SuperLiga Groups Announced... sort a.

According to the Houston Chronicle, the 2008 North American SuperLiga participants have been decided and groups have been drawn.

Group A
- PUMAS
- New England Revolution
- Chivas USA
- Atlante

Group B
- Houston Dynamo
- Chivas de Guadularara
- Pachuca
- DC United

DC United will host all of their matches at RFK Stadium.

It does appear that the actual schedule for this tournament has yet to be determined, as DC United's schedule only has the All Star game listed for July. Now unless MLS has finally realized that a month break in the summer would actually help the quality of play in the league (which I doubt that they would ever do) the lack of schedule matches for July leads me to believe that SuperLiga will take place in July, but they aren't sure as to when exactly. Houston only has one match listed on their schedule, as does New England. Chivas USA have two on their schedule.

All in all, the group looks very tough, so the guys who do take part in the group stage matches should have good matches. I assume that Tom Soehn's priority list for 2008 might look a little like this:

1a. CONCACAF Champions Cup (as it comes first)
1b. MLS Cup
2. Supporters Shield
3. CONCAF Champions League
4. SuperLiga Championship
5. US Open Cup

I haven't heard or seen anything either for or against this, but as the CONCACAF Champions League will be taking place during the same time frame as the CONMEBOL Copa Nissan Sudamericana, I would assume that CONCACAF clubs will not be taking part in that tournament any longer. I will keep an eye out for this one.

I am one of those people who actually likes the SuperLiga. Yes, it is a made up tournament, but most tournaments have to start somewhere. Yes, the matches don't truly test the MLS clubs as they do not have the travel "quirks" of heading to Mexico for group matches. All in all, as I said last year, the tournament is a very good idea and has to begin somewhere.

I would ultimately like to see the group stages involve 6 games, 3 home and 3 away. unfortunately, this type of thing will not be done until MLS rosters get larger and the salary caps get bigger. MLS clubs would pass out if they had the mid week travel matches in Mexico, then the MLS matches, then right afterwards the CONCACAF Champions League matches, which will require more travel matches.

Until MLS increases the roster sizes and the salary caps, the SuperLiga, in its current format, is a good stepping stone to giving more MLS clubs exposure to matches outside of MLS. This is a good start.

CD Guadalajara fires Manager after DC United Loss

According to CNN/SI.com, CD Guadalajara fired their manager, Jose Manuel de la Torre after their first round loss to DC United in the Copa Nissan Sudamericana. Chivas are currently 4th in their Mexican league group and haven't exactly been scoring as many goals as they are expected to. Torre has been replaced by Efrain Flores.

This should make the Tuesday night match in Guadalajara alot more interesting. Not to say that they will fold like Chelsea did against Manchester United with their new manager, but considering that Flores will only have a few days to try and get his troops in line, this should bode well for DC United.

Match Recap: DC United 2 - 1 CD Guadalajara

This is turning out to be one very long season for DC United. They started it off a month before the most of MLS started play with the CONCACAF Champions Cup in late February. They would ultimately be knocked out of the tournament in the Semi-Finals by CD Guadalajara. They then marched right into the MLS regular season along with the rest of the league. In July, DC United ventured into the USOC, getting knocked out by the Harrisburg City Islanders (all be it while using a second string team). United followed that performance up with the inaugural North American SuperLiga, in which they advanced all the way to the Semi-Finals, losing to FC David Beckham.

Now as the MLS regular season is winding down and the playoffs are looming overhead, DC United once again makes an other trip outside of the league for more competition, the Copa Nissan Sudamericana. Not only is this tournament a chance to face off against outside opponents, but as United were matched up against the very club that knocked them out of the CONCACAF Champions Cup, CD Guadalajara, revenge was definitely an item on the agenda.

Last night United hosted CD Guadalajara in the first match of the two match, home/away series, picking up a 2-1 victory in a very difficult situation. United was vastly outplayed for the first 25 minutes of the match, but was able to steal a 23rd minute goal. Both sides settled down after the Ben Olsen goal and the match looked pretty even handed until the 44th minute when defender Marc Burch picked up his second yellow card of the half and was sent packing to the showers. Considering the situation: playing an in season CD Guadalajara and just going down a man, being up 1-0 at halftime was pretty good.

The second half I expected to see Bobby Boswell come on to fill in for Bursch (as well as Boswell can do on the side) and either have Moreno or Fred be taken off for the extra defender. The way that Boswell was warming up during the break made me think he was infact coming in. Instead, Tom Soehn sent out the same 10 guys who finished the first half and ten minutes into the second half, United was able to pounce on a defensive lapse in the Chivas defense. Gomez sent a free kick right into the Chivas wall, but none of the Goats were able to clear it. Clyde Simms jumped on it and sent the ball into the bottom far corner through traffic. United, down a man, was now up 2-0.

United then weathered one helluva storm for the next 35 minutes. Chivas had about 4 shots in the first half, but they finished the match with 21, you do the math. Yes, Troy Perkins was beat on the 61st minute goal, but I honestly think it was more of total defensive lapse that allowed the cross to come through the box, rather than Troy getting caught on the wrong side of the goal mouth.

Troy looked like he was having a bad game. He was making some really great saves and came off his line when he needed to, but his goal kicks were awful. When I say he looked like he was having a bad game, his facial expressions made me think that he wasn't there last night. Ironically, he actually looked stronger after Chivas scored, hopefully he doesn't require that type of motivation next week in Mexico.

All in all, this is a great result. DC United only requires a draw in Mexico to advance and take on Arsenal of Argentina. If United were to advance, they would play their Quarter Final home/away series over mid to late October, which is right in the middle of the MLS Cup playoffs. Not trying to get ahead of ourselves, but even though advancing through this international tournament would be a huge thing for the club; is this the point where we start making the hard choices and decide which competition to put all of our eggs into? What's more important; MLS Supporters Shield....the MLS Cup....or the Copa Nissan Sudamericana? I for one think that the level of importance is in the exact order I put them in, as the Supporters Shield is the one title that United has the most control over, as in, they currently control their own destiny with that title.

Next up for United is the Saturday home match against Toronto FC, who recently broke out of their 15 year goal drought. See you all at RFK Saturday night.

Soccer News & Notes: 7/25/2007

LA Galaxy win first SuperLiga Match; FC Dallas Draw
God I love Landon Donovan! This guy has a nack for making people eat the same stuff that they throw at him. After the Beckham circus match Saturday night, pretty much everyone dropped Donovan on his head for missing the open header late in the match and basically being invisible through out the entire match. I even said that the Galaxy would finish dead last in their SuperLiga group.

Well, he proved me wrong and showed the rest of the media that he can still step up in matches. Donovan scored the match winner as the Galaxy, minus Golden Balls, defeated Pachuca 2-1 last night. As FC Dallas drew with Chivas de Guadalajara 1-1, the Galaxy currently sit at the top of the Group A standings.

FC Dallas draw with Chivas.
The other SuperLiga match of the night had FC Dallas draw with Chivas de Guadalajara 1-1, despite an apparent hand ball that lead to the Chivas goal that tied the score at 1-1. FC Dallas played a man short for the end of the match as Drew Moor was sent off for shoving Chivas captain Hector Reynoso.

I watched the first half of this match and I was shocked at how hard these guys were hitting each other. The hitting was fierce and the passing was horrible. FC Dallas had terrible passes through out the entire first half, and it made me wonder if it was only time until Chivas snuck in with a goal. Chivas themselves weren't that much better, but they did have faster build ups in the offense, which I thought would be the difference. I figured teh score would be 1-0 for Chivas.

Freddy off to Benfica?
The AP is reporting that MLS and Benfica have agreed to a $2 million dollar transfer for Freddy Adu, but Freddy and Benfica have yet to agree to personal terms of the contract. Freddy was back in the Real Salt Lake line up as they hosted Boca Juniors in an international friendly last night, which finished 1-1. Negotiations appear to be on going.

I really, really like this move, assuming that Freddy can agree to personal terms with Benfica. Moving to Portugal provides Freddy with the chance to face an entirely different environment and get alot more playing pressure on him, rather than marketing pressure. At Benfica, Freddy will have to fight for playing time in training, something that Peter Nowak was trying to get him to understand and what he said he figured out with his two week training session last year with Manchester United. He won't be the media darling of the entire league, like he head been over here. His game should improve greatly, assuming that he moves. I am just happy that he wants the greater challenge, unlike some other guys.

Eddie Johnson turns Derby down.
Speaking of Americans getting chances to move overseas, Eddie Johnson has reportedly turned down Derby's offer to joining the EPL side this season. Derby has just been promoted to the EPL and were looking to bring EJ in to bolster its offense. In 2005, Benfica offered MLS a reported $6 million for EJ's contract, but the league turned them down.

As I said before, I think that EJ should move, especially with his stock so "high." The guy has been lighting up MLS, 12 goals in 11 games, but his game needs to go higher, especially if he wants to truly be an international goal scoring threat for the USMNT. Playing in the EPL would have forced him to become quicker, not only on his feet, but in his head.

Poor decision EJ, poor decision.

Here it comes…SuperLiga!

Ok, so how long has it been since the inaugural SuperLiga tournament was announced along with the participants and the bitching? After all of the complaining, arguing and debates, we are finally set to see inform MLS clubs go against pre-season Mexican clubs with 1 Million dollars up for the winner.

So what should we expect? Should we see the MLS clubs wipe the field with their Mexican opponents? The Mexican clubs are in preseason form after all, so they should be rusty and ripe for the picking.

I doubt that we will see anything other than some interesting matches. Clubs on both sides of the Rio Grande should do well, but I think we will see something of a Houston vs. Pachuca final. Houston is playing very well right now and Pachuca seem to have everything falling into place for them.

I am worried about two of the MLS clubs, the LA Galaxy and DC United. The Galaxy will be entering their second straight international tournament in pretty much as many weeks. They lost 3-0 to Tigres and 1-0 to Chelsea this last week. Considering that they have already faced a pre-season Mexican club and fared poorly, how are they going to do against two of the better Mexican sides? The Galaxy are still trying to figure out who is playing which position and what formation works the best. Pavon picked up a knock in the Chelsea match and that other guy from England doesn’t seem to be ready to really play until maybe Saturday against Chivas. I was impressed with their defensive form against Chelsea. Xavier played out of his mind in central defense and Cannon saved their bacon 4 or 5 times. That said, I expect the Galaxy to finish last in their group, using the three matches essentially as a pre-season run at the new players and see which formation works the best and to get them back in form for the MLS regular season.

DC United on the other hand really haven’t had that much of a run of good form lately. In their last four matches, they are 0-3-1, having been shut out in the three losses and having blown a 3-0 lead at home n the draw. So now the injury depleted Black & Red have to face two of Mexico’s best then travel to Houston and face the MLS leading Dynamo, one of the clubs that shut them out in those three losses. Considering that Tom Soehn should have both Ben Olsen and Fred available (Olsen had to sit out the RBNY match and Fred gets an MLS sponsored vacation when United face the Revolution on August 5th) I expect them both to be in the lineup for Wednesday nights match against Morelia. If United can get three points against Morelia, a draw against America then hopefully they will not have to worry about their match against Houston. If not, I think based on their current form, United might miss out on playing passed the group phase in this tournament.

Overall, my opinion of this tournament hasn’t really changed. I think that it is a great idea and one that will hopefully grow with each season that we see it. Based on Commissioner Garber’s statements on MLSnet.com, I think that it will:

“Matt from Chapel Hill, N.C.: What are your expectations of SuperLiga this year? Will it ever go to a Home and Away format? Will it expand? Will it be on TV in English?

Don Garber: We're launching SuperLiga in a reduced format this year and still have some work to do to determine the future structure of the tournament. I certainly hope we can achieve a home and away competition with expanded teams but this year have to determine the tournament's success before we move forward.” - MLSnet.com

The biggest thing that will determine its future is if the first run is a success. In order for the tournament to be a success, the current fans need to get behind it. It seems that a lot of MLS fans are shunning this tournament because the teams were selected instead of teams that won some type of qualification to get in.

I think that once the matches get started, there will be plenty of fans in the seats and we will see this tournament become a success. As MLS/SUM/MPD begin planning the next SuperLiga, hopefully they will take any mistakes from this one and eliminate them and expand the tournament to include more clubs. I would ultimately like to see MLS/SUM/MPD begin to invite the top two clubs from Costa Rica as well.

My Trip to Mexico.

I ended up having to spend the last week in Mexico City for work and while I was there, I was able to enjoy the World's game from a different point of view.

I spent part of Wednesday watching the UEFA Champions League Final with several Mexico's and other Latin Americans and I have to say, that wasn't that great a match. Liverpool looked the better of the two sides, but Milan was able to play a better second half than their first and that was all that mattered.

Later that night I sat in Papa Bill's Saloon drinking Sol and Dos Equies while watching America play on a very wet field against Santos in the Copa Libertadores. America sent it's Second team to Brasil because their First team are playing against Pachuca in the Apertura Finals tonight and Sunday. While I was still a little unsure why a club would send two separate teams to play in two separate tournaments, I watched America take a 1-0 lead into half time against Santos. That lead would soon evaporate as Santos came out firing on all cylinders and won the match 2-1 behind two great second half goals. I understand that winning the Apertura championship is the highest importance in America's plans, but I did not agree with sending what in all cases, was their second string side to play in a Quarter Finals of an international tournament.

The whole two teams issue got me thinking about MLS and how much of a chance it might be for MLS clubs to adopt that philosophy. While I was in Mexico City, it was announced that DC United will again take part in the Copa Sudamericana and again face off against Chivas de Guadalajara, the same club that knocked United out of the CONCACAF Champions Cup. With the Sudamericana taking place in September, right after the SuperLiga, and possibly during the US Open Cup run and the tail end of the MLS regular season, DC United will have several choices to make concerning player personnel. Considering that the MLS regular season and playoffs should be the club's primary focus, should United send an all reserve side into the US Open Cup? I say yes, and send the reserves into the first match.

The bigger question I saw was that as MLS grows and possibly gets involved in more and more international tournaments, will we see the type of two team commitment that I saw with America? I know that right now, several MLS clubs sort of do this when it comes to the US Open Cup, but will we see this with the SuperLiga? Sudamericana? I hope not. I honestly see no reason why a club would send a second side to take part in an international tournament. To me, it doesn't make sense. Sure, I understand sending some of the reserves, but an entirely different team? America didn't even send it's first team goalkeeper. I really hope that this practice is not adopted by MLS sides. Use reserves in the US Open Cup, but when MLS clubs take part in international tournaments, I want to see their best team sent out there.

All in all, being in Mexico with so much Soccer going on was really cool. Every TV channel pretty much had coverage of both the Champions League final and the upcoming Apertura championship with America and Pachuca. ESPN SportCenter lead off their show Wednesday night with the Champions League final, then had an update on the Apertura championship, then the Copa Libertadores match in Brasil, then the International friendly between Ecuador and Ireland, then they finally had coverage on the NBA playoffs. I couldn't understand a word of Spanish during the broadcast, but seeing so much soccer on ESPN, and leading off SportsCenter was great to see. I doubt that we will ever see that type of coverage in the State's, but a guy can dream, can't he?

Pachuca are Champions of CONCACAF

Pachuca outlasted Chivas de Guadalajara last night after 120 minutes of scoreless soccer, to win 7-6 on Penalty kicks and claim the CONCACAF Champions Cup. Pachuca will now represent CONCACAF in the 2007 FIFA World Club Cup which will take place in Japan. This is the second straight time that a Mexican club will take part in the tournament, as Club America played in the December tournament last year, finishing 5th out of 6 clubs.

You almost had to expect that of the two CONCACAF clubs, Pachuca would finish the tournament on top. They made history last year by becoming the first non-CONMEBOL club to win the Copa Sudamericana. Where Club America failed in the FIFA World Club Cup last year, I have a feeling that Pachuca will make a better showing.

DC United Recap: CONCACAF Champions Cup

Well, it was a better match than the last time in Mexico.

So Jamie finally scored and we finally saw Fred. I think we saw alot more in this match. I saw Emilio and Gomez basically get smothered out of the match, something we should be prepared to see over the entire MLS season.

Regardless of the fact that Chivas kept Gomez and Emilio from really getting too involved in the match, I wasn't that upset with the scoreline or the performance of United. 2-1 is a respectable scoreline, one I didn't want to see unless we dropped in the 2, but nothing to really be ashamed about. The performance overall, was a good one. Our ball control, for the most part, was very good. Player support for the guy on the ball needs to improve, and I expect that it will. Passing out of the defense needs to improve as well, which we will have to wait and see how it does.

So the 2007 CONCACAF Champions Cup is no more for DC United. They went 2-1-1 in the tournament and made the semi-finals. The biggest thing about their performances in each match is that they never looked like they were overmatched. Not playing on a pitch that looked like it had clumps of grass every meter; not in two very cold down pour's and not at altitude against one of the best clubs in the Western Hemisphere. If the performance over the last four matches is any indication of how DC United will do in the MLS season, things are definitely looking up for sure.

Benny was definitely my man of the match. Jamie put in his best performance of the tournament as well. Troy... I have to say, as a former goalkeeper, letting a ball go straight through your hands and into the net is devastating. I was impressed with how he recovered himself to come up with three huge saves in the last 15 minutes of the match. He should have another strong season in the nets.

Well, Chivas now have their chance to match what Club America did last season and try and go to the FIFA Club World Cup. I have to say it, I wasn't impressed with Chivas after the first match and I still haven't changed my opinion about them. Chivas, at best, looked like a good MLS club. Yes, some of their passing was crisper than 85% of MLS clubs, but I never really saw them outclassing DC United. I probably saw four separate times where Chivas was starting to show the "class" that they were supposed to have. You exclude those times and it looked like a good MLS match.

So now United travel up to Denver to visit DSG Park and take on the Colorado Rapids. Assuming that United play this Saturday as they did today, I have no problem predicting a 3-0 victory for United.

Weekend Update: A lot happening

Well, over the last week, a lot has happened over the world of football. The English FA Cup semi-finals are set; Mr. Fred goes to Washington; MLS gets more jersey sponsors.

FA Cup Semi-Finals
Both Manchester United and Chelsea continued their runs towards each other in the FA Cup, with both clubs winning their Quarter Final replays. Manchester United have the easier route as they will face Watford in the Semi-Finals, with Chelsea facing Blackburn.

I fully expect to see a Chelsea vs. Manchester United FA Cup final at the new Wembly Stadium this season. Unless Blackburn’s defense can hold against the seemingly resurgent Chelsea offense, Chelsea will go through. I can’t see Watford breaking down the United defense, nor do I see them really holding Rooney and Ronaldo from finding the back of the net. The FA should get their dream final, especially one that will highlight the opening of Wembly.

Fred joins DC United
DC United has signed Brazilian midfielder Fred from the Australian A-League. With the international transfer letter the only thing holding up Fred from starting for United against Chivas in the second leg of the CONCACAF Champions Cup Semi-Final second leg, things are finally falling into place for DC United. All of the off season moves are starting to come into place and based on several reports, the offensive build up of the club is looking miles ahead of last years side. Hell, even without Fred, Emilio himself has raised the attacking bar for United.

Two more MLS Jersey Sponsorships
LA seemed to have been able to screw themselves out of a deal with Citibank and went with Herbalife for their jersey sponsorship. Toronto FC went with BMO Banking to sponsor their jerseys. Am I the only one who thinks LA’s jersey’s look stupid? At least there will be more money going into the clubs and giving other clubs a chance to get a better understanding of the deals.

USMNT Preview
I will have a preview for tomorrow’s USMNT match vs. Ecuador. The US roster looks interesting, I am very eager to see who gets the starting line-ups in this first match.

DC United vs. Chivas Highlights

Here are some highlights from last night's match.

1-1: DC United recap

Well, I learned that in a cold, wet, rainy hostile stadium, Budweiser almost tastes good.

Besides that, I watched a very good soccer game between DC United and Chivas, the real Chivas. I saw a pre-season United absorb everything that a midseason Mexican powerhouse could throw at them, and really only give up one mistake the entire match. I also saw two guys show their worth: Bobby Boswell & Emilio.

Tonight's match was what I really expected the first Olimpia match to look like. United looked like they were in pre-season form. Our offense was never really clicking and our runs were rampant and off sequence. Our defense, for the most part was very strong, yet looked erratic at times. Facundo Erpen had at times the match of his life and at other times, a very horrible match. If we get anything out of this match tonight is that for 90 minutes, we showed that we can go blow for blow with the best in CONCACAF and still remain standing.

Emilio had a less than stellar match, then again coming off of his last two, he really didn't have anywhere else to go but down. He had some really nice runs and passes, but he was never really able to get through the final step and get a really good shot on goal....until the 90th minute when he headed in United's goal. This guy is a striker of every facet of the term. He can work the match for 89 minutes, then in that last minute, he strikes. Thank god he is in United black & red.

My Man of The Match was Bobby Boswell. That boy was all over the place in the back line. Everytime Erpen was beat or made a shotty kick, Boswell was there to clean it up. Boswell shut down their central forwards and was huge for our defense. That guy is growing right before our eyes. I expect him to start getting offers from overseas as soon as the 2008 January transfer window.

So we have a 1-1 goal aggregate on our hands. Considering that we scored both goals and the last one came in the 90th minute, I have no problem with 1-1 heading down to Guadalajara. Is it 2-0 like Houston has with Pachuca? No, but then again, we could be down 1-0. Assuming that Troy continues to get his thigh better and can have better ball distribution and we get Fred on the roster and can get him into the squad, we might have a chance heading into the second leg. I really don't think at this point that we will advance...but this is the thing; Chivas really didn't impress me tonight.

For a club that has half of the Mexican National Squad on its starting roster and for such a powerhouse of a club, Chivas really didn't look that special. Yes they have great passing and their attack is very fast, but (maybe it was the rain) their finishing isn't the best thing since sliced bread. Their only goal came from a deflection and it was an own goal at that. Granted now that I have said this, they will execute like the Harlem Globetrotters and we will get a replay of the PUMAs home match two years ago. That said, I really don't see Chivas as having that great an attack.

So where does this all lead? Our attack needs to get much better and get everyone back on the same page that we were on against Olimpia. If that is to happen, we have a fighting chance in the second leg. Our defense, while very good/lucky tonight, needs to step it up an extra notch. If these two things occur, then I will eat my words and we should get a result in Mexico. If they don't...well, we should be ready for the MLS season opener.

DC United Preview: CONCACAF Champions Cup vs. Chivas

2007 CONCACAF Champions Cup: Semi Finals Leg 1
DC United vs. Chivas de Guadalajara
8:00pm, 3/15/2007
RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.

So the Semi Finals are here, with two Mexican clubs (Chivas & Pachuca) taking on two American clubs (DC United & Houston Dynamo). The two Mexican clubs are traveling north of the border for the first legs of the Semi Final series, which now both take place tonight.

DC United are sporting just about the same squad that defeated CD Olimpia 7-3 over two legs in the Quarter Finals. Goalkeeper Troy Perkins has recovered from his thigh strain and is expected to start tonight. In my opinion, the biggest key factor is that United have been able to get two more weeks of training under their belts, along with a full friendly against Honduran side Motagua last Friday, in which they were able to continue their offensive output with 4 goals.

Ok, the two Olimpia matches and the Motagua match were just the warm up. Now the big boys have come into town. Regardless of whatever anyone says, Olimpia might have been in mid-season form, but they sucked. Chivas are currently level with Pachuca at the top of the Mexican First Division. Yes they lost to W Connection in their first leg of their Quarter Final series, but they took care of business in the return leg and really should have won by about 5 goals.

Tonight's match and the away leg in Mexico will not be anything like the Olimpia matches. I expect to see a much stronger attacking and defending side taking on DC United. I fully expect Chivas to test our defense and to see how efficient our offense really is. The two home matches two years ago against PUMAS and Catolica are what I expect more than the two Olimpia matches. That said, I also expect to see a much different DC United club than the side that took on PUMAS and Catolica. We have a much stronger attack, composed midfield and a lot more experience in the defense and goal.

I really do not know what to expect in tonight’s match. As it is raining now, I am hoping that the weather conditions cause enough problems for the Chivas defense that Emilio, Moreno and Gomez can sneak in a couple of goals to have some type of aggregate lead going into the altitude in Mexico. Hopefully our defense will be able to either step it up as they did last season, or do just enough to keep the wheels from coming off of the wagon and we get a route handed to us at home.

See you all out there, expect 25,000 people. :)

I love this!!! DC United vs. Chivas

I found this over at Elliot in the Morning.

Now go buy a damn ticket! Support the club!!!

CONCACAF Champions Cup Previews

I found three separate CONCACAF Champions Cup previews; CNN/SI.com has a preview that really focuses on the fact that on the club level, MLS is Mexico's bitch; ESPNsoccernet has a more balanced viewpoint (if there can really be a balanced view of this, at least Carlisle didn't bring up the 5-0 ass raping that PUMAS gave United two years ago) and highlights the players to watch; and David Lifton provides an in-depth report from DC United's training sessions in Florida.

So the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions Cup is just about here. Houston hosts the defending Copa Sudamericana champions, Pachuca tomorrow night in what should be a packed house. Houston has some injury issues, as illustrated in the ESPN article but as Pachuca has a tough match at the end of the week against Tigres, there is a chance that Pachuca sits some of their big guns hoping for an even result for the return leg.

Thursday night, DC United hosts Chivas at RFK Stadium in the first leg. I spoke with my ticket rep and he said that about 15,000 tickets have been sold for the match and that they are still taking orders, so every United supporter who goes out for this match up had be ready to yell and scream for our boys. To give you an idea of how many people the Front Office is expecting, they have opened about 20 sections of the 400 level and are preparing to open several 500 level sections. If you haven't picked up your tickets yet, go here right now and get them!

Steve Goff has mentioned that Troy Perkins was looking strong in goal yesterday during training, so unless someone else has a knock that hasn't been reported, United should be able to field a full strength side, which is a very, very good thing.

I hope to post a preview tomorrow for the Houston vs. Pachuca match. That damn thing called work has been keeping me from really posting anything (doing a 50 PC desktop rollout alone sucks) so if I miss that preview, I will definitely have a preview for the DC United vs. Chivas match up.