El Capitán Arrives in New York to Complete Red Bull’s El Tri

Red Bull New York has announced the signing of Mexico National Team Captain Rafael Márquez as the club’s third designated player. Márquez signed with the MLS side on a four year deal worth $25 million, as reported by ESPN Deportes reporter John Sutcliffe. “I am excited to be joining the Red Bulls,” Márquez said. “Despite having the opportunity to fulfill my contract with Barcelona, coming to New York and playing in Major League Soccer was a chance that I could not refuse. I am completely committed to doing my very best to help the Red Bulls in their playoff push this year and compete for championships in the years to come.” Márquez and his former club FC Barcelona came to an agreement to terminate the defender’s contract with the Catalan side over the weekend, a deal which would have kept Márquez in a Barcelona shirt till 2012. FC Barcelona held a sendoff ceremony for the Mexican captain on Saturday, July 31, 2010 at Camp Nou. While at FC Barcelona, Márquez won two UEFA Champions League Cups, four League titles, one FIFA Club World Cup, one UEFA Super Cup, one Spanish Cup, three Spanish Super Cups and three Catalan Cups. Márquez played a ...

2010 MLS All-Star Roster: Players to Face Manchester United

The final All-Star selections to complete the 23-man MLS roster at the 2010 AT&T All-Star Game that will face English Premier League historic club Manchester United on July 28 in Houston, TX are set. The First XI was selected based on online voting comprised of fans, media, players, and MLS coaches/GMs. Each party has a 25 percent stake in the total voting held during the first half of the season. The top vote-getters were announced via MLSsoccer.com on July 13, just two weeks before the event. The “First XI” tag is not to be confused with the term “Starting XI”; they are only the top 11 chosen by the voters to represent the MLS at the All-Star Game and therefore are guaranteed a spot on the final roster. The remaining 12 slots are a combination of picks made by the MLS All-Star Head Coach and MLS Commissioner Don Garber. LA Galaxy coach Bruce Arena was named the MLS All-Star Head Coach, earning the honorable role based on his club holding the highest points-per-game in the Major League Soccer standings by the June 27 deadline. As MLS Coach, Arena gets to add 10 players of his choosing to the MLS roster to complement the First ...

Luis Angel Landin Released By Houston Dynamo

It was a promising move that was supposed to reward the Houston Hispanic fan base. Instead, Luis Angel Landín was holding back a franchise that, since its relocation from San Jose, experienced instant success and two MLS Cup Championships. The United States is a results-driven country, and the Forward position in Soccer is the most criticized because it’s judged based on the statistics of goals scored. Nonetheless, a player receiving a salary in the six figures only to produce just two goals and three assists in almost one year's time is unacceptable. It was expected that the Houston Dynamo would not pick up Landín’s contract option after the loan expired in December, but his early dismissal proves the Dynamo are ready to win now and won’t stand for setbacks. Houston Dynamo announced the signing of Luis Angel Landín as the club’s first Designated Player on August 20, 2009. Landín joined La Naranja on loan from Mexican First Division team Cruz Azul until December 2010. Landín had already been registered in the 2009-10 CONCACAF Champions League with Cruz Azul, meaning the Houston Dynamo would be unable to use his services for that competition. The Designated Player slot in MLS is commonly used by teams ...

Chivas USA Wanted It More, Houston Dynamo Eliminated from USOC

The Houston Dynamo fans’ hopes for a Lamar Hunt US Open Cup title would come to a heartbreaking halt at the hands of fellow MLS Western Conference rival Chivas USA. The Goats broke a club spell by winning their first match at Robertson Stadium at the expense of what were undoubtedly the Dynamo reserves. Despite losing the only two league meetings earlier this year against La Naranja , Chivas USA must feel they got the better end of the battle by eliminating the Dynamo from US Open Cup play and will await the winner of the Los Angeles Galaxy-Seattle Sounders FC quarterfinal. Brian Ching may have taken the night off, but one could’ve sworn to see the USA men’s national team habits of giving up early goals on the field as Justin Braun’s header in the fifth minute opened up the scoreboard and gave the visiting Chivas USA the 1-0 lead. Houston Dynamo was forced to play catch up the rest of the evening. Simply by looking at the lineups sent on to the field by their respective managers, it is evident Houston Dynamo sent their reserves to face all but two Chivas USA common starters. Chivas USA flew to Houston ...

Houston Dynamo 2, Real Salt Lake 1: Dynamic Davis Dethrones Champs

Robertson Stadium was sporting a sea of “Forever Orange” on Houston Dynamo Day. Supporter groups, season ticket holders, and newcomers were all part of 18,000+ strong fans in attendance for the 2010 home opener versus the 2009 MLS Cup Champion Real Salt Lake. Fans were anxiously waiting this date for months; the Dynamo could not wait to start at home, a field where they lose rarely. Although the night started festive, there was little time to celebrate. The Dynamo began the season the previous week at FC Dallas and left Frisco with a 1-1 tie in the Texan Derby. After game day opening celebrations concluded, the 22 men on John O’ Quinn field starting things off to a fast tempo. Fans were chanting “Let’s Go Dynamo!” as the Orange Crush was in a battle of possession for most part of the first half. That is, until the 17th minute when RSL’s Argentinean striker Javier Morales took advantage of a defensive mishap by the home team and shot one with ease past Pat Onstad into the right corner of the net to put the defending Champions in the lead 1-0. Looking carefully at the play: ...