Soccer By Ives

Szetela to sign with Spanish Club Racing Santander

Danny Szetela is heading to Spain.

After Nearly two months of transfer speculation and negotiations, the Columbus Crew midfielder has passed up offers from Roma and Newcastle (among others) to play for Spanish First Division side Racing de Santander.

The Herald News has learned that Szetela has signed a three-year deal with the Northern Spain-based club, which began the La Liga season in solid fashion by tying Barcelona last weekend. Racing de Santander finished in 10th place in La Liga last season.

Szetela's days with the Crew are over

Danny Szetela has played his last game for the Columbus Crew.

No, he hasn't made a decision yet on which European offer he is accepting but all the teams in line to sign Szetela have agreed to the $150,000 transfer fee for his services, a fee that will send him to Europe by this weekend.

It's Q & A Time

Okay folks, it is Friday before Labor Day, which seems like as good a time as any to have a Question & Answer session.

I know I set a new personal record for taking longer than ever to answer the last pile of questions but this time around I will be looking to cap the questions more quickly. Get your soccer questions in and try to make them clear and not too broad. No meaning of life questions (No "How can US Soccer create more true No. 10s" questions. I'm looking to answer questions, not write essays.)

The last round of questions were very good so let's keep that going. I will look to have them all answered by Tuesday morning (So you can read them as you sit at work wishing you were still at the beach).

Fire away.

TGIF: Beckham is out. Now what?

Good morning folks. It is the final day of the European transfer window, which means we should be hearing about transfer news throughout the day. I'm still waiting on word of Danny Szetela's decision, which will be revealed today.

For today's first post I wanted to offer up one last discussion on David Beckham. As you have heard by now, an MRI revealed that Beckham will in fact miss six weeks with a sprained MCL in his right knee. It is a nightmare development for the Galaxy and MLS, which will watch the Galaxy go on a handful of road games to venues that were set to be sold out for Beckham. Now, the Golden Goose is down and fans from Salt Lake City to Columbus are left with tickets that aren't worth as much now.

Szetela's decision imminent

   

Danny Szetela has not signed with Roma, Brescia or even new player Newcastle United. At least not yet.

Conflicting reports have the Clifton-born midfielder headed to everywhere from Rome to England but as of early this evening Szetela has yet to sign a deal with anybody. Sources close to Szetela insist that the Columbus Crew midfielder has yet to decide where he will move to next, but will decide by early tomorrow.

Champions League Groups Drawn

The Groups for the 2007/2008 UEFA Champions League were drawn on Thursday and the draw is offering up some juicy match-ups as usual.

Here is the group rundown (With a skinny on each group):

Beckham likely out six weeks

You knew David Beckham was finished as soon as the challenge happened.

Beckham will be sidelined for up to six weeks with a sprained ligament in his right knee suffered during the LA Galaxy's SuperLiga final loss to Pachuca on Wednesday night. It is an injury that will force Beckham to miss England's upcoming European Championship qualifiers as well as most of the remainder of the MLS season.

The injury means fans in Salt Lake City, Kansas City and Columbus will likely miss out on seeing the Golden Boy work his magic. It also ends whatever faint hopes Los Angeles may have had about making a run at the MLS playoffs.

What is your take on the Beckham situation? Share your thoughts below.

Szetela to Brescia?

Word is trickling down early this morning that Clifton native and Columbus Crew midfielder Danny Szetela is set to sign with Italian Serie B side Brescia. There are conflicting accounts about this situation, with sources placing Szetela in Italy while other sources say no deal is done yet. What is clear at this point is that Szetela's transfer future will be determined in the next 24 hours.

A source close to Szetela still insists that no deal has been agreed to yet and that Szetela is still considering options from England, Italy and Spain. With just one more European business day to make a deal during the summer transfer window, Szetela doesn't have much time left to make a decision.

SuperLiga Final (Running Commentary)

Good evening folks. We have the Los Angeles Galaxy and Pachuca facing off in the inaugural SuperLiga final.

The match is on Telefutura so for those of you who can't see it I will try to provide you with some commentary on the match. Fellow SBI readers can also chime in on the match.

Share your comments and thoughts on the match below.

A little soccer for breakfast

For those of you who are morning people there is some soccer for you to watch.

The U.S. Under-17 national team will face Germany on Thursday morning (7am Eastern Time) in the second round of the U-17 World Cup. The game will be shown live on ESPNU.

The young Americans reached the secound round of the World Cup after a 2-0 win against Belgium. They'll be without New Jersey native Billy Schuyler, who is out on yellow cards.

I'll be awake at this time but will watch it on TIVO (SBI Junior has the living room TV on lockdown in the morning). I'll put up a post in the morning for folks to share thoughts on the match and try to follow along.

SuperLiga Final (Pre-Game)

Good afternoon folks. I'll be taking a break from the blog this afternoon but will be back tonight to follow the SuperLiga final between the Galaxy and Pachuca.

Feel free to share some comments on tonight's match, and whatever else is going on in the soccer world, between now and the final.

Riquelme to join Atletico Madrid

 

Atletico Madrid continued its busy summer transfer period by adding Argentine playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme. Reports out of Spain are reporting that Riquelme is set to sign a two-year deal with Atletico after spending last season with Boca Juniors following his falling out with Villareal.

Riquelme will join Simao Sabroso, Diego Forlan and Jose Antonio Reyes as Atletico's top summer additions, with Fernando Torres the big name to depart.

Beckham set to play in tonight's SuperLiga final

David Beckham appears ready to play for the LA Galaxy in tonight's SuperLiga final against Pachuca.

Beckham and Landon Donovan are set to return to the lineup after missing the Galaxy's 3-0 loss to Colorado with various injuries. Will that be enough to defeat the Mexican champions? I'm not so sure about that one.

Rumors of Frank Yallop stepping down as Galaxy head coach have been swirling throughout the weekend but Yallop is still in charge as of today.

The SuperLiga final kicks off at 11 p.m. on Telefutura.

Prelude to a Gooch deal?

Good morning all. Nothing major going on in the European transfer front but one deal announced this morning makes you wonder if an American will be on the move.

Fulham sold defender Zat Knight to Aston Villa for 3.5 million pounds, which could clear the way for Fulham to add central defender Oguchi Onyewu. No, there aren't any reports surfacing on that potential move yet but Fulham had been linked to Onyewu earlier in the summer.

If Fulham were to add Onyewu, the Cottagers would be up to five Americans on their roster (Brian McBride, Clint Dempsey, Carlos Bocanegra and Kasey Keller). Yes, Fulhamerica would certainly fit as a nickname.

Onyewu isn't the only American Fulham could add to the collection. Watford central defender Jay DeMerit has also been linked to Fulham and could also be set for a move back to the EPL.

I know some of you aren't keen on a potential Onyewu-Bocanegra club partnership given the mixed results on the national team level. How would you feel about Onyewu going to Fulham? What about Jay DeMerit? Share your thoughts below.

Transfer window set to close

Good afternoon folks. We stand three days away from the close of the European transfer window and teams and players are scrambling to make moves.

Whether it is Dani Alves still trying to leave Sevilla or Manchester United and Manchester City searching for forwards, there should be some good action in these coming days.

Here is my question to you. What moves would you like to see made in these final days? Adriano to Man U? Alves to Chelsea. Ronaldinho to Chelsea (I'm not buying that one at all).

What moves do you see being made and what moves would you like to see made? Share your thoughts below.

You Write the Caption (Monday's Best)

You guys haven't lost your collective touch. There were some very funny entries for Monday's You Write the Caption. The picture of Sepp Blatter wearing a size small uniform was classic, as were some of your captions.

Here are the 10 best:

How big a deal is Denilson?

FC Dallas introduced its first designated player signing on Monday, hailing Brazilian midfielder Denilson as a player second only to Beckham in terms of significance among the league's recent high-profile signings.

Is he really? Yes, we all know he was once sold for a record transfer fee (which was nine years ago and you won't find many people who will call that a successful purchase) and yes he is a World Cup winner (though unlike the previous three world cup winners to sign with MLS, Denilson wasn't a key figure on the World Cup winner he played for). I'm really left wondering just how relevant Denilson is and whether he was really worthy of a DP signing.

Solskjaer to retire

Manchester United legend Ole Gunnar Solkjaer will officially retire today, ending a prolonged battle with injuries and putting an end to a career that deserved a better finish.

Solskjaer will forever be remembered for scoring the game-winning goal in Man U's amazing comeback victory over Bayern Munich in the 1999 Champions League final.

His sudden retirement leaves Man U with just one healthy forward, Carlos Tevez, adding fuel to the speculation that the club will find another forward before the transfer window closes on Friday.

You Write the Caption

Yes, it has been a while, but You Write the Caption is back. I had to bring it back after seeing this photo.

It is a picture of none other than Sepp Blatter, looking spry in a snug soccer uniform that makes you wonder what the video of this event must have looked like. Enjoy.

(The rest of) Your Questions Answered (Finally)

As promised, here are the rest of your questions from two weeks ago finally answered. Apologies for the extended delay but you folks set a new record for questions and it coincided with a busy time for me. I'll be sure to put a cap on questions next time so I can get the answers out more quickly.

Now, without further ado, your questions answered:

RAUL- You wrote about how the central defender for the Chicago Fire is on the trading block and how Tony Sanneh rights are owned by the Rapids. Is there a trade deadline in the MLS? Also, who else is on the block and what do you see happening. What about that kid from Liberia Doo?

IVES- The trade deadline is Sept. 14th as is the deadline for discovery options so there is still time to add a player. It's getting late in the game though.

GAVIN- Would love your opinion regarding grass vs. artifical turf. Will the latter prove a difficulty in attracting top European players in the future? Does David Beckham's comments regarding the issue carry alot of weight?

IVES- Beckham saying there needs to be no turf isn't going to all of a sudden make teams change to grass. It boils down to grass not being a viable option in Toronto because of the weather (so I'm told). Gillette surprises me since you would think the football team would prefer grass. You would hope that Real Salt Lake would have grass when it builtds its own stadium. That leaves Giants Stadium, which will hopefully be out of the picture by the 2009 season. So in theiry you could see just two turf fields in two years, Toronto and New England.

Is it keeping players from coming here? I'm not sure that's the case and if a player is so much of an injury risk that they wouldn't sign with MLS because they had to play on turf then do you really want that player anyway? The league doesn't need to spend money on older foreign players who will break down easily.

The Own Goal

If you're still in shock from this weekend's Red Bulls-Revolution match you aren't alone. The game-deciding own goal left many speechless and left the Red Bulls wondering why they are so cursed at Gillette Stadium.

If you actually missed the own goal when it originally happened you are not alone. Not only did I not see the ball go in the net (I was typing away before hearing the loud roar from the crowd) but Carlos Mendes didn't see it go in the net either. He turned around to run upfield after delivering one of the best own goals in MLS history.

Was it Mendes' fault? Not really. Yes, he put some pace on the long pass back to Jon Conway but Conway should have gotten to the ball.

Monday Morning Center Back (Don't call it a comeback)

Good morning folks. Sorry for not posting sooner but I got caught up trying to finish off the Q&A leftovers from two weeks ago. That will post later this morning so look out for that.

This morning I wanted to focus on the suddenly rejuvenated MLS playoff race. Just when the playoff's eight teams seemed settled, we have had two teams re-emerge from their early-season struggles to make things interesting.

The Chicago Fire and Colorado Rapids have pulled together winning streaks to pull within striking distance of the Columbus Crew for the eighth and final playoff spot. Chicago sits just one point behind the Crew with a game in hand while Colorado is now tied with Columbus on points.

Red Bulls vs. Revolution (Running commentary)

Hello folks. We're about to kick off. Check here for a running commentary on the match:

Lineups for tonight's Red Bulls-Revs match

Here are BOTH lineups and benches for tonight's match:

Red Bulls sign Francis Doe

The Red Bulls officially signed Francis Doe today, clearing the way for him to dress for tonight's match against New England.

The 21-year-old Liberian-born forward/wing midfielder will provide the Red Bulls with cover on the flanks and makes it even more likely that Markus Schopp won't play another minute this year.

The Red Bulls put Santino Quaranta on season-ending injured reserve to make room on the roster for Doe, who is a senior roster player.

Doe has trained with the Red Bulls for the past month and could get some minutes tonight.

Conway to start tonight

Good afternoon all. I'm at Gillette Stadium and just got word that Jon Conway will start in goal. Ronald Waterreus is not with the team due to personal reasons so Danny Cepero will be the back-up.

I'll have the lineup shortly so check back here in a bit.

For those of you who haven't seen it, here is my preview story on tonight's Red Bulls-Revs match.

Beckham will not play vs. Colorado

To the surprise of no one, David Beckham will not travel with the Los Angeles Galaxy for their upcoming road game against the Colorado Rapids. A source confirmed on Friday night that Beckham will stay home and rest his injured left ankle.

Fresh off three full matches in a six day span, Beckham will not be able to recover in time for Sunday's match and his status for Wednesday's SuperLiga final against Pachuca is in doubt.

Beckham was in visible pain as he limped around the field at Home Depot during the final minutes of Thursday's 3-0 loss to Chivas USA. Galaxy coach Frank Yallop admitted after the match that he never should have used Beckham. Now he may be without Beckham for an extended period of time.

I'm not one to say I told you so (Yes I am) but I did call this one in a blog post on Thursday morning. I won't gloat too much (although there is one fellow blogger I'd like to send a crow sandwich to.)

For those of you who haven't seen it yet, here is my ESPN.com column on the status of the Galaxy. It's not a pretty picture.

What do you think of this mess? Share your thoughts below.

My crack at the Red Bulls lineup vs. New England

Good evening folks. I'm in Massachusetts ahead of Saturday's New England-Red Bulls match and here is my take on the lineup Bruce Arena will use against the Revs:

TGIF: A great soccer weekend

Good afternoon all. Apologies for the lack of posts today but I'm heading to Boston for the Red Bulls-Revolution game so I've been a bit busy. I did manage to crank out an ESPN.com column on the sad state of the LA Galaxy. Not sure when that is running but keep an eye out for that this weekend.

With all the great soccer action on TV as well as some good MLS matches for people to attend I couldn't help but wonder what you folks will be doing this weekend soccer-wise. Will you be playing in some games? Hitting the pub in the morning? Marching down to your local MLS stadium?

What am I doing? Well, I'll be at Gillette tomorrow night to watch Revs-Red Bulls then I'll spend all day Sunday watching the splendor of TIVO'd soccer matches (I will also make time to answer those questions that slipped through the cracks two weeks ago. No, I didn't forget about them.)

Tell us what your doing this weekend to get your soccer fix. Share your plans below.

This weekend's soccer on TV

The start of the Serie A and La Liga seasons highlight this weekend's soccer TV action. Barcelona, led by the trinity of Messi, Henry and Ronaldinho, will look to win back the title it lost to Real Madrid last season. Juventus will make its return to the first division after a one-year banishment to Serie B.

You name the big club and it will be on TV this weekend. Barca, Real Madrid, Manchester United, Inter Milan, Juventus. There is tons of action to watch. Better make room on your TIVO.

Here is a rundown of this weekend's European soccer on TV (with one MLS game on the list):

McBride out until Christmas

Former US national team forward Brian McBride will be sidelined until Christmas after knee surgery for a dislocated patella.

McBride is back in the United States, where he is about to embark on a lengthy rehab.

Fulham just recently signed American goalkeeper Kasey Keller to bring the number of Americans on its roster to four, but only three will be around until Christmas now.

Chivas USA thrashes the Galaxy, 3-0 as Beckham plays 90 minutes (Again)

Maykel Galindo scored two goals and David Beckham played yet another 90 minutes, but it wasn't enough as the LA Galaxy dropped a 3-0 decision to arch-rival Chivas USA on Thursday night.

Beckham played his third full match in six days and left the field with a pronounced limp after spending the last minutes of the match grimacing in pain. Not sure what Frank Yallop was thinking. Maybe he was trying to figure out where in San Jose he will buy a house this off-season.

The loss is the Galaxy's third straight in MLS play. When was the last time they won in MLS play? Try the Fourth of July.

What did you think of tonight's game? Share your thoughts below.

Brazil announces roster for USA-Brazil match

Ronaldinho, Kaka and Robinho will lead Brazil when it takes on the US national team on Sept. 8th in Chicago.

Brazil announced its 23-man roster on Thursday and the squad is a full-strength team. Here it is:

GOALKEEPERS (2): Doni (Roma), Julio Cesar (Inter Milan)
DEFENDERS (8): Maicon (Inter Milan), Daniel Alves (Sevilla), Alex Silva (São Paulo), Lúcio (Bayern Munich), Juan (Roma), Alex (Chelsea), Kleber (Santos), Gilberto (Hertha Berlin),
MIDFIELDERS (8): Gilberto Silva (Arsenal), Mineiro (Hertha Berlin), Josué (VfL Wolfsburg), Fernando (Bordeaux), Elano (Manchester City), Kaká (AC Milan), Julio Baptista (Real Madrid), Diego (Werder Bremen)
FORWARDS (4): Ronaldinho (Barcelona), Robinho (Real Madrid), Vagner Love (CSKA Moscow), Afonso (SC Heerenveen)

Fulham signs Kasey Keller

Kasey Keller has found a job and it is with a team that has shown an affinity for signing Americans.

Fulham has signed Keller, who should step in and become the team's starter. If you haven't seen the amazing blunder by current Fulham goalkeeper Tony Warner last weekend you missed a real howler. Regular starter Antti Niemi is injured, which means Keller could have a chance to play a key role for the Cottagers.

Keller joins Brian McBride, Carlos Bocanegra and Clint Dempsey on a Fulham team that is fast becoming a favorite among American soccer fans.

Keller also joins Tim Howard, Brad Friedel and Marcus Hahnemann, giving the United States 20 percent of the STARTING goalkeepers in the English Premier League (Jeez people, you know what I meant).

What do you think of this move? Share your thoughts below.

Beckham's world tour a disaster waiting to happen

 

When David Beckham walked off the field against the Red Bulls on Saturday, it was tough to believe that he just played 90 minutes on the Giants Stadium turf. Even more mind-boggling than that is the fact that Beckham played ANOTHER 90 minutes on Wednesday for England against Germany.

US Under-17 team routed by Tunisia, 3-1

So much for the current US Under-17 national team being the best US team ever.

The Americans suffered their second straight loss in two matches on Thursday, dropping a 3-1 decision to Tunisia in the Under-17 World Cup in South Korea. A pair of first half penalties gave Tunisia the lead and US penalty in the 90th minute was too little, too late.

The loss makes the Americans' chances of reaching the second round a long shot (I was incorrect in stating they were eliminated earlier) and gives American fans something to be concerned about. Okay, maybe it doesn't but it is still pretty disappointing to see an American youth team perform so poorly in a World Cup.

What do you think of this result? Share your thoughts below.

Chelsea gives up on Alves, signs Belletti

Chelsea's on-again, off-again chase for Sevilla star right back Dani Alves has ended with the London club moving on and landing Barcelona defender Belletti instead.

Reports out of England suggest that Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich squashed Chelsea's bid for Alves because of the outrageous transfer fee Sevilla was demanding for the young Brazilian. That story sounds intriguing but it's tough to tell just how true it is.

Belletti is no Alves but he is still a considerable upgrade over Glen Johnson, who hadn't done much to make the right back spot his own.

Real Madrid building a monster

Good morning folks. I'm sure you were expecting me to start the morning off with some comments on either the US national team's loss to Sweden or the Red Bulls loss to DC United on Wednesday. Those are coming. I wanted to start this Thursday off by talking about Real Madrid's construction of a team that is now set to challenge Barcelona not only for the La Liga title, but the Champions League title.

Real Madrid are set to add Chelsea winger Arjen Robben and Manchester United defender Gabriel Heinze in a pair of shrewd maneuvers that will have the defending La Liga champions loaded at every position.

Will it be enough to hold off Barcelona for the Spanish title? Is it enough to make them the favorites for the Champions League? Share your thoughts below.

Red Bulls vs. DC United (Running Commentary)

Hello all. We're close to kickoff here at RFK Stadium for the Red Bulls-DC United match. It should be a good one.

Do not panic of Altidore's benching. It's mainly a move to get him some rest during a busy week. In case you don't remember, Altidore wore himself out in the Galaxy game and could barely walk off the field on Saturday.

Now, onto the commentary. Enjoy

Red Bulls lineup tonight vs. DC United

Hello all. I'm here at RFK Stadium, or as the Red Bulls like to call it, hell. I'm hearing that the crowd tonight will be pretty good. The Red Bulls will be in for a tough one tonight.

Here are the starting lineups for tonight's match between the Red Bulls and  DC United at RFK Stadium:

US lineup vs. Sweden

Here's the lineup:

--------Donovan--------Dempsey------------

Beasley-------------------------------Bradley

----------Feilhaber----Mastroeni---------

Bornstein--------------------------Cherundolo

---------Bocanegra----Onyewu---------------

-------------------Howard-------------------

Bradley does play the right flank at Heerenveen so he could go there, or the formation could be this also:

Beasley-----------Dempsey----------------Donovan

--------------------Feilhaber-------------------------

----------Mastreoni--------Bradley-----------------

Bornstein--------------------------------Cherundolo

-----------Bocanegra-------Onyewu----------------

---------------------Howard-------------------------

What do you think of this lineup? Share your thoughts below.

USA vs. Sweden (Your running commentary)

Good afternoon all. We're getting close to kickoff and I figured I should get a post up on the game where you all can place your comments on the match. I won't be able to do a running commentary on this match but feel free to comment throughout the match.

Fire away and enjoy the match.

Where will you be watching USA-Sweden?

Good morning all. I'll be in DC tonight for the Red Bulls-DC United tilt and I couldn't help but wonder where most of you will be watching this afternoon's USA-Sweden friendly. The 2:30pm kickoff isn't great for you 9-to-5ers out there but I know many of you will be sneaking out of work to see this game live.

Where will you be watching? Let us know where you'll be checking the game out.

As for me, if I can get some stuff done today that I need to get done I will be trying to meet up with Steve Goff at Summer's in Arlington.

Where will you be?

Who starts vs. Sweden?

We're a day away from the US national team's friendly against Sweden and it is time to think about what starting XI Bob Bradley will use.

Sweden boasts deadly forwards and a dynamic midfield, but their defense can be beaten. With that in mind, here is my shot at a starting US lineup:

Tottenham bids on Riquelme

Struggling EPL side Tottenham may have found the answer to spark its floundering attack. Reports surfacing out of Europe have the London club making a move for Argentine playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme. It may not help save manager Martin Jol's job, but acquiring Riquelme could help Tottenham salvage a season that started terribly before last weekend's romp over Derby.

Obviously I think this would be a huge move. What do you think of Riquelme's potential move to Tottenham? Share your thoughts below.

Former Spain and Real Madrid coach takes over Benfica

Former Spain and Real Madrid coach Jose Antonio Camacho has taken over as Benfica's new coach, two days after the club fired Fernando Santos (Camacho is on the right).

What will this mean for Freddy Adu. We will soon find out.

My last Beckham column (for a while)

Good morning folks. If you're looking for some early-morning reading here is a link to my Herald News column today. The column is on Saturday's match and why the Red Bulls need to capitalize on the momentum.

For those of you wondering about how the English star is doing over in England, Beckham took part in some light jogging in Monday's practice and looks like a long-shot to play. At this rate I would be surprised if he is more than a late substitute in the England-Germany friendly. Here's a story on yesterday's proceedings from my buddy Sam Wallace at The Independent.

Feel free to share your comments on my column, as well as your random thoughts on Beckham, below.

You write the Caption (Last week's winners)

What can I say? Finding funny soccer pictures is getting tougher and tougher.

I really couldn't find any good ones so I didn't do another YWTC last week after Monday. Then again, Monday's entry was probably worth a week of laughs.

So here they are, the best entries for this rather unfortunate photo of Ricardo Clark and Pablo Mastroeni:

Your chance to see Red Bulls/Galaxy AGAIN

Did you miss the insane nine-goal display on Saturday between the Red Bulls and Galaxy? Don't fret. You'll have several chances to watch it again.

MSG is showing replays of the match this week. Here is the schedule:

• Tuesday- 9pm, 11pm and 1am
• Wednesday- 12pm, 2pm, 6pm

That's six chances to see the best MLS soccer game all year, the kind of game you need to make a DVD for your archives.

MSG is also showing a series, Born to Play, which spotlights some of the best soccer players of all time. Here is that schedule:

• Tuesday- 7pm (Pele), 7:30pm (Zidane), 8pm (Ronaldo)
• Wednesday- 1pm (Pele), 1:30pm (Ronaldo), 3pm (Zidane), 3:30pm (Maradona), 4pm (Pele), 4:30pm (Ronaldo), 5pm (Zidane), 5:30pm (Maradona)

Enjoy the soccer.

Tajikistan shocks United States at U-17 World Cup

Tiny Tajikistan scored four goals, coming from behind on two occasions, to beat the United States, 4-3, in the Under-17 World Cup in South Korea.

A stunning game-winning goal from Fatkhulio Fatkhuloev capped a back-and-forth affair that saw the Americans take 1-0 and 3-2 leads, only to have Tajikistan come back with some stellar strikes.

New Jersey native Billy Schuler set up the first US goal and scored the second to star for the Americans, who will face Tunisia on Thursday.

Welcome to Europe Freddy

Freddy Adu is getting a quick education in how different European soccer is from Major League Soccer.

Benfica manager Fernando Santos was fired after one league match, a draw against newly-promoted Leixos. That's right. One match. Santos should send his resume to clubs in MLS, where you can go months without a win and still keep your job.

How will that affect Adu? It will be interesting to see. Adu did not see the field in Benfica's tie and it is unclear what interim manager Fernando Chalana thinks of Adu.

Eddie Lewis completes Derby move

The rumored Eddie Lewis to Derby County move has been completed.

Lewis joins fellow American Benny Feilhaber on a Derby squad that is off to a rough start in the EPL.

I still think it's safe to say that Lewis will come back and play for the expansion San Jose team in 2008 but he will have at least one year to strut his stuff in the EPL after playing really well in the lower levels of England the past few years.

Monday Morning Centerback (A look back at Saturday)

   

Good morning all. Here we are, two days removed from one of the most exciting and entertaining games in MLS history and there is still so much to discuss.

You have David Beckham putting on a show, Juan Pablo Angel stating his case as the best forward in MLS history, Jozy Altidore leaving us in awe over his skills at the ripe old age of 17 and Clint Mathis reminding us that he is a big-game player.

You also had an impressive crowd at Giants Stadium that really did steal the show. Here's the thing though, no matter what some observers insist, the majority of the 66,237 in attendance was NOT made up of people clueless about soccer.

Red Bulls topple Beckham's Galaxy in 5-4 goal-fest

They came to see David Beckham, but were treated to much, much more. A crowd of 66,237 converged on Giants Stadium to see Beckham play his first Major League Soccer match in the area on Saturday night and he treated them to an early display of his magic, assisting on a pair of goals just eight minutes into the match.

Little did the fans know that those early goals were just the start of one of the most exciting soccer matches ever played here. By the time referee Kevin Stott blew the final whistle, nine goals had been scored, including five by the Red Bulls, who capped the entertaining affair with a Juan Pablo Angel game-winner in the 88^th minute to give the Red Bulls a 5-4 victory.

Red Bulls vs. LA Galaxy (Running commentary)

Okay folks, I'm going to try and do a running commentary. I have two stories going for the Herald News so I may not post as frequently as normal. Please add your comments on the match below:

Starting Lineups (Red Bulls vs. Galaxy)

Here are the starting lineups for tonight's match:

David Beckham is STARTING tonight

   

David Beckham will be in the starting lineup for tonight's match between the Galaxy and Red Bulls. I just got the word from a good source. That should help to the already good buzz surrounding tonight's match.

I'm at Giants Stadium and the fans are already out in full force. Should be a good day.

Remember where you heard it first.

Michael Bradley starts, plays 90 for Heerenveen in draw

 

U.S. national team midfielder Michael Bradley started and played 90 minutes in Heerenveen's season-opening scoreless draw with Willem II on Friday.

Fresh off a busy summer that saw him play well for the US national team at the Gold Cup and be nominated for the Gold Ball Award at the Under-20 World Cup, Bradley has earned a starting role with the Dutch club after a season in which he struggled for playing time.

What do you think of this development? Share your thoughts below.

The All-American EPL Best XI

In honor of Eddie Lewis' arrival in the EPL (and thanks to the suggestion of an SBI reader) here is the All-American EPL Best XI:

(Some of) Your Questions Answered

Hello folks. I'm sure some of you are waiting for me to finish the latest Q&A session. I was able to answer some of the questions but there were way too many to get to, particularly this week.

In honor of David Beckham's arrival in the area this weekend I will post my answers to the first 23 questions posted by you, the SBI readers (I'll post the rest over the weekend):

JOE- What's your take on the Toronto supporters' insistence on throwing streamers and the like at players taking corners? I personally think it's crap and they shouldn't be throwing stuff at players no matter what it is. Many of them on the message boards say it's harmless and shows great support.

IVES- I think Toronto FC fans are great but they repeatedly cross the line when it comes to throwing things like streamers. Last time I checked I didn't recall seeing players in England, Spain or Italy having projectiles hurled at them on a repeateded basis. Obviously there are exceptions but no fan groups make it a routine, partly because they would be dealt with swiftly if they tried.

There are times to throw streamers, like at the start of a game or after a goal. Throwing them, or anything else, at players during corner kicks seems stupid to me.