Football. Fútbol. Futebol. Calcio. Fußball. ποδόσφαιρο. Kopaná. Fotbal.
Futball. Voetbal. Fotboll. Fotball. Nogometni. футбол. oкер. Jalkapallo.
Futbola. Association Football. Soccer. Nogomet. Piłka Nożna. Fótbolti.
Fodbold. Il-Loghba tal-ballun. Futbol. Futbolo. Sepakbola. Kandanda.
Kinipōpō peku. Cumann Peile. Isikkamik arsaanneq כדורגל đá banh ฟุตบอล
फुटबाल 蹴球 足球 フットボール لعبة كرة القدم بازى فوتبال


In any language, the whole world is united by a ball.


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Copyright © 2006-2009 by Steve Amoia. All rights reserved.

Guest commentaries are copyrighted by their respective authors. Images are courtesy of and copyrighted by the named photographer or source. Original Italian and Spanish text courtesy of and copyrighted by the named source.

All Italian and Spanish translations are by Steve Amoia, and provided as a service to my readers.

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Monday, November 9, 2009

Mister Lippi Releases His Roster for Friendlies with The Netherlands and Sweden


Image of Marcello Lippi courtesy of Paul Blank and
http://www.postproduktie.nl/.

Mister Lippi released a 25 man roster for the upcoming friendlies on 14 and 18 November against The Netherlands (in Pescara), and Sweden (in Cesena), respectively.

Sports News - January 29, 2009
"How do I get Lippi to select me again?"
"Transfer to Juventus, and don't hug Mourinho the
next time you face Inter Milan."


There were a few new faces, but once again, Antonio Cassano of Sampdoria was not selected. His Samp teammate, Giampaolo Pazzini, made the cut.

There were six players selected from Juventus FC.

Giuseppe Rossi of Villarreal was the only foreign-based player selected.

Azzurri Roster

Goalkeepers

Buffon (Juventus), De Sanctis (Napoli), Marchetti (Cagliari)

Defenders

Bocchetti (Genoa), Cannavaro (Juventus), Cassani (Palermo), Chiellini (Juventus), Criscito (Genoa), Grosso (Juventus), Legrottaglie (Juventus), Maggio (Napoli), Zambrotta (Milan)

Midfielders

Biondini (Cagliari), Camoranesi (Juventus), Candreva (Livorno), (De Rossi was injured yesterday and was replaced by Montolivo from Fiorentina), Galloppa (Parma), Marchionni (Fiorentina), Palombo (Sampdoria), Pirlo (Milan)

Strikers

Di Natale (Udinese), Gilardino (Fiorentina), Palladino (Genoa), Pazzini (Sampdoria), Rossi (Villarreal)

Courtesy of La Gazzetta dello Sport, 08 November 2009.

Friday, November 6, 2009

Week/Giornata 12 of the Italian Serie A


Image courtesy of the Italian Lega Calcio.

The Serie A began in 1929. Only Internazionale Milano has played every season in the top flight. To learn more about Italian soccer history, please click the image to visit my Italian Calcio and History of the Azzurri page.

Wesley Sneijder has been a revelation for Inter Milan
this season, and has become their "uomo simbolo."

Image courtesy of Paul Blank and http://www.postproduktie.nl/



Quotes of the Week in Italian Calcio


Image courtesy of stock.xchng.

"Gigi's words of confidence in me were very comforting." Diego of Juventus

"We can overtake Inter Milan." Ciro Ferrara of Juventus

"Antonio Cassano is a genius. I hope he makes it back with the Azzurri." Giampaolo Pazzini of Sampdoria

"Berlusconi likes the Spanish module of this team under Leonardo." Adriano Galliani of AC Milan

"The reception by the crowd at the San Siro was incredible." Ricardo Kaka' of Real Madrid

"This team has a great character and spirit." Jose' Mourinho of Internazionale Milano

"Wesley Sneijder is an incredible player." Maicon of Internazionale Milano

Quotes are courtesy of La Gazzetta dello Sport but translated from the Italian by me.


Live Streaming of the Games

Image courtesy of stock.xchng.
  • Click the image to view a schedule of live video streams from ATDHE.net.


Image courtesy of Rojadirecta.org.

  • Click the image above to view a very detailed daily schedule of live video streams.


Week 12 Fixtures


2009/2010 Serie A Fixtures (Printable PDF Version from La Gazzetta dello Sport)

LiveSoccerTV (Serie A Broadcast Schedule)


Video Highlights


A great source for Serie A videos.
You can also view videos on the
Goal4Replay application above this
post.

Online Coverage of the Serie A

  • For an ESPN Matchtracker of Italian football, please click here.

  • For an interesting STATS Match Center, please click here. (Then select Serie A at the top left.)
  • For a game tracker called Live Match from La Gazzetta dello Sport, please click here. You may have to click on the number of the week to see a full fixture list.

  • For a detailed map of Italy and Serie A clubs, please click here.
Cable Coverage of Italian Soccer in North America
  • Fox Soccer Channel, GolTV (Coppa Italia and Azzurri), RAI International
  • Telefutura Contacto Deportivo has an excellent highlight show at 11 p.m. Eastern time every night. Weekend telecasts have Serie A highlights.
  • Titulares Telemundo with Andres Cantor also has an excellent highlight show at 11 p.m. Eastern time on Saturdays and Sundays.

For those new to Italian calcio, please read my article, Soccer Terminology in the Mother Tongue (Italian to English).

Enjoy the passion of Italian calcio.



World Football Commentaries Home Page

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

2009/2010 UEFA Champions League Matchday 4: "I expect a great reception." Kaka'


Image courtesy of UEFA.

The premier world football club competition kicked-off on 15 September. The defending champion is FC Barcelona, and the final will take place on 22 May 2010 from el Estadio Bernabeu in Madrid.

"Matchday 1 takes place on 15/16 September, with fixtures continuing on 29/30 September, 20/21 October, 3/4 November, 24/25 November and 8/9 December. The top two sides from each section will progress to the first knockout round draw on 18 December, which will be held at 12.00 CET in Nyon, while those finishing third will enter the UEFA Europa League Round of 32."

Source: UEFA.com.
Real Madrid v DC United
Cristiano Ronaldo and Ricardo Kaka'
during
a preseason friendly in Washington. Ricky will face
his old friends and fans at the San Siro on Tuesday.

"Per quello che c'è stato in questi anni, mi aspetto una bella accoglienza . Sarà una partita difficile".
"For all that has been in these years, I expect a great reception. It will be a difficult game."

Ricardo Kaka' of Real Madrid.

Kaka' had a 94.55% pass completion rate on 55 passes. He also had 8 shots on goal against his former team at the San Siro.
Italian source: La Gazzetta dello Sport, 2 November 2009.

"Dice che vuole eliminare il Milan dalla Champions League? Certo, perché lo conosce bene e lo teme... Sarà emozionante rivederlo e giocare contro di lui. Nello spogliatoio ha lasciato un ricordo bellissimo".

AC Milan's Kaka and Carlo Ancelotti
Kaka' and Carlo Ancelotti at Milan.
"He says that he wants to eliminate Milan from the Champions League? Of course, because he knows Milan well and fears it... It will be emotional to see him again, and to play against him. In the dressing room, he left a beautiful memory."

Alessandro Nesta
of AC Milan on Ricardo Kaka'.
Italian Source: La Gazzetta dello Sport, 20 October 2009.



New Faces


There are 8 new teams, along with 16 domestic title holders.

Here are the 32 teams divided into 8 groups:

Group A

Bayern Munich
Juventus
Bordeaux
Maccabi Haifa

Group B

Manchester United
CSKA Moscow
Besiktas
VFL Wolfsburg

Group C

AC Milan (Huntelaar returns to face los Merengues.)
Real Madrid CF (Kaka' returns to face the Rossoneri.)
Olympique Marseille
FC Zurich

Group D

Chelsea FC
FC Porto
Atletico de Madrid
Apoel FC Nicosia

Group E

Liverpool
Olympique Lyon
ACF Fiorentina
Debreceni

Group F

FC Barcelona (Ibrahimovic returns to face the Nerazzurri.)
Internazionale Milano (Eto'o returns to face Barca.)
Dynamo Kiev
FC Rubin Kazan

Group G


Sevilla
Rangers Glasgow
Vfb Stuttgart
AFC Unirea Urziceni

Group H

Arsenal
AZ Alkmaar
Olimpiakos FC
Standard de Leige

UEFA Awards for 2008/2009

UEFA Club Goalkeeper of the Year: Erwin van der Saar of Manchester United.
UEFA Club Defender of the Year: John Terry of Chelsea FC.
UEFA Club Midfielder of the Year: Xavi Hernandez of FC Barcelona.
UEFA Club Striker of the Year: Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona.

Paolo Maldini of AC Milan received a Special Achievement Award from UEFA President, Michel Platini, during the draw ceremony in Monaco.

UEFA Champions League Site
UCL Statistics

World Football Commentaries Home Page
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Sunday, November 1, 2009

USA 2 x Costa Rica 2: 2010 World Cup Qualifier by Andrew Helms


Image courtesy of Stock.xchng.

Editor's Note

This was the winning entry in the World Football Commentaries Writing Contest.
Congratulations to Andrew.

by Andrew Helms
15 October 2009


The US overcame a two-goal deficit, horrendous finishing, playing down a man, and playing with heavy hearts with their teammate Charlie Davies in the hospital to tie a Costa Rica team desperate for the win that would qualify them for next summer’s World Cup. Jonathan Bornstein’s header from a Robbie Rogers corner kick in the 95th minute leveled the score 2-2 and secured first place in CONCACAF for the US after a grueling 16-month tournament. On the other side, it was heartbreak for Costa Rica; the tie pushed them into fourth place which means a two-game playoff with Uruguay, CONMEBOL’s fifth place team, will decide which nation will be the final team to qualify for South Africa.

It was a very strange match. It started as an open, attacking affair which saw both sides with chances in the first 30 minutes. Unfortunately for the US it was Costa Rica that was able to capitalize, building a two-goal lead after 24 minutes thanks to a three minute, world-class display by Bryan Ruiz. The first goal was a deadly combination of attacking verve and defensive timidity. Ruiz turned Oguchi Onyewu at the corner of the 18 and then made a beeline for the goal. Carlos Bocanegra was slow to react and Howard was soft coming off his line. ESPN commentator Alexi Lalas mentioned the idea that the timid display could be the result of the US playing to not get a red card. Whenever you play with the purpose to not do something, bad things happen. Just three minutes later the Costa Ricans played an impressive sequence of passes to undo the left side of the US defense before Ruiz hit a laser into the far upper V. The US was shell-shocked. Costa Rica had one foot in Cape Town. From there, however, the US took over and generated chance after chance. Before the goals, on 9 minutes, Conor Casey missed a 100% opportunity after a wonderful individual display by Jozy Altidore. Before half-time Altidore would miss a similar opportunity as would Landon Donovan.

The goals would come. Michael Bradley followed up a Donovan shot and awkwardly forced the ball into the ground and over the onrushing keeper; it took sheer determination to break the seal. Even after Onyewu went down with a torn patella tendon and the US was playing with 10 men, substitute Jose Francisco Torres dictated play and the US was relentless in their pursuit of the second goal. Finally, with seconds remaining Bornstein rose to meet a well-driven corner kick from Rogers and the celebrations began.

In the post-game celebration the team posed in front of a Charlie Davies banner. Captain Carlos Bocanegra thanked the fans for their support throughout qualification. With Trinidad and Tobago tying Mexico, the US finished first in CONCACAF. Again. Even with the excitement of the game and clinching first, soccer is still secondary. The US soccer community all wishes Davies a speedy recovery, and we pray for comfort for the family and friends of the passenger who died. Though the injuries are less severe, we all are also hoping Onyewu and Jay DeMerit are able to recover quickly and fully as well.

About the Author

Andrew Helms lives in Atlanta, Georgia and works for the American Cancer Society as a Director of Financial Reporting. When healthy, he plays soccer with the North Atlanta pick-up soccer group and tennis in the Ultimatetennis singles league and ALTA neighborhood doubles league.

His blog is located at: http://ahelms.com.



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