Soccer By Ives

This weekend's soccer on TV

Good afternoon folks. If you are a fan of Serie A then this is the weekend for you. Three high-caliber match-ups in Italy's first division headline a good weekend of soccer action on TV.

Juventus travels to AC Milan on Saturday before Inter Milan travels to the Viola to face Fiorentina. Sunday's action is capped with red-hot Udinese traveling to Rome to square off with Roma.

Italy doesn't have all the top action. The Barcelona derby is this weekend, with Barca traveling to face arch-rival Espanyol, a squad that has been on a good run of form lately. Germany's premier match of the weekend pits SBI Top 25 clubs Hamburg and Werder Bremen in a match that is definitely worth a TIVO hit.

The EPL slate is a bit light this weekend, though the Arsenal-Aston Villa match will be interesting to see since Arsenal is coming off its first loss of the season in any competition.

As good as these games are, the most exciting soccer TV may come on Sunday morning, when the draw for the Euro 2008 Tournament is shown on ESPN2. I know that's REAL early to be waking up but you can always just go back to sleep after seeing how the teams are drawn and see who teams like England Italy and France will be playing.

Here are the rest of the weekend's soccer games on TV:

If you were MLS commissioner for a day

Good morning folks. It is a slow news cycle in the soccer world so I started wondering about random issues pertaining to Major League Soccer. A reader asked what I considered a league issue that MLS needs to address and I thought about the reserve division and how it needs to be revamped.

That got me to wondering about what I would do if I could be MLS commissioner for a day and could actually implement some rules or changes that would be adopted by the league permanently. I really don't have an answer for that yet but I want to ask you, the SBI readers, what one change would you make to the league if you had that magical power to change things? Increase the cap? Increase the number of foreigners? Fire most of the refereres? Put a team in Philly? Put a team in St. Louis?

Fire away. I want to hear from you. Remember, you can only make one change to the league as commish for a day. What would it be?

(Some of) Your Questions Answered

Good afternoon folks. It's another dreary day on the East Coast and I will be heading offline for a bit today. I was hoping to have last week's Q&A session completed but was unable to get to all of them. Rather than make you wait, I have decided to post some of the answers to some of your questions. I will get to the rest ASAP (Monday at the latest).

Feel free to use this thread to discuss anything you'd like, be it the Q&A, Red Bull Park, Beasley's injury, The NCAA Tournament, the upcoming U-23 training camp, Harry Redknapp's arrest, the UEFA Cup or anything else in the soccer world you would like to discuss.

Before you start firing away, here are some of your questions answered:

Ironmen set to make home debut

 

If you are a New Jersey resident and have ever wondered what indoor soccer was all about, you will soon have your own team to watch.

The New Jersey Ironmen are set to make their home debut at the Prudential Center in Newark on Saturday night (7:30pm). Brazilian legend Pele will be in attendance and the team is expecting a sellout crowd for the opener.

Here is my feature in today's Herald News on the Ironmen's home opener.

I have never been to an indoor game before and have really never watched an indoor game on TV, but I will be at the Prudential Center on Saturday to experience it for the first time.

The Ironmen are off to a 3-1 start and look to be on of the top teams in the 10-team Major Indoor Soccer League.

Will you be going to the Ironmen home opener? Have you been to a indoor game before? Are you completely oblivious to the indoor game? Share your thoughts on the Ironmen's home opener and indoor soccer below.

Beasley could miss rest of European season

DaMarcus Beasley looks to be out for the year with damaged knee ligaments, according to the Glasgow Daily Record. Beasley injured his left knee after colliding with Stuttgart goalkeeper Raphael Schafer during Stuttgart's 3-2 Champions League win against Rangers on Wednesday.

If Beasley has torn knee ligaments, he could be sidelined through the summer, with a fall return likely at best. Torn ligaments would also mean that the U.S. national team winger would almost certainly miss the U.S. team's second-round World Cup qualifying match against the Barbados/Dominica winner and could lead to him missing some games in the first group stage of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying.

The injury comes just as fellow American left winger Bobby Convey has recovered from his own injury issues. The U.S. team will lean heavily on Convey come the summer (if he is healthy) and will also need to turn to veteran winger Eddie Lewis as well. Lewis has remained on the U.S. team radar in recent months despite his age (33).

As it stands, the Glasgow Daily Record is reporting this exclusively. I will post further confirmation as it surfaces.

What do you think of this potentially devastating news? Share your thoughts below.

NCAA Tournament: No. 1 seed Boston College toppled

The Men's NCAA Tournament moved to the Sweet 16 after Wednesday's second round matches and No. 1 Boston College won't be coming along for the ride.

The Eagles were knocked off by local rival UMass, 2-1, on Wednesday night, making BC one of six higher seeds to lose second-round match-ups. Bradley beat No. 4 seed Indiana in penalty kicks while Old Dominion beat No. 6 seed Brown, 2-1. South Florida (pictured above) knocked off No. 14 Akron, 1-0.

Here are Sweet 16 match-ups, along with the second-round results the teams used to get there:

Red Bull to begin construction on stadium....AGAIN

From the 'Haven't I heard this someplace before' department comes news that the Red Bulls are set to begin construction on Red Bull Park. The Star Ledger is reporting that the club is set to begin building Red Bull Park next week. Yes, Red Bull Park is the same stadium that was supposed to be finished by next summer. The club is now aiming for a target completion of summer of 2009.

So what's the difference between this and a groundbreaking? Well, if you were Red Bull would you want to announce another groundbreaking? Let's face it, another groundbreaking or two on the Harrison stadium project and the Red Bulls may open the stadium playing in the Chinese Premier League by the time it's actually finished.

So will the stadium actually be built by summer of 2009? Red Bulls managing director Marc deGrandpre was confident that it would be when asked at MLS Cup. I know the club's prime objective is to have it done by summer of 2009, now whether that vision becomes a reality remains to be seen.

If you are wondering what the stadium will look like, the renderings being circulated look very similar to Woerthersee Stadium in Austria, one of the host stadiums for the Euro 2008 Tournament:

 

Champions League: Matchday Five (Your Running Commentary)

Good afternoon folks. Apologies for the delay in getting this up. You know the drill. If you're watching Champions League action today then share your thoughts as well as letting us know what you're seeing. I will do a light commentary on Chelsea-Rosenborg.

Let's have some fun.

Altidore, Edu, Seitz chosen for Under-23 training camp

Red Bulls Jozy Altidore and Hunter Freeman are two of 22 players selected to the first U.S. Under-23 national team camp under U.S. Under-23 national team head coach Peter Nowak. The camp is being held in preparation of a two-match tour in China in December.

The team will train for a week at Home Depot Center beginning on Dec. 1 before departing for China on Dec. 8. The Americans will face the Chinese Under-23 national team on Dec. 13 and Dec. 16.

Maurice Edu, Sacha Kljestan, Robbie Findley, Christ Seitz and Eddie Gaven highlight a roster made up of 20 pros and seven players who made the U.S. senior national team debuts in 2007.

Here is the full roster:

The 50 most exciting teenagers in soccer

If you missed the November issue of World Soccer magazine you missed a cover story on the 50 Most Exciting Teenagers on the Planet. It was a great piece with quality information, especially for those of you who relish knowing about the best up and coming talents in the game.

Some of the players you would expect were on the list, including Sergio Aguero, Alexandre Pato, Micah Richards, Giovani Dos Santos, Bojan Krkic and Anderson, but there were two players who were NOT on the list that left me scratching my head a bit.

Jozy Altidore and Freddy Adu were nowhere to be found.

Now I'm not saying it's a travesty that neither is on the list. I just found it interesting that neither made it, particularly after how both performed at the Under-20 World Cup. Altidore nets two goals against Brazil and Adu was on fire, but neither made the list.

If you are wondering what players WERE on the list, here they are:

Generation adidas kicks off tour of Spain

   

The MLS season ended 11 days ago at MLS Cup but some of the league's best young talents are still busy playing. A 16-player Generation adidas squad is in Madrid, Spain for a two-week training tour that includes matches against some La Liga reserve teams.

Current Red Bull Hunter Freeman, former Red Bulls Marvell Wynne and David Arvizu, and former MetroStar Tim Ward are part of the squad while retired Red Bull Mark Lisi, who now works for adidas, organized the tour. Red Bulls equipment manager Craig Chmeil is the team's kit man, so the Red Bulls are well represented on this trip. (Jozy Altidore was originally going to go on this trip but missed it due to other commitments. Needless to say, it would have been a media circus in Madrid if he had made the trip.)

The Generation adidas squad, coached by Houston head coach Dom Kinnear and assistant John Spencer, won its first match on Tuesday, beating Rayo Vallecano's reserves, 1-0, in a testy match that saw Hunter Freeman and Marvell Wynne issued red cards. Real Salt Lake defender Nathan Sturgis provided the goal while Chris Seitz was in net for the shutout.

Here is the breakdown of who played (and more info on their tour):

Riquelme on his way back to Boca Juniors

Those of you praying that Argentine playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme would somehow make his way to Major League Soccer will have to find a new dream. Riquelme will return to Boca Juniors once the winter transfer period opens in January. The deal will be a full transfer, not a loan deal like the one Riquelme joined Boca Juniors on earlier in the year.

Riquelme hasn't played a minute for Villarreal this season because of a major falling out with Villarreal manager Manuel Pellegrini. Riquelme's absence hasn't hurt Villarreal much. The Yellow Submarine sits second in the La Liga standings, just a point behind Real Madrid.

Riquelme's club hiatus hasn't stopped him from dominating for Argentina. The free kick maestro has recorded four goals in World Cup qualifying for Argentina despite his lack of first-team club action.

There is no truth to the rumor that Ray Hudson is paying out of his own pocket to have GolTV air all Boca Juniors matches starting in January (okay, I just made that part up.)

What do you think of Riquelme's move? Disappointed that he won't be playing in Europe? Crushed that some MLS team didn't find a way to lure him here? Happy because Boca will now win the Argentine League title? Share your thoughts below.

Beasley suffers serious knee injury in Rangers UCL loss to Stuttgart

U.S. national team winger DaMarcus Beasley was taken off the field on a stretcher during Rangers' 3-2 loss to Stuttgart on Wednesday. Beasley stated after the match that he believes he injured a knee ligament. The extent of the injury is not known yet but Rangers manager Walter Smith is calling the injury serious.

Beasley is expected to have an MRI today which will reveal the extent of his injury.

Champions League: Matchday Five (Your Running Commentary)

Good afternoon all. We are less than an hour away from kicking off most of today's Champions League fixtures and it's a good time to set up a running commentary post (As you can see by the picture above, some Champions League action has already begun, with PSV opening the scoring against CSKA Moscow).

I will be following the Manchester United-Sporting Lisbon match and providing commentary. You can feel free to comment on that match, as well as any matches you have access to. Check in and let us know if you'll be following along. Once the matches begin you can share your views and thoughts below.

Enjoy the action.

You Write the Caption: The Winners (11/7)

The wait is over. I'm sure some of you were wondering what happened to the last episode of You Write the Caption. Well, it was a busy month and I let it slip by for a few weeks but here's hoping that delay makes these caption entries that much funnier.

In case you forgot the last YWTC photo, it is the one above of Alexi Lalas playing in a recent charity match. It took a photo that hilarious to help bring back YWTC and here are the best caption suggestions submitted by you, the SBI readers. Enjoy:

SBI European Club Top 25

Good morning folks. The Champions League is set to kick off in a few hours, with some truly exciting match-ups, so what better time to reveal the latest SBI European Club Top 25 than now?

Yes Arsenal fans, there is a change at the top. Manchester United's loss means that Inter Milan is the new No. 1. Okay, I'm kidding. Arsenal is back on top after Man U's stumble. Staying there won't be easy with road dates against Sevilla and Aston Villa.

The same 10 teams are in the Top 10, with some minor changes near the bottom. The real changes took place in spots 11 through 25, with Werder Bremen making a big jump and Manchester City returning to the standings.

Here it is, the SBI European Club Top 25:

Champions League: Matchday Five

The UEFA Champions League is back and this week's slate of games features some very juicy match-ups for those of you who are craving them after a weekend with few truly marquee match-ups.

Barcelona-Lyon headlines Tuesday's matches (and will be shown on delay on ESPNClassic at 5pm), with Manchester united-Sporting Lisbon being shown on ESPN2 (2:30pm). Real Madrid and Werder Bremen top the schedule on Wednesday (and will also be shown via delay on ESPN Classic at 5pm), though Chelsea-Rosenborg will be the game shown on ESPN2.

Chelsea-Rosenborg? Really? Okay, I know, Chelsea fans will be happy to watch this game but seriously, whoever picked this game is clueless. Porto-Liverpool, AC Milan-Benfica and Real Madrid-Werder Bremen would all have been better choices to show but somebody with a Chelsea jersey on under his suit at ESPN made the call.

One game you are going to want to follow is Inter Milan-Fenerbahce. Inter's lone loss of the season so far was its Champions League loss to Fenerbahce. Expect some payback to be handed out.

Here is the full slate of Champions League matches this week:

Americans Abroad: Weekend Rewind

Freddy did it again.

Yes, Freddy Adu scored another goal and Benfica fans are starting to feel the same Adu-mania that enveloped MLS fans just a few years ago.

Adu was the only American to deliver a goal in Europe last week, but there were plenty of other quality performances. Bobby Convey started and played 90 minutes for Reading, moving him closer to a return to the U.S. national team mix. U.S. national team defensive anchors Carlos Bocanegra and Steve Cherundolo sat out the action last weekend.

Here is a rundown of how American soccer players did in Europe's top leagues last weekend:

Trade Analysis: Carroll for Kamara

The Columbus Crew shipped forward Kei Kamara to San Jose for midfielder Brian Carroll today.

Who wins in this deal? From a talent standpoint, I'll go with Columbus, which lands a solid defensive midfielder whose stock is low but upside is high. The Crew already has Danny O'Rourke in defensive midfield, but pairing them together would give Columbus a pretty tough tandem to provide defensive cover behind midfielders Eddie Gaven and Guillermo Barros Schelotto.

As for San Jose, you had to see them dealing Carroll, whose contract is a little bigger than you'd like ($115K in 2007). Kamara has scored some goals in MLS, and is a bargain at the $33K he made in 2007, but I have never really rated him as someone who can be a productive starter. Will he need to start for the Earthquakes? You hope for San Jose fans that he won't. I can't help but wonder if San Jose couldn't have gotten more for Carroll. Then again, that contract might have scared some teams off.

What do you think of this trade? Did the Crew make out or did Yallop move one step closer to bringing MLS Cup back to San Jose? Share your thoughts below.

Good morning San Jose

Here's a question to ponder for the San Jose Earthquakes fans who are just logging on to their computers this morning. With American forward Kamani Hill and Derby manager Billy Davies looking for work, is it that far-fetched to consider a scenario where Hill and Derby winger Eddie Lewis wind up with the Earthquakes?

Hill, the former UCLA standout who was recently waived by German club Wolfsburg, is from Berkely while Lewis was an original member of the MLS San Jose Clash and a former teammate of current Earthquakes GM John Doyle.

San Jose definitely needs forwards and Hill needs to go somewhere he is actually going to play regularly. The Quakes did acquire left winger Ivan Guerrero in the expansion draft but there is no guarantee they will keep him. Besides, if Eddie Lewis is ready to come back then you have to sign him. Yes, he's 33 but he's still a quality player. The real question is whether Lewis is ready to bail on Derby. Wouldn't you want to jump off that sinking ship if you could? The fact that Davies just got the boot has to leave Lewis wondering whether he wants to stick around much longer.

San Jose also made its first post-expansion draft trade today, sending midfielder Brian Carroll to the Columbus Crew for forward Kei Kamara. The deal is good news for Kamara as well as for former Red Bull Joe Vide, who just said goodbye to his stiffest competition for San Jose's starting defensive midfield spot (for now).

What say you Quakes fans (and another other MLS fans)? Share your thoughts on Hill and Lewis being 'Quakes, as well as today's trade, below.

Where are they now: Mamadou Diallo

So I was going through my TIVO the other day, trying to get through all the shows I've missed in recent weeks, and I stumble on some Futbol Mundial episodes. One of them focuses on the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup when I see a familiar face in one of the clips.

It was none other than former MetroStars striker (and Mike Ammann hacker) Mamadou Diallo. He was the captain of Senegal's beach soccer national team. He was red carded during his team's quarterfinal loss to France after he attempted to turn and volley a shot only to kick an opponent in the face. Some things don't change apparently.

It was an interesting blast from the past to say the least.

Monday Morning Center Back (Altidore, Adu, Asia and Another coach fired)

Good morning all. The World Cup qualifying draw was this past weekend and it gave us plenty to look forward to in the next two years. from England's chance at revenge against Croatia to the USA drawing an easier path to the Hexagonal than Mexico.

We also had increasing talk about Jozy Altidore going to Europe. Real Madrid is ramping up its interest while Altidore has stated that he will only leave for the right situation. Is Real Madrid the right situation? Here is my column on Jozy's situation for ESPN.com. I'll try to make my point very clear. Altidore should spent one more season in MLS. That's it. A full year as a starter in MLS will help him far more than a year as a sub in Europe will. You can disagree, and some folks do, but that's my stance.

Here are some other tidbits from the weekend and today:

2010 World Cup Qualifying Draw: UEFA

You just knew there would be a rematch, didn't you? Just four days after Croatia ended England's Euro 2008 dreams, the teams have been paired together in the same UEFA World Cup qualifying group.

England-Croatia, Denmark-Sweden, Germany-Russia and Netherlands-Scotlands are just some of the quality match-ups you will see in European World Cup qualifying.

Here are the European World Cup qualifying groups.

2010 World Cup Qualifying Draw: CONCACAF

The U.S. national team's path to the 2010 World Cup will begin with a match-up against the winner of the Dominica/Barbados play-in qualifier. As you may recall, the US team faced Barbados in the second round of the 2002 World Cup qualifying cycle (winning both matches by a combined score of 11-0).

If you are wondering about Mexico, 'El Tri' will face face the winner Belize/St. Kitts and Nevis. Easy as cake right? Well, things get a wee bit tougher for the Mexicans in the next round, where they just may be in the region's group of death.

Here is a closer look at the rest of the CONCACAF Draw:

Soccer Saturday

Good morning folks. Another busy weekend of European soccer action is upon us and you can check in here with your thoughts, observations, complaints and boasts.

Relieved to see Liverpool thrash Newcastle? Surprised at Bolton's performance against Man U? Happy to see Bayern Munich get back in the win column? Share your thoughts below:

This weekend's soccer on TV

 

If you're still feeling a bit hungover after all the turkey and international soccer at midweek, it's okay. You're not alone.

If you need a weekend where there aren't too many high-level matches then this is a good weekend to relax and just watch some decent matches (or maybe go to your local museum or movie theatre). If you're a die-hard soccer fan, there's still plenty of action to tide you over.

As you might expect, not many leagues schedule top quality match-ups for the weekend after such a heavy international fixture date, so finding a game of the week this week wasn't easy. Palermo at Juventus on Sunday is probably the best match in terms of quality. In terms of potential for goals, the Man City-Reading match has potential as well.

Without further ado, here is this weekend's schedule of matches on TV:

The MLS Dream Designated Player Game

Good afternoon folks. If you've just gotten back from battling fellow shoppers for that $200 HDTV or $20 digital camera, here's something for you to ponder (If you're an MLS fan that is.)

You are suddenly the president of your favorite MLS team. The January transfer window is upon you and you have a bottomless bag of cash to buy ANY player in the world you want. Let's pretend your team has an available DP slot (this is for Red Bulls, Fire and Galaxy fans). What player would you sign?

Since I'm sure far too many of you would say the usual suspects I am excluding the following players from consideration: Ronaldinho, Kaka, Messi, C. Ronaldo and Cesc Fabregas.

That leaves anybody else in the world. You can sign them to a four-year contact. Try to make it a player at a position your team actually needs. You can consider all the intangibles, such as ability to sell tickets, presence in the locker room, would the player actually enjoy playing in your team's market, etc., etc.

Name your favorite MLS team, what player you would sign, and why.

Fire away.

Coundoul makes Senegal's African Cup of Nations roster

(SBI EXCLUSIVE)

The Senegal national team has chosen Colorado Rapids goalkeeper Bouna Coundoul to be on its roster for the upcoming African Cup of Nations in Ghana starting January 20.

Coundoul was with Senegal for two recent friendlies in Paris, France, and he made his Senegalese national team debut last weekend in a 3-2 win against Mali. He played 45 minutes. He impressed enough in training and against Mali to take one of the three goalkeeper spots for the African Cup of Nations Tournament.

Things just keep getting worse for England

Just when you thought Wednesday's disastrous loss to Croatia was as bad as it could get for England, now comes word that the defeat will cost them dearly when the time comes to draw groups for qualifying for the 2010 World Cup.

England has fallen to 12th in the FIFA World  rankings, which is only good for 10th in Europe. The top nine teams in Europe will be placed in a put for European World Cup qualifying. This essentially means that England could wind up in a World Cup group with any of Europe's top powers and in case you have forgotten, in European World Cup qualifying only the first place team in each group is guaranteed an automatic place (with second place group teams having to go through playoffs to advance)

So just think, England could theoretically wind up in a brutal World Cup qualifying draw and wind up also missing the 2010 World Cup just two years after missing Euro 2008. The nightmare keeps getting worse for England.

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

Euro 2008: The teams that DID make it

For those of you who, like me, are waiting for the turkey to be done, here is some food for thought. Here are the 16 teams who DID make it to next summer's European Championships:

• Austria (host)
• Croatia
• Czech Republic
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Italy
• Netherlands
• Poland
• Portugal
• Romania
• Russia
• Spain
• Sweden
• Switzerland (host)
• Turkey

The draw for the Tournament is set for Dec. 2. Here is a breakdown of how the teams will be divided in the pots for the draw:

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving folks. It is a slow day in the soccer world (thankfully), which will give us all a chance to relax and think about the past week's events in the soccer world.

As you know (or maybe not), Thanksgiving isn't a holiday in England, but this date will go down as The Day After Hell. As expected, England fired Steve McClaren as manager. The list of candidates to replace him is growing by the second. If only England's problems were isolated to the choice of manager.

Here are some other tidbits you may have missed:

Dane Richards played 70 minutes and looked pretty good playing a left wing role for Jamaica in its friendly win against Guatemala on Wednesday. No, he still can't shoot or cross, but he runs at defenders well and makes things happen.

Bouna Coundoul played a half for Senegal in its 3-0 win against Mali last weekend. He is vying for the third goalkeepers slot on Senegal's African Cup of Nations squad.

That's all for now. I wasn't planning to blog much today but you never know when inspiration may strike.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving folks and, as always, thanks for continuing to support Soccer By Ives.

Euro 2008: England is OUT

The unthinkable happened to the English national team. Needing just a tie to advance to next summer's European Championships, England fell behind 2-0, came back to tie Croatia 2-2, only to surrender a late goal to fall, 3-2, at Wembley Stadium, ending their Euro hopes and damning coach Steve McClaren to infamy.

Russia, by virtue of its victory against Andorra on Wednesday, will advance ahead of England, which saw several key injuries decimate the team. That's still no excuse. At the end of the day, if you're the so-called soccer power that England is supposed to be then you find a way to beat Croatia at Wembley. Period.

New Earthquakes select first 10 players

The expansion San Jose Earthquakes took their first steps toward fielding a team on Wednesday after selecting 10 players in the MLS expansion draft.

Here are the selections:

Player, former club

• Ivan Guerrero- Chicago
• Jason Hernandez - Chivas USA
• Chris Pozniak-Toronto FC
• Ned Grabavoy- Columbus
• Brian Carroll - DC United
• Clarence Goodson -FC Dallas
• Ryan Cochrane- Houston
• Gavin Glinton- Los Angeles
• Joe Vide- NY Red Bulls
• James Riley - NE Revolution

Not too many real surprises on this list. Jason Hernandez was a bit surprising but he is an underrated player who provides steady defense at a good price. I am still trying to figure out why FC Dallas left Clarence Goodson exposed. I thought it might be because he's out of contract but for San Jose to select him tells me they expect him to stick around. I thought he was FC Dallas' best defender for a chunk of the season. I wonder what happened there.

Red Bulls fans will be sad to see Joe Vide go, and they should be. He was a tenacious defensive midfielder who had his flaws but will still be a good value for San Jose next year.

I will offer my detailed breakdown of these picks later. For now, share your thoughts on these picks below. What pick surprised you the most? What pick hurt the most? What pick made you laugh?

Fire way.

Michael Parkhurst: Will he stay or will he go? (UPDATED)

One of the more intriguing rumors to surface at MLS Cup was word that New England defender Michael Parkhurst was set to make a move to Fulham, making him the fifth American on the books at the London club.

So is he leaving or not? None of the Boston papers have reported anything substantial and neither have any of the reputable papers in England. The closest thing to confirmation at this point is the fact that someone (an overzealous Fulham fan perhaps) has already changed Michael Parkhurst's Wikipedia page to read that he's now a Fulham player (at least that's what it said before some childish individual changed it shortly after my post).

It makes sense that Parkhurst would go now, with one year remaining on his current MLS contract. If New England keeps him another year they would lose him for nothing after the 2008 season. Selling him now would at least bring the club some revenue (although it probably wouldn't be enough to offset the huge loss Parkhurst would be to a Revs defense that would be lost without him).

Dodging the Designated Player Rule

Amidst all the festivities of MLS Cup weekend, there were a few announcements that did not get the attention they deserved. The first was word from MLS that it was grandfathering the contracts of Landon Donovan, Eddie Johnson and Carlos Ruiz so that their teams would not need to make them Designated Players to keep them.

I don't think I'm alone in believing that this decision was an absolute joke.

World Cup Qualifying: Colombia knocks off Argentina

So much for Argentina rolling through World Cup qualifying unbeaten.

Carlos Tevez saw a first-half red card as Colombia scored a pair of second half goals to upset Argentina, 2-1, on Tuesday night. The victory moves Colombia, still unbeaten in four qualifying matches, to eight points, just a point behind Argentina.

Lionel Messi worked his usual magic with a nice first-half goal, but Colombia was at home and rallied in the second half as the Argentines tired from playing a man down. Coach Jorge Luis Pinto is working some magic with Colombia and his second-half substitute, Dayro Moreno, made Pinto look like a genius by scoring an 83rd minute game winner.

What do you think of Colombia's strong World Cup qualifying start? Share your thoughts on this result below.

Good morning soccer fans

It is way too early to be awake but here I am after having passed out really early last night. Yes, I'm still feeling the aftereffects of MLS Cup weekend. What can I say? My days of partying hard and being able to recover quickly are over.

Let's start the day off with some articles you may or may not have already seen as well as my appearance on Marcelo Balboa's radio show, From the Pitch

Here is the link to my radio appearance last night. (The link should work now. I know it wasn't working earlier this morning. Thanks to CT for setting that up for me.)

And here is some light reading:

My ESPN.com column on New England's overdependence on Taylor Twellman

and

My Herald News column on the Red Bulls doing the right thing by looking at coaches with MLS ties

And some heavier reading:

Here's a story from my boy Luis Arroyave of the Chicago Tribune on Chicago Fire midfielder Bakary Soumare. Get the Kleenex ready.

I'll be back with some more posts shortly so stay tuned.

SBI on the radio tonight

For those of you interested in hearing my views on Major League Soccer, I will be a guest on Marcelo Balboa's radio show, From the Pitch, tonight at around 8:20pm Eastern.

You can listen to the show on www.mlsnet.com or you can listen to the show here.

We will be discussing MLS Cup, the expansion draft and other league and U.S. soccer issues.

If you get a chance then tune in.

MLS Cup Weekend: A look back

Okay, I know some of you have asked me what the MLS Cup weekend in DC was like. Well, I have decided to post a diary of my experience at weekend's activities. The diary is LONG so I hope you have some time to kill. That's assuming you don't fall asleep while reading it.

Here it is, my diary of the MLS Cup Weekend:

Where will Riquelme go?

The best benchwarmer in the soccer world is six weeks away from freedom. The question is where will Juan Roman Riquelme go?

Riquelme is set to leave his nightmare situation at Villarreal during the next transfer window in January and top teams throughout Europe are lining up bids. Inter Milan and Juventus are near the front of the line while Atletico Madrid has long been interested in acquiring the Argentine playmaker.

So here's my question to you. Where would you like to see Riquelme go? Inter? Juve? Atletico Madrid? Tottenham? The Red Bulls? Share your thoughts below.

List of players for the MLS Expansion Draft is set

Good morning folks. For those of you wondering what players the San Jose Earthquakes would have to choose from in Wednesday's expansion draft, wonder no more. Here are the players who will be available:

Red Bulls Expansion draft list is HERE

Here you go, some more news hot off the SBI presses.

Here is the Red Bulls expansion list:

MLS Cup is going back to Cali (Carson to be exact)

Get your suntan lotion and dressy outfits ready, MLS Cup is going back to California in 2008 as the title game returns to the Home Depot Center after a three year hiatus from the jewel of Carson, California.

Red Bulls trade Clint Mathis to Galaxy

Soccer By Ives has learned that the Red Bulls have traded Clint Mathis, the club's all-time goal-scoring leader, to the LA Galaxy for the Galaxy's third-round draft pick in the 2008 MLS Draft. I'll post more information as I get it.

The trade sends Mathis back to the Galaxy, the club where his MLS career started in 1998. It also completes his career with the Red Bulls/MetroStars. He finished with 45 career goals for the Red Bulls and MetroStars, breaking Gio Savarese's club record.

Now Mathis will join the circus in LA, which means teaming up with David Beckham and playing for new LA coach Ruud Gullit.

What do I think of the deal? I think Mathis still has something left and could have been a good option for the Red Bulls, assuming he would have taken a considerable paycut to play for the Red Bulls. Apparently technical director Jeff Agoos thought otherwise.

The deal also makes the Red Bulls' expansion list easier to put together.

What do you think of the trade? Share your thoughts below.

It's Q&A Time

Well folks, with all the soccer action last weekend and all the activity at MLS Cup in Washington DC, it feels like a perfect time for another Question & Answer session.

Here is your chance to ask me soccer questions about anything from MLS to international soccer. Try to keep them reasonably-sized and try to limit your questions to one or two. I will do my best to try and answer your questions, or at least find the answers.

Let's here some questions. Fire away. (NO MORE QUESTIONS FOLKS. Thanks for those who submitted questions.)

Khano Smith's 'headbutt'

If you watched the MLS Cup Final on Sunday one play that certainly stood out was when Khano Smith appeared to headbutt Houston defender Craig Waibel in the second half. Referee Alex Prus only gave Smith a yellow card though, so what gives?

According to Smith, he hit Waibel with his shoulder and not his head and insisted that Waibel dove to try and get him thrown out. As much as Smith's behavior on Sunday (his constant whining and his pushing of Joseph Ngwenya to get him off the field as he was subbing out) made him the target for fan boos, the video angles of the incident don't prove conclusively that Smith connected on the head butt motion. You could argue intent but Prus was right there and determined that Smith struck Waibel with his shoulder.

What say you? Should Smith have been sent off? Should Alex Prus be fitted for thick glasses? Should Chuck Liddell stunt double Craig Waibel go down in a heap so easily? Share your thoughts below.

Jose Angulo close to choosing MLS

Former high school All-American and St. Benedict's Prep standout Jose Angulo is very close to deciding on signing with Major League Soccer ahead of the 2008 MLS Draft in January.

According to sources close to Angulo, the left-footed striker has received strong interest from a top team in Italy but concerns about his citizenship status in MLS have Angulo leaning toward signing with MLS.

Monday Morning Center Back: The day after

Good morning folks. It is the day after one busy weekend of soccer action. You had MLS Cup, the US national team playing its last game and European championship and South American World Cup qualifiers going on. It truly was a soccer fan's paradise.

Here is a look back at some of the weekend's highlights:

Red Bulls denied permission to interview Juan Carlos Osorio

The Red Bulls' search for a head coach to replace Bruce Arena has led them to Chicago head coach Juan Carlos Osorio. Sources have told SBI that the Red Bulls asked for permission to speak with Osorio about their vacant head coaching position. Chicago turned down the Red Bulls request but there is still a possibility that the Fire will grant the Red Bulls permission to speak to Osorio.

If the scenario sounds familar to Fire and Red Bulls fans, it should since it was five years ago when the MetroStars hired away then-Fire coach Bob Bradley to become the Metros head coach.

MLS Cup XII: New England vs. Houston (Running Commentary)

Good morning folks. I'm coming to you from RFK Stadium and we are about an hour away from MLS Cup XII.

I'm writing you from the computer of Dallas-based writer and ESPN.com teammate Steve Davis because the wireless connection isn't working for everybody. Hopefully it gets hashed out or else you might be subjected to Soccer By Steve.

I will be doing a running commentary during the match (as soon as my computer gets a connection). For now you folks can start talking about today's final between Houston and New England. For those of you who missed my prediction, I'm going with the Revs in a 2-1 victory.

Enjoy the match and share your comments below:

MLS Cup Notes

Good afternoon folks. I'm back from watching the USA-South Africa match, which was definitely entertaining (Not the match, but going to Summer's to watch it). It has been a very interesting weekend in DC with last night's Commissioner's Party serving as the high point of the weekend. A veritable who's who of American soccer converged on Park at 14th and the information was flowing.

Here are some nuggets from the festivities:

Red Bulls: Jozy is NOT for sale

The same day reports emerged from Spain linking Real Madrid to Red Bulls forward Jozy Altidore, Red Bulls officials made it clear that the 18-year-old sensation is not for sale.

"He's not going anywhere," Red Bulls president Marc deGrandpre said on Friday night. "I've talked to Jozy and he knows he's a very important part of our future."

The Red Bulls are eager to keep Altidore around as long as possible and the temptation of a large transfer fee isn't likely to sway a parent company that isn't struggling for money.

USA vs. South Africa (Your running commentary)

Good morning folks. Yes, I am awake (barely) and am about to head to Summer's in Arlinton VA. The lineup for today's match is out and the only variation from my proposed lineup is Heath Pearce at left back (with Feilhaber on the right wing and Bradley in central midfield)

I will attempt to do some running commentary from Summer's but if I can't you can at least post your thoughts on the match here.

Enjoy the match

USA vs. South Africa: Who will Bob Bradley start?

Good afternoon folks. I'm freezing to death in the RFK Stadium press box and finalized plans for watching the USA-South Africa friendly on Saturday. I will be watching it at Summer's in Arlington VA. Bruce from the Dunord blog is hosting a viewing party and he has given me permission to crash it. That means all SBI Mafia members are encouraged to attend. I will be there (let me add the disclaimer that 9am is pretty early in the morning for me so there is a remote possibility that I will be late. I will try to limit the amount of boozing I do tonight.)

Now, on to the game. Bradley will be without Landon Donovan for the match and will have 17 players available for a friendly against the 2010 World Cup hosts. You know the question I always ask. What starting lineup should he use? Here is the lineup I think he will use:

MLS Cup Notes

It is still a little early in the weekend but here are some nuggets to pass along from the MLS Cup festivities:

Red Bulls complete purchase of AEG's share of Red Bull Park

The Red Bulls are set to announce the completion of their purchase of AEG's share of the Red Bull Park stadium project. Yes, finally.

This should pave the way for Red Bull to begin construction of Red Bull Park, at least in theory. As you know from reading SBI, the project is facing some issues that should delay the project. One Red Bulls official told me my new timetable for the project was inaccurate. It will be interesting to see if the club presents its