So the DYNAMO head to CANADA for game to of a four game tour that takes them to four different countries.
Tuesday they play a huge match in MEXICO against UNAM Pumas in Mexico City and then head to the altitude of Colorado to take on ARSENAL…eerr, uh I mean the COLORADO RAPIDS. Or is it the CRUSH? Whatever.
Having called the Toronto FC / Kansas City game last weekend I can only say they were bad. Little effort, little organization and only two players who seemed to care. Defender JULIUS JAMES (excellent rookie out of UCONN) and goalkeeper GREG SUTTON.
At some point MAPLE LEAF SPORTS who owns the franchise is going to believe the TORONTO FC honeymoon with the fans will eventually want a winner. I can’t see this travesty of players coming in and going out lasting…..33 players used this year.
Soon every player in MLS will have had a stint in Toronto.
SO WHY HASNT A PLAN BEEN DEVELOPED AND WHY HASN’T TORONTO FC EVENTUALLY STUCK WITH A BASE OF PLAYERS TO BUILD A TEAM. WHY HAVEN’T THEY MONITORED THE SITUATION OF THE BETTER TEAMS AROUND MLS AND TAKEN A PAGE OUT OF THEIR BOOKS? WAS THIS REALLY PROGRESS IN TORONTO THIS YEAR?
OK off the soapbox and back to tonite. As bad as TORONTO was last weekend I can sense on the artificial surface in front of 20,000 fans some sort of pride will come out of their players. Pride not to be embarrassed , not to mention playing for jobs?
DANIEL DICHIO who played in Italy and is a hulking center forward should start in the place of CARLOS RUIZ.
AMADO GUEVARA is their midfield leader (scary thought). Oh don’t get me wrong, he is a beautifully talented soccer player but not a leader of men nor a player that will lead you to deep glory. In fact JOHN CARVER knows this.
As for the DYNAMO, expect some differences in the lineup from their last match in PANAMA and don’t expect to see much of BRIAN CHING. Dominic Kinnear is trying to win games, put out strong lineups while keeping the eye on the big picture of the volume of games in both MLS and CONCACAF CHAMPIONS CUP.
DYNAMO score first it will be a monster psychological blow to TORONTO FC…..here’s to a Dynamo win and leaving that fair city without injury.
As for me I am calling the SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES home match against REAL SALT LAKE tonite in SAN JOSE
You have to admit it is great to see that all these games now are beginning to have huge meaning in getting into the playoffs.
Getting through July and August is tough in MLS.
Don’t forget radio this Wednesday and hope you enjoyed last night’s DYNAMO SOCCER REPORT on CHANNEL 55. Catch the DYNAMO there this afternoon at 2:45 and then catch us on HDNET in SAN JOSE with the QUAKES and RSL’ers .
As I leave I want to know your pre and post game thoughts on the DYNAMO TORONTO FC match.
Glenn
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Glenn,
The Toronto lineup almost seems to be too talented to be playing this bad – even if you had 2 or 3 guys give great individual efforts they should be respectible. Dynamo need to adapt to the surface and I think be agressive in getting the first goal rather than sitting back defensively. Team should be relatively fresh.
ON the soccer report last night you mentioned the possibility of ESPN acquiring the EPL rights and how it would affect Fox Soccer Channel. Having ESPN involved in any sport or league raises its profile (just look at the NHL now that it is off ESPN) but right now FSC goes about as wall to wall as they can with EPL action from the weekends and throughout the week and I question if ESPN would give the EPL the same depth of coverage unless they convert ESPN Classic to a soccer channel or block out a lot of ESPN2 space. Years ago, ESPN did have EPL rights and I recall some games being shown on delay on Monday afternoons or something like that. They like to cherry pick the best content and throw the rest out but they have picked up the Champions League coverage (by the way, is it odd that ESPN sideboards are up during the CONCACAF Champs League contests when they don’t have rights in the US?).
IF ESPN were to get the US rights for the EPL exclusively, it probably would be the death blow for FSC. From a realistic perspective, I’m not sure there is enough interest or legitimate inventory for both FSC & GOL TV to exist economically.
Congrats on HDnet getting fully on Comcast.