Preseason is officially underway, and head-to-head games start to heat up today with four games:
- Noon ET: Orlando City 4, FC Dallas 0, Orlando, Fla. | OCSC RECAP | Dallas RECAP
- 1 pm ET: Houston Dynamo 3, San Jose Earthquakes 2, Tucson, Ariz. | Houston RECAP | San Jose RECAP
- 1 pm ET: New England Revolution 0, Vancouver Whitecaps 2, Tucson, Ariz. | New England RECAP | Vancouver RECAP
- 10 pm ET: Seattle Sounders 5-0 UCLA, Walnut, Calif. | Seattle RECAP
You can catch all the news and updates from MLS training camps below, and for the entire preseason schedule, click here.
ALL THE GOALS
Who found the back of the net on Wednesday? Here's a list:
Orlando City 4, FC Dallas 0:
- ORL -- Tony Cascio (unassisted) 13
- ORL -- Martin Paterson (unassisted) 30
- ORL -- Kaká (penalty kick) 33
- ORL -- Danny Mwanga (unassisted) 64
Houston Dynamo 3, San Jose Earthquakes 2:
- HOU -- Rob Lovejoy (Giles Barnes) 13
- SJ -- Adam Jahn (Shea Salinas) 28
- HOU -- Giles Barnes (Will Bruin) 40
- HOU -- David Horst (Brad Davis) 53
- SJ -- Adam Jahn (Tommy Thompson) 57
New England Revolution 0, Vancouver Whitecaps 2:
- VAN -- Octavio Rivero 57
- VAN -- Octavio Rivero 62
Seattle Sounders 5, UCLA 0
- SEA -- Obafemi Martins (Andy Rose) 39'
- SEA -- Lamar Neagle (Marco Pappa, Gonzalo Pineda) 44'
- SEA -- Chad Barrett (Aaron Kovar) 77'
- SEA -- Kenny Cooper (Guest Player) 86'
- SEA -- Michael Azira 90'
A DOUBLE DOOP
While several MLS teams were busy facing off against each other on Wednesday, the Philadelphia Union had a pair of good old-fashioned intra-squad scrimmages at their camp in Clearwater, Fla.
Five goals were scored between the two games, with newly acquired C.J. Sapong, Danny Cruz, Andrew Wenger, Homegrown Zach Pfeffer and SuperDraft pick Dzenan Catic providing the strikes.
Wenger also put in some work after the scrimmages. Maybe he's got a future after his playing days are over...
HAMMER TIME
Newly named New York Red Bull assistant coach Denis Hamlett goes way back in MLS, and he’ll be looking to bring some of his hard earned knowledge to first-year head coach Jesse Marsch’s staff.
Hamlett, who was head coach of the Chicago Fire in 2008 and 2009, traces his coaching lineage back to Bob Bradley, whom he coached under during the Fire’s early days. Marsch, of course, also has ties to Bradley, having played for him with the Fire and Chivas USA and worked with him with the USMNT.
The Red Bulls’ official site has a nice profile on Hamlett, who also spoke about his move to New York and his long relationship with Marsch in this video interview.
RIVERO BRACE POWERS WHITECAPS TO WIN OVER REVS
Well, that’s one way to make a debut.
Vancouver’s newly signed Young Designated Player Octavio Rivero had a brace in his first ever match for the Whitecaps on Wednesday, scoring twice in the span of five minutes to power the ‘Caps to a 2-0 win over the New England Revolution in Tucson, Ariz.
The Uruguayan striker – who turned 23 on Jan. 24 – got things going in the 57th minute, beating a Revs defender to a Matias Laba through ball and before knocking home a sliding finish to make it 1-0. He doubled Vancouver’s advantage in the 62nd, latching onto a Nicolas Mezquida through ball just outside the box, rounding Revs ‘keeper Brad Knighton and coolly slotting home.
You can check out both of Rivero’s goals below. Find the Whitecaps match recap right here.
ARNAUD STRUGGLING TO "SETTLE" IN
Don’t worry D.C. fans, Davy Arnaud isn’t having any trouble fitting in on the field with United.
He is, however, in a bit of hot water with some of his teammates, with forward Conor Doyle telling the club’s official website that Arnaud is looking at some punishment after recently walking out of a game of Settlers of Catan, which has become a staple with United this preseason.
“We are trying to sort out a punishment for him so he can come back and play,” Doyle said. “He was losing and he rolled a seven, and if you play Catan you know that’s not a good thing, and he walked out on a game so that’s what we have to deal with.”
TEAM BONDING
The Portland Timbers are halfway through their stay in Tucscon as they continue to integrate the new arrivals to the team in hopes of an improved defensive showing in 2015. Timbers.com caught up with some of the old and new faces to see how they're progressing and what the locker room environment is like in the preseason:
BETTER LATE THAN NEVER
Everybody loves preseason highlights. EVERYONE. We finally got a look at the highlights from New York City FC's 2-1 win over the Jacksonville Armada on Sunday, and they're worth your time.
Goals from Khiry Shelton and Markus Naglestad? Not bad.
Scoop pass give-and-go from David Villa? Yes, please. Check out the highlights.
QUITE THE SCENE-SET
Perhaps the best place to be on this Wednesday is Tucson, where four MLS teams are squaring off at 1 pm ET as part of FC Tucson's Desert Friendlies series.
The sunshine looks glorious.
IN DEMAND
Preseason tournaments are great for road trips, but it sounds like fans of expansion clubs Orlando City and New York City FC may be taking that concept to new heights.
The Charleston Battery, host of the preseason Carolina Challenge Cup, announced today that the opening night of the three-game tournament (Feb. 21) has sold out Blackbaud Stadium, which has a capacity of about 5,000, by the earliest date in tournament history. Only spots for Battery season ticket holders and potentially some standing-room seats remain for a doubleheader featuring Orlando and New York City squaring off, with the Houston Dynamo facing the host Battery, their USL PRO affiliates, in the nightcap.
Tickets remain available for the second and third nights of the tournament (Feb. 25, Feb. 28), both doubleheaders featuring the same four teams.
THAT GUY LOOKS FAMILIAR
We had been told former FIFA World Player of the Year Kaká would be ready for his first minutes with Orlando City on Wednesday, and the Designated Player is not going to disappoint:
Dax McCarty, Jesse Marsch and the Red Bulls were one of the first MLS teams on the training field on Wednesday morning, continuing to work out in Florida. After scrimmaging South Florida on Sunday, the club welcomed Sacha Kljestan into camp on Tuesday.
OLSEN LOOKING FOR MORE AFTER 0-0 TIE
D.C. United played their second preseason game on Tuesday, tying 0-0 against Swedish club Jönköping Södra in a friendly in Bradenton, Fla.
Despite it being only the club's second preseason game, head coach Ben Olsen admitted he "was looking for a little bit more" from his group:
SYNCHRONIZED ... STRETCHING?
The LA Galaxy braved the cold climes of Washington, D.C. to take on Georgetown University in a preseason scrimmage yesterday, and it forced Robbie Keane and Dan Gargan to work on their stretching game while all bundled up:
This picture seems like it's begging for a caption contest. Any ideas? Let us know in the comments section.
