Out for a Throw Soccer Blog

New Home!

2008-06-28T22:54:00.002-04:00

It brings me great sorrow to announce the end of Out for a Throw. Don't fret though, there is a new website you can go to. YanksSoccer.com is the my new site about American Soccer and I hope you will visit it and enjoy it. Feel free to bookmark it so you don't forget it or join up with one of our RSS feeds.

USA Demolishes Barbados

2008-06-16T10:54:00.004-04:00

As many of you know, USA began their World Cup Qualifying campaign with a 8-0 win over Barbados. The result puts nothing in doubt when the US go to Barbados next weekend. If you missed the game, here are the highlights:

Leave your comments about the games below

World Cup Qualifying Results

2008-06-16T10:22:00.003-04:00

Yesterday was an action packed day of World Cup Qualifying. Both CONMEBOL and CONCACAF held qualifying matches yesterday. SBI put up a good report of the action and I'll send you out to him for the details, but there were some major shocks to say the least. Enjoy the football today and leave your comments below.

Awesome Turkey Come Back from Dead to Advance to the Quarterfinals

2008-06-15T19:49:00.006-04:00

Turkey rallied from a two goal deficit in the final fifteen minutes to oust the Czech Republic from Euro 2008. Turkey looked dead and buried after goals from Jan Koller and Jaroslav Plasil but the Turks refused to lay down and concede the game.

The young Turkish winger Arda Turan forced a tenuous final fifteen minutes when he finished Hamit Altintop's centering ball to the lower corner. Peter Cech got finger tips on it but could only deflect it onto the post and the ball rolled in to the net.

Turkey continued to press and received a fortuitous tally in the 87th minute. Peter Cech went up to collect an ordinary cross but fumbled the ball into Nihat's run and the Villareal man finished to send the Turkish fans into rapture.

The first ever group stage penalty shootout seemed imminent but Nihat was not finished. The Czech Republic gave the ball away to Tuncay who sent the ball into Nihat's run. Nihat sent a bending ball from eighteen yards to the top corner over an onrushing Peter Cech. The ball bent down into the crossbar and bounced into the goal.

Turkish fans went crazy and some of them could not believe their side had come back in such dramatic fashion. This game will surely go down as one of the most fantastic games in Euro history.

Turkey is set to play Croatia who clinched the top spot in group B in the quarterfinals.

What did you think of today's exciting match? Did Turkey deserve the win? Were the Czech's unfortunate and unlucky? Leave your thoughts in the comment section.

Scolari Moved to Chelsea because of the Cash

2008-06-15T08:05:00.003-04:00

Luiz Felipe Scolari, esteemed coach of Portugal, and soon to be manager of Chelsea admits that the cash brought him to Stamford Bridge. Scolari said "money mattered" in his decision to join Chelsea, and if we know Chelsea, we know that Scolari isn't going to leave a poor man. He also said he hopes to retire in four or five years. Scolari also revealed that Portugal's football federation wanted to keep him on, but they were not able to match the money that Chelsea was offering. He also spoke about the concerns that he wouldn't adequately be able to communicate with some of his players. "I speak English with my players, I speak German, I speak Italian... don't worry, the language of football is only one." It sounds like Scolari has a firm grasp on his new job, and I cannot wait to see where he can take Chelsea FC.

Aaron Ramsey Chooses Arsenal over Man-u and Everton

2008-06-14T08:52:00.005-04:00

As unhappy as Arsene Wenger was about losing the title to Manchester United, it must be a little consilation that he has pipped Aaron Ramsey from under their noses. The 17 year old Cardiff City midfielder impressed in Cardiff's FA cup run, and sparked the interest of Everton, Manchester United, and Arsenal. All three teams met Cardiff's valuation, rumored to be about 5 million pounds, and it was up to Ramsey to choose his destination. Ramsey sites Arsene Wenger as a "Big factor" in his decision to move to the Emirates. Ramsey apreciates the fact that Wenger is always using his young players, and they get a chance to compete at the highest level.

What do you think about Arsene Wenger pipping Aaron Ramsey away from Old Trafford? Are you surprised Ramsey chose Arsenal over Man-u? Your Comments are welcome below.

Italy held to 1-1 draw, The Nedtherlands dominate France

2008-06-13T16:42:00.004-04:00

Death must be an exciting thing, because the "Group of Death" is so exciting that I'm constantly on the edge of my seat. The two World Cup finalists could be ousted by the proverbial underdog, Romania, and Holland is undeniably the most entertaining team I have seen in a while.

Romania and Italy played to an eventful, controversial, and entertaining draw. Italy thought they exorcised their demons when Luca Toni scored a fantastic header to the top corner. However, the linesman ruled him offside. The replay clearly showed that he was onside, but the goal didn't stand and the score remained level. Adrian Mutu made the Italian faithful cringe when he latched onto a through ball and buried it in the back of the net. Italians didn't have to wait more than a minute for the equalizer though, as Christian Panucci put Giorgio Chiellini's flick in to the Romanian net just a minute after Mutu gave Romania the lead. The referee was again the culprit when he called a penalty against Italy in the 81st minute. Mutu stepped up but Buffon was up to the task. He dived by the ball, but his trailing hand hit the ball, and the danger was over. Italy must be disappointed with their 1-1 tie, and Romania ecstatic with their destiny in their own hands.

As back and forth as the Italy Romania match was, it was nothing compared to the Dutch and The French. The Dutch won 4-1 over the French, and the French were to put it lightly, ripped to shreds. The Dutch truly achieved "Total Football" in their past two games. With their victory they clinched first place in the group, and a match with the second place team from group D. Dirk Kuyt, Robin Van Persie, Arjen Robben, and Wesley Sneijder all scored in dramatic fashion propelling the Dutch to the quarterfinals.

France and Italy will play next tuesday, and so will Romania and The Nedtherlands. If France and Italy tie, then all Romania needs is a point to advance. If Romania wins, they are through. If Romania lose, then the winner of France and Italy will go through. If France and Italy are tied after regular time, they will go to penalties to determine a winner.

I hope you enjoy this fantastic day of soccer. It doesn't get better than this. As always, leave your thoughts below in the comments section.

Beenhakker Rips English Ref

2008-06-13T07:29:00.005-04:00

Leo Beenhakker was understandably mad, after Austria were awarded a late penalty which effectively ousted the Polish from the tournament. The English found their way to Euro 2008 in the form of Howard Webb, and he duly sparked the ire of Mr. Beenhakker with his questionable penalty. Here's what Beenhakker had to say about the game and Mr. Webb.

"Maybe he wants to show he is a big boy and has the guts to do it, I don't know,"

"I've never had a problem in 43 years of being in football but this is something I cannot understand.

"It's impossible to accept but I am working on it,"

"I'm very satisfied with the boys, I have no complaints about the boys.

"We don't have it in our own hands any more and the conclusion is we are out of the tournament."

"If you lose a game because they score two and you don't it's different and tough but you accept it," he said.

"Sometimes you don't get what you deserve. This hurts much more than the first match.

"It was the only situation to survive in the tournament. Austria is excited about the result."

Who Will Scolari Bring to Chelsea?

2008-06-12T10:41:00.003-04:00

Since Chelsea made the announcement that they are going to hire Luiz Felipe Scolari after Euro 2008, I was wondering what this would mean for the future of my beloved club. Will Scolari bring in some of his Portuguese and Brazilian players he's previously managed? It is reported that he will go after Kaka, and he will attempt to convince Ricardo Carvalho to stay. Ronaldinho is also a genuine possibility.

Who should Luiz Felipe Scolari bring to Chelsea? Let's hear what you think in the comments section.

Scolari is New Chelsea Manager

2008-06-11T17:04:00.007-04:00

Luiz Felipe Scolari will be the next manager of Chelsea. There were numerous managers asociated with the Chelsea job, but Scolari rose above them. His long pedigree of making winners should serve him well at Stamford Bridge. Scolari will begin on July 1, after the Euro's end.

What do you think of the hire? Is Scolari the right man for the job? Your thoughts below.

Jozy Altidore Agrees to Terms with Villareal

2008-06-11T08:26:00.004-04:00

Jozy Altidore has oficially agreed to terms with Villareal, and will be unveiled today at a press conference. The deal can't officially happen until July 1 when the European transfer window opens. We don't know his salary, but it will be considerably more than his 108,000 dollars a year salary for the Red Bulls. It is also posible he could be loaned out to Recreativo Huelva, so he can have more playing time.

What do you guys think of the move? Sad to see him leave? Happy that he might play Champions League football next year? Happy he can try to convince Giuseppe Rossi to play for the US, oh wait, that ship has sailed.

Your thoughts below.

US Roster vs. Barbados released

2008-06-10T14:36:00.004-04:00

The USA should have no trouble getting by Barbados, but there are some interesting omissions from the squad. Most notably, Jozy Altidore was not included in the team. There were some injury concerns last week, but it could just be that Bradley didn't want to call him in because he didn't play in one of the friendlies. The only player who was included in the roster who didn't play in the 3 friendlies against England, Spain, and Argentina is Brian Ching. His inclusion highlights a major lack of depth at forward, and the US need to look deeper into the pool for some talent. Kenny Cooper and Robbie Findley might warrent a call up to the full national team. Here is the roster:

Name	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Birthdate	Caps/G	Hometown	Club
Adu, Freddy	M	5’8”	140	6/2/1989	7/0	Potomac, Md.	SL Benfica (Portugal)
Beasley, DaMarcus	M	5'8	145	5/24/1982	75/15	Ft. Wayne, Ind.	Glasgow Rangers (Scotland)
Bocanegra, Carlos	D	6'0	170	5/25/1979	57/9	Alta Loma, Calif.	Out of Contract
Bradley, Michael	M	6’2”	175	7/31/1987	19/1	Cedar Grove, N.J.	SC Heerenveen (Holland)
Califf, Dan	D	6'1	175	3/17/1980	19/1	Orange, Calif	FC Midtjylland (Denmark)
Cervi, Dominic	GK	6’6”	205	7/9/1986	0/0	Norman, Okla.	Out of Contract
Cherundolo, Steve	D	5'6	145	2/19/1979	47/2	San Diego, Calif.	Hannover 96 (Germany)
Ching, Brian	F	6’1”	195	5/24/1978	26/5	Haleiwa, Hawaii	Houston Dynamo (MLS)
DeMerit, Jay	D	6’0”	185	12/4/1979	8/0	Green Bay, Wis.	Watford FC (England)
Dempsey, Clint	F	6’1”	170	3/9/1983	41/9	Nacogdoches, Texas	Fulham FC (England)
Donovan, Landon	F	5'8	148	3/4/1982	100/35	Redlands, Calif.	Los Angeles Galaxy (MLS)
Edu, Maurice	M	6’0”	170	4/18/1986	7/0	Fontana, Calif.	Toronto FC (MLS)
Guzan, Brad	GK	6’4”	210	9/9/1984	7/0	Homer Glen, Ill.	Chivas USA (MLS)
Hejduk, Frankie	D	5'8	155	8/5/1974	78/6	Cardiff, Calif.	Columbus Crew (MLS)
Howard, Tim	GK	6’3”	210	3/6/1979	31/0	North Brunswick, N.J.	Everton FC (England)
Johnson, Eddie	F	6’0”	180	3/31/1984	35/11	Palm Coast, Fla.	Fulham FC (England)
Kljestan, Sacha	M	6’1”	150	9/9/1985	6/0	Huntington Beach, Calif.	Chivas USA (MLS)
Lewis, Eddie	M	5'10	155	5/17/1974	78/9	Cerritos, Calif.	Derby County (England)
Mastroeni, Pablo	M	5'10	170	8/26/1976	59/0	Phoenix, Ariz.	Colorado Rapids (MLS)
Onyewu, Oguchi	D	6’4”	210	5/13/1982	33/4	Olney, Md.	Standard de Liege (Belgium)
Pearce, Heath	D	5’10”	175	8/13/1984	14/0	Modesto, Calif.	Hansa Rostock (Germany)

What do you think of the roster? Is it what you expeceted? you thoughts below.

Aragones Gets Everything Right, and Villa Scores 3!

2008-06-10T13:44:00.005-04:00

The Spanish fans were rightfully worried after their narrow one goal wins against USA and Peru.

The expectations were low coming in, and Spain had only won one major trophy. However, a 3-0 victory over a strong Russian team will do a lot good for moral and expectations. David Villa was not going to be in Aragones' plans, but the two poor results against Peru and USA forced him to start Villa and Torres. Villa and Torres were a winning combination it turned out, and Aragones looks like a genius. Villa recorded the first hat-trick of the tournament against Russia. His sublime finishing skills were extraordinary, and he almost single handedly torched the Russian defense.

Spain's first goal was courtesy or some great Torres work. Torres took a long ball and beat his man. He pushed the ball by the keeper to the streaking Villa alongside him, and Villa didn't miss the open net.

Villa again made a great run and finished, virtually eliminating the Russia's chances of gaining some points. Iniesta received the ball on a counter attack, and made space with some smart dribbles. He played a ball behind the Russians to Villa, who made no mistakes. He calmly put the ball under an onrushing Igor Akinfeev.

The Russians were affectively buried at half-time, but Villa would not give up. In the 75th minute, Villa took a long ball, fooled his defender on a great cutback, and finished perfectly to the near post. Villa went to the bench and hugged his strike partner Fernando Torres, who had just been subbed.

Russia still didn't give up, and scored a conselation goal in the 86th minute. Zyryanov crossed it in off a corner. It was flicked on to a wide open Pavluchenko on the back post. Pavluchenko didn't miss from 4 yards and sent a screaming header into the night.

Spain got the final word though, as Villa turned to provider. He stole a long ball and played it over the top of the defense to a streaking Cazorla who vollied hard. It was parried right into an onrushing Cesc Fabregas, and his diving header capped the night off on a fantastic note.

Spanish fans should be absolutely giddy about this result, and for once, Aragones got it right. Spain played a more complete game than even The Dutch did against Italy. If Spain can play like this for the rest of the tournament, they will be the champions, without a doubt.

UEFA Backs Ref in Van Nistelrooy's goal

2008-06-10T08:49:00.004-04:00

Uefa has decided that it was the correct call that Ruud Van Nistelrooy was onside, due to the player down behind the goal. This doesn't come as much of a surprise, because UEFA usually backs their referee's decisions. Here's the goal, you decide for yourself what the ruling should have been.

Top Ten Purchased Jerseys of Euro 2008

2008-06-09T19:29:00.002-04:00

I recently had a conversation with the President of Eurosport, and I asked him this. What are the top selling Euro 2008 Jerseys? He gave me the answer, but it wasn't what I had predicted. Neither of the Hosts were represented among the top ten, and Greece, not a favorite to win was among the top 5. I was surprised not to see the Czech Republic in the top ten either. Here is the list:

1)Portugal

2)Italy

3)Germany

4)Greece

5)Holland

6)Spain

7)France

8)Croatia

9)Romania

10)Poland

What do you guys thing of the best selling jersey's? Is it what you expected? Leave comments below.

The Tale of Two games

2008-06-09T16:15:00.004-04:00

With Group C or the "Group of Death" kicking off today, it was going to be a great day of football. The two games were worlds apart. Romania and France was a boring game, and The Nedtherlands vs. Italy was an exciting match.

France were the favored side, but didn't play like it. Romania had strong defense, and limited the good chances of the potent French lineup. Romania had few good chances, but limited all strong chances for France. The French will be dissapointed not to take maximum points from their game against the weakest team in the Group. Romania will be pleased with the point, and will look forward to playing Italy who were thrashed by The Nedtherlands.

The Dutch had a tough road to qualify for the nock-out stages. They had to beat the two finalists of the 2006 World Cup, and a underrated Romania. The Nedtherlands got the perfect start.

Ruud Van Nistelrooy scored in the 26th minute when he was clearly offside. Buffon cleared a free kick, that was shot back in. Van Nistelrooy deflected it in, and the replay showed that a blind man would have seen he was offside. However, Christian Panucci had crashed into Gigi Buffon on the initial clearance, and was lying behind the goal. He played Van Nistelrooy onside, and Van Nistelrooy punished the Italians with a collected touch in.

The Dutch didn't put their foot off the gas, and they scored a brilliant goal courtesy of Wesley Sneijder. The Dutch went on a counter attack, and swept the ball into space on the left. The ball was played to the right, and back into a sprinting Sneijder who put the ball by an onrushing Gigi Buffon.

The Italians began to play better, and the game started to level out. However, in true Dutch fashion, Les Oranjes didn't stop trying to score. Another counter attack saw the Dutch charge up the field, and Dirk Kuyt struck a ball that was saved by Buffon. He collected the rebound and sent the ball into the box. Giovanni Van Brockhorst was wide open and he didn't waste his golden opportunity.

The Dutch fans were delirious, and they should be. The Nedtherlands beat the World Champions Italy 3-0. Italy were thoroughly dominated, and Roberto Donadoni needs to do some serious thinking about his lineup for his next game against Romania.

USA VS. Argentina Review

2008-06-09T08:32:00.004-04:00

When you think of USA vs. Argentina, the first thing that might come to your mind is "CRUSH." As an avid US Soccer fan, those were the words I was hoping wouldn't have to be thought about, talked about, whispered, anything at all. To my surprise, I turned on the Tivo to watch the game, and the US never once made me thing that word (shock of my life).

The first 20 minutes were shaky, and needed Tim Howard to step up a few times, but we kept holding on. As time progressed, we started to combine, attack, possess. The US played the game I always knew they were capable of. The defense was solid, midfield was comfortable, forward was (well it was Eddie Johnson, what do you expect) well, poor. This unprecedented performance by the USA is a complete 180 from the game against England.

The Yanks committed countless turnovers, never had much going forward, and left some glaring holes in the defense at Wembley. Against Spain, they had some bright spots, but fell back and let Xavi beat them on a goal that was the result of some horrendous flat-footed defense. Against Argentina, there were attacking ideas, strong stringent defense, and timely goal keeping. Eddie Johnson forced Abondanzieri to slide out and save, Heath Pearce forced him into a diving save, Clint Dempsey's deflected shot almost went in, and Oguchi Onyewu hit the crossbar. Although there were no goals, we came close, and in the second half, the US was getting an equal share of play.

I was not optimistic about the US's chances against Argentina, the #1 team in the World. Out of all of the friendlies the US played, Argentina would have to be the most difficult. The USA had been demolished by England, and handled by Spain, two teams that aren't as good as Argentina, but The Yanks came out and showed what they are capable of.

Heath Pearce was a machine on the field. Nobody got by him at the left-back position, and he never turned the ball over. He also got up the wing and put in some extremely dangerous balls. He also tested Abondanzieri with a gorgeous strike; unfortunately, Abondanzieri was up to the test. Pearce cemented his spot at left back with a fantastic performance.

Damarcus Beasley and Clint Dempsey are back. Both of them were poor against Spain and England, but were revitalized against Argentina. Beasley's speed saw him run up the left wing, leaving defenders in his wake. His ability to spread the game out, and push up high, alleviated the pressure on the central midfielder's, and allowed the team to have more time on the ball. Dempsey was back to his normal self again. He was dangerous when he got the ball, and was constantly getting dragged down. His excellent ability to carry the ball and shield defenders was on display, and he almost won the US the game when his shot was deflected and missed the goal by a foot. Beasley and Dempsey left me bewildered in England and Spain, but gave strong performances against Argentina.

Landon Donovan returned from injury, and showed what the US lacked against England. Donovan is the poster boy of US Soccer, and he receives a lot of flack for it. He never has been successful in Europe, but his success for the Yanks in undeniable. He received his 100th cap last night, at the young age of 26. He was also the leading scorer in US history at the age of 25. He showed why he's had so much success on the international stage against Argentina. At Wembley, we lacked the willingness to run at the defense, and take chances. Donovan, with his great speed took on Argentina with no hesitation. His pace troubled Argentina, and his ability to see the field and quickly combine was awesome. He is never afraid to take on a defender, no matter who it is. Having Donovan back helped the US put on a strong showing.

When the USA walked out onto the field, the capacity crowd cheered their lungs out. The supporters were clad in mostly red and white, something that doesn't always happen in the US. Whether it was the fans, the excitement of playing the world's best team, or Bob Bradley putting out the right lineup; The USA can be happy that they matched the play of Argentina. I can confidently say The Yanks are ready to begin World Cup qualifying against Barbados.

Frei out of Euro's, Drogba talks to Milan, Jo ready for Manchester City

2008-06-08T09:11:00.004-04:00

Alexander Frei

Alexander Frei, the Swiss striker, has been ruled out of Euro 2008. He took a knock in the first half of the opening game of Euro 2008 against the Czech Republic, and had to be helped off the pitch. Cuno Wetzel, the team doctor had this to say about the injury. "Frei has partially ruptured a ligament in his left knee and will be out for around six weeks," The host's road got a lot steeper after their 1-0 loss to the Czech Republic, and without Frei, it seems their hopes and aspirations of advancing to the quarter finals are just about gone.

Didier Drogba

Didier Drogba has been given permission to speak to Milan about possibly signing for them, but Milan's other Chelsea target has not been granted permission. Andriy Schevchenko has not gained permission to speak to the Rossoneri. Drogba has been rumored to be interested in re-uniting with Jose Mourniho, but Mourinho is not interested in buying a striker at this time.

Jo to Manchester City

Garry Cook, the Executive Chairman of City says they will sign the Brazilian Jo, in the next week. Garry Cook talked in detail about how they are moving up, because they can attract players of Jo's calibe to City. Cook also revealed that City were in talks with Ronaldinho about a possible move to The Eastlands.

Portugal win 2-0

2008-06-07T16:18:00.004-04:00

Everybody knows Portugal have the talent to win Euro 2008, but they need to come through. Portugal showed that they had the talent against Turkey, but their first goal came in the 60th minute after a tortuous period of narrow misses. In all, Portugal hit the wood work 3 times.

Pepe thought he had the lead for the Portuguese when his header from a cross went in. However, the replay showed that he was offside, and the goal did not stand.

Portugal came close time after time, but the Turks didn't break. Ronaldo blew by a Turkish defender, but Volkan Demeril, the Turkish keeper saved his shot to the back post. Ronaldo continued to deliver quality service, and the Portuguese almost had the lead when Ronaldo supplied Nuno Gomes with a cross. Gomes headed on to the bar, and the Turkish faithful breathed a sigh of relief.

Portugal were not to be denied however. Pepe received a pass in the center of the pitch, and played a sublime one-two. He got the ball back and Emre Asik slid to knock it away. It was well intentioned by Asik, but the replay showed he lifted the ball over a sliding Volkan Demeril. The Portuguese fans went crazy, and Pepe was their hero.

Turkey was not going to give up however. Tuncay almost leveled the score when Ricardo came out to collect across. Tuncay slipped in front of Ricardo, but he didn't get solid contact and Ricardo was able to parry it, and the ball was subsequently cleared. Emre Asik had the golden opportunity of the game, when he received a open header in the box, but sent it wide. Tuncay had the last opportunity of the game, but he missed an open volley from the top of the box.

Turkey threw everyone forward in stoppage time, and Portugal capitalized. Ronaldo made a great turn, and took the ball down the left side. He pushed the ball to an open Moutinho, who turned and found a wide open Raul Meireles who didn't miss the wide open net.

Portugal will have to be pleased with their 2-0 win over the Turks. Portugal overtakes the Czech Republic on goal difference, and are the leaders of their group with 3 points. Portugal takes on The Czech Republic next Wedensday.

The Portuguese were the winners, and they thoroughly deserved it.

Czech Republic Beats Switzerland 1-0

2008-06-07T15:00:00.005-04:00

Vaclav Sverkos left the Swiss fans in tears after his 70th minute strike was the difference in the opening game of Euro 2008. The game went back and forth, but some lax defending was what cost the Swiss points. The Swiss cleared a corner, but didn't push up the field fast enough. Sverkos received a header over the Swiss defense, and put it into the net. The hosts pushed on to find an equalizer, but were unsuccessful. The Czech Republic will play Portugal and Switzerland will combat Turkey, next wednesday.

Daniel Alves moves to Barcelona

2008-06-07T06:37:00.004-04:00

The Brazilian right back, Daniel Alves has reportedly reached an agreement with Barcelona, and he will transfer for a sum of 29.5 million euros. His fee could rise to 36 million euros depending upon appearances and incentives reached. Alves joined Sevilla from Bahia for 1 million euros in 2003. Alves will be Barcelona's 4th signing after Seydou Keita, Martin Caceres, and Gerard Pique. Alves was linked to Chelsea last summer, but that move never came to fruition. Alexander Hleb, is reportedly the next target for Pep Guardiola, as he looks to re-build Barcelona's squad. What do you think of Alves's move? Your comments below.

US Roster vs. Argentina

2008-06-06T15:51:00.001-04:00

70,000 tickets have been sold for the USA vs. Argentina match this Sunday at the Meadowlands. Argentina is fresh off a match with Mexico, where they were the resounding victors, recording a 4-1 victory. Stars such as Lionel Messi, and Sergio Aguero highlight the stellar roster for Argentina. The USA roster is as follows:

GOALKEEPERS: Dominic Cervi, Brad Guzan, Tim Howard.

DEFENDERS: Dan Califf, Steve Cherundolo, Jay DeMerit, Frankie Hejduk, Oguchi Onyewu, Heath Pearce.

MIDFIELDERS: Freddy Adu, DaMarcus Beasley, Michael Bradley, Maurice Edu, Sacha Kljestan, Eddie Lewis, Pablo Mastroeni.

FORWARDS: Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Eddie Johnson.

Who will the US start? Have your say in the comments section.

Giovanni moves to Tottenham

2008-06-06T15:22:00.004-04:00

Young Mexican starlet, Giovanni Dos Santos, has officially moved to Tottenham from Barcelona. His 4.7 million pound move will officially take place on July 1st when the European transfer window opens. Barcelona will get 20% of any further transfer in the next two years, and after that, they will receive 10%. Depending on how many appearances Giovanni makes, his transfer could rise to 8.6 million pounds. What do you think of this transfer? Will it work out for Giovanni? leave your responses below.

The top 20 misses ever

2008-06-05T16:33:00.004-04:00

On a slow day for soccer news, and the eve of Euro 2008, we hope that none of the men in Euro 2008 miss chances as golden of these. These are the top 20 misses of all time. There are truly some unbelievably bad plays. Feel free to post comments below.

Enjoy!

Ronaldo ready to move

2008-06-05T12:12:00.004-04:00

Cristiano Ronaldo says "he would like to play for Real Madrid". The Portuguese winger made his intentions clear in an interview with Brazilian newspaper Terra. He also said it was not up to him to decide at this point. He believes it is a issue between the two clubs now, and he will go to Real Madrid only when Manchester United receives the proper compensation. Ronaldo also doesn't want to talk about any potential transfers until after the Euro's. What do you guys think of the this never ending Ronaldo transfer saga?

USA-Spain Review

2008-06-04T21:17:00.000-04:00

It was truly a tale of two halves in Santander. The USA went stride to stride with Spain in the first half, and they were a step slow in the second half.

Patches of good play for each team marked the first forty-five minutes. Spain established itself early, passing the ball around the back looking for holes in the US defense. Spain found little success in this approach, as the US ran hard and limited Spain to two legitimate chances. The US had spells of possession that resulted in good opportunities, but failed to make their good chances count. Eddie Johnson ran past Carles Puyol, and shot at Casillas who put the ball out for a corner. The few US supporters at the game thought the US had gone ahead when Freddy Adu played a ball into the path of Johnson who coolly chipped Casillas. However, the dream start was not to be, as the replay showed Johnson was just offside. Bob Bradley had to be happy with a 0-0 halftime score.

The second half began with Adu making way for Beasley, and Hejduk replacing Cherundolo. Whether it was the tired legs or something else, the US was not the same team in the second half. The US began to bunker in early in the second half, and would live to rue the decision. Spain possessed the ball without pressure within 30 yards of the goal. Things became increasingly dangerous for the US as legs began to tire. The US mustered one chance in the second half when Eddie Lewis crossed a ball in for Eddie Johnson who headed wide. All Johnson needed to do was to put it on goal, but his header was wide and the domination of possession by Spain continued. Xavi came close when his free kick from 25 yards banged off Brad Guzan’s crossbar. However, Xavi was not to be denied. He took a pass, made a nifty move by the first defender, ran by a flat-footed Oguchi Onyewu, and finished in clinical fashion. Johnson had the final opportunity, but Casillas stopped his shot and Spain was the victor.

The US found some success against a very good team, but faded at the end. It was a great learning experience for the Yanks, and there were many positives that can be taken from the game. Freddy Adu made his second international start, and he was the most dynamic player on the field. Eddie Johnson was fed great balls for the entirety of the first half from Adu. All balls going forward went to the feet of Adu, and he made good use of it. He began most of the Yank’s opportunities, and was the sole source of creativity. Bob Bradley needs to get Adu in the regular lineup for the US after his fantastic performance against Spain.

Another thing that went well for the US was Maurice Edu partnering with Michael Bradley in the center midfield. Edu controlled the ball well and allowed Bradley to get up the field and feed Adu. Bob Bradley needs to allow Michael Bradley to get forward, and if Edu lets that happen, then he should play alongside Bradley.

I understand that many of the US players just finished club seasons, but so did the Spanish players. Spain was constantly hustling to balls, and played hard and fast for 90 minutes. The US played well for 55, and then Spain ran all over them. To compete against the world’s best, you cannot play for just 55 minutes and expect to gain a result.

Overall, the US played well, but could not sustain their high level of play. When the US play as well as they did against Spain, they can compete with the best. That fact was proven in Santander.

Altidore sold to Villareal

2008-06-04T13:24:00.004-04:00

We reported earlier today that Jozy Altidore was close to signing for Villareal for $10 million. Soccer By Ives is reporting that his sale has been confirmed, and he officially has smashed the transfer record for an MLS player. He won't join the team until July 1, and he will be loaned out to Recreativo Huelva when he arrives. What do you guys think?

Jozy Altidore close to signing for Villareal

2008-06-04T12:56:00.004-04:00

Spanish Newspaper Marca, is reporting that Jozy Altidore is extremely close to signing for Villareal. A reported $10 million fee will be payed to The Red Bulls and Altidore could play his final game at the Meadowlands on Sunday for the USA against Argentina. He would be loaned to Recreativo Huelva immediately upon his arrival. He will be in the mix for starts at Recreativo, and this would be the move Altidore has been waiting for, and hopefully he can grow to be a force on the international level. What do you guys think of this move?

Hughes goes to Man City, Sven Introduced as new coach of Mexico, New Fifa Rankings out

2008-06-04T11:15:00.007-04:00

Mark Hughes joins City

Mark Hughes is officially the new manager at the Eastlands. Hughes signed a 3 year deal, and is bringing two assistants from Ewood Park to Eastlands. New chief executive of Manchester City had this to say.

'I am delighted to welcome Mark on board. In our view he is the brightest young manager in the game and he was our number one target for the manager's job.'

Cook continued to praise Hughes's vision.

'He made it clear to us from the moment we met that he shared our vision and ambition to make Manchester City one of the top sides in the country. 'The club intends to invest in new players as well as securing the long-term services of key members of the current first-team squad. 'Mark has already identified some of the players and backroom staff that he wants to see here at City, and we will begin the process of recruiting them immediately.'

It looks like City is going to have another big summer.

Sven Introduced as Coach of Mexico

This was a story we broke yesterday, but Eriksson has officially been introduced as the new coach of Mexico. He spoke to the Mexican media, here's what he had to say:

"To help Mexico reach the World Cup is a big challenge. You [Mexicans] have 120 million people and it’s motivating. I like big challenges so it is up to me to convince the supporters and the players that I am the right man."

“My job will be to improve the job the players have been doing and not to change their mentality. I don’t want to talk too much about players as I don’t think it is professional. There is another coach still working.”

He sounds like he is committed to the job, and I certainly don't want to see him on the other side when the US plays Mexico.

New FIFA World Rankings

Argentina has retained their #1 ranking in the FIFA World Rankings for May 28th. England moved back into the top ten, moving up two places to 9th. The USA retained their ranking of 21st after their loss to England.

That's all for now. Discuss below.

Sven will lead Mexico

2008-06-03T17:21:00.005-04:00

Sven Goran Eriksson is officially the new manager of Mexico. It is a major surprise to see a Swede as the manager of Mexico, but he is a good coach. Mexico is also a talent laden nation, and Eriksson could lead them to a deep run in the World Cup. As a US fan, I'm not happy to see Eriksson as the coach for Mexico. He is a great coach, as long as he leaves the Mexican ladies alone. I'm not looking forward to the day when the US plays Mexico with Eriksson on the bench. What do you guys think of this move?

Ancelotti says no, Jack Warner telling the US no

2008-06-03T15:49:00.003-04:00

Carlo Ancelotti

Carlo Ancelotti, the AC Milan manager has said no to becoming the new manager of Chelsea. Ancelotti has had much success at Milan, even though this past year was poor. However, they won the FIFA Club World Cup, and the Champions League last year. Potential replacements for Avram Grant seem to be scared of coming to Stamford Bridge. Guus Hiddink said he’s not interested, now Carlo Ancelotti is not interested. If Mancini doesn’t take the job, then maybe I will get my wish of either Frank Rijkaard, or Mark Hughes. All we can do is hope that Peter Kenyon gets on the phone to nab Hughes from Manchester City.

Jack Warner

The ever talkative Jack Warner says the US should not attempt to bid for the 2018 World Cup. I previously wrote an article talking about his various scandals, and his less than transparent way of doing business. Here is what he said:

“The United States should abandon plans to host the 2018 World Cup in favor of a 2022 bid, FIFA vice president Jack Warner urged Tuesday. Warner wants to back England to host football's showpiece tournament, but says it would be "political suicide" not to support the United States in his role as president of the CONCACAF federation, which covers North and Central America and the Caribbean. "I have to convince them not to bid," Warner said in an interview to be aired Tuesday night by the British Broadcasting Corp. "It is easier for me to convince America to wait until 2022 ... I have said to England that until America gets knocked out, that's where my vote will have to go."

At least he’ll support us if we do bid. Jack got his pointless friendly against England, and he needs to back the US in their quest to beat England for the 2018 World Cup. It will be 24 years since we had it, and we want it again.

That’s all for now. Let’s hear you thoughts in the comments section.

Cannavaro will miss Euro's, Becks says stay Ronaldo

2008-06-03T06:32:00.005-04:00

Canavarro to miss Euro 2008

Fabio Canavarro will miss Euro 2008 the Italian FA said. He had a training ground collision, where he injured his ankle, and he won't be fit in time for any part of Euro 2008. There is no word on a replacement yet, but Italy should be calling one in soon. It is a sad sight to see the former World Footballer of the Year go down and have to miss a major tournament.

Ronaldo to Madrid?

Cristiano Ronaldo has been told to stay at Manchester United, rather than moving to Real Madrid. Beckham, speaking out of personal experience, said that it won't be a good decison for Ronaldo to leave Old Trafford, and go to the Bernabeau. Real Madrid has also just said that they have the money to sign Ronaldo. Madrid paid 40 million pounds for Zenidine Zidane 6 years ago, but it is rumored that they will pay have to pay much more than that this time.

Manchester City after Hughes, Mourinho finally signs, and other news

2008-06-02T11:51:00.005-04:00

Mark Hughes to City?

Yes, the gods are cruel. I wanted Mark Hughes for Chelsea, but he looks like he could go to Manchester City. Hughes will collect a nice transfer budget, and a definite pay increase if he decides the Eastlands is his next home. As I alluded to earlier, Hughes has a track record of turning teams around. He also possesses a great knowledge and vision when it comes to finding good players. He also could bring some players with him, notably, Roque Santa Cruz, and David Bentley. I say this is a good career move for Hughes, although Peter Kenyon should get on the phone quickly and attempt to steal him away.

Jose Mourinho officially at Inter

Yup, it was finally announced. The Special one has found a new home in Milan. Now the real question is whom he will bring in to deliver European glory. He can take Drogba as far as I'm concerned, but please don't take Frank Lampard. He is the heart and soul of Chelsea, and he plays with a great passion for the game ever since his mother died. He also could bring in some Barcelona men, as they are having a mass exodus. Ronaldinho, and Eto’o, would be great additions to the Inter squad. We’ll have to wait and see…

Paul Gascoigne, Mathieu Flamini

Gascoigne has been put into a mental hospital again. He was placed in a Mental Hospital due to the Mental Health Act. A sad, sad story gets even sadder.

In other news, Mathieu Flamini has joined the French National team in their preparations for Euro 2008. He was the contingency plan in case a midfielder was hurt, and guess what, Patrick Viera hurt his ankle. It is not guaranteed that he will go to Austria and Switzerland, but he is now in training with the team, and if Viera isn’t fit in time, he will go in his stead.

That’s all for now, we’ll see how things play out for the rest of the day. Hopefully I’ll be back soon.

Preview: Spain vs. USA

2008-06-01T19:36:00.003-04:00

The USA will be looking to bounce back from their loss to England, and it will not be an easy match against Spain. Spain is a team consisting of superstars at every position, and it will be a huge test for the Americans. Here is the probable lineup for the USA:

-------Johnson--Donovan--------

Beasley---------------Dempsey--

----------Bradley--Edu------------

Pearce----------------Cherundolo

----Bocanegra-Onyewu----------

-----------Howard------------------

I hope that Bob Bradley will consider a second half appearance of Michael Orozco, Freddy Adu, and Nate Jaqua, so we can see how they stack up on the international level. I'm predicting a 3-1 win for Spain.

Jack Warner, Unethical or Savvy?

2008-06-01T14:30:00.002-04:00

Jack Warner is the President of Concacaf, Vice-President of FIFA, and one of the sketchiest businessmen you could encounter. His questionable ethics when it pertains to advancing his own self-interest and that of Trinidad & Tobago are legendary.

As a proud supporter of the Yanks, I get scared every time Jack Warner is influential in any big decision. His long known favoritism to the little island nations of the Caribbean is a major concern for US fans. FIFA elects its presidents with each country receiving one vote. Similarly, each continental federation elects its president in the same manner. Warner panders to the numerous island nations, and then ignores nations like Mexico and the US without much worry. Sepp Blatter is also dependent on Warner. Blatter uses Warner to rally all of the Island nations to vote for him when FIFA presidential elections come around. The Caribbean makes up a significant portion of the votes, and Blatter would not be elected without them. So what is so egregious about this? He is operating inside the rules. The far less publicized story is that Warner uses the leverage he has with Blatter to get away with scandals and corruption. Warner has been involved in multiple scandals, and has never received the proper punishment from FIFA.

Warner is a smart guy, but he tried to skirt the law too many times. Warner’s scandals all coincidentally have to do with Trinidad & Tobago, his home country. Trinidad & Tobago played a friendly against Scotland at Easter Road in 2004. Warner attended the game which is no cause for concern, but what he did after that is concerning. He went to John McBeth, the president of the SFA and asked for the proceeds of the game to be made out to him personally, not the FF of T&T. McBeth responded appropriately. ”No, we don’t do that” he said, but Warner also approached other members of the SFA to have the proceeds made out to him directly. Warner was completely out of line, but no investigation ensued from FIFA.

There is also the very publicized World Cup ticket scandal, but there is a less publicized Bonus scandal with the T&T players. After the World Cup, which saw T&T make an admirable showing, there were bonuses due to the players. Warner reported that the FA had collected TT $18.25 million, and spent TT $17.9 million. Warner promised the players half of the difference, and the players could not believe the FF had profited so little from going to The World Cup. 13 members of the team retired from international football in protest, until their rightful bonus was given to them. It was later revealed that the FF had amassed more than TT $173 million. The players were rightfully suspicious.

Warner also damaged the possibility of the US hosting the World Cup (something I am not happy about). Warner said that he would ”battle to bring…the tournament to his region”, as he should. Warner controls 3 of the 24 votes when deciding where to host the World Cup, making him very powerful on this matter. He said in that same interview that he would favor Italy, or Spain if the World Cup were to go to Europe. He since changed those statements in hopes of securing a friendly against England for T&T. After he secured a useless friendly in T&T, he changed his mind about England hosting the World Cup. Warner said “The time has come” for England to host a World Cup. It was a big blow for the US’s bid to host in 2018. If your own regional president does not back you, the whole bid could be jeopardized.

What ever you may think of Warner, he was smart enough to get himself in a position where he cannot be reprimanded for his misconduct.

What do you guys think about Warner? Is he as unethical as the evidence points to? You get to decide for your self.

Sources: BBC Sport, Sunday Herald, BBC Sport International, Gaurdian

What the US needs to learn from their loss to England

2008-05-31T22:53:00.003-04:00

These comments are a little belated but I was caught up in some other things. Here is what the US needs to learn from their game at Wembley.

The USA were humbled at Wembley. There was speculation by many (including myself) that the USA could get a result out of the game, or maybe even a win. I will say it now. ”England played well, and outclassed the US.” I previously made an argument that the US could win. However, the US never was in the game. The first ten minutes were poor for both teams, and then England showed that they are a world-class team. There are a few problems that were made apparent for the US.

There is a major crisis for the US upfront. Eddie Johnson had one good chance; Josh Wolff might just as well have never stepped on the field. A casual observer might not have known Wolff was in the game until he was replaced. Johnson floated in and out of the game, and often played the ball back instead of attacking the England defense. Some of the US faithful might point to the fact that we were without Jozy Altidore and Landon Donovan, which is a fair point. Donovan has been on a tear, and Altidore is a promising player at eighteen.

The fact remains though, that the US pool is extremely shallow. The poor play of Johnson and Wolff will force Bob Bradley to look for new forwards. The immediate player to whom Bob Bradley will look is Kenny Cooper. A former youth player for Manchester United, he currently plies his trade for FC Dallas. He has scored six goals in ten games, and is a big and strong player in the mold of Brian Mcbride. The US lack a true target forward and capable backups. When the Yanks do not have Donovan and Altidore available, they need to have players who can step in and score goals. Bob Bradley must look further into the US pool, and attempt to find some competent backups.

The US was also outplayed in midfield. It was evident that Ricardo Clark does not have the ability to compete against the world's best. He made a habit of giving the ball away, and was not forceful enough in making his presence felt. Bradley played an insignificant game, making a few good challenges, but generally not being as assertive as a ball winning midfielder needs to be. Maurice Edu was a bright spot when he came in for Ricardo Clark. He covered a lot of area and didn’t commit the same sloppy mistakes that Ricardo Clark made. Bob Bradley might want to consider a Maurice Edu and Michael Bradley partnership in the center midfield for the game against Spain.

Bradley also needs to look deeper at the left midfielder spot. Damarcus Beasley was not at his best against England. His set pieces were poor, and he generally struggled to make progress down the left side. Beasley is the best left midfielder for the US when he is on top form, but when he struggles, there is a need for a capable backup. Beasley might need a few more months to fully rehabilitate from a serious knee injury sustained in the Champions League final.

A few years ago, Bobby Convey could have fought for a starting spot. Now he is injured and a long way from duplicating his stellar play when Reading were promoted to the premiership. The best option appears to be Freddy Adu. His confident play, quickness, and flare make him a strong replacement for Damarcus Beasley. Beasley will be the left midfielder for the foreseeable future, but The Red, White & Blue need depth.

The US must play the ball quicker. They could not play the ball fast enough to avoid the English, and often lost the ball because of it. England passed the ball fluidly from side to side, but the Yanks had trouble playing quick 3 pass combinations. Steven Gerrard’s goal was worked because of quick one-touch passing, and the US struggled mightly to use any form of one-touch passing at all. Without quick passing, the Yanks will never be able to compete against teams as good as England.

England was the resounding victor at Wembley, but the US should take its lessons learned and apply them to its upcoming games against Spain and Argentina, and the beginning of World Cup qualifying. The US is playing the best in the world to gain experience. Hopefully, the lessons learned from playing world class teams can be put to use so that the US can compete against any nation in the world.

Sven is finally put out of his misery

2008-05-31T10:17:00.003-04:00

Sven Goran Eriksson looks set to leave Eeastlands. An advisor of Thaksin Shinawatra has said that Eriksson will leave by June 15th, and he looks set to take over the Mexican National team. He will fill the post left by the firing of Hugo Sanchez. This ends a tortuous period for Sven who led the team to a 9th place finish in the league, and had to have speculation about his job. Sven will be remembered by fans with great admiration. I chronicled this saga in a previous article. Enjoy the lead up to Euro 2008! I should be back later with some more news bits.

Mark Hughes, The man for Chelsea

2008-05-29T19:54:00.001-04:00

Chelsea has some big decisions to make. The three potential managers on Chelsea's shortlist are Mark Hughes, Roberto Mancini, and Carlo Ancelotti. All are exceedingly qualified, but who will be able to combat Manchester United for the Premiership title, and the Champions League. My first choice, Frank Rijkaard, seems to be out of the running, so who is the next best manager for Chelsea? Hughes, Mancini, and Ancelotti are all accomplished managers, but I want Chelsea to be the best team in the world, so Peter Kenyon, and Roman Abramovich must pick the right manager. Chelsea has the monetary backing to be the best team in the world, but they also need the manager who will convert that money into titles. The best man for Chelsea is Mark Hughes.

Mark Hughes, the current manager of Blackburn, would flourish at Chelsea. He is a specialist at moving clubs forward in more positive directions, which he did successfully for Wales and Blackburn. When he managed Wales, he led the little nation to the brink of qualification for Euro 2004, before they lost out to Russia in a memorable playoff match. Hughes then took over at Blackburn, where his chief goal was to avoid relegation. He did so, and in the next year, Blackburn finished in sixth place; qualifying for the Uefa Cup as well. He has since made Blackburn into a consistent top ten finisher, as well as a regular participant in the Uefa cup. Hughes is a manager his players respect; something that Chelsea, a club with many big egos, desperately needs.

Hughes also has a history of fantastic purchases. His ability to spot talent, will serve him well at Chelsea. At Blackburn, he used his limited money to buy Roque Santa Cruz (£3 million), Christopher Samba (£400,000), and Benni McCarthy (£2 million), all of whom panned out to be solid, if not great. If he is given the money that Chelsea say they will spend, his eye for talent could produce fruitful times at Stamford Bridge. Hughes could also bring some of his talent he amassed at Blackburn to Chelsea. Highly touted David Bentley, would be a marvelous addition to the Chelsea squad, and the same could be said for Roque Santa Cruz. Hughes also knows the European market well, due to his management in numerous international matches, against some of the premier countries in Europe.

Hughes would be tempted to leave Blackburn for Chelsea. Chelsea will offer a massive transfer budget, and a significant salary increase. Unfortunately, it is not a guarantee that he would move to Stamford Bridge because he is happy at Ewood Park. He also has a contract that makes it costly for anybody to attempt to move him. However, if Abramovich wants Hughes, he will pay the money.

Hughes is a talented manager, and Chelsea would benefit from his abilities to spot talent, demand respect, and his track record of improving clubs, and national teams.

What do you guys think about Hughes as a potential manager of Chelsea? Is he the right man for the job? If he isn't, who is? Let's hear who you think Chelsea should make their manager.

England Wins

2008-05-28T18:04:00.004-04:00

England were the better team today at Wembley. The 2-0 win was deserved, and goals from John Terry, and Steven Gerrard got them the win. Terry received a boost, after missing his penalty in the Champions League final. Terry headed home Beckham's cross from the right side, beating Carlos Bocanegra to the ball. Howard made a dive, but the ball was out of his reach. A nice through ball into a wide open gap of the US defense in the 59th minute sealed the deal, as Gerrard calmly finished by Brad Guzan. The US enjoyed the last 20 minutes of possession creating 2 good chances. Eddie Lewis's chip to the back post was tipped away by David James, and the ball would have fallen to Bocanegra at the back post. Freddy Adu had a long range effort saved by David James, James got down well to save.

England were clearly the better team, passing fast, and switching the ball effectively from side to side. The US will go on to Spain for their friendly on June 4th, and England is off to Trinidad & Tobago for their friendly on Sunday.

US player ratings

Tim Howard;6

(Brad Guzan, 46; 5 );

Steve Cherundolo; 4

(Frankie Hejduk; 6 46;),

Oguchi Onyewu; 5

Carlos Bocanegra; 5

Heath Pearce; 6

Clint Dempsey;6

Ricardo Clark; 4

(Maurice Edu; 5 78)

Michael Bradley; 5

DaMarcus Beasley; 4

(Eddie Lewis; 6 68);

Eddie Johnson; 4

(Nate Jaqua; NR 89),

Josh Wolff; 3

(Freddy Adu; 6 68)

Afternoon Football News Roundup...

2008-05-27T16:15:00.007-04:00

John Terry was named the captain for England today, for the impending friendly against The USA. He is the third captain to be picked in Fabio Capello's rotation sytem. He will choose a permanent captain at the beginning of World Cup Qualifying. Rio Ferdinand, and Steven Gerrard were the two captains, in the England's previous two friendlies against France, and Switzerland respectively. Terry received a much needed pick me up, after slipping on his game winning penalty, and clanking it off the post. Kickoff is set for 3:00 ET, and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN Classic, and Galavision. My prediction is that the US will win 2-1 and surprise England. You can refer to my article on why the US will win the game here.

Inter Milan manager Roberto Mancini, looks to be on his way out of Milan. His agent has hinted that he will be making an exit. If he leaves, who will fill the void? Jose Mourinho is the top pick, but he also has been rumored to be going back to fill the same open position for Chelsea. We will have to wait and see...

Iraq's parliament has moved to disband all of their sport federations, and FIFA has decided to suspend the Iraqi football team for 1 year, and all of their olympic qualifying. FIFA will accept a reversal of the decision by the Iraqi parliament by Thursday.

Top ten Premier League purchases of 2007-2008 season.

2008-05-26T11:37:00.003-04:00

Take a look at my new article for Soccerlens. Or you can keep reading right here...

A manager’s success is directly tied to the players he recruits, so naturally, the manager needs to make his money count. Clubs always have reservations about making money available to their manager, especially when players like David Nugent are bought for £6 million, but these ten buys were truly divine.

10. Blumer Elano (8 mil) - Manchester City

His shooting ability, vision, passing skill, and commitment were on show the whole season, even while the team faltered in the second half of the season. Manchester City’s form at the beginning of the year was in large part due to Elano’s contributions.

9. Phil Jagielka (4 mil) - Everton

I had reservations about this buy when first announced, but Jagielka became a major part of Everton’s push for Champions League football.

Jagielka played with passion and heart all year; something I enjoy seeing in my Evertonians. He was constantly aware in the back, and had outstanding positioning.

He was a bargain at 4 million pounds and Moyes will be pleased with this buy.

8. Sulley Muntari (7 mil) - Portsmouth

Sulley Muntari is a consistent and controlling midfielder, who has done wonders for Portsmouth. Muntari was aquired from Udinese who collected a nice fee for him, but his impact has been tangible.

His striking ability and his tidy play got Portsmouth to eighth in the table, and to be the FA Cup champions. Portsmouth’s presence in Europe is in part due to Muntari’s stellar play.

7. Carlos Tevez (unattached, loan) - Manchester United

Everybody remembers the Carlos Tevez saga. No one knew who owned Carlos Tevez and court dates had to be set. In the end, he signed a two-year loan deal with Manchester United.

In 48 appearances, he scored nineteen goals. His bullish play and knack for being in the right positions served Carlos and United well. Not bad for United, considering they haven’t paid a transfer fee for him yet.

6. Martin Petrov (4.7 mil) - Manchester City

Martin Petrov was an unknown quantity when he came to the premiership from Atletico Madrid, but the Bulgarian has proven he was worth the money. In 34 matches, Petrov has tallied 5 goals and nine assists. His runs up the left were key to City’s success as he was able to beat defenders on the dribble.

He was one of the few bright spots when the whole team faded at the end of the year, and at 4.7 mil, he was a bargain for the amount of influence he exerted when he played.

5. Owen Hargreaves (17mil) - Manchester United

Owen Hargreaves made the difference for United this year. His tireless play and his ability to hit stunningly effective free kicks were a key component to Manchester United’s double. 17 mil is not cheap, but Hargreaves delivered and more importantly has the potential to deliver for the next 5 years.

His sublime free kick against Arsenal probably won United the league, and his ball winning skills are exceptional. He took a lot of flack before the World Cup because the English public hadn’t seen him play but he has certainly proved his worth since for England and this year for Manchester United.

4. Jermain Defoe (9 mil) - Portsmouth

Jermain Defoe was a fantastic buy for Harry Redknapp. Defoe was languishing on the bench at Tottenham but has rebooted his career under Harry Redknapp’s guidance.

In Defoe’s 12 matches for Portsmouth, he netted 8 goals and led Portsmouth’s rise to number eight in the table. 9 million might seem like a lot for someone who could not start at Tottenham, but Jermain Defoe looks to be fulfilling his potential at Fratton Park.

3. Bacary Sagna (6 mil) - Arsenal

Sagna arrived in the summer from Auxerre, for a sum of £6 million. He was an unknown quantity when Arsene Wenger bought him, but Sagna has since become one of the most consistent and reliable right backs in the EPL. He was a key contributor to Arsenal’s league challenge before being injured.

Sagna was a bargain at 6 million pounds, considering the hugely positive impact he had on Arsenal’s performances this season.

2. Fernando Torres (26 mil) - Liverpool

Fernando Torres was the best player for Liverpool (besides Steven Gerrard) all year. He arrived from Atletico Madrid for an unbelievable £26 million (20m when you factor in Luis Garcia), but has been worth every penny.

His 24 goals in 33 league matches are the most goals scored by a foreigner in his first year in the EPL (beating Ruud van Nistelrooy’s previous record. Imagine Liverpool’s standing in the table if Torres hadn’t put them on his back and carried them upwards.

His pace and positioning combined with his shooting ability made him one of the top buys last summer.

1. Roque Santa Cruz (3 mil) - Blackburn

Roque Santa Cruz, a 26 year old Paraguayan, was hands down, the best buy of the year. Cruz scored 19 goals in 37 league appearances, which makes him the fourth leading scorer in the EPL. What makes this buy so good is the price v goals equation. Take your pick, you can have Cruz’s 19 goals for £3 million, or you can have Fernando Torres’s 24 goals for £20 million. I’ll take Santa Cruz as the best buy of the 2007-2008 EPL season.

Bye Bye Mr. Grant

2008-05-24T14:09:00.007-04:00

Avram Grant has been sacked three days after losing the Champions League final. His assistant coaches will reportedly be leaving as well. Personally, Grant needed to win the Champions League final to stay, and he didn't. This just goes to show how soccer hinges on little moments. If John Terry doesn't slip, Grant still likely has a job. Am I sad to see him go? No. I thought he was average at best, but I want to thank him for his contributions to Chelsea, and doing an admirable job with the intense media scrutiny.

So long Mr. Grant.

Additionally, I wrote an article for Soccerlens today that I put up for review before Grant's firing. Step one of Chelsea's plan that I mapped out in the article was to fire Avram Grant. 5 minutes later he's fired. Talk about an accurate prediction. What actually happened was I finished the article, called up my best friend Peter Kenyon, and told him to fire Grant so I would look like a prognosticator. Check it out here.

Beasley makes a good return, Hull Promoted

2008-05-24T13:57:00.004-04:00

Damarcus Beasley made a start in the Scottish Cup final against Queen of the South. He played 76 minutes, scored a goal, and assisted on another. Rangers won the game 3-2. Rangers ended their season with two trophies, and a second place finish in the Uefa cup and in the SPL.

Hull earned promotion today with a 1-0 win at Wembley Stadium against Bristol Rovers. It ends 104 years of waiting for top flight football. Dean Windass was the lone scorer, and he earned Hull a 60 million pound win.

Evening news

2008-05-23T20:36:00.004-04:00

I've hit it big. Two articles for Soccerlens and I'm all over google. Here is my most recent article on why the US will beat England.

In other news, Michael Owen is most likely out for the two upcoming friendlies for England with a virus. He was on the 31 man roster, but may have to withdraw his name. Don't fret English fans, you have a wealth of attacking options and there are plenty of capable replacements.

Alex Ferguson is mad at Real Madrid for the dogged chase after Cristiano Ronaldo. The Scotsman said, Real Madrid have no moral issues at all." Real have been praising the Portuguese winger highly in hopes to lure him to the club.

Carlos Bocanegra was released today by Fulham. He fell in the order at Fulham to the point where he was usually an unused substitute. He is widely rumored to be moving to either PSV Eindhoven, or Osasuna. Carlos will be available for the England friendly upcoming on the May 28th.

Feilhaber out, Edu in

2008-05-22T21:16:00.003-04:00

One modification to make to the US roster. Maurice Edu is in, and Benny Feilhaber is out. Feilhaber sustained an injury in his match for the U-23 Yanks in Toulon, and will not be available to play for the US in their upcoming friendly. Maurice Edu will join the team after their game against DC on the weekend.

US national team roster for England friendly

2008-05-20T18:27:00.002-04:00

http://lagalaxy.theoffside.com/files/2008/02/landon_donovan.jpg

Bob Bradley has finalized his 22 man roster for the upcoming friendly next week at Wembley Stadium. The roster only has 3 MLS players, and one from Mexico. The rest of the squad is based out of Europe. I will be back tomorrow with a lineup, and prediction. Listed also is the roster for England which does include, you guessed it, David Beckham.

Here it is:

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION
GOALKEEPERS (3): Dominic Cervi (Out of Contract), Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), Tim Howard (Everton FC)
DEFENDERS (8): Carlos Bocanegra (Fulham FC), Dan Califf (FC Midtjylland), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Jay DeMerit (Watford FC), Oguchi Onyewu (Standard de Liege), Michael Orozco (San Luis), Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Freddy Adu (SL Benfica), DaMarcus Beasley (Glasgow Rangers), Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Benny Feilhaber (Derby County), Eddie Lewis (Derby County)
FORWARDS (5): Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Nate Jaqua (Out of Contract), Eddie Johnson (Fulham FC), Josh Wolff (Out of Contract)

ENGLAND ROSTER BY POSITION
GOALKEEPERS (3): David James (Portsmouth), Joe Hart (Manchester City), Chris Kirkland (Wigan)
DEFENDERS (10): Wayne Bridge (Chelsea), Wes Brown (Manchester United), Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United), Phil Jagielka (Everton), Glen Johnson (Portsmouth), John Terry (Chelsea), Stephen Warnock (Blackburn), David Wheater (Middlesbrough), Jonathan Woodgate (Middlesbrough)
MIDFIELDERS (12): Gareth Barry (Aston Villa), David Beckham (Los Angeles Galaxy), David Bentley (Blackburn), Joe Cole (Chelsea), Stewart Downing (Middlesbrough), Owen Hargreaves (Manchester United), Tom Huddlestone (Tottenham), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Jermaine Jenas (Tottenham), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Theo Walcott (Arsenal), Ashley Young (Aston Villa)
FORWARDS (6): Gabriel Agbonlahor (Aston Villa), Dean Ashton (West Ham), Peter Crouch (Liverpool), Jermain Defoe (Portsmouth), Michael Owen (Newcastle), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)

Where does Ronaldinho end up?

2008-05-19T21:20:00.002-04:00

http://www.footballpictures.net/data/media/1/Ronaldinho.jpg

This Ronaldinho saga reminds me of the Wizard of Oz, just like in the Wizard of Oz, when Dorethy was swept away in a fierce wind. Similarly, Ronaldhino looks to be on his way in a whirlwind of transfers out of Barcelona. Once the world’s best player, it seems clear that it is time for him to re-invent himself at a new club.Joan Laporta, the president of Barcelona, admitted that it was the end of an era last night on Spanish television. He also said that it is time for Ronaldinho to move on to a new club, but he should be treated like a hero for his contributions to the Catalan giants.

‘He (Ronaldinho) needs a new challenge. When a cycle finishes it is normal that the most emblematic pieces also come to an end,’ ‘I would like Ronaldinho to be given a great send-off so that he is remembered for all he has given us and that if he didn’t do any more it was because the circumstances wouldn’t allow it.’

Joan Laporta admits that Ronaldinho will be in a new uniform next year. The real question is, what uniform? Here’s where he could end up:

Milan It would be poetic for Ronaldinho to go to Milan and partner his Brazilian compatriot. He would presumably play alongside Kaka, and run the offense in an attacking midfield position. It would be great for Ronaldhino to reinvent himself under the bright lights of the San Siro. Italy is a league that would also suit his style of play. He likes to carry the ball and make moves and that is far more common in Italy, than it is in England (another possible destination of his). At this point, it looks like Milan might be out of the question as Barcelona may require to much money for the Brazilian’s services.
Juventus Gianluigi Buffon has already made up his mind on this matter. He thinks “Ronaldinho would be the dream of any player or supporter,” Juventus is also looking to strenghthen their squad for a deepChampions League run next year. The squad finished in a strong third place in Serie A this year, after a year in Serie B. Is Juventus as serious a buyer as Milan is at this point, no, but if Ronaldinho doesn’t move to Milan, they might become one of his main suitors. Juventus missed out on Mathieu Flamini, the french midfielder, and would be unwise to miss out on Ronaldinho as well.
Manchester City Nothing would be better for Manchester City than splashing cash for Ronaldinho. A superstar would immediately raise the pedigree of the club, and its media exposure as well. Thaksin Shinawatra is an ambitious man and his pockets are deep. If Sven Goran Eriksson is sacked, and Scolari is hired this could be a very likely destination. Luiz Felipe Scolari, the coach of Brazil’s 2002 world cup winning squad, would love to be re-united with his old player. If City decide to keep Sven Goran Erikssonthe move might not be to the benefit of Ronaldinho. There is plenty of turmoil at the club, and much of that is due to the confrontation between the fans, the owner, and the manager. If Ronaldinho had to choose where to go today, it would not be in his best interest to go to City. That said, the lure of the EPL, and the possibility of re-uniting with a former coach could be to difficult to resist.

The only thing we really know right now is that Ronaldinho will be leaving the Camp Nou this summer. Where will he go? We should find out soon enough. If I had to make a guess, it would be Milan, but at this point who know where he will go. I can make one prediction, and that is that Ronaldinho will do great things for whichever club he goes to. His loss of form at Barcelona had more to do with the situation at the club, than it was to do with him actually regressing, and becoming a poorer player. What do you guys think? Where will Ronaldinho end up, and how will he do at his new club?

DC United is serious trouble

2008-05-18T08:39:00.005-04:00

Last night DC United gave up a lead, allowing 3 second half goals to Chivas USA. Usually the locker room doesn't open for post game comments until Tom Soehn speaks, but today it took half an hour, and everybody in the locker room except for Soehn declined to comment. This looks to be a demoralizing loss for DC. They got their lead off a wonder strike courtesy of Gallardo, and then bottled it in dramatic fashion, giving up 3 goals in the span of 9 minutes. Who wouldn't be demoralized? All indications point to Tom Soehn being in the hot seat as DC is deep in last place in the highly competitive eastern conference. With a month until the transfer window opens, they will have to learn how to win with these players. Here's what Soehn had to say after the game.

"We are going to go back and hopefully we'll get a couple guys back but everybody still has got to dig deeper. Games aren't won over 60 minutes, it's 90 minutes, and I thought we had about 60 minutes in us, and that's not good enough in this league, in any league."

DC clearly has a lot of thinking to do.

My take on the US Roster

2008-05-17T09:52:00.007-04:00

http://i.a.cnn.net/si/2007/writers/greg_lalas/05/16/bradley/p1_bradley-ap2.jpg

Bob Bradley recently announced a squad of 33 players to compete in the 3 upcoming friendly's against England, Spain, and Argentina. He will be selecting a squad of 22 players for each game from that squad of 33. Sounds like a reasonable idea right, it is if your playing teams like Anguilla or Suriname where the lineup picked doesn't matter, you still will beat them. We're not playing the worst teams in the world here, we're playing the cream of the crop. I know some of you might say "England they didn't make Euro 2008, they're not that good after all." but think again. They are ranked 11th in the world, and sandwiched in between The Netherlands, and Romania, two very good, very accomplished teams. Bob Bradley will select 22 players for each game, but he will need to pick the best or we won't have a shot at winning. So maybe he varies his selections a bit and he picks a total of 26 players; then we won't get to see some of the players who have played themselves on to the team with good MLS seasons, like Robbie Rogers, or Kenny Cooper. Anyhow, In the wake of Bob picking a 33 man roster, I got around to thinking, what players I would pick for each of the games. I believe I have the answers and they are as follows:

England Lineup

Subs: Guzan, Califf, Spector, Adu, Lewis, Jaqua, Wolff

---------Dempsey-------Johnson------------

Beasley----------------------------Donovan

------------Bradley---Clark------------------

Pearce--------------------------Cherundolo

---------Bocanegra---Onyewu-------------

-----------------Howard----------------------

Spain Lineup

Subs: Guzan, Demerit, Beasley, Johnson, Califf, Cherundolo, Wolff

--------------Dempsey--Jaqua--------------

Adu--------------------------------Donovan

------------Feilhaber--Bradley-------------

Pearce-------------------------------Spector

--------------Orozco--Onyewu------------

------------------Howard--------------------

Argentina Lineup

Subs: Guzan, Spector, Orozco, Adu, Edu, Ching, Cooper

------------Dempsey Altidore-------------

Beasley--------------------------Donovan

---------------Clark---Bradley-------------

Pearce------------------------Cherundolo

------------Onyewu--Bocanegra---------

-----------------Howard--------------------

These are the lineups I would use for the game. Bradley however, might not use Beasley because he's coming off an injury, additionally Clark and Edu, might not travel to Europe due to scheduling conflicts. Guzan is the second choice keeper but might not go to Europe because he would miss game with Chivas USA. MLS players will be sparce in Europe, but there will be more involved in the game against New York.

Ronaldo eyed move to Spain, Usa roster released

2008-05-16T06:37:00.004-04:00

http://www.christianoronaldo.net/CristianoRonaldoG_Getty.jpg

Cristiano Ronaldo wants a move to spanish football after he said that "He would love to play in Spain." He says after the Champions League final that he will consider his future. This comes as a shock to the United fans, because Ronaldo has continually stated that he is happy in Manchester. Real Madrid is the favorite to get his signature were he to make a move.

In other news, USA Soccer has released a pool of 33 players to be used in the three up coming friendlies. There are the usual inclusions such as Landon Donovan, and Tim Howard, but there are also some players who played their way onto the squad like Kenny Cooper, and Robbie Rogers. The full roster is right here.

GOALKEEPERS- Dominic Cervi (Out of Contract), Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), Tim Howard

(Everton FC), Troy Perkins (Valerenga IF), Chris Seitz (Real Salt Lake)

DEFENDERS- Carlos Bocanegra (Fulham FC), Dan Califf (FC Midtjylland), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Jay DeMerit (Watford FC), Frankie Hejduk (Columbus Crew), Oguchi Onyewu (Standard de Liege), Michael Orozco (San Luis), Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United)

MIDFIELDERS- Freddy Adu (SL Benfica), DaMarcus Beasley (Glasgow Rangers), Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Maurice Edu (Toronto FC), Benny Feilhaber (Derby County), Eddie Gaven (Columbus Crew), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Eddie Lewis (Derby County), Pablo Mastroeni (Colorado Rapids)

FORWARDS- Jozy Altidore (New York Red Bulls), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Kenny Cooper (FC Dallas), Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Nate Jaqua (Out of Contract), Eddie Johnson (Fulham FC), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew), Josh Wolff (1860 Munich)

Rangers downed by Zenit in Uefa Cup final

2008-05-14T18:17:00.002-04:00

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Rangers were downed 2-0 by Zenit St. Petersburg today in the Uefa cup final. Rangers were outclassed for most of the game, and were only able muster a handful of decent shots on goal. Zenit controlled the game and the possession. They were able to attack well off of the counter attack and made it count when they scored both of their goals. Andriy Arshivan was the most dangerous player on the field throughout the game. He was sent free off a long ball from the back and rounded the goalie and fired on goal. The ball was goal bound but Sasa Papac raced back to the goal line and headed it away. He wouldn't be denied however as he set up Igor Denisov for the first goal. Arshivan moved to the center and then sent Denisov free to only have to beat the goalie, which he calmly did. Rangers threw their team forward and were punished for their lack of defense when Konstantin Zyrlanov sent Rangers home with nothing to show for their efforts. Zyrlanov worked some space passed away and received the ball with only a tap in remaining. Rangers will still compete for the domestic treble but will be disappointed that they were not able to leave Manchester with a nice big trophy.

US Soccer WCQ venues released

2008-05-14T17:58:00.002-04:00

ussoccerlogo.jpg

US Soccer has released the 3 venues they will play in for the semifinals of World Cup Qualifying. The semifinal stage has 2 groups of 4 and each team plays each other once at home and once away. There will be games played in Chicago, Washington D.C. and Commerce City Colorado. Chicago and Commerce city have never hosted World Cup qualifying before and the last time D.C. did was in 2004. The last time the US played in Washington, they were able to dispatch Panama 6-0 with an Eddie Johnson hat trick. The US needs to beat Barbados in a home and home series starting on June 15th in Carson California to advance to the semifinal stage.

Keller speaks about Fulham, New Concacaf Champions League format

2008-05-14T15:56:00.003-04:00

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Kasey Keller spoke to US Soccer about Fulham's escape from relegation. It was a comical and illuminating interview; I recommend taking a look.

In other news Concacaf has released their format and dates for the new Concacaf Champions league. The US spots will be occupied by the two MLS cup finalists, the supporters cup winner, and the US open cup winner. The first games are set for this summer. Here are the specifics.

Enjoy the Uefa Cup final!

Wednesday, May 14, Transfer Rumors

2008-05-14T06:27:00.003-04:00

http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/07_02/MichaelOwenDM1707_468x480.jpg

Here is Today's Transfer Gossip. Michael Owen reportedly could be on his way to Japan, and Didier Drogba could be going to either Inter, or Milan. Enjoy

Martin Jol is going to........... Hamburg

2008-05-13T21:19:00.004-04:00

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42098000/jpg/_42098034_jol416.jpg

Martin Jol, the former Tottenham manger who was fired earlier this year for his abysmal start to the season will take over at Hamburg. Jol has been out of a job since last fall and will begin at the beginning of the next season. Jol has signed a deal up until June 2010. He replaces Huub Stevens who is leaving to become the coach of PSV Eindhoven. Jol was the top target for the German side and they are very happy with their signing. What do you think of the move?

Rangers make push for UEFA glory

2008-05-13T20:39:00.004-04:00

Walter Smith wants Rangers to make the most of their chance for Uefa cup glory in Manchester tomorrow. Manchester is expecting upwards of 100,000 Rangers fans who do not have tickets for the game. All of the hotel rooms in Manchester have been booked. A Caravan of over 100 cars left Ibrox this morning adorned in Ranger's Blue and White. They will snake their way down to Manchester in time for the game tomorrow. Walter Smith said "This season has been terrific for us so far and we've got opportunities to make it even better," Tomorrow Rangers will be going for their second trophy out of a possible 4. They have already won the League Cup, and they will contest for the Uefa Cup, the Scottish Cup, and the SPL title. Smith is happy just to be this far in Europe. "The European competition is obviously not one we thought we would get as far in, so it's a nice surprise." He also will not overplay his competitions success and the challenge it will present. "Zenit have also had a terrific season, won their championship and find themselves in the final too. It will be a very difficult game." The kick off is set for 2:45 ET. Coverage on Fox Soccer Channel starts at 2:30 ET. Enjoy the game!

Bristol City going to Wembley

2008-05-13T19:04:00.003-04:00

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Bristol City came back in Extra time to win their championship playoff match against Crystal Palace 2-1. Palace went even on aggregate with a Ben Watson strike in the twenty fourth minute. The game languished on until in Extra time when Lee Trundle put the robins ahead with a 104th minute strike. They sealed the deal 6 minutes later with a goal by Michael McIndoe. Palace showed their true colors today, as they rose rapidly out of the middle of the table to get into a promotion spot. They were not able to sustain their form and got beat pretty convincingly in the end, by a club with far less resources and money.

Bristol City will presumably play Hull for promotion next week, as Hull has a two goal advantage over Watford and the upcoming leg is at home.

Crystal Palace vs. Bristol City preview

2008-05-13T06:31:00.003-04:00

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There are only 3 fixtures world wide today, and the most important one is Crystal Palace vs. Bristol City. Today is the second leg of the first found of the championship playoffs, and Neil Warnock and Crystal Palace need a favorable day at Ashton Gate, to move on to Wembley. Palace are down 2-1 on aggregate and the robins were able to score 2 all important away goals at Selhurst Park. Warnock's boys will have to get out and attack to have any chance of moving on, and that could possibly make them vulnerable to Bristol City's counter attacks. If Palace can nick an early goal, it puts all the pressure on Bristol City. One mistake from them after that and it's another year in the Championship. Realistically, Bristol City have come to far to just lay down and die for Palace and I am predicting a 1-1 draw and Bristol City going to Wembley later on this Month. What do you guys think about this? I do hope Palace win, because the more I see Neil Warnock the better but Bristol City should be able to pull this one out.

Tuesday, May 13, 2008 Transfer Rumors

2008-05-13T06:27:00.003-04:00

Here are today's movers and shakers in the transfer market. There are rumors galore after the season with many jobs in question after sub par performances.

Chelsea Injury Scare

2008-05-13T06:20:00.002-04:00

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Chelsea have avoided a big set back in their champions league title aspirations. John Terry and Didier Drogba were questionable for the game in Moscow after going down with injuries in the final game of the season. It does now seem that both will be available for the final, and Avram Grant will have a full side at his disposal. It would have been a big blow not to have a capable goal scorer, and your captain available for the final, but Grant has luckily avoided this predicament.

Monday, May 12, 2008 Transfer Rumors

2008-05-12T18:30:00.002-04:00

Here are today's transfer rumors, with the first signing after the premiership season already completed, this should be interesting start to the summer.

US U-23's squad released for Toulon invitational

2008-05-12T18:01:00.002-04:00

Peter Novak released a 22 player squad to compete in the Toulon invitational later this month. This tournament is being used as a way to narrow down players on the fringe of making the olympic squad. It is a heavily European based squad, which gives some of the players who did not get an opportunity to compete in the olympic qualifying tournament. The squad is as follows:

GOALKEEPERS (3): Dominic Cervi (out of contract), Chris Seitz (Real Salt Lake), Quentin Westburg (Troyes)
DEFENDERS (10): Tony Beltran (Real Salt Lake), Eric Brunner (out of contract), Kyle Davies (Southampton), Michael Gavin (Los Angeles Galaxy), Kamani Hill (Vfl Wolfsburg), Jonathan Leathers (Kansas City Wizards), Brek Shea (FC Dallas), Julian Valentin (Los Angeles Galaxy), Rob Valentino (New England Revolution), Blake Wagner (FC Dallas)
MIDFIELDERS (5): Bryan Arguez (Hertha Berlin), Corey Ashe (Houston Dynamo), Greg Dalby (SC Charleroi), Benny Feilhaber (Derby County), Lee Nguyen (Randers FC)
FORWARDS (4): Gabe Ferrari (Sampdoria), Bryan Jordan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Ellis McLoughlin (Hertha Berlin), Sammy Ochoa (Tecos)

Chelsea's first signing, England names squad for US friendly

2008-05-12T17:34:00.008-04:00

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Chelsea have signed Jose Boswinga, the Porto right back for a nice sum of 16.2 million pounds. He will presumably slide into the right back position where Essien has been playing for most of the year. A good signing for Chelsea; they were able to beat out Manchester United for the signature of Boswinga and he will be Avram Grant's second signing since joining the club last fall. This move will hopefully give Grant, or whoever the next manager of Chelsea is the chance to have 3 world class central midfielders who are interchangeable. If Lampard does stay (that's in question) they will have three world class combinations in the center. Lampard with Essien, Lampard with Ballack, and Ballack with Essien. I like this move a lot and I hope Chelsea will dip a little deeper in the transfer window for a striker, a left winger, and some cover for the back line. All in all, a good day for Chelsea.

In other news, Fabio Capello has named a 31 man squad for the friendlies against the USA and Trinidad and Tobago. Capello selected a full strenghth squad, but his surprise inclusions were U-21's Tom Huddlestone of Tottenham, and Joe Hart of Manchester City. The USA has yet to release a squad but should have one in the next week.

Americans Abroad

2008-05-11T15:42:00.003-04:00

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There were some Americans involved in relegation battles and UEFA cup battles over the Weekend. Some faired better than others but here are the results.

England

Brian McBride played 90 minutes in Fulham's 1-0 win over Portsmouth

Kasey Keller played 90 minutes and made 6 saves in Fulham's 1-0 win over Portsmouth

Clint Dempsey played 72 minutes in Fulham's 1-0 win over Portsmouth

Carlos Bocanegra dressed but did not play in Fulham's 1-0 win over Portsmouth

Eddie Johnson did not dress in Fulham's 1-0 win over portsmouth

Bobby Convey did not dress in Reading's 4-0 win over Derby

Marcus Hanhemann played 90 minutes and made 4 saves in Reading's 4-0 win over Derby

Eddie Lewis played 90 minutes in Derby's 4-0 Loss to Reading

Benny Feilhaber played 45 minutes as a sub in Derby's 4-0 loss to Reading

Tim Howard played 90 minutes and made 3 saves in Everton's 3-1 win over Newcastle

Brad Friedel played 90 minutes and made 6 saves in Blackburn's 4-1 loss to Birmingham

Jonathan Spector did not dress in West Ham's 2-2 draw against Aston Villa

Jay Demerit played 29 minutes as a sub in Watford's 2-0 loss to Hull

Scotland

Damarcus Beasley dressed but did not play in Ranger's 3-1 win over Dundee United

France

Andrew Jacobson did not dress in Lorient's 2-1 win over Metz

Quentin Westberg's Troyes will play Sedan on monday

Germany

Bryan Arguez dressed but did not play in Hertha Berlin's 1-0 win over Nurnberg

Steve Cherundolo played 90 minutes in Hannover's 6-1 loss to Werder Bremen

Salvatore Zizzo played 20 minutes as a sub in Hannover's 6-1 loss to Werder Bremen

Heath Pearce dressed but did not play in Hansa Rotock's 2-1 loss to Bayer Leverkusen

Italy

Gabrieli Ferrari did not dress in Sampdoria's 2-0 win over Palermo

Holland

Michael Bradley plays against NAC Breda in their UEFA Cup qualifier on Monday

Belgium

Oguchi Onyewu played 90 minutes in Standard Liege's 2-0 win over Racing Genk

Mexico

Jose Francisco Torres played 54 minutes as a sub in Pachuca's 2-1 win over San Luis

Michael Orozco dressed but didn't play in San Luis's 2-1 loss to Pachuca

Manchester United win the Premiership

2008-05-11T13:52:00.005-04:00

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Manchester United have won the Premiership today with a 2-0 win away at the JJB. The title was never in much doubt after Cristiano Ronaldo scored from the spot, and Ryan Giggs added a goal late to put the game out of reach and hand the title to the Red Devils. All that remains for Manchester United is the Champions League final. Their opponent, Chelsea will want to stop them after failing to win the league on the final day. The Red Devils will be going for a double, and Avram Grant's job may hang in the balance. Sir Alex Ferguson had his boys ready, and the preparation payed off with the title. To salvage the season at Stamford Bridge, they will certainly have to beat Manchester United; a task they are capable of pulling off having already beat them once this year. An exciting end to the year, and a repeat champion, I'm already looking forward to next season.

Fulham are safe! and other EPL results

2008-05-11T11:54:00.009-04:00

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Fulham have survived miraculously off a Danny Murphy goal in the 79th minute to beat Portsmouth; and stay in the premiership for another season. A win secured premiership status and Fulham delivered to the 2,000 fans that had made the trip to the south coast. Danny Murphy hammered home a Jimmy Bullard cross to win the game; the goalie didn't even move. However for Portsmouth, the lack of marking on the play has to be a major concern heading into the FA cup final. Fulham were in control of their destiny at the beginning of the day, but had they tied or lost, they would have finished in 19th place. Both Birmingham and Reading won on the day.

Your new Premiership champion is Manchester United, they handled their business at the JJB and chelsea were held to a tie, off a last minute Bolton goal. You have to think now that the Champions league final, will decide the fate of Avram Grant at Chelsea.

Everton secured UEFA cup status for next year after their 3-1 win over Kevin Keegan's Newcastle. Aston Villa were only able to muster a tie after a late Dean Ashton equalizer made the score 2-2.

All results are as follows:

Birmingham beat Blackburn 4-1

Reading beat Derby 4-0

Manchester United beat Wigan 2-0

Chelsea ties Bolton 1-1

Everton beat Newcastle 3-1

Aston Villa tie West Ham 2-2

Middlesborogh beat Manchester City 8-1, yes you do read that correctly

Liverpool beat Tottenham 2-0

Arsenal beat Sunderland 1-0

Fulham beat Portsmouth 1-0

Your three relegated teams are Reading, Birmingham, and Derby.

Your three promoted teams are West Brom, Stoke City, and TBD

It was a wild end to the season, I'll try to snag some video highlight of the Man City game.

MLS Saturday Recap

2008-05-11T08:34:00.003-04:00

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4 games on saturday and I called the winners in 3. Not bad for my first Saturday. I picked Columbus, Hoston, Dallas, and New York, and all but Dallas won. Now for the recaps:

Houston vs. Colorado:

A good and exciting game, physical, and fast as well. Houston sneaked a winner because of the stupidest defensive play I have ever seen. A colorado defender cleared the ball with his hand and conceded a penalty. The first goal for Houston was also sloppy with Bouna Condoul coming out into no man's land and missing the ball. Colorado's goal was better. The ball was played into the feet of Cummings who let it run past the defense and shot it far post. Colorado after their goal to tie it looked like the better team, but luck ran out as Houston was awarded the late penalty.

Real Salt Lake vs. FC Dallas:

Real Salt Lake was able to win at home against a formidable Dallas squad. Salt Lake scored first off of a Javier Morales strike. The visitors bounced back though, through a Kenny Cooper strike. It was not to be for Dallas however, as Kyle Beckerman powered Real to the win with a seventy third minute strike

San Jose Earthquakes vs. Columbus Crew:

San Jose surprised me here. When you look at them, you wonder, where are the goals going to come from. They scored two last night, and still failed to get a win. Ramiro Corrales scored first for San Jose to put them up at half. Columbus bounced back quite nicely with 3 goals in ten minutes, 2 from Robbie Rogers, 1 from Brad Evans. San Jose sneaked one back courtesty of Ryan Turner, but another good win for Columbus.

New York Red Bulls vs. LA Galaxy:

2 less goals than I predicted, but still a fast paced game. New york got off to a good start from a Danliegh Borman goal which lasted long into the night, but in the 77th minute, Alan Gordon struck to get the home team back in the game. It was not to be however, because in the 79th minute, just 2 minutes later, Juan Pablo Angel scored the winner and New York came away with the win. A fair result, but I did expect more goals to be honest.

A good day of games, enjoy the recaps you see here.

Sunday, May 11, 2008 transfer Gossip

2008-05-11T08:32:00.001-04:00

Here is today's gossip. Have a look, and enjoy

MLS Saturday

2008-05-10T19:45:00.003-04:00

There are 4 matches tonight, and all are shaping up to be good matches.

Here they are:

Houston vs. Colorado

Houston needs to get back to their form of their last two seasons, and Colorado is looking to build on their good victory over DC.

Prediction: Houston 2-1

FC Dallas vs. Real Salt Lake

FC Dallas is looking to rebound after a draw with Chivas, and Real needs to close down better, as David Beckham was able to have too much space and scored a long distance goal because of it.

Prediction: 1-0 Dallas

Columbus Crew vs. San Jose Earthquakes

Columbus will have a good chance to keep winning against a weak San Jose squad that has played pretty poorly throughout the season.

Prediction: 2-0 Crew

New York Red Bulls vs. Los Angeles Galaxy

A star studded game, Angel, Altidore, Donovan, and Beckham. LA looks to continue their unbelievable scoring record, will need to get plenty of goals due to their lack of any defense at all. The Red bulls should be able to get on the board, and make this a high scoring, fast paced game.

Prediction: 3-2 Red Bulls

2008-05-10T18:37:00.002-04:00

A funny video of pole vaulting across a canal. What relevance does this have to soccer? This is Michael Bradley's team, Heerenveen. You get to see him towards the end of the video, and what transpires is quite comical. Enjoy!

SOS (Save Our Sven)

2008-05-10T15:02:00.001-04:00

http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/10_01/Sven0810_468x639.jpg

The Signs have been up, ever since the loss to Fulham. The fans have made it clear that getting rid of Sven Goran Eriksson is not the path the club should be taking.

Last year Manchester City were in fourteenth place and only managed to score, a meager 10 goals at home in 19 matches, the least amount of goals scored at home in the history of the top flight. Eriksson was brought in to get Manchester City to a mid table position. He did that, and recorded a double over Manchester United. Eriksson might have even guided them to a Uefa Cup spot through a fair play position given to the EPL by Uefa this week.

Some of you reading this right now would ask, so why is his job even in question. The owner and chairman of Manchester City, former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra decided it was time for a change. This sparked the ire of the City supporters, petitions were made, signs put up, and even peaceful protests to get the chairman's attention.

Sven won't Officially be sacked at least until after the final game of the season, and we don't know yet whether or not the fans support could save Eriksson his job. The Club has been in contact with Luis Felipe Scolari, Portugal's national team coach, but Scolari has distanced himself from the job. Eriksson on the other hand seems to be making plans himself if indeed he is let go. He reportedly has had talks with Benfica, who have been looking for a new manager after Juan Antonio Camacho left earlier this year.

So caught in the middle of this mess is the loyal supporters of City. The fans have desperately been waiting for a winner to arrive, and now they have one. Even the players have reacted negatively to this. For now, this saga remains a quagmire, but maybe after this sunday, we will have a clear indication of what direction Eriksson, and the club decide to move in.

A first for Zizzo, and Beasley almost back

2008-05-10T14:44:00.000-04:00

Sal Zizzo made his Bundesliga debut, at 21 years old. He came on as a second half substitute. Hannover, however, were beaten 6-1 on the day, but a game Sal will never forget. In other news Damarcus Beasley was on the bench for Rangers today, after sustaining major knee damage in the Champions League, against Stuttgart. He did not play, but it is a positive sign as he could be ready for the UEFA cup final against Zenit St. Petersburg on Wednesday.

Bristol City steal win in promotion playoffs

2008-05-10T10:21:00.000-04:00

http://www.football.co.uk/shared/images/news/400x400_1192104398_spt_ai_palace_warnock_09.jpg

Wipe that smile off your face Neil, you surrendered two away goals and are down a goal in aggregate. I know you will blame it partially on the officials, but it all evens out eventually. Bristol City got a 2-1 win over in form side Crystal Palace. The Robins went up on Palace in the fifty third minute off a Louis Carey Goal, but Palace evened the score line in the eighty seventh minute when Louis Carey committed a foul in the box, and Ben Watson Converted. The Robins would have the last laugh off a 30 yard blast by David Noble in stoppage time, which sent the away fans into rapture. Neil Warnock has some work to do on the road if Palace are to make it to Wembley.

Here are the two new US Soccer Videos

2008-05-10T09:43:00.000-04:00

Saturday, May 10, 2008 Transfer Gossip

2008-05-10T08:57:00.000-04:00

Here is the day's transfer gossip. My personal favorite is Mohamed Al Fayed giving 5,000 pounds to be spent at Harrod's, to all of his players if Fulham can avoid relegation.

U-20's down Bolton, and Manchester United reserves

2008-05-10T08:54:00.000-04:00

http://www.tampabaysports.org/images/400/ussoccer.jpg

The US U-20 squad is in England for three friendlies with the reserve squads from Bolton, Manchester United, and Liverpool. The US youngsters dispatched both the squads of Bolton, and Manchester United, 2-0, and 2-1 respectively. Felix Garcia assisted on a goal by Chris Agorsor, and was brought down in the penalty area, setting up Jorge Flores for the other goal. The game against Manchester United reserves went well for the Yanks. Jorge Flores assisted on a goal by Peri Marosevic, but soon after the Red Devils tied it up. Marosevic and the Yanks had the last laugh, however putting the game away before the final whistle off an Ike Opara header flicked on to Marosevic who hammered home for the win. The Yanks play their final game tomorrow, against the Liverpool reserves.

Are you Fulham fans ready for Sunday?

2008-05-10T08:51:00.001-04:00

If by any means your not, then this following video will be sure to get you in the mood, pumped up, and ready to root of the cottagers, as they continue their unbelievable escape.

DC United in Trouble?

2008-05-10T08:48:00.000-04:00

http://dcunited.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20080506&content_id=155406&vkey=news_dcu&fext=.jsp&team=t103

DC was beat for the fifth time yesterday at home to the Chicago Fire. Goals from Justin Mapp and Cuathemoc Blanco powered the Fire to first place in the east, a point ahead of Columbus. DC lacked shape and real team unity throughout the game, and except for the last fifteen minutes was never a real threat. It Isn't quite the time to push the panic button however. DC was without Marcelo Gallardo, Fred, and Devon Mctavish. A full strenghth DC squad is still formidable, even when they are in poor form. They debuted there new jerseys on the night, a spiffy VW logo on the front of the Jersey makes it look very profesional. Thoughts on the game are welcome. Here are the highlights, decide for yourself what needs to change for DC.