Bologna playmaker Alessandro Diamanti is the most fouled player in Europe so far this season. While you might assume that Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi would be on the receiving end of most rough treatment, it is actually the former West Ham player who's taken a bit of a battering this season. According to figures [.
Arsenal has a crunch match against Liverpool up at Anfield on Sunday (8:30 EST, Fox Soccer
Channel). Both teams have yet to win a game this season, although it's not quite crisis
intervention time, as it's only the third game in. Still, Arsenal has yet to score a goal, which is
worrying since we just sold the player who scored 40% of our goals last season.
There was a time not too long ago when the U.S. national team enjoyed a wealth of midfield
options and a lack of forwards. As the team heads into Tuesday's must-win World Cup qualifier, the
Americans are faced with the opposite problem.
Injuries to Michael Bradley and Landon Donovan have exposed a lack of midfield depth and left
Jurgen Klinsmann's team lacking attacking punch and stability.
Juergen Klinsmann's side achieved their first ever victory in Azteca Stadium after a 1-0 win over
Mexico on Wednesday. Although only a friendly, the historic victory was celebrated by Americans as
a landmark moment against our eternal rivals, particularly considering the experimental lineup
employed by the Yanks.
The U.S. Men's National Team takes on arch-rival Mexico tonight at Estadio Azteca, and the U.S.
will be looking to become the first Americans to beat 'El Tri' on Mexican soil when the square off
in a rare friendly in Mexico City (8pm, ESPN2).
The Americans will be trying to snap a four-match winless streak against Mexico, a streak that
began with a 2-1 loss at Azteca in 2009 during World Cup qualifying.
The U.S. Men's National Team will take the field at Estadio Azteca tonight trying to beat a
Mexico team riding a wave of confidence and good form. The Americans will also be trying to win in
a stadium they have never won in, a city they have never won in, and a country they have never won
in.
Wayne Rooney has suggested that as he gets older and loses some of his pace, he plans to play in
central midfield. Having played there a few times last season when United were hit by injuries,
Rooney grew to enjoy the role, although would still prefer to play up front for the time being.
"I did my bit by dropping into a central midfield role when the team got hit by injuries
last season," Rooney said in My Decade in the Premier League, which is being serialised by the
Daily Mirror.
Chelsea's transfer window: Roman splurges in pursuit of Premier League title - originally posted
on Soccerlens.com
Chelsea are going through something of a transitional period, as a number of older heads have
left Stamford Bridge to be replaced by young pretenders. Roman Abramovich splurged in excess of
£80 million in revamping the Blues' squad this summer, with the Russian oil tycoon conducting all
his business before the panic of transfer deadline day.
Chelsea's transfer window: Roman splurges in pursuit of Premier League title - originally posted
on Soccerlens.com
Chelsea are going through something of a transitional period, as a number of older heads have
left Stamford Bridge to be replaced by young pretenders. Roman Abramovich splurged in excess of
£80 million in revamping the Blues' squad this summer, with the Russian oil tycoon conducting all
his business before the panic of transfer deadline day.
With their Champions League hoodoo finally over, it's time for Chelsea to rectify their sixth
place finish from last season.
Finally installed as the permanent manager, Robbie Di Matteo has overseen the signatures of
three of the world's top talents. However, it remains interesting how Chelsea will cope without the
Didier Drogba factor.
Chelsea secured a memorable FA Cup and Champions League double last season after interim manager
Roberto Di Matteo led Roman Abramovich's side to a strong finish amid a disturbed league
campaign.
The Russian billionaire responded by spending almost £60 million on players this season, which
should increase further following the expected arrival of Wigan's Victor Moses.
Tottenham rounded off transfer deadline day with a double signing of goalkeeper Hugo
Lloris and forward Clint Dempsey.
Andre Villas-Boas started his managerial post at Tottenham FC eager to sign a
goalkeeper, a striker and a replacement to Luka Modric who left White Hart Lane to join Real
Madrid.
Tottenham rounded off transfer deadline day with a double signing of goalkeeper Hugo
Lloris and forward Clint Dempsey.
Andre Villas-Boas started his managerial post at Tottenham FC eager to sign a
goalkeeper, a striker and a replacement to Luka Modric who left White Hart Lane to join Real
Madrid.
Arsenal attacker Gervinho has identified club legend
Robert Pires as his role model and said that he wants to surpass the Frenchman's
achievements with the Gunners.
After a quiet debut season in English football, Gervinho wants to up his game significantly and
is looking at Pires' trophy-laden Arsenal career for inspiration.
Liverpool fans have spoken, and it's clear they want winger Theo Walcott to be the next major
addition at Anfield this summer.
With the transfer window in full swing, the Reds have been linked with a number of top players
after adding the services of Welsh international Joe Allen last week.
Manager Brendan Rodgers doesn't appear to have ended his business there either, with Walcott one of
a handful of players the Northern Irishman is being linked with.
Liverpool midfielder Jonjo Shelvey admits to having held talks with the Scottish FA about the
prospect of turning out for them at international level.
The 20-year-old playmaker was born in England and has represented the Three Lions at youth
level.
He could, however, switch allegiance as his grandfather was born in Scotland.
Sky Sports understands Liverpool midfielder Joe Cole has rejected a move to Spartak Moscow.
Sky Sports had earlier indicated that the Anfield giants were ready to listen to offers for player
before the close of the transfer window.
And it's understood that the Russians, who were drawn to face Barcelona, Benfica and Celtic in
Group G of the Champions League, were keen on signing the experienced 30-year-old.
Nuri Sahin has refused to rule out the prospect of completing a permanent switch to Liverpool if
his loan deal proves to be a success.
The Turkey international has linked up with the Reds on a season-long agreement from Real
Madrid.
Arsenal were also believed to be keen on acquiring his services, but Sahin will spend the 2012/13
campaign at Anfield after being convinced to head for Merseyside by Real colleague Xabi Alonso.
Arsene Wenger has said that when injured midfielder Jack
Wilshere regains full fitness, it will be like a fresh new signing for the club, but has
insisted that the England international will not be forced back into action ahead of schedule.
The Spanish football press are reporting that Nuri Sahin has recently decided against a switch
to Arsenal and should finalize a deal with the Reds in the next 48 hours.
Spanish newspaper Marca reports the players agent Reza Fazeli travelled to Anfield on Monday to
iron out the details of the deal.
Nicks' note: We have a Liverpool post for you today. Rather like the
transfer of Oussama Assaidi, this one is completely out of the blue.
Moonmoon, a writer for Sports Illustrated India, has written for BigFourZa
before; and she comes out of cryogenic sleep here to stop the bad press about Joe Allen.
I was really surprised to read that Real Madrid's Xabi Alonso has turned down a two-year
contract extension at the club. A move that should see the Spanish midfielder leave the Bernabeu
next summer.
The decorated veteran, he has won the World Cup, European Championship, La Liga and the
Champions League, has only two years left on his current Real Madrid contract.
Real Madrid's in-demand Nuri Sahin is set to decide on his future this week after Liverpool joined
Arsenal in making a loan offer for the midfielder.
The Turkish international has been told he can leave the league champions on-loan after failing to
establish himself in Jose Mourinho's midfield, making just 10 appearances following his move from
Borussia Dortmund.
Brendan Rodgers has asserted that the services of defender Daniel Agger are highly valuable to
him and that the Dane is unlikely to leave the club this summer.
Agger has been linked with a £25 million move to Premier League champions Manchester City in
recent days but when asked to comment on his status following Liverpool's 4-0 aggregate win over
Gomel in the Europa League, Rodgers was dismissive on such links.
George John has experienced his fair share of setbacks in the past year. But if the FC Dallas
centerback's spirits have been dampened, he isn't showing it.
Last summer, a deal that would have sent John to English side Blackburn Rovers FC fell
through.
FC Dallas has revived a season that looked like a lost cause just a month ago, and one of the
key factors behind the recent resurgance is the play of former MLS MVP David Ferreira.
The Colombian playmaker illustrated his importance to the Dallas attack repeatedly in recent
weeks, and the past week was his best yet.
The Revs midfielders desire to dribble over playing the ball quickly has hurt the team lately.
(Photo: Chris Aduama/aduama.com)
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. It's the same story, just different night for the New England Revolution. The
Montreal Impact came into Foxborough and took advantage of the one mistake New England made, while
the Revolution didn't have an answer for Montreal's defensive shape.
Paulo Dybala is a footballing Jimmy McNulty. If you are unfamiliar with the HBO series The Wire,
the McNulty character is a detective who just happens to have an ingrained talent for what he does.
He is possessed of an instinct that sets him apart from the rest of the knuckleheads around
him.
The battle for the Cascadia Cup is as tight as ever. The Timbers have the early lead, but the
Vancouver Whitecaps and Seattle Sounders FC are better teams and in a points tie for the third spot
in the West. Saturday's 1 PM match isn't just for key points in the trivalry contest, but has
implications for the Playoff hunt.
Through Ryu's Lens: Shinji's first Man Utd minutes.
Football is back, and with that glorious statement is the fact that Ryu Voelkel has stopped
taking pictures of Lebron James and started back up with his work relating to the beautiful
game.
Manchester City should not be regarded as favourites to retain their Premier League title,
according to their clearly agitated boss Roberto Mancini, who is becoming increasingly frustrated
at a summer of inactivity in the transfer market at Eastlands.
But is the Italian right to declare that other clubs are in a better position to take their crown?
Bayern Munich produces an abundance of players for the German national team, but unlike the national powerhouse, the Bavarian side lacked a player who could play behind the striker as a number 10. When you hear Bayern Munich, "FC Hollywood," trophies, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Arjen Robben and Frank Ribery come to mind.
Conor Henderson has been dubbed as one of Ireland's most promising football stars, yet the young
playmaker has spoken out about his future stating that it may not be with Arsenal after enduring a
frustrating start to the campaign. The player, who is a vital part of Noel King's team which must
beat Hungary this [.
By "The Other 87 Minutes" / Senior Unemployed English Major
Correspondents
Today we celebrate the return of the school year by thinking of the children. Not just any
children, but badass ones – the kids we all wanted to be when we grew up. Some of them might have
aged and become either a best-selling author/religious cult leader or a 41-year-old pinch runner or
Batman (briefly) or Robin Williams, but each of them did their best work in their childhood or
early teenage years.
If you were excited about the possibilities of an attack featuring Fred Montero, Mauro Rosales,
Eddie Johnson and Christian Tiffert before Saturday's game, you are probably about to explode with
excitement now. Sure, Montero scored his first MLS hat trick, but even beyond that the Sounders had
what has to be their most efficient offensive performance in their history which resulted in a 6-2
win over Chivas USA
Fueled by those four players, the Sounders turned 12 shots into six goals.
Despite quiet confidence in advance of this season's opening salvos, a tough sequence of fixtures
added to the absence through injury of midfield playmaker Peter Leven will have left Oxford United
fans cautious before the Capital One Cup visit to Bournemouth on August 14th. But their divisional
betters from Dorset were seen off on penalties and the League campaign has started no less
auspiciously – two of the favourites, Bristol Rovers and Southend have been vanquished and the
performance in the latter game in particular was notable for its ease.
Nike Football introduces the CTR360 Maestri III football boot with a new commercial entitled
"Take Control" featuring FC Barcelona soccer great Andres Iniesta. The advert showcases Iniesta and
the competition as string puppets before reverting to real life footballers.
Ad Credits:
The music in Nike commercial is Zigeunerweisen, Op.
The curious case of Sebastian Grazzini and the Chicago Fire has come to a resolution.
The Fire loaned Grazzini to Argentine club Atletico de Rafaela on Friday. The terms of the deal
were not disclosed. The Fire had exercised their option on the Argentine playmaker for a second
year at the end of June after a bit of a contract dispute, which, according to the Chicago Sun
Times, was started over Grazzini misunderstanding the original terms of his deal with the club.
