Some Soccer News for Tue Mar 20, 2012
STARTERS
Montreal head coach Jesse Marsch was channeling Steve Sampson during their home opener as he lined his team up in a 3-6-1 formation!
dN
Toronto will be without their leader Torsten Frings for as much as 6 weeks after he suffered a hamstring injury in Saturdays game. That means he is most likely out of both legs of the CONCAChampions Semifinals and 6 league games.
-Daniel Girard of the Star with a report.
-John Molinaro of SportsNet on the importance of losing Frings.
dN
Seattle announces that captain Mauro Rosales will be out for a couple of weeks due to a right knee sprain. (not the same injury as last season)
-Eddie Johnson is battling a hip injury too.
dN
New England has now said that forward Jose Moreno will be arriving "later this week." This is the 4th or 5th new timeline we have heard in the past month. This time he is said to be dealing with some "personal matters."
-How big of a stretch is it right now to say that he is going to make Dallas' signing of Denilson look like a brilliant move.
NOTICE
Sign up today for MLS Fantasy Soccer Manager, and then become a member of the du Nord Futbol league using this code: 3815-897
117 teams in our league so far. Lets go for 150! Come On!
FC Pancetta - managed by Kip Riske is in 1st Place!
TASTIEST MLS GAME OF THE WEEKEND
-Fri Mar 23
Seattle Sounders FC v Houston Dynamo - 9:00PM CT on NBCSN
DU NORD AT THE CONTROLS
du Nord at the Controls - Tue Mar 20, 2012 - new music mix at Spotify.
STORY OF THE DAY
On Sunday Kilmarnock pulled off a grand upset beating Celtic in the Scottish League Cup Final.
But what happened in the stands during the game was a true tragedy. The father of Kilmarnock player Liam Kelly suffered a heart attack during the game and was later pronounced dead at a local hospital. Kelly was told immediately after the game, but the rest of the team was not told until after the trophy presentation.
The Glasgow Daily Record has several stories covering such a sad day:
-What should have been best moment of our lives left us in despair
-Killie Dressing room fell silent after hearing of Liam Kelly's dad
-Cup final hero admits he'd gladly give up winners' medal to bring back Liam Kelly's dad
-Liam Kelly Left distraught by tragic death of dad at League Cup Final
-Kilmarnock will help Liam Kelly through trauma of losing dad
-We didn't tell players Liam Kelly's father had died so they could enjoy success
Thanks to du Nord reader Manchester Quakes Fan for alerting us to the story.
USA U23/OLYMPIC TEAM
Training for Olympic qualifying is underway in Nashville.
Cuba, Canada and El Salvador are the opponents.
dN
Freddy Adu has been named team captain.
dN
Right fullback Sheanon Williams of Philadelphia has been added to the roster taking the last spot.
dN
Steve Davis of NBC Sports asks the question - Why Nashville?
Ivan Orozco of CONCACAF.com give us the background on Joe Corona.
US Soccer give us a specialized web page just for qualifying.
US Soccer asks Teal Bunbury to name his Top 5 Apps.
USS has a video interview with centerback Ike Opara.
USS also does a short Q & A with Amobi Okugo who is continuing to take college courses even while playing.
-Okugo says that Kofi Sarkodi and Perry Kitchen both take classes as well.
Greg Sullivan of the Nashville Tennessean on the team being in Nashville.
dN
USA Roster
G:
Bill Hamid - DC United
Sean Johnson - Chicago Fire
D:
Perry Kitchen - DC United
Ike Opara - San Jose Earthquakes
Kofi Sarkodie - Houston Dynamo
Zarek Valentin - Montreal Impact
Jorge Villafana - Chivas USA
Sheanon Williams - Philadelphia Union
M:
Freddy Adu - Philadelphia Union
Joe Corona - Tijuana
Mix Diskerud - Gent
Jared Jeffrey - Mainz
Amobi Okugo - Philadelphia Union
Michael Stephens - LA Galaxy
F:
Juan Agudelo - New York Red Bulls
Terrence Boyd - Dortmund
Teal Bunbury - Sporting Kansas City
Joe Gyau - Hoffenheim
Brek Shea - FC Dallas
Tony Taylor - Estoril
dN
Canada Roster
G:
Adam Janssen - no club
Michal Misiewicz - FC Edmonton
D:
Nana Attakora - no club
Andres Fresenga - Racing Club Montevideo
Doneil Henry - Toronto
M:
Bryce Alderson - Vancouver Whitecaps
Drew Beckie - no club
Kyle Bekker - Boston College
Philippe Davies - no club
Sherif El-Masri - Courts Young Lions
Evan James - Montreal Impact
Samuel Piette - Metz
Shaun Saiko - Edmonton
Matt Stinson - Toronto
Russell Teibert - Vancouver Whitecaps
F:
Lucas Cavallini - Club Nacional
Randy Edwini-Bonsu - Eintracht Braunsweig
Marcus Haber - St Johnstone
Carl Haworth - Montreal Impact
Babayele Sodade - Seattle Sounders
dN
Cuba Roster
G:
O Cooper
J Pichardo
A Sardinas
D:
D Aira
J Corrales
Y De Armas
J Figueras
C Francisco
F Guerra
J Macias
R Malblanche
E Palmero
Y Salazar
Y Vincent
M:
D Blanco
M Chang
E Cordovez
J Farinas
M Hernandez
A Marrero
L Martinez
Y Ramirez
F:
K Garcia
Y Lahera
S Rodriguez
2012 CONCACAF OLYMPIC QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT
8 teams enter, 2 teams leave.
Group Stage round robin with the top 2 from each group advancing to the Semifinals.
The winners of the two Semifinal games go to the Olympics.
dN
STANDINGS
Group A
Canada
Cuba
El Salvador
USA
Group B
Honduras
Mexico
Panama
Trinidad & Tobago
dN
GROUP STAGE
Matches & Scores:
-Thu Mar 22
El Salvador v Canada - 5:30pm
USA v Cuba - 8pm on Universal Sports Network (DirecTV channel 625)
Venue: LP Field - Nashville TN
-Fri Mar 23
Honduras v Panama - 8pm
Trinidad & Tobago v Mexico - 10:30pm
Venue: The Home Depot Center - Carson CA
-Sat Mar 24
Cuba v El Salvador - 3:30pm
USA v Canada - 6pm on Universal Sports Network (DirecTV channel 625)
Venue: LP Field - Nashville TN
-Sun Mar 25
Panama v Trinidad & Tobago - 2:30pm
Mexico v Honduras - 6pm
Venue: The Home Depot Center - Carson CA
-Mon Mar 26
Canada v Cuba - 5:30pm
USA v El Salvador - 8pm on Universal Sports Network (DirecTV channel 625)
Venue: LP Field - Nashville TN
-Tue Mar 27
Honduras v Trinidad & Tobago - 8pm
Mexico v Panama - 10:30pm
Venue: The Home Depot Center - Carson CA
FIFASCANDALIZATIONINGS
In yet another sign that the roof is caving in on Brazilian soccer poobah Ricardo Teixeira he has now resigned from his third post in just 2 weeks - this one the biggest - the FIFA Executive Committee.
-Could this guy see jail time in his future? Or by resigning is he avoiding legal actions?
BIG EUROPEAN CLUB MATCHES
Matches & Scores:
-Wed Mar 21
Manchester City v Chelsea - neither team can afford a slip up of any kind
DO YOU REALIZE
Bobby McMahon at Forbes looks at the high numbers of Canadians turning out in person and switching on their TVs to watch soccer, compared to Americans. Impressive stuff.
-On a side note McMahon asks, So what is wrong with the Canadian men's national team program? Great question.
STAT OF THE DAY
People really do hate the Red Bulls! NBC rating for Sunday's Philly v Colorado game up over 50 percent from last week weeks Dallas v New York game.
FACT OF THE DAY
Jurgen Klinsman sent out a Twitter message today saying that the USA v Scotland friendly has already sold more tix than any previous USA game in Jacksonville FL. Nice.
PICTURE OF THE DAY
Kei Kamara and CJ Sapong dance like mad Leprechaun's after Kamara scored a goal on Saturday. Brilliant!
OOF
"Vancouver Whitecaps FC confirmed today that striker Darren Mattocks suffered burns to his upper right arm and shoulder on the evening of Sunday, March 18, while preparing dinner.
The 21-year-old Jamaican striker was admitted to a local hospital and is currently being assessed and treated."
Scary. Lets hope he recovers quickly and completely.
VIDEO OF THE DAY
The Montreal Gazette has video of the huge opening day for the Impact.
MLS MATCHES & SCORES
WEEK 3
Matches & Scores:
-Fri Mar 23
Seattle Sounders FC v Houston Dynamo - 9:00PM CT on NBCSN
Venue: CenturyLink Field
-Sat March 24
Toronto FC v San Jose Earthquakes - 12:00PM CT on TSN/RDS
Venue: BMO Field
New England Revolution v Portland Timbers - 3:00PM CT
Venue: Gillette Stadium
Columbus Crew v Montreal Impact - 3:00PM CT
Venue: Crew Stadium
Chicago Fire SC v Philadelphia Union - 7:30PM CT
Venue: Toyota Park
Real Salt Lake v CD Chivas USA - 8:00PM CT
Venue: Rio Tinto Stadium
Vancouver Whitecaps FC v DC United - 9:00PM CT
Venue: BC Place
-Sun Mar 25
New York Red Bulls v Colorado Rapids - 3:00PM CT on ESPN
Venue: Red Bull Arena
Sporting Kansas City v FC Dallas - 6:00PM CT on Galavision
Venue: Livestrong Sporting Park
Bye: LA Galaxy
MLS STANDINGS
EAST
6 Sporting Kansas City (+4)
6 Houston Dynamo (+2)
1 Chicago Fire SC (0)
1 Montreal Impact (-2)
0 Toronto (-2)
0 Columbus Crew (-2)
0 Philadelphia Union (-3)
0 DC United (-3)
0 New York Red Bulls (-3)
0 New England (-4)
WEST
6 Real Salt Lake (+4)
6 Colorado Rapids (+3)
6 Vancouver Whitecaps FC (+3)
4 Portland Timbers (+2)
4 FC Dallas (+1)
3 Seattle Sounders FC (+2)
3 LA Galaxy (0)
3 San Jose Earthquakes (0)
0 CD Chivas USA (-2)
MLS TEAM & PLAYER NEWS
General News
Daniel Girard of the Toronto Star looks ahead to the huge potential for the Toronto-Montreal rivalry.
-They play for the first time in MLS on Apr 7, and that game is in Montreal. Expect another monster sized crowd for that one.
dN
Nigel Reed of the CBC looks at a big weekend at least attendance wise for Canada's MLS teams, mainly in Montreal were over 59,000 were in attendance.
dN
Paul Kennedy of Soccer America takes us on a tour around the league to see how the foreign players performed.
dN
COLORADO RAPIDS
Craig De Aragon of the Post with player ratings from Sunday's game at Philadelphia.
COLUMBUS CREW
Adam Jardy of the Dispatch with today's Crew team notes.
dN
Jardy on preparations around the town for the home opener.
dN
Columbus is set to sign 27 year old Montenegrin left fullback Nemanja Vukovic from Grbalj.
FC DALLAS
Todd Date of 3rd Degree talks to head coach Schellas Hyndman on making substitution decisions that might not be popular with the fans. Great stuff.
-Hyndman also talks about new forward Luis Perea.
-And the health of Fabian Castillo and David Ferreira.
DC UNITED
Steven Goff of the Post talks to team owner Will Chang.
MONTREAL IMPACT
Jack Todd of the Gazette celebrates opening day for the Impact.
-Then he gets destroyed in the comments section by soccer haters.
dN
The Gazette has photos from the big day as well.
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES
Matt Schwab of the Mercury News writes that goalkeeper Jon Busch has raised his hand and taken the blame for his team's loss to Houston.
SEATTLE SOUNDERS
The Washington Post talks to owner Drew Carey about the Sounders and the importance of winning v profits.
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC
Bruce Constantineau of the Sun with an article on the very impatient young forward Omar Salgado.
-There is talk of a loan deal to Carolina.
dN
Russell Berrisford of the Sun questions the Caps use of Sebastien Le Toux.
dN
The Vancouver press is tooting the Whitecaps horn over 2 clean sheet while neglecting to point out they came against two of the worst offensive teams we have seen in MLS in several years.
-The only way it could get better for them is if they played New England next, which they don't.
MLS/USA RELATED RUMORS
Michael Lewis of Big Apple Soccer writes about the agent of Michael Ballack who rips the Red Bulls and calls GM Erik Soler "clueless."
-Why is Soler clueless, cuz he doesn't want Ballack on his team? One thing we know for sure is that Bayer Leverkusen, management and players, don't want Ballack around!
AMERICANS IN EUROPE
Game Action:
ENGLAND - League One
Frank Simek - Carlisle United - Tue Mar 20 - went the full 90 as they tied 0-0 v Preston.
dN
Coming Up:
BELGIUM - Pro League
Sacha Kljestan - Anderlecht - Wed Mar 21 v Zulte Waregem
ENGLAND - Premier League
Brad Friedel - Tottenham - Wed Mar 21 v Stoke
Marcus Hahnemann - Everton - Wed Mar 21 v Arsenal
Tim Howard - Everton - Wed Mar 21 v Arsenal
AMERICANS IN MEXICO
Greg Garza who is now playing for Tijuana makes his debut writing a diary for Goal.com.
FRANCE
Coupe De France - Quarterfinals
Just a few days after advancing in the UEFA Champions League Marseille are bumped from the League cup by a team from THIRD DIVISION of French soccer!
Matches & Scores:
-Tue Mar 20
Quevilly 3-2 Marseille
-Wed Mar 21
Valenciennes v Rennes
Gazelec Ajaccio v Montepellier
PSG v Lyon
GERMANY
Kaiserslautern has fired head coach Marco Kurz. He will be replaced by assistant coaches Oliver Schaefer and Gerry Ehrmann as co-interims.
ITALY
Coppa Italia - Semifinal
Juve knocks out Milan and advances to the Final.
2nd Leg (with 1st Leg score included)
-Tue Mar 20
Juventus 2-2 Milan - Juv advances 4-3 on aggregate.
-Wed Mar 21
Napoli v Siena (1-2)
EUROPE
NETHERLANDS
KNVB Beker - Semifinals
Matches & Scores:
-Wed Mar 21
Heerenveen v PSV
-Thu Mar 22
AZ v Heracles
TOP EURO CLUB GOAL SCORERS
As of Tue Mar 20
Premier League
26 Robin Van Persie
20 Wayne Rooney
16 Kun Aguero
16 Demba Ba
Bundesliga
22 Mario Gomez
20 Klaas Jan Huntelaar
16 Robert Lewandowski
16 Claudio Pizzaro
16 Lukas Podolski
Serie A
20 Zlatan Ibrahimovic
19 Antonio Di Natale
18 Edison Cavani
15 German Denis
Primera Division
32 Cristiano Ronaldo
31 Lionel Messi
17 Radamael Falcao
17 Gonzalo Higuain
Ligue 1
17 Oliver Giroud
13 Nene
12 Eden Hazard
11 three players tied
COPA LIBERTADORES
Group Stage
Matches & Scores:
-Tue Mar 20
Emelec v Lanus
Bolivar v Junior
-Wed Mar 21
The Strongest v Internacional
Corinthians v Cruz Azul
Vasco da Gama v Libertad
Boca Juniors v Arsenal
-Thu Mar 22
Velez Sarsfield v Deportivo Quito
Santos v Juan Aurich
Atletico Nacional v Godoy Cruz
dN
Standings
Group 1
6 Internacional (+5)
6 Santos (+3)
6 The Strongest (-3)
0 Juan Aurich (-5)
Group 2
5 Flamengo (+1)
4 Lanus (0)
4 Olimpia (0)
3 Emelec (-1)
Group 3
7 Union Espanola (+5)
4 Bolivar (-1)
3 Universidad Catholica (0)
1 Junior (-2)
Group 4
9 Fluminense (+3)
4 Boca Juniors (0)
3 Arsenal (+1)
1 Zamora (-4)
Group 5
7 Libertad (+4)
4 Vasco Da Gama (0)
3 Nacional (-1)
3 Alianza Lima (-3)
Group 6
7 Cruz Azul (+5)
5 Corintians (+2)
3 Nacional Asuncion (-2)
1 Deportivo Tachira (-5)
Group 7
6 Velez Sarsfield (+3)
4 Deportivo Quito (+1)
4 Guadalajara (-2)
3 Defensor Sporting (-2)
Group 8
7 Atletico Nacional (+6)
4 Universidad Chile (+2)
4 Godoy Cruz (-3)
1 Penarol (-5)
ASIA
Asian Champions League - Group Stage - Matchday 2
Matches & Scores:
-Tue Mar 20
Tokyo 2-2 Ulsan
Adelaide United 2-0 Gamba Osaka
Pohang Steelers 0-2 Bunyodkor
Beijing Guoan 1-1 Brisbane Roar
Pakhtakor 1-1 Bani Yas
Al Jazira 3-2 Al Rayyan
Esteghlal 0-0 Nasaf
Al Arabi 1-3 Al Ittihad
-Wed Mar 21
Central Coast v Nagoya Grampus
Seongnam v Tianjin Teda
Kashiwa Reysol v Jeonbuk Motors
Guangzhou Ever v Buriram United
Persepolis v Al Shabab
Al Gharafa v Al Hilal
Al Nasr v Lekhwiya
Al Ahli v Sepahan
The next round is on Apr 3/4
Standings etc.
Montreal head coach Jesse Marsch was channeling Steve Sampson during their home opener as he lined his team up in a 3-6-1 formation!
dN
Toronto will be without their leader Torsten Frings for as much as 6 weeks after he suffered a hamstring injury in Saturdays game. That means he is most likely out of both legs of the CONCAChampions Semifinals and 6 league games.
-Daniel Girard of the Star with a report.
-John Molinaro of SportsNet on the importance of losing Frings.
dN
Seattle announces that captain Mauro Rosales will be out for a couple of weeks due to a right knee sprain. (not the same injury as last season)
-Eddie Johnson is battling a hip injury too.
dN
New England has now said that forward Jose Moreno will be arriving "later this week." This is the 4th or 5th new timeline we have heard in the past month. This time he is said to be dealing with some "personal matters."
-How big of a stretch is it right now to say that he is going to make Dallas' signing of Denilson look like a brilliant move.
NOTICE
Sign up today for MLS Fantasy Soccer Manager, and then become a member of the du Nord Futbol league using this code: 3815-897
117 teams in our league so far. Lets go for 150! Come On!
FC Pancetta - managed by Kip Riske is in 1st Place!
TASTIEST MLS GAME OF THE WEEKEND
-Fri Mar 23
Seattle Sounders FC v Houston Dynamo - 9:00PM CT on NBCSN
DU NORD AT THE CONTROLS
du Nord at the Controls - Tue Mar 20, 2012 - new music mix at Spotify.
STORY OF THE DAY
On Sunday Kilmarnock pulled off a grand upset beating Celtic in the Scottish League Cup Final.
But what happened in the stands during the game was a true tragedy. The father of Kilmarnock player Liam Kelly suffered a heart attack during the game and was later pronounced dead at a local hospital. Kelly was told immediately after the game, but the rest of the team was not told until after the trophy presentation.
The Glasgow Daily Record has several stories covering such a sad day:
-What should have been best moment of our lives left us in despair
-Killie Dressing room fell silent after hearing of Liam Kelly's dad
-Cup final hero admits he'd gladly give up winners' medal to bring back Liam Kelly's dad
-Liam Kelly Left distraught by tragic death of dad at League Cup Final
-Kilmarnock will help Liam Kelly through trauma of losing dad
-We didn't tell players Liam Kelly's father had died so they could enjoy success
Thanks to du Nord reader Manchester Quakes Fan for alerting us to the story.
USA U23/OLYMPIC TEAM
Training for Olympic qualifying is underway in Nashville.
Cuba, Canada and El Salvador are the opponents.
dN
Freddy Adu has been named team captain.
dN
Right fullback Sheanon Williams of Philadelphia has been added to the roster taking the last spot.
dN
Steve Davis of NBC Sports asks the question - Why Nashville?
Ivan Orozco of CONCACAF.com give us the background on Joe Corona.
US Soccer give us a specialized web page just for qualifying.
US Soccer asks Teal Bunbury to name his Top 5 Apps.
USS has a video interview with centerback Ike Opara.
USS also does a short Q & A with Amobi Okugo who is continuing to take college courses even while playing.
-Okugo says that Kofi Sarkodi and Perry Kitchen both take classes as well.
Greg Sullivan of the Nashville Tennessean on the team being in Nashville.
dN
USA Roster
G:
Bill Hamid - DC United
Sean Johnson - Chicago Fire
D:
Perry Kitchen - DC United
Ike Opara - San Jose Earthquakes
Kofi Sarkodie - Houston Dynamo
Zarek Valentin - Montreal Impact
Jorge Villafana - Chivas USA
Sheanon Williams - Philadelphia Union
M:
Freddy Adu - Philadelphia Union
Joe Corona - Tijuana
Mix Diskerud - Gent
Jared Jeffrey - Mainz
Amobi Okugo - Philadelphia Union
Michael Stephens - LA Galaxy
F:
Juan Agudelo - New York Red Bulls
Terrence Boyd - Dortmund
Teal Bunbury - Sporting Kansas City
Joe Gyau - Hoffenheim
Brek Shea - FC Dallas
Tony Taylor - Estoril
dN
Canada Roster
G:
Adam Janssen - no club
Michal Misiewicz - FC Edmonton
D:
Nana Attakora - no club
Andres Fresenga - Racing Club Montevideo
Doneil Henry - Toronto
M:
Bryce Alderson - Vancouver Whitecaps
Drew Beckie - no club
Kyle Bekker - Boston College
Philippe Davies - no club
Sherif El-Masri - Courts Young Lions
Evan James - Montreal Impact
Samuel Piette - Metz
Shaun Saiko - Edmonton
Matt Stinson - Toronto
Russell Teibert - Vancouver Whitecaps
F:
Lucas Cavallini - Club Nacional
Randy Edwini-Bonsu - Eintracht Braunsweig
Marcus Haber - St Johnstone
Carl Haworth - Montreal Impact
Babayele Sodade - Seattle Sounders
dN
Cuba Roster
G:
O Cooper
J Pichardo
A Sardinas
D:
D Aira
J Corrales
Y De Armas
J Figueras
C Francisco
F Guerra
J Macias
R Malblanche
E Palmero
Y Salazar
Y Vincent
M:
D Blanco
M Chang
E Cordovez
J Farinas
M Hernandez
A Marrero
L Martinez
Y Ramirez
F:
K Garcia
Y Lahera
S Rodriguez
2012 CONCACAF OLYMPIC QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT
8 teams enter, 2 teams leave.
Group Stage round robin with the top 2 from each group advancing to the Semifinals.
The winners of the two Semifinal games go to the Olympics.
dN
STANDINGS
Group A
Canada
Cuba
El Salvador
USA
Group B
Honduras
Mexico
Panama
Trinidad & Tobago
dN
GROUP STAGE
Matches & Scores:
-Thu Mar 22
El Salvador v Canada - 5:30pm
USA v Cuba - 8pm on Universal Sports Network (DirecTV channel 625)
Venue: LP Field - Nashville TN
-Fri Mar 23
Honduras v Panama - 8pm
Trinidad & Tobago v Mexico - 10:30pm
Venue: The Home Depot Center - Carson CA
-Sat Mar 24
Cuba v El Salvador - 3:30pm
USA v Canada - 6pm on Universal Sports Network (DirecTV channel 625)
Venue: LP Field - Nashville TN
-Sun Mar 25
Panama v Trinidad & Tobago - 2:30pm
Mexico v Honduras - 6pm
Venue: The Home Depot Center - Carson CA
-Mon Mar 26
Canada v Cuba - 5:30pm
USA v El Salvador - 8pm on Universal Sports Network (DirecTV channel 625)
Venue: LP Field - Nashville TN
-Tue Mar 27
Honduras v Trinidad & Tobago - 8pm
Mexico v Panama - 10:30pm
Venue: The Home Depot Center - Carson CA
FIFASCANDALIZATIONINGS
In yet another sign that the roof is caving in on Brazilian soccer poobah Ricardo Teixeira he has now resigned from his third post in just 2 weeks - this one the biggest - the FIFA Executive Committee.
-Could this guy see jail time in his future? Or by resigning is he avoiding legal actions?
BIG EUROPEAN CLUB MATCHES
Matches & Scores:
-Wed Mar 21
Manchester City v Chelsea - neither team can afford a slip up of any kind
DO YOU REALIZE
Bobby McMahon at Forbes looks at the high numbers of Canadians turning out in person and switching on their TVs to watch soccer, compared to Americans. Impressive stuff.
-On a side note McMahon asks, So what is wrong with the Canadian men's national team program? Great question.
STAT OF THE DAY
People really do hate the Red Bulls! NBC rating for Sunday's Philly v Colorado game up over 50 percent from last week weeks Dallas v New York game.
FACT OF THE DAY
Jurgen Klinsman sent out a Twitter message today saying that the USA v Scotland friendly has already sold more tix than any previous USA game in Jacksonville FL. Nice.
PICTURE OF THE DAY
Kei Kamara and CJ Sapong dance like mad Leprechaun's after Kamara scored a goal on Saturday. Brilliant!
OOF
"Vancouver Whitecaps FC confirmed today that striker Darren Mattocks suffered burns to his upper right arm and shoulder on the evening of Sunday, March 18, while preparing dinner.
The 21-year-old Jamaican striker was admitted to a local hospital and is currently being assessed and treated."
Scary. Lets hope he recovers quickly and completely.
VIDEO OF THE DAY
The Montreal Gazette has video of the huge opening day for the Impact.
MLS MATCHES & SCORES
WEEK 3
Matches & Scores:
-Fri Mar 23
Seattle Sounders FC v Houston Dynamo - 9:00PM CT on NBCSN
Venue: CenturyLink Field
-Sat March 24
Toronto FC v San Jose Earthquakes - 12:00PM CT on TSN/RDS
Venue: BMO Field
New England Revolution v Portland Timbers - 3:00PM CT
Venue: Gillette Stadium
Columbus Crew v Montreal Impact - 3:00PM CT
Venue: Crew Stadium
Chicago Fire SC v Philadelphia Union - 7:30PM CT
Venue: Toyota Park
Real Salt Lake v CD Chivas USA - 8:00PM CT
Venue: Rio Tinto Stadium
Vancouver Whitecaps FC v DC United - 9:00PM CT
Venue: BC Place
-Sun Mar 25
New York Red Bulls v Colorado Rapids - 3:00PM CT on ESPN
Venue: Red Bull Arena
Sporting Kansas City v FC Dallas - 6:00PM CT on Galavision
Venue: Livestrong Sporting Park
Bye: LA Galaxy
MLS STANDINGS
EAST
6 Sporting Kansas City (+4)
6 Houston Dynamo (+2)
1 Chicago Fire SC (0)
1 Montreal Impact (-2)
0 Toronto (-2)
0 Columbus Crew (-2)
0 Philadelphia Union (-3)
0 DC United (-3)
0 New York Red Bulls (-3)
0 New England (-4)
WEST
6 Real Salt Lake (+4)
6 Colorado Rapids (+3)
6 Vancouver Whitecaps FC (+3)
4 Portland Timbers (+2)
4 FC Dallas (+1)
3 Seattle Sounders FC (+2)
3 LA Galaxy (0)
3 San Jose Earthquakes (0)
0 CD Chivas USA (-2)
MLS TEAM & PLAYER NEWS
General News
Daniel Girard of the Toronto Star looks ahead to the huge potential for the Toronto-Montreal rivalry.
-They play for the first time in MLS on Apr 7, and that game is in Montreal. Expect another monster sized crowd for that one.
dN
Nigel Reed of the CBC looks at a big weekend at least attendance wise for Canada's MLS teams, mainly in Montreal were over 59,000 were in attendance.
dN
Paul Kennedy of Soccer America takes us on a tour around the league to see how the foreign players performed.
dN
COLORADO RAPIDS
Craig De Aragon of the Post with player ratings from Sunday's game at Philadelphia.
COLUMBUS CREW
Adam Jardy of the Dispatch with today's Crew team notes.
dN
Jardy on preparations around the town for the home opener.
dN
Columbus is set to sign 27 year old Montenegrin left fullback Nemanja Vukovic from Grbalj.
FC DALLAS
Todd Date of 3rd Degree talks to head coach Schellas Hyndman on making substitution decisions that might not be popular with the fans. Great stuff.
-Hyndman also talks about new forward Luis Perea.
-And the health of Fabian Castillo and David Ferreira.
DC UNITED
Steven Goff of the Post talks to team owner Will Chang.
MONTREAL IMPACT
Jack Todd of the Gazette celebrates opening day for the Impact.
-Then he gets destroyed in the comments section by soccer haters.
dN
The Gazette has photos from the big day as well.
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES
Matt Schwab of the Mercury News writes that goalkeeper Jon Busch has raised his hand and taken the blame for his team's loss to Houston.
SEATTLE SOUNDERS
The Washington Post talks to owner Drew Carey about the Sounders and the importance of winning v profits.
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC
Bruce Constantineau of the Sun with an article on the very impatient young forward Omar Salgado.
-There is talk of a loan deal to Carolina.
dN
Russell Berrisford of the Sun questions the Caps use of Sebastien Le Toux.
dN
The Vancouver press is tooting the Whitecaps horn over 2 clean sheet while neglecting to point out they came against two of the worst offensive teams we have seen in MLS in several years.
-The only way it could get better for them is if they played New England next, which they don't.
MLS/USA RELATED RUMORS
Michael Lewis of Big Apple Soccer writes about the agent of Michael Ballack who rips the Red Bulls and calls GM Erik Soler "clueless."
-Why is Soler clueless, cuz he doesn't want Ballack on his team? One thing we know for sure is that Bayer Leverkusen, management and players, don't want Ballack around!
AMERICANS IN EUROPE
Game Action:
ENGLAND - League One
Frank Simek - Carlisle United - Tue Mar 20 - went the full 90 as they tied 0-0 v Preston.
dN
Coming Up:
BELGIUM - Pro League
Sacha Kljestan - Anderlecht - Wed Mar 21 v Zulte Waregem
ENGLAND - Premier League
Brad Friedel - Tottenham - Wed Mar 21 v Stoke
Marcus Hahnemann - Everton - Wed Mar 21 v Arsenal
Tim Howard - Everton - Wed Mar 21 v Arsenal
AMERICANS IN MEXICO
Greg Garza who is now playing for Tijuana makes his debut writing a diary for Goal.com.
FRANCE
Coupe De France - Quarterfinals
Just a few days after advancing in the UEFA Champions League Marseille are bumped from the League cup by a team from THIRD DIVISION of French soccer!
Matches & Scores:
-Tue Mar 20
Quevilly 3-2 Marseille
-Wed Mar 21
Valenciennes v Rennes
Gazelec Ajaccio v Montepellier
PSG v Lyon
GERMANY
Kaiserslautern has fired head coach Marco Kurz. He will be replaced by assistant coaches Oliver Schaefer and Gerry Ehrmann as co-interims.
ITALY
Coppa Italia - Semifinal
Juve knocks out Milan and advances to the Final.
2nd Leg (with 1st Leg score included)
-Tue Mar 20
Juventus 2-2 Milan - Juv advances 4-3 on aggregate.
-Wed Mar 21
Napoli v Siena (1-2)
EUROPE
NETHERLANDS
KNVB Beker - Semifinals
Matches & Scores:
-Wed Mar 21
Heerenveen v PSV
-Thu Mar 22
AZ v Heracles
TOP EURO CLUB GOAL SCORERS
As of Tue Mar 20
Premier League
26 Robin Van Persie
20 Wayne Rooney
16 Kun Aguero
16 Demba Ba
Bundesliga
22 Mario Gomez
20 Klaas Jan Huntelaar
16 Robert Lewandowski
16 Claudio Pizzaro
16 Lukas Podolski
Serie A
20 Zlatan Ibrahimovic
19 Antonio Di Natale
18 Edison Cavani
15 German Denis
Primera Division
32 Cristiano Ronaldo
31 Lionel Messi
17 Radamael Falcao
17 Gonzalo Higuain
Ligue 1
17 Oliver Giroud
13 Nene
12 Eden Hazard
11 three players tied
COPA LIBERTADORES
Group Stage
Matches & Scores:
-Tue Mar 20
Emelec v Lanus
Bolivar v Junior
-Wed Mar 21
The Strongest v Internacional
Corinthians v Cruz Azul
Vasco da Gama v Libertad
Boca Juniors v Arsenal
-Thu Mar 22
Velez Sarsfield v Deportivo Quito
Santos v Juan Aurich
Atletico Nacional v Godoy Cruz
dN
Standings
Group 1
6 Internacional (+5)
6 Santos (+3)
6 The Strongest (-3)
0 Juan Aurich (-5)
Group 2
5 Flamengo (+1)
4 Lanus (0)
4 Olimpia (0)
3 Emelec (-1)
Group 3
7 Union Espanola (+5)
4 Bolivar (-1)
3 Universidad Catholica (0)
1 Junior (-2)
Group 4
9 Fluminense (+3)
4 Boca Juniors (0)
3 Arsenal (+1)
1 Zamora (-4)
Group 5
7 Libertad (+4)
4 Vasco Da Gama (0)
3 Nacional (-1)
3 Alianza Lima (-3)
Group 6
7 Cruz Azul (+5)
5 Corintians (+2)
3 Nacional Asuncion (-2)
1 Deportivo Tachira (-5)
Group 7
6 Velez Sarsfield (+3)
4 Deportivo Quito (+1)
4 Guadalajara (-2)
3 Defensor Sporting (-2)
Group 8
7 Atletico Nacional (+6)
4 Universidad Chile (+2)
4 Godoy Cruz (-3)
1 Penarol (-5)
ASIA
Asian Champions League - Group Stage - Matchday 2
Matches & Scores:
-Tue Mar 20
Tokyo 2-2 Ulsan
Adelaide United 2-0 Gamba Osaka
Pohang Steelers 0-2 Bunyodkor
Beijing Guoan 1-1 Brisbane Roar
Pakhtakor 1-1 Bani Yas
Al Jazira 3-2 Al Rayyan
Esteghlal 0-0 Nasaf
Al Arabi 1-3 Al Ittihad
-Wed Mar 21
Central Coast v Nagoya Grampus
Seongnam v Tianjin Teda
Kashiwa Reysol v Jeonbuk Motors
Guangzhou Ever v Buriram United
Persepolis v Al Shabab
Al Gharafa v Al Hilal
Al Nasr v Lekhwiya
Al Ahli v Sepahan
The next round is on Apr 3/4
Standings etc.
posted by brucio at 16:45
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