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This year’s NSCAA convention was held in Baltimore, Maryland.  I will have many memories from this convention for many years to come.  First thing I would like to do is just list some of the coaches/celebrities that I saw/met in Baltimore – and this is only naming a few.

I saw Steve McClaren, the recently axed England National Team Coach on Thursday.  I saw him walking through the convention center a couple of times bright and early Thursday morning.  Then I watched him run a coaching session in a very crowded exhibit hall.  He declined to comment about the England Euro 08 qualifying blunder.

I saw the legendary Tony DiCicco, the NSCAA Goalkeeping Institute Director and recently hired U-20 Women’s National Team Coach.   He was 103-8-8 in his only stint as Head USA Women’s Soccer Coach – and was the coach when the U.S. women won the 1999 World Cup (yes, that was the year of the infamous Brandy Chastain sports bra controversy).

Coming back from Lunch on Friday afternoon, Alexi Lalas, the General Manager of the LA Galaxy, was waiting to cross the street at the same corner we were.  I wished him good luck in this weekend’s MLS SuperDraft and I also thanked him for helping get David Beckham to come play in the USA.  In my opinion, Lalas may be one of the top 5 most influential American born soccer players/executives ever.  I know people will think I am crazy saying that – he wasn’t the best player – but he was a part of US Soccer getting on the world map back in the late 80’s and early 90’s.  And the Beckham signing, if the MLS can keep attendance up, may go down as the biggest and best signing that the USA has ever seen.  Lalas was a very nice guy for the 2 minutes we were able to talk walking a block or two to the convention center.

I also met a gentleman by the name of Taj, he is a big part of the youth academy at Everton FC.  He helped oversee the training of Wayne Rooney for many years and when I told him I had a 21-month-old son named Rooney – the guy almost flipped.  He gave me a big hug and told me “all of the UK thinks you are a God now son!!”  You just can’t get a better moment.  He was a great guy and even came over to our table (we were at the Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Reception) and introduced himself to my friends and talked with us for about 5 minutes or so.

I met Declan McIntyre, the National Goalkeeping Co-ordinator for FAIreland.  We met at an Irish Pub and I was wearing my new Manchester United Line Up Jacket – and that definitely did not sit well with Coach McIntyre.  And just for fun, I decided to put the cherry on top and let him know that my son’s name was Rooney – the reaction was priceless.  Basically he said, in so many words, my son is now guaranteed to be a failure.  Obviously, it was just ribbing and he was a pleasure to spend those 15 minutes with.

Honorable Mentions:  Dominic Kinnear, Eric Wynalda, Jason Kries, Heather Mitts (maybe the hottest female soccer player ever produced in the world), Andrew Wallace (first and former www.soccerpro.com manager) and Nate Houser (legendary NPSL player).

The nightlife was brilliant.  We ate at a place called M&S Grille, a brilliant seafood restaurant.  We hung out at the ESPNZone, as well as many pubs.  We had many late nights and met many different coaches/celebrities at all hours of the night and that is what makes the NSCAA convention the best week/weekend of the year.

After Eddie Johnson’s $3 million move to Fulham this week, I got to wondering.  Where does the MLS go from here, and more importantly, how do they hold onto their biggest stars?  Regrettably, the answer is not simple, but I do believe it is possible for the MLS to actually become a league where players want to play during the prime of their career and not a league for a player to come out of retirement for.

First things first, let me just say that I believe whole-heartedly that the MLS is moving in the right direction with its continuous expansion and now its creation of its own little version of the Champions League.  More can be done though.  So, because its my new favorite thing, I have come up with a short list that I believe will enable the MLS to become a respected and fruitful league.

1. It is time to bring Relegation into the picture, and this means bringing the United Soccer League (USL) into the big picture.  With no threat of relegation, the MLS lacks that fighting spirit and passion of a struggling club, and the giant-killing demeanor of a recently promoted club.  With the threat of relegation, and the promise of promotion, there will be a new found sense of urgency in the MLS, and who knows, maybe we will actually see players play to their entire skillful potential.

2. Please, please, please do away with the MLS Draft.  I know that in America we are all about equality and the draft is the best way to make the weaker teams better, but it does not work for soccer.  Lets instead institute an Academy system and allow teams to sign players as young as 10 years old.  They would have schooling provided for them as they continued to develop their skills, and when it came time for college, the team would maintain their rights unless they are traded or sold to another team.

3. Pay the players more.  That is a lot easier said than done, especially with average attendance usually less than 20,000 people per game, but it has to be done.  The league needs to be made more attractive to larger investors who can afford to pay larger contracts to keep the stars in the league as well as bring in some of the top stars.  New York and LA are doing a fantastic job, but we need the entire league’s cooperation.

Its an uphill battle for sure but the MLS is moving in the right direction and the future is bright.

Cheers!

Fulham have added their 5th American player to their roster in the form of Eddie Johnson.  While I was instructed to keep it very hush-hush, I am now allowed (because it has been reported on the Fulham FC website) to talk about everything that the club is willing to disclose.

Johnson has been at the Fulham training grounds and practicing some with the first team and the first report is that he will provide a pacey striker in the absence of captain Brian McBride, and at 6’1 he is more than useful in the air.

His three-and-a-half year deal will keep him at the club until the summer of 2011, and now will be the time for him to prove himself as not only the US National Team replacement for McBride but as the long term replacement for McBride at Fulham as well. 

Best of luck Eddie.  I will see you at the grounds.

Cheers!

I attended the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Convention this past week from Wednesday, January 16 through Sunday, January 20.  This is the 3rd consecutive year that I have attended the convention – and every year just gets better.  If you ever want to know what all the newest tracksuits look like – all you need to do is attend the convention for an hour or two.  You will see every brand of tracksuit from Nike, Adidas, Diadora, Puma & Umbro in every color & style they make being proudly displayed by every soccer coach in attendance.  It’s literally like walking through the catalogs.

During the 2006 convention in Philadelphia (my rookie year of attending the convention), I walked 10 blocks from my hotel to the convention center site every day in the middle of January.  If you have ever attended a sporting event in Philly in January – or even watched the Philadelphia Eagles on TV during the NFL playoffs – you know how bitter cold it can be.  Dumb rookie mistake.  But I did have a good time.  The 2007 convention was held in Indianapolis, IN.   I had even a better time in ‘07 – you could walk for blocks and still be indoors. But this year I was smart enough to get online early and reserve a hotel that was connected to the convention center. 

2007 was the first year that SoccerPro.com helped sponsor the Missouri State High School Soccer Association party.  The party was thrown right before the exhibit hall opened – and it went very well.  The exhibit hall was open from Thursday evening through Saturday and had a couple hundred manufacturers there – Nike, Adidas, Puma, Diadora, Umbro, Kelme & KwikGoal were the obvious big ones. There were also many pro-turf companies and many other small manufacturers.

We even put a team together to play in the Walt Chyzowych 4-a-side tournament that Saturday.   The team name was Soccerpro.com (of course).  The team members were Jon Klein (Head Men’s Soccer Coach at Columbia College and retired MISL star), Vinnie Darnell (Head Men’s Soccer Coach at the University of Missouri – Rolla and a retired pro), Ryan Swan (Associate Head Coach at Drury University), Travis Cairier  (Asst. Coach at Sedalia HS), Matt Stacey (Head Women’s Soccer Coach at Jeff City High School) and myself.  We went undefeated in our bracket and was awarded the second seed going into the quarterfinals.  Vinnie pulled his hammy halfway through the quarterfinal matchup and that was the beginning of the end.  We tied the game with about 10 seconds left to send it to PK’s.  We lost in PK’s 2-1 (only 3 shooters per team) – Klein was the only one to make ours.  But we played well for a bunch of old guys (besides Matt & Travis).  All in all it was a great convention but that doesn’t hold a candle to 2008’s in Baltimore, which I’ll be writing up in the next day or so.

After what can only be described as a lackluster display against Arsenal, does Fulham have what it takes to fight their way out of the relegation zone and survive for another year in the Premiership?

Most importantly, Fulham needs more productivity out of their attack.  They will get a huge lift when captain Brian McBride returns from injury in the coming weeks, but this is a team sport, and it will take a team effort to survive.  What I cannot understand is why manager Roy Hodgson continues to play with only one striker.  This is like playing an entire (American) football game in Prevent-Defense, and in the words of John Madden “Prevent-Defense only prevents you from winning”.  It would behoove Hodgson to put a little more time into his attacking tactics and aim to put a few more balls into the back of the net instead of hoping to just prevent your opponent from scoring.

The return of McBride however, would certainly bring the biggest boost to the play of Clint Dempsey.  While Dempsey has spent much of this season as the lone striker and has even found himself as Fulham’s leading goal scorer (if it isn’t his skill then it is most certainly the flashy new Nike Mercurial boot that has boosted his goal scoring potential), but Dempsey is a midfielder and will better serve Fulham as a pacey winger doing battle in the midfield as opposed to combating the giants that lurk along the back line of many Premiership Teams.

Fulham also desperately needs to upgrade their central defense as well.  Carlos Bocanegra and Moritz Volz provide a defensive force on the outsides, but Aaron Hughes and Dejan Stefanovic are perpetually incompetent in the center.  The signing of Norwegian center back Bred Hangeland will be a huge boost to the defense, but Hodgson would do well to invest more money in stiffening up the rest of his defense.

It is a long road ahead for Fulham with the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool coming to town, and away games at Manchester City, Newcastle, and surging Everton.  Roy Hodgson will have to motivate his team to take as many points from home games as they can and assure that they walk away with nothing less than a 1-point tie at away matches. 

So with a little luck, some motivation, and good old-fashioned hard work there is no reason that the Cottagers can’t survive for another go in the Premiership.

Cheers!

Big things happening around these parts.  First things first though.  Newcastle has signed Kevin Keegan to what is roughly a three-year contract.  Many people are dubbing this the “second coming”, which seems a little overdone, but I suppose that when you’re supporting the only major club of a major English city that hasn’t produced a trophy in over 50 years and the man that once lead you to your highest league place ever (third place in 1994) is now at the helm I too would be, as they say, “over the moon”. 

Keegan is walking into what is currently one of the toughest managerial positions in the Premier League.  He has, however, been given a “blank check” in regards to spending and been told that his imagination is his only boundary.  Dare I say that I would begin calling clubs immediately attempting to pull at least one more world-class player onto my team.  Most notably a defender, and while I have a few in mind that will be for another blog so stay tuned.

In other news, the papers here have been heavily reporting on new England manager Fabio Capello’s apparent tax evasion in Italy.  But while he has quickly squashed these rumors, many of the sports pages and magazines have been enquiring into the prospect of Capello picking a new man to wear the badge for the Three Lions.  In light that Capello may or may not pick John Terry to captain the English side I have devised my list of the top 5 candidates for the job. […]

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Recently Inter Milan announced it had agreed to a 10-year sponsorship deal with Nike. Hours after the announcement rumors began to swirl that Barcelona’s Ronaldinho would be leaving Spain and heading east to Italy.

While the midfielder’s place at the Nou Camp has been unsteady for most of the season and transfer speculation persists, Chelsea or AC Milan has always been at the head of the pack to sign the former World Player of the Year. Now steps in Inter Milan, who has considerable spending cash and is one of the biggest clubs in the world, possibly bidding for Ronaldinho’s services.

Quite a convenient and quick turnaround for Nike.

Why wouldn’t the company want its most popular and marketable soccer star to go to a team that wears its brand? Both Milan and Chelsea wear adidas. Soccer is a business and everything eventually comes down to money. Ronaldinho would be a marketing coup for Inter Milan, which would reap the benefits of his global reach. The branding giant also benefits by having its most popular star continually wearing Nike soccer gear in any photo or image that would ever pop up.

While it does not always work this way, rumors so soon after the deal will make this an interesting situation to watch develop.

Who really has the control over players - clubs or sponsors?

After lunch spent in a pub that was for Chelsea fans only (yes there was a bloke standing at the door turning Tottenham supporters away), learning a few Chelsea chants, a little bit of haggling, and a cheery fellow directing us to our seats with his battle cry “GO ON YA BLUES”, myself and two other gents found ourselves sitting amongst a passionate and lively crowd with nothing but blue coursing through their veins.

It would be impossible for me to truly explain the atmosphere at Stamford Bridge, but the game on the pitch was magnificent.  With the sounds of “If you hate Tottenham stand up!” and “Go on CHELSEA, Go on CHELSEA” ringing in the players ears the entire Chelsea team ran circles around the lackluster Tottenham squad.

I was not quite sure what to expect at the beginning of my little adventure, with the likes of John Terry, Andre Shevchenko, and Didier Drogba all out with injury, but with Michael Ballack sporting the captains badge and Joe Cole and Shaun Wright-Phillips reeking havoc on the wings and with Peter Cech lurking in the back (though he only had to make one true save it was nothing short of thievery) Tottenham had no real chance of getting themselves into the game.  Even new $15 million man Nikolas Anelka got into the act as he nearly put in a low drive just minutes upon his entrance and just before the whistle he banged one of the crossbars.  Even though Anelka never got on the score sheet he was welcomed by the home crowd with a standing ovation and the chant “GO ON YOU BLUE!”

The highlight of the game was without a doubt the 30 yard curling strike that Juliano Belletti sent smoldering into the back of the net far out of reach of the keeper’s hands.  Try as they might, Robbie Keane, Dimitar Berbatov, and the late sub Jermaine Defoe were never really able to get themselves involved and then Tottenham fans were sent home with a clear “don’t let the door hit you on the way out” as Shaun Wright-Phillips drilled home the last nail with a cool finish from just inside the box.

All in all, my first football game in London was almost a complete success.  I say almost because the only thing that could have possibly made this moment any better would have been if I was sitting in the stand at old Trafford singing “GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED!” and watching the Red Devils, with goals from Cristiano Ronaldo, Carlos Tevez, and Rio Ferdinand, see off plummeting Newcastle United in a shattering 6-0 victory.

Cheers!

Greetings from London.

Being that this is my first blog, I thought I would take a minute to introduce myself.  My name is John Conner.  I am currently a Junior at the University of Missouri, and I am studying abroad in London this semester.  I am an avid soccer fan (this is the last time I will use the word, from now on it will be football, as to avoid being shunned by the mighty English that I am living amongst) and have played the sport since I was 4 years old.  While I am living in London for the next four months I will be working with Fulham FC, and will be keeping you up to date with the club’s as well as the EPL’s happenings.

Enough about me…ON WITH THE FOOTBALL!

Obviously the biggest news is the sacking of Sam “Big Sam” Allardyce.  His dismissal means that Newcastle will soon be hiring their fourth manager in less than two years, and seventh manager in the past 11.  Now I agree that it is unacceptable for a large club like Newcastle United, who are the only professional team based in Newcastle, to be underachieving as much as they are with the talent they have at their disposal, but with the constant changing of managers it is impossible for players to ever begin to adapt to and play within the system that their manager brings to the table.  This certainly begins to beg the question of whether or not Newcastle is unmanageable.  Now I would never ask a fan of any sport and of any team to not put their whole heart behind their team, but managers must be given time to allow everything to work correctly, and a few months is not the correct amount of time.

Now of course, with this sacking brings the fun of discussing the possible candidates for replacements.  The papers here have quickly tipped Mr. Harry Redknapp of Portsmouth for take over.  However, he quickly brushed these off as complete rubbish.  While I think Redknapp is a fine manager I do not see him as the manager of the mighty Magpies and their faithful Toon Army have a smorgasbord of other names to choose from so I will discuss my top 3.

1. Alan Shearer - The Newcastle and England legend has been tipped for the job, but he claims that he is happy working as a journalist for the BBC.  I for one think he would be the best available pick, and would be incredibly interested to see what kind of style and flair he could bring has a manager.

2. Martin Jol - According to reports, Jol is the “fan favorite” to take over the manager position at Newcastle, and it is thought that he would be keen to do so.  I am a long-standing admirer of Jol and his managerial abilities and was disappointed to see him sacked by Tottenham in October.  He certainly has all the right tools to bring Newcastle the success that it craves.

3. Kevin Keegan - Now Keegan is apparently not high on any of the bookies list, or on the list of many of the local papers, but I see the England footballing legend as another ideal candidate for the job.  Keegan finished his playing career with Newcastle and also started his managerial career with them.  In his first season as manager he lead them to promotion to the Premier League, and finished third in their first season after promotion.  Dare I say that I believed Keegan could do it again?

It will be an interesting time for Newcastle as they search for a new manager, and lets hope that they actually allow the new Manager a little time to actually formulate some success.  For now though, the Toon Army marches without a general.

Cheers!

Is there a more frustrating English side than Liverpool?

Armed with some of the most ardent supporters around, the club seems only able to tread water in the English Premier League, and now it has fallen out of top four spots. It is one-point behind Manchester City, although with a game in hand, but still a 1-1 draw with Wigan in which Titus Bramble (who shouldn’t even be allowed in the stands of a Premiership match let alone on the pitch) scores the tying goal is just a terrible result.

There really is no other way to put it.

Now Manager Rafa Benitez is bickering with the club’s owners and there is speculation that the club may be sold again soon. Add this onto 17 years without a league title and Liverpool fans certainly have reason to be upset.

But what really makes the blood pressure boil is Liverpool’s ability to play like world-beaters in the UEFA Champions League. Two finals in the past three years and one title in that span is incredible. When a club does this, it should be challenging for league titles year in and year out. But look at the table and the Reds are 12 points out of first and 10 out of second. Heck, even Chelsea in third place is six points ahead and with Liverpool’s league form shouldn’t be too concerned about a challenge.

Now Benitez wants more money to buy more players to boost Liverpool’s chances. Isn’t that what he got in the summer when he spent millions to make Liverpool a legitimate title contender? Fernando Torres has been worth every penny, but the rest of the buys seem suspect so far. Somehow the fortitude and game mastery that Liverpool and Benitez show in Europe gets trounced and toppled by lowly league sides. Something needs to be done about the intestinal fortitude of the Reds. Changes need to be made and more than just a January buy can produce.

Some may say Tottenham Hotspur has been a bigger disappointment, but with the way things go at White Hart Lane, nothing can be taken as a certainty. Spurs have crashed and burned, but the Reds have just been underwhelming to a degree that they are irrelevant to the title chase halfway through the season.

So Reds fans begin preparing for next season’s campaign and just hope that Liverpool is Champions League eligible. Otherwise it could be a really depressing season.