Here are the top 15 soccer stories we’re following today:
1. THE WORLD'S GREATEST
Germany won their fourth World Cup on Sunday, their first since becoming a reunified country, beating Argentina 1-0 deep into extra time thanks to a goal from substitute Mario Götze. Despite falling just short of soccer’s ultimate prize, Lionel Messi was voted the best player at the tournament, but it seems to be little consolation.
2. INSULT TO INJURY
After their humiliating defeat at the hands of Germany, Brazil were looking to salvage some pride in the third-place playoff against the Netherlands. Unfortunately for the host country, the Dutch won 3-0, handing Brazil their first back-to-back defeats on home soil since 1940 and seemingly costing coach Luis Felipe Scolari his job.
3. DID YOU MISS ME?
Clint Dempsey made an immediate impact on his return to the Seattle Sounders, scoring the first goal in their 2-0 win over the Portland Timbers (watch highlights here) and, according to Timbers coach Caleb Porter, the Sounders DP “proved why he’s one of the best players in our country.”
4. UNITED CAN “DO ANYTHING”
D.C. United were able to add to the San Jose Earthquakes' woes with a 2-1 win on Friday evening (watch highlights here). It’s now four defeats in a row for the Quakes, who struggled despite their roster nearing full strength, while United’s Bill Hamid believes, “We can do anything,” after recording a third straight win on the road.
5. RAPIDS FIGHT BACK
While it may not have been easy on the eyes, the Colorado Rapids were ultimately pleased with the way they fought back from two goals down to earn a 3-3 draw against the unlucky Philadelphia Union (watch highlights here). The result hinged on red cards given and not given, leaving Philadelphia a little, shall we say, frustrated.
6. KING HENRY
On a night when he became the club;s all-time leader in assists, Thierry Henry put on another masterful display to help his New York Red Bulls beat the Columbus Crew 4-1 (watch highlights here). Yet Crew coach Gregg Berhalter feels his side played a big part in their own demise.
7. DYNAMO SHIP IS LEAKING GOALS
“We are just letting in too many goals,” was the opinion of the Houston Dynamo’s Brad Davis, who saw his side surrender a two-goal lead in a 4-2 defeat against Toronto FC (watch highlights here). Jermain Defoe played a huge part in TFC’s comeback but, rather than take the credit for himself, he praised his side’s spirit instead.
8. LACK OF COMMUNICATION
A calamitous error from the Montreal Impact gifted Sporting Kansas City a 2-1 win on Saturday (watch highlights here), and SKC coach Peter Vermes was keen to praise the forward pressure that caused the mistake. The Impact, on the other hand, are left searching for answers once again.
9. REVOLUTION SLIP AGAIN
After winning five MLS games in a row back in May, the New England Revolution have since lost five league games in a row, with the latest 1-0 defeat coming at the hands of the Chicago Fire (watch highlights here). New England had a late chance to tie the score, but for the second time in four days, goalkeeper Sean Johnson made the difference for the Fire.
10. CHIVAS USA KEEP ROLLING
A red card for defender Jordan Harvey, combined with Erick Torres' fifth goal in five games, proved too much the Vancouver Whitecaps as they lost 3-1 to Chivas USA (watch highlights here). While Carl Robinson suggested, “I don’t think we deserved to lose,” Goats coach Wilmer Cabrera was full of praise for his side's resilience.
11. RUSSELL RE-UPS
There was some good news for the Whitecaps, though, as on Friday they announced that Canadian international and influential midfielder Russell Teibert has signed a new multi-year contract with the club. There was positive news for the Philadelphia Union as well, who confirmed the loan signing of Jamaican golden boot winner Brian Brown.
11. GALAXY PLAN
The LA Galaxy took on Real Salt Lake on Saturday and came away with a 1-0 win (watch highlights here) in a display that had echoes of their MLS Cup-winning performances. RSL left the field unhappy about two calls from the officials.
13. ORLANDO LOOKING AT ANOTHER BRAZILIAN?
While AC Milan’s CEO confirmed on Friday that Orlando City are in negotiations to land Robinho, the club has meanwhile added another striker for the immediate future, signing former Fire forward Giuseppe Gentile for the rest of the 2014 USL PRO season.
14. FINDING FREDDY
Freddy Adu’s search for a new club continues as AZ Alkmaar of the Eredivisie, a league which has so often been a bastion for Americans abroad, have chosen to pass on the 25-year-old forward after a short trial with the club.
15. A REMARKABLE RUN
It was certainly a great World Cup, and there was perhaps no better story than North Korea’s remarkable run to the World Cup final, beating the USA, Japan and China along the way. OK, so that didn’t really happen, but a parody video doing the rounds over the weekend certainly had several news outlets fooled into thinking that North Korea was reporting it that way.
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