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Writer spends time, a lot of time, with Deuce. Pretty damn good read [This is American Soccer]
Ex-Birmingham striker finds new job. He’s a cop in Calgary [Calgary Sun]
Odd job: Becks lookalike [Headingly Today]
And, finally:
If you haven’t seen Del Piero’s goal from Wednesday, go see it now [101 Great Goals]
Written by Darkvader on September 18th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on Backpasses and ü75.
latest result from UEFA cup. AC Milan VS Zenith, Napoli VS Benefica, Sampdoria VS Kaunas
Written by Darkvader on September 18th, 2008 with no comments.
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Napoli 3 - 2 Benfica 
NAPOLI (3-5-2): Navarro; Santacroce, Paolo Cannavaro, Contini; Christian Maggio, Blasi, Walter Gargano, Marek Hamsik, Vitale; German Denis, Ezequiel Lavezzi.
Here is the starting eleven formation by Benfica Coach Quique Flores:
BENFICA (4-4-2): Quim, Maxi Pereira, Luisao, Sidnei; Urreta, C. Martins, Yebda, Reyes; Angel Di Maria, David Suazo.
AC Milan 3 - 1 Zurich 
Substitutes: 65′ Alexandre Pato out, Marco Borriello in 77′ Eric Hassli out, Nikci Adrian in
68′ Massimo Ambrosini out, Emerson in 88′ Almen Abdi out, Admir Mehmedi in
75′ A. Shevchenko out, Ronaldinho in
Line up:
MILAN: Dida; Antonini, Bonera, Kaladze, Jankulovski; Ambrosini, Flamini, Seedorf; Kakà ; Shevchenko, Pato.
Here is the starting formation for Zurich:
ZURICH: Leoni; Stahel, Tihinen, Barmettler, Stucki; Djuric, Aegerter, Okonkwo, Alphonse; Abdi, Hassli.
Sampdoria 5 - 0 Kaunas 
Written by Darkvader on September 18th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on Napoli and Sampdoria and UEFA and ac milan.
I don’t remember when was the last time I was in full agreement with MARCA, but yes, MADRID and their ‘pedestrian futbol’ stunk it up again. Warning - Guti had an excellent game, now expect him to disappear for the next 5 matches.
ENGLISH TRANSLATION - “NOT MUCH SOCCER, NOT MANY GOALS, A WHOLE LOT OF WHISTLING, but we’re LEADERS”
Written by estoverao on September 18th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on Champions League and boring futbol and pedestrian futbol and raul and real madrid and schuster.
NICOSIA (AFP) - Cash-rich Manchester City needed a brace from Brazilian striker Jo to overcome Cypriot minnows Omonia Nicosia 2-1 in this UEFA Cup first round, first leg tie here on Thursday.
Omonia surprisingly went ahead from Klodian Duro’s direct free kick on the edge of the area after 49 minutes but Jo grabbed the headlines with two second-half goals to clinch victory.
Jo levelled the score in the 59th minute with a simple tap in after Elias Charalambous had failed to clear the ball as Sean Wright-Phillips took it off him to set up his team-mate.
The Brazilian secured victory on 72 minutes when, unmarked inside the area, he had time to trap the ball and pick his spot with a low drive into the right-hand corner.
But Cyprus international Efstathios Aloneftis should have scored for Omonia after 62 minutes but his effort from six-yards went the wrong side of the post.
“I’m pleased with performance and the result but a little bit concerned we didn’t convert our chances. We are in good shape for the second leg,” said City manager Mark Hughes.
His opposite number Nedim Dudic agreed that City deserved the win.
“We played a very good team and we paid for our mistakes but we will give it our all for a good result in the return leg,” said Dudic.
Although Manchester City enjoyed the lion’s share of opportunities this was an open game high on entertainment value with the home side not overawed by their much vaunted opponents.
City’s flair players started brightly with record signing Robinho and Wright-Phillips at the heart of their team’s best attacking moves.
Robinho, all flicks and tricks, had a shot parried by keeper Antonis Georgallides after only two minutes.
The keeper was called into action soon after, this time having to tip a goal-bound Wright-Phillips effort around the post.
The visitors created plenty of attacking opportunities as their hosts were also intent on going forward by deploying four strikers.
A great first half chance fell to Jo when he should have tapped into an open net, but missed, from a cross when Stephen Ireland stole the ball on the edge of the area after defender Charalambous dithered on the ball.
But Jo was unlucky not to open the scoring when his shot thumped against the upright after he outsmarted the defence on 41 minutes.
It was then the turn of the industrious Ireland to see his close-range effort bounce off the woodwork just before the interval.
When Jo again hit the goal frame early in the second half, City must have believed they were cursed not to score until a defensive error showed them the way.
The game was billed as a missmatch between Cypriot minnows Omonia and the newly cash-rich club from the Premier League but on the pitch the rich-poor divide was not always visible.
The island’s most popular club was spurred on by deafening support from the 18,000 crowd at Nicosia’s GSP stadium and substitute Clayton Cruz was denied an equaliser by Joe Hart in the closing seconds.
Written by estoverao on September 18th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on Manchester City and UEFA Cup and elano and flowing soccer futbol and jo and mark hughes and robinho and shaun wright-phillips.
I’ve been watching this game and rather enjoying it, so I thought a little 2nd half liveblog wouldn’t be a bad thing. For someone who is always ragging on MLS, I’ve had fun with this one.
Good attacking football from both sides, and the tempo is high.
I just feel like the one thing they’re all missing is that last pass through en route to goal. The final delivery is sloppy, but it’ll come in time. Thus, you end up getting guys shooting from range without much menace (except for Angel, whose free-kick was beastly), or you get a lot of goals scored via the old Fifa ‘98 route: cross from the touchline, get a tap-in or a header from the edge of the 6-yard box.
Maybe I’m wrong. Either way, it’s been a good ‘un so far. 1-1 at halftime, and they’re getting ready to come back…
Follow along if you’re around, after the jump.
Starting XIs:
—–
New York Red Bulls:
18 - Jon Conway (GK)
2 - Kevin Goldthwaite
6 - Seth Stammler
7 - Mike Magee
9 - Juan Pablo Angel
13 - Jorge Rojas
17 - Gabriel Cichero
19 - Dane Richards
23 - Juan Pietravallo
27 - Andrew Boyens
60 - Jeff Parke
Subs:
1 - Danny Cepero (GK)
4 - Carlos Mendes
8 - Sinisa Ubiparipovic
12 - Danleigh Borman
15 - John Wolyniec
32 - Luke Sassano
33 - Chris Leitch
—–
Columbus Crew:
1 - William Hesmer (GK)
2 - Frankie Hejduk
4 - Gino Padula
5 - Danny O’Rourke
10 - Alejandro Moreno
11 - Pat Noonan
12 - Eddie Gaven
14 - Chad Marshall
15 - Stefani Miglioranzi (replaced by Ekpo, 20″)
16 - Brian Carroll
19 - Robbie Rogers
Subs:
18 - Kenny Schoeni (GK)
6 - Andy Iro
8 - Duncan Oughton
9 - Jason Garey
17 - Emmanuel Ekpo 20
23 - Ezra Hendrickson
32 - Steven Lenhart
And we’re off.
46 mins:
Holy shit… that didn’t take long. GOAL COLUMBUS… Robby Rogers, who caused a lot of problems on the left wing, takes the ball with pace and cuts infield, letting fly from 30 yards and sending the ball soaring past Jon Conway.
New York Red Bulls 1, Columbus 2
50 mins:
Rogers and Eddie Gaven are causing nightmares on the flanks for RBNY. Rogers ghosts past Cichero on the left, and the Venezuelan defender decides to stonewall him and send him flying. The crowd wants a penalty; the ref gives it where he should have given it, just outside. Rogers floats it in but Conway collects easily.
Conway’s been rather pants tonight. Caught way out of position on goal #1, arguably on goal #2 as well, and just hasn’t looked up for it tonight.
Moreno collects it outside the box dead center and decides to rip a shot with Boyens in his face… narrowly wide.
Sub for RBNY: Woljniec in, Pietravallo out. The salt-and-pepper hair atop the sub is rather hilarious to look at.
Other players who have looked good: Ekpo for Columbus (fast as shit but can’t play a good final pass!) and Dane Richards, another lad who is faster than the proverbial speeding bullet but whose passing has the accuracy of a shotgun at long range.
55 mins:
LA Galaxy haven’t won since Arena took over? I’m not surprised. Meanwhile, RBNY struggle to have any possession whatsoever. Moreno feeds Ekpo at the edge of the box, his thunderous shot is blocked and loops high and harmlessly towards the touchline. Conway canters across to collect under no pressure, but misjudges it and it dinks off him for a corner.
Corner doesn’t amount to much, although the clearance is weak, and when Gaven gets it in the box again, his shot is rather weak and smothered easily.
57 mins:
RBNY cough it up again cheaply in midfield, and Brian Carroll jogs towards goal and shoots from 35 yards. It loops wide. What is with all this long-range shooting? A lot easier to score if you’re close.
60 mins:
Harkes (I think it’s Harkes) posits that the way to mark Juan Pablo Angel out of the game is to put two on him; one right in front of him to stop him shooting, and one right behind him to stop him getting the ball. Is he suggesting JPA might enjoy being the Lucky Pierre?
I wish I didn’t now have that imagery. Damn you, Harkes. NIGHTMARE FUEL.
61 mins:
The RBNY defensive third of the field is beginning to resemble WW2-era Dresden; it is raining possession and chances on poor Conway’s goal, leaving their defense looking rather dilapidated. (That’s right folks, a tenuous WW2 reference!) The raiding is halted momentarily by a foul on the edge of the box that gives Conway a chance to clear and breathe a little.
62 mins:
Here come Columbus again. Marshall plays Moreno through, and it’s a straight sprint to goal. He holds off the last defender, Conway comes out to greet him on the edge of the box, Moreno dinks it past him to the left and then takes a rather ridiculous dive right over Conway’s outstretched body. The crowd becomes apoplectic looking for the penalty, but the ref knows best and awards a goal kick.
Moreno knocked it far too long past Conway to sell the ref on the foul, which was dubious at best to begin with.
RBNY have a corner on the right, which they promptly squander by heading well over the bar.
66 mins:
Columbus spending all their time attacking without difficulty down the wings. A weak cross from Gaven is cleared easily, and Rojas sets off for a sunday job through the entire midfield. He gets some 25 yards virtually untouched, and with 4 Crew defenders in front of him and RBNY players trying to make a break, he takes a speculative shot from range. Not far over, either, but leaving his teammates looking rather frustrated.
RBNY attack again down the left, but Goldthwait tosses up a cross to nowhere.
68 mins:
Cynical that from Dane Richards. A RBNY corner is cleared easily, and Rogers breaks up-field. He knocks it past the first man and turns Richards, whose response is to pull on his shirt until he falls down. Yellow card. Columbus take the free-kick quick and break down the right, the cross in finds Gaven who narrowly heads over.
70 mins:
It’s Angel’s turn to cross to nowhere. Bit more possession finally for RBNY in this second half, but Columbus have threatened to score a boatload of goals so far in this second half. Will their profligacy in front of goal lead to a soft equalizer?
20 minutes left to find out.
71 mins:
Cute trickery from Ekpo in midfield, but his final pass to Moreno trickles harmlessly through to the keeper. Frustrating stuff from someone who is very, very fun to watch.
I missed a substitution 10 mins ago for RBNY: Mike Magee off, Danleigh Borman off.
72 mins:
It’s Hesmer’s turn to look like Paul Robinson in goal, as a long, lofted free kick into the box catches him in two minds and he’s forced to fumble it out for a corner with 2 Red Bulls giving him pressure. It amounts to nothing.
73 mins:
I’m not watching MLS anymore; it’s just the Rogers and Gaven Show. Their link-up play is enjoyable, but Columbus aren’t doing anything with it. Wojyniec breaks for RBNY down the left flank, but Hejduk distracts him enough to regain possession. Both teams are passing it around neatly for the most part, but it’s not adding up to clear-cut chances.
76 mins:
HOW IN THE NAME OF DAVID BECKHAM DID THEY MISS THAT?!?!?!? Gorgeous play by Columbus. Given time to pass it around on the edge of the box from left to right to left again, Rogers chips the defense and Hejduk beats the offside trap. Through one-on-one on Conway, he hits it right into the goalie, and the ensuing scramble breaks to Rogers on the edge of the box. With plenty of space to shoot at, he scuffs it off the outside of his foot, it takes a deflection and Conway smothers the loose ball. Gilt-edged chance for the Crew.
… immediately from that Wolyniec beats the trap from Rojas’s smart angled pass, but Hessmer is equal to it. Welcome back, end-to-end football. I’ve missed you the last 20 minutes.
80 mins:
Both sides are tired, but RBNY are starting to look more threatening. Still, the final pass is lacking. To prove my hypothesis, Rojas has a chance to spring Angel, but his pass is too strong and despite a spirited chase, it rolls out for a Columbus throw-in.
82 mins:
Sub time for Columbus after a lull in the play. Ekpo is off, with defender Danny Iro coming in. Would be awful to drop 2 points after this performance.
Sigi Schmid has another sub ready in the form of Jason Garey. Who’s he replacing?
85 mins:
Dane Richards capitalizes on a gaffe to break down the right wing. All alone, he whips in a quick, low cross but it’s easily clear. You can sense Angel’s frustration from here.
And just like that… Columbus break and SCORE ANOTHER GOAL. Neat, clinical move, too. Hejduk gets through on the right after a neat chip through by Noonan, he races in on goal with the Goldthwaite breathing down his neck, he waits until Conway comes out before passing across for Gaven, who was wide open and slots it into an empty net. Very nicely done indeed.
New York Red Bulls 1, Columbus Crew 3
Just like that they bring on Garey for Noonan, who’s had a quiet game. Not much of note from Pat N.
89 mins:
Frustration and petulance emerge from the RBNY side, who are clearly annoyed at the rather lackluster performance they’ve put in this evening. Rogers (I think) holds the ball near the left-hand corner flag, slowly sucking time off the clock, and Goldthwait decides he’s had enough and takes a wild hack at the back of his leg. A long, swinging kick for no reason whatsoever, and the ref’s decision is easy. RED CARD FOR GOLDTHWAIT.
Columbus fans cheer, Goldthwait stomps off. Stupid move late in the game.
90+1 mins:
Roll on full time, please. RBNY are just committing stupid, angry fouls and tension is running a little higher at the game winds down. Hejduk has another run down the wing, but it’s broken up by Stammler. Less than a minute to go.
90+2 mins:
O’Rourke skies a shot well over, and we’re seconds from the whistle.
FULL TIME:
A comfortable, richly-deserved win for Columbus at home despite coughing up the early goal. Rogers and Gaven were a constant menace, and RBNY will now have to deal with a suspension for Goldthwait, the guy with the most mins this season, after his idiotic foul at the death.
Final Score: New York Red Bulls 1, Columbus Crew 3
Decent game, that. MLS is slowly winning me over. Sure, it’s no Liverpool, but I need to stop the snobbery when it comes to the US version. Still, I’m adamant that they’re lacking the final pass. Too many long-range shots and dribbling into two defenders. Still, a good game.
Now it’s time to crack into the scotch and watch Gordon Ramsay berate moronic, ornery failing restauranteurs for an hour.
Written by Darkvader on September 18th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on Columbus Crew and Lingering Bursitis and Liveblogs and MLS and Red Bull New York.
With this in mind, & aiming to please, SFS has come across this
official
The paper titles : “The 24 men of Real Madrid”. The picture angle many
have been a mistake, better front on, but this is what we have guys.
The question is: will Real Madrid stay all season with the chosen 24 above?
Will it add a new member in December?
Stay tuned!
Hope the Real fans enjoyed this.
*Thanks to “Mundo Deportivo” for the team header.
Written by STRIKER on September 18th, 2008 with no comments.
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The long road of the UEFA Cup kicked off tonight with 4 Spanish
teams in action. Many consider the Uefa Cup more difficult & much
more unpredictable than the Champions League. The 1ºhalf set up of
the Uefa Cup is a home & away knock out stage which then turns
into a Group ( Champions League format) stage to see the top of
each group fight it out till the final. It is basically a tooth-grinder
of a competition which takes the punch out of most teams.
The first team to feel the true nature of Uefa is DEPORTIVO who went
down away 2-0 to Norweign side BRANN BERGEN. The goals come
in the 20th min via a penalty that BJARNASSON converted & in the
36th min via SOLLI.
Bergen deserved the win as they were superior & will make the return
leg a must win game ( & with 3 goals) affair for Deportivo who face an
uphill battle.
SEVILLA FC did the job as was expected with a 2-0 victory at
home against SALZBURG. Young CAPEL ( above) scored the first
goal for Sevilla in the 6th min. From here Salzburg stood firm until
the 90th min when CHEVANTON scored Sevilla FC second goal.
In theory, Sevilla should´nt have problems for the return leg.
RACING with all the illusion in the world won an even affair against
HONKA ESPOO by the narrow margen of 1-0. The goal come in a
moment of a lapse of concentration from Honka as the 2º half had
just started. In fact, in the 46th min PEREIRA got in & scored Racing
only & winning goal.
Racing has the advantage for the return leg, but needs to be cautious
as it is not at all in the bag.
VALENCIA flew to the Portugues Islands of Madeira to meet
MARITIMO, a good Portugues side with class. The game is currently
in play & Valencia leads 0-1 thanks to then 12th min fabulous goal
from MORIENTES (above).
Written by STRIKER on September 18th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on Racing de Santander and Sevilla FC and Spanish Football and Spanish Soccer and UEFA Cup and Valencia CF and deportivo.
Does anyone watch Little Cup?
A ton of the matches have already concluded, probably due to being played in countries so tiny and scattered that they have their own provincial timezones. However, it’s not over just yet!
Everton v. Standard Liege just kicked off, as did Spurs at home to Wizla Krakow, which should be fun as they’re missing new signings Pavlyuchenko and Corluka (both cup-tied… good transfers, then), and Modric who already has a knee injury.
Starting XIs and the rest of the scores after the jump.
Get ready for some bad news, all you Omonia Nicosia fans…
Everton 1 Yakubu 23″
Standard Liege 1 Mbokani 9″
(kick-off 3.05pm ET)
Everton: Howard, Neville, Yobo, Jagielka, Lescott, Anichebe, Castillo, Osman, Arteta, Cahill, Yakubu.
Subs: Nash, Baines, Vaughan, Nuno Valente, Jutkiewicz, Baxter, Rodwell.
Standard Liege: Aragon, Camozzato, Onyewu, Sarr, Dante, Dalmat, Jovanovic, Defour, Witsel, De Camargo, Mbokani.
Subs: Devriendt, Goreux, Toama, Mikulic, Nicaise, Ingrao, Gonzalez.
Spurs 0, Wisla Krakow 0
(kick-off 3.10pm ET)
Tottenham: Gomes, Gunter, Woodgate, King, Bale, Bentley, Jenas, Zokora, Lennon, Giovani, Bent.
Subs: Cesar, Huddlestone,Gilberto, Campbell, Dawson, O’ Hara, Assou-Ekotto.
Wisla Krakow: Pawelek, Singlar, Baszczynski, Cleber, Diaz, Boguski, Sobolewski, Cantoro, Zienczuk, Pawel Brozek, Jirsak.
Subs: Juszczyk, Guedes Filho, Glowacki, Niedzielan, Malecki, Lobodzinski, Barreto.
EARLIER SCORES
—–
AS Nancy 1 Berenguer 42″
Motherwell 0
Litex Lovech 1 Popov 10″
Aston Villa 3 Reo-Coker 45+1″, Barry 72″ (pen), Petrov 90+2″
Portsmouth 2 Diarra 39″, Defoe 60″
Guimaraes 0
Omonia Nicosia 1 Duro 49″
Manchester City 2 Jo 59″, 72″
Written by Darkvader on September 18th, 2008 with no comments.
Read more articles on Everton and Lingering Bursitis and Manchester City and Motherwell and Tottenham and UEFA Cup.
Michael Ballack Interview after the Bordeaux game
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/7620210.stm
Michael Ballack on the bench
at the Bordeaux game
Michael Ballack vs Bordeaux
Home, Champions League 08-09
3:21 min | 35 MB | 1,3 Mbps | 624×336
Music: Akcent - French Kiss
Link: Sharebee
by Jano7
Written by Darkvader on September 18th, 2008 with no comments.
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