Mirko Vucinic "Trust In Me"

Roma forward Mirko Vucinic has told his teammates that they can trust in him to deliver on Tuesday when Roma face Manchester United in the Champions League. Roma will have to due without their superstar Italian forward Francesco Totti, and Vucinic is set to take his place in the starting line-up. This game is a re-match from last years Champions League matchup between the two European heavyweights, when Machester thrashed Roma 7-1. Tuesday's match will set the pace for the return leg in Manchester when Roma will have Totti back.

M!ke

Toronto Downed In Season Opener

Toronto FC opened their season with a loss today to the Colombus Crew by a score of 2-0. Toronto started the game out well, trying to take the attack to the hometown team with the support of over 2400 Toronto faithful making the trip down to Colombus. Jim Brennan had several chances, one from a beautifully crafted set peice off a corner kick that just sailed over the bar. TFC would get burned by Crew midfeilder Moffat who scored from a well hit shot from outside the Toronto penalty area. Toronto had a penalty shot awarded to them late in the first half for a four against Jeff Cunningham, but Forward Colin Samuel had his shot saved. The Second half was filled with more Toronto attacking opportunities, however it was the Crew who would capitalize again when Alex Moreno took advantage of a great through ball and slotted the ball home past the Toronto keeper Edwards.

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Cahill Out For The Season

Everton midfeilder Tim Cahill has suffered a foot injury that will rule him out for the rest of the season. This comes as a mjor blow to an Everton team that is looking to take forth in the premiership from Liverpool and therefore qualify for the Champions League. Liverpool and Everton meet this Sunday in a huge matchup in the race for te Champions League.

M!ke

Ronaldinho To Buy Out His Own Contract?

Ronaldinho has been under fire as of late with speculation that he is going to be leaving Barcelona in the summer. The latest rumor is that he will invoke the FIFA article 17 which would allow him to buy out his own contrat and then move to a club of his choosing. Ronaldinho's agent has denied this rumor however, stating that it was merely an option, but it was not one that his client was looking into. He also dismissed the rumor that Ronaldinho would sign with Real Madrid after leaving Barca, saying they had not had any contact with Madrid. This all comes after Ronnie had been linked to Italy's Inter Milan in a summer switch involving Marco Materazzi heading to Barca.

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Canadian CONCACAF Champions League Qualifying Tounament Announced

Today the Canadian Soccer Association announced the schedule for the upcoming Canadian CONCACAF qualifying tournament this summer. Toronto FC of the MLS, and the Montreal Impact and Vancouver Whitecaps of the USL First Division are going to compete in a round robin style tournament of home and away match-ups to determine Canada's representitive in the 2008-2009 CONCACAF Champions League. All three teams are going to see this as an opportunity not only to play on a larger stage and expose their players and market to the world, but as a challange because of the built in rivallry that already exists between these three sporting markets within Canada. The schedule for the tournament is as follows:

May 27 - Toronto @ Montreal

June 17 - Vancouver @ Montreal

June 25 - Montreal @ Vancouver

July 1 - Vancouver @ Toronto

July 9 - Toronto @ Vancouver

July 22 - Montreal @ Toronto

M!ke

Another USL Side Kicks MLS

Another USL side, the Richmond Kickers, has defeated MLS side DC United 3-0 in a friendly. 4000 people were there to take in the matchup, and for the second time in a week, an MLS club was defeated by a lower divison club. The kickers play in the USL Second Division, and should take great confidence in their squad for their upcoming season. Thier fantastic victory followed up the victory that the Charlston Battery earned against Toronto FC of the MLS. The question that needs to be asked now is how competitive is the MLS in comparison to the other divisions of professional soccer in North America? Could Charlston, Montreal (who recently defeated the Honduran National Team) Vancouver or Richmond play in the MLS and compete?

M!ke

Montreal Impact Beat the Honduran National Team

The Montreal Impact of the USL First Division defeated the Honduran National Soccer team 3-1 in a friendly Monday. Honduras is getting ready for a international friendly with Columbia while Montreal is greaing up for their season, and the two sides played a 70 minute exhibition match in order to get some match practice in. The Impact must be thrilled with the victory over a team ranked 43rd in the world by the FIFA rankings.

M!ke

Juve and Madrid After French Star

According to a report on Goal.com, Juventus and Real Madrid are competing for the signature of an up and coming French winger, said to be the heir to Thierry Henry. The young man named Gabriel Obertan plays for Bordeaux in France, and is currently under contract until 2011, but is siad to be available this summer, thought at a heft sum of money. Both clubs are looking to increase their attackin options as they are loaded with stars such as Raul, Del Piero, Trezeguet and Van Nistelrooy in their 30s and will eventually need some new blood into their attack.

M!ke

Toronto FC Loose To Charlston

Toronto FC lost their final pre-season match against the Charlston Battery of the USL First Division 2-0 tonight. The squad was forced to play without several starters including American's Maurice Edu and Marvell Wynne, as well as Canadians Andrea Lombardo, Tyler Hemming and recent signing Tyler Rosenlund, who were all playing in the CONCACAF Olympic qualifing tournament. Dispite the lack of starters, Toronto looked like a squad that wanted a win early on, and pushed forward through the Joey Melo and Martin Britton in the midfeild, but fell short up front. Charlston took control just before half time, scoring on a great diving header, and didn't look back in the second half.

M!ke

West Ham's Young Guns Ace

West Ham Utd earned a much needed point tooday, coming from behind against a strong Everton side to draw 1-1. After going down 1-0 by a goal from star striker Yakubu, the Hammers were able to claw a goal back in the second half thanks to a great header from Dean Ashton. It was the Hammer's two young guns that took away some of the spotlight however, with 18 yeah old striker Freddie Sears and 18 year old defender James Tomkins making the most of their shots on the pitch and providing the West Ham faithful with a glimps of what is to come in the next few years. The future is looking bright, as the two come from a West Ham youth system that has developed some of the top players in England to date.

M!ke

Italy To Be Without Their First And Second Choice Keepers

Italy looks to be in goal keeping trouble in their friendly with Spain next week due to injurys to first choice keeper Gianluigi Buffon and back-up Marco Amelia. Coach Roberto Donadoni will have to start his third string keeper, and at the moment there is great debate within the Italian media as to who that actually is. Christian Abiati has been in fine form for Athletico Madrid, but has made some contriversial statments regarding Marco Amelia. Other options such as Roma's Curci and Sevilla's De Sanctis are both in back-up roles at their clubs this season and have not featured much in the first team sides. Whatever the outcome, the person chosen will most likely represent the choice for the third keeper spot at Euro 2008.

M!ke

Canada Close to Olympic Dream

The Canadian National U23's have qualified for the semi finals in the CONCACAF Olympic qualifing tournament on goal difference, knocking out Mexico as a result. The team which finnished on four points from three games, 1-1 v. Mexico, 2-1 loss v. Haiti, and a 5-0 win against Guatamala, edged out the Mexican team on goal difference, setting up a semi final matchup with the United States. The winner will qualify for the finals of the tournament, as well as automatically qualify for the Olympic tournament this summer in Beijing.

M!ke

Fan Violence Erupts in Argentina

One man was shot dead, while another was stabbed in rioting that took place all over Argentina this past weekend. Velez Sarsfield fan Emanuel Alvarez was shot dead on his way to the match between Velez and San Lorenzo after the supporters bus he was riding was shot at. He was only 21 years old. Another man, said to be 40 years old, was taken to the hospital after being stabbed in the abdomen at a Boca Juniors match. Unlike the Velez match, which was called off due to supporters attempting to tear the stadium apart, the Boca match went ahead and played to a 0-0 draw. hundreds were arrested, and there is a reward of 20,000 euros for anything that leads to the arrest of the suspects in the Alvarez shooting.

M!ke

Saviola To Be Sold

Real Madrid striker Javier Saviola looks to be sold in the summer after failing to impress in his first season with Real Madrid. The Argentine and former Barcalona star, has been unable to command a place in the Madrid lineup, and coach Bernard Schustre has apparently told the board of directors that he would like to bring in a new striker in the summer. There could be a lot of interest in Saviola, his first few seasons at Barca were full of goals and he should be able to re-establish himself at a new team next season.

M!ke

Beckham A Cut Above

Watching the exhibition match between the LA Galaxy and FC Dallas, you can tell the difference in skill that Beckham has compared to some of the players on both of the sides during the match. The effort he puts into the match, even though it is just an exhibition, as well as the accuracy of his passes just goes to show you how visible the difference is between a world class player and an everyday professional. He might not be in the perfect place for Fabio Capello to see him each and every week, but Beckham defenently has the heart, leadership, and passing ability, something the England team could defenently benefit from.

M!ke

Champions League Draw Fixed?

According to reports on goal.com, as well as throughout the european media, Fridays Champions League quarter final draw was fixed. A post on the icliverpool fan fourm a full 90 minutes before the draw predicted that Arsenal v. Liverpool, Chelsea v. Fenerbahce, Man Utd v. Roma, and Barcelona v. Schalke would be the outcome of the draw. It went on to state that this was through insider information, and that bookies had stopped taking bets regarding the outcome of the draw. These rumors fave been denied by UEFA, but you have to say that it does look somewhat fishy.

M!ke

Poor Derby County

Today I thought I would comment on what has become a farce in the English Premier League... the terrible form of Derby County. Honestly, I feel bad for the team. I know what its like to play on a team where no matter what you do, you cannot change the fact that many members of the squad are just not good enough to compete. I look at Derby, and see a reflection of my current squad of no-hopers. The fact that Derby managed to nic a goal from Chelsea can be seen as a positive, as well as their play in the first half, but thier self destruction in the second half was characteristic of their season, and I cannot help but feel for the team doing everything they can to end the season on a respectable note.

M!ke

Wigan's Palacios's Brother Held Hostage

The younger brother of Wigan Athletics midfeilder Wilson Palacios has been held hostage since the middle of 2007 according to bbc.co.uk. The 15 year old boy was the target of local gangs, and is one of many soccer related kidnappings to take place over the last few years. Dispite the ransom being paid several weeks ago, the young Palacios has yet to be released, and police in Honduras are attempting to negotiate his release. With all this hanging over the head of the Wigan man, he has managed to maintain some great form this season, helping his squad to tie Arsenal this past weekend.

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Arsenal Held to a Draw By Wigan

Wigan Athletic came away with a point against league leaders Arsenal Sunday, after having never taken a point off of the team since their arrival in the Premier League. The Latics navigated the tough and bumpy pitch to hold Arsenal to a 0-0 scoreline. Arsenal could have scored only 50 seconds in to the match were it not for a great save by keeper Chris Kirkland on a streaking Adebayor. Kirkland stood tall throughout the match, making several big saves to keep Wigan in it, while on the attacking end Wigan held their own as specially down the right flank through the clever play of Luis Valencia. Valencia created numerous chances for the Latics, whom should feel more than pleased after gaining a point from the league leaders.

M!ke

Claudio Lopez Signs for MLS

Argentine striker Claudio Lopez, best known for his time in Spain with Valencia and Italy with Lazio has signed on in the MLS with the Kansas City Wizards. The club has confirmed that the player signed his contract on friday, and on mlsrumors.blogspot.com there are several pictures and an email confirming his transfer. This is a player of real quality, and if he still has some of the speed that was a big part of his game earlier in his career, he should be successful in the MLS.

M!ke

Norht And South Korea To Play In Shanghai

The football federations of North and South Korea have agreed to play their Olympic soccer qualifiers in the nutral location of Shanghai, China. The two nations had disputed the location of the match, with neither side wanting the other to get their way. The compromise was made after FIFA stepped in, allowing to the integrity of the match-up to be upheld. The game will take place on March 26th.

M!ke

Roma Send Madrid Out Of Tournament

Last night AS Roma defeated Real Madrid a second time by a score of 2-1 to send the Spanish champions out of the Champions League 4-2 on aggrigate. The match was hotly contested, with both sides playing attacking, attractive soccer, trying to get the winning goal rather than attempting not to conceed. It was not until the 74th minute when Taddei lept up to head in a cross from Tonetto to send Roma into the lead. Raul answered back under two minutes later for Madrid, but video replay showed that he was clearly offside and therefore the goal should not have counted. Roma were still in the lead however, and dispite Madrid being a man down after loosing Pepe for a second bookable offence, the spainards pushed forward in numbers. Injury time is when Roma finnished it off, with Panucci sending in a free kick that Vucinic was able to head in past Casillas to seal their victory.

M!ke

Carlos Ruiz Scores A Hat-Trick For The Galaxy

The LA Galaxy defeated a team of Hong Kong internationals and members of 2nd-division side Shanghai Dongya, in a friendly match 3-0. LA striker Carlos Ruiz put in a hat-trick of goals, and should have had a forth, but it was called back for a non-existant offside. The Galaxy continue thier preseason preperations in the far east, and play club Hong Kong Union later this week before finnishing their Asia tour.

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Juve Interested in Frank Lampard

According to Goal.com, Juventus director Gianluca Pessotto has commented that Juve are currently looking into the possibility of acquiring Frank Lampard from Chelsea in order to shore up their midfeild. Juve have spent much of this season with difficulties in their midfeild, as their signing of Tiago Mendes was a flop. Lampard could provide the work rate and attacking power that Juve are looking for.

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Milan Out Of Champions League

Arsenal came into form late in the second leg of their round of 16 Champions League match With AC Milan, scoreing two goals to send Milan out of the tournament. Arsenal looked like the more dominant side, with its younger players seeming to have more energy than the erxperienced but older Milan side. The Arsenal defence was able to contain the attacking trio of Pato, Kaka, and Inzaghi, and allowed for their star midfeilder Fabragas to score a fantastic goal from about 30 yards out to send Arsenal into the quarter finals. Milan will now end the season without anything to show for their work, and look like they may be in trouble, currently siting fifth in the Serie A standings, with the possibility of not qualifing for next years Champions League.

M!ke

Kaka Fears Getting Injured Like Eduardo

Milan playmaker Kaka fears having a similar injury to whaich Arsenal forward Eduardo suffered a few weeks back. The brazilian has suffered from knee problems this year, and feels like referees are not doing their part to make calls that would put a stop to all the rough treatment he has been receiving. Milan play Arsenal this week in the Champions League, and Arsenal will have to look elsewhere for their creative spark after Eduardo's terrible injury.

M!ke

Big Clubs Looking At Cameroonian Keeper

According to Goal.com, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur are both looking at bringing in Cameroonian international goalkeeper Carlos Kameni. Kameni, who currently plays for Espanyol in Spain, most recently represented Cameroon at the African Nations Cup, taking his team all the way to the finals before loosing to Egypt. One problem the English clubs may find is that the players agent, former Cameroon Striker Patrick Mboma, is currently in Barcelona looking to negotiate a new deal for his client with Espanyol, which cold take the keeper off the market, or significantly drive up his price tag.

M!ke