Can anyone in Spain catch Real Madrid? Well, given that we were asking the same question of Barcelona at this stage last year, it’s certainly possible, but ESPN’s Phil Ball says the possibility looks increasingly remote with each passing week. On Saturday, Real rather comprehensively won the Madrid derby, beating neighbor Atletico, 2-0. As it […]
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What They’re Saying
“That’s what it said in the papers — let’s hope the papers are right!”
— New Newcastle manager Kevin Keegan when asked if it was true he had $60 million to spend during the winter transfer window.
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U.S. Soccer Development Academy Results
Arsenal FC’s Under-17/18 Academy team opened its Development Academy campaign with a 3-0 victory over the Irvine Strikers on Saturday. Michael Vega, Trenton Titus and Eddie Valencia scored for Arsenal, which returns to action the week after next when it hosts visiting Washington Premier and FC Portland. For all the Development Academy results and goal scorers …
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MLS Offseason Player Moves
D.C. United completed a deal for Argentine forward Franco Niell, who was acquired on a one-year loan from Argentinos Junior on Tuesday. For all the team-by-team MLS offseason player moves …
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Egypt catches Lions napping
[AFRICAN NATIONS CUP] Defending champion Egypt easily disposed of Cameroon, 4-2, in their much-anticipated showdown Tuesday at the African Nations Cup.
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Tottenham ends brawling Arsenal’s jinx
[ENGLAND] Only four months into his job as Tottenham manager, Spaniard Juande Ramos is the toast of White Heart Lane. Spurs snapped a nine-year run of 21 games without a victory over archrival Arsenal in grand style on Tuesday when it crushed the Gunners, 5-1, to win their English League Cup series, 6-2, on aggregate. Arsenal came so unglued at the end that Togolese star Emmanuel Adebayor and Dane Nicklas Bendtner became involved in an altercation
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Americans in Norway
[MAKING A LIST] Pat Noonan is the third MLS player and fourth American to sign with a Norwegian club in the offseason. There are 10 Americans on the rosters of Norwegian pro clubs — five of them U.S. internationals.
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Pat Noonan leaves Revs for Norway
Three years after goalkeeper Adin Brown played out his MLS contract and signed with Norwegian club Aalesund, he’s about to be joined by another ex-Rev. Pat Noonan, who started and earned an assist in the 2-0 USA win over Sweden Saturday at Home Depot Center, is joining Aalesund on a free transfer. The Revs elected not to pick up the option on his MLS contract, hoping it could sign him for a lower salary than the $225,000 he earned last season.
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Soccer Job Openings
[EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES] Soccer America provides the latest on employment opportunities for soccer-related positions: college coaching opportunities, positions in the pros, youth soccer, the soccer industry, even television.
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McClaren: MLS Puts Beckham’s England Career in Jeopardy
Steve McClaren thinks David Beckham’s England career will be over after he earns his 100th cap against Switzerland on Feb. 6. The former England manager believes the standard of play in Major League Soccer isn’t good enough for him to continue at international level. Beckham is currently training with Premier League leader Arsenal ahead of […]
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
More Drama, Another Draw for Liverpool
Amid protests and a worsening ownership situation, Liverpool fell further behind in the league standings on Monday, drawing 2-2 at home to Aston Villa. The fifth-place Reds needed a late equalizer from Peter Crouch to salvage a point; Liverpool has now drawn its last four games and sits 14 points behind leaders Manchester United and […]
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Feilhaber to Stay in Europe
U.S. midfielder Benny Feilhaber will not be leaving Derby County for Major League Soccer, according to separate reports on the Web. In fact, in an ESPN interview, Feilhaber implies that unless Derby manager Paul Jewell tells him to look for work elsewhere, he’ll be staying. “I made the right choice coming to Derby,” Feilhaber said […]
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Former Newcastle Defender on His Way to L.A.
Former Newcastle defender Celestine Babayaro is on the verge of making a switch to the Los Angeles Galaxy, according to various reports. The 29-year-old former Nigeria international has been without a club for over a month after agreeing to leave the Magpies by mutual consent. Babayaro spent three years at Newcastle but failed to establish […]
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New York’s Osorio Eyes Argentine Gallardo
The New York Times’ Jack Bell talks with Red Bulls coach Juan Carlos Osorio, who is headed to South America on a scouting trip. “I can tell you that we have already found the players we need, but there are restrictions because of the salary cap,” the Colombian said. “I am looking for a central […]
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Red Bull Academy teams to be cost-free
[YOUTH] Players selected to the New York Red Bulls youth academy teams will play cost-free. “We believe by eliminating the cost barrier, top players will be able to develop within our program with a goal of someday playing on the first team for the New York Red Bulls,” said RBNY Academy Director Bob Montgomery.
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Euro moves deplete Dynamo
No sympathy will be poured out from its opponents, but the Houston Dynamo isn’t looking so dynamic up front. Joseph Ngwenya, who arrived in a trade from Columbus last season and tied for the team lead with seven goals, is joining SK Austria Karnten as a free agent. Ngwenya scored Houston’s first goal in its 2-1 MLS Cup win over New England last November.
Posted inSoccer America Daily, What They're Saying
What They’re Saying
“The money is frustrating, but I understand that this is all part of it. Hopefully I will be here long enough to see an increase in the salary cap that will allow us to go and look in different markets to help bring the level of MLS higher.”
— New York Red Bulls coach Juan Carlos Osorio, who says he’s identified a central defender, a left-footed midfielder and a playmaker – reportedly Argentine World Cup vet Marcelo Gallardo – but that the salary cap may hinder his shopping spree. (New York Times)
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MLS Offseason Player Moves
Draft day deals sent U.S. internationals Alecko Eskandarian from Real Salt Lake to Chivas USA, his fourth team in 14 months, and Chris Albright from Los Angeles to New England, while a deal for Jim Curtin to leave Chicago for Chivas USA was reportedly agreed upon on Monday. Champion Houston lost Zimbabwean Joseph Ngwenya, who scored the Dynamo’s first goal in MLS Cup 2007, to Austria Kaernten, last in the T-Mobile Bundesliga at the winter break. For all the team-by-team MLS offseason player moves …
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Liverpool soap opera continues
[ENGLAND WATCH] Who will fall first? Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez? Or its despised American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett?
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Sir Alex defends gesture
[OFF THE POST/VIDEO] Manchester United coach Alex Ferguson denied intentionally making an abusive gesture at Reading fans near the end of his team’s 2-0 win on Saturday. Of the gesture, known in Britain as an “up yours” sign, Ferguson said, “All I was doing was expressing my relief at winning one of our hardest games of the season.”
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Kalou golazo decides Ivory Coast-Nigeria showdown
[AFRICAN NATIONS CUP/VIDEO] Dribbling seems to be a lost art these days, but Salomon Kalou put on an extraordinary display of magic on the ball to score the only goal in Ivory Coast’s 1-0 win over Nigeria in a battle of giants Monday at the African Nations Cup in Sekondi
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Puerto Rico is on a roll
[WORLD CUP WATCH] Led by a core of American pros and collegians, Puerto Rico won back-to-back games for the first time in more than a decide when the Boricuas swept a pair of friendlies at Bermuda.
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Ibrahimovic Double Saves Inter
Fittingly, the best player in Serie A came to the rescue of the best team in Serie A, as Zlatan Ibrahimovic on Sunday fired home two late goals in the 3-2 win over Parma that kept Inter Milan undefeated and seven points clear of Roma at the top of the table. The Swede converted a […]
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MLS SuperDraft Grades
ESPN writer Ives Galarcep grades the performance of the 13 MLS teams during last Friday’s SuperDraft, an event he describes as being “thin in the talent department.” He gave the Chicago Fire an “A” for walking away with arguably the draft’s best forward in Patrick Nyarko, its best attacking midfielder in Peter Lowry and best […]
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Aston Villa Enjoys American Ownership
In stark contrast to the situation at Liverpool, Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill couldn’t be happier with American owner Randy Lerner. Villa traveled to Anfield Monday to face the Reds, and “while the Kop plots more anti-U.S. protests, O’Neill and the Villa supporters might as well be draped in stars and stripes for the Premier […]