Breakfast Links - August 14, 2023
(image via Houston Dynamo FC)
Happy Monday everybody! Hope you all enjoyed a break in Dynamo and Dash action. Here are your links to catch up on what happened this weekend.
Houston
It was a very quiet weekend for Houston soccer with only Dynamo 2 in action. Houston dominated the match in terms of possession, but failed to convert any real chances that came their way. Vancouver’s keeper, Isaac Boehmer, made an incredible seven saves to keep the game at 0-0. The Dynamo managed to win the game on penalties to secure an important two points.
Leagues Cup
The quarterfinals of Leagues Cup took place Friday night with some massively one sided games. Inter Miami and Nashville both demolished their opponents with Miami beating Charlotte 4-0 and Nashville beating Minnesota 5-0. Surprisingly, Lionel Messi was only directly involved in one of the four goals with him scoring the final goal of the night. Josef Martinez and Robert Taylor continued their hot form in Leagues Cup with both getting on the score sheet. For Nashville, Hany Mukhtar went nuts, scoring a goal and providing three assists. With how hot Minnesota has been lately, this was the shock of the tournament so far.
Philadelphia managed to beat Queretaro in a hard fought 2-1 win. They got off to a quick start with Jesus Bueno scoring inside ten minutes. Angel Sepulveda got one back for Queretaro in the 65th minute setting up an exciting final 20 minutes of the game. Deep into stoppage time, Omar Mendoza took out Joaquin Torres to earn himself a second yellow card and put his team down to ten men. Philly took full advantage, with Kai Wagner finding Chris Donovan for the with the late equalizer. Philadelphia will now host Messi’s Miami squad on Tuesday.
The other big matchup was between LAFC and Monterrey. Arguably the strongest roster in each league went head-to-head in a wild game that saw Monterrey win 3-2. LAFC started strong winning a penalty just a minute in that Dennis Bouanga converted. Matesz Bogusz then capped off a great counterattack blasting the ball past Esteban Andrada from the top of the box to make it 2-0. Monterrey then won a penalty of their own that Sergio Canales tucked away to start the comeback. With ten minutes to go, Victor Guzman put in a cross that deflected off Sergi Palancia for an own goal to level the match. Shortly after, Jordi Cortizo had a moment of magic outside the box where his shot led to a rebound for Roeglio Funes Mori that completed the comeback for Monterrey. They are now the only Mexican team left and will travel to Nashville for Tuesday’s semifinal.
Around the World
The quarterfinals of the Women’s World Cup continued with Sweden knocking out Japan 2-1. Sweden’s goals were scored by Amanda Ilestedt and Filippa Angeldal. Japan got one back late on through Honoka Hayashi, but Sweden were able to hold on. Australia beat France in a penalty shootout following a 0-0 draw. Mackenzie Arnold had a huge game in net for Australia making five saves. Colombia gave England a tough matchup, but it was not enough as England won the game 2-1. Leicy Santos scored for Colombia first then Lauren Hemp and Alessia Russo scored two unanswered goals for England. Tuesday will see Spain play Sweden with Australia playing England on Wednesday.
Legendary Tottenham striker, Harry Kane, finalized his move to German champions Bayern Munchen. After being with Tottenham since 2011, this move came as a massive shock as most thought he’d play his whole career there. Just after signing he was already called into action making his debut against RB Leipzig in the German Super Cup. Dani Olmo scored a hat trick to humiliate Bayern and spoil Harry Kane’s chance at his first ever competitive trophy.
The Premier League kicked off with Manchester City and Arsenal taking care of business at home against Burnley and Nottingham Forrest. Luton got a rough welcome to the Premier League with them losing 4-1 on the road to Brighton. The two American defenders, Tim Ream and Antonee Robinson, got a clean sheet on the road to a weak looking Everton side. Aston Villa, who some say had the best transfer window, got thrashed on the road to Newcastle 5-1. Tottenham played their first game after Harry Kane’s departure and looked good going forward still but looked incredibly weak at the back in a 2-2 draw with Brentford. Liverpool and Chelsea played too a tense 1-1 draw which is becoming the usual when these teams meet.
