Rumor Mill: Man Utd for Sale?

The transfer windows are when most of the football rumors are floated around the interwebs, but it seems that someone has gotten the jump on the gossip usually reserved for January. There are reports that a group of Chinese businessmen have a bid ready to buy Manchester United for over 1 billion pounds! That is absolutely absurd. While seemingly ridiculous, it might be somewhat believable for a couple of reasons. One is that the club currently has debt in excess of 700 million pounds which it has had some difficulty refinancing. The other reason being that we have seen similar big sales in the last couple of years, including Chelsea and Manchester City to Russian and Middle Eastern billionaires. Let's see what the Glazers (Americans who also own the Tampa Bay Bucs) decide to do.

Is the offer even real? Is it too good to pass up? Are Gillette and Hicks wishing the Chinese would approach them for a sale? We'll find out soon enough.

NCAA College Cup Final

Today at 1PM, the Akron Zips will face the Cavaliers from the University of Virginia for the NCAA men's national championship. The match is being played in Cary, NC and will be aired on ESPN2 and ESPN360.com.

It seems as though whoever ranked the teams prior to the tournament did a good job. Undefeated Akron (23-0-1) is the #1 ranked team and UVA (18-3-3) holds the #2 position. The Zips are going for their first national title while UVA is trying for its 6th (last title won in 1994).

While I'm a bit partial to my alma mater in UVA, I think it should be a good game. UVA is on a 15 game win streak while Akron has been playing well also. Both teams did face tough tests in the semifinals with UVA beating Wake Forest in OT and Akron defeating UNC in penalty kicks. Hopefully this game will be decided in regulation and not go to penalties.

Go Hoos!

MLS Top Goals of 2009

I know the MLS season ended last month, but I thought I would highlight some of the great goals from the past year. Below are the top 10 "Goal of the Year" nominees. Landon Donovan won the award, and I think rightly so. That was a siiick nasty full volley with some crazy swerve on it. For me, Clint Mathis' one-time volley and Freddy Montero's long range blast were honorable mention. Enjoy.

World Cup 2010 Draw

On December 4th, the draw for next summer's World Cup in South Africa was announced. Some countries were happy (USA!) and some would like a re-do of the groupings. Below are the groups as decided by a hybrid ranking and random selection process.

Group A: South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay, France

Group B: Argentina, Nigeria, South Korea, Greece

Group C: England, USA, Algeria, Slovenia

Group D: Germany, Australia, Serbia, Ghana

Group E: Netherlands, Denmark, Japan, Cameroon

Group F: Italy, Paraguay, New Zealand, Slovakia

Group G: Brazil, North Korea, Ivory Coast, Portugal (GROUP OF DEATH)

Group H: Spain, Switzerland, Honduras, Chile

With the groups decided, now teams can go about scouting opponents, forming strategy and finalizing their rosters for the finals which start on June 11, 2010. Group G looks to be the "Group of Death." Looks like C. Ronaldo might want to sharpen up his triple step-overs and apply a little extra hair gel if Portugal plan to advance against the all-star roster of the cup holders Brazil and Ivory Coast with the likes of Didier "The Great Diver" Drogba and the Toure brothers. USA seems to have a good opportunity to advance to the 2nd round for the first time since 2002 when they made it all the way to the quarterfinals. With that being said, USA still has a lot of unanswered questions about its team that need to be figured out before this summer.

Now that the draw is set...LET THE COUNTDOWN TO JUNE 11 BEGIN!

We're Back!

With the draw for the upcoming World Cup in South Africa being announced a week ago, I've become inspired to start up the blog again. Look out for new posts on the beautiful game!

U.S. Soccer: The Goals of 2008

Here is a video that U.S. Soccer put together of the Men's national team goals from 2008. While the video quality isn't that great, some of the goals are pretty good. I think my favorite is Jozy's powerful header (and first MNT goal) against Mexico. The tunes are pretty sweet and should get you amped up for the World Cup qualifying games that will take place in 2009. If you want to go back and see 2007's best U.S. goals, check out this post.

Early Transfer Window Action

The European transfer window has only been for 24 hours, but that hasn't stopped several clubs from making early moves. Here is a quick roundup of the some of the first moves of the window.

• Full-back Wayne Bridge moves from Chelsea to Manchester City for an undisclosed transfer fee. Call it intuition, but something tells me this is the first of several moves City will be making in the next few weeks. And this move seems to imply that City is looking to sure up their defense before they make an anticipated (and seemingly inevitable) high profile offensive signing.
• Manchester United signed Serbian wingers Zoran Tosic and Adem Ljajic from Partizan Belgrade for a transfer fee reported to be near 17 million Euros. Ljajic, just 17 years old, will remain on loan in Belgrade, but Tosic, 21, will have the opportunity to train under Ryan Giggs and could be used in the near future. Tosic has been touted as one of the best young wingers in Europe, and will have fellow Serbian Nemanja Vidic to ease his transition into English football.

Dempsey Comes Up Big

Clint Dempsey delivered when it was needed this past weekend with 2 goals against Chelsea to salvage a point at Craven Cottage and extend Fulham's unbeaten streak to 9 games. Dempsey scored his 3rd and 4th goal of the season against the Blues on Sunday and has consequently helped to cement his place in Fulham's starting lineup. Dempsey was not in favor with Roy Hodgeson at the begining of the season but has worked his way towards playing regular minutes.

Good for Clint. He is one of my favorite American players to watch and I am glad he is doing well in London. Hopefully his quality play will continue through the rest of the season and help keep Fulham in the top half of the Premiership table. While this season has been much closer in terms of points separating the 20 EPL teams, it seems as though Fulham has a good thing going and should avoid a relegation scare such as last year. Currently Fulham sits in 9th position with 26 points. Their next three Premiership games come against Blackburn, West Ham and Sunderland, definitely some opportunities to pick up some points.

Arsenal Without Cesc for 3-4 Months

Gunner fans who saw Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas go down during Sunday's 1-1 draw against first placed Liverpool had their fears confirmed this morning. Cesc is reported to have partially ruptured his medial collateral ligament, and will be sidelined for 3-4 months.

This proves as yet another blow to Arsenal's already dwindling title hopes; no word on whether this injury will affect Wenger's actions during the winter transfer window. The transfer period runs from January 1st through January 31st.

Juande Ramos set to take over in Madrid

Former Tottenham and Sevilla manager Juande Ramos will take charge of Real Madrid today; his managerial debut will be a UEFA Champions League match that could have Madrid finishing atop their group with a win. Ramos must be enthusiastic about the opportunity with a top flight club, but his tenure with Madrid may prove to be anything but long term. Ramos is contracted for only a 6 month period and Madrid is notorious for discarding managers. Ramos will be Madrid's 11th coach in the last 10 years.

Madrid takes on Zenit St. Petersburg today in UEFA Matchday 6. Ramos will want a strong performance from his side, but the performance to watch might be that of Zenit's Andri Arshavin. Ramos has called him "magical" and may be looking heal some of Madrid's injury woes by bringing Arshavin to Real during the transfer window.

Carlo Ancelotti "Fumed" with AC Milan

AC Milan was handed a sobering 3-1 defeat by Sicilian club Palermo in a loss that gives first place Inter a commanding 6 point lead over their inter-city rivals. The Rossoneri were unable to take the lead in the 27th minute when Ronaldinho failed to convert a penatly and did not find the back of the net until it was far too late. Palermo had already scored three goals before Ronaldinho got one back in the 83 minute. And in an effort to calm his frustration, Carlo Ancelotti was caught on the sideline taking advantage of the Serie A's smoking policy (or lack there of--good luck getting away with that in the EPL).

Ronaldinho Goes Top Shelf

Ronaldinho showed his skill once again with this superb strike against Portsmouth on Matchday 3 of the UEFA Cup.

Portugal, Ronaldo Embarrased in Brazil Friendly

World Player of the Year, Cristiano Ronaldo's Portuguese side was dismantled by an inspired Brazilian side in this weeks international friendly. Portugal were outplayed throughout, and were handed a 6-2 defeat, but the excitement didn't come to an end with the final whistle.

It seems that just about everyone had something to say about Ronaldo's performance. Brazilian defender Silva refused to shake Ronaldo's hand on behalf of what Silva claimed to be a "leg breaking" tackle shelled out by Cristiano. And another Brazilian defender also spoke out against Ronaldo's apparent lack of class; Marcelo claimed he fell victim to a Ronaldo elbow.

Cristiano quipped to the press earlier this week that he was so good last year, he should have been awarded not only the FIFA World Player of the Year, but the top three spots. In response to this Brazilian international Elano showed his class with a statement that captured the his sides' sentiment on the night, "Cristiano Ronaldo scores big goals and does excellent exhibitions but for me I would choose Kaka as the world's number one. We certainly overcame Portugal in this duel and I will always help Kaka to overcome Ronaldo."

Manucho Rejoins Manchester United

With all the attention on the Dimitar Berbatov saga, little has been made of 25 year old Angolan national, Manucho, who has rejoined Manchester United after finally securing a UK work permit. Manucho signed a three year contract with United last December, but was forced out on loan to Panathinaikos FC after he was unable to obtain a UK work permit.

It became obvious just how good of a prospect Manucho was after his spectacular showing at this years' African Cup of Nations. During the Cup of Nations he scored four goals in three games and was named honored with a "Best XI of the Cup" award. Now the real question will be, how does Ferguson balance the likes of Berbatov, Rooney, Tevez and Manucho?

Tottenham Transfer Speculation

Reports are surfacing that Tottenham Manager Juande Ramos is hoping to make this transfer window a memorable one. ESPN is reporting that Ramos is looking to sign David Villa, Andrei Arshavin and Vedran Corluka for a sum of roughly 120 million dollars. The transfers (and now we move into the heavy speculation) would be partially funded by the 60 million dollar sale of Dimitar Berbatov to Manchester United.

Quite the undertaking? It might not be as far fetched as one would think. David Villa has reportedly stated that he is ready for a move to the Premier League. Tottenham may prove to be an easy transition for the Spaniard because of the fast style of play enforced by Ramos' managing. Arshavin's chances at joining Barcelona seem lost; the striker might be thinking that a trip to Tottenham is his only chance at leaving Russia. And as for Corluka, Ramos has publicly stated that he hopes to base his defense on a partnership between the Croatian and Jonathan Woodgate.

Nothing but another fantastic European transfer window pipe dream? Perhaps, but with the recent inclusion of David Bentley, Giovani and Luka Modric, one has to feel that Ramos has the vision and the capability of putting together a side that is capable of great things. Now all he needs is the money.

EPL Transfers

I know this list is a bit dated (from July 21), but it gives a good overview of most of the transfers that Barclay's Premier League teams have made this summer. Check it out and start to map out your fantasy team for the upcoming season. The season kicks off on August 16th.

Liverpool Sign Robbie Keane in 20 Million Pound Deal

Tottenham fans will be saddened to see Robbie Keane depart White Hart Lane as Liverpool completed the signing of the Irish National. The deal's legitimacy was initially questioned by Tottenham, but the Spurs have officially withdrawn their previously filed complaint. Liverpool has been in the hunt for a striker since the departure of Peter Crouch. And with the addition of Keane to Liverpool's attack, its hard to deny that the Red's goal scoring potential. Keane has reported to Anfield for his his team physical.

Spurs fans are probably pretty shaken up (especially with the continued doubts of Dimitar Berbatov's future) but I wouldn't be too quick to lose faith in Tottenham. Juande Ramos is an adept manager and now with the departure of Robbie, I doubt that the additions of Luka Modric, Giovani Dos Santos will be the last of the summer.

Americans at Villa Park

The American Brads have taken over at Aston Villa during the current transfer window. First Brad Guzan signed with Aston Villa several weeks ago (pending a work permit being issued) and today Brad Friedel's transfer went through from long time club Blackburn. Friedel will almost definitely come in as the starter, taking Guzan under his wing.

This is a great development for Guzan. He will be able to transition into the EPL under Friedel, a seasoned keeper in one of the best leagues in the world. This will also bode well for the USA national team as their historically strong position of goalkeeper will gain even more strength with Guzan's development with the Villians. Either way, we should see a Brad playing between the sticks at Villa this season. Go Brad(s)!

Summer Transfers: Shakers and Movers

Ronaldinho: Barcelona to AC Milan

Alexander Hleb: Arsenal to Barcelona

Dimitar Berbatov: Tottenham to Man United??

Gilberto Silva: Arsenal to Panathinaikos

Peter Crouch: Liverpool to Portsmouth

Giovani dos Santos: Barcelona to Tottenham

Luca Modric: Dinamo Zagreb to Tottenham

Brad Guzan: CD Chivas USA to Aston Villa

Claudio Reyna: To Retire from Red Bull New York

Brian McBride: Fulham to ???

Josh Wolff: 1860 Munich to Kansas City Wizards

Video: Top Goals at Euro 2008

I feel as though I've been spoiled by the European Championships. Now I am going to have to wait another 2 months to watch top notch football (I guess we do have the Olympics to tide us over). If you miss the goals and drama of the Euro Cup as much as I do then here is a little video to cheer you up. These are a few of the better goals scored at the tournament.