Some News for Mon Feb 15, 2010

STARTERS

Freddy Adu started and scored the game winning goal for Aris!!! I bet that was a big one for him. And as a wrote last night on Twitter: My eyes welled up with tears as I watched Freddy Adu score a goal for Aris tonight. I had no idea I cared about the boy! Watch it here.

dN

Landon Donovan & Tim Howard get a shot in the UEFA Europa League tomorrow, Tue Feb 16, as Everton host Sporting of Portugal in a Round of 32 First Leg match.

dN

Add Benny Feilhaber to the Team USA injury list! WTF? See details in Americans In Europe section.

dN

Barcelona has lost for the first time in the 09/10 season. It took 22 games, but their nemesis Atletico Madrid did the job.
-Barca's lead at the top is now just 2 points over Real Madrid, with both teams having won 17 games. They meet again on Sun Apr 11.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

The competition resumes!

The 1st Leg of the knock out rounds!

dN

A variation to the format this year sees the matches spread out over 4 days instead of 2, giving more TV space for the teams.

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Simon Kuper of the Financial Times looks at the two big tabloid matches in this round - Ferguson v Beckham and Mourinho v Chelsea.

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Kevin McCarra of the Guardian on the possibilities of upsets in this round.

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David Conn of the Guardian reports on what UEFA pres Michel Platini has done with the Champions League since he took over leadership.

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The Observer with an interview with Milan's most un-sung star player Clarence Seedorf.

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1st Leg Matches & Scores
-Tue Feb 16
Olympique Lyonnais v Real Madrid Club de Futbol - Live at 1:30pm Central on FSC
Associazione Calcio Milan v Manchester United Football Club - Delayed at 4:00pm Central on FSC
-Wed Feb 17
Futebol Clube do Porto v Arsenal Football Club - Live at 1:30pm Central on FSC
Fussball-Club Bayern Munchen v Associazione Calcio Fiorentina e Florentia Viola - Delayed at 4:00pm Central on FSC
-Tue Feb 23
Verein fur Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V v Futbol Club Barcelona
Olympiacos Club of Fans of Piraeus v Football Club des Girondins de Bordeaux
-Wed Feb 24
Football Club Internazionale Milano Societa per Azioni v Chelsea Football Club
Central Sports Army Club Moscow v Sevilla Futbol Club Sociedad Anonima Deportiva

BIG CLUB MATCHES THIS WEEKEND

-Sat Feb 13
Benfica 1-0 Belenenses - the smaller Lisbon derby ends with the winner going to #1 and the loser to dead last.
-Sun Feb 14
America 2-0 Cruz Azul - a lesser DF derby see Club America starting to gain momentum.

TWITTERVERSE/FACEBOOKING

FreddyAdu11: sushi at times restaurant with princess Eddie Johnson. Guy takes an hour just to get dressed

THIS IS WHAT ITS ALL ABOUT

The Jed Zayner blog is tearing it up! Zayner plays fullback for the Columbus Crew and has been blogging during spring training, and featuring a different teammate everyday. This entry on Guillermo Barros Schelotto is worth it just for the pictures alone.
-Who would have dreamed the Schelotto would become best buds with Steven Leanhart and Robbie Rogers. What a trio!

Another entry on the blog features forward Jason Garey taking a quality cheap shot at Toronto FC: It was awesome because we were watching TFC play in a scrimmage against UCF (college team) and they were losing to them until the final minute. They scored and you would have thought they won the MLS Cup Championship. Steve and I looked at each other and were wondering why they were freaking out about scoring against a college team that they just tied.

WHY?

We have lost another one! The Houston Chronicle will no longer run articles by Glenn Davis. He talks about it on his blog.

And here is Davis's last column for the Chron.

MLS NEWS

Marc Narducci of the Phil Inquirer reports on the Union's first ever preseason game, and gives us some post game analysis too.

dN

Kerith Gabriel of the Philadelphia Daily News with an article on the Union's young first year striker Jack McInerney.

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Jose Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle reports that Dynamo forward Luis Landin suffered an ankle sprain over the weekend in a match against Southern Methodist. No word on how bad it is yet.

dN

Ortiz also tells us about 3 foreign midfielders in preseason training with the Dynamo.

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FC Denver visits the Colorado Rapids training session and gives us a glimpse of what is going on.
-They also have an interview with new Rapids midfielder Wells Thompson.

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Soccer 365 interviews Colorado head coach Gary Smith.

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The Deseret News does a Q & A with RSL midfielder Will Johnson.

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James Edward of the Deseret News looks at RSL's goalkeeper situation.

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Shawn Mitchell of the Columbus Dispatch writes about midfielder Adam Moffat, who has skill the team would love to use, but he has been injured most of the last 2 seasons.

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The Hollister Free Lance in California reports on the San Jose Earthquakes efforts to build fan base.

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Well, that didn't last long - Dallas had earlier signed and has now released Ghanaian centerback Aziz Ansah. Hmmm. How did that go so wrong??

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Gareth Wheeler of the Toronto Sun reports that TFC is giving Scottish soccer veteran (meaning old) Paul Dickov a look-see.
-He had been on loan at Derby County until Feb 1, where he bagged 2 goals in 16 games.

dN

KC has officially signed goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen of Denmark.

MLS RUMORS

Soccer 365 gives us their latest on Blaise N'Kufo, and more.

The Seattle Post Intelligencer with more on N'Kufo.

NSC MINNESOTA STARS

Brian Quarstad of Inside Minnesota Soccer has a Q & A with Stars GM Kris Bjerkness.

dN

The team has not shown us a jersey yet, but they did announce that their shirts will be Cobalt Blue, and a second shirt will be Sunshine Yellow.
-I would hope so seeing as those are the main colors of their logo.

USA WORLD CUP 2010 SOUTH AFRICA

The Glasgow Daily Record talks to DaMarcus Beasley about what it's going to take for him to be on the USA roster.
-I say that if he is healthy he has to go, his skills are just too good to leave out.

dN

Jeff Carlisle of ESPN Soccernet looks at the few remaining chances players will have to get on the USA squad.

AMERICANS IN EUROPE

Yanks Abroads tells us to add Benny Feilhaber to the Team USA injury list. It's his right ankle. The team hopes its a sprain, but wait further diagnosis.

dN

Steve Davis of ESPN Soccernet figures Landon Donovan is headed back to Los Angeles in a few short weeks.

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Carlos Bocanegra found himself back on the bench, unused, for Rennes.

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Stuart Holden was on the bench for the first time at Bolton, but did not play in FA Cup game. They drew 1-1 at home against Tottenham.

dN

Maurice Edu was back on the bench for Rangers after his latest injury but he did not play. DaMarcus Beasley did play though, starting and going until half time. They won 3-0 over Hibs.

dN

Game Action: (only those that played are listed)

ENGLAND - FA Cup
Brad Friedel - Aston Villa - went the distance as they drew 2-2 at Crystal Palace.

ENGLAND - League One
Mike Grella - Leeds - came on as a sub in the 75th minute as they drew 1-1 at Leyton Orient.
Jemal Johnson - Stockport County - started and went 75 minutes as they drew 2-2 at home against Colchester United.
Jon-Paul Pittman - Wycombe - came on as a sub in the 81st minute as they drew on the road 1-1 at Brentford.

GERMANY - Bundesliga
Michael Bradley - Monchengladbach - went the distance as they beat Nurnberg 2-1 at home.

Greece - Super League
Eddie Johnson - Aris Thessalonika - started and went 61 minutes as they won 2-1 at home over Ergotelis.
Freddy Adu - Aris Thessalonika - started and played 62 minutes scoring the winning goal as they got a 2-1 victory at home over Ergotelis.

SCOTLAND - Premier League
DaMarcus Beasley - Rangers - started and played the first half as they beat #3 Hibernian 3-0 at home.

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Coming Up: (all possible players are listed)

ENGLAND - Premier League
Stuart Holden - Bolton - Wed Feb 17 at Wigan

ENGLAND - Championship League
Jay DeMerit - Watford - Tue Feb 16 at Queens Park Rangers
Frank Simek - Sheffield Wednesday - Tue Feb 16 v Doncaster Rovers

UEFA - Europa League - Round of 32 - 1st Leg
Landon Donovan - Everton - Tue Feb 16 v Sporting
Tim Howard - Everton - Tue Feb 16 v Sporting

AMERICANS IN MEXICO

Juan Jose Francisco Torres scored a big goal for Pachuca converting a smashing free kick in the 84th minute to win it on the road! [Thanks to Jay for catching my naming blip]

dN

PRIMERA DIVISION
Edgar Castillo - UANL Tigres - came on as a sub in the 64th minute but lost 2-1 on the road to Monterrey.
Herculez Gomez - Pueblo - came on as a sub in the 57th minute but they lost at home 3-5 to Pachuca.
Jose Francisco Torres - Pachuca - came on as a sub at half time and scored the game winner as they went to Puebla and came away with a 3-5 victory.
Marco Vidal - Indios Juarez - played the full 90 and drew 1-1 at San Luis.

CANADA

Canada is set to play Argentina in the warm ups to the World Cup. Date is May 24. Location is unknown.

UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE

Round of 32, 1st Leg happens this week on Thu Feb 18.

ENGLAND

Patrick Barclay of The Times feels that if Portsmouth file for bankruptcy and don't pay their taxes, then the Football League should pay the tab, not stiff fellow taxpayers.

dN

The Times also has an article on the unorthodox management & life style of Gordon Strachan.
-FYI: I have a framed picture of Gordon on the wall of my house. Which doesn't come close to Strachan admiting: "I’ve got a seven-foot John Wayne statue at my house." Yeeesssss!

dN

The Premier League is considering a post-season playoff tournament for the final Champions League spot. Teams finishing 4-7 would fight it out.

dN

FA CUP

The Round of 16
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Feb 13
Chelsea 4-1 Cardiff City
Southampton 1-4 Portsmouth
Derby County 1-2 Birmingham City
Reading 2-2 West Bromwich Albion
Manchester City 1-1 Stoke City
-Sun Feb 14
Bolton Wanderers 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur
Fulham 4-0 Notts County
Crystal Palace 2-2 Aston Villa

Replays of tied Round of 16 games:
-Wed Feb 24
Aston Villa v Crystal Palace
Stoke City v Manchester City
West Brom v Reading
Tottenham v Bolton

Quarterfinals
-Mar 6 & 7
Chelsea v Manchester City or Stoke City
Fulham v Bolton Wanderers or Tottenham
Reading or West Brom v Crystal Palace or Aston Villa
Portsmouth v Birmingham

Already advanced: Chelsea, Portsmouth, Birmingham and Fulham.

SPAIN

Barcelona's 21 game unbeaten streak was brought to an end by rivals Atletico Madrid!

dN

Phil Ball of ESPN Soccernet begins his column with a remembrance, then sees the joy of Real Madrid and the dread of Barcelona, plus the rest of the league.

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Sid Lowe of the Guardian finds Atletico to be Barca's kryptonite, and the rest of the weekend in La Liga.

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Top La Liga Team Standings (22 games played)
55 Barcelona - Last: Sun Feb 14 L 2-1 at Atletico Madrid.
53 Real Madrid - Last: Sat Feb 13 W 0-3 at Xerez.
43 Valencia - Last: Sat Feb 13 D 1-1 at Sporting Gijon.
39 Sevilla - Last: Sun Feb 14 W 1-0 v Osasuna.
- - - - -
37 Mallorca (21 played) - Next: Mon Feb 15 at Tenerife
35 Deportivo La Coruna - Last: Sun Feb 14 L 2-0 at Espanyol.

FRANCE

Top Ligue 1 Team Standings (24 games played)
51 Bordeaux - Last: Sun Feb 14 W 3-1 v St Etienne.
48 Montpellier - Last: Sat Feb 13 W 1-0 v Grenoble.
44 Lille - Last: Sat Feb 13 W 3-1 v Bolougne.
- - - - -
43 Lyon - Last: Sat Feb 13 W 1-0 v Lens.
- - - - -
42 Marseille (23 games played) - Last: Sat Feb 13 W 1-2 at Monaco.
42 Auxerre - Last: Sun Feb 14 W 1-0 v Rennes.

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COUPE DE FRANCE - Round of 16
-Wed Feb 17
Brest v Lens
-Already advanced: PSG, Quevilly, Boulogne, Sochaux, Auxerre, Monaco & St Etienne.

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COUPE DE LA LIGUE - Semifinals
-Wed Feb 17
Lorient v Bordeaux
-Marseille has already advanced to the Final.

GERMANY

Raphael Honigstein of the Guardian on the return to glory for Ruud VanNistelrooy at Hamburg, and the rest of the weekend in the Bundesliga.

dN

Top Bundesliga Team Standings (22 games played)
48 Bayer Leverkusen - Last: Sat Feb 13 W 2-1 v Wolfsburg.
48 Bayern Munich - Last: Sat Feb 13 W 3-1 v Dortmund.
45 Schalke - Last: Sun Feb 14 W 2-0 v Koln.
- - - - -
39 Hamburg - Last: Sat Feb 13 W 1-3 at Stuttgart.
36 Dortmund - Last: Sat Feb 13 L 3-1 at Bayern Munich.

ITALY

Paolo Bandini of the Guardian on the dissenters of Fiorentina, and the rest of the weekend in Serie A.

dN

Top Serie A Team Standings (24 games played)
54 Inter - Last: Sun Feb 14 D 0-0 at Napoli.
47 Roma - Last: Sat Feb 13 W 4-1 v Palermo.
45 Milan (23 played) - Last: Fri Feb 12 w 3-2 Udinese.
39 Napoli - Last: Sun Feb 14 D 0-0 v Inter.
- - - - -
39 Sampdoria - Last: Sat Feb 13 W 2-0 v Fiorentina.
38 Juventus - Last: Sun Feb 14 W 3-2 v Genoa.

ARGENTINA

Argentina will play Canada as 1 of their World Cup warm up games. Date is May 24, but no location announced.

PODCASTS/VIDEOCASTS

723 Football Films, the people who gave us the Landon Donovan international goal collection video, now bring us the same for Mr Clint Dempsey.
-And I have to admit, that was the first time I have seen that World Cup goal against Ghana on video. I was at the game, but have still never been able to rewatch any of thoese 3 games from '06. That goal was one hell of a pass from DaMarcus Beasley, and fantastic finish from Deuce.