[PREVIEW] When the USA and Poland national teams renew their biennial international series Wednesday in Krakow (3:30 p.m. ET, Fox Soccer Channel), the match will be shaded by the influences of a third country. Players of both nations play in Germany or have done so in the past, the teams last met two years ago in Kaiserslautern, and Poland is using the friendly to prepare for its opening game in the 2008 European Championship: a June 8 date with, you guessed it, Germany. Soccer America’s Ridge Mahoney looks at how both teams will approach the game.
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2007 MLS Statistical Leaders
D.C. United’s Luciano Emilio won the goal scoring title. New England’s Steve Ralston led MLS in assists. Chris Klein ended up playing two games above the maximum of 30 following his trade from Real Salt Lake to Los Angeles. For all the 2007 MLS statistical leaders …
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2008 MLS Eastern Conference in Brief
Here are numerical rosters by position with each player’s career MLS statistics and schedules for all seven MLS Eastern Conference teams …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“The standards are growing each year and I genuinely believe we are at the stage now where the top [MLS] sides could survive in the English Premiership.”
— FC Dallas coach Steve Morrow, a former English Premier League player with Arsenal. (Yahoo!Sports)
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TFC Coach: ‘The Worst Performance I’ve Ever Seen’
Toronto FC capped off a poor showing in the Carolina Challenge Cup with a 2-0 loss to tournament host Charleston Battery of the United Soccer League. The MLS club finished winless and in last-place with a 0-2-1 record behind the San Jose Earthquakes (3-0-0), the Battery (1-1-1) and the New York Red Bulls (0-1-2). Last […]
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Injured French Face Questions Against England
Fabio Capello’s England will be near full strength for Wednesday’s friendly at the Stade de France, but France coach Raymond Domenech is faced with an injury list a mile long. The most notable absentee, perhaps, is Lyon striker Karim Benzema, who was carried off over the weekend against Paris Saint-Germain. Veterans Thierry Henry of Barcelona […]
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Host Team in Disarray Ahead of 2010
The 2010 World Cup in South Africa is now 800 days away, and while progress is being made on the ground, the host team is in disarray, says Rob Hughes of the International Herald Tribune. A miserable 71st in FIFA’s world rankings, South Africa doesn’t even crack Africa’s top ten. With a series of poor […]
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Seattle, RSL Add Former NFL Execs
Two former National Football League executives are making the move to Major League Soccer, according to separate reports. Seattle Seahawks vice president Gary Wright will become Senior Vice President of Business Operations for the new MLS team in Seattle, which isn’t set to join the league until 2009, while former Philadelphia Eagles vice president Bill […]
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Becks Needs a Better Supporting Cast in ’08
In his 2008 MLS preview, Houston Chronicle columnist Glenn Davis says the criticism David Beckham received for his on-field performances last year were unfair. Not that those performances were spectacular, but Davis implies that the media ought to overlook that aspect considering the visibility Becks brings to the league. Not only does his “spotlight shine […]
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Picking Donovan is a chance lost
Of the 18 players named to the U.S. roster to face Poland Wednesday in Krakow, perhaps the most obvious selection is the one who should have been omitted: Landon Donovan. Soccer America’s Ridge Mahoney explains.
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Houston Texans lift U-16 crown at Dallas Cup
[CORRECTION] Texans FC Red from Houston, coached by Carl Fleming, won the Dallas Cup U-16 crown last weekend, beating the Rampage Blue (Calif.), 2-0, in the final and the Lonestars Red (Texas), 3-1, in the semis. Led by Marcos "Junior" Escobar‘s eight goals, Fleming’s team scored 14 times in its six games en route to the title.
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Proposing a no-go zone
[REF WATCH] Recent incidents in the English Premier League have Manchester United coach Alex Ferguson saying, “The haranguing of referees is ridiculous, we know that” and Gordon Taylor, the chief executive of the players’ union (PFA) suggesting an "exclusion zone" around referees.
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Toronto comes off nightmare weekend
Building depth is one of Toronto FC’s tenets for its second MLS season but based on results and the comments of Coach John Carver at the Carolina Challenge Cup just having enough bodies doesn’t mean you have a deep squad.
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Quakes down Bulls en route to Carolina Cup title
San Jose and Red Bull New York were supposed to meet Saturday on the opening day of the season but renovations to the Quakes’ temporary home, Buck Shaw Stadium, couldn’t be completed in time, and so both teams instead will have a bye this weekend. They did meet in late March regardless.
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Wizards’ Real win build confidence ahead of D.C. clash
[MLS COUNTDOWN] Last year, Kansas City pounded D.C. United, 4-2, to start a season that eventually produced the Wizards first postseason appearance in three years. The Wizards will open against D.C. again when the 2008 season kicks off this weekend, and tuned up for their repeat performance by beating Real Salt Lake, 1-0, Saturday at the Saturn Cup in Norman, Okla.
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Freddy Adu leads the class
[OLYMPIC QUALIFYING GRADES] U.S. under-23 national team coach Peter Nowak got a look at all 20 players on his roster during Concacaf Olympic qualifying that concluded Sunday. Every player who was with the team for the duration played at least two games. Top marks for players who played two or more games went to Freddy Adu, Stuart Holden, Maurice Edu and Dax McCarty. For all the average grades …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“In all my years in the game, that’s probably the worst performance I’ve ever seen.”
— Toronto FC’s first-year coach John Carver after last season’s worst MLS team finished its 2008 preseason with a 2-0 loss to the USL’s Charleston Battery. (National Post)
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Juve Does Scudetto Race a Favor
“Everything left to play for,” the Corriere dello Sport’s Alessandro Vocalelli declared after Juventus beat Inter Milan, 2-1, to cut Inter’s lead over AS Roma to four points. Earlier in the day, Roma did its part, scraping past relegation-fighter Empoli by the same score with just 10 men. But Juventus really Roma the bigger favor, […]
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Drogba Is Grant’s Unlikely Vindicator
With Chelsea trailing 1-0 with 20 minutes to play against Arsenal, respect for Chelsea manager Avram Grant was in short supply. The Blues were staring down their first potential defeat at Stamford Bridge in almost two years. Off came Michael Ballack and Claude Makelele for Nicolas Anelka and Juliano Belletti, as the crowd started chanting […]
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Becks Aiming for 2010
During an interview with reporters, David Beckham revealed that he plans to keep fighting for his England place long after he reaches 100 caps for England against France on Wednesday night. “I never thought a year or two ago that I would make 95 caps, never mind 100,” the Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder said. “I’m […]
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Technical Directors and the New MLS Talent
It’s one thing to spend a hoard of cash and a designated player slot on a player like David Beckham or Cuauhtemoc Blanco, but the majority of MLS clubs searching for (cheap) international talent are simply trying to fill their rosters, says Nick Firchau of the Southtown Star. As such, men like Frank Klopas, technical […]
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Will Fulham’s Americans Stay or Go?
“Team America,” or Fulham FC, lost again this weekend, and with just seven games left to play in the English Premier League season, relegation is looking more and more like an inevitability. As USSoccerPlayers’ Graig Carbino says, “barring a mini-miracle,” Fulham will be playing second division soccer next season, which means that most of its […]
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Soccer on TV
The USA’s clash with Poland is one of many international friendlies on tap in the midweek. MLS’s 13th season kicks off this weekend; the Direct Kick package offers a free preview.
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REPORT CARD: Gaven shines in loss
[USA-HONDURAS GRADES] Soccer America’s Ridge Mahoney grades the U.S. U-23 players in their 1-0 loss to Honduras in Olympic qualifying on Sunday.
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Nowak’s boys slip in final
As soon as the euphoria of qualifying for the 2008 Olympic Games began to subside late Thursday began the speculation of which over-age players head coach Peter Nowak and U.S. national team coach Bob Bradley might select. A 1-0 overtime loss to Honduras in the final on Sunday offered opportunities.