Recently in Mexican Futbol Category
Get caught up on the weekend's soccer in 60 seconds or less:
*The Galaxy had three shots on goal, scored on one of them and beat the MLS-leading Dynamo Sunday at Home Depot Center.
*Highlights:
*Heartbreak for the Americans in South Africa.
*Reaction:
*Mexico and Guatemala drew Sunday in San Diego in Gold Cup warmup.
Only six players on the 23-man roster have caps in the double digits - Freddy Adu, Brian Ching, Jimmy Conrad, Steve Cherundolo, Heath Pearce and Santino Quaranta.
Chivas USA and Galaxy fans will not doubt be more interested in the players not picked; there is no Landon Donovan, Jonathan Bornstein or Sacha Kljestan on the U.S. roster.
There are only four carryovers from the Confederations Cup squad: Adu, Pearce, Charlie Davis and goalkeeper Luis Robles.
The 2-2-9 Galaxy face the similarly struggling 2-8-3 Earthquakes at 1:30 p.m. today on ESPN2, the start of a seven-game stretch that sees LA play five matches on the road. The Galaxy, seeking to rebound from last week's 2-0 home loss to Real Salt Lake, are without the suspended Eddie Lewis, while Landon Donovan is on national team duty.
More from an Earthquakes perspective is here.
BTW, the Galaxy and Earthquakes have both scored just 15 goals this season (only the Red Bulls have scored fewer), but the Earthquakes have conceded 10 more than LA. Can Edson Buddle and the Galaxy take advantage of that on the road?
Chivas USA, meanwhile, embark on their SuperLiga campaign at Home Depot Center against Tigres. The game kicks off at 7 p.m. live on KFTR.
CONCACAF has released the 30-player rosters for the Gold Cup.
Here's the U.S. roster.
The Galaxy's Landon Donovan is absent, but Chivas USA Jonathan Bornstein is named as are Southern California products John Thorrington and Robbie Rogers. The most unfamiliar name: Aston Villa's Eric Lichaj.
Chivas USA was named to Canada's squad, BTW, and while we're at it here's Mexico's roster.
I'll blog from the Chivas USA game tonight, so please join me then.
The games that matter:
1:30 p.m. Saturday ESPN2 Galaxy at San Jose Earthquakes
5 p.m. Saturday KFTR San Luis at Chicago Fire
7 p.m. Saturday Tigres at Chivas USA
11 a.m. Sunday ESPN Brazil-Italy
11:25 a.m. Sunday ESPN2 Egypt-U.S.
3 p.m. Sunday Fox Soccer Channel FC Gold Pride at Sol
Meanwhile, the Galaxy tradition of shipping out apparently subpar players only to see them become reborn elsewhere continues in Portland with former goalkeeper Steve Cronin and in the nation's capital where Josh Wicks is supplanting Louis Crayton.
But former Chivas USA midfielder Panchito Mendoza has seen his time at the mothership come to an end.
After months of rumors, the deal is done and Cristiano Ronaldo will now do his pouting, um, playing in Spain with Kaka.
Well, that was a bit of an anticlimax for Chivas USA.
It was also a game that featured, said Chivas USA Coach Preki, "the dumbest goal ever."
See for yourself:
Mexico made heavy work of Trinidad & Tobago Wednesday, but are back (sort of) on track in WCQ. Lovely second goal though.
Finally, while we're on the subject of international football, it looks like a kid on his way to Cal State Northridge this fall is taking an unexpected detour.
As an English-born, naturalized Canadian citizen who lives in the U.S., nations don't mean that much to me.
Except when it comes to soccer.
Because in soccer different nationalities, cultures and races serve to remind me not how different people are, but how much many share an obsessive interest regardless of where they are from in a ball rolling around a pitch chased by 22 sweaty people.
And there are few places like Southern California where it's possible to find so many folks from different nations all watching soccer in a relatively small geographic area.
Clarification: The Iranian election occurs two days - June 12 - after the second Iran World Cup qualifier this month.
It was close though.
We'll just have to wait on top Mexican clubs visiting regularly just across the border.
Chivas USA and the Galaxy might not like the competition for Latino fans, but it could happen.
AP Photo
Azteca Stadium in Mexico City sat eerily empty Sunday during the game between Club America and Tecos because of the swine flu outbreak.
CONCACAF today canceled the remainder of the Under-17 championships in Tijuana and postponed the second leg of the Champions League final because of escalating fears of a swine flu pandemic.
The U.S. Under-17 team, which includes midfielder Carlos Martinez of San Pedro, is returning to its home base in Florida.
The U.S. is advising residents not to travel south of the border.
Professional games in Mexico City were played behind closed doors over the weekend.
Here's the (edited) CONCACAF press release:
Due to the growing concerns about the outbreak of swine flu in Mexico, CONCACAF General Secretary Chuck Blazer announced Monday that the remainder of the confederation's Under-17 Championship in Tijuana has been canceled and the second-leg of the CONCACAF Champions League finals has been postponed.Mexican authorities previously had closed schools in Mexico City and on Monday extended that decision nationwide. Based on the actions of the Mexican government, CONCACAF responded to safeguard the health of players, officials and fans.
Costa Rica, Honduras, Mexico and the USA all had clinched berths the FIFA U-17 World Cup 2009, and were to play the semifinals on Wednesday with the championship and third-place match scheduled for Saturday. The four semifinalists will advance to the U-17 World Cup in Nigeria from 24 October - 15 November.
The second-leg of the CONCACAF Champions League™ finals between CD SC Cruz Azul (MEX) and Atlante FC (MEX) was to be played Wednesday in Cancun, but that game now will be delayed until Tuesday, 12 May at 9 p.m. local (10 p.m. EDT). Atlante leads the two-game title series 2-0 from its opening win in Mexico City last Wednesday.
The CONCACAF Beach Championship in Puerto Vallarta, scheduled to begin Wednesday and continue through Sunday, is under review with a final decision expected Tuesday.
The Galaxy, Chivas USA and Sol are all in action today, but the big news of the morning just landed in my e-mail: Toronto FC Coach John Carver has resigned, the club announced this morning.
Slightly curious timing.
Toronto became the first MLS team to beat Chivas USA in midweek and faces Kansas City Sunday.
Meanwhile, Sunday's games in Mexico City involving Club America and CD Guadalajara have fallen victim to a potential swine flu pandemic.
And there is a Galaxy-Chivas USA derby this weekend locally: the SuperClasiquito.
Onward to the local (brief) previews:
Chivas USA Preview
First-place Chivas USA (4-1-1) hosts FC Dallas (1-3-1) at 7:30 p.m. at Home Depot Center today where kids get in free with an adult ticket purchase.
No doubt it will be the club's sixth straight game with the sixth different lineup.
Defender Ante Jazic, 33, unable to shake off the effects of a March 11 concussion, has been placed on the disabled list, meaning he'll miss the next six games.
The key for Dallas: Dave van den Bergh.
TV: KAZA (live), delayed 9 p.m. Prime.
Galaxy Preview
The omens aren't good for the Galaxy (0-1-3) today in Colorado where they haven't scored a goal against the Rapids (2-2-1) in more than five years, are 0-8-3 in 11 games there and haven't beaten their opponents in two games this season.
(Updated: 9:55 a.m. - The Galaxy's official blog is reporting this morning that striker Edson Buddle made the trip and could make his first appearance of the season tonight. More here.)
BTW, the Galaxy have put spots on the grass berm for the July 19 game against AC Milan in Carson on sale. Cost: $50.
TV: Delayed 10 p.m. FSN.
Sol Preview
The (3-0) Sol, who haven't conceded a goal yet this season play (0-2) St. Louis Athletica, the only WPS team yet to score one.
TV: None.
The Sol are without strikers Marta, Camille Abily and Han Duan who have obligations overseas with their respective homelands this weekend.
Briefly:
*Mexico will play Guatemala June 28 in San Diego, Soccer United Marketing announced today, with tickets also going on sale today to Visa cardholders over at Ticketmaster. Tickets start at $25. Sales to the general public begins May 5.
The San Diego game comes four days after Mexico plays Venezuela in Atlanta just before the Gold Cup begins. From the SUM press release:
Mexico is no stranger to San Diego having played twice in the last two years in the Southern California soccer hotbed in front of sold-out crowds at Qualcomm Stadium. On Feb. 27, 2007 Mexico defeated Venezuela 3-1 in front of 63,328 fans before falling to Argentina last year on June 4 in front of 68,498 fans. México and Guatemala have played each other a total of 27 times with Mexico leading the all-time series 17-4-6. Guatemala is lead by Chicago Fire midfielder Marco Pappa and former MLS star Carlos Ruíz who now plies his trade for Olimpia of Paraguay.The games will mark the U.S. debut of Mexican national team head coach Javier "el Vasco" Aguirre since his return to the bench this past April.
*For the second year in a row, KAZA Azteca 54 will air Chivas USA games this season. The eight scheduled Chivas USA home game broadcasts include this Saturday's match against FC Dallas.
*It appears we can expect more Seattle fans to turn out en masse at Galaxy and Chivas USA games in Carson in the future. Great for the game atmosphere whether you're a Sounders fan or not. Details here.
*Former Galaxy assistant coach (and John O'Brien mentor) Afshin Ghotbi is now coach of the Iranian national team. Is there a better time for a U.S.-Iran game?
I'll have more later on today about the Galaxy, Chivas USA and (hopefully) Seatlle Sounders' injury issues after training.
It does, however, sound like Seattle Coach Sigi Schmid has first-choice back-up (yes, you read that right) goalkeeper Chris Eyelander available for the big game against Chivas USA at Home Depot Center.
Here's a little preview from the Seattle Times this morning on the import of the game.
Meanwhile in the stupid coaching tricks department we apparently have North (Torrance) High School's boys soccer coach Matt Chavez getting fired the same day he was named Daily Breeze Coach of the Year, CD Guadalajara Coach Omar Arellano receiving a pink slip after just 17 days on the job (and right before this weekend's SuperClasico against Club America), while once and future Mexico Coach Javier Aguirre was formally introduced Thursday and immediately sought to downplay expectations by saying he was no Superman. Good luck with that tactic, Javier.
Finally, MLS gets under way early this weekend with a 4 p.m. game today between D.C. United (1-1-2) and New England (2-0-1) so those of you with fantasy soccer teams (he reminds self) get your starting lineups in order.
Here are your other (selected) options both on TV and live at Home Depot Center this weekend:
7:30 p.m. Saturday FSN San Jose-Galaxy
7:30 p.m. Saturday Prime Chivas USA-Seattle Sounders at the HDC
8 a.m. Sunday Fox Soccer Channel Everton-Manchester United (FA Cup semifinal)
11:30 a.m. Sunday FSC AC Milan-Torino
Noon Sunday KVEA CD Guadalajara-Club America
Noon Sunday Fox Sports Espanol Boca Juniors-River Plate
1 p.m. Sunday (no TV) L.A. Sol-F.C. Gold Pride at the HDC.
Playing a little catch-up this evening, so you should know:
*Mexico soccer coach Sven-Goran Eriksson was fired today, a day after El Tri crashed to a 3-1 loss against Honduras in World Cup qualifying.
Less than a year into the job, the former England coach had just one win in its last
seven games.
"We told Mr. Eriksson that his term with the national team has finished," Justino Compean, president of Mexico's soccer federation, said at a news conference.
*The L.A. Sol of Women's Professional Soccer today signed 25-year old Liz Bogus, who had 31 goals and 18 assists during a four-year career at Arizona State where she was the 2002 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year award.
*Fox has indeed outbid ESPN for the rights to the UEFA Champions League in a three-year deal. Games will be shown on Fox Soccer Channel, FSN, FX and Fox Sports en Español.
The final will air on FX in High Definition each year, a spokeswoman with the network told me. FSC is also "looking to accelerate the time frame in which they will begin broadcasting in HD."
Although no official on-air talent decisions have been taken, Fox is looking to use the international English-language feeds UEFA provides rather than using American talent stuck in an L.A. studio.
From the (edited) press release:
As the primary outlet for the UEFA Champions League, Fox Soccer Channel will deliver 110 live and delayed UEFA Champions League matches per season to its nearly 35 million subscribers. FSN - reaching up to 83 million homes nationwide through its owned and affiliated regional sports networks - will televise 16 live matches per season, while Fox Sports en Español will distribute 94 total contests (live and delayed) in Spanish to its 14 million subscribers.The UEFA Champions League Final will air each season on FX, reaching over 95 million homes nationwide. Next season, the final will be staged on a Saturday for the first time in its history, with the match kicking off at 11:45 a.m. Pacific May 22, 2010 at Madrid's Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.
Fox Soccer Channel's UEFA Champions League coverage will include one live and two premiere match telecasts per match day - including prime-time rebroadcasts of FSN and Fox Sports en Español's live offerings - as well as live pregame and postgame shows from its Los Angeles studios. All live matches will kick off at 11:45 a.m. Pacific on Tuesdays and Wednesdays during the course of the season. Fox Soccer Channel will also produce a 30-minute UEFA Champions League highlight show at the conclusion of each match day.
AP Photo
Always classy Galaxy forward Landon Donovan created all three goals today and teed the final one up to Jozy Altidore to give the kid a hat trick.
By RONALD BLUM
AP Sports Writer
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Jozy Altidore became the youngest American with an international hat trick, and the United States beat Trinidad and Tobago 3-0 Wednesday night to maintain its lead in the final round of qualifying for next year's World Cup.
Making just his fourth international start, Altidore connected in the 13th, 71st and 89th minutes, all three times off passes from the Galaxy's Landon Donovan.
The 19-year-old forward, an increasingly important part of the U.S. roster, also scored as a substitute in the 77th minute last Saturday to start the U.S. comeback from a two-goal deficit in a 2-2 tie at El Salvador. He has six goals in nine international appearances.
"It's pretty cool," Altidore said. "Most important is we came out, and the guys rebounded from the El Salvador game, and we made a statement - made a statement we are one of
the teams to be reckoned with in CONCACAF."
Altidore eclipsed the mark for youngest hat trick set in 2004, when 20-year-old Eddie
Johnson scored three times as a substitute in a 6-0 win over Panama in the semifinals of
qualifying.
"He's earned it," Donovan said. "He has played well. He deserved it."
The United States (2-0-1), seeking its sixth straight World Cup berth, leads the final
round of North and Central American and Caribbean qualifying with seven points, followed
by Mexico and Costa Rica (both 1-1) with three apiece, El Salvador (0-0-2) and Trinidad (0-1-2) with two each and Honduras (0-1-1) with one.
U.S. coach Bob Bradley made four changes to his starting lineup and used an offensive
formation.
He dropped DaMarcus Beasley from midfield to left back in place of Heath Pearce, started Brian Ching and Altidore up front, and left Donovan (left) and Clint Dempsey in advanced midfield roles. With Beasley roaming up, it resembled a 4-3-3 at times.
"They both made so many plays," Donovan said of Altidore and Ching.
No. 75 Trinidad and Tobago, playing without suspended 37-year-old star Dwight Yorke,
didn't have a shot on goal against the world's 17th-ranked team until Keon Daniel's attempt on a rebound after a free kick bounced off a defensive wall in the 63rd minute,
American goalkeeper Tim Howard, returning from a one-game suspension for a yellow
card, nearly got into trouble in the sixth minute when he kicked a free kick right to Stern
John. But it bounced off the forward and went wide.
Six minutes later, Bocanegra played a long ball up the left to Ching, and he headed it to
Donovan.
Donovan chested the ball, then crossed to Altidore, who broke free of Aklie Edwards and
beat goalkeeper Clayton Ince from 6 yards. It was the fourth goal in nine international
appearances for the 19-year-old.
Altidore had two other chances in the first half, putting an angled shot wide in the 27th
minute and popping an open shot over the crossbar in the 41st.
He got the second goal after taking a pass from Donovan and faking out Trinidad captain
Dennis Lawrence.
On the final goal, Michael Bradley received a long pass and played the ball into the penalty area to Donovan, who bent it back to Altidore. His shot from 19 yards bounced in off the hands of Ince.
Briefly:
*Galaxy squad player Leonard Griffin goes under the knife today in Munich for a hernia operation. Goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts is still not in full training. And those of you with fantasy football teams should know Rolling Hills Estates' Robbie Rogers of the Columbus Crew is not expected to play Saturday so he can rest a hamstring issue.
*For what it's worth English tabloid the Daily Mail is the latest media outlet to speculate about Mexican Coach Sven Goran Eriksson and his job security (or lack thereof).
*Chivas USA fan group the Union Ultras host a viewing party for the club's game in Dallas Sunday in West Covina.
*And the Croatian community in San Pedro is gearing up for its third annual Small Goals Tournament set for May 23 to coincide with Croatian Independence Day.
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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