Category: Story

Chivas USA midfielder Sacha Kljestan‘s price tag has proven to expensive for Glasgow Celtic, reports Ronnie Cully in an “exclusive.”   He writes that Major League Soccer has “placed a price tag of around £2.5m [$3.6 million] on the 23-year-old. It is understood extra payments based on appearances, plus a substantial sell-on clause, would be […]

FIFA President Sepp Blatter said Friday that soccer’s world governing body will reject joint bids for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups if there are other single-country bids with “certain guarantees,” according to the Spanish news agency Efe, citing comments by Blatter at a press conference in Asuncion, Paraguay.   If true, this would already […]

When Chelsea’s Ivorian forward Salomon Kalou celebrated scoring against Middlesbrough on Wednesday, his post-goal choreography in tandem with compatriot Didier Drogba could, it seems, be interpreted in one of two ways. Either he was showing his admiration for WWE wrestler John Cena, or he was making a statement in support of the Ivory Coast political […]

Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill will be pleased that so many people still underestimate his side’s chances of winning the Premier League title this season, writes Kevin McCarra. In fact Villa’s ambitions “are so often overlooked that the team are clandestine contenders,” he says.   But Villa is only a point behind Liverpool and Chelsea, […]

Well worth reading in full, Kaveh Solhekol‘s entertaining guide to the worst aspects of the modern game includes a rant about modern squad numbers: “Remember the days when the best player was No 10 and goalkeepers were No 1? Not any more. Thanks to someone at the Premier League watching an American football game, players […]

The Cyprus Football Association says that talks with the breakaway Turkish Cypriots to unify soccer on the ethnically divided island have collapsed. The CFA said Friday it considers the matter “over” after the Cyprus Turkish Football Association turned down a FIFA- and UEFA-brokered deal on ending its decades-old exclusion from international  soccer.

“A very rare find. As organized as youth soccer is now, we might not see that again.” Houston Dynamo Director of Youth Development James Clarkson on the team’s 18-year-old generation adidas signing Felix Garcia, who grew up playing soccer in the streets and parks of Laredo, with the benefit of avoiding soccer clubs and their […]

“It’s definitely more relaxed than last year. It helps to have had the kind of season we had last year. That’s not being slack, I don’t think, but I have no doubt once we get closer to the start of the season, things will be a bit more serious.” Columbus Crew’s “gritty, grinning Scotsman” Adam […]

“His [David Beckham‘s] agent is here in Milan. He will first speak with him and then we will meet him ourselves. The good feeling between our club and David is absolute but you all know the situation.” AC Milan Vice President Adriano Galliani reports on the latest installment of the L.A. Galaxy midfielder’s seemingly inevitable […]

“I thought about it a lot, and it was the right amount of money and security [with United]. Another thing is, I have a good situation here. I think a lot of guys go from team to team looking for a good situation, for things like playing time, enjoying where they’re living. I’ve obviously had […]

Newcastle United’s already troubled season hit more problems Wednesday when Michael Owen and Joey Barton both suffered serious injuries in the team’s 2-1 defeat at Manchester City, while manager Joe Kinnear said that the club’s owner, Mike Ashley, was suffering hard from the economic downturn and might be struggling to pay the players. Meanwhile, goalkeeper […]

The “hunch” that Washington Post reporter Steven Goff nurtured a couple of days ago that Marcelo Gallardo will return to Argentina and be replaced by his compatriot Christian Gomez as D.C. United’s playmaker looks a step closer to realization. Gallardo is trying to negotiate a contract settlement that will free him to join River Plate, […]

English referee Mark Clattenburg, 33, “was widely regarded as the brightest young talent in English football refereeing…who soared through the ranks in record time and looked destined for fame on the greatest stages,” writes Nick Harris. But all that came to an end Wednesday when he was sacked as a Premier League referee following an […]

FIFA President Sepp Blatter said Wednesday that it will allow Brazil to stage the 2014 World Cup in 12 cities rather than 10. Soccer’s world governing body had initially said it wanted the tournament staged in 10 cities to minimize logistical problems.   “This country is not a country, it’s a sub-continent, five-times world champions, […]