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MLS Western Conference Notes: Gordon apologetic, Whitecaps waive Paulo Jr., and more

AlanGordon2 (ISIPhotos.com)

Photo by ISIPhotos.com

BY MIKE DONOVAN

To the surprise of no one, MLS suspended Alan Gordon for three games for using a gay slur in Sunday’s loss to the Portland Timbers. Since the incident, Gordon has been unable to sleep and apologized to Robbie Rogers through Steven Lenhart.

“You spend years being a nice guy and using this sport the right way and then one slip up of a word that is taken out of context can put a hold on all the good that you do,” Gordon told the San Jose Mercury News. “I’m far from perfect. I’m a true believer in standing up and saying I messed up. I won’t hide. I will own it. This won’t define me.”

Gordon will miss a total of four games, due to the red card he received in the match. The Oregon State product missed the first four games of season recovering from foot surgery.

Here are some more news and notes from around the Western Conference heading into MLS Week Eight action:

CHIVAS USA

Daniel Antunez, who made his first MLS start Saturday, has been sidelined with a torn meniscus.  Antunez hurt his knee during the first half of the Goats 1-0 loss to Colorado.

The University of Hartford product has bounced around professional soccer, having played for five clubs before returning to his native Southern California. Antunez will most likely be replaced in the lineup by 20-year old Marvin Iraheta.

COLORADO RAPIDS

Anthony Wallace hadn’t played in 14 months before he stepped on the field on Saturday during the Rapids 1-0 over Chivas USA. In that span, Wallace had sustained injuries to both his knees, his left achilles and sustained a groin strain.

The 24-year-old played the final 17 minutes against Chivas and while he played primarily left back before his injury, he came into the game as a midfielder. Colorado has used 24 players this season, which is the most in MLS.

FC DALLAS

Eric Hassli is excited to take on his old club with FC Dallas taking on the Vancouver Whitecaps twice in the next two weeks. Hassli spent the first year-and-ahalf of his MLS career with the Canadian club.

The French striker has played just 60 minutes this season while dealing with an ankle injury, but had a key part in the only goal in Dallas’s 1-0 victory over LA on Saturday.

LA GALAXY

The Galaxy have given up eight goals in all competitions in 2013 and a staggering seven of them have been in the final 15 minutes. The club is blaming mental lapses and believes they will have to correct the issue if they’re going to have any chance of repeating in 2013. In each of the last three overall matches, LA has given up the winning goal with less than ten minutes remaining on the game clock.

PORTLAND TIMBERS

The Timbers Reserve team continued its impressive run to start the season, defeating the Earthquakes Reserves 2-1 at Jeld-Wen Field on Monday. Michael Nanchoff had a brace as the team moved into first place in the reserve league’s West Division. In his last two games for the reserves, Nanchoff has 3 goals and an assist.

REAL SALT LAKE

Nick Rimando was named Utah’s Male Pro Athlete of the Year, beating out an impressive list of athletes that included two players from the Super Bowl Champion Baltimore Ravens. Rimando was won the award for “Highlight of the Year” for his performance in the first leg of last season’s Western Conference Semifinals in Seattle.

SEATTLE SOUNDERS

With injuries to Eddie Johnson and Obafemi Martins, the Sounders have been looking for someone to step up on the attacking side of the field. Lamar Neagle has filled some of the void in the last week with a goal against Santos Laguna and a decent effort against the New England Revolution.

Neagle was traded back to the Sounders after spending last season with the Montreal Impact. Despite not usually playing as the high striker, Neagle found himself in that position in last Saturday’s game against the Revs. Neagle will likely make his way back to the bench if and when Martins and Johnson return.

VANCOUVER WHITECAPS

On Wednesday, the Whitecaps waived winger Paulo Jr.  The Brazilian had yet to feature for the club after being acquired in January’s re-entry draft.

Vancouver is looking to replace Paulo Jr. quickly and already has two players in mind. Being considered are Ghanaian midfielder Aminu Abdallah and South African defender/midfielder Ethen Sampson.

Comments

  1. Too bad about Paulo Jr. We were excited about him as a forward for RSL but he just didn’t cut it. And good for Gordon for being stand up about it. He looked like a thug in that game, but I don’t think he usually plays like that.

    Reply
  2. way to go Gordon.

    it was mighty stupid of him, but lets not call for his head. He deserves a ban and then for us to let him get back to work

    im curious, does he get paid during the ban?

    Reply
    • I agree with this, it’s a shame you have to punish the messenger to eliminate the message, but he’s being a real stand up guy about it.

      Reply
      • Stand up, sure, but delusional too. This wasn’t “a word taken out of context,” but this IS Gordon trying to decontextualize his usage of the word. The important context is the culture of antagonism and even hatred toward LGBT communities and using a derogatory term for homosexuals to insult somebody perpetuates this culture.

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