Chivas USA - Where are they now?

Here's a look at what the players from Chivas USA's final days did in MLS this season:

Dispersal Draft:

1. Dan Kennedy - FC Dallas - 16 GS, 30 Saves, 19 GA, 5 Shutouts, 7-5-4
2. Matt Dunn - New York City FC - 1 appearance (waived in June)
3. Thomas McNamara - New York City FC  (exp draft) - 19 Apps, 15 Starts, 5 Goals, 3 Assists
4. Donny Toia - Montreal Impact - 31 Apps, 29 Starts, 1 Goal, 0 Assists
5. Caleb Calvert - Colorado Rapids - DNP (On Loan to Charlotte Independence)
6. Kris Tyrpak - DNP (waived by San Jose in Feb, played w/ Austin Aztec & San Antonio Scorpions)
7. Marco Delgado - Toronto FC - 20 Apps, 19 Starts, 3 Goals, 3 Assists

Others:

Bobby Burling - Colorado Rapids - Waiver Draft - 22 Apps, 22 Starts, 2 Goals, 0 Assists
Carlos Bocanegra - Did Not Play, Retired
Tony Lochhead - Did Not Play in MLS
Martín Rivero - Did Not Play in MLS, Plays for Aldosivi (Argentina)
Nigel Reo-Coker - Montreal Impact - Waiver Draft - 28 Apps, 20 Starts, 0 Goals, 2 Assists
Agustín Pelletieri - Did Not Play in MLS, Plays for Tigre (Argentina)
Michael Nwlioh - Did Not Play in MLS
Akira Kaji - Did Not Play in MLS, Plays for Fagiano Okayama (Japan)
Eric Avila - Orlando City SC (Loan from Santos Laguna) - 21 Apps, 15 Starts, 1 Goal, 2 Assists
Andrew Jean-Baptiste - Did Not Play in MLS, Released by New York Red Bulls in June
Marvin Chávez - Did Not Play in MLS, Plays for San Antonio Scorpions
Ryan Finley - Did Not Play in MLS, Plays for Charlotte Independence
Trevor Spangenberg - New England Revolution (Loaned to Richmond Kickers) - DNP
Nathan Sturgis - Houston Dynamo - Reentry Draft - 18 Apps, 15 Starts, 1 Goal, 2 Assists
Oswaldo Minda - Did Not Play in MLS, Plays for Barcelona (Ecuador)
Jhon Kennedy Hurtado - Did Not Play in MLS

Designated Players:

Cubo Torres - Houston Dynamo - 11 Apps, 3 Starts, 0 Goals, 1 Assist

Dynamo Forward Scores Twice for Chivas Guadalajara

Houston striker Erick "Cubo" Torres helped Chivas Guadalajara picked up three huge points in Liga MX action this weekend when he scored twice in the match's last 20 minutes to give them a 2-1 win over Puebla. The 22 year-old Mexican international led Chivas USA in scoring last year with 15 goals including goals in six consecutive matches in June and July. After Chivas USA disbanded following the 2014 season, Torres was signed by the Houston Dynamo to a designated player deal in December.

Breaking Down Klinsmann's Latest Camp Roster

Two movie quotes come to mind when I look at Jürgen Klinsmann's latest Team USA camp roster. 

From Miracle:

You're missing some of the best players. I'm not looking for the best players... I'm looking for the right ones.

And from Major League:

Who are these f%ckin' guys?

Americans in the UEFA Champions League

Big week for Sacha Kljestan and Anderlecht as the American played all 90 minutes of their epic come-from-behind draw against Arsenal. Trailing 3-0 through the first hour, Anderlecht scored three times in the final 30 minutes to erase what appeared to be an insurmountable deficit. It was a bit of a reversal for Anderlecht who in their previous match squandered a 1-0 lead late against Arsenal and fell 2-1. Former MLSer Andy Najar assisted on the equalizer.

David Yelldell - GK - Bayer Leverkusen - Yelldell again took his typical back seat to Bernd Leno and Dario Kresic as Leverkusen defeated Zenit St Petersburg 2-1.

Joe Gyau - MF - Borussia Dortmund - Gyau continues to rehab his injured knee. Dortmund won without him, 4-1 over Galatasaray and currently sit atop Group D a perfect 4-0.

The 2010 World Cup Team, Where are they Now?

After our article yesterday about Oguchi Onyewu and then noticing that Robbie Findley was coming off the bench for Real Salt Lake last night I was curious as to where the rest of the 2010 U.S. Men's World Cup was at these days. Here's a quick rundown:

Goalies

Tim Howard - 4 years later, Howard's still with Everton and still at the top of his game. He posted another shutout against Swansea City Saturday.
Brad Guzan - Guzan has now emerged as the starter for Aston Villa and continues to make a name for himself in the Premier League.
Marcus Hahnemann - Now 42, Hahnemann is a backup goalie for the Seattle Sounders. He hasn't appeared in an MLS match since last year's postseason when he replaced the suspended Michael Gspurning.

Defenders

Jonathan Spector - The former Manchester United product has been with Birmingham City of England's Football League Championship since 2011.
Carlos Bocanegra - Bocanegra returned to his MLS roots in 2013 joining up with Chivas USA. He made 18 appearances for the Goats this year before suffering a concussion in July which led to his subsequent retirement.
Oguchi Onyewu - As discussed yesterday, Gooch has signed on with Charlton Athletic. He went unused as a substitute Saturday in their match against Sheffield Wednesday.
Steve Cherundolo - Cherundolo announced his retirement in March after 16 seasons with Hannover 96. He's now an assistant coach on the club's amateur team.
Jonathan Bornstein - After five seasons in MLS, Bornstein went south of the border in 2010.  But since signing with Tigres UANL, he's struggled to find playing time and is currently on loan to Querétaro.
Jay DeMerit -DeMerit tore a tendon in his ankle in June and since announced his retirement appearing in parts of the last four seasons with Vancouver.
Clarence Goodson - Goodson joined the San Jose Earthquakes in 2013, but was limited to just 10 appearances this year after suffering a toe injury.

Midfielders

Michael Bradley - Bradley's first season with Toronto FC was a disappointment as they squandered a fast start and wound up missing the postseason all together. Bradley ended the year with just 2 goals and 4 assists in 25 games.
DeMarcus Beasley - Beasley became the first American to play in four World Cups this year filling the void at left back. He signed on with the Houston Dynamo after the tournament ended making his first MLS appearance since 2004. He started ten games for the Dynamo who missed the postseason.
Clint Dempsey - Deuce returned to MLS last August after a successful run in England, and this year he turned in his best MLS season with 15 goals and 10 assists in helping Seattle win the U.S. Open Cup and the Supporter's Shield.
Landon Donovan - Donovan has announced that he'll retire at the end of the season, but it wasn't because he can't play at a high level. In this, his last MLS season, Donovan finished with 10 goals and a career high 19 assists while the Galaxy finished with the league's second best record.
Stuart Holden - Holden's career has been one of disappointment as a slew of unfortunate injuries have kept him from realizing his full potential. He had his leg broken by Nigel de Jong in a friendly versus the Netherlands in 2010, he received 26 stitches and a fractured femur in a collision with Manchester United's Jonny Evans in 2011, and he tore his ACL in the Gold Cup Final in 2013. He has since suffered additional setbacks during his rehab, but he's still under contract at Bolton.
Ricardo Clark - Clark spent the full year with the Dynamo and scored 4 goals to go along with 4 assists in 25 games. He rejoined the club in 2012 after an injury-plagued stint in Europe.
Jose Francisco Torres - Torres has spent his entire professional career in Mexico playing 6 1/2 seasons with Pachuca before joining Tigres UANL. He joined Tigres in late 2012.
Maurice Edu - Edu spent the 2014 MLS season on loan from England's Stoke City to the Philadelphia Union. While the Union missed the playoffs, Edu started 31 of 34 matches scoring 3 goals and tallying two assists.
Benny Feilhaber - Feilhaber came to MLS after the 2010 World Cup and has now completed his fourth full season in the league. After helping Sporting KC to a title in 2013, he started 30 games this year scoring 4 goals to go along with 6 assists.

Strikers

Herculez Gomez - Gomez left MLS before the 2010 season and has been in Mexico ever since playing for six different clubs. He's currently on loan from Tijuana to Tigres UANL where he's playing alongside Torres.
Edson Buddle - Buddle scored his 100th MLS goal this season with the Rapids, but he appeared in just 18 matches on the year starting 12. Colorado missed the postseason.
Jozy Altidore - Altidore continues to excel for the U.S., but hasn't found similar success at the club level since leaving the Netherlands for Sunderland. He's scored just one English Premier League goal in parts of two seasons.
Robbie Findley - The speedy Findley made just 8 starts for Real Salt Lake this season after being injured for much of the year. He scored one goal, but tallied six a year ago.

MLS Conference Realignment Coming

So if you didn't already hear, Chivas USA is going away after this season which means next year we'll have a 20 team league with the additions of Orlando City FC and New York FC. Here's what the new conference alignment looks like:

EAST

Chicago Fire, Columbus Crew, DC United, Montreal Impact, New England Revolution, New York Red Bulls, New York City FC, Orlando City FC, Philadelphia Union, Toronto FC

WEST

Colorado Rapids, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, Sporting Kansas City, LA Galaxy, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake, San Jose Earthquakes, Seattle Sounders, Vancouver Whitecaps FC

So in essence, the Western Conference traded away Chivas USA for Defending MLS Champs Sporting Kansas City, and the Houston Dynamo while the East adds expansion clubs New York City FC and Orlando City FC. So next year in the West, three of the following clubs won't make the postseason: Dallas, Houston, Sporting KC, LA, Portland, Real Salt Lake, Seattle and Vancouver. BRUTAL.

But hey, maybe Toronto will finally make the postseason!

ESPN Article on Chivas USA

Weekly Recap

Pretty exciting final week of the season as we saw the Supporter's Shield decided not by American icons Clint Dempsey or Landon Donovan, nor by MVP candidates Obafemi Martins or Robbie Keane. Instead Guatemalan International Marco Pappa came off the bench to score two goals and secure the double for the Sounders. We also saw Italian veteran Marco Di Vaio cap off his career with one final goal, Bradley Wright-Phillips tie the league's single season scoring record with 2 goals against Sporting KC, Lee Nguyen add to his MVP campaign with his 18th goal of the season and 9th game winner, and yet another Toronto FC campaign end in disappointment. But the week's biggest disappointment has to belong to the Portland Timbers. Not only were they eliminated from the CONCACAF Champions League with a 3-1 loss to Olimpia, they also watched Vancouver get a late winner from Kendall "Elementary My Dear" Waston to clinch the final playoff spot for the Whitecaps leaving Portland on the outside looking in. For the rest of us though, there are playoffs to look forward to!

Fantasy Soccer - Week 33

59 points this week and a successful Top 10 finish. We'll try and do better next year...

GK - Nick Rimando - Real Salt Lake - 7 pts
DEF - Akira Kaji - Chivas USA - 10 pts
DEF -  David Horst - Houston Dynamo - 3 pts
DEF - Lawrence Olum - Sporting KC - 2 pts
MID - Lee Nguyen - New England Revs (C) - 18 pts
MID - Gyasi Zardes - LA Galaxy - 2 pts
MID - Landon Donovan - LA Galaxy - 2 pts
MID - Fabian Castillo - FC Dallas - 1 pt
MID - Ethan Finlay - Columbus Crew - 3 pts
FWD - Felix Borja - Chivas USA - 9 pts
FWD - Dom Dwyer - Sporting KC - 2 pts

Americans in the UEFA Champions League

Another quiet round for the Americans as once again, only Sacha Kljestan dressed, and he wasn't called upon in Anderlecht's 2-1 loss to Arsenal.

David Yelldell - GK - Bayer Leverkusen - Yelldell took his typical back seat to Bernd Leno and Dario Kresic as Leverkusen defeated Zenit St Petersburg 2-0.

Sacha Kljestan - MF - Anderlecht - Kljestan dressed, but once again went unused, this time getting passed up in favor of Leander Dendoncker and Matías Suárez. Anderlecht squandered a 1-0 lead over Arsenal giving up goals in the 89th and 91st minutes to fall 2-1.

Joe Gyau - MF - Borussia Dortmund - Gyau injured his knee in the U.S.'s match against Ecuador on October 10th and is out until January. Dortmund won without him 4-0 over Galatasaray.

Weekly Recap

We're a little behind this week, so here's the abbreviated recap:

RESULTS

WEDNESDAY

Houston 1 Toronto FC 0

Portland 3 San Jose 0

FRIDAY

Sporting KC 2 Chicago 0

Vancouver 1 Seattle 0

Cubo Torres Gets His First Goal for Mexico

Everything coming up Chivas USA right now. In the past week, Chivas USA defeated Real Salt Lake 1-0, Colorado 2-1, and now Erick "Cubo" Torres has scored his first goal for Mexico's Senior National Team, a game winner against Panama. Almost makes you forget the fact that between July 12th and October 5th, they went 0-11-1 during a 12 game stretch and were shutout 9 times.

Fantasy Soccer - Week 30

So, I got my feet wet with the Fantasy Soccer thing this past week. Finished with 60 points, good for 46th among the 125 players who joined this round on mlssoccer.com. Not great, but not horrible. And hey, overall I'm in 31,789th place. Nowhere to go but up! Here's a look at my roster:

STARTERS (60)

GK - Nick Rimando - Real Salt Lake - 9 pts
DEF - Nick Hagglund - Toronto FC - 3 pts
DEF - Zach Loyd - FC Dallas - 2 pts
DEF - Lawrence Olum - Sporting KC - 7 pts
DEF - Heath Pearce - Chivas USA - 8 pts
MID - Landon Donovan (C) - LA Galaxy - 14 pts
MID - Lee Nguyen - New England Revs - 6 pts
MID - Gyasi Zardes - LA Galaxy - 3 pts
FWD - Quincy Amarikwa - Chicago Fire - 5 pts
FWD - Dom Dwyer - Sporting KC - 1 pt
FWD - Joao Plata - Real Salt Lake - 2 pts

Another Record for Donovan As Galaxy Win Again - MLS Weekly Recap

THURSDAY

Chicago 1 Philadelphia 1

The Fire set an MLS record with their 17th draw of the season with a dramatic stoppage-time equalizer against the Philadelphia Union. Amobi Okugo's 88th minute goal seemed a sure bet to send the Philadelphia faithful home happy, but Robert Earnshaw had other plans. The Fire's super-sub capitalized on a turnover by Philadelphia keeper Rais Mbolhi to set a new MLS record for parity. Earnshaw now has 3 goals in just 174 minutes of playing time.

FRIDAY

DC United 0 Sporting Kansas City 0

United clinched a playoff berth, becoming the first Eastern Conference club to do so this season, thanks to another shutout from Bill Hamid. Hamid has now posted back-to-back clean sheets, and five in his last eight matches. Unfortunately for DC, he was matched by Sporting's Andy Gruenebaum who made a season-high seven saves in posting his second consecutive shutout as well.

Americans in the UEFA Champion's League

Quiet round for the Americans as of the now three players on Champions League rosters, only Sacha Kljestan dressed, and he wasn't called upon in Anderlecht's 3-0 loss to Joe Gyau's Borussia Dortmund.

David Yelldell - GK - Bayer Leverkusen - Yelldell again took a back seat to Leno and Kresic as Leverkusen defeated Benfica 3-1. Yelldell hasn't appeared in a competitive match since July of 2011 when he conceded 4 goals to Dynamo Dresden in a 4-3 loss in the German Cup (DFB-Pokal). He last dressed in May for a league match against Bremen.

Sacha Kljestan - MF - Anderlecht - Kljestan dressed, but was passed up in favor of strikers Frank Acheampong (Ghana, Age 20), Gohi Bi Zoro Cyriac (Ivory Coast, Age 24) and Nathan Kabasele (Belgium, Age 20).

Joe Gyau - MF - Borussia Dortmund - The 22 year-old Gyau dressed for four Bundesliga matches in September making his debut as a substitute in the 73rd minute on the 24th against Stuttgart. He has yet to dress for a Champions League match.

Americans in the UEFA Champions League

Only two Americans are on active rosters for the 32 remaining clubs playing in the UEFA Champions League this year. Here's a rundown of how they fared on Match Day 1.

David Yelldell - GK - Bayer Leverkusen - The 32 year-old Yelldell is currently the 3rd string keeper behind Bernd Leno, the youngest GK to play in a Champions League match, and Dario Kresic, a former youth national team keeper in Croatia. A lot's going to have to happen before Yelldell makes an impact for Bayer Leverkusen who he's yet to play for in a league match despite signing with the club back in 2011.

Sacha Kljestan - MF - Anderlecht - Kljestan is in his 5th season with Belgian powerhouse Anderlecht setting a professional career high with 8 goals in league play last year. He scored in the Group Stage of the Champions League in 2013 against Olympiacos (Greece), in the Third Qualifying Round of the Champions League in 2012 against Ekranas (Lithuania), in the Group Stage of the Europa League in 2011 against Lokomotiv Moscow, and in the Third Qualifying Round of the Champions League in 2010 against The New Saints (Wales) in 2010. Kljestan came into the match against Galatasaray Tuesday in the 66th minute up 1-0, but Anderlecht couldn't hang on to the lead yielding a late equalizer to Burak Yilmaz.

The World Cup is Over... MLS Week in Review

Germany Wins the World Cup

What an epic finish to just a sensational World Cup. Mario Götze, the 22 year old Bayern Munich striker, delivered just a clinical finish in the second half of extra time to give the Germans a 1-0 win, and their first World Cup title since 1990. It wasn't the high-scoring affair that we all might have wanted, but it wasn't short on entertainment. Ultimately, Argentina just didn't create enough chances in the attacking third, and they coughed away some of the ones they did have. Still, they can hold their heads high knowing they played a really strong tournament. Germany just played a better one. Now sadly we wait for four more years until Russia, 2018.

U.S. Open Cup Semifinals Set

The semifinal pairings for the 2014 U.S. Open Cup are set with FC Dallas set to take on the Philadelphia Union on August 12th, and the Seattle Sounders hosting the Chicago Fire on August 13th.

Philadelphia defeated New England 2-0 behind Sebastien Le Toux's 14th career U.S. Open Cup Goal. Le Toux now is the tournament's all-time leading scorer in the modern era (1995-present).

Dallas got all they can handle from the Charlotte RailHawks in a high scoring affair. Down 1-0 early, Dallas got three goals from Blas Pérez and a goal and two assists from Fabián Castillo en route to a 5-2 win.

Chicago got late goals from Jeff Larentowicz and Alex to defeate a plucky Atlanta Silverbacks squad 3-1. Chicago lost Mike Magee to a red card though and will be without him for their semifinal match against the Sounders.

Seattle saw Darlington Nagbe steal a win from them late in stoppage time with a dramatic equalizer, but Kenny Cooper, tied for the lead with a tournament-high four goals, headed in the game winner in extra time after Portland had gone a man down. Marco Pappa added an insurance goal a few minutes later to send Seattle through 3-1.

MLS Weekly Recap

DC United defeated San Jose 2-1 on Friday behind goals from former U.S. National Teamer Eddie Johnson and Luis Silva. Chris Wondolowski, in his first game back from the World Cup, scored his sixth goal of the year in a losing effort.

Thierry Henry had a goal and three assists giving him 37 for his career in a New York uniform making him the franchise's all-time leader as New York routed Columbus 4-1. Bradley Wright-Phillips, a former Manchester City product, added his league leading 15th goal of the season.

Jermain Defoe, who scored for England in the 2010 World Cup, bagged a pair of goals in the second half as Toronto came back from being 2-0 down to defeat the Houston Dynamo 4-2. U.S. World Cup veteran Brad Davis scored twice for Houston in the first half.

After scoring just 7 goals in his first 5 MLS seasons, Quincy Amarikwa is in the midst of a break-out season in 2014. The 26 year-old striker tallied his sixth goal of the season to give Chicago a 1-0 win over New England. Goalkeeper Sean Johnson denied Chris Tierney on a PK late in the match to preserve the win and earn the shutout.

22 year-old Gyasi Zardes scored the only goal of the match as the LA Galaxy extended their unbeaten streak to 7 games with a 1-0 victory over Nick Rimando and Real Salt Lake. Rimando saved a late penalty to keep the game close, but Real Salt Lake was unable to find an equalizer.

Colorado rallied from a 3-1 deficit to draw with the Philadelphia Union 3-3 on Saturday. Jamaican-born Deshorn Brown scored in the 86th minute to even up the score and break the hearts of the Philadelphia faithful. Argentinian midfielder Cristian Maidana, in his first MLS season, delivered his 8th assist of the year for the Union, second in the league behind Henry's 9.

Dom Dwyer scored two more goals, giving him 14 on the year, as Kansas City defeated Montreal 2-1. Dwyer has 6 goals this year against the Impact, the last of which came in the 89th minute of this match to break a 1-1 tie. Unfortunately for American soccer fans, if you're hoping Dom Dwyer is the future for U.S. strikers, Dwyer is English.

Erick Torres, on loan to Chivas USA from Guadalajara (Mexico), scored for the fifth straight match as Chivas USA defeated Vancouver 3-1. Vancouver's Jordan Harvey sustained a costly red card in the 69th minute of the match with the game still tied at 1. The Whitecaps were unable to hang on after going a man down.

Standings

Top 10 Leading Scorers

 

1. Bradley Wright-Phillips (England) - New York Red Bulls - 15

2. Dom Dwyer (England) - Sporting Kansas City - 14

3. Erick Torres (Mexico) - Chivas USA - 13

4. Jermain Defoe (England) - Toronto FC - 10

5. Obafemi Martins (Nigeria) - Seattle Sounders - 8

5. Clint Dempsey (USA) - Seattle Sounders - 8

7. Fabián Espíndola (Argentina) - DC United - 7

7. Robbie Keane (Ireland) - LA Galaxy - 7

7. Joao Plata (Ecuador) - Real Salt Lake - 7

7. Jack McInerney (USA) - Montreal Impact - 7

Player Bio of the Week

This week's focus is on striker Bradley Wright-Phillips. The 29 year old Englishman leads MLS this year with 15 goals for the New York Red Bulls. Signed in late July of 2013, the Red Bulls were 4-0 in games he started last year and he scored once during the regular season and again in the playoffs. In 2014, he's become a mainstay up top with Thierry Henry helping New York to an Eastern Conference high 30 goals through 23 matches. Wright-Phillips has a pair of hat tricks on the season, and has scored in 9 of his last 11 league matches. He began his career with Manchester City, but after an unproductive couple of seasons there, he was sold to Southampton before later ending up with Plymouth Argyle, Charlton Athletic and Brentford. Wright-Phillips' best season came in 2011-12 when he led Charlton Athletic to the English Football League One Championship behind his league leading 22 goals. His success didn't transfer up a division though as he scored just once in 19 league matches during the 2012-2013 season and was subsequently released. Wright-Phillips logged five appearances with the English U-20 National Team back in 2005, but has not been a member of the National Team picture in recent years.