Daily news roundups / Featured

Mac & Keon praised, more reaction to Union win, more morning news

Photo: Paul Rudderow


Philadelphia Union

Jack McInerney knew why he didn’t start against Houston and Columbus: “I wasn’t scoring. I wasn’t doing my job.”  Three games later and he’s on a three game scoring streak with one assist. McInerney said, “I proved I can score goals at the youth levels and why coach Hack [team manager John Hackworth] drafted me. For him to give me the opportunity and for me to finally keep putting goals in game after game, shows his belief in me and my ability.”

Dave Zeitlin notes that McInerney is “now one of only three players in Union history to have scored in three straight games (Sebastien Le Toux did it twice and Danny Mwanga did it once).”

Hackworth said of McInerney, who had earlier missed some goalscoring opportunities, “That’s what goal-scorers do. They forget about the last one and gotta go right back at it. And Jack was unlucky not to be on the board in that first half and I just told him ‘don’t get your head down and keep going after it.’ And he did.”

He continued, “Jack has been really important to us in the last couple months and it’s great to see him scoring goals. For this team in the last couple games, he’s done a huge amount of work. It’s a tough position for him because we’re asking him to do it by himself.”

Hackworth said of his team, “The guys in that room have a lot of pride and character. I am so impressed with the character of the gentlemen in that room. When you have that, despite the fact that there are no playoffs on the horizon, they want to do a job for the fans and for themselves.”

Hackworth praised Keon Daniel’s play on both sides of the ball, saying he played his best game of the year. “I think he played both sides of the ball with class,” Hackworth said. “He was really good in possession and going forward. He joined the attack, his service, especially on set pieces, was excellent and consistent. But he did a lot of work to get back and his intensity was right. I think it’s been something he’s struggled with—the intensity in this league. He’s certainly stepped up in that regard.”

Daniel said, “It’s been a while since I’ve had a performance like this. I’m just getting comfortable. I owe the fans because they had high expectations of me. I haven’t been the best I can and it’s something I have in my mind to give back to these fans—these lovely fans we have—and even this league and my teammates. So I’m just working on it.”

While he said it’s not his call to make, Daniel said he hopes to be back with the Union next year. “Of course I’m happy to be here. I love being here. I call here my home, my second home.”

Chris Vito writes of the visa issues that prevented Keon from playing the final months of the 2011 season, “On that topic, I’ve gotten confirmation, from a source close to Daniel, that visa issues were not to blame.” Vito does not elaborate.

Match reports and recaps from PSP,  MLSsoccer.com, PhiladelphiaUnion.com, The Inquirer, The Daily News, The Delco Times, CSN Philly, phillyBurbs.com, Boston Herald, Examiner.com, SBIPhilly Soccer News, The Brotherly Game, Union Dues, Philly Sports Live, New England Soccer Today, The Bent Musket, Goal.com, The Sports Network, The AP, and UPI,

Local

La Salle’s women’s team came from behind to defeat VCU 2–1. The win was the 46th for the senior class, making them the winningest class in school history.

Harrisburg City Islanders will hold an open tryout on Saturday, Oct. 20 at at the Lower Dauphin Middle School in Hummelstown, PA. There will be a $60 registration fee. For more information, click here.

MLS

In Eastern Conference play, first place Kansas City (59 points) drew 1–1 on the road with sixth place Columbus (49 points). Chicago (56 points) moved into second place with a 2–0 win over now fourth place New York (53 points) at Red Bull Arena. KC’s draw on Sunday was enough for Chicago to clinch the second Eastern Conference playoff spot. DC United (54 points) moved into third place with a 1–0 road win over last place (22 points) Toronto, who are now winless in 12 games. Fifth place Houston (50 points) drew 1–1 with seventh place Montreal (41 points). The Union (36 points) remain in eighth place–14th overall, four points ahead of Colorado and two points behind Dallas–with their 1–0 win over ninth place New England (29 points).

Some 66,452 spectators were on hand to see Seattle thump Portland 3–0 on Sunday night. It was the second largest regular season crowd in league history, the biggest being David Beckham’s debut match for LA against New York at the Meadowlands.

Chris Wondolowski scored a hat trick in San Jose’s 4–1 win over Colorado on Saturday. The win means the Earthquakes clinched the top spot in the West and lead KC by six points with 64 points, matching the club’s record high while also matching the club’s record for wins  at 19 with two games remaining for the Supporters Shield. Wonolowski also broke San Jose’s record for all-time goals scored. Now on 25 goals, Wondolowski is two goals behind Roy Lassiter’s record, set in 1996.

LA Galaxy didn’t just lose the game to Real Salt Lake on Saturday, they lost Landon Donovan with a left knee injury that could see him miss the remaining two league games of the season and the upcoming USMNT qualifiers.

Here’s an interesting rule clarification: Players in danger of earning a suspension for yellow card accumulation will not be suspended for the first playoff game if they receive a yellow card in the last game of the season. A player who receives a red card will in the last regular season game will be suspended for the first playoff game.

Speaking to reporters on Friday about the proposed new stadium in Queens, Don Garber said he expects a deal to be finalized with the city in the next month with groundbreaking ideally happening in 2014 and the stadium opening in 2016 or 2017. Garber also said an owner for the new stadium and the team that will be played there should be found withing the next seven months. More here.

Could the unbalanced schedule hurt MLS in Champions League play?

Michael Jones, a part-time coach in the Red Bulls’ youth training program, was murdered early Sunday morning near Union Square in Manhattan. More on the gruesome story here.

Women’s Soccer

US Soccer president Sunil Gulati spoke with reporters on Friday on several topics related to the women’s game. Regarding a possible new women’s professional league, Gulati said discussions have taken place with eleven ownership groups representing ten cities “spread across the country.” Gulati explained, “Where we right now is talking with them [is] starting a process of vetting those potential investors on financial and other financial, operational, organizational management guidelines…There are some former professional teams that are obviously part of that group, some current MLS teams investor-operators are part of that group and we expect to have that process pretty much completed by the end of October.”

Gulati said, “The USL is part of this structure and would handle the front office possibilities, if we pull this together.”

He also said that US Soccer’s involvement in the new league would be greater than previously with WUSA and WPS. “There is every possibility that we would have a more active role in the management and funding of this league. What form that takes is still being discussed but a big part of our participation would be that the National Team players would play in this league and perhaps be funded directly by U.S. Soccer.”

Read the extended quote sheet here. More on Gulati’s comments here.

It is possible that Seattle may be the city with two ownership groups interested in joining the proposed league. On Sunday, Sounder at Heart reported that Amy Carnell, who as general manager of Seattle Sounders Women was responsible for bringing in Sydney Leroux, Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe and Hope Solo, was no longer with the club. Carnell said in an email statement, “I am currently working with an owner here in Seattle that believes in the game as much as I do.”

Sounders Women are holding a press conference on Tuesday “regarding women’s professional soccer in the United States, the Sounders Women stance and situation within that process, and organizational developments within the Sounders Women.

US

Jurgen Klinsmann is expected to release the roster for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Antigua & Barbuda and Guatemala this afternoon at 3pm.

Soccer America takes a quick look at Klinsmann’s selection dilemma.

Michael Bradley scored in his first game back from injury for Roma. Maurice Edu made his Premiership debut, coming on as a sub for Stoke City.

Sunil Gulati announced that Jill Ellis will fill in as interim coach of the USWNT for the upcoming Fan Appreciation Tour games against Germany scheduled for this month. Gulati also said that Ellis, an assistant under former coach Pia Sundhage and currently US Soccer’s Youth Development Director for women’s soccer, is not a candidate for the head coaching job.

Gulati said that the search committee to fill the head coach vacancy has “talked to a number of people” and that the process will continue until at least the end of October “but if it goes into November, that’s not a problem.”

Borussia Dortmund Sports Director Michael Zorc says reports that the club has signed 16-year-old Junior Flores “are not totally right.” Because FIFA prohibits clubs signing a player before they are 18, it may be that the club has offered him a pre-contract.

 

4 Comments

  1. James "4-3-3" Forever says:

    Rumors on twitter that Altidore wasn’t called up. Crazy.

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