Category: Story

[CUBA-USA] The most impressive performance from the USA at Saturday’s 1-0 win over Cuba came after the game when Landon Donovan kept a straight face as he said, “I thought we played very well.” In fact, the unconvincing effort against a soccer minnow was a stark reminder that the U.S. national team isn’t making progress.

[USA-TRINIDAD & TOBAGO] Trinidad & Tobago’s Soca Warriors will be without captain Dwight Yorke, who returned to English club Sunderland under pressure, when they face the USA Wednesday in their World Cup 2010 qualifier.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] Brazil beat Chile, 3-0, in Santiago on Sunday in the only South American World Cup 2010 qualifier to climb from sixth to second place and ease the pressure on beleaguered coach Dunga.

[MLS NAMES & NUMBERS] Argentine Guillermo Barros Schelotto made a case for 2008 Most Valuable Player with one goal and two assists in the Columbus Crew’s 4-0 win over the New England Revolution in the battle of MLS’s two best teams.

Against Cuba, Clint Dempsey was moved from the frontline into the midfield and scored his third goal of the qualifying campaign after striking twice in the preliminary round against Barbados. After the game, he spoke about the Cuban fans’ warm reception …

Books and artwork are among the few items the U.S. Department of the Treasury allows Americans to bring back from Cuba, so I take a walk down the Paseo de Prado where Havana artists sell their paintings. But on Saturday the pedestrian-only path is overrun by about a hundred young volunteers passing out condoms and educational material on the prevention of STDs. The Plaza de Armas in Old Havana is as usual, with scores for vendors selling used books. It’s of little surprise what books dominate the vendors’ displays.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] Canada’s World Cup 2010 hopes appear to be over after it fell to Honduras, 2-1, in Montreal on Saturday, leaving it with one point after two games at home and a date at Mexico on Wednesday in Group B in front of it.

The surprise of the opening day of play in Europe was France’s 3-1 loss to Austria that will put new pressure on Coach Raymond Domenech to resign. Italy needed a stoppage time goal to beat Cyprus, 2-1. It wasn’t until after halftime that England scored against Andorra. Two Joe Cole goals were all the scoring in a 2-0 England win. in South America, Argentina had to settle for a 1-1 tie against Paraguay. New Zealand, starting five players who attended U.S. colleges and also played in MLS, clinched  the Oceania title with a 3-1 victory at New Caledonia. For all results and goal scorers …

Mike Woitalla reports from Havana
In what was surely the least intimidating atmosphere the USA will face in their 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign, it eked out a 1-0 over Cuba in Havana. The Cuban fans filled only half the Pedro Marrero Stadium and were more than 30 yards from the field because of the running track. They applauded as the American players were introduced, giving their loudest welcome to Landon Donovan. And they cheered when the Americans waved goodbye.

[CUBA-USA REPORT CARD] Soccer America’s Mike Woitalla grades the U.S. players’ performance in their 1-0 win over Cuba on Saturday. …

Mike Woitalla reports from Havana
The USA training session the day before the game was closed so as not to reveal its starting lineup for its game against Cuba on Saturday. But most likely, Coach Bob Bradley‘s squad will closely resemble the team that won at Guatemala, 1-0, on Aug. 20. That means defensive muscle in the middle covering for attacks from the flank. The main question marks are who will replace Pablo Mastroeni in the central midfield and how much Bradley will take into account Wednesday’s qualifier against Trinidad & Tobago.

Mike Woitalla reports from Havana
The corrugated metal roof of Pedro Marrero Stadium, damaged by Hurricane Gustav, was being fixed by brave acrophobia-free men and fortunately no one was hit when one of the panels fell down. Others carried hundreds of plastic deck chairs into the stadium for the front rows. But busiest of all were the two men who cut the entire field by pushing around the kind of two-stroke engine lawnmowers more appropriate for a backyard grass. And what thanks do they get? “The grass is a little long,” said U.S. coach Bob Bradley on the eve of his team’s World Cup qualifier against Cuba.

Cuba has two sets of currency. That’s why I accidentally paid 24 times more for a newspaper than the asking price. And why when I tried to buy a postcard with the peso bill that features Jose Marti‘s face I was told to use the one on which the 19th century Cuban hero is riding a horse. The CUC, or convertible peso, is what foreigners use. The CUP, or Cuban peso, is for locals and is the equivalent of four U.S. pennies – which is what the admission price is for Cuba’s World Cup against the USA on Saturday.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] Since qualifying for the 1986 World Cup, Canada has had no luck in World Cup qualifying. Once again, the Canadians find themselves in trouble thanks to a 1-1 tie against Jamaica in Toronto last month in the opening game of the semifinal round of World Cup 2010 qualifying. If it doesn’t beat Honduras Saturday in Montreal, Canada is in danger letting another World Cup slip away.

[WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING] Algeria, once an African power but on decline for two decades, is staging a comeback in World Cup 2010 qualifying. Its 3-2 win over powerhouse Senegal before 45,000 fans in Blida on Friday moved it into first place in Africa’s Group 6 with nine points, one better than the Senegalese and four better than Gambia.

Saturday’s Cuba-USA game is one of 15 games to be televised on cable or pay-per-view. The weekend schedule includes Day 2 of the Concacaf semifinal round and Day 1 of European group play. For all the matches …