Prior to D.C. United's victory over the Colorado Rapids I honestly predicted the final score to be, D.C. United 3 – Colorado 0. Now, it's true that I always predict that D.C. United will win 3-0, but for the first time since August 5th of last season I was correct. I owe it all to Quavas Kirk.

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Here's what MLSNET is showing as our current injuries: MF Ben Olsen OUT - ankle surgery DF Domenic Mediate OUT - concussion FW Francis Doe OUT - foot infection DF Gonzalo Peralta QUESTIONABLE - hamstring MF Marcelo Gallardo PROBABLE - hernia surgery Of course we need to add: GK Zach Wells OUT - sesamoiditis MF Fred OUT - hamstring Let's go down the list; Ben Olsen. Click to continue reading...

After attending the DC United match last night against the New England Revolution I left with a sense of happiness that has not been with me after a game in a long time. United played with a quality I haven't seen since before the start of SuperLiga. Having Quaranta and Peralta back at full strength didn't hurt at all either. Click to continue reading...

With a trip to the U.S. Open Cup final on the line, here is the team Head Coach Tom Soehn has decided to go with this evening:

Zach Wells; Bryan Namoff, Devon McTavish, Gonzalo Peralta, Gonzalo Martinez; Fred, Clyde Simms, Santino Quaranta, Ivan Guerrero; Jaime Moreno, Luciano Emilio.

And this is how they'll lineup:

--------Moreno---------Emilio----------

----------------Quaranta-----------------

Guerrero---------------------------Fred

-----------------Simms-------------------

Martinez------------------------Namoff

----------McTavish--Peralta----------

------------------Wells-------------------

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Match #13.17 -- Kansas City Wizards

Six Word Novel Preview:
Even on points, a six-point game.

Opponent:
Kansas City Wizards

TV: 2 August 2008, Comcast Sportsnet, DireckKick, MLSLive.tv

Radio: WFED 1050AM, SRN

Previous Meeting:
March 29, 2008 - KC 2 - United 0

The Stakes:

Both teams sit on 22 points in the Eastern Conference, so this game could provide a six-point swing in the standings if either team manages to win.

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Yes, I know this is from last year, but it's still great.

Anyways, the Wizards travel to DC this weekend to take on United. The two teams come in going in entirely different directions. The Wizards are undefeated in their last 6 games (2-0-4). DC on the other hand has lost their last 4 games, all at home. Click to continue reading...

Given the focus that this blog has given to United's roster this year, I thought it would be appropriate to base our Mid-Season Review specifically on the roster moves that the team has made. In part 1, we will look at United's acquisitions, meaning the players that the team added since the end of last season that they didn't have to give up anything for. Click to continue reading...

This was the first non-Open-Cup game of the season that I didn't see either in person or on tv, and that's probably a good one. Because aside from maybe the match at RSL early in the year, this was easily DC's worst performance yet. I should have taken the Fullback approach and prepped for this game with some red wine, or better yet, I should have been taking in the game with my arch nemesis Jose. Click to continue reading...

Photo by ISIphotos.com

What happens to the SBI MLS Power Rankings when all five MLS matches end in ties? Can there be much of a change? Can there really be any change?

I say there can be. Let's face it, not every tie is the same.

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After being evaluated today in Germany, it has been decided that both Marcelo Gallardo and Gonzalo Peralta will need surgery for sports hernias. Gallardo will have bilateral sports hernia surgery, which will require him to go under the knife both tomorrow and Saturday, while Peralta only needs work done on the left side which will be completed tomorrow.

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OK, after much delay, a lot of time on the phone with the tech support divisions of two hosting companies, and many more gray hairs, everything is finally back to normal, both here and at Wings For Wheels. 

Since it's late, I'll only say the following about the last two United games: The SuperLiga performances show how Dave Kasper failed to recognize the importance of depth in building a squad that can compete on two fronts.

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Oh dear. So we're looking at Peralta and Gallardo being ready for action by August 7th, at the earliest, and they'll probably need a couple of weeks to get back into something resembling game shape. Given Gallardo's injury history, I'd budget at least another week or two on top of that for him. I seem to remember the last time we trotted down this particular herniated road, it was Namoff Click to continue reading...

This "just in". Marcello Gallardo and Gonzalo Peralta off to Munich to see a groin specialist (what a title!). If they need surgery, which I'll assume they will, they are expected out a little more than a month. Bryan Namoff had this surgery last season and was back in three weeks. Immediate repercussions? Click to continue reading...

United will look to rebound from its 2-1 loss to Chivas de Guadalajara on Saturday when it faces Atlante FC this evening at RFK Stadium in its second SuperLiga Group A match (8 p.m. ET). The game will be broadcast live on TeleFutura and can also be heard on the radio in english (1050 AM) and spanish (1540 AM).

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New England v Santos
* I wonder if Santos is thinking to themselves 'a competition like this and we have to degrade ourselves to playing on something that should be used in making garbage bags or credit cards'?
* A half hour into this game all I can think of 'nil draw'.
* Reason being, besides a high number of fouls, no one has put a chance on goal that I thought was going in.

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Just got finished watching the match immediately following my three hour drive home from Virginia Beach. At least I should say I just got finished watching 81 minutes of the match. I missed the rest thanks to the lights at RFK delaying the match past 10:00 pm. What's with that anyway? That's just embarassing. Click to continue reading...

Equipo Seleccion-tri-Mexico28
Originally uploaded by prismatico Los partidos clasificatorios están a la vuelta de la esquina en la CONCACAF. Sven Goran Eirksson va a conocer Centro América y lo que es Concacaf. Nosotros a su vez lo vamos a conocer en su nueva faceta, o por lo menos en otro lugar fuera de Europa. Click to continue reading...

Quick impressions from the SuperLiga opener at RFK Stadium, a 2-1 win for Chivas over D.C. United:

* Which team was in preseason? If you lined up all 22 players on the field for a sprint across the field, the Chivas players would probably come in first through 11th. They ran fast and played fast. Click to continue reading...

Xolos-edecanes-modelos-11
Originally uploaded by prismatico La primera A iniciara en México en una semana mas, y promete traer emociones, con equipos que no lucharan por ascender, pero otros que han hecho grandes contrataciones y un buen esfuerzo por conseguir el ansiado boleto a Primera división nacional, uno de los mas fuertes sin duda sera Xolos de Tijuana, por eso aquí esta el calendario completo de juegos:

Calendario Apertura 2008

Jornada Fecha Hora Local Visitante Lugar
1 21 jul. Click to continue reading...

Photo courtesy of a loyal MLSR reader.

From Soccer Insider:

The Blanco Situation and Other Tidbits

You all have been asking for more specifics on what exactly happened in last night's game with Blanco. Here's what I can tell you.

In addition to his on-field conduct, which according to D.

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With the 2008 MLS season at its midway point it is a good time to consider the signings MLS teams made last pre-season and how they have done so far. Before we get to that this weekend, I wanted to point to one signing that may be the bust of the year, but a bust you haven't heard much about.

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With United's Open Cup debut scheduled for tomorrow evening at the Maryland SoccerPlex, the coaching staff has some really interesting roster decisions to make. Last year, United took a Harrisburg Islanders squad way too lightly, and supposedly have learned their lesson. Even though the Rochester Rhinos are currently struggling in USL, DC should take this opportunity to earn a Champions League birth seriously. Click to continue reading...

After a couple of underwhelming victories the past few weeks, this win was just what United needed to not only continue their unbeaten streak, but also gain some confidence going into Superliga. Recently, United has been beating lesser opponents while giving up too many goalscoring opportunities. But in this match, against inarguably one of the most talented offensive teams in the league, DC dominated possession, dominated the scoreline, and performed admirably well on defense. Click to continue reading...

The big news from the locker room this morning is that Ben Olsen will be included in the 18-man roster for the first time this season. The club's long tenured midfielder has been fighting through pain all year after ankle surgery in the off-season, but in the last week or so has revved up his training regime.

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Euro 2008 - Espana vs Rusia [Spain vs Russia] - en Semifinales
Originally uploaded by BLOGARJONA La furia española avanza a la Gran Final:
La Selección española de futbol se enfrento a Rusia por segunda vez en este campeonato, luego de que ambos avanzaron de la fase preliminar. Click to continue reading...