Last week, two unfamiliar faces were manning the net during a small sided B-squad training session at Red Bull’s practice. One of those faces has been identified.
Egyptian goalkeeper El-Hany Soliman has been training with New York since last week. A report from Egyptian Footy claims the long time El-Ittihad netminder signed on with the Red Bull’s for three years. New York denies he is even on trial.
Late last week, Coach Hans Backe did reveal that the team was still in the market for a third keeper. “We need the third goalie, definitely,” Backe admitted on SBI. “We can’t go the whole season with two goalies.” At the same time, he conceded that a commanding veteran wouldn’t be that high of a priority considering Meara’s present form. “Meara has a future. It will be up and down all the time but we haven’t decided if we will sign a veteran or not.”
New York remains in the market for a striker, though Backe admitted in the same report that many of the options available weren’t to his liking. With four days until the transfer deadline, the Red Bull’s have many decisions to make, and little time to do it.
There is plenty more happening around the world of New York soccer. Here is a taste in a New York Minute:
FOURTH ANNUAL COSMOS COPA!
Cosmos Copa is the nation’s preeminent amateur adult soccer tournament that unites New York City’s diverse community. The tournament is a NYC “World Cup-style” event where the best NYC soccer players represent their country of heritage. Local teams representing 28 different countries will compete for the title of “Cosmos Copa City Champion” – in honor of both New York City as well as their country of origin. This year, Cosmos Copa has partnered with the Cosmopolitan Soccer League and Modell’s Sporting Goods to engage the 28 local communities of the teams involved in this year’s tournament.
Every year, the tournament begins with a qualifying round, which will be spread out over two weekends in June. The qualifying teams this year are: Albania, Argentina, Bolivia, Croatia, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Guyana, Holland, Italy, Ivory Coast, Japan, Kosova, Liberia, Portugal, Russia, St. Vincent and Grenadines, Spain, USA, and Uruguay. These 20 teams will be competing for the remaining eight spots available for this year’s Cosmos Copa tournament, taking place in late July. Last year’s eight quarterfinalists- Colombia, England, Greece, Haiti, Ireland, Jamaica, Poland and Senegal will round out the rest of the tournament. All games will take place within the 5 boroughs of NYC.
The official Cosmos Copa tournament draw party will take place on Tuesday, June 26th and will feature New York City Soccer legend, Giovanni Savarese and Cosmos legend, Shep Messing amongst other guests.
The tentative 2012 Cosmos Copa Tournament Dates are as follows (dates subject to change):
· Official Draw Party: June 26th
· Group Stage: July 14th and 15th
· Quarterfinals: July 21st
· Semi-finals: July 22nd
· Finals: July 28th
You can visit CosmosCopa.com for more information.
THIERRY HENRY UP FOR GOAL OF THE WEEK
The captain’s BEAST of a notch to end the demolition of the Crew is up for MLS Goal of the Week. Three consecutive player of the week awards and already player of the month … one more honor is just icing on the cake. VOTE HERE!
NY FURY SIGN TOBIN HEATH
Who needs the WPS? Former players are now migrating to the WPSL and the USL W-League. For Sky Blue standout Tobin Heath, the New York Fury of the WPSL made the most sense. The dynamic USWNT standout and New Jersey native has signed with the team. “I’m looking forward to playing for the New York Fury in the WPSL,” said Heath. “It’s a club with a great mix of talented players and coaches and I hope to contribute to their success this season.”
UPDATE ON WEST SIDE PIER 40 NY2 NEGOTIATIONS
Interesting quote that slipped through the cracks from the twitter of Jack Bell of the New York Times: “Word is that meeting between MLS and folks about Pier 40 went OK. No thumbs down at least. More meetings planned. Maybe something late April”
DID YOU KNOW …
The leagues top three goal scorers will be taking the field when the Red Bulls take on San Jose? Henry and Cooper, 1 and 2 respectively, will meet Chris Wondowloski (3) at Red Bull Arena. Their combined efforts (19 goals) are more than any MLS side. The Red Bulls 14 goals lead the league, but surprisingly, San Jose ties them with goal differential at a +6 (good for second in the league behind Kansas City).
AND FINALLY …
It looks like this years All Star Game opponent will be Chelsea of the English Premier League. The story, originally broken on The Brotherly Love blog, will be confirmed this afternoon at a press conference from PPL Park.
