Tag: MLS

Martino insists turf won’t stop Messi, Suarez from playing at Revs

The Inter Miami stars both appear set to play in front of a huge Gillette Stadium crowd on Saturday

The artificial turf at Gillette Stadium will not prevent Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez from playing in Inter Miami’s match at the New England Revolution, according to head coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino.

A crowd of more than 60,000 is expected in Foxborough on Saturday, as Boston-area fans get their chance to see Inter Miami’s stars in action.

Martino’s words at Friday’s press conference will be reassuring to those fans, who appear set to see most of Inter Miami’s big names — save for the injured Jordi Alba — take on the Revs in a MLS matchup.

“The players are all available, and those who are healthy will travel. We will see the formation to face the New England Revolution a little later,” Martino said. “We previously played on artificial turf at Charlotte last year, and had no problem.”

After signing with Miami last year, Messi shrugged off any concerns that he would skip matches on turf.

“I did all of my youth career on artificial turf,” Messi told reporters last August. “It’s been a long time since I played on turf, but I don’t have a problem with it.”

Messi played the full match on Charlotte FC’s turf field in October, as the Herons fell 1-0 at Bank of America Stadium.

Despite his well-documented knee issues, Suárez also looks set to play on Saturday after beginning his MLS career with six goals in nine games.

New signing Matías Rojas will be available to make his Inter Miami debut, but Alba will continue to sit as he recovers from a hamstring strain.

“Matías Rojas forms part of the roster and will travel with the team to face New England Revolution. But Jordi Alba will not travel. I said last week that he wouldn’t be available against the Revolution, but starting next week we will monitor him game by game,” Martino said.

New England Revolution vs. Inter Miami (MLS)

  • When: Saturday, April 27
  • Where: Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, MA)
  • Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
  • Channel/streaming: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV (WATCH LIVE)

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Oakland Roots sign former MLS and USMNT striker Dom Dwyer

The longtime MLS striker has moved to the USL Championship

Oakland Roots has announced the signing of longtime MLS forward Dom Dwyer on a deal through the end of the 2024 season.

Dwyer, 33, joins the USL Championship side after spending 11 seasons in MLS with Sporting KC, Orlando City, Toronto FC, and most recently Atlanta United.

The England-born striker amassed 85 goals and 19 assists in 231 regular season appearances in MLS, including a career-best 22-goal campaign with Sporting KC in 2014.

“Adding a player to the mix with the pedigree of Dom is going to be a huge boost to the team and the locker room,” said Oakland Roots head coach Noah Delgado. “He comes to Oakland with experience at some of the highest levels of the game and gives us another dangerous goal scoring threat.”

After gaining his citizenship, Dwyer earned four caps with the U.S. men’s national team in 2017. The forward scored two goals in the 2017 Gold Cup as the USMNT won the tournament.

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Columbus Crew vs. Monterrey: How to watch Champions Cup, TV channel

Columbus will look to take a big step toward the final in the first leg

The Columbus Crew climbed a mountain to reach the Concacaf Champions Cup semifinal. Now, the MLS side will have an even tougher test on its hands.

Columbus overcame Tigres in the quarterfinal, becoming the first MLS side in this competition to fail to win at home in the first leg against a Liga MX side and still advance.

The Crew went through with a penalty shootout victory, taking their place among three Liga MX sides in the semifinal round.

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Columbus won’t want to try and repeat its history-making feat against Monterrey, as Wilfried Nancy’s side looks for a home win on Wednesday ahead of next week’s second leg at Estadio BBVA.

Monterrey got past a star-studded Inter Miami side with relative ease in the quarterfinal, having eliminated another MLS side, FC Cincinnati, in the previous round.

The winner of this tie will move onto the final, where they’ll face either Club América or Pachuca.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the match.

Columbus Crew vs. Monterrey (Concacaf Champions Cup)

  • When: Wednesday, April 24
  • Where: Lower.com Field (Columbus, OH)
  • Time: 8:15 p.m. ET
  • Channel/streaming: FS1 (Watch FREE on Fubo), TUDN

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Leagues Cup announces home venue pool for Liga MX sides, knockout stages

13 stadiums could end up serving as temporary home venues for Liga MX sides during this summer’s edition of the Leagues Cup

If you want to see some of Liga MX’s giants during the 2024 Leagues Cup, the list of potential home venues is coming into focus.

The pool of potential “hub” stadiums for Club América, Monterrey, Chivas, and Tigres, as well as any knockout round match between the other 13 Liga MX clubs in the tournament, was announced on Wednesday.

13 stadiums, all in the United States, could potentially see a Liga MX side serve as temporary hosts in the Leagues Cup, which will run from July 26 to August 5.

While the home venues for América, Monterrey, Chivas, and Tigres have not yet been confirmed, a previous announcement on tournament modifications at least denotes the stage at which the quartet can host knockout matches.

Should Chivas advance from Group West 2, the Guadalajara-based club will serve as the round-of-32 host if its point haul is superior to its opponent. Monterrey will get the same status in the round of 16, while América — who along with the Columbus Crew have been granted a bye directly to the knockout round — will have hosting privileges through to at least the semifinals.

Leagues Cup hub stadium pool

  • Audi Field (Washington, D.C.)
  • BMO Stadium (Los Angeles, Calif.)
  • Dick’s Sporting Goods Park (Commerce City, Colo.)
  • Dignity Health Sports Park (Carson, Calif.)
  • Geodis Park (Nashville, Tenn.)
  • Paypal Park (San Jose, Calif.)
  • Q2 Stadium (Austin, Texas)
  • Red Bull Arena (Harrison, N.J.)
  • Shell Energy Stadium (Houston, Texas)
  • Snapdragon Stadium (San Diego, Calif.)
  • Subaru Park (Chester, Pa.)
  • Toyota Stadium (Frisco, Texas)
  • TQL Stadium (Cincinnati, Ohio)

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Ex-USMNT defender Gonzalez admits he contemplated suicide during difficult period

The veteran defender opened up on his mental health struggles on a podcast

Former U.S. men’s national team defender Omar Gonzalez has opened up on his mental health battle, admitting that he contemplated suicide at various points during a difficult period.

Gonzalez said he started to struggle in the aftermath of the USMNT’s failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup. The U.S. was eliminated from contention in a stunning defeat at Trinidad and Tobago, with Gonzalez scoring an own goal in 2-1 loss.

“It started I think, just the World Cup, when we didn’t qualify and the own goal,” Gonzalez said on the Major League Journeymen podcast.

“Everything up until that point was wins, championships, just going straight up and consistent. It was amazing and then comes this point and we didn’t qualify [for the World Cup] and then I lose a Copa MX. And then I go to MLS Cup again in 2019 and we lose to Seattle, and losing Canadian Championships. … I started thinking, ‘Is it me? Am I the reason? It just keeps following me.’

“But I was dealing with that just fine, and then came a couple of head injuries and it just sort of made everything worse. And I started forgetting people’s names and then came this period of time where the stress was too much and the head injuries were just compounding, and the stress of being away from home, baby on the way, contract year — everything that goes into it.

“I just started thinking of every single way to just end it. Every part of my day was just thinking of a way to just end it. [I was] just fighting through that, still trying to play at a high level, and still giving everything to the sport and putting on a different face was draining. No one knew about it.

Gonzalez was then asked to clarify if he was talking about ending his career or his life, to which he replied: “My life.

“It was very scary. And I was just dealing with it and going into training, still being myself.”

The 35-year-old said that after a Toronto FC match against NYCFC — a game that actually ended with a positive result — the dam broke and he reached out to get help.

“We’re having a s–t year. We’re in last place, just awful, awful environment,” he said. “The locker room was absolute dogs–t, like it was bad. And we give this great performance for once. We’re down 2-0 at half and we come back and we tie the game up, and we fight and everything.

“But then after the game, everything just came to a head. I just started bawling. I talked to the doctor. I was like ‘I need help, this can’t go on.’

“Then from that from that moment on, things got a lot better just finding help.”

Gonzalez left Toronto to join the New England Revolution in 2022, before signing with his hometown club FC Dallas ahead of the current season. The veteran defender has been capped 52 times by the USMNT, playing at the 2014 World Cup and winning the Gold Cup in 2013 and 2017.

Watch Gonzalez discuss mental health stuggles

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Messi’s bodyguard shows sprinter speed to eliminate pitch invader

Yassine Chueko showed the speed and awareness of a lethal No. 9

If Inter Miami is ever short on players, Yassine Chueko looks like he would at least have the speed to get a job done.

Chueko, better known as Lionel Messi’s bodyguard, showed the speed and awareness of a lethal No. 9 during Inter Miami’s game against Sporting Kansas City on Saturday, flying off the touchline as a pitch invader closed in on Messi for a selfie.

More than 72,000 fans were in attendance at Arrowhead Stadium as Inter Miami defeated Sporting KC 3-2 in a thrilling match.

Messi was the star of the show, notching an assist and a stunning goal as the Herons took home three points. On Monday, the Argentina legend was named the MLS player of the week.

Chueko also had a big night on Saturday, as the match was delayed multiple times due to fans charging onto the pitch.

In one instance, Chueko had a lot of ground to cover — and he did so with impressive haste.

Watch Messi’s bodyguard sprint onto the field

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Columbus Crew overcome Tigres, making Concacaf Champions Cup history for MLS

The obstacles piled up, but the Crew’s commitment to its principles set the stage for a historic success

The Columbus Crew did something no MLS team has ever done in the Concacaf Champions Cup Tuesday night.

The defending MLS Cup champions went to Estadio Universitario and secured a 1-1 second-leg draw against Tigres, eventually advancing to the semifinals on penalty kicks thanks in large part to goalkeeper Patrick Schulte’s two saves early in the tiebreaker.

The first leg at Lower.com Field had also ended 1-1, and history pointed to bad news ahead. No MLS team paired with a Mexican side had ever hosted a first leg, failed to win, and then recovered in the second leg to advance before.

The Crew got that first-leg draw without star forward Cucho Hernández, dropped by head coach Wilfried Nancy for an as-yet-unspecified issue, and faced even more difficulties in the second leg.

For one thing, U.S. men’s national team prospect Aidan Morris, a key ballwinner for Columbus, was unavailable due to a suspension. However, the biggest blow came just three minutes into the match, Schulte got the ball stuck under his foot under pressure from André-Pierre Gignac, conceding a disastrous goal.

It wasn’t just that Tigres had taken the lead, but that this goal — a product of welcoming pressure from an opponent, a foundational element of Columbus’ methodology under Nancy — called the entire approach into question.

The Crew had to dig in for a spell, with Tigres sensing an opportunity to put the tie to bed quickly. That’s a long-standing pattern for MLS teams in this situation, particularly after a bad mistake.

Columbus, however, held its nerve.

“That’s the way it’s been since the beginning when I took the team: It’s all about us,” Nancy told reporters after the match. “We respect the opposition, we try to adjust certain things depending on what kind of style of play we’re going to face. But at the end of the day, we try to play our football. And today, yes, I’m really proud of the way we played.”

The Crew began playing its way back into the match, with Cucho playing a major role in a 59th minute equalizer.

A long ball over the Tigres defense left the Colombia forward with plenty to do, and while Mo Farsi couldn’t finish off a pass from the left, Diego Rossi was on hand to make sure the opportunity paid off.

El Volcán, arguably the toughest atmosphere in Mexico, was suddenly tame, and Columbus navigated the next hour of the match without having to suffer for long spells. The Crew would finish the match with a possession advantage despite playing on the road, underlining the club’s commitment to its core tactical principles.

“I’m not surprised to be honest with you, because this is not easy, what I’m asking to my players,” said Nancy.

“Yes, we are [MLS Cup] champions, but the idea is: Is it possible to seek improvement all the time, all the time, all the time? Tonight I’m really happy because, yes, we won. But to be honest with you, PK win or loss, it would have been the same for me. Because they believe in [the principles]. That’s why they are able to play the way they want to play, knowing that it’s not easy.”

With a 2-2 aggregate scoreline and the away goals tally equal, penalties arrived, opening the door for Schulte’s redemption on the night. Staring down Gignac, arguably the single player to torment MLS teams in the Champions Cup more than any other, Schulte leapt to his right on the tiebreaker’s opening shot to make a stunning stop.

The Crew took the lead, and Schulte proceeded to deny Guido Pizarrio in round two, setting the stage for a 4-3 triumph.

“Pat deserved that,” insisted Nancy. “He knows that he has to evolve, and so I’m really happy for him, because I can tell you that he was really, really disappointed when we conceded the goal.

“This is the message, this is all the time, day to day what we try to give them. All the time, try to give a new challenge…sometimes there’s a little voice behind you saying that, ‘No, no this is not possible.’ So I try to tell them that, ‘Hey, [wave away] this voice. Leave it on the side, and just play.'”

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Buck: Lining up with players like Mainoo is why I picked England

Buck and Mainoo started together with England’s U-19s last fall

Noel Buck has said the chance to play alongside the likes of Manchester United star Kobbie Mainoo is why he’s committed his international future to England.

The New England Revolution midfielder has been involved with the U.S. at the youth level, but accepted a call-up from England’s U-19 side last fall and has made eight appearances for the Young Lions.

Buck is now provisionally cap-tied to England, meaning he would now need to file a one-time change of association to play for another country.

In an interview with The Athletic, Buck said that England made a strong push for him and that he’s happy with where he is for the time being.

“I’m in a good spot with England now, we’ll see what the future holds,” he said.

Buck was born and raised in the U.S. but is eligible for England and Wales through his father. The 19-year-old said that the quality of players at England’s disposal is one of the main reasons he’s cast his lot with the Three Lions for now.

“Each time I go with England, I learn a couple of new things, meet new people and get better experiences,” Buck said. “They’re all fantastic players — especially Kobbie. The fact he’s playing right now for England (seniors) is unreal to think about.

“It’s why I wanted to play for England: you get to play with these types of players and I’ll include (Leeds United’s) Archie Gray in that, fantastic player, and Jack Hinshelwood at Brighton. Quality.

“What Kobbie’s success does is also highlight the pathway and how quickly things can change.”

Mainoo, 18, has enjoyed a breakthrough season with Manchester United that has seen him go from starting alongside Buck with England’s U-19s to making his senior debut last month.

Buck isn’t shy about his desire to one day play in the same league as Mainoo, but added that his focus for now is on the Revs.

“I’ve always wanted to go and play in England,” Buck said. “That’s always been a dream — whether it’s in the Premier League or the Championship — but at the moment I’m focused on my football here.”

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Monterrey vs. Inter Miami: How to watch Champions Cup, TV channel

The Herons are facing an extremely difficult task in Mexico, even with Lionel Messi back

Inter Miami will head to Mexico with a mountain to climb, as it gets ready to face Monterrey in the second leg of the Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinal.

With Lionel Messi sidelined, Monterrey took a huge step toward the semifinal by posting a 2-1 win at Miami in the first leg last week.

The battle between the teams continued after the final whistle, as a post-game altercation took place outside the Monterrey dressing room.

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Miami will need to win the second leg and score at least two goals to advance, a daunting prospect that has been made a little more achievable after Messi made a goalscoring return to the squad over the weekend.

The winner of this tie will face the winner of the quarterfinal between Tigres and the Columbus Crew.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the match.

Monterrey vs. Inter Miami (Concacaf Champions Cup)

  • When: Wednesday, April 10
  • Where: Estadio BBVA (Monterrey)
  • Time: 10:30 p.m. ET
  • Channel/streaming: FS1 (Watch FREE on Fubo), TUDN

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Club America vs. New England Revolution: How to watch Champions Cup, TV channel

The Revs head to Mexico facing an almost impossible hurdle to overcome in the second leg

The New England Revolution don’t just have a mountain to climb on Tuesday at Club América, they have to scale Mount Everest.

América destroyed the Revs 4-0 in the first leg of their Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinal last week, taking an almost insurmountable lead back home to the Estadio Azteca.

It may just be a matter of damage control in the second leg for Revs coach Caleb Porter, who has indicated he may rotate his squad with almost no hope of progression.

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That will suit América manager André Jardine just fine, as his side is in the middle of another Liga MX title pursuit. Las Aguilas are level on points with Toluca atop the table after a 1-1 draw with Santos Laguna over the weekend.

With a match against Toluca coming up at the weekend, Jardine likely will jump at the chance to rotate his squad as well.

The winner of this tie will face the winner of Pachua vs. Herediano in the semifinal. With Pachuca winning its first leg 5-0 in Costa Rica, an all-Liga MX semifinal looks inevitable.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the match.

Club America vs. New England Revolution (Concacaf Champions Cup)

  • When: Tuesday, April 9
  • Where: Estadio Azteca (Mexico City)
  • Time: 10:30 p.m. ET
  • Channel/streaming: FS1 (Watch FREE on Fubo), TUDN

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We recommend interesting sports viewing/streaming and betting opportunities. If you sign up for a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.