Things just haven't been sunny in San Jose this season. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)
Woah. I did not see this coming this quickly.
The San Jose Earthquakes and head coach Frank Yallop announced today that they have mutually agreed to part ways. Assistant coach Mark Watson has been named the interim head coach for the remainder of the 2013 season.
The news of a national team call up should always bring a smile to a player's face, but for
Carlos Valdes, this one was sweeter than most.
After two years out of the national team, Valdes was rewarded for his playso far this season and
selected by head coach Jose Pekerman for a 24-player camp in Madrid, Spain ahead of Colombia's
upcoming World Cup qualifiers in September.
By Tony Edwards - San Jose, CA (June 19, 2012) US Soccer Players -- In Tuesday's column, Tony
studies the effect coaching changes had this weekend in MLS, asks if Salt Lake can lift the
Supporter's Shield, and gives sartorial advice to the Whitecaps. Did the recent coaching changes
have any effect on results this past weekend?
Coaching changes, personnel moves and the addition of an expansion franchise are about to be
relegated to the land of off-season action as Major League Soccer kicks off the 2012 season this
weekend.
In anticipation of the season start, here is a look at the league's now 19 teams. We start with
the Eastern Conference, we follow with the Western Conference and finish with a preview of the
Colorado Rapids.
Hard to believe it but New York will not make a change next year even if they fail to reach the
post season this year.
Red Bulls GM Erik Soler says coach Hans Backe will return next season regardless of if the team
qualifies for the playoffsabout 4 hours ago via Twitter for
BlackBerry®ReplyRetweetFavorite@NYDNInterNetsStefan
Bondy
This tweet came earlier in the day and sparked a decent debate between folks on Twitter.
Seattle and RSL could be battling it out for a Supporter's Shield this season. (Getty
Images)
Aside from a handfull of teams, we are at the halfway point in the Major League Soccer season.
Most teams have played 17 games or more at this point so we should have a very solid understanding
as to who is contending and who is just flat out pretending.
With coaching changes made in Major League Soccer this past weekend with both Teitur Thordarson
(Vancouver) and Carlos de los Cobos (Chicago), Ives Galarcep looks at the moves by both teams.
The 2011 season started off with so much promise for both the Vancouver Whitecaps and Chicago
Fire, two teams who came into the season with question marks and coaches who seemed like prime
candidates to be replaced if things didn't go well.
I came across an article on MLSSoccer.com earlier this morning and really thought it was worth
discussing. The article is about former MLSers and other Americans/Canadians abroad that should
return home to play in MLS. I can't say I disagree with many on this list and I have a couple more
that probably just need to suck it up and return home so they can actually see some playing time on
the field.
According to ESPN Los Angeles, Chivas USA is set to dismiss head coach Martin Vasquez after one
season as the club's manager. Vasquez guided Chivas to an 8-18-4 mark and last place in the Western
Conference.
Oddly enough the move comes shortly after reports of him getting a vote of confidence from the
club.
Clint Dempsey in a June 4 friendly between the U.S. and Spain at Gillette Stadium. (Photo: Chris
Aduama/aduama.com)
Tottenham Hotspur's last minute swoop to acquire Clint Dempsey for around $9.6 million may have
come as a surprise, but on paper at least the move makes a lot of sense for both parties.
FC Cologne forward Lukas Podolski has indicated that he will consider all his transfer options
at the end of the current season, insisting that he can "fit into any side in Europe."
Podolski has been on the radar of Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger for quite a while and widespread
reports in the English media suggested that Tottenham Hotspur were also keen on signing the Germany
international.
Several coaching changes have taken place recently which will set both the MIAC men's and
women's soccer conferences up to be interesting. Jocelyn Keller named new head coach of Carleton
Women's Soccer On the women's side, Jocelyn Keller was named as the new head coach of the Carleton
women's soccer program.
At one point, there was a half-assed plan to repost old posts, both in a transparent bid to keep
MFUSA going, and because I honestly believe there are things worth revisiting in the archives. This
is one of those, a post by Jason Kuenle about a USMNT fan base at odds with itself. It's more than
relevant as Jurgen Klinsmann attempts to make a hard right turn with the team and program, so I
present to you now.
The Seattle Sounders are at home this weekend after a week's worth of well needed rest. They
play an improving Chivas USA team at the CLink on Saturday. Hopefully, they can build on last
weekend's win at Sporting KC. Also, for those of you who are interested, Pat Noonan talks about the
foul and the flop from Omar Bravo.
No matter how good a coach you may be, your success will ultimately come down to your players on
the field.
Especially in professional sports, ownership groups with itchy trigger fingers seem to think that a
quick firing can present a quick fix for a team in disarray. That has been brought to the forefront
in the National Football League (NFL) here in the United States, and in the English Premier League
(EPL).
When I started writing this blog my intention was to write about everything and anything related
to the Fire. In general I wanted to provide a place to find news, information, and discussion that
wasn't provided anywhere through mainstream media outlets. This post has nothing to do with the
team's play, player additions, or coaching changes so indulge my rambling regarding an off field
topic for a moment.
This season's Serie A campaign looks to be one of the most competitive in recent memory. With
the top clubs from the last few seasons getting older, and upstarts gaining more experience, the
gap seems to be closing and fans of Italian soccer have much to look forward to.
For this reason, predicting the team who will place fifth in the table during this upcoming
season was perhaps the most difficult selection to make.
Juventus suffered last season following one of the worst campaigns in their glorious history.
There were multiple reasons behind their collapse such as instability due to coaching changes, a
number of injuries to key players, the management's bad decisions in the transfer market and the
age factor catching up with star players among other factors.
Two NASL matches were played Wednesday evening, with both matches between Montreal Fort
Lauderdale and FC Edmonton -Carolina RailHawks ending in 1-1 draws.
Coaching changes aren't usually fodder for this website, but since the Revs have reached into
their broadcast booth when grabbing a coach for the 2012 version of the team, we can file this
under media coverage of the team. Heaps retired after the 2009 season and spent two years paired
with Brad Feldman while providing color commentary.
We like to paint the world in perfectly ordered opposites. On the one hand, as an American, I
have grown up with the cold familiarity of the franchise sports model. Here's how the cookie
crumbles in the States. Basically, a businessman (or woman) who has made billions in selling
chemicals or prescription drugs hits middle age, gets bored, doesn't want to start a foundation,
and picks a small Midwestern city to inject with happiness and PR via a sports team.
It's been a busy news week for the Sounders and the rest of MLS. The Seattle Sounders invited
strikers Cillian Sheridan and Myron Samuel to train with the Sounders this week. Sounders fans were
able to see both play in the reserve league game against the Vancouver Whitecaps. The Whitecaps
senior team, and their family-friendly fans, will be in town this Saturday for the big rivalry
game.
For those of you who haven't been following the drama happening within FIFA, you really should
be. It's fascinating how such an inward, closed-off organization was finally pried open, if only a
little bit, for the rest of us to see how it works. Over the last week or so there's been a lot of
upheaval within the organization over corruption to the point where FIFA had no other option than
to address them properly.
New Chicago Fire interim head coach Frank Klopas went right to work on Tuesday conducting his
first training session and his first media sessions. The sports press was out in full press with
cameras galore. You might have even noticed the coverage on the local news stations yesterday. I
think this was in part due to Klopas' history in Chicago as a player and a famous soccer
figure.
At times, it seems that coaches in professional sports are shuffled more often than the decks at
Vegas blackjack tables. And when the cards finally land, the hand can be a raw deal: with even a
hint of distress, managers take heavy fire from team brass, sponsors and fans, all of whom have
different stakes at risk and their own set of expectations for success.
Teams typically begin each season with high expectations. The previous season's performance, new
player acquisitions and coaching changes raise anticipation of the upcoming campaign. Some these
expectations are realistic and some are not. As a result, as the season begins to play out, many
teams meet or exceed expectations but some some fail to live up to their perceived potential.
It's been a long time since Red Bulls fans have experienced such a quiet offseason. While other MLS
teams have been announcing roster moves and unveiling coaching changes (and while the David Beckham
to Tottenham Hotspur loan saga has been playing out in L.A.), RBNY fans have had to be content with
the merest crumbs of information.
 A little over four months ago the World Cup hopes of Brazil and Argentina were dashed within
twenty-four hours of each other. O Selecão fell 2-1 to the Netherlands in a game where a
mental collapse was their undoing.
