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A new month and a new day, time to shake off this weekend's showing and look forward to the next fixture. In this edition of Major Link Soccer, we get your week started talking about the fact that USOC qualifying is underway in California. A New York Comos legend passed away over the weekend at the age of 65. Two different lines of thinking when it comes to the state of US Soccer after exiting from the Olympic Qualifying tournament.
Lets get to the links!
MLS joins World League Association | wcsh6.com
Major League Soccer has improved its standing in the global soccer community by joining the newly formed World League Association, it was announced Wednesday. The World League Association, which also is comprised of the European Professional Football Leagues (EPFL), the South African Premier Soccer League, the Thai Professional League and the United Arab Emirates League, represents a single voice on the international stage as it works to promote professional soccer and protect the common interests of the member organizations.
The group also organizes exhibitions, conferences, training courses and other events. Major League Soccer's inclusion in the association sees the budding league earn a seat next to the English Premier League, La Liga, Ligue 1 and the Eredivisie, all of which are members of the World League Association. MLS Commissioner Don Garber has been appointed to the organization's 11- member Board of Directors alongside EPL chairman Sir David Richards and Spanish League president Jose Luis Astiazaran. The group will meet for the first time in Bangkok, Thailand this September.
Fullerton Rangers Beat San Diego Boca in Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Round on SoccerNationNews Soccer News
NPSL Divisional Showdown for US Open Cup Entry Continues and San Diego's Soccer Teams are Out of the Race. There was a moment when fans looked forward to the possibiltiies of Boca taking on the LA Galaxy or Chivas USA on the field, but that hope is over. San Diego Boca FC were defeated by the Fullerton Rangers of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) last Friday night at 7:00 p.m. at Balboa Stadium in Downtown San Diego.
Sean Hartnett: Remembering New York Cosmos Legend Giorgio Chinaglia " CBS New York
For a brief time, soccer was king of the New York sports scene. A large portion of that credit belonged to Giorgio Chinaglia, the controversial, egocentric and enigmatic star striker of the New York Cosmos during their heyday. Chinaglia passed away Sunday morning at the age of 65, but few embraced the celebrity-athlete lifestyle quite like Giorgio. Alongside world-famous soccer icons Pele, Franz Beckenbauer and Carlos Alberto, Chinaglia helped transform the NASL from a little-known semi-professional league to delight of America and captured the hearts of New Yorkers.
Toronto FC remains winless in MLS in loss to Columbus Crew | Sports | National Post
"Sharpness — it’s a simple word," said forward Danny Koevermans, who scored 10 goals in 17 games last year, but has none so far in 2012. "Like, now we don’t score so we’re not sharp. That’s not the thing, everybody wants to score when you’re in a position to score. I was there three times today, and of course I want to score. So what is the word sharpness?"
Dynamo midfield gets thinner as MLS suspends Moffat one game - Houston Chronicle
"Maybe I should re-talk with the (disciplinary) committee," Boswell said. "We had these meetings about a month ago for preseason. They said they were going to go back and look at plays and adjust accordingly. "It looks like they've done that in Adam's case. I'm not sure what the ruling on the Fernandez thing is. Was I punched? Yes. Was he shown a card? Yes. Was he suspended? I don't know. I don't think he did."
RSL: Timbers coach was mentor to Kyle Beckerman, Nat Borchers | The Salt Lake Tribune
Eleven years after Beckerman first heard from Spencer, the coach is in his second year in Portland and leads what is considered one of Major League Soccer’s most promising teams. That phone call was a lesson to the young Beckerman, who said he still tries to emulate various habits of Spencer’s, including calling new players. "I thought that was really neat," Beckerman said, "and something I try and do today when we get new players, to try to be the first to welcome them."
Edson Buddle and Galaxy try to kick-start rest of season - latimes.com
"We were able to train and work on things that we need to improve on," defender Todd Dunivant. "That's the biggest thing probably that we missed from the first four games of the season. We didn't have time to really train and correct any shortcomings that we had. "Little adjustments can make a big difference."
Red Bulls still hope Rodgers plays this season - - SI.com
"What I can say is that we, of course, are not very happy but we respect the fact that there is a system in place that makes decisions,'' Soler said. "However, we are not giving up, so we will continue to try.'' Soler said the Red Bulls released Rodgers so he could play somewhere.
As U.S. goes out with a whimper, Mexico roars - latimes.com
That has observers pleading for everything from patience — "Is the sky falling? Absolutely not," said former national team defender Alexi Lalas — to near panic — "We need to have new leadership" said Galaxy Coach Bruce Arena, the winningest coach in national team history. "There's some examination that needs to be there. There needs to be a closer inspection," Arena continued. "Where we are, where we want to go and who's going to get us there. So maybe there's a little bit of tweaking necessary."