Some Soccer News for Nov 30, 2015

Hello Columbus! I am excited to be attending my 10th MLS Cup Final. Maybe I will see you there.

dN

MLS Cup Playoffs
Some VERY dramatic soccer in the 2nd Leg of the Semifinals on Sunday evening left us all wanting more. (The fans of the 2 teams that found themselves on the losing end probably wanted a lot more so they could pull off the comeback.) Glorious goals all over the place.

Semifinals
Sun Nov 29
Dallas 2-2 Portland Timbers - Por advances 5-3 on aggregate
New York Red Bulls 1-0 Columbus Crew - Col advances 2-1 on aggregate

FCD-PT Recap:
-The rain brought the goals and both #10s Diego Valeri and Mauro Diaz were remarkable.
-Video highlights.
-Match report by Peter Welpton of the Dallas Morning News.
-The Timbers advance to their 1st MLS Cup Final by Jeff Carlisle of ESPN FC.

RBNY-CC Recap:
-So so so so so so close were the Red Bulls from taking that game to extra time. Literally off the post 4 1/2 minutes into stoppage time.
-Video highlights.
-Match report by Filip Bondy of the New York Times.
-The Crew advance to their 2nd MLS Cup Final by Doug McIntyre of ESPN FC.

Final
Sun Dec 6
Columbus Crew v Portland Timbers - 3pm CT on ESPN
-Current weather forecast for Sunday at kickoff: High 51F. Intervals of clouds and sunshine. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph.

dN

I think Fox Sports did a spectacular job with MLS games this season. I had my doubts. But week after week it just got better and better and better. Thank you to John Strong, Alexi Lalas, Julie Stewart-Binks, Rob Stone, Eric Wynalda, Brad Friedel, Stuart Holden, JP Dellacamera, Katie Witham, Brian Dunseth and the whole behind-the-scenes production crew. (Plus the people I forgot.) You knocked me out.
-PS. I LOVE now loud the get the crowds to sound, it really sucks me into the atmosphere of the game!

dN

Official MLS Best 11
G: Luis Robles (New York Red Bulls)
D: Laurent Ciman (Montreal Impact)
D: Kendall Waston (Vancouver Whitecaps FC)
D: Matt Hedges (FC Dallas)
M: Benny Feilhaber (Sporting Kansas City)
M: Fabian Castillo (FC Dallas)
M: Dax McCarty (New York Red Bulls)
M: Ethan Finlay (Columbus Crew SC)
F: Sebastian Giovinco (Toronto FC)
F: Kei Kamara (Columbus Crew SC)
F: Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy)
-All great and deserving players this season.
-But I have two major issues with this team:
1) No team in the league plays with 3 centerbacks and no fullbacks.
2) No team in the league plays with 3 forwards. Hell, most teams don't even play with 2 forwards.

dN

Two Americans had eventful weekends in Europe:
-Fab Johnson had a fabulous game for Gladbach, even though the results were not fabulous. He scored the 1st and 3rd goals in a 3-3 tie at Hoffenheim.
-It was good and bad for Alejandro Bedoya. Good: he is fully back from an undisclosed illness and started for the first time in 2 months. Bad: he got 2 yellow cards and was ejected from the game. They drew 0-0 at home v Bastia.

Check out this cool video of EVERY touch by Fabian Johnson against Hoffenheim - including the two great goals. Clip from Fox Soccer.

dN

American and American investment companies are pouring money into the English Premier League. By Soccernomics author Stefan Szymanski.
-In a 5 year span EPL teams have tripled their income from broadcasting deals.

dN

A handful of us Dark Clouds, aka Minnesota United supporters, pledged money for every yellow or red card the team got this season and in the end we raised $1010 for Somali-American Youth Enrichment Club (SAYEC.) I am proud of my fellow fanaticos.

dN

I was listening to the Feelies at my desk all morning, so I thought I should share a song from this early 80s New York pop post-punk band. This is The Boy With The Perpetual Nervousness from 1980 originally released by Stiff Records.
-If you would like to know more you can read the Feelies "story" here.

dN

Do not count out Tracy Morgan, he intends to make you laugh again. From GQ.

dN

The coin toss, what is the value in sports? By Victor Mather of the New York Times.

dN

Jaime Vardy of Leicester City is the Vedad Ibisevic of the Premier League. Lets hope he doesn't blow out his knee sometime this month. By Stuart James of the Guardian.

dN

Liga MX Liguilla Apertura:
-Two lower seeded teams advanced, but neither can really be seen as a upset.
Quarterfinals aggregate scores:
America(6) 5-3 Leon(3)
Tigres(5) 3-1 Chiapas(4)
Pumas(1) 1-1 Veracruz(8) - Pumas advances as higher seed
Toluca(2) 3-2 Puebla(7)
-William Yarborough played the full 90 for Leon in Leg 2, which was a 2-1 win. Miguel Ibarra, Ventura Alvarado, Joe Corona, Gabe Farfan and Jose Torres did not play in the 2nd Leg games.

Semifinals
-Dec 2+3 and 5+6
Pumas(1) v America(6)
Toluca(2) v Tigres(5)
-Final: Dec 10 + 13
-All rounds are 2 Legs.
-In Semifinals away goals break ties, no extra time is played, and if still tied they higher seed advances.
-In Final away goals DO NOT break ties, and the game can go to Extra Added Time and a Penalty Kick Shootout if tied.

dN

The finalists for FIFA Mens Player Of The Year for 2015
-Lionel Messi - FC Barcelona + Argentina
-Neymar Jr - FC Barcelona + Brazil
-Cristiano Ronaldo - Real Madrid + Portugal

The finalists for FIFA Womens Player Of The Year for 2015
-Carli Lloyd - Houston Dash + USA
-Aya Miyama - Okayama Yunogo Belle + Japan
-Celia Sasic - FFC Frankfurt + Germany

The finalists for FIFA Mens Coach Of The Year for 2015
-Luis Enrique - FC Barcelona
-Pep Guardiola - FC Bayern Munchen
-Jurgen Klinsmann - USA national team
-Jorge Sampaoli - Chile national team

The finalists for FIFA Womens Coach Of The Year for 2015
-Jill Ellis - USA national team
-Mark Sampson - England national team
-Norio Sasaki - Japan national team



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 24, 2015

This will be my last post of the week due to the Thanksgiving holiday. Have an excellent long weekend. I know I will.

dN

An in depth story on the youth academy success of FC Dallas. This one by the always quality Brian Sciaretta of American Soccer Now.

dN

MLS Cup Playoffs Semifinals
2nd Leg Schedule
Sun Nov 29
Dallas v Portland Timbers (1-3) - 4pm CT on ESPN New York Red Bulls v Columbus Crew (0-2) – 6:30pm CT on FS1 -Final on Sun Dec 6

dN

Jesse Marsch of New York Red Bulls has been named MLS Coach Of The Year. Well earned.

dN

Veljko Paunovic has been hired to be the new head coach for Chicago Fire. A very bold move!
-He played for Philadelphia Union for 1 season, 2011, his last year as a player before retiring.
-He just led Serbia to the U20 World Cup championship this summer.

dN

One last MLS note for today - I just got a press release from Sporting Kansas City outlining their preseason plans. YES!

dN

French sports daily L'Equipe briefly reviews Bob Bradley's first league game in charge of Le Havre (HAC.) (In French)
-They called the 0-0 draw a missed opportunity for HAC.
-L'Equipe also has a great photo of Bradley at training.

dN

The Glockenspiel in St Paul is closing its doors. Damn.
-I have some amazing memories watching Germany games in that place, but these two are my fondest:
1. Germany destroys Brazil 7-1 in Semifinals at World Cup 2014 - the place was stunned at first, then exploded like nothing I have ever seen before, and then partied for hours afterward! Pure joy!
2. Germany crushes England 4-1 in Round of 16 at World Cup 2010 - one guy in particular got more and more insane as each goal went in for Germany. At one point he was literally on his knees banging both hands on the seat of his chair as hard as he could, screaming "Ja! Ja! Ja! Ja! Ja! Ja!" Wow.

dN

One of the world's largest and best book stores is in Islamabad Pakistan. Many of the books they sell are printed in English even. By Rod Nordland of the New York Times.

dN

Liga MX Apertura Laguilla:
Quarterfinals 1st Leg
-Wed Nov 25
America v Leon
Tigres v Chiapas
-Thu Nov 26
Veracruz v Pumas
Puebla v Toluca

dN

Frank Beckenbauer has gone on record for the first time saying he has no knowledge of any secret bank account that was supposedly used to acquire the rights to the 2006 World Cup for Germany. From Deutsche Welle.

dN

Also FIFA has said they are charging Sepp Blatter + Michel Platini with offenses that would ban them from soccer for life if found guilty. From the BBC.

dN

Celtic + Dundee are looking at playing an official league match on USA soil. By the Press Association via the Guardian.
-Official games are a mile and a half better than friendlies, all day long.

dN

UEFA Champions League Matchday 5 today and tomorrow.
-Some more teams will advance, and others will be eliminated. (How's that for analysis?)

dN

Lets finish off today with the Guardian's picks for the Best Goals Of The Week.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 23, 2015

9 seconds!
-Thats how long it took Columbus to score against New York in the MLS Cup Playoffs Semifinal on Sunday.

dN

USA CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying Rd 4 Gm 4 on Mar 29 v Guatemala: MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus

dN

MLS Cup Playoffs
Semifinals 1st Leg Schedule
Sun Nov 22
Columbus 2-0 RBNY - CC goals by Justin Meram + Kei Kamara.
Portland 3-1 Dallas - PT goals by Liam Ridgewell, Dairon Asprilla + Nat Borchers. D goal by David Texiera.
-Top three goals of the round:
1. JM for CC
2. DA for PT
3. KK for CC
-A rare clean sheet for Columbus has to be a huge boost going on the road with a lead.
-New York's vaunted midfield was run off the field by the pressure of Columbus. Trapp, Tchani, Higuain, Finlay and Meram destroyed McCarty, Felipe, Kljestan, Grella and Sam. RB must turn the tables to advance.
-Dallas heads home with an important road goal and the best home record in MLS this season.
-Portland has good news and bad news: Diego Valeri + Rodney Wallace will return from suspension, but Liam Ridgewell left the game Sunday with a leg injury that is not new.
-The atmosphere in the stadiums in both Columbus and Portland was nuts!
-Luckily we don't have to watch any more MLS on fake turf this season.

Semifinals 2nd Leg Schedule
Sun Nov 29
Dallas v Portland Timbers (1-3) - 4pm CT on ESPN
New York Red Bulls v Columbus Crew (0-2) – 6:30pm CT on FS1
-Final on Sun Dec 6

dN

The great story of rising star Ethan Finlay, from Duluth to Columbus Crew (and beyond?) By Brian Straus of Sports Illustrated.

dN

Teams from around the world call Sporting KC coach Peter Vermes constantly asking if he would be interested in running their team. So how much longer will he last at SKC and how does the club keep building in a fast growing league? By Sam McDowell of the Kansas City Star.

dN

du Nord Futbol 2015 MLS Best XI
G: Bill Hamid
FB: Tony Beltran + Kemar Lawrence
CB: Damien Perrinelle + Laurent Ciman
M: Ethan Finlay, Dax McCarty, Matias Laba + Fabian Castillo
F: Kei Kamara + Sebastian Giovinco

dN

What is the plan for the new owner of French 2nd division team Le Havre who just hired Bob Bradley. By Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated.

dN

What should Minnesota United's off season plan look like for the 2016 season? By Jon Marthaler of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

dN

More Ottawa news: star forward Tom Heinemann has left the team and been signed by Tampa Bay Rowdies.

dN

Jacksonville has hired Tony Meola as their new head coach.
-He has never coached a professional team before.

dN

Former Minnesota player Simone Bracalello was released by Carolina RailHawks.

dN

The former president of Boca Juniors, Mauricio Macri, is the new president of slightly bigger "club." He is the new president of the country of Argentine. The election yesterday was on Sunday.

dN

Rumors floating around that the US Department of Justice may go after FIFA like a mafia family and seek to shut it down completely.
-And Sepp Blatter says he almost died two weeks ago. Story by RTS, via this article from the Irish Times.

dN

Great music for you to hear!
Mountain Singers new album "Listening Devices"
Find it + listen at Bandcamp, then buy it for a great price.

dN

Liga MX Apertura Laguilla is all set:
CF Pumas UNAM (1) v CD Tiburones Rojos Veracruz (8)
Deportivo Toluca FC (2) v Puebla FC (7)
Club Leon FC (3) v CF America (6)
Chiapas FC (4) v CF Tigres UANL (5)
-QF: Nov 25 + 26, Nov 28 + 29
-SF: Dec 2 + 3, Dec 5 + 6
-F: Dec 13, Dec 20
-All rounds are 2 Legs.
-In all proceeding rounds the highest seeds will be paired with the lowest remaining seeds.
-In Quarter +Semifinals away goals break ties, no extra time is played, and if still tied the higher seed advances.
-In Final away goals DO NOT break ties, and the game can go to Extra Added Time and a Penalty Kick Shootout if tied.

dN

The most stunning story in European club football right now is that after 13 rounds in England the team leading the Premier League is not Chelsea or Arsenal or either of the Manchesters, but Leicester City (with only 1 loss.) Who? Exactly! What a stunner.
-Of note though is that they have only played 1 game against a top team and got squashed 2-5 at home by Arsenal.
-Coming up in the next 6 games are Nov 28 v #2 Man U, Dec 19 at #7 Everton, Dec 26 at #8 Liverpool and Dec 29 v #3 Man City. Lets see where they stand come New Years Day.

dN

Sat Nov 12 at 11:15am CT
Real Madrid 0-4 Barcelona - Bar goals by Luis Suarez(2), Neymar + Andres Iniesta.
-It was an absolute crushing.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 20, 2015

I can hardly believe it myself, but somehow I came in 2nd in the voting to David Beckham for People magazine's Sexiest Man Alive! Damn you Beckman. Even my own Mom voted for him.

dN

Corinthians are the new Brazilian Champions. Huge congrats to them.

dN

du Nord Futbol 2015 MLS Best XI
G: Bill Hamid
FB: Tony Beltran + Kemar Lawrence
CB: Damien Perrinelle + Laurent Ciman
M: Ethan Finlay, Dax McCarty, Matias Laba + Fabian Castillo
F: Kei Kamara + Sebastian Giovinco

And my 2nd Team
G: David Oustad
FB: Harrison Afful + Robby Rogers
CB: Nat Borchers + Kendall Waston
M: Benny Feilhaber, Wil Trapp, Diego Charra + Mauro Diaz
F: Obafemi Martins + Robbie Keane

dN

MLS Cup Playoffs
-The Semifinals on Sunday.

1st Leg Schedule
Sun Nov 22
Columbus Crew v New York Red Bulls - 4:00pm CT on ESPN
Portland Timbers v Dallas - 6:30pm CT on FS1
-2nd Leg matches on Sun Nov 29
-Final on Sun Dec 6
-Of the 4 teams left Portland is the only one who CANNOT host the final - they are the lowest seed of the 4 teams being tied on points with Columbus but behind +5 to +2 in the tie breaking goal differential.

dN

The new management team of the Chicago Fire has cleared out their entire technical staff. By Jeff Engelhardt of Hot Time In Old Town.

dN

MLS Player re-signings:
-Kendall Waston has signed a new deal with Vancouver. Great move by the Whitecaps.
-On the flipside RSL has re-signed their 35 year old star Javier Morales to a contract extension. I love this player, but I am not sure this was such a good idea. They need to get some fresh blood in the key roles for this team, and by signing him they take up a nice chunk of payroll that could be spent on a much younger player or two to build for the future. At some point you have to cut ties and rebuild. No matter how painful.
-And finally DC has signed forward Alvaro Saborio to a new deal too. Will be a good move as long as he took a pay cut.

dN

More on the rise of the FC Dallas academy. By Les Carpenter of the Guardian. Thanks to Paul for the link.

dN

Marc Dos Santos, former head coach of Ottawa Fury, has been named the first head coach of Sporting Kansas City's new reserve team Swope Park Rangers who will play in USL starting next season.

Ottawa has replaced Dos Santos with new head coach Paul Dalglish. The Englishman has been the head coach of both FC Tampa Bay and Austin Aztex prior.

dN

Sat Nov 12 at 11:15am CT
Real Madrid v Barcelona

With Messi sidelined for several months now and Xavi gone Neymar has become the new leader at Barcelona. By Sid Lowe of the Guardian.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 19, 2015

HERE IT IS! du Nord Futbol 2015 MLS Best XI
G: Bill Hamid
FB: Tony Beltran + Kemar Lawrence
CB: Damien Perrinelle + Laurent Ciman
M: Ethan Finlay, Dax McCarty, Matias Laba + Fabian Castillo
F: Kei Kamara + Sebastian Giovinco

My team will beat your team every time!

dN

MLS Cup Playoffs
-The Semifinals on Sunday.
1st Leg Schedule
Sun Nov 22
CC v NYRB - 4:00pm CT on ESPN
PT v D - 6:30pm CT on FS1
-2nd Leg matches on Sun Nov 29
-Final on Sun Dec 6

Luis Robles of New York Red Bulls has been named MLS Goalkeeper Of The Year.

In looking at MLS expansion teams, I think their biggest weakness is always defense. I suggest Minnesota United focus on a strong defense first.

Sporting Kansas City's Sporting Park stadium has been renamed Children's Mercy Park.

Dallas relies on its academy to advance the future of the club. By Rick Gosselin of Sports Day DFW.

dN

Year end review of USMNT. By Graham Parker of the Guardian.

A full 2015 year-long tally of all the USMNT player game ratings from Soccer America.

dN

Canadian head coach Benito Floro. “We trust in ourselves that winning every game is possible.”
-Clearly drunk!
-Thanks Paul.

dN

Sat Nov 12 at 11:15am CT
Real Madrid v Barcelona
-See you at the Nomad in Minneapolis

dN

On Monday Colombian Football Federation president Luis Bedoya resigned due to "personal reasons." Local authorities are said to be investigating Bedoya's bank records in connection to the FIFA scandal though. And some reports say he is already in the United States. Then on Tuesday Sergio Jadue president of the Chilean Football Federation turned himself in to USA authorities after having his office raided by Chilean police last week in connection to the FIFA investigations.
-Both are executive committee members of CONMEBOL, with Bedoya as the group's president.
-Neither was among those initially sought by US officials in the world football probe, but they appear to be the next people to go under the microscope.

dN

Matches in France will be played this weekend, but only season ticket holders will be allowed in the stands. No single game tickets and no away fans.

dN

Supposedly France and Arsenal player Matthieu Flamini is partners in a company that has discovered a way to mass produce an acid that can replace oil. So why are we reading about it in the English trash tabloid The Sun? Instinct tells me that something is missing from this story. Stay tuned.

dN

A live Boiler Room set by SUNNO))). Bring the noise. Thanks to Joe J for the heads up.

dN

A very somber Facebook page for the band Eagles of Death Metal.

dN

The 10 stadiums to house the Copa Centenario next summer:
CenturyLink Field - Seattle
Citrus Bowl - Orlando
Gillette Stadium - Foxborough
Levi's Stadium - Santa Clara
Lincoln Financial Field - Philadelphia
MetLife Stadium - East Rutherford
NRG Stadium - Houston
Rose Bowl - Pasadena
Soldier Field - Chicago
University of Phoenix Stadium - Glendale
-Its too bad that half of these stadiums do not have real grass. Actually its kinda embarrassing.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 18, 2015

Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton on Syrian Refugees: "This is Minnesota. You have every right to be here. And anybody who cannot accept your right to be here should find another state."
dN

I finally got to watch the Ronda Rousey v Holly Holm fight last night, thank you Pat!, and its obvious why Holm won - she was perfection. Footwork, speed, defense, right jab, straight left, take downs, leg kicks, and an almighty head kick to finish it off. Best performance I have ever seen in the UFC. Amazing job by Holly Holm. Wow.
dN

USA CONCACAF WORLD CUP QUALIFYING

On the flip side, before watching the fight I watched the USA at Trinidad and Tobago World Cup qualifier and it was unimpressive from a USA standpoint!
-Some of those USA players were near lifeless out there. While others put out the effort to snag the needed road point.
-How many missed and poor passes, and terrible shots, and weak attempts can you put together in one game? Especially against an opponent that was beatable.
-T+T barely put up a fight. OK T+T was simple and solid in defense, but not some impenetrable wall of power. No way.
-That is 2 points lost for the USA.
-But the bigger story is that CONCACAF teams now know that they don't even have to play a great game to get a point(s) from the USA.
-This USA team seems to have the gears ground into neutral in a bad way.
-Usually a road draw is a decent result, but when you look at the rest of the nights games around CONCACAF you can see that our team has taken a step backward comparatively.
-And tactically, well, this team has no tactics. I think we can forget about this important aspect of the game until the next coach is hired. End of story.
-The biggest proof is the continued use of Michael Bradley and Jermaine Jones as a midfield "pair". They simply can't play well together, never have, never will. THEY PLAY THE EXACT SAME ROLE. Its painful to watch, mainly because with them on the field together its like the team is playing with 10 men, there is no need for both of them.

Here is my assessment of the team from last night, position by position:
Howard: not much to do, but solid job when called upon.
Orozco + Ream: not terrible, but at times struggled with speedy wingers - they are centerbacks after all so whats the point of having them at fullback? Seriously, what is the point, cuz they added nothing to the game going forward.
Belser + Cameron: decent, but not enough pace or strength. Luckily T+T just isn't very good, so they were never strongly challenged.
Jones + Bradley: (see above) Jerm-Germ had his typical rugged game and came on stronger as the game wore on, while Bradley had a bad game, and his poor choices (giveaways and fouls) could have been disastrous against a better opponent.
Yedlin + Johnson: not used nearly enough. The team played very narrow, when width could have unbalanced a defense that put 8 behind the ball at all times. Johnson is a star that barely gets used.
Altidore + Zardes: Jozy had the one great performance on the night, giving everything he had. While Zardes had the poorest, missing one header completely and having another clank off his head and then the crossbar, when a composed striker would have finished it. Neither forward has great touch to begin with which does not help the hold up play, hence the even bigger need for width.
-And with all that said, the coach only made 2 of his 3 subs, bringing on Nagbe and Wood who were invisible.
-Not having Clint Dempsey on the roster is inexcusable.
-I am sure T+T was satisfied with the point.
-If the USA was satisfied with that performance and outcome then we should fear for the future.
-Last thing: When he came on the field last night I loudly declared that Darlington Nagbe will never have the impact for the USA that people are dreaming of. He just isn't made of that tough stuff you need for the international game. I hope he proves me wrong, but I don't believe he will.

On 2015 and 2016 for the USMNT. By Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated.

Rd 4 Game 2 Group C
-Tue Nov 17
Trinidad + Tobago 0-0 USA - oof
-Match report from the Trinidad and Tobago Guardian.

dN

Other results from CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying:
-Mexico had a historic victory, winning at Honduras for the first time in 50 years.
-Costa Rica, Jamaica and Guatemala all won on the road as well.
-Canada got an important road draw at El Salvador.
Rd 4 Game 2 - Tue Nov 17
Honduras 0-2 Mexico - Mex goals by Jesus Corona + Jurgen Damm.
El Salvador 0-0 Canada
Haiti 0-1 Jamaica - Jam goal by Clayton Donaldson.
Panama 1-2 Costa Rica - Pan goal by Luis Tejada. CR goals by Bryan Luiz + Marco Urena.
St Vincent + The Grenadines 0-4 Guatemala - Gua goals by Stefano Cincotta, Minor Lopez, Denniss Lopez + Gerson Tinoco.
-Games 3 + 4 of the round take place on March 25 + 29.
-USA will face Guatemala on both dates. First away and then at home, with stadium still TBD.

Group C Standings
4 USA (+5 gd)
4 T+T (+1 gd)
3 Guatemala (+3 gd)
0 St Vincent (-9 gd)

dN

MLS Cup Playoffs
-And now we return to MLS! With Semifinal 1st Leg games on Sunday.
1st Leg Schedule
Sun Nov 22
Columbus Crew v New York Red Bulls - 4:00pm CT on ESPN
Portland Timbers v Dallas - 6:30pm CT on FS1
-2nd Leg matches on Sun Nov 29
-Final on Sun Dec 6

dN

MLS has signed a new TV deal with FOX for more international distribution, this time to Sub-Saharan Africa. (Thats about 70% of the continent.) Previous deals with FOX already show games in 140 countries across the USA, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.

dN

Former American international Steve Cherundolo is an assistant coach at Hanover 96 and tells us what he knows (not much) about the possible terrorist threat in Hanover on Tuesday night that saw the cancellation of the Germany-Netherlands friendly. By Liviu Bird of Sports Illustrated.
-German authorities now think there was no actual threat in Hanover.

dN

Famed Spanish language American soccer match commentator Andres Cantor talks about a wide range of soccer in America topics, including what he sees as a lack of attention being paid by the current regime at US Soccer to the large soccer loving Hispanic segment of the USA. By Mike Woitalla of Soccer America.

dN

Ottawa Fury has signed their award winning goalkeeper Romuald Peiser to a contract extension.

dN

Holy smokes! This new song from Santigold is a lot of fun! Can't Get Enough Of Myself

dN

Euro 2016 Qualifying Playoffs:
-Hungary, Ireland, Ukraine + Sweden are the last 4 to advance to the tournament next summer.

2nd Leg
Hungary 2-1 Norway - Hun advances 3-1 on aggregate.
Ireland 2-0 Bosnia + Herzegovina - Ire advances 3-1 on aggregate.
Slovenia 1-1 Ukraine - Ukr advances 3-1 on aggregate.
Denmark 2-2 Sweden - Swe advances 4-3 on aggregate.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 17, 2015

SPECIAL NOTE: Come Say Goodbye to the Sweetwater Tonight - Tue Nov 17 USA v Trinidad + Tobago (5:25pm CT). Be there cuz this is the last hurrah. The beloved(?) bar + grill is closing forever at end of November and this is the final USA game before then. Its been our home for over 10 years and deserves a righteous send off.

dN

“I was overjoyed!”
-Trinidad + Tobago head coach Stephen Hart reacts to the news that Clint Dempsey was not named to the USA squad.

dN

I am not sure how the French team is pulling it together to play a friendly match tonight in England. I don't think I could go through with it. Martin Samuels of the Daily Mail tries to make sense of the whole scene.

dN

Without attacking anyone the cowardly terrorists have struck a blow in Germany when a suspicious package found in the stadium caused the cancellation of today's Germany v Netherlands game in Hannover. Story from Deutsche Welle.
-ADDITIONAL NOTE: Its looking more and more like these threats were for real, with serious destruction planned, but foiled by security.

Sadly, the same scenario in Belgium where the friendly v Spain was also called off due to fear of attack.

dN

USA CONCACAF WORLD CUP QUALIFYING

Rd 4 Game 2 Group C
-Tue Nov 17
Trinidad + Tobago v USA - 5:25pm at Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port-Of-Spain, Trinidad on beIN Sports

Match previews:
-Stiff Test as Warriors healthy and ready for US. From Trinidad and Tobago Guardian.
-Hart not focusing on November memories. By Joel Bailey of Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.
-Jurgen Klinsmann and the United States face Trinidad and Tobago test. By Doug McIntyre of ESPN FC.
-‘Here we go again!’ U.S. soccer team returns to Trinidad and Tobago. By Steven Goff of the Washington Post.

In the past 7 games against CONCACAF teams the USA has won only 2 - against Cuba and St Vincent + The Grenadines. That is not good enough. At all.

The story of little known USA forward Bobby Wood. By Brian Straus of Sports Illustrated.

USA Roster:
G: Brad Guzan, Bill Hamid, Tim Howard
D: Ventura Alvarado, Matt Besler, Geoff, Cameron, Fabian Johnson, Matt Miazga, Michael Orozco, Tim Ream, Brek Shea
M: Kyle Beckerman, Michael Bradley, Mix Diskerud, Miguel Ibarra, Jermaine Jones, Darlington Nagbe, DeAndre Yedlin
F: Jozy Altidore, Alan Gordon, Jordan Morris, Bobby Wood, Gyasi Zardes

Results from CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying Rd 4 Game 2 - Tue Nov 17
Honduras v Mexico - GA
El Salvador v Canada - GA
Haiti v Jamaica - GB
Panama v Costa Rica - GB
St Vincent + The Grenadines v Guatemala - GC

dN

US Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati answered the big questions last week. From Sports Illustrated.

dN

Real Salt Lake pulled off one of the greatest planned free kick plays of all time this season. Genius Football reminds us just how great it was.
-I was watching the game when it happened and I leaped out of my seat in joyous celebration.

They had no idea what hit them. Great free kick. pic.twitter.com/Mgu30LdSZG

— GeniusFootball (@GeniusFootball) November 17, 2015

dN

Euro 2016 Qualifying Playoffs: (4 winning teams will be the last to advance to the next summer's tournament)

2nd Leg
-Sun Nov 15
Hungary 2-1 Norway - Hungary advances 3-1 on aggregate.
-Mon Nov 16
Ireland 2-0 Bosnia + Herzegovina - Ireland advances 3-1 on aggregate.
-Tue Nov 17
Slovenia v Ukraine (0-2)
Denmark v Sweden (1-2)

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Five emerging international footballers who could become stars at Euro 2016. By Martin Laurence of the Guardian.

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When a seemingly invincible athlete like Ronda Rousey gets KOed where does she go next? From Victor Mather of the New York Times.

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New.

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Awesome illustrations of some of the best bookstores in Minnesota. Buy a book at a store today! You won't regret it. My fave these days is Common Goods in St Paul.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 16, 2015

Nick Bockwinkel RIP

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TONIGHT! Dark Clouds Annual End of Season Awards and Silent Auction - Mon Nov 16 at Turf Club in St Paul 6PM to 9PM

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SPECIAL NOTE: Come Say Goodbye to the Sweetwater - Tue Nov 17 USA v Trinidad + Tobago (5:25pm CT). Be there cuz this is the last hurrah. The beloved(?) bar + grill is closing forever at end of November, and this is the final USA game before then. Its been our home for over 10 years and deserves a righteous send off.

dN

“We thought it might be a good idea to keep consistency with the position Fabian Johnson is playing with his club.”
-USA head coach Jurgen Klinsmann seems to be picking up on a few things.

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USA CONCACAF WORLD CUP QUALIFYING

Rd 4 Game 1 Group C
-Fri Nov 13
USA 6-1 St Vincent + The Grenadines - USA goals by Jozy Altidore(2), Bobby Wood, Fabian Johnson, Geoff Cameron + Gyasi Zardes.

-In the bigger picture this game, beyond the 3 points, tells us nothing about where the USA team is at right now. Tuesday will tell us a whole lot more.
-USA tried to make it difficult for themselves by giving up a goal to St V in just the 5th minute. Oalex Anderson of Seattle Sounders 2 singlehandedly burned the right side of the defense badly (I'm looking at you DeAndre Yedlin, Gyasi Zardes and Geoff Cameron.) T+T wingers and strikers must be licking their chops in anticipation of Tuesday night.
-4 of the USA goals came on set pieces.
-Jozy Altidore now has 31 goals for the USA, just 3 behind Eric Wynalda for third on the all time list.
-USA players with good solid performances: Wood, Altidore, Johnson, Bradley, Ream, Besler.
-Matt Miazga + Darlington Nagbe made their debuts and are now cap tied to the USA.
-Jermaine Jones pulled up lame with more than 5 minutes left to play but the USA had already made their 3 subs so they chose to leave him on the field. It looked to be a hamstring injury.
-The USA was only whistled for 2 fouls in the game.
-Attendance was 43,433.

Rd 4 Game 2 Group C
-Tue Nov 17
Trinidad + Tobago v USA - 5:25pm at Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port-Of-Spain, Trinidad on beIN Sports

-T+T went to Guatemala for their first game and dominated the home team. 2nd half goals by Khaleem Hyland and Kenwyne Jones paved the way.
-This will be a very tough game for the USA on Tuesday, and I do not feel confident about a positive outcome.
-Tim Howard is expected to start in goal.
-Will there be other lineup changes for the USA? Kyle McCarthy of Fox examines the situation.
-T+T still has revenge on its mind for Tuesday stemming from the Nov 19, 1989 Paul Caligiuri goal that sent the USA to the World Cup and T+T packing. Still. From the T+T Guardian.
-T+T wants their fans to makes their presence felt in the stands. From the T+T Newsday.

USA Roster:
G: Brad Guzan, Bill Hamid, Tim Howard
D: Ventura Alvarado, Matt Besler, Geoff, Cameron, Fabian Johnson, Matt Miazga, Michael Orozco, Tim Ream, Brek Shea
M: Kyle Beckerman, Michael Bradley, Mix Diskerud, Miguel Ibarra, Jermaine Jones, Darlington Nagbe, DeAndre Yedlin
F: Jozy Altidore, Alan Gordon, Jordan Morris, Bobby Wood, Gyasi Zardes

Here is the other results for CONCACAF Rd 1 from Fri Nov 13:
Mexico 3-0 El Salvador - GA - Andres Guardado, Hector Herrera + Carlos Vela with the goals.
Canada 1-0 Honduras - GA - who else but Cyle Larin with the goal.
Costa Rica 1-0 Haiti - GB - Cristian Gamboa scoring.
Jamaica 0-2 Panama - GB - Alice Cooper + Wes Morgan(OG) with the tallys.
Guatemala 1-2 Trinidad + Tobago - GC - Carlos Mejia scoring for Guat, with Khaleem Hyland + Kenwyne Jones getting goals for T+T.

Rd 4 Game 2 - Tue Nov 17
Honduras v Mexico - GA
El Salvador v Canada - GA
Haiti v Jamaica - GB
Panama v Costa Rica - GB
St Vincent + The Grenadines v Guatemala - GC

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A video feature story on USA international and American-Peruvian-German midfielder Alfredo Morales of Ingolstadt. From Deutsche Welle.

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NASL

Huge congrats to the 2015 champions New York Cosmos.
-They have captured the trophy in 2 of their 3 years back in the NASL.

Final:
Sun Nov 14
New York Cosmos 3-2 Ottawa Fury

Gaston Cellerino was the hero for the Cosmos scoring all 3 goals. Tom Heinemann tried to keep pace for Ottawa with 2 goals of his own, but teammate Mason Trafford derailed the Fury with a 68th minute red card.
-A packed house of 10,166 witnessed the home win.

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Indy Eleven will have a reserve team in the NPSL next season.

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Euro 2016 Qualifying Playoffs: (4 winning teams will be the last to advance to the tournament next summer)

1st Leg
-Thu Nov 12
Norway 0-1 Hungary
-Fri Nov 13
Bosnia + Herzegovina 1-1 Ireland
-Sat Nov 14
Ukraine 2-0 Slovenia
Sweden 2-1 Denmark
2nd Leg
-Sun Nov 15
Hungary 2-1 Norway - Hungary advances 3-1 on aggregate.
-Mon Nov 16
Ireland v Bosnia + Herzegovina
-Tue Nov 17
Slovenia v Ukraine
Denmark v Sweden

Hungary qualifies for #EURO2016, its 3rd EURO appearance, 1st since 1972. Hungary's last major tournament was the 1986 World Cup.
-Tweet by Paul Carr of ESPN.

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As murder and chaos reigned down on Paris last Friday night the story at the France-Germany soccer match was surreal. By Sam Borden of the New York Times.

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The original Major League Soccer fantasy game MFLS created by Mark Wheeler is closing up shop after 20 years. A real shame. Thanks to Marc from Salem for the heads up.

dN

New music for you, recommended by me.
-Mountain Singers "Listening Devices"
Find it and listen at Bandcamp, then buy it for a real cheap price.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 13, 2015

SPECIAL: Say Goodbye to the Sweetwater - Fri Nov 13 USA v St Vincent (5:30pm CT) and Tue Nov 17 USA v Trinidad + Tobago (5:25pm CT). Be There. (Closing forever at end of November)
dN

I think we had a very, very good game actually against Mexico.
-USA head coach Jurgen Klinsmann

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USA CONCACAF WORLD CUP QUALIFYING

The first 2 games are here:
Rd 4 Game 1 Group C
-Fri Nov 13
USA v St Vincent + The Grenadines - 5:30pm CT at Busch Stadium in St Louis, Missouri on ESPN2
Rd 4 Game 2 Group C
-Tue Nov 17
Trinidad + Tobago v USA - 5:25pm at Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port-Of-Spain, Trinidad on beIN Sports

USA Roster:
G: Brad Guzan, Bill Hamid, Tim Howard
D: Ventura Alvarado, Matt Besler, Geoff, Cameron, Fabian Johnson, Matt Miazga, Michael Orozco, Tim Ream, Brek Shea
M: Kyle Beckerman, Michael Bradley, Mix Diskerud, Miguel Ibarra, Jermaine Jones, Darlington Nagbe, DeAndre Yedlin
F: Jozy Altidore, Alan Gordon, Jordan Morris, Bobby Wood, Gyasi Zardes

A preview of St Vincent + The Grenadines' squad. By Jeff Carlisle of ESPNFC.

Here is the rest of CONCACAF Rd 1 for Fri Nov 13:
Mexico v El Salvador - GA
Canada v Honduras - GA
Costa Rica v Haiti - GB
Jamaica v Panama - GB
Guatemala v Trinidad + Tobago - GC

dN

Mauro Biello has been named head coach of the Montreal Impact.
-Great move.

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Two fairly big news items emerged from Seattle Thursday night at their post season public meeting: 1) Sigi Schmid will return as head coach, and 2) Adrian Hanauer has taken over from Joe Roth as the principal owner of the club. By Matt Pentz of the Seattle Times.

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The new leader of David Beckham's Miami team, Tim Leiweke, wrote an editorial in the Miami Herald laying out his vision for the club and city.

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NASL

Final:
Sun Nov 14
New York Cosmos v Ottawa Fury - 4pm CT on ESPN3.com

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The 2015 NASL Best 11:
G: Romuald Peiser - Ottawa Fury
FB: Justin Davis - Minnesota United + Kevin Venegas - Minnesota United
CB: Rafael Alves - Ottawa Fury + Carlos Mendes - New York Cosmos
M: Richie Ryan - Ottawa Fury, Lance Laing - Edmonton, Ibson - Minnesota United + James Marcelin - Ft Lauderdale Strikers
F: Stefano Pinho - Ft Lauderdale Strikers + Christian Ramirez - Minnesota United
-This would make a good MLS team.

dN

Fort Lauderdale Strikers forward Stefano Pinho was named NASL Golden Ball winner.
-He also won the Golden Boot for his 16 goals scored.

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Looks like head coach Gunter Kronsteiner is again out the door at Ft Lauderdale Strikers. Gunther posted a cryptic message online thanking the ownership then blaming GM Caio Zanardi for running him out of town.

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Euro 2016 Qualifying Playoffs: (4 winning teams will be the last to advance to the tournament next summer)

Krisztian Nemeth of Sporting KC played the full 90 for Hungary as they upset Norway in their away leg putting them in a great position to advance.

1st Leg
-Thu Nov 12
Norway 0-1 Hungary
-Fri Nov 13
Bosnia + Herzegovina 1-1 Ireland
-Sat Nov 14
Ukraine v Slovenia
Sweden v Denmark
2nd Leg
-Sun Nov 15
Hungary v Norway
-Mon Nov 16
Ireland v Bosnia + Herzegovina
-Tue Nov 17
Slovenia v Ukraine
Denmark v Sweden

dN

NEXT MONDAY! Dark Clouds Annual End of Season Awards and Silent Auction - Mon Nov 16 at Turf Club in St Paul 6PM to 9PM



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 12, 2015

SPECIAL NOTICE: Say Goodbye to the Sweetwater
-Our beloved dank watering hole in St Paul is closing for good at the end of November. These will be is our last two games to watch soccer there: Fri Nov 13 USA v St Vincent (5:30pm CT) and Tue Nov 17 USA v Trinidad & Tobago (5:25pm CT)
-Be There.

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Q + A with the one and only Landon Donovan. Whats on his mind, and what does he have planned for the future? (Besides becoming a father!) By Seth Vertelney of Goal.

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So just who is the starting goalkeeper for the USA? By Paul Tenorio of the Orlando Sentinel.

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The big-picture pressure is building: How does the USA do what it has rarely been able to do - produce star players. By Jeff Carlisle of ESPNFC.

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Who are the "in-form" and "out-of-form" players for the USA right now. By Doug MacIntyre of ESPNFC.

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USA CONCACAF WORLD CUP QUALIFYING SCHEDULE

Rd 4 Game 1
-Fri Nov 13
USA v St Vincent + The Grenadines - 5:30pm CT at Busch Stadium in St Louis, Missouri on ESPN2

Rd 4 Game 2
-Tue Nov 17
Trinidad + Tobago v USA - 5:25pm at Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port-Of-Spain, Trinidad on beIN Sports

USA Roster:
G: Brad Guzan, Bill Hamid, Tim Howard
D: Ventura Alvarado, Matt Besler, Geoff, Cameron, Fabian Johnson, Matt Miazga, Michael Orozco, Tim Ream, Brek Shea
M: Kyle Beckerman, Michael Bradley, Mix Diskerud, Miguel Ibarra, Jermaine Jones, Darlington Nagbe, DeAndre Yedlin
F: Jozy Altidore, Alan Gordon, Jordan Morris, Bobby Wood, Gyasi Zardes

dN

Houston head coach Owen Coyle tells English media about his 1st year experiences with soccer in North America. From Sky Sports.

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The best of MLS insider info, rumors and tidbits. By Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated.

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Mark this date on your calendar: January 22, 2016 - MLS preseason begins.

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Wow. Now this is a crazy dream!

Had a dream last night that G.G. Allin bought #cf97 from Andell Holdings. This makes no sense on any level but I dreamt it. I need help.

— Shawn Francis (@TheOffsideRules) November 12, 2015

dN

Huge congrats to Boca Juniors for claiming both the Argentina Primera Division championship and the Copa Argentina championship this week.

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Euro 2016 Qualifying Playoffs: (4 winning teams will be the last to advance to the tournament next summer)
1st Leg
-Thu Nov 12
Norway v Hungary
-Fri Nov 13
Bosnia + Herzegovina v Ireland
-Sat Nov 14
Ukraine v Slovenia
Sweden v Denmark
2nd Leg
-Sun Nov 15
Hungary v Norway
-Mon Nov 16
Ireland v Bosnia + Herzegovina
-Tue Nov 17
Slovenia v Ukraine
Denmark v Sweden

dN

Dark Clouds Annual End of Season Awards and Silent Auction - Mon Nov 16 at Turf Club in St Paul 6PM to 9PM

dN

My brother has released his first all-electronic album!
Mountain Singers "Listening Devices"
-Find it + hear it at Bandcamp, then buy it for a real cheap price.

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He just likes to take buses and trains for a little joy ride. "Hey neighbor! Wanna got for a joy ride?" Whats the harm? From the New York Times.

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Happy birthday Neil Young. This is one of my favorite songs: Cortez The Killer
-And this a list of my favorite Neil Young albums:
After the Gold Rush
Decade
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
Harvest
Journey Through the Past
On The Beach
Psychedelic Pill
Ragged Glory + Weld + Arc (2 live companions)
Rust Never Sleeps + Live Rust (live companion)
Trans
Zuma

dN

Finish your day with a podcast featuring me as a guest: Midfield Press + Two United Fans TUFcast with a Minnesota United season review show.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 11, 2015

SPECIAL: Say Goodbye to the Sweetwater - Fri Nov 13 USA v St Vincent and Tue Nov 17 USA v Trinidad + Tobago. Be There. (closing at end of November)

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A great look at the NASL/USL split that happened 6 years ago, and where the 2 leagues have gone since then. By Kenn Tomasch of Kenn.com blog with expert guests Neil Morris, Brian Quarstad and Brendan Doherty.

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The new NASL team Rayo OKC will begin play just 5 months from now and their home field will be Yukon High School on the far western edge of Oklahoma City - all but a rural location. (See Map Here)

There was a lot of chatter yesterday on Twitter that Rayo Vallecano is behind on paying employees of the parent club in Spain.

#RayoOKC is an affiliate team of a bigger league, playing in a (high school!!) football stadium, in a market with an existing pro team...

— Alex Schieferdecker (@theschief) November 10, 2015

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Ottawa head coach Marc Dos Santos was named NASL Coach Of The Year. No surprise - an incredible turnaround.

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What comes next for the Seattle Sounders? After falling short of their goal once again do they make radical changes? Players? Coaches? Management? Jeff Carlisle of ESPNFC tries to answer the big questions.

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Some MLS Postseason Awards:
Laurent Ciman of Montreal - Defender Of The Year
Cyle Larin of Orlando - Rookie Of The Year

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The Serbia v Albania match that took place in Oct 2014 became a huge cultural + political hot potato. The rematch was last month, and this impressive video, Guns, Drones and Burning Flags, tells the full story. Made by James Montague for Copa90.

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The head of the Russian World Cup Committee Vitaly Mutko has been accused of being involved in a massive national sports performance enhancing drugs program which is currently being investigated by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Report by Mark Bisson of World Football Insider.

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Both Netherlands and Belgium are considering lawsuits against FIFA over bidding for 2018 World Cup. Reuters has the report.

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The big two-legged Euro 2016 Qualifying Playoffs begin on Thursday. The 4 winners fill the last spots at the tournament next summer.
1st Leg
-Thu Nov 12
Norway v Hungary
-Fri Nov 13
Bosnia + Herzegovina v Ireland
-Sat Nov 14
Ukraine v Slovenia
Sweden v Denmark
2nd Leg
-Sun Nov 15
Hungary v Norway
-Mon Nov 16
Ireland v Bosnia + Herzegovina
-Tue Nov 17
Slovenia v Ukraine
Denmark v Sweden

dN

Dark Clouds Annual End of Season Awards and Silent Auction - Mon Nov 16 at Turf Club in St Paul 6PM to 9PM.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 10, 2015

NASL's next new team will be in Oklahoma City and in partnership with Spanish club Rayo Vallecano. Reported by Dave Martinez of Empire of Soccer.
-The team will be called Rayo OKC.
-We dont know when they will begin play, or where their home stadium will be located.
-The league is going into a small market that already has a pro team - USL's two year old OKC Energy.
-One of the financial backers was initially slated to enter a team in NASL in 2014, but his partner left to join the Energy group.
-My initial reaction? Oof.

dN

USA CONCACAF World Cup qualifying begins this Fri Nov 13 in St Louis, Missouri.
-USA v St Vincent + The Grenadines - 5:30pm CT at Busch Stadium on ESPN2
-Training got going at full speed on Monday in Miami. Michelle Kaufman of the Herald was there.

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Sebastian Velazquez of NYCFC and formerly of Real Salt Lake posted a very personal message on Twitter yesterday about a very dark background that has caused him a massive struggle. What a brave and inspiring thing to post.

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Both Rodney Wallace + Diego Valeri will miss the 1st Leg of the Semifinals for Portland due to the stupid "2 yellow cards earned in the playoffs = 1 game suspension" rule. (Not 2 in 1 game, 2 total.)

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Bob Bradley officially named head coach of Le Havre (HAC) in French 2nd division.

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Readers ask Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated about the topics of the day.

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The investigations into FIFA wrong doing creeps closer and closer to Franz Beckenbauer. The German legend has been connected to too many of these stories not to have gotten at least some blow-back on his expensive shirts. And his refusal to co-operate with investigators never looks good. From the AP.

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Wow. Erykah Badu is so damn talented. This song blows the original away by a mile.

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Over the past 3 days college football players made a major stand at the University of Missouri - bringing racism into the forefront and causing real change in leadership at the school. By Joe Nocera of the New York Times.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 9, 2015

NASL

You cannot deny that top forwards Raul and Tom Heinemann lead their teams to the Championship. Congrats to Cosmos and Ottawa on reaching the Final.

Semifinals:
Sat Nov 7
New York Cosmos 2-1 Fort Lauderdale Strikers - Raul with an amazing goal to win the game.
-Match report from Empire of Soccer.
Sun Nov 8
Ottawa Fury 2-1 Minnesota United - Captain Caveman disassembled the Minnesota defense with two strong goals.
-Match report from Ottawa Citizen.
Final:
Sun Nov 14
New York Cosmos v Ottawa Fury - 4pm CT on ESPN3.com

As for my beloved Minnesota United, the big name/money players were shut down by Ottawa and provided only glimpses of a chance at winning the game. Their individual skill kept them in it till the very end of extra added time, but it was not nearly enough. And tactically they were outmaneuvered at almost every twist and turn of the match.
A very disappointing end to the season, for the 2nd year in a row. The slow fade in the last month is puzzling and the biggest frustration for fans.

dN

MLS Cup Playoffs

Quarterfinals
2nd Leg Schedule
Sun Nov 8
New York Red Bulls 1-0 DC United – NYRB advances via 2-0 aggregate
Columbus Crew 3-1 Montreal Impact – CC advances via 4-3 aggregate
Dallas 2-1 Seattle Sounders – series ends tied 3-3, D advances via 4-2 PKS
Vancouver Whitecaps 0-2 Portland Timbers – PT advances via 2-0 aggregate

The Heroes:
-Dax McCarty, Bradley Wright-Phillips + Gonzalo Veron
-Cedrick Mabwati, Steve Clark, Ethan Finlay + Kei Kamara
-Jessie Gonzalez, Tesho Akindele, Kellyn Acosta + Walker Zimmerman
-Diego Valeri + Fanendo Adi

Five things we learned in this round of playoff matches. By Graham Parker and Graham Ruthven of the Guardian.

Columbus won its first playoff series since Sigi Schmid left the team after winning the 2008 MLS Cup Final.

Semifinals
1st Leg
Sun Nov 22
CC v NYRB - 4:00pm CT on ESPN
PT v D - 6:30pm CT on FS1
-2nd Leg on Sun Nov 29
-Final on Sun Dec 6

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Patrick Vieira has been hired as new head coach of New York City FC.

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The revivial of a true old school classic that any long time follower of the 2nd Division can tell you all about: MLS Commissioner Don Garber has fined Montreal Impact Owner Joey Saputo, Vice President of International Relations & Technical Development Nick De Santis and Technical Director Adam Braz undisclosed amounts for inappropriate conduct directed at the match officials after the Impact’s match against Columbus Crew SC on November 1, 2015.

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Bob Bradley with a video message for the supporters of his club Stabaek - on his way out the door.

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The president of the German Football Association Wolfgang Niersbach has resigned while an ongoing investigation suggests Germany bought the votes for 2006 World Cup. From Deutsche Welle.
-Franz Beckenabuer is still not being investigated.

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A video report on our love affair with the violent nature of sports. And what is the future of sports that feature violence? From the New York Times.

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Even though the issue discussed in this article is very very serious (the horriffic beating of a woman,) the main flavor here is the outright hostility from Philadelphia (Eagles) toward Dallas (Cowboys). By Angelo Cataldi of Philly Voice.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 6, 2015

NASL PLAYOFFS

Semifinals:
Sat Nov 7
New York Cosmos v Fort Lauderdale Strikers - 1 pm CT on ESPN3.com.
Sun Nov 8
Ottawa Fury v Minnesota United - 2 pm CT on Ch.45 in the Twin Cities and on ESPN3.com.

Minnesota United training report. By Jon Marthaler of Northern Pitch.

dN

USA CONCACAF WORLD CUP QUALIFYING

The first 2 games are right around the corner. Get prepared.
Rd 4 Game 1
-Fri Nov 13
USA v St Vincent + The Grenadines - 5:30pm CT in St Louis, Missouri at Busch Stadium on ESPN2
Rd 4 Game 2
-Tue Nov 17
Trinidad + Tobago v USA - Time TBA at Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port-Of-Spain, Trinidad on beIN Sports

USA Roster:
G: Brad Guzan, Bill Hamid, Tim Howard
D: Ventura Alvarado, Matt Besler, Geoff Cameron, Fabian Johnson, Matt Miazga, Michael Orozco, Tim Ream, Brek Shea
M: Kyle Beckerman, Michael Bradley, Mix Diskerud, Miguel Ibarra, Jermaine Jones, Darlington Nagbe, DeAndre Yedlin
F: Jozy Altidore, Alan Gordon, Jordan Morris, Bobby Wood, Gyasi Zardes
-Darlington Nagbe + Matt Miazga get their first calls to the USA.
-Miguel Ibarra + Jordan Morris are back with the team.
-These recent call ups were NOT included: Dempsey, Gonzalez, Brooks, Wondolowski, Rimando, Yarbrough, Evans, Beasley, Chandler, Garza, Bedoya, Williams, Zusi, Morales, Davis, Corona, Johannsson, Agudelo
-The roster would indicate that the plan is still to play Fabian Johnson out of position.
-Only 1 actual fullback on this roster, Shea, and he is just converted a year ago and is very green.

dN

MLS Cup Playoffs

Bruce Arena will be part of the MLS playoffs studio crew on Sunday for FS1. YES!

2nd Leg Schedule
Sun Nov 8
New York Red Bulls v DC United (1-0) – 2pm CT on ESPN
Columbus Crew v Montreal Impact ((1-2) – 4pm CT on ESPN, TSN1 + RDS1
Dallas v Seattle Sounders (1-2) – 6:30pm CT on FS1 + TSN
Vancouver Whitecaps v Portland Timbers (0-0) – 9pm CT on FS1, TSN1 + RDS1

Semifinals - Sun Nov 22 + Sun Nov 29
Final - Sun Dec 6

dN

Three new stadiums for MLS teams are being designed and built right now. What will they they be all about? From Tim Newcomb at Sports Illustrated.
-By the way, the same people are designing all 3 of them - Orlando, DC and Minnesota. Is there really no one else capable?!

dN

Bob Bradley gets ready to head for the next vista. The strong rumor is that he is going to be named the new head coach at Le Harve (aka HAC) in the French 2nd division in the next week or so. An interview with Bradley, one of my favorites by Rob Harris of the Big Story from AP.
-Harris posted more Bradley quotes on Facebook.

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Who are the 6 most favored soccer teams of the hipster-gencia? By Barry Glendenning of the Guardian.
-You definitely know who one of those teams is don't you?

dN

HBO's new documentary about basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - Minority of One - is very good. You should watch it.

dN

Athletic Club from the Basque Country city of Bilbao in Spain has always used only Basque players, and gets consistent solid results on and off the field. From the NY Times.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 5, 2015

Copa MX Final - Huge congrats to Chivas de Guadalajara who won their first trophy in 9 years.
Leon 0-1 Guadalajara
-Miguel Ibarra did not dress. They sure could have used someone with his creativity late in the game. so BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO to them.

dN

What is going on with the San Antonio Scorpions?
-Sunday they fired head coach Alen Marcina at the airport baggage claim.
-Monday they announced that they had re-signed talented winger Bill Forbes.
-Wednesday they sold their stadium to the city + county, and those entities announced that the facility would be leased to the NBA San Antonio Spurs.
-Also on Wednesday the Spurs announced that they intended to field a team in USL next season (2016,) with hopes to move to MLS at some point. Story by Chris Hockman of the Examiner.
-As part of the purchase agreement the Spurs organization paid the Scorpions $3M for an undisclosed purpose.
-So where does that leave the Scorpions? Do they have a place to play? Is there still a team?
-WTF?

dN

In 2015 NASL currently fields 11 teams.
-Minnesota United are leaving for MLS, but no date is set. But rumors say 2016 will be their last in the 2nd division.
-Atlanta Silverbacks are in limbo, being league owned and with a MLS team set to take the field in that city in 2017.
-And now the ambiguity of San Antonio's future, with potential for immediate negative consequences.
-Odds are good that NASL will be 9 teams when the 2016 season kicks off.
-Puerto Rico and Miami are scheduled to join half way through the 2016 season taking, the league back to 11. (Or up to 13 if Atl and SA don't go away.)
-It was reported on Wednesday that another new team will be announced in the next 10 days. But no start date is rumored yet.
-Best case scenario sees 14 teams in 2016.
-And yet the league has stated on the record that they will field anywhere from 15 to 18 teams next season.
-I am having a tough time sorting through that math and getting the desired answer.
-I guess that means there is more news to come to make at least 15.

dN

US Soccer has announced that MLS teams will not be allowed to field their own USL teams in the US Open Cup for 2016. For some reason I didn't even bother to read about the decision making behind this move.

dN

NASL

Semifinals:
Sat Nov 7
New York Cosmos v Fort Lauderdale Strikers - 1 pm CT
Sun Nov 8
Ottawa Fury v Minnesota United - 2 pm CT
-both games can be seen on ESPN3.com and the Watch ESPN app.

Here is how the 4 Semifinalists went head to head this season:
-New York v Fort Lauderdale
Aug 8 FLS 3-3 NYC
Aug 2 NYC 2-0 FLS
Apr 4 FLS 0-1 NYC
---
Ottawa v Minnesota
Aug 15 OF 1-2 MU
Jul 11 MU 1-1 OF
Apr 19 OF 1-0 MU

dN

Were you a fan of Lou Reed? Do you know who he was? If you really liked any pop music from the 70s onward that took risks then you heard things he strongly influenced. But who was he really? The New York Times looks at his biography. Thanks to Paul for the heads up.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 4, 2015

Tonight is the Copa MX Final!
Leon v Guadalajara - 9pm CT on Univision Deportes
-Green Batman v Chivas (Non)USA
-Carlos Slim v Jorge Vergara
-Giant Bank Account v Giant Ego

dN

Fabian Johnson scored for Monchengladbach against Juventus in the UEFA Champions League.
-Despite that fact Gladbach was eliminated from advancing to the Rd of 16.
-Also yesterday in UCL, Real Madrid (1-0 win v PSG) and Manchester City (1-3 win at Sevilla) became the first 2 teams to advance to the knock out round. They did it with 2 matches still to play.
-Today's big match is Bayern v Arsenal

dN

US Soccer is still using its U17 Residency Program in Bradenton FL to build the sport, but there has been little winning to show for it since year one. By Mike Woitalla of Soccer America.
-In the first year of the program, 1999, the USA finished 4th at the World Cup. "The USA has not managed to win a knockout-stage game at the U-17 World Cup since then."

dN

Steven Gerrard got paid millions upon millions of dollars to play half a season for the LA Galaxy. Then he whined that it was too hard: “Going on the road, playing on turf, playing at altitude, playing in humidity, those are the hurdles that I’ve had to face over the last three months that I wasn’t aware of. Every away game has a different challenge.”

dN

Its tough to read about the current turmoil of the Trinidad + Tobago national team when you know about the staggering amounts of money Jack Warner made (AKA stole) via the program. By Lasan Liburd of Wired 868.

dN

The 2006 World Cup bribery scandal in Germany is growing. Tax officials raided the football association headquarters and private homes of those thought to be involved looking for evidence. From Deutsche Welle.

dN

Oof! Twin Peaks on Showtime has officially been pushed back to 2017. I know that was the original plan, but I fell for the whispers of a 2016 release.

dN

Do you read true crime stories? This tale of murder is just nuts. Blood Ties. From the New Yorker.

dN

Opportunity: du Nord Music Mix Vol 60
(download & extract)

dN

You can now pre-order the new album from SUNN O))) called Kannon. It will be released on Dec 4.

dN

NASL

The Ottawa v Minnesota Semifinal pits leagues top defense by far (23 allowed) against leagues tops offense by far (54 scored.)

And New York Cosmos are by far the hottest team entering the postseason:
What kind of form are the 4 teams in?
#1 NYC: WWWWD - 13 pts
#2 OF: DWWDW - 11 pts
#3 MU: DWLWW - 10 pts
#4 FLS: WLDWL - 7 pts

dN

One of my favorite non-Minnesota players in NASL is Billy Forbes and he just signed a contract extension to remain in San Antonio.
-I was kinda hoping he would move on to a bigger team and/or a higher level league.



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 3, 2015

New York City FC, as long rumored, fired head coach Jason Kreis late yesterday. Empire of Soccer has a statement from Kreis after the fact.

dN

In other New York related news, Red Bulls centerback Damien Perrinelle left the game in DC Sunday with an apparent knee injury and its now known that he is out for rest of season with an unspecified knee injury that will require surgery to repair.

dN

Orlando City adds to their front office soccer staff by hiring an exec from Benfica to oversee ALL soccer operations. He had been in charge of Benfica's reserves, academy and scouting. Great idea. By Paul Tenorio of the Sentinel.

dN

What can you tell me about El Burrito Mercado on Cesar Chavez St in Saint Paul?

dN

As happens with regularity, I've been listening to a lot of New Order. Why not crank up their best album: Power, Corruption & Lies.

dN

Had that moment earlier today when a delightful woman that I have been flirting with worked in, "....and my boyfriend said....." So that shot is over.

dN

At the midway point of the UEFA Champions League group stage only 1 team has a perfect record - Zenit of St Petersburg Russia. They travel to Lyon for a game tomorrow.

The two best games from UEFA Champions League Matchday 4:
-Tue Nov 3 - Real Madrid v PSG
-Wed Nov 4 - Bayern v Arsenal

dN

Russia is being forced to face its big problem with racism as World Cup 2018 approaches. By Sam Borden of the New York Times.

dN

(Upcoming Cosmos playoff game......)

The Cosmos are playing a playoff game on turf in a baseball stadium at an amusement park? ????

— Total MLS (@TotalMLS) November 2, 2015

The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Nov 2, 2015

Día de Muertos

Huge congrats to the Kansas City Royals and their fans for the World Series win!

And huge congrats to New Zealand for winning the Rugby World Cup!

MLS Cup Playoffs

@dunord @AlexiLalas Didier Drogba likes One Leg pic.twitter.com/zZpLyLT5jS

— Joe Miller (@xjoeymillerx) November 2, 2015

Quarterfinals - 1st Leg
Sun Nov 1
DC United 1-0 New York Red Bulls - 2pm CT on ESPN
Portland Timbers 0-0 Vancouver Whitecaps - 4pm CT on ESPN + TSN
Montreal Impact 2-1 Columbus Crew - 6pm CT on FS1 + TSN
Seattle Sounders 2-1 Dallas - 8:30pm CT on FS1 + TSN

The Heroes:
-Dax McCarty of New York stuck his head in to fearlessly score off a set piece.
-Vancouver goalkeeper David Ousted made a couple of huge saves to keep the clean sheet on the road.
-Dallas + Montreal made life miserable for Seattle + Columbus. Neither team gave up an inch anywhere on the field. Buzzing buzzing buzzing everywhere.
-Fabian Castillo of Dallas can make you look silly with his speed and ball skills and he did just that to the Seattle defense to open the scoring.
-Clint Dempsey of Seattle scored a gorgeous free kick goal to win the game for the home team.
-Big big big road goals by Columbus + Dallas - road goals are the tie breaker in 2 Leg series.

The Villains:
-Kei Kamara + Ethan Finley were invisible for Columbus. This team will be out if these two don't show up in the 2nd Leg. Kamara also let Patrice Bernier run right past him to head home a corner kick.
-Michael Parkhurst of Columbus had a terrible giveaway that allowed Johan Venegas to stroll in on Steve Clark and score to win the game.
-Didier Drogba of Montreal loves playing this role: diving, flailing, faking, whining and then DOMINATING opponents! He had Columbus in a lather! He also perfectly set up Federico Higuain for the Columbus goal with a terrible clearance in front of his own net.
-Portland + Vancouver: [ESPN Sports Center] "Ok, we now go to the highlights of Portland v Vancouver ... oh, wait, I'm bring told by the producer that there were no highlights. Sorry about that, so we move on to Division III college football..." I have no issues with a scoreless draw as long as the two teams show up to play. These two played to not make mistakes. Safety first is not attractive. And what makes it worse is this was supposed to be one of those bitter Cascadia Cup derby matches.
-The young players of Dallas kinda wilted under the pressure late.

2nd Leg Schedule
Sun Nov 8
New York Red Bulls v DC United – 2pm CT on ESPN
Columbus Crew v Montreal Impact – 4pm CT on ESPN, TSN1 + RDS1
Dallas v Seattle Sounders – 6:30pm CT on FS1 + TSN
Vancouver Whitecaps v Portland Timbers – 9pm CT on FS1, TSN1 + RDS1

Semifinals - Sun Nov 22 + Sun Nov 29
Final - Sun Dec 6

dN

A big du Nord Futbol THANK YOU to Eddie Johnson who has sadly announced his retirement. The Grown Ass Man gave us some great memories on the field and off.

dN

Our main (Bat)man Miguel Ibarra scored an awesome goal for Leon in a 2-1 in over Atlas that clinched a playoff berth. Check the video (begins at 0:07.) It was Ibarra's 1st Liga MX goal after nabbing a couple in league cup games.

dN

Bob Bradley and his Stabaek are tied for 2nd with Stromsgodset on points, but trailing by 7 in goal differential as the Norwegian season heads into its final round of the season.
-Not only that but they qualified for Europa League next season, which is kinda insane for a team with such a small budget!
-This is more than likely his last game in charge of the Blue Ones before heading to the Le Harve in Ligue 2.

dN

Fabian Johnson and his Monchengladbach team have won 6 in a row in the Bundesliga. He set up the first goal in a 1-4 win at Hertha.
-John Brooks is still stuck on the bench in Berlin.

dN

New York Times Magazine with a feature on one of my favorite authors, the harsh and harrowing yet beautiful Mary Gaitskill.

dN

Rare video footage of one of the world's most infamous rock n roll band The Shaggs. From 1972. Thanks to Wes Burdine and Dangerous Minds for the link.

dN

NASL

The regular season is now over.

With an Ottawa tie and a New York win the top 2 seeds switched spots on the last night of the season and New York Cosmos claimed that precious #1 ranking.
-Tampa also stumbled, losing to the Cosmos, so with a Fort Lauderdale win on Sunday the Strikers stole the final playoff position from the Rowdies.

Minnesota 2-2 San Antonio
Minnesota didn't want to get hurt or suspended so they played a pretty boring game.
-Minnesota scored on a PK by Pablo Campos and a great flying stab from Kevin Venegas.
-After the game San Antonio fired head coach Alen Marcina. (At the airport baggage claim no less.) Marcina played 1 season for the Minnesota Thunder.

For Minnesota United now its time to shine! The team has to build their own momentum heading to Ottawa. In the month of October the team has 10 points from 5 games, which is decent, but haven't strung together a lot of great halves of soccer. Here we go!

Semifinal match schedule:
Sat Nov 7
New York Cosmos v Fort Lauderdale Strikers - 1 pm CT
Sun Nov 8
Ottawa Fury v Minnesota United - 2 pm CT
-both games can be seen on ESPN3.com and the Watch ESPN app.

dN

Dark Clouds End of the Year Charity Auction and Awards Ceremony! November 16th!
-Everyone is welcome. Not just Dark Clouds members.

dN

The weekends Bundelisa Talking Points. from Deutshe Welle.
-Eintracht played with 6 defenders against Bayern and spoiled the leaders perfect season with a 0-0 draw.

dN

Premier League: 10 talking points from the weekend’s action. From the Guardian.
-Including Costa Rican Joel Campbell finally making his presence known at Arsenal.

dN

USA + CONCACAF World Cup qualifying is right around the corner. Get prepared.
-Fri Nov 13
USA v St Vincent + The Grenadines - 5:30pm CT in St Louis
-Tue Nov 17
Trinidad + Tobago v USA - details still TBA



The Bird Is The Word