Soccer Capsules: Neymar, Pato lead Brazil to 2-0 win over U.S.
EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (AP) — Neymar scored on debut and Alexandre Pato added a goal late in the first half as Brazil beat the United States 2-0 in an international friendly Tuesday, the first match for both nations since their disappointing World Cup exits.
Neymar, the 18-year-old Santos sensation, had just switched with Robinho and moved from the left flank to the center. He beat Johnathan Bornstein to an Andre Santos' cross and angled a header inside Tim Howard's left post in the 29th minute.
Pato doubled the lead in first-half stoppage time when Ramires' through ball split Bornstein and Carlos Bocanegra, and the 20-year-old AC Milan forward shot past Howard. It was his second in nine appearances and first since his debut against Sweden in March 2008.
"They put you in such difficult spots defensively," Bocanegra said. "I made the decision to step, and probably should have went the other way and maybe tried to run back."
Both Pato and Neymar were overlooked by Dunga for his World Cup roster despite public clamor for their selection in Brazil. Dunga was fired after the 2-1 World Cup quarterfinal loss to the Netherlands last month and replaced by Mano Menezes, who promised to restore "Jogo Bonito" — beautiful Game — as Brazil prepares to host the World Cup in 2014.
Menezes replaced the dour defensive tactics of Dunga with an attack-minded 4-3-3 formation with Pato between Neymar on the left and new Brazil captain Robinho on the right.
"That's the line that we will establish from now on," Menezes said through a translator.
A near-sellout crowd of 77,223 attended the high-profile homecoming for a U.S. team that drew record television ratings during the World Cup.
With young, swift players, Brazil showed glimpses of the renowned ball movement that took a back seat in South Africa to a more defensive game. Brazil won for the 15th time in 16 matches against the U.S. and has outscored the Americans 31-10.
"If we're going to get to the next level, we've still got to be a lot better," American star Landon Donovan said.
Ganso, Victor and defender David Luiz also made their international debuts for Brazil, along with substitutes Andre, Ederson and Jucilei.
"Everyone was very comfortable playing together," Neymar told Brazilian media. "Mano gave us a lot of freedom to do what we always do on the field, and that helped a lot. That's why we were able to play so well."
U.S. coach Bob Bradley had nothing but praise for Neymar.
"His ability to go at people and create on the dribble is something that I think is special," he said. "I think everyone knows the talent that Brazil possesses."
For both nations, rebuilding began in New Jersey, in a gleaming $1.6 billion stadium set for its first official NFL games next month.
Criticized for some of his lineups during the 2-1 overtime loss to Ghana in the World Cup's second round, he made six changes from that starting 11.
Bradley used Maurice Edu in midfield in place of Ricardo Clark, and started Benny Feilhaber and 23-year-old Alejandro Bedoya in the midfield instead of Landon Donovan, who moved up to forward, and Clint Dempsey, who remained in England with Fulham ahead of the Premier League opener.
"A very young team we had tonight as well as them," Donovan said, "but from an experience standpoint, they had a lot of guys that have played in a lot of big games and we haven't and I think that showed through."
MLS scoring leader Edson Buddle started up front in place of Robbie Findley, who was ineffective in South Africa.
Omar Gonzalez made his international debut at central defender in place of Oguchi Onyewu.
Bradley may have been coaching his last match as U.S. coach — his contract expires in December and it's not certain whether the U.S. Soccer Federation wants to retain him. Before he was hired four years ago, former Germany coach Juergen Klinsmann withdrew from consideration.
"It was agreed after this game there would be some more discussions and we will see where those discussions go," Bradley said.
Arena, Rote, Dooley and Preki inducted into Hall
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — With the U.S. Hall of Fame building in upstate New York shuttered, Bruce Arena, Kyle Rote Jr., Thomas Dooley and Preki Radosavljevic were inducted during a ceremony in a stadium club at the New Meadowlands before the United States' exhibition against Brazil on Tuesday night.
The Hall building in Oneonta, N.Y., shut down in September except for special events and closed for good in February.
"The Hall is an important part of what we do," U.S. Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati said during the two-hour ceremony. "The physical structure — someday we'll have that back."
Arena, the former U.S. national team and current Los Angeles Galaxy coach, exchanged a few playful jibes with Gulati, who let him go in 2006 after Arena's second World Cup in charge of the Americans.
"Unquestionably the most successful coach in the history of American soccer," Gulati said.
Arena coached Virginia to five NCAA titles in 18 seasons and D.C. United to a pair of MLS Cup championships and one U.S. Open Cup win before taking over as national team coach in 1998. The U.S. advanced to the 2002 World Cup quarterfinals, the best finish for the Americans since reaching the semifinals of the first tournament in 1930.
Arena said his best moment was the opening 3-2 upset of Portugal at the 2002 World Cup.
"The U.S. had to step on the field after 9-11 and be unified and demonstrate to the world that we are united country and that we could put a product on the field," he said.
Rote Jr., the North American Soccer League's 1973 rookie of the year, was a forward for Dallas (1972-78) and Houston (1979), and made five appearances for the U.S. national team from 1973-75. His father, Kyle Rote, starred for the NFL's New York Giants from 1951-61 and became a broadcaster for NBC.
Gulati called Rote soccer's "first American superstar."
Dooley and Preki were both on the 1998 U.S. World Cup team, and the two started back-to-back MLS All-Star games in 1998-99.
Dooley, the 1993 U.S. Soccer athlete of the year, was born in Germany, then became a U.S. citizen and had seven goals in 81 international appearances for the U.S. Dooley also played for the U.S. when it hosted the 1994 World Cup.
Preki, current coach of Toronto FC, was the only player to start the first eight MLS All-Star games and was the league's career points leader when he retired and the first player with five 10-goal, 10-assist seasons. The Yugoslavian-born star had four goals in 28 appearances on the U.S. national team.
Soccer America's Paul Gardner received the annual Colin Jose media award.
-- Ronald Blum
Beckham to briefly take the field with Galaxy
CARSON, California (AP) — David Beckham is set to return to the practice field briefly with his Los Angeles Galaxy teammates on Wednesday.
Beckham is expected to complete a warmup with the Galaxy squad before continuing his rehabilitation work with the club's training staff for the remainder of the practice session.
The 35-year-old English midfielder tore his left Achilles' tendon on March 14 while on loan at AC Milan. He began his rehabilation for the injury in Los Angeles in April.
The injury shattered Beckham's hopes of becoming the first English player to appear in four World Cups and has also forced him to miss all of the Major League Soccer season so far. The Galaxy close the MLS regular season Oct. 24.
Salgado signs with MLS, loaned to Vancouver
NEW YORK (AP) — Forward Omar Salgado has signed with Major League Soccer and was loaned for three months to the Vancouver Whitecaps of the U.S. Soccer Federation Division 2.
The 16-year-old from El Paso, Texas, will go into the 2011 MLS SuperDraft. He spent 1½ years with Chivas Guadalajara before signing with MLS, scoring seven goals in 10 games with the reserves.
Salgado trained with the Mexican Under-20 team in March and April, then switched and played for the United States at the Milk Cup in Northern Ireland. On July 26, he scored in a 1-0 victory over China.
Mexico Soccer
Del Bosque, Casillas say few are in shape
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Spain coach Vicente Del Bosque and goalkeeper Iker Casillas aren't expecting a world class performance from the World Cup winners in their friendly against Mexico.
The duo said Wednesday's match at the 100,000-seat Azetca stadium — Spain's first since winning the World Cup a month ago — will be a practice game for the out-of-shape Spanish players, most of whom are just coming off vacation.
Del Bosque said Tuesday he would play some of his top players just a few minutes, while others may not play at all. Barcelona, which has seven players on the team, has been the most vocal of the clubs back home complaining that their stars could risk injury by playing and should have been left off the squad.
And there's the matter of a frantic travel schedule.
Spain arrived late Monday with no time for players to get accustomed to Mexico City's altitude of 7,350 feet and the thin air which makes even a short walk feel like a mountain marathon for newcomers.
"What we can't do is play our luxury lineup," Del Bosque said. "We have to see the game as part of the preparation for the games that are coming up."
And there are plenty of those on the jam-packed calendar, both for Spain's national team, and the big Spanish clubs like Barcelona and Real Madrid.
The seven Barcelona players will have essentially no time to train for the first leg of this weekend's Super Copa against Sevilla. The second leg is a week later, followed in short order by the opening of the Spanish league. Then many players will again don Spain's national shirt for two more matches — a European championship qualifier on Sept. 3 and then a grueling trip to Buenos Aires for a ceremonial friendly on Sept. 7 against Argentina.
A few days later, the league season resumes followed by the opening of the Champions League group stage in mid-September.
Barcelona sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta has already hinted at the potential burnout and called the decision to call up his players as "extraordinarily negative."
Zubizarreta spoke last week just as Brazil and Real Madrid midfielder Kaka was undergoing knee surgery, which threatened his career. The injury was made worse by playing in the World Cup.
"It'll be the first time in history that players still on holiday will have been called up," Zubizarreta said. "Logic would say they are not in a situation to make such a great effort and such a long trip."
Iker Casillas, the Spain and Real Madrid keeper, acknowledged that most of the Spanish team players had not trained for a month. But he promised a complete effort for a match being played as part of Mexico's 200th anniversary celebration of independence — from Spain.
"It is obviously true that many on the team don't have the appropriate preparation," Casillas said. "I don't know if this team will play like the World Cup team, or not. I can assure you we are just as fired up as we were a month ago."
Casillas welcomed the possibility of eight substitutes being used in the match — instead of the normal six for an exhibition — which the Mexican federation is trying to arrange.
He also repeated several times that Spain would do more than "just go through the motions."
"Just doing that isn't OK," Casillas said. "What's of merit here is that we are going to play an important game for Mexico — and for Spain. It's our first game after the World Cup and we know a lot will be expected of us. We are here to win, not just to walk around or be tourists."
-- Stephen Wade
League News
Chelsea leads contenders in open league title race
LONDON (AP) — Chelsea faces what could be the most open Premier League for years when it tries to hold on to the title it won by just a single point last season.
The Blues are favorites but their near decade-long status as the biggest spender in football's richest league has been surpassed by Manchester City's reaction to last season's failure to reach the Champions League.
City looks set to be a contender after spending about 80 million pounds ($127 million) to bolster its squad and take its spending in two years past 300 million pounds ($477 million).
Manchester United has signed Mexico striker Javier Hernandez after finishing second last season and Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger says his young side is finally ready to challenge for the title.
"The Premier League has got progressively harder to win," United striker Wayne Rooney said. "In previous seasons, you might have had straightforward games where the top clubs could afford to rest players, but that's not the case anymore.
"Nowadays it's hard to leave players out because every game is competitive and difficult."
Predictions are even harder than usual because of new Premier League rules limiting squad sizes in an effort to wean clubs off big money transfers.
The ruling that teams must now draw from a pool of 25 players instead of a limitless supply could hit City especially hard since it lists 38 first-team squad players on its website.
Since finishing fifth last season, City has bought Spain midfielder David Silva, Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Toure, Serbia defender Alesksandar Kolarov and Germany defender Jerome Boateng. It has also tried to sign Inter Milan's Mario Balotelli and Aston Villa's James Milner.
"Yaya is one of the best midfielders in the world and for him to come to City shows the kind of ambition this club has," City midfielder Patrick Vieira said. "We want to win trophies and I think we'll do it."
That ambition was clear last season, when City fired Mark Hughes to hire former Inter Milan coach Roberto Mancini when it had lost just two of 17 Premier League matches.
Hughes will be at Fulham this season, replacing Roy Hodgson following his move to Liverpool, which was replaced in the top four by Tottenham.
Fulham could finish in the top 10 without the distraction of the Europa League, which last season provided the unfashionable west London club with only the second final of its 131-year history.
Hodgson is already popular with Liverpool fans after persuading Spain striker Fernando Torres and club captain Steven Gerrard to spurn transfers and stick with a team that slumped to seventh last season. He has also signed England midfielder Joe Cole on a free transfer following the expiry of his Chelsea contract.
"Last season was a very disappointing season for the club in every respect, culminating in a popular manager leaving," Hodgson said. "You don't dispel that with a couple of signings and I would never want to dupe the Liverpool public by telling them all is rosy now because Joe Cole has signed."
But Liverpool should improve, with Cole, Gerrard, Torres and goalkeeper Jose Reina providing a strong spine to the team. And with City also stronger, Tottenham will struggle to match last season's fourth place, its highest finish since 1990.
The north London club will also have the extra demands of a debut Champions League appearance should it advance to the group stage.
But Chelsea looks to be the team City and the other contenders will have to beat.
Chelsea won all of its meetings with Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool last season and has replaced Cole with Israel midfielder Yossi Benayoun and is on the brink of bringing in midfielder Ramires — one of the few bright spots in Brazil's disappointing World Cup campaign.
Hernandez will help alleviate the burden on Wayne Rooney, who was left lethargic and listless at the World Cup after scoring 34 goals for Manchester United last season, but United still relies heavily on veterans Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Edwin van der Sar.
The trio, who have a combined age of 110, continue to defy predictions of retirement but Giggs and Scholes at least cannot be expected to play all United's 38 Premier League matches.
Arsenal has failed to compete seriously since they went unbeaten through the 2003-04 season but Wenger thinks that another year's experience and minor tweaks to his squad will put his young players in contention.
"The money will not be an excuse for us if we do not achieve our targets," Wenger said. "Do I have a team I think can play at the top? I say, 'Yes.'
"I judge my players are ready to compete for the championship."
The biggest offseason news for Arsenal was not the signing of Morocco striker Marouane Chamakh, but the club's successful thwarting of Barcelona's attempt to sign captain Cesc Fabregas.
Similarly, defender Nemanja Vidic's decision to sign a new contract at United could be a huge fillip to his team ahead of a season where the margin between success and failure could be tiny.
Each club can still sign as many players as it likes but is limited to a 25-man squad for the league, just as in the Champions League.
All 20 Premier League clubs must submit a list including at least eight so-called "homegrown" players, by Sept. 1 — the day after the summer transfer window closes.
A homegrown player is one who, irrespective of nationality or age, has been registered with an English or Welsh club for three full seasons or 36 months prior to his 21st birthday.
"I think the new homegrown rules coming in are important," Rooney said at the Premier League season review. "For me, it's a welcome ruling because it will make the league a bit more interesting, especially in the transfer market."
The Premier League believes that the ruling will benefit the England national team following its dismal performance at the World Cup.
"We want to develop Premier League players," Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore said. "In doing so, we will develop English players."
Clubs can add a limitless number of extra players, providing they are under 21, so Chelsea's Fabio Borini, Gael Kakuta and Jeffrey Bruma could play important roles this season.
But Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said the rules will do nothing to stop top sides hoarding talent because they will simply make surplus players into attractive loan targets by paying part of their salaries while they take short-term deals with other clubs.
"I think it is a disastrous decision for football and I am amazed the union accepted it," Wenger said.
-- Stuart Condie
Bundesliga coaches see Bayern keeping title
BERLIN (AP) — Most of the 18 Bundesliga club coaches say Bayern Munich is well-placed to defend its league title successfully this season.
A survey by German news agency DPA released Tuesday found that 15 coaches favored Bayern to retain the title.
Borussia Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp was among those predicting back-to-back Bayern titles — because "no other team is close to being as strongly manned."
Bayern is going into the new season with a familiar squad — unlike last season's runner-up, Schalke, which coach Felix Magath has been revamping.
Bayer Leverkusen coach Jupp Heynckes says Bayern is always the favorite but added that "Schalke has made very good buys," including former Real Madrid striker Raul Gonzalez.
FIFA News
FIFA probes alleged North Korea player punishment
SINGAPORE (AP) — FIFA President Sepp Blatter said soccer's world governing body has opened an inquiry into allegations that North Korea might have mistreated players and coaches after the team lost all three of its World Cup matches.
Blatter said Wednesday that FIFA sent a letter to the North Korean football federation on Tuesday seeking information about the allegations of mistreatment and the recent election of a new federation president.
"It's a kind of investigation to tell us about the election of a new president, and if it is true, the allegations made by the media that the coach and some players have been condemned or punished," Blatter said.
"The first step is the federation and we'll see what the answer will be, and then we can elaborate on that."
Radio Free Asia reported last month that North Korean officials summoned the national team to a closed-door meeting in the capital Pyongyang to criticize it for its losses to Brazil, Portugal and Ivory Coast at the World Cup in South Africa. The report said players were then ordered to reprimand coach Kim Jong Hun.
The report cited unidentified sources in North Korea and a Chinese businessman described as knowledgeable about North Korea affairs. South Korea's main spy agency couldn't confirm the report, and there was no mention of any such meeting in North Korean state media.
Asian Football Confederation chief Mohammad bin Hammam told reporters on Wednesday that he spoke with four players in North Korea last month and they didn't report any mistreatment.
"There was an unconfirmed report that these players have gone through torture or something like that, but I can't confirm that," bin Hammam said. "I haven't seen anything with my eyes or heard anything with my ears.
"Maybe this FIFA investigation can clear the air."
In other news Wednesday, Blatter reiterated that the International Football Association Board plans to discuss the use of goal-line video technology at the IFAB's next meeting in October in Cardiff, Wales.
At least four companies are preparing to present proposals, Blatter said.
"At this meeting, all these people can present their different items," Blatter said. "If you have an accurate and simple system, we will implement it."
Goal-line technology has become a top priority after officiating errors helped eliminate England and Mexico from the World Cup.
-- Alex Kennedy
Blatter eager to see younger FIFA referees
BERLIN (AP) — FIFA president Sepp Blatter believes top international referees should be younger.
Blatter said in an interview posted on the German soccer federation's website Tuesday that a plan regarding top referees will be released in October or November and "there will be a rejuvenation."
FIFA has a mandatory retirement age of 45 for referees. Blatter did not give any details of what changes might be made.
The World Cup's two most-criticized refereeing decisions — the failure to award England a goal for a shot by Frank Lampard that crossed Germany's line, and a goal awarded to Argentina ever though scorer Carlos Tevez was offside when he received the ball — involved referees in their 40s.
The two youngest referees who officiated matches in South Africa, both in their early 30s, were rated highly enough to be given control of the two semifinals.
The final was handled by England's Howard Webb, then 38, who took extended leave from his job as a policeman to be a professional referee in the Premier League.
"I am also for professional referees, even though I know that there are other opinions on that," Blatter said.
As for technical support measures, that issue is "a bit more complicated," he was quoted as saying. "Every system must be carefully checked for its practicability."
Elsewhere
Capello to test new England players versus Hungary
LONDON (AP) — England's friendly against Hungary on Wednesday could provide a glimpse into the future for Fabio Capello, or it could just be a reality check about the paucity of emerging talent available as he rebuilds the team ahead of European Championship qualifying.
One thing seems certain — and both Capello and captain Steven Gerrard are almost encouraging it: The players will be jeered at Wembley Stadium as many fans get their first chance to vent their anger after a humiliating World Cup exit.
Gerrard said on Tuesday he would join in the abuse if he was a fan in the 90,000-capacity stadium, which is expected to be only two-thirds full.
"I'm sure there will be boos at times, but we have to be men and take it on the chin — we deserve it, we let them down," he said. "Hopefully with time we can show we are a good team and we are desperate to make them happy in the future. We have to show how sorry we are with our performance on the pitch."
But Gerrard insisted Capello's coaching credentials should not be in question despite the Italian facing intense scrutiny of his tactics and man-management in South Africa.
"It would be stupid and naive not having confidence in him moving forward," Gerrard said. "You can't just shift the blame to the managers in these situations."
Capello plans to start against Hungary with the 10 players that have been retained from the 23-man World Cup squad, with Bobby Zamora also set to be handed his England debut alongside striker Wayne Rooney.
In the second half, though, Capello wants to introduce players such as 18-year-old Jack Wilshere and 20-year-old Arsenal teammate Kieran Gibbs, who he hopes will steer England to the Euro 2012 title despite having never played at such a high international level before.
"It is always important to freshen things up and change things about a bit when you underperform and things don't go your way in a big tournament," Gerrard said. "It would be very unfair on these young lads if all the experienced lads were excluded from the squad and they were all thrown in at the deep end together. You need the right mix of experience and youth.
"Then we can regroup, move forward together, get a positive result and hopefully that will start the rebuilding process and turn things around from South Africa."
Joe Hart, who went to South Africa but didn't play, will be making his first international start in goal. A back injury to Birmingham goalkeeper Ben Foster on Tuesday, which followed Paul Robinson's earlier retirement, led to Watford's Scott Loach and Blackburn's Frankie Fielding, who has never played in the Premier League, being called into the squad on the eve of the match. Capello's options for replacements were limited having dropped David James and Robert Green, who both played at the World Cup.
England's Euro 2012 qualifying campaign begins in September with matches against Bulgaria and Switzerland.
Hungary's return to Wembley will evoke memories of the so-called "match of the century" in 1953 when its 6-3 victory condemned England to its first home loss by a non-British side.
Hungary, which hasn't qualified for a major tournament since the 1986 World Cup, will be led for the first time by coach Sandor Egervari, who is preparing for Euro 2012 qualifiers against Sweden and Moldova next month.
Egervari took Hungary to the bronze medal at the 2009 Under-20 World Cup in Egypt and also won three Hungarian league titles as coach, in 1999 and 2003 with MTK and in 2000 with Dunaferr.
Egervari has called up only two players to the national team from the youth squad — Vladimir Koman and Akos Elek — saying he preferred not to handicap the under-21 team, which plays a crucial European Championship qualifier Wednesday against Bosnia.
Egervari and Sandor Csanyi, the millionaire banker who took over the presidency of Hungary's football federation in July, have both tried to lower expectations about the team's performance in the coming years, saying that they expect the squad to have better chance of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup than Euro 2012.
-- Rob Harris
Gerrard urges England fans to be patient
WATFORD, England (AP) — Steven Gerrard concedes his England team is not among football's elite and has urged fans to lower their expectations.
A dismal World Cup campaign which ended in a 4-1 second-round thumping by Germany highlighted to Gerrard that England isn't the world power it considers itself to be.
"It's you guys, not me, who say how good we are," the England captain told a media briefing Tuesday. "At the moment, we're not up with the best. We went out in the last 16 ... are you guys going to lower the expectations?"
Going into the tournament, coach Fabio Capello had declared that England was capable of reaching the final after winning nine out of 10 qualifiers.
In reality, though, Capello knew something that he's only just acknowledged: England was too mentally and physically fatigued to end its 44-year World Cup title drought.
Gerrard thinks the English public shouldn't burden the team with the expectation that will from return from Ukraine and Poland with the 2012 European title. Qualifying for the Euros starts soon.
"I think that might help, yes, but will that happen? I don't think so," the Liverpool midfielder said. "This is not going to happen overnight this is not going to happen in weeks and months, this is going to take years to turn this situation around.
"This is as low as it gets, going out the way we did."
After traveling to South Africa buoyed by the public support, the England team returned to an angry backlash and are expecting some jeers when they play Hungary in a friendly on Wednesday.
"I'm not going to lie to you — since we were knocked out of the World Cup it's been really difficult to be an England player," Gerrard said. "We've received a lot of criticism, both as individuals and as a team group, and rightly so."
But at no time did the 30-year-old Gerrard contemplate retiring from international football.
"I've played for England for over 10 years now and I would love nothing more than to go out on a high rather than looking back at memories of South Africa and how we went out losing 4-1 to Germany," Gerrard said. "I suppose (quitting) does cross your mind at times, but very quickly you switch back to thinking of staying and hanging in and hopefully turning things round and having a successful tournament."
Gerrard is still frustrated about the manner of England's World Cup exit. Had Frank Lampard's goal stood against Germany — the ball bounced off the crossbar and appeared to go over the goal line but was not allowed — England would have leveled the game at 2-2. But Germany quickly regained the ascendancy.
"Up to their third goal I was having the time of my life, captaining my country and loving it, really enjoying the training day-in and day-out, enjoying the games, the build up and the expectation," Gerrard said. "Then for the game to just change and be done on two counterattacks and lose 4-1 to your archrivals was difficult to take. That's what I can't get out of my head."
Gerrard said it was a sign of naivety.
"They are the things we need to sit down and go over and moving forward we need to think about. Sometimes when you're in a knockout situation and 2-1 down you go gung-ho to try to chase the game and turn it round but that was a big mistake," he said. "We tried to turn it round instead of being patient when there was a lot of time left to get the equalizer. That was the players, not instructions. The players have got to take responsibility. We went out there, we were in control of the situation."
For now, Gerrard would just be glad to reach the last four of Euro 2012.
"I think England should be getting to semifinals with the players we have."
-- Rob Harris
France travels to Norway to heal World Cup wounds
PARIS (AP) — Still reeling from its woeful World Cup in South Africa, France needs to restore its damaged image and will try to take a first step toward redemption in Wednesday's friendly at Norway.
In South Africa, France exited a major tournament in the first round without winning a match for the second time in a row, and its players embarrassed the country with a training strike that caused a political outcry and made headlines around the world.
France coach Laurent Blanc, who stepped in to replace Raymond Domenech after the fiasco, said it's time to turn the page and open a new chapter of the team's history with a win.
"We'll always have this World Cup scar," Blanc said. "Only good results will allow us to rub out what happened. We are traveling to Norway aiming for the best possible result, a win."
After deciding to drop all the World Cup players as a collective punishment for their actions in South Africa, Blanc will field an experimental team made of 13 uncapped players and 16 French league players.
In South Africa, the players refused to train as a protest after Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka was sent home following an expletive-laced tirade at Domenech.
Blanc's decision to snub the World Cup players for his first game in charge was widely seen as a statement of intent, meaning that unlike Domenech he was not going to tolerate bad behavior in his star-studded team.
Blanc told reporters in Oslo that he would wait until after Tuesday evening's practice before settling on a captain and the starting lineup.
AS Roma defender Philippe Mexes, whom Blanc said was one of the players vying for the captain's armband, said he hoped the match would help "develop a new image for French football, for the French national team."
Mexes' Roma teammate John Arne Riise told Norway's TV2 that he and his fellow Norwegian players expected a hard-fought match.
"It'll be a tougher match than it would have been against the World Cup squad," Riise said. "These guys are hungry, they're young and they want to prove themselves to their coaches and to the French people."
The France squad's image also took a severe blow when two of its biggest stars — Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery and Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema — were handed preliminary charges last month as part of a probe into a suspected network of prostitution that operated out of a nightclub on Paris' Champs-Elysees.
Blanc, a former Manchester United defender who won the World Cup and European Championship with France, wants to keep his players away from temptation and will ask clubs to charter flights in order to get them back immediately after their international duties.
"I don't think it's normal that after our games the players can vanish in the Parisian nights," Blanc said. "I enjoyed it when I was a player but for the moment it's better if the players go back home immediately after the match to avoid off-the-field problems."
Once a European powerhouse, France dramatically dropped in the FIFA rankings, where it stands 21st, just above Norway. France, which won the European Championship twice and the 1998 World Cup, earned its last major title 10 years ago at Euro 2000.
"We need to do things differently compared to what happened in South Africa," said Real Madrid midfielder Lassana Diarra, who missed the World Cup due to stomach problems. "I'm in the state of mind of a player who comes to win titles. We need to post good results and we want to show a real collective spirit."
Under Domenech, who established an ineffective boring style of play, France progressively lost its fan base. On the contrary, Blanc is a popular figure among the supporters who love the attacking football mentality he developed at Bordeaux.
"I really appreciate Laurent Blanc's philosophy," Benzema said. "He loves beautiful football and so do I."
Against Norway, Blanc is expected to play in a classic 4-4-2 with Samir Nasri behind strikers Guillaume Hoarau and Benzema.
"I understand that people have a bad impression of us," Nasri told France Football magazine. "It's our task to make them change their minds. But talks are not enough anymore, we need actions."
France will begin 2012 European Championship qualifying at home against Belarus on Sept. 3.
Aston Villa striker John Carew was ruled out of the game after Norway's medical team said he has inflammation in his knee.
-- Samuel Petrequin
Alex Ferguson backs Queiroz at misconduct hearing
LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson on Tuesday threw his full support behind his former assistant Carlos Queiroz, who is fighting allegations of misconduct that could cost him his job as Portugal coach.
Ferguson testified on Queiroz's behalf at a Portuguese Football Federation hearing into charges he was aggressive and insulting toward an anti-doping team sent to test the Portugal squad ahead of the World Cup.
Queiroz has denied disrupting the tests but could be suspended — and consequently fired — if he is found guilty.
Ferguson was among the witnesses called by Queiroz to provide character references at a disciplinary hearing in Lisbon. Queiroz was Ferguson's assistant at Old Trafford for five years before taking charge of Portugal.
"He's a fantastic coach and teacher, and his main purpose in life is to develop young people, to inspire them and to make sure they turn out good human beings, so that's the reason I'm here to support him, because I know him well and he's a great man of great dignity," Ferguson told reporters after testifying.
"Carlos is one of the good guys."
The incident occurred in May at the squad's training camp in central Portugal before it traveled to South Africa. Officials sent to carry out surprise tests on Portuguese players said Queiroz harassed and intimidated them and used foul language.
Disrupting doping tests is punishable by law, either with a fine of up to €10,000 ($13,000) or a suspension of up to four years.
Queiroz has denied the charges. He has previously said he was angry that the unannounced early morning tests had disturbed the players but said he did not obstruct the testing. He has said he regrets the language he used but said cursing is not unusual in football.
None of the players tested positive.
Ferguson said doping controls place "a terrible strain on football managers" because they have to know where their players are at all times of the day.
"Understandably, in Carlos's situation, preparing for a World Cup as he was, this became a great interference for him," Ferguson said.
"He should stay (as Portugal coach) because he's good enough. He has a great reputation."
Other witnesses called by Queiroz in his defense are former Portugal international Luis Figo and the club presidents of Benfica and FC Porto.
Queiroz, whose two-year tenure as coach has drawn broad criticism over his team's performances, recently complained he was being subject to a "public lynching" as details of the inquiry were leaked to the media. He has claimed the proceedings are a pretext to get rid of him. He has a contract through 2012.
The federation declined to comment on the proceedings, saying they are confidential until the findings are released in coming days.
The Portuguese Sports Institute, which oversees doping tests, opened an inquiry into Queiroz's conduct which it sent to the secretary of state for sport, who then forwarded its findings to the federation for action.
-- Barry Hatton
The Netherlands rests World Cup stars against Ukraine
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — The Netherlands will be without the players who led the team to the World Cup final last month when it plays Ukraine in a friendly match on Wednesday.
Coach Bert van Marwijk has retained only backup goalkeeper Michel Vorm from the World Cup squad for the match in Donetsk, allowing the Dutch to test how deep the country's new pool of talent goes ahead of its first 2012 European Championship qualifier, against San Marino on Sept. 3.
With players like Wesley Sneijder and Robin van Persie missing, possible debuts await PSV Eindhoven defender Erik Pieters, FC Utrecht forward Ricky van Wolfswinker, Chelsea center back Jeffrey Bruma and Ajax midfielder Siem de Jong, who are all aged 22 or younger.
Feyenoord's Leroy Fer, Hedwiges Maduro of Valencia and AZ Alkmaar's Dirk Marcellis could also get a chance to play. PSV midfielder Orlando Engelaar, who was dropped days before the World Cup, opted out of the squad.
The Netherlands lost 1-0 to Spain in the World Cup final, conceding a goal to Andres Iniesta in the second half of extra time.
Ukraine, which failed to qualify for the World Cup but will co-host Euro 2012 with Poland, is without injured Dynamo Kiev winger Oleh Husev while Anderlecht midfielder Oleksandr Yakovenko misses out with a damaged hip. Dnipro midfielder Ruslan Rotan is available to coach Myron Markevych after returning from injury.
The friendly is causing consternation among Ukraine's top clubs, whose domestic season already is in full flow. By coincidence, Dynamo Kiev faces Dutch team Ajax in a Champions League qualifier next week, and coach Valery Gazzayev has asked Markevych to rest star strikers Andriy Shevchenko and Artem Milevskiy for the match against the Dutch.
But Markevych indicated he'd field his strongest side, saying: "I understand Gazzayev. He's worried about the physical condition of his players but we shouldn't forget that we're talking about the national team."
Markevych said he was expecting the Dutch to prove a tough opponent despite its inexperienced squad.
-- James Marson
Holger Osieck appointed Australia's head coach
SYDNEY (AP) — Holger Osieck, an assistant to Franz Beckenbauer when West Germany won the 1990 World Cup, has been appointed as Australia's head coach.
Football Federation Australia chairman Frank Lowy announced the signing Wednesday via video conference from Europe, hours before Australia was to play Slovenia in an international friendly as part of its preparations for the 2011 Asian Cup.
Osieck was assistant coach for the West German national team from 1987 to 1990 and has had stints as coach of the German national youth team, as Canada's head coach, as director of FIFA's technical department and guided Japan's Urawa Red Diamonds to the Asian Champions League title in 2007.
The 61-year-old German replaces Pim Verbeek, who quit after taking Australia to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, where the Socceroos were eliminated in the group stage following a win, a draw and a loss.
"I feel very much honored to be your choice," Osieck said in a telephone conference. "It's a very big challenge for me, it's a great challenge."
His appointment was a departure from the Socceroos' last two foreign coaches — Guus Hiddink and Verbeek — who were both Dutch and both not able to stay long term in Australia.
Lowy said Osieck would relocate to Australia and be responsible for rebuilding the national team and for mentoring homegrown coaches. Many of the stars of Australia's last two World Cup campaigns will be too old to contend for places at the next World Cup in 2014, and depth is a key issue regarding the talent coming through.
"We're not starting from scratch. Australia has done very well in recent years and made the past two World Cups and our first target should be to establish our team on that level on a permanent basis," Osieck said.
Lowy said Osieck's extensive knowledge of Asian football was attractive to the FFA, which joined the Asian confederation after the 2006 World Cup and now competes in continental club and international qualifiers.
"He has experienced what it takes to traverse Asia and win tournaments and this will be invaluable experience as he leads our team into the AFC Asian Cup in January and as we prepare for another challenging campaign to qualify for the World Cup in Brazil," Lowy said.
Lowy said Osieck's experience in Canada, where he led the national team to the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2000 when it was held in the United States, was another part of his appeal. Football is the fourth-ranked among Australia's football codes in terms of sponsorship and TV audiences, behind Australian Rules, rugby league and rugby union, but interest has increased as the Socceroos have qualified for the last two World Cups.
"Holger has also worked in a nation where football is not the No. 1 sport and proved that he can win a major Championship against nations who have football in their veins," Lowy said.
Osieck is expected to take over from interim manager Han Berger, the FFA's technical director, before Australia's next friendly in Switzerland on Sept. 3.
"Taking over at a stage of natural transition as we start our preparations for 2014 is an ideal opportunity to influence the future direction of the young players and coaches from Australia," he said.
Batista leads Argentina in post-Maradona era
DUBLIN (AP) — Argentina interim coach Sergio Batista admits his players are still hurting from the humiliating way they were knocked out of the World Cup as they prepare to begin the post-Diego Maradona era with a friendly against Ireland on Wednesday.
Argentina's 4-0 defeat by Germany in the quarterfinals in South Africa proved to be Maradona's last match in charge as the country's football association decided not to renew his contract.
Batista, Argentina's youth team coach, has been placed in temporary charge of the senior squad.
"The players are still smarting from the defeat to Germany - that really hurt," he said on Tuesday. "But then you are not a real footballer if something like that does not still hurt you after a few weeks and months, so this is a real opportunity to get that day out of our system."
Batista has made no secret of his desire to replace Maradona on a permanent basis and will also be in charge when Argentina play Spain in a friendly in Buenos Aires on Sept. 7.
Estudiantes coach Alejandro Sabella and Claudio Borghi of Boca Juniors are also reported to be in the running for the position but a victory against Ireland would further Batista's claims to take the job full-time.
"I'd prefer it if I was judged not on one game but a whole project, which might stretch from now to 2014," he said. "I'd also like to be judged on what I've achieved in the national set-up on a whole to now."
Batista guided Argentina to gold at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Lionel Messi was part of that title-winning side and Batista claims he has the backing of the Barcelona forward and the team's other leading players.
"I think Messi offered it because he knows how I am, how I handle a group," Batista said. "I hope we can be together a long time."
Key players Messi, Javier Mascherano and Gonzalo Higuain are available to Batista on Wednesday in a squad selected last month by Maradona. Several players left out of the 23-man World Cup group have been recalled, including forward Ezequiel Lavezzi and midfielders Jesus Datolo and Fernando Gago.
Ireland coach Giovanni Trapattoni was hospitalized with nausea on Tuesday, a day before the friendly at Lansdowne Road, leaving his assistant Marco Tardelli to take charge of training. The Football Association of Ireland said the 71-year-old Trapattoni's condition was not serious.
Ireland, which did not qualify for the World Cup finals, is waiting on the fitness of striker Kevin Doyle (calf) and Richard Dunne (knee), but Aiden McGeady, Shane Long, Caleb Folan and Marc Wilson have been ruled out because of injury.
Tottenham striker Robbie Keane, who is set to win his 100th cap for Ireland, could start on his own up front if Doyle is not passed fit.
ICoast football federation fails to get some visas
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) — Ivory Coast will be without six players from its intended squad of 26 to face Italy in a friendly Tuesday because the federation failed to get them the necessary visas.
German club Hannover said Tuesday that its players Constant Djakpa and Didier Ya Konan won't be able to play in the match in London.
The Ivorian federation said on its website that six players were "missing the call because of their visas."
It said the others were Arthur Boka, who plays for German club Stuttgart, Aruna Dindane and Bakari Kone from Qatari club Lekhwiya, and Koffi Romaric N'Dri of Spanish team Sevilla.
Hannover said it was the second time this year that Ya Konan has been shut out of a national team match because he didn't have the right documents.
"Because of the new mistake by the Ivorian federation, Constant and Didier have not only missed a day of training — it certainly isn't particularly good for their motivation," Hannover sports director Joerg Schmadtke said.
The match at Premier League club West Ham's stadium is the first in charge for interim coach Francois Zahoui.
Sven-Goran Eriksson's contract was not renewed after the veteran Swede led Ivory Coast at the World Cup where it was eliminated in a group comprising Brazil, Portugal and North Korea.
Bremen denies reports Oezil headed for Barca
BREMEN, Germany (AP) — Werder Bremen has denied reports that Germany World Cup star Mesut Oezil is on the verge of a move to Barcelona and says it has no offers for the midfielder.
Spanish media had reported that a deal was almost done but Bremen media director Tino Polster said "there are no talks and there is no offer from Barcelona."
Oezil's future has become the focus of intense speculation recently.
The Kreiszeitung Syke newspaper on Tuesday quoted Werder manager Klaus Allofs as saying that there are still no offers for Oezil and that he is "very relaxed" — although "it may be that the story gathers pace now."
Allofs added that "I'm not always running to the fax machine or getting sweaty hands over whether an offer might have arrived when I check my e-mail."
Olympiakos to hire Valverde after European exit
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Spanish coach Ernesto Valverde says he has accepted an offer to coach Olympiakos, returning to the Greek club after a 15-month absence.
Valverde says he is ready to "work hard and ... build a new Olympiakos."
The club was due to issue a statement later Tuesday, with the 46-year-old coach due to sign a two-year contract for a reported annual salary of €1.4 million ($1.8 million).
Olympiakos is looking to re-establish dominance in Greece after losing the league title to Panathinaikos last season and missing out on a Champions League spot in domestic playoffs.
The club fired German coach Ewald Lienen last week after it was ousted from the Europa League by Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Real Madrid signs Carvalho from Chelsea
MADRID (AP) — Real Madrid has signed Ricardo Carvalho from Chelsea on a two-year deal.
Carvalho returns to play under former Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho at Madrid, which did not disclose the cost of the transfer.
The 32-year-old Portugal defender first played under Mourinho at FC Porto, and the Portuguese coach then brought him along to Stanford Bridge in 2004 after Porto's Champions League triumph. They had won the UEFA Cup the season before.
Carvalho was a regular at center back over six seasons at Chelsea, helping the team win three league titles and three FA Cup trophies.
Mourinho also attempted to bring Carvalho to Inter Milan when he moved to the Italian club, but was unsuccessful. Carvalho is Madrid's fifth summer signing.
Ireland coach Trapattoni hospitalized with nausea
DUBLIN (AP) — Ireland's soccer association says coach Giovanni Trapattoni will remain in a hospital overnight after suffering from food poisoning ahead of the team's friendly with Argentina.
The 71-year-old Trapattoni was taken to a Dublin hospital on Tuesday at 3 a.m., after feeling unwell since arriving in Ireland on Sunday. He believes the bout of nausea was caused by shellfish he ate before leaving Italy.
The association said Tuesday that Trapattoni's condition "remains stable and not serious," but he will stay in the hospital overnight and be assessed by consultants in the morning.
Assistant coach Marco Tardelli expects Trapattoni to be well enough to take charge of Wednesday's match against Argentina in Dublin.
Belgium's Mpenza joins Azerbaijan club Neftchi
SION, Switzerland (AP) — Swiss club FC Sion says it has released Emile Mpenza, allowing the Belgium forward to complete his transfer to Neftchi Baku of Azerbaijan.
Sion on Tuesday said it released the 32-year-old Mpenza after receiving an improved offer from Neftchi, but did not disclose financial details.
Mpenza scored 21 goals in the Swiss league last season.
His previous clubs include Standard Liege in Belgium, Schalke and Hamburg in Germany, and England's Manchester City.
Mpenza has scored 19 goals for Belgium and made the last of his 57 international appearances last October. His performances for Sion earned him a brief recall to the Belgium national team.
Austria captain Janko out for Switzerland game
VIENNA (AP) — Austria captain Marc Janko has been ruled out for Wednesday's friendly against Switzerland with a thigh muscle injury.
The striker, who plays for Dutch champions Twente, said Tuesday that "it's no use to play when you're only 60 percent fit. With every step, I would risk an even worse injury."
Austria Vienna striker Roland Linz, who returned to the squad after two years, was expected as a replacement for Janko.
Goalkeeper Juergen Macho (thigh) and midfielder Daniel Beichler (groin) were also out with injuries for the Switzerland game, which is Austria's final test before the start of Euro 2012 qualification in September.
Brazilian club Gremio signs coach Renato Gaucho
SAO PAULO (AP) — Two-time Brazilian champion Gremio has hired former player Renato Gaucho as its new coach.
Renato Gaucho is replacing Silas, who was fired after the team's 2-1 loss to Fluminense on Sunday, the team's eighth straight game without a win.
Gremio is only 18th in the 20-team Brazilian league standings, in the relegation zone.
A former striker, Renato Gaucho scored both of Gremio's goals when it won its only club world title in 1983. He also played for the Brazilian national team.
