Let’s start today off with a bang: Eric Wynalda has been named Director of International Operations for Mexican Segunda division side Murcielagos (that’s the third division in Mexico). Wynalda will scout players and try to facilitate player exchanges that will bring the talent to Murcielagos that will move them up to the top. I think this is a great move. Wynalda wanted to coach and I didn’t want to hear him pretend to be controversial and forthright and narrate replays anymore (it’s a replay… I can see what happened, tell me why). A quick addition to this story, SoccerChris at SoccerChris.com compares this situation to Barcelona failing to recognize Jose Mourinho’s coaching talent. I… Mou… Wynal… WHAT!?

Real Salt Lake got stuck in Atlanta before a big Champions League match after Delta Airlines FUBARed their flight. Their flight from Salt Lake City got delayed, and the airline gave away the seats on their connecting flight to Toronto. We now have a new reason to root for these guys. They get screwed by airlines too.

Charlie Davies, aka the American soccer apologists’ Real Reason the US Didn’t Win the World Cup, talks about his path to recovery.

Although MLS has no solid expansion plans after Montreal joins the league, one man in Ottawa isn’t giving up hope of bringing top-flight pro soccer to the province.

Things going from bad to worse for the USSF: First Jurgen Klinsmann revealed how close he was to becoming the USMNT head coach, now a judge in Chicago has ruled that the US soccer body has no right to collect fees to sanction international matches on US soil. You know all those awesome summer friendlies between Chelsea, AC Milan, Inter Milan, Manchester United and others? Turns out the USSF collections 5-15% of the gate as a “sanctioning fee.” How did the USSF justify this? By invoking a law that was put in place to make sure there were regulations on matches that related to qualification for international tournaments like the Olympics or the World Cup. I don’t know about you, but I figured USSF was doing a lot of the legwork to get the great international friendlies on US soil. Apparently it was a company called ChampionsWorld, now bankrupt. In an bombastic statement that would make Johnny Cochrane proud, the lawyer for ChampionsWorld’s creditors said he expects to depose Sunil Gulati in the coming weeks, presumably using the orcs he grew in his fire pit.

SI’s Steve Davis ranks the Union’s midfield 13th out of 16 teams. Behind Toronto. The Union often list MLS’s best player Sebastian Le Toux as a midfielder even though he plays a Messi role (a winger mixed with a false nine, shaken not stirred), shouldn’t this count for something? We’re talking about Toronto! How can I blame Fred for this? Oh wait, it’s easy.

He knows where to come when he’s ready for that one. (It’s us! Come to PSP!)

Sheanon Williams continues to earn praise. Goal.com and Steve Davis named Williams in their teams of the week, and he certainly deserves it. Williams has been everything Michael Orozco Fiscal was not on the right, and MOF has been everything nobody else was since returning to the middle.

And finally, a preview of all the great Champions League action today. Oh-by-the-way, every team that plays in the Champions League today will probably earn more money in 90 minutes than Kodjovi Obilale, the Togolese goalie injured during a bus attack at the African Cup of Nations, received from FIFA, Togo and the Confederation of African Football combined. FIFA promised $25,000, Togo paid $70,000 (about half his hospital bills), and the Confederation of African Football gave NOTHING. The French Football Federation paid for his flight to France for treatment. Emmanuel Adebayor, Togo’s captain, paid for the flights so Obilale’s family could be by the player’s side. More on this to come at PSP.