Projected Starting Lineups: New York Red Bulls

Projected Starting Lineup:

-------------------Angel-------Altidore---------------

-------------------------Reyna-----------------------

Van den Bergh--------Stammler--------------Richards

Goldthwaite------Parke-------Mendes-------Freeman

----------------------Conway------------------------

Off the Bench: MF Danleigh Borman, GK Zach Thornton, FW John Wolyniec, FW Oscar Echeverry, DF Chris Leitch, MF Mike Magee, MF Sinisa Ubiparipovic, DF Eric Brunner

The projected lineup might look off, but it's what it would be with everyone healthy. Unfortunately, Osorio isn't going to have that luxury from the get go. Richards is out for the first month of the season, where rookie Danleigh Borman might fill in. Many who saw Borman during the preseason said he was more than capable of providing the energy needed to match a Richards, but there aren't many that can match his pace. Van den Bergh could man the left wing, but lacks the pace to do so all season. If you melded the speed and energy of Richards with Van den Bergh's crossing, you'd have one hell of a dangerous player. The biggest question mark for the Bulls this season will be the health and efficiency of 1st DP Claudio Reyna. He has looked good in the preseason, but all it takes is a knock to the thigh to put him out of commission for a while. If he stays healthy, though, this RBNY could find the consistency they sorely needed last year. Winning three, losing three, winning two, etc. If Reyna goes down however, a once again healthy Mike Magee could really get his chance to shine again. In fact, you could see those two platoon in that attacking mid role. Seth Stammler will play the Kovalenko role, winning balls and distributing. Great thing about Stammler is his versatility. If needed, he can play anywhere in the back.

The defense is led by the duo of Mendes and Parke in the middle. Last year's real deficiency was the outside fullbacks. Goldthwaite came over from Toronto and didn't do much, but there is much pointing to that having changed. Hunter Freeman was oft-injured last year, but showed well in Olympic Qualifying and - yet again - if healthy could make an impression this year. Depth in the back is their strong point - first round SuperDraft pick Eric Brunner will see some time while Chris Leitch is serviceable.

Up at the top, you have easily the most feared duo of strikers in the league. Jozy Altidore and Juan Pablo Angel have worked well together so far and look to build on that this year. Osorio brought in Oscar Echeverry to share time with Jon Wolyniec when Altidore leaves for the Olympics in China. It has yet to be seen whether or not Echeverry can play well beside Angel, but we know that with Wolyniec it's a bit iffy. Expect Angel to hit for 20, at least, and Altidore to grab a good amount.

Jon Conway gets his starting chance in goal this year. Just like Steve Cronin in LA, it's his position to lose. Backup Zach Thornton, although getting up there in age, is perfectly capable of taking it away from him. UPenn grad Danny Cepero - said to have a promising future - has apparently been loaned out to USL Division 2 side Harrisburg City Islanders.

If the Bulls keep scoring and the defense tightens up unlike last season, Osorio could have a Championship team on his hands. You need people to play to their potential though - that means you, Reyna. I can't see it all coming together this year. 2009 is a better bet. The Bulls will start strong and fade late, hanging on for a playoff spot and most likely a first round exit.

Outlook: 4th in the East

Angel has been playing injured.

Talking to Juan Pablo Angel after the Red Bulls' 1-0 win over Chicago, it was revealed that he has been playing the last couple games with a strained intercostal muscle. As a former competitive runner in college I can tell you that strained intercostal muscles are extremely painful. It has everything to do with the twisting of your torso and is also effected by how deep you breath and how often. Clearly, one can play with it - but it certainly isn't comfortable. Arena confirmed it in his press conference.

In short, Angel is a beast.

Jozy Altidore is out injured.

Not dressed, not playing in RBNY vs. Chicago. A shame because last time out Altidore and Angel destroyed the Fire combining for all three goals in a 3-0 rout. According to RBNY officials, the injury is 'lower leg', most likely the calf injury that he received late in the U-20 World Cup.

Starting Line-ups: RBNY vs. Chicago

Red Bull New York (10-9-3)

GK: Ronald Waterreus ()

Defenders: Jeff Parke (), Seth Stammler (), Dave van den Bergh (), Chris Leitch ()

Midfielders: Dane Richards (), Claudio Reyna (), Joe Vide (), Clint Mathis ()

Forwards: Juan Pablo Angel (), John Wolyniec ()

Unused Subs: Jon Conway (), Kevin Goldthwaite (), Carlos Mendes (), Dema Kovalenko (), Sinisa Ubiparipovic (), Francis Doe (), Mike Magee ()

Chicago Fire (7-9-5)

GK: Matt Pickens ()

Defenders: C.J. Brown (), Chris Armas (), Diego Gutierrez (), Gonzalo Segares ()

Midfielders: Logan Pause (), Cuauhtemoc Blanco (), Bakary Soumare (), Ivan Guerrero ()

Forwards: Paulo Wanchope (), Chris Rolfe ()

Unused Subs: Jon Busch (), Dasan Robinson (), Mike Banner (), Bruno Menezes (), Brian Plotkin (), Chad Barrett (), Calen Carr ()

Live Blog of LA Galaxy/NY Red Bulls game

Over at Center Holds It.

Join me in what promises to be a damn-good evening. Be back with more stuff once I get situated in New York.

Starting Line-ups: RBNY vs. Toronto FC

I'm back from vacation - but conveniently I forgot the power cord. I will try and conserve power to finish the game but if I go away without explanation, you'll understand why.

Couple notes: Dema Kovalenko's injuries sustained in the car crash have kept him out of the 18, but Sinisa seems to be healthy enough to play. Mike Magee's name has found his way in to the 18 for the first time in a long time as he has spent the last year or so recovering from a ACL injury. For Toronto, Mo Johnston is missing Danny Dichio, Marvell Wynne, Ronnie O'Brien, Andrew Boyens, Jeff Cunningham and Greg Sutton. Wow.

Hopefully, 16 days will have cured the Red Bulls illnesses.

New York Red Bulls

GK: Jon Conway ()

Defenders: Hunter Freeman (), Jeff Parke (), Seth Stammler (), Chris Leitch ()

Midfielders: Dane Richards (), Claudio Reyna (), Dave van den Bergh (), Joe Vide ()

Forwards: Jozy Altidore (), Juan Pablo Angel ()

Unused Subs: Danny Cepero, Kevin Goldthwaite, Carlos Mendes, Clint Mathis, Sinisa Ubiparipovic, Mike Magee, John Wolyniec

Toronto FC

GK: Kenny Stamatopoulos ()

Defenders: Adam Braz (), Tyrone Marshall (), Marco Reda ()

Midfielders: Andy Welsh (), Jim Brennan (), Chris Pozniak (), Todd Dunivant ()

Forwards: Collin Samuel (), Andrea Lombardo ()

Unused Subs: Sam Reynolds, Nana Attakora-Gyan, Andrew Boyens, Gabe Gala, Joey Melo

Chivas USA 2, Red Bull New York 0

Angel called it "strange" and "unlucky"

Altidore called it "frustrating"

Stammler called it "unlucky"

Arena called it "not good enough" - but believe it or not, he did say "we actually probably played better tonight than last Sunday against D.C. [United]". Interesting

Either way...Ante Razov and Sacha Kljestan scored for Chivas USA, while the post kept most everything out of Brad Guzan's goal. Bruce Arena's 3 forward attack in Altidore, Angel, and Wolyniec created the chances but couldn't convert those chances into goals.

Match Report from MLSNet.com

Match Report from Top Drawer Soccer

Goal Scorers

CHV: Razov (6), Kljestan (2)
RBNY: NONE

Starting Line-ups: Red Bulls throw a curve ball vs. Chivas USA

Red Bull New York

GK: Jon Conway

Defenders: Hunter Freeman, Chris Leitch, Seth Stammler, Kevin Goldthwaite

Midfielders: Joe Vide, Claudio Reyna, Dave van den Bergh

Forwards: Juan Pablo Angel, John Wolyniec, Jozy Altidore

Subs:

Unused Substitutes: Danny Cepero, Carlos Mendes, Dema Kovalenko, Clint Mathis, Dane Richards, Sinisa Ubiparipovic, Randi Patterson

Bruce Arena has opted for a 4-3-3 formation as he tries to put all three in-form strikers together on the field. This'll be the first time in a long time that the Red Bulls have gone with three forwards. Angel is back from suspension. Clint Mathis and Dane Richards are both on the bench, while Joe Vide has earned his way into the holding midfielder role. Also look for Van den Bergh to act a little more defensive. The other surprise is Chris Leitch over Carlos Mendes which the buzz in the press box here is that Mendes is out with the flu (could probably see some time in the second half if needed). Stammler, Freeman, and Goldthwaite all have the pace to deal with Galindo, but will it happen?

Chivas USA

GK: Brad Guzan

Defenders: Claudio Suarez, Shavar Thomas, Jonathan Bornstein, Alex Zotinca

Midfielders: Sacha Kljestan, Lawson Vaughn, Jesse Marsch, Francisco Mendoza

Forwards: Maykel Galindo, Ante Razov

Subs:

Unused Substitutes: Preston Burpo, Jason Hernandez, Orlando Perez, Rodrigo Lopez, Jorge Flores, Anthony Hamilton, Laurent Merlin

The Goats have come to Giants Stadium with a healthy line-up - the key decider between these teams seems to be who comes off the bench to spark the game. Looking at Chivas' bench options compared to the Red Bull's it looks like NY has the upper hand.

Tidbits from RBNY: Arena expects another defender soon, Parke injured, Beckham under-rated

Red Bull New York 1, D.C. United 0

full match report coming in the weekend round-up

- Bruce Arena said in his post-game press conference that he expects another central defender on the roster soon. He revealed this when he was questioned about putting Seth Stammler back at central defense. This need being compounded with the injury, though seemingly slight, to Jeff Parke. Parke had a solid first half until his back pass (unnecessary though it was) caused him to strain his right hamstring.

- "He brings a great attitude to the team everyday. Works very hard. When he's called upon, he comes through. Last year he did pretty good job, but he's an improved goalkeeper this year. They do say that when keepers get into their thirties, they get much better. I think Jon is getting a much better feel for how to play, how to read the game." Arena on Jon Conway, replacement for Ronald Waterreus.

- "Even on a bad day, Wolyniec helps us" - Arena on Wolyniec's work ethic

- Jozy Altidore decided to forfeit his time off that Arena offered him after the U-20 World Cup. This was due to the fact he wanted to end the jinx against D.C. He accomplished his goal, but admitted to being fatigued early out there, but in no way did he regret not taking the days off.

- "Whatever this league needs to get some attention, I'll take it. I'm happy I'm not in the middle of it, but if that's what gets people in the stands. I, personally, think that David Beckham is, oddly enough, a very underrated player. I mean he is an outstanding I don't think he's gonna carry the league on his back, but he's a great player. I think the expectations as to what he's gonna do are large, but that's certainly not my problem" Arena on Beckham.

- Arena said he was impressed by ESPN's presentation comparing it to the presentation of other American sports, but reiterated that he was happy not to be in the middle of it. Too much to handle.

Starting Lineups: D.C. United vs. New York Red Bulls

New York Red Bulls

GK: Jon Conway ()

Defenders: Hunter Freeman (), Carlos Mendes (), Jeff Parke (), Kevin Goldthwaite ()

Midfielders: Dane Richards (), Claudio Reyna (), Seth Stammler (), Clint Mathis ()

Forwards: Jozy Altidore (), John Wolyniec ()

Substitutes:

Unused Subs: Danny Cepero, Chris Leitch, Dema Kovalenko, Markus Schopp, Dave van den Bergh, Joe Vide, Jerrod Laventure

Altidore cuts his time off short from the long run in Canada to wreak havoc on the piecemeal D.C. defense. Not only that but someone has to fill in for the suspended Juan Pablo Angel. Someone needs to find the net as there has only been one goal in the past four games. Waterreus is still injured as is Dema Kovalenko (but he is on the bench, if desperately needed)

D.C. United

GK: Troy Perkins ()

Defenders: Devon McTavish (), Bobby Boswell (), Greg Vanney (), Marc Burch ()

Midfielders: Clyde Simms (), Brian Carroll (), Christian Gomez (), Joshua Gros ()

Forward: Luciano Emilio (), Fred ()

Substitutes:

Unused Subs: Jay Nolly, Jeff Carroll, Stephen DeRoux, Rod Dyachenko, Domenic Mediate, Nicholas Addlery

The Brazilians will start up front looking to expose any inconsistencies in New York's back four, but United is without Bennie Olsen who lit up the Red Bulls last meeting for a well-deserved hat-trick.

Note to Red Bull New York

Get rid of Todd Dunivant and you're stupid.

Especially for Kevin Goldthwaite.

Geez - we could have sent him to Los Angeles for Nathan Sturgis and Robbie Findley! Why settle for Dunivant.

Don't worry RBNY fans - it's not set in stone. Just rumors flyin' about - first reported by MLSU.

Assorted.

Sylvain Distin could on his way to Fratton Park as Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp looks to bolster his defense after a formidable Premiership showing. Pompey is also looking hard at a previous summer's transfer target, Ghanaian midfielder Sulley Muntari. The figure is reported to be around $14 million.


Charlton, with a quick return to the Premiership in mind, have signed Chris Iwelumo from Colchester and Crewe's goal-scorer Luke Varney for a cool $4 million.


Romario has scored his "one-thousandth" goal and joins Pele in that realm. Controversy, of course, ensues but a thousand is a thousand. If ALL goals were counted, like in Romario's case, who else would be close?

The big MLS news today was from New York. The Red Bulls have pushed back 2 months the opening date for Red Bull Park. Article is here.

good news and bad news

The Good:

Columbus got Guillermo Barros Schelloto and it should be announced tomorrow.

The Bad:

RBNY apparently has traded Marvell Wynne, even though there has been no formal confirmation, it is for Toronto's 2008 2nd Round Superdraft Pick and a Partial Allocation.
Remember when I told you I might be a Bulls fan? I rescind that offer. What the f***. I liked Wynne to no end...Hunter Freeman, you better prove that this is the right trade. Good luck Marvell at Toronto.

RBNY's DP - no real confirmation yet but...

It looks like Juan Pablo Angel is on his way to the big NJ/NY. Actually, someone should be trying their damnedest to make sure his flight stays whereever it is right now considering this piece of crap weather (unless he's coming from Boston). Big Apple Soccer has the scoop.

Does this make the Bulls a championship contender?

Send me a frickin' angel...

Juan Pablo Angel to the Bulls?

Stumbled upon this at my morning watering hole. Just please don't be a load of crap, because this with Reyna would probably make me a happy fan and [long drawn and hesitant sigh] a Red Bulls fan.

This guy is good. I'll give you some clips later so you see what I mean.

Here is the source my friends.


An update from Big Apple Soccer puts Frenchman and oft-injured forward Djibril Cisse in the mix. Cisse has played for Liverpool in the past and Olympique Marseille at the present. The guy is clearly a proven scorer. Therefore, my opinion is a toss-up. With Cisse you get a young, 25 year old goalscorer with the propensity to propel a team by himself, but unfortunately you also get a hot-head and a boat-load of injuries. With Angel, you get a classy, 31 year old striker looking for time and the chance to play everyday again.

Verdict? Angel...mainly because if Angel is too expensive (as they are saying), what do you expect Cisse to cost?

Remember Juan Pablo Angel?

According to a variety of sources, most specifically Metrofanatic (an insider Red Bull website which has been rather spot on when it comes to transfer news), we might be seeing Aston Villa and Colombian international striker Juan Pablo Angel coming to New York.


Think Adolfo Valencia. Or a first-season Alex Comas. Except better.

Here.

Some interesting stuff...

* The tragedy is averted apparently as David Beckham's injury is serious by not "oh-my-lordy-MLS is going down the drain" serious. He will be out about a month with what seems to be an MCL partial tear/heavy strain. No confirmation yet as to what it is. It looks like it won't hurt his LA Galaxy debut but will certain close the door for him right now to pick up a recall to McClaren's England squad. If you remember Beckham getting hurt before like I do, four weeks for him meets two and a half. The guy is a fighter and for all we know, he could find himself on the pitch against Isreal at the end of March. Read here.


* Barcelona Phoenix? Barca Miami? Who knows...but Barcelona is planning on expanding their brand into the US sometime soon. They would like to form a partnership with an MLS team or simply go the Red Bull New York, Crystal Palace Baltimore route. It'll be interesting to see where this goes. I'm all for partnerships, but lets lay off the feeder club route. That's a hole that is really tough to get out of. Read about it here.


* Conor Casey is finally a TFC boy. Good for Toronto. Mo Johnston finally had to part ways with his number one allocation spot to secure him, but in all honesty it should be a pretty damn good pick-up. That's assuming of course he can stay healthy and not jump on the MCL injury bandwagon. Also picked up by Toronto in this afternoon's waiver draft was recent former Columbus GK Jon Busch. Toronto looks to be pretty scary this year. Is this a Chicago Fire in the making?


* Giovanni Savarese, the Youth Director at RBNY, has left and/or been fired by the New York Red Bulls. As of right now, there is no news as to why. I will certainly keep you updated and, in my mind, this kind of weird. If somebody knows something I don't, please fill me in. Check out the news here.

Red Bull New York Training from the Eyes of a Rookie: Former UPenn GK Danny Cepero

Feb. 8, 2006

Bradenton, Florida


Well it's been a little over a week since I joined the Red Bulls and while it was all a bit overwhelming at first, each day I get more and more comfortable with everything. Last Tuesday, January 30 I met the whole team for a meeting in Giants Stadium, where they play their home games. Everyone welcomed me to the team and all the big "stars" like Claudio Reyna and coach Bruce Arena seemed to be very humble and good people.

We then traveled to New York City for a photo shoot where we all put on the team uniforms and had our headshots and action shots taken of us in this studio in Tribeca. That was actually pretty cool.

The next day was filled with trips to the doctor for team physicals and orthopedic screenings, nothing too exciting. I did get a chance to train and play with the team on Wednesday and Thursday which was pretty exciting. It was good to finally get out on the field and just play in an informal atmosphere before heading down to Florida. It was a good couple of days to get my feet wet.

Since those first few days at Giants Stadium we've made our way down here to Bradenton, Florida with its 75 degrees and sunny weather. February 3 was our first official day of preseason and as to be expected there were a lot of first-day jitters. I didn't play as well as I would have liked and had a nice, little reality check from Claudio Reyna when he rocketed a shot past me with tremendous ease. I wasn't even angry, I was just in awe more than anything.

Since then, each day I've been getting more comfortable and learning a great deal from the veteran goalkeepers and coaches that I'm able to train with. We mostly train twice a day at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. for two hours at a time. The amount of fitness and running we've had to do hasn't been too bad its mostly a lot of playing as we're all adjusting and building that team chemistry.

February 6 we had an off-day and the team went to play mini-golf. It was a nice change of pace. I started off hot, but fell apart on the back nine. I think I finished seven over par...terrible.

Overall, I feel privileged to be working with the guys on the team and am just looking to take as much in as I can and help this team wherever I can.

Until next time...

February 11, 2007
Preseason Day 10

Bradenton, Fla.

Today is our second off-day of preseason and it's much needed. The last few days have been pretty tough in terms of training and anytime we get some time to chill by the pool or watch TV for endless hours is pretty money.

This past Friday we changed things up a bit by moving our afternoon training session to one of the local beaches here in Bradenton. We ran on the beach, did some crazy exercises in the water, and actually played some volleyball. It was definitely a good chance for the entire team to get away from the training field, enjoy the weather, and have some fun.

Yesterday we scrimmaged the Under-17 National Team for a full 90 minutes. While I didn't get a chance to play, the goalkeepers had a pretty tough training session that lasted for nearly the full 90 minutes. Luckily we had the rest of the day off and all day today so our bodies have a chance to recover.

This coming week we're playing four games in seven days against other MLS teams. I don't really know the order but we play Kansas City, Columbus, D.C., and Chicago before we head back to N.Y. next Monday, Feb. 19.

One week of training camp left and I'm looking forward to getting better each day and then going home for a few days or even back to Philly to relax for a few days.

That's all for now, I should have more updates as the week goes on.

Feb. 17, 2007

Orlando, Fla.


We left Bradenton, Fla. on Thursday and drove up to Orlando where we're playing in a pre-season tournament at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex.

Last night we played the defending MLS Champions Houston Dynamo and lost 3-1. The result was a bit disappointing but it's still early and we're still getting used to each other and building that chemistry. Today we had a light training session in preparation for our match tomorrow night against Real Salt Lake.

Other than that, we've been mostly watching TV and sleeping. Aside from the soccer, everything moves slowly and there's a lot of down time. I've been hanging out with a couple of guys my age who were drafted this year--my roommate Sinisa Ubiparipovic from Akron, Randi Patterson from UNC-Greensboro and Hugh McDermott from Monmouth. They actually just told me to write some stuff about them as we sit around the dinner table!

We're enjoying ourselves and it's cool to be around kids who are going through the same thing that I am. We're all crossing our fingers hoping to get signed sometime in the next few weeks but on the whole, we can't really complain all that much since the weather is great and I get the chance to play pro soccer for a bit.

I feel much more comfortable on the field now and in goal which always helps the confidence level although I have yet to hear any news regarding a possible contract/roster spot.

We fly back to New Jersey Monday morning and have a couple of days off before training again at Giants Stadium and then leaving for Los Angeles on March 1. By then we should know where we stand on the team but until that time, just a lot of hard work and having fun.

***Courtesy of Penn Athletics***

Red Bulls and the Myth of the Second DP

There is one article here that I came across dated as February 23rd that puts Robbie Fowler as RBNY's second DP. Now, if you've been hearing what I've been hearing for the past week, their DP choice, Agustin 'Tin' Delgado was suspended worldwide for his role in an Ecuadorian league game. Therefore, no DP for RBNY til the summer. Goal.com seems to think otherwise however. Fowler would be a great addition to the MLS - at 31, he should be able to produce for some years to come.



Currently playing his second stint with Liverpool in the English Premiership, he has hit for 162 goals in his club career, playing with Liverpool, Leeds United, and with Claudio Reyna at Manchester City. A Liverpool man through and through, Fowler also scored 7 goals in 26 appearances for the English national team.

In 1999, Fowler was accused of drug use, particularly cocaine, by Premiership fans and even some officials. In a funny turn events, Fowler scored a goal against Everton and proceeded to mime "snorting" the touchline chalk dust (or whatever that stuff is). In another event, Fowler taunted former England international and Southampton defensive stalwart Graeme Le Saux by wiggling his ass at him. There were rumors going around about Graeme's sexual orientation. So for those who wanted the controversy of Agustin Delgado, why not get a better player who has the same amount of controversy? He's no Paul Gascoigne or Vinnie Jones, but he will certainly get the job done. Oh yea, Fowler was fined a total $180,000 and missed 6 games for the two incidents.

Other rumors floating around is that the KC Wizards are looking at 28 year-old Argentinian Luciano De Bruno from Hapoel Tel-Aviv and that the Colorado Rapids are closing in on someone as well. As we all know, however, Conor Casey should be in Toronto very shortly apparently still awaiting league approval. All this injection of talent is making me dizzy. We shall see - I have a feeling that this week will be rather busy.