Julian De Guzman : News http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/ en-gb This site is powered by e107, which is released under the terms of the GNU GPL License. Webmaster - winsms@nospam.com winsms@nospam.com Wed, 08 Sep 2010 04:12:01 +0200 Wed, 08 Sep 2010 04:12:01 +0200 http://backend.userland.com/rss e107 (http://e107.org) 60 Julian De Guzman : News http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/e107_images/button.png http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/ 88 31 Search Search Julian De Guzman query http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/search.php Concacaf CL: Motagua 2 - Toronto FC 2 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.129.10
For the first time in the club’s young history, Toronto FC will participate in the group stages of the CONCACAF Champions League, thanks to a 2-2 draw away to CD Motagua that knocked the venerable Honduran side out of the competition.

Yeoman work from Stefan Frei, creative flair from Maicon, and second-half goals from Dwayne De Rosario and Chad Barrett saw the Reds come from behind twice to get a rare away result in front of a sparsely packed, but very loud Estadio Nacional Tegucigalpa.

Former TFC star Amado Guevara had both of the hosts’ goals in what was an entertaining affair, with the Hondurans having the lion’s share of possession, but only to have the brilliant Frei stymie them on seven occasions.


First Half

After starting on the bench on Saturday versus Kansas City, captain Dwayne de Rosario and Chad Barrett returned to Preki’s starting line-up, along with a Champions League debutant in 17-year-old TFC Academy player, Doneil Henry, but it was the former TFC player who would get the crowd of 6,000 strong on its feet early.

In the 6th, a long ball over the head of Nick Garcia found its way to Mauricio Weber on the left, who nicely timed a cross for a diving Amado Guevara. The Motagua captain’s header easily beat a helpless Stefan Frei, who could only watch as the hosts went level on aggregate. It’s difficult to place blame on a 17-year-old rookie, but it was all too simple for Guevara to get in between Henry and Nana Attakora. That isn’t to put the goat horns on the central defense alone, as some very lax play in the middle allowed Motagua to move forward to start the play in the first place.

Young Henry was exposed again in the 17th by Honduran World Cup star Emilio Izaguirre, who stormed past the Brampton, Ontario native on the edge of the box and hammered a rising drive at net. Luckily for Frei, it wasn’t from the best of angles and it sailed well over the bar.

The pace picked up in the 28th. First, a nice one-two between Julian de Guzman and De Rosario sprung the captain behind the Motagua defense and the TFC talisman headed for goal. Unable to get full control of the ball to produce a quality shot, De Rosario was cut off by a charging Johnny Leveron, who did well to cut off DeRo’s attempt at net. From the ensuing clearance, Motagua would come back the other way, but a gorgeous long ball to Charles Cordoba went to waste when Weber sent a very tame low shot at Frei.

In an attempt to liven up his sluggish attack, Preki took off Henry at the half-hour for Maicon Santos, with Dan Gargan dropping into the back four, yet it was the hosts who looked most likely add another . First, in the 39th, Weber diagonally crossed a ball into right of the TFC area for an onrushing Cordoba. Making a split-second decision, Frei raced off his line to meet it and dove to collect prior to the smallish Motagua star arriving on the scene. Not two minutes later, Cordoba would again have a shot on goal, but it was easily saved by Frei and the match stayed 1-0 going into the half.


Second Half

Cordoba’s terrorizing of the TFC defense continued after the restart. In the 46th, the striker knocked down a long pass and used a strong first touch to get a step on Attakora. Failing to do so for the entirety of the first, Cordoba got a quality strike on goal, but Frei made a tremendous diving stop to deny the striker.

The Motagua frontman wasn’t done there, as he beat Dan Gargan’s offside trap to receive a nice through ball from Weber and came in alone on Frei. The Cordoba of the first half emerged again, as his attempt on net was beyond pedestrian and barely forced Frei to move.

TFC’s possession began to increase as the half went on, but the chances really weren’t of high value. In the 53rd, a Mendoza foul resulted in a TFC free kick from just over 20 yards out. De Rosario’s delivery was good and Maicon was in position to make contact with a header, yet an adventurous run off of his line by Donaldo Morales allowed the Motagua ‘keeper to punch the ball out of danger. Had he mistimed that effort, he would have been helpless to stop the Toronto men who had begun to assemble in the area from getting to the ball.

In the 55th, De Rosario sent an inviting ball wide to Nick Labrocca. The midfielder raced down the left and had a step on his defender. As he is apt to do at times, Larocca then shot from a sharp angle, well over the goal of Donaldo.

The Reds would find that precious away goal five minutes later. Coming down the right, Maicon split the Motagua defense with a beautiful through ball that was latched onto by De Rosario. Taking two strides, the TFC captain fired low and beat Donaldo, knotting the game at 1-1 and putting TFC back ahead on aggregate.

As expected, the TFC marker resulted in wave after wave of Motagua attack, looking to level the match, but needing two goals to cancel out the Reds’ away marker. They would get one in the 62nd with Guevara coming back to haunt his former club for a second time. With the Reds’ defense dropping back deeply, the 2004 MLS MVP fired a hard strike through a crowd from the edge of the box and past a screened Frei.

Knowing that this still wouldn’t be enough, Motagua would continue its desperate assault forward, but Frei had an answer for everything they threw at him. In the 72nd, a De Rosario turnover afforded Motagua with a 2-0 break in behind the TFC backline. Shannon Welcome, whose cousin is Georgie Welcome, a fellow Motagua striker who is currently on trial with Rangers, fired from a sharp angle and found side netting outside the near post.

Then, in the 75th, Izaguirre, who was a presence on the wing all evening, sent in a spot-on cross to the heart of the of the TFC area. Marcelo Dos Santos muscled his way past his marker and got his outstretched leg to the delivery, but the Brazilian’s diving effort cleared the ball. Not two minutes later, it would be Welcome again, this time with a long range effort, hammering a howitzer from feet outside the box. Frei leapt, with his left arm extended as far as possible, to punch over and curb some of the momentum that was clearly going the hosts’ way. Motagua’s inability to find a way past the Swiss ‘keeper for that priceless third goal would resign them to an unhappy fate in the 79th.

Like he did on TFC’s opening goal, the substitute Maicon would play catalyst again, dinking off a clever backheel in an attempt to spring Chad Barrett. Barrett, the man with the lone goal in last week’s home tie, was momentarily frozen by the intervention of Mendoza, but the Motagua man only managed to deflect the ball back into Barrett’s path. Breaking in alone, Barrett’s low, hard drive took only the slightest of deflections, but that was enough to beat Donaldo and bury Motagua.

Needing two in ten minutes, Motagua again tried to come forward with intent. Their best chance to pull one back came from an Izaguirre cross in the 83rd that was headed onto a completely unmarked Guillermo Diaz from only five feet out, yet somehow the defender managed to head wide. Ramon Maradiaga could only manage to stare at the ground solemnly, as full knowledge that his side had crashed out of the Champions League began to set in.

TFC now advances to what should be a competitive and extremely difficult Group A, featuring perennial Mexican powerhouse and five-time CONCACAF Champions League winners, Cruz Azul, the 2010 Panamanian Clausura champs, Arabe Unido, and a familiar foe in current MLS holders, Real Salt Lake. Things get under way in two weeks time, at home to Cruz Azul. Thoughts of the Champions League group stage will be put on hold, though, as after the long journey back to Toronto, TFC hosts Chivas USA on Saturday afternoon.




Highlights Video:
    Source: Goal]]> Wed, 04 Aug 2010 14:28:30 +0200 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.129.10 Concacaf CL: Toronto 1 - Motagua 0 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.128.10 CONCACAF Champions League win in club history.


Chad Barrett scored and Toronto built on early momentum to earn a 1-0 win over Honduran visitors Club Deportivo Motagua in the first leg of a Champions League qualifier.

Captain Dwayne De Rosario was again a maestro in the midfield, earning an assist on the decisive goal while creating several chances of his own against Motagua at BMO Field. Toronto should have converted on more than one of its shots, but its play was enough to send the 18,891 paying customers into the streets entertained and satisfied.

"It was fun," De Rosario said. "We saw a lot of the ball in the midfield, guys were moving, guys were on the ball, and I think that was a big key to our success."

Toronto earned an invitation to the tournament with its successful defence of the Nutrilite Canadian Championship in May. The CONCACAF Champions League -- comprised of North American, Central American and Caribbean teams -- takes part in three stages, and sends its champion to compete in the FIFA Club World Cup.

A win, a tie or a high-scoring one-goal loss in next week's second leg would see the Canadian side qualify for the competition's group stage.

"It's a great result, it's a positive thing to take a win out of here," Barrett said. "In Honduras, it's going to be tough. They're going to be just as good, if not better, on their own field."

Toronto is set to fly to Honduras from Kansas City following its league game against the Wizards on July 31. It will face Motagua in the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa on Aug. 2, a little more than a year after president Manuel Zelaya was ousted in a coup.

Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada has published a list of stark warnings for would-be travellers to Honduras on its website. The Canadian government has not issued an official travel warning, but it does advise tourists to "exercise a high degree of caution in Honduras due to an increase in violent crime as well as recent political unrest."

De Rosario said the stadium can be an intimidating place to play.

"It's an intense atmosphere," he said. "It will be a good experience for a lot of the guys. It's a very difficult environment to play in."

Toronto was bounced from the preliminary round of the tournament last year after failing to score a goal in two games against the Puerto Rico Islanders. The Canadian side fell 1-0 at home and drew 0-0 on the road.

It became clear very early on Tuesday that the team would not settle for another shutout in the competition. Toronto coach Predrag (Preki) Radosavljevic selected a squad filled with regulars, and he appeared to send them onto the field with orders to attack.

After a flourish of early movement, forward O'Brian White was nearly the first to crack the score sheet in the 19th minute, but was thwarted with a last-second deflection from Motagua defender Ivan Guerrero.

The visitors had four World Cup veterans in their starting lineup -- a group headlined by former Toronto midfielder Amado Guevara -- but were sluggish. They were still on their heels after White's attempt when De Rosario sliced them open for the opening goal.

Toronto's captain hit Barrett on the run, sending the forward in all alone on goal in the 20th minute. The 25-year-old stroked the ball into the net for a 1-0 lead.

De Rosario sent forward Jacob Peterson on another run three minutes later, only to have the five-year MLS veteran send a lob harmlessly over the net. Canadian midfielder Julian de Guzman was stopped on a weak left-footed shot 10 minutes before halftime, moments before Barrett was caught from behind on a breakaway.

"We kept pushing forward," Preki said. "We were trying to get a second goal because we knew how important it was to get a second goal."

Forward Maicon Santos turned his marker inside out just minutes after making his debut in the second half for Toronto, but joined the growing list of near-misses when the play fizzled. De Rosario and de Guzman each had open lanes to goal before the game was an hour old, but the former was low, and the latter sent his shot too high.

De Rosario had another glorious chance in the 73rd minute, after running for what seemed like five kilometres to chase down a pass. The 32-year-old, who will join the MLS all-star team in Houston for its game against Manchester United on Wednesday, blasted a shot on net from just inside the box, forcing a difficult save.

Motagua pushed back near the end, narrowly missing a redirection in the final five minutes.

"The game now is history," Motagua coach Ramon Maradiaga said through a translator. "We hope that, in Tegucigalpa, we can turn the game around."

:: highlights video ::


Source: http://www.sportsnet.ca/soccer/2010/07/27/torontofc_motagua/]]> Wed, 28 Jul 2010 11:29:55 +0200 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.128.10 Toronto FC 1 - FC Dallas 1 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.127.2 Milton Rodriguez on a corner kick, which gave the visitors a point they appeared to have no chance of claiming over the first 65 minutes of a rain-soaked afternoon at BMO Field.


Just like seven days earlier in Philadelphia, when TFC lost 2-1 on a penalty five minutes into second-half stoppage time, this result cost them valuable points in a race for the Major League Soccer playoffs that looks destined to go down to the last game in October.

“At the end of the day, we lost two points,” said midfielder Julian de Guzman, who enjoyed one of his best games of the season and set-up TFC’s goal in the 61st minute.

“It’s definitely not enough to only walk out with one point against Dallas at home.”

While the tie kept the Reds unbeaten at home this season — 5-0-4 — they lost an opportunity to move into a tie for fifth place with Dallas (6-2-8) in the 16-team league, which sends eight teams to the playoffs.

Compounding the disappointment for TFC (6-5-5) is the fact the team plays eight of its final 14 games away from home, where it has just a win and a tie in seven matches so far this season.

The Reds will have to rebound quickly. They host Motagua of Honduras at BMO Field Tuesday in the opening leg of a CONCACAF Champions League preliminary round.

On Saturday, TFC dominated the game for more than an hour before an announced crowd of 19,743, which was significantly reduced by the nasty weather.

After taking the play to Dallas and generating the game’s only good scoring chances, the Reds finally scored just over an hour in.

De Guzman started the play by winning the ball on his own side of the field and beginning a counter attack.. Soon after crossing the halfway line, he played a perfect ball through the defence onto the foot of Maicon Santos.

Maicon Santos, who was making his first MLS start for TFC in three appearances since signing earlier this month, fought off defender Zach Loyd and drilled a low shot on the short side to beat Kevin Hartman. It was his first goal for the Reds.

But soon after, TFC stopped pushing forward and let Dallas dictate the game’s pace.

“After we scored the goal, we relaxed,” said head coach Preki Radosavljevic. “It was almost like we took 10 new guys and put them on the field and said: ‘Okay, defend.’”

After some sloppy defensive play by TFC led to a Dallas corner, Rodriguez rose between two defenders to thump home the David Ferreira cross past a helpless Stefan Frei.

It was yet another goal conceded off a set piece, a recurring theme for this team. And, as was so often the case last season, when TFC fell a point short of the playoffs, it was scored in the final 15 minutes of the game.

“Once again, we found a way to give away a soft goal,” Preki said. “That’s a worrying thing. I think we’re lacking concentration in the box.”

Frei said it comes down to one-on-one play on corners and free kicks.

“We’ve got to win our individual battles and almost take the intensity up a notch when we defend our set pieces,” said Frei, who preserved the tie with a diving, finger-tip save off a deflected shot from Atiba Harris in the 87th minute. “It’s got to get better.”

Midfielder Jacob Peterson said while it may be “human nature” to feel you have to defend when you get the lead, the Reds have to develop a killer instinct that sees them continue to push forward to look to widen their lead and not try to hang on for wins.

“The best teams in the world keep pushing and look to win games 3-0, 4-0 and we’ve got to acquire that,” said Peterson, who came on as a substitute for the final nine minutes.]]> Wed, 28 Jul 2010 11:16:24 +0200 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.127.2 Philadelphia 2 - Toronto FC 1 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.126.2

It had appeared another less-than-stellar effort from TFC would result in another decent result, but Maxsim Usanov’s hand-ball made Chad Barrett’s late equalizer meaningless. As a result, Toronto’s unbeaten streak has ended at eight games. The game was played in blisteringly hot conditions in front of 17,221 fans at PPL Park in Philadelphia. The humidex hit the mid-40s and slowed the action to a crawl for much of the proceedings. Neither side mustered much in the first half, but Philadelphia, led by the explosive Le Toux, was slightly more dangerous. Philadelphia should have opened the scoring in added time following the first 45 minutes of play. In all alone, Le Toux set up Jordan Harvey who nudged a sliding attempt off the far post seconds before the whistle brought the half to a close. Jordan scored in Toronto’s 2-1 win in May. The visitors clearly were not pleased with their play in the first half. In an interview with CBC, defender Dan Gargan lamented the subpar start. “It was a pretty poor first 45, our work rate isn’t there, we have a lot to improve on for the second half,” Gargan said.

The second half indeed did bring some improvement, but not enough.

Philadelphia finally broke the deadlock when Le Toux’s 61st-minute corner kick was headed in beautifully by Michael Orozco Fiscal, who was left unmarked by Nick Garcia. It was Fiscal’s first MLS goal and just the second goal conceded by the Reds in the past five matches. Not much offence followed for either side and a listless TFC looked dead in the water, until one play changed everything. In the 80th minute, Barrett headed a Gargan throw-in, shocking keeper Chris Seitz, who could only look angrily at his defence. It was Barrett’s fifth strike of the season, but first since May 29th. Philadelphia also blew a lead last weekend and no team in the East has surrendered more goals than the Union. But it was TFC that faltered next. Usanov, in as a substitute thought he had made a game-saving block in front of Frei, but the only problem was it was with his hands. As a result Le Toux got a penalty kick and made no mistake. It was the first time this season an old problem resurfaced. The team constantly gave up late goals in 2009, but this was the first outing of 2010 where a tying or winning goal was conceded in the final 15 minutes.

“We wanted three points, we were expecting three points, they were struggling, (but) credit to them,” Barrett said following the game.


Only scoring 11 goals in nine games is not nearly enough and it finally caught up to the Reds, who need to find some offence to complement their steady defence. TFC did not get the offensive boost it anticipated when Spanish forward Mista was unable to make his debut because his international transfer agreement did not go through in time. Five games without a marker for captain Dwayne De Rosario also has to be a major concern for TFC and head coach Preki with a busy stretch of games looming. Source: ryan.wolstat@sunmedia.ca]]> Sun, 18 Jul 2010 14:11:09 +0200 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.126.2 Toronto FC 0 - LA Galaxy 0 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.124.2

Subway shutdowns, altered bus routes and the uncertainty over road closures contributed to the lighter-than usual crowd, as teams renewed the Major League Soccer season following a break for the World Cup. Attendance was announced as 18,809, though it did not reflect the actual number of fans in the stands. Los Angeles arrived with the best record in the league, but without stars Landon Donovan and Edson Buddle, members of the U.S. team eliminated from the World Cup in a 2-1 loss to Ghana earlier in the day. The Galaxy tied a league record by opening the season with a 12-game unbeaten streak, a run that placed the team atop the overall MLS standings. Los Angeles entered its game against Toronto with 10 wins in 13 games, having allowed only four goals all year. Neither team was at its best in the first half on Saturday night, though, after a two-week layoff to accommodate the World Cup. Toronto and Los Angeles each managed a lone shot on goal in the opening 45 minutes, with the hosts enjoying only marginally better chances. Toronto midfielder Nick LaBrocca sent a curling shot wide across the face of goal in the 35th minute after a few unsteady touches on the sideline with teammate Jacob Peterson. It was followed minutes later by a speculative drive from captain Dwayne De Rosario, who fired from 30 yards out.

Black smoke hung over BMO field

Toronto coach Predrag (Preki) Radosavljevic shuffled his cards early in the second half, substituting forward Chad Barrett and midfielder Julian de Guzman onto the field. The changes, however, had little effect, and the game ended in a stalemate. "It was a typical game after three weeks of not playing," Preki said. "I don't think either of the teams was very sharp. It was a tough fight. I thought if anybody made a mistake, that was going to be how the game was decided. But neither team really made any big mistakes." Some of the most interesting developments unfolded just over the horizon. Evidence of the nearby G20 Summit hung over the stadium, with a thick plume of black smoke rising from downtown Toronto. There were reports it was from the latest in a string of police cars set ablaze by protesters, and it would have been burning a 20-minute walk from the upscale hotel where the Galaxy had been staying. Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment issued a statement to offer absent ticket holders the chance to attend another game this season. Tickets to that other game will be subject to availability. "We made a decision to hold this game based on the security information we were receiving and given the location of BMO Field," MLSE executive vice-president Bob Hunter said in the release. "With the Galaxy and officials all in the city, there was never any thought given to cancelling the game." For the Galaxy, the thoughts after the game drifted toward their teammates at the World Cup. It is not known when Donovan and Buddle will return to action for Los Angeles, which has only lost once in 13 games this season.

"They've had a long, tough World Cup," Mathis said. "Those guys have been on a whirlwind, so it's time to bring those guys back down to earth, a little bit."

Source: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/story/2010/06/26/sp-tfc-galaxy.html#ixzz0tAVCk1lY
]]> Fri, 09 Jul 2010 09:36:58 +0200 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.124.2 Colorado 3 - Toronto FC 1 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.123.2

First Half:

Perhaps it was the quick turnaround between matches or the thin Colorado air, but TFC found itself on the back foot from the opening whistle. A virtually nonexistent Reds’ attack allowed the Rapids to quickly assert themselves in the midfield and control the tempo of the match. Led by the pace of Omar Cummings, Colorado came in waves at TFC, but was unable to trouble goalkeeper Stefan Frei.

At the heart of the Rapids’ midfield, former Rev Larentowicz and stalwart Pablo Mastroeni outplayed their Reds counterparts Martin Saric and Julian de Guzman, which permitted Cummings, along with wingmen Colin Clark and Jamie Smith, to run the TFC defence ragged, but the trio were never seemingly able to find that perfect service for frontman Casey to latch onto. TFC’s ugly trend of cheaply giving the ball away whilst in fleeting possession of it only exacerbated the situation for the visitors.

The Rapids’ dominance did not go unrewarded, but the hosts’ breakthrough came in controversial circumstances. In the 24th, an onrushing Cummings came straight at fullback Adrian Cann. With Colorado forward cutting to his left, Cann lost his footing and the referee immediately indicated a penalty, adjudging that the big TFC defender handled while prone. Replays showed that the ball appeared to have gone off of Cann’s forehead and not his arm, but Toronto’s pleas fell on deaf ears.

From the spot, former Red Casey’s cheeky chip shot fooled Frei and put the hosts deservedly ahead and the Rapids enjoyed the advantage for the rest of the opening 45.

Second Half:

The opening minutes saw the first real spell of attack from Toronto and the Reds were almost able to strike immediately, as a beautiful through ball by de Guzman found a streaking Chad Barrett, who was able to get by Marvell Wynne, but the former TFC defender was able to prevent his old roommate from getting a shot on goal.

Barrett’s strong start to the half continued in the 57th, when his beautifully timed through ball found Sam Cronin in alone on Rapids ‘keeper Matt Pickens. The goalie was unable to deal with the sophomore winger’s deke left and was forced into hauling him down and a penalty was awarded. Pickens was able to guess right on De Rosario’s penalty, but the Toronto captain’s shot had too much power to it and the Reds equalized on DeRo’s 4th goal of the season.

The deadlock was short-lived, however, as the visitors’ old habit of lapses in judgment came back to haunt them once again. With Wells Thompson cutting down the right side, Martin Saric committed an easily avoidable foul at the edge of the Toronto box in the 70th. Jeff Larentowicz’s ensuing free kick was sent directly at the Toronto wall, but Julian de Guzman inexplicably jumped out of the way, allowing the ball safe passage to beat a frozen Frei.

With their lead restored, Colorado once again began to take the play to TFC and the visitors were unable to cope. In the 84th, after De Rosario fouled Larentowicz, right back Maksim Usamov needlessly grabbed a hold of Conor Casey and pulled him to the ground, as the Rapids flooded into the box in anticipation of the forthcoming free kick. For the second time in the match, Casey found himself at the spot and the American international successfully converted again, icing the game and a well deserved 3 points for the Rapids.

Winless now in their first three road matches of the season, TFC returns home to take on Freddie Ljungberg and the Sounders in a week’s time, while the Rapids pay a visit to Foxboro on Saturday to meet Shalrie Joseph’s Revolution.

Source: Goal.com]]> Mon, 19 Apr 2010 14:40:28 +0200 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.123.2 Toronto FC 2 - Philadelphia Union 1 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.122.2

First Half

A quiet start to the first game played on grass at BMO Field belied the frenetic action that was to occur before the whistle was blown at the half. The first 15 minutes saw a feeling-out process for two clubs unfamiliar with one another, with much of the play contained in the midfield, but it didn't take long for physicality to come into play and hard-hitting football was the order of the day for the remainder of the opening 45.

The first of four bookings in the half took place in the 15th minute when Latvian defender Raivis Hščanovičs came in hard with both feet on Union defender Cristian Arrieta. It seemed that Hscanovics might have gotten lucky by only seeing yellow, as replays showed that he got mostly shin of the former Lecce man and very little of the ball.

The Union were able to come close at the half-hour, when Arrieta sent in an inviting cross into the TFC box, but last weekend’s hat-trick hero, Sebastien Le Toux, was unable to meet the delivery.

Shortly thereafter, the complexion of the game changed dramatically when Union captain Danny Califf misfired a back pass to ‘keeper Chris Seitz. With an onrushing Julian De Guzman about to intercept the pass for a clear chance on net, Califf impeded the Canadian international with a thoughtless elbow to the chin. Referee Baldomero Toledo wasted little time in sending Califf for an early shower.

The home side struck on the ensuing free kick from just outside the box in the 35th minute. With both Nick Labrocca and Martin Saric taking quick touches, it was ultimately captain Dwayne De Rosario who sent in a low drive through the wall. While the ball did take a slight deflection on the way in, Seitz misplayed the shot badly, as De Rosario notched his second marker in as many matches.

Down a man and with momentum seemingly against them, the visitors fought back admirably and were rewarded just before time. After a nice 1-2 near the center of the field, Roger Torres, on loan from Columbian side América de Cali, smartly found a streaking Jordan Harvey, who had slipped behind Usmanov on the right. In alone on Stefan Frei, the defender made no mistake with a low drive past the ‘keeper.

Second Half

Smelling blood with the numerical advantage, Preki made a double switch at the half to force the issue, bringing in strikers Chad Barrett and O’Brian White in place of Saric and Usmanov, with Gargan dropping back to defense. While it was Toronto which was geared for attack, the 10-men Union brought the play in the early going. The industrious Torres, in his final moments before coming out in favor of defender Shavar Thomas, played provider once again, this time for Le Toux. The ex-Sounder’s header was directly at Frei.

With the numbers game effectively neutralizing Philadelphia's creativity in the midfield, TFC began to press, as de Guzman gave it a go, sending in a drive from outside the box that forced a nice save out of Seitz. Later, Barrett should have done better in the 54th minute, when de Guzman sent a beautiful cross into the box. Barrett, unmarked, connected on a free header, but sent the ball over the bar.

The Union, growing in resolve, further frustrated their hosts, as TFC was unable to break the deadlock. A misplayed Alejandro Moreno clearance in the 70th minute saw an impressive bicycle kick attempt by De Rosario go wide. Off a corner, Dan Gargan came inches wide with a header moments later.

The hosts were not to be denied, though, as Gargan’s through ball connected with a streaking White, who got by the marking of Harvey. Seitz, looking to prevent a shot, was adjudged to have brought the former UCONN star down, and White was awarded a penalty in the 80th minute. From the spot, captain De Rosario blasted the penalty by a diving Seitz and restored the Reds’ lead for his third strike of the season.

DeRo should have capped his evening with a hat trick, but the Canadian international hit the crossbar after being played in alone on a 2-on-1 break with Barrett. This did little to dampen the evening, though, as the Reds celebrated their first points of the season in a victorious home opener.

The Reds have little time to savor their victory, as they head to Denver for a Sunday afternoon encounter with the Rapids, while the Union will have longer to reflect on the defeat, idle until next Saturday, when they look for their first ever road win at the brand new Red Bull Arena.

:: Highlights Video ::


Source: Mike Beauvais (Goal.com)
]]> Fri, 16 Apr 2010 10:42:28 +0200 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.122.2 New England Revolution 4 - Toronto FC 1 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.121.2
It's hard to believe that New England was losing the game at the half.

Zach Schilawski had a dream first start in front of his home fans, as the Revolution rookie scored 3 second-half goals in a 13-minute span in a 4-1 New England victory over Toronto FC at Gillette Stadium. 

TFC led at the half from new captain Dwayne De Rosario, but a Jekyll-and-Hyde performance was capped by horrific defending that allowed the Revs to win their fourth-straight home opener. 

First Half 

With Julian DeGuzman relegated to the bench due to illness, Preki’s side implemented 5 changes in his into his starting line-up, including debut starts for both full-backs, Dan Gargan at right and the newly signed Ratis Hscanovics at left and winger Nane Joseph. 

Shalrie Joseph made his return from injury to start at the heart of the Revs midfield. Early on, neither side intended to give any quarter and chances were few and far between. 

Joseph came close in the 5th, but the hugely influential midfielder’s header went wide after meeting a beautifully timed cross from Sainey Nyassi, whose runs caused trouble for the TFC defence all night long. 

The half’s only score came in the 28th, when a Labrocca corner was seemingly cleared from danger, but only as far as centerback Nick Garcia, who was able to find De Rosario with a cross and, after slipping behind his marker, Emmanuel Osei and in front of a contorted Joseph, the captain’s twisting header found the net, past the outstretched arm of ‘keeper Preston Burpo. 

The Revs pressed again pressed late with Chris Tierney providing solid service into the box all evening, but came up short as the Toronto defense held strong.

Second Half

New England came out flying to start the second and were almost immediately rewarding. 

After coming down the right wing, Nyassi send in a cross that wasn’t cleared from the near post and Schilawski was able to beat Nick Garcia to the ball, poking home the equalizer in the 46th. 

Shortly thereafter, the much-maligned Nick Garcia did little to dissuade his critics as he cheaply gave the ball away to Schilawski, who walked in and beat TFC ‘keeper Stefan Frei to his left. 

If the quick goal to open the second jarred TFC, this goal shook the Reds to their core, as they never did recover from it, rarely making meaningful runs forward and sitting back and watching the Revs boss the midfield and continue to come on in waves.

The former Wake Forest Demon Deacon completed his hat trick in the 59th. Joseph, a creative presence all night before being removed in the 74th, went wide to find Kheli Dube, whose timely cross found Schilawski to score his third in much the same manner as his first. 

With Chad Barrett coming on in the 62nd for Hscanovics, one of the lone bright spots tonight for TFC, the team shifted to a 4-4-2, with Nane dropping back to full-back. The move proved costly, as only 3 minutes later, the 2010 SuperDraft 2nd-rounder attempted an ill-conceived back pass to his goalkeeper, which was quickly gobbled up by Nyassi and the Gambian made no mistake in beating a visibly frustrated Frei. 

Thankfully for TFC, they won’t have long to dwell on this disappointing performance, as they take on the expansion Philadelphia Union in their home opener on Thursday night at BMO Field, while still looking for their first points of the season. 

The Revs, after improving to 2-1-0 on the year, now head to the west coast to take on the San Jose Earthquakes next Saturday night.


Source: Goal.com
]]> Mon, 12 Apr 2010 17:41:58 +0200 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.121.2 Andrade excited to trial with Toronto FC. http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.119.1 Jorge Andrade.



The former Porto, Deportivo de La Coruña and Juventus defender has accepted an invite from the club that will see him come to the club’s training camp between February 8 and 18 where he will attempt to win a contract with the MLS side.

Andrade, who has over 50 caps for Portugal, is free to sign with any side after becoming a free agent in April when Juventus terminated his contract.

The centre-half has a history of bad injuries to his left knee but still believes he can play at a high level and will use the upcoming trial with TFC to prove his fitness to the staff. The move also reunites him with Toronto’s designated player, Julian De Guzman, who he played with at Deportivo.

"I am very excited to reunite with my former teammate Julian De Guzman. I am hoping to secure a contract with Toronto to play in front of a large Portuguese community and in front of a tremendous atmosphere," Andrade said, speaking exclusively to The Score.

The move by the club’s Director of Soccer Mo Johnston, at least on the surface, appears to be a potential little risk, huge reward for the club as a healthy Andrade could prove to be a player who quite literally could turn around a team who, in three years of existence, have done very little to address major issues in their defence.

In 2009 Toronto conceded 46 goals in their 30 MLS games at an average of 1.53 goals per game. The league average was 39.85 goals conceded at 1.27 goals per game.

In 2008 Toronto conceded 43 goals in their 30 MLS games at an average of 1.43 goals per game. The league average was 42.21 goals conceded at 1.40 goals per game.

In 2007 Toronto conceded 49 goals in their 30 MLS games at an average of 1.63 goals per game. The league average was 38.06 goals conceded at 1.33 goals per game.

From day one (TFC have had 19 clean sheets in 90 MLS games) there has been a clear need for a true leader at the heart of the defence to help provide the medicine to the defensive virus that coaches Johnston, Carver and Cummins couldn’t find a solution to. If he proves to be healthy, in Andrade, Toronto FC may well have stumbled on a gem.
]]> Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:32:04 +0100 http://www.enblanquiazul.org/deguzman/news.php?item.119.1