Daily news roundups

Le Toux injury, Mexico owes Zusi, more news

Philadelphia Union

The foot injury that saw Sebastien Le Toux exit the DC United game after only 16 minutes could be serious. Looking ahead to Saturday’s road game in Montreal, Le Toux said on Tuesday, “Right now at this moment, if the game was tomorrow, I can’t play…I’m getting treatment and wearing a boot most of the time when I’m home. It sucks. I can’t really run.”

Le Toux continued, “It’s much better than it was two days ago but I’m still feeling it. I’m definitely questionable for this weekend. It’s kind of day-to-day. I could feel better tomorrow but there’s stuff I can’t do like cutting, which still hurts a lot. This has never happened to me before so I don’t know what to expect.”

Amobi Okugo was named to the MLS Team of the Week. He also did a Q&A with AllNigeriaSoccer.com.

Conor Casey comes in at No. 17, and Jack McInerney at No. 19, in the latest Castrol Index Top 20 Performers rankings. In the Full Castrol Index, the top five Union players are McInerney (No. 6 in the league), Zac MacMath (No. 21), Casey (No. 22), Okugo (No. 45), and Le Toux (No. 47).

In the latest power rankings at MLSsoccer.com, the Union remain at No. 10.

At the Brotherly Game, Andrew Stoltzfus notes that it’s possible, if the the results go the right way, that the Union, Impact, Dynamo and Fire could be in a four-way tie for third place after this week’s games.

This is the opening for a blog post at Philly.com about the WUSV World Championship for German Shepherds that is taking place at PPL Park Oct. 17-20: “The PPL Stadium, known best for facilitating Philadelphia Union games, will host one of the world’s biggest and most prestigious events in world of dog handling.” First off,”The PPL Stadium” is called PPL Park (and not “The PPL Park”). Second, what’s with the “known best for facilitating Philadelphia Union games” malarkey? Is it so difficult to write that it’s the home of the Union? Would the author write that Citizens Bank Park is best known for facilitating baseball games or that it is best known as the home of the Phillies? Pathetic.

US

In 2009, a late header from Jonathan Bornstein against Costa Rica ensured Honduras a place in the 2010 World Cup. On Tuesday night, a stoppage time header from Graham Zusi gave hope to Mexico and ended Panama’s World Cup hopes.

Understandably, this Mexican television announcer went bonkers when Zusi scored the equalizer, breaking into English at one point to say, “Gol Estados Unidos! We love you! We love you forever and ever! God bless America!”

Goal.com said of the reaction in Mexico after the dramatic US comeback, “Cue cries of ‘USA, USA,’ in bars and gatherings all around Mexico. Social networks in the country were flooded with El Tri fans thanking the United States.”

As the US Soccer Twitter account put it, “#YoureWelcomeMexico.”

If the numbers being bantered about are to be believed, Zusi’s stoppage time goal — incredibly, the first headed goal of his professional career — will have preserved the Mexican soccer federation and Mexican broadcasters nearly $1 billion in revenue. Zusi joked after the game, “Hopefully, I get free vacations to Mexico whenever I want.” He added, “It’s a little weird being the rivals that we are for us to kind of save them, save their future. It’s a little strange to think about.”

Sacha Kljestan said, “Look, we’re happy we won, but I feel bad for Panama. I could see it on the players’ faces after the game. I wanted to congratulate them on a good tournament, but the sad thing about sports is there’s always a loser. Sucks that it comes at the expense of a victory for us, but that’s life.”

Jurgen Klinsmann said, “Obviously, you feel for the people, you feel for the entire country, you feel for [Panama head coach] Dely Valdez, who I admire a lot, but this is football, it’s not over until it’s over.”

Klinsmann made clear the US “could have played a lot better than we did, especially in the first half,” but said of his team’s desire, “We played our game. We came here to play simply just a game against Panama and the players went all 90-plus minutes to get a win and get three points. They believed in it all the way until the end. This is our job. We were focused on our job. We understand that tonight so much was at stake for both Mexico and Panama. We respect that, but we were solely focused on ourselves. We said that before the game and after the game. Mexico played their game in Costa Rica and we were here, and experienced an unbelievable finish of a game.”

And how about Aron Johansson’s stoppage time winner, his first goal for the US after only four appearances? How about the him not celebrating the goal and, after accepting the congratulations of his teammates,  simply heading back to the center circle for the restart? It was the perfect combination of good sportsmanship and “I score like this all the time.”

Johansson wasn’t the only US classy player, as this photo of Terrence Boyd consoling Panama’s Felipe Baloy shows.

Match recaps from PSP, US Soccer, MLSsoccer.com, Soccer America, SBI, ESPN, ASN, Goal.com, and The AP.

Player ratings from MLSsoccer.com, ESPN, Soccer America, and Goal.com.

ESPN has three quick points from the US win.

US Soccer Players has four things learned about CONCACAF and the Hexagonal now that the qualification cycle is over.

Local

The Villanova men’s team defeated Lehigh 1-0 with a 59th minute penalty kick..

MLS

The Montreal Impact announced on Tuesday that Marco Di Vaio will be returning to the team in 2014.

The league has fined Seattle Sounders and head coach Sigi Schmid for mobbing the ref during Sunday’s loss to Portland. The team was fined $5000 and Schmid was fined $1000 for this, their second violation this season of the league’s mass confrontation policy.

San Jose’s Ramiro Corrales, the last player still in the league from its inaugural season in 1996, is retiring.

Baynews9.com talks to Brett Lashbrook, the director of Orlando SC’s efforts to become a MLS franchise. MyFoxOrlando.com on the social media campaign the team has initiated in the final week before Orlando County commissioners vote on funding for a new downtown Orlando soccer stadium on Oct. 22.

Elsewhere

ProSoccerTalk rounds up who has qualified for the World Cup.

Goal.com has a quick look at the eight teams that made it to the UEFA World Cup qualifying playoffs.

The Guardian has a primer on everything you need to know about going to Brazil.

Poland fired head coach Waldemar Fornalik following his team’s 2-0 loss to England and failed World Cup qualification campaign. Let the Peter Nowak rumors begin!

Bob Bradley’s Egypt was thumped 6-1 by Ghana, essentially ending their World Cup hopes.

2 Comments

  1. That picture is awesome!

  2. Nice report. Love the Mexican announcer proclaiming his affection bit.

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