Photo: Earl Gardner
Philadelphia Union
The Union will look to make it two-in-a-row tonight when they face New York City FC at Yankee Stadium (7 pm: TCN, MLS Live, Direct Kick).
The preview on the NYCFC website says, “The Club will be without midfielder Mix Diskerud” tonight when they face the Union. Speaking after playing 80 minutes in the 2-0 US win over Mexico on Wednesday night, Diskerud told Big Apple Soccer’s Michael Lewis that may not be the case: “We’ll see. I’m going to come in around 1 p.m. so I can’t reveal too much. I don’t want to give Philadelphia an advantage. So maybe I’ll come on, maybe not.”
Will he have to convince NYCFC head coach Jason Kreis that he is able to play? Diskerud said, “We’ll see. I’ll give him a call afterwards. I’ll shoot him a text. We’ll talk. I’m 24-years-old. I feel fresh.” Hopefully, it’s just a case of postgame exuberance.
In the likely event that Diskerud does not play, or at least start, his likely replacement will be Mehdi Ballouchy. Kreis said of Ballouchy, “Mehdi is a very technical player, very, very good on the ball and makes good decisions in possession and is capable of finding the right pass. He’s started a few games for us already, and he’s always in the mix.”
Much has been made of NYCFC’s tiny pitch. Ray Gaddis said of the challenges it poses, “You just have to be more technical with your passing. It’s a tight space, so you’re not going to have as much time on the ball. You’re not going to have as much time to do what you want to do in the game. Sometimes, it takes away from your style of play because you may like to play long balls or you may like to spread out a little more with the width of the pitch, but now you can’t do that. It’s going to be a scrap up there.
Previews from PSP, Philadelphia Union (video) Inquirer, Daily News, Delco Times, Philly Soccer News, Brotherly Game, Vavel, Metro, MLSsoccer.com, NYCFC, New York Post, Big Apple Soccer, Skyscraper Blues, beIN Sports, MLSGB, The Sports Network.
At Hudson River Blue, Eugen Rupinski of fellow SB Nation blog Brotherly Game gives some advice on rooting for an expansion team.
At Copa 90, an interesting take on last Saturday’s game from NYCFC supporter Luca Morganti, who also wonders if Union and NYCFC supporters might bond over their shared hatred of New York Red Bulls.
At MLSsoccer.com, Dave Zeitlin on emerging start Erick Ayuk. Here’s a great passage from the piece:
Being so young comes with another perk: Ayuk is fearless during games. Just before making his first start in Kansas City on April 5, Lahoud remembers captain Maurice Edu finishing his talk in the pregame huddle when Ayuk chirped in with a simple request: “Give me the ball.”
“Those were his first words,” Lahoud said with a laugh. “Welcome to MLS. He’s a very confident kid. He’s got fantastic determination. And his balance – he’s got three legs, practically.”
Ayuk said, “I’m the little one. I listen to everybody when they speak to me in training…It’s a team and it’s a family.” What’s not to love?
Brotherly Game on why Ayuk will be “the Union’s next big hit.”
More on John McCarthy making his MLS debut for his hometown team at Sports Rants.
Former Union Homegrown Player Christian Hernandez is among three players who have signed with New York Cosmos and “who will be loaned to the Cosmos B team,” which will play in the National Premier Soccer League’s North Atlantic Conference and is coached by former Union youth technical director Alecko Eskandarian.
Union Academy
At Brotherly Game, Matt Ralph recaps the Union Academy results against their DC United counterparts last Sunday. The U-18s drew 1-1, the U-16s won 1-0, and the U-14s won 3-0.
Local
Elkins Park, Pa. native and Ocean City Nor’easters alum Steven Miller has signed with USL side Tulsa Roughnecks.
Ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup semifinal between Arsenal and Reading, Get Reading in the UK has a story about Brian Sturges, a ex-pat who now lives in Pennsylvania and “has turned part of his house into a shrine dedicated to all things Reading FC.”
MLS
The league announced on Wednesday that Tottenham Hotspur will be the opponent in this year’s All-Star Game, which is being hosted by Colorado Rapids. The All-Star Game: Loved having at PPL Park. Otherwise, sure I’ll watch, and I’ll be happy for Union players who are called into the MLS side, but, to be blunt, I couldn’t really give a toss.
In related news, the teams participating in this summer’s International Champions Cup have been announced. They are Manchester United, Chelsea, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Porto, Fiorentina, Club América, LA Galaxy, New York Red Bulls, and San Jose Earthquakes. Details will be announced April 28 with the tournament beginning July 11 and ending August 5, three days before the start of the Premier League season. Separate tournaments will also be staged in Australia (and include Real Madrid, Manchester City, and Roma) and China (clubs to be announced). More at Fox Soccer, BBC, Sky Sports, Reuters, the Press Association, and the AP.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Robbie Keane has rebuffed the notion that MLS is a retirement league and defended the standard of play ahead of the arrival of Steven Gerrard at LA Galaxy:
I did not come out here to enjoy the beach, that’s for sure. There is a lot of pressure on you as a designated player in MLS and I have certainly not taken my foot off the gas for a moment.
You can see that because I have been a part of LA Galaxy teams that have won the MLS Cup a few times and that is not easy to win and the standard in MLS is rising all the time.
You can now see how the league has grown, certainly with the players coming over here like Kaka and Stevie Gerrard. The league will only continue to grow and I believe in the next five, six years it could be a massive, massive league.
Speaking of the enthusiasm he has seen for the Minnesota expansion team, Landon Donovan says of the league’s growth, “The tipping point has happened, now the reality is just how fast is it gonna go.” More from Donovan at For the Win and MLSsoccer.com.
Arsenal CEO Ivan Gazidis is a little more restrained in his assessment of the league:
I think MLS is on a fantastic growth trajectory. The Premier League, international football generally and the World Cup, all of these things give added impetus to what’s happening in MLS. Their journey is a long term one. I don’t think anyone should fool themselves there that MLS is going to become the go-to league in the next few years but it will continue to develop over time
Minnesota United director of season ticket sales Sean Sittnick says, following the expansion announcement, the team is selling a season ticket package every 90 seconds. “There were people coming to us before this, but now the MLS announcement is making people say, ‘I want to be there,'” Sittnick told Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.
Regarding efforts to build a new soccer stadium in Minneapolis, a blog post at the Star Tribune says just because Minnesotans are tired of building new stadiums doesn’t mean they shouldn’t back the stadium plans. “The United group had a keen sense of its bad timing and came in with a plan that is more than just palatable. It’s fair. It might even be a good deal for the state and city, something that is rare. Their bad timing shouldn’t diminish a good plan.”
Sacramento Republic officials and Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson have announced a list of five goals to meet by the end of the year in order to begin construction of a new stadium for the team, which is widely considered a frontrunner for the next wave of MLS expansion More at Sacramento Bee, Sacramento Business Journal, and KCRA.
US
The field conditions were terrible, which was predictable enough considering the temporary grass pitch had only been laid down on Monday, but who cares, the US defeated Mexico 2-0. Again.
Lovely goals from Stanford student athlete Jordan Morris and returning youngster Juan Agudelo did the business.
Morris said after the game, “I’ve dreamed about it since I was a little kid, scoring a goal, especially in such a big game in front of so many fans. It was unbelievable. [On the celebration], I blacked out a little bit. I didn’t really know what was going on.
Jurgen Klinsmann said of Morris’ future,
We hope we can do a lot of the work, by talking, by communicating through [Morris’] coach and to him and also the family. And to keep them with their feet on the ground. With Jordan, I think you have a character that is very grounded. He’s a smart kid, and he understands he has a long way to go.
Does it always work? No, they need to go also through the down periods because it’s not only just sunshine in their first couple of years as professionals, and we help them as much as we can. But they also have to learn that they are in the driver’s seat. They decide where to go, they decided what do.
By the way, the last college player to score for the US was Union assistant coach Mike Sorber in the 2-0 win over Canada in 1992. More on Morris at Fox Sports, MLSsoccer.com, Goal.com, ProSoccerTalk, and USA Today. Soccer America considers the performances of both Morris and Agudelo.
Morris was to be awarded Man of the Match honors but, because he is 20 and the award is sponsored by Budweiser, he was to young to receive it. By the way, it was announced on Wednesday that Anheuser-Busch, whose relationship with US Soccer dates back to 1986, has renewed their sponsorship agreement with federation.
More on the win at PSP, US Soccer, MLSsoccer.com, Fox Sports, CBS Sports, Yahoo Sports, Washington Post, the Guardian, ASN, American Soccer Analysis, ProSoccerTalk, Goal.com, SBI, The Sports Network, and the AP. US players’ reactions at ASN.
At ESPN, a recap from a Mexico perspective. Mexico head coach Miguel Herrera reassured his team’s supporters after the loss, “We’re going to face them in the CONCACAF final to go to the Confederations Cup, don’t worry, that’s where we’ll see them.”
Player ratings at MLSsoccer.com, ASN, Soccer America, Goal.com, ProSoccerTalk, ESPN,
Soccer America has three takeaways from Wednesday’s win, ProSoccerTalk has three things learned, ESPN has three quick thoughts, SI has three thoughts, the Guardian has — gasp — five things learned.
At Fox Soccer, Laura Vesey says “There are a lot of questions” about the USWNT following the release of the Women’s World Cup roster.
Elsewhere
Reuters reports the Caribbean Football Union will not vote as a block in the upcoming FIFA presidential elections, as had long been the case when well known crook Jack Warner was in charge of things. CFU president Gordon Derrick said, “Those days are long gone. If there is a democracy and we believe in a democracy then that means that everyone who is nominated has a chance to participate and whoever votes, votes, whichever way
The AP reports, “Brazilian soccer teams are on alert because of a dengue fever outbreak that has already affected some of the country’s top clubs.”
It seemed like Mix & David Villa were NYCFC’s danger men last weekend. Without Mix in the mix I think the Union have a good chance tonight. Maybe a tired Mix would be even better.
i would love to see a tired mix come in and play a really ineffective game and then get subbed early for mehdi ballouchy who is a bad player
+1 my hope as well
Without Mixx in the mix, the mix will be diluted.
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Thank you, I’ll be here all week 🙂
My thoughts exactly Osager. I actually hope Mix plays. Not the bench riding rested midfielder looking to make a point.
There is no way Mix is starting. This is a big head fake. Maybe he comes in for the last 15 minutes. And this is a break (finally!) for the U. Hope we can take advantage of it.
It may just be a case of that first win swoon, but I’m feeling pretty good about tonight! What’s this talk of NYFC and Union fans bonding over mutual dislike of NYRB? I’m all for common respect of fans but think about it…we don’t bond with the Yankees cause we all don’t like the Mets…Honestly the U are working class and NYFC are the upper crust. Oh yea I just remembered Man City ownership group sees NYFC as a novelty not a juggernaut haha…oh snap I don’t know if the shadowy organization of U ownership is any better. Albright told me that they are manipulating the Federal Reserve into raising interest rates so all the MLS teams that actually go out and make investments will pay a higher percentage on said investments; so we got that
As a Union fan, I have no problem holding both the RBs and NYCFC in equal contempt.
+1
Mr. Gazidis, thank you for your sensibility.
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When you are Robbie Keane at the end of your career and a team is willing to pay you 3M a season, I guess you do and say what is necessary. For me, this is all a rouge….
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….come on, you either go play in Asia at your age or your go and play a tier down, which is the equivalent of playing in The Show for 20 years and getting asked to play 3rd base for The Iron Pigs at 34. It is more than the ego can handle. This MLS league will be great for the near retired player getting handsome handsome paydays and that is it.
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MLS is like the snake eating itself like the Union is the local snake eating itself.
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Again, Mr. Gazidis, thank you for your sensibility.
Am I alone with my overall dislike of Keane?
Not alone, keane is the most overated, completely over paid DP in the entire MLS (except for Mboli), completely selfish, over the hill-won’t play defense, and THE worst with on field critical of fellow team mates during the game I’ve ever seen, it’s a crime someone, anyone else isn’t playing on his roster spot…
Keane is the best striker in the MLS…at his worst.
What exactly can you extrapolate from JK’s comments regarding Jordan Morris. Is that the language J.R.R. Tolkien created?
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And speaking of Jordan Morris…. the guy couldn’t even get the MOTM award – maybe Juan Valdez should be a de facto sponsor the next time an under age kid wins it.
No Mix = Union more likely to lose (that’s how they roll). However, 2-2 is my prediction.
2-1 again; cj scores the winner!
I prefer your prediction.
While not punctual, you are proper in preferring his prediction, if I may be presumptive.
2-0 NYCFC (Villa/Nemec-Mix set-piece delivery)). Union 36% possession/66% pasing completion. Carroll will see the pitch, around 65′. Letoux starts alone, up top, and does nothing. Wenger is the MOTM, for the Union (teenie pitch will keep him involved.). McCarthy shows how green he is (Blake should be in goal…indefinitely.) That’s my call.
Scratch the Mix delivery. He’s not playing. 1-0 NYCFC
Mind you, I am god-awful at gambling…I’m trying to use some mind-control…we are going to need it!
Err…by MOTM I mean…has no business in the starting XI, right now. Wenger has been horrendous!
Playing the same team back to back is fraught with potential emotional upheaval, winner of first relaxing a little, loser of first a little more pumped. Kreis is a both a better coach and more established with his team than Greg Vanney was during last year’s home-and-home with Toronto.
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Were Diskerud a defender, playing full games on back-to-back nights might be conceivable to me. But he’s not. The extreme deep muscle fatigue he would face in the last half hour were he to start significantly heightens the risk of muscle tissue injury. It’s early season, months away from do-or-die games. He’s too important to their season to risk a lengthy recovery hiatus, especially since they play again on Sunday the 19th.
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He’ll dress to create uncertainty and might see fifteen minutes off the bench at the end if they need him.
Bartomelo Toledo is our referee for tonight, so I expect to see 4 red cards and 2 mass confrontations.
Sweet. I just watched a 16′ YouTube video on soccer fights…pretty entertaining. There is another “Football is nothing without respect”, that was fantastic.