Category: Section 2 Around the Net

“He’s getting better, he’s returning. It’s now or never,” AC Milan coach Leonardo said of Brazilian star Ronaldinho before the club’s league opener. “Now is his moment for Milan and for the national team.” The twice FIFA World Player of the Year’s form has slid noticeably since 2006. But Leonardo says he has seen encouraging […]

Mexican club Toluca brought its top guns for the CONCACAF Champions League match Thursday against San Juan Jabloteh in Port-of-Spain. The move paid off as Toluca. Raul Nava scored in the ninth minute and the visitors held on for a 1-0 victory. Next up for Toluca is a trip to Washington, D.C., for a match […]

Sevilla has signed striker Alvaro Negredo from Real Madrid to a five-year contract. Spanish media reports put the price tag at about $21 million. Negredo had played for the past two seasons at Almeria before being re-sold to Madrid last month as proposed in the terms of his original sale. Madrid has a surplus of […]

The recession isn’t affecting the revenues generated by the European Champions League, the world’s most lucrative club competition. According to UEFA figures, the tournament will earn a record $1.55 billion in marketing and television revenues for clubs and organizer UEFA this season, a figure up 33 percent from last season. And this revenue stream isn’t […]

Sky Blue FC, New Jersey’s Women’s Professional Soccer team, has achieved a remarkable turnaround this season, overcoming a last-place start, two coaching changes and injuries to its star forward. On May 25, nine weeks into the inaugural season of WPS, Sky Blue sat seventh – dead last – in WPS with a 1-4-2 record. The […]

During AC Milan’s preseason tour of America, newly signed defender Oguchi Onyewu sat down with the New York Times’ Jeffrey Marcus for an interview. Onyewu speaks candidly about handling the pressure of the big stage, his new team, and his identity as a person and player. He emphasizes his hunger to learn from this new […]

On Tuesday, Earthquakes owner Lew Wolff reaffirmed his commitment to building a soccer-only stadium in San Jose while also detailing the snags hanging up the plan. Primarily, ownership is struggling to generate private sponsor interest in difficult economic times. “You can’t do it out of magic,” Wolff said. “There’s no sense building a stadium unless […]

The New England Revolution hope to join increasing number of MLS teams that boast a soccer-specific stadium. The process behind building such a venue can be complicated, expensive, and time-consuming, but it can bring a host of benefits for a team, its fans, and the community. Brian Bilello, the Revolution’s chief operating officer, said ownership […]

“It was more than an argument,” a source from the Fire said of the halftime altercation between the MLS team’s coach Denis Hamlett and star defender Bakary Soumare on Aug. 9 in Houston. “There was a physical altercation, and the team had to deal with it quickly and assess a fine.” According to the source, […]

Brazilian club Sao Paulo continued its hot streak, winning its seventh straight match by defeating struggling Fluminense 1-0. Midfielder Richarlyson scored Sao Paulo’s winner with a remarkable goal at Morumbi Stadium, dribbling past two defenders before firing a shot over charging Fluminense goalkeeper Rafael. The result put Sao Paulo only one point behind rival Palmeiras, […]

Jose Altidore‘s debut for English Premier club Hull City has been delayed due to a swine flu scare in the U.S. squad in Mexico. Although the quarantine has been removed, the 19-year-old remains in New York awaiting international clearance from the U.S. government based on the results of a biometric test. Hull City manager Phil […]

The Argentine government has stepped in to help resolve the debt crisis hampering the country’s cash-strapped clubs that owe huge sums in wages to players and taxes to the government treasury. President Cristina Fernandez has agreed to pay the Argentine Football Association $155 million to broadcast matches on terrestrial television, more than double what the […]

On Wednesday, Panamanian side Arabe Unido stunned Mexican power Pachuca 4-1 in Panama with an energetic and hungry performance. First-half goals from Orlando Rodriguez and Victor Mendietta were followed by second half goals by substitute Manuel Mosquera and defender Reynaldo Leyvin for the home side.   American midfielder Jose Francisco Torres played 90 minutes in […]

Spanish club Valencia was barred from wearing the sponsored shirts it typically dons when the club kicked off its Europa League playoff at Norway’s Stabaek on Thursday. “Despite intense negotiations over the last few days UEFA have taken this decision because of Norwegian restrictions … with regards to publicity (for online gambling),” the Primera Liga […]

The New York Red Bulls need change. The team hasn’t won in more than three months (14 straight games) going into Sunday’s match against FC Dallas. The average attendance has dropped to all-time low of 12,487 as the team threatens to post the worst record in MLS history. Some fans wore paper bags over their […]

Danny Cepero, who won a starting position as the New York Red Bulls goalkeeper last season, has suffered through a dismal 2009. He communicates some of his frustration in the New York Times’ “Goal” blog. Cepero says, “While I appreciate the ability of my friends, family and even fans, to sugarcoat the current embarrassment, sometimes […]

Mired in a six-game losing streak, the Red Bulls are desperate for change. On Wednesday, the club signed Walter Garcia, a 25-year-old Argentinean defender from Quilmes Atlético Club of the Argentinean Second Division. “We have been interested in bringing Walter into the club since the beginning of the year,” said New York sporting director Jeff […]

Former Germany goalkeeper Jens Lehmann announced that he will retire at the end of this season. Lehmann said that he wants to see one last year of Champions League soccer with his current club Stuttgart. “Until the end of the season and then that is it,” he said. “It will be good to move out […]

Universidad de Chile advanced to the next round of the Copa Sudamericana, South America’s No. 2 club tournament behind the Copa Libertadores, with a 1-0 away win over Colombian club Deportivo Cali on Tuesday. Walter Montillo struck in the 69th minute to ensure advancement after Cali lost the first leg 2-1 in the Chilean capital […]

ESPN’s Bill Simmons, also known as the “Sports Guy,” serves as the snide and opinionated voice for millions of American sports fanatics. After spending his career so far musing on mainstream American sports, he’s turning to soccer, a sport that represents a strange new world for him. Reporting from Azteca on last week’s World Cup […]

Playing away at Celtic, Arsenal capitalized on two lucky bounces to gain a 2-0 victory in the qualifying stages of the Champions League. At the end of the first half, William Gallas accidentally deflected home a 30-meter free kick by Cesc Fabregas. In the second half Celtic defender Gary Caldwell turned a cross from Arsenal […]

Werder Bremen has signed Peru striker Claudio Pizarro on a permanent three-year deal from Chelsea, the Bundesliga club said on Tuesday. Pizarro joined Werder last season on loan, his second stint with the club. From 1999 to 2001, he helped Bremen win the German Cup and reach the UEFA Cup final. Pizarro’s new contract, running […]

Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic will make his Barcelona debut in a friendly against Manchester City on Wednesday after recovering from a hand fracture. “He’s in good shape and we are planning on him (Ibrahimovic) playing a part,” Coach Pep Guardiola said at a news conference on Tuesday. Ibrahimovic joined from Inter Milan last month in […]

Arsenal has joined the list of European clubs mining America for young talent. Reports from Young Guns website devoted to Arsenal’s reserve and youth program suggest that the English Premier League club will sign 15-year-old Luis Gil within weeks. Gil is a native of Garden Grove, Calif. He previously played club soccer at Pateadores and […]

According to several league and club executives, United Soccer Leagues has been put up for sale by Nike, the majority owner of the league. Two sources from the lower-level league have confirmed that MLS has inquired into purchasing it. Followers of the North American game have long dreamed of a promotion-relegation system similar to the […]