Paid Their Dues: Beginnings and Ends for Former Union Players

Kleberson will make his NASL debut this weekend, but until then, he is living it up. He's been very active since joining Twitter a few weeks ago, and has been more than willing to engage Indianapolis fans on the microblogging site. Indy kicks off their inaugural season on Saturday, when they will host the Carolina RailHawks. Here is Kleberson on a billboard:

After Cerro Porteño eliminated Deportivo Cali from Copa Libertadores contention on Tuesday, Faryd Mondragon has announced that he has played his last game with the Cali club. He has now retired from club soccer, and will retire from professional soccer altogether after the World Cup.

Matt Kassel has been signed by Arizona United SC of the USL PRO. United Head Coach James Dellorusso claims that Kassel is a "true number eight." It sounds like Kassel could become yet another former Union player to have a big role with a lower league American club.

Chandler Hoffman seems to be enjoying his time with LA Galaxy II, as he has already claimed two goals for himself this season. After three games, Los Dos sit atop the USL PRO standings with seven points.

Some incredibly intelligent people over at mlssoccer.com have been wondering if Justin Mapp deserves a spot on the USMNT's World Cup roster.

Now, I am a bigger Justin Mapp fan than you. Justin Mapp is my lifestyle, but even I think this may be a bit much. Of course, Mapp has been stellar since leaving the Union. He currently leads the league in key passes and crosses, which is ridiculous. (If you were wondering, Shea Salinas is second in both of those categories.) On a world stage, however, Mapp would have a tough time trying to replicate his domestic performance. He will not be able to shred Philipp Lahm as easily as he has Jair Benitez. Mapp is a very good MLS player, and has been one of the most underrated players in the league over the past few years, but he just does not have the quality or reputation to merit a call-up.

Oh, and Justin Mapp made this cross the other day:

Chris Seitz and Brian Perk both saw the field this weekend, but their spots in goal are in jeopardy. Raul Fernandez has been recovering from hernia surgery for much of the season, but Seitz has filled in admirably than him. It's likely that Fernandez will reclaim his spot once fully fit. Jaime Penedo, LAG's usual No. 1, missed much of training last week trying to work out some visa information. Penedo also suffered a minor injury, so Bruce Arena decided to put Perk in goal against the Galaxy's neighbors. He kept the clean sheet, but only had to face one shot on goal. Like Seitz, he will lose his job once Penedo is healthy.

Porfirio Lopez and Alajuelense were knocked out of the CONCACAF Champions' League on Tuesday. After getting shutout at home, LDA had a pretty slim shot at advancing to the Final. Toluca scored two more at home to win the series 3-0 on aggregate. There were still more Porfirioes in the CCL Semifinals than there were MLS teams.

Jordan Harvey went ninety minutes in Vancouver's 2-1 loss to Colorado.

Kai Herdling got 28 minutes in Hoffenheim's 1-1 draw with Hertha on Sunday.

Michael Orozco started on Saturday, but came off injured after 21 minutes. There is still no update on his status.

Neither of the Farfan twins cracked their teams' gameday rosters this week.

Since you are reading this, you probably know that Bakary Soumare's Chicago Fire scored late to steal two points from the Union. I should not even have to mention that heartbreaking goal to you, as it will be engraved in your memory until the next time the Union concede late (there is a game tomorrow).