There were many skeptics who thought that Cuauhtemoc Blanco would not cut it in MLS when he arrived to play for the Chicago Fire a year ago, and Bernardo Fallas admits that he was one of them. Now he’s happy to concede that he was wrong on all counts — about Blanco being too old, […]
Author Archives: Soccer America
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Crew Must Give Schmid A New Contract
The Columbus Crew’s 11-6-4 record, tied for the best in MLS this year, is the result of coach Sigi Schmid’s “soccer mind and his eye for talent,” writes Michael Arace. That’s why he deserves a new contract. “He has completely overhauled the team in three years,” Arace says. “Of the 30 men on the Crew’s […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Will St. Louis Be Priced Out Of MLS?
St. Louis’ bid to land a Major League Soccer team “looks to be entering the home stretch,” Tom Timmermann reports, but he qualifies the statement by adding “again.” The deadline is mid-October, and prime mover Jeff Cooper, who heads an investment group that has proposed a stadium, housing, office and retail space complex in Collinsville, […]
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
TELEVISION: FSC to air eight women’s clashes
Fox Soccer Channel will broadcast the Women’s College Game of the Week in conjunction with the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. The eight games will all be broadcast on Thursdays, beginning with the Sept. 11 match between West Virginia and Kentucky.
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
SMALL COLLEGES: Previewing the men’s favorites
Favorites Franklin Pierce (NCAA Division II) must overcome heavy losses, Middlebury (NCAA Division III) will again be led by goalie Brian Bush (623 scoreless minutes and counting), and Azusa Pacific (NAIA) must overcome the loss of Steven Lenhart, now with MLS’s Columbus Crew. For a look at the top five teams in each of the three small college divisions …
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
TELEVISION: FSC men’s coverage kicks off Friday
Fox Soccer Channel will again air men’s college action in conjunction with the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. The 12-game schedule begins with Friday’s match between No. 11 UCLA and No. 4 Maryland from the Home Depot Center.
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
CONFERENCE WATCH: Men’s Preseason Polls
NCAA Division I men’s conference polls are out. For the preseason conference ranking of your favorite D1 program …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
England likely to lose Gerrard for two qualifiers
[WORLD CUP 2010] Midfielder Steven Gerrard, who played in Liverpool’s 1-0 win over Standard Liege on Wednesday to earn Liverpool a spot in UEFA Champions League group play, is scheduled for groin surgery that will likely force him out of England’s two World Cup qualifiers next month.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Bundesliga set to earn more than Italian Serie A
[GERMANY] According to a study by the StageUp sport business research firm, the Germany Bundesliga is likely to over take the Italian Serie A as the world’s second richest league. First is the English Premier League, whose revenues for the 2008-09 are estimated to be $3.5 billion.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
FC Dallas’ new midfielder sidelined
[MLS] Dutch midfielder Victor Sikora, whom FC Dallas signed earlier this month, will be sidelined for four to six weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a torn lateral meniscus in his right knee. He suffered the injury during his second start for Dallas, a 1-1 tie with Kansas City on Saturday.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
MAKING A LIST: WPS head coaches
Jorge Barcellos, who coached Brazil to second place at the 2007 Women’s World Cup and the silver medal in the 2008 Olympic women’s soccer competition, is headed to Women’s Professional Soccer, where he will serve as the St. Louis head coach. Dallas and Los Angeles have yet to hire coaches with only weeks to go before the first player selections take place for the WPS’s 2009 launch.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“We’re absolutely convinced that we have the right man for the job and that we’re heading in the right direction. We have absolute patience. I’m not worked up all. I’m completely calm. We drew 10 times last year and we ended up champions by 10 points.”
— Bayern Munich president Karl-Heinz Rummenigge delivers a vote of confidence to Coach Juergen Klinsmann after Bayern started the Bundesliga season with two ties. (Reuters)
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Del Bosque tells Serbia, ‘Hands Off Bojan’
Spain national team coach Vicente del Bosque has warned Serbia off attempting to lure teenage star Bojan Krkic to play for Serbia. Krkic’s father is Serbian, his mother Catalan, and he was born and raised in Spain.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Vidic Not Keen On The Manchester Rain
Manchester United central defender Nemanja Vidic has said that he would not want to stay in England long term because of the Manchester rain, and because all people do in the evening is watch TV. Well what do you expect when it’s raining outside?
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Kljestan Awakes Dutch Interest
An unnamed Dutch team is interested in signing Chivas USA’s midfielder Sacha Kljestan after his displays for the U.S. Olympic team.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Manchester City Borrowed Millions From Former Chairman
Former City Chairman John Wardle has loaned the team a total $12 million over the past year, reports David Conn, raising new doubts about the financial stability of the team’s owner, the Human Rights Watch-condemned former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
The Connection Between Liu Xiang And The U.S. Soccer Team
Columnist Dan Oshinsky has been trying to work out the U.S. equivalent to China’s first Olympic track and field gold medalist, Liu Xiang. And then he came up with an answer — the men’s national soccer team. Liu shattered for the Chinese “the stereotype that they cannot compete in any sprint-type event. Chinese regard him […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Rangnick Vindicated By Hoffenheim’s Early Lead
Ten years ago, Ralf Rangnick, at that time coach of German second division leaders SSV Ulm, was mocked by the German soccer establishment after he appeared on German TV to explain how his team had succeeded by using a flat back four and zonal marking. The Germans still believed in the sweeper system, despite no […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
St. Louis Hires Brazilian WNT Coach Barcellos
The St. Louis women’s team due to start play in Women’s Professional Soccer next spring has hired Brazilian women’s team coach Jorge Barcellos to be its coach and general manager. “We’ll have a special look to the team with a lot of skill and creativity on the field,” promised Jeff Cooper, the team’s owner. “He […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Vide The Obscure
D.C. United’s new holding midfielder Joe Vide wasn’t supposed to be there. Not at D.C., who signed him up during an injury crisis after he was waived by San Jose, and not on the edge of the penalty area in a scoring position against the Colorado Rapids last weekend. But his left foot shot handed […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Schelotto The King Of The Assist
In the early days of Major League Soccer, assists were handed out to players like goody bags at a toddler’s birthday gig. Nowadays, a pass has to “unlock” the opposition defense to qualify as an assist, writes Shawn Mitchell, and this season it’s clear who is the chief locksmith — Columbus Crew’s Argentine playmaker, Guillermo […]
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Reporter
Disney all-stars take fourth at Chelsea youth tournament
The Disney Soccer Showcase under-16 all-stars, chosen from players competing at the 2007 Disney’s Soccer Showcase, finished fourth in Chelsea Academy’s inaugural youth cup near London.
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Reporter
Red Bull U-17s beat Italian U-17 champion Inter Milan
The New York Red Bulls’ U-17s scored one of the biggest wins an MLS youth team has ever recorded when it beat Inter Milan’s Serie A U-17 championship team, 3-1, on on Saturday night in Newark, N.J.
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Reporter
Women’s Nike Friendlies Results
Play wrapped up Sunday at the 2008 Women’s Nike Friendlies at the U.S. Soccer National Training Center in Carson, Calif. Three U.S. youth national teams and 25 club teams from around the country played three games over the course of four days.
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Reporter
U.S. under-15 girls dominate against U-17 powers
The U.S. under-15 girls national team won by scores of 5-0, 6-0 and 4-2 against U-17 club teams at the 2008 Women’s Nike Friendlies at the U.S. Soccer National Training Center in Carson, Calif.