Arsenal First Team: Previous Clubs

These are the clubs that the current Arsenal first team were with before they signed with the Gunners. (including youth teams, not including loans)


Arsenal Youth - Jack Wilshere

AS Monaco - (Emmanuel Adebayor, Armand Traore*)
ASEC Mimosas - (Kolo Toure^)
Atalanta - (Vito Mannone)
Auxerre - (Abou Diaby, Bacary Sagna)
Barcelona - (Cesc Fabregas^)
Bastia - (Alexandre Song)
Borussia Dortmund - (Tomáš Rosický)
Cannes - (Gael Clichy)
Chivas Guadalajara - (Carlos Vela^)
Dinamo Zagreb - (Eduardo)
Cardiff City - (Aaron Ramsey)
Celta Vigo - (Manuel Almunia)
Chelsea - (William Gallas)
Étoile Carouge FC - (Johan Djourou^)
Feyenoord - (Robin van Persie)
Kjøbenhavns Boldklub - (Nicklas Bendtner^)
K.S.K. Beveren - (Emmanuel Eboué)
Legia Warszawa - (Łukasz Fabiański)
Manchester United - (Mikaël Silvestre)
Marseille - (Samir Nasri)
São Paulo - (Denilson)
Servette - (Philippe Senderos*)
Southampton - (Theo Walcott)
Werder Bremen - (Amaury Bischoff)


*on loan
^youth


Countries signed from:

7 - France
3 - England
3 - Spain
2 - Germany
2 - Switzerland
1 - Belgium
1 - Brazil
1 - Cote d'Ivoire
1 - Croatia
1 - Denmark
1 - Italy
1 - Mexico
1 - Netherlands
1 - Poland
1 - Wales

Tallest and Shortest Premiership Players by Team

Aston Villa
6'6" - Zat Knight
5'9" - Nigel Reo-Coker

Arsenal
6'3" - Manuel Almunia, Emmanuel Adebayor, and Nicklas Bendtner
5'7" - Jack Wilshere

Blackburn
6'4" - Paul Robinson and Christopher Samba
5'7" - Martin Olsson

Bolton
6'4½" - Ali Al Habsi and Adam Bogdan
5'8" - Ebi Smolarek

Chelsea
6'5" - Petr Cech
5'6" - Miroslav Stoch

Everton
6'5" - Carlo Nash
5'7" - Leighton Baines

Fulham
6'5½" - Pascal Zuberbuhler
5'7" - Andrew Johnson

Hull City
6'5" - Matt Duke and Anthony Gardner
5'7" - Nick Barmby

Liverpool
6'3" - Sami Hyypia
5'7" - Javier Mascherano

Manchester City
6'3" - Joe Hart
5'5" - Shaun Wright-Phillips

Manchester United
6'4" - Ben Foster
5'7" - Paul Scholes

Middlesbrough
6'5" - David Wheater
5'8" - Gary O'Neil

Newcastle
6'3" - Andrew Carroll
5'7" - Obafemi Martins and Charles N'Zogbia

Portsmouth
6'7" - Peter Crouch
5'8" - Arnold Mvuemba

Stoke City
6'5" - Thomas Sorensen
5'8" - Andy Griffin

Sunderland
6'6" - Martin Fulop
5'7½" - Steed Malbranque

Tottenham
6'3" - Verdan Corluka and Heurelho Gomes
5'5" - Aaron Lennon

West Ham United
6'4" - James Collins and Calum Davenport
5'6½" - David Di Michele

West Bromwich Albion
6'4" - Jonas Olsson
5'9½" - Borja Valero

Wigan Athletic
6'4" - Michael Pollitt
5'8" - Ryan Taylor

Soccer History of You'll Never Walk Alone

I've seen the Liverpool and Celtic supporters sing "You'll Never Walk Alone" countless times, but I never knew the history behind it or even the words to the song. This post tells a little history of the tune along with some video evidence.

The BBC story behind Liverpool and the song You'll Never Walk Alone

Facts from Songfacts:
-- The Rogers & Hammerstein song was originally written for the 1945 musical Carousel.

--Frank Sinatra was the first artist to take this song into the charts (#9 on the Billboard charts in 1945).

--In the original musical Carousel, the song was sung to inspire a pregnant female character after the death of her husband.

--The Pink Floyd song Fearless ends by fading into a recording of Liverpool Football Club fans singing this song.

--In 1985 a version by The Crowd returned the song to #1. Gerry Marsden of Gerry and the Pacemakers was again the lead vocalist. Zack Starkey, Ringo Starr's son, was on drums, making him and Ringo the first father and son to both have UK #1s.

Liverpool or Celtic: Who Walked Alone First? (Link)

Origins as a Football Anthem:
In the 1960's the DJ at Liverpool's Anfield would play the top ten albums in order, with the number one album of the time being You'll Never Walk Alone playing last, right before game time. The fans took to singing it even after the album dropped from the top ten and the "anthem" has stuck ever since. Celtic, Hibernian, Feyenoord, and FC Twente have also adopted the song.

Lyrics:

When you walk through a storm hold your head up high,
And don't be afraid of the dark.
At the end of a storm is a golden sky
And the sweet silver song of a lark.

Walk on through the wind,
Walk on through the rain,
Tho' your dreams be tossed and blown.
Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart
And you'll never walk alone,
You'll never walk alone!

Gerry and the Pacemakers Version


Liverpool Supporters


Celtic and Liverpool Supporters



List of Artists Who've Recorded YNWA:
Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Mario Lanza, Roy Hamilton, Louis Armstrong, Claramae Turner, Perry Como, Adicts, Nina Simone, Malcolm Vaughan, Shirley Bassey, Doris Day, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Ray Charles, Patti Labelle, The Righteous Brothers, Elvis Presley, Tom Jones, Johnny Maestro, Aretha Franklin, Lee Towers, Frankie Vaughan, Olivia Newton-John, Kiri te Kanawa, Smoking Popes, Bryn Terfel, The Three Tenors, Die Toten Hosen, Johnny Cash, Renee Fleming, Alicia Keys, Jordin Sparks

German Top Scorers in the Bundesliga

These are the top scorers from the German Bundesliga since 1999-00 listed by season to the top German scorer (in bold).

2007-08
24 - Luca Toni (Bayern Munich)
19 - Mario Gomez (Stuttgart)

2006-07
20 - Theofanis Gekas (VfL Bochum)
16 - Alexander Frei (Borussia Dortmund)
16 - Roy Makaay (Bayern Munich)
15 - Kevin Kurányi (Schalke)

2005-06
25 - Miroslav Klose (Werder Bremen)

2004-05
24 - Marek Mintál (1. FC Nürnberg)
22 - Roy Makaay (Bayern Munich)
20 - Dimitar Berbatov (Bayer Leverkusen)
18 - Marcelinho (Hertha Berlin)
15 - Miroslav Klose (Werder Bremen)

2003-04
28 - Ailton (Werder Bremen)
23 - Roy Makaay (Bayern Munich)
20 - Martin Max (Hansa Rostock)

2002-03
21 - Élber Giovane (Bayern Munich)
21 - Thomas Christiansen (VfL Bochum)
16 - Ailton (Werder Bremen)
15 - Kevin Kurányi (Stuttgart)

2001-02
18 - Marcio Amoroso (Borussia Dortmund)
18 - Martin Max (1860 Munich)

2000-01
22 - Sergej Barbarez (Hamburger SV)
22 - Ebbe Sand (Schalke)
19 - Claudio Pizarro (Werder Bremen)
16 - Michael Preetz (Hertha Berlin)

1999-00
19 - Martin Max (1860 Munich)
17 - Ulf Kirsten (Bayer Leverkusen)

Facts:

1963 to 1989 all had a German Top Scorer.

For nearly 40 years, between 1963 and 2000, the only foreign top scorer in the Bundesliga was Norwegian Jørn Andersen in 1989-90.

Since 2000 there has been a major switch in the top scorer trend, with only one German top scorer (Klose, who was born in Poland) in the past eight seasons.

Gerd Müller won the scoring title a record 7 times.

The only non-German player to win the scoring title multiple times was Ghana's Anthony Yeboah at Eintracht Frankfurt in 92-93 and 93-94.

Top Scorers in back to back Bundesliga seasons include Lothar Emmerich, Gerd Müller, Jupp Heynckes, Dieter Müller, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, and Ulf Kirsten.

10 = Times the top scorer title has been shared

Stefan Kuntz had the longest gap between being a multiple top scorer. He first led the league in 85-86 with VfL Bochum, but didn't become top scorer again until nearly a decade later in 93-94 with 1. FC Kaiserslautern.

Highest Single Season Goal Totals for a...
German: 40 - Gerd Müller (Bayern Munich, 1971-72)
International: 28 - Aílton (Brazil) (Werder Bremen, 2003-04)

Top Scorers by Club
14 - Bayern Munich
5 - Borussia Mönchengladbach
5 - 1. FC Köln
5 - Werder Bremen
4 - Bayer Leverkusen
4 - Eintracht Frankfurt
4 - VfB Stuttgart
3 - 1860 Munich
3 - Borussia Dortmund
3 - Hamburger SV
3 - VfL Bochum
2 - Schalke
1 - Rot-Weiß Oberhausen
1 - Hertha Berlin
1 - FC Nuremberg
1 - Fortuna Düsseldorf
1 - 1. FC Kaiserslautern

Although Bayern Munich leads the list, a player from the club has been top scorer only 2 times in the past 17 seasons. (Giovane Élber and Luca Toni)

Nationalities of Bundesliga Top Scorers
Italy
Greece
Slovakia
Brazil
Spain
Denmark
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Ghana
Norway

CONCACAF players in the J-League

This is a list of full international players from CONCACAF that have spent time in Japan's J-League. Ｊリーグ公式サイト


Canada
Issey Nakajima - Albirex Niigata (2003)

Costa Rica
Paulo Wanchope - FC Tokyo (2007)

El Salvador
Jaime Rodriguez - Yokohama Flugels (1992-1993)

Honduras
Saul Martinez - Omiya Ardija (2006)

Panama
Jorge Dely Valdes - Cerezo Osaka (1995), Consadole Sapporo (1997-1998), Omiya Ardija (2001-2002), Kawasaki Frontale (2003)

Trinidad and Tobago
Silvio Spann - Yokohama FC (2005)

USA
Dan Calichman - Sanfrecce Hiroshima (1992-1993)



MLS connections
Paulo Wanchope - Chicago Fire (2007)
Saul Martinez - Miami Fusion (1999)
Jorge Dely Valdes - Colorado Rapids (1999-2000)
Dan Calichman - Los Angeles Galaxy (1996-1998), New England Revolution (1999-2000), San Jose Earthquakes (2000)

Where are they now?
Issey Nakajima - FC Nordsjælland (Denmark)
Paulo Wanchope - Manager of CS Herediano in Costa Rica
Jaime Rodriguez - Coordinator and Assistant coach of El Salvador national team
Saul Martinez - CD Marathón (Honduras)
Jorge Dely Valdes - Manager of the Panama U-20's
Silvio Spann - Wrexham in England's Conference National
Dan Calichman - LAFC director of player development

Uruguay Premier Division Clubs in Montevideo - Interactive Map

I've always found it interesting that nearly every club in the top division of Uruguay play in the city of Montevideo. This season, 13 of the 16 clubs in the Premier Division play in the capital city. It's amazing that all of these clubs have their own stadiums, although stadium may be a generous term for a few of them.

Click the icons for club names and zoom in to see the different stadiums. Click 'view larger map' for better navigation options.


View Larger Map

Largest Capacity Club Stadium in Every European Country

Nation	Team	City	Stadium	Capacity
Albania	Vllaznia	Shkoder	Loro Borici	16,000
Andorra	CE Principat and Constellacio Esportiva	Andorra La Vella	Aixovall	300
Armenia	Ararat and Pyunik Yerevan	Yerevan	Razdan	70,000
Austria	Red Bull Salzburg	Salzburg	Wals Siezenheim Stadion	30,000
Azerbaijan	Neftchi	Baki	Tofiq Bakhramov	50,000
Belarus	Dinamo Minsk	Minsk	Dinamo	50,000
Belgium	Club Brugge and Cercle Brugge	Brugge	Jan Breydel Stadion	30,000
Bosnia-Herzegovina	FC Sarajevo	Sarajevo	Olympic Stadium	42,000
Bulgaria	Botev	Plovdiv	Botev	40,000
Croatia	Dinamo Zagreb	Zagreb	Masimir	38,000
Cyprus	Ominia, Apoel, and Olympiakos	Nicosia	Makarion Ath. Center	27,000
Czech Republic	Hradec Kralove	Hradec Kralove	Vsesportovni Stadion	26,000
Denmark	FC Copenhagen	Copenhagen	Parken	41,500
England	Manchester United	Manchester	Old Trafford	76,000
Estonia	Flora Tallinn	Tallinn	Lillekula	15,000
Faroe Islands	B 68 Toftir	Toftir	Svangaskard	8,000
Finland	FC Lahti	Lahti	Lahden Stadion	14,000
France	Olympique Marseille	Marseille	Velodrome	60,000
Georgia	Dinamo Tbilisi	Tbilisi	Boris Paichadze	73,500
Germany	Hertha Berlin	Berlin	Olympiastadion	75,000
Greece	AEK Athens	Athens	Olympic Stadium	71,000
Hungary	Raba ETO	Gyor	Gyori	25,500
Iceland	FRAM	Reykjavik	Laugardalsvollur	7,000
Ireland	Bohemians	Dublin	Dalymount Park	14,500
Israel	Hapoel and Maccabi Tel Aviv	Tel Aviv	Bloomfield	19,000
Italy	AC Milan and Internazionale	Milan	San Siro	85,500
Kazakhstan	FK Kairat	Almaty	Tsentralny	25,000
Latvia	Skonto Riga	Riga	Skonto	7,000
Lithuania	FBK Kaunas	Kaunas	Daris IR Girenas	15,000
Luxembourg	CA Spora Luxembourg	Luxembourg	Stade Josy Barthel	8,250
Macedonia	Vardar Skopje and Rabotnicki	Skopje	Gradski	24,000
Malta	Valletta	Valletta	National TA Qali	14,000
Moldova	Sheriff	Tiraspol	Bolshaya Spotivnaya	14,000
Netherlands	Ajax and Feyenoord	Amsterdam and Rotterdam	Amsterdam Arena and De Kuip	51,000
Northern Ireland	Lindield	Belfast	Windsor Park	21,000
Norway	Rosenborg, Brann, Valeranga, and Lyn Oslo	Trondheim, Bergen, Oslo	Lerkendal, Brannstadion, Ulevaal	24,000
Poland	Zaglebie Lubin	Lubin	Zaglebie	35,000
Portugal	Benfica	Lisbon	Da Luz	76,000
Romania	Politehnica AEK	Timisoara	Dan Paltinisanu	40,000
Russia	Spartak and Torpedo Moscow	Moscow	Luzhniki	77,000
Scotland	Celtic	Glasgow	Celtic Park	60,500
Serbia & Montenegro	Crvena Zvezda	Belgrade	Crvena Zvezda	52,000
Slovakia	Slovan Bratislava	Bratislava	Tehelne Poli	30,000
Slovenia	Olimpija Ljubljana	Ljubljana	Bezigrad	18,000
Spain	Barcelona	Barcelona	Camp Nou	115,000
Sweden	AIK Solna	Stockholm	Rasunda	37,000
Switzerland	Basel	Basel	Saint Jakob	42,000
Turkey	Fenerbahce	Istanbul	Sukru Saracoglu	52,000
Ukraine	Dynamo Kiev	Kiev	Olympiysky	83,000
Wales	Cardiff City	Cardiff	Ninian Park	22,000

Stats Compiled from RSSSF

Soccer Anthems

FIFA Anthem


UEFA Champion's League Anthem


UEFA Cup Theme


MLS Anthem

Asia All-Time FIFA Ranking Map

This map shows the highest FIFA ranking ever achieved by all the countries in Asia. Click to Enlarge.

East African Soccer Players in Europe

These are all the players currently with clubs in Europe from the area of Africa known as the East African Community (EAC).

Nation (African Rank:World Rank)

Burundi (38:128)
Kassim Bizimana - BV Veendam (Netherlands)
Cédric Ciza - RSC Anderlecht (Belgium)
David Habarugira - RSC Anderlecht (Belgium)
Omar Mussa - SK Wilrijk (Belgium)
Dugary Ndabashinze - KRC Genk (Belgium)
Selemani Ndikumana - Lierse SK (Belgium)
Christian Nduwimana - Herk FC (Belgium)
Emmanuel Ngama - FCV Dender EH (Belgium)
Saidi Ntibazonkiza - NEC Nijmegen (Netherlands)
Faty Papy - Trabzonspor (Turkey)
Musaba Selemani - R. Union Saint-Gilloise (Belgium)
Mohammed Tchité* - Racing de Santander (Spain)

*Mohammed 'Mémé' Tchité, perhaps the top current player from the East African region, was the second leading scorer in Belgium with Standard Liege before transferring to Racing de Santander in Spain. He scored a memorable hat trick early this season against Valencia. Tchité had stated his desire to play for Belgium where he acquired citizenship while with Standard Liege. However, FIFA intervened because he had already chosen to represent Burundi and Rwanda earlier in his career.

Kenya (21:84)
Amos Ekhalie - IFK Mariehamn (Finland)
Robert Mambo Mumba - GIF Sundsvall (Sweden)
Dennis Oliech - AJ Auxerre (France)
Willis Ochieng - IFK Mariehamn (Finland)

Rwanda (24:91)
Fritz Emeran - Levadiakos (Greece)
Olivier Karekzi - Ham-Kam (Norway)
Henri Munyaneza - Germinal Beerschot (Belgium)
Hamad Ndikumana - AC Omonia (Cyprus)

Tanzania (29:101)
Kali Ongala - GIF Sundsvall (Sweden)

Uganda (15:68)
Noah Babadi Kasule - FC Banants (Armenia)
Nestroy Kizito - FK Vojvodina (Serbia)
David Obua* - Hearts (Scotland)
Ibrahim Sekagya - Red Bull Salzburg (Austria)
Eugene Ssepuuya - FK Vojvodina (Serbia)
Michael Sserumagga - Helsingborgs IF (Sweden)
Abubaker Tabula - GIF Sundsvall (Sweden)

*Uganda's David Obua has had an interesting career progression. He spent some time with the Wilmington Hammerheads in the United States USL-2 (3rd division) before moving back to Africa and becoming one of the top players in the South African league with the Kaizer Chiefs. That success led him to a trial with West Ham United before he signed with Hearts in Scotland.

08-09 English Manager Changes

Here are the many managers in England that started the 08-09 season with a club and for one reason or another are no longer with that club. Interesting that the top three English leagues have all changed about 1/3 of their managers halfway through the season. Who's next? Scolari perhaps?

Premier League
Blackburn - Paul Ince
Newcastle - Kevin Keegan
Portsmouth - Harry Redknapp
Sunderland - Roy Keane
Tottenham - Juande Ramos
West Ham United - Alan Curbishley

League Championship
Blackpool - Simon Grayson
Charlton - Alan Pardew
Derby County - Paul Jewell
Norwich City - Glenn Roeder
Nottingham Forest - Colin Calderwood
Queens Park Rangers - Iain Dowie
Southampton - George Burley
Watford - Aidy Boothroyd

League One
Carlisle United - John Ward
Colchester United - Geraint Williams
Crewe Alexandra - Dario Gradi
Hartlepool - Danny Wilson
Huddersfield Town - Stan Ternent
Leeds United - Gary McAllister
Swindon Town - Maurice Malpas

League Two
Barnet - Paul Fairclough
Bournemouth - Jimmy Quinn
Bury - Chris Casper
Grimsby Town - Alan Buckley


(excluding caretaker managers)

MLS Late-Round Draft Gems

This is a list of players that have been drafted by MLS teams in the later rounds of the 96-99 College Draft and the 00-08 Superdraft that have gone on to make a great impact in the league. By comparison, here are some Number One picks from the last few years: Matt McKeon, Steve Shak, Chris Carrieri, Chris Gbandi, Nikolas Besagno, Tahj Jakins, Leo Cullen, Jason Moore.

Even in last year's draft quite a few players that were selected in round 3 or later made an impact including, Luke Sassano (NY, 3) Stephen King (CHI, 3), Geoff Cameron (HOU, 3), Brandon McDonald (LA, 4), Steven Lenhart (CLB, 4). I'm sure there will be a few from the 2009 draft as well. Enjoy the wheelin and dealin today. (Check out The Offside Rules draft day bingo card for additional good times)


Round 3
Jesse Marsch (DC) 1996
Eddie Lewis (SJ) 1996
Ante Razov (LA) 1996
Kevin Hartman (LA) 1997
Matt Reis (LA) 1998
Kerry Zavagnin (KC) 2000
Nick Rimando (MIA) 2000
Edson Buddle (CLB) 2001
Alejandro Moreno (LA) 2002
Logan Pause (CHI) 2003
Chris Rolfe (CHI) 2005
Gonzalo Segares (CHI) 2005
Omar Cummings (COL) 2007

Round 4
John Wolyniec (CHI) 2000
Michael Bradley (NY) 2004
Jonathan Bornstein (CHV) 2006
Adam Cristman (NE) 2007

Round 5
Davy Arnaud (KC) 2002
Jack Jewsbury (KC) 2003

Round 6
Andy Dorman (NE) 2004
Jeff Parke (NY) 2004


Official Superdraft Website

MLS All-Time Team Goal and Assist Leaders

These are the All-Time leaders in Goals and Assists for the teams currently in MLS.

Chivas USA
G: 30 - Ante Razov
A: 27 - Sacha Kljestan

Chicago Fire
G: 76 - Ante Razov
A: 48 - Peter Nowak

Colorado Rapids
G: 39 - Paul Bravo
A: 53 - Chris Henderson

Columbus Crew
G: 62 - Jeff Cunningham and Brian McBride
A: 61 - Robert Warzycha

FC Dallas
G: 91 - Jason Kreis
A: 65 - Jason Kreis

DC United
G: 120 - Jaime Moreno
A: 101 - Marco Etcheverry

Houston Dynamo
G: 31 - Brian Ching
A: 22 - Brad Davis

Kansas City Wizards
G: 71 - Preki
A: 98 - Preki

Los Angeles Galaxy
G: 70 - Cobi Jones
A: 91 - Cobi Jones

Real Salt Lake
G: 19 - Jeff Cunningham
A: 17 - Javier Morales

New England Revolution
G: 98 - Taylor Twellman
A: 68 - Steve Ralston

New York Red Bulls
G: 41 - Giovanni Savarese
A: 36 - Amado Guevara and Tab Ramos

San Jose Earthquakes
G: 61 - Ronald Cerritos
A: 47 - Ronald Cerritos

Toronto FC
G: 11 - Danny Dichio
A: 5 - Carl Robinson and Marvell Wynne

All-Time Premiership League Table Statistics

All-Time Premier League Top 10 (Points)

1360 - Manchester United
1202 - Arsenal
1140 - Chelsea
1121 - Liverpool
918 - Aston Villa
895 - Newcastle United
854 - Tottenham
835 - Everton
823 - Blackburn
692 - Leeds United

100+ Premier League Wins

406 - Manchester United
343 - Arsenal
322 - Chelsea
319 - Liverpool
245 - Newcastle United
242 - Aston Villa
228 - Tottenham
224 - Blackburn
221 - Everton
189 - Leeds United
180 - West Ham United
158 - Middlesbrough
150 - Southampton
135 - Manchester City
113 - Bolton
101 - Sheffield Wednesday

100+ Premier League Draws

192 - Aston Villa
174 - Chelsea
173 - Arsenal
172 - Everton
170 - Tottenham
164 - Liverpool
160 - Newcastle United
151 - Blackburn
151 - Middlesbrough
142 - Manchester United
137 - Southampton
131 - West Ham United
125 - Leeds United
124 - Manchester City
112 - Coventry

100+ Premier League Losses

248 - Everton
243 - Tottenham
219 - Southampton
212 - West Ham United
210 - Middlesbrough
207 - Aston Villa
194 - Newcastle United
191 - Manchester City
189 - Blackburn
158 - Liverpool
154 - Leeds United
153 - Bolton
146 - Sunderland
145 - Chelsea
143 - Coventry
134 - Leicester
129 - Charlton
128 - Derby County
126 - Sheffield Wednesday
125 - Arsenal
123 - Wimbledon
118 - Fulham

All-Time + Goal Differential

704 - Manchester United
512 - Arsenal
407 - Liverpool
399 - Chelsea
120 - Newcastle
83 - Blackburn
70 - Aston Villa
68 - Leeds United

All-Time -100 or greater Goal Differential

-152 - Sunderland
-149 - Derby County
-140 - Southampton
-112 - West Ham United
-108 - West Bromwich Albion
-105 - Bolton
-103 - Coventry
-103 - Middlesbrough
-102 - Leicester
-100 - Charlton

Top 10 Clubs No Longer in the Premiership

Points - Club - Current League Position

692 - Leeds United (10th, League One)
587 - Southampton (23rd, Championship)
409 - Coventry (14th, Championship)
392 - Sheffield Wednesday (12th, Championship)
391 - Wimbledon (Moved to Milton Keynes)
361 - Charlton Athletic (24th, Championship)
342 - Leicester City (1st, League One)
274 - Derby County (18th, Championship)
239 - Nottingham Forest (20th, Championship)
224 - Ipswich (11th, Championship)


All stats as of January 12, 2009

Landon Donovan - Bayern Munich Highlight Video - Jan 10, 2009

From veoh.com

MLS Boomerang Players

I've found the recent Jermain Defoe back to Tottenham situation in England rather compelling and it got me thinking about "boomerang" players in Major League Soccer that played for a team, left the team, then ended up back on the original team again. Since the list was compiled with the MLS-only All-Time Player Register, I didn't count offseason excursions to Europe such as Nate Jaqua's recent Houston-Austria-Houston year. (You're welcome to list any of these situations that come to mind in the comments)


Arturo Alvarez
San Jose Earthquakes 2003-04; 2008

Shaker Asad
New England Revoloution 2000-01; 2002

Joe Cannon
San Jose Earthquakes 1998-2002; 2008

Jeff Cassar
Dallas Burn/FC Dallas 1996-97; 2003-2006

Ronald Cerritos
San Jose Earthquakes 1997-2001; 2005

Ryan Cochrane
San Jose Earthquakes 2004-05; 2008

Ramiro Corrales
San Jose Earthquakes 1996-97; 2001-04; 2008

Raul Diaz Arce
DC United 1996-97; 2000-01

Joey DiGiamarino
Colorado Rapids 1998-2000; 2004

Joe Franchino
Los Angeles Galaxy 1998-2000; 2008

Giuseppe Galderisi
New England Revolution 1996; 1997

Gavin Glinton
Los Angeles Galaxy 2002-03; 2006-07

Kelly Gray
San Jose Earthquakes 2005; 2008

Diego Gutierrez
Kansas City Wizards 1996; 2002-05
Chicago Fire 1998-01; 2006-08

Wolde Harris
Colorado Rapids 1997-99; 2005

Chris Henderson
Colorado Rapids 1996-98; 2002-05

Andy Herron
Chicago Fire 2004-06; 2008

Steve Jolley
NY Metrostars/Red Bulls 2000-03; 2006-07

Brian Kamler
DC United 1996-99; 2001

Harut Karapetyan
San Jose Earthquakes 1998; 2000

Josh Keller
Tampa Bay Mutiny 1998; 1999-01

Roy Lassiter
DC United 1998-99; 2002

Chris Leitch
Columbus Crew 2002; 2006
NY Metrostars/Red Bulls 2003-05; 2007-08

John Maessner
DC United 1996-97; 1999-2000

Clint Mathis
NY Metrostars/Red Bulls 2000-03; 2007
Real Salt Lake 2005; 2008
*Los Angeles Galaxy 1998-2000; 2008*

Matt McKeon
Kansas City Wizards 1996-98; 2000-02

Tony Meola
NY Metrostars/Red Bulls 1996-98; 2005-06

Jaime Moreno
DC United 1996-2002; 2004-08

Roy Myers
NY Metrostars 1999; 2000-01

Preki
Kansas City Wizards 1996-00; 2002-05

Santino Quaranta
DC United 2001-06; 2008

Tim Regan
NY Metrostars/Red Bulls 2003-05; 2007

Carlos Ruiz
Los Angeles Galaxy 2002-04; 2008

Jorge Salcedo
Los Angeles Galaxy 1996; 1999-00

Carlos Valderrama
Tampa Bay Mutiny 1996-97; 1999-01

Greg Vanney
Los Angeles Galaxy 1996-2001; 2008

Dante Washington
Columbus Crew 1996; 2000-05

Richie Williams
DC United 1996-2000; 2002
NY Metrostars 2001; 2003

Evans Wise
Tampa Bay Mutiny 1996-97; 1998

John Wolyniec
NY Metrostars/Red Bulls 1999; 2003-05; 2006-08





These players have been with a team twice but made zero regular season or playoff appearances on one of their stints.

Preston Burpo - Colorado
Jon Busch - Chicago
Zach Thornton - New York
Clint Mathis - Los Angeles

All-Time Canadians in the Premier League

These are all of the players from Canada that have played at least one English Premier League game since 92-93.


Jim Brennan - Norwich City - 2004-05
Terry Dunfield - Manchester City - 2000-01
David Edgar - Newcastle United - 2006-current
Craig Forrest - Ipswich Town, Chelsea, West Ham - 1992-95, 1996-01
Tomasz Radzinski - Everton, Fulham - 2001-07
Paul Stalteri - Tottenham, Fulham - 2005-08
Frank Yallop - Ipswich Town - 1992-95



Where are they now?
Jim Brennan - Toronto FC (MLS)
Terry Dunfield - Macclesfield Town (League Two, England)
Craig Forrest - Broadcaster on Rogers Sportsnet and CBC (Canada)
Tomasz Radzinski - Lierse S.K. (Belgium)
Paul Stalteri - Borussia Mönchengladbach (Germany)
Frank Yallop - Head coach of San Jose Earthquakes (MLS)

Foreign Premiership Players in 1992-93

Compared to the multi-national English Premier League of today, the first season of the Premiership had very few foreign players.

13 of the 37 foreign players from that season hailed from Scandinavia, and ...gasp... there were zero Brazilians and Argentinians in the league (and for that matter no West African or Asian players).

By today's standards it may be surprising to know that CONCACAF was the most represented region outside of Europe at that time with a whopping five players. How things have changed.


Pal Lydersen (Norway)
Erland Johnsen (Norway)
Frank Strandli (Norway)
Gunnar Halle (Norway)
Erik Thorstvedt (Norway)
Kare Ingebrigtsen (Norway)

John Jensen (Denmark)
Jan Molby (Denmark)
Peter Schmeichel (Denmark)

Anders Limpar (Sweden)
Patrik Andersson (Sweden)
Roland Nilsson (Sweden)

Ken Monkou (Holland)
Michel Vonk (Holland)
Hans Segers (Holland)

Mark Bosnich (Australia)
Jaston Kearton (Australia)

Craig Forrest (Canada)
Frank Yallop (Canada)

Thorvaldur Orlygsson (Iceland)
Gudni Bergsson (Iceland)

Stefan Beinlich (Germany)
Matthias Breitkreutz (Germany)

Dariusz Kubicki (Poland)
Robert Warzycha (Poland)

Roy Wegerle (USA)
John Harkes (USA)

Peter Ndlovu (Zimbabwe)
Bruce Grobbelaar (Zimbabwe)

Jan Stejskal (Czech)
Eric Cantona (France)
Istvan Kozma (Hungary)
Ronnie Rosenthal (Israel)
Nayim (Morocco)
Mark Tinkler (South Africa)
Dwight Yorke (Trinidad and Tobago)
Andrei Kanchelskis (Ukraine)

By Foreign Region
5 - CONCACAF
4 - CAF
2 - OFC
0 - AFC
0 - CONMEBOL

20 Foreign Countries Represented in 92-93

Since the initial 92-93 season an additional 65 countries have been represented for a total of 85.

MLS connections:

John Harkes (Played with DC, NE, and CLB, current announcer for Primetime ESPN MLS games)
Craig Forrest (announcer for Toronto FC on Rogers Sportsnet and CBC)
Frank Yallop (played with TB Mutiny and has managed San Jose Earthquakes and Los Angeles Galaxy)
Robert Warzycha (played with Columbus Crew and recently named Manager of Columbus)
Roy Wegerle (played with Colorado, DC, and Tampa Bay)
Anders Limpar (played with Colorado)

Still Playing
Peter Ndlovu (Thanda Royal Zulu, South Africa)
Mark Tinkler (Whitby Town, NPL England 7th division)
Mark Bosnich (Central Coast Mariners, Australia)
Dwight Yorke (Sunderland, EPL)

European Players with 110+ Caps

This is a list of the players in Europe who have been capped at least 110 times in their international careers.


156 - Martin Reim (Estonia)
150 - Lothar Matthaus (West Germany)
149 - Vatlijs Astafjevs (Latvia)
143 - Marko Kristal (Estonia)
143 - Thomas Ravelli (Sweden)
142 - Lilian Thuram (France)
134 - Dorinel Munteanu (Romania)
130 - Edwin van der Sar (Netherlands)
129 - Peter Schmeichel (Denmark)
127 - Luis Figo (Portugal)
126 - Paolo Maldini (Italy)
126 - Andoni Zubizarreta (Spain)
125 - Gheorghe Hagi (Romania)
121 - David Carabott (Malta)
120 - Fabio Cannavaro (Italy)
120 - Theodoros Zagorakis (Greece)
119 - Pat Jennings (Northern Ireland)
119 - Mart Poom (Estonia)
118 - Karel Poborsky (Czech Republic)
118 - Rüstü Reçber (Turkey)
117 - Heinz Hermann (Switzerland)
117 - Jari Litmanen (Finland)
116 - Marcel Desailly (France)
116 - Roland Nilsson (Sweden)
115 - Björn Nordqvist (Sweden)
115 - Gheorghe Popescu (Romania)
113 - Gilbert Agius (Malta)
113 - Viktor Onopko (Russia)
112 - Frank de Boer (Netherlands)
112 - Alain Geiger (Switzerland)
112 - Andres Oper (Estonia)
112 - Hakan Sükür (Turkey)
112 - Dino Zoff (Italy)
111 - Carmel Busuttil (Malta)
110 - Fernando Couto (Portugal)

Something for Your MLS and US Soccer Withdrawals

Don't get me wrong, I watch and enjoy footy from everywhere in the world, but every mid-winter I start to really miss the action from Major League Soccer and the US Nats. If you feel the same, here's a couple of "half-way-offseason" videos to get your fix. The first 2008 MLS Goals of the Year video is from the excellent blog Climbing The Ladder which is a must read if you're into American Soccer.



The video below shows the US National Teams Goals of 2008. From the official US Soccer Website.



Looking forward to February 11. USA v Mexico World Cup Qualifier.

Head to the USMNT blog for updates on the current training camp in California.

South American Players with 100+ Caps

These are all the players from South American nations that have been capped at least 100 times for their national teams.


155 - Ivan Hurtado (Ecuador)
142 - Cafu (Brazil)
127 - Javier Zanetti (Argentina)
125 - Roberto Carlos (Brazil)
122 - Roberto Palacios (Peru)
115 - Roberto Ayala (Argentina)
111 - Carlos Valderrama (Colombia)
110 - Carlos Gamarra (Paraguay)
109 - Alex Aguinaga (Ecuador)
106 - Diego Pablo Simeone (Argentina)
105 - Héctor Chumpitaz (Peru)
103 - José Manuel Rey (Venezuela)
101 - Jorge Soto (Peru)
101 - Leonel de Jesús Alvarez (Colombia)
101 - Claudio Taffarel (Brazil)
100 - Luis Enrique Capurro (Ecuador)



close...
98 - Ulises de la Cruz (Ecuador)
98 - Djalma dos Santos (Brazil)
97 - Robert Acuna (Paraguay)
97 - Juan Jayo (Peru)
97 - Ronaldo (Brazil)
97 - Oscar Alfredo Ruggeri (Argentina)


92 - Pele (Brazil)
91 - Diego Maradona (Argentina)

CONCACAF Players with 100+ International Caps

This is a list of the 25 players from the CONCACAF region that have been capped at least 100 times by their national teams in their international careers. Will the 26 year old Landon Donovan climb to the top of the list by the end of his career?

178 - Claudio Suarez (Mexico)
164 - Cobi Jones (USA)
140 - Pavel Pardo (Mexico)
134 - Jeff Agoos (USA)
130 - Jorge Campos (Mexico)
128 - Marcelo Balboa (USA)
124 - Luis Antonio Marin (Costa Rica)
122 - Walter Centeno (Costa Rica)
121 - Ramon Ramirez (Mexico)
117 - Angus Eve (Trinidad and Tobago)
115 - Amado Guevara (Honduras)
112 - Ian Goodison (Jamaica)
112 - Claudio Reyna (USA)
110 - Paul Caligiuri (USA)
110 - Mauricio Solis Mora (Costa Rica)
109 - Rolando Fonseca (Costa Rica)
109 - Alberto Garcia Aspe (Mexico)
106 - Eric Wynalda (USA)
105 - Landon Donovan (USA)
105 - Stern John (Trinidad and Tobago)
105 - Theodore Whitmore (Jamaica)
102 - Kasey Keller (USA)
101 - Earnie Stewart (USA
100 - Tony Meola (USA)
100 - Joe-Max Moore (USA)