A stoppage-time winner by Santos Laguna nullified a valiant display by the Columbus Crew in a CONCACAF Champions League match played in Mexico on Tuesday night. But the match will be remembered for one specific play which remains the subject of controversy.
This morning there is still confusion about the reason for which the referee in Torreón, Mexico, disallowed Andy Iro’s first-half goal. Was it offside? Was it the fact that the bloodied Emilio Renteria was not given permission to come back onto the field? Or was it that Rentería had a jersey without a number?
Here's what Robert Warzycha had to say about it. CONCACAF’s official website says it was the number issue.
One writer explains how he thinks the officiating also got the better of Toronto FC in their 1-0 loss to Árabe Unido in Panama. However, TFC have only themselves to blame on the decisive goal.
One more MLS club will take a stab at breaking through on the road in the Champions League as Real Salt Lake visit Group A Mexican foes Cruz Azul. The theme endures: The defending MLS Cup champs will seek to become the first American team to win a competitive match in Mexico.
RSL manager Jason Kreis still hasn’t decided if his club will “throw the kitchen sink” at Cruz Azul and go for a historic result in Mexico City (8 p.m. ET, Fox Soccer Channel).
What Kreis is sure about is that you won’t see Real Salt Lake play defensively and allow Cruz Azul to run the proceedings.
In the CONCACAF Champions League it will be important for MLS clubs to keep serve at home against Mexican sides.
On Wednesday night it falls on the Seattle Sounders, who host Mexicans Monterrey with ticket sales already reaching the 19,000 mark at Qwest Field (10 p.m. ET, Fox Soccer Channel).
In addition to the CONCACAF Champions League, the Seattle Sounders are busy on other fronts including the US Open Cup and MLS Cup Playoff push. Throw on top of that the acquisition of a team in Tanzania.
Following Wednesday’s match, the Sounders will shift focus to former player Freddie Ljungberg and the Chicago Fire. After allowing four Houston Dynamo goals on set pieces, Chicago says they’re just going to try to nip the problem at the bud: Don’t give up any set pieces.
It was a big news day for the Dynamo. They named the COO replacement for Oliver Luck, who joined West Virginia as the school's new athletic director. They announced a final agreement on their new stadium. And they also said they will be chasing a DP for 2011 who will be Hispanic.
Soccer knows no boundaries. Former Everton player and new Vancouver Whitecaps signing Cody Arnoux spoke about his decision to return to North America after a stint in England.
Playing soccer in the USA has its perks. Take the Colorado Rapids. In addition to tickets to Denver Nuggets and Colorado Avalanche games, Rapids players can look forward to some access to St. Louis Rams games as owner Stan Kroenke has been approved as new majority owner of the NFL team.
From a billionaire owner to an international player who took a pay cut just to stick with the league’s last-place club, D.C. United.
Speaking of DC, the reports out of Switzerland were true. Swiss league veteran Carlos Varela has joined the club on trial.
Swiss soccer will look to add another club to the group stage of the UEFA Champions League as BSC Young Boys look to pull off the upset of the playoff round at Tottenham Hotspur (2:30 p.m. ET, Fox Soccer Channel). The other live match pits Ajax against Dynamo Kiev (2:30 p.m. ET, Fox Sports en Español).
In other TV action on Wednesday, world powers FC Barcelona and AC Milan, who are rumored to be negotiating a transfer for Zlatan Ibrahimovic, will face off at the Nou Camp in Spain (1:30 p.m. ET, ESPN Deportes).
Club soccer dominates the news. But the upcoming international break could bring us one of the biggest news stories of the year in American soccer. That’s when Aston Villa are expected to make a decision on their next manager.
Aston Villa’s chief executive, the right hand man of American owner Randy Lerner, says that Lerner will go about making the right choice just as he has with the Cleveland Browns’ hiring of Eric Mangini. Hmm.
Meanwhile, in England they are calling for financial regulations that mirror what takes place with sports in the United States.
Lastly, the story of how England caused a well-known Sports Illustrated columnist to fall in love with soccer.
