MLS Newsstand - June 15, 2018

SELECT CLIPS

• D.C. United midfielder Paul Arriola's diving header makes No. 1 on SportsCenter Top  10 plays (SportsCenter, ESPN2)
  
• Piatti keeps the Impact alive with an exciting performance against Orlando City SC (ESPNFC.com)
  
• Ahead of his third World Cup, a look at Giovani dos Santos’ top five goals for the LA Galaxy (MLSsoccer.com)
  
• Examining the goals scored by MLS players going to the World Cup (MLSsoccer.com)
  

MLS ARTICLES

• Russia 2018: Every MLS Player at the World Cup (Newsweek)
  
• Luca (The Players’ Tribune)
  
• Atlanta United excited about 2026 World Cup (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
  
• Galaxy break up vacation with Open Cup trip to Portland (Los Angeles Times)
  
• San Jose Earthquakes acquire defender Guram Kashia from Vitesse Arnhem (ESPNFC.com)
  
• No team but 2 referees for US at World Cup in Russia (FOX Sports)
  
• United bid victory has MLS and USMNT players excited for lead-up to 2026 (Goal.com)
  
• Philadelphia Union embracing another U.S. Open Cup clash with New York Red Bulls (Pro Soccer USA)
  
• Earthquakes sign centerback Guram Kashia as they look past 2-2 draw with Revolution (Pro Soccer USA)
  
• Adams, Robles voice excitement for United 2026 bid's victory (SBI Soccer)
  
• Kutler's first MLS start another sign of Red Bulls' young, deep roster (SBI Soccer)
  
• Osorio's former MLS players say he can take Mexico to World Cup success (MLSsoccer.com)
  
• 2 Chainz & Miguel Star In MLS "Our Soccer" Commercials Ahead Of 2018 FIFA World Cup (HipHop DX)
  
• Storylines: Portland Timbers v LA Galaxy (U.S. Open Cup) (Stumptown Footy- SB Nation)
  

Russia 2018: Every MLS Player At The World Cup
Newsweek – June 15, 2018
The U.S. might not be represented at the 2018 World Cup, but there are plenty of MLS connections among the 32 teams competing in the tournament.
Having reached the round of 16 in the last two World Cups, the USMNT failed to qualify for the final stage of the World Cup for the first time since the competition was held in Mexico in 1986. Despite the absence of the national team, however, there are 19 MLS players in Russia, which means the league falls just short of making the top 10 best-represented leagues at the World Cup.
Unsurprisingly, CONCACAF teams boast the largest MLS contingents. Costa Rica has six MLS players in its squad, while Panama and Mexico have five and three respectively.
Here Newsweek runs through the familiar faces to U.S. soccer fans.
Francisco Calvo—Minnesota United, Costa Rica
The 25-year-old defender will make his World Cup debut if he plays in Russia, as he was absent four years ago. A center-back by trade, he’s also comfortable at left-back, which allows him to cover two different roles in Oscar Ramirez’s preferred 5-4-1 formation.
Ronald Matarrita—New York City, Costa Rica
Bryan Oviedo’s understudy at left-back, the 23-year-old has already racked up 21 caps for the national team but has played the full 90 minutes only twice in the current MLS season, missing four games through injury.
Kendall Waston—Vancouver Whitecaps, Costa Rica
The center-back missed the World Cup in Brazil four years ago but scored the 95th minute equalizer in October's qualifier against Honduras that earned Costa Rica a ticket to Russia. Has played over 100 games for the Whitecaps since joining in 2014.
David Guzman—Portland Timbers, Costa Rica
Made his national team debut in 2010 but missed the 2014 World Cup and has been in and out of the team over recent years. Started 24 of the 25 MLS games he played last season.
Rodney Wallace—New York City, Costa Rica
A regular in Costa Rica’s starting XI, the New York City winger grew up in the U.S. and never played in the Costa Rican domestic league. Deployed as left-winger for club and country, he can also play as further back in midfield, as well as on the right wing.
Marco Urena—Los Angeles FC, Costa Rica
Scored the third goal in Costa Rica’s historic 3-1 win against Uruguay in Los Ticos’ opening game at the 2014 World Cup. Was Los Angeles FC’s third pick in the 2016 MLS Expansion Draft.
Omar Gaber—Los Angeles FC, Egypt
The right-back was loaned to Los Angeles FC from Swiss club Basel in January but has only been in the squad for eight MLS matches, making just two starts. A right-back who can also play in midfield, the 26-year-old isn’t a regular for his national side.
Jonathan dos Santos—Los Angeles Galaxy, Mexico
Lost his spot in the first XI after making the surprise decision of moving to the MLS from La Liga side Villarreal, where he had established himself as a regular starter. Will make his World Cup debut if he features in Russia.
Giovani dos Santos—Los Angeles Galaxy, Mexico
The eldest of the dos Santos brothers, this year’s will be Giovani’s third World Cup. He was voted runner-up for the FIFA Young Player of the Tournament award in 2010 and opened the scoring in Mexico’s 2-1 defeat against the Netherlands in the round of 16 four years ago.
One of the most experienced and talented players in the squad, he’s scored 27 goals in 80 games for the Galaxy.
Carlos Vela—Los Angeles FC, Mexico
Made himself available for selection again after opting not to play the 2014 World Cup. Only four players in Mexico’s squad have scored more international goals than the former Arsenal player.
Michael Amir Murillo—New York Red Bulls, Panama
The 22-year-old has developed rapidly since moving to the Red Bulls and has made the right-back slot his own in the national team. Composed in defense, he can also be an important factor at the other end of the pitch.
Harold Cummings—San Jose Earthquakes, Panama
The center-back missed most of Panama’s qualification campaign with injury problems but has since returned to full fitness and started all 10 MLS games he has played so far this season.
A tough-tackling defender, he might not be a regular starter at the World Cup.
Fidel Escobar—New York Red Bulls, Panama
One of the youngest members of Panama’s squad, the center-back will compete for one of the starting spots with veteran defender Felipe Baloy. Plays alongside Murillo for the New York Red Bulls, where he’s on loan from Sporting San Miguelito.
Roman Torres—Seattle Sounders, Panama
With three minutes left in Panama’s last qualifier, Torres scored the winner against Costa Rica, which combined with Trinidad and Tobago’s win against the U.S. took Panama to the World Cup for the first time in its history.
In 2016, Panama’s captain scored the winning penalty in a shoot-out against Toronto FC as the Sounders clinched their first MLS Cup.
Adolfo Machado—Houston Dynamo, Panama
A physically imposing central defender, Machado is one of Panama’s most experienced players and one of coach Hernan Dario Gomez’s preferred choices at center-back The 33-year-old was suspended for two years in 2012 after failing a doping test.
Anibal Godoy—San Jose Earthquakes, Panama
A tenacious defensive midfielder, Godoy has developed into a key player for club and country and is one of Gomez’s favorite players. The 28-year-old is one of the few Panamanians to have experienced European football, having played for Hungarian side Budapest Honved.
Yoshimar Yotun—Orlando City, Peru
Began his career as left-back before moving into central midfield, the 28-year-old has been a regular for the national side over the last seven years. Spent two seasons with Swedish side Malmö before moving to Orlando.
Andy Polo—Portland Timbers, Peru
Arguably Peruvian soccer’s brightest talent, he has struggled to fulfill his potential—partly because he has changed clubs six times in seven years. On loan to the Timbers from Mexican club Morelia, the 23-year-old striker is yet to find the net in the MLS.
Gustav Svensson—Seattle Sounders, Sweden
An experienced central midfielder, Svennson plied his trade in Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine and China before landing in the MLS. Not a starter for Sweden but a useful squad player, who can also play at center-back.
Luca
The Players’ Tribune – June 14, 2018
I’m not gonna lie … I was definitely hoping for a boy.
I know it’s not right, and that I probably shouldn’t admit it. But I mean, come on, I’m a professional soccer player. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been wishing for a son from the moment my wife, Megan, and I found out that she was pregnant with our first child back in January of 2014. I imagined what it would be like to have someone follow in my footsteps, and immediately started thinking about teaching our boy why they call soccer “the beautiful game.” Right away, like within minutes after we’d found out Megan was pregnant, I was having these visions in my head of our son playing professionally, and me, old and gray, up in the stands cheering him on.
Of course, at that point we didn’t know if the he I was seeing in my mind was going to be a she instead, and it felt like it would be an eternity before we’d be able to know for sure. During those first 16 or 17 weeks, the anticipation just kept building and building. We wanted to spoil the baby in every way possible … but we didn’t know if we should be buying pink or blue.
We couldn’t handle it. We were going crazy. We had to know. So….
We took matters into our own hands.
Like a week or so before we were all set up to meet with our doctor for the 20-week ultrasound, we went to this elective ultrasound place where you can get 3-D and 4-D images, along with videos that you just may not typically be able to get from your doctor. We plopped down our $100, and got the news, and then….
We went on a shopping spree for our baby boy.
We weren’t messing around, either. We wanted to celebrate … finally. So we went to all the different baby stores in L.A. and hit up every boys’ section they had. His first outfits were a soccer starter set and an Oakland Raiders onesie.
It was all so much fun at the time, but looking back on it, I guess we didn’t fully think things through because when the actual ultrasound appointment with our doctor rolled around we were kind of stuck. We weren’t sure exactly how to play it, but we didn’t want to tell her that we had jumped ahead, so we actually ended up just … pretending like we didn’t already know it was going to be a boy.
It was a little weird, for sure. But at the same time it was cool, because Megan and I were completely happy. We were on top of the world when the doctor confirmed that, “Oh yeah … it’s definitely a boy.”
The room filled with laughter at that point. Pure joy. But it didn’t last long.
During those doctor visits, they also do routine measurements to make sure the baby is growing at the expected rates. At one point during the testing, it felt as if our doctor was lingering on a particular area far longer than others, and she stopped giving us any readings. Her smiles changed to half smiles. Her demeanor completely changed. Suddenly, she didn’t seem quite as happy as us.
All the while, my wife and I just kind of sat there gripping each other’s hands, looking at one another with these “What is going on here?” looks.
After what seemed like forever, our doctor said she wanted to speak with us back in her office, where we could sit and discuss the readings she was seeing.
At that point, even the half smile was gone.
It was just like, “We need to talk.”
When we got ourselves together and made it over to her office, our doctor proceeded to tell us that there may be a problem with our baby’s heart.
She wanted us to go for further examinations with a specialist and said we needed to get an echocardiogram that would allow the doctors to look more closely at the functions of our son’s heart. Beyond that, though, it was really tough to be sure of what was going on. She mentioned some problem with his blood flow, but everything seemed super technical, and our heads were pretty much spinning at that point. I mean, going in, we had just thought the appointment was simply to confirm the sex of our child, so we definitely weren’t expecting anything like what we heard.
We didn’t really know what to do or think. We were distraught. And heartbroken … even though we didn’t even really know exactly why yet.
The doctor told us she wasn’t certain how severe the problem was, but that she thought our son could possibly have a congenital heart defect. And so we got an appointment to see someone at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles….
In a week.
Seven whole days.
Let me tell you: That’s a long time to go between being told that the child you’re expecting may have a serious heart condition and being able to get more information about what’s going on.
And, of course, the first thing we did after getting home from the ultrasound appointment was Google everything under the sun.
We knew it was probably a bad idea, but it’s so hard when you’re in that position. It’s almost impossible to resist the temptation to learn something — anything! — about what might be wrong. So we went online, and we read all about congenital heart defects, and how they affect one out of every 100 newborn babies … and then we did our best to tell each other that our boy was going to be fine.
When our appointment at CHLA finally came around, the specialist there was able to bring some certainty to everything.
And it wasn’t good.
He diagnosed our son with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, something neither Megan or I had come across in our extensive Google searches. Basically, the left side of our son’s heart was underdeveloped and wasn’t allowing for normal blood flow to his body. The doctor told us there weren’t many kids who have had HLHS who are still alive today, and he wanted to talk with us about next steps. But before he went any further he apologized and said he needed to ask us a difficult question. He told us he would only ask it one time.
“Do you want to terminate this pregnancy?”
Wow.
Our hearts sank. We did not see that one coming.
At that point everything was just hitting us all at once. And when we said no, that we weren’t looking to go in that direction, the doctor told us what would need to happen after our child was born.
There would have to be an immediate open-heart surgery after Megan delivered the baby, and then three additional, staged open-heart surgeries — the first at a week old, the second coming about six months after that, and the last surgery, if our son was lucky enough to make it that far, would be at three years old.
It was a lot.
And those surgeries wouldn’t be a fix, either. They’d help to address issues with our son’s blood flow, but he’d still only have half a heart.
The specialist went on with his details, just giving us bad news on top of bad news. And that’s when he said that our son, who we had already decided to name Luca, would probably never be able to play soccer.
That was tough to hear for sure, but it was obviously the least of our worries. And, plus, I didn’t even believe it was true. I honestly had complete faith that our boy was going to be O.K. I mean, at one point I was just a skinny little kid from Bryans Road, Maryland, and somehow I ended up being drafted to play professional soccer for a living alongside David Beckham and Landon Donovan. I knew all about beating the odds. I had proven so many people wrong to get to where I was in my life, and I just knew that Luca was going to do the same.
In the weeks that followed, we discussed the possibility of attempting a surgery prior to delivery, but the risk to both Luca and Megan during the operation was just far too high. So all we could really do was let our son’s heart develop as much as it could.
And pray.
After getting the news about Luca’s heart, my wife started a blog to keep our friends and family informed about what was going on. But the truth was that it was for us, too. Just to kind of help us cope with everything. She created the hashtag #LucaKnowsHeart and that slogan immediately felt right.
The blog allowed us to connect with other families that had gone through what we were going through. They were able to share real-life stories about their children. And it did give us some comfort knowing that there were support systems out there — that people were sending love our way.
My wife definitely used the blog to help her cope. But for me soccer is what helped me deal with everything that was going on. My time on the pitch, and the support I received from my teammates, and throughout the league … that’s what helped me fight through. Soccer became a getaway for me, a place where I could go and, at least for a couple of hours, escape from all the fears I had about our son. I would use up all the other hours of the day worrying about him, but while I was around the team and playing soccer, I felt as if that was the only part of my day I had control of. And my teammates were always there to do whatever they could to help pick me up — especially right before Megan gave birth.
Because Luca would need surgery immediately after delivery, the doctors scheduled a C-section, and it just so happened that the day before our son’s birth date, we had a home game against D.C. United, the team I grew up rooting for as a kid.
For that game my teammates wanted to recognize Luca and our story by wearing warmup shirts that had the hashtag my wife had created. And the support didn’t stop there. The same day Luca was diagnosed with a heart defect, I went and got a tattoo of a heart and cross on my wrist, to remind myself to just keep faith. During the game, I wore that design on a shirt under my jersey, and a few of my teammates did the same.
We won that game 4–1 , and each time one of my teammates scored they’d run over to me and lift their jersey up over their head to display that heart with the cross inside.
It meant the world to me — more than words can say or do justice to. It was such an emotional night, and it was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had on a soccer field. In a lot of ways, I almost didn’t want it to end, because the love that the fans and my teammates showed us was beyond special.
But as I walked off the pitch after that final whistle, I knew full well that the time for games was over.
I stayed positive the whole time.
Honestly.
By the time the big day arrived, I had actually convinced myself that Luca was going to come out and have absolutely nothing wrong with him.
I know that probably sounds super naive.
I mean, the doctors had pretty much told us what to expect and how long the recovery process would be, but in my mind I was like, He’s going to be perfectly fine when he gets here.
That’s just where my head was. I believed.
But, you know, as soon as he was born, our son was rushed over to this little incubator and the nurses started shoving tubes up his nose and needles in his hands so they could monitor and control his breathing.
Less than five minutes after he arrived, Luca was already turning purple.
It was clear — to me and to everyone else in that delivery room — that he actually wasn’t “perfectly fine.” He was in bad shape, and it was getting worse by the second.
They don’t do deliveries at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, so Megan gave birth at the hospital directly across the street. Before I could really even catch my breath and realize that I had just become a father, Luca was being wheeled into an ambulance that would take him over to CHLA for his first surgery.
I made the trip with him — his skin turning darker and darker shades of purple with each passing minute. My wife, though, had to stay behind. She was told that she’d need to remain at the hospital to recover from her C-section for three or four days. She only got to see Luca for two seconds — literally like … one … two — as they rolled him past her to the ambulance.
When Luca came out of his first open-heart surgery at CHLA, just a couple of hours after being born, I remember I stood over him to block the light from his eyes. I started to talk to him, and I told him that I loved him, and, slowly, he opened his eyes.
I wanted more than anything to help him, and to do anything I could to give him some comfort. So that first night I decided to sleep in his room. I didn’t want to leave his side. I was afraid to, in all honesty.
And believe me, there was no sleep for me that night.
All I did was close my eyes, pray that somehow everything would be fine, and listen to all the machines in the room beeping and buzzing and clanking while the nurses entered every few minutes to check on our son.
My wife had forgotten a couple of things at home, so the next morning I went back to grab them from the house. As I was returning to the hospital, I got a call from Megan’s mom.
“She needs you RIGHT NOW. Please hurry and get back.”
You could hear Megan crying in the background. Everything was starting to catch up to her at that point. She needed more than two seconds with her son, as any mother would.
When I got back to the hospital, I checked in with her and told her I’d run over to CHLA and FaceTime her right away so she could see Luca and tell him she loved him. But when I got over to Luca’s floor, I hit the intercom buzzer to get into the cardiothoracic ICU, and….
Nothing.
I buzzed again.
NOTHING.
Then I go to buzz a third time, and, as I do, I look through the little window cutout in the door and see all these nurses running down the hallway.
So I just let myself in, and as I’m walking to our son’s room, in my head I’m like, They were running in the direction of where Luca’s being kept. No way they were running to his room. That couldn’t be what was going on. There’s no way.
A few steps later, I turned the corner and….
It was Luca they were all running to.
Before that afternoon, I had thought “We need to talk” would probably be the worst, most heartbreaking thing I’d ever hear from a doctor.
I was wrong.
As I got into the doorway of Luca’s room, there were upwards of 10 to 15 nurses, doctors and surgeons crammed in there — so many people that my father-in-law was pinned up against the window, standing on a couch-bed. I was told that our son had gone into cardiac arrest — he “coded” is I think how they put it — and required an emergency surgery that was going to happen right there in that room to save his life.
A few moments later, when my dad, my father-in-law and I went over to a waiting room on Luca’s floor, a doctor came in and told me….
“Your son is the sickest child in the entire hospital.”
I mean, those were his exact words.
“The sickest child in the entire hospital.”
That’s so much worse than “We have to talk.” It’s not even close.
All three of us broke down and cried when we heard those words.
And while all that was going on, my wife had been calling and calling because I had promised her that I was going to FaceTime her with Luca as soon as I got to his room. It must have been agonizing.
When she couldn’t reach me, she tried my dad, and he picked up the call.
Megan knew immediately that something was wrong, and she kept asking him what was happening. My dad basically just told her that we’d come back over to her room in a few minutes and explain everything then.
As soon as I stepped out of the elevator on Megan’s floor at the hospital, I could hear her screaming.
Clear as day.
It sounded like something out of a horror movie.
“Is he dead? Did he die? Luuuuuca! Is he dead?”
Just those words over and over again.
She was assuming the worst at that point, so she was actually a little relieved to hear that Luca was still alive. It was only 28 hours after she had given birth, and she wasn’t in any sort of shape to get released, but she said that had to see her baby boy while he was still breathing. And we didn’t know how much time we had left. So we got her discharged as fast as humanly possible, and the nurses were actually still yanking IVs out of her arms while I was wheeling her to the elevator.
When we got to Luca’s room, Megan immediately rushed over to our boy. And I’ll always remember her singing the words to “Jesus Loves Me” to him. She just kept singing that to him again and again, and when he heard my wife’s voice.…
Luca opened up his eyes.
It was incredible.
I truly believe he knew right then that we were his parents — that he recognized our voices and realized that we loved him with all our hearts.
We didn’t want to share too many photos of Luca while he was in the hospital because for much of that time his chest was completely cut open and we just weren’t ready to put those images out into the world. But at one point I took a photo that I had to share. We were sitting around in his room and I put my finger in his hand, like just to let him know that I was there with him.
I didn’t really have any expectations. For the majority of the days he would just pretty much sleep, but when I gave him my hand that afternoon … he gripped onto my finger.
I’ll never forget that moment we shared.
I just had this really strong feeling that I was comforting him right then, and it was the first time I felt like a real father.
My son needed me, and I was there for him.
A week after Luca was born, and six days after coding and being put on a heart-lung bypass machine, we had to start discussing next steps. He needed to come off the machine because it was doing his body more harm than good, and the doctors told us that our boy was going to need a third surgery in seven days.
The nurses gave us a rundown of what was going to happen during the procedure and told us that we were to wait outside the room. One of the nurses said the surgery would take about an hour, and that if she came out at any time before an hour was up that it would be because things weren’t looking good….
Meaning our son was going to die.
Hearing that, Megan and I looked at one another with absolute sadness in our eyes. There wasn’t much we could say, but we did make one request.
We had never gotten the chance to hold Luca because he had to spend all of his time in the incubator hooked up on all his machines, and we wanted to be sure we’d get that chance. No matter what.
If they knew this was happening, we told them, that Luca wasn’t going to make it, then we wanted to get into the room and just hold him before he passed away.
We wanted to kiss him and tell him that we loved him, so we made the nurses promise to get us in there as soon as they knew for sure.
And 20 minutes in … the nurse opened the door and walked over to us.
Seeing her walk out of that room mid-operation, and knowing exactly what it meant was….
I don’t really know how to put it, actually. There aren’t any words that can describe what it’s like to find out that your child is going to die. There’s nothing I can write here, to be honest.
But they hurried us into where the operation was taking place as they were still trying to clean and unravel all the tubes and wires from around Luca’s body. We were able to hold and kiss him, and as soon as they put Luca into Megan’s arms she started singing “Jesus Loves Me,” just as she did the first time she arrived at his room a few days earlier.
He opened his eyes once again, and then, for the last time … he closed them.
Luca passed away on September, 4, 2014.
We stayed in that room and held our son for three or four hours after he passed away.
Then, when we finally were able to bring ourselves to leave, we had to somehow think about what we were going to do next … how we were going to move forward.
We had a room at our house that was all ready for Luca. A crib. Tons of clothes. Toys. Our dog, Diesel, was excited to greet his new buddy. Everything was all ready, and now all the dreams that had played out in our head were gone.
That was by far the saddest day of my entire life.
But it’s not the end of this story.
There’s a pretty special chapter remaining, and one that Luca definitely had something to do with.
Luca was laid to rest back in our home state of Maryland a week after he passed away. Soon after that, I was back on the pitch trying to start my own road to recovery. I can say for certain that 2014 was the worst year of my life off the field, but somehow it ended up being quite possibly my most accomplished on it. My teammates and I finished that season by hoisting a league-record fifth MLS Cup trophy.
A few months later, during the off-season, Megan and I started to really think about trying to have another child.
We were scared initially, of course. And after having been through so much, we were nervous about pretty much everything — doctor visits, buying clothes, or just about being happy that we were expecting again. But we both knew that we couldn’t let losing Luca convince us that having children wasn’t ever going to be in the cards for us.
We knew we were strong, and loved each other no matter what happened, and that we had everything we needed to be wonderful parents if we were lucky enough to get a second chance.
Megan got pregnant again five months after Luca passed away.
This time around it would be a girl, and everything checked out fine from the start.
We’re both convinced that Luca made that so — that he made sure everything would be O.K. for our family going forward. And on October 22, 2015, Megan gave birth to Luca’s little sister, Noelle.
Seven pounds, 10 ounces, and as healthy as can be.
Maybe for some people having a healthy child is kind of par for the course, but to me that was a miracle right there.
Noelle is a living breathing miracle, and I truly believe that she’s here with us today — and thriving and running all over the place and having a blast and just being a kid — because of Luca.
Her big brother.
And if you have any doubt about that….
While I was holding Noelle for the very first time, I turned and asked one of the nurses what the time of birth was — like the official time, so I could write it down and we could have it for one of our scrapbooks.
It was 8:28.
Luca’s birthday was 8/28.
Miracle.
Noelle was scheduled for a seven o’clock delivery, but Luca wanted us to know he was right there with us to welcome Noelle into the world. So she arrived at a time that could not be more special to Megan and me.
We feel like Luca sent her to us, and we definitely believe that he is protecting her and watching over her at all times.
Noelle knows about Luca, too, and she loves him just as much as we do. From the photos of him on our walls at our house to the screen saver on my phone, whenever she sees him she always shouts his name.
“Luca! Luca! Luca!”
As she gets older, we’ll tell her all about him, and about how brave he was. And you better believe I’m going to relive that finger-holding moment with her in glorious detail.
I have a hunch that he’s not only going to be her guardian angel, but her hero, too. And that when she’s in school, Noelle’s going to be doing projects on him and helping to educate her friends about congenital heart defects.
Noelle and Luca will always be connected in so many ways.
Every now and then, Megan and I pull out the scrapbook that we made when she was pregnant with Luca.
We look at all the early ultrasound images we paid for back then, and the photos of little outfits, and the pictures of him from the hospital and we….
Can be thankful.
We are truly thankful for the time we were able to share with him.
And now, a few years after his passing, we’re mainly doing whatever we can to try and keep his name and memory alive. If you go on social media and type in the hashtag #LucaKnowsHeart, you’ll be able to see all the love we have gotten, and all the awareness we have raised for CHD in Luca’s memory.
To this day, people still ask us all the time if they should even mention Luca’s name around us.
Every single time our answer is the same:
Please bring him up as much as you want. As much as you can, actually.
We love talking about our son. And that’s never ever going to change.
For me personally, Luca continues to inspire me every day.
As I write this, I am six months post-op from a complete ACL tear in my left knee. For any professional athlete, missing time playing the game you love is probably the feeling you dread most. Lots of athletes who have gone through similar injuries say it was the worst thing to happen to them in their entire life.
Luca has blessed me with a different perspective.
I got a very kind message the other day from a fan that said: “Looking forward to seeing you back on the pitch and hope you’ve had good mental health through this injury.”
“Don’t worry about that,” I told him. “I’ve been through far worse in my life.”
I truly treat every single day as a blessing now, and when I’m on the field I am playing for Luca — because he never got to play the game himself. He wasn’t able to experience that feeling, so I’m enjoying every moment on the field to the fullest with him in mind. On the rare occasion when I have complained during my ACL rehab, all I need to do is look down at my wrist and see that tattoo I got for him.
I think of how hard he fought, and that keeps me pushing on.
As for our family, we have been uprooted from Los Angeles and landed in Texas, where I am in my second season with the Houston Dynamo. It was time for a change for our family, and we couldn’t be happier in the heart of Texas.
Megan is doing great. She still keeps in touch with a lot of her friends from L.A., and especially the “heart moms” she met during and after her pregnancy with Luca. She takes the absolute best care of Noelle. I am so proud to see the mother she has become.
And as for Noelle….
She’s happy, and healthy, and enjoying life like any other two-year-old.
After Dynamo home games, when she is allowed to run and play on the field, we can’t help but think of Luca — and that his spirit is there inside her, laughing and having fun and running free right along with Noelle.
That makes us smile.
Luca’s more than just a memory now. He lives on through our daughter. We know that each and every time we tell Noelle we love her, Luca is hearing it … and that he knows we’re saying it to him, too.
And we all know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that he loves us right back.
Atlanta United excited about 2026 World Cup
Atlanta Journal-Constitution – June 14, 2018
Atlanta United’s Brad Guzan remembers watching the 1994 World Cup while growing up in Chicago.
With Wednesday’s announcement that the U.S., Mexico and Canada will host the 2026 World Cup, Guzan is looking forward to sharing new experiences in the sport with his children.
That’s just one of the benefits that a few of Atlanta United’s players and manager Gerardo Martino said will be a benefit of the U.S. hosting the tournament for just the second time. The first was 1994, won by Brazil.
“Excited to have it here to see how over the next eight years the sport gets bigger and the league gets bigger,” Guzan said.
Hector Villalba said it’s really important for MLS that the World Cup will be in the U.S. because it will aid its growth. He said one of his first World Cup memories was, on a day so cold in Argentina that he was suffering, watching Maxi Rodriguez score against Mexico in 2006 in Germany.
Martino said hosting the tournament will benefit the U.S. men’s national team, which failed to qualify for the World Cup in Russia that starts today, because it will give them extra motivation.
Guzan said it’s too early to predict big things for the team in 2026.
“So much can change in eight years,” he said. “There could be guys we’ve never even heard of involved in national team that are only kids.
“Hopefully there are a few Landons (Donovan) coming through, a few Christians (Pulisic) coming through. Who is to say? We can all dream.”
Galaxy break up vacation with Open Cup trip to Portland
Los Angeles Times – June 14, 2018
The U.S. Open Cup schedule-makers did the Galaxy no favors, breaking up their three-week World Cup break with a two-day trip to Portland for Friday’s round of 16 game with the Timbers, a team they played in Oregon just two weeks ago.
That game ended in a draw, snapping Portland’s six-game winning streak. But the Galaxy may not be taking the same team back.
Forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who scored twice in Saturday’s MLS win over Real Salt Lake, was in Moscow on Thursday, shilling for a sponsor at the World Cup. Midfielders Romain Alessandrini (quadriceps) and Sebastian Lletget (ankle) were questionable with injuries.
The Galaxy declined repeated requests for updates on both players. But the team did say midfielder Baggio Husidic, who hasn’t played since mid-April, could return to the lineup.
Given the opponent, a two-week break following the game and the fact that a win Friday would send them into the quarterfinals of a tournament they haven’t won since 2005, the Galaxy are likely to use a largely first-team lineup in Portland rather than the reserves who played in the team’s first Open Cup game last week.
San Jose Earthquakes acquire defender Guram Kashia from Vitesse Arnhem
ESPNFC.com – June 14, 2018
The San Jose Earthquakes announced the acquisition of defender Guram Kashia from Vitesse Arnhem on Thursday.
Kashia, who is from the nation of Georgia, isn't eligible to play for San Jose until the secondary transfer window opens on July 10. The Earthquakes used targeted allocation money to obtain his services.
Kashia, 30, has been the captain of Vitesse, a top-level side in the Netherlands. He appeared for the club in six Europa League games last season, and he had three goals and an assist in Eredivisie league play. Kashia has been with Vitesse since 2010, scoring 25 goals and 18 assists in 293 games.
"To reinforce select positions during the upcoming transfer windows, we began by identifying someone that fit the criteria we were looking for in a high-quality central defender and this was Guram," said Earthquakes general manager Jesse Fioranelli in a team release.
"In addition to his extensive experience, he is a leader both on and off the field and we're confident he will be an important addition to our squad."
Kashia began his pro career with Dinamo Tbilisi in his hometown, notching 12 goals in 91 appearances from 2006-10.
Kashia has also appeared in more than 60 games for Georgia's national team, netting two goals.
The Earthquakes, who are second-from-bottom in the Western Conference standings, already have a Georgian national who formerly played for Vitesse Arnhem in midfielder Valeri "Vako" Qazaishvili.
No team but 2 referees for US at World Cup in Russia
FOX Sports – June 15, 2018
MOSCOW (AP) Jair Murrufo remembers the first time he picked up a whistle and called a soccer match.
”My father kept saying, Hey, you want to be a referee?’ And I’m 19 years old, and I’m like,No, why would I want to do that?”’ he recalled.
That was an under-8 contest filled with kids trying to learn the sport. Now the 41-year-old from El Paso, Texas, will be on the field for soccer’s pinnacle: the World Cup.
While the United States is missing from soccer’s showcase for the first time since 1986, it is the only nation with two referees working the tournament.
Mark Geiger is the second American to referee at two World Cups. The 43-year-old from Beachwood, New Jersey, worked two matches during the group stage in Brazil four years ago, and then became the first American to officiate a knockout stage match: France’s 2-0 win over Nigeria.
”It is an indication of the quality of the pool that we have here,” said Howard Webb, the English referee who worked the 2010 World Cup final and now heads the Professional Referee Organization, which supervises match officials in the U.S. and Canada.
Marrufo’s father, Antonio, was a referee in Mexico’s top division who was under consideration for the 1998 World Cup but wasn’t picked.
”Now he’s so excited for me and just living his dream through me,” Jair Murrufo said in New York before heading to Russia. ”I want to fly him out there, but we’ll see.”
He remembers his first match, in an El Paso youth league. His father kept prodding.
”I just said, OK, fine. So you could get off my back, I’ll do it,”’ the son explained. ”The first thing I do is I waved down my assistant referee and said,No, I got this,’ and I felt like it was in my blood. And, obviously, it was, because from that day on I fell in love with it.”
Geiger started when he was 13, in the Jersey Coast Youth Soccer League. His motivation?
”Money,” he said with a smile. ”It was the easiest, most enjoyable job that a teenager that young could have, going out and doing five, six games on a Saturday and then same thing on a Sunday.”
Marrufo worked for paint company Sherwin-Williams before he was among the first four full-time referees hired by the U.S. Soccer Federation in 2007. He was voted Major League Soccer’s Referee of the Year in 2008 and was the only American on the preliminary list of 2010 World Cup referees released by FIFA.
But Marrufo was suspended for two weeks early in the 2009 by the USSF for receiving a jersey from Chicago’s Cuauhtemoc Blanco after an MLS match, and he did not work ay Major League Soccer games after June 24 that year because of what the USSF said were poor performances.
It took nearly a decade for him to work his way back into contention.
”Things didn’t go my way, and I didn’t give up on it, and I was chasing it,” he said. ”And it’s finally coming true.”
Geiger was an advanced placement math teacher in Lanoka Harbor, New Jersey, until PRO was established by the USSF and MLS in 2013. The history of American referees at World Cups was slim before his performances in Brazil.
David Socha was the first American to referee a World Cup match, whistling one match each in 1982 and 1986. Vincent Mauro worked in 1990 and Arturo Angeles followed in 1994.
Esse Baharmast became the first awarded two games at one tournament, in 1998, and Brian Hall was in charge of two matches in 2002. There were no American referees on the field during the 2006 and 2010 tournaments. Geiger refereed the final of the 2011 Under-20 World Cup, earning a spot in the big World Cup three years later.
”I think he was the single biggest success story from that tournament from an officiating point of view,” Webb said.
Geiger and Marrufo are among the officials at this World Cup who have had experience with Video Asssistant Referees, which will be used to review whether there are clear errors in goals, penalty-kick incidents, direct red cards, mistaken identity and serious missed incidents. MLS began using VAR last August.
”It’s a godsend,” Geiger said. ”To be able to fix your mistake before the game ends is certainly something that’s advantageous to all of us.”
United bid victory has MLS and USMNT players excited for lead-up to 2026
Goal.com – June 14, 2018
Wednesday's announcement awarding the rights to host the 2026 World Cup to the united bid has MLS players counting the days to the big event
Many American soccer fans woke up on Wednesday morning to the news that the United States-led united bid had defeated Morocco and been voted as host of the 2026 World Cup . Tyler Adams was already awake. Still re-adjusting to the time change after his recent week with the U.S. national team in Europe, the New York Red Bulls midfielder was up well before the vote was decided, anxiously awaiting word that would affect all Americans, but especially young players like him who could be on the field playing in a World Cup on home soil eight years from now.
"I was up and waiting to find out. I was well awake for that," Adams said on Wednesday after the Red Bulls' 2-1 win against Seattle. "It's really, really exciting to have the World Cup come to your home country because you can have friends and family wherever the event may be, and I'm hoping to be a core guy for that world Cup. I just need to continue to establish myself now and gain experience like the France game, and they'll make me be ready for that time."
Adams, 19, was still four years away from even being born when the 1994 World Cup was played in the United States so he doesn't have the first-hand experience of what a World Cup on home soil can do for the sport. One player who knows all too well what it can mean is Adams' Red Bulls teammate, all-star goalkeeper Luis Robles. The 34-year-old record-setting goalkeeper was an impressionable 10-year-old in 1994 and he was one of the generation of American children who caught the soccer bug with the help of that year's World Cup.
"It introduced me to the game, because I didn't play soccer to that point," Robles told Goal . "I played it on the school yard, I played rec one year, but I was a baseball player. But then all of a sudden there's the World Cup and this game of soccer. The stadiums were full and it really was amazing and it introduced me to the beautiful game. After that I knew players like Alexi Lalas and Tony Meola, so when I was 11 and they asked me if I want to play goalie I thought 'Hey, Tony Meola plays goalie so I'm going to do that.' It was a pretty good introduction and it's pretty exciting to see what that's going to do for soccer in this country." 
Wednesday's news not only helped generate excitement among American soccer fans still hurting from the U.S. national team's failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup , it also helped set a new goal for players who will aspire to be a part of the American team that takes the field in 2018.
"I'll have a chance to play a World Cup on home soil. Even just going to a World Cup would be incredible, but being able to play in front of your family and friends would be even more incredible," Seattle Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan told Goal. "I'm just stoked, not just individually, but for all the American players that will have a chance to play, and all the Americans who will have a chance to see a World Cup before their eyes.
"At that point I'll be 31 years old, so it might be tough to make it," Roldan said. "It's tough right now, at 23, but it'll be even tougher at 31. If I can continue to progress I'll have a chance. I've already set some goals for myself, like the World Cup in Qatar, but the World Cup in the United States is definitely another one."
By the time the 2026 World Cup kicks off, it will have been 32 years between the World Cups on American soil, a full generation, and the fans and aspiring players who were inspired in 1994 will turn into the parents preparing to see their own children experience the same feeling they enjoyed.
"My son will be 13 in 2026, and it's going to be such a great experience for him," Robles told Goal ."I know what it meant for me, and I'm just looking forward to being able to see him have that same experience."
Philadelphia Union embracing another U.S. Open Cup clash with New York Red Bulls
Pro Soccer USA – June 14, 2018
CHESTER, Pa— The U.S. Open Cup Round of 16 draw produced another familiar matchup for the Philadelphia Union, who play the New York Red Bulls for the fourth year in a row in the competition Saturday at Talen Energy Stadium.
While the matchup with the Red Bulls, who the Union usually play three times in the Major League Soccer regular season, feels a little redundant, it still presents the club with a chance to advance in the competition and move one step closer to a trophy.
“You can’t hide anymore,” Union midfielder Haris Medunjanin said. “Everybody knows how they play, we know how they play. It’s difficult when you play the same opponent all the time, especially in one year you play a team three or four times. There’s no surprise anymore.
“It’s always going to be a tough game. It’s a derby here, so it’s a competition you can win the cup. In five to six games you can win a trophy. It’s important for us, and if we win, we play again at home. So it’s going to be fast, and maybe we can play all the games at home. We’re going to do our best and hopefully we win.”
Union captain and midfielder Alejandro Bedoya said it’s a game they’re taking seriously.
“Obviously at this point in time it’s a chance for us to win a trophy,” Bedoya said. “I’m pretty sure we’re going to have our first team out there and they’ll have most of their first team. It’s another chance for us to advance in the U.S. Open Cup and it’s a chance at a trophy.”
For experienced players on the Union roster, like Medunjanin and Alejandro Bedoya, the Open Cup differs from other domestic cup competitions they’ve participated in.
Medunjanin played in the Netherlands, Spain, Turkey and Israel before coming over to the United States to play for the Union in 2017, and he’s been involved in plenty of heated cup contests.
“Even in Spain the cup games are very important,” Medunjanin said. “Maybe the bench guys play the first round because you’re playing a third or fourth league team, but after that the first team always play the cup games because they see it as very serious.” 
“Even Israel is competitive because when you play at a big team in Israel it’s a big deal if you win the league and the cup,” Medunjanin said.
Bedoya featured for clubs in Sweden, Scotland and France, and his time at Nantes produced incredible cup memories that still put a smile on the midfielder’s face.
The U.S. Men’s National Team player scored back-to-back game-winning goals for Nantes during the 2016 Coupe de France against Mantes and Bordeaux.
“(Mantes) was right outside of Paris and it went into overtime and I came off the bench, my hair is going crazy, my headband wasn’t working, this is when I had long hair, “Bedoya said. “I literally came on and with my first touch of the game I got the ball in behind and scored a goal. That’s probably my best cup moment.”
“In France away against Bordeaux, it was one of those 1-0, they came back up 2-1, then we tied it 2-2, then we went 3-2 in overtime and they we scored again 3-3,” Bedoya said. “I came off the bench and I had missed a great chance earlier to get the lead and then close to the end of the game off a free kick or corner kick I got on the end of it with a header. I played maybe 20 minutes in the cup, but it was in extra time and it made the difference and we won 4-3. Cups are always interesting.”
Another interesting aspect of Bedoya’s cup experience in France was a 2015 Coupe de France opener against Club Franciscain from Martinique, a Caribbean nation under the jurisdiction of the French Football Federation.
“With the States being so large, I guess they have to set it up differently but I remember in the Cup in France we had to play a team from Martinique,” Bedoya said. “They flew all the way up to France so that was a unique experience.”
“Maybe they should open (the Open Cup) up a little bit, but then again, these small teams don’t have the budgets,” Bedoya said. “It’ll be very hard to make it happen. I’m not going to  get into opening up the system, but I would’ve liked to play maybe play a team from California or Texas, a small team. I’m sure it’d be cool for them too to travel far and away and see other things. It is what it is. It’s still a chance for a lot of teams and players to do something.”
While the Union have had their share of historic Open Cup moments, the competition still has some work to do to compare to those overseas.
“You always have some outsiders from the third or fourth league that come in the final,”  Medunjanin said. “Here the MLS teams are much stronger than the USL teams, but still you see a couple of USL teams make it so it’s always a tough competition. I don’t have the feeling that the cup here is the same like in Europe.”
Earthquakes sign centerback Guram Kashia as they look past 2-2 draw with Revolution
Pro Soccer USA – June 15, 2018
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Earthquakes enter the abbreviated World Cup break without a win in six games following Wednesday night’s 2-2 draw with the New England Revolution. Danny Hoesen scored twice for the Quakes, but a pair of defensive lapses allowed the Revs to gain a share of the spoils at Avaya Stadium.
The Quakes made their first move of the upcoming transfer window, acquiring Georgian centerback Guram Kashia with Targeted Allocation Money. He will bolster a defense that gave up six goals on its two-game homestand. Kashia will be eligible to play for San Jose starting July 10.
With very little momentum and a tough part of the calendar on the horizon, here are three thoughts on the Earthquakes’ game against the Revolution and their path moving forward.
Harder, stronger, better, faster
Even though the team has only one win since the season opener, the coaches and the players have not given up on the season. It is frustrating for all involved, to be sure, to see even their best performances relegated to the trash heap, but that hasn’t eroded away everyone’s commitment to turning the ship around and salvaging something of the season.
“We take every game really serious,” Earthquakes head coach Mikael Stahre said. “Now we prepare every game like a final, actually, even if we are really, really far from the red line. We have to prepare for every single game and try to win it. Play for the fans, play for the ownership, and play also for the teammates. For me, that is important.”
The Quakes are often associated with a never-say-die attitude, and no other player exemplifies that more than the captain, Chris Wondolowski. His two goals against LAFC last weekend were wasted when the team’s defense let them down, and against New England, it was some of those same liabilities that kept the Quakes from earning their first win in over a month.
“I thought that our energy was good,” Wondolowski said. “I thought we came out and executed. It was good to get that goal early and put pressure, but again, we keep shooting ourselves in the foot. I sound like a broken record, but that’s kind of been our M.O.”
When individual errors are at the root of a team’s struggles, the imprudent action is to point fingers and assign blame. Such a counterproductive response has been largely avoided in San Jose, where the approach moving forward will be centered on building consistency through more targeted training and preparation.
“It is easy to be a coach when your team is winning, but you have to show leadership,” Stahre said. “You have to make the plan even if you are struggling. That is the hardest part. As long as I am the coach for the San Jose Earthquakes, we will put in maximum effort every single day.”
Doin’ it right
One bright spot in the last few games has been the reawakening of the Quakes’ offense. Stahre has settled on a 4-4-2 formation that plays with a diamond midfield, pushing Valeri “Vako” Qazaishvili to the tip, just behind the striker pairing of Hoesen and Wondolowski. The tactical change has put all three attackers into positions that play to their strengths.
“Even though we are struggling at the moment, we have to take all the positive things now and try to make it even better. We are creating chances for the moment, and our strikers Danny and Wondo score goals. That is really important. We create more chances. We provoke the opponent more. We have a little bit more direct approach than in the beginning of the season.”
“I think that we are definitely starting to find our rhythm. I think Danny, Vako, and I are starting to play off each other a lot better and find that cohesiveness. I think that we need to try continue to get crosses, but quality crosses, not crosses that just hit the first guy and get cleared out. I thought on the second goal, Nick did a great job picking out Danny, and we need more of that.”
Nick Lima made the hustle play of the game in chasing down the ball along the right sideline ahead of pinging the ball to Hoesen in the area. His self-assessment dovetailed nicely with Wondo’s: Lima didn’t feel he was doing enough to deliver the ball consistently into the box. However, the full back made it clear that he needed to provide balance with his defensive responsibilities as well, and that was his number one goal moving forward.
The wide players in the diamond midfield are tasked with helping on both sides of the ball, and Tommy Thompson and Magnus Eriksson were entrusted with those roles against the Revolution. Both players are known more for their attacking prowess, especially Eriksson, and the Swede expended a lot of effort on the right side of the formation. Thompson, making his first start of the season, liked what he saw from the offense, but he knows the team can’t shirk its defensive responsibilities.
“We want to score goals. We want to continue putting opponents on the back foot, and that’s the main goal to get goals at home, and we are doing that, which is a positive, but at the end of the day, you can’t be letting in four goals at home like last game and two at home today. It’s not just on the defenders, it’s on the entire team, we have to stay locked down as a unit and start to get results.”
Around the world
The Earthquakes announced their first summer signing this week, as Kashia, centerback and team captain at Dutch side Vitesse, will join the team and be eligible to play when the MLS summer transfer window opens on July 10. The Georgian international can’t get to San Jose soon enough, as the defensive back line needs all the support it can get.
“To reinforce select positions during the upcoming transfer windows, we began by identifying someone that fit the criteria we were looking for in a high-quality central defender and this was Guram,” Earthquakes general manager Jesse Fioranelli said in a club statement. “In addition to his extensive experience, he is a leader both on and off the field and we’re confident he will be an important addition to our squad.”
Kashia has made 293 appearances across all competitions during his eight years in the Netherlands. The Tbilisi native has also been a fixture in the Georgian national team, earning 64 caps in a 10-year international career. Kashia will be reunited with Vako in San Jose, as both have featured for Vitesse and Georgia.
The Quakes’ frailty on defense is well documented, and the constant shifting of players in and out of the lineup, as well as formation changes, have made it difficult for the group to gel around a single identity. The only constants in defense have been goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell and Lima, who both have played every minute of the season.
“It’s difficult, but it’s not an excuse,” said Lima. “We go out there and train as a unit, we have experience under our belts in training and most units, we have all played together. Each pairing is something we should be used to, to have a certain level, because that is what we do in training. We sometimes hurt ourselves.”
Stahre indicated that the addition of Kashia would give the team options at centerback, as well as options in formation. The Quakes’ coach signaled that a three-man back line would be an option, something he employed earlier in the season. Alternatively, he could use one of his centerbacks at left back, a position that has been the team’s Achilles heel all season. He did just that against the Revs, playing Swiss centerback Francois Affolter out wide.
Fioranelli made it clear that the signing of Kashia was not a reactionary move. He has been looking at the upcoming summer transfer, as well as future windows, for some time, and Kashia was a player that he believed would be a long-term contributor to the Quakes. Fioranelli indicated that he was not necessarily done with his summer acquisitions either, but he declined to provide more detail about who or for what positions he was targeting.
Adams, Robles voice excitement for United 2026 bid's victory
SBI Soccer – June 14, 2018
Fresh off their side’s 2-0 victory over the Seattle Sounders on Wednesday, New York Red Bulls players Tyler Adams and Luis Robles were talking about another big victory, that of the United 2026 bid earlier in the day.
“With the time change, I was up at 6:30, so I was well awake for that,” said Adams, only a few days removed from getting a 1-1 draw in France with the U.S. Men’s National Team. Once the vote was complete, Adams could not hide his joy.
“It’s really, really exciting to have the World Cup come to your home country because you could have friends and family wherever the event may be,” Adams said.
As someone who is expected to be part of the USMNT for the several World Cup cycles, Adams is well aware of the opportunity that comes for him individually with a World Cup in the United States. “[I’m] hoping to be a core guy for that World Cup,” the 19-year-old said, “so I’m continuing to establish myself now and gain experience like those France games will help me be ready by that time.”
For Adams’ club captain Robles, thinking about 2026 brought back fond memories of 1994. He remembered the U.S.’ run to the quarterfinals, saying, “I saw Tony Meola and his long hair, Alexi Lalas and his fiery hair, all of those characters that made up the 1994 team that advanced against Colombia.”
In addition to making memories with his son, Robles is also looking forward to the future for U.S. Soccer in general, . “I’m excited for U.S. Soccer, and I think that really gives us a lot of incentive to really sort out what’s going on with the U.S. national team.”
Additionally, he is excited for players like Adams who will work for the next eight years with that World Cup in mind. “I’m really excited for the youth of America,” Robles said. “You look at what transpired over the weekend against France and when they play the young generation, you see this tenacity and fearlessness that’s amazing, and a lot of it comes from this organization, so I’m glad that we can contribute in that sense.”
More than anything, though, a World Cup creates memories for players, coaches, and onlookers alike. “I was doing the math; ‘oh man, my son [will only be] 13,’” Robles said, “but he’ll at least get to see what I saw when I was young in ‘94.”
Kutler's first MLS start another sign of Red Bulls' young, deep roster
SBI Soccer – June 15, 2018
In a way, the New York Red Bulls’ 2-1 victory over the Seattle Sounders on Wednesday was a snapshot of the team’s season so far. Once again, New York Red Bulls II players past and present found themselves in the senior team’s lineup, and the latest player to make the jump was Ethan Kutler.
“He’s a very gifted player,” head coach Jesse Marsch said following the match. “We’re continuing to try to build in more defensive sophistication and more of a defensive edge with him but he does provide us with that ease to be able to pass, put plays together, see the next play and on certain days, that’s really valuable.”
The right back showed off that passing ability, recording assists on both of the Red Bulls’ goals. The second one in particular was memorable, as Kutler’s superb cross was finished by Bradley Wright-Phillips. Despite impressing the crowd, the process was simple was simple for Kutler.
“You look for Bradley Wright-Phillips when he’s in the box,” Kutler said. “He’s always making pretty great runs, so it’s pretty easy to find him.”
As for his overall performance, Kutler was modest despite receiving praise from his coach.
“It’s my first MLS start, so I’m pretty proud of that, but it’s a high pressure situation for me,” he said. “I obviously [had] a little nervous energy out there. I’m missing passes, missing defensive plays, but it’s something that I’m going to get used to, playing in high pressure situations, so hopefully down the line I can be comfortable in these types of situations.
“It’s a pretty big adjustment tempo-wise, pace-wise, [and] physicality-wise,” though he noted that the easiest part of the transition is understanding the system. “The system’s pretty much the same,” he added, “so you know exactly what you have to do for both teams.”
As Luis Robles noted, Kutler’s strong start mimics the success of many of the other players on the Red Bulls’ roster.
“It’s not Ethan,” the goalkeeper said, “it’s pretty much anyone whose number has been called upon this season.”
Kutler joins the likes of Florian Valot and Vincent Bezecourt, among others, to make his way onto the first team after spending an extended period of time with the USL side. In years past, Marsch and company have handed similar promotions to other players, but a majority of them saw very few minutes. With the departure of older players like Sacha Kljestan and Mike Grella during the offseason, spots opened up for the younger talent within the organization, and many of them have taken advantage of their opportunities.
Additionally, their performances have provided their teammates with a sense of relief, especially during weeks with multiple matches.
“I remember in years past, when we had to deal with stretches like we are right now, we just thought, ‘Oh no. Who’s going to step up? Are they going to be able to do this?,'” Robles said. “We [would] question our depth,” the goalkeeper added.
Overall, Kutler’s performance represents a bigger accomplishment for the Red Bulls.
“Right now, it seems like no matter who Jesse puts in,” Robles said, “the clarity that he’s instilled within the group, and of course, the confidence that exudes from this group, we feel like we’re going to get a result no matter who we play against.”
Osorio's former MLS players say he can take Mexico to World Cup success
MLSsoccer.com – June 14, 2018
They all remember the notebook.
Anyone who played under Mexican national team coach Juan Carlos Osorio will tell you how he always used to jot down notes in his little spiral pad, using a red and blue pen to differentiate attacking players from defenders.
“You can still see him doing it now,” says New York Red Bulls II head coach John Wolyniec, who played under Osorio with the Red Bulls in 2008 and 2009.
“I never quite got a peek inside of it,” adds Calen Carr, who suited up for him in 2007 when Osorio took over a last-place Chicago Fire team midway through the season and led them into the playoffs.
But even though it may have been shrouded in mystery, that notebook was symbolic of Osorio’s meticulous nature during his three-year-run as an MLS head coach. And it’s that nature, some of his old MLS players believe, that can perhaps help Mexico snap a streak of six straight Round of 16 exits at the World Cup.
El Tri open Sunday vs. defending champs Germany, with both sides looking to win Group F to avoid a potential meeting with Brazil in their first knockout game.
“If there is a manager that can get Mexico to finally get over the hurdle,” Carr says, “I think Juan Carlos would be as prepared to get his team as psychologically and physically ready as anybody.”
Carr only played under Osorio for a short period of time in Chicago but nevertheless called him “one of my favorite coaches.” And he credits him for coming in right away and changing the mentality of the group because he knows how to “find a way to get people to really buy into what he’s doing.”
Philadelphia Union head coach Jim Curtin agrees with that sentiment, although he admits Osorio’s style is “unorthodox” and initially came as a “shock to some players.” Curtin was certainly shocked the first time he saw Osorio sleeping in the Fire’s film room.
“His preparation for training sessions was pretty meticulous in terms of setting a cone down to literally the exact inch and being out on the field two hours before a session to make sure everything was up and running and not a minute was wasted,” says Curtin, who was injured during much of that 2007 season in Chicago, allowing him to more closely observe his coach.
“To watch what he’s done with Mexico is not a surprise because he did the same thing in the short time I was around him in Chicago. He’s bold. He doesn’t care what people think and he doesn’t care what the media says. He has his way.”
Osorio certainly has his share of critics with the Mexican fans and media but Curtin thinks that if you look at his 31-9-8 record with El Tri since taking over in late 2015, “not enough people talk about how good of a job he’s done there.” 
He and others also believe the Colombian is uniquely suited to do well in a tournament setting because of how sharp he is at scouting and how unafraid he is to make big adjustments when needed.
“It’s no secret the criticism of Juan Carlos is he changes too much — changes formations, changes players,” Wolyniec says. “I think that comes from him coming at the game from a scouting perspective and reacting and adjusting to the opponent.”
“If you look at his track record, he hasn’t been a lot of places too long,” Carr adds. “I think part of the reason is he comes in fast and he’s passionate and I think there’s something to that in getting the best out of people in a short format.”
Carr also adds that not being Mexican may serve as an advantage because “he’s unburdened by some of the past, and I think he can help the team feel that way as well too.”
Perhaps then, after the World Cup, he may also be in the running for the US national team coaching job?
“I’d back him for it,” Carr says. “I think he checks a lot of boxes. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him considered for that position, which would sort of be an interesting wrinkle in the US-Mexico rivalry.”
Wolyniec agrees that Osorio certainly has the pedigree, work ethic, scouting chops, international experience and MLS background to make him a candidate for the USMNT job. But no matter where the 57-year-old ends up, or if he stays with Mexico, the Red Bulls II coach will continue to look to him as an inspiration, just as he has for the past decade.
“The first thing you notice about Juan Carlos is his seriousness and his passion for the game,” Wolyniec says. “That comes off right away almost before he introduces himself. And that’s infectious.
“He would say players pick up on anything, so if you misplace a cone or say the wrong player's name, they’re going to pick up on that. So that’s why you have to be detailed and meticulous about what you’re doing.
“He’s certainly an example to follow but a model that’s hard to replicate.”
2 Chainz & Miguel Star In MLS "Our Soccer" Commercials Ahead Of 2018 FIFA World Cup
HipHop DX – June 13, 2018
LOS ANGELES, CA – The fever gripping the Russia-hosted 2018 FIFA World Cup (the 21st FIFA World Cup in its entirety) is almost upon us.
Not to be left out, North America’s Major League Soccer is also anticipating a big bump in visibility and the premier organization has recruited both 2 Chainz and Miguel to raise the awareness of the sport on U.S. soil.
A self-admitted LA Galaxy fan, Miguel has collaborated with acclaimed filmmaker Rollo Jackson for his MLS “Our Soccer” spot, which also features music composed by Jay Wadley.
Following its online premiere today, Miguel’s latest TV look will air in the U.S. and Canada beginning during World Cup games in English, Spanish, and Spanglish on Fox/FS1 starting tomorrow, June 14.
At the start of the MLS 2018 season, MLS and Cornerstone recruited trap house mortgage broker (and real-life Atlanta United fan) 2 Chainz and 2017 MLS Cup champion and game MVP Jozy Altidore for the first “Our Soccer” spot. The World Cup frenzy has catapulted the clip to pick up traction and can be found below.
And if you’re a true soccer fan, the news that the USA, Canada and Mexico all won bids to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup should excite you to no end.
Storylines: Portland Timbers v LA Galaxy (U.S. Open Cup)
Stumptown Footy- SB Nation – June 15, 2018
The Story So Far
The Timbers are coming off a 0-0 draw with Sporting Kansas CIty on the weekend, extending their unbeaten streak to 8 matches. It wasn’t the greatest night for the Green and Gold, but they were able to hold off the best team in the West.
Now they face the LA Galaxy in the Round of 16 of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. This will be the third time in a few short months that the Timbers and Galaxy have faced each other. The last time was right here at Providence Park, a 1-1- draw. Now it’s time to see who is going to advance to the quarterfinals.
It’s Full Of Stars
With the World Cup in full effect, the league has gone into hibernation mode. The Timbers don’t have another MLS match until they travel on the 24th to the ATL to face an Atlanta team running on all cylinders. Right now it’s focusing on the LA Galaxy, they advanced through the Round of 16 by beating FC Golden State Force 3-1, whereas the Timbers dispatched the San Jose Earthquakes 2-0.
I would suspect that with the break that all bets are off and we could see close to a regular first choice eleven, though I’d expect still to see some youngsters. With the World Cup, the Galaxy are missing the do Santos brothers and the Timbers are missing David Guzman and Andy Polo. I’d suspect you’ll see Ola Kamara start along with possibly Zlatan (I wouldn’t hold my breath) - though the last time here, he came off the bench and was pretty uninspiring.
The Galaxy are 34-17-0 in U.S. Open Cup Play, they’ve been in it every year since 1999, winning the tournament in 2001 and 2005. They’ve also reached the finals on two other occasions. Last season they made it to the quarterfinals before being bounced out of the competition by the San Jose Earthquakes. Though former coach Bruce Arena was famous for not caring in the least bit about the Open Cup.
Chalkboard
The Galaxy will most likely come out in a 4-2-3-1 which seems to be Sigi Schmid’s prefered formation. With the possibility of Zlatan starting on the bench, I’d look to Ola Kamara to get the start at the lone striker spot. Kamara is just second to Ibrahimovic in goals scored with 6, the aforementioned Zlatan has 7. But with Providence Park being turf, I’m pretty confident that Zlatan will start the match on the bench, if he makes the 18 at all. Open Cup, World Cup break - I could see him watching from the stands for this one.
As far as the Timbers go, they’ll come out in a 4-3-2-1, which has become the preferred tactics of Giovanni Savarese. Look for Andres Flores to start for the absent Andy Polo away at the World Cup. Other than that, I’m not sure how Gio is going to play this. Get your eleven a run out, or play the kids again, though my gut tells me he’ll go with a first choice-ish eleven.
Projected Starting XI’s
Timbers: Jeff Attinella - Zarek Valentin, Larrys Mabiala, Julio Cascante, Marco Farfan - Diego Chara, Andres Flores, Cristhian Paredes - Diego Valeri, Sebastian Blanco - Samuel Armenteros
Galaxy: David Bingham — Dave Romney, Michael Ciani, Jorgen Skjelvik, Ashley Cole — Perry Kitchen, Servando Carrasco — Chris Pontius, Bradford Jamieson IV, Emma Boateng — Ola Kamara
Welcome To Thunderdome
The Timbers have made Providence Park a fortress, and I wouldn’t expect anything different against the Galaxy coming back to our house. It’s a pretty hopeful eleven I predicted for the Timbers - as USOC matches can be a crapshoot, personnel wise. Same goes for the Galaxy, if I had a dart board I would have done my projection that way.
Nothing would be more sweet than taking out the Galaxy. Plus, who doesn’t want to win some silverware right? While this tournament has it’s issues, I’m sure we can all agree on that. Still I want my club to win silverware, and the Lamar U.S. Open Cup is a way to get some hardware on the shelf. Paint me optimistic.
While I’ve liked the deputising that Old Bill has been doing at the full-back spot - I’d like to see Zarek play his natural position and for Farfan to get some minutes. The USOC is perfect for that, and it just bugs me when you have to play someone out of position. Cascante has been holding his own at the back, so no rush on Ridgewell - who when he comes back from injury could be fighting for minutes with Cascante. Which is a good thing, keeps both of them on their toes - not to mention throwing Tuiloma in the mix.
Also wouldn’t be surprised if we’re treated to another Lawrence Olum sighting, which makes me cringe. I’m sure he’s a nice guy, he’s just not a starter, tournament or not.
If you’re like me and can’t make it to Providence Park - it will be streamed at timbers.com