This obviously isn’t the first, nor will it be the last, rant as to what’s wrong with American soccer, but it’s mine and it’s right now.  And I’m at a point where I don’t care about changing anyone’s minds or hearts.    I need to vent and don’t really care about detracting opinions. 

If you don’t want to read such a rant for five minutes, I don’t blame you, but you’ve been warned.  Thanks either way.

Well, so much for Project 2010.

Our United States soccer program can be likened to having sex with the ex-wife.  Sure, the sex is hot at first, but if the problems that caused the breakup in the first place weren’t fixed, the relationship will get worse.  We are expected to support a team “just because it’s OUR team” and be talked down to for daring to suggest anything is wrong.    Enough!  This was not a good soccer team that crashed against Ghana.  Just a lucky one who eventually got the result they deserved.  Maybe we should have made it a “revenge match.” 

Americans have this incredible stubbornness to tradition, especially when traditions don’t make sense.  France and Italy have bombed out of the World Cup, and at least their FA’s admit massive changes have to be made. 

You can bet promises of changes will be made from the loser of Germany vs. England.  Both of them won't be happy with losing in the round of 16.  All of them have won the World Cup and when things go wrong, they at least try to make serious changes.

So why is it that when America fails, there's no talk of serious fundamental change from the United States Soccer Federation, thinking a coaching change is all we need?

America was lucky to get out of our group (thanks Landon), a group that we were supposed to easily get by.  Coach Bob Bradley’s insane loyalty to players cost us what was the easiest path to the semifinals America will ever have.  Right now, it’s going to be tough to hope for anything past the round of 16 in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.  If you think South American countries are doing well now, just wait until 2014.  Unlike Africa, we are despised in South American countries and will be in a very hostile environment. 

The truth is we are only marginally better since the 2006 World Cup.  Yes, American soccer has grown.  But if you put in $1,000 for a savings bond, and someone else puts in $1,000,000 in a savings bond at a higher rate, who is going to get more?  The major soccer superpowers are growing more because they have better foundations.

While everyone is focusing on getting rid of Bob Bradley, we are missing a much bigger picture.  We could have had Jürgen Klinsmann as our manager four years ago.   From what everyone generally believes, he would have taken the job had he been given the power to do what he needed to do to improve American soccer, and the United States Soccer Federation (and President Sunil Gulati) wouldn’t give it to him. 

We can call for Gulati’s ouster, and I will, but conveniently, the USSF rules allow him to be reelected five months before the World Cup, not five months after, so he gets to stay in, knowing there is no real mechanism to get rid of him.  What country would allow their soccer leader to have a conflict of interest, working for a team in their top league?  That would be the United States.  That is how backwards our thinking in America is.

The arrogance of our soccer program is even better illustrated with Don Garber, Commissioner of “Major League Soccer,” itself a laughable name given it’s “major” in name only.  After not being seen until our fortunate win against Algeria, Garber was publicly stating that there will be no instant replay since FIFA doesn't want it, and then going on espn touting MLS.  By the way, how did MLS players do on our team?  Not really that well, except for Donovan who frankly is too good for MLS.  When you run a league with players on McDonalds wages, except for overpaid, oft-injured “Euro-divas,” this is what you get.     You can make an argument that any dependence on Major League Soccer in its current form is a liability to our national team.

And I don’t want to hear “MLS is still new.”  Bull.  Ultimate Fighting Championship was left for dead ten years ago.  Now it makes as much revenue as MLS all by itself and surely makes a profit.  Sports in this country can take off quickly with good management and infrastructure.  How many decades has soccer been on the cusp of being a major sport?  I played high school soccer in 1987 when it was brand new to our school.  The attendance for high school soccer today isn't much better.  We still get the players football coaches don't want because we insist on playing in the fall.

The point is many soccer fans know that except for a small number of really good players, the team is not really that good, and know that until there is a change of attitude that hey, maybe we need to at least admit we need to change like France and Italy, 2014 will actually be worse for us.

But we won’t change.  We’re so smug we think we’ll win the World Cup bid, just like we were convinced we would win the Olympics for Chicago.  While we’re the favorites for 2022 (Europe’s getting the 2018 bid), Australia at least claims they will develop a second tier and have promotion and relegation.  They never hosted, had a terror-free Olympics, and their youth program itself is nothing to sneeze at.   Everything FIFA is looking for when it comes to reaching out to new or young markets.  Meanwhile, we apparently didn't offer any proposed changes to our structure in our bid.

Just ask yourself:  If FIFA thought before giving us the 1994 World Cup that we would develop a league that has forced mediocrity and no credible second tier after 16 years, would they have given us the World Cup?  So why should they pick us against Australia?  Maybe if we offered major changes before the World Cup bids are announced this December we will win it without any doubt.

And before anyone wants to retort “promotion and relegation will never happen,” spare us.  The bigger point is there’s no second tier that’s credible in American soccer.  Please enlighten us as to how this smug organization fixes our second tier problem if we can’t do pro/rel.  The second tier is undeniably a disaster and a major problem with our player development.  MLS should be at least developing a second tier, one minor league team per MLS team, and nobody thinks they are looking into that.  And no, a reserve squad doesn’t count.  FIFA is already trying to reduce the number of teams in the top leagues in the world.  How are we going to get away with expanding past twenty teams?

So what to do?  Many of the suggestions here have probably been made before by others. Here's a few of mine.

Before the objection is made to any idea, let me give my retort: 

Do we want to win the World Cup or not?

1.  Get rid of Gulati.  He should do the honorable thing and resign.  The USSF should only have a placeholder President until a new election is done.  Let it be a truly public campaign, let’s see what people with actual soccer coaching or sports management backgrounds suggest we do to change.  Professors of economics won't cut it anymore.  Change the rules to have elections after the World Cup, not before. 

Do we want to win the World Cup or not?

2.  Put instant replay in MLS.  No, instant replay itself isn’t going to revolutionize soccer in America, I haven’t lost my marbles.  But the IDEA that we tell FIFA to “shove it” and do what the serious soccer fans want for a change just might start that revolution. 

Do we want to win the World Cup or not?

3.  Futsal programs everywhere.   This should be priority 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 for any new USSF boss.  We are too soft in this country.  We spend $millions of taxpayer dollars on perfectly manicured soccer pitches for third graders, but nobody wants to invest a dime for futsal programs in inner city recreation centers.   Meanwhile, South American kids play on streets and futsal courts. 

We need to find way to get futsal programs better funded and working together for once.  Have MLS teams set up promotion and relegation futsal leagues, with the winning team in each top flight a trip to the MLS Final for a “Champions League” style tournament.  A one-week tournament of these teams from different MLS cities would be great publicity for the MLS Final.

Every recreation center in America needs to have a futsal program if physically possible.  We need to get this game to young kids, especially African-American kids who can't afford the overpriced American soccer programs.  As it has been said before:  In the rest of the world, soccer is the poor kids' game, in America, it's the rich kids' game.  Until that mentality is broken we will never get the best talent from all parts of our country.

On top of this, stop worrying about perfectly manicured soccer fields in youth play.  Accept the realities of artificial turf up through high school.  Just focus on better technologies for turf.  The cooler field technologies from companies like Mondo and Tiger Turf are promising.  GeoTurfUSA uses an infill system of crushed coconut shells and cork for a much more stable, cooler field.  It sounds crazy but it works.  The technology will get better, so we should be embracing it.

Do we want to win the World Cup or not?

4.  Move all college and high school soccer to the spring.   Find a way to do this, it's even more critical for high schools than colleges.  We need to stop settling for the best athletes that didn’t play on the football team.  I bet there are a ton of good athletes who would gladly play football in the fall and soccer in the spring.  I bet a few of them would have been better defenders than Ricardo Clark.

Do we want to win the World Cup or not?

5.  High school soccer programs need revamping.   We have totally the wrong mentality for American soccer development.  First we depend on having kids in over-priced academies, and then inexplicably put our kids in high school programs that draw flies for attendance.  In high school football, the high school coach runs the entire program in his district basically, all the way down to pee-wee levels.  That networking is partially why football draws much better. 

Come on, soccer has been in high schools for decades now, there are no excuses for low attendance.  Having larger crowds does make a difference in recruiting kids to play.  Start networking better.  In the fall offseason, those kids who are not playing football in high school or middle school should be playing in futsal leagues.

Do we want to win the World Cup or not?

6.  Fix the second tier.   This is critical not only for player development, but in selling soccer in the United States.  In our country we accept that some cities get minor league teams.   (Why are we even considering a second New York team?  They can’t sell out Red Bull Arena.)   Having no teams in the southeast is unacceptable even with the failures in Tampa and Miami.  And sorry, not everyone in the southeast will root for an Atlanta team, they want their own team to root for.  Currently, the USSF has a patchwork solution to our problems that nobody thinks will be a permanent solution.  Again, FIFA has limits to how many teams a top-flight can have.  So there isn’t much more room to expand MLS anyway.

What MLS should do is start marketing the idea of minor league teams (one per MLS team) in the biggest markets where MLS is not currently playing.  For cities that actually need a stadium, use a template design for a modest venue of say 12,000 seats, but in open enough spaces to where it can be expanded in the future.  Keep the costs down.  Just get the foot in the door.

Now, twenty years after this there will be two developed flights of soccer teams.  Then finally we can have promotion and relegation.  And current MLS owners who wouldn't like the idea will have sold off their teams by then anyway.  The key is to announce a specific date for when there will be the switch.  It can be 2030 for all I care, just say it will happen for sure and watch how interested cities become all of a sudden.  All of a sudden there will be a television deal for the second tier. 

Do we want to win the World Cup or not?

7.  Sell league naming rights for MLS, use money for bonuses for team wins.   You don’t even have to change the collective bargaining agreement much.    Americans who are not soccer fans will understand like in NASCAR and golf, if someone wins, they get paid more.  No bonuses for ties.  Wins.  Any leftover money carries to MLS Final.  You will suddenly see more motivated play during the otherwise "dog days" of MLS because every game will literally matter to the players.

Do we want to win the World Cup or not?

8.  In fact, change the name of Major League Soccer.   Who are we kidding?  It’s not a “major” league.  Call it “North American Premier League” or something.  And if not, at least get the words “Major League Soccer” OFF the logo.  It’s so minor league….

Do we want to win the World Cup or not?

You will note not one of my suggestions involve hiring a specific person for head coach.  It won’t matter who the coach unless we have a complete change of atmosphere in American soccer leadership.  Right now, I don’t think even “The Special One” José Mourinho could improve American soccer.

I was listening late one night to Bob Valvano on espn radio (yeah, it was really late night), around the time when we thought that college football was about to implode.  He made the point that it was never an issue of how to do a college football playoff, but the willingness to do it.  Just like this essay, there are countless “how to fix American soccer” pieces out there.  All we can do is make suggestions.  If the powers that be won’t admit, like France and Italy have, that we have serious problems, nothing is going to change.

If we’re not determined to win the World Cup no matter what it takes, why exactly should our kids be playing soccer?

It's not one thing, but many things we need to do to change.  None will happen until, again, we respond to the question, "Do we want to win the World Cup or not?"

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On July 29, Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy will look to kick off their 2010 U.S. Open Cup run with a bang against A.C. St. Louis of the USSF D2 Pro League.

A.C. St. Louis, a team founded this season, defeated the NSC Minnesota Stars in the second round 1-0, but they are a team in turmoil right now.

This past week, the club fired manager Claude Anelka and replaced him with Dale Schilly of youth club St. Louis Scott Gallagher.

The club currently sits in the cellar of the USSF D2 Pro League NASL Conference with a 2-7-1 record. Furthermore, a financial power struggle has seen businessman Jeff Cooper take complete financial ownership of A.C. St. Louis.

A player to watch out for on A.C. St. Louis is Mike Ambersley. He was instrumental in their 1-0 victory over the NSC Minnesota Stars on June 22 and has a great striking touch.

Others to look out for include midfielder Luke Kreamalmeyer and Gauchinho (Jéferson Lima de Menezes) and goalkeeper Alec Duffy.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy are enjoying relative stability under the ownership of the Anschutz Entertainment Group and head coach Bruce Arena. The Galaxy sit at 10-1-3 (33 points), good for the best record in Major League Soccer.

With Landon Donovan and Edson Buddle returning to the Galaxy, the biggest question is whether they will play Tuesday.

Buddle leads Major League Soccer with nine goals this season while Donovan's performance at the 2010 FIFA World Cup should carry over quite nicely back home at Victoria Street.

If Arena chooses to rest the Buddlevan Connection, a plethora of other dangerous attackers at the manager's disposal include Tristan Bowen, Michael Stephens, Juninho, Alex Cazumba, Chris Birchall, and Jovan Kirovski. And all of them can score when they have the ball at their feet.

A stingy defensive backfield—led by Omar Gonzalez, A.J. De La Garza, Sean Franklin, Gregg Berhalter, and Todd Dunivant—along with a beast of goalkeeping depth in Donovan Ricketts and Josh Saunders will force A.C. St. Louis to be very creative and opportunistic in their attacks and counters.

It's time for the Los Angeles Galaxy to welcome A.C. St. Louis to some true competition. NSC Minnesota Stars this isn't! Take it to the bank.

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There was no surprise that Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy would come into the contest looking a little rusty. After all, the team was recuperating from injuries with the 2010 FIFA World Cup break.

On Saturday at BMO Field, the G's got back into the familiar habit of earning points, rather than coming up empty. On a pitch that was drenched with heavy precipitation late into the night, the Galaxy held Toronto FC to another scoreless draw.

Really, though, the Galaxy looked and felt disconnected their first time out of the break. The passing was not crisp, and the shooting by the likes of Juninho was simply unacceptable. Tristan Bowen will have wanted to rue the opportunities he had with the ball.

To their credit, the Galaxy neutralized the TFC midfielders and never got them going offensively. Nick LaBrocca threatened with a triad of shots for the Reds.

But Donovan Ricketts only needed to make one save on the night at BMO, and that was a shot in the first half by Dwayne De Rosario.

De Rosario was held at bay by the Galaxy backline. Center back Omar Gonzalez proved to be talisman behind Toronto's frustrations in their attacking third.

With the draw, Los Angeles improves to 10-1-3 (33 points), six points ahead of the Columbus Crew for the top overall spot in the league and nine points to the good of Real Salt Lake.

INS & OUTS:

On the continuing adventures of Landon and Edson in South Africa...

Landon Donovan saved the USA from elimination in the group stages last Wednesday with a goal in the 91st minute to beat Algeria, 1-0 and secure a date with Ghana in the Round of 16 in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

“He stepped up again. I was so happy for him. He deserves it,” Todd Dunivant said on the goal. “He’s been playing world-class soccer for the last year-and-a-half now, and he’s totally being recognized now. People are realizing this guy is for real and one of top players in the world.

“It felt like the game was slipping away from the US. They were pushing and were clearly the better team. Algeria was playing defensively the whole time. It didn’t make sense why they (Algeria) were sitting back there, content with putting the US out of the World Cup even it if meant them going out.

“The team certainly has flair for the dramatic. Even with the Confederations Cup last year, it is not dull watching US soccer play. The football gods looked down brightly upon us.”

Not so on Saturday. In extra time, a 93rd minute strike by Asamoah Gyan sunk the States 2-1 in Rustenberg.

If Bob Bradley isn't relieved of his duties sometime very soon, Sunil Gulati is a bigger fool than I first imagined.

A Galaxy of World Cup stars

Aside from Bruce Arena, Landon Donovan, Edson Buddle and David Beckham, 28 other current and former Galaxy players, coaches, assistants and trainers have taken part in a FIFA World Cup.

There have been as many current and former Galaxy members who have competed in the World Cup as teams competing in the Finals. How about that!

Current Players:
David Beckham (1998, 2002, 2006 as a player and 2010 as an assistant with England)
Landon Donovan (2002, 2006, 2010 with U.S.)
Edson Buddle (2010 with U.S.)
Gregg Berhalter (2002 and 2006 with U.S.)
Chris Birchall (2006 with Trinidad and Tobago)
Eddie Lewis (2002 and 2006 with the U.S.)
Clint Mathis (2002 with the U.S.)
Donovan Ricketts (1998 with Jamaica)

Former Players:
Bruce Arena (as a coach in 2002 and 2006)
Chris Albright (2006 with U.S.)
DaMarcus Beasley (2002, 2006, 2010 with U.S.)
Paul Caligiuri (1990, 1994 with U.S.)
Brian Ching (2006 with U.S.)
Curt Onalfo (2002, 2006 assistant coach with U.S)
Tony Sanneh (2002 with U.S.)
Alexi Lalas (1994, 1998 with U.S.)
Jorge Campos (1994, 1998, 2002 as a player and 2006 as an assistant coach with Mexico)
Carlos Hermosillo (1986, 1994 with Mexico)
Luis Hernandez (1998, 2002 with Mexico)
Hong Myung-Bo (1990, 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2006 as an assistant coach with South Korea)
Cornell Glenn (2006 with Trinidad and Tobago)
Andreas Herzog (1990, 1998 with Austria)
Roy Myers (1990 with Costa Rica)
Simon Elliott (2010 with New Zealand)
Carlos Pavon (2010 with Honduras)

Technical Staff:
Dave Sarachan (as a coach in 2002)
Cobi Jones (as a player in 1994, 1998 and 2002)
Jürgen Klinsmann? (as a player in 1990, 1994 and 1998; as a coach in 2006)
Ruud Gullit (as a player in 1990)
Zak Abdel (as a coach in 2010)
Ivan Pierra (as a trainer in 2010)
Ralph Perez (as a coach in 1990)


Youth Academy Update

At the Bryan Park Soccer Complex in Browns Summit, North Carolina, the LA Galaxy Youth Academy U-18's drew 2-2 with FC Greater Boston. Tomorrow, they face the Clearwater Chargers at 5:00 p.m. ET and on Tuesday, they clash with FC Dallas at 11:00 a.m.

The U-20's drew 1-1 with the Southern California Seahorses on June 19 and defeated the Poway Vaqueros 2-0 on June 24. They are currently 3-1-1, good for second place so far in the Super-20 League 2010 Pacific Southern California U20M Division.


U.S. Open Cup Action

The Galaxy begin their 2010 U.S. Open Cup play on Tuesday, June 29 against A.C. St. Louis of the USSF D2 Pro League. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PT.

Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com

Source: Click Here

There was no surprise that Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy would come into the contest looking a little rusty. After all, the team was recuperating from injuries with the 2010 FIFA World Cup break.

On Saturday at BMO Field, the G's got back into the familiar habit of earning points, rather than coming up empty. On a pitch that was drenched with heavy precipitation late into the night, the Galaxy held Toronto FC to another scoreless draw.

Really, though, the Galaxy looked and felt disconnected their first time out of the break. The passing was not crisp, and the shooting by the likes of Juninho was simply unacceptable. Tristan Bowen will have wanted to rue the opportunities he had with the ball.

To their credit, the Galaxy neutralized the TFC midfielders and never got them going offensively. Nick LaBrocca threatened with a triad of shots for the Reds.

But Donovan Ricketts only needed to make one save on the night at BMO, and that was a shot in the first half by Dwayne De Rosario.

De Rosario was held at bay by the Galaxy backline. Center back Omar Gonzalez proved to be a talisman behind Toronto's frustrations in their attacking third.

With the draw, Los Angeles improves to 10-1-3 (33 points), six points ahead of the Columbus Crew for the top overall spot in the league and nine points to the good of Real Salt Lake.


INS & OUTS:

On the continuing adventures of Landon and Edson in South Africa...

Landon Donovan saved the USA from elimination in the group stages last Wednesday with a goal in the 91st minute to beat Algeria, 1-0, and secure a date with Ghana in the Round of 16 in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

“He stepped up again. I was so happy for him. He deserves it,” Todd Dunivant said on the goal. “He’s been playing world-class soccer for the last year-and-a-half now, and he’s totally being recognized now. People are realizing this guy is for real and one of top players in the world.

“It felt like the game was slipping away from the US. They were pushing and were clearly the better team. Algeria was playing defensively the whole time. It didn’t make sense why they (Algeria) were sitting back there, content with putting the US out of the World Cup even it if meant them going out.

“The team certainly has flair for the dramatic. Even with the Confederations Cup last year, it is not dull watching US soccer play. The football gods looked down brightly upon us.”

Not so on Saturday. In extra time, a 93rd minute strike by Asamoah Gyan sunk the States 2-1 in Rustenberg.

If Bob Bradley isn't relieved of his duties sometime very soon, Sunil Gulati is a bigger fool than I first imagined.

A Galaxy of World Cup stars

Aside from Bruce Arena, Landon Donovan, Edson Buddle, and David Beckham, 28 other current and former Galaxy players, coaches, assistants, and trainers have taken part in a FIFA World Cup.

There have been as many current and former Galaxy members who have competed in the World Cup as teams competing in the Finals. How about that!

Current Players:
David Beckham (1998, 2002, 2006 as a player, and 2010 as an assistant with England)
Landon Donovan (2002, 2006, 2010 with U.S.)
Edson Buddle (2010 with U.S.)
Gregg Berhalter (2002 and 2006 with U.S.)
Chris Birchall (2006 with Trinidad and Tobago)
Eddie Lewis (2002 and 2006 with U.S.)
Clint Mathis (2002 with U.S.)
Donovan Ricketts (1998 with Jamaica)

Former Players:
Bruce Arena (as a coach in 2002 and 2006)
Chris Albright (2006 with U.S.)
DaMarcus Beasley (2002, 2006, 2010 with U.S.)
Paul Caligiuri (1990, 1994 with U.S.)
Brian Ching (2006 with U.S.)
Curt Onalfo (2002, 2006 assistant coach with U.S)
Tony Sanneh (2002 with U.S.)
Alexi Lalas (1994, 1998 with U.S.)
Jorge Campos (1994, 1998, 2002 as a player, and 2006 as an assistant coach with Mexico)
Carlos Hermosillo (1986, 1994 with Mexico)
Luis Hernandez (1998, 2002 with Mexico)
Hong Myung-Bo (1990, 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2006 as an assistant coach with South Korea)
Cornell Glenn (2006 with Trinidad and Tobago)
Andreas Herzog (1990, 1998 with Austria)
Roy Myers (1990 with Costa Rica)
Simon Elliott (2010 with New Zealand)
Carlos Pavon (2010 with Honduras)

Technical Staff:
Dave Sarachan (as a coach in 2002)
Cobi Jones (as a player in 1994, 1998 and 2002)
Jürgen Klinsmann? (as a player in 1990, 1994 and 1998; as a coach in 2006)
Ruud Gullit (as a player in 1990)
Zak Abdel (as a coach in 2010)
Ivan Pierra (as a trainer in 2010)
Ralph Perez (as a coach in 1990)


Youth Academy Update

At the Bryan Park Soccer Complex in Browns Summit, North Carolina, the LA Galaxy Youth Academy U-18's drew 2-2 with FC Greater Boston. Tomorrow, they face the Clearwater Chargers at 5:00 p.m. ET and on Tuesday, they clash with FC Dallas at 11:00 a.m.

The U-20's drew 1-1 with the Southern California Seahorses on June 19 and defeated the Poway Vaqueros 2-0 on June 24. They are currently 3-1-1, good for second place so far in the Super-20 League 2010 Pacific Southern California U20M Division.


U.S. Open Cup Action

The Galaxy begin their 2010 U.S. Open Cup play on Tuesday, June 29 against A.C. St. Louis of the USSF D2 Pro League. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PT.

Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com

Source: Click Here

T-180 minutes to kickoff: The Los Angeles Galaxy will have to soldier on for a couple more matches without the assistance of Landon Donovan and Edson Buddle, who have paced the USA to a 1-0 win over Algeria and a spot in the Round of 16.

This Saturday, the Galaxy travel to the site of this year's MLS Cup, BMO Field, to take on Toronto FC in a quest to make amends for their draw earlier this season.

T-170: While we're on the subject, let's talk a little bit about BMO Field. BMO stands for Bank of MOntreal (note the capitals in this one) Financial Group, the sponsors of this CAD $62.5 million gem in Exhibition Place.

This is an open-air structure that seats up to 21,800 strong. This originally was slated to be located on the campus of York University. But York backed out of the offer, and so the site was moved to the location of the demolished Exhibition Stadium.

This site is also home to the Toronto Nationals, the 2009 champions of Major League Lacrosse.

T-160: In the past, BMO Field was home to a surface made of FieldTurf. However, last year the Toronto City Council voted to install a permanent, natural grass surface. The pitch as it is today at BMO is replete with a state of the art drainage system and heating system.

T-150: One of the more famous moments (or infamous moments, depending on your fancy) at BMO Field happened at 23:13 in Toronto's match with the Chicago Fire on May 12, 2007.

Danny Dichio, now an assistant coach with the Toronto FC Academy, scored TFC's first-ever goal. The reaction? Thousands and thousands of seat cushions flooded the pitch in their salute to the club's first-ever cult hero.

Today, the Toronto FC supporters—from the Red Patch Boys to the U-Sector to the Tribal Rhythm Nation—sing his name at the 23:13 mark during each match as part of the club's growing lore.

T-140: A big question right now is whether or not Dwayne De Rosario, one of MLS's leading scorers right now, will have another breakout performance. With the Galaxy licking their wounds from their 1-0 defeat at Real Salt Lake, now has never been more perfect a time for TFC's talisman to rub salt into the blue and gold wounds of LA.

T-120: Two hours to go before kickoff. It's time for the lineups.

T-110: Long Beach's very own Alan Gordon is hoping to be ready for this contest.

“Everybody is in a good spot,” Gordon said. “When guys slide in, everybody's confident and everybody has been able to contribute when they come in. That's just the way this season has gone. It doesn't always happen like that, so we're fortunate to have that happen. Hopefully it continues.

"I've had a couple of problems this year and I feel healthy now," Gordon said. "It's just a matter of getting game-fit so I can come into the game and hopefully contribute."

T-90: Just want to let you know that the USA have been eliminated from the 2010 FIFA World Cup in a 2-1 loss to Ghana, the same scoreline that doomed the States four years ago. Check out my pieces on that match on The View and on Bleacher Report.

T-60: In other MLS action today, the Columbus Crew take on D.C. United, Houston Dynamo takes on the Colorado Rapids, the Kansas City Wizards clash with the New York Red Bulls and Chivas USA take on FC Dallas.

T-30: Earlier this week, Real Salt Lake and San Jose Earthquakes played to a 0-0 draw.

T-15: Los Angeles's next three league contests include Seattle at home on July 4, on the road against the New England Revolution on July 10 and a road trip on July 18 against D.C. United. Their next match will be against A.C. St. Louis at the Home Depot Center on June 29.

FIRST HALF KICKOFF: 4:37 P.M.

1' - We are underway with this one.

2' - Early chance for Jacob Peterson. He was looking for O'Brian White. Goal kick for the Big Cat from Montego Bay, Donovan Ricketts.

5' - Here's Amadou Sanyang. Offsides on Dwayne DeRosario. Goal kick Ricketts.

7' - Too long a pass for Todd Dunivant. Here's a throw-in.

8' - Stefan Frei resets the distribution for TFC. Slow in the early going. This is Sean Franklin.

9' - There's Chris Birchall on the feast. Martin Saric is shaken up. Terrible header by Alex Cazumba. Sparse crowd early. Are the Blue Jays in town>

10' - Jovan Kirovski is offsides.

12' - Slight armball. And DeRo was offsides on that shot.

13' - This is Nana Attakora, with the mark. Gargan pushes Alex Cazumba aside for the goal kick.

14' - Toronto FC on the attack. Great passing.

16' - Another offsides on De Rosario.

17' - This is Dunivant with the throw-in. Birchall's ambitious one-timer too high.

18' - Gonzales was flattened by O'Brian White. Goal kick.

19' - What is with the adventurous long balls? Get one into the net already!

20' - Throw-in for Toronto's Dan Gargan.

21' - Good clearance by Dunivant. Bad challenge by Tristan Bown on Nana Attakora.

22' - Another offsides on White. Goal kick Ricketts.

23' - Gregg Berhalter should have done better. Throw-in Toronto.

24' - And "Danny Dichio" is sung by the TFC fans, as mentioned earlier in this P-B-P.

25' - Goal kick for Ricketts.

26' - Tristan Bowen with a chance, but that is snapped up by Frei.

27' - A blistering one-timer by Juninho sails into the upper deck. A couple of scoring chances for LA go wide Miami, wide Miami, wide Miami, wide wide wide.

28' - And Bowen is shaken up. No card on the kick by Cann, huh? Come on, Alex Prus. Seriously, yo.

29' - A lesson well learned for Michael Stephens, as given by Jovan Kirovski.

30' - We are thus half an hour into the match, and it's still scoreless.

31' - Nothing more than a battle of aerial ping pong at this point.

32' - Set piece for Toronto FC. They take it short, and back come the Galaxy.

33' - Some more action in the midfield, nothing less.

34' - What is Donovan Ricketts doing? Keystone Kops right there. Throw-in, Gargan.

35' - The U-Sector and Red Patch Boys anticipate. The Galaxy defends the corner well.

36' - A shot from Nick LaBrocca misses the top left corner. Goal kick, Ricketts.

37' - This is Gambia's Amadou Sanyang. The series for the Reds goes into the hands of Ricketts.

38' - USA vs. Ghana this isn't! A shot from DeRo went in Ricketts director. Just like Canada vs. Jamaica in CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying.

39' - Good clearance from Omar Gonzalez. And De Rosario is offsides again.

40' - The sounds of the Tribal Rhythm Nation could be heard, replete with steel drum ensemble.

42' - Omar Gonzalez with another clearance. A deep throw-in ensures. Too high a shot from LaBrocca.

43' - Goal kick for Frei. We are still scoreless.

44' - LA is trying a little flash and dazzle. Nothing doing.

45' - Bowen needs to work on his ball handling. Sean Franklin clears. No stoppage time. We head to the break.

SECOND HALF START 5:38 P.M.

46' - Second half now underway...

Substitution Toronto FC
IN 19 Chad Barrett
OUT 17 O'Brian White

47' - TFC will look to get the go-ahead goal here through Dwayne De Rosario.

48' - Warning shot from Bowen.

49' - Here is Sean Franklin. Too long a run. Throw-in.

50' - LA winning the possession battle early. Sanyang clears for a corner.

51' - Alex hears the "Who Are Ya?" chant from the faithful.

52' - Another Galaxy chance misses. Corner, and that shot by Juninho hits side netting.

55' - What was that, Juninho? He wasn't set up on that series, the Juninho Carsonista.

57' - Julian De Guzman gets ready to enter the game.

58' - And that goes into the hands of Donovan Ricketts.

59' - Both teams have been pretty rusty coming off the break. Hopefully, the production will come.

60' - Substitution Toronto FC
IN 6 Julian De Guzman
OUT 25 Martin Saric

Chad Barrett with the pressure.

61' - Frei with the save, but not before a little human foosball.

63' - Here comes Toronto. And Jacob Peterson is taken down by Alex Cazumba. Set piece time for Dwayne De Rosario.

65' - That didn't amount to much.

66' - Substitution Los Angeles Galaxy
IN 21 Alan Gordon
OUT 9 Jovan Kirovski

67' - Another Cazumba shot hits side netting.

69' - This is Sean Franklin with the throw-ins. The Galaxy are biding their sweet time right now.

70' - Donovan Ricketts goes off his line, and he is hurt.

71' - Substitution Toronto FC
IN 27 Gabe Gala
OUT 23 Jacob Peterson

72' - Alex Prus has proved to be a bit of a Homer Simpson with no card issued to Dwayne De Rosario. D'oh!

73' - We are over 70 minutes into the contest, and it's still scoreless.

74' - Cazumba's right calf seems to be cramping up. The boos rain down, as if to say that it was staged. Hmmmm...not so fast, my friends.

75' - DeRo's shot misses wide right.

76' - Substitution Los Angeles Galaxy
IN 84 Clint Mathis
OUT 88 Alex Cazumba

77' - Right now, Columbus leads D.C. United 1-0 and Houston leads Colorado 1-0.

78' - TFC's midfield seems to have been neutralized today. Easily offsides right there.

79' - Sean Franklin fouled by Raivis Hsicanovics.

80' - Here's Dunivant with the throw-in. Rain begins to fall down in Toronto.

81' - This is going to make the pitch a little bit slick. Here's De Rosario, and that will be a corner as De Guzman is stopped.

83' - Handball on Alan Gordon. They're getting quite a show and a shower, aren't they?

84' - Too high a shot for Gabe Gala. Too much mustard on the hot dog.

Substitution Los Angeles Galaxy
IN 6 Eddie Lewis
OUT 17 Tristan Bowen

85' - Good ol' Todd Dunivant, making his fourteenth start this year. Mr. Consistency. The rain is falling in droves.

86' - Samyang clears. It's a corner taken short. Players sliding on the turf at will here. This is football at its most fun.

88' - Ricketts snatches that up.

90' - Frei with the goal kick. And Chad Barrett was offsides. Too easy.

90' + 1' - Four minutes of stoppage time. Good save by Frei again.

90' + 2' - Updates...Columbus now leading D.C. 2-0, while Colorado evens the score to make it 1-1. Back come the Reds.

90' + 3' - This has been a solid defensive effort for both teams. Here is Dan Gargan with the throw-in.

90' + 4' - Solid diving cover by Donovan Ricketts. One more shot here for Toronto FC. That pass to Gala didn't amount to much. It's another draw.

Stay tuned for my take on this contest on The View and on Bleacher Report.

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Having boarded a jet to New York, rumors are rife that Thierry Henry has said adiós to Barcelona, and has gone on to pen a two-year deal with MLS side New York Red Bulls. Is this a step forward for the Red Bulls, or a case of history repeating itself?

Anyone who remembers the North American Soccer League (NASL) can probably remember a previous New York team, the Cosmos, who drew large crowds upwards of 40,000 fans per game by bringing in foreign talent such as the legendary Brazillian Pelé and Franz Beckenbauer of Germany.

When Pelé signed for Cosmos he was over 35 years old, and when Beckenbauer jumped on board he was 32.

Both men, while legends in their prime, were aging fast before they crossed the Atlantic and spearheaded a wave of overpaid, aging superstars often unable to still perform at the levels that propelled them to super-stardom.

There were a lot of factors in the decline of the NASL. Over-expansion was a huge reason, but one of the primary causes of the decline was a mismanagement of funds that saw millions spent on these aging stars rather than engaging the public and working to bring through young domestic talent.

If we fast forward to today to Major League Soccer (MLS) and look at David Beckham and Thierry Henry, we're once again seeing vast sums of money to lure aging players past their prime to come to America for an easy retirement gig.

And whilst MLS claim to have taken precautions against a repeat of the problems that lead to the decline of NASL, with the growing recruitment of over-salaried foreigners who no longer posses the same levels of ability and with the proposed expansions of 2011, and 2012, it has to be asked if the MLS are repeating mistakes from the past.

The United States men's national soccer team has once again made it through to the knockout stage of the current World Cup for the third time out of the last five tournaments, and they also made it to the quarterfinals in 2002.

With this track record alongside coming runners up in the 2009 Confederations Cup, and having climbed to a highest FIFA ranking of fourth in the world in 2006, they have shown the world that United States soccer is capable of competing with the best in the world and generating public support and interest.

Therefore, isn't it time for America to stand on its own and have a league that isn't reliant on over-paying semi-retired professionals, but of attracting the best, whilst still in their prime, and of churning out generations of domestic superstars capable of competing on the world stage?

I wish Thierry Henry all the best in New York, but I'd rather the Red Bulls had spent their money on developing youth talent, and I hope that this isn't a sign of history repeating itself.

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This is Part 19 in a series of articles on the players that make up the 2010 Los Angeles Galaxy.

One of the rising young stars itching to get his name across on the big stage is Bryan Jordan of the Los Angeles Galaxy. The No. 27 is a utility player on the pitch, able to play as a forward, a wide midfielder, or a defender.

His versatility has made him a smash hit with the Portland Timbers. Now he looks to provide another wrinkle in Bruce Arena's 4-4-2 system.

Bryan Jordan was born on September 13, 1985, in Pasadena, California. As a youth player, Jordan played for the Rams of Temple City High School, scoring 46 goals and 28 assists, with a career-high 22 in his senior year.

Jordan continued his career at Oregon State, where he played alongside current Galaxy teammate Alan Gordon. In 68 appearances, Jordan scored 15 goals, with five in each of his junior and senior campaigns.

Jordan finished his career at Oregon State with Pac-10 All-Academic first team honors in two of his seasons with the Beavers and an All-Pac-10 honorable mention in his senior season.

Before signing with the Portland Timbers, Jordan played with the San Fernando Valley Quakes of the USL Premier Development League, making seven appearances.

Jordan played 1,506 minutes in 26 appearances for the Timbers in 2007, scoring five times en route to a USL First Division semifinals appearance. His first professional goal came in a 1-0 exhibition win over Necaxa on May 9, 2007.

Jordan would appear nine more times with the Timbers in 2008 and score five goals and an assist. But for Bryan, bigger ambitions and dreams lay ahead.

Before the 2008 season began, Jordan was on trial with the Galaxy. He featured in the Pan-Pacific Championship in Hawaii as well as on their Asian tours in China and Hong Kong and was even a hit with the locals .

The manager at the time, Ruud Gullit, was so impressed by Jordan's hard work that he decided to give him a contract on March 26, 2008.

Jordan made his MLS debut on May 10, 2008 as a substitute for Joe Franchino in LA's 2-1 defeat to the New York Red Bulls. On September 6, Jordan earned his first start and goal against Real Salt Lake.

Jordan went on to make seven appearances and four starts with the Galaxy, and he also scored four goals in seven appearances with the reserve side.

2009 proved to be a watershed year for Jordan, who made 19 appearances with a number of them off the bench as a substitute. His only goal of the season came on April 18 against the San Jose Earthquakes in a 1-1 draw.

Jordan started and played the full 120 minutes in the U.S. Open Cup Play-In Game defeat against Colorado on April 7, converting his spot kick in the game’s deciding penalty shootout. He was also instrumental in the 2-2 draw with AC Milan, scoring on a David Beckham corner in the friendly.

Hard work can get you to places that were initially meant to simply just visions and pies in the sky.

Places like Portland, Honolulu, Shanghai and Hong Kong. Bryan Jordan has seen them all and played in them all.

Now he looks to help lift a trophy in a city whose MLS Cup dream is beginning to turn into reality with every win and result: Toronto.

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The Seattle Sounders begin defense of their Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup championship.

The Sounders will face the Portland Timbers in a third round match on June 30 at PGE Park. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. The match will be televised by FSN.

The Sounders-Portland winner advances to the quarterfinal round to meet the Chivas USA-Austin Aztex winner on either July 6 or 7.

A crowd of 16,382 filled PGE Park last year. The Sounders defeated the Timbers, 2-1.

Seattle proceeded to win the cup with victories over Kansas City, Houston and D.C. United.

Portland, a member of U.S. Soccer Division 2, advanced to the third round by beating the Kitsap Pumas of the PDL, 4-1, in Bremerton on Tuesday night. Seattle and the other seven MLS teams enter Open Cup play at the third round stage.

The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the U.S. Soccer Federation's National Championship, is an annual competition open to all amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer.

It is the oldest annual team tournament in U.S. sports history and among the oldest soccer tournaments of its type in the world.

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The MLS postseason continues as the Seattle Sounders begin defense of their Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

The Sounders will face the Portland Timbers in a third round match on June 30 at PGE Park. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. The match will be televised by FSN.

The Sounders-Portland winner advances to the quarterfinal round to meet the Chivas USA-Austin Aztex winner on either July 6 or 7.

A crowd of 16,382 filled PGE Park last year as The Sounders defeated the Timbers, 2-1.

Seattle proceeded to win the cup with victories over Kansas City, Houston and D.C. United.

Portland, a member of U.S. Soccer Division 2, advanced to the third round by beating the Kitsap Pumas of the PDL, 4-1, in Bremerton on Tuesday night. Seattle and the other seven MLS teams enter Open Cup play at the third round stage.

The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the U.S. Soccer Federation's National Championship, is an annual competition open to all amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer.

It is the oldest annual team tournament in U.S. sports history and among the oldest soccer tournaments of its type in the world.

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The Seattle Sounders have plenty of games scheduled for the busy period following the World Cup break.

On Sunday afternoon the Sounders will be in action in Chester, Pennsylvania.  The team will face the Philadelphia Union at their new soccer specific home.

The next MLS competition will be July 4 on the road against the Western Conference leaders, the Los Angeles Galaxy.  On July 11 the Sounders will return home to entertain FC Dallas.

The Sounders then travel to face D.C. United at RFK Stadium July 15.

There is also plenty of activity outside the MLS.  The Sounders are in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup third round competition.  U.S. Soccer has now bracketed Seattle and the Portland Timbers with the L.A. Galaxy and AC St. Louis in Division 2.

The Sounders and Timber will square off June 30 in Portland.

The Sounders FC-Portland winner advances to the quarterfinal round to meet the L.A. Galaxy-St. Louis winner on either July 6 (St. Louis) or July 7 (L.A. Galaxy).

On July 18 Seattle will host the internationally round Celtic FC in a highly anticipated friendly.

Also on the international front, the Sounders host Metapan of El Salvador June 28 as part of the CONCACAF competition.

The return leg is scheduled for August 3.  The Sounders will travel to El Salvador for that match.

This is a demanding schedule.  How does a team handle it?  This question was put to Sounders Coach Sigi Schmid, who responded:

“Staying healthy is important. Managing training properly, making sure that you have recovery intermixed with the actual training times and then just a matter of doing a little bit of squad rotation. You have got to mix guys. Some guys seem to deal all right with playing game after game. They are able to take on that load. Some are different body compositions and for them, taking on a heavy, heavy load of games is not the best option. A lot of times it comes to individual decision so it’s not like, ‘Oh, Sigi must think this guy is a better player. He’s playing him all the time.’ It’s sometimes somebody just has the physical capacity to do it while the other guy maybe doesn’t. It takes management of your squad rotation and proper management of training.”

Opponents need to be confronted in order.  With Philadelphia Union next on the Seattle schedule Schmid sized up the opposition:

“Obviously they are going to come into the game highly motivated. We have been able to meet Philadelphia twice under good circumstances for them. One, the first game of the year where they came to our place, which is difficult, but still it was their first game and nobody knew anything about them so they were a mystery to everybody. Now we play them in what should be their most emotional game of the year from a standpoint of opening up their stadium. So we have to be prepared. We have to be sharp at the very beginning. We cannot get caught up in the crowd with them, but we are used to big crowds so it makes it a little bit easier for us in that regard. And the other thing is how hot it is going to be. How much is humidity going to be there. So we have to deal with that factor as well because we really haven’t played any games yet this year in humidity. We’re training hard right now and we will ease off as the week goes on and be ready to go on Sunday.”

The question was put to Coach Schmid if Philadelphia Union has changed since when Seattle opened the season against the eastern team, to which he responded:

“They’ve been in every game. I think they have settled more on a system of play at this stage. They’ve got [Alejandro] Moreno and [Sebastien] Le Toux who have formed a partnership up front. So from that standpoint, they are evolving. They know what their back four is even though [Michael] Orozco won’t play against us because he got red carded but they have had a pretty standard back four. So they know some of the pieces to their puzzle at this stage and it’s a little bit easier to prepare for them as a result.”

The Sounders keenly anticipate the arrival of new player Blaise Nkufo after he finishes his World Cup competition with Switzerland.  Schmid commented on Nkfuo’s World Cup play:

“I thought it was okay. When he was playing with [Alexander] Frei up there at the beginning of the game they had their regular partnership going although Chile is a very defensively active team so they made it difficult for Switzerland to really get into a rhythm. But then with the red card, it changes everything. Then Frei has to go wide, he’s up high on his own, they have to take Frei out. So it became a more difficult game for him as a result of that. Again, he did a good job of holding up the ball, allowing his team to connect off of him. A role of a player is different on every team and his role for them is a guy who’s going to hold up and put others into play and not necessarily be the guy who gets put into play at the end himself. But that’s something we expect more from him when he gets here.”

One scoring change has been made regarding the Sounders’ last game against D.C. United.  James Riley had been credited with a goal along with Fredy Montero to spark the team’s comeback in the 3-2 loss.

The goal would have been Riley’s first in five years.

It has now been determined that the score was an own goal.

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