The Chicago Fire put their undefeated preseason streak to the test when they take on Chivas USA
today at 2:00 PM CST. Live audio of the game will be available with Fire Communications Manager
Brendan Hannan and Team Writer Jeff Crandall teaming up on the play-by-play. Per Crandall, this
will be the 4th time the combo has called a game.
The Union confirmed on Wednesday through the team's Twitter account that Zac MacMath is joined
in preseason training by Chase Harrison, who had temporarily joined the club late last season when
Faryd Mondragon and Thorne Holder were both out with injuries before the club declined the option
to sign him in November to make him available for the Re-Entry Draft.
Now with a stunning 1-1 draw in the books against the Vancouver Whitecaps the Seattle Sounders
announced five preseason scrimmages in their "Florida" phase of training. Florida in quotes because
the key note match will be against Atlante FC behind closed doors in Cancun, Mexico on February
22nd at 4PM Pacific.
Sporting Kansas City's quest to repeat as Eastern Conference regular season champions began
today with a 2-1 pre-season victory against the San Jose Earthquakes in the pre-season opener for
both clubs.
Kansas City midfielder Konrad Warzycha delivered the game-winning goal, converting a free kick
to break a 1-1 deadlock.
The Philadelphia Union are working on solidifying their 2012 friendly schedule by talking to
Newcastle United about playing in Philadelphia during the summer, according to a report.
"I Wish I Was A Geordie," an American Newcastle blog, is reporting that Newcastle and the Union
are discussing the two clubs playing an international friendly this year.
Photo Credit: Alfonso Jimenez via Wikimedia Commons
Ever since Amado Guevara was shown the door, I've been clamoring for an actual #10 Creative
Midfielder for our team - to absolutely no avail. That genius Bruce Arena (besides destroying our
pretty good backline in 2007) saddled us with the perenially injured Claudio Reyna, who (as a
defensive midfielder) was absolutely not the creative player we needed.
Good news everyone!
The remainder of the Dynamo's local TV deal has finally be revealed and it's all about Fox
Sports Houston and FSHouston Plus....more importantly, all broadcast will be in glorious high
definition. Happy dance time!
"This agreement with Fox Sports Houston, coupled with our overall television package, creates
the strongest broadcast situation in club history," said Dynamo president Chris Canetti.
The beginning of the 2012 Major League Soccer season is right around the corner and the folks
over at MLS Soccer have released their first preseason power rankings. As expected the LA Galaxy
are on top, while the New England Revolution get no love, as MLS Soccer ranks them below the
expansion side Montreal Impact.
Toronto and Kansas City have faired pretty well so far this winter. (Getty Images)
Many clubs are a few weeks into their pre-seasons and now that the international transfer window
has shut, it is a good time to look at how each MLS side has done so far this winter. (Note: the
MLS window doesn't close until April, which means players who failed to land new jobs in Europe can
still head to MLS.
The Columbus Crew now has a home on SBNation
Some inter-network news this morning for you all. As you guys may very well know we here at
Stumptown Footy are part of a much larger, bigger and all around fantastic sports network of blogs
and sites. This works out great for you guys since it means we have more resources available and
more clout with which to get us into sports events and the like.
Massive Report - For Columbus Crew Fans
Now joining SB Nation's dominence of the MLS team specific blogosphere is a Columbus Crew site
so large it could only be called "Massive Report." This means that every team returning in MLS for
2012 is represented. Of course there are plans for a Montreal Impact blog and it is only a matter
of time before all 19 teams are live.
Leeds United have signed MLS star Robbie Rogers on an 18-month contract from Columbus Crew.
The 24-year agreed personal terms on January 10 but had to wait for his work permit to be approved
before he could become officially part of the squad at Elland Road.
Rogers was given a taste of football in England in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Newcastle
last week but was unable to feature for the reserves because not all of his paperwork had been
completed.
The U.S. Under-23 men's national team finished off its January training camp with a victory,
topping Alajuelense 1-0 in a friendly in Costa Rica.
Tony Taylor scored the lone goal, taking a pass from the Columbus Crew's Dilly Duka at the top
of the box and finishing in the 41st minute.
Being a professional has less to do with getting paid, and more to do with the proper attitude and
approach. The adjustment for young professionals making a jump to the next level from college
normally starts with how quickly they can apply that approach, and adapt to those demands.
Craig Merz of MLSsoccer.
When the Chicago Fire announced Quaker Oats as their new jersey sponsor earlier this week (I
swear that one is growing on me by the day), the news left four clubs without a sponsor.
The Colorado Rapids, the Columbus Crew, FC Dallas and Sporting Kansas City all have holes in
their jerseys well metaphorically speaking.
When the Chicago Fire announced Quaker Oats as their new jersey sponsor earlier this week (I
swear that one is growing on me by the day), the news left four clubs without a sponsor.
The Colorado Rapids, the Columbus Crew, FC Dallas and Sporting Kansas City all have holes in
their jerseys well metaphorically speaking.
Don't forget today is the last day to pre-order the 2012 edition of the Sounder At Heart
official Scarf. There's one problem, today is the last day you can pre-order the scarfs. Time is
up at Noon, which is a half hour from now.
With training camps starting to fire up across Major League Soccer, that means more news is
going to start rolling in and that means the official return of Major Link Soccer.
So the bottom line is they're not thrilled:
But let us recall the stated policy of BSA – no atheists and no gays allowed. Period.
They even succeeded in defending this position at the U.S. Supreme Court in 2000.
So then, is it really such a great deal for our rapidly-expanding professional league to ally
itself with an organization that openly espouses bigotry and intolerance?
Like the SuperDraft... just less Super... and more MentalNo we aren't being all
streets with French crazy people - we are being all streets with the 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft!
And honestly, what's a draft if it's not a wee bit mental? And hey, Montreal's in it now so l
vous allez.
The Torontos had five picks today in the annual hunt for gold (not Matt Gold) that slipped through
the two rounds of last week's SuperDraft.
The Chicago Fire might be adding a new graphic to the front of their jerseys this season.
According to reports out of Chicago, the club is closing in on a jersey sponsor deal with Quaker
Oats, something that would end the club's sponsor hiatus after one season. Best Buy had been the
team's jersey sponsor from 2008-2010 before ending its commitment prior to last season.
The Rapids released their preseason plans today. They'll be making two trips, first to Oxnard and
San Luis Obispo in California and second to Hawai'i for the Hawaiian Islands Invitational
Tournament. In between the trips they'll be training out at the Dick. The first day of training is
a week from today, though players report on Thursday for physicals and fitness assessments.
If you just can't get enough Chicago Fire action with 17 home games, the option to travel to an
away game is always there. Section 8 Chicago, the Independent Supporters Association for the
Chicago Fire Soccer Club, has a part of their website dedicated to Away Trip planning and
discussion. Once the season gets closer, Section 8 is the place to go to purchase away tickets and
for some games, away game bus tickets that depart from Chicago.
The 2012 Chicago Fire season is almost here. The 2012 Chicago Fire preseason starts on Wednesday
if you count the players reporting for physicals as preseason. The team will start actually
training in Ave Maria, Florida on January 20. Preseason scrimmages on the calendar include January
29 vs. D.
Had the MLS SuperDraft not been shortened to two rounds, then a lot more scrutiny would be
applied to some of the early selections in Tuesday's MLS Supplemental Draft, with those picks
typically being included among teams' draft hauls from last week's main event.
As it stands, the upcoming four-round affair provides another chance for teams to bolster their
rosters as training camps open across North America.
Images: PIERRE ANDRIEU/AFP/Getty Images, AFP PHOTO / ANDREW YATES.
Ludovic Obraniak was a Lille player until yesterday when he signed a three-and-a-half year
contract with Bordeaux.
All of our further research regarding his career, life and propensity towards nudity was
abandoned as soon as we laid eyes on his.
Nearly nine hours after being selected with the 10th pick in the Major League Soccer SuperDraft,
and after doing who knows how many interviews, Ethan Finlay's voice was a little hoarse
Thursday night.
But he was still excited to talk about his day and his future with the Columbus Crew.
PSP will be updating this page with each team's pick as they happen in today's SuperDraft.
Page will auto-refresh every 2 minutes with updates.
Check out PSP's pre-draft coverage examining possible Union selections and local players in
this year's SuperDraft.
Round 1 Pick # MLS team Player Position College 1 Montreal Impact 2 Vancouver Whitecaps FC 3 New
England Revolution 4 Toronto FC 5 Chivas USA 6 San Jose Earthquakes 7 D.
At Gay4Soccer, a call to offer support to gay players and fans:
Imagine how David Testo's career would have gone if he didn't have supportive people to
come out to early on in his career while at the Columbus Crew. I'd like to think the kindness and
support of the players he told kept him in the game and standing strong against the on-field taunts
he's had to endure.
Wednesday:
• Tim Bolton
Wheater: No Rafa...
Reports say that Tim Bolton deal is etched.
Ream will battle former Middlesborough phenom David Wheater for playing time at Bolton with
Wheater getting the first call obviously to replace The Overrated Gary Cahill.
photo by Nick Turchiaro/ISIphotos.com
After uncertainty clouded his future with Toronto FC, Joao Plata is staying right where he
is.
One of MLS's most technically-gifted players, Plata has agreed to re-sign with Toronto FC on a
multi-year deal.
Photo: Paul Rudderow
Philadelphia Union
Tweet from SBI: "I'm told Philadelphia Union midfielder Michael Farfan will be heading to
England for a training stint with Premier League side Sunderland." As of this writing, we are
waiting for confirmation from the Union about this report.
As expected, the Columbus Crew signed two-time National Champion and Soccer America's College
Soccer Player of the Year for 2011 Ben Speas as a homegrown player. Speas won the 2010 College Cup
with the University of Akron before transferring to UNC and winning it again in 2011. Speas scored
the only goal in the 2011 final, winning the MVP award.
BBC News and Sky News are reporting that American Robbie Rogers has signed a deal with Leeds
United of England's Championship. The 24 year old winger has been capped 18 times by the United
States National Team and most recently played for the Columbus Crew in MLS. This isn't Rogers'
first signing with a European club.
photo by Michael Janosz/ISIphotos.com
Robbie Rogers made it no secret that he wanted to play abroad once his MLS contract expired at
the end of last season.
It appears his wish has been granted.
Rogers has agreed to join Championship club Leeds United, subject to him securing a work
permit.
United States Under-23 National Team coach Caleb Porter announced three additions to the squad
currently training in Carson, California, along with two players unable to attend camp due to
injury. Columbus Crew goalkeeper Matt Lampson, Los Angeles Galaxy goalkeeper Brian Perk, and
Stuttgart defender Royal-Dominique Fennel have joined the camp, with goalkeeper David Bingham and
defender Gale Agbossoumonde unavailable due to injury.
Photo by ISIphotos.com
Centerback Gale Agbossoumonde and goalkeeper David Bingham have been forced to withdraw from
United States Under-23 national team camp with undisclosed injuries ahead of today's opening day of
training at the Home Depot Center, according to U.
Columbus Crew forward Emilio Renteria and Chivas USA forward Alejandro Moreno are among the
players called in for Venezuela's friendly against the United States on Jan. 21 at University of
Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.
Former New York Red Bulls defender Gabriel Cichero is also part of the 24-man group that will
face Mexico in Houston four days later.
Venezuela head coach Cesar Farias named his 24-man roster for the upcoming match against the
U.S. Men's National Team at 9 p.m. ET Jan. 21 at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale,
Ariz. Venezuela's attacking group includes Alejandro Moreno of Chivas USA and Emilio Renteria of
the Columbus Crew:
VENEZUELA ROSTER BY POSITION
GOALKEEPERS (2): Alan Liebeskind (Lara), Leonardo Morales (Anzoategui)
DEFENDERS (8): Joel Caceres (Lara), Gabriel Cichero (Lens), Javier Gonzalez
(Petare), Rubert Quijada (Monagas), Carlos Rivero (Anzoategui), Andres Rouga (Tachira), Carlos
Salazar (Anzoategui), Jose Manuel Velazquez (Mineros)
MIDFIELDERS (8): Angel Chourio (Real Esppor), Diomar Diaz (Petare), Agnel Flores
(Mineros), Francisco Flores (Anzoategui), Edgar Perez Greco (Lara), Alejandro Guerra (Mineros),
Diego Guerrero (Tachira), Miguel Mea Vitali (Lara)
FORWARDS (6): Richard Blanco (Petare), Darwin Machis (Mineros), Alejandro Moreno
(Chivas USA), Hermes Palomino (Cherno More), Emilio Renteria (Columbus Crew), Jose Reyes
(Anzoategui)
Brad Evans was certainly a hit at Friday night's Q&A session at Official U.S. Soccer Bar Tim
Finnegan's Irish Pub, answering questions and sharing stories for more than an hour about rising
from a club player in Arizona to the U.S. National Team.
The local fans were particularly interested in his thoughts about player development in the state
and how more kids can reach the elite levels in the sport.
A healthy Josh Gatt and Mexican-American midfielder Isaac Acuña are among the 22 players called
in for the next U.S. Under-23 training camp by coach Caleb Porter.
The camp will take place at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., before the group departs
for Costa Rica to play friendlies against Saprissa reserves on Jan.
