the year in photos
in 2010, photos change, words not so much.
MLS Superdraft breakdown - you know you’re not getting that here. But every year the draft marks the beginning of a new soccer season. Beyond the MLS hot stove, it means the first USMNT game of the new year is around the corner, with the Gold Cup just...
The Ten Shirt
An excerpt from the new novel by Michael Maddox
How the USMNT (might have) won the 1982 World Cup
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“Too small,” Coach Messina answered, knowing full well that he would be questioned again. “Five-foot-nothin’, and what, about a hundred pounds – soaking wet?”
“But Tom, you can see this kid’s a player, can’t you?” Gary Rickman was...
an end to things
a giveaway, a tackle, a hug, another four years
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Was it just a hug or something more? And what can we all learn from that most intimate moment filmed for millions to see? Penn State writing teacher Casey Wiley looks for long-term meaning in an emotional moment as he wraps up the fan’s four-year cycle… before...
phantom points
“Pity comes too late, turn around and face your fate: An eternity of this before your eyes!”
Last Saturday’s draw felt like a win. Yesterday’s felt like a loss, which isn’t to take anything away from the unbelievable comeback orchestrated by the USMNT against Slovenia.
It’s just to say that when, after a wonderful date, a date...
we’ll see about sacha
this is all five parts of the story.
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Sacha Kljestan throws up his hands. He did his best and doesn’t know what else to do. Maybe it’s time to quit. He’s thought about it before. One guy can only do so much. So many factors go into success or create failure. The opponent...
we’ll see about sacha pt5
This is part 5. Here is part 4. Here is part 3. Here is part 2. Here is part 1.
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Sacha is in line for a spot in the American midfield, but where exactly he stands only Bob Bradley knows. The American coach deals in elusive simplicity, which he projects to the media and, sometimes it...
we’ll see about sacha pt4
This is part 4. Here is part 3. Here is part 2. Here is part 1.
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The dream team. Not The Dream Team. The Hulking NBA players walked next to the soccer team at the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Oylmpics, but for an U-23 American soccer team, this was the best yet. Dreaming...
we’ll see about sacha pt3
This is part 3. Here is part 2. Here is part 1.
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Sacha played every minute of every game his freshman year as an attacking central midfielder. He finished second on the team in points, with 6 assists and 4 goals and was just one of three freshman to earn all-conference honors in the Big...
we’ll see about sacha pt.1
Sacha Kljestan throws up his hands. He did his best and doesn’t know what else to do. Maybe it’s time to quit. He’s thought about it before. One guy can only do so much. So many factors go into success or create failure. The opponent is only of them.
Sacha sizes up his pre-teen cousin Moselle,...
a story for the grandkids
Filip Bondy’s new book on the USMNT will get better with age
I almost put it down after the forward. In his 300-page book Chasing The Game (out now from De Capa Press), which interlaces player profiles and men’s national team history with expanded game reports from the recently completed World Cup Qualifying cycle, Filip...
vietnam star or league minimum
Did I just learn why the negotiations over the collective bargaining agreement are so contentious? Did I find out just how disrespected the Vietnam league is? Or did I discover that MLS doesn’t think he’s worth it? There is plenty to learn from the professional path taken by Lee Nguyen, but at present, all I...
it’s awesome (according to them)
TIAS’s Senior Hair Band Correspondent scores world exclusive with the Group of Death
If you were one of the lucky few who snagged a t-shirt in Seattle during the Supporters Summit, than you might know the Group of Death. For the rest of you, it’s merely the hardest group, with the toughest teams, pooled together in...
