Category: Soccer America Daily

The San Jose Earthquakes travel to FC Dallas on Thursday (9 pm ET, ESPN2). Both teams are below the playoff zone and FC Dallas leads the Quakes in the West by four points. But the Quakes have a game in hand. FC Dallas striker Jeff Cunningham has five goals and two assists in seven games since arriving via trade with Toronto FC. Earthquakes attacker Arturo Alvarez pays his first visit to Frisco since being traded by FC Dallas in late July. For this weekend’s TV schedule, standings and leading goalscorers …

[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.

[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS’ LEAGUE] The Montreal Impact and the Puerto Rico Islanders of the USL-1, the USA’s second tier league after MLS, extended their unbeaten streaks and lead their respective Champions League groups. Roberto Brown scored twice for Montreal in a 2-1 win in Honduras against Olimpia and the Islanders tied Municipal, 2-2, in Guatemala.

[MLS] The playoff race standings. …

[MLS] Jorge Flores scored three goals in his first three appearances for Chivas USA, which coincided with the club’s rise in the Western Conference after a slow start to the MLS season. The 19-year-old Flores, who earned his spot with Chivas USA through the televised open tryout, Sueno MLS, has seen action in 10 games this season and has earned U.S. U-20 national team call-ups. Get to know Flores in this profile that covers on- and off-field experiences. …

[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.

The regular-season champion Puerto Rico Islanders led all teams with three players named to the USL First Division all-league first team. For all the first- and second-team selections …

[UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE] There were easy wins for Arsenal and Manchester United in Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League group action. But Belarus side BATE Barisov gave Juventus a fright, holding it to a 2-2 draw.

[EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES] Soccer America provides the latest on employment opportunities for soccer-related positions. They include college coaching opportunities, as well as opportunities in pro soccer, youth soccer, the soccer industry and television.

Day 2 of the UEFA Champions League group stage concludes Wednesday. Six of the eight games, including Liverpool-PSV, are available on television. For all the games on television …

[OFF THE POST/VIDEO] On Wednesday (8 pm ET), Gol TV will air a show, "The Art of Football," featuring former Monty Python star John Cleese explaining the rules of the game. For a sample in which Cleese tries to clarify the offside rule. …

[ARGENTINA] River Plate defender Facundo Quiroga scored with a spectacular overhead kick at the weekend. Typifying the club’s fortunes so far this season, it went into the back of his own net.

[ENGLAND] Just two days after Hull City’s stunning 2-1 victory over Arsenal, the Tigers’ chairman, Paul Duffen, issued a warning about the state of the English Premier League. And it wasn’t about the race for the 2009 championship.

The UEFA Champions League resumes with Day 2 of group play. Tuesday’s marquee game is last year’s UEFA Cup champion, Zenit St. Petersburg, against Real Madrid. For all the games on television …

[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.

Columbus and Houston stayed on top of the East and West, respectively. For all the weekend results, standings, leading goal scorers and schedules. …

[AMERICANS ABROAD] Bundesliga veteran Steve Cherundolo returned to his right back spot with Hannover 96 and helped it beat Bayern Munich, 1-0. But other U.S. national team players sat out their team’s weekend action. …

[ENGLAND] Bolton Wanderers and Hull City tried different approaches to playing on the road at much stronger teams Saturday. The lesson was clear, as Hull took plaudits and points from its thrilling 2-1 win at Arsenal.

[GERMANY] Not even Bayern Munich losing its second successive game can keep Hoffenheim out of the headlines. After a making a comeback from three goals down, the newly promoted team lost out to free-scoring Werder Bremen by the odd goal in nine.