2009 Dynamo & USMNT Soccer Thread

[Keith]

Can't wait to get this going.

Good news today as Bobby Boswell re-signed. I think he was looking at playing in Turkey. Pat Ianni was traded to Seattle for a draft pick. Probably a good move for both Pat and the Dynamo.

Tally Hall was signed as the backup keeper. I'll be very interested in watching him next month.

[papabear]

GREAT news about Boswell. I was disappointed that Ianni didn't develop the way I thought he would, but with him losing generation Adidas status and the subsequent hit on the cap, combined with the trade for Julius James means it was probably time for him to go.

The only thing I know about Hall is that he is not Tony Caig....and that is enough for me to be a huge fan of the signing right now.

[Keith]

Wowowow!

Dynamo worked the system pretty good to acquire Felix Garcia, an 18-yr old forward from Laredo.

The Dynamo has completed the signing of U.S. Under-20 star Felix Garcia, acquiring his rights from the PDL Laredo Heat for an undisclosed fee, sources confirmed to SBI on Tuesday night. Houston is set to introduce the 18-year-old striker as its newest signing at a press conference on Thursday. Garcia will join the Dynamo as a member of the MLS Generation adidas program. ...

So how did Garcia wind up with the Dynamo rather than in the 2009 MLS Draft? Garcia signed a pro contract with the Laredo Heat, which allowed him to be acquired outside of the draft despite being just 18. When Garcia's representatives, the Wasserman Media Group, conveyed Garcia's desire to stay in Texas, that narrowed the field to the Dynamo and FC Dallas.

http://www.soccerbyives.net/soccer_b...ix-garcia.html

With the Chinger lined up for WCQ duties this year, this could be an excellent opportunity. I'm really starting to get excited about the future here at the position, with Kamara and Danny Cruz. Plus it wouldn't surprise me at all to see Ngwenya back in orange, maybe sooner than later.

The schedule is supposed to come out later today too.

Losing DeRo might be tough, but with the re-signing of Boswell, the elevation of Holden, and now the adds of the draft, Tally, and Felix... I'm getting pumped.

[papabear]

Originally Posted by Keith

Wowowow!

Dynamo worked the system pretty good to acquire Felix Garcia, an 18-yr old forward from Laredo.



http://www.soccerbyives.net/soccer_b...ix-garcia.html

With the Chinger lined up for WCQ duties this year, this could be an excellent opportunity. I'm really starting to get excited about the future here at the position, with Kamara and Danny Cruz. Plus it wouldn't surprise me at all to see Ngwenya back in orange, maybe sooner than later.

The schedule is supposed to come out later today too.

Losing DeRo might be tough, but with the re-signing of Boswell, the elevation of Holden, and now the adds of the draft, Tally, and Felix... I'm getting pumped.

It remains to be seen how well all the moves play out, but I am consistently in awe of how good a job the front office does. I'm getting pumped as well.

I"m SOOOO ready for the WCQ against Mexico as well.

[Fonz the Boss]

If this kid gets playing time then the Dynamo fan base will get amazingly larger... Laredo is very passionate about their locals making it big. This kid is gonna be their David Beckham.

[Keith]

Apparently the Laredo Kid went back home to finish school. Hmmm.

Went to the friendly versus Dallas today, Dynamo winning easily 3-0. Game was played in three 30-minute periods, and Dynamo were up 2-0 after the first one. Goals came from Wondo, James, and Waibel.

Julius James definitely has some speed in the back. He wasn't entirely crisp, but next to Bobby Boswell (who looked pretty darn good), I think the trade-off might be nice. Another new guy, Andrew Hainault, played CB in the final 30 minutes. Tall guy, also promising.

Tally Hall played the final 30', but wasn't challenged much. He looks confident back there though.

Kamara didn't score, but he had some flashes of brilliance. Mullan drew the ire of a Dallas player, and both were sent off with reds. Not sure Mullan's was deserved, but whatever. Brad Davis had a decent game in DeRo's spot. Wade Barrett played the first 60' at LM, and I thought he struggled. Mike Chabala was in his old spot, and while his service was iffy, the rest was alright.

Live blog from MyDynamo.net has more details on the game.

[papabear]

Originally Posted by Keith

Apparently the Laredo Kid went back home to finish school. Hmmm.

Went to the friendly versus Dallas today, Dynamo winning easily 3-0. Game was played in three 30-minute periods, and Dynamo were up 2-0 after the first one. Goals came from Wondo, James, and Waibel.

Julius James definitely has some speed in the back. He wasn't entirely crisp, but next to Bobby Boswell (who looked pretty darn good), I think the trade-off might be nice. Another new guy, Andrew Hainault, played CB in the final 30 minutes. Tall guy, also promising.

Tally Hall played the final 30', but wasn't challenged much. He looks confident back there though.

Kamara didn't score, but he had some flashes of brilliance. Mullan drew the ire of a Dallas player, and both were sent off with reds. Not sure Mullan's was deserved, but whatever. Brad Davis had a decent game in DeRo's spot. Wade Barrett played the first 60' at LM, and I thought he struggled. Mike Chabala was in his old spot, and while his service was iffy, the rest was alright.

Live blog from MyDynamo.net has more details on the game.

Sounds like the Kid got a little overwhelmed by all the attention. I understand wanting to finish school, but I heard he walked out of a meeting/training and missed a mandatory physical before leaving town without telling anyone. Hopefully it's just a kid who needs to grow up a little.

Thanks for the report. I'm not sure if I like Mullan getting sent off in what amounts to a practice. Even if it was undeserved he should be able to keep his cool better than that. Didn't see it so it could just be the ref being extra cautious and keeping an exhibition match from getting out of hand.

[Keith]

The Mullan red happened on the West sideline and all of the fans were seated on the East, so even though I think I saw it, I was far enough to have missed something.

Basically, what I think I saw was Mullan playing his typically gritty way and getting tangled with the FCD player. Both fall to the ground, and the FCD player elbows Mullan. Scrum ensues. The referee probably saw less than I did, so he did the lazy thing imo and just sent both players off.

The ref otherwise let the guys play for the most part, not a lot of whistles. I think had this been a regular season affair, both might have received yellows.

[papabear]

Champions cup tonight against Atlante...They should be a little sharper than us, but I think we win this game easily. We need to do it with a couple of goals in the bank too. The second leg will be much tougher. Of course if we get out to a big lead like last time we run the risk of someone getting injured by the cheap shots they will start taking. I really wish the start time wasn't so late. I want to go, but with a 9:00 pm start I'll probably watch from the house.

[papabear]

I'm not going to start another thread...but if the national team doesn't beat Honduras, and look damn good doing it, I'll be past ready to fire Bradley. I thought he was a big step up from Arena, soccer's Dom Caperish mouth breather, but the team has looked terrible in their last couple of matches. That Costa Rica was ridiculous. Better results than that have gotten better coaches fired in other countries.

[Keith]

Bradley sent out a lineup designed to lose. He looked at both games this week and basically chose to go three-and-out and punt against Costa Rica to get ready for Honduras. Boo.

Our backline is really overrated, and by that I mean they suck. Onyewu seems to disappear, Bocanegra isn't as good as we seem to want him to be, and the experiment with Beasley at LB needs to end at least until we get better play at CB. (I kinda like Marvelle Wynn at RB, just wish he was a bit more consistent defensively.) I realize this is a bit of homerism, but why isn't Bobby Boswell called into this camp more?

Speaking of overrated, I'm looking at you Clint Dempsey, sorry. I get he can finish (does a pretty decent job at Fulham), but if he isn't moving forward, then he's not really an asset at all. Makes you really appreciate the sort of game Brian Ching brings to this squad and makes you realize how much they miss him like they did against Costa Rica. Sounds crazy since Ching's finishing hasn't been anything special lately, but Ching might be as important as anyone to the squad right now. I hope his partnership with Alitdore grows, though given time it seems obvious that Jozy will eventually replace Ching completely.

More overrateds? Pablo Mastro-card... goodbye. Ugh, I wish Bradley would quit giving him minutes. Give me any of our other midfielders and let Mastroeni ride off into the MLS sunset.

Lil' Bradley is a good player, he's won me over, but Daddy keeps him on the pitch too long and too often. He should have not been out there before he got his yellow, and now he isn't available for Honduras. Hopefully this means Rico gets a shot. I like Rico, and would have loved him out there instead of Mastrocard, but lil' Bradley is obviously the better player overall.

As for the Dynamo... right on schedule it seems. This 2-game stretch @ Chicago and vs. Chivas will be telling though. Ching out for tonight (and Rico), but Chicago is missing Blanco and others too, so maybe that's a wash. Actually, I'm interested to see Kei and Ade together, and with Mulrooney able to play Rico's role, should work in our favor.

[papabear]

Originally Posted by Keith

Bradley sent out a lineup designed to lose. He looked at both games this week and basically chose to go three-and-out and punt against Costa Rica to get ready for Honduras. Boo.

I can understand looking at the two matches and deciding to focus on Honduras. That might have been what he was doing, but why did he have to play a 4-3-3? We could have pushed someone forward later in the match if he wanted to try and create more of an attack. You knew that Costa Rica was going to come fast and hard, and with that turf an extra midfielder to try and break up their attack before it got started would have been the smart thing to do. Yes, Rico would have been perfect for that role. Yes, I am a homer.

Our backline is really overrated, and by that I mean they suck. Onyewu seems to disappear, Bocanegra isn't as good as we seem to want him to be, and the experiment with Beasley at LB needs to end at least until we get better play at CB. (I kinda like Marvelle Wynn at RB, just wish he was a bit more consistent defensively.) I realize this is a bit of homerism, but why isn't Bobby Boswell called into this camp more?

I still like Onyewu. The oustside backs were out of position so much that he was really forced out of his comfort zone in the middle several times. Bocanegra is so-so. I wonder about Boswell too. Bradley seems to be falling into the same trap as Arena of getting stuck on the same players even when they don't play well. I like Wynn's potential, but you shouldn't be starting in a world cup qualifier based on potential....especially when the other outside back is playing out of his natural position. Beasely was absolutely terrible. I don't even want to see him on the field. His first touch is embarrassing for a player at this level. A poor touch by Wynn indirectly set up at least one of their goals if I remember correctly.

Speaking of overrated, I'm looking at you Clint Dempsey, sorry. I get he can finish (does a pretty decent job at Fulham), but if he isn't moving forward, then he's not really an asset at all. Makes you really appreciate the sort of game Brian Ching brings to this squad and makes you realize how much they miss him like they did against Costa Rica. Sounds crazy since Ching's finishing hasn't been anything special lately, but Ching might be as important as anyone to the squad right now. I hope his partnership with Alitdore grows, though given time it seems obvious that Jozy will eventually replace Ching completely.

I still pull for Dempsey because he's form Nacogdoches. He didn't play well at all. Ching would have made such a huge difference in this game....not just because he wouldn't have tried to hide from the ball all night and look like he was about to cry like Donavan (can you tell I'm frustrated with him). He would have dropped back and forced himself into the action and used his strength to fight off the Costa Rican pressure instead of crumbling from it. Altidore didn't have a great game, but he at least looked like he was trying. He'll get better. I hope he manages some more minutes wherever he ends up on loan next year. Oh....and can someone else besides Landon please start taking free kicks. He completely misses anything that could be considered a target more times than not. We cannot afford to miss those opportunities.

More overrateds? Pablo Mastro-card... goodbye. Ugh, I wish Bradley would quit giving him minutes. Give me any of our other midfielders and let Mastroeni ride off into the MLS sunset.

Please God

Lil' Bradley is a good player, he's won me over, but Daddy keeps him on the pitch too long and too often. He should have not been out there before he got his yellow, and now he isn't available for Honduras. Hopefully this means Rico gets a shot. I like Rico, and would have loved him out there instead of Mastrocard, but lil' Bradley is obviously the better player overall.

Bradley hasn't won me over, but he's a solid player and showed at least some effort. Not sure I really like him in that role though. He's just not creative enough to initiate an attack for me, but that goes back to that idiotic formation. One more time. Rico would have been perfect as a defensive midfielder against Costa Rica. I understand he was a last minute replacement because of injury, but I couldn't believe he wasn't inserted to start the second half. I can't believe he took Torres out, unless it was to save him for Sat. He seems to be the only player we have who's willing/able to create something 1 on 1.

As for the Dynamo... right on schedule it seems. This 2-game stretch @ Chicago and vs. Chivas will be telling though. Ching out for tonight (and Rico), but Chicago is missing Blanco and others too, so maybe that's a wash. Actually, I'm interested to see Kei and Ade together, and with Mulrooney able to play Rico's role, should work in our favor

I'm looking forward to finally getting a good look at the Dynamo's new forwards. Holden's going to need to keep stepping up with Ching gone. Mulrooney should be able to handle Rico's role well enough. If we can come away with four points from our next two games I'll be estatic.

[Keith]

dale dynamo

8-0-1 now in their last nine games. If they hadn't allowed that goal in the 88th minute on the road in NY, they'd have a perfect run in that stretch. Actually, had Ching also buried his chip in the home match against the NYRB in April, they could have been looking at a 10-0-0 run. Amazing.

Dom has done it again in getting Cam Weaver for Wondo. Two goals tonight after setting up Holden's goal in the Chivas match. Every time you think the Dynamo are hurting at forward, Kinnear just reloads.

And the first half season MVP might be Geoff Cameron. His pairing with Boswell has just been phenomenal to watch. Adding in Hainault has just made the backline one pretty impressive unit.

There's a home match next week against Salt Lake, but then there's a pretty long road trip with four away (plus one on the road for the USOC - - I think that is in college station though). A couple of those, like the ones against Seattle and Toronto, might be fun to watch.

[papabear]

I was really counting on Julius James to be the one to help shore up the back line, but Cameron and Hainult have been fabulous. Holden looks more and more comfortable each game replacing DeRosario. They had a stretch against Toronto a few matches back where they played some of best soccer I have ever seen from them...truly a joy to watch. Their linking up better on the runs and seem to finally have gotten on the same page.

Their ability to re-load and reshape the team in the middle of the season is amazing.

[papabear]

Rico's red card vs. Italy was B.S. Even playing a man down I still felt like we gave away the game. Brazil is going to come out angry after having to struggle to beat Egypt. Don't think we're going to make it out of the group stage....

[Keith]

Agreed on all counts. The group set-up was a joke. The other group is Spain and yuck, designed to give the host the best possible opportunity to advance.

With Italy and Brazil in with the U.S. and Egypt, hopes were dim, but they had promise at halftime. I feel bad for Rico. He is not a dirty player. It was a bit of a reckless challenge, warranted a yellow but not a red. Sadly, there have been some trigger-happy refs in recent World Cups, so something like this could happen in 2010. It's a good learning experience for him and the team. The U.S. has some decent midfield depth though, so Rico might have a hard time getting selected when it counts next summer.

On an unrelated note, I kinda wish Bob would give Adu more minutes. I can see it being hard since he wants Dempsey out there and Donovan is better suited in the middle, but Adu has some ability, and I think he may be a better dead ball kicker than anyone in the current starting XI.

[papabear]

Originally Posted by Keith

Agreed on all counts. The group set-up was a joke. The other group is Spain and yuck, designed to give the host the best possible opportunity to advance.

With Italy and Brazil in with the U.S. and Egypt, hopes were dim, but they had promise at halftime.

I thought our best chance to advance was to upset Italy and then beat Egypt. I'm not sure if the Brazil v Egypt match proves the Brazilians are vulnerable or that the Egyptians are much better than I thought. Probably a little of both. Even with a man down we had a couple chances that we really wasted to score more against Italy. We also had our usual instance of sloppy play wasting what I thought was a pretty good day of defense.

I feel bad for Rico. He is not a dirty player. It was a bit of a reckless challenge, warranted a yellow but not a red. Sadly, there have been some trigger-happy refs in recent World Cups, so something like this could happen in 2010. It's a good learning experience for him and the team.

One of my complaints is that he was tripped up himself right before the foul. It was just incidental contact, but it had him slightly off balance as he went in for the challenge. He caught the Italian high and that's probably what cost him the red. A yellow wouldn't have drawn much of a complaint from me, but even the Italians admitted a red was unwarranted.

The U.S. has some decent midfield depth though, so Rico might have a hard time getting selected when it counts next summer.

Rico is like Shane Battier to me. so much of what he does goes unnoticed. He just has a way of breaking up the flow of the opposition before they can ever get into an attacking position. I thought he was doing a good job until the red, and hope Bradley recognizes his value and tireless effort. He's just perfect in the defensive mid-field role IMO.

On an unrelated note, I kinda wish Bob would give Adu more minutes. I can see it being hard since he wants Dempsey out there and Donovan is better suited in the middle, but Adu has some ability, and I think he may be a better dead ball kicker than anyone in the current starting XI.

I like Dempsey and with his experience in England I understand why Bradley keeps throwing him out there. He just hasn't been playing well. Everyone wants to make Donovan the centerpiece and keeps telling me he's better suited to the middle, but for me his best games of late have come when he played out wide. I would love to see more Adu.

[Keith]

Okay, Donovan out left is good so long as he stays aggressive and stays wide. And I was ready to pile on Dempsey again until his goal. Actually, f- it, I'll do it anyway. If Dempsey isn't good enough to play forward, then he should sit on the bench. He is just not going to play defense. That limitation can be covered if he plays forward, but not at right mid.

btw, anyone really miss Bocanegra? Can't say as though I am. I guess he's still the worthy starter when healthy (plus he seems to have a knack on corners), but he's still overrated in my book. Onyewu is playing better though. Or maybe he isn't having to cover up for his teammates as much.

lil' Bradley has his good and bad moments, but I can't help but imagine what Adu would look like in his spot. Yes, Freddy needs to develop (and I wish he would play on a club that started him), but if he can't get the minutes in WCQ's and Cups like these, then when? Hopefully in the Gold Cup, but I'm not sure if they've officially announced the rosters yet. Hopefully Adu will get his chance then, but with Holden on the roster, I'm guessing it will have to be at forward. Hopefully Adu can show some improvement defensively from there. Just seeing Adu on the bench when Davies, Casey, etc. get their names called is a little frustrating. Altidore is there to win balls in the air (and Dempsey if Big Bradley keeps putting him at RM), so let little Freddy squeeze on in there.

And Rico ought to be a lock from now on. This squad is a different monster when Rico is in the middle. I'll be curious to see how he pairs with Stuart Holden in the Gold Cup.

Speaking of, Dynamo will be losing Andrew Hainault to the Canadian team. I guess I shouldn't complain too much given half of the Dynamo squad should be considered for call-ups, but Hainault is becoming a very effective player for the Dynamo. I think it's taken him a bit to get comfortable out wide and moving forward, but he's definitely upgraded the backline. It seems like Wade Barrett is a good guy and a great team leader and all, but it was rough watching him try to play against RSL on Saturday.

[Joel]

i like bradley. the player, i mean. i had high hopes for his dad, but he does seem to be getting into ruts with his plater selection.

altidore may have a bright future, but i think he pays immature, and slacks a lot. i agree that dempsey is a liability at any position that has defensive obligations. are we missing some mls strikers because of availability? twellman (& ching), for instance. whatever happened to eddie johnson?

beasley needs to be put down. that guy was always about potential, and now he's too old for that.

[papabear]

-I was literally opening the laptop to bitch to anyone who would listen about Dempsey. I couldn't believe they pulled Altidore and left Dempsey on the field....I can handle having poor games, but I can't handle someone being that lazy defensively. I don't know if he's worn out from his season in England, but it looks like he's just being lazy. After one of his ten+ completely pointless turnovers Egypt went racing down the field. He just walked/slow jogged back while his teamates had to cover for him. It didn't even look like he was paying attention to the game anymore.

-I'm not a Donovan fan, but there's no reason for him to not be out wide after the Egypt game.

-Rico is a beast. I don't think he has, but he should have the defensive mid-fielder role locked up.

-I think Altidore is coming along nicely. He still has his mistakes, and he can linger on them a little too long sometimes, but for the most part he works hard and does what the team ask of him. Hopefully he has been picking Chings brain when he has the chance because they seem to want to use him in a similar role. Praying he gets more minutes with his Club though.


-I was astonished that the cards fell right yesterday. Now we get the privilege of likely being embarassed by Spain. The crazy part is even though we won by three yesterday, we were still too sloppy with the ball (mostly Dempsey) for my taste. There have been times in the past where I thought the US national team was really ready to compete with the big dogs...and then I watch them get embarassed and remind me of how far away they are. I don't think we have a chance against Spain, but maybe I'm wrong again. I'm hoping they at least put up a solid game against them

I'm just not happy with where this team is. I was proud of the fact they came out and fought hard yesterday, which is more than you can say about some of their recent matches.