Oduro's development a bright spot for FCD

FRISCO, Texas -- For the most part, last season was one to forget for the majority of the FC Dallas squad. But along with striker Kenny Cooper, who finished second in MLS in goals, another attacking bright spot was the continuing development of Dominic Oduro.

All told, Oduro played in 25 games, nine of those starts and the 23-year-old from Ghana finished the year with five goals and two assists, tying another career best he set in 2007. Before Jeff Cunningham's arrival in late August, the former Virginia Commonwealth star played an average of just more than 67 minutes in 14 of FCD's first 18 games he played in.

After Cunningham joined the team, Oduro played in eight of the Hoops' final nine games, but averaged just 20 minutes of action down the stretch. Despite his lack of playing time, Oduro handled the midseason coaching change from Steve Morrow to Schellas Hyndman like a seasoned veteran.

"I thought I was more professional about it," Oduro said. "It wasn't easy for me but I thought I was very good. He (Hyndman) came in and I thought I would have more playing time. I was disappointed in sitting on the bench but at the same time, it's what he wants for the team. I just took it in good faith. I still did my best and it wasn't easy for me but I just think I did what I had to do. It was a tough position to be in but I made the best of it."

Still, even though he didn't score a goal after July 27, Oduro feels his third year in MLS went pretty well.

"We had a little bit of change in coaching from Steve Morrow to (interim coach) Marco (Ferruzzi) and then to Schellas, which was a big transition for us," he said. "I thought I had a great season. It's unfortunate that we didn't make the playoffs. I think next year we will do better than we did last year."

And even though it was Cunningham who saw the bulk of the playing time instead, Oduro savored the opportunity to learn some tricks of the trade from such an experienced scorer.

"I have learned a lot," he said. "Let's face it, he's a veteran of this league and he's been through a lot. Both on and off the field, we communicate a lot. He's a great motivator for me. He tries to give you confidence and he's a great guy."

While much of the season went well for Oduro, he admits that missing the playoffs for the first time in his MLS career was a bitter pill to swallow.

"I wouldn't say that we're mad, we're just disappointed that we didn't make it," he said. "That was the first time we hadn't made the playoffs (since I had been here) so it was more a disappointment. I think there were one or two games that we could've won to make everything right. At the end of the day, it is what it is. So all we have to do is try to win more games, finish games and hopefully things will go well next year."

He did watch much of the 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs on TV but did say it was more than a little painful.

"It was a little difficult watching it," Oduro said. "When I was watching it, I felt like we could've been there and we could've been the guys playing. At the same time, it's our league and we have to show commitment to it. It wasn't all that exciting. I would say it was more heartbreaking. I thought Columbus deserved it, so kudos to them."

Last season, Oduro showed a better ability to finish, something that had been a big question in his game during his first two seasons. This offseason, he wants to continue laying the groundwork to make such big strides.

"I've been trying to work on the little things that happened last year," he said. "Nobody is perfect and everybody has things they have to work on. I am trying to work on my speed and trying to get better and better. I am running and weightlifting to get better for next season."

Just before the holiday season, Oduro surprised his family by returning to Ghana for the first time in a number of years. It was clearly a big moment.

"I haven't been home since 2004," he said before Christmas. "This is something I have been looking forward to. I'm excited to be going back home. It's more like it's one of my dreams come true. They don't even know I'm coming home. It will be a huge surprise for them and I know they will be very happy. It will be like a big family reunion."

With preseason training beginning in mid-January, count Oduro as one player who is ready to start anew.

"It's kind of boring sitting at home right now," he said. "I'm ready for the season to start and am ready to show what I can contribute to the team."

Pachuca blank Toluca, advance

HOUSTON -- Two of the best teams in Mexico squared off Monday night at Robertson Stadium as CONCACAF Champions Pachuca defeated 2008 Apertura Champions Toluca, 1-0. Two second-half substitutes, Christian Gimenez and Edgar Benitez, combined to secure Pachuca's advancement to the next round of InterLiga 2009.

With frigid temperatures and both teams still in preseason form, the clubs came out a little cold offensively. Pachuca had the best of the ball early, but to little or no avail. The teams combined for only five first half shots, with none forcing saves.

The best efforts in the first half came in the final minutes. In the 44th minute, Pachuca midfielder Damian Alvarez broke free down the right side behind the Toluca defense. The Tuzos midfielder tried to send the ball across to forward Blas Perez, who was making a dangerous run, but a great play by a Toluca defender cleared the ball out for a corner.

The resulting corner kick was cleared easily by the Red Devils but the ball made its way to Alvarez again, this time 40 yards from goal. His blast from distance went narrowly wide and the halftime whistle blew, ending a drab first half.

Both teams came out with more attacking flair in the second half. Toluca opened when Carlos Morales ripped a shot from the top of the box right at Tuzos goalkeeper Rodolfo Cota.

Pachuca didn't take long to counter. Gimenez sent in a ball from the right side across the Toluca defense. The ball found Alvarez who sent the ball low and across the face of the goal, missing just wide.

Tuzos coach Enrique Meza gambled early in the second half when he made his third and final substitution in the 58th minute bringing on Benitez for Alvarez. The move almost paid immediate dividends in the very next minute when Benitez drove in on goal and smoothly cut the ball back beating his defender. His shot, though, went narrowly wide into the side-netting.

Pachuca Coach Enrique Meza was pleased with the play of his team, and in particular, the performance of his substitutes.

"Yes, I think that once they came in they took their toll on the opposition," he said. "Afterwards the others came in and we were able to win the game."

Midfielder Jose Francisco Torres agreed. "We have good players and they came out motivated. They came in strong with a lot of attitude," Torres said.

Pachuca's pressure finally turned out to be too much as they were rewarded for their large advantage in possession. Gimenez again broke down the right side of the Red Devil defense and his cross was perfect, finding Benitez at the far post. Benitez mishit the ball downward but the ball deflected off of him a second time and into the goal. It wasn't pretty, but it counted just the same.

Pachua almost extended the lead twice in the 73rd and 74th minutes, again through their second half substitutes. A Pachuca cross found Gimenez in front of goal, but he deflected the cross just wide. In the very next minute, Benitez broke free behind the Toluca defense with a perfectly placed pass by Jose Francisco Torres. He drove on goal, but Toluca keeper Cesar Lozano parried the effort just over the bar.

Toluca are champions, however, and they weren't going down without a fight. Second half substitute Raul Nava drove in on goal down the left side in the 79th minute. His effort was saved easily by a well-positioned Cota to preserve the 1-0 victory for Pachuca.

With the win, the Tuzos now sit with six points atop Group A. They have guaranteed themselves advancement to the next round regardless of the outcome of their final game. In addition, they have the inside track on the top spot in the group as the only team that can catch them in points, Tecos UAG, has to make up a whopping eight goals in goal differential, the first tie-breaker.

Tuzos midfielder Torres was happy with his team's performance and the position in which Pachuca now sit.

"I think we are one step closer to the final," he said. "We had a good game tonight. We did the simple things, and we came out with a good score."

Would-be Revs take a shot at tryout

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The resumes started to pour into the office of New England Revolution vice president of player personnel Mike Burns in the days after last January's invitation-only tryout.

From far and wide, a couple hundred aspiring professionals sent packages to the Revolution technical staff in hopes of landing a slot in this year's invitation-only tryout, held Monday night.

"If you look back through the history of the Revs, there were some years where we had an open tryout, but then we got 200 players showing up and some guys would be in workboots," Burns said. "You want to be realistic, but at the same time, you want to give guys an opportunity."

Approximately 30 players earned a chance to show off their abilities at the Dana-Farber Field House. Most of the lucky few were Division I college players from local universities who missed out on a chance to attend the MLS Player Combine slated to begin on Saturday. Players from other local colleges comprised the remainder of the pool.

"Some of these guys were up to go to the combine, but never made it," Revolution head coach Steve Nicol said. "This year, the standard was probably as high as it has been in the last two or three years because we've invited a lot of players from Division I schools and a few of them were close to getting in the combine."

Nicol and his coaching staff oversaw the tryouts, which consisted of scrimmages between three assigned teams. Within two hours, the chance to impress passed and the hopefuls were left to wonder whether their name would be called in the MLS SuperDraft on Jan. 16 or whether the Revs might invite them to preseason camp for an extended look.

"We don't know yet if we'll invite any of these guys to preseason or if we'll ultimately end up signing any of them, but I can say that over the last five or six years, this was the best group of players we have invited," Burns said.

The comparatively shallower tryout pool in previous years still yielded results. Current players Chris Tierney (2008) and Brad Knighton (2007) joined the team through the tryout process, while former Revolution striker Connally Edozien (2005) spent a year with New England before carving out a successful career in the USL First Division.

"If you find one player, it's worthwhile," Burns said.

An opportunity for that one chosen tryout player may not exist on the senior roster this season. New England holds seven draft picks in the four-round SuperDraft and has four open roster slots. Experienced players could also arrive and take the roster spot of a tryout participant or draft pick. Smaller roster sizes and the elimination of the reserve league have already led to the release of most of the Revs' developmental players.

"It's more difficult for sure," Burns said. "Without a reserve division, it's going to be more difficult for guys to make roster spots. From my perspective and from our coaches' perspective, that's better because it means more competition. From their perspective, I'm sure they'd rather have a few more roster spots because it would make their job a little easier."

Even if this year's tryout reaps no dividends for the senior roster and even with the avalanche of resumes bombarding the office over the course of the year, Burns said the team will likely continue to hold similar tryouts in the future.

"We feel like it's worthwhile to have," Burns said. "I'm sure there are some people out there who would like us to have more than one tryout a year, but this time is conducive for us in terms of our schedule, our coaches' schedules and the facility schedules here. It's something we've always done and I don't foresee us not doing it."

Donovan joins Munich on temporary loan

Los Angeles Galaxy forward Landon Donovan has joined German Bundesliga giant Bayern Munich on a two-month loan spell, it was announced by the MLS club on Monday.

Donovan, who led Major League Soccer with 20 goals last season, is scheduled to return to Los Angeles on March 8, two weeks ahead of the 2009 season opener against D.C. United at The Home Depot Center on March 22.

"I've appeared for a number of teams already," Donovan told Bayern's official website. "I can play football, and I know what has to be done out on the pitch. I'm ready for the challenge, and when my chance comes, I'll take it."

Donovan, 26, initially joined Bayern on a 10-day trail in November. He is currently with Bayern in Dubai where the club is training during the Bundesliga's winter break and will play five friendlies before returning for the second half of their domestic season.

"We're all excited by him," Bayern head coach Jurgen Klinsmann told FCBayern.com. "He'll get playing time, in the friendlies, in the DFB Cup and in the Bundesliga. He has unbelievable pace and dribbling skill, he looks for the one-on-one situations, and he scores goals."

Klinsmann first became aware of Donovan, who began his professional career with German club Bayer Leverkusen, during his time living in southern California.

"Jurgen has been very supportive," Donovan said. "It was lucky for me that he spent a long time in Los Angeles and saw me play there. He knows my qualities. But I'm aware there'll be no gifts for me here at Bayern. I'll have to work hard for everything here, but that's what I'm really looking forward to."

Donovan, who is the second all-time leading scorer in Galaxy history with 52 goals and 40 assists in four years, has 106 caps for the U.S. national team and has scored 37 goals in international competition. Donovan is also a five-time winner of the Honda Player of the Year Award, given annually to the top U.S. national team player.

"The lad's fired up and wants to prove himself, which I find amazing," Klinsmann said. "He wants to convince the powers that be, myself included, that he's the right player for Bayern. He certainly has the determination."

Donovan should get ample opportunity to showcase his ability during his 10-week loan. Bayern Munich are currently tied for first place with TSG Hoffenheim at the halfway point of the Bundesliga season and will return to action on Friday, Jan. 30 against Hamburg.

That game is the first of six league games that the club has scheduled during the duration of Donovan's loan, which will culminate following Bayern's home game against Hannover 96 on Saturday, March 7.

However, it won't be easy for Donovan to get into the lineup with the likes of Luca Toni, Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski up front for Bayern.

"It'll be very tough, because Klose and Toni are in great form," Donovan said. "My job is to make the coach's job more difficult."

Superclasico rivals battle to draw

HOUSTON -- Fans were expecting another great match from Club America and Chivas de Guadalajara at Robertson Stadium on Saturday night, as the Superclasico rivals battled in the fourth match of InterLiga.

The fans got what they wanted.

America, the 2008 Interliga champion, scored first in the 37th minute, but Chivas earned an own goal in the 56th minute as the two teams played to a 1-1 draw in front of 30,729 fans. The match was each team's first in Group B play.

Both teams are 0-0-1 with a point and in a four-way tie with Tigres and Atlas in the group.

America scored in the 37th minute when one of their newest signings, Jean Beausejour, got a pass in the upper left box and drilled a shot just inside the lower pole. Angel Reyna sent a delayed pass to Beausejour, who gathered it and drilled it for the goal.

Chivas scored the equalizer in the 56th minute when Sergio Amaury Ponce chased down a free kick and appeared to send a header into the net. After further review, the header went off of America's Alejandro Arguello for an own goal.

"We played a hard game. Both teams didn't want to lose," said America forward Robert De Pinho. "We played hard. I think it was a fair ending to the game. Both teams came out wanting to win."

Salvador Cabanas tried to give America the early lead in the 16th minute, but his shot from the left went high. In the 26th minute, Chivas got a shot by Carlos Ochoa after Fernando Ortiz couldn't clear. Guillermo Ochoa, however, saved Carlos Ochoa's shot, and the score remained knotted at zero.

In the 33rd minute, America nearly took the lead on a shot by Enrique Vera from 18 yards out, but Chivas goalkeeper Luis Ernesto Michel made a great save to deny it. In the 41st minute Carlos Ochoa headed Ramon Morales' pass from the right, but Guillermo Ochoa was there for the stop.

Morales nearly tied the score late in the first half when he tried to surprise America on a free kick from near midfield on the left, but his shot went over the goal.

"This was a very tense game, and we fought very hard," said Carlos Ochoa. "We had a good game, and I'm glad the fans had a good game to watch. We played good. At the end, we had a lot of opportunities to score. I'm glad to see us playing well as a team. I look forward to the next game."

America started the second half with a header by Robert De Pinho that was saved by Michel in the 48th minute. In the 51st minute, De Pinho came back with a shot from 22 yards out on the right that Michel easily gathered.

Beausejour was looking for his second goal of the night in the 64th minute, but his trip through the box and shot from the left from 15 yards out went wide right. Carlos Ochoa tried giving Guadalajara the lead in the 66th minute as he fired one from just right of the semi-circle that went just left of the upper pole.

De Pinho tried to regain the lead for Club America in the 67th minute, but Michel easily gathered up his free kick from 27 yards out in the middle. Chivas defender Hector Reynoso got a loose ball off a corner kick in the 71st minute, but his bullet from above the semi-circle went high.

Xavier Baez tried to give Chivas the lead in the 79th minute, but his bullet from 30 yards out left of midfield went high. Morales nearly scored in the 81st minute as he dribbled up the left sideline and gathered for a bullet that Guillermo Ochoa had to dive to his left to make the save on.

Club America fought back in the 85th minute as second-half substitute Enrique Esqueda headed a pass from the middle of the box that Michel made a diving save to stop. Arguello's corner kick from the left side in the 87th minute was batted out by Michel.

Beausejour tried to give America the lead in the 90th minute, but his shot from the left box went wide right.

"I felt we should have won the game," Reynoso said. "Even though we didn't play well in the first half, we played well in the second half, and we should have won it."

Guillermo finished with four saves for America, while Michel had two.

"Our team needs more offense, and I think the return Pavel Pardo will help the team be more ordered," said America defender Edgar Castillo. "We have to get more ball in the midfield."

Both teams will continue Interliga play on Tuesday at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, TX, as America battle Tigres at 7 p.m. CT and Chivas face Atlas at 9:30 p.m. CT.

Atlas, Tigres open Group B with draw

HOUSTON -- In a prelude to the Chivas de Guadelara-America clasico, Atlas and Tigres UANL played to a scoreless draw in the third game of InterLiga 2009 and first in Group B Saturday night at Robertson Stadium.

Atlas dominated play in the first half, out-shooting Tigres, 7-2, but Tigres controlled the action in the second half and just missed coming out with a win.

Both teams sit at 0-0-1 with a point in Group B play.

"This game was very boring due to it this being our preseason," said Tigres midfielder Lucas Lobos. "We still don't have all of the understanding of how everyone plays the game, so we are still a little new with each other."

Atlas came out quick as Eduardo Rergis fired one from outside the 18-yard box in the first 30 seconds of the match, but his shot went wide right. Cesar Ibanez got a feed to the top of the box in the eighth minute, but his low line drive went wide to the left.

Sandwiched between the Atlas attempts, Tigres' Julio Aguilar headed a free kick from the middle of the box in the fifth minute, but the ball sailed just over the cross bar. In the 18th minute, Atlas' Jorge Archucarro got a feed in the upper right corner of the box from Bruno Marioni, but Archucarro sent his shot 10 rows into the stands.

Two minutes later, Marioni nearly put Atlas on the board after getting a pass back on the left side of the box and letting a bullet go that hit the left side of the net. Ibanez got another shot off in the 34th minute, but the rocket from just beyond the right corner of the box went high.

In the 40th minute, Atlas had another chance to take the lead when Botinelli faked out two Tigres defenders on the right side of the box and passed off to defender Nestor Vidrio, who let a shot fly high. Three minutes later, Rergis got control of a loose ball on the left side and one-timed it just outside the left side of the net.

"It was a difficult game because they played well defensively," Botinelli said. "We weren't able to take advantage of the chances we had. We have a good attitude, and we know we have to have better offense if we are going to win."

Tigres finally got another shot off in the first half stoppage time as Jesus Molina got a short pass at the top of the semi-circle and fired a one-timer over the crossbar.

"I thought we needed to have more communication between our players," said Tigres midfielder Francisco Fonseca. "During the season we will have that communication, but we were working with a couple new players tonight, so we had to try to integrate them."

Tigres got its first shot on goal in the 49th minute with a free kick by midfielder Lucas Lobos, but Atlas' goalkeeper Pedro Hernandez was easily able to save it to keep it scoreless.

Atlas came right back in the 52nd minute with a Marioni free kick from just right of the semi-circle that blistered by the wall, and forced Tigres 'keeper Oscar Perez to make a diving save to his right to stop. In the 65th minute, Marioni took an open, right-footed shot in the middle of the box, but his weak shot missed to the left of the net.

Tigres' Ariel Bogado received a feed at the upper left corner of the box in the 69th minute, but he missed the shot left of the net. Atlas came right back as Marioni got a shot in the middle of the box, but Perez came off his line and made a foot save to deny the scoring opportunity.

Vidrio got a header off in the 82nd minute, but it went high. Tigres quickly got the ball up the field, and Lobos fired a bullet from the left box, which Hernandez saved nicely to keep the match scoreless.

Jesus Duenos got a touch in the 85th minute, but his shot from the upper right box went to the left of the net. Tigres came right back as second half substitute Francisco Fonseco tried to go one-on-one against Hernandez on the right side of the box, but Hernandez was able to stop Fonseco's shot.

Hernandez and Perez each finished with three saves in the match.

Both teams return to InterLiga play Tuesday night at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas with Tigres playing America at 7 p.m. CT and Atlas facing Chivas at 9:30 p.m. CT.

"Every game is an important game right now," Marioni said about having to play Chivas and America still. "We have to win as many as we can. We knew they were going to stay back and defend well and make us beat them. We couldn't convert the chances we got."

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.