I'll update this story a little later in the evening when there's more detail. For now, though, the headline at the top of Olé is announcing that Ramón Díaz, the former River Plate, Oxford United, San Lorenzo and Club América de México manager, has been involved in a car crash near Urdinarrain, Provincia de Entre [. Click to continue reading...

Stories in the Brazilian press at the start of the week had Corinthians, one of the country's biggest clubs and the current employers of Ronaldo, planning to sign Juan Román Riquelme from Boca Juniors in a bid to boost their Copa Libertadores campaign in 2010, their centenary year. I've written about it for Soccernet, and [. Click to continue reading...

Argentines Abroad is delayed slightly this week by the Monday night fixture bumping the normal domestic coverage a day on, and the fact I've been writing an article for another site (more of which later in the week). That's useful in some ways because the Copa del Rey in Spain has ensured there's action to [. Click to continue reading...

Diego Simeone's San Lorenzo travelled across the Río De La Plata on Wednesday night for the first leg of their Copa Sudamericana quarter final against Uruguayan opposition Just like the national team a week earlier, they came away with a narrow win, 1-0 over River Plate of Montevideo thanks to a 71st minute header from [. Click to continue reading...

Imagine a world cup without Lionel Messi. Impossible!. Well this was almost becoming a reality on Wednesday when Argentina took on bitter rivals Uruguay in the sentenario stadium in Montevideo.

Argentina emerged victorious but only just. They needed an 84th minute goal from substitute Mario Bolatti to send them through as one of the automatic qualifiers in the South American region.

Click to continue reading...

It's been a qualifying campaign no-one who followed it from start to finish will ever quite manage to forget, but eventually, somehow, in spite of their manager, their opponents and let's face it their own often atrocious performances, Argentina have qualified for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Click to continue reading...

The moment of truth arrives tonight. At 8pm local time (7pm in Argentina; 11pm British Summer Time) Argentina will take to the pitch in the Estadio Centenario, the site of the first ever World Cup final back in 1930. They need a result against their oldest rivals to secure qualification for South Africa 2010. Click to continue reading...

Not I. Oh, heavens no. The heavens opened over the Estadio Monumental on Saturday night and, in a frantic finish, a substitute chosen by D10s himself scored the winning goal to keep Argentina just on track for qualification to South Africa 2010. Martín Palermo has waited ten years for the chance to atone [. Click to continue reading...

LA GALAXY VS. TORONTO FC
Home Depot Center -Saturday, 10:30PM EST
TV: Rogers Sportsnet
Toronto FC makes its annual trip to Hollywood, unless you count Chivas USA - which is Mexican Hollywood, to play the Nu-Cosmos, aka LA Galaxy, aka David & The Beckhams. This may be the last time us Torontos get to see The Beckham Show, barring a post-season miracle, as the tattoo/ coiffure enthusiast looks likely to drift out of MLS this off-season. Click to continue reading...

Another 1-0 win for the home side in the second all-Argentine Copa Sudamericana preliminary tie saw domestic champions Vélez Sársfield progress to the first round proper after a 2-1 aggregate win over Boca Juniors. Martín Palermo was sent off for the visitors for a violent challenge on national side left back Emiliano Papa, and Jonathan [. Click to continue reading...

It's only the Copa Sudamericana, but San Lorenzo seemed rather pleased at their 1-0 win over Tigre on Tuesday night, which takes them to the second round on away goals after a 2-2 aggregate draw. Fabián Bordagaray was sent on as a substitute with nine minutes of the ninety remaining, and scored the winner in [. Click to continue reading...

Brazil was a great South American football nation, but in the 1930s still stood in the shadow of Argentina and Uruguay: in both 1930 and 1934 they were eliminated in the first round of the World Cup. There was nevertheless no doubt that Brazil was an outstanding footballing nation, and they were eager to prove it at the 1938 World Cup in France, where they alone represented South America after Click to continue reading...

All of a sudden, after the week that's just passed, 'Diego Maradona's Argentina' sounds less like a porteño schoolboy's fantasy and more like a sneering insult from Brazilians and Paraguayans towards their neighbours. If you've not had quite enough of reading (and, through The Enganche Argentine football podcast) about it yet, though, you can click here [. Click to continue reading...

In the wake of Saturday night's humiliation in Rosario at the hands of Brazil, Diego Maradona has been experimenting with personnel (if not formation) during Monday's training sessions. Whilst the outfield positions are still up in the air, one position that does look guaranteed to change is in goal, where Maradona seems set to use [. Click to continue reading...

One of the most eagerly awaited fixtures on the international football calendar will be staged in Rosario on Saturday night, with Argentina in need of a win and Brazil no doubt eager to put one over the on their great rivals and inflict what would be only Argentina's second ever home defeat in World Cup [. Click to continue reading...

You thought you'd read everything worth reading in preview to this weekend's World Cup qualifying matches, didn't you? Well you're wrong (unless you've already read this). Because this week, in our second interview, The Enganche have been talking to Mario Kempes, and asking him about making his Argentina debut at altitude away to Bolivia, what [. Click to continue reading...

A very exciting edition of The twofootedtackle Football Podcast, as Chris Nee and Gary Andrews are joined in the studio by football journalist, South American football expert and all-round lovely bloke Tim Vickery. On the agenda: Premier League, Major League Soccer, Brazil, Argentina, South American players in Europe, Tottenham Hotspur, Barcelona and the (hopefully brief) return of large-scale hooliganism.

Click to continue reading...

Did I say shamed? I meant enriched, of course...
You can always rely on South American football to throw up a few vicious brawls, but this is something else:
LINK LINK
This shocking series of incidents happened in Bolivia last Sunday during the "clasico cruceno" derby between Oriente Petrolero and Club Blooming. Click to continue reading...

I can now embed the goals from Thursday night's Copa Sudamericana preliminary first leg between Boca Juniors and Vélez Sársfield. Pablo Mouche opened the scoring early on for Boca, and Víctor Zapata got a late but deserved equaliser for Vélez to take the tie back to the Estadio José Amalfitani all square. Click to continue reading...

Friday saw the announcement of Diego Maradona's national team squad to face Brazil in Rosario on the 5th September, which will then take on Paraguay days later in Asunción. Matches between Argentina and Brazil are always intense affairs, but with so much riding on this game for Maradona's men in particular, el pibe de oro [. Click to continue reading...

Boca Juniors hosted Argentine champions Vélez Sársfield in the final Copa Sudamericana preliminary first leg for Argentina's sides on Thursday night, and took  a very early lead through Pablo Mouche to get Alfio Basile's latest term at the club off to a flying start. They controlled the game thereafter with Vélez looking rather off the [. Click to continue reading...

The second Copa Sudamericana preliminary round in El Monumental on Wednesday night was Ariel Ortega's fourth debut for the club, and things seemed to be going swimmingly when Cristian Fabbiani scored a cracker just before the hour. That was all overshadowed, though, when Eduardo Salvio popped up with ten minutes to spare to equalise [. Click to continue reading...

Tuesday night saw the last pre-season match for two of the Primera División's teams, but for once perhaps we'd better not make fun of the Copa Sudamericana. It serves its purpose after all, and this was a richly deserved first-ever continental tie for Tigre, albeit against domestic rivals. They adapted to their new surroundings rapidly: [. Click to continue reading...

South American football's reputation is a burning, engine-less plane plummeting to its demise inside the crater of a climaxing supervolcano. Or maybe that's too kind. And a great deal of this is down to a refusal by the associations to take drastic measures. Argentina has suspended its season indefinitely, but that's down to finances rather [. Click to continue reading...

On the 18th July 1909, it's likely that neither Inter nor Grêmio realised the long term implications when the two clubs first met.
Fast forward an entire century and the match is arguably the biggest derby in South American football where words such as passion, belief and commitment are little more than vast understatements. Click to continue reading...

On the 18th July 1909, it's likely that neither Inter nor Grêmio realised the long term implications when the two clubs first met.
Fast forward an entire century and the match is arguably the biggest derby in South American football where words such as passion, belief and commitment are little more than vast understatements. Click to continue reading...

So sang Manchester United fans in the Old Trafford stands when Verón played for our club. And with a slightly altered headline, you can read all about La Brujita's latest trophy win over on ESPN Soccernet. Want to relive that amazing pass on Wednesday night to Christian Cellay one more time? Then check this link [. Click to continue reading...

The dust has settled on the trophy presentation and Estudiantes' squad are preparing for their triumphant return to La Plata on Thursday afternoon with the Copa Libertadores de América. If you'd like to see how they came from behind to win their fourth continental crown, look no further there's a ten minute highlight video [. Click to continue reading...

The 50th edition of the Copa Libertadores has been won by Estudiantes de La Plata, who lift the trophy for the fourth time in their history, after a 29 year wait. Winning in Belo Horizonte's feared Minerão, where Argentine sides fear to tread (but have succeeded before all the same), Juan Sebastián Verón emulated his [. Click to continue reading...

As usual with a huge match involving an Argentine club, HEGS races to the aid of anyone who wants to know what's going on but doesn't have access to a TV or internet connection. Except if you've got the latter you're able to watch it. Whatever, you can follow it live here all the same. [...] Click to continue reading...

The second leg of the final of the 50th Copa Libertadores de América begins in around half an hour (that's the plan, anyway), and you will of course be able to follow it with almost-live text updates  right here on HEGS. As we wait for the clock to tick down to kick off though, you [...] Click to continue reading...

After filling the vacant coach's role left by Abel Braga in June last year, Tite is now subject to pressure from a growing number of fans after last night's demoralising defeat against Ecuador's LDU.
Two cup final defeats in the space of a week could have dire consequences on the former Grêmio coach with Inter. Click to continue reading...

An entertaining match ended 0-0 in La Plata last night in the first leg of the 2009 Copa Libertadores final, as Estudiantes dominated but couldn't find a way past the inspired goalkeeping of Cruzeiro's Fábio. If you've read about it but would like to see some highlights, step this way. Copa Libertadores 2009, final first leg: [. Click to continue reading...

The first leg of the 2009 Copa Libertadores final is played on Wednesday night in La Plata, to a full house tickets went on sale on Tuesday and all 40,000-plus of the home allowance had been sold out by the evening. Brazilian club Cruzeiro are the visitors to the Estadio Ciudad de La Plata [...] Click to continue reading...

CONMEBOL is the South American Football Confederation (officially known as the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol) which covers the majority of the continent of South America. It is the oldest of FIFA's confederations, originally forming in 1916, almost a century ago. The federation's formation was begun by Héctor Rivadavia Gómez who had a grand plan for a federation for South American football.

Click to continue reading...