The Full 90

Jimmy Nielsen... save of the week... didn't deserve the shame of picking the ball out of his net four times... kick save and a beauty... vote for him... you know the drill.

Comment Buzz Up Share

I am a Joe Posnanski fan. I'd say this even if we didn't once have the same name signed on our paychecks. He's easily one of the three biggest writing influences for me. (And, it's worth noting that when I walked into the press box a month ago during the Kansas City Wizards-Los Angeles Galaxy match and saw him sitting there, I was a wee bit starstruck.)

Unfortunately, the city that he was based in (and still lives in I believe) makes an unglamorous cameo in his Sports Illustrated profile of Landon Donovan. Judge for yourself.

Landon Donovan cannot move. Well, this is Kansas City. Nobody can move. The Wizards' field is the bane of American soccer. Carved into a minor league baseball stadium, CommmunityAmerica Ballpark, it's way too short and way too narrow. Playing here, as Los Angeles Galaxy coach Bruce Arena will say, is like playing big league baseball with the bases 75 feet apart. The field smothers creativity. There is no open space. There are no clear angles. It is soccer in a Chevy Equinox.

Comment Buzz Up Share

more

To get you ready for the drama that will start unfolding on June 11 in South Africa, The Star and The Full 90 will introduce you to the teams, the key performers, what to look for and what to expect in this year's Cup.

Now for the last team in the Group of Leisure.

Comment Buzz Up Share

DOMINIC FAVRE | AP

Swiss forward Blaise Nkufo, center, and teammate Tranquillo Barnetta, right, look on as Costa Rica's defender Junior Diaz, left, goes for the ball during an international friendly soccer match at the Stade de Tourbillon in Sion, Switzerland, Tuesday. Costa Rica won 1-0.

Raul Meireles scored twice to lead Portugal to a 3-1 victory Tuesday against Cameroon, which played most of the match with 10 men after star striker Samuel Eto’o got ejected.

In other World Cup tuneups, the Netherlands outplayed Ghana 4-1 and slumping Switzerland lost 1-0 at home to non-qualifier Costa Rica.

In Covilha, Portugal, Eto’o was sent off in the first half after collecting his second yellow card, a minute after Meireles scored his first goal.

Comment Buzz Up Share

FRED BLOCHER | /The Kansas City Star

The Power and Light District will host watch parties for all 64 World Cup games on the "living room" screen at KC Live!

Break out the body spray and hair gel, the Power and Light District, in conjunction with the Kansas City / USA Host City Bid Committee, announced today that all 64 World Cup matches will be shown live at the 2010 Summer of Soccer in the “living room” at KC Live! in downtown Kansas City.*

*Yes, this even means the 6:30 a.m. games.

“The FIFA World Cup is the biggest event in the world and we are excited to partner with the Wizards to invite all of Kansas City to participate in it in a way very few fans can outside the host country,” said Nick Benjamin, executive director for theKansas City Power & Light District.“We hope every Kansas Citian stops by to experience the Summer of Soccer and be a part of this incredible event.”

Comment Buzz Up Share

Hans Punz | AP

Arsenal's Theo Walcott was omitted from England's final 23-man World Cup squad on Tuesday, one of seven players dropped by coach Fabio Capello following a training camp.

LONDON (AP) — Germany will bring six strikers to South Africa but Italy dropped two as some of the leading World Cup contenders made late decisions on their teams Tuesday, hours before the roster deadline.

England dropped Theo Walcott but kept injured Gareth Barry, while the host Bafana Bafana left all-time top scorer Benni McCarthy off their teams.

Germany coach Joachim Loew promised to take an attack-minded squad and his only late change was to take out 23-year-old defender Andreas Beck. That meant he retained Bayern Munich strikers Mario Gomez, Miroslav Klose and Thomas Mueller plus Cacau, Stefan Kiessling and Lukas Podolski to give him plenty of goal-scoring options.

Comment Buzz Up Share

One way to tell that the World Cup soccer tournament is near is when players, particularly goalkeepers, start criticizing the ball that will be used in the competition.

So it’s not surprising that criticism has been leveled on adidas’ Jabulani ball.

“It’s terrible, horrible,” said Brazil’s Julio Cesar. “It’s like one of those balls you buy in the supermarket.”

Comment Buzz Up Share

Memorial Day weekend was a big weekend for high school girls soccer. Blue Valley West beat Blue Valley Northwest for the 6A state title and St. Thomas Aquinas avenged their only loss of the season in the 5A-1A championship game. In Missouri, Liberty beat Lee's Summit North to advance to the Missouri Class 3 semifinals.

Blue Valley West girls win state title

Blue Valley West senior Ashley Catrell may have had extra motivation for the Class 6A state girls soccer match with BV Northwest on Saturday afternoon at the Olathe District Activity Center.

Comment Buzz Up Share

Jacques Brinon | AP

British model Noami Campbell poses with Louis Vuitton's director of communications, Antoine Arnault, during the presentation of the case that will carry the FIFA World Cup in Paris on Tuesday. The famous French fashion house Louis Vuitton unveiled a special travel case it made for the World Cup trophy in Paris.

I've been waiting for this month to start for, uh, months now. And it's finally here. Next Friday, it's wall-to-wall soccer, as Mexico vs. South Africa kicks off the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

The news today is that every team must have their 23-man roster set. Some have been set for weeks (like Brazil), some were set before the trip (like the USA) and some have already been set this morning. Of the early cuts this morning, the biggest surprise so far (other than Mexican star Giovani Dos Santos allegedly considering quitting the team because his brother Jonathan was left off the roster) is that South Africa won't have all-time leading scorer Benni McCarthy on the roster.

England is awaiting a fitness test for Gareth Barry to release their roster. (We'll have a more comprehensive wrap-up when that decision is made.)

Comment Buzz Up Share

The U.S. World Cup team arrived in Johannesburg on Monday following a 17-hour flight and was greeted by the same visible security presence that was on hand for the arrival of other countries.

Armed special task-force members, dressed in dark blue uniforms, surrounded the South African Airways plane at the O.R. Tambo airport as the players emerged on a cool, overcast afternoon.

After leading his team off the plane, coach Bob Bradley immediately picked out the opening game against England on June 12 as a chance to make an impression on the tournament.

Comment Buzz Up Share

Firstly, we hope everyone is having a great Memorial Day. Secondly, remember to thank any and all veterans you come across for their service to this country.

OK, now back to the Wizards. Chances are you and me (and several other people) thought things had turned around from last year. New players were brought in. A new formation was installed. New coach Peter Vermes stressed fitness and pressure above all else. The team came out of the gate fast, with two wins, hung tough until controversy reared its head in Seattle and played MLS-best Los Angeles to a standstill.

And then the proverbial crap hit the very real, very large fan. They're winless in seven games and I'm not sure a Garmin device could help them find the back of the net right now. (Though, Garmin would make a great sponsor.)

Comment Buzz Up Share

What the players and coaches had to say after Real Salt Lake's 4-1 thrashing of the Kansas City Wizards.

KANSAS CITY WIZARDS MANAGER PETER VERMES

Overall thoughts on the match:
“We gave up two early goals, and that puts you in a hole no matter if you are home or away. Obviously if you’re away it’s a little more difficult. It was good to get a goal right before halftime and sort of get a little momentum back. “We came out in the second half trying to tweak a few things and get back in the game. Obviously the free kick and the ejection of our guy put us into a big hole – a much bigger hole that was much more difficult to get out of. Whether it’s 2-1 or 4-1, it is what it is.”

Comment Buzz Up Share

They don’t make road trips like this anymore. It starts in summer and ends in winter, could last up to six weeks and, by the way, the whole world will be watching.

There was plenty to think about Sunday as the U.S. national soccer team arrived at Dulles International Airport for the 17-hour flight to South Africa for the World Cup.

“It starts to get real now, you know?” goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann said.

Comment Buzz Up Share

Darko Bandic | AP

England's Wayne Rooney reacts inside a goal frame during their friendly soccer match against Japan in Graz, Austria, Sunday. England were lucky 2-1 winners.

Lucky England gets by Japan, Mexico outplays poor Gambia, France is unspectacular, goalkeepers hate the new ball and Honduras needs some new shirts.

LONDON — England missed a penalty shot and needed two own goals to beat Japan 2-1 in a World Cup warmup Sunday, while the Ivory Coast squandered a two-goal lead to draw with Paraguay.

In other games involving World Cup teams, Mexico outplayed non-qualifier Gambia 5-1 with two goals each by Javier Hernandez and Adolfo Bautista; France used a second-half goal from William Gallas to tie Tunisia 1-1; South Korea lost 1-0 to Belarus; and Nigeria tied Colombia 1-1.

Comment Buzz Up Share

Marcio Jose Sanchez | AP

Toronto FC's Dwayne De Rosario, top is lifted by teammate Nick LaBrocca after De Rosario's second goal of the game against the San Jose Earthquakes during the second half of a MLS soccer game in Santa Clara on Saturday. Toronto won 3-1.

Looking back at the week that was in Major League Soccer.

Los Angeles Galaxy 2, Columbus Crew 0

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Los Angeles Galaxy is the only unbeaten team in Major League Soccer after beating the Columbus Crew 2-0 on Saturday in a clash of the respective conference leaders.

Comment Buzz Up Share