Short takes

• Miguel Ibarra's move to Mexican giants Club León might be good for his development as a player, and his sale is good for United's bottom line. It won't help Minnesota on the field, though. The team has no replacement for his speed on the wing or his newly developed finishing ability on the counterattack. Ibarra was the team's best player, perhaps the best in the NASL, and losing him will make it that much harder for United to make the playoffs — and take away the club's most marketable player to boot.

• After Saturday's game against Fort Lauderdale, Minnesota has a break in the schedule until July 4. That should give Manny Lagos a chance to spend some of the seven-figure windfall the team received for Ibarra — preferably on a player to help replace him.

• It's been a great month for the U.S. men's youth teams. The U-20 team has reached the quarterfinals of the World Cup and is poised to go farther. The U-23 team took third place at the prestigious Toulon Tournament in France, beating England and the Netherlands along the way. Youth success doesn't always translate to senior team success, but there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic.

• The NASL announced NBA star Carmelo Anthony would lead an ownership group to bring a team back to Puerto Rico, replacing the Puerto Rico Islanders, who suspended operations in 2012. Previously, former AC Milan and Italy superstar Paolo Maldini announced they would help bring a team to Miami. If both teams happen, it would give the NASL 13 teams and some star power in the owner's box. Still, it's worth remembering that the NASL also confidently announced expansion in northern Virginia and in Oklahoma City; both teams vanished without a trace.

• The National Sports Center expects to break its record of 1,060 teams at the USA Cup youth soccer tournament this year. Teams from five continents have already registered for the 31st edition of the gigantic soccer festival in Blaine.