Ferguson and Rooney: BFFs again.

To anybody out there who has ever doubted that one should never believe a word that comes out of the mouth of a player when it is contract renegotiation time, there is this: Wayne Rooney, all over the soccer news this week after it emerged that he wants to leave Manchester United because he believes them to be a club in decline, has signed a new contract that will keep him there until 2015. Death threats were made by balaclava-clad “fans” at Rooney’s home before the new deal.

Union

The Daily News looks at how the Union are preparing for the November 24 expansion draft. It’s an informative article. Except for the parts where it says that Le Toux is 24 (he’s 26) and that the Union will end their season “tomorrow” (the season ends for the Union on Sunday). Jeez. (Editor’s note: The story also says the Union can only lose one player, but as far as we know, they can lose two because this year’s draft rules are different, thanks to the presence of two expansion teams.) (Author’s note: You are correct, sir! The Union can lose two players. And as another reader wrote in the article’s comment section, Sebastien Le Toux is not the only MLS player with double digit goals and assists (13 and 11, respectively). Fredy Montero has ten of each.)

Sports Illustrated has an in-depth review of the Union’s first year. There are no new insights here—the Union brand is a hit, the fans are awesome, the team needs more offense, Torres “ought to be a top priority for the Union,” Fred “clearly hasn’t been the answer” in the midfield veteran role, the defense needs work (particularly on the right), the goalie situation cost the team as Seitz “displayed the uncanny ability to manufacture losses,” etc.—but it is nice to see the team get some serious attention from one of the major sports news outfits.

Speaking of Fred, he was the answer last week, scoring a goal and also saving one. That save was voted Napa Save of the Week with 43% of the vote.

John Hackworth thinks the Union’s slow start made them better. “We’re a team now. Back then we were a bunch of individuals.”

Danny Mwanga participated in a live chat with fans yesterday. It’s informative and funny. You can read the transcript here.

MLS

The Energy Drinks clinched the Eastern Conference title with a 2–0 win over New England Revolution. Thierry Handball did not play.

Goal.com debates the fairness of the playoff system. My take? Having an Eastern and a Western conference rather than a straight table is stupid.

MLS has released an application for those of you who have iPhones and iPod Touch devices. Me, I have a Droid. Hopefully the new app will work better than the recently relaunched MLS website, which still sucks.

CONCACAF Champions League

The Columbus Crew, who already had finished second in Group B, defeated Joe Public (I chuckle every time I write, think about or say that team name) 4–1 on Thursday night. The victory ended a six game winless streak for the Crew. The winless streak will begin again when the Union defeat them on Sunday.

US

Tony DiCicco, the coach of the 1999 World Cup winning USWNT and current coach of Boston Breakers, blasts player development in the US.

USWNT star Abby Wambach talks to ESPN’s Sports Center.

This weekend’s Bolton v Wigan derby presents a bit of a problem for Stuart Holden: his grandparents, who live nearby, are Wigan supporters. “My grandparents were Wigan fans before, but they’ve assured me 100 per cent that they’ll be behind Bolton.”

Elsewhere

Amos Adamu, one of the two men caught on tape soliciting money in exchange for their vote for the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids, says he “refutes all allegations made.” Sepp Blatter, the president of FIFA, is surprised that people think FIFA is corrupt and vows to “bring back credibility to football,” saying to soccer fans around the world, “Trust us and you will see confidence will be restored.” Yeah, right.

We now know which bidding countries are being investigated for vote trading. FIFA is investigating allegations that the organizers of the joint Portugal/Spain bid for the 2018 World Cup colluded with the organizers of the Qatar bid for the 2022 World Cup.

Ex-Liverpool owner Tom Hicks moans to the New York Times about what a tough year he has had.

The collapse of four players in a match between two Peruvian second division sides leads to allegations that home team Sport Ancash spiked the water bottles of visiting team Hijos de Acosvinchos. The president of Sport Ancash says it was food poisoning.

With the nonsense surrounding the sale of Liverpool, the Saga of Wayne Rooney and the FIFA scandals, it can be easy to forget that what truly matters in soccer takes place on the field. Here’s a little reminder. In case you haven’t seen this already, brace yourself for a truly ridiculous goal-of-a lifetime, a 92nd minute game winner from Glentoran’s Mathew Burrows. It is simply one of the finest goals ever. Ever.

Footy on the Telly™

Friday, October 22
Bristol City v QPR, 2:30pm on FSP
Connecticut v Notre Dame, 8pm on FSC
San Diego v Portland, 11pm on FSC

Saturday, October 23
Everton v Spurs, 7:30am on ESPN2
Moenchengladbach v Werder Bremen, 9:30am on GolTV
Chelsea v Wolves, 10am on FSC
Sunderland v Aston Villa, 10am on FSP
Zaragoza v Barcelona, 12pm on GolTV
West Ham v Newcastle, 12pm on FSC
Nottingham Forest v Ipswich, 12 pm on FSP
Doncaster v Sheffield United, 2pm on FSP
Fiorentina v Bari, 2:30pm on FSC
Valencia v Mallorca, 3:50pm on GolTV
West Brom v Fulham, 5pm FSC
Birmingham v Blackpool, 6pm on FSP
Botafogo v Vitoria, 6pm on GolTV
Junior v America, 8pm on  GolTV
Chivas USA v Chicago, 11pm on FSC

Sunday, October 24
Parma v Roma, 6:30am on FSP
Stoke v Manchester United, 8:30am on FSC
Bologna v Juventus, 9am on FSP
Manchester City v Arsenal, 11am on  FSC
Wigan v Bolton, 11am on FSP
Sevilla v Bilbao, 1pm on GolTV
Inter Milan v Sampdoria, 2:30pm on FSC
Lille v Marseille, 3pm on FSP
Atletico Paranaense v Fluminense, 3pm on GolTV
Columbus Crew v Philadelphia Union, 4pm on Live Well HD Network, My Network TV – WQMY
Liverpool v Blackburn, 5pm on FSC
Leverkusen v Mainz, 5pm on GolTV

Monday, October 25
Napoli v AC Milan, 2:30pm on FSC
Leeds v Cardiff City, 2:30pm on FSP