Holy Feilhaber! (Thanks Matt.)

(MLS Recaps below this post, 10 Bright Spots of Week 12 out Monday)

United States 2, Mexico 1
Soldier Field
Gold Cup Final

The USMNT pulled it off in dramatic fashion Sunday night with another PK conversion from Landon Donovan and arguably the best goal of the tournament from Benny Feilhaber (his second international strike). Overall, it was a game in which although Mexico was pressuring and had some real nice looks at Timmy Howard's net, you could feel the Americans oozing confidence and chomping at the bit. It was raw but gradually as the game went on, a somewhat polished team finished a tough two goal turnaround to win 2-1 over Tricolores. Hugo Sanchez must be feeling the pressure now as two losses in a CONCACAF tournament spells "re-evaluation" for the Mexican legend. Bob Bradley pulled it off and it seems the team is starting to mesh well and learn each other. Feilhaber, Bradley, and Mastroeni all work well together - Rico Clark did add energy, but also some unforced errors (not that Bradley and Feilhaber did supply a good many of those either). Howard solid in goal, expected no less. Yes, we need a striker - but the reserved look for Dempsey or Donovan is working well. While Beasley, in form, is fantastic on the wing and showed it several times this cup (his finals performance was a little weak though). Gotta love the depth and, even more so, you have to be somewhat excited to see the young Copa America take on such quality teams. At least we'll get a sense as to where our depth stops...

Anyways the picture about sums up the win...

5 BRIGHT SPOTS of the MATCH

1. Benny Feilhaber - a text I received from a friend after his impressive strike, "Holy Feilhaber!". Couldn't have said it any better - but the truth is, everyone saw the progress and talent emanating from the HSV young'un and despite some errant touches/crappy passes he seemed to know what he had to do to make that midfield functional. Mastroeni did well to adjust quickly to Feilhaber and was his usual no holding back self although the midfield were getting the run around from; it will be nice to see him continue to get time against real big guns in the Copa America

2. Brian Ching - he might not have been the greatest but he certainly showed flashes of brilliance; that turn on the Mexican defender and the ensuing post-clanker was well-executed (although a finish would have been nice); also his work rate was Brian McBride-ish and was what allowed him to draw that penalty kick in the 62nd minute; now to return to help Houston continue their run of good form

3. Andres Guardado - he didn't turn us around like he did in the last meeting, but his goal was well read and his industriousness on the wing inspired "veterans" like Nery Castillo and Carlos Salcido to decent showings; his collision with Jonathan Spector was unfortunate and I only hope he is alright (big balls not to come out)

4. Jonathan Spector - filled in real well for Frankie Hejduk and made a good case for the starting role, although Frankie Simek (his sub after the collision with Guardado) played admirably as well; it will be nice to have depth at that position (both are not on the Copa America squad as Danny Califf and Marvell Wynne will be looked at instead)

5. Tim Howard - that close range save on Bofo Bautista was amazing and his performance, although a tad shaky at times, was typical of an American GK vs. Mexico; silent confidence is Howard especially when you compare him to the douche-bag that is Oswaldo Sanchez (still bitter about that swipe he took at Eddie Johnson in their last encounter); can't wait to see him have another solid year with Everton as the number one and even England great Phil Neville thinks Timmy will leave himself a "legacy" at Goodison Park!

MLS Game Recaps

Here are some great recaps from various contributors at Top Drawer Soccer. If you want a light read and want the intricacies of each match, take a look at'em.

New England 3, Toronto FC 0

Welshman Andy Dorman starts slow but finishes strong with two goals to bring his season tally to 5 and dispatch of the shifty Toronto Reds. Match Recap.

FC Dallas 1, Colorado 0

Juan Carlos Toja provides the offense...again...as FCD overcomes adversity and a strong home presence to defeat the Rapids. Match Recap.

Real Salt Lake 2, D.C. United 1

Oregon State product and Galaxy castaway Robbie Findley welcomed himself to Salt Lake with 2 goals to douse the hottest squad in MLS. Match Recap.

Columbus 3, Los Angeles 2

LA's woes continue as Gaven continues his form and uses his Copa call-up as an excuse to help the Crew dismantle the Galaxy for their second straight win. Match Recap.

Houston 1, Kansas City 0

De Ro and Onstad were back but it was former U-20 USMNT star Patrick Ianni that took the spotlight with a strong header to open his MLS scoring account and sink the Wizards for the second consecutive time. Match Recap.

Destinations found for Tiago, Tuncay, Juan, and Givet.

Sergio Almiron (Empoli) and Tiago (Lyon) have signed for Juventus.

Garry O'Connor (Spartak Moscow) signed for newly promoted Birmingham City.

Sanli Tuncay (Fenerbahce) has signed for Middlesbrough. The Turkish winger/striker has all the right tools to become a solid winger in the Premiership. Could this mean Stewart Downing is looking to move elsewhere or is THIS the replacement for Viduka?

Bayern Munich continued their spending (trying to get that dismal season out of their minds) by bringing back Ze Roberto from Santos.

Oguchi Onyewu will still be a Standard Liege player at the beginning of the 2007-08 season according to Yanks Abroad.

Roma have signed consistent Brazilian fullback Juan from Bayer Leverkusen on a four-year contract through 2011.

Olympique Marseille has swooped for three. Gael Givet, established fullback/midfielder for Monaco and internationally capped, has signed as well as Laurent Bonnart (Le Mans) and Benoit Cheyrou (Auxerre).


Quick Game Recaps:

USA 2, Canada 1
Gold Cup Semifinal

On to the Gold Cup final thanks to a well-struck Frankie Hejduk goal (his first in 7 years) and a Landon Donovan PK. Not really much to say about this game, except that up until Michael Bradley's 89th minute send-off, the kid was having a good match. As were Dempsey, Donovan, and at times, Beasley. The problem is they stopped the momentum too early and the last 10 minutes were mostly dominated by the Canadians. A bogus offsides call, and it was rather bogus, in the end saved our boys from an extra 30 minutes with a man down. The Canadians didn't threaten much, but when they did it was normally Ali Gerba at the forefront. It was former Leicester City man Iain Hume that cut the lead in half with some time to go with a nice 20 yard shot.

The US will play Mexico this Sunday for the championship. It should be said that based on momentum heading into the game - the US have been all over the place form-wise, whereas Mexico has steadily been finding their groove. I would love to think our shakiness is due to the fact we need some tough competition.

MLS Primetime Thursday

Houston 4, Chivas USA 0

There really wasn't much dominance. Maybe some, but none that showed Houston could do that to Chivas USA 9 times out of 10. Brad Davis provided the unlikely scoring touch - hitting two long-range efforts and supplying penalty kick composure. His first hat-trick no less as he must have been inspired by fellow "defensive" midfielder Ben Olsen's recent hat-trick against the New York Red Bulls. Maybe the Dynamo want to ask Ching, Clark, Onstad, and De Rosario to take another week off - these guys are playing opportunistically and with vigor. Regardless, just like Frank Yallop is excited to get back Jazic and Harmse, Kinnear will be happy as hell to get back De Ro and Onstad.

HOU: Davis 3 (3), Mullan (1)
CHV: NONE

The goalfest continues: Xavier's Debut a Win, FC Dallas Outplayed

First off, the semifinals of the CONCACAF Gold Cup 2007 are set.

It will be USA vs. Canada at 7pm on Thursday, June 21st (Telefutura)
and Mexico vs. Guadeloupe at 10pm on Thursday, June 21st (Telefutura)

Gold Cup Quarterfinals:

Canada 3, Guatemala 0
USA 2, Panama 1
Mexico 1, Costa Rica 0 (AET)
Guadeloupe 2, Honduras 1

Clearly, the stunner here is Guadeloupe beating a Honduras team that really looked as if it could cause some damage in the latter rounds of the knock-out round. Bocanegra's header fueled the US over a scrappy Panamanian squad, while Mexico beat the Ticos in dramatic but extremely ugly fashion. Even if Mexico comes through and wins this tournament, I gotta think Sanchez could still be on his way out. Canada looked the strongest of the four advanced, dispatching Guatemala 3-0. Sorry for the lack of coverage but, as of late and maybe some people agree, the MLS has been much more entertaining to watch.

Sunday, June 17th
Toronto FC 4, FC Dallas 0
BMO Field

The last home game before a six game road trip (thanks to the U-20 World Cup) could have ended any better for the Reds. Steve Morrow must really be confused. Four separate scorers got in on the action, while Carl Robinson stood out as a player much looking forward to being the fulcrum of this Toronto squad. Edu, Dichio, Robinson, and Cunningham all got on the board as the veterans clearly set the tone for Toronto FC. Once again BMO Field was teeming with energy and electricity and now I truly understand what the pundits mean when they say, "[so-and-so's team] wants to make their home field a fortress". Was it a Giants/Eagles game? No. But could it be someday? Possibly - without the unnecessary violence and "accidental" beer spilling. Regardless, TFC shows their colors yet again. Downside: six game road trip awaits and some of it might have to be without Danny Dichio who was taken off just after halftime.
Because I Think...'s MVP: Carl Robinson, the Welsh international made every good chance he had worth it; he had a hand in three of the four TFC goals and helped pick apart an unusually disorganized FC Dallas backline


TFC: Edu (2), Dichio (4), Robinson (1), Cunningham (5)
FCD: NONE

Los Angeles 3, Real Salt Lake 2
Home Depot Center

Daniel Torres set the tone for RSL in the 4th minute gifting a goal to the struggling Nate Jaqua when he tried half-assedly to pass the ball back to keeper Joe Cannon. Jaqua still almost managed to mess it up. Veteran Chris Brown tried desparately all game to keep Salt Lake in this, equalizing in the 6th minute and making it 3-2 in the 73rd. New acquisition Abel Xavier had a functional first showing for the Galaxy but looked a tad off his mark (especially if you had seen him play before M'brough). It was good to see Edson Buddle get a goal and you could tell he was relieved as well as he wore his emotions on his sleeve by falling to the ground afterwards and pumping fists of determination. Buddle, immensely talented, has been the league's journeyman as of late being used as trade bait extraordinnaire. Cobi celebrated his 37th birthday with a goal fed by Kyle Martino. Overall - RSL needs to find a couple pieces to right the ship, while LA needs Beckham and another good physio.
Because I Think...'s MVP: Edson Buddle


LAG: N. Jaqua (1), C. Jones (2), E. Buddle (1)
RSL: C. Brown 2 (3)

That was one h

RSL for a win? Barton to bother another club? and the Gold Cup...

Sorry for the lack of a post yesterday. I had to take a night off and head into Philly for some fun.

ESPN2's MLS Primetime Thursday Match-up

Real Salt Lake vs. FC Dallas
Rice-Eccles Stadium

In this one, Dallas has all the injury problems as Kenny Cooper is out for two months with a broken tibia and Ramon Nunez might have to miss the game due to a nagging groin strain. The defense is intact though as a bunch of excuse me, but mediocre, defensive players have begun to mold together forming a tight-knit group that has served the Hoops well as of late. Real Salt Lake should be ready to go as Alecko Eskandarian tries to settle down with the winless franchise and Freddy Adu tries to jumpstart his game. Dallas will most likely have Toja attacking again with Pablo Ricchetti in the holding midfield position, and much to RSL's dismay, I think we'll see it work once again. Abe Thompson might not be THE answer to Kenny Cooper's absence but he certainly is a damn good temporary fix.
PREDICTION: FC Dallas are propelled once again by the organization of Juan Carlos Toja and Dominic Oduro's speed troubles the slow RSL defense, Esky bags a goal though in a 2-1 Hoop win


English Premiership News:

Controversial and somewhat annoying Joey Barton (if he was on the Revolution, he would punched Joey Franchino to) has joined Newcastle as the replacement for Scott Parker who opted for West Ham United.


Israeli defender Tal Ben-Haim, a somewhat hot transfer target in the Premiership, has joined Chelsea on free transfer. This seems a little mediocre for the Blues - a kind of Khalid Boulahrouz move (which hasn't panned out yet). We'll see - he has done real well for the Bolton Wanderers.

CONCACAF Gold Cup:

The United States will play Panama in the quarterfinals of the Gold Cup. Panama was third in Group C after Mexico needed a late goal from Carlos Salcido to push them through the group. In other action - Honduras dispatched of Cuba 5-0. Panama's a pretty tough squad and they'll be tough to get by.

The quarterfinals look like this:

16.06.2007	S1 : Canada - Guatemala	1 p.m.	Te	- : -	Boston, Foxboro
16.06.2007	S2 : USA - Panama	4 p.m.	Uni	- : -	Boston, Foxboro
17.06.2007	S3 : Mexico - Costa Rica	2 p.m.	Uni	- : -	Houston
17.06.2007	S4 : Honduras - Guadalupe	5 p.m.	Te	- : -	Houston

If the US wins, they'll take on the winner of Canada-Guatemala. Mexico has a hard play-off opener against Costa Rica - I feel another upset a-brewin'.

I will have much more tonight as I sit down to the delights of FCD/RSL. I love Thursday Primetime.

Each Game a Little Better than the First

I think I saw Bob Bradley smile tonight. I'm serious.

Anyways - a 3-0-0 group stage for the USMNT with wins against Guatemala 1-0, Trinidad and Tobago 2-0, and El Salvador 4-0. The results from tomorrow's Group C match-ups will determine if the US takes on cinderellas Guadeloupe or the third place team from C.

BRIGHT SPOTS

1. Benny Feilhaber and Michael Bradley - a couple errant passes here and there certainly doesn't ruin the fact that their work ethic, composure (pretty good for two guys averaging 20 years of age), and vision were above par; once their technical and tactical abilities catch up somewhat and mix it in with some stiff competition from Rico Clark and a little down the road Dax McCarty or Sacha Kljestan and we have ourselves a decent midfield; it will be interesting to see the reactions to a Mexico, Costa Rica, or Canada.

2. Clint Dempsey - we need a tad more creativity in the line-up and somebody other than Deuce has step up and I'm not talking about Oguchi Onyewu's creativity (how many ways to get a red card); Duece also came back into the midfield and fought for the ball while showing a dare I say, veteran presence on the field

3. Damarcus Beasley - his play against El Salvador was sensational; DMB knew he was going to get chopped, hit, battered, and bruised but held steadfast and tucked the ball away twice (the first one looked like a mishit). Beasley has regained his form (could be cause he's looking actively for a club) and it was evident throughout the group stage

DARK SPOTS

1. Short Passing - the passing up until the third game (and even then there were some weird choices being made) was somewhat atrocious; I understand the squad has been still working on getting a feel for each other but a lot of the reason the USMNT had a bittersweet group stage was because execution was at a recent low; the 4-0 win vs. El Salvador was promising however

2. Oguchi Onyewu - he played better against El Salvador but overall, I think his stock took a tiny nose dive into the middle Premiership realm - instead of Real Madrid, Chelsea, and Liverpool looking at him, you can expect Onyewu to be courted again by Fulham, Bolton, Middlesbrough, the likes of an Osasuna or Real Zaragoza, or maybe even a Siena or Catania - he still has the quarterfinals and hopefully beyond to make his mark

3. Referees - again against El Salvador it seemed the game was under control - but Guatemala and Trinidad and Tobago were iffy; and even this last game, El Salvador were taking pot shot after pot shot upon Damarcus Beasley and Clint Dempsey

Next Game: Quarterfinal vs. TBA - Saturday 6/16, 4:30pm, FSC

U.S.A. 1 - Guatemala 0

It was the same physical atmosphere as the friendly deadlock they had earlier this year, but the U.S. got their goal early and held on despite Oguchi Onyewu's sending off with 20 minutes to go. Clint Dempsey finished a nice Taylor Twellman cutback after he caught Guatemala's central defender Melgar sleeping. Landon Donovan, fresh off his 6-0 drubbing of Drew Carey, had a decent game creating chances and taking men on, but the game was really a tale of two halves. One organized and creative soccer, the other physical and scrappy as all hell. The youngsters, Bradley and Feilhaber, in the middle were effective but with some glaring mistakes at times. That is to be expected. An in-depth look at the game tomorrow, ratings and all.


One thing to say though: Pineda, the ref, (and I normally never comment on officiating) was inconsistent and abnormally selective...I don't like him.

Photo Courtesy of Trent Davol, International Sports Images on USSOCCER.com

MLS Gold Cup Absences: Is Ruiz gone really a bad thing?

Instead of game previews this weekend, here is a list of significant absences broken down by team:

Chicago

Justin Mapp (USA)
Ivan Guerrero (Honduras)

Two playmakers gone for the Fire and that doesn't exactly fill Chicago fans with confidence. Bakary Soumare should see some extra time, possibly playing out of position.

Chivas USA

Jonathan Bornstein (USA)
Brad Guzan (USA)

Guzan might play in Chivas game being number three on the roster, but the absence of Bornstein will sting. His presence has not been as 'in your face' as last year, but he certainly anchors an improving Chivas backline.

Colorado

Pablo Mastroeni (USA)
Roberto Brown (Panama)

The absence of Brown will push fellow bald big man Conor Casey to the forefront. He needs to respond to earn his playing time.

Columbus

Frankie Hejduk (USA)

The Crew lose consistency here and a crucial veteran presence, but hopefully Schelloto can start putting in the goals so Hejduk's absence won' hurt so much.

D.C. United

With nobody leaving, even though many think Bobby Boswell should have gotten the call, this should be the time for D.C. to make their run up to the top of the tables.

FC Dallas

Carlos Ruiz (Guatemala)

Ruiz hasn't been in form much and his absence might even be a blessing for this team. Kenny Cooper, a tad dejected, should continue shouldering the scoring load. Look for Abe Thompson and Dominic Oduro to get more playing time. My guess is Thompson will help push Dallas to the top.

Houston

Ricardo Clark (USA)
Brian Ching (USA)
Dwayne De Rosario (Canada)

Clearly, this doesn't bode well for an already struggling squad. De Rosario who has only briefly shown signs of his past self will still be missed. Mulrooney will replace Clark and the only thing missing should be his youthful exuberance. The biggest loss, however, is Ching - not scoring at the moment, but Houston's real hope to reignite the scoring fire. Don't expect Ngwenya or Dalglish to shoulder the burden.

Kansas City

Eddie Johnson (USA)

Eddie Johnson's absence is Yuri Movsisyan's gain - look for the young'un to make a decent impact in trying to fill Johnson's in-form shoes.

Los Angeles

Landon Donovan (USA)
Ante Jazic (Canada)
Kevin Harmse (Canada)

Just like Houston, the Galaxy are a struggling giant who without these three could have even more problems. The key is Beckham's arrival to shore up a sporadic midfield. Robbie Findley, despite his potential, needs to find a way to score without Landon Donovan around.

New England

Taylor Twellman (USA)
Michael Parkhurst (USA)
Steve Ralston (USA)

Parkhurst said after the 4-3 loss to Kansas City that it was an off game for a confused New England backline. Problem is, Parkhurst is the best of that defense and without him - there might be more blow-ups. Doesn't help that leading MLS scorer Twellman is gone too as well as the veteran impetus of the Revs, Steve Ralston. They need Khano Smith to start using his speed on the sidelines and Adam Cristman or Pat Noonan to hit the net.

New York

All the studs are there - now it's just a matter of playing the soccer they have been playing. If that is the case, RBNY should have no problem and the Bulls could extend their Eastern Conference dominance.

Real Salt Lake

Jason Kreis has some tough games ahead even without losing anybody to the Gold Cup. No absences certainly helps though.

Toronto FC

Carl Robinson (Wales - Euro 2008 Qualifiers)
Greg Sutton (Canada)
Adam Braz (Canada)
Chris Pozniak (Canada)
Marco Reda (Canada)

Well considering most of these guys aren't absolutely crucial to Toronto's success, TFC can come out of this okay. Problem is, the lack of depth on the sideline could play a role in whether the Reds do well or not. Djekanovic is in goal now, a young 24-year old and look for the developmental guys like Gabe Gala to get a run around.

US Men's National Team Gold Cup Roster

Goalkeepers (3) - Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), Tim Howard (Everton FC), Kasey Keller (Borussia Moenchengladbach)

Defenders (8) -Carlos Bocanegra (Fulham FC), Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA), Jay DeMerit (Watford FC), Frankie Hejduk (Columbus Crew), Oguchi Onyewu (Standard Liege), Michael Parkhurst (New England Revolution), Frank Simek (Sheffield Wednesday), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United)

Midfielders (8) - DaMarcus Beasley (PSV Eindhoven), Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC), Benny Feilhaber (Hamburger SV), Justin Mapp (Chicago Fire), Pablo Mastroeni (Colorado Rapids), Steve Ralston (New England Revolution)

Forwards (4) - Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Eddie Johnson (Kansas City Wizards),Taylor Twellman (New England Revolution)

Clearly, there are some notable omissions here. A Frankie Hejduk inclusion baffles me, instead of opting for a young back and solid attacking back like Burciaga Jr. Some other players left out were Bobby Boswell, Chris Rolfe, Kyle Beckerman, and Bennie Olsen. It is nice, however, to see Michael Parkhurst get the nod though. Any others missing that hit a nerve?

Leg Two

UEFA Champions League
Scores:
Lyon 0, Roma 2


I don't know if we'll be hearing from our Lyon correspondant due to the result. Lyon, more than the past few years, had the best chance to get to that ever elusive final this year. Roma, specifically the Brazilian Mancini and Totti said no. Lyon, however, did have 19 shots to Roma's 8. The MVP in this was clearly Roma's GK Alexander Doni who was aggressive and pretty much out of his mind this whole game. Au revoir Lyon, it was a good run.

LYO: NONE
ROM: Totti (22), Mancini (44)

Inter 0, Valencia 0

Chaos ensued as Inter Milan was booted out. I am starting to despise Italian clubs. This shit has to stop. Calm your fans down, sedate them, shouldn't they all still be on a high from Italy's WC win?!? I'm protesting by not writing any more. Instead, I'll send you here. Oh yea and Valencia moves on thanks to away goals, 2-2.

INT: NONE
VAL: NONE

Chelsea 2, Porto 1

How I wanted Chelski to lose. Especially to Mourinho's old team. I can't complain, however, about 2 England squads into the final. Maybe there will be a little repeat of history - Liverpool v. Chelsea in the quarterfinal? Anyways, Chelsea won this crappily. Robben's goal, however, should be credited to Porto's GK Helton. It slipped through his hands and he lost his team the game. Well maybe it wasn't that bad considering Chelsea did have 17 shots.

CHE: Robben (48), M. Ballack (79)
POR: NONE

Liverpool 0, Barcelona 1

Barca still goes out on away goals 2-2. I love upsets and this one was the most important today. Liverpool have certainly proven to me that their win a couple years ago is not just a fluke. Although, I would have loved to see Lyon in the final, I will now be rooting for Gerrard and boys. Not to mention I like this new signing Arbeloa from Deportivo. Former Chelsea man Eidur Gudjohnsen tried to spark a comeback in the 75th minute, but ultimately Barca's possession play wasn't aggressive enough.

LIV: NONE
BAR: E. Gudjohnsen (75)

Other quick news:

* The U.S. has learned their opponents for this summer's Gold Cup. No surprise, we have the hardest group in El Salvador, Trinidad and Tobago, and Guatemala. None of those teams are slouches. Mexico has Panama, Honduras, and Cuba. Canada has Haiti, Guadeloupe, the Ticos (Costa Rica). I'll give you the schedule at some other point.

* Jonathan Spector broke his silence on West Ham United's trials and tribulations. Eurosport has it all here. I'm surprised they allowed an American to give his opinion.

* The possibility of David Villa moving to Liverpool this summer is pretty high according to Goal.com and Eurosport. They would be ridiculously scary and then Robbie Fowler would most definitely have to act on that 'going to Qatar' business. Or wait? Could he come here?

* The lottery for former Maryland Terp and Heerenveen Frisian Robbie Rogers is gonna happen this Thursday. TFC wants him and seeing as their the expansion squad, they have the highest chance of getting him. We'll see.

*Some real good games tomorrow. Thank god for DVR/TIVO.