Category: Soccer America Daily

[OFF THE POST] Meleanie Hain, who lost her concealed weapons permit after taking a Glock 26 to her 5-year-old daughter’s soccer games, has got the permit back and assured a Pennsylvania judge, “I’m certainly not looking to shoot anyone over a goal.”

Fans may regard the USA’s Concacaf qualifier Wednesday against Trinidad & Tobago as little more than a lark; with qualification assured, some younger players can get on the field, knock the ball around, and just enjoy the experience. In reality, this figures to be a fiercer test, regardless of the stakes, than what the team faced in Guatemala City and Havana.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] There’s a lot on the line as the second double fixture week of World Cup 2010 qualifying concludes in Europe. Can Portugal regain its winning form? Will Michael Ballack be fit for Germany’s top-of-the-table clash against Wales? What is Steven Gerrard‘s role in the England team? Will New Jersey-born Giuseppe Rossi get his first start for Italy?

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] While the USA and Costa Rica have clinched berths in next year’s Hexagonal, Mexico heads to Edmonton to face Canada with hopes of clinching one of the two berths from Group 2. Tri coach Sven-Goran Eriksson is under pressure after the 1-0 loss at Jamaica on Saturday brought a wave of criticism from the Mexican press.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] German Reinhold Fanz, who has been working for free, was demoted as Cuba’s national team coach after its 6-1 loss to the United States on Saturday.

[MLS] Spanish club Barcelona will announce details of its bid for an MLS expansion team in conjunction with Bolivian businessman Marcelo Claure, who resides in Miami, on Wednesday — the deadline for applications for the two expansion spots MLS hopes to add for the 2011 season.

Coach Kazbek Tambi has named the 21-player roster that will represent the United States at the inaugural Under-17 Women’s World Cup, which will be held Oct. 28-Nov. 16 in New Zealand.

The Trinidad & Tobago-USA game is one of 11 World Cup qualifiers available on television on Wednesday. For all the listings …

[REF WATCH] The first official experimentation with extra linesmen was conducted at a European U-19 Championship qualifying tournament in Slovenia and UEFA President Michel Platini was pleased with the results. An extra linesman was positioned near each goal to help alert referees to fouls in the area or diving incidents.

Nobody knows better than Sigi Schmid that sitting atop the MLS standings during the regular season means nothing in the postseason. Clinching the Supporters’ Shield, which the Crew accomplished Sunday by tying the Fire, 2-2, at Toyota Park, isn’t even half the battle in MLS.

[TRINIDAD & TOBAGO-USA] After releasing nine players and adding four others to face Trinidad & Tobago in the next U.S. qualifier, Coach Bob Bradley has tweaked the squad yet again.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] The end of the first phase of World Cup qualifying in Africa sparked off violence, celebrations and, in the case of Uganda, widespread confusion.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] In Asian World Cup qualifying this week, Australia and Japan have winnable home games, while in Group 2’s big match Iran hosts North Korea.

The Trinidad & Tobago-USA game is one of 11 World Cup qualifiers available on television on Wednesday. For all the listings …

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] There were few surprises in Europe’s weekend World Cup qualifying action, with expected victories for England, Spain and the Netherlands.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] Paraguay continues to lead the way in South American World Cup qualification after a road victory in Colombia. Brazil and Argentina also won to keep a firm hold on second and third spots.

Burkina Faso and Malawi are among the surprise African countries through to the final phase of the continent’s World Cup qualifying. Those eliminated include recent World Cup participants Senegal and Angola.

[USL-1] West African imports have played an increasingly important role in the USL First Division, no one more so than Charles Gbeke. The 30-year-old Ivory Coast native has hopped around six USL-1 teams — with two stints apiece at three clubs — ending up a second time at Vancouver. All he did was lead the Whitecaps to their second USL-1 title, scoring both goals in the club’s 2-1 victory over the Puerto Rico Islanders in the final.

In the case of a U.S. military operation a few years ago, a proclamation of “Mission Accomplished” turned out to be drastically premature; for the U.S. national team, its mission of qualifying for the Hexagonal is done with two games to spare. The Americans dismantled a game Cuba team, 6-1, at RFK Stadium Saturday with a pair of DaMarcus Beasley goals and single scores apiece from four players. Atop Group A with a 4-0-0 record, the USA. is assured of a place in the six-team Hexagonal final round from which the Concacaf 2010 World Cup participants will emerge.

[USA-CUBA REPORT CARD] Soccer America’s Ridge Mahoney grades the U.S. players’ performance in their 6-1 win over Cuba on Saturday. …

[WORLD CUP 2010] In its next qualifier the U.S. will present a very different squad than the one that routed Cuba, 6-1, on Saturday in Washington, D.C. Coach Bob Bradley released nine players and added four more to flesh out his 18-man roster for a match Wednesday in Port of Spain against Trinidad & Tobago, which scraped out a 0-0 tie in Guatemala City Saturday. The result kept the teams tied in second place with 1-1-2 records and five points.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] The USA and Costa Rica clinched berths in the Hexagonal after only four rounds of the semifinal round of qualifying in the Concacaf zone. On the other hand, Canada’s 3-1 loss at Honduras eliminated it from contention. In Day 4’s big surprise, Jamaica edged Mexico, 1-0, to keep its slim hopes alive.