Carli Lloyd scores a hat trick, Heather O' Reilly chips in with another as USA easily beat Mexico, 4-0, to secure a semi-final spot against Costa Rica in the Olympics qualifiers. This result reversed their shocking loss to Mexico in the World Cup qualifiers which forced them into a playoff match.

It's hot! Bloody hot.
Australian summer can be a bit like that, can't it, even this year. My friends are gathered, some want to sit close, others are over dressed, most in green.
Chocolate cake! On a summers day? I went for hot chips!
Move over, it's getting hotter, but there's no space, not in the Canberra stands.

It's rare that expectations are low for Manchester United, but after the back-to-back disappointments against Blackburn and Newcastle, United were the clear underdogs heading into last weekend's FA Cup showdown at City. But as has happened time and time and time and time again, United delivered when the chips were down, and while the 3-2 [.

When the chips are down and the Miami Heat need a bucket, who do they go to? That would be NBA champion and Finals MVP Dwyane Wade. For the second time this season, Wade delivered the game-winner for the Miami Heat.

This time, Wade's shot downed the Minnesota Timberwolves by a final score of 103-101.

Steven Gerrard has shouldered the burden of being Liverpool's 'talisman' for years now, and when the chips are down, everyone seems to look to the captain for inspiration. Such over-reliance on Gerrard has arguably been a handicap at times, and with the team struggling to score goals, the pressure is once again on Gerrard to come in and solve the problem.

File Photo: Daniel Gajdamowicz

Philadelphia Union

Peter Nowak answered questions from reporters via tele-conference on Thursday on the club's recent signings. See our report, published on Thursday night, for an overview of what was discussed. Also, look for a second report from the press conference later this morning for more quotes and analysis, particularly in regards to how the team plan to handle the number of internationals now on the roster and the status of Keon Daniel.

When the chips are down, the man to call up is Didier Drogba. The Ivory Coast striker has removed an absolutely intense amount of pressure off the backs of Andre Villas-Boas and Chelsea Football Club by turning in two superb ...
This is a content summary. Visit http://www.epltalk.com to read the entire article

Drogba Lite Lukaku was devilishly lucky to survive after a diabolical challenge on Henderson

Belgians dip their chips in mayonnaise but Romelu Lukaku was lucky not to be mired in brown sauce. Handed only his third start since his £18million switch from Anderlecht, the Chelsea striker was lucky to last until the interval.

The Dama de Honor, the shopping trolley and the squid Take one pasty white English guy - regular correspondent from this parish, Andy Hudson - his father and a retired footballer from Denmark and send them on an extended European Football Weekend to Spain.... "That's tasteless.""You finish it off.""I don't want it.

Ash splashes cash for Pards at last (shame it's at the casino)

Alan Pardew is unlikely to criticise the amount Mike Ashley spends after seeing him in action on a recent night out. The Newcastle United manager joined his boss and cohort Derek Lambias at Apers Casino – where Andy Carroll famously fell off a stool last year – and watched as Ashley played with £5,000 chips, losing £50,000 on one roll of the dice.

For all the panic and soul-searching, then, England have qualified for next year's European Championships in Poland and Ukraine, although their performance last night was again patchy and hinted at a team that is likely to struggle against the very best in Europe next summer. Moreover, England's night which should, or might, otherwise have been an evening for celebration of some sort was further soiled by the decision of Wayne Rooney to take a kick at Miodrag Dzudovic with just over fifteen minutes of the match left to play and get himself a red card and a suspension for the start of next summer's tournament.

I would like to personally apologize to Sofia Vergara for not getting the Emmy. What garbage...Let's start with AC Milan's Alberto Aquilani because this week he gives us the rare header worth fawning over.Nap 0-1 Mil door goalsarena2011Ya know what else we haven't had enough of around here lately? Sweet chips.

Chips, hats and alcohol free Amiens 0-1 Le Havre (12:08:11) Reporting on the first leg of a three-part French and Belgian European Football Weekend, Andy Hudson of Gannin' Away... The coach turned onto Buckingham Palace Road. "Thank fuck we're here" came the mackem accent from behind me, "I'm never doing that again" it continued before morphing into a yawn.

Internazionale have spent much of this week in Beijing, China preparing to defend their Italian Supercoppa tomorrow against city rivals AC Milan. But all the talk surrounding the club has been focused on potential transfers including some very big names.

The Sneijder Saga Continues.

Not content to just do their thing in the Paul Scholes testimonial match at Old Trafford today, the Cosmos organization is set to take part in something called the Vegas Winter Kick on Feb. 12th at Sam Boyd Stadium. Word out of Sin City is that the promoters, Justice Entertainment, say the opposition "will be a quality team that is recognized worldwide.

The Kopsource Guide to Fantasy League Success

With the season only a matter of days away, many of you will be preparing your fantasy teams for war. However, many of you would struggle feel right at home on the touchline with Roy Hodgson. Never fear, though, Kopsource has a few tips for those who have been left scratching their heads; or rubbing thier faces as it were.

President Obama, his wife Michelle, and their daughters Sasha and Malia eat some chips and dip as they watch the World Cup final.

Morgan gets a through ball and cleverly chips the French goalkeeper as she rushes out to win the ball.

By Chris Wright

The US Women spanked France with two late goals to secure themselves a spot in the World Cup against Japan (who beat Sweden 3-1 in the other semi-final) in Frankfurt on Sunday.

Laura Cheney swept home to put the States a goal up inside nine minutes, only for France to equalise ten minutes after the break when Sonia Bompastor's flat cross bounced across the six-yard box and nestled inside the far post.

Photo: Daniel Gajdamowicz

Union

Paunovic or Dax McCarty? Who would you take? New York dispatched with a high-priced, moody and inconsistent veteran offensive player (Dwayne "Tiny Dancer" de Rosario) and received Dax McCarty in return. The best part of this trade?

Time for kickoff!
2 - I'm ready for the match with the breakfast of champions, real whipped cream and strawberries on a chocolate brownie - Breakfast at Germany, the AC version.
3 - Corner for Japan, nothing comes of it.
4 - Nearly a corner straight into the goal from New Zealand there.

My first ever Cambodian League game at the Olympic Stadium in downtown Phnom Penh! Follow the crowds? Hardly. A 10 minute ride by tuk tuk to the stadium and I walked p the ramp and into a large, cavernous bowl of a stadium long familiar to me from Andy's Kingdom of Football blog.

A couple of hundred fans perhaps in the main stand, seeking shelter from a tropical sun almost at the peak of its powers, 2 pm has to be one of the dafter kick off times in the region; at least Malaysia's 8.

With a headline like that, what year is this again?

I experienced that connection with Stevie Nicol and Bob Bradley. They believe in me, and they know I'll run through a brick wall for them, and I do miss that. I haven't felt that way in Europe; I haven't felt that connection with a manager that when the chips are down and you're going into battle that I'm a guy they look to try to make things happen.

They won the league last year with a spectacular 5-1 victory at the Bung Karno Stadium in front of 45,000 of their travelling supporters. They have been frquently crowned best supporters in the country. But now, when things ain't going so well what has happened to the famous Aremania? Check out their recent attendances with the most home games at the top.

The Special One puts all of his chips on red for the Champions League Final.

The fight.

I haven't gotten a chance to see the match yet was stuck blogging Spurs for The Score but it looks as if we kind of cruised to the points. Good, not great, news.

Better news? We're up to second on goal difference thanks to another Arsenal capitulation.

Awful. Just awful.

Not to be too dramatic, or to put too fine a point on it, but today was a tale of two teams. One team went down 2-0, on the road, to a team that's been playing quite well lately. How did they respond? They banded together, simply decided to win, and scored 4 goals in a breathtakingly dominant 20-minute span to win 4-2.

In lieu of a real training session, the U.S. WNT spent three hours this morning shooting footage for ESPN for a commercial that will air promoting the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup. We can't give away anything about the spot, but the players and crew had fun on a bit of a hot morning and the players performed like Hollywood veterans on the "set".

Avram, You're The Man.

Is West Ham's solution to saving the club from relegation as simple as the formula of sacking Avram Grant as soon as possible, sign Sam Allardyce to replace him and give the manager six players who can walk in to Upton Park and make an immediate difference?

I really don't like Stoke fans. They will put that down to successfully achieving their status as wind up merchants but it's so far removed from that. Fans come to Old Trafford every week thinking they're clever singing "we support our local team", as if they were the ones that made it up, as if we've never heard it before, and as if it bothers in the slightest, whether a red from Manchester, the North West, down south, Ireland or anywhere else.