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File this one under the category: most likely to attract choice commentary from Seattle Sounders
supporters.
As the Sounders-less MLS First Kick fast approaches, we here at Stumptown Footy are spooling up
the statistical analysis drives in preparation for the 2012 campaign. Lacking much in the way of
hard data so far, with just one preseason match under our belt, we've decided to start with the
schedule.
Less than two years after its construction was completed, PPL Park was awarded its first MLS
All-Star game, the league announced on Wednesday.
The game has been scheduled for July 25th at 8:00pm ET and will be televised on ESPN2 and
Galavision. An opponent has not been announced.
The soccer specific stadium, which has a capacity of 18,500, is the home grounds of the
Philadelphia Union, who entered the league in 2010.
Photo: Paul Rudderow
It's official, PPL Park will be the site of the 2012 MLS All-Star Game on July 25.
The opponent, "a renowned international club," will be announced at a later date.
MLS Commissioner Don Garber, Philadelphia Union CEO Nick Sackiewicz, Philadelphia Mayor Michael
Nutter and Chester Mayor John Linder were on hand at the press conference at Philadelphia's City
Hall on Tuesday morning for the announcement.
By Joel Greenwaldt
Baltimore Blast (8-3) vs. Syracuse Silver Knights (6-6)
Game Time: 1/6/2012 7:35 PM
http://www.misllivesoccer.com/
What needs to go right for the Blast:
- Take the lead early and put the game away: Syracuse has benefited from early leads in
both of their wins in Baltimore this season.
With it being New Year's Eve, I figured it was time to take a look back at the 2011 wishes that I'd
posted at the end of last year.
1. Return to the Playoffs - This was filled 100%, not only did KC qualify for the playoffs again,
but the team won the regular season Eastern Conference crown and had home field advantage.
"This ain't our house!"One of the worst kept cats in town is apparently out of the
bag this afternoon. No, Nick Soolsma didn't visit the Humane Society - but John Molinaro at
Sportsnet is reporting that Toronto FC will imminently announce that the Champions League
Quarterfinal against LA Galaxy will be played at SkyDome.
By Sharon Hom
Louisville Lightning @ Kansas MagicSaturday, December 3 - 7:35 PM CSTEPIC Indoor Sports –
Overland Park, KS
LOUISVILLE LIGHTNING Record: 2-1 (3rd place, Eastern Division). 1-0 @ Home, 1-1 Away Goals
For-Goals Against: 27-22
KANSAS MAGICRecord: 3-0 (1st place, Eastern Division).
Xavi and Messi celebrate win against AC Milan (Photo: AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Barcelona secured top spot in Champions League Group H with a thrilling 2-3 victory over AC
Milan in the San Siro.
A myriad of talking points dominated pre-game coverage, but only one threatened to mar the match
itself: Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Creighton mens soccer captured the MVC title, now aim for the bigger prize at NCAA
Championships.
Omaha, NE The Missouri Valley Conference Championship game had the #1 and #2 seeds matched up
head to head for the automatic NCAA berth. There was lots to play for and it was evident with
some of the tough challenges and physical play on both sides.
Are the 2011 L.A. Galaxy the best team in the history of MLS?
Is David Beckham's MLS career over?
Those seem to be the questions everyone's contemplating after last night's 1-0 MLS Cup victory.
(Along with this lesser one: Did you ever think a player could be so awful that you'd pine for Chad
Barrett?
On Sunday evening in a rainy Carson, California it seemed that all the stars had aligned for
MLS, for AEG, for Don Garber, and for the Designated Player concept as David Beckham, Robbie Keane,
and Landon Donovan teamed up to give the Los Angeles Galaxy the 2011 MLS Cup winning goal in the
72nd minute at the Home Depot Center.
Photo by Michael Janosz/ISIphotos.com
By THOMAS FLOYD
CARSON, Calif. - Ever since the participants in Sunday's MLS Cup booked their tickets to the
season's grand finale two weeks ago, the Los Angeles Galaxy has been widely pegged as one of the
biggest favorites the final has ever seen.
Marked man. Jose "Choco" Gomez blanketed all evening with Bradley's man marking scheme. Dion
Acoff enjoys a rare breather with his man nowhere in sight.
Omaha, NE I made the journey out to Nebraska to cover the Missouri Valley Conference tournament
live at Morrison Stadium. What an incredible soccer facility!
After the all consternation, all the second guessing, all the doubts, the Houston Dynamo are
playing for the Eastern Conference Championship on Sunday. It's mind blowing to realize that this
really was a rebuilding year in Houston and despite the challenges and roster turnover, Dominic
Kinnear once again has his team in a conference final, the fourth time in the team's six
seasons.
(c) 2010 Premier LeagueAccording to the BBC, when Chelsea played Birmingham City FC the afternoon
of November 20, 2010 at St.Andrews, they took 25 shots on Ben Foster's goal. Birmingham took only 1
– yes one – shot the entire match. The end result? Birmingham 1, Chelsea 0. One way to read
these results is to say Birmingham got lucky.
If there was a criticism of the Roy Hodgson era it was that away from home we never really
seemed interested in attacking. Hodgson denied that we played differently on our travels, but
anyone who watched the team scuffle to horribly attritional narrow defeats in those seasons knows
better: we kept everyone behind the ball and hoped that inspiration might strike.
Two leg aggregate series in the MLS Playoffs favor the team with fewer games played. This has
become known around MLS media circles as the "Curse of the CCL." But Real Salt Lake shouldn't take
any solace in the fact that they've played fewer games. Their First XI has played in 313 more
minutes than the likely lineup put forward by the Seattle Sounders.
The Virginia men's soccer team plays Boston College at 7 p.m. Saturday at Klöckner Stadium and
ESPN3 will be showing the game on a live webcast.
UVA PRESS RELEASE:
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - The Virginia men's soccer team entertains Boston College at 7 p.
- Union Vs. Dynamo, MLS Cup Playoffs 2011: Where Are The Storylines? [SB Nation Soccer]
- Dynamo put faith in Hall as playoffs loom [MLS Soccer]
- Union, Dynamo coming from different directions in MLS Cup playoffs [Philly.com]
- Three Preview Questions With Dynamo Theory And SBN Houston [The Brotherly Game]
- NOT THE SAME TEAMS: Past results don't mean anything in the playoffs [Philly Soccer News]
- Robertson means home-field advantage [Houston Dynamo]
- Glenn Davis: What to watch vs.
In Major League Soccer's odd playoff format this is the only two leg series (tie, whatever). In
order to grant the higher seed an actual advantage it hosts the second leg and a potential for
overtime on its own soil. Overtime is reached if the scoreline over the two matches in the series
are tied with no regard away goals.
(Photo: Daniel Gajdamowicz)
All this week, PSP will be breaking down the Philadelphia Union/Houston Dynamo playoff
matchup. PSP's roving correspondent Adam Cann lays out the big questions and Eli Pearlman-Storch
answers them. First up, we compare the goalkeeping of the second and third best teams in the
Eastern Conference.
There may be no hotter team than the Houston Dynamo right now. (Getty Images)
The 2011 MLS Cup Playoffs are set. We have 10 clubs going for the big prize next month in Los
Angeles and we start on Wednesday with the first wild card round in league history with FC Dallas
hosting the New York Red Bulls.
DC United has little at stake in this last match, but SKC will win the Eastern Conference with a
win and will certainly want make sure they secure home field advantage. However, some United
players will literally be playing for ...
Photo by Don Feria/ISIphotos.com
By THOMAS FLOYD
Well, the New York Red Bulls sure took the drama out of this weekend.
With New York's 1-0 win over the Philadelphia Union on Thursday, the 10th and final ticket to
the postseason was booked, and the Portland Timbers and Chicago Fire were eliminated from playoff
contention.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - The Virginia men's soccer team visits Virginia Tech Friday evening in a key
ACC matchup. Game time is set for 7 p.m. at Thompson Field. Live statistics as well as a link to a
subscription-based live video broadcast will be available at VirginiaSports.com.
Ranked as high as 21st nationally by Soccer America, the Cavaliers (9-5-0, 3-2-0 ACC) are looking
for key points in the ACC race.
Dallas 0 - Toronto 3 Home field advantage didn't help Dallas in a Major League Soccer matchup where
the winner advanced to the knockout stage of the CONCACAF Champions League. Danny Koevermans scored
in the 29th minute and Joao Plata had two goals in the 69th and 81st minute with Milos Kocik
picking up the shutout in front of 2,578 at Pizza Hut Park.
One game. Everything on the line.
This is the stuff that rivalries are made of.
Philadelphia Union vs. the New York Red Bulls. On national TV. It's so on.
If Philadelphia wins, the Red Bulls go home for a long winter. Their disastrous season is over.
The Union win the Eastern Conference and home field advantage if they make it to the conference
finals.
Last weekend was one of the more glorious moments in the history of Manchester City Football Club.
They cruised past Aston Villa to a convincing 4-1 home win, grabbing the spotlight with conviction,
despite plenty of off-field distractions and pressures to justify the tab their owners have laid
out. This weekend at least and at last, City look to be in the catbird seat compared to local
rivals United, who barely managed to eke out a draw ten minutes from time at Anfield.
*Staggering Seattle fell short of the MLS finish line Saturday, missing their three leading
scorers, falling 2-0 to the Philadelphia Union and handing the Galaxy their second straight
Supporters' Shield.
The title capture was all but inevitable anyway for the Galaxy, who may have finished the season
tired and depleted, but they outlasted the rest of MLS to make Sunday's penultimate game of the
season against Chivas USA in Carson a coronation rather than confirmation of the rightful MLS
champions.
So, you'll soon be reading my two-post series at FoxSoccer about the US, and US soccer, and our
twisted, bizarre, schizophrenic, and bipolar relationship with Mexico and Mexican Americans. I give
Fox credit for letting me be candid, honest, and frank about both sides of the equation I address
how and why Hispanics have been somewhat excluded in the current US setup.
The Los Angeles Galaxy clinched their second consecutive Supporters' Shield trophy on Saturday
night when the Seattle Sounders dropped a 2-0 result to the Philadelphia Union.
Los Angeles has 64 points with two games remaining and with their regular season championship,
the Galaxy will have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, including the 2011 MLS Cup
Final, which is scheduled to be played at Home Depot Center.
Success! The Seattle Sounders defeated the Chicago Fire 2-0 to win the U.S. Open Cup for a third
straight year. I admit I had my moments of doubt. Their defense almost seemed prescient in their
ability to intercept passes and shots. Luckily, Fredy Montero scored the go-ahead goal just when I
was mentally preparing for a grueling overtime.
What: Philadelphia Union at Seattle Sounders
Where: CenturyLink Field, Seattle, WA, USA
When: 10:00pm ET
TV: CSN
Radio: Call me and I'll do it over the phone
Tuesday did not go well for the Union.
So you guys must have heard the news by now. Well not news, but rather the rumors. Rio Ferdinand
is going to Chicago! Not really, but it sure does make a sparkly headline doesn't it? Apparently
the British media have been having a field day with regards to the transfer rumor. Regardless of
whether it true or not (it's not) I just don't see where it makes sense.
Photo by Stephen Brashear/ISIphotos.com
Either way, history is going to made in Seattle Tuesday night.
Should the host Seattle Sounders defeat the Chicago Fire in the U.S. Open Cup final (10 p.m.,
Fox Soccer Channel), then they'll put the finishing touches on a three-peat, something that has
never been done in the Major League Soccer era and hasn't been accomplished since Greek American AA
did so in 1967-1969.
The University of Wisconsin women's soccer team has created a home-field advantage at the
McClimon Complex over the past three seasons.
But Sunday afternoon, the Badgers suffered a rare Big Ten Conference setback on their home
turf.
Tiffany Cameron scored the lone goal on a shot that clipped in off the post in the 48th
minute as Ohio State held off UW 1-0, handing the Badgers their first conference loss of the season
and snapping their nine-game Big Ten home unbeaten streak (5-0-4).
While the Seattle Sounder no longer need to worry about making the MLS Cup Playoffs, there is
still much to play for up in Vancouver. The Cascadia Cup is in doubt and that minuscule chance at
the Supporters Shield needs Seattle to win out. Fortunately Seattle is playing the rather weak
Vancouver Whitecaps on the final day of Empire Field.
On a muggy, warm and cloudy day in Tukwila the main interest at practice was Mr Alan Hinton.
With the game against the Vancouver Whitecaps he, Brian Schmetzer and Roger Levesque represent the
history across generations and represent the history of this rivalry that is represented by the
Cascadia Cup.
We always knew the flaws in Major League Soccer's screwy new playoff structure would reveal
themselves sooner or later. And sure enough, here they come.
All year, MLS teams have targeted those top three spots in each conference. The aim, of course,
is to avoid the new play-in round, where four wild cards square off in a bid to join six automatic
qualifiers.
