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    Guest

    Own The Opportunity

    By Guest, in 24th Minute,

    In the history of the modern Olympic Games only one host nation had failed to win a gold medal , an accomplishment so nice and accommodating that it could only be Canada that pulled it off – twice.
    If you were being diplomatic you’d call that an answer to a good trivia question. If you were being honest, you’d just call it pathetic. When you factor in wealth and opportunity, and ignore games involving ice and pucks, Canada was arguably the least successful sports country on Earth.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]However, Canadians – at least those born before the 1970s – didn’t seem to care. The country was good at hockey and that was all that mattered. So, Montreal in 1976 and Calgary in 1988 were seen as successful, despite the (lack of) medal count.
    But, something changed. Younger Canadians were more worldly and less willing to fulfil the role of patsy. When Vancouver was awarded the 2010 Olympics it was pretty clear that another goose egg would not be accepted. Something needed to be done.
    So, in 2005, after a year or so of study, the Own The Podium program was unveiled. For those unaware OTP demanded that Canada not only improve its Olympic status, but actually win the medal race. An incredible amount of resources were put into OTP and, shockingly, it worked.
    If you use the IOC’s method of calculating medal standings, Canada actually did win the medal race at the 2010 Olympics (Canada had the most golds, although the US had more total medals). Not surprisingly, Canadians had a hell of a lot more fun watching Vancouver than they did Calgary and Montreal. It turns out us Canucks like to win just as much as the rest of the world does.
    At this point you might be asking yourself what this has to do with soccer. Or, maybe you’ve already figured the tie in because it’s obvious. When you consider how successful OTP was/is and you also consider the fact that the majority of Canadians continue to support its ideals (even with a global recession, federal deficit and small-c Conservative government OTP continues and has actually been expanded to include summer sports) an argument can be made that there might be a willingness to develop a similar program to finally look at finding solutions to the issues that face the world’s game here in Canada.
    That political will might especially exist if, say, we were four years away from hosting a World Cup and staring down the very possibility of embarrassing ourselves at home again.
    Simply put, why isn’t the CSA demanding that soccer get its OTP geared towards seeing the Canadian women win the 2015 World Cup.
    There may never be a time when the government is more open to spending resources on the sport than there is right now. The soccer community needs to act and act quickly to make sure the opportunity doesn’t pass.
    Guest

    Sturgis being shopped

    By Guest, in 24th Minute,

    Canadian Soccer News has confirmed that Nathan Sturgis is being shopped. Yesterday, the Reds were close to a deal with Seattle to return Sturgis back to the North-West.
    Sturgis had his most successful year in 2010, starting the majority of the Sounders games.
    Seattle needs cap relief and were looking to move a combination or all of David Estrada, Miguel Montaño and Mike Fucito. All three are playing limited minutes for Seattle. However, TFC sees promise in the three relatively young athletes.
    The Sounder cannot afford Sturgis, who is on an $89,250 salary, without receiving allocation back in the deal and Toronto was not willing to part with any causing the deal to fall apart.
    However, it’s likely that Sturgis’ days with TFC are numbered and the club remains active in its efforts to move him.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Guest
    It took months of convincing those within the Canadian Soccer Association politically opposed to the idea of a national division two league, but it now appears the CSA is finally ready to commence its D2 feasibility study.
    Canadian Soccer News has learned that the CSA executive will meet this Wednesday to finalize the details on the study's scope and it's expected that an announcement on who will lead the study will come shortly after.
    Sources within the CSA have been tight lipped about the identity of the man charged with defining a blueprint for Canadian professional soccer's next direction, but they did confirm that he hails from an academic background, has a depth of experience in sports business and soccer and he is also said to reside in B.C. - which, given the current climate, is politically interesting as much as it is anything.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    It is unclear how long the study is expected to take, but the CSA moratorium on D2 teams in Canada is set to expire Sept. 30, 2011. At that point, teams interested in playing in US-based D2 leagues could once again begin applying for sanctioning within Canada.
    If you need further background on this story and how it came about you can go here.
    But what do you think? Does Canada need its own national league to assist development? Or, for better or worse, are we tied to the US system for good?
    Guest
    Vancouver Whitecaps co-owner Jeff Mallett confirmed his club's interest in signing Canadian-born former England international Owen Hargreaves.
    Speaking to The Globe and Mail, Mallett finally said on record what had been whispered about in Canadian soccer circles for weeks -- that the Whitecaps have been in contact with Hargreaves and hope to further discuss the possibility of the former Bayern Munich and Manchester United midfielder joining Vancouver's MLS club.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Mallett addressed the issue of Hargreaves' never-ending injury situation -- the Calgary native has made less than 30 appearances for Man United over the previous four seasons combined -- by commending the 30-year-old on his apparent dedication to returning to club football completely fit, as demonstrated by a recent series of YouTube clips (shot in the Vancouver area) featuring the player going through a series of drills.
    “He’s doing the right thing and making sure he’s really fit this time,” Mallett told The Globe and Mail's David Ebner. “This is maybe the last chance to go back. He’s looking really good. He’s holding back all of his options until this point. He wants to play at the highest level possible. He’s played at the highest level. If he can get back at that level, he would like to play at that level. You can’t blame him, at all.”
    The 'Caps co-owner acknowledged that there is competition for Hargreaves' services -- most notably from West Brom of the EPL -- but that Vancouver would be "on the option list" when Hargreaves makes his decision.
    Guest
    Today, we're joined by Canadian international and Radio-Canada analyst Patrice Bernier to discuss the news he has been cleared by doctors to play, what countries his agent is looking for him to make a return in and the possibility of him suiting up for an MLS Montreal Impact squad in 2012.
    We'll also discuss Vancouver's own Watergate, the arrival of Andy Iro to Toronto and why the latest speculation surrounding Julian DeGuzman's links to Israel are bunk. And we'll also touch on the news the CSA is preparing to introduce the man who will be leading the Canadian D2 league feasibility study.
    The archived show is now up.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    <embed src="http://itscalledfootball.podhoster.com/FlowPlayerLight.swf?config={embedded:true,videoFile:%27http://itscalledfootball.podhoster.com/download/2540/24515/july182011final.mp3%27,initialScale:%27scale%27,controlBarBackgroundColor:%270x778899%27,autoBuffering:false,loop:false,autoPlay:false}" width="400" height="25" scale="fit" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed>
    Guest

    How much is MLSE’s fault?

    By Guest, in Onward Soccer,

    As we prepare for the launch of Toronto FC’s latest – and most crucial – rebuild, it’s time to flag something I want very, very much to be wrong about.
    The question: How damaging is Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment to Toronto FC’s actual ability to play soccer?
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    As my colleague Duane Rollins pointed out the other day, come Wednesday night over 100 players will have suited up and played for TFC in all competitions. That’s in just four-and-a-half seasons. So let me ask you – how many of those have dozens and dozens of professional footballers have actually played their best ball at BMO Field?
    We do have to narrow this down a bit. For anyone playing for their first professional club, there’s no previous track record for comparison purposes. Goaltender Stefan Frei, for example. To me, he’s clearly been the best and steadiest contributor the Reds have ever had.
    But how hard is it to imagine him being even better with a competent professional defence in front of him? Not hard at all – but unfair because we’d be speculating.
    And in this area, we certainly don’t have to speculate.
    How many players have come here, disappointed, and then rebounded to do better work with their next club? I’m going to say dozens.
    Soccer doesn’t serve up a lot of useful stats, but the significant majority of players who ever played striker for Toronto FC went into a trough when they were here, and instantly regained their scoring touch after they were cut/dealt/dropped/disposed of.
    Jeff Cunningham is the most shining example – a golden boot for FC Dallas after a paltry six goals for Toronto. You can also lob in such names as Ali Gerba, Carlos Ruiz and Collin Samuel. Recent departures such as Chad Barrett and O’Brien White may not be as obvious, but both are clearly feeling better about themselves – and their game – since leaving Toronto. And, as Cunningham tellingly told “It’s Called Football” a while ago, striker is a position that is all about confidence.
    The case isn’t as clear in other positions.
    Dwayne de Rosario scored a lot of goals from the midfield, and hasn’t even remotely replicated that since being dealt twice, to New York Energy Drink and D.C. United. But DeRo clearly succumbed, in his Toronto time, to the competition this club has always excelled at behind the scenes – head games.
    Julian de Guzman has not excelled here, and I don’t think Amado Guevara or Laurent Robert are particularly missing Toronto right now. And Toronto has excelled in breaking defensive players’ confidence since day one.
    There’s one guy I can think of who has clearly outdone himself in TFC red – Adrian Cann. Yes, he was a Vancouver Whitecap longer than he’s been a Red, but the 30-year-old centreback clearly found both poise and purpose when he was paired with Nana Attakora in the centre of Toronto’s defence throughout the 2010 season.
    Cann’s injured now, which is unfortunate. Attakora, of course, never found favour with the new regime, and has been dealt west to San Jose, where he reunites with Sam Cronin, the sharp, promising young midfielder ex-TFC coach Preki couldn’t freaking stand.
    I fully expect both those lads to haunt Toronto FC for years to come.
    Now – of course – a lot of the blame for all of this still falls dead across the desk of former TFC scoundrel-in-chief Mo Johnston. When you start looking for MLSE’s culpability, the two biggest crimes are hiring Mo in the first place, and – unforgivably – bringing him back for a fourth season in 2010.
    That’s four years of toxic workplace for the players. No wonder performance and production took a roster-wide swoon.
    But what about now? Johnston was basically the first guy with a name and a resume who came along. Not wanting to repeat that mistake, MLSE hired German great Jurgen Klinsmann as a high-powered “consultant,” which led directly to the hiring of new Toronto head man Aron Winter.
    But was that a reach too far in the other direction? What if all they really had to do was just go out and get a veteran MLS coach with strong European connections – someone like Paul Mariner? And, of course, they did hire Mariner – as an assistant to Winter, who has already shown naiveté in the face of the oft-baffling realities of Major League Soccer.
    I’m not knocking the current mid-season rebuild. That old team was one face-plant in Nicaragua from a totally lost season – and clearly wasn’t going anywhere. But what happens now?
    Incoming Designated Players Torsten Frings and Danny Koevermans are clearly not going to play the best football of their careers for Toronto FC. But they have to help – if they want to actually play. All eyes will be on them, of course, but mine will also be on the guys that got away – Alan Gordon, Jacob Peterson, Tony Tchani, Nana Attakora. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to see solid seasons from all of them the rest of the way.
    My fear is that the Winter circus – while not as obviously doomed and hopeless and the Johnston one – may still be a dreadfully misguided approach to solving the various multi-headed problems of contending in MLS.
    I’m also concerned that MLSE, in general, is such a strange and unknowable organization, it leaves its soccer players thinking about all sorts of distracting things that have nothing at all to do with who the next opponent is, and how to play the next ball at their feet.
    Four and a half years in, Toronto FC is clearly and presently the least-successful franchise in the history of Major League Soccer. They are the only side ever to miss the playoffs four years on the trot, and have one of the drabbest, dullest, most pointless records in the league so far this season.
    Here’s the fear – and now will be the perfect time to find out for sure:
    Does the simple act of working for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment knock the top ten percent off of almost every Toronto FC player’s talent?
    Remember, in a tough, gritty, competitive league like this, players live and die with the tops of their game. If you don’t have it, you don’t produce. And the team, on and on and over and over, doesn’t win.
    If the current mess continues on from here, it ain’t Mo Johnston’s fault. And any extent to which it’s Winter’s can, I submit, be laid squarely in the boardroom of those who hired … both of them.
    As I said, I want very much to be wrong about this.
    But the time has come to ask tough questions of those in the owner’s box. The final answers will begin taking shape on Wednesday night.
    Onward!
    Guest
    The odds of Julian de Guzman finishing the season with Toronto FC are improving, although there still is a chance that he will return to Europe.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Sources close to the club confirmed that de Guzman has been given the opportunity of finding a club, but TFC itself is not shopping the midfielder. It's been said that de Guzman is only interested in returning to Europe if it's in Spain. There are no known offers at this time.
    "It's up to him whether he stays," was how one source put it. Although Aron Winter has had some issues with his play, TFC is happy to fulfill the rest of his contract, which runs through to the end of the 2012 season. However, they are not interested in forcing de Guzman to stay if he is not happy.
    It's being suggested that Winter sees de Guzman fitting into the right midfield spot that Jacob Peterson filled prior to being shipped to San Jose.
    Guest

    Twisted priorities in Vancouver

    By Guest, in 24th Minute,

    The Vancouver Whitecaps had a choice to make today. Faced with a waterlogged pitch and a poor weather report, the club knew that it was highly unlikely that they could play two games in the space of three days on the temporary grass pitch that had been installed.
    So, something had to give. They could either go ahead with the league game – the game that actually had meaning – or they could play a friendly against a uninterested European side on Monday.
    They, of course, chose to play Manchester City on Monday.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] CSN has been informed by people that were inside Empire Stadium as the decision was being made today that it really was an either or choice, although the club says otherwise.
    Obviously, it would have been unfortunate to cancel the City game. They used the game as a way to market season ticket sales earlier in the year. Some fans would have been angered by that. City probably would agree to come back at a later date, but that might not come for a few years.
    It would have been the right decision though. It would have demonstrated that the Whitecaps valued competition over spectacle and were committed to providing the players with the best possible environment to be successful in, even if that meant sacrificing a buck or two.
    The fact that the game was scheduled to take place two days after a MLS game and two days before another should have tipped us to the Caps thinking. They have bought into the Church of the Big Euro Friendly that so many in MLS have.
    One club that has not bought into that is Toronto FC. TFC fans demanded that the club not be burdened with unnecessary in-season friendlies during last year’s town hall meetings and the club agreed not to. In a year where TFC has been consistently criticised (often legitimately) they should be praised for that decision.
    As for Vancouver, the only thing the Caps should feel about their choice is shame. They won’t, of course, because when it comes to these games MLS is truly shameless.
    Guest

    Temporary FC

    By Guest, in 24th Minute,

    Not all milestones are to be celebrated. Such it is with Toronto FC as the club sits just two players away from having played 100 different players on the senior roster all-time (in all competitions). With Aron Winter seemingly interested in replacing the whole roster during the current break, the 100 number will be blown away – it’s possible that six new players could suit up in TFC’s next game.
    By the time the fifth season is over, Toronto will have had more players than both of the 2005 expansion sides.
    The only way to appreciate the amount of turnover Toronto has had you need to compare the club to the rest of the league. CSN has done just that:
    Using data from the end of 2010 (the most recent available that allows us to look at all teams) Toronto ranks 13th out of the 18 teams that have played in MLS (for the purpose of the calculations Houston is considered a distinct club from San Jose and the current Earthquakes keep the pre 2006 stats).
    It breaks down like this:
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]

    New York – 235
    Colorado – 198
    New England – 189
    DC United – 188
    Columbus – 170
    Los Angeles – 162
    San Jose – 162
    Dallas – 158
    Chicago – 143
    Kansas City – 143
    Chivas – 96
    Salt Lake – 90
    Toronto – 82
    Tampa Bay - 81
    Miami – 70
    Houston – 54
    Seattle - 35
    Philly - 28

    However, just looking at the raw numbers doesn’t really tell the story. Obviously teams that have played 15 season will have had more players than those that have played four. Removing Seattle (just two seasons) and Philadelphia (one season), here are the average amount of players per year statistics.

    Toronto – 20.5
    Tampa Bay 20.25
    Miami – 17.5
    Chivas – 16.0
    New York – 15.66
    Salt Lake – 15
    Colorado – 13.2
    San Jose – 12.46
    DC United – 12.53
    New England – 12.6
    Columbus – 11.33
    Chicago –11.0
    Houston – 10.8
    Los Angeles – 10.8
    Dallas – 10.53
    Kansas City – 9.53

    In fairness, there is a bump for expansion teams that, by necessity, have to look at a lot of players early. However, it is telling that of the original clubs, New York – they of zero trophies – ranks highest in player turnover. Also, you can’t chalk all of Toronto’s numbers up to being an expansion side. The Reds are significantly higher than any active team.
    If all six of the new Reds debut, Toronto’s average turnover number will actually increase at the end of the year to 20.8.
    Clearly, the mess Mo Johnston left Toronto had to be cleaned up. So, it’s hard to be too critical of the new management. However, one would hope that they are aware of a need to push Toronto down a few spots on that list.
    Guest
    For all the whinging Long Balls does over the fact that he's "always working," a quick comparison of his slow-paced lifestyle against the endless parade of matches, friendlies and international tournaments a Canadian footballer participates in makes him realize.... Well, at the very least it makes him realize that soccer players endure a much longer season than most North American athletes do.
    Here we are in the dog days of summer and the European football calendar is quietly creaking back to life. Read a rough overview of who's doing what after the jump as Long Balls clings to its patchy summer posting schedule.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Mike Klukowski has begun linking up with Josh Simpson at Manisaspor in Turkey. He never left Turkey of course, he simply switched over from Ankaragücü after they stopped paying him. While the plan in the eyes of Canadian supporters is for Kluker and Simpson to form a devastating partnership down the left side with their club and then seamlessly transfer that chemistry into the Canadian team, they didn't get a chance to develop anything beyond how to critique each other's finer points from the subs bench last weekend, as Klukowski played the first half, and Simpson the second, in a 2-0 victory over the interestingly named Austrian side, Wacker Innsbruck.
    Striker Marcus Haber has returned from a season-ruining knee injury, starting for Scottish side St. Johnstone as they beat Irish club UCD by four goals to one last weekend. He played again on Wednesday, 90 minutes this time, in a 2-0 victory over Dundee FC, which also apparently included some patrol duty out on the flank.
    Anyone following Long Balls through the spring will be well aware of the increasingly depressing tone this column struck in regards to both Jaime Peters and David Edgar, two young Canadian defenders wallowing on the substitute benches with their respective Championship sides. They both managed to see on-field action this week in club friendlies, Edgar getting 71 minutes for Burnley against Bury, while Peters played the first half for Ipswich against second division side FC Eindhoven (not the other bigger and better one). Whether or not these run outs are a sign of anything more than preseason play-tinkering remains to be seen, but the fact Peters subsequently returned to his usual perch on the sidelines for matches against Kazakh club FC Aktobe and Dutch club Den Bosch doesn't bode particularly well.
    Even Haidar Al-Shaibani saw the field this week, and astute followers of the French second division will immediately recognize that as a startling event, considering he logged all of two appearances for 177 minutes last season. The Canadian keeper backstopped Nimes in a 2-1 friendly loss to AS Cannes. Again, Canadian followers probably shouldn't read too much into this, and by "too much" I mean Al-Shaibani playing much more than he did last year.
    Many thanks again to the wonderful original research done by Canadian fans on the Voyageurs forum.
    Guest
    It seems that Aron Winter and Paul Mariner weren't done re-shaping Toronto FC's roster.
    Less than a day after acquiring Terry Dunfield and Ryan Johnson, TFC announced a few moments ago that they have traded for hulking Columbus centre back Andy Iro and little-used winger Leandre Griffit. Going to Columbus is Tony Tchani, who only arrived in Toronto a few months ago as part of the Dwayne De Rosario trade.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    For those keeping score at home, over the past 24 hours TFC have gained Dunfield, Johnson, Iro and Griffit, and they've parted with Nana Attakora, Alan Gordon, Jacob Peterson and Tchani.
    Iro is obviously the key to today's deal, with the 6'5" defender filling a huge need in TFC's woefully depleted backline. Griffit seems a thrown in spare part needed to make the deal work, but he'll have every chance to impress Winter and co. alongside a slew of incoming reinforcements.

    Rudi Schuller occasionally contributes Toronto FC and Canadian national team content to the 24th Minute. He manages the Euro File here at Canadian Soccer News, and is MLSsoccer.com's beat writer for all things concerning Canada's men's national teams. Follow Rudi on Twitter, @RudiSchuller.
    Guest
    We're doing things a little different today. We'll be joined by the CAO of Oakville soccer Paul Varian and the president and owner of Milltown FC, Dino Rossi, to once again address what we can do, on the grassroots level, to fix our game.
    We're throwing five questions at each of them - concerning new development leagues, attracting corporate sponsors and ultimately ensuring Canadians cap here - in hopes of furthering that conversation which started last week, following the collapse of the women at the World Cup.
    The achived podcast is now up
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Dino and Paul bring some pretty varied ideas to the table so let us know who you thinks got it right or if they're both off on certain issues.
    <embed src="http://itscalledfootball.podhoster.com/FlowPlayerLight.swf?config={embedded:true,videoFile:%27http://itscalledfootball.podhoster.com/download/2540/24464/5questionsjuly15final.mp3%27,initialScale:%27scale%27,controlBarBackgroundColor:%270x778899%27,autoBuffering:false,loop:false,autoPlay:false}" width="400" height="25" scale="fit" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed>
    Guest
    Terry Dunfield is a traitor. He's a villain. He's a backstabber and a fink.
    That, I imagine, is about the gist of what went through the minds of a good many Vancouver Whitecaps supporters yesterday when it was announced that the midfielder had been shipped to rivals Toronto FC. As Andrew Bucholtz noted over on Vancouver Insider, Dunfield was the hometown boy who came home to make good on a once hugely promising career. He's the guy who leaped into the waiting arms of ecstatic supporters after scoring for Vancouver on their MLS debut against, of course, Toronto.
    And now he's a Red. And Canadian soccer will reap a benefit.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]Why? Because nothing fuels a good rivalry better than deceit and treachery (real or perceived, it doesn't matter). As an Arsenal fan, I loved Sol Campbell not so much because of his defensive skill and power, but because he abandoned Tottenham to become a Gunner, and his mere presence in an Arsenal shirt pissed off Tottenham fans. The same goes for William Gallas (the bastard!), but in reverse.
    The Toronto FC-Vancouver Whitecaps rivalry is no Tottenham-Arsenal, but even in its short lifespan, this rivalry has had some serious moments: Vancouver trouncing TFC on opening day, the oh-so controversially abandoned NCC final second leg, the possibly-even-more-controversial second leg replay victory for TFC. And now this: Vancouver's hometown boy moving to the centre of the universe, the arrogant, self-important Ontario capital.
    But it's a good thing. (Yes, that's easy for me to say.) It's another building block in a potentially great Canadian sports rivalry. Rivalries need a few things to really get boiling: a natural animosity (MLS's two Canadian teams, from parts of the country that like to reserve judgement about each other – check); controversy (this year's Canadian championship final – check); and a cast of villains and heroes. We're halfway there on that last one. If Dunfield suddenly amps things up, and leads a resurgent Toronto to glory, well, too bad for Whitecaps fans, but good for the rivalry, I guess.
    For Canadian professional soccer to permanently establish itself – beyond the honeymoon period that Vancouver is enjoying, and that Toronto is pining for – rivalries have a big role to play. They bring out passion and attract interest – in this case to the benefit of two Canadian teams.
    Now, I might be overblowing the facts just a bit. Maybe a lot. He was something of a fan favourite, but Terry wasn't really lighting things up on the West Coast, and was especially out-of-favour under new manager Tommy Soehn. And he didn't ask to move, but was traded, and has had nothing but good things to say about his former club.
    But that's not the point: facts and reality need not enter into this. If (and it's a big if) Dunfield and TFC start to enjoy some real success, Vancouver supporters will look at the past with rose-tinted glasses (Dunfield's missed penalty against Columbus will fade, his leap into the stands at Empire Field will stand out), and at the present with a scowl ("Psht – fuck him. Fuck Toronto. We should have never let him go.")
    In short: How good Dunfield was or wasn't for Vancouver won't matter if he's a success with TFC. Bitterness will prevail. To make the point clear for TFC supporters, imagine reading this headline: "De Guzman MVP as Whitecaps Take MLS Cup."
    Ouch.
    For now, though, add another log on the fire of the Toronto-Vancouver rivalry. And, TFC fans, maybe it's time for a new chant: "We've got Terry Dunfield! we've Terry Dunfield! La la, laa laa! La la, laa laa!"
    Guest
    Multiple sources have confirmed that Canadian youth international Keven Aleman is likely the future considerations in the Terry Dunfield deal.
    Aleman refused to sign a letter of commitment with TFC Academy earlier this year, with an eye to gaining a contract in Europe following the FIFA u17 World Cup. However, he failed to have a significant impact at that tournament and has yet to find an opportunity in Europe.
    If he fails to earn a contract overseas, the Whitecaps will obtain his rights. He will be transferred to the club's academy team for the duration of the 2011 season. If he plays one full season for Vancouver he'll be considered a home-grown player for the club.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    Guest
    Tonight, we'll have a special edition podcast up - breaking down the day's action by Toronto FC.
    We'll take an individual look at the players going out, as well as the players coming in and ask the question: is this team better today, than it was yesterday?
    We'll also look at the addition of Terry Dunfield and what it does to the lineup, debate if this will herald the departure of Julian DeGuzman and talk about what pieces could still be to come.
    The archived show will up around midnight.
    [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
    <embed src="http://itscalledfootball.podhoster.com/FlowPlayerLight.swf?config={embedded:true,videoFile:%27http://itscalledfootball.podhoster.com/download/2540/24449/july142011final.mp3%27,initialScale:%27scale%27,controlBarBackgroundColor:%270x778899%27,autoBuffering:false,loop:false,autoPlay:false}" width="400" height="25" scale="fit" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed>
    We'll also have another podcast up tomorrow, where we take two influential members of the community, who are known to differ on a number of opinions and throw five questions at them. The aim is to further the debate that Canadian soccer is having right about what needs to be done to fix our game from the grassroots level up.
    It will be up at noon on Friday.
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