry Lewis, it’s fun – NyBERsund, nice lady). Weaver will face fellow American Nate Borcher and his club Odd Grenland in the semifinal of the NM Cup. The 24-year-old Weaver scored 18 goals for Seattle last year and was Rookie of the Year. Why is he in Norway and nor in MLS, I wonder?

For a more complete description of all the Americans involved in this weekend’s action, check out Yanks Abroad.

Ouch! McBride hurt again

Yanks Abroad is reporting that Brian McBride will need surgery to repair a dislocated patella he suffered while scoring the concilation goal for Fulham last Saturday in a 2-1 loss to Middlesbrough.

Brian McBride faces a lengthy period on the sidelines after suffering a dislocated patella while scoring Fulham's opening goal against Middlesbrough at Craven Cottage on Saturday.

You have to feel for the oft-injured McBride. Here's an unofficial rundown of McGlass' history of maladities:

1997 -- ankle
1998 -- concussion
1999 -- fractured cheekbone
2000 -- blood clot in arm
2001 -- right knee, swollen eye, blood clot#2
2003 -- hamstring, shoulder surgery, fractured orbital bone
2005-06 -- stiches above right eye
2007 -- dislocated patella

Shut up, Donny!

If you are a soccer fan and you are a masochist, watch the video above. PTI discusses New York's 5-4 win over Beckham's Galaxy. Tony Kornheiser plays the part of Donny in The Big Lebowski. He's out of his element. He has no frame of reference. He's like a child who wanders into the middle of a movie and wants to know what happened.

These are the same assholes telling us that a 1-0 baseball game is exciting. It's an old argument, but one that soccer bashers refuse to hear: If you understand and appreciate the skill it takes to play this game, you don't need more scoring to make it exciting. Look at the AFL...Not even ESPN would claim that the AFL is more exciting than the NFL and the AFL routinely averages well over a 100 points a game.

Ok, they are at least discussing MLS on PTI, so that's something, I guess. And maybe the rabid soccer fans are partly to blame for constantly trumpeting the rise of the soccer in this country. But Kornhole's refusal to acknowledge gains that the sport has made is just irrational and likely born out of the fear that he has finally become irrelevant. (News flash: that happened when you took the MNF job).

While Saturday's match was full of exciting goals, it was also full of lousy defense. MLS doesn't need more 5-4 matches; it needs fossils like Kornheiser to retire.

TYH'S PICKS FOR MLS BEST 11 (Week 20)

GOALKEEPER

M. Pickens (CHI)

DEFENDERS

D. McTavish (DC), I. Guerrero (CHI), W. Barrett (HOU)

MIDFIELDERS

S. Joseph (NE), C. Clarke (COL), J. Marsh (CHI), D. Beckham (LA)

FORWARD

J. Altidore (NY), C. Pavon (LA), C. Blanco (CHI)

Stott, drop and roll

So, there were several things that I could have written about after watching Red Bull New York edge Los Angeles 5-4 last night at Giants Stadium. I could discuss David Beckham's impact on the Galaxy or Carlos Pavon's revival or Jozy Altidore's brilliance or the dreadful state of the Field Turf or the fact that the defenses of both sides played like crap (the Galaxy's poor D due to injuries and New York's due to Bruce Arena), but it wasn't the flurry of goals or even the historic attendance that caught my eye. It was the absolutely lousy refereeing by Kevin Stott.

Now saying an MLS referee is lousy is like calling a midget tiny, but even with the bar set so low in MLS, Stott's performance was dreadful. If you ask almost any player about the officials, they will almost always say that they just want the match to be called consistently. The referee needs to decide ahead of time, the type of foul that warrants a caution and then stick to it. They need to hold both teams to a consistent standard and allow the players to decide the game.

But the often unspoken assumption is that the referee will also make the calls necessary to protect the players from injury by punishing recklessness, and he will make the calls to prevent a team from gaining an unfair advantage. In short, the referee must impose his authority on the match by maintaining the integrity of the rules.

There were several moments in last night's match when Stott failed at his duty. It began in the fourth minute, when Stott failed to demonstrate his authority by sending off Ty Harden, who, as the last man, pulled Altidore down and prevented a 1-v-1 opportunity. Los Angeles should have been a man down for 86 minutes. But it wasn't only New York who was the victim, a two-footed challenge by Dave van den Bergh on Beckham, had the Englishman screaming at van den Bergh for his recklessnees, but there was no yellow card shown for the dangerous challenge. Later Clint Mathis slid in on Beckham as well, with no chance at the ball; no yellow that time as well. In fact there were several dangerous tackles that went unpunished beyond a foul and sometimes even the foul wasn't called. Is this consistency or incompetence?

In all, Stott pulled the card from his pocket only three times during a match that warranted a flash of color many more times, given the recklessness abandon of both teams. Los Angeles lost yet another defender to injury (Ante Jazic in the 17th minute) and there were many players who finished the match limping (Mathis, Altidore, Beckham, etc.). Both sides were fortunate that more players were not injured.

Perhaps the incredible atmosphere of Giants Stadium, that clearly inpsired the players relentlessness, was infectious enough to distract Mr. Stott from his duties as game gatekeeper. A 12-year veteran, Stott, who was chosen to officiate in last year's World Cup, has a reputation of one of the better American referees, which made his poor performance even more shocking.

In a match with so much drama, so much passion, it becomes even more imperative that the referee holds fast to protect the players from their own adrenaline, their own zealous play. And Mr. Stott did not.

SuperLiga: DC get bent, LA thru

Not since A Christmas Carol has a crippled Englishman been the subject of so much attention. But tonight Tiny Tim got his revenge, as Los Angeles rode a stellar 63 minutes from their new captain David Beckham to a 2-0 win over MLS rivals DC United 2-0 in the semi-finals of SuperLiga 2007 at The Home Depot Center.

Los Angeles will host Pachuca in the final of the inaugural SuperLiga tournament on August 29.

The Galaxy saw more of the ball in the opening 45 minutes, but there were also a few anxious moments for the crowd, as Beckham hit the dirt twice in the the first half. One of those instances came in the 18th minute, when he dove in on Jaime Moreno and received his first yellow card for his new club.

Beckham's first MLS goal came in the 27th minute, as he caught goalkeeper Troy Perkins cheating to his left with a bending ball to the top right of goal.

But DC also threatened several times, forcing Joe Cannon to make several superb saves. Cannon was nearly caught cheating off his line by Moreno who lofted a ball from near midfield that Cannon was forced to tip over.

Los Angeles burst out to 2-0 just two minutes into the second half, when new captain Beckham sent former Galaxy captain Landon Donovan through on goal and Donovan finished neatly with a low right-footed shot.

DC would have cut the lead in half in the 51st minute if not for a incredible reflex save off of a Luciano Emilio shot from close range.

As good as Donovan and Beckham looked, Edson Buddle's play was the polar opposite, as the former Toronto forward struggled with his touch and passing all game.

After another through ball to Donovan in the 56th minute, a pass to Kyle Martino resulted in a foul by Ben Olsen from 30 yards. This time, though, Perkins was up to the challenge and snatched the Beckham's attempt out of the air.

With the 2-0 lead, Beckham, who said his ankle was at 75%, was substituted for Peter Vagenas in the 63rd minute to a standing ovation from the crowd.

With the entrance of Christian Gomez at halftime for Greg Vanney, DC managed some quality chances but could not finish and Cannon maintained his shutout.

SuperLiga.com, no doubt using the Telefutura feed, littered their broadcast with shots of various hot women but managed not to miss any goals with cutaways to the Babe Cam. Nice work.

MLSnet.com Match Report

SuperLiga: Dynamo derailed on PKs

Anyone who thinks that MLS and Mexican clubs are not taking SuperLiga seriously did not watch tonight's match. After four goals, three ejections and 33 fouls, Pachuca defeated Houston 4-3 on penalty kicks in the first semi-final of the inaugural SuperLiga series at Robertson Stadium.

After each club's first three penalty takers were successful, Houston's Brian Ching hit the left post, but was rescued by a nice block by Pat Onstad on Damian Alvarez. Onstad, however, could not stop Pachuca's Rafael Marquez Lugo's effort, following Joseph Ngwenya weak attempt at a chip was stopped by Pachuca keeper (and White Snake roadie) Miguel Calero. Pachuca advance to the final to face the winner of DC United v. the Los Angeles Galaxy at The Home Depot Center tomorrow night.

The Dynamo jumped out to a 1-0 in the fourth minute after Brian Mullan beat Pachuca's right-sided defense like a rented burro and crossed to an unmarked Dwayne DeRosario whose mishit bounced fortuitously off his face and past Pachuca keeper (and White Snake roadie) Miguel Calero.

A horrible mistake on defense nine minutes later left Patrick Ianni with no other choice but to tug the jersey of Christian Gimenez who had a breakaway opportunity. The tug clearly came outside of the box, but Gimenez waited until inside the box to tumble over. Referee Ricardo Salazar made the correct call, however, awarding a free kick outisde the box and sending off Ianni for fouling, as the last defender, to deny the clear scoring opportunity. Predictably, the classless Pachuca surrounded the referee demanding a penalty.

Despite being a man up, Pachuca continued to demonstrate that sportsmanship isn't a highly regarded virtue in the Mexican division as they argued EVERY call. Center forward Juan Cacho provided the requisite cheap shots we have come to expect from Mexican clubs, including a dangerously late challenge on Pat Onstad that drew the ire of Craig Waibel who had to be held back by teammates.

Pachuca decided to try playing soccer for a few minutes, instead of just complaining, and they managed to equalize in the 28th minute. After a superb build-up, Carlos Rodriguez got free on the left flank and his low cross beat Onstad and found Cacho who tucked it away easily from the six.

In the second half, Pachuca attacked en masse and Houston defended valiantly before sucumbing in the 62nd minute, as halftime substitute Andres Chitiva put the visitors up 2-1 with a low near post shot that Onstad couldn't turn away. Houston appeared to be headed to their third loss in three matches, until the 83rd minute. A long, searching free kick by Richard Mulrooney found Eddie Robinson in the box and his header made it 2-2. Mulrooney was superb all match in plugging up the hole left by Ianni's ejection.

Minutes later, Chitva continued Pachuca's classy ways by being sent off after receiving his second yellow for a clear dive. With all numbers equalized, the action was end to end, as both exhausted sides tried to avoid an extra session, but they could not.

In the first OT, Pachuca's Jaime Correa dumped Houston sub Corey Ashe who struck his head against a green pad covering the sideline camera. While on the ground, he kicked out his legs in the direction of a Pachuca player, for which he received a red card from Salazar. Pachuca players were sqwarming the sidelines, apparently thinking that Ashe was wasting time.

In the second OT, another sub Chris Wondolowski was nearly the hero as his hard shot forced a tough save by Calero after a beautiful through ball by Brian Ching found him on a dead run.

Houston, who are surely showing the strains of a packed schedule, have now lost three matches in a row, and will look to rebound on Sunday versus FC Dallas.

MLSnet.com Match Report

TYH’s Top 25 (August)

"I can't even see the ball. It went really high up into the stands that time, Eddie."

Each month TYH will announce the Top 25 U.S. players. The rankings will be cumulative and will take into consideration current level of play, injuries and past proficiency with the national team. The first 11 will be divided into positional leaders (4-4-2), followed by 11 reserves* and three players that deserve a shot at cap #1.


Goalkeeper:
Tim Howard

Defenders:
Carlos Bocanegra
Oguchi Onyewu
Steve Cherundolo
Heath Pearce

Midfielders:
Landon Donovan
Clint Dempsey
Benny Feilhaber
DaMarcus Beasley

Forward
Eddie Johnson
Jozy Altidore

Reserves:
Marcus Hahnemann, Michael Bradley, Ricardo Clark, Frank Simek, Steve Ralston, Taylor Twellman, Freddy Adu, Jonathan Spector, Josh Wolff, Andy Dorman

Let’s have a look at:
Marc Burch (D), DC United
Danny Szetela (M), Columbus
Sal Zizzo (D/M), Hannover

ANALYSIS: Most of the movement in this month’s Top 25 can be attributed to MLS players in midseason form and overseas Americans still shaking off the rust. But even Bocanegra’s horrendous match against Arsenal, his worst ever with Fulham, was not enough to shake him out of the starters. Pearce at starting left back is worth a look, if only to keep Heydude off the field. No changes to the midfield, although Donovan’s recent play did give me pause. In the end, I chalked it up to Beckhamization and kept him in the starting 11. He is still one of the most talented players we’ve got. Twellman, on the other hand, dropped to the bench in favor of a Johnson-Altidore partnership. Both players are tearing up MLS right now and it would be interesting to see whether they could play together.

Two formerly injured national team players returned to the Top 25 after impressing in their comeback matches – Josh Wolff and Marcus Hahnemann. And for the love of God, can someone please realize how good Andy Dorman is! Sure, it’s only MLS but Dorman is vastly underrated and deserves a call-up sooner rather than later.

One of our “Let’s have a look at” players, Sal Zizzo, has been called up for the August 19 Sweden match, so let’s hope he gets in the match. But still no love for Danny Szetela, from Bradley (or any of the over 100 clubs reportedly interested in him). Finally, Marc Burch could be the left back we’ve been searching for. He’s shown the left-footed crossing ability of Eddie Lewis, especially from deep, and unlike Lewis he can play pretty good defense. He’s been DC United’s best player this month.

*The reserves include the best available players and may or may not reflect positional depth.

Dear Mr. Lalas

This is a letter regarding the recent fortunes of the particular club under your management, branded as the Los Angeles Galaxy soccer club. The triumph of signing Mr. David Beckham and the subsequent speculations regarding Mr. Beckham’s malady must weigh heavily upon your spirit in these dark times when victories seem as illusory as an oasis in Death Valley. The following correspondence has been composed in hopes that I may be of some assistance to your club.

You have called Los Angeles “the jewel of MLS” and indeed the recent attendance figures in our nation’s capital and in Foxboro add weight to your characterization. So it follows that if the “jewel of MLS” were to miss out on the playoffs, it would be to the grave detriment of the fiduciary dealings of the league.

So, I tender this epistle to suggest some remedies (writ below) for your struggling club. I hope you will consider each for the sake of the Los Angeles Galaxy and of Major League Soccer.

Yours truly,
TYH

Jozy Altidore/Claudio Reyna for Landon Donovan/Chris Klein
Now, New York will not part ways with the talented Jozy Altidore easily, but that is why you must offer the Galaxy’s original poster boy – Landon Donovan. Let’s face it. Landon isn’t happy these days. All those comments you’ve made about the necessity of having players who can deal with the Beckhamization of the team, they have been directed at the LanDo, have they not? I mean, the guy goes from being the star of the team to being that creepy dude with the bad dye job and the receding hairline (Perez Hilton can be so cruel). So, LanDo’s square head must be squarely on the trading block already. New York was a rumored destination for him a few seasons ago. Why not make it happen now? To sweeten the pot, you can agree to take Captain America off their hands. Reyna, a once magnificent player, injures himself more than Steve-O at a mousetrap and glue gun convention. He’s an albatross for New York, but a change in scenery could rejuvenate the battered hero. Captain America and Captain Britain fighting side by side. Like Bush and Blair, it’s destined to be a successful.

Maurice Edu for Kevin Harmse
This trade would provide Los Angeles with speed, a quality the current squad sorely lacks. Ok, that’s an understatement; it’s like saying Lindsay Lohan lacks sound moral judgment. But Maurice Edu would be a nice upgrade for Los Angeles on either flank and Kevin Harmse would be an irresistible pick-up for Toronto. A mediocre Canadian player that isn’t already playing for them? They’d be frothing at the mouth. And we all know how MoJo loves those Canadians.

Jim Carrey for Drew Carey
Ok, it must be kind of cool having Dilbert cheering for your club, but that is so BB (Before Beckham). Jennifer Love Hewitt attended the Chelsea match for god’s sake! The freakin’ ghost whisperer! It’s time to move off the C-List and onto the A-List. Why not get a good return on Drew’s value now by trading him for Jim Carrey? Wouldn’t you rather have a box office giant and star of such hits as “The Cable Guy” and “Ace Ventura”? Jim Carrey may be Canadian, but Drew Carey’s heart really is in Cleveland, and if they get a team, he’s gone anyway. Plus, his game show really sucks (I mean really really sucks). Furthermore, Jim dates Jenny McCarthy. Jenny McCarthy, Katie Holmes and Posh Spice in the same press box? Did I hear Bravo reality show?

Lalas for Lalas
Ok, I know you may bristle like Rob Zombie at a church picnic, but you have to think outside the box on this one. You have to admit that your mouth sometimes gets you into trouble these days; whereas, your brother can barely utter a coherent sentence. No more worrying about what you might have said about the piss poor quality of the English Premier League, how Beckham is bigger than Jordan, or how your album Ginger was a underappreciated masterpiece that left Dylan in your dusty wake. The Galaxy GM would no longer be under the microscope because no one would want to listen to a Greg Lalas press conference. I mean, honestly, have you even listened to an entire episode of MLS Extratime? And they’re like 15 minutes long.

Houston Dynamo for Beckham, LLC.
My final suggestion requires real gravitas (meaning big balls). Trade away the biggest signing in franchise history and the man responsible for making you relevant again. That’s right, trade David Beckham. If you truly want Los Angeles to get into the playoffs this year, you will need to make a move that will address all of your club's deficiencies at once. And no other player on your club could bring in the amount of talent in exchange than Sir Becks. So trade Spice Boy for the entire Houston Dynamo franchise because that is the only way that you are going to assure yourself a spot in the playoffs. Bold, I know, but as Ovid (I think he was the dog in the Garfield comics) once said, “The gods favor the bold.”

TYH'S PICKS FOR MLS BEST 11 (Week 19)

GOALKEEPER

B. Coundoul (COL)

DEFENDERS

M. Burch (DC), M. Parkhurst (NE), M. Petke (COL)

MIDFIELDERS

G.B. Schelotto (CLB), D. McCarty (DAL), A. Alvarez (DAL), B. Olsen (DC)

FORWARD

J.P. Angel (NY), J. Altidore (NY), P. Noonan (NE)

St. Louis group want on MLS map

Monday will be D-Day for pro soccer in St. Louis. Decision Day. A group calling itself St. Louis Soccer United are expected to make a presentation to the Collinsville City Council, hoping they adopt a 400-acre development project that includes a $100 million dollar soccer-specific stadium.

"The city stands to make $40 million to $50 million above and beyond the bonds in the first 10 years," East Alton attorney Jeff Cooper and SLSU presenter told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "What we're prepared to do is put an $80 million to $100 million investment into Collinsville, and we're asking the city to help us out with some of that with taxes that will be paid off from the project.

The group is optimistic that St. Louis could have an MLS franchise playing by 2009. Click here for the Post-Dispatch article.

Our long national nightmare is over...

David Beckham finally played, so maybe all those reporters covering the "will he-won't he" stories can go back to covering AYSO matches. Beckham made his debut in the 72nd minute of Thursday's match against DC United. And guess what? L.A. still lost.

MLS goal-scoring leader Luciano Emilio and a rejuvenated DC United spoiled the much-hyped (understatement of the year) debut of MLS's most famous designated player. Emilio put United ahead in the 27th minute with a well-struck shot from distance that goalkeeper Joe Cannon got a hand on but could not keep out, and that's the only goal that they would need.

LA coach Frank Yallop started Kyle Martino over Peter Vagenas in the midfield, and the young American cleared space for a Beckham debut in the second half, only it wasn't in the way that Yallop preferred. In the 67th minute, Martino was shown a straight red for sliding in on Fred's ankle from behind.

Beckham's entrance for Quavas Kirk, as expected, drew a huge ovation and certainly a sigh of relief from Galaxy executives. But Beckham, who only began practicing with his teammates this week, had trouble linking up with any of them, even though he delivered some impressive passes. One pass to Carlos Pavon came off a beautifully struck free kick to Pavon at the near post, but the Honduran international put it over the bar.

The Beckham effect was on full display as 46,686 packed RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C., in the hope that the Gimped Great One would make a cameo. The LA Galaxy, who have played fewer matches than anyone to maximize the Beckham effect, will need to shake off the loss quick, with a Sunday match against the East-leading Revolution looming on Sunday. Los Angeles are clinging to the hope that more Beckham will equal more points as they have a pitiful 14 points from 14 matches.

The win puts United in second place in the East, with a game in hand. United will return to SuperLiga play in their next match, giving Los Angeles a chance at revenge in the USA-Mexico club tournament semi-final on August 15 at The Home Depot Center.

Sports media personality Michael Wilbon, best known for being one-half of the PTI duo, has a nice column on Beckham's debut and NASL memories.

Wizards sign Colombano

The Kansas City Wizards have signed Argentinean attacking player Eloy Colombano, as a youth international.

Colombano, who is just 24, has already been chewed up and spit out by Argentina's football machine. As a teenager, he impressed scouts enough to earn a call-up to Argentina's under-20 squad. He was later signed by Argentine first division club Estudiantes, but things took a turn for the worse for Colombano when he fractured his foot. According to a 2005 article in El Dia, he began to slip into obscurity, at one point playing in Argentina's fourth division.

"We are excited to add Eloy Colombano to our team," Head Coach Curt Onalfo said. "He fits very well into our style of play, adds tremendous depth and quickness to our team and will push the players already on our roster on a daily basis for a starting spot in our team."

Colombano is primarily a right-sided midfielder. Kansas City have the week off and will host New England Sunday, August 19th at Arrowhead Stadium.

Who says MLS doesn't pay well?

FC Dallas midfielder Anthony Wallace shows off his minimalist crib.

Nowak to lead USA Olympic effort

The USSF announced on Wednesday that former DC United coach and U.S. national team assistant Peter Nowak would be the new coach of the U.S. under-23 tasked with qualifying for the 2008 Summer Olympics.

"We have 12 months to prepare for the most important tournament in this age group, and I am anxious to build on the work that we have already started with many of these players," Nowak said. "As we saw in the U-20 World Cup, we have some great young talent, and I will spend the next couple of months getting a good look at the whole group. Our job is not only to qualify for the Olympic Games, but to continue to prepare these players for service with the full national team."

So, you think Freddy Adu is happy to see his old coach take the reins of a team that he was likely to be one of the central figures. Why wouldn't he be? How quickly we forget. You see, Nowak and Adu didn't see eye to eye. Here's a trip down memory lane courtesy of Freddyadublog.com.

Then to the surprise of many, after what appeared to be a stellar game for the young Freddy Adu coach Nowak subbed Matias Donnet in the 65th minute for Adu. With Adu out, that changed the pace of the game and the Revolution were able to wind down the clock and come out victorious to move on to the finals. Although Nowak said he wanted fresh legs in the game and that was the reason for the substitute it came at an unusual time sparking debate over whether the substitution was just a stab at rumors that Freddy Adu might be moving to play in Europe.

Here's another one from a more traditional source (USA Today):

Adu vented his frustrations to reporters in October while United was preparing for the opening game of the playoffs. He said he should be playing "a lot more," even though he had started 16 of 25 regular-season games and averaged about 60 minutes per appearance as a second-year player. He said his lack of playing time had wrecked his chances of making the U.S. World Cup team and left open the possibility that he would leave United at the end of the season.

So, the drama is set to start again and soon, as Nowak has announced his attentions to organize some friendly matches to test the waters of the U-23 player pool before qualification begins next March. Looking at the players available this could be the U.S.'s strongest Olympic team ever.

Here's what Nowak had to say about the player pool on ussoccer.com:

“We feel very good about what is available to us. I think the bulk of the group will come from the players who played in the U-20 World Cup in Canada. There are also a lot of older players who are playing abroad – guys like Charlie Davies, Benny Feilhaber, Kamani Hill, Lee Nguyen and Jonathan Spector - that could play important roles. We know that working with the schedules of these players will be difficult, so that is why it is critical to move forward as quickly as possible. As for other players, we will certainly keep an open mind throughout the process.”

Revs round out Open Cup final four

The New England Revolution dispatched USL-2 club the Harrisburg City Islanders 2-1 at Gilette Stadium in the final quarterfinal match of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. The Revs will host the Carolina Railhawks (USL-1) on September 4.

New England sat on two early goals by Andy Dorman in the 4th minute and Taylor Twellman in the 17th for much of the contest, before Harrisburg's Matt Tanzini managed a concilation goal for the visitors.

The other semi-final pairing will have FC Dallas traveling to Qwest Stadium to take on MLS killers Seattle on September 4.

GoalSeattle responds

A commenter saying he is the webmaster for GOALSeattle.com had this to say about my post on Seattle's MLS chances:

You are wrong on almost all levels. Shoulda been there. The most important level you are wrong about? MLS is looking for franchise investors, NOT supporters groups. Seattle currently have FOUR groups playing it out for MLS rights. Unless all of these rich guys have not done their homework, I'd say they are sold on Seattle as a market.

You can read my response (and other readers' comments) here.

He was also kind enough to provide video footage that he says disputes my criticism of the atmosphere at Qwest last night.



Decide for yourself. Thanks.

MLS in Seattle? The Sounders of silence

With the Seattle Sounders’ trouncing of Colorado in the US Open Cup and their Round of 16 win over Chivas America, MLS Seattle boosters are pointing and nodding and nudging one another like Tim Howard off his meds. But hold on a minute.

The Sounders put together a couple of wins and looked impressive against Colorado, but this particular team’s quality on the pitch says nothing about Seattle’s ability to host an MLS expansion team.

That’s not the way Seattle Sounder owner Adrian Hanauer saw it following his side's win:

"I'm highly optimistic we'll be able to get this thing [MLS expansion] done this time"

Not so fast, Hanauer. Let’s examine an aspect of last night’s 5-0 blitzkrieg of Colorado that has been overlooked – the pitiful crowd.

I watched the match on usllive.com (ok, the first half) and what struck me was not the quality of the Sounders or the terrible play of the Rapids, but the complete lack of atmosphere. If Seattle fans expect MLS to bring a franchise to their city, they need to show the league that they will support a team (even when they’re playing crappy Colorado). And there were way too many open seats. Sure, it was played in Qwest Field, a cavernous NFL stadium, but I’m talking empty bottom bowl seats.

The attendance for last night’s match was officially 6,619. Against Chivas America in the Round of 16, it was 3,589. Pitiful.

I can only guess, but I am confident that this would not be the case in a city like Philadelphia, who is also soliciting MLS for a team. Admittedly, I have experienced the passion of the Philly fans first hand when I made a comment about them possibly slipping on the list of MLS expansion cities and was immediately torched on this site and Big Soccer.

Yes, the Sons of Ben, as their already-created supporters group is called, are in full force and would have gotten out the word and filled the stadium had an MLS club came to town to play a local Philly squad. They are already organizing trips to other MLS stadiums. And there is already a proposed SSS in Chester, Pa.

I googled and googled and I couldn’t find anything like the SOBs (I hope they did that on purpose) for Seattle. I found this blog GoalSeattle.com, but it doesn’t seem to be organizing fan support in any real way, other than politely urging people to support the Sounders.

Another stumbling block for MLS Seattle will be Qwest, itself. MLS commish Don Garber has gone on record stating that every MLS team needs to be playing in their own soccer-specific stadium. So, even if Qwest Field is an acceptable short-term solution, a Seattle franchise would need to be thinking about an SSS. And here’s a great column on the problem with that, courtesy of a blogger on seattlest.com.

Last night was Seattle’s opportunity to show that there is a passion and desire to bring MLS to the city, and it fell as flat as the Colorado Rapid defense.

Ellinger finally resigns...but from what?

Real Salt Lake’s former coach and now former technical director John Ellinger resigned on Tuesday. But that begs the question, what was he doing in the first place?

In May, former MLS player Jason Kreis replaced him as RSL’s head coach after a winless start to 2007, but he was retained as “technical director.” Ellinger’s overall coaching record was a paltry 15-37-16 in over two years with the expansion club. After that, Ellinger presumably traded away Jeff Cunningham and Mehdi Balloucy, and officially wished Freddy Adu well with his new Euopean home. In return, they got Alecko Eskadarian, Kyle Beckerman and a whole lot of salary cap room. But where is the big DP signing that Ellinger promised to deliver? Rumors had idenitifed Jay-Jay Okocha as a candidate, but that has not materialized.

Still, the fans must be happy to be rid of the old man. At least one blogger will have to rename his site, having got his wish. Firejohnellinger.com, an RSL fan site, “dedicated to all RSL fans who keep getting kicked in the nuts by their team,” will have to find a new pariah. Maybe, firejasonkreis.com or hirepeternowak.com or whycantRSLgetadecentdp.com.

RSL managed to beat the MLS champs recently, but Houston was not in top form, having played five matches in 13 days. There only other win came at the expense DC United back in June, that saw Robbie Findley score two in his RSL debut. The Salt Lake is all dried up.

YA: Roma confirm Szetela talks; Feilhaber to EPL?

The guys over at Yanks Abroad have confirmed with Roma that the Serie A giants are negotiating to bring under-20 star Danny Szetela in. Meanwhile, Gold Cup hero Benny Feilhaber may make the move to EPL newboys Derby County.

Szetela has 3 goals and two assists for Columbus this season, but it was his performance in the U-20 World Cup this summer that caught the attention of a myriad of European clubs. The Crew acquired Szetela in a lottery draft in 2004, and he became the youngest Crew player to record a point during a regular season match. He started 13 matches in 2005 for the Crew, but 2006 was a season to forget, as injuries (foot and knee) kept him sidelined for much of the season.

Feilhaber burst onto the MNT scene in 2007, with a two goals in 10 caps with the full U.S. team. The former UCLA midfielder participated in the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship in The Netherlands, and signed with Hamburg SV shortly after. Feilhaber earned his first start for the senior US team in last March against Ecuador. The Brazilian-born Feilhaber is of Austrian decent but turned down Austria’s national teams attempts to bring him in.

Click here for Feilhaber article.

Click here for Szetela article.

Seattle Open a frosty can of whoop ass

The Seattle Sounders of USL-1 humiliated the Colorado Rapids, 5-0, while FC Dallas managed to retain some top-flight dignity with an OT win over the Charleston Battery (USL-1). Meanwhile, Carolina (USL-1) managed to hold onto a 1-0 win over USL-2 club Richmond.

Seattle 5, Colorado 0
The US Open Cup typically features upsets due in part to the relative lack of importance most MLS clubs appear to place in America’s oldest soccer pro soccer tournament combined with lower divisions clubs frothing at the collective mouth for a chance to show their quality versus an MLS club.

But Colorado’s absolute hammering at the hands of MLS hopefuls was the worst defeat suffered by an MLS team in Open Cup history. Goals from four different Sounders players (Taylor Graham, Zach Scott, Josh Gardner, and Sebastien Le Toux) along with a Facundo Erpen own goal gave Seattle back-to-back wins over MLS franchises, a stat that gives their bid for an expansion team some real ammunition. Keep an eye out for a post on Seattle’s MLS chances later in the day.

http://seattlesounders.net/

FC Dallas, 2, Charleston 1 (OT)
FC Dallas needed extra time to fight off experienced MLS-killers Charleston, as Arturo Alvarez’s 95th minute goal delivered Dallas to the semi-finals.

Stephen Armstrong’s 17th-minute goal put the Battery on top for just five minutes, as Clarence Goodsen equalized in the 22nd. Dallas will face another apparent MLS-killer, Seattle.

http://fc.dallas.mlsnet.com/t104/

Carolina 1, Richmond 0
A Connally Edozien goal helped the home-side Railhawks advance to the semi-finals, as Carolina topped Richmond. Former MLS striker Chris Carrieri featured for the Railhawks, and nearly scored in the 50th minute with a rocket just past the right post.

Although Richmond, the USL-2 defending champs, gave the Railhawks all they could handle, they managed to hold on to the 1-0 win. The winner of Wednesday’s final quarterfinal between the Harrisburg City Islanders (USL-2) and the New England Revolution will face Carolina in the other semi-final.

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