After all of the controversy that Eric Wynalda went through last year it isn't surprising that the WWL has benched the former Soccer star in favor of another. According to ESPN....

ESPN and ABC will kick off its 13th straight season of Major League Soccer coverage with a new line-up of in-booth commentators – veteran soccer television announcer JP Dellacamera and former U.S. Men’s National Team captain John Harkes – for MLS Primetime Thursday and U.S. Soccer telecasts including, the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches.

Dellacamera and Harkes will lead ESPN’s new on-air crew for U.S. domestic soccer telecasts with sideline reporter Allen Hopkins returning for the second year on select MLS and U.S. Soccer telecasts. Rob Stone, who has been involved with soccer at ESPN since 1997, will continue his role as on-site studio host and play-by-play commentator for select MLS matches, with former U.S. Women’s National Team captain and soccer Hall of Famer Julie Foudy as studio analyst.

This is right up there with the Sean McDonough quote “I noticed your occasional paralysis kicked in at dinner when the check came” right after mentioning injured Bills' player Kevin Everett. During last night's MLS opening round playoff game, as the DC United were taking on the Chicago Fire, Eric Wynalda had this to say as ESPN2 went to a shot of the crowd....

As ESPN2 cameras panned to the Chicago Fire supporter's group Section 8 with about 15 minutes left in the match, fans in the section set off flares that gave off a red, fire-like glare. Wynalda responded to this image by saying, "Looks like California," a flippant reference to the wildfires currently plaguing California. The haunting silence that followed after the comment leads me to believe Wynalda realized the mistake he just made.