ESPN TV Schedule for the February 19/20 Champions League Matches

The TV schedule for ESPN's coverage of the first leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 ties has been released, and I have to say, I think "The Worldwide Leader in Sports" has it exactly right. Not only did they select the best ties of the round to broadcast (their first legs, at least), these are the teams that appeal most to American viewers, the target audience.

You can make the valid argument that Manchester United is the most recognizable name here in the States, but their match against Lyon will likely not make for great viewing and thus will not be televised on ESPN.

Only a couple more week until the Champions League restarts and I couldn't be more ready to see the best teams in Europe go at it after some of the dreadful games I've seen this winter. If you'd like to see my predictions, scroll down to the date of the Round of 16 draw where you'll find capsules for each tie and my picks to advance.

Here's the ESPN TV schedule:

Tuesday, February 19:

Arsenal vs. AC Milan (2:30 PM ET; ESPN2)
AS Roma vs. Real Madrid (5:00 PM ET; ESPN Classic)

Wednesday, February 20:

Liverpool vs. Inter Milan (2:30 PM ET; ESPN2)
Celtic vs. Barcelona (5:00 PM ET; ESPN Classic)

African Cup of Nations Semifinals Recap

Alright, so I was 0-2 in predicting the results of today's African Cup of Nations semifinals. I think that's what makes this game so special. I went with both of the "favorites" for all of the logical reasons, and my logic was proven to be skewed. Hey, I can live with that.

The biggest surprise, at least as far I was concerned, was Egypt's 4-1 victory over Ivory Coast. It wasn't the fact that Egypt won that surprised me; after all, Egypt are the defending champions of this tournament. It was the margin of victory that really shocked me.

Striker Amr Zaky bagged the game-winning goal for Egypt for the second straight game; in fact, Zaky scored twice in a span of five minutes in the second half today to propel the Pharaohs.

Egypt went up 1-0 through a goal from former Sheffield United midfielder Ahmed Fathi in the 12th minute. Fathi took a bouncing ball outside the 18 and sent it towards goal, though a significant deflection was what beat the Ivorian goalkeeper.

The match then went scoreless until Zaky's first goal of the game in the 62nd minute to put Egypt up 2-0. Lyon forward Abdul Kader Keïta pulled a goal back for my pretournament picks just a minute later, but Zaky scored again in the 67th minute to throw a wrench in Ivory Coast's comeback hopes.

Mohamed Aboutreika, who has scored a whopping 81 goals in 128 league appearances for Egyptian club side El-Ahly, added an insurance goal in second half injury time to account for the final margin.

The scoreline was a bit misleading; Chelsea striker Didier Drogba had three very good chances denied by Egypt's goalkeeper, Essam Al Hadari, when it was still 1-0.

Six Premiership players were in Ivory Coast's starting lineup but surprisingly, Middlesbrough's Mohamed Shawky didn't play for Egypt today although he'd started in their previous games and is a fixture at the holding midfield position for his country.

In today's other semifinal, Cameroon beat hosts Ghana 1-0 behind a 72nd minute goal from former Colorado Rapids midfielder and Alain Nkong. Nkong came on as a substitute 10 minutes prior to his goal, and his appearance was only the second in his international career.

Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o continued his prolific tournament with the assist on Nkong's game-winner. A superb through ball sent Nkong in on goal and his opened-foot finish allowed the team and German coach Otto Pfister to book a place in the final, where they'll meet Egypt.

Pfister has managed across Africa in both a club and international capacity since 1972 and has never won an African Cup of Nations. He's been in charge of a U-17 World Cup winner (Ghana-1992) and a U-19 African Cup of Nations winner (Ivory Coast-1983), but has never won Africa's continental championship.

It was a pretty even game and both countries had their chances. I was surprised that Cameroon's defense was able to shut down Ghana but to be fair, the latter were forced to play with Michael Essien in the back to replace the suspended captain, John Mensah, and were without Asamoah Gyan and Laryea Kingston altogether due to injury.

The final is now set. Egypt will meet Cameroon in Accra on Sunday. Prior to that, we'll see the Third Place game between Ivory Coast and Ghana. Because of that third place game, Salomon Kalou, Didier Drogba, and Michael Essien will all miss the huge match between Chelsea and Liverpool and that should offset the absence of star striker Fernando Torres for Liverpool.

I'll go with the defending champions to beat Cameroon and repeat. They've defied my expectations so far so I might as well ride the form team, although Cameroon are playing well right now also. Of course, Egypt did thump Cameroon 4-2 during the group stage but if anything, I think that result plays in the latter’s favor as they’ll want revenge and Egypt may come out a bit cocky.

These third place games are always crapshoots. Teams either come out with no energy and spirit because they're not in the final, or they come out to play with no pressure on their shoulders and relatively little on the line. The better team is Ivory Coast, particularly if Ghana's injury problems don't get better over the next couple of days.

England-2, Switzerland-1...Recap

Distinctly average.

That's how I would categorize England's performance for the majority of their 2-1 friendly victory over Switzerland tonight. Distinctly average.

If the England players wanted to come out and set a positive tone to impress new manager Fabio Capello, I'd have to say that as a group, they didn't accomplish their goal.

David James was OK between the sticks. He made the stops he was supposed to make, but shanked a couple of goal kicks and clearances after back passes from field players. He didn't appear to control his back line very well either, but more on them in a second.

The starting back line (Wes Brown, Rio Ferdinand, Matthew Upson, and Ashley Cole) was the definition of mediocre. In fact, I think "mediocre" would be flattering for the games these four players had. First of all, one could make the argument that Brown, Upson, and Cole shouldn't have been in the starting lineup based on current form in the first place, but that's neither here nor there. Ferdinand and Upson looked very, very shaky at times in the center, none more so than on Switzerland's equalizer in the 58th minute. Brown doesn't give you anything going forward, and Cole gives you very little on defense for a left back. Wayne Bridge came in for Cole in the 73rd minute and was an immediate upgrade at that position in my opinion, but if Switzerland had any attacking capability in their front line whatsoever, they would have scored more than once because this England defense was ripe for the picking.

The midfield was definitely England's bright spot, with both goals coming from that group. Neither Gareth Barry nor Owen Hargreaves, Barry's replacement at the holding midfield position, played particularly well, but captain Steven Gerrard, Joe Cole, David Bentley, and Shaun Wright-Phillips all had solid games. Tottenham midfielder Jermaine Jenas opened the scoring on a tap-in finish in the 40th minute after a wonderful bit of dribbling skill from Cole, and Wright-Phillips tapped in a left-footed cross from Gerrard in the 62nd minute to put England back in front, 2-1. Jenas didn't exactly light things up today; I thought he actually played poorly aside from the goal.

Up front, Wayne Rooney, Peter Crouch, and Ashley Young all played, with Young coming on for Rooney just three minutes before the match ended. Wazza dropped deep in the first half, as is his usual playing style, and then ended up in a wide left midfield role for most of the time in the second half. The Manchester United man continued his lack of production at the international level though as he had numerous shots, but none of them seriously threatened Swiss goalkeeper Diego Benaglio (sounds real Swiss to me!!). Crouch was more useful than Rooney I thought; the big man has an incredibly soft touch, and can win balls in the air and control them to his teammates or to himself, and he showed these skills today. Personally, I feel that the lone striker formations which Capello favors cater more towards Crouch's strengths than Rooney's, so I'll be looking at that position more closely in the future.

As I said, I think the play of the midfield was England's lone bright spot today and if Switzerland had any offensive punch, they could've easily gotten a result out of this game. Not the most impressive way to begin under Capello, but a victory is a victory.

My Man of the Match: If I was forced to pick, it would be the captain, Steven Gerrard.

My England Starting XI

I've been focusing on the England national team over the past week or so here, trying to divert attention away from the Premiership a little bit and to the new era under Fabio Capello.

Injuries have limited the options Capello was able to choose from for the friendly today against Switzerland, but if I had to pick a starting lineup from today's roster, here's who I would go with:

GK: David James (Portsmouth)
LB: Wayne Bridge (Chelsea)
CB: Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United)
CB: Jonathan Woodgate (Tottenham)
RB: Micah Richards (Manchester City)
LMF: Ashley Young (Aston Villa)
DMF: Gareth Barry (Aston Villa)
CMF: Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)
RMF: David Bentley (Blackburn)
ST: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)
ST: Peter Crouch (Liverpool)

Subs:

Scott Carson (Aston Villa)
Matthew Upson (West Ham)
Joleon Lescott (Everton)
Jermaine Jenas (Tottenham)
Owen Hargreaves (Manchester United)
Joe Cole (Chelsea)
Jermain Defoe (Portsmouth)

I have a feeling Capello might go a different way and possibly play a 4-5-1, with Hargreaves, Barry, and Gerrard in the middle. The Italian manager is known for playing with two holding midfielders and a lone striker and if that's the case today, I don't see how he couldn't put Peter Crouch as the target man up top ahead of Wayne Rooney, who drops too deep for my liking.

What's your take? I want to hear your preferred lineup.

Steven Gerrard Handed Captain's Armband

I don't think this is a shock to anyone.

Liverpool's local hero had been the skipper in John Terry's absence in the fateful Euro 2008 qualifiers against Russia and Croatia last year and with Terry injured AGAIN, Gerrard was the odds-on favorite to lead England out today in their friendly against Switzerland.

The only other choice was Manchester United center back Rio Ferdinand, but Ferdinand isn't even club captain and was responsible for organizing the Christmas party at which Jonny Evans, now on loan at Sunderland but with the Red Devils at the time, was accused of rape.

To be clear, Capello hasn't named Gerrard permanent captain and won't name a permanent captain until England's first World Cup qualifier in September, against Andorra. Until then, there will likely be a rotation involving Gerrard, Terry (when healthy), and possibly Ferdinand.

If you ask me though, Steven Gerrard would be the right man for the job. Many readers think I have a bias towards Liverpool, which is far from the case, but trust me, I know a leader when I see one. Gerrard has put the Reds on his back on numerous occasions, most notably the famous come-from-behind victory over AC Milan in the Champions League final in Istanbul in 2005. He clearly inspires his teammates whenever he's on the field, and Capello said as much yesterday:

"I won't be picking a permanent captain for the time being but at the moment I think Steven Gerrard is important for everyone because he is a player who can motivate other players and transmit ideas," said Capello.

I believe Gerrard should be the full-time captain, with or without John Terry in the lineup. I have a feeling the former will receive that honor as well, although a string of unimpressive performances at the international level could mean otherwise and Gerrard hasn't exactly lit it up for England in recent games.

New England Away Kit

Here's a clip from Sky News unveiling England's new red away jersey, showed off by Michael Owen and Rio Ferdinand. They'll wear this at the Stade de France in Paris on March 26 when they play Raymond Domenech's squad in a friendly.

First, however, they'll host Switzerland on Wednesday. That match will mark the start of the Fabio Capello era.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Quarterfinals (Day 2)

After squandering an early 2-0 lead, Cameroon needed a 92nd minute goal from Stade Rennais midfielder Stéphane Mbia to beat Tunisia today and advance to the semifinals. The extra time goal was Mbia's second of the game and spoiled any hope of a Tunisian upset, which was only made possible in the first place after an 81st minute tally from Yassine Chikhaoui levelled the match at 2-2.

The same Tunisia defense that had been stout in the group stage (3 goals allowed in 3 matches) was awful today; their marking was atrocious and in truth, they were fortunate to only concede three goals to a Cameroonian squad that racked up 10 goals in their group games. To be fair, Tunisia did manage to contain star striker Samuel Eto'o, but one man does not make a team.

The Eagles of Carthage started their only two Premiership players, Birmingham City's Mehdi Nafti and national captain Radhi Jaidi, as usual, although French coach Roger Lemerre made multiple changes to the side that drew with Angola on Thursday.

The four-time champions of this tournament and Group D winners this year exit in heartbreaking fashion. They came from behind and got a late goal to equalize, only to have their dreams shattered by a goal just two minutes into extra time.

Cameroon's lineup featured three Premiership players in Alexander Song, Geremi, and Andre Bikey. Geremi, a Newcastle midfielder, scored directly off a free kick to put the victors up 2-0 in the 27th minute.

The Indomitable Lions' victory propels them to a semifinal matchup against Ghana, the host nation, on Thursday. Goals could be aplenty with the firepower each team possesses, so I'm really looking forward to that game. My pick: The home team gets it done, 3-1.

In today's other quarterfinal, Egypt wrecked my pre-round predictions and beat Angola 2-1. I had gone 3-3 until this result, and it was a game in which Angola was clearly the unluckier of the two teams.

Egypt went ahead 1-0 on a PK (as a result of a questionable handball decision) from Hosni Abd Rabou in the 23rd minute, which was his third goal from the spot in the tournament. A left-footed screamer from Manucho, Manchester United's newest signing, levelled the match just four minutes later however, and that goal was Manucho's fourth of the tournament.

Amr Zaky "scored" the winning goal seven minutes before halftime, and it was just one of those "right place, right time" situations. Angola's defense failed to cut out a cross and it cost them, as the ball ended up deflecting off the onrushing Zaky's arm and into the net.

Angola ran out of gas at the end and Egypt was able to attack and counter-attack succesfully, though they didn't get the insurance goal which would've put the game away.

Despite the loss today, the Black Antelopes are clearly on an upward trend, having qualified for World Cup 2006 and giving a good account of themselves there as well. Portuguese coach Luís Oliveira Gonçalves has a team that will host the 2010 African Nations Cup and should have every chance to make a run there and in the 2010 World Cup, if they can qualify for that.

With the victory, the Pharaohs move on to the semifinals where they'll meet my choice, Ivory Coast. This match is going to be a little trickier for Ivory Coast than a lot of outsiders would expect, but I'm going to ride my favorites until the very end. Ivory Coast-2, Egypt-1.

I Told You So..Not Yet, but Soon

Listen. I’m not the type of guy to fake humility and modesty; when I predict something or hype something up beforehand and it comes to fruition, I’m the first person to stand up and say “Yeah, that’s right, I said that would happen.” I don’t see what’s wrong with that. To me, the majority of people who don’t say “I told you so” really want to, but they just don’t give in to that urge for the sake of wanting to appear humble. That’s it, it’s to keep up appearances so they don’t sound cocky.

Whatever. I don’t believe in that.

Go back and look at my preseason capsules for each Premiership team; I picked Fulham to finish 13th this year. Alright, I may have overestimated the players ex-manager Lawrie Sanchez brought in last summer. Upon further review, some of those players were more squad guys and depth guys than actual regular contributors. With that said though, this is all in hindsight. Steven Davis, Diomansy Kamara, David Healy, Aaron Hughes, and Chris Baird are all internationally-capped players. Healy holds the record for most goals scored in one European Championship qualifying campaign (13). Kamara averaged better than a goal every three games for West Bromwich Albion from 2005-2007. These acquisitions all seemed like legitimate, significant moves at the time, and they just haven’t worked out as well as I thought they would.

My preseason prediction was heavily influenced by a healthy Brian McBride and having creative midfielder Jimmy Bullard return from injury by Christmas, which was the timetable for his recovery from his severe knee injury, suffered on September 9, 2006 in a game against Newcastle, entering this season. McBride dislocated his knee–--ironically, while scoring a goal–--on August 18 and only made his return to the lineup today in the 2-1 win victory over Aston Villa as a late substitute. McBride, the captain, was coming off a fans’ player of the year 2006-2007 season in which he scored 12 league goals and really helped Fulham retain their Premiership status. Bullard started the 2006-2007 season for the Cottagers like a house on fire, winning two Man of the Match awards in his team’s first three games played. He was terrific for Wigan from 2003-2006 when he was at the JJB, playing an integral role in their promotion to the Premiership in 2004-2005 and spearheading his team’s run to the Carling Cup final the next year.

When I did my Christmastime season summaries for every team and their respective outlooks for the rest of the year, I again was counting on both McBride’s and Bullard’s return. As I said, that was the original mark for Bullard and after McBride’s injury, the estimated timetable for his recovery was around that same time as well. The Cottagers were in 13th place at the time I wrote their summary, so things were looking good for me.

But then, things didn’t exactly go according to plan. After Christmas (December 25) and before today’s victory, Fulham did not record a win. They slipped gradually down the standings from 13th place to 19th place, where they now sit. The returns of Bullard and McBride kept getting pushed back and pushed back and no hope looked to be in sight. At that point, I was preparing to eat my words and take the heat for predicting a mid-table finish.

Not so fast. New manager Roy Hodgson tapped into his Scandinavian connections and brought in five players from that region this January, including three from Finland, his most recent place of employment (as national team manager). Jari Litmanen was the most recognizable name of those five with his background at Ajax, Bareclona, and Liverpool, but some under-the-radar moves have really proved beneficial.

Norwegian center back Brede Hangeland was signed to help shore up the leaky defense corps and at 6′5″, is a force in the air. Hangeland won the SkySports Man of the Match award in his Fulham debut against Bolton on January 29, proving his worth instantly.

Danish midfielder Leon Andreasen played well today in the victory. Erik Nevland, a Norwegian striker, made his debut today after signing from FC Groningen, where he scored 53 goals in 116 league games. Two North Americans, Eddie Johnson (USA) and Paul Stalteri (Canada) were brought in as well to help address the club’s most glaring needs (up top and in the back). Toni “Bonecrusher” Kallio is another defender, capable of playing both center and left back, and has made 35 appearances for Finland.

Most importantly though, and we saw this today, Bullard and McBride are healthy again and back in the lineup. Bullard’s free kick late in the match was a thing of magic and a perfect way to take the three points. McBride entered the game as a sub and showed his value as a target man, playing with his back to goal, controlling long balls and then either nodding them down to teammates or to himself, followed by a pass to a teammate.

Aston Villa are a very, very good young team. I had them finishing 7th this season and look to be right on that line. This was a big win for Fulham today and with the mediocrity and downright poorness of some of the teams at the bottom of the table, I can honestly see Fulham making a real run towards safety. They’re simply a better team and have a more experienced manager than the likes of Birmingham, Wigan, and Sunderland, all sides ahead of them right now. Their poor run of form was duly noted, of course, but let’s be honest with ourselves. Two of their best players in Bullard and McBride were injured for that whole period of time. No club, no matter who it is, can survive long-term injuries to their top two players.

The Cottagers have two winnable games upcoming as they’re at Middlesbrough next week, followed by a home game against London rival West Ham. The Cottagers also still have Derby, Sunderland, Reading, and Birmingham on their schedule, and their two most difficult games (against Liverpool and Manchester United) both come at Craven Cottage.

Come May, if Fulham do what I think they will do and finish very close to 13th, believe me, I’ll be here saying “I told you so” and laughing at the rest of you who wrote them off as dead and buried by Christmas.

Newest Installment of José Mourinho on Setanta Sports

Very nice.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Quarterfinals (Day 1)

The quarterfinal round of the 2008 African Cup of Nations opened in style today as Ghana snatched a 2-1 victory over their fierce West African rivals, Nigeria, through an 83rd minute goal from former MLS star Junior Agogo. Portsmouth midfielder Sulley Muntari threaded a low, left-footed shot/cross across the six-yard box to leave the easiest of tap-ins for Agogo, whose second goal of the tournament proved to be the winner for the host nation.

Ghana had been playing with 10 men since the 60th minute, when captain John Mensah was sent off for a professional foul on Nigeria's Peter Odemwingie, who had broken in nearly alone on goal. There was very little contact but as Mensah was the last man back and prevented a clear goal-scoring opportunity, the match referee had little choice but to show the red card.

Nigeria went ahead 1-0 on a PK from Everton striker Yakubu, but a powerful header from versatile Chelsea stalwart Michael Essien levelled the match nearly right on halftime. The Super Eagles almost equalized in the game's dying minutes; they puffed and puffed but in the end, they couldn't blow the Ghana house down.

There were Premiership players galore in this game as four started the match for Ghana (Essien, Muntari, Paintsil, and Kingson), and four started for Nigeria as well (Yobo, Etuhu, Obi Mikel, and Yakubu).

Ghana will now play the winner of tomorrow's Tunisia-Cameroon match on Thursday in the semifinals, while Nigeria exit the African Cup of Nations before the semifinal round for the first time in five tournaments.

In today's second match, Ivory Coast cruised to a 5-0 victory over Guinea, who were playing without their captain and best player in Pascal Feindouno. My pre-tournament pick to win it all made things look easy as two Chelsea players, Salomon Kalou and Didier Drogba, combined for three goals in the victory. Les Éléphants scored four times in the last 20 minutes of the game to put the match well and truly away, but this was no contest from the opening kickoff.

Five Premiership players (Kalou, Drogba, Meite, Zokora, and Eboue) featured for the winners today, who move on to face the winner of tomorrow's match between Egypt and Angola.

I got both of my predictions for today's games correct and so I'm feeling it, I'm feeling lucky. I'll go with the high-flying Cameroon side, led by Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o, to win against Tunisia. In the only real surprise pick of the round, I'm also going to go with Angola to knock off the defending champions, Egypt.

Giving Credit When Credit is Due

I've given Arsenal their share of criticism all year long and been hesitant to jump on the Gunners' bandwagon, especially because of the relatively soft away schedule they've played up to this point. Manchester United are still going to win the title in my opinion and I've said that since last summer, so don't mistake that, but Arsenal are going to make it a fight until the very end and that's something I didn't think they would do back in November and December.

In one of my most recent posts, I talked about Manchester City's dip in form recently and how it looked like they were going to contiune sliding down the table. But you know what? They entered today's game against Arsenal with a 9-3-0 record at home. Undefeated. 30 points out of a possible 36. Arsenal came to the City of Manchester Stadium and bossed the match from beginning to end and in truth, the 3-1 scoreline was actually flattering to City, the loser.

Arsenal did this without their first-choice center back in Kolo Toure, who's away with Ivory Coast in the African Cup of Nations. They did this without their starting goalkeeper in Manuel Almunia. They did this without talismanic, creative midfielder Tomas Rosicky. Manchester City had a near-capacity home crowd supporting them and no injuries limiting them, and still got waxed.

As I said, I still think Manchester United are going to win the title. I've been excused in the past of playing favorites and things like that, but let me assure you, that's not the case. When I recognize a good performance from any team, I'm the first to applaud it and have no problem in doing so because I don't support one specific Premiership team.

This was a great win for Arsenal today and it could very well spur them on down the road. In the end, I'm not sure if they have the firepower to compete with United and the defending champions have the advantage of hosting what could be the title-decider on April 12, when they'll welcome the Gunners to Old Trafford. It won't be as quiet as a funeral parlor then, I can assure you of that.

Premiership Clubs Outspend Other Major European Leagues Combined

Take a look at this article I found on Fox Soccer's website:

"Clubs in the English Premier League showed again during soccer's January transfer window the benefit of playing in Europe's richest national competition.

The 20 teams spent a record total of about 150 million pounds (US$298 million; €200 million) on players to boost their chances of success or aid their attempt to avoid relegation.

That is more than the top leagues in Italy, Spain, Germany and France put together.

Buoyed by a 300 million-pound increase in television revenue this season and expected total income of 1.8 billion pounds, the Premier League clubs spent about three times as much as they did in the last January trading window.

But the biggest spending club owed little of its outlay to the changing revenue streams.

Backed by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, Chelsea paid more than 27 million pounds (US$53.8 million; €36.1 million) for France striker Nicolas Anelka, Serbia defender Branislav Ivanovic and Argentina under-20 forward Franco di Santo.

In third place and seeking to regain the title they last won in 2006, the Blues were the only team of the so-called "Big Four" rounded out by Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool to go into the red in January.

Much of that went on Anelka, whose 15 million-pound (US$29.9 million; €20.1 million) transfer from Bolton made him the Premier League's most expensive January signing ever.

That pushed Chelsea into spending almost as much as the total 30 million pounds (US$59.7 million; €40.2 million) by the 24 teams in the second-tier League Championship.

With such riches on offer to those in the elite, it is little surprise that Fulham, Wigan, Birmingham, Bolton and Sunderland all spent a lot to bolster their squads as they fight relegation.

Fulham spent almost 10 million pounds (US$19.9 million; €13.4 million), although its most important arrival could prove to be free signing Jari Litmanen, the veteran Finland forward who won the Champions League with Ajax and also played for FC Barcelona and Liverpool.

"I have no doubt that he will have a big part to play over the coming months and that we shall benefit as a team from his skill and experience," Fulham manager Roy Hodgson said.

Fulham has struggled to protect a lead this season and is in 19th place, but Litmanen's ability to hold the ball up and score crucial goals should relieve some of the pressure on a defense strengthened by Denmark's Leon Andreasen and another Finland international, Toni Kallio.

Last-place Derby was one of the busiest clubs, bringing in eight players despite looking certain to be relegated. But the Rams only spent 3.5 million pounds (US$6.9 million; €4.7 million) and brought in the experienced Laurent Robert, Alan Stubbs, Roy Carroll and Danny Mills for free or on loan.

That reluctance to spend suggests the club is thinking about preparing for next season and an attempt at promotion back to the Premier League.

But at the other end of the table, United and Arsenal, which are tied atop the standings with four points more than Chelsea, made no major acquisitions. They only jettisoned fringe players and sent youngsters out on loan.

And while a record amount was spent, more than 73 million pounds (US$145 million; €97.6 million), or about half, was recouped in sales.

And Tottenham was the perfect example.

Spurs were the second biggest spenders with 21.5 million pounds (US$42.8 million; €28.7 million) on Jonathan Woodgate, Alan Hutton, Gilberto and Chris Gunter signed to shore up a defense that has conceded more goals from free kicks and corners than any other.

But it clawed back more than 11 million pounds (US$21.9 million; €14.7 million) offloading eight players, including England striker Jermain Defoe to Portsmouth."

All I can say is "wow". A net total of $153 million US was spent by Premiership clubs to acquire players this January. That's an average of $4.9 million per day, which is just $200,000 less than what Chelsea striker Claudio Pizarro signed for last summer. In one month, Premiership clubs spent more than half of what Alex Rodriguez would make in his new 10-year, $275 million contract with the New York Yankees, which is the richest contract in sports history.

The Premiership is the most entertaining soccer league in the world, and I've said that on numerous occasions. The quality of play might not be the best, but obviously people like watching it as evidenced by the Premiership's gigantic TV contracts.

David Beckham Deserves his 100th Cap

With the announcement of the 30-man provisional squad selected by new England coach Fabio Capello yesterday for the upcoming friendly against Switzerland, I thought it was time for me to weigh in on the “Does Becks deserve his 100th cap?” debate.

Let me make something clear first. I have no problem whatsoever with Beckham not being picked for this game. He’s not match fit, and it’s that simple. You can’t justify putting him on the roster when he’s been training for a month with Arsenal’s reserves over players like David Bentley, Shaun Wright-Phillips, and Ashley Young, guys who have been playing competitively in the Premier League all winter and play that same wide position (although Young plays on the left for Aston Villa). Again, I completely understand the rationale behind that decision.

Capello left the door open to recall Becks to the squad if he is on good form when the MLS season kicks off this spring and I have no doubt he will be. Capello and Beckham have a history of this same sort of thing from Real Madrid last year, where Beckham impressed the manager so much in training that he put Becks back into the starting lineup (where he played an integral role in helping Madrid win La Liga) even after chairman Ramón Calderón stated that the former would never play for the Spanish giant again after his declaration to move to the LA Galaxy that summer.

I’m not sure how you can make the argument that Beckham doesn’t deserve his 100th cap for everything he’s done for England and soccer in that nation, both with the national team and with Manchester United. You can say that Beckham isn’t part of England’s future, which is correct, but this discussion isn’t about whether he will play any part in World Cup 2010 or even the qualifying campaign. This is about whether he should lead the team out of the tunnel for one more game, whether he should receive the honor of 100 caps for England, something done only by four players previously. It would be a milestone figure for Beckham, and one that he’s truly earned through his accomplishments on and off the field.

Beckham’s reputation as a player is well-documented. Notable figures in the game like his former managers Sir Alex Ferguson and Capello have praised him for his consummate professionalism and dedication. He was a part of six Premiership winners at Manchester United, where he also won a Champions League and two FA Cups. He was the runner-up for the FIFA World Player of the Year award on two occasions (1999 and 2001). Without Becks’ free kick against Greece in October 2001, England wouldn’t have even qualified for World Cup 2002. In that match, he was the only England player to step up and it was his performance that carried the rest of the team. In World Cup 2006, Beckham played a direct part (either through a goal or an assist) in four of England’s six goals in the tournament. He became the first English player ever to score in three different World Cups. Since that World Cup, he’s played in four matches for England and totaled four assists.

Beckham served as England’s captain for 58 of the 99 games he’s appeared in, from November 15, 2000 to July 2, 2006, when England lost on penalties to Portugal in the World Cup quarterfinals. After that loss, Beckham was the definition of a great captain. We saw him consoling his teammates, picking them up off the field and embracing them, shaking hands with the Portuguese players, and applauding the fans as he went into the tunnel. Six years’ worth of wearing the armband is a remarkable accomplishment and in terms of “matches captained”, Beckham ranks fourth in England national team history. It’s common knowledge that his tenure and leadership was instrumental in the career of many English players, Wayne Rooney most noticeably. Rooney was a loose cannon for Everton, England, and for Manchester United when he first arrived at Old Trafford, but the time he spent around Beckham with England really seemed to change him as a player.

Do I think Beckham deserves that 100th cap? Of course. Do I think he’ll actually get it? Yes. Barring injury, there’s simply no way he won’t get it and I think the only question is when, not if, it will happen. I believe Capello will want him to get it at home in front of the fans, so I’m predicting Beckham will captain the squad for the last time in the game against Kazakhstan on October 11 of this year. Prior to that, there are two other World Cup qualifiers but they’re both away, so I don’t think he’ll play in either of those games. Of course, the middle of the MLS season (when Beckham should be in full stride) would come closer to the September 6 match at Andorra, and even though Beckham should be in better form than most of the Premiership players who are just getting their season underway, I’m not sure if he would get that 100th cap on the road.

David Beckham deserves his 100th cap. He’s contributed enormously to English soccer over the years and served his country as captain for 58 matches. He’s carried the team and won important games single-handedly. He’s influenced many players both on and off the field in tremendous, positive ways.

How can this man not reach that honored milestone?

African Cup of Nations Recap--Day 12

Both teams said they were playing to win the game. Both teams only needed a point to advance the quarterfinals. What was the result? As I predicted here a few days ago, the Tunisia-Angola match yesterday ended in a boring 0-0 draw. The crowd was depressingly small, it was a hot afternoon, the match was played at an incredibly slow pace, and there were only a few real chances all game long.

Angola, after qualifying for their first ever World Cup in 2006 (and they acquitted themselves very nicely as well), have now reached the quarterfinals of the African Cup of Nations for the first time in their soccer history.

Tunisia coach Roger Lemerre was clearly satisfied with a draw as he was shown repeatedly waving his players back to sit behind the ball in the second half and his side go through as the champions of Group D. Radhi Jaidi and Mehdi Nafti, both Birmingham City players, started for The Eagles of Carthage.

Senegal and South Africa both needed to win and then have a winner in the Tunisia-Angola match for either of the former two nations to qualify for the next round. Neither event happened as yesterday's other game ended 1-1. South Africa went ahead almost a quarter of an hour into the match through Elrio Van Heerden's second goal of the tournament, but West Ham striker Henri Camara equalized for Senegal in the 37th minute. Blackburn defensive midfielder Aaron Mokoena played but didn't have a great game for South Africa, and Premiership players Camara, Abdoulaye Faye, Papa Bouba Diop, and Diomansy Kamara all started for Senegal.

The Lions of Teranga were playing without starting goalkeeper Tony Sylva and captain El-Hadji Diouf as the pair were suspended for breaking curfew earlier in the week. It was a disappointing exit for the West African nation; their roster is full of accomplished players and after a quarterfinal run in World Cup 2002, they enter every major tournament with high expectations.

South Africa was using this tournament as a chance for the players to gain high-level, competitive match experience before World Cup 2010, which they'll host. Brazilian coach Carlos Alberto Perreira has made the World Cup the main focus for his team and they'll put all their eggs in that basket.

The quarterfinal bracket for Groups C and D is now complete. Tunisia, the champion of Group D, will take on Group C runner-up Cameroon on Monday and Angola will face Egypt, the defending champions of this tournament and winner of Group C, on Tuesday.

Final Group D Standings (Teams in bold advance):

1. Tunisia (5 points, +2 goal differential)
2. Angola (5 pts, +2 GD)
3. Senegal (2 pts, -2 GD)
4. South Africa (2 pts, -2 GD)

Action resumes on Sunday with the first two quarterfinal matchups, Ghana-Nigeria and Ivory Coast-Guinea. I'm going to go with good form and take Ghana and Ivory Coast to win their games and advance to the semifinals.

City, Liverpool Exposed for What They Are

Yesterday's action proved especially telling for two sides, Manchester City and Liverpool. Both teams came into this season with high expectations; Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez stated repeatedly that winning the Premiership was his side's main goal and obviously he wanted the deep Champions League run that has become the Reds' trademark. Manchester City didn't have the same expectations as Liverpool but with a new, successful manager and significant turnover from the 2006-2007 squad, City fans had to have been thinking along the lines of a place in Europe.

To be fair, City have had the least disappointing season of the two teams so far and there is still just over a third of the schedule remaining. However, with the way City started the year (three consecutive wins--including a win over fierce rivals Man U--, seven wins in their first ten league games, and three straight victories in the Carling Cup), fans have to be a bit nonplussed with the way City is going right now. The Blues have won just three times in their last 14 games in all competitions; one of those wins was in the FA Cup and another was against Newcastle.

City are the soccer version of bipolar as they boast a 9-3-0 record at home but only a 2-5-5 mark away from Eastlands. Yesterday's 1-1 draw against Derby, who are looking like the worst team in Premiership history, was a clear representation of City's problems. The equation is simple: If you can't win away from home, you won't challenge for anything significant. City were actually down 1-0 and it took a goal from a youngster, Daniel Sturridge, to equalize. Where was Elano? Where was Stephen Ireland? If your big name players don't perform on a consistent basis, again, you won't challenge for anything.

After yesterday's games, City sit in 6th place in the Premiership but that's looking tenuous. Liverpool (and I'll get to them in a bit) are only a point behind but have a game in hand and a much, much better goal differential. Blackburn is in 8th place and they're only a strong run away from passing City as they're just three points behind, and Portsmouth will make that strong run after they get the players who are currently taking part in the African Cup of Nations back in mid-February. Suddenly, City's 6th place spot and UEFA Cup berth could vanish and they could be looking at anywhere between 8th-10th. With the way they started the year, that would have to be viewed as a disappointment.

The true definition of disappointment, though, is Liverpool. I don't want to get into much detail about the Reds as I've already done that in the past week or so (and taken heat for it; was I wrong? No.) and there's no need to restate the obvious. Yesterday's game against West Ham was a microcosm of the entire season for Liverpool. More often than not, the Reds will have the clear advantage in amount of possession (the most useless stat in soccer), a high shot total but with few of those on goal, and more corners than their opponent. Yet on the scoreline, which is the only thing that matters, Liverpool tends to come up short. I don't care how long have you the ball; you can pass it around all game long and it wouldn't mean anything to me. It's all about what you do when you have the ball and in Liverpool's case, it's a whole lot of nothing.

Having said everything I have about Liverpool, I stand behind the prediction I made a couple weeks ago that they'll still finish in 4th place. But is that good enough? I'm sorry, I don't think just scraping by the other teams in the hunt for the last Champions League spot can be viewed as a success. It would be a step backwards from Liverpool's performance last season at a time when all the clubs around them are getting better, not worse.

City and Liverpool are two different cases of disappointment. Liverpool had title hopes and will be fortunate to finish in fourth place, while City had legitimate European hopes with the way they started out and may not get there. If you're a Liverpool fan, I'm not sure how you could possibly look at this season in a positive light and although you still can if you root for City, you have to think about what could have been.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Day 11

Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o became the top scorer in African Cup of Nations finals history today when he converted his second PK of the tournament in the 28th minute, and Cameroon benefited from a Sudanese own goal just six minutes later and went on to win 3-0. Eto'o also scored again right before the end of the game to add to his now-record count of 16 tallies. Cameroon bossed the match from start to finish and although Sudan played much better in the second half, they exit the tournament with no points and no goals scored.

In today's other game, Egypt and Zambia played to a 1-1 draw and that point allowed the Pharaohs to win Group C. Zambia came into the match knowing they really needed a three-goal victory to advance, so an 88nd minute equalizer from Christopher Katongo was little consolation to the Southern African side. Middlesbrough midfielder Mohamed Shawky played the entire match for Egypt and despite knowing they only needed a draw to win the group, coach Hassan Shehata opted to play his usual 3-5-2 lineup.

Final Group C Standings (teams in bold advance):

1. Egypt (7 points, +5 goal differential)
2. Cameroon (6 pts, +5 GD)
3. Zambia (4 pts, -1 GD)
4. Sudan (0 pts, -9 GD)

Group play concludes tomorrow with Group D, and Tunisia and Angola are in the driver's seat to qualification as they both sit on four points while Senegal and South Africa have their work cut out for them with one point each. Interestingly enough, we'll see those groups of two play against each other tomorrow and while a draw would seal the deal for Tunisia and Angola, both coaches have said their sides will be playing to win. My guess? That game will end in a draw.

Quick Predictions for Today's Premiership Games

Alright, I gave you a brief preview of three of the four games yesterday. I want to change things up a bit today and just give you my predictions for this afternoon's action; nothing more, nothing less.

1. Chelsea-2, Reading-1
2. Tottenham-3, Everton-2
3. Manchester City-3, Derby-1
4. Manchester United-2, Portsmouth-0
5. West Ham-2, Liverpool-1

Agree? Disagree? Let me hear you.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Day 10

Disgruntled Chelsea striker Didier Drogba scored just nine minutes in and two second half goals were added insurance for Ivory Coast yesterday as Les Éléphants, my pre-tournament pick to win the whole thing, cruised to a 3-0 win over Mali. Mali came into this game knowing they really needed a result because Nigeria was playing the lightweight of the group, Benin, but they just looked overmatched at times. When Fredi Kanoute was substituted for Momo Sissoko in the 46th minute, you just knew the match was over. The victory capped a perfect group stage for Ivory Coast with three wins in as many matches and more importantly, allowed them to avoid Group A winner Ghana in the quarterfinals.

Nigeria knew exactly what they needed to do yesterday: beat Benin. The Super Eagles had to take care of business there and then hope Ivory Coast would beat Mali, and everything went according to plan if you're rooting for Nigeria. Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel scored once on a header and then set up Yakubu in the 86th minute to seal the deal for Nigeria, who overcame a lackluster first half performance to win the game 2-0. Amazingly enough, those two goals were the first two scored by Nigeria all tournament, even though they have pretty impressive attacking talent on the roster, including three legitimate 10-12 goals-a-season guys in Kanu, Obafemi Martins, and Yakubu.

Nigeria squeaked through by the skin of their teeth as they ended up on the same number of points (4) as Mali. The Super Eagles' superior goal differential (+1 > -2)meant they advanced ahead of Mali, who started the tournament in such fine fashion. For Nigeria, an early exit would have been viewed as a huge disappointment and one that surely would have cost German coach Berti Vogts his job.

The quarterfinal bracket, at least as far as Groups A and B are concerned, is now set. Ghana, the winner of Group A and the hosts of the tournament, will play Nigeria in Accra. Ivory Coast, the winner of Group B, will play Guinea in Sekondi. I'm not going to make any predictions yet, but I don't think this second game is going to be very close.

Final Group B Standings (Teams in bold advance):

1. Ivory Coast (9 points, +7 goal differential)
2. Nigeria (4 pts, +1 GD)
3. Mali (4 pts, -2 GD)
4. Benin (0 pots, -6 GD)

Group C finishes group play today and things are still definitely up for grabs. Cameroon plays Sudan and will very likely win that game. If they do, they'll advance, but whether it's as the group winner or group runner-up is to be determined. In the other game, Egypt, the defending champions and current group leader, will contend with a Zambian side that smells a chance to reach the quarterfinals. They can do so by beating Egypt by at least three goals (unlikely), winning while Cameroon does not, or getting a draw while Cameroon loses.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Day 9

Chelsea stalwart Michael Essien scored once and set up Portsmouth midfielder Sulley Muntari for Ghana's second goal and that was all The Black Stars needed to see off Morocco yesterday and win Group A, likely avoiding Ivory Coast in the quarterfinals by doing so. The 2-0 scoreline was even a bit misleading as Ghana really dominated this game, but Morocco were very unfortunate to have an own goal by Ghana and West Ham defender John Paintsil disallowed as the whistle had already been blown for a foul even though replays showed there was none.

As the host nation, Ghana had been expected to make a deep run in this tournament and have lived up to that so far, winning all three of their group matches. On the other hand, Morocco will be disappointed with how things turned out. The Lions of the Atlas were predicted by most people to go through as the group runner-up, but a surprise loss to Guinea did them in.

Speaking of Guinea, they picked up a point against minnows Namibia with a 1-1 draw and coupled with Morocco's loss, that result was enough to see them through to the last eight. The National Elephants were playing without their best player and captain, Pascal Feindouno, who was serving the first game of a two-match ban for a stupid red card he received in his country's win over Morocco. Souleymane Youla scored in the 62nd minute but Namibia spoiled a victory and earned their first point of the tournament in the process with an 81st minute goal from Brian Brendell.

Guinea will likely play the Ivory Coast in the quarterfinals and without Feindouno, I don't think they have any chance to win that game. Regardless, advancing to that stage of the tournament would be significant as it would be the third straight African Cup of Nations in which they did so. Before that, the last time they progressed to the quarterfinals and behind was 1976, so it shows the upward trend of soccer in Guinea.

Final Group A Standings: (Teams in bold advance)

1. Ghana (9 points, +4 goal differential)
2. Guinea (4 pts, 0 GD)
3. Morocco (3 pts, +1 GD)
4. Namibia (1 pt, -5 GD)

Group B wraps up today with things looking fairly stable. Ivory Coast will battle Mali and although the former have already qualified for the quarterfinals, they still need a draw or victory to win the group while Mali only need a point to advance but would need to win the game to win the group. Look for Nigeria to put a hammering on Benin today as the Super Eagles need a win and an Ivory Coast victory to avoid the embarrassment of exiting the tournament early.

A Trio of Six-Pointers

Things have been pretty busy in the soccer world recently at least as far as this site goes, what with the African Cup of Nations in full swing and the FA Cup 4th Round ties and 5th Round draw over the past few days.

Let’s not forget the bread and butter though. Premier League action heats up again with a round of midweek games, starting with four tomorrow and then five on Wednesday. Three of tomorrow’s matches are extremely, extremely important and so I wanted to give you a brief preview of what to watch for. These games are the definition of the term “six-pointers”, as each of the six teams involved are in the relegation fight and could either go three points closer to safety or three more points behind the teams they’re chasing in the battle to remain in the Premier League.

Middlesbrough (13th; 22 pts) vs. Wigan (17th; 20 pts):

This will be game #1 of the post-Jonathan Woodgate era at Middlesbrough. Say what you like about Woodgate and how injury-prone he is, but he’s a quality center-back and his presence will sorely be missed at the Riverside, especially as Boro have already conceded 37 goals this season. They’ve won just once in their last six league matches and only twice at home all season. Both Tuncay Sanli and Gary O’Neil should return to the lineup, however, and that will be a boost to Gareth Southgate’s club.

Marlon King should be set to make his debut for Wigan after recently joining the Lancashire side from Watford. King is a serviceable striker who will help Wigan up front; they’ve scored only 23 goals in as many matches this season. They’ve won just once away from the JJB this year but have earned points in five out of their last seven league games, including their sole road win at Derby. As a sidenote, this will be Wigan’s 100th match in the Premier League.

Bolton (15th; 21 pts) vs. Fulham (19th; 15 pts):

Out of the six clubs I’ve highlighted today, I think these two need a victory the most.

Bolton lack any type of scoring punch now that Nicolas Anelka has continued his nomadic ways and moved to Chelsea, and the likely signing of Aston Villa central defender Gary Cahill doesn’t address that need whatsoever. The Trotters have won just twice in their last seven league games and those wins came against Derby and Birmingham. El-Hadji Diouf and Abdoulaye Meite are both away due to African Cup of Nations duty and that doesn’t help matters at all.

One thing that does work in Bolton’s favor, however, is Fulham’s awful road form. Bolton have been solid at home this season (5-3-4) and Fulham have picked up only four points in eleven away league matches so far (0-4-7). The Cottagers actually hadn’t won away from home in the 2007 calendar year either, so Bolton should have the advantage tomorrow in that regard. Fulham will need Clint Dempsey to have a good game tomorrow if they have any hope of gaining a much-needed three points.

Sunderland (18th; 20 pts) vs. Birmingham City (16th; 20 pts):

Sunderland will head into tomorrow’s match with a much-weakened side as Michael Chopra, Danny Higginbotham, Grant Leadbitter, Ross Wallace, Kieran Richardson, Carlos Edwards, and Dickson Etuhu will all be out and each of those players has had an appreciable role with the club this season. The Black Cats have shown improvement recently with two wins in their last five league matches, including the dominant 2-0 win against Portsmouth at the Stadium of Light on January 13. Kenwyne Jones is capable of scoring every time he walks onto the field and Birmingham will likely have trouble containing him in the air.

The Blues have the most away wins (2) out of any team in the bottom seven in the Premiership and will likely hand James McFadden his first start since his recent move from Everton. Mauro Zarate has joined the club on loan as well and trust me, this kid is a star in the making. He scored the winning goal for the Argentine U-20 team in the final of last summer’s FIFA U-20 World Cup against the Czech Republic, and was the co-top scorer in the Argentine Apertura in 2006-2007 with 12 goals. Birmingham are healthy and will have every opportunity to steal a victory on the road, although they’ll have to earn it as Sunderland are 5-3-3 on home turf this season.

Barack Obama is a West Ham Fan

Have you all seen the article on the Telegraph's website "revealing" that Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama is a West Ham supporter?

I'm not sure what to make of this. Reports state that ever since Obama went on a trip to England five years ago, the Illinois senator has been a fan of the Claret and Blue and that he watches Premiership matches whenever he can with his busy schedule.

Of course, Bill and Hillary Clinton are supposedly huge Manchester United fans as well. They're also fans of the New York Giants as Bill recently said while speaking to an elementary school. Curious that New York has more electoral votes than Massachusetts, the home state of the New England Patriots, the Giants' opponent in the Super Bowl. Curious also that the Clintons seem to enjoy jumping on the bandwagons of successful teams.

Anyway, back to Obama. What do you guys think, is he a true Hammers fan?

FA Cup 5th Round Draw Revealed

The draw for the 5th Round of the FA Cup was conducted at 8:30 Eastern Time this morning and I have to say, there are some very interesting ties that will be worth watching.

Here's the complete draw (Premiership teams are in bold, home teams are listed first):

Bristol Rovers v Southampton
Cardiff City v Wolverhampton Wanderers
Sheffield United v Middlesbrough
Liverpool v Barnsley
Manchester United v Arsenal
Preston North End v Portsmouth
Coventry City v West Bromwich Albion
Chelsea v Huddersfield Town

If you're a fan of lower-league soccer, this is a mixed bag. Huddersfield Town and Bristol Rovers (both in League One) are the lowest-ranked teams left at this stage, and while the former has no chance to advance, Bristol Rovers could very well pull off an upset. You're guaranteed to see either Cardiff or Wolves move on and either Coventry or West Brom as well. Other than that, the pickings are slim.

I don't think I'm going out any real limb in predicting that Sheffield United will beat Middlesbrough at Brammall Lane. I know they're only in 14th place right now in the Championship, but this is a team that has already beaten Bolton and Manchester City in the FA Cup this year and Middlesbrough are struggling in the Premier League and could be without Jonathan Woodgate as well. If all else fails, maybe someone at Sheffield United can steal some more money from the visiting team's locker room.

Liverpool have been lucky enough to draw lower-league sides in both of their previous FA Cup ties and the trend continues in this round as the Reds will host Barnsley, who currently occupy 16th place in the Championship.

David Nugent will make his return to Preston as his current club, Portsmouth, heads to the North West and Deepdale. Preston are really struggling this year without Nugent (22nd in the Championship) but both they and their fans will really be up for this game, particularly if Nugent is playing.

Undoubtedly, the tie of the round is Manchester United-Arsenal, although it will be interesting to see what sort of team Arsene Wenger trots out at Old Trafford. Will he go with the kids as he does in most cup games, or will he go with a more traditional side since this is a big, big matchup? We'll see.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Day 8

Manchester United are looking smarter and smarter for their interest in Manucho as the Angolan striker scored twice in seventeen minutes in the second half to propel his country to a come-from-behind 3-1 win yesterday over Senegal.

Manucho now has three goals in two games in this edition of the African Cup of Nations, Angola has four points and is sitting in the driver's seat to qualification for the quarterfinals, and Senegal is without their head coach as he resigned after the loss. The Lions of Teranga are in big trouble and it looks unlikely that they'll advance even though they have a roster full of quality players who make their living overseas, including six players in the Premiership who appeared in yesterday's game. One of those players, Newcastle's Abdoulaye Meite, put Senegal ahead after just 20 minutes, but after a first half in which they were dominated, Angola came out in the second half and simply took it to their opponents.

The other game yesterday also ended with a 3-1 score as a more experienced Tunisia side beat the 2010 World Cup hosts, South Africa. Francileudo Santos scored twice in the first half and The Eagles of Carthage took a 3-0 lead into the break. South Africa only avoided a clean sheet with an 87th minute goal and didn't even deserve that with their sloppy play all game long. Tunisia's lineup included two Birmingham City players, Radhi Jaidi and Mehdi Nafti, and South Africa started both Steven Pienaar and Aaron Mokoena once again. Their hopes of advancing to the next round are likely over, and Tunisia can seal the deal with a draw or win against Angola in the last group match.

Group D Standings (after two games):

1. Tunisia (4 points, +2 goal differential)
2. Angola (4 pts, +2 GD)
3. Senegal (1 pt, -2 GD)
4. South Africa (1 pt, -2 GD)

Group A is back in action today as they'll wrap up their part in this stage of the tournament. The Ghana-Morocco match is huge as Morocco will likely need to beat Ghana to advance to the quarterfinals because they're currently tied on points (3) with Guinea, who have the huge advantage of playing lightweights Namibia. If both Morocco and Guinea draw, Morocco would advance due to a better goal differential.

Adding Insult to Injury

ESPNsoccernet is reporting that a significant amount of money--believed to be in the region of $3,000-$4,000 US--was stolen right out of wallets from the Manchester City dressing room at some point during the afternoon today. City occupied the visitors' changing room as they were in Sheffield to take on Sheffield United in the 4th Round of the FA Cup, a game in which they surprisingly lost 2-1.

"A number of staff and players have had a quantity of cash stolen," City spokesman Paul Tyrrell told Sky Sports News.

"I am not aware that the dressing room was locked and the police are looking in it."

Wow. If this is the case, Sheffield United has to be at fault. There's no excuse for not locking the doors to the locker room and prohibiting access to everything inside.

Then again, what were City's players and staff doing with that much money?? They were the visiting team and probably were heading back to Manchester directly after the match; I'm not sure why they were carrying any considerable amount of money in the first place.

City aren't exactly setting the world alight right now with their recent form. This is a team that has won a grand total of three matches in their last thirteen played in all competitions. They're fading in the race for fourth place in the Premiership and with today's loss are now out of both domestic cup competitions. The last thing their players and staff are thinking about at the moment is the money in their wallets, especially when it's inside a place that should be safe and off-limits to anyone but team personnel, and somehow even that is now missing.

After a trip to Derby next week, City have the displeasure of playing Manchester United, Arsenal, and Everton in their three league games in February.

Could it get any worse?

FA Cup 5th Round Draw

The draw for the fifth round of the 2007-2008 edition of the world's oldest domestic cup competition will take place tomorrow, and the eight ties are scheduled to be played on February 16 and 17.

None of the fourth round ties need replays as they all were decided this weekend. Coca-Cola League One sides Huddersfield Town and Bristol Rovers are amongst the last 16 teams in the competition, as are several Championship squads and each of the Premiership's "Big Four".

Full coverage of the draw can be found here tomorrow; check back during the morning for more updates.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Day 7

Samuel Eto'o converted a PK in the 66th minute to draw even with Ivory Coast legend Laurent Pokou for most goals scored (14) in the African Cup of Nations finals and Joseph Job bagged a brace to propel Cameroon over Zambia 5-1 yesterday. This was a game Cameroon absolutely needed to win after their opening loss to Egypt and the Indomitable Lions took care of business. Only a 90th minute goal from Christopeher Katongo prevented Zambia from being shut out. Newcastle midfielder Geremi scored the opening goal for Cameroon and after coming on as a substitute in that game against Egypt, Arsenal starlet Alexandre Song played the full 90 minutes yesterday.

Egypt all but guaranteed their place in the quarterfinals with a 3-0 win over Sudan, a game in which the defending champions had to work a little harder than the flattering scoreline might indicate. Second half substitute Mohamed Aboutriaka scored twice in five minutes late in the game to put the match away for the Pharaohs, but Sudan started out like a house on fire and Egypt did well to survive the rush and come out with the victory. Once again, Middlesbrough midfielder Mohamed Shawky played the entire game for Egypt.

Cameroon will play Sudan to wrap up the group stage and Egypt will take on Zambia, and it doesn't take a genius to predict that the favorites will most likely win those games. If that holds true, Egypt will win Group C and Cameroon would be the runner-up.

Group C Standings (after two games):

1. Egypt (6 points, +5 goal differential)
2. Cameroon (3 pts, +2 GD)
3. Zambia (3 pts, -1 GD)
4. Sudan (0 pts, -6 GD)

Today's games could be very interesting as Group D is in action. All four teams in the group are even right now with a point each and to me, this is the most evenly matched group in the tournament, by far. Senegal and Angola will meet although interestingly enough, it was Angola who was one of Africa's representatives in the last World Cup, not Senegal; and Tunisia will play the hosts of the 2010 World Cup, South Africa.

False Alarm

Yossi Benayoun's natural hat trick propelled Liverpool from a 2-1 deficit to a 5-2 victory today in the 4th Round of the FA Cup.

Havant and Waterlooville jumped out to a 1-0 lead at Anfield after just eight minutes, and the Blue Square South side went back ahead 2-1 on a Martin Skrtel own goal just after the half-hour mark.

Benayoun then scored three in a row for Liverpool and Peter Crouch added an insurance tally in the 90th minute to put the game in the bag and send the Reds into the last 16 of the world's oldest and most prestigious cup competition.

Personally, I was hoping Havant and Waterlooville could pull off the stunner and win today. I wrote about how I believe changes need to be made at Liverpool just after their 2-2 draw against Aston Villa earlier in the week and to me, this is exactly the type of game that will hinder progress being made on Merseyside. Fans will look at the scoreline and say "Wow, five goals, our boys made it look easy out there" and proceed like nothing's wrong.

The reality of the situation is this. Liverpool were tied with a team full of part-timers at halftime. Yes, they ended up winning, but that's what they were supposed to do anyway and in impressive fashion. I know that the team Rafa put on the field wasn't exactly a full-strength lineup, but surely they're better than being outplayed by a team in Blue Square South for the first half?

Upset of the Century?

My goodness. Say what you like about it being the FA Cup and it not mattering much to teams in the Premier League, but we could be seeing history today if Havant and Waterlooville can nick a goal in the second half of their FA Cup 4th Round tie at Liverpool. The last time a non-league team beat a top-flight opponent was back in the 1988-1989 season when Sutton United shocked Coventry City.

As I type this, the score is 2-2 in the 48th minute and the part-timers from Blue Square South actually have led this game on two occasions. Liverpool isn't exactly playing a full-strength side but they do have Torres, Carragher, and Gerrard available off the bench and a couple of regular first-team players in Mascherano, Finnan, and Benayoun starting.

Havant and Waterlooville are making a tidy profit from this game which could cover operating costs for literally a season or two, if not longer, and if they can force a replay, that would be hugely lucrative as well.

I'll keep you posted with updates on this game.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Day 6

Ivory Coast became the first nation to punch their ticket to the quarterfinals of the 2008 African Cup of Nations today after a 4-1 romp over Benin, a game in which Benin needed a 90th minute goal to avoid a shutout and the Toure brothers combined on a nice goal for the winners.

Ivory Coast now need only a draw in their last group match against Mali to win Group B and the game against the runner-up in Group A that comes with it. My pre-tournament favorites are looking good so far and I'm going to stick with them until the very end. They're getting contributions from everywhere right now, not just up top and in the midfield, and I'm not convinced that anyone in this tournament can beat them with the possible exception of Ghana. Chelsea striker Didier Drogba is the captain ahead of some other worthy candidates like Arsenal's Kolo Toure and he scored the opening goal to start the ball rolling today for Ivory Coast.

Mali needed something out of today's game against Nigeria and they got the job done with a 0-0 draw. It was by no means pretty to watch, but if you're a Mali fan, you have to like the position your team is in now with just one group game to go. Yes, it's against Ivory Coast, but with both teams needing only a point to keep their respective places and advance, I can see Mali coming out with a share of the spoils because it suits both teams just fine. Mali was very, very unlucky to not win today's game as an 83rd minute left-footed drive by Seydou Keita came off the crossbar.

Nigeria now need to beat Benin in their last game and hope Ivory Coast beat Mali. The Super Eagles boast a pretty potent front line with Newcastle striker Obafemi Martins and Everton's Yakubu, but somehow have been held scoreless thus far in the tournament. I have no doubts they'll take care of Benin, but as I said before, a draw seems the most likely result in the Ivory Coast-Mali match.

Group B Standings (after two games):

1. Ivory Coast (6 points, +4 goal differential)
2. Mali (4 pts, +1 GD)
3. Nigeria (1 pt, -1 GD)
4. Benin (0 pts, -4 GD)

In tomorrow's action, wins by Zambia against Cameroon and by Egypt against Sudan can seal those countries' places in the last eight. Egypt should get the job done against Sudan with relative ease, but Zambia will really have their hands full with favored Cameroon.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Day 5

Ghana put themselves in a very strong position to win Group A and qualify for the quarterfinals of the 2008 African Cup of Nations with their 1-0 win over Namibia yesterday. The Black Stars aren't exactly winning with style right now, but they're getting the job done and former MLS star Junior Agogo's 41st minute tally from close range was all they needed to pick up the three points. Portsmouth midfielder Sulley Muntari's spectacular bicycle kick early in the game sailed straight into the hands of Namibia goalkeeper Attiel Mbaha. Ghana now need just a draw against Morocco in their last group stage game to seal a berth in the knockout stages, but could still move on with a loss depending on the result of the Guinea-Namibia match and Ghana's goal differential.

Yesterday's other game was a better one for the viewers as Guinea pulled off a 3-2 upset over Morocco. AS Saint-Etienne attacking midfielder and Guinea star Pascal Feindouno bagged a brace but was sent off as well in the 67th minute. Feindouno put Guinea ahead on a free kick after just 11 minutes, and then three goals in eight minutes (the first by Guinea, the second by a sensational strike from Morocco's Hicham Aboucherouane, the third a PK from Feindouno) busted the game wide open. Morocco pulled a goal back in the 90th minute, but by then it was too late to really impact the game.

Morocco really had their fate in their own hands and could've basically sealed the qualification deal if they would've won yesterday, which by all rights they were supposed to do. Instead, they'll face the daunting task of needing a result against Ghana in the last group game and it will likely have to be a victory because Guinea play the lightweights of the the group, Namibia. Morocco and Guinea are tied on points with 3 but Morocco's superior goal differential (+3; Guinea's is 0) could prove significant if both teams win their last game.

Group A Standings (after two games):

1. Ghana (6 points, +2 goal differential)
2. Morocco (3 pts, +3 GD)
3. Guinea (3 pts, 0 GD)
4. Namibia (0 pts, -5 GD)

Group B is in action today and wins by Ivory Coast and Mali would seal both nations' places in the last eight of the tournament. Ivory Coast play Benin and with no disrespect to Les Écureuils (The Squirrels), this game should simply be a matter of how much Ivory Coast will win by. Mali, on the other hand, have their hands full with Nigeria and to be honest, the only team that seems likely to win this game is Nigeria. A draw for Mali wouldn't be the worst result in the world but Nigeria could really use the three points after their opening loss to Ivory Coast.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Day 4

I'll tell you what, this year's edition of the African Cup of Nations is getting better and better. The quality of some of the goals scored has been absolutely fantastic and yesterday we saw more of the same.

The 2010 World Cup hosts, South Africa, earned a point out of nothing against Angola as substitute Elrio van Heerdeen blistered a long-range effort in the 87th minute to equalize the game at 1-1, where it would end. Manchester United's new signing, Manucho, scored for Angola about a half hour into the match. Steven Pienaar and Aaron Mokoena started for South Africa, who fielded a younger lineup in an effort to give some players big-match experience before the next World Cup.

Tunisia and Senegal played to a 2-2 draw and once again, a spectacular late goal was vital. Mejdi Traoui's drive into the top left corner in the 82nd minute gave Tunisia a share of the spoils and cancelled out what would have been a game-winning goal from Newcastle and Senegal striker Diomansy Kamara just 14 minutes earlier. Senegal's starting lineup featured Kamara, Abdoulaye Faye, El-Hadji Diouf, and Habib Beye, and Papa Bouba Diop and Henri Camara came on as substitutes. Birmingham defender Radhi Jaidi started for Tunisia as well, so we saw Premiership players aplenty in this game.

Group A is back in action today as Ghana take on minnows Namibia and Guinea play Morocco in a critical, critical game for 2nd place in the group.

Arrivederci, Rolando Bianchi

You all know my feelings towards Rolando Bianchi. After he came out in an interview with Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport back in late December and criticized all things English soccer, I wrote here about how selfish Bianchi is and how he should be on the next plane out of Manchester when the January transfer window opened. I took a lot of criticism for it but to be honest, my mind couldn't have been any more made up that Rolando Bianchi had worn out his welcome in Manchester and that interview sealed his fate at the Eastlands.

I'm glad to see the higher-ups there echo my sentiments as well, and they've shipped Bianchi to Lazio on loan with a permanent move back to Italy in the summer very likely. He had nothing positive to say about his club or soccer as a whole in England, and the fact of the matter is he wasn't producing on the field either; check the stats, you'll see what I mean.

Bianchi wanted to go back to Italy to boost his chances of playing for the national team, and he made no bones about it. I had no problem with that; every player has his individual ambitions and that's perfectly fine. As I said back in December however, it was the way he voiced his opinions that crossed the line. He made his club look bad by suggesting the team was full of alcoholics, and he had the audacity to criticize the refereeing in England when in fact, if I recall correctly, there was a major referee match-fixing scandal in his home country just a few years ago.

The bottom line is this: Bianchi didn't want to be in Manchester and City didn't want him there after that interview either, so they made a move to get rid of him and end any distractions he was bringing to the club. Both parties involved will benefit from this, particularly Manchester City, but I'm afraid Bianchi hasn't learned his lesson. City had no choice but to move him out; they could've punished him through fines or a demotion to the reserve team, but that would've just turned into an unnecessarily ugly situation. Bianchi, on the other hand, will go to Lazio and score his share of goals and maybe earn a spot on the Italian national team. Does that make him a better person and a better teammate? No chance.

African Cup of Nations Recap--Day 3

Yesterday's action in the African Cup of Nations involved Group C, and Egypt's 4-2 victory over Cameroon put the defending champions in a great position while Cameroon will now have to battle out of a hole to advance to the quarterfinals, which had to have been their minimum expectation before the tournament began.

This was a very interesting game in that three players, two for Egypt and one for Cameroon, scored two goals each. A brace from Samuel Eto'o wasn't enough for the
Indomitable Lions to overcome Egypt yesterday, who featured Middlesbrough midfielder Mohamed Shawky.

The second game of the day saw Zambia beat Sudan 3-0. That result all but eliminates Sudan but if Zambia can pull off an upset in either of their next two group matches, they'll likely advance to the next round and that would be a major coup for the south African side. A goal in the 2nd minute by James Chamanga really ended any suspense this game could have potentially had.

Once again, there are two games on tap for today with the key match being Tunisia-Senegal.