Daily news roundups

News roundup: Steel playoff hopes, NWSL final set, make or break in T&T, more

Photo: Rob Simmons

Note: PSP is looking for a volunteer to write our Thursday news roundups. If interested, please email dwalsh@phillysoccerpage.com.

Philadelphia Union

Yes, the Union are out of the playoffs, but there is more to watch for in the MLS season. Namely, that Ilsinho’s contact automatically renews for 2018 if he plays in 75% of matches… and he’s currently at 73.5%.

Bethlehem Steel

Bethlehem, however, are very much in the playoff picture. They travel to Rochester tonight with a chance to secure their top-8 spot and first-ever playoff birth. The match begins at 7:05 p.m. and you can catch it on the WatchESPN while you watch the USMNT match.

Major League Soccer

How to Americanize MLS without ruining it.

Carlos Bocanegra earns a contract extension and a raise at Atlanta United. Well deserved.

Orlando City is not happy with the league after FC Dallas only earns a fine from fielding an illegal player.

NWSL

NC Courage bested Chicago Red Stars for the first time to move onto the final.

Meanwhile, Portland Thorns absolutely thrashed Orlando Pride 4-1 to move to the championship game.

How both teams arrived to the trophy match.

NWSL season review!

U.S. Soccer

Here’s how the U.S. should play against Trinidad & Tobago tonight.

With the short turnaround from Friday, Saint Pulisic’s calf injury is improving, but it’s still uncertain whether he’ll play.

28 years later: The game that changed it all for U.S. Soccer.

The scoring curse in the U.S.’ recent World Cup-clinching games.

The Yanks still have work to do.

The T&T soccer federation changed the location of tonight’s crucial WCQ match to save money – and now the field is flooded.

U.S. World Cup hopes will sink or swim on the water-logged pitch.

So why isn’t the game available on normal television? How to watch.

Across the globe

Iceland (!) becomes the smallest country to ever make the World CupCue thunder clap.

Serbia also clinched a birth in the final tournament, while Croatia and Ireland claimed spots in the playoff round.

20 Comments

  1. When I read my 1,000,000th article on how to Americanize soccer or something along those lines I hope a bunch of balloons fall from the ceiling and someone gives me a cake.

    • That article is a rehash from the 90’s.

    • That Forbes piece is one of the absolute dumbest things I’ve ever read. It’s also empirically indefensible. As MLS as standardized play, the sport here has gained popularity and profitability. When you have a bigger US audience for the Premier League than MLS, the answer is not to Americanize the game. It’s quite obviously the opposite.

    • Ugh.

  2. Iceland is circa 1/10th of Philadelphia and has some great players and plays some great soccer. Makes you wonder what is happening here. There was a damning comment on an soccer article in the WSJ yesterday from someone who claimed to have inside knowledge that politics within US Soccer is largely to blame…
    .
    Anyway, there are lots of lessons to learn from Iceland and I hope that the Union and US Soccer give their development and coaching training a good look!

    • a corrupt football federation? surely you jest

    • Top Icelandic athletes are all playing soccer. Here, the top athletes go to the higher paying sports and many never play soccer. I think it’s one of the reasons the US women’s team is one of the best in the world. The girls don’t have to choose between soccer and American football when they are growing up.

      • There are tons of top athletes in the US that chose soccer. Get real. Look at the numbers; there are so many kids playing soccer. Don’t tell me that none of those are as good an athlete as those who chose other sports! It is all about the development that is mismanaged.

      • Guido is right. The numbers are there, we just need the development structure in place for these kids. We have over 350k kids playing in the Philly area alone…

      • Hasn’t Iceland gone on on Germany 2006, Klinsmann era “refresh” where they completely changed the way their soccer system works?

        AKA< the type of stuff we would never do here.

      • Kevin Vernia says:

        The US got a head start on the rest of the world regarding Woman’s Soccer. Every World Cup and Olympics, other countries tactics and abilities narrow the gap more and more.
        .
        The issue isn’t tactics, it’s a lack of effective development infrastructure (good coaching, less games/more practice, etc)

      • el Pachyderm says:

        THE ATHLETE ARGUMENT? REALLY?
        .
        somebody help…. I can’t take it.
        .
        I watched a twitter video earlier today of four and five year old Spanish kids in a 4v1 rondo……PING PING PING.
        .
        …..you don’t have to be an athlete to move the ball better than the others….. THAT’S THE WHOLE POINT of KEEP AWAY when you’re a weak frail small little non athletic kid.
        .
        the rest of the world is not playing sharks and minnows and catch the fox tail.
        .
        .
        Where’s my rock…. back under it.

    • Jerome soccer man says:

      there are more kids playing organized soccer in the USA than any country in the world, like Johan Cruyff said I played organized soccer for 4 hours a week till 17 but all day in the streets, here it’s pay pay or you don’t play the English and their cronies brought that to this country , it’s all pay, they got billboards in the British Isles go to America the dumb Americans will pay…

  3. People are saying that Mexico and Costa Rica have nothing to play for tonight. In Mexico’s case, that’s probably true (although it would be somehow fitting if a late Mexican goal keeps the US alive). Mexico is currently ranked 14 and although 2-4 teams ahead of them probably won’t qualify, it’s unlikely that they’ll move up enough spots to claim one of the number 1 seeds in Russia. Assuming the rumors are true that the draw will be based on ranking rather than geography, they are probably set as a pot 2 team.
    .
    Costa Rica is currently ranked 21. They are pretty much right on the cusp between pot 2 and pot 3. The draw against Honduras on Saturday didn’t help, so they really should be looking for 3 points tonight.

  4. Sit Ilsinho so the contract is off the books for next year. Renegotiate him to be back up at a more club friendly number if they must.

  5. el Pachyderm says:

    Well Bruce’s rhetoric is of the covering his ass version should the team fail tonight. I call bullshit.
    .
    Here’s some truth. If one or two of those uppity euro teams played in CONCACAF, the United States of America would not qualify. They would be playing for a 4th playoff spot typically… battling it out with Costa Rica every cycle.
    .
    Wales lost one game and are on the outside looking in. ONE.
    .
    If Jurgen Klinsman spoke so inanely he would be crucified… Bruce Almighty though…… the US Media pigeons are jostling for seed at his feet.

    • Wales also drew 50% of their games and draws are punished in soccer. 3 of Wales’ 4 wins were against Moldova and Georgia. That’s two minnows in their group. The US’ wins against St. Vincent and the Grenadines got wiped out after the last round and they started fresh in this round.
      .
      Europe only has 1 round plus the 2nd place playoffs. The top teams and the minnows all compete there. There is a lot of luck as to which group you get drawn into. Would Poland or Serbia be going to Russia if they had been drawn into group G with Spain and Italy (rather than with Romania/Denmark or Wales/Austria as the top seeds in their groups)? I’m thinking probably not.
      .
      Europe should change their qualifying to eliminate the minnows quickly and then have the top 24 teams battle it out for the 13 spots. 4 groups of 6 with the top 3 advancing and the 4 4th place teams having a single elimination round in a neutral country. That would take a lot of the luck of the draw out.

  6. CHOKE!!!

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