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Soccer Sunday: Your Running Commentary

Landon Donovan (ISI Photos) 

                                                                             Photo by ISIphotos.com

Landon Donovan and the new-look Los Angeles Galaxy take the field today in one of the day's most anticipated matches.

There are some good European match-ups, including Liverpool's showdown vs. Brad Friedel's Aston Villa (noon on Fox Soccer Channel), but today's LA Galaxy-D.C. United tilt (3pm, Telefutura) is one fans throughout MLS will have an eye on (and not just for fantasy MLS purposes).

If you will be watching any of today's remaining games, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.

Enjoy the action.

Comments

  1. @Steve B.

    NO CLEAR CAMERA ANGLE?? Were you drunk when you watched the replay?? The camera angle was very clear that it hit Wallace’s thigh. L.A. was gifted the tie.

    Reply
  2. In regards to the handball call resulting in the PK against DC united: I was at the game sitting very close to the goal and it was clearly a handball. However, when I got home and watched it on TV, there was no clear camera angle, and the commentators suggested otherwise.

    Overall, I think 2-2 was a fair result for both sides.

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  3. lol,the few the proud,Rangers Fc….ok maybe not so proud,more like a disgrace

    😀

    good to see fans of 1860 Munich,but its all about St. Pauli!Celtic’s brother team

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  4. Hey Colman, “Einmal Loewe, immer Loewe!!” lol, you have seen way more than me. I just played youth for them back in the 1820’s …or was it 1970’s, before their deep descent into the Regionaliga. Was supposed to be a ballboy at the Olympia Stadion and then I got sick that day . . . SOOOOO, well you are probably the more committed fan. Glad to hear the shout out. Few of us around!

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  5. @ jddjsjsjdd,

    Guzan is better off staying with Aston Villa knowing that he is learning from a veteran and he starts at Villa in under two years. He played in FA and UEFA Cupa matches.
    He will be starting sooner than later because Martin O’Neill wanted him and lets be honest, Villa cannot afford to pay huge money for a goalie anytime soon.

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  6. BlueWhiteLion – OMG AN 1860 fan in North America!!! I used to live in Munich and sold the Loewen News for them…attended all home and a couple away games from the age of 8-14 (when I moved to Toronto)! We should start a supporters chapter over here 😉

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  7. 1. This Guy–yeah, the flag was up. Marrufo conferred with the AR and then called the PK. My understanding (what I read) was that the AR was signaling the FOUL, not offside.

    2. The TV coverage indicated there was no handball, not even close on the PK call against Wallace. So to argue that the two calls were equal is a bit dubious.

    Hard to be able to tell much about DC United from this match. LAG probably isn’t a very good team so having a shutout for 80 minutes (then giving up 1 goal on a bad PK call, another with 2 starting defenders down) might seem good news but the real question for DCU is if defensive organization has improved much and you really can’t conclude one way or the other on the basis of this match. The other question is whether Gomez is the Gomez of old or if he’s an old Gomez. Again, he looked good but it’s against the LAG central midfield so that doesn’t mean anything. Probably the two positives that come out of this for DCU are:
    –some of the young depth showed well
    –DCU sucked on the road last year so getting a point in the first road game isn’t terrible.

    But otherwise, all of the questions DCU had going into the season are pretty much still unanswered.

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  8. whoever asked why Twellman never played abroad and maybe could have played on a Bundesliga 2 team. . . was that tongue in cheek or serious? He DID play for such a team: 1860 Munich. Go Lions! lol.

    I didn’t get to see it live, but on the replay, the LA crowd sounded pretty loud and raucous. Were they the whole game? If so, great for them!

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  9. Oh and I think dempsey will stay at craven cottage as long aws he is welcome. What a year for yanks abroad. Too bad so many of them have to play against AW’s red and white army.

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  10. It seems like MLS gets slightly better each year, for one reason or another. I’m enjoying it.

    I’ll also enjoy April 1st in the Music City, including Demos’ before the game. Ohhh I’m so ready.

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  11. @ jddjsjsjdd,

    I never thought about that. If they both don’t win UCL that would be crazy. Maybe Messi’s goal tally as he has like 19 goals in La Liga at the momet, but yeah Stevie G is playing out of his mind right now, with CL and EPL. We’l have to wait and see.

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  12. On account of being born in london and having parents from islington, I’ll admit to being an Arsenal-supporting “eurosnob”. However, after having a long work week and staying home and watching both MLS games on FSC on saturday night as well as the game on thursday, I can say I’ll be following MLS this year for sure. I loved the unpredictibility of the games and some of the finishes were pure class.

    However, despite friedel and guzan being at AV I have to root against them in the league. It will surely be a great finish to the english season on both ends of the table. I think Arsenal will challenge for 3rd because with their record vs the other members aof the top 3 and their current form I favor them to win out except for the Liverpool fixture.

    Liverpool is looking like a team on a mission and if gerrard and torres stay healthy they are unbeatable.

    Being a gooner and a USMNT fan has put me in some tough positions lately, I can’t wait for april 1st hope to see some of you here in the Music City.

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  13. “hostile”. I’ve never been, but that’s how I’d described it based on tv. It’s right up there with BMO, RFK, Qwest, HDC, basically one in the same.

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  14. Ron White,

    Did you watch the whole match?

    DC United was given a penalty also. except with the DC Penalty the player was offsides by at least 3 meters. The linesman had his flag up, waiving it back and forth but the head ref still awarded a penalty for a foul that was commited to a player receiving a ball offsides.

    Quit whining.

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  15. Adam, I feel sorry for you that you haven’t experienced a DCU game at RFK. It is the best sports experience in DC. Agree totally with DC Josh. And Wallace and Pontius sure showed today that they may be great young talent.

    As for the game, sucky ref call at a really bad time. If you had told me before the game that we’d get a point, I would have been thrilled – bummer to lose a 2 goal lead. But, what I did see in this game was heart. Wallace, Pontius, McTavish and Janeki taking each other out and Benny – wasn’t too fast but his passes were precise and perfect. We may not win a ton of games this year but if we keep that heart and spirit, it will be tough to complain.

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  16. Timmmmay…..hate to break it to you but the contact was going on into the box,by the time the ref called the foul Donovan was tripped inside.Then five minutes later Donovan scores the penalty and goes on to score another one,what can you do,we have a hostile crowd at the HDC,why do you think the referee gave us a penalty 5 minutes later?

    =]

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  17. Adam-

    All of those players are gems in the rough. Altidore was taken 17th in the draft. Every team picked at least one player, some two, before he was selected.

    DC has had Freddy Adu and Bobby Convey, has Ben Olsen and Santino Quaranta, who were all young studs. I agree that their scouting has sucked lately. It says something of the short-sightedness that a lot of people have towards soccer.

    You really are missing out on DC United home games. The atmosphere, although the stadium sucks, is fantastic. And the team is the most decorated club in the MLS. Get some tickets with the Screaming Eagles or Barra Brava, have a couple beers and some good food at the tailgate with us, and sing your ass off all game long.

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  18. I live in DC, I have yet to go to a United game, I would actually give a crap if they brought in some young exciting talent a la a Fredy Montero, nyassi or Altidore.

    Until then its a bunch of over the hill peeps. Same goes for Galaxy.

    HOPEFULLY, MLS will bring in people after the U20 WC in Egypt.

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  19. lol…I like to think of it as a make up call….He gave LD a freekick right outside the box 5 minutes before that,when he was clearly grabbed atleast two yards inside the box.

    Donovan FTW….my capitannn

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  20. is guzan starting the el salvador match?
    if so he will be playing in the us qualifier and villas match vs man utd in the next two weeks. i think this is his moment of oppurtunity

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  21. Tony: did you see the replay? Gomez bumped donovan a yard out of the box, he then fell into the box. If gomez was last back you maybe give the continuity and pk, but the replays were clear. (the spot is where the foul is committed, not where the player falls) the one that might realistically have been called was when Olsen dragged (Klein maybe?) down right above the Spot, but since they were both fighting, it’s a tough call either way. And murrafo was letting a lot go all over. Kovalenko was lucky to escape with just a yellow and a pk frankly. Although a yellow for him might as well be a red, it took him out of the game totally.

    I think murrafo was actually calling a good game, save the bad pk call on Wallace. He let the teams play, kept his whistle in his pocket on a lot of hard but clean tackles from both sides and let the teams decide the game.

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  22. David, I hoped you watched your LA Galaxy today. Bruce has Landon up high, Gordon as super sub, and Franklin on at RB. You must have noticed the vast improvement. There is still a very decent chance that one of these Galaxy chaps will send you a real ‘hospital ball’, they have that ability you know.

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  23. Overall 2:2 is probably fair. I am with Tony on the PKs, the handball on DC was bad, but so was the 1st-half PK. Seems like a wash.

    DC was better in the 2nd, but LA had good chances in the first.

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  24. I thought the DC PK was pretty weak. And while the Galaxy PK was non-existent, it makes up for the non-pk call earlier when the foul was given outside the box.

    All in all, I thought 2-2 was fair. The galaxy looked the better team to me and dropped points for not converting chances.

    And, you can see why LA is reluctant to give up DOnovan, can’t you?

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  25. “They handed a point to LA today when giving a pk for a non-existant hand ball by DC.”
    ——————————–

    And please, someone, explain to me how Dema doesn’t get sent off in the first half. PK given, last man, yellow card????? Grow a spine ref.

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  26. MLS Referees are just plain bad. They handed a point to LA today when giving a pk for a non-existant hand ball by DC. They were influnced by the LA players.

    It is not just the player quality that needs improving at MLS. Might be better to import refs to the league.

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  27. Im torn between The Reds and The Whites but i want Stevie G to taste the league title. I’m sure Dempsey and the crew will rebound from the loss.

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  28. I am glad Fulham have a chance to end Liverpool’s streak next week. I think there is no honor in losing, but that they have a chance to win if they play on their form.

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  29. Wow, so does Jair Marufo get credited with an assist for Landon’s PK goal from Rodney Wallace’s phantom hand ball?

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  30. As a longtime Galaxy fan I’m not getting a good feeling about Arena. I’m also not an Arena basher but Why Not Go Young? You get what you deserve with Dema. Eddie’s hurt. Tony’s slow. Say what you want about young kids but they run all day. I’ll take a couple veterans but this is too much.

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  31. And i do believe AV can snatch 4th from Arsenal. 8games left. Even though Arsenal is back on form, they have the CL and FA Cup which will take up their time.

    And Guzan deserves to be starting. I know he’s in the long term plans for AV, but still i’m sure like Hahnemann he could be the no.1 of any lower table PL team.

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  32. Kizz, you make a great point.

    Messi for sure will win especially if he gets the La Liga title or CL title. And Gerrard will win if he wins either the PL title or CL title. What i wonder is what if they both win their league titles and neither wins the CL, wóuld Messi’s stats outway those of Gerrard?

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  33. Wow, did I just see a DC United rookie draft pick do something helpful??? Wow, that’s a nice change!!!
    Seriously though, Pontius is looking very good!

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  34. Barca 6-0 over malaga…Messi amazing once again.

    I hope for a Barca v Liverpool CL semifinal. That will an excellent tie.

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  35. Wowwwww, im sorry, but as a LA fan, im sooooooo bored watching this dam game, LA needs to look abroad and not bring in other “MLS” players, Bruce arena needs to take a few trips to Brazil, and Argentina for some midfield playmakers cuz we have noooooooo mid, i can tell you right now, we need a CM, Attacking mid, and 2 CB’s, and an exciting player

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  36. “Why doesnt Guzan take a loan to a team like WBA or Stoke, they have terrible GK’s”

    Maybe at Stoke City, because I’m not impressed with Sorensen and Guzan could battle him for that #1 spot, but not West Brom, because Tony Mowbray wanted Scott Carson at West Brom and Carson has been proven as he has played for Aston Villa, Liverpool, Charlton and Leeds United.
    Carson has been impressive making some saves, but he plays on a terrible club with a horrible defense.

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  37. @ jddjsjsjdd,

    Aston Villa still has to play Man United in two weeks without Brad Freidel. They cannot handle any of the top three teams, lost to Chelsea at home and got destroyed by Liverpool today.
    Villa is not a deep team, they have never been at this level before, but I do see them giving Arsenal a run for fourth. Though Arsenal has not lost a game in 13 matches, they still have to play United, Liverpool and Chelsea again. Hopefully with their current form and with Adebayor, Fabregas and Rosicky on their way back with Arshavin, Van Persie, Nasir, they might get some points from those matches.

    Also Messi probably is World Football Player of the year. Remember, in 2007 Kaka won even with Ronaldo’s performance, this year Ronaldo got it and Messi was a second. You make a good point, if Liverpool wins EPL and UCL, Stevie G gets it and the Argentine wins if Barca clinches Champions League and La Liga, who knows.

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  38. la starting line up via dcunited.com :

    Saunders, Franklin, Gonzalez, Sanney, Delagarza; Magee, Kovalenko, Tudela, Klein, Donovan, Kiroski

    Available subs:

    Benitez, Marshall, Valentin, Migloioranzi, Patterson, Jordan, Gordon

    Reply

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