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SEATTLE -- Clint Dempsey didnt have much to say about the two-game suspension he received from Major League Soccer. De Aaron Fox Womens Jersey . Fourteen words to be exact. "Disappointed. I dont agree with it. It is what it is and move on," Dempsey said after the Seattle Sounders wrapped practice on Thursday. The real concern for some is that the suspension came right before a major U.S. national team exhibition against Mexico next Wednesday. By the time Dempsey takes the field against Mexico in Glendale, Ariz., it will have been more than two weeks since Dempsey last played. And while its just an exhibition, its significant because it will be the last U.S. match before World Cup camp begins in May. "Its a friendly, its not a World Cup qualifier so theres not much pressure that there would be if it was a World Cup qualifying game," Dempsey said. "But its still exciting to represent your country and to play against one of your rivals." Dempsey was suspended and fined for violent conduct toward Toronto FC defender Mark Bloom in a March 15 match. Dempsey hit Bloom in the stomach/groin area, a blow not seen by officials but that was captured by television cameras. Dempsey said after the match that he was trying to slap Blooms hand off his back and did not intend to strike his body. The MLS players union appealed but the suspension was upheld. Dempsey sat last week when Seattle won at Montreal and will be a spectator Saturday when the Sounders host Columbus. Hell return to MLS play on April 5 when Seattle travels to rival Portland. U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann was one of Dempseys most vocal supporters after the suspension was announced. He was quick to point out the number of fouls Dempsey has taken since returning to MLS. "Its very disappointing to see Clint be the only person punished from this game," Klinsmann said last week. "There is a foul against him in the sixth minute that should have been a red card. The persistent fouling continued throughout the game, and hes getting punished for a reaction following all those fouls. Yes he made a mistake, but if opponents dont get penalized for consistently fouling, it only encourages them to continue that approach." According to stats provided by MLS, Dempsey is the most fouled player in the league since Aug. 10 of last season. Dempsey, the U.S. captain, appreciated Klinsmanns concern. "Yeah, for sure its always good that the manager has your back and I appreciate that," Dempsey said. "All I can do is keep working hard and keep working on my fitness after training and making sure I play well when Im with the national team, like I have always done in the past. And make sure I keep playing good with the national team moving forward and pay him back for his faith in me." Dempsey said one solution to the fouls would be for more yellow cards to be handed out earlier in the match. He believes that could create a better rhythm to the game. "I think its important to protect every player," Dempsey said. "The sooner you start giving the cards for reckless fouls then it cuts down on a lot of things and it makes the game more exciting to watch because there is more free flow to it." De Aaron Fox NCAA Jersey . "Today was a very great day for me. It was always my dream to be good in GS," Wierather said. "I took quite a long time to get there. It feels awesome to have my first win (in GS)." Wierather leads overall with 595 points from Lara Gut (568), who finished second, and Maria Hoefl-Riesch of Germany (535). De Aaron Fox Jersey .com) - The Los Angeles Kings werent playing their best hockey before the league went on break during the Winter Olympics.With the 2014 FIFA World Cup kicking off Thursday in Brazil, TSN.cas panel of experts is here to provide you with sage advice, or at least best guesses. We asked TSNs team of soccer analysts to provide their picks for the group stage. Read on to find out who is in contention and who might be looking at an early exit. The panel consists of TSN Soccer Analysts Jason deVos, Luke Wileman and Kristian Jack, TSN Radio 1050 Toronto host Gareth Wheeler, TSN Radio 690 Montreals Noel Butler and TSN.ca soccer editors Shane McNeil and Ken Rodney. Group A: 1. Brazil, 2. Croatia 3. Cameroon, 4. Mexico. No one seems to have much doubt that the hosts are advancing to the second round and they have been chosen unanimously as group winners by TSNs experts. While Neymars training scare did sound a few alarms, it was pretty clear that Brazil was the team to back in Group A, and for several of our analysts, the team to take it all. Second place is a bit more of a toss-up with three perennially competitive teams rounding out the group, but Croatia got solid backing from more than half the TSN team. The likes of Mario Mandzukic and Luka Modric make them an offensive force and will likely provide the offence they need to make the Round of 16. Mexico has advanced to the Round of 16 in each of the last five World Cups, but their appalling qualifying performance has them on the outside looking in. The Indomitable Lions of Cameroon have only once advanced out of the group stage but still got some second-place consideration. Picks - deVos: Brazil, Croatia. Jack: Brazil, Mexico. Wileman: Brazil, Cameroon. Wheeler: Brazil, Croatia. Butler: Brazil, Croatia. McNeil: Brazil, Croatia. Rodney: Brazil, Croatia. Group B: 1. Spain, 2. Netherlands, 3. Chile, 4. Australia. One of the more stacked groups in the competition, Group B was a divisive force amongst the TSN soccer team with the two reigning finalists pulling first- and second-place votes away from one another. The Champs, though, did prevail, and Spain is the consensus pick to top the group. Theyve won three straight tournaments dating back to Euro 2008 and theres not much to suggest they arent going to be competitive in Brazil. Dont underestimate the importance of group play here, because whoever finishes second will in all likelihood draw Brazil in the Round of 16. While Chile was picked as a second-place finisher on more than one ballot (and first by Kristian Jack!), the Netherlands took the second spot in the group. And why not? With the likes of Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben, the Dutch are wired to score in droves. The Australians will have to settle for a participation ribbon in this competition. Picks - deVos: Spain, Chile. Jack: Chile, Netherlands. Wileman: Spain, Netherlands . Wheeler: Spain, Netherlands. Butler: Spain, Chile. McNeil: Netherlands, Spain. Rodney: Spain, Netherlands. Group C: 1. Ivory Coast, 2. Colombia, 3. Japan, 4. Greece. This is another balanced group that prompted a wide variety of scenarios from our analysts. In the end, though, two teams emerged well ahead as the cream of the group. Unfortunately, those two teams wound up in a dead heat in terms of votes received. Were giving Ivory Coast the nod by virtue of having more first-place votes, so watch out for Didier Drogba, Yaya Toure and the rest of the Elephants to step up amid fierce competition. Colombia was the easy choice for second place and may well have been the favourite here if Radamel Falcao were fit enough to play. We still like their chances to advance and make a serious run at topping the group. Japans Samurai seem to succeed at the World Cup every other tournament (they made the Round of 16 in South Africa), but they are up against some serious competition in this group that doesnt really have a minnow. Greece is a team that can usually lull its way into the playoffs with staunch defence, but they were unable to convince our analysts that they will silence Colombia or the Ivorians. Picks - deVos: Colombia, Ivory Coast. Jack: Colombia, Japan. Wileman: Colombia, Ivory Coast. Wheeler: Ivory Coast, Colombia. Butler: Ivory Coast, Colombia. McNeil: Ivory Coast, Greece. Rodney: Ivory Coast, Colombia. Group D: 1. Uruguay, 2. Italy, 3. England, 4. Costa Rica. Yes, we know, you probably disagree. As you can see below, the vote was razor thin with little wiggle room between the reigning the perennial picks from England and Italy and the reigning bronze medalists from Uruguay. Heres the logic: Luis Suarez is not 100 per cent, but he is still probably the breakout player of the group. The Uruguayans will be buoyed by the fact that they won the World Cup last time it was held in Brazil and were the top-ranked team in the group at the time of the draw. They received the most first-place votes of any team in the group from our panel. The margin between England and Italy is harder to discern. All our analysts conceded that both have the talent to go through but both are facing obstacles. England has the tougher games to start their group play, while Italys travel schedule works against them. De Aaron Fox College Jersey. . Theres no easy way to pick this group, since its one of several Groups of Death in this competition. If you dont like our picks, change them. The vote was so split in this group that its hard to call this a true consensus choice. Picks - deVos: Italy, Uruguay. Jack: Uruguay, Italy. Wileman: Italy, England. Wheeler: England, Italy. Butler: England, Italy. McNeil: Uruguay, England. Rodney: Uruguay, Italy. Group E: 1. France, 2. Ecuador, 3. Switzerland, 4. Honduras. In the second unanimous decision, France emerged as the clear favourite from Group E. Theyve alternated between sublime and ugly at each World Cup since hosting in 1998. The 2010 effort in South Africa could not have been uglier, so that leaves nothing but room for improvement. Losing Franck Ribery stings, but Les Bleus have the depth to at least top this quartet. The race for second was tight. Ecuadors Antonio Valencia showed hes in full compete mode by getting a red in a recent friendly against England, so if he comes out and plays at the top of his game, it should propel yet another South American team into the playoffs. The Swiss were one of the surprise teams in the top seeding pot for the 2014 draw and as such should also be considered a serious threat to advance. No one seems to be a believer in Honduras. Picks - deVos: France, Ecuador. Jack: France, Switzerland. Wileman: France, Ecuador. Wheeler: France, Switzerland. Butler: France, Switzerland. McNeil: France, Ecuador. Rodney: France, Ecuador. Group F: 1. Argentina, 2. Nigeria, 3. Bosnia and Herzegovina, 4. Iran. To the surprise of few, were picking Lionel Messi, Kun Aguero and the rest of Argentinas potent attack to easily run this group and – like their rivals from Brazil – theyre a popular pick to take the entire tournament. Nigerias Super Eagles are our pick to take second in the group behind some English Premier League talent in their midfield in the forms of John Obi Mikel and Victor Moses. Some of our resident internet nerds from TSN.ca really like Bosnia and Herzegovinas chances and the team did score a heap of goals in qualifying, but Edin Dzeko and co. came up short in the vote and may have to settle for thrilling their fans simply by making their first-ever appearance. Iran has won just one game in three previous trips to the World Cup. Picks - deVos: Argentina, Bosnia/Herzegovina. Jack: Argentina, Nigeria. Wileman: Argentina, Nigeria. Wheeler: Argentina, Nigeria. Butler: Argentina, Nigeria. McNeil: Argentina, Bosnia/Herzegovina. Rodney: Argentina, Bosnia/Herzegovina. Group G: 1. Germany, 2. Portugal, 3. USA, 4. Ghana. The deepest of the groups from top to bottom, the only thing everyone could agree on was that the Germans are going through. They dont tend to leave the group stage to chance and have finished in the top eight at every World Cup since being banned from the 1950 World Cup (also in Brazil). They will get through and in all likelihood as group-winners. Portugal gets the second-place vote here but it wasnt a unanimous decision. Cristiano Ronaldo will carry the Portuguese, the only question is: how far? He out-willed Zlatan Ibrahimovic to get his team here. Does he have it in him to carry the team deep? The U.S. got some love as potential spoilers, so keep an eye on them. They surprised a lot of people in South Africa and Jurgen Klinsmann has been busy sowing the seeds of doubt around his team before the tournament. Is he just trying to get other teams to let their guards down? Ghana is a strong team and would be a threat to advance in most other groups... just not this one. Picks - deVos: Germany, Portugal. Jack: Portugal, Germany. Wileman: Germany, Portugal. Wheeler: Germany, USA. Butler: Portugal, Germany. McNeil: Germany, USA. Rodney: Germany, Portugal. Group H: 1. Belgium, 2. Russia, 3. Korea Republic, 4. Algeria. A chic underdog pick in this competition, Belgium is the team to beat in Group H according to everyone here at TSN. They boast a superb balance of attack and defend with some reliable and smart talent all through their line-up. How frightening is it that if teams are able to neutralize Eden Hazard and Romelu Lukaku that they might still see Adnan Januzaj coming off the bench? Russia are back at the World Cup for the first time in over a decade and we like their odds to get out of the group due to their ability to score in droves. Theyve struggled in big tournaments since the fall of the Soviet Union, but they did manage to finish third at Euro 2008. Korea Republic have already continued their streak of eight straight trips to the World Cup, but we believe thats where the dream ends. As for Algeria, English and American fans will be able to tell you that they are capable of causing trouble. We just dont see them as a threat to advance. Picks - deVos: Belgium, Russia. Jack: Belgium, Russia. Wileman: Belgium, Russia. Wheeler: Belgium, Korea. Butler: Belgium, Russia. McNeil: Belgium, Russia. Rodney: Belgium, Russia. Cheap NFL JerseysCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaCheap Jerseys From ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys AuthenticWholesale Jerseys ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaNFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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