“It’s difficult to avoid the conclusion that the only thing preventing Celtic and their ilk winning more often on their travels are simple human frailties: insecurity and fear.” Barry Glendenning searches for clues to solve the mystery of Glasgow Celtic’s terrible Champions League road form.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Eight Potential Buyers For Newcastle
“I know for a fact [Newcastle owner] Mike [Ashley] is talking to eight consortiums about [buying] the club,” says Newcastle’s interim manager Joe Kinnear.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Get Marta!
Austin Kelley hopes that the still nameless L.A. team set to compete in Women’s Professional Soccer next year will pull out all the stops to sign Brazilian Marta, after winning the somewhat flimsy right to try and negotiate a deal with the player in the league’s ‘international draft’ last week. “Start the bidding war,” writes […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Zenit Refutes Bribery Allegations
In other alleged bribery news, Zenit St .Petersburg has denied allegations that it paid Bayern Munich to throw last season’s UEFA Cup semifinal. Spanish newspapers El Pais and ABC reported that a leading Spanish judge has heard a taped telephone conversation in which Russian criminal Gennadios Petrov claimed to have paid the German team “vast […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
English FA Turned Down World Cup Bribes
The tell-all memoir of David Davies, the former executive director of the English Football Association, continues to leak its pre-publication scoops to the U.K. media. The latest revelation is that the FA was offered the chance to buy votes while bidding for the 2006 World Cup. The call to the FA offering to set […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Montreal’s Philosophy: Work Hard And Believe
Montreal Impact coach John Limniatis explained his team’s incredible 2-1 Concacaf Champions League away victory at Olimpia of Honduras with simple words. He said the win, which came in the middle of a seven-game stretch in 15 days, was a result of industry and self-belief. This is in stark contrast to the attitude of at […]
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
MORNING BRIEFING: Freshman leads Michigan State
With 12 goals in 11 games, freshman Laura Heyboer has been a big reason why Michigan State is 10-1-0 and ranked No. 20 in the country.
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
MORNING BRIEFING: Notre Dame falls to Michigan
Michigan again showed why it is one of the most dangerous teams in the country as the unranked Wolverines defeated No. 14 Notre Dame, 3-1, Wednesday afternoon in a game played at Eastern Michigan University’s Scicluna Field. ALSO: Wins for Wake Forest, Creighton, Ohio State and Loyola (Md.) and ties in a pair of major West Coast showdowns.
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
SCOREBOARD: Soccer America Women’s Top 25
The two top-ranked ACC teams meet in the NSCAA Women’s Game of the Week Thursday when No. 9 Duke hosts No. 6 North Carolina. For this week’s complete Soccer America Women’s Top 25 …
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
SCOREBOARD: Soccer America Men’s Top 25
No. 1 Wake Forest improved to 9-0-0 with a 3-0 win over Elon. For this week’s complete Soccer America Men’s Top 25 …
Posted inCollege Soccer Reporter, Story
INTERVIEW: Notre Dame’s Kerri Hanks
SOCCER AMERICA interviews top-ranked Notre Dame’s Kerri Hanks, who will go down as one of the great strikers in the history of women’s college soccer. The 2006 Hermann Trophy winner ranks 17th in NCAA Division I history with 208 points (74 goals and 60 assists). She says the Irish are finding ways to finish early and late, making them a favorite to return to the Women’s College Cup.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
USL teams remain undefeated
[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS’ LEAGUE] The Montreal Impact and the Puerto Rico Islanders of the USL-1, the USA’s second tier league after MLS, extended their unbeaten streaks and lead their respective Champions League groups. Roberto Brown scored twice for Montreal in a 2-1 win in Honduras against Olimpia and the Islanders tied Municipal, 2-2, in Guatemala.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Luck betrays D.C. against Cruz Azul
[CONCACAF CHAMPIONS’ LEAGUE] Bad soccer has plagued D.C. United for much of this forgettable season yet it can make a case that bad luck Wednesday at RFK Stadium just about extinguished its slim hopes of advancement in the regional championship.A bizarre carom off Cruz Azul forward Pablo Zeballos redirected a shot past United keeper Zach Wells for the only goal in a 1-0 game that all but eliminated D.C. (0-3-0) with three CCL matches still to play. The other three teams in Group A all have six points.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Jaime Moreno suspension extended
[MLS] D.C. United’s desperate quest to reach the playoffs will see it play two of its final four games without the player that has produced the most goals. The MLS Disciplinary Committee has doubled the fine and suspension incurred by Jamie Moreno for his elbow to the face of Dallas midfielder Andre Rocha during their match at Pizza Hut Park last Sunday. Moreno is second on the team in goals with 10 and leads United with nine assists.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
MLS TV Schedule
The San Jose Earthquakes travel to FC Dallas on Thursday (9 pm ET, ESPN2). Both teams are below the playoff zone and FC Dallas leads the Quakes in the West by four points. But the Quakes have a game in hand. FC Dallas striker Jeff Cunningham has five goals and two assists in seven games since arriving via trade with Toronto FC. Earthquakes attacker Arturo Alvarez pays his first visit to Frisco since being traded by FC Dallas in late July. For this weekend’s TV schedule, standings and leading goalscorers …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“Soccer players are simple fools. They only learn by being dropped or fined. They all eat crap — so now they lose the weight or they lose their money. End of story.”
— Renato Portaluppi, coach of Brazilian club Vasco da Gama, who has threatened six players he deems overweight with $150 fines if their don’t shed some pounds.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Germany 2011 will be played in summer
[WOMEN’S WORLD CUP] The 2011 Women’s World Cup in Germany will be played June 26-July 17 — which represents a switch from the last two women’s world championships, which were played in the fall.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Cluj and Anorthosis remain unlikely unbeaten
[UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE] Romanian champion Cluj held Chelsea to a draw in Wednesday’s Champions League action, while two late Lionel Messi goals earned Barcelona a win over Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk.
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
Trying to make sense of away goals
Admittedly, there was reason to wonder whether Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger was in full possession of his faculties this past weekend. His team had been sensationally upended by Hull City — at home, in Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium, no less. A result that ought to have been impossible, but there it was — Hull City, a newly promoted club, playing its first-ever season in the top league, with a bunch of players who can be politely described as non-household names — and they’d got the better of mighty Arsenal.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
The Remarkable Rise of Cluj
“By early 2002, the club had only played nine seasons of top flight football in 90-odd years of existence, and were in the third division drawing paltry crowds of around 200. Then Árpád Pászkány arrived.” Andy Clark tells the remarkable story of Romania’s unlikely Champions League participants, CFR Cluj.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Must-Win Game For The Quakes
“By playing like crap on Saturday we’ve put ourselves in a familiar situation where we’re forced to get a result.” Quakes goalkeeper Joe Cannon looks forward to his team’s game at FC Dallas Thursday.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
France Goalkeeper Coupet Slates Domenech
“People aren’t happy in the France team. [Coach Raymond] Domenech plays with people but if you keep doing that, you stumble in the end. It’s ever so sad because there’s an amazing quality in that group and it’s all being wasted.” Goalkeeper Gregory Coupet burns his bridges with the French national team.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
The Kaiser’s Advice
“If that happened to someone on a school team, you’d tell them, ‘Clear off and go play the piano or the flute’.” Franz Beckenbauer reacts to an own goal from Bayern Munich defender Martin Demichelis in Tuesday’s 1-1 Champions League draw with Olympique Lyon.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Scots Finally Tempt Argentina
At the third attempt, Scotland has persuaded Argentina to play a friendly game at Hampden Park in Glasgow next month. The first request fell through when Argentina demanded 100 percent of the gate money and television revenue. The Scottish Football Association didn’t go for that at all. Then the SFA polled its own fans to […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Crystal Palace Owner Ready To Sell
Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan bought the team eight years ago when he made $64 million from selling his mobile phone company. His team is close to the bottom of the Championship (England’s second tier), does not own its stadium, Selhurst Park, and is mortgaged to a hedge fund, Agilo, that caters for “distressed companies.” […]