Soccer Mania

Added December 31st, 2010 by Ian SOCCER One of the sickest sports stories in 2010, or any type of story for that matter, involved the attack on the team bus of the Togo national soccer team in Angola in January. Some form of justice has been handed down as an attacker named Joao Antonio Prati was sentenced to 24 years in jail by an Angolan court on Dec. 29th for his part in the ambush which took place in the countrys Cabinda province. The attack took place just before the African Cup of Nations soccer tournament got underway.According to Cabinda attorney general Antonio Nito, the court analyzed the evidence and facts of the case and was satisfied that Puati had a role in the deadly incident that killed two Togo team members and injured several more. He was found guilty on the charge of armed rebellion. The ambush lasted for about 30 minutes as attackers fired automatic weapo...

Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Guzan has been in need of regular playing time ever since leaving Major League Soccer to join the Villans, but the presence of Brad Friedel has made getting games all but impossible. The solution could be coming for Guzan in the form of a loan to League Championship side Hull City. Sources have told SBI that Guzan is finalizing a loan move to the former Premier League side and former home of U.S. national team striker Jozy Altidore. Hull City is currently sitting in 15th place in the 24-team League Championship, four points out of a possible promotion playoff place. Arsenal goalkeeper Vito Mannone has been starting in goal for the Tigers, but he is out with an injury that could sideline him for an extended period of time. What do you think of Guzan's potential loan deal? Like the idea of him getting regular playing time? Share your thoughts below. English & European Football Clubs & Leagues News | Video | Commentary

With typical style, Sky Sports wrap up the best of the action of the first half of the 2010/2011 Premier League season. Watch Free Live Soccer Football Matches Online Here

Several weeks back Arsenal confirmed that Japanese forward Ryo Miyaichi will be joining the Gunners in January 2011. Much in keeping with many signings during the Wenger era, 18-year-old Miyaichi is a player whom few know anything about. Playing in his native homeland, the Gunners snapped up the youngster after he impressed during a trial earlier in 2010, and there have only been limited occasions in which Arsenal fans have been able to get a glimpse of their latest acquisition. That has now changed however as Miyaichis has starred during the All Japan High School Tournament. As a quick aside, the All Japan High School Tournament is an annual, nationwide, high-profile high school association football tournament. The competition is the largest scale amateur tournament in Japan, and is taken very seriously. Representing Chukyodai Chuyko High School (wearing white), Ryo Miyaichi starred in his teams first match of the games. After just nine minutes Miyaichi proved the provider for the ope...

Very shortly after the controversial decision (in the English-speaking world, at least) to award Qatar the right to host the 2022 World Cup, FIFA's human face Sepp Blatter announced he would support a winter World Cup. Whether this is likely to happen can be only conjecture at the moment, as the tournament is a solid 11 years away. Yet Sepp isn't the only one behind the change: so is the players' union. Unlike Mr. Blatter, the players' union listed their reasons for wanting the World Cup in winter quite trenchantly: "It is not sensible to award a World Cup in the summer to a country with an average temperature of 41C in June and July, a midday temperature of 50C and above all, extremely high humidity." Of course, FIFA knew all of this going into the vote, so what does this very sudden change (or at least, the indication that FIFA is open to the change), less than a month after the voting, mean? Perhaps FIFA did not expect the reaction it received, and wanted...

Unbeaten in 10 games now in all competitions and whilst Tottenham remain in fifth position in the Premier League they are being talked up as potential champions of England for the first time since 1961. Key to their recent form and hopes for 2011 are the form of wingers Gareth Bale and Aaron Lennon. In recent matches both have been superb and both Aston Villa and Newcastle have been unable to live with the twin wing threat from Harry Redknapps flying widmen. Against the Toon Aaron Lennon was the first to be involved testing James Perch who had come in for Jose Enrique. Bale was next to get in on the act with a trademark surging run into the box as the Spurs flyers attempted to make things happen in a goalless first half. As the Newcastle defence was run a little more ragged, Bale and Lennon came to the fore in the second half. First Lennon scored Tottenhams opener with a fine low drive and both became crucial when the home side went down to 10 men after Younes Kaboul was sent off. The ...

Avid 101ers will remember most of these incredible misses but somehow it never gets tiring to watch these shockers. English & European Football Clubs & Leagues News | Video | Commentary

Comment & analysis round-up Quote of the day :I have been lucky the support I have had has been from the players and within the club, he said. I havent had a lot of support from the fans ever since I came here. The fans have not been happy with what they have seen in the whole of 2010 and since I came here we have not won enough games to keep them happy. That is understandable in the sense that they were hoping when I came here the latter part of last season would be forgotten and we would start flying again. That hasnt happened and as a result, as manager, you are the one in the firing line, but of course it doesnt make the job easier because it makes the players more nervous. I can only say as a manager you have to understand that fans care for their club and want it to do well and when it is not doing well they voice their disapproval. That is the way of football today. When you take on any job, especially a big job like this one, and results dont go the way people want especia...

Photo by ISIPhotos.com By JOHN BOSCHINI The Los Angeles Galaxy went into the off-season looking for defensive depth and took a good step toward that on Thursday by signing veteran fullback Frankie Hejduk. Acquired in the Re-Entry Draft from Columbus, Hejduk should give the Galaxy the defensive leader the club has needed to help mold a strong, but young stable of defenders. The Galaxy has yet to announce a deal with Colombian striker Juan Pablo Angel, who the club also acquired the MLS rights to in the Re-Entry Draft. Here are some other stories to close out your Thursday: Puyol injured in Catalonia friendly Barcelona is set to lose captain Carles Puyol for up to 10 days after the defender was injured while representing Catalonia on Tuesday. Puyol, 32, picked up a groin injury during the regional side's 4-0 defeat of Honduras. He is set to miss two La Liga matchups against Levante and Deportivo la Coruna, who sit 16th and 13th in the Spanish table respectively. Puyol will also miss ...

Closing out a great 2010 of in U.S. Soccer, myself and Christopher Riordan close out a year's worth of podcasts with this Oscar-inspired awards show. One hour, 62 nominees and 20 awards honor out favorites films (teams), directors (coaches), actors (players) as well as moments from the last calendar year. We gave you a sneak peak at the nominees earlier this week. Now it's time for the reveals. Join us for to close out 2010 in the U.S. soccer world with this, a very special edition of the Major League Soccer Talk podcast. Related posts: Your Chance To Vote: 2010 Major League Soccer Talk Podcast Awards Ladies and gentlemen, It is our pleasure to announce the... Reviewing The News: Major League Soccer Talk Podcast While Major League Soccers playoffs have demanded most of our... Major League Soccer Talk Podcast, Weekend Review: Live Show For those who took part in our live EPL Talk... Watch Free Live Soccer Football Matches Online Here

The rebuilding of the Columbus Crew roster took another step forward on Thursday with the club formally announcing the signing of Chilean defender Sebastian Miranda. Miranda, 30, has played his entire professional career in Chile save for a stint in Austria with Red Bull Salzburg in 2005-2006. He most recently played for Union Espanola in Chile's top flight. The 5-foot-8 Miranda is expected to challenge for the starting right back position, which was vacated when the club opted not to re-sign Frankie Hejduk. Here are a few more items involving Major League Soccer teams: MARINER DEPARTS PLYMOUTH ARGYLE Paul Mariner has left his post as coach at Plymouth Argyle, giving further credence to the report linking him to Toronto FC's open head coach position. Mariner, a long-time assistant to Steve Nicol with the New England Revolution, joined Plymouth Argyle's staff 14 months ago, but the club was relegated to League One in May and is in financial straits. Mariner was considered on...

Freddie Ljungberg's stay in Major League Soccer is officially over. After two up-and-down seasons in the United States, Ljungberg is headed back to the United Kingdom after signing with Scottish Premier League leaders Celtic FC. Terms of the deal were not announced, and Ljungberg is expected to be introduced at a press conference on Friday. Ljungberg had been on trial with Celtic this week before coming to an agreement with the club on Thursday. In his two seasons as a Designated Player in MLS, Ljungberg accumulated four goals and 20 assists with the Seattle Sounders and Chicago Fire. How would you rate Ljungberg's time in MLS? Do you think he's a good fit for Celtic? Share your thoughts below. Watch Free Live Soccer Football Matches Online Here

Arsenal wasted a chance to join Manchester United and Manchester City atop the Premier League standings by drawing Wigan Athletic on Wednesday, but Andrei Arshavin most definitely did not waste this chance in pulling the Gunners level in the first half. Enjoy: Football Betting Tips, Odds, Asian Handicap, Oicks, Preview & Prediction

By FRANCO PANIZO The year is nearing its end, and while most United States national teams are eagerly awaiting to see what the future holds, SBI is looking back at the memorable year that was for the Americans. From a pair of drama-filled, late goals in the World Cup to a couple of finishes off of assists from players making their U.S. national team debuts, 2010 had plenty of goals worth watching again. With 19 total goals scored during the year, there were some nice finishes, including Edson Buddle's first against Australia, which barely missed the cut.With that said, here are SBI's Top Five USMNT Goals of 2010: 5. Jozy Altidore vs. Poland 10/9 The finish was easy. The pass was sublime. Jozy Altidore scored his second goal of 2010 for the U.S. national team and the opener in a 2-2 draw with Polandwhen he made a nice run behind the defense and got on the end of a perfect pass from Jermaine Jones. Facing questions about whether or not he'd fit in with his new teammates, Jone...

Photo courtesy of Jeff Camarati/UNC Athletic Communications By JOHN BOSCHINI Life has gotten pretty surreal for former North Carolina defender Jalil Anibaba. Signing an agent, inking a contract with the Major League Soccer and a receiving an invitation to the MLS Combine are all indications that his dream of a professional career is finally transitioning into a reality. "Now I'm talking to family members and I'm like, 'I have to call my agent' or 'My agent said this,'" Anibaba said. "It's really weird to say considering just a little while ago I was in college, but it's reassuring to know I'm close to being a professional." Anibaba spent three years at Santa Clara University, a mere 15 miles away from his hometown of Davis, Calif., but the 6-foot central defender transfered for his senior season to play at North Carolina under the direction of Elmar Bolowich. "We didn't have any issues with Jalil when he came in," B...

By AVI CREDITOR Villarreal striker Nilmar is set for an extended spell on the sidelines after returning to Brazil to have surgery to fix a cartilage problem in his right knee. It is unclear exactly how much time Nilmar, who has led all Villarreal scorers in La Liga play with 10 goals, will have to miss. His injury opens up a starting slot aside Giuseppe Rossi and should at the very least allot more minutes up top for Jozy Altidore. The Yellow Submarine, currently third in La Liga, will have to try to hold on to that spot without the injured Nilmar and Marcos Senna (hamstring) for the foreseeable future. Here are a few more stories from around the soccer world: MONCHENGLADBACH SIGNS TWO American midfielder Michael Bradley is set to have two new teammates after Borussia Monchengladbach signed 20-year-old defender Havard Nordtveit from Arsenal and 30-year-old defender Martin Stranzl from Spartak Moscow. The players fill a glaring need for the German side, which is toiling in the cellar o...

Added December 30th, 2010 by Ian SOCCER Like Liverpool, English Premier League club Manchester City has found its hard to get rid of unwanted players because nobody is willing to pay their inflated wages. And because of the 25-man roster rule that states eight players need to be homegrown, things are even tighter. It actually looks good on the teams and the players as their greed has seen their careers come to a standstill in some situations. Paying millions of pounds for players to sit on the bench is ridiculous and its what many of them deserve.City manager Roberto Mancini wants to spend even more money during the January transfer window, but unless the roster can be cleared and some of the deadwood moved theres not really any point in buying more players. This means that a rumoured move to buy striker Edin Dzeko from German club Wolfsburg for about 40 million euros may hav...

As we close the books on 2010 and go through our retrospectives (including MLS Talk's own awards) I wanted to take a different look back on the year that was through a different lens: what if what happened didn't happen, or vice versa. Over the weekend I intend to take four 2010 events from American soccer and debate what would have happened if they would have turned out differently. And the first one is a big one. For those who don't know, ESPN Classic has been showing World Cup games over the past few days as part of their best of 2010 series. I had the pleasure of re-watching the Netherlands-Uruguay match last night, a game that saw incredible goals by Giovanni von Brockhorst and Diego Forlan in the first half, as well as the Orange advancing to the finals. But to get to that point, Uruguay had to beat Ghana, who the previous round had beaten the U.S. in an overtime game that would only be surpassed by their next. Would we have seen this Netherlands-Uruguay match-up had ...

You can understand the Gunners anger. At the end of November Tottenham caused a major upset coming from 2-nil down at arch enemies Arsenal to win 3-2. The equaliser on that occasion was a penalty converted by Rafael van der Vaart which had been awarded after Arsenal skipper Cesc Fabregas had been punished for raising an arm in the wall when defending a Spurs free-kick. Having stopped the ball illegally the referee pointed to the spot. The Dutchman scored, and the rest is now history. Fast forward to Wednesday night just passed and Arsenal found themselves wondering why they did not benefit from an almost identical situation at the DW Stadium. After a thrilling all-action match against the Latics, 10-man Wigan rallied to 2-2 draw with the high-flying north Londoners. But moments before the final whistle, the Gunners had an opportunity to strike on goal as Samir Nasri lined up a free-kick. Much like what happened during the Tottenham incident, Arsenals effort on target never got passed t...

Comment & analysis round-up Quote of the day :Ever since I came here the famous Anfield support hasnt really been there. I have to hope the fans will become supporters because we need support we are not deliberately losing It was a sad way to end 2010 and a sad way to play the first game for a few weeks in front of our own supporters. We let them down and they showed us what they thought of it and I would probably have done the same. Maybe we are lacking quality and lacking confidence, and the negativity doesnt help. The players are not getting on the ball for fear of making mistakes. Roy Hodgson. Runner-up :Whats the difference between this handball and my one versus Spurs? Referees dont want us to complain about them but they make life difficult for themselves Is it a rule or just what they feel? Cesc Fabregas on a penalty not given v Wigan. Carlo Ancelotti on Chelsea 1 Bolton 0 :Im not sure that everything now will be OK. We have to perform again. We are not at the best in ...

For once this season, Sergio Ramos and Jose Mourinho were on opposite sides, but this didnt stop the Real Madrid defender from dedicating a penalty to the Special One. The Spanish League sent out a representative team to face Africa United, coached by Jose Mourinho, in the third annual Champions for Africa match in aid of education programmes in Africa last night. One of the highlights of the match, which included a number of comedy moments, came 15 minutes into the first half when the La Liga team were awarded a penalty. Ramos stepped up and even before taking the penalty, the Real Madrid defender who holds the record for most red cards, pointed at his coach on the Africa United bench. The 2010 World Cup winner duly scored a beautiful Panenka penalty, dinking the ball home and dedicated the goal to Mourinho who looked on with his trademark cheeky smile. Sergio Ramos penalty against Africa United and love-in with Jose Mourinho is on this video. Related video links: Highlights of Liga B...

The 2011 MLS Draft is two weeks away. That's right, just two weeks away, and the reality is that MLS teams are far from finished trying to figure out which players to move up and move down their draft lists. Wondering who your team might take when the draft takes place? Over the course of the past three years we have made the SBI MLS Mock Draft a regular part of the lead-up to the Draft and while it's impossible for anybody to know how the draft will actually go, we're confident this Mock Draft is a good measure of where the draft's top prospects project, and which needs teams will be looking to fill. Wondering what last year's first SBI MLS Mock Draft looked like? Here it is. Of the 16 players I had going in the first round, a total of 11 wound up actually going in the first round. Danny Mwanga wasn't a part of that Mock Draft because at that point he looked unlikely to sign with MLS (that was before MLS through a big-money offer to seal the deal). So who is t...

Celtic 1 Motherwell 0 (SPL, December 29, 2010) Paddy McCourts skilful run and shot gave the home side the lead midway through the first half. The winger had earlier headed wide with Emilio Izaguirre and Joe Ledley also off-target during a concerted period of Celtic pressure. Motherwell rarely threatened but found themselves a man up in the closing stages after Scott Browns dismissal. English & European Football Clubs & Leagues News | Video | Commentary

Stuart Holden and Bolton have a chance to move past Chelsea in the English Premier league standings with a win against the struggling blues today at Stamford Bridge (2:30pm, Fox Soccer Channel) Chelsea is coming off a lethargic loss to Arsenal on Monday, while Bolton is fresh off a 2-0 win against West Bromwich Albion. Chelsea needs at least a draw to hold on to fifth place in the Premier League, but will be seeking a win to move ahead of Tottenham into fourth place. If you will be watching Chelsea-Bolton, or the Arsenal-Wigan match on Fox Soccer Plus, or Liverpool-Wolves on FoxSoccer.tv, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below. Enjoy the action World Soccer News | Video | Podcast | Gallery | Live Streaming

If you have ever wondered where SBI readers check in from most often, you might be surprised at what the numbers reveal. We started out as a New York/New Jersey-dominated website before re-launching as a nationally-focused soccer news site in 2008. In the three years since we have managed to develop a well-balanced readership that represents American soccer fans very evenly. Here is a rundown of the top cities, states and countries for SBI readership, based on traffic statistics taken over the past six months: TOP 10 STATES FOR SBI READERSHIP California New York Texas Illinois New Jersey Washington Virginia Pennsylvania Massachusetts Florida District of Columbia Ohio North Carolina Maryland Georgia Colorado Michigan Oregon Indiana Utah TOP 25 CITIES FOR SBI READERSHIP New York Washington D.C. Chicago Seattle Los Angeles San Francisco Houston Atlanta Boston Denver Philadelphia Columbus Dallas Arlington, VA Portland Austin Minneapolis Salt Lake City San Diego Raleigh/Durham Brooklyn Tor...