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Morning Ticker: Marquez sidelined, Vela quarantined and MLS deals made

Rafael Marquez (AFP) 

Rafael Marquez, every American's favorite Mexican national team player, is set to miss the rest of the European season after suffering a knee injury on Wednesday.

Marquez, who made headlines back in February for once again drawing a red card vs. the United States, suffered a torn meniscus during Barcelona's 0-0 tie vs. Chelseain their Champions League semifinal first-leg match-up.

The injury puts Marquez's availability for upcoming World Cup qualifiers for Mexico in serious doubt. He had already served his two-match suspension for the red card earned for kicking U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard, but now may not be available for Mexico's upcoming qualifiers vs. El Salvador (June 6th) and Trinidad & Tobago (June 10th).

The injury also means Marquez will miss the highly-anticipated La Liga clash between Barcelona and Real Madrid on Saturday. He joins Real Madrid defender and MMA wannabe Pepe on the suspended list for that match.

Here are some other stories from this morning and Tuesday to get your day going

Orozco's San Luis advances in Libertadores

Mexican club San Luis reached the knockout round of Copa Libertadores after beating Paraguayan side Libertad, 2-0, on Tuesday. U.S. national team defender Michael Orozco started and played 90 minutes for San Luis.

Vela back from Swine Flu quarantine

Arsenal striker and Mexican international Carlos Vela returned to the Gunners on Tuesday, a day ahead of their Champions League semifinal vs. Manchester United, and a day after being kept in quarantine follow a visit from friends from Mexico. Concerns over the swine flu epidemic led Arsenal officials to keep Vela away from the team until he was cleard medically to return.

Vela is a good bet to play a key role in today's Champions League semifinal, with both Robin Van Persie and Eduardo sidelined by injury and Andrei Arshavin cup-tied to Zenit St. Petersburg.

Sounders down RSL in U.S. Open Cup

Sebastian LeToux recorded two goals and two assists to lead the Seattle Sounders to a 4-1 rout of Real Salt Lake in a U.S. Open Cup play-in match on Tuesday in the Seattle suburb of Tukwila, Washington.

In a match-up of Western Conference powers which both rested key regulars, the Sounders proved too tough as LeToux, Sanna Nyassi and Stephen King all scored for Seattle. Will Johnson provided Real Salt Lake's lone goal.

The Sounders will now face the Colorado Rapids in the next play-in round of the U.S. Open Cup.

FC Dallas makes pair of deals

FC Dallas added yet another young prospect to a squad that is resembling a college team more and more each week after acquiring central defender Kyle Davies from Real Salt Lake for a second-round draft pick in 2010. To make room for Davies on its rosters, FC Dallas dealt veteran defender Aaron Pitchkolan to San Jose for a conditional draft pick.

Dallas adds Davies, the U.S. Under-20 national team captain, to a roster already loaded with five Generation adidas players. No word on whether FC Dallas will go from paying salaries to providing scholarships.

The Pitchkolan deal gives the Earthquakes a veteran defender to help offset the loss of Ryan Cochrane, who is set to moss up to three months after ankle surgery.

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What do you think of these stories? Think Marquez's injury was karmik payback for his karate kick on Tim Howard? Think Vela will make an impact vs. Manchester United? Can you see the Sounders winning U.S. Open Cup? Trying to figure out how many U-21 players Schellas Hyndman will add before he realizes he's not at SMU anymore?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. c´mon guys , I think the injury of Marquez will be OK for MXNT because we have another great defender ( Hector Moreno – AZ Alkmaar ) he can make a couple with Galindo or Magallon , the doubts are in left and rigth side , Salcido is banned for two yellow cards and Osorio recently was in surgery …… Aguirre can handle the situation, for me, the best options for right side is Israel Castro ( Pumas ) & left side Oscar Rojas ( America ) ….. for sure Marquez will be against USANT in August , but the main thing is that the swine flu can be controlled ………..

    regards!!

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  2. Marquez is paying the price for the bad karma he built up over the years, especially for what he did to Cobi Jones. I don’t feel bad for him in the least. He and most of the rest of the Mexican National Team are a bunch of sore losers and bad sports in general.

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  3. MEXICO is lucky, this is a blessing Marquez is slow and stupid and he sucks. They can start steriod boy Galindo or just naturalize another Brazilian or Argie.

    Vela quarantined? What does it matter he has been quarantined to the bench all year.

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  4. Jim said “is there a limit to the amount of GA players a team can have on their team?”

    Yes limit is five I believe. That is the reason Davis and Wallace are occuping(sp) senior roster spots.

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  5. To MiamiA:
    You are wrong! Marquez has been a favorite of both Rijkaard and Guardiola (two extraordinary coaches) for his characteristics as a player, which allow him to be on “the verge of a yellow” a la Gattuso! His ability to come out playing from behind by sending long precise passes is a rarity for a defender, and would allow him to play in any elite team in the world. He has made very stupid mistakes in particular against the USMT, but if Tim Howard can forgive and forget, and actually praise the guy, well I have nothing left to say. Make no mistake about it, Barca’s results are not as good without him, and they will suffer!!!

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  6. FCD’s roster was overloaded with center backs before the Davies move and thin on the left side. I like the move, and it’ll be interesting to see if Davies and Anthony Wallace can push each other past Blake Wagner on the depth chart.

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  7. (maybe someone said this?) Seattle is pretty smart for having the Cup match away from Qwest Field. Actually it’s pretty effin’ brilliant. I have much love for the Open, but it seems like it’s lost some steam lately. Bringing the excitiment of that new club to a more intimate venue to accomodate the smaller numbers of fans that show up for Cup matches. It also keeps qwest field sacred for the league matches.

    or maybe i’m jumping the gun here and they play all the rest of their open cup matches at qwest. anyone know?

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  8. “They did the same thing with Ibrahim”

    Ummm..what?? Ibby never showed up!! He refused to come to Dallas. They didn’t have a chance to NOT play him. You dont’ know what you are talking about.

    As for Dallas’ youth strategy in general, it’s a very risky move. The problem with MLS salary structures is that when a kid graduates from GA you are forced to make a tough decision, is he worth the salary cap hit to keep him. The better these kids do, the more tough decisions they force the FO to make on them. You spend three years developing these kids and then you have to either cut a Sr roster player or trade the kid away…that’s your reward for developing talent. MLS rules need to have flexibility for these situations.

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  9. When the U-20 Championships come up later this year, FCD will have zero subs. I actually like building a youthful squad, but none of those guys are even getting a whiff of playing time. Wallace, Shea, Davies, Lambo, Marosevic….thats alot of good young talent thats not developing. They did the same thing with Ibrahim. Since hes been shipped to TFC, he’s at least played and done pretty well for himself.

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  10. I DO wish ill on Marquez…Over the years he has been a dirty player that has put other players on field at physical risk…Tim Howard could have been seriously injured because of Marquez’s poor sportsmanship…Plus Marquez sucks…He always seems to come up small for his teams when they need him…I hope he retires, and does not come to the MLS.

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  11. Maybe if they keep trying Dallas can get only Generation Addidas players on their roster and have a total yearly salary of $0. They wouldn’t need anyone to show up to their games they could just make money with there sponsorship deals and selling players. If they get $4 million for Cooper they should be set for the next 10 years.

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  12. “Ives must be a closet Hindu or Buddhist. Karma’s come up an awful lot recently around here!”
    ________________________

    If he was, he, like a lot of misinformed users of the word, wouldn’t be throwing it around like they do.

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  13. Nick – without those 2 palyers and a home crowd we MIGHT be treated to a team – Chelsea – that resembles a top 4 European team instead of a scared sh!tless bottom of the table team. I’ve never been more disappointed in a game.

    Eurosnobs and US Soccer haters always say we (soccer in the US as a whole) don’t care about “football” and only care about wins. Then after that rediculous performance yesterday Chelsea are praised for their “tactics”. They were simply going after a result. Their line up was not about footballing in the least bit. I will always site this game when confronted by Eurosnobs about the style of play in the US.

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  14. I had a couple of my high school football players tear a meniscus last season, and it took both of them about two months to make it back on the field, and three to be at 100%.

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  15. So barca will definitely be without Marquez and Puyol for the return leg at Stamford Bridge. Should make things pretty interesting.

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  16. I’ve always been a fan of Orozco making the squad for WC10. I hope to see it. The kids got alot of talent. FC Dallas should start playing some of the young talent. Brek Shea, I don’t think he’s seen the pitch this year.

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  17. RSL’s starting lineup included Findley, Beckerman, Johnson, Russell and Olave. Yuri and Borchers came on in the 2nd half. Sounders regulars to start were limited to Zakuani, Riley, Scott, and Le Toux.

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  18. I hate to see anybody go down injured, but at least Marquez can’t cripple any opponents for the next few weeks. El Tri will probably be fine in his absence, as they’re still good enough to beat the teams they’ll be playing while he’s out.

    On a more positive note, I love seeing the Sounders doing do well! That team is definitely right place, right time for that city, and I’m curious as to whether the initial interest/attendance will be sustained after year 1, but they’re a shot in the arm for Seattle and for MLS generally. That’s how to do expansion right!

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  19. Well, if Dallas is convinced they’re going to stink it up anyway this year, I don’t see a huge problem with going young. I’m a little surprised to see them phoning it in so early though. I guess all that’s left is to sell Kenny Cooper in July.

    I was at the Sounders/RSL Open Cup match last night. Loved the atmosphere in tiny Starfire Stadium. Sounders were absolutely smoking – missed two open nets and hit the post too. Le Toux wants his old job back.

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  20. If Orozco continues to do well for San Luis, I definitely see him getting a starting spot. I wonder if he’ll get the spot over Marshall. I would say yes because Orozco is getting time against better competition while Marshall is dominating, or WAS dominating, against MLS forwards.

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  21. Turtle, Barca put his recovery time at 8-10 weeks, but who knows. I don’t think he will be that large of an impact for Mexico if he is back in time for the Azteca showdown. Our boys need to bring the pain either way!

    I’m very excited Orozco is getting significant playing time in the Copa Lib. I really hope Bradley gives him some time in the Gold Cup. We are in dire need for backline depth.

    I hope the Dallas youth progesses into something special. As a fan of American soccer, I don’t like to see any MLS team suffer as much as Dallas does. Bruce Arena needs to take notes, the average age of the Galaxy must be 45. He hasn’t changed a bit, can’t get out of his comfort zone with former players.

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  22. “Think Marquez’s injury was karmik payback for his karate kick on Tim Howard?”

    Ives must be a closet Hindu or Buddhist. Karma’s come up an awful lot recently around here!

    I realize that Orozco’s on everyone’s s*** list for his Olympic gaffe vs. Nigeria, but considering Pearce’s recent failings, should Bradley take a look at him? Gold Cup?

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  23. fcd is trying to build with youth, which may get ugly as far as results go. patience is in short supply among the fans, so it’s a risky strategy. I will say that hyndman definitely has a system and plan for the team- the question is whether it’s a good one. hunt group’s strategy seems to be go as cheap as possible, which doesn’t sell in flash-obsessed big d. on the other hand, acquiring the U20 captain can’t be a bad move. pitch was a fan fave but not mls calibre….

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  24. Looks at the upside of the FCD moves. All of our U-20s will get lots of trainging and playing time together! Sucks for us fans, but maybe this will be for the best as far as the MNT is concerned.

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  25. Found this regarding recovery time:

    “After meniscus tear surgery, recovery time will vary depending on your age, activity level, amount of menicus loss, and any other procedures that were performed. For most meniscectomies, normal recovery time is about 4-6 weeks.”

    He’ll be back for the USA in August.

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  26. “No word on whether FC Dallas will go from paying salaries to providing scholarships.”

    Wow Ives it sounds like you have been reading comments from FC Dalls blog and 3rd Degree. That sentiment is running wild heree in Dallas as no thinks Hyndman is making a good transition from the college game.

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  27. It doesn’t sound like Marquez will be back for the next two qualifiers, but my question is: will he be back for the US-Mexico game at Azteca???

    I have my doubts.

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