Alvaro Saborio Wins 2010 MLS Newcomer of the Year Award

Real Salt Lake striker Alvaro Saborio has just been named MLS Newcomer of the Year for his impressive first season with the team. Saborio out-polled Thierry Henry and Joel Lindpere from the New York Red Bulls. He signed with Real Salt Lake in the beginning of the 2010 MLS season as part of a loan agreement between the team and FC Sion in Switzerland.  Saborio started the MLS season and rose like a meteor with 12 goals and four assists within 27 appearances. He also left a great impression in the CONCACAF Champions League with six goals for Real Salt Lake. While Saborio and Real Salt Lake are becoming a big hit in the football/soccer world, his contract expires at the end of December 2010. It appears that Real Salt Lake, Alvaro Saborio and FC Sion are trying to hammer out a deal which would leave the striker in Salt Lake City, Utah. The response of Saborio has been that if Real Salt Lake wants him to remain with the team, he will do that. At the present time, there have been no comments about the deals between Real Salt Lake and FC Sion concerning the future of Alvaro Saborio.Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com

Los Angeles Galaxy Brace Themselves for Stern FC Dallas Challenge

Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy already know what they are up against on Sunday, Nov. 14 when they take on FC Dallas in the 2010 Major League Soccer Western Conference Finals.“Dallas has been a terrific team on both sides of the ball this year," Arena said. "[Goalkeeper Kevin] Hartman’s had a fabulous record, goals against. The defense has played well but what continues to catch everyone’s eye is their quality going forward. Ferreira you could argue has been the best player in the league this year. He’s a terrific player. The combination of [David] Ferreira and whoever they choose as their forward has been outstanding.”But it's more than just Hartman and Ferreira that makes FC Dallas the complete package, and a match for the home side.“Their flank play, the combination of players they use whether it’s been [Atiba] Harris, [Marvin] Chávez, Brek Shea, the Brazilian [Jackson Gonçalves]...They’ve been outstanding in those categories,” Arena said of their depth. “The experience of [Daniel] Hernandez holding in the midfield...They have a team, I’ve said this before, they’re very good in every position on the field.”The Los Angeles Galaxy defeated FC Dallas at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas 1-0 on May 20 before ...

D.C. United: How D.C. United Can Return To Championship Form

Following the United's shortcomings in 2009, it seemed the club took major steps in rebuilding a team with the hope that it could return to its glory days. Evidently, this became anything but the case throughout the course of 2010, losing 20 matches in the process and only winning six. It was a season that just brought new lows and piles of bad news each and every day. As the club hits the post-season, here's a list of things that D.C. United should do to return with a stronger team than 2010...though shouldn't take too much. The first thing the club must to is to...Begin Slideshow

Victoria Beckham in Pics: David Beckham’s Smoking Hot LA Galaxy WAG

She's one-half of the most famous marriage in sports, and she gets hotter and hotter with every year.Her name is Victoria Beckham, but some people still think of her as "Posh Spice" from The Spice Girls.Whatever you think of her, there's no doubting just how smoking hot she is. It's no wonder David Beckham snared her when he had the chance.If you need convincing...Begin Slideshow

MLS Cup Playoffs: What Don Garber and MLS Should Take Away From Them

On November 13, the Colorado Rapids and San Jose Earthquakes will play for the Eastern Conference title.  Yes, as ridiculous as it sounds they are, in fact, playing for the Eastern Conference title, even though one team is based about 20 miles from the Pacific Ocean while the other is practically in the heart of the Rockies. The fact that we have a match up for a geographic title with two teams clearly not in that geographic region is in part to MLS Commissioner Don Garber and his evident reluctance to move away from a conference driven format.   If you look at the MLS playoffs, you'll notice that one side is the East bracket, while the other side is the West bracket. If one looks at the overall standings, it comes to attention that the clubs New York Red Bulls and Columbus Crew, the top two Eastern Conference teams finished the regular season in third and fifth-place, respectively. The big deal? The MLS clubs Real Salt Lake and Seattle Sounders FC, clubs that had seasons just as strong, if not stronger than the east coast powerhouses, were literally being punished for playing the west.  This is a result of the lack of equilibrium between the strength of the East ...

FC Dallas’ Unheralded Success in the MLS Cup Playoffs

FC Dallas has had incredible success thus far in the MLS Cup playoffs, knocking off the reigning MLS Cup champs, Real Salt Lake.   The news broke all over Salt Lake's local media about their aggregate loss. The underdog had defeated RSL. Dallas dethroned a favorite to win MLS Cup 2010 and a team that has dominated league play and CONCACAF Champions League play.  So, what media praise did Dallas receive regarding their achievement? Well, none...but there was a nice, modest, Associated Press story copied and pasted on the Dallas Morning News website under the "More Sports" tab. Instead, DMN keeps you updated about every single football game that occurred in the nation, NASCAR and literally every other piece of news in the sporting world outside of soccer. Dallas going to the Western Conference Final didn't even crack the top of Dallas sporting news. It's understandable that the Dallas Morning News keeps a firm grasp on American football, since they still believe it's the only sport that exists. But when will it occur to them that a story about their soccer team going to the MLS Western Conference Final might be more important than their dearly beloved Cowboys losing another game? Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com

David Beckham Set Piece Mastery Boosts L.A. Galaxy Over Seattle Sounders

When David Beckham was flying high with Manchester United, the phrase “Bend it like Beckham” became so popular that it was used as a title for a British film that enjoyed success, boosted by its title and a non-speaking appearance by the soccer superstar late in the action. Beckham has carried the set piece to the same kind of advanced art as Sir Isaac Newton did science and Rembrandt did painting.  It was on display Sunday night before a throng of 27,000 at Home Depot Center in Carson, California as he boosted the Los Angeles Galaxy to a 2-1 win over the Seattle Sounders and a 3-1 edge in aggregate compilation.The Galaxy under legendary mentor Bruce Arena one week earlier had won a 1-0 defensive struggle in Seattle against the Sounders, thereby securing a one goal advantage in the Western Conference MLS semifinal encounter going into Sunday’s rematch.  It would therefore require a two goal margin for the Sounders to win and a one score advantage to force overtime action.   Anyone thinking that the Galaxy would therefore play it safe and move into a conservative mode from the beginning of play was proven wrong when the locals, now aided by home ...

2010 MLS West Final: Los Angeles Galaxy vs. FC Dallas

The road to the 2010 MLS Cup will not go through Red Bull Arena. It will not go through Columbus Crew Stadium or Rio Tinto Stadium. It will not go through any venue east of the Rocky Mountains.It will go through Commerce City, Colorado and Dick's Sporting Goods Park. And it will also go through Carson, California and the Home Depot Center, where Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy host Schellas Hyndman's FC Dallas in the 2010 Major League Soccer Western Conference Finals.Time to take a look at...the protagonists.FC DALLASSchellas Hyndman's FC Dallas have a big chip on their shoulders. They were unable to solve the Los Angeles Galaxy in their regular season meetings, losing 1-0 at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas and 2-1 at the HDC.On Sunday night, the third time could be the charm for the Hoops.FC Dallas finished the 2010 regular season with a 12-4-14 record (50 points), good for fourth place overall in the league and third in the MLS Western Conference. The Hoops defeated Real Salt Lake 2-1 in the first leg of their Western Conference semifinal at the Oven. Goals by Jeff Cunningham and super sub Eric Avila paced FC Dallas to the win.They ...

LA Galaxy’s David Beckham, Edson Buddle, Omar Gonzalez Eliminate Sounders, 2-1

Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy get to play one more glorified home game. That's right, the G's get one more home game to close out their season before the 2010 MLS Cup in Toronto beckons.On a night where clear skies gave way to a playoff atmosphere of 27,000 strong, midfielder David Beckham was the talisman in helping the Galaxy prevail 2-1 over Sigi Schmid's Seattle Sounders to win the home-and-home 3-1 on aggregate.“We heard for a week before we played them how happy they were to play us in this series," said team captain Landon Donovan, "and my guess is that they probably have some different feelings now.”“It’s obviously a very good win for our team," Arena said after the match. "I thought we played very well in the first half. The second half, we were a little bit sloppy in the last 20 minutes. "If we had been a little smarter, a little sharper, perhaps we would have gotten that third goal and really killed the game. Give Seattle credit, they never quit. They came at us right until the end. It was a tough battle for 95 minutes.”For the most part, it was a solid performance by the backline ...

New York Cosmos Fans Compete for the Opportunity to Meet Pelé

Queens, NY - In a once in a lifetime opportunity, New York Cosmos fans competed in a penalty shot contest where the winner would meet the great Pelé. Contestants arrived to Flushing Meadows Corona Park at Field 3 to participate in a single elimination penalty shoot-out. From 12 yards away, contestants had four open targets to choose from. If a contestant scored, he/she would automatically advance to next round. This would go on until the winner was declared. With samba drums playing in the background, players lined up in orderly fashion and waited for their turn to kick. While the music harmoniously played on, the soccer fans in attendance behaved as if they were in a golf tournament, remaining silent out of respect for each contestant who was in the process of taking their shot. To be honest, I don’t know who was more nervous, the penalty shot takers or the audience respectfully supporting them. The only time the audience would verbally react was when they were asked to make some noise after the contestant had taken his/her penalty shot. Once the bail sailed to its designated target, ...