It may have taken 2 losses and two ties (4 points in 4 matches) to wake up them up, but the Red Bulls have finally gotten their first win of the season in their fifth match at home at Giants Stadium against Real Salt Lake, the same club that they defeated 1-0 to win the 2008 Western Conference championship and qualify them for the MLS Cup final as well as a spot in 2009-2010 CONCACAF Champions League which begins this summer.
The Red Bulls dominated the match in their 2-0 win against a weak Real Salt Lake side. I wasn't able to watch the match because I was at a play off hockey (my second favorite sport after soccer/football) game for the Bridgeport Soundtigers, the AHL affiliate of the New York Islanders, at Nassau Coliseum, but that's for another blog which I will start eventually. I did however catch a few minutes of the replay today on MSG although I missed both goals. From what I did see, the Red Bulls played very well and had a lot of chances.
Macoumba Kandji opened the scoring in the 2nd minute and Juan Pablo Angel finally scored his first of the season in the second half.
For more detailed match coverage, see the match report and the official match tracker.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Croatia welcomes first Irish player to league
Croatia Times has reported back in March that Stephen Murray, an Irish football/soccer players, will be playing professionally in Croatia.
Murray is a 27 year old born Kilkenny, Ireland and has signed with Junak, a club based in southern CRoatian town of Sinj and currently plays in Croatia's second division.
After playing for Waterford United, Murray moved to Memphis where played for a club there. Murray told Croatian daily newspaper "Jutarnji List" that his "coach in the USA was a Croat, and he helped me get into Croatian football."
I'm surprised no other Irish players were interested in playing in Croatia, but anyway, I wish the best of luck to Stephen Murray. I will talk more about him as I find more news.
Murray is a 27 year old born Kilkenny, Ireland and has signed with Junak, a club based in southern CRoatian town of Sinj and currently plays in Croatia's second division.
After playing for Waterford United, Murray moved to Memphis where played for a club there. Murray told Croatian daily newspaper "Jutarnji List" that his "coach in the USA was a Croat, and he helped me get into Croatian football."
I'm surprised no other Irish players were interested in playing in Croatia, but anyway, I wish the best of luck to Stephen Murray. I will talk more about him as I find more news.
Clubs promote political parties in Croatia
In most of the world, separating politics from sport especially football/soccer (being the world's most popular game) has been a daunting task. This is mostly common in international competitions and with national teams as many rivalries between two nations are due to political reasons. However, in Croatia, politics has been used as a form of propaganda and political symbols have been shown on team jerseys, according to this article from the Croatian Times.
According to the article, clubs have been promoting certain political parties in Croatia and local football authorities in eastern Croatia are trying to find a way to stop it after finding out that referees have allowed this to happen in up to four matches in which political part symbols and politically related materials showed up on jerseys. These refs may face suspension.
This has been especially widespread now as political parties are trying to promote themselves before local elections take place on May 18.
Ante Vucemilovic, president of the Slavonska-Baranjska county football federation in eastern Croatia, made the following statetment to daily newspaper Slobodna Dalmacija (Free Dalmatia): "Referees and other authorities are supposed to prevent political propaganda."
According to the article, clubs have been promoting certain political parties in Croatia and local football authorities in eastern Croatia are trying to find a way to stop it after finding out that referees have allowed this to happen in up to four matches in which political part symbols and politically related materials showed up on jerseys. These refs may face suspension.
This has been especially widespread now as political parties are trying to promote themselves before local elections take place on May 18.
Ante Vucemilovic, president of the Slavonska-Baranjska county football federation in eastern Croatia, made the following statetment to daily newspaper Slobodna Dalmacija (Free Dalmatia): "Referees and other authorities are supposed to prevent political propaganda."
Friday, April 17, 2009
Native American Indian living in Canada is interested in playing for Dinamo Zagreb
This is somewhat old news but while looking at some of the sports articles on the Croatian Times, I thought this was noteworthy enough to post about it here.
Cheona Edzerza is from the Tahltan tribe in British Columbia, Canada and is interested in playing for defending HNL-1 and Croatia Cup champion Dinamo Zagreb.
The 14 year old arrived in Zagreb in late March to train with the club's under 15 squad.
Croatia Times reports that the player is "allegedly extremely talented." Edzerza was part of the Native American British Columbia team that won the championship at the North American Indigenous Games last year in which he scored the golden goal in overtime to win the championship.
Edzerza was interested in furthering her career and found Dinamo Zagreb online and impressed with what he saw. Edzerza told "Sportske novosti" ("Sports news"), a daily Croatian sports news source, that he is "happy to be in Croatia after having informed myself about Dinamo on the internet, and I was thrilled by what I saw. I will give my best to show what I can do in order to stay with Dinamo. I want to have a great career, and I am already dreaming about playing for Dinamo in Maksimir Stadium."
He spent two weeks in London before arriving in Zagreb.
Could this be a new trend over at Maksimir? Ever since Eduardo da Silva signed with the Zagreb-based club, Dinamo signed a few more Brazilians to the club. With Edzerza's interest in a Croatian club, could we be seeing more Native American Indians playing in Croatia and the rest of Europe?
Cheona Edzerza is from the Tahltan tribe in British Columbia, Canada and is interested in playing for defending HNL-1 and Croatia Cup champion Dinamo Zagreb.
The 14 year old arrived in Zagreb in late March to train with the club's under 15 squad.
Croatia Times reports that the player is "allegedly extremely talented." Edzerza was part of the Native American British Columbia team that won the championship at the North American Indigenous Games last year in which he scored the golden goal in overtime to win the championship.
Edzerza was interested in furthering her career and found Dinamo Zagreb online and impressed with what he saw. Edzerza told "Sportske novosti" ("Sports news"), a daily Croatian sports news source, that he is "happy to be in Croatia after having informed myself about Dinamo on the internet, and I was thrilled by what I saw. I will give my best to show what I can do in order to stay with Dinamo. I want to have a great career, and I am already dreaming about playing for Dinamo in Maksimir Stadium."
He spent two weeks in London before arriving in Zagreb.
Could this be a new trend over at Maksimir? Ever since Eduardo da Silva signed with the Zagreb-based club, Dinamo signed a few more Brazilians to the club. With Edzerza's interest in a Croatian club, could we be seeing more Native American Indians playing in Croatia and the rest of Europe?
All Croatian Sports Club fans hold initiative to help poor families in Vukovar
According to this Croatian Times article, fans from all of the Croatians sports clubs will be starting a humanitarian initiative called "From Croatian fans to Vukovar" to help poor families in Vukovar, a city in eastern Croatia on the Serbian border that many patriotic Croatians call "heroic."
The city was almost completely destroyed during the early 90's Croatian War of Independence leaving many residents still living in horrible conditions.
Donations will be raised through different local activities or going directly to a bank account number at "Privredna banka" which is in the article I linked to above and will go to the Saint Vinko Paulski Association, which will distribute the money among the families.
The initiative will end on May 16 which is when fans will participate in a procession from Vukovar's city centre to the Memorial Cemetery where the war victims are buried.
More information can be found at www.slobodanavijacima.org.
The city was almost completely destroyed during the early 90's Croatian War of Independence leaving many residents still living in horrible conditions.
Donations will be raised through different local activities or going directly to a bank account number at "Privredna banka" which is in the article I linked to above and will go to the Saint Vinko Paulski Association, which will distribute the money among the families.
The initiative will end on May 16 which is when fans will participate in a procession from Vukovar's city centre to the Memorial Cemetery where the war victims are buried.
More information can be found at www.slobodanavijacima.org.
Klasnic rejects Werder's offer for damages
The hearing is over and the results are in--Werder Bremen has offered 350,000 euros to Klasnic but he has refused to take it.
According to the Croatian Times, the 28 year old striker rejected the offer at a hearing which took place at a Bremen courtroom. Klasnic stated that he did not actually file the suit for the intention of taking money from the club but rather just for principle.
However, according to German sources, Klasnic is demanding over one million Euros in damages from his former club because he lost one year of his career, suffered damage to his health and had to undergo kidney transplants. According to the Croatian Times, a verdict will probably not be handed down for another year.
According to the Croatian Times, the 28 year old striker rejected the offer at a hearing which took place at a Bremen courtroom. Klasnic stated that he did not actually file the suit for the intention of taking money from the club but rather just for principle.
However, according to German sources, Klasnic is demanding over one million Euros in damages from his former club because he lost one year of his career, suffered damage to his health and had to undergo kidney transplants. According to the Croatian Times, a verdict will probably not be handed down for another year.
Klasnic Update
About a year ago I posted this blog entry about Croatian striker Klasnic's decision to sue his former German club. Well, this recent article from the Croatian Times states that he has finally done so. He has sued Werder Bremen of the German Bundesliga for professional carelessness over a kidney transplant he had to undergo two years ago at the recommendation of the German club's medical team.
According to the Croatian Times. Klasnic believes that they are responsible for the loss of a kidney that was donated by his mother and was rejected by his body. His father later donated his kidney which his body accepted.
There was a hearing yesterday (Thursday April 16) with a decision to come sometime today. Being that it is already around 8 pm in Germany, the decision was most likely already reported so I will post this as soon as I found out.
Klasnic, who currently plays for Nantes, a French club, has stated that "It is very important to me to learn the truth about the doctors’ failure. I often think about it, and sometimes I cannot even sleep because of it."
More to come soon.
According to the Croatian Times. Klasnic believes that they are responsible for the loss of a kidney that was donated by his mother and was rejected by his body. His father later donated his kidney which his body accepted.
There was a hearing yesterday (Thursday April 16) with a decision to come sometime today. Being that it is already around 8 pm in Germany, the decision was most likely already reported so I will post this as soon as I found out.
Klasnic, who currently plays for Nantes, a French club, has stated that "It is very important to me to learn the truth about the doctors’ failure. I often think about it, and sometimes I cannot even sleep because of it."
More to come soon.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
2009 Honda Superclasico kicks off with 0-0 tie
One of the biggest and fiercest rivalries in Major League Soccer is the one between the LA Galaxy and Chivas USA, both of which play there home matches in Home Depot Center in Carson, CA. The rivalry is also known as the Honda Superclasico. It also considered the only true derby in Major League soccer being that both clubs are located in the same city. The name comes from the Mexican derby between Club America and Chivas de Guadelajara. The 2009 derby will consists of three already scheduled league matches as well any US Open Cup or MLS Cup matches.
The first league match of the derby was dominated by defense leading to a frustrating scoreless draw.
The Los Angeles Galaxy is currently the defending champion of the derby with a 1-0-2 (5 points) record in 2008. LA has won 3 out of the 4 derbies, the first of which they sweeped 4-0-0 in 2005 when Chivas USA was added to the league as an expansion team). The Galaxy also holds the most wins against Chivas USA since Chivas joined the league with a 9-3-5 record (which includes Saturday's scoreless tie).
I will keep a close eye on this year's derby and keep you updated regarding how it progresses throughout the season.
The first league match of the derby was dominated by defense leading to a frustrating scoreless draw.
The Los Angeles Galaxy is currently the defending champion of the derby with a 1-0-2 (5 points) record in 2008. LA has won 3 out of the 4 derbies, the first of which they sweeped 4-0-0 in 2005 when Chivas USA was added to the league as an expansion team). The Galaxy also holds the most wins against Chivas USA since Chivas joined the league with a 9-3-5 record (which includes Saturday's scoreless tie).
I will keep a close eye on this year's derby and keep you updated regarding how it progresses throughout the season.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
New York Red Bulls continue winless season
The New York Red Bulls played the Houston Dynamo in Houston on Saturday night to a scoreless draw. This was the first competitive clash between the two clubs since the New York Red Bulls eliminated the two time MLS Cup champions Dynamo in the first round of the 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs so fans of both clubs were assured a great match as the Dynamo were set for revenge.
Both clubs played extremely well during the first half and have had some pretty good chances at goal throughout the match but neither club was able to find net. Despite the lack of goals, the match was very intense and tempers flared with several yellow (and red) cards as the Dynamo attempted to avenge their elimination from the MLS Cup Playoffs last season.
With this result, here is how each club stands right now (note that the percentage I have listed is the superior points percentage--instead of using points as the first criteria for ranking clubs throughout the season, I take the number of points earned divided by the number of points possible for the number of matches played and multiply that by 100. I use this so that one club will never have the "upper hand" over any other at any point during the season):
New York Red Bulls (0-2-2; 2 points earned/4 matches(3)=16.7%; last place in east; 13th out of 15 in league): The Red Bulls have had an extremely disappointing start to the Major League Soccer season as you can see from their record. Not one goal was actually scored by a Red Bull player so far. The only goal came in the form of a New England Revolution own goal in a match that ended in 1-1 draw. Red Bull Juan Pablo Angel (a favorite to win the MLS Golden Boot although he does have quite a bit of competition and the Red Bull's current form is not helping him any), however, has had several chances in these matches but could not find the back of the net. The Red Bulls are back in action next Saturday when they will face Real Salt Lake (currently 2-1-0; 6 points in 3 matches; 66.7%; 3rd in west out of 8; 5th place overall). The last time the Red Bulls faced Salt Lake was in the 2008 Western Conference championship game in which the Red Bulls beat them 1-0.
Houston Dynamo (tied with Red Bulls with a 0-2-2 record but beats them on goal difference putting Dynamo in 6th place in the west and 12th overall)have also had a pretty disappointing start to the regular season. It started with their first competitive loss back in February in which Mexican powerhouse Atlante eliminated them from the CONCACAF Champions League. Despite being upset by the Red Bulls last season in the 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs, the Houston squad started the 2009 season will a glimmer of hope after ending the 2008 season with a Champions League win making them the only MLS and American-based club to qualify for the elimination round of this important international competition. The Dynamo's next match is next Sunday against the Colorado Rapids at home.
Both clubs played extremely well during the first half and have had some pretty good chances at goal throughout the match but neither club was able to find net. Despite the lack of goals, the match was very intense and tempers flared with several yellow (and red) cards as the Dynamo attempted to avenge their elimination from the MLS Cup Playoffs last season.
With this result, here is how each club stands right now (note that the percentage I have listed is the superior points percentage--instead of using points as the first criteria for ranking clubs throughout the season, I take the number of points earned divided by the number of points possible for the number of matches played and multiply that by 100. I use this so that one club will never have the "upper hand" over any other at any point during the season):
New York Red Bulls (0-2-2; 2 points earned/4 matches(3)=16.7%; last place in east; 13th out of 15 in league): The Red Bulls have had an extremely disappointing start to the Major League Soccer season as you can see from their record. Not one goal was actually scored by a Red Bull player so far. The only goal came in the form of a New England Revolution own goal in a match that ended in 1-1 draw. Red Bull Juan Pablo Angel (a favorite to win the MLS Golden Boot although he does have quite a bit of competition and the Red Bull's current form is not helping him any), however, has had several chances in these matches but could not find the back of the net. The Red Bulls are back in action next Saturday when they will face Real Salt Lake (currently 2-1-0; 6 points in 3 matches; 66.7%; 3rd in west out of 8; 5th place overall). The last time the Red Bulls faced Salt Lake was in the 2008 Western Conference championship game in which the Red Bulls beat them 1-0.
Houston Dynamo (tied with Red Bulls with a 0-2-2 record but beats them on goal difference putting Dynamo in 6th place in the west and 12th overall)have also had a pretty disappointing start to the regular season. It started with their first competitive loss back in February in which Mexican powerhouse Atlante eliminated them from the CONCACAF Champions League. Despite being upset by the Red Bulls last season in the 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs, the Houston squad started the 2009 season will a glimmer of hope after ending the 2008 season with a Champions League win making them the only MLS and American-based club to qualify for the elimination round of this important international competition. The Dynamo's next match is next Sunday against the Colorado Rapids at home.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Eduardo da Silva is back as Croatia defeats Andorra 2-0
In Eduardo da Silva's first competitive match for the Croatian national team since the nasty incident while playing for Arsenal last year, Croatia defeated Andorra 2-0 in a 2010 World Cup qualifying match Croatia was expected to win quite easily.
Both of Croatia's goals came in the first half. The win keeps them in second place behind England (5-0-0) who defeated Ukraine today to keep themselves in the #1 spot with a perfect record in Group 6.
Croatia opened the scoring in the 15th minute with "Ivan Klasnic's precise shot from the edge of the box" according to this article from Reuters. The pace of the match slowed since then and Croatia created very few chances while Andorra hardly had a look at goal. Croatia's second goal came at the 35th minute as a cross from Klasnic was slotted in by Eduardo da Silva.
In the second half, Croatia dominated but failed to create any noteworthy chances to increase their lead away from home against weak Andorran team.
Despite the win, the result is quite disappointing to me as Croatia should have scored more against such a weak team. Croatia's next qualifying match is against Ukraine at home in Zagreb June 6. Croatia already played Ukraine away in Kharkov resulting in a disappointing 0-0 tie.
For more World Cup 2010 European qualifying results and standings, check the official website.
Both of Croatia's goals came in the first half. The win keeps them in second place behind England (5-0-0) who defeated Ukraine today to keep themselves in the #1 spot with a perfect record in Group 6.
Croatia opened the scoring in the 15th minute with "Ivan Klasnic's precise shot from the edge of the box" according to this article from Reuters. The pace of the match slowed since then and Croatia created very few chances while Andorra hardly had a look at goal. Croatia's second goal came at the 35th minute as a cross from Klasnic was slotted in by Eduardo da Silva.
In the second half, Croatia dominated but failed to create any noteworthy chances to increase their lead away from home against weak Andorran team.
Despite the win, the result is quite disappointing to me as Croatia should have scored more against such a weak team. Croatia's next qualifying match is against Ukraine at home in Zagreb June 6. Croatia already played Ukraine away in Kharkov resulting in a disappointing 0-0 tie.
For more World Cup 2010 European qualifying results and standings, check the official website.
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