By Sean Connolly

After 4 years in England Brian McBride is back where he belongs, the MLS. McBride is out of England and back in the States after being traded to the Chicago Fire, McBride’s hometown.

McBride out of England and back in the States

This is great for the MLS as McBride was such an intregal part of the MLS’ development with the Columbus Crew. McBride who has played for the U.S. National team hopefully will begin a trend in which American players return to play club ball in the MLS. In 8 seasons with the crew McBride was an all-star 7 times and scored 62 goals along with 45 assists.

It's been a while since we've seen him in an MLS uniform, but he's back

McBride’s return means a lot to this league. He is an innovator and the quintessential American soccer player. His success in England was amazing but after not seeing McBride in America for 4 years it’s hard not to have missed him after the last time we saw him all bloody during America’s loss to Italy in the 2006 World Cup.

McBride in the 2006 World Cup

McBride retired from international play after the 2006 World Cup so McBride will make his first return to American soccer in two years after he comes back from the Olympics where his serving as an “overage player” and a captain. The Fire gave up a good amount for the hometown kid, trading away Chad Barrett and a first round pick to Toronto FC (they had McBride through an allocation process to get him to the US). The 36 year-old McBride should be welcomed back with open arms as he is a US Soccer legend and a hero to anybody who plays the sport of soccer in America.

By Sean Connolly

They’re not the greatest side, but West Ham is an English Premier League team…and to most of America, that’s all that matters.

The MLS media will try and hype this game up and try to convince America that the MLS can play with the best of them, heck that’s all the post game questions were to David Beckham after his side’s victory. The truth this is just a start for the MLS. They need to continue these winning habits against solid teams who play in legitimate leagues.

But enough about the nuances of the result of the MLS’ victory, let’s talk about the game. For the most part it was a pretty exciting game. For the MLS the majority of the ball went through Beckham…exactly what the crowd, sponsors, and ESPN wanted. Becks played very well and assisted on Cristian Gomez’s goal to tie the game. The goal came within a minute of the game’s first goal by West Ham’s Dean Ashton, which set the tone of the game.

The MLS All-Star squad seemed to be united more than West Ham United as they actually played like they have played together hundreds of times before. They showed heart and determination as they scored right before half with Cuauhtemoc Blanco’s goal(Blanco won the MVP of the game) and again minutes after West Ham scored, Houston Dynamo’s Dwayne De Rosario took it into the box, got fouled, and then drilled and I mean drilled the penalty home. He put as much strength as I’ve ever seen behind a penalty as he rocked it off the bottom of the crossbar and it crossed the line.

Overall, you have to appreciate what the MLS has done. These game will always sell out because there are always going to be supporters of an international battle of some sort. With Barcelona making a US tour this summer, playing Chivas soon, and the Champions League ripoff Superliga actually working, I think its time for MLS teams to begin competing against European teams. The interest garnered in a match between an MLS team and an English Premiership team would certainly help the league. This is another great step for the MLS.

OKLAHOMA CITY – An American Airlines flight from Boston to Los Angeles was diverted to Oklahoma City on Friday after a passenger stripped nude and later tried to open an emergency exit door before being subdued by members of a professional soccer team and others, the FBI said.

Members of the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer were among those who grabbed the passenger near an exit door, FBI spokesman Gary Johnson said. Tie wraps were placed on the man, whose name was not immediately released. He was taken into custody in Oklahoma City and placed under psychiatric evaluation, Johnson said.

American Flight 725, a Boeing 757, arrived in Oklahoma City at 1:35 p.m. CDT and was back in the air an hour later, said American Airlines spokesman Tim Smith. It landed without further incident at Los Angeles International Airport at 3:13 p.m. PDT.

Craig Tornberg, the soccer team’s general manager, said he confronted the man as soon as he saw him emerge naked from one of the plane’s restrooms.

“I said he should get back into the bathroom and put on his clothes,” Tornberg said after the plane landed in Los Angeles. “He said something strange to me. He said, ‘I don’t hear you. I don’t see you.’ ”

Tornberg said the man complied and got dressed but a few minutes later “made a beeline for the emergency door.”

Tornberg said he, assistant coach Gwynne Williams and Michael Burns, the team’s vice president for player personnel, grabbed the man and forced him into a seat while a flight attendant tied him up.

“It was strange, but when he put his hands on the exit door – that brought it to another level,” Burns said. “Clearly, he wasn’t thinking straight.”

The pilot diverted the flight to Will Rogers World Airport where the man was removed.

“He was taken into custody by the Oklahoma City Police Department and taken to a crisis center for a mental evaluation,” Johnson said.

Shortly before the incident, Tornberg said he saw the man, described as clean-cut and in his early 20s, crying and “talking a lot of gibberish.”

The soccer team was on its way to Southern California for a game on Sunday against Chivas USA at California State University, Fullerton. Its members were among 151 passengers and seven crew members on the flight.

As passengers left the plane in Los Angeles, several indicated they had taken the incident in stride.

Gillian Callaghan, who was traveling with her 12-year-old son, said she never panicked because the flight crew seemed to keep things well under control. She said she felt sorry for the man.

“He was just having some troubles, confused, not a scary guy,” she said.