Archive for October, 2008
Another Prize for Evergreen Maldini
AC Milan idol Paolo Maldini has picked up yet another title having been awarded the “Giacinto-Facchetti, il bello del calcio” prize.
The award was created in 2006 at the initiative of sports newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport and named after the former Inter Milan player of the same name who died in the same year but was considered to have had an exemplary career.
The inaugural winner of the award, called the ‘beauty of football’, was Paraguayan Julio Gonzalez, who carried on playing despite having an arm amputated after a car accident.
Last year Iraq captain Younis Mahmoud won the prize following his war-torn country’s victory in the AFC Asian Cup.
Maldini, 40, is in his 25th season as a professional player for Milan during which time he made 126 appearances for his country, won seven Italian titles and the European Cup/UEFA Champions League five times.
Soccer Rules Simplified
The referee must be informed of the new rules that are emerging in the game of soccer. And the maximum number of goals that will win the game.
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Only the penalty kick that occurs when the team, which scores are in front of ”Offside” is a Corner kick adjacent to the goal in which the layer crosses or kicks the ball into play from the side line.
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To prevent an offensive term such as offside, the player attacking cannot be infront of the last defender when the ball is kicked by someone else in there team, in order to depict this I have included a video on offsides:
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PS
Even people who nothing about the game of soccer still know this one but it has to be included as it is an important rule in the game of soccer.
- The rule for a hand ball includes using any part of the body from the tips of the fingers to the shoulder.
Indirect kick- you cannot score.
(An indirect kick must be touched by another player before scoring.)
A direct kick is much more serious and is a result of a more serious offense close to goal.
A note on offsides
Try this. An offensive or attacking player can’t be ahead of the ball and involved in the play unless there is a defender between him and the goalkeeper. Or, you can’t hang out at the other team’s goal waiting for the ball.
MLS: Hoops Drop Rio Grande Plate To Tigres
It was just a friendly match between two teams in a friendly partnership, contested almost entirely by reserves by the time it ended.
In fact, it didn’t end until FC Dallas’ Aaron Pitchkolan scored in the 89th minute to win the game 3-2, although Tigres UANL of Mexico won the aggregate-goals series on penalty kicks.
The teams played as if far more was at stake than the Rio Grande Plate, a silver trophy the size of a small manhole cover.
Tigres came into the second match with a 2-1 lead gained in a friendly Feb. 20 in Monterrey, Mexico.
By applying pressure through much of the first half, FC Dallas turned that around by taking a 2-0 lead in the game and a 3-2 advantage in the series.
Two players with a combined total of 15 minutes in MLS matches this season played a big role in an attack that had advantages of 10-4 in shots and 8-0 in corner kicks over the opening 45 minutes.
Those corner kicks were especially important. Rookie Chase Wileman set up both goals with corners, from either side of the goal. The first came in the fifth minute, when Pitchkolan headed Wileman’s kick from the right corner into the lower left of the goal.
In the 34th minute, Wileman’s kick from the left corner found Jamie Watson in front of the goal, and he headed a ball on one bounce into the right side of the net. Watson, who spent parts of the last three seasons with Real Salt Lake, has not played in a league game since signing with FC Dallas before this season.
Wileman said, “I’ve been in charge of set pieces with a lot of teams I’ve been on, including the reserve team. With corner kicks, you don’t always know where they’re going.
“Preferably, I’ll kick from (the right corner), because of the in-swing,” the left-footed kicker added. “You’re just trying to hit it in an area. Luckily, Pitch and Jamie were there.”
The home team’s starting lineup was barely recognizable even to its most hardcore fans, with FC Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman choosing to rest all of his regulars in advance of this weekend’s all-important league game against Real Salt Lake, but the Tigres lineup included seven starters.
The Mexican starters also left at halftime or during the second half, when Tigres took control of the game. Second-half goals by Guillermo Marino (off a corner kick) and Lucas Ayala tied it 2-2 and restored Tigres’ one-goal lead on aggregate.
“Chase had a lot of good service from the flanks in the first half. They switched to a 3-5-2 in the second half, and that took a little out of his game,” Hyndman said of the 5-foot-7, 135-pound Wileman. The 22-year-old from Grand Prairie, Texas, had starred for Hyndman when he coached at Southern Methodist.
Just when it appeared the Rio Grande Plate would be going back to Mexico for the second consecutive year, Bobby Rhine headed the ball across the goalmouth to Pitchkolan, FC Dallas’ most recognizable face in the game. His shot from the left side gave the Hoops a 3-2 lead and a 4-4 aggregate tie.
When neither team scored during the final minute or in extra time, the game went to penalty kicks to decide.
But even that didn’t happen immediately. Tigres players raised a fuss because they felt their Mexican ball should be used for the penalty kicks because it was the ball in play during the second half. After ruling that each team would use its own ball, referee Edvin Jurisevic ejected Tigres’ Antonio Sancho with a second yellow card and gave backup ‘keeper Enrique Palos a yellow for unsporting behavior.
Then Andre Rocha put FC Dallas ahead on the first penalty kick, but the three teammates who followed missed. Tigres’ three successful kicks against Hoops backup ‘keeper Ray Burse gave the Mexican team the decision 3-1 in the shootout.
“I don’t know if the balls made a difference,” Hyndman said, “but that shows how much this meant to (Tigres).”
Said Watson: “I think we deserved to win against a team with seven starters. It’s more a point of pride than anything else.”
He and Wileman, long-time teammates in Dallas-area age-group soccer and on the U.S. U-17 team, were among the FC Dallas players who benefited from the exposure. Another was left-side midfielder Viktor Sikora, who had played just briefly in one game since suffering torn meniscus in a knee.
“Sikora, it was a great time for him to get on the field and play a lot,” Hyndman said. “It was his first full game since Columbus (Aug. 16). He gave us good leadership and education in a young lineup.”
Will that translate into greater playing time for Sikora in the final two regular-season games?
Hyndman answered, “I hope so.”
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Tigres (1-0-0) vs. FC Dallas (0-1-0)
October 14, 2008 — Pizza Hut Park
Scoring Summary:
DAL — Aaron Pitchkolan 1 (Chase Wileman ) 5
DAL — Jamie Watson 1 (Chase Wileman ) 34
TIG — Guillermo Marino 1 (Javier Saavedra ) 61
TIG — Lucas Ayala 1 (Manuel Viniegra ) 73
DAL — Aaron Pitchkolan 2 (Bobby Rhine 1, Michael Dello-Russo 1) 89
Penalty-kick shootout:
DAL — Andre Rocha (Goal)
TIG — Blas Perez (Goal)
DAL — Bobby Rhine (Wide Left)
TIG — Guillermo Marino (Goal)
DAL — Eric Avila (Saved)
TIG — Manuel Viniegra (Saved)
DAL — Chase Wileman (Saved)
TIG — Javier Saavedra (Goal)
Tigres — Oscar Perez (Enrique Palos 46), Emmanuel Cerda (Manuel Viniegra 63), Luis Ramirez, Jose Rivas (Antonio Zacarias 76), Israel Jimenez (Javier Saavedra 46), Lucas Lobos (Antonio Sancho 46), Jonatan De Leon (Francisco Acuna 55), Francisco Fonseca (Guillermo Marino 46), Jesus Molina, Julio Aguilar (Lucas Ayala 46), Blas Perez,
Substitutes Not Used: Armando Pulido, Hugo Sanchez
FC Dallas — Ray Burse, Michael Dello-Russo, Anthony Wallace, Aaron Pitchkolan, Andrew Daniels, Bobby Rhine, Chase Wileman, Dax McCarty (Eric Avila 46), Viktora Sikora (Spencer Wadsworth 86), Dominic Oduro, Jamie Watson (Andre Rocha 74),
Substitutes Not Used: Bruno Guarda, Josh Lambo, Drew Moor, Bryant Rueckner, Blake Wagner.
Source from MLSnet.com
Soccer Preview - Important Soccer Games This Week.
This week we have some great games coming up.
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We have the Barcelona - Atletico game in Spain.
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In Germany we have the two most attacking teams facing off - Stuttgart vs Werder Bremen.
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What about the game in UK,where City take on Liverpool in a game I do expect some nice football.
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Of course, we should not forget the Athens derby between Olympiakos and AEK played in the Karaskaki stadium.
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This is the weekend’s la liga preview.
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Who ever you bet on this weekend have in mind that many teams have played a lot of games by now.
The Champions League teams and Uefa Cup teams must be tired by now.
Too many games in a small period of time can never come good.
We might see some tired legs out there.
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Let’s take a look at la liga preview for the match that will be played in Catalonia between Barcelona and Atletico.
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My thoughts regarding the team from Madrid is that i think they are over performing so far.
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They are good but they are not that good.
They have good players but they are not great players.
Like I said in my Atletico - Sevilla analysis.
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Atletico’s drop of form is just a matter of time.
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Atletico come into this game after a nice win in the Champions League against Marseille.
But are they good enought to take on Barcelona away?
The coach Aguerre will most likely play his 4-4-2 system at Camp Nue with Aguerro and Sinamo playing rather deep.
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Quick counter attacks and solid defending will be his plan.
Its simple,if you want something from Barcelona on their home ground then you need to score.
Barcelona wont leave a game played at home without scoring a goal.
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I believe Atletico can suprise Barcelona in the play that they master very good.
Counter attacking football.
You see Barcleona’s defensive back four line is not a the fastest one around.
While Atletico have some very speedy attacking players.
Already mentioned Aguerro and Sinamo are not the only ones.
Maxi on the wing is also a player that like to run into space.
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Guardiola the Barca coach will have to be careful.
If he dont want them famous white handkerchiefs coming out he better step up.
So far i must say he have done an O.K. job.
But he must build on this momentum.
Barcas cutting edge passing is not their yet,they need to bring that out.
Their defending is not on a level that it should be.
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They came away with a scrappy win in Shaktar some days ago after once again being saved by the little magician called Messi.
They are so depended on him that it would be fair to call Barcelona Messilona many times.
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We will see a fresh Messi in this game as he only played 30 minutes away to Shaktar.
Of course that did not stop him from scoring twice.
Messi who will face Pernia come Saturday night should really tare him apart.
Pernia is a slow player that is not good in one on one situations.
Yellow card or red card must be a side bet in this came as it will be party time on that left flank of Madrid.
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Barca will control possession as they are they strongest team in the world when it comes to that.
Atletico will keep their positioning and count the minutes.
They more that go by the better and then maybe snatch a counter attacking goal.
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One thing for certain, Atletico have left the “we are hopefull of a result” long time ago.
They come into this game confident of a result.
















