Category: Section 2 Around the Net

“Half the teams in the league are different than they were two years ago. Things evolve. We are always interested in a designated player, or finding someone with real quality, a world-class player, but we need to get the right person coming into our team and not jeopardize the whole way we do things as […]

Chelsea striker Didier Drogba has been charged with violent conduct by the English FA after throwing a coin into the crowd during Wednesday’s League Cup game against Burnley.

“If you’re a die-hard Yankee fan and that’s your sport, I don’t expect that person to be coming to the [New York] Red Bulls, necessarily. But if you’re a sports fan looking for an affordable ticket and quality product in a state-of-the-art facility, that’s going to be us.” RB New York Managing Director Erik Stover […]

Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber will grab a shovel December 1 and, together with team, local and state officials, officially break ground on the Philadelphia team’s new stadium in Chester.

In keeping with the David Beckham trend of heading abroad to stay in shape during the MLS offseason, D.C. United’s Brazilian midfielder Fred is off on loan to … Wellington Phoenix of Australia’s A-League, where he will be eligible to play six games. Fans of Fred’s former team, the Melbourne Victory, are reportedly miffed at […]

There’s nothing like the long term deferral of success to make triumph a sweeter experience. The Chicago Fire won the MLS Cup in the team’s first season of existence, and has since been unable to recapture the standard it established perhaps a little too quickly. But the Columbus Crew has kept its public waiting long […]

Fire and former Crew striker Brian McBride, 36, again found himself on the familiar side of defeat. After scoring nine playoff goals for Columbus in his eight seasons with the team, but without picking up a Conference title, he scored for the defeated Fire Thursday to cries of “Traitor!” from a section of his former […]

Another player still reportedly resentful at being traded is Real Salt Lake’s Dema Kovalenko, who accused RB New York coach Juan Carlos Osorio of dishonesty and being “two-faced” when he sent the midfielder to Utah earlier this year. As narrative luck would have it, the two teams meet this Saturday in the Western Conference playoff […]

The Spanish press has been speculating that Real Madrid’s German coach Bernd Schuster will be fired if his side fails to beat Real Valladolid this weekend. Despite having led the team to the Spanish league title last season, and despite not having lost a league game since the opening day of the season, Madrid has […]

Manchester City and its manager Mark Hughes have a long shopping list of players ready for the upcoming January transfer window, but Hughes has said that just because the club is rich does not mean he will pay over the odds. “Still,” writes James Ducker, “it is difficult to see the Sheikh [owner Sheikh Mansour] […]

Eric Wynalda’s been uncharacteristically quiet of late, but he spoke to Andrea Canales about Landon Donovan’s current training stint with Bayern Munich and a possible long-term move to Europe. “This is a gut check to see how much heart you have,” Wynalda said. “It’s not how much skill you have. It’s a test. My only […]

Argentine media reported Wednesday that Diego Maradona may quit as Argentina coach over his choice of an assistant, after just one week in charge. Maradona is due to make his coaching debut in Glasgow next week in a friendly against Scotland. The reports said Maradona has run into a deadlock with Argentina soccer federation President […]

Soccer’s world governing body FIFA is reviewing its plan to hold a dual tender for hosting rights to the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, Matt Scott reports. A quarter of the 24 members on FIFA’s powerful executive committee last month questioned the plan. They said that, with the vote set for March 2011, deciding the […]

London police are to investigate the incident that saw Chelsea striker Didier Drogba throw a coin back into the crowd during his team’s League Cup defeat at home to Burnley Wednesday. Drogba, who apologized for his behavior after the match, threw an object back into the section of Burnley supporters behind the goal moments after […]

Cristiano Ronaldo’s representatives are ready to begin talks with Manchester United over a new contract, even though he penned a five-year deal last year for $179,000 a week, reports Andy Hunter. United, however, want to wait until the end of this season before resuming talks. Ronaldo, 23, is 19 months into the five-year contract, and […]

“I don’t even know if he’ll be able to play for us. I mean the first goal is for him to get fit and in the best shape possible. But I don’t know if he’ll play, that’s another thing completely.” AC Milan’s Dutch midfielder Clarence Seedorf adds himself to the list of doubters about David […]

“[New York Coach Juan Carlos Osorio] took over a team that’s been losing. Then you have one of your Designated Players retiring, then arguably the best young player in this country was sold to Europe. Then toward the end of the year you have two guys suspended for performance-enhancing substances. So it hasn’t been easy.” […]

“I’m not nearly self-confident enough to say I knew what I was doing. But if you’ve been around pro sports long enough you can quickly pick up when someone has a fire in their stomach which can lead to success in their profession.” Real Salt Lake owner Dave Checketts looks back on his appointment early […]

“Perhaps legendary football coach Vince Lombardi said it best: Winning isn’t the only thing, but wanting to win is. No statement could better capture the final moments of the Dynamo’s stunning loss to the New York Red Bulls on Sunday before a packed Robertson Stadium.” Bernardo Fallas lauds Houston and its fans for their attitude […]

Real Madrid has confirmed that its Dutch striker Ruud Van Nistelrooy is out for the season with a partially torn meniscus in his right knee.

“Neither AEG nor anyone affiliated with the organization are in negotiations or are contemplating the purchase of Newcastle United Football Club,” read a statement from Anschutz Entertainment Group.

It took Japanese side Gamba Osaka less than 15 minutes to kill off Adelaide United in the second leg of the Asian Champions League final Wednesday. After winning the first leg 3-0 two weeks ago in Osaka, Brazilian forward Lucas struck twice in the opening quarter of an hour to finish the series at 5-0 […]

The spokesman for England’s professional soccer players has spoken out against tough new doping rules for the Premier League, claiming that they will constitute an invasion of privacy. The English FA has signed up to the World Anti-Doping Association code, and from July next year a pool of up to 30 players must be available […]

The Chicago Fire was concerned that defender Bakary Soumare would be unable to make the transition from the college game to Major League Soccer, writes Nick Firchau, but those doubts were banished long before Soumare, 23, was nominated for this season’s Defensive Player of the Year award. “‘We always had the idea that he would […]

Sigi Schmid, the 55-year-old Columbus Crew boss who has been deservedly crowned MLS Coach of the Year, probably “watches more televised soccer than any other person in America,” according to Shawn Mitchell. “Sundays are for European games and MLS highlights from the weekend,” writes Mitchell. “Mondays are dedicated to watching recordings of the upcoming opponent. […]