U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann calls the Centenario showdown with Costa Rica in Chicago Tuesday a”must-win.” Clint Dempsey says the USA has “to bring it.” Dempsey is more correct than Klinsmann. The USA needs at least four points from the Costa Rica game and groupfinale against Paraguay on Saturday to reach the quarterfinals. The order […]
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Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Copa Central: Extreme heat plagues opening weekend
The Copa Centenario has been billed as a showcase for what a World Cup could be like in the United States, but a big issue is the summer heat. While much has been made of what it will be like in 2022when Qatar hosts the World Cup, teams felt the extreme heat on the first […]
Posted inOff The Post, Story
Copa Centenario Preview: USA must rise to occasion in tough Group A
The USA did not get any breaks with a Copa Centenario draw that included star-studded Colombia, 2015 Copa America semifinalist Paraguay and Concacaf nemesis Costa Rica in Group A. But the Americansare quietly confident that they will make a long run at the biggest men’s tournament to played in the United States since the 1994 […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
Centenario will reveal if USA has forged a foundation of consistency
By Ridge Mahoney (@ridgemax) Perhaps the most vital component of successful soccer teams isn’t mentioned as often as talent,skill, determination and cohesion. It comes by different names — consistency, reliability, stability — and it’s often been lacking since head coach Jurgen Klinsmann took overthe U.S. team after the 2011 Gold Cup. Klinsmann’s incessant juggling of […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Copa Centenario: Final rosters released
The final 23-player rosters for the 16 competing teams in the Copa Centenario were unveiled on Monday. A player listed on a team’s final roster may only be replaced in the event of serious injury upuntil 24 hours before his team’s first match and only from the preliminary 40-player roster. The tournament will open on […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They're Saying: Raquel Rodriguez
“For the U.S. national team players, getting just a $2,000 bonus would be an insult. But for players like me who don’t make money playing soccer for their country, that $2,000 is a hugehelp.” — Raquel Rodriguez, who led Penn State to the 2015 NCAA Division I title and now plays for the NWSL’s Sky […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
Projecting USA's Copa America Centenario roster
By Ridge Mahoney (@ridgemax) March wasn’t the best month for U.S. Soccer’s elite men’s teams and thus the plan goingforward for head coach Jurgen Klinsmann is rife with possibilities. Had the USA swept Guatemala, Klinsmann might have taken a different approach at the Copa America Centenario in June.It will probably clinch a berth in the […]
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MLS Countdown: Kaka is ready for defending champs
Orlando City, one of three unbeaten teams at 1-0-2, plays its next two games on exclusive national telecasts: at home against Portland Sunday on Fox Sports 1, and next Friday in Philadelphia onUniMas. OCSC should be at full strength against the defending champion. Kaka has recovered from a thigh injury that has ruled him out […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
MLS Countdown: Internationals return from duty
The days immediately following the FIFA fixture dates are anxious ones for club coaches unsure of how fit their players will be when they rejoin their teams. Counting the U.S. U-23 s pickedby head coach Andi Herzog for the Olympic playoff series against Colombia, more than 70 MLS players were summoned by their national teams. […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
WCQ: Mexico secures first Hex berth
Mexico became the first team to clinch a berth in the Hexagonal, the final round of World Cup 2018 qualifying in the Concacaf zone thanks to its fourth win in four games, a 2-0 victory over Canada.Costa Rica and Trinidad & Tobago, the other group leaders, only need ties in their next games to advance. […]