Well it's just a preseason match and doesn't count for anything, but the Dynamo's 1-0 victory over the LA Galaxy does give us the ever so slightest bit of retribution after last season. Nathan Sturgis scored his second goal of the preseason as the Dynamo defense continued it's streak of clean sheets with their fifth straight shutout of the preseason.

Sacre bleu! And that's enough stereotypical French speak for now... In any case, it appears that today's pre-season friendly against the Montreal Impact was not quite as fruitful as their previous game against the LA Galaxy earlier this week when they won 4-1 against the former MLS Champs.
In any case, as with the previous game we don't have too much information to go on for this match since we weren't there to actually cover it.

Looks like we have some catching up to do. The Seattle Sounders have sold about 14,000 tickets for the March 7 CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal against Santos Laguna. With a month left before the game, that's a perfectly respectable total, but it's also about 25,000 fewer than Toronto FC has sold for their quarterfinal against the LA Galaxy the same day.

Their Words "Now, I've been in football for nearly 20 years and I have a good understanding of relationships with Managers. I do agree that the Manager is the most important person in a football club or an organisation like this, but there are moments when the Board and the Chairman have to step up to the plate when strong leadership is required.

The LA Galaxy just completed one of the best seasons in MLS history, if not the best, and they may be even better in 2012 after enjoying an outstanding off-season that has many scratching their heads at just how they've been able to do it.

If you have been wondering just how the Galaxy have constructed what looks like an unstoppable MLS roster, read my Fox Soccer column detailing just how the Galaxy have done it.

From Joe Roth to Adrian Hanauer to Sigi Schmid to players like Mike Fucito Seattle Sounders FC has been quite clear about their goals for this year. Another US Open Cup title will not be enough. It is a consistent organizational chorus that started at the End of Year Business Meeting and is hinted at in most conversations about the upcoming season.

"You are just on loan Dave..."A SALARY CAP FAR, FAR AWAY
In the most uneventful (in a good way) pre-season of Toronto FC's history, we can't help but gaze into the distance at our next meaningful opponent, LA Galaxy. In one of the shrewdest moves in MLS governance, Galaxy persuaded the league to allow them to use Mexican Pesos as their salary cap currency.

I woke up this morning to Josh Mayers of the Seattle Times reporting that the LA Galaxy had managed to secure Leonardo on a free transfer and they got Juninho back on a free loan.Suffice it to say that my initial response was not fit to print.

The top of the LA Galaxy roster boggles the mind.

After winning MLS Cup, earning a place in the Champions League and become the MLS equivalent of a SuperClub, the LA Galaxy had questions to answer at the end of 2011.
The possible departures of David Beckham, Juninho and the confirmed loss of Donovan Ricketts raised questions. Add to that the threat of extend loans from Landon Donovan and Robbie Keane, the Galaxy had quiet cause for concern.

STARTERS
Ridge Mahoney of Soccer America reports sad news that Harry Keough of the USA World Cup team that beat England in 1950 has passed away.
dN
Vancouver & Seattle faced off in a "friendly" yesterday: 10 yellow cards and 1 red card. Oof!
dN
Another week, another huge day for the LA Galaxy as they sign a new loan deal with Sao Paolo for the services of central midfielder Juninho, one of the unsung heroes of their great 2011 season.

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.

Juninho proved to be a handful for most MLS sides in 2011. (Getty Images)

I said a few weeks (or maybe just a couple weeks) back that the biggest thing that the LA Galaxy needed to replace this winter was Juninho.

Well, what better way to replace him than with him.

The LA Galaxy announced on Tuesday that the club has reached an agreement with Brazilian club São Paulo FC that will allow midfielder Juninho to return to the Galaxy on loan for the 2012 MLS season.

Sometimes items from Soccer America can be a total miss but check out today's MLS Confidential on the Galaxy. For anyone out there that couldn't get how the LA Galaxy was able to squeeze in Edson Buddle to their salary cap, check this article out.

By bringing back Edson Buddle into the fold, even if he costs slightly more than the $178,488 salary he earned in 2010 before leaving for Germany, the Galaxy probably hasn't crunched its salary cap to any great extent, because of player departures as well as amassing allocation money.

Even though he arrived early, about 30 Galaxy fans were on hand when Edson Buddle returned to Southern California Friday night, stepping off a flight from Europe (Photo courtesy LA Galaxy). Past and future Galaxy striker Edson Buddle will hold a press conference Monday at Home Depot Center after his

Portland and Vancouver have done well in preparing for their sophomore seasons. (Getty Images)

Yesterday I took a look at the 10 clubs from the Eastern Conference in how they've done so far this winter. Naturally right after the post was put up one of those clubs went out and signed a DP.

Today, we'll look at the nine clubs from the Western Conference to see how they've been doing so far this winter.

The Philadelphia Union were expected to announce the signing of Lionard Pajoy last week, but the team has yet to officially recognize the striker as a player. According to a Colombian league report, Pajoy is experiencing visa problems, which are keeping him from joining the Union.

The 30-year-old had problems getting out of his contract with Itagui Ditaires, per a source that talked to Kerith Gabriel, of the Philadelphia Daily News and Philly.

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.

When it comes to announcing his presence at clothing stores, a gigantic poster is no longer enough for Davey Becks. These days, he doesn't get out of bed for anything less than a set of huge shiny Beckham effigies, dressed only in affordable high street underwear.

The LA Galaxy star's expectations were surpassed last night at the H&M store on London's Regent Street, when he unveiled his new 'bodywear' line (aren't all clothes technically 'bodywear'?

A year ago, the Seattle Sounders opened their season on March 15. This year, they will essentially do so eight days earlier. On paper that might not seem like a huge difference.

But unlike last year when they opened against a LA Galaxy team that was in the same stage of its season, the Sounders' first opponent will be Santos Laguna, a Mexican Primera side that will have already played nine matches.

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.

After spending a year in Germany playing for FC Ingolstadt of the German 2. Bundesliga, United States striker Edson Buddle is returning to the Galaxy after signing a free transfer.

The Galaxy garnered suspicion early Wednesday when they posted a picture of a blank #14 jersey on their official Twitter account, asking fans whose name they would like to see on the jersey.

As if the defending MLS Champions needed any more offensive firepower, the LA Galaxy announced today that Edson Buddle would be rejoining the Galaxy after terminating his contract with FC Ingolstadt by mutual consent.

Buddle's addition gives LA the league's best forward tandem, as he and Robbie Keane will lead a line that should feast on the service provided by Landon Donovan and David Beckham.

The past few days have altered the landscape of MLS, the Western Conference and, specifically, Cascadia. While many of us have always believed that the West was much stronger than the East, the amount of talent that has flooded in during the past week alone has only strengthened that belief.

Let's review: The Portland Timbers have added Kris Boyd, the leading scorer in Scottish Premier League history; the Vancouver Whitecaps traded for Sebastien Le Toux, who's contributed to 45 goals over the past two seasons; and the LA Galaxy brought back Edson Buddle, who scored 19 goals during the 2010 season.

The Philadelphia Union have officially completed a trade of Kyle Nakazawa to the LA Galaxy. Nakazawa will be sent to California with a second round selection in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft for one of the Galaxy's international roster spots.

Nakazawa was reported to be on his way to the Galaxy early this morning, when the Brotherly Game published a storywith information from a source knowledgeable on the situation.

"I have a squad thiiiiiiis big"FILLING HOLES, FEELING WHOLE
Isn't it refreshing to hear Aron Winter and his troops talk about how the club is "almost complete"? Barely a week in to training camp and the club's depth charts are nearly full. With the most recent acquisition completed, Chilean defender Miguel Aceval, the biggest hole of the off-season - the defence - has pretty much been taken care of.

Edson Buddle is back. (Getty Images)

Edson Buddle is back in a LA Galaxy uniform. The deal to bring back one of the league's all-time best goal-scorers happened today.

Buddle rejoins the Galaxy after being released from his contract with FC Ingolstadt 04 on Tuesday. Los Angeles maintained his MLS rights following his free transfer to Ingolstadt last January.

Keon Daniel is not at the Youth Sports Complex, in Wayne, PA, according to fans that are at the Philadelphia Union's open team practice. Despite seeing a player of Daniel's build with a dreadlocks style haircut, the midfielder is not at the camp today.

Fans tweeted that the 25-year-old was sighted at preseason training camp this morning, before retracting their observations.

Another Philadelphia Union player is on his way out of the club, as Kyle Nakazawa will be traded, the Brotherly Game has learned.

Sources tell the Brotherly Game that the Nakazawa will be moved to the LA Galaxy in a move that one of the sources said will be announced tomorrow. The trade has been in the works since sometime last week.

STARTERS
Wow! Philadelphia really wanted to get rid of Sebastian Le Toux! After he did not get signed by Bolton this week they turned around and sold him to Vancouver today.
-Why in the world would they dump their best player???
-Jonathan Tannenwald of Philly.com with the Le Toux saga.

This used to be everyday at BMO Field. Sigh.We love us a transfer deadline day. The MLS one is kind of fun for trades but with the multiple windows it can get a bit muddled. On the flipside, when UEFA shuts its window twice a year - it is quite the spectacle. Teams scrapping it out for the title trying to bring in a useful mercenary while minnows try to avoid relegation with a timely loan signing or keep the club alive by selling an asset for big money.

It's that time again. Another chance for me to share my highly biased opinions with all of you, the Dynamo faithful. I cherish this time I have to spend ranting and raving about anything Dynamo or US Soccer related, and to have you all comment on it -- whether positive or negative. It's an honor to write for all of you and for Dynamo Theory, and while my activity sees dips and lulls, rest assured I hope to be around here for a long time to come.

The Seattle Sounders have played in three U.S. Open Cup title games and three MLS Cup playoff series, but the match against Santos Laguna in the CONCACAF Champions League on March 7 may be the biggest match in franchise history. Not to be too much of a shill, but if you're enough of a fan of this team to be reading this blog, you probably should plan on being at Century Link Field that day.

How 51 USMNT players performed for their club teams this weekend:

Goalkeepers (7)

Guzan, Brad (Aston Villa/BPL)
Dressed however did not play in 3-2 loss to Arsenal in FA Cup 4th round.

Dominic Cervi (Celtic/SPL)
Did not dress in 3-1 win over Falkirk in League Cup action.

Video: FA Cup: Everton/Fulham

In a showdown between two of the USA's best attackers, Landon Donovan prevailed providing both the crosses that resulted in two perfect strikes as Everton beat Clint Dempsey and Fulham. The man from Nacogdoches had a quieter evening.

Donovan has had an instant impact on Everton making the best of his two month loan and Dempsey is on par to repeat last season's success, most recently scoring a hat trick against Newcastle.

Ireland striker Robbie Keane has already become Aston Villa's in-game gaffer by shouting out pitch instructions to his short-term colleagues.
Keane has ingratiated himself to team-mates and fans alike with his brilliant double in the 3-2 victory at Wolves last Weekend and it capped an amazing full Villa start for the 31-year-old Irish captain who is currently on loan from LA Galaxy.

Today at noon, or if you're on the East Coast 3 p.m., Fox Soccer will be broadcasting Everton vs Fulham in a FA cup match up. I bet you're asking yourself why I'm bringing this up here? Two of America's best players will be on display, on opposite sides of the ball. The LA Galaxy's Landon Donovan who is on loan to Everton, and Clint Dempsey - the only American to bag a hat trick in England's top flight.

There's a whole slate of FA Cup 4th Round matches this weekend, kicked off by a match today that is especially interesting for viewers on this side of the pond. Everton hosts Fulham, which means it's also a faceoff of the two best American players of this generation: Landon Donovan vs. Clint Demspey.

Although you can't argue with the fact that David Beckham decided to turn down an awful lot of money and the lure of several major clubs in order to continue pursuing a career in the MLS, proving a number of soccer betting tips wrong in the process, that fact fades into insignificance when you realise that not only does Becks want to stick around because he enjoys playing in North America, but also because he has a vested interest in staying for the long term in order to take advantage of the clause in his contract that means he could become the owner of an MLS franchise once his deal expires.

Article by Pedro Gomes
As yet another January camp enters the United States Soccer history books, let us take a quick look back at what has transpired and what we have learned from the camp.
Rosters:
Typically US roster announcements are desperately anticipated, usually overly analyzed and this camp was no different.

There has been a lot of talk in recent years about successful and yet past-their-prime players moving to the United States to earn the big bucks and to continue their career in the American limelight. This began with David Beckham moving to LA Galaxy, with much of the commotion surrounding his wife, Posh Spice's desire to hang out with Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise.