Here are a few highlights of things happening in the world of soccer:

* The LA Galaxy defeated Hong Kong United 3-0 behind a Carlos Ruiz hat trick. Two of his goals came in the final 10 minutes in a game that once again David Beckham reminds us all of his marvelous passing ability. Beckham will produce this year in MLS and the pressure is on Ruiz to score goals for LA. The chances will come, will they get consistent finishing?

*The MLS waiver draft came and went with little fanfare like a clandestine secret in the night.
The Dynamo got a cheap bargain in Kyle Brown of Real Salt Lake up front. He scored two goals last year in limited appearances. Can Dominic Kinnear and the container of competition that he has created in Houston bring out the best in this bargain. Based on the success of Joseoph Ngwenya and Nate Jacqua last year one has to keep an eye on this acquisition and that of Argentine Franco Caraccio.
Only two other moves were made with Brandon Prideau being picked up by the Chicago Fire and Jeff Curtain (Jim Curtain’s brother) being picked up by DC United to add some depth at the back.
Noteworthy players not picked up include Kelly Gray a former Houston Dynamo member who went from playing on the Galaxy Asian tour to being dumped. Dynamo fans might wonder why he wasn’t re-acquired and depth in midfield plus a high salary (around $100k) makes him both salary cap prohibitive and positionally not attractive as the need is up front. Players in MLS fall into a danger zone when making 80-100k when clubs look to stay within the confines of the salary cap. Cheaper alternatives are often found for these players and the danger of acquiring one of these players at a lower salary is that you acquire a dissatisfied player upset at this system. Gray is versatile by MLS standards and someone should inquire about him.
It doesn’t mean someone might not come in with an offer to Gray at a reduced rate. Celestine Babayaro a former Nigerian national team member was also dropped by LA and went unclaimed as well.
Kyle Martino of LA who has always possessed a comfort on the ball is out of the picture for the moment as well. The experiment of playing him wide last year under Frank Yallop in LA didn’t work and he clearly is not capable of being a prime playmaker running the show for a time in MLS in a central role. In fact few teams now have out and out playmakers in MLS.

*The U.S. Women knocked off China 4-0 in the Algarve Cup in Portugal behind goals from Lindsay Tarpley, Tobin Heath, Abby Wambach (her 87th career goal) and Carli Lloyd. Coach Pia Sundhage was quoted as saying “four goals are fun” betore also commenting that “womens soccer has become too predictable”. It’s great to hear that honesty.

*Word out of San Antonio is that the playing fields are less than stellar and have rankled some of the MLS squads to the point that Chivas and DC United played their regulars on another field. The reason the games are being played in Cibolo, TX is to draw attention to the building of a stadium or complex that can house more soccer events in a city that has few playing options to host professional soccer matches.
So why didn’t the teams inspect the facilities before making a commitment to the tournament? Strange.

*The United States mens national team could be headed towards playing England at famed Wembley on May 28th in a game that could get David Beckham his 100th cap. Imagine if England had qualified for Euro 2006 and Beckham missed a month of MLS? The U.S. have wisely scheduled other matches against European competition including March 26th vs. Poland and June 4th vs Spain. Argentina also may be a possibility on June 8th. I like the quality of these opponents. As a matter of fact the days of playing Honduras, El Salvador and Costa Rica need to be limited to World Cup qualifying and the Gold Cup.

* What a story the fight for a Champions League place has become for rivals Liverpool and Everton!

*Barcelona star Lionel Messi left the field in tears against Celtic in the Champions league with a muscle tear. The loss of Messi could cost Barcelona the Spanish La Liga title as he is out for 6 weeks. Meanwhile La Liga just went up a notch in importance for Real Madrid after Roma eliminated them yesterday in Champions League play. The “Galacticos” will now focus on winning La Liga over rivals Barcelona who advanced in the Champions League over Celtic.
The EPL looks strong with Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal all advancing. Arsenal knocked off defending Champions AC Milan and could carry that confidence back into their domestic title hunt against Manchester United. Speaking of United Cristiano Ronaldo carries on at a goal a game clip and Real Madrid have sound as though they are prepared to offer him a contract that would pay him $320,000 per week. Yes 320,000. Great work if you can get it.