USA

Récord, a Mexican daily sports newspaper, has named 18-year-old American midfielder Jonathan Gonzalez in its Torneo Apertura Best XI following a sensational breakthrough season for the California native at Monterrey.

After signing with Monterrey in 2014, Gonzalez advanced through the youth ranks before becoming a mainstay in the heart of Los Rayados’ midfield throughout the 2017 Apertura season. Monterrey finished at the top of the table in the regular season before losing in the final to Tigres.

Atlanta United are officially terrifying. After an impressive first season in Major League Soccer, Tata Martino's team has gotten even better with Wednesday's addition of former Portland Timbers midfielder Darlington Nagbe.

The USA international is one of the best creative midfielders in MLS, and will make an Atlanta United attack that already features the likes of Josef Martinez and Miguel Almiron even more vicious.

U.S. & The A.

Bruce Arena responded to USMNT and Huddersfield Town midfielder Danny Williams’ claims that U.S. Soccer favored domestic-based players throughout qualifying in an effort to “market” MLS by calling the statements “completely false” on Tuesday. 

Men's college soccer in the United States is an anomaly. No other country sends potential professional athletes to academic universities instead of athletic academies like the U.S. While this is the accepted norm in football and basketball, the two most popular sports in the country, soccer operates differently throughout the world.

Borussia Dortmund hadn’t won in nine Bundesliga matches, so they hired a manager who hadn’t won in 14 matches. And it worked, somehow. Dortmund beat Mainz 2-0 to win for the first time in league play since September to give new coach Peter Stöger his first victory this season.

In continuing the theme of 2017 being a sh*t year for U.S. soccer, the lone American at the Club World Cup was at fault for the goal that knocked Mexico’s Pachuca out of the competition on Tuesday at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in the UAE. Gremio’s Everton turned Omar Gonzalez inside out before curling in a wonderful shot to give the Brazilian side a 1-0 victory in extra time.

Gonzalez apparently thought he was still playing for the USMNT, perhaps against Trinidad and Tobago. 

Borussia Dortmund needed a change, this much was obvious. The club was in a massive tailspin in both the Bundesliga and Champions League. So Dortmund fired coach Peter Bosz on Sunday. But the man they replaced him with as Dortmund coach — Peter Stöger — was just fired from the one club that has been more disappointing in the Bundesliga this season: Cologne.

After more than 100 minutes of impressive defensive play, Indiana’s defense finally made a mistake and Stanford pounced for a 1-0 victory in the NCAA Men's College Cup final on Sunday at a chilly Talen Energy Stadium in Chester, Pennsylvania. 

The Cardinal won their third straight NCAA championship and Stanford became the first school to win the men’s and women’s NCAA College Cup in the same year after the Cardinal women won last week against UCLA. 

Toronto FC avenged their 2016 final defeat to Seattle by defeating the Sounders in a rematch at MLS Cup 2017, 2-0. Jozy Altidore scored the game-winning goal in the 67th minute off a Sebastian Giovinco through ball, and Toronto’s historic Supporters’ Shield season was given the famous ending it deserved. 

In the fourth-minute of second half stoppage time, Victor Vazquez added Toronto’s second, capping a sensational first season for the Spaniard in MLS.