Category: Soccer America Daily

Wednesday’s UEFA Champions League action features two games available live on television: Chelsea-Juventus and Real Madrid-Liverpool. ESPN Deportes will air eight and a half hours of continuous coverage of all four games. For all the matchups and broadcast times …

[WPS] Women’s Professional Soccer took one more step toward its launch with the unveiling of the Puma uniforms worn by players from the league’s seven teams at a high-profile fashion presentation Tuesday in New York.

[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE] Many of the chances in a back-and-forth game came from the run of play, but a pair of set pieces produced the goals as Houston and Atlante tied, 1-1, in the first leg of their Concacaf Champions’ League quarterfinal series Tuesday in Texas in front of 10,203 fans.

[MLS] It has taken more than two years, but Toronto FC is steadily amassing much of the Canadian talent playing on this side of the Atlantic Ocean. Another player from that mold, whose long-anticipated move brings him north after a long detour, made it official this week when defender Adrian Serioux went north from FC Dallas in exchange for TFC’s first-round pick in the 2010 SuperDraft pick and allocation money.

[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE] The Houston Dynamo’s record against Mexican teams is sprinkled with all manner of results but regardless of win, loss or tie, its players and coach welcome the competition. A rematch with Atlante is Houston’s quarterfinal assignment in the 2008-09 Concacaf Champions League, beginning with the first leg at Robertson Stadium Tuesday (10 p.m. ET, Fox Soccer Channel, Galavision).

[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE] MLS had plentiful reasons to object when Concacaf announced it would expand its club championship to 24 teams, but getting knocked out by lesser opposition surely ranked low on the list. As the quarterfinals commence after a three-month gap since group play, only one MLS team, Houston, is among the final eight. Four Mexican teams make up half of the quarterfinalists, and two others hail from the USL. Ticket sales are going so briskly that Montreal Impact officials hope to pack the Olympic Stadium with a record crowd of 50,000 fans for the visit of Santos Laguna Wednesday.

[CONCACAF UNDER-20 CHAMPIONSHIP] Coach Thomas Rongen named the 20 players who will represent the USA at the 2009 CONCACAF Under-20 Championship, which will be played March 6-15 in Trinidad & Tobago. For the complete roster …

[MEXICO] Manuel Lapuente joined fellow former Mexican national team coach Javier Aguirre in the unemployment ranks when he was dismissed as Tigres coach Sunday. Meanwhile, Aguirre, fired as Atletico Madrid coach earlier this month, dismissed speculation that he’ll be replacing Sven-Goran Eriksson as the Tri coach.

Soccer fans can feast on full days of UEFA Champions League action Tuesday and Wednesday. All eight games will be shown — six of them live. ESPN2 will feature Anglo-Italian clashes  Inter Milan-Manchester United on Tuesday and Chelsea-Juventus on Wednesday. ESPN Deportes will air eight and a half hours of coverage both days. For all the matchups and broadcast times …

[MLS] Rookie defenders, even good ones, will have bad days, yet one of the first games in the sophomore season of 2008 Rookie of the Year Sean Franklin turned out to be among his worst.

[MLS] The “dream team” may be headed for a divorce. An expansion application to place a team in Miami from legendary Spanish club Barcelona and Bolivian businessman Marcelo Claure has taken a rocky turn, according to press reports on both sides of the Atlantic.

[AMERICANS ABROAD] Two young Americans returned to action when defender Jonathan Spector started for English Premier League West Ham and midfielder Sal Zizzo came off the bench late for Hannover 96 in the German Bundesliga. For a wrap-up on Americans in foreign leagues. …

[AMERICANS ABROAD] Landon Donovan had a big chance to prove himself dear to Bayern Munich, coming on as a halftime sub with Bayern struggling against newly promoted, 11th-place FC Cologne. Reviews of Donovan’s performance in a game that launched “Bayern Crisis” headlines in Germany didn’t favor the 26-year-old American’s chances to land a long-term deal with Bayern, but it still has four more games before the loan ends.

With a host of scouts from top European clubs on hand, Anderlecht opened up a four-point lead in Belgium with a 4-2 win over Oguchi Onyewu‘s Standard Liege. Lyon, winner of the last seven French titles, is pulling away in Ligue 1. Sporting won the Lisbon derby with a 3-2 win over Benfica. For all the weekend results and current standings …

[ENGLAND] Is the Premier League race over? Last week Sir Alex Ferguson said the chase was between his Manchester United and Liverpool, dismissing struggling Chelsea. Then Liverpool was held to a 1-1 tie at home with Manchester City on Sunday, leaving Manchester United with a seven-point lead.

[SPAIN] Barcelona lost for the first time since opening day when city rival Espanyol beat 10-man Barca, 2-1, at the Camp Nou Stadium on Saturday on a pair of goals by former Barca midfielder Ivan de la Pena. Barca’s lead over Real Madrid, which was 12 points a week ago, is down to seven.

[GERMANY] The Bundesliga has its third leader in three weeks as Hamburg took over first place with 2-1 win at Bayer Leverkusen thanks to two goals by defender Marcell Jansen on Sunday. Last week’s leader Hamburg and the leader at the winter break, Hoffenheim, are two points back. Bayern Munich dropped four points off the pace when it was stunner by FC Cologne, 2-1.

[ITALY] Inter Milan didn’t give challengers Juventus and AC Milan any chance to make a dent on its big lead when won at Bologna, 2-1, on Sunday. The win left Inter nine points ahead of Juventus, a 2-0 winner at Palermo, and 11 points in front of AC Milan, which edged Cagliari, 1-0, on a second-half Clarence Seedorf goal.

[AMERICANS ABROAD] With both its regular forwards injured, Landon Donovan could get his first start for Bayern Munich when it faces Cologne on Saturday (GolTV 11:30 am ET). Earlier this week, Bayern chairman Karlheinz Rummenigge downplayed the American’s chances of staying past the loan deal, but the injuries and a crowded schedule should give Donovan a chance to make his case.

[WORLD CUP 2010] The sale of the approximately 3 million tickets available for the 2010 World Cup begins Friday. For information on how fans can purchase tickets …

[MLS] With a month to go before New York opens the 2009 season in Seattle, head coach Juan Carlos Osorio took the time to scout talent in El Salvador.

[MLS] Chicago led until the final minute of its exhibition match against Mexican second division club Queretaro FC Wednesday but was left with a 1-1 tie at the final whistle.