Author Archives: Soccer America

The UEFA Cup quarterfinal draw also occurred on Friday, with perhaps the most intriguing match-up being Manchester City vs. Hamburg, who lost two players to the EPL team within the last transfer year and have former Tottenham coach Martin Jol at the helm. The other three pairings find the second tier competition's two French teams […]

A trio of recent Champions League rivalries will be revived in the 2009 edition of the competition, as UEFA announced in the quarterfinal draw today in which Chelsea will meet Liverpool for the fifth time in as many years (adding to the 22 times the two teams have met across all competitions in the last […]

“My love for this sport, which has given me plenty over the years, has allowed me to feel young, not only in terms of the physical side, but also from the spiritual one. I have had the fortune of always playing in my hometown and I have always had the support of my family. These […]

"We know that [Juan Pablo] Angel is amazing, but I want to create my own history." 21-year-old Colombian midfielder Fredy Montero, who was involved in all three of Seattle's scores in their season opener, on how his admiration for Red Bulls' MVP candidate and fellow countryman Juan Pablo Angel doesn't stop him from wanting to […]

“The coolest part for me — after spending my whole career in Europe — I was very nervous about coming home and being let down. Just kind of thinking ‘why did I come home for this?’ But what was so tremendous about everything that I’ve had so far from the professionalism to the training facilities […]

The recent rift between Argentina coach Diego Maradona and veteran midfielder Juan Roman Riquelme has not surprisingly drawn strong reactions from fans of Boca Juniors, the team where both national treasures gained fame early in their respective playing careers. But that reaction has not been what one might expect, with fans displaying support for Riquelme […]

Concacaf, the confederation that governs North, Central American and Caribbean soccer, announced today that it has received a $10 million grant from FIFA to fund a two-year program intended to develop the professional leagues of 11 select countries within the region. The main priority of the redundantly named "WIN in CONCACAF with CONCACAF" is to […]

After being rumored for a few weeks now, and just two days from making Vancouver the league’s 17th team, MLS made things official on Friday by announcing that Portland will become the second of two expansion teams set to begin play in 2011. Portland becomes the third team (including Seattle) from the United Soccer Leagues […]

“I think it would be opportune to have a salary cap, like they do in the United States. There are discussions at UEFA to introduce this system in the Champions League sooner or later. A weak, pale summer market awaits us, with player swaps but very little money movement. This is more than certain.” AC […]

"One: Being on the pitch after the game – he had no right to be there. Two: Being dressed in the manner in which he was dressed. Three: The pictures verify the aggression he was showing towards our players and staff after the game." Hull City coach Phil Brown, listing his complaints with the postgame […]

"He definitely wants to get called back. He has said if the coach calls him up, he'll go. He's itching to go back to the national team. (Mexico) should use a player with that kind of experience. At this time, they're struggling. They have so many young guys. A guy with [Blanco's] experience could help […]

"For a league that non-believers will tell you really doesn't matter, Major League Soccer has certainly generated a whole lot of press these past few months," observes The Globe and Mail's Stephen Brunt of the months of offseason talk surrounding David Beckham and MLS expansion talk. While even the biggest companies and most solid sports […]

Ian Plenderleith points out that unlike most of the top Euro leagues where the title seems to always go to one of the three or four biggest clubs, at the start of the MLS season, all teams can believe in a championship. “No manager mutters the equivalent of: ‘A UEFA Cup place would be nice, […]

With the 2009 MLS season set to kick off Thursday in Seattle (TV: ESPN2, 9 pm ET), MLSnet.com’s Jeff Bradley looks back at the past 13 years of MLS season openers, starting with the inaugural season when “there was Eric Wynalda, blonde bowl-cut whipping in the wind, faking Jeff Agoos right out of his scrunchy […]

Using history to remind us that the buzz around the Sounders’ MLS debut isn’t the first time that the city of Seattle has been soccer-crazy, Tacoma News Tribune writer John McGrath tells of the times “before Qwest Field replaced the Kingdome, before an indoor soccer attendance record was set in the Tacoma Dome.” Delving back […]

Concluding an exhilarating week for the Northwest soccer world that included the announcement of Vancouver as the next MLS expansion team on Wednesday and the soldout season opener of the new Seattle Sounders franchise on Thursday, a report from The Oregonian has Portland being named as the league’s 18th team on Friday. Citing sources within […]