Friday Odds & Ends

-- Pat Walsh has a commentary on Goal.com, in which he expresses the opinion that the better teams in the MLS, like the Houston Dynamo, are playing too many games:

http://www.goal.com/en-us/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=541174

This issue came up on the American Soccer Show episode that came out the first week of the year, on which I was a guest, and we came to the conclusion that it benefits the Dynamo because they get more chances to look at their younger players in game situations.

-- The Chicago Fire have been interested in hiring Dynamo assistant coach, John Spencer, to serve as their new coach, but he turned their offer down.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/soc/5442280.html

-- For the - I'm Glad Oliver Luck is Dynamo President File - more head scratching decisions coming out of the L.A. Galaxy FO, which has sent stand-out GK, Joe Cannon, to San Jose:

http://www.mercurynews.com/othersports/ci_7941874?nclick_check=1

-- On the Amercian Soccer Spot, Kartik has some good things to say about Eurosnobs and the January transfer window.

http://csrnusa.com/ussoccerspot/

-- Parma is looking to obtain striker Cristiano Lucarelli from Shakhtar Donetsk:

http://www.goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=541300

-- The skilled, but frustrating Roma winger, Amantino Mancini, is likely to leave Roma this January:

http://www.goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=541982

-- Back-up GK changes at Roma, could see Gianluca Curci leaving and Massimo Taibi coming in as his replacement:

http://www.goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=541097

-- The Vatican feels that football is a good way to teach life lessons:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7179757.stm

Speaking of Italian Football, the winter break is over and Serie A returns this weekend.