Recently in Prep Soccer Category

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.

There are some advantages when the Internet, telephones and computer system go down simultaneously at work (keep in mind I work at a newspaper): I could remain blissfully ignorant Tuesday of the stunning Liverpool-Chelsea UEFA Champions League game until I could go home and watch it (ah, I miss the pre-blogging days some times) held on the eve of English football's most tragic day and with memories of the even more amazing Liverpool comeback in the 2005 UEFA Champions League final still fresh.

Things aren't due to be fixed at work until about 1 p.m. today so with any luck things will follow the same pattern with regard to the Manchester United-Porto game (which is a roundabout way of saying don't expect much blogging).

So let's play a little catch-up:

*Seattle's Fredy Montero will be able to fully concentrate on the Sounders game with Chivas USA after the resolution of the legal issues hanging over him.

*We won't be seeing Kasey Keller in goal for Seattle this weekend after his red card against Kansas City for handling the ball outside the box and he's still angry about it.

BTW, here's what Seattle Coach Sigi Schmid told me about Keller's ejection when I spoke to him Monday:

"His hands were in tight. I think if it's a defender that slides into an attacker in the same manner I think the referee gives him a yellow card and we move on. But because it's a goalkeeper the instinct is to say he probably tried to bat it down with his hands. It's a tough one to argue, but it it was a tough call. It's not like he had his arms extended, it's not like he threw his arms at the ball or anything like that. He basically slid into it like a defender would slide into a tackle."

*Chivas USA will hold its second "Practice in the Community" at 10 a.m. Sunday at Montebello High School, 2100 West Cleveland Ave. Fans can take photos, get autographs and meet players after the practice. It's free.

*North (Torrance) High's Andre Turoldo and Matt Chavez were named Daily Breeze Player of the Year and Coach of the Year respectively.

*Lastly, the Sol is having a not to be missed ticket sale today in recognition of tax day for Sunday's game at Home Depot Center.

Busy (and slow-starting) day working on Tuesday's column, a preview of this weekend's game of the MLS season so far: Saturday's match-up between MLS leader Chivas USA and second-place team the Seattle Sounders at Home Depot Center. I'll post that in the morning. (The Galaxy play in San Jose Saturday, BTW).

Names in the news include:

*Galaxy goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts, who today became only the club's third to be named MLS Player of the Week after making five saves in the 0-0 draw with Chivas USA on his MLS debut. Ricketts joins Kevin Hartman and Joe Cannon as the only goalkeepers in Galaxy history to keep a clean sheet in their first-ever start for the club.

The only other Galaxy goalkeepers named MLS Player of the Week: Jorge Campos (1996) and Kevin Hartman (1999 and 2002).

*Question: Will David Beckham improve his chances of playing for England at the 2010 World Cup sitting on the bench in Milan or playing in L.A.? Daily Mail.

*Midfielder Alberto Lopez, 17, from Aurora, IL, won the nationally-televised player search Sueño MLS 2009 and will receive an invitation to join the Chicago Fire Juniors.

*South (Torrance) High's Lauren Hein was named Daily Breeze Player of the Year, while South's Brad Gomez was named Coach of the Year.

It will be an all MLS SuperLiga final with the New England Revolution, 2-0 winners over bad losers Atlante tonight, playing the Houston Dynamo Tuesday in Boston.

I only watched the last 10 minutes of the game (work intervened), but that was enough to see some ugly scenes at game's end for the second consecutive SuperLiga semifinal.

Five red cards (!) were brandished at Atlante players (several after the game) in what was a nasty conclusion.

And it was clear in the waning moments of the game Atlante were simply trying to get in some lumps with behind the legs two-footed tackles, late challenges and body checks.

(BTW, for those who don't know things got rambunctious at the end of Tuesday's Pachuca-Houston Dynamo game, too).

The silver lining for Chivas USA? They got knocked out by a team in the final of the tournament.

Well-moderated discussion of the game here.

Full disclosure: I'm Anglokixx in this thread.

Highlights

Also:
*USC striker Amy Rodriguez, essentially Abby Wambach's replacement, was profiled here.

*Galaxy rookie Bryan Jordan is going on loan to the USL Portland Timbers for the third time this season - until the end of the season. Will he be missed? From the Galaxy:

Jordan leads the Galaxy Reserve Team in goals this season, scoring four times in five games, including one in Monday's 2-2 draw with FC Dallas.

*And for those with nothing better to do at 8 p.m. Monday tune to Fox 11 to see whether the winner of the "Choice Male Athlete" award at the 2008 Teen Choice Awards is David Beckham, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Eli Manning or Tiger Woods.for the award. Woo hoo!

Chivas USA lost Thursday to the Red Bulls.

Said Chivas USA Coach Preki:

"We had six, seven, great chances in the second half that we don't connect on and the final pass isn't good enough or the shot goes straight to the goalkeeper. We didn't manage to break them down. They had one play in the second half and that's it. We were solid defensively. We didn't give too many things away. That's how it goes."

Over in Galaxyland, Bryan Jordan has joined the Portland Timbers on loan.

The best thing about San Jose returning to MLS: Road Trip!

From the (edited) Galaxy press release:

For just $65 per person, fans can purchase the package which will include one ticket to the Galaxy's game against their Northern California rivals, round trip transportation from Home Depot Center to McAfee Coliseum and admittance to a special Galaxy Travel Package Tailgate, with complementary food and beverages, which will be held in the parking lot of McAfee Coliseum prior to the game.

Following the game, buses will depart from McAfee Coliseum at 10:30 p.m. and are scheduled to arrive back at Home Depot Center at 5:30 a.m. on Sunday less than nine hours prior to the start if the U.S. National Team's inaugural 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifying match against Barbados, which begins at 2 p.m. at Home Depot Center.

Vist http://la.galaxy.mlsnet.com/t106/pdf/2008/galaxy_sanjose.pdf for an order form which must be faxed to (310) 630-2251 by Tuesday.

Tip of the hat to fans who attend both games.

Congrats to Loyola Marymount Coach Paul Krumpe.

From the LMU press release:

Loyola Head Men¹s Soccer Coach Paul Krumpe is one of 14 former students who will be included in the inaugural class for the West High School Hall of Fame in Torrance. Krumpe and the rest of the class will be inducted at a dinner and ceremony on Friday at Los Verdes Country Club in Rancho Palos Verdes.

Krumpe is a 1982 graduate of West High School and went on to start all four
years for UCLA, co-captaining the 1985 NCAA Championship team. He then
featured on both the national and international level for the next six
years. He was a member of the U.S. National Team from 1986-1991, earning
more than 40 caps while playing in the 1990 World Cup, the 1988 Olympics,
and the 1987 Pan-American Games.

Since becoming the head coach at LMU in 1998, Krumpe has compiled a record
of 90-85-20 while leading the Lions to four successive NCAA Tournament
appearances between 2001-2004.

Finally, the Pepperdine women's soccer team added an eighth member to its 2008 recruiting class, as forward Karissa Garcia of Roseville signed an intent-to-enroll form.

Garcia, who attends Oakmont High, was co-MVP of the Sierra Foothill League in 2008 and was the MVP in 2007.

The seven previously announced recruits: midfielder/forward Elizabeth Brezden (Anaheim/Canyon High); forward Laura Cole (Whittier/La Habra High); goalkeeper Lacey Heck (Long Beach/Wilson High); defender Kelsey McGovern (Coto de Caza, Calif./Santa Margarita Catholic High); defender/forward Kelsea Smith (Camarillo/Oaks Christian High); midfielder/forward Myriah Stockman (Sandy, Utah); and midfielder/forward Melissa Trammell (Yakima, Wash).

Late blogging today, since the day job got in the way - apologies.

The Long Beach Press-Telegram has named its high school Dream Team.

And the PDL Ventura County Fusion, which plays Friday night against the Fresno Fuego at home, has released UCLA striker Jason Leopoldo.

Back Friday morning with a full preview of the weekend's games.

For now, I'm watching the Lost finale.

*The U.S. Under-23 National Team plays the Ivory Coast at 9 a.m. today on Fox Soccer Channel from France.

*Fontana's Maurice Edu of Toronto FC has been called into the senior national team for next week's game against England, presumably as a replacement for the injured Benny Feilhaber.

*The Galaxy's Ante Jazic has only just returned from injury, but the defender has been recalled by Canada's National Team for its May 31 game against Brazil in Seattle.

*In other MLS news, former Galaxy midfielders Jovan Kirovski and Kelly Gray have joined the San Jose Earthquakes from the Colorado Rapids, with former Chivas USA reserve goalkeeper Preston Burpo moving in the opposite direction.

*ESPN has announced that Wednesday's UEFA Champions League final between Manchester United and Chelsea - the first-ever between two English teams - was ESPN2's highest-rated and most-watched UEFA telecast in history.

From the ESPN press release:

The telecast was seen in an average of 798,000 homes (and by 1,097,000 viewers), and received an 0.8 rating. The network's previous UEFA record was the 2006 final, seen in 613,000 homes (and by 770,000 viewers), based on a 0.7 rating.

On ESPN Deportes, the Spanish-language telecast earned a 4.5 Hispanic coverage rating, representing 153,000 Hispanic homes, the highest rating the network has ever received.

ESPN Classic will re-air the telecast as an instant classic at 5 p.m. Saturday.

*Meanwhile, Electronic Arts' UEFA Euro 2008 video game has gone on sale, featuring 52 teams.

From their press release:

A new game mode called Captain Your Country will enable gamers to put themselves on the pitch, earn the captaincy of their team, and truly inspire their country to glory. Gamers will be able to celebrate their success on-field through user-controlled celebrations that will add to the pageantry and atmosphere of the event.

*Cal State Northridge women' soccer has announced the signing of eight high school seniors to letters of intent: sweeper Nicole Cruz and defender Emily Geckle (both Thousand Oaks High); goalkeeper Christina Herrera (Pasadena High); defender Marie Hirsch (Notre Dame High); midfielder Marissa Miller (Righetti High); defender Katie Russ (Canyon High); midfielder Brielle Slepicoff (Saugus High); and midfielder Sinead Vaughan (Royal High).

*Only two local PDL games scheduled this weekend.

At 7:30 tonight the San Fernando Valley Quakes play at Los Angeles Legends.

At 7 p.m. Saturday, it's the Bakersfield Brigade at Southern California Seahorses at La Mirada High.

*The Women's Premier Soccer League begins play locally this weekend.

Games scheduled locally:
Saturday- Ajax America Women- Los Angeles Rampage at noon at Nansen Field in Rolling Hills Estates.
San Diego WFC SeaLions- West Coast FC at 7 p.m. at Cathedral Catholic High in San Juan Capistrano.
Claremont Stars- SD United at 5:30 p.m. at Claremont High School.

*Finally, if you thought MLS officiating was bad, check this out.

Have a great weekend.

I get paid to worry.

As in today's column, which takes a look at the dominance of David Beckham and Landon Donovan and the implications for the Galaxy's season.

For those who haven't seen it yet, here are the highlights of Becks and Donovan dismantling Chivas USA.

Not surprisingly after that performance, Galaxy forward Landon Donovan was named the MLS Player of the Week by the North American Soccer Reporters, for the second consecutive week.

Elsewhere, Long Beach State has announced its 2008 recruiting class including defender Nicole Hubbard (Lakewood/Mayfair High) and U.S. Under-17 international midfielder Shawna Gordon (Rancho Cucamonga/Los Osos High) as freshmen, while Marissa "Bo" Rael (Rancho Cucamonga/Los Osos High), who played last semester at the University of Oregon, is at LBSU.

The Daily Breeze today named Banning's Guillermo Beltran as its Boys Player of the Year and Banning Coach Frank Sandoval as its Boys Coach of the Year.

Mira Costa's Julia Barrow was named Girls Player of the Year on Tuesday along with Girls Coach of the Year, South Torrance's Brad Gomez.

In other high school related soccer news, Chivas USA has launched an internship program at Carson High dubbed "Imagine More. Be More!"

More details here.

CONCACAF Olympic qualifying begins tonight with two games including the U.S. against Cuba and I offered a primer in today's column.

CONCACAF has released the rosters for the teams in Group A.

Chivas USA midfielder Sacha Kljestan and his role on the U-23 team is profiled here, although Fontana's Maurice Edu was on Monday named team captain for the tournament.

Lastly, Andrew Sakura, 17, the starting goalkeeper for Palos Verdes High died last weekend after crashing his father's Corvette while speeding. He would have turned 18 later this month.

Chivas USA lost 1-0 to the Houston Dynamo in San Antonio on Friday, the Galaxy play the next game of their Asia tour at 11 tonight live on Fox Soccer Channel from Hong Kong where ticket sales have reportedly been poor, the U.S. Women triumphed again in Portugal while the high school soccer season is over.

And so is my posting on a gorgeous day in Southern California. Enjoy the weekend.

Chivas USA plays the Houston Dynamo tonight in San Antonio (although due to the state of the field there it's reportedly the reserve squads that will play) and the Galaxy plays the third and final game of its Asian tour live on Fox Soccer Channel at 11 p.m. Saturday (that's a time that screams TiVo).

Still, if you only watch one game this weekend make it Brad Friedel's Blackburn Rovers against FulhamAmerica at 7 a.m. Saturday on FSC as the London team with a large contingent of Americans fights for EPL survival.

The David Beckham Academy in Carson has redesigned its Web site.

And as of Monday, Fox Football Fone-In has moved to a new night and time (the show begins at 5 p.m.).

Finally, prep action from the Daily Breeze is here and here, the Daily News here and the Long Beach Press-Telegram here.

Here we go again.

Reports out of England suggest David Beckham's landmark 100th England appearance could come against France March 26, just three days before the Galaxy's first MLS game of the season in Colorado. More here.

Mexico's Under-23 team, which will play its Olympic qualifiers in Carson, turns out for its final warmup game against Finland tonight in Dallas and hasn't looked good.

Lastly, preps news from the Daily Breeze is here, the Daily News here and the Long Beach Press-Telegram here.

Among South Bay and Harbor Area schools Saturday, Peninsula beat West Torrance to claim the CIF Division II title, while Banning won its first soccer title since 1995.

In Downey Saturday, Wilson and San Clemente shared a championship as did Mayfair High and La Mirada, but Downey High lost.

Lancaster's Desert Christian triumphed Saturday, as did Oaks Christian of Westlake Village.

However, Newbury Park lost.

If you watched the 11:30 p.m. Galaxy-FC Seoul game on Fox Soccer Channel last night you know LA salvaged a rather uninspiring 1-1 tie in regulation time to kick off their Asian Tour.

Yet if you read this story you know the Galaxy actually lost on penalty kicks, something neither alluded to or shown on FSC.

More than a little strange.

Also, preps coverage from the Daily Breeze is here.