Some News for Tue Aug 16, 2011
STARTERS
Like the finale of Lost the drama is underwhelmingly over in England and Spain as Barcelona bought midfielder Cesc Fabregas from Arsenal.
-Sid Lowe of the Guardian with the story.
-Phil Minshull of the BBC wonders how The Cesco Kid will fit in.
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LA Galaxy has made a huge move toward securing their front line by signing 31 year old Irish forward Robbie Keane from Tottenham. His has been signed to a Designated Player deal.
-Just a week ago I wrote that LA could not win MLS Cup without an upgrade to their forwards who were not getting the job done. Will this be the move that takes them over the top? Could be. Its a big one.
-With a 3 DP limit and LA already having filled those roster spots, where does that leave Juan Pablo Angel? You can assume that Landon Donovan and David Beckham have not been released or asked to take pay cuts.
-Head coach Bruce Arena's response to the situation: "When we have that solved, we'll be the first to let you know. I'm considering Donovan and Beckham as well." That dude is a scream.
-That quote and other details from Scott French of ESPN.
-Later in the day French reports that Angel is on his way to Chivas USA. Which means all he has to do is put his old socks and stuff in a box and move it down the hall to another locker room, then score a hat trick when the two teams next face off!
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Tomorrow's U20 World Cup Semifinals will pit Portugal v France and Mexico v Brazil.
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And Eddie Johnson is back in MLS too! But at which team? And can he still score? He is young enough.
-Here is the order of the teams for picking: Chivas USA, Houston, TFC, Chicago, KC, Seattle, Columbus, New York, RSL, San Jose, LA, Dallas, Colorado, Vancouver, Portland, DC, New England, Philly.
-Johnson has some recent off the field issues to deal with.
CHUCK BLAZER INQUIRY
Andrew Jennings writing for the Independent says Chuck Blazer is under investigation in the USA by the FBI for offshore bank accounts.
Richard Conway of Sky News has Blazer's response to these allegations, and says there is NO FBI investigation.
-Blazer says that Jack Warner is still in control of the Caribbean Football Union offices and bank accounts!
Sky News also reports that Mohamed Bin Hammam is demanding an investigation of Blazer.
And in a hilarious turnaround the Trinidad & Tobago Express quotes Jack Warner as saying he is "not surprised" that Blazer is under investigation.
The funny part in all of this is that we have suspected for years and years that every FIFA member is corrupt, and now they are turning on each other, presumably out of sheer greed.
FIFA SCANDAL - BRAZIL
The main weight of the bribery scandal now moves to Brazil and the people in charge of the 2014 World Cup. Accusations say that Ricardo Teixeira the director of WC14 is up to his elbows in corruption and is set to profit in a big way.
So who is the man in Brazil these days that is trying to get to the bottom of this story? None other than former football star and now politician Romario!
-Check out his own website to see his curiosity in bloom. (In Portuguese)
L'Equipe of France reports today that a federal investigation is now underway involving Teixeira and 9 Million Reales (5.6 Million US Dollars) that are missing. (In French)
STORY OF THE DAY
Jonathan Wilson of the Guardian ponders the big question - How long can Spain reign?
2011-12 CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
LA and Seattle begin group play tonight with home games.
LA faces a very strong Motagua team featuring many familiar faces - Amado Guevara, Pando Ramirez, Ivan Guerrero, Milton Reyes and Jerry Bengston.
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Group Stage
Round robin home & away - matches played Aug 16 to Oct 20
GROUP A
LA Galaxy (USA)
Alajuelense (Costa Rica)
Monarchas Morelia (Mexico)
Motagua (Honduras)
GROUP B
Colorado Rapids (USA)
Real Espana (Honduras)
Santos Laguna (Mexico)
Isidro Metapan (El Salvador)
GROUP C
UNAM Pumas (Mexico)
Tauro (Panama)
Dallas (USA)
Toronto (Canada)
GROUP D
Monterrey (Mexico)
Comunicaciones (Guatemala)
Seattle Sounders (USA)
Herediano (Costa Rica)
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Matches & Scores:
Matchday 1
-Tue Aug 16
Seattle Sounders v Comunicaciones - 9pm CT - Live on Fox Soccer
LA Galaxy v Motagua - 11:30pm CT - Delayed on Fox Soccer
Santos Laguna v Real Espana - 7pm CT
Alajuelense v Morelia - 9pm CT
-Wed Aug 17
Colorado Rapids v Isidro Metapan - 9pm CT - Live on Fox Soccer
Pumas v Dallas - 11:30pm CT - Delayed on Fox Soccer
Herediano v Monterrey - 7pm CT
-Thu Aug 18
Tauro v Toronto - 7pm CT - Live on Fox Soccer
VERY SAD NEWS
The father of Chelsea midfielder Jon Mikel Obi has been kidnapped in Nigeria.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"David Villa has an eye for goal that would make a cyclops jealous."
-Ray Hudson
BEST NEWS I'VE HEARD ALL DAY
Official edict from MLS: For 2012 season Designated Players 20 or younger will only count 150K against salary cap compared to 335K, and players 21-23 will only count 200K against cap. Great move.
STAT OF THE DAY
New York and Chicago went into their match last weekend with 12 and 13 ties respectively. Was there any chance the game was going to end with a winner? No. Yer right. None. 2-2 tie.
FACT OF THE DAY
Reuters reports that mustacioed genius Ricardo La Volpe has quit his job as head coach of the Costa Rican national soccer team.
-He did not help the team improve, and his ego will only let him blame everyone but himself for their lack of improvement.
-His record was 4W, 8D & 5L.
MLS MATCHES, SCORES & STANDINGS
WEEK 22
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Aug 13
Seattle Sounder FC 0-0 CD Chivas USA
Venue: CenturyLink Field
Atten: 36,364
Toronto FC 1-0 Real Salt Lake - TFC goal by Joao Plata.
Venue: BMO Field
Atten: 21,644
New York Red Bulls 2-2 Chicago Fire SC - NYRB goals by Thierry Henry & Joel Lindpere. CF goals by Dominic Oduro & Sebastian Grazzini.
Venue: Red Bull Arena
Atten: 25,177
DC United 4-0 Vancouver Whitecaps FC - DCU goals by Chris Pontius(2), Andy Najar & Stephen King.
Venue: RFK Stadium
Atten: 11,738
Columbus Crew 3-1 New England Revolution - CC goals by Kevin Alston(OG), Julius James & Emilio Renteria. NER goal by Benny Feilhaber.
Venue: Crew Stadium
Atten: 13,041
Philadelphia Union 2-2 FC Dallas - PU goals both by Sebastien Le Toux(both PK). FCD goals by Maicon Santos & Brek Shea.
Venue: PPL Park
Atten: 18,811
San Jose Earthquakes 1-2 Colorado Rapids - SJE goal by Joey Gjertsen. CR goals by Caleb Folan(PK) & Jeff Larentowicz.
Venue: Buck Shaw Stadium
Atten: 10,525
-Sun Aug 14
Houston Dynamo 2-1 Portland Timbers - HD goals by Adam Moffat & Brian Ching. PT goal by Jack Jewsbury.
Venue: Robertson Stadium
Atten: 14,475
LA Galaxy and Sporting Kansas City were off this week.
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WEEK 23
Matches & Scores:
-Wed Aug 17
New England Revolution v Houston Dynamo - 7:00PM CT on Direct Kick
Venue: Gillette Stadium
Sporting Kansas City v Portland Timbers - 7:30PM CT on Direct Kick
Venue: LIVESTRONG Sporting Park
-Thu Aug 18
Chicago Fire SC v DC United - 8:00PM CT on ESPN2
Venue: Toyota Park
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EJECTIONS:
Sam Cronin - San Jose - red card
George John - Dallas - two yellow cards
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Standings:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
37 Columbus Crew (24 GP) (+4 GD)
34 Philadelphia Union (24 GP) (+8 GD)
31 Houston Dynamo (24 GP) (+1 GD)
31 New York Red Bulls (25 GP) (+4 GD)
30 DC United (22 GP) (0 GD)
30 Sporting Kansas City (23 GP) (+2 GD)
23 Toronto FC (26 GP) (-21 GD)
21 New England Revolution (24 GP) (-13 GD)
20 Chicago Fire SC (23 GP) (-7 GD)
WESTERN CONFERENCE
48 LA Galaxy (25 GP) (+15 GD)
43 FC Dallas (25 GP) (+8 GD)
42 Seattle Sounders FC (25 GP) (+8 GD)
40 Colorado Rapids (26 GP) (+5 GD)
36 Real Salt Lake (22 GP) (+13 GD)
30 CD Chivas USA (24 GP) (+4 GD)
26 Portland Timbers (23 GP) (-8 GD)
25 San Jose Earthquakes (24 GP) (-6 GD)
18 Vancouver Whitecaps FC (24 GP) (-15 GD)
IF THE MLS PLAYOFFS STARTED TODAY
10 Teams:
EAST
1 Columbus
2 Philadelphia
3 Houston
WEST
1 LA
2 Dallas
3 Seattle
WILD CARD
1 Colorado
2 Salt Lake
3Houston New York
4New York - DC
MLS TEAM & PLAYER NEWS
General News
Steve Davis of Sports Illustrated with five things we learned from Week 22.
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DC United midfielder Chris Pontius was named MLS Player Of The Week.
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Dallas goalkeeper Kevin Hartman has set a new league record with 373 starts.
FC DALLAS
FCD acquired centerback Jack Stewart from NSC Minnesota Stars on a loan deal for the rest of this season, with an option to buy.
DC UNITED
First year professional Joe Willis not only made his debut but got the start at goalkeeper last weekend ahead of Steve Cronin who really struggled last week after Bill Hamid was red carded and was suspended.
SPORTING KANSAS CITY SC
Asst coach John Pascarella was suspended for 3 games for going nuts on the referee crew after a loss to Seattle.
NEW YORK RED BULLS
The Bulls acquired defensive midfielder Stephane Auvray from KC in exchange for a future Superdraft pick.
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES
SJE has signed a loan deal for 27 year old Ecuadoran forward Edmundo Zura.
-He has played 11 times for his national team.
-Zura was also on loan in Australia a few years ago.
MLS/USA RELATED RUMORS
Rangers are after Carlos Bocanegra to play centerback for them. He has been playing left fullback in France.
MLS RESERVE LEAGUE
Matches & Scores:
-Mon Aug 15
New York Red Bulls 2-1 Philadelphia Union - NYRB goals both by Jhonny Arteaga. PU goal by Roger Torres.
-Sun Aug 21
Houston Dynamo v Real Salt Lake
Columbus Crew v Philadelphia Union
New England Revolution v New York Red Bulls
Portland Timbers v Vancouver Whitecaps FC
-Sun Aug 28
Chicago Fire SC v Colorado Rapids
Sporting Kansas City v FC Dallas
Philadelphia Union v New England Revolution
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Standings Etc.
MLS YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
Toronto announces that they have hired 5 new scouts for the U15 & Under set all across Canada. That is the way to make it really happen.
NASL NEWS
Puerto Rico is only 3 points from securing a playoff spot.
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Anyone who thinks Montreal is out of this race for the playoffs does not know their history. I will not bet against them.
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And Puerto Rico has put Carolina on notice that the race for 1st place is not over yet either.
NASL SCOREBOARD
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Aug
FC Tampa Bay 2-0 NSC Minnesota Stars - TB goals by Pascal Millien & Frankie Sanfilippo.
Puerto Rico Islanders 2-0 Carolina RailHawks - PRI goals by David Foley & Petter Villegas.
-Sun Aug 14
FC Edmonton 1-1 Fort Lauderdale Strikers - FCE goal by Paul Hamilton. FLS goal by David Santamaria.
Montreal Impact 4-0 Atlanta Silverbacks - Mircea Ilcu, Hassoun Camara, Sinisa Ubiparipovic & Mignane Diouf.
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Standings (as of Sun Aug 14):
*44 Carolina RailHawks (+22 GD) (20 GP)
38 Puerto Rico Islanders (+8 GD) (21 GP)
31 FC Tampa Bay (+4 GD) (21 GP)
28 NSC Minnesota Stars (+2 GD) (20 GP)
28 Fort Lauderdale Strikers (+2 GD) (21 GP)
26 FC Edmonton (-7 GD) (21 GP)
- - - OUT OF PLAYOFFS - - -
19 Montreal Impact (-2 GD) (21 GP)
12 Atlanta Silverbacks (-27 GD) (21 GP)
*Secured playoff birth
AMERICANS IN EUROPE
Chris Rolfe scored the game winner for AalBorg last weekend.
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Brian Sciaretta of Yanks Abroad talks to Josh Gatt about his growing stature at Molde in Norway. They are in first place, and he is one of the reasons why.
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Andrew Vorce also of YA talks to Anton Peterlin about his new team Walsall in England's League One.
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Oguchi Onyewu was not in uniform for Sporting's season debut.
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Jermaine Jones didn't suit up for Schalke.
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Carlos Bocanegra was not on the game day roster for Saint Etienne.
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Game Action:
BELGIUM - Pro League
Sacha Kljestan - Anderlecht - played the full 90 as they won 0-1 at Lokeren.
CZECH REPUBLIC - CZECH LIGA
Stefan Jerome - Sigma Olomouc - on the bench as they won 1-2 at Ceske Budejovice.
DENMARK - Superliga
Clarence Goodson - Brondy - played the whole game but drew 2-2 v SonderjyskE.
Conor O'Brien - SonderjyskE - came on as a sub in the 64th min as they drew 2-2 at Brondby.
Michael Parkhurst - Nordsjaelland - played the full 90 as they won 2-0 v Koge.
Chris Rolfe - AaB - started and went 83 min scoring the winning goal as they won 2-1 v Odense.
Brad Rusin - HB Koge - went the distance getting a yellow card and losing 2-0 at Nordsjaelland.
ENGLAND - Premier League
Clint Dempsey - Fulham - played the full match but drew 0-0 v Aston Villa.
Brad Friedel - Tottenham - game v Everton postponed.
Brad Guzan - Aston Villa - on the bench as they drew 0-0 at Fulham.
Tim Howard - Everton - game at Tottenham postponed.
Zak Whitbread - Norwich - started but came out in the 71st min as they drew 1-1 at Wigan.
ENGLAND - Championship League
Robbie Findley - Nottingham Forest - Sat Aug 13 - went the full 90 but lost 2-0 at Millwall.
Jonathan Spector - Birmingham - Sat Aug 13 - on the bench as they won 1-0 v Coventry.
Jonathan Spector - Birmingham - Tue Aug 16 v Burnley POSTPONED.
ENGLAND - League One
Anton Peterlin - Wallsall - Sat Aug 13 - started and went 82 min as they tied 1-1 at Hartlepool.
Anton Peterlin - Wallsall - Tue Aug 16 - went the distance getting a yellow card but losing 3-2 at Sheffield United.
FINLAND - Veikkausliiga
Giuseppe Funicello - Mariehamn - started, got a yellow card, and played the first half as they lost 4-0 at Jaro.
Mason Trafford - Mariehamn - played the entire match but lost 4-0 at Jaro.
Josh Wicks - Mariehamn - went the full 90 but lost 4-0 at Jaro.
FINLAND - Ykkonen
Dan Stevens - PS Kemi Kings - started and played 78 min as they lost 1-0 at Hameenlinna.
Jeremy Vuolo - AC Oulu - went the full 90 as they won 3-1 v Kooteepee.
Kellan Wilson - HIFK - on the bench as they won 3-0 v Espoo.
FRANCE - Ligue 1
Quentin Westberg - Evian - went the full 90 as they won 1-0 v Nice.
GERMANY - Bundesliga
Timmy Chandler - Nurnberg - went the full 90 getting a yellow card and losing 1-3 v Hannover.
Steve Cherundolo - Hannover - on the bench as they won 1-2 at Nurnberg.
Alfredo Morales - Hertha Berlin - came on as a sub in the 67th min as they tied 2-2 at Hamburg.
David Yelldell - Bayer Leverkusen - on the bench as they won 1-0 v Bremen.
GERMANY - 2 Bundesliga
Edson Buddle - Ingolstadt - came on as a sub in the 74th min and scored 1 min later as they tied 1-1 v FSV Frankfurt.
Ricardo Clark - Eintracht Frankfurt - on the bench for a 1-1 tie v Fortuna Dusseldorf.
Luis Robles - Karlsruher - on the bench as they lost 1-3 v Entract Braunschweig.
Matt Taylor - Paderborn - came on as a 67th min sub but lost 0-1 v Greuther Furth.
Bobby Wood - 1860 Munich - on the bench as they won 4-0 v Erzgebirge.
NETHERLANDS - Eredivisie
Jozy Altidore - AZ Alkmaar - came on as a sub in the 68th min but lost 2-0 at Twente.
NETHERLANDS - Eerste Divisie
Charles Kazlauskas - Helmond Sport - went the distance as they won 3-2 v Sparta Rotterdam.
NORWAY - NM Cupen - Quarterfinals
Sean Cunningham - Molde - on the bench as they lost 3-2 at Fredrikstad.
Josh Gatt - Molde - went the full 120 minutes getting a yellow card and losing 3-2 at Fredrikstad.
NORWAY - Eliteserien
Erik Benjaminsen - Stabaek - on the bench as they won 2-0 v Stromsgodset.
Mikkel Diskerud - Stabaek - played the full 90 as they won 2-0 v Stromsgodset.
NORWAY - 1 Divisjon
John Borrajo - HamKam - played the entire game as they won 0-3 at Bryne.
Steve Clark - Honefoss - went the distance in a scoreless draw at Bodo-Glimt.
Kyle Helton - Mjondalen - came on to start the second half as they drew 0-0 at Lov-Ham.
Kenneth Di Vita Jensen - Honefoss - on the bench as they drew 0-0 at Bodo-Glimt.
PORTUGAL - Primeira Liga
Alex Zahavi - Vitoria Setubal - on the bench as they won 2-1 v Pacos de Ferreira.
SCOTLAND - Premier League
Dominic Cervi - Celtic - on the bench as they won 5-1 v Dundee United.
Mo Edu - Rangers - started and scored a goal but also got 2 yellow cards and was ejected as they won 0-2 at Inverness.
SWEDEN - Allsvenskan Liga
Alejandro Bedoya - Orebro - went the distance as they won 0-2 at Djurgarden.
SWEDEN - Superettan
Brian Edwards - Degerfors - played the whole match as they drew 1-1 at Assyriska.
Nick Noble - Ljungskile - went the distance and won 3-1 v Sundsvall.
Matt Pyzdrowski - Angelholms - went the full 90 as they won 1-3 at Qviding.
Michael Thomas - Ljungskile - played the entire game as they won 3-1 v Sundsvall.
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Coming Up:
ENGLAND - Championship League
Conor Doyle - Derby County - Wed Aug 17 v Blackpool
Robbie Findley - Nottingham Forest - Tue Aug 16 at Doncaster
Mike Grella - Leeds - Tue Aug 16 v Hull
AMERICANS IN MEXICO
Game Action:
PRIMERA DIVISION
Isaac Acuna - America - came on as a sub in the 81st min as they tied 2-2 at Tigres.
DaMarcus Beasley - Puebla - started and played all but 2nd half stoppage time as they drew 1-1 at Tijuana.
Joe Benny Corona - Tijuana - started and went 69 min as they drew 1-1 v Puebla.
Edgar Castillo - America - went the full 90 as they tied 2-2 at Tigres.
Herculez Gomez - Estudiantes Tecos - started and played 75 min as they won 2-0 at Atlas.
Jose Torres - Pachuca - started and played 69 min as they won 3-0 v Toluca.
LIGA DE ASCENSO (2nd division)
Marco Vidal - Leon - went the full 90 as they won 0-1 at Indios.
THE CARIBBEAN - TRINIDAD & TOBAGO EDITION
Newsday of Trinidad & Tobago reports that a company called All Sports Promotions has been brought in to run the marketing of the T&T Football Federation.
-There is also a new Authorization Committee in place to oversee the federation.
T&T will play a home friendly against India on Sun Aug 21.
The T&T Express with the latest on Jack Warner pulling his team Joe Public out of the Pro-League just 2 weeks before the new season begins, thus putting all of his players out of work. Where does this leave the league itself?
-"The players are the priority. They (he players) cannot simply walk away and find something else to do. Their dreams, hopes and ambitions are invested in the T&T Pro League, the tip of the T&T football pathway. Those of us in charge of the League must face up to our responsibilities. We must not easily subject these young men to misery, failure and sleepless nights."
-But obviously Jack Warner can.
ENGLAND
The Premier League season began on Sat Aug 13:
Recap du Nord: Zaba Daba Doo Man City and Bolton got off to romping 4-0 wins! While Chelsea and Arsensal had scoreless draws.
Alan Gardner, Ian McCourt and Jacob Steinberg of the Guardian with Five things we learned from the Premier League this weekend.
Good to see that nothing at all has changed with Joey Barton. Can he get a TV show in America?
-Sat Aug 13
POSTPONED Tottenham v Everton
Blackburn 1-2 Wolverhampton
Fulham 0-0 Aston Villa
Liverpool 1-1 Sunderland
Queens Park Rangers 0-4 Bolton
Wigan 1-1 Norwich
Newcastle 0-0 Arsenal
-Sun Aug 14
Stoke 0-0 Chelsea
West Brom 1-2 Manchester United
-Mon Aug 15
Manchester City 4-0 Swansea
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League Cup 2nd round will be played on Tue Aug 23. Here are the matches & scores.
SPAIN
Super Cup
Matches & Scores:
1st Leg
-Sun Aug 14
Real Madrid 2-2 Barcelona - RM goals by Mesit Ozul & . Bar goals by David Villa & Lionel Messi.
2nd Leg
-Wed Aug 17
Barcelona v Real Madrid (2-2) - 4pm CT on GolTV
FRANCE
Ligue 1 games this weekend:
Recap du Nord: Toulouse, Montpellier, Caen and St Etienne are the 4 teams with 2 wins from 2 rounds. The champs Lille have a draw and a loss, and does oil money PSG. On the good side, promoted Evian has a win and tie, AND an American goalkeeper!
Ben Lyttleton of the Guardian on Montpellier's great start, Lille's awful start and the rest of the round in Ligue 1.
-Sat Aug 13
Lorient 1-1 Bordeaux
Lyon 1-1 Ajaccio
Rennes 1-1 PSG
St Etienne 1-0 Nancy
Sochaux 1-2 Caen
Toulouse 2-0 Dijon
Valenciennes 0-0 Brest
-Sun Aug 14
Auxerre 2-2 Marseille
Evian 1-0 Nice
Lille 0-1 Montpellier
GERMANY
Bundesliga games this weekend:
Recap du Nord: Schalke were the only team that stormed to a big win this round, while Hannover, Mainz and Bayern got road wins. But the big news was Dortmund went to Hoffenheim and got themselves beaten!
Raphael Honigstein of the Guardian says that after just 2 games the head coach of Koln is already going down the drain, and the rest of the round in Bundesliga.
-Sat Aug 13
Schalke 5-1 Koln
Hamburg 2-2 Hertha
Nurnberg 1-2 Hannover
Freiburg 1-2 Mainz
Hoffenheim 1-0 Dortmund
Wolfsburg 0-1 Bayern
Gladbach 1-1 Stuttgart
-Sun Aug 14
Kaiserslautern 1-1 Augsburg
Leverkusen 1-0 Bremen
ITALY
Matt Meadows of Reuters tells us all about Juventus's brand new stadium.
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Serie A starts on Saturday. We will have the list of games later this week.
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Coppa Italia 3rd Round on Sat Aug 20 & Sun Aug 21, matches & scores here.
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
The final stage of qualify will take place on Aug 16/17 and 23/24 - Play-Off Round matches & scores.
-The 10 winners advance to the group stage.
The first 5 games were played today.
Matches & Scores
1st Leg
-Tue Aug 16
Kobenhavn 1-3 Plzen
BATE 1-1 Sturm
Twente 2-2 Benfica
Arsenal 1-0 Udinese
Lyon 3-1 Rubin
-Wed Aug 17
Wisla Krakow v APOEL
Maccabi Haifa v Genk
Dinamo Zagreb v Malmo
OB v Villarreal
Bayern v Zurich
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The draw for the group stage will take place on Thu Aug 25.
BRAZIL
Recap du Nord: The top 3 all tied in their weekend games and remain exactly as they were, but #4 Vasco da Gama beat former #5 Palmeiras and moved with in 4 points of the top spot. The loss dropped Palmeiras to 6th place behind new #5 Botafogo who won.
Brazil - Serie A Standings (16 of 38 games played):
34 Corinthians (10 W) - LAST: Sun Aug 14 D 2-2 Ceara - NEXT: Wed Aug 17 at Atletico Mineiro
34 Flamengo (9 W) - LAST: Sun Aug 14 D 2-2 at Figueirense - NEXT: Thu Aug 18 v Atletico GO
32 Sao Paulo - LAST: Sat Aug 13 D 2-2 v Atletico PR - NEXT: Thu Aug 18 at America Mineiro
30 Vasco - LAST: Sun Aug 14 W 1-0 v Palmeiras - NEXT: Wed Aug 17 at Avai
28 Botafogo - LAST: Sat Aug 13 W 4-2 v America Mineiro - NEXT: Wed Aug 17 at Internacional
- - - - -
27 Palmeiras - LAST: Sun Aug 14 L 1-0 Vasco
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Tim Vickery of the BBC says Brazil has a long way to go to get their act together for WC14 without the pressure of a qualifying tournament.
COLOMBIA 2011 U20 WORLD CUP
Official World Cup website - tournament runs Jul 29 - Aug 20.
Quaterfinals
The hosts Colombia were knocked out of the tournament by Mexico who are rattling the cages at every age level right now. (The senior team is rolling, and the U17s just won their World Cup in June.)
Portugal, Brazil and France are the other 3 semifinalists, who all won very close games.
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Aug 13
Portugal 0-0 Argentina - Por wins 5-4 in Penalty Kick Shootout.
Mexico 3-1 Colombia
-Sun Aug 14
Spain 2-2 Brazil - Bra wins 4-2 in Penalty Kick Shootout.
France 3-2 Nigeria
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Semifinal
Matches & Scores:
-Wed Aug 17
Portugal v France - 5pm CT on ESPNU
Mexico v Brazil - 8pm CT on ESPNU
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Final
Match & Score:
-Sat Aug 20
Semifinal winners
BIG PIMPIN
If you love Spanish futbol they you will need to be checkin this out - Football Espana! Featuring great contributions by Guillem Balague, Michael Robinson, Phil Ball, Terry Venables and others. Edited by Ben Lyttleton. Season preview available now!
Like the finale of Lost the drama is underwhelmingly over in England and Spain as Barcelona bought midfielder Cesc Fabregas from Arsenal.
-Sid Lowe of the Guardian with the story.
-Phil Minshull of the BBC wonders how The Cesco Kid will fit in.
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LA Galaxy has made a huge move toward securing their front line by signing 31 year old Irish forward Robbie Keane from Tottenham. His has been signed to a Designated Player deal.
-Just a week ago I wrote that LA could not win MLS Cup without an upgrade to their forwards who were not getting the job done. Will this be the move that takes them over the top? Could be. Its a big one.
-With a 3 DP limit and LA already having filled those roster spots, where does that leave Juan Pablo Angel? You can assume that Landon Donovan and David Beckham have not been released or asked to take pay cuts.
-Head coach Bruce Arena's response to the situation: "When we have that solved, we'll be the first to let you know. I'm considering Donovan and Beckham as well." That dude is a scream.
-That quote and other details from Scott French of ESPN.
-Later in the day French reports that Angel is on his way to Chivas USA. Which means all he has to do is put his old socks and stuff in a box and move it down the hall to another locker room, then score a hat trick when the two teams next face off!
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Tomorrow's U20 World Cup Semifinals will pit Portugal v France and Mexico v Brazil.
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And Eddie Johnson is back in MLS too! But at which team? And can he still score? He is young enough.
-Here is the order of the teams for picking: Chivas USA, Houston, TFC, Chicago, KC, Seattle, Columbus, New York, RSL, San Jose, LA, Dallas, Colorado, Vancouver, Portland, DC, New England, Philly.
-Johnson has some recent off the field issues to deal with.
CHUCK BLAZER INQUIRY
Andrew Jennings writing for the Independent says Chuck Blazer is under investigation in the USA by the FBI for offshore bank accounts.
Richard Conway of Sky News has Blazer's response to these allegations, and says there is NO FBI investigation.
-Blazer says that Jack Warner is still in control of the Caribbean Football Union offices and bank accounts!
Sky News also reports that Mohamed Bin Hammam is demanding an investigation of Blazer.
And in a hilarious turnaround the Trinidad & Tobago Express quotes Jack Warner as saying he is "not surprised" that Blazer is under investigation.
The funny part in all of this is that we have suspected for years and years that every FIFA member is corrupt, and now they are turning on each other, presumably out of sheer greed.
FIFA SCANDAL - BRAZIL
The main weight of the bribery scandal now moves to Brazil and the people in charge of the 2014 World Cup. Accusations say that Ricardo Teixeira the director of WC14 is up to his elbows in corruption and is set to profit in a big way.
So who is the man in Brazil these days that is trying to get to the bottom of this story? None other than former football star and now politician Romario!
-Check out his own website to see his curiosity in bloom. (In Portuguese)
L'Equipe of France reports today that a federal investigation is now underway involving Teixeira and 9 Million Reales (5.6 Million US Dollars) that are missing. (In French)
STORY OF THE DAY
Jonathan Wilson of the Guardian ponders the big question - How long can Spain reign?
2011-12 CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
LA and Seattle begin group play tonight with home games.
LA faces a very strong Motagua team featuring many familiar faces - Amado Guevara, Pando Ramirez, Ivan Guerrero, Milton Reyes and Jerry Bengston.
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Group Stage
Round robin home & away - matches played Aug 16 to Oct 20
GROUP A
LA Galaxy (USA)
Alajuelense (Costa Rica)
Monarchas Morelia (Mexico)
Motagua (Honduras)
GROUP B
Colorado Rapids (USA)
Real Espana (Honduras)
Santos Laguna (Mexico)
Isidro Metapan (El Salvador)
GROUP C
UNAM Pumas (Mexico)
Tauro (Panama)
Dallas (USA)
Toronto (Canada)
GROUP D
Monterrey (Mexico)
Comunicaciones (Guatemala)
Seattle Sounders (USA)
Herediano (Costa Rica)
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Matches & Scores:
Matchday 1
-Tue Aug 16
Seattle Sounders v Comunicaciones - 9pm CT - Live on Fox Soccer
LA Galaxy v Motagua - 11:30pm CT - Delayed on Fox Soccer
Santos Laguna v Real Espana - 7pm CT
Alajuelense v Morelia - 9pm CT
-Wed Aug 17
Colorado Rapids v Isidro Metapan - 9pm CT - Live on Fox Soccer
Pumas v Dallas - 11:30pm CT - Delayed on Fox Soccer
Herediano v Monterrey - 7pm CT
-Thu Aug 18
Tauro v Toronto - 7pm CT - Live on Fox Soccer
VERY SAD NEWS
The father of Chelsea midfielder Jon Mikel Obi has been kidnapped in Nigeria.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"David Villa has an eye for goal that would make a cyclops jealous."
-Ray Hudson
BEST NEWS I'VE HEARD ALL DAY
Official edict from MLS: For 2012 season Designated Players 20 or younger will only count 150K against salary cap compared to 335K, and players 21-23 will only count 200K against cap. Great move.
STAT OF THE DAY
New York and Chicago went into their match last weekend with 12 and 13 ties respectively. Was there any chance the game was going to end with a winner? No. Yer right. None. 2-2 tie.
FACT OF THE DAY
Reuters reports that mustacioed genius Ricardo La Volpe has quit his job as head coach of the Costa Rican national soccer team.
-He did not help the team improve, and his ego will only let him blame everyone but himself for their lack of improvement.
-His record was 4W, 8D & 5L.
MLS MATCHES, SCORES & STANDINGS
WEEK 22
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Aug 13
Seattle Sounder FC 0-0 CD Chivas USA
Venue: CenturyLink Field
Atten: 36,364
Toronto FC 1-0 Real Salt Lake - TFC goal by Joao Plata.
Venue: BMO Field
Atten: 21,644
New York Red Bulls 2-2 Chicago Fire SC - NYRB goals by Thierry Henry & Joel Lindpere. CF goals by Dominic Oduro & Sebastian Grazzini.
Venue: Red Bull Arena
Atten: 25,177
DC United 4-0 Vancouver Whitecaps FC - DCU goals by Chris Pontius(2), Andy Najar & Stephen King.
Venue: RFK Stadium
Atten: 11,738
Columbus Crew 3-1 New England Revolution - CC goals by Kevin Alston(OG), Julius James & Emilio Renteria. NER goal by Benny Feilhaber.
Venue: Crew Stadium
Atten: 13,041
Philadelphia Union 2-2 FC Dallas - PU goals both by Sebastien Le Toux(both PK). FCD goals by Maicon Santos & Brek Shea.
Venue: PPL Park
Atten: 18,811
San Jose Earthquakes 1-2 Colorado Rapids - SJE goal by Joey Gjertsen. CR goals by Caleb Folan(PK) & Jeff Larentowicz.
Venue: Buck Shaw Stadium
Atten: 10,525
-Sun Aug 14
Houston Dynamo 2-1 Portland Timbers - HD goals by Adam Moffat & Brian Ching. PT goal by Jack Jewsbury.
Venue: Robertson Stadium
Atten: 14,475
LA Galaxy and Sporting Kansas City were off this week.
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WEEK 23
Matches & Scores:
-Wed Aug 17
New England Revolution v Houston Dynamo - 7:00PM CT on Direct Kick
Venue: Gillette Stadium
Sporting Kansas City v Portland Timbers - 7:30PM CT on Direct Kick
Venue: LIVESTRONG Sporting Park
-Thu Aug 18
Chicago Fire SC v DC United - 8:00PM CT on ESPN2
Venue: Toyota Park
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EJECTIONS:
Sam Cronin - San Jose - red card
George John - Dallas - two yellow cards
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Standings:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
37 Columbus Crew (24 GP) (+4 GD)
34 Philadelphia Union (24 GP) (+8 GD)
31 Houston Dynamo (24 GP) (+1 GD)
31 New York Red Bulls (25 GP) (+4 GD)
30 DC United (22 GP) (0 GD)
30 Sporting Kansas City (23 GP) (+2 GD)
23 Toronto FC (26 GP) (-21 GD)
21 New England Revolution (24 GP) (-13 GD)
20 Chicago Fire SC (23 GP) (-7 GD)
WESTERN CONFERENCE
48 LA Galaxy (25 GP) (+15 GD)
43 FC Dallas (25 GP) (+8 GD)
42 Seattle Sounders FC (25 GP) (+8 GD)
40 Colorado Rapids (26 GP) (+5 GD)
36 Real Salt Lake (22 GP) (+13 GD)
30 CD Chivas USA (24 GP) (+4 GD)
26 Portland Timbers (23 GP) (-8 GD)
25 San Jose Earthquakes (24 GP) (-6 GD)
18 Vancouver Whitecaps FC (24 GP) (-15 GD)
IF THE MLS PLAYOFFS STARTED TODAY
10 Teams:
EAST
1 Columbus
2 Philadelphia
3 Houston
WEST
1 LA
2 Dallas
3 Seattle
WILD CARD
1 Colorado
2 Salt Lake
3
4
MLS TEAM & PLAYER NEWS
General News
Steve Davis of Sports Illustrated with five things we learned from Week 22.
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DC United midfielder Chris Pontius was named MLS Player Of The Week.
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Dallas goalkeeper Kevin Hartman has set a new league record with 373 starts.
FC DALLAS
FCD acquired centerback Jack Stewart from NSC Minnesota Stars on a loan deal for the rest of this season, with an option to buy.
DC UNITED
First year professional Joe Willis not only made his debut but got the start at goalkeeper last weekend ahead of Steve Cronin who really struggled last week after Bill Hamid was red carded and was suspended.
SPORTING KANSAS CITY SC
Asst coach John Pascarella was suspended for 3 games for going nuts on the referee crew after a loss to Seattle.
NEW YORK RED BULLS
The Bulls acquired defensive midfielder Stephane Auvray from KC in exchange for a future Superdraft pick.
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES
SJE has signed a loan deal for 27 year old Ecuadoran forward Edmundo Zura.
-He has played 11 times for his national team.
-Zura was also on loan in Australia a few years ago.
MLS/USA RELATED RUMORS
Rangers are after Carlos Bocanegra to play centerback for them. He has been playing left fullback in France.
MLS RESERVE LEAGUE
Matches & Scores:
-Mon Aug 15
New York Red Bulls 2-1 Philadelphia Union - NYRB goals both by Jhonny Arteaga. PU goal by Roger Torres.
-Sun Aug 21
Houston Dynamo v Real Salt Lake
Columbus Crew v Philadelphia Union
New England Revolution v New York Red Bulls
Portland Timbers v Vancouver Whitecaps FC
-Sun Aug 28
Chicago Fire SC v Colorado Rapids
Sporting Kansas City v FC Dallas
Philadelphia Union v New England Revolution
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Standings Etc.
MLS YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
Toronto announces that they have hired 5 new scouts for the U15 & Under set all across Canada. That is the way to make it really happen.
NASL NEWS
Puerto Rico is only 3 points from securing a playoff spot.
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Anyone who thinks Montreal is out of this race for the playoffs does not know their history. I will not bet against them.
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And Puerto Rico has put Carolina on notice that the race for 1st place is not over yet either.
NASL SCOREBOARD
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Aug
FC Tampa Bay 2-0 NSC Minnesota Stars - TB goals by Pascal Millien & Frankie Sanfilippo.
Puerto Rico Islanders 2-0 Carolina RailHawks - PRI goals by David Foley & Petter Villegas.
-Sun Aug 14
FC Edmonton 1-1 Fort Lauderdale Strikers - FCE goal by Paul Hamilton. FLS goal by David Santamaria.
Montreal Impact 4-0 Atlanta Silverbacks - Mircea Ilcu, Hassoun Camara, Sinisa Ubiparipovic & Mignane Diouf.
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Standings (as of Sun Aug 14):
*44 Carolina RailHawks (+22 GD) (20 GP)
38 Puerto Rico Islanders (+8 GD) (21 GP)
31 FC Tampa Bay (+4 GD) (21 GP)
28 NSC Minnesota Stars (+2 GD) (20 GP)
28 Fort Lauderdale Strikers (+2 GD) (21 GP)
26 FC Edmonton (-7 GD) (21 GP)
- - - OUT OF PLAYOFFS - - -
19 Montreal Impact (-2 GD) (21 GP)
12 Atlanta Silverbacks (-27 GD) (21 GP)
*Secured playoff birth
AMERICANS IN EUROPE
Chris Rolfe scored the game winner for AalBorg last weekend.
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Brian Sciaretta of Yanks Abroad talks to Josh Gatt about his growing stature at Molde in Norway. They are in first place, and he is one of the reasons why.
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Andrew Vorce also of YA talks to Anton Peterlin about his new team Walsall in England's League One.
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Oguchi Onyewu was not in uniform for Sporting's season debut.
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Jermaine Jones didn't suit up for Schalke.
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Carlos Bocanegra was not on the game day roster for Saint Etienne.
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Game Action:
BELGIUM - Pro League
Sacha Kljestan - Anderlecht - played the full 90 as they won 0-1 at Lokeren.
CZECH REPUBLIC - CZECH LIGA
Stefan Jerome - Sigma Olomouc - on the bench as they won 1-2 at Ceske Budejovice.
DENMARK - Superliga
Clarence Goodson - Brondy - played the whole game but drew 2-2 v SonderjyskE.
Conor O'Brien - SonderjyskE - came on as a sub in the 64th min as they drew 2-2 at Brondby.
Michael Parkhurst - Nordsjaelland - played the full 90 as they won 2-0 v Koge.
Chris Rolfe - AaB - started and went 83 min scoring the winning goal as they won 2-1 v Odense.
Brad Rusin - HB Koge - went the distance getting a yellow card and losing 2-0 at Nordsjaelland.
ENGLAND - Premier League
Clint Dempsey - Fulham - played the full match but drew 0-0 v Aston Villa.
Brad Friedel - Tottenham - game v Everton postponed.
Brad Guzan - Aston Villa - on the bench as they drew 0-0 at Fulham.
Tim Howard - Everton - game at Tottenham postponed.
Zak Whitbread - Norwich - started but came out in the 71st min as they drew 1-1 at Wigan.
ENGLAND - Championship League
Robbie Findley - Nottingham Forest - Sat Aug 13 - went the full 90 but lost 2-0 at Millwall.
Jonathan Spector - Birmingham - Sat Aug 13 - on the bench as they won 1-0 v Coventry.
Jonathan Spector - Birmingham - Tue Aug 16 v Burnley POSTPONED.
ENGLAND - League One
Anton Peterlin - Wallsall - Sat Aug 13 - started and went 82 min as they tied 1-1 at Hartlepool.
Anton Peterlin - Wallsall - Tue Aug 16 - went the distance getting a yellow card but losing 3-2 at Sheffield United.
FINLAND - Veikkausliiga
Giuseppe Funicello - Mariehamn - started, got a yellow card, and played the first half as they lost 4-0 at Jaro.
Mason Trafford - Mariehamn - played the entire match but lost 4-0 at Jaro.
Josh Wicks - Mariehamn - went the full 90 but lost 4-0 at Jaro.
FINLAND - Ykkonen
Dan Stevens - PS Kemi Kings - started and played 78 min as they lost 1-0 at Hameenlinna.
Jeremy Vuolo - AC Oulu - went the full 90 as they won 3-1 v Kooteepee.
Kellan Wilson - HIFK - on the bench as they won 3-0 v Espoo.
FRANCE - Ligue 1
Quentin Westberg - Evian - went the full 90 as they won 1-0 v Nice.
GERMANY - Bundesliga
Timmy Chandler - Nurnberg - went the full 90 getting a yellow card and losing 1-3 v Hannover.
Steve Cherundolo - Hannover - on the bench as they won 1-2 at Nurnberg.
Alfredo Morales - Hertha Berlin - came on as a sub in the 67th min as they tied 2-2 at Hamburg.
David Yelldell - Bayer Leverkusen - on the bench as they won 1-0 v Bremen.
GERMANY - 2 Bundesliga
Edson Buddle - Ingolstadt - came on as a sub in the 74th min and scored 1 min later as they tied 1-1 v FSV Frankfurt.
Ricardo Clark - Eintracht Frankfurt - on the bench for a 1-1 tie v Fortuna Dusseldorf.
Luis Robles - Karlsruher - on the bench as they lost 1-3 v Entract Braunschweig.
Matt Taylor - Paderborn - came on as a 67th min sub but lost 0-1 v Greuther Furth.
Bobby Wood - 1860 Munich - on the bench as they won 4-0 v Erzgebirge.
NETHERLANDS - Eredivisie
Jozy Altidore - AZ Alkmaar - came on as a sub in the 68th min but lost 2-0 at Twente.
NETHERLANDS - Eerste Divisie
Charles Kazlauskas - Helmond Sport - went the distance as they won 3-2 v Sparta Rotterdam.
NORWAY - NM Cupen - Quarterfinals
Sean Cunningham - Molde - on the bench as they lost 3-2 at Fredrikstad.
Josh Gatt - Molde - went the full 120 minutes getting a yellow card and losing 3-2 at Fredrikstad.
NORWAY - Eliteserien
Erik Benjaminsen - Stabaek - on the bench as they won 2-0 v Stromsgodset.
Mikkel Diskerud - Stabaek - played the full 90 as they won 2-0 v Stromsgodset.
NORWAY - 1 Divisjon
John Borrajo - HamKam - played the entire game as they won 0-3 at Bryne.
Steve Clark - Honefoss - went the distance in a scoreless draw at Bodo-Glimt.
Kyle Helton - Mjondalen - came on to start the second half as they drew 0-0 at Lov-Ham.
Kenneth Di Vita Jensen - Honefoss - on the bench as they drew 0-0 at Bodo-Glimt.
PORTUGAL - Primeira Liga
Alex Zahavi - Vitoria Setubal - on the bench as they won 2-1 v Pacos de Ferreira.
SCOTLAND - Premier League
Dominic Cervi - Celtic - on the bench as they won 5-1 v Dundee United.
Mo Edu - Rangers - started and scored a goal but also got 2 yellow cards and was ejected as they won 0-2 at Inverness.
SWEDEN - Allsvenskan Liga
Alejandro Bedoya - Orebro - went the distance as they won 0-2 at Djurgarden.
SWEDEN - Superettan
Brian Edwards - Degerfors - played the whole match as they drew 1-1 at Assyriska.
Nick Noble - Ljungskile - went the distance and won 3-1 v Sundsvall.
Matt Pyzdrowski - Angelholms - went the full 90 as they won 1-3 at Qviding.
Michael Thomas - Ljungskile - played the entire game as they won 3-1 v Sundsvall.
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Coming Up:
ENGLAND - Championship League
Conor Doyle - Derby County - Wed Aug 17 v Blackpool
Robbie Findley - Nottingham Forest - Tue Aug 16 at Doncaster
Mike Grella - Leeds - Tue Aug 16 v Hull
AMERICANS IN MEXICO
Game Action:
PRIMERA DIVISION
Isaac Acuna - America - came on as a sub in the 81st min as they tied 2-2 at Tigres.
DaMarcus Beasley - Puebla - started and played all but 2nd half stoppage time as they drew 1-1 at Tijuana.
Joe Benny Corona - Tijuana - started and went 69 min as they drew 1-1 v Puebla.
Edgar Castillo - America - went the full 90 as they tied 2-2 at Tigres.
Herculez Gomez - Estudiantes Tecos - started and played 75 min as they won 2-0 at Atlas.
Jose Torres - Pachuca - started and played 69 min as they won 3-0 v Toluca.
LIGA DE ASCENSO (2nd division)
Marco Vidal - Leon - went the full 90 as they won 0-1 at Indios.
THE CARIBBEAN - TRINIDAD & TOBAGO EDITION
Newsday of Trinidad & Tobago reports that a company called All Sports Promotions has been brought in to run the marketing of the T&T Football Federation.
-There is also a new Authorization Committee in place to oversee the federation.
T&T will play a home friendly against India on Sun Aug 21.
The T&T Express with the latest on Jack Warner pulling his team Joe Public out of the Pro-League just 2 weeks before the new season begins, thus putting all of his players out of work. Where does this leave the league itself?
-"The players are the priority. They (he players) cannot simply walk away and find something else to do. Their dreams, hopes and ambitions are invested in the T&T Pro League, the tip of the T&T football pathway. Those of us in charge of the League must face up to our responsibilities. We must not easily subject these young men to misery, failure and sleepless nights."
-But obviously Jack Warner can.
ENGLAND
The Premier League season began on Sat Aug 13:
Recap du Nord: Zaba Daba Doo Man City and Bolton got off to romping 4-0 wins! While Chelsea and Arsensal had scoreless draws.
Alan Gardner, Ian McCourt and Jacob Steinberg of the Guardian with Five things we learned from the Premier League this weekend.
Good to see that nothing at all has changed with Joey Barton. Can he get a TV show in America?
-Sat Aug 13
POSTPONED Tottenham v Everton
Blackburn 1-2 Wolverhampton
Fulham 0-0 Aston Villa
Liverpool 1-1 Sunderland
Queens Park Rangers 0-4 Bolton
Wigan 1-1 Norwich
Newcastle 0-0 Arsenal
-Sun Aug 14
Stoke 0-0 Chelsea
West Brom 1-2 Manchester United
-Mon Aug 15
Manchester City 4-0 Swansea
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League Cup 2nd round will be played on Tue Aug 23. Here are the matches & scores.
SPAIN
Super Cup
Matches & Scores:
1st Leg
-Sun Aug 14
Real Madrid 2-2 Barcelona - RM goals by Mesit Ozul & . Bar goals by David Villa & Lionel Messi.
2nd Leg
-Wed Aug 17
Barcelona v Real Madrid (2-2) - 4pm CT on GolTV
FRANCE
Ligue 1 games this weekend:
Recap du Nord: Toulouse, Montpellier, Caen and St Etienne are the 4 teams with 2 wins from 2 rounds. The champs Lille have a draw and a loss, and does oil money PSG. On the good side, promoted Evian has a win and tie, AND an American goalkeeper!
Ben Lyttleton of the Guardian on Montpellier's great start, Lille's awful start and the rest of the round in Ligue 1.
-Sat Aug 13
Lorient 1-1 Bordeaux
Lyon 1-1 Ajaccio
Rennes 1-1 PSG
St Etienne 1-0 Nancy
Sochaux 1-2 Caen
Toulouse 2-0 Dijon
Valenciennes 0-0 Brest
-Sun Aug 14
Auxerre 2-2 Marseille
Evian 1-0 Nice
Lille 0-1 Montpellier
GERMANY
Bundesliga games this weekend:
Recap du Nord: Schalke were the only team that stormed to a big win this round, while Hannover, Mainz and Bayern got road wins. But the big news was Dortmund went to Hoffenheim and got themselves beaten!
Raphael Honigstein of the Guardian says that after just 2 games the head coach of Koln is already going down the drain, and the rest of the round in Bundesliga.
-Sat Aug 13
Schalke 5-1 Koln
Hamburg 2-2 Hertha
Nurnberg 1-2 Hannover
Freiburg 1-2 Mainz
Hoffenheim 1-0 Dortmund
Wolfsburg 0-1 Bayern
Gladbach 1-1 Stuttgart
-Sun Aug 14
Kaiserslautern 1-1 Augsburg
Leverkusen 1-0 Bremen
ITALY
Matt Meadows of Reuters tells us all about Juventus's brand new stadium.
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Serie A starts on Saturday. We will have the list of games later this week.
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Coppa Italia 3rd Round on Sat Aug 20 & Sun Aug 21, matches & scores here.
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
The final stage of qualify will take place on Aug 16/17 and 23/24 - Play-Off Round matches & scores.
-The 10 winners advance to the group stage.
The first 5 games were played today.
Matches & Scores
1st Leg
-Tue Aug 16
Kobenhavn 1-3 Plzen
BATE 1-1 Sturm
Twente 2-2 Benfica
Arsenal 1-0 Udinese
Lyon 3-1 Rubin
-Wed Aug 17
Wisla Krakow v APOEL
Maccabi Haifa v Genk
Dinamo Zagreb v Malmo
OB v Villarreal
Bayern v Zurich
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The draw for the group stage will take place on Thu Aug 25.
BRAZIL
Recap du Nord: The top 3 all tied in their weekend games and remain exactly as they were, but #4 Vasco da Gama beat former #5 Palmeiras and moved with in 4 points of the top spot. The loss dropped Palmeiras to 6th place behind new #5 Botafogo who won.
Brazil - Serie A Standings (16 of 38 games played):
34 Corinthians (10 W) - LAST: Sun Aug 14 D 2-2 Ceara - NEXT: Wed Aug 17 at Atletico Mineiro
34 Flamengo (9 W) - LAST: Sun Aug 14 D 2-2 at Figueirense - NEXT: Thu Aug 18 v Atletico GO
32 Sao Paulo - LAST: Sat Aug 13 D 2-2 v Atletico PR - NEXT: Thu Aug 18 at America Mineiro
30 Vasco - LAST: Sun Aug 14 W 1-0 v Palmeiras - NEXT: Wed Aug 17 at Avai
28 Botafogo - LAST: Sat Aug 13 W 4-2 v America Mineiro - NEXT: Wed Aug 17 at Internacional
- - - - -
27 Palmeiras - LAST: Sun Aug 14 L 1-0 Vasco
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Tim Vickery of the BBC says Brazil has a long way to go to get their act together for WC14 without the pressure of a qualifying tournament.
COLOMBIA 2011 U20 WORLD CUP
Official World Cup website - tournament runs Jul 29 - Aug 20.
Quaterfinals
The hosts Colombia were knocked out of the tournament by Mexico who are rattling the cages at every age level right now. (The senior team is rolling, and the U17s just won their World Cup in June.)
Portugal, Brazil and France are the other 3 semifinalists, who all won very close games.
Matches & Scores:
-Sat Aug 13
Portugal 0-0 Argentina - Por wins 5-4 in Penalty Kick Shootout.
Mexico 3-1 Colombia
-Sun Aug 14
Spain 2-2 Brazil - Bra wins 4-2 in Penalty Kick Shootout.
France 3-2 Nigeria
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Semifinal
Matches & Scores:
-Wed Aug 17
Portugal v France - 5pm CT on ESPNU
Mexico v Brazil - 8pm CT on ESPNU
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Final
Match & Score:
-Sat Aug 20
Semifinal winners
BIG PIMPIN
If you love Spanish futbol they you will need to be checkin this out - Football Espana! Featuring great contributions by Guillem Balague, Michael Robinson, Phil Ball, Terry Venables and others. Edited by Ben Lyttleton. Season preview available now!
posted by brucio at 18:18
2 Comments:
Everything that comes out of Ray Hudson's mouth is classic.
you have Houston listed as a top three, and as a wildcard team. just fyi
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