Blaise returned to Twente's active roster just in time for the biggest matches of the season. PSV Eindhoven in League action on the 20th and Feyenoord Rotterdam on the 24th to advance to the Dutch Cup Final.

Here's how the Sounders PR staff announced his return

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I had the great fortune to spend a week in Mexico; Cabo San Lucas down in Baja Sur. No, this was not a soccer trip, I leave those to Steve Davis. This was about sun, and family. So posting slowed down a bit here. You may have noticed, or not. But I did do some soccer reading (Soccernomics), and had conversations with locals about the game they love - which is hard because I don't speak Spanish.

Mostly I did a totally non-scientific survey, because I was curious about how pure the fanbase of a teamless state would be. By teamless, I mean no pro side. And no real amateur side either, not of significance. Sure, there are some local branches of Universities - where I was had one from Tijuana. In all though, this state of less than 1 Million people is 32nd of 32 by population. So why would I think there would be a decent team? Why would I think that the people here would love soccer?

Well, because its Mexico. And like so many things in soccer there is this tradition that everyone in Mexico loves soccer. The reality isn't quite so pure.

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 The Sounders took 5th in the La Manga Cup II for 2010 with their win over SK Brann of Norway. But again, these matches aren't necessarily about wins/losses, but instead about competing for time. That window is narrow (unless the rules change) as March First approaches. The competition for the last 1 or 2 Developmental spots is seems to be down to Lamar Neagle and Mike Fucito.

While Wallace and Predido may have their advocates, at this point I'm down to the guy who proved everything possible last year, and the guy doing it this year. Both have played about 50% of the available minutes when healthy. In the videohere Ljungberg mentions both.

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We don't know much, but we know that Sounders can now finish with a winning record in the tourney. Maybe even a top 5 finish against Norwegian and Danish sides. That's basically it. Everything else is guessing.

I've postulated that there is competition for who will be the starting Right Wing/Mid, at the very least who will provide depth at the wide midfielder positions (Jaqua, Levesque, Estrada, King, Fucito). There is of course the backup role at Left Back (Wahl, Scott) and depth at Right Back (Neagle, Ianni, Sturgis). Center Mid seems to have an opening as well with Vagenas, Sturgis, and King all playing there in these first three matches - one of those will start Match Day One.

Let's look at the attacking players competing for depth and roster slots first

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La Manga Cup II is set-up so that every team plays three matches, but by losing on Day One the Sounders can now finish at best with a 5th place trophy by winning their next two. More importantly though we get another snapshot of competition within Sounders FC for those precious roster slots.

Today they face Stabaek IF's football side. Last season Stabaek finished 3rd on the table with a +18 Goal Differential. Sigi describes the team;

They’ve got good physical players, guys with good size, that are going to challenge and hold balls up, with hard running guys up front. Their level of play is little bit behind Rosenborg, but they’re a good team and it’s going to be good opposition for us.

 But rather than focus on beating a Norwegian team that will be in the Europa League I'm more interested in what the Sounders do, and how they do it. I'm a bit intrigued by Mikkel Diskerud as he is young, and has American eligibility.

Lineups as soon as they are public. Best feed to watch when we get it as well. Here is the Sounders official text only live blog

I like to talk in the terms of Starters, Rotationals, Subs and Reserves. These days though those final two sections are really just Trialists. The depth chart is in flux, and so Sigi had to choose a lineup that he hoped could win, but at the same point the Sounders are trying to figure out a few spaces who the starter will be (RM and CB), and are the depth is certainly up for battle.

It feels like time for a little graphic

There are few things that need a little explanation. Left and Right fullbacks played a mirror image. In the first half Riley was the more typically attacking player, while in the second half that went to Gonzalez. In the midfield the more defensive Sturgis came on for Vagenas, and later King assumed the now more attacking role that Alonso had assumed.

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On January 21st, pending a CBA agreement, the primary transfer window will open for Major League Soccer. As usual I will start to track those players that would be available on a Free.  While the Designated Players get all the attention, there have been several free transfers and loans that have really helped the league step forward.

Kasey Keller, Fredy Montero, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Freddie Ljungberg are just a few of the names who signed to the league on a Free. So here, we will track those players that are available on the Free. The window closes on April 15th, so there will be plenty of the time for any team in MLS to try and sign that key Free - if the CBA gets done.

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Dave pointed me toward a great blog called 3 Four 3 that I want to highlight, because I think these guys have very much the right idea when it comes to the qualities that make a player great:

This term "elite" is very often abused. In conversations with players, parents, fans, coaches – the soccer community in general – I have heard many label this or that player elite. And many times it actually is a decent player. But elite they are not! Also, it’s amazing how many times the player that was referenced is in reality just one of the bunch.

The issue arises because people, specifically in the US, have the wrong idea of what constitutes elite. Their metrics are just flat out wrong. The most resounding error is focusing on physical attributes. Is he big? Is he strong? Is he fast?

This does not make or break elite status!

What makes or breaks you are two and only two fundamental attributes: Technical Quality and Soccer IQ.

Please read the rest of the post and the blog as a whole, because these guys are showing a kind of thinking that is not found often enough in American soccer. The point that they make in the post referenced above can't be made forcefully enough. What the professional American player is lacking generally is not size, speed, or strength, it's some combination of those two attributes they identify. Think back on the Sounders season, and remember those stretches when it seemed like nobody could string more than four passes together. Remember the possessions that went for nothing because someone couldn't trap the ball or needed too many touches to control the ball. Think back to those times when we couldn't get past a team packed in their own end for ninety minutes. To use their terms, these are failures of technical quality and soccer IQ.

Of course, this is hardly a problem of just the professional level. American soccer suffers from this at all levels from the toddlers on up. I saw a particularly stark example a couple of years ago. A friend of mine, who coached his son's U-12 team, invited me to see them play in a local tournament. We arrived a little early and a girls' match was finishing up. We watched as we waited for the field to open up, and I saw a little girl anticipate and intercept a pass, smoothly dribble around the opponent she had just beaten to the ball, and take off down the field, head up, looking for her teammates. Impressed, I turned to my friend and said, "That number 44 is pretty good," to which he replied, "But she's so small." I really wish I could say I was surprised at his response, but unfortunately that sort of thinking is all too common.