Photo by ISIphotos.com
There are two key MLS playoff series kicking off today, and European soccer action looms, but the U.S. Under-17 national team's final World Cup group match should garner plenty of attention on this Soccer Sunday.
The U.S. Under-17 team is coming off a 1-0 win vs. Malawi and can progress to the knockout round of the Under-17 World Cup with a draw or win vs. the United Arab Emirates today (10am, ESPNU).
THe ultimate MLS rivalry heads into post-season mode as Chivas USA takes on the LA Galaxy at Home Depot Center (5pm, ESPN2), but not before the league's most familiar playoff foes face off when Chicago meets New England (2pm, FSC).
If you will be watching today's action, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.
Enjoy the action (Sunday's soccer TV schedule is after the jump):
TODAY'S SOCCER ON TV
6:30am- ESPN360.com- Ajax vs. Feyenoord
7am- Setanta USA- Spartak Moscow vs. FK Rostov
9am- RAI- Sampdoria vs. Bari
9am- ESPN360.com- Roma vs. Bologna
9am- FSC/FSE/ESPN360.com- Livorno vs. Inter Milan
9:48am- ESPN360.com- USA vs. United Arab Emirates (Under-17 World Cup)
9:48am- ESPN360.com- Malawi vs. Spain (Under-17 World Cup)
11am- FSC/FSE- Birmingham City vs. Manchester City
1pm- Azteca America- Morelia vs. Chivas de Guadalajara
1pm- Telemundo- Toluca vs. Queretaro
1pm- FSE- Sunderland vs. West Ham United (Delayed)
2pm- FSC/FSE- Chicago Fire at New England Revolution
2pm- ESPN360.com- Korea Republic vs. Algeria (Under-17 World Cup)
2pm- ESPN360.com- Italy vs. Uruguay (Under-17 World Cup)
3:45pm- FSC/RAI- Palermo vs. Genoa
5pm- Univision- Club America vs. Jaguares
5pm- ESPN2/ESPN Deportes/ESPN360.com-Chivas USA vs. Los Angeles Galaxy
9pm- Telefutura- Santos Laguna vs. UNAM Pumas
I looking for a Jerome-Chavez pairing up-top. McInerney, though he hustled for the first goal and scored of a goalie mistake..has blown too many chances and gave the ball away too much with a bad touch, so far.
Gale Agbossoumonde was only 1.5 months away from being eligable for this tournament. Talk about only if!
If UAE is currently above us in the group because we’re both even on GD and they have more goals scored then why do we advance with a draw? Does goals allowed come into play first?
Following from Kabul, I plan on waking up (or just staying up) for the Chv USA v Galaxy match! This is the first MLS game I am GENUINELY excited for!
ALSO COME ON YOU YOUNG NATS!
I believe a draw would get them through as one of the 4 best 3rd-pace teams.
I replied to the wrong comment….my bad.
Beasley was back on the bench for Rangers, but the match has just been abandoned at halftime due to heavy rain.
Anyone got a stream for the USA vs UAE game? I can’t get ESPN360.
Nice close up of Wilmer Cabrera there (sarcasm).
Marlon – check atdhe.net.
Why did they show a white guy and say it was Cabrera? Idiots at ESPN.
Ball hasn’t left our half so far.
Wrong. Idiots at FIFA. This is a FIFA feed with a FIFA commentator.
We still look like crap going forward. At least we’re consistent.
Game isn’t on atdhe.net or justin.tv. It’s on Fifa.com, but not if you’re in the US. It’s supposed to be showed delayed on Galavision at 10, if that’s any help.
HAS ANYONE FOUND A FEED, i don’t get ESPNU or 360
I beg to differ. We look like FAST crap going forward
link to fifa2.feedroom.com
WTF Mac!!! Hit it first time.
McInerney is the most over-hyped player ever.
ESPNU and Galavision are both showing it live, but Galavision has the actual time elapsed. ESPNU’s time clock is 10 minutes off.
Also, the Galavision announcing is far better, if you can deal with Spanish.
How sad, McInerny blows great chance with the ‘yard touch’ in front of goal. My guess is that these players do this all the time in practice, yet coaches can’t correct them?
We’re looking better going forward…but still weak in the final third.
You have a point. Given what he did with it, he would have done better to hit it first time — but, you can see what he was trying to do….
As for beingover-hyped, he wasn’t that hyped to begin with — he was a surprise when he took the starting job from Gyau…and he’s only 17.
ouch
The McInerny miss was unforgivable.
There’s no soccer on GolTV today? Hard to believe.
YOu guys might want to harsh on the USA, but a Spanish forward just missed a header with the half the goal wide open in front of him to knock it into.
Cheeky effort by Shinsky.
I don’t think I’ve seen us put anything on frame from ANY of our corners during this tournament.
“Good possession in a good position wasted by the USA”. Story of this tournament.
The UAE has done their homework. Just clog the top of the box and give us possession. We can’t break them down.
Lot of negativity considering they are trying to break down UAE who is playing straight bunker and corner football….and they look pretty good at it.
Goal!!!…for Spain….Goalie came too far out and gave up easy shot to near post.
Shot on net after a corner in the 33rd minute by the US. UAE still looks very dangerous every time they counter.
Goal!! USA!!!
McINERNY! Good clean up of a good shot. 1-0 US!
Goal USA. Finally a shot from outside the area. McInerny with a poachers finish.
Jack Mac puts in a rebound of Palodichuk’s shot from top of the box…in case you’re tuning in here for updates.
Nice goal from USA, both players one touched the ball into goal. Shinsky has much more energy and is completing more passes. I hope Jerome can make a mark, and that USA doesn’t sit back.
Gil wastes a golden chance. To be fair, the keeper did well.
Keeper with another good save from Jerome.
I stand corrected, idiots at FIFA. The whole production of this game has been filled with errors. They said USA lost to Spain 3-1, the clock was 10 minutes off for a while, and the graphic after McInerny scored said he scored 1 goal in 1 match when it should be 2 goals in 3 matches. I know the U17 world cup isn’t going to get the best production values, but it shouldn’t be this sloppy.
Tough stop by the UAE keeper. And AGAIN! UAE defense looking stretched as soon as they came out to try and attack. All new game to watch.
The UAE goalie is the only one keeping them in the game. Where has this kind of shooting been in the last 2 games?
Some of these UAE kids have great skill on the ball.
Jerome wastes WASTES a 3 v 3 break.
Looks like the USA remembered they can actually shoot on goal.
Good sometimes it takes a goal to wake things up.
Shinsky has a whole lot of pace.
Hey what’s up with the field? Black stuff is flying up everywhere.
(SBI-have you really never watched a game played on field turf?)
Nicely done from Shinsky. McInerny should’ve been in there for a cut back.
Watts has quality service from the back, something we’ve never had on the senior team.
(SBI-He’s a recently-converted defensive midfielder, and I’m still not sold on centerback being where he ultimately winds up playing.)
Unfortunate not to be up by at least two. Hopefully we won’t pay for those misses.
This USA team is so damned skilled. They are calm on the ball, have a nice touch, and of course, like any US squad, have pace.
UAE can thank their keeper that it’s this close.
Too bad they don’t seem to be so sharp in the attacking third.
US has been more skillful, Shinsky and McInerny much better, Jerome and Gil not shown much so far.
It’s field turf, and the black stuff are rubber crumbs/pellets used to keep the plastic strands that substitute as blades of grasss standing vertical. Frankly it works well, but they get all over you and with them being both black and rubber, it really makes the field VERY hot. Not to mention they get in your shoes and that gets a little annoying.
Looks like they are playing on field turf. The black stuff is the rubber pellet “dirt”.
Nice shot of the mic and a dude hitting VHS tape boxes together. Way to go FIFA.
I’ve watched the whole first half on 360 and the boys, remember everybody these are just boys who can’t even vote, look good. Keeping possession and pressure on the UAE. The first goal was worked well with several chances to really put the game away but both were saved by the keeper. Let’s not right off the future of USA soccer because we are not beating the UAE by 37 at the half. Give the boys a break and be positive for once. GO USA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyone else have a clue what is going on with the FIFA feed?
I think Jerome is gassed. expect him off 15 minutes in. For those of you down on Shinsky, you can see the speed, desire and footwork are there if rough.
Gil had a nice layoff to Poda—? (can’t remember his last name) who has had a nice tourney I think. great shot that Mcinerney cleaned up.
if ball possession is the benchmark then this team has done REAL well in this tourney. They need some finishers, but they have controlled every game.
The CB scare me on the counters, like all US CB’s they’re slow. but with a lead you can see Herold and Polak playing back
Go US
and to ADAM in Kabul, keeep safe
Poladichuk.
Great name, maybe greatest name.
Second half is underway. No subs for either side and the lower part of the left side of the net is loose. Ref tried taping it but there’s still a hole there. Will be interesting to see if someone hits one into that side-netting.
So true… Out of the player pool you monster!
Crazy stuff from the commentator, apparently if this score holds one of the tie-breakers for the third-place teams to get into the knockout round could be on-field behavior. No, not cards, but actual behavior. That’s amazing.
Good point about Adam in Kabul. Stay in one piece, man.
Announcer said that disciplinary record would be the determining factor in getting to the second round if goals for and against is the same. What a joke.
(SBI-Not just disciplinary record, but actual behavior, as in how they interact with officials and opponents. That would involve using observations by tournament officials at matches. Talk about a crazy possibility.)
Let them go to penalties or something.
Hey fellas,
I’m watching on the US Soccer matchtracker. Has anybody found a working stream? I’m not having much luck on the usual sites. I’m in England though, that could be part f the problem.
Gil wastes another chance by refusing to shoot first time.
link to fifa2.feedroom.com
I think if you’re outside the states you can watch at fifa.com.
The field for the USA v. UAE looks terrible and the game is nearly unwatchable. We are a bit better at moving the ball around, but not by much.
what a save.
GREAT save from the UAE keeper.
That tiebreaker sounds very odd… I would be worried about underhanded results.
P.S.
The US possession and passing has been outstanding Gene, they’ve owned the possession for the entire game and their pass completion percentage must be very very high. The field looks messy but doesn’t seem to be having much impact on the ball’s roll.
I really like Gil’s vision on calmness on the ball. He has looked really sloppy in front of goal, though. As I type this, he gets robbed with great save by the UAE keeper. Jerome wanted the ball on the right, but I can’t fault Gil for shooting.
whats the little red flower like patch epl teams are wearing???
ANOTHER chance wasted by Jerome.
Gil and Jerome continue to be unimpressive in attack
Ran onto a ball 15 yards out and skyed the left footer.
link to en.wikipedia.org
Thomas, are you watching the FIFA stream from within the United States?
P.S. Anybody have a working stream, I could smack somebody that I am never able to watch these guys play.
What was that Earl Edwards?
oooof…that was nerve jangling by the US keeper.
Is it just me or is Shinsky quick as heck? I didn’t see the Malawi game but against Spain he was sloppy and selfish on the ball and he continually tried to take that Spanish defender to the corner and never did get past him losing ball after ball. However, today against this kid from UAE he exploded past him a few times.
That feed back to McInerney was beautiful…Unfortunately Jack missed the shot.
Wasn’t supposed to be a reply to madmax but, whatever…
I’m in Austria watching the FIFA stream.
They just look so danged comfortable on the ball…it’s kind of amazing really.
Duran is getting beat in midfield, he needs some defensive help.
We have a Packwood sighting!
Gil’s really found his legs in this game — looks really good. Now, we get our first look at the kid from Birmingham.
Unfortunately the FIFA stream isn’t allowed here in the UK. Oh well. Hopefully get to watch the Round of 16
turns out direct tv has galavision, nevermind
i’ve been watching for 30 seconds and i have seen more attacking prowess and confidence than with the senior team
Shinsky looks a little gassed on the left.
I don’t think you can watch CONCACAF matches while in a CONCACAF country.
That’s what mine is saying
You think that might be because they’re playing other kids?
Looks we have a tough draw, huh? As I read it, if we hold on to 2nd, and Italy gets at least a point against Uruguay, we’ll have to play the Azzurri.
I can’t believe we haven’t finished this game off.
I wonder if the US kids with get sodomized by the refs versus Italy like the senior team does?
i think it’s more the changing attitude of the us soccer culture, and the coaching
if you’ve seen any of the senior team’s practices, they practice the counter attack extensively, not much one on one
what in the world is that free kick for
I don’t know why some of you are getting on Gil. I thought he’s looked fine. Remember, he’s only 15 and he’s basically in charge of running the entire offense for the US team. He’s gotten unlucky in front of goal a couple times but you can see the skill and vision on the ball. Hopefully, he’ll get a move to a good team and he can develop for us.
Soft call.
Probably an oversimplification but you may have a point about the culture change. It is unusual to see the US having so much of the possession.
agree entirely.
First order of business for the US U-17 residency program when they get back to Bradenton: Force all players to practice with his weak foot for an entire practice. To say our right mid has no left foot is a serious understatement. It would be interesting to see how the champion of the US Academy league would do against Malawi and the UAE, lack of chemistry seems to be a huge problem, not very fluid and really no clue in the final third. No killer instict.
Anyone notice that that one UAE player’s hairline almost comes all the way down to his eyebrows?
wow he has some speed and that was a great first touch
great shielding of the ball by jerome, he is looking great
Wow, I can’t believe how negative some of you folks are. ALL the possession, plenty of opportunties, skilled touches…WHAT exactly do you want?
Good time wasting by Jerome
Wow, this corner flag thing is really holding up the game…the FIFA commentators backhanded comment about the linesman not trying to fix the corner flag was hilarious…
you have to admire that creativity, he wanted to lay it off backwards, out of the air, with the outside of his foot
I too agree. Gil looks great on the ball. He’s calm, creative, etc. Very impressive for someone that age.
oh no, what happened to jerome, i hope he is faking it
Typical (of late) slow start for the USA in FIFA competitions… Many chances and lots go wanting… will they get some in the net next round? Shinsky is growing on me…Jack McInerney going the opposite way..
no foul?
F*** Jerome and his F***ing time wasting. USA — not UPA!
McInerny and Shinsky stepped up a bit. Now if Jerome and Gil can find some more skills in front of goal, US might have a chance in next game.
good thing he had to avoid the UAE player going two studs up full tackle
Good win that could have been convincing with more composure in front of goal.
How did Packwood look?
Good and convincing win for a team that only needed a draw.
absolutely a glaring generalization. how many full team training sessions do you sit in on, Adrian?
Wow…settle down there buddy…
This team is very convincingly unconvincing in the final third otherwise the team is pretty good. I like the defense and the holding midfielders, but Polak sometimes get caught going forward. Poladchuk and Duran are good, but you’d think that if the team is trying to score that they would want the centermidfield to be a little more dynamic.
I would add that it was refreshing to see the U-17s play goal kicks and free kicks short to keep possession rather than automatically going long every time.
Birmingham taking it to City.
This Chucho guy is legit. His name is as well.
I agree. I would like to see a little more creativity and ability to make dangerous, attacking passes from at least one of the center-mids, but I guess I can settle for competent distribution and positioning at this point.
there are countless videos online of their training sessions, and i have been to a few in chicago
Crap all over the field in Birmingham and oh s— Birmingham City player down on the floor with a seizure?
Player is up and walking off, but he certainly has a concussion I’d assume, he seemed to swallow his tongue. He looks like he’s coming back on.
Birmingham fans deserve a goal, but the final pass is never there.
Phillips had a sitter 6 yards in front of Shay Given, but calls for a handball instead of shooting. Maybe he should let the officials call the fouls and play soccer.
Barry Ferguson sent off for interference on a THROW IN.
He had a yellow before and got a second it wasn’t a straight red
watched both the malawi and uae games…am very impressed with the u17s comfort with the ball, first touch and possession, it seems to be a bit better than the full national team….granted, they are kids playing against other kids…that said, i hope this group will be able to mature in the right environments and hopefully we can get at least 5 from this team to the full national team….on another note…any idea what the schedule is for the round of 16???
Right but he knew that as well and still acted like a child. Hasn’t learned a thing since the incident on the Scotland bench has he?
If Renken and Gyau can make it through the Hoffenheim system, they will be stars. Gil is the youngest, and best player on the U-17 world cup team, so he has a ton of potential. Edwards is a big kid and very athletic. Watts is decent, but our biggest problem on the senior level is defense. No depth, no real quality like our attacking players. It’s very worrying.
and Jerome and chavez h ave “blown” any chances? How about two break away goals against Spain? hmmm. Atleast McInerney has scored a goal as a striker. He has connected the best with Duran in the middle. I say a McInerney-Chavez pairing would be best.
Totally agree. Good intelligence and confidence in this team. I wish there was a strong, ball-winning central midfielder to allow more space to be created, and of course the finishing needs to be a lot stronger, but this is basically a pretty good team.
Under 17 World Cup Round of 16
Argentina v. Colombia
Turkey v. U.A.E.
Switzerland v. Germany
USA v. Italy
Spain v. Burkina Faso
Iran v. Uruguay
Mexico v. South Korea
Nigeria v. New Zealand
He had a much better haircut than that guy with the low hairline for UAE. Does that answer your question? He looked very energetic running onto the field.
anyone feel that we have the toughest 4 teams throughout the bracket?
Hey Ives, is it really that much cheaper to own a turf field than natural grass field? sure at first it requires little upkeep but after some time the field goes to crap and you either need to replace it or repack in the rubber or do something to make it even again. I am just wondering because after seeing a couple matches at this U-17 world cup it seems like FIFA is opening up somewhat to turf, even though most players cant stand it.
Do you think the United States was actually playing better, or was it who they were playing that made this team look really good today? Since UAE gave them alot of space, it allowed the team to actually play their game with possession. While in the spain game (i only saw the first half), spain pressured high and made them look silly on defense for a while and neutralized part of the attack.
Finally, who do you see from this team rising in the future to the senior team?
Italy up next on 11/4
I watched this same team (u17′s) play the Wizards reserves in person, Wizards reserves dominated them, you get much more space when you arent playing grown fit men; example of this, go check out the top highschool girls teams in your area, space and time makes a huge difference, the way the move the ball makes it seems like you are watching Spain, then you realize they are getting 2 or 3 seconds more time on the ball every touch.
the road to the final for the US goes through Italy, Germany/Swiss(beat brazil and mexico finished with 9) and argentina… OUCH!
Uh, yeah…We’re in a Euro Sandwich.
I agree it’s quite a turn around for Shinsky.
A country with 300 million people shoud be able to blow away some of these teams. The problem is not quanity, but quality. We have more kids playing soccer then the entire population of the UAE and Malawi combined, but it is hard to get any good playing 2-3 times per week. We need street soccer in our culture because as a coach I rather pull from 20 kids who play on the street every day then 200 kids the play 3/week.
I watched the U17 US vs UAE game today. Taking a larger view, I think we can see the development of US players.
Currently, the USMNT is strong in our defensive third, and weak in the middle third as well as our offensive third.
The U20 US team was the same.
The U17 US team, however has skill in the middle third. They keep possession and try to break down the other team. They play balls very close to the touchline AND can keep the ball in play. I’m pretty impressed with the footwork of these players. I know people are down on players like Jerome and Gil, but I’ve been impressed. It’s not the hopeful long ball tactics of the USMNT or the U20s. I don’t know if it’s due to the Coach or a change in philosophy, but I’m glad we can keep possession of the ball.
Now, the next stage of development is to become dangerous in our offensive third. How long will it take? My guess, another 5-10 years before we see it in the U17s, so the players that will show this are in the 6-11 age range now. Keep you eyes peeled
Also, before we get too excited about the success or lack of success of the U17s, let’s note that the Dutch & Brazil did *NOT* make it to the knockout rounds!! That said, how much do you want to bet that these Brazil & the Dutch will *still* be good in 5-10 years
BTW, in the knockout rounds, we play Italy next and then, if we win, we play the winner of Swiss v Germany. We ended up in the UEFA quarterfinal bracket!!
link to fifa.com
I agree. The area that needs improvement most is the final third. Most of the attackers take too many touches or a too heavy touch. The goal scored today was from some good one touch football.
They put that rubber stuff on real grass nowadays too, right? I think the football field at my high school has it. But it looked like there was a million times more of it at that field in Nigeria.
Two words: Perry Kitchen (now that’s a great name).
uhm… goals?