Author Archives: Soccer America

Freddy Adu and Santino Quaranta share a difficult past. The two Maryland natives once shared RFK Stadium’s field as teenagers on D.C. United, both forced into adulthood too soon and eventually shipped off for unflattering reasons – Adu because of impetuousness, Quaranta because of a drug addiction. “He’s come a long way. I’m just very […]

Former Villarreal goalkeeper Mariano Barbosa will join Atlas of Mexico from River Plate after fellow Argentine and River teammate Marcelo Ojeda failed a medical with a blood disease. Barbosa comes to the Red and Blacks on a three-year contract. Barbosa, 24, played for Villarreal between 2005 and 2007.

Uruguayan coach Sergio Markarian ended his tenure at Universidad de Chile in style, winning the Chile championship final. Chilean Juan Manuel Oliveira scored a diving header in the 63rd minute to give “the U” a 1-0 away win over Union Espanola in the second leg of the Apertura final on Tuesday night, for a 2-1 […]

Former FA Cup winner Southampton has a buyer. Swiss tycoon Markus Liebherr, a member of one of Europe’s top business dynasties, paid an undisclosed amount to buy the club from its administrators. Liebherr, 61, said in a statement on the club’s website (www.saintsfc.co.uk): “I believe we have a superb opportunity to rebuild this great club. […]

Celso Borges‘ goal in the 64th minute gave Costa Rica a 1-0 win over Jamaica in their Gold Cup match Tuesday night in Columbus, Ohio. Borges slid to get under a low cross from second-half substitute Pablo Herrera, knocking the ball beneath the arm of goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts. Jamaica played a man down after referee […]

For the second game in a row, Ali Gerba provided all the offense Canada needed. Gerba scored in the 32nd minute as Canada remained undefeated at the CONCACAF Gold Cup with a 1-0 victory over El Salvador last night. El Salvador defender Manuel Salazar misplayed a cross from Canadian captain Paul Stalteri. The ball fell […]

South African construction workers went on an indefinite strike Wednesday at stadiums being built for the 2010 World Cup — a move that could derail Africa’s historic first World Cup tournament. About 70,000 workers at stadiums across the country downed tools after wage negotiations deadlocked earlier this week. Workers are demanding a 13 percent pay increase while employers are only offering a 10.4 percent rise.

Pia Sundhage, the U.S. women’s national team coach, has recalled Cat Whitehill and Leslie Osborne to the U.S. women’s squad for two internationals against Canada on July 19 and 22. Both Whitehill and Osborne have been sidelined from national team duties by knee injuries since before the 2008 Olympics, which the United States won without […]

Midfielder Benny Feilhaber has joined the U.S. team for Wednesday night’s first round Gold Cup match against Honduras in Washington, D.C.. Feilhaber, who played in all five U.S. games during the Confederations Cup, will fill one of seven additional roster spots that CONCACAF allotted the team. Feilhaber joins Brad Guzan, Jonathan Bornstein, Sacha Kljestan, Ricardo […]

An organized Canadian side opened the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup with a 1-0 win over Group A opponent Jamaica last Friday in Los Angeles, Canada’s third consecutive victory under interim coach Stephen Hart. “It’s obviously important in the first game of a tournament to get off to a good start and we managed to do […]

A recent swine flu outbreak in Buenos Aires cast doubt over the proceedings of the first leg of the final of the Copa Libertadores, Latin America’s most prestigious club competition. But the two finalists, Cruzeiro of Brazil and Estudiantes of Argentina, are scheduled to play Wednesday in La Plata, Argentina, located about 35 miles southeast […]

The Chicago Fire’s Calen Carr suffered a severe MCL sprain last July that threatened his greatest attribute, his speed. A year later, he is back to dispel any doubts about his recovery. “I think when you go through a major injury, especially a knee injury, you have a lot of questions that pop into your […]

U.S. midfielder Michael Bradley has been suspended for four games by FIFA, soccer’s governing body, for “committing acts of misconduct against opponents and match officials” in the USA’s 2-0 upset of Spain on June 24, a FIFA spokesman has confirmed to SI.com. But Bradley will still be available for the USA’s World Cup qualifier at […]

Oguchi Onyewu‘s outstanding performances for the U.S. national team in the Confederations Cup boosted his profile – a lot. The center back has joined AC Milan on a three-year contract the club said Tuesday, becoming the first U.S. player to join Serie A in more than 10 years. Onyewu joins Milan from Standard Liege in […]

Brazilian soccer club Cruzeiro wants to postpone this week’s Copa Libertadores match against Estudiantes because of the swine flu outbreak in Argentina. A spokesman for the club said on Monday that it made the request through Brazil’s soccer federation. The official said Cruzeiro wants the match postponed or moved to another location-in Argentina or another […]

Chelsea has completed the signing of Russian international Yuri Zhirkov from CSKA Moscow for a for year deal worth $29 million. The 25-year-old, who was impressive at Euro 2008, can play on the left wing or at left back and was given a ringing endorsement by temporary Blues boss Guus Hiddink, who has since returned […]