Saturday, December 31, 2011

Blues Blank Visiting---And Struggling---Glenavon

At Belfast, Northern Ireland:


Peter Thompson (63') and Rory Patterson (90') each delivered a goal in the second half on Saturday as league-leading Linfield defeated struggling Glenavon 2-0 at home in IFA Premiership action.

Eight In A Row For The Blades

At Sheffield, England:


Ryan Flynn (12'), Chris Porter (34'), and Ched Evans (42') all came up with goals in the first half as Sheffield United won their eighth straight English League One contest, 3-1 at home on Saturday over Hartlepool United.  The Blades find themselves in second place in the league standings.

Another Shutout Defeat For Punchless Forest

At West Bridgford, England:


Kenny Miller scored the only goal of the match in the 59th minute as Cardiff City defeated Nottingham Forest 1-0 on the road in Saturday English League Championship action.  For Forest, it was their club record seventh straight game without a goal.

Equalizer Gains Road Draw For Wolves As 2011 Ends

At Bolton, England:


Steven Fletcher's equalizer in the 49th minute on Saturday enabled Wolverhampton to gain a 1-1 English Premier League road draw with Bolton.  The draw enabled Wolves to climb one spot to 16th place in the league standings.  Sam Ricketts scored at 22 minutes for the Trotters, who found themselves in the league basement heading into the New Year.

Friday, December 30, 2011

Bad News For FC Sion----Good News For FC Basel (And Grasshoppers Too)

Looks like Manchester United can forget about a Champions League reprieve.

Late Goal Snags Road Point For Stanley

At Hereford, England:

Micha Evans' equalizer in the 72nd minute lifted Accrington Stanley to a 1-1 Friday English League Two road draw with Hereford United.  Yoann Arquin scored for the hosts.

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Sydney Pummeled At Home

At Sydney, Australia:

Eli Babalj (32'), Mate Dugandzic (45'+2), Jason Hoffman (75'), and Alex Terra (84') each delivered a goal on Thursday as the Melbourne Heart picked up their largest Hyundai A-League victory to date, handing Sydney FC their worst-ever home defeat 4-0.

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Old Firm Derby: Bhoys Hold Off 'Gers To Move To Top Of SPL Standings

At Glasgow, Scotland:

Joe Ledley scored the only goal of the match in the 52nd minute on Wednesday as Celtic defeated visiting Rangers 1-0 in the latest edition of the Old Firm Game, enabling the Bhoys to move past their archrivals to the top of the Scottish Premier League standings.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

1-1 Road Draw For Anderlecht

At Mons, Belgium:

Chris Makiese's equalizer in the 84th minute enabled Mons to salvage a 1-1 Tuesday Belgian Pro League home draw with RSC Anderlecht.  Guillaume Gillet's successful penalty kick in the 25th minute provided the guests' tally.

Defensive Boo-Boo Carries Blades To Home Win

At Sheffield, England:

Alan Sheehan's own goal in the 50th minute proved decisive as Sheffield United came from behind to defeat visiting Notts County 2-1 in Tuesday English League One action.  Ryan Flynn also scored for the Blades in the 30th minute.  The win lifted the hosts to second place in the league standings.

Ten-Man Wolves Hold Frustrated Gunners To 1-1 Draw At Emirates Stadium

At London:

Steven Fletcher's equalizer in the 38th minute carried ten-man Wolverhampton to a 1-1 Tuesday English Premier League road draw with Arsenal.  Gervinho scored at 8 minutes for the Gunners.

Monday, December 26, 2011

Saints Make Things Batty For Batmans

At Newtown, Wales:


Simon Spender (68'), Tomos Roberts (72'), and Craig Jones (74') each delivered a goal on Monday as The New Saints came from behind to overtake Newtown 3-1 on the road in Welsh Premier League action.

Glens Down Blues In Belfast Derby

At Belfast, Northern Ireland:


Darren Boyce scored the only goal in the 76th minute as Glentoran defeated visiting Linfield 1-0 in Monday IFA Premiership action.

Dark Blues Fall At Home

At Dundee, Scotland:


Andrew Jackson scored the only goal of the match in the 22nd minute while goalkeeper Dominic Cervi stopped Matthew Lockwood's penalty kick at 51 minutes on Monday as Greenock Morton knocked off Dundee 1-0 on the road in Scottish First Division action.

2-0 Home Win For The U's

At Cambridge, England:


Michael Gash (36') and Luke Berry (58') provided the scoring as Cambridge United blanked visiting Braintree Town 2-0 in Monday English National Conference action.

Late Goal Carries Stanley Past Shrimps

At Morecambe, England:


Bryan Hughes scored the winning goal in the 75th minute on Monday as Accrington Stanley defeated Morecambe 2-1 on the road in English League Two action.

Let George Do It: Boyd Goal Haunts Sagging Forest

At West Bridgford, England:


George Boyd came back to haunt his former team as his 20th-minute tally provided all the scoring in Peterborough United's 1-0 Monday English League Championship road win over Nottingham Forest.

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Let Georgios Do It: Double Sends Bhoys Within One Point Of Rangers

At Glasgow, Scotland:


Georgios Samaras scored both goals (45', 53') as Celtic blanked visiting Kilmarnock 2-0 on Saturday.  The win, coupled with St. Mirren's upset triumph over Rangers, moved the Bhoys to within one point of their arch-rivals atop the Scottish Premier League standings, heading into their Old Firm clash this coming Wednesday.

St. Mirren: No Buddies To SPL-Leading 'Gers

At Paisley, Scotland:


Aaron Mooy (44') and Paul McGowan (45') each scored a goal a minute apart late in the first half on Saturday as St. Mirren came from behind and knocked off nine-man visiting Rangers 2-1 in Scottish Premier League play.  It was the Buddies' first win over 'Gers since 2008.

Friday, December 23, 2011

Stoppage Time Goal Salvages Home Point For Dinamo Tirana

At Tirane, Albania:

Alfred Osmani's stoppage-time equalizer (90'+1) enabled Dinamo Tirana to salvage a Friday Albanian Superliga 1-1 home draw with Bylis Ballsh.  Amarildo Dimo scored at 36 minutes for the visitors. 

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Home Win For The Black Eagles

At Istanbul, Turkey:

Hugo Almeida scored the only goal of the match in the 37th minute as Besiktas defeated visiting Karabukspor 1-0 in Thursday Turkish Super Lig action.

One-Man Soccer Hooliganism

Here's what happened at a Dutch Cup clash on Wednesday night at the Amsterdam ArenA:

The fan targeted Esteban after running on to the playing area 37 minutes into the KNVB Beker clash at the Amsterdam ArenA.




Esteban, 22, responded by kicking the fan several ties, including when he was on the ground, leading him to be shown a red card by referee Bas Nijhuis. Livid AZ coach Gertjan Verbeek called his players from the field, with them subsequently leaving the ground and forcing Nijhuis to abandon the game.

Boneheaded excuse for a "fan."

Sydney FC Up To Third After 2-2 Home Draw

At Sydney, Australia:

Karol Kisel (PK-19') and Dimitri Petratos (66') each delivered a goal on Thursday as Sydney FC climbed up to their place in the Hyundai A-League standings following their 2-2 home draw with Adelaide United.  Daniel Mullen (8') and Dario Vidosic (56') each tallied once for the visiting Reds.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Wild Home Win For Ajax Cape Town

At Cape Town, South Africa:


After Kingston Nkhatha equalized for Black Leopards FC during second-half stoppage time (90'+3, his second goal of the contest), Lebogang Manyama came back with the winning goal (90'+5) for Ajax Cape Town as the hosts outlasted their guests from Venda 4-3 in Wednesday South African Premier Soccer League action.

PSG On Top Of Ligue 1 Standings At Season's Midway Point

At Saint-Etienne, France:


Mathieu Bodmer scored the only goal of match in the 32nd minute on Wednesday as Paris Saint-Germain defeated Saint-Etienne 1-0 on the road to claim a three-point lead over Montpellier atop the French Ligue 1 standings at the season's midway point.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Colo-Colo Eliminated From Clausura Playoffs Despite Home Win

At Calama, Chile:


Diego Barrios scored the series-winning goal in the 80th minute on Tuesday as Cobreloa, despite dropping a 2-1 home decision in game two of the Chilean Primera Division Clausura playoff semifinal series with Colo-Colo, still won the series (4-4 on aggregate) due to the away goals rule and have advanced to the playoff final.

1-1 Home Draw For Blues

At Belfast, Northern Ireland:

Peter Thompson's equalizer in the 65th minute enabled league-leading Linfield to gain a 1-1 Tuesday IFA Premiership home draw with Lisburn Distillery.  Mark Cooling's successful penalty kick in the 15th minute provided the visiting basement residents' lone score.

Scoreless In Monaco

At Fontvieille, Monaco:

The Tuesday Ligue 1 contest between basement-dwelling AS Monaco and visiting---and league-leading---Clermont, ended in a 0-0 deadlock.

Successful Trip To Sardinia Puts Rossoneri Back Atop Serie A--For A Night At Least

At Cagliari, Italy:

Goals from Francesco Pisano (OG-4') and Zlatan Ibrahamovic (60') carried AC Milan to a 2-0 Tuesday Italian Serie A road win over Cagliari, putting the Rossoneri back atop the league standings, at least for a night.

Wolves Come Back From Two One-Goal Deficits To Gain Home Draw With Canaries

At Wolverhampton, England:

With goals from Sylvan Ebanks-Blake (36') and Ronald Zubar (82'), Wolverhampton twice battled back from one-goal deficits on Tuesday to gain a 2-2 English Premier League home draw with Norwich City.  Andrew Surman (11') and Simeon Jackson (75') each scored twice for the Canaries.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Late Goal Gains Road Point For The Black Eagles

At Samsun, Turkey:


Edu delivered the equalizer with his penalty kick in the 78th minute on Sunday as Besiktas gained a 1-1 Turkish Super Lig road draw with Samsunspor.  Murat  Yildirim scored for the hosts at 37 minutes.

Smashing Home Triumph For Club Africain

At Tunis, Tunisia:


Alexis Mendomo (23'), Hamza Zakar (OG-50'), Belil Ifa (PK-69'), and Alaa Marzouki (87') each contributed a goal to Club Africain's 4-0 Sunday Tunisian Ligue 1 home fist-beating of Stade Tunisien.

Late Goal Delivers Road Point For Lions

At Coimbra, Portugal:


Elias Mendes Trindale's equalizer in the 80th minute lifted Sporting CP to a 1-1 road draw with Academica de Coimbra in Sunday Portuguese Primeira Liga action.  Eder tallied at 28 minutes for the hosts.

Stoppage-Time Goals Seal Victory For Auckland City

At Auckland, New Zealand:


Emiliano Tade (69'), Andrew Milne (90'+1), and Daniel Koprivcic (90'+3) provided the scoring as Auckland City dominated visiting Otago United Dunedin 3-0 in Sunday New Zealand Premiership action.

Another Tough Road Setback For Dinamo Tbilisi

At Martvili, Georgia:


Merani Martvili handed visiting Dinamo Tbilisi their second straight Georgian Umaglesi Liga defeat on Sunday, 2-1.

Own Goals Lifts Anderlecht To Home Win And Top Of Belgian Pro League

At Brussels, Belgium:


Geir Fevang's own goal in the 83rd minute proved to be the game-winning goal as RSC Anderlecht, leading the Belgian Pro League standings, defeated visiting Lokeren 3-2 on Sunday.  Guillaume Gillet scored twice (38', 61') for the hosts.

Bulls Gore Visiting Austria Vienna To Climb To Third In League Standings

At Wals-Siezenheim, Austria:


Stefan Maierhofer scored twice (43', 90') as FC Red Bulls Salzburg dominated visiting  Austria Vienna 3-0 in Sunday Austrian Bundeliga action.  The win enabled the Bulls to jump two placed to third, two points behind Rapid Vienna and SV Ried.

Scoreless In Paris

At Paris:


Sunday's French Ligue 1 contest between Paris Saint-Germain and visiting Lille ended in a 0-0 stalemate.

Rear-End-Kickin' Win For Ajax

At Amsterdam, Netherlands:


Christian Eriksen (19'), Theo Janssen (58'), Dmitry Bulykin (79'), and Miralem Sulejmani (85') each delivered a goal as Ajax Amsterdam demolished visiting ADO Den Haag (who played the last 80 minutes with only ten men) 4-0 in Sunday Dutch Eredivisie action.

Celtics Blank Saints On Road

At Perth, Scotland:


Gary Hooper (60') and Ki Sung-Yueng (64') provided the scoring as Celtic blanked St. Johnstone 2-0 on the road in Sunday Scottish Premier League action.

LEO THE LION HELPS BARCA CLUB SANTOS TO WIN WORLD CLUB CUP TITLE

At Yokohama, Japan:


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Lionel Messi scored twice (17', 82') as Barcelona whitewashed Santos 4-0 on Sunday to win their second FIFA Club World Cup championship in three years.  Shown here is Barca midfielder Adriano celebrating after the victory.


Earlier on Sunday, after 120 scoreless minutes, Al-Sadd won the penalty-kick shootout with Kashiwa Reysol 5-3 to capture the third-place contest.


Associated Press photo

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Early Goal From Alex Darlington Holds Up For TNS On The Road

At Carmarthen, Wales:


Alex Darlington's goal in the 6th minute held up as The New Saints defeated basement-occupying Carmarthen Town 1-0 on the road in front of 637 fans in Saturday Welsh Premier League action.

Let George Do It: Early Malukela Tally Holds Up For Ajax Cape Town

At Durban, South Africa:


George Malukela scored the only goal of the match in the 7th minute as Ajax Cape Town downed Golden Arrows 1-0 on the road in Saturday action from the Premier Soccer League in South Africa.

Red Dogs Stay Atop Liga I Standings

At Targu Mures, Romania:


Marius Niculae's successful penalty kick in the 50th minute as Romanian Liga I-leading Dinamo Bucharest defeated relegation-threatened Targu Mures 1-0 on the road on Saturday.

Home Win For IFA-Leading Blues

At Belfast, Northern Ireland:


Michael Carvill scored the only goal of the match in the 67th minute as IFA Premiership-leading Linfield defeated visiting (and next-to-last-place) Glenavon 1-0.

Comeback Win For Modena

At Modena, Italy:


Giuseppe Greco (PK-77') and Maurizio Ciaramitaro (87') each scored a goal on Saturday as struggling Modena knocked off league-leading Torino 2-1 in Italian Serie B action.

Colo-Colo Beaten At Home In Playoff Semifinal Series Opener

At Santiago, Chile:


Nicolas Trecco scored the winning goal in second-half stoppage time (90'+3) as Cobreloa defeated Colo-Colo 3-2 on the road in the opening match of their Chilean Primera Division Clausura two-game semifinal-round playoff series.

Zlatan's PK Seals Rossoneri Victory

At Milan, Italy:


Antonio Nocerino (54') and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (PK-63') delivered the scoring as AC Milan climbed to the top of the Italian Serie A standings following their 2-0 Saturday win over visiting AC Siena.

3-1 Home Win For Panathinaikos

At Athens:

Sebastian Leto scored twice (8', 79') as Panathinaikos closed to withing one point of Greek Super League-leading Olympiacos with their 3-1 home win over Asteras Tripolis on Saturday.

Road Win For Sixties

At Karlsruhe, Germany:

Daniel Bierofka scored twice (33', PK-87') as TSV 1860 Munich defeated relegation-threatened Karlsruher SC 3-1 in Saturday German 2.Bundesliga action.

2-2 Draw For Le Havre And Monaco

At La Havre, France:

The Saturday French Ligue 2 match between visiting AS Monaco and Le Havre ended in a 2-2 deadlock.  Ryan Mendes provided both goals (34', 78') for the hosts while Valere Germain did likewise (44', 45', a minute apart) for Monaco.

Comeback Win For Sydney FC

At Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia:

Goals from Bruno Cazarine (60') and Juho Makela (84') enabled Sydney FC to come from behind to topple the Newcastle Jets 2-1 on the road in Saturday Hyundai A-League action.

The Disater Movie Known As The Dinamo Tirana Season Continues

At Shkoder, Albania:

Dritan Smajlaj (49') and Armando Vajushi (58') each delivered a score in the second half on Saturday as Vllaznia Shkoder defeated basement-residing visiting Dinamo Tirana 2-1 in comeback fashion in the Albanian Superliga.

Sergio Garcia Delivers All The Points For Parakeets

At Gijon, Spain:

Sergio Garcia delivered the winning goal in the 84th minute as visiting Espanyol defeated Sporting Gijon 2-1 in Saturday Spanish Primera Division action.

Late Goal Salvages Home Point For Staggies

At Dingwall, Scotland:

Colin McMenamin's 82nd-minute equalizer enabled Scottish First Division-leading Ross County to salvage a 1-1 home Saturday draw with Dundee.  Steven Milne scored at 35 minutes for the visiting Dark Blues.

Late Goal Rescues Rangers

At Glasgow, Scotland:

Kyle Lafferty scored the winning goal in the 83rd minute as Rangers outlasted visiting Inverness Caledonian Thistle 2-1 in Saturday Scottish Premier League action.

Quakers Knock Off U's

At Darlington, England:

Adam Rundle (37') and Adam Reach (69') each tallied once on Saturday as Darlington blanked visiting Cambridge United 2-0 in English National Conference action.

Home Win For Stanley

At Accrington, England:

Bryan Hughes (12'), Jayden Stockley (61'), and Kevin Long (89') provided the scoring that carried Accrington Stanley to a 3-1 Saturday English League Two home win over Torquay United.  Accrington's unbeaten league streak has stretched to six games.

Blades Blank Cherries For Sixth Straight Win---Thanks To Bournemouth Defensive Blunders

At Bournemouth, England:

Own goals from Adam Barrett (5') and Steve Cook (77') provided all the scoring in Sheffield United's 2-0 road win over AFC Bournemouth on Saturday in English League One action, the Blades' sixth successive victory.

Goose Eggs For Robins and Forest

At Bristol, England:


The Saturday English League Championship match between Bristol City and visiting Nottingham Forest ended in a 0-0 stalemate.  For Forest, their string of league matches without scoring a goal has now stretched to five games while the Robins still have not beaten their guests in their last 30 meetings, dating back to December, 1974.

Pistol Pete Carries Potters Past Wolves

At Wolverhampton, England:


Peter Crouch scored the winning goal in the 70th minute on Saturday as Stoke City came from behind to upend Wolverhampton 2-1 on the road in English Premier League action.

Friday, December 16, 2011

Easy Win For Ten-Man Bayern

At Munich, Germany:

Mario Gomez (48'), David Alaba (53'), and Toni Kroos (88') provided the scoring as Bayern Munich broke open what was at halftime a scorless stalemate and ended up dominating visiting FC Cologne 3-0 in Friday German Bundesliga action.  The league-leaders manhandled their guests despite losing Franck Ribery to a red-card ejection in the 33rd minute.

Europa League Knockout-Stage Draw: Ajax Vs. Red Devils; Citizens vs. Dragons; Potters Get Crack At Valencia

At Nyon, Switzerland:

The draw for the first two knockout rounds of this season's Europa League took place on Friday.

Here are the match-ups for the Round of 32 with the opening games to take place on February 16 and the return contests on February 23.

The home clubs for the respective opening matches are listed first.

FC Porto vs. Manchester City

Ajax Amsterdam vs. Manchester United

Lokomotiv Moscow vs. Athletic Bilbao

FC Red Bull Salzburg vs. FC Metalist Kharkiv

Stoke City vs. Valencia

FC Rubin Kazan vs. Olympiacos

AZ Alkmaar vs. RSC Anderlecht

Lazio vs. Atletico Madrid

Steaua Bucharest vs. FC Twente

FC Viktoria Plzen vs. FC Schalke 04

Wisla Krakow vs. Standard Liege

Sporting Braga vs. Besiktas

Udinese vs. PAOK FC

Trabzonspor vs. PSV Eindhoven

Hannover 96 vs. Club Brugge

Legia Warsaw vs. Sporting CP

For the Round of 16, the opening games in the respective two-match series will take place on March 8 with the return contests to take place on March 15.

The opening-match hosts are listed first:

Red Bull Salzburg-Metalist Kharkiv winner vs. Rubin Kazan-Olympiacos winner

Legia Warsaw-Sporting CP winner vs. Porto-Manchester City winner

Steaua Bucharest-FC Twente winner vs. Viktoria Plzen-Schalke winner

Stoke City-Valencia winner vs. Tabzonspor-PSV winner

AZ-Anderlecht winner vs. Udinese-PAOK winner

Lazio-Atletico Madrid winner vs. Braga-Besiktas

Ajax-Mancester United winner vs. Lokomotiv Moscow-Athletic Bilbao

Champions League Round-Of-16 Draw: Gunners Get Shot At Rossoneri; Dueling Blues as Napoli Will Battle Chelea

At Nyon, Switzerland:

The draw for the first knockout round in this season's UEFA Champions League took place on Friday.

In each case, the club hosting the opening match in its' respective two-game series is listed first:

Lyon vs. AOPEL FC

Napoli vs. Chelsea

AC Milan vs. Arsenal

FC Basel vs. Bayern Munich

Bayer Leverkusen vs. Barcelona

CSKA Moscow vs. Real Madrid

Zenit Saint Petersburg vs. SL Benfica

Marseille vs. Inter Milan

The opening games will take place on February 14-15 and February 21-22

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Europa League: Spurs, Brumbies, Bhoys, Austria Vienna Eliminated; AZ, Udinese To Knockout Stage

Group-stage play in the Europa League concluded on Thursday with twelve games.


Group A:


At Thessaloniki, Greece:


PAOK and visiting Rubin Kazan battled to a 1-1 draw that saw both clubs advance to the knockout stage.  Vieirinha's penalty kick in the 16th minute put the Greek club ahead, but Nelson Valdez delivered the equalizer for the visiting Russian club at 48 minutes.


At Dublin, Ireland:


Steven Pienaar (29'), Andros Townsend (38'), Jermain Defoe (45') all scored in the first half as Tottenham Hotspur demolished pointless Shamrock Rovers 4-0 on the road.  The visiting English club, nevertheless, still found themselves eliminated from the tournament.


FINAL GROUP A STANDINGS:


1. PAOK FC (GP: 6; GD: +4; PTS: 12)
2. FC Rubin Kazan (GP: 6; GD: +6; PTS: 11)
3. Tottenham Hotspur (GP: 6; GD: +5; PTS: 10)
4. Shamrock Rovers (GP: 6; GD: -15; PTS: 0)


PAOK FC and Rubin Kazan advanced to the knockout stage.


Group B:


At Hanover, Germany:


Konstantin Rausch (25'), Didier Konan Ya (33'), and Artur Sobiech (78') each tallied once as Hannover 96 downed visiting FC Vorskla Poltava 3-1.


At Copenhagen, Denmark:


Michy Batshuayi scored the only goal of the match in the 31st minute as Standard Liege blanked FC Copenhagen 1-0 on the road.

FINAL GROUP B STANDINGS:



1. Standard Liege (GP: 6; GD: +8; PTS: 14)
2. Hannover 96 (GP: 6; GD: +2; PTS: 11)
3. FC Copenhagen (GP: 6; GD: -4; PTS: 5)
4. FC Vorskla Poltava (GP: 6; GD: -6; PTS: 2)


Standard Liege and Hannover 96 advanced to the knockout stage.


Group C:


At Tel Aviv, Israel:


Salim Tuama (33') and Avihai Yadin (76') each scored once as Hapoel Tel Aviv knocked off visiting knockout-stage-bound Legia Warsaw 2-0.


At Eindhoven, Netherlands:


Stanislav Manolev (75') and Tim Matavz (79') each tallied once as PSV Eindhoven held off visiting Rapid Bucharest 2-1.


FINAL GROUP C STANDINGS:


1. PSV Eindhoven (GP: 6; GD: +8; PTS: 16)
2. Legia Warsaw (GP: 6; GD: -2; PTS: 9)
3. Hapoel Tel Aviv (GP: 6; GD: +1; PTS: 7)
4. Rapid Bucharest (GP: 6; GD: -7; PTS: 3)


PSV Eindhoven and Legia Warsaw advanced to the knockout stage.


Group G:


At Alkmaar, Netherlands:


AZ Alkmaar, with their 1-1 home draw with group-winning FC Metalist Kharkiv,  advanced to the knockout stage.  Adam Maher for the hosts and the Ukrainian club's Marko Devic each scored a goal in the 37th minute.


At Vienna, Austria:


Michael Liendl (62') and Nacer Barazite (80') each tallied once as Austria Vienna blanked visiting Malmo FF 2-0.  Despite the win, the club from the Austrian capital, due to AZ's home draw, were still eliminated from the tournament.


GROUP G STANDINGS:


1. FC Metalist Kharkiv (GP: 6; GD: +9; PTS: 14)
2. AZ Alkmaar (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 8)
3. Austria Vienna (GP: 6; GD: -1; PTS: 8)
4. Malmo FF (GP: 6; GD: -11; PTS: 1)


FC Metalist Kharkiv and AZ Alkmaar advanced to the knockout stage.


Group H:


At Bruges, Belgium:


Ewerton Jose Almeida Santos delivered the equalizer in the 65th minute as Sporting Braga gained a 1-1 road draw with Club Brugge.  Bjorn Vleminckx scored in the 50th minute for the hosts as both clubs advanced to the knockout stage.


At Birmingham, England:


Adam Rooney scored in the 24th minute as Birmingham City shut out visiting NK Maribor 1-0.  Still, with the win, the Brumbies were eliminated from European competition.


FINAL GROUP H STANDINGS:


1. Club Brugge (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 11)
2. Sporting Braga (GP: 6; GD: +6; PTS: 11)
3. Birmingham City (GP: 6; GD: 0; PTS: 10)
4. NK Maribor (GP: 6; GD: -9; PTS: 1)


Club Brugge and Sporting Braga advanced to the knockout stage.


Group I:


At Udine, Italy:


Antonio Di Natale's equalizer (45'+1) proved decisive as Udinese gained a 1-1 home draw with Celtic, sending the hosts to the knockout stage and eliminated the Bhoys from the tournament.  Gary Hooper scored for the visiting Scottish club in the 29th minute.


At Madrid:


Radamel Falcao Garcia (PK-38'), Alvaro Dominguez (43'), and Arda Turan (79') each delivered a goal as Atletico Madrid, who already clinched a berth in the knockout stage, won the group with a 3-1 home win over Rennes.


FINAL GROUP I STANDINGS:


1. Atletico Madrid (GP: 6; GD: +7; PTS: 13)
2. Udinese (GP: 6; GD: -1; PTS: 9)
3. Celtic (GP: 6; GD: -1; PTS: 6)
4. Stade Rennes (GP: 6; GD: -5; PTS: 3)


Atletico Madrid and Udinese advanced to the knockout stage.


The top two teams in each of the eight groups are joined by the third place club from each of the eight UEFA Champions League groups in the first knockout round.







FIFA Club World Cup: It's Barca Vs. Santos For The Crown

At Yokohama, Japan:


Adriano scored twice (24', 42') as Barcelona, thanks in some part to defensive miscues, demolished Al-Sadd 4-0 on Thursday in a FIFA Club World Cup semifinal match.  On Sunday, the reigning European champs will battle South American titleholders Santos in the final.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Millonarios Blow Aggregate Advantage And Lose In PK Shootout

At Barranquilla, Colombia:


Juan Valencia (13'), Vladimir Hernandez (27'), and Giovanni Hernandez (65') each scored a goal on Wednesday as Junior erased their first-game 3-0 road defeat to take the second game of their Colombian Primera A Clausura semifinal-round playoff series with Millonarios, squaring the two-game series at 3-3 on aggregate.  Then, in the penalty-kick shootout, Giovanni Hernandez, Braynner Garcia, Sherman Cardenas, Victor Cortes, and Carlos Bacca all converted their spot kicks as the hosts won the shootout 5-4 to advance to the Clausura final against the Once Caldas-Sante Fe winner.

Late Scoring Propels Club Africain

At Tunis, Tunisia:


Zouheir Dhaouadi (72') and Hamza Messadi (75') each scored a goal three minutes apart in the second half on Wednesday as Club Africain downed visiting Hammam-Lif 2-0 in Tunisian Ligue 1 action.

Torino Beaten In Completion Of Suspended Contest

At Padova, Italy:


Padova knocked off visiting Torino 1-0 in an Italian Serie B match that was originally played back on December 3 but was suspended at 76 minutes with the hosts leading 1-0 (Francesco Ruopolo scoring in the 49th minute).  The remaining unexpired time was played on Wednesday.

Dinamo Tbilisi Blasted At Zestaponi

At Zestaponi, Georgia:


In a battle in which first place in the Umaglesi Liga standings was at stake, league-leading Zestafoni dominated visiting Dinamo Tbilisi 5-1 on Wednesday.

Europa League: Cottagers, Maccabi Haifa, PSG Eliminated; Red Bull Salzburg, Steaua Bucharest Advance

The final week of group-stage play in the Europa League commenced with twelve games played on Wednesday.

Group D:

At Zurich, Switzerland:

Xavier Margairaz (69') and Oliver Buff (90') each scored once as FC Zurich defeated visiting FC Vaslui 2-0, knocking the Romanian club out of the running for the knockout stage.

At Rome:

Libor Kozak (42') and Giuseppe Sculli (55') each tallied once as Lazio blanked visiting Sporting CP 2-0.  Both team will  play in the knockout stage.

FINAL GROUP D STANDINGS:

1. Sporting CP (GP: 6; GD: +4; PTS: 12)
2. Lazio (GP: 6; GD: +2; PTS: 9)
3. FC Vaslui (GP: 6; GD: -3; PTS: 6)
4. FC Zurich (GP: 6; GD: -3; PTS: 5)

Sporting CP and Lazio advanced to the knockout stage.

Group E:

At Kiev, Ukraine:

Oleg Husyev's late equalizer at 80 minutes (his second goal to go with his 17th-minute tally) salvaged a 3-3 home draw for Dynamo Kiev in their match with Maccabi Tel Aviv.  Omer Vered (49'), Eliran Atar (62'), and Moanes Dabour (75') each scored once for the visiting Israeli club.

At Istanbul, Turkey:

Manuel Fernandes (PK-59'), Mustafa Pektemek (74'), and Edu (82') each tallied once as Besiktas defeated visiting Stoke City 3-1 and win Group E.  Both the Black Eagles and Potters will take part in the Round of 32.

FINAL GROUP E STANDINGS:

1. Besiktas (GP: 6; GD: +6; PTS: 12)
2. Stoke City (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 11)
3. Dynamo Kiev (GP: 6; GD: 0; PTS: 7)
4. Maccabi Tel Aviv (GP: 6; GD: -9; PTS: 2)

Besiktas and Stoke City advanced to the knockout stage.

Group F:

At Bratislav, Slovakia:

Marian Had's own goal in the 52nd minute proved decisive, in more than one way, as FC Red Bull Salzburg came back from two goals down to defeat Slovan Bratislava 3-2 on the road.  Thanks to the fact that they scored a higher number of goals on the road in their two group-stage meetings with Paris Saint-Germain, the Red Bulls advanced to the knockout stage.

At Paris:

Javier Pastore (21'), Mathieu Bodmer (41'), Inigo Perez (OG-85'), andGuillaume Hoarau (PK-90') each delivered a goal as Paris Saint-Germain doubled-up visiting Athletic Bilbao 4-2, but still, due to scoring fewer road goals in their two meetings with Red Bull Salzburg, were still eliminated from European competition.

FINAL GROUP F STANDINGS:

1. Athletic Bilbao (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 13)
2. FC Red Bull Salzburg (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 10)
3. Paris Saint-Germain (GP: 6; GD: +1; PTS: 10)
4. Slovan Bratislava (GP: 6; GD: -7; PTS: 1)

Athletic Bilbao and FC Red Bull Salzburg (the latter because of a higher number of road goals scored in their two head-to-head meetings with Paris Saint-Germain) advanced to the knockout stage.

Group J:

At Haifa, Israel:

Jurica Buljat (OG-7') got things off on the wrong foot for Maccabi Haifa, while Ciprian Marica (84') and Andreas Wiegel (90'+2) each tallied once for Schalke 04 as the visiting German club eliminated the hosts from the tournament with their 3-0 road domination.

At Bucharest, Romania:

Stefan Nikolic scored twice (70', 85') as Steaua Bucharest locked up a knockout-stage berth with their 3-1 home win over AEK Larnaca.

FINAL GROUP J STANDINGS:

1. FC Schalke 04 (GP: 6; GD: +11; PTS: 14)
2. Steaua Bucharest (GP: 6; GD: -2; PTS: 8)
3. Maccabi Haifa FC (GP: 6; GD: -2; PTS: 6)
4. AEK Larnaca (GP: 6; GD: -7; PTS: 5)

FC Schalke 04 and Steaua Bucharest advanced to the knockout stage.

Group K:

At Krakow, Poland:

Tsvetan Genkov scored the winning goal in the 46th minute as Wisla Krakow secured passage to the knockout stage with their 2-1 home win over FC Twente.

At London:

Hans Henrik Andreasen (64') and Baye Djiby Fall (90'+3) each provided a second-half goal as Odense Bollklub came back from a two-goal deficit and gain a 2-2 road draw with Fulham, ending the Cottagers' European campaign.

FINAL GROUP K STANDINGS:

1. FC Twente (GP: 6; GD: +7; PTS: 13)
2. Wisla Krakow (GP: 6; GD: -5; PTS: 9)
3. Fulham FC (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 8)
4. Odense Bollklub (GP: 6; GD: -5; PTS: 4)

FC Twente and Wisla Krakow advanced to the knockout stage.

Group L:

At Graz, Austria:

Kostas Manolas (10'), Nathan Burns (43'), and Viktor Klonaridis (77') each scored once as AEK Athens defeated SK Sturm Graz 3-1 on the road.

At Brussels, Belgium:

In a battle of knockout-stage bound clubs, Sacha Kljestan (33'), Fernando (39'), Marcin Wasilewski (57'), Matias Suarez (61'), and Guillaume Gillet (78') each tallied once as RSC Anderlecht defeated visiting Lokomotiv Moscow 5-3.

FINAL GROUP L STANDINGS:

1. RSC Anderlecht (GP: 6; GD: +13; PTS: 18)
2. Lokomotiv Moscow (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 12)
3. AEK Athens (GP: 6; PTS: -7; PTS: 3)
4. SK Sturm Graz (GP: 6; GD: -9; PTS: 3)

RSC Anderlecht and Lokomotiv Moscow advanced to the knockout stage.

FIFA Club World Cup: Santos Defeat Kashiwa Reysol To Reach Final

At Toyota, Japan:


Neymar - Santos x Kashiwa (Kazuhiro Nogi/FIFA.com)

Neymar (18', that's him celebrating), Humberlito Borges Teixeira (23'), and Danilo (62') each scored once as Santos defeated Kashiwa Reysol 3-1 on Wednesday to advance to Sunday's final of the FIFA Club World Cup.  They will take on the Barcelona-Al-Sadd winner.


Earlier on Wednesday, Hiram Mier (39'), Jesus De Nigris (44'), and Jesus Zavala (47') each tallied once as Monterrey defeated Esperance St 3-2 in the fifth-place game.


FIFA.com photo by Kazuhiro Nogi

Sunday, December 11, 2011

TARHEELS CAPTURE MEN'S COLLEGIATE SOCCER CROWN

At Hoover, Alabama:


Ben Spears scored the only goal of the match in the 65th minute as the North Carolina Tar Heels defeated the UNC Charlotte 49ers 1-0 on Sunday to win the Men's National Collegiate Soccer championship.

TIGRES WIN APERTURA TITLE; GAIN CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE GROUP-STAGE BERTH

At San Nicolas de los Garza, Mexico:


Hector Mancilla (52'), Danilinho (64'), and Alan Pulido (86') each scored a goal in the second half on Sunday as Tigres came from behind to defeat visiting Santos Laguna 3-1 in the second game of the two-match Mexican Primera Division Apertura playoff final and won the Apertura title 4-1 on aggregate.  Both clubs will enter next season's CONCACAF Champions League, Tigres in the group stage and Santos Laguna in the preliminary round.

Black Eagles Drop Two Points Late At Home

At Istanbul, Turkey:


Tevfik Kose's 87th-minute equalizer enabled Istanbul BB to gain a 1-1 Sunday Turkish Super Lig road draw with Besiktas.  Mustafa Pektemek scored for the Black Eagles at 71 minutes.

Dreary Conclusion To Rough First Half Of Season For Grasshoppers---They Lose To Last-Place Lausanne Sports

At Lausanne, Switzerland:


Junior Negrao (5') and Nicolas Marin (37') each delivered a goal in the first half as basement-residing Lausanne Sports defeated visiting----and next-to-last-place Grasshoppers 2-1 in Sunday Swiss Super League action as the first half of the season came to a conclusion for both clubs.  For Grasshoppers, their next league match will take place as FC Lucerne on March 3.

Goose Eggs For The Red Dogs And Home-Standing Astra Ploiesti

At Ploiesti, Romania:


The Sunday Romanian Liga I contest between Astra Ploiesti and visiting league-leading Dinamo Bucharest ended in a 0-0 deadlock.

Road Win For Panathinaikos

At Athens, Greece:


Kostas Katsouranis scored the winning goal in the 74th minute as Panathinaikos came from behind to top Panionios 2-1 on the road in Sunday Greek Super League action.

Dinamo Tbilisi Held To 1-1 Home Draw With Relegation-Threatened Kolkheti Poti

At Tbilisi, Georgia:


Sunday's Georgian Umaglesi Liga contest between Dinamo Tbilisi and visiting Kolkheti Poti ended in a 1-1 deadlock.

Millonarios 90 Minutes Away From Clausura Final

At Botoga, Colombia:


Erick Moreno scored twice (17', 65') as Millonarios dominated visiting Junior in the opening match of their two-game Colombian Primera A Clausura semifinal playoff series with Junior at home on Sunday, 3-0.  The series will concluded on Wednesday at Barranquilla, Colombia.

Quick Goals Lift Bulls To Home Win

At Wals-Siezenheim, Germany:


Goals from Gernot Plassnegger (OG-40') and Stefan Maierhofer (42'), two minutes apart carried FC Red Bull Salzburg to a 2-1 come-from-behind Sunday Austrian Bundesliga home win over Admira.

Goose Eggs For Gold Coast United and Sydney FC

At Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia:


Sunday's Hyundai A-League contest between Gold Coast United and visiting Sydney FC concluded in a 0-0 stalemate.

Triumphant Conclusion To Apertura Phase For Boca

At Buenos Aires:


Dario Cvitanich scored the only goal of the match in the 78th minute as Boca Juniors concluded the Apertura portion of their Argentinian Primera Division campaign with a 1-0 home win over All Boys.

Road Win For Ajax, Thanks To Own Goal

At Waalwijk, Netherlands:


Guy Ramos' own goal in the 42nd minute proved decisive as Ajax Amsterdam defeated RKC Waalwijk 1-0 on the road in Sunday Dutch Eredivise action.

Super Mario Haunts His Former Team

At Stuttgart, Germany:


Mario Gomez scored twice against his former club (13', 57') as Bayern Munich came from behind to defeat 10-man VfB Stuttgart 2-1 in Sunday German Bundesliga action.

Rossoblu Gain Home Draw With Rossoneri

At Bologna, Italy:


With Marco Di Vaio (11') and Alessandro Diamanti (73') each provided a goal on Sunday as Bologna prevented AC Milan from moving to the top of the Italian Serie A standings with their 2-2 home draw with the Rossoneri.  Clarence Seedorf (16') and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (PK-71') each tallied once for the visitors.

Parakeets Double-Up Matressmakers

At Barcelona:


Joan Verdu scored twice early (5', 7') as Espanyol ended their five-match Spanish Primera Division winless run with a 4-2 home doubling of Atletico Madrid on Sunday.

FIFA Club World Cup: Al-Sadd, Kashiwa Reysol Advance To Semis

At Toyota, Japan:


The quarterfinal round of the FIFA Club World Cup took place on Sunday with two games.


Abdulla Koni goal Al-Sadd


Khalfan Al Khalfan (33') and Abdulla Koni (48', shown above) provided the scoring as Asian club champs Al-Sadd held off their African counterpart Esperance ST of Tunisia 2-1 in the opening contest.  For the club from Qatar, it's a semifinal match-up with Barcelona.




Ryohei Hayashi celeb Kashiwa Reysol


In the second contest, Japanese champs Kashiwa Reysol (with Leandro Domingues tallying at 52 minutes) and Monterrey, CONCACAF titleholders (with Humberto Suazo scoring in the 57th minute) were deadlocked at 1-1 following regulation time and the subsequent 30 scoreless minutes of overtime.  In the penalty-kick shootout, Leandro Dominques, Jorge Wagner, Ryoichi Kurisawa, and, with the winning spot kick, Ryohei Hayashi (shown above celebrating), all converted their PK's as Kashiwa took the shootout 4-3 and advanced to the semifinal round, where they will face South American champs Santos of Brazil.


Getty Images photos

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Colo-Colo Advance In Chilean Clausura Playoffs

At Santiago, Chile:


Roberto Gutierrez scored twice on Saturday (26', 77') as Colo-Colo, following their series-opening road win, took game two of their two-match Chilean Primera Division Clausura quarterfinal-round playoff series with Deportes La Serena 3-1 and won the series 9-3 on aggregate.  

The Gooch Gains Three Points For The Lions

At Lisbon, Portugal:

Oguchi Onyewu scored the lone goal of the match in the 23rd minute on Saturday as Sporting CP held on to third place in the Portuguese Primeira Liga standings following their 1-0 home win over CD Nacional.