Lambo update...

INITIAL UPDATE (11 am) - We mentioned on Sunday that rookie goalkeeper Josh Lambo was injured a few minutes into the Reserve game. He suffered a concussion, and was taken to a nearby hospital, where we learned of the fractures in his jaw. He spent the night at the hospital for further evaluation.

One comforting thing for Josh and the team was that his mom and dad were in town for the game. We realize it's not easy for parents to see their children in this condition, but his mom told us she felt better being here with him rather than having received a phone call. A few players went to see him at the hospital, while others checked in with us later that night to find out how Josh was doing.

Given the blow he took, and the fractured jaw, we know he'll likely be out quite some time. We'll talk to the staff today to try to get more details, both about his condition and the team's plans.

Gabriel Funes wins Sueno MLS - Dallas

Prior to Sunday's game, FC Dallas and MLS announced that Gabriel Funes, a 17-year Argentine-born forward from Arlington, Texas, was selected as the Winner of Sueño MLS 2008: The Dream Continues. The announcement was made live from Pizza Hut Park to a national TV audience during Univision’s popular weekly sports show, República Deportiva. Click here to learn more about Gabriel...

Gabriel joined Chivas USA winner Briant Reyes on the show, both players having been selected from a talent pool of approximately 2,000 participants in each hometown as the culmination of a six-week-long quest to find the best undiscovered young soccer players.

Already a star at the high school level, the lanky forward led Arlington High to a 19-1 record, scoring 35 goals this past season. Gabriel made a final impression on the FC Dallas coaches when he scored the lone goal for the Sueño Team against the FC Dallas U-17 Team on March 21. His twin brother, Jose Funes, has also inherited talent for the sport, having reached the round of 12 at Sueño MLS in Dallas.

FCD's Arturo Alvarez presented Gabriel his FC Dallas jersey during the show. Gabriel, along with Alexei Reyes (Dallas), Noel Luna (Fort Worth), and Rafael Martinez (Dallas) were selected from the Sueño tryout by FC Dallas as the first players invited to form the FC Dallas Juniors, the club's newly created developmental elite team that will directly prepare players for the professional team.

We want to congratulate these four players and the many others that left an impression on the coaching staff (which, a few will be invited to the tryout for the new youth teams). We'll have more info on the forthcoming youth initiative in the coming weeks...

Reserves - FCD 1, Chivas USA 1

Following the game, the FC Dallas Reserves played the Chivas USA Reserves to a 1-1 draw. FCD’s goal was scored by Drew Moor in the 25th minute, while Chivas’ goal was scored by Jorge Flores in the 47th.

We had a scary moment only five minutes in, when FCD keeper Josh Lambo collided with Chivas USA's Anthony Hamilton. It appeared Josh took a knee to his head / face. Lambo remained on the field for a few minutes while being attended to, then was helped off the field and eventually carted up to the lockerroom. The initial diagnoses is a concussion, though he was taken to a nearby hospital for further evaluation.

FC Dallas: Josh Lambo (*Matt Wideman 9), Michael Dello-Russo, Drew Moor, Andrew Daniels, Abdus Ibrahim (*Ever Alvarado 61), Anthony Wallace, Eric Avila, Brek Shea, Chase Wileman, Arturo Alvarez, Dominic Oduro.

* Guest Player

FCD 1, Chivas USA 1

UPDATED: A 1-1 tie today in the season and home opener versus Chivas USA. Check the site for a recap, highlights, box scores, etc. Some notes...

UPDATED (6 pm CT):

• FC Dallas is now 6-3-4 all time on season openers, and remains undefeated over the last six openers with a record of 2-0-4. On home season openers, the team is now 7-3-2.
• FCD’s record versus Chivas USA is now 5-3-4, and 3-1-3 against them at Pizza Hut Park.
• Juan Toja’s goal was his seventh career regular season goal.
• For Bobby Rhine, it was his 34th career assist, putting him one away from second all-time in team history (Ronnie O’Brien - 35).
• Duilio Davino, making his MLS debut, was named the team captain for the year. Another making his MLS debut was Andre Rocha.
• Dario Sala made seven saves today, two off his all-time high.
• Only Rhine, Toja, Aaron Pitchkolan, and Kenny Cooper started both today’s opener and last years. Dax McCarty, Abe Thompson, and Dominic Oduro were the others that appeared in each of the last two season openers.
• Marcelo Saragosa left the game with a right groin strain…Defender Alex Yi missed the game with a left hamstring injury…David Wagenfuhr was out with a concussion…Ricardinho was out with a right ankle sprain.
• Defender Drew Moor and midfielder Arturo Alvarez served a one-game suspension for having received red cards in the team’s final game of 2007.

First Weekend...

MLS kicked off on Saturday with five games, and the home team earning points in each game...

Columbus 2, Toronto 0
Kansas City 2, D.C. United 0
Colorado 4, Los Angeles 0
Real Salt Lake 1, Chicago 1
New England 3, Houston 0

As you see, Chicago was the only road team to pick up a point - with Blanco scoring a couple minutes into stoppage time to take three points away from RSL.

Click here for recaps and highlights.

Team Photo Day...

We weren't kidding on Friday when we said it was a busy day...following the Foundation Luncheon, the entire team along with ownership and coaching staff all came back to Pizza Hut Park to take the annual team photo.

Once difference in the photo this year, at least compared to last year, is that we had the team line up in four rows instead of three. One thing that was the same – it was still difficult to get all 39 people to stay still for the short amount of time.

We’ll have the photos processed and then select the best one to use this year. Stay tuned for details on how to get a poster of this year's team.

2008 Kickoff Luncheon...

The FC Dallas Foundation hosted the 2008 Kickoff Luncheon sponsord by Verizon on Friday, giving many partners and contributors their first chance to see the 2008 team. MLS Commissioner Don Garber was the keynote speaker.

The players and coaching staff mingled with the gathering before, during, and after the event, posing for numerous photos. Even the Commish stopped to take a photo with Juan (with Nelson Rodriguez, MLS Sr. VP of Business Dev.).

All fans that attend the season opener on Sunday will also have a chance to see the entire team. Following the first team game, fans are welcome to stay for the Reserve Team's game against the Chivas USA's Reserves - this game will also be played inside the stadium (and a concession stand will remain open).

Burse Loan Completed

Today we completed the anticipated loan of Ray Burse to the Portland Timbers. Per the agreement, Burse may be recalled by FC Dallas at any time during the year.

Steve Morrow: “We are fortunate to have three quality goalkeepers on our roster. With Dario claiming the starting position, it was important for us to find consistent and quality games for Ray so he can continue developing through experience.

Ray is a big part of our future, and playing competitively will have him more prepared to step in when we need him. Furthermore, we are pleased with the progress that Josh Lambo has made this preseason.”

Also, André Rocha has now officially been added to the roster and is of course eligible to play on Sunday.

Arrive Early, Join Others...

Today we unveiled plans for “The FC Dallas Experience,” an interactive day-of-game entertainment area located on the Gold Lot prior to all home games this year - starting this Sunday with the home opener.

The FC Dallas Experience will include:* Live music.* Interactive inflatables, including a large enclosed soccer field, an obstacle course, and shot-on-goal location.* Face painters and banner and poster making stations.* FC Dallas player autograph session.* Skills demonstrations from the FC Dallas School of Excellence Soccer Camps.* Food and non-alcoholic beverages will be available to purchase.* FC Dallas vendor village.

Now, we know that many fans will set up their own tailgate parties and cookouts (also a favorite gameday activity for some of here at the FCD Blog). However, if you don't want to tailgate, or are looking for another way to meet other fans, this will be the place.

Even if you tailgate, you're all welcome to walk on over to the FCD Experience with your own food / beverages if you'd like.

This week's, Arturo and Drew will be signing autographs starting at around 1 p.m.

And for those of you that have seen our FCD TV episodes and have dreamed to one day be on, be on the look for our cameras at The FC Dallas Experience on Sunday...

Dario on TV...

Busy day today, which continues for Dario Sala...he'll be on the Kia Southwest Sportstalk show tonight with Josh Roe (live at 6:30, and replayed at 11:30 pm)...he'll then head to the Univision studios for a segment with Mario Montez...Tune in to watch Dario on KFWD-52 (chan # 14 on Time Warner up here in Frisco) and send your comments / questions sportstalk@belo.com

Thursday's practice (s)...

It was such a nice day for practice, that the team trained twice today.

One main note today was the return of two players. Duilio joined the entire group for the first time since March 14; and Dax McCarty, fresh off his CONCACAF Best XI performance for the U.S. U-23, also joined the team. For Dax, it was his first practice with the guys since late February.

In the afternoon, the team worked out again with the trainers from the Michael Johnson Performance Center, this time here at PHP.

Last week, we had a chance to catch up with Michael Johnson during one of these workouts. Not bad having a five-time Olympic Gold Medal sprinter giving the team some tips...here's a little taste of what goes on at one of these sessions, enjoy:

Breaking news...

Goalkeeper Ray Burse today is on his way to Portland, Oregon to check out the city.

The Reason: FC Dallas is exploring the possibility of loaning Ray to the Portland Timbers of the United Soccer League's 1st Division. If this can be worked out, it would allow Ray to have consistent playing time and allow him to continue his development through game experience.

Details are being discussed and finalized with all parties. Check back with us on Thursday for an update on this development.

In the meantime, discuss...

FCD TV - Behind the Scenes, DSG Commercial

We told you last week that Duilio joined a few other MLS players in the taping of a Dick's Sporting Goods commercial here in Texas. Above, you see Duilio, Houston's Brian Ching, and Colorado's Christian Gomez. It was fitting that D.C. United's Ben Olsen is not on this photo, since he get's enough time on our video, as well as the commercial. The complete spot is expected to debut on TV during the upcoming weekend of MLS games.

Duilio in NYC...

As scheduled, Duilio was back at practice this morning, getting some running in on the side and then continuing his workout indoors. He also came back for another session this afternoon. And, while the team is off on Wednesday, Duilio won't be. He's coming back at 9:30 am.

The staff will see how he responds. He's shooting to be involved in the Thursday, Friday, and Saturday practice, with his obvious goal to be involved on Sunday. We'll keep you posted.

Duilio did spend the last two days in New York City as an invited guest of MLS, alongside KC's Jimmy Conrad, D.C.'s Ben Olsen, and New England's Taylor Twellman. From midday Sunday until Monday afternoon, Duilio did a bunch of interviews with various media outlets, such as: Univision's popular morning show Despierta America, ESPN Deportes Magazine, Sports Illustrated Latino, CNN en Espanol, Univision Sports, Futbol Mundial, and of course, MLSnet.com and FutbolMLS.com.

Wagenfuhr update...

David Wagenfuhr called the team staff on Sunday after the game against Atletico Paranaense and told them he was feeling light-headed. Given his previous history, on Monday, the staff put him through the ImPACT Test. The results showed he had sustained a concussion.

The team is being cautious with him, keeping him out of the last two practices. He’s technically listed as Doubtful for Sunday’s game against Chivas USA.

Highlights...

Here you go, highlights of FCD's 2-1 win over Atletico Paranaense...apologies in advance if you don't like the music...also, we're not gonna have a chance to get to the LA game highlights, but we are planning a few other videos for the week.

Ricardinho Update

The swelling on Ricardinho ankle and foot has gone down some, though he was still in a walking boot this morning. At this point, we'll be listing him as Out for this weekend's opener with a right ankle sprain.

We'll let you know next week how's he progresses and hopefully have a better timeline on his return.

Liverpool Wins Dallas Cup Super Group

Liverpool FC and Dallas Stars and Rangers owner Tom Hicks (far left) with his team and the trophy. Photo: Jimmy Vanegas.
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Congratulations to England club Liverpool FC for winning the Dr Pepper Dallas Cup XXIX Super Group U19 Championship match. On Sunday, Liverpool defeated FC Dallas' Mexican League partner Tigres UANL 3-0 at Pizza Hut Park to claim the title. Click here to see all the winners.

Dax - CONCACAF "Best XI"

On Saturday, CONCACAF unveiled the 2008 CONCACAF Men’s Olympic Qualification All-Tournament Team, which was selected by the CONCACAF Technical Study Group and features the “Best XI” along with seven Honorable Mentions.

We want to congratulate FCD's Dax McCarty, who joins teammates Mo Edu, Michael Orozco and Freddy Adu on the Best XI.

The U.S. plays Honduras on Sunday for the CONCACAF title (4 pm CT). On Saturday, the team had a great experience attending the Nashville Predators home game versus the Chicago Blackhawks.

FCD 2, CAP 1 - Dallas wins series 4-1 on aggregate

UPDATE (10:15 pm): FC Dallas tonight defeated Clube Atletico Paranaense 2-1 at Pizza Hut Park in the team’s final preseason game before the start of the MLS season. With the win, FCD claims the second annual USA-Brazil Challenge by an aggregate of 4-1, having defeated CAP 2-0 on March 6 in Curitiba, Brazil. Recap and comments.

Ricardinho left the field with a right ankle injury. Xrays taken after the game were negative. He does have a sprained right ankle and contusion on his right foot, and left the stadium in a walking boot. He'll be reevaluated on Monday.

We've started the video archive of the game, so hopefully it'll be available on the site at some point on Sunday.
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UPDATE (8:40 pm: second half underway: Abe Thompson replaces Ricardinho and Juan Toja comes in for Marcelo Saragosa.
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UPDATE (8:25 pm): FCD is up 2-1 at halftime. CAP scored first when Douglas Maia lifted a free kick from near midfield into the Dallas area where Leanardo Le flicked it above Dario Sala in the 15th minute. FCD then scored twice within two minutes: first David Wagenfuhr lobbing a 22 yard shot over Viafara in the 35th minute, andthen two minutes later Pablo Ricchetti scored on a free kick, which caused all kinds of chaos.

From up here in the press box, it appeared that the CAP players were waiting for a whistle from the referee. However, the replay doesn't show the ref even asking the players to back up or to wait for a whistle. Pablo also didn't appear to ask for the 10 yards, and he quickly took the kick that caught all the CAP players not looking.

The CAP players ran toward the ref. # 11 Eduardo Salles was one of the ones that made contact, which knocked the ref over. At this point, all the players were in front of the refs, which caused security and the assistant referees to come to his defense.

After giving red cards to both Salles and # Michel, the referees walked off the field intending to abandon the game. They got as far as the endline by the tunnel. There, all the refs gathered with the referee liaison, and Steve Morrow and Bobby Hammond making their plea to continue the game. After a few minutes, the refs ran back onto the field, added seven minutes to the end of the half, and continued.
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The game's underway...click here to watch live and for free...then come back here to share thoughts.

FCD trains with Michael Johnson

The FDC Blog faithful knows that the team has utilized the Michael Johnson Performance Center and their trainers throughout this preseason. On Thursday, the Olympic Gold Medal winning sprinter was on hand to run the Speed Session over at the McKinney facility. Click here for more, including photos.

We had previously asked a few players on the team who the fastest player is. Two names we heard often were Dominic Oduro and Michael Dello-Russo. We later learned that Dello had taken speed technique training while running track in high school, though for Dominic, this was his first experience learning more about specific techniques that affect speed.

And for those inquiring, we wanted to pit Michael and the 'Birdman' in a race, but couldn't make it happen.

The players were split into different groups, all doing a variety of drills. For example, the keepers worked on specific exercises that affect first step; the midfielder group in general worked on quick movement speed; while the forwards and wing players worked on long sprint exercises .

Again, our FCD TV crew was on hand, so also expect a bit of this behind the scenes at some point next week. That is, if we ever give our video staff some time away from filming, webstreaming, and commercial shoots so they can do some editing.

Duilio in Commercial

A few weeks back, MLS informed us that Dick's Sporting Goods would be taping a commercial with MLS players here in the metroplex. Duilio Davino would be one of the players.

On Thursday, Duilio joined D.C. United's Ben Olsen, Houston's Brian Ching, and Colorado's Christian Gomez at the Dick's Sporting Goods in Hurst, Texas for the taping.

Ben maybe had it the worst off, as he had to be onsite at around 6 a.m. Duilio and the other players arrived around 9:30, though their involvement started around 12:30 pm.

It was quite a production. We're not sure how many people were involved, but from the looks of all the movement, there had to be 30-40 crew members. Each player even had his own trailer to relax in throughout the day.

We're told the commercial is expected to debut during the first weekend of MLS play. However, we're hoping to finish an FCD TV edition showing the behind the scenes. Be on the lookout for both soon...

Atletico Paranaense Arrives

Our friends from Atletico Paranaense arrived this morning - 19 players and six coaches and staff members. They've created this nice chart / press kit (click to enlarge), which has all the info on the players that are in town.

Dallas is up 2-0 in the second-annual USA-Brazil Challenge, following the 2-0 win over CAP at Kyocera Arena in Brazil on March 6. The team that scores the most goals in both games combined will win the series, with penalty kicks deciding the winner should CAP win on Saturday by two goals.

Some familiar names that traveled for CAP: Vinicius (04), Chico (05), Kaio (o5) also made the trip last year (and were part of CAP's Dallas Cup winning sides in previous years)...Michel gave us some fits back on March 6, then scored the game-winner for CAP three days later.

The team rested this morning, and were out training on the adidas Field at 4 pm (with Ricardinho and Andre Rocha briefly interrupting their session for hellos). On Friday, they'll have a stadium-field walkthrough around 11 am then practice immediately following FCD, also on the prestigious Field #1.

AND now, the moment some fans have patiently (and some impatiently) been waiting for..............yes, we will provide a live webstream of this game on fcdallas.com...you're welcome, now help us spread the word.

Dax Starts - Olympics on the Line

Dax McCarty is starting tonight for the U.S. U-23 team in the CONCACAF Men’s Olympic Qualifying semifinal game against Canada. You can tune in at 8 pm CT to Fox Soccer Channel or ESPN Deportes to watch. Which ever team wins will join Honduras in representing the region in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Honduras defeated Guatemala in the other semifinal on penalty kicks.

UPDATED: The U.S. wins 3-0 and earns a berth in the Olympics. They'll face Honduras on Saturday for the CONCACAF title. Dax is expected to re-join FCD early next week.

Two new Madisons...

We had two more addition's to the FCD family recently...

Upon his return from Brazil, Head Athletic Trainer Joshua and wife Stacey welcomed their second child when daughter Madison Joy was born...a week later, our man Tony and wife Lisa welcomed daughter Riley Madison...

Momss and daughters are healthy and doing great...dads can't stop smiling...congrats to all!

On a dry field...

Goalkeeper coach Drew Keeshan takes a few reps among the keepers today after practice.
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Looks like we picked a good day for an off day. It rained all day on Tuesday, which caused the cancelation of the Dallas Cup games here at the complex.

All were back out today - Dallas Cup out on the complex and (in stadium tonight) - and FCD on our own adidas Field. Our fans know how good this field holds up - if not for some water near the fences no one would have known it rained at all yesterday.

Getting back to some of these 'niggling injuries,' as we've heard Steve say call em - the coaches are not worried about them, and neither are the players. It's more us asking the players to stay off for a bit since we want to start the season as healthy as possible.

On Thursday, the team will train at 10 am and then everyone will be going to the Michael Johnson Performance Center for a 3 pm Speed Session, which is expected to be run by Mr. Johnson himself.

1920's Reporter

Those of you that read our post-game blog the other day, or that have listened to local sports radio 1310 The Ticket the past couple of days, know that their "1920's Reporter" was at the press conference on Saturday.

This bit has been done to many other celebrity athletes, and we're not ashamed to say we got hit in our own stadium, although it was not our player. We briefly debated if we even wanted to let this note out, but we figured to let others know that we can take a joke (or an attempt at a comedy bit, though we guess some may question if this bit is even entertaining).

Anyway, they'll be running the bit on air today at 12:30 pm CT. Click here to listen. Beckham was his usual good natured, calm, and composed self - laughing and answering the "question."

And, for the FCD fans out there that like to hear soccer on local sports radio, let the guys at The Ticket know. The more they realize they have soccer fans that are fans of their station and thus other sports, the more likely they'll talk about soccer.

Monday's Injury Report...

Toja was back at practice on Monday after missing some time with a left knee contusion.
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The team went through a few different drills this morning; the guys that didn't play much on Saturday finished the day with a small-sided scrimmage against each other. To say it was lopsided would be nice. The orange team beat up on the yellow team, at one point we heard '6-2'. Since we didn't write down everyone that played on each team, we have to leave it as this.

The rest of the guys were released while the scrimmage took place. Still, a few of the players stayed around to work on shots, taking passes from each other and shooting on goal. Others did extra ball work as well as fitness on the sides.

Duilio didn't train today. He was practicing all of last week. However on Friday evening, he had an MRI on his left knee, which had been causing him some minor pain the past few weeks. The MRI revealed a small bruise on the outside bone on his knee, which caused some inflammation. So on Saturday, the coaching staff told him he'd have to wait at least a week before they put him out on the field. Marcelo Saragosa and Arturo also stayed inside to workout. Marcelo had a sore groin, and Artie's quad is still a bit tight.

Juan Toja did practice today, which is two sessions in a row for him. He's had a knee contusion since taking a hit against West Texas A&M a few weeks ago. He played part of one game in Brazil, but it's been bugging him for some time, so he was kept out until last Friday. Toja and the rest of the team will get an extra day to get better, as the entire team has been given Tuesday off.

Franco Baldini at Pizza Hut Park

Franco Baldini, photo courtesy of The England Football Association.
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England National Team General Manager Franco Baldini was in attendance on Saturday at our game vs. LA. It's publicly known that he was here to observe David Beckham. England will be playing France later this month, which would be Beckham's 100th appearance for his national team should he play.

On Sunday, the England Football Association sent FC Dallas the following statement from Mr. Baldini.

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After attending the FC Dallas v LA Galaxy fixture on March 15, 2008 at Pizza Hut Park, England General Manager Franco Baldini said:

"I received a very good reception from everyone while I was in Dallas.

It was good to see so much interest in the fixture with such a large crowd at the stadium and with high levels of media covering the game.

It can only be good for soccer in the U.S. that there is such a growing level of interest.

It was clear to see that the approach is extremely professional and the facilities are first-class.

I'm sure that football (soccer) in the United States has a very interesting future.

I would like to thank everyone at FC Dallas for their help and assistance this weekend and wish them well for the new season."

Postgame Video - Steve and Dario

As we mentioned, here is video of the postgame conference with Steve and Dario.

Dallas Cup Starts at Pizza Hut Park today

Pizza Hut Park is once again a host venue for the prestigious Dr Pepper Dallas Cup XXIX youth tournament. From March 16 to March 23, the complex fields and stadium will host games involving some of the top youth teams from the United States, Brazil, England, Japan, Mexico, Germany and more.

The tournament begins today when reigning Super Group champion Sao Paulo FC from Brazil faces Texas-based Andromeda SC at 3 pm CT. The Opening Ceremonies will take place at 5 pm, and will be followed by England’s Liverpool FC taking on FK Slavija from Bosnia/Herzegovina in the nightcap. Click here for the complete Dallas Cup XXIX schedule and ticket information.

As part of the final weekend of Dallas Cup XXIX, FC Dallas will host Brazilian-partner Clube Atletico Paranaense in the return leg of USA-Brazil Challenge on Saturday, March 22 at 7:30 pm CT. FC Dallas won the first leg of the aggregate-goal friendly series 2-0 on March 6 in Curitiba, Brazil. One ticket will get fans into the FCD vs. CAP game, as well as the Finals of the U-13, U-14, and U-15 games earlier that day.

FCD 0, LA 0 - Final

UPDATED, postgame: Thanks to everyone that came out tonight, as well as those that tuned in online. Click here for the game recap or here for the matchtracker with the lineups and stats.

We had a sell out crowd of 20,500 - obviously the largest ever preseason game for us here at Pizza Hut Park. Money collected from this game will be donated by the FC Dallas Foundation to UNICEF and the Frisco Miracle League - we're planning on having a formal presentation the next time LA plays here in May.

Following the game, we did a press conference with Steve Morrow and Dario Sala, followed by Ruud Gullit and David Beckham. Everyone talked about the game, but those quotes will appear in print somewhere later (and we'll have some of this video on Sunday at some point). For now some stuff that may not come out in the press...

Dario, who made numerous saves in the game, livened up the presser - making the media chuckle with a few one-liners. For starters, when asked what happened between Andre Rocha and David Beckham towards the end, Dario said something along the lines of "nothing, Andre doesn't speak English and Beckham doesn't speak Portuguese."

Then, Morrow was asked if a performance like tonight secured Dario the number one position. Steve gave his standard answer of 'who ever is on form, etc', to which Dario leaned in behind smiling and said "come on coach," making everyone laugh.

Dario also had them laughing when he was asked about the team chemistry. He answered that he thought it was great, that the Brazil trip was a great bonding opportunity, that the guys worked hard, and that....he enjoyed the beach - maybe more than the work. His answer was in Spanish, which drew double laughs; first by those that understood him in his native language, then by the English speakers when they heard the translation a few second later.

LA came up next. Beckham did mention the fans, noting how he heard the 'stick' the fans were giving him.

We even had "1920s Reporter Guy" from 1310 The Ticket make an appearance. He 'questioned' Beckham by saying "Champ, champ, do you and the misses frequent any speakeasies in LA"...Beckham handled it well, though we think the station got themselves a funny bit which we assume will be heard at some point this week. Beckham now joins the list of other celebrity athletes who've been 'interviewed' by the Reporter Guy, such as Lebron James, Peyton Manning, Kobe Bryant, and many others.

That's it for tonight... continue sharing your opinions and thoughts with others, and check back with us later on Sunday for the video.

Finally, a home game...

It seems like forever ago that we had to get ready for an FC Dallas game here at Pizza Hut Park. Actually, it was last November. Fast forward four months and here we are getting ready for the FC Dallas Foundation Charity Game on Saturday, March 15 is 7:30 versus the LA Galaxy. Click here to keep reading...

It'll be the first chance for you to see your team in action in the new uniforms, in what it is expected to be a good tune up for the season. If you can't make it, you can watch the game live on fcdallas.com for free. There are a few tickets still available. Call the office before 1 pm CT on Saturday and tell them you read on the blog that you could still buy tickets (888.323.4625).

As normal, those that played yesterday had a recovery session. The rest of the guys had a light session. This included Andre Rocha, who arrived this morning after getting his visa yesterday, as well as Juan Toja and Duilio Davino, who had been nursing injuries. Arturo sat out with a bit of a cold, or something similar that we saw other players and staff catch last week. Steve tells us that Duilio could see action on Saturday, though he'll likely hold Juan out until he gets a full week of practice in. Read more on mlsnet.com.

Following practice, Duilio did a sit down interview for Fox Sports en Espanol (to be run at a later date). Then, he joined the rest of the team for the annual meeting with League officials regarding rules of play, conduct, and other disciplinary topics. Alfonso Mondelo and Joe Machnick were joined by U.S. Soccer referee Abbey Okulaja in the presentation.

The officials reiterated many of the points brought up last year about First Kick, went over many videos explaining different interpretation of rules, and opened up the floor for discussion and QnA. One of the main differences they explained to the players and coaches is a slight variation of the offsides rule.

In short, they are telling the players to play till the whistle. Just because a player is an offside's position when the ball is played, he is not necessarily offsides if another player run from an onside position to the ball. Ultimately, there are still going to be some tough calls from the referees and their assistants. One way the MLS officials explained this was: defenders, don't raise your hands expecting the call. Forwards, raise your hands indicating you are not involved in the play.

And so we don't forget, on Wednesday, Josh Lambo, Anthony Wallace and Chase Wileman joined a couple hundred kids at the annual Easter Egg Hunt here at the Park.

FCD 4, Tulsa 2

FCD defeated the University of Tulsa 4-2 this afternoon in a scrimmage played on the adidas Field. Ibee opened the scoring in the second minute, after Dello sent a cross into Blake Wagner who chested it down in the box, allowing Ibee to put the ball away from the penalty spot. Blake got on the board just minutes later, after a Dello-Russo shot was deflected by the Tulsa keeper, which Blake was able to head home. FCD took the 2-0 lead into halftime.

Just minutes into the second half, Doudou Toure hit a long range blast from 25 yards, which flew past the outstretched hands of the Tulsa keeper into the back of the net. Brek Shea notched FCD’s fourth and final goal a few minutes later, easily poking in a low cross from Ibee at a the top of the six.

Tulsa scored in the 60th and 90th minutes to make the final score 4-2.

Full recap will be posted on fcdallas.com shortly...

Here’s the lineup. Everyone played the full 90…

-----------------Lambo----------------
Daniels---------Yi-------------Wally
Dello---Avila---Wileman--Wagner
-----Ibee------Toure-------Shea----

Schedule Changes

We want to make you aware of four changes to the 2008 schedule, one date change and three time changes. Click here for the complete schedule.

DATE CHANGE:
The August 9 match versus Houston Dynamo has been changed to Wednesday, May 28 at 7:30 p.m. CT, and will now be televised on FSN Southwest.

TIME CHANGES:
August 3 at Toronto FC will now start at 3 p.m. CT (from 6 p.m.)
August 30 at home versus Columbus Crew will now start at 8 p.m. CT (from 7:30 p.m.)
October 2 at home versus San Jose Earthquakes will now start at 8 p.m. CT (from 7:30 p.m.)

Back to work at PHP

Though we here at the blog today Wednesday off, the team was back at work. Toja and Rocha were excused, but Arturo re-joined the group.

The team will be split up a bit on Thursday. Some guys will be in at 10:30 for a session, and then go to the Michael Johnson Performance Center later in the afternoon. The rest of the guys will be coming in for the 2 pm scrimmage against Tulsa, on the adidas Field.

After yesterday's practice, we caught up with Abe and Dario, asking how they feel about their individual progress and the team's preparations so far:

Survivor Update - Two Teams Still Alive

The guys had another round of Survivor before departing Brazil on Monday...two teams remain - ironically, it's Team Dallas and Team Brazil - and they'll battle it out for the 2008 Preseason Survivor Championship here at PHP this week.

Since we haven't provided an update for a while, here's a little more info on this year's competition. Click here to read more...

As you know, there were nine teams of three. On one day, they had a swimming competition, in which Team Old Guys were eliminated (in part, because Dominic would not do any of the swimming challenges). This was an odd twist, as Bobby Rhine's team's seemed to advance late in the competition in previous years, winning two of the past three Survivor Competitions.

The staff decided that eliminated teams could try to win a place back in during the next challenge. So, on Wednesday night, Team Old Guys would have to finish among the top three or they would be eliminated for good.

The challenge that night was a four-part quiz. The staff had come up with 15 questions in four categories:

1. Potpouri (which included current events, Dallas / Texas geography, and pop culture, etc)

2. World Soccer History

3. Who's Who (of the current team)

4. Math Exam, which involved mathematical equations based on various statistics such as jersey numbers, goals scored, assists, personal stats, etc.

The teams would write down their answers, and who ever had the most correct at the end of the night would win. It was a fun night, with guys laughing at each other for the answers some provided.

Team Hair had a tough night...Team Brazil, who claimed they didn't know anything about U.S. event, recruited not one, but three staff members to supposed help translate.

Team Maryland ended up winning the challenge, tying Team D for the most correct answers.

Team Old Guys did survive, but would end up being eliminated the next day on the crossbar challenge. Once again, Dom took the heat when he could not hold on to the crossbar as Dario and Bobby tried to hit it from the top of the box. Team Bradenton was also eliminated, as Eric Avila couldn't outlast Marcelo Saragosa (he tried to cheat a bit, by wrapping his legs on the crossbar.)

Since practices began splitting up (with one group doing recovery while the other trained), the staff decided to wait until the final day to eliminate most of the other teams.

So on Monday, the guys went on a two-mile run along the water. Some teams were eliminated based on where the team members finished on the run.

Four teams remained, and they played a soccer-tennis type juggling game to bring it to two finalists. Team Dallas and Team Brazil advanced, though some claim team Brazil used a ringer, as Bobby Rhine took Andre Rocha's place while he sat out with a slight injury.

The winner will now be decided among these two teams...we'll let you know who wins...

Back in Texas

It was a long travel day, but we made it back, safely. Ours bags are a different story - we're still trying to track down 20 missing bags, both personal and team bags.

The guys are off today. They'll be back for a 2 pm session on Wednesday here at the Park.

UPDATED: Toja and Sala were given permission to travel to Argentina for a few days; the'll both be back in town later this week...Andre Rocha also stayed back. He actually traveled with the team from Florianopolis to Sao Paulo, but he did not receive his passport / P1 visa by the team the team departed for Dallas on Monday night, therefore he had to stay. A positive for him is that his family lives in Sao Paulo. He's been waiting a week for his passport, and will be flying to Dallas the day he gets his passport, which could be any day now.

Brazil - Day 9 - The Beach

The CAP reps had set up a nice dinner last night at a casual but gourmet-style pizza joint in one of the beach towns. Along with the dinner pizza one may expect, they also brought out a desert pizza - covered with nutella, strawberries and biscuit-like cookie crumbs as toppings. Good stuff!

Now that the games and practices are over (at least here in Brazil), many of the traveling party have felt the wear, some have even been battling a bit of a cold. "Relax" was the word often most used when asked how some will finish off the weekend. Keep reading...

So today, some guys chilled out at the hotel pool. Some guys felt like they'd had enough sun for the week, so they headed for mall across the street. Others were comfortable in their air-conditioned rooms. And the rest decided the best way to relax was to go to the beach.

As happens at times when the group splits up, we here at the blog have an unfortunate decision to make - which group to we cover, you know, so that you can follow along. Today's decision was the toughest. Not really - we were the first ones on the bus that was heading to the beach.

Still, there was plenty to deal with: A 30 minute bus ride. Incredibly hot sun. Temps in the high 80s. Figuring out what number lotion to wear. Chairs or towels?

There was a surfing competition going on, which brought out a lot of people. The water was extremely cold, so no one really spent any considerable amount of time in the ocean. The players found a good spot under some umbrellas, and were joined by a couple FCD staffer as well as CAP reps. The thing was, it was too hot to be out there too long. So after a few hours, we were all back on the bus en route to the hotel.

The guys will have a workout in the morning, and then begin the journey back to Dallas. Some have already left. Juan flew to Argentina on Saturday, and Dario flew down there today. They'll join the team in Frisco in the middle of the week. Our doc and athletic trainer also left today for Texas.

The rest of us leave on Monday; going from Florianopolis to Sao Paulo in the afternoon and then directly to Dallas later in the evening, expecting to arrive on Tuesday morning.

We're not sure if we'll be able to get online again before our departure. If not, thanks for coming along with us to Brazil through the blog. We'll see you back in Dallas soon.

FCD 1, Avai FC 3

This is why we enjoy this blog. Because we can be informally official, when appropriate. So, before we get to a little about the game, we'll mention that it was frustrating game to watch. Why? Because from the sidelines, it seemed like the game was played in 30 second intervals, because that's about how long the ball moved before a foul was called. Now, as for if they were even fouls, no need to get ourselves going again. More on the game, with photos...

Now, on the game. Beautiful day to start off, though in the sun it was very warm. Avai had good possession early, and the FCD guys seemed a bit slow catching up to the speed of play. And even though the game was mainly played in the Dallas defensive half for the first 15 minutes, it was FCD that had the two best chances to score. The defense held strong, and the speed up top created chances for Dominic and Abe.

At the half hour mark, Avai took advantage of a quick start off a free kick to open the scoring. Forward Hegon took a quick pass from 40 yards out and took two touches forward before unleashing a rocket. Ray Burse dove, but the ball was hit as solid as could be hit, nicking both the underside of the crossbar and side post as it went in.

FCD came out more fired up to start the second half. Anthony Wallace ripped a hard shot from 35 yards, causing the keeper to fully stretch to make the save. Within a minute, both Abe and Blake also took shots that were saved.

However, in the 49th minute, Avai was given a free kick. Dello-Russo appeared to make a clearance in the box after beating the man to the ball. However, the referee saw something no one else saw, evidently, and he whistled for a penalty kick. Avai's Nicolas slowly chipped the ball right down the center as Dan Kennedy dove to his right for the 2-0 lead.

Though FCD's young core continued applying pressure, the heat may have started to take its toll. The coaching staff changed 9 of the 10 field players over the next 20 minutes, and they continued what the first group had started.

A few minutes after entering, Kenny Cooper headed home a David Wagenfuhr cross from six yards out to make it 2-1. Then, Bobby Rhine sent a cross from the right to the far post, where Aaron Pitchkolan's diving header from 5 yards out hit the side net.

Ricardinho also had two good chances, first heading a clean cross with no one on just wide; and then have his near post shot saved by the diving keeper. The ball then bounced to the center of the area, where Chase Wileman ripped a shot that was cleared off the line by a stretched out defender.

A minute later, Pablo was shown a red card for a tackle 20 yards from the FCD box. Within a minute, Avai took a ball toward the goal on the left side, sent a ball across the goulmouth were Ildemar easily knocked in the third goal.

Talking to Steve afterwards, they contemplated taking the team off the field at one point, as it seemed every whistle was against FCD.

So, a frustrating way to end the Brazil leg of preseason, but the players performed admirably. We'll clean this summary up a bit for the website, along with quotes from Steve..

Brazil - Day 8, hotel view...

The guys had a nicer game-day walk then in recent memory today...here's one view from the hotel pool (yes, its about 3-4 floors above street level)....what appears to be a beach, is not really. There are signs posted stating swimming is not approved...still, not a bad walk!

Lunch has been served, we're leaving here at 2:15 for the 3:30 kickoff (12:30 CT). We'll be back after the game with a recap, and some photos. For now, the starting lineup:

----------------------Ray-----------------------

------Daniels----------Yi-------------Wagner---
---Dello-Russo----Avila---Wallace------Shea-----

--------Ibee----------------------------Oduro----

------------------Thompson-------------------

Brazil - Day 7, Video!

Since we likely won't be able to do a blog-tracker on Saturday, we thought we'd at least let you see the guys practicing this afternoon here in Florianopolis...

Brazil - Day 7; in Florianopolis

Four afters after leaving the Atletico Paranaense Training center, we arrived at the Estádio da Ressacada (formally known as Aberbal Dr. Ramos da Silva Stadium) - home stadium of Avai FC of Brazil's Serie B here in Florianopolis. The game is set for 3:30 pm on Saturday, and will be used as a charity match. Fans that bring one kilo of food for donation can get in for free. They will then select a local charity to donate the food to, on behalf of Avai and FCD...more photos...
It's a neat looking stadium, with a taken care of playing field.
The team's use and underground tunnel to walk from the locker room to the field, as the players come up just past the barb-wire fence you see in some of these photos. All around the outside of the fence is a four step moat - or so we thought. It's actually a standing area, all-around the stadium.
The sideline areas have seat-back chairs, with suites above and covered by a small roof. On the ends, the stands are for, well, standing - meaning, no seats. People buy tickets to stand in these areas. What this does is allow for a large capacity. So, while Atletico Paranaense's stadium appears big, they tell is this stadium can accomodate more, "around 28K people." We're not sure if that means they are all comfortable, though.
By 7:50 pm, we were in our hotel - a luxury-style Majestic Hotel near the water (not necessarily the beach). Besides the look and feel of the hotel, one of the most appealing things is that it's in a somewhat lively area - or at least, compared to the soccer-only complex we'd been in. We see lights, cars, buildings, and people not in soccer gear walking around.
Don't get us wrong, the CAP center is a great place to concentrate fully on soccer - living, eating, and training within its walls. But here, we can at least tell people we know that we saw a little bit of Brazil when we go back.

Brazil - Day 7

We're going to be traveling to Florianopolis this afternoon, should be about 3-4 hour drive. Not to make anyone back in Dallas jealous, but it was pretty warm and sunny for the morning session today. Now that we get to see a little bit of Brazil, if anything on the drive, we're hoping it stays this way...we wouldn't want the sun to go away on Sunday we the guys get the day off - in a beach town.

While we drive, click here for more on last night's win...also, a photo gallery with images of the game should be posted soon...we did get a DVD of the game, so we hope to get you some highlights (but it'll likely happen next week when we're back in Texas).

Meanwhile, back at PHP...a blizzard?

While the team is running out of suntan lotion in Brazil, much of the staff today performed work they may never had thought they'd do when they first joined the FCD/PHP team. Many will be talking about the workday that was Thursday, March 6, 2008 for years to come...it'll just be a matter of how big the fish was, or really, how much snow actually fell...click here for more, including photos...

The Mexico U-23 team was scheduled to face Finland's National Team at Pizza Hut Park, with kickoff set for 8:30 p.m. CT. For Mexico, it was their last friendly before beginning group play in the CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Tournament next week.

A meeting was held early in the morning that said they would like to get the game played, despite what the conditions may be (we're not sure they thought it could look like it did).
In the morning, the weather called for presipitation, with some media outlets mentioning a possible 1-2 inches of snow...by 4 pm, we had received around 4 inches of snow on the field at Pizza Hut Park...by 6:30, our grounds crew informed us it was closer to six inches of snow.

So here goes our shameless plug...what can we say, we're proud of the teamwork the office showed...

At 3:30 pm, the FCD / PHP staff - most dressed in the regular business casual attire - grabbed shovels, put on the team's blue winter parkas, and some even wore cleats - and went down to the field to help push snow off...we're talking the ticket sales crew, sponsorship reps, business development, maintenance, marketing - you name it - all helping the grounds crew.
The field was cleared before 7 pm...the weather was listed as 32 degrees by kickoff, with windchills listing in the mid 20s...Still, a crowd of 11,780 fans braved the elements. The game finished 0-0...even so, fans seemed to enjoy themselves, as snowballs were seen tossed around throughout the evening...some fans may have hoped for a memorable win, instead, they'll have stories of the memorable game - played in snow, in Dallas, in March 2008.

FCD 2 , Atletico Paranaense 0 - FINAL

Both Brazilian's that CAP has loaned FCD scored in the first half to give FCD the 2-0 in the 2008 USA-Brazil Challenge. The return leg will be played at Pizza Hut Park on March 22, 2008.

Early - CAP get's a few chances into the box early, though nothing that threatens...FCD returns the favor and makes it way in from the left, twice drawing fould about 35 yards from the box. Click here to continue reading the attempted play-by-play tracker.
8th - as we've seen with all our goals down here so far, FCD picks ups an errant ball and converts. Pablo Ricchetti steps up to defense a clearance from defender Joao Leanardo just outside the left side of the box (Pablo's right)...he picks up the pass, and quickly takes the ball to the endline, looks up and see Andre Rocha had made a run..Pablo sends a sharp pass right to Rocha, who heads it past the keeper from about six yards out.

14th - CAP forward Ederson battles Pitch in the center, and breaks through...Dario anticipates by coming way out to the arc (outside the box), leaving Ederson almost no room to get around...Dario goes down low with hands to the sides, and the ball hits off his thigh to stop the dangerous play...

26th - Ederson get's another chance from top of the box but Dario is there...

The game seems back and forth...within the minute...

26th - Ricchetti takes a ball at the top of the box from Cooper...Pablo shoots as the defender closes in, the shot goes wide right by a narrow margin...
32 – Ricardinho header from inside the area goes over…Wags with cross from left…

BTW – Juan Toja and Duilio Davino had soreness following the game the other day so we’re holding them out today, they won’t be available…

37 - Ricardinho makes it 2-0 FCD...again, another pick off...Michel attempted to pass backwards about halfway between midfield and his area...Ricardinho raced in and picked the ball off...went one-on-one with keeper and easily slipped the ball low past the keeper...

38 – Rhine now enters in from the right but last defender makes a saving play or it was another one-on-one…

We’re reminded by our friends from CAP next to us that CAP has not lost at home in 18 games, two off the all-time record…the growing crowd seems to be getting a little antsy…

44-Quick passing in the middle between Pablo, Marcelo and Rocha has CAP running around a bit…

46 – Rhine takes a hard shot from the right, saved by the keeper and the halftime whistle blows…

Loud whistling AND boos send the players to the lockerroom…we’re thinking they’re not booing FCD…

At the half, we ask our neighbor doing the CAP site which of these CAP starters are regulars on the first team – he checks off Julian Viafara, Leandro, Matheus, Michel, Renan, Chico, Rodrigao, and Kaio….he says they don’t all always play every game, but are regulars on the on the first team…
The second half is underway…

46 - both Adrian Serioux and Kaio go down and out with knocks…magic spray gets them both in at the same time…

49 – CAP’s Matheus send a missle from the left side, about 30 yards out, causing Sala to dive to his right sending the ball out for a corner…no threat on the re-start.

52 – Whistling continues as CAP sends a long ball out wide with no one around…Marcelo and Pablo are breaking a lot of in the middle, then finding quick outlets…

55 – CAP makes the first sub…13-Carlao replaces Leandro

57 – Drew moves forward toward the middle, takes a shot that is going left…Ricardinho reaches out at the six and almost gets a toe on it (but doesn’t, out for a goal kick)

60 – another sub for CAP, Robert replaces Kaio…

60 – Ricardinho beats the last defender on the left and tries to curl in a shot around the keeper…it slowly crosses the goal and goes wide right…

62 – Alex Yi enters for Adrian Serioux

66 – Rodrigao comes in strong down the left of center and rips a low shot that Dario does well to dive and save to his right…the deflection goes to Michel who rips another shot to the near post and hits the side net..

Interesting – the team’s sit on opposite sides of the field, and the subs must report across the field from where FCD’s bench is…Drew Keeshan is running around the field to the players warming up for FCD…a sub coming soon…

69 – Pitch calmly gets a ball out wide by megging a forward, to which the crowd response for the nifty move…

70 – Michel takes a shot from the left side that hits Drew inside the area…for FCD eyes in the press box, it looks like it hit Drew in the chest…for CAP reps in the press box, and all their fans whistling, they’re claiming it was Drew’s hand…play goes on, referee touches chest to indicate what he saw…

75 – Anthony Wallace comes in for Ricchetti…Dominic Oduro in for Ricardinho…for CAP, Fagner replaces Rodrigao and Deivid replaces Douglas Maia.

77 – Dario goes way out past the left corner of the box to stop Ederson from getting the ball as he’d received a long ball and was beyond the last defenders…Dario and Ederson collide and Dario gets a yellow,

On the ensuing freekick from Michel, Dario goes high to tip the ball over the crossbar…

85 – Abe in for Cooper…Dallas goes on to connect 12 passes around the field, leaving CAP to continue chasing…

FINAL – game ends…good showing for FCD.

FCD Lineup 3-4-1-2: 44-Dario Sala, 14-Drew Moor, 17-Aaron Pitchkolan, 15-Adrian Serioux (21-Adrian Serioux 62'), 19-Bobby Rhine (C), 6-Pablo Ricchetti (26-Anthony Wallace 75'), 5-Marcelo Saragosa, 16-David Wagenfuhr, 11-Andre Rocha, 10-Ricardinho (Dominic Oduro 75'), 33-Kenny Cooper (7-Abe Thompson 85').

CAP Lineup 3-5-2: 1-Julian Viafara, 2-Douglas Maia (16-Deivid 75'), 3-Leandro (13-Carlao 55'), 4-Matheus, 5-Joao Leonardo, 6-Michel (17-Dudu 87'), 7-Renan (15-Vinicius Hess 87'), 8-Chico, 10-Rodrigao (18-Fagner 75'), 10-Kaio (14-Robert 60'), 11-Ederson.

Brazil - Day 5

The guys had two sessions today...The morning session consisted of a pool recovery for those that played a lot on Tuesday, while the others did a circuit of various exercises. The good thing was, both groups were in the same location.

See, the complex has a large pool room, which includes an ice cold plunge pool, a regular waist-high pool (thanks), and a deep lane. Next to this is a large flat area that is used for all type of exercises.

The afternoon saw everyone out on the field. The staff ran the team through ball movement drills, having what could be the starting 11 tomorrow and the next 11 walk through and then run through moving the ball from back to front.

As you see below, Dello-Russo also has a new number. He has worn 22 the past two seasons, and this requested and was given #2. Which leave #22 for Josh Lambo. Now everyone has a number.

They'll have a light workout in the morning, and we'll be leaving the complex around 4:15 for the 6 pm kickoff. We're looking to do a blog-type matchtracker for anyone wanting to follow the game. Kickoff in Dallas is 3 pm.

Brazil - Finishing Day 4

Following Tuesday's game, the Atletico Paranaense Board Member Frank Romanowski invited the FC Dallas staffers to his family house for a pick up game and Brazilian-style barbecue. Some of us had been here before, so we definitely didn't want to miss out. Click here for more...
Frank and other CAP staffers (which includes Paulo Rink) used the 2007 road FCD uniforms, while our staff wore the 07 FCD home red-and-white kits. Our staff consisted of our athletic trainers and doctor, the coaches, the blogger, Hitch, and our equipment and administrative staff.

Since we know both teams are now waiting to see what goes up on this blog, we'll leave it that the team wearing the FC Dallas uniform ended up winning the game, by a good margin.
Following the game, we sat in the clubhouse (also part of the backyard) and were treated to a fantastic barbecue and some caiparinhas.

Brazil - Day 4; FCD 2, CAP U-20 2

FCD and CAP's U-20 team drew 2-2 this afternoon here at the CAP Training Center. Atletico scored first at the 25 minutes, but then Brek Shea scored twice in the second half to give FCD the lead. However, with Atletico's Manoel headed home the equalizerwith five minutes to go.

Atletico had the majority of possession for longer stretches of the first half, with FCD seemingly having a difficult time connecting passes. Josh Lambo had a few good saves early. In the 25th minute, Josh dove out in front of CAP's Patrick to stop his shot, however the ball bounced away and midfielder Raul hit the ball off the crossbar and saw it bounce in for the first goal. Josh made another couple of good saves to keep the score at 1-0 heading into the half.

The second half was completely different, as FCD created numerous chances. At the 54 minute mark, Dominic Oduro intercepted an errant pass and used his speed to get by the last defender just right of center. As he took the ball in the box, CAP keeper Neto came out to cut him off. Dominic looked up and saw Brek Shea running in at the opposite side. Shea met Oduro's pass and hit it into the empty net.

Nearly 20 minutes later, Shea redirected a Dan Kennedy 70 yard punt towards goal, with the keeper having come out to the top of the box to make the save. However, the ball landed back at Brek's feet and he took a shot from just outside the box to the left side of the net to give FCD the lead.

Shea nearly had the hat-trick, as again Oduro sprung him open racing in at the keeper. This time however, the keeper got his leg on the ball for the save.

Ricardinho, Juan Toja, and Andre Rocha all entered late, and both Ricardinho and Toja had near missed as FCD continued pushing forward.

However, with five minutes to go, CAP's Patrick sent a low drive from the right side to the near post, where Manoel snuck in a header past Kennedy.

SCORING:

CAP - Raul 25'

FCD - Shea (Oduro) 54'

FCD - Shea 70'

CAP - Manoel (Patrick) 85'

FCD (3-4-3): Lambo (Kennedy 46), Daniels, Pitchkolan, Yi, Dello-Russo, Avila (Wileman 75'), Wallace (Andre Rocha 80'), Wagner (Wagenfuhr 87'), Shea (Ricardinho 80'), Oduro, Ibrahim (Toja 75')

CAP U-20 (3-5-2): 1-Neto (12-Rafael 70), 4-Ronaldo (16-Cristiano 70'), 5-Andre (15-Bruno T. 55), 3-Douglas, 11-Alex Sandro, 6-Bileu (18-Fagner 46'), 7-Uillian, 2-Raul (13-Manoel 55'), 8-Deivid (17-Douglas C. 70'), 9-Willian (14-Bruno 65'), 10-Patrick.

Brazil - Day 4

Above you see the entrance to the dorm / caferia / meeting rooms / etc, etc. Throughout the week, we'll show you this awesome complex through photos.

========================================

At 10:15 am, those that played most of yesterday's game did a recovery session in the pool...the remaining players worked outside...Andre Rocha arrived early this morning and took part in practice...Juan Toja was also cleared to resume training today...

here's the lineup for this afternoon's game: 3-4-3: Daniels, Pitchkolan, Yi, Dello-Russo, Avila, Wallace, Wagner, Ibee, Oduro, Brek...we'll be back later with the result...

Above is the trophy case, which is in the foyer as you walk into the main hall (see photo above). The case, which has been added since our visit here last year, includes all the various trophies Atletico Paranaense has won - from youth tournaments (including Dallas Cup) to first team championships. Above the case you see the doors to some dorm rooms.

Previous 10, meet new 10...

Just as the game on Monday was kicking off, we were surprised to hear someone calling out names of the staff and players from beyond the fence. The voice was familiar - and then so was the face.

Former FCD midfielder Denilson came out to the CAP Training Center to pay a visit to his former teammates and coaches. Denilson is now playing at Palmeiras in Sao Paulo, which is not too far from Curitiba. They played on Sunday, and he took his day off to come see the team.

He joked with Ricardinho about taking his old number (and hair style) - as you see in the prior post, Ricardinho is now wearing # 10.

Brazil - FCD 2, Malucelli 1

A year ago we started our Brazil-leg of preseason with a 2-1 win over Serie C side J. Malucelli, with goals from Bobby Rhine and Kenny Cooper.

Fast forward to 2008 and we have similar results. FCD today opened it's Brazil preseason schedule of games with a 2-1 win over Malucelli, again with goals from Cooper and Rhine.

Six players played 90 for the first time this spring. The game ended 30 minutes ago and we're thinking that ringing noise we're still hearing is the referee still blowing his whistle.

UPDATED: Rhine was involved in both goals. First, in the 16th minute, he picked up a loose ball near the right side of midfield and quickly found Pablo Ricchetti with a forward pass. Ricchetti moved forward, waiting for Cooper to continue his run from the left before feeding him a weighted through pass just beyond the last defender. Cooper ran in unmarked and calmly lifted a shot above the keeper’s right shoulder for the 1-0 lead.

A minute before the break, Rhine again took a misplayed ball and played it forward to Abe Thompson just outside the penalty box. Thompson advanced a low pass between two defenders to Ricardinho on the left side. From a tight angle and with a defender closing in at the near post, Ricardinho sent a pass across the goalmouth, where Rhine had continued his run to easily push the ball into the back of the net.

For now, the lineup (3-4-3): Sala (Burse 46), Moor, Davino (Pitchkolan 75'), Serioux, Rhine (Dello-Russo 75'), Saragosa, Ricchetti (Wallace 68'), Wagenfuhr, Cooper, Thompson, Ricardinho (Oduro 68).

NOTE: Unfortunately we did not get video of the goals. We were actually trying to video tape the game, as well as take photos. And, wouldn't you know it, the instance we put the video camera down for 30 seconds, Kenny scores. Believe us, we were as upset as we're sure some of you are about missing the goals.

Brazil - Day 3

Another preseason trip means another round of 'Survivor' for the team. This year, the coaching staff had some fun dividing the guys into nine teams of three:

Team Brazil: Marcelo Saragosa, Ricardinho, Andre Rocha

Team Florida: Aaron Pitchkolan (for his one year at Tampa), Anthony Wallace, Blake Wagner

Team Maryland: Abe Thompson, Michael Dello-Russo, Alex Yi

Team Dallas: Chase Wileman, Drew Moor, Kenny Cooper

Team Hair: Brek Shea, Juan Toja, Adrian Serioux

Team D: Duilio Davino, Dan Kennedy, Andrew Daniels

Team Bradenton: Eric Avila, Josh Lambo, Ibee Ibrahim

Team Old Guys: Dario Sala, Bobby Rhine, Dominic Oduro

Team Married Guys: David Wagenfuhr, Pablo Ricchetti, Ray Burse (though he's not technically married).

The first Challenge: Plank Horseshoes.

What: Two hoops are placed about 25-30 yards apart. One member of the team stands next to each ring, with the third member laying in a plank position in between.

The point: One teammate had to kick the ball in the air to the other circle, and that teammate had to one-touch the ball so that it would land in the circle. Once the ball stopped in the circle, that player then went to the plank position, and the other two continued, until all three had one-touched the ball to a stand-still in the circle.

Three team's competed at the same time, with the winner of each of the three rounds then facing off for the final round.

Team Maryland won the first challenge, meaning they'll have immunity from tonight's challenge.

Brazil - Day 2

After a good night's sleep, the guys were out on the fields this morning for a training session. Other than the strong sun, the session was similar to what we've seen back at PHP.

Then, the majority of the team went to Kyocera Arean and watched Atletico Paranaense defeat Toledo 4-1 in a Parana State Tournament Game. For CAP, they extend their longest undefeated streak in team history, now standing at 13-0-1 in the tournament.

Dinner was served at 7 p.m., and an evening weight and core session ended the night. Some other notes:
* The game against Atletico Paranaense was originally scheduled for March 5, which was intended to be a doubleheader (they have two ‘first’ teams, A and B). However, the Copa do Brasil game was moved to March 6, therefore our game was also moved.
* With the change of game date, we’ve added another game. On Monday, we’ll play Brazilian side J. Malucelli here at the CAP training center at 4 pm (that's 1 pm for those in Texas). Some may recall we also played this team in 2007
* On Tuesday, the guys that don’t get much time in Monday’s game will play the CAP U-20 team, also here at the training center.
* Jorge Alvial did not accompany the team to Brazil. He had a doctors appointment on Thursday, and was advised to have a medical procedure performed relatively quickly. Therefore, he set up his appointment for this upcoming week.
* Doudou Toure also did not travel. By having refugee status due to his birth in Mauritania, he was still receiving proper documentation to allow him to travel.
* The team has waived its rights to Scott Jones and Sandy Gbandi, officially. At the end of 07, MLS informed team's that they didn't need to waive a player if they thought they may want to keep him the following season. However, since neither was offered a contract for 08, the team now had to waive their rights to the players.
* (UPDATED - 9:30 am) Andre Rocha has not joined the team, yet. He actually flew down on Thursday, with an appointment for his P-1 visa interview set for Friday in Sao Paulo. However, with his flight arriving three hours late on Friday, he missed the appointment. We were fortunate to get him another appointment for Monday afternoon, and are therefore expecting him to arrive at the CAP training center on Monday evening.

Morrow: Roberto Mina

Steve Morrow on Roberto Mina:

"Just to bring everyone up to speed on Roberto Mina’s status with regard to our team.

There was a proposal sent to Roberto and his representatives before he came to Dallas that was agreed to by all parties. As we’ve stated before, we did not ask Roberto to come here on trial. He was here to prove his fitness, and obviously, having spent so long on the sidelines, we wanted to make sure his previous injuries did not limit what we already knew he was capable of on the field.

After his first week with us, we saw progress but felt we needed more time to evaluate him further. We sat down with him a few days before leaving for Brazil and told him and his agent that we were satisfied with his fitness, and we expressed to them how much we wanted to have Roberto as part of our plans here at FC Dallas.

At that point, we informed his agent that we would like to proceed with the agreed-to contract to enable Roberto to join the team in Brazil. As with every other player, the final points on contracts are finalized by the league office.

On Friday afternoon, as the team was preparing to travel, with a flight for Roberto, his agents informed us that their talks with the league had collapsed. This came as a major surprise to us, after believing that all parties were happy and committed.

Regretfully at this point, Roberto and his agents have decided to move on and explore other opportunities."

Back in Brazil...

The team arrived to DFW Airport at 6:00pm on Friday and, while it took a little longer than normal, everyone checked in without a problem.

After we had passed through the security check point, we were surprised to see another MLS team also waiting for their flight. Real Salt Lake were at the next gate over at they were heading down to Argentina on a flight that left 10 minutes before ours. Our players took the opportunity to catch up with old acquaintances and the numerous RSL team members that had ties to Dallas; General Manager Garth Lagerwey, Head Coach Jason Kreis, Ast. Coach Jeff Cassar, equipment manager Kevin Harter and midfielder Cary Tally to name a few.

The travel gods continued to look over us on our trip to Sao Paulo as we took off and arrived on time (The same flight the day before was 3 hours late). We were pleasantly surprised to see no line to clear customs and so everyone (with visas in hand) went through in 10 minutes. No bags were lost and after a short walk to the next terminal we checked into our flight on TAM airlines with 90 minutes to spare.

The entire team was in the waiting area 30 minutes before the flight was scheduled to depart when someone uttered the fateful and untimely "this trip has gone so smoothly, nothing has gone wrong." And…no less than 5 minutes later we were notified that the flight was being moved to Gate 11. No biggie, just a walk a few gates over.

Fifteen minutes after we resettle ourselves, a TAM gate agent approaches asking who is in charge. They are not comfortable with the soccer balls flying down to Curitiba, since they are afraid that the balls will explode once we get in the air. Even though we deflate the balls in order to travel, they cite safety concerns. So they bring all 40 soccer balls from the luggage hold to us in the waiting area. Evidently the new adidas ball has a stronger core to it so even when deflated it still keeps its round shape.

With Marcelo's help, but to no avail, we try to reason with them and point out that the balls just made a 10 hour flight from Dallas and both the balls and the passengers arrived safely. After going back and forth with the Gate Agent, we were able to find a needle so that we could let out the little air that remained in the balls. That was enough to pass the TAM safety test, so they took the 40 balls back to the tarmac and loaded them on to the plane – and after an hour delay, we were able to board.

The flight to Curitiba was quick and our entire luggage, including the 40 balls, made it with out a problem. As we were exiting the terminal, there was a group of 20 fans - some wearing FC Dallas jerseys - that were waiting to greet the team, get autographs and have their picture taken with the players.

It's a 30 minute ride to the CAP complex where lunch was waiting for us.

The players had two hours on their own to eat, unpack, and catch up on some sleep before a 5:30pm practice. Practice was just over an hour and focused on getting the player's legs going again after the 19 hour journey from Dallas to Curitiba. Tomorrow there will be a practice in the morning and then the FC Dallas players and staff will go to Kyocera Arena to watch CAP play in one of their regular season games.

Sueno MLS - Round of 60

The Sueno MLS Round of 60 tryouts were held today at Pizza Hut Park. Remember, last weekend 2,000 particpants from all over the country (and a few from other countries) came to PHP for the tryouts held from Feb. 22-25. The FCD coaching staff selected only 60 players from that group to move on.

After a brief warm-up, the 60 players were divided into four teams of 15 each. Each team played three 40 min games vs. the other teams and at the end of the day, FCD assistant coach Jorge Alvial notified the 18 players who will move on to the next round. Those 18 players will be invited back to PHP to train next weekend Mar. 8 and scrimmage a local TBD team on March 15. The names of the 18 will be announced Sunday morning on Univision’s top-rated weekly sports magazine show, República Deportiva (10 am - Noon CT).