The 35 man preliminary rosters were announced today for this summer's Gold Cup for all 12 teams competing in the tournament. Among the players are five Sporting KC players who could be called up for the final 23 man rosters for two of the teams competing in the tournament.
There were three players named to the US roster that could be called up. Matt Besler and Graham Zusi, who are currently with the national team were named to the team. The third player is a bit of a surprise considering his lack of playing time lately. Benny Feilhaber is the third US player that has been called up. Feilhaber hasn't played a lot lately for Sporting, but will look to represent the US for a second time while a member of Sporting KC.
The other two that have been named to the provisional squad are Sporting's two Haitians, Mechack Jerome and Peterson Joseph. The two have already been called up for Haiti's friendlies against Spain and Italy this month.
The Gold Cup runs from July 7th through the 28th throughout the US. The group stage runs from the 7th through the 16th with knockout rounds after that. Should any of the 5 make the final 23, they'd miss up to 5 league games if they make the finals. An elimination during the group stage would see players miss 3 games.
Here's KC's 5 games that take place during the Gold Cup, or just before, after players would have reported.
7/3 vs Vancouver.
7/7 at Chicago
7/13 vs Toronto
7/20 at Salt Lake
7/27 at Montreal
Friday, May 31, 2013
Thursday, May 30, 2013
CONCACAF Champions League Draw is Monday
Sporting Kansas City kicked off it's US Open Cup defense on Tuesday, and this coming Monday they'll find out their reward for winning the 2012 Cup. Monday, June 3rd is the date of the draw for the 2013-2014 CONCACAF Champions League. The tournament itself will kick off some time August and will see Sporting grouped with 2 other teams. They'll play a home and away match against each of the two other teams in their group.
Sporting KC will be placed in Pot B for selection along with 7 other teams. KC will be draw with a team from Pot A and Pot C. Pot B and Pot A will both be split into two sub pots. In one sub pot, will be all US and Mexican teams. In the other sub pot will be the other regional teams in those pots. The reason for this is because US teams cannot be draw against teams from their country or Mexican league teams (this part is to attempt to get a quarterfinal of 4 Mexican and 4 US based teams).
So who can Sporting be grouped with?
From Pot A Sporting could be grouped with Herediano from Costa Rica, Olimpia from Honduras, Communicaciones from Guatemala, or Arabe Unido from Panama.
From Pot C, Sporting can be grouped with any of the 8 teams. Sporting San Miguelito from Panama, Luis Angel Firpo from El Salvador, Real Esteli from Nicaragua, W Connection, or Caledonia AIA both from Trinidad, Valencia from Haiti, Cartagines from Costa Rica (replaces Belize representative because they do not have a stadium that meets CONCACAF's minimum standards), or the 2nd Guatemala team (which will either be the Clausura winner or Heredia if Communicaciones wins).
From a quick glance, and only knowing a little about many of these teams, the best draw for KC would likely be Arabe Unido of Panama and Valencia from Haiti, although Real Esteli wouldn't be a horrible draw either. Drawing W Connection would see Sporting face off against former teammate, Daneil Cyrus, and the team the Wizards knocked out in the 2002 version of the tournament when it was still the Champions Cup.
Sporting KC will be placed in Pot B for selection along with 7 other teams. KC will be draw with a team from Pot A and Pot C. Pot B and Pot A will both be split into two sub pots. In one sub pot, will be all US and Mexican teams. In the other sub pot will be the other regional teams in those pots. The reason for this is because US teams cannot be draw against teams from their country or Mexican league teams (this part is to attempt to get a quarterfinal of 4 Mexican and 4 US based teams).
So who can Sporting be grouped with?
From Pot A Sporting could be grouped with Herediano from Costa Rica, Olimpia from Honduras, Communicaciones from Guatemala, or Arabe Unido from Panama.
From Pot C, Sporting can be grouped with any of the 8 teams. Sporting San Miguelito from Panama, Luis Angel Firpo from El Salvador, Real Esteli from Nicaragua, W Connection, or Caledonia AIA both from Trinidad, Valencia from Haiti, Cartagines from Costa Rica (replaces Belize representative because they do not have a stadium that meets CONCACAF's minimum standards), or the 2nd Guatemala team (which will either be the Clausura winner or Heredia if Communicaciones wins).
From a quick glance, and only knowing a little about many of these teams, the best draw for KC would likely be Arabe Unido of Panama and Valencia from Haiti, although Real Esteli wouldn't be a horrible draw either. Drawing W Connection would see Sporting face off against former teammate, Daneil Cyrus, and the team the Wizards knocked out in the 2002 version of the tournament when it was still the Champions Cup.
National Team Duty for Sporting Players
One day after Sporting Kansas City advanced to the fourth round of the US Open Cup, three more Sporting players took the field for their country in international friendlies. The first was Soony Saad who made his debut for the national team of Lebanon. In a friendly against Oman, Saad scored Lebanon's only goal in the 1-1 game in Qatar. Saad was supposed to return to Kansas City after the game as Lebanon went on for World Cup qualifiers against South Korea and Iran. Saad posted today on Twitter though that he is going to stay a little bit longer, meaning he's impressed enough that he's impressed enough to earn a place in the team that will travel for their two World Cup qualifiers.
The news wasn't as good for Sporting's two US representatives. Graham Zusi started the USA's game against Belgium. After going down in the 6th minute, Zusi helped set up the equalizer in the 22nd. His corner to the back post was headed back across goal by Clint Dempsey and headed in by Geoff Cameron. Unfortunately things didn't get better for the USA in the second half the US gave up two more goals to go down 3-1. In the 69th minute, Zusi exited the game for Brad Evans. At the same time, Matt Besler entered the game for Clarence Goodson. Up until Besler's entrance he'd looked like the best center back of the night and hadn't even played a minute. Goodson and Omar Gonzalez had looked very poor together. Unfortunately Belgium scored shortly after Besler came on (although the fault more was on Damarcus Beasley not Besler). Besler did make a great tackle later in the half that looked close to being a penalty but on replay showed to be a great tackle. The US though fell 4-2 to the Belgians and now head to DC for a friendly with Germany before heading to Jamaica.
The news wasn't as good for Sporting's two US representatives. Graham Zusi started the USA's game against Belgium. After going down in the 6th minute, Zusi helped set up the equalizer in the 22nd. His corner to the back post was headed back across goal by Clint Dempsey and headed in by Geoff Cameron. Unfortunately things didn't get better for the USA in the second half the US gave up two more goals to go down 3-1. In the 69th minute, Zusi exited the game for Brad Evans. At the same time, Matt Besler entered the game for Clarence Goodson. Up until Besler's entrance he'd looked like the best center back of the night and hadn't even played a minute. Goodson and Omar Gonzalez had looked very poor together. Unfortunately Belgium scored shortly after Besler came on (although the fault more was on Damarcus Beasley not Besler). Besler did make a great tackle later in the half that looked close to being a penalty but on replay showed to be a great tackle. The US though fell 4-2 to the Belgians and now head to DC for a friendly with Germany before heading to Jamaica.
Dwyer and Loaned KC Players Will Not Play vs Sporting
There's been a big debate since Tuesday night after both Sporting Kansas City and affiliate club, Orlando City, won their US Open Cup matches setting up a fourth round match up where the two would play each other. The debate was whether Orlando City's top scorer and KC's 2012 first round draft pick Dom Dwyer, and KC's 3 other loaned players (Christian Duke, Jon Kempin, and Yann Songo'o) would be able to play in the game.
Today we found out the answer to the question, and it's that they will not be able to play in the game. The two teams had an agreement before the season, that the loaned players would not be able to play in a game should the two play each other.
I understand the frustration of Orlando City fans in this regard, but it's unfortunately the situation that it is. MLS and KC pay Dwyer's and the rest of the loaned players salaries.
Really this shouldn't be a surprising move to anyone. If you look at loans around the world of soccer, the majority of them contain no compete clauses that keep the loaned player from facing off against his parent club should the two meet. An example of this is Romelu Lukaku, who is signed with Chelsea FC. He was out on loan this past season to fellow EPL club, West Bromwich Albion. When Chelsea faced West Brom this season, Lukaku was ineligible to play in the match because of the terms of his loan. So this isn't some new thing that MLS or KC, or US Soccer made up.
The problem with it is that this situation wasn't ever discussed for any of the affiliates until it happened. And then things got confusing when New England's cup tied players didn't play for Rochester while DC did have some of their players play for their affiliate, Richmond. A straight laid out rule for it would certainly be appreciated. Or even make the affiliate rule the same that exists for PDL teams that are affiliates (like the Portland Timbers and the Timbers U23 team that both qualified this year). PDL teams can't play their pro affiliate until the final. That would at least clear up part of it and make the situation less likely.
Today we found out the answer to the question, and it's that they will not be able to play in the game. The two teams had an agreement before the season, that the loaned players would not be able to play in a game should the two play each other.
I understand the frustration of Orlando City fans in this regard, but it's unfortunately the situation that it is. MLS and KC pay Dwyer's and the rest of the loaned players salaries.
Really this shouldn't be a surprising move to anyone. If you look at loans around the world of soccer, the majority of them contain no compete clauses that keep the loaned player from facing off against his parent club should the two meet. An example of this is Romelu Lukaku, who is signed with Chelsea FC. He was out on loan this past season to fellow EPL club, West Bromwich Albion. When Chelsea faced West Brom this season, Lukaku was ineligible to play in the match because of the terms of his loan. So this isn't some new thing that MLS or KC, or US Soccer made up.
The problem with it is that this situation wasn't ever discussed for any of the affiliates until it happened. And then things got confusing when New England's cup tied players didn't play for Rochester while DC did have some of their players play for their affiliate, Richmond. A straight laid out rule for it would certainly be appreciated. Or even make the affiliate rule the same that exists for PDL teams that are affiliates (like the Portland Timbers and the Timbers U23 team that both qualified this year). PDL teams can't play their pro affiliate until the final. That would at least clear up part of it and make the situation less likely.
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Dwyer Continues to Score - Former SKC Wizards Update
Dom Dwyer continues a stellar season. He scored another league season, tying the USL-Pro mark for goals in a season after only 11 games. And he added 2 more goals in the US Open Cup yesterday against the Colorado Rapids. We'll now get to wait and see if Dwyer and the rest of KC's loaned players will be able to play against Sporting in the next round of the Cup. Here's the rest of this week's update.
Active without a club or unknown
Jose Burciaga
Julio Cesar
Doug DeMartin
Birahim Diop
Edson Elcock
Mauro Fuzetti
Willy Guadarrama
Aaron Hohlbein
Mike Jones
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Scott Lorenz
Amir Lowery
Neven Markovic
Akeem Priestly
Scott Sealy
MLS
Davy Arnaud - Montreal - Out injured.
Bobby Convey - Toronto - Did not dress in Toronto's 2-0 loss to New England.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Started and played 72 minutes in RSL's 1-1 draw with Chicago. Dressed but did not play in Salt Lake's 3-2 extra time win over Atlanta in the US Open Cup.
Michael Harrington - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 2-0 win over DC.
Kevin Hartman - New York - Did not dress in New York's 2-2 draw with Columbus. Did not dress in New York's 2-0 win over Reading in the US Open Cup.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes, recording an assist in Portland's 2-0 win over DC.
Eddie Johnson - Seattle - Started and played 72 minutes in Seattle's 4-0 loss to LA. Came off the bench and played 45 minutes in the USA's 4-2 loss to Belgium.
Chris Konopka - Philadelphia - Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 5-3 loss to Montreal. Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 2-1 win over Ocean City in the US Open Cup.
Rauwshan McKenzie - Portland - Dressed but did not play in Portland's 2-0 win over DC.
Khari Stephenson - Salt Lake - Dressed but did not play in RSL's 1-1 draw with Chicago. Came off the bench and played 36 minutes scoring a goal in RSL's 3-2 win over Atlanta in the US Open Cup.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Started and played 90 minutes in Columbus' 2-2 draw with New York. Started and played 90 minutes in Columbus' 2-1 win over Dayton in the US Open Cup.
Konrad Warzycha - Columbus - Dressed but did not play in Columbus' 2-2 draw with New York. Started and played 90 minutes in Columbus' 2-1 win over Dayton in the US Open Cup.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Fort Lauderdale - Started and played 90 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 1-0 win over Edmonton. Did not dress in Fort Lauderdale's 2-0 loss to Dallas in the US Open Cup.
Kevin Friedland - Minnesota - Did not play in Minnesota's 3-2 win over Tampa Bay.
Shavar Thomas - Fort Lauderdale - Did not dress in Fort Lauderdale's 1-0 win over Edmonton. Started and played 90 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 2-0 loss to Dallas in the US Open Cup.
USL
Christian Duke - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 64 minutes in Orlando's 4-1 win over Wilmington. Dressed but did not play in Orlando's 3-1 win over Colorado in the US Open Cup.
Dom Dwyer - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 77 minutes, scoring a goal in Orlando's 4-1 win over Wilmington. Started and played 90 minutes, scoring 2 goals in Orlando's 3-1 win over Colorado in the US Open Cup.
Brian Fekete - Orlando - Did not play in Orlando's 4-1 win over Wilmington. Did not dress in Orlando's 3-1 Open Cup win over Colorado.
Cyprian Hedrick - Phoenix - Started and played 90 minutes in Phoenix's 2-2 draw with Charlotte.
Jon Kempin - Orlando (Loan) - Dressed but did not play in Orlando's 4-1 win over Wilmington. Dressed but did not play in Orlando's 3-1 US Open Cup win over Colorado.
Nelson Pizarro - Los Angeles - Started and played 90 minutes, recording an assist in LA's 4-3 win over Charlotte. Started and played 90 minutes in LA's 2-1 loss to Chivas in the US Open Cup.
Mike Reidy - Rochester - Started and played 90 minutes in Rochester's 0-0 draw with Charleston. Started and played 90 minutes in Rochester's 5-1 loss to New England in the US Open Cup.
Yann Songo'o - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 4-1 win over Wilmington. Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 3-1 win over Colorado in the US Open Cup.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 2-0 win over Harrisburg. Started and played 120 minutes in Richmond's 0-0 (4-2) PK shootout loss to DC in the US Open Cup.
John Wilson - Charleston - Dressed but did not play in Charleston's 0-0 draw with Rochester. Started and played 90 minutes in Charleston's 1-0 win over San Jose.
PDL
Scott Angevine - Des Moines - Did not play in Des Moines' 1-0 loss to St. Louis. Started and played 90 minutes in Des Moines' 2-0 loss to KC in the US Open Cup.
Michael Kraus - Tucson - Did not dress in Tucson's 2-1 loss to Ventura County.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Syracuse - Offseason
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason
Boris Pardo - Missouri - Offseason
Craig Rocastle - Missouri - Offseason
Paul Wright - San Diego - Offseason
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - FC Haka - Finland - Dressed but did not play in Haka's 0-0 draw with Jippo.
Stephane Auvray - DPMM FC - Brunei (Singapore League) - Did not dress in DPMM's 1-1 dra with Young Lions.
Vicente Arze - Esteghlal - Iran - No game this week.
Omar Bravo - Atlas - Mexico - Offseason.
Sunil Chhetri - Churchill Brothers - India - Offseason.
Eloy Colombano - UAI Urquiza - Argentina - Lots 1-0 to General Lamadrid.
Daneil Cyrus - W Connection - Trinidad - Offseason
Pablo Escobar - Atletico Huila - Colombia - Did not dress for Huila.
Roger Espinoza - Wigan - England - Offseason.
Gary Glasgow - North East Stars - Trinidad - Offseason
Herculez Gomez - Santos Laguna - Mexico - Dressed but did not play in the USA's 4-2 loss to Belgium.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Offseason.
Jeferson - Bahia - Brazil - Did not dress in either of Bahia's games.
Will John - AZAL - Azerbaijan - Offseason.
Igor Kostrov - Dacia - Moldova - No game this week.
Carlos Marinelli - Universidad San Martin - Peru - Started and played 68 minutes in San Martin's 2-0 loss to Universitario.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Started and played 90 minutes in Spartak's 2-0 win over Alaniya.
Michal Mravec - Zilina - Slovakia - Did not play in Zilina's 2-2 draw with Kosice.
Pablo Punyed - Fylkir - Iceland - Did not dress in either of Fylkir's games.
Ryan Smith - Skoda Xanthi - Greece - Offseason
Milos Stojcev - FK Leotar Trebinje - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes in Leotar's 2-1 win over Slavija.
Matt Taylor - Preußen Münster - Germany - Offseason.
Ivan Trujillo - Llaneros - Colombia - Did not dress for Llaneros.
Diego Walsh - TOT SC - Thailand - Did not dress for TOT.
Active without a club or unknown
Jose Burciaga
Julio Cesar
Doug DeMartin
Birahim Diop
Edson Elcock
Mauro Fuzetti
Willy Guadarrama
Aaron Hohlbein
Mike Jones
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Scott Lorenz
Amir Lowery
Neven Markovic
Akeem Priestly
Scott Sealy
MLS
Davy Arnaud - Montreal - Out injured.
Bobby Convey - Toronto - Did not dress in Toronto's 2-0 loss to New England.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Started and played 72 minutes in RSL's 1-1 draw with Chicago. Dressed but did not play in Salt Lake's 3-2 extra time win over Atlanta in the US Open Cup.
Michael Harrington - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 2-0 win over DC.
Kevin Hartman - New York - Did not dress in New York's 2-2 draw with Columbus. Did not dress in New York's 2-0 win over Reading in the US Open Cup.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes, recording an assist in Portland's 2-0 win over DC.
Eddie Johnson - Seattle - Started and played 72 minutes in Seattle's 4-0 loss to LA. Came off the bench and played 45 minutes in the USA's 4-2 loss to Belgium.
Chris Konopka - Philadelphia - Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 5-3 loss to Montreal. Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 2-1 win over Ocean City in the US Open Cup.
Rauwshan McKenzie - Portland - Dressed but did not play in Portland's 2-0 win over DC.
Khari Stephenson - Salt Lake - Dressed but did not play in RSL's 1-1 draw with Chicago. Came off the bench and played 36 minutes scoring a goal in RSL's 3-2 win over Atlanta in the US Open Cup.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Started and played 90 minutes in Columbus' 2-2 draw with New York. Started and played 90 minutes in Columbus' 2-1 win over Dayton in the US Open Cup.
Konrad Warzycha - Columbus - Dressed but did not play in Columbus' 2-2 draw with New York. Started and played 90 minutes in Columbus' 2-1 win over Dayton in the US Open Cup.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Fort Lauderdale - Started and played 90 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 1-0 win over Edmonton. Did not dress in Fort Lauderdale's 2-0 loss to Dallas in the US Open Cup.
Kevin Friedland - Minnesota - Did not play in Minnesota's 3-2 win over Tampa Bay.
Shavar Thomas - Fort Lauderdale - Did not dress in Fort Lauderdale's 1-0 win over Edmonton. Started and played 90 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 2-0 loss to Dallas in the US Open Cup.
USL
Christian Duke - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 64 minutes in Orlando's 4-1 win over Wilmington. Dressed but did not play in Orlando's 3-1 win over Colorado in the US Open Cup.
Dom Dwyer - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 77 minutes, scoring a goal in Orlando's 4-1 win over Wilmington. Started and played 90 minutes, scoring 2 goals in Orlando's 3-1 win over Colorado in the US Open Cup.
Brian Fekete - Orlando - Did not play in Orlando's 4-1 win over Wilmington. Did not dress in Orlando's 3-1 Open Cup win over Colorado.
Cyprian Hedrick - Phoenix - Started and played 90 minutes in Phoenix's 2-2 draw with Charlotte.
Jon Kempin - Orlando (Loan) - Dressed but did not play in Orlando's 4-1 win over Wilmington. Dressed but did not play in Orlando's 3-1 US Open Cup win over Colorado.
Nelson Pizarro - Los Angeles - Started and played 90 minutes, recording an assist in LA's 4-3 win over Charlotte. Started and played 90 minutes in LA's 2-1 loss to Chivas in the US Open Cup.
Mike Reidy - Rochester - Started and played 90 minutes in Rochester's 0-0 draw with Charleston. Started and played 90 minutes in Rochester's 5-1 loss to New England in the US Open Cup.
Yann Songo'o - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 4-1 win over Wilmington. Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 3-1 win over Colorado in the US Open Cup.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 2-0 win over Harrisburg. Started and played 120 minutes in Richmond's 0-0 (4-2) PK shootout loss to DC in the US Open Cup.
John Wilson - Charleston - Dressed but did not play in Charleston's 0-0 draw with Rochester. Started and played 90 minutes in Charleston's 1-0 win over San Jose.
PDL
Scott Angevine - Des Moines - Did not play in Des Moines' 1-0 loss to St. Louis. Started and played 90 minutes in Des Moines' 2-0 loss to KC in the US Open Cup.
Michael Kraus - Tucson - Did not dress in Tucson's 2-1 loss to Ventura County.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Syracuse - Offseason
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason
Boris Pardo - Missouri - Offseason
Craig Rocastle - Missouri - Offseason
Paul Wright - San Diego - Offseason
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - FC Haka - Finland - Dressed but did not play in Haka's 0-0 draw with Jippo.
Stephane Auvray - DPMM FC - Brunei (Singapore League) - Did not dress in DPMM's 1-1 dra with Young Lions.
Vicente Arze - Esteghlal - Iran - No game this week.
Omar Bravo - Atlas - Mexico - Offseason.
Sunil Chhetri - Churchill Brothers - India - Offseason.
Eloy Colombano - UAI Urquiza - Argentina - Lots 1-0 to General Lamadrid.
Daneil Cyrus - W Connection - Trinidad - Offseason
Pablo Escobar - Atletico Huila - Colombia - Did not dress for Huila.
Roger Espinoza - Wigan - England - Offseason.
Gary Glasgow - North East Stars - Trinidad - Offseason
Herculez Gomez - Santos Laguna - Mexico - Dressed but did not play in the USA's 4-2 loss to Belgium.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Offseason.
Jeferson - Bahia - Brazil - Did not dress in either of Bahia's games.
Will John - AZAL - Azerbaijan - Offseason.
Igor Kostrov - Dacia - Moldova - No game this week.
Carlos Marinelli - Universidad San Martin - Peru - Started and played 68 minutes in San Martin's 2-0 loss to Universitario.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Started and played 90 minutes in Spartak's 2-0 win over Alaniya.
Michal Mravec - Zilina - Slovakia - Did not play in Zilina's 2-2 draw with Kosice.
Pablo Punyed - Fylkir - Iceland - Did not dress in either of Fylkir's games.
Ryan Smith - Skoda Xanthi - Greece - Offseason
Milos Stojcev - FK Leotar Trebinje - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes in Leotar's 2-1 win over Slavija.
Matt Taylor - Preußen Münster - Germany - Offseason.
Ivan Trujillo - Llaneros - Colombia - Did not dress for Llaneros.
Diego Walsh - TOT SC - Thailand - Did not dress for TOT.
All Stars to Play Roma at Sporting Park
Tonight during half time of the US friendly against Belgium, the opponent for this year's MLS All Star Game was announced. For the first time since 2003, MLS will play a team from outside the EPL. Italian side AS Roma will be coming to Sporting Park to take on the All Stars on July 31st.
Certainly not the glamor game that many people were hoping for, Roma finished the most recent Serie A in 6th place, out of the champions league. That will certainly raise a red flag with many people who were waiting to buy tickets. It's certainly not the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City, Real Madrid, or Bayern Munich, but I still think it'll be a fun game. It does have more big names than the other most recently rumored team, Valencia. The name that will immediately stick out to US fans, is US international, Michael Bradley, who just finished his first year with the Rome side. Also on the team is Roma legend, Francesco Totti, the 36 year old who has appeared over 500 times for Roma. There's also current Italian international, Daniele De Rossi. It's not going to be the epic game that I think many Sporting fans were hoping for, but I still thing this will be a fun game.
Certainly not the glamor game that many people were hoping for, Roma finished the most recent Serie A in 6th place, out of the champions league. That will certainly raise a red flag with many people who were waiting to buy tickets. It's certainly not the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City, Real Madrid, or Bayern Munich, but I still think it'll be a fun game. It does have more big names than the other most recently rumored team, Valencia. The name that will immediately stick out to US fans, is US international, Michael Bradley, who just finished his first year with the Rome side. Also on the team is Roma legend, Francesco Totti, the 36 year old who has appeared over 500 times for Roma. There's also current Italian international, Daniele De Rossi. It's not going to be the epic game that I think many Sporting fans were hoping for, but I still thing this will be a fun game.
S.A.S. Wednesday After Stats
This was the third time KC has played Des Moines in the tournament proper. That's tied with Colorado and Chicago for the most against one team.
At 20 years, 97 days, Mikey Lopez became the 9th youngest player to play a game for Sporting KC.
He also became the 9th youngest player to start a game for Sporting KC.
Kei Kamara's goal was his 3rd in the US Open Cup proper for KC, tying him with Ryan Pore for the third most all time.
It was also his 3rd goal in the US Open Cup including qualifiers, tying him with Pore and Teal Bunbury for fourth all time on that list.
The game winner was Kamara's 10th game winner for KC in all competitions, breaking his tie with Miklos Molnar for 5th on that list.
Chance Myers recorded his 10th assist in all competitions.
Myers made his 11th appearance in Open Cup competitions (qualifiers and the tournament proper), that ties him with Preki for the 5th most appearances.
It was Myers' 8th appearance in the tournament proper. That ties him with Josh Wolff, Matt McKeon, Michael Harrington, and Matt Besler for 6th on that list.
It was Myers' 10th start in Open Cup competitions, giving him sole possession of 3rd place on that list.
It was his 8th start in the tournament proper, tying him with McKeon and Chris Klein for the 3rd most all time for KC.
Eric Kronberg made his 9th start in all open cup competitions, tying him with Harrington and Jimmy Conrad for 4th on that list.
Kronberg earned his 5th win in US Open Cup competitions, breaking his tie with Tony Meola for the most in team history.
At 20 years, 97 days, Mikey Lopez became the 9th youngest player to play a game for Sporting KC.
He also became the 9th youngest player to start a game for Sporting KC.
Kei Kamara's goal was his 3rd in the US Open Cup proper for KC, tying him with Ryan Pore for the third most all time.
It was also his 3rd goal in the US Open Cup including qualifiers, tying him with Pore and Teal Bunbury for fourth all time on that list.
The game winner was Kamara's 10th game winner for KC in all competitions, breaking his tie with Miklos Molnar for 5th on that list.
Chance Myers recorded his 10th assist in all competitions.
Myers made his 11th appearance in Open Cup competitions (qualifiers and the tournament proper), that ties him with Preki for the 5th most appearances.
It was Myers' 8th appearance in the tournament proper. That ties him with Josh Wolff, Matt McKeon, Michael Harrington, and Matt Besler for 6th on that list.
It was Myers' 10th start in Open Cup competitions, giving him sole possession of 3rd place on that list.
It was his 8th start in the tournament proper, tying him with McKeon and Chris Klein for the 3rd most all time for KC.
Eric Kronberg made his 9th start in all open cup competitions, tying him with Harrington and Jimmy Conrad for 4th on that list.
Kronberg earned his 5th win in US Open Cup competitions, breaking his tie with Tony Meola for the most in team history.
Getting the Job Done
It wasn't a blow out, and it wasn't always pretty, but Sporting Kansas City took care of business against their PDL foes, the Des Moines Menace tonight 2-0 at Sporting Park to advance to the fourth round of the US Open Cup. Goals by Kei Kamara and Claudio Bieler in each half gave Sporting the goals they required.
KC came out from the start and looked to find an early goal. Inside the first few minutes they should have been up 1-0. A cross from Mechack Jerome skipped over the head of a Menace defender to Kamara. Kamara controlled the ball on his chest and fired a ball towards goal, but it hit the side netting keeping the score 0-0. Sporting should have had another goal shortly after. After some work down the left the ball made it's way through the box to Chance Myers. With goalkeeper Scott Angevine out of position, Myers looked to have a goal, but his shot was right at a Menace defender and the score remained 0-0. Finally in the 12th minute, Kansas City grabbed the lead. Of a short corner the ball was played to Myers at the top of the box. Myers cut in and then fired a cross across the box where it was turned into the net by Kamara to give KC the 1-0 lead. After the goal, Des Moines seemed to pick their game up and started to actually come out and try to really attack KC. They were actually unlucky to not equalize as the half went on. A nice through ball found Shadow Sebele alone on goal with Eric Kronberg. Sporting's back up goalkeeper did a good job of pushing the ball away from Sebele in challenging for the ball. Sebele won the ball back though and fired a cross towards the back post. The ball though was a little too fast for a sliding Chris Harmon, who would have had a tap in had he made contact. KC had the better chances though and just could not find a second goal.
In the second half, KC continued to push the game, attacking the Menace from the start, looking to grab a second and put the game to bed. The Menace defense though held fire making blocks and Angevine coming up with saves. He did a really nice job on Mechack Jerome, who throughout the half came up with some very good efforts from range outside the box that were either blocked or saved. CJ Sapong also forced a nice save out of Angevine after a short from distance. KC kept coming, inserting two starters from Sunday's contest with Houston, Jacob Peterson and Claudio Bieler. Shortly after his insertion, Peterson and Jerome hooked up on a give and go but Peterson's cross to the back post saw Sapong not reach it until the angle was too narrow for him to do much with. Shortly after that though KC found a second, and it was again Peterson who was the architect. Another cross from Peterson this time found Bieler on the back post and he beat Angevine to make it 2-0. KC kept searching for more goals and were unlucky to add to the total. Bieler had a nice effort blocked from the top of the box. Then KC had the ball twice hit the cross bar in one play. Off a corner kick that was played towards the near post, the ball was flicked towards goal and hit the cross bar. It deflected over to Benny Feilhaber who controlled the ball on his chest and then volleyed the ball, but didn't get over it enough from a tight angle and fired it into the cross bar again. Overall KC really should have put 5 or 6 on the board against the PDL side, but the two were enough to see KC through to the 4th round and a date with USL affiliate, Orlando City.
Wizards Man of the Match - Mechack Jerome - The Haitian had himself an extremely strong game, not only defensively, but also getting himself up the field and crossing the ball into the box. Would have liked to have seen more to the back post in the first half when Kamara was matched up with a defender a head and a half shorter than him, but Jerome did a good job overall and was unlucky to not add a goal to his total today.
Player Ratings - Kronberg 7, Jerome 8 - Collin 7, Olum 7, Gardner 6, Lopez 6, Thomas 5, Feilhaber 6. Myers 6, Sapong 5, Kamara 7. Subs Peterson 7, Bieler 7, Rosell NR.
KC came out from the start and looked to find an early goal. Inside the first few minutes they should have been up 1-0. A cross from Mechack Jerome skipped over the head of a Menace defender to Kamara. Kamara controlled the ball on his chest and fired a ball towards goal, but it hit the side netting keeping the score 0-0. Sporting should have had another goal shortly after. After some work down the left the ball made it's way through the box to Chance Myers. With goalkeeper Scott Angevine out of position, Myers looked to have a goal, but his shot was right at a Menace defender and the score remained 0-0. Finally in the 12th minute, Kansas City grabbed the lead. Of a short corner the ball was played to Myers at the top of the box. Myers cut in and then fired a cross across the box where it was turned into the net by Kamara to give KC the 1-0 lead. After the goal, Des Moines seemed to pick their game up and started to actually come out and try to really attack KC. They were actually unlucky to not equalize as the half went on. A nice through ball found Shadow Sebele alone on goal with Eric Kronberg. Sporting's back up goalkeeper did a good job of pushing the ball away from Sebele in challenging for the ball. Sebele won the ball back though and fired a cross towards the back post. The ball though was a little too fast for a sliding Chris Harmon, who would have had a tap in had he made contact. KC had the better chances though and just could not find a second goal.
In the second half, KC continued to push the game, attacking the Menace from the start, looking to grab a second and put the game to bed. The Menace defense though held fire making blocks and Angevine coming up with saves. He did a really nice job on Mechack Jerome, who throughout the half came up with some very good efforts from range outside the box that were either blocked or saved. CJ Sapong also forced a nice save out of Angevine after a short from distance. KC kept coming, inserting two starters from Sunday's contest with Houston, Jacob Peterson and Claudio Bieler. Shortly after his insertion, Peterson and Jerome hooked up on a give and go but Peterson's cross to the back post saw Sapong not reach it until the angle was too narrow for him to do much with. Shortly after that though KC found a second, and it was again Peterson who was the architect. Another cross from Peterson this time found Bieler on the back post and he beat Angevine to make it 2-0. KC kept searching for more goals and were unlucky to add to the total. Bieler had a nice effort blocked from the top of the box. Then KC had the ball twice hit the cross bar in one play. Off a corner kick that was played towards the near post, the ball was flicked towards goal and hit the cross bar. It deflected over to Benny Feilhaber who controlled the ball on his chest and then volleyed the ball, but didn't get over it enough from a tight angle and fired it into the cross bar again. Overall KC really should have put 5 or 6 on the board against the PDL side, but the two were enough to see KC through to the 4th round and a date with USL affiliate, Orlando City.
Wizards Man of the Match - Mechack Jerome - The Haitian had himself an extremely strong game, not only defensively, but also getting himself up the field and crossing the ball into the box. Would have liked to have seen more to the back post in the first half when Kamara was matched up with a defender a head and a half shorter than him, but Jerome did a good job overall and was unlucky to not add a goal to his total today.
Player Ratings - Kronberg 7, Jerome 8 - Collin 7, Olum 7, Gardner 6, Lopez 6, Thomas 5, Feilhaber 6. Myers 6, Sapong 5, Kamara 7. Subs Peterson 7, Bieler 7, Rosell NR.
Monday, May 27, 2013
All Star Opponent Rumors
Just over two months until the All Star game, we are still awaiting word on who the opponent for the match will be on July 31st at Sporting Park. There have been plenty of rumors swirling over the last month or so about who the opponent will be, but they've really picked up over the last few day.
Early rumors in the process was that recently crowned European Champions, Bayern Munich would be the opponent for the All Stars. Munich though will be hosting the Audi Cup along with Manchester City, AC Milan, and Sao Paulo at the exact same time the All Star game is going on. So no German champs at Sporting Park this summer. Which is unfortunate because Munich would have been quite a fun game, despite what Simon Borg things about them being too "mechanical."
More recently there have been more rumors. Saturday on Twitter, Steven Goff from the Washington Post, posted that it looked like Valencia would be the All Star opponents. Currently the 4th place team in Spain, in position to potentially qualify for the Champions League next year. Unfortunately though there are really only two teams in Spain that most people care about and Valencia isn't one of them. The way the Spanish table works out, Valencia was actually closer to relegation than it was to winning La Liga this year. They're closer to the 8th place team in the table than second, and closer to sixth than 3rd. The top heavy table leaves a lack of excitement for the rest of the table. It also doesn't help that Valencia really lacks much name recognition on their roster that will bring in more casual fans.
Today another rumor came out, this one from Taylor Twellman. Twellman posted that he'd heard rumors that AS Roma would be the opponent for the MLS All Stars. While Roma finished 6th in Serie A this past season, from some casual conversations I've had since seeing Twellman's tweet, more people were excited over this than Valencia. There were two main reasons for that. The first was Michael Bradley. The US international plays for Roma and as long as he's not on the Gold Cup roster (which is possible with Jurgen Klinsmann likely to have changes between World Cup qualifiers and the Gold Cup), I'd expect Bradley to be part of any Roma tour of the US. The other reason is because of Francesco Totti. The Roma legend would give some name power to the All Star game. The problem with the Roma rumor though is that they look like they're heading to Asia.
On the other hand I've also heard from a number of people who are going to be disappointed unless the opponent is one of the big names from the big leagues, the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Munich, Dortmund, Juventus, etc. And without those teams, some people are starting to already regret the money that they're dropping on tickets for a game against a team that they feel under delivers for an All Star event. At this point it doesn't look like one of those big names will be at Sporting Park. You can already sense the disappointment coming from a number of people.
Early rumors in the process was that recently crowned European Champions, Bayern Munich would be the opponent for the All Stars. Munich though will be hosting the Audi Cup along with Manchester City, AC Milan, and Sao Paulo at the exact same time the All Star game is going on. So no German champs at Sporting Park this summer. Which is unfortunate because Munich would have been quite a fun game, despite what Simon Borg things about them being too "mechanical."
More recently there have been more rumors. Saturday on Twitter, Steven Goff from the Washington Post, posted that it looked like Valencia would be the All Star opponents. Currently the 4th place team in Spain, in position to potentially qualify for the Champions League next year. Unfortunately though there are really only two teams in Spain that most people care about and Valencia isn't one of them. The way the Spanish table works out, Valencia was actually closer to relegation than it was to winning La Liga this year. They're closer to the 8th place team in the table than second, and closer to sixth than 3rd. The top heavy table leaves a lack of excitement for the rest of the table. It also doesn't help that Valencia really lacks much name recognition on their roster that will bring in more casual fans.
Today another rumor came out, this one from Taylor Twellman. Twellman posted that he'd heard rumors that AS Roma would be the opponent for the MLS All Stars. While Roma finished 6th in Serie A this past season, from some casual conversations I've had since seeing Twellman's tweet, more people were excited over this than Valencia. There were two main reasons for that. The first was Michael Bradley. The US international plays for Roma and as long as he's not on the Gold Cup roster (which is possible with Jurgen Klinsmann likely to have changes between World Cup qualifiers and the Gold Cup), I'd expect Bradley to be part of any Roma tour of the US. The other reason is because of Francesco Totti. The Roma legend would give some name power to the All Star game. The problem with the Roma rumor though is that they look like they're heading to Asia.
On the other hand I've also heard from a number of people who are going to be disappointed unless the opponent is one of the big names from the big leagues, the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Munich, Dortmund, Juventus, etc. And without those teams, some people are starting to already regret the money that they're dropping on tickets for a game against a team that they feel under delivers for an All Star event. At this point it doesn't look like one of those big names will be at Sporting Park. You can already sense the disappointment coming from a number of people.
Cup Defense Begins
Sporting Kansas City will begin their defense of the US Open Cup tomorrow at Sporting Park when they'll take on the PDL side, Des Moines Menace. This will be the third time that the two teams have met in a competitive game, all in US Open Cup play. The two teams first met in 2005 at Julian Field on the campus of Park University in the tournament's 4th round. KC got a brace each from Davy Arnaud and Josh Wolff en route to a 6-1 win over the team. The two teams met a year later, this time in the 3rd round. A stoppage time winner by Scott Sealy saved KC the blushes of extra time as KC won 2-1.
Des Moines advanced to the match up with Kansas City by pulling off an upset in the tournament's second round, beating Minnesota United 1-0 last week. Former SKC Academy player, Brandon Fricke scored the winner for the Menace while former goalkeeper, Scott Angevine got the shutout. The Menace are in a very busy portion of their schedule. The game between the two teams will be their third in a six game stretch all in 15 day stretch, and all of them being on the road. They switched up the lineup a bit, making eight changes from the team that beat Minnesota in their 1-0 loss in St. Louis this past Saturday. That means that they should come into KC with a rested starting group for the most part.
On Kansas City's side of things, Sporting is going to be down a few players for the match. KC will be missing three players due to national team duty. Soony Saad is still away with the Lebanon national team, while Matt Besler and Graham Zusi left the team after the game yesterday against Houston to join the US national team for their two friendlies and three World Cup qualifiers coming up in the next few weeks. The team was supposed to be without US U20 midfielder, Mikey Lopez, who was supposed to join the US U20 team in Toulon France for the tournament there that kicks off tomorrow, but Lopez was on the bench for yesterday's game, and it hasn't been mentioned that he's left so I think he very well could make his debut for KC tomorrow. I expect a few other changes to the lineup ahead of tomorrow's game, but not too many, as KC's roster is thin at the moment. It could be even thinner if Aurelien Collin, Benny Feilhaber, and CJ Sapong are unable to go. Those three missed the game Sunday due to injury issues and if they're not ready to go tomorrow, would leave KC with just 18 players available for tomorrow. I think those three though may at least get some time tomorrow, just so that KC puts a more competitive team out on the field.
Number to Remember - 1 - That's the number of goals scored by Des Moines in the two matches against KC the last two times these teams have met in the US Open Cup. Des Moines also hasn't scored, or allowed more than one goal in any game so far this season. The Menace have won 3 games this season by a 1-0 scoreline. They also have a 1-1 draw and a 1-0 loss so far this year. On the bad side, each of the two times that KC has played Des Moines, while they've won the two games, they've only advanced the one round further before being knocked out.
Key Match Up - KC offense vs Des Moines defense - Against Minnesota, Des Moines sat very deep in their own end and tried to hit them on the counter or through set pieces. That's how Des Moines got their lone goal in the 1-0 win, off a set piece. KC has shown some struggles in breaking down a team that bunkers in, especially when that team is on the road.
PREDICTION - On paper this isn't a challenge for KC, but this is the glamor of the Open Cup, it gives teams like Des Moines that one chance to pull off the big upset against the big boys. KC has officially never lost to a PDL team in the Open Cup, going 3-0-1 in their history (they lost on penalty kicks against the Chicago Sockers in 2000, but that officially goes down as a draw). Even with KC's depleted lineup from call ups and injuries this is a game that Sporting should easily take care of business.
SKC - 3 (Sapong, Kamara, Olum)
DM - 0
Des Moines advanced to the match up with Kansas City by pulling off an upset in the tournament's second round, beating Minnesota United 1-0 last week. Former SKC Academy player, Brandon Fricke scored the winner for the Menace while former goalkeeper, Scott Angevine got the shutout. The Menace are in a very busy portion of their schedule. The game between the two teams will be their third in a six game stretch all in 15 day stretch, and all of them being on the road. They switched up the lineup a bit, making eight changes from the team that beat Minnesota in their 1-0 loss in St. Louis this past Saturday. That means that they should come into KC with a rested starting group for the most part.
On Kansas City's side of things, Sporting is going to be down a few players for the match. KC will be missing three players due to national team duty. Soony Saad is still away with the Lebanon national team, while Matt Besler and Graham Zusi left the team after the game yesterday against Houston to join the US national team for their two friendlies and three World Cup qualifiers coming up in the next few weeks. The team was supposed to be without US U20 midfielder, Mikey Lopez, who was supposed to join the US U20 team in Toulon France for the tournament there that kicks off tomorrow, but Lopez was on the bench for yesterday's game, and it hasn't been mentioned that he's left so I think he very well could make his debut for KC tomorrow. I expect a few other changes to the lineup ahead of tomorrow's game, but not too many, as KC's roster is thin at the moment. It could be even thinner if Aurelien Collin, Benny Feilhaber, and CJ Sapong are unable to go. Those three missed the game Sunday due to injury issues and if they're not ready to go tomorrow, would leave KC with just 18 players available for tomorrow. I think those three though may at least get some time tomorrow, just so that KC puts a more competitive team out on the field.
Kronberg
Myers - Opara - Olum - Gardner
Thomas - Lopez
Joseph
Kamara - Sapong - Miller
Number to Remember - 1 - That's the number of goals scored by Des Moines in the two matches against KC the last two times these teams have met in the US Open Cup. Des Moines also hasn't scored, or allowed more than one goal in any game so far this season. The Menace have won 3 games this season by a 1-0 scoreline. They also have a 1-1 draw and a 1-0 loss so far this year. On the bad side, each of the two times that KC has played Des Moines, while they've won the two games, they've only advanced the one round further before being knocked out.
Key Match Up - KC offense vs Des Moines defense - Against Minnesota, Des Moines sat very deep in their own end and tried to hit them on the counter or through set pieces. That's how Des Moines got their lone goal in the 1-0 win, off a set piece. KC has shown some struggles in breaking down a team that bunkers in, especially when that team is on the road.
PREDICTION - On paper this isn't a challenge for KC, but this is the glamor of the Open Cup, it gives teams like Des Moines that one chance to pull off the big upset against the big boys. KC has officially never lost to a PDL team in the Open Cup, going 3-0-1 in their history (they lost on penalty kicks against the Chicago Sockers in 2000, but that officially goes down as a draw). Even with KC's depleted lineup from call ups and injuries this is a game that Sporting should easily take care of business.
SKC - 3 (Sapong, Kamara, Olum)
DM - 0
S.A.S. Monday After Stats
Seth Sinovic made his 100th appearance in all competitions in his MLS career.
Kei Kamara scored his 32nd league goal for KC, breaking his tie with Mo Johnston for 5th place for KC.
In the 53rd minute, Matt Besler moved past Diego Gutierrez and into 13th place in minutes played in league play for KC. Besler finished the game with 9,801 minutes played.
Besler made his 113th league appearance for KC, tying him with Roger Espinoza for 18th place on that list.
Besler made his 131st appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Jose Burciaga, Uche Okafor, and Espinoza for 16th place on that list.
Besler made his 124th league start for KC, breaking his tie with Burciaga for 14th place on that list.
Besler and Jimmy Nielsen both made their 108th league start for KC, tying them with Gutierrez for 14th place on that list.
Nielsen made his 117th start in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Okafor for 16th place on that list.
The draw was Nielsen's 30th in league play for KC, tying him with Tony Meola for the most in team history.
It was Nielsen's 31st draw in all competitions, tying him with Bo Oshoniyi for 2nd on that list.
Kei Kamara scored his 32nd league goal for KC, breaking his tie with Mo Johnston for 5th place for KC.
In the 53rd minute, Matt Besler moved past Diego Gutierrez and into 13th place in minutes played in league play for KC. Besler finished the game with 9,801 minutes played.
Besler made his 113th league appearance for KC, tying him with Roger Espinoza for 18th place on that list.
Besler made his 131st appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Jose Burciaga, Uche Okafor, and Espinoza for 16th place on that list.
Besler made his 124th league start for KC, breaking his tie with Burciaga for 14th place on that list.
Besler and Jimmy Nielsen both made their 108th league start for KC, tying them with Gutierrez for 14th place on that list.
Nielsen made his 117th start in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Okafor for 16th place on that list.
The draw was Nielsen's 30th in league play for KC, tying him with Tony Meola for the most in team history.
It was Nielsen's 31st draw in all competitions, tying him with Bo Oshoniyi for 2nd on that list.
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Grudge Match as Advertised
Sporting Kansas City had an opportunity to move up the table today in the Eastern Conference against an undermanned Houston side that was missing both of their starting center backs. Unfortunately for Kansas City, they were back to many of their old tricks, out shooting their opponent, but not able to find the net. Kansas City out shot the Dynamo 17-12 and 5-1 in shots on goal, but KC could only manage one goal, while the Dynamo took advantage of their single shot on goal and KC ended up with a 1-1 draw.
The Dynamo actually had a fantastic chance to take the lead in the 7th minute off the foot of Brad Davis from a free kick. Just outside the box, Davis played a ball right into the middle of the box. Will Bruin got a glancing header on it, but not enough to put it on frame and the shot went just wide of the post. KC had the better of play throughout the first half, but struggled to create opportunities. They had a decent chance off a free kick from just outside the box that Mechack Jerome blasted just over the bar. Their best opportunity of the first half came in the 36th minute off a Matt Besler throw in. Besler launched a ball that went all the way to the back post. There Graham Zusi had lost his man and fired a header on goal. Tally Hall though got down very well and saved the shot at the lower corner of the post.
The game looked to take a disastrous turn for KC in the 39th minute. The Dynamo worked the ball down KC's left and then the ball was played into the middle for Davis. Davis had a direct path towards the net if not for a great tackle by Oriol Rosell. Referee Drew Fischer saw the play totally different though and pointed to the penalty spot, much to the shock of KC and the fans. Sporting will hear from the league for mass confrontation over the play, and it'd be hard to blame them as replays showed the Rosell made a perfect tackle to win the ball. After a few KC players had gone over to confront the assistant referee to have him talk to the center, Fischer and his linesman conversed. After this conversation, Fischer overturned his call and gave a drop ball.
KC came back down the field after the play was restarted and almost found the opener. Some nice one touch passing through the midfield found the ball at the feet of Paulo Nagamura. Nagamura fired a shot/cross towards the far post, but Jacob Peterson was a step slow on his slide and the ball rolled wide of the post. Into stoppage time of the first half the Dynamo grabbed the lead. A free kick from the left was flicked on into the path of Will Bruin who was posted up on Ike Opara. Bruin laid the ball into the path of an on rushing Davis who wasn't followed by Nagamura or Matt Besler. Davis fired near post on Jimmy Nielsen beating him to make it 1-0. Nielsen for some reason got caught moving to his far post, which left his near post totally exposed for Davis to fire in.
KC pushed the game from the start of the second half, looking to find an equalizer. They had a great opportunity in the 52nd. A Besler long throw was knocked around in the box until it fell to Claudio Bieler. Bieler's shot though was blocked out for a corner. In the 68th minute, KC found their equalizer. After some nice passing around the field, Bieler squared a ball in the middle for Kei Kamara. Kamara cut back towards Bieler and then fired a shot across his body and into the corner to make it 1-1. KC continued to pressure looking to take the lead against the Dynamo. In the 76th Hall was forced to make another big save. Off a Zusi free kick the ball was played into the box where it was flicked on by Kamara. Hall through got a hand up and deflected the shot over the bar for a corner. KC kept throwing numbers forward but couldn't find a way past Hall to give KC the lead. Then in stoppage time the Dynamo almost grabbed a winner. After a corner, the Dynamo broke out on a counter. The ball was played to Jason Johnson who got in behind KC's defense. With only Nielsen to beat, Johnson looked set to force Nielsen to keep the game level. But a great sliding challenge by a recovering Nagamura knocked the ball out for a corner and preserved the draw.
Wizards Man of the Match - Kei Kamara - Came on as a sub before the hour mark and stamped his authority on the game. He's struggled to really make an impact since coming back from Norwich, but he was a catalyst that really helped KC force the tempo and change things up. He brought a level of spontaneity that the team lacked.
Player Ratings - Nielsen 5, Sinvoic 5, Opara 4, Besler 5, Jerome 5, Rosell 5, Nagamura 6, Joseph 5, Zusi 6, Bieler 6, Peterson 5. Subs Myers 5, Kamara 7, Olum NR.
The Dynamo actually had a fantastic chance to take the lead in the 7th minute off the foot of Brad Davis from a free kick. Just outside the box, Davis played a ball right into the middle of the box. Will Bruin got a glancing header on it, but not enough to put it on frame and the shot went just wide of the post. KC had the better of play throughout the first half, but struggled to create opportunities. They had a decent chance off a free kick from just outside the box that Mechack Jerome blasted just over the bar. Their best opportunity of the first half came in the 36th minute off a Matt Besler throw in. Besler launched a ball that went all the way to the back post. There Graham Zusi had lost his man and fired a header on goal. Tally Hall though got down very well and saved the shot at the lower corner of the post.
The game looked to take a disastrous turn for KC in the 39th minute. The Dynamo worked the ball down KC's left and then the ball was played into the middle for Davis. Davis had a direct path towards the net if not for a great tackle by Oriol Rosell. Referee Drew Fischer saw the play totally different though and pointed to the penalty spot, much to the shock of KC and the fans. Sporting will hear from the league for mass confrontation over the play, and it'd be hard to blame them as replays showed the Rosell made a perfect tackle to win the ball. After a few KC players had gone over to confront the assistant referee to have him talk to the center, Fischer and his linesman conversed. After this conversation, Fischer overturned his call and gave a drop ball.
KC came back down the field after the play was restarted and almost found the opener. Some nice one touch passing through the midfield found the ball at the feet of Paulo Nagamura. Nagamura fired a shot/cross towards the far post, but Jacob Peterson was a step slow on his slide and the ball rolled wide of the post. Into stoppage time of the first half the Dynamo grabbed the lead. A free kick from the left was flicked on into the path of Will Bruin who was posted up on Ike Opara. Bruin laid the ball into the path of an on rushing Davis who wasn't followed by Nagamura or Matt Besler. Davis fired near post on Jimmy Nielsen beating him to make it 1-0. Nielsen for some reason got caught moving to his far post, which left his near post totally exposed for Davis to fire in.
KC pushed the game from the start of the second half, looking to find an equalizer. They had a great opportunity in the 52nd. A Besler long throw was knocked around in the box until it fell to Claudio Bieler. Bieler's shot though was blocked out for a corner. In the 68th minute, KC found their equalizer. After some nice passing around the field, Bieler squared a ball in the middle for Kei Kamara. Kamara cut back towards Bieler and then fired a shot across his body and into the corner to make it 1-1. KC continued to pressure looking to take the lead against the Dynamo. In the 76th Hall was forced to make another big save. Off a Zusi free kick the ball was played into the box where it was flicked on by Kamara. Hall through got a hand up and deflected the shot over the bar for a corner. KC kept throwing numbers forward but couldn't find a way past Hall to give KC the lead. Then in stoppage time the Dynamo almost grabbed a winner. After a corner, the Dynamo broke out on a counter. The ball was played to Jason Johnson who got in behind KC's defense. With only Nielsen to beat, Johnson looked set to force Nielsen to keep the game level. But a great sliding challenge by a recovering Nagamura knocked the ball out for a corner and preserved the draw.
Wizards Man of the Match - Kei Kamara - Came on as a sub before the hour mark and stamped his authority on the game. He's struggled to really make an impact since coming back from Norwich, but he was a catalyst that really helped KC force the tempo and change things up. He brought a level of spontaneity that the team lacked.
Player Ratings - Nielsen 5, Sinvoic 5, Opara 4, Besler 5, Jerome 5, Rosell 5, Nagamura 6, Joseph 5, Zusi 6, Bieler 6, Peterson 5. Subs Myers 5, Kamara 7, Olum NR.
FC Kansas City Fall at Home for the First Time
FC Kansas City dropped their first decision at home this season in front of 4,186 fans on Verizon Wireless Field at Shawnee Mission District Stadium. Following a foul in the penalty box that ultimately resulted in Lauren Sesselmann being ejected from the game, Sky Blue’s Sophie Schmidt converted a penalty kick in the 23rd minute to hand Kansas City the 1-0 loss.
Sky Blue FC came into tonight’s match unbeaten in their last four games while FC Kansas City was unbeaten at home. In what was billed as one of the marquee matchups of the weekend, both teams attacked early looking to find an early advantage. In the 23rd minute, Lisa DeVanna received a pass from her Sky Blue teammate and drove straight at the Kansas City defense. As the defense collapsed on her in the box, Becky Sauerbrunn and Lauren Sesselmann knocked the ball from her feet. Referee, John McCloskey, immediately pointed to the penalty spot and showed Lauren Sesselmann a straight red-card. The ejection was issued to the Canadian international for ‘Denying an Obvious Goal Scoring Opportunity by Foul’ and the Blues were forced to play the remainder of the game short-handed.
Sophie Schmidt scored the resulting penalty kick to give her side the 1-0 lead. Despite having to play with only ten players, Kansas City controlled much of the possession late in the first half and throughout the second half. In the final five minutes of the match, as Sky Blue drew in their defense to preserve the victory, FC Kansas City managed several quality scoring opportunities, outshooting Sky Blue 13-10 on the night. Unfortunately, they were not able to convert any of those opportunities, including a last-minute corner kick that Nicole Barnhart headed over her opposition’s net.
FC Kansas City gets the week off to recover from the loss, just as six of their players head off for their respective national teams. The U.S. Women’s National Team faces off against Team Canada on June 2nd in a friendly re-match of the London Olympics Semi-Final.
The Blues are back in action on June 6th and June 9th in Portland and Seattle respectively. The team returns to Verizon Wireless field on June 16th to face the Chicago Red Stars in the second game of a home-and-home series.
Sky Blue FC came into tonight’s match unbeaten in their last four games while FC Kansas City was unbeaten at home. In what was billed as one of the marquee matchups of the weekend, both teams attacked early looking to find an early advantage. In the 23rd minute, Lisa DeVanna received a pass from her Sky Blue teammate and drove straight at the Kansas City defense. As the defense collapsed on her in the box, Becky Sauerbrunn and Lauren Sesselmann knocked the ball from her feet. Referee, John McCloskey, immediately pointed to the penalty spot and showed Lauren Sesselmann a straight red-card. The ejection was issued to the Canadian international for ‘Denying an Obvious Goal Scoring Opportunity by Foul’ and the Blues were forced to play the remainder of the game short-handed.
Sophie Schmidt scored the resulting penalty kick to give her side the 1-0 lead. Despite having to play with only ten players, Kansas City controlled much of the possession late in the first half and throughout the second half. In the final five minutes of the match, as Sky Blue drew in their defense to preserve the victory, FC Kansas City managed several quality scoring opportunities, outshooting Sky Blue 13-10 on the night. Unfortunately, they were not able to convert any of those opportunities, including a last-minute corner kick that Nicole Barnhart headed over her opposition’s net.
FC Kansas City gets the week off to recover from the loss, just as six of their players head off for their respective national teams. The U.S. Women’s National Team faces off against Team Canada on June 2nd in a friendly re-match of the London Olympics Semi-Final.
The Blues are back in action on June 6th and June 9th in Portland and Seattle respectively. The team returns to Verizon Wireless field on June 16th to face the Chicago Red Stars in the second game of a home-and-home series.
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Grudge Match
It's been only 2 weeks since Sporting Kansas City handed Houston their first loss at home on the season. Since then Houston has actually started a losing streak at home, losing to New England last weekend as well. So tomorrow at Sporting Park, the Dynamo will be looking for a matter of revenge. The games between these two teams lately have already been intense and physical, and now Houston comes into the game with the extra chip on their shoulder looking for pay back for KC giving them their first loss at BBVA Compass Stadium and their first loss in almost 2 years at home.
Houston comes into the game though a little thin at centerback. The Dynamo will be without at least one, and possibly both of their starting centerbacks. Bobby Boswell is serving the first of a two game suspension for a headbutt in last week's loss to New England. Also in that game, Jermaine Taylor left the game injured in the first half. It's the second game in a row the Jamaican has left a game early due to injury. With both of them potentially out, Houston's centerbacks could be Eric Brunner and Ricardo Clark when they take the field tomorrow. The Dynamo will have their 3 US call ups for the game tomorrow, Corey Ashe, Brad Davis, and Tally Hall are all leaving to join the US team after the game tomorrow.
Like the Dynamo's call ups, Sporting KC's two US call ups, Matt Besler and Graham Zusi will depart after tomorrow's game. Sporting will welcome back starters Aurelien Collin and Oriol Rosell, who both missed last week's game in DC due to yellow card accumulation. This will give KC the opportunity to field their best eleven tomorrow for not only the first time in a while, but the last time as well with all the call ups that are hitting Kansas City in the month of June. The most interesting question heading into the game is probably the right back position and who will start there for Kansas City. Will it be the team's regular, Chance Myers, who has come into his own over the last few seasons, or will it be Mechack Jerome who has filled in very well for KC when he's started.
Key Match Up - Claudio Bieler vs Houston center backs - As I stated above, Houston will be without at least one, possibly both center back starters. With the lack of a consistent pairing there, this could leave a number of openings in Houston's middle for Bieler to expose. That could spell a lot of trouble for the Dynamo, especially if KC score early.
Number to Remember - 3 - It's been three games since KC had a goal scored by someone who was not a defender. In those three games, KC has scored 2 goals, one by Aurelien Collin, the other by Ike Opara. The last goals scored by a someone other than a defender was in KC's 4-0 win over Chivas. Before that? You have to go back to the beginning of April and KC's 1-0 win over DC.
PREDICTION - Sporting KC tends to have a habit of playing to the level of their competition this year. This is evident of their wins over Montreal and on the road at New York and Houston, while also being shown in their loss to Toronto and draws with Chicago, New England, and DC. On that hand you'd think KC would be up for a big game against the Dynamo. But KC has also seemed to struggle when teams come in undermanned. Without Boswell and Taylor, Houston could be ripe for the pickings, but KC needs to actually make them pay? Will they? The only time lately they've shown they could punish a short handed team was against Chivas USA this year.
SKC - 1 (Kamara)
HOU - 1 (Davis)
Houston comes into the game though a little thin at centerback. The Dynamo will be without at least one, and possibly both of their starting centerbacks. Bobby Boswell is serving the first of a two game suspension for a headbutt in last week's loss to New England. Also in that game, Jermaine Taylor left the game injured in the first half. It's the second game in a row the Jamaican has left a game early due to injury. With both of them potentially out, Houston's centerbacks could be Eric Brunner and Ricardo Clark when they take the field tomorrow. The Dynamo will have their 3 US call ups for the game tomorrow, Corey Ashe, Brad Davis, and Tally Hall are all leaving to join the US team after the game tomorrow.
Like the Dynamo's call ups, Sporting KC's two US call ups, Matt Besler and Graham Zusi will depart after tomorrow's game. Sporting will welcome back starters Aurelien Collin and Oriol Rosell, who both missed last week's game in DC due to yellow card accumulation. This will give KC the opportunity to field their best eleven tomorrow for not only the first time in a while, but the last time as well with all the call ups that are hitting Kansas City in the month of June. The most interesting question heading into the game is probably the right back position and who will start there for Kansas City. Will it be the team's regular, Chance Myers, who has come into his own over the last few seasons, or will it be Mechack Jerome who has filled in very well for KC when he's started.
Nielsen
Myers - Collin - Besler - Sinovic
Nagamura - Rosell
Joseph
Kamara - Bieler - Zusi
Key Match Up - Claudio Bieler vs Houston center backs - As I stated above, Houston will be without at least one, possibly both center back starters. With the lack of a consistent pairing there, this could leave a number of openings in Houston's middle for Bieler to expose. That could spell a lot of trouble for the Dynamo, especially if KC score early.
Number to Remember - 3 - It's been three games since KC had a goal scored by someone who was not a defender. In those three games, KC has scored 2 goals, one by Aurelien Collin, the other by Ike Opara. The last goals scored by a someone other than a defender was in KC's 4-0 win over Chivas. Before that? You have to go back to the beginning of April and KC's 1-0 win over DC.
PREDICTION - Sporting KC tends to have a habit of playing to the level of their competition this year. This is evident of their wins over Montreal and on the road at New York and Houston, while also being shown in their loss to Toronto and draws with Chicago, New England, and DC. On that hand you'd think KC would be up for a big game against the Dynamo. But KC has also seemed to struggle when teams come in undermanned. Without Boswell and Taylor, Houston could be ripe for the pickings, but KC needs to actually make them pay? Will they? The only time lately they've shown they could punish a short handed team was against Chivas USA this year.
SKC - 1 (Kamara)
HOU - 1 (Davis)
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Sporting Will Host 4th Round US Open Cup Game if They Beat Des Moines
Today US Soccer held the draw for the 4th round of the 100th edition of the US Open Cup. Sporting Kansas City enters the tournament this coming week against the Des Moines Menace in the 3rd round of the tournament. Should KC advance past the PDL side, Sporting Park will host the 4th round of the tournament as well.
KC's opponent for the game would be one of the Colorado Rapids or Orlando City. Those two teams meet next Tuesday down in Orlando in their 3rd round match up. With Orlando hosting the match against Colorado it could lead to an interesting situation where KC plays their USL affliate, where Christian Duke, Dom Dwyer, Jon Kempin, and Yann Songo'o are all currently playing. Dwyer and Kempin became cap tied to the Lions after appearing for them last night in Orlando's second round win over the Ocala Stampede. The question would be whether any of those four would be able to play against Sporting in the game should Orlando advance. Usually when a player is on loan to another club and that team plays the players' parent club, the loaned player does not play in the game. The reason for this is that it could raise questions of the integrity of the game if Dwyer or Kempin were to mess up. On the other hand I personally think those two (or any of the four loaned players I only mention those two cause they're cap tied already) would want to play against the parent club. Either way I'll be interested to know if the two could play should KC advance.
KC's opponent for the game would be one of the Colorado Rapids or Orlando City. Those two teams meet next Tuesday down in Orlando in their 3rd round match up. With Orlando hosting the match against Colorado it could lead to an interesting situation where KC plays their USL affliate, where Christian Duke, Dom Dwyer, Jon Kempin, and Yann Songo'o are all currently playing. Dwyer and Kempin became cap tied to the Lions after appearing for them last night in Orlando's second round win over the Ocala Stampede. The question would be whether any of those four would be able to play against Sporting in the game should Orlando advance. Usually when a player is on loan to another club and that team plays the players' parent club, the loaned player does not play in the game. The reason for this is that it could raise questions of the integrity of the game if Dwyer or Kempin were to mess up. On the other hand I personally think those two (or any of the four loaned players I only mention those two cause they're cap tied already) would want to play against the parent club. Either way I'll be interested to know if the two could play should KC advance.
Multiple Call ups for Former KC Players - Former SKC Wizards Update
We're heading towards an international break for friendlies and World Cup qualifiers. A couple former KC players have been called up already for national team duty. Daneil Cyrus has been called up for some friendlies for Trinidad, Roger Espinoza has been called up for Honduras' upcoming World Cup qualifiers, while Eddie Johnson and Herculez Gomez have been called up for the USA's upcoming 5 friendlies. Here's the rest of this week's update.
Active without a club or unknown
Jose Burciaga
Julio Cesar
Doug DeMartin
Birahim Diop
Edson Elcock
Mauro Fuzetti
Willy Guadarrama
Aaron Hohlbein
Mike Jones
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Scott Lorenz
Amir Lowery
Neven Markovic
Rauwshan McKenzie
Akeem Priestly
Scott Sealy
MLS
Davy Arnaud - Montreal - No game this week.
Bobby Convey - Toronto - Came off the bench and played 45 minutes in Toronto's 1-0 loss to Columbus.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Started and played 84 minutes in RSL's 4-1 win over Chivas.
Michael Harrington - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 2-2 draw with Vancouver.
Kevin Hartman - New York - Did not dress in New York's 1-0 win over LA.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 77 minutes in Portland's 2-2 draw with Vancouver.
Eddie Johnson - Seattle - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring 2 goals in Seattle's 4-2 win over Dallas.
Chris Konopka - Philadelphia - Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 1-0 win over Chicago.
Khari Stephenson - Salt Lake - Came off the bench and played 6 minutes, recording an assist in RSL's 4-1 win over Chivas.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Started and played 83 minutes in Columbus' 1-0 win over Toronto.
Konrad Warzycha - Columbus - Dressed but did not play in Columbus' 1-0 win over Toronto.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Fort Lauderdale - Did not play in Fort Lauderdale's 3-1 loss to San Antonio. Dressed but did not play in Fort Lauderdale's 1-1 (7-6) PK shootout win over Laredo in the US Open Cup.
Kevin Friedland - Minnesota - Started and played 90 minutes in Minnesota's 3-2 loss to Tampa. Did not play in Minnesota's 1-0 loss to Des Moines in the US Open Cup.
Shavar Thomas - Fort Lauderdale - Started and played 78 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 3-1 loss to San Antonio. Started and played 120 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 1-1 (7-6) PK shootout win over Laredo in the US Open Cup.
USL
Christian Duke - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 2-2 draw with Harrisburg. Came off the bench and played 50 minutes in Orlando's 1-0 win over Rochester. Did not play in Orlando's 2-1 Open Cup win over Ocala.
Dom Dwyer - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring 2 goals in Orlando's 2-2 draw with Harrisburg. Came off the bench and played 25 minutes in Orlando's 1-0 win over Rochester. Started and played 45 minutes, scoring a goal in Orlando's 2-1 US Open Cup win over Ocala.
Brian Fekete - Orlando - Did not dress in Orlando's 2-2 draw with Harrisburg. Did not dress in Orlando's 1-0 win over Rochester. Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 2-1 win over OCala in the US Open Cup.
Cyprian Hedrick - Phoenix - No game this week.
Jon Kempin - Orlando (Loan) - Dressed but did not play in Orlando's 2-2 draw with Harrisburg. Dressed but did not play in Orlando's 1-0 win over Rochester. Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 2-1 win over Ocala in the US Open Cup.
Nelson Pizarro - Los Angeles - Started and played 57 minutes in LA's 1-1 draw with Richmond. Dressed but did not play in LA's 2-1 loss to Wilmington. Started and played 90 mintues in LA's 5-1 win over Ventura County in the US Open Cup.
Mike Reidy - Rochester - Started and played 90 minutes in Rochester's 1-0 loss to Orlando. Started and played 90 minutes in Rochester's 1-0 win over GPS Portland Phoenix 1-0 in the US Open Cup.
Yann Songo'o - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 2-2 draw with Harrisburg. Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 1-0 win over Rochester. Did not play in Orlando's 2-1 win over Ocala in the US Open Cup.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 1-1 draw with LA. Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 4-1 win over Icon FC in the US Open Cup.
John Wilson - Charleston - Dressed but did not play in Charleston's 1-0 win over Houston's reserves. Started and played 90 minutes in Charleston's 1-0 win over the Portland Timbers U23 team in the US Open Cup.
PDL
Scott Angevine - Des Moines - Started and played 90 minutes in Des Moines 1-0 win over Winnipeg. Started and played 90 minutes in Des Moines' 1-0 win over Minnesota in the US Open Cup.
Michael Kraus - Tucson - Did not dress in Tucson's 3-1 win over Southern California.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Syracuse - Offseason
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason
Boris Pardo - Missouri - Offseason
Craig Rocastle - Missouri - Offseason
Paul Wright - San Diego - Offseason
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - FC Haka - Finland - Lost 2-1 to KUPS in the Finnish Cup.
Stephane Auvray - DPMM FC - Brunei (Singapore League) - No game this week.
Vicente Arze - Esteghlal - Iran - Did not dress in Esteghlal's Asian Champions League game.
Omar Bravo - Atlas - Mexico - Offseason.
Sunil Chhetri - Churchill Brothers - India - Offseason.
Eloy Colombano - UAI Urquiza - Argentina - Tied Deportivo Laferrere 0-0.
Daneil Cyrus - W Connection - Trinidad - Offseason
Pablo Escobar - Atletico Huila - Colombia - Did not play in Huila's 1-1 draw with Cucta Deportivo.
Roger Espinoza - Wigan - England - Started and played 90 minutes, recording an assist in Wigan's 2-2 draw with Aston Villa.
Gary Glasgow - North East Stars - Trinidad - Offseason
Herculez Gomez - Santos Laguna - Mexico - Started and played 90 minutes in Santos' 3-0 loss to Cruz Azul. Came off the bench and played 45 minutes in Santos' 2-1 loss to Cruz Azul.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Offseason.
Jeferson - Bahia - Brazil - Did not dress in Bahia's 1-1 draw with Vitoria.
Will John - AZAL - Azerbaijan - Did not dress in AZAL's 4-0 win over Kapaz.
Igor Kostrov - Dacia - Moldova - Started and played 78 minutes in Dacia's 3-1 win over Olimpia. Drew with Zimbru 0-0.
Carlos Marinelli - Universidad San Martin - Peru - Started and played 58 minutes in San Martin's 3-0 loss to Sporting Cristal.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Came off the bench and played 37 minutes in Spartak's 1-0 win over Krasnodar.
Michal Mravec - Zilina - Slovakia - Started and played 62 minutes in Zilina's 2-1 win over Dukla.
Pablo Punyed - Fylkir - Iceland - Started and played 89 minutes in Fylkir's 1-0 loss to Stjarnan. Started and played 20 minutes in Fylkir's 2-2 draw with Keflavik.
Ryan Smith - Skoda Xanthi - Greece - Offseason
Milos Stojcev - FK Leotar Trebinje - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes in Leotar's 4-0 loss to Zeljeznicar.
Matt Taylor - Preußen Münster - Germany - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Munster's 4-1 win over Babelsberg.
Ivan Trujillo - Llaneros - Colombia - Did not dress in Llaneros' 1-1 draw with Universitario Popayan.
Diego Walsh - TOT SC - Thailand - Did not play in TOT's 2-1 loss to Muang Thong United.
Active without a club or unknown
Jose Burciaga
Julio Cesar
Doug DeMartin
Birahim Diop
Edson Elcock
Mauro Fuzetti
Willy Guadarrama
Aaron Hohlbein
Mike Jones
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Scott Lorenz
Amir Lowery
Neven Markovic
Rauwshan McKenzie
Akeem Priestly
Scott Sealy
MLS
Davy Arnaud - Montreal - No game this week.
Bobby Convey - Toronto - Came off the bench and played 45 minutes in Toronto's 1-0 loss to Columbus.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Started and played 84 minutes in RSL's 4-1 win over Chivas.
Michael Harrington - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 2-2 draw with Vancouver.
Kevin Hartman - New York - Did not dress in New York's 1-0 win over LA.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 77 minutes in Portland's 2-2 draw with Vancouver.
Eddie Johnson - Seattle - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring 2 goals in Seattle's 4-2 win over Dallas.
Chris Konopka - Philadelphia - Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 1-0 win over Chicago.
Khari Stephenson - Salt Lake - Came off the bench and played 6 minutes, recording an assist in RSL's 4-1 win over Chivas.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Started and played 83 minutes in Columbus' 1-0 win over Toronto.
Konrad Warzycha - Columbus - Dressed but did not play in Columbus' 1-0 win over Toronto.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Fort Lauderdale - Did not play in Fort Lauderdale's 3-1 loss to San Antonio. Dressed but did not play in Fort Lauderdale's 1-1 (7-6) PK shootout win over Laredo in the US Open Cup.
Kevin Friedland - Minnesota - Started and played 90 minutes in Minnesota's 3-2 loss to Tampa. Did not play in Minnesota's 1-0 loss to Des Moines in the US Open Cup.
Shavar Thomas - Fort Lauderdale - Started and played 78 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 3-1 loss to San Antonio. Started and played 120 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 1-1 (7-6) PK shootout win over Laredo in the US Open Cup.
USL
Christian Duke - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 2-2 draw with Harrisburg. Came off the bench and played 50 minutes in Orlando's 1-0 win over Rochester. Did not play in Orlando's 2-1 Open Cup win over Ocala.
Dom Dwyer - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring 2 goals in Orlando's 2-2 draw with Harrisburg. Came off the bench and played 25 minutes in Orlando's 1-0 win over Rochester. Started and played 45 minutes, scoring a goal in Orlando's 2-1 US Open Cup win over Ocala.
Brian Fekete - Orlando - Did not dress in Orlando's 2-2 draw with Harrisburg. Did not dress in Orlando's 1-0 win over Rochester. Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 2-1 win over OCala in the US Open Cup.
Cyprian Hedrick - Phoenix - No game this week.
Jon Kempin - Orlando (Loan) - Dressed but did not play in Orlando's 2-2 draw with Harrisburg. Dressed but did not play in Orlando's 1-0 win over Rochester. Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 2-1 win over Ocala in the US Open Cup.
Nelson Pizarro - Los Angeles - Started and played 57 minutes in LA's 1-1 draw with Richmond. Dressed but did not play in LA's 2-1 loss to Wilmington. Started and played 90 mintues in LA's 5-1 win over Ventura County in the US Open Cup.
Mike Reidy - Rochester - Started and played 90 minutes in Rochester's 1-0 loss to Orlando. Started and played 90 minutes in Rochester's 1-0 win over GPS Portland Phoenix 1-0 in the US Open Cup.
Yann Songo'o - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 2-2 draw with Harrisburg. Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 1-0 win over Rochester. Did not play in Orlando's 2-1 win over Ocala in the US Open Cup.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 1-1 draw with LA. Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 4-1 win over Icon FC in the US Open Cup.
John Wilson - Charleston - Dressed but did not play in Charleston's 1-0 win over Houston's reserves. Started and played 90 minutes in Charleston's 1-0 win over the Portland Timbers U23 team in the US Open Cup.
PDL
Scott Angevine - Des Moines - Started and played 90 minutes in Des Moines 1-0 win over Winnipeg. Started and played 90 minutes in Des Moines' 1-0 win over Minnesota in the US Open Cup.
Michael Kraus - Tucson - Did not dress in Tucson's 3-1 win over Southern California.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Syracuse - Offseason
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason
Boris Pardo - Missouri - Offseason
Craig Rocastle - Missouri - Offseason
Paul Wright - San Diego - Offseason
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - FC Haka - Finland - Lost 2-1 to KUPS in the Finnish Cup.
Stephane Auvray - DPMM FC - Brunei (Singapore League) - No game this week.
Vicente Arze - Esteghlal - Iran - Did not dress in Esteghlal's Asian Champions League game.
Omar Bravo - Atlas - Mexico - Offseason.
Sunil Chhetri - Churchill Brothers - India - Offseason.
Eloy Colombano - UAI Urquiza - Argentina - Tied Deportivo Laferrere 0-0.
Daneil Cyrus - W Connection - Trinidad - Offseason
Pablo Escobar - Atletico Huila - Colombia - Did not play in Huila's 1-1 draw with Cucta Deportivo.
Roger Espinoza - Wigan - England - Started and played 90 minutes, recording an assist in Wigan's 2-2 draw with Aston Villa.
Gary Glasgow - North East Stars - Trinidad - Offseason
Herculez Gomez - Santos Laguna - Mexico - Started and played 90 minutes in Santos' 3-0 loss to Cruz Azul. Came off the bench and played 45 minutes in Santos' 2-1 loss to Cruz Azul.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Offseason.
Jeferson - Bahia - Brazil - Did not dress in Bahia's 1-1 draw with Vitoria.
Will John - AZAL - Azerbaijan - Did not dress in AZAL's 4-0 win over Kapaz.
Igor Kostrov - Dacia - Moldova - Started and played 78 minutes in Dacia's 3-1 win over Olimpia. Drew with Zimbru 0-0.
Carlos Marinelli - Universidad San Martin - Peru - Started and played 58 minutes in San Martin's 3-0 loss to Sporting Cristal.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Came off the bench and played 37 minutes in Spartak's 1-0 win over Krasnodar.
Michal Mravec - Zilina - Slovakia - Started and played 62 minutes in Zilina's 2-1 win over Dukla.
Pablo Punyed - Fylkir - Iceland - Started and played 89 minutes in Fylkir's 1-0 loss to Stjarnan. Started and played 20 minutes in Fylkir's 2-2 draw with Keflavik.
Ryan Smith - Skoda Xanthi - Greece - Offseason
Milos Stojcev - FK Leotar Trebinje - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes in Leotar's 4-0 loss to Zeljeznicar.
Matt Taylor - Preußen Münster - Germany - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Munster's 4-1 win over Babelsberg.
Ivan Trujillo - Llaneros - Colombia - Did not dress in Llaneros' 1-1 draw with Universitario Popayan.
Diego Walsh - TOT SC - Thailand - Did not play in TOT's 2-1 loss to Muang Thong United.
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Sporting KC to Face Des Moines in US Open Cup
Sporting Kansas City now know their opponent next Tuesday at Sporting Park in the third round of the US Open Cup. Tonight in Minnesota, PDL side (US 4th division), the Des Moines Menace beat NASL (US 2nd division) Minnesota United 1-0. The win will see the Menace travel to KC next week for a game. The 1-0 win came off an 86th minute goal off a header from former KC academy player, Brandon Fricke.
It'll be the 3rd time that Kansas City and Des Moines will meet up in US Open Cup play. Kansas City won the first match up between the two in 2005 at Park University 6-1 off braces by Davy Arnaud and Josh Wolff. The second match up came a year later at Blue Valley District Athletic Complex. KC won that match up as well, 2-1 off a stoppage time winner by Scott Sealy.
This year's match up will be two days after Sporting KC's game Sunday against Houston. But with the number of call ups that Kansas City has, some of KC's first team is likely going to have to play both games on short rest.
In other US Open Cup news, two of Sporting KC's loaned players, Jon Kempin and Dom Dwyer became cap-tied to Orlando City for this year's US Open Cup. Both played in Orlando's 2-1 win over PDL side, Ocala Stampede. Dwyer had Orlando's first goal.
And in news that will make some people in Kansas City happy, the Dearborn Stars, who advanced over the KC Athletics after a protest lost 4-1 to Dayton in extra time. Dearborn had 3 players sent off, finishing the game with 8 players.
It'll be the 3rd time that Kansas City and Des Moines will meet up in US Open Cup play. Kansas City won the first match up between the two in 2005 at Park University 6-1 off braces by Davy Arnaud and Josh Wolff. The second match up came a year later at Blue Valley District Athletic Complex. KC won that match up as well, 2-1 off a stoppage time winner by Scott Sealy.
This year's match up will be two days after Sporting KC's game Sunday against Houston. But with the number of call ups that Kansas City has, some of KC's first team is likely going to have to play both games on short rest.
In other US Open Cup news, two of Sporting KC's loaned players, Jon Kempin and Dom Dwyer became cap-tied to Orlando City for this year's US Open Cup. Both played in Orlando's 2-1 win over PDL side, Ocala Stampede. Dwyer had Orlando's first goal.
And in news that will make some people in Kansas City happy, the Dearborn Stars, who advanced over the KC Athletics after a protest lost 4-1 to Dayton in extra time. Dearborn had 3 players sent off, finishing the game with 8 players.
Monday, May 20, 2013
More Call Ups for KC, and its Affect
Sporting Kansas City today announced three more players had been called up to represent their national team today. Mikey Lopez, Kansas City's first round draft pick this year has been called up to the US U20 team for the upcoming Toulon Tournament in France. The tournament in France goes from May 28th through June 8th and is a warm up for the U20 World Cup this summer in Turkey. For the Toulon tournament, the USA is grouped with Colombia, Congo, South Korea, and France. The US will France on the 28th, Colombia on the 30th, Congo on the 1st, before closing out group play on the 5th vs South Korea. If the US finishes in the top two in their group they'll advance to play in either the finals or the third place match on the 8th. With travel, Lopez is likely to miss the league games vs Houston and Montreal as well as KC's first US Open Cup match on the 28th. The last is probably the most disappointing as Lopez likely would have made his debut if he'd stayed with the team.
The other two call ups are KC's Haitian contingent, Mechack Jerome and Peterson Joseph. Both are back with the national team for two games against the previous two World Cup champions. Haiti will play Spain at Sun Life Stadium down in Miami on June 8th. Haiti will then travel to Brazil where they will take on the 2006 World Cup champions Italy on the 12th in the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro as Italy prepares for the Confederations Cup. The pair would not miss any league games, but the two would miss a potential 4th round US Open Cup match on the 12th should Sporting win their first game.
The win puts Kansas City in an interesting position team wise. That gives KC a total of 7 players currently on the roster that will be traveling with their national team over the next month or so, with Matt Besler, Kei Kamara, Soony Saad, and Graham Zusi being the other four. If those 7 were all to be gone at the same time, KC would only have 17 available players in Kansas City when you don't count the 4 players on loan in Orlando and Teal Bunbury recovering from his ACL tear still.
There is some good news in this though. First, there is no time during this stretch that Kansas City that all seven of those players will be gone. For Houston only Saad and Lopez are likely to be unavailable. For the US Open Cup game on Tuesday the 28th those two plus Besler and Zusi will not be available. The June 1st game against Montreal will see three, Lopez, Besler, and Zusi. Should KC win their third round US Open Cup match, they'll be missing five for the fourth round match on the 12th as Besler and Zusi will be joined by Mechack Jerome, Peterson Joseph, and Kei Kamara for that match. The other good news is that KC's schedule during this run is fairly light. KC only has two league games and potentially two Open Cup games affected by these call ups. It could certainly have been a lot worse for Kansas City.
To see the break down of about when players will be gone check out the below graph I crudely drew up. (Click to see full size.)
The other two call ups are KC's Haitian contingent, Mechack Jerome and Peterson Joseph. Both are back with the national team for two games against the previous two World Cup champions. Haiti will play Spain at Sun Life Stadium down in Miami on June 8th. Haiti will then travel to Brazil where they will take on the 2006 World Cup champions Italy on the 12th in the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro as Italy prepares for the Confederations Cup. The pair would not miss any league games, but the two would miss a potential 4th round US Open Cup match on the 12th should Sporting win their first game.
The win puts Kansas City in an interesting position team wise. That gives KC a total of 7 players currently on the roster that will be traveling with their national team over the next month or so, with Matt Besler, Kei Kamara, Soony Saad, and Graham Zusi being the other four. If those 7 were all to be gone at the same time, KC would only have 17 available players in Kansas City when you don't count the 4 players on loan in Orlando and Teal Bunbury recovering from his ACL tear still.
There is some good news in this though. First, there is no time during this stretch that Kansas City that all seven of those players will be gone. For Houston only Saad and Lopez are likely to be unavailable. For the US Open Cup game on Tuesday the 28th those two plus Besler and Zusi will not be available. The June 1st game against Montreal will see three, Lopez, Besler, and Zusi. Should KC win their third round US Open Cup match, they'll be missing five for the fourth round match on the 12th as Besler and Zusi will be joined by Mechack Jerome, Peterson Joseph, and Kei Kamara for that match. The other good news is that KC's schedule during this run is fairly light. KC only has two league games and potentially two Open Cup games affected by these call ups. It could certainly have been a lot worse for Kansas City.
To see the break down of about when players will be gone check out the below graph I crudely drew up. (Click to see full size.)
Sunday, May 19, 2013
S.A.S. Sunday of Stats
Matt Besler made his 130th appearance in all competitions, tying him with Jose Burciaga, Uche Okafor, and Roger Espinoza for 16th place on that list.
It was Besler's 112th league appearance, breaking his tie with Sean Bowers for 19th on that list.
Besler made his 123rd start in all competitions for KC, tying him with Burciaga for 14th place on that list.
Jimmy Nielsen made his 116th start in all competitions for KC, tying him with Uche Okafor for 16th place on that list.
Besler and Nielsen made their 107th league start for KC, tying them with Okafor for 15th place on that list.
It was Besler's 112th league appearance, breaking his tie with Sean Bowers for 19th on that list.
Besler made his 123rd start in all competitions for KC, tying him with Burciaga for 14th place on that list.
Jimmy Nielsen made his 116th start in all competitions for KC, tying him with Uche Okafor for 16th place on that list.
Besler and Nielsen made their 107th league start for KC, tying them with Okafor for 15th place on that list.
Controversial Call Limits KC to a Point in DC
In close games many times you'll see a questionable call by a referee help to decide the game. More often than not that quesitonable call is a judgment call by the referee that could be called either way and is usually argued as such depending which side of the call you're on. Then you have incidents like in today's game and you get offside calls that are blatantly wrong. KC defender Ike Opara had a legitimate goal ruled out due to an offside call that live looked totally wrong and on replay looked worse when there are at least 3 DC players between Opara and the goal (and potentially a 4th even with Opara depending on how you view the angle). PRO Executive Director, Peter Walton said it was "clearly a wrong call and one that cannot be justified."
Meanwhile the referee himself, Matthew Nelson said he "misjudged the play."
In the end the call helped to cost Sporting Kansas City 2 points as they and DC played to a 1-1 draw. And while there's no way to tell how the rest of the game would have gone if the goal had counted it's a frustrating situation with the game ending 1-1.
KC had a strong start to the game, pushing the game and putting DC on the back foot. It was DC on the counter though that created the first really good chance of the half in the 10th minute. After a cross was played back to an onrushing Nick De Leon, the midfielder fired a shot from outside the box that Jimmy Nielsen just palmed into the air and out for a corner, not attempting to hold the ball. KC kept pushing and in the 30th minute came the controversy. Off a corner the ball ended up wide with Seth Sinovic. Sinovic played the ball to Matt Besler who was racing towards the end line. Besler cut the ball back into the path of Jacob Peterson. Peterson played the ball to the back post where Opara had made his run. Opara tapped the ball into the net but was wrongly ruled offside and the score remained 0-0. KC tried to find a goal before half, Graham Zusi forced a decent save out of Bill Hamid in the 39th after DC turned the ball over in their own end. As the half wore down it was acually DC who almost grabbed the lead heading into the half. A deep cross made it into the box where Dwayne DeRosario found himself unmarked. DeRosario tried to head the ball back towards the near post, but put his header wide keeping the score 0-0.
KC continued their search for the first goal in the second half but struggled to create chances. Finally in the 60th minute they found it. Off a Zusi corner kick, Opara ran into the box and got a touch on the ball and deflected it onto the head of Ethan White who headed it past Hamid and into his own net to make it 1-0 Sporting. The lead only lasted 5 minutes though as in the 65th DC was level. Chris Pontius played a fantastic cross to the back post for Kyle Porter who one timed an effort into the far post past Nielsen to level the game at 1-1. After giving up the equalizer Kansas City again was pushing the game looking to retake the lead. A great ball into the box in the 77th minute. Opara knocked the ball into the middle where Claudio Bieler dummied the ball, unfortunately no one had made the run to the back post. Off the ensuing corner the ball ended up at the back post where Opara and Kei Kamara had cracks at the goal but saves by Hamid and the DC defense kept the score 1-1. DC came right back down the field off a long clearance from Hamid and almost took the lead themselves. The ball ended up at the feet of Porter who raced into the box and fired on Nielsen who made a good kick save. KC in the 81st had one of their better chances as a Zusi cross was knocked back to the top of the box to Bieler who fired a shot on goal that Hamid did very well to get down and tip around the post. Bieler could have had another chance or two but Bieler and Kamara both made the same runs a few times and Kamara ended up with the effort instead. KC pushed but couldn't find the winner their arguably deserved and had to settle for a point, leaving KC 1-1-3 against the bottom 4 in the East while they're 4-0 against the top 5 currently. KC is playing well against the opponents they should but more often than not appear to be playing down to the level of their competition when teams in the lower half of the table.
Wizards Man of the Match - Ike Opara - Created the own goal and wrongly had one of his own ruled out. He also did a very good job of shutting down DC's attack. He's proven over the last few games that KC shouldn't have to worry too much when Besler is gone with national team duty.
Player Ratings - Nielsen 6, Jerome 6, Besler 6, Opara 7, Sinovic 5, Nagamura 6, Joseph 6, Fielhaber 5, Peterson 5, Bieler 6, Zusi 7. Subs Olum 6, Kamara 5, Gardner 5.
Meanwhile the referee himself, Matthew Nelson said he "misjudged the play."
In the end the call helped to cost Sporting Kansas City 2 points as they and DC played to a 1-1 draw. And while there's no way to tell how the rest of the game would have gone if the goal had counted it's a frustrating situation with the game ending 1-1.
KC had a strong start to the game, pushing the game and putting DC on the back foot. It was DC on the counter though that created the first really good chance of the half in the 10th minute. After a cross was played back to an onrushing Nick De Leon, the midfielder fired a shot from outside the box that Jimmy Nielsen just palmed into the air and out for a corner, not attempting to hold the ball. KC kept pushing and in the 30th minute came the controversy. Off a corner the ball ended up wide with Seth Sinovic. Sinovic played the ball to Matt Besler who was racing towards the end line. Besler cut the ball back into the path of Jacob Peterson. Peterson played the ball to the back post where Opara had made his run. Opara tapped the ball into the net but was wrongly ruled offside and the score remained 0-0. KC tried to find a goal before half, Graham Zusi forced a decent save out of Bill Hamid in the 39th after DC turned the ball over in their own end. As the half wore down it was acually DC who almost grabbed the lead heading into the half. A deep cross made it into the box where Dwayne DeRosario found himself unmarked. DeRosario tried to head the ball back towards the near post, but put his header wide keeping the score 0-0.
KC continued their search for the first goal in the second half but struggled to create chances. Finally in the 60th minute they found it. Off a Zusi corner kick, Opara ran into the box and got a touch on the ball and deflected it onto the head of Ethan White who headed it past Hamid and into his own net to make it 1-0 Sporting. The lead only lasted 5 minutes though as in the 65th DC was level. Chris Pontius played a fantastic cross to the back post for Kyle Porter who one timed an effort into the far post past Nielsen to level the game at 1-1. After giving up the equalizer Kansas City again was pushing the game looking to retake the lead. A great ball into the box in the 77th minute. Opara knocked the ball into the middle where Claudio Bieler dummied the ball, unfortunately no one had made the run to the back post. Off the ensuing corner the ball ended up at the back post where Opara and Kei Kamara had cracks at the goal but saves by Hamid and the DC defense kept the score 1-1. DC came right back down the field off a long clearance from Hamid and almost took the lead themselves. The ball ended up at the feet of Porter who raced into the box and fired on Nielsen who made a good kick save. KC in the 81st had one of their better chances as a Zusi cross was knocked back to the top of the box to Bieler who fired a shot on goal that Hamid did very well to get down and tip around the post. Bieler could have had another chance or two but Bieler and Kamara both made the same runs a few times and Kamara ended up with the effort instead. KC pushed but couldn't find the winner their arguably deserved and had to settle for a point, leaving KC 1-1-3 against the bottom 4 in the East while they're 4-0 against the top 5 currently. KC is playing well against the opponents they should but more often than not appear to be playing down to the level of their competition when teams in the lower half of the table.
Wizards Man of the Match - Ike Opara - Created the own goal and wrongly had one of his own ruled out. He also did a very good job of shutting down DC's attack. He's proven over the last few games that KC shouldn't have to worry too much when Besler is gone with national team duty.
Player Ratings - Nielsen 6, Jerome 6, Besler 6, Opara 7, Sinovic 5, Nagamura 6, Joseph 6, Fielhaber 5, Peterson 5, Bieler 6, Zusi 7. Subs Olum 6, Kamara 5, Gardner 5.
FC Kansas City Top Boston Move Into Third
FC Kansas City earned
three points and moved up the National Women’s Soccer League table by
defeating the Boston Breakers 2-0 tonight. Nicole Barnhart earns her
third ‘clean sheet’ with another shutout while Renae Cuellar and Lauren
Cheney scored their fourth and second goals respectively in front of
4,362 fans at Verizon Wireless Field.
The
win bumps FC Kansas City into third place in the NWSL standings with 10
points. The team will be at home again next week to face Sky Blue FC
on Saturday May 25th at 7:35pm. Tickets are available by calling 855.4KC.GOAL or emailing tickets@kcprosoccer.com.
Coming
into tonight’s match, the Boston Breakers were the last remaining
undefeated team in the NWSL, while FC Kansas City was recovering from
their first loss last week. While still early in the season, this game
had the feel of a ‘must-win’ situation for both sides. To make matters
more complicated for Kansas City, center-back and U.S. National Team
allocation, Becky Sauerbrunn, was unavailable due to an injury suffered
against Western New York last week. Taking her place on the back line
tonight was Jen Buczkowski, while Casey Loyd stepped in to fill her role
in the midfield.
Both
players played admirably and held Boston to only five shots on goal.
Nicole Barnhart easily earned her third win, all by shut-out. Renae
Cuellar returned to her goal scoring ways when she slotted home a
breakaway attempt against her teammate on the Mexican National Team,
Cecilia Santiago, in the 17th minute. Lauren Cheney was credited with
the assist on Cuellar’s goal and then notched a score of her own in the
64th minute when she guided in a cross from Casey Loyd on the
left side then using her upper body to deflect the ball inside the near
post.
Saturday, May 18, 2013
It's a Trap
Tomorrow's game against DC United at RFK Stadium is a classic trap game for Sporting Kansas City. Sporting comes into the game coming off a big win over Houston on the road last week. DC on the other hand comes in on the backs of a 7 game winless run and lost their last home game 4-0 to Houston. So DC is at a point of extreme pressure to get a result.
United's last game home game was a 4-0 loss to Houston at RFK. The pressure is mounting on DC coach Ben Olsen to begin to get results. DC has scored the fewest goals in the league heading into the game, having only scored 5 times through 10 games. They've struggled with some injuries as well, with Chris Pontius and Nick DeLeon missing time for the club during this stretch. They still have former MVP Dwayne DeRosario (and Carlos Ruiz although he is injured) on the roster and he seems to always cause KC some problems.
Kansas City comes in with a few issues of their own, specifically in defense. In the 1-0 win over Houston last week, both Aurelien Collin and Oriol Rosell picked up their 5th yellow cards of the season. That will see them both suspended for tomorrow's game. The two suspensions raise enough questions for Sporting's starting 11 on their own, but there are other questions for Sporting as well. Specifically the health of Matt Besler. Besler has missed the last few games with a knee injury. With Collin out Ike Opara is expected to get another start at center back. If Besler can't go, then Lawrence Olum looks set to get his first start of the season alongside Opara. The midfield could be a product of whether Besler can or cannot go. If Besler can go, Olum could slot directly into Rosell's spot in front of the back four. The other option is to have Paulo Nagamura play in the more withdrawn role and play the likes of Benny Feilhaber and Peterson Joseph in front of him. The other possibility is to drop Graham Zusi back into midfield, but I think that'd do more harm to the attack than good. The other question is whether Kei Kamara has been with the team long enough to get reinserted into the starting lineup.
Number to Remember - 5 - Kansas City has won 5 straight games in the series against DC United. They've won the two meetings each of the last two years as well as the one match up so far this year. In those 5 games, KC has shut out DC in four of them, all by a 1-0 score line. The only one that wasn't 1-0 was a 2-1 win at Sporting Park last year.
Key Match Up - Claudio Bieler vs Dejan Jakovic - Bieler so far this year has been as good as advertised, he's currently still second in the league in scoring and has been a handful for teams. He scored the winner when these two teams met at Sporting Park earlier this year and will be counted on again to find net.
PREDICTION - As I mentioned in the opening, this is a trap game for KC. KC is coming off a huge win against a rival in Houston now get to travel to play a team who is desperate. And KC gets to do it without two key defensive parts. The good news for KC is that the DC offense still don't strike me with a ton of fear. DeRosario is a threat, but the rest of the team offensively has struggled. Casey Townsend has done well early on in the lower division this year, he's not proven himself at the MLS level. The other option is Lionard Pajoy who doesn't strike a ton of free in teams.
SKC - 2 (Bieler, Kamara)
DC - 1 (DeRosario)
United's last game home game was a 4-0 loss to Houston at RFK. The pressure is mounting on DC coach Ben Olsen to begin to get results. DC has scored the fewest goals in the league heading into the game, having only scored 5 times through 10 games. They've struggled with some injuries as well, with Chris Pontius and Nick DeLeon missing time for the club during this stretch. They still have former MVP Dwayne DeRosario (and Carlos Ruiz although he is injured) on the roster and he seems to always cause KC some problems.
Kansas City comes in with a few issues of their own, specifically in defense. In the 1-0 win over Houston last week, both Aurelien Collin and Oriol Rosell picked up their 5th yellow cards of the season. That will see them both suspended for tomorrow's game. The two suspensions raise enough questions for Sporting's starting 11 on their own, but there are other questions for Sporting as well. Specifically the health of Matt Besler. Besler has missed the last few games with a knee injury. With Collin out Ike Opara is expected to get another start at center back. If Besler can't go, then Lawrence Olum looks set to get his first start of the season alongside Opara. The midfield could be a product of whether Besler can or cannot go. If Besler can go, Olum could slot directly into Rosell's spot in front of the back four. The other option is to have Paulo Nagamura play in the more withdrawn role and play the likes of Benny Feilhaber and Peterson Joseph in front of him. The other possibility is to drop Graham Zusi back into midfield, but I think that'd do more harm to the attack than good. The other question is whether Kei Kamara has been with the team long enough to get reinserted into the starting lineup.
Nielsen
Myers - Opara - Besler - Sinovic
Nagamura - Joseph
Feilhaber
Kamara - Bieler - Zusi
Number to Remember - 5 - Kansas City has won 5 straight games in the series against DC United. They've won the two meetings each of the last two years as well as the one match up so far this year. In those 5 games, KC has shut out DC in four of them, all by a 1-0 score line. The only one that wasn't 1-0 was a 2-1 win at Sporting Park last year.
Key Match Up - Claudio Bieler vs Dejan Jakovic - Bieler so far this year has been as good as advertised, he's currently still second in the league in scoring and has been a handful for teams. He scored the winner when these two teams met at Sporting Park earlier this year and will be counted on again to find net.
PREDICTION - As I mentioned in the opening, this is a trap game for KC. KC is coming off a huge win against a rival in Houston now get to travel to play a team who is desperate. And KC gets to do it without two key defensive parts. The good news for KC is that the DC offense still don't strike me with a ton of fear. DeRosario is a threat, but the rest of the team offensively has struggled. Casey Townsend has done well early on in the lower division this year, he's not proven himself at the MLS level. The other option is Lionard Pajoy who doesn't strike a ton of free in teams.
SKC - 2 (Bieler, Kamara)
DC - 1 (DeRosario)
Friday, May 17, 2013
Kamara and Saad Called Up for National Team Duty
Sporting KC have two more internationals for the upcoming international window. Joining Matt Besler and Graham Zusi on national team duty will be Kei Kamara and Soony Saad.
Kamara will be rejoining the Sierra Leone national team for their 2 upcoming qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup. Currently Sierra Leone sit in 2nd place in their 4 team qualifying group on 4 points with a 1-1-1 record at the half way point. The first game is on June 8th when Kamara and Sierra Leone will host group leaders, Tunisia. Tunisia is currently on 9 points, so a loss by Sierra Leone would see them eliminated from qualification and almost assure Tunisia passage to the next round. The second match sees the Leone Stars travel to Cape Verde, who are currently winless in this round of qualifying, but the African Cup of Nations quarter-finalists will be a tough opponent for Sierra Leone. During the stretch, Kamara will not miss any league games as he'll not leave until after KC's game against Montreal on the first and return before KC's match in Dallas on the 22nd. He would miss a potential US Open Cup game should KC win their first match.
Saad is a new addition to the list of Sporting KC internationals. After representing the US at the U17 and U20 level, Saad has filed his one time switch with FIFA to represent Lebanon. Saad will be gone from May 25th through the 31st for a friendly against Oman. Saad will miss Sporting KC's match up against Houston on the 26th as well as KC's first US Open Cup game. The later of those two games is probably the bigger blow for KC because Saad was likely to be a starter for that game for KC.
Good luck to both players as they represent their country.
Kamara will be rejoining the Sierra Leone national team for their 2 upcoming qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup. Currently Sierra Leone sit in 2nd place in their 4 team qualifying group on 4 points with a 1-1-1 record at the half way point. The first game is on June 8th when Kamara and Sierra Leone will host group leaders, Tunisia. Tunisia is currently on 9 points, so a loss by Sierra Leone would see them eliminated from qualification and almost assure Tunisia passage to the next round. The second match sees the Leone Stars travel to Cape Verde, who are currently winless in this round of qualifying, but the African Cup of Nations quarter-finalists will be a tough opponent for Sierra Leone. During the stretch, Kamara will not miss any league games as he'll not leave until after KC's game against Montreal on the first and return before KC's match in Dallas on the 22nd. He would miss a potential US Open Cup game should KC win their first match.
Saad is a new addition to the list of Sporting KC internationals. After representing the US at the U17 and U20 level, Saad has filed his one time switch with FIFA to represent Lebanon. Saad will be gone from May 25th through the 31st for a friendly against Oman. Saad will miss Sporting KC's match up against Houston on the 26th as well as KC's first US Open Cup game. The later of those two games is probably the bigger blow for KC because Saad was likely to be a starter for that game for KC.
Good luck to both players as they represent their country.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Besler and Zusi Called Up, Convey Traded
Jurgen Klinsmann today announced his camp roster ahead of a 5 game stretch for the US Men's national team that includes 3 World Cup qualifiers. Sporting KC will be represented in camp by two players, defender Matt Besler and midfielder/forward Graham Zusi. The camp kicks off on Sunday the 26th, but both Besler and Zusi will be a day late. The two will leave for camp after Sporting KC's game against Houston that day in Kansas City.
As part of the camp, the US have two friendlies scheduled. They'll take on Belgium in Cleveland on May 29th and then Germany in Washington DC on June 2nd. From there the US will jump back into World Cup qualifying with a match in Jamaica on June 7th. The US will then return home for 2 more qualifiers. They'll take on Panama on June 11th in Seattle and then play Honduras on the 18th in Salt Lake City. A busy stretch for the US. Last year they did a similar 5 game stretch although only 2 were World Cup qualifiers in that cycle. Unfortunately for the US by the last game the players were exhausted and certainly looked it in a loss to Jamaica. Hopefully a better performance over the 5 game stretch this year.
The good news for Sporting KC is that during this stretch they are in a light cycle in their schedule. Besler and Zusi will only miss one game over the stretch, a June 1st match against the Montreal Impact. They could also miss 2 US Open Cup games. They will definitely miss the 3rd round match up against either Minnesota United or the Des Moines Menace. And should KC win, they'll also miss the June 12th 4th round match up.
Convey Traded
Before the announcement by US Soccer, KC made an announcement of their own. The team announced today that they had traded midfielder Bobby Convey to Toronto FC for a 3rd round SuperDraft pick (will be 1st round Supplemental draft pick as SuperDraft has been only 2 rounds the last few years) in 2014.
Convey started the first two games of the season for KC but lost his starting spot after that and only played 112 minutes for KC so far this season. The former US international has struggled to stay healthy after the team's stellar start to the 2012 season that saw them start 7-0. He'd fallen further down the depth chart for Kansas City with the healthy return of Jacob Peterson and the return of Kei Kamara. With young forward Soony Saad also competing for time moving Convey makes a lot of sense for KC.
On the other hand it is a little disappointing considering how well Convey had looked in preseason this year.
At it's base, this looks to just be a salary dump and a move to create an open roster spot with the trade from KC's perspective. Convey was making $200,000 this year. And while I can't see Toronto taking on all of his salary, that should still create some wiggle room for KC if they wanted to try to add talent come the summer window. With his salary currently I have no complaints about "only" getting a 1st round Supplemental Draft pick, unless Sporting is cover the majority of Convey's salary while he's in Toronto.
As part of the camp, the US have two friendlies scheduled. They'll take on Belgium in Cleveland on May 29th and then Germany in Washington DC on June 2nd. From there the US will jump back into World Cup qualifying with a match in Jamaica on June 7th. The US will then return home for 2 more qualifiers. They'll take on Panama on June 11th in Seattle and then play Honduras on the 18th in Salt Lake City. A busy stretch for the US. Last year they did a similar 5 game stretch although only 2 were World Cup qualifiers in that cycle. Unfortunately for the US by the last game the players were exhausted and certainly looked it in a loss to Jamaica. Hopefully a better performance over the 5 game stretch this year.
The good news for Sporting KC is that during this stretch they are in a light cycle in their schedule. Besler and Zusi will only miss one game over the stretch, a June 1st match against the Montreal Impact. They could also miss 2 US Open Cup games. They will definitely miss the 3rd round match up against either Minnesota United or the Des Moines Menace. And should KC win, they'll also miss the June 12th 4th round match up.
Convey Traded
Before the announcement by US Soccer, KC made an announcement of their own. The team announced today that they had traded midfielder Bobby Convey to Toronto FC for a 3rd round SuperDraft pick (will be 1st round Supplemental draft pick as SuperDraft has been only 2 rounds the last few years) in 2014.
Convey started the first two games of the season for KC but lost his starting spot after that and only played 112 minutes for KC so far this season. The former US international has struggled to stay healthy after the team's stellar start to the 2012 season that saw them start 7-0. He'd fallen further down the depth chart for Kansas City with the healthy return of Jacob Peterson and the return of Kei Kamara. With young forward Soony Saad also competing for time moving Convey makes a lot of sense for KC.
On the other hand it is a little disappointing considering how well Convey had looked in preseason this year.
At it's base, this looks to just be a salary dump and a move to create an open roster spot with the trade from KC's perspective. Convey was making $200,000 this year. And while I can't see Toronto taking on all of his salary, that should still create some wiggle room for KC if they wanted to try to add talent come the summer window. With his salary currently I have no complaints about "only" getting a 1st round Supplemental Draft pick, unless Sporting is cover the majority of Convey's salary while he's in Toronto.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Bitter Sweet Week for Espinoza - Former SKC Wizards Update
A bitter sweet week for Roger Espinoza and Wigan Athletic. On Saturday, Wigan pulled off a huge upset of Manchester City and won the FA Cup for the club's first silverware. Espinoza became only the second player to win the US Open Cup and FA Cup after Freddie Ljunberg. Unfortunately 3 days later Wigan hit a low as they were relegated from the Premier League and will be playing in the Championship next season. Here's the rest of this week's update.
Active without a club or unknown
Jose Burciaga
Julio Cesar
Doug DeMartin
Birahim Diop
Edson Elcock
Mauro Fuzetti
Willy Guadarrama
Aaron Hohlbein
Mike Jones
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Scott Lorenz
Amir Lowery
Neven Markovic
Rauwshan McKenzie
Akeem Priestly
Scott Sealy
MLS
Davy Arnaud - Montreal - Did not dress in Montreal's 3-2 win over Salt Lake. Did not dress in Montreal's 0-0 draw with Vancouver.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Dressed but did not play in Salt Lake's 3-2 loss to Montreal.
Michael Harrington - Portland - Started and played 83 minutes in Portland's 3-0 win over Chivas.
Kevin Hartman - New York - Did not dress in New York's 1-1 draw with New England.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 74 minutes in Portland's 3-0 win over Chivas.
Eddie Johnson - Seattle - Started and played 90 minutes, recording an assist in Seattle's 4-0 win over San Jose.
Chris Konopka - Philadelphia - Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 1-0 win over Chicago. Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 4-1 loss to LA.
Khari Stephenson - Salt Lake - Came off the bench and played 21 minutes in Salt Lake's 3-2 loss to Montreal.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Started and played 70 minutes in Columbus' 2-0 loss to Colorado.
Konrad Warzycha - Columbus - Came off the bench and played 13 minutes in Columbus' 2-0 loss to Colorado.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Fort Lauderdale - Did not play in Fort Lauderdale's 2-1 win over Minnesota.
Kevin Friedland - Minnesota - Did not play in Minnesota's 2-1 loss to Fort Lauderdale.
Shavar Thomas - Fort Lauderdale - Started and played 90 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 2-1 win over Minnesota.
USL
Christian Duke - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 76 minutes in Orlando's 2-0 win over Seattle's reserves.
Dom Dwyer - Orlando (Loan) -Started and played 90 minutes, scoring 2 goals in Orlando's 2-0 win over Seattle's reserves.
Brian Fekete - Orlando - Did not dress in Orlando's 2-0 win over Orlando.
Cyprian Hedrick - Phoenix - Started and played 90 minutes in Phoenix's 2-1 loss to Pittsburgh. Dressed but did not play in Phoenix's 4-3 loss to Dayton. Started and played 90 minutes in Phoenix's 2-1 loss to Tucson in the US Open Cup.
Jon Kempin - Orlando (Loan) - Did not dress in Orlando's 2-0 win over Seattle.
Nelson Pizarro - Los Angeles -
Mike Reidy - Rochester - Started and played 79 minutes in Rochester's 1-0 win over Wilmington.
Yann Songo'o - Orlando (Loan) - started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 2-0 win over Seattle's reserves.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 4-1 win over Antigua.
John Wilson - Charleston - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Charleston's 4-2 win over Wilmington. Started and played 87 minutes in Charleston's 1-0 loss to Charlotte.
PDL
Scott Angevine - Des Moines - Started and played 90 minutes in Des Moines' 1-1 draw with Springfield. Started and played 90 minutes in Des Moines' 1-0 win over Madison in the US Open Cup.
Michael Kraus - Tucson - Did not dress in Tucson's 1-1 draw with LA.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Syracuse - Offseason
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason
Boris Pardo - Missouri - Offseason
Craig Rocastle - Missouri - Offseason
Paul Wright - San Diego - Offseason
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - FC Haka - Finland - Started and played 90 minutes in Haka's 3-1 win over OPS. Started and played 90 minutes in Haka's 1-0 loss to KooTeePee.
Stephane Auvray - DPMM FC - Brunei (Singapore League) - Did not play in DPMM's 3-2 win over Homes United. Did not play in DPMM's 2-1 loss to Hougang United.
Vicente Arze - Esteghlal - Iran - Did not play in either of Esteghlal's games.
Omar Bravo - Atlas - Mexico - Came off the bench and played 28 minutes in Atlas' 0-0 draw with Santos. Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Atlas' 3-1 loss to Santos.
Sunil Chhetri - Churchill Brothers - India - Started and played 90 minutes in Churchill's 3-0 win over Air India.
Eloy Colombano - UAI Urquiza - Argentina - Beat CSyD Liniers
Daneil Cyrus - W Connection - Trinidad - No game this week.
Pablo Escobar - Atletico Huila - Colombia - Did not play in Huila's 6-1 win over over Deportivo Pasto.
Roger Espinoza - Wigan - England - Started and played 90 minutes in Wigan's 1-0 win over Manchester City in the FA Cup final. Started and played 90 minutes in Wigan's 4-1 loss to Arsenal.
Gary Glasgow - North East Stars - Trinidad - No game this week.
Herculez Gomez - Santos Laguna - Mexico - Came off the bench and played 8 minutes in Santos' 0-0 draw with Atlas. Started and played 90 minutes in Santos' 3-1 win over Atlas.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Tied Portmore United 0-0.
Jeferson - Bahia - Brazil - Did not play in either of Bahia's games.
Will John - AZAL - Azerbaijan - Did not play in AZAL's 5-3 win over Revan.
Igor Kostrov - Dacia - Moldova - Beat Iskra-Stal 3-0.
Carlos Marinelli - Universidad San Martin - Peru - Started and played 70 minutes in San Martino's 1-0 loss to Real Garcilaso.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Did not dress in Spartak's 1-1 draw with Krylya Sovetov.
Michal Mravec - Zilina - Slovakia - Lost 2-1 to Slate Moravce.
Pablo Punyed - Fylkir - Iceland - Started and played 67 minutes in Fylkir's 2-1 loss to Valur. Started and played 90 minutes in Fylkir's 1-1 draw with Fram.
Ryan Smith - Skoda Xanthi - Greece - Came off the bench and played 26 minutes in Xanthi's 3-0 loss to Panathinaikos.
Milos Stojcev - FK Leotar Trebinje - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes scoring a goal in Leotar's 1-1 draw with Zvijezda.
Matt Taylor - Preußen Münster - Germany - Started and played 90 minutes in Munster's 3-0 loss to Unterhaching.
Ivan Trujillo - Llaneros - Colombia - Started and played 64 minutes in Llaneros' 0-0 draw with Deportivo Pereira.
Diego Walsh - TOT SC - Thailand - Did not play in TOT's games.
Active without a club or unknown
Jose Burciaga
Julio Cesar
Doug DeMartin
Birahim Diop
Edson Elcock
Mauro Fuzetti
Willy Guadarrama
Aaron Hohlbein
Mike Jones
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Scott Lorenz
Amir Lowery
Neven Markovic
Rauwshan McKenzie
Akeem Priestly
Scott Sealy
MLS
Davy Arnaud - Montreal - Did not dress in Montreal's 3-2 win over Salt Lake. Did not dress in Montreal's 0-0 draw with Vancouver.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Dressed but did not play in Salt Lake's 3-2 loss to Montreal.
Michael Harrington - Portland - Started and played 83 minutes in Portland's 3-0 win over Chivas.
Kevin Hartman - New York - Did not dress in New York's 1-1 draw with New England.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 74 minutes in Portland's 3-0 win over Chivas.
Eddie Johnson - Seattle - Started and played 90 minutes, recording an assist in Seattle's 4-0 win over San Jose.
Chris Konopka - Philadelphia - Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 1-0 win over Chicago. Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 4-1 loss to LA.
Khari Stephenson - Salt Lake - Came off the bench and played 21 minutes in Salt Lake's 3-2 loss to Montreal.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Started and played 70 minutes in Columbus' 2-0 loss to Colorado.
Konrad Warzycha - Columbus - Came off the bench and played 13 minutes in Columbus' 2-0 loss to Colorado.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Fort Lauderdale - Did not play in Fort Lauderdale's 2-1 win over Minnesota.
Kevin Friedland - Minnesota - Did not play in Minnesota's 2-1 loss to Fort Lauderdale.
Shavar Thomas - Fort Lauderdale - Started and played 90 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 2-1 win over Minnesota.
USL
Christian Duke - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 76 minutes in Orlando's 2-0 win over Seattle's reserves.
Dom Dwyer - Orlando (Loan) -Started and played 90 minutes, scoring 2 goals in Orlando's 2-0 win over Seattle's reserves.
Brian Fekete - Orlando - Did not dress in Orlando's 2-0 win over Orlando.
Cyprian Hedrick - Phoenix - Started and played 90 minutes in Phoenix's 2-1 loss to Pittsburgh. Dressed but did not play in Phoenix's 4-3 loss to Dayton. Started and played 90 minutes in Phoenix's 2-1 loss to Tucson in the US Open Cup.
Jon Kempin - Orlando (Loan) - Did not dress in Orlando's 2-0 win over Seattle.
Nelson Pizarro - Los Angeles -
Mike Reidy - Rochester - Started and played 79 minutes in Rochester's 1-0 win over Wilmington.
Yann Songo'o - Orlando (Loan) - started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 2-0 win over Seattle's reserves.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 4-1 win over Antigua.
John Wilson - Charleston - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Charleston's 4-2 win over Wilmington. Started and played 87 minutes in Charleston's 1-0 loss to Charlotte.
PDL
Scott Angevine - Des Moines - Started and played 90 minutes in Des Moines' 1-1 draw with Springfield. Started and played 90 minutes in Des Moines' 1-0 win over Madison in the US Open Cup.
Michael Kraus - Tucson - Did not dress in Tucson's 1-1 draw with LA.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Syracuse - Offseason
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason
Boris Pardo - Missouri - Offseason
Craig Rocastle - Missouri - Offseason
Paul Wright - San Diego - Offseason
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - FC Haka - Finland - Started and played 90 minutes in Haka's 3-1 win over OPS. Started and played 90 minutes in Haka's 1-0 loss to KooTeePee.
Stephane Auvray - DPMM FC - Brunei (Singapore League) - Did not play in DPMM's 3-2 win over Homes United. Did not play in DPMM's 2-1 loss to Hougang United.
Vicente Arze - Esteghlal - Iran - Did not play in either of Esteghlal's games.
Omar Bravo - Atlas - Mexico - Came off the bench and played 28 minutes in Atlas' 0-0 draw with Santos. Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Atlas' 3-1 loss to Santos.
Sunil Chhetri - Churchill Brothers - India - Started and played 90 minutes in Churchill's 3-0 win over Air India.
Eloy Colombano - UAI Urquiza - Argentina - Beat CSyD Liniers
Daneil Cyrus - W Connection - Trinidad - No game this week.
Pablo Escobar - Atletico Huila - Colombia - Did not play in Huila's 6-1 win over over Deportivo Pasto.
Roger Espinoza - Wigan - England - Started and played 90 minutes in Wigan's 1-0 win over Manchester City in the FA Cup final. Started and played 90 minutes in Wigan's 4-1 loss to Arsenal.
Gary Glasgow - North East Stars - Trinidad - No game this week.
Herculez Gomez - Santos Laguna - Mexico - Came off the bench and played 8 minutes in Santos' 0-0 draw with Atlas. Started and played 90 minutes in Santos' 3-1 win over Atlas.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Tied Portmore United 0-0.
Jeferson - Bahia - Brazil - Did not play in either of Bahia's games.
Will John - AZAL - Azerbaijan - Did not play in AZAL's 5-3 win over Revan.
Igor Kostrov - Dacia - Moldova - Beat Iskra-Stal 3-0.
Carlos Marinelli - Universidad San Martin - Peru - Started and played 70 minutes in San Martino's 1-0 loss to Real Garcilaso.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Did not dress in Spartak's 1-1 draw with Krylya Sovetov.
Michal Mravec - Zilina - Slovakia - Lost 2-1 to Slate Moravce.
Pablo Punyed - Fylkir - Iceland - Started and played 67 minutes in Fylkir's 2-1 loss to Valur. Started and played 90 minutes in Fylkir's 1-1 draw with Fram.
Ryan Smith - Skoda Xanthi - Greece - Came off the bench and played 26 minutes in Xanthi's 3-0 loss to Panathinaikos.
Milos Stojcev - FK Leotar Trebinje - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes scoring a goal in Leotar's 1-1 draw with Zvijezda.
Matt Taylor - Preußen Münster - Germany - Started and played 90 minutes in Munster's 3-0 loss to Unterhaching.
Ivan Trujillo - Llaneros - Colombia - Started and played 64 minutes in Llaneros' 0-0 draw with Deportivo Pereira.
Diego Walsh - TOT SC - Thailand - Did not play in TOT's games.
Sporting Third Round US Open Cup Potential Draw Reveiled
US Soccer today announced the potential draw for the 3rd round of this year's US Open Cup. The third round is when all 16 US based MLS teams enter the competition. The defending US Open Cup champions, Sporting Kansas City learned who their potential opponents could be today. Sporting KC's draw will see them playing at Sporting Park in the 3rd round this year and will be playing a regional team after winning a coin flip with the Chicago Fire. Sporting could play one of three teams as the first round match takes place tonight. The match tonight sees the Des Moines Menace of the PDL taking on the Madison 56ers of the NPSL in Des Moines. The winner of that match will travel to Minnesota next Tuesday to take on Minnesota United in the 2nd round. The winner of that second round match up will travel to KC to play in Sporting Park on Tuesday the 28th
Of the potential opponents, KC has previously played one of those teams, the Menace. Kansas City played the Menace in the Open Cup in 2 straight years in 2005 and 2006. KC won both of those two games, winning 6-1 in 05 and 2-1 in 06. Minnesota United, Kansas City has never officially played, but they have played the Minnesota Thunder, the previous team in Minnesota, losing in 2005 3-1 and winning on penalty kicks in 2009 after drawing 3-3 over 120 minutes.
The game will come two days after Sporting takes on Houston at Sporting Park. Last year Kansas City played Orlando City in the 3rd round after only two days rest. In that game, only 3 players who started the previous league game started against Orlando (Chance Myers, Aurelien Collin, and Seth Sinovic). Three starters entered that game as subs, Matt Besler, Graham Zusi, and CJ Sapong.
Of the potential opponents, KC has previously played one of those teams, the Menace. Kansas City played the Menace in the Open Cup in 2 straight years in 2005 and 2006. KC won both of those two games, winning 6-1 in 05 and 2-1 in 06. Minnesota United, Kansas City has never officially played, but they have played the Minnesota Thunder, the previous team in Minnesota, losing in 2005 3-1 and winning on penalty kicks in 2009 after drawing 3-3 over 120 minutes.
The game will come two days after Sporting takes on Houston at Sporting Park. Last year Kansas City played Orlando City in the 3rd round after only two days rest. In that game, only 3 players who started the previous league game started against Orlando (Chance Myers, Aurelien Collin, and Seth Sinovic). Three starters entered that game as subs, Matt Besler, Graham Zusi, and CJ Sapong.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
When Do You Consider Recalling Dwyer?
To say that Dom Dwyer has had a stellar start to his loan time at Orlando City may be an understatement. Sporting KC's first round draft pick in the 2012 SuperDraft is off to a flying start in Orlando. Through 8 games for Orlando, Dwyer has scored 10 goals already. That's double the amount of goals as the next highest scorer Joseph Ngwenya (although he's played half as many games as Dwyer has).
His two latest goals came in Orlando's 2-0 win over the Seattle Sounders reserves on Sunday in Seattle. Plenty of comments can be made regarding the level of competition in the USL-Pro league, the third division of US Soccer, but you can't deny an output of over a goal a game for Dwyer with Orlando. And in the last game against Seattle the lineup included players that have regularly appeared in league play for the Sounders, including Patrick Ianni, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Steve Zakuani, including others. And he looked pretty good doing it as well with a few other chances that were blocked or well saved.
With this success you have to begin to wonder if and when Peter Vermes will look to recall the Englishman to Kansas City. You can't coach form and right now, Dwyer is in a very good run of form at the moment. Other than the win over Chivas, KC has struggled at times to find the net. And with the US Open Cup starting in a few weeks and Champions League starting later this summer, KC could use a guy that is putting the ball in the back of the net.
Vermes has said in the past that if he does call up one of his players that is on loan with Orlando he'd try to send a replacement to Orlando, with there being only four players currently in Orlando, per the terms of the deal, Vermes would need to send a player down to replace Dwyer. The logical choice for KC to send should they recall Dwyer would be Soony Saad who since the healthy return of Jacob Peterson and return of Kei Kamara has found his chances limited. A chance for Saad to get game time and get his confidence up the way that Dwyer is currently would be a big boost for Sporting KC as the season progresses. But on the other hand Dwyer would likely be behind Claudio Bieler and CJ Sapong should he return with Dwyer being more of a center forward. And with Teal Bunbury looking like he could return in June, that'd put Dwyer further down the depth chart at the center forward position. But again with KC potentially competing in 3 competitions later this summer depth will be tested and needed for those games.
The odd thing is that with KC's current issues on the back line it could be another loanee that could get an emergency return to KC, at least for this weekend's game against DC. With Aurelien Collin suspended and Matt Besler still recovering from a knee injury KC's only has 2 players likely to play center back, Ike Opara and Lawrence Olum. That could potentially see Vermes recall Yann Songo'o, who has played every minute for Orlando so far this season, at least to have center back coverage on the bench. If Vermes decides not to recall Songo'o the likely center back coverage would seem to be Michael Thomas who has played there in games against college teams during the season so far.
His two latest goals came in Orlando's 2-0 win over the Seattle Sounders reserves on Sunday in Seattle. Plenty of comments can be made regarding the level of competition in the USL-Pro league, the third division of US Soccer, but you can't deny an output of over a goal a game for Dwyer with Orlando. And in the last game against Seattle the lineup included players that have regularly appeared in league play for the Sounders, including Patrick Ianni, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Steve Zakuani, including others. And he looked pretty good doing it as well with a few other chances that were blocked or well saved.
With this success you have to begin to wonder if and when Peter Vermes will look to recall the Englishman to Kansas City. You can't coach form and right now, Dwyer is in a very good run of form at the moment. Other than the win over Chivas, KC has struggled at times to find the net. And with the US Open Cup starting in a few weeks and Champions League starting later this summer, KC could use a guy that is putting the ball in the back of the net.
Vermes has said in the past that if he does call up one of his players that is on loan with Orlando he'd try to send a replacement to Orlando, with there being only four players currently in Orlando, per the terms of the deal, Vermes would need to send a player down to replace Dwyer. The logical choice for KC to send should they recall Dwyer would be Soony Saad who since the healthy return of Jacob Peterson and return of Kei Kamara has found his chances limited. A chance for Saad to get game time and get his confidence up the way that Dwyer is currently would be a big boost for Sporting KC as the season progresses. But on the other hand Dwyer would likely be behind Claudio Bieler and CJ Sapong should he return with Dwyer being more of a center forward. And with Teal Bunbury looking like he could return in June, that'd put Dwyer further down the depth chart at the center forward position. But again with KC potentially competing in 3 competitions later this summer depth will be tested and needed for those games.
The odd thing is that with KC's current issues on the back line it could be another loanee that could get an emergency return to KC, at least for this weekend's game against DC. With Aurelien Collin suspended and Matt Besler still recovering from a knee injury KC's only has 2 players likely to play center back, Ike Opara and Lawrence Olum. That could potentially see Vermes recall Yann Songo'o, who has played every minute for Orlando so far this season, at least to have center back coverage on the bench. If Vermes decides not to recall Songo'o the likely center back coverage would seem to be Michael Thomas who has played there in games against college teams during the season so far.
Monday, May 13, 2013
S.A.S. Monday After Stats
Aurelien Collin's goal was his 10th in all competitions, he's the 27th player to hit that mark for KC.
It was Collin's 5th game winner in league play, tying him with Jimmy Conrad, Jack Jewsbury, Igor Simutenkov, Teal Bunbury, and Graham Zusi for 14th on that list.
It was Collin's 6th game winner in all competitions, tying him with Eddie Johnson, Jose Burciaga, Francisco Gomez, and Mo Johnston for 13th on that list.
The win was Peter Vermes' 51st league win, breaking his tie with Ron Newman for second on KC's list for coaches.
In the 87th minute, Jimmy Nielsen passed Uche Okafor and moved into 15th place for minute played in league play, Nielsen finished the game with 9,517 minutes played.
In the 15th minute, Nielsen moved past Okafor and into 16th place in minutes played in all competitions. Nielsen finished the game with 10,357 minute played.
Nielsen made his 106th league starting, tying him with Matt Besler for 16th on that list.
Kei Kamara made his 100th league appearance for KC, he's the 25th player to hit that mark.
Graham Zusi made his 121st appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Sean Bowers for 20th on that list.
It was Collin's 5th game winner in league play, tying him with Jimmy Conrad, Jack Jewsbury, Igor Simutenkov, Teal Bunbury, and Graham Zusi for 14th on that list.
It was Collin's 6th game winner in all competitions, tying him with Eddie Johnson, Jose Burciaga, Francisco Gomez, and Mo Johnston for 13th on that list.
The win was Peter Vermes' 51st league win, breaking his tie with Ron Newman for second on KC's list for coaches.
In the 87th minute, Jimmy Nielsen passed Uche Okafor and moved into 15th place for minute played in league play, Nielsen finished the game with 9,517 minutes played.
In the 15th minute, Nielsen moved past Okafor and into 16th place in minutes played in all competitions. Nielsen finished the game with 10,357 minute played.
Nielsen made his 106th league starting, tying him with Matt Besler for 16th on that list.
Kei Kamara made his 100th league appearance for KC, he's the 25th player to hit that mark.
Graham Zusi made his 121st appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Sean Bowers for 20th on that list.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Sporting Ends Houston's Unbeaten Streak
Coming into last Sunday and the start of Sporting KC's 3 games in 8 days streak, I figured that taking 6 out of 9 points from the 3 games would have been acceptable. You had home games against the struggling Chivas and Seattle and a trip to Houston where the Dynamo are unbeaten in 36 games. The Chivas game went to plan with a 4-0 win. Then a rough game against Seattle at home that KC lost 1-0. So heading into the game against the Dynamo tonight, Sporting had 3 of the 6 I was expecting with the toughest game ahead. KC though came out with a good game plan, got some luck and pulled out a 1-0 win over the Houston Dynamo, ending their unbeaten run at home that had lasted for 22 months.
From the start KC actually came out with some intention from the start and actually had some good possession early on against the Dynamo, but lacked in creating chances. In the 10th minute KC got the first good look of the game off a long throw. The thrown was partially cleared to Oriol Rosell who fired a volley on goal but it was right at Tally Hall. Hall knocked the shot down and covered up the rebound. The Dynamo started to come alive and created some half chances but didn't test Jimmy Nielsen early on. KC continued to get some looks themselves, with Claudio Bieler forcing another save out of Tally Hall. While it wouldn't affect them the rest of the night tonight, in the 24th minute Sporting KC was dealt a blow towards next week. Aurelien Collin picked up his 5th yellow card of the season and will sit out the game next weekend in DC. With Matt Besler still recovering from his knee injury that could lead to an Ike Opara/Lawrence Olum center back pairing. Things for the DC game took another hit in the 40th when Rosell picked up his 5th yellow of the season, meaning he'll miss the game as well, leaving KC a little light defensively. KC made it through the half though and the two teams were level heading into the half time break.
In the second half Kansas City continued to hang with the Dynamo and were creating the better of the chances. Graham Zusi and Peterson Joseph combined well in the 52nd minute, the only thing lacking was Zusi's shot which he put wide from just outside the box. Shortly after KC had another really good chance off a short free kick, Seth Sinovic fired a shot from long range that Hall did well to hold onto. KC continued to pressure and in the 73rd it paid off. A long throw by Sinovic was flicked on by Collin. Collin's header went past Hall and was headed into the net. Houston defender, Corey Ashe raced back and got his head on it but couldn't keep the ball out and Kansas City went up 1-0. Off a turnover immediately after the kick off KC almost doubled the lead. Houston turned the ball over quickly and KC sent a long ball over the top to Claudio Bieler. Bieler ended up collecting the ball and firing a shot just wide of Hall's post. After that the Dynamo really took over the game and pinned KC in their own end. In the 80th the Dynamo had a great opportunity to equalize off a corner. Brad Davis played the ball to the back post for substitute, Jason Johnson. Johnson headed the ball back across goal towards the back post. Nielsen was beaten, but Paulo Nagamura hadn't moved too far off the post yet (like a good player should when covering the post) and headed the ball off the line keeping KC in front. The Dynamo kept pushing the game and won a number of free kicks as KC seemed to commit foul after foul in their defensive half of the field giving Davis plenty of chances to swing balls into the box. KC though stepped up and cleared the chances. In the 84th off another Davis corner the ball got partially cleared but Andrew Driver fired a shot just wide. While the Dynamo controlled the game, KC tried to strike on the counter with Zusi, CJ Sapong, and Kei Kamara. KC got some opportunities, but Houston was quick to recover and KC at times was content to use it to kill more clock. As the game entered stoppage time, Houston was playing everything into the box. A Hall free kick was played into the path to Davis who had a look on goal, but Opara shut the angle down and Davis didn't get a good shot off and Nielsen collected. KC held on and collected 3 points to get to the 6 of 9 I was expecting, not the way I did, but they got it done and moved into a tie for second in the East.
Wizards Man of the Match - Aurelien Collin - It was a little hectic early on for him and the yellow will see him miss the DC game, but Collin was solid tonight. Everything into the area he was cutting out, and he got the vital goal to win it.
Honorable Mention - Ike Opara
Player Ratings - Nielsen 6, Jerome 7, Collin 8, Opara 8, Sinovic 7, Rosell 5, Nagamura 6, Joseph 6, Peterson 6, Bieler 6, Zusi 6. Subs Kamara 6, Olum 6, Sapong NR.
From the start KC actually came out with some intention from the start and actually had some good possession early on against the Dynamo, but lacked in creating chances. In the 10th minute KC got the first good look of the game off a long throw. The thrown was partially cleared to Oriol Rosell who fired a volley on goal but it was right at Tally Hall. Hall knocked the shot down and covered up the rebound. The Dynamo started to come alive and created some half chances but didn't test Jimmy Nielsen early on. KC continued to get some looks themselves, with Claudio Bieler forcing another save out of Tally Hall. While it wouldn't affect them the rest of the night tonight, in the 24th minute Sporting KC was dealt a blow towards next week. Aurelien Collin picked up his 5th yellow card of the season and will sit out the game next weekend in DC. With Matt Besler still recovering from his knee injury that could lead to an Ike Opara/Lawrence Olum center back pairing. Things for the DC game took another hit in the 40th when Rosell picked up his 5th yellow of the season, meaning he'll miss the game as well, leaving KC a little light defensively. KC made it through the half though and the two teams were level heading into the half time break.
In the second half Kansas City continued to hang with the Dynamo and were creating the better of the chances. Graham Zusi and Peterson Joseph combined well in the 52nd minute, the only thing lacking was Zusi's shot which he put wide from just outside the box. Shortly after KC had another really good chance off a short free kick, Seth Sinovic fired a shot from long range that Hall did well to hold onto. KC continued to pressure and in the 73rd it paid off. A long throw by Sinovic was flicked on by Collin. Collin's header went past Hall and was headed into the net. Houston defender, Corey Ashe raced back and got his head on it but couldn't keep the ball out and Kansas City went up 1-0. Off a turnover immediately after the kick off KC almost doubled the lead. Houston turned the ball over quickly and KC sent a long ball over the top to Claudio Bieler. Bieler ended up collecting the ball and firing a shot just wide of Hall's post. After that the Dynamo really took over the game and pinned KC in their own end. In the 80th the Dynamo had a great opportunity to equalize off a corner. Brad Davis played the ball to the back post for substitute, Jason Johnson. Johnson headed the ball back across goal towards the back post. Nielsen was beaten, but Paulo Nagamura hadn't moved too far off the post yet (like a good player should when covering the post) and headed the ball off the line keeping KC in front. The Dynamo kept pushing the game and won a number of free kicks as KC seemed to commit foul after foul in their defensive half of the field giving Davis plenty of chances to swing balls into the box. KC though stepped up and cleared the chances. In the 84th off another Davis corner the ball got partially cleared but Andrew Driver fired a shot just wide. While the Dynamo controlled the game, KC tried to strike on the counter with Zusi, CJ Sapong, and Kei Kamara. KC got some opportunities, but Houston was quick to recover and KC at times was content to use it to kill more clock. As the game entered stoppage time, Houston was playing everything into the box. A Hall free kick was played into the path to Davis who had a look on goal, but Opara shut the angle down and Davis didn't get a good shot off and Nielsen collected. KC held on and collected 3 points to get to the 6 of 9 I was expecting, not the way I did, but they got it done and moved into a tie for second in the East.
Wizards Man of the Match - Aurelien Collin - It was a little hectic early on for him and the yellow will see him miss the DC game, but Collin was solid tonight. Everything into the area he was cutting out, and he got the vital goal to win it.
Honorable Mention - Ike Opara
Player Ratings - Nielsen 6, Jerome 7, Collin 8, Opara 8, Sinovic 7, Rosell 5, Nagamura 6, Joseph 6, Peterson 6, Bieler 6, Zusi 6. Subs Kamara 6, Olum 6, Sapong NR.
FC Kansas City Fall for the First Time
From FC Kansas City
FC Kansas City suffered its first loss of the season Saturday night at Sahlen’s Stadium against the Western New York Flash by the score of 2-1. Current FIFA Player of the Year, Abby Wambach, scored both goals for the home side in the first half. Her U.S. Women’s National teammate put FC Kansas City on the board in the second half, but the ‘Blues’ were unable to find an equalizer.
Going into tonight’s match, Kansas City’s defense had been the best in the league. When Wambach scored in the 34th minute it ended a 237 minute shutout streak for Nicole Barnhart and the KC defense. It was also the first goal given up in run-of-play, putting FC Kansas City behind for the first time all season. Wambach scored again five minutes later taking advantage of a defensive miscue from KC and beat Nicole Barnhart one-on-one for the 2-0 lead.
Lauren Cheney was able to get the Blues on the board with a flick-header past the outstretched arms of Western New York goalkeeper, Adrianna French, in the 53rd minute. Trying to increase the offensive pressure, Coach Vlatko Andonovski subbed in Erika Tymrak, Courtney Jones and Melissa Henderson as the second half went along. Although they outshot the Flash 12-9, Kansas City was not able to add more goals to their tally
The team will return home next Saturday, May 18th to face Sydney Leroux and the Boston Breakers at 7:35p.m. CT. Tickets are available by emailing tickets@kcprosoccer.com or calling 855.4KC.GOAL.
FC Kansas City suffered its first loss of the season Saturday night at Sahlen’s Stadium against the Western New York Flash by the score of 2-1. Current FIFA Player of the Year, Abby Wambach, scored both goals for the home side in the first half. Her U.S. Women’s National teammate put FC Kansas City on the board in the second half, but the ‘Blues’ were unable to find an equalizer.
Going into tonight’s match, Kansas City’s defense had been the best in the league. When Wambach scored in the 34th minute it ended a 237 minute shutout streak for Nicole Barnhart and the KC defense. It was also the first goal given up in run-of-play, putting FC Kansas City behind for the first time all season. Wambach scored again five minutes later taking advantage of a defensive miscue from KC and beat Nicole Barnhart one-on-one for the 2-0 lead.
Lauren Cheney was able to get the Blues on the board with a flick-header past the outstretched arms of Western New York goalkeeper, Adrianna French, in the 53rd minute. Trying to increase the offensive pressure, Coach Vlatko Andonovski subbed in Erika Tymrak, Courtney Jones and Melissa Henderson as the second half went along. Although they outshot the Flash 12-9, Kansas City was not able to add more goals to their tally
The team will return home next Saturday, May 18th to face Sydney Leroux and the Boston Breakers at 7:35p.m. CT. Tickets are available by emailing tickets@kcprosoccer.com or calling 855.4KC.GOAL.
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Finishing a Busy Week in an Unfriendly Environment
Sporting KC return to action again tomorrow against the Houston Dynamo. It'll be the 3rd game in just over a week for both teams. The two teams though have looked quite different over the past week. While Houston has looked quite good, taking 6 points on the road against LA and an admittedly poor DC United, KC took 3 points from two home games against Chivas USA and Seattle. Now KC gets to travel on the road while Houston returns home to a place where the Dynamo have yet to lose.
Houston's road play in the past week has been dominate, especially in DC. The team is playing well and Will Bruin appears to have woken up from his early season slump. They are suffering through some long term injury issues with both Calen Carr and Omar Cummings, but this has given more time to the likes of Giles Barnes and Andrew Driver, who have seized the time and taken full advantage of it. The Dynamo have been the thorn in the backs of Kansas City for the past few years, especially in the playoffs taking KC out the last two years.
Kansas City while they got the 4-0 win over Chivas has been in some poor form lately, especially at home. They've lost 3 of their last 4, with 3 of those games being at home. Losses to LA, Portland, and Seattle have brought Kansas City back to earth and have brought a number of questions on style and tactics for Kansas City. Sporting will get the return of Paulo Nagamura from his suspension Wednesday for his stomp on the weekend. Also expect a few more changes to the lineup from Wednesday as a few players got some rest. One big question is whether or not Matt Besler will be returning to the lineup. Besler has missed the last two games due to a knee injury. Not that Ike Opara has done horribly replacing Besler, but the defense has missed Besler's composure in the back.
Nielsen
Myers - Collin - Opara - Sinovic
Nagamura - Rosell
Feilhaber
Kamara - Bieler - Zusi
Number to Remember - 6 - That's the number of games in a row that KC has gone in league play without a win against the Houston Dynamo on the road. Since handing the Dynamo their first home loss in team history, Sporting has gone 0-3-3 in Houston, scoring 5 goals while conceding 11. That's not including 2 playoff losses (both 2-0), or a 1-0 extra time win in a US Open Cup qualifier (that actually took place in College Station).
Key Match Up - Aurelien Collin vs Will Bruin - Bruin finally broke out of his goal scoring slump recently, scoring 2 goals in Houston's Wednesday night win over DC. Collin will likely be the one tasked with keeping an eye on the striker. On the surface that looks set to be a fairly physical match up between the two.
PREDICTION - I would like to say that I'm confident in this game, but I'm really not. Recent results for Kansas City (4-0 win over 10 man Chivas aside) have left me with more questions than answers about this team. Peter Vermes finally started using some squad rotation this past week in games so the lineup could certainly change a bit. But the team right now doesn't seem to be clicking as well. The defense has been exposed very badly in these games, especially on the counter. Shoring up the defense must be a key for this game. I don't like to rely on KC's past history or Houston's, but with KC winless since 2006, and Houston undefeated at BBVA Compass Stadium since it opened I don't have high hopes for this game, I'd probably be thrilled with a draw, but I don't really see that happening. I expect Dominic Kinnear to outcoach Vermes again and take this game.
SKC - 0
HOU - 2 (Bruin, Driver)
Houston's road play in the past week has been dominate, especially in DC. The team is playing well and Will Bruin appears to have woken up from his early season slump. They are suffering through some long term injury issues with both Calen Carr and Omar Cummings, but this has given more time to the likes of Giles Barnes and Andrew Driver, who have seized the time and taken full advantage of it. The Dynamo have been the thorn in the backs of Kansas City for the past few years, especially in the playoffs taking KC out the last two years.
Kansas City while they got the 4-0 win over Chivas has been in some poor form lately, especially at home. They've lost 3 of their last 4, with 3 of those games being at home. Losses to LA, Portland, and Seattle have brought Kansas City back to earth and have brought a number of questions on style and tactics for Kansas City. Sporting will get the return of Paulo Nagamura from his suspension Wednesday for his stomp on the weekend. Also expect a few more changes to the lineup from Wednesday as a few players got some rest. One big question is whether or not Matt Besler will be returning to the lineup. Besler has missed the last two games due to a knee injury. Not that Ike Opara has done horribly replacing Besler, but the defense has missed Besler's composure in the back.
Nielsen
Myers - Collin - Opara - Sinovic
Nagamura - Rosell
Feilhaber
Kamara - Bieler - Zusi
Number to Remember - 6 - That's the number of games in a row that KC has gone in league play without a win against the Houston Dynamo on the road. Since handing the Dynamo their first home loss in team history, Sporting has gone 0-3-3 in Houston, scoring 5 goals while conceding 11. That's not including 2 playoff losses (both 2-0), or a 1-0 extra time win in a US Open Cup qualifier (that actually took place in College Station).
Key Match Up - Aurelien Collin vs Will Bruin - Bruin finally broke out of his goal scoring slump recently, scoring 2 goals in Houston's Wednesday night win over DC. Collin will likely be the one tasked with keeping an eye on the striker. On the surface that looks set to be a fairly physical match up between the two.
PREDICTION - I would like to say that I'm confident in this game, but I'm really not. Recent results for Kansas City (4-0 win over 10 man Chivas aside) have left me with more questions than answers about this team. Peter Vermes finally started using some squad rotation this past week in games so the lineup could certainly change a bit. But the team right now doesn't seem to be clicking as well. The defense has been exposed very badly in these games, especially on the counter. Shoring up the defense must be a key for this game. I don't like to rely on KC's past history or Houston's, but with KC winless since 2006, and Houston undefeated at BBVA Compass Stadium since it opened I don't have high hopes for this game, I'd probably be thrilled with a draw, but I don't really see that happening. I expect Dominic Kinnear to outcoach Vermes again and take this game.
SKC - 0
HOU - 2 (Bruin, Driver)
Thursday, May 09, 2013
Dwyer Scores Hattrick for Orlando - Former SKC Wizards Update
Sporting KC's on loan striker, Dom Dwyer had a very good week. He scored a hattrick in Orlando's big 7-2 win over Antigua and was named the USL-Pro player of the week for this past week. It was a bitter sweet one for Roger Espinoza. Espinoza getting his first start in a few months scored the first goal of the game for Wigan, but it wasn't enough as they sank deeper into relegation trouble with a 3-2 loss to Swansea. Finally on another loan note, Kei Kamara's loan in England ended this past week without Norwich purchasing Kamara's contract. Kamara returned to a loud cheer last night against Seattle. Here's the rest of this week's update.
Active without a club or unknown
Jose Burciaga
Julio Cesar
Doug DeMartin
Birahim Diop
Edson Elcock
Mauro Fuzetti
Willy Guadarrama
Aaron Hohlbein
Mike Jones
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Scott Lorenz
Amir Lowery
Neven Markovic
Rauwshan McKenzie
Akeem Priestly
Scott Sealy
MLS
Davy Arnaud - Montreal - Did not dress in Montreal's 2-2 draw with San Jose. Did not dress in Montreal's 2-1 loss to New York.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Started and played 54 minutes, scoring a goal in Salt Lake's 2-0 win over Vancouver. Started and played 59 minutes in Salt Lake's 2-1 win over New England.
Michael Harrington - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 0-0 draw with New England. Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 1-1 draw with Dallas.
Kevin Hartman - New York - Did not dress in New York's 1-0 win over Columbus. Did not dress in New York's 2-1 win over Montreal.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 81 minutes in Portland's 0-0 draw with New England. Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 1-1 draw with Dallas.
Eddie Johnson - Seattle - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Seattle's 2-2 draw with Philadelphia. Started and played 90 minutes in Seattle's 1-0 win over KC.
Chris Konopka - Philadelphia - Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 2-2 draw with Seattle.
Khari Stephenson - Salt Lake - Came off the bench and played 10 minutes in Salt Lake's 2-0 win over Vancouver. Dressed but did not play in Salt Lake's 2-1 win over New England.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Started and played 87 minutes in Columbus' 1-0 loss to New York.
Konrad Warzycha - Columbus - Came off the bench and played 1 minute in Columbus' 1-0 loss to New York.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Fort Lauderdale - No game this week.
Kevin Friedland - Minnesota - Did not play in Minnesota's 2-2 draw with Carolina.
Shavar Thomas - Fort Lauderdale - No game this week.
USL
Christian Duke - Orlando (Loan) - Did not dress in Orlando's 7-2 win over Antigua.
Dom Dwyer - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a hattrick in Orlando's 7-2 win over Antigua.
Brian Fekete - Orlando - Did not dress in Orlando's 7-2 win over Antigua.
Cyprian Hedrick - Phoenix - Started and played 90 minutes in Phoenix's 1-1 draw with Pittsburgh.
Jon Kempin - Orlando (Loan) - Did not dress in Orlando's 7-2 win over Antigua.
Nelson Pizarro - Los Angeles - Started and played 88 minutes in LA's 0-0 draw with Pittsburgh. Started and played 70 minutes in LA's 4-3 loss to the LA Galaxy reserves.
Mike Reidy - Rochester - Started and played 90 minutes in Rochester's 1-0 loss to Harrisburg.
Yann Songo'o - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 7-2 win over Antigua.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 2-0 win over Wilmington. Started and played 90 minutes, recording an assist in Richmond's 3-3 draw with Charlotte.
John Wilson - Charleston - Started and played 90 minutes in Charleston's 1-0 win over Dayton.
PDL
Michael Kraus - FC Tucson - Offseason
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Syracuse - Offseason
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason
Boris Pardo - Missouri - Offseason
Craig Rocastle - Missouri - Offseason
Paul Wright - San Diego - Offseason
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - FC Haka - Finland - Started and played 90 minutes in Haka's 2-2 draw with Kajaani.
Stephane Auvray - DPMM FC - Brunei (Singapore League) - Started and played 55 minutes in DPMM's 2-0 loss to Warriors.
Vicente Arze - Esteghlal - Iran - Did not play in Esteghlal's 1-0 win over Foolad.
Omar Bravo - Atlas - Mexico - Did not dress in Atlas' 1-0 loss to Leon.
Sunil Chhetri - Churchill Brothers - India - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Chruchill's 1-1 draw with Mohun Bagan.
Eloy Colombano - UAI Urquiza - Argentina - Beat Deportivo Espanol 3-1.
Daneil Cyrus - W Connection - Trinidad - Started and played 90 minutes in W Connection's 4-0 win over Defence Force.
Pablo Escobar - Atletico Huila - Colombia - Did not play in Huila's 2-1 loss to Boyaca Chico. Did not play in Huila's 0-0 draw with Fortaleza.
Roger Espinoza - Wigan - England - Came off the bench and played 15 minutes in Wigan's 3-2 win over West Brom. Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Wigan's 3-2 loss to Swansea.
Gary Glasgow - North East Stars - Trinidad - No game this week.
Herculez Gomez - Santos Laguna - Mexico - Came off the bench and played 27 minutes in Santos' 2-1 loss to Morelia.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Beat Waterhouse 2-0.
Jeferson - Bahia - Brazil - Did not play in either of Bahia's games.
Will John - AZAL - Azerbaijan - Did not dress in either of AZAL's games.
Kei Kamara - Norwich - England - Came off the bench and played 18 minutes in Norwich's 2-1 loss to Aston Villa.
Igor Kostrov - Dacia - Moldova - Started and played 67 minutes in Dacia's 2-1 win over Academia UTM.
Carlos Marinelli - Universidad San Martin - Peru - Started and played 90 minutes in San Martin's 1-0 loss to Melgar.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Did not dress in Spartak's 2-1 loss to Mordovia Saransk.
Michal Mravec - Zilina - Slovakia - No game this week.
Pablo Punyed - Fjolnir - Iceland - Season starts in May.
Ryan Smith - Skoda Xanthi - Greece - No game this week.
Milos Stojcev - FK Leotar Trebinje - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Leotar's 3-1 loss to Travnik. Started and played 90 minutes in Leotar's 5-0 loss to Borac Banja Luka.
Matt Taylor - Preußen Münster - Germany - Started and played 90 minutes in Munster's 1-0 win over Stuttgarter Kickers.
Ivan Trujillo - Llaneros - Colombia - Started and played 90 minutes in Llaneros' 2-1 win over Valledupar. Did not play in Llaneros' 2-1 win over La Equidad.
Diego Walsh - TOT SC - Thailand - Did not dress in TOT's 1-0 win over Pattaya United.
Active without a club or unknown
Jose Burciaga
Julio Cesar
Doug DeMartin
Birahim Diop
Edson Elcock
Mauro Fuzetti
Willy Guadarrama
Aaron Hohlbein
Mike Jones
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Scott Lorenz
Amir Lowery
Neven Markovic
Rauwshan McKenzie
Akeem Priestly
Scott Sealy
MLS
Davy Arnaud - Montreal - Did not dress in Montreal's 2-2 draw with San Jose. Did not dress in Montreal's 2-1 loss to New York.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Started and played 54 minutes, scoring a goal in Salt Lake's 2-0 win over Vancouver. Started and played 59 minutes in Salt Lake's 2-1 win over New England.
Michael Harrington - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 0-0 draw with New England. Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 1-1 draw with Dallas.
Kevin Hartman - New York - Did not dress in New York's 1-0 win over Columbus. Did not dress in New York's 2-1 win over Montreal.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 81 minutes in Portland's 0-0 draw with New England. Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 1-1 draw with Dallas.
Eddie Johnson - Seattle - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Seattle's 2-2 draw with Philadelphia. Started and played 90 minutes in Seattle's 1-0 win over KC.
Chris Konopka - Philadelphia - Dressed but did not play in Philadelphia's 2-2 draw with Seattle.
Khari Stephenson - Salt Lake - Came off the bench and played 10 minutes in Salt Lake's 2-0 win over Vancouver. Dressed but did not play in Salt Lake's 2-1 win over New England.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Started and played 87 minutes in Columbus' 1-0 loss to New York.
Konrad Warzycha - Columbus - Came off the bench and played 1 minute in Columbus' 1-0 loss to New York.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Fort Lauderdale - No game this week.
Kevin Friedland - Minnesota - Did not play in Minnesota's 2-2 draw with Carolina.
Shavar Thomas - Fort Lauderdale - No game this week.
USL
Christian Duke - Orlando (Loan) - Did not dress in Orlando's 7-2 win over Antigua.
Dom Dwyer - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a hattrick in Orlando's 7-2 win over Antigua.
Brian Fekete - Orlando - Did not dress in Orlando's 7-2 win over Antigua.
Cyprian Hedrick - Phoenix - Started and played 90 minutes in Phoenix's 1-1 draw with Pittsburgh.
Jon Kempin - Orlando (Loan) - Did not dress in Orlando's 7-2 win over Antigua.
Nelson Pizarro - Los Angeles - Started and played 88 minutes in LA's 0-0 draw with Pittsburgh. Started and played 70 minutes in LA's 4-3 loss to the LA Galaxy reserves.
Mike Reidy - Rochester - Started and played 90 minutes in Rochester's 1-0 loss to Harrisburg.
Yann Songo'o - Orlando (Loan) - Started and played 90 minutes in Orlando's 7-2 win over Antigua.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 2-0 win over Wilmington. Started and played 90 minutes, recording an assist in Richmond's 3-3 draw with Charlotte.
John Wilson - Charleston - Started and played 90 minutes in Charleston's 1-0 win over Dayton.
PDL
Michael Kraus - FC Tucson - Offseason
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Syracuse - Offseason
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason
Boris Pardo - Missouri - Offseason
Craig Rocastle - Missouri - Offseason
Paul Wright - San Diego - Offseason
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - FC Haka - Finland - Started and played 90 minutes in Haka's 2-2 draw with Kajaani.
Stephane Auvray - DPMM FC - Brunei (Singapore League) - Started and played 55 minutes in DPMM's 2-0 loss to Warriors.
Vicente Arze - Esteghlal - Iran - Did not play in Esteghlal's 1-0 win over Foolad.
Omar Bravo - Atlas - Mexico - Did not dress in Atlas' 1-0 loss to Leon.
Sunil Chhetri - Churchill Brothers - India - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Chruchill's 1-1 draw with Mohun Bagan.
Eloy Colombano - UAI Urquiza - Argentina - Beat Deportivo Espanol 3-1.
Daneil Cyrus - W Connection - Trinidad - Started and played 90 minutes in W Connection's 4-0 win over Defence Force.
Pablo Escobar - Atletico Huila - Colombia - Did not play in Huila's 2-1 loss to Boyaca Chico. Did not play in Huila's 0-0 draw with Fortaleza.
Roger Espinoza - Wigan - England - Came off the bench and played 15 minutes in Wigan's 3-2 win over West Brom. Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Wigan's 3-2 loss to Swansea.
Gary Glasgow - North East Stars - Trinidad - No game this week.
Herculez Gomez - Santos Laguna - Mexico - Came off the bench and played 27 minutes in Santos' 2-1 loss to Morelia.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Beat Waterhouse 2-0.
Jeferson - Bahia - Brazil - Did not play in either of Bahia's games.
Will John - AZAL - Azerbaijan - Did not dress in either of AZAL's games.
Kei Kamara - Norwich - England - Came off the bench and played 18 minutes in Norwich's 2-1 loss to Aston Villa.
Igor Kostrov - Dacia - Moldova - Started and played 67 minutes in Dacia's 2-1 win over Academia UTM.
Carlos Marinelli - Universidad San Martin - Peru - Started and played 90 minutes in San Martin's 1-0 loss to Melgar.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Did not dress in Spartak's 2-1 loss to Mordovia Saransk.
Michal Mravec - Zilina - Slovakia - No game this week.
Pablo Punyed - Fjolnir - Iceland - Season starts in May.
Ryan Smith - Skoda Xanthi - Greece - No game this week.
Milos Stojcev - FK Leotar Trebinje - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Leotar's 3-1 loss to Travnik. Started and played 90 minutes in Leotar's 5-0 loss to Borac Banja Luka.
Matt Taylor - Preußen Münster - Germany - Started and played 90 minutes in Munster's 1-0 win over Stuttgarter Kickers.
Ivan Trujillo - Llaneros - Colombia - Started and played 90 minutes in Llaneros' 2-1 win over Valledupar. Did not play in Llaneros' 2-1 win over La Equidad.
Diego Walsh - TOT SC - Thailand - Did not dress in TOT's 1-0 win over Pattaya United.
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