Some News for Mon Jun 7, 2010

STARTERS

Just so the people of England know - We have a forward named Edson, after Pele, and another named Herculez. You have been warned!

dN

Will everyone shut up about the World Cup ball. MLS has been using it all season, and no one has mentioned it once. STOP IT!

dN

If the USA advance out of group play they will take on one of the teams from Group D - Australia, Germany, Ghana or Serbia.

TWITTER

Get on board our Twitter train: @dunord

USA WORLD CUP 2010 SOUTH AFRICA

4 days till we get started and 5 days till the big game.

dN

Matches & Scores:
-Sat Jun 5
USA 3-1 Australia - USA goals by Edson Buddle(2) & Herculez Gomez. Aus goal by Tim Cahill.
Venue: Ruimsig Stadium - Roodepoort, South Africa

dN

NOTES FROM THE GAME ON SATURDAY:

"It was a victory for the Americans but it was England who will draw the greatest encouragement from the game." - The Telegraph.

dN

Ricardo Clark. The midfielder went down with an apparent hamstring injury late in the Americans 3-1 win over Australia on Saturday, but a U.S. Soccer spokesman indicated that Clark was merely suffering from cramps

dN

Australia blamed the field for their loss on Saturday, but it was THEIR home training base. So they can stop talking about that now. And they can stop with the Bruce Arena crap too. He never said they were one of the WEAKEST to qualify for the 06 tourney, he said they were one of the LAST to qualify. Get it straight.

dN

Both teams complained about the ball too. Again, shut up and play.

dN

Clint Dempsey can be held mostly responsible for the Aussie goal and he let his mark Tim Cahill slide right past him with no effort to the back post, and then Steve Cherundolo covering the post did his best Mike Burns by not helping his keeper out at all.

dN

The USA defense was terrifyingly bad for most of the game. If they play like that against England, and England is on there game they could score 7 or 8. I am very nervous.

dN

One way to cut down on free kick situations is to not make so many stupid fouls near their own penalty area.

dN

Many have said that in an official match Clint Dempsey & Craig Moore would probably have both been sent off for their macho head to head shoving and yelling after a poor tackle by Moore.

dN

du Nord Three Star of the Game

3. Steve Cherundolo - great stuff pushing forward up the right side, and working in tandom with Lanodn Donovan (who did not make the list for the first time in ages), should start against England no question about it.
2. Clint Dempsey - the hardest working man in showbiz got unlucky not to have scored, and forced the Aussies to try and kill him several times to slow him down. His big flaw though was the marking that cost a goal.
1. Edson Buddle - two very smart goals, and lots of good time on the ball giving his teammates time to get into the play. A nearly perfect game from him.

dN

Jozy Altidore trained at near full speed on Sunday.

dN

Ronald Blum of the Associated Press on the return of DaMarcus Beasley.

dN

FIFA.com on Herculez and Davey Crockett.

dN

USA today with a story on Edson "I was named after Pele" Buddle.

dN

Jen Chang of Sports Illustrated with 5 points of USA optimism.

dN

Henry Winter of the Telegraph calls Landon Donovan the key USA players.
-Telegraph match report.

dN

The Times on Michael Bradley.

dN

The Telegraph on coach Bob Bradley.

dN

Jere Longman of the NY Times on where Bob Bradley's philosophy comes from.

dN

Jeffrey Marcus of the NY Times on Sunday's training.

dN

David Moyes head coach of Everton, writing for The Times (well, telling the story to a ghost writer anyway) raves about Landon Donovan.

dN

Monday was a day off for the players.

dN

- - - - -
Official Team Blog

The US Soccer video page at You Tube. Fantastic stuff!
- - - - -

dN

The Telegraph takes us back to Belo Horizonte 1950.

The Independent has a few words from England's keeper on that impossible to forget night in Brazil.

dN

USA OPPONENTS

England
-England will use their starting 11 on Monday in a scrimmage against local club team Platinum Stars.
-The NY Daily News says the USA has no way to stop Wayne Rooney. You have to love the pure arrogance of something like this. It's quite funny. Don't be offended.

Algeria
-Algeria defeat UAE

HONDURAS WORLD CUP 2010 SOUTH AFRICA

Not a good final warm up for Hondruas. I enjoy this team, but I fear for them and their lovely fans.

-Sat Jun 5
Honduras 0-3 Romania - Rom goals by Daniel Niculae, Gheorghe Florescu & Mirel Radoi(PK). In St. Veit An Der Glan, Austria

dN

But lets go back to last fall, and listen again to that now world famous radio call as they qualified for the World Cup, when the USA tied Costa Rica in the final seconds of the last round of CONCACAF qualifiers. Glorious! One of the greatest things I have ever heard in my life.

WORLD CUP 2010 - SOUTH AFRICA

John Obi Mikel of Nigeria has not recovered from a knee injury he suffered during the Chelsea season and has been left off the Nigeria team.

dN

Dutch star winger Arjen Robben suffered a hamstring tweak in a friendly. No word on the severity.

dN

Andre Pirlo of Italy has a calf injury that will be evaluated in the next few days.

dN

Tim Cahill of Australia has a neck strain.

dN

20 people were injured in a stampede at a free friendly between Nigeria and North Korea in Makhulong. The even sadder news is that initially the gates were opened causing a stampede, then gates were closed again, but when they re-opened the same thing happened. Just awful.

dN

George Vecsey of the New York Times talks to the international legend Pele.

dN

A Guardian interview with Portugal legend Eusebio.

dN

Gabriele Marcotti of The Times on Spain's chances as favorites to win it all.

dN

Jere Longman of the NY Times does not see an African team taking it all the way.

dN

Billy Witz of the NY Times gives us his top young player from each of the 8 groups.

dN

Jeffrey Marcus of the NY Times on all the stars who are injured.

dN

Foreign journalists are forbidden from talking to North Korea players and coaches.

dN

Hungary scored first against the Netherlands on Saturday, then gave up 6!

Friendly Matches & Scores:
-Sat Jun 5
Algeria 1-0 UAE - Alg goal by Karim Ziani(PK).
Cameroon 3-4 Serbia - Cam goals by Pierre Webo(2) & Eric Choupo-Moting. Ser goals by Milos Krasic, Dejan Stankovic, Nenad Milijas(PK) & Marko Pantelic.
Denmark 0-1 South Africa - SA goal by Katlego Mphela.
Ghana 1-0 Latvia - Gha goal by Owusu-Abeyie Quincy.
Honduras 0-3 Romania - Rom goals by Daniel Niculae, Gheorghe Florescu & Mirel Radoi(PK).
Italy 1-1 Switzerland - Ita goal by Fabio Quagliarella. Swi goal by Gohan Inler.
Netherlands 6-1 Hungary - Net goals by Robin Van Persie, Wesley Sneijder, Arjen Robben(2), Mark van Bommel & Eljero Elia. Hun goal by Balazs Dzsudzsak.
Slovakia 3-0 Costa Rica - Slo goals by Douglas Sequeira(OG), Robert Vittek & Stanislav Sestak.
USA 3-1 Australia - USA goals by Edson Buddle(2) & Herculez Gomez. Aus goal by Tim Cahill.
-Sun Jun 6
Nigeria 3-1 North Korea - Nig goals by Yukubu Aiyegbeni, Victor Obinna(PK) & Obafemi Martins. NK goal by Tae Se Jong.
-Mon Jun 7
Tanzania 1-5 Brazil - Bra goals by Robinho(2), Ramires(2) & Kaka.
-Tue Jun 8
Portugal v Mozambique
Spain v Poland
-Wed Jun 9
Chile v New Zealand

THE OBVIOUS CHOICES

After the groups stage I see these are the obvious choices to advance and win the World Cup:

-Round of 16:

A1 (France) v B2 (Nigeria)
C1 (England) v D2 (Serbia)

E1 (Netherlands) v F2 (Paraguay)
G1 (Brazil) v H2 (Chile)

- - -

B1 (Argentina) v A2 (Mexico)
D1 (Germany) v C2 (USA)

F1 (Italy) v E2 (Denmark)
H1 (Spain) v G2 (Cote d’Ivoire)

-Quarterfinals

France v England
Netherlands v Brazil
- - -
Argentina v Germany
Italy v Spain

-Semifinals

England v Brazil
Argentina v Spain

-Final

Brazil v Spain

-Winner

Brazil

QUESTION OF THE DAY

How bummed would Canadians be when Kansas City Wizards forward Teal Bunbury chooses the country he grew up in, USA, over the country he was born in?
-Toronto Globe & Mail: Bunbury has represented Canada at the U17 & U20 level. He is eligible to play for the U.S. but says he's “not thinking too much about it. If it does come into play, I'll make my decision then. But right now the best thing I can do is focus on Kansas City. I know I'm getting experience, but I want to start putting up some goals and assists.”

STORY OF THE DAY

Who is the biggest surprise in MLS as we get oh so close to the World Cup break? Colorado! Yes, the Rapids. can you believe that. They sit at 19 points which is 3rd place in the really strong Western conference, and on a run of 3 consecutive 1-0 wins. Who saw this at the beginning of the season?

MLS WEEK 11

Matches & Scores:
-Sat Jun 5
Toronto FC 0-0 Kansas City Wizards
Venue: BMO Field - Toronto ON
Attendance: 21,583
New York Red Bulls 1-0 Chivas USA - NYRB goal by Seth Stammler.
Venue: Red Bull Arena - Harrison NJ
Attendance: 18,815
DC United 0-0 Real Salt Lake
Venue: RFK Stadium - Washington DC
Attendance: 15,328
Los Angeles Galaxy 4-1 Houston Dynamo - LAG goals by Jovan Kirovski(2), Tristan Bowen & Alex Cazumba. HD goal by Cam Weaver.
Venue: Home Depot Center - Carson CA
Attendance: 20,826
FC Dallas 2-0 San Jose Earthquakes - FCD goals both by Brek Shea.
Venue: Pizza Hut Park - Frisco TX
Attendance: 14,331
Chicago Fire v Philadelphia Union - CF goals by Baggio Husidic & Marco Pappa. PH goal by Danny Mwanga.
Venue: Toyota Park - Bridgeview IL
Attendance: 14,658
Colorado Rapids 1-0 Columbus Crew - CR goal by Drew Moor.
Venue: Dick's Sporting Goods Park - Commerce City CO
Attendance: 14,318
Seattle Sounders FC 3-0 New England Revolution - SS goals by Leo Gonzalez, Steve Zakuani & Fredy Montero.
Venue: Qwest Field - Seattle WA
Attendance:36,344

dN

EJECTIONS
Nick Garcia - Toronto - Red Card
Craig Rocastle - Kansas City- 2 Yellow Cards
Pablo Mastroeni - Colorado - Red Card

dN

Coming up for mid-Week 12 (the last games before the World Cup break)
-Wed Jun 9
Chicago Fire v Colorado Rapids - 7:30 PM Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Toyota Park - Bridgeview IL
Real Salt Lake v Los Angeles Galaxy -8PM Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Rio Tinto Stadium - Sandy UT
-Thu Jun 10
Kansas City Wizards v Philadelphia Union - 7PM Central on Direct Kick
Venue: CommunityAmerica Ballpark - Kansas City KS
Seattle Sounders FC v DC United - 9PM Central on ESPN2
Venue: Qwest Field - Seattle WA

MLS TEAM & PLAYER NEWS

Brek Shea of FC Dallas was named MLS Player Of The Week.

dN

Kyle McCarthy of Goal.com with his weekly recap including the return of Seattle's offense - Monday MLS Breakdown.

dN

Steve Davis of Sports Illustrated gives us Five things to take away from Week 11.

dN

The Toronto Globe & Mail on young Kansas City striker Teal Bunbury.

MLS INJURY REPORT

DC fullback Rodney Wallace suffered a broken leg after getting kicked and will be out up to 2 months.

DU NORD PLAYER OF THE WEEK

This was fun, LA right fullback Sean Franklin had two of the best crosses for goals to Jovan Kirovski that you will ever see. So for that they share the award. They made it look waaaay too easy, but they were really the reward for a long series of great passes that broke down the defense. Goal one - and - goal two.

MY THOUGHTS

It was a joy to see Jaime Moreno in stands with DC the faithful, banging on a drum and singing at the top of his lungs. Check it out. And here is a snap shot off my TV:















dN

DC v RSL was pretty damn worthless viewing. It was one of the worst MLS games I have seen in a long time. Not only were there almost no chances on goal, but neither team even got worked up enough to earn a card.

dN

LA just pulverized Houston 4-1. They are approaching best all time team right now, and are doing it without the stars. Amazing. Too bad they gave up a goal. Hahahaha. That makes it 3 this season!

dN

On that goal we got a freak play were a collision lead to the ball boucning off the thigh of Houston's Cam Weaver and into the net.
-But Weaver paid a heavy price as the boot of LA keeper Donovan Ricketts went right into his chest and took him completely off his feet. That must have really really hurt.

dN

The LA TV guys said the Galaxy are 120-6-11 all time when leading at half time. Impressive.

dN

Houston has stopped their win/loss yo-you routine finally, but its the wrong direction. They have now lost 3 in a row.

dN

For the first time in his MLS career, Dynamo keeper Pat Onstad is looking pretty bad. They may want to give him a rest mentally and physically. And their back 4 is not helping Onstad either.

dN

Dallas may not have had a big crowd, but comparatively I can live with 14,000. Good job, kinda.

dN

David Ferreira of FC Dallas's play all season has been fantastic, but the way he took San Jose apart and set up two goals for teammate Brek Shea was a thing of beauty. Not to take anything away from all of Shea's great skill and effort on #2.

dN

The Toronto announcers acted like they were shocked when Nick Garcia got a Red Card for putting the bottom of his cleats into the knee and thigh of Kei Kamara. Are they that big of homers? Garcia is a goon. And it was a totally deserved ejection. He knew exactly what he was doing, and was hoping to get away with it. Maybe I am wrong, but you watch this and tell me it isn't an obvious red.

dN

KC midfielder Craig Rocastle has caught my attention 3 or 4 times now this season, and I have come to this conclusion - He is not a soccer player. He is a bouncer.

dN

And from what I can tell, KC coach Peter Vermes is in waaaaaaaay over his head at this point. He is the GM and coach and both have been poor in 2010. Most of those dozen off season signings are on the bench, and his tactics look odd at best. He subbed one fullback for another at halftime, and neither was good or bad, just a completely wasted sub. And he still doesn't seem to get that Josh Wolff is a poacher, not a provider. He has to be up top, or off the field.

dN

The #1 overall draft pick Danny Mwanga has not looked all that impressive, but he has scored in 3 straight games. That is impressive.

dN

Seattle's three goal blitz on New England was beyond impressive. It left the Revs outclassed by several miles. And all three goal scorers seemed to be trying to top the others for Goal of the Week honors!
-Check em out - Gonzalez - Zakuani - Montero.

dN

The weekend attendance average was 19,525. Pretty damn good.

MLS RUMORS

Arch Bell of Yanks Abroad reports that Sacha Kljestan is close to a transfer to Anderlecht in Belgium.

MLS/USA EXHIBITIONS

Newly added:
-Wed Jul 21
Glasgow Celtic (Scotland) v Sporting (Portugal)
Venue: Fenway Park - Boston MA

USSF DIVISION 2

Is Austin really this good?!?!

dN

Matches & Scores:
-Fri Jun 4
Rochester Rhinos 0-0 NSC Minnesota Stars
-Sat Jun 5
Austin Aztex 2-1 Puerto Rico Islanders
-Sun Jun 6
Montreal Impact 1-1 Miami FC Blues
Vancouver Whitecaps 1-0 Tampa Bay Rowdies
Portland Timbers 1-1 Carolina RailHawks

-Wed Jun 9
Miami FC Blues v Crystal Palace Baltimore
NSC Minnesota Stars v Montreal Impact
Austin Aztex v Portland Timbers
Vancouver Whitecaps v Carolina RailHawks

dN

Standings (As of Mon Jun 7):
23 Austin - 10 played
18 Tampa Bay - 10 played
15 Rochester - 10 played
15 Vancouver - 9 played
12 Montreal - 8 played
12 Carolina - 8 played
12 Portland - 9 played
10 Baltimore - 9 played
11 Minnesota - 12 played
9 Puerto Rico - 7 played
9 Miami - 9 played
4 St Louis - 9 played

dN

Standings base on Points Per Game:
2.3 Austin
1.80 Tampa Bay
1.67 Vancouver
1.50 Carolina
1.50 Montreal
1.50 Rochester
1.33 Portland
1.29 Puerto Rico
1.11 Baltimore
1.00 Miami
0.92 Minnesota
0.44 St Louis

SOCCER IN AMERICA

Forbes says that American soccer is behind most of the rest of the world due to economics.

I could not disagree more. It's a matter of priority. The USA started their push the same time as all the other major countries pushed the women's game and the USA had completely dominated for several decades now. Give the men's game time, it has come a long way in 20 years.

AMERICANS IN EUROPE

Yanks Abroad talks to a U20 player trying to catch on with a European side after bouncing around for the past 4 years - Shaun Greenfield.

dN

Game Action: (only those that played are listed)

NORWAY - Eliteserien
Mikkel Diskerud - Stabaek - Sun Jun 6 - went the distance as they tied 1-1 at Sandeford.
Di Vita Jensen - Honefoss - Sun Jun 6 - came on as a sub in the 76th minute but they lost 1-0 at Odd.
NOTE: After this round the league is on break until the Jul 4 weekend.

dN

Coming Up: (all possible players are listed)

NORWAY - Eliteserien
Hunter Freeman - Start - Next: Mon Jun 7 v Viking
NOTE: After this round the league is on break until the Jul 4 weekend.

AMERICANS IN ASIA

Brian Sciaretta of Yanks Abroad talks to the first American to play in China - Lyle Martin.

ITALY

Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti has confirmed that former Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez is the number one choice to replace Jose Mourinho.

ENDERS

Adidas goes all Star Wars on us. How many cameos can you name?