Category: Section 2 Around the Net

La Gazzetta Dello Sport celebrates Manchester United’s 0-0 draw with Barcelona at the Nou Camp on Wednesday as a victory for “catenaccio”, an old Italian defensive system that translates loosely as “door-bolt.” If indeed a “door-bolt” defense was their intention, the paper says Sir Alex Ferguson’s men executed the plan flawlessly. With 10 men always […]

In an interview with Spanish paper La Marca, England Coach Fabio Capello revealed on Friday that Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder David Beckham would remain part of his plans for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. ‘It’s still open,’ Capello replied when asked about Beckham’s England career. “He played in the last game, he did […]

ESPN Soccernet columnist Doug McIntyre digs into Major League Soccer for what many claim is a “make-it-up-as-you-go-along attitude towards its own arcane set of rules and regulations.” He adds that many of these complaints are justified. Among them: three years ago, McIntyre says the league “strong-armed” FC Dallas into trading an allocation so that Landon […]

What’s the biggest problem with MLS? According to Adam Smartschan of the Cape Cod Times, the league’s problem is the fact that even if the New England Revolution had lost its opening five games, it wouldn’t be out of the playoff picture. “The MLS regular season,” Smartschan writes, “a seven-month ordeal stretching from the last […]

Thanks in large part to the retrenched approach of Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United, Wednesday’s first leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinal clash between the Red Devils and Barcelona didn’t produce the attacking fireworks that many had expected. For 90 minutes, Barcelona absolutely camped itself inside the United third of the field but found […]

AC Milan wants Ronaldinho and Andriy Shevchenko, and Ronaldinho and Andriy Shevchenko want to move to AC Milan. However, Goal.com reports that the moves will not be so simple, as there’s likely to be wrangling over the players’ transfer fees. Already Milan VP Adriano Galliani has indicated that Milan and Barcelona, Ronaldinho’s current employer, are […]

Both Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson and Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard, whose teams faced each other Wednesday in the UEFA Champions League semifinals, know a perfect season. In 1999, Ferguson’s United won three major trophies — the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League — a success that’s yet to be matched in Europe […]

Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard is adamant that his team can end Chelsea’s unbeaten record at Stamford Bridge during next week’s UEFA Champions League semifinal return leg. “We believe we can beat Chelsea on their own patch,” he said. “We’ve gone to Inter Milan, we’ve gone to Arsenal and scored, so there is no reason why […]

Rivalries come and go, but local derbies are forever. Luis Bueno of the Press Enterprise likes the healthy enmity that’s developed between Chivas USA and L.A. Galaxy fans in the Los Angeles derby’s short three-year history. Players and coaches may come and go, but as long as Galaxy and Chivas fans maintain that healthy disrespect, […]

Chivas USA defender Claudio Suarez tells Nick Green of the Daily Breeze he expects to hang up his boots at the end of the 2008 season, thus closing the door on a glorious career spanning 20 years. Suarez, 39, is the most capped player in the history of the Mexican national team with 178 appearances, […]

Italy’s Prime Minister-elect Silvio Berlusconi on Tuesday defied reports in the Italian press alleging that he would oppose the takeover of AS Roma by a foreign entity. The speculation was that the AC Milan president, who announced earlier in the day that he would renounce his post, might oppose foreigners investing in Serie A clubs, […]

Jozy Altidore will have done his prospects for making the U.S. Olympic team no harm with the spectacular solo goal he scored for the New York Red Bulls in a 1-1 draw against the New England Revolution on Saturday. Though the game ended in a tie, Altidore was a menace throughout and was unlucky not […]

The Houston Chronicle says that the silence that came from the Dynamo players following Saturday’s 2-2 draw against the L.A. Galaxy speaks volumes about the team’s recent on-field performances. “The locker room was a quiet place Saturday, and that [the tie] is a point on the road,” coach Dominic Kinnear said after a game in […]

The boardroom battle between Liverpool co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett continues, as The Independent revealed on Tuesday that Gillett’s director’s box will be occupied by senior officials from Dubai International Capital — the firm that wishes to buyout the American owners — for the Champions League clash between Liverpool and Chelsea at Anfield Tuesday […]

Less than one week after lifting Spain’s King’s Cup, Valencia has given Coach Ronald Koeman and several members of his coaching staff the sack. The Dutchman, who signed a two-and-a-half year deal in November following the sacking of Quique Sanchez Flores, was in charge at the Mestalla for less than six months, during which time […]

Roma’s title hopes faded at home to Livorno, Inter plodded along towards its third consecutive Serie A title, but Juve’s Alessandro Del Piero and FIFA World Player of the Year Kaka stole the headlines in Italy this weekend, scoring three goals each in impressive victories for Juventus and AC Milan, respectively.   Del Piero scored […]

The Italian league title inched closer toward its inevitable conclusion on Sunday when second-place Roma failed to beat Livorno, Serie A’s worst team heading into Saturday’s clash at the Stadio Olimpico. Once again, Roma fans were forced to watch their captain and talisman Francesco Totti limp off the field with an injury — one that […]

Sven Goran Eriksson is clearly planning to be back at the City of Manchester Stadium after orchestrating a $40 million agreement to bring 21-year-old Brazilian striker Jo to Manchester City next season. The CSKA Moscow striker, who was joint top scorer in Russia last season with 14 goals, has already made a bright start to […]

The Los Angeles Galaxy recovered from a terrible first half to earn a 2-2 draw against defending MLS champ Houston Dynamo on Saturday. Once again, the team owed its goals to Landon Donovan and David Beckham. Beckham assisted on each of Donovan’s goals, which came in the 67th and 84th minutes.   “First half — […]

FC Dallas coach Steve Morrow praised his players’ 2-0 win against Chivas USA as his team’s best performance of the nascent 2008 season. “We created some great opportunities and defended well when we had to,” Morrow said. “We want to build on good, strong defensive displays.” With two wins and two draws, FCD is the […]

The Seattle Sounders are embarking on their last season in the United Soccer Leagues before joining Major League Soccer as an expansion team in March 2009. As the Seattle Times reports, the Sounders would love a repeat of 2007 when they captured a league-best fourth championship. The final campaign begins Saturday away to the Charleston […]

Soccer365 writer Andrea Canales checks in on the Cuban trio who defected to the U.S. during the recent Olympic qualifying tournament and are currently on trial with the L.A. Galaxy. Yordany Alvarez, Yenier Bermudez and Jose Miranda say they do not regret the tough decision they made, nor do they regret making the four-day journey […]

As expected, Italian giant AS Roma received a letter from a third party interested in a potential takeover, the club’s majority shareholder revealed on Thursday. While no mention was made of the investor’s name, it is widely believed that American billionaire George Soros is the man behind the bid, preparing to make a massive investment […]

Negotiations between the Houston Dynamo and the city turned ugly earlier this week when Mayor Bob White told reporters about a threatening letter sent by MLS Commissioner Don Garber urging Dynamo officials to step up efforts to secure a stadium deal with the city soon or the league could be forced to consider relocating the […]

The English press is digging into Chelsea manager Avram Grant for the bizarre press conference he gave following Chelsea’s 1-0 win away to Everton on Thursday. Grant answered most reporters’ questions with simple “Yes” and “No” answers and refused to elaborate. The closest thing he gave to an explanation was: “Maybe [I’m] upset because it’s […]