Over the last couple of years, MLS has made a long string of significant decisions aimed at advancing the league and improving the quality of soccer on the field. These have included the Designated Player rule in all of its iterations, the Generation Adidas program and recently, the mandating of team specific academies tasked with developing young players and retaining young talent in the league.

Monday MLS Breakdown: Application of the Home Grown player rule keeps the overarching goal in mind

Confused about MLS' Home Grown player rules? Curious why certain players have signed recently despite not meeting the posted rules? Kyle McCarthy provides an outstanding breakdown of the system. It's a must read in my opinion.

In 2011, the MLS schedule was released in February. MLS fans eager for league news got a surprising gift on Thursday when the league released the entire 2012 schedule more than one month earlier than last year. For business junkies, the most interesting part of the release is probably the announcement of nationally telecast games.

Photo: Nicolae Stoian

There's only one piece of soccer news that really matters to American soccer fans today, and no, Eli, it's not that Philadelphia Union signed a deal with Rosenberg's Peanut Chews, which apparently are a source of some great conflict among the PSP staff.

Yep, it's Landon Donovan going to Everton.

Revolution fans can finally exhale.

In a surprise announcement made during the team's 2012-13 jersey unveiling at the Gillette Stadium Pro Shop on Saturday, Revolution President Brian Bilello announced that the team had re-signed midfielder Shalrie Joseph. According to a tweet from Boston Herald reporter Kyle McCarthy, Joseph's new deal will classify the Grenadan center half as a Designated Player for the 2012 season.

Add Milton Caraglio, Rajko Lekic, Monsef Zerka and Franco Coria to the long list of members of the 2011 New England Revolution who may not be back next year. According to a tweet from Boston Herald reporter Kyle McCarthy, the Revs declined an option to purchase Caraglio and contract options on Lekic and Zerka.

Tacticians stress a lack of true '#9' central strikers in the modern game, and the evolution of a 'false 9' like Messi or Rooney who are drawn up on the board as a 9, but really drop back much deeper like a '#10'.
Where alignments like 4-2-3-1 and 4-1-4-1 are becoming more en vogue to counter some of the changes to the modern game, it seems like the 4-4-2 formation still appears to be the system of choice in Major League Soccer.

Emotions ran high at Gillette Stadium yesterday morning as the Revolution processed the departure of coach Steve Nicol.
Kyle McCarthy of the Boston Herald writes of the final meeting between Stevie Nicol and his New England Revolution players, as well as the profound effect he had on the Revs.

Alex McLeish has rung the changes for this Carling Cup clash, but retained a strong side blending youth and experience.

Aston Villa Hereford 22 Brad Guzan 28 David Cornell 31 Chris Herd 2 Ryan Green 5 Richard Dunne 5 Michael Townsend 21 Ciaran Clark 3 Joe Heath 30 Eric Lichaj 16 Daniel Williams 17 Jean II Makoun 17 Joe Colbeck 25 Barry Bannan 8 Nicky Featherstone 7 Stephen Ireland 14 James Mcquiokin 12 Marc Albrighton 4 Harry Pell 10 Charles N'Zogbia 10 Delroy Facey 9 Darren Bent 7 Stuart Fleetwood Subs Subs 33 Andy Marshall 38 Russell Hoult 32 Nathan Baker 30 Tommy Johnson 23 Habib Beye 19 Kyle McCarthy 34 Shane Lowry 11 Kenny Lunt 28 Jonathan Hogg 31 Lewis Feeley 26 Andreas Weimann 9 Yoann Arquin 14 Nathan Delfouneso 32 Nathan Perkins

Time for some quick hits on business stories circulating the world of American soccer scene. We'll start with USWNT goalie Hope Solo, who has reportedly inked a mult-year deal with Gatorade to join their stable of spokesman/atheletes. According to the Sports Business Journal, the deal is estimated to fall in the low six-figure (per year) range.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Serbians Marko Perovic and Ilija Stolica are no longer members of the New England Revolution after their contract options were declined today. Perovic and Stolica both signed with the club last season.

Marko Perovic was one of the few bright spots for the Revs in 2010.

It seems generally accepted in the MLS community, if not the US Soccer community, that soccer specific stadiums are key to the growth of soccer in the USA.

The reasons are many, and include everything from the emotionally-relevant display of faith in the sport in this country, to the very practical ownership of parking and other associated revenue streams.

This segment is a weekly recap of some of the more interesting, relevant, and entertaining Revolution news as tweeted by members of the MLS world and, naturally, the Revs themselves.

This week, we have some pre and post game tweets from Shalrie Joseph, some airplane etiquette with Zak Boggs and Darius Barnes, and some congrats to send out to the Alston family.

It's time, folks. The Revolution are set to take on the San Jose Earthquakes tonight in a clash involving two teams who appear to be rounding into form.

But first, let's have some musket rounds.

[Boston.com]
Frank Dell'Apa previews tonight's clash against the Earthquakes. He is quick to point out that West Coast road trips have been less than successful for the Revs so far this season.

A little FanPost action from my old college classmate CMajor here, bringing up a really good point about some issues the New England Revolution might face with the Gold Cup this summer. Leave some comments and let him know what you guys think!

It's been reported by GrenadaFA.

Rajko Lekic Has First Training Session

Kyle McCarthy was at training to speak with Rajko Lekic after his first training session as a member of the Revolution. He sounds pretty excited to be here, so that's a plus. No definite word on his availability for Sunday though.

We're two days away from the Union's away game against the current holders of the Supporters' Shield, the Los Angeles Galaxy. This promises to be a huge test for the Union, who have quickly grabbed an important six points in their first two games. Here are some stories on the Union, MLS, and soccer in general to keep your Thursday going.

Tonight, Philadelphia Union fans can meet their favorite players as the team hosts a rescheduled version of the Meet the Players event. It will take place at PPL Park's Stadium Club between 7-9 PM. Fans are encouraged to arrive early, because once a certain capacity of people is filled, no further fans will be allowed entry.

As we do every Monday, here is a roundup of some business issues from Friday and the weekend that we didn't hit in our previous posts. We'll start in WPS, where,iIn conjunction with primary partner PUMA, WPS debuted the Women's Soccer Training Collection last week. A number of PUMA/WPS athletes were part of the launch of the new soccer themed clothing line.