THE SOCCER REPORT
International leagues take break for friendlies; U.S. women advance
Oct 17, 2018, 3:05 pm
Mallory Pugh, 20, and the U.S. Women's National Team have qualified for next summer's FIFA Women's World Cup. Team USA will be looking to defend their crown and pick up their fourth World title. Nike
USWNT punch ticket to 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, England manhandles Spain and Germany’s woes continue against France
The second international break post-2018 FIFA World Cup left plenty to talk about, from the World Champion France to the regionals like the rebuilding United States. On the Women’s side of things, a few more spots for next year’s Women’s World Cup were clinched. In club soccer, Major League Soccer had a few matches with playoff implications.
International Friendlies
Outside of the UEFA Nations League, European sides tested themselves in friendlies to stay active during the international break. The big nations on this side of the world played in friendlies in preparation for their continental tournaments next season.
The United States men’s national team is one of several who are still on a coaching search. The USA opted for a young roster to gain experience against 2018 World Cup participants in Colombia and Peru. Mexico is also in the same boat and tested themselves against Costa Rica and current South American champion Chile. Argentina and Brazil took their brands on the road to Saudi Arabia where they added another chapter to their rivalry. Uruguay went on tour in Asia where they were defeated by both of their hosts in South Korea and Japan.
Notable results:
Italy 1-1 Ukraine
Iraq 0-4 Argentina
Wales 1-4 Spain
USA 2-4 Colombia
Mexico 3-2 Costa Rica
South Korea 2-1 Uruguay
Saudi Arabia 0-2 Brazil
Peru 3-0 Chile
Scotland 1-3 Portugal
Japan 4-3 Uruguay
Argentina 0-1 Brazil
Belgium 1-1 Netherlands
Colombia 3-1 Costa Rica
USA 1-1 Peru
Mexico 0-1 Chile
UEFA Nations League
The Nations League has added another level of competition to European international soccer, making more of mere friendlies and putting higher stakes on these matches. The format may be a bit complicated to grasp at first but it is essentially what the name entails, a league, with financial incentives for the teams that perform best. Countries are paired off in groups with promotion and relegation, with the champion to be crowned next summer. The tournament also influences the qualifying process for Euro 2020.
France handed Germany a 2-1 loss, their sixth in 10 matches, while England handed Spain their first home loss in 15 years.
Notable results:
Poland 2-3 Portugal
Belgium 2-1 Switzerland
Croatia 0-0 England
Netherlands 3-0 Germany
Ireland 0-0 Denmark
Russia 2-0 Turkey
Poland 0-1 Italy
Iceland 1-2 Switzerland
Spain 2-3 England
France 2-1 Germany
Ireland 0-1 Wales
Ukraine 1-0 Czech Republic
Concacaf Nations League Qualifying
Following in the footsteps of Europe, Concacaf (the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) has instituted their own Nations League. The qualifying rounds continued during this FIFA date with the top 10 sides also booking their place in next year Concacaf Men’s Championship, known as the Concacaf Gold Cup.
Top 10: 1. Curaçao (6), 2. Haiti (6), 3. Canada(6), 4. Cuba(6), 5. Saint Kitts and Nevis (6), 6. Jamaica (6), 7. Dominican Republic (6), 8. Nicaragua (6), 9. Martinique (6), 10. El Salvador (6)
Notable results:
U.S. Virgin Islands 0-5 Curaçao
Dominican Republic 3-0 Cayman Islands
Puerto Rico 0-1 Martinique
El Salvador 3-0 Barbados
Bonaire 0-6 Jamaica
Nicaragua 6-0 Anguilla
Canada 5-0 Dominica
Saint Lucia 1-2 Haiti
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2018 Concacaf Women's Championship
The U.S. Women’s National Team assured secured a spot in their eight FIFA Women’s World Cup on Sunday with a 6-0 win over Jamaica, also advancing to the Concacaf Women’s Championship Final. Canada booked their spot to France 2019 as well with a 7-0 win over Panama. The two giants of the region will face off for the Concacaf title on Wednesday night in what will also serve as a preparation for next summer’s tournament. Jamaica and Panama will face off in the third place match with a spot to the Women’s World Cup on the line. Mexico and Costa Rica were left disappointed after being denied qualification in their final game of the group stage.
Group A: USA (9), Panama (6), Mexico (3), Trinidad and Tobago (0)
Group B: Canada (9), Jamaica (6), Costa Rica (3), Cuba (0)
Semifinals: Canada def. Panama, 7-0; USA def. Jamaica 6-0 [Highlights].
Third-place match: Panama vs. Jamaica
Championship match: USA vs. Canada
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Major League Soccer
Eight teams were in action across four matches this weekend as the MLS playoff race continues to take shape. The weekend slate started on Friday night in La La land as LAFC defeated the Houston Dynamo 4-2 to jump Kansas City for second in the Western Conference (the top two seeds get a bye through the wild card round). Mauro Manotas scored the opening goal for the Dynamo before a two-hour weather delay (lighting) would prolong the second half. LAFC would regroup with the break and score four unanswered goals over the course of the match. Andrew Wenger scored a consolation goal late to dwindle the difference down to two.
The only other match this weekend with playoff implications involved the rejuvenated D.C. United against the West’s No. 1 seed FC Dallas. FCD could not increase the gap between them and the rest of the West while D.C. won their third straight to officially jump into the playoff picture. Transformed into a contender by the summer arrival of former Manchester United star Wayne Rooney, D.C. jumped Montreal in the standings and controls their destiny with one extra game in hand. In other action, Colorado won 2-0 at Minnesota and New England defeated Orlando City at home - both matches of teams already eliminated from the playoff race.
East top six: 1. Atlanta United (66), 2. NY Red Bulls (65), 3. NYC FC (53), 4. Philadelphia (50), 5. Columbus (48), 6. D.C. United (44).
West top six: 1. FC Dallas (57), 2. LAFC (56), 3. Sporting KC (53), 4. Portland (51), 5. Seattle (50), 6. Real Salt Lake (46).
Scoring leader: 30 - Josef Martinez (Atlanta United)
Assists leader: 17 - Borek Dockal (Philadelphia Union)
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Upcoming Matches (All Times CT):
For a primer on all the league action before the FIFA International break, check out last week’s soccer recap.
Wednesday, October 17
6:30 p.m. - [MLS] D.C. United vs. Toronto FC (ESPN+)
6:30 p.m. - [MLS] Orlando City SC vs. Seattle Sounders FC (ESPN+)
7 p.m. - [Concacaf Women's Championship] Final - USA vs. Canada (FS2)
9 p.m. - [MLS] Vancouver Whitecaps vs. Sporting KC (ESPN+)
Thursday, October 18
8 p.m. - [MLS] Real Salt Lake vs. New England Revolution (ESPN+)
Friday, October 19
1:30 p.m. - [Bundesliga] Eintracht Frankfurt vs. Dusseldorf (FS2)
2 p.m. - [La Liga] Celta Vigo vs. Alaves (beIN Sports en Espanol)
9 p.m. - [Liga MX] Atlas vs. Veracruz (Univision Deportes)
Saturday, October 20
6 a.m. - [La Liga] Real Madrid vs. Levante (beIN Sports)
6:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Chelsea vs. Manchester United (NBC Sports)
8:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Wolfsburg vs. Bayern Munich (FS1/Univision Deportes)
8:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Stuttgart vs. Dortmund (FOX Deportes)
9 a.m. - [Premier League] West Ham vs. Tottenham (NBC Sports)
9:15 a.m. - [La Liga] Valencia vs. Leganes (beIN Sports en Espanol)
11 a.m. - [Serie A] Juventus vs. Genoa (ESPN+)
11:30 a.m. - [Premier League] Huddersfield vs. Liverpool F.C. (NBC Sports)
11:30 a.m. - [La Liga] Villarreal vs. Atletico Madrid (beIN Sports en Espanol)
11:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Schalke 04 vs. Werder Bremen (FS2)
1:45 p.m. - [La Liga] FC Barcelona vs. Sevilla (beIN Sports en Espanol)
5 p.m. - [Liga MX] Queretaro vs. Cruz Azul (ESPN Deportes/Univision Deportes)
7 p.m. - [Liga MX] Pachuca vs. Santos Laguna (ESPN Deportes)
7 p.m. - [Liga MX] Club America vs. Tijuana (Univision/Facebook)
9 p.m. - [Liga MX] Necaxa vs. Leon (Univision)
Sunday, October 21
8:30 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Hertha Berlin vs. Freiburg (FS2)
9:15 a.m. - [La Liga] Eibar vs. Athletic Bilbao (beIN Sports en Espanol)
10 a.m. - [Premier League] Everton vs. Crystal Palace (NBC Sports)
11 a.m. - [Bundesliga] Moenchengladbach vs. Mainz (FS2)
11:30 a.m. - [La Liga] Huesca vs. Espanyol (beIN Sports en Espanol)
12 p.m. - [Liga MX] Lobos BUAP vs. Chivas (Univision)
1:30 p.m. - [Serie A] Inter Milan vs. A.C. Milan (ESPN+)
1:45 p.m. - [La Liga] Real Betis vs. Valladolid (beIN Sports en Espanol)
2 p.m. - [MLS] Atlanta United vs. Chicago Fire (ESPN)
2 p.m. - [MLS] All other Eastern Conference matches (ESPN+)
4 p.m. - [MLS] Minnesota United vs. LA Galaxy (ESPN)
4 p.m. - [MLS] Houston Dynamo vs. Seattle Sounders FC (KUBE57)
4 p.m. - [MLS] All other Western Conference matches (ESPN+)
5 p.m. - [Liga MX] UNAM vs. Tigres (Univision Deportes)
7 p.m. - [Liga MX] Morelia vs. Puebla (Univision Deportes)
9 p.m. - [Liga MX] Monterrey vs. Toluca (FOX Deportes)
Monday, October 22
1:30 p.m. - [Serie A] Sampdoria vs. Sassuolo (ESPN+)
2 p.m. - [Premier League] Arsenal vs. Leicester City (NBC Sports)
2 p.m. - [La Liga] Real Sociedad vs. Girona (beIN Sports)
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.