Soccer: Extra Time

Soccer: Extra Time

Arsenal star Walcott ruled out for six weeks

September 08, 2010 , ι NewsCore

The stop-start career of Arsenal striker Theo Walcott suffered another setback late Wednesday when the English Premier League (EPL) star was ruled out for six weeks with an ankle injury. A scan on... Read on

A scan on the injury he suffered 10 minutes into England’s 3-1 win over Switzerland on Tuesday night revealed ligament damage to his right ankle that will keep him on the sidelines until the end of next month.

England manager Fabio Capello had originally predicted a two-week layoff after speaking to the player before leaving Basle.

Walcott’s latest injury is a huge blow to Arsenal and England, but more pertinently to the player himself, who has responded impressively to being left out of Capello’s World Cup squad to re-establish himself as first choice for club and country.

The 21-year-old began the season in magnificent form, scoring four goals in three EPL games, including a hat-trick against Blackpool, and starting all of England’s three matches.

Walcott’s brief career has been a rollercoaster ride of highs and lows, from being taken to the 2006 World Cup as a 17-year-old to being dropped on the eve the next tournament, but the recurrence of injuries has been the one constant theme.

This is the eighteenth significant injury he has suffered since signing for Arsenal four years ago, a curse that has played an important role in hindering his development.

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Fabio Capello confirms he'll quit as England coach after Euro 2012

September 08, 2010 , ι Sky Sports

England coach Fabio Capello confirmed Wednesday that he will step down as the team's manager after his contract expires following the Euro 2012 soccer tournament, Sky News reported. The 64-year-old... Read on

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Escort's parents apologize to Wayne Rooney's wife

September 08, 2010 , ι NewsCore

The parents of the woman at the center of an alleged sex scandal involving England star Wayne Rooney issued a public apology today to the striker's wife. Jennifer Thompson, 21, went public on Sunday... Read on

The parents of the woman at the center of an alleged sex scandal involving England star Wayne Rooney issued a public apology today to the striker's wife.

Jennifer Thompson, 21, went public on Sunday with claims Rooney paid the $1855-a-night escort for sex, creating a scandal which threatens to end the soccer player's marriage.

Rooney's 24-year-old wife, Coleen, was pregnant with the couple's only child at the time.

In a statement released Wednesday, the escort's parents Hamish and Dana Thompson offered their "most sincere apologies to Coleen Rooney and her family."

"The last few days have been extremely trying for us and our family," the statement said. "Following the various newspaper articles concerning our daughter Jennifer, we would like to offer our most sincere apologies to Coleen Rooney and her family."

The statement continued: "This may sound somewhat hollow, but my wife and I would never condone what has or may have happened. Jennifer is our daughter and we love her and we will deal with this matter as a family, not via the media."

Rooney, 24, set aside his personal problems yesterday to score a goal in England's 3-1 victory over Switzerland in their second Euro 2012 qualifier match.

England coach Fabio Capello praised the Manchester United star's performance, which followed speculation that he would be left out of the squad to recover from the psychological fallout of the sex scandal.

"I think he played well. He was always at the center of the play, the center of the movement. I think the pressure was really strong on him, but he played very well," Capello said.

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FIFA Inspection Group arrives in New York as U.S. eyes World Cup bid

September 07, 2010 , ι BRIAN LEWIS

The FIFA Inspection Group arrived in New York last night to start their tour of the United States, and produce a technical report for the executive committee. They'll file that in November and the... Read on

The FIFA Inspection Group arrived in New York last night to start their tour of the United States, and produce a technical report for the executive committee. They'll file that in November and the 24-member panel will make its decision Dec. 2.
	 
Here is a partial transcription of a press conference today on the Upper East Side with U.S. Soccer President Sunil Guilati and Head of FIFA Inspection Group Harold Mayne-Nicholls.
	 
 
	 
Harold Mayne-Nicholls, head of FIFA Inspection Group 
	 
Opening Comments
	 
"Thank you, Sunil. First of all I would like to really thank all the representatives of the venues and cities that are bidding for this World Cup bid process for 2018 and 2022. The reception we had last night was wonderful and we really enjoyed it. Thanks to the mayors of New York, Nashville and Atlanta who were with us in that reception…We are here on our eighth visit to different bidding countries for these two next World Cups. We are here to get as much information as possible about what this bidding process is presenting to FIFA to run the World Cup in 2018 or 2022.
	 

	 
We will in these four days receive as much information as possible to put in our report for the [FIFA Executive Committee] members who, on Dec. 2, will decide which countries will get the World Cup in 2018 and 2022. We are sure we will receive all the information we need and with that information we are also sure we will present to the ExCo members a very objective report so they can have a strong basis for the decisions they will make.
	 

	 
I really thank U.S. Soccer and the bid organization for all their help during the last days in organizing the visit and also for sending us all the information we required for the visit. It will be a pleasure to be here. It will be a pleasure to go to these five venues, and of course it was really nice yesterday to receive information from the other thirteen venues that we will be unable to visit due to the time limit. Thanks again to the U.S. Soccer Federation and thanks to Sunil for all your efforts in the well organized visit that we will have here in the next days."
	 
 
	 
 
	 

	 
U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati 
	 
Opening Comments
	 
"Good morning. Welcome to the official kickoff of the FIFA Inspection Tour for the 2018/2022 World Cups. A big welcome to those of you who are here from our 18 candidate cities, as well as members of the media and guests. It's my great pleasure to introduce Harold Mayne-Nicholls, a longtime friend and the president of the Chilean federation who is head of FIFA's inspection group. He'll make some remarks and then he will be officially starting his inspection of five cities and a number of stadiums and training facilities. He will depart with his team after which I'll make a couple of opening remarks and take any questions from any of the media.
	 
 
	 

	 
“This is very much a technical inspection tour. They will be looking at facilities, infrastructure, hotels, highways, trains, planes, those sorts of things and obviously our stadiums. They will go from here to Washington to Miami to Dallas and Houston and home on Thursday night. The last stop on the totality of the inspection tour is Qatar, which they will do early next week. It’s an important part of the process. We had a date in May where we submitted the thousands of pages of documents but this is part of the process where they will write a technical report to FIFA’s Executive Committee which will summarize their visit and evaluate the bids more generally. Then FIFA will make a decision on Dec. 2 regarding the placement of the World Cup in 2018 and 2022.
	 
 
	 

	 
"We started last night with a reception. Some of the highlights of the trip are visits to the stadiums. There is a White House breakfast on Wednesday morning, we’re not sure of all the guests but there will certainly be a couple of cabinet members and some senior members of the President’s staff as well as the FIFA group. Bob Bradley is flying in for that as well and will be joining me with the group. [There will be] lots of things with mayors and governors and civic leaders in our cities, starting with New York and Washington today.
	 
 
	 

	 
"FIFA’s routine in this is that they do an opening and a closing statement but they don’t take questions. It’s the same policy they have in all nine of the countries. They let the written reports speak for themselves, but we’re under no restrictions. I’m happy to answer any questions there may be.”
	 
 
	 
On how the five cities were selected for the tour:
	 
“A lot of it had to do with distances and wanting to be on the East Coast because they are trying to get back to Zurich. It was about trying to make sure they saw three or four things; they wanted to see potential stadiums for the opening and Final. They wanted to see potential sites for the international broadcast center, and third was some training sites and hotels and so on. The first two are obviously very specific in terms of the IBC and stadiums. In a country like the United States we could have done that in different ways. We could have done a West Coast swing because we’ve got multiple stadiums that could meet the 80,000 minimum requirement for the Final. We decided on an East Coast swing because a couple of the newest stadiums we have, obviously one is here in the New York area and one is in Dallas. We wanted to make sure those were part of the process. The nation’s capital seemed like an obvious one. Once we did that, trying to get the rest into three days, there weren’t a lot of degrees of freedom. In an ideal world there would have been a longer trip. We would have loved to have taken them to a game, for example in Seattle, an MLS game, and seen some other venues on the West Coast, but that wasn’t possible.”
	 

	 
 
	 
On the challenges in convincing FIFA to award the World Cup to the United States:
	 
“The challenge is that it’s not a time trial. We’re not in a race against the clock; it’s a competition, an election. So the biggest challenge is the other challengers. There are some very qualified competitors that have done World Cups, have top leagues and lots of infrastructure. There are others who have proposed different solutions to issues. I think the challenges are that this is going to be a tough fight. We’ve known that since the beginning and it’s been a hard competition so far. I think we’ve done everything we can to date on the technical bid preparation, which is extraordinary, and the second part now, which is convincing 24 people that the technical bid and everything that the United States offers is what they want. We did a lot of that this summer, with President Clinton and Vice President Biden on the ground at the World Cup. They held one-on-one meetings and group meetings with those people. We are visiting all 24 of the Executive Committee members in their home cities. Luckily one of those is 150 meters from here so I think he is on board.
	 

	 
Other issues that we may face is that we hosted in 1994, which may not have been long enough ago, and I think some of the international community underestimates the passion for the game in the United States. When we start talking about the landscape in the U.S. they’re surprised by it. They are surprised that we have 16 teams and are growing in MLS. They are surprised that Americans were the No. 1 ticket buyers for the World Cup. They are surprised that you couldn’t get into bars in a lot of major cities at 10 a.m. to watch World Cup games. They’re surprised that the TV rights for the World Cup were the single largest in the world. When you look at all those things happening in a relatively short time since the 1994 World Cup, you can see the extraordinary success story. It’s important that we continue to get that message across, and the story we tell is that if you look at this as a 50-year time span from 1984, which I use as a benchmark because of the Olympic Games which gave FIFA the faith in American spectators for the sport in 1994, we’re at halftime. Look what we’ve done in the first half. Imagine what we can do in the second half if American television and commercial partnerships treat the World Cup the same way they might treat the Olympics, for example. And more Americans treat viewing it the way they might the NFL, for example. We saw some of that. We finally got what we’ve been going for for 25 years, which is water cooler talk. People who didn’t normally tune in were talking about the World Cup, Donovan’s goal, the save, whatever. So, convincing the world that we’re halfway there is a big challenge, and that’s what we’re working hard on.”

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Ex-Liverpool manager Houllier to be offered Aston Villa job

September 05, 2010 , ι SkySports

Gerard Houllier is set to be offered the manager's job at Aston Villa, Sky Sports reported Sunday. Houllier, who was in England for Jamie Carragher's testimonial on Saturday, was staying coy on the... Read on

Gerard Houllier is set to be offered the manager's job at Aston Villa, Sky Sports reported Sunday.

Houllier, who was in England for Jamie Carragher's testimonial on Saturday, was staying coy on the rumors when asked about the Villa job over the weekend.

However, it is believed Villa chairman Randy Lerner has offered the Frenchman the chance to replace former boss Martin O'Neill.

O'Neill resigned at Villa Park just before the start of the season with Kevin MacDonald being placed in caretaker charge.

The likes of Alan Curbishley, Sven Goran Eriksson and MacDonald have been linked with the role, but it appears former Liverpool boss Houllier is in pole position for the post.

Houllier, who left Liverpool in 2004, is believed to have impressed Villa's board in the interview process and could be unveiled as the new manager in the next 48 hours.
	 
Read more:
	 http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11677_6359276,00.html

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England's Wayne Rooney due on Swiss flight amid media claims -- Sky News

September 05, 2010 , ι Katie Cassidy

Soccer star Wayne Rooney was expected to fly with the rest of the England squad to Switzerland, despite allegations about his private life appearing in several British newspapers Sunday. The... Read on

The Manchester United striker trained with his national teammates Sunday and the session was described as business as usual. At a media conference, England midfielder James Milner said, "We're coming off the back of a good result and we've got another big game on Tuesday, so it's about preparing for that and recovering from the last one."

Rooney was the subject of reports Sunday in several British newspapers which lead to speculation about whether he would play against Switzerland in Tuesday's Euro 2012 qualifying game. However, the Football Association (FA), England's soccer governing body, denied reports that Rooney would remain at home.

Milner described Rooney as a "top player," adding, "You want your best players out on the field and he's obviously one of those. Things are always being said in the papers -- good things, bad things -- about the England team. That’s part and parcel of football, you have highs and you have lows and it's down to us to make sure the only thing that matters is on the field."

Tuesday's game was considered to be England's toughest fixture in its bid to make the finals and fans feared the potential absence of the team's star performer could damage chances of a victory.
	 
Read more:
	 http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/Wayne-Rooney-Expected-To-Fly-To-Switzerland-Amid-Allegations-About-Private-Life-In-Sunday-Newspapers/Article/201009115714849

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David and Victoria Beckham set to make LA their permanent base

September 05, 2010 , ι NewsCore

David Beckham and wife Victoria are set to quit Britain and make the United States their permanent base after putting their English mansion on the market, the (London) Sunday Mirror reported.... Read on

David Beckham and wife Victoria are set to quit Britain and make the United States their permanent base after putting their English mansion on the market, the (London) Sunday Mirror reported. Goldenballs and Posh Spice have officially gone Hollywood.

Estate agents have valued their southern England home at $27 million (£18million) -- they snapped it up in 1999 for £2.5 million.

A source close to the family said: “Frankly they cannot see themselves ever returning to make London their full-time base. The children are settled, speak with American accents and David and Victoria are immersed in the laid-back Los Angeles way of life. They love it there -- they’re well liked, have plenty of friends and feel it’s their spiritual home.”

As well as the 1930s Georgian mansion, the couple, both 35, have homes in Los Angeles, Dubai and France.

The Beckhams, who spent most of the summer at their chateau in Bargemon in the South of France, are also planning to buy an apartment in New York, where Victoria’s fashion business is based.

Since moving to America in 2007 the Beckhams have taken to the American way of life and their Hollywood celebrity pals include Tom Cruise and his wife Katie Holmes.

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Red Bulls come up short at champion RSL

September 05, 2010 , ι By BRIAN LEWIS

The Red Bulls lost 1-0 at defending MLS Cup Champion, Real Salt Lake last night in front of 19,115 at Rio Tinto Stadium.With the loss, the Red Bulls dropped to 11-8-4 with 37 points, losing ground on... Read on

The Red Bulls lost 1-0 at defending MLS Cup Champion, Real Salt Lake last night in front of 19,115 at Rio Tinto Stadium.
	 
With the loss, the Red Bulls dropped to 11-8-4 with 37 points, losing ground on Eastern Conference-leading Columbus. With coach Hans Backe having said beforehand MLS Cup finalists L.A, and Real Salt Lake along with Columbus were the class of the league, and his own team wasn't yet quite up to the task of winning a title, last night was a measuring-stick game for New York; and the Red Bulls were found wanting.
	 
The Red Bulls are 0-4 against that trio, MLS' top teams in the points standings; but they're 11-4-4 against the rest of the league. Whether they're truly a cut below, or were just due for a letdown coming off back-to-back solid wins, they came up short at Real Salt Lake, which ran its MLS-record home unbeaten streak to 22 games.
	 
New York coughed up the game's only goal just four minutes in. Midfielder Kyle Beckerman lofted the ball over the top to an on-rushing Fabian Espindola, who shook off his defender and slotted it past goalkeeper Greg Sutton with his left foot. That proved to be all Real Salt Lake needed. The Red Bulls played a horrid first half followed by a vastly-improved second, but couldn't break through.
	 
The Red Bulls, who were missing four starters from last Saturday’s 2-0 win over San Jose due to international duty – midfielders Rafa Marquez and Dane Richards, goalkeeper Bouna Coundoul, and defender Roy Miller – tried to get right back into the game in the 12th minute, as midfielder Seth Stammler found Juan Pablo Angel in the penalty box and the Colombian’s header forced goalkeeper Nick Rimando to parry it off the left post. Four minutes later, Real Salt Lake’s Andy Williams sliding volley was held by Sutton.
	 
In the 33rd minute, Angel’s aerial prowess again nearly earned the visitors a goal as his header from a Joel Lindpere corner kick was cleared off the line by Williams. Soon after, Sutton made a huge save to keep the match at 1-0 when he pushed away a Robbie Findley eight-yard header.
	 
In the second half, New York put more pressure on the hosts and Angel was denied for a third time in the 55th minute. Lindpere’s corner swung to the Designated Player, whose powerful header was saved by a diving Rimando. Angel’s ensuing attempt on the rebound was deflected by Rimando and cleared from the goal mouth by Beckerman.

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Manchester United star Ryan Giggs blasts 'overpaid' soccer players -- Sky Sports

September 04, 2010 , ι Razwan Mirza

Manchester United veteran Ryan Giggs said young players in England's Premier League will never get a chance to beat his records in the sport because they are pampered, Sky Sports reported Saturday.... Read on

The 36-year-old said he had no plans to quit the team just yet and hoped Manchester United could continue its success after already winning every title available to it. The former Wales international won 23 winners' medals during a glittering career under United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

But the midfielder believes the young stars of today are showered with too much money before they are able to prove themselves.

Giggs told U.K. newspaper the Daily Star: "A lot of players now, before they've established themselves, get a lot of money, which I never got. I was on good money, don't get me wrong, but I was playing in the first team and I was on £30 ($46). I was on an apprenticeship wage. Then my next contract was like £200 ($307)with expenses and gradually contracts would get better the older you got. That was how I grew up."

He continued: "Now, before you're proven, you've got the money -- a four or five-year contract -- which is the way football's gone. Some players can handle it, some player's don't. I've been at the club during its most successful era and been here a long time. It's going to be hard to beat. I'm not going to say it will never ever be done, but it will be tough."
	 
Read more:
	 http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11667_6357177,00.html

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Red Bulls face test vs. Salt Lake

September 03, 2010 , ι By BRIAN LEWIS

With the Red Bulls boasting three Designated Players and an actual payroll about $15 million _ both MLS records _ coach Hans Backe is going into tomorrow's measuring-stick game (9 p.m. MSG) against defending MLS Cup champion Real Salt Lake managing expectations in his best Lou Holtz form.
	 
"They look very solid. They’re missing (Alvaro) Saborio, the striker on Costa Rica and (Will) Johnson for Canada; but still they have probably two of the best midfield players in (Kyle) Beckerman and (Javier) Morales who can make a difference in any team,'' said Backe. "They are solid, they are strong. It’s a good game for us. I hope they don’t hammer us five or six-nil.''
	 
The Red Bulls (11-7-4) and Real Salt Lake (11-4-7) are second in the Eastern and Western Conferences respectively, trailing Columbus and the Galaxy. Backe insisted that his team wasn’t yet on a par with any of that other trio. But he admits a shorthanded win Saturday _ playing sans four starters _ could change his mind.
	 
"Then I could change my way of thinking. If we're in the game, create great chances, then I can say, OK we're that close with the best teams,'' said Backe. "They’ve been outstanding at home; but why not? They're a quality team and they're only missing two players, so it’s a very tough game for us. But why not? The way we've been playing, anything is possible.''
	 
Keeper Bouna Coundoul, right back Roy Miller, and midfielders Dane Richards and Rafa Márquez _ all starters _ are away for international duty, with reserve midfielder Carl Robinson absent for family reasons. Expect Greg Sutton, Danleigh Borman, Mac Kandji and Seth Stammler to step in, respectively.
	 
"Overall we're playing OK right now,'' said Thierry Henry. "We have some parts in the game where we do control the game, and still some parts we give too much room to the other side and they have some chances.
	 
"They're well-organized and they're the champions. We're going to go there missing some key players; it's going to be a tough test for us. I know they're a team that doesn’t lose a lot of games. We're going to have to show that we can also play well at their place and see what we can do.''
	 
The Red Bulls rolled 4-1 at Toronto to snap TFC's 17-game home unbeaten streak, but tomorrow's task is far tougher. The defending champs are not only better than Toronto, but Real Salt Lake is on a 21-game unbeaten run at Rio Tinto since May 16, 2009; and they've outscored their victims 46-11 in that streak.
	 
"It’s normal that people are getting excited, and we all agree that we've played better in the last couple of games,'' said captain Juan Pablo Angel. "(But) it still takes time to find the team, to get to understand each other and know the movements of each other. There’s still a lot of work to be done.
	 
"(Real Salt Lake) have a core of people who've been with the club for years. They won the championship last year and they’re contenders again this year. That’s what we’re trying to find: A core of people who're going to be here, and then add players, keeping the same structure.''
	 
That's exactly what Backe and GM Erik Soler are developing, scraping ex-coach Juan Carlos Osorio's perpetually-rotating lineup and eternally-changing formations. The result in the first half of a season was a solid-if-unspectacular team that ground out results that belying their so-so form. But with the addition of Henry and Marquez, they've tantalized with some brilliant soccer.
	 
And their defense has improved even more than their offense, benefitting from their dominance in possession. They allowed 19 goals in 16 games before Henry's arrival, but just four in the six games since. In essence, their goals-against has been cut in half, from 1.19 to .67.
	 
"Those guys talk all the time, don’t lose the ball, get the passing game going, etc,'' Backe said. "They say stay in the game until the magic hour, stay in the game the first 60 minutes you always have a chance to win the game. That means you need to have possession, have a good passing game, one-two touches.
	 
"Other teams will lose their organization the last 10 to 20 minutes, because they have to chase the ball for 60. If we can just get that in our mindset, in our movements and passing, then we're (going) the right way.''

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BRIAN LEWIS With the Post since 1998, Brian Lewis has covered the World Series, NBA Finals, Final Four, NFL playoffs, NYC Marathon, U.S. Open, World Cup, bowl games, and more than a thousand baseball games, including two perfect games at Yankee Stadium. He’s a Rutgers grad, class of 1990.

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CLEMENTE LISI Clemente Lisi is a native New Yorker and Post news reporter who spends most of his spare time playing and watching soccer. He is a regular contributor to the blog, where he writes about Italy's Serie A and the Champions League.

DYLAN BUTLER Dylan is an award-winning reporter/columnist who has covered New York City high school sports for more than a decade. After graduating from St. John’s University (he prefers Redmen to Red Storm), the Queens native worked for the TimesLedger Newspapers, serving as Sports Editor for the chain of 13 weekly newspapers in the Community News Group. An avid soccer fan, Dylan has covered the sport on all levels, from high school to international soccer. Dylan co-founded FiveBoroSports.com, a popular web site dedicated to daily coverage of New York City high school and college athletics. He also covered the Yankees, Jets and Devils for SNY.tv.

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