3 January 2003 - Nowak Calls Time On His Playing Career

On 3 January 2003, the Chicago Fire traded team captain Piotr Nowak to New England, but he retired about a month later before suiting up for his new club.

The Polish international midfielder joined Chicago in 1998 after a four-year tenure with 1860 Munich that saw him named Poland's Player of the Year (1996) and the Bundesliga's best playmaker (1995-96). He made an immediate impact with the fledgling MLS side, who named him the team MVP in his first season as they won the MLS Cup and the US Open Cup.

More successes followed, including another US Open Cup in 2000, as Nowak collected two more MVP awards in 2000 and 2001. By the end of the 2002 season, he set the club's current all-time assist record at 48. But salary cap considerations led Chicago to trade their then-38-year old captain to New England for the 2003 season. Later that year, Chicago made him the first inductee in their "Ring of Fire," honoring past players.

Just over one month after the trade announcement, Nowak chose to retire rather than continue his playing career in New England. He wasn't done with football altogether, however, as he took over as manager of DC United in 2004, winning that season's MLS Cup. He left DC in 2006 to work with the US national team and, in 2009, became the first head coach for the Philadelphia Union. He later took charge of Antigua and Barbuda and is currently the manager of Polish club Lechia Gdańsk.

29 January 2006 - Eight May Be Enough, But Nine Is Better

On 29 January 2006, the United States beat Norway 5-0 in a friendly at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California. Three of the Yanks' goals were scored by forward Taylor Twellman, whose hat-trick was only the ninth in the history of the US national team.

Twellman, who plays his club ball for the MLS' New England Revolution, was making a push for inclusion in the 2006 World Cup side. Despite winning the MLS Golden Boot in 2005, he had scored only one previous international goal, in October 2005, since his call up to the senior team in 2002.

Although Twellman appeared to find his scoring touch, contributing another goal in a 3-2 friendly win over Japan in February 2006, he was not part of the side that traveled to Germany in 2006. That team managed to score only one goal--a 43rd-minute strike from Clint Dempsey against Ghana--and was eliminated from the tournament in the group stage. (They also benefited from an Italy own goal to draw 1-1 with the eventual champions.)

Twellman rejoined the national team for their successful 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup campaign and made his last appearance on 19 January 2008.

11 January 2007 - They Don't Call Them Fulhamerica For Nothing

On 11 January 2007, Fulham announced the signing of Clint Dempsey, who later won back-to-back Player of the Season awards for the club.

Dempsey, then 23, had spent the first three seasons of his professional career with the New England Revolution, scoring 25 goals in 71 league appearances between 2004 and 2006. He had also become an important player for the United States, earning 23 caps during that period. That attracted the interest of Fulham manager Chris Coleman, who brought Dempsey in to play alongside his US teammates Brian McBride and Carlos Bocanegra.

Fulham paid New England a reported £2 million to sign Dempsey, making him the Premier League's most expensive American. He paid a near-immediate dividend with a goal against Liverpool that May that kept Fulham from being relegated.

In five and half seasons at Craven Cottage, he constantly improved his goal tally and was the club's top scorer in 2010-11 and 2011-12, with 13 and 23 goals, respectively, earning him Fulham's Player of the Year award for both seasons. His total tally reached 60 goals in 225 appearances, including 50 in the Premier League, a record for an American player.

In the summer of 2012, he moved to Tottenham in a £6 million deal, but stayed there for only one season before returning to MLS with the Seattle Sounders. In December 2013, he rejoined Fulham on loan from Seattle.

20 April 1996 - The MetroStars Fall

On 20 April 1996, the NY/NJ MetroStars lost their MLS home opener when they conceded an own goal with just thirteen seconds left.

Based in Giants Stadium, the MetroStars were the informal successor to the Cosmos and, as such, carried high expectations. With stars such as midfielder Tab Ramos and goalkeeper Tony Meola, most observers tipped the MetroStars to challenge for the league title in that first season. But an opening-day away loss at Los Angeles dampened some of that enthusiasm.

They returned to Giants stadium for their home opener, with a crowd of almost 47,000 turning out to see them take on the New England Revolution. The teams battled to a scoreless standstill for most of the match, which, under the rules at the time, would have sent them into a shootout. But just moments from the end of regulation, New England's Darren Sawatzky sent in a shot that Meola parried into the path of MetroStars defender Nicola Caricola. Caricola tried to clear it, but succeeded only in floating it over Meola's head and into the goal, gifting New England the 0-1 win.

The MetroStars went on to finish the season with a record of fifteen wins (three of which were shootout wins, worth only a single point) and seventeen losses. That was still enough to qualify them for the MLS Cup, but they lost in the first round to eventual champions DC United.

3 January 2003 - Nowak Calls Time On His Playing Career

On 3 January 2003, the Chicago Fire traded team captain Piotr Nowak to New England, but he retired about a month later before suiting up for his new club.

The Polish international midfielder joined Chicago in 1998 after a four-year tenure with 1860 Munich that saw him named Poland's Player of the Year (1996) and the Bundesliga's best playmaker (1995-96). He made an immediate impact with the fledgling MLS side, who named him the team MVP in his first season as they won the MLS Cup and the US Open Cup.

More successes followed, including another US Open Cup in 2000, as Nowak collected two more MVP awards in 2000 and 2001. By the end of the 2002 season, he set the club's current all-time assist record at 48. But salary cap considerations led Chicago to trade their then-38-year old captain to New England for the 2003 season. Later that year, Chicago made him the first inductee in their "Ring of Fire," honoring past players.

Just over one month after the trade announcement, Nowak chose to retire rather than continue his playing career in New England. He wasn't done with football altogether, however, as he took over as manager of DC United in 2004, winning that season's MLS Cup. He left DC in 2006 to work with the US national team and, in 2009, became the first head coach for the Philadelphia Union.

29 January 2006 - Eight May Be Enough, But Nine Is Better

On 29 January 2006, the United States beat Norway 5-0 in a friendly at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California. Three of the Yanks' goals were scored by forward Taylor Twellman, whose hat-trick was only the ninth in the history of the US national team.

Twellman, who plays his club ball for the MLS' New England Revolution, was making a push for inclusion in the 2006 World Cup side. Despite winning the MLS Golden Boot in 2005, he had scored only one previous international goal, in October 2005, since his call up to the senior team in 2002.

Although Twellman appeared to find his scoring touch, contributing another goal in a 3-2 friendly win over Japan in February 2006, he was not part of the side that traveled to Germany in 2006. That team managed to score only one goal--a 43rd-minute strike from Clint Dempsey against Ghana--and was eliminated from the tournament in the group stage. (They also benefitted from an Italy own goal to draw 1-1 with the eventual champions.)

Twellman rejoined the national team for their successful 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup campaign, but his most recent US appearance came on 19 January 2008 and he is no longer listed in the team's player pool.

27 July 1994 - The Second Coming Of Barbarossa

On 27 July 1994, defender Alexi Lalas signed with Serie A side Padova, becoming the first American in the modern era to play in Italy's top flight.

Lalas rose to national prominence while playing for Rutgers University, leading them to the NCAA Championship Game in 1990. In 1991, he was named a First Team All American and also won both the Hermann Trophy and the Missouri Athletic Club Player of the Year award.

After graduating from Rutgers in 1991, Lalas did not sign with a club and played exclusively for the United States national team. Between 1991 and 1998, he earned 96 caps and scored 9 goals for the national side.

A charismatic and colorful character, with his trademark long red hair and a beard, Lalas achieved near-celebrity status during the 1994 World Cup. He started and played every minute in the US's four matches, until they were eliminated by eventual winners Brazil in the first knockout round.

Lalas' performance in the World Cup drew the attention of Padova, who had just been promoted to Serie A for the 1994-95 season. Padova finished at the bottom of the table in 1995, but won a relegation playoff to remain in the top flight. At the end of that season, Lalas signed a contract with MLS to play in the new league's inaugural season, but MLS had to delay its start until 1996, so it loaned Lalas back to Padova for the 1995-96 season.

In 1996, Lalas signed for the New England Revolution, where he played until December 1997 (including a brief period on loan with Ecuadorian side Emelec). He spent the next several years with various MLS clubs, including the NY/NJ Metrostars, Kansas City Wizards, and Los Angeles Galaxy.

After his playing career ended, Lalas spent time as a broadcaster as well as serving as the general manager of the San Jose Earthquakes, Metrostars/Red Bulls, and the Galaxy.