Dynamo hoping to accelerate talks with Holden………German Bundesliga news from Munich and Mitha

The Dynamo are clearly hoping to accelerate talks with Stuart Holden and are expecting to have a decision before Christmas and maybe as early as next week according to CEO Chris Canetti. As mentioned in earlier blogs it seems the Dynamo would remain very similar to next year if Holden re-signs. If he doesn’t then the Dynamo will clearly be in the market for more players and will have money to put towards those acquisitions and will look alot different in midfield.
I have said that I believe Holden will stay but in the end we must also consider the potential of a work stoppage in MLS which is now being mentioned. Pat Onstad of the Dynamo who is involved with negotiations says the players are preparing for a potential lockout on February 1st. A long lockout would be devasting for the sport and MLS at this stage.
Could Holden be influenced to head overseas because of this potential problem looming? You would think Holden and his agent will consider this among all their criteria.
Check out my column in the Houston Chronicle tomorrow with more thoughts on the CBA….go to chron.com, click sports, click soccer…….also head over to Foxsportshouston.com for another blog that I am doing for FSH……..twitter.com: Soccermattersgd

GERMAN NEWS from Salman Mitha

Global warming? I don’t think so. It’s extremely c-c-c-cold in Germany right now, and I’m sure all the teams will agree with me that the winter break could not come at a more appropriate time. However, with the competition heating up over the past weeks, teams that have turned it recently around may regret the stoppage.
The first team that may want to continue playing is Bayern Munich. Only a few weeks ago Louis Van Gaal was “Mr. No Victory” after three consecutive draws and leading a team that may fall out of the league title race, and the team was about to be eliminated from the Champions League. Now, after beating Juventus in Italy 4-1 and qualifying for the knockout stages of the UCL and wins in the last three league matches the club has risen to third in the table. They take on Berlin Saturday with the return of Franck Ribery a possibility.
Schalke has also turned it around and got another win today against Mainz 1-0 behind a goal from Jefferson Farfan as they now sit at the top of the table.
The win will put pressure on Leverkusen now who have shown signs of fatigue and are looking towards the break. They have drawn twice in consecutive games including against last place Berlin. They face an interesting match against Moenchengladbach and Michael Bradley.
Bremen winless in three take on Hamburg.
The team most needed the break is Wolfsburg the defending champions. They were eliminated from the Champions League and winless in their last four league matches. They sit mid-table and will lose top scorer Edin Dzeko to Italy or England during the break. They need a win against Frankfurt.

A Merry Christmas to all,

Salman Mitha in Munich, Germany