Dear Dynamo fans, fanaticos
I am in search of Dynamo fans that have shown loyalty beyond belief having attending every Dynamo game at home since the team came to Houston?
Do you exist and are you out there?
Email me at gdavis98@swbell.net if you know of any Dynamo fan that fits in this category.

TUESDAY CASUALTY

Richard Mulrooney was injured Tuesday in practice fracturing his cheekbone.
Mulrooney who has been the incumbent right back is now out for Saturday night in New Jersey and had surgery.
Fans can post messages to Mulrooney here on the website while the question now is how does Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear replace Mulrooney who has always been coveted for his distribution.
Does Andrew Hainault move to right back and Wade Barrett re-join the line-up? Julius James? Craig Waibel? Mike Chabala?

Atlante to World Club Championship.
For me this was a real year of opportunity for an MLS Club to have gotten to the World Club Championships. Hard to believe that Atlante is going isn’t it?
What will it take for MLS to win this tournament and why did USL teams succeed to advance further?

Some in the press are notorious for fabricating stories. Hotshot journalists look to make their career with one story while compromising their integrity.
Which leads me to an interesting story about a journalist for the BBC named Harry Harris.
Harris made a contribution to the BBC program Radio 5 Live where he claimed that West Ham manager Gianfranco Zola and first team coach Steve Clarke were planning a move to Chelsea. Both were former players at Chelsea.
During an interview with Zola and Clarke Harris wrongly alleged that they had attended an interview with Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich.
Zola and Clarke have accepted undisclosed libel damages and the BBC said it did not endorse the comments of Harris.
Zola and Clarke apparently were distressed by the claims and feared it would damage their relationship with West Ham United.
To have had any discussions with the management of another club would have constituted a breach of contract.

DYNAMO ALL ACCESS WITH GLENN DAVIS PODCAST IS UP

Go to 790thesportsanimal.com, click podcasts, click Glenn Davis.
Guests on the show were Philadelphia Union CEO Nick Sakiewicz, Dynamo midfielder Stuart Holden and Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear.
Sakiewicz address the new club plus the rumored involvement of AC Milan midfielder Clarence Seedorf and how the “Sons of Ben” supporters group is pushing the sport of soccer in Philly.
Stuart Holden reflects on his “amazing delivery” to Kei Kamara for the lone goal in the FC Dallas win while Dominic Kinnear breaks down the FC Dallas game and the play of his squad.

Is the Dynamo goal the “goal of the week” in MLS? Their is a certain midfielder in Toronto that scored twice and is in the running…..

What a stunning finish to the Mexican league.
Emotions swung back and forth and in the end, INDIOS struck a major blow defeating Chivas 3-1 with two late goals from Hector Horacio Gimenez.
The two goal win meant that giants of Mexican soccer Club America and Chivas were denied the Liguilla playoffs.
For Club America and Chivas fans the feeling can only be muy triste…….
So here are the playoff pairings which I am hoping leads to a Pachuca/ Toluca final as they were the most consistent squads during the season:

Pachuca vs. Jaguares
Toluca vs. Indios
Pumas vs. Tecos
Monterrey vs. Puebla

Necaxa also suffered a huge blow as they have now been relegated to the 2nd division.
Give me your thoughts on the wild finish to the Mexican Futbol League regular season.

FANATICOS, SOCCER FANS….CAN YOU HEAR ME?
Join me tonite for Dynamo All Access with Glenn Davis on 790 The Sports Animal.
We will talk Dynamo, Champions League, Mexican Football league and I have a few surprises for you. Gold Cup tickets also will be given away.

CALL IN NUMBER is 713-212-5790

Show streams live on the internet at 790thesportsanimal.com and mlsnet.com

Guests: Dominic Kinnear Dynamo coach
Stuart Holden Dynamo midfielder
Nick Sakiewicz Team President PHILADELPHIA UNION
MYSTERY GUEST

POLL QUESTION: Who wins the Champions League final in Rome. BARCELONA OR MANCHESTER UNITED?

Thanks to all the fans that attended the post game radio show outside the Dynamo locker room Saturday night and whom called in with post games thoughts!

What a night at Robertson Stadium! Close to 17,000 fans in an “orange” filled dream that ended up the right way for the good guys.
One thing we clearly all have learned is that few teams will come in to Robertson Stadium and “open up” against the Dynamo.
Week in and week out the challenge for the Dynamo at home will be to break down thick, compact , immovable defenses.
What I mean by “open up” is come to aggressively attack and create. To try and produce chances as opposed to being destructive, negative and hopeful for a break or a free kick.
I like seeing teams that are just playing the “road tactics” card called out. Ok, enough of my soapbox!

The Dynamo controlled this one throughout the evening barring a period of 10-14 minutes when F.C. Dallas responded to the goal and put pressure on the Dynamo. It also occurred when they pulled off left back Blake Wagner and brought on Dax McCarty moving to a three back system.

THE GOAL: It came in the 58th minute and was a nice three man move finally getting the Dynamo behind the FC Dallas defense. Brad Davis picked out a streaking Stuart Holden. It looked as though it was going to run over the end-line and Holden produced a spectacular play by getting their and turning a tremendous left footed cross in to the box. At this point FC Dallas defenders were frozen and KEI KAMARA got a great run at it and pounded his header past Ray Burse. Class goal and a relief to the close to 17,000.

IT COULD HAVE CHANGED THE TACTICS: One always wants an early goal and the Dynamo almost had it against a deep, defending team. Bobby Boswell’s header in the 10th minute beat FC Dallas goalkeeper Ray Burse but was kicked off the line. A goal here and Dallas would have had to re-think their long term tactics.

THE MISSES: The normally reliable Brian Ching missed two clear cut chances which would have made the night more comfortable. In the 38th minute he was set up beautifully by Brad Davis but put his shot over the top. In the 52nd minute it was unbelievable the in-attentiveness of left back Wagner of FC Dallas. He turned his back to a throw in which went over his head and put Brian Ching in. With only Burse to beat, Ching put his shot in to the side-netting.

DALLAS TACTICS: FC Dallas kept a line of four defenders with holding midfielder Marcelo Saragosa as a protective shield. Dave van den Berg and Andre Rocha both sat back wide in midfield completing a block of 7 and never looked as though they wanted to go at anybody? Colombian David Ferrierra never in touched the ball the first 22 minutes and must have been questioning his move to MLS as FC Dallas just kicked the ball over the halfway line towards Ken Cooper JR and Jeff Cunningham hoping for a lapse in concentration.
Cooper JR., Cunningham and Ferierra rarely were on the ball in this match. Their best period of play and involvment came after the Dynamo goal.
Cunningham off the initial kickoff in each half looked close to getting put through.

FC DALLAS COMES CLOSE WITH ONLY ONE SHOT ON GOAL: Like every soccer match, every team gets a good chance. FC Dallas got theirs in stoppage time when van den Berg created space for himself on the left and whipped in a cross that was met by center-back George John. It was right at Onstad but if that goes in on this night we would be lamenting missed chances. FC Dallas finally got Ferriera on the ball in the 76th minute after a loss of possession and he threatend by finding Cooper JR.
Amazing how quickly on the shorter field that if you lose possession in a bad area you can get punished.

HOLDEN AND CLARK: The midfield partnership looked solid with Clark as the axis and it continues to blossom. Clark marked Ferrierra out of the game and it seems that three or four times a half he needs to go forward out of that deep midfield position to bring an element of surprise. The few times he did it posed questions for FC Dallas.
Holden made some wise choices on the ball and the field seemed very fast altering a few of his passes.

BRIAN MULLAN is coming on and had success against Wagner.

DYNAMO CENTER BACKS WERE SOLID and it is interesting to see Jeff Cameron continue to grow as a central defender bringing lots of choices to Dominic Kinnear in the future. Andrew Hainault defending well at left back and no one got behind him. Not the easiest thing to play left back if you are mainly right footed because your tendency can be to carry your first touch towards the middle and pressure.

SUPPORTERS GROUPS: The supposed 200 fans did not show for FC Dallas but major props to those that did attend adding to the atmosphere! Way to go.
I liked the Pablo Ricchetti jersey that was flown late in the game to honor their midfielder. Angel of death was cool from the Texian Army once they got it upright. Very detailed and cool. El Battalon rocked with the giant orange and black flag that spread across the entire section. A great spectacle for all!!!!

FIREWORKS: Credit the Dynamo FO for some great fireworks even though they had to ingnite them at halftime based on espn and city codes. I had my head out of the window in the press area checking these beauties out. What a sporting value!!!

BRINGING IT TO YOU: That is the idea behind the post game radio call in show that I host down at autograph alley. It is a great place to convene post game with tons of Dynamo players signing autographs and adding that important personal touch. Great to see all the young fans down their in magical moments with their stars! This goes a long way…..

What are your thoughts on the DYNAMO win over FC DALLAS?

JOIN ME TOMORROW NIGHT FOR DYNAMO ALL ACCESS WITH GLENN DAVIS from 7-9pm on 790 The Sports Animal.

PHILADELPHIA UNION will join MLS next year and will be announced Monday and I will have their executive leader Nick Sakiewicz on the show plus more . So check out the blog to get more info on guests as they get locked in . This is a “call to arms” for you the fan to join me tomorrow night as we continue to push the frontiers of soccer on the radio.
Call in number is 713-212-5790

What matches are you watching today. Currently I am catching Arsenal and Chelsea.

Quick interview I did with FC Dallas defender Drew Moor who grew up in the DFW area playing his youth soccer. FC Dallas comes off a 2-1 loss to DC United at RFK Stadium. Despite being outplayed they held a 1-0 lead in the first half before being beaten by two Jaime Moreno goals . Particularly disturbing for FC Dallas was the fact that these were very direct goals that came through the heart of their defense. Now you can always just put the accountability on the back four but they seem to be struggling positionally. The first Moreno goal came off a 60 yard direct ball from Bryan Namoff that Moreno was allowed to control between two defenders with FC Dallas defender Daniel Torres inexplicably moving to his left to I assume read the pass:

GD: The squad is struggling defensively, can you put a finger on anything?

DMoor: It’s something I think about every day and every night. We’ve been punished for a lack of concentration. We’ve made mistakes at bad times.

GD: The challenge against your rivals the Dynamo is a big one but could be used as a source of motivation right?

DMoor: This isn’t a normal game for us. We consider this a rivalry game and need points. We the the mind-set to take three points away from them. Season’s can be turned
around.

GD: You are rumored to be moving to right back for this game. Do you have a preference to play at right back or center back?

DMoor: I feel like I have played as much in each position and bouncing back and forth can be challenging.

GD: What has to happen as a team against the Dynamo?

DMoor: We need to match their intensity and alot of that comes from midfield. It is a tough place to play (Robertson). They are relentless, intensity is the big word.

MORE THOUGHTS ON THE DYNAMO AND FC DALLAS

If you are debating about whether you are going tonite I can break your gridlock? Go to the game LIVE! You won’t regret it. This will be intense, fireworks post game and of course you can also come down to autograph alley and get player signatures plus catch my live radio call in show post game on 790 The Sports Animal. Lots of fun and an additional value for you the fan. We are bringing the fan experience to you , so come join me after the game. Also the number to call in to get on the air is 713-212-5790 and I always like to get the opinion and thoughts of you the FANATICO!

Keep an eye on these matchups:

BRIAN MULLAN vs. BLAKE WAGNER- Wagner likes to attack and get forward but something tells me today Mullan could have a field against the FC Dallas left back.
Remember in pre-season and I said pre-season, Mullan absolutely schooled Wagner at will down the right side.

RICARDO CLARK and MARCELO SARAGOSA- Clark is the axis upon which the Dynamo midfield rolls. Saragosa a Brazilian will move from right back to a postion as a holding
midfielder that he has played mostly in MLS. The two will look to establish the middle third of the field in a territorial encounter.
The tackles will be flying.

If all the supposed changes occur from FC Dallas it will be a total shake up and they will be left with alot of youth at the back. Steve Purdy and George John will play at center back positions and Moor will be moved to right back with Wagner at left back. Which leads me back to the midfield and who establishes this area as theirs through effort, posession and overall control. Back fours are only as good as the play in front of them. For Dallas to have any chance today they must play well in midfield.
Lets also not forget the Dynamo was impressive but still scored off a goalkeeper error and corner kick. Lets hope they get some great chances through the run of the play today.
Could be a goal scoring break out game for the Dynamo ……Jeff Cunningham who can fly and is always unpredictable is expected to start if you believe what is coming out of Dallas.

COURTESY OF THE ELIAS SPORTS BUREAU
If you are a stats person here is one for you tonite. Peter Hirdt of the Elias Sports Group brings you this. FC Dallas striker Kenny Cooper will be come only the third players in MLS history to start 40 consecutive games as a striker. The mark is currently held by Taylor Twellman of NE and Alejandro Moreno of Columbus. So there you have it stats lovers….

LOOKING AHEAD TO THE NEW YORK TOROS
Was this a case of a “new” New York Red Bulls under Juan Carlos Osorio or just a reflection of how bad San Jose is right now.
Might just be a little bit of both. To New York credit they came to play last night.
Talk about a team that is consisent with poor individual play, the Earthquakes are in real trouble and are missing key components. I can’t think how disappointed Earthquakes coach Frank Yallop has to be in players that have been given opportunity due to injury.
They have just not been able to get it done.
New York scored 4 goals in 40 minutes at Giants Stadium. Three out of the four goals were clear individual mistakes from San Jose.
Rojas (2), Angel and M. Kandji getting the goals for New York.
The Dynamo hit the fake stuff at Giants Stadium next Saturday. Catch it on KHOU 11.2.

Thoughts on the Dynamo/FC Dallas and your soccer weekend?

The Dynamo went through a light workout this morning ahead of tomorrow’s MLS encounter at Robertson Stadium against FC Dallas.
The good news is that the poor Robertson Stadium surface is looking in good shape and is a vivid green.

PHILADELPHIA NAME AND LOGO LEAKED

It is the PHILADELPHIA UNION. That is the new name of the Philly franchise that begins play in MLS in 2010.
I personally love the name! According to the club the name represents the working class roots of Philly plus the city’s role in the formation of our government.
The logo and name were leaked on the MLS web-page and the name also is similar to those used in South America like Union de Sante Fe.
Pretty cool.
Now lets hope that some politician on Monday (Unveiling of name and logo) doesn’t find a way to politicize the name when it is unveiled. Reminds me of a past naming issue? Remember?

Three Dynamo youth players are heading to Germany this month to represent the United States at the u15 level against Germany.
Two of the three are local youth area products who will be a part of a soccer changing exerience.
Forward Bryan Celis , goalkeeper Fernando Pina are both local players from the Dynamo Academy while Eric Sanchez hails from the Dynamo South Texas Academy.
A great start? You bet.
For these three players they will experience a trip of a lifetime that could catapult their vision of the sport and their place in it.
A good performance in Germany and any one of the trio could land a spot at the Bradenton Academy in Florida in the U.S. u17 residency program that has produced players like Landon Donovan and DaMarcus Beasley.
James Clarkson heads up the Dynamo Academy.

FC DALLAS

Make no mistake. This is a big game for both teams and having been at Dynamo practice yesterday and heading down today and it is clear the Dynamo are focused.
FC Dallas is in free-fall having won only one game.
Is it me or has this squad been re-building for 10 years? Poor signings including Duilio Davino and Denilson were stretches to change the course of success and the squad has gone through coaches rapidly like Colin Clarke (now Puerto Rico Islanders who play tonite at Austin), Steve Morrow and now Schellas Hyndman.
FC Dallas is clearly pointing at this emotional rivalry game to try and turn their season around on national tv (Espn).
Now as someone who calls games for Espn, the network loves it when their are passionate crowds so lets fill Robertson and make a statement Saturday night.
Incidentally, after the game come join me near autograph alley for the live post game radio call in show on 790 The Sports Animal.
Tomorrow morning I will break down the Dynamo and FC Dallas in my weekly Houston Chronicle soccer column.
Great ticket values for this game can be found at HoustonDynamo.com, ticket specials also can be found at Fiesta. Expect a post-game fireworks show and more!

ANTON PETERLIN

You probably never heard of him but he is a new signing for Everton in England.
Peterlin spent 10 days in Liverpool recently and was awarded a contract with the Toffees whose squad includes U.S. international goalkeeper Tim Howard.
Peterlin played college soccer at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
Peterlin got the tryout after being discovered playing for the PDL squad the Ventura County Fusion.
Fusion coach Graham Smith recommended him to Everton coach David Moyes.
Peterlin has described training sessions at Everton with players like Australian international Tim Cahill and Mikel Arteta.
Peterlin will sign his contract apparently in July when Everton comes to the states to play the MLS All Stars.
Stay tuned for more on this Monday on Dynamo All Access with Glenn Davis…

DIDIER APOLOGIZES
Didier Drogba apologized for his out-burst after the recent Champions League draw with Barcelona.
“I was very upset at what happened during the game, but have seen pictures on tv and I accept that I over-reacted,” said Drogba.

MEXICAN LEAGUE OPENS UP THE GATES
It will be strange because the Mexican Federation is putting some conditions on the opening of stadiums in the final week of regular season play.
Fans must wear facemasks, wash their hands upon entering the stadium, walk to their seats in single file. Every fan will be quizzed on their health while every other seat will be empty. Families will be allowed to sit together.
Mexican league possibilities remain wide open heading into the final weekend .

GOOD TV WATCHING THIS WEEKEND

Check out the Austin Aztex vs. Puerto Rico Islanders on FSC tonite. Former area player Sandi Gbandi plays in midfield for the Islanders and scored two goals against Cruz Azul in the Concacaf sem-finals. Ironically, former FC Dallas coach Colin Clarke manages Puerto Rico.

Saturday:
Everton vs. Spurs 9am FSC
West Ham vs. Liverpool 11am FSC
Club America vs,. Necaxa at 9pm Telefutura

Sunday
Man U vs Man City 7:30 AM Setanta
Arsenal vs. Chelsea 10:00 am FSC
Milan vs Juventus 1:30 FSC
Sounders vs. LA 2pm Telefutura

What games will you be watching and what does your soccer weekend entail?

We look at these calls:

#1 24th minute Dani Alves and Florent Malouda in the corner both equally using their body, does Malouda flop back embellishing the call. Further complicating things are that it
may have been called in the box. In the end Chelsea get a free kick but one could make an aguement for Malouda embellishing.

#2 27th min: Drogba and Abidal, Drogba goes down easily. I don’t see a penalty, do you?

#3 56th min: Drogba again in the box, Drogba doesn’t protect the ball well enough and allows a tackle and then goes down dramatically rolling around.

#4 82nd minute: Anelka and Pique, this in my opinion was the one that should have been called. Pique admits he handled it without intent. Not that it matters.
This was a clear penalty.

#5 Stoppage time: Michael Ballack shot hits a turning away Samuel Eto’o under the arm…..Ballack chases referee hoping to influence. Even Ballack knows this is not a penalty
but worth a try to influence the referee.

The only clear cut penalty out of the bunch is #4 in my opinion. Any of the others if called would have been controversial.
What are your thoughts after having another look at these?

The Dynamo take on FC Dallas this Saturday at Robertson Stadium at 8pm.
The game is nationally televised on Espn2 and the hope of many is to fill the “Rob” to send out a great message about soccer support in our town.
Be their for a game that will take on a different meaning to different teams.
The Dynamo with a win and home games in the near future can jump right back into it in the Western Conference while FC Dallas has to be looking at this game as a platform moment to try and turn the early part of their season around.
After taking a 1-0 lead last weekend at DC through Andres Rocha, FC Dallas was beaten on a pair of goals from Jaime Moreno.
So what is the best moment in helping to make this rivalry?
For me you go back to 2006 at the Pizza Hut Park where the Dynamo took on the NE Revolution in the MLS Cup Final.
It had to hurt the home squad and fans as hosts of the Cup to see their stadium filled with “Orange” supporters from Houston.
Not to mention the dramatic comeback equalizer in overtime from Brian Ching and then the penalty kick win. What a moment for the fans and the Dynamo franchise in their first year.
“The best year of my life,” said Dynamo hero Brian Ching.

BARCELONA/CHELSEA FALLOUT

The fall out from this one is going to be talked about for a long time.
Referee Tom Henning Ovrebo is the brunt of all the attention from Chelsea and their supporters for blowing this one from a referee performance stand-point.
Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink, striker Didier Drogba and John Terry all criticised the Norwegian referee.
Hiddink has mentioned being robbed and injustice.
What else do we expect Chelsea to do after the final whistle and a tying Andres Iniesta goal? The turn around of emotion was unreal.

Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola is hailing the fighting spirit of his squad and had this to say about the refereeing.
“I understand that the Chelsea people may be a bit disappointed as I’ve been told there could have been some possible penalties, but to tell you the truth I didn’t see anything,” said Guardiola.

Not many are talking about Drogba and his clear one on one miss.
Some fans are even saying there is a conspiracy from UEFA to not have Chelsea in the final.

The saga goes on?

I was never up for the Manchester United /Chelsea all England final.
Barcelona and the soccer gods come to the rescue at Stamford Bridge. This was billed as tactics vs. more skilled opposition and truly that is how Chelsea and Guus Hiddink played it.
If they felt they could have played more open against Barcelona then they would have done it. Call it a sign of respect for Barcelona.
Instead Chelsea at home sat back defended well and put on a feast for the eyes for tacticians who love a plan carried out for perfection.
I must say other than outside back Daniel Alves where was the width in the Barca attack? Lionel Messi flared up occasionally but didn’t produce much.
Just when we were about to be told about the tactical genius in this win of Hiddink and Chelsea in waltzes Andries Iniesta who hits an unbelievable goal to tie it at one and advance Barcelona to the Champions League final against Barcelona. Chelsea hearts are broken in a blink of an eye.
Chelsea was an immovable object defending deep at home and Lionel Messi and company could not break them down. Alves was their main threat and Thierry Henry was a huge miss as was Carlos Puyol and Rafa Marquez.
The amazing hit from Michael Essien left me breathless……to put Chelsea up. It was a wonder goal and further defined the defend and counter tactics.
To be fair Didier Drogba on this night turned into a “diver” as did others on Chelsea. English teams being more in integrity than others when it comes to diving does not hold up on this occasion . I thought the big man Drogba went to the ground rather easily and then we see him sourrounding the referee after the game with other Chelsea players.
I for one am glad this is Manchester United vs. Barcelona in the final. It just seems far more appealing and it will be interesting to see the tactical thought process of Alex Ferguson.

GOALS OF AMAZING QUALITY:

First the MICHAEL ESSIEN “goal of a lifetime” was a stunning volley off his left foot that fell to him. He just lashed it in!!!

ANDRES INIESTA’S goal was magical because he never had a run at it to hit it. He was basically planted on one foot and hit it amazingly well. Watch the video and you will see he does not get a proper run up to the ball which is what makes this even more amazing!

Give me your thoughts? Drogba a diver? Barca lucky and Chelsea unlucky or was this a win for football?

Not that this should be any surprise to anyone but according to Italian media, David Beckham is hoping to never play another game in MLS.
Beckham, again according to the Italian media, has instructed his lawyers to find a loop-hole and get him out of the contract.
Beckham is expected to return to LA during June to finish the rest of the MLS season before re-joining AC Milan presumably in 2010.
I have mentioned this before like others that there is no way that he is relishing coming back to MLS with the World Cup in South Africa right around the corner and his want to be in that squad.
There is no telling what his management group or handlers are telling this man and the story is deeper than we will ever know.
Will coming back to MLS now even look in integrity and in earnest from Beckham?