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Philadelphia Union

As expected, the Union has announced the signing of winger Fabrice “Fafa” Picault. PSP, Philadelphia Union (announcement, video, highlights), Philly.com, Delco Times, CSN Philly, Brotherly Game, Philadelphia Sports Nation, MLSsoccer.com, ESPN, and Goal.com.

At the Union website, Matt Bodiford notes Andre Blake will be facing off against Union teammates Alejandro Bedoya and Chris Pontius in tonight’s USA-Jamaica friendly (7:30 pm, FS1, Fox Soccer 2Go, UniMás, Univision Deportes, Univision Now). More at Philly Sports Network.

Section 215 says Haris Medunjanin is great but fans shouldn’t expect him to be Vincent Nogueira. More on Medunjanin at Philly Sports Network.

SBI on Oguchi Onyewu signing with the Union.

ASN projects Auston Trusty will make the US U-20 MNT roster for the CONCACAF U-20 World Cup qualification tournament.

At the Union website, a recap of Thursday’s training session in Clearwater.

Philly Sports Network reviews Jim Curtin’s comments at last week’s open practice on what preseason training in Florida will entail.

Former Union man Antoine Hoppenot has signed with USL side Reno 1868.

Bethlehem Steel FC

At the Steel website, a look at the opening of preseason training.

Section 215 on new Steel signing Santi Moar, who was initially selected by the Union in this year’s SuperDraft.

MLS

Atlanta have signed 23-year-old Venezuelan forward Josef Martínez “on loan as a Designated Player…The loan deal includes a club option to purchase.”

Portland have signed 28-year-old Argentinian winger Sebastián Blanco “as a Designated Player.” The announcement notes, “Portland acquired the Right of First Refusal to Blanco from Seattle Sounders FC in exchange for $75,000 of General Allocation Money.”

San Jose have announced to arrivals: Targeted Allocation Money has been used to acquire Dutch forward Danny Hoesen on a season-long loan “with an option to buy,” while German defender/midfielder Florian Jungwirth has been signed using Targeted Allocation Money.

San Jose also signed Albania international midfielder Jahmir Hyka “to a multi-year contract using Targeted Allocation Money.”

Toronto have re-signed Canadian international forward Tosaint Ricketts.

At Orlando Sentinel, Orlando head coach Jason Kreis says Young Designated Player Bryan Rochez, defender David Mateos, and midfielder Devron Garcia will not be returning to the team this season.

At ASN: “What are so many MLS teams signing Costa Ricans?”

At MLSsoccer.com, a full transcript of MLS president and deputy commissioner Mark Abbott’s teleconference with reporters earlier this week on the topic of expansion.

At FourFourTwo, a look at how attendance and marketing standards are being set by the league’s newest teams

At FiftyFiveOne, a good read on what happens with all those owners and cities looking to launch teams after MLS has completed expansion: “[W]hat will become of those clubs left on the outside? Rich owners have swept into some of these markets, promising stadiums and the highest level of soccer. Will they simply walk away from their clubs when they find themselves stuck in the USL? Will NASL become a haven for these disgruntled owners, leading to another era of seeking to challenge MLS to force a merger?”

The NASL has joined the USL in counting Canadian players as domestic players. More from The Canadian Press.

At FourFourTwo, how the new political climate in the US, as embodied most recently in the Trump travel ban, is affecting soccer in the US: “In MLS circles, last week’s hastily enacted and chaotically enforced travel ban may be the first of a series of policies whose consequences have to be worked out on the run. Union reps, agents, league officials and players are already sorting out the implications for players currently or potentially affected by this ban, as well as trying to anticipate scenarios future presidential orders might present.”

NWSL

At the NWSL website, details on the league’s new three-year partnership with A + E Networks. More at New York Times, FourFourTwo, and Excelle Sports.

US

At ESPN, head coach Bruce Arena discusses some of the lineup changes we can expect for tonight’s game. Arena says, “We’ll have a different look in the midfield, with a number of different players.” Could Pontius get the start? Previews at US Soccer (preview, five things to know), Times Free Press, Jamaica Gleaner, MLSsoccer.com, SI, Soccer America, Pro Soccer Talk, ans Stars and Stripes FC.

Fox Sports notes this will be the first time the USMNT has played a home friendly on artificial turf since 1994.

ESPN has a Q&A with Arena on how the team looks ahead of the March qualifiers.

At SI, a good read from Grant Wahl on Arena, who says,

The last four or five years [under Klinsmann], I just didn’t feel a connection to the program. There were too many swings up and down along the way that didn’t show the same culture that was developed after ’98. Right or wrong, Jurgen marketed a concept that never got there—about how good they were going to be and the style of play. We [coaches] don’t have a lot of control over that. If you want us to play like one of the great countries in the world, it’s not likely to happen in the short term. That doesn’t mean [our style is] wrong or bad—that means we’re playing the cards that are dealt to us.

Nevertheless, Arena praises Klinsmann: “He brought enhanced visibility to the program and he convinced U.S. Soccer that the national team demands a certain level of support it never had before. I remember going to Europe [on scouting trips] and having to buy a cellphone and a SIM card because they wouldn’t give me a global phone. I know I step into a position that is greatly supported.” More from Arena on the positive impact Klinsmann had at ESPN.

Arena has spoken out against the Trump travel ban:

I think it’s sad because one thing we do in our sport is that we are a global sport. We travel the world. We meet all kinds of people. And we conclude at the end that they are all beautiful people.

We have bad people in the world, we have bad people in our country, but clearly a large majority of people are good. It’s fabulous when we can give them an opportunity to be part of our country.

Trump supporter Geoff Cameron has spoken out in support of the travel ban:

I believe it’s important to support our President whether he was your candidate or not. I am pleased he is making security of all Americans one of his top priorities. Our enemies have stated—and in Europe they have proven—they will take advantage of lax immigration procedures for the purposes of staging attacks. A temporary pause on immigration for the purpose of evaluating and improving vetting procedures makes sense. The United States is one of the most generous and compassionate nations. Our ability to care for and support countries and refugees in need resides in our own sense of security. If we don’t feel safe, how can we protect others?

USWNT captain Becky Sauerbrunn has spoken out against the ban:

Soccer, more often than not, helps to unite the world, what this Muslim ban is doing is dividing it. Separating “Us” and “Them” to another degree, adding more division to a country that already struggles with race, religion, sexual orientation, and gender. When I represent my country on the field I do so with heartfelt gratitude to the people who fight for and defend our fundamental freedoms—to believe in whatever I want, to love whoever I want, and to be a valued member of society while doing so. That’s the America I play for.

I play for the America that embraces refugees from war-torn nations, for the America that welcomes all people who want the chance to experience the American Dream, for the America that appreciates the contributions from all the people it shelters. This Muslim ban is un-American—a betrayal of the values that make this country great. We can, we must be, we are better than this.

The AP reports, “Contract talks between the women’s national team and the U.S. Soccer Federation have resumed after the players’ union retained a new lawyer.” The article quotes Sunil Gulati, “The tone is just completely different, and everyone wants to get a deal done. The players want to play. We want to have a fair CBA, so I have no doubt we’ll get a deal done.” More on the resumption of negotiations at New York Times, ESPNW, and The Equalizer.

Elsewhere

The Times reports, “The results of tests of video referees have proved so promising that FIFA is keen to have the option of using the system at next year’s World Cup, it can be revealed.” More at ESPN.

The AP reports, “FIFA is closing its match-fixing detection division, deciding to outsource the work of discovering betting irregularities in world football. The investigations that FIFA’s Early Warning System had been carrying out for a decade will now be run by data services company Sportradar.”

Check out the latest Footy on the Telly for listings of live soccer on TV, online, and on satellite radio for the upcoming week.

And with that, I want to say thank you to all of you dear readers for your support over the last seven years as today I am stepping down as managing editor of PSP so I can focus on completing two book projects on Philadelphia soccer history. I’ll still be contributing occasional articles to PSP but my daily involvement with the site is now at an end.

I do not have the words to express how deeply rewarding it has been helping to grow PSP since we launched the site in November of 2009 and how grateful I am to have had the opportunity to work with the writers and photographers who have volunteered their talent and time over the years, many of whom I now count as among my dearest friends. I would also like to thank the professional writers at other outlets who cover Philadelphia Union, and also those at the team — both players and staff — who so generously took this amateur enthusiast seriously, some of whom have become friends along the way.

PSP is one of the greatest things I will ever do in my life.

Thank you to all — I’ll see you at the game.