SoccerNation's Blog

2009-2010 UEFA Champions League Preview

Keeper — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:27:08 GMT

After a long four month hiatus, the UEFA Champions League is set to officially begin. This year's qualification system did change a bit, but the format from here on out is still the same. 32 sides -- 8 groups of 4 teams each -- representing a total of 18 nations will partake in the most prestigious of club competitions this year. 16 of these clubs will move onto the knockout stages. These knock-out stages are pretty much do-or-die. Each team will play one leg at home and the other on the road. The team with the most goals scored advances. In the event of a tie, the team with the most away goals will win via the away goals rule. If still tied, then extra time will be played right then and there. If no one scores, then the match will go to penalties. This format will also be used in the quarterfinals and semifinals. This year's final will be hosted at the Santiago Bernabeu, the home of Real Madrid. The final is a one-off tie and if tied at 90, then the match will go to a 30-minute overtime period. If still tied, it will progress to the dreaded penalties. Ok, now let's get to the fun stuff. Let's look at the teams (nation of origin and last year's domestic league finish in parentheses). Click here to continue reading. Please leave comments hear or send me an e-mail!

Serie A Year in Preview

j11forbes: Go Jo-Jo Go! — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 17:59:45 GMT

Serie A is set to begin a year in transition this weekend. In fact, this may be the last year for the Italian Serie A, as the league is set to break away from the lower leagues and reformat the competition into something more resembling the structure for Barclay's Premier League. A rebranding, complete with a new name, is almost certain to happen.

On the pitch, there will be transition as well. Inter is transitioning away from their reliance on Zlatan Ibrahimovic, having sold him to Barcelona over the summer. Juventus and Milan are both transitioning to new coaches with new systems. Roma is trying to put together another run at the Champions League after a disastrous performance last season.

More importantly, many teams are placing greater and greater focus on their youth systems and giving young players a shot. Giovinco should get regular playing time at Juventus. Balotelli and Santon will regularly see the field for Inter. Pato is still the Duck. Roberto Acquafresca, Fabio Santocroce, and a host of younger players should continue to impress for lower tier teams.

Finally, we may see some real competition for the Scudetto this year. Inter has walked away with the last four Scudettos. This year however, they will face serious competition from a Juventus squad finally fully re-integrated into the top flight, a healthy Milan squad, and a host of other squads that have built themselves solidly and are hungry to pull off an upset.

A big question remains how the Italian teams will fare in European competition. Roma is off to a good start in the Europa League having won their first two qualifiers. Fiorentina put in a good effort securing a 2-2 draw in Lisbon in Champions League qualifiers. But it will take more than solid showings in qualifiers to convince skeptics of the league. The continental opinion of the league will rest on the shoulders of Inter, Juventus, Milan, and Fiorentina. Another year where no Italian squads advance to the quarterfinals of the Champions League is not acceptable. Yet all four squads have significant flaws. They have the talent, but whether they can put it together against top flight competition will have to be seen. At any rate, Lazio, Roma, and Genoa are all high quality teams that should be driven to succeed in the Europa League rather than play nothing but reserves and youth team players.

Predicitions:

Scudetto - Juventus. They have the strikers (Amauri, Del Piero, Iaquinta), the midfielders (Giovinco, Diego, Melo, Marchisio, and others), and the goalkeeper (Buffon). Their season will rest on the shoulders of their defense. Chiellini and Legrottaglie have the skills, but to the extent they need to rely on Fabio Cannavaro, they are screwed.

Champions League - Inter, Fiorentina, Genoa. Inter will need to figure out a system that reliably produces goals other than get the ball to Ibra and let him score a miraculous goal. The team really lacked creativity in attack last year, and while their offseason acquisitions are solid, they don't help in this area. It will give Juventus the room they need to take the title, but just barely. I see Fiorentina, Genoa, and Milan fighting it out for the third and fourth spot, and Milan failing due to an overreliance on old stars (thank you Captain Obvious). Fiorentina and Genoa have both bounced back from years in the lower divisions to build strong teams that compete smartly. They don't break the bank on transfers, they live within their means, and they succeed by finding young talent and bargain basement deals. Both should continue to do well.

Europa League - Milan, Roma. Both teams are in visible decline right now and in poor financial situations. Both have some young talented players but rely on aging stars past their prime (Totti, Pirlo, Ronaldinho). Both have serious question marks at goalkeeper and have trouble keeping defenders healthy. Over a long grind, fatigue will cause these teams to lose enough points to keep them out of the Champions League.

Coppa Italia - Palermo. Palermo has quitely put together a good team with a good coach. The volatility of their owner and the insanity of their own fans may keep them from seriously competing with some of the other squads mentioned on a season long basis, but they can string together enough wins against good competition to win some unexpected hardware this season. I'm betting that Zamparini will put enough pressure on Zenga to bring a trophy to the city, even if it is the secon-rate Coppa Italia.

Other teams to watch - Napoli, Udinese, Sampdoria. Sampdoria is worth watching simply for the pairing of Pazzini and Cassano. Udinese always plays beautiful attacking football, even if they can never defend and are extremely inconsistent. It makes their games fun to watch and they have some real solid talent, particularly captain Antonio Di Natale, Alex Sanchez, Gaetano D'Agostino and Simone Pepe. Napoli have made some interesting moves in the transfer market, especially picking up Quagliarella to pair with Lavezzi in attack. If they can put the pieces together, they can challenge for a spot in Europe.

Bonus Prediction - Roma wins the Europa League.

Young Player to Watch: Stefan Jovetic. He won't start all that often, but the 19 year old is an extremly dangerous player off the bench for Fiorentina. He's got sublime dribbling and passing skillsand a dangerous shot. If Fiorentina can find a way to work him and Mutu onto the pitch together in support of Gilardino, the team can challenge for the championship

Ode to Michel Salgado-Galactico Survivor

Big Chaco — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 05:58:52 GMT

Michel Salgado said goodbye to the press today. And will say good bye at the end of the month to the Madridistas in the Trofeo Bernabeau game against AC Milan after playing 10 years for Real Madrid. A tenure much longer than Beckham, Ronaldo, and Zidane's.

Michel Salgado is certainly one of the important players Real Madrid has had in the past decade. He was in the glorious teams in the beginning of the decade, stayed through the team in the shadows of the galactico era in the middle of the decade, and remained loyal to the team in the latter part of this decade. While he did not standout on the flanks like Roberto Carlos, he did his job on the right-side of the field. Remember, he owned the right-flank for Madrid for seven straight seasons. He was a starter for the last two Champions League finals Madrid won (against Valencia and against Leverkusen). I thought he was on his way out when Sergio Ramos signed for the team but he provided assurance (and insurance) on the flanks whenever Sergio Ramos was suspended or injured. It took the arrival of Arbeloa, and emergence of Miguel Torres, to finally push out the aging Salgado.

He's one of those players only appreciated by Real Madrid fans. The same way ManUtd fans appreciate Neville, the way Milan fans appreciate Ambrosini. Quiet players in the shadows of the superstars, but a vital component to the club. MARCA said it best in a headline, "Adios a la garra", Goodbye to the Fighting Spirit. Here's to Salgado! Winner of 4 La Liga titles, 1 Intercontinental, and 2 Champions League trophies!

http://estaticos01.marca.com/albumes/2009/08/05/salgado_5_julio_09/1249484159_extras_albumes_0.jpg

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Gold Cup Final 2009: A series of unfortunate events

naxself — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 21:12:31 GMT

Watching the Gold Cup Final on Univision is a somewhat unsettling experience. Aside from the alarming lack of HD, it's a bit like being a non-Cubs or non-White Sox fan and watching a game on WGN: the announcers are so patently biased that it renders their analysis pointless. The Univision announcers were clearly rooting for Mexico from the beginning, apparently unaware that a good number of Americans (and Canadians) can speak Spanish. But that is, in reality, just the latest in a long line of weirdness by Univision's announcers.

The real problems with the game were two-fold. First, the referees were terrible. They missed calls left and right, most egregiously when a penalty was called on Heaps (it was Giovanni dos Santos who was committing the penalty) and when not one but two Mexican attackers were clearly offside on Mexico's second goal. Get those calls right and it's 1-0 for Mexico in the 70th minute, not 3-0. Not only that, but Jay Heaps' second yellow was complete uncalled for. That only continues a recurring theme: CONCACAF officials, in general, and Gold Cup officials in particular, are terrible.

Second, the US played a monumentally bad second half. I don't know what happened but everything went wrong. The back four, in particular, were terrible. They were burned time and again by Mexican attackers, esp. Giovanni dos Santos (who looked like a real attacking player for the first time in two years), and their offside trap was painfully ineffective. I sincerely doubt that any of them will be suiting up for the US anytime soon.

That brings me to the midfielders. Stuart Holden played the entire match too narrow. He has speed and skill and should have been wider to create space for Kyle Beckerman and, more importantly, Brian Ching. Ching and every other forward was also ineffective. I doubt Ching's World Cup hopes were helped by this match.

In the end, even a heavy 5-0 loss isn't that big a deal considering that the US fielded a B-team and nobody really cares about the Gold Cup. I was, however, disappointed that so few US fans were at Giants Stadium. Mexican fans badly outnumbered them. For shame! Can any hard and fast conclusions be formed from this match or this tournament? I'm reasonably certain that none of the US defenders will play for the national team again anytime soon. I'm also reasonably certain that Brian Ching's World Cup dream crashed and burned. More players hurt their causes here than helped though some will surely recover. I only hope that the A-team, which will be called up for the 12 August qualifier in Mexico, knows they have to avenge this loss.

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Gold Cup 2009: Canada is eliminated by the referee

naxself — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 23:20:01 GMT

The most important person on the pitch in Canada's 1-0 loss to Honduras today was wearing neither red nor white; he was wearing black. That person was, in fact, the referee.

He was terribly inconsistent from the start which resulted in a choppy game. Neither team really got going but that wasn't helped by Honduras's persistent fouling; though only about 50% of those fouls were called. The crucial call came near the end of the half, when the referee awarded Honduras an undeserved penalty shot.

The play itself was clearly not a penalty. If the ball touched anything, it touched Kevin McKenna's head; it most certainly did not touch his hand or arm. It is not an overstatement to say that that call cost Canada the game (though their anemic offense didn't help).

In the end, it wasn't the referee that cost Canada the game (though he didn't help); it was their lack of offense. In 3 group games, they only managed 3 goals. That's unacceptable. Canada needs to find a way to open up space in their attack. Perhaps using Julian de Guzman as an anchorman/midfield distributor and putting 3 attacking midfielders behind Gerba would be a better option.

Another option is to give more kids a chance. In that, I'm speaking specifically of David Edgar and Asmir Begovic. Edgar has the makings of a quality central defender while Begovic may already be better than Greg Sutton.

Canada plays a defensive game out of necessity. What they need is an offensive game to work off the counter-attack. Only then will they stop losing games they should win.

Serie A Year in Review

j11forbes: Go Jo-Jo Go! — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 00:02:54 GMT

Failures in both major European club competitions, coupled with a Scudetto race that seemed over before it started, led many to call this a down year in the Serie A. Add in the media???s tendency to overreact to everything and people are questioning whether Serie A can ever return to the glory days when it was unquestionably the best league in the world. Still, even amidst the doom and gloom, the seeds for a successful renaissance were planted this past season.

Inter walked away with another Scudetto this year, easily, as both Milan and Juventus lacked the consistency to challenge for the title. There were no last game heroics needed this time around and Inter has now won three straight championships on the field. Still, most will remember them for another failure in the Champions League, especially with the dismal performance they put in against Manchester United. Inter has made it clear that their sole focus next year is winning the Champions League, and their offseason has made that clear. Milito, Lucio, and Motta are great pickups that address specific needs for the team. Milito will provide the goals when Ibrahimovic doesn???t, and Lucio adds much needed depth to the backline.

Juventus and Milan were both hurt by their uncanny ability to drop points against lower rung teams. Defensive inconsistency damaged both teams and their fortunes next year will be determined by whatever improvements new coaches and offseason acquisitions can bring to the defense. Milan has added Onyewu and Thiago Silva to a solid backline, but they still don???t have a goalkeeper. Juventus has one of the best goalkeepers in the world, but any team that enters a season with Fabio Cannavaro as a starting center back at this point in his career needs to worry.

The most entertaining battle in the league occurred for the final Champions League Spot between Genoa and Fiorentina. The teams finished tied for points and Fiorentina only squeaked through due to their head-to-head record against Genoa. The teams fought a highly entertaining late season match up that saw Genoa take a 3-0 lead into the 60th minute only to walk away with a draw due to an Adrian Mutu hattrick. Coupled with Fiorentina???s home win in the early part of the season send the Viola into the Champions League. Both teams will look to continue their recent runs of success despite some key losses next season.

Elsewhere in the league, Lazio won the Coppa Italia, knocking out Milan and Juventus along the way and beating Sampdoria on penalties in the final. Roma bottomed out, finishing in sixth place despite a team largely unchanged from the one that finished second to Inter last year.

Of the four Italian Champions League teams, Fiorentina failed to make it out of the group stages and was eliminated in their first round in the UEFA Cup. English clubs eliminated Roma, Juventus, and Inter in the first knockout round of the Champions League. Milan, having failed to qualify for the Champions League, set their sites on winning the UEFA Cup (the only significant trophy missing from their hardware cabinet) and failed miserably, losing out in the first knockout round to Werder Bremen. The other Italian clubs failed to take the UEFA Cup seriously, focusing instead on the domestic league, and fared accordingly. Only Udinese represented Italy in Europe this year with anything worthy of respect. They paid for it by failing to qualify for European football next year.

On the plus side for the league, several encouraging developments took place throughout the last season. First, new security measures introduced in the wake of several soccer related deaths have been largely successful and the Italian game was much more peaceful this past season. Second, clubs have awakened to the necessities of the modern game and are starting to invest in their own stadiums. Fiorentina and Juventus are leading the way here.

Third, the Serie A clubs announced they will break away from the FIGC to form their own league in 2010. The Serie A clubs will finally sell their domestic TV rights as a whole as opposedt o individually. This will significantly increase the amount of money available to Italian teams once it happened. The new league set up will be based on the English Premier League is expected to increase total revenue in Serie A by close to a hundred million pounds a year.

Finally and most importantly, known as a retirement league recently for the increasing age of its players, Serie A teams finally discovered the power of youth. Mario Balotelli and David Santon, both under 20, got significant playing time at Inter and helped the club win its title. Sebastien Giovinco, though somewhat limited in playing time, continued to prove he is a future star at Juventus. Giorgio Chiellini was perhaps the best defender in the league last year and he???s younger than 25. Stevan Jovetic impressed in the second half for Fiorentina when called upon to substitute for an injured Adrian Mutu. Marco Motta stepped up for Roma and earned consideration for the Azzurri. All around the mid-table clubs, youngsters such as Roberto Acquafresco, Fabio Santacroce, Ezequiel Lavezzi, and Federico Marchetti showed that the Italian league???s true strength may lie in some of its youngest players. And I haven???t even mentioned Alexander Pato or the potential return of Giuseppe Rossi yet.

For many reasons, the most recent Serie A campaign is one to forget. The future for Italian soccer, however, may be the brightest its been in years.

The SoccerNation Report- 7/9/09

Keeper — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 12:53:35 GMT

Hello and welcome back to The SoccerNation Report. Today we have tons of news and insight on the world of football. Now, let's get started.

Barca in for Villa?- Barcelona could be in for Valencia target David Villa. Barca's president, Joan Laporta, has lodged a 40 million euro bid for the Spanish striker. Valencia, who is in desperate need of money, pretty much have to sell both David Silva and David Villa to help account for the massive debt in the club. Valencia have been very successful in recent years and it's a shame that it's come to this for them. But that isn't why we are here. We're here to talk about Barca picking up the scraps before Real can. Real have supposedly "given up" on the prospect of signing Villa after signing the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, and Karim Benzema. Real are also still looking at bringing in Franck Ribery, so that might be why. As for Barca, I think this is a good move. Villa is a great striker and it will do two-times the good if he doesn't go to Real Madrid. For Villa, the move is excellent because he'll play alongside the world's best team and player in Lionel Messi. He'll also have Xavi Hernandez behind him to control the team. But there is a small problem for Barca. His name is Eto'o. Eto'o has done absolutely no wrong here. Last season, he did NOT underperform. In fact, he probably overperformed. But if you are Barca, you can't have both on the roster. Eto'o can't sit the bench and Villa shouldn't either. Then that would mean that Henry or Messi would have to. And neither of those two would want to sit the bench. So, if this move does happen (which I now expect it to) Eto'o is going to be leaving Barca. Barca need to get the most out of Eto'o and the place to sell him to would be Manchester City. City have alreadt tried to sign him and I fully expect them to be the front-runners to sign him. I will have further updates in the coming weeks regarding this story.

Liverpool News- A few things regarding Liverpool, so I'll clump them in together. Steven Gerrard, Liverpool's captain center mid, has signed a 4 year extension and will see out the remainder of his career with Liverpool. Gerrard has never been with another team and signed with the club at the ripe old age of 7. Fabio Aurelio, one of Liverpool's surplus outside backs, will need surgery on his knee after twisting it while playing with his kids. Aurelio was set to be the back-up to Emiliano Insua, and this only confirms that Insua will be the #1.

Quick Headlines-

Marc-Antoine Fortune has signed with Celtic from Nancy. Fortune was also being chased by West Bromwich Albion.

Sergio Asenjo signs with Atletico Madrid. The highly-rated young goalkeeper has moved from Real Valladolid and into Madrid. Expect a lot from this kid, he looks promising.

Shunsuke Nakamura expects a baptism by fire in La Liga this coming term.

Results

Copa Libertadores Final 1st Leg: Estudiantes La Plata 0, Cruzeiro 0

The South American championship series got its start in Buenos Aires, but it was a very scrappy affair that saw no goals scored. The second leg will determine who goes to the UAE for the FIFA Club World Cup this year.

Uruguayan National Championship: Nacional 3, Defensor Sporting 0

The Championship will now continue on into another two-legged final, but it could end after two further matches due to the complicated system that the league is using. GOLTV will have the match of sometime.

CONCACAF Gold Cup Group A (played Monday)

Jamaica 0, Costa Rica 1. Celso Borges scored the winner for Costa Rica.

El Salvador 0, Canada 1. Ali Gerba scored in his second straight match to win it for the Canucks.

Canada- 6 pts

El Salvador- 3 pts

Costa Rica- 3 pts

Jamaica- 0 pts

Matchday 3 Fixtures: Costa Rica v. Canada, El Salvador v. Jamaica

CONCACAF Gold Cup Group B (played Tuesday)

Haiti 2, Grenada 0. Fabrice Noel and James Marcelin scored for Haiti to win it.

United States 2, Honduras 0. The US finally scored in the 73rd via Santino Quaranta and then Brian Ching scored 6 minutes later.

United States- 6 pts

Haiti- 3 pts

Honduras- 3 pts

Grenanda- 0 pts

Matchday 3 Fixtures: United States v. Haiti, Honduras v. Grenada

CONCACAF Gold Cup Group C (to be played tonight)

Guadeloupe v. Nicaragua

Mexico v. Panama

Europa League Action- The second leg of all 23 Europa League 1st Round Qualifying matches are today. Check one out if you can. Here are the scores from the first leg.

Final FC Tbilisi 2 - 0 B36 Torshavn Qualifying Round
Final Dinaburg 2 - 1 Nomme Kalju Qualifying Round Celtnieks Final Simurg 0 - 1 Bnei Yehuda Qualifying Round
Final Banants 0 - 2 Siroki Brijeg Qualifying Round Republican Stadium Final Valletta 3 - 0 Keflavik Qualifying Round National, Ta' Qali Final FC Lahti 4 - 1 Dinamo Tirana Qualifying Round Lahden Stadion Final Sutjeska 1 - 1 MTZ-RIPO Qualifying Round Gradski Stadium Final Trans Narva 0 - 3 Rudar Velenje Qualifying Round Trans Narva Stadium Final Zimbru Chisinau 1 - 2 Okzhetpes Kokshetau Qualifying Round Zimbru Stadium Final Dinamo Minsk 2 - 1 Renova Qualifying Round Dinamo Stadion Final Randers FC 4 - 0 Linfield Qualifying Round Essex Park Randers Final FC Spartak Trnava 2 - 1 Inter Qualifying Round Antona Malatinskeho Final CS Grevenmacher 0 - 2 FK Vetra Qualifying Round
Final Szombathelyi Haladas 1 - 0 Irtysh Pavlodar Qualifying Round
Final Anorthosis Famagusta 5 - 0 UN 97 Kaerjeng Qualifying Round Antonis Papadopoulos Final NK Slaven Koprivnica 1 - 0 Birkirkara Qualifying Round Gradski Final Sligo 1 - 2 Vllaznia Shkoder Qualifying Round The Showgrounds Final NSI Runavik 0 - 3 Rosenborg Qualifying Round vid Lokin Stadium Final Buducnost Podgorica 0 - 2 Polonia Warsaw Qualifying Round Pod Goricom Final Lisburn Distillery 1 - 5 FC Zestafoni Qualifying Round New Grosvenor Stadium Final Helsingborg 3 - 1 Mika Ashtarak Qualifying Round Olympia Stadion Final Fram Reykjavik 2 - 1 T.N.S. Qualifying Round Laugardalsvollur Final Motherwell 0 - 1 Llanelli Qualifying Round Fir Park Stadium (4,307)

Well, I hope you liked it. It's been Keeper and I'm out.

The SoccerNation Report- 7/7/09

Keeper — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 13:40:20 GMT

Hello and welcome to the awarding winning SoccerNation Report. Today I've got a lot to cover and my lead is a very juicy story. So, let's get started quickly.

Onyewu Signs With AC Milan- The American defender has finally penned a deal with a big-name club. The American has hjoined Milan on a free transfer from Standard Liege. But the funny thing is that no one expected it to be this big of a team. After being heavily pursued by the likes of Fenerbahce, Ajax, Genoa, and even Fiorentina, he has joined the Rossoneri. Onyewu will be the first American to sign a contract with one of Italy's biggest clubs. It would be Europe if not for Tim Howard signing with Man. U ages ago (or at least it feels like it) and Brad Friedel's move to Liverpool. Onyewu is going to see massive amounts of time in Milan and will likely end up partnering up with Alessandro Nesta in the middle. Onyewu is the replacement of retired captain Paolo Maldini, one of the best defenders of all-time. But what does this move mean for all parties? For Milan, they have signed one of the most dominant centerbacks in the game with regards to winning the ball in the air. Onyewu's frame is one that is going to help Milan a ton of corners both ways. Onyewu is 6 ft. 4 in. and weighs around 205 lbs. With that size, Milan are going to have a definite advantage in the air. For Onyewu, the move signals that it is finally his time to shine in the ever-so difficult world of football. Onyewu has always had the potential to play well at the highest level and lately he has been proving just that. After a great Confederations Cup, Onyewu has earned this move and it will give him the opportunity to play with some of the best in the world and to learn how to play that much better. In Italy, his possession game and passing will improve a ton or he'll be gone. So that should be incentive enough to play well and learn. For the United States, this move marks a huge turning point in the world of football. We now have someone that is on the biggest stage of them all and we can now relate to that and know that we have arrived. This move also proves that this United States team is the best team in our history. With this move (and the Confed. Cup run), the US have now proven that they are on the world's stage for good. This US team, despite all of its failures and all of its players that haven't always lived up to potential, is still the greatest of all-time when they actually play together and do so well. This US team has always been the best (even without the majority of the players in successful European roles). I've got news for you now, we've got players in Europe and that's good enough. If we get playing time for some of them, that's an added bonus. Onyewu's move has turned over a new leaf within the US and it is for the good. Now, I've got to order me an Onyewu jersey.

Paddy Kenny Fails- Sheffield United's goalkeeper, Paddy Kenny, has failed a drug test and is now subject to a possible two-year suspension. Kenny is one of England's most recognizable keepers having gone up and down in the league's totem pole. He was caught taking ephedrine.

Milan Make Two Bids- AC Milan are back in the news with a double bid for two strikers. They are going after Sevilla and Brazil striker Luis Fabiano and Real Madrid/Holland striker Klaas Jan Huntelaar. Both moves would be good for Milan, but I feel that Fabiano would be the best move. More will surely come of these moves in the next week or so.

Jo Back to Everton- Manchester City want-away Jo will stay another season with Everton after being loaned out for the second half of the season last term. Jo managed to score 5 goals in 11 for Everton and he played very well in his short time with them. This move should help him gain his feet and get him ready for a potential move back to City next summer or to elsewhere.

Something Interesting- Birmingham City are getting ready to make a dream pairing in the center of midfield. No, they aren't bringing Zidane and Koeman to play there. City are set to sign Lee Bowyer on a permanent move. He was on loan for the last half of last season and did very well in helping them gain promotion. The West Ham midfielder is known for his absurd challenges and his habitual picking up of yellow and red cards. But here's the dream part. City could also pick up Newcastle centermid Joey Barton and make a dream pairing. Barton, who has went to jail recently, is also known for his absurd challenges and picking up yellow and red cards frequently. Could you imagine the carnage that those two would cause? I just hope that everyone sits their best players against those guys should they play together.

CONCACAF Gold Cup Reminder

Jamaica vs. Costa Rica- 7:00 EST

El Salvador vs. Canada- 9:00 EST

Well, I hope you liked it. It's been Keeper and I'm out.

The SoccerNation Report- 7/6/09

Keeper — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 13:42:30 GMT

Hello and welcome back to The SoccerNation Report. Today I've got a lot to cover, so let's get started.

The Lead Story- Yuri Zhirkov is officially a Chelsea player. The Russian international left back has completed a move from CSKA Moscow for 18 million pounds. The move makes it three Russian internationals that have moved to London in the past year alone. The first was Roman Pavlyuchenko's move to Tottenham and the other was Andrei Arshavin going to Arsenal. The 25 year-old is a converted fullback that gets into the attack very well. He is very versatile and will help the Blues out considerably. This move seems to have Ashley Cole on the outs, but we will have to see. I just don't know why they would buy Zhirkov for 18 mil and then sit him on the bench. The Russian star will reportedly make 80,000 pounds a week for four years time. This move is a very good one for Chelsea. Zhirkov is much better than at defence than Ashley Cole and is much more consistent. He is also more equipped to go forward because he has a killer long-range shot that can be netted from 35-40 yards out. Zhirkov is also good on free-kicks and can do well with his left foot for Chelsea. For Ashley Cole, this will likely send him out of town. The tabloids have him linked with Real Madrid, but that is very unlikely. A move like Manchester City wouldn't be surprising. For Zhirkov, the move will help improve him even further. This Russian exodus is a good thing for the Russian National Team and for Zhirkov. This move will test Zhirkov in the toughest league in the world and will give him vast amounts of experience going forward with Russia. For Russia, the extra experience will help them in the World Cup (should they qualify). I applaud Chelsea for this move. This is the type of player that Liverpool, Manchester, and Arsenal should have been looking at as well. Very good signing.

A Few Quick Rumors-

Manchester United are set to sign Bordeaux striker Gabriel Obertan. He is only 20.

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti has declared that John Terry will never leave the club.

Inter have reportedly cooled their interest in Chelsea pair Deco and Ricardo Carvalho.

Everton are set to make their first signing of the off-season. They are set to sign American Antonio Peterlin from Ventura County Fusion after impressing on a 10 day trial run.

Andrea Pirlo is reportedly happy to stay for the remainder of his contract at AC Milan.

Franck Ribery is now saying that he does not want to quit Bayern Munich. This marks the umpteenth time that he has said this.

CONCACAF Gold Cup Update

Group A- Matchday 1

Canada 1, Jamaica 0. Ali Gerba hit the winner in the 74 minute on a beautiful volley. Canada had the better of chances, but both keepers came up big for their sides.

Costa Rica 1, El Salvador 2. The Costa Ricans underperformed again and dropped the match to ES. Osael scored first in the 19th minute for ES. Then Warren Granados scored for Costa Rica in the 63rd and gave the appearance that they would go on and win. But it wasn't meant to be. Osael scored in the 85th to give the three points to ES. Costa Rica had more chances, but ES took advantage of good finishing to win it.

Tuesday at Columbus Crew Stadium: Jamaica v. Costa Rica (7:00 EST), El Salvador v. Canada (9:00 EST)

Group B- Matchday 1

Honduras 1, Haiti 0. The Hondurans saved face pretty late in this one against Haiti, who really aren't that bad of a team. Honduras was dominated for most of the match, but Carlos Costly hit the winner for them in the 75th minute.

Grenada 0, United States 4. The US completely dominated Grenada with the fringe and want-on players. The US had goals from Freddy Adu (6), Stuart Holden (30), Robbie Rogers (59), and Charlie Davies (67). Grenada had only 2 shots and the US had 12. If not for many great saves from Grenada's Desmond Noel, the score would have been worse.

Wednesday at R.F.K. Stadium: Haiti v. Grenada (7:00 EST), United States v. Honduras (9:00 EST)

Group C- Matchday 1

Panama 1, Guadeloupe 2. For the second consecutive Gold Cup, Guadeloupe have impressed. They scored twice in the first half. Loic Loval scored in the 33rd minute and David Fleurival scored in the 42nd minute. Panama pulled one back via Nelson Barahona in the 68th, but it wasn't enough.

Nicaragua 0, Mexico 2. Mexico has taken another win from a CONCACAF opponent with an easy 2-0 victory. Luis Noriega scored a penalty in the 45th minute and Pablo Barrera scored in the 85th minute. Nicaragua only had 2 shots and Mexico had 9.

Thursday at Reliant Stadium: Guadeloupe v. Nicaragua (8:00 EST), Mexico v. Panama (10:00 EST)

Classic Match of the Day- [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZrdMQKo4Zw&feature=related[/youtube]

Well, I hope you liked it. It's been Keeper and I'm out.

The SoccerNation Report- 7/3/09

Keeper — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 10:59:19 GMT

Hello and welcome back to The SoccerNation Report. Here we go.

The Lead Story- Owen to United? A shock move has happened between maligned striker Michael Owen and Manchester United. Sir Alex Ferguson has already confirmed the player as a United player. He said the following :"Michael is a world class forward with a proven goalscoring record at the highest level and that has never been in question. Coming to Manchester United with the expectations that we have is something that Michael will relish." This move is a huge one for Michael Owen and his career. The free agent is now at yet another crossroads in his career. Owen's first crossroad was when he left Liverpool as a mere lad with a ton of potential to play for Real Madrid and then the subsequent return to England at Newcastle. Since being at Newcastle, Owen has been the captain most of the time and has also been oft-injured. One must only think about the talent he was (and really still is) when he is not injured. When not injured, Owen is one of the best scorers in the world, no joke. This is a great move for a player that has been on the outs of the England National Team and is also looking to recapture the form he used to have before his move to Real Madrid. Owen will be the number 3 striker and should see a lot of time with United because of the vast amount of matches that they play year-in and year-out. As a big fan, I really wish this player the best of luck and I think that Owen will rediscover form. He won't ever be the same guy that we all saw running around in a Liverpool kit, but he will find a goalscoring form again.

City Make Play for Terry, Again- Manchester City have made another move for John Terry. Chelsea have once again turned down the offer for their center-back captain. One can not blame Man. City for this chase, but it just seems too far-fetched at this juncture. Terry is a great defender and an even better captain and it would be great for City to bring in someone of his capability. But the fact that he is a great captain means that he not move to City for any regardless of the large sum of money that they can offer. Then again, money does do a ton of talking.

Chamakh for Adebayor- Arsene Wenger, manager of Arsenal, could be set to trade the services of Emmanuel Adebayor for those of Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh. Chamakh is said to be a back-up plan. But why not go after Gomis of St. Etienne? I admit that I don't know much about the player, but Gomis seems to be a better option. He's a bigger forward that has pace and scores goals. Not to mention, he plays better with better players around him. Your decision Arsene.

Games of the Day- CONCACAF Gold Cup

Canada v. Jamaica- 8:00 eastern

Key Matchup: Paul Stalteri vs. Ricardo Fuller, Marlon King

El Salvador v. Costa Rica- 10:00 eastern

Key Matchup: Eliseo Quintanilla vs. Walter Centeno

Well, I've gotta run. It's been Keeper and I'm out.