Some News for Fri Aug 27, 2010

BOB BRADLEY WATCH

Yesterday's meeting with the USSF brought no news. So we go back to standing in the corner, wondering.

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Grahame Jones of the Los Angeles Times proclaims that he is tired of waiting for US Soccer and Bob Bradley to come to a conclusion about the future.

CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

The Group Stage is underway. The set up has 4 groups of 4 with everyone playing the others in their group home and away for a total of 6 games. At the end, the top 2 from each group will advance to the quarterfinals etc, which will also be home and away.

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Matches & Scores
Round Two
-Tue Aug 24
Arabe Unido 1-0 Toronto FC
Santos Laguna 1-0 Columbus Crew
-Wed Aug 25
Cruz Azul 5-4 Real Salt Lake
Seattle Sounders 0-2 Monterrey
Puerto Rico Islanders 4-1 CD FAS
-Thu Aug 26
Toluca 4-0 Olimpia - Tol goals by Juan Cuevas(2), Hector Mancilla & Francisco Arevalo(OG).
Saprissa 4-1 Marathon - Sap goals by Alejandro Sequeira, Jario Arrieta, Josue Martinez & Armando Alonso. Mar goal by Mario Berrios.
Municipal 1-1 Joe Public - Mun goal by Mario Rodriguez. JP goal by Micah Lewis.

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Steven Sandor of the Toronto Sun tells TFC to stop complaining about the refs and just play some good soccer on the road for once.
-Boy, Sandor really has it in for this club.

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Round Three will be played Sep 14-16.

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GROUP STANDINGS:
Group A
3 Real Salt Lake (USA) (0)
3 Arabe Unido (Panama) (0)
3 Toronto (Canada) (0)
3 Cruz Azul (Mexico) (0)
Group B
6 Santos Laguna (Mexico) (+4)
3 Columbus Crew (USA) (0)
1 Municipal (Guatemala) (-1)
1 Joe Public (Trinidad & Tobago) (-3)
Group C
6 Monterrey (Mexico) (+3)
3 Saprissa (Costa Rica) (+2)
3 Marathon (Honduras) (-2)
0 Seattle Sounders (USA) (-3)
Group D
4 Toluca (Mexico) (+4)
4 Puerto Rico Islanders (Puerto Rico) (+3)
1 FAS (El Salvador) (-3)
1 Olimpia (Honduras) (-4)

STORY OF THE DAY

Steve Davis of Daily Soccer Fix reports that strong efforts are being made to bring back the MLS reserve teams.

PICTURE OF THE DAY

Most excellent! FCD midfielder Brek Shea is always good for a snap shot. Click over to 3rd Degree to check it out.

MLS WEEK 22

Matches & Scores:
-Sat Aug 28
Columbus Crew v FC Dallas - 3:00pm Central on Telefutura
Venue: Crew Stadium - Columbus OH
Toronto FC v Real Salt Lake - 6:00pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: BMO Field - Toronto ON
New York Red Bulls v San Jose Earthquakes - 6:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Red Bull Arena - Harrison NJ
New England Revolution v Philadelphia Union - 6:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Gillette Stadium - Foxborough MA
Colorado Rapids v Houston Dynamo - 8:30pm Central on FSC
Venue: Dick's Sporting Goods Park - Commerce City CO
Seattle Sounders FC v Chicago Fire SC - 9:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: Qwest Field - Seattle WA
Los Angeles Galaxy v Kansas City Wizards - 9:30pm Central on Direct Kick
Venue: The Home Depot Center - Carson CA
-Sun Aug 29
CD Chivas USA v DC United - 9:00pm Central on ESPN2
Venue: The Home Depot Center - Carson CA

MLS TEAM & PLAYER NEWS

Steve Davis of Sports Illustrated on the plethora of weekend games with big playoff implications.

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Paul Kennedy of Soccer America shows us the radical shift in the nationality and position of new players coming into the league in the past decade.

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Joshua Mayers of the Seattle Times does a Q & A with Sounder GM Adrian Hanauer about their former player Freddie Ljungberg who returns to Seattle this weekend with Chicago. and the Designated Player positions in general.

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Todd Dybas of the Seattle Post Intelligencer on the return of Ljungberg.

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Don Ruiz of the Olympians on Ljungberg too.

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Brian Straus of Fanhouse introduces us to Union rookie striker Danny Mwanga.

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The Philadelphia Daily News got Union head coach Peter Nowak to answer viewer mail. Wow.

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Marc Narducci of the Philadelphia Inquirer looks at where the Union stands as we are now in the final third of the season.

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Frank Dell'Apa of the Boston Globe on New England's offensive output, and the return of a healthy Kheli Dube should help.

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The Revs website has an article on their former player Jay Heaps who is doing commentary this season on the team's tv games.
-He's no Greg Lalas.

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Michael Lewis of Big Apple Soccer on the improvements and renewed potential of Red Bulls winger Dane Richards. Thierry Henry loves him.

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Guillermo Rivera of Chicago Now stops by Fire training and fills us in on some team news.
-Nery Castillo did NOT travel with the team to Seattle. The team is trying to fast track his fitness level.

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Orrin Schwarz of the Daily Herald gives us more on Castillo, including words from the man himself, and great news on the return of John Thorrington (a big favorite of du Nords.)

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Len Ziehm of the Chicago Sun Times gives us news on a possible defensive realignment for the Fire.

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Daniel Girard of the Toronto Star sees 2 Canadian national team games next week that will really mess with the TFC roster. Remember how bad it was 2 years ago when they had to sign a player just to have enough cover.

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Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun on TFC's challenge to make the playoffs.

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Paul James of the Globe & Mail looks ahead to Salt Lake's trip to TFC this Saturday.
-I predict that Salt Lake with be sluggish.

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John Meyer of the Denver Post on the Rapids battle for a playoff spot.

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The Denver Post in an article about Rapids owner Stan Kroenke becoming the new owner of the NFL St Louis Rams mentions other sports teams he owns, but not the Rapids. I can understand other cities running this story and not mentioning that, but in their own town?

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And the Rapids have also been forced by TV pressure to move their 2 final home games of the season from 7pm primetime spots to 3pm don't-bother-me-I'm-watching-college-football-spots time.

MLS PLAYER MOVEMENT

Toronto has now officially signed 17 year old defender Doniel Henry from their academy. He has already played for the team in some non-MLS games.
-Daniel Girard of The Star on Henry.
-Jason de Vos of the CBC tells us what he thinks this signing means for Canadian soccer.

MLS INTERNATIONALS

5 MLS players are headed for the Jamaican national team next week as they take on Costa Rica on Sun Sep 5 in Kingston.
-Omar Cummings – Colorado Rapids
-Ryan Johnson – San Jose Earthquakes
-Dane Richards – New York Red Bulls
-Donovan Ricketts – Los Angeles Galaxy
-Shavar Thomas – Kansas City Wizards

MLS INJURY REPORT

Shawn Mitchell of the Columbus Dispatch reports that Crew midfielder Emmanuel Ekpo suffered a groin muscle injury and will miss at least this weekends game. And other team injury updates.

MLS/SUM BUSINESS

Craig Merz, who covers the Crew for MLS Soccer, on his Twitter feed (@icer12) suggests that the league is working on the 34 game schedule for next season.

MLS YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

LE Eisenmenger writing for Soccer Lens looks at the institution of transfer fees, and how it could help grow elite youth soccer in America.
-Great concept.

MLS STADIUMS

Columbus Business Journal with an article on the Crew thinking ahead to more fans and an improved/new stadium. Yup, Columbus is already thinking new stadium. My how times have changed.

USSF DIVISION 2

Raf Katigbak of the Montreal Mirror attends an Impact game with the Ultras Montreal. (Thanks to Jack for sending the link)

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San Antonio Express News with an article on a local financier hoping to bring a team to D2.

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Soccer 365 does a Q & A with Ian Joy of the Portland Timbers.

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Matches & Scores:
-Thu Aug 26
Portland Timbers 1-1 Austin Aztex
-Fri Aug 27
Montreal Impact v Rochester Rhinos
-Sat Aug 28
Carolina RailHawks v Puerto Rico Islanders
-Sun Aug 29
Vancouver Whitecaps v Austin Aztex
Tampa Bay Rowdies v AC St Louis
Portland Timbers v Crystal Palace Baltimore

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Standings (As of Thu Aug 26):
48 Rochester - 25 played
45 Austin - 22 played
39 Vancouver - 24 played
35 Portland - 24 played
34 Carolina - 23 played
29 Puerto Rico - 22 played
28 Montreal - 24 played
28 Minnesota - 25 played
27 Tampa Bay - 24 played
24 Baltimore - 24 played
22 St Louis - 23 played
20 Miami - 24 played

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Pro-Rated Standings based on Points Per Game:
2.05 Austin
1.92 Rochester
1.63 Vancouver
1.48 Carolina
1.46 Portland
1.32 Puerto Rico
1.17 Montreal
1.13 Tampa Bay
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
OUT OF PLAY OFF SPOTS
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
1.12 Minnesota
1.00 Baltimore
0.96 St Louis
0.83 Miami

USL-2 NEWS

America's 3rd division has handed out their season awards:

-Most Valuable Player - Lamar Neagle, Charleston Battery
-Rookie of the Year - Jeremy Deighton, Pittsburgh Riverhounds
-Coach of the Year - Mike Anhaeuser, Charleston Battery
-Defender of the Year - Shintaro Harada, Pittsburgh Riverhounds
-Goalkeeper of the Year - Hunter Gilstrap, Pittsburgh Riverhounds

SOCCER IN AMERICA

NY Sports Journalism does a Q & A with John Brody of the Wasserman Media Group. About 2/3's of the way through this article you will see them come to MLS and US Soccer. No real details, but some really positive energy.

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The Memphis Daily News with word on Copa Memphis, a soccer and music festival, starring Brazilian team Botafogo. Really.
-I remember Copa Minnesota. One and done.

TEAM USA

The Toronto Sun reports that Teal Bunbury has turned down an offer to play for the Canadian national team, in hopes that he can play for the USA.

AMERICANS IN EUROPE

Greg Seltzer tells us that Jeremiah White has signed with Belchatow who after 4 rounds are in 2nd place in the Polish top division.

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Two Americans are in the UEFA Champions League groups stage:
-Oguchi Onyewu & Milan will face: Real Madrid, Ajax & Auxerre
-Jermaine Jones & Schalke will face: Lyon, Benfica & Hapoel Tel-Aviv

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Game Action: (only those that played are listed)

ENGLAND - League One
Frank Simek - Carlisle United - Fri Aug 27 - went the full 90 as they drew 1-1 at Colchester United.

NETHERLANDS - Eerste Divisie
Charles Kazlauskas - Helmond Sport - Fri Aug 27 - went the full 90 as they won 0-1 at Dordrecht.

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Coming Up: (all possible players are listed)

BELGIUM - Pro League
Sacha Kljestan - Anderlecht - Sat Aug 28 v Zulte-Waregem

DENMARK - Superliga
Michael Parkhurst - Nordsjaelland - Sun Aug 29 v AaB
Chris Rolfe - AaB - Sun Aug 29 at Nordsjaelland
Marcus Tracy - AaB - Sun Aug 29 at Nordsjaelland

ENGLAND - Premier League
Clint Dempsey - Fulham - Sat Aug 28 at Blackpool
Brad Friedel - Aston Villa - Sun Aug 29 v Everton
Brad Guzan - Aston Villa - Sun Aug 29 v Everton
Marcus Hahnemann - Wolverhampton - Sat Aug 28 v Newcastle United
Stuart Holden - Bolton - Sun Aug 29 v Birmingham City
Tim Howard - Everton - Sun Aug 29 at Aston Villa
Eddie Johnson - Fulham - Sat Aug 28 at Blackpool
Eric Lichaj - Aston Villa - Sun Aug 29 v Everton
Jonathan Spector - West Ham - Sat Aug 28 at Manchester United

ENGLAND - Championship League
Conor Doyle - Derby County - Sat Aug 28 v Queens Park Rangers
Mike Grella - Leeds - Sat Aug 28 at Watford
Zak Whitbread - Norwich - Sat Aug 28 at Nottingham Forest

ENGLAND - League One
Anton Peterlin - Plymouth Argyle - Sat Aug 28 v Peterborough United

FINLAND - Veikkausliiga
Daniel Antunez - Inter Turku - Sun Aug 29 at Oulu

FRANCE - Ligue 1
Carlos Bocanegra - Saint Etienne - Sat Aug 28 v Lens

GERMANY - Bundesliga
Michael Bradley - Monchengladbach - Sun Aug 29 at Bayer Leverkusen
Steve Cherundolo - Hannover - Sat Aug 28 at Schalke
Ricardo Clark - Eintracht Frankfurt - Sat Aug 28 v Hamburg
Jared Jeffrey - Mainz - Sat Aug 28 at Wolfsburg
Jermaine Jones - Schalke - Sat Aug 28 v Hannover
Daniel Williams - Freiburg - Sat Aug 28 at Nurnberg

GERMANY - 2 Bundesliga
Amaechi Igwe - Ingolstadt - Sat Aug 28 at Duisburg
Luis Robles - Karlsruher - Sun Aug 29 v Alemannia Aachen
David Yelldell - Duisburg - Sat Aug 28 v Ingolstadt

LATVIA - Virsliga
Nate Weiss - Jelgava - Sat Aug 28 at Jauniba

NORWAY - Eliteserien
Erik Benjaminsen - Stabaek - Sun Aug 29 v Lillestrom
Steve Clark - Honefoss - Sun Aug 29 at Aalesund
Mikkel Diskerud - Stabaek - Sun Aug 29 v Lillestrom
Hunter Freeman - Start - Sun Aug 29 Rosenborg
Clarence Goodson - Start - Sun Aug 29 v Rosenborg
Di Vita Jensen - Honefoss - Sun Aug 29 at Aalesund

PORTUGAL - Liga de Honra
Tony Taylor - Estoril-Praia - Sun Aug 29 at Moreirense
Greg Garza - Estoril-Praia - Sun Aug 29 at Moreirense

RUSSIA - Premier Division
Yevgeni Starikov - FC Tom Tomsk - Sun Aug 29 v Dinamo Moskva

SCOTLAND - Premier League
Dominic Cervi - Celtic - Sun Aug 29 at Motherwell
Maurice Edu - Rangers - Sat Aug 28 v St Johnstone

SWEDEN - Allsvenskan Liga
Alejandro Bedoya - Orebro - Sat Aug 28 v Helsingborg
Ryan Miller - Halmstad - Sun Aug 29 v Kalmar

AMERICANS IN MEXICO

Coming Up:

PRIMERA DIVISION
Isaac Acuna - America - Sun Aug 29 v Necaxa
Edgar Castillo - San Luis - Sat Aug 28 v Atlante
Herculez Gomez - Pachuca - Sun Aug 29 at Puebla
Sonny Guadarrama - Atlante - Sat Aug 28 at San Luis
Sammy Ochoa - Estudiantes Tecos - Fri Aug 27 v Morelia
Miguel Ponce - Guadalajara - Sat Aug 28 v UNAM Pumas
Jose Torres - Pachuca - Sun Aug 29 at Puebla
Marco Vidal - Pachuca - Sun Aug 29 at Puebla

MEXICO

Its official now - fullback Carlos Salcido has left PSV Eindhoven for Fulham.

ENGLAND

Ewan Murray of the Guardian gives us a taste of why we won't we ever see the two big Glasgow clubs join the Premier League - Manchester United v Rangers in the UEFA Champions League.

SPAIN

Barcelona has bought defensive midfielder Javier Mascherano from Liverpool for 22 Million Euros.

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Sid Lowe of Sports Illustrated previews the new season ahead.

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Opening Weekend of the Spanish Primera Liga
Matches & Scores:
-Sun Aug 29
Deportivo La Coruna v Real Zaragoza
Espanyol v Getafe
Hercules v Athletic Bilbao
Levante v Sevilla
Malaga v Valencia
Mallorca v Real Madrid
Osasuna v Almeria
Racing Santander v Barcelona
Real Sociedad v Villarreal
-Mon Aug 30
Atletico Madrid v Sporting Gijon

GERMANY

Wolfsburg has bought attacking midfielder Diego from Juventus for 15.5 Million Euros.

ITALY

Our friend Roberto Gotta of ESPN Soccernet previews Serie A!

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Paulo Bandini of the Guardian previews the Serie A 2010-11.

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Opening Weekend of the Italian Serie A
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Aug 28
Udinese v Genoa
Roma v Cesena
-Sun Aug 29
Bari v Juventus
Milan v Lecce
Chievo v Catania
Fiorentina v Napoli
Palermo v Cagliari
Parma v Brescia
Sampdoria v Lazio
-Mon Aug 30
Bologna v Inter

UEFA

Atletico win the Super Cup!

UEFA Super Cup
-Fri Aug 27
Inter 0-2 Atletico Madrid - AM goal by Jose Antonio Reyes & Kun Aguiero.

UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE

Here are the 8 sets of 4 teams for the upcoming Group Stage that begins Thu Sep 16:
Group A
Juventus
Manchester City
Red Bull Salzburg
Lech
Group B
Atletico Madrid
Bayer Leverkusen
Rosenborg
Aris Thessalonika
Group C
Sporting
Lille
Levski
Gent
Group D
Villarreal
Club Brugge
Dinamo Zagreb
PAOK
Group E
AZ Alkmaar
Dynamo Kyiv
BATE Borislav
Sheriff
Group F
CSKA Moskva
Palermo
Sparta Praha
Lausanne
Group G
Zenit St Petersburg
Anderlecht
AEK Athens
Hajduk Split
Group H
Stuttgart
Getafe
Odense Boldklub
Young Boys
Group I
PSV Eindhoven
Sampdoria
Metalist Kharkiv
Debrecen
Group J
Sevilla
Paris St Germain
Borussia Dortmund
Karpaty
Group K
Liverpool
Steaua Buchuresti
Napoli
Utrecht
Group L
Porto
Besiktas
CSKA Sofia
Rapid Wien

SOUTH AMERICA

Jack Bell of the New York Times tells us that one of the Chilean miners trapped a half mile underground is former club and national team player Franklin Lobos. (thanks to JJ for that one)

BRAZIL

Santos best player Ganso blew out his left knee last night against Gremio and after surgery will be out at least 6 months, and probably more like 8. Damn.

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Brasileiro Round 17 Matches & Scores:
-Sat Aug 28
Internacional (5) v Botafogo (3) - 4:30pm Central on GolTV
Vasco (9) v Cruzeiro (6)
Ceara (7) v Prudente (16)
Santos (4) v Goias (20)
-Sun Aug 29
Corinthians (2) v Vitoria (11)
Guarani (14) v Flamengo (10)
Atlectico MG (18) v Palmeiras (13)
Fluminense (1) v Sao Paulo (15)
Atletico GO (19) v Avai (8)
Atlectico PR (12) v Gremio (17)