Soccer Insider

Americans abroad, Tuesday edition

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 16:45:10 -0500

D Carlos Bocanegra 90 in Rennes' 1-0 French Cup loss at fourth-division US Quevilly D Jay DeMerit 90 in Watford's 2-0 win over Bristol City F Kenny Cooper last 45 in Plymouth's 2-1 loss at Reading D Frank Simek 90 in Sheffield Wednesday's 2-0 win over Blackpool MF Stuart Holden not in 18 for Bolton in 2-0 loss at Manchester City F Mike Grella enters in the 79th minute for Leeds, scores in the 86th for a 3-2 victory to force added time against Carlisle in JP Trophy section finals. he later converts a penalty kick but club falls (4-4 aggregate, 6-5 PKs)

Video: Landon Donovan's goals

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 11:16:49 -0500

I stumbled upon this on Youtube this morning..... Every international goal scored by Landon Donovan, starting with his finish against Mexico in a 2000 friendly. His totals each year: 2000 -- 1 (one appearance) 2001 -- 0 (8) 2002 -- 6 (20) 2003 -- 7 (15) 2004 -- 5 (14) 2005 -- 6 (15) 2006 -- 0 (11) 2007 -- 9 (12) 2008 -- 3 (9) 2009 -- 5 (15) Totals -- 42 (120) Which goal is your favorite?

Tuesday kickaround

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 08:52:53 -0500

*Another blizzard bearing down on the mid-Atlantic today? No worries. The WAGs of international soccer will warm your hearts in Sports Illustrated's "swimsuit" issue. *Ruud Gullit will head the Netherlands-Belgium World Cup bid, while Indonesia's slim hopes continue to fade. *UEFA has a new online look. *The league schedule for the 12-team USL-NASL second division is set, with matches beginning April 10 and Crystal Palace Baltimore getting underway April 16 at UMBC Stadium against Tampa Bay. To limit travel expenses, clubs were divided into three geographical pods. Within its pod, each team will play the other three teams twice at home and twice away. Each team will also compete against the eight teams from the other two pods twice overall. And each club was paired with a team from a different pod for an additional home-and-away series. *Americans abroad: D Carlos Bocanegra and Rennes at Quevilly in French Cup MF

D.C. United trialists in Bradenton

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:46:38 -0500

D.C. United has invited center defenders Quiarol Arzu of Honduras and Jermaine Taylor of Jamaica to the second phase of training camp, which will begin a day earlier than scheduled in Florida because of another snowstorm bearing down on Washington. The club will skip town Tuesday instead of Wednesday and set up camp in Bradenton for a 2 1/2-week stay that will include at least four friendlies, starting Saturday against the Columbus Crew. Trialists tentatively scheduled to join the club are Arzu, 24, from Platense and the Honduran Olympic squad; Taylor, 25, who started five World Cup qualifiers for Jamaica in 2008; and goalkeeper Andrew Quinn, a DeMatha High graduate who played collegiately at Notre Dame and recently completed two weeks of workouts with Glasgow Rangers. Quinn will provide depth with Josh Wicks recovering from a shoulder injury and Troy Perkins at U.S. national team camp in California. After addressing

Bundesliga boss at the Super Bowl

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:01:30 -0500

Bundesliga chief executive Christian Seifert has been always fascinated by the Super Bowl, an American sporting spectacle that is as much about entertainment and promotion -- the pregame hype, the in-game commercialism, the halftime mock-rock concert, the postgame party -- as it is about end zones and punts. He remembers, at age 19, staying up until 2 in the morning in Germany to watch the San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals play for the title in 1989. On Sunday, Seifert was at Sun Life Stadium in Miami attending his first Super Bowl -- not so much as a fan but as businessman observing the NFL spectacle. He watched from a private box behind an end zone, and met NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and was introduced to college star Tim Tebow, with whom he was unfamiliar until this weekend.

Video: Barcelona, Real Madrid victories

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 08:30:50 -0500

Lionel Messi excels, Barca survives two red cards in a 2-1 victory over Getafe: Ray Hudson provides colorful description of Real Madrid's 3-0 victory against Espanyol:

Americans abroad

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 11:16:21 -0500

Injured list: Onyewu, Davies, Dempsey, Torres, Cherundolo, Clark, Beasley, Edu. GOALKEEPERS Tim Howard 90 minutes in Everton's 1-0 loss at Liverpool Brad Friedel 90 in Aston Villa's 0-0 tie at Spurs Brad Guzan in 18, didn't play for Villa Marcus Hahnemann 90 in Wolves' 2-1 loss at Birmingham Luis Robles in 18, didn't play in Kaiserslautern's 3-0 win over Paderborn

Sunday kickaround

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 10:11:50 -0500

*For the second time in recent weeks, D.C. United has been linked with Quiarol Arzu, a 24-year-old Platense defender who started in the 2008 Olympics. *With the training grounds buried by snow, D.C. United will conduct indoor workouts before heading to Bradenton, Fla., this week. The club will focus on strength training and conditioning, and might end up practicing on a field covered by a bubble at the University of Maryland. After watching two feet fall, do you think midfielder Christian Castillo of El Salvador is reconsidering his decision to play in Washington? *FIFA has chosen the officiating trios for the World Cup, and the group includes referees from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Uzbekistan, Seychelles, as well as Martin Hansson, who missed the infamous Thierry Henry handball. But no Americans made the cut. On Hansson's inclusion, UEFA chief Michel Platini says: "He couldn't see the handball and it was not

Video: Jozy Altidore's goal

Sat, 06 Feb 2010 14:31:14 -0500

Not the best quality and who knows how long it will be available. Nevertheless, Jozy Altidore's first league goal for Hull City during a 2-1 victory over Manchester City on Saturday:

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Sat, 06 Feb 2010 14:31:14 -0500

Marsch retires, Crew signs Colombian

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 17:02:39 -0500

*Chivas USA midfielder Jesse Marsch, one of three players to appear in matches in each of MLS's 14 seasons, announced his retirement to become an assistant coach under Bob Bradley with the U.S. national team. The only others to play at least once in every year of MLS are Steve Ralston, who signed with second-division St. Louis this week; and D.C. United's Jaime Moreno, the league's all-time leading scorer, who is set to play in Washington in 2010. Marsch, 36, began his career with United in 1996 and had four league goals in two seasons before being claimed by Bradley, then the coach of the Chicago Fire, in the expansion draft. "I remember my first day as a pro soccer player, 22 years old, jumping into a van at United training camp in Del Mar [Calif.]," he told the Insider today. "John Harkes was driving, Jeff Agoos was in the

Friday kickaround

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 11:18:41 -0500

*Amid scandal, John Terry is out as England's captain. *Adding to the U.S. national team injury woes, Mexican-based midfielder Jose Francisco Torres is out for a few weeks with a hamstring ailment. *Already sidelined for an extended period with a shoulder injury, New England goalkeeper Matt Reis underwent knee surgery. He will miss three to four months. Preston Burpo, acquired in a trade with Colorado last month, is the starter. *Who is Columbus' mystery signing that we hinted at last week? According to Crew defender Jed Zayner's blog, it's a Colombian forward named Sergio. If you google "Sergio Colombia futbol," the first name to appear is Sergio Herrera, 28, from Deportivo Cali. Hmmm. Or it could be these guys. Awaiting word from Crew officials. *USA vs. Mexico! Under-17s, that is. As first seen on the Insider's Twitter page, the youth squads will face one another Feb. 24 at Raymond James

D.C. United's Szetela out 6 weeks

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 10:05:24 -0500

D.C. United midfielder Danny Szetela underwent surgery Thursday night for damaged meniscus in his right knee and will be sidelined about six weeks, the MLS club announced. He was injured in practice Tuesday. If the timeline holds true, he would return to full-time training a week before the league opener at Kansas City.

Weekend TV listings

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 07:12:34 -0500

What are you going to watch? FRIDAY Germany, Werder Bremen-Hertha Berlin 2:30 p.m. ET, GolTV Mexico, Queretaro-Chivas 9:30 p.m. Galavision SATURDAY England, Liverpool-Everton 7:30 a.m. ESPN2 Germany, Wolfsburg-Bayern Munich 9:25 a.m. ESPN Deportes England, Manchester United-Portsmouth 9:30 a.m. Setanta England, Hull City-Manchester City 10 a.m. Fox Soccer Channel Spain, Valladolid-Valencia noon ESPN Deportes

Surgery for D.C. United's Szetela

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:01:09 -0500

D.C. United midfielder Danny Szetela is tentatively scheduled to undergo surgery Friday after an MRI exam revealed torn meniscus in his left knee. He was injured during Tuesday's training session. If no further damage is discovered, he seems likely to miss at least a month. With a major snowstorm heading toward the Washington area, the operation might have to be postponed. The club will reveal further details after the procedure is completed.

Ex-Sol players claimed in WPS dispersal draft

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 14:34:53 -0500

With the demise of the Los Angeles franchise, Sol players were selected in the WPS dispersal draft Thursday. Brazilian superstar Marta, the four-time FIFA world player of the year, will play for Gold Pride in the San Francisco area. Washington: D Brittany Bock, F Faith Ikidi. Gold Pride: F Marta, F Kiki Bosio, F Lindsay Browne. Philadelphia: GK Karina LeBlanc, D Estelle Johnson. St. Louis: MF Shannon Boxx, MF Aya Miyama, MF Tina DiMartino, MF Catherine Sorenson. Chicago: F Casey Nogueira. Atlanta: MF Manya Makoski, F Pavlina Scasna. Sky Blue: MF Nikki Washington, F Kiersten Dallstream. Boston: D Stephanie Cox, F Michelle Enyeart. Bock, 22, was invited to two U.S. national team camps last year and can play central defense, defensive midfield or serve as a target forward if Abby Wambach is unavailable. The Freedom has the rights to Ikidi, a Nigerian national team regular, who is under contract in