In the second preseason game of the season, KC once again took care of business, this time against their First Kick opponent DC United. What would be assumed to be the first team started the game again for Kansas City. It was the same lineup as KC put out against San Jose last weekend, with one exception.

Wesley Sneijder has been linked with Manchester United in the past few days, and not for the first time. The Dutchman has continuously been linked with Manchester United for the best part of two seasons but each time the move was apparently close to completion something cropped up an prevented it from being finalized.

Inigo Lopez grabbed a late winner for Granada to give their La Liga survival hopes a big boost as they beat local rivals Malaga on Monday.

Malaga had the better early exchanges as the game started at a fast and furious pace with first Enzo Maresca then Rondon shooting high and wide from good positions in the opening minutes.

Daneil Cyrus is not in camp with Sporting KC due to "personal reasons" and it doesn't look like he'll be joining the team soon. Word out of Trinidad (h/t The Daily Wiz) is that Cyrus will be joining the Trinidad and Tobago U-23 for a camp. The camp will be capped off by two friendlies again the full national team of Guyana.

Obviously, the atmosphere at a derby held in such high esteem such as that of 'Derby della Madonnina' is meant to blow you off your feet. Unfortunately, besides Diego Milito's wonder strike for Inter in the 54th minute (there's no denying him, really) the game last night was .

League leaders AC Milan host their cross city rivals Inter Milan in the 204th meeting between them at the San Siro. Though Milan leads with the most number of wins in all meetings, there really is nothing to separate both sides.

Milan have won 72 of all the 204 meetings just one more than Inter with the pair each having scored an 279 goals in all meetings.

League leaders AC Milan host their cross city rivals Inter Milan in the 204th meeting between them at the San Siro. Though Milan leads with the most number of wins in all meetings, there really is nothing to separate both sides.

Milan have won 72 of all the 204 meetings just one more than Inter with the pair each having scored an 279 goals in all meetings.

There is so much that can change the draft and the way that teams select that it's really hard to look at KC's first round pick, the 16th overall, let alone the rest of KC's draft. So we're going to just look at the 16th draft pick at this point and go through the rest of the picks as they come up during the draft.

Took a little while for me to get this post out due to all the stuff that's been going on since Sporting KC's season ended. But here's a look at my post season grades.
Korede Aiyegbusi - INC - Only played 94 minutes for KC in league play this year, not enough to warrent a grade.
Davy Arnaud - C+ - Missed quite a bit of time after having hernia surgery, and once back found himself as a back up to the midfield trio of Cesar, Espinoza, and Zusi.

Some quick bits of news on four Kansas City players from this past season. First, with regards to the re-entry draft (more on the draft as a whole later). Kansas City has two players that have been played into the draft, Luke Sassano and Shavar Thomas. Neither one is incredibly surprising. Thomas was 100% expected after he wasn't waived, the Jamaican international made only 3 substitute appearances in MLS play this past season.

photo courtesy Jarred Donalson
Sporting KC made 4 more roster moves today, waiving four players before today's waiver draft. KC waived Jeferson, Craig Rocastle, Milos Stojcev, and Scott Lorenz. Jeferson Rocastle, and Stojcev all three take up international spots that are now open to be used next year.

I'm getting this out later than I had planned to, but it seemed like every night when I sat down to write it there was other news that I wanted to get to first and by the time I was done with those I was ready to be done. But now it's time to take a look at the upcoming expansion draft.
First, here are the rules for the expansion draft and how the rules affect Kansas City.

The day after the Sporting KC season ended, Robb Heineman posted on Twitter that the team was making an offer on a Spanish designated player. Since then, people have been speculating who it is that KC is trying to sign. It especially picked up after Heineman posted yesterday that a deal was done and would be announced in January.

After a scoreless first half, the Dynamo opened up the attack with Andre Hainault and Carlo Costly goals as Houston earned 2-0 win over Sporting K.C. at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park and a return to the MLS Cup Final for the first time since 2007.

Hainault opened the scoring in the 53rd minute when a corralled a loose ball inside the box and fired it through to give the guests the lead.

photo courtesy of Jarred Donalson
Sporting KC took a big first step in the playoffs on Sunday night in Colorado as they took out the Rapids 2-0 in the first leg of their home and home series. With the second leg at home at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, KC is firmly in the driver's seat in the series.

By DAVID GUBALA

Sporting Kansas City went into Sunday's Eastern Conference semifinal first leg looking to hopefully come away with a draw against the Colorado Rapids to send the series back to Kansas City

A nightmarish night for the Rapids helped Sporting KC return to the Midwest with so much more.

Sporting KC didn't have to rely on other results, KC took care of business themselves, beating DC 1-0 and earning themselves the top spot in the Eastern Conference. KC started an unchanged lineup from the one that clinched a playoff spot vs New York. KC once again had the early pressure creating some decent chances, the best of which was a cross that Omar Bravo ran onto in the fourth minute.

To say that Inter's Champions League match Tuesday night against Ligue 1 champions Lille was a "must win" would be a massive understatement. After a lackluster performance at the weekend that resulted in a loss to Catania, the heat was on and cranked up to the maximum temperature. Yes, one could argue the penalty given against Luca Castellazzi was a soft call and it should never have been.

Once again Kansas City runs the risk of losing one of their players in this year's expansion draft to help fill the roster for the Montreal Impact. Yesterday MLS released the date as well as the basic rules for the draft.
The draft will be held on November 23, 3 days after the MLS Cup final in LA.

By GARRETT DAVEY

KANSAS CITY, Kansas -- Sporting Kansas City is one of the toughest teams in the league to beat at home, and doing so with ten men and without your top player makes the task all but impossible.

The New York Red Bulls learned that fact after seeing Thierry Henry sent off for violent conduct in the 28th minute.

With a week to spare, Sporting Kansas City clinched a spot in the 2011 MLS Cup playoffs thanks to a 2-0 win over the New York Red Bulls yesterday at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park. KC's early pressure nearly paid off inside the first minute off a corner kick. Graham Zusi's corner went through to the back side.

Estamos en fecha FIFA y todas las selecciones del mundo se encuentran reunidas para jugar partidos oficiales o partidos amistosos como es el caso del encuentro de México vs Brasil, que se efectuará el próximo martes 11 de octubre.
Dicho partido al ser amistoso no resta importancia sino todo lo contrario ha creado cierta expectación a nivel internacional quienes pondrán las miradas la noche del martes, debido a la cantidad de estrellas que se verán las caras en el estadio Territorio Santos Modelo de Torreón y Mano Menezes.

Sporting KC had the control of the game last night at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, but were unable to take advantage of the possession and were only able to grab a point as they tied Philadelphia 1-1. The point only tied Sporting KC with the Columbus Crew at the top of the Eastern Conference. With the way results have already gone today, the tie has seen KC fall into a tie for second as Houston as beaten Dallas to hop over KC, Philly, and Columbus into first place.

South American football blog: How Julio Cesar Falcioni has got Boca juniors jumping again

For the new season, MirrorFootball is teaming up with some of the blogosphere's best new writers to bring you even more great football reads every single day. Saturday is South America day, and here's Valderramarama's Ed Malyon with his take on the week's big issues in Argentina.

By GARRETT DAVEY

KANSAS CITY, Kansas -- On a night when both teams had aspirations of taking a hold of first place in the Eastern Conference, neither team could muster the goals needed to walk away with all three points

Sporting Kansas City dominated for stretches, and created more chances on Friday night at Livestrong Sporting Park, but managed just one goal against a resolute Philadelphia defense.

After spending the last two months at home, Sporting KC goes back onto the road where they'll take on the surging Real Salt Lake. RSL has won their last 3 games, two of which were on the road. Last week they defeated Seattle in Seattle 2-1 thanks to an own goal and a goal by Alvaro Saborio. Salt Lake is currently ranked 4th in the very strong West and in place to have to play a wild card game in the playoffs if they started tomorrow.

Sporting Kansas City made one move today before the roster freeze at 4pm Central time today. Today KC announced that they'd acquired Kenyan defender, Lawrence Olum. Olum spent most of the year with Orlando City SC of the USL Pro division. The 27 year old Olum played in 21 games for Orlando City in league play, recording only 1 assist.

The Serie A season is finally underway and with it comes the hopes, expectations, and dreams for all clubs in Italy's top flight. Everything seems a little brighter with the promises of what can happen but when everything falls apart after the first match, that light is much dimmer than before. Preseason only garnered more questions than answers in regards to Inter manager Gian Piero Gasperini's.

Frustrated Forlan alongside triumphant Miccoli
The Serie A has been dominated by the two main Milanese clubs for a bit more than half a decade. While they have had some testing competition by the likes of Roma and Juventus, the past ten years have seen AC Milan or Inter Milan win the scudetto seven times.

Sporting Kansas City had a big opportunity to get themselves into a more favorable playoff position on Saturday when the 3rd place Houston Dynamo came to town. The Wizards grabbed the opportunity and took full advantage of it defeating the Dynamo 3-0 at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park. KC set out from the offset and took the game to the Dynamo, controlling play extremely well early on.

By DAVID GUBALA

Sporting Kansas City completed the impressive climb from last place in the Eastern Conference to first place with their latest victory at Livestrong Park, and the star was a player KC will need to shine if they plan on staying in first place.

Teal Bunbury's sophomore season has been disappointing given the expectations of his second season as a pro, but he showed again on Saturday why he's considered one of the best young players in MLS.

photo courtesy of Jarred Donalson
Last night KC pulled back another point late in the game against the LA Galaxy, converting a late penalty kick by Omar Bravo to earn a 2-2 draw with LA. It's the fourth time KC has earned a point after the 89th minute, giving them a -5 now in points gained/lost in the 89th minute on.

Fresh off a last-minute come-from-ahead loss to FC Dallas last week, Sporting Kansas City desperately needed some good news in Sunday night's match-up against the Los Angele Galaxy.

Some good news came late in the form of a Frankie Hejduk handball.

Hejduk handled a cross in the penalty area to set up an Omar Bravo stoppage time penalty kick that helped Sporting KC salvage a 2-2 draw at Livestrong Sporting Park on Sunday.

In a rescheduled game, Sporting Kansas City came back twice at home to split the points with the Los Angeles Galaxy. Sean Franklin opened the scoring for LA in the 25th minute, and that lead held until Julio Cesar equalized for Sporting in the 72nd. It was Franklin again, putting LA back in front two minutes later from a David Beckham service.

Bem-vindo a Selecao Bootcamp! It was Birthdays galore over the weekend as both Julio Cesar and Alexandre Pato celebrated their big days with their Brazilian teammates. Cesar was pelted with water and made to roll his face over the grass while Pato got a strawberry cake courtesy of the squad's chef!

Brazil v Ghana All eyes on the Selecao - originally posted on Soccerlens.com

It is the nature of modern football that in any match involving Brazil, the spotlight rests solely on their ambitions for their next title.

This time, as hosts of the next World Cup, they have only friendlies (and the Confederations Cup) to fine-tune their preparations in the next 3 years and as such, every friendly will be an examination of Brazil's credentials to lift the World Cup on their home soil.

Aaaand... he's back for Brazil next month against Ghana! What a relief, eh, Ronaldinho? / via Reuters

(See Brazil's official squad list to face Ghana after the cut)

Goalkeepers: Julio Cesar (Inter Milan/ITA), Fabio (Cruzeiro), Jefferson (Botafogo)

Defenders: Lucio (Inter Milan/ITA), Thiago Silva (AC Milan/ITA), David Luiz (Chelsea/ENG), Dede (Vasco da Gama), Daniel Alves (Barcelona/ESP), Danilo (Santos), Marcelo (Real Madrid/ESP), Adriano (Barcelona/ESP)

Midfielders: Lucas Leiva (Liverpool/ENG), Ralf (Corinthians), Luiz Gustavo (Bayern Munich/GER), Elias (Atletico Madrid/ESP), Paulo Henrique Ganso (Santos), Lucas (Sao Paulo), Fernandinho (Shakhtar Donetsk/UKR)

Forwards: Alexandre Pato, Robinho (both AC Milan/ITA), Neymar (Santos), Hulk (FC Porto/POR), Ronaldinho (Flamengo), Leandro Damiao (Internacional)

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It's been a week and a half since Kansas City last had a league game, but it's back to work tomorrow when the Wizards host the second expansion team this year, the Portland Timbers. The Timbers meanwhile are coming in on short rest, having played in Houston on Sunday. The Timbers went directly from Houston to KC, but will have to replace Lovell Palmer who is suspended due to yellow card accumulation.

Most Kansas City fans probably didn't expect Guadeloupe midfielder Stephane Auvray to play another game for the Wizards ever after he had basically disappeared from training almost 2 months ago. Today that became official as Sporting KC traded the midfielder to the New York Red Bulls. In return, Kansas City get the Red Bulls second round pick in 2013.

BEM-VINDO to Seleção Bootcamp, a relatively short edition this time because kick-off for their friendly against Germany takes place later today! Mano's manos did the usual from an X-Ray (kindly demonstrated by Julio Cesar below- unfortunately it did not reveal any other finds) to their training session.