DC United Signs Clyde Simms

Since joining the team in 2005 Simms has worked his way in to the starting line up. In 2008 he played all of DC United's 45 games MLS, Superliga Concacaf etc. he started 43 of those games. He was also called up to the national team in May for a friendly against England.
He was one of the players that I hoped that DC United would sign unfortunately, I have no details of the agreement yet, but I bet my left bollock that he will make more than the 59 000 dollars he made the past season.

Links;
DC United Announcement
Wiki

Soehn To Coach 2009

Yeah, Yeah I know a month and a half without a post. Well it has been damn hard to muster up any inspiration after watching DC United's season go down the drain. Now to the good news, it can't get any worse. The bad news it will not get any better either. According to Goff, "option on his contract will be exercised." This means that there will be NO improvements, Tom Soehn is a horrible coach that misses the fundamental basics in coaching and strategy. No leadership skills and no inspiration for the team.

That DC United after missing the play offs can not acknowledge this is sad and you would have to question the front office on this decision. Hopefully they will at least invest in a Soccer for Dummies book so Tommy Boy can catch up with the game.

I hope that they will not raise the season ticket prices, because another season of this will be dreadful.

DC United Vs FC Dallas highlights.

Her we got some highlights from the game against FC Dallas.
Highlights
Moreno Scores
Quaranta Scores

New Players

At this point DC United is not signing players to enhance the team, feels like they are signing people to get a starting line up. With all the injuries and so many games ahead it these 4 new players better be ready to play.
Ibrahim Koroma a 19 year old Central Defender from Sierra Leone who is a sterter for their national team. There is not much information about him, check his wiki for some more info.

Thabiso Khumalo forward from South Africa who actually played this past Saturday against FC Dallas and had a great game. As far as I can see on wiki this guy has been bouncing around between MLS and USL teams since 2001, looking forward to see some more of this guy.

Greg Janicki a 24 year old defender that we drafted from USL2 Pittsburgh, have not found a lot of information except that he is 6' 3" twice the average length of DC United's rooster.

Ryan Miller a former Notre Dame player that was drafted by Columbus Crew earlier this season, he is listed as a defender, never got to start a game with the Crew. Here is a link to his wiki.

I am looking forward to see Khumalo get some time with Luci on top and let Moreno fall back to midfield until Gallardo is back, then Moreno can be a sub and rest his old legs.

Joe Vide Goal Of the Week

That is right Joe "sharp shooter" Vide scored his first goal of the season and as a Pro and this beaut got voted Sierra Mist Goal of the week, he was assisted by Luciano Emilio.

Check out Joe's goal against Colorado Rapids.

Video footage from DC United Vs Colorado

Just updated Youtube with some videos from the Colorado Rapids beating this past Saturday, feel free to enjoy Joe Vide almost detach the net from the frame, Santino Quaranta launch a rocket from the the top of the box and Quavas Kirk sweeping up the left overs in front of the goal. And finally of course complete highlights of the game. And of course if you want to relive some old games find highlights and goals from the past on my Youtube channel.

Fred injured

Fred pulled his hamstring against New England last week and will be out at least 3 weeks. And yes I know this is old news, still needs to be posted!

A New Goalie, A ShutOut, A Win

Yes that pretty much sums it up, DC United headed up to Chicago with a newly signed Goalkeeper, Louis Crayton from Liberia. I think they finalized his contract Thursday or Friday and he was the starter on Saturday, that pretty much sums up the confidence for Zach Wells, I hope I do not have to see Wells guard the net for DC United in a long time.

I could not watch the game, damn direct kick, so I have not much to say about our performance, but since both Peralta and Gallardo was not playing and we still manage to beat Chicago on the road I hope we got something going. Of course having Fred scoring a goal again was long overdue.

I hope we can keep it up against New England tonight and give them a spank they will have a hard time to forget.

DC United @ Chicago Fire
Fred Scores on a corber Kick!

New Goalie!?

DC United has reach an agreement with Goal Keeper Louis Crayton, he still needs to pass his physical and have his International Transfer Certificate processed before DC United can start him. As long as all limbs are attached this should not be a problem. He has been playing for FC Basel the Swiss champs for the past 3 years as the backup goalie. He has 36 caps to his name.

Check out the Wiki.

DC United Signed Ivan Guerrero

Goff just reported on his blog that Honduran midfielder Ivan Guerrero was acquired from San Jose Eartquakes. I was hoping that we would get a new defender but if this signing means that I don't have to Rod Dyachenko galloping around on the turf I take. His salary is 147 000 dollars and he is flying in to DC today and will be available against Kansas City Wizards on Saturday and considering our performance the last four games we will need any help we can get. When I looked around for a picture this one popped up, I hope he is not one of them.

Welcome Ivan kick some arse

Links;
Goffs Blog
Wiki

Player Rumours

There are some rumours circulating regarding a couple of players that might be coming to try out for DC United, I have 2 names so far, Carlos Will Mejia from Honduras a 24 year old midfielder and Emiliano Diaz, 25 years old from Argentina and also a midfielder. No official comment from DC United.

Links
Carlos Will Meji Wiki

Gallardo and Peralta Under the knife

Behind The Badge just reported that Marcello Gallardo and Gonzalo Peralt will undergo surgery for Sports Hernia. Gallardo is sporting a double and Peralta a single. Recovery time is usually 2-3 weeks. This is not good, looks like they will miss at leas 3 League games.

Link
Behind the badge

Jose Carvallo Released

DC United released Jose Carvallo today. The 21 year old Peruvian was a loan from Universitario he only had one appearance for DC United.

Links
Source
Wiki

DC United Aquire Joe Vide

Joe Vide was today aquired after San Jose waived their rights to him. He was first drafted 5th in the 2006 Supplemental Draft by New York Red Bulls, he had a total of 23 appearances with the Red Bulls before he got picked by San Jose Earthquakes in the 2007 supplemental draft, he had 5 starts with them before he got waived. He will be avilable to play against Houston Dynamo on Tuesday 07/22.

Links;
DC United Announcement
Wikipedia

Craig Thompson

People has asked me who this guy Thompson is that all of a sudden showed up on midfield. Craig Thompson got picked up in the 2nd round of the MLS Supplemental Draft 2008 by Houston Dynamo, who waived him and DC United picked him up the 30th of June. Due to the many injuries against Rochester July 1st in the US Open third round he was on the bench and got to play in the second half. I wasn't at the game but read that he did really good, he then started in the Superliga 2008 against CD Guadalajara and Atlante and played OK.


Links;
Wiki
Goff's article in Washington Post

Superliga Vs DC United 2-0

After the 2 first games of the Superliga 2008 a couple of things has been become obvious.

1. Jaime Moreno is not not the heart and soul of this team, he is not the leader or inspiration to anyone on the field. In my opinion he passed his prime about 4-5 years ago and is now only a sad shadow of what he used to be. To pay someone 235 000 dollars a year to kick PK's is stupid. Yes he makes some nice assists here and there but he looses the ball more often than he keeps it within the team. As far as I am concerned he is a sub, coming in second half will fit his pace and fitness level more.
2. Tom Soehn it has been obvious for a long time that he can not coach, I think he makes poor decision's in every aspect of the game and it was very clear against Atlante where he was out coached from the first minute of the game. If DC United wants to elevate themselves they will have to get a real coach, not continue to hire retired players turning wanna be coach.
3. Gallardo, never thought we would look this bad without him, hopefully he will not need surgery and can come back soon.
4. Peralta has been taking a lot of crap this season, I like him though, he might not be the most speedy guy, but his height is welcome and he holds the middle well. He is tough and doesn't take any shit.
5. Dyachenko No More!
6. McTavish, Burch combination in the middle is not working, I like both players but we are getting bitch slapped in the middle. I want Martinez back in the middle like in the beginning of the season, we need some speed, he can still attack from there. Especially when Peralta is gone. Burch did good last year on the left flank.

On the good side, Wells has picked up his game a little, he is still shaky though and I think we need to find someone to challenge him at this position. Craig Thompson came from no where and started 2 games, he is doing pretty good, needs to pick up his pace a little. Luci of course continues to score goals, he has really picked up his game.

Highlights;
DC United Vs Cd Guadalajara
DC United Vs Atlante

Oh and I know I will get shit for the comments about Moreno, don't get me wrong he used to be a great player and he has my full respect and admiration for what he has done for DC United in the PAST.

DC United Vs LA Galaxy 4-1

For some reason I did have not a good feeling about this game when I headed in to RFK early in the morning for some tailgating. After enjoying Screaming Eagles excellent tailgate, especially the beer seemed to hit the spot, I definitely felt better and when I got the lucky socks on I was ready to take on Old Spice and company.

I don't think we played that good or if LA played that bad. Check out the highlights. Zach Wells probably had his best game of the year and even if that don't say much he actually made a couple of big saves. Of course Luci on top had another great game working hard and with 7 shots, 6 on goal and 1 assist and 2 goals, he should probably have scored more had some great chances. Gallardo worked hard on midfield and ended up with a nice goal and an assist. I still think that he would be better off without Moreno up front, since Moreno is so slow he actually pushes Gallardo out of position. Fred had an OK game with one assist. Martinez was stellar in the back and his attacks on left side seems to be causing all kind of problems for the opponents.

Now I will mention that Moreno did score a goal, of course on a Penalty Kick and of course it was created by someone else, in this case Santino Quaranta. This is the only way Moreno can score and in my opinion why not let Luci take the PK's he would have a chance to be up to 14 goals this season and lead the league.

Soehn continues to make questionable decisions, starting Moreno is one, we all know Moreno have issues when it is to hot, to cold or somewhere in between. Tino has been suffering with a ham string for a while and this time didn't last more than 27 minutes on a hot day like it was all subs is needed at the end of the game so I thought it was a bad decision. Martinez wanted to get out at the end of the game and looked like he was limping, but instead Soehn took out Moreno?! I think Moreno could have handled to do nothing for another 15 more minutes. Martinez had been working really hard.

Finally it was great to seeBenny back on the field, hopefully he he is getting better and can start work himself back to the starting line-up.

Franco Niell waived

DC United waived Franco Niell or Mighty Mouse as we called him. I didn't think that Niell really got a chance to show what he could do, a lot of people didn't like him, said that he didn't score and so on. I liked his speed and intensity and think he would have been a good sub, but considering the price tag $150K he would have been an expensive sub.

The only thing that worries me is the depth in the forward position now, the only one we have on top is Emilio and when he don't score we loose. Moreno's trips towards the 18 yard line are rare and he averages 1 shot on goal per game, so we really need someone here.

I also hope that they are looking in to a new goalie, after watching the last game I am 110% convinced Wells got to go.

Good luck to you Franco Niell!

Yeah That Bad

I know I haven't been posting a lot since....... Zach Wells made a save some time in preseason. But now I intend to get back on track just like DC United. After a dreadful beginning of the season, DC United has finally started to pick up their game, next game on Sunday against Old Spice and friends at RFK you don't want to miss, get your tickets now and lets meet up at the Screaming Eagles Tailgate before the game.

And from now on, I will make sure to keep you guys up with the latest news as they arrive.

Vamos United!

Lost against Kansas City Wizards

I have never been a big fan of Mr. Soehn, his decisions and tactics has never made any sense to me and so again this past Saturday when we traveled to to Kansas City. Now the question for this game was should we start with our best players or rest them for tuesdayd CONCACAF cup semi final.
I thought that since it was early in the season ate least start with our best guys and change our key players later in the game to keep them somewhat fresh for Tuesday.
The other side of the coin would be to rest key players and have some bench warmers playing the game.

Now at first it looked like Soehn was went for the second option, kind off, he replaced Fred with Mediate? All other starters were in? Mediate has been with us for many years and he has never impressed anybody which just makes the rest of the team have to work harder. In addition to that when we went down 0-1 he changes out Burch with Fred and puts Mediate as a defender instead of Burch and then a little later sub out Mediate with Stratford?? So in addition to have all our regular starters on the field chasing to get back to even, he puts an already mediocre midfielder to play defense only to change him out later in the game.

Tom is constantly out coached and his success relies only on the players performance, anyone can pick a starting XI and have them have a go for it.

Here are the highlights from the game and good luck tonight DC.

DC United Signs Santino Quaranta

DC United signed Santino Quaranta. After playing with us 2001-2006 he got traded to LA and Red Bulls who released him after last season. Tino joined DC United's training camp on the west coast and made an impression. He is in the best shape he has ever been and more focused than ever. He had received offers from other clubs but wanted to come back to DC United.

Tino will add more depth to our midfield and I think a great addition to our team.

Want more info.... Check the wiki.

Vanney GONE!!!!

In one way or another we did expect Vanney to be gone and I am one that will not miss him. This guy was among the slowest player I have seen and very expensive. Well know he is gone, DC United traded his rights for LA Galaxy's Quavas Kirk a 19 year old midfielder all this according to MLS Soccer God Goff. This guy will add depth to our midfield and DC definately got the beeter end of the deal.

There is also a rumor that Santino Quaranta is joining DC United's training camp in California to try to get a spot, we have to see what happens there.

Mixed Valentine News

Some Yahoo at Yahoo Sports ranked MLS Top 20 players, Emilio was number 3 and Benny number 16 I assume this was based on last years performances since Gallardo wasn't ranked but on the other hand Beckham was ranked 4 and he was injured most of the season.... As I said some Yahoo.

The big news for today came from the Post, that Fenty has proposed a 27000 seat soccer stadium at Poplar Point to be public funded. No this man swings more than a monkey on crack so we have to see how serious this is.

Other than that 27 days until this years first game.

DC United Schdule

DC United released their regular season schedule last week.
You can view/add the calendar like this;
Just click the here to view it online
Click here to view it in blog format or add the url to your favorite RSS Reader
Or import the iCal file to you PIM/PDA/Email Client/Cell Phone.

Enjoy!

Gomez Signed With Colorado Rapids

Christian Gomez has signed with Colorado Rapids, DC United received a first round pick for the trade and future considerations........ According to Goff the future considerations would be Colorado's DP spot for 2 years which can prove valuable for DC and I believe we can both afford another DP and stay under the Cap. While DC United is not looking for a DP, it might be in our interest to use it for Emilio when his contract expires to be able to keep him.

As for Gomez departure, it is unfortunate but I believe he and his agent got to greedy and know he will be apart of the many MLS player getting crushed by DC United. Will we miss him, I don't think so, Gallardo is a very good player and even though it is just pre-season reports from Bradenton, Florida is that he has been really good in practice.

Things to come???

Training camp has started and DC United has just played the first scrimmage. Now granted they played the U-17 Mens National Team so when it is not a real measure for what to come. What was really intersting and hopefully a tiny indication of what to come. Franco Niell scored 3 goals and 2 of them was assisted by Marcelo Gallardo.

Also Marc Burch scored on a free kick, which hopefully means that he will take the free kicks this year. I always wondered why they didn't let him take more free kicks last year, he has a canon. Granted Gomez was really good around and out side the box but when he went cold I wish they would have used Burch a little we all remember this shot, make me smile every time.



Also, keep an eye on the blog there are rumors about Gomez that if they are true would be very cool.

New players confirmed

Gonzalo Martinez - Defender, very solid background, wiki
Gonzalo Peralta - Defender, solid background and at 6' 2" he will add some height in the box. Finally we will get some depth on defense, wiki
Jose Carvallo - Goalie now confirmed by DC United, will be good with some competition on this spot, wiki

Finally the big one;
Marcelo Gallardo has signed with DC United and will take our DP spot (big name player spot) he his an attacking midfielder and play maker, wiki.

This looks great on paper and hopefully these new guys will come to the MLS and play. Both Martinez and Gallardo is 32 years old and will bring a lot of experience to the team. It has been a long uncertain off season but it looks like we might pull it off and I truly think we will have a stronger team than the last 2 years.

Holy Crap

Jose Carvallo Rumour is that a deal is about done but so far I haven't heard anything from DC United
Gonzalo Peralta deal is close
Marcelo Gallardo finalized, Goff says, but nothing announced from DC United.

Arguez Out

Goff just posted that D.C. United's transfer of 19-year-old midfielder Bryan Arguez to Hertha Berlin has been finalized, sources close to the negotiations confirmed. Don't be surprised to see an official announcement today or Monday.

It is a shame that DC United never gave the kid a chance, obviously he has talent.

Gomez will not come back

Goff just reported that there is no chance in h*** that Gomez will be back with DC United this season or any other season.
The story is that Gomez got a very good offer during the season which he declined, he wanted more money, season ended and Gomez was nowhere close to the performance of the year before, DC United gave him another offer which was only 1 year with less money. Gomez apparently accepted the money but wanted 2 years.
When DC United in addition to that was trying to get Veron and was looking at other midfielder's to strengthen the team, Gomez got emotional about the whole thing and pretty much closed the door.

Through an intermediary, Gomez wanted to say: "Thank you to D.C. fans. My family and I will miss them."

I loved Gomez but I do not like players that whines and bitches like this so I say;
Adios Amiga, and good luck!

Supplemental Draft Picks

Brandon Owens, defensive player, Wiki
Dan Stratford, Midfielder, Wiki
James Thorpe, Goalkeeper, Wiki

All of these players have been stars in their college teams, we just have to see if they will be good enough to join the squad after training camp.

More Franco Niell Videos

Thanks Thomas for some more videos on Niell. The more information I receive about this little guy the more stoked I am getting. Check the assist to the goal in the end of this first video, stellar.

Links;
Nice Assist
Gooooooaaaaaalllll

DC United Resigns Jaime Moreno

DC United resigns Jaime Moreno, it will be really interesting to see that contract, he must have got a much lower salary compared to last year and we all hope he will not be apart of the starting line up. Hopefully he will have energy enough to play at least 20-25 minutes per game if needed and maybe he can teach Gomez if he comes back on how to take a PK.

Peruvian Goalie José Carvallo Seen in DC

According to Goff at Washington Post, the peruvian Goalie José Carvallo has been spotted in Washington. The 22 year old has 2 seasons behind playing for Universitario and also played one game for the Peruvian national team last year.

Apparently this youngster already has a VISA and I read somewhere that his mother lives in Northern Virginia, this would mean that he would not be counted as a foreign player.

I assume that he will compete with Zach Wells for the starting spot. That said, DC United has yet to confirm that Carvallo will join the squad or even join the training camp that starts next week.....

Maybe he is just here to visit mami....

Links;
Washington Post
Wiki

DC United Signs Gonzalo Martinez

DC united has now confirmed that they have signed defender Gonzalo Martinez from Colombia. Martinez is 32 years old and has a solid background. He has played 3 season in the Italian league, he has played 36 games for the National team and most recetly played for Millonarios from Colombia.

He definitely is getting up there in age but being a defensive player that is not necessarily bad, even though you get slower with age your experience is something that might be even more important than speed and as long as this guy is not slower than Vanney we will be fine. Having a solid and experienced player like Martinez directing out young guns McTavish and Burch in the back line will be huge and I think he will be playing in between these two guys with Namhoff covering the right side.

This might be the best defensive line up we had in years, I still think we need 1-2 guys on the bench to add some depth, hopefully one of our draft choices can fill that spot.

Martinez is waiting for his VISA and transfer certificates to be finalized, hopefully he will be able to join our team shortly.

The Team is slowly getting together and we are still waiting for some signings to happen on the midfield, there are rumors flying around regarding Gomez, and a new Argentine player but until I have some more solid information I will wait to post.


Links;
DC United
Wiki
Google
Washington Post

DC United Signs Argentine Franco Niell

Goff reported yesterday that Neill had been signed to DC United and now it is confirmed. I know very little about this guy other than that he is 5' 4", he has played 60 games for Argentinos Juniors as a forward and have scored 10 goals. He is 24 years old and have been signed to a 1 year loan from the Argentine club.

It would have been nice to get a striker that could win a header or two. Reports says he is very fast and works hard and tough to get hold off, considering his height I believe that.

I think he will complement Emilio very well and it will be good to see what he can do together with a player that will actually run and try to move forward with the ball. Also nice to see that we signed a young player.

Niell is waiting for Visa and Transfer papers ro go thru and will then join the squad who will start pre season training next week.

Links.
Washington Post
Wiki
Youtube
DC United