QUESTION ON MY MINDWho will help save my team?
The Minnesota Thunder is all but dead. This is horrible news. The team has been around since 1990 and won many amazing games & trophies, but currently finds itself in the hands of ownership who appear to be lying to everyone in sight, and have no money at all. A report came out over the weekend that says it looks like even all
the players have been released from their contracts. The details are sketchy, but Brian Quarstad at
Inside Minnesota Soccer has been doing an incredible job in
uncovering as much as he possibly can. (The local newspapers have only followed his lead, beaten to the punch again.) We need help! Desperately! To save our team!
STARTERSIt'll be Colombia v Switzerland and Spain v Nigeria in the U17 World Cup Semifinals on Thursday.
MLS PLAYOFF NEWSA big anti-whoopty-do it turned out to be for Columbus winning the Supporters Shield this year. They were the #1 over all seed, yet they had to travel all the way west to Salt Lake (at high altitude) for the 1st leg game, and then get the shortest turnaround of any series for their 2nd leg game. The Champs got hosed by the schedulers. On the other hand, they had their chances and blew it.
dNRogers Gone? - Do you remember those mystery Twitters we saw late last Thursday night from Crew midfielder Robbie Rogers? (See Friday's news post.) Well, I got an email over the weekend from a loyal reader who wondered if this is what those Twitters might have meant: "
GM Mark McCullers has informed Robbie he will be left unprotected in the expansion draft..." Are they really bailing on him?
dNI was in Chicago on Saturday night for the Fire v Rev's 2nd leg. It was a gorgeous night. The fact that I didn't need a coat on November 7th in the midwest is almost surreal. It was awesome to see Toyota Park completely full of people wearing red. It's the sight that all of us soccer fans in America dream about. The game was very good in the first half, dull for the first 25 minutes of the second half, and then exploded in the last 15. Great night. The only way that could have gone better for me is if New England had managed to score at the very end and sent the game into extra time chaos. Now that would have been really wild!
dNTom Dunmore of Pitch Invasion was at that game as well, and writes
this fantastic description of what its like to be real fans of your team. (Thanks to D for the link)
-Fire supporters, aka Section 8, had a sit down with team owner Andrew Hauptman last week.
This is what transpired.
dNJill Painter of the LA Daily News with an article
just raving about Landon Donovan. Fantastic to see him getting some due from traditional sports columnists.
dNJames Edward of the Deseret News writes about
Salt Lakes early prep for Chicago next Saturday night.
dNThe Deseret News has a
Q & A with RSL captain Kyle Beckerman.
dNSteve Pastorino (former RSL GM) writing for the Salt Lake Tribune says
RSL coach Jason Kreis has done a great job in the post season so far.
dNHoly smokes - has Houston's new forward Luis Landin been eating well or what? Believe me, I should know.
dNHouston's left back Mike Chabala will not play in the semifinal after receiving a second Yellow Card in the playoffs. He get's a one game suspension.
dNIt was nice to see Beckman sporting the Cockatiel look.
MLS PLAYOFF SCHEDULEQuarterfinals - 2nd Leg
Matches & Scores:
EASTERN CONCERENCE-Thu Nov 5
Columbus Crew (1) 2-3 Real Salt Lake (4) - RSL advance 4-2 on aggregate - CC goals both by Guillermo Barros Schelotto. RSL goals by Javier Morales, Robbie Findley(PK) & Andy Williams.
Venue: Crew Stadium - Columbus OH
Attendance: 10,109
-Sat Nov 7
Chicago Fire (2) v New England Revolution (3) Chic advance 3-2 on aggregate - CF goals by John Thorrington & Cuauhtemoc Blanco.
Venue: Toyota Park - Bridgeview IL
Attendance: 21,528
Match report by Nick Firchau of the Chicago Sun Times.
Match report by Orrin Schwarz of Chicago's Daily Herald.
Match report by Sam Stejskal of Chicago Now.
Post game analysis by Stejskal.
Post game notes on McBrides injury by Stejskal
Match report by Kyle McCarthy of the Boston Herald.
Post game analysis by McCarthy.
Match report from the Boston Globe.
Post game analysis from the Globe.
WESTERN CONCERENCE-Sun Nov 8
Houston Dynamo (2) 1-0 Seattle Sounder FC (3) Hou advance 1-0 on aggregate - HD goal by Brian Ching.
Venue: Robertson Stadium - Houston TX
Attendance: 27,465
Match report by Bernardo Fallas of the Houston Chronicle.
Post game notes by Fallas.
More post game notes by Fallas on his blog.
Post game notes by Glenn Davis of the Chronicle on his blog.
Match report by Jose Miguel Romero.
Post game notes by Romero.
Post game quotes from Seattle coach & players by Romero.
Post game quotes from Houston players by Romero.
Match report from the Seattle Post Intelligencer.
Post game analysis from the Intelligencer.
Another post game analysis from the Intelligencer.
-Sun Nov 8
Los Angeles Galaxy (1) 1-0 Chivas USA (4) LA advance 3-2 on aggregate - LAG goal by Landon Donovan(PK)
Venue: Home Depot Center - Carson CA
Attendance: 27,000
Match report by Phil Collin of the LA Daily News.
Post game notes by Nick Green of the Daily Breeze on his blog 100 Percent Soccer.
Match report by Luis Bueno of the Press Enterprise.
Match report by Graham Jones of the Los Angeles Times.
dNSemifinals
Matches & Scores:
-Fri Nov 13
Los Angeles Galaxy v Houston Dynamo - 10pm Central on ESPN2
Venue: Home Depot Center - Carson CA
-Sat Nov 14
Chicago Fire v Real Salt Lake - 7pm Central on FSC
Venue: Toyota Park - Bridgeview IL
dNFinal
Match & Score:
-Sun Nov 22
7:30pm Central on ESPN
MLSKyle McCarthy of the Boston Herald with a
post season analysis of the New England Revolution.
TEAM USAWe've got International Friendly matches in Slovakia & Denmark!
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Nov 14
Slovakia v USA - 9am Central on FSC
-Wed Nov 18
Denmark v USA - 1:30pm Central - TV TBA
dNHere is the roster
G:
Brad Guzan - Aston Villa
Marcus Hahnemann - Wolverhampton
Troy Perkins - Valerenga
D:
Carlos Bocanegra - Rennes
Jonathan Bornstein - Chivas USA
Steve Cherundolo - Hannover
Jimmy Conrad - Kansas City Wizards
Clarence Goodson - Start
Frankie Hejduk - Columbus Crew
Chad Marshall - Columbus Crew
Heath Pearce - FC Dallas
Jonathan Spector - West Ham
M:
Michael Bradley - Monchengladbach
Clint Dempsey - Fulham
Benny Feilhaber - AGF Aarhus
Sacha Kljestan - Chivas USA
Dax McCarty - FC Dallas
Robbie Rogers - Columbus Crew
F:
Jozy Altidore - Hull City
Conor Casey - Colorado Rapids
Jeff Cunningham - FC Dallas
Eddie Johnson - Fulham
USA WORLD CUP 2018/22 BIDHere is the Timetable:
2009Nov 10-12 - Workshop for final presentations from Cities
Dec - Determination of final Cities for Bid submission
2010May 14 - Bid submission to FIFA
Aug - FIFA Venue Inspection Tour
Dec - Final decision by FIFA for Host of 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups
Thanks to Kyle Rogers of the Kansas City Wizards for that information.
dNKansas City also very much wants to be a host city if the USA gets the bid. If you want to support their plan you can check it out online
right here.
AMERICANS IN EUROPEMarcus Tracy scored the games only goal on Sunday as Aalbourg beat Kobnhaven 1-0. A big win!
dNFrank is Back! Frank Simek has finally returned to the Sheffield Wednesday starting line up for the first time in ages. He has fought back from a bad ankle injury that has kept him out for what seems like a year and a half. There had been talking of sending him out on loan to get games, but it appears as though he is getting up to speed at Wednesday.
dNDaMarcus Beasley also played in a league game for the first time in ages. He came on as a half time sub for Rangers. And I am not sure, but he may have come on as a defender.
dNGame Action: (only those that played are listed)
DENMARK - Superliga
Benny Feilhaber - AGF Aarhus - played 90 as they drew 1-1 at Koge.
Michael Parkhurst - Nordsjaelland - went the full 90 and won 0-1 at Sonderjyske.
Marcus Tracy - AaB - started and went 74 minutes, scoring the winning goal as they beat Kobnhaven 1-0 at home.
Jeremiah White - AGF Aarhus - started and went 75 in a 1-1 road draw at Koge.
ENGLAND - Premiership
Jozy Altidore - Hull City - started and went 83 (his sub, the immaculately named Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink scored the game winner) as they beat Stoke 2-1 at home.
Clint Dempsey - Fulham - went the full 90 and scrored the teams goal on a Penalty Kick as they drew 1-1 at Wigan.
Brad Friedel - Aston Villa - went the full 90 as then wolloped Bolton 5-1 at home.
Tim Howard - Everton - went the distance as usual and won 1-2 at West Ham. This win was badly needed.
Jonathan Spector - West Ham - played the full match but lost 1-2 at home to Everton.
ENGLAND - Championship
Frank Simek - Sheffield Wednesday - started and played 72 minutes but they lost at home 1-2 to Queens Park Rangers.
ENGLAND - League One
Mike Grella - Leeds - came off the bench in the 86th minute and sealed the 2-0 road victory over Oldham with a goal in the 90th minute in the FA Cup.
Jon-Paul Pittman - Wycombe - started and played 81 minutes, scoring a goal, as they drew 4-4 with Brighton in the FA Cup. They will now replay the game.
FRANCE - Ligue 1
Carlos Bocanegra - Rennes - started but was pulled in the 66th minute as they lost 3-2 at Toulouse.
GERMANY - Bundesliga
Michael Bradley - Monchengladbach - went the distance in a scoreless home draw against Stuttgart.
Steve Cherundolo - Hannover - went the distance but drew 2-2 at home to Hamburg.
GERMANY - 2 Bundesliga
Kenny Cooper - 1860 Munich - came on as a sub in the 74th minute, but they lost 1-0 at Energie Cottbus.
Matt Taylor - Frankfurt - started and played 75 minutes but they could only get a 0-0 home draw against Arminia Bielefeld.
David Yelldell - Koblenz - played the full match but lost 2-1 at Paderborn.
NETHERLANDS - Eerste Divisie
Charles Kazlauskas - Helmond Sport - went the full monty as they won at home 3-1 over TOP/Oss.
SCOTLAND - Premiership
DaMarcus Beasley - Rangers -
came on as a sub at halftime (!) as they beat St Mirren 2-1 at home.
AMERICANS IN MEXICOGame Action: (only those that played are listed)
PRIMERA DIVISIONEdgar Castillo - UANL Tigres - went the distance, and scored the last goal as they be Atlante 4-0 at home.
Jose Francisco Torres - Pachuca - played all 90 but lost 3-0 at Toluca.
Marco Vidal - Indios Juarez - started and lasted 70 miuntes, getting a Yellow Card, as they lost at home 0-1 to Chiapas.
dNComing Up:The final round of this season.
PRIMERA DIVISIONEdgar Castillo - UANL Tigres - Sat Nov 14 at Pachuca
Michael Orozco - San Luis - Sat Nov 14 at Queretaro
Jose Francisco Torres - Pachuca - Sat Nov 14 v UANL Tigres
Marco Vidal - Indios Juarez - Sun Nov 15 at UNAM Pumas
dNUANL, San Luis & Pachuca are all still alive for one of the last 3 playoff spots. Indios however are by far the worst team in the league with only 5 points, 10 behind their nearest competitor. And you thought the Red Bulls of New York were bad this season.
MEXICOToluca, Cruz Azul, Morelia, Santos Laguna, America, Monterrey and Puebla have clinched playoff spots, and are awaiting 3 more.
Then the bottom 4 square off with the 2 winners joining the top 6.
ENGLANDThe Guardian gives us
Five things we learned from the Premier League this weekend.
SPAINPhil Ball of ESPN Soccernet on
a "taxing" week in Spain, and the two big teams from Madrid.
dNSid Lowe of the Guardian says
its Groundhogs day for Atletico Madrid, and a round up of the weekend in La Liga.
GERMANYSimon Kuper of the Financial Times looks at the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall with the story of
a man still fighting the East.
dNRaphael Honigstein of the Guardian on yet
another Bayern Munich face plant and the rest of the Bundesliga.
ITALYAfter a sour start to the season Milan has climbed their way up to #3 in the table, just 2 points behind #3 Juventus, and 7 back from #1, and city rivals, Inter.
dNPaolo Bandini of the Guardian on
the unraveling of Lazio, and a round up of the weekend from Serie A.
BIG EUROPEAN CLUB MATCHESMatches & Scores:
-Sat Nov 7
Atletico Madrid 2-3 Real Madrid - the hosts were down 0-3 and fought back late to make a game of it.
Bayern Munich 1-1 Schalke - the draw did neither one of them any favors, but it hurt Bayern much more because they dropped from #6 to #8. Schalke are still at #4.
-Sun Nov 8
Inter 1-1 Roma - the tied game shaves 2 points off Inter's lead over Juventus who got a win.
Lyon 5-5 Marseille - an insanely wild shoot out, with both teams scoring in stoppage time. The draw also takes Lyon out of the lead again.
Twente 1-0 Ajax - nothing but the point totals changed as #1 beat #3.
Chelsea 1-0 Manchester United - huuuuge win for the home team, who now have a 5 point lead over their fellow contenders. Big time!
BRAZILWith 4 rounds left to play in the Campeanato Brasileiro there are an astonishing 10 teams still technically alive for the title.
Standings - after 34 of 38 games played:
59
Sao Paulo - Last: D 1-1 Gremio - Next: Sat Nov 14 v EC Vitoria
58
Palmeiras - Last: L 1-0 at Fluminense - Next: Wed Nov 11 v Sport
57
Flamengo - Last: W 1-3 at Atletico MG - Next: Sun Nov 15 at Nautico
56
Atletico MG - Last: L 1-3 Flamengo - Next: Sat Nov 14 at Cortiba
54
Cruzeiro - Last: W 2-3 at Sport - Next: Sat Nov 14 v Gremio
53
Internacional - Last: D 1-1 at Gremio Barueri - Next: Sun Nov 15 v Santos
50
Avai - Last: W 0-1 at EC Vitoria - Next: Sun Nov 15 v Corinthians
49
Corinthians - Last: W 2-0 v Esporte Clube Santo Andre - Next: Sun Nov 15 at Avai
48
Gremio - Last: D 1-1 v Sao Paulo - Next: Sat Nov 14 at Cruzeiro
47
Goias - Last: L 2-0 at Atletico Paranaense - Next: Sun Nov 15 v Esporte
U17 WORLD CUP NIGERIASwtizerland & Colombia will face off in one Semifinal, with Spain taking on the hosts Nigeria in the other.
dNOfficial web sitedNQuarterfinals
Matches & Scores:
-Sun Nov 8
Colombia 1-1 Turkey - Col win 5-3 in Penalty Kick Shootout - Col goal by Jorge Luis Ramos. Tur goal by Muhammet Demir.
Italy 1-2 Switzerland - Ita goal by Federico Carraro. Swi goals by Nassim Ben Khalifa & Oliver Buff.
-Mon Nov 9
Spain 3-3 Uruguay - Spa win 4-2 in Penalty Kick Shootout - Spa goals by Isco(PK) & Borja(2). Uru goals by Adrian Luna, Gabriel Mezquida & Sebastian Gallegos.
South Korea 1-3 Nigeria - SK goal by Son Heung Min. Nig goals by Ramon Azeez, Abdul Ajagun & Terry Envoh.
dNSemifinals
Matches & Scores:
-Thu Nov 12
Colombia v SwitzerlandSpain v NigeriadNFinal
Match & Score:
-Sun Nov 15
v dNBracket
