My MLS Bigamy Continues

I've written about my various soccer (and other sports)-related travels both here on the blog and in other forums as well.  I've also written about the dilemma that faces me as a native of Philadelphia who was living in DC when MLS started (without a Philadelphia team in the mix) and have been with DC United from the start.  Those two topics collided last weekend as I made my first trip to PPL Park in Chester, PA for my first Union home match since their home opener against DC United last season.

Nope, no telephoto lens - we were that close.

[For those who don't follow MLS or the stadium situations of the teams therein, the Union played their first ever home match and a bunch of others at Lincoln Financial Field - home of the NFL Eagles - until PPL Park was ready].

Going in, I was pretty excited for a few reasons:

Scouting Ahead

You may be wondering what I've been up to since the Premier League season ended a couple of weeks back.  Jeremy has been keeping the blog pressing forward with updates from the player and managerial transfer market while my fingers have taken a much needed break from writing long form editorials 3 or 4 times per week.  That isn't to say that I haven't been paying any attention at all to things related to the Premier League or fantasy.  In fact, I've had the opportunity to watch some really good players (many of them live) since last I wrote and now that I'm back from my latest trip, I'll fill you all in on what I've seen and how it may apply to next season and beyond.

Best player that's ever graced MLS

'Best player that's ever graced MLS' says goodbye - MLS - Yahoo! Sports

“He’s the best player that’s ever graced MLS,” said United interim coach Ben Olsen, a longtime teammate. “It’s no coincidence that every trophy that this team has won, Jaime Moreno has been a part of.”

Moreno entered the league during its inaugural season in 1996, and he’ll play his last game Saturday when United ends their regular season against Toronto FC at RFK Stadium. He is the only player in MLS history with 100 goals and 100 assists. His 132 goals are tied with Jeff Cunningham of FC Dallas atop the all-time list—and Moreno has played in four fewer games. Moreno’s 102 assists are fifth all-time, and he’s a seven-time All-Star.

How much have defenses feared him? He’s suffered 703 fouls, 66 more than anyone else.

But it’s the hardware that sets the 36-year-old Bolivian apart from any contender on the MLS legacy charts. United have won 12 trophies with Moreno on the roster: four MLS Cups as league champions, four Supporters’ Shields for best regular-season record, two U.S. Open Cups and a pair of international titles. He is a winner, one who didn’t get sufficient due in the general sports world.

This is a bit off topic for the blog, especially these days as we don't really cover - as we don't play - MLS fantasy any longer; but I wanted to take a minute to pay tribute to my favorite player ever. As I wrote when Thierry Henry signed with the New York Red Bull:

You see, Neal and I are DC United fans. Since day one. Since Eric Wynalda beat us with an 88th minute goal in the first ever MLS game. Since the magic triangle of Etcheverry, Moreno and Diaz Arce turned around that first season and led us to consecutive MLS Cup championships - the second of which we watched in the pouring rain at our home field, RFK Stadium. Since the day Peter Nowak and the expansion Chicago Fire beat us to deny us a hat trick of championships, and broke our hearts.

Of that magic triangle, it was Moreno who stayed around the longest, adapted his game the most and really is my last strong link to DC United - which makes me quite sad. But in the words of perhaps my favorite bit of signage ever at a DCU/NY(J) match:

DC is Jaime-town!

Portsmouth announces roster ahead of D.C. United friendly

Portsmouth announces roster ahead of D.C. United friendly

Sad, sad state of affairs when Pompey's marquee names are...

Danny Webber, David Nugent, Michael Brown, Tommy Smith, and wait for it...

Marc Wilson.

I just threw up in my mouth a little bit

A piece of me just dies every time I look at this.

Thierry Henry was (is?) the player. The player we wanted to watch.  The player we had to have in our fantasy teams.  The player that could do the impossible and make it look easy.

Pope to step aside at season's end

SALT LAKE CITY -- Often celebrated as the best defender the United States has ever produced, Eddie Pope announced Thursday that he will retire from Major League Soccer at the end of the 2007 season.

I"m not sure what to say. I have to admit to being a little sad, and I'm not sure I can quite capture my emotions fully in this post. Maybe an update to follow. But the Pontiff is retiring. Definitely the end of an era.

Pope was the shy kid out of North Carolina who wore #23 in honor of fellow alum Michael Jordan. He was the rookie of the year and stand-out defender on a team full of more experienced and well-known players. Of course, he scored the header in stoppage time that won DC the first of their now four MLS Cup championships. And he famously, or at least for me memorably, turned down interest from Europe to stay close to home.

So many memories of my young adulthood are tied up with DC United and it's hard to avoid the sense that an era in my life is passing too. I'm no longer in DC, and no longer a young adult. Pope is with Real Salt Lake (and to paraphrase the Sports Guy, he never played for NY. Can we all agree that that just never happened?). But I get nostalgic when Neal text messages me from RFK as he did this weekend. And this news is a bit of a bolt out of the clear blue sky -- even though I'll always associate the Pontiff with the pouring rain in which he won his first two DCU championships, the second of which I was lucky enough to attend.

Okay, I'm officially babbling. Back to work, but not without one final chant of "Ooh ah! Eddie Pope! I said Ooh ah, Eddie Pope!"