Seattle's 3rd DP, Alvaro Fernandez

Should Landon Donovan Stay or Leave?

Landon is arguably the best American field player of all time and he is finishing the most successful run of his career (Everton, Galaxy, World Cup, etc.) Despite MLS Commissioner Don Garber’s statement that Donovan wasn’t going anywhere, a number of suitors have popped up, including Manchester City. In addition, Donovan told SI:

“We have had transfer interest and we will have some time to think about it and see where it goes,” Donovan told Reuters after featuring for the MLS All Stars against Manchester United on Wednesday. “There is interest from a number of teams.”

I think it’s clear that Donovan wants to leave but Garber is reluctant to let go of the league’s poster boy. If the right offer comes along I think Garber will have to let Donovan go.

Personally, I think Donovan should leave. He isn’t getting any younger and he proved during his time at Everton that he can step in and produce in the big leagues. I’d like to see Donovan leave for 4-5 years and come back to MLS to finish off his career.

He is a big player for MLS but the addition of big names like Thierry Henry, Nery Castillo, and the rumored arrival of Rafael Marquez, I think the league has enough star power to survive without Landon.

Seattle Sounders add 3rd DP

The Seattle Sounders signed 24 year old Uruguayan midfielder Alvaro Fernandez. The young midfielder was a member of Uruguay’s World Cup team making four appearances, including a start against Ghana in the quarterfinals. This is a fantastic signing for the Sounders and MLS. It’s nice to see a team sign a DP in their mid 20’s. Maybe this move will start attracting younger prospects to the league.

The arrival of Fernandez further puts into question the status of Freddie Ljungberg. Speculations suggest that Freddie is looking to depart Seattle before the transfer window closes. The question is whether he will stay in MLS or head back to Europe. If Donovan leaves LA I wonder if Arena will try to get the Swedish international to the Home Depot Center.

MLS All Stars get their ass kicked

It was only an exhibition match but the result still stings a little. I expected Manchester United to present the toughest test for our All Stars thus far but 5-2, was a little much. I hope this doesn’t deter the league from maintaining the All Star game format. No one wants to see our All Stars face Fulham, and I’d rather have them scrap the whole game if they want to go back to the East v. West format.

I can’t say what the repercussions will be from this game, but one thing is for sure . . . Manchester United has some good young players coming up.

US U-20’s in Milk Cup final

The US U-20’s qualified for the Milk Cup finals after defeating Denmark 3-2 on Wednesday. The Milk Cup is an annual youth international tournament held in Northern Ireland. The US won the tournament in 2005 and placed second in 2006. This tournament is typically used as a warm up for World Cup qualifiers or getting off cycle teams like the U-18’s some experience.

The US started the tournament off on the right foot beating China 1-0 on a goal from forward Omar Salgado. Denmark proved to be a tougher task but the US was able to squeak out a win after going down a goal in the first half. Adrian Ruelas, Santos Laguna forward, scored an equalizer for the US in the first half and found the game winner a minute from full time. Toronto FC’s Faud Ibrahim blasted a volley to temporarily put the US ahead in 74th minute.

Although the team is missing some core players, such as Philadelphia Union duo Jack McInerney and Amobi Okugo, the team boasts a very talented line up. Here are few players that you should keep an eye on: Omar Salgado (recently signed with MLS from Club Guadalajara - Chivas), Juan Agudelo (NY Red Bulls), Adrian Ruelas (Santos Laguna - Mexico), Greg Garza (Sporting Lisbon - Portugal), and Francisco Navas Cobo (Houston Dynamo).

The US faces a very tough Northern Ireland side that beat China 5-0 to qualify for the finals. The match will be played on Friday July 30th at 1pm EST.

MLS announced today that teams are allowed a second DP slot and the option of purchasing a third. An official announcement should be made later today.

Here are the basics of the new rule:

• MLS confirmed that these new rules will be effective immediately.
• The Third DP costs $250,000.
• That money used to purchase the 3rd DP slot is evenly shared as allocation money with all the other MLS clubs that do not have three DPs.
• DP player takes up $335,000 of a team’s salary budget (13% of the teams salary budget)
• This is a reduction from the old rule which charged $415,000
• Allocation money can be used to bring salary cap hit down to $185,000
• DP player takes up $167,500 if signed mid-season.
• Old DP rule expired at the end of the 2009 season
• New DP rules doesn’t expire
• DP slots cannot be traded and no team can acquire a 4th slot or more.
• DP slots can be used to sign existing MLS players.
• If a DP is transferred to a club in another country, the MLS team will recoup the money spent on the DP before the league transfer split kicks in.

What do you think about this new rule?

Jozy Altidore scored his first Premiership goal today.  He gave Hull City the lead in 31st minute against Manchester City.  Boateng scored the winning the goal for Hull in the 54th.  Adebayor pulled one back for City but Hull was able to hold on for the win.  Altidore was subbed out in the 66th minute and walked off with a slight limp.

Here is the goal:

All I have to say about this is . . . THANK GOD!!!  I thought the kid was never going to score.  He’s played well for Hull, but the goals have eluded him.  Hopefully Altidore gets on a long scoring run from here on out.  We’ll need him in top goal scoring form this summer.

Share your thoughts on the goal.

Before we start this morning’s news and notes sections. I would like to bring to your attention a very interesting and important piece of news.   The Green Army is the first annual FC DENVER MLS FANTASY LEAGUE CHAMPION!!!!  Was there any doubt who would win this league.  Like I said when the fantasy league started, this competition was really to see who would be in second place.

Anyways I’m going to give you guys a moment to bask in my awesomeness . . . that’s right take it all in.

The Green Army finished the season with 3670 points and placed 600 overall.  I didn’t get into the top 400 like I hoped, but I was close for most of the second half of the season.  The Texian Army, led by Jeff Crow, finished second with 3396 points.  The second place finish was only 15 points better than third place finisher Straight Red with 3381 points, led by Kyle Firebaugh.

Congrats to the top three finishers and thank you to everyone for playing.  We’ll do this again next season and next time please remember to bring some Kryptonite cause I’m bullet proof son!!!!

US U17 set to fact Italy in the Round of 16:

The US defeated the UAE 1-0 on Sunday to book a place into the second round.  The loan goal was scored by Jack McInerney who followed up a spilled shot by the UAE goalkeeper.  Italy finished first in group F and are looking like favorites to win the whole the tournament.

The US has played some good soccer in this tournament they just haven’t finished.  All of their games could have ended in clear and large victories, including the game against Spain, if the US just converted.  If they US can find their goal scoring touch, they should advance past Italy.

Here is a list of the other round of 16 matches: Argentina vs. Colombia; Turkey vs. United Arab Emirates; Switzerland vs. Germany; Italy vs. United States; Spain vs. Burkina Faso; Iran vs. Uruguay; Mexico vs. Korea Republic; Nigeria vs. New Zealand

MLS Top Seeds Struggle:

After the first round of play Real Salt Lake (8th seed) and New England(7th seed) were able to find victories against Columbus (1st seed) and Chicago (4th seed), respectively.  The remaining top 4 seeds, LA and Houston, both finished with ties.  Here is how the games turned out:

Houston v. Seattle: 0-0, the next match is in Houston, last year Houston took a 0-0 scoreline home and ended up losing to NY Red Bulls.

Columbus v. Real Salt Lake: 0-1, Robbie Findley 88th minute, Columbus has been struggling since they qualified for the playoffs, they’ll need to find their form if they want to beat an RSL team that is likely to buckle down and defend when they travel to Columbus.

Chicago v. New England: 1-2, Rolfe 17th, Olsei 47th, Joseph 75th, New England was able to hang onto their lead this game but Chicago will be tough to stop at Toyota Park.

Los Angeles v. Chivas: 2-2, Maicon 4th, Magee 14th, Donovan 41st, Galindo 50th, The game was a comedy of defensive errors. Both sides need more focus in the next match.

Edgar Castillo called for the US National Team:

Edgar Castillo has finally been called into the national team by Bob Bradley.  He will participate in the US’s two European friendlies in the middle of November against Slovakia and Denmark, both already qualified for the World Cup.  Castillo released the news of his call up to the Mexican media on Saturday and it has been subsequently confirmed.

For those that don’t know, Castillo turned his back on the US a few years ago to play for Mexico even though he was born and raised in New Mexico.  Castillo lost his place with the Mexican national team due to the constant coaching changes and a dip in his form and playing time.  Castillo appeared for Mexico several times but non of those appearances cap tied him.  When FIFA passed the law that allows players to switch national teams at any age as long as they are 1) eligible to play for that country, and 2) not cap tied, Castillo had a change of heart and petitioned to play for the US.  Castillo has been in great form for his current club Tigres and could be the answer at left back or left mid.

Clint Dempsey Scores Again:

Dempsey put the nail in Liverpool’s coffin this weekend by scoring Fulham’s 3rd goal.  Dempsey is finally returning to form after an injury lay off.  Now that Charlie Davies has practically been ruled out of the World Cup, barring a miracle recovery, we’ll need Dempsey in top goal scoring form come the summer.

Yanks Abroad getting minutes:

It was good weekend for American defenders this weekend.  Nine Americans went 90 minutes: Bocanengra, Spector, Cherundolo, Freeman, Castillo, Goodson (1 goal), Simek, Orozco, and Parkhurst.

Freidel, Perkins, and Howard played 90 for their clubs while a majority of the American keepers dressed but did not play. Including: Guzan, Hahnemann, Cervi, and Robles.

National team midfielders Dempsey (goal), Bradley, and Torres all played 90 minutes.  While Benny Feilhaber, White, and Bedoya all played at least 75 minutes.  Beasley once again made the first 18 for Rangers but did not play.

Up top, Altidore played the most minutes with 31 in Hull’s loss at Burnley.  Cooper was the only other American forward to see time (15 min).  Freddy Adu made the bench but didn’t play for Belenenses against Porto.  Little by little he’s working his way in.  Keep the faith.

Alright, that’s it for today. Let me know your thoughts!

After a long day of matches England, Paraguay, and Spain join the list of qualified teams.  A few other countries such as Denmark and Chile missed out on the opportunity to join this group and will have to wait until October to celebrate a berth. There are 11 teams qualified so far leaving 20 spots still in contention.  One of those spots will definitely go to either Bahrain or New Zealand.

This is the current list of qualified teams:

South Africa, Brazil, Paraguay, Ghana, Netherlands, England, Spain, South Korea, North Korea, Japan, and  Australia

There are still some big names not yet qualified such as Portugal, France, Argentina, Italy, Germany, Egypt, USA, Mexico, Croatia, Nigeria, and Chile.  While some of these teams are on the brink of a berth others look likely to miss out on the big show.

 Loading ...

Here are some videos of yesterday’s qualifiers:

Brazil 4-2 Chile

USA 1-0 T&T

England 5-1 Croatia

Share your thoughts on the qualifiers and the World Cup.

I hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend. Here is a brief recap of whats been going on in South America.

Brazil beat Argentina 3-1 in World Cup Qualifying on Saturday to book a ticket to the World Cup.  Brazil put on an impressive defensive display that thoroughly frustrated the Argentinians.  Messi was impressive but couldn’t break through the backline. Brazil had limited chances but punished Argentina with every opportunity. Defender Luisao opened the scoring before Luis Fabiano doubled it before the half.  Datolo got one back for Argentina off a 20 yard bomb but Luis Fabiano regained the 2 goal advantage for Brazil just two minutes later.

It was a make or break game for Argentina as it was likely to see them drop out of the top 4 with the loss. Luckily the soccer gods smiled on Argentina and they fell no further than 4th place after Colombia beat Ecuador 2-0.  Ecuador would have ended up in 4th place had they walked away with a victory in Colombia.

Uruguay’s loss to last place Peru and Venezuela drawing Chile leaves only 5 points between 4th place Argentina and 8th place Venezuela.  With only 3 games left, there are at least 5 teams playing for the last automatic spot (4th place spot, Argentina) and the playoff spot (5th currently held by Colombia).  Bolivia still has a chance to get the playoff spot but its a long shot.

Here is the table right now:

Brazil 30 pts Qualified

Chile 27 pts

Paraguay 27 pts

Argentina 22 pts

Colombia 20 pts (playoff spot, plays 4th place CONCACAF team)

Ecuador 20 pts

Uruguay 18 pts

Venezuela 18 pts

Bolivia 12 pts

Peru 10 pts

Wednesday’s matches will be crucial in South America.  Argentina will visit Paraguay in an almost must win game. Paraguay will qualify with a victory over Argentina.  If Argentina loses and both Colombia and Ecuador win, Argentina will drop to sixth.  Chile will also be playing for qualification against Brazil.  Brazil, already qualified for the World Cup, might rest their stars for this match.

Argentina is still in control of their destiny but they can’t afford anymore mistakes.  That is the nature of South American qualifiers. Typically one team will dominate, such as Brazil this year or Argentina in previous years, but the rest of the teams battle it out until the last day.  If you have the opportunity to catch any games on Wednesday don’t pass it up, it should be very exciting.

The University of Denver Pioneers ended exhibition play with a win against Stanford on Saturday.  The game was played at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on the Colorado Rapids’ practice field.

Goals were scored by freshman defender Drew Beckie, freshman forward Nick Brant, and senior defender Austin Haller.  Jarod Stigall, Kyle Varvil, and Sam Garza added assists for the Pioneers.

The Pioneers fell to SMU in Texas in their first exhibition match of the season off a 90th minute game winner.

The Pioneers start their regular season play on Friday September 4, against North Carolina State at the Duke Classic, in North Carolina. They will finish off the tournament with a game against Duke on September 6th.

Here is the rest of the schedule for this season:

Fri, Sept. 4, North Carolina, Away (Duke Classic)

Sun, Sept. 6, Duke, Away (Duke Classic)

Fri, Sept. 11, Dayton, Home 7pm

Sun, Sept. 13, Belmont, Home 2pm

Sun, Sept. 20, Washington, Home 7pm

Fri, Sept. 25, Cal State Northridge, Away (Fullerton Classic)

Sun, Sept. 27, Cal State Fullerton, Away (Fullerton Classic)

Thu, Oct. 1, Missouri State, Away

Sat, Oct. 03, Tulsa, Away

Sat, Oct. 10, Missouri-Kansas City, Home 7pm

Fri, Oct.16 San Jose State, Away (Conference Game)

Sun, Oct. 18, Sacramento State, Away (Conference Game)

Fri, Oct. 23, UNLV, Home 7pm (Conference Game)

Fri, Oct. 25, New Mexico, Home 1pm (Conference Game)

Fri, Oct. 30, Seattle, Home 7:30pm (Conference Game)

Sun, Nov. 1, Cal State Bakersfield, Away (Conference Game)

Sat, Nov. 7, Air Force, Away (Conference Game)

Thu, Nov. 12, 13, and 15 MPSF Tournament at DU

Adu found a team

Freddy Adu has finally secured a loan deal to Belenenses in the Portuguese first division.  Belenenses sits 7th in the Portuguese league and will be facing Benfica this weekend.

I think most were expecting or at least hoping Adu would head to a slightly less competitive league or a much smaller team in a big league, like Altidore at Hull.  I think the Portuguese league is riding the prestige and strength of Porto, Benfica, and Sporting (with the exception of two seasons these three teams have won every league championship in the last 65 years).  In reality the league isn’t as competitive as it looks and getting playing time at a mid table Portuguese club is very realistic.  I think this will be a good move for Adu . . . maybe I’m just being optimistic.

Trading defenders

Coach Smith has taken another step to put his personal stamp on the Rapids. Ugo Ihemelu has been traded to FC Dallas for Drew Moor, a second round draft pick in 2010, and allocation money.  I wonder how much Baudet’s performance against Houston this weekend pushed this trade through.  Ugo has been an excellent player for the Rapids.  His versatility and athleticism made him a core member of the Rapids backline.

Is it a good move for the Rapids?  Drew Moor is an excellent defender and can play wide right as well as centrally.  Moor probably brings a little bit more offense than Ihemelu.  Considering the Rapids also received money and a draft pick I think it was a good move by Smith.  Sad to see Ugo go but that is the nature of the game.

Team of the Week honors for Davies

Charlie Davies’ good form is still rolling.  He didn’t score this weekend but he earned the game winning penalty kick in Sochaux’s league match against Monaco.  Davies was dangerous all game and his play earned him Ligue 1 Team of the Week honors.

Castillo scores

Edgar Castillo smashed a goal for Tigres this weekend in Mexican league play against Santos. The diminuative left back got a hold of a loose ball just outside the 18 and ripped a shot from 25 yards out.  It was his first goal for Tigres but he chose not celebrate because he thought it disrepectful to the team that gave him his start in the Mexican league.

Castillo continues to make a case for himself to be selected for the US national team.  What will it take for Bob Bradley to give this guy a shot?  Do you think the USSF is making him sweat it out before they give him a call? or, do you think there are still questions about his real desire to play for the US?

Share your thoughts on these developments.

Thomas Rongen has announced the roster that will be participating in the U20 World Cup at the end of September.  The US will face Germany, Cameroon, and North Korea in group play.  Every game of the U20 World Cup will be televised on ESPN or Galavision.  The US’s first game against Germany will be shown live September 26 at 9:55 am (ET) on ESPN Classic, ESPN 360, and Galavision.

The group is made up of 10 pros and 10 college players.  Anthony Wallace and Brian Perk were on the roster for the last U20 World Cup.  FC Dallas is best represented team on this roster, contributing goalkeeper Josh Lambo; defenders Anthony Wallace and Kyle Davies; and forwards Brek Shea and Peri Marosevic.

Here is the full roster, some notes after the jump:

GOALKEEPERS (3): Sean Johnson (Central Florida; Lilburn, Ga.), Josh Lambo (FC Dallas; Middleton, Wis.), Brian Perk (UCLA; Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.)

DEFENDERS (6): Gale Agbossoumonde (Miami FC; Syracuse, N.Y.), Kyle Davies (FC Dallas; Danville, Calif.), Aaron Maund (Notre Dame; Dorchester, Mass.), Ike Opara (Wake Forest; Durham, N.C.), Anthony Wallace (FC Dallas; St. Petersburg, Fla.), Sheanon Williams (Unattached; Boston, Mass.)

MIDFIELDERS (8): Danny Cruz (Houston Dynamo; Glendale, Ariz.), Mikkel Diskerud (Stabak; Oslo, Norway), Dilly Duka (Rutgers; Montville, N.J.), Jorge Flores (Chivas USA; Anaheim, Calif.), Jared Jeffrey (Club Brugge; Richardson, Texas), Brian Ownby (Virginia; Glen Allen, Va.), Dillon Powers (Notre Dame; Plano, Texas), Michael Stephens (UCLA; Naperville, Ill.)

FORWARDS (4): Sam Garza (Denver; Highland Village, Texas), Peri Marosevic (FC Dallas; Rockford, Ill.), Brek Shea (FC Dallas; College Station, Texas), Tony Taylor (Jacksonville; Jacksonville, Fla.)

(more…)

The Group stage is set for this year’s Champions League.  Here is the result of the draw, followed by my thoughts on the groups:

Group A

Bayern Munich, Juventus, Bordeaux, Maccabi Haifa

Group B

Manchester United, CSKA Moskva, Beskitas, Wolfsburg

Group C

AC Milan, Real Madrid, Marseille, Zurich

Group D

Chelsea, Porto, Atletico Madrid, APOEL

Group E

Liverpool, Lyon, Fiorentina, Debrecen

Group F

Barcelona, Inter Milan, Dynamo Kyiv, Rubin

Group G

Sevilla, Rangers, Stuttgart, Unirea Urziceni

Group H

Arsenal, AZ Alkmaar, Olympiakos, Standard Liege

Group A is much tougher than it looks.  Bayern Munich and Juventus look like the easy favorites to walk out of Group A but it would be foolish to count out French champions Bordeaux.  This is one of the more balanced groups of the draw.

Group B won’t be as easy as it looks for Manchester United.  They weren’t drawn with any traditional powers but  Wolfsburg are the current German champions and will be very difficult to beat. Away games at Beskitas and the icy fields in Moscow will be tough on Sir Alex’s young team.

Group C has one of the most interesting matchups of the group stage.  AC Milan v. Real Madrid should be one of the highlights of the first round and will see Kaka make his first competitive debut against his former team.  Newcomers Zurich will get a rough introduction into European football.

Chelsea is the favorite in Group D.  Atletico Madrid and Porto will be battling it out to see who accompanies Chelsea into the next round. Porto eliminated Atletico in last year’s knockout round, so the colchoneros will be looking for revenge.

Liverpool has been very successful in Europe since Rafa Benetiz took over.  Lyon and Fiorentina shouldn’t but up too oposition, but if Liverpool keep going with their current form they might not make it out of the group.

Group F features Barcelona v. Inter Milan which will be one of the better matchups in the first round.  Samuel Eto’o and Zlatan Ibrahimovic will face their old teams and there should be plenty of drama leading up to this one.  Dynamo Kyiv and Rubin don’t really stand a chance.

Group G is a very balanced group, probably the most even across the board of any group.  Sevilla and Stuttgart are my two favorites to walk out of the group.  Rangers, Scottish champions, will be a tough opponent but should be out classed.  Hopefully young American midfielder Maurice Edu gets some playing time for Rangers. The Champions League will be a valuable experience he can bring back to the national team.

Arsenal is going walk through Group H.  Arsenal is on fire and, if they can stay healthy, should have no trouble destroying this group.  The battle for second place will be interesting. AZ Alkmaar are the current Dutch champions and Olympiacos, Greek champions, need to be on top of their game if they want to qualify.

 Loading ...