CHING!! puts a stumbling block in front of the Fire

Last night a spectacular hat trick by Dynamo legend Brian Ching kept the Chicago Fire at bay. The fire, with a short turn around after a midweek game against the revs, looked sloppy. Sean Johnson and the defense certainly had a game to forget as they allowed four goals from a struggling Dynamo team. Ljunberg kept his good form going with two assists to wilman Conde on a corner and Calen Carr in the run of play. That and an own goal from the Dynamo could not earn even a single point for the fire on the road. Points that are dearly needed if the team is going to make the playoffs. Something Fire fans have come to expect. Johnson and the defense looked particularly unorganized as men went unmarked and goals flew into the back of the net all night. Im not the boss but its my guess that Carlos de los Cobos won't be around long in Chicago. His constant lineup changes and attempts to bring in sub par El Salvadorans has not boded well for the fire this year. I hear Bob Bradley might be on the market again. I'm just saying.

MLS teams begins push to the playoffs and concacaf champions league group play

Most MLS teams have made their mid-season moves and have their rosters set to begin the push to the playoffs. Last night the Revs and the Fire played a crucial game in terms of playoff implications. An 85th minute Calen Carr goal snuck past Reis and gave the Fire a 2-1 victory. As the standings sit right now the fire still remain outside the playoff picture as the Western Conference looks to put 6 teams in. Also last night Real Salt Lake and the Columbus Crew improved MLS teams to 3 and 0 in Champions league group play. Perhaps MLS teams are listening to Garber and taking this contest more seriously. Tonight at 9 the Sounders will look to make it 4-0 for MLS as they take on Marathon. Who do you think makes the playoffs this year? Will this finally be the year an MLS team takes Champions league title?

Macalester Pre-Season Approaches

Determined Scots will be descending on Macalester's campus in just a few weeks time to prepare for the upcoming season in the MIAC. Expectations are high as the Scots will look to repeat as conference champs and more importantly will look to make a deep run into the NCAA tournament. In what some may see as a shocker, Coach Ian Barker was able to keep budding stars, Jonathan Dachenhaus, Ian HC, and the Mercurial Doddy, from being lured overseas by the likes of Tottenham, Mito Hollyhock, and Dutch giants Ajax. One of the more exciting developments for the upcoming season is the new headband rule that the team decided upon. For every game the Macalester Scots will wear either a blue or orange headband, that includes coach Ian Barker. This may come as a surprise to some of you but what most people don't know is that headbands let you jump twice as high, run twice as fast, and have the killer instinct of a great white shark. Yes, it is shocking but you better believe it and you better get ready for a crazy season in the MIAC.

Ian Henderson-Charnow to Mito HollyHock?

Could Henderson-Charnow be heading to J.League 2 side Mito HollyHock?

Ian Henderson-Charnow, 18, of Brooklyn, NY, may be on trial in the land of the ninjas. This past fall, Ian Henderson-Charnow impressed the soccer world with his attacking flair and hard-nosed tackles in his freshman season at Macalester College. "I identified this freshman, and I said that he could be making an impact with the first team sooner rather than later," said Macalester coach Ian Barker. Jonathan Dachenhaus, fellow team mate at Mac, is rumored to have created the opportunity for the highly-touted centre midfielder. Dachenhaus, who has been training with Tottenham Hotspur FC talked highly of the low in stature Henderson-Charnow to coach Harry Redknapp, who has connections with the ambitious Japanese side. The trans-Pacific move might be good for Henderson. His diminutive stature will integrate well with the Hollyhock side. What's next for Mac? Rumor has it that centre forward Eric Dodd of Iowa has been looked at by Polish side Legia Warsaw.....

Jonathan Dachenhaus to Spurs?

From the dirty south to the upper midwest Jonathan Dachenhaus has taken the country by storm. A solid season for the Macalester Scots may have been enough to catch the eye of Harry Redknapp. When asked about his young left back, Macalester head coach Ian Barker said, "I wish that muppet the best of luck across the pond, I just hope Liverpool doesn't thrash him to badly." Jonathan's only comment was to give the credit for his recent success to his teammate Eric "The Mercurial Doddy". "He just brings out the best in me, that happens when you play with people who are better than you", were Jonathan's exact words.
Post your comments below.

Landon Looks to Debut Saturday Against Arsenal

Landon Donovan will begin his most recent European endeavor with Everton this Saturday. The beleagured Toffees are eager for someone who can come in and create some offense for the team and bring them back towards the top of the table. Landon will be with Everton for 10 weeks and then will rejoin the Galaxy for the Galaxy's season opener. He joins fellow American Tim Howard at the toffees as they both try and get to top form before the World Cup in South Africa this summer. Will Landon be able to impress with Everton in his latest stint in Europe? Will he be able to bring Everton back into Europe league contention?

ESPN reveals partial roster on sportscenter?

Sportscenter has just revealed a partial roster for the upcoming match against Mexico. The regulars are present as the US tries to secure its first victory at Azteca Stadium.
Goalkeepers: Brad Guzan, Tim Howard
Defenders: Carlos Bocanegra, Jonathan Spector, Oguchi Onyewu, Jay Demerit, Chad Marshall, Jonathan Bornstein

Oddly that was all that Sportscenter had. Do you like the choices so far? Is anyone left out that you were hoping to see?

Altidore to Hull City

Jozy Altidore is heading to Hull City on a year long loan deal from Villareal. The 19 year-old striker will ply his trade against the best in the Premier league as he prepares for the upcoming World Cup. This loan is pending on a hearing for his work permit that is scheduled for monday. Is this a good move for Jozy? How many goals will Jozy have at the end of the year? Leave your comments below

Beckham works to win back fans against Barcelona

Tonight at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena over 93,000 spectators came out to see the Los Angeles Galaxy take on the European champions, Barcelona. Stars such as Messi, Puyol, Henry, and Marquez took the field against Beckham, Donovan and the rest of the Galaxy. The Galaxy were overmatched by Barcelona's sharp passing but were not at all embarrassed in this friendly. David Beckham did his best to win back the support of the riot squad by firing in a classic Beckham free kick. As Beckham left the field in the second half after being substituted was greeted by a rousing ovation. Perhaps the Beckham Experiment is taking a positive turn. If the Galaxy can make a splash in the playoffs this season many naysayers may be quieted. Beckhams free kick tied the game at 1 but Barcelona scored in the second half to secure the victory. The Galaxy did not stay on their heels and made the game very exciting by counterattacking with a vengeance. However they could not find an equalizer as the game ended 2 to 1.

Donovan to Serie A?

Recent reports say that recently promoted Serie A club Livorno is interested in signing Landon Donovan. Livorno's president had this to say,

“We have spoken with his representative, but we have to understand what his requests are and whether we can afford him, I know the lad since he was 18, I like him very much and even though his fee would not be a problem, I believe his wage demands exceed our parameters.“But we could arrange something with some of our sponsors in Los Angeles, just like I did with [Kazuyoshi] Miura years ago, hoping it will bring us less bad luck…”

European interest was likely after his performance in the Confederations cup. However, signing Landon will not be an easy task. MLS will not be keen on letting their poster boy go. Also, Landon is going to make a sizable amount of cash wherever he goes. At a recently promoted club like Livorno that could be a problem.

USA vs. Mexico only on telemundo and mun2

The highly anticipated World Cup Qualifier against Mexico will not be available to the vast majority of Americans in English. Apparently NBC owned Telemundo will be airing the game in spanish but would not present a reasonable price for the rights to the game in English. Sources say that ESPN offered the normal amount for this type of game and were still 3 to 4 times lower than what telemundo was demanding. I urge you as american soccer fans to become active and stuff inboxes at NBC. For your convenience I have provided these emails. brian.walker@nbcuni.com adam.freifeld@nbcuni.com Lyndsay.Iorio@nbcuni.com dick.ebersol@nbcuni.com Perkins.Miller@nbcuni.com Jeff.Zucker@nbcuni.com Do not be innapropriate simply ask that one of the most anticipated soccer matches in recent history is being hidden on an incredibly small network and that they should make the game available to everyone.

Soccer maintaining media buzz after Confed Cup

With David Beckham's return, the Gold Cup run, the world football challenge, and MTV's Real world going to DC United games, soccer has remained in the spotlight. Sportscenter has, as usual, been all over the Beckham saga. They have also covered the friendlies that have involved the European giants involved in the World Football Challenge. Also, the Real World cast recently took a trip to RFK for a DC United game. The one downside would be the fact that the upcoming WCQ against Mexico will only be on tv in english on mun2.

European Season Continued

Michael Bradley returns to Borussia Moenchengladbach after helping them escape relegation last year. He will most certainly start and get plenty of playing time. Hopefully he can continue his growth in the top flight in Germany and help anchor the US midfield in South Africa. He is traditionally a defensive midfielder with crunching tackles but if he can develop a finishing touch and a creative flare he could propel the US to new heights.
Freddy Adu is on the ropes. His progression since joining Benfica has been non existent. He needs to either get a better loan situation than AS Monaco was or break into the lineup at Benfica. This is a very important season for a young player with loads of potential and expectations. The US could definitely use his creativeness and attacking mentality out of the midfield but he must improve his defense and consistency. Steve Cherundolo will be looking to earn his spot back at Hannover and get back into the lineup for Bob Bradley's squad. Playing time after his injury will help to bring back his form and confidence. Riding the bench would be devastating for Cherundolo and could mean the last World Cup was HIS last as well. Carlos Bocanegra is looking safe and confident at Rennes and is definitely still a starter there. Bocanegra will look to repeat as Rennes' most attractive player as voted on by the fans. Barring injury Carlos will be ready for the summer in South Africa. Best of luck to all the Americans playing overseas!

Important European Season for Americans

With the World Cup looming and several American players involved with transfers, this European season looks to be filled with intrigue. Oguchi Onyewu may have one of the toughest tasks as he tries to secure a starting spot with AC Milan. His dominating presence in the air will hopefully secure him enough starts in Serie A to improve his skills for the next World Cup. He will be closely watched by those stateside and a lot of pressure is on him to perform.
Clint Dempsey will look to continue his impressive run at Fulham which doesn't look to be a problem. He will again look to be a top scorer from the midfield in the EPL.
Eddie Johnson is another interesting story. Could this be the year he gets it together? An active preseason for Eddie may get him a look this year instead of another loan. If he can make his play consistent and become a crowd favorite at Craven Cottage like he was at Cardiff City this could be an exciting season for him. Perhaps Eddie could make it back into the national team picture before the summer. Fulham could definitely be exciting to watch with Dempsey and Johnson on the field.
Charlie Davies stock has skyrocketed after the Confederations Cup and his signing with French Side Sochaux looks perfect. Charlie should be able to start on a consistent basis and unlike his time at Hammarby he will have other weapons on the field he can use. Charlie's blazing speed and great hold-up skills look to dice up Ligue 1 defenders and help Sochaux move up the Ligue 1 ladder. More on Freddy Adu, Michael Bradley, Steve Cherundolo and others later.

USA into the semifinals

well done by the us to come back tonight after going down 1-0 in the first half. Kyle Beckerman continued his bid for more national team playing time with the game tying blast. Kenny Cooper finished off the Panama squad in extra time from the spot after receiving a boot in the belly from a Panama defender. The US now plays Honduras in Chicago for a chance in the finals. Go get your tickets and make it a pro US crowd! How do you think the nats will fare against Honduras in the semis? do you think Bob should call in some more experienced players. please leave your comments.

Welcome

Welcome to my blog! First I would like to tell everyone a little bit about myself. I am 18 years old and will soon be attending Macalester College in St. Paul where I will be playing soccer. After following several blogs online and watching every game I could get on TV, I decided to make my own blog and weigh in on US soccer, the MLS, and Americans abroad.