Photo: Earl Gardner
Philadelphia Union
The league has announced the complete 2017 schedule will be released today. The announcement did not include a time for the release.
At the Daily News, John Smallwood looks at the recent signings of Jay Simpson and Giliano Wijnaldum and writes these “are the type of moves you hope are indicative of Sporting Director Earnie Stewart’s understanding of the back alleys of European football and how to find a few genuine jewels amidst a market full of baubles and trinkets.”
At PhillyVoice, Kevin Kinkead looks at the Union depth chart.
At Section 215, transfer targets for the Union (warning: slideshow).
Jim Curtin is in a three way tie for fourth place in a poll of players at MLS Combine asking who their favourite MLS coach is.
At US Soccer, a video on the arrival of Alejandro Bedoya and Keegan Rosenberry to the January USMNT camp.
Bethlehem Steel FC
At the Bethlehem Steel website, Tom Via has a good piece on assistant coach Jay Cooney.
At USLsoccer.com, an article based on an interview USL President Jake Edwards did with SiriusXM on Tuesday in which he talks about the league receiving provisional Division 2 sanctioning. On the issue of what the league needs to do to address areas where the league does not meet Division 2 standards, Edwards said, “We’re the first league to ever [submit a clear plan] with timelines and deliverables. The clubs have put all of that together, so for now we must execute on that.”
Edwards added, “We are 100 percent focused on our league and what we have to do to move [it] forward over the next few years. That’s all we’ve done over the last few years, focus on building a sustainable, quality league with great clubs and strong local ownership groups. [Division 2 sanctioning] is a validation of everything that we’ve done to date, and we have to keep focusing on what we’re doing to ensure the long-term and continued success of the USL.”
Edwards said “we’ll be announcing shortly the next cluster of clubs coming in for the ’18 and ’19 seasons.”
Philadelphia Union Academy
Episode 1 of a three-part video series following a day in the life of two Union Academy students is available for viewing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZGMKmkhOpU
Interesting stuff.
Local
US Soccer and the Union announced on Wednesday that the USWNT will host Germany at Talen Energy Stadium on Wednesday, March 1 at 7 pm. The game is the second of the opening double header of the SheBelieves Cup and will be preceded by England-France at 4 pm. The other pairs of games are being played at Red Bull Arena on March 4, and RFK on March 7.
At US Soccer, five things to know about the SheBelieves tournament. At the Union website, a SheBelieves Cup 101.
Sons of Ben
The Sons of Ben Board election is about to take place:
The Sons of Ben Board Elections will be moving forward with our candidates for Membership and Philanthropy. The Voting period will begin on Monday, January 16th and run through Saturday, January 21st. As in previous elections, we will be using a secure third-party site and members will be sent an email link to their ballot. Again, our nominees are:
Membership – Ashley Cunningham and J. Spike Rogan
Philanthropy – Lauren Murray and Pat Wolenter
Here’s a Q&A with the candidates.
MLS
Goal.com and MLSsoccer.com report NYRB head coach Jesse Marsch is leaving the club to become the manager of Red Bull Salzburg. Assistant coach Chris Armas will replace Marsch at NYRB. Metro says the reports are false. Marsch has notably not been attendance at the the MLS Player Combine in Los Angeles this week.
NYCFC have acquired Panamanian international midfielder Miguel Camargo on a one-year loan deal “with an option to buy.”
Atlanta have acquired Argentine midfielder Yamil Asad “on a season-long loan as a Discovery Signing” from Argentine first division side Vélez Sarsfield.
Toronto have signed midfielder Sergio Camargo to a Homegrown Player contract.
Salt Lake have re-signed 34-year-old defender Chris Wingert.
Portland have unveiled their new primary kit. Looks good.
USA Today reports: “As part of their relocation plan for Los Angeles, the San Diego Chargers have an agreement to play at the StubHub Center in nearby Carson for the next two seasons before moving into their permanent new home in Inglewood with the Los Angeles Rams.” The StubHub Center is of course the home of the Galaxy and site of many USNT games.
The Boston Globe’s update on New England Revolution’s efforts to build a stadium: “After more than a year of discussions, the effort to build a professional soccer stadium in Dorchester is all but dead.”
Goal.com on how MLS presents unfamiliar challenges to coaches from the UK.
NWSL
Official: FC Kansas City has been bought by Minnesota-based businessman Elam Bear.
US
US Soccer has confirmed Gambia-born midfielder Kekuta Manneh has gained US citizenship: “the Vancouver Whitecaps FC attacker is still in the process of completing the remaining eligibility requirements that will allow him to suit up for the U.S. Men’s National Team moving forward.”
Elsewhere
Christopher Steele, who wrote reports on compromising material Russian operatives allegedly had collected on U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, is a former officer in Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service, according to people familiar with his career…
After he left the spy service, Steele supplied the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) with information on corruption at FIFA, international soccer’s governing body.
It was his work on corruption in international soccer that lent credence to his reporting on Trump’s entanglements in Russia, U.S. officials said on Wednesday.
The AAP reports, “The AFC believes the continent should be one of the foremost recipients of extra World Cup places following the governing body’s decision to expand the event to 48 teams…AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa said the rapid increase in Asia’s population warrants more than the four direct qualifying berths currently available.”
Headline at the AP: “FIFA risks quality of World Cup to bring more teams to party”.
The Guardian rounds up fan opinions from around the world on the expansion of the World Cup format in 2026 to 48 teams. I have no idea how the blurbs from each country were selected and the one that represents the US is kind of lame.
ESPN notes that UEFA’s European Club Footballing Landscape report “has shown that nine European clubs have moved so far ahead of the rest financially that they are unlikely to be caught up with.” The nine clubs are Arsenal, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, and Real Madrid.
The AP reports, “UEFA has banned Partizan Belgrade from the Champions League and Europa League for the next three seasons because of unpaid debts.”
Every time I read something by Kinkead, I become even more convinced that this team should be playing a 4 -4- 2. Or at least a 4-4-1-1 How many goals will this team score with Alberg and Simpson paired up top?
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That UEFA report has a ton of interesting stuff in it. Fascinating.
Inclined to agree..the armchair manager I am. I’d rather a 4-3-3 TBH.
I love Kevin, but he gets an idea in his head sometimes and beats it into the ground. Even if you don’t think Curtin is a good coach, Stewart obviously knows a lot about soccer and is signing off on this too.
The UEFA Champion’s League is compelling and fun to watch but TBH- I enjoy following the Europa League as much if not more because it’s like seeing a bombshell on TV that’s unattainable and unrealistic versus waking up next to “Everyday beautiful,” knowing your the luckiest guy alive.
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The story lines are more compelling for me with the ‘lesser’ club teams.
I always enjoy the Europa League and equate the match-ups to a unlikely meeting between animals in nature (or one of those weird circuses in China).
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Like a lion fighting a polar bear…how do you handicap that match-up?
A Lion v a Polar Bear is at first blush a stand-off because one is on land while the other is in the water, really cold water where the lion can under no circumstances go.
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It reminds me of two wars where one opponent’s complete helplessness on the ocean shaped the outcome – American Civil War and Napoleonic-Era Peninsular War – so I guess the Polar bear would win out as it has an amphibious capability that would protect it when resting while the lion gets no rest because it must remain vigilant 24-7-365 to receive the next amphibious assault. (As long as global warming doesn’t destroy the bear’s habitat and kill its food supplies.)
If the polar bear can nick a goal off a set piece in the first leg (he’s dangerous on corners), I would think that he would be able to take the sting out of the game in the arctic home leg and advance.
Polar bears hunt humans. Just saying.
Schedule is out on the Union (and MLS) website. Only one home game in March. First time in quite awhile that they are home over July 4 weekend. All 3 games against the expansion teams are August 26 or later. 3 games against DC United, NYRB, and Montreal (2 at Talen against the latter 2).