Photo: Courtesy of Philadelphia Union

Union

How was your Sunday? I kept going back to my computer to watch the game highlights in an effort to convince myself that Saturday night’s win was not a dream. It certainly was dreamy, though.

Seattle’s News Tribune noted the Union was bringing two stars into town in the persons of Freddy Adu and Sebastien Le Toux. The Seattle Times predicted the Union would play for a draw and expected a 0–0 result. Well, the Seattle Times was half right as Adu scored the first Union goal and Le Toux assisted the second. Maybe the Sounder’s marketing department ought to have made a bigger deal about them.

Match reports from Philly Soccer Page, MLSsoccer.com, SBI, SBNation, goal.com, 90soccer.com.

Reaction from Seattle sources including Seattle Times, the News Tribune, the Olympian, the Post Intelligencer, q13Fox.com, Sounder at Heart, GoSounders.com, SBNationSeattle.

Peter Nowak said of winning in Seattle, “There’s no better place to win. This is a tough place to play, and a win like this tastes good after two years of trying to win a game on the West Coast. It was a really good game. It was a good-paced game, and I think tactically we were very good.”

Sebastien Le Toux said, “It is huge win for us to get it here, especially after the Sounders’ U.S. Open Cup win. To come on out into the west and get a win is a big confidence boost for us. It is big win for us to be on top in the East.”

Freddy Adu said of his goal, “That goal was all Gabe. Lo and behold, the ball popped up exactly where I was and, at that point, I just have to concentrate on finishing it.”

CSN Philly and Prost Amerika profile Freddy Adu.

The Delco Times looks at what a difference 18 month can make.

This DC United blog says, don’t forget about the Black and Red. With four games left compared to the rest of the Conference-leading team’s two, they could still finish in first place with a miracle run.

Keon Daniel started and played 65 minutes in Trinidad and Tobago’s upset 1–2 loss to Bermuda on Saturday.

MLS

The Union win means that LA have clinched the Supporters Shield and the CONCACAF Champions League berth that goes along with it. Only a third of Supporters Shield winners have gone on to win the MLS Cup.

In the only other league game of the weekend, San Jose topped New England 2–1.

Toronto is coming to town on Saturday and Torsten Frings will be with them. The German is digging life in MLS and Canada.

Kyle Beckerman is suspended for the remainder of the regular season for head-butting the Chicago Fire’s Daniel Paladini last month.

Montreal Impact’s evaluation camp, which included Philadelphia’s Jeremiah White, has concluded.

Soccer America’s Paul Gardner says MLS needs to do something about dirty tackling.

US

Player ratings from Soccer America and MLSsoccer.com for the USMNT’s 1–0 win over Honduras on Saturday.

Here’s a Q & A with USMNT newcomer Danny Williams.

From the Department of the Bizarre, a Jamaican newspaper recounts the verbal ill-treatment the Jamaican refereeing crew received during the USA v Honduras game.

Elsewhere

After a 0–0 draw with Sierra Leone, the South African team did  a lap of honor to celebrate qualification for the African Cup of Nations. Turns out, they didn’t qualify. South Africa believed that goal difference was the tie-breaker since they were level on points with Niger and Sierra Leone, but the rules state that head-to-head results are the decider, which puts Niger on top. South Africa is appealing the decision.

Players from Germany’s 1966 World Cup team are denying doping allegations following the discovery of a letter dated Nov. 29, 1966 from the then FIFA medical committee chairman Mihailo Andrejevic. Former defender Willi Schulz said, “I rarely laughed so much and almost crashed the car into a tree when I heard of it on the radio. The allegations are ridiculous.”