With all the build up revolving around Luis Suarez and Patrice Evra, this afternoon's early kick-off between Manchester United and Liverpool lived up to the pre-match hype. Arguably the spiciest fixture in the Premier League calendar, it was given even more zest before a ball had even been kicked, when Liverpool's Luis Suarez refused to shake Patrice Evra's extended hand.

Well it's just a preseason match and doesn't count for anything, but the Dynamo's 1-0 victory over the LA Galaxy does give us the ever so slightest bit of retribution after last season. Nathan Sturgis scored his second goal of the preseason as the Dynamo defense continued it's streak of clean sheets with their fifth straight shutout of the preseason.

Liverpool striker Luis Suarez was cutting an increasingly frustrated figure during the first-half of his side's match against Manchester United this lunchtime. After his refusal to shake Evra's hand before kick-off, Suarez was jeered throughout the first-half. He then showed his frustration very publicly when he felt he should have had a free-kick when through [.

My brain is an arsehole. "Just one gigantic whiskey before you go to bed. Go on!"

I need to stop listening to my brain although I'm not sure who I should listen to in that case. I guess it's another reason why I've always been a fan of butlers. "Should I have one gigantic whiskey before I go to bed, Carmichael?

BY ADAM SERRANO

Friday's scrimmage between the Houston Dynamo and the Los Angeles Galaxy may have been a rematch of the 2011 MLS Cup, but last November's match was far from the minds of all involved.

The Dynamo defeated the Galaxy 1-0 after Nathan Sturgis scored the lone goal of the match on a header from a looping cross from Josue Soto in the 68th minute.

Photo by ISIphotos.com

Even though TSG 1899 Hoffenheim was unceremoniously dumped out of the DFB Pokal quarterfinals by second-tier Greuther Furth on Wednesday, the match carried significance for one American.

U.S. Under-23 winger Joe Gyau, made his first-team debut for Hoffenheim, entering as an 80th-minute substitute for U.

Afro aggro A match in the Belgian league descended into a bit of a girly catfight, complete with hair pulling, last pulling. Lierse and Standard each had a player sent-off, despite red-carded Standard defender Felipe being the victim of the hair attack. Boban Grncarov Lierse's Macedonian defender conceded a free-kick in the Liege [.

Inigo Lopez grabbed a late winner for Granada to give their La Liga survival hopes a big boost as they beat local rivals Malaga on Monday.

Malaga had the better early exchanges as the game started at a fast and furious pace with first Enzo Maresca then Rondon shooting high and wide from good positions in the opening minutes.

Luis Suarez made his return from his eight-match suspension but their was no fairy tale ending as Liverpool and Spurs played to a goalless draw at Anfield.

Suarez started the game on the bench and he watched his teammates come flying out of the blocks with Gerrard slipping a delightful through ball to Andy Carroll only for Michael Dawson to make a goal-saving fifth-minute challenge.

By JOHN BOSCHINI

Manchester United just will not go away as they overcame a 3-0 deficit to draw away to Chelsea and keep pressure on Manchester City.

It was shaping up to be a long afternoon at Stamford Bridge as a 1-0 halftime lead for Chelsea from Jonathan Evans' own goal was quickly extended.

By Chris Wright

'Twas the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals over the weekend, with Ivory Coast whupping co-hosts Equatorial Guinea 3-0 on Saturday courtesy of a brace from young Didier of Drogbashire and a colossal 32.808399-yard free-kick from Yaya Toure...

Would you just look at the swing on that?

With just over half an hour to play, Manchester United were 3-0 down at Stamford Bridge. However, after coming back to make it 3-3, Michael Carrick has claimed he is disappointed we didn't go on to get the win.

"We were slightly disappointed in the end," said Carrick. "Obviously, when you're 3-0 down and have your backs against the wall, if someone offers you a point then you'll be happy with that but getting a third goal with a fair bit of the game to go, we fancied ourselves to go on and win it.

By FRANCO PANIZO

Sacha Kljestan has quietly put together a solid season for RSC Anderlecht, but he made some noise in the club's latest win on Sunday.

Kljestan scored his third goal of the season (fourth across all competitions) in Anderlecht's 4-2 win over Racing Genk when he fired home a free kick from 30 yards out.

Anderlecht midfielder Sacha Kljestan fired home the second via free kick in their 4-2 victory over Belgian holders Genk (not to be confused with Mix Diskerud's Gent, as can easily occur).The clip may take a while, but it'll surface sooner or later.- Greg Seltzer

Two goals from Didier Drogba and a fine free kick from Yaya Toure gave Ivory Coast a comfortable 3-0 win over Co-host Equatorial Guinea to send the Elephants through to the Semi final where they will face either Gabon or Mali.

In the day's earlier match Zambia beat 10 man Sudan with a scoreline to make it through to the semis for the first time since 1996.

Sporting KC got their first preseason game under their belts today when they took on the San Jose Earthquakes today down in Arizona. The two teams started the game with what would likely be considered their first team lineup. Both teams got things started quickly in the game. The Quakes grabbed the lead inside the first 5 minutes, as Chris Wondolowski finished off a cross from Marvin Chavez.

I 7-1 to be a Blackburn fan? No, it doesn't quite work, does it. One day we'll get to the promised land of an 8 goal victory, and all the wonderful pun-based jokes this allows. For today, I think 7 will do. My thoughts as follows:
* We started brightly, and scored after only 2 minutes.

By Alan Duffy

Arsenal 7 (Seven)-1 Blackburn Rovers Premier League 4th February 2012

After a sustained period of dismal performances and almost no points, Arsenal needed to rediscover their mojo on Saturday if they were to stay in the hunt for a top-four finish.

szólj hozzá: Arsenal Blackburn 7:1 HIGHLIGH

In which RVP scores a sublime hat trick. In which the Ox is unleashed. In which Song continues to find his passing groove. In which Thierry Henry scores his first Premiership goal on his return. In which Theo Walcott made the right choices. In which Frances Coquelin showed why the flanks are so important.

A dictionary definition of "hope" is: "the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best."

In recent games there have been certain Arsenal players who, when they receive the ball, induce in me the opposite of hope.

What I mean by this is the very personal effect they have on me when watching the game.

A dictionary definition of "hope" is: "the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best."

In recent games there have been certain Arsenal players who, when they receive the ball, induce in me the opposite of hope.

What I mean by this is the very personal effect they have on me when watching the game.

The tragedy that occurred in Port Said on Wednesday evening has overshadowed all else in world football this week, and this is a subject that we will be returning to when the dust has settled on a disaster so appalling as to be almost incomprehensible. Reports from Egypt have been pouring across the world via social media, and we would urge anyone reading this to bear in mind when reading reports on this subject elsewhere in the media that the events of this week are representative of broader political issues in Egypt than mere football rivalries.

Sebastien Le Toux and Kyle Nakazawa were seen as the two major free kick takers on the Philadelphia Union through the team's first two seasons of existence.

For Le Toux it was because of his massive number of free kicks, coupled with a perceived high failure rate on them. Nakazawa's status as a free kick taker came from a mystique that he developed among the Union's fan base from great technique.

The Dynamo had another positive preseason match today, defeating San Jacinto College 4-0. Goals from Nathan Sturgis, Will Bruin, Adam Moffatt and trialist Jorge Escobar did the damage for Houston.

Houston Dynamo Press Release:

The Houston Dynamo continued their 2012 preseason with a 4-0 victory over San Jacinto College, Wednesday morning, at the Houston Amateur Sports Park.

FC Barcelona took a good step towards proceeding to Copa Del Rey final with a 1-1 draw at Mestella. Considering how tough we have found recently in Valencia, this draw is as good as a win - especially because of the away goal. In the 27th minute Jonas put Valencia ahead, but Carles Puyol equalised for Barca in the 36th minute.

Carroll celebrates with Bellamy and Henderson...Liverpool put three past a lacklustre Wolves side yesterday at a freezing cold Molineux. Andy Carroll got himself on the score sheet whilst Wolves struggled to find a goalscorer at all. The win moved Liverpool into 5th in the table.
Wolves had less worries than originally thought injury wise as Frimpong ended up being able to start in midfield for McCarthy's side.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic scores a brilliant free-kick during Milan's 3-0 Serie A win over Cagliari last night.

Adidasproud sponsors of AC Milan.

Written by fatgingergooner

With 3 defeats in the last 4 games and an unconvincing win against Leeds in the last round of the FA Cup, Arsenal fans were feeling far from optimistic ahead of this 4th round clash against Aston Villa.

Rumour had it that the Gunners injury list was starting to ease, and so it proved with Sagna, Henry and Arteta all named on the bench and also the young Frenchman Coquelin was deputising at right back.

Written by fatgingergooner

With 3 defeats in the last 4 games and an unconvincing win against Leeds in the last round of the FA Cup, Arsenal fans were feeling far from optimistic ahead of this 4th round clash against Aston Villa.

Rumour had it that the Gunners injury list was starting to ease, and so it proved with Sagna, Henry and Arteta all named on the bench and also the young Frenchman Coquelin was deputising at right back.

I'm slaving away trying to come up with a greatest Scottish league XI for the The Away End's current search for the best of the best.
I've actually already had my vote but now I've been asked to put something down in writing and I find myself with too many names, too many options.
Should I only vote for players I've seen?

Benvenuto amici! Here's a perfect photo demonstrating the unglamorous side of football when you're on the pitch and it starts to rain. Believe us, it's absolutely horrible. Poor Claudio Ranieri had to stay on and watch as his Inter boys fought and sunk 0-1 to lowly Lecce at the Via del Mare stadium last night.

Like a cross between Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Nicklas Bendtner, Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan is very fond of his own abilities. There were questions as to whether he would play in Ghana's African Cup of Nations match against Mali after sustaining an injury in training on Thursday, but he did start and scored off a free kick in his side's 2-0 win.

Woolwich Arsenal, the club that changed football. Have your name in the book as an official sponsor. Updated information here

By Walter Broeckx

The first real goal mouth incident was when Van Persie took a free kick short to Vermaelen and the Verminator launched a rocket. Given was equal to it with [.

szólj hozzá: a3-2av

Today was a must win for Arsenal. Not just to reverse the perception of a club descending into a familiar and vicious cycle of self inflicted wounds and low self esteem. But to resurrect the career of a manager under fire.

A defeat would have tipped the scales between the two camps, the AKB and the ASG (Arsene Should Go) resting at a precarious 50-50 irrevocably in favour of the latter.

AS Roma vs Bologna 1-1 Highlights 2012 Video Goals Di Vaio Pjanic free kick is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter

AS Roma vs Bologna 1-1 Highlights 2012 Video Goals Di Vaio Pjanic free kick is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter AS Roma vs Bologna 2012 ( Roma Bologna video below) Final score and result:- Roma Bologna 1-1 ( Pjanic/ Di Vaio) Stadio Olimpico, Rome- 29 January, 2012- Serie A Miralem [.

Sunderland v Middlesbrough 2012 FA Cup Highlights 1-1 Video Goals Barry Robson Frazier Campbell is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter

Sunderland v Middlesbrough 2012 FA Cup Highlights 1-1 Video Goals Barry Robson Frazier Campbell is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter Sunderland v Middlesbrough 2012 ( Sunderland Boro video below) Final score and result: Sunderland vs Middlesbrough 1-1 ( Campbell/ Robson) Stadium of Light, Sunderland- 29 January, 2012- Sunday North Eastern [.

FC Barcelona could have handed over the Liga title to Real Madrid unofficially after drawing away at 17th placed Villareal. The lead at the top of the summit is seven points which could be too much for our boys to climb. Already with a very depleted side, we weren't helped by Guardiola's decision making all night.

By Joel Greenwaldt
@Joel Greenwaldt (On Twitter)
The Baltimore Blast secured their fifth consecutive win at home on Friday, an 18-10 victory over the Norfolk SharX in front of 5,764 fans. The victory improved Baltimore's record to 12-4 on the season, and has them sitting five games up on Rochester for the division lead with eight games to be played.

Didn't catch the game live, but after watching the highlights, I wish I had. In the 5th minute of stoppage time, Gabon's Bruno-Zita Mbanangoye hit a spectacular free kick (probably a goal of the tourney) that earned the co-hosts a berth in the quaterfinals, knocking out one of the favorites to win it all.

The US Women took down Costa Rica 3-0 to book their ticket for this summer's London Olympics. Tobin Heath scored in the first half, Carli Lloyd continued her current run of form with a goal in the second half, and Alex Morgan sealed the win with a late goal of her own.

Pia Sundhage made two changes from the team that faced Mexico on Tuesday, preferring Tobin Heath over Amy Rodriguez and giving converted striker Kelly O'Hara a start at right back.