Tevez Returns to Europe, Misses Manchester City Practice

15 February, 12:11, by admin Tags: ,

After spending three months of unauthorized leave in his native Argentina, Carlos Tevez is back at Manchester City, but his future with the club is uncertain. The striker, who has not played since manager Roberto Mancini accused him of refusing to leave the bench during a Sept. 27 match against Bayern Munich, reported to the club doctor at the team’s training ground for a fitness test. A week after the incident, Tevez left England for Argentina without the City’s permission. The club later fined Tevez 1.2 million pounds for refusing to return from Buenos Aires and has suspended his pay of 200,000 pounds a week since he has been there.

Manchester City defender Joleon Lescott tweeted this week that “all the players are excited to have Carlos, Kolo [Toure] and Yaya [Toure] back to help achieve our goal.” However, former goalkeeper Joe Corrigan voiced his displeasure with Tevez’s decision and thought his return could hurt team morale.

“Since the Tevez situation reared its head the team spirit has increased, which has been proven by them digging in and getting results,” he said. “I hope he doesn’t get the chance to play.”

Tevez missed an important team practice today ahead of Manchester City’s game tomorrow against Porto. He has not been registered to play in Europe after his absence, but has been undergoing continued, extensive physical and fitness examination. It is expected that Mancini and Tevez will have their first meeting since the player’s return sometime next week.

For more Europe and international soccer info, use SoccerInferno — the latest online football news, scores and stats available!

U.S. Women’s National Team Headed to 2012 Summer Olympics

08 February, 09:58, by admin Tags: , ,

Defending their Olympic gold medals in Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008, the U.S. Women’s National Team will travel to London to compete in the 2012 Summer Olympics. The team clenched a spot in the games following a 3-0 victory over Costa Rica in the semifinals of the CONCACAF (Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) tournament.

Following a sloppy first half in which the American team put just one goal on the scoreboard (made by Tobin Heath), both the team and fans were worried whether the U.S. team would pull out a victory. The Costa Rican team is currently ranked 41st in the world women’s soccer team rankings, but has never qualified for the Olympics or a World Cup and has never scored on the U.S. team.

“There were moments where I think Costa Rica were outplaying us, and it just shows you how important it was to all of us,” said team member Abby Wamcabh in an Associated Press interview. “Nobody wanted to make that mistake. And luckily we didn’t.”

Two additional goals by Carli Lloyd and Alex Morgan in the second half (72nd minute and 89th minute respectively), solidified the U.S. Women’s victory.

For any soccer fanatics in Texas, head over to the FC Dallas Stadium in Frisco on Friday, Feb. 10, to attend a public training session for the U.S. Women’s National Team between 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. CST. Admission is free. This practice comes before the team’s match against New Zealand on Saturday in the stadium.

To follow the U.S. Women’s National Team’s trip to the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, follow Soccer Inferno, which has all the latest up-to-the-minute scores, stats, news and video straight from FIFA and ESPN. What are you waiting for? Download the Soccer Inferno toolbar online today!

UEFA Finds Massive Losses When Investigating Euro Club Spending

25 January, 12:49, by admin Tags:

The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has revealed that some of Europe’s top soccer clubs have annual losses in revenue totaling roughly 1.6 billion Euros, according to data gathered in 2010. Other statistics indicate that this number may still be rising. These losses were discovered after teams had to submit to UEFA’s financial fair play monitoring, which went into effect in July of 2011.

Compared to UEFA’s 2009 study, the combined annual loss of top-level teams rose 36 percent, about $520 million in 2010. Losses can be blamed on the bidding war for top players, staff costs, transfers and overspending on salaries. The study also noted that the richer and more successful clubs are more likely to lose money – the wealthiest leagues in Europe being England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Those five teams combine to hold two-thirds of the wealth amongst European football leagues. While the top 18 clubs earned a combined $68 million in profits in 2010, most teams spent 65 percent more than they earned.

Do you think that UEFA clubs should have to report their spending? Is it fair or unfair? The world of European soccer is certainly more different than that in the United States. Luckily, you can keep up with all the latest soccer news and scores by downloading the free SoccerInferno toolbar.

Owner tried to promote Stability for the Wolves

12 January, 09:37, by admin Tags: , ,

Steve Morgan, the owner of the Wolves is backing the current coach of the team regardless of the team being in another regulation battle. Morgan wants to make clear that the Wolves are not a “hire-and-fire club.” The Wolves is a soccer club located in Wolverhampton located in central England. 

“Its not for me to comment on other clubs. All I can do is comment on Wolves…Of course, we have our problems but our philosophy is to work through the problems.”

Other clubs managers have been recently sacked due to poor turnout. The Wolves owners, Steve Morgan and Jez Moxey have consistently shown their support for coach McCarthy whether the team is winning or loosing. This attitude hasn’t changed even during the recent Premier League survival fight. Morgan’s rational for supporting McCarthy is that he’s seen his skills at Molineux, also located in Wolverhampton, and hopes to see the same skills used toward the Wolves.

Morgan’s final words on the matter were: “I’ve never commented on the manager’s job in four and a half years I’ve been at the club and I’m not going to start now.”

Beckham Won’t Go to Europe, Future With Galaxy Unclear

04 January, 18:46, by admin Tags: ,

After many months of speculation, American fans of David Beckham can breathe a sigh of relief – the British soccer star isn’t leaving the states just yet. Just this week, Beckham declined an offer to join the French team Paris Saint-Germain. The club had reportedly offered the star an 18-month, $18.7 million deal. His reason for turning them down? Beckham didn’t want to move his family of six across the world for a European stint

“We feel a little disappointed,” said PSG president Nasser al-Khelaifi this week. “But both sides agreed it would be better that wee not do the deal… Maybe in the future.”

The 36-year-old midfielder’s 5-year contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy expired in November after Beckham helped them win the MLS Cup. He hopes to finalize a new one-year contract with the Galaxy in the coming days. Part of Beckham’s stipulations to resigning with the Galaxy is whether the team would accommodate the star if he were selected to play for England in this summer’s Olympic Games in London. Speculation on the subject points toward Beckham staying in L.A., especially with the team’s recent success in the MLS and the recent signing of Ireland captain Robbie Keane.

“I am very proud of the time that I’ve spent with the Galaxy and it might continue,” Beckham said recently.

Barcelona Easily Grabs Second FIFA World Club Cup Championship

28 December, 08:59, by admin Tags: ,

Following a sensational and rather easy game against Santos FC on Sunday, Dec. 18, Spain’s Barcelona team was awarded the title of FIFA World Club Cup champions for their second time. The game was played in front of a sold-out crowd at the Yokohama International Stadium in Yokohama, Japan, and Barcelona defeated Santos with a score of 4-0; the same score with which they defeated Al Sadd in the semi-finals. This is the second time Barcelona has won the Club World Cup in three seasons.

Three of the goals were made in the first half of the game; one by Rafael Cabral, another by Lionel Messi and a third by Cesc Fabregas. At this point, it looked as though Barcelona was unstoppable.

“We played a great and complete game with a lot of intensity,” said Barcelona captain Carles Puyol. “The first two goals we scored calmed us down but we never doubted ourselves. I think it was a fair result. We surprised Santos by coming at them straight from the start, which they probably weren’t use to as they tend to have more time on the ball in their domestic league. We’re very happy.”

The fourth and final goal was made again by Messi with eight minutes remaining in the match. The team was awarded the title and $5 million after the win.

Donovan Heads to UK for MLS Offseason on Loan to Everton

22 December, 15:29, by admin Tags: , ,

Instead of sticking out the L.A. Galaxy’s off-season training session in the United States, Landon Donovan will be hopping the pond to play for the Everton team as part of a two-month loan deal. Galaxy fans shouldn’t worry though, the captain whose team recently became the MLS Cup champions, will play his last game for Everton on Feb. 25. He’ll be back in the states in time to join the Galaxy for the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal series in Toronto on March 7. The official MLS season will open three days later on March 10.

This isn’t the first time the American has played for Everton. He spent 10 months with the club prior to the 2010 season. Not only did he score two goals in his 13 games, but also won the club’s Player of the Month honor. Though he indicated during the latter part of the MLS season that he wasn’t planning on accepting a loan move, he did say that Everton was the only English club he would consider playing for during the MLS offseason. Negotiations with the club lasted less than a week before Donovan agreed.

“This is a great opportunity for Landon,” said Galaxy coach and GM Bruce Arena in a statement. “During the final months of the 2011 season, he was limited because of an ongoing injury, and he just started to get his legs back during the playoffs. Therefore, I think that this opportunity with Everton comes at a perfect time, as he is rested and ready to go.” Follow your favorite MLS players and see what they’re up to during the off season by tracking them using the SoccerInferno toolbar.

UNC-Chapel Hill Men Win NCAA Soccer Championship

14 December, 13:14, by admin Tags: ,

With last week’s SoccerInferno report on the women’s NCAA National Championship title, it’s only fair to report on the men’s NCAA championship game, which took place last Sunday, Dec. 11, in Hoover, Ala. North Carolina was represented well in the final game of the tournament with UNC-Charlotte facing the UNC-Chapel Hill for the title. The Tar Heels of UNC-CH defeated Charlotte by a 1-0 score to claim their second national title in 10 years.

The only goal of the game was scored by UNC Junior Ben Speas in the 65th minute; a beautiful 25-yard shot that has some news organizations are calling it a “wonder goal.” He was also an important player in the Tar Heel’s game on Friday night against UCLA when Speas kicked the winning penalty kick to propel the team over UCLA to win the game 3-1 after it was tied 2-2 at the end of regulation time. Speas is no stranger to big wins or National Championship titles, however. He was part of the University of Akron team that won the NCAA tournament in 2010.

The UNC-CH team has come close to winning the National Championship in recent years. The team lost in semifinal games in both 2009 and 2010 and lost in the final game back in 2008. Tar Heel senior Kirk Urso is the only player on the Carolina roster to have played minutes in each of the previous three College Cups, so Sunday’s victory was especially rewarding.

“My whole college career has been awesome, but there was something extra about this team,” he said in an interview. “To cap it off with this is something I’m going to remember the rest of my life.”

Stanford Women’s Soccer Wins First National Championship

07 December, 15:38, by admin Tags: ,

Congratulations to the Stanford women’s soccer team on their first national championship in Division I women’s soccer! The team defeated Duke 1-0 last Sunday to clench the title that has eluded the Cardinals for the past three years. Since 2008, the team has never lost a regular season game; the team’s four seniors never lost a game at home and advanced to the College Cup four times. In 2008 the Cardinals lost in the semifinal game and in both 2009 and 2010 they lost in the national finals with a 1-0 score. In the school’s history, Stanford has won 101 national championships. The women’s soccer team added one more to that with their victory this weekend in Kennesaw, Ga.

“I told them they are going to go down in history as the first team to ever win a national championship for women’s soccer at Stanford,” Coach Paul Ratcliffe said.

Stanford dominated the game for much of the first half, but seniors Camille Levin and Teresa Noyola teamed up to score the only goal of the game during the second half. Once the Cardinals scored, the Blue Devil women got serious and attacked the Stanford goal repeatedly in the final 20 minutes of the game. Sophomore goalie Emily Oliver said it was, “the longest 20 minutes of my life.” Even with Duke’s aggressive offense, it was only fitting that Stanford win the game after many years of such hard work and crushing disappointments. Congrats again to the Lady Cardinals!

Knee Injury Knocks Liverpool’s Leiva Out For Season

01 December, 11:34, by admin Tags: ,

One of Liverpool’s most crucial players has been eliminated from the team roster for the remainder of the season after suffering a knee injury in the club’s 2-0 Carling Cup victory at Chelsea Tuesday night. Lucas Leiva was carried off the field on a stretcher in the second half of the game. Scans have revealed that the Brazil international suffered damage to the anterior cruciate ligament in Leiva’s left knee. A statement released by the team indicated that he would undergo surgery immediately but would “unfortunately” be ruled out for the rest of the season.

The news came as a blow to Liverpool’s manager, Kenny Dalglish, and the rest of the team as the 24-year-old midfielder has been one of the club’s best players over the past two seasons. Most recently, Leiva had outstanding performances against Chelsea in the Premier League and League Cup victories and the team’s 1-1 tie at home on Sunday against Manchester City.

To compensate for the loss of Leiva, Liverpool recalled midfielder Jonjo Shelvey, who has been on loan to Blackpool. In addition to Shelvey, Dalglish has other options to keep his team playing at the highest level possible in Leiva’s absence. The best would be the return of captain Steven Gerrard who has spent much of the season recovering from a groin operation and ankle infection; he has only made five game appearances this season. Another option at Dalglish’s disposal is Jordan Henderson, who joined the team just last summer from Sunderland. Liverpool fans, stay on top of roster changes and follow Leiva’s recovery using the helpful SoccerInferno toolbar, which allows you to track scores, schedules and more right from your desktop.

12345...Last »