Lion Links
Lion Links: 6/8/15
Welcome to Monday, everyone. Yeah, it's tough, but we'll get through it.
It’s always easier to face a Monday morning when Orlando City wins over the weekend, and so it was at Chicago on Saturday night. It allows us to go into work stylin’ as if we were players for Zenit St. Petersburg.
Let's get to your Monday Lion Links, starting with all the info you need from Saturday's win, such as:
- Gavin's match recap from the dramatic victory
- Andrew M's player ratings for all who participated
- My five takeaways from the match
Josh Ford Finally Sees the Field
For the first time in 2015, Orlando City goalkeeper got some playing time, starting Saturday night for the NASL's Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Unfortunately, Ford and the Strikers came out on the losing end of a 2-1 scoreline. Indy 11 scored the game winner in the fourth minute of stoppage to deny Ford a result in his first action of the season.
Pineda also scored the equalizer for Indy when he beat new Strikers goalkeeper Josh Ford low to the far post also from the edge of the box. Dylan Mares set up Pineda with a short pass. Ford was acquired on loan from Major League Soccer’s Orlando City SC the same day that the club learned David Meves suffered a fractured jaw in the U.S. Open Cup match at Charleston Battery on May 27.
USMNT Won't Face Mats Hummels in Germany Friendly
When the U.S. takes on Germany on Wednesday a key cog in the European club's defense will be missing. Central defender Mats Hummels will miss Germany's next two matches. The Borussia Dortmund man has picked up a hip injury, the German federation (DFB) announced. Hummels has been ailing for a few weeks and won't be available for either Wednesday’s friendly against the USMNT or Saturday’s Euro qualification match against Gibraltar. Hopefully the Yanks can put another four goals on the board like they did against the Netherlands.
U-23 USMNT Takes Third in Toulon
OCSC right back Tyler Turner came on in the 55th minute in the U.S. U-23 team’s 2-1 victory over England in the third-place match of the Toulon Tournament in France. The third-place finish equals our country’s best finish in the invitation-only tournament in southern France, showing that the country is starting to become more competitive at the youth level, which is a step toward catching up at the senior level.
FIFA Scandal Grows More Disgusting Daily
Just when you think the grimy, sordid details of FIFA's wrongdoing can't get any worse, it manages to sink to another level. Yesterday, word came out that FIFA may have awarded South Africa the 2010 World Cup even though Morocco won the vote.
"After talking with everybody … whose votes went where? We're all colleagues, you know. And then we found out that actually Morocco won by two votes." Although he admits it is possible some people lied about how they voted, Bhamjee said he was convinced Morocco won.
Yuck. Just…yuck. Go away FIFA and never come back. The Mane Land will be happy to serve as the game's worldwide governing body.
Germany Hangs 10 on Ivory Coast at WWC
Unlike in the men's game, there's a pretty huge difference between the haves and have-nots in women's international soccer. This became pretty evident yesterday when one of the Cup favorites, Germany, scored 10 times in a 10-0 win over Ivory Coast. Celia Sasic and Anja Mittag each netted a hat trick for the Germans, who nearly matched their record 11-0 win over Argentina in 2007. Norway beat Thailand 4-0 in the other match yesterday. Hopefully today's games will be more competitive (except for the USWNT's. They can win big if they want).
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Well, that's about it for your Monday Lion Links. We hope your winning swagger from Saturday night gets you through the day.