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MLS Notes: Columbus signs defender, Mariner leaves Plymouth Argyle and more

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The rebuilding of the Columbus Crew roster took another step forward on Thursday with the club formally announcing the signing of Chilean defender Sebastian Miranda.

Miranda, 30, has played his entire professional career in Chile save for a stint in Austria with Red Bull Salzburg in 2005-2006. He most recently played for Union Espanola in Chile's top flight.

The 5-foot-8 Miranda is expected to challenge for the starting right back position, which was vacated when the club opted not to re-sign Frankie Hejduk.

Here are a couple of more items involving Major League Soccer teams:

MARINER DEPARTS PLYMOUTH ARGYLE

Paul Mariner has left his post as coach at Plymouth Argyle, giving further credence to the report linking him to Toronto FC's open head coach position.

Mariner, a long-time assistant to Steve Nicol with the New England Revolution, joined Plymouth Argyle's staff 14 months ago, but the club was relegated to League One in May and is in financial straits. Mariner was considered one of MLS' top assistants and potential head coaching candidates when he was with the Revolution.

SMITH: CUMMINGS WILL BE WITH CLUB FOR OPENER

Omar Cummings may or may not be headed to Aston Villa on a short-term loan, but regardless, he will be with the Colorado Rapids for the team's season opener against Portland in March, according to head coach Gary Smith.

Smith told MLSSoccer.com that "My involvement will be if he's on trial and it turns into something more substantial. Then, he must be back for that first game."

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Do you like the signing for the Crew? Think Mariner would be a good coaching selection for Toronto? Happy to hear that Cummings will be with the Rapids for the season opener regardless of a potential loan?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. WorldAtlas.com, Wikipedia.com and NationalGeographic.com, all say that the Western Hemisphere includes UK, Spain & France. But I am sure that RedPatch & Socmin trump those sources.

    Hemisphere = Half the globe…not just some arbitrary made up map.

    Just say “The Americas”, and it would fit.

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  2. While England, France and Spain are in Western Europe and a part of what is called Western civilization, they don’t quite meet the geographical defintion of being a part of the Western Hemishpere.

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  3. Cunningham is 34,now Miranda 30.It doesn’t make sense unless you put Warzycha’s ego and Gillermo’s free style of play together.Then you start thinking…

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  4. I would say the EPL is the best in the Western Hemisphere…since the UK is IN the western hemisphere(France & Spain too). Just saying…

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  5. I agree that it’s hard to get a sense of some of the South American leagues. Clearly the Argentine and Brazilian leagues are on top, but after that, it’s a bit of a drop off for the second-rate leagues: Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay, with the Colombian league having faded in recent years. But clearly there’s good players coming from Chilean squads. Seattle’s Alvaro Fernandez, for instance, was playing in Chile before coming to MLS, and he played in the World Cup for Uruguay.

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  6. they have great young talent but they all leave once they are good enough for europe. brazil may get better as economy is very strong right now.

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  7. Historically yes, with the great years of Atl. Nacional and America de Cali, but recently in the last 5-6 years, they really have dropped off in the international tournaments, and their national team has struggled as well. Certainly their players are still great coming to the MLS, but recently the league is on the outs. The last major success was 2004, Once Caldas won the Copa Libertadores.

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  8. Thanks for the opinion. I never got into South American football for some reason. Should pay it more attention, but, there is only so much time in the day for surfing the internet at work. LOL.

    BTW, does the Colombian league rate well against these other countries? I ask because a lot of players have left Colombia for MLS and done well recently. Now I am noticing a lot of transfer rumors from Uruguay and Chile.

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  9. I would say that Chile is in the mix with Paraguay, Uruguay, Mexico, and recently even Ecuador teams. These countries usually have one, maybe two teams that reach later stages in the south american tournaments. It kind of depends on the team and the year. I wouldn’t put Mexico that high in comparison to the South American leagues. Mexico has never had a team win the Copa Libertadores, (Chivas reached the finals 2010 & America, reached the semis in 2008) & Pachuca is the only Mexican team to win a tournament, (Copa Sudamericana 2006). In Chile, Universidad Catolica and Universidad de Chile have been playing rather well. So again, I would just say it really depends on the team and the year, which could swing rankings of leagues’ strength.

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  10. I know that Brazil and Argentina have great leagues, but what is the general consensus on the quality of the other South American domestic leagues? I know the pay isn’t great, but how good/competitive are they? I would think Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico are definitely the best in the western hemisphere, but what is the pecking order after those three?

    And yes I know these kinds of questions are silly, just wanting opinions, albeit educated ones please.

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  11. Perhaps I’m not remembering the statement incorrectly but I thought the club mentioned youth movement or getting younger. Something to that extent.

    Haven’t their recent signings all been +30?

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