Between Games...

With the team coming off last night’s friendly against Chivas de Guadalajara and heading into Tuesday’s U.S. Open Cup 3rd Round matchup with Miami FC, today’s training session was fairly light. The guys started warming up at 11 a.m. and practice officially ended a little after Noon, although many of the guys stayed on the field to get some extra work in.

Below, Adrian Serioux looks on as Dominic Oduro works on some quick touches with Marco Ferruzzi…
Meanwhile, Chase Wileman lines up for a shot as Josh Lambo recovers from the previous one in a quick turn / finishing drill.
After taking knocks in last night’s game Arturo Alvarez (right quad) and Bobby Rhine (left foot) stayed inside today and are not expected to play against Miami FC tomorrow night. In addition, Pablo Ricchetti (right foot) and Marcelo Saragosa (right ankle) were out on the field today, but both worked off to the side with the training staff before heading in early. It looks like Pablo might also be out for tomorrow, while Marcelo’s status is questionable.

REMINDER: All-Star voting ends on Wednesday

A reminder that voting for the 2008 MLS All-Star game ends on Wednesday, July 2. Fans are able to cast up to 10 votes per day (click here to vote). The MLS All-Star First XI, which will consist of one goalkeeper, three defenders, five midfielders and two forwards, will be announced on July 10.

The First XI are determined by online fan balloting comprising 25 percent of the total vote, with MLS coaches and GMs (25 percent), media (25 percent) and players (25 percent) accounting for the remainder. On July 15, Steve Nicol and his staff will select five All-Stars who will join two Commissioner's selections to complete the MLS 18-man roster.

The 13th annual MLS All-Star game features the MLS stars taking on West Ham United of the English Premier League at BMO Field in Toronto, July 24 at 7 p.m. ET.

FCD 1, Guadalajara (Chivas) 2

UPDATE (post-game): FC Dallas surrendered two late goals to give Chivas de Guadalajara a 2-1 win in a friendly exhibition on Sunday night at Pizza Hut Park.

Juan Toja gave Dallas the lead in the 21st minute, knocking in a corner kick from Andre Rocha. FCD made nine changes in the second half, with only Dario Sala, Duilio Davino, and Blake Wagner playing the full 90 minutes.

Ricardinho and Brek Shea had the two best chances to stretch the lead. In the 75th minute, Ricardinho broke free on a one-on-one, but Chivas keeper Luis Michel did well to cut the angel and make the save. A minute later, Brek Shea’s header from eight yards out went just over the crossbar.

Chivas drew even in the 82nd minute, when Ramon Morales converted a penalty kick after Dallas defender Michael Dello-Russo tripped Antonio Salazar. Guadalajara took the lead four minutes later on a goal from Marco Fabian, who intercepted an errant pass from FCD’s Anthony Wallace and raced around Dario Sala before shooting in from 25 yards out.

SCORING SUMMARY:
DAL – Juan Toja (Andre Rocha) 21’
GUA – Ramon Morales (Penalty kick) 82’
GUA – Marco Fabian (unassisted) 86’

FC DALLAS (3-4-1-2): Dario Sala, Drew Moor (Aaron Pitchkolan 70), Duilio Davino, Blake Wagner, Adrian Serioux (Michael Dello-Russo 75), Marcelo Saragosa (Anthony Wallace 46), Andre Rocha (Bobby Rhine 61, Andrew Daniels 88), Arturo Alvarez (Brek Shea 46), Juan Toja (Chase Wileman 54), Abe Thompson (Eric Avila 68), Dominic Oduro (Ricardinho 59).

GUADALAJARA: 1-Luis Michel, 18-Xavier Baez, 4-Hector Reynoso, 17-Antonio Olvera, 6-Omar Esparza (21-Jorge Cardenas 78), 16-Edgar Solis (7-Julio Cesar Nava 46), 20-Edgar Mejia, 13-Sergio Avila (8-Marco Fabian 65) 11-Ramon Morales (3-Juan Ocampo 90), 9-Omar Arrellano (23-Antonio Salazar 65), 15-Jesus Padilla (2-Javier Ledesma 91+).
===================================================
The team is starting off with a 3-4-1-2 formation...there will be unlimited subs, so just about everyone is available. As we mentioned yesterday, Kenny is being rested, Pablo is out with an injured right foot, and Ray is up in Portland getting his belongings.

The starters:
-------------------Sala----------------------
-----Moor--------Davino----------Wagner---
-------------Serioux----Saragosa-----------
----Rocha--------------------------Alvarez---
----------------------Toja--------------------
------------Thompson-----Oduro---------

UEFA EURO 2008: Spain vs. Germany

ABC Sports has a doubleheader of soccer today, starting with the LA Galaxy at DC United game (11 am CT) and then followed by the UEFA EURO 2008 Final between Spain and Germany at 1:30 pm CT.

Give your thoughts on the tourney, a prediction, etc. in the comments...

I'll get it started: it's awesome that all the games have been available on TV (or online)...the games have been great (overall)...I'm picking Spain. (Grammar corrected for #2).

Training for Chivas

While 18 guys traveled to Houston on Wednesday, the rest of the guys took part in some intense conditioning drills on Thursday and Friday mornings. Today, the entire team was back together on the adidas Field - getting ready for Sunday night's game versus Chivas Guadalajara...

Schellas tells us that Pablo won't play, since he picked up a right foot injury at Houston...he also tells us it's likely they'll rest Kenny...Ray is finishing up with Portland tonight at Atlanta, so he'll be out as well...other than that, we're expecting all the players to be available...we'll talk with the Chivas coaches and the refs before the game to determine the number of subs allowed...

On Friday, we asked Schellas his thoughts on approaching the three games this week:

“That’s going to be a real task for us, because we want to see as many players as we can in competition, and obviously its good competition...But to give everybody playing time, we also realize we have to give other players rest. So the trick is to put a good, competitive team out on the field; play good, attractive soccer; try to get results; and give younger players an opportunity to give the veterans a break as well to give themselves another opportunity to be seen.”

Sala in Heroes Celebrity Baseball Game

Last night, Juan Toja and Adrian Serioux were invited by Envy Magazine to be celebrity judges for the Miss Envy 2008 Model Search held at House of Blues...there was no need to twist either of their arms in order to participate...

Tonight, Dario Sala will join other famous faces from Hollywood, the NFL, NHL, NBA, MLB, and more at the Seventh Annual Reebok Heroes Celebrity Baseball Game at the Dr Pepper Ballpark in Frisco. Kenny Cooper, Abe Thompson, and Aaron Pitchkolan will also be involved in some of the activities (not the game).

Dario joins other local athletes like Mike Modano, Brenden Morrow, Michael Irvin, Jason Terry and DeMarcus Ware, as well as TV and movie stars for the benefit game. Money raised will benefit the children’s charities of The Heroes Foundation YOUniversity Program and The Mike Modano Foundation.

The Homerun derby starts at 4 pm, and celebrity game at 6 pm. Click here for more info.

Guadalajara arrives...

California-born Chivas forward Jesus Padilla is interviewed by local ESPN Deportes radio's Jesus Padilla...
=====================================

Just as we were set to kickoff Thursday's game in Houston, Chivas Guadalajara arrived into DFW on a flight from Phoenix around 7:45 pm. Chivas began it's preseason tour on Wednesday, losing 1-0 to the New York Red Bulls in Arizona.

The team trained this morning on Field #5 at Pizza Hut Park. As expected, fans showed up to watch the training...what was not expected - the Chivas staff inviting the fans inside the gate to watch from up close...afterwards, all players and coaches posed for photos and signed autographs...they will train again at 10 am on Saturday.

CHIVAS ROSTER:
GOALKEEPERS: Luis Michel, Sergio Rodríguez
DEFENDERS: Javier Ledezma, Juan Ocampo, Héctor Reynoso, Mario de Luna, Antonio Olvera de los Santos
MIDFIELDERS: Omar Esparza, Julio César Nava, Marco Fabián de la Mora, Ramón Morales, Sergio Ávila, Édgar Iván Solís, Xavier Báez Gamiño, Alejandro Galván, Édgar Mejía, Jorge Adrián Cárdenas
FORWARDS: Alberto Medina Briseño, Javier Hernández Balcazar, Jesús Andrés Padilla, Antonio Salazar, Omar Arellano.
Mexico National team regulars Ramon Morales (left) and Hector Reynoso are among the most popular players here...

FCD 1, HOU 1

UPDATED: Down 1-0 at halftime, the team switched to a 3-5-2 and pulled together in the second half, with Kenny notching the equalizer off a pinpoint cross from Toja out on the left flank. FCD claims the regular season series based on away goals (FCD 4 - HOU 2), which means "El Capitan" will be back in Dallas next season!

Full recap, box score, highlights, etc. at fcdallas.com
=================================================
Here we go. It’s the third and final game of the 2008 regular season series between FC Dallas and the Houston Dynamo, and “El Capitan” is up for grabs. While the two previous games ended in draws, Dallas can claim the series trophy for the first time with a win or even a tie (based on FCD’s 3-2 edge in away goals scored).

While we’re still about 10 minutes away from kickoff, the day has already gotten off to a good start for Dallas. The FCD Juniors and Houston Dynamo U-16 and U-18 teams squared off earlier today, marking the first-ever competition for the Juniors sides. The FCD U-16’s won their match 3-1, with scoring from Moises Hernandez, Chris Figueroa and Ruben Luna. The U-18 match ended in a 1-1 tie, with Gabriel Funes scoring on a free kick from about 25 yards out.

The current temperature is hovering around 80 degrees, and it has rained on and off a bit here today. Tonight's forecast indicates a 50% chance of thunderstorms. Yuck!

Schellas is sticking with the 4-4-2 formation that he introduced last weekend at New York, although there are a few changes in the lineup. Here’s how it looks…

------------------------ Sala -----------------------
Moor --- Pitchkolan --- Davino --- Serioux
---------------------- Ricchetti --------------------
----- Saragosa ---------------------- Toja ------
----------------------- Rocha ---------------------
--------------- Cooper ---- Alvarez -------------

Three FCD Players up for Sports Awards

Dario Sala, Pablo Ricchetti, and Juan Toja are nominees for the first ever "Tecate Premios Deportes" (Tecate Sports Awards), as announced by Univision today. Comprised of Hispanic athletes in ten different categories, the nominees were selected for their talent, character and perseverance, as well as their contributions to and impact on the Hispanic community.

The nominees were selected by a distinguished panel of current and former professional athletes and sports writers. The judging criteria for the awards included the athletes' statistical excellence, participation in a televised professional sport in the United States during 2007, cumulative impact on their team and in the sport, and their reputation as a role model for the Hispanic community.

The FCD players are up for the All-Star Team of the Year, nominated with two other players from Mexico's First Division in their respective positions: Dario's competition is Club America's Guillermo Ochoa and Atlante's Federico Villar...Pablo is up against Gerardo Torrado of Cruz Azul and Jaime Correa from Pachuca for Defensive Midfielder...and Toja is grouped with Chivas Guadalajara's Ramon Morales and Toluca's Antonio Naelson Zinha for best midfielder.

The awards will be presented during a celebrity-filled "red carpet" celebration at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, California, and will be broadcast on the Univision Network on Sunday, July 20th. Unfortunately, we just found out about this - and online voting apparently is closed. Congrats to all three for being nominated!

Other MLS players are also nominated. Click here for full release.

On to Houston...

The team left for Houston this afternoon, after another good workout this morning...yesterday, we caught up with Schellas and Drew Moor after training...UPDATED: The players that traveled are: Sala, Burse, Moor, Pitchkolan, Rhine, Serioux, Wagner, Davino, Alvarez, Ricchetti, Toja, McCarty, Oduro, Thompson, Rocha, Saragosa, Avila, and Cooper.

Open Cup update

Tonight, U.S. Soccer announced that the winner of the FC Dallas versus Miami game will advance to the Quarterfinal to face the winner of the 3rd Round match between the Charleston Battery (USL 1) and Houston Dynamo (MLS), which will be played on July 1 at Blackbaud Stadium in Charleston, South Carolina.

If we get past Miami, we'll host either Charleston or Houston at Pizza Hut Park on Tuesday, July 8 (7:30 p.m. CT).

FCD to Host Miami FC in Open Cup

FCD will host Miami FC (United Soccer League's 1st Division) in the 3rd Round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday, July 1 at Pizza Hut Park (7:30 pm CT). Miami tonight defeated the Atlanta Silverbacks 1-0 in the second round to advance. Click here to learn more about Miami. You'll notice they are on a seven-game undefeated streak, and their roster includes many players with MLS experience.

Season ticket holders should use Bonus Game C for the game. If you don't have tickets, call the front office for more info - 888.FCD.GOAL.

Media stuff and more...

Today was busy, but we're not complaining...among the things that kept us busy were: Duilio taping a commercial for Univision...

Marcelo and his wife and son in a photo shoot for a local youth sports magazine...Kenny on the ESPN.com chat...setting up Juan for an ESPN Deportes interview...Schellas taping a phone interview with GolTV...plenty of email / phone exchanges with ESPN ahead of the Thursday game...a photo shoot with a local newspaper photographer at Brek and Lambo's apartment...our own video interviews to shoot (we'll post on Wednesday)...media at practice...and, well, more stuff that kept us busy...

Not much to share from practice today - media was asking about Cooper, about Ricardinho, about Houston, about formations, etc..we'll see what they report back, but we'll also post some of the comments here on Wednesday (couldn't get to them today).

One note to share is that Schellas wants Ray Burse to stay...Ray will join Portland on Friday for two upcoming game this weekend (at Carolina and at Atlanta), then come back to Dallas to remain with us moving forward...

Tonight we'll know who we play in the U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday, July 1...Atlanta plays at Miami - if Miami wins, we host them...if Atlanta wins, we travel to Atlanta next Tuesday. Click here to track all Open Cup games...

Cooper Chat on ESPN.com

If you have questions for Kenny Cooper, here's your chance to try to ask them...Kenny will be chatting on espn.com today at 2 pm CT...Click here to send you questions or to follow along...

Returning...

The team was back out on the adidas Field this morning from 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. after practicing inside the stadium all last week. For the record, the blog staff misses the stadium field sessions because of the wonderful shade that can be found on the stage. It’s a bit harder to escape the sun out on the adidas Field, but enough about us...

Adrian Serioux has rejoined the team after spending the past two weeks with the Canadian National Team for World Cup Qualifying. Canada advanced past St. Vincent and the Grenadines with a 4-1 win last Friday (7-1 aggregate).

Drew Moor and Brek Shea were absent this morning, as they’re flying back from Barbados with the U.S. National Team. The U.S. advanced 9-0 on aggregate after the 1-0 victory yesterday at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados.

There are no new injuries to report today as everybody participated in full training.

UPDATED (3 p.m.): We forgot to mention earlier that goalkeeper Ray Burse was also here this morning and will remain with the team through Thursday night's game down in Houston.

Schellas on Sports Extra Tonight

The team returns from New York today and the players will have the rest of the day off, before before a quick turnaround to begin preparing for the game down in Houston this Thursday night. 

Before you hit the hay tonight, make sure to tune in to Sports Extra with Derek Castillo (NBC 5 at 10:30 p.m.), as Schellas Hyndman will be a guest on the show. 

FCD 0, NY Red Bulls 1

UPDATED (post-game) - Not the was Schellas wanted to start off...the results evens the all-time series with NY at 15-15-2, and interestingly, also evens the record at Giants Stadium to 8-8-1... Schellas becomes the 60th head / interim coach in MLS history - MLS coaches are now 27-22-11 in their first league games (doesn't count those who have filled in when head coaches are out with red card or other reasons)...

As always, recap, boxscore, highlights, quotes, etc at fcdallas.com.
-----------------------------
We're going with a flat back four tonight, and kind of diamond shape in the middle...something like this:
----------------------Sala---------------------
--Rhine----Pitchkolan--Davino----Wagner---
--------------------Ricchetti------------------
----------Rocha----------------Saragosa------
----------------------Toja---------------------
-------------Cooper----Oduro--------------

Brek joins Drew in Barbados

So now you know Brek didn't travel with us to New York. Instead, he had a 5:40 am flight from Dallas to Barbados, to join FCD teammate Drew Moor and the U.S. Men's National Team for the second-leg of the World Cup Qualifier.

For Brek, it's first-ever call up to the full Men's National Team...Last summer, he was on the U.S. U-17 team at the U-17 World Cup in Korea...In January, we drafted him with the #2 overall pick...then, in April he was called in to the U.S. U-20's for a tournament in Portugal...and, just last month, he joined the U.S. U-23's for the Toulon Tournament in France.

The U.S. vs. Barbados game in on Sunday at 2 pm CT, live on ESPN Classic and Galavision. You can follow along with the National team through their blog.

The travel party...

Not our regular travel day: The flight left on time...we arrived into Newark Airport 30 minutes early...all our bags made it...the bus was on time...and we have all the keys ready for our hotel rooms...we're sitting here at the Crowne Plaza waiting for our team meal - instead of the meal waiting for us...anyways, we'll take the good start to the trip.

The travel party consists of 19 players, four coaches, and the team staff: Dario Sala, Ray Burse, Bobby Rhine, Duilio Davino, Aaron Pitchkolan, Blake Wagner, Michael Dello-Russo, Andrew Daniels, Anthony Wallace, Eric Avila, Juan Toja, Pablo Ricchetti, Marcelo Saragosa, Andre Rocha, Dax McCarty, Arturo Alvarez, Dominic Oduro, Abe Thompson, Kenny Cooper...Schellas, John Ellinger, Marco, and Drew.

New York, New York

The team held its final practice this morning before flying to New York for Saturday night’s game against the Red Bulls.

Duilio Davino participated in full training today for the first time this week. Right before the end of the session, the training staff had Davino do some cutting and sprints to test his ankle further, which he completed with no apparent problems. Ray Burse was back out on the field again after his practice was cut short yesterday, when he took a knock to his left thumb.

The guys have boarded the bus and are off to the airport. Fans can watch the game at home live on Fox Soccer Channel and Fox Sports en Espanol (6:30 p.m. CT), or join other FCD supporters at Lochrann’s, located across the street from Pizza Hut Park. Read all about how Dallas matches up against the Red Bulls here and check out the NY preview video clips below featuring Schellas Hyndman, Dax McCarty and Arturo Alvarez....

FCD vs. New York Preview

Schellas Hyndman, Dax McCarty and Arturo Alvarez (Spanish) talk about adjusting to change, the team's recent form, and taking on the New York Red Bulls this Saturday...

In the Stadium

The skies were dark with thunder and lightning in the distance early this morning. The practice was scheduled for 9 am, but the team decided to wait out the clouds...

We've not forgotten how fortunate we are to have our own facility, thinking back to the old days when the team had no place to wait out such weather. So, while some guys lounged around watching TV and adjusting to the earlier wake up calls, others worked out in the gym, some used the hot and cold tubs, and yet others used the time to sharpen up their ping pong game. The sun came out by 10:15 a.m., at which point the guys were more than ready to get on the field.

For the second consecutive day the team practiced on the Stadium Field, while the adidas Field is undergoing regular maintenance. One thing we noticed right away that was different from last week, was that there were four coaches out there, including John Ellinger. Another was the type of drills the team went through - as we're sure you've read by now, the staff is introducing the guys to possibility of playing with a 4-4-2 formation, which is different that they've played for most of the year.

We've got some uncertainty in the defense this week, at least with regard to the guys that have gotten the most minutes back there this year. Drew is with the U.S. team, and Adrian is with the Canadian team - so neither will be available. And, Duilio has not participated in full training this week after injuring his left ankle at around the 70th minute in the Chicago game. He played through it at the time, but it's been bothering him since.

On a positive, Dax was back out on the field this morning, working through drills with the full team after sitting out Wednesday's practice.

Ray Burse stayed with the team this week after coming in for the Chicago game. However, he had to leave practice early today after taking a knock on his sore left thumb (which he injured just prior to the NE game).
Drew worked with the keepers, making full use of having the stadium walls. In the drill shown above, he'd rip shots off the wall, allowing the keepers to work on quick reflexes by reacting to the direction the ball would take off the wall.

Practice is at 9:00 a.m. on Friday, with the team flying out to New York in the early afternoon for Saturday night's game against the Red Bulls.

More foosball...

Lots of fun was had last week at the foosball tourney...thanks to all those that attended...you may see yourself in the video below:

Moor going to Barbados

Drew Moor today was called to U.S. Men’s National Team for the upcoming 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying game versus Barbados. He'll report to the team tonight in Miami, Florida, and is not expected to rejoin us until next Monday. The game at Barbados is on Sunday, June 22 at 2 p.m. CT (live on ESPN Classic and Galavision.)

Drew has made four appearances for the U.S. National team, including two this year, the most recent on February 6, 2008 in a 2-2 draw with Mexico in Houston.

The U.S. opened 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying on June 15 by opening the first leg of their Second Round two-game series against Barbados with an historic 8-0 victory at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. The eight-goal win is the largest margin of victory ever in U.S. Men’s National Team history, and ties the record for the most goals scored by the U.S. in a match.

Schellas Hyndman Introduced

New FC Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman. PHOTO: Rick Yeatts / FC Dallas
==========================================

We had a great media turnout today for the press conference introducing Schellas Hyndman as head coach, and looking from up front it, looked like almost the entire team was in attendance as well.

Outlets represented: WFAA 8 / KFWD-52, CBS 11 / KTXA 21, NBC 5 / Telemundo, Univision / CW 33, and Fox 4; Associated Press, 3rdDegree, MLSnet (ENG and SPA), Star-Telegram, Dallas Morning News / Al Dia, Sportsticker, DallasSoccerNews, ESPN Deportes Radio, Pegasus News.

Click here for the official release. Click here to watch the press conference if you missed it.

FCD 2, DFW Tornado 0

With the introduction of the Open Cup schedule, and with a few changes to first team games, MLS teams have had a difficult time getting reserve games in - Dallas included (we've had four re-scheduled). So, the staff arranged a scrimmage against the DFW Tornados (PDL team), in order to get the guys some competition - that's not within themselves.

It took a bit of time but Chase Wileman finally opened the scoring in the 75th minute, working a nice combination with Ricardinho before slotting home a shot from near the goal on the right side.

Guest player Spencer Wadsworth made it 2-0 about a minute after replacing Abe Thompson in the 80th minute. Wadsworth, timing his run to the top of the six, met a curving cross from Bobby Rhine from the right side and slid it past the on-rushing keeper.

Josh Lambo played his first competitive minutes in goal since the injury back on March 30.

Here's how FCD lineup up today: Josh Lambo, Andrew Daniels, Aaron Pitchkolan, Michael Dello-Russo, Anthony Wallace, Dax McCarty (Chase Wileman), Eric Avila, Bobby Rhine, Brek Shea, Abe Thompson (Spencer Wadsworth), Ricardinho.

UPDATED (after first two comments): the game was played on the stadium field, while the adidas Field undergoes some regular maintenance. Marco and Drew coached the team, lining the guys up in a 4-4-2.

Schellas Hyndman Named FCD Head Coach

FC Dallas General Manager Michael Hitchcock announced today that Schellas Hyndman has been hired as the team’s head coach. Hyndman replaces Steve Morrow, who was relieved of his coaching duties on May 20.

Hitchcock will introduce Hyndman to the media at a press conference on Tuesday, June 17 at Pizza Hut Park at 11 a.m. CT. Hyndman joins FC Dallas after 31 seasons as a college head coach, the past 24 as the head coach of nearby Southern Methodist University (SMU).

FCD Jrs. to Play in SUM U-17 Cup

Soccer United Marketing today announced details of the second annual Youth Development soccer tournament, SUM U-17 Cup, which kicks off on Friday, July 4 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. The tournament features 14 Major League Soccer sponsored U-17 Youth Development teams.

The champion will take home the coveted SUM U-17 Cup and earns the opportunity to participate in the 2009 Trofeo Quixote U-17 tournament in Madrid, Spain. The second place team will gain entry into the prestigious Super Group in the 2009 Dallas Cup youth tournament in Frisco, Texas. The losing semifinalists will participate in the Dallas Cup U-19 group.

This tournament is being hosted at no cost to all participants as Soccer United Marketing covers the costs of player travel, accommodations and other tournament-related expenses.

The preliminary SUM U-17 Cup schedule is as follows:
July 4 – Round Robin Matchday 1
July 5 – Round Robin Matchday 2
July 7 – Round Robin Matchday 3
July 8 – Semi Finals
July 10 – Final

Group A: D.C. United, Colorado (A), Houston, Chicago.
Group B: Kansas City, Toronto, Colorado (B), New England.
Group C: FC Dallas, Chivas USA, Columbus Crew.
Group D: Los Angeles, Real Salt Lake, New York.

Since Groups C and D have three teams, each team will play a team from the other group to round off group play. FCD was were drawn to play the LA Galaxy.

FCD 1, Chicago 0

UPDATED (postgame): FCD today extended it's home undefeated streak versus Chicago to 11 consecutive games (10-0-1)...the last time Chicago won in Dallas was last century - on July 4, 1999 at the Cotton Bowl.

Kenny Cooper has now played in four games against Chicago, and he's scored in all four...this was his third game-winning goals against the Fire.

Recap, boxscore, highlights, etc at fcdallas.com.

(2:15 pm) It's hot out here today, temps reaching past 100 degrees down on the field before kickoff. FCD lines up in a 3-1-4-2 today, with Pablo Ricchetti again in the role in front of the three defenders. Not that we get into formations much, just thought we'd point out how the team drew it up.

"How to Miss: 101"

Blake Wagner introduces this clip of him, Eric Avila and Brek Shea taking penalty kicks after practice today as "How To Miss: 101." But with Brek and Eric in goal, we're thinking we might need to change the title...

Previewing Chicago...

Ten-year FC Dallas veteran Bobby Rhine gives us a look at this Sunday's matchup against the Chicago Fire....


... and Duilio Davino addresses the media in Spanish about facing former Club America teammate Cuauhtehmoc Blanco for the first time in MLS play.

Breaking News - Ibrahim traded to Toronto

Today we completed a trade that sees Abdus Ibrahim go to Toronto FC in exchange for a conditional draft pick in the 2010 MLS SuperDraft.

FC Dallas will acquire Toronto’s natural first round selection if: Ibrahim plays in 10 or more 2009 MLS regular season games, or, if he is sold or loaned, or traded to another MLS team before the 2010 MLS SuperDraft. If none of the condition above are met, Dallas will receive Toronto’s natural second round selection in the 2010 MLS SuperDraft. In addition, Dallas will receive 50 percent of any transfer fee if Ibrahim is transferred from an MLS club to one overseas.

Most fans of the FCD blog know he's been away from the team for some time now on personal leave. Given his age and his expressed desire to be close to his family at this time, we felt this was best for him.

Zarco in the House

A surprise guest showed up to training today: former Dallas player Jorge ‘Zarco’ Rodriguez. The 1998 team MVP and three-time Dallas Defender of the Year (1998, 2000, 2001) chatted during practice with his former coach and current FC Dallas color commentator, Dave Dir. After practice, Zarco caught up with fellow El Salvadoran Arturo Alvarez inside the locker room.

Jorge Zambrano from Univision’s Contacto Deportivo also stopped by this morning to conduct interviews with several FCD players. Of course, he talked with Duilio Davino about facing Chicago’s Cuahtehmoc Blanco, his long-time teammate at Club America. Zambrano also spoke with Arturo Alvarez, Dario Sala, Pablo Ricchetti, Juan Toja and everyone’s favorite FCDTV guest reporter, Eric Avila. The interviews should run on Contacto either Friday or Saturday, so keep an eye out for that.

And after stepping off the training field, Kenny Cooper and Dominic Oduro took the time to visit with about 50 young attendees of the FC Dallas School of Excellence Soccer Training Camps.

U.S. Open Cup info...

U.S. Soccer has announced the third round possible pairings for the 2008 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Results from the second round of play on June 24 will determine the potential matchups and venues for the third round to take place on July 1.

FC Dallas will play the winner of the Second Round game between Miami FC and the Atlanta Silverbacks, both of the United Soccer League’s First Division, which will take place on June 24 at Tropical Park in Miami, Fla.

If Atlanta defeats Miami, FC Dallas will visit the Silverback for the Third Round game on July 1 at RE/MAX Stadium (Atlanta, Ga.). If Miami defeats Atlanta, then FC Dallas will host Miami at Pizza Hut Park on July 1.

The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the U.S. Soccer Federation’s National Championship, is an annual competition open to all amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. It is the oldest annual team tournament in U.S. sports history and among the oldest soccer tournaments of its type in the world. In 1999, the competition was renamed to honor long-time soccer pioneer Lamar Hunt. Click here for more.

Hitchcock - On the coaching process...

Dear FC Dallas Fans:

I wanted to take this time to inform you on where we are with the search for the next head coach of FC Dallas.

Over the past few weeks we’ve diligently reviewed over 50 potential candidates that we felt may be able to lead our team on the field. The process was at times difficult and time consuming. Some of the candidates we wanted to interview were employed by other teams and organizations, and so we first needed to request permission from their current employers before even approaching them.

At the same time, we also received a number of inquiries from others that were interested in interviewing for the position. Out of respect for those we interviewed and those we did not, we won’t mention names. However, we can tell you that both our league and team has attracted the interest and attention of many well-qualified candidates.

Once we narrowed our list of candidates, we invited a select few to interview. After talking to the finalists, we met to discuss who we felt was the right person to lead our team at this time.

We’ve now reached the final stages of the process, and expect to be able to make a formal announcement to present the new FC Dallas head coach early next week.

I also want to take this time to thank Marco Ferruzzi, Drew Keeshan, and the players, who have shown great commitment and professionalism throughout this process.

Once again, thanks for your support of FC Dallas.

Michael Hitchcock
General Manager
FC Dallas / Pizza Hut Park

Foosball Tourney on Thursday

If you've checked out the official site, you know about the Foosball Tourney on Thursday, June 12 at Sherlock's Baker St. Pub & Grill (8 pm CT). If you haven't checked the site, here's the scoop.

Fans are invited to take on FC Dallas players & fellow fans in a one-off elimination style foosball tournament. You can also partner up with a player for $10 with all proceeds benefiting the FC Dallas Foundation. There's no need to sign up, just join us at the bar.

Sherlock's Baker St. Pub & Grill is located at 9100 N. Central Expressway, Ste 141, Dallas, TX 75231, on the corner of Park Ln & Central Expressway.