David Beckham. Thierry Henry. Rafael Marquez. Thierry Henry. Cuauhtémoc Blanco. Juan Pablo Angel.

Those are some of the biggest DP signings in MLS history. They provide talent on the field and name-recognition off it, bringing in a lot of fans to see them play.

Eric Hassli? Have you ever even heard of him?

The Vancouver Whitecaps have announced Hassli will be the team’s first designated player. The question is, why?

He comes from Swiss Super League club FC Zurich. As a forward, however, he’s only scored seven goals in the past two seasons. Not very good numbers. He’s also not going to draw many fans out to games, although as an expansion team, the Whitecaps may not need a marquee name to bring out fans; the “newness” of the team may be enough.

Hassli has never played at the international level for France. C’mon man, even Mista has made a couple of appearances for Spain.

There are some reasons why it could be a good signing. At 6’4” and 200 pounds, he is a very strong forward, who according to Vancouver president Bob Lenarduzzi, also has good technical skill. The Whitecaps were also very thin at the forward position, with the only listed forwards on the roster being Atiba Harris (more of a midfielder) and Omar Salgado (who can’t play until September because of an age-restriction rule).

It certainly has the potential to be an impact signing, similar to Joel Lindpere for the New York Red Bulls and Alvaro Saborio for Real Salt Lake in 2010. But neither of those signings was for DP slots. For a club that was praised for bringing in USMNT defender Jay DeMerit as its first signing, the Hassli acquisition is a bit confusing.

Is Hassli worth the money? Or was this a move made out of desperation?

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Anticipation is building for soccer fans in America with the 2011 edition of the Major League Soccer season less than two weeks away. There are a lot of new faces in new places, as well as two new teams—the Portland Timbers and Vancouver Whitecaps.

Each team will play 34 games in 2011, with each team playing everybody twice. That means there are a total 612 games. There will be some very entertaining soccer to be played, but here are the top 15 regular season games that you need to watch.

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The Seattle Sounders' unofficial opening salvo in the Great Northwest MLS rivalry didn't close as well as they'd hoped.

In the 21st minute, a rain-soaked Kasey Keller seemingly stopped a shot on goal only to have the ball lay up a few feet in front of him as he watched it rocket to the back of the net off of Timbers forward Jorge Perlaza. Most assuredly this goal was weather-related.

However, the Sounders did nothing to earn a victory—weather-related goal or not.

The Sounders' playing style hasn't changed this year. There are still spots of unbridled excitement riddled in between many minutes of passing the ball around on defense.

Speaking of defense, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado is now back in the lineup. He had an up and down night, mixing a few good plays with some bad.

Most notably on defense, though, was the play of Jeff Parke.

Parke made plenty of mistakes, but he was slow to correct them and was constantly in the wrong place. Most remarkably—aside from providing zero cover for the aforementioned goal—Parke allowed several balls to run right past him and across the middle of the goal.

It's a wonder Keller is losing his hair.

If Sounders coach Sigi Schmid insists on playing everything out of the back, it'll be important that he solidify the middle of the defense.

On a more positive note, the midfield was looking good. Ozzie Alonso picked up right where he left off last year and Alvaro Fernandez looks stronger than ever. Still, there were several times throughout the game that they were playing heads down and missed some golden opportunities to get the ball to a wide open Steve Zakuani.

Hopefully they'll review the tapes and improve this quickly.

Fredy Montero and Blaise Nkufo had solid games, though they had difficulty finishing. Nkufo looks like he's lost a few pounds. Midway through the second half, it appeared Nkufo was injured and he seemed to slow down. Alternately, he looked frustrated and that may have been the cause as well.

The final ended 2-0 with a last-minute goal by Timbers forward Kenny Cooper. Starfire Sports stadium was sold out, with 3,100 in attendance. It's possible that it is now time for the Sounders to find another place to play these games.

While a great facility, Starfire is not equipped to handle events that can draw many more thousands. The crowd was oppressively close, but at least was under cover for the rainy night.

The Sounders face the Vancouver Whitecaps on Sunday. The Community Shield is played on Wednesday at Qwest Field and will feature the US Open Cup Champion Sounders facing the MLS Cup Champion Colorado Rapids.

The MLS regular season opens March 15th when the LA Galaxy visit the Sounders.

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The Los Angeles Galaxy seem to be making a nasty habit of choking in penalty shootouts as well as giving up leads at the worst times possible. If Bruce Arena's side expects to defend their Supporters Shield, let alone contend for the MLS Cup, well...they probably would be wise to keep their expectations low. 

After Frankie Hejduk became Goat No. 1 for a foul that led to Club Tijuana even the score at 2-2, the Galaxy proceeded to lose in penalties 4-3 with Jovan Kirovski becoming Goat No. 2 for his inability to learn from his transgressions at the 2009 MLS Cup. 

Granted, Los Xolos played like a side in midseason form, but on the other side, the Galaxy played discombobulated football for the good part of 90 minutes with Landon Donovan, David Beckham and Juan Pablo Angel lacking the communication and know-how to be contenders. 

Omar Gonzalez equalized for the Galaxy in the 41st minute off of Beckham and Donovan finished off the delivery from Chris Birchall to make it 2-1. 

Joaquin Del Olmo's Club Tijuana took an early 1-0 lead in the 38th minute thanks to Gilberto Mora and equalized on the penalty from Miguel Lopez in the 82nd minute. 

The Galaxy will open up the season on Mar. 15 against the Seattle Sounders in front of a nationally televised audience on ESPN. 

One can only hope that by the time the third round of the 2011 U.S. Open Cup arrives, the G's will have learned their lessons and in the process, avoid a path of penalty shootout recidivism.

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With the Los Angeles Galaxy set to begin their 2011 Major League Soccer campaign on March 15 against the Seattle Sounders at Qwest Field, Bruce Arena's men will be due for some fine tuning when they take on Club Tijuana tonight at Torero Stadium on the campus of the University of San Diego in San Diego, California.

"It's our first real preseason game," midfielder Landon Donovan said.

"We've played a lot of scrimmages but this is our first chance. We're two weeks out now so this is a big test."

While the Galaxy have played preseason matches against the Portland Timbers, San Jose Earthquakes, Colorado Rapids and Vancouver Whitecaps, those were mere scrimmages.

This time, it's for real.

Club Tijuana Xoloitzcuintles De Caliente, managed by Joaquin del Olmo, are a team that plays in the Liga de Ascenso, the second division of Mexican football. Having won the 2010 Apertura, they are another league title or a victory over the 2011 Clausura champion away from promotion to the Primera Division de Mexico.

Currently in the 2011 Clausura, Tijuana are 2-5-1 (11 points) and are on track to make the Liguilla (playoffs).

"Any time you play against a Mexican team it's exciting, certainly a different style of play from MLS," Arena said on their opponents.

"This is a team that experienced a lot of success last year. It's good for us to have a gated game against good competition."

Donovan, forward Juan Pablo Angel and midfielder David Beckham will likely be in the starting lineup for the first time.

"It's my first time playing a game in San Diego so I'm excited about that," Beckham said.

"I've been there once or twice before and it's a great city. It's nice to be playing a game there."

Beckham stressed the importance of a strong result against a side whose stadium, the Estadio Caliente, is just a few bus and train rides away from the heart of downtown San Diego.

“It's important, these games for us, as they're leading into the season,” Beckham said.

“It's important that we get our fitness and obviously get the team shape right.”

Tijuana don't have a lot of firepower to speak of, but their main trigger man is Raul Enriquez, who led the team in the Apertura with five goals and is the team leader in the Clausura with three goals.

Another contributor to Los Xolos is Luis Orozco, with four goals scored in the Apertura.

Prediction:

It will be important that the Galaxy contain Enriquez's finishing ability; also shutting down Nestor Gerk and and Orozco will be key.

Expect a rusty, but solid initial outing at Torero Stadium for the G's.

Los Angeles Galaxy 2, Club Tijuana 1

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EPL Talk, the online blog for the English Premier League has leaked the Manchester United travel schedule for 2011 and guess who is on it?

It's being reported that Man U. will begin play right here in Seattle at Qwest Field.

If you recall, earlier this year the Sounders promised there would only be a single international friendly, but that the visiting team would be a world top-five.

Well, congrats to the front office if the rumor is true. They landed one of the true big names in soccer and the sellout is virtually guaranteed.

The Sounders, for their part, have remained silent on the subject. An announcement is sure to come soon, we hope.

When the front office does announce the opponent for the friendly, and if it's Man U., they'll have satisfied a chief complaint from Sounder fans last season.

Despite the valiant efforts to provide more games, Boca Juniors and Celtic did not satisfy the fans' desires for good, quality international teams.

Add that to the grueling schedule the Sounders faced while trying to bring home an MLS Cup and the fans were much higher on the team than on the front office last season.

In other Sounders news, the Cascadia Cup kicks off this weekend with visits to Starfire from the Portland Timbers and Vancouver Whitecaps. The rivalry has now begun. The Pacific Northwest is the new home to the hottest rivalry in the MLS. 

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The New York Cosmos kicked off the 2011 Asia Tour today when Pelé, Eric Cantona and Cobi Jones arrived safely in Singapore. From now until March 9, all three New York Cosmos Ambassadors' purpose is to demonstrate the organization's good-will commitment to developing young talent and building global partnerships.

The tour begins in Singapore and continues onto Hong Kong starting March 6 (featuring Pelé only) and ending March 9, as stated in their press release:

"Other programs taking place in Singapore will include:

A Q&A session hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (AmCham Singapore) in conjunction with the U.S.-Asia Pacific Regional Business Summit. AmCham Singapore Chairman Dr. Steve Okun will address 'What’s Next In the Soccer World' and will talk to Pelé, Cantona and Jones about the important role that soccer plays to bridge communities.

A gala dinner with Singapore President S.R. Nathan and his wife in attendance, benefiting the Bone Marrow Donor Programme.

Ribbon-cutting of a brand new soccer pitch being unveiled at the Singapore Sports School.

A soccer clinic hosted by Cobi Jones with Team Hope, an organization committed to 'changing lives through football.' An exclusive launch of the Umbro x New York Cosmos home kit with leading soccer retailer Weston at their Queensway Shopping Centre Branch."

Also joining the tour are chairman Paul Kemsley and vice chairman Terry Byrne.

"On top of the first-class hospitality and enthusiasm that we have received In Singapore and Hong Kong, we have also seen a significant commitment by organizations and individuals of many levels to developing young talent and the future of the sport. This is very complementary to the mission of The New York Cosmos. We are excited to be here to meet fans, players, partners, leaders and dignitaries—and to let everyone know that The New York Cosmos are back. We will continue to integrate Asia in all that we do and look forward to returning to this region in the very near future," Kemsley stated.

New York Cosmos fans will be able to view photos and videos from The 2011 New York Cosmos Asia Tour on the New York Cosmos' official Facebook page.

For more information about the 2011 New York Cosmos Asia Tour, please visit www.nycosmos.com.

Cesar Diaz covers soccer for Latino Sports. You may follow him on Facebook at Covering Soccer and on Twitter at @CoveringSoccer and @LatinoSports143. Please email your questions and comments to Cesar at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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Major League Soccer kicks off its 16th season in less than three weeks, so it seems appropriate to look back on the last fifteen years and pick out the greatest 25 goals.

The league has seen plenty of exciting goalscorers throughout it's history, including domestic stars (McBride, Donovan, Mathis, Twellman, Wynalda, Chinn, Dempsey) and foreign (Moreno, Ruiz, Angel, Henry, Etcheverry, Djorkaeff).

These stars of the league and a few surprise candidates have contributed many spectacular goals throughout the years.

Here, we count down the top 25 shots, volleys, bicycle kicks and chips since the league's inception in 1996.

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McBean, USA U-17 win CONCACAF

On one hand, it does help that Mexico is hosting the FIFA Under-17 World Cup this year.

On the other hand, the Los Angeles Galaxy's Jack McBean will return to Los Angeles Galaxy training camp a winner.

That's because McBean—coming off the bench later for Wilmer Cabrera's USA Under-17 Men's National Team—defeated rivals Canada 3-0 in extra time at the Catherine Hall Stadium in Montego Bay, Jamaica to win the 2011 CONCACAF Under-17 Championship.

This is the first CONCACAF Under-17 title for the Stars and Stripes.

Nathan Smith opened the scoring for the USA in the 92nd minute. Andrew Oliver made it 2-0 for the Yanks in the 100th minute before Alfred Koroma put the game out of reach in the 120th minute of play.

Whether or not McBean's success will internationally translate to a huge payoff on the Galaxy Reserves is up to the fates to decide.


If Mr. Becks fits, all the better

Galaxy team captain Landon Donovan shrugged off the worries that midfielder David Beckham would have a rough go at meshing with the team at training.

“Like always, he fits right in,” Donovan said. “He looked great, he looked fit, he looked sharp. He and I always get back on the same page quickly. He and everyone else seem to get going quickly.

“All we care about is that when he’s here, he wants to be here and he wants to play. [Last Thursday] he showed that he wants to be here and he wants to help this team.”

Donovan believes that it is not up to Bruce Arena's Galaxy to decide whether or not Beckham should play on loan during the Major League Soccer offseason.

“Who am I to say he shouldn’t be somewhere playing?” Donovan said. “The last two years I’ve been in Europe playing, so I understand why he would want to do that and why he would want to play there.”

Juan Pablo Angel believes that Beckham's work training with Tottenham Hotspur provides a big advantage and a needed boost.

“It’s important for him also to give himself a chance of playing at that level, training with the players he was training with at Tottenham," said Angel—who played at Aston Villa from 2001 to '07. “I think it’s only going to do him good and hopefully we’re going to get the benefits from it. He’s going to be as important as ever for our team and for the league.”

Donovan did note that it could have been similarly advantageous to have Beckham with the club during training at Arizona State University in Tempe.

“Would we have liked to have had him since Jan. 24? Sure, but that’s the way it is," Donovan said. "Everyone has individual things going on, and we’re just happy to have him back.”

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David Beckham, fresh off a few months of training with Tottenham Hotspur F.C., returned to the Los Angeles Galaxy this week as the team camp continued.

“My main objective was to get fit for the Galaxy and for the MLS season," Beckham said after training. "My main objective wasn’t to play for a Premiership team. Even if I would have been on loan, even if I would have played the games, this is the time I was always going to come back.”

No loans were in the horizons for the the 35-year-old Beckham, who chose to emphasize his match fitness ahead of the 2011 Major League Soccer campaign.

“If there was an option to play, I was going to take it," Beckham said. "But without a doubt, I 100 percent wanted to go somewhere and train and not take the three months and just sit around doing nothing. At this stage of my career and especially after the injury I had, I realized it was more important to train than to sit on a beach.

“Speaking with Bruce and speaking at the level that the players came back at at the end of January, it was sensible to continue the program I was doing at Spurs—only missing out on a few weeks with the lads here. It was just important for my fitness and for my level that I continue there and come back fitter than I was last season.”

The Galaxy's late 2010 run to the Western Conference Championship and the Supporters Shield title had a preseason feel rather than a postseason feel for Beckham.

“Especially coming back from the injury, it was even more important to go somewhere and keep fit,” Beckham said. “Any Premiership team—especially a Premiership team in the top four—the quality and the intensity of their training was going to be good for me.”

The Galaxy kick off the 2011 MLS season on Mar. 15 against the Seattle Sounders.

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