The Philadelphia Union are working on solidifying their 2012 friendly schedule by talking to
Newcastle United about playing in Philadelphia during the summer, according to a report.
"I Wish I Was A Geordie," an American Newcastle blog, is reporting that Newcastle and the Union
are discussing the two clubs playing an international friendly this year.
Featured image: Earl Gardner
2011 was a great year for Philly soccer fans. The Philadelphia Union made it to the playoffs in
just their second season. For the second year in a row, and their second year of existence, the
Philadelphia Independence made it to the WPS Finals. Nearly 58,000 turned out to see the Union play
Real Madrid at the Linc, where the USMNT would host Mexico only a few weeks later (even if the home
support was outnumbered by the support for the visitors at both games).
Photo: Nicolae Stoian
Kickoff for Sunday's game is now set for 5pm.
ESPN2 is broadcasting New York Red Bulls v LA Galaxy at 3pm, which pushes the kickoff of
Sunday's Union v Houston game, which is also on ESPN2, up to 5pm. Why the start times aren't the
other way around, given the fact that the Eagles are playing the Cowboys at the Linc at 8pm, the
Giants are playing Miami at 1pm and the Jets have a bye, is beyond me.
With the Philadelphia Union set to host their inaugural playoff match this Sunday, much of
Philadelphia is gripped with Doop fever. Another symbol of the team's success at reaching hearts
and minds came last week, when the Union announced a deal with sports radio station WIP to
broadcast 17 matches, beginning in 2012.
When the Philadelphia Union and DC United last met on July 2, the Union were 7–4–5 with 26
points and in first place in the Eastern Conference. Danny Mwanga had scored his fifth goal of the
season the previous weekend in a come-from-behind win against Chivas USA that also included goals
from Veljko Paunovic and Carlos Ruiz.
The USA MNT certainly packed more excitement into the last 20 minutes than it did in the first 70
against Mexico last night at The Linc, but in the end, sent the fans home happy and gave new head
coach Jurgen Klinsmann a fine result in his first match in charge.
A coach also loves when subs can come off the bench to contribute, as that's often a difficult task
for young players, but three combined for the USA's equalizer in the 73rd minute as Juan Agudelo
played Brek Shea who played Rogers for the tap in.
Not so long ago we were looking at the Union at the season's mid-point. Five game's later and
things look a lot less rosy than they did then.
At the season's midpoint, the 2–2 draw with DC, the Union were 7–4–6. Since then, the
Union have one win, one loss and three draws for a 8–5–9 record.
Here's everything you need to know to get fully prepared for tonight's USA-Mexico match.
A sample...
- Landon Donovan has five goals in 13 appearances against Mexico.
- Jose Torres, who holds both U.S. and Mexican passports and chose to represent the United
States, has yet to face Mexico at the international level.
Bill Hamid's journey through the U.S. Soccer ranks has been well documented, and has now culminated
in a call up to the Men's National Team ahead of the Aug. 10 match against Mexico. The match will
be played at the Linc in Phildelphia – just 150 miles from his hometown of Annandale, Va.
Setting: Saturday, July 23 at Lincoln Financial Field in
Philadelphia; kickoff scheduled for just after 9:00 PM Eastern
Broadcast Information: ESPN Deportes and ESPN3.com nationally,
with coverage beginning at 9:00 PM Eastern
For the Real Madrid Perspective, Visit Managing Madrid
Just three days after the Philadelphia Union took a rather exhilarating 1-0 victory against
Everton thanks to a late goal from academy player Christian Hernandez, the Union welcome Cristiano
Ronaldo and Real Madrid to Lincoln Financial Field.
Time for some attendance numbers for you attendance geeks out there. The Sports Business Daily
released current attendance figures to date in comparison to this time last season. As expected
the league has enjoyed a 6.3% raise in folks at the gate with only five clubs seeing negative
percentages (The Union are one of those teams in the negative and its largely due to them playing
their first two games at the Linc in Philly).
The Philly Soccer Page » Allocation money is... what?
The Philadelphia Union have been very good defensively. But their success has masked a real lack of
proven depth on the back line. Both Farfan brothers and Keon Daniel have deputized on the outside
while Sheanon Williams had to slide into the middle when Califf couldn't go in Portland.
Setting: Saturday, July 2 at RFK Stadium in Washington;
kickoff scheduled for 7:06:30 PM Eastern
Broadcast Information: Soccer Night in America on Fox Soccer
(J.P. Dellacamera, Kyle Martino, Brian Dunseth) nationally, coverage starting at 6:30 PM / Fox
Deportes nationally / MLS Direct Kick, MatchDay Live (Canada only -- Fox Soccer feed)
DC's Record: 4-5-6, fifth in East
DC's Last Match: T, 2-2 at
Houston
Philadelphia vs.
I consider myself lucky. I have a Dad who has helped guide me and shape me throughout my time
here on Earth. That alone is enough. But he's also someone who absolutely lives and breathes
through sports and has instilled an emotional attachment - one I consider as important as air - to
Philadelphia sports franchises in me.
Union
Apparently the article in the Daily News by Kerith Gabriel we linked to yesterday about the Real
Madrid friendly was yanked for breaking some kind of an embargo. So now there is this article in
the Daily News by Kerith Gabriel saying the same thing: the Union will play Real Madrid on July 23
at the Linc.
Editors note: The article from Wednesday we linked to below was pulled for apparently
violating some kind of news embargo. A new article appeared on Thursday morning re-confirming the
original article.
Kerith Gabriel reports at the Daily News that the Union have finalized the deal to host Real
Madrid at the Linc on July 23.
Union
There is more information about the rumored friendly with Real Madrid, first reported by the
Washington Post last Thursday. Kerith Gabriel reports in the Daily News that negotiations are
underway for a possible July 23 fixture at the Linc. The problem is that the Union are scheduled to
play Seattle away on that date.
Jonathan Tannenwald reports, on his Philly.com The Goalkeeper, that the Philadelphia Union are
currently negotiating with Spanish giants Real Madrid for a possible friendly this summer.
Madrid were reportedly set to play Mexican club Club America in the World Football Classic on
July 23, but according to Kerith Gabriel, of Philly.
