Category: Section 2 Around the Net

[MLS] The melding of the USL and MLS versions of the Seattle Sounders has added another element, that of goalkeeper Chris Eylander.

[INTERLIGA] A pair of 1-0 InterLiga Monday matches propelled Pachuca into the finals with one Group A game left to play and left Morelia, which lost to UAG (“Tecos”), seething at a goal scored with one of its players laying on the ground, apparently injured.

It’s hard to guess how the decision-making process on new players works at AC Milan these days. According to The Times, Liverpool forward Jermaine Pennant “has been given the chance to revive his career” at the Italian giant and has been offered a pre-contract agreement by the club ahead of his contract expiring at Liverpool […]

Manchester City’s transfer market moves over the coming month “may be the last chance to witness the spectacle of an English club spending a foreign owner’s money with unrestricted lavishness,” writes Richard Williams.   With everyone else feeling the pinch from the economic downturn (even Chelsea’s players now have to pay for their training-ground meals), […]

Idealistic UEFA President Michel Platini said Monday he will not challenge Sepp Blatter for the FIFA presidency, and that he expects Blatter to stay in the post for six more years following the next election in 2011, reports Yasir Abbasher.   Speaking at the Gulf Cup in Muscat, Platini said, “We have a good president […]

One of the less endearing aspects of the English FA Cup is when teams switch stadiums in order to make more money (or maximize revenue, as club accountants no doubt phrase it). A few years ago non-league Farnborough moved its home tie with Arsenal to Highbury in order to earn some quick cash. Not only […]

“I didn’t like him [Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson] saying I didn’t like the offer I was made because neither my agent nor me were given one. I don’t know anything on my future. United know what they must pay if they want me to stay. I want to stay but the club have not […]

The Houston Dynamo has given up its pursuit of Mexican striker Luis Angel Landin after the Morelia Monarcas forward signed a one-year loan deal with Mexican First Division club Cruz Azul instead.   “We’re out of the running,” Dynamo Chief Operating Officer Chris Canetti said Monday. Houston’s offer was apparently not good enough for Morelia, […]

The Gulf state of Qatar is considering a bid to become the first Arab country to host the World Cup finals, the secretary-general of the Qatar Football Association, Saud al Mohannadi, said Tuesday.   He claimed that the state had “the means and the ability” to host the finals, either in 2018 or 2022, and […]

“There’s very little in the way of any coaching feuds in MLS,” writes Andrea Canales, casting a wistful eye towards Europe and the psychological games and insults involving men like Jose Mourinho, Arsene Wenger and Alex Ferguson. “That’s a shame, because it robs the game of a certain amount of intrigue.”   Grudge incidents in […]

Colorado Rapids coach Gary Smith has made three New Year’s resolutions for the club. “Number one, to win the MLS Cup. Number two, in doing that, to play in a style and fashion that fits this club. Number three, for the whole staff within the club, for the players and for the fans, to have […]

“This summer, I no longer had a head for football, I’d completely lost the fire. I felt completely extinguished. For the first time in my career, I’d lost the passion for football. I was lost.” Chelsea striker Didier Drogba confesses that he started the season with no desire to play following the death of his […]

“[David] Beckham could go on for another five or six years. His cardiovascular readings are very good. His basic fitness is excellent. All he needs to do now is to alter his training program slightly.” AC Milan doctor Jean-Pierre Meerseeman on the future playing prospects of the L.A. Galaxy midfielder.

“It’s dawned on me that not only do some sports thrive in silence, but indeed they flourish. They become things of grace and beauty. Stripped of the chatter — most of which is gaudily decorative rather than utilitarian anyway — we see the sports in their naked state. And they are beautiful.” Steven Wells explains […]

Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard, 28, was charged on Tuesday with assault “occasioning actual bodily harm and affray” following an alleged fight outside a nightclub. His arrest happened in the early hours of Monday, just hours after he had scored twice in league-leading Liverpool’s 5-1 win at Newcastle.   Gerrard was charged along with two other […]

When Roy Hodgson was offered the job of taking Fulham out of the relegation zone a year ago, he may have been motivated by more than money, writes Paul Doyle. Another key factor at play was redemption. Despite much acclaim for his coaching prowess abroad, neither of his previous spells in England at Bristol City […]

Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp has come through the honeymoon phase of his spell at White Hart Lane and is back to doing what Premier League managers know best — blaming referees for their team’s defeats. After Tottenham lost, 2-0, at lowly West Bromwich Albion on Sunday, Redknapp said referee Steve Tanner was so poor […]

If managers don’t blame referees, then the next option is to blame their players. Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari had harsh words for his own team’s defense after it let slip a 2-1 lead at Fulham Sunday and allowed Clint Dempsey a late headed equalizer.   Scolari held goalkeeper and captain Petr Cech chiefly responsible […]

A player at English non-league side Chippenham Town seems to have set a new world record for receiving the fastest ever red card after he was dismissed three seconds into a game.   Striker David Pratt, 21, lunged at midfielder Chris Knowles of opponent Bashley straight from the kickoff and received a straight red from […]

“Merseyside Police is investigating an assault that took place in the early hours of Monday Dec. 29 on Bold Street in Southport. At around 2:30 am this morning officers attended a disturbance at a licensed premises on Bold Street. Six men were arrested on suspicion of section 20 assault on Lord Street.” The official police […]

“The Turkish Cypriots said yes to FIFA and UEFA. In other words, they accepted the proposal which we had also agreed to.” UEFA vice president Marios Lefkaritis says that Turkish Cypriot clubs are set to rejoin the Cyprus Football Association after a half-century absence that has seen them excluded from international competition. The Cypriot league […]

“He’s probably going to die soon. I don’t think there’s any point helping him — we’re wasting our time. If I could wish, I would wish that he would go away from us. Everyone thinks he’s Gazza but because he’s the top player doesn’t mean he’s a good dad or a good person to be […]

“It’s been a long year and it has taken its toll and we must now move forward without him.” Derby County Chairman Adam Pearson following the resignation of manager Paul Jewell after Sunday’s 1-0 home defeat to Ipswich Town. Jewell had an unspectacular 7-30-13 record.

The Houston Dynamo and Major League Soccer have made an offer to take Mexican forward Luis Angel Landin, 23, on loan for a year from Morelia Monarcas, reports Bernardo Fallas. The Mexican team would retain the player's rights and collect an undisclosed fee. Houston's Chief Operating Officer Chris Canetti called the discussions "very interesting" and […]

Speculative Italian media reports have claimed that Borussia Dortmund's possibly U.S. defender Neven Subotic has as good as been sold to Serie A side Napoli. But the team's Managing Director Hans-Joachim Watzke has issued an unequivocal statement that the player is "absolutely not for sale." For good measure, Watzke added, "regardless of how much is […]