Josh Ouellette
By Josh Ouellette
Copa America Centenario is now in full swing and so far the competition has looked intense, and not like the giant group of friendly matches the competition could’ve resulted as.
Unfortunately for the United States, Columbia looked every bit as good as they did in the 2014 World Cup, but a 2-0 result seemed a little cruel for the Americans who should’ve probably been a little more clinical with their finishes and maybe not given up a penalty for superstar James Rodriguez to slot home with ease.
The good news for the USMNT is that Paraguay and Costa Rica drew, so they can easily still take second in the group stage and advance. The bad news is both teams looked fast and deadly, and like the Americans just need to a little more clinical in front of the net.
“Anyone who has a kid trying out for his High School football team needs to read this book. Torosian has taken his 20 some years of reporting on Prep sports, mixed a healthy dose of San Gabriel Valley insider references and created a very readable first effort.”
“A page turner…I’m sorry it’s over! Is a sequel in the works?”
“Torosian does for high school football what Hemingway did for the Spanish Civil War…compelling look beyond the scoreboard and into the lives of players…”
“A truly great story unfolds in the pages of Joe Torosian’s first novel. With high school football at its core, the story of Dale Andrade shows how a young man grows in all aspects of his life thanks to being a part of a team and a football community.”
“This is a great read for everyone: from those who love high school football to those who have no idea about the game.”
“This book brings you onto the field and into the locker room…”
Joe Torosian’s high school football novel is available through Amazon.com –click pic–
(Cover by Pat Cherry www.blackheartart.com)
Otherwise, the rest of the matches have resulted as they should have. Mexico beat Uruguay, 3-1, which for fans of El Tri is pretty exciting. Even more exciting for Chicharito and company is the fact that they scored twice after Uruguay equalized in the 74th minute.
And it’s pretty safe to say the Rose Bowl will be near or at capacity when Mexico faces Jamaica at 7 p.m. PT on June 9th, and while I wish the USMNT was playing in Pasadena, Mexico getting a chance to pack the iconic stadium will be pretty great for the city and Southern California in general.
The only unfortunate thing about the Copa America and the 2016 Euros going on this month is the fact that the play in the MLS takes a major dip as all of the league’s best players are fulfilling their international duties, well everyone except Giovani dos Santos.
Dos Santos famously rejected a call up to play for El Tri when he was selected to the initial 40-man roster. And Mexico’s loss is the LA Galaxy’s gain in a time when they need him the most.
Catching up with the Galaxy: Sporting Kansas City handed LA an attacking onslaught last Thursday, outshooting the Galaxy 15 to 1, and luckily for Brian Rowe it didn’t really matter how many shots KC flung at his net because only four shots were on target.
But for LA the scary thing is only managing to get off one shot. Missing Robbie Keane and Gyasi Zardes for the first time, at the same time at least, of the season has to hurt. But the Galaxy has enough talent to supply a guy like dos Santos even when they’re unavailable. And after praising them for winning as they should win in recent weeks, watching them play to this draw, while a gritty effort, was a little disheartening, even considering it was a match against a pretty damn good Sporting KC squad that still has two of its best players—Benny Feilhaber and Dom Dwyer.
LA has a little bit of a break, with their next match coming against La Maquina in the 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on June 14. Four days later the Galaxy travel to face Toronto FC in their next MLS match.
That’s all for now, folks. I’m excited to see how the USMNT finishes out the group stage of the Copa America, and I hope they move on and get a chance to face a very beatable Brazil team in the quarterfinals, because that is when I will make my judgment on Jurgen Klinsmann and his future in charge of the national team.
Sorry for taking a week off last week to the few who take the time to listen to me spout off about soccer. Summer football just started and trying to teach freshman how to get in a proper stance really required all of my attention.
Then again, I’m just joshing around.
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