Category: Section 2 Around the Net

Writing for Pitch Invasion, Andrew Guest considers the increasing drain of soccer talent from African countries to European countries. Although a trend fraught with fears about the negative affects of globalization, such as the exploitation of labor and the severing of community ties, it also offers "some opportunities for African soccer to do globalization right," […]

Argentina teeters on the edge of missing its first World Cup since 1970. Despite losing three of the last four qualifying games, including a 3-1 defeat to rivals Brazil on Saturday, Argentina coach Diego Maradona is approaching Wednesday’s critical match at Paraguay with unflagging swagger. “We’ll go (to Paraguay) with the same confidence as always,” […]

Sheffield United goalkeeper Paddy Kenny has been suspended by the FA after testing positive for the banned stimulant ephedrine, found in some cold remedies. The Republic of Ireland international ingested the over-the-counter medicine without consulting United's medical staff. "We know Paddy's not a drugs cheat and they've accepted that," Sheffield manager Kevin Blackwell said. "We're […]

The USA needs a win Trinidad & Tobago on Wednesday to distinguish itself among the leaders in Concacaf qualifying; only one point separates the top four teams. But Martin Rogers points out the game in Port of Spain promises to be tricky for the Americans because seven players — Landon Donovan, Jozy Altidore, Carlos Bocanegra, […]

Albie Loeffler – the founder of the Staples (Conn.) High School soccer program – died Sept. 6, one day before his 94th birthday. Loeffler is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame as a referee. One of the premier soccer officials in the nation, he refereed the first-ever two-man system college game, as […]

Benny Feilhaber answers a few tough questions ahead of Saturday’s World Cup qualifier against El Salvador. As part of Goal.com’s “You Asked?” video feature, Feilhaber talks about his influences growing up and his favorite players to watch today. He also reveals the funniest member of the national team as well as the biggest “ladies man.”

Arsenal announced that it will appeal the two-match ban UEFA imposed on Eduardo da for diving against Celtic during a Champions League qualifier. “We strongly believe that the decision taken is deeply flawed and not based on any forensic review of the video evidence available,” Arsenal said in a statement Thursday. “There are obvious errors […]

The museum at the National Soccer Hall of Fame, in Oneonta, NY., will close to the public after Labor Day due to financial difficulties. Although the institution will remain open on days when it hosts matches, it will cut staff as part of a “new sustainable operating model,” Jonathan Ullman, its President and Chief Operating […]

Gambian native Amadou Sanyang arrived in Toronto in March to face the harsh truth. "It was very cold to me," the 18-year-old defender said. "It was like: ‘Wow, what am I doing here?’" But Sanyang, who has appeared in all four TFC games since turning 18 on Aug. 1, says the season change has comforted […]

Arturo Alvarez isn’t the only member of El Salvador to play in MLS. Alvarez’s teammate on the San Jose Earthquakes, Ramon Sanchez, also plays for El Salvador. So does New York Red Bulls defender Alfredo Pacheco. These players know that the unlikely odds of a result in the USA. But they are not setting their […]

Javier Aguirre replaced Swede Sven-Goran Eriksson as Mexico coach with one simple objective: qualify for the World Cup. Aguirre has turned around a sputtering team in only a few months. But the success doesn’t appear to come from any secret methodology. Mexico winger Andres Guardado says that the players simply respect Aguirre’s personality and honesty. […]

Mathew Le Tissier, a legendary Southampton player, has revealed in a new autobiography that he once failed an attempted betting scam during a game against Wimbledon. Le Tissier colluded with friends and a teammate to cash in on a spread bet of over $16,000 on the timing of the first throw-in. The plan was for […]

After some uncertainty, Diego Maradona announced Argentina's starting lineup when it faces archrivals Brazil on Saturday. The two-time world champions will go with: Mariano Andujar, Javier Zanetti, Nicolas Otamendi, Sebastian Dominguez, Gabriel Heinze, Maximiliano Rodriguez, Javier Mascherano, Juan Sebastian Veron, Jesus Datolo, Lionel Messi and Carlos Tevez. Pundits speculated that Maradona might use veteran striker […]

The headline “MLS Ousts Three Referees” in the Sept. 2 edition of “Around the Net” was inaccurate, because it is the U.S. Soccer Federation (not MLS) that disciplines officials, and trains, evaluates and assigns them.

Washed up soccer players everywhere should appreciate Phil Tuckett's new documentary, "The Golden Age," which documents a season of the Golden Age League in Corona Park, Queens, New York. The highly competitive league is made up of middle-aged players who were once stars in their homelands. Most are from Central and South America. Their former […]

English power Chelsea has been banned from signing new players until 2011. FIFA delivered the ban after has ruling that Chelsea unfairly lured 18-year-old striker Gael Kakuta to break his contract with French club Lens and join the English club. FIFA “established that the English club induced the player to such a breach.” Chelsea cannot […]

Earlier this summer, Cody Arnoux made a rare move for an American player by signing for an English Premier club directly out of college. Arnoux starred for three years at Wake Forest University where he scored 16 goals in 16 games during the 2008 season. Goal.com interviewed Arnoux about his decision to move to Everton […]

Chicago Fire attacker Chris Rolfe has agreed to terms with Aalborg of the Danish SuperLiga. The 26-year-old will make the move when the transfer window opens in January. Although the Fire opened negotiations with Rolfe in hopes of keeping him in Chicago, Fire technical director Frank Klopas said he understands Rolfe's decision to leave. "We […]

Guillermo Franco is returning to his native Argentina to play for reigning Copa Libertadores champion Estudiantes de La Plata. The Mexican striker will join Estudiantes after Mexico's game against Honduras on Sept. 9. Franco played for Valencia since 2006, but the club didn't opt to bring Franco back for the 2009-10 season. Franco said that […]

Heath Pearce's move to Turkish club Bursaspor has been canceled. According to the club's official website Pearce wanted to re-work the contract before he signed, but he and the club couldn't come to an agreement before FIFA closed the transfer window. The failed move leaves the U.S. left back still out of contract and with […]

Mexico is entering Costa Rica with momentum on its side for a crucial clash at the famed Estadio Saprissa. Since the start of the Gold Cup, Mexico has won six of seven games, drawing one game against Panama. Mexico has also enjoyed success at the Estadio Saprissa before. Four years ago, Los Ticos scored two […]

U.S. national team defender Heath Pearce has joined Bursaspor of the Turkcell Super Lig on the last day of the transfer window. Pearce has been in search of a new team since leaving German club Hansa Rostock, where he played for two years. Pearce also played two years in the Danish league for FC Nordsjaelland, […]

Tottenham Hotspur snatched up Portsmouth star Niko Kranjcar on the last day of the transfer market. In dire need of a midfielder after Luka Modric suffered a broken leg over the weekend, Spurs coach Harry Redknapp opted for another Croatian midfielder whom he coached during his time at Portsmouth. Kranjcar expressed his enthusiasm for his […]

FC Nordsjaelland player Jonathan Richter has been forced to have his leg amputated after being struck by lightning during a friendly match on July 20. Medics restarted the player's heart, but placed him in an induced coma. The damage to his leg was so severe that he agreed with doctors' recommendation to amputate the lower […]

The U.S. Soccer Federation has ended the MLS season early for three veteran referees, reports Steven Goff of the Washington Post. Jair Marrufo has been removed from the assignment rotation for “poor performances” over the course of the season. Michael Kennedy and Abbey Okulaja have been ousted for failing midseason fitness tests that require sprints […]