U.S. Soccer’s Development Academy is set to debut competition with the inaugural Fall Showcase Weekend Oct. 6-8 at the National Training Center in Carson, Calif. Forty teams from 20 elite clubs will participate in the three-day event, which includes teams at the U-16 and U-18 age groups.
Category: Soccer America Daily
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Luciano Emilio is front-runner for MLS honors
Kudos to MLS for adding a new award category this year, a prize of far more interest to fans than the internally driven Executive of the Year and the like. (Incidentally, for filling nearly every seat for the entire season at BMO Field, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment is the hands-down choice. Well done. Runner-up is that ticket-seller extraordinaire, David Beckham.)
The Newcomer of the Year is open to all players who joined the league in 2007. It is not restricted in any away — as is the Rookie of the Year Award to first-year professionals — and is an obvious adjunct to the league’s adoption of the Designated Player option. So important have some newcomers been to their teams this season they deserve serious mention as MVP candidates as well.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Tim Howard recovering from hand injury
[CORRECTION] American goalkeeper Tim Howard did not play in Everton’s 1-0 loss to Manchester United last weekend, as reported in Monday’s Daily. Howard dislocated a finger in 58th minute of the USA’s 4-2 loss to Brazil Sept. 9. He managed to play the rest of the game but was deemed unfit upon his return to his English Premier League club. German keeper Stefan Wessels started for Everton in Howard’s place.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Feilhaber makes EPL debut
[AMERICANS IN ENGLAND] Benny Feilhaber made his English Premier League debut on Monday as an 80th minute sub for Derby County in a 1-0 win over Newcastle. Feilhaber, 22, joined Derby from Bundesliga club Hamburg SV in the offseason but was prevented from an earlier debut because of delays in his visa processing. The win was Derby’s first of the season and moved it out of last place.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Brazil leads way going into Women’s World Cup group finales
Led by the reigning FIFA Player of the Year Marta (two goals and two assists), Brazil put in the most dominating performance of the Women’s World Cup when it crushed host China, 4-0, Friday in Wuhan. No team clinched a berth in the final eight going into the group finales Monday-Wednesday. Only Argentina and Ghana have no chance going into their third game. Here’s how the group races look …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
USA looks to extend unbeaten streak to 50 games
[WOMEN’S WORLD CUP] After a 2-0 win over Sweden on Friday thanks to a pair of goals by Abby Wambach — the second on a superb half-volley — the USA faces Nigeria on Tuesday to close out group play at the Women’s World Cup. A tie would be enough to put the USA into the quarterfinals, but it may need a big win (or some help from Sweden against North Korea) to avoid a potential showdown with defending champion Germany in the quarterfinals.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“I’m absolutely speechless.”
— Toronto FC coach Mo Johnston after his team, playing a man up for most of the game, extended its league record scoreless streak to 822 minutes and its winless streak to 11 games in a 0-0 tie with Real Salt Lake. (London Free Press)
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
WEEKEND WRAPUP: International Soccer Headliners
Arsenal is leading the English Premier League after its 3-1 win at Tottenham, while Thierry Henry’s new club Barcelona, failed to score in a 0-0 tie at Osasuna. Canadian Jonathan De Guzman, one of the hottest prospects on the European scene, kept Feyenoord in first place in the Dutch Eredivisie. In Portugal, there was a third coaching casualty in four weeks. Soccer America continues its review of the weekend’s big international news with its International Soccer Headliners series …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
USL First Division Playoff Results
Atlanta and Puerto Rico won USL First Division playoff series for the first time when they advanced to next weekend’s semifinals along with top seeds Seattle and Portland. For complete quarterfinal results and goalscorers and semifinal schedules …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Houston back on top; Toronto fails even against Salt Lake’s 10
Houston won and Chivas USA tied, so the defending champion Dynamo is back in first place; Kansas City stuns Columbus with two goals in stoppage time; New England tops Dallas in a preview of the U.S. Open Cup; Colorado and Chicago rally to earn ties despite being down to 10 men; and the Toronto barren run continues. Soccer America’s Ridge Mahoney reports on all of the weekend’s MLS action …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Beasley scores in Rangers loss
[AMERICANS ABROAD/VIDEO] DaMarcus Beasley scored his second Scottish Premier League goal in five appearances since joining Glasgow Rangers, but his team went down, 4-2, at Hearts as Rangers fell for the first time this season.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Dempsey scores again in EPL
[AMERICANS IN ENGLAND, GERMANY, BELGIUM] Days after being elected by fans as Fulham Player of the Month, Clint Dempsey scored his third EPL goal of the season in the 11th minute of Fulham’s 1-1 tie at Wigan. Fulham’s American defender Carlos Bocanegra hit the crossbar on a header. Blackburn, with Brad Friedel in goal, tied Chelsea, 0-0. Friedel made an acrobatic save in the 27th minute and stifled superbly a 84th minute effort by Andriy Shevchecko, who injured defender Christopher Samba on the play with a kick to the head.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Can it get worse for Toronto?
[MLS PREVIEW] Toronto, scoreless in the last 732 minutes and winless in nine games, hosts Real Salt Lake.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
FC Dallas to test Revs backline
[MLS PREVIEW] They’ve posted the same number of wins playing vastly different styles: the Revs seldom sparkle but can split open opponents, while FC Dallas is adding South American artisans as fast as it can.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Wizards face depleted Crew
[MLS PREVIEW] The Wizards sit seventh in the overall standings and have conceded 37 goals, which ties them with Toronto FC and Real Salt Lake as the league’s most porous defenses. The Crew is tied for ninth with Colorado, a point behind Chicago, and has failed to win any of its last six games.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Can Chicago keep it up when Red Bulls visit?
[MLS PREVIEW] Coach Juan Carlos Osorio has won four of seven games since replacing Dave Sarachan but crunch time is at hand.
Next week, Chicago plays at Dallas and hosts D.C.; against those two teams and New York, it is a combined 0-4 in 2007, and it also must play D.C. again in October.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Colorado hosts first-place Chivas USA
[MLS PREVIEW] Losers of two in a row, the Rapids do have the edge of playing fresh, whereas Chivas USA knocked heads with the Galaxy Thursday night and took over first place in the Western Conference by winning, 3-0.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Floundering Galaxy hosts streaking Dynamo
[MLS PREVIEW] These teams are at opposite ends of the Western Conference, yet both lost excruciating penalty-kick tiebreakers to Pachuca in the SuperLiga, so how different can they be? Well, a lot. They haven’t played since a 0-0 tie at Robertson Stadium way back on April 8; so much has happened since.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
TV PREVIEW: International Weekend Headliners
European clubs are back action after a week off for Euro ’08 qualifying, and Liverpool’s Rafael Benitez isn’t happy with the the Reds’ early kickoff on Saturday. French Thierry Henry will look for his first La Liga goal with Barcelona. The Altintop twins, Hamit and Halil, square off in a Bundesliga clash of giants. In Argentina, struggling River Plate must rebound after a disastrous midweek result. Soccer America’s International Weekend Headliners series continues with a look at what’s on TV.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Women’s World Cup TV ratings in perspective
When the Americans opened play against North Korea at the 2007 Women’s World Cup on Tuesday morning, only 195,000 U.S. households were watching ESPN2’s early-morning telecast from China. But its reairing of the USA-North Korea game on Tuesday evening drew an audience of more than 340,000 households. Here’s putting those viewerships in perspective …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
"Words in Spanish directed at my family, I understand perfectly well. As such when I reacted, it was the wrong reaction but sometimes even rational and normal people err. As such, I would like to apologize to you, to the fans, the players and to the people of Portugal."
— Portugal’s Brazilian coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, who disregarded the sticks-and-stones adage and took a swing at Ivica Dragutinovic after Wednesday’s Euro 2008 qualifier, a 1-1 tie. (Reuters)
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Snakebit Galaxy embarrassed again by Chivas USA
The Galaxy played its role to the hilt once again: running endlessly if somewhat mindlessly, falling behind in the first half, pushing forward aggressively only to squander enough chances to win, and succumbing to a pair of late goals. Final score: Chivas USA 3, Los Angeles 0. Sound familiar?
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Dempsey named Fulham’s Player of the Month
[AMERICANS ABROAD] American attacker Clint Dempsey was named Player of the Month at his English Premier League club Fulham. Dempsey was used a sub in the first three games of the season, then started the next two games and notch a goal in each.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Scots pull Euro upset
Scotland beat France for the second time in European Championship qualifying with a stunning 1-0 win Wednesday night in Paris. Other key results: England picked up its second 3-0 victory in four days, beating Russia at Wembley. The Czech Republic’s 1-0 win over Ireland all but ended the suspense in Group D. Poland and Finland remained 1-2 in Group A after their 0-0 tie in Helsinki. Portugal and Serbia tied, 1-1, in an ill-tempered affair in Lisbon.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“I’m sorry Fergie, I didn’t know it was you.”
— What Kevin Reynolds said after he punched Manchester United coach Alex Ferguson in the groin in an unprovoked attack at a London train station. Reynolds, described as a homeless alcoholic, then chanted, “Fergie, Fergie, shut your mouth.” The 43-year-old, who had 105 previous convictions including several assaults, had been released from prison five days earlier. (The Scotsman)