Wednesday Kicks: Sounders, Fusion, Blues & More
Midweek seems an apt time to touch on a few things I've overlooked:
*The Sounders play Barcelona at 7:30 tonight in Seattle on ESPN2. It will be interesting to see who that usually delirious crowd will predominantly be rooting for - the home team or the European champions. More here.
Here's Barcelona's Lionel Messi doing a little ball juggling atop the 605-foot-high Space Needle ahead of the game.
Photo courtesy FC Barcelona/Sounders FC/SUM
*Earlier this evening the Chicago Fire meets Tigres in the SuperLiga final that begins at 5 p.m. on Fox Soccer Channel.
*Speaking of the Fire, their PDL team will contest the title at 7 p.m. Saturday against the Ventura County Fusion at Ventura High on Main Street. With the Galaxy and Chivas USA out of town this weekend I plan to attend the game (as a fan). More details and a special ticket deal here.
*Meanwhile, a night earlier the Pali Blues plays in the W-League championship against the Freedom in Washington. That game can be seen live at 4:30 p.m. on Fox Soccer Channel.
*Belated condolences BTW to Coach Brian Boswell and his Rolling Hills Estates-based Ajax America who fell 1-0 to the Long Island Fury last weekend in New York in the Women's Premier Soccer League final after posting an excellent 15-2-1 record on the season.
*In other women's soccer news, Long Beach State, winners of the last three Big West title have been picked to finish second this year in a preseason coache's poll. Cal State Northridge were picked to finish fifth.
*Former UCLA and Galaxy player Zak Ibsen (who played 50 games for the Galaxy over two seasons ending in 2000) detailed his descent into crystal meth addiction for the New York Times' Goal blog.
*Finally, fellow blogger Steve Davis explains why he doesn't hate Crew midfielder Robbie Rogers of Rolling Hills Estates.
About 100 Percent Soccer
Sportswriter Nick Green has written the 100 Percent Soccer column since 2005 for the Daily News, Daily Breeze and other Los Angeles area newspapers. The blog of the same name began in 2007. A native of England, he began writing about soccer in the mid-1980s and in 2000 permanently exchanged a seat in the stands for one in the press box. He lives six miles from Carson's Home Depot Center, home of the Los Angeles Galaxy, Chivas USA and the training headquarters for U.S. Soccer and is married to a long-suffering soccer widow. Join Nick on FaceBook and follow him on Twitter.
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