According to this report the Columbus Crew were set to capture former New England Revolution striker from Norwegian side Aalesund, but had the deal turned down by Major League Soccer. The Crew were prepared to offer $225,000 to Aalesunds, but MLS felt that was too much. MLS felt the Crew would be overpaying Aalesunds and turned the deal down. Noonan was interested in returning to MLS in an effort to re-ignite his international career. Now it looks like Noonan will be remaining in Norway, despite only playing three times for Aalesunds FK. UPDATE: A source of ours got the details mixed up, sorry for any temporary confusion. 

Popularity: 48%

The Columbus Crew have released 29 year old Argentinian striker Nicolas Hernandez. Hernandez was acquired in a trade with Colorado, in exchange for Tim Ward. Hernanez made 5 appearances for the Crew, failing to find the net. Nicolas arrived in Major League Soccer in 2006 from Chilean powerhouse Cobreloa. Hernandez was considered to be a talented striker, and one would think the move may be an indicator that Columbus is close to capturing another player. What do you think? Was this move a precursor to another? Differences between player/manager? Just freeing up cap space?

Popularity: 28%

Kansas City vs. Columbus: Is it the defense or the offense or both?

As I watched Columbus score two relatively easy goals against the Wizards, both due to defensive blunders by young defenders, my heart went out to Jimmy Conrad.   The veteran defender and Wizards captain played a good game, a fact that would be easy to miss when you see a 3-0 final score.  He did many things well; he just didn’t have the help he needs.  Aaron Holbein and Jonathan Leathers will probably be solid defenders as they mature, but right now they are struggling to find their way and it is costing the Wizards big time.   The first goal was Holbein’s fault as he caused the corner kick that led to the Marshall header.   On the corner itself, Holbein seemed to be lost as he neglected to mark Marshall on the play.  The second goal came when Jonathan Leathers got sucked in to the middle and was out of position to effectively defend Moreno who exploited the open wing and scored on an easy chip over Kevin Hartman.   It was tough to watch, neither goal should have happened.  I leaned to the guy sitting next to me and said “I’ll bet Jimmy would like to have Nick Garcia back for another year”.   Don’t get me wrong, I think trading long time KC backfield steady Nick Garcia to San Jose for the first overall pick that was used to acquire Chance Myers will probably pan out in a couple years, but for now it is foolish to think Garcia isn’t a better defender than any of Kansas City’s existing backfield except Conrad.   Holbein, Wahl, Leathers, and Harrington are all faster than Nick Garcia, but none of them is as tough.  Opposing attackers move with relative impunity on the KC final third of the field.  Other than Conrad, none of the KC defenders made any of the Columbus players pay for coming in to their zone.   In stark contrast, the Columbus defense, minus Hejduk no less, punished the Wizards attackers all night.  Not only did Iro and Marshal dwarf Lopez and Sealy physically, they hacked, pushed, pulled, and wore out the strikers every time they tried to come in to their zone.  Leathers and Holbein can’t be knocked for their hustle; they’re just not playing consistently smart and tough enough to provide an effective transition to the midfield.  It seems like it’s time to move Jack Jewsbury back to defense.  Heck, maybe Jose Burciaga Jr. might be interested in returning to KC?  Onalfo shipped Burciaga to Colorado, essentially for nothing, because of his tendency to get caught upfield.   Relative to the defensive problems KC is having this season; Jose’s foibles don’t look so bad. 

OK, to be fair, getting spanked by Columbus wasn’t all about the poor play of the defense.  Kansas City’s offense was atrocious.  Scott Sealy looked totally lost and was utterly ineffective.  The most telling sign of Sealy’s poor play came when Lopez attempted a little through ball in the Columbus box that Sealy failed to read.  Lopez exploded at Sealy like I’ve never seen him do since coming to Kansas City.  For the better part of 15 seconds he balled Sealy out for not providing a proper run.  It was obvious frustration with Sealy had built up and Lopez finally unloaded on him.  It is baffling why Onalfo kept Sealy in the game for 90 minutes.   The KC midfield continued its struggle tonight with Arnaud and Jewsbury almost unnoticeable for most of the game until Arnaud started sliding all over the field in the final 15 minutes.   Just as it is time to make some adjustments on defense, something has to be done on offense also.  The stats prove it- two measly shots on goal against Hesmer, and neither was any good.   The Wizards have only scored 10 goals in 11 league games.  To make matters worse, their leading goal scorer is their center back.   

What’s going on with the Wizards attack?  I know its complex, but something jumped out at me during the Columbus game.  I sit at one end of the field for most games, I noticed something vividly- the Wizards rarely overlap.  One of the most basic soccer tactics is to provide constant overlapping runs to make attackers hard to mark.  This means quick diagonal runs with and without the ball.  Instead of this, the Wizards seem to run constant straight lines.  They seem easy to mark.  When Marinelli or Lopez are carrying the ball across the field no one overlaps behind and provides a run.  This happened several times against Columbus.   Overlapping runs seem so simple, but they appear to be totally absent in the Wizards attack.  I think Lopez was upset with Sealy because Scott almost never overlaps or provides clear diagonal runs.  

This was a game the Wizards should have won.  Columbus was missing their center back Hejduk and several other players due to injury.  Further, Columbus was coming off a U.S. Cup game against Chicago on Tuesday and should have been a touch fatigued.  The Wizards were returning  home for the first time in more than two months with a sellout crowd to greet them.  Still, they laid an egg.  The season is more than a third complete, several  weaknesses in the Wizards roster and strategy are starting to emerge.   Is it the defense?  Is it the offense?  Right now it appears to be both.   Will Onalfo and co. find the solutions before this season is out of reach?

Popularity: 27%

Thanks to a youtube posting, the issue of race in MLS is prevalent for the first time in its short history. We have been lucky as soccer in fans in the US. We see horrific stories from around the world regarding riots, stadium collapses and racially charged banners and chants. I was proud of the fact that, while racism is still a big problem in the US, we always seemed to do a good job of keeping it out of our sports. In America the athlete is gray. Until someone goes and messes it up.

As you can see from the clip linked above, there are always going to be individuals who will ruin it for everyone else. I don’t think we can ever truly stop that. What makes it worse for us American soccer fans, is the inevitable hooliganism tag we get smacked with anytime the general sports media gets a hold of any story similar to this. We already fight an uphill battle everyday trying to change the minds of the masses and convert them to what we know is a beautiful game. Instances such as this force our sport to take a step back and see how far we really have left to go.

So what can we do? How we answer this question will show our mettle. There are people who will choose to roll over and dismiss it. There are others who will blow it out of proportion. The fact is that this could have been any stadium on any day, that it happened in Columbus is an unfortunate circumstance for the true Crew fans. They will shoulder the brunt of the blame. And perhaps they should, because what you don’t hear in that clip is anyone standing up to the guy abusing the players…

I don’t think there is a supporters group in the this country that would stand up and say they support shouting out racial slurs from their sections. So, my challenge to the supporters groups? Put your money where your mouth is. We are in a unique position to “police our own”, and we should. The talk of bans is ridiculous. What I’d like to see is something like the following:

The leaders of all the different supporters groups, regardless of size, in MLS should get together to form a Cultural Council of sorts to establish what will and will not be tolerated in their sections. They need to go on record and serve notice that certain guidelines need to be followed. Once the guidelines are established each group should nominate one volunteer to serve as their representative to the council, to update other groups on their results and how they have dealt with their own group’s adversity.

I know many of the supporters groups already have their own proclamations, regarding acceptable behavior, and that is awesome. But couldn’t your experiences in dealing with these problems help another group? We need a handful of people that can put their respective colors aside and talk.

This doesn’t have to be a big formal deal, it can be a private message board on an unassuming server. Whatever it is, it has to happen to show that we, as soccer fans, expect more from ourselves and are willing to take accountability. It can’t be just Columbus alone against the world. Our group, that reads the blogs, posts on message boards and get up at 3am to watch games on Sopcast, is a small but passionate one. To further divide it serves no purpose.

So the ball is in your court supporters groups. Do you want to do something about it? Or wait for it to happen in your section next?

Popularity: 30%

Rating: 2(Possible)

According to multiple sources out of MLS and England, Brian McBride is in advanced negotiations with the Chicago Fire and may join the team as early as July. The 35 year old Striker is a Illinois native, and has previously played for the Columbus Crew in MLS. McBride has spent the last 4 years at English Premiership side Fulham, scoring 32 goals.

Popularity: 36%

Chivas USA travel to Columbus to take on the Crew Saturday at 4:30.

Team update here.

Chivas USA have been working to get back into form after a rocky preseason plagued with injury. A majority of the starting line up was injured or out due to surgery.

Lets start with the possible line up. Chivas USA have yet to announce the status of Ante Razov, Lawson Vaughn or Alecko Eskandarian (listed as questionable). I’ll update you if I hear anything. All in all, we may see a line up like this…

——Galindo——-Haris——–

Mendoza-Marsch-Nagamura-Kljestan

Bornstein-Suarez-Thomas-Pozniak

———–Guzan——————

Bench: Razov, Wicky, Eskandarian, Ebert, Curtin, and Kennedy

A pregame from a crew supporter here

The opposition.

The Columbus Crew have had their share of tough times. However, they are still a solid team. Key players to look out for.

Schelotto. The Argentine is crafty, and has been known to create plays out of thin air. If Chivas USA can contain Schelotto, Chivas USA can contain Columbus Crew.

Moreno. Alejandro Moreno is good. He positions himself well and can shoot from outside the box. Look for him to clash with Thomas a few times.

Gaven. Eddie Gaven and Sacha Kljestan will match brains and brawn when they meet on Saturday.

Chivas USA.

Raphael Wicky. The talented Swiss International is getting closer to match fitness. As soon as the midfielder learns how to play with his teammates, the better. With his service, any striker will look good.

Shavar Thomas. Thomas spent last game cleaning up after Curtin. he will likely be playing with Suarez this time. If he connects well with the emperor, the defense should be impenetrable.

Maykel Galindo. GOLindo is getting stronger each game, and is expected to start. His talent makes hose around him look better.

I think the Red and White have a good chance of walking away with three points. As for the score, I’ll put the Chivas USA up 2-1.

Whats your prediction? Comment below!

Popularity: 21%

Year three under the Red Bull brand kicks off Saturday when the Columbus Crew visit Giants Stadium, and New York/New Jersey soccer fans hope that this year’s team can rise above the mediocre performances of recent campaigns. 

New York enter their new season with a new head coach and a new philosophy, but with mostly the same core group of players as last year’s team that bowed out of the playoffs in the first round at the hands of the New England Revolution. New head coach Juan Carlos Osorio has placed an emphasis on improving a defense that allowed 46 goals last season, third worst in all of Major League Soccer. Osorio has gone about implementing a 3-5-2 formation, and the team is slowly but surely grasping the nuances of playing with a three man backline.

Reports out of Red Bull camp reveal that Osorio is leaning towards a backline composed of Kevin Goldwaithe on the left, Jeff Parke in the middle and Chris Leitch on the right in place of incumbent Carlos Mendes, who had been receiving much of the playing time there in preseason. With Dane Richards out with an MCL tear and Hunter Freeman nursing a right ankle sprain, rookie Luke Sassano seems poised to make his MLS debut on the right side of midfield, along with fellow rookie Danleigh Borman on the left as both have been impressive. All in all, I think that we might see the following starting lineup Saturday night:

————Angel———–Altidore————

Borman————Reyna————-Sassano

——Van Den Bergh—–Stammler———-

Goldthwaite——-Parke————–Leitch

——————-Conway———————-

Columbus arrives in New York coming off an impressive 2-0 win, albeit against a weak Toronto F.C. team, and is looking to defeat the Red Bulls at Giants Stadium for the first time since 2003. 

Keys to the game: It will certainly be interesting to see how the Red Bulls operate defensively in their opening game. Have they made the necessary strides and adjustments while playing in this new system? Preseason performances have certainly indicated that there is still much work to be done in perfecting the 3-5-2, and Columbus will be looking to exploit this inexperience. Going along with this, the 3-5-2 places even more emphasis on team defending, with the midfield support and backtracking essential for success. Rookies Danleigh Borman and Luke Sassano will have to help contain Columbus’ Eddie Gaven and Robbie Rogers on the flanks, as both are formidable attacking players. 

Key Matchup: Seth Stammler vs. Guillermo Baros Schelotto. Sticking with a defensive theme, everyone knows the skill that Columbus’ playmaker Schelotto possesses, as well as his ability to start an attack and adequately support the forwards. The question is how New York will go about disrupting Schelotto, which will invariably slow down Columbus’ attack. Seth Stammler looks to be New York’s answer, as he provides the bite in the defensive midfield duo of him and Dave Van den Bergh. Stammler is exceptional in his ability to cover vast amounts of ground, taking away passing lanes and sticking his tackles well. Look for him to provide the necessary energy in support of the three man backline.

Key Player: Claudio Reyna. Employed in a new attacking role for the coming season, this will be many fans’ first look at the rejuvenated Reyna. I firmly believe that, if healthy, Reyna will emerge as a viable attacking option. Reyna’s new role allows him to enjoy a certain amount of free range, as he is positioned behind the two forwards. He will be called upon to link the midfield and forwards, and to provide quality service to Angel and Altidore. With Reyna’s field vision and ball control skills, I believe that he will flourish in this new role.

Popularity: 10%