Pre-Season Results: The Cruelest Blow Yet…

…and who else would it fall on the Real Salt Lake (RSL)?
Real Salt Lake 1-2 Lynn University
RSL’s ongoing pre-season victory parade through colleges of which I have never heard and Premier Developmental League teams continued…right up until they hit the brick wall that is Lynn University (see the third “section” here for some details).  Brutal, [...]

One Last Plug for the Pan-Pacific

I finally made my way over to MLSnet.com’s official propaganda page for the Pan-Pacific Tournament (kicks off tonight; check ESPN’s listings for times and channel…it’s in there…and all times are, helpfully, GMT). Can’t say I regretted avoiding it until now: even the news/headline section overflows with the usual airy features and quote-filled pap about [...]

Richards + for Conde? Asking Anyone Who Cares

Soccer By Ives reported this morning that the Chicago Fire turned down a swap proffered by Red Bull New York that would have sent right-sided lightning bolt Dane Richards to Chicago and disgruntled defender Wilman Conde to NYC (or thereabouts).  Further down his post, Ives concocts a couple other formulations for separating Conde from the [...]

Rapids-Reinaldo-RSL: Do They Ever Stop Competing?

Figuring they had shot their wad for several years when they signed Christian Gomez, word that the Colorado Rapids slapped a discovery claim on some Brazilian cat named Reinaldo surprised me a little. “Ambition” and “Colorado Rapids” appear in about as many sentences as “spendthrift” and “New England Revolution.”
Apart from knowing he most [...]

Champions League Today On TV

Since I just set my girlfriend’s DVR to tape the games, I figuered I would let everyone know what’s going on with today’s Champions League Games.
Arsenal-Milan     ESPN2 2:30-5:30
Celtic v Barcelona     ESPN Deportes 2:30-5:00
ESPN Classic 5:00- 7:00 (Replay from ESPN Deportes but in English)
Lyon v Manchester United ESPNDeportes 4:45-7 (Tape Delay)
Basically ESPN Deportes replays three [...]

Fenerbahçe v Sevilla – Let it Snow, Let it Snow

Sevilla take on Fenerbahçe Wednesday in a stadium that is reminiscent of the Winter Classic played between the Buffalo Sabres and the Pittsburgh Penguins on New Years Day. The current ‘blanket of snow’ aptly named by AS.com is in the process of being cleared.
Sevilla left the homeland for Istanbul with 20 players in tow.
Palop, [...]

Chelsea’s Greek Deadlock Made Worse – Threats, Sanctions?

Avram Grant called Chelsea’s performance the “worst performance since he took charge”. Without Frank Lampard in the starting line-up, the midfield looked oddly quiet against Olympiakos who were content to sit back and not muster any attacks against the Blues defense. Didier Drogba looked dejected – not himself – probably due to a African Nations [...]

Pan-Pacific Challenge: Hyping That Which Cannot Be Hyped

It’s possible Steve Davis (whoops…It’s actually Jeff Carlisle, who) said it best in the preview of the Pan-Pacific Challenge (PPC) he wrote for ESPN:
“While the PPC isn’t the UEFA Champions League, it is a sign that the beginning of the MLS season is inching closer, and the fact that some international sides are tagging along [...]