Photo: Paul Rudderow

Philadelphia Union

Jack McInerney has been named by the North American Soccer Reporters as the MLS Player of the Week, the first Union player to be so honored since 2011 when Justin Mapp was so honored. Sebastien Le Toux is the only other Union player to be named Player of the Week by NASR, receiving the honor twice in 2010.

McInerney is No. 2 in the latest Castrol Weekly Top 20 behind some French guy who plays for New Jersey. In the Full Castrol Index, he’s ranked No. 1, which is a Union first. The next four highest ranked Union players are Conor Casey (No. 19), Amobi Okugo (No. 50), Sebastien Le Toux (No. 51), and Michael Farfan (No. 64).

McInerney was also named Player of the Week by We beat them all to it.

McInerney’s season total of six goals makes him the youngest player to ever lead the league in goals. While you ponder that, vote Jack McInerney for Goal of the Week.

McInerney and Conor Casey were both named to ProSoccerTalk’s Team of the Week.

McInerney is the guest on the latest ExtraTime Radio podcast (starts at 2:59).

Vote Sheanon Williams for the 2013 John Wanamaker Athletic Award, “presented annually to the athlete, team or organization that has done the most to reflect credit upon Philadelphia and to the team or sport in which they excel.”

The title of this post from Kevin Kinkead is about the Bill Hamid quote we mentioned in Monday’s roundup that was hung in the Union locker room before Sunday’s game but it’s the discussion about how the Union have worked to improve on the road that will be of lasting interest.

Two observations standout from the latest Inside Doop at CSN Philly. First, how McInerney’s brace overshadowed another fine performance from Conor Casey (long may he stay healthy). Second, based on current form and John Hackworth’s past selection preferences, seven positions seem pretty much locked up, the backline and holding midfield spot as well as the forward tandem of Casey and McInerney. In other words, three midfield spots seem to be the only positions up for grabs. Presumably, competition in training will continue to keep heating up—and as we all know from countless remarks in press conferences, that’s a good thing—but there are several players whose careers are filled with starts in the mix and Hackworth’s man-management skills are likely to become as much of a storyline as any questions about his tactical acumen or roster selections in any given game.

Power rankings! ESPN moves the Union up three spots to No. 8 after what it elsewhere calls “a wild game chock full of mistakes on both ends.” At Soccer America, the Union move up three spots to No. 6.

David Murphy seems to prefer “Jack Attack” when referring to McInerney in his reaction to Sunday’s win. As Murphy makes clear, the Union’s schedule includes games against struggling teams—New England, Seattle, and Chicago—before a big test at home against LA on May 15.

Zolo Times’ reaction to Sunday’s win is more focused on the evident flaws that any honest observer of the Union cannot fail to recognize.

Union Dues lists some key moments in Sunday’s win.

Union strength and conditioning coach Kevin Miller recounts his experience at last week’s Boston Marathon.

Freddy Adu made his first appearance for Bahia on Sunday, coming on for the final five minutes of the 0-0 draw with Juazeirense.

Local

The Union’s Cristhian Hernandez leads this week’s wrap of how MLS players on loan to USL clubs fared on the MLS website.

Kyle Gruno (PDA; Saddle River, N.J.) has been called up for the US BNT U-14 camp taking place at The Home Depot Center from April 20 – 28.

MLS

Sporting Intelligence has ranked MLS as the seventh best soccer league in the world. ProSoccerTalk notes that the rankings bring “into account attendances, finances, goals, competitiveness, caliber of players and managers, stadiums and success in continental competitions.”

SB Nation Bolton Wanderer’s blog The Lion of Vienna Suite says that, “According to a source,” Kevin Davies “is set to move to Major League Soccer side Toronto FC.”

New York’s Juninho has been suspended one additional game on top of the automatic one-game suspension he received for kicking a ball at Kansas City goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen during a stoppage of play.

Seattle Sounders announced on Friday that they have signed former Reading United forward Will Bates.

NWSL

At the Washington Post, Steven Goff has a great story about two Washington Spirit players who are living in a retirement community during the NWSL season.

US

Newly elected FIFA executive committee member, US Soccer president Sunil Gulati, says that he believes the salary figures of FIFA executives should be made public—if they are allowed to be.

Gulati also said he will push once again for the US to host a World Cup while also pushing for the number of automatic World Cup spots guaranteed to CONCACAF to be increased to four.

At Soccer America, Paul Kennedy writes that Gulati has a tightrope to walk. “Differences exist between what is acceptable in the United States and in most other countries on corporate governance covering such issues as transparency, conflicts of interest and bribery.”

More on Gulati’s election from Alex Labidou and Avi Creditor.

Elsewhere

The Champions League semifinal round begins today with Bayern Munich hosting Barcelona (2:30pm, FSC). Lionel Messi is still questionable with a hamstring injury. Jonathan Wilson writes that today’s match “could mark the transition from one generation to the next.”

Want to read the CONCACAF integrity committee report on alleged corrupt practices of well-known crook Jack Warner and garden gnome impersonator Chuck Blazer? Read here.

Everyone had a good laugh yesterday after the Twitter accounts of Sepp Blatter and FIFA World Cup were hacked. Not so funny was the claim of responsibility from the Syrian Electronic Army, a group sympathetic to the murderous regime of of Syrian president Bashar Assad.

Also not funny are hints from Blatter that he will seek another term as FIFA president.

Manchester United, who won the Premiership title on Monday, will increase their marketing efforts in the US to capitalize on increased exposure from the NBC deal to broadcast the BPL.

The AP reports, “A Kenyan referee is suing the national football federation, saying he was left impotent after a coach grabbed and squeezed his testicles in a pitch invasion.”