Updating the alternate CONCACAF qualifying standings
Mar 28, 2022
A few months ago, I wrote about the received wisdom that “a point on the road is a good result” in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying. With qualifying all but done and dusted, I thought I’d update those standings and see whether the received wisdom is true.
Quick thoughts from Minnesota's 1-0 win against RBNY
Mar 13, 2022
It’s hard for MNUFC fans not to feel a little bit giddy after the Loons stole three points from New York on Sunday.
Adrien Hunou's uphill battle
Mar 11, 2022
I’ve been observing Adrian Heath’s press conferences for a while now. I get the strong sense that the MNUFC manager always knows what he’s after, in communicating through these situations. He comes across as frustrated sometimes, or pleased, but not always when you’d expect him to be. He also never, ever lambastes players in the media, and will tell you straight out that he won’t criticize players in that way.
On Bongi, and the lack of baseball, for Sota Soccer
Mar 9, 2022
I’ve written much for Sota Soccer as the MLS season has gotten off the ground. It’s very much the same sort of thing as here on this blog.
What we learned from Philadelphia 1, MNUFC 1
Feb 28, 2022
MNUFC has one point after one game of the 2022 season. I don’t think that’s disappointing, because that point came on the road against Philadelphia, a very good team - and also because that point means the Loons have already exceeded their point total from the first four games of 2021. Here are a few things that I think we learned from the 1-1 draw.
Sota Soccer launches new MNUFC site
Feb 25, 2022
I’m flattered that the team at Sota Soccer has asked me to contribute some MNUFC posts this year. Here is my first blog over there, looking at the reason MNUFC has so many doubters this season - and why those doubts may or may not be correct.
The MNUFC second XI shows what kind of offseason it's been
Feb 21, 2022
It’s week one of the MLS season, which seems impossible, what with the winter storm warnings blaring over today’s airwaves. Philadelphia’s weather is a little less ominous - it’ll be nearly 70 midweek before being mid-30s on Saturday - but still, this is too darn early for soccer season.
We don't talk about Hunou, no no
Feb 18, 2022
For pretty much all of the 2021 season, Minnesota United’s goalscoring - or lack of it - was a pretty heated topic. It wasn’t a lack of offensive talent or even a lack of offensive creativity; the team, as a whole, simply could not find the back of the net.
Could the MLB lockout make this the Summer of Soccer in the USA?
Feb 16, 2022
Pitchers and catchers did not report to spring training yesterday. Nor do pitchers and catchers seem like they’re going to report any time soon. Major League Baseball locked out its players earlier this offseason, and the owners and players seem very, very far from coming to any kind of collective bargaining agreement. So far, the themes seem to be that A) the owners will not rest until they have extracted every last concession from the players that they can possibly think of, B) the players are extremely angry at the owners for attempting to nickel-and-dime them during a period of expanding revenues, and C) neither side seems particularly concerned that fans may leave and never come back, even though all the signs seem to be pointing in that direction.
Loons lose 1-0 to Portland in preseason, we learn more about MNUFC
Feb 14, 2022
Last week I wrote about the questions the Loons needed to answer during their preseason tournament in Portland, so we might as well start with those five topics, following MNUFC’s 1-0 loss to Portland in the team’s first televised game of the 2022 preseason.