Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was left wondering what if after the Blues won the English FA Cup final with a 1-0 victory over Manchester United Saturday in overtime of the first final at the new Wembley Stadium. Didier Drogba‘s goal in the 116th minute decided the game and denied United a league and cup double. Drogba’s goal was his 33rd of the season. The Ivorian scored Chelsea’s two goals in the League Cup final victory over Arsenal and finished the Premier League season as its top scorer with 20 goals.
Category: Soccer America Daily
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EPL’s Chelsea and United plot for next season
As the FA Cup final dropped the curtain on the 2006-07 season for Chelsea and Manchester United, they began to consider plans for the 2007-08 season.Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho is looking to sign three new players — a defender, midfielder and a striker — for the coming season. In addition, he wants to tie up captain John Terry (the subject of rumors he wants to leave) and midfielder Frank Lampard (able to move to the club of his wishes — Barcelona? — for a set fee of $16 million under FIFA’s transfer guidelines) to long-term contracts. Meanwhile, Manchester United is reported to have reached a transfer agreement with Bayern Munich for Canadian-born England midfielder Owen Hargreaves, Bayern president Franz Beckenbauer said on Sunday.
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Mexico calls up Blanco for summer tournaments
[GOLD CUP ROSTER] Mexico included Chicago Fire signee Cuauhtemoc Blanco in its preliminary squad of 28 players for the CONCACAF Gold Cup and the Copa America on Friday. Hugo Sanchez will take 23 players to each of the tournaments, his first major tests as national team coach. Barcelona star Rafael Marquez is expected to skip the Gold Cup but will play at he Copa America.
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Cruz Azul kicked out of Mexican playoffs
Pachuca reached the final of the Mexican First Division’s Torneo Clausura playoffs by forfeit when semifinal rival Cruz Azul was expelled from the competition for using Salvador Carmona in the first leg of the semifinals on Thursday after being informed Carmona had been handed a lifetime ban for doping Wednesday by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland. Pachuca, which won the first leg, 3-1, away faces Club America in the final. With a second-half goal by Ismael Rodriguez, America beat archrival Guadalajara for its second 1-0 victory and advance to the Mexican First Division finals, 2-0, on aggregate.
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Romario finally gets his 1,000th goal
Former Brazil striker Romario finally scored what he said was the 1,000th goal of his career by converting a penalty in Vasco da Gama’s 3-1 over Sport Recife in the Campeonato Brasileiro on Sunday. Celebrations and interviews held up the match for 16 minutes after the 41-year-old Brazilian great sent Sport goalkeeper Magrao he wrong way, Romario’s tally includes goals scored in youth team, friendly and testimonial games, but doubts about his milestone failed to dampen the celebrations.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
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“I found out late in the week [that I was starting] and I just tried to make the best of the opportunity.”
— John Wolyniec, who started at forward for the New York Red Bulls against Columbus, because Jozy Altidore was attending his high school senior prom, and scored the first goal to set off a 4-0 rout in which he also notched an assist. (Herald News)
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Stuttgart claims Bundesliga title with late-season surge
VfB Stuttgart completed a late-season surge with a 2-1 victory over Energie Cottbus on Saturday that extended its winning streak to eight games and secured the young team the 2007 German Bundesliga title. The title was the fifth for Stuttgart, which moved ahead of long-suffering Schalke 04 on the second-to-last week of the season. For a few brief moments, it looked like Schalke might get the miracle it needed to capture its first Bundesliga title. Stuttgart trailed Cottbus after Sergiu Radu‘s deflected shot beat Timo Hildebrand in the 19th minute, but goals from Thomas Hitzlsperger on a brilliant long-range shot in the 28th minute and Sami Khedira‘s goal in the second half took Stuttgart its first Bundesliga title in 15 years.
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Real Madrid wins another squeaker thanks to Roberto Carlos goal
For the third straight league game, Real Madrid pulled out a last-gasp victory, beating Recreativo Huelva, 3-2, on Sunday to maintain its edge over Barcelona in the race for Spain’s La Liga title. With Barcelona cruising to a shocking 6-0 win at Atletico Madrid — the worst defeat at home in Atletico history — Real Madrid looked to be in trouble when it blew a 2-0 lead at Recre. With three games left, Real and Barcelona are tied with 69 points, but Real Madrid has won the tiebreaker (better head-to-head). UEFA Cup champion Sevilla remained just two points further back with a 2-1 comeback win at Deportivo Coruna.
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Vancouver remains unbeaten in USL-1 with 3-1 wins over Victory and Rhinos
[USL RESULTS] The defending champion Vancouver Whitecaps remained unbeaten in the USL First Division with 3-1 victories at California on Saturday and at home against Rochester in a rematch of last year’s playoff final on Sunday. Cuban Eduardo Sebrango scored two goals against the Victory and once against the Rhinos. Vancouver (5-0-2) leads Montreal (3-0-2) and Atlanta (3-2-2) by six points.
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Porto’s Dragons extend Portuguese dominance of big three
[MAKING A LIST] Porto won repeated as Portuguese league champion when it beat Desportivo Aves, 4-1, at home on Sunday to edge Sporting by one point and extend the domination of Portugal’s big three. Porto, Sporting and Benfica have won all but two Portuguese league titles since 1946. Belenenses (1946) and Boavista (2001) are the only other teams to win a league championship. Only nine teams have a team other than Porto, Sporting or Benfica even in finished in the top two
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AMERICANS ABROAD: Hannover misses chance for UEFA Cup
In Germany, Hannover 96 (Steve Cherundolo, 90 min.) missed a chance to clinch a spot in the Intertoto Cup, a path to the UEFA Cup, when it lost, 3-0, to FC Nuremberg. Kamani Hill was a 75th sub for Wolfsburg in its 2-0 loss to Werder Bremen. Wolfsburg finished three points above the releagtion zone. In the Second Division, Munich 1860 finished the season with a 2-2 tie with Erzgebirge Aue and in eighth place. Munich’s Gregg Berhlater went the full 90 while Josh Wolff was out injured. Wolff joined the team in midseason and played 10 games, scoring twice and assisting twice.
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Boca pays for blunders at home in Libertadores Cup stunner
[COPA LIBERTADORES RESULTS] Martin Palermo scored in the 90th minute to salvage a 1-1 tie for Argentine powerhouse Boca Juniors against Paraguayan champion Libertad in the first leg of their Libertadores Cup quarterfinal series on Thursday in Buenos Aires. Boca star Roman Riquelme and keeper Mauricio Caranta were the goats for Boca. Riquelme missed a penalty kick for Boca, which fell behind when Caranta tried to tip Osvaldo Martinez‘s free kick out of play but missed the ball, which flew into the Boca goal.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“Your dad is a cucumber!”
— What Crystal Palace fans chanted at Colchester United goalkeeper Dean Gerken, who was treated with “You should have stayed in a burger!” after giving up two goals. (BBC)
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OFF THE POST: Ref OKs bathroom break
[VIDEO] While preparing to take a goal kick, goalkeeper Maximiliano Kadijevic of Argentine second division club Defensores Belgrano signaled to the referee that nature was calling. The accommodating ref called for a stoppage and put the game on hold for several minutes, allowing Kadijevic to leave the field for the loo. “Something was troubling me, maybe a fruit juice,” said Kadijevic, whose team fell, 2-0, to Sarmiento Junin.
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Stuttgart looks to wrap up German title; Real Madrid seeks help from Atletico in Spain
[TV PREVIEWS] VfB Stuttgart looks set to clinch its fifth German league title when it takes a two-point lead over Schalke 04 and a seven-game winning streak into its final game against Energie Cottbus on Saturday (TV: GolTV, live, 9:30 am ET). in Spain, Real Madrid will look to continue its hot form when it travels to Recreativo Huelva on Sunday (TV: GolTV, live, 1 pm ET). Madrid, which shares La Liga lead with Barcelona, has the best away record in La Liga — in sharp contrast to Barca, which goes into its game at Atletico Madrid on Sunday (TV: GolTV, live, 3 pm ET) with only two wins in its last 11 away games.
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Full slate to serve up answers in MLS Week 7
[TV PREVIEW] This is by far the most contentious weekend of league play to date. Six games in two days through which answers regarding many MLS teams will be provided. Among the clashes: D.C. United looking for only its second win of the season when it faces rising Toronto; a rematch of last year’s final; the season’s second Chivas USA-Los Angeles clasico. Soccer America’s Ridge Mahoney previews all the action.
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Brazil calls up Ronaldinho and Kaka for England and Turkey friendlies
Brazil stars Ronaldinho and Kaka have been called up for friendlies against England and Turkey in June even though they requested to skip the Copa America. Coach Dunga said he wanted Ronaldinho and Kaka at the Copa America in Venezuela this summer but respected their decision to ask for a rest.
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U.S. opponent Guatemala names Carlos Ruiz to Gold Cup roster
[GOLD CUP ROSTER] Colombian Hernan Gomez, coach of Guatemala’s national team, named his 23-player squad for the Gold Cup, where the Chapines will face the USA, as well as El Salvador and Trinidad & Tobago, in Group B. MLS star Carlos Ruiz and Pablo Melgar of Chilean club Antofagasta are the only foreign-based players.
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USA draws untested teams for Under-17 World Cup
[HACKWORTH PODCAST] The USA faces first-time finalists Belgium and Tajikstan and Tunisia in Group E at the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup in South Korea, which will take place Aug. 18-Sept. 9 in seven venues. The U.S. U-17s, one of the seeded teams in Thursday’s draw in Seoul, open against Tajikistan on Aug. 20 in Changwon, then face Tunisia three days later and conclude group play on Aug. 26 against Belgium in Cheonan.
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Grudge match marks FA Cup’s return to Wembley
[TV PREVIEW] The English FA Cup returns to Wembley — the new Wembley Stadium built at a cost of $1.49 billion — on Saturday when Manchester United and Chelsea meet in a grudge match. The game comes almost two weeks after United ended Chelsea’s two year-reign as English league champion, clinching the Premier League title. A crowd of 90,000 will pack Wembley for the dream final.
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Repeat performance for FC Dallas
For the second time in six days, FC Dallas won, 2-1, on the road sin Carlos Ruiz in the starting lineup. On Saturday, FCD beat Kansas City. On Thursday, Coach Steve Morrow fielded the same starting lineup the beat the Wizards and FCD prevailed over Chicago in the Brimstone Cup to take over first place in the Western Conference. With Ruiz, a subject of trade rumors, sidelined with what was described as a tight left hamstring, Kenny Cooper and Colombian Juan Toja again provided the scoring
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Club America takes first leg of Superclasico playoff
[TV SCHEDULE] Twenty-four hours after being held by Santos of Brazil to a 0-0 tie in the Libertadores, Club America returned to Azteca Stadium, where it beat Chivas, 1-0, in the first leg of their semifinal series in Mexico’s Torneo Clausura. Regular-season leader Pachuca looked set to return to the Clausura final with a 3-1 win at Cruz Azul on Wednesday night.
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Mitchell to be 10th Canada head coach since ’86 World Cup
[MAKING A LIST] A day after U.S. Soccer confirmed Bob Bradley as men’s national team coach, Canada Soccer Association followed its lead and has called a press conference for Thursday in Toronto to announce the appointment of under-20 national team coach Dale Mitchell as men’s national team coach.
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Chivas USA teams up with Mexican paint company
MLS club Chivas USA has signed a jersey sponsorship deal with Comex Group, Mexico’s leading paint company. As part of the multiyear, multimillion-dollar agreement, Chivas USA’s jerseys will be emblazoned with the Comex logo, while Comex’s Frazee Paint brand becomes Chivas USA’s first ever presenting sponsor.
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Police arrest Chelsea’s Mourinho in dispute over family dog
Jose Mourinho, the pugnacious Chelsea manager, was arrested four days before the Blues’ FA Cup final against Manchester United, on charges of obstructing police. The incident took place after Mourinho rushed home from Chelsea’s team awards banquet after his wife, Tami, called, saying an animal health official and two police officers went to their central London home to place their dog into quarantine, believing it had been taken out of Britain and then brought back without the necessary shots.