Recently by Jason de Vos
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Soccer
2011 could outshine 2010 for Canadian women
Although 2010 was a banner year for the Canadian women's national team program, 2011 could be even better.
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Soccer
Hutchinson, Matheson were Canada's best in 2010
The Canadian Soccer Association announced its finalists for the CSA player of the year awards this week, so I thought I'd weigh in with my two cents on who should pick up the hardware.
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Soccer
Whitecaps take shape while TFC ship out
The Vancouver Whitecaps dipped their toes into the waters of Major League Soccer on Wednesday when they took part in the 2010 MLS Expansion Draft.
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Soccer
MLS Cup offers familiar faces for TFC fans
When the MLS Cup final kicks off on Sunday evening, Toronto FC fans will see a few familiar faces on the field.
Marvell Wynne, Conor Casey and Jeff Cunningham all used to ply their trade on the turf of BMO Field as members of Toronto FC. On Sunday, they will be playing for the biggest prize in Major League Soccer as members of the Colorado Rapids and FC Dallas, respectively.
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Soccer
Bunbury decision no surprise
"How can you blame Bunbury for choosing to play for the U.S.? Canada is never going to get to the World Cup."
"At least the kid has some ambition, wanting to play for a winner, rather than settling for a guaranteed place on a team that has no chance of qualifying."
There, I beat you to it.
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Soccer
Canada's women playing inspired soccer
Congratulations, ladies.
Canada's Women's World Cup team qualified for next summer's FIFA Women's World Cup on Friday with a 4-0 victory over Costa Rica in the semifinals of the CONCACAF qualifying tournament. It will be Canada's fifth straight appearance at the World Cup, and it is thoroughly deserved.
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Soccer
Character vital to future of Canadian soccer
The past week was an interesting one in Canadian soccer, and I spent the best part of my two-hour drive home late Friday pondering the significance of the events that transpired over the last seven days.
Martin Nash, former Canadian national team player, called time on his playing career and moved into a coaching role with the Vancouver Whitecaps. "Nashy" was a fantastic player whom I had the pleasure of having as a teammate on the national team. He was one of the most underrated passers of the ball in Canada, and I always felt he could have played at a very high level in Europe if he had only had a little slice of good luck.
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Soccer
Canadian player quota in MLS set to change
Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber was in Toronto this week and took the opportunity to have lunch with assorted members of the media. I was fortunate enough to be one of the invitees, and I found the question and answer session to be an informative one.
I have met the commissioner briefly before, but this was my first opportunity to directly question him on all things MLS-related. Garber is an intelligent, articulate man who speaks with passion about the growth of soccer in the United States and Canada, and I left the session with an increased confidence in his ability to lead MLS into the years ahead.
- Soccer Whitecaps, Impact push on in the playoffs Both the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Montreal Impact are through to the semifinals of the USSF Division 2 playoffs, which begin play on Thursday. The Whitecaps are due to face the Puerto Rico Islanders away from home, while the Impact have a date with the Carolina Railhawks at Stade Saputo in Montreal. The second game in each series is due to take place on Oct. 17. Both Canadian teams are riding the wave of momentum, which is always a good sign once a playoff campaign gets under way.
- Soccer Whitecaps and Timbers set to continue rivalry The Vancouver Whitecaps enter their final season of Division 2 soccer hoping to go out with a bang - by winning another championship. The Whitecaps have twice finished on top of the playoff pile in recent memory, lifting the USL First Division trophy in 2006 and 2008. Last season they made it to the final, only to lose to their Canadian rivals, the Montreal Impact. This year's post-season provides an opportunity to add to their trophy cabinet before making the step up to Major League Soccer next season.
- Soccer De Rosario's outburst ill-advised Dwayne De Rosario's goal celebration on Saturday, a mock signature on a cheque, was a rare public display of petulance. De Rosario clearly feels that his value to Toronto FC is not being compensated sufficiently - and he certainly has a case.
- Soccer Red hot Gerba firing on all cylinders When Ali Gerba arrived at Toronto FC in the summer of 2009, he was all set to be the answer to the club's goal scoring woes. After all, Gerba has netted 15 goals in 29 games for the Canadian national team - a better strike rate than any other men's player in recent memory.
- Soccer New beginning for Toronto FC I was once told by a season ticket holder at Ipswich Town that the reason he supported Ipswich is because the club's values reflected his own values. Ipswich is a family-oriented club that has a reputation for nurturing and developing players from their academy through to their first team.
- Soccer Post-match post-mortem from a defender's P.O.V. The day after a match is always the time for a post-mortem; you grab a cup of tea, get together with the coaching staff and watch the game over again, looking for any mistakes that need to be corrected for the next time you take the field.
- Soccer Busy month for Canadian soccer September marks a busy month for Canadian soccer.
- Soccer TFC's latest signing signals new Canadian era Thursday, Aug. 26, 2010 is a day that Doneil Henry will never forget. If you are a supporter of Canadian soccer, neither should you. For Henry, it signalled the beginning of his professional soccer career with Toronto FC, when he became the club's first academy player to sign a professional contract.
- Soccer Words of wisdom for Canadian soccer One of my favourite John Wooden quotes is: "Failure is not fatal, but failure to change might be." Supporters of Canadian soccer would be wise to heed those words of wisdom.
- Soccer Sound advice still rings true At the age of 19, I was given some very sound advice. I was under contract to the Montreal Impact at the time, and during the off-season, I spent six months training with Charlton Athletic in England.
- Soccer Are contracts worthless in soccer? The concept of honouring a contract in football seems to be a thing of the past. Manchester City striker Emmanuel Adebayor claimed this week that, despite only joining the team at the start of last season, he could soon be off to join another club.
- Soccer Time to speak up about state of Canadian soccer I have received numerous requests recently to wade into the murky waters of the ongoing power struggle at the Alberta Soccer Association (ASA). For those of you who are unaware of what has been going on in Alberta, there are two rival Boards vying for control of the ASA.
- Soccer Toronto FC: Mid-season review As we reach the mid-season point in Major League Soccer, it is time to take an objective look back over the first 15 games and assess how Toronto FC has done in all departments thus far.
- Soccer Mixed results for Canada's national teams This weekend was a busy one for Canada's various national team programs. Training camps and international friendlies took place around the world, and while the results were mixed, the experience gained was invaluable.
- Soccer An update on governance reform to Canadian soccer At the Canadian Soccer Association's annual general meeting last weekend, delegates voted in favour of a new governance framework that will revolutionize the organization. The decision could prove to be the most important one ever made by the CSA, and the response from the soccer community across the country has been very positive. However, as with any change this important, there are many questions that still need to be answered.
- Soccer Governance of Canadian soccer about to change Change is coming. The Canadian Soccer Association held its annual general meeting this weekend in Winnipeg, and top of the agenda was a proposal to change the governance structure of the CSA. So what exactly is governance?
- Soccer The many sides of Toronto FC Toronto FC has a split personality. Winless on the road and unbeaten at home, that trend continued on Saturday as Toronto thumped the Chicago Fire by a score of 4-1. Goals from Nick LaBrocca, O'Brian White and a pair of Chad Barrett strikes gave Toronto as comfortable a victory as they've had in their short history.
- Soccer Impact announcement big news for Canadian soccer The Montreal Impact was officially unveiled as the next Major League Soccer franchise on Friday. The worst kept secret in Canadian soccer was confirmed. In 2012 when Montreal begins play in MLS, Canadian fans will have three solid organizations to support: Toronto FC, the Vancouver Whitecaps (who begin play in 2011), and the Montreal Impact. But what does it mean for the development of the game in Canada?
- Soccer That wasn't a foul! "That wasn't a foul, ref - I got the ball!" That is a statement heard over and over again on football pitches across the world, from the amateur ranks all the way up to the elite levels of international football.
- Soccer Answering readers' questions I always appreciate the comments and e-mails that are sent in after every blog I write. It only underlines my belief that there is a real passion for the game in Canada, and that there are fans of the beautiful game from coast to coast. This week I offered readers the chance to send me questions on Twitter; there were some excellent ones sent in, and here are a few of the best.
- Soccer Montreal joining MLS makes sense for both parties The Montreal Impact face the Portland Timbers at Stade Saputo on Sunday, April 25th in what will be the Canadian club's USSF Division 2 home opener. The Impact goes into this season as defending champions, and they will be looking to repeat that feat once again this year. The Montreal club opened their 2010 campaign on the road last weekend, suffering a 2-0 defeat to the Austin Aztecs. Despite that setback, things are looking bright for club president Joey Saputo and his team. An announcement on Montreal's status as Major League Soccer's next expansion team is looming, and if rumours are to be believed, that announcement could come any day now. The public courtship of MLS and the Impact is complete, and all that is left to do is to make the relationship formal.
- Soccer De Rosario has a difficult job on his hands There are people who believe that the role of a captain in football is largely a ceremonial one. They believe that the captain leads the team out of the dressing room, tosses the coin at the start of the game and takes on a more prominent role in dealing with the media. They also believe that there is nothing more to the job, and that it can be done by just about anyone who is assured of a spot in the starting line-up every week. I'm not one of those people.
- Soccer New beginnings for national team stars Two former members of the Canadian men's World Cup team are beginning new careers this week. How they fare in their new jobs will be as much about the networks they can build, as it will be about their individual determination to succeed.
- Soccer Toronto FC needs improvement Toronto FC got their 2010 Major League Soccer campaign underway on Saturday, succumbing to the reigning regular-season champions, the Columbus Crew, by a score of 2-0.
- Soccer 2010 MLS Western Conference predictions CBC Sports commentator Jason de Vos breaks down Major League Soccer's Western Conference for the 2010 regular season.
- Soccer Canada's U-17 women are champions Last Saturday was a football fan's dream - non-stop games from morning to night. I watched six of them in total; Everton-Bolton, Stoke-Tottenham, Arsenal-West Ham, Toronto FC-Real Salt Lake followed by New York Red Bulls' opening game in Red Bull Arena against Brazilian side Santos. While there was some fantastic football on display throughout the day, the most entertaining game from a Canadian perspective was the sixth game I watched - Canada versus Mexico in the final of the CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship.
- Soccer Nothing but good news for Montreal Impact The Montreal Impact made some major announcements this week, including the acquisition of a Canadian Soccer League (CSL) franchise and the creation of the Montreal Impact Academy - more on that in a minute. The Impact has agreed contracts with three more players; forward Reda Agourram, goalkeeper Andrei Badescu and midfielder Pierre-Rudolph Mayard have all put pen to paper on new agreements with the club.
- Soccer Carl Robinson reveals reason for Toronto FC departure Last week, in exchange for a fourth round draft pick in 2011, Toronto FC traded veteran Welsh midfielder Carl Robinson to the New York Red Bulls. Media reports suggest that New York will only have to pick up $125,000 of Robinson's salary, with Toronto responsible for the remainder of his contract.
- Soccer Toronto FC - 2007 versus 2010 During a recent golfing trip, three friends of mine - all Toronto FC supporters - and I discussed all things TFC related. Arrivals, departures and prospects for the coming season were all dissected and examined.
- Soccer TFC's poor defending cause for concern Reading too much into pre-season results can be a dangerous thing. On many occasions, teams I have played on have gone on to have successful seasons after poor performances and surprising losses during pre-season. From a player’s perspective, pre-season is all about getting your match fitness and ensuring that you are in peak condition when the season gets under way. Results are always important, but building up an understanding with your teammates takes precedence when there are no points at stake.
- Soccer Congratulations to Christine and the CBA conundrum Canadian women’s national team star Christine Sinclair set not one, but two remarkable milestones this week. She is now the most capped player in Canadian soccer, with 133 games to her credit, and she also reached the 100-goal mark for the national team. In true Canadian fashion, Sinclair deflected the praise for her remarkable achievements:
- Soccer MLS salary cap unlikely to go up considerably “The only way to make a small fortune owning a football club is to start with a large fortune,” or so the saying goes. Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber will be very familiar with that expression, and it is one he will be reinforcing over and over again as MLS negotiates a new collective bargaining agreement with its players’ union.
- Soccer Derby delight for Liverpool, Chelsea There were some great match-ups this weekend in the English Premier League, with a number of local derbies taking place. Liverpool faced Merseyside rivals Everton, Birmingham battled with Midlands foe Wolverhampton, while Chelsea hosted fellow London club Arsenal. There are always plenty of full-blooded challenges in derby games, as the players realize that those matches, more than any others, mean the most to the supporters. As a player, it is important to treat those games with the same reverence as the fans.
- Soccer No pain, no gain and other thoughts on Canadian soccer Toronto FC gave the media its first glimpse of pre-season training on Wednesday and, for probably the first time ever in a pre-season, Danny Dichio was there with a big smile on his face. Now part of the coaching staff after retiring as a player last season, Dichio was not required to don his running shoes and hop on one of the treadmills to do his VO2 max, a test that calculates an athlete’s ability to deliver oxygen to the muscles. That is enough to put a smile on anyone’s face.
- Soccer Big money owners threaten to ruin game Why do ordinarily intelligent, successful businessman become illogical, irrational fanatics as soon as they own a soccer club? You’ve heard the story countless times. A wealthy individual rides in on his white horse, promising financial prudence and stability.
- Soccer Whitecaps put right building blocks in place I used to love playing Monopoly as a kid. There was a certain satisfaction to be gained from the slow, methodical acquisition of assets, and you could almost sense the moment when your holdings would put you out in front for the long haul.
- Soccer A missed opportunity for U.S. Soccer Federation, MLS Last week, the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) stepped in to resolve a dispute between the United Soccer Leagues (USL) and a group of breakaway USL teams who wanted to start up their own league, called the North American Soccer League (NASL). The USSF announced a compromise in which they would create a yet-to-be-named second division league with two conferences – one called the USL and the other the NASL. While I am glad to see that the USSF stepped in to take action - and this move is a good one in the short term - I think they missed an important opportunity.
- Soccer Is gambling among teammates common in professional sports? A few weeks ago, during a locker-room dispute over a reported unpaid gambling debt, NBA all-star Gilbert Arenas allegedly pulled a gun on Washington Wizards teammate Javaris Crittenton. Not to be outdone, Crittenton returned the favour, resulting in a standoff. As shocking as the incident was, I have to admit I wasn’t that surprised.
- Soccer My New Year's wish list As 2009 draws to a close, I’ve decided to forego the usual ritual of a New Year’s resolution. I don’t see the point in waiting until tomorrow to do what you can do today, so I’ve never really been into that tradition.
- Soccer Landon Donovan making the right move? Last week, English Premier League side Everton finally completed their protracted loan move for Landon Donovan. The American forward will join the Toffees as soon as his work permit is approved and he will remain with them until mid-March, when he will rejoin his Los Angeles Galaxy teammates for their MLS season opener on March 27th. While it may seem like a dream move for Donovan, I am left scratching my head as to the logic behind the decision.
- Soccer Offside: Fixing Canadian soccer: New coach, new board? With Monday’s announcement that Stephen Hart is having the “interim” tag removed from his job as men’s national team coach, the Canadian Soccer Association is taking a step forward. It might not be the step forward that some people were looking for, but it is a step forward nonetheless.
- Soccer Offside: Fixing Canadian soccer - Governance Of all the feedback I received in the last six months surrounding the state of soccer in Canada, the most heated centred on the Canadian Soccer Association's Board of Directors. Most fans in Canada believe that the CSA’s board is out of touch with the game in our country and that its sole purpose is to maintain the status quo. It is not difficult to come to that conclusion, as the board is a vague group of individuals who are rarely given any publicity. Who better to vent your frustrations on than those who choose not to respond?
- Soccer Offside - An update on fixing Canadian Soccer Back in the summer, I wrote a series of blogs examining the state of Canadian soccer.
- Soccer Time to bring in video replay, with a condition Scandalous. Absolutely scandalous. That is the only way to describe the goal that clinched a berth in the World Cup for France on Wednesday night in the Stade de France in Paris.
- Soccer The CSA's side of the Asmir Begovic story As I wrote earlier in the week, there are always two sides to every story. The Asmir Begovic saga is no different. The other day I relayed to you Asmir Begovic’s side of things. Now I’m going to tell you the story according to the Canadian Soccer Association.
- Soccer The other side of the Asmir Begovic story There are always two sides to every story, and often times those two sides don't match up.
- Soccer What defines a captain? Wearing the captain’s armband is widely regarded as a privilege in soccer, yet there is no clear definition as to what the job entails.
- Soccer Toronto FC's playoff failure is an embarrassment Toronto FC’s 5-0 loss to the New York Red Bulls on Saturday night, and the inevitable playoff failure that accompanied that result, was nothing short of an embarrassment. Everyone who has followed this team since its inception three years ago will now weigh in with an opinion about where it all went wrong and who is to blame. Was it the fault of the players, Chris Cummins or Mo Johnston? Was it a combination of all three? Was it a lack of technical ability on behalf of the players, or were the tactics that were employed the reason for their capitulation in the most important game in the history of the franchise?
- Soccer One week changes TFC fortunes A week is a long time in soccer. It is a saying that I used often as a player when trying to lift the spirits of my teammates, after they had been dropped from the starting line-up or suffered an injury. Things can change very quickly from one moment to the next, and it pays to keep a level head no matter the circumstances. Never get too high when things are going well, and never get too low when things look desperate.
- Soccer Plenty of storylines in World Cup qualifying World Cup qualifying is coming to an end, with only a few places still up for grabs. We've gained some interesting insight into the contenders and pretenders for next year's big event in South Africa, so here's the lowdown on a few things I've seen over the qualifying process:
- Soccer Canada faces challenges with long-term player development plan The Canadian Soccer Association held a press conference on Wednesday to announce BMO as the presenting partner for the “Wellness to World Cup” initiative as well as to introduce Sylvie Beliveau as the new LTPD (long term player development) manager.
- Soccer Intrigue builds in World Cup qualifying The 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa is just around the corner, and the race to qualify is tighter than ever. There are some fascinating matches coming up in the month of October to whet your appetite.
- Soccer So much going on in the wide world of soccer It has been an interesting week in the wide world of football, and there is plenty to comment on.
- Soccer De Guzman doesn't cure all of Toronto FC's problems The signing of Julian de Guzman as Toronto FC's first-ever designated player can be nothing but a good one for the struggling club. Any time you can pick up your country's best player in the prime of his career it has to be considered a good bit of business.
- Soccer Making a case for - and against - Mo Johnston Football is a game of opinions, and whether you are a player, coach, pundit or a fan, you likely have a strong opinion when it comes to your own team.
- Soccer Young Ipswich goalkeeper wise beyond his years Is being a professional footballer the best job in the world? Ask anyone who has ever had the privilege of earning an income playing the game they love that very question, and they will probably answer, "Absolutely!"
- Soccer A coach's legacy After Canada was eliminated from the Gold Cup by Honduras last month, I was asked by numerous individuals if I thought we should give Stephen Hart the full-time position of head coach of our men’s national team.
- Soccer Gold Cup proves it: Give Stephen Hart the job Once again, soccer fans across the country are licking their wounds after Canada was eliminated from another major competition, as our men’s national team was bounced out of the Gold Cup by Honduras on Saturday.
- Soccer A sad tale about the state of youth soccer in Canada A friend of mine from high school told me a disturbing story the other day. It provides some insight into the state of youth soccer in our country, so I thought I would share it with you.
- Soccer Winners and losers at the Confederations Cup With the Confederations Cup ending on Sunday with Brazil defeating the United States 3-2 in the final, it is time to take an alternative look at the winners and losers of the tournament.
- Soccer Bafana Bafana lacked finishing touch Despite a valiant effort, South Africa was unable to pull off a second upset in the semifinals of the Confederations Cup, falling 1-0 to Brazil on Thursday. A brilliant Dani Alves strike was all that separated the two sides at the end of 90 minutes. But more on that in a minute. The Bafana Bafana very nearly followed up the USA's miraculous victory over top-ranked Spain with a shock victory all their own. That they didn't was more down to poor finishing rather than a particularly brilliant defensive display from Brazil.
- Soccer Group A was a prognosticator's dream It isn't often that pundits get all of their predictions correct. More often than not, there is an upset or two along the way that throws a wrench in the works. The inability to correctly predict the future usually gets explained by something along the lines of, “It's a funny old game, isn't it?” When we do manage to get everything right, there is usually a sense of validation that comes along with those accurate predictions. There is generally a sense of satisfaction that comes in knowing you have actually learned something about the game you have worked so hard at for so many years.
- Soccer Bora wins despite result A few days ago, I wrote that there were only a handful of teams in the world capable of containing Spain, the world's No. 1-ranked team, when they are on form. Well, Iraq nearly made me eat my words. For the majority of today's game between these two Group A combatants in the Confederations Cup, Iraq stifled and stymied the stylish Spaniards.
- Soccer Defending 'El Nino' a maddening task If, before Sunday, there existed a football supporter in New Zealand who had never before seen Fernando Torres score goals, well, let’s just say that’s probably no longer the case.
- Soccer Confederations Cup could be a coming-out party for some There will be stars aplenty on show in South Africa during the Confederations Cup, with the likes of Brazil, Italy and Spain all sending strong line-ups.
- Soccer Fond memories of Japan By virtue of winning the 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup, the Canadian men's national team qualified to play in the 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup in Japan. It was at the time, and remains to this day, Canada's greatest achievement in men's football.
- Soccer Offside: Fixing Canadian Soccer - Getting to the World Cup CBC Sports soccer commentator Jason de Vos examines the state of Canadian soccer in Offside, a multi-part blog series exclusive to CBCSports.ca. In this final installment, de Vos, a former captain of Canada's national team, takes a look at what Canada has to do to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Canada has only qualified for the World Cup once: the 1986 tournament held in Mexico. Since then, we have made six attempts to qualify for that elusive festival of football, and on every occasion we have come up short. I was involved in three of those qualifying campaigns. I played sparingly in the 1998 campaign, but I had two full attempts at reaching the World Cup in 2002 and 2006. I have been asked many times over the years if I have any regrets about my playing career. I always answer that question the same way; I have no regrets - because I did the very best I could every time I stepped on the field - but I have some disappointments. The single biggest disappointment for me was never making it to the World Cup.
- Soccer Offside: Fixing Canadian Soccer - Who's in charge? CBC Sports soccer commentator Jason de Vos examines the state of Canadian soccer in Offside, a multi-part blog series exclusive to CBCSports.ca. This week de Vos, a former captain of Canada's national team, takes a look at the governance of Canadian soccer. In April of 2003, the Australian Independent Soccer Review Committee released a report on the governance of soccer in Australia. Popularly known as the “Crawford Report”, it laid bare the problems facing soccer in Australia and put forth a number of recommendations to restructure the game down under. Many of those recommendations were implemented, which resulted in major improvements, including the country’s successful qualification for the 2006 World Cup in Germany. Presently, Australia is well on its way to booking a place at next summer’s World Cup in South Africa. If you have never read the Crawford Report, I urge you to do so. It can be found here.
- Soccer Offside: Fixing Canadian Soccer – Training and competition CBC Sports soccer commentator Jason de Vos examines the state of Canadian soccer in Offside, a multi-part blog series exclusive to CBCSports.ca. This week de Vos, a former captain of the Canadian national team, takes a look at training and competition. It is widely believed that reaching the elite level in sport requires somewhere in the neighbourhood of 10,000 hours of training. If an athlete trained for an hour a day, every day, it would take over 27 years to reach that milestone.
- Soccer Offside: Fixing Canadian Soccer - Coaching the coaches CBC Sports soccer commentator Jason de Vos examines the state of Canadian soccer in Offside, a multi-part blog series exclusive to CBCSports.ca. This week de Vos, a former captain of the Canadian national team, takes a look at coaching.
- Soccer Offside: Fixing Canadian soccer - Player Development CBC Sports soccer commentator Jason de Vos examines the state of Canadian soccer in Offside, a multi-part blog series exclusive to CBCSports.ca. This week De Vos, a former captain of the Canadian national team, takes a look at player development.
- Soccer Offside: Fixing Canadian soccer - we're just getting started CBC Sports soccer commentator Jason de Vos examines the state of Canadian soccer in Offside, a multi-part blog series exclusive to CBCSports.ca. I would like to start off by thanking everyone for taking the time to comment on last week's blog. Your overwhelming response only underlines my belief that there is a tremendous level of support for the game of soccer in Canada.
- Soccer Offside: Where do we start in trying to fix Canadian soccer? CBC Sports soccer commentator Jason de Vos examines the state of Canadian soccer in Offside, a multi-part blog series exclusive to CBCSports.ca. In part one, de Vos, a former captain of Canada's national team, lays the groundwork on how to fix the game in Canada.
- Soccer With Mitchell gone, who will take over as Canada's coach? Dale Mitchell finally paid the price for Canada's failure to qualify for the 2010 World Cup.
- Soccer Expect a 2-team battle in MLS's Western Conference With the Major League Soccer season set to kick off this week, all eyes are rightly focused on Toronto FC. Canada’s only MLS team - for now at least - is considerably stronger this year, and the club's fans from across the country are licking their lips in anticipation of better things to come from the men in red. The additions of players like Dwayne DeRosario, Pablo Vitti and Adrian Serioux, as well as rookies like Sam Cronin, Stephan Frei and O’Brian White, give Toronto a real belief that this season will mark the first occasion that playoff football will come to the Lakeshore in this country’s largest city. While I expect this season to be an improvement on last year for Toronto FC, there are a number of other teams who will also be looking to go one better in 2009. Here’s a look at the teams in the Western Conference:
- Soccer Heartbreak for Impact I have always been the glass-half-full type of person. It’s a choice you make, I suppose. You can be a negative influence and criticize everything and everyone around you; or you can try to be positive, keeping your goals in focus, despite the hurdles that are placed in front of you. It is a philosophy that has served me well over the years, especially in my football career. I’ve lost count of the number of times I could have given up, quit the game and gone back to having a “normal” life. Football can really kick you in the teeth sometimes, and it takes strong character to keep going when all around you seems to be falling apart. Well last night, it all fell apart for the Montreal Impact.
- Soccer Impact face tougher test down in Mexico The Montreal Impact take on Santos Laguna of the Mexican Primera Division in the second leg of the CONCACAF Champions League quarter-finals on Thursday. The Impact head down to Torreon, Mexico with a 2-0 lead in hand, and if last Wednesday's meeting between these two teams is anything to go by, the Impact could very well be on their way to the semifinals. The big question on everyone's mind is, "Can the Impact get another result?" Given what I've seen from the Mexicans so far, I don't see why not.
- Soccer Impact winning hearts in hockey country "This is a soccer nation. Not a hockey nation." Those were the words of Montreal Impact midfielder Sandro Grande on Wednesday night, right after his team beat Santos Laguna of Mexico 2-0 in the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions League quarter-final at Olympic Stadium in Montreal. That's a pretty bold statement coming from a guy who is relatively unknown outside of Montreal. But how can you argue with him? There were 55,571 fans at the game.
- Soccer Impact set for battle with Santos Hindsight is a wonderful thing, isn't it? Decisions that once seemed so difficult to make become painstakingly obvious with the benefit of hindsight, and more than a few people over the years have been known to utter the words, "If I'd known then what I know now."
- Soccer Cronin's got guts For the first time in 18 years, I attended the first day of pre-season training without the usual sense of impending doom. They say the anticipation of pain is worse than the pain itself, but having been through 18 pre-seasons, I’d have to disagree. Pre-season hurts and no amount of training in the off-season makes it any less painful.
- Soccer Bye bye Beckham? For those of you hoping to catch a glimpse of David Beckham this summer at BMO Field, you may be waiting for a long time. I don’t think Mr. Posh Spice is going to be coming back to Major League Soccer and his Los Angeles Galaxy teammates, judging by the noises being made over in Milan. This week, when Beckham was asked if he would be prolonging his stay in Serie A beyond the end of his loan agreement with AC Milan, he replied, “I can’t say what will happen. My contract says that I’ll be here until March. We’ll have to wait and see.” Doesn’t sound like someone who is desperate to get back to Los Angeles, does it?
- Soccer "Trader Mo" fools 'em all Just when we thought we had him figured out Mo Johnston surprised us all. “Trader Mo”, as he has been affectionately dubbed, was widely expected to deal some or all of his three first-round draft picks in Thursday’s Major League Soccer SuperDraft. Toronto FC desperately needs an experienced central defender, and likely some more help in front of goal, if it is to push on and have a go at a playoff run. It was expected that Mo would use his draft picks in order to address these deficiencies by trading the picks in exchange for an experienced MLS player, rather than selecting players in the draft to plug the holes.
- Soccer Advice to Mo: Fill the holes without breaking the bank Now that the holiday season has come and gone, it’s time to start looking forward toward an exciting summer of football. Can Toronto FC continue their improvement and give the fans what they have been longing for the past two seasons, post-season play at BMO Field? Will either Vancouver or Ottawa, the two remaining Canadian cities in the running for Major League Soccer expansion, be granted a franchise to rival the Reds of TFC? Will Montreal continue their Cinderella story and knock off Santos of Mexico in the quarter-finals of the CONCACAF Champions League?
- Soccer Opportunity knocks My parents allowed my brother and I to pursue our dreams, and they supported us both along the way. We were allowed to make our own decisions, right or wrong, and we were able to learn from them.
- Soccer Tough pill, but right decision by Impact group A week is a long time in football. It is an overused cliche, but like most cliches, it has a ring of truth to it. It is one I’ve used myself many times over the years. When you captain a football team, you are often the emotional compass in the dressing room. Week after week, you have one group of players who are happy - usually the ones who are playing - and another group of players who are miserable. You guessed it, generally the ones who are left out.
- Soccer Columbus Crew more than a 1-man show It is tempting to suggest that the success of the Columbus Crew, regular season champions and Major League Soccer finalists, is solely down to the influence of their star player, Guillermo Barros Schelotto. Schelotto is a shoe-in for league MVP honours, such has been the impact he has made this season. But he has been ably supported this season and his teammates often don’t get the credit they deserve. With the Crew taking on the New York Red Bulls in Sunday’s MLS Cup final (CBC, 3 p.m. ET), let’s take a look at some of the other Columbus players who could have a say in the outcome of the match.
- Soccer The protected 11 - who will they be? The season ends on Saturday for Toronto FC with a trip to San Jose to face off against the Earthquakes. Although it is the last game that the players will be involved in this season, for head coach John Carver and Director of Soccer Mo Johnston, the games are just beginning.
- Soccer Impact gritty, not pretty, in draw with Olimpia It wasn’t pretty, but the Montreal Impact got the job done. The Impact reached the quarter-finals of the CONCACAF Champions League on Tuesday night with a 1-1 draw against CD Olimpia of Honduras at Stade Saputo in Montreal.
- Soccer What now for Canada? The Canadian men’s World Cup team takes on Mexico this Wednesday at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton in a CONCACAF Group B World Cup qualifying match. The game is meaningless for Canada though, as we were eliminated from contention following a 3-1 loss to Honduras this past Saturday. Canada now has only a single point from its first four group games. So now what do we do?
- Soccer World Cup disappointment: Canada just isn't good enough We just aren’t good enough.
- Soccer Can World Cup team follow Impact lead? On Saturday, Canada faces a do-or-die World Cup qualifying game in Honduras. If head coach Dale Mitchell is looking for any pointers on what it takes to come home with a victory, he could do worse than pick up the phone and call John Limniatis. For not only does Limniatis know how to win on the road, he also knows how to do it in style. The Montreal Impact head coach led his battered and bruised team into hostile territory once again this week. This time they faced Joe Public of Trinidad, whose coach, Keith Griffiths, boasted that his team would beat the Impact by “at least four” goals when the two teams met in Trinidad. Well, at least he got the four goals part right.
- Soccer Montreal Impact give Canadian soccer fans hope It can’t be easy being a Canadian soccer fan.
- Soccer Credit where credit is due Last Wednesday, the Montreal Impact played host to Mexican champions Atlante FC in Group C action of the inaugural CONCACAF Champions League. Like many people, I expected the Mexicans to bowl into Stade Saputo with a swagger, strut their stuff for 90 minutes, and jet back to sunny Cancun with a comfortable victory under their belts. Boy, was I wrong.
