[MEN’S RECRUITING] In one of the first major signing announcements of the 2008 men’s recruiting season, Maryland signed Michigan prep star Casey Townsend, who has graduated a semester early and will join the Terrapins in the spring semester.
Monthly Archives: January 2008
Howard men’s coach nabbed in youth sex sting
Howard men’s soccer coach Joseph Okoh was arrested on a felony charge last Friday after police said he went online to solicit a person he thought was a 13-year-old girl for sexual purposes.
Collegians head to Europe
MLS isn’t the only option for college players. January saw several stars head to Europe for tryouts. University of California midfielder Andrew Jacobson surprised MLS when the top pick of D.C. United signed with French First Division club Lorient after a short tryout.
Soccer Job Openings
[EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES] Soccer America provides the latest on employment opportunities for soccer-related positions: college coaching opportunities, positions in the pros, youth soccer, the soccer industry, even television.
NCAA Division I Men’s & Women’s Coaching Changes
Paul Stahlschmidt resigned as Appalachian State men’s coach after five years with the Mountaineers. Long-time women’s coach Patrick Farmer resigned after four seasons as the women’s coach at Syracuse. Washington University coach Wendy Dillinger accepted the women’s head coaching job at Big 12 school Iowa State. Chris Pfau left Evansville to fill the women’s vacancy at Akron. Jaime Frias left Stephen F. Austin to take the women’s head coaching job with the Nevada program mired in controversy. For all the coaching moves …
Cristiano Ronaldo Gem Buries Portsmouth
Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 18th and 19th Premier League goals of the season last night, leading Manchester United to a 2-0 victory over Portsmouth. Ronaldo’s second goal in particular — a wicked looping free-kick hit with tremendous pace-left his manager Sir Alex Ferguson in awe. “That without doubt must be the best (I’ve seen in […]
Inter Edges Juve in Coppa Clasico
Inter Milan battled through to the Coppa Italia semifinals with a 5-4 aggregate win after an enthralling 3-2 victory at Juventus Wednesday night. Trailing 2-1, the Nerazzurri had to rely on another dubious penalty decision to bring them back into the match before reserve forward Mario Balotelli slotted home a fantastic second to seal the […]
Liverpool Fans Launch Takeover Initiative
The unrest at Liverpool continues. While the backroom has made peace, the club’s fans are so desperate to replace owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett that they’ve started a fundraising scheme to oust the Americans. Described as a “longshot” member-share scheme by the Associated Press, the group, called Share Liverpool FC, will today begin collecting […]
Guzan Denied Work Permit
Brad Guzan has been denied an English work permit, thus ending Aston Villa’s pursuit of the Chivas USA goalkeeper. An English panel ruled on Thursday that the U.S. international did not meet the necessary requirements. Villa bid $4 million to bring the player to the Premier League from MLS. The 23-year-old had been training earlier […]
Capello Drops Becks, Again
David Beckham has been left out of Fabio Capello’s first England squad. The Italian tactician, who took charge of the national team following England’s failure to qualify for Euro 2008, omitted Becks and included two new players in a provisional group of 30 to play in next Wednesday’s friendly against Switzerland. Capello cited a lack […]
Transfer Talk
Soccer America’s Ridge Mahoney examines MLS preseason player movement.
Your Simple Steps to the College Search
If college recruiting had a motto, it would be this: “What the [insert expletive of choice] am I supposed to be doing?” It’s a perfectly reasonable question to ask. Most players and their parents have never been through the process. Or maybe they bumped and scraped their way through it with an older sibling. The pressure mounts as they realize each player only has one chance to get it right.
Columbus rebuilding attack around Schelotto
[MLS TEAM PREVIEW] The great whoosh reverberating through the Midwest earlier this week may or may not been Crew coaches and executives exhaling at the arrival of Argentine playmaker Guillermo Barros Schelotto. In his series examining MLS clubs’ preseason maneuvers and preparations, Soccer America’s Ridge Mahoney reports on who Coach Sigi Schmid is eying to add to the Crew.
Mexican-American named Bayern Munich assistant coach
Bild, Germany’s largest circulation daily, headlined the news, “Ami coach will be Klinsmann’s Super Assi” when it reported that Chivas USA assistant coach Martin Vasquez will be Bayern Munich’s assistant coach when Juergen Klinsmann takes over in July. Vasquez, who played for both his native Mexico and the USA, had a long pro playing on both sides of the border before becoming an assistant coach in the WUSA and MLS.
The importance of beating Mexico
Next Wednesday, Mexico comes to Houston to face the USA, whose win one year ago in a similar friendly meant a lot for Coach Bob Bradley. Soccer America’s Mike Woitalla explains how recent U.S. supremacy over Mexico has been critical to the success of U.S. national team coaches going back almost 20 years.
African Nations Cup Results
Striker Samuel Eto’o scored twice in Cameroon’s 3-0 victory over Sudan and set an African Nations Cup record for career goals he shared with former Ivory Coast star Laurent Pokou, who scored the last of his 15 goals 38 years ago. In Wednesday’s other game, Egypt clinched first place in Group C ahead of the Indomitable Lions with a 1-1 tie with Zambia. For all the African Nations Cup results and schedule …
What They’re Saying
“Beckham is a nice man and I’m sure he will reach 100 appearances for England. But he is just a good player, nothing more. He has a good long-range shot, but he’s not a great player – he doesn’t belong to the superior group of players. There are hundreds of Beckhams playing soccer all over the world.”
— Diego Maradona, who in the same interview apologized for his “Hand of God” goal against England in the 1986 World Cup. (The Sun)
U.S. Soccer Development Academy Results
Teams from Southern California powers Irvine Strikers and Pateadores both went 3-0-1 against visiting teams from Washington Premier and the Colorado Rush in the U-17/18 and U-15/16 age groups in U.S. Soccer Development Academy play. Teams from the U.S. U-17 residency program swept a pair of games against the AFC Lightning. For all Development Academy results and goal scorers …
2008 Best Girls Clubs
For the second year in a row, Eclipse Select and the Dallas Texans are 1-2 in Soccer America’s rankings of the Best Girls Clubs. Southern California’s Slammers moved up two spots to No. 3. For Soccer America’s Top 25 Girls Clubs …
2008 Best Boys Clubs
For the first time since Soccer America began its annual rankings of the Best Boys Clubs, the Dallas Texans are No. 1. They edged the Chicago Magic, first the last three years. Arsenal FC of Southern California again completed the podium. For Soccer America’s Top 25 Boys Clubs …
Wenger, Fabregas Hail In-Form Adebayor
Emmanuel Adebayor was on target once again as Arsenal defeated Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle United, 3-0, for the second time in four days at the Emirates Stadium. The lanky striker scored twice in the FA Cup fourth-round victory on Saturday and opened the scoring once again in the Premier League victory on Tuesday, taking his recent […]
MLS Reluctant on the Transfer Market
ESPN writer Frank Dell’Apa tells us that Major League Soccer has earned more than $30 million in transfer fees since 1996. To be sure, $30 million is a negligible percentage of the worldwide soccer market over the last 11 years, but if recent trends are anything to go by, the league’s transfer revenue looks set […]
Columbus Chasing Poland Captain Zurawski
The Columbus Crew is on the hunt for a designated player, and according to the Columbus Dispatch, that player might be Poland captain Maciej Zurawski, who has fallen out of favor at Celtic, his current club. The 31-year-old has made precious few appearances for the Hoops this season and reportedly wants to sign for the […]
MLS Should Look to Africa
For years, the African Cup of Nations has been a feeding ground for Europe’s top clubs in search of cheap foreign talent. Andrew Dixon of USSoccerPlayers wonders whether MLS scouts, fixated on bolstering their squads with Latin American talent, have even bothered to make the trek to Ghana this year, because if they are, “they’re […]
New England Owner Kraft Reveals Liverpool Interest
As the Liverpool backroom continues to lick the wounds from its recent civil war, American business mogul Robert Kraft has publicly declared his interest in the English Premier League club. As Dubai International Capital hovers above the unsettled atmosphere at Anfield, waiting to buy out Liverpool owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, Kraft tells Sky […]
