Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Some News for Tue Apr 19, 2011

STARTERS

Chivas USA has TURNED DOWN the opportunity to add Benny Feilhaber to their team.
-That means that not only did he not fit their needs and salary cap, but they couldn't find someone to give them good value to sign and trade him.
-What happens next? Philly has the next shot at him. Stay tuned.

dN

The New York Times points out that last weekend the Red Bulls 11 starters were from 11 different countries. Wow.

CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Final

Do you know why so many people (myself included) like Salt Lake general manager Garth Lagerwey? Cuz this is what he said about RSL's success in this tournament: “We haven’t done anything yet.”

The closest we can come to approximating what RSL is up against when they face Monterrey is their two games in the group stage against Cruz Azul. RSL lost to CA 5-4 in Mexico City in a torrential downpour that turned the field into a series of ponds. In that game we saw RSL take the lead then lose their collective minds as the game wore down and CA turned up the wild intensity. For many of us that game was fun to watch, but not for Salt Lake supporters. The other important factor from that game is that a MLS has still not won again in Mexico. In the second game RSL beat CA 3-1 at home. NOTE: Timeline corrected.

Randy Davis of Keepin' It Real is in Monterrey and has some team notes and practice photos for us to check out.
-Every soccer fan in America is probably jealous of him. I know I am.
-Check out the setting for RSL practices (click to enlarge):

















So, if Paulo Jr can't go does that mean Conor Chinn will be on the bench for his huge game?

A cool video of players, coaches and executives from all around the league wishing RSL good luck against Monterrey.

James Edward of the Deseret News on the Lakers as they train in the stadium a day before the big game.
-The field has some American football lines on it.

Edward also writes that RSL's goal from Day 1 in this tournament was to win the championship.

Michael C Lewis of the Salt Lake Tribune on RSL's confidence.

Gordon Monson of the Tribune does some serious gushing about RSL.

Jeff Carlisle of ESPN on RSL as they approach the final and biggest hurdle.

dN

Matches & Scores:
1st Leg
-Wed Apr 20
Monterrey v Real Salt Lake - 9pm CT on FSC
2nd Leg
-Wed Apr 27
Real Salt Lake v Monterrey - 9pm CT on FSC

STORY OF THE DAY

I had wondered why Thierry Henry acted almost angry when he scored his goal for the Red Bulls last weekend.

Brian Lewis of the NY Post informs us that I was not getting it wrong and fills us in on what was behind that outburst.
-Henry was being taunted by some fans in the team's home supporters end of the field. Hmmm.

THE QUADRACLASICO - MADRID V BARCA 2011

Real Madrid & Barcelona face off 4 times in 3 competitions in 18 days beginning on Saturday April 16.

dN

Game 2 on Wednesday is the Final of the Copa Del Rey aka The Kings Cup, played on a neutral field.

dN

Matches & Scores:
-Sat Apr 16
Real Madrid 1-1 Barcelona - Primera Division - RM goal by Cristiano Ronaldo(PK). Bar goal by Lionel Messi(PK).
Venue: Estadio Santiago Bernabeu - Madrid
-Wed Apr 20
Barcelona v Real Madrid - Copa Del Rey Final - 2:30pm CT on GolTV
Venue: Estadio Mestalla - Valencia
-Wed Apr 27
Real Madrid v Barcelona - UEFA Champions League Semifinal Leg 1 - 1:45pm CT on FSC
Venue: Estadio Santiago Bernabeu - Madrid
-Tue May 3
Barcelona v Real Madrid - UEFA Champions League Semifinal Leg 2 - 1:45pm CT on FSC
Venue: Camp Nou - Barcelona

QUOTE OF THE DAY

On a home opener crowd and sponsorships: "I was disappointed. I was embarrassed. Everybody knows the way I feel. We’re still not a destination in this market. We’re still not a priority. Certainly, our home opener is not a major event in this market. There are things we need to do better in order to change that. It’s still about relevance. We’ve been very successful on the field, but we have to do things that generate bigger crowds and make the spotlight shine on us, make us important.
The corporate support has fallen off. Every sports franchise needs a good base, in sponsorship and season tickets. The big thing for us is that our season ticket base hasn’t grown. Over the past three years it has not declined but it hasn’t grown through the best period in club history."


-Columbus Crew President Mark McCullers.

Read the full interview below in the Columbus Crew section below.

OOF

And we thought naming an American soccer team after corporate owners Red Bull was hard to swallow.....

Arabian Business is reporting that Royal Emirates Group has purchased Spanish La Liga team Real Zaragoza and plan to rename them Team Dubai. (thanks to Simon for the link.

THIS IS WHAT ITS ALL ABOUT

Tweed Thornton of Hot Time In Old Town does a long Q & A with our FIF and Chicago Fire supporters collective Section 8 chairman Tom Dunmore.

PICTURE OF THE DAY

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has grown a mustache is tribute to his new owner Stan Kroenke. (thanks to Darrell for the great pic)
























MLS MATCHES, SCORES & STANDINGS


Week 6

Matches & Scores:
-Thu Apr 21
DC United v New York Red Bulls - 7:00pm CT on ESPN2
Venue: RFK Stadium - Washington DC
-Fri Apr 22
Colorado Rapids v Seattle Sounders FC - 8:30pm CT on FSC
Venue: Dick's Sporting Goods Park - Commerce City CO

More to come.

MLS TEAM & PLAYER NEWS

General News

Michael Beaven of the Akron Beacon Journal keeps tabs on former Zips around the league, highlighting Chris Korb of DC this week.

Joshua Mayers of the Seattle Times asks Sounder head coach Sigi Schmid about his thoughts on the league's signing of Benny Feilhaber.

COLUMBUS CREW

Shawn Mitchell of the Dispatch says Crew target 20 year old Argentine attacking midfielder Santiago Prim is now free from his contract with San Lorenzo and talking to Columbus.
-Centerback Julius James has acquired the nickname "Old Spice."

Mitchell does a Q & A with President Mark McCullers on the state of the organization.
-Pretty good reading here.

DC UNITED

Craig Stoufer of the Examiner on the return to full health for Chris Pontius. He could be a difference maker.

LA GALAXY

Bad news direct from the team: "Defender Leonardo will undergo surgery after tearing both the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and Lateral Collateral Ligament (LCL) in his right knee. A starter in each of the Galaxy’s first seven games of the season, he is expected to miss the remainder of the 2011 MLS season."

NEW YORK RED BULLS

Michael Lewis of Big Apple Soccer on what the Bulls can achieve if Thierry Henry produces.

SEATTLE SOUNDERS

Stanley Holmes of Sportspress Northwest does a Sounders checkup 6 games into the season.

Don Ruiz of the Olympian compares Sounders crowds to Portland crowds.

VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC

Veteran midfielder Pete Vagenas is getting a look from the Whitecaps.

USA U18 TEAM

Friendlies
Matches & Scores:
-Tue Apr 19
USA U18 v Portland Timbers
-Sat Apr 23
USA U18 v U of Portland
USA U18 v U of Washington

USA U17 TEAM

The youngest/newest of the U17 players at the academy in Bradenton are at a tournament in France. For the most part these are not the players that qualified for the U17 World Cup earlier this year.

Mondial Minimes Montaigu Tournament - Apr 20-25

dN

Group A
Portugal
France
USA
Japan
Group B
England
Guinea
Uruguay
UAE

dN

Matches & Scores:
-Wed Apr 20
France v Japan
Portugal v USA
England v Uruguay
UAE v Guinea
-Thu Apr 21
France v USA
Portugal v Japan
Guinea v Uruguay
England v UAE
-Sat Apr 23
France v Portugal
USA v Japan
England v Guinea
Uruguay v UAE
-Mon Apr 25
A3 v B3 - 5th & 6th place
A4 v B4 - 7th & 8th place
A2 v B2 - 3rd & 4th place
A1 v B1 - Final

dN

USA U17 Roster
G:
Santiago Castano - NY Red Bulls
Zack Steffen - FC Delco
D:
Russell Canouse - Hoffenheim
Dylan Greenberg - Albertson SC
Matt Habrowski - Derby County Wolves
Luis Martir - Guadalajara Chivas
Miguel Polley - Derby County Wolves
Robby Sagel - Downtown Rapids
M:
Jordan Allen - Empire United
Marco Delgado - Cosmos Academy West
Nicholas Gaitan - Argentinos Juniors
Antonio Murillo - Neusport
Adam Najem - NY Red Bulls
Zach Pfeffer - Philadelphia Union
F:
Paul Arriola - Arsenal FC
Nicko Corriveau - Bethesda SC
Kevin De La Torre - Chivas USA
Alex Muyl - Cosmos Academy East

AMERICANS IN EUROPE

Alejandro Bedoya scored his second goal of the season for Orebro, but in a losing effort.

dN

Game Action:

SCOTLAND - Premier League (last game of regular season)
Mo Edu - Rangers - Tue Apr 19 - went the full 90 as they won 0-4 at Dundee United.

SWEDEN - Allsvenskan Liga
Alejandro Bedoya - Orebro - Mon Apr 18 - played the full 90 scoring a goal but they lost 2-3 v Gelfe.
Gale Agbossoumonde - Djurgarden - Tue Apr 19 - played the full 90 but lost 2-1 at GAIS.

dN

Coming Up:

SWEDEN - Allsvenskan Liga
Ryan Miller - Halmstad - Wed Apr 20 at Norrkoping
Samuel Petrone - Mjallby - Wed Apr 20 at Malmo

MEXICO

I screwed up the other day and missed the fact that Morelia has also clinched a spot in the playoffs. They join the already mentioned Pumas and Tigres.

dN

Playoff Standings as of Sun Apr 17:
Group A
ADV-29 UANL Tigres
24 Guadalajara
Group B
23 Atlante
22 America
Group C
ADV-32 UNAM Pumas
ADV-28 Morelia
Wild Card
24 Cruz Azul
22 Monterrey
- - - - -
20 Santos Laguna - A
20 Toluca - B
20 Atlas - B

ENGLAND

Recap du Nord: #1 Man U played to a scoreless draw on the road today extending their lead to 7 points.

Top of the Premier League Table: (32 of 38 GP)
70 Man United - Tue Apr 19 D 0-0 at Newcastle (33 GP)
63 Arsenal - Wed Apr 20 at Tottenham
61 Chelsea - Wed Apr 20 v Birmingham
56 Man City - Off this midweek
53 Tottenham - Wed Apr 20 v Arsenal (31 GP)

SPAIN

COPA DEL REY

Final
Match & Score:
-Wed Apr 20
Barcelona v Real Madrid

FRANCE

COUPE DE FRANCE

Lille advanced to the Final today.

Semifinals
Matches & Scores:
-Tue Apr 19
Nice 0-2 Lille
-Wed Apr 20
Angers v PSG

ITALY

COPPA ITALIA

Inter claims a 1st leg road win today.

Semifinals
Matches & Scores:
1st Leg
-Tue Apr 19
Roma 0-1 Inter
-Wed Apr 20
Milan v Palermo

EUROPE

POLISH CUP

Lech Poznan advances to the Final today.

Semifinals
Matches & Scores:
2nd Leg (1st Leg score included)
-Tue Apr 19
Podbeskidzie Bielsko-Biala 2-3 Lech Poznan - LP advances 4-3 on aggregate.
-Wed Apr 20
Legia Warszawa v Lechia Gdansk (1-0)

COPA LIBERTADORES

This is the final week of Group Stage games.

dN

Advanced:(9 of 16) Cruzeiro, Estudiantes, Gremio, Junior, LDU Quit, Libertad, Penarol, Univ Catolica, Velez Sarsfield

Out:(10 of 16) Caracas, Depor Tachira, Godoy Cruz, Guarani, Independiente, Jorge Wilstermann, Leon de Huanuco, Oriente Petrolero, Depor Tolima, Union Espanola

dN

Group Stage
Matches & Scores:
-Tue Apr 19
Jorge Wilstermann v Jaguares
Internacional v Emelec
Libertad v San Luis
Univ San Martin v Once Caldas
-Wed Apr 20
Santos v Deportivo Tachira
Colo Colo v Cerro Porteno
Nacional v America
Argentinos Juniors v Fluminense

dN

Standings:
Group 1
ADV-11 Libertad (Paraguay) (+6 gd) (5 gp)
6 Univ San Martin (Peru) (-2 gd) (5 gp)
5 San Luis (Mexico) (-1 gd) (5 gp)
4 Once Caldas (Colombia) (-3 gd) (5 gp)
Group 2
ADV-13 Junior (Colombia) (+2 gd) (6 gp)
ADV-10-Gremio (Brazil) (+3 gd) (6 gp)
OUT-6 Oriente Petrolero (Bolivia) (-1 gd) (6 gp)
OUT-5 Leon de Huanuco (Peru) (-4 gd) (6 gp)
Group 3
9 America (Mexico) (+1 gd) (5 gp)
7 Argentinos Juniors (Argentina) (+1 gd) (5 gp)
7 Nacional (Uruguay) (0 gd) (5 gp)
5 Fluminense (Brazil) (-2 gd) (5 gp)
Group 4
ADV-12 Univ Catolica (Chile) (+2 gd) (6 gp)
ADV-11 Velez Sarsfield (Argentina) (+5 gd) (6 gp)
OUT-9 Caracas (Venezuela) (-3 gd) (6 gp)
OUT-4 Union Espanola (Chile) (-4 gd) (6 gp)
Group 5
9 Colo-Colo (Chile) (0 gd) (5 gp)
8 Cerro Porteno (Paraguay) (+4 gd) (5 gp)
8 Santos (Brazil) (+1 gd) (5 gp)
OUT-2 Depor Tachira (Venezuela) (-5 gd) (5 gp)
Group 6
10 Internacional (Brazil) (+9 gd) (5 gp)
9 Chiapas Jaguares (-1 gd) (5 gp)
8 Emelec (Ecuador) (+1 gd) (5 gp)
OUT-1 Jorge Wilstermann (Bolivia) (-9 gd) (5 gp)
Group 7
ADV-16 Cruzeiro (Brazil) (+19 gd) (6 gp)
ADV-10 Estudiantes (Argentina) (-2 gd) (6 gp)
OUT-8 Depor Tolima (Colombia) (-3 gd) (6 gp)
OUT-0 Guarani (Paraguay) (-14 gd) (6 gp)
Group 8
ADV-10 LDU Quito (Ecuador) (+8 gd) (6 gp)
ADV-9 Penarol (Uruguay) (-5 gd) (6 gp)
OUT-8 Independiente (Argentina) (-1 gd) (6 gp)
OUT-7 Gody Cruz (Argentina) (-2 gd) (6 gp)

ASIA

FIFA.com talks to Brazilian great Juninho about playing for a club in Qatar.

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Not to quibble too much, Bruce, but RSL's game with Chivas at Chivas when they lost 5-4 was actually before they beat Chivas 3-1 in Utah, not after.

9:33 AM  
Blogger brucio said...

Quibble away - you are correct.

My quibble is that its Cruz Azul, not Chivas.

hahahahahahaha

thanks

10:00 AM  

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