MLS: Landon Donovan might not be done playing

The Galaxy left Landon Donovan unprotected for the MLS expansion draft and many thought that signaled the end to his abbreviated comeback.

Maybe not.

Thursday, reports surfaced that Donovan is in discussions with Real Salt Lake for a two-year Designated Player contract.

Donovan,34, is a free agent.Landonlegend

He rejoined the Galaxy, ending his short retirement in September for the push toward the playoff.

ESPN’s Julie Stewart-Binks also reported that an unidentified Eastern Conference team also offered Donovan a deal.

Donovan started his MLS career with San Jose before joining the Galaxy for the 2005 season. He stepped away after the 2014 season for a brief retirement.

Donovan has been extremely quiet regarding his future, although a Salt Lake Tribune report said that Donovan visited RSL and met with general manager Craig Waibel.

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Boxing Day lineup kicks off busy stretch in Premier League

Here is the schedule for the English Premier League action for Boxing Day (Monday):

4:30 a.m.

Watford v. Crystal Palace (NBCSN)

7 a.m.

Manchester United v. Sunderland (NBCSN)

Chelsea v. Bournemouth (CNBC)

Arsenal v. West Brom

Leicester City v. Everton

Swansea City v. West Ham United

Burnley v. Middlesbrough

Hull City v. Manchester City (NBCSN)

Tuesday

9:15 a.m.

Liverpool v. Stoke City (NBCSN)

Wednesday

11:45 a.m.

Southampton v. Tottenham (NBCSN)

 

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Galaxy will open 2017 at home against FC Dallas

The Galaxy will open the 2017 season at home, March 4 against FC Dallas, it was announced Wednesday.

The game will start at 1 p.m.

Last season, the Galaxy posted an 8-1-8 record at home.mls_logo-svg

The complete 2017 MLS schedule will be announced at a later date.

Here is a breakdown of the schedule:

Each club will play 34 games (17 home and 17 away). Teams will face each of their 10 conference opponents twice during the season with one game at home and one game away. Clubs also will compete in select additional games against different conference opponents three times, and they will face non-conference opponents once.

Here are the other home openers:

2017 Major League Soccer Home Openers

WEEK 1

Friday, March 3, 2017 (home team listed first):

9:30 p.m. – Portland Timbers vs. Minnesota United FC (Providence Park)

Saturday, March 4, 2017 (home team listed first):
2 p.m. – Columbus Crew SC vs. Chicago Fire (MAPFRE Stadium)

1 p.m. – LA Galaxy vs. FC Dallas (StubHub Center)

4:30 p.m. – Real Salt Lake vs. Toronto FC (Rio Tinto Stadium)

6 p.m. – Colorado Rapids vs. New England Revolution (Dick’s Sporting Goods Park)

7 p.m. – D.C. United vs. Sporting Kansas City (RFK Stadium)

8:30 p.m.  – Houston Dynamo vs. Seattle Sounders FC (BBVA Compass Stadium)

10 p.m. – San Jose Earthquakes vs. Montreal Impact (Avaya Stadium)

Sunday, March 5, 2016 (home team listed first):

5 p.m. – Orlando City SC vs. New York City FC (Orlando City SC Stadium)

7 p.m. – Atlanta United vs. New York Red Bulls (Bobby Dodd Stadium)

9:30 p.m. – Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs. Philadelphia Union (BC Place)

WEEK 2

Saturday, March 11

2 p.m. – Chicago Fire vs. Real Salt Lake (Toyota Park)

2 p.m. – New England Revolution vs. Orlando City SC (Gillette Stadium)

4 p.m. – New York Red Bulls vs. Colorado Rapids (Red Bull Arena)

4:30 p.m. – Philadelphia Union vs. Toronto FC (Talen Energy Stadium)

7 p.m. – Montreal Impact vs. Seattle Sounders FC (Olympic Stadium)

9 p.m. – Sporting Kansas City vs. FC Dallas (Children’s Mercy Park)

Sunday, March 12

2 p.m. – New York City FC vs. D.C. United (Yankee Stadium)

5 p.m. – Minnesota United FC vs. Atlanta United (TCF Bank Stadium)

WEEK 3

Saturday, March 18

8 p.m. – FC Dallas vs. New England Revolution (Toyota Stadium)

Sunday, March 19

7 p.m. – Seattle Sounders FC vs. New York Red Bulls (CenturyLink Field)

WEEK 5

Friday, March 31

7:30 p.m. – Toronto FC vs. Sporting Kansas City (BMO Field)

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Invitees for MLS Player Combine announced

Here are the 53 collegiate players that will participate in the MLS Player Combine, Jan. 8-12. The players will  showcase their talents in front of representatives from all 22 MLS clubs during the combine.

There will be six games (Jan. 8, Jan. 10 and Jan. 12).

All invited players will be eligible for selection in the 2017 SuperDraft, Friday, Jan. 13 at the LA Convention Center.

First Name Last Name School Pos. Hometown/Citizenship
Lalas Abubakar University of Dayton DF Accra, Ghana; Ghana
Michael Amick UCLA DF Sunnyvale, CA; USA
Brandon Aubrey University of Notre Dame DF Plano, TX; USA
Kwame Awuah UConn MF Toronto, ON; Canada
Nazeem Bartman University of South Florida FW Cape Town, South Africa; South Africa
Kyle Bjornethun Seattle University DF Snohomish, WA; USA
Brandt Bronico UNC Charlotte MF High Point, NC; USA
Russell Cicerone SUNY-Buffalo MF/FW Bloomfield Hills, MI; USA
Suliman Dainkeh University of Maryland DF Reston, VA; USA
Michael DeGraffenreidt University of Louisville DF Baltimore, MD; USA
Guillermo Delgado University of Delaware FW Tres Cantos, Spain; Spain
Nick DePuy UC Santa Barbara FW Irvine, CA; USA
Francis de Vries Saint Francis University (Penn.) DF Christchurch, New Zealand; New Zealand
Reagan Dunk University of Denver DF Dallas, TX; USA
Jack Elliott West Virginia University DF/MF London, England; UK
Wuilito Fernandes UMass-Lowell FW/MF Praia, Cape Verde; Cape Verde
Alec Ferrell Wake Forest University GK Westlake, OH; USA
David Goldsmith Butler University FW Bristol, England; UK BIO
Jorge Gomez Sanchez Temple University FW Talavera De La Reina, Spain; Spain
Julian Gressel Providence College MF Neustadt an der Aisch, Germany; Germany
Sam Hamilton University of Denver MF Evergreen, CO; USA
Niko Hansen University of New Mexico FW Sacramento, CA; USA/Denmark
Jacori Hayes Wake Forest University MF Bowie, MD; USA
Joe Holland Hofstra University MF London, England; UK
Walker Hume UNC Chapel Hill DF San Angelo, TX; USA
Daniel Johnson University of Louisville MF Duluth, GA; USA
Aaron Jones Clemson University DF Great Yarmouth, UK; UK
Eric Klenofsky Monmouth University GK Lincoln Park, NJ; USA
Austin Ledbetter SIU-Edwardsville DF St. Charles, MO; USA
Zeiko Lewis Boston College MF Pembroke, Bermuda; Bermuda
Connor Maloney Penn State University DF Harrisburg, PA; USA
Napo Matsoso University of Kentucky MF Louisville, Kentucky; Lesotho
Billy McConnell Indiana University DF Richboro, PA; USA
Jake McGuire University of Tulsa GK Chino Hills, CA; USA
Lindo Mfeka University of South Florida MF/FW Durban, South Africa; South Africa
Robert Moewes Duke University GK Dortmund, Germany; Germany
Brian Nana-Sinkam Stanford University DF Lititz, PA; USA
Chris Nanco Syracuse University FW Brampton, ON; Canada
Jakob Nerwinski UConn DF Lawrenceville, NJ; USA
Chris Odoi-Atsem University of Maryland DF Mitchellville, MD; USA
Evan Panken University of Notre Dame MF Edina, MN; USA
Danilo Radjen University of Akron DF Broadview Heights, OH; USA
Robby Sagel Penn State University DF Las Vegas, NV; USA
Eddie Sanchez University of Portland MF/FW Canby, OR; USA
Auden Schilder University of Washington GK Bellingham, WA; USA
Justin Schmidt University of Washington DF Albuquerque, NM; USA
Colton Storm UNC Chapel Hill DF Mechanicsburg, PA; USA
Christian Thierjung California FW Dove Canyon, CA; USA
Tanner Thompson Indiana University MF Loomis, CA; USA
Felix Vobejda UCLA MF/DF Bielefeld, Germany; Germany
Chris Wehan University of New Mexico MF Laguna Niguel, CA; USA
Jordan Wilson University of Kentucky DF Auchterarder, Scotland; UK
Brian Wright University of Vermont FW Ajax, ON; Canada
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Major League Soccer announces plans for future expansion

Major League Soccer is looking to expand again.

Commissioner Don Garber laid on the league’s plans for expansion Thursday afternoon. It was announced that the next expansion cities are expected to be revealed sometime next year, with the goal of beginning in 2020.

The league will accept bids for the 25th and 26th franchises until the end of January.

Garber added that the franchise fees for those two teams would be $150.

Atlanta United and Minnesota United FC will bring MLS to 22 franchises when they join next year. LAFC will be No. 23 in 2018. The Miami project, backed by David Beckham is still scheduled to be the 24th Miami FC is still on target to be the 24th team, but Garber offered caution.

“If we can’t close the deal in Miami we’ll figure out who will be our 24th team,” Garber said.

According to MLS, the following 10 markets have expressed interest in securing an mls_logo-svgexpansion team: Charlotte, Cincinnati, Detroit, Nashville, Raleigh/Durham, Sacramento, St. Louis, San Diego and Tampa Bay.

“There is tremendous interest in professional soccer across the United States and Canada,” Garber said in a release. “Since announcing plans to expand to 28 clubs late last year, many potential ownership groups have contacted us, and numerous public officials have stated their desire to bring an MLS expansion team to their city.

“We look forward to reviewing expansion applications in the coming months and conducting formal meetings in 2017 with possible team owners.”

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U.S. men’s national soccer team will kick off 2017 in San Diego

Bruce Arena’s first game as U.S. men’s national soccer team coach is set for Jan. 29 against Serba at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.

The game will kick off at 1 p.m. Tickets will go on sale Monday.

Arena is preparing for his second tenure as coach of the U.S., having replaced Jurgen Klinsmann in November.

The game will come at the end of the annual January camp.This is not a FIFA date. The U.S. resumes World Cup qualifying, in March with a home game against Honduras and a trip to Panama.

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Monrovia’s Ashley Sanchez honored by U.S. Soccer

Ashley Sanchez of Monrovia was selected the U.S. Soccer young female player of the year.

The announcement was made Tuesday U.S. Soccer. ussoccerlogo

Sanchez, who will be attending UCLA in the fall, played in two women’s world cups this year. She was the captain for the U.S. U-17 team and then joined the U-20 team. She received 47 percent of the vote with midfielder Andi Sullivan receiving 27 percent.

Sanchez became the first U.S. youth player to score in both the U-17 and U-20 Women’s World Cups in the same year.

At the U-17 tournament, Sanchez scored three goals and finished her career at U-17 level with 21 goals. She started all six games at the U-20 tournament, finishing with one goal and two assists.

Sanchez has committed to UCLA.

“It was a memorable year for sure, and even though we fell short at both World Cups, I know the experiences that me and my teammates had will last a lifetime,” Sanchez said. “It’s a huge honor to win this award and I’m really appreciative of everyone who voted for me. I also want to thank all of my teammates and coaches on the U-17s and the U-20s. They are great players and great friends and hopefully a bunch of us will reach our goals of playing for the full team one day.”

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Galaxy acquires midfielder Miguel Aguilar in trade

The Galaxy announced that acquisition of midfielder Miguel Aguilar from D.C. United in exchange for a 2018 fourth-round MLS SuperDraft pick.galaxy

Aguilar, originally from Sacramento, was a first-round pick by DCU in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft. He made 17 appearances during his rookie season and six last year before being loaned to USL Richmond Kickers.

Aguilar, 23, played at the University of San Francisco.

The Galaxy will also receive a 2019 fourth-round draft pick.

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MLS commissioner Don Garber confirms expansion of Targeted Allocation Money

Targeted Allocation Money or TAM will increase to $1.2 million for each team, MLS commissioner Don Garber confirmed at a press conference in Toronto, Friday.

Last year, teams were given $800,000. The increase will give teams a bit more flexib3ility on the league’s $3.6 million cap.

TAM is designed to help teams attract top talent outside of the three Designated Player spots.

 

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LAFC and Orange County Blues FC announce partnership

Los Angeles Football Club and the USL’s Orange County Blues FC announced a new partnership that will expand player development and create a loan system between the two franchises.

LAFC is set to join MLS in 2018. lafc

“We are incredibly excited about this partnership, which will contribute significantly towards our goals of building a competitive roster in 2018 and growing the game here in Southern California,” LAFC Executive VP of Soccer Operations John Thorrington. “In the OC Blues, we have a fantastic partner with an owner and staff who closely align with our vision to bring world-class professional soccer to Southern California.”

The deal will provide LAFC the ability to loan players to the Blues as soon as the 2017 season.

“We are thrilled to launch this exciting new era in Orange County soccer with our LAFC affiliation,” Orange County GM and Executive VP of Soccer Operations Oliver Wyss. “This partnership will significantly enhance the quality of our first team and strengthen the bonds between the two clubs. Together we will expand opportunities for coaching education and focus on all aspects of player development.”

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