VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC vs. PORTLAND TIMBERS
MLS MATCHDAY #11
SATURDAY, MAY 7, 2016, 2:00 PM
BC PLACE, VANCOUVER, BC
TICKET INFO
TV: TSN 1 RADIO: TSN 1040 LIVESTREAM: TSN GO
BC Soccer Web MLS MATCHDAY #11: Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs. Portland Timbers, May 7, 2016 – BC Soccer Web
Cascadia derbies are always huge matches, but this one should take on even more of an edge. After a slow start, the 2015 MLS Cup champions are starting to find their groove, coming off an important 2-1 win over Toronto FC on the weekend. Meanwhile, the Whitecaps are still searching for an identity, and Carl Robinson made it clear in training this week that he was unimpressed so far with the effort and tone of the squad. Will the Whitecaps show up for one of the biggest matches of the season? Saturday is a massive test of that. We have all the news and match previews here.
Saturday’s home match against Portland Timbers is sold out – Whitecaps FC
Vancouver Whitecaps FC announced on Wednesday that Saturday’s home match against Cascadia rivals Portland Timbers is sold out.
MLS Disciplinary Committee suspends Kekuta Manneh for one match – MLS
The MLS Disciplinary Committee announced today that Vancouver Whitecaps FC forward Kekuta Manneh has been suspended one game and issued an undisclosed fine for a serious foul play that endangered the safety of an opponent in the 68th minute of their match against New York City FC on April 30.
MLS suspends D.C. United’s Chris Rolfe, Vancouver’s Kekutah Manneh – ESPN FC
MLS also fined LA Galaxy striker Giovani Dos Santos and defender Jelle Van Damme an undisclosed amount for violating the league’s mass confrontation policy.
Giovani dos Santos posts MLS memo revealing $250 fine – Goal
Giovani dos Santos may have earned a fine for his behavior during the LA Galaxy’s 1-1 draw with Sporting Kansas City on Sunday, but that punishment doesn’t seem like much of a deterrent for the Mexican playmaker.
Whitecaps Player Utilization – Eighty-Six Forever
I think it’s safe to say that most people who follow the Whitecaps closely know that Robbo’s preferred formation is a 4-2-3-1, however, he’s shown that he’s not afraid to go to a 4-4-2 and sometimes 3-5-2 if needed. I’ve come to accept that the 4-2-3-1 is, for now, here to stay and the 4-4-2 is widely used, however, let’s look at a few different options, and what players, when fully healthy, could fill those roles.
Whitecaps marvel at ‘unbelievable’ Leicester City title – Sportsnet
Carl Robinson couldn’t wait for a reporter to finish his question about Leicester City’s improbable run to the English Premier League title before interjecting. “Unbelievable,” the head coach of the Vancouver Whitecaps blurted out. “I don’t think it will happen in football again, in any league again.
Toronto FC set to open newly-renovated BMO Field vs. FC Dallas – MLS
For the second time in as many years, Toronto FC are about to open the doors to their refurnished home.
The new BMO Field culmination of Tim Leiweke’s dream – Toronto Sun
On Saturday — three years after Leiweke asked fans to “dream big” — his vision will be on full display when TFC hosts FC Dallas at the newly renovated, 30,000-seat BMO Field.
Toronto FC’s Osorio: ‘We’ve sent a message to the rest of MLS’ – Sportsnet
onathan Osorio wants to make one thing perfectly clear to future opponents: this isn’t the same Toronto FC you remember from past years.
Impact still has ‘fighting spirit,’ goalkeeper Evan Bush says – Montreal Gazette
It hasn’t been quite the romp that many Montreal Impact fans expected after the club’s torrid finish to the 2015 MLS season.
48 MLS players named to preliminary rosters for Copa América Centenario – MLS
The Copa América Centenario’s preliminary rosters were officially announced on Wednesday, and one thing is pretty clear: There could be a lot of familiar faces for MLS fans.
Collin, McCarty Ready for a Florida Homecoming – Empire of Soccer
When the New York Red Bulls face Orlando City SC on Friday, their newest defender Aurelien Collin will be returning to the team that traded him less than a week after the transaction was finalized.
Kaka set for Red Bulls, Orlando encounter – Empire of Soccer
The New York Red Bulls victory over Orlando City was a seminal moment for the club, triggering a two-game winning streak and buoying the hopes and expectations of the defending Supporters’ Shield champions.
Sounders still seeking quality addition – Kitsap Sun
Coach Sigi Schmid reaffirmed Wednesday that the club remains as interested as ever in adding an impact player — sooner or later. This primary transfer window will close May 11. The secondary transfer window is July 4 through Aug. 3.
Lions ‘Real Football’ banner nothing personal – 24 Hours
Despite what you may have read in local social media chatter this week, it is, in fact, possible to be a fan of more than one Vancouver sports franchise. Or, at the very least, enjoy watching one sport without taking a holier-than-thou attitude towards fans of another.
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BC SOCCER NEWS
BC Provincial Cup Semi-Final Weekend – May 6-8 – BCSA
The run to the Adult Provincial Cup Finals is onto the semi-final rounds!
SHEARON ANNOUNCES 2016 MEN’S SOCCER RECRUITING CLASS – TWU
Trinity Western men’s soccer coach Mike Shearon officially announced the seven players that will form the core of his 2016 recruiting class, which includes four Alberta-based players and three from B.C.
Soccer Storm win Coastal Cup – Nanaimo News Bulletin
The Island champions are now the champs of the coast, too. Nanaimo’s undefeated Upper Island Storm U14 rep A girls’ soccer team won B.C. Soccer’s Coastal Cup on Sunday in Aldergrove, defeating West Coast Metro 3-1.
Mike Bartram Memorial this weekend – Kamloops This Week
The Kamloops Youth Soccer Association will play host to its first major tournament this weekend, with the annual Mike Bertram Memorial Youth Soccer Tournament beginning on Saturday, May 7.
Kicking into spring – Squamish Chief
Quest University, youth soccer partner to make soccer year-round in Squamish.
U-15 Rep squad punishes Terrace in play day – Northern View
The Prince Rupert Youth Soccer Association’s under-15 boys’ Rep team began the season strong at home this weekend, beating the Terrace under-15 rep squad 4-1 — an impressive result for the athletes.
Delta Blaze rally to win RASA Summer League opener – Delta Optimist
RASA Summer League kicked off another season last week with Division One rivals Delta Blaze and Richmond FC “A” squaring off. The first half was very close with both sides getting chances to take the lead, but it was Richmond who struck first just before the interval on a header by Theo Lorenz.
Pacific Soccer Coaching Conference – June 3-5 at SFU – BC Soccer Web
The Pacific Soccer Coaching Conference is back for its second year. Learn from some of the best coaches in the game. This year’s conference features speakers from Arsenal, Leicester City, Southampton, the English FA and more. Register before April 30 for early bird pricing.
Free Physiotherapy Clinical Trial for Achilles Pain at UBC – UBC Centre for Hip Health & Mobility
Do you have Achilles pain? Interested in free Physiotherapy? If yes, join our clinical trial to look at the effectiveness of intramuscular stimulation (IMS), a form of acupuncture therapy, in treating Achilles tendon pain.
Victoria Highlanders 2016 Season Tickets Now Available – Select Your Seats
The Victoria Highlanders are ready to return to the PDL for 2016. BC Soccer Web encourages all soccer fans on Vancouver Island to get behind their team. Season tickets are now on sale and extremely affordable. Support Local Soccer!
The BC Soccer Web Guide to Empire Field – BC Soccer Web
Empire Fields and Plateau Sports Park is the lofty and formal name given to Vancouver’s newest addition to the soccer scene. Yet, anyone who’s ever kicked or carried both kinds of footballs around these parts knows the place by heart.
Introducing BC Soccer Web Syndication – BC Soccer Web
You can now add BC Soccer Web news to your website simply by adding our new RSS Feed! Find out more.
Send your Soccer News to BC Soccer Web! – BC Soccer Web
BC Soccer Web is the hub for soccer in British Columbia. We want to share your soccer news with the entire province, and you can help by letting us know! We want your match reports, club news, league standings, and info on upcoming tournaments and clinics. Whether you submit links to existing news on the web, or your own original writing, we want to share it with the soccer community in B.C.
EPIC presents the 2016 Western Canada College ID Camp
CANADA SOCCER NEWS
Canada Soccer heads to Saskatoon for the 2016 Annual Meeting of the Members – CSA
Canada Soccer will hold the 2016 Annual Meeting of the Members this 7 May in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The weekend serves as a review of the successful past year as well as a springboard to greater things to come in 2016 and beyond.
Futsal: Canada, USA knotted after first leg – CSA
It will be winner takes all on Thursday night after Canada and USA drew 4-4 in the opening leg of the play-in series for the 2016 CONCACAF Futsal Championship. The Americans held a 3-0 lead in the 4 May opener before Canada stormed back in a seven-goal second half at the BN Arena in San José, Costa Rica.
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WFC2, USL & NASL NEWS
UNITED SOCCER LEAGUE
WFC2 3 TULSA ROUGHNECKS 2
WEDNESDAY, MAY 4,
THUNDERBIRD STADIUM, UBC
PHOTO GALLERY: WFC2 3 TULSA ROUGHNECKS 2, May 4, 2016 – BC Soccer Web
Exclusive photos for BC Soccer Web by Bill Currie
Greig, Froese, Haber lead Whitecaps FC 2 to a thrilling late comeback to defeat Tulsa Roughnecks FC 3-2 – Whitecaps FC
Daniel Haber, one of 10 Canadians seeing pitchtime for Whitecaps FC 2, scored an 89th-minute match-winner for the home side to defeat Tulsa Roughnecks FC 3-2 on Star Wars Night at Thunderbird Stadium on Wednesday evening.
WFC2 Rallies for Victory, Remains Undefeated – USL
Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 (4-0-2, 14pts) rallied twice to earn a 3-2 victory against Tulsa Roughnecks FC (1-5-1, 4pts) as goals by Kianz Froese and Daniel Haber keyed a win at Thunderbird Stadium. Sammy Ochoa twice gave the Roughnecks the lead, but WFC2 remained undefeated as Kyle Greig notched his fifth goal of the season before Froese and Haber’s late finishes.
Eddies impressive in 1-0 victory over Jacksonville Armada – FC Edmonton
FC Edmonton (2-1-2) opened up their two game road trip with an impressive 1-0 victory over Jacksonville Aramda FC (1-1-2), May 4 at Community First Park. The win pushed the Edmonton side into sixth place in the North American Soccer League (NASL) Spring Season standings.
Diakite’s volley leads Eddies to win over Jacksonville on a woeful field – the11.ca
A few minutes before he volleyed home his second-half match-winning goal, FC Edmonton central defender Pape Diakite got into an aerial battle with two Jacksonville Armada players.
OCB Falls 3-1 to FC Cincinnati in Heavy Rain – Orlando City SC
Following a weather delay of over two hours, Orlando City B (2-5-1, 7 points) fell 3-1 to FC Cincinnati (4-2-1, 13 points). Bryan Róchez scored the lone OCB goal in the 52nd minute.
McBean Steals Show for Los Dos – USL
LA Galaxy II captain Jack McBean tallied three times to lead his side to a 3-2 victory against Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC on Wednesday at the newly renovated StubHub Center’s Track & Field Stadium.
Louisville Continues Undefeated Streak vs. Toronto – USL
Louisville City FC (5-1-2, 17pts) scored in either half as it took a 2-0 victory against Toronto FC II (1-3-2, 5pts) at the Ontario Soccer Centre. Both goals came via TFC II mistakes, as an early own goal by Martin Davis gave Louisville the lead, and a botched clearance by Quillan Roberts led to Niall McCabe’s first of the season with 25 minutes to play.
Joe Cole is ‘massive signing for Tampa Bay Rowdies and NASL’ – The Telegraph
In January, when the Tampa Bay Rowdies were looking at players in England whose contracts were coming to an end this summer, one name jumped out – Joe Cole.
Union rally draws big numbers in support of Cosmos’ Belmont Stadium – Empire of Soccer
Two weeks ago, Nassau County Legislator Carrie Solages drew a dozen supporters in opposition of the proposed New York Cosmos’ stadium.
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WOMEN’S SOCCER NEWS
Lyon add Dzsenifer Marozsan from Frankfurt – Equalizer
UEFA Women’s Champions League finalists Lyon have bolstered their squad after confirming the signing of Germany international Dzsenifer Marozsán on a two-year contract. She will not be eligible for the Champions League final.
A Chat with Stephanie Labbé – Midfield Press
The Washington Spirit are sitting atop the NWSL standings, having taken 9 out of 9 possible points from their matches with a 3-0 record. Leading up to the Portland game this week, arguably the first real test for the Spirit this season, I was lucky enough to catch up with the new keeper in town, Stephanie Labbé. She was gracious enough to answer a few of my questions after training.
Thorns FC midfielder Tobin Heath named NWSL Player of the Month – Timbers.com
Portland Thorns FC midfielder Tobin Heath was named the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Player of the Month for April, it was announced today.
Kim Little: World class wherever her team needs her – Sounder at Heart
“Kim Little’s playing centerback,” my friend said to me at one point during the match. And she wasn’t wrong. At times, Little also filled in at right back, forward, and winger. She was where her team needed her to be, and it was truly beautiful to watch.
NWSL teams should reconsider the “pinkification” of their marketing strategies – Unusual Efforts
The Soccer Girls. If you live in the United States, you’ve almost certainly seen them before. They frequent your local Chipotle and Panera Bread. They look as if they’ve just come from battle, but instead of armour they wear jerseys and sweatpants, and combat boots have been replaced with Adidas sandals. Aged anywhere from eight to eighteen, this breed of American adolescent has the majority of NWSL front offices wrapped around their finger. They’re too young, and often too busy, to have a job, and have little money to spend on merchandise or tickets, so why are teams continuing to pander to this small part of the American public?
Women’s Champions League: Wolfsburg v Lyon: final in depth – UEFA
Three years from debutants Wolfsburg dethroning holders Lyon in the 2013 UEFA Women’s Champions League final, they meet again in the decider on 26 May in Reggio Emilia.
Abby Wambach joins ESPN as analyst, podcast host – SBI
Abby Wambach’s post-soccer future as been made clear. The former U.S. Women’s National Team star will join ESPN as an analyst and contributor. As part of her new job, Wambach will cover this summer’s Euro 2016 tournament in France and the Rio Olympics in August. In addition, Wambach will work across multiple platforms including ESPN Films while also hosting a podcast titled “Fearless Conversation with Abby Wambach”.
Abby Wambach is a smart hire for a network with a relevancy problem – The Guardian
What Wambach brings as a broadcaster however, is more than just a contemporary perspective. At a time when ESPN continues to hemorrhage cord-cutting viewers, she has the potential to draw young fans back into broadcast cable television – or at least to keep them from leaving. Wambach is charismatic. She’s passionate. She’s cool.
WU17 Euros: Germany make their point against holders Spain – UEFA
Klara Bühl earned Germany a deserved point, and denied María Antonia Is’s side victory, late in a tie that burst into life with three goals in three minutes.
Uefa in women’s football push – Campaign
Uefa is looking for an agency to encourage more women across Europe to watch and play football. The governing body has contacted UK and European agencies directly with a brief. A source described it as “big and ambitious”.
China women’s football team looking for medals in Rio 2016 – CCTV America
The women’s national team is 12th in the FIFA rankings. Last year, China garnered international attention after the women managed to win a game in the World Cup for the first time since 2007. It went on to the semi-finals. Before the tournament, they were viewed as underdogs, but the better-than-expected World Cup results for the Chinese team with the nickname Steel Roses has given it hope to make it to the top of world football.
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WORLD SOCCER NEWS
UCL Rewind: Real Madrid books spot in final with win over Man City – SBI
A Madrid Derby will determine European soccer’s biggest prize. Real Madrid booked their place in the Champions League final on Wednesday with a 1-0 victory over Manchester City. The victory sends the Spanish giant to the UCL finals for the second time in three years, where they will face a familiar foe in Atletico Madrid, who they defeated two years ago to win La Decima.
Madrid given another derby day as Real match Atlético in Champions League – The Guardian
Spain’s capital rejoices because – for the second time in three seasons – the city’s teams are in the final after Zinedine Zidane’s side defeat Manchester City.
Copa Libertadores Review: Nacional advance to quarters, River eliminated – Goal
Nacional is into the Copa Libertadores quarterfinals, but defending champion River Plate suffered a last-16 exit.
Ranieri will not ‘break’ Leicester dressing room with star names – Goal
Leicester City boss Claudio Ranieri hopes to stick with the players who secured Premier League glory in the Champions League next term.
Curtis Allen: Europa League play-offs potential lifeline – BBC Sport
Glentoran striker Curtis Allen believes the newly-introduced Europa League play-offs are a potential lifeline for the Belfast club.
Spurs close to deal with FA to play home games at Wembley in 2017-18 – The Guardian
Tottenham Hotspur are close to a deal with the Football Association to play their home games at Wembley in 2017-18, according to the FA chairman Greg Dyke, while the north London club are also pushing to stage their Champions League ties there next season.
Russia Reacts to Kosovo’s UEFA Membership –Futbolgrad
UEFA’s decision to accept Kosovo as its 55th member state on May 3, 2016 has been the subject of major discussions in Russia. The vote on Tuesday was 28 to 24 in favour, for Kosovo to join UEFA as a full member state.
Bob Bradley’s Le Havre needs help on path to French promotion – SBI
Two games remain in the French Ligue 2 campaign for Bob Bradley and Le Havre AC, and the path to promotion is not entirely free and clear.
Chinese Super League clubs make early Asian Champions League exit – BBC Sport
Big-spending Chinese clubs Guangzhou Evergrande and Jiangsu Suning have been knocked out of the Asian Champions League at the group stages.
Guangzhou, Jiangsu ready for Chinese Super League battle after ACL exit – ESPN FC
The 2016 Chinese Super League season is on course to be the best ever. As the season reaches the quarter-mark, average attendances of just under 30,000 are seeing some top class players deliver the goods. There is a general mood of optimism and excitement in the air.
Harry Redknapp’s appointment at Central Coast Mariners makes no sense – Sydney Morning Herald
If Harry Redknapp isn’t keen on travelling to Australia in his new role for the Central Coast Mariners, it is advisable that the struggling A-League club looks for another football consultant.
News Analysis: FIFA interferes with CONCACAF election, what will CAS do? – Inside World Soccer
The ban of CFU President Gordon Derrick, which prevents him from running for CONCACAF president, is possibly one of the most lawyered documents we have seen of late. But it is a tale of law and its manipulation that is not over as the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) is to be asked to rule on the case.
Argentina uses Trump’s immigration comments to make a great soccer commercial – Washington Post
Donald Trump’s comments on immigration have been replayed around the world. In Mexico, current and former leaders tore into Trump, with former president Vicente Fox saying, “I’m not going to pay for that [expletive] wall!” In Saudi Arabia, Walid bin Talal, a member of the royal family, tweeted that Trump is “a disgrace not only to the GOP but to all America.” In Britain, Prime Minister David Cameron called Trump’s rhetoric “divisive, stupid and wrong.”