Looking back at 2008

Boil it all down, and the year in soccer on our part of the globe finished like this: Columbus is on top of the MLS world, the United States is back on top of the women's soccer world and the U.S. men are coiled for their shot at joining the rest of the world at South Africa 2010.

In Major League Soccer, Sigi Schmid's third year of a three-year rebuild in Columbus proved to be everything the loyal Crew fans could desire. Schmid's hold at Crew Stadium, in all honesty, seemed a bit tenuous as the year began, for two previous seasons in Ohio had netted zero playoff appearances.

But as MLS fans watched perennial contenders Houston and New England struggle at times during 2008, Columbus was trotting along steadily, getting it done. By the time Schmid's men hammered New England in an emphatic statement game in August (a 4-0 result), they were clearly entrenched as title favorites. Sure enough, guided by MLS Defender of the Year Chad Marshall and a roster full of stable parts, they went on to claim the Supporters' Shield and then the MLS Cup.

The Crew's 3-1 win against the New York Red Bulls on a sunny southern California day was a victory lap of sorts for playmaker extraordinaire Guillermo Barros Schelotto. He followed a league MVP campaign with three assists that day, punctuating the trio with the cleverest of passes to Frankie Hejduk for the back-breaker insurance goal.

Columbus' time to shine was surely the story of 2008 in MLS. But quite a few sidebars deserved big mention, too.

Start with Columbus' opponent that day at The Home Depot Center. Manager Juan Carlos Osorio and his mystical playoff ways finally helped direct a wandering New York side into the league final. Major League Soccer's most high-profile club had never landed there before. But Dane Richards' blazing efforts down the right side helped steer the Red Bulls past Houston in perhaps the biggest upset to date in MLS playoff history. Then, in a memorable conference championship, Real Salt Lake pounded the posts (Three times? Are you kidding me?) but couldn't put one past young goalkeeper Danny Cepero, who was outstanding in replacement duty for Jon Conway.

The MLS All-Stars had been similarly outstanding back in August, as a packed house at appreciative BMO Field in Toronto watched Cuauhtemoc Blanco score a dandy for himself and set up one more. Then they saw hometown hero Dwayne De Rosario bang in a late penalty kick winner in the 3-2 victory against England's West Ham United.

Real Salt Lake finally broke the postseason seal, then maneuvered past Chivas USA in the first playoff round. But that was only half the tale of soccer success in Utah for 2008, for Dave Checketts' club christened beautiful Rio Tinto Stadium, which opened in October to rave reviews. Rio Tinto rose as the seventh stadium developed specifically for an MLS team. Also along the important stadium development front, officials in New York broke ground on Red Bull Arena, with a completion date set for late 2009.

Not all of the tales of MLS 2008 ended so swell, of course. San Jose's brave playoff push in its expansion season ultimately fell short. Darren Huckerby's midseason addition helped mold San Jose into one of the league's better sides over the campaign's last 10 weeks. But the early deficit was too much to overcome for Frank Yallop's smartly assembled group, which looks like a side to be taken seriously going forward.

And down the coast in Los Angeles, Ruud Gullit wasn't the managerial fit needed for the Galaxy. Despite his impressive playing resume internationally, Gullit never seemed to mesh with the side, guided ably by David Beckham and Landon Donovan. The results weren't pretty, as the Galaxy's potent offense could never quite mitigate a flimsy defense. Gullit resigned in August, nine months after accepting the post, as the team slogged through a seven-game winless slide.

It would soon become Bruce Arena's mess to clean up. The former U.S. boss couldn't do enough in the remaining time, however. Donovan claimed the league's Golden Boot with his breakout campaign of 20 goals, but the Galaxy were left behind as eight teams claimed playoff spots.

The year's end sees Bob Bradley's national team right where it needed to be: crouched and poised for a final dash toward World Cup 2010. A 1-0 win in Guatemala in a black-and-blue bruiser of a game -- just ask Eddie Lewis -- early in second-round qualifying drove the effort. From there, a steady series of hardy results kept the USA ahead of the pack, allowing them to advance into final-round qualifying with room to spare.

Along the way, Tim Howard gave fans reasons to believe he can be the next link in a chain of outstanding guards in the U.S. goal. (Howard's unshakable performance in a scoreless draw against Argentina was surely one of the U.S. Soccer highlights of 2008, even if it was only a friendly.)

Ahead of him, Oguchi Onyewu and Carlos Bocanegra rewarded Bradley's faith by establishing themselves as the region's preeminent central defensive pairing. Heath Pearce finally brought some stability to a left back spot that's been a trouble-maker for some time. Michael Bradley's midfield performance for club and country didn't go unnoticed. His gift for scoring and general outlay for Heerenveen in the Dutch Eredivisie earned the national team coach's son a late-summer transfer to Bundesliga side Borussia Mцnchengladbach.

Jozy Altidore and Freddy Adu continued to demonstrate their fabulous potential, if only in small bursts. Altidore's summer move from Red Bull New York to Spain's Villarreal fetched an MLS record transfer price. Meanwhile, Clint Dempsey and Donovan provided the bulk of the U.S. scoring as the Americans prepped for a hectic 2009. This year's schedule includes not only the important "hexagonal," the region's final round of World Cup qualifying, but also a stop in South Africa for the Confederations Cup and the CONCACAF Gold Cup back home.

Around the world, we witnessed the usual whirlwind of high-profile transfers and near-transfers. Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid? Wait for it ... wait for it ... uh, well, I guess it's not going to happen.

Indeed, the Portuguese dynamo stayed under Sir Alex Ferguson's watch at Manchester United after wrapping up his amazing 2007-2008 season at Old Trafford in May. Meanwhile, headlines danced over one very significant managerial "transfer" as well. Jose Mourinho, unemployed for a spell after leaving Chelsea, took the post at Inter Milan amid significant hullabaloo.

Speaking of high-profile managerial appointments (and proving once again that when you think you've seen it all, you'd better think again), Diego Maradona was named in the fall to guide Argentina's embarrassment of soccer riches. Where that one will land is anybody's guess.

During the summer, Spain finally shook that bothersome underachiever's label, prevailing in Euro 2008 with elegant, attacking soccer. Fernando Torres provided the goal as Spain, outclassing Germany, claimed its first title in 44 years in the 1-0 result in the tournament co-hosted by Austria and Switzerland. Holland's talented assembly also played with class but was undone in elimination play by a bold Russian effort.

Youngsters Sergio Aguero and Lionel Messi guided Argentina to Olympic gold, but not until FIFA and a bunch of lawyers could untangle the messy politics of player availability. It was club vs. country as European heavyweights asserted their displeasure over losing important players to the Olympic tournament for a few weeks to begin the season. The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled for the clubs, although some relented just the same, blessing their talent's visit to China.

That settled, Aguero scored twice within six minutes as Argentina danced past long-time rival Brazil in the semifinals in Beijing. Four days later, the Argentineans found a way past stubborn Nigeria to claim their second gold in four years.

No such off-field drama roiled the women's Olympic tournament. With a new direction and philosophy under manager Pia Sundhage, the U.S. rallied past Abby Wambach's absence due to injury to capture gold in Beijing. It was a splash of redemption after matters had unraveled so spectacularly a year earlier for a proud program during the 2007 Women's World Cup. (And it was also a bit surprising after a 2-0 loss to Norway to open the Olympic tournament had set off immediate alarm bells around the U.S. camp.)

But in the end, Hope Solo was big and brave in goal, and Carli Lloyd's extra time strike was enough to have the U.S. women lifting gold.

As for the U.S. men in the Olympics, a team with so much promise can only wonder what may have been but for a few minutes of wandering focus in a first-round match against the Dutch. Peter Nowak's team opened the tourney with a deserving 1-0 win over Japan, then had the talented Netherlands nearly beaten, standing on a late 2-1 lead. Alas, an ill-advised foul and a wall that needed to be better gave the young Dutchmen the slim little chance they needed.

That 2-2 tie arranged a dramatic first-round closer against potent Nigeria. When Charlie Davies' late header clanged off the cross bar, the stunned Americans were left holding a 2-1 loss, out of the running for elimination play.

What's ahead in 2009? A 15th side joins MLS as Qwest Field gets set to rock the Seattle Sounders FC way. With nearly half the field getting squeezed out of the playoff picture this time (eight teams in, seven teams out), the race for post-season soccer will be more ferocious than ever.

On the international front, Mexico comes calling in February as that final round of World Cup qualifying commences with a biggie in Ohio. By this time next year, we'll be discussing which team prevailed in the 14th MLS Cup, and we'll all be chattering about which countries negotiated their way into South Africa 2010.

US roster has distinct MLS flavor

U.S. national team coach Bob Bradley has called in a squad made up largely of Major League Soccer players for a training camp to prepare for a Jan. 24 friendly against Sweden at The Home Depot Center.

The group, which features 20 MLS players, will assemble in Carson, Calif. on Jan. 4.

"This is the beginning of a big year for the national team, and it is important that we get started off heading in the right direction," Bradley said in a statement. "This is another great opportunity to reinforce the principles of how this team operates both on and off the field, as well as getting players ready for the match against Sweden and the first World Cup qualifier this year against Mexico in February."

Ten of the 15 MLS clubs are represented, including five players from the MLS Cup champion Columbus Crew -- goalkeeper William Hesmer, MLS Defender of the Year Chad Marshall and midfielders Eddie Gaven, Brian Carroll and Robbie Rogers.

Marshall is one of four players on Bradley's squad to earn major MLS postseason hardware. Bradley's roster also includes Chicago's Jon Busch, the MLS Goalkeeper of the Year; LA Galaxy defender Sean Franklin, the MLS Rookie of the Year; and FC Dallas forward Kenny Cooper, the MLS Comeback Player of the Year.

Brian Ching, who scored all four of his national team goals in 2008 in World Cup qualifying matches, is the leading capwinner on the young squad with 32 appearances. The forward is one of four players selected from the Houston Dynamo, joining midfielders Geoff Cameron, Ricardo Clark and Stuart Holden.

Midfielder Sacha Kljestan played in eight matches last year for the US -- the most of any player on this squad -- and is one of two Chivas USA players, joining defender Jonathan Bornstein. Fullback Chris Wingert, who enjoyed a stellar 2008 MLS season with Real Salt Lake, Toronto FC's Marvell Wynne and Cory Gibbs from the Colorado Rapids round out the MLS-based defenders.

Jack Jewsbury is the lone player from the Kansas City Wizards selected. He and Chicago's John Thorrington are the final two players in a midfield exclusively comprised of MLS talent.

Joining Cooper and Ching up front is Chicago's Chris Rolfe, one of three Fire players on the roster.

The four Scandinavian-based players, all currently on winter break, are goalkeeper Troy Perkins (Valerenga IF), defenders Clarence Goodson (IK Start) and Danny Califf (FC Midtjylland) and forward Charlie Davies (Hammarby IF). Goalkeeper Matt Pickens is out of contract.

After the friendly against Sweden, the U.S. will prepare for a showdown with rival Mexico on Feb. 11 at Columbus Crew Stadium in the opening game of the final hexagonal round of qualifying for FIFA World Cup 2010 South Africa.

A busy 2009 will also include the FIFA Confederations Cup in June, where the U.S. has been drawn into Group B with five-time World Cup winners Brazil, current World Champion Italy, and Egypt, as well as the CONCACAF Gold Cup and additional World Cup qualifying matches.

Shea likely to return by start of season

FRISCO, Texas -- Brek Shea experienced just about everything in his first season of professional soccer. He was an early draft pick by FC Dallas, worked his way through the reserves and played a number of different positions, made a couple of appearances with the first team -- and now is spending the offseason in rehabilitation after undergoing a pair of knee surgeries late in the year.

"It (my knee) is feeling good," Shea said. "Every morning, I'm meeting with our trainers here. Yeah, I usually never have injuries and now I've had two back-to-back. Hopefully now I'm done with them for a while, knock on wood."

FCD head coach Schellas Hyndman has no concern about Shea's most recent surgery being his second in a matter of just a few months.

"He had that meniscus tear and they sewed it up," Hyndman said. "He's been working like crazy. We were all excited and were going to send him to the (U.S. national) under-20 camp because the doctors were going to release him and then we took him into a few more tests out here and he felt a pop. So, the doctor looked at him again and they did a surgery on him ..."

"This time, they removed the part of the meniscus that did not heal. It didn't connect well, so they thought the best thing to do was to go ahead and remove it. This is going to be a quick recovery, three to four weeks. So, I'm not concerned about the number. I'm more concerned that the first time, it didn't take, so the second time we're going to make it better."

Shea's rookie season began in January when the 6-foot-3 native Texan was taken second overall in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft by FCD. The rangy 18-year-old showed his versatility for the Hoops' reserves, making starts at forward, left midfield and finally at center back.

Shea also played in two contests with the FCD first team. He played the final four minutes of a 2-0 win at Chivas USA on April 20 and then the final 13 minutes of a 2-1 loss at Colorado on June 1.

For the FCD reserves, Shea made eight starts and performed solidly. He also earned call-ups from the full, under-20 and under-23 national teams.

"It was a good learning experience," Shea said. "I learned a lot of things and hopefully next year, I can do a lot more than what I did this year."

Shea credits one recently retired FCD veteran for helping ease his transition into MLS.

"Bobby Rhine, he helped a lot," he said. "When things were going bad or whatever, he would pull me aside and tell me stuff. I guess he thought that (to retire) was the best decision, so I support it."

In early December, Shea was one of a number of FCD players taking in the NCAA Men's College Cup at Pizza Hut Park. That experience brought mixed feelings for Shea -- who could have been a freshman competing for the national championship had things gone differently.

"I had committed to Wake Forest and when I was watching (the College Cup), I thought that I could have been there (playing with them)," he said. "But I never really wanted to go to college. It was never my first option. That was more my parents' thing."

FCD is set to begin preseason in mid-January. But before then, Shea plans to head to his old stomping grounds for some training, where FCD teammate Anthony Wallace, who lives in the area, could join him.

"I'm going to head to Bradenton for the U-17 program, train there for two weeks," he said. "Then I will have a couple of U-20 camps before we start preseason. I think I'm going to Bradenton on the 7th of January. (Wallace) lives 40 minutes away and will probably come up and train with us but I haven't really talked to him about it since November."

Shea should be ready to train at the start of preseason and that means he could also be getting called in for camps with the U-20s.

"The first one that I know about is on the 18th (of January) when we go to Trinidad," he said. "Then, I think we're having a camp all of February. I have talked to them but haven't gotten an e-mail or anything. They just said that they're bringing me in but I don't know if it's official or anything."

Red Devils, Monarcas to kick off InterLiga

FRISCO, Texas -- The sixth edition of InterLiga kicks off on Friday when Toluca and Morelia meet at Pizza Hut Park. Between them, the two clubs have six InterLiga appearances.

Toluca enters 2009 just a few weeks removed from winning their ninth championship in team history. On December 14, Los Diablos Rojos won the Apertura title by defeating Cruz Azul on penalty kicks for their first piece of hardware since 2005.

Chilean-born striker Hector Mancilla, who came over from Veracruz in July 2008, had a big impact for his new side, leading the team with seven goals. Defender Diego De La Torre was second with three tallies.

There will also be a few new faces in this event for Toluca. Defender Jose Olvera, who scored a controversial game-tying goal in a 2007 SuperLiga match against FC Dallas at Pizza Hut Park, is on loan from Chivas de Guadalajara.

Also new is striker Sergio Santana, also formerly with Chivas. He will now don the shirt for Toluca, the same side he faced in May 2000 when he made his Mexican Primera Division debut with Pachuca FC. Santana has made seven appearances for the Mexican national team.

With these two entering the team, midfielder Sergio Ponce heads to Chivas. He had played for Toluca since 2001 and was front and center for three championship teams.

However, the star of the club's title run has been 39-year-old Argentine-born goalkeeper Hernan Cristante, who didn't allow a goal in a league-record 762 straight minutes. Cristante has more games than any other active foreign-born player in the Primera Division.

As for Morelia, they enter InterLiga 2009 after finishing sixth in the 2008 Apertura with a 4-5-3 record, but the club played in many close matches as Las Monarcas' goal differential was a solid +7.

Another important contributor was Peruvian-born newcomer Andres Mendoza, who led Apertura with 10 goals. "El Condor" was a transfer from Romanian club Steaua FC who also has made 36 appearances with the Peruvian national team.

This year marks Las Monarcas' fourth trip to InterLiga, an event that they have not fared well in thus far. Morelia's all-time record is just 1-7-1, with their lone win coming on January 10, 2007 when they handed Tecos a 3-1 defeat at Robertson Stadium in Houston.

Morelia has met Toluca twice in the event, in 2004 and in 2008 with both matches ending in defeat. On January 9, Los Diablos Rojos prevailed 3-1 at the Home Depot Center and on January 4, 2004, in the first-ever Interliga, Toluca won 1-0 in a match played in Stockton, California.

Las Monarcas have also struggled mightily at Pizza Hut Park, where they are 0-3-0 all-time and have been outscored by their opposition 6-1. Morelia's lone goal in Frisco came on January 8, 2006 when they fell 2-1 to CF Pachuca.

Toluca has also struggled in Frisco, losing their only match at PHP on January 6, 2008, when they fell 1-0 to Club America. Los Diablos Rojos have never won an InterLiga match played in Dallas as they are also 0-2-0 at the Cotton Bowl, losing 2-1 to Jaguares in 2005 and 2-1 to Santos in 2004.

In 2008, Los Diablos Rojos got two goals in InterLiga from Vicente Sanchez, who has since moved on to Germany. Christian Giminez, now with CF Pachuca, also found the back of the net for Toluca. However, Brazilian-born midfielder Zinha, who had a goal in Toluca's 3-1 win over Morelia last January, does return.

As for Las Monarcas, they scored just one goal in last year's event and it came in that aforementioned 3-1 loss to Toluca. Morelia's lone tally came from forward Ever Guzman, who has been with the side since 2004.

Tecos meet Pachuca in InterLiga opener

FRISCO, Texas -- Throughout their respective histories in the Mexican Primera Division, Tecos de la UAG and CF Pachuca have met on numerous occasions. However, these two sides have never faced each other in InterLiga, something that will change on January 2 at Pizza Hut Park.

This will be each team's second InterLiga appearance. Tecos last played in the event in 2007 when they went 0-1-2. In their first InterLiga match, they played Club America to a 1-1 draw in Houston on January 4. Then, three days later, came a draw to Jaguares in Frisco. Tecos' run ended with a 3-1 loss to Morelia at the Home Depot Center on January 10, 2007.

It was a solid debut for Argentine midfielder Jorge Zamogilny in the recently-concluded Apertura, as he finished with five goals after an offseason transfer from Puebla. Vice-captain Joel "El Tiburon" Sanchez added three goals, while midfielder Rafael Medina had three goals and two assists for Tecos.

Chilean-born striker Rodrigo Ruiz, who returned to the team after a stint on loan at Veracruz, added four goals. Speaking of Medina, he is one player who could step up. During InterLiga 2007, he assisted on two goals and could again be a focal point of the Tecos' attack.

A big concern during the 2008 Apertura was UAG's porous defending. Tecos finished the season with 28 goals allowed, second-worst in the first division, clearly an issue that Pachuca will look to exploit in Frisco.

Despite their issues in the back, Tecos still managed to qualify for the Apertura playoffs. In the opening leg against the club that would later be crowned Apertura champs, UAG played Toluca to a scoreless draw at 3 De Marzo Stadium on November 23, 2008. However, the return leg played a week later at Nemesio Diaz Stadium belonged to Los Diablos Rojos as they prevailed 2-0 and advanced to the league semifinals, where they would face Santos Laguna.

On the other side of the equation sits the Tuzos, the two-time defending CONCACAF Champions League titleholders. They finished 5-6-6 with 25 points and were third in Group One during the 2008 Apertura. Christian Giminez's team-leading eight goals tied him for third among league goal scorers.

The Tuzos' only previous trip to InterLiga came in 2006 when they went 1-1-1. Ironically, Pachuca's match at PHP, on January 8, 2006 against Morelia, was their only win as the Tuzos prevailed 2-1 thanks to goals from Luis Angel Landin and Richard Nunez.

Other key contributors for Pachuca during the Apertura were Argentine midfielder Damian "La Chillindra" Alvarez, who had three assists and veteran goalkeeper Miguel "El Condor" Calero, who also wears the captain's armband.

A player of interest to American soccer fans is 21-year-old midfielder Jose Torres, who is a Texas native. Torres has been with the Tuzos since 2006 and hails from Longview, which is about 2.5 hours from the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex. He made his US national team debut on October 11, 2008 in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Cuba, and made his first international start four days later against Trinidad and Tobago.

Torres has appeared in Frisco twice with the Tuzos. On July 28, 2007, he was on the bench for Pachuca's 1-1 draw with FC Dallas in SuperLiga 2007 but did not play. However, last July in a SuperLiga 2008 match with Santos Laguna, he started for his side.

This will mark the third time that Pachuca have played in Frisco. On July 28, 2007, they played FC Dallas to a 1-1 draw in SuperLiga 2007, an event the Tuzos ended up winning. A penalty kick by Giminez in the 87th minute denied a win by the home side from MLS.

And on July 20, 2008, Pachuca and Santos Laguna played to a 1-1 draw in SuperLiga '08. A goal by Alvarez in the fourth minute gave them an early lead but a late equalizer by Santos forced them to settle for a tie, which still allowed them to advance.

During the 2008 Apertura, Tecos and Pachuca met just once. That came on November 5, 2008, when the sides met on the Tuzos' home grounds, Hidalgo Stadium, a match that finished in a 2-2 draw. Unlike Tecos, Pachuca failed to qualify for the Apertura playoffs.