Photo: Daniel Gajdamowicz
Philadelphia Union
Broad Street Hooligans says they have “a few connections who work down at PPL” and that these connections “may have accidentally overheard their bosses super-secret text messages” to the effect that Philadelphia will host the 2012 MLS All-Star Game. BSH assumes the game will be at PPL Park. No, I don’t know how you overhear a text message.
In response to the BSH article, Daily News reporter Kerith Gabriel tweeted,“@PhilaUnion fans: you are going to read a blog post that says your team was awarded the 2012 MLS All-Star game. As of now, that is FALSE.”
The Union released their timeline for ticket purchases on Friday. The window is now open for last year’s partial season ticket holders to renew. The window opens for buyers of new partial season ticket plans on Jan. 17 with single game and group tickets going on sale on Jan. 24.
Amobi Okugo is hungry. “Everyone is striving to be a consistent starter and that’s my goal. Hopefully I can accomplish that in my third season. I feel like I’m ready. I feel like I’ve been ready.”
MLS Talk “Three Questions” series wonders what the ceiling will be for the Union in 2012. Whether three questions—What will Freddy Adu do; will the offseason signings address their needs; what will Sebastien Le Toux’s role be—are enough to provide an answer is another question. Interesting note: did you know that in 2011, Le Toux’s “scoring decreased but he played more as a creator, setting up his forwards to score their own goals”? In addition to scoring more goals in 2010 than in 2011, didn’t Le Toux also have more assists in the team’s inaugural season? Was he playing less as a creator then?
More mock drafts. SB Nation has the Union selecting Enzo Martinez (M – UNC/GA ) in the first round, Aaron Maund (D – Notre Dame) and Hunter Jumper (D-UVA) in the second round. Rant.com has the Union taking Austin Berry (D – Louisville) in the first round and Evans Frimpong (F-Delaware) in the second round.
Union City Blue reacts to the 2012 Union schedule.
Philadelphia Independence/WPS
USWNT star Abby Wambach and multiple FIFA Women’s Player of the Year Marta say they may not play in WPS in 2012. Wambach says, “the most important thing” is helping the USWNT qualify for the 2012 Olympics while Marta says “there are also possibilities” to play in Europe.
Ahead of Friday’s draft, All White Kit looks back at some past drafts. The Independence did well in the 2009 Expansion and International Drafts, terrible in the 2010 Rookie Draft, well again in the 2010 Dispersal Draft.
Philly Soccer News says WPS is missing out on a big opportunity by having a closed draft rather than an open draft with fans and supporters groups present like MLS does.
Local
Harrisburg City Islanders are holding an open tryout on Wednesday and Thursday.
Temple women’s soccer team members junior Kate Yurkovic and sophomore Jenna Gosnay are in Nicauragua with Soccer Without Borders.
Could Allentown be the home of an MLS team?
MLS
Here are some roundups of what happened at the Players Combine on Saturday and Sunday plus a look at Day Two’s winners and losers. The first four matches produced 14 goals.
In its look at the Homegrown Player rule, Goal.com says the brevity of the publicly available explanation of the rule from the league “obscures the complexity of some situations they govern and the malleability of the metric used to assess them. The end product often leaves coaches, executives and observers frustrated due to the apparently inconsistent outcomes and raises those familiar and uncomfortable queries about the equity and the pliability of the league’s internal governance structures.” The article is illustrated with a photo of Zach Pfeffer sitting on the bench along with several other Union players.
The AP reports that “Major League Soccer is looking to take the lead with the best protocol for handling concussions.”
Following the news of the knee injury Omar Gonzalez suffered on the first day of his loan to FC Nurnberg, an injury that will keep him out of action for at least six months, Michael Lewis says this is why MLS players shouldn’t go out on loan. Steve Davis says “poppycock.”
Betfred.com is offering 9/2 odds that Thierry Henry will score the opening goal this afternoon when Arsenal plays Leeds in the FA Cup, 5/4 odds that he will score in the game.
Landon Donovan’s Everton will meet Brad Friedel’s Tottenham on Wednesday and Clint Dempsey’s Fulham in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Jan. 28.
The Wall Street Journal writes, “If Henry turns back the clock and Donovan repeats his exploits of 2009, you could not rule out the possibility that the offseason raiding of MLS by Europe’s top leagues will intensify”
People.co.uk says Frank Lampard “has no interest in moving to Major League Soccer despite interest from LA Galaxy.”
Union Dues reacts to the recently announced schedule.
US
In case you missed it, here’s Dempsey’s hat trick against Charlton from Saturday.
Goal.com named Dempsey their World Player of the Week.
Elsewhere
Wayne Rooney says it’s not his fault Vincent Kompany was sent off in the 12th minute of Manchester City’s 3–2 loss to Manchester United in Sunday’s FA Cup match. Roberto Mancini disagrees.
Liverpool have said they will impose a lifetime ban on any spectator who is found to have racially abused Oldham Athletic defender Tom Adeyemi during Saturday’s FA Cup match. Liverpool won 5–1. In more Liverpool news, Stuart Downing was arrested on Sunday morning for allegedly assaulting a former girlfriend outside of a club.
The Liverpool and Manchester United wins means the two clubs will face each other in the fourth round of the FA Cup. The two clubs have announced they will hold “peace talks” ahead of the game to address concerns about how supporters will react following the judgement against Luis Suarez for racially abusing Patrice Evra. In related news, if Anton Ferdinand’s QPR defeat MK Dons in their third round replay, QPR will host John Terry’s Chelsea only days before Terry’s court date to face charges he racially abused Ferdinand.
In more related news, Espanyol coach Mauricio Pochettino has condemned the actions of fans after whole sections of the home support made monkey noises at Barcelona’s Danny Alves in Sunday nights 1–1 Catalan derby.
Omar “El Gato” Ortiz, a first division goalie in Mexico currently on suspension for using steroids, has been arrested by police for allegedly being part of a kidnapping ring.
Great Man City comeback in 2nd half with only 10 men. They almost tied it on 2 occasons in the last 5 minutes when the ball was kicked into the box but fell unkindly for their players. Great 45 minutes of soccer action!!!
DiCanio was in the news again; this time for upsetting Wigan with the team he manages (think it is Bristol).
You don’t want to be a Liverpool fan these days …
Thanks for sharing the Allentown link. I’d love to see this happen…I think it would be great for fans in both regions.
The window on Allentown as an untapped market has passed. The Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs (Phillies AAA)moved there from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2008 with a brand new stadium out by the airport and the Flyers AHL Phantoms are in the process of getting a barn built downtown.
Not that Allentown isn’t sports-crazy, cause it is, but I think MLS has out-grown that type of market and the saturation of recent arrivals likely would have sapped much of the STH enthusiasm that announcing another new team would have hoped for. On the other hand, it could be a great market for a USLPro team or a WPS team.
Agreed. The Lehigh Valley is a good minor league market, with a lot of growth as it transitions from old industries (steel, etc.). The AAA baseball team was a big step up from the prior stabs at minor league baseball. Growth in the suburbs has brought a lot of people into the region, and redevelopment in Allentown and Bethlehem’s south side make it a much better market.
But MLS? Not going to happen while the Union are around, nor should it.
Thank god Kerith Gabriel isn’t a real reporter. I’m not saying he’s right or wrong, but his attitude—”IT DIDN’T HAPPEN UNLESS AN OFFICIAL SOURCE TOLD ME”—is embarrassing. Wait, what? Woodward and Whatstein? Let me just call up Nixon’s press secretary to get this all cleared up. Nope, no story there.
Clint Dempsey!
“No, I don’t know how you overhear a text message.”
Siri?
I would love to see Bethlehem Steel reemerge as a pro team in USL or NASL. But Allentown/Lehigh is definitely not an MLS market with the Union around.
Imagine if the Union had minor league affiliates in all three lower divs? Harrisburg USL, Reading PDL, then Allentown/Bethlehem NASL… With collaborated training and development… Philly/PA Soccer Powerhouse.
Thanks Oshi for the technology tip! I had to ask around about what “Siri” meant. That’s what I get for having a Droid!
More on Adu. This time he says outright that he wants to play for Rayo and that he, “…expects to have the opportunity to stay”.
http://www.abola.pt/nnh/ver.aspx?id=308987
Just a side note. I’m perfectly happy with him leaving at this point, but if he were to leave that would mean Roger Torres is our only option at CAM. This whole situation is a bit concerning because at the moment it seems entirely possible, though probably unlikely, that we could start the season without either.
Another fine catch – thanks!
Beware of counterfeit products; your entire efforts may be
a damn squib if you purchase duplicate equipment.
They also keep active accounts in almost all social media websites existing on the Net.
) and not letting food or beverages sit in the containers for
too long.