MLS Inquest 2012: Chivas USA

Chivas USA were unable to improve despite acquiring Juan Agudelo

2012 MLS Inquest: Chivas USA
Record: 7-18-9
Points: 30
Final Position: 9th, Western Conference

Player of the Year: Miller Bolanos
This was a tough call to make between Bolanos and 'keeper Dan Kennedy.  While Kennedy certainly kept Chivas in some games this year, Bolanos was often the most consistent danger man on offense, if there was one.  His stats suffered from Robin Fraser's continual tinkering of the offensive lineup, but the Ecuadorian managed to tally 3 goals and 4 assists.  He was tied with Ryan Smith for the club lead in the assist category and second in goals.

Flop of the Year: Juan Pablo Angel
Yes, JPA did lead Chivas USA with 4 goals.  4. That's pretty bad in and of itself, but then one steps back and sees how much, or actually how little he played.  He could have been, and should have been, a marquee name for the Goats, but only made 19 appearances, starting 9 times.  In Chivas' final home match against the Colorado Rapids, Angel was spotted in a luxury box, laughing with a sweater tied around his neck, yuppy style.  Great place for a team leader to be.

The Good:
Chivas looked pretty decent out of the gates, collecting two big road wins at Real Salt Lake and at the Portland Timbers.  The strength of the team in those early weeks was defense, but the good, stout defense in front of Dan Kennedy's goal eventually faded away, and with it, the results.

The Bad:
Despite acquiring several well known players, Chivas USA was never able to gel and get their chemistry going as team down the stretch.  Their only two wins in the second half came at the expense of Portland, the last one coming on July 29.

The Ugly:
There's  a lot of ugly to go around at Chivas USA.  Changes in their ownership structure and front office have gone into effect, but it didn't matter what was changed down the stretch for the Goats, nothing helped.  They dropped 8 out of their last 10 games to fall to last place in the Western Conference.  What is even more ugly is that so many of the prime seats at the HDC sit empty covered by tarps at every Chivas USA home match.

The Verdict:
This was nothing but another majorly disappointing season for the Goats and their fans.  The brand is in shambles, despite the high profile additions of guys like Juan Agudelo, who was utterly ineffective.  Robin Fraser seems to be in trouble with the new front office shakeup and rumors already swirling about who will be the next Chivas USA manager.  Still I don't see the outlook getting any brighter for the side until the culture around the team and the brand have improved.

MLS Inquest 2012: Toronto FC

A midseason injury to Danny Koevermans scuttled TFC's recovery

This is one of the most ambitious things I've ever tried to do here on the blog, a wrap up of every MLS team as their season ends.  Of course, the season is now over for nine teams, and two more will be added before the week is out.

An inquest is an investigation that takes place after a death to determine the cause, so I've I decided to go with "MLS Inquest" as the name for the series.  We'll see if I can keep up with it.  Here is the first entry, a look the unfortunate season of Toronto FC.

2012 MLS Inquest: Toronto FC
Final Record: 5-21-8
Points: 23
Final Position: 10th, Eastern Conference

Player of the Year: Luis Silva
This rookie midfielder from UCSB was one of the few consistent bright spots for TFC this year.  Silva scored 5 goals and tallied 5 assists in 30 league appearances for the club this year.  His speed and ability often resulted in headaches for opposing defenses, and he should be heavily involved in whatever TFC's plans are going forward.

Flop of the Year: Torsten Frings
The wear on the on the legs of the soon to be 36 year old TFC captain really started to show at times this season as Frings spent ample amount of time on the sidelines, appearing in only 20 league matches.  While always a hard worker, Frings was often played all over the pitch and many times out of position.  No matter where he was, he was rarely able to provide the leadership that TFC needed to get over the hump

The Good:
Forward Danny Koevermans was having an outstanding year before suffering a season ending injury on the turf at New England on July 14.  His 9 goals still were tops on the team when the regular season ended.  The team also made a run to the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions League, and once again captured the Canadian Championship.

The Bad:
TFC struggled to find a consistent goal scorer after the injury to Koevermans, even with the addition of former Whitecaps' man Eric Hassli.  Meanwhile, they continued to bleed goals, giving up 62 goals for a goal difference of -26.  That mark was second worst in MLS.

The Ugly:
Any league hopes for the season were squashed early on when the Reds lost their opening 9 matches of the season.  They finally picked up their first win on May 26, 1-0 over the Philadelphia Union.

The Verdict:
Things were supposed to get better for the Reds after Aron Winter was sacked, and they did for awhile. TFC picked up at least a point in 8 of 9 matches from mid June to late July.  However, results eventually fell off again, as their last league win came July 18 over the Colorado Rapids.

The revolving door personnel policy over the last couple of years hasn't worked, only resulting in fans showing up at BMO Field with bags over their heads.   If Paul Mariner really is the man to lead the club going forward, they need to get the players he wants and see what happens, banishing all traces of the Aron Winter "era."

I predicted that TFC would finally crack the MLS postseason this year.  I've never been more wrong about anything.  Next year could look bleak as well, especially if the team does not reinforce it's defense.  Late last week TFC aired some dirty laundry about this aspect, accusing MLS of scuttling it's move for former Swedish International Olof Mellberg on a DP contract.  Listen for more on this story.  If the league really did shut that move down, it will raise a lot of questions about the DP situation going forward for smaller market teams and defenders.

Strong Finish Lifts Barcelona Over Rayo Vallecano

Barcelona celebrate Cesc Fabregas's late goal at Rayo Vallecano (Getty Images)

It was a windy and chilly day yesterday when Barcelona brought their show to Madrid, not to face Real or even Atletico, but going up against Rayo Vallecano at Estadio Teresa Rivero.  Prior to the match, Rayo's manager Francisco Jemez had indicated that his side intended to go toe to toe with Barca, and they pretty much did, holding their ground until late in the second half.

It really took Barca a few minutes to even get a foothold in the match, and Rayo tried desperately to take advantage and hit them early.  Unfortunately for them, they couldn't really get their sights on goal, and rarely tested Victor Valdes and his somewhat makeshift Barca back line.  Jose Carlos got a grand look after a corner in the very first minute, but screwed his shot wide of the goal.  He really should have done better.  He would try his luck again, dialing up a shot in the 17th minute but again failed to hit the target.  Despite the Rayo pressure, Barcelona really didn't look like they were going to break.

Slowly Barca got their feet under them and finally made Rayo pay for their missed opportunities in the 20th minute.  Cesc Fabregas picked out David Villa, who was making a superb late run into the penalty area.  Villa cleanly one touched the ball past the Rayo 'keeper and into the net to make it 0-1 to Barcelona.

Rayo responded pretty well though, and had a great chance to equalize the match prior to halftime.  In the 44th minute Javi Fuego dumped a ball over the top of the Barca defense that dropped to Andrija Delibasic in the area.  The Serb got his shot away, and on target, but Valdes was up to the task, corralling it and preserving his team's 0-1 lead going into the interval.

Barcelona came out in the second half and immediately put a little more daylight between themselves and the home side.  In the 48th minute Lionel Messi took a ball from Martin Montoya and smacked it into the top corner of the goal to make it 0-2 to Barcelona.

Rayo still didn't go away though, and really deserved a lot of credit for hanging in the match as long as they did.  The continued to create chances and half chances, but still really could not get their shots on frame.  In the 78th minute Sergio Rodri got a great look at goal off of a set piece, as the ball fell to him just on the side of the six.  However once again he failed to test the 'keeper and the home side failed to cut into the lead.

That was the last opening Barca would need as they would add three more goals over the course of the final twelve minutes.  In the 78th Jordi Alba found Xavi in the center of the box, and he promptly slotted home Barca's third.   Cesc Fabregas volleyed in a cross from Pedro to make it 0-4 in the 80th, and Messi finished the night with a clinical finish from a tough angle to make it 0-5 at full time.

In the end, Rayo probably didn't deserve to get put to the sword quite so badly, but their missed opportunities came back to haunt them as they failed to capitalize on Barca's vulnerable back line.  It wasn't always vintage Barcelona, but it was more than enough.

Chelsea vs United Fallout: Complaint Lodged Against Referee

Referee Mark Clattenburg shows Fernando Torres the red card.

CORRECTION: According to Sky Sports, the referee audio is not recorded.  I had read on another article that it was. (--BrandonLBC)

Let me say a couple of things in the interest of full disclosure.  First, I am a Chelsea fan.  My grandfather spent time in London throughout his life, and for whatever reason, came home loving Chelsea, though unfortunately he passed away before what we shall term as the "Abramovich Era."  So Blue was in my blood when I kicked my first ball in AYSO in the early 80s.  Of course, I sucked at soccer, and went to play baseball instead, but I digress.  Let me just say, I try not to be a homer on this blog, but it's damn hard right now.

Second, while I am guilty of highlighting various high profile officiating debacles, especially in Major League Soccer, I really try to shy away from jumping on the "referee cost us the game" bandwagon.  Referees don't put the ball in the back of the net.  They don't make saves in front of goal.  Again, it's hard to take that tact after watching this game today.

Here's my take: On the first red card to Ivanovic, I don't know if it was a great call, but Ivanovic certainly put Clattenburg in position to have to decide, so I can't really blame him there.  The second yellow to Torres was a complete and utter farce in my view.  Now I understand that diving is largely a subjective call by the referee, so it isn't technically an incorrect call.  However, when you choose to effect that match in that manner, issuing a second yellow or red card for something that's not even a foul, like dissent or diving, I think that's just incompetent.  My views are my own.  The same thing happened to Freddy Adu earlier this year in MLS, and the decision was just as shaky.  It looked to me, from the replay, that Evans did make just a little contact with Torres.  Not to mention you can just fall over when you're playing a sport, like, say soccer.  It's not always a dive.  That's why I'm totally against the "red card for diving" crowd.

Javier Hernandez's goal was offside.  Period, end of story.  Arteta's goal for Arsenal was offside.  The EPL is starting to have some MLS sized credibility issues with their refs and linesmen, though it's hard to fault the center official for a blown offside call.

Chelsea does deserve some of the blame.  The own goal by David Luiz certainly didn't help, and they were down 0-2 at home within 13 minutes.  They deserve some credit too.   They did an amazing job fighting back, and probably would have gotten the point if it weren't for that offside goal.

As the dust cleared after the match, word came out that Chelsea FC had filed a complaint with the Football Association against referee Clattenburg.  However, the complaint, lodged with the FA match delegate, is not about the calls, but alleges that he used inappropriate language toward two different Chelsea players during the match.  The FA had no immediate comment.

Is this just Chelsea's way of lashing out at Clattenburg, or is there something to this?  Referees wear microphones and the audio is recorded, so we'll see I guess.  However, it is interesting to note that Clattenburg has already been appointed to officiate at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

EPL: Arsenal Survives 10-Man QPR

Arsenal's Aaron Ramsey celebrates the match winning goal (Getty Images)

It's been a long week for the Gunners.  Not only did they drop a home Champions League match to Schalke 04, but Arsene Wenger drew some ire from some supporters and media after saying that qualifying for the Champions League was probably more important than winning a trophy.  Well I think we all know Mr. Wenger is probably talking about trophies like the League Cup, but the point of criticism still stands and has been debated for much of the week.  Wenger and his players came into the match hoping a result against bottom dwellers QPR would ease some of the pressure.

There was reason to be optimistic for the Gunners as well.  Jack Wilshere made his season first team debut after an injury that sidelined him for more than a year.  He looked pretty good too.  As a matter of fact, he was about the only thing that looked good in the first half.

Arsenal did have the best chance of  the opening stanza, and it came very early on.  In the 10th minute Bacary Sagna sent a cross into the six, where it met the head of Aaron Ramsey.  Ramsey managed to direct it on to the goal, and perhaps he had Julio Cesar beaten.  However, the ball dinged off the crossbar and out of danger.

QPR was largely punch-less through the first half as well, failing to tally a shot on target.  The Gunners would have a half chance right before halftime, as Andre Santos got a shot on goal, but Cesar made a fairly easy save to send the teams to the interval scoreless.

After a very mediocre first half performance, Arsenal came out looking much better in the second.  In the 51st minute Per Mertesacker headed a free kick from Mikel Arteta that forced a diving save from Cesar.  It was the first of a couple of fine saves from the former Inter man in the second half.

In the 77th minute Arsenal had a golden chance to go a goal up.  After a bit of a scrum in front of Cesar's goal, the ball fell very nicely to Santi Cazorla, who was all alone in the middle of the box.  Unfortunately the Spaniard blazed his wide open look well over the crossbar to the dissatisfaction of his teammates and the crowd.

The match changed just two minutes later though, and it totally swung the odds in Arsenal's favor.  In the 79th minute Arsenal's Thomas Vermaelen pushed QPR's Stephane Mbia just outside the QPR penalty area.  The assistant referee awarded the foul, but that wasn't enough for Mbia, who lashed out in a kick at the Arsenal man.  The referee spotted it, and had no choice but to issue him the red card, putting QPR down a man with ten minutes to go.

It didn't take Arsenal long to capitalize either.  In the 84th minute Cesar found himself alone in front of his goal with Olivier Giroud and Arteta.  Cesar managed to save Giroud's close range header, but parried it right to Arteta, who hit the bar with a header of his own.  The ball dropped to him though, and the former Everton man poked it over the line to give Arsenal the 1-0 lead.  Replays later showed Arteta was was probably offside on the play, but it would have been a tough call for the assistant to see so close to goal.

QPR did not fold though, in fact they responded with their best stretch of the match.  In the 90th minute Adel Taarabt found Esteban Granero in the box with a long range free kick, but Granero poked his shot just wide of the far post.  In the 2nd minute of stoppage time, Jamie Mackie gave the Arsenal defense the traffic cone treatment and maneuvered for a close 1v1 with Vito Mannone.  Mannone saved the shot stone cold to preserve the lead.  Finally in the third minute of stoppage, Mannone came up big again, tipping a Granero free kick away from his top corner, which finally silenced QPR and locked in the 1-0 win for the Gunners.

Chivas USA Continues Front Office Overhaul

Some MLS clubs are not waiting for the official end of  the regular season to make changes.  This includes Western Conference bottom dwellers Chivas USA, who found themselves locked into last place in the west after last weekend's loss to the Colorado Rapids.

Earlier this year Jorge Vergara and his wife Angelica Fuentes, current owners of Liga MX side Chivas de Guadalajara, bought out the Cua brothers ownership interest in Chivas USA to take control of the club, and now they're starting to bring in their own people.  On Tuesday they named Jose David as new team president and Jose Luis Real as supervisor of soccer operations.

Jose David, a resident of Los Angeles, is a native Mexican businessman.  He's been at the forefront of many Mexican multinational corporations, including a spell as CFO of Megamex Foods.  He has resided in LA for the past 7 years.

Real is a former player and coach in Mexico, where he coached Atlas and Chivas.  He is most widely known as a key figure in developing Chivas' much-lauded youth academy.  He's expected to have a direct influence on the on the pitch product, which could be a good thing for the Goats.  He will continue to live in Guadalajara, but is expected to make trips to LA frequently to oversee soccer operations.

Rumors have been swirling about the head coaching position as well.  Several reports surfaced earlier this week saying that Robin Fraser had officially been ousted as coach, but for now the club is denying that.  Most of the rumors seem to center on Mexican National Team manager Efrain Flores. Besides his three match stint with El Tri, he has managed Liga MX sides Atlas, Leon, Chivas, and Pachuca.  It will be interesting to see what happens after the regular season officially ends this weekend.

The Day After: An RSL Supporter's Perspective and Recovery

This pic sums up the night at Rio Tinto Stadium (realsaltlake.com)

So as someone who is both an RSL fan and someone who at least tries to be a fairly unbiased blogger about the beautiful game, I've been doing a lot of thinking in the last 24 hours about what I was going to say in this space.  Last night when I left Rio Tinto Stadium, cold and absolutely soaked to the bone, I was struggling with another feeling that I'm not all that used to when departing an RSL match: disappointment, bitter disappointment.

I've felt it before of course.  This campaign has had it's share of ups and downs.  The farce of a match that was the US Open Cup loss to Minnesota was absolutely horrid.  Of course many of us, including myself, think back to the Ultimate Disappointment: dropping the CONCACAF Champions League final second leg to Monterrey at home in April 2011.  That memory, that bad taste in my mouth, will never quite go away.  I'm sure it's even worse for the players that participated.

Now obviously last night was not a disappointment of that magnitude, for me anyway.  A lot of MLS pundits were throwing that around last night and this morning, but trust me, it's different.  Certainly reaching the CCL knock out round was one of the team's goals this year, but failing that is a whole different world from being that close to a major trophy and not touching it, to be that close to going to the FIFA Club World Cup and maybe a match against a club like Barcelona or Chelsea.

So what happened?  What were the fatal flaws for the Claret and Cobalt this time around?  I have a couple of ideas.  It's really tempting for me to overly critical, still just 24 hours after the final whistle.  However, for the most part I'm going to try and take a bit of a high road, highlighting some general trends instead of picking apart individual performances.  Heaven knows there were a couple of performances that need to be picked apart, but anyone with more than a remote interest in and knowledge of RSL can easily pick them out.

First off, this team is absolutely toothless without Alvaro Saborio.  I highlighted this several weeks ago, and then Fabian Espindola and Javier Morales picked up a couple of goals and the thought faded a bit.  Well guess what?  RSL scored zero goals at Seattle up a man, and zero goals against Herediano on their home turf.  Let's face it, the Herediano 'keeper made some really nice saves, but it really wasn't that close.

This has to be addressed.  The book on stopping RSL in the playoffs is now wide open and obvious.  Stop Saborio and you stop RSL.  As close to Superman as Sabo sometimes seems, he'll have a tough time cutting through MLS's better defenses if we have no other viable scoring threat.  This brings up a question.  Why are we bothering to pay Justin Braun?  I get it.  He doesn't have the system down.  Coach Kreis says he needs to be more consistent in training.  Couldn't these things have been known earlier in the season when we acquired him, theoretically adding depth to our forward corps?  Braun is not Sabo, not anywhere close, but as our guys sent desperate cross after desperate cross into the box late last night, it was obvious that we were missing the target man.  One would think after a few years in MLS a player like Braun would at least be able to fill that roll in a rudimentary fashion.

Secondly, the team lacks the depth it had in the 2010-2011 CCL run.  That was obvious last night when Kreis's hand was forced on two of the three subs.  While I think Sebastian Velasquez might indeed have a promising future with RSL, the spot was too big last night, and at any rate, he wasn't the type of player we needed.  As for the forwards, Espindola and Paulo Jr are too similar, especially considering the park the bus strategy that Herediano wisely employed during the second half.  Neither of those speedsters were going to get in the box and mix it up with the white shirts.  Espindola did try, and got clocked when going in for the attempt.  He took an NFL sized hit going for a header late in the match.  Can't fault him for trying, but it's not his game.  I'm sorry, Emiliano Bonfigli isn't the answer either.

This lack of depth first reared it's ugly head during the aforementioned US Open Cup match, when RSL was missing a number of guys to international duty.  The thrashing they took was ugly, and sparked some changes.  Braun was added.  Kwame Watson-Siriboe was added.  Kenny Mansally was added.  I've discussed Braun, and obviously Watson-Siriboe was a great catch and helped save this team's bacon as Olave and Schuler were both injured.  Mansally took a nasty injury against Tauro FC, but has looked pretty impressive when he's had the minutes.

The midfield depth is there, but is young, albeit capable, I think.  The concern is forward.  RSL needs another target man to back up Sabo.  The problem they now have is, how do you go out and get him without the extra allocation money?

Finally, I think one of the biggest things working against RSL this time were the high expectations.  High expectations are great, and they deserved to be high.  RSL has remained focused on this tournament since losing the 2011 final.    Since they had success before and had the veteran class to get it done, it was natural that the team, the fans, and the league expected RSL to excel this time around as well.  It just wasn't to be, but those high expectations, perhaps too high for a team a bit long in the tooth, leave bitter disappointment in their wake, as opposed to the "we were just happy to be here" feeling that so many sports teams delude themselves with.

In the end, you can't fault the effort of the players on the pitch.  There was not once in 90 minutes last night that I questioned whether our guys were giving 100%.  They knew what they had to do, and just couldn't do it.  Some credit has to go to Herediano as well.  That team was not messing around.  They were a very capable club both on offense and defense.  Unfortuantely they did result to the typical CONCACAF tactics of diving and delaying late on, but by that point RSL was doing nothing but scrambling.

As my friend and I turned onto the street where I live, about an hour north of Rio Tinto Stadium, I remarked that it was still possible to smile, that after all, it wasn't 2011.  That seems like it might be a weird spot for a supporter's recovery to begin, but I realized something: to really grasp the excitement of the highs, they have to be contrasted with the horrible disappointment of the lows. The peak RSL climbed in 2011 was huge, and they so nearly stood on the summit and took all of us with them.  They fell a few steps short, but we were still proud.  This year, they didn't get as far up the mountain, but it wasn't for lack of effort.  This time they took us along as well, and in the end we are still proud.  You'll never make the summit without taking the climb, and there will be more summits ahead for RSL and her proud fans.

Leeds United Supporter Gets Jail Time in GK Attack

A Leeds United Supporter has been jailed for this incident last Friday.

Leeds United fan Aaron Cawley has been sentenced to four months in jail for attacking Sheffield Wednesday's GK Chris Kirkland during a League Championship match last Friday at Hillsborough Stadium.  At about the 77th minute, Cawley leaped onto the pitch, punched Kirkland in the face, and quickly escaped back into the crowd.

He was not arrested at the Stadium, but turned himself into the police after friends had supposedly told him what he had done.  Cawley admitted to being intoxicated.  He says that he had a number a beers followed by 3/4 of a liter of vodka before coming to the match, where he consumed 7 to 10 pints of cider.  Wow.

Cawley has been banned from football matches before, and has been cited for violating these injunctions at least 4 times. 

Cawley admitted to assault and going on to a football pitch. He was jailed for 16 weeks and ordered to pay £85 costs. The district judge said he will be given a new banning order, probably for five years.

Info from Sky Sports was used in this entry.

Puddle's Goal of the Weekend: Colorado's Kamani Hill

Goal of the weekend is back.  This weekend we go to the Home Depot Center, where the Rapids' Kamani Hill nailed this outstanding header against Chivas USA.

Rapids Doom Chivas USA to Another Loss

Martin Rivero and Kamani Hill both scored for the Rapids (Getty Images)

The match between Chivas USA and the Colorado Rapids Saturday night at the Home Depot Center didn't have playoff implications for either side, but there was plenty of pride on the line, as well a chance to gain more points and hopefully avoid the Western Conference basement.

At least the Rapids played as if that was on the line.  For Chivas USA, not so much.  The Rapids dominated the first half, stretching out to a two goal lead before the interval, which did force Chivas to actually try in the second, though it didn't really matter much in the end.

Chivas USA did control much of the possession throughout the opening stanza, but it was largely pointless possession.  The chances went to the Rapids.  Their first came on 12 minute when Omar Cummings sent a shot in that missed the Goats goal.  Speaking of the Goats, they started backup, and former RSL third stringer, Tim Melia with Dan Kennedy getting the night off.  This proved costly for Chivas early on as Melia tried to claim a ball in his box, but couldn't hold it, leading to a continuation of the play.  The defense managed a half hearted clearance, but only so far as the Rapids' Kamani Hill, who passed to Martin Rivero on the right side.  He calmly collected the ball then slotted in between Melia and his near post to give the Rapids the 0-1 lead on 16 minutes.

The Rapids, who were quite impressive both on the ball and off, were to add a second goal on 43 minutes.  On this occasion Cummings blazed a well hit cross through the area to Hill, who was coming up the Rapids' left.  Hill met the cross brilliantly with his head, driving it into the ground where it skipped past Melia and inside the far post to make it 0-2 going into the break.

Coming out down two goals for the second half, Chivas decided to throw more men forward.  After all, it wasn't like it mattered to them if they lost by 2 or 3 goals.  However the Rapids and their own backup 'keeper, Stew Ceus, were quite happy to bunker in and protect their lead.

The Goats did manage a few half chances, and even tested Ceus a couple of times.  Juan Agudelo tried to make his presence felt, but couldn't find the target even with a couple of decent looks.  It was largely emblematic of his season, if not of his career so far.  Laurent Courtois actually managed to force a save out of Ceus on 76 minutes, but it would be one of only two shots on target on the night for the Goats as the Rapids easily held on to the 0-2 win.

Despite the 3 points, the Rapids cannot catch FC Dallas for sixth in the west, but depending on next week's results, they could finish as high as seventh.  The performance was largely indicative of the kind of play the Rapids are capable of under Oscar Pareja, especially with players like Rivero, Hill, and Jaime Castrillon.  The question is, will they grow enough to perform like that against the better teams in MLS?  It's possible, but time will tell.

With Portland's win on Sunday, the loss dooms Chivas USA to a last place finish in the West, though last place in the league as a whole is reserved for Toronto FC's fate.  For the Goats, this promises to be another long off season, but if they continue to play like this, it might not be long enough.

Congrats to the San Jose Earthquakes: 2012 Supporters Shield Winners

Chris Wondolowski and the Earthquakes have clinched the Supporters Shield

The Puddle would like to pass on congratulations to the San Jose Earthquakes, who are now officially the 2012 Major League Soccer Supporters' Shield Winner.  The Shield is the honor given to the MLS team that finishes the regular season with the most points.  Earlier this evening, Sporting Kansas City played to a scoreless draw with the New York Red Bulls, leaving them at least four points back of the Quakes going into next week's final matches.  The Quakes host the LA Galaxy tomorrow night, looking to add to their current total of 64 points.

There are a couple of added benefits to winning the Shield.  First and foremost, they will get to host MLS Cup if they make it that far as the top seed in the playoffs.  If they accomplish this, they won't host at Buck Shaw Stadium though.  They'll play the winner of the Western Conference wild card game in the first round of the Playoffs proper.

Finally, the honor secures the Quakes a spot in next year's CONCACAF Champions League.  They join Sporting Kansas City, who have already qualified as US Open Cup Champions.  Their final regular season game will be at Portland next weekend.

Canada Manager Hart Resigns

The Canadian national team leaves the pitch after falling to Honduras

Soccer is a results oriented business, and it's even getting to be that way in countries where soccer isn't even the main sport.  Expectations are rising in places like the USA and Canada, and when those expectations aren't met, somebody pays the price.

In the end the result that Canada wanted, at least the next step, was so close yet so far away.  Coming into Tuesday's World Cup Qualifier in Honduras, all team Canada needed was a draw to advance to the Hexagonal stage next year.  They didn't get close, as the Hondurans blew them off the pitch by an 8-1 scoreline.

The process of paying the price for the disappointment began today as manager Stephan Hart resigned. In a conference call earlier today, the Canadian Soccer Association said that Hart's resignation had indeed been offered and accepted.

CSA president Victor Montagliani had this to say about the newly departed manager: “Stephen’s always been an exemplary model for the game at both the national and international levels. He’s been asked to do a lot of things and he’s done it with the ultimate class and the gentleman that he is. He has earned the respect of the entire soccer community.”

Of course that was tempered by this quote about the result: "I’m not sure if words can describe the feelings when I was down there or words that I can’t even say on this call.  I think at the end of the day, whether we’re working in the game [or not], we’re obviously all fans of our national team. We’re all proud to be Canadians and I had a feeling I never want to experience again.”

Canada now has a long time to wait.  Qualifying for the 2018 World Cup doesn't begin for three years.  Certainly some of the guys that are around now aren't going to be around then, and the program now faces a massive rebuilding project.

Canada has qualified for the FIFA World Cup just once, in 1986.  That year they were grouped with France, Hungary, and the USSR.  They lost all three group stage matches with a -5 goal difference.  They also won the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2000 and the Olympic Championship in 1904.

Senegal Disqualified From African Cup of Nations.

Senegalese police evacuate the Ivory Coast national team as debris rains on the pitch.

This weekend I covered the fan riots that forced the abandonment of the Senegal vs. Ivory Coast African Cup of Nations qualifier last Saturday.  With the Ivorians leading 0-2 late in the second half (and 2-6 on aggregate) Senegalese fans erupted to into violence, invading the pitch, lighting fires in the stands, and tossing projectiles at match officials and players.

Today the Confederation of African Football (CAF) formally disqualified Senegal from the tournament, awarding the Ivory Coast the 0-2 match result that confirms their trip into the tournament finals next year.

CAF said in a statement: "CAF decided to officially confirm the result of the match as 2-0 in favour of Ivory Coast … and to consider Senegal the loser of the said match and eliminated from the competition without prejudice to any other sanctions that may be imposed by CAF disciplinary board."

While Senegal will undoubtedly be unhappy about missing the final, there is an odd silver lining for Newcastle United, as strikers Demba Ba and Papis Cisse will not have to travel home to compete in the tournament come January.

No word yet as to if CAF will impose further sanctions on Senegal in the future.

France Equalizes Spain On Last Minute Goal

France celebrates Olivier Giroud's last minute equalizer. (Getty Images)

France came into today's World Cup Qualifier looking for some revenge for Euro 2012, and to prove to everyone that Spain isn't invincible.  Did they accomplish either of those aims?  Maybe.  They took advantage of a late Spanish mistake to score a goal on virtually the last kick of the match.  I for one came away thinking the wounds that led to Spain dropping points were more self inflicted than the result of anything France did.

France came out in a fairly conservative formation, but kind of clogged up the midfield blocking any direct route at goal for the Spanish possession offense.  However Spain did find some joy on the wings, especially coming up the left side.  This resulted in a corner kick in the 26th minute.  It was sent in to the area and Sergio Ramos saw his first shot go off the post and seemingly away from danger.  However, France couldn't clear, and the ball came back into the area.  While Ramos was still standing there, literally with his head in his hands, the ball fell kindly to him and he smashed it into the top of the net to give Spain the 1-0 lead.

France struggled to create quality chances, but appeared to have equalized the match just prior to halftime.  Jeremy Menez managed to poke home a ball from Karim Benzema at close range, but the goal was ruled out for offside.  Replays seemed to suggest that while Menez was ahead of the last defender when the ball came across, he looked to actually be behind the ball.  At any rate, the decision stood.

Spain had a golden chance to to go up 2-0 at the death of the first half.  Laurent Koscielny cynically brought down Pedro in the area to concede a penalty kick.  Cesc Fabregas stepped up to take it, but Hugo Lloris guessed correctly, diving to his right to save the kick and keeping it 1-0 going into the break.

France came out much more lively in the second half, but scrappy play from both sides dominated the match.  Karim Benzema had a chance to even things up, but somehow missed the target after a great cross from Frank Ribery.

However in the 94th minute the French would take advantage of their literal last chance.  Spain sub Juanfran turned the ball over in midfield and France came storming up the pitch.  Ribery was on hand again to drop yet another pinpoint cross into the box, and this time France got it on target.  Arsenal man Olivier Giroud rose and headed the ball past Iker Casillas into the back of the net to salvage a a point for France at full time.

Senegal vs Ivory Coast Abandoned Due to Fan Violence

Police in Senegal take cover from rocks being hurled from the stands (Reuters)

Unfortunately, this type of violence still scars our beautiful game.  An African Cup of Nations Qualifier between Senegal and the Ivory Coast had to be abandoned earlier Saturday after police in Dakar, Senegal, were forced to fire tear gas into the stands as Senegal fans lit fires and threw rocks and other objects onto the pitch, ostensibly in protest over their side's poor performance.

The chaos erupted after Didier Drogba scored a penalty kick in the 70th minute.  That made the match 0-2 in favor of the Ivory Coast, and put the score to 2-6 to Ivorians over the two legs.  A pitch invader had gone after Drogba a few minutes earlier, but he was stopped before he could reach the former Chelsea man.  After the PK, the fans began to light the stands on fire and hurl projectiles onto the pitch.  According to the local press, at least one match official was struck with an object as the officials and players took refuge in the center circle. 

Ivory Coast supporters were driven onto the pitch where they joined the players.  The police were then able to escort the group out of the stadium.  The match was officially abandoned after it had been stopped for about 40 minutes.  It is expected the the African Confederation will order the result to stand and the Ivory Coast will qualify for the tournament proper.

Several big name players were involved besides Drogba.  Demba Ba and Papiss Cisse joined West Ham's Mohamed Diame in the lineup for Senegal, while the Ivory Coast featured Drogba, Newcastle MF Cheick Tiote, Arsenal man Gervinho, and brothers Yaya and Kolo Toure of Manchester City.

It is thought that no players were injured.  Manchester City confirmed that Yaya and Kolo Toure were involved in the match, but suggests they were unharmed.

Hopefully anyone who was injured will recover quickly.  Even more important, hopefully there will come a day when this kind of thing really is finally stamped out.

Ivory Coast fans form a ring around fans and players at midfield.  (Reuters)

Sounders Eddie Johnson Rescues USA...and Klinsmann

Seattle forward Eddie Johnson scored both goals for the USA (AP Photo)

One pundit on my timeline called this the worst game the US Men's National Team have played since the early 90s.  Well, in the early 90s I was a snot nosed teen more concerned with playing soccer (and playing badly) than I was with watching it, so I can't really disagree.  I think I can honestly say it was the worst I've ever seen them play. 

Does it say something that they can play that badly and still come away with three points?  Sure it does.  It says sometimes it's better to be lucky than good, but I doubt luck will get us through the Hex, and we're not even there yet.  Still, you gotta hand it to Eddie Johnson.  He was good, not just lucky.  To say this was a statement game from him probably doesn't do him justice.

Surely the conditions in Antigua and Barbuda didn't help, but as is often said about pitch condition, both sides have to play on it.  No knocking A and B, but a World Cup caliber team at the top of the group should have been able to overpower them, and that was not the case at all.

The Americans looked to be in control early on, and pushed their noses in front in the 20th minute.  Sporting Kansas City's Graham Zusi sent a left footed cross into the area to Johnson, who headed the first goal of the night down past the Antigua 'keeper to make it 0-1 to the USA.

The advantage didn't last long though, and this time it wasn't even Kyle Beckerman's fault.  In the 25th minute Peter Byers stripped Carlos Bocanegra and dished to Dexter Blackstock, who torched by Clarence Goodson and the rest of the flower picking USA defense to slot an easy goal past Tim Howard to make it 1-1, which was the score at halftime.

The USA attacked into a heavy wind in the second half, and chances continued to be at a premium.  Herculez Gomez got a couple of nice looks in the area, but always seemed to be looking for the extra, killer pass instead of going for goal, which got the USA nothing.  Klinsmann brought in Jermaine Jones, who I like to call Super Yellow Card man.  Apparently this was supposed to help, but ten minutes and a few horridly bad passes later, Jones picked up his customary yellow card, which will keep him out of the last match against Guatemala. 

Antigua and Barbuda about caught the USA flat footed a couple of times as well.  It didn't matter if it was Michael Bradley, Danny Williams, or the aforementioned Jones, all of the midfield had a hard time with the speed of the home side.  The defense left Tim Howard dangerously exposed a few times, and the home side sent a couple of shots just agonizingly wide of the Everton man's post.

It was EJ and the USA that would get the last word though.  In second half stoppage time, San Jose forward Alan Gordon hit Johnson with a cross at the back post.  Johnson effortlessly floated a header into the net to seal the 1-2 win for the USA.

Did they deserve the three points?  Probably not, but in the end they'll take a sigh of relief and take them.  The result puts them up three on Jamaica and Guatemala, who play later this evening.  A draw in Kansas City on Wednesday SHOULD be enough to put them into the Hex, but that's not a sure thing yet.

Glory Edge Roar in Heated Rematch.

Brisbane's Besart Berisha attacks the Perth goal (3news.co.nz)

The Hyundai A-League concluded it's first week of fixtures with a rematch of the last Grand Final: Perth Glory vs Brisbane Roar.  If you took in that match about six months back, you remember it being a fairly heated affair.  Folks that were wanting more of the same from this match pretty much got their way, as it appears that a heightened rivalry between these two clubs really is on the way.

The match started very wide open and it didn't take long for a certain amount of controversy to brew.  In the 3rd minute Perth forward Shane Smeltz went down in the area and both he and the Perth crowd appealed for a penalty.  The referee was unmoved and the teams played on.  Replay showed that while the defender did come in from behind, there wasn't much if any contact, and it looked like a good non-call.

The Roar would have the first prime chances of the match though, both of them coming off of set pieces.  In the 5th minute Erik Paartalu got his head to a Brisbane corner, but couldn't get it on target.  Then in the 11th Paartalu got another chance on a free kick and got his header closer, but it still flashed inches wide of the near post.

Perth had their best chance of the first half early on as well.  In the 14th minute Smeltz picked up on Brisbane blunder and charged head long into a 1v1 situation with Brisbane 'keeper Michael Theo (as he's known now).  Theo came charging out and hit the deck in front of Smeltz, who managed to get some kind of a shot away, but it ended up having little power and rolled wide of the mark.  It was great stuff from the Roar shot stopper.

Both teams got their tempers up late in the half as well.  In the 35th minute Brisbane's Besart Berisha was fouled near the edge of the penalty area.  Berisha went down and the Glory's Liam Miller came in rather late, bascially tripping into the prone Brisbane man, and not really trying to avoid falling on top of him.  The Roar's Mitch Nichols took obvious exception to this and charged into the fray, pushing Miller and getting in his face.  The referee managed to clear the madness, and gave both Miller and Nichols yellow cards for their trouble.  Then, right before the half, Berisha was given a yellow after causing a bit of a ruckus on a Brisbane corner kick.  The first half ended with no goals, but a decent few yellow cards.

The fact that it was only week one really began to show itself in the second half, as both teams began to look a little leggy.  Chances were few and far between.  The yellows kept coming though as both Jacob Burns and Travis Dodd would earn cautions for Perth in the stanza.

The Glory would ultimately have the last laugh this day though.  In the 88th minute Scott Jamieson sent a cross into the Roar eighteen, where it found the head of newly subbed in Glory attacker Billy Mehmet.  Mehmet executed a brilliant header to the back post, and the ball slotted into the net to give the Glory the 1-0 win.  It was pretty much a perfect shot and there wasn't much Theo could do about it.

On the day, the Roar probably felt a little hard done by, as they certainly gave as good as they got on opposing turf.  Though they dominated possession, a lot of their play was really sloppy, and they gave the ball up more than a few times.  One could also tell that the defense was bending more than it probably should have, though to be fair, in the end they were just beaten by a fantastic football play.

The Glory showed that they're more than ready to stand and go toe to toe with anyone in the A League this year, and they put forth a really great effort, in the end a winning effort.  It won't make the fans forget the last Grand Final, but knowing they've started the new season off on 3 points isn't a bad way to begin moving on.

Rapids Pickens Shuts It Down For Season

Colorado's Matt Pickens suffered a groin injury vs San Jose (Getty Images/2010)

Bad news this week for the Colorado Rapids, but in the end I guess it could have been worse.  Goalkeeper Matt Pickens suffered a groin injury during the second half of the Rapids loss to San Jose last weekend and left the match, handing Stew Ceus his MLS debut.

With the Rapids out of MLS playoff contention, manager Oscar Pareja has said that he does not intend to risk further injury to Pickens and will withhold him for the final two matches of the season.  This is a huge deal in the statistical sense.  He had started the previous 75 matches for Colorado, that's a team record and is the longest active streak in the league.

Pickens is the Rapids all time leader in wins and clean sheets.  He has 107 saves this season, a personal best and Rapids record.  He's currently third in MLS.

I've always thought Pickens is at least one of the top ten 'keepers in MLS, and the Puddle wishes him a speedy recovery. 

Chelsea Top Norwich in Brilliant Fashion

Eden Hazard scored his first non-PK league goal for Chelsea (Chelsea FC)

Norwich had the first eleven minutes today at Stamford Bridge.  The other 79 belonged firmly to Chelsea.  The Blues overcame a bit of a shaky start, especially on the defensive end, to blow out Norwich and keep hold of first place heading into the FIFA international break,

Chelsea looked a little ragged in their own penalty box in the early minutes, and Norwich's Grant Holt, ever the hard worker, was able to to take advantage.  In the 11th minute Leon Barnett headed a ball down into the path of Holt, who had way more space than he should have been given.  The Norwich forward rifled a shot past Petr Cech and into the bottom corner of the goal to make it 0-1 to the Canaries.

That was all the wake up Chelsea needed though.

Just three minutes later Branislav Ivanovic crossed a ball into the Norwich area where it found the head of Fernando Torres.  El Nino calmly deposited it into the back of the net to tie the match at 1-1.  It's his 6th goal of the year for the Blues across all competitions.  Just two minutes later Eden Hazard nearly put the Blues in front with an excellent volley chance, but he just mishit it and it trickled rather easily into the hands of John Ruddy.

However in the 22nd minute The Blues finally did grab the lead for good.  Torres tried a nice overhead kick in the area, but Ruddy managed to parry the shot away.   Unfortunately for him, the ball fell to Frank Lampard who volleyed home a cannon shot to make it 2-1 to Chelsea.  The Blues would get one more before halftime, as Juan Mata found Hazard with a seeing eye through ball in the 31st minute.  Hazard expertly one touched the ball inside the far post to give Chelsea the 3-1 lead going into the break.

Chelsea handled the Canaries pretty easily in the second half as well, though Grant Holt did get a decent look at a header in the 47th minute, only to see it glance a couple yards wide of the post.  Ruddy made a a couple of fantastic stops in 1v1 situations.  He snuffed out a nice run by Mata in the 58th, and then saved a sure goal from Torres in the 75th.

It was just one minute after that save on Torres that the Blues put the icing on the cake.  In the 76th minute Mata flipped a centering ball over the Norwich defense to Ivanovic who volleyed home the final goal of the match to make it 4-1 to Chelsea.  After that last strike, Norwich pretty much conceded, subbing out goal scorer Holt, and didn't trouble the Blues at all during the last 14 minutes.

The win keeps Chelsea in 1st place going into the break, regardless of  results on Sunday.  Norwich is still looking for their first win of the new season, and they remain in the bottom three.

Hyundai A-League Returns For New Campaign

The Hyundai A-League is the top flight domestic league in Australia

Last night football returned to Australia as the Hyundai A-League began it's new season.  The league kicked off last night with the Melbourne Derby, in which the Melbourne Heart held off the Melbourne Victory for a 1-2 win, much to this writer's dismay.

My American readers might not be familiar with the A-League and it's clubs, but I'm hoping to change that this year.  If you're an MLS fan, there's really no reason why you shouldn't look into the the A-League, as their league and ours have several things in common.  The A-League is a young league, going into it's 8th season I believe, and has had a lot of the same growing pains that MLS has gone through.  They've struggled with league and FA vs owners issues, they've lost franchises and started new ones.  Still, after a couple of years following the league myself, I actually believe the quality of the football is actually a little bit better than where MLS was at that stage of it's development.  It's not the Premier League or La Liga, but it's quality professional football and I'm almost always entertained.

Here's a brief round up of some of the major story lines as the A-League kicks off the new season.

1. The arrival of high profile foreign players has begun.
Here's another concept MLS fans will be familiar with.  After going on for a few years, the league gained a higher profile and started to attract big name foreign players, albeit they were perhaps in the twilight of their career.  The same has happened in the A-League this year.  Juventus legend Alessandro Del Piero turned down a few potential suitors, including Liverpool, to sign for the A-League's Sydney FC.  This is a big deal, think Beckham signing for the Galaxy.  It hasn't just been ADP though, as former England international Emile Heskey has signed for Newcastle Jets.

2. Expansion West Sydney Wanderers begin play.
The last time the A-League expanded a couple of years back, They opened up the Melbourne Heart franchise, creating an in-city derby with Melbourne Victory, one of the league's most successful clubs.  As mentioned earlier, they opened the season with this derby last night.  This time the league has followed the same course, starting up the West Sydney Wanderers franchise to rival Sydney FC, another one of the league's power clubs.  This has not been without some controversy as a dust up between the FFA, league and the former Gold Coast United franchise led to Gold Coast's expulsion and dissolution late last season.  Some felt more might have been done to save that existing franchise before adding the new expansion side.  Also some fan violence associated with West Sydney has been observed in the preseason, which has not gone over well.  The actual football begins now, and hopefully this derby will develop like the Melbourne clash.

3. Championship manager switches sides.
Unquestionably the best team in the A-League the last couple of years has been Brisbane Roar.  They've won the last two Grand Finals and at one point had a league record unbeaten run.  The manager who led the Roar to those titles, Ange Postecoglou,  left the club after last season and took over the manager's role at Melbourne Victory, one of the star franchises of the league that massively failed to live up to their reputation last year.  It remains to be seen whether the Roar can continue their winning ways without him, or if he can help return the Victory to prominence.  Personally, I wouldn't bet against either of those things happening.  The Roar are a superior side, and I'll have to see them beaten in the big game to believe it.

Those are the major stories going into league play, but not the only ones.  For folks wishing to check out the A-League, Fox Soccer plays at least one match every weekend, usually live.  Of course with the USA/Austrailia time difference, they're usually late at night/early in the morning.  Set your DVRs.  This weekend's featured match is a rematch of the Grand Final from last year, Perth Glory vs Brisbane Roar, and can be seen on Fox Soccer at 2 AM Eastern Sunday morning.

Of course, there are plenty of ways to keep up with league on the web and through social media.  You can check out the official league website at www.footballaustralia.com.au/aleague. The Clubs and the league have a twitter and Facebook presence as well.  Finally, check out a couple of my friends.  First, the folks over at VictoryBlog provide top notch news on the Melbourne Victory, and they have also launched a new podcast covering the whole league with The A-League Show.  Finally my buddy Troy (Twitter: @leaveforthecup) and friends are launching their own footy podcast, Girl's Don't Like Us, as well.  Right now it's only available on Soundcloud, but they're hoping to expand into other avenues shortly.  Follow them on twitter @GirlsDontLikeUs for updates.  They're quality, and hey, Troy is an RSL fan as well!

So, MLS fans and others, check out this growing league and help grow the beautiful game world wide.  I think you'll be glad you did.

Europa League: Udinese Downs Liverpool at Anfield

Giovanni Pasquale celebrates his goal for Udinese (Sporting Life)

Do you remember all those good feelings around Liverpool after they thumped Norwich last weekend?  Well, after yesterday's Europa League loss, neither do they.  The Reds held their own in the first half against Italian side Udinese, but a dismal performance in the second half doomed them to a loss that not even Luis Suarez and Steven Gerrard could rescue them from.

Now to be fair, Udinese are obviously a much better side than Norwich, but one would still fancy Liverpool to do better at Anfield.  While Udinese generally looked better at the opening, both sides traded chances from set pieces in the first 15 minutes.  In the 8th minute Sebastian Coates headed a corner low toward the bottom of the Udinese goal, but Zeljko Brkic made a great save for the Italians.  Then in minute 14 Mehdi Benatia got his head to a free kick for Udinese, but like his counterpart, Pepe Reina was up to the task, parrying the ball the around the post to keep the match level.

Liverpool got the first goal of the match on 23 minutes, slightly against the run of play.  Stewart Downing sent a cross into the area that Jonjo Shelvey connected with on a late run.  The midfield man headed a nice shot down past Brkic to make it 1-0 to Liverpool.

After conceding the first goal, Udinese went into a little bit of a funk.  The closest they got to an equalizer in the first half was from a shot by Antonio Di Natale, who curled the ball just wide of the top corner of Reina's goal in the 29th minute.  However, despite the increase in possession, the Reds could not up their lead and the half ended on the 1-0 score line.

Udinese made them pay for that right off in the second half.  They made an attacking substitution at the interval, inserting Andrea Lazzari.  He paid divedends immediately, centering a ball to Di Natale in the 46th minute.  The striker calmly and clinically slotted past Reina to tie the match at 1-1.

Things got a little scrappy for awhile after the equalizer, but kicked back to life in the 71st minute, much to Liverpool's dismay.  Udinese sent a free kick into the Liverpool six, but Coates rose and headed the ball into his own net to give Udinese the 1-2 advantage.  It got worse for Liverpool just a minute later when Giovanni Pasquale scorched a shot from outside of the box into the bottom of the goal to make it 1-3.

Brendan Rodgers has made some important subs of his own, inserting Luis Suarez and Steven Gerrard into the lineup for Liverpool, and Suarez seemed to start the Reds on the comeback trail in the 75th minute.  The Uruguayan banged a free a kick over the Udinese wall and into the top of the net to make it 2-3 with 15 minutes left.

In the end it would be too little too late for Liverpool, though not for lack of effort.  In the 77th minute Suarez sent in a bullet header from close range that was well saved by Brkic.  Suarez must have thought he had scored.  However, in the last 10 minutes Udinese's defense really solidified, blocking most of Liverpool's attempts and forcing them to to shoot from at least mid range.  It was pretty impressive, but they are an Italian side after all.  They were able to hold their advantage and pull out the three points with the 2-3 win.

Celtic's Forster Called Up For England.

Celtic GK Fraser Forster has been called in for England

I've been a fan of what Fraser Forster has been able to do in goal for Celtic, and I'm happy to hear the news that came down the pipe when the England squad was announced for the next World Cup Qualifiers.  Forster has been selected to represent the Three Lions, a relative rarity for a player in the SPL.

Certainly the fact that Jack Butland has been released to the U-21 side has helped in Forter's selection, but some folks in the England camp have been arguing that a more tried and experienced backup is needed for Joe Hart.  With Forster's and Celtic's appearance in the group stage of the UEFA Champion's League, Forester's stock and profile have risen.

Fraser himself had this to say about his new opportunity:

"I'm excited as well and just looking forward to meeting up with everyone really. It's a great opportunity and a great chance to test myself against some great players"

"I got a call from the gaffer yesterday to let me know he thought it was going to happen and then I found out for definite today so I'm thrilled" 

If capped, Forster would be the first player from the SPL to be capped by England since 2004, when Parkhead MF Alan Thompson played 60 minutes for England in a 1-0 loss to Sweden.  He was never called up again.

Late Surge Pushes Chelsea to UCL Road Win

Fernando Torres and the Blues blanked Nordsjaelland 4-0 (AP Images)

After an opening match draw at home vs Juventus Chelsea traveled to Denmark to take FC Nordsjaelland, the Danish champions.  The Danes pushed Chelsea hard for nearly 80 minutes before the Blues finally broke the match open and cruised over the finish line.

Chelsea fans were perhaps right to be nervous after the defending European champions gave up a two goal lead at home to Juve, but the Blues got off to a pretty good start in this one.  In the early minutes Oscar sent a cross into Danes' area, and a Nordsjaelland defender headed it off his own bar while trying to clear the ball away from a lurking Victor Moses.  Then in the 10th minute Juan Mata connected with Frank Lampard, but Lamps sent the Spaniard's cross just over the crossbar.   Fernando Torres forced a save out of the Nordsjaelland 'keeper in the 22nd minute, and the Danes looked to have successfully weathered the early storm.

However in the 33rd minute the Danes turned the ball over to disastrous effect.  Torres took the ball off Enoch Adu and dished to Lampard.  Lamps hit Mata in the center of the area and he was able to slot the ball into the goal to give the Blues the 0-1 lead.

Early in the second half Torres had a chance to but the Blues up another goal, but the Nordsjaelland 'keeper barely beat him to another nice ball from Oscar.  Then in the 53rd minute The Danes dodged another bullet as Moses scored, but his goal was correctly ruled out for a foul.

Nordsjaelland fought well though, and their efforts nearly paid off with an equalizer late on.  In the 73rd minute Joshua John sent a low shot in on Petr Cech's goal, and Chelsea 'keeper just barely managed to save the ball, parrying it off the near post and away from danger.

The Blues finally put some distance between themselves and the home side on 79 minutes.  Torres earned a free kick just outside of the area when he was fouled by Michael Parkhurst.  David Luiz stepped up over the free kick and smacked a gorgeous right footed kick in off the left post to make it 0-2.  Then just three minutes later Mata got his second of the match after he drilled home a ball that deflected off of a defender.  Finally in the 89th minute Oscar dropped a little ball off to Ramires, who tapped home Chelsea's final goal of the night to make it 0-4.

The three points put Chelsea top of the group after Juve drew with Shaktar in the other Group E match from today.

Sabo & Espindola Help RSL Torch Chivas USA

RSL celebrate Alvaro Saborio's third goal of the night (Getty Images)

RSL fans got what they wanted Saturday night as the Claret and Cobalt thrashed Chivas USA 0-4 at the Home Depot Center.  Alvaro Saborio netted his second hat-trick of the season, Paulo Jr. scored a goal, Fabian Espindola recorded three assists, and Nick Rimando posted yet another clean sheet as RSL moved into sole possession of second place in the Western Conference.

It seems like it was a long time ago that Chivas USA bounced RSL 0-1 at the Riot.  At that early point in the season it looked like Robin Fraser's Chivas side might be heading in the right direction as they pieced together a run of outstanding defensive performances.  Unfortunately for the Goats, it hasn't worked out that way, or anywhere near that way.

It didn't take RSL long to get things started either.  In the 8th minute Fabi sent a cross into the box that Javier Morales flicked on toward the post.  Saborio was waiting in the wings to deposit the ball past Dan Kennedy to give the Claret and Cobalt the 0-1 advantage.

Chivas didn't get much time to breathe either, as the next RSL goal came on just 11 minutes.  This time the Claret and Cobalt were helped by an uncharacteristic error from Chivas 'keeper Dan Kennedy.  He tried to roll the ball out to Ante Jazic, but Fabi sniffed it out and picked off the ball.    Espindola then dished to Sabo, who got just enough of the ball to dribble it over the line and give RSL the 0-2 lead.

Morales nearly scored for RSL in the 56th minute when he torched Chivas's defense and beat Dan Kennedy, only to have his shot cleared off the line by John Valenica.  Sabo followed that up by icing his hat-trick in outstanding fashion in the 65th minute.  Kennedy stopped a shot from Will Johnson, but gave up a rebound to Sabo.  The Costa Rican executed a deft turn and floated the ball in off the bottom of the crossbar to give RSL the 0-3 lead.  Paulo Jr. would add a goal of his own in the 81st minute to make the full time result 0-4.

Obviously pretty much everything went right for RSL in this one.  It wasn't luck either.  It was our players working hard, being where they were supposed to be, and doing what they were supposed to do on the pitch.  Chivas never really had an answer for the offense, and Nick Rimando was more than up to the task when Chivas did try to score.  The defense did well despite the absence of Jamison Olave to yellow card suspension.  Chris Schuler made the start and looked good.  Knowing that we also have Kwame-Watson Siriboe is a nice luxury and gives RSL much needed depth on the back line.

Let's temper the expectations just a little bit though.  Yes, RSL has gotten the results they needed in recent weeks.  However, Portland and Chivas are bottom of the pack in the West, so they'll need at least that kind of an effort going forward.  Their last three games are at LA, at Seattle, and at home vs Vancouver, all playoff teams at least at the moment.  The last match of the season could be interesting especially if Vancouver needs three points to clinch a playoff spot.