greg lalas
When he selected as the #1 overall pick in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft, everyone knew Andrew Wenger was a smart player.
At Duke, he moved from forward to center back and back again, succeeding at both positions. He also possessed some serious academic bona fides, being named to the Academic All-America first team in 2011 and the Academic All-ACC team three times .
Well, turning pro and scoring a goal or two for the Montreal Impact hasn't changed his academic determination. He recently contributed an essay to the "Soccer Politics" blog, a site organized and managed by Duke students under the guidance of Professor Laurent Dubois.
Here's Wenger, in his own words, explaining what his essay on UEFA's Financial Fair Play is about:
This post will first investigate how the idea of Financial Fair Play (FFP) was created. I will examine what some European Leagues already do to curb financial delinquency. The post will then gloss over concerns skeptics have of the new regulations before delving into how the regulations are structured and how they will be governed. This will be followed by questions pertaining to how UEFA will be able to achieve their desired goals that FFP is supposed to achieve. Finally, it will discuss critiques and suggestions meant to improve the current FFP model.
In his first season in MLS, Honduran international Victor Bernardez helped lead the San Jose Earthquakes to the Supporters Shield, and, on a personal level, he was named to the MLS Best XI.
Now, it looks like he might be doing things off the field to help the club. In this Q&A with Honduran side Diez.hn, Bernardez revealed that, at the request of the Quakes' technical staff, he has networked to try to bring two more Honduran internationals to San Jose.
"I played in the national team with them," Bernardez said. "The important thing is that they are good people. That's what the president of San Jose wants: harmony in the dressing room."
Bernardez cited sensitivities around the contract negotiations and declined to reveal the names of his two potential new teammates.
More and more Hondurans have joined MLS in recent years, including Houston's Boniek Garcia, New England's Jerry Bengtson, Colorado's Henry Thomas, and Seattle's Mario Martinez, among others.
This offseason has seen several of Martinez's 2012 Olympic teammates linked to MLS. Seattle have reportedly been chasing CD Victoria defender Wilmer Crisanto for a while, while Olimpia defender Johnny Leveron, Victoria defender Jose David Velasquez, and Olimpia attacking midfielder Alex "the Honduran Maradona" Lopez have popped up on various radars.
"I'm proud because managers are becoming interested in the quality of Honduran footballer," Bernardez said.
MLS "haters" be forewarned: The latest edition of Jimmy Conrad's American Soccer Spectacular pulls no punches.
And if you love great goals, well, there's that too.
Somehow this little bit of news slipped through the cracks last week.
While most eyes around here were focused on the MLS Cup final, Portland Timbers forward Kris Boyd and Vancouver Whitecaps forward Kenny Miller hit the training pitch with their former club, Rangers, over in Scotland.
They trained with the first team, giving the younger players in the side "a wee education," as manager Ally McCoist put it.
"I’ve always said that if you play for this club it never leaves you," McCoist told Rangers.co.uk about Boyd's return. "There’s no doubt about that.
From 2006-2010, Boyd scored 127 goals for the 'Gers, winning the Scottish Premier League Golden Boot four times during that period. Rangers were banished this year to the country's fourth tier due to financial insolvency, but they won two Premier League titles during Boyd's time there.
Miller saw similar success for the Light Blues, notching 146 goals in all competitions in two separate stints at Ibrox. He won the Golden Boot in 2011, capping a three-year run that saw the 'Gers three-peat as SPL champions.
Should we read into their appearance at Rangers' training facility, Auchenhowie? Probably not. In fact, considering that both players failed to live up to expectations in 2012, the extra work can only help.
Poor Kei Kamara. The Sporting Kansas City winger is more bummed out than any other player that David Beckham is leaving the LA Galaxy. Seems Kamara never got the chance to snag one of Beckham's jerseys.
Am pissed, Beckham is leaving and I didn't get his Shirt. Sad news for me. #SeriousTweet
— KEI KAMARA (@keikamara) November 20, 2012
Wondo did it. He tied Roy Lassiter's 16-year-old record for most goals in an MLS season, 27. (Congrats, Wondo.)
Let's compare some of the career numbers of Wondolowski and Lassiter.
| Chris Wondolowski | Roy Lassiter | |
| Seasons Played | 8 | 7 |
| Games Played | 143 | 179 |
| Career Goals | 68 | 88 |
| Total Shots | 347 | 398 |
| Average minutes per game | 67 | 77 |
| Goals per 90 minutes played | .64 | .58 |
| Shots per 90 minutes played | 3.27 | 2.60 |
| Shots on goal per 90 minutes played | 1.50 | 1.54 |
| Percent Conversion rate (Goals/Shots) | 19.6% | 22.1% |
| Road goals | 36 | 36 |
Top Goal Scorers in Each Season:
- 2012: 27 goals – Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)
- 2011: 16 goals – Dwayne De Rosario (D.C. United); Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)
- 2010: 18 goals – Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)
- 2009: 17 goals – Jeff Cunningham (FC Dallas)
- 2008: 20 goals – Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy)
- 2007: 20 goals – Luciano Emilio (D.C. United)
- 2006: 16 goals – Jeff Cunningham (Real Salt Lake)
- 2005: 17 goals – Taylor Twellman (New England Revolution)
- 2004: 12 goals – Eddie Johnson (Dallas Burn); Brian Ching (San Jose Earthquakes)
- 2003: 15 goals – Carlos Ruiz (Los Angeles Galaxy); Taylor Twellman (New England Revolution)
- 2002: 24 goals – Carlos Ruiz (Los Angeles Galaxy)
- 2001: 19 goals – Alex Pineda Chacón (Miami Fusion)
- 2000: 26 goals – Mamadou Diallo (Tampa Bay Mutiny)
- 1999: 18 goals – Stern John (Columbus Crew); Roy Lassiter (D.C. United); Jason Kreis (Dallas Burn)
- 1998: 26 goals – Stern John (Columbus Crew)
- 1997: 16 goals – Jaime Moreno (D.C. United)
- 1996: 27 goals – Roy Lassiter (Tampa Bay Mutiny)
Check out this goal from the Chicago Fire's Victor Pineda in a Reserve League match against Houston last weekend. It's got a shimmy, a shake, and a grand finale that, frankly, deserved a little more exuberant celebration.
If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find him, maybe you can hire... Jozy Altidore.
It's been one of the bigger questions of this summer: Where will all the Americans at bankrupt Rangers wind up?
We learned this week that Alejandro Bedoya joined Helsingborgs -- where, as fate would have it, he'll have the chance to face former Rangers rivals Celtic in the Champions League preliminary round. And on Saturday Carlos Bocanegra suited up for the reconstituted bottom-tier version of Rangers in a 2-2 draw at Peterhead.
So what of Maurice Edu?
It appears the US international is headed to English Championship side Ipswich Town on a £300,000 move. “We are interested in a midfield player but we don’t want to comment on speculation as he’s a Rangers player,” manager Paul Jewell said, coyly.
Mexico's gold medal sparked a joyous frenzy south of the Rio Grande.
In el Norte, it ignited a Twitter frenzy of reactions. There were plenty of congratulations from US national team players and fans, but also a bit of hand-wringing about what the larger meaning is for the US soccer scene. After all, the US and Mexico are massive rivals, and they renew their senior side rivalry in next Wednesday's friendly at Azteca Stadium.
Congrats to Mexico in winning the gold.Way to represent CONCACAF. Soccer is really improving in north America and central America.
— Eddie Johnson (@eddie_johnson7) August 11, 2012
Felicidades a México.
— Jozy Altidore (@JozyAltidore) August 11, 2012
Turning tv off now..
— Joe Gyau (@JoeGyau36) August 11, 2012
Bravo Mexico. Salud.
— Alexi Lalas (@AlexiLalas) August 11, 2012
The coolest acronym in the world of acronyms, CONCACAF, is owning the Olympics in soccer. That is all.
— Jimmy Conrad (@JimmyConrad_com) August 11, 2012
Thoroughly enjoyed the
#Oly mpicGoldMedalGame with Mexico winning on my flight and@arlowhite@kylemartino were quality listen.#lucky& mdash; Taylor Twellman (@TaylorTwellman) August 11, 2012
Congrats to Mexico!!! A stellar tournament from a very talented team. What will this do for the rivalry??
#USvsMexico
Of course, it wasn't just players. Journalists got into the act, doing their best to use just 140 characters to give the result context, especially as it relates to the US national team.
Mexico is now 3-0 vs Brazil in world-tournament finals, also winning at 2005 U-17 WC & 1999 Confed Cup.
— Paul Carr (@PCarrESPN) August 11, 2012
In case you're wondering, Mexico's rise in global soccer is only a good thing for the United States
#SIeod& mdash; Grant Wahl (@GrantWahl) August 11, 2012
We'll see what happens in next 2 years, but it's not crazy to think Mexico could win World Cup 2014
#SIeod& mdash; Grant Wahl (@GrantWahl) August 11, 2012
USA fans might hate it, but Mexico has done great work developing this generation & are reaping the rewards. It's their golden era.
#Respect< /p>— Ives Galarcep (@SoccerByIves) August 11, 2012