MLS - 2012 Season

1. Brek Shea...shut up and play soccer. There's a great sign that I USED to love that someone at the stadium hangs saying "you better Brekkenize". Mmmm, not so much. He's believing his own hype and it's time for him to start backing it up. Around here, one of the worst things someone can say about a man is he's "all hat and no cattle". Let's round up the herd Shea or stop firing your damn pistols.

2. Mo...thanks for the shout out to the Academy team. Those kids work really hard and in this sweltering heat. Props to them.

3. This just in...Steven Beitashour's for real. Hope to see a lot more of him (against teams other than FCD).

 

Biking in DC traffic is borderline insane. You'd be safer running.

Maybe they can add it to the X Games though.

 

Portland to announce Caleb Porter as their new coach today
http://www.soccerbyives.net/soccer_...nounce-porter-as-head-coach-on-wednesday.html

The beginning of an MLS dynasty.

 

I was hoping he'd end up with the Crew since he was just up the road. Yeah, they're going to be good.

 

I firmly believe he went to Portland because of the fanbase and incredible gameday atmosphere. Getting atmosphere and a home game advantage was something he put a lot of effort into at Univ. of Akron. For that reason, I dont believe there was a chance of him going to the Crew and it might have had something to do with him turning down the DC United job. He is going to love it at Jeld-wen

 

Thanks for posting Mo, once they went into the tank I stopped paying attention. Great hire, I actually think the Olympic failure will help Porter in his next gig, and I'm loving it that it's Portland. The Timbers are on 30 straight sellouts w/8000 on the waiting list for season tickets. At least they gave the faithful two straight home wins w/one of them being a Cascadia derby match over Vancouver.

 

Wow.. gotta get back to paying attention. That's huge.

Then of course, I read the comments on that post.. and want to bang my head from what I see as folks who are half-right, and those who are right , but for the wrong reasons.
Even given total support by fans and management, it's gonna not be easy.
A great case study is Tom Fitzgerald re: the Crew. His collegiate level record before and after his MLS tenure speaks to his ability at the college level. His implosion at the Crew, when the skill level, not to mention ego cloud, was much different tells us about what Porter has to deal with.
Porter's Olympic flameout has nothing to do with his possible success.

I'm sure Mo agrees that Porter focusses on PROGRAM vs Project. Olympic management is project management. If you want to see the difference, look at Toronto. ALWAYS a project position.
Vs the Crew.. which is 'ehhhh..' so there's no 'right' way to do it, just gotta 'Hope for Change' when it comes to your leadership's abilty and attitudes.

 

I'm likely wrong, but I dont blame the Olympic failure on Porter. That team did not play like a Caleb Porter team, it played like a Jurgen Klinsmann team. Brek Shea could've also just cleared the freakin' ball, but it doesnt matter because they werent going to get anywhere anyway.

I predict success and that city will soon be known as Porterland. :lol:

 

Anyone else read No Short Corners?

 

That's a good read.

Phil Anschutz has put AEG up for sale. People are wondering whether that will mean trouble for MLS, the Galaxy and the Dynamo. Personally, after all Anchutz has done for MLS, I cant imagine him doing anything that would weaken the league. Kind of like the unfounded worries people had when Al Fayed sold Harrods. But nevertheless ray:
http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-anschutz-aeg-sale-20120918,0,754304.story

 

Thanks for posting Barry.

Mo, this was the lead story on the local news show we watch in the morning. While the focus was mostly on what this means for the proposed NFL stadium downtown, they mentioned some of the other major holdings (including the Galaxy and the Home Depot Center) possessed by AEG. The first name mentioned is tech billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong, who owns a piece of the Lakers and is a huge sports fan. The other possible suitor is the Guggenheim group that bought the Dodgers earlier this year.

 

Quakes keep it rolling in Seattle 2-1. Cracker of a goal by Dawkins in the first minute of highlights, Steve Zakuani back from a horrible injury tied it for the Sounders, before Wondo (who else?) helps the cross into the net for his 22nd of the season

http://www.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/20 ... v-sj/recap

 

Wondo is MLS's leading goal scorer by a large margin and Quakes will likely win the Supporters Sheild. San Jose has it goin' on at the moment.

I hope Wondo gets another call-up in October. People say he's been a dud for the Nats but I dont agree.

 

I tend to agree with those that think he's been a dud...so far. However, still think he deserves a shot, and could be productive. Unfortunately, for Wondo unless Der Kaiser wants to start 2 forwards, he's third in the pecking order and will see little to no pitch time.

 

COYQ!!!

 

Stumbled across this article - very good read. Sad story, but dude has a lot of courage. Shame he wasn't given another shot at playing after he came out. I wonder who the 3 players he's referring to are? Landon, maybe? Either way, time for sports to wake up - the color barrier was broken long ago.

http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2012/9/2 ... t=sc_t2_a7

 

Thanks for sharing, very good read.

 

Interesting article on player salaries. The Liquid Cracks are shelling out nearly 14 million for Henry, Marquez, and Cahill? :shock: There are a few guys listed that I've never heard but are getting big bucks to put people in seats (how about rock bottom Toronto..ouch).

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story ... er?cc=5901

Will have the dvr set for the Portland-Seattle match on Sunday. Hands down best derby in the league in terms of atmosphere.

 

Worthy of posting again on this thread. 66,000 in Seattle for a Cascadia Derby w/Portland. Even being a Timbers fan can't hide the appreciation for the banner of Sigi in the first minute of the highlights. Easy 3-0 win for Sounders with help of two OGs from Portland. EJ with a good left-footed half volley a little after the 3 minute mark.

http://www.portlandtimbers.com/video/20 ... rs-seattle