The U.S. Men's National Team will play their final match of the year this morning in the city of Krasnodar as they take on the Russian National Team (10am, ESPN2).
Jurgen Klinsmann has called in a team that is a good mix of regular starters and new young faces to take on a dangerous Russia side that has enjoyed a strong run of form in World Cup Qualifying.
From the Guardian:
The former Chelsea and Newcastle manager Ruud Gullit has joined Russia's Terek Grozny as coach on
an 18-month contract, the Chechnya-based club said on its website yesterday. Gullit, 48, joins the
club three years after being fired by the Los Angeles Galaxy. He has also managed Feyenoord.
Whilst just settling in to the hot seat with the Russian national team, ex-England manager had
claimed that under his guidance, the Three Lions would've done better at this summer's Euro finals,
saying to an English journo:
 "If I were with your guys it would've been even better.
The Chelsea coaching turnstiles have churned once more.
The Blues have become somewhat notorious in recent years due to the high turnover rate at the
managerial position. Since Roman Abramovich took over the club in 2003, there have been
seven different Chelsea managers. That's seven managers in eight years, or a new manager
every 1.
Unbelievable rumors coming out of Russia that Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini is poised to
become the coach of the Russian national team.
The Russian sports website Sports.ru has sensationally claimed that Mancini would walk out of
Manchester City next week after being given £6m a year by the Russian Football Federation.
Unbelievable rumors coming out of Russia that Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini is poised to
become the coach of the Russian national team.
The Russian sports website Sports.ru has sensationally claimed that Mancini would walk out of
Manchester City next week after being given £6m a year by the Russian Football Federation.
With Guus Hiddink closing in on returning as the new Chelsea boss, the veteran Dutch coach will
be under no illusions about the scale of the task awaiting him on his return to Stamford Bridge. It
was a reunion that always seemed destined to happen Hiddink was hugely popular during his first
spell as Chelsea coach and neither he nor the club really wanted to leave, but his contractual
obligations with the Russian National Team meant he could not continue in the role.
Greece edged Russia with a late first half goal to book their spot in the quarterfinals. It was
a surprise result as Russia were major favorites and would have advanced with a draw or win.
Russia were the stronger side to start but Greece were able to keep it scoreless. The lone goal
of the match just before halftime as Greece scored following a throw-in.
Russia can win Group A with a win as they face Greece in their final Euro 2012 group stage
match. The match will take place at the Warsaw National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland with kickoff
scheduled for 20:45 local time.
Greece manager Fernando Santos
"If we get into the match early, or better yet, straight from the referee's whistle – if we
go into it focused and don't make those mistakes – then I think our team has a chance of
achieving what we want.
Co-host Poland looks for their first win of Euro 2012 as they face Group A favorites Russia. The
match will take place at the National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland with kickoff scheduled for 20:45
local time.
Poland manager Franciszek Smuda
"That psychological burden on the players from before the tournament has gone and in the next
match we will not be under the same kind of pressure.
It was a sight to behold by any standards. With a dose of somewhat unexpected energy from Andrey
Arshavin, the Russian national team gave us a first night to remember at the Euro 2012
championships in the second game of Group A last night. Arshavin, who captains the Russian team, is
currently on loan from Arsenal to Zenit Saint Petersburg but may have raised a sufficient number of
eyebrows to be recalled to Arsenal's first team after his crowd-thrilling performance.
Russia opened the UEFA Euro 2012 tournament with a victory 4-1 over the Czech Republic. The two
teams will have two more group stage matches against Greece and co-hosts Poland.
Play-By-Play
First Half
1′ The match begins with conditions better than expected as the rain has slowed down a
bit.
Russia Euro 2012 Shirts - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
The Russia National Team, led by Dick Advocaat, will be expected to emulate
their Euro performances of four years ago when they progressed to the semi-finals. Despite missing
out on World Cup qualification, Russia will know that they have the squad and the opportunities to
reach the knockout stages of Euro 2012.
Group A favorites Russia start the UEFA Euro 2012 tournament with a match against the Czech
Republic. The match will take place at the Municipal Stadium in Wroclaw, Poland at 20:45 local
time.
Russia manager Dick Advocaat
"If we're really honest, it's all about results. But we can't change our way of playing.
The Russian national team could be forgiven for treating all matches up to the 2018 World Cup
finals as a warm up for that competition. After all, the amount of money being spent on the first
tournament to be held in the country will be vast and expectations amongst the Russian public will
be accordingly high.
Tottenham Hotspur forward Roman Pavlyuchenko has been ruled out of Russia's Euro 2012 qualifiers
due to an ankle injury he picked up prior to the team's matches against Ireland and Macedonia.
Dick Advocaat, the manager of the Russian national team, revealed that based on the results of a
late fitness test, the 28-year old Pavlyuchenko will not be traveling with the rest of the squad
despite an impressive start to the Premier League season.
It has been confirmed, through various sources, that the Turkish Football Federation has agreed
in principle to hire Guus Hiddink as the head coach of the Turkish national team. Hiddink, who is
still under contract with the Russian Football Federation until June, will sign a contract that
will have him begin his duties as head coach on August 1, 2010.
The draw for the qualification phase of the Euro 2012 tournament took place on Sunday. Turkey
found out who they would be playing in order to get into Euro 2012, which will be co-hosted by
Poland and Ukraine. Turkey was drawn into group A with the following nations:
Germany
Austria
Belgium
Kazakhstan
Azerbaijan
What's interesting about this draw is that Germany, Austria, and Belgium are countries with a
sizable Turkish expatriate population.
Thierry Henry's handball heard around the world helped secure France's passage to the 2010 World
Cup, but the French may not be through to South Africa yet.
The Irish federation has appealed Wednesday's night 1-1 result (2-1 aggregate advantage for
France), and is demanding that France replay the second leg of the playoff.
Thierry Henry's handball heard around the world helped secure France's passage to the 2010 World
Cup, but the French may not be through to South Africa yet.
The Irish federation has appealed Wednesday's night 1-1 result (2-1 aggregate advantage for
France), and is demanding that France replay the second leg of the playoff.
It was a sight to behold by any standards. With a dose of somewhat unexpected energy from Andrey Arshavin, the Russian national team gave us a first night to remember at the Euro 2012 championships in the second game of Group A last night. Arshavin, who captains the Russian team, is currently on loan from Arsenal to Zenit Saint Petersburg but may have raised a sufficient number of eyebrows to be recalled to Arsenal's first team after his crowd-thrilling performance.
A couple of things on this brutally, brutally hot Sunday:
According to the Daily Star (granted, not the most reliable of sources), CSKA goalkeeper Igor
Akinfeev wants to come play for Arsenal. Apparently Akinfeev said the following:
Arsenal and Manchester United are two of the very best clubs in the world.
This blog needs a new writer. If you think you've got what it takes to write about the Russian
national team for World Cup Blog, then read our application guidelines and send us an email. [read
more]
A photograph of Real Madrid's new home shirt for the 2010-11 season has been leaked.
The new design, featuring blue trim on a white shirt designed and manufactured by Adidas, is a
lot smarter than the current Real Madrid home strip in my opinion. The collar design is sleek an is
similar to the design of the Adidas shirt for the Russian national team.
One of the world's best coaches is now fair game.
Guus Hiddink has confirmed his departure as head coach of the Russian national team when his
contract expires on June 30. Having led Russia to the semifinals of the 2008 European
Championship, Hiddink failed to guide the Russians to the World Cup, falling to Slovenia in a
two-game playoff.
Current Russian national team manager Guus Hiddink has reportedly declined an offer from North
Korea to manage their national team. Hiddink was very open about his disappointment about not
qualifying for the World Cup, and after seeing Russia lose out to Slovenia in the playoffs it is
speculated that Hiddink will not jump ship to a team that will be playing in South Africa this
summer.
The days of the great broad expressway to South Africa 2010 are decisively past: the struggle
now has moved onto a narrow mountain pass. Every victory won today was as thin as it may be
decisive. And it wasn't merely Europe – many held their breath across the world today. Few
have cause to exhale yet.
In partnership with Russian Football Now, EPL Talk presents the thirteenth
episode of RNF's podcast.
Two close losses to Germany in UEFA World Cup qualifying has the Russian national team in a
two-legged playoff with Slovenia. Many see this as the most lopsided of the four UEFA qualifying
playoffs, though Slovenia who allowed only four goal in ten qualifiers should give the Russians
significant problems.
Last week UEFA released the seeds for the final eight matches of the UEFA qualifying season for the
2010 World Cup. The seeding system based on the division of the eight second-placed teams into a
top-four and bottom-four pot, guaranteeing that the four "best" teams would face the four "worst"
has been controversial, with the bottom four teams protesting vigorously and the top four keeping
mum.
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Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko is planning showdown talks with manager Harry
Redknapp after the international break during which he will "insist" on being allowed to leave the
club in January.
With the World Cup set to take place in Africa for the first time, two of the continent's
participants have made swift and drastic coaching changes just months before the tournament
begins.
The Ivory Coast axed Vahid Halilhodzic over the weekend and is prepared to name his successor
after Wednesday's friendly with tournament-host South Africa.
With the World Cup set to take place in Africa for the first time, two of the continent's
participants have made swift and drastic coaching changes just months before the tournament
begins.
The Ivory Coast axed Vahid Halilhodzic over the weekend and is prepared to name his successor
after Wednesday's friendly with tournament-host South Africa.
To be clear, this is just a rumour right now. Nothing more, and certainly nothing official. Plus
Guus Hiddink is officially contracted to the Russian national team until July 2010. So let's not
get carried away. But...
...There are whispers being whispered that the Argentine Football Association may approach Guus
Hiddink and offer him a role coaching Argentina alongside Diego Maradona at World Cup 2010.
Amidst all the swirl of Hiddink's possible moves, the Chelsea rumours seem to carry most
credibility. They could soon have Guus Hiddink back as technical director. It would look a bit
crowded at the top with Carlo Ancelotti as manager, Frank Arnesen as director of football, and Ron
Gourlay elevated to CEO in place of Peter Kenyon.
The UEFA 2010 World Cup Qualifying Playoffs had their second legs on Wednesday, November 18,
2009. One of the match-ups was Slovenia v Russia 1-2 after the first leg. The Russians were the
favorites but Slovenia did have an away goal. Who was able to win and advance to South Africa next
summer? Here's a recap of the match along with video highlights.
It's a busy weekend of international matches on Saturday, November 14, 2009 in the world of
soccer. In UEFA there are playoff matches in 2010 World Cup Qualifying while other regions such as
CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, and AFC also have qualification matches taking place. Many matches will be
televised and here's a full set of TV listings for the United States and United Kingdom.
French powerhouse Paris St. Germain has already spent big money this summer in landing Argentine
star Ezequiel Lavezzi from Napoli with a €26 million transfer, but the big spenders from Paris
have their sights set on even bigger targets.
Reports out of Italy have PSG making a combined €65 million transfer bid for AC Milan striker
Zlatan Ibrahimovic and defender Thiago Silva.
MOSCOW, Russia Roman Abramovich, the billionaire owner of Chelsea football club, is to take a
leading role in preparations for World Cup 2018 after Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin
indicated he should "open his wallet" and help pay for the championship. Abramovich, who already
bankrolls the Russian national team, was a prominent member of [.
