The SuperDraft has come and gone once again and this year's edition certainly had its share of head turning moves and signings.

The Red Bulls came into the draft with four selections and came away with four fresh faces that could signal quite a bit of change throughout the organization.

A few years ago, a friend invited me to see a documentary on the New York Cosmos. I must admit. I found the movie, Once In A Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos to be quite entertaining. It was a cinderella story of an American soccer club that appeared out of nowhere, did the unthinkable by signing the best player in the world and then crashed out of existence in a larger-than-life fashion.

Just this week, Brazilian player Marta was awarded the FIFA Player of the Year award for the 5th consecutive year. As the soccer's number one female athlete, her career is still without obstacles.
After joining the Women's Professional Soccer league from Sweden, her club the L.A. Sol folded after one season.

Prior to Thursday's SuperDraft, New England Soccer Today's Brian O'Connell caught up with Revsnet.com co-founder and draft guru Mike Marshall to get his take on the annual cavalcade of aspiring soccer stars.

Brian: When we last spoke, you referenced a number of talented Akron players (Darlington Nagbe, Michael Nanchoff, Kofi Sarkodie, Zarek Valentin, and Perry Kitchen) which have since been named Generation adidas players.

The combine is over, the Generation Adidas Class is finalized, and the draft is upon us. Check out our final predictions and tune into ESPN2 at noon eastern to see how it all pans out.

Round 1

[$ - indicates possible generation adidas]

1. Vancouver Whitecaps - DARLINGTON NAGBE, F (AKRON) $

The Whitecaps are lacking in the forward department, they should address it with the first pick in the draft.

The conventional wisdom about the Red Bulls coming into this year's MLS Superdraft in Baltimore was that they would seek out help in defense, focusing on the center back and fullback positions. On the other hand, Erik Solér made it clear in interviews yesterday that if their favored targets at those positions were not available, they would select the best player available.

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As most of you know, the MLS Superdraft will take place on January 13th, 2011 in Baltimore.

The league has announced its final list of invitees with now more than 70 hopefuls at the Combine. Added to the list are five non-college internationals, included John Rooney. Also joining the Combine is former Seattle Sounders Vegas Combine invitee Ryan Kinne of Monmouth. Ten other players have been added as well.

Kaka is back! Well... sort of. After a five-month layoff, he played his first 15 minutes of top-tier football last weekend against Getafe. It's too early to say whether Kaka has completely recovered, but during that brief appearance he looked sharp, lean, and hungry. We'll be able to make a more accurate assessment once he gets a full 90 minutes – although right now, it's hard to see when that might happen.

Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics

By AVI CREDITOR

Stephen McCarthy's journey to Major League Soccer has spanned three time zones, two colleges and one famed club team, but he's finally approaching his final destination.

McCarthy, one of the top defensive midfield prospects available in next Thursday's MLS SuperDraft, spent three years at Santa Clara University prior to transferring to North Carolina for his senior season.

We at In The Stands almost spat out our cups of tea upon reading quotes from renowed football agent Jorge Mendes claiming that Cristiano Ronaldo is: "the greatest player in the history of football".

Yes, the ever-humble and down-to-earth agent of CR7 has gone on record and suggested that, in addition to being the best player in the world at present, Portuguese and Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is also the greatest player of all time!

There are a couple of good stories on the Chicago Fire, Section 8, and everything Chicago soccer that should not be missed. Let's start with Guillermo Rivera of Fire Confidential with some quotes from Frank Klopas. On the players taking part in the MLS SuperDraft Combine right now, Klopas had this to say:

These players have been off for a few months so it's tough to judge guys on these games, we've seen most of them before now so we're looking for the best fit based on who's available when we pick.

Messi won the Ballon d'Or last night he was named the best player in the world in 2010. Not Xavi. Not Iniesta. Not Sneijder. And not a single (Fantasy) Premier League player in sight. La Liga's dominance continues on ... Continue reading →

Leo Messi was wearing a dickie bow last night. Proof, some said with a smile, that he knew he was going to be awarded with a second successive Ballon d'Or – after all, Xavi Hernández and Andrés Iniesta were only in ties. But he didn't know: amid all the shock, the disgust and the pathetic patriotic paranoia, the man most surprised at Messi's award was Messi.

Since the first MLS draft in 1996, 10 goalies have been drafted in the first round. The results are decidedly mixed. And while some first rounders have been productive and others have been duds, no goalie selected in round one has had a long and influential career for the team that picked him. Brad Guzan for Chivas and Matt Jordan for Dallas have come closest to fulfilling their promise as long-term number ones.

By MIKE NASTRI

The Houston Dynamo came away as the big winner on draft day taking Kofi Sarkodie and trading up to select Will Bruin.

Sarkodie, the dynamic right back from Akron, fell a few spots lower than expected on draft day. Houston took the best player available with the seventh overall pick in Sarkodie despite just recently signing a right back in Hunter Freeman,.

It seems most years before this one, the MLS Superdraft was something of an event for FC Dallas, because we were usually looking at a pretty good pick close to the start of the draft. And while that may have been a good thing on draft day, I wouldn't have traded our run last year to get stronger picks this year.

There's no doubt that a 2-2 result in the 215th Merseyside Derby was far from an ideal outcome at Anfield, but -- aside from the short burst of Everton dominance to begin the second half -- this was one of matches that should be viewed as more encouraging than disappointing.
Most strikingly, Raul Meireles continued to emerge from his shell and was perhaps the best player on the pitch.

He may not have left the Camp Nou to a standing ovation, he may not be the best-paid player in the world, and he may not have totally fulfilled the promise he had. However, Andres D'Alessandro -- a one-time prodigy -- was voted Best Player In The Americas for his performances for Brazil's Internacional by the prestigious Uruguayan El Pais.

It's one thing to have supporters or analysts tell you who the best players, teams, or leagues are. Depending on who you ask or which metric you use, you can have endless arguments about quality. But why not go directly to the source and ask the professionals themselves? After all, they have to play the game week in and week out and see things on and off the field that spectators often don't or can't.

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE JUST JOINED US: CONCACAF doesn't actually give out this award. Nor do Mexican, Central American, Caribbean, Canadian, or Yankee Imperialist Running Dog journalists. Nor, obviously, do players, coaches, administrators, or federations. This is something I do. Because (1) it's funny if it's just me, and (2) it shows how much CONCACAF sucks that they can't even organize or sanction cheap publicity like this.

Some say he was born to play for Spurs. Others just stand there, jaw to the floor, STILL lost for words as he absolutely burns down the wing, leaving a trail of weary defenders in his wake. And, to think, he used to be a bit rubbish. Signed by Martin Jol ages ago and announced himself with disgracefully good free-kick against Arsenal.

The Oklahoma City Thunder took advantage of an injury ravaged Dallas Mavericks squad on Thursday night, winning 99-95. The Mavs were without Dirk Nowitzki, Caron Butler and Roddy Beaubois arguably the team's three most explosive players. Kevin Durant did most of the damage, scoring 28 points on 11-for-22 shooting from the field.

Sidney Crosby, the best hockey player on earth, will be sidelined for the next week due to a concussion. The injury happened on Wednesday during the Pittsburgh Penguins 8-1 destruction of the Tampa Bay Lightning. These will be the first games the 23-year-old will miss during the 2010-11 NHL season.

DOHA, Qatar A stunning long-distance strike from Odil Akhmedov and a horrendous defensive mix-up by a former Asian Player of the Year gave Uzbekistan a 2-0 win against hosts Qatar in the opening match of the Asian Cup in Doha. Qatar looked unlikely challengers for a first Asian Cup trophy as they kicked off [.

The University of Akron's Darlington Nagbe has won the prestigious Hermann Award, presented by the Missouri Athletic Club to the best player in the NCAA.
Nagbe is a former star with Internationals and played in the Development Academy's inaugural season. He adds the Hermann Award to the College Cup title that the Zips won in December.

Nearly two years ago, the Daily Mail's Matt Lawton published a piece under what should surely be considered one of the most dunderheaded headlines in recent football journalism: "The best players of the world (and Xavi): Ronaldo crowned king of football." In the wake of Cristiano Ronaldo's ascension as the world player of the year in 2009, Lawton took the time to cheekily ridicule Xavi Hernández, a player whose patience, measure, and impeccable sense of the tempo in attack and defense has helped to make Barcelona the best club side in Europe (arguably) and Spain the best national side in the world (most certainly).

Frank Klopas and the Fire technical staff are currently in Florida for the MLS Combine ahead of the draft on January 13 but Klopas feels the Fire have a pretty good handle on which players they're interested in right now. "These players have been off for a few months so it's tough to judge guys on these games, we've seen most of them before now so we're looking for the best fit based on who's available when we pick" said Klopas.

MADRID, Spain -Ballon d'Or finalists Lionel Messi and Andres Iniesta scored to lead Barcelona to its 12th straight Spanish league win in a 4-0 victory at Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday. Messi played David Villa clear into the right side of the area before the Spain striker squeezed a right-footed shot past goalkeeper Daniel Aranzubia [.

Against the Boston Celtics, Derrick Rose was the best player on the court. And that's quite a feat considering the Celtics have at least four Hall of Fame players on their roster. But on Saturday, the game belonged to Rose, who finished with 36 points. When all was said and done, the Bulls had a 90-79 victory over the Celtics.

Last gaps stuff from the captain

It was one of those days again for Arsenal. Despite the raft of changes, this was still a side with 10 full internationals plus Denilson that came out to face Leeds United in the FA Cup Third Round. That the opposition was a Championship side only served to show the kind of insipid performance from our squad players.

In a week that has seen the Christian festival of Epiphany come and pass, the world was reminded of the day that three very wise men from the East came and paid homage to an even more special baby boy.

Theology aside, the similarities bestowing the football world to this most sacred of Christian holidays can be drawn.

In an absolutely proud night for FC Barcelona, Lionel Messi won the inaugral FIFA- Balon D'OR World Player of the Year. The award was presented by Pep Guardiola . Everyone of us expected either Xavi or Iniesta to pick it up this year, but have to admit that it finally went to the Best Player in the World.

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We're happy to bring you our first feast of football for your ears in 2011 with the 8th episode of the A Football Report Podcast. This time on the AFR Podcast were grateful to have Iain Macintosh (UK correspondent for The New Paper) in the figurative AFR house alongside Oliver Sparrow (London), Dominic Vieira (Lancaster), Eric Beard (Boston), and Darshan Joshi (Kuala Lumpur).

Choosing the winner of the 2011 Ballon D'Or seemed like a tough decision to make. Three Barcelona geniuses, all with a chance to be crowned as the best player of the world. Iniesta and Xavi had just triumphed in the World Cup with Spain, but Messi was part of an amazing season for Barcelona, scoring 43 goals in 57 matches.

Choosing the winner of the 2011 Ballon D'Or seemed like a tough decision to make. Three Barcelona geniuses, all with a chance to be crowned as the best player of the world. Iniesta and Xavi had just triumphed in the World Cup with Spain, but Messi was part of an amazing season for Barcelona, scoring 43 goals in 57 matches.

If you're unfamiliar with SUFC, it's an excellent football clothing line started by Chris Toy of Studs Up fame. They've got a great range of football t-shirts, polos, sweatshirts and more on the way all inspired by football culture. I'm delighted to say I've partnered up with SUFC to get all RoM readers 10% off their full range of gear until January 16th.

On a day when yet another shit ton of snow fell on the greater New York area, the ice dam that was the Red Bulls offseason finally began to break. Speaking with reporters ahead of the 2011 Superdraft (being held tomorrow in DC United's soon-to-be hometown of Baltimore), Red Bulls GM Erik Solér confirmed that the club has in fact added English speedster Luke Rodgers and Norwegian midfielder Jan Gunnar Solli to the roster for the upcoming season.

The Draft isn't even an hour old and it's already a tremendous success for our beloved boys in naranja.

The Houston Dynamo selected fullback Kofi Sarkodie (5' 9", 155lbs) with the 7th pick in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft. Sarkodie was part of the Akron Zips National Championship team this year and was easily the best fullback available in the draft.

Argentina, and likely Lionel Messi, almost universally acclaimed as the best player in the world at the moment is returning to the U.S. to play (AP Photo).

Not on the West Coast, unfortunately.

The U.S. plays Argentina at 4 p.m. March 26 in East Rutherford, N.J. live on ESPN2 and Univision.