Daily news roundups

Union bits, Seattle wins, MLS clubs clean house, more morning news

Photo: Garen Meguerian

Philadelphia Union

At CSN Philly, Dave Zeitlin has five ways the Union can improve for 2014. The first is to keep John Hackworth in charge and the young core of Jack McInerney, Amobi Okugo, Zac MacMath and Sheanon Williams intact. The second? Open up the wallet for a “star playmaker.” Zeitlin also considers the possibility of trading Brian Carroll and Ray Gaddis.

in Wednesday’s roundup we linked to tweets from Dave Zeitlin that include quotes from an interview he had done with Nick Sakiewicz in which Sakiewicz says he had “no thoughts” about firing Hackworth.

The Brotherly Game rounds up how former Union Academy players are doing in the college game.

Local

The Conwell-Egan girls’ team defeated Science and Learning Academy 3-0 on Wednesday to claim the PIAA District 12 Class A girls soccer title. Michelle Latronica scored two goals and an assist in the win, which will see Conwell-Egan through to the state tournament where they will face the District One champion on Tuesday at 4 pm at the South Philadelphia super site.

Although the Archbishop Wood girls’ team lost 1-0 to Archbishop Ryan in the Philadelphia Catholic League championship game, they advanced their campaign for glory in the state tournament with a 13-0 destruction of Benjamin West on Wednesday for the District 12 championship in a game that featured 11 different goalscorers. As they did last year, Wood next faces Villa Joseph’s, who won their third straight District I championship on Wednesday, in the first round of the state tournament.

The soccer component of The Special Olympics of Pennsylvania’s Fall Festival will begin on Friday at four different locations: Pike Field (5 v 5), Mendel (7 v 7), the Agnes Irwin School (7 v 7), and Villanova Stadium (11 v 11). The Delco Times notes, “The Fall Festival is presented in partnership with Villanova University’s Special Olympics Committee and is recognized as the largest student-sponsored Special Olympics event in the world.”

MLS

Houston hosts Montreal tonight in the Eastern Conference Knockout Round (8:30 pm, NBCSN, MLS Live). ProSoccerTalk has a preview.

Seattle defeated Colorado 2-0 in Wednesday night’s Western Conference Knockout Round. Leading 1-0 with four minutes remaining in regular time, Sounders keeper Michael Gspurning was red carded for handling the ball outside of the box before Eddie Johnson put the nail in Colorado’s coffin with a stoppage time goal. Seattle next host Portland on Saturday in the first leg of the Western Conference semifinal (10 pm, NBCSN). LA hosts Real Salt Lake in the first leg of the other Western conference semifinal on Sunday (9 pm; ESPN, ESPN Deportes).

At SI, Grant Wahl updates his report saying that MLS was considering changing the playoff schedule to play games during the the FIFA international break to say, “After considering staging playoff games during the November FIFA international window, MLS has decided not do so. MLS playoffs will instead continue under their previously scheduled format with mid-week games allowing the first four playoff legs to occur before the start of the international window and a break in games during the Nov. 11-20 window.”

DC United has declined the options on Carlos Ruiz, Lionard Pajoy — remember them? — and Marcelo Saragosa.

The Washington Post is reporting that Dwayne De Rosario is also out at DC. While there’s been no confirmation yet from the club, De Rosario posted a photo on Instagram on Wednesday of large banner bearing his likeness being removed from RFK Stadium.

It’s official: the Chicago Fire have parted ways with head coach Frank Klopas. Also gone is President of Soccer Operations Javier Leon.

The Chicago Sun Times notes that the Fire have now gone through four team presidents and four coaches since Andrew Hauptman purchased the club in 2007 and that Klopas’ dismissal comes 15 years to the day after he scored the game-winning goal for Chicago in the US Open Cup final in 1998.

Goal.com is reporting that Frank Yallop, let go by San Jose earlier this season, will replace Klopas. Team sources have confirmed the report to the Chicago Tribune and ESPN.

Speaking of San Jose, the Earthquakes have signed interim manager Mark Watson to a multi-year deal.

Citing salary cap and performance concerns, Columbus Crew interim manager Brian Bliss tells MLSsoccer.com that the team has cut Argentinian midfielder Matias Sanchez and Andrew Horton, the club’s first Homegrown Player signing.

The Daily Mirror is reporting that Toronto FC have offered Jermaine Defoe a £5million-a-year deal. That’s 8 million US dollars, 8.3 million Canadian dollars.

David Beckham said in an interview broadcast on Facebook on Wednesday, “I’m passionate about staying in football and being an owner of a team is something I’m passionate about.” He added, “Miami is one of the places we looked at, and we’ve looked at others too.”

Beckham explained, “I am excited about owning a team…continuing to be part of the MLS in the future. Miami excites me because I think it’s a city that is very excitable. I’ve been to watch the basketball there. I’ve seen the (NFL’s Miami) Dolphins play. It’s a city where the people in the city love their sport.”

Beckham also said that Sir Alex Ferguson was among the first people he has considered to manage his MLS team. “The funny thing was I’m involved in the MLS and bringing my own franchise into the league and actually he was one of the first in my phone book to contact as the manager, but I’m not so sure anymore – I’m not sure he’d accept!”

Beckham said he isn’t interested in going into coaching. “Management doesn’t float my boat, really.”

CBS Miami reports that should Beckham officially announce that he wants to buy a franchise in Miami he will have a tough task getting public funding for a soccer specific stadium. “Call it the Miami Marlins stadium effect, but people in South Florida are now loathe to giving any public money to help fund stadiums for professional sports teams.”

US

Jurgen Klinsman has decided not to call up Julian Green to the November camp for the upcoming USMNT friendlies against Scotland and Austria. “We are going to give Julian an opportunity to breathe,” said Klinsmann. “All of these conversations and attention can be a bit overwhelming for a young player, so we decided to take the foot off the pedal and let him focus on his work at Bayern. We had a great conversation. He’s a mature young man and he clearly has a bright future. I told him that when the time is right, the door is wide open” Green would have to file a one-time switch with FIFA in order to play for the US because he has previously represented Germany at the youth level.

The USWNT drew 1-1 with New Zealand in Wednesday’s friendly in Columbus. Sydney Leroux scored in the 42nd minute before the US conceded the equalizer in the 87th minute. Postgame quotes here.

The US U-17 WNT faces Trinidad & Tobago tonight in Jamaica at 7 pm in the first game of the CONCACAF U-17 Women’s Championship. Fox Soccer Plus and Fox Soccer 2Go are showing the US games. If you enter the promo code “U17WNT” before Nov. 10, you will receive 14 days of free access to view the US games on Fox Soccer 2Go.

Elsewhere

Panama is still fighting to make it to the Intercontinental playoff against New Zealand, asking FIFA to investigate if Mexico fielded an ineligible player during the Hex. MLSsoccer.com reports, “FEPAFUT has made an ‘official consultation’ to FIFA about the possibility that Argentina-born forward Christian “Chaco” Giménez may have been played illegally by Mexico in World Cup qualification, according to a tweet the federation made on Wednesday.”

The Guardian reports, “UEFA has sacked one of its officials after admitting its new anti-racism strategy was not properly enforced during the incident involving Yaya Touré that means CSKA Moscow will have to play their next Champions League game in a partly closed ground.” CSKA Moscow’s next home Champions League game is against Bayern Munich on Nov. 27. More on the story from Goal.com.

ProSoccerTalk’s Joe Prince-Wright described UEFA’s decision as “laughable” and said CSKA should have been kicked out of the tournament. “UEFA has missed a golden chance to set a precedence as to how racists who attend soccer games in Europe and across the world should be punished. Swift and harsh punishment should be the order of the day, and if domestic teams and national teams aren’t allowed to compete in the Champions League, Europa League and other big tournaments, then that should be a big enough punishment to make the clubs whose fans are guilty of such deplorable behavior stand up, take notice and do something to eradicate it.”

At ESPN, Ian Macintosh weighs in on the proposal to expand the World Cup field to 40 teams under the headline of “Don’t let Michel Platini ruin the World Cup!”

8 Comments

  1. Danny Cruz outlasted Lionard Pajoy. I guess that means the Union won that trade…

    Seattle must have been very happy that they still had subs left after the red card.

  2. Any interest in bringing De Rosario to Philly?

    • Ed Farnsworth says:

      Personally? Maybe in 2010. Not in 2014.

    • At the right salary? Definitely.

      • I wanna see the Union draft Steve Neumann from Georgetown (as well as Reading United) as a central playmaker, along with Farfan, and bring DeRo to serve as a bridge until either or both are ready to go 90 minutes every week in that role. Sort of like Carroll, he can be a strong veteran presence until the youth are ready to take over.

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