Big blow for AC Milan's title hopes as striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has been suspended for three matches for his red card against Napoli, meaning he will miss the top-of-the-table clash with Serie A leaders Juventus.

Ibra was sent off midway through the second half of Sunday's 0-0 draw with Napoli at the San Siro after he slapped opponent Salvatore Aronica in an off-the-ball incident.

Stylish and Educational! 3nil's Onside/Offside Shirt.

Imagine a perfectly timed run from the far side. Ozil slips Benzema in, which is followed by a cool finish to the far post. But there's something wrong; the assistant referee has raised his flag and the goal doesn't stand.

No Tractor Girls allowed Ipswich Town boss Paul Jewell is at the centre of a sexism row after post-match comments about a female assistant referee. The Tractor Boys' gaffer was infuriated after his side were refused a late penalty at Birmingham only for the home side to grab a winner. He was in no doubt [.

Manchester United face Wigan, Manchester City face West Brom, Liverpool face Blackburn, Chelsea face Fulham. Four of the strongest teams in the land, all apart from Manchester City are at home, against three of the weakest travelling teams in the country and the other, West Brom, with a dismal home record.

Wolves came very close to win this game with three goals to two, as I predicted in my pre-match article, but the assistant referee just had to spoil our fortune by waving Fletcher off for offside. A correct decision, but still... It didn't start too well though, with former Wolves player Surman allowed to roam [.

Wolves came very close to win this game with three goals to two, as I predicted in my pre-match article, but the assistant referee just had to spoil our fortune by waving Fletcher off for offside. A correct decision, but still... It didn't start too well though, with former Wolves player Surman allowed to roam [.

Santos - FC Barcelona0:4 (0:3)
FechaSede / EstadioHoraAsistencia
18 diciembre 2011 Yokohama / International Stadium Yokohama19:3068166Goles marcadosLionel MESSI (BAR) 17', XAVI (BAR) 24', Cesc FABREGAS (BAR) 45', Lionel MESSI (BAR) 82'Santos
[1] RAFAEL CABRAL (GK) [2] EDU DRACENA (C) [3] LEO [4] DANILO (-31') [5] AROUCA [6] DURVAL [7] HENRIQUE [9] BORGES (-79') [10] GANSO (-83') [11] NEYMAR [14] BRUNO RODRIGO En el banquillo [12] ARANHA (GK) [23] VLADIMIR (GK) [8] ELANO (+31') [13] BRUNO AGUIAR [15] ANDERSON CARVALHO [16] VINICIUS [17] FELIPE ANDERSON [18] IBSON (+83') [19] ALAN KARDEC (+79') [20] Wason RENTERIA [21] PARA [22] DIOGO Entrenador Muricy RAMALHO (BRA)
FC Barcelona[1] Victor VALDES (GK) [2] DANI ALVES [3] Gerard PIQUE (-56') [4] Cesc FABREGAS [5] Carles PUYOL (C) (-85') [6] XAVI [8] Andres INIESTA [10] Lionel MESSI [11] THIAGO (-79') [16] Sergio BUSQUETS [22] Eric ABIDAL
En el banquillo [13] PINTO (GK) [25] Oier OLAZABAL (GK) [7] David VILLA [A] [9] Alexis SANCHEZ [14] Javier MASCHERANO (+56') [15] Seydou KEITA [17] PEDRO (+79') [18] Jonathan DOS SANTOS [19] MAXWELL [21] ADRIANO [24] Andreu FONTAS (+85') [27] Isaac CUENCA Entrenador Pep GUARDIOLA (ESP)
Amonestaciones
Gerard PIQUE (BAR) 39'
, Javier MASCHERANO (BAR) 71'
, GANSO (SAN) 73'
, EDU DRACENA (SAN) 74'
Expulsiones
Cuerpo arbitral del partido
ÁrbitroRavshan IRMATOV (UZB) Assistant Referee 1Abdukhamidullo RASULOV (UZB) Cuarto ÁrbitroYuichi NISHIMURA (JPN) Assistant Referee 2Bakhadyr KOCHKAROV (KGZ) Quinto ÁrbitroToru SAGARA (JPN)
Santos (BRA )EstadísticasFC Barcelona (ESP)8Disparos163Remates a puerta90Goles413Faltas cometidas1311Faltas recibidas132Saques de esquina41Tiros libres ejecutados (al arco)10 / 0Lanzamientos penales (Goles/Remates)0 / 00Fueras de juego60Goles en propia meta02Tarjetas amarillas20Segunda tarjeta amarilla y tarjeta roja00Tarjetas rojas018Tiempo real de juego4529%Posesión del balón71% Gracias por tu visita Estadísticas de Fútbol

Hi everyone,
As most of you have seen the game between Stoke and Tottenham there were a few questionable decisions made by the referee Chris Foy.
First I think its right to talk about Peter Crouch's handling of the ball before setting up the goal. It could be said that the referee did not have a clear view of the incident, however the fact that the assistant referee could have signaled should not be ignored.

Written by Harry

Arsenal brought together an array of legends to help them celebrate the history that is Arsenal, 125 years of history to be precise, from the days of Dial Square, Plumstead common, Henry Norris getting us into Division one after WW1, the Chapman Era, the 70's double, moving in more recent history with George Graham's titles and cups, right upto Wenger's invincible's and some of the best football I have ever seen.

Written by Harry

Arsenal brought together an array of legends to help them celebrate the history that is Arsenal, 125 years of history to be precise, from the days of Dial Square, Plumstead common, Henry Norris getting us into Division one after WW1, the Chapman Era, the 70's double, moving in more recent history with George Graham's titles and cups, right upto Wenger's invincible's and some of the best football I have ever seen.

By Chris Wright

With Manchester United one up through Chicharito (or rather Chicharito's stomach/thigh), a pretty naff penalty call from the assistant referee saw Newcastle nick a point at Old Trafford this afternoon.

Referee Mike Jones quite rightly gave a corner when Rio Ferdinand's clean-as-you-like block challenge saw Hatem Ben Arfa's cross squirt out of touch, only for Jones' assistant to overrule the decision because the shimmering fairies dancing around his head told him to.

Sir Alex Ferguson has slammed the assistant referee, John Flynn, after a ridiculous decision which denied United three points against Newcastle today.

The referee, Mike Jones, initially indicated that a corner should be awarded, before the linesman flagged for a penalty.

Ferguson criticised the linesman and reflected on an equally poor decision by an official at the end of the 2009-2010 season against Chelsea, when Didier Drogba scored the match-winning goal from an offside position.

Flag FAIL Roma forward Osvaldo smacked a crisp bicycle kick into the net against Lecce last week. Cop a load of this. While Osvaldo was doing a Rooney, the assistant referee was doing a disservice to fans of the game everywhere. He flagged for offside and the goal was disallowed. If you pause the video [.

By Alan Duffy

Alex Horne, with a little Madonna-esque microphone

FA big-wig Alex Horne believes that the much-debated goal-line technology could finally be introduced into top level football as early as next season. Horne says that if one of the current systems which are being tested is found to work reliably, then the technology is likely to be introduced.

Brolly bad luck The La Liga match between Granada and Real Mallorca was called off after an assistant referee was struck by an umbrella. The linesman was left with a deep cut to his cheek after being hit by the stray accessory. After spotting his bleeding colleague, the referee immediately took all the match officials [.

The clock has struck midnight on Levante's cinderella start to the season as the former leaders suffered their third consecutive defeat in a row, this time at the hands of Atlético Madrid.

All five goals came within a rollercoaster final 25 minutes as Atlético won 3-2. Xavi Torres equalised for the visitors shortly after Pizzi had put the hosts ahead, but Adrián López's fourth goal of the season and Diego's 83rd-minute effort ensured Atlético moved up to ninth.

Don Garber spoke to reporters today to announce the league's best XI and talk a bit about the 2012 season. The only Seattle Sounder named to the Best XI was goal-keeper Kasey Keller. Keller, in his final professional season, anchored one of the league's top defenses. He led all league goalkeepers with 18 wins and made a career-high 110 saves.

The ballots have been tallied and we now know the finalists for the various end-of-season awards for Major League Soccer.

Last year it was easy to find some fault in the various finalists but this year, every award was fairly open enough.

2011 Major League Soccer Awards Finalists (Listed in alphabetical order by last name within each award category) Rookie of the Year Finalists – Winner to be announced Nov.

Brad Davis, Dwayne DeRosario and Brek Shea were named finalists for the MLS MVP Award on Monday as the league announced the finalists for all the season-ending awards.

Here are all the finalists for the awards, with winners set to be announced over the course of the next two weeks, starting with MLS Rookie of the Year on Tuesday:

2011 MLS AWARD FINALISTS (announcement date in parentheses)

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR (Tuesday)

Michael Farfan (Philadelphia Union)

Perry Kitchen (D.

Graham Poll: Lee Mason should explain Old Trafford penalty reversal and card shark Luis Suarez

It takes courage to give a penalty against Manchester United at Old Trafford and assistant referee Jake Collin did just that on Saturday afternoon.

View the full story here: The Mail

A news article on 2011-11-06 23:31:16 from: The Mail

This news item has been reproduced from today's media.

By Alan Duffy

West Bromwich Albion 0-2 Liverpool Premier League 29th October

Liverpool were by far the better side at the Hawthorns on Saturday with goals from Charlie Adam (via the penalty spot) and Andy Carroll sealing a comfortable win for the visitors.

West Bromwich Albion 0-2 Liverpool | Premier League Match report

He is a magnet to controversy and probably always will be but it is impossible not to admire Luis Suárez's mercurial talent. The Uruguayan took centre stage here in an accomplished Liverpool performance that proved there is life after Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher.

By FRANCO PANIZO

It's no secret that Arsenal is in need of some reinforcements, and manager Arsene Wenger has already identified one possible target for the winter transfer window.

Wenger is hoping to bring in Fiorentina winger Juan Manuel Vargas, the Peruvian international which had been linked with Arsenal during the summer transfer window.

Thievery. Robbery. A mugging.
The crime rate is high in Morelia, and that doesn't stop from extending onto the soccer fields there.
Estadio Morelos was site of one of the biggest non-violent crimes in Morelia's recent history. On Tuesday, the Galaxy had a goal and a victory stolen from them.

Thievery. Robbery. A mugging.
The crime rate is high in Morelia, and that doesn't stop from extending onto the soccer fields there.
Estadio Morelos was site of one of the biggest non-violent crimes in Morelia's recent history. On Tuesday, the Galaxy had a goal and a victory stolen from them.

Landon Donovan makes the most of his play against the Rapids, and he did it again on Friday night, delivering the lone goal in the LA Galaxy's home win over Colorado.

This time, the goal came in the 36th minute as Donovan was unmarked when receiving a pass from Sean Franklin. Unlike his miss against Costa Rico on the same field in a USA friendly a week early, Donovan was clinical.

Why Dean Holdsworth and Diogo are my Champ and Chump of the Week

Champ of the Week: Dean HoldsworthAldershot allegedly had no chance at Upton Park this week, but the Shots' League Cup victory came as no surprise to me. We played at the EBB Stadium in pre-season and I saw then how well organised and effective Dean had made his team.

Galaxy 1 Alajuelense 0

Galaxy forward Chad Barrett enters the game in the 74th minute for Adam Cristman; it's the UCLA product's first appearance since July 4.

*********************

Landon Donovan got a 68th minute yellow card for flinging an opponent to the ground.

By IAN HOLLIDAY

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — For the third straight match, the New England Revolution scored first. And for the third straight match, the Revolution squandered its lead.

Recently signed designated player Milton Caraglio netted his first two MLS goals in the first half, and Dane Richards scored a brace of his own in the second as the Revs and the New York Red Bulls split the points Saturday night at Gillette Stadium.

U.S. Soccer referee Mark Geiger and assistant referee Sean Hurd have been selected to officiate the final of the FIFA Under-20 World Cup between Brazil and Portugal in Bogota, Colombia.
The match will be broadcast live on ESPNU and ESPN3.com on Saturday, August 20, at 7 p.m. ET.
The American referees, along with Canada's Joe Fletcher, have also been on the referee crew for a Group E match between Brazil and Austria, a Group B match featuring Uruguay and Cameroon and a Round of 16 game between Spain and Korea Republic.

The Chicago Fire have fallen into a predictable pattern, regardless of the ever-changing crew of personnel wearing the team's jersey.

Josh Wolff cancelled out Sebastian Grazzini's opener with a somewhat controversial equalizer, and D.C. United played the Chicago Fire to a 1-1 draw at Toyota Park Thursday night.

Brazilian soccer assistant referee Nadine Schram Câmara Bastos worked the lines of Sunday's 2-2 draw between Campeonato Brasileiro Série A leaders Corinthians and mid-table Ceará. Given that it is still a rarity to see female match officials in top level men's matches, the dental assistant caught the attention of the cameras while in action.

Photo: Canadian Press

By JOSE M. ROMERO

Jeff Larentowicz's low bouncer through the San Jose wall and past goalkeeper Jon Busch in the 72nd minute proved to be the difference as the Colorado Rapids came from behind to defeat the host San Jose Earthquakes 2-1 Saturday night at Buck Shaw Stadium.

U.S. Soccer referee Mark Geiger and and assistant referee Sean Hurd are currently representing the U.S. at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Colombia.
Geiger served as the fourth official for the first two Group A games - Korea Republic vs. Mali and host Colombia vs. France.
Geiger and Hurd were assigned to the match between Brazil and Austria, working alongside Canadian assistant referee Joe Fletcher and England's Mark Clattenburg, who served as the fourth official.

The NASL announced Thursday afternoon that Strikers midfielder Eduardo Coudet has been suspended by the NASL for 6-games following last nights league match against the Puerto Rico Islanders.

According to witnesses and visible from the Puerto Rico Islanders highlight video on Youtube, Coudet protested a penalty kick incorrectly given by the referee.

The NASL announced Thursday afternoon that Strikers midfielder Eduardo Coudet has been suspended by the NASL for 6-games following last nights league match against the Puerto Rico Islanders.

According to witnesses and visible from the Puerto Rico Islanders highlight video on Youtube, Coudet protested a penalty kick incorrectly given by the referee.

Sorry this one is a little late compared to when the game ended. I had my 3 year old son with me at the game and then went with the Family to honor those who came before us and served our country at the National Cemetery. Anyways on to the recap.

Quick Recap:

Portland plays listless soccer for much of the game and gets punished by a team that could actually finish.

On Thursday, CONCACAF released the list of eligible referees for the 2011 Gold Cup. Referees will be required to pass a pre-tournament fitness test along with receiving instructions as part of CONCACAF's Elite Referee Course to be held in Dallas from May 30th to June 4th. The Gold Cup kicks off the next day in Dallas with Costa Rica playing Cuba and Mexico facing El Salvador at Dallas Stadium.

U.S. Soccer referee Mark Geiger and assistant referee Mark Hurd were invited by FIFA to participate as match officials at the 2011 FIFA Under-20 World Cup from July 29 until Aug. 20 in Colombia. Geiger and Hurd will join 15 other referees and 31 other ...

A Wayne Rooney penalty is all it took. Call it bullying the assistant referee. Call it controversial. Call it whatever you want. The season is played over 38 games, not just one, and Manchester United came out with a 1-1 ... Continue reading →