Stagnating at Arsenal, German centre-forward/left attacking midfielder Lukas Podolski, 29, now finds himself in a ruinous situation on loan at Inter Milan.

You surmise Podolski‘s fleeting feeling of relief has since been replaced by hopelessness.

Wanting Out

Last October, there was speculation Podolski could do a William Gallas by moving to Tottenham Hotspur.

Categorically denying the rumour via twitter, #AlwaysAGunner was one of the six hashtags Podolski used to diffuse the gossip.

Leading into the 2015 January transfer window, always a Gunner was a thought which gradually shifted away from Podolski‘s mind.

“I am not happy with the situation at the moment. It would be wrong to suggest that I am,” Podolski said, per The Guardian. “In football you can’t sadly just go looking for a [new] club.”

Averaging 14.14 minutes in the Premier League, Podolski was never given a chance to prove his worth this season. 

When Podolski scored the clutch winner in a 2-1 win over Anderlecht last October in the UEFA Champions League, he received words of encouragement from Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.

“[Podolski] is frustrated and I understand that of course,” Wenger said, per Sky Sports. “[But] he will be important in the coming months.”

Wenger, do you know what would further irk an already unhappy Podolski?

• October 25, 2014 | Sunderland 0-2 Arsenal: Unused substitute.
• November 1, 2014 | Arsenal 3-0 Burnley: Subbed on in 79th minute.
• November 9, 2014 | Swansea 2-1 Arsenal: Unused substitute.
• November 22, 2014 | Arsenal 1-2 Manchester United: Unused substitute.
• November 29, 2014 | West Bromwich Albion 0-1 Arsenal: Unused substitute.

In the proceeding five Premier League games after coming up big against Anderlecht, Podolski started and finished on the bench four times—so much for being important.

Starting on the left side against Galatasaray in the Champions League last December, Podolski produced the goods, scoring twice in a 4-1 win.

He was benched in the next Premier League game—a 4-1 win over Newcastle United, playing just 17 minutes.

The capricious way Wenger managed Podolski led to his departure. 

“I gave [Podolski] a chance to go,” Wenger said, per Rob Kelly at Arsenal.com. “At some stage too much competition is detrimental to [his] confidence.”

It was Bayern Munich all over again—no longer the big fish in a small pond at Koln, Podolski forced his way out. 

On that occasion, he went straight back to Koln. 

This time, it was Inter Milan. 

“The welcome I received [from Inter Milan fans] was something I’ve never seen anywhere else in the world,” Podolski said, per Inter.it. “I can’t wait to see what the future holds.”

Bad First Impression

Taking the ball from way outside the box, Podolski unleashes a cannon-like left-footed shot to score an amazing long-range goal—in training.

The Inter Milan media department released a clip from one of their training sessions, which doubled as a Podolski highlights video. 

It felt like a public relations ploy: “Yeah, we know he has been useless so far, but he trains hard!”

You could not help but wonder if this was meant to quell the backlash towards Podolski‘s lack of intensity, which was exacerbated by Inter Milan manager Roberto Mancini.

“Lukas needs to do more,” Mancini said, per Sky (h/t Football Italia). “We know he can give a lot more and we hope he will.”

To Podolski‘s credit, he accepted the criticism, even though Mancini once again proved he was not an advocate of what happens in the dressing room stays in the dressing room.

“[Mancini] was asked [about me] and it was an honest answer,” Podolski said, per Bild (h/t Stephan Uersfeld at ESPN FC). “I work hard every day with the squad and the coaching staff to find my rhythm again.”

Podolski has been Parma-bad in Serie A and was voted by La Gazzetta dello Sport readers in a snap-shot poll as the second-worst January transfer signing/loan.

• 604 minutes over nine games without a goal or assist; inefficient.
• 17.65 percent shooting accuracy—47.05 percent of his shots have been from outside the box; terrible shot selection.

In a 1-1 draw against Cesena, Podolski went 0-5 in goals scored-shots taken, momentarily dropping the words pass and assist from his vocabulary. 

He had a 20 percent shooting accuracy and failed to record a single pass which led to a scoring chance for his teammates. 

When he attempted to be a provider during a 1-0 defeat against Fiorentina, he inadvertently kicked the corner flag while crossing the ball.

Nothing has gone right for Podolski.

“[Getting back into form] is not something you can do by just flicking a switch,” Podolski said, per SPORT1 (h/t Joe Short at the Daily Express). “I have no problems when the media and other people criticise me.”

Podolski‘s teammate Rodrigo Palacio, who has struggled throughout the season, would agree. 

Since the arrival of Podolski, which was an indictment on Palacio‘s productivity (one goal and two assists heading into the January transfer window), he has scored six goals in his last seven combined Serie A/UEFA Europa League games. 

Meanwhile, it seems Podolski can only score in training.

Coming Home

Why is Podolski substandard at clubs not named Koln?

Just ask former Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness, who attempted to explain how Podolski, one of Germany’s brightest talents in recent memory, flopped for the Bavarians.

“For [Podolski] there is only Koln, Koln and Koln,” Hoeness said, per Deutsche Welle. “He dreams of Koln day and night.”

Unwanted at Arsenal and a burden at Inter Milan, Podolski is probably already thinking about a move back to Koln.

“I can imagine a transfer to Koln in the next few years because I’m always attached to the club,” Podolski said, per Sky Sport (h/t Ross Dunbar at Deutsche Welle). “That’s what I dream about and I hope it comes true again.”

Should that happen, cue the song Skylar Grey – Coming Home, as it would be Podolski‘s third stint at his boyhood club—2003-06, 2009-12 and maybe 2015-whenever he retires.

+allanjiang.

When not specified, statistics via WhoScored.com. 

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Manchester City are reportedly planning on stealing one of Manchester United’s top transfer targets from under their nose, as the defending Premier League champions are talking to Wolfsburg‘s Kevin De Bruyne about a possible summer move.

Het Laatste Nieuws‘ Kristof Terreur reports director of football Txiki Begiristain has already contacted the Belgium international’s entourage:

The 23-year-old has been linked with a move to Old Trafford recently, and Bild (h/t The Guardian‘s Ed Aarons) believes Louis van Gaal is a big fan of the former Chelsea man.

De Bruyne‘s emergence as one of Europe’s top passers and all-round midfielders has been rapid, and Wolfsburg have ridden their new superstar to new heights, quickly becoming one of the top clubs in the Bundesliga.

From a statistical perspective, the versatile midfielder has become one of the most impactful players in the game today. As shared by the New York Times‘ Stefan Bienkowski, his output matches up well with some of his more illustrious colleagues:

ESPN FC’s Michael Cox couldn’t hide his admiration after De Bruyne almost single-handedly guided Wolfsburg past Inter Milan in their Europa League encounter, scoring twice and adding an assist for good measure:

Premier League fans perhaps remember De Bruyne best for his time with Chelsea, where he was part of a group of Belgian youngsters who arrived with much fanfare at Stamford Bridge.

He and Romelu Lukaku failed to make an immediate impact and were eventually sold for a big profit, while Thibaut Courtois has emerged as the club’s top option in goal after spending several years on loan with Atletico Madrid.

De Bruyne wasn’t given much time to impress by Jose Mourinho, and while it made perfect sense to sell the Belgian to the highest bidder at the time, the decision seems a poor one in hindsight.

His fantastic performances for Wolfsburg have already led to plenty of transfer speculation, and per France Football (h/t Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Johnson), Paris Saint-Germain are among his many suitors:

Blessed with pace, vision and plenty of raw scoring ability, De Bruyne has been the on-pitch leader of Belgium’s national team for years, often making a far bigger impact than Chelsea star Eden Hazard, who is yet to truly make his mark for the Red Devils.

De Bruyne seems more than ready to make the step up to a bigger club, but after only moving to Wolfsburg in 2014, it seems unlikely he’d be willing to return to the Premier League so soon.

The club certainly has no intention of selling its biggest star, via Terreur:

Wolfsburg will likely qualify for next year’s Champions League, which will give fans and scouts alike a glimpse of what the Belgian can do against the very best competition Europe has to offer.

He’s only 23, and with another year of seasoning in the Bundesliga, De Bruyne could establish himself as a true superstar before entertaining the idea of returning to England and possibly joining one of the Manchester-based clubs.

United added plenty of top players to their squad last season, and according to Bleacher Report’s Stan Collymore, they should do so again in 2015. De Bruyne certainly fits the bill:

The Citizens aren’t exactly short of cash, either, and if Manuel Pellegrini is truly convinced De Bruyne is the one player he needs to push for next year’s Premier League title, a massive offer could persuade the Germans to change their mind.

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Arsenal‘s latest transfer gossip sees the club adding yet more attack-minded players to a team already bloated in forward areas. That’s a strange strategy for a squad that needs more help in defence and between the posts than up front.

But even with a midfield brimming with several advanced playmakers, Gunners boss Arsene Wenger apparently still thinks Hakan Calhanoglu is too good to resist. The Arsenal chief is so impressed he’s even ready to send work-shy misfit Lukas Podolski to Bayer 04 Leverkusen to prompt the Bundesliga club into a sale, per the Daily Star on Sunday.

Getting rid of Podolski is acceptable. In fact, waving goodbye to the striker more concerned with social media minutes than grafting on the pitch should be a central part of Wenger‘s summer strategy.

That’s why the 29-year-old Germany international is currently on loan at Serie A side Inter Milan. But manager Roberto Mancini has been very critical of Podolski‘s performances, per a Daily Mail report by Reuters writer Brian Homewood.

Podolski‘s agent has even suggested his client will seek a move to Turkey once this season ends, per David Wright of the Sunday Express. Yet a return to the Bundesliga seems more appropriate for a player whose career has stalled since leaving Germany in 2012.

But should that mean Podolski would be acting as a makeweight for Calhanoglu?

The Gunners are hardly in need of creative midfield players. Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey, Tomas Rosicky, Santi Cazorla and Mesut Ozil give Wenger more options than he knows what to do with.

Of course, Calhanoglu has been dubbed the “new Ozil.” Yet there’s little wrong with the old one, at least on current form.

However, B/R’s James McNicholas recently stated Ozil can’t be graded a success since arriving for a club-record fee in 2013. He even discussed how the Gunners might improve their squad if they sold a so-called “luxury” player:

Natural free-kick specialist Calhanoglu is a mercurial talent, but he isn’t the Leverkusen player Wenger should pursue. A better option would be offering Podolski to sweeten a deal for midfield destroyer Lars Bender, a player Arsenal have been heavily linked with.

The Gunners have a need for a midfield player with strength and defensive qualities. Wenger‘s squad certainly doesn’t need another schemer.

Nor does it need another striker. That’s why a proposed move for Palermo forward Paulo Dybala should raise a few eyebrows.

Particularly when he’ll cost as much as €40 million. Club president Maurizio Zamparini indicated Dybala will agree to join a new club within the “next 15 days,” per Metro’s Jamie Sanderson.

Spanish website Fichajes.net also reported Arsenal have been working feverishly to wrap up a deal for a budding star generating heavy interest (h/t Sanderson).

The only problem is finding a place for another tricky and pacy attacker. After all, Wenger can already call on Alexis Sanchez, Danny Welbeck, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott.

The latter has been stalling over a new contract offer. Wenger recently only half-mockingly chided the fleet-footed England international for dragging his feet, per BBC Sport, but it’s difficult to believe he’s already looking for Walcott‘s replacement.

If Wenger is going to make big signings this summer, he should target a more assured goalkeeper and a more athletic centre-back. His squad already has all the playmakers and goalscorers it needs.

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Even when Chelsea aren’t trying, they are winning in the transfer market as they watch Egyptian left/right-forward Mohamed Salah, 22, raise his transfer stock to the nth level on loan at Fiorentina.

Initially viewed as a squad-filler, Salah has the potential to be another big-money transfer away from Chelsea. 

Liverpool Chelsea

Salah proved he could play against Premier League teams having scored for Basel against Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur in the UEFA Europa League.

Entering the 2014 January transfer window, Liverpool were planning to sign Salah from Basel, per ESPN.

It was speculated that if Liverpool were to sign Salah, it would enable Raheem Sterling to be loaned out to Swansea City, per Gary Jacob at The Times.

Though, Liverpool assistant manager Colin Pascoe quashed the theory.

“We just laughed at that [rumour],” Pascoe said, per James Pearce at the Liverpool Echo. “Raheem has been brilliant this season. He won’t be going anywhere.”

• Jordon Ibe → Birmingham City (loan).
• Sebastian Coates → Nacional (loan).
• Tiago Ilori → Granada (loan).

Pascoe was right as Sterling avoided being one of the Liverpool prospects to be loaned out halfway through the season.

However, Liverpool botching the proposed Salah deal means you will never definitively know if his arrival would have led to Sterling’s loan to Swansea City.

After the Salah deal collapsed, his commitment was questioned by Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre, who went on the public relations offensive.

Unlike Ayre, Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers was more introspective, perhaps believing he could have brought the best out of Salah, which is what is happening at Fiorentina.

“It’s the construction of the whole deal, not only with [Salah] and the agent but also Basel. It was deemed in this case that we couldn’t do a deal and Chelsea could,” Rodgers said, per Andy Hunter at The Guardian. “If [transfer targets like Salah] end up going to [a rival] club, it is difficult to take.”

Salah‘s agent Sascha Empacher revealed Liverpool’s delaying tactics opened the door for Chelsea.

“[Negotiations with Liverpool] lasted two-and-a-half months—too long,” Empacher said, per David Anderson at the Daily Mirror. “When Chelsea contacted Basel, Salah was happy and took his chance. It was no financial matter.”

Chelsea signing Salah for €15.4/£11 million seemed nefarious because he was a luxury squad player.

It was as if Chelsea feared Salah‘s X-Factor would play a role in Liverpool potentially challenging for the Premier League title. 

Remember, one slip from Steven Gerrard against Chelsea effectively cost Liverpool the Premier League, handing the title to Manchester City.

What if Salah was subbed on for Liverpool, used his blazing speed and single-handedly beat Chelsea? 

It really does reinforce the crux of ElAlonso’s video The Butterfly Effect.

Fiorentina Freebie

Salah averaging 40.8 minutes per Premier League game and only appearing as a substitute three times this season strengthens the cynical claim of Chelsea buying him to keep him away from a contending Premier League team. 

Chelsea negotiating with a foreign team, Roma, further indicates Salah was an expendable short-term signing, per David Amoyal at GianlucaDiMarzio.com:

• Proposed deal: Salah moves to Roma on loan with a buyout clause of €17/£12.1 million, which would represent a nominal €1.6/£1.1 million profit for Chelsea.

That was January 23, 2015. 

Eleven days before Fiorentina would finally say no mas on transfer deadline day, allowing Juan Cuadrado to move to Chelsea for €32.7/£23.3 million plus Salah on loan.

Like Nemanja Matic being given away to Benfica which facilitated David Luiz’s transfer to Chelsea in 2011, Salah was an undervalued bargaining chip, per Nima Tavallaey at GianlucaDiMarzio.com:

• Fiorentina pressured Chelsea into paying the rest of Salah‘s salary until the end of this season.
  
• If Fiorentina want to renew Salah‘s loan for next season, it will cost €1 million/£713,557.

Running on to Khouma Babacar’s audacious backheel, Salah outpaced Sassuolo‘s back line and scored in a 3-1 win.

Reading Alberto Gilardino’s flick-on pass, Salah reached the ball first and finished under pressure in a 1-1 draw against Torino.

Taking advantage of Samir Handanovic’s error, Salah pounced and finished excellently with his left foot in a 1-0 win over Inter Milan.

Latching on to a defensive clearance from Jasmin Kurtic, Salah took the ball from inside his half and spear-headed a one-man counter-attack against Juventus.

Veering to the left, Salah struck the ball into the top right corner to score an amazing goal. 

He later scored another after a defensive miscue from Juventus in a 2-1 Coppa Italia win.

Voted by La Gazzetta dello Sport readers as the No. 1 January transfer signing so far in Serie A, Salah has been world class, which enhances the reputation of Fiorentina manager Vincenzo Montella.

Not only did Montella sell a mercurial Cuadrado at an inflated transfer fee, Salah is an upgrade, albeit on a short-term basis.

Salah is an incredible component of Fiorentina‘s attack and is at times unstoppable on the fast-break, as illustrated by Omar Momani.

Allowing Salah to play a free-roaming role, Montella is turning the Eygptian into a superstar.

“Salah is in a state of grace and we hope he can continue,” Montella said, per Rai (h/t Enis Koylu at Goal). “Honestly, his immediate impact has gone beyond expectations.”

Right now, Salah > Cuadrado, per OptaPaolo.

Another Great Deal For Chelsea?

The Associated Press (h/t USA Today) reported that Fiorentina can exercise a clause to buy Salah for €20/£14.3 million. 

When Chelsea announced the Salah loan, there was no mention of a buyout clause.

Though, Fiorentina revealed the current “agreement runs until 30 June 2015 with the possibility of extending the [loan] deal for the 2015-16 season and a further option of making the transfer permanent.”

The key phrase is further option, as opposed to an iron-clad buyout clause, which does not give Chelsea the right to contest if Fiorentina stump up the money.

Should this be the case, Salah will be easy money for Chelsea.

Why?

You surmise Chelsea will deny Fiorentina‘s loan-renewal option in order to sell Salah to the highest bidder in the summer transfer window.

If Salah continues his meteoric form, he will rival the €39.2/£28 million fee Chelsea received when selling Romelu Lukaku to Everton in 2014.

Salah could be another transfer win for Chelsea (an inadvertent one).

+allanjiang.

When not specified, statistics via WhoScored.com. 

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Jose Mourinho may have failed to guide Chelsea past 10-man Paris Saint-Germain during Wednesday’s Champions League action, but according to the latest rumours, the Portuguese manager will start talks on a contract extension with the Blues very soon.

As reported by the Daily Star‘s David Woods, Chelsea owner Roman Abramovic is convinced The Special One remains the right man for the job, even if he fails to win this year’s Premier League title:

Mourinho suffered a crushing blow on Wednesday when Chelsea were knocked out of the Champions League at home by Paris St-Germain.

But rather than putting his job in jeopardy, Blues owner Roman Abramovich wants to give The Special One a new deal.

Starsport understands the club are ready to begin talks even though his current three-year deal does not run out until the end of next season.

A source close to the Russian billionaire said last night: “Roman has no complaints.

“He will definitely want Jose to stay, even if they do not win the league.”

The Blues currently hold a five-point lead over defending champions Manchester City with a match in hand and already secured their first piece of silverware this season by beating Tottenham Hotspur in the Capital One Cup final.

While we’ve seen plenty of dramatic finishes to the Premier League title race in previous seasons, Chelsea are widely expected to walk away with this year’s crown. Bleacher Report’s Andy Brassell thinks Mourinho‘s squad shouldn’t have any problems finishing the job:

On top of the on-pitch success, Mourinho has done an excellent job in the past few transfer windows, bringing in star players like Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas, while balancing the books with the sales of Romelu Lukaku, Andre Schurrle and Kevin de Bruyne.

Top stars are already lining up to play for the club next season, and as shared by Goal UK, Shakhtar Donetsk‘s Douglas Costa showered the manager with praise recently, calling him the best in the business:

His opinion is undoubtedly shared by many but certainly not all. Mourinho has been a frequent target of criticism for the defensive manner in which his star-studded teams often play, and his insistence there is a “campaign” against the club is often met with laughs by pundits like ESPN’s Alan Tyers.

Wednesday’s draw against PSG gave his detractors some added fuel, and former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes was one of many to fire shots at the Blues, per Goal:

Despite those criticisms, Mourinho remains one of the most successful coaches of our time. His last Champions League triumph came in 2010, when he was still managing Inter Milan, but he has won domestic titles with every team he’s managed, dating back to his days with Porto.

He was always likely to return to the Chelsea bench for the 2015-16 season, so fans shouldn’t be shocked to hear talks over a potential contract extension are right around the corner.

According to BBC Sport, Mourinho‘s current contract runs until 2017.

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With their exit from the Champions League sealed by a goal from a former player, it hasn’t been a terrific week for Chelsea. Thanks to the positive continental exploits of a few former Blues, things did not get much better for them on Thursday evening.

The architect of the Wolfsburg’s Europa League round of 16 first-leg victory over Inter Milan was undoubtedly Kevin De Bruyne, who was involved in all three goals in the 3-1 win. In the 29th minute, the Belgian took the brilliant out-swinging corner from which Naldo scored the equaliser…

Just after the hour mark, De Bruyne found the net for himself when Inter ‘keeper Juan Pablo Carrizo played the ball right to his feet…

The 23-year-old then completed his evening with a free-kick that once again called the Nerazzurri goalkeeper’s ability into question…

Understandably, Twitter was awash with praise for the former Chelsea man, who has helped Die Wolfe become favourites for the tournament (as per Odds Checker)…

Chelsea supporters needed absolutely no reminding that Jose Mourinho let De Bruyne go to Wolfsburg in January 2014. However, they were served plenty of unwelcome reminders by the good folks of social media… 

Even Squawka waded in on the schadenfreude, offering a humbling Mou quote to frustrate the Shed End faithful…

In light of Chelsea’s recent struggles, the performance made Blues fans doubt their transfer dealings…

Many were hoping that the Blues board had included a buy-back clause in his contract when he was unceremoniously kicked out of Cobham…

Non-Chelsea fans, meanwhile, delighted in the idea of the club “pulling a Matic,” by buying back the player they nonchalantly sold at an inflated price…

To compound the Blues fans’ misery, De Bruyne’s fellow alumnus Mohamed Salah enjoyed yet another good night for Fiorentina. The on-loan midfielder provided the assist for Josip Ilicic’s goal in their 1-1 draw with Serie A rivals Roma…

Predictably, the memes rolled in…

To make matters even worse, yet another man who used to call the Bridge home had a good evening in the Europa League. Romelu Lukaku did most of the work for Everton‘s opener against Dynamo Kiev and managed to assist Steven Naismith…

Many suggested that Lukaku would not have fought off the advances of the Dynamo defence if he was still plying his trade in west London…

The Belgian striker then got his name on the scoresheet with a penalty…

So, to recap: In one evening, Chelsea have seen De Bruyne score twice and assist, Salah bag an assist and Lukaku play a key part in Everton’s European campaign. And, of course, this comes the day after David Luiz scored a goal to help knock the Blues out of the Champions League.

Suffice to say, it’s been a rough 24 hours for Mourinho and Co.

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PHILADELPHIA — Minutes after his city was declared as the host for the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup final, Philadelphia mayor Michael Nutter made a bold declaration. 

“This is the greatest sports city in the United States of America,” Nutter proclaimed from the podium inside Lincoln Financial Field. 

Nutter’s statement may hold up when it comes to the major sports teams in the town, but it is easy to question how relevant it is to the city’s soccer fans. 

On the same day when the City of Brotherly Love was being awarded the rights to host a major soccer match, most of the Philadelphia sports scene was focused on the capture of an NFL free agent. That’s just how things are in the town synonymous for its fans who boo and throw batteries at Santa Claus. 

In their six years of existence, Major League Soccer’s Philadelphia Union has gained little to no traction outside of the soccer-viewing public in the city. 

The club did capture the hearts of some outside observers during its run to the 2014 U.S. Open Cup final, but once it fell to the Seattle Sounders in extra time, things were back to normal in Philadelphia. 

Union CEO and operating partner Nick Sakiewicz wasn’t particularly concerned with drawing casual fans of the game to the Gold Cup final, which would presumably hand the MLS side some momentum in regard to attendance. 

“We don’t need casual fans to watch soccer anymore in this country,” Sakiewicz said. “We’re filling up our stadiums with soccer fans.” 

PPL Park, the home of the Union and host of the Gold Cup third-place game, had an announced attendance of 18,022 for the club’s season opener against the Colorado Rapids on Saturday. Although the number of sold tickets was near the stadium’s capacity, there were plenty of empty seats in the stands for the match itself. 

While the sport has taken off in some cities across the country like Seattle, Portland and Kansas City, Philadelphia has failed to catch the same amount of soccer fever despite plenty of big-name clubs visiting over the last few years. 

The perfect example of this is the lackluster attendance numbers for last summer’s International Champions Cup match between Inter Milan and Roma. Only 12,169 fans showed up for the match at the site of the 2015 Gold Cup final. 

While it is worth pointing out the two events are completely different, a small number like that does bring up a bit of concern about Philadelphia’s hosting ability. 

If the expected United States versus Mexico final comes to fruition this summer, the organizers of the tournament should have no problem selling out the venue. Back in 2011, a friendly between the two rivals drew over 30,000 fans to the home of the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles. 

A potential final between the Yanks and El Tri should be able to fill the stadium to its capacity of over 68,000 given the magnitude of the match. 

The real concern comes about if the U.S. men’s national team or Mexico do not earn a spot in the final, which is a strong possibility given the increased depth of CONCACAF. In the 2013 edition of the tournament, the USMNT defeated Panama 1-0 to win the tournament at Chicago’s Soldier Field. 

Selling out a stadium in a major city is crucial for a major final, but not everyone will show up if the USMNT or Mexico faces a nation who is seen as a weaker opponent. Few casual fans are going to line up to watch one of the two top teams in CONCACAF beat up on a lesser-known side. But if both of the big teams are involved, everyone will line up to watch. 

One positive about Philadelphia playing host to the Gold Cup final is the fan base will primarily be in support of the USMNT if the Yanks make the final. Unlike other major cities on the east coast, Philadelphia does not have a major ethnic group that would back a different team like Costa Rica or Mexico if they came to town. 

Out of all the stadiums hosting matches in the knockout round, Philadelphia does hand the USMNT the biggest home-field advantage, which could end up being a major factor during the July 26 final. 

If a successful final crowd in July can parlay into new fans and a stronger home support down the river in Chester at PPL Park, that would be a huge step forward for the city’s support of the beautiful game. 

However, there is also the fear that things will go back to normal once the big show leaves town. That is a major possibility since the Union is not expected to be a contender in MLS once again. 

Philadelphia seems like the right site for the Gold Cup final due to its ability to hand the USMNT the support it needs. But once the dust settles, nothing much will change in regard to how the sport is viewed in the City of Brotherly Love. 

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90. 

All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. 

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