Speaking Of Tongues News

Commentary from Sunday's Gol TV presentation of Deportiva La Coruna v Real Madrid - Ray Hudson: Gago is looking as rough as a badgers backside, isn't he? Phil Schoen: I've never really touched a badger, but I'll take your word for it.

The BBC is reporting that Manchester City manager Stuart Pearce is saying Claudio Reyna could be headed back to the USA very soon, due to family issues.
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DC United has now been officially sold (for the second time - let's hope this deal does not fall apart). The price is reported to be $33 million. Real estate mogul Victor MacFarlane is the leader of the new ownership. It was thought that John Hendricks of the Discovery Channel was part of the group, but for now he is not. Brian Davis & Christian Laettner, former Duke basketball greats are part of the group. Another partner is Will Chang who runs an investment firm and is a part owner of the San Francisco Giants baseball team.
-Official DC United press release.
-MLSnet report.
-Washington Post article.
-But of course all the best stuff comes from Dan Steinberg's DC Sports Bog at the Wash Post. He was at the press conference and has all the dirt, skinny, behind-the-scenes-talk etc. Awesome stuff! I am not gonna link to anything specific, just go to the site and start scrolling and reading. There is stuff in several posts. Plus you get to read about basketball player Gilbert Arenas's massive birthday party!
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You can keep up with the USA January training camp via the official team weblog. Plus US Soccer has tons of photos and video. If you watch the video of "01-04 pm" you will see some serious intensity! Wow.
-Andrea Canales at LA Soccer News talks to US Soccer President Sunil Gulati as camp kicks off.
-Canales also talks to New York Red Bulls left back Todd Dunivant about the camp.
-Ives Galarcep at Soccernet names 5 of the newer players in the US camp that could make a difference.
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US Soccer has announced their roster for the USA U20 World Championship qualifying tournament in Panama on January 17-21. The only player they did not get for the team was Michael Bradley, who's Dutch team, Heerenveen, would not release him for these games.
-Their game schedule looks like this:
Jan 17 v Haiti
Jan 19 v Guatemala
Jan 21 v Panama
-There will be no television for the tournament.
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You can get complete coverage of the MLS pre-Superdraft talent tryouts from Buzz Carrick and 3rd Degree. Day One - and - Day Two.
Top Drawer Soccer also has good coverage.
-Of course MLSnet has coverage as well. 2 stories on the overall camp: ONE - and - TWO. And two more stories on specific players: Scott Jones - and - Bakary Soumare.
-Note: LA will have 5 of the first 23 picks in this Friday's Superdraft.
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The Guardian is reporting that Clint Dempsey's English work permit hearing is set for Wednesday.
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Alexi Lalas spouts off in a Q & A with Soccernet's Kristian Dyer. Can I go on the record and say that I used to love Lalas but I am getting more and more sick of him every time he opens his mouth. Shut up and do something pal! Win, then talk! We never hear Kevin Payne blabbing and his team is doing just fine drawing attendance.
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Andrea Canales at LA Soccer News talks to Joe Cannon about his new mission with the Los Angeles Galaxy.
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Glenn Davis of the Houston Chronicle looks ahead to what he see's as a very exciting 2007.
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Ridge Mahoney of Soccer America conducts a Q & A with new Kansas City coach Curt Onalfo.
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Ben Knight at Sportsnet Canada says Toronto FC needs a rival. Isn't he jumping the gun a little? Aren't rivals something that develops as you actually play games? On the other hand, if that's what he wants, then he can have 12 of them. The current teams all have every intention of beating the snot outta the new boys. No one will want to lose to Toronto.
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The Eugene Oregon Register-Guard with a nice feature story on their hometown boy, forward Nate Jaqua, newly of Los Angeles.
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According to our main man Hearn Christopher at the Kansas City Star, Tony Meola has moved back to the KC area and is looking for coaching opportunities (scroll down the page a bit for the Meola section). Does this mean his playing days are done? Hearn also tells us that Tony got new black brief underwear for Christmas. Wonderful news. No word on whether Tony will continue to shave his legs.
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The Columbus Dispatch says the Crew will most likely spend their entire pre-season on USA soil. And a Rotund Rosental update as well.
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The latest update on a possible future MLS team in St Louis from the Post Dispatch. This story talks about a stadium site in the eastern suburb of Collinsville.
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Soccer America is reporting that Chivas USA is trying to set up a reality show where the winner gets a spot on the team roster. Please no!
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Yanks Abroad talks to American Jay DeMerit at Watford in the EPL about his teams very difficult season so far. They sadly sit deeply into the relegation zone in last place.
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YA also hands out grades for the first half of the season performances by many of our Americans playing in Europe.
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A second unnamed Italian club has joined Milan in the chase for Oguchi Onyewu. Fulham are not out of the hunt, but will have to increase their bid to get him. And reader BQ sent me a note from a Belgian site that said Newcastle and Aston Villa have joined in the bidding. Nice, nice.
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This past weekend in England was the 3rd round of the FA Cup. Here is the full list of scores. There were an astonishing 13 games ended in a tie, so those will be replayed this week and next depending on the teams schedules. They also held the draw for the 4th round this morning. You can see those matchups here.
-Rob Hughes of the International Herald Tribune on the "old fashioned magic" that the FA Cup can be for small clubs.
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Let's check in with our favorite Americans in England and see how their FA Cup matches went:
-DaMarcus Beasley - Manchester City - started and went 80 minutes at Sheffield Wednesday that ended 1-1. They will replay it on the 16th.
-Carlos Bocanegra - Fulham - started and went the distance in the center of defense, but could only draw 2-2 at Leicester. The replay is Jan 17.
-Jay DeMerit - Watford - played 90 as his team beat Stockport United 4-1.
-Brad Friedel - Blackburn - played the whole match as his team went on the road and won huge, 1-4, at Everton!!
-Marcus Hahnemann - Reading - had their match with Burnley postponed due to bad weather. Will be played tomorrow Jan 9th.
-Tim Howard - Everton - played the whole game but saw his team crushed 1-4 by Blackburn. Quite ugly. Not one of Tim-may's better games from what I have read.
-Eddie Lewis - Leeds - went 90 on the left side of midfield in his teams 3-1 loss to West Bromich Albion.
-Brian McBride - Fulham - went 90, got a goal and set up the other as his team went to Leicester and drew 2-2. The replay is the 17th.
-Jonathan Spector - West Ham - came on as a half time sub in his teams 3-0 win over Brighton Hover & Albion.
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There is a chance that Bobby Convey could play for Reading tomorrow when they make up the postponed game v Burnley.
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The Mexican InterLiga tournament kicked off last Wednesday in Houston. All 8 teams play 3 times during 6 sets of double headers. The tournament is split up into 2 groups of 4 teams who will play a round robin with the top two teams from each advancing.
-The top 2 teams from each group will play off at HDC for the title on Sun Jan 13.
-The winner gets a spot in the upcoming Copa Libertadores.
-Games in Houston:
Group A:
Monterrey 0-2 UANL
Cruz Azul 3-2 Necaxa
Group B:
Chiapas 2-1 Morelia
America 1-1 UAG
-Games in Dallas
Saturday scores - Group A:
UANL 2-2 Cruz Azul
Necaxa 3-2 Monterrey
Sunday scores - Group B:
Morelia 0-2 America
UAG 2-2 Chiapas
-Match report from Carlos Nava of the Dallas Morning News.
-Games in LA this week
Tuesday Jan 9 matches - Group A:
Necaxa v UANL
Monterrey v Cruz Azul
Wednesday Jan 10 matches - Group B:
Morelia v UAG
America v Chiapas
-You can see all the games on Fox Sports en Espanol.
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Ernst Bouwes at Soccernet takes an in-depth look at the coaching excellence of Guus Hiddink. So why doesn't he sit still for very long?
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Brazil will take on Portugal, Feb 6 in London England at Emirates Stadium, home of Arsenal.
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Phil Ball kicks off the winter 07 half of La Liga in his usual top quality style: Santa's legacy
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Speaking of Spain, I watched two awesome matches this weekend. Zaragoza 2-1 over Sevilla on Saturday, which ended in one of the worst/lamest fights I have ever seen. And then Deportivo's 2-0 dismantling of Real Madrid on Sunday. Put that one together with Real's last match of 06, a 0-3 ass kicking by Recreativo, and they are in some serious trouble. I love it.
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The New York Times with a story on the state of the game in Iraq.
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This weeks EPL Talk podcast has an interview with English Premier League television commentator Steve Banyard. If you watch the EPL regularly then you have probably heard his voice many many times.
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Flavio Ortega, coach of the Honduras national team, is in serious condition after suffering a stroke on Saturday.
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FIFA.com has an interview with Arsenal's Togolese striker Emmanuel Adebayor.
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FIFA also interviews Panama's new coach Alexandre Guimaraes about his squad and the other teams in CONCACAF.
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The Nassau Guardian, in the Bahama's, looks at the recent growth of soccer on the island and what the future may hold.
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Inter Milan owner Massimo Moratti was in New York City over the holiday's and sat down for an exclusive interview with Goal.com.
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Simon Kuper of the Financial Times writes about the life long love of football, especially Scottish nobody's Raith Rover, by Gordon Brown, the man most expect to become the next Prime Minister of England.
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The Associated Press says that FIFA's official World Cup 2006 report does not mention Zinedine Zidane's head butt or red card from the final. Figures. To be expected from those louts. I mean, how can their Golden Ball winner also have been a disgrace to his team. By any chance did George Bush appoint Sepp Blatter? Cuz Seepy really all the competency of Michael Brown & Paul Bremer.