Total Futbol

Transfer Window: CLOSED!

The Premier League transfer window just closed, at 6 p.m. Eastern on Friday, and Tottenham sealed a deal for Fulham's American star Clint Dempsey just in the nick of time.

Dempsey made it clear all summer he wanted to leave Fulham for a team with a better shot at the Champions League. He was hoping to land at Liverpool, but the two clubs couldn't agree on a price. Aston Villa wanted Dempsey, but he didn't want them. Enter Tottenham in the 11th hour. They had money to spend after getting hefty transfer fees for Rafael van der Vaart (moved back to former German club Hamburg) and Luka Modric (moved to Real Madrid). They also sent Mexican forward Giovani Dos Santos on loan to Mallorca.

The fact that five teams were bidding on an American midfielder is a major sign of progress for US Soccer.

Other transfers of note...

Carlos Bocanegra on loan from Rangers to Racing Santander.

Dimitar Berbatov from Manchester United to Fulham

Ju Young Park from Arsenal on loan to Celta Viga

Scott Sinclair from Swansea to Manchester City

Maicon from Inter to Manchester City'

Nigel de Jong from Manchester City to AC Milan

Charlie Adam from Liverpook to Stoke

Nicklas Bendtner from Arsenal to Juventus on loan

Alessandro del Piero from Juventus to Sydney FC

Giovani dos Santos from Tottenham to Mallorca

 

 

Friday Headlines

Hi there, Soccer Fans.

I'm baaaaack from the London Olympics. Amazing event. Among the many events I covered were the USA women's soccer win over Japan and Mexico's historic win over Brazil. Great atmoshpere for both. Even the media bus TO Wembley Stadium was fun on the day of Brazil-Mexico. Those journalists are a lively bunch, to say the least.

Just getting back to work. Here are some quick Friday headlines as we head into the Opening Weekend of the English Premier League.

-Robin Van Persie seals deal with Manchester United. The former Arsenal star signed a four-year $38 million contract with ManU and said he made the decision because the "little boy inside'' him was "screaming'' for ManU. Van Persie led the EPL with 30 goals last season, and Wayne Rooney was second with 27. In other words, ManU fans are very happy today. His debut is Monday vs. Everton, 3 p.m., ESPN2

-Brazil coach Mano Menezes under fire after losing to Mexico at the Olympics (no big surprise there). There were rumors that former Barca coach Pep Guardiola was a possible replacement, but his agent says there have been no talks.

-Clint Dempsey wants to leave Fulham, reportedly refuses to play for the team, so he was left off the opening-day starting lineup. Most reports have him heading to Liverpool, but there is no deal to speak of.

-Finally, US soccer fans will no longer see La Liga matches on GOL-TV. The rights were sold to BeInSport, a new Miami-based company operated by Al Jazeera. Their matches are available on DirecTV and DISH Network. See TV listings below.

What are your thoughts on today's news? Thoughts on the US win over Mexico Wednesday night? Is it significant? Share your views. We want to hear from you.

Michelle.

 

Weekend TV listings...

Soccer fans, take note that La Liga matches are no longer on GOL-TV. The league TV rights, along with French Ligue 1 and Italian Serie A are now owned by BeInSport, a Miami-based company run by Al Jazeera that hired Phil Schoen and Ray Hudson among its commentators. Games are available on DirecTV and DISH Network.

SATURDAY...

Arsenal vs. Sunderland 10 a.m. ESPN, ESPN Deportes

West Brom vs. Liverpool 10 a.m. Fox Soccer, Fox Deportes

Lyon vs. Troyes 11 a.m. Univision

Newcastle vs. Spurs 12:30 p.m. Fox Soccer, Fox Deportes

Celta Vigo vs. Malaga 1 p.m. BeInSport

Lorient vs. Montpellier 2 p.m. Univision

Sevilla vs. Getafe 3 p.m. BeInSport

Mallorca vs. Espanyol 5 p.m. BeInSport

Queretaro vs. Club America 6 p.m. Univision

 Monterrey vs. Atlante 8 p.m. Univision

SUNDAY:

Marseille vs. Sochaux 8 a.m. BeInSport

Wigan vs. Chelsea 8:30 a.m. Fox Soccer, Fox Deportes

Manchester City vs. Southampton 11 a.m. Fox Soccer, Fox Deportes

Real Madrid vs. Valencia 1 p.m. BeInSport

Toluca vs. Pachuca 1 p.m. Univision

Neza vs. Pumas Morelos 1 p.m. GolTV

Barcelona vs. Real Sociedad 3 p.m. BeInSport

Ajaccio vs. Paris Saint-Germain 3 p.m. Univision

Santos vs. Corinthians 3 p.m. GolTV

Levante vs. Atletico Madrid 5 p.m. BeInSport

Tigre vs. River Plate 6:10 p.m. GolTV

New York Red Bulls vs. Portland Timbers 7 p.m. Galavision

MONDAY

Everton vs. Manchester United 3 p.m. ESPN2, ESPN Deportes

Chelsea roster for US tour...

Looks like Chelsea will have its A-list players for the July 28 game against AC Milan at Sun Life Stadium. Ticket sales were around 50,000 already with a few categories sold out. Ticketholders invited to open training sessions Friday night July 27 at 6 p.m. Doors open 5 p.m. You must have game tickets to enter. Here is the travel roster released by the club:

 

CHELSEA
FC ROSTER:

Goalkeepers: Petr Cech, Henrique
Hilario, Ross Turnbull, Jamal
Blackman 

Defenders:
Branislav Ivanovic,
Ashley Cole, John Terry, David Luiz, Paulo Ferreira, Gary Cahill, Sam
Hutchinson, Todd Kane, Nathaniel
Chalobah 

 

Midfielders:
Michael Essien,
Ramires, Flourent Malouda, Raul Meireles, Frank Lampard, John Mikel Obi, Eden Hazard, Marko Marin, Yossi
Benayoun, Josh McEachran, George
Saville 

 

Forwards:
Romelu Lukaku,
Fernando Torres, Gael Kakuta, Kevin De Bruyne, Patrick Bamford, Lucas
Piazon 

 

50,000-plus expected Chelsea-AC Milan

News from Sun Life Stadium today:

Ticket sales are approaching 50,000 for the Chelsea vs.  AC Milan match at Sun
Life Stadium on Saturday, July 28 (6 p.m. ET) as part of the 2012 Herbalife
World Football Challenge.  While four of the top five ticket categories have
been sold out, a limited number of sideline and lower level seats, as well as
upper level seats, continue to be available through Ticketmaster and the stadium
box office.

Organizers additionally announced that fans with tickets to the game are invited to attend both team’s open training sessions at the stadium, currently scheduled for the evening of Friday, July 27,.  Doors will open at 5 p.m., with practice starting at 6 p.m. fans must show their ticket to gain admission and free
parking.

With this game, Sun Life Stadium continues to establish itself as South Florida’s top venue for world-class international soccer.  On Aug. 16, the stadium will host
Argentina’s Boca Juniors vs. Colombia’s America de Cali (tickets available via
Ticketmaster).  Just last month, more than 48,000 fans saw Lionel Messi and
other international superstars play in the World Masters Tour.   In all, nearly
200,000 fans have attended the four international soccer matches at Sun Life
Stadium since the summer of 2011.

 

 

Miami's Sanz to lead CONCACAF

Colombian-born Miami resident Enrique Sanz was named general secretary of CONCACAF, succeeding Chuck Blazer, who resigned in January. Sanz, 38, has spent the past 15 years at TrafficSports, helped establish the recent incarnation of NASL and was involved in regional TV deals. He previously worked at InterForever.

Here's more information...

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2012/07/13/concacaf-appoints-enrique-sanz-general-secretary

 

Watch Beckham bend it!

David Beckham was not picked for the Great Britain Olympic team (sorry, ladies), but he did score two goals for the LA Galaxy in last night's 5-3 win over Portland. The second was a textbook curling free kick...watch it here:  

Euro hangover? Olympics on horizon!

Back from vacation...

So, you suffering from Euro 2012 hangover? Getting the urge every day around 2:45 p.m. to flip on the TV? Me, too...

Good news, though...there is still plenty of soccer to enjoy this summer. There's MLS. There's the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. There's the Chelsea vs. AC Milan friendly here at Sun Life Stadium on July 28...and, there's the Olympic soccer tournament! Watch Brazil's Neymar and many of the world's other best Under-23 players (plus 3 overage players per team) battle for the gold medal at several of the English Premier League's best-known stadia.

The Groups are:

A: Great Britain, Uruguay, Senegal, UAE

B: Mexico, Switzerland, South Korea, Gabon

C: Brazil, Egypt, Belarus, New Zealand

D: Spain, Honduras, Japan, Morocco

Sadly, the US didn't qualify. Who do you think will take the gold?

 

Que Viva Espana!

4-0...Spain wins easily over Italy, reduced to 10 men in the second half.

Most lopsided final in Euro tournament history. And Spain becomes first team ever to win the Euro-World Cup-Euro trifecta.

I never would have predicted such a lopsided match. Italy had played so well leading into this game. Were they too tired or is Spain really that good?

Spain v. Italy! TODAY!

And so, we're down to two...Spain vs. Italy. 2:45 p.m. ESPN

Spain is trying to become the first team ever to win the Euro-World Cup-Euro trifecta. Resurgent Italy looked mighty good in its semifinal against Germany and hasn't allowed a goal in 300-plus minutes. Should be a great match.

If you want to watch with other soccer-crazed fans, here are some great spots:

Fritz and Franz (Coral Gables and Ft. Lauderdale),
Churchill's (North Miami), Fado Irish Pub (Mary Brickell Village), Sports Grill
(South Miami, Kendall, Sunset, Bird Rd.), Waxy O'Connors (Miami Beach),
Playwright (Miami Beach), Finnegan's (Miami Beach), Novecento (Brickell), George's (South Miami)

 I am on vacation, and hope to have access to a TV...here is my column from this morning...

http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/07/01/2876463/spains-style-of-play-different.html

Enjoy! And share your comments after the match.