Photo by David Bernal/ISIphotos.com

As a new season approaches for the New York Red Bulls, it is still very uncertain who will be standing between the goalposts for a team looking to surpass its results from 2011.

According to multiple reports, manager Hans Backe definitively said that German goalkeeper Frank Rost would not be returning to the club, weeks after sporting director Erik Soler said there was a "good possibility" of Rost coming back.

Bye bye Timmy?Good morning! With MLS preseason training beginning in just three weeks and the MLS Combine complete, there should be a lot of player movement and a ton of new signings announced in the coming days. The 2012 MLS SuperDraft kicks off tomorrow, and though the New York Red Bulls only have one selection (the 31st overall pick in round two), it's not inconceivable that we could see a trade or two happen while the general managers and coaches are assembled in Kansas City.

STARTERS
Big Apple Soccer alerts us to a an interview that former New York Red Bulls goalkeeper Bouna Coundoul is accusing his former team of having a racist attitude when it comes to dealing with him and other players of African decent.
dN
Edson Buddle who was given an early winter vacation by the new coach at Ingolstadt last week is in London for a try out with West Ham.

Solér Speaks, FinallySince the New York Red Bulls were knocked out of the MLS playoffs by the Los Angeles Galaxy back in November, almost all of the news coming out of Harrison has been about players departing. First a large chunk of the reserve team was let go, then the club cut loose a group of veterans that included Chris Albright, Bouna Coundoul and Carlos Mendes in the re-entry draft.

Photo by Bill Barrett/ISIphotos.com

By AVI CREDITOR

Tim Ream's training stints with West Brom and Bolton are just that and nothing more. Officially.

New York Red Bulls general manager Erik Soler made that much clear to reporters on Tuesday, saying that Ream won't be transferred or loaned out despite what conflicting reports from overseas might suggest.

Ream: West Brom Bound?Following a turbulent 2011 regular season for the New York Red Bulls, General Manager Erik Solér and Head Coach Hans Backe have played their cards very close to the vest as they look to reshape and add depth to the squad for 2012. Apart from sanctioning the departure of a half dozen fringe players and exposing highly-paid veterans such as Carlos Mendes, Bouna Coundoul and Chris Albright to this year's Re-Entry Draft (Mendes has since been snapped up by Columbus), there has been little to no action to report.

There was a time when I liked a couple players in the MLS Re-Entry Draft for the Seattle Sounders to pick up in Stage Two and talk into less money. First Bobby Boswell renegotiated with the Houston Dynamo and then Bobby Convey went to Sporting Kansas City at a cut rate (rumors say 200K$). Now the list of available players is absent of the really appealing names.

A couple weeks ago, I put up the New York Red Bulls roster prior to the beginning of the off-season. Mr. Soler and Mr. Backe have been busy since then, and over at our facebook page, members of the Viper's Nest Editorial Board have been clamoring for an updated post to sum up the salary and roster ramifications of the moves thus far.

With the expansion draft just two weeks away, Red Bulls fans are debating the merits of who to protect and who to expose. Presented below, to assist in the discussion, is the current Red Bulls roster and salaries, according to the MLS Players Union website.

Name

Player Des.

New York has a lot of talent but little depth, which could be good for them in the expansion draft. (Getty Images)

It wasn't the year that most had expected out of the New York Red Bulls. A fast started turned into a long summer drought followed by a late season push into the playoffs. Expectations were high and the team failed to reach them.

Man, the past week or so has been quite kind to the Red Bulls. After Irene washed away any hopes of the Galaxy match being played, New York saw their playoff position actually improve despite not playing a single match since August 20th. As of now, New York owns the 10th and final playoff spot, sitting behind Columbus, SKC, Houston, and Philly in the East.

Sporting Kansas City's Kei Kamara and Teal Bunbury have been called up by their respective national teams. (Getty Images)

It will be a fairly slow week around these parts, seeing how MLS is pretty much off this weekend (except for two games). With a FIFA fixture on the calendar this weekend there are a full slew of MLSers involved in friendlies and even some World Cup qualifiers.

Do I even need to bother recapping this game? You might as well just read my last post. It meets all the requirements: disappointment, 2-2 draw, second half comeback, Ballouchy being useless... you know, the usual. Just when you think they can't draw against a crappier team, they do. The Revs, proud owners of the most anemic offense in the league, still managed to take a 2-0 lead against New York and it took a 87th minute equalizer to walk away with a point.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. Milton Caraglio's first two MLS goals put the New England Revolution up 2-0 at halftime, but the New York Red Bulls would have their say in the second half, finding the back of the net twice to leave Foxborough with a 2-2 draw. The draw extends the Revs winless streak to six games and New York's to seven.

"It is what it is" says Thierry Henry every time I attend New York Red Bulls training at Montclair State University. And it is what it is with this club with another draw after ninety minutes -- for the thirteenth time this season. And this was against the side that is dead last in the Eastern Conference, Chicago Fire.

By MIKE NASTRI

Another game, another draw for the New York Red Bulls.

After not winning a game since July 6th, the Red Bulls desperately needed three points to stay in the increasingly crowded Eastern Conference playoff picture. A match against the last place Chicago Fire seemingly was that game, but New York let an opportunity and an early lead slip away once again.

The Chicago Fire's 2011 MLS Regular Season has essentially become an exercise in preparing for the 2011 U.S. Open Cup and the 2012 MLS Regular Season. Last week's 4-2 loss to the expansion Vancouver Whitecaps was no doubt the worst moment in the Fire's 2011 campaign and it might have been the worst moment in the club's entire history as Stephen Piggott opined in last week's game recap.

Wow, well hopefully you haven't been using the Offside as your sole source for MLS news (as I know many of you do), because I haven't been very diligent in updating you on all things Red Bull New York. With the Bulls facing some adversity (understatement of the year?), the front office has taken action and enlisted the help of German backstop Frank Rost.

Wow, well hopefully you haven't been using the Offside as your sole source for MLS news (as I know many of you do), because I haven't been very diligent in updating you on all things Red Bull New York. With the Bulls facing some adversity (understatement of the year?), the front office has taken action and enlisted the help of German backstop Frank Rost.

Good afternoon! It's a glorious one here in Red Bulls Land. Not only that, but our glorious team is back in action @The Home Depot Center. Chivas USA will be the opponent and three points are a must for RBNY. But before all that, let's examine some RBNY news from the past week.
Of course, the big news of this past week was the signing of former Hamburger SV netminder Frank Rost.

Photo by Tracy Allen/ISIphotos.com

By ANTHONY ZILIS

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- New York Red Bulls manager Hans Backe just didn't seem to care about the U.S. Open Cup – at least not on Tuesday, when his team played the Chicago Fire in its fourth of nine games in July.

Hans Backe - Mr. Mediocre
I've been absent from The Viper's Nest for far too long, weighed under by this, that and the other. But I'm back, and I'm determined to bring you a regular, more consistent British perspective of the Red Bulls.
So, have I missed much?
Yes, but most of it bad.

While Palo Alto and Stanford Stadium hosted an impressive 4th of July fireworks show, albeit on July 2nd, the match itself also had its share of fireworks. The Quakes came off as a bit more feisty and had the majority of fouls on the night, resulting in Bobby Burling picking up 2 yellows and being forced out of the game.

Lindpere Beats Jon Busch to Open the ScoringThe Red Bulls completed their season-long four game road trip in Palo Alto, California last night by - how else? - going up early and then handing back points to the opposition. The 2-2 draw might have felt like a well-earned road point if not for the fact that RBNY threw the Quakes a lifeline by conceding so easily after dominating the first half.

In the last 10 games the Chicago Fire and New York Red Bulls have played this season, there has only been one loss. That would be New York's 4-2 defeat at the hands of the Seattle Sounders. Otherwise both teams can claim all sorts of 'unbeatenness'. Typical of the 2011 MLS season, only 2 of those 9 unbeaten marks have been wins.

During training on Saturday, May 14th New York Red Bulls head coach Hans Backe knew that he was going to face a tough and scrappy Chivas-USA side. What we saw on Sunday night was a coming out party for Justin Braun as he along with Chivas-USA flew across the country and found a way to gain three points on the road and the first west coast side to win in the eastern end.

By MIKE NASTRI

New York Red Bulls coach Hans Backe said during the week that Sunday's match vs. Chivas USA could be a trap game for the Eastern Conference leaders. And that's exactly what it was.

Justin Braun's hat trick was just enough for Chivas USA to slip by New York, 3-2, at Red Bull Arena on Sunday.

I'm starting a new feature for View From the Couch, the Rapids All-Time Team. Through the course of the season I'll roll out a starting XI of, IMO, the best Rapid player at each position. I've decided to go with a 3-4-3 over a 4-4-2 but it was close. There will also be a 7 man bench/honorable mention and a coach.

Apparently, it can buy you damn entertaining 90 minutes of soccer, though. Throughout the week, everyone in MLS was hyping this game to be the greatest game of the year, and while hype is usually unsubstantiated, this game lived up to all the buzz surrounding the league's two marquee franchises.

The weekend gave us some interesting talking points. Here are a few quick thoughts and some snap judgments on what the weekend did for MLS. Also below, a small preview for upcoming articles this week.
Injuries: This weekend represented another weekend where a league star went down with a broken bone in his leg.

I don't think I've ever been this entertained by a 1-1 draw in MLS since I started watching the league back in 1996 as a half-season ticket holder for DC United. And it's not just because that's the scoreline I predicted yesterday (because it you read me regularly, you know that's basically a fluke).

I don't think I've ever been this entertained by a 1-1 draw in MLS since I started watching the league back in 1996 as a half-season ticket holder for DC United. And it's not just because that's the scoreline I predicted yesterday (because it you read me regularly, you know that's basically a fluke).

Luke's aeroplane celebration... yea or nay?

Take a deep breath folks; the Red Bulls took home all three points tonight... but just barely. In a win that was very much different from the two matches that preceded it, New York played an incredibly strong first half that saw Luke Rodgers get on the board once again.

By the end of the 68th minute of the Philadelphia Union's 1-0 win over the New York Red Bulls, Roger Torres was a Philly hero. The 19-year-old Colombian entered the game and scored less than 30 seconds later, ending up netting the game winner.

With only a touch, Torres put the Union into the talk of soccer heads throughout the country.

Roger Torres' 68th minute goal was enough as the Philadelphia Union defeated the New York Red Bulls Saturday night at PPL Park. The result kept the Union's 100% home record intact, and continued the home shutout streak that Faryd Mondragon has had to begin the 2011 season.

Just seconds after entering the game for Carlos Ruiz, Torres received the ball from fellow substitute Danny Mwanga, who had pounced on an extremely poor pass from New York defender Tim Ream.

After all the trade-hype eventually died down, it was time for the Red Bulls to take the field. With Dwayne De Rosario in tow, New York was looking to get off on the right foot. But the Dynamo proved that there is plenty of work still to be done during the long season that lies ahead.

Remember when I said that it was MLS Cup or bust for New York this year? Well folks, that sentiment should be felt now more than ever. Erik Soler made a huge splash this afternoon in anticipation to their clash with Houston by trading away Tony Tchani, Danleigh Borman, and a first round draft pick in 2012 for five-time MLS Best XI midfielder Dwayne De Rosario.

There's no doubt about who's ranked number one this week. Real Salt Lake thrashed the LA Galaxy to show that they are the class of MLS at the moment.

MLS Rankings: Week 2
1. REAL SALT LAKE (2-0-0)
Last week: Beat Los Angeles, 4-1, on Saturday.

After its thumping of the Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday night, it's no surprise that Real Salt Lake maintains its stronghold on the top of the SBI MLS Power Rankings.

Aside from Salt Lake's victory, some other results stood out and had an impact on this week's rankings.

After it was announced that five starters from their first game against Seattle would missing on their trip to Columbus, Hans Backe was forced to put together a makeshift lineup that would severely test New York's depth. Even with all these changes, the Red Bulls still managed to get a result in enemy territory, a sign that perhaps this team has what it takes to be championship caliber.