Photo by Mikey loves Barcelona

I will be the first to admit that my proximity to RFK Stadium may color my biases a little bit.  But after seeing DC United’s press release on their latest friendly, I have to be impressed with this club.  Despite playing in less than stellar facilities and finishing last in MLS last season, the club continues to line up some of the biggest name clubs in the world for friendlies.

Yesterday the club announced that it will host the EPL’s Everton on July 23 at RFK.  Everton, for those not fans of the English game, are one of England’s more prominent clubs that are currently in eighth place in the Barclay’s Premier League.  The biggest name on the team for American fans is U.S. national keeper Tim Howard, but some of the bigger name Everton players include Australian international Tim Cahill, England star Phil Neville, Sideshow Bob look alike Marouane Fellaini, and rising English star Jack Rodwell.

The Everton friendly is the second announced one this season; DC United had previously announced that it will play Ajax on May 22 at RFK.  Ajax is one of the Netherland’s most famous clubs and one of five clubs to repeat as European champions.  Currently they sit in third place in the Dutch Eredivisie and boast international stars like Maarten Stekelenburg and defender Gregory van der Wiel, who both played for the World Cup runner-up Dutch side.  Interestingly, there is an odd connection between Ajax and DC: Ajax’s most famous player Johan Cruyff played at RFK Stadium in the early 1980s as a member of the Washington Diplomats.

DC United is currently planning a third international friendly but the club has a recent history of bringing the world’s biggest names to RFK.  Last season, the team hosted (and defeated) AC Milan in a much publicized match.  Other famous opponents include FC Celtic (2006), Chelsea (2005), Leeds United (1996), Newcastle (2000), and Real Madrid (2009).  While some people dismiss these kinds of matches as no more than pointless wastes of time and energy, DC United’s aggressive international scheduling gives the team positive attention and boosts its international profile.

You can buy soccer tickets at TixDaq.

Would you want to see Guiseppe Rossi this summer?

Earlier this offseason, I posted a poll and question about what EPL teams you would like to see do a tour of the United States.  Since then we have seen Barcelona confirm a three-stop tour of the U.S., where they will be playing both Manchester United (DC) and AC Milan (Miami).  But with as large a country as ours, there is plenty of space and a diverse enough fan base in the United States for other European clubs to pay a visit this year .

Today’s question will expand the original to the other three major European leagues: La Liga, Bundesliga, and Serie A.  A later post or two will include further European leagues and clubs, so if your favorite European team has not yet been posted, you will have your chance to pick it later.  All three of the other major leagues have diverse styles of play and passionate fans in the U.S. who sometimes have to compete for attention with the more popular (and culturally accessible) English Premier League.  But a major driver of the popularity of these leagues is immigration – fans root for teams in the country of their descendants or from where they originate.  Hence the huge Barcelona and AC Milan followings across the United States.

So here are six clubs that I think would do well to take a tour of the United States this summer who have not already announced any matches.  Of course vote for which ones you’d like to see through the poll below and in the comments section:

Inter Milan:  The nerazzurri hit hard times under Rafa Benitez but slowly seem to be righting themselves.  Even if they are not treble contenders this year, the team is stocked with world class talent from front to back.  Wesley Snejder, Samuel Eto’o, Cambiasso, Julio Cesar, etc. are all big names in the soccer world, and are good draws.  Inter has visited the United States as recently as last year and draws very well.  Dream match – Inter Milan versus AC Milan in Baltimore.  Bring one of the best derbies in the world to the U.S. city with a rich Italian history.

Juventus: Juve is another large Italian club that has fallen on hard times.  But Juventus has traditionally been the face of Italian soccer, supplying the national team with many of its players.  Fans would come out to see Gigi Buffon, maybe when healthy the world’s best keeper, as well as Alessandro Del Piero, Alberto Aquilani, and breakout star Milos Krasic.  Dream match – Juventus versus Ajax in the New Meadowlands.  Replay the 1996 now-Champions League final outside a city with supporters of both clubs.

Real Madrid: Any chance you can see The Special One, you have to take that opportunity.  But besides Mr Mourinho, Real Madrid may have the best collection of soccer talent in the world.  Even a second or half squad would bring out world-class players but fans could hope to see Ronaldo, Higuain, Xabi Alonso, and Mesut Ozil.  Dream match – Real Madrid versus FC Dallas in the Jerry Dome.  Miami gets Barcelona this summer, so Dallas gets Real.

Villareal: The big reason to bring Villareal to the United States is Jozy Altidore.  If he is the future of the U.S. national team, bring him to the U.S. on a tour or for a friendly so Americans can see him with his club.  And Villareal is having a great season, third in the league behind the big two, and they have a ton of talent.  One of their top scorers is Giuseppe Rossi, someone American soccer fans may have heard of.  Dream match – New York Red Bulls and Villareal in New Meadowlands.  Playing the match here allows Rossi and Altidore a chance to play near their hometowns.

Bayern Munich: The Bundesliga pecking order has been upset this year, with traditional clubs like Stuttgart in danger of relegation.  However, even though they are sitting just fifth, Bayern is the premier name in Bundesliga outside Germany.  Big names from the most recent World Cup like Muller and Schweinsteiger populate the roster, and French fans can come out to see Franck Ribery.  Dream match – Bayern visiting Seattle at Qwest Field.  Seattle has been skipped in many of these tours and deserve a big-name competition.

TSG Hoffenheim: Many people may not have heard about this club or think it would be a good draw in the United States, but Hoffenheim, a mid-table club, has a great story in Vedad Ibisevic.  You can read the entire story in this New York Times article, but in brief Ibisevic’s family fled to the United States to avoid the ethnic warfare in Bosnia.  Vedad played for a year with the University of St. Louis before beginning his professional career in Europe.  Dream match – Obviously Hoffenheim should play in St. Louis and the probably opponent should be Sporting Kansas City, the closest professional club.

All of us have had friends who are in a complicated relationship.  It may even have been us: the guy recently began dating a much more attractive woman who, while not a young bombshell, is still a gorgeous woman.  This woman recently ended an intense relationship but does not treat your friend like a rebound – she says all the right things when all your buddies meet up for drinks and she obviously cares for him.  They had a rough beginning – your friend had jealousy issues, she had to get used to your friend’s idiosyncrasies – but they seem to be going well together.  But you notice she likes to eye the bar a little too much, and seems to often stare off at other men, with that look in her eyes asking “what if”.  She knows your friend is the best fit for her, but can’t help wondering if she can relive the glory days with other, more glamorous guys like the one she used to date.

What would you tell your friend?  Wouldn’t you warn him about where this relationship is headed, if not tell him he should begin thinking about breaking it off before it gets too messy?

The Galaxy and David Beckham have reached that point.  After a few years of settling in and finding their grooves in their relationship, Beckham is again the center of transfer rumors to England.  This time it is a loan deal to Tottenham for a few months, to help Harry Redknapp’s team make a run at the title.  The Galaxy have patiently dealt with Beckham’s desire to play top-flight football, quietly conceding most of the 2010 season after he picked up an Achilles injury playing for AC Milan and uttering nary a protest when he speaks of his desire to play for the English national team again.  And it’s not like they have not benefited, having made tons of money off the Beckham name.  But it has to stop.

How many games has David Beckham, he of the $250 million contract, played for the LA Galaxy since the beginning of 2009?  16.  Just 16 (hat tip Steve Davis). It’s time for this experiment to end and for the Galaxy to make a permanent transfer of Beckham to an English team.

The LA Galaxy are poised to make a run at an elusive third MLS Cup.  If the club can sign Juan Pablo Angel and hold on to internationally coveted players like Edson Buddle and Omar Gonzalez, Bruce Arena has constructed the ultimate win-now team.  It has experience, fire power, and enough defense to win the MLS Cup.  Beckham is an important part of this, expected to play a solid midfield and do what he does best – scare the heck out of teams during corner kicks and free kicks.  But if Beckham leaves or, God forbid, gets hurt, where does that leave LA?  Experienced yes but missing a starter in the midfield.  It’s better for them to plan now and use his DP spot to get another midfielder.

We’ve seen this story before – David Beckham wanted to go on a short loan to AC Milan that basically turned into a two-year commitment and an injury.  Now, knowing that he has to keep in front of the English coaching staff’s vision to fulfill his dream of playing for England (again), there are these reports of a short-term loan to Tottenham.  What if he finds success coming off the bench?  What if Spurs are still in a title hunt in March?  They will certainly be in the hunt for a Champions League spot.  Will this time Team Beckham reject a longer loan and come back to LA?

I remember watching the LA Galaxy dominate the Seattle Sounders (sorry Seattle fans) in the second leg of this year’s playoffs.  Beckham was starting and played maybe his best game of the past two years.  He was flying all over the pitch, helping thwart the Sounder’s attack and serving as a conduit to the Galaxy attack.  This was the Beckham MLS and LA fans have wanted to see since “the Beckham rule” went into effect, and it has been a rare treat these past few years.  A loan spell could guarantee they may not see that again this year, and because of that it is time to finally cut the cord.  MLS and the Galaxy deserve better.

Merry Christmas and happy holidays everyone!  While the United States paused work to celebrate the holidays, MLS was busy receiving come hither glances from foreign soccer stars who, seeing Thierry Henry and Beckham’s success in the U.S., have decided that coming to American to finish their career would be most beneficial.

The most recent, and possibly biggest name, is AC Milan star Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who told Voetbal International this weekend that he would like to finish his career in a nice place in the U.S. before retiring.  Previously, the striker had said AC Milan would be his last club, but indicates he would love the chance to make a little extra money playing in America in the future.  The Swede would be a great get for MLS, as he is one of the world’s best goal-scorers and a bona fide star.  His play early in the 2010-2011 Serie A season almost single-handedly kept Milan in the scudetto race as well as the Champions League.  The one problem is his current contract runs through 2014, so if he does honor his contract it will be a long time before we see him in an MLS uniform.

The second big name is Chelsea forward and former French international Nicolas Anelka, who is under contract in England for the next two years.  Anelka has made the rounds in international football, playing for (in addition to Chelsea) Arsenal, Liverpool, Paris Saint-Germain, and Real Madrid.  Another incredibly gifted striker who even at an older age (he would be 33 in 2012) would be a major contributer to an MLS team.  And he has an American soccer connection – his brother is former AC St. Louis coach Claude Anelka, who told a French soccer site “More and more players want to go playing over there. United States represents something. It makes you dream.”

A third potential international looking to make an American move is someone very familiar to national team members.  Most recently of West Ham, Mexican-international Guillermo Franco is looking at all international options, including MLS as reported by Jeremiah Oshan.  His status as unsigned makes him a promising prospect to play in the U.S., and there are clubs that could use his services.  But he is also looking at the Middle East and wants to retire at Monterrey, where he was a star in the Mexican league.

Finally, the MLS site mentions that Fiorentina’s Adrian Mutu has possible interest in an MLS move.  While Mutu is an immensely talented player, the Romanian is coming off a drug suspension and Fiorentina has indicated they do not want to resign him when his contract is up.  His baggage may be too much to take on for an MLS club.

These are some big names rumored to be considering MLS and it shows the appeal of the U.S. soccer league.  But who do think would be the best addition to the MLS?

Update: Get your DC tickets here.

Congratulations D.C, Miami, and Dallas – according to the FC Barcelona website this morning you will have the opportunity to witness the world’s best team in person.

The team has announced its summer 2011 tour and it is a monster one.  The club will begin in Europe against unknown opponents.  They will play two matches at Munich’s Audi Cup on July 21 and 22, followed by a trip to Split, Croatia for a friendly July 25.

Then the team travels across the Atlantic for three matches in the United States.  Dates, locations and opponents are below:

July 30 – Manchester United v. Barcelona (Washington, DC)

August 3 – AC Milan v. Barcelona (Miami, FL)

August 6 – America of Mexico v. Barcelona (Dallas, TX)

This will be the club’s first trip back to the U.S. since 2009 and the club expects to make over $8 million on the tour.

My first impression is that the Manchester United/Barca match will be epic.  Expect that one to be played at Fedex Field instead of RFK due to its size and the stadium will be closed to full.  AC Milan, which is no stranger to the U.S. having played friendlies here the past two summers, looks to be returning again and will give the Miami area some great soccer.  Finally, Dallas will allow fans of the Mexican soccer league to see how their teams match up against a European giant.

What do you think about the announced schedule?  Upset they are not playing MLS teams or your hometown is not on the tour schedule?  Or just happy to have a chance to see Barcelona, Manchester United, and AC Milan back in the states?

This year’s Memorial Day weekend would certainly be well remembered by most Chicagoans and especially sports fans.

With the Stanley Cup finals starting in Chicago and the MLB St. Louis Cardinals visiting Wrigley Field, and a Presidential visit thrown in, the visit of AC Milan to Toyota Park took somewhat of a back seat. Yet for soccer fans it was the main event of the weekend.

Befitting his status as one of the world’s best known athletes, Ronaldinho stopped by Wrigley Field to perform one of the great honors in the City of Chicago and threw out the first pitch before the Cubs v. Cardinals game on Saturday. He was quoted as saying that all the people love him when he goes to another country. He did not know how right he was on that one.

While this writer has not been a fan of international friendlies, the very name of the Brazilian superstar and his AC Milan squad is such a draw to the soccer fan that watching it on Fox Soccer is not an option. It helps that Fire season ticket holders received the game as a bonus to their ticket package. A warm summer night at Toyota Park in any event is an attraction in and of itself.

The game was nationally televised on Fox Soccer Channel but yet the game became a sellout with over 20,000 fans in attendance. I will not bother with the game details they are unimportant to the story. Suffice to say, AC Milan won 1-0 on a goal early in the 2nd half by Clarence Seedorf.

The Italian side was clearly superior to the Fire and easily prevented what has been a weak offense for Chicago from posing any real threats until later in the game when substitutes abounded. Tactics wise AC Milan played a team defense that allowed the man with the ball to be double and tripled covered but yet did not open up a free man for a shot. Very impressive but you can do that with size and speed on your team that is world class. As for Ronaldinho himself, I must say he seemed a bit upset when his teammates did not get him the ball when he considered himself open. He did acknowledge the crowd who loved him all night and played well into the second half pleasing his army of fans.

As I said above, Ronaldinho said he was loved and he was correct. In the 31st minute a fan in Milan gear ran onto the field and bowed on the ground to the Brazilian legend. There was some contact between the two and Ronaldinho flashed a big smile as the fan was pulled off the field by security. A second fan tried to get onto the pitch at the same time as the first fan but did not get far. Then in the 83rd minute another fan made it onto the pitch but failed to reach Seedorf. About the 71st minute mark a flare appeared in the north end zone stands the home of Section 8. This is not unheard of at a Fire game but the flare in the stand was followed by one thrown onto the pitch toward the Milan keeper. Luckily no one was hurt and the flare was picked up quickly by security personal that had a busy night. It is unknown whether the offender was caught. To say the least it brought back some bad memories.

The night was special from the beginning. A Brazilian band was playing for the crowd in the north end zone. A new Scottish themed pub had a group of ladies in some interesting tartan outfits on the grounds and almost every team and country jersey you can think of was on display. Germany, Italy, England, Brazil, Argentina, USA, Mexico, and Israel national shirts. Add to that Man U., Arsenal, Chelsea, Barcelona, Real Madrid, NE Revolution, LA Galaxy, and of course the visitors AC Milan and host Chicago Fire. As my friend, a former New York City police officer who was attending only his second soccer game ever with me said, the game was less about the soccer but more about the event. A good way to look at it if you ask me.

Fire Alarms

The first ever visit of the Philadelphia Union takes places next week on Saturday June 5. The Fire then make up a game moved earlier to accommodate the Sister City Cup with the Rapids on June 9. With friendlies included, it will be the 5th and 6th home games in a row for the Fire. After the June 9th game the Fire have only one league home game between then and August 1. The Fire will host a SuperLiga match up at Toyota Park on July 14 vs. Monarcas Morelia.

A recent Chicago fan poll published in the Chicago Tribune over the weekend found Fire fans increasing in number by 9% over a three year period. Good but not great. Needless to say Blackhawk fans increased the most.

Food choice: Too hot to eat. Ice cold lemonade helped.

One of the major complains that many have against the MLS is that it is a developmental league. No American dreams of playing for the San Jose Earthquakes or the Kansas City Wizards – they imagine themselves playing in Italy, Spain or England. The best MLS players are always eyeing their European opportunities. Their agents are mapping out career strategies of moving from the US to one of the “lesser” European leagues in Holland or Denmark as a transition to a bigger European League. The USMNT has two types of players – those who play in Europe and those who should.

For many US Soccer fans, this reality has made Major League Soccer look like a minor league operation, simply holding players until they get a shot at the big show. Seeing the trickle of past-their-prime players like Freddie Ljungberg, Kasey Keller and (yes) David Beckham make the reverse journey only reinforces the degree to which the MLS is viewed as an unimportant league. While Tony Parker comes to the NBA to compete against the best, his fellow Frenchman Patrick Vieria looks at spending his last year as a professional playing in the MLS as “an experience.”

When you go to a MLS game, you look around the crowd and see lots of people wearing the jerseys of some of the great teams of Europe. What is the soccer fan who is wearing the Arsenal, Barca, Real Madrid, AC Milan or ManU jersey at a MLS game really saying? “I love this sport, and I am willing to come to a MLS game because that is all we have, but please don’t confuse me with someone who thinks this is any good.”

So when will the MLS be talked about in the same breath as the EPL, La Liga, or Serie A? Realistically, the answer is never. The MLS will always be a feeder league for the high fliers of Europe. We should absorb that fact, and root for our MLS team without reservation or an ounce of insecurity.

There are plenty of great soccer nations that export all their great players and yet command a fervent following from their fans. Nearly every great Dutch player plays outside of Holland, and that does not make the Ajax fans walk around bemoaning the state of their league. The majority of the Argentina national team plays in Europe, and the River vs. Boca Super Classico in Buenos Aires makes the Galaxy/Chivas Superclassico look like a garden party. And of course, there is not a single member of the Brazil starting XI who plays for a Brazilian club team, but there are still over 400 teams in the Brazilian Football Confederation.

The US Soccer fan has to adopt this same attitude. The MLS is our league, and its players are our players. When some of them get the opportunity to play in Europe, that does not diminish the status of our league – it enhances it. It proves we are turning out players with the ability to compete among the best. Whether our teams can compete among the best is irrelevant.

Sometime in January, a handful of the best the MLS has to offer – Chad Marshall, Robbie Rogers and (almost certainly) Landon Donovan – will be taking off their cleats and uniforms and be putting on their boots and kits. As a proud MLS fan, I will be looking forward to see how they stack up with their new teams in their new leagues. I will also be looking forward to seeing the new blood the MLS brings in. I will still go to my 12 Galaxy games a year and Tivo the rest. I will still play my Sunday 5 on 5 games in my “vintage” gold and green Galaxy uniform.

The MLS may not be a first tier league, but that does not mean we should be second tier fans.

Alessandro Bianchi/Reuters

Despite his expressed interest to remain in Italy, it appears that David Beckham will return to the Los Angeles Galaxy for the 2009 MLS season. The Friday February 13th deadline for a trade deal, which was set by MLS Commissioner Don Garber, has come and gone without A.C. Milan making an acceptable offer for Beckham. Galaxy’s GM and Coach, Bruce Arena, stated that: “we did not receive an acceptable offer for [David Beckham]. As a result, David remains an LA Galaxy player and we look forward to having him back with the club starting March 9.”

As Arena’s statement indicates, Beckham is on loan with Milan until March 8, which means there is more time for a transfer deal to be brokered, one that could possibly include Beckham enhancing the transfer fee with money from his own bank accounts. If all the parties involved in this little soap opera really want to get a transfer deal done, it would be in their best interests to go about it quietly, for all the press these past weeks did nothing but cause distraction and stir the pot.

Beckham’s recent statement that “at Milan I have found great players who have been of great help to me” sums up the heart of the situation. While he may be one of the best known soccer players, Beckham is an excellent player with a good set of skills, but he is not in the pantheon of greatest soccer players ever, and, more importantly, he is not the kind of soccer player that can carry an entire team to victory, no matter the circumstances. Beckham is a team player, in almost the purest sense of the term. Yes, he is a star persona off the pitch, but on the pitch he excels when he is working with capable teammates – he best operates in an ensemble, not as a soloist.

If things continue on this path, then we will see Beckham return to our shores in a couple weeks and do another tour of the MLS, heck, we might actually see him in Houston in this time. Beckham is a professional, and while he might not be happy playing for L.A., he’ll suit up without complaint and take the pitch, and the Galaxy probably won’t make the playoffs again. Then again, maybe Arena will be able to develop a squad and a strategy that compliments Beckham’s skills and doesn’t expect him to be the team’s savior and top goal scorer. With the return of Beckham, the Galaxy would be smart to transfer Landon Donovan to Bayern Munich, permanently, and take advantage of the transfer fee and salary cap room to improve the rest of its squad. Get a backline that won’t be so porous and get some strikers who can take advantage of crosses and passes from Beckham.

There’s still a couple weeks left for something to happen, but for now I’m looking forward to watching the Derby della Madonnina on Sunday.

The LA Galaxy and AC Milan have until Friday to work out an agreement to see where David Beckham will play for after the March transfer date. With the start of the MLS season coming quickly it will be nice to have this finally come to an end so it won’t distract the Galaxy as they get set for their season, a season they will want to improve on and make the playoffs this year. Beckham’s contract allows him to leave the Galaxy after the ’09 season, and anyone reading his quotes over the last month know his heart is in Italy so if the Italian giants can offer a deal in excess of $10 million then the league should accept that and carry on or they will get zero when he does ultimately walk after the ’09 season. I for one applaud commissioner Don Garber in wanting to get this resolved as quickly as possible, it’s about time Major League Soccer sets the deadline and it let’s other clubs around the league that they won’t be played like a fiddle.

So what are your thoughts, will AC Milan up their offer and keep Beckham? Will they let him go back to the LA Galaxy and wait until the 2009 season when Beckham can walk out on his MLS deal and re-sign him then?

Jason Pedersen writes for JustSoccerJerseys