Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Francisco Varallo, Last Surviving Player From 1930 World Cup, R. I. P.

Francisco Varallo, the last surviving player from the inaugural World Cup that was played in 1930, passed away on Monday at La Plata, Argentina at age 100.

Mr. Varallo played for Argentina, who lost to host nation Uruguay in the championship match at Montevideo 4-2.

He started in all three group stage games but was injured in the match against Chile and missed the semifinal contest with the United States, which the Argentinians won 6-1.  Mr. Varallo did play in the final against Uruguay. 

Monday, August 30, 2010

Lions Take One On The Road

At Figueira da Foz, Portugal:

Leidson (42'), Matias Fernandez (PK-61'), and Yannick Djalo (70') provided the scoring as Sporting defeated Naval 3-1 on the road in Monday Portuguese Liga action.

No Aston Villa For Team USA Coach

It was announced on Monday that Bob Bradley will stay on as the head coach of the United States men's national team as he signed a contract extension that will keep him put until 2014.

Craig Reid Double Lifts Exiles To Road Draw With Dons

At Kingston upon Thames, England:

Craig Reid scored twice (PK-25', 79') as Newport County gained a 2-2 road draw on Monday with AFC Wimbledon in English Blue Square Premier Conference action.  Danny Kedwell (PK-16') and Christian Jolley (56') provided the Dons' goals.

CAF CL: Draw Sends JS Kabylie To Semifinals; Home Win For Heartland

Two games were played on Sunday as Match Day #4 in CAF Champions League group stage play came to a close.

Group B:

At Owerri, Nigeria:

Ikechukwu Ibenegbu (40') and Chinedu Efugh (85') provided the scoring as Heartland FC remained alive for the second semifinal berth from Group B with a 2-1 home win over Ismaily.

At Cairo, Egypt:

Saad Tedjar's equalizer at 29 minutes enabled JS Kabylie to gain a 1-1 draw with Al-Ahly and lock up a berth in the semifinal round. Mohamed Nagy scored at 22 minutes for the hosts, who currently cling to second place in Group B.

GROUP B STANDINGS:

1. JS Kabylie* (GP: 5; GD: +3; PTS: 10)
2. Al-Ahly (GP: 4; GD: 0; PTS: 5)
3. Heartland FC (GP: 4; GD: -1; PTS: 4)
4. Ismaily (GP: 4; GD: -2; PTS: 3)

*Clinched berth in semifinal round

Sunday, August 29, 2010

MLS: Goats Blank Visiting DCU

At Carson, California:

Justin Braun scored the only goal of the match at 12 minutes as Chivas USA ended a three-game winless streak with a 1-0 home win over DC United in the only Sunday Major League Soccer match.  Goalkeeper Zach Thornton made three saves for his fourth shutout of the season.

MLS STANDINGS:

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

1. Columbus (GP: 22; GD: +11; PTS: 41)
2. New York (GP: 21; GD: +4; PTS: 36)
3. Toronto FC (GP: 21; GD: -3; PTS: 27)
4. Kansas City (GP: 21; GD: -2; PTS: 26)
5. Chicago (GP: 18; GD: -1; PTS: 23)
6. New England (GP: 21; GD: -14; PTS: 21)
7. Philadelphia (GP: 21; GD: -12; PTS: 20)
8. DC United (GP: 22; GD: -21; PTS: 15)

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

1. Los Angeles (GP: 22; GD: +16; PTS: 43)
2. Real Salt Lake (GP: 22; GD: +20; PTS: 40)
3. FC Dallas (GP: 21; GD: +11; PTS: 37)
4. Seattle (GP: 22; GD: -1; PTS: 32)
5. Colorado (GP: 21; GD: +4; PTS: 31)
6. San Jose (GP: 20; GD: 0; PTS: 29)
7. Houston (GP: 22; GD: -9; PTS: 23)
8. Chivas USA (GP: 21; GD: -3; PTS: 22)

Home Win For Boca

At Buenos Aires, Argentina:

Sebastian Battaglia (36') and Luca Viatri (66') provided the scoring that paced Boca Juniors to a 2-1 home win on Sunday over Velez Sarsfield in Argentina's Premiera Division.

Pato Pair Propels Rossoneri

At Milan, Italy:

Alexandre Pato scored twice (16', 28') as AC Milan horsewhipped visiting (and newly-promoted) Lecce 4-0 on Sunday in the opening match of the Serie A season for both clubs.

TNS Top Bala Town With Ten Men

At Oswestry, England:

Chris Sharp (7') and Alex Darlington (82') each scored once as The New Saints, despite playing the last 40 minutes with ten men, defeated visiting Bala Town 2-1 in Sunday Welsh Premier League action.

Home Shutout Win For Monaco Over Champions-League-Bound Auxerre

At Fontvieille, Monaco:

Daniel Niculae (52') and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (59') provided the goalpower that carried AS Monaco to a 2-0 home win over AJ Auxerre in Sunday play in Ligue 1.

Parakeets Lifted By Dani's Double

At Barcelona, Spain:

Dani Osvaldo's double (34', 55') carried Espanyol to a 3-1 home win over Getafe in the Spanish Premiera Division season opener for both clubs on Sunday.

Luis Suarez Hat Trick Powers Ajax

At Doetinchem, Netherlands:

Luis Suarez delivered a hat trick (14', 41', 85') as Ajax Amsterdam delivered a 5-0 road brass knuckling to De Graafschap in Sunday Dutch Eredivisie action.

Bhoys Top Steelmen On the Road

At Motherwell, Scotland:

Daryl Murphy's penalty kick at 73 minutes provided all the scoring as Celtic, still smarting from their Europa League elimination, defeated Motherwell 1-0 on the road in Sunday Scottish Premier League action.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

CAF CL: Esperance Blank Champs To Move Closer To Semis

One game was played on Saturday in the CAF Champions League's group stage.

Group A:

At Rades, Tunisia:

Michael Eneramo scored twice (20', 50') as Esperance ST blanked visiting TP Mazembe 3-0.

GROUP A STANDINGS:

1. Espernace ST (GP: 4; GD: +4; PTS: 9)
2. TP Mazembe (GP: 4; GD: 0; PTS: 7)
3. ES Setif (GP: 4; GD: +1; PTS: 4)
4. Dynamos FC (GP: 4; GD: -5; PTS: 3) 

MLS: Hoops Make History With Scoreless Draw; RSL and Reds Go Scoreless, Too; Philly Top Revs In Foxborough; Thierry Henry's Maiden MLS Goal Powers Red Bulls; Rapids and Wizards Get Shutout Wins; Sounders Come Back To Douse Fire

Seven games made up the Saturday Major League Soccer schedule.

At Columbus, Ohio:

FC Dallas set a new MLS record with their 10th straight game without a defeat as they held the home standings Columbus Crew to a 0-0 deadlock.

At Toronto:

Goalkeeper Nick Romando racked up his 10th shutout of the MLS season, helping Real Salt Lake battle hosts Toronto FC to a 0-0 stalemate

At Foxborough, Massachusetts:

Jack MeInerney (82') and Justin Mapp (90') scored late as the Philadelphia Union came from behind to defeat the New England Revolution 2-1 on the road, snapping their six-game winless streak. 

At Harrison, New Jersey:

Dane Richards scored at 45 minutes and Thierry Henry scored his first MLS goal at 62 minutes as the New York Red Bulls blanked the visiting San Jose Earthquakes 2-0. 



At Commerce City, Colorado:

Three goals scored in the first half----by Jamie Smith (2'), Omar Cummings (15'), and Conor Casey (23')----enabled the Colorado Rapids to dominate the visiting Houston Dynamo 3-0. 



At Carson, California:

Davy Arnaud (11') and Jimmy Conrad (68') each tallied once as the Kansas City Wizards knocked off the Los Angeles Galaxy 2-0 on the road. 



At Seattle:

Fredy Montero scored twice (36', 90'+1) as the Seattle Sounders came from behind to defeat the visiting Chicago Fire 2-0 to stretch their unbeaten MLS streak to seven games (four wins and three draws). 

Tigres Come Up Short In Mexico City

At Mexico City:

In Saturday action in Mexico's Premiera Division, Emanuel Villa (10'), Javier Antonio Orozco (42'), and Alejandro Vela (53') each scored a goal as Cruz Azul held off visiting Tigres 3-2. 

Scoreless In Brussels

At Brussels, Belgium:

Saturday's Belgian Jupiler League contest between RSC Anderlecht and Zulte-Waregem ended in a 0-0 stalemate

Kenny Miller Saves The Day For 'Gers

At Glasgow, Scotland:

Sasa Papac (33') and Kenny Miller (79') provided the scoring to lift Rangers to a come-from-behind 2-1 home win over St. Johnstone on Saturday in Scottish Premier League action.

Dons Top Sports On Road

At Eastbourne, England:

Danny Kedwell scored twice (31', 90') as AFC Wimbledon defeated Eastbourne Borough in Saturday action in the English Blue Square Premier Conference 3-2 on the road.

Goose Eggs For The Boys From Up The Hill and Stanley

At Oxford, England:

Saturday's English League Two contest between Oxford United and visiting Accrington Stanley ended in a 0-0 stalemate.

Saints Blast Rovers In Bristol

At Bristol, England:

Jose Fonte (10'), Adam Lallana (34'), Richard Lambert (PK-59'), and Lee Barnard (90') each tallied once as Southampton destroyed hosts Bristol Rovers 4-0 Saturday in League One action in England.

Still Winless: Forest Held To 1-1 Home Draw By Promoted Canaries

At West Bridgford, England:

In Saturday action in England's League Championship, Andrew Crofts scored at 42 minutes to carry Norwich City to a 1-1 road draw with Nottingham Forest.  Dexter Blackstock converted his penalty kick at 35 minutes for the Tricky Trees' score.

Stalemate For Wolves and Magpies

At Wolverhampton, England:

Andy Carroll's equalizer at 62 minutes lifted Newcastle United to a 1-1 road draw in English Premier League action on Saturday with Wolverhampton.  Sylvan Ebanks-Blake scored for Wolves at 43 minutes. 

Ten-Man Sydney FC Settle For 1-1 Home Draw

At Sydney, Australia:

Patricio Perez converted on a penalty kick at 73 minutes to enable the Central Coast Mariners to gain a 1-1 road draw on Saturday with ten-man Sydney FC in A-League action.  The struggling hosts' goal came at 47 minutes from Rhyan Grant.  

Friday, August 27, 2010

CAF CL Group Stage: Shutout Win Helps ES Setif's Knockout Stage Chances

One game was played on Friday as the second half of group stage play in the CAF Champions League commenced.

Group A:

At Setif, Algeria:

Bouazza Feham's double (32', 78') helped carry ES Setif to a 3-0 home beatdown of Dynamos FC. 

Matress Makers Blank Nerozzurri For Super Cup Triumph

Jose Antonio Reyes (62') and Sergio Aguero (83') each tallied once as Europa League titlists Atletico Madrid defeated Champions League champs Inter Milan 2-0 on Friday in Monaco to capture the UEFA Super Cup title.

1-0 Home Win For Blues

At Belfast, Northern Ireland:

Paul Munster scored the only goal of the match at 33 minutes as Linfield FC defeated visiting Coleraine 1-0 in IFA Premiership action on Friday. 

Bayern Stunned At Kaiserslautern

At Kaiserslautern, Germany:

Goals from Ivo Ilicevic (36') and Srdjan Lakic (37') powered FC Kaiserslautern, despite ending the game with only ten men, to a 2-0 home shocker over Bayern Munich in Friday action in the German Bundesliga. 

Europa League Draw

Here are the results of the draw for the group stage of the Europa League that took place in Monaco on Friday:

Group A:

Juventus
Manchester City
Red Bull Salzburg
Lech Poznan

Group B:

Atletico Madrid
Bayer Leverkusen
Rosenborg BK
Aris Thessaloniki

Group C:

Sporting 
LOSC Lille Metropole
Levski Sofia
KAA Gent

Group D:

Villarreal
Club Brugge
Dinamo Zagreb
PAOK FC

Group E:

AZ Alkmaar
Dynamo Kiev
FC BATE Borisov
FC Sheriff

Group F:

CSKA Moscow
Palermo
Sparta Prague
FC Lausanne-Sport

Group G:

Zenit Saint Petersburg
RSC Anderlecht
AEK Athens
Hajduk Split

Group H:

VfB Stuttgart
Getafe
Odense BK
BSC Young Boys

Group I:

PSV Eindhoven
Sampdoria
Metalist Kharkiv
Debreceni VSC

Group J:

Sevilla
Paris Saint-Germain
Borussia Dortmund
Karpaty

Group K:

Liverpool
Steaua Bucharest
Napoli
FC Utrecht

Group L:

FC Porto
Besiktas
CSKA Sofia
Rapid Vienna 

Thursday, August 26, 2010

CONCACAF CL: Joe Public Gain Road Draw; Easy Wins For Saprissa and Toluca

Thursday marked the conclusion of Match Day #2 in the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League with three games contested.

Group B:

At Guatemala City:

Micah Lewis' equalizer (90'+3) enabled Joe Public FC to gain a 1-1 road draw with CSD Municipal.  Mario Rodriguez had scored at 77 minutes for the hosts.

GROUP B STANDINGS:

1. Santos Laguna (GP: 2; GD: +4; PTS: 6)
2. Columbus Crew (GP: 2; GD: 0; PTS: 3)
3. CSD Municipal (GP: 2; GD: -1; PTS: 1)
4. Joe Public FC (GP: 2; GD: -3; PTS: 1)


Group C:


At San Jose, Costa Rica:


CD Saprissa, with Alejandro Sequeira (34'), Jairo Arrieta (52'), Josue Martinez (77'), and Armando Alonso (86') each scoring a goal, dominated visiting CD Marathon 4-1.


GROUP C STANDINGS:


1. Monterrey (GP: 2; GD: +3; PTS: 6)
2. CD Saprissa (GP: 2; GD: +2; PTS: 3)
3. CD Marathon (GP: 2; GD: -2; PTS: 3)
4. Seattle Sounders FC (GP: 2; GD: -3; PTS: 0)


Group D:


At Toluca, Mexico:


Juan Cuevas scored twice (4', 10') as Toluca smothered visiting CD Olimpia 4-0.


GROUP D STANDINGS:


1. Toluca (GP: 2; GD: +4; PTS: 4)
2. Puerto Rico Islanders (GP: 2; GD: +3; PTS: 4)
3. CD FAS (GP: 2; GD: -3; PTS: 1)
4. CD Olimpia (GP: 2; GD: -4; PTS; 1)

UCL Group Stage Draw

Here are the results from the draw for the group stage of the UEFA Champions League that took place on Thursday in Monaco.

Group A:

Inter Milan
Werder Bremen
Tottenham Hotspur
FC Twente

Group B:

Lyon
SL Benfica
FC Schalke 04
Hapoel Tel Aviv

Group C:

Mancester United
Valencia
Rangers
Bursaspor

Group D:

Barcelona
Panathinaikos
FC Copenhagen
Rubin Kazan

Group E:

Bayern Munich
AS Roma
FC Basel
CFR Cluj

Group F:

Chelsea
Marseille
Spartak Moscow
MSK Zilina

Group G:

AC Milan
Real Madrid
Ajax Amsterdam
AJ Auxerre

Group H:

Arsenal
Shakhtar Donetsk
SC Braga
Partizan Belgrade

Europa League Playoff Round Concludes: Liverpool, Citizens, AZ, Lausanne-Sport, Yellow Submarine, Sporting, Juve, Croatian Archrivals Advance; Scottish Trio Eliminated

The remaining 36 two-game series for places in the group stage of the Europa League concluded on Thursday.

At Minsk, Belarus:

Two successful penalty kicks from Carl Hoefkens (5', 32') carried Club Brugge to a 3-2 road win in game two over Dinamo Minsk and a 5-3 aggregate win for the two-match series.

At Baku, Azerbaijan:

Lucas Barrios scored the only goal of the match (90'+1) as Borussia Dortmund defeated Qarabag FK 1-0 on the road in game two and closed out the Azerbaijani club on aggregate, 5-0.

At Aktobe, Kazakhstan:

Despite dropping a 2-1 decision on the road in game two, AZ Alkmaar still won their two-game series with FK Aktobe 3-2 on aggregate.  Pontus Wernbloom scored the series-winning goal at 10 minutes.

At Funchal, Portugal:

FC BATE Borisov, with goals courtesy of Aleksandr Pavlov (52') and Maksim Skavysh (90'+2), defeated CS Maritimo 2-1 on the road in game two and won the two-game series 5-1 on aggregate.

At Moscow:

Silvio scored at 17 minutes as Lausanne-Sport gained a 1-1 road draw in game two with Lokomotiv Moscow, squaring the two-game series at 2-2 on aggregate to force what turned out to be 30 scoreless minutes of overtime.  In the penalty-kick shootout, Silvio, Abdul Carrupt, Rodrigo Tosi, and Fabio Celestini each converted a spot kick as the Swiss second-division club won the shootout 4-3 on advance to the group stage. 

At Mogilev, Belarus:

With a goal during stoppage time of each half----Nilmar (45'+1) and Marco Ruben (90'+1), Villarreal defeated hosts FC Dnepr Mogilev 2-1 in game two and handily took the two-game series 7-1 on aggregate.

At Helsinki, Finland:

Ricardo Quaresma (15'), Guti (67'), Necip Uysal (77'), and Filip Holosko (90'+3) each tallied once as Besiktas spanked HJK Helsinki 4-0 in game two on the road and took the two-match series 6-0 on aggregate.

At Vienna, Austria:

Carlos Ruiz scored at 42 minutes as Aris Thessaloniki FC gained a 1-1 road draw in match two with Austria Vienna, good enough for the Greek club to take the two-game series 2-1 on aggregate.

At Kharkiv, Ukraine:

Goals from Marko Devic (66') and Cleiton Xavier (71') enabled FC Metalist Kharkiv to gain a 2-2 home draw in game two with AC Omonia, good enough for the Ukrainian club to win their two-game series 3-2 on aggregate.

At Brondby, Denmark:

Sporting, thanks to goals from Evaldo (45'), Nuno Coelho (75'), and Yannick Djalo (90'+1), overturned their 2-0 home defeat of last week with a 3-0 road win over Brondby IF, taking out the Danish club 3-2 on aggregate. 

At Nicosia, Cyprus:

After Ailton Almeida scored at 41 minutes for APOEL FC to give the Cypriot club a 1-0 home decision in game two with Getafe, squaring the two-game set at 1-1 on aggregate, Cata Diaz scored the series-winning goal in overtime (98') as the Spanish club took out APOEL 2-1 on aggregate.

At Bucharest, Romania:

Ante Vukusic scored the lone goal of the match (88') as Hajduk Split gained a 1-1 road draw with Unirea Urziceni in game two and won their two-game series 5-2 on aggregate.

At Lovech, Bulgaria:

With Yannick Mbengogo (53') and Peter Czvitkovics (81') providing the scoring, Debreceni VSC blanked PFC Litex Lovech 2-1 on the road in game two and won their two-game series 4-1 on aggregate. 

At Zurich, Switzerland:

After Veroljub Salatic scored at 77 minutes to enable Grasshoppers to get the measure of visiting Steaua Bucharest 1-0 in game two to square the two-game series at 1-1 on aggregate to force what would be 30 scoreless overtime minutes, the Romanian club, thanks to successful conversions from Bogdan Stancu, Romeo Surdu, Stanislav Angelov, and Iasmin Latovlevici, won the penalty-kick shootout 4-3.

At Trabzon, Turkey:

Thanks to goals late in the contest from Giray Kacar (OG-83') and Dirk Kuyt (88'), Liverpool defeated Trabzonspor 2-1 on the road in game two and won their two-match series 3-1 on aggregate.

At Sofia, Bulgaria:

After a scoreless opening contest in Sweden, Daniel Mladenov (49') and Garra Dembele (51') each scored a goal some two minutes apart early in the second half as Levski Sofia overcame a one-goal deficit and defeated visiting AIK 2-1 in game two and won the two-game series by that same score on aggregate.

At Eindhoven, Netherlands:

Balazs Dzsudzsak scored twice (73', PK-90') as PSV Eindhoven easily overturned their 1-0 road loss of last week in Russia by stomping on visiting FC Sibir Novosibirsk 5-0 in game two and won their two-game series 5-1 on aggregate.

At Tel Aviv, Israel:

Despite dropping a 4-3 decision on the road to MAccabi Tel-Aviv in game two, Paris Saint-Germain won their two-game series 5-4 on aggregate, thanks to their 2-0 home win of last week, and goals in this road contest from Guillame Hoarau (PK-40'), Ludovic Giuly (64'), and Nene (PK-90'+3)

At Simferopol, Ukraine:

With goals courtesy of Arturo Vidal (PK-50') and Gonzalo Castro (90'+3), Bayer Leverkusen defeated SC Tavriya Simferopol 3-1 on the road in game two and won their two-game series 6-1 on aggregate.

At Ghent, Belgium:

Thanks to goals from Yaya Soumahoro (34') and Elimane Coulibaly (61'), KAA Gent overturned their 1-0 road setback of last week by defeating visiting Feyenoord Rotterdam 2-0 in game two and won their two-match set 2-1 on aggregate.

At  Athens, Greece:

Pape Bouba Diop's goal at 23 minutes enabled AEK Athens to gain a 1-1 home draw in game two with Dundee United, enough for the Greek club to win their two-game series 2-1 on aggregate.

At Stuttgart, Germany:

With qualification for the group stage in jeopardy, VfB Stuttgart, thanks to goals from Timo Gebhart (56') and Christian Gentner (64'), erased a game-two two-goal deficit at home to gain a 2-2 draw with Slovan Bratislava and won their two-game series 3-2 on aggregate.

At Poznan, Poland:

A 0-0 home stalemate in game two with FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk carried KKS Lech Poznan to a 1-0 aggregate win for the two-match series.

At Utrecht, Netherlands:

Ricky van Wolfswinkel's hat trick (PK-12', PK-19', 46') helped FC Utrecht erase the two-goal aggregate deficit after game one as they spanked visiting Celtic 4-0 in game two to take out the Bhoys 4-2 on aggregate.

At Wrexham, Wales:

Giuseppe Aquaro (11') and Christian Tiboni (80') provided the goalpower that carried CSKA Sofia to a 2-2 road draw in game two with The New Saints, enough to carry the Bulgarian club to a 5-2 aggregate win in the two-match series.

At Lviv, Ukraine:

Artem Fedetsky scored the series-winning goal in second-half stoppage time (90'+3) as FC Karpaty Lviv gained a 1-1 home draw with Galatasaray in game two, and with the score at 2-2 on aggregate, won the two-game series on away goals.

At Maribor, Slovenia:

Despite dropping game two 3-2 on the road, Palermo still won their two-game series with NK Maribor 5-3 on aggregate.  Abel Hernandez scored both goals for the Sicilian club at 62 and 68 minutes.

At Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France:

With the two-game series having gone scoreless through the first game-and-a-half, Yohan Cabaye (PK-69') and Aurelien Chedjou (80') provided the scoring that carried LOSC Lille Metropole to both a 2-0 game-two and aggregate win over FC Vaslui.

At Boras, Sweden:

Edinson Cavani provided both goals (29', 38') as Napoli defeated IF Elfsborg 2-0 on the road in game two and won their two-game series 3-0 on aggregate.

At Turin, Italy:

Alessandro Del Piero scored the only goal of the match at 53 minutes as Juventus defeated visiting SK Sturm Graz in game two 1-0 and won their two-game series 3-1 on aggregate.

At Birmingham, England:

Rapid Vienna, with goals courtesy of Atdhe Nuhiu (52'), Mario Sonnleitner (78'), and Rene Gartler (81') each providing a tally, defeated Aston Villa 3-2 on the road in game two and won their two-match series 4-3 on aggregate.

At Motherwell, Scotland:

Peter Utaka provided the game's lone score at 28 minutes as Odense BK took game two 1-0 on the road and won their two-game series with Motherwell 3-1 on aggregate.

At Istanbul, Turkey:

After Emre Belozoglu scored at 50 minutes for Fenerbahce, enabling the Yellow Canaries to gain a 1-0 home decision in game two with PAOK FC to deadlock the two-game series 1-1 on aggregate, the Greek club won the series in overtime as Zlatan Muslimovic scored at the 112 minute mark enabling the visitors to take the series 2-1 on aggregate.

At Manchester, England:

Manchester City, with Shaun Wright-Phillips (43') and Dedryck Boyata (59') providing the scoring, blanked visiting FC Timisoara 2-0 in game two and won their two-game series 3-0 on aggregate.

At Zagreb, Croatia:

Two penalty kicks from Sammir (45'+2, 84') carried Dinamo Zagreb to a 2-1 home win in match two with Gyori ETO FC and a 4-1 aggregate win for the two-game series.

At Porto, Portugal:

Let's hear it for Hulk!  His hat trick (36', PK-59', 63') carried FC Porto to a 4-2 game-two win over visiting KRC Genk and a 7-2 aggregate win.

The winners of these two-games series, along with Atletico Madrid who won the final this past may, CSKA Moscow, who wrapped up their two-game series on Tuesday, and the ten teams that lost their UEFA Champions League playoff round series (RSC Anderlecht, Sampdoria, Sevilla, Sparta Prague, Zenit Saint Petersburg, FC Sheriff, BSC Young Boys, Red Bull Salzburg, Rosenborg BK, and Dynamo Kiev) will take part in the Europa League group stage draw on Friday in Monaco.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

CONCACAF CL: RSL Blow Lead In Soaky Mexico City While Sounders Fall Against Striped Gang In Another Bad Night For MLS Clubs

Three games were played on Wednesday as Match Day #2 in the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League continued.

Group A:

At Mexico City:

Javier Orozco had a four-goal night (5', 76', 87', 89') and Christian Gimenez scored the game winner (90'+3) as Cruz Azul overcame a 3-1 deficit and overtook visiting Real Salt Lake 5-4 in a contest that saw heavy rains turn the pitch at Azul Stadium into a wetland.

GROUP A STANDINGS:

1. Cruz Azul (GP: 2; GD: 0; PTS: 3)
    Real Salt Lake (GP: 2; GD: 0; PTS: 3)
3. Arabe Unido (GP: 2; GD: 0; PTS: 3)
    Toronto FC (GP: 2; GD: 0; PTS: 3)


Group C:


At Seattle:


Goals from Neri Cordozo (41') and Aldo de Nigris (58') carried Monterrey to a 2-0 win on the road against Seattle Sounders FC.


Group D:


At Bayamon, Puerto Rico:


Jonathan Fana scored twice in the first half (22', 45'+1) as the Puerto Rico Islanders dominated visiting CD FAS 4-1.

Carling Cup: Magpies Top Stanley

At Accrington, England:

Ryan Taylor (36'), Shola Ameobi (48'), and Peter Lovenkrands (67') provided the scoring as Newcastle United held off Accrington Stanley 3-2 on the road Wednesday in the second round of action in England's League Cup.

UCL Playoff Round: Spurs, Auxerre, FC Copenhagen Overturn Game-One Setbacks To Advance To Group Stage; Ajax and MSK Zilina Advance Too

The playoff round for berths in the UEFA Champions League's group stage concluded with five games on Wednesday.

At Copenhagen, Denmark:

Solvi Ottesen scored the only goal of the match (33') as FC Copenhagen took game two of their two-match set with Rosenborg 1-0 at home, and with the two-game score 2-2 on aggregate, won the series on away goals.

At Zilina, Slovakia:

Momodou Ceesay provided the game's lone goal at 18 minutes as MSK Zilina defeated visiting Sparta Prague 1-0 in game two and won their two-game set 3-0 on aggregate to become the first Slovakian club since Artmedia Petzralka in 2005-06 to reach the Champions League's group stage.

At London:

Peter Crouch's hat trick (5', 61', PK-78') helped Tottenham Hotspur overcome their 3-2 road defeat of last week as they brass knuckled visiting BSC Young Boys 4-0 in game two and won their two-match series 6-3 on aggregate, enabling Spurs to reach the Champions League's group stage for the first time in club history.

At Auxerre, France:

Cedric Hengbart (9') and Ireneusz Jelen (53') provided the goalpower that enabled AJ Auxerre to overturn their 1-0 road defeat at Saint Petersburg with a 2-0 home win in match two over Zenit Saint Petersburg and win their two-game series 2-1 on aggregate and reach the group stage of the Champions League for the first time since 2002-03.

At Amsterdam, Netherlands:

Luis Suarez (43') and Mounir El Hamdaoui (75') as Ajax Amsterdam defeated visiting Dynamo Kiev 2-1 in game two and won their two-game series 3-2 on aggregate.


The draw for the Champions League's group stage will take place on Thursday in Monaco.


The ten teams that were eliminated over the past two days will play in the group stage of the Europa League.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Carling Cup: Wolves Win In OT; Saints Fall

Here's a quick rundown on a couple of games played on Tuesday in the second round of England's League Cup:


At Wolverhampton:


Richard Stearman scored the winning goal in overtime (120') as Wolverhampton Wanderers defeated League Two club Southend United 2-1.


At Southampton:


Ivan Klasnic scored the only goal of the match (31') as Bolton defeated Southampton 1-0 on the road.

CONCACAF CL: Rough Tuesday For MLS Clubs

Two games were played on Tuesday as Match Day #2 in group stage play in the CONCACAF Champions League commenced.

Group A:

At La Chorrera, Panama:

Fidel Caesar scored the only goal of the match (40') as Arabe Unido defeated visiting Toronto FC 1-0.

Group B:


At Torreon, Mexico:


Jorge Evan Estrada's game winner (90'+3) carried Santos Laguna to a 1-0 home win over the Columbus Crew.

 

Dons Fall At The Diamonds' Pitch

At Irthlingborough, England:

Rene Howe scored the only goal of the match at 64 minutes as Rushden & Diamonds defeated visiting AFC Wimbledon 1-0 Tuesday in the English Blue Square Premier Conference.

UCL Playoff Round: Partizan, Werder, SC Braga, FC Basel, Hapoel Tel Aviv Advance To Group Stage

Five of the ten two-match series in the UEFA Champions League's playoff round concluded Tuesday.

At Tel Aviv, Israel:

Eran Zahavi scored during second-half stoppage time (90'+2) to enable Hapoel Tel-Aviv to gain a 1-1 home deadlock in game two of their two-match series with Red Bull Salzburg and a berth in the group stage as they won the two-game series 4-3 on aggregate.

At Tiraspol, Moldova:

Alexander Frei scored twice in the second half (80', 87') as FC Basel overpowered FC Sheriff 3-0 on the road in game two to take their two-game set 4-0 on aggregate.


At Brussels, Belgium:


In game two between Partizan Belgrade and RSC Anderlecht, Cleo scored twice in regulation time for the visiting Serbian club at 15 and 53 minutes to give Partizan a 2-0 lead, only to see Romelu (64') and Guillaume Gillet (71') score for the hosts to square the contest at 2-2.  With the score for the two-game series deadlocked at 4-4 on aggregate and with 30 minutes of overtime unable to resolve the issue, with Cleo, Radosav Petrovic, and Vojislav Stankovic all converting their penalty kicks, while three of Anderlecht's tries ended up sailing over the crossbar, Partizan won the penalty-kick shootout 3-2 to advance to the group stage for the first time since the 2003-04 campaign.

At Seville, Spain:

Lima's second-half hat trick (58', 85', 90') enabled SC Braga to hold off Sevilla 4-3 on the road in game two and win their two-game series 5-3 on aggregate.

At Genoa, Italy:

Markus Rosenberg's goal in second-half stoppage time (90'+3) forced overtime, where Claudio Pizarro scored the series winner (100') as Werder Bremen, despite being down 3-1 after regulation play in game two, still defeated Sampdoria 5-4 on aggregate after the conclusion of overtime to advance to the group stage. 

Europa League Playoff Round: Horse Advance To Group Stage

At Larnaca, Cyprus:

Seydou Dounbia (85') and Mark Gonzalez (89') provided the late goals as CSKA Moscow defeated Anorthosis Famagusta FC 2-1 on the road Tuesday in game two of their two-match series in the playoff round of the Europa League and won the two-game set 6-1 on aggregate, enabling the Horses to qualify for the group stage.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

All Boys Get All The Goals At Boca's Expense

At Buenos Aires, Argentina:

Mauro Matos (PK-29') and Eduardo Dominguez (39') each tallied once as All Boys continued Boca Juniors' struggles in Argentina's Premiera Division, beating the visitors 2-0 on Sunday.

Lions Top Maritimo

At Lisbon, Portugal:

Sporting defeated CS Maritimo 1-0 in Sunday action in the Portuguese Liga.  For the Lions, it was their first win of the league season. Matias Fernandez scored the game's lone goal at 89 minutes.

Danny's Double Boosts DC

At Washington:

In Sunday's lone Major League Soccer match, Danny Allsopp scored both goals (22', 63') as DC United ended their five-match losing streak (and eight-game winless streak in which they had scored but three goals) 2-0 at home over the Philadelphia Union.  The win was the first for Ben Olsen in three games as DC's interim head coach.  The Union's winless streak now stretches to six matches.

MLS STANDINGS:

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

1. Columbus (GP: 21; GD: +11; PTS: 40)
2. New York (GP: 20; GD: +2; PTS: 33)
3. Toronto FC (GP: 20; GD: -3; PTS: 26)
4. Chicago (GP: 17; GD: 0; PTS: 23)
5. Kansas City (GP: 20; GD: -4; PTS: 23)
6. New England: (GP: 20; GD: -13; PTS: 21)
7. Philadelphia (GP: 20; GD: -13; PTS: 17)
8. DC United (GP: 21; GD: -20; PTS: 15)

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

1. Los Angeles (GP: 21; GD: +18; PTS: 43)
2. Real Salt Lake (GP: 21; GD: +20; PTS: 39)
3. FC Dallas (GP: 20; GD: +11; PTS: 36)
4. San Jose (GP: 19; GD: +2; PTS: 29)
5. Seattle (GP: 21; GD: -2; PTS: 29)
6. Colorado (GP: 20; GD: +1; PTS: 28)
7. Houston (GP: 21; GD: =6; PTS: 23)
8. Chivas USA (GP: 20; GD: -4; PTS: 19)