Category: Section 2 Around the Net

The philosophy of English Premier League Chief Executive Richard Scudamore with regard to his universally scorned plan to play a round of EPL games in foreign cities around the world is similar to that of a small child hankering after an unfeasibly expensive toy. He seems to figure that if he bangs on about it […]

Arsenal Chairman Peter Hill-Wood has repeated that the club's ownership will stay in the hands of those who have "Arsenal in their blood." He was addressing concerns from Arsenal supporters' groups that billionaire investors such as Denver Nuggets owner Stan Kroenke and controversial Uzbek-Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, who between them control around 36 percent of […]

Nouveau riche west London Championship side Queens Park Rangers has sacked manager Iain Dowie with the season just 12 games old. Its triumvirate of extremely rich owners had demanded Premier League soccer by noon Thursday, and Dowie had been unable to deliver due to the constrictions of time in the current dimension.

“I feel calm. Two or three others deserve the Ballon d’Or. But if you evaluate what each one did over the course of the season I believe I did more than everyone else. What else do I have to do to win the Ballon d’Or and Fifa award?” Cristiano Ronaldo expects recognition of his achievements […]

The Seattle Sounders FC will host open tryouts in three Washington cities in November. Inevitably, the tryouts “will be filmed for a reality-based television show that will be shown in late January of 2009.” But if only the base is reality, what will the rest be? Fantasy footie on ice? Shaolin soccer from Spokane? The […]

“We’ve been treated great out here. The fans are great, the U.S. is great and it’s been a great ride. We couldn’t ask for anything more. My family is happy here and I like playing in this league.” Kansas City Wizards’ Argentine midfielder Claudio Lopez dishes the gritty inside story on soccer life at a […]

Former Polish national team coach Janusz Wojcik was detained Wednesday in Warsaw and will "most likely" be charged with active and passive corruption, according to Polish Justice Minister and Attorney General Zbigniew Cwiakalski. The former player and member of parliament for the Self Defence Party is accused of taking "large amounts of bribes". The minister […]

“I’m sick of losing. It’s a chance to finish on a high note.” Landon Donovan tells Goal.com’s newly installed U.S. editor Andrea Canales that he aims to take the Galaxy’s dead rubber game against FC Dallas dead serious. But he does he mean final game of the season, or final game of his L.A. career?

The Mexican Soccer Federation (FMF) has expelled a third division team for its alleged ties to drug traffickers. The FMF’s national council voted Tuesday to expel the Mapaches (Raccoons) of Nueva Italia and the team’s president, Fidel Ortega Vargas, two weeks after seven members of the team were detained by federal authorities.

“It’s insane, an unbelievable achievement for the club and the boys.” Adelaide United defender Sasa Ognenovski hails his side’s progress to the final of the Asian Champions League after beating Bunyodkor of Uzebkistan 3-1 on aggregate. Adelaide will meet Japan’s Gamba Osaka, and is guaranteed a place at the 2008 World Club Cup as either […]

“They were the more alert team tonight. We were second-best at everything.” Houston Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear after his mostly reserve side’s 3-1 home defeat to UNAM Pumas in the Concacaf Champions League.

Setanta Sports TV cameras homed in on a Welsh fan holding a cuddly toy sheep in front of a big flag during Wales’ U-21 game against its English counterparts. The problem? Written on the flag was the Welsh slogan, “Twll Din Bob Sais,” which translates as “A***holes to the English.”

While AC Milan broke the story Wednesday about taking David Beckham on loan in January, and MLS Commissioner Don Garber confirmed that talks were afoot, it seems that only the L.A. Galaxy was kept in the dark. No wonder Galaxy coach Bruce Arena described the whole affair as “odd.” “The first I heard about it […]

David Beckham should leave MLS right now if he seriously wants to play for England at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, writes Graham L. Jones. “Not on loan, not for just a short training spell with AC Milan or any other European club that comes calling, but for good — his own good […]

Jaime Moreno retired from international soccer Wednesday with a cameo appearance for Bolivia in an exhibition game against El Salvador at RFK Stadium. In the stadium where Moreno’s scored so many goals for D.C. United, however, it was a former United player, Eliseo Quintanilla, who scored the goal of the night as El Salvador ran […]

FIFA President Sepp Blatter is often labeled the “Teflon boss” for his ability to avoid questions and accusations about bribery and corruption involving soccer’s world governing body. His charmed professional life seems to extend to his personal life too — at the weekend he escaped unhurt from a high-speed car collision. According to a report […]

David Beckham has agreed to join AC Milan on loan in January, the club’s Vice President Adriano Galliani told the BBC. “Beckham has chosen Milan,” said Galliani. “He’ll stay here in Milan on loan for a few months. Our squad is ultra-competitive and it will remain this way but Beckham is something different and intriguing.” […]

Chelsea midfielder and German national team captain Michael Ballack has criticized German coach Joachim Loew for showing a lack of respect to the team’s established senior players. After Loew dropped Ballack’s teammate Torsten Frings to the bench for last week’s World Cup qualifiers, the captain lamented Loew’s policy that national team selection is now based […]

The draw for the final round of African World Cup qualifying Wednesday has pitted Cameroon in the same group as Morocco, and Nigeria in the same group as Tunisia. In the other three groups, the favorites to advance are Egypt, Ghana and Ivory Coast. “It is indeed a very difficult group,” said Cameroon’s German coach […]

Luis Arroyave asks a pertinent question about the playoffs: what’s the use of “home advantage”? The Chicago Fire will clinch home advantage in the Eastern Conference if it beats New York Thursday, but, he asks, “does the Fire even want it?”

U.S. national team second-choice goalkeeper Brad Guzan has yet to appear for the English Premier League’s Aston Villa since his summer move from Chivas USA, but for now he’s happy to be learning at the feet of his compatriot and namesake Brad Friedel. “Being able to train with him day in and day out, and […]

“I am no longer Chelsea coach, and I do not have to defend them any more, but I think it is correct if I say [Didier] Drogba is a diver. Drogba, [Cristiano] Ronaldo, [Fernando] Torres and [Robin] Van Persie are the divers. Who dives more? Who has won more penalties in recent years? But English […]

“He’s showing relentless courage and effort to get up and down the field and has been plugging away. Sometimes it takes a while to get that first goal, and it came at a perfect time.” Kansas City Wizards coach Curt Onalfo lauds Hercules Gomez, who scored the Wizards’ last-minute gamewinner against San Jose at the […]

“All the teams in Europe will look and see the 5-2 win by Arsenal, away and with a young team, and I think they will be scared to play us.” Theo Walcott gets a little carried away after Arsenal’s 5-2 Champions League win at Fenerbahce.

“The key here is some people had probably written us off. But we never wrote ourselves off, and now, I think people realize we’re a team that can do some damage here in the second half of the season.” Michigan State Men’s Coach Joe Baum looks forward after beating top 20 teams UIC, Michigan and […]