Abby Wambach’s broken leg is a “huge blow” to the chances of the U.S. women’s Olympic team winning gold in Beijing, writes Andrea Canales, especially for a roster already robbed of experienced players such as defender Cat Whitehill and midfielder Leslie Osborne. But while many of the players that Coach Pia Sundhage takes to the […]
Posted inSoccer on TV., Story
Soccer on TV
The USSF Development Academy Championships are on ESPN2 and ESPNU on Friday and Saturday. Group play in the Superliga 2008 concludes Saturday and Sunday. MLS action includes a New York-Los Angeles clash, a meeting that last year attracted 66,237 fans and ended in a 5-4 Red Bulls win.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Manchester City tries crystal power
[OFF THE POST] In addition to owner Thaksin Shinawatra‘s millions of dollars, English Premier League side Manchester City is hoping feng shui will bring trophies to the Eastlands.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Beware the roaming doppelganger
[OFF THE POST] Mexico coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has been so busy with his coaching duties that some people have wondered how he manages to get it all done. Turns out, there are two of him.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Wolff delivers for Wizards in barn-burner
[MLS/VIDEO] Thursday night’s ESPN audience was treated to one of the season’s best games as host Columbus tied Kansas City, 3-3, in game that featured three goals during a six-minute stretch in the first half and a tying goal by Wizards prodigal son Josh Wolff.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
The Wambach Injury
[VIDEO] The U.S. women’s national team’s leading scorer, Abby Wambach, underwent successful surgery Thursday on the broken leg she suffered Wednesday that keeps her out of next month’s Olympics. For video of Wambach’s collision with Brazilian defender Andreia Rosa. …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Argentine refs armed with special spray
[REF WATCH] Referees in the Argentine second division will be equipped with more than just a whistle and cards when the next season kicks off. The Argentine federation has decided to outfit its referees with a vanishing white spray, too. Officials will use the spray, which disappears within a minute, to keep walls 10 yards away from the ball during free kicks.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
"I want to thank all the fans, the doctors, the players on the team and Tasha Kai for scoring the winning goal. Obviously, it’s devastating, but above everything else, I’m only one player, and you can never win a championship with just one player. I have the utmost confidence in this team bringing home the gold."
— Abby Wambach, the USA’s leading scorer, who will miss the Olympics after suffering a broken leg Wednesday during the USA’s 1-0 friendly win over Brazil. Wambach has been replaced on the Olympic roster by 20-year-old forward Lauren Cheney, an Indiana product who has 12 U.S. caps and three goals. Cheney has scored 42 goals in her first two seasons at UCLA. (AP)
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Olympic coach Nowak goes with experience
Lack of experience won’t be an issue with the U.S. Olympic men’s soccer team. The 18-player squad selected by Coach Peter Nowak includes 12 players who have experience at the full national team level, including Brian McBride, who has played in three World Cups.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Eto’o off to Uzbekistan?
[TRANSFER TALK] What initially seemed to be nothing more than a PR stunt is now a story with some legitimacy. Samuel Eto’o arrived in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, to discuss a proposed move to Kuruvchi, the current leader of the Uzbek League.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
U.S. Soccer Development Academy’s Finals Week Results
Carmel United’s 2-2 tie with LAFC was good enough to win Group C and send it into Saturday’s final of the U-15-16 Group against PDA, which had already clinched first place going into . For all Thursday’s results and goal scorers and the weekend television schedule of all the placement games …
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
MLS TV Schedule
New York hosts Los Angeles for the first time since a Giants Stadium crowd of 66,237 witnessed a 5-4 Red Bulls’ win over the Galaxy last season. … If San Jose ends its six-game winless streak it will be the first team to win at Toronto this season. … Real Salt Lake protects its Western Conference first-place spot win it plays at Chicago. … FC Dallas looks for its first win under Coach Schellas Hyndman when it hosts Colorado. … For all of this weekend’s MLS action on TV and the standings. …
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Insider
Tips for the Camp Counselor
In this day and age, soccer camps come in all sorts of shapes and sizes: skills camps, indoor camps, fun camps, and team camps. And for better or worse, I’ve worked at all of them.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Zimmerman Tries Out At Westerlo
Hamburg striker Preston Zimmerman, who was promoted to Hamburg’s first-team roster at Christmas but didn’t appear in the Bundesliga in the second half of the season, is on a week’s tryout with Belgian first division club Westerlo.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
United’s Gallardo and Peralta May Face Surgery
D.C.’s injury worries increase as its Argentines face possible hernia operations.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Glory Glory Drogheda United
Results and reports from the remaining first leg games of the UEFA Champions League opening qualifying round. Look away if you’re a fan of the Faeroe Islands’ champion, NSI Runavik.
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
All-Star Opponents Flying Economy Class
The prestigious Premier League opponents of our Major League Soccer superstars are traveling to the United States for the All-Star game in appropriate style — by economy class. Or, as Britain’s favorite tabloid phrases it: “West Ham stars are fuming at their tour from hell after a travel firm went bust.” According to the (notoriously […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
The Curious Case Of The Qatari Brazilian
Emerson, a Brazil-born Qatar international, has just been banned by FIFA after it turned out that he represented Brazil at the 1999 South American U-20 tournament. Despite all the confusion surrounding the player’s passport and his real identity, Gavin Hamilton writes that “the Qatar FA made a huge mistake, punishable in FIFA statutes by a […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
SuperLiga’s A Bust
Many of D.C. United’s players declared themselves “disappointed” after Tuesday’s SuperLiga defeat at home to Atlante. However, writes Pat Walsh, “it was the kind of disappointment one feels walking up to a bus stop, seeing the bus pull away, and thinking, Oh, well, there will be another along in a few minutes.” That other bus […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Lopsided Stats Will Mean Nothing In Beijing
The U.S. women’s team is No. 1 in the FIFA world rankings and has gone 21-0-1 this year, but those facts and stats will mean little or nothing when it comes to next month’s Olympic tournament in Beijing, writes Mark Zeigler. As U.S. captain Kate Markgraf puts it: “Sometimes it’s not the best team over […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Wambach out of Olympics
The U.S. women will head to the 2008 Olympic Games on the momentum of two straight victories over nemesis Brazil — and a 21-0-1 record in 2008 — but they will do so without their top scorer.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
U.S. Soccer Development Academy Awards
The eight conference starting XI squads and coaches of the year were announced for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Under-17/18 age groups. Among the recipients were former U.S. national team star Bruce Murray, selected as the Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year for his work with CASL. For all the awards …
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One goal apiece is enough for Revs and Chivas USA
[SUPERLIGA] New England and Chivas USA took giant strides towards qualifying for the SuperLiga semifinals Wednesday night by scraping out 1-0 victories against their Mexican rivals in Group B.
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
In Praise of Claudio Reyna
What a shame that Claudio Reyna’s splendid career should end in anticlimax. The final stage of that career, his signing with the Red Bulls in January 2007, proved to be one step too many.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
U.S. Soccer Development Academy’s Finals Week Results
The Baltimore Bays and LAFC moved into Friday’s final of the U-17/18 Group at the U.S. Soccer Development Academy’s Finals Week at the Home Depot Center. For all Wednesday’s results and goal scorers …