World Cup Update #4: north Korea will be missed

For an article about north Korean player Jong Tae-se, click here.

To see video footage of the north Korean national team at the Johannesburg Zoo, click here.

Milan have a new goalkeeper

A.C. MILAN OFFICIAL NOTE

6/23/2010

A.C. Milan communicate the acquisition of MARCO AMELIA from Genoa, with the right to claim the compartecipation, and the definitive sale of MARCO STORARI to FC Juventus.

The two photos above are of Marco Amelia. The photo below is of Marco Storari.

My new favorite Japanese soccer team

I think the reasons should be obvious.

FA Cup Final: Chelsea 1 - Portsmouth 0

Above: Portsmouth players attempt to console Kevin-Prince Boateng after he missed a penalty that would have given Portsmouth the lead. Moments later, Drogba scored to put Chelsea ahead.

Portsmouth's season has been a complete disaster-- relegated from the Premier League, unable to pay their players and creditors, facing possible bankruptcy. Somehow, though, they managed to make it all the way to the FA Cup Final against Chelsea. Somehow they managed to survive a first half in which Chelsea hit the goal post/cross bar five times. Somehow they managed to win a penalty early in the second half. Boateng, however, rather than scoring, managed to drive his shot straight into the feet of the diving Petr Cech. Not surprisingly, at the end of the match, Boateng could be seen on the bench with a jacket over his head to hide the fact the he was crying.

What I have been reading lately #46

On Penalties - Andrew Anthony

When I got this book, I thought it would be a survey of world history and culture from the point of view of penalty kicks. Instead it turned out to be all about the England national team's failure to win three penalty shootouts-- the 1990 World Cup semi-final against Germany, the Euro 1996 semi-final against Germany, and the 1998 World Cup round of 16 match against Argentina. It was an excellent book.

A map of Brazil's top division soccer clubs

Just in case you are ever in Brazil...Click on the map for a much closer look.

A soccer highlight

I wish Milan had a player who could do something like this (just not Ibrahimovic).

Yet another official announcement from AC Milan #2

Below is a list of the players who are and are not available for today's match versus Lazio. If you read carefully, you will see that it is quite a list.

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MILAN-LAZIO: THE CALLED UP ROSSONERI

3/27/2010

MILAN - Here are Leonardo's 21 called up players for Milan-Lazio:

Dida, Roma, Abate, Antonini, Favalli, Jankulovski, Kaladze, Oddo, Romagnoli (n.53), Thiago Silva, Zambrotta, Ambrosini, Flamini, Gattuso, Seedorf, Streasser (n.51), Borriello, Huntelaar, Inzaghi, Verdi (n.52), Zigoni (n.17).
Unavailable players: Abbiati, Bonera, Nesta, Onyewu, Beckham, Mancini, Pato.
Suspended players: Pirlo, Ronaldinho.

Great moments in World Cup history #5

The 1998 final

My daughter was four years old back then. At the start of the tournament, she predicted France would win. She was very happy when she turned out to be right.

Match report: Roma 0 - Milan 0

• What happened: Roma dominated the first ten minutes. Milan dominated the rest of the match but couldn't score.
• Milan players who did well: Flamini
• What this match teaches us: Milan are still in second place. Manchester United are up next.

Highlights are below:

Match report: Fiorentina 1 - Milan 2

• Goals scored: Gilardino 14', Huntelaar 81', Pato 90+2'
• What happened: Because this match had been rescheduled and conflicted with Champions League play, it was not shown on television. Milan were losing, but came back and won late. Milan are back in second place, four points behind Inter.

Match report: Bari 0 - Milan 2

I don't really have time for a full match report, but I will mention the following highlights-- Borriello's goal, his hug for coach Leonardo after scoring, Abbiati's penalty save, and the always excellent black road uniforms.

What I have been reading lately #45

Left Foot Forward: A Year in the Life of a Journeyman Footballer by Garry Nelson and Anthony Fowles

Garry Nelson played football in England for many, many years without ever reaching the Premiership (or, before that, the First Division). He played for a number of clubs, such as Southend United, Plymouth Argyle, Brighton & Hove Albion, and Charlton Athletic. He wrote this book during one of the very last years of his career, when he played for Charlton.

Below: Nelson is the player in red.

Late official announcement from AC Milan

TODAY IN MILAN: MANCHESTER UNITED

2/16/2010

MILAN - Very soon, at their training ground near the San Siro stadium, Manchester United will have lunch. In their hour-by-hour account of the Red Devils' day in Milan, the official site manutd.com refers of the stretching session held this morning after breakfast by Sir Alex Ferguson's team.

Match of the day: Napoli 0 - Inter 0

One of the more exciting nil-nil games I have ever seen. Inter are still in first place. Napoli are in fourth.

Match report: Milan 3 - Udinese 2

• Goals scored: Huntelaar 7', Pato 39', Floro Flores 45', Huntelaar 57', Di Natale 86'
• What happened: Milan kept scoring but also played sloppily, so they kept letting Udinese back in the match. I spent most of the match worrying about injuries.
• Milan players who could not play due to injury: Seedorf, Borriello, Antonini
• Milan players who returned today from injury: Nesta, Pato
• Milan players who had to leave early due to possible injury: Mancini, Thiago Silva (!)
• Milan players who appear to be quite rusty despite having scored a goal: Pato
• Milan player who made the pass that led to each of Milan's goals: Ronaldinho. The second one, a long pass down the middle of the field to Pato, was especially nice.
• Famous visitors to the San Siro to watch the match: Sir Alex Ferguson
• Strange sightings from today's match: Escorting the referees down the tunnel to the pitch were three men dressed as admirals/hotel doormen. (Sorry, no photo was available)
• What this match teaches us: Manchester United are coming on Tuesday.

Great moments in World Cup history #2

1998 Argentina versus England

This game had everything-- Michael Owen's most famous goal, Argentina's clever goal off the free kick, Beckham's red card. Everybody knew about it and everybody watched it, even my wife at work, I think.

Match report: Bologna 0 - Milan 0

• Goals scored: None
• What happened: Milan controlled the ball for almost the entire game, passing it around to each other in the middle of the field. Ronaldinho hit the crossbar, Ambrosini hit right where the goal post meets the crossbar. Bologna occasionally counter-attacked. No one scored.
• Things I have never seen before: Milan wearing red shorts (see photo above); newly signed Mancini starting for Milan.
• Things I have not seen in a long time: Bonera back from injury.
• Milan players who did well today: Pirlo, Abate
• Milan players who basically did nothing worth mentioning today: Ronaldinho, Seedorf, Borriello
• Milan players who are still injured: Pato, Nesta
• Bizarre interruptions to the broadcast on Fox Soccer Channel: In the 81st minute, the broadcast signal abruptly changed to C-SPAN, where Senator John McCain was talking in a Senate committee room. Then it changed to the Emergency Alert System, on which Civil Authorities were broadcasting a Required Monthly Test. About one minute of the game was interrupted. I was hoping that Milan would score during that time, but they didn't.
• What this match teaches us: Sometimes scoring goals seems easy, and sometimes it doesn't.

There is really no point in posting highlights today.

Match report: Milan 1 - Livorno 1

Above: Cristiano Lucarelli scores to tie the game. Despite the many arms raised in the air by the Milan players, Lucarelli was not offside.

• Goals scored: Ambrosini 44', Lucarelli 53'
• What happened: Ambrosini scored; Ambrosini almost scored again; Ronaldinho hit the post; Huntelaar shot high (several times). Favalli failed to clear the ball in the box, and Lucarelli scored.
• The only upside of the match: Livorno are my second-favorite Serie A team. Their goal was scored by a communist, their fans sing revolutionary songs, and their coach is the coolest looking coach in the entire world (see photo below).
• What this match teaches us: Milan better get their act together, because they play Manchester United in the Champions League in February.

Below: Livorno coach Serse Cosmi (right) talks to Livorno president Aldo Spinelli before today's match. Earlier in the week, Cosmi attempted to resign but was lured back by Spinelli.

Highlights are below:

Match report: Inter 2 - Milan 0

• Goals scored: Milito 10', Pandev 65'
• What happened: Milan were up a man most of the match (Sneijder having been sent off in the first half on a straight red card for sarcastically clapping at the referee) but still never really had a chance. Seedorf and Borriello came close on headers in the second half, and Ronaldinho had a penalty kick stopped in stoppage time. Nesta did not play, but his substitute, Favalli, did not do half badly.
• What this match teaches us: Inter are still the better team.

If you must watch the highlights, they are below.