After an offseason full of major moves, promise and tangible signs of improvement, the Portland Timbers were hit with a sizeable dose of bad news Friday.

Colombian striker Jose Adolfo Valencia, signed as a Young Designated Player back in December, requires knee surgery to repair damaged cartilage in his left knee and is going to be out for anywhere from the next 6-to-12 months.

The Denver Post has confirmed a rumor that came out of Colombia this weekend, Independiente Medellín midfielder Jaime Castrillón is in talks with the Rapids. He was also in talks to join Colombian side Millionaires but has decided to set his eyes on MLS. Some sources are reporting that he's already signed, but the Rapids told the Post that discussions are still on-going.

By Tony Edwards - San Jose, CA (Jan 5, 2012) US Soccer Players -- In Thursday's edition, Tony analyzes the Rapids' coaching choice, the same old news out of Harrison, and midfield options for the Sounders. Are the Rapids getting everything they want in a coach? With Colorado yet to make this Denver Post report official, possibly.

BREAKING NEWS: The NSC Minnesota Stars will ring in 2012 with the unveiling of a new logo, designed by our good Friend-In-Football Kevin Joseph, on Mon Jan 9 at 7:30pm at Brits Pub in downtown Minneapolis. See you there!
STARTERS
The 2012 NSCAA Convention will take place January 11-15 in Kansas City MO.

The Colorado Rapids are set to hire FC Dallas assistant and Academy Director Oscar Pareja has the team's new head coach, the Denver Post reported on Tuesday evening.

Pareja has beaten out a group of candidates that included Denis Hamlett, Tom Soehn and Richie Williams. The Rapids are expected to make the announcement this week.

The Denver Post is reporting that the Rapids have re-signed Brian Mullan to a multi-year deal. No details on amount or length, but I'm sure those will leak in the coming days. The article also mentions that they're working on a new contract for Steven Emory, and that they would like to re-sign Danny Earls and Miguel Comminges, but they're waiting on a new coach before making the final decision on those two.

Sorry I went AWOL on everyone (which I'm guessing is about 5 readers at this point in the offseason ;)) for a few days, stomach flu sucks. A couple of interesting news items came out this week.

• Colorado declined the options on Miguel Comminges, Danny Earls, Steven Emory, and Michael Holody.

Holody's 3 years of service means he's eligible to be selected by other MLS teams in next week's re-entry drafts.

Dan thinks Colorado made a phenomenally bad decision based mostly on past performance while admitting this:

Steve Sampson and Thomas Rongen have won doubles in MLS.

I rest my case. Jeff Carlisle goes on to paint a picture of the dysfunctional working relationship between Smith and his superiors:

Smith went public with his displeasure in an October interview with The Denver Post but later tried to make peace with Bravo, realizing that he didn't want to leave the team he had spent three years putting together.

Shocking move by the Colorado Rockies who fired coach Gary Smith. What makes this decision such a head scratcher is that Smith led the Rapids to their first MLS Cup less than a year ago.

Managing director Jeff Plush said Monday that he decided not to renew Smith's contract, which ended after the season.

Paul Kennedy of Soccer America reports that less than a year after he led the Colorado Rapids to their first MLS championship, Englishman Gary Smith is out as head coach.
Management announced on Monday that it will not renew Smith's contract, making his departure the second quickest forced exit of an MLS Cup champion coach in league history.

When a story surfaced almost a month ago detailing issues between Colorado head coach Gary Smith and technical director Paul Bravo, it was clear one of them wouldn't be back for 2012.

As it turns out, Smith will be the one not returning.

The Colorado Rapids parted ways with Smith on Monday, announcing that they would not renew the contract of the coach who led the Rapids to the 2010 MLS Cup title.

The Denver Broncos are not the only recipients of the unbridled optimism of Colorado sports fans and writers.

Trailing Kansas City 2-0 on aggregate when they take the field tonight at Livestrong Sporting Park in Kansas, the Colorado Rapids have suddenly become the beneficiaries of miraculous hopes for improbable outcomes.

Their Words That season's done. You don't pay attention to it. You're in the playoffs. That's all that counts. You try to make a run in the playoffs. Rapids forward Omar Cummings on what happened during the regular season. Other Sources Cummings' goal gives Rapids 1-0 playoff win over Columbus Crew - from The Denver Post's John Meyer: "Omar was standing there, just chilling by himself.

BY ADAM SERRANO

Trouble is brewing in the front office of the Colorado Rapids.

In an interview with the Denver Post, head coach Gary Smith admitted that there is a "relationship issue" between himself and Rapids techincal director Paul Bravo that may see Smith decide not to re-sign with Colorado when his contract is finished at the end of the season.

STARTERS
Kasey Keller will play his last regular season game in Seattle on Saturday night and they are expecting over 60,000! Wow! He is retiring from playing at the end of the season.
-They probably won't break their own attendance record set this past summer against Manchester United of over 67,000.

• Dynamo ready for rough reception in Portland crunch clash [MLS Soccer]
• Things to consider with Dynamo at Portland tomorrow. Can the "Orange" get it done? [Glenn Davis Soccer]
• Top 50 MLS Cup Moments: #39 Change of Plans [MLS Soccer]
• Dynamo, Timbers trade has produced winning results [Houston Chronicle]
• Houston's Costly and Camargo adjust to playoff chase [MLS Soccer]
• Home field still a huge edge for playoff-hungry Timbers [MLS Soccer]
• Slideshow: Inside the new Dynamo stadium [Houston Business Journal]

In Other News:

• Coach Gary Smith's days with Rapids numbered?

Their Words The reality is that when people don't work together well, you tend to miss out on certain things. Things fall through cracks. Colorado coach Gary Smith, speaking to The Denver Post about his relationship with technical director Paul Bravo. Other Sources Why LA Galaxy deserve more than just the Supporters Shield and a playoff crapshoot - from The Mirror's Alexi Lalas: So, in essence, when the regular season ends, the playoffs come along.

I was just going to do a recap of my All-Time Team tonight but the Denver Post had an interesting article about tension in the Rapids Front Office this afternoon. It seems that Gary Smith is happy to sign a new contract for next year, but not if he has to continue to work with Technical Director Paul Bravo.

It's Friday! Grab a drink! While you're downing a beer or two you can also sip on a few of the week's best stories we've stumbled upon.


* The Shin Guardian - A Treatise: The State of U.S. Soccer

"It is no secret that the US youth system has struggled to produce genuine global superstars in the sport and a team that can truly compete for the World Cup.

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Tomorrow - Wed Sep 15 is the last day MLS teams can make any roster moves for this season. Thats it.
dN
The rumor is that the USA will schedule two more friendlies this calendar year - Approx Fri Nov 11 and Tue Nov 15, both in Europe.
2011-12 CONCACACHAMPIONS
Matchday 3
dN
Scott French of ESPN writes about LA headed to Morelia and the wave of negativity headed toward Landon Donovan.

Well, it took a number of years, and a couple dozen tries, but an MLS team has finally scored a victory south of the border in CONCACAF Champions League group play as FC Dallas defeated Pumas UNAM 1-0 in Mexico City. It shouldn't have taken this long, but sincere congratulations to Schellas Hyndman's side for finally breaking the ice.

Photo: Daniel Gajdamowicz

Union

Have you already read the PSP preview? More match previews for tonight's encounter between the Philadelphia Union and Colorado Rapids at MLSsoccer.com, the Brotherly Game, Unholy Union, Goal.com, phillyBurbs.com, DelawareOnline.com, FoxNewsLatino, the Denver Post, the LA Times and Bookmaker.

Just being reported by the Denver Post. Say goodbye to our Champions League chances, its going to be a struggle just to make the playoffs now.

Photo by Michael Janosz/ISIphotos.com

Seattle Sounders fans won't get the chance to serenade Brian Mullan after all.

According to The Denver Post, Mullan did not accompany the rest of the Colorado Rapids to Seattle for Saturday afternoon's match, which will be the first meeting between the two clubs since Mullan's tackle broke the leg of Seattle winger Steve Zakuani earlier this season.

Burned over Beckham: The Galaxy's penchant for not fully disclosing injuries finally caught up with them and David Beckham, seen here holding the Olympic torch earlier this month with Lord Sebastian Coe, ahead of the 2012 London Olympics (AP Photo).

Specifically, David Beckham's unreported back spasms that kept him out of last weekend's game against the Colorado rapids.

It's only April, but we've got an early lead in the MLS-related "You gotta be ****ing KIDDING me" story of the year: An exclusive interview with the guy who brought Dallas' season to a standstill, Jonathan Leathers called
"Fullbacks tackle - and here's how to do it."
Quote: Originally Posted by not actually in the article, but still Stop when you hear a "snap.

In between matches against the MLS Cup-contending LA Galaxy and New York Red Bulls, the Union get to take on DC United tonight in a US Open Cup play-in match at the Maryland Soccerplex (more here on what to expect from our Joey Samuel). One of those really busy weeks where I do not envy the lives of the players.

The MeloDrama is finally over. According to the Denver Post, Carmelo Anthony has officially been traded to the New York Knicks. Carmelo Anthony has to be ecstatic because he wanted to go to the Knicks all along. The Knicks have to be happy because they landed their man. The big losers? The New Jersey Nets.

STORY OF THE DAY
Ridge Mahoney of Soccer America considers the Adidas influence on MLS.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"One day we went to Maradona's assistant's house for a barbeque, and we all played some soccer. That was so cool to meet Maradona. He was a lot different than I thought he'd be.