Some Soccer News for Thu Aug 30, 2012

STARTERS

The du Nord Futbol Show Podcast - Episode 9 has been set free into the wild from its rusty cage! Download or listen here.

dN

Maurice Edu has officially signed with Stoke City in the English Premier League today.

dN

HUGE: Terrence Boyd and Mix Diskerud both scored the goals that sent their new team Rapid Vienna and Rosenborg through to the group stage of the UEFA Europa League!
-Josh Gatt (Molde) and Steve Cherundolo (Hannover) also advanced to the group stage.
-Jozy Altidore (AZ) was eliminated.

dN

Jorge Vergara and Angelica Fuentes have bought out their 50% partners in Chivas USA, Antonio and Lorenzo Cue, and now own the team completely.
-Will we finally see real upgrades to make this team successful? Not if Vergara + Fuentes Guadalajara team as a benchmark.
-What the team needs most is their own stadium and a true identity.
-Vergara + Fuentes also own Costan Rican powerhouse Saprissa.
-Jose Domene is being replaced as general manager too.

dN

LATE ADDITION: Philadelphia Union names interim head coach as permanent head coach.

dN

The award for the UEFA Best Player in Europe for 2-11-12 goes to Andres Iniesta.
-Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were the other two finalists.

dN

Chicago Fire midfielder Marco Pappa had signed a deal with Netherlands club Heerenveen to join them at the end of the current season, but things have changed and Heerenveen has now paid a transfer fee to buy his contract immediately. So Chicago will be without one of their quality offensive players in their run for the playoffs.

dN

Houston, DC, Chicago, Montreal and Columbus are within 3 points of each other and are fighting over 2 playoff spots.
-See details on points, games played and tie breaker below in the MLS standings section.

STORY OF THE DAY

Graham Parker of Grantland with a big article on one of my favorite people in all of American soccer - Peter Wilt.

Despite the fact that Wilt is one of the most beloved figures in the history of the league from a fans perspective, he has never returned to any of its teams.

MINNESOTA STARS FC

Matches + Scores:
-Sat Sep 1 Minnesota Stars v San Antonio Scorpions Venue: NSC Stadium - Blaine MN

TASTIEST MLS GAME OF THE WEEK

Saturday sees more playoff chasing as we get Columbus v Montreal, and then playoff position hunters LA v Vancouver.

And on Sunday another battle for playoff positions with Chicago v Houston.

BIG EUROPEAN CLUB MATCHES COMING UP THIS WEEK

UEFA Super Cup
-Last seasons winners of the Champions League and Europa League.
Match + Score:
-Fri Aug 31
Chelsea v Atletico Madrid
Venue: Stade Louis II - Monaco

Matches + Scores:
-Sun Sep 2
Liverpool v Arsenal - Live at 7:25am CT on Fox Soccer
Udinese v Juventus - Live at 11:00am on beIN
Barcelona v Valencia - Live at 3:00pm on beIN
Inter v Roma

DU NORD AT THE CONTROLS

du Nord at the Controls - Tue Aug 28, 2012 - new music mix at Spotify.

TEAM USA - EL EQUIPO DE TODOS

No Dempsey? No Donovan? No Bradley?

dN

Michael Bradley is out for up to 3 weeks with a hamstring strain.

dN

Bolton reports that Tim Ream is being called up by the USA for the upcoming qualifiers.

dN

There has been a lot of talk as to who the future back up keeper to Tim Howard is. So I made a list of the potential USA goalkeepers from MLS teams:
-Ryan Meara
-Tally Hall
-Tyler Deric
-Bill Hamid
-Sean Johnson
-Will Hesmer
-Andy Gruenebaum
-Zac MacMath
-David Bingham
-Nick Rimando
-Josh Saunders
-Brian Perk
-Dan Kennedy
-Matt Pickens
Who am I missing?

dN

WORLD CUP QUALIFYING
Matches + Scores:
-Fri Sep 7
Jamaica v USA
-Tue Sep 11
USA v Jamaica

CONCACHAMPIONS 2012-13

Both LA and Guadlajara beat Caribbean teams 4-0 at home, while Monterrey got the job done on the road.

dN

LA sent out a team of kids (except Pat Noonan) and ran Puerto Rico off the field. The two fowards were 18 (Jose Villareal) and 17 Jack McBean and both scored goals with McBean setting up another one. Very impressive young team.

dN

Santos Laguna, LA Galaxy and Monterrey have the maximum 6 points.

dN

After tonight all teams will have played 2 of their 4 games in the group stage.

dN

Joshua Mayers of the Seattle Times has words from Sounder head coach Sigi Schmid on his team's game in Trindad tonight.

dN

Matches + Scores:
-Tue Aug 28
Toronto 1-3 Santos Laguna - Tor goal by Quincy Amarikwa. SL goals by Carlos Quintero, Daniel Luduena + Candido Ramirez.
Real Esteli 0-1 Alajuelense - Ala goal by Allen Guevara
-Wed Aug 29
LA Galaxy 4-0 Puerto Rico Islanders - LAG goals by Tommy Meyer, Jose Villareal, Jack McBean + Michael Stephens.
Guadalajara 4-0 W Connection - Gua goals by Marco Fabian(3) + C Fierro.
Municipal 0-1 Monterrey - mon goal by Humberto Suazo.
-Thu Aug 30
Caledonia AIA v Seattle Sounders - 7pm CT on Fox Soccer
Olimpia v Houston Dynamo - 9pm CT on Fox Soccer
Tauro v Herediano

All games are shown on the internet at CONCACAF TV.

dN

Standings:
Group 1
6 Santos Laguna(+7)
3 Toronto(+2)
0 Aguila(-9)
Group 2
3 Herediano(+1)
3 Real Salt Lake(+1)
0 Tauro(-2)
Group 3
3 Olimpia(+3)
3 Houston Dynamo(+2)
0 FAS(-5)
Group 4
3 Seattle Sounders(+2)
1 Marathon(0)
1 Caledonia AIA(-2)
Group 5
6 LA Galaxy(+7)
3 Metapan(-1)
0 Puerto Rico Islanders(-6)
Group 6
4 Tigres UANL(+4)
4 Alajuelense(+1)
0 Real Esteli(-5)
Group 7
6 Monterrey(+6)
3 Municipal(0)
0 Chorrillo(-6)
Group 8
4 Xelaju(+1)
3 Guadalajara(+3)
1 W Connection(-4)

QUESTION OF THE DAY

Remember yesterday when I asked this question: "Has anyone seen or heard from Edson Buddle?"

Well, we got an answer last night as he came on as a sub in the 71st min of Galaxy's Champions League game.
-They could really use him down the stretch.

STAT OF THE DAY

Dwayne DeRosario scored his 100th MLS goal in his 299th game last night.
-And it was a beauty. See it right here.

Here are the 6 other players who have scored more than 100 goals in MLS history:
134 Jeff Cunningham (365 games)
133 Jaime Moreno (340 games)
124 Landon Donovan (276 games)
114 Ante Razov (262 games)
108 Jason Kreis (305 games)
101 Taylor Twellman (174 games)

Other active players chasing the 100 mark:
92 Edson Buddle
81 Brian Ching
80 Josh Wolff
72 Juan Pablo Angel
62 Kenny Cooper
59 Chris Wondolowski

MLS MATCHES AND SCORES

WEEK 26

Matches + Scores:
-Wed Sep 29
DC United 2-2 New York Red Bulls - DCU goals by Nick DeLeon + Dwayne DeRosario. NYRB goals by Joel Lindpere + Wilman Conde.
Venue: RFK Stadium
Atten: 10,303
New England Revolution 3-3 CD Chivas USA - NER goals by Saer Sene(2) + Rauwshan McKenzie(OG). CU goals by Shalrie Joseph(2) + Miller Bolanos.
Venue: Gillette Stadium
Atten: 10,945
Philadelphia Union 1-2 Columbus Crew - PU goal by Carlos Valdes. CC goals by Josh Williams + Eddie Gaven.
Venue: PPL Park
Atten: 16,568
-Fri Aug 31
Portland Timbers v Colorado Rapids - 9:30pm CT on NBCSN
Venue: Jeld Wen Field
-Sat Sep 1
New England Revolution v Philadelphia Union
Venue: Gillette Stadium
Columbus Crew v Montreal Impact
Venue: Crew Stadium
Sporting Kansas City v Toronto FC
Venue: Livestrong Sporting Park
Real Salt Lake v DC United
Venue: Rio Tinto Stadium
LA Galaxy v Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Venue: The Home Depot Center
-Sun Aug 2
Chicago Fire SC v Houston Dynamo - 6pm CT on Galavision
Venue: Toyota Park
FC Dallas v Seattle Sounders FC
Venue: FC Dallas Stadium
San Jose Earthquakes v CD Chivas USA - 8pm CT on NBCSN
Venue: Buck Shaw Stadium

-All 19 teams are in action this week.

MLS MATCH NOTES

EJECTIONS:
Josh Williams - Columbus - red card

dN

New England had a 3-0 lead after just 21 minutes but threw it all away and allowed Shalrie Joseph to come home and exact a little revenge, scoring twice for Chivas, in a tie game.

dN

Chivas USA has moved above Chris Wondolowski on the goal scoring leader board. They have 20 and he has 18.

MLS STANDINGS

In the East:
DC moves above Chicago into 4th place on the tie breaker rules.

EAST
47 Sporting Kansas City(32GF)(26GP)
46 New York Red Bulls(46GF)(27GP)
42 Houston Dynamo(38GF)(26GP)
41 DC United(43GF)(26GP)
41 Chicago Fire SC(32GF)(25GP)
-----
39 Montreal Impact(42GF)(28GP)
39 Columbus Crew(31GF)(25GP)
25 Philadelphia Union(25GF)(24GP)
24 New England Revolution(33GF)(26GP)
21 Toronto FC(29GF)(26GP)
WEST
50 San Jose Earthquakes(52GF)(26GP)
43 Seattle Sounders FC(40GF)(25GP)
43 Real Salt Lake(37GF)(27GP)
40 LA Galaxy(46GF)(27GP)
37 Vancouver Whitecaps FC(29GF)(27GP)
-----
32 FC Dallas(33GF)(28GP)
28 CD Chivas USA(20GF)(24GP)
26 Colorado Rapids(33GF)(26GP)
24 Portland Timbers(26GF)(25GP)
-(Goals For)(Games Played)

The first tie breaker is goals scored.

MLS TEAM AND PLAYER NEWS

General News

Graham Parker of the Guardian with a round up of Wednesday nights three games.

CHICAGO FIRE

Word from Chicago is that Mike Jeffries is no longer the director of player personnel. Don't know if he quit or was fired.
-He as been replaced by Guillermo Petrei.

FC DALLAS

Thomas Floyd of Soccer By Ives with a feature on George John who is fulling recovered from a concussion and disappointment from failure to secure a European transfer.

SPORTING KANSAS CITY SC

Thad Bell of the Examiner talks to Teal Bunbury about how he rehabs from a bad knee injury.

NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION

Kyle McCarthy of the Boston Herald on the return of Shalrie Joseph to Gillette where he made his former team pay.

PHILADELPHIA UNION

Jonathan Tannenwald of Philly.com has post game quotes from Union coach John Hackworth after last nights game - he admits that the playoffs are not in the picture any longer.

PORTLAND TIMBERS

Brian Straus of Sporting News traces the route new head coach Caleb Porter has taken to get to his next challenge.

dN

PT announced that they will not be in business with Ticketmaster after the end of this sesaon. Hooray beer.

REAL SALT LAKE

Franco Panizo of Soccer By Ives with a feature on Kyle Beckerman.

MLS EXPANSION

The Orlando Sentinel does a Q + A with Orlando City president Phil Rawlins about his teams quest for MLS-dom.
-You can't say this guy isn't a dreamer.

USL PRO NEWS

Playoffs - Semifinals

Matches + Scores:
-Fri Aug 31
Orlando City v Wilmington Hammerheads
Rochester Rhinos v Charleston Battery

WOMEN'S U20 WORLD CUP

Knockout Stage:

Quarterfinals
Matches + Scores:
-Thu Aug 30
B1/A2: Nigeria 1-0 Mexico
A1/B2: Japan 3-1 S Korea
-Fri Aug 31
C1/D2: N Korea v USA
D1/C2: Germany v Norway

Semifinals
Matches + Scores:
-Tue Sep 4
Nigeria v C1/D2 Winner
Japan v D1/C2 Winner

Final
Match + Score:
-Sat Sep 8
Semifinal Winners

AMERICANS IN EUROPE

Game Action:

DENMARK - DBU Pokalen - 2nd Round
Charlie Davies - Randers - Wed Aug 29 at Aalborg Freja.

FINLAND - Suomen Cup - Semifinals
Etchu Tabe - KuPS - Thu Sep 30 - won 1-0 v MYPA.

UEFA - Europa League Play-Off Round 2nd Leg
Jozy Altidore - AZ - Thu Aug 30 - started and went 60 min as they lost 0-5 v Anzhi Makhachkala - eliminated 0-6 on aggregate.
Terrence Boyd - Rapid Wien - Thu Aug 30 - went the distance scoring a goal as they won 3-0 v PAOK - advanced 4-2 on aggregate.
Steve Cherundolo - Hannover - Thu Aug 30 - started and went 70 min as they won 5-1 v Slask Wroclaw - advanced 10-4 on aggregate.
Michael Diskeruud - Rosenborg - Thu Aug 30 - started and went 90 minutes scoring a goal as they won 2-1 v Legia Warszawa - advanced 3-2 on aggregate.
Josh Gatt - Molde - Thu Aug 30 - started and went 74 min getting a yellow card as they won 1-2 at Heerenveen - advanced 4-1 on aggregate.

SCOTLAND - League Cup - 2nd Round
Carlos Bocanegra - Rangers - Thu Aug 30 - went the full 90 as they won 3-0 v Falkirk.

MEXICO

LIGA MX
dN

Apertura - Round 7 of 17
Matches + Scores:
-Fri Aug 31
Tijuana v Jaguares
Morelia v Pumas UNAM
-Sat Sep 1
Cruz Azul v Pachuca
Queretaro v Atlante
Santos Laguna v Tigres UANL
Monterrey v Atlas
San Luis v Leon
-Sun Sep 2
Toluca v America
Guadalajara v Puebla

COPA MEXICO

Matchday 5

One game left this round. And after that just one round left in the group stage.

dN

Group Stage

Group 1
10 Morelia
10 Leon
9 Dorados
2 Est Tecos
Group 2
9 Cruz Azul
9 Altamira
8 Toros Nexa
5 Atlas
Group 3
12 Pachuca
7 Atlante
6 La Piedad
4 Univ Guadalajara
Group 4
12 Necaxa
11 San Luis
5 Pumas Morelos
4 Jaguares
Group 5
11 America
9 Correcaminos UAT
6 Queretaro
5 Veracruz
Group 6
9 Tijuana
8 Merida
6 Pumas UNAM
5 Celaya
Group 7
8 Toluca
8 Lobos BUAP
7 Irapuato
7 Puebla

dN

Matchday 5
Matches + Scores:
-Wed Aug 29
Lobos BUAP 4-0 Irapuato
Atlas 1-0 Cruz Azul
Atlante 0-1 Pachuca
America 4-1 Queretaro
-Thu Aug 30
Puebla v Toluca

CANADA

Canada has two crucial qualifiers coming up next week: Fri Sep 7 v Panama in Toronto, and Tue Sep 11 at Panama in Panama City.
-Here is the roster:
G:
Lars Hirschfeld - Valerenga
Milan Borjan - Sivasspor
Kenny Stamatopoulos - AIK
D:
Ante Jazic - Chivas USA
Kevin McKenna - Koln
Andre Hainault - Houston Dynamo
Marcel de Jong - Augsburg
Dejan Jakovic - DC United
David Edgar - Burnley
Ashtone Morgan - Toronto
M:
Nik Ledgerwood - Hammarby
Julian de Guzman - Dallas
Terry Dunfield - Toronto
Will Johnson - Real Salt Lake
Atiba Hutchinson - PSV Eindhoven
Pedro Pacheco - Santa Clara
Patrice Bernier - Impact Montreal
F:
Tosaint Ricketts - Politehnica Timisoara
Simeon Jackson - Norwich
Dwayne De Rosario - DC United
Olivier Occean - Eintracht Frankfurt

UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE

The Playoff Round is here - Thu Aug 30.