Author Archives: Travis Clark

March 14, 2016

FA Cup quarterfinals serve up a feast of golazos

Written by Travis Clark

lukaku

While it’s unclear whether or not English clubs actually want to win the FA Cup, this past weekend of action served up some sensational goals.

Proverbial big clubs Arsenal and Chelsea were both sent packing by Watford and Everton respectively, while Manchester United snatched a 1-1 draw against West Ham to force a replay later this spring.

All three matches had something in common: jaw-dropping goals. Let’s dig into it.

Watford defender Adlène Guedioura provided what turned out to be the game-winning goal in Watford’s 2-1 win at Arsenal. He shows little regard for the safety of David Ospina as he smashes this in.

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March 11, 2016

Top 5 matches to watch on TV: Mar. 11-13

Written by Travis Clark

BrooksHertha_3150391There has never been a better time to be a soccer fan in the United States.

For the devoted fans, the option to wake up early on a Saturday and watch soccer basically every minute exists when the MLS season overlaps with the European calendar. Another huge slate of action is available this weekend.

Here are my top five matches to watch (all times Eastern).

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March 10, 2016

Marco Reus’ emphatic volley punctuates Dortmund’s dominance of Spurs

Written by Travis Clark

bvb

Billed as one of the two must-see matchups of the Europa League’s round of 16, Marcos Reus and Borussia Dortmund seized control of its tie against Tottenham, steamrolling the London club by a 3-0 score line.

Most of it comes down to the finishing of Marco Reus.

Facing a rotated Spurs side, with one eye on the English Premier League title race, Dortmund dominated from the opening kickoff. After some typically wayward finishing, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang opened the scoring with a clinical header, with Reus adding two more in the second half.

His second goal summed up the gulf in class between the two on the day.

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March 7, 2016

Mal Pugh sets up Alex Morgan for win against France

Written by Travis Clark

In case you were wondering if Mal Pugh deserves the long look she’s getting from the full USWNT, look no further than her work on Sunday against France.

Scoreless heading into injury time, the 17-year-old UCLA recruit helped conjure up the game-winning goal. Her perfectly-weighted ball found Alex Morgan through a sea of French defenders, and the speedy forward finished with aplomb to secure a 1-0 win for the USA.

Sunday’s outing against France wasn’t all good news, as the score was only tied at 0-0 thanks to some great work by Hope Solo earlier in the game.

The USWNT faces Germany on Wednesday in Boca Raton, with the winner capturing the inaugural She Believes title. A draw favors the Germans, so it’s a must-win game for the Americans.

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March 7, 2016

The Good, the Bad & the Ugly from MLS Week 1

Written by Travis Clark

mcnamara

MLS is back.

Serving up almost 12 hours of soccer on Sunday, there were plenty of memorable moments from the first day of Major League Soccer.

Here’s a look at the good, bad and the ugly from the opening day of action.

The Good

Higuain!

Perhaps the best match of opening day took place in Portland, as Columbus Crew SC paid a visit to the Timbers to rehash the 2015 MLS Cup. Portland emerged as 2-1 winners on the day (and honestly it should’ve been more) but Federico Higuain’s bicycle kick was a beauty.

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March 4, 2016

Crystal Dunn’s golazo leads the USWNT past England

Written by Travis Clark

In lieu of a trip to Europe for this year’s Algarve Cup, the U.S. women’s national team are hosting the She Believes Cup with France, Germany and England making the trip.

Crystal Dunn’s penchant for scoring spectacular goals propelled the USWNT to a 1-0 win over England in Thursday’s opening group match. The Washington Spirit star has shown a knack to lash home goals from all around the field and her effort in Tampa was no different.

Jill Ellis’ side enjoyed and up-and-down performance up until Dunn’s 72nd minute effort, frustrated by the defensive effort of the visiting Lionesses.

The USA continue the tournament on Sunday against France, which lost 1-0 to Germany.

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March 1, 2016

Tuesday anything but super for D.C., LA in CONCACAF Champions League

Written by Travis Clark

USATSI_9151733WASHINGTON — If there was one key for D.C. United’s quest to erase a 2-0 deficit against Queretaro in the CONCACAF Champions League, it was simple: don’t concede an away goal.

Four minutes into Tuesday night’s second leg of the quarterfinals, Queretaro’s Ángel Sepúlveda scored.

Tie over. Simple as that.

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February 24, 2016

Clint Dempsey’s free kick the highlight for MLS teams in Tuesday’s CCL action

Written by Travis Clark

dempseyEvery year, the return of CONCACAF Champions League play consistently triggers the debate of the tournament’s format, MLS’ need to actually win the thing and excuses as to why they don’t.

The quarterfinal matchups for 2016 are particularly compelling because four MLS teams find themselves up against four Liga MX sides. In the never ending quest to catch up with Liga MX, MLS finds ways to minimize the implications of playing club teams south of the border. Tuesday’s results were mixed: D.C. United lost 2-0 on the road against Queretaro, and Seattle conceded a soft goal late in the second half to draw 2-2 against Club America.

There was one clear highlight from Tuesday, aside from the new turf in Seattle. Clint Dempsey curled in this tasty free kick to open the scoring in the Pacific Northwest.

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February 12, 2016

A day in the life of a Division II soccer player

Written by Travis Clark

We’ve gone behind the scenes of a day in the life at Casa Grande Sports Academy in Arizona, a glimpse of DI soccer at Kentucky and a day in the Development Academy.

Next up?

This video takes us behind the scenes at Division II powerhouse Palm Beach Atlantic University. Florida looks like a warm place in the winter.

If you have a video you think we should see, please get in touch.

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February 11, 2016

USWNT cruises past Costa Rica to open Olympic qualifying

Written by Travis Clark

Whenever the U.S. women’s national team takes the field against CONCACAF opposition, usually all it takes to win is a single goal.

With that in mind, after Alex Morgan scored 12 seconds into Wednesday night’s Olympic qualifying match against Costa Rica, the chances of a massive upset essentially went from slim to none.

By the 15th minute, USA had extended its lead to 3-0 thanks to goals from Carli Lloyd and Crystal Dunn. Morgan and Christen Press (who scored the best goal of the game) rounded out the 5-0 scoreline.

Up next for the USWNT is a matchup against Mexico on Friday.

 

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