Archive for February, 2012

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Hart on loss to Armenia: Canada looked “like a team that has not played in four months”

By
Gavin Day
– 02/29/2012

Kevin McKenna: Opening goal

More than anything, members of the Canadian men’s soccer team were just happy that they got a game together.

Playing for the first time since the second round of World Cup qualifying ended back in November, Canada dropped a 3-1 decision to Armenia in a game at the Tsirion Stadium in Limassol, Cyprus.

“I’m glad we played the game,” said Stephen Hart who was less than happy with the game overall. “The first half, we did OK for about the opening 30 minutes of the game and then it was a matter of keeping proper possession of the ball and basically giving them the chances that they had.”

That good start led Canada to jump out to an early lead. Julian de Guzman lofted a corner kick in from the left side and team captain Kevin McKenna rose well to head
home in just the fifth minute of play.

After that goal, however, the Armenians started to take control of the game and generate quality chances of their own.
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TFC’s tactical changes bear fruit in win over Hacken

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/29/2012

Ryan Johnson

After a poor display in its first outing at the Walt Disney World Soccer Classic, Toronto FC coach Aron Winter adjusted not only the personnel, but the formation.

The result was a 3-1 win for TFC over Swedish side BK Hacken that was a little closer than it deserved to be.

American trialist Moises Orozco scored the deciding goal with five minutes left to go in regulation, while Joao Plata added a late insurance goal. And while those are the incidents that will grab the match-report headlines, the real interesting ploy was Winter’s decision to move Torsten Frings into a sweeper role. Rather than the Dutch 4-3-3, TFC played a 3-4-3, with Ty Harden and Miguel Aceval in the middle of the defence and fullbacks Richard Eckersley and Ashtone Morgan converted into out-and-out wingers.
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Whitecaps sign Barbara: Who plays, and who sits?

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/28/2012

Etienne Barbara

When Ossie Ardiles managed Tottenham in the early 1990s, he unveiled a system which saw Spurs use five forwards. It didn’t help Spurs get close to silverware.

Now, Whitecaps coach Martin Rennie could easily do the same. With Tuesday’s signing of reigning NASL MVP Etienne Barbara, Rennie has a wealth of attacking players at his disposal. The Maltese striker — who has been injured and hasn’t been able to see any preseason action so far in 2012 — joins Sebastien Le Toux, Eric Hassli, Camilo, 2011 No. 1 draft pick Omar Salgado, Atiba Harris, Davide Chiumiento, Long Tan and 2012 No. 2 overall pick Darren Mattocks in what is the most top-heavy roster in MLS.

And Designated Player Barry Robson arrives in July.

But Rennie is a proponent of a 4-4-2; it’s the system he stuck with last year as the Carolina RailHawks finished the regular season with the NASL’s best record but, alas, collapsed down the stretch and into the playoffs. It’s the system he’s preferred through the Whitecaps’ preseason matches.
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Parker, Schmidt lead Canadian women to opening win at Cyprus Cup

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/28/2012

Kelly Parker

Kelly Parker scored and had a role in setting up two others as the Canadian national women’s team opened the Cyprus Cup Tuesday with a comprehensive 5-1 win over a Scotland side that’s missing its best player.

Sophie Schmidt scored twice, including the winning goal, while Christine Sinclair and Melissa Tancredi also got goals for the Canadians, who are preparing for the 2012 Olympics in London.

Parker — who played for the Atlanta Beat of WPS last season — scored from over 20 yards out, just six minutes into the game.

Jane Ross, who plays for Glasgow City, beat Canadian keeper Stephanie Labbe to tie the game.
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Hart’s Canadian side besieged by hail, rain in Cyprus

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/28/2012

Stephen Hart

In his time as Canadian national men’s team coach, Stephen Hart has had to struggle with European club coaches who don’t want to release their players, players who refuse to represent Canada and the difficulty of bringing players from far-flung spots in the world for Canadian games and camps.

But, on Tuesday, he added Mother Nature to his list of adversaries.

The skies opened up in Cyprus Tuesday, bring a mix of rain and hail — forcing Canada to adjust its training routine ahead of tomorrow’s friendly with Armenia.

“There was a fair amount of hail,” said Hart in a conference call. “And you have to wait until the hail melts before you can go out on the field, or else someone can roll an ankle.”
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TFC waives midfielder Elbekay Bouchiba

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/28/2012

Add Elbekay Bouchiba’s name to a list of Toronto FC players that even the most die-hard fans would have problems recalling. Olivier Tebily, Diaz Kambere, Abbe Ibrahim…

Unlike the other three players mentioned, though, Bouchiba never got into a competitive game. On Tuesday, Toronto FC waived the Dutch-Moroccan midfielder.

Last year, after signing with the club during the preseason, Bouchiba suffered a season-ending ACL injury, and was still on the roster up to Tuesday morning.
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Official: Impact waives English midfielder Ian Westlake

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/28/2012

Ian Westlake

At least Ian Westlake stayed with the Montreal Impact long enough to get a photo of himself in the team’s new MLS jersey.

On Monday, the Impact confirmed what had been rumoured all weekend — announcing that the English midfielder had been waived.

Westlake has been listed as an injured player, with achilles tendonitis.

In July of last year, Westlake signed on with the Impact, and became a fixture in midfield for the team as it tried to rebound from an awful start and push for the playoffs in its final NASL season.
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Hungarian connections help Canadian midfielder Gyorio get SKC trial

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/27/2012

Mozzi Gyorio

Canadian midfielder Mozzi Gyorio’s Hungarian roots may have helped him connect with a trial at Sporting Kansas City.

Gyorio, who was born in a Hungarian-speaking part of Serbia, then moved to Hungary with his parents before the family settled in Prince Edward Island, played part of the second half during SKC’s 1-1 draw with the Montreal Impact Sunday at the Disney World Soccer Classic.

Agent Laszlo Keresi, who represents Gyorio along with John Horvath, said that Keresi lobbied SKC coach Peter Vermes to get the Canadian the trial. Vermes, like Gyorio and the agents, has Hungarian roots, and, back in the late ‘80s, was the first American to ever play in the Hungarian league.
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Wenger impresses for Impact in draw with SKC

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/27/2012

Andrew Wenger

Andrew Wenger, the top pick of the MLS SuperDraft, had some bright moments as the Montreal Impact hung on for a 1-1 draw with Sporting Kansas City in each team’s second match of the preseason Walt Disney World Classic in Orlando, Fla.

With the Impact playing less than 48 hours after it was drubbed 3-0 by the Vancouver Whitecaps in the tournament opener, coach Jesse Marsch made wholesale changes to his starting lineup, as a mix of NASL alumni and young players got the starts today.

Wenger, who played both up front and in the back during his days at Duke University, continued as a forward for the Impact. He’s been used on the front line since he arrived in the Impact fold, and it’s clear that — with the Impact looking to have more depth on the defensive side but looking to be challenged in the goal-scoring department — Marsch would rather see Wenger on offense.
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Long Tan won’t allow himself to be the Whitecaps’ forgotten striker

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/26/2012

Long Tan

Chinese striker Long Tan has enjoyed an impressive run for the Whitecaps in the Walt Disney World Classic.

That is, if you don’t count his penalty kick attempt. “Attempt” is the key word there.

Tan drew two penalty kicks, the first one which was converted by Sebastien Le Toux, as the Whitecaps beat the Houston Dynamo 1-0 Sunday.

The second one, which Tan chose to take himself, wasn’t good. Let’s just chalk it up to it being a preseason match. It was a feeble attempt to chip Dynamo back-up keeper Tyler Deric. Tan sent a chip up the middle, but Deric held his ground and caught the lob with ease.
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