Some Soccer News for Jan 5, 2018

It's Day 5 of 2018.


MEXICO - LIGA MX

The new season starts tonight! Let the Clausura begin!

• The champs from Nuevo Leon start us off at 7pm CT on Univision Deportes. They travel to struggling Puebla.

Lots of American's playing in Liga MX this Spring - here is a preview. By Paul Kennedy for Soccer America.

Week 1 Schedule:
-Fri Jan 5
Puebla v Tigres
Atlas v Leon
-Sat Jan 6
Cruz Azul v Tijuana
Monterrey v Morelia
Pachuca v Pumas
Necaxa v Veracruz
-Sun Jan 7
Toluca v Guadalajara
Querataro v America
Santos Laguna v Lobos BUAP

dN

LOS LOONS

In case you missed it yesterday, here is the Loons 2018 schedule.

We knew this 2 weeks ago, but today Minn announced the loan of Johan Venegas to Saprissa.

17 days until preseason begins.

Two new preseason games addded - at EFSC Melbourne Campus
-Sat Feb 3
MNUFC v Florida International University - 1pm CT
-Wed Feb 7
MNUFC v Jacksonville Armada - 1pm CT

dN

MLS

The Philadelphia Union offseason is still void of adding starting talent to the roster, but other moves show signs of a long term plan. By Jonathan Tannenwald for Philly.com.

A roundup of the most important off season moves in MLS so far. By Sam Stjeskal for MLS.

• There are some impressive deals in the list.

Following in the footsteps of a countryman NYC has signed a true #10 to hopefully lead the team where Andrea Pirlo was not able to. By Luis Miguel Echegaray for Sports Illustrated.

Don Garber is in the last year of his MLS contract as commissioner. Where are we, and what happens next? By Beau Dure for Four Four Two.

• And for those of you who hate the guy, I think you are dead wrong, there would be no MLS without him. And American soccer would not be recognizable without the growth of MLS.

dN

AMERICANS ABROAD

Gent has loaned Kenny Saief to Anderlecht for the rest of the season. Brian Sciaretta with the news.

dN

BIG TEAMS + GAMES IN EUROPE'S 5 TOP LEAGUES

Schedule/Results:
-Thu Jan 4
Tottenham 1-1 West Ham
-Fri Jan 5
Fiorentina v Inter
-Sat Jan 6
Atletico Madrid v Getafe
Milan v Crotone
Napoli v Hellas Verona
Roma v Atalanta
Cagliari v Juventus
Valencia v Girona
-Sun Jan 7
Barcelona v Levante
Celta de Vigo v Real Madrid



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Jan 4, 2018

It's Day 4 of 2018.


USMNT January camp roster coming next Monday at 11:00am. Training starts Thu Jan 11.

• And I fully expect Christian Ramirez on Minnesota to be on that list.

dN

MINNESOTA UNITED

18 days until preseason begins.

Justin Davis has signed with Nashville FC in USL. Wishing him good luck this season.

Here It Is! The Whole Minnesota United 2018 MLS Schedule:
Mar

• Sat 3 at San Jose
• Sat 10 at Orlando
• Sat 17 v Chicago tbd
• Sat 24 at Red Bulls

Apr

• Sat 1 v Atlanta 1pm
• Sat 14 at Portland
• Sun 22 at Seattle
• Sat 28 v Houston 7pm

May

• Sat 5 v Vancouver 1pm
• Wed 9 at LAFC
• Sat 12 v San Jose 1pm
• Sat 20 v Kansas City 1pm
• Sat 26 v Montreal 7pm

Jun

• Sun 3 at KC
• Sat 23 at Colorado
• Fri 29 v Dallas 7pm

Jul

• Wed 4 v Toronto 6pm
• Sat 7 at Houston
• Sat 14 v Salt Lake 7pm
• Wed 18 v New England 7pm
• Sun 22 v LAFC 6pm
• Sat 28 at Vancouver

Aug

• Sat 4 v Seattle 7pm
• Sat 11 at Galaxy
• Sat 18 at Dallas
• Sat 25 at KC

Sep

• Wed 12 at DC
• Sat 15 at Salt Lake
• Sat 22 v Portland 7pm
• Sat 29 v NYC 7pm

Oct

• Sat 6 at Philadelphia
• Sat 13 v Colorado 1pm
• Sun 21 v Galaxy 11am
• Sun 28 at Columbus

5 game road trip in Aug - Sep = LAG-Dal-KC-DC-RSL

Home games:
Wed - 2
Fri - 1
Sat - 12
Sun - 2
---
11am - 1
1pm - 5
6pm - 2
7pm - 7

Loons will be on American national TV twice: at Sea - Apr 22 on ESPN, and at KC - Jun 3 on FS1.

• They will be on Canadian national TV thrice.

dN

MLS

Benny Feilhaber is sold by SKC to the new LAFC. Good move for both.

DC will start the season by playing 12 of 14 games on the road. New stadium is supposed to open in Mid-July.

dN

USMNT

Mexico is supposedly going to make a hard run at American Jonathan Gonzalez and try to get him to change federations. By Tom Marshall for ESPN.

dN

MEXICO - LIGA MX

Let the Clausura begin!

Week 1 Schedule:
-Fri Jan 5
Puebla v Tigres
Atlas v Leon
-Sat Jan 6
Cruz Azul v Tijuana
Monterrey v Morelia
Pachuca v Pumas
Necaxa v Veracruz
-Sun Jan 7
Toluca v Guadalajara
Querataro v America
Santos Laguna v Lobos BUAP

dN

BIG TEAMS + GAMES IN EUROPE'S 5 TOP LEAGUES

Schedule/Results:
-Thu Jan 4
Tottenham v West Ham
-Fri Jan 5
Fiorentina v Inter
-Sat Jan 6
Atletico Madrid v Getafe
Milan v Crotone
Napoli v Hellas Verona
Roma v Atalanta
Cagliari v Juventus
Valencia v Girona
-Sun Jan 7
Barcelona v Levante
Celta de Vigo v Real Madrid



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Jan 3, 2018

It's Day 3 of 2018.


Huge congrats to Municipal Perez Zeledon (of San Isidro) on winning the Costa Rica 2017 Apaertura Championship.

• This is their 2nd championship ever (1st was in 2004).

dN

There is no doping in world football is there? Naaaaaaah. How do we know? Cuz FIFA tells us so. Therefore they have no need to investigate. By Tariq Panja for the New York Times.

dN

MINNESOTA UNITED

19 days until preseason begins.

Off Season Signings:

• Harrison Heath
• Tyrone Mears

dN

MLS

Orlando has acquired certified #10 Sacha Kljestan and some salary cap $ from RBNY for a couple young players. Good move Orlando.

dN

AMERICANS ABROAD

Bobby Wood had a pretty unremarkable 2017. He suffered a lot of missed practice time and games with a knee injury. As far as production, he only scored 2 goals for Hamburg - 1 last Spring and 1 this Fall - and 2 times for the USMNT.

dN

MEXICO - LIGA MX

One writers wish list for 2018. By Tom Marshall for ESPNFC.

dN

BIG TEAMS + GAMES IN EUROPE'S 5 TOP LEAGUES

Schedule/Results:
-Tue Jan 2
Swansea 0-2 Tottenham
Man City 3-1 Watford
-Wed Jan 3
Arsenal 2-2 Chelsea
-Thu Jan 4
Tottenham v West Ham



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Jan 2, 2018

It's Day 2 of 2018.


FINALLY! The head of the Russian World Cup tournament was the same guy who organized their Olympic doping program. He has FINALLY stepped down from his World Cup post. And has "temporarily" resigned his position as head of the Russian Football Union. By Martha Keller for The Guardian.

• In early December he was banned for life from the Olympics.

dN

MLS

Two years ago Toronto was still the worst club in MLS history. In a very short time they have become one of the very best. By Mark Zwolinski for the Toronto Sun.

LAFC signings so far - impressive:
Latif Blessing (Ghana)
Laurent Ciman (Belgium)
Omar Gaber (Egypt)
Jordan Harvey (USA)
Calum Mallace (USA)
Tyler Miller (USA)
Rodrigo Pacheco (Argentina)
Diego Rossi (Uruguay) DP
Marco Urena (Costa Rica)
Carlos Vela (Mexico) DP
Walker Zimmerman (USA)

• Probably not as good as Atlanta United last year, yet, but LA still has over half a roster to fill.

Interview with LAFC GM John Thorrington and head coach Bob Bradley on roster building. By Kevin Baxter for the LA Times.

A letter to the fans from new Colorado Rapids head coach Anthony Hudson. From Burgundy Wave.

dN

USMNT

A January training camp opens on the 10th with mostly if not all MLS players.

• They will play a friendly against Bosnia + Herzegovina on the 28th at the Stub Hub Center in Carson CA.
• The question in the mind of Minnesota United fan's is whether or not Christian Ramirez gets called in. I waffle back in forth between Yes and No. Right now I am leaning Yes.

The federation is also holding a first-ever 10 day youth camp in Florida for a huge pool of players in the 15-20 year old range. Over 150 players are involved in the session run by Tab Ramos which started today. From US Soccer.

dN

AMERICANS ABROAD

An interview with Jonathan Gonzalez of Monterrey after an amazing breakout season as an 18 year old. By Mike Woitalla for Soccer America.

• Q: When the full national team played Portugal in a friendly last November, you had already been starting for Monterrey for more than three months, but you were not on the U.S. roster ...
• A: I wasn’t called in, in November. Personally, nobody came and talked to me and let me know about that friendly. I just wasn’t called in.

Antonee Robinson - a 20 year old left fullback to keep your eyes and ears on. Signed with Everton and currently on loan at Bolton. He was born in England and has an American passport. Has played 17 games so far this season.

Another youngster is struggling - Cameron Carter-Vickers. By Brian Sciaretta for American Soccer Now.

• Words on Robinson too.

dN

EUROPE

Napoli leads Serie A at the halfway point. But they have have been in a similar spot the previous two years and failed to get the job done. By Paolo Bandini for the Guardian.

Only Two Teams Still Unbeaten in the 5 Big Leagues:

• Manchester City 19-2-0
• Barcelona 14-3-0

dN

BIG TEAMS + GAMES IN EUROPE'S 5 TOP LEAGUES

How would you like to be a Tottenham player this week? They play in the Premier League on Tuesday and Thursday, and then Sunday in the FA Cup.

Serie A in Italy is taking a 2 week break after games on Sat Jan 6, returning on Sun Jan 21.

Mid-Week Schedule/Results:
-Tue Jan 2
Swansea v Tottenham
Man City v Watford
-Wed Jan 3
Arsenal v Chelsea
-Thu Jan 4
Tottenham v West Ham



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Dec 22, 2017

It's Day 356 of 2017.


FYI: I AM GONNA SKIP OUT ON A WEEK OR TWO OF POSTS AFTER THIS ONE TODAY. SEE YOU NEXT YEAR.


Huge congrats to Copa MX champions Monterrey.

dN

FC Cincinnati feels that they are just "dotting I's and crossing T's" before they are to become a Major League Soccer team. Its in the hands of the lawyers now. By Tom McKee for WCPO Cincinnati.

• Which means it could still easily fall apart.

dN

What does Nashville need to do now to be ready to take the field in MLS? By Brian Straus for Sports Illustrated.

dN

The two Milan teams, Inter and AC, got large investments from China in the past few years but their paths are very different on their current financial stability. By Robert Smith for the Financial Times.

• The article is thick with business and financial buzzwords.

dN

The 2018 MLS player du Nord du Not list

• (64 players currently in MLS that I don't want to see on the Minnesota United roster in 2018)

dN

Tap Water: du Nord Music Mix Vol 150 (download + extract)

dN

MLS

Q + A with Brad Friedel, new head coach of New England Revolution. By Martin Harasimowicz for Four Four Two.

dN

AMERICANS ABROAD

Jonathan Gonzalez + Monterrey beat Omar Gonzalez + Pachuca 1-0 in the Copa MX final. Both went the full 90 minutes.

• A miserable year ends on another bad note for Omar with his mark beating him for the winning goal.

dN

MEXICO - COPA MX

Final
-Thu Dec 21
Monterrey 1-0 Pachuca - Cup winning goal by Aviles Hurtado.

dN

WORLDWIDE

A list of the 100 best footballers in the world for 2017. From The Guardian.

• The Full List: #100 - #1

dN

BIG TEAMS + GAMES IN EUROPE'S TOP LEAGUES

Weekend Schedule:
-Fri Dec 22
Arsenal v Liverpool
Espanyol v Atletico Madrid
-Sat Dec 23
Real Madrid v Barcelona
Everton Chelsea
Sassuolo v Inter
Juventus v Roma
Man City v Bournemouth
Leicester v Man United
Milan v Atalanta
Napoli v Sampdoria
Burnley v Tottenham
Valencia v Villarreal


The Boxing Day/New Years Day Extended Schedule for the Big Teams in England:
-Tue Dec 26
Tottenham v Southampton
Chelsea v Brighton & Hove
Man United v Burnley
Liverpool v Swansea
-Wed Dec 27
Newcastle v Man City
-Thu Dec 28
Crystal Palace v Arsenal
-Sat Dec 30
Chelsea v Stoke City
Liverpool v Leicester
Man United v Southampton
-Sun Mar 31
Crystal Palace v Man City
West Brom v Arsenal
-Mon Jan 1
Burnley v Liverpool
Everton v Man United
-Tue Jan 2
Swansea v Tottenham
Man City v Watford
-Wed Jan 3
Arsenal v Chelsea
-Thu Jan 4
Tottenham v West Ham



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Dec 21, 2017

It's Day 355 of 2017.


ICYMI: MLS announced that Nashville will be joining the league in the next few years.

The Wilf family who own the Minnesota Vikings NFL team have bought a piece of the new MLS Nashville team. By Andy Greder for the St Paul Pioneer Press.

• Thankfully they didn't get their hands on the Minnesota MLS team. We dodged a bullet there.

dN

A group of people are working very hard to create a new model for a 3rd division in American soccer, and Peter Wilt is at the wheel of the company truck that is moving fast and searching for new routes constantly. By Chris Kivlehan for Midfield Press.
There is a lot to consume in this article:

• Short background on NISA.
• Update to NISA plans.
• Interview with NISA president Peter Wilt (Wilt is a friend of du Nord and always a very interesting interview - well worth your time)

dN

Is 2017 a turning point for women's soccer worldwide? This is a very good argument saying it is. By Julie Foudy for ESPNW.

dN

The 2018 MLS player du Nord du Not list

• (64 players currently in MLS that I don't want to see on the Minnesota United roster in 2018)

dN

Tap Water: du Nord Music Mix Vol 150 (download + extract)

dN

MINNESOTA UNITED

Des Moines Menace head coach John Pascarella joins Minnesota as the new goalkeeper coach.

Jerome Thiesson gains recognition for his play at right fulback last season. (Rated 5th best in the league.) By Ridge Mahoney for Soccer America.

dN

MLS

Miguel Almiron of Atlanta tells, in his own translated words, what his first season was like in MLS. And the rest of his life story too. For the Players Tribune.

A look at the practice facility and small stadium Real Salt Lake is building for all their teams to use. By Megan Webb and Lucas Muller for RSL Soapbox.

dN

NWSL

How ownership of Real Salt Lake went from nothing to everything in owning a NWSL team in just 15 days. By Richard Farley for Four Four Two.

dN

MEXICO - COPA MX

Final
-Thu Dec 21
Monterrey v Pachuca - 8:50pm CT on Univ Deportes

dN

WORLDWIDE

A list of the 100 best footballers in the world for 2017. From The Guardian.

• Nearing the top: #100 - #11

dN

BIG TEAMS + GAMES IN EUROPE'S TOP LEAGUES

Weekend Schedule:
-Fri Dec 22
Arsenal v Liverpool
Espanyol v Atletico Madrid
-Sat Dec 23
Real Madrid v Barcelona
Everton Chelsea
Sassuolo v Inter
Juventus v Roma
Man City v Bournemouth
Leicester v Man United
Milan v Atalanta
Napoli v Sampdoria
Burnley v Tottenham
Valencia v Villarreal



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Dec 20, 2017

It's Day 354 of 2017.


The 2018 MLS player du Nord du Not list

• 65 players currently in MLS that I don't want to see on the Minnesota United roster in 2018

dN

Julie Ertz named U.S. Soccer Female Player Of The Year

• Sophia Smith named Young Female Player Of The Year

dN

FIFA doctor who was investigating Russian PED allegations fired by FIFA pres Gianni Infantino without warning and inquest stopped. By David Conn for the Guardian.

dN

8 official candidates for US Soccer president: Paul Caligiuri, Kathy Carter, Carlos Cordeiro, Steve Gans, Kyle Martino, Hope Solo, Michael Winograd, Eric Wynalda

• Election is Feb 10

dN

MLS

Greg Vanney of Toronto named CONCACAF Men's Football Coach Of The Year.

dN

MEXICO - COPA MX

Final
-Thu Dec 21
Monterrey v Pachuca - 8:50pm CT on Univ Deportes

dN

FIFA

A list of the 100 best footballers in the world for 2017. From The Guardian.

• NOW MORE: #100 - #41

dN

BIG TEAMS + GAMES IN EUROPE'S TOP LEAGUES

Mid-Week Schedule:
-Wed Dec 20
Toulouse 1-2 Lyon
Marseille 3-1 Troyes
Monaco 2-1 Rennes
PSG 3-1 Caen

Weekend Schedule:
-Fri Dec 22
Arsenal v Liverpool
Espanyol v Atletico Madrid
-Sat Dec 23
Real Madrid v Barcelona
Everton Chelsea
Sassuolo v Inter
Juventus v Roma
Man City v Bournemouth
Leicester v Man United
Milan v Atalanta
Napoli v Sampdoria
Burnley v Tottenham
Valencia v Villarreal

dN

BIG TEAMS IN EUROPEAN LEAGUE CUP GAMES

Today's news:

• Schalke, Arsenal and Man City all advanced in England.
• Roma has lost in Italy.
• Dortmund lost to Bayern in Germany.

DFB Pokal Round of 16
-Tue Dec 19
Schalke 1-0 Koln
-Wed Dec 20
Bayern 2-1 Dortmund

English League Cup Quarterfinals
-Tue Dec 19
Arsenal 1-0 West Ham
Leicester 1-1 Man City - MC adv 4-3 on penalties
-Wed Dec 20
Chelsea 2-1 Bournemouth
Bristol v Man United

Coppa Italia
Rd of 16
-Tue Dec 19
Napoli 1-0 Udinese
-Wed Dec 21
Roma 1-2 Torino
Juventus 2-0 Genoa
Quarterfinals
-Tue Dec 26
Milan v Inter



The Bird Is The Word

The 2018 MLS player du Nord du Not list

(65 players currently in MLS that I don't want to see on the Minnesota United roster in 2018)
(Or if you prefer, I have broken the players down, by position, below.)
Tesho Akindele
Arturo Alvarez
Quincy Amarikwa
Jalil Anibaba
Emmanuel Boateng
Deshorn Brown
Benoit Cheyrou - RETIRED
Aurelien Collin
Cristian Colman
Warren Creavalle
Cody Cropper
Christian Dean
Nick DeLeon
Tyler Deric
Clement Diop
Andrew Dykstra
Kevin Ellis
Sean Franklin
Raymon Gaddis
Luis Gil
Jake Gleeson
Marlon Hairston
David Horst
Erik Hurtado
Andrew Jacobson
Adam Jahn
Jared Jeffrey
Will Johnson
Taylor Kemp
Jon Kempin
Brad Knighton
Chris Korb
Connor Lade
Kekuta Manneh
Felipe Martins
Darren Mattocks
Jack McInerney
Roy Miller
Ashtone Morgan
Yura Movsisyan
Chance Myers
Dominic Oduro
Kofi Opare
Damien Perrinelle
Jacob Peterson
Leonardo
Dave Romney
Brian Rowe
Soony Saad
Marcelo Sarvas
Brek Shea
Harry Shipp
Luis Silva
Jay Simpson
Sunday Stephen
Daniel Steres
Cristian Techera
Russell Teibert
Chris Tierney
Maximiliano Urruti
Jared Watts
Andrew Wenger
Joe Willis
Marvell Wynne
Gyasi Zardes


----------
----------


By Position
G:
Cody Cropper
Tyler Deric
Clement Diop
Andrew Dykstra
Jake Gleeson
Jon Kempin
Brad Knighton
Brian Rowe
Joe Willis

FB:
Jalil Anibaba
Christian Dean
Sean Franklin
Taylor Kemp
Chris Korb
Connor Lade
Roy Miller
Chance Myers
Brek Shea
Chris Tierney

CB:
Aurelien Collin
Kevin Ellis
David Horst
Ashtone Morgan
Kofi Opare
Damien Perrinelle
Leonardo
Dave Romney
Daniel Steres
Jared Watts
Marvell Wynne

DM:
Warren Creavalle
Raymon Gaddis
Andrew Jacobson
Jared Jeffrey
Will Johnson
Marcelo Sarvas
Sunday Stephen

CM:
Luis Gil
Erik Hurtado
Russell Teibert

OM:
Arturo Alvarez
Nick DeLeon
Marlon Hairston
Felipe Martins
Jacob Peterson
Soony Saad
Harry Shipp
Luis Silva

F:
Tesho Akindele
Quincy Amarikwa
Emmanuel Boateng
Deshorn Brown
Cristian Colman
Adam Jahn
Kekuta Manneh
Darren Mattocks
Jack McInerney
Yura Movsisyan
Dominic Oduro
Jay Simpson
Cristian Techera
Maximiliano Urruti
Andrew Wenger
Gyasi Zardes

Some Soccer News for Dec 19, 2017

It's Day 353 of 2017.


MLS will announce Nashville as its next expansion team on Wednesday. From the Nashville Tennessean.

dN

MINNESOTA UNITED PARTIAL 2018 SCHEDULE

Minnesota United will begin the 2018 season on the road:
-Sat Mar 3
San Jose Earthquakes v Minnesota United

And then play their first home game of the season on St Patrick's Day:
-Sat Mar 17
Minnesota United v Chicago Fire

I don't know if they have a bye week in between or we just don't have that part of the schedule yet.

They will also travel to Portland to open their stadium after they add more seats:
-Sat Apr 14
Portland Timbers v Minnesota United

dN

MLS PARTIAL 2018 SCHEDULE

All 23 MLS Home Opening Games for 2018:
-Sat Mar 3
Toronto v Columbus
Houston v Atlanta
Orlando v DC
Dallas v Salt Lake
Colorado v Chicago
San Jose v Minnesota
Philadelphia v New England
-Sun Mar 4
Seattle v LAFC
Vancouver v Montreal
Kansas City v NYC
LAG v Portland
-Sat Mar 10
Columbus v Montreal
New England v Colorado
Salt Lake v LAFC
NYRB v Portland
Chicago v Kansas City
-Sun Mar 11
Atlanta v DC
NYC v LAG
-Sat Mar 17
Montreal v Toronto
DC v Houston
Minnesota v Chicago
-Sat Apr 14
Portland v Minnesota
-Sun Apr 29
LAFC v Seattle

dN

CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Two Legged Championship Bracket:
-Match dates TBA
Chivas v Cibao
Seattle v Santa Tecla
RBNY v Olimpia
Tijuna v Motagua
Tigres v Herediano
Toronto v Colorado
Dallas v Tauro
America v Saprissa

Match Date Range:

• Round of 16: Feb 20-22 + Feb 27- Mar 1
• Quarterfinals: Mar 6-8 + Mar 13-15
• Semifinals: Apr 3-5 + Apr 10-12
• Finals: Apr 17-19 + Apr 24-26

dN

MLS

Colorado has signed 31 year old American left fullback Edgar Castillo from Monterrey in Liga MX.

• Castillo only played 1 game for Monterrey in the Fall season.

dN

AMERICANS ABROAD

Edgar Castillo has left Monterrey and signed with Colorado Rapids in MLS.

dN

WORLDWIDE

A list of the The 100 best footballers in the world 2017. From The Guardian.

• Here is #100 - #71

dN

EUROPEAN NEWS

Some said coaching in the Premier League would be much harder than the Bundesliga or La Liga. Pep Guardiola probably begs to differ. By Rory Smith for the New York Times.

dN

BIG TEAMS + GAMES IN EUROPE'S TOP LEAGUES

Mid-Week Schedule:
-Wed Dec 20
Toulouse v Lyon
Marseille v Troyes
Monaco v Rennes
PSG v Caen

Weekend Schedule:
-Fri Dec 22
Arsenal v Liverpool
Espanyol v Atletico Madrid
-Sat Dec 23
Real Madrid v Barcelona
Everton Chelsea
Sassuolo v Inter
Juventus v Roma
Man City v Bournemouth
Leicester v Man United
Milan v Atalanta
Napoli v Sampdoria
Burnley v Tottenham
Valencia v Villarreal

dN

BIG TEAMS IN EUROPEAN LEAGUE CUP GAMES

DFB Pokal Round of 16
-Wed Dec 20
Bayern v Dortmund

English League Cup Quarterfinals
-Tue Dec 19
Arsenal v West Ham
Leicester v Man City
-Wed Dec 20
Chelsea v Bournemouth
Bristol v Man United

Coppa Italia
Rd of 16
-Tue Dec 19
Napoli v Udinese
-Wed Dec 21
Roma v Torino
Juventus v Genoa
Quarterfinals
-Tue Dec 26
Milan v Inter



The Bird Is The Word

Some Soccer News for Dec 18, 2017

It's Day 352 of 2017.


Christian Pulisic and Dortmund have had a relatively rough Fall 2017.

dN

American midfielder Jonathan Gonzalez named to Liga MX Apertura Best 11.

dN

Alex Morgan and Keylor Navas were named CONCACAF Womens and Mens Player Of The Year.

dN

CONCACAF Champions League Round of 16 Draw is Monday at 6pm CT.
Here are the teams:
(Pot 1)

• America
• Dallas
• Guadalajara
• New York Red Bulls
• Seattle Sounders
• Tigres
• Tijuana
• Toronto

(Pot 2)

• Cibao (Dominican Republic)
• Colorado Rapids
• Herediano
• Motagua
• Olimpia
• Santa Tecla (El Salvador)
• Saprissa
• Tauro (Panama)

Each round is 2 Legs
Match Dates:

• Round of 16: Feb 20-22 + Feb 27- Mar 1
• Quarterfinals: Mar 6-8 + Mar 13-15
• Semifinals: Apr 3-5 + Apr 10-12
• Finals: Apr 17-19 + Apr 24-26

All the details.

dN

Official: Giovani Savarese named head coach of Portland Timbers.

dN

What FIFA deserves more than anything is a 48 team 2026 World Cup hosted by Morocco.

• Current status of the US-MEX-CA bid. By Steven Goff for the Washington Post.

dN

MINNESOTA UNITED

The Loons signed right fullback Tyrone Mears from Atlanta. He is 34 years old.

dN

MLS

Atlanta pulled off a deal to sign Darlington Nagbe from Portland. He will have his best chance ever to shine.

Toronto wisely signed centerback Drew Moor to a new 1 year contract.

dN

AMERICANS ABROAD

Keaton Parks made his Primeira Liga debut with Benfica as a fullback, coming on as a sub in a 1-5 win over CD Tondela.

• He signed a new contract with Benfica just last week.

dN

MEXICO - COPA MX

Final
-Thu Dec 21
Monterrey v Pachuca

dN

EUROPEAN NEWS

What is so impressive about Manchester City and their 15 (now 16) game winning streak? By Victor Mather for the New York Times.

Three Teams Unbeaten in the Big 5 Leagues:

• Manchester City 17-1-0
• Barcelona 13-3-0
• Atletico Madrid 10-6-0

dN

BIG TEAMS + GAMES IN EUROPE'S TOP LEAGUES

My Notes:

• AC Milan appears to be going down the tubes. Articles about financial issues abound, and they got pummeled by Hellas Veronas.
• Inter Milan also lost (first time this season) and fell from 1st to 3rd.
• Tottenham was crushed by Man City.
• -Valencia and Leipzig lost too and might be out of the "Big Teams" list soon.

Weekend Results:
-Fri Dec 15
Saint-Etienne 0-4 Monaco
-Sat Dec 16
Arsenal 1-0 Newcastle
Atletico Madrid 1-0 Deportivo Alaves
Stuttgart 0-1 Bayern
Chelsea 1-0 Southampton
Dortmund 2-1 Hoffenheim
Inter 1-3 Udinese
Torino 1-3 Napoli
Rennes 1-4 PSG
Roma 1-0 Cagliari
Eintracht Frankfurt 2-2 Schalke
Man City 4-1 Tottenham
Eibar 2-1 Valencia
-Sun Dec 17
Barcelona 4-0 Deportivo La Coruna
Bologna 0-3 Juventus
Leipzig 2-3 Hertha
Bournemouth 0-4 Liverpool
Lyon 2-0 Marseille
West Brom 1-2 Man United
Hellas Verona 3-0 Milan

Mid-Week Schedule:
-Wed Dec 20
Toulouse v Lyon
Marseille v Troyes
Monaco v Rennes
PSG v Caen



The Bird Is The Word