Defending champ Canada to open U-20 Women’s Championship against Costa Rica

December 3, 2009

Canada will face Costa Rica to open the CONCACF Under-20 Women’s Championship while host Guatemala will play Cuba later on January 20 in the struggle to determine the confederation’s three qualifiers for the World Cup.

Trinidad & Tobago will open play for Group B the following day against Mexico, with the reigning world champion United States completing the first round of group matches against Jamaica immediately afterward.

Group A resumes on January 22 with Cuba taking on defending champion Canada, and Guatemala playing Costa Rica. Mexico and Jamaica face off on January 23 with Trinidad playing the United States.

Group play concludes with Costa Rica facing Cuba, and Guatemala playing Canada on January 24, while Jamaica faces Trinidad, and the United States confronting Mexico a day later.

The group winners will play the runners-up from the opposite group on January 28, with the championship and third-place matches set for Saturday, January 30.

The finalists and third-place winner will qualify for next year’s World Cup in Germany July 13-August 1.

Group A
Canada
Costa Rica
Guatemala
Cuba

Group B
United States
Mexico
Jamaica
Trinidad & Tobago

SCHEDULE
(Kickoff times in U.S. Eastern; local kickoff times in parentheses)
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, January 20
Canada vs. Costa Rica, 3 p.m. (2 p.m.)
Guatemala vs. Cuba, 5:30 p.m. (4:30 p.m.)

Thursday, January 21
Trinidad & Tobago vs. Mexico, 3 p.m. (2 p.m.)
Jamaica vs. United States, 5:30 p.m. (4:30 p.m.)

Friday, January 22
Cuba vs. Canada, 3 p.m. (2 p.m.)
Guatemala vs. Costa Rica, 5:30 p.m. (4:30 p.m.)

Saturday, January 23
Mexico vs. Jamaica, 3 p.m. (2 p.m.)
Trinidad & Tobago vs. United States, 5:30 p.m. (4:30 p.m.)

Sunday, January 24
Costa Rica vs. Cuba 11 a.m. (10 a.m.)
Guatemala vs. Canada, 1:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m.)

Monday, January 25
Jamaica vs. Trinidad & Tobago, 3 p.m. (2 p.m.)
United States vs. Mexico, 5:30 p.m. (4:30 p.m.)

SEMIFINALS
Thursday, January 28
Group B winner vs. Group A runner-up, 2:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m.)
Group A winner vs. Group B runner-up, 5:30 p.m. (4:30 p.m.)

FINALS
Saturday, January 30
Third Place
Semifinal losers, 2:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m.)
Championship
Semifinal winners, 5:30 p.m. (4:30 p.m.)

GUATEMALA CITY

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Quaranta, Ching give USA 2-0 victory over Honduras

July 9, 2009

WASHINGTON -Santino Quaranta struck in the 75th minute to beat Honduran goalkeeper Donis Escobar inside the near post, lifting the United States to a 2-0 win against Honduras in a clash of Group B titans Wednesday night at RFK Stadium.

Brian Ching headed home an insurance goal four minutes later for the United States, which moved to the verge of the quarterfinals with six points atop Group B.

It was the fourth victory for the United States in as many meetings against Honduras in Gold Cup history. The Americans also defeated Honduras in a World Cup qualifier 2-1 a month ago at Chicago’s Soldier Field, the site of the Gold Cup semifinals.

The atmosphere at RFK Stadium was electric, as long before the opening kick the partisan Honduran crowd chanted and waved flags. The majority fans sung as one when the national anthem of Honduras was played.

But nobody knows RFK better than Quaranta, the D.C. United midfielder who broke a tense scoreless tie with his first international goal. Benny Feilhaber fed Charlie Davies inside the box and the forward laid the ball square to Quaranta, who ran onto the ball and struck from the top of the area to beat Escobar with a low, hard shot.

Four minutes later, Ching took a cross from Steve Cherundolo and powerfully headed it into the net from eight yards to seal the win for the United States and send the American fans into a frenzy.

While there was no scoring in the first half, there was plenty of drama.

Quaranta missed a diving header from 12 yards, sending it wide of the far post in the 15th minute.

Four minutes later, Walter Martinez was played in on Troy Perkins with a long ball over the top, but the American goalkeeper did well to come off his line and snag the attempt.

In the 22nd minute, Kyle Beckerman played Ching through and the forward had Escobar beat, but his chip was cleared off the line by a Honduran defender.

Martinez had the best chance of the first half on the half-hour mark, getting behind the U.S. backline and running in alone on Perkins. But the Honduran captain took a touch and went near post, putting his shot off the outside netting from 14 yards.

Four minutes later, Heath Pearce lofted a cross from the left and found an unmarked Freddy Adu, but his downward header from eight yards was saved.

The United States nearly capitalized on a Honduran defensive gaffe when Pearce pounced on a ball after Honduran defender Nery Medina tripped. The American left back crossed into the box, where Adu took a touch before Ching missed with a side volley in the 51st minute.

In the 64th minute, U.S. coach Bob Bradley made a pair of changes, bringing on Feilhaber for Logan Pause and Davies for Adu. Some 11 minutes later, those moves would prove quite fruitful.

Davies nearly had an unusual winner in the 71st minute as he leapt to block Escobar’s attempted clearance and the ball spun toward the open net before the Honduran goalkeeper recovered and pounced on it.

Both teams travel to Boston and will play the final game of the group stage on Saturday with Honduras facing Grenada and the U.S. taking on Haiti at Gillette Stadium.

By Dylan Butler

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Tags: american fans, B., backline, Benny Feilhaber, bob bradley, BOSTON, brian ching, Charlie Davies, Chicago, CONCACAF Champions' Cup, cup history, cup semifinals, dc united, Dylan Butler, far post, freddy adu, gillette stadium, grenada, Haiti, heath pearce, Honduras, insurance goal, international goal, kyle beckerman, many meetings, national anthem of honduras, Pearce, rfk stadium, santino quaranta, scoreless tie, soldier field, steve cherundolo, troy perkins, U.S., United States, USA, Walter Martinez, Washington, world cup qualifier

Quick Report: United States 1-3 Italy

June 16, 2009

Italy came back from behind to beat the United States 2-1 in Confederations Cup Group B this Monday.

It was an eventful first half at Pretoria’s Loftus Versfeld stadium, where the USA went a man down when Ricardo Clark received a red card for a foul on Gennaro Gattuso in the 33rd minute.

But eight minutes later, Giorgio Chiellini brought down Jozy Altidore with a penalty as result. The experienced Landon Donovan converted the opportunity.

Italy were much stronger after the interval however, and got the equaliser through Giuseppe Rossi in the 58th minute. The Villarreal forward had replaced Gattuso a minute earlier.

And in minute 72, Daniele De Rossi’s strike from outside the penalty area even handed the ‘Azzurri’ a 2-1 lead. In added time, Rossi smashed home another for 3-1.

Italy lead this group as Marcello Lippi’s men have a better goal record than Brazil, who beat Egypt 4-3 in their opening game.

Written by: Jonathan Roorda

Tags: added time, Azzurri, B., brazil, confederations cup, de rossi, Egypt, equaliser, game, gennaro gattuso, Giuseppe Rossi, interval, Italy, Jonathan Roorda, landon donovan, loftus versfeld, marcello lippi, pretoria, Ricardo Clark, roorda, United States, USA

Champions League Draw sets Preliminary Round pairings, determines four-team groups

June 12, 2009

NEW YORK – Last season’s runner-up Cruz Azul will face Costa Rica’s Herediano in the Preliminary Round of the 2009-2010 CONCACAF Champions League, one of eight pairings established in Thursday’s draw.

Fellow Mexican side Pachuca, the 2008 CONCACAF Champions Cup winner, will take on the No. 2 team from Guatemala (either Comunicaciones or Jalapa), while the New York Red Bulls will play W Connection of Trinidad, and D.C. United will face off against Chalatenango of El Salvador.

The full schedule and order of matches will be announced later when the last qualifiers are confirmed and the schedule makers can accommodate the various league fixtures, schedule conflicts and commercial considerations. Three places remain undecided: the second berths from Panama and Guatemala as well as the Canadian spot.

The last spots from Panama and Guatemala will be decided by Sunday, while Canada’s berth has been reduced to Toronto FC or the Vancouver Whitecaps. That place will be determined Wednesday.

Other Preliminary Round pairings include the top Panamanian side (either Arabe Unido or San Francisco) against San Juan Jabloteh of Trinidad; Olimpia of Honduras against the No. 2 Panamanian club (either Arabe Unido or Chorrillo); Liberia of Costa Rica against Real Espana of Honduras; and the Canadian championship winner against the Puerto Rico Islanders.

“With a core group of retuning teams, the addition of more than 50 percent of new clubs will guarantee many surprises and a lot of excitement,” CONCACAF General Secretary Chuck Blazer said.

The draw also allocated the eight seeded teams into four, four-team group for the second phase, and placed them with the winners from the Preliminary Round.

The Houston Dynamo, a quarterfinalist last season, will head Group A with Metapan of El Salvador, the winner of the Pachuca-Guatemala pairing and the winner between Olimpia and its Panamanian opponent.

Group B will include Mexican Apertura champion Toluca along with Marathon of Honduras, also a quarterfinalist last season, either D.C. United or Chalatenango, and the winner between San Juan Jabloteh and its Panamanian foe.

The USA champion Columbus Crew will be in Group C with Saprissa of Costa Rica, either Cruz Azul or Heridiano, and the winner between the Canadian champion and the Puerto Rico Islanders. The last quartet, Group D, will consist of Mexican Clausura champion Pumas, the top-seeded team from Guatemala (either Comunicaciones or Municipal), the New York Red Bulls-W Connection winner and either Liberia or Real Espana.

PRELIMINARY ROUND
Arabe Unido-San Francisco (PAN) vs. San Juan Jabloteh (TRI)
Pachuca (MEX) vs. Comunicaciones-Jalapa (GUA)
New York Red Bulls (USA) vs. W Connection (TRI)
Olimpia (HON) vs. Arabe Unido/Chorrillo (PAN)
Cruz Azul (MEX) vs. Herediano (CRC)
D.C. United (USA) vs. Chalatenango (SLV)
Liberia (CRC) vs. Real Espana (HON)
Vancouver Whitecaps/Toronto FC (CAN) vs. Puerto Rico Islanders (PUR)

GROUP STAGE
Group A
Houston Dynamo (USA)
Metapan (SLV)
Pachuca (MEX)-Guatemala No. 2 (Comunicaciones or Jalapa)
Olimpia-Panama No. 2 (Arabe Unido or Chorrillo)

Group B
Toluca (MEX)
Marathon (HON)
D.C. United (USA)-Chalatenango (SLV)
San Juan Jabloteh (TRI)-Panama No. 1 (Arabe Unido or San Francisco FC)

Group C
Columbus Crew (USA)
Saprissa (CRC)
Cruz Azul (MEX)-Herediano (CRC)
Canada No. 1 (Toronto FC or Vancouver Whitecaps)-Puerto Rico Islanders (PUR)

Group D
Pumas UNAM (MEX)
Comunicaciones or Municipal (GUA)
New York Red Bulls (USA)-W Connection (TRI)
Liberia (CRC)-Real Espana (HON)

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Teams to learn CONCACAF Champions League fate in Thursday’s draw

June 11, 2009

NEW YORK – Teams will learn their CONCACAF Champions League fate Thursday when the draw will set the Preliminary Round pairings and allocate the sides for the Group Stage.

Eight teams will be seeded directly into the Group Stage: Toluca and Pumas UNAM from Mexico, the Columbus Crew and Houston Dynamo from the United States, Costa Rica’s Saprissa, Marathon of Honduras, Isidro Metapan from El Salvador and either Comunicaciones or Municipal of Guatemala.

The other 16 teams will be entered in the Preliminary Round draw. Teams in Pot A: Cruz Azul and Pachuca from Mexico, the New York Red Bulls and D.C. United from the United States, either Vancouver or Toronto from Canada, Olimpia of Honduras, Liberia of Costa Rica and Arabe Unido or the Panamanian Apertura champion, will be drawn against the teams in Pot B: Chalatenango of El Salvador, Real Espana of Honduras, Herediano of Costa Rica, the Puerto Rico Islanders, Trinidadian sides W Connection and San Juan Jabloteh and the No. 2 teams from Panama and Guatemala.

No team will be pitted against another team from the same country, except for potentially the third-placed teams from Honduras and Costa Rica, for the two legs scheduled to be played July 28-30 and August 4-6. Honduras and Costa Rica received a third berth due to the forfeiture of places by Belize and Nicaragua because of inadequate stadia and their third teams will be considered wildcards for the purpose of the draw.

CONCACAF Deputy General Secretary Italo Zanzi will conduct the draw with the assistance of Mary Lynn Blanks at the confederation’s headquarters in New York City. The draw will be recorded at the CONCACAF’s Trump Tower television studio and be available for viewing later Thursday at CONCACAF.com.

After the Preliminary Round is set, a second draw will be conducted to establish the groups, once more using the principle that no two teams from the same country will be placed in the same group with the exception of Costa Rica and Honduras.

The Group Stage will begin the week of September 18 and continue for six rounds, finishing on October 22. Two teams from each group will qualify for the Championship Round, and will learn their path through the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals in a subsequent draw to be held later this year.

Three berths remain undecided in the 24-team field: Canada’s lone berth as well as the second berths from Guatemala and Panama. Although Comunicaciones has claimed one of Guatemala’s berths, it still is awaiting to learn if it will be seeded directly into the Group Stage or be forced into the Preliminary Round.

Preliminary Round Seedings
Pot A
Cruz Azul (MEX), Pachuca (MEX), New York Red Bulls (USA), D.C. United (USA), Vancouver Whitecaps or Toronto (CAN), Olimpia (HON), Liberia (CRC), Arabe Unido or Apertura champion (PAN)
Pot B
Arabe Unido or Apertura champion (PAN), Comunicaciones or Jalapa (GUA), Chalatenango (SLV), Real Espana (HON), Herediano (CRC), W Connection (TRI), Puerto Rico Islanders (PUR), San Juan Jabloteh (TRI)

Group Stage Seedings
Toluca (MEX), Pumas UNAM (MEX) Columbus Crew (USA), Houston Dynamo (USA), Saprissa (CRC), Marathon (HON), Comunicaciones or Municipal (GUA), Metapan (SLV)

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Tags: Arabe, arabe unido, B., Belize, Canada, chalatenango, columbus crew, concacaf champions league, CONCACAF Champions' Cup, Costa Rica, cruz azul, D.C., deputy general, El Salvador, group stage, Guatemala, herediano, Honduras, Houston, houston dynamo, isidro metapan, italo zanzi, Liberia, Mary Lynn Blanks, Mexico, New York, new york city, new york red bulls, Nicaragua, pachuca, Panama, Puerto Rico, puerto rico islanders, san juan, san juan jabloteh, saprissa, television studio, Toronto, Tri, trump tower, two legs, United States, Vancouver, W. Connection, Whitecaps

Ronaldinho left out of Brazil squad

May 22, 2009

AC Milan play maker Ronaldinho has not been selected for Brazil’s upcoming World Cup Qualifiers with Uruguay and Paraguay.

Ronaldinho has been spending more time on the bench than on the pitch lately, forcing Dunga to give the player time to return to his old level.

“Ronaldinho is currently going through a tough phase. I will do anything to help him get better again,” Dunga said.

June is an important month for Brazil, who are currently in second place in the South American World Cup Qualifying group. Following the crucial games with Uruguay and Paraguay, the ‘Selecao’ get to prepare for the Confederations Cup where they face Egypt, USA and Italy in Group B.

Written by: Jonathan Roorda

Tags: ac milan, B., bench, Brasil, brazil, brazil squad, confederations cup, crucial games, Egypt, Italy, Milan, paraguay, pitch, Qualifiers, Qualifying, ronaldinho, selecao, South American, uruguay, USA, world cup qualifiers, world cup qualifying group

CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship rescheduled for June 17-21 in Puerto Vallarta

May 21, 2009

NEW YORK – The CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship will be played June 17-21 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, rescheduled after initial plans for the tournament were postponed due to swine flu concerns.

The United States will open the tournament on Wednesday, June 17 against the Bahamas in Group B at Unidad Deportivo Agustín Flores with host Mexico facing Canada in Group A in the second game of a doubleheader.

Costa Rica in Group B and El Salvador in Group A will begin play the following day, with round-robin play concluding on Friday before the semifinals and finals on Saturday and Sunday.

The tournament originally was to be played April 29-May 3 in Puerto Vallarta, but an outbreak of swine flu in Mexico in late April resulted in government officials closing schools nationwide for a week. CONCACAF responded in kind, cancelling the semifinals and finals of the Under-17 Championship in Tijuana and postponing the second of the Champions League final in Cancun and the Beach Soccer Championship in Puerto Vallarta.

Two teams will qualify for the Beach Soccer World Cup to be played in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates November 16-22.

The Bahamas will be making its debut in the CONCACAF championship while Canada is returning after a two-year absence.

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Tags: april 29, B., Bahamas, beach soccer, Canada, Cancun, champions league, CONCACAF Beach, CONCACAF Champions' Cup, concacaf championship, Costa Rica, doubleheader, Dubai, El Salvador, flores, flu, government officials, initial plans, Mexico, New York, outbreak, puerto vallarta, puerto vallarta mexico, saturday and sunday, second game, soccer championship, soccer world cup, swine flu, tijuana, united arab emirates, United States

Seoul refutes N.Korea´s food-poisoning claims

April 6, 2009

SEOUL (AFP) – South Korean football officials on Monday ridiculed North Korean claims that its footballers were poisoned by Seoul before losing a World Cup qualifier last week.

“The North’s claims are groundless,” Park Il-Ki, a Korea Football Association (KFA) official, told AFP.

“The North’s team stayed at a hotel they chose during the game in Seoul. They had only food that their team doctor checked out. Their claims are really far-fetched. How can we be responsible?”

The North’s football body on Sunday accused Seoul of poisoning northern players who lost the April 1 match 1-0. The South’s victory puts it in the driving seat in Asian Group B.

North Korea before the game asked for a postponement, saying three players had fallen ill because of the food they had been served.

World football governing body FIFA ordered that the game go ahead as scheduled.

In Sunday’s statement, the North urged FIFA to review the match.

It said the food poisoning “was a product of a deliberate act perpetrated by adulterated foodstuff” and also blasted the Omani chief referee for disallowing a goal by the North Koreans.

“The match… turned into a theatre of plot-breeding and swindling,” the statement said.

Park said the KFA decided not to issue any statement in reply because such individual tit-for-tat responses do not conform to FIFA rules.

Kim Joo-Sung, the KFA’s international affairs department chief, told Yonhap news agency that matters related to hotels or food are the responsibility of the visiting team.

As to the dispute over the goal, Kim added: “North Korea can lodge an objection with FIFA and wait for a decision.”

The North’s statement came as the rest of the world was preoccupied with its controversial long-range rocket launch.

It took aim at South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak, who is reviled by the North for his firmer line on cross-border relations.

“It is as clear as noonday that it (the conduct of the match) was a product of the Lee Myung-Bak group’s moves for confrontation with the DPRK (North) and a deliberate behaviour bred by the unsavoury forces instigated by it,” the statement said.

Written by: AFP