Friday, July 31, 2009

08/09 Hat Tricks

This is a list of players from the top leagues in Europe and MLS that scored three goals or more in a single game in the 2008/2009 season.

ENGLAND
Premier League
1 - Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)
1 - Gabriel Agbonlahor (Aston Villa)
1 - Robinho (Manchester City)
1 - Emmanuel Adebayor (Arsenal)
1 - Andrei Arshavin (Arsenal)
1 - Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea)

Championship
2 - Kevin Doyle (Reading)
1 - Deon Burton (Charlton Athletic)
1 - Billy Sharp (Sheffield United)
1 - Sylvan Ebanks-Blake (Wolverhampton Wanderers)
1 - Chris Iwelumo (Wolverhampton Wanderers)
1 - Leroy Lita (Norwich City)

SCOTLAND
2 - Kris Boyd (Glasgow Rangers)
1 - Kevin Kyle (Kilmarnock)
1 - Chris Porter (Motherwell)
1 - Shunsuke Nakamura (Glasgow Celtic)

GERMANY
2 - Claudio Pizarro (Werder Bremen)
2 - Edin Dzeko (VfL Wolfsburg)
2 - Grafite (VfL Wolfsburg)
2 - Mario Gomez (VfB Stuttgart)
1 - Stanislav Sestak (VfL Bochum)
1 - Demba Ba (TSG Hoffenheim)
1 - Patrick Helmes (Bayer Leverkusen)
1 - Andriy Voronin (Hertha BSC)

SPAIN
2 - Samuel Eto'o (Barcelona)
1 - Thierry Henry (Barcelona)
1 - Gonzalo Higuain (Real Madrid)
1 - Rafael van der Vaart (Real Madrid)
1 - Raul (Real Madrid)
1 - Mohamed Tchite (Racing Santander)
1 - Roberto Soldado (Getafe)
1 - Mate Bilic (Sporting Gijon)
1 - Diego Forlan (Atletico Madrid)
1 - Raul Tamudo (Espanyol)
1 - Frederic Kanoute (Sevilla)

FRANCE
1 - Mickael Pagis (Stade Rennes)
1 - Guillaume Hourau (Paris St Germain)

ITALY
2 - Filippo Inzaghi (AC Milan)
2 - Diego Milito (Genoa)
2 - Marco Di Vaio (Bologna)
1 - Adrian Mutu (Fiorentina)
1 - Sergio Pellissier (Chievo)
1 - Giuseppe Mascara (Catania)
1 - Goran Pandev (Lazio)
1 - German Denis (Napoli)

MLS
2009
1 - Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids)
1 - Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake)

2008
2 - Edson Buddle (Los Angeles Galaxy)
1 - Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy)
1 - Luciano Emilio (DC United)

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

NASL Photos: Connections to MLS and US Soccer

I was looking at a few really excellent NASL sites the other day (NASL Jerseys---Dave Brett Historic Soccer Videotapes---NASL History Homepage) and found some really great photos of a few well known players. I thought it would be interesting to put together a little picture collection (mostly borrowed pics from the superb NASL Jerseys website) of NASL players with USA and MLS soccer connections.

BONUS: I also happened upon a great video that I hadn't seen before of the 1981 NASL Soccer Bowl between the Chicago Sting and New York Cosmos. If you have a few minutes, definitely watch it, it's a high quality video and it ends with a great shootout.



Ken Cooper - Current FC Dallas player Kenny Cooper's father




Glenn "Mooch" Myernick - Former influential coach and all around good guy in the US national team program. Here is a link to the Mooch Myernick Memorial Fund.




Ray Hudson - GOLtv announcer looking like he will "“capitalise on it like a big werewolf with a plate of liver in front of it.” (He actually said that, while announcing a game last May....). Here's a link to Shut Tha Windaz for many more Ray Hudson-isms.




Fran O'Brien - Father of Colorado Rapids (on loan at Montreal Impact) player Ciaran O'Brien




Hugo Sanchez - Sanchez is a former Real Madrid and Mexico legend and also one of only two players who played in both NASL and MLS (the other was Roy Wegerle)




Shep Messing (with Pele) - Shep is the current Red Bulls commentator and MLS Extratime co-anchor. He has also provided commentary for the World Cup (and he's Danny Szetela's agent?)




Tim Twellman - Father of New England Revolution and USMNT player, Taylor Twellman




Andranik Eskandarian - Father of current Los Angeles Galaxy player Alecko Eskandarian




Giorgio Chinaglia - The Italian scored an amazing 193 goals in 213 appearances in his 7 years with the New York Cosmos. He also provided commentary for ABC at the past two World Cups.




Alan Hinton - Hinton has been involved with the Seattle Sounders since 1980 when he took over as the NASL Sounders manager. He now provides commentary on Sounders FC broadcasts.




Thomas Rongen - Current sporting director for Chivas USA and USA U-20 National Team Coach




Brian Joy - Father of recently released Real Salt Lake player Ian Joy




Norm Wingert - Father of current Real Salt Lake player Chris Wingert




Frank Klopas - Klopas was on the 1984 Chicago Sting roster but didn't make an appearance. He went on to play in MLS with KC and Chicago. He is the current technical director for the Chicago Fire.



Roy Wegerle - Wegerle and Hugo Sanchez are the only two players who played in NASL and MLS. Roy played for the NASL Tampa Bay Rowdies and the MLS Tampa Bay Mutiny.




2009 MLS All-Star Player Salaries

GK Kasey Keller (SEA) - $300,000
GK Zach Thornton (CHI) - $55,000
DF Geoff Cameron (HOU) - $34,650
DF Wilman Conde (CHI) - $188,000
DF Jhon Kennedy Hurtado (SEA) - $37,000
DF Chad Marshall (CLB) - $320,000
DF Bakary Soumare (CHI) - $138,000
MF Davy Arnaud (KC) - $228,750
MF Kyle Beckerman (RSL) - $163,150
MF Cuauhtemoc Blanco (CHI) - $2,943,702
MF Brad Davis (HOU) - $132,300
MF Stuart Holden (HOU) - $34,728
MF Will Johnson (RSL) - $64,771
MF Freddie Ljungberg (SEA) - $1,314,000
MF Javier Morales (RSL) - $200,000
FW Conor Casey (COL) - $200,000
FW Landon Donovan (LA) - $900,000
FW Fredy Montero (SEA) - $155,000

(Guaranteed Compensation Numbers Used)


Combined All-Star Salary = $7,409,051
Average Annual Salary = $411,613

Combined All-Star Salary Without Blanco, Donovan, and Ljungberg (Designated Players): $2,251,349
Average Annual Salary: $150,089


Comparisons: According to a 2006 BBC article on player wages, Championship players in England earned an average salary of about $385,000, League One players $130,000, and League Two players earn $95,000.

That means that the average salary of the best players in MLS in 2009 falls somewhere between League One and Championship average salaries.

John Terry is/was reportedly being offered around $1.6 million a month to play for Manchester City. That would make Terry $400,000 a WEEK, which is around the average YEARLY salary of the best players in MLS. Funny money.....

The lowest paid all-star in the final 18 roster in 2008 was Jonathan Bornstein, with a salary of $77,500. This season 5 players on the final 18 make $65,000 or less. (Somebody give Stuart Holden a raise!!)



2008 MLS All-Star Salaries

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Amazing Soccer Supporter Videos: Volume 1

Most soccer followers know about the great fans at the major clubs around the world. This series of videos shows the fans from clubs around the world that many people wouldn't think of first when thinking of excellent fan support (although, outside of currently 2nd division Portland, all of the clubs here are regular top division title contenders in their respective countries). There are so many videos that I could have included that I'll definitely revisit this topic again in the future.

ASIA (Urawa Reds, Japan)


NORTH AMERICA (Portland Timbers, USA)


AUSTRALIA (Melbourne Victory)


EUROPE (Wisła, Poland)


SOUTH AMERICA (Nacional, Uruguay)


AFRICA (USM Alger v MC Alger, Algeria)

Monday, July 27, 2009

Blowout Finals in Major International Tournaments

This is a list of blowout Final games in major international tournaments from around the world. (with wins by at least 3 goals).


EUROPE (UEFA European Championship)
1972
West Germany 3-0 USSR

CONCACAF (Gold Cup)
2009
Mexico 5-0 USA

1993
Mexico 4-0 USA

CONMEBOL (Copa America)
2007
Brazil 3-0 Argentina

1999
Brazil 3-0 Uruguay

1979 (First Leg)
Paraguay 3-0 Chile

ASIA (AFC Asian Cup)
1980
Kuwait 3-0 Korea Republic

AFRICA (African Nations Cup)
1980
Nigeria 3-0 Algeria

1963
Ghana 3-0 Sudan

1957
Egypt 4-0 Ethiopia

OCEANIA (OFC Nations Cup)
2004 (First Leg)
Australia 5-1 Solomon Islands

2004 (Second Leg)
Australia 6-0 Solomon Islands

1996 (First Leg)
Australia 6-0 Tahiti

1996 (Second Leg)
Australia 5-0 Tahiti

WORLD (World Cup)
1998
France 3-0 Brazil

1970
Brazil 4-1 Italy

1958
Brazil 5-2 Sweden

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Eight Points or More against England's 'Big Four'

This list shows the teams that have managed to pick up at least 8 points from 8 league games against England's Big Four (Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, and Manchester United) in the past 10 seasons.


2008/2009
10 - Tottehham Hotspur (2W-4D-2L; -3GD)
9 - Fulham (2W-3D-3L; -3GD)

2007/2008
NONE

2006/2007
12 - West Ham United (4W-0D-4L; -2GD)
9 - Everton (2W-3D-3L; -2GD)
9 - Portsmouth (2W-3D-3L; -4GD)

2005/2006
12 - Blackburn Rovers (4W-0D-4L; -3GD)
11 - Middlesbrough (3W-2D-3L; -3GD

2004/2005
11 - Birmingham City (3W-2D-3L; -2GD)
9 - Manchester City (2W-3D-3L; -2GD)
9 - Bolton Wanderers (2W-3D-3L; -3GD)

2003/2004
10 - Charlton Athletic (3W-1D-4L; -2GD)
9 - Southampton (3W-0D-5L; -5GD)
8 - Portsmouth (2W-2D-4L; -9GD)

2002/2003
14 - Blackburn Rovers (4W-2D-2L; +2GD)
9 - Leeds United (3W-0D-5L; -4GD)
8 - Middlesbrough (2W-2D-4L; -3GD)
8 - Newcastle United (2W-2D-4L; -8GD)
8 - West Ham United (2W-2D-4L; -8GD)

2001/2002
10 - Charlton Athletic (3W-1D-4L; -5GD)
9 - Bolton Wanderers (2W-3D-3L; -8GD)
8 - Aston Villa (2W-2D-4L; 0GD)
8 - Southampton (2W-2D-4L; -7GD)
8 - West Ham United (2W-2D-4L; -7GD)

2000/2001
14 - Leeds United (4W-2D-2L; +1GD)
12 - Sunderland (3W-3D-2L; 0GD)
10 - Middlesbrough (3W-1D-4L; 0GD)
10 - Southampton (3W-1D-4L; -5GD)
10 - Charlton Athletic (3W-1D-4L; -6GD)
10 - Leicester City (3W-1D-4L; -6GD)

1999/2000
9 - Tottenham Hotspur (3W-0D-5L; -3GD)
8 - Newcastle United (2W-2D-4L; -2GD)
8 - Middlesbrough (2W-2D-4L; -5GD)
8 - West Ham United (2W-2D-4L; -8GD)

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

08/09 Youngest League Appearances

This is a list of the handful of 15, 16, and 17 year olds that made at least one first team appearance in the major leagues of Europe and MLS last season (08/09). The age listed is the players age when they made their first appearance of the season.



English Premier League (8)
16 - Jose Baxter (Everton), Jack Wilshere (Arsenal)

17 - Chris Wood (West Brom), Jack Rodwell (Everton), Federico Macheda (Manchester United), Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal), Aaron Doran (Blackburn Rovers), Danny Welbeck (Manchester United)

France Ligue 1 (5)
17 - Timothee Kilodziejczak (Lyon), Rajiv Van La Parra (Caen), Eden Hazard (Lille), Henri Saivet (Bordeaux), Yannis Taffer (Lyon)

German Bundesliga (5)
17 - Lennart Hartmann (Hertha BSC), Kevin Vogt (VfL Bochum), Juvhel Tsoumou (Eintracht Frankfurt), Marco Terrazino (TSG Hoffenheim), Pascal Gross (TSG Hoffenheim)

Italy Serie A (4)
17 - Daniele Ragatzu (Cagliari), Allesandro Crescenzi (Roma), Luigi Sepe (Napoli), Simone Zaza (Atalanta)

Scottish Premier League (3)
17 - John Fleck (Rangers), Paul Slane (Motherwell), James McCarthy (Hamilton Accies)

Spain La Liga (0)
Bojan Krkic was 18 years 3 days when he made his first 08/09 appearance for Barcelona.
Jozy Altidore was 18 years 313 days on his Villarreal Debut


MLS (2009)
17 - Abdus Fuad Ibrahim (Toronto FC)

MLS (2008)
16 - Abdus Fuad Ibrahim (Toronto FC)
17 - Israel Sesay (Los Angeles Galaxy)

England (Championship)
15 - Reuben Noble-Lazarus* (Barnsley)
16 - Connor Wickham (Ipswich Town), Jonjo Shelvey (Charlton Athletic)
17 - Nathaniel Clyne (Crystal Palace), Kieron Djilali (Crystal Palace), Victor Moses (Crystal Palace), James Comley (Crystal Palace), Sean Scannell (Crystal Palace)




* At 15 years and 45 days old, Reuben Noble-Lazarus became the youngest player ever to feature in an English Football League match when he came on as a substitute during Barnsley's 3–0 Championship defeat by Ipswich Town on 30 September 2008.

Monday, July 20, 2009

LA Galaxy vs AC Milan Highlights and Post Game Reactions

Apologies for the 'lazy' post today, I've been short on time recently. I stayed up way past my 'newborn-influenced' bedtime to watch this game last night and I have to say it was worth the lost sleep. Entertaining game, Beckham-boos, Beckham precision passing, Inspired (again) Landon Donovan, Ronaldinho looking like the Ronny of old, the game had a little bit of everything. Here are the highlights and a few post game reactions.



Friday, July 17, 2009

Soccer Clubs with Company Names

This is a list of world soccer clubs with the name of a company in their official name.


Airbus U.K. Broughton (Wales)
Air India (India)
Bayer 04 Leverkusen (Germany)
Busan I'Park (South Korea)
Carl Zeiss Jena (Germany)
Cisco Roma (Italy, Serie C2)
Cruz Azul (Mexico)
Dempo SC (India)
FC Torpedo-ZIL Moscow (Russia)
Inti Gas Deportes (Peru)
Jagatjit Cotton and Textile Mills FC (India)
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (South Korea)
Kingfisher East Bengal FC (India)
La Equidad (Colombia)
Philips Sport Vereniging "PSV" Eindhoven (Netherlands)
Quilmes (Argentina)
Red Bull Brasil (Brazil)
Red Bull New York (USA)
Red Bull Salzburg (Austria)
Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma (South Korea)
Sheriff Tiraspol (Moldova)
Skoda Xanthi (Greece)
Suwon Samsung Bluewings (South Korea)
Technogroup Welshpool Town (Wales)
Total Chalaco (Peru)
Vauxhall Motors (England, Conference North)
Wacker Burghausen (Germany)

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Copa Libertadores Finals Facts since 1988

All of the final scores listed are 2 game aggregate totals

Argentina vs Brazil Finals
2009
Estudiantes vs Cruzeiro 2-1

2007
Boca Juniors vs Grêmio 5-0

2003
Boca Juniors vs Santos 5-1

2000
Boca Juniors vs Palmeiras 2-2 (4-2 Pen)

1994
Velez Sarsfield vs São Paulo 1-1 (5-3 Pen)

1992
São Paulo vs Newell's Old Boys 1-1 (3-2 Pen)


All-Brazil Finals - Surprisingly, there has never been an all-Argentine Final
2006
São Paulo vs Internacional 3-4

2005
Atlético Paranaense vs São Paulo 1-5


No Brazilian or Argentine Club in the Finals
1991
Colo-Colo vs Olimpia 3-0

1990
Olimpia vs Barcelona 3-1

1989
Atlético Nacional vs Olimpia 2-2 (5-4 Pen)


Finalists since 1988
Brazil (15)
São Paulo (5) Cruzeiro (2) Grêmio (2) Palmeiras (2) Fluminense (1) Internacional (1) Atlético PR (1) Santos (1) São Caetano (1) Vasco (1)

Argentina (9)
Boca Juniors (5) Newell's Old Boys (2) Estudiantes (1) River Plate (1) Velez Sarsfield (1)

Colombia (5)
Atlético Nacional (2) Once Caldas (1) Deportivo Cali (1) America de Dali (1)

Paraguay (4)
Olimpia (4)

Chile (2)
Colo-Colo (1) Universidad Catolica (1)

Ecuador (2)
Barcelona (2) LDU Quito (1)

Mexico (1)
Cruz Azul (1)

Peru (1)
Sporting Cristal (1)


Winners by Nation
Brazil - 8
Argentina - 7
Colombia - 2
Paraguay - 2
Uruguay - 2
Ecuador - 1



Original Post: May 3, 2008
Updated: July 16, 2009

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

MLS and USL 2009 Summer Friendly Schedule



Saturday, July 18 (ESPN2, 3:00PM ET)
Chelsea FC v. Seattle Sounders (Qwest Field, Seattle)

Saturday, July 18 (USLlive.com, 7:00PM ET)
Estudiantes Tecos (Mexico) v. Carolina Railhawks (WakeMed Soccer Park, Cary, NC)

Sunday, July 19 (ESPN, 10:00PM ET)
AC Milan v. Los Angeles Galaxy (Home Depot Center, Carson, CA)

Wednesday, July 22 (7:30PM ET)
River Plate v. Toronto FC (BMO Field, Toronto)

Wednesday, July 22 (*, 8:35PM ET)
Comunicaciones (Guatemala) v. Minnesota Thunder (National Sports Center, Minneapolis)

Saturday, July 25 (*, 10:00PM ET)
Burnley FC v. Portland Timbers (PGE Park, Portland)

Tuesday, July 28 (*, 7:30PM ET)
Girondins de Bordeaux v. Montreal Impact (Olympic Stadium, Montreal)

Wednesday, July 29 (ESPN2, 9:30PM)
Everton FC v. MLS All-Stars (Rio Tinto Stadium, Utah)

Saturday, August 1 (FSC, 11:00PM ET)
Barcelona v. LA Galaxy (Rose Bowl, Pasadena)

Tuesday, August 4 (*, 7:30PM ET)
River Plate v. Montreal Impact (Stade Saputo, Montreal)

Wednesday, August 5 (ESPN2, 10:30PM ET)
Barcelona v. Seattle Sounders (Qwest Field, Seattle)

Friday, August 7 (GOLTV Canada, 7:30PM ET)
Real Madrid v. Toronto FC (BMO Field, Toronto)

Sunday, August 9 (FSC, 3:00PM ET)
Real Madrid v. DC United (RFK, Washington DC)



* I couldn't find tv listings for the USL games, but it would be worth checking USLlive.com at game time. Last season a few of the summer friendlies were streamed there and it's good quality and free.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Videos: Animated Soccer Shows and Clips

Here are a few example clips of soccer in animated (cartoon) form. The first clip is the full first episode of Captain Tsubasa: Road to 2002 (wiki). Veoh has more full episodes of the classic soccer anime. The clips following Tsubasa are from The Simpsons (couldn't find a decent Ronaldo appearance clip), Family Guy, Whistle!, Hungry Heart Wild Striker, and Inazuma Eleven. There are quite a few more anime soccer shows out there, but I'm no expert. Feel free to share your favorite soccer animation moments or shows in the comments.


Watch captain tsubasa 01 in Anime | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com









Monday, July 13, 2009

Argentine Born Players who've Played for National Teams outside of South America

These players were all born in Argentina but went on to play International soccer with a 'foreign' national team outside of South America. (Since 1950)



Antonio Angelillo - Italy (1961-1962)
Jose Andres Bilibio - Armenia (2002-2004)
Daniel Brailovsky - Israel (1986-1988)
Gabriel Caballero - Mexico (2002)
Mauro Camoranesi - Italy (2002-present)
Ruben Cano - Spain (1977-1979)
Pablo Cardozo - Australia (2000)
Roberto Colautti - Isreal (2002-present)
Nestor Combin - France (1964-1968)
Oscar Crino - Australia (1981-1989)
Hector De Bourgoing - France (1962-1966)
Alfredo di Stefano - Spain (1957-1963)
Jose Eulogio Garate - Spain (1967-1975)
Francisco Lojacono - Italy (1959-1962)
Humberto Maschio - Italy (1962)
Pablo Mastroeni - USA (2001-present)
Gabriel Mendez - Australia (1994-2000)
Miguel Montuori - Italy (1956-1960)
Alejandro Naif - Palestine (2002-2004)
Emiliano Pedrozo - El Salvador (2004)
Mariano Pernia - Spain (2006-present)
Bruno Pesaola - Italy (1957)
Juan Antonio Pizzi - Spain (1994-1998)
Angel Rambert - France (1962-1964)
Hector Rial - Spain (1955-1958)
Omar Sivori - Italy (1961-1962)

Friday, July 10, 2009

Journeymen of Gold Cup 2009

This is a list of journeymen players at the 2009 Gold Cup that have played at 8 clubs or more in their career.

13 - Mickaël Antoine-Curier (Guadeloupe)
Preston North End
Nottingham Forest
Brentford
Oldham Athletic
Kidderminster Harriers
Rochdale
Sheffield Wednesday
Notts County
Grimsby Town
Vard Haugesund (Norway)
FK Haugesund (Norway)
Hibernian (Scotland)
Dundee (Scotland)

12 - Delroy Facey (Grenada)
Huddersfield Town
Bolton Wanderers
Bradford City
Burnley
West Bromwich Albion
Hull City
Oldham Athletic
Tranmere Rovers
Rogherham United
Gillingham
Wycombe Wanderers
Notts County

12 - Byron Bubb (Grenada)
Millwall
Hendon
Slough Town
Boreham Wood
Aylesbury United
Hemel Hempstead Town
Cheshunt
Dover Athletic
AFC Wimbledon
Harrow Borough
Burnham FC
Farnborough FC

11 - Ali Gerba (Canada)
Montreal Impact
Miami Fusion
Pittsburgh Riverhounds
Toronto Lynx
GIF Sundsvall
IFK Goteborg
Odd Grenland
AC Horsens
Ingolstadt
Milton Keynes Dons
Toronto FC

11 - Charles Gbeke (Canada)
Troyes (France)
Comercial (Brazil)
Matsubara (Brazil)
Vancouver Whitecaps
Seattle Sounders
Ottawa Wizards
Toronto Lynx
Hamilton Thunder
Herfølge (Denmark)
Montreal Impact
Rochester Raging Rhinos

10 - Blas Perez (Panama)
Panama Viejo
Arabe Unido (Panama)
Nacional (Uruguay)
Envigado (Colombia)
Centauros (Colombia)
Deportivo Cali (Colombia)
Cucuta Deportivo (Colombia)
Hercules DF (Spain)
UANL Tigres (Mexico)
Pachuca (Mexico)

9 - Froylan Ledezma (Costa Rica)
Alajuelense (Costa Rica)
Ajax (Netherlands)
Cerro Porteño (Paraguay)
Deportivo Saprissa
The Strongest (Bolivia)
Akratitos (Greece)
SCR Altach (Austria)
FC Augsberg (Germany)
Admira Wacker (Austria)

9 - Victor Herrera (Panama)
Panama Viejo
Sporting '89 (Panama)
Toluca (Mexico)
Necaxa (Mexico)
Firpo (El Salvador)
Millonarios (Colombia)
San Francisco (Panama)
Puerto rico Islanders
Sevilla FC Bayamon (Puerto Rico)

9 - Luis Tejada (Panama)
Tauro (Panama)
Plaza Amador (Panama)
Deportes Tolima (Colombia)
Envigado FC (Colombia)
Al Ain FC (UAE)
Once Caldas (Colombia)
Real Salt Lake
America de Cali (Colombia)
Millonarios (Colombia)

8 - Felipe Baloy (Panama)
Eurokickers FC (Panama)
Sporting '89 (Panama)
Envigado (Colombia)
Independiente Medellin (Colombia)
Gremio (Brazil)
Atletico Paranaense (Brazil)
CF Monterrey (Mexico)
America (Mexico)

8 - Nicolas Munoz (Panama)
Sporting '89 (Panama)
Arabe Unido (Panama)
Envigado (Colombia)
Chalatenango (El Salvador)
FAS (El Salvador)
Aguila (El Salvador)
Alianza (El Salvador)
Vista Hermosa (El Salvador)

8 - Alberto Blanco (Panama)
San Francisco (Panama)
Sheriff Tiraspol (Moldova)
Alania Vladikavkaz (Russia)
Al-Ain FC (UAE)
Al-Nasr (Saudi Arabia)
Plaza Amador (Panama)
Atletico Junior (Colombia)
Maccabi Netanya (Israel)

8 - José Luis Garcés (Panama)
Club Atletico Independiente (Panama)
Sporting '89 (Panama)
Arabe Unido (Panama)
San Francisco (Panama)
Nacional (Uruguay)
OS Belenenses (Portugal)
CSKA Sofia (Bulgaria)
Academica de Coimbra (Portugal)

8 - Jamal Campbell-Ryce (Jamaica)
Charlton Athletic
Leyton Orient
Wimbledon
Chesterfield
Rotherham United
Southend United
Colchester United
Barnsley

8 - Ricardo Fuller (Jamaica)
Crystal Palace
Tivoli Gardens (Jamaica)
Hearts (Scotland)
Preston North End
Portsmouth
Southampton
Ipswich Town
Stoke City

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Interactive Map: Club Teams - Haiti Gold Cup Squad

This Google map shows the club teams of the 2009 Haitian Gold Cup squad, the USA's next matchup in the group stage of the GC. There are some interesting 'stadiums' to look at if you click the icons and zoom in. Click the link below the map for a list view of the players and their clubs.


View Club Teams: Haiti Gold Cup Squad in a larger map

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

All-Time Premiership Assist Leaders by Nation

Here are the English Premier League's All-Time Assist leaders sorted using only the top assisting player from each country. (minimum 15 assists)

Assists
Nation
Player
66
Wales
Ryan Giggs
62
France
Thierry Henry
61
England
Frank Lampard
51
Spain
Cesc Fabregas
39
Portugal
Cristiano Ronaldo
32
Bulgaria
Dimitar Berbatov
32
Netherlands
Dennis Bergkamp
32
Norway
Morten Gamst Pedersen
31
Republic of Ireland
Robbie Keane
31
Peru
Nolberto Solano
30
Senegal
El-Hadji Diouf
30
Cote d'Ivoire
Didier Drogba
26
Sweden
Freddie Ljungberg
24
Australia
Mark Viduka
20
Cameroon
Geremi
20
Denmark
Claus Jensen
19
Iceland
Eidur Gudjohnsen
19
Nigeria
Yakubu
18
Togo
Emmanuel Adebayor
18
Czech Republic
Patrik Berger
17
Canada
Tomasz Radzinski
16
Israel
Yossi Benayoun
16
Italy
Paolo Di Canio
16
Grenada
Jason Roberts
15
Argentina
Carlos Tevez

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Official Soccer Player Websites

This is a list of English Language "Official" player websites from MLS (and former MLS) and the rest of the world. Be prepared for a plethora of flash intros, self-indulgent photos, and month old content.


MLS

Jimmy Conrad
www.jimmyconrad.com

Chris Rolfe
www.chrisrolfe.com

Maurice Edu
www.mauriceedu.com

Landon Donovan
www.landondonovan.com

Jim Brennan
www.jimmyb11.com

Danny Dichio
www.dichio24.com

Rohan Ricketts
rohanricketts.com

David Beckham
www.davidbeckham.com


WORLD
Afonso Alves
http://www.alvesofficial.com/

Ryan Babel
www.babelofficial.com

Michael Ballack
http://www.michael-ballack.com/?101A1A2A100

Diego
http://www2.diego10.com.br/en/

Didier Drogba
www.didierdrogba.com

Michael Essien
www.michaelessiengh.com

Luis Fabiano
http://www.fabianoofficial.com/

Cesc Fabregas
http://www.cescfabregassoler.com/

William Gallas
http://www.williamgallas.net/en/index.asp

Owen Hargreaves
www.owenhargreaves.de

Andres Iniesta
http://www.andresiniesta.es/index_eng.html

Stephen Ireland
www.stephenireland.com

Mehdi Mahdavikia
http://www.mahdavikia.de/?111A0A2

Michael Owen
www.michaelowen.com

Carlos Puyol
http://www.carles5puyol.com/

Ronaldinho
http://www.ronaldinhogaucho.com/

Giuseppi Rossi
http://www.giusepperossi.com/pages/index_uk.html

Roque Santa Cruz
http://www.roquesantacruz.com.py/enlang/default.aspx

Andriy Schevchenko
www.sheva7.com

Clarence Seedorf
www.seedorf.com

Wesley Sneijder
www.sneijderofficial.com

Luca Toni
http://www.lucatoni.com/

Fernando Torres
www.fernando9torres.com

Rafael Van der Vaart
www.vandervaartofficial.com

Namanja Vidic
www.nemanjavidic.com

David Villa
http://www.davidvilla7.com/index.php?idioma=2

Shaun Wright-Phillips
www.clubswp.com




I've been working on this list for a long time and put together most of it on my own but recently found a good site (that I wish I'd found sooner) with much of this info on it - Best Players Directory. Check that site out for fansites, foreign language official players sites, and more.

Feel free to let me know of more "Official" player sites in the comments or by email.

Monday, July 6, 2009

Videos: Funny Goal Celebrations

Here are 7 funny/bizarre goal celebrations. I'd like to see all of the USA goalkeepers doing the celebration in the second video from now on. That's not too much to ask, is it guys?














Friday, July 3, 2009

Tv Schedule: 2009 Gold Cup Knockout Stage

MATCH DATE MATCH TIME TV

QTR July 18 Group A-1 v Group B-2 * 5 pm ET TeleFutura
QTR July 18 Group B-1 v Group A/C-3 * 8 pm ET TeleFutura
QTR July 19 Group C-1 v Group A/B-3 * 4 pm ET Univision
QTR July 19 Group C-2 v Group A-2* 7 pm ET Univision
SEM July 23 Philadephia QTR Winners * 7 pm ET TeleFutura
SEM July 23 Dallas QTR Winners * 10 pm ET TeleFutura
Final July 26 Semifinal Winners 3 pm ET Univision



* Order of matches
within same venue
could be switched.

Group Stage Schedule

TV Schedule: 2009 Gold Cup Group Stage


GROUP DATE MATCHUP
TIME TV
A July 3 Canada v Jamaica
8 pm ET Galavision
A July 3 Costa Rica v El Salvador
10 pm ET TeleFutura
B July 4 Honduras v Haiti
7 pm ET Galavision
B July 4 Grenada v United States
9 pm ET FSC & TeleFutura
C July 5 Panama v Guadaloupe
5 pm ET Galavision
C July 5 Nicaragua v Mexico
7 pm ET Univision
A July 7 Jamaica v Costa Rica
7 pm ET TeleFutura
A July 7 El Salvador v Canada
9 pm ET Galavision
B July 8 Haiti v Grenada
7 pm ET Galavision
B July 8 United States v Honduras
9 pm ET FSC & TeleFutura
C July 9 Guadaloupe v Nicaragua
8 pm ET Galavision
C July 9 Mexico v Panama
10 pm ET Univision
A July 10 Costa Rica v Canada
7 pm ET Galavision
A July 10 El Salvador v Jamaica
9 pm ET TeleFutura
B July 11 United States v Haiti
7 pm ET FSC & TeleFutura
B July 11 Honduras v Grenada
9 pm ET TeleFutura
C July 12 Panama v Nicaragua
4 pm ET Galavision
C July 12 Mexico v Guadaloupe
6 pm ET Univision


Knockout Stage Schedule

2009 Gold Cup Squad Experience

Here are a few stats to help get an idea of the experience of the Gold Cup squads. While USA, Honduras, and Mexico have sent 'B/C' squads, nations like Jamaica, El Salvador, and Panama have sent close to their full strength 'A' teams. Will that even the field?


Players with 60 caps or more
117 - Walter Centeno (Costa Rica)
113 - Ian Goodison (Jamaica)
96 - Ricardo Gardner (Jamaica)
91 - Harold Wallace (Costa Rica)
80 - Donovan Ricketts (Jamaica)
78 - Tyrone Marshall (Jamaica)
77 - Andy Williams (Jamaica)
77 - Pierre Bruny (Haiti)
74 - Paul Stalteri (Canada)
70 - Frantz Gilles (Haiti)
68 - Alfredo Pacheco (El Salvador)
63 - Claude Davis (Jamaica)
60 - Leonardo González (Costa Rica)

Average Caps
38.48 - Jamaica
33.17 - Panama
26.48 - El Salvador
23.17 - Costa Rica
20.78 - Canada
18.57 - Mexico
16.26 - Haiti
12.17 - Grenada
9.21 - Guadeloupe
8.26 - USA (10.53 with 7 Add-On Players)
5.20 - Honduras
2.30 - Nicaragua


Average Age
28.22 - Costa Rica
27.26 - Panama
27.04 - Canada
27.00 - Jamaica
26.26 - Guadloupe
25.96 - Mexico
25.65 - El Salvador
25.61 - Nicaragua
25.53 - USA
24.87 - Grenada
24.56 - Honduras (Zero Players over 30)
24.05 - Haiti


Players with 5 caps or less
23 - Nicaragua
17 - Honduras
16 - USA
10 - Haiti
10 - Mexico
9 - Grenada
9 - Guadeloupe
8 - Costa Rica
5 - Canada
3 - Jamaica
2 - El Salvador
1 - Panama

Players with 40 caps or more
10 - Jamaica
9 - Panama
5 - Costa Rica
5 - El Salvador
4 - Canada
4 - Mexico
3 - Haiti
1 - Guadeloupe
1 - USA
0 - Grenada
0 - Honduras
0 - Nicaragua

Thursday, July 2, 2009

UK Based Players on Gold Cup 2009 Squads


ENGLAND

Arsenal
FW - Carlos Vela (Mexico)

Barnsley
MF - Jamal Campbell-Ryce (Jamaica)

Bolton Wanderers
DF - Ricardo Gardner (Jamaica)

Derby County
DF - Claude Davis (Jamaica)

Gillingham
FW - Simeon Jackson (Canada)
DF - Rimmel Daniel (Grenada)

Harrow Borough
GK - Andray Baptiste (Grenada)

Ipswich Town
MF - Jamie Peters (Canada)

Notts County
FW - Delroy Facey (Grenada)

Queens Park Rangers
DF - Damion Stewart (Jamaica)

Sheffield Wednesday
MF - Jermaine Johnson (Jamaica)

Slough Town
MF - Byron Bubb (Grenada)

Stoke City
FW - Ricardo Fuller (Jamaica)

Tottenham Hotspur
MF - Giovani Dos Santos (Mexico)

Tranmere Rovers
DF - Ian Goodison (Jamaica)

Wigan Athletic
FW - Marlon King (Jamaica)

Yeovil Town
GK - Josh Wagenaar (Canada)


SCOTLAND
Dundee
FW - Mickaël Antoine-Curier (Guadeloupe)

Inverness Caledonian Thistle
DF - Richard Hastings (Canada)

WALES
Cardiff City
DF - Miguel Comminges (Guadeloupe)

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Interactive Map: Gold Cup 2009 Venues and Schedule

This Google Map shows all of the venues for the 2009 Gold Cup. Click the icons for schedule and matchup information at each venue and zoom in to see the stadiums. Click 'View Gold Cup 2009 Venues in a larger map' for a list view of the venues and dates.


View Gold Cup 2009 Venues in a larger map