[MLS] TFC is last in the Eastern Conference but again ranks No. 1 among MLS teams in players called for international duty as league coaches prepare for crucial games. Toronto isn’t in the same absurd position as it was during the last FIFA international fixture window, when no less than nine players were summoned and it fielded one of its scouts and a few other short-term emergency signings in a 3-1 loss to Chivas USA. But it will be missing five players this time around to play Dallas on Saturday. Several other teams, including the Los Angeles Galaxy, have been hit call-ups for World Cup qualifying as they aim for playoff spots.
Author Archives: Ridge Mahoney
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
D.C. injury wave sweeps away Fred
To the list of obstacles impeding D.C. United’s push for the playoffs can be added injuries to midfielder Fred, who is out for the season.
Fred has aggravated a strained hamstring, and like midfielder Marcelo Gallardo, won’t return to action this year.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
DeRo steal bags a win
The best show in American soccer, De Ro and the Dynamo, wowed the crowd again Tuesday night at Robertson Stadium. Ten minutes after he came on as a sub, Dwayne DeRosario stole a ball in midfield and seared the net from 30 yards to earn Houston a 2-1 victory over Panamanian club San Francisco FC and a piece of the lead atop Group A of the Concacaf Champions League.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Injury to DP Gallardo devastating for D.C.
[MLS] As the Galaxy and Red Bulls have learned, tying up a huge salary and grand expectations in one (Designated) player can be risky. Marcelo Gallardo is this year’s case in point.
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
Stumbles at home jumble playoff race
A while ago, Kansas City coach Curt Onalfo confidently stated his team could and would pick up the points needed to reach the playoffs because of a run of home matches at CommunityAmerica Ballpark.
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
Scheduling vitriol is heating up
The 2008 MLS season is far from over, yet Commissioner Don Garber has already begun lobbying for 2009 to be the Year of the Conflict. Next weekend numerous MLS teams will be again be deprived of players called up to play for their national teams in World Cup qualifiers, and league executives will again jab, duck and parry the inevitable criticisms of teams stripped of important players as the playoff chase intensifies. That’s just a warmup for next year.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Dicey decisions leave MLS playoff hopefuls tied
An unfair decision but perhaps a fair result left both FC Dallas and San Jose wishing they’d done more in their 1-1 tie Thursday night at Pizza Hut Park.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Jaime Moreno suspension extended
[MLS] D.C. United’s desperate quest to reach the playoffs will see it play two of its final four games without the player that has produced the most goals. The MLS Disciplinary Committee has doubled the fine and suspension incurred by Jamie Moreno for his elbow to the face of Dallas midfielder Andre Rocha during their match at Pizza Hut Park last Sunday. Moreno is second on the team in goals with 10 and leads United with nine assists.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Luck betrays D.C. against Cruz Azul
[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS’ LEAGUE] Bad soccer has plagued D.C. United for much of this forgettable season yet it can make a case that bad luck Wednesday at RFK Stadium just about extinguished its slim hopes of advancement in the regional championship.A bizarre carom off Cruz Azul forward Pablo Zeballos redirected a shot past United keeper Zach Wells for the only goal in a 1-0 game that all but eliminated D.C. (0-3-0) with three CCL matches still to play. The other three teams in Group A all have six points.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Help off the shelf for D.C. and Dallas
[MLS] The MLS playoff jumble may add a few more variables this week, as key injured players get ready to get back into it. D.C. United and FC Dallas, which are just below the playoff zone, stand to benefit.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Dynamo fireworks in Mexico City
[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE] Houston still must play four of its six group games, yet the Dynamo strengthened the chances of advancement in the regional championship by coming home from Mexico City with a spectacular 4-4 tie against UNAM at the Stadio Olimpico Universitario on Wednesday.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
RSL set to open in … Rio Tinto!
Mock it if you will, but the naming-rights deal announced today for its new stadium moves Real Salt Lake up another notch in the business sector, more than a week before it unveils its new home on national television.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Weighing Bradley’s Choices
[MY VIEW] In the next few days, names of players summoned by U.S. coach Bob Bradley for the next two Concacaf World Cup qualifiers will begin to leak out, with the inclusion or lack thereof of Freddy Adu, Jozy Altidore, Eddie Johnson and Kenny Cooper drawing the most interest.
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
Assessing the midnight-hour moves
At the MLS All-Star Game in Toronto two months ago, the fate of Jeff Cunningham sparked much banter on the sidelines and in the press box.
Posted inSoccer America Magazine, Story
MLS Game Changers: Jorge Rojas
Rojas heads Red Bull makeover
Posted inSoccer America Magazine, Story
MLS Game Changers: Darren Huckerby
‘Hucks’ brings zip and zeal
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
Forza the college game!
Every year, the critics of Division I men’s college soccer circle and swoop, citing the short schedule, limited budgets and liberal substitution rules as impossible impediments to attaining a professional career.
Posted inSoccer America Magazine, Story
MLS Game Changers: Brian McBride
Fire gets its hometown hero
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
D.C. downed; USL remains undefeated
[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE] There was a silver lining to D.C. United’s latest defeat in international play. The Montreal Impact outshot Mexico’s Atlante but settled for a scoreless tie at home to keep USL clubs undefeated the regional championship.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
A new dawn for Real Salt Lake
Since starting up four years ago, Real Salt Lake has stumbled a few times on and off the field, yet on two fronts it is establishing a long-term commitment to the community and its fans.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Resilient Dynamo grinds out a point
[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS’ LEAGUE] As an organization and as a team, the Houston Dynamo has a curious method of enduring congested schedules, acts of nature, and occasional upheavals.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Crew clinches playoff spot, seven spots left
[MLS] By notching four points in two matches it has played without the assist catalyst, Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Columbus ended a three-year playoff drought. For a playoff race update …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Houston Dynamo copes with Ike
Rather than jam its postponed Concacaf Champions’ League match into an already crowded schedule, the Houston Dynamo will instead delay it as long as possible. Hurricane Ike forced the Dynamo’s first of six CCL matches last Wednesday against Salvadoran champion CD Luis Angel Firpo to be rescheduled, and on Monday the team announced the new date: Nov. 26, three days after MLS Cup. The Dynamo is in Panama City to play its first CCL match against league champion San Francisco FC on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET, Fox Soccer Channel).