Soccer Capsules: Hernandez, Vela lead Mexico over New Zealand 2-0
Comments 0PASADENA, California — Javier Hernandez and Carlos Vela scored in a five-minute span of the second half, leading Mexico over New Zealand 2-0 in Wednesday's friendly between the two World Cup-bound teams that drew 90,526 to the Rose Bowl.
Hernandez, a 21-year-old Guadalajara forward, put El Tri ahead in the 54th minute with his third goal in two international games, beating All Whites goalkeeper Glen Moss with a header from 7 yards off a cross from PSV Eindhoven defender Carlos Salcido.
Vela dribbled past three defenders in the 58th minute and slotted the ball in from 12 yards. The 21-year-old has just one goal in 17 games for Arsenal this season.
Fernandez and Vela may have done enough to earn themselves a place in Mexico's World Cup squad.
"They have the desire to do something," said Mexico coach Javier Aguirre, who will choose the squad in May. "They have the hunger and I'm going to take advantage of it."
New Zealand's best chance came in the fifth minute when Andrew Boyens, who plays for Major League Soccer's New York Red Bulls, headed Leo Bertos' corner wide of a post.
"It was a great result," New Zealand coach Richard Herbert said. "We had to have a very strong focus on the pitch but we've all taken it in stride and that was important."
Aguirre started six Europe-based players: Salcido, Rafael Marquez, Ricardo Osorio, Andres Guardado and the Dos Santos brothers, Giovani and Jonathan.
Mexico plays South Africa in the World Cup opener on June 11, then finishes its group games against France and Uruguay. New Zealand is in a first-round group with defending champion Italy, Paraguay and Slovakia.
Cabanas unlikely to return soon to football
MEXICO CITY — Despite a miraculous recovery from a gunshot wound to the head, Paraguay football star Salvador Cabanas is still unaware of what happened to him and unlikely to return to playing anytime soon.
Dr. Ernesto Martinez, who has treated Cabanas since he was shot at point-blank range 5 1/2 weeks ago in a Mexico City bar, said Wednesday the Paraguayan has no idea what happened to him and has trouble with his short-term memory.
The 29-year-old Cabanas was moved on Tuesday from a Mexico City hospital to a clinic in the capital that specializes in rehabilitation.
"With brain injuries, we don't know when he will be able to orient himself, or have the ability to begin to ask about what happened or connect with reality," Martinez said.
Martinez said Cabanas might need "one, two, three years" to recover from the brain injury.
"Right now, obviously, he is not going to be able to return to football," Martinez said.
Cabanas was the top forward on the Mexico City club America, and would have been certain to be included in Paraguay's national team going to the World Cup in South Africa.
Cabanas was shot just before dawn on Jan. 25 in a Mexico City bar. Hours after, surgeons operated hoping to remove the bullet, but decided it was too risky and left the metal fragment lodged in his skull.
The main suspect in the shooting, identified as Jose Jorge Balderas, remains at large.
Six employees of the nightspot "Bar Bar" were questioned in the shooting and released on bail. The bar owner is still in custody.
Mexico City Attorney General Miguel Angel Mancera has said he wants to interview Cabanas when his doctors give the go-ahead.
England to play Mexico, Japan ahead of World Cup
WEMBLEY, England — England will prepare for its World Cup opener against the United States by playing Mexico at Wembley Stadium and Japan in Austria.
The England-US game will be at 3,783 feet in Rustenburg on June 12, and England is among several teams headed to Austria for altitude training.
England will announce its training camp roster on May 16, the day after the FA Cup final, and will travel for a training camp in the mountains of Austria starting May 17.
The team will return home to face Mexico — the exact date hasn't been picked — then will go back to Austria and play Japan at Graz on May 30.
Players will be given a few days off and coach Fabio Capello will announce his final 23-man roster on June 1. The Three Lions will depart from London the next day and arrive in South Africa on June 3.
Ciudad Juarez fires coach Trevino
MEXICO CITY — Struggling Mexican side Ciudad Juarez has fired coach Jose Trevino.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the club, which is winless in its first eight games in Mexico's Clausura tournament, said Joaquin Mendoza would take over from Trevino for this weekend's match against Tigres.
The move may not save Indois, who face a battle against relegation into Mexico's second division. They have drawn three and lost five of their eight matches.
Ciudad Juarez is in freefall — just 10 months ago, the club from Mexico's troubled border region reached the semifinals of the league playoffs before being ousted by Pachuca.
U.S. Soccer
Netherlands beats U.S. 2-1 in World Cup warmup
AMSTERDAM — DaMarcus Beasley may have boosted his World Cup chances. Jonathan Bornstein and Robbie Findlay did nothing to help theirs. And Stuart Holden joined the long U.S. injured list.
The United States fell flat in Europe once again, losing to the third-ranked Netherlands 2-1 Wednesday night in the Americans' last match before coach Bob Bradley picks his World Cup roster.
"We had some moments in the first half that were OK, but I don't think we put enough pressure on them," said U.S. midfielder Landon Donovan, who hardly touched the ball. "It took us too long in the second half before we made some real plays."
Dirk Kuyt converted a penalty kick in the 40th minute after Bornstein pulled on Wesley Sneijder's arm in the penalty area. Kuyt sent his kick to the right of goalkeeper Tim Howard, who dived the other way.
"We lost our concentration and it was a very bad time to give up a penalty," Bradley said.
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar made it 2-0 in the 73rd minute with a shot that deflected off Bornstein's chest and left the already committed Howard with no chance to stop it.
U.S. captain Carlos Bocanegra scored in the 88th minute, getting his 12th goal in 77 appearances by beating goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg to the top of the 6-yard box to head in Beasley's 35-yard free kick.
"They were all standing there, and they looked kind of confused, so I tried to take it as quickly as I could," Beasley said.
Beasley had a chance to tie it in the 90th, but his free kick from just outside the penalty area was easily grabbed by Stekelenburg at the far post.
"Especially as DaMarcus got into the flow of the game more, he was able to make some good runs forward," said Bradley, leading the team on his 52nd birthday. "You started to see his mobility and a little bit of his quickness. He had the confidence of being a threat and put defenders on their heels. Those are good things and, hopefully, they can be built upon."
Rejoining the national team for the first time since playing poorly in last June's Confederations Cup, Beasley entered in the 34th minute after Holden limped off with a bruised shin sustained from a hard challenge by Nigel de Jong. Holden, taken for X-rays, joined Clint Dempsey, Oguchi Onyewu, Ricardo Clark, Benny Feilhaber, Steve Cherundolo and Charlie Davies on the injured list.
Maurice Edu, Beasley's Glasgow Rangers, teammate, replaced Jose Torres at the start of the second half, Edu's first international appearance knee surgery last June.
Findlay was paired up front with Jozy Altidore at the start of the match, held exactly 100 days before the U.S. opener. Findlay was replaced in the 62nd minute by Alejandro Bedoya, and Eddie Johnson entered in the 76th for Donovan, playing a day shy of his 28th birthday.
Bradley now must deliberate over the 23-man roster he'll announce ahead of exhibitions against the Czech Republic (May 25 at East Hartford, Conn.) and Turkey (May 29 at Philadelphia). The Americans then head to South Africa, where they may have a June 5 exhibition against Australia before playing England on June 12 in their World Cup opener. They complete the first round against Slovenia and Algeria.
"We have a little more time where we're sizing up form and assessing injuries, but certainly there is a nucleus of guys," he said. "There are players who have played big roles throughout qualifying and players who continue to be in the picture for us. There are always going to be tough decisions. As a staff we're committed to seeing as many games as we can, and we have a lot of work to do to make sure we can make all the decisions that give us the best chance."
The 18th-ranked U.S. has lost its last five matches in Europe and is 4-19-3 on soccer's most powerful continent since April 1998, with three wins over Poland and one over Switzerland. The Dutch are 4-0 against the Americans, outscoring them 7-1.
"Certainly it was a good test for us, and I think overall the team played well," Bradley said. "The collective effort was pretty solid. There were moments where it needed to be sharper, quicker and better, and we still need to raise the bar."
NOTES: After getting booed by fans at halftime at Wembley, England rallied to beat Egypt as Peter Crouch scored twice and Shaun Wright-Phillips had a goal. ... Slovenia routed visiting Qatar 4-1 on goals by Milivoje Novakovic, Bostjan Cesar, Andraz Kirm and Bojan Jokic. ... Algeria lost 3-0 at home to Serbia, which started Neven Subotic, a 21-year-old defender, who grew up in Salt Lake City but opted against playing for the United States. ... The U.S. debuted new blue road jerseys with white sashes that harken back to the uniforms the Americans wore at the 1950 World Cup, where they upset England 1-0.
-- Bruce Mutsvairo
Beasley says playing more will decide WCup fate
AMSTERDAM — DaMarcus Beasley says more than a solid performance in the American attack Wednesday is needed for him to earn a spot on the U.S. World Cup squad.
Beasley entered in the 34th minute of a 2-1 loss to the Netherlands after Stuart Holden injured a shin. Beasley's long free kick was headed in by U.S. captain Carlos Bocanegra for the American goal in the 88th minute.
"It feels good to be back," Beasley said after his first match with the national team since his blunder led to a Brazilian goal in the Confederations Cup last June 18. "I need more games, and then I will try make things difficult for the coach."
After scoring twice in five games in December for Glasgow Rangers, Beasley was sidelined for two months with a thigh injury. The first match back for the 27-year-old midfielder was Feb. 14.
"My form is the most important thing," he said. "I need to work on that, and then we will see."
This was the last game for the national team before U.S. coach Bob Bradley picks his 23-man World Cup roster. Beasley, a Fort Wayne, Ind., native, was part of the 2002 and 2006 World Cup teams and has 17 goals in 90 international appearances.
"We have a little more time where we're sizing up form and assessing injuries, but certainly there is a nucleus of guys," Bradley said. "There are always going to be tough decisions."
Bradley praised Beasley, who had a chance to tie the score in the 90th minute. His free kick was saved by goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg at the far post.
-- Bruce Mutsvairo
U.S. to play Czechs in Connecticut friendly
AMSTERDAM — The United States will start its World Cup send-off tour by playing the Czech Republic at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut, on May 25.
The site of the match was announced Wednesday by U.S. Soccer Federation. The U.S. has played at Rentschler Field twice previously, defeating Trinidad and Tobago 1-0 in a World Cup qualifier in August 2005 and beating Latvia 1-0 in its final warmup before the 2006 World Cup.
The Americans play Turkey at Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field on May 29 before leaving for South Africa. They also might play fellow World Cup qualifier Australia in a friendly on June 5 in Johannesburg.
Making its sixth straight World Cup appearance, the U.S. opens June 12 against England, plays Slovenia six days later and completes the first round against Algeria on June 23.
In addition to playing the U.S., the Czechs meet Turkey on May 22 in the first match between national teams at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey.
At the 2006 World Cup in Germany, the Czechs outplayed the Americans in the tournament opener for both teams, winning 3-0. In 1990, Czechoslovakia routed the U.S. 5-1 in the Americans' return to the World Cup following a 40-year absence.
The Czech Republic failed to advance to the 32-nation field for this year's World Cup in South Africa, finishing behind Slovakia and Slovenia in its European qualifying group.
Holden out for up to 6 weeks with leg fracture
BOLTON, England — Bolton midfielder Stuart Holden will be out of action for as long as six weeks after breaking his right leg in the United States' 2-1 friendly loss at the Netherlands.
Holden was hurt by a hard tackle by Nigel de Jong and limped off in the first half before having X-rays.
The 22-year-old Holden has started Bolton's last two English Premier League matches.
Bolton manager Owen Coyle says "it is a blow, but the most important thing is that he returns bigger and better."
AP Interview: MLS wants English to buy U.S. teams
MANCHESTER, England — Having failed to convince Barcelona and Real Madrid to invest in Major League Soccer teams or start new franchises, MLS commissioner Don Garber is turning his focus to English Premier League clubs.
Barcelona had been looking to buy partial ownership of a MLS expansion team but negotiations collapsed. However, Garber hasn't given up on forging partnerships that could not only bring in investment but also new methods and links with bigger competitions.
"We think it would be smart for us to have an international team sitting around our board table and helping to influence the way we think and perhaps connect us even more closer with the international community," Garber said in an interview with The Associated Press at SoccerEx.
"We tried with FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, and we will continue to talk to the Spanish clubs while finding some way to see if there is an investment opportunity with any of the English clubs. We are not anywhere close to that on any level yet."
One club that could be persuaded to invest in north America is Manchester City. Garber met Monday with City chief executive Garry Cook, whose club has been transformed by a major injection of money since Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mansour's takeover in September 2008.
"Part of the relaunch of that team is for them to think strategically about their business and where international expansion fits into that, and where the U.S. might fit into that," Garber said. "We've had very preliminary discussions about that. They've got a lot of figuring out to do on their own end in terms of what their international plans are."
Garber argues that MLS teams need greater exposure with soccer outside the United States to improve playing standards.
"We could learn a lot about youth development and coaching and the technical side of things," Garber said. "On the technical side, we still need help and I like to think we are not creating an American version of the world game. I would like to think we are part of the world game, and in order to do that we need to have more deep association with the global football community."
A recent trend has been Americans buying English clubs, with Malcolm Glazer at Manchester United, George Gillett Jr. and Tom Hicks at Liverpool, Randy Lerner at Aston Villa and Ellis Short at Sunderland. Stan Kroenke has a majority stake in Arsenal, and owns MLS's Colorado Rapids.
"Just like it's good in my view to have American sports team owners in England, it would good for MLS to have an English club investing in our league," Garber said. "I would love to see an opportunity for an equity investment. It would be good for us."
A new MLS team could be bought for about $40 million, Garber says, in the next round of expansion.
Philadelphia is the only new team in 2010, while Portland, Ore., and Vancouver will join the MLS in 2011.
Some English clubs already play in the U.S. in the summer, with Manchester United, Manchester City and Tottenham possibly making the trip this July. Garber said helping to grow the sport is the next logical step for interested clubs.
"Whether it's an existing team or an expansion team is irrelevant to me," Garber said. "But I would see over the next number of years us continuing our connection with international football clubs, and having it go beyond representing them in the United States for brand development and fan opportunities."
-- Rob Harris
U.S. beats Germany 3-2 to win Algarve Cup
FARO, Portugal — The United States beat Germany 3-2 on Wednesday to capture the Algarve Cup women's football tournament for the seventh time.
Germany goalkeeper Nadine Angerer fumbled the ball in the 70th minute and Lauren Cheney tapped it in for the winner.
"That was the only way I was scoring today, I had a few bad touches, but the goalie bounced it off my face," Cheney said. "I even looked around me to make sure no one was by me so I couldn't mess it up."
U.S. coach Pia Sundhage said the team did well to win all three of its group games to reach the 12-nation tournament final, and then beat reigning world champions Germany in difficult conditions.
"I am impressed. We play against Germany, one of the best teams in the world, we play on a bad pitch, it's a bit muddy and we play in a final, but we performed in such a way that's nice to see that kind of attacking soccer with solid defending," Sundhage said.
The Americans dominated in the first half of their eighth straight Algarve final, taking a 2-0 lead when Carli Lloyd and Abby Wambach scored within a five-minute span.
Germany, looking for its second Algarve title, pulled one back through Inka Grings just before halftime when she netted on a tight angle to beat American goalie Hope Solo.
With 15 minutes left, Grings' second levelled the scores, as she poked the ball beneath the outstretched Solo from close range.
Germany, which scored 16 goals without reply in its three group games before the final, was stronger in the second half but the sodden pitch foiled efforts by the world's two top-ranked women's teams.
Sweden took third place in the tournament with a 2-0 win over China.
World Cup
SAfrica footballers can't hide their excitement
DURBAN, South Africa — South Africa's footballers could not hide their excitement on Wednesday as the 100-day countdown to the World Cup passed, but the team faces a huge test to qualify for the second round of the tournament.
In the east coast city of Durban for the friendly against Namibia at the new Moses Mabhida Stadium, South Africa defender Bevan Fransman said the reality of hosting and playing in the one of the world's biggest sporting events is hitting home.
"There is no turning back," Fransman said. "When we got the bid everybody said 'We've got the World Cup,' well the reality is hitting now. It's time to get ready."
Coach Carlos Alberto Parreira has told his players to make the most of the opportunity to play at a World Cup, calling it a "priceless feeling."
With much of the preparations out of the way, local focus will shift to the host team and its performances. South Africa opens the tournament on June 11 with a Group A match against Mexico, before games against Uruguay and France. It will be viewed as a failure if the home team does not reach the knockout stage.
Fransman, who plays for Maccabi Netanya in Israel, was one of a string of foreign-based players called up by Parreira for the Namibia game as the Brazilian looks to finalize his squad.
Also included was Germany-based veteran defender Bradley Carnell, Bryce Moon of Greek club PAOK and Anele Ngcongca, who plays in Belgium.
Ngcongca said there was no looking back.
"Time goes by so quick," the K.R.C. Ghenk midfielder said. "We have to look forward because the other day we thought this day would not come and here we are now, the countdown shows there is no looking back."
Midfielder Moon said, "We are ready to give our best to the country. It's very close because time flies. We are ready to take the challenge, and we will see what happens."
Defender Siyanda Xulu added, "We must start believing in ourselves."
Lebohang Mokoena, a midfielder with South Africa's Mamelodi Sundowns, was brought in by Parreira four years after playing his last game for his country.
"It's been too long that I haven't been in the national team, but I have always kept faith that given a chance at club level I will bounce back," he said.
"So it's just up to me to play well when given a chance in the national team because the World Cup is close.
"We are moving closer to the biggest tournament in the world, and as for the players it gets more exciting to say, 'We are almost there,'" Mokoena added.
The team was joined at a training session on Tuesday by Brazil's two-time World Cup winner Cafu as Parreira uses all of his contacts to inspire his team. Cafu played under Parreira in the World Cup-winning team in the U.S in 1994.
Wednesday's match against neighbor Namibia is part of the 100-day celebrations but its also one of precious few warmup games left for South Africa.
The South African Football Association said tickets for the game at the 70,000-seat Moses Mabhida Stadium had sold out.
Building costs took Soccer City $133m over budget
JOHANNESBURG — The venue for the World Cup final cost nearly a third more than estimated due to the rising price of building materials, Johannesburg officials said Wednesday.
Johannesburg city councilman Parks Tau said Soccer City went 1 billion rand ($133 million) over budget and cost 3.2 billion rand ($424 million).
The 90,000-capacity venue, which will host the opening and closing matches of the tournament, which runs from June 11-July 11, was handed over to the city by the Aveng construction group with 99 days to go before kickoff.
Work on transport infrastructure around the stadium is scheduled for completion in mid-March.
Several matches will be played at Soccer City to test the surface before the World Cup opener between South Africa and Mexico.
Soccer City is inspired by the shape of the calabash, a gourd used throughout Africa to store food and drink, a symbol of hospitality and togetherness. It is an intimate sporting venue, with spectators as close as 4 yards from the field.
Fiberglass cladding on the exterior of the stadium in earthy shades of red, orange and brown refers to Johannesburg's history as South Africa's city of gold. Tunnels leading to the field continue the mining theme, with interior scaffolding and workmen's' lights hanging from untreated cement walls.
"I'm proud because it's a World Cup stadium, and I can tell people that I contributed to it," said Thami Mabuza, a member of the Soccer City construction team.
-- Nastasya Kay
Germany agrees World Cup bonus plan
BERLIN — Germany's players would receive bonuses of 250,000 euros ($339,000) each if they win the World Cup.
The governing body of German soccer says it has reached an agreement with the players on a bonus system identical to the one drawn up for the 2008 European Championship.
Bonuses will start with payments of 50,000 euros each ($67,800) for reaching the quarterfinals. The players would get 100,000 euros apiece ($135,600) for getting as far as the semifinals and 150,000 euros ($203,400) each for reaching the final.
Germany has won three World Cup titles, the last in 1990. It reached the semifinals at home in 2006.
International Roundups
Spain wins at France; Argentina wins at Germany
Argentina eased the pressure on coach Diego Maradona with a 1-0 victory at Germany on Wednesday night, and Spain heaped more on France coach Raymond Domenech with a 2-0 triumph at Les Bleus on a big night of World Cup warmups.
Twenty-eight of the 32 World Cup teams were in action, with the United States losing 2-1 at the Netherlands. England, which plays the U.S. in its opener on June 12, rallied for a 3-1 victory over visiting Egypt, and defending champion Italy was held to a 0-0 tie by Cameroon at Monte Carlo, Monaco.
In a late game, Mexico played defeated New Zealand 2-0 before 90,526 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.
At Munich, Gonzalo Higuain scored in first-half injury time to lift Argentina, which struggled during qualifying.
"It was (like) a World Cup game," Maradona said. "The lads played a great match. I've nothing but praise for all of them."
Argentina defender Martin Demichelis broke a cheekbone when he was hit accidentally in the face by the knee of Germany captain Michael Ballack.
At Saint-Denis, David Villa scored in the 21st minute and Sergio Ramos just before halftime for Spain, which had been 0-5-1 in France since a 3-1 win at Lyon in October 1968. Some of the French fans called for the resignation of Domenech, whose team needed a blatant Thierry Henry hand ball in a playoff against Ireland to qualify.
At Wembley, Peter Crouch entered in the second half and scored twice, and fellow substitute Shaun Wright-Phillips added a goal for England.
In a warmup for its World Cup opener against the United States on June 12, England fell behind when Mohamed Zidan scored in the 23rd minute after a mistake by defender Matthew Upson.
England's players were booed at the half, and at the start of the second half Crouch replaced Jermain Defoe and Michael Carrick took over from Frank Lampard.
Crouch tied it in the 56th off Gareth Barry's cross, Wright-Phillips scored from a rebound in the 74th and Crouch got his second goal from Wright-Phillips' cross five minutes later.
After Mohammed Zidan had stunned England with a 23rd-minute goal, Crouch tied it in the 56th off Gareth Barry's cross, Wright-Phillips scored from a rebound in the 74th and Crouch got his second goal from Wright-Phillips' cross five minutes later.
"I said to the players to press more to win the ball back quickly and in the second half we did that," England coach Fabio Capello said. "Crouch is a big option for me because sometimes you can play long ball. Today we didn't, and he played very well with one touch, two touches. In the second half he made the difference."
Portugal beat China 2-0 as Cristiano Ronaldo set up Hugo Almeida's goal in the 36th minute and Almeida added another in second-half injury time.
Lee Dong-gook and substitute Kwak Tae-hwi scored to give South Korea to a 2-0 victory over Ivory Coast in London. The Ivorians are looking for a new coach after firing Vahid Halihodzic last month, and former England and Mexico coach Sven-Goran Eriksson was also at the game along with former Juventus coach Ciro Ferrara.
Serbia won 3-0 at Algeria on goals by Marko Pantelic, Zdravko Kuzmanovic and Zoran Tosic. Slovenia routed visiting Qatar 4-1 as Milivoje Novakovic, Bostjan Cesar, Andraz Kirm and Bojan Jokic scored. Emre Gungor and Hamit Altintop gave Turkey a 2-0 win over visiting Honduras.
At the Rose Bowl, Javier Hernandez and Carlos Vela scored in a five-minute span of the second half for Mexico.
Also, Australia, Kuwait and Jordan became the final teams to qualify for next year's Asian Cup.
Australia beat Indonesia 1-0 on Mark Milligan's goal in the 42nd minute at Brisbane to top Group B and advance with Kuwait, which tied 0-0 at Oman. Jordan defeated Singapore 2-1 on Anas Bani Yaseen's tiebreaking goal in the 61st minute at Amman to finish second in Group E behind Iran.
-- Robert Millward
Godoy Cruz takes lead in Argentina
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Godoy Cruz took over the top spot in Argentina's Clausura tournament on Wednesday, defeating Lanus 2-1.
In other Wednesday matches, Independiente won 1-0 at Tigre, and Argentinos Juniors were 1-0 victors at Estudiantes.
Godoy Cruz leads with 15 points, one more than Independiente and three ahead of Velez Sarsfield and Colon. Colon could move level on points with a victory Thursday at Apertura champion Banfield. Lanus has only seven points in seven rounds of games.
Godoy Cruz went ahead through experienced Colombian midfielder Jairo Castillo in the 36th minute. Paraguayan striker Santiago Salcedo got the equalizer for Lanus, but Uruguayan midfielder Carlos Sanchez scored the winner.
Striker Andres Silvera scored in Independiente's victory. Veteran forward Jose Luis Calderon scored in the 33rd for Argentinos Juniors to defeat his old side Estudiantes, for whom he played over 200 games.
In Tuesday matches in the mid-week round of games, it was: Rosario Central 2, Arsenal 3; Velez Sarsfield 4, Boca Juniors 4; Racing 1, Huracan 1.
On Thursday it's: Atletico Tucuman vs. Newell's Old Boys, Banfield vs. Colon, Chacarita vs. Gimnasia, River Plate vs. San Lorenzo.
The mid-week matches are being played to squeeze the calendar to give players time to join their national teams for the World Cup in South Africa, which opens June 11. However few of the players likely to play for Argentina's national team play in the country.
Elsewhere
Man United CEO criticizes group trying to buy club
MANCHESTER, England — Manchester United chief executive David Gill criticized the bid by rebel fans and a group of financiers to buy the club and said Wednesday that the Glazer family is not planning to sell anytime soon.
Gill asked how the 18-time English champions would be able to operate as a business and make decisions under the group known as the "Red Knights," claiming there would be too many people involved.
"The idea of having 20, 30 or 40 very wealthy people running Manchester United, I don't know how it would work in practice," Gill said at the SoccerEx convention. "The better-run clubs are where there is clear single decision-making and it's quick and efficient: Roman Abramovich at Chelsea, Sheikh Mansour at Manchester City, Silvio Berlusconi at AC Milan.
"Having a number of wealthy people involved, they will all want to be involved in decision-making. I'm not sure what their endgame is but the endgame is irrelevant. The vast majority of fans of Manchester United should be happy with what we are doing and staying at the top of domestic and world football."
But United fans are angry that the club's debts have risen to 709 million pounds ($1.1 billion) since the 2005 leveraged takeover by Malcolm Glazer, who apparently won't listen to offers for the three-time European champions.
"The owners are very long-term owners and have shown that with Tampa Bay, which they took over in 1994-5," Gill said in a question-and-answer session on stage. "They are not sellers. That's not saying people like these Red Knights can't come forward with some ideas."
Gill said the debt is easily serviced by the club's revenue, listed at $462 million last season, according to a Deloitte's study released this week. And he claimed the situation is far different from when he opposed Glazer's plans for United in September 2004.
"The level of debt they were proposing and business plan underpinning that debt were too aggressive," Gill said. "They revisited those plans, changed the structure of the financing, revisited the business plans underpinning that financing and that culminated in the takeover in 2005."
The Glazers have recently raised 504 million pounds ($762 million) through a seven-year bond issue to help refinance some of the club's liabilities.
But many fans complain manager Alex Ferguson has only spent a third of the 80 million pounds ($131 million) brought by the sale of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid last year.
"We're looking at players all the time," Gill said. "Alex has been very clear. He's not going to go out and pay for a player just because everyone else thinks we should do that. He's a Scot. He wants value for money. He's not going to waste it."
The Manchester United Supporters Trust is behind the Red Knights and has started to formulate a takeover bid with Jim O'Neill, chief economist at Goldman Sachs, and Keith Harris, chairman of investment bankers Seymour Pierce.
Harris, who previously helped to broker Roman Abramovich's 2003 takeover at Chelsea and Randy Lerner's buyout of Aston Villa in 2006, was mocked by Gill on stage at SoccerEx.
"Keith Harris will go anywhere that there's a bit of publicity around, and we know that and we accept that," Gill said. "That's his modus operandi, but his track record in football isn't anything to write home about."
MUST says its membership numbers have soared since the Red Knights went public on Tuesday with their plans. Last month, it was at 36,000 but the figure now exceeds 78,000.
La Liga chief: Spanish league not competitive
MANCHESTER, England — La Liga's top executive wants action taken to stifle the dominance of Barcelona and Real Madrid after admitting Cristiano Ronaldo's arrival in Spain has only served to strengthen the duopoly.
While Ronaldo signing for Madrid last year for a world record 80 million pounds (then $131 million) will help the league drive up TV revenues globally, the Portugal winger is playing in a competition that is a two-horse race.
With 12 matches to go, there are only two points separating Barcelona and Real Madrid at the top, with Valencia 13 points adrift in third.
"Ronaldo is a big help domestically and internationally (for marketing), but he makes the league more one-sided," La Liga chief executive Francisco Roca Perez told The Associated Press. "Barcelona and Madrid will always be dominant but I'm not happy that their dominance is so big that right now we still have one-third of the competition ahead of us and they are 13 points ahead of the rest. That is not good for anybody.
"It's not a question of having two teams very dominant, it's a question that this dominance is getting too big."
While Madrid has amassed debts of euro327 million to strengthen its team, the league's concerns are about the debts lower down the top flight. Roca Perez said he will later this month unveil new financial regulations to prevent clubs amassing debt.
"We want to tighten the financial conditions, especially the expenditure side of the Spanish teams. The ratio will probably be player salaries and player amortization to revenue they get from operations," Roca Perez said. "We are not extremely worried about the top teams — Real Madrid and Barcelona — having debt because of the real estate and other assets they have. I'm worried about many other teams that don't have such capabilities and their debt can be more troublesome."
Roca Perez believes the new rules will make Spanish teams more attractive to foreign investors.
"Most of our investors are from Spain or Latin America, but not from the United States or Russia like in England," he said on the sidelines of Soccerex. "I think there is an opportunity there, another league to take a look at. There is no reason not to get international investors we hope and we look forward to having them."
Central to La Liga's problems is the fact that Barcelona and Madrid negotiate their own TV contracts, meaning that 47 percent of the league's euro1.8 billion ($2.5 billion) income goes to them. The bottom 10 teams only get 16 percent of the revenue.
"In Europe we get more competitions where it's not difficult to guess the outcomes," Roca Perez said. "We have a low degree of competitive balance across the board. Spain is probably the worst example right now. This is something we should definitely aim to sort out to keep the competition interesting and fans riveted.
"We have a very tough situation because the television rights are being sold individually. We need to find a way to get this way readdressed, but you can't impose anything — there must be an agreement between all the teams."
Roca Perez also wants La Liga to move from evening games by playing one match each weekend at 3 p.m. or 4 p.m. Spanish time to make it more attractive to evening TV audiences in Asia.
-- Rob Harris
Agent expects Mutu to receive 3-4 month doping ban
ROME — Adrian Mutu's agent Giovanni Becali expects his client to be banned for three to four months following the preliminary hearing into the Romania forward's doping case.
Mutu tested positive for traces of the stimulant Sibutramina on two occasions, after matches against Bari on Jan. 10 and Lazio on Jan. 20.
"My feeling is there will be a suspension, but I don't expect it to be more than three or four months," Becali told reporters on Wednesday.
"He explained what he consumed. He made a mistake in taking the substance without asking what it was and he admits his guilt by not asking his doctor if he could take this substance."
Mutu and his legal team will return to face the Italian Olympic Committee's antidoping commission on March 19.
"Of course there will be some months' suspension," Becali said. "We aren't yet sure. We shall see in 15 days."
The 31-year-old Mutu, who plays for Fiorentina, is already facing the possibility of paying €17 million (US$24 million) in compensation to his former club Chelsea after testing positive for cocaine use in 2004.
The Swiss Federal Court is nearing a ruling on Mutu's appeal against the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which said he must pay Chelsea compensation.
CAS ruled in July that FIFA was right to award Chelsea compensation because Mutu had breached his contract.
Chelsea fired Mutu for failing a drug test, then received no part of its transfer fee back after he served a seven-month ban and rebuilt his career in Italy. Mutu joined Juventus as a free agent and was then sold after one season for €8 million (US$11 million) to Serie A rival Fiorentina.
Mutu's legal team argued in favor of his good character and said he took the substance unaware that it was on the banned list. It also said his positive test at Chelsea had no relevance to the latest incident.
"This has nothing to do with what occured at Chelsea," Becali said. "Therefore we do not feel the past is a factor. The two are not related.
"We hope the court understands he acted in good faith, because he has already lost four to five years of his career," he said. "If he has made a mistake, he will pay — but hopefully not too dearly."
Germany, England, Greece move up FIFA rankings
ZURICH — European champion Spain still leads the FIFA rankings ahead of Brazil, the Netherlands and Italy, while the United States slipped four spots to 18th.
Former European champion Greece is back in the top 10 for the first time since June 2008.
Germany has moved up one spot to fifth, England improved one place to eighth and Euro 2004 champion Greece goes up two to 10th, replacing Egypt.
Egypt had moved up the rankings after winning the African Cup of Nations in January, but has slipped to 17th. Portugal dropped to sixth and Argentina to ninth.
The United States will visit the Netherlands for an exhibition on Wednesday.
Macclesfield manager Alexander found dead at home
MACCLESFIELD, England — Macclesfield's Keith Alexander, one of the few black managers in English football, has died. He was 53.
Macclesfield said Alexander was found at his home Wednesday, a day after his team's 1-0 loss at Notts County in League Two.
The cause of his death was not revealed but Alexander, who led Lincoln to the playoffs in four seasons in a row, had been ill on various occasions since he had a cerebral aneurysm in November 2003.
The Football Association announced that England's players will wear black armbands as a mark of respect in Wednesday's friendly against Egypt at Wembley Stadium.
Brazilian fans banned from cursing inside stadiums
SAO PAULO — Fans have been prohibited from cursing and making obscene gestures inside some Brazilian stadiums as authorities look to promote a "healthy environment" at football matches.
The football federation in the northeastern state of Paraiba has included a rule in this year's regional championship saying that "violent, immoral and offensive" acts, including curse words and obscenities, are not allowed during matches.
The federation says the ban is intended to "make football stadiums in Paraiba a healthy and safe" environment which can be attended by families and children.
There is no specific punishment for those who disrespect the rule, but local media reported Wednesday some violators were briefly taken to a police station inside the stadiums.
16 PSG fans banned, Sarkozy condemns violence
PARIS — Sixteen Paris Saint-Germain fans have been banned from stadiums following clashes, and France president Nicolas Sarkozy strongly condemned the violence.
The Paris prosecutor's office said Wednesday the fans will have to show up at police stations during matches. Another fan was sentenced to a six-month suspended jail term for "aggravated violence."
Clashes involving hooligans from the two main stands at PSG's stadium Parc des Princes, the Tribune d'Auteuil and the Kop of Boulogne, erupted last Sunday before and after a 3-0 loss to Marseille in the French league.
A 38-year-old man sustained a head injury and was in a critical condition on Wednesday.
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