Mirandes, the giant killing third division Liga club bowed out beaten by Athletic Bilbao, 6-2, in the second leg of the Copa Del Rey (8-3 aggregate). Fernando Llorente showed why he's on the wishlist of some of the world's biggest clubs by scoring a brace. Athletic also got goals from Iker Muniain, Markel Susaeta and defender Jon Aurtenetxe. The last goal was an own goal by Fernandez Cesar Caneda.
Mirandes managed to claim a couple through Aitor Blanco. The third division club beat Villarreal, Racing Santander and Espanyol to make it to the semi-finals but were no match for Athletic who find the Copa Del Rey happy hunting grounds entering their 36th final of which they have won 23, second only to Barca's 25 titles.
Barca will meet Valencia in the second leg tomorrow having tied the first edition, 1-1 at the Mestalla.
The world's most over rated striker receives a three match ban for slapping Napoli's Salvatore Aronica. To be fair Aronica also indulged in some extra-curricular activities against Antonio Nocerino but Ibra's was a reputation call. He will miss crucial matches against Udinese and Juventus.
Who let the cat out? A tabby provided the most excitement in the Liverpool vs Spurs match, a cagey affair. Luis Suarez came on in the 66th minute after his nine match ban and promptly plonked Scott Parker on the abdomen with a scything foot, an accident more than anything else, but with Suarez the line is finely drawn. The Uruguayan was booked but escaped more severe punishment.
Wayne Rooney, now an expert on red cards promptly tweeted his instant verdict.
"If ref sees that kick from suarez and books him for it it should be red," tweeted the Manchester United striker.
He got a reaction from Kenny Dalglish, the same as he did with Roberto Mancini. May not be the wisest move before that big Liverpool vs Man Utd game this weekend. For his part, Dalglish stuck to his guns reiterating the wrongness of Suarez's ban. In the mishandling of the John Terry racial abuse case, he may just have a point.
Spurs for all that attacking talent could not get much. Maybe they were missing Harry Redknapp who's preoccupied with fighting his tax evasion charges and missed his flight to the match after his plane developed engine trouble. It was their defense providing the biggest moment as Michael Dawson (how about an England spot in place of John Terry?) made a great tackle to take the ball away from Andy Carroll with the striker set to shoot. Liverpool's scoring drought has seen them score 14 goals in their last 12 matches with Carroll unable to take up the scoring slack in Suarez's absence.
Co-hosts Gabon looked like it was going to be headed to their best showing in any ACN when Eric Mouloungui shot them into the lead in the 55th minute. But Mali had other ideas as Cheick Diabate equalized in the 84th minute. At the end of extra time, with the two teams deadlocked, the fate of the match was decided on PK shootout.
The Panthers were found wanting when St Etienne's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, missed his PK as Mali proved flawless in finding the back of the net with Barca's Seydou Keita scoring the winning spot kick.
The semi-finals line up: Ivory Coast, the overwhelming favourites face off against Mali, while Ghana are pitted against the overachieving Zambians. The smart money is on an Ivory Coast vs Ghana final, which would be a repeat of the 1992 ACN final with the Taranga Lions emerging victorious after a marathon PK shootout 11-10, over the Black Stars. But this is football, upsets are part of the sport's fabric.
Captain John Mensah puts Ghana ahead through his third international goal. Saber Khelifa equalized after beating Samuel Inkoom to a lofted ball. The match headed to extra time and in the 110th minute, Abedi Pele's son, Andre Ayew scored the winner after Tunisia's goalie, Aymen Mathlouthi coughed up Inkoom's cross right into his path. The 2-1 win puts Ghana in the semi-finals pitting them against the surprising Zambians.
Ghana last won the Africa Cup of Nations in1982. Andrew Ayew's father, the legendary Abedi Pele was part of that victorious team.
Inter's wheels are coming off. After such a strong push to within sniffing distance of Milan and Juve, they have lost to lowly Lecce, drew Palermo and yesterday, Roma took the lumber to them. Juan gets the Giallorossi on the board, Fabio Borini's lovely brace follows, and the Bojan Krkic finishes emphatically to give Roma a thumping 4-0 victory. Where was that steel trap defense that reached its heights in that victory over Barca in the CL semi-finals two years ago?
The Nerrazzuri lie in fifth but are adrift by nine points from top club Juve. They trail Milan, who lost to Lazio this weekend, by eight points. Udinese and Lazio are ahead of them. Roma follows closely behind for that crucial fourth spot. And Claudio Ranieri is under pressure again.
Today, owner Massimo Moratti warned the players, "they have to give their soul" and "some of the players must understand that the Serie is not over yet, there is a very long way to go."
Demba Cisse the most expensive player in the January transfer and the other half of the Senegalese strike force alongside Demba Ba, provided an instant impact as he scored a majestic goal on his debut. Majestic.
Ba and Cisse were away on ACN duty and how they were missed, especially Ba, who gave Newcastle the lead in the 30th minute for his 16th Premiership goal. Villa looking good in spells managed to go into half time with the equalizer through Robbie Keane, whose Premiership loan return has been quite spectacular too.
The magical moment belonged to Demba Cisse (Papiss Demba Cisse) if you must in the 71st minute who latched onto a cross by Jonas Gutierrez after Villa failed to clear and the Senegalese striker chested the ball down and slammed it on the half volley giving Shay Given no chance at all. Automatic. No hesitation. No second guessing.
In Jonas Gutierrez, Newcastle have an immense, unflagging motor, who never gives up. A force of nature. Yoann Cabaye's place was taken by Danny Guthrie, a very underrated player who kept the midfield metronome going through his nice through balls and chips into the box, creating scoring opportunities for Ba and Cisse. The Geordies paid a price through ugly injuries to Leon Best and Ryan Taylor, the latter's looked far worse as he was stretchered off.
Villa did no favours to Arsenal, as Newcastle climb to fifth with Chelsea making ground over Spurs, looking good for the win against Man Utd. Tomorrow Liverpool take on Spurs, in another defining match for the race at the top.
Alex McLeish looked like broiled lobster on the sidelines screaming his head off.
Zambia cruised past Sudan, 3-0 to the semi-finals of the ACN, the first time since 1996. Sudan made things difficult for themselves after Ali Saif Eldin was sent off for his second violation when he brought down Rainford Kalaba in the 63rd minute. By that time the Chipolopolos (The Copper Miners) were already a goal up from Sunzu Stoppila.
Christopher Katonga's initial PK effort was parried by Akram but he followed up successfully with the rebound. Substitute James Chamanga sealed the victory adding a third.
"Our target was to reach the semi final for the first time since 1996. We learnt a lot in 2010 where we were not efficient. I think we were better this time."
The Chipolopolos await the winner of the Ghana vs Tunisia match. The Ivory Coast will take on either Gabon or Mali in the other quarterfinal.
Didier Drogba could not be denied as he made up for a missed penalty by pouring in a brace. Ivory Coast added another through Yaya Toure as they send Equatorial Guinea, the co-hosts, out of the ACN. The Taranga Lions are through to the semi-finals.
Drogba will be missing today's huge showdown with Man Utd, and in his absence, Chelsea is hoping that misfiring Fernando Torres and Daniel Sturridge, take up the goalscoring slack.
In which RVP scores a sublime hat trick. In which the Ox is unleashed. In which Song continues to find his passing groove. In which Thierry Henry scores his first Premiership goal on his return. In which Theo Walcott made the right choices. In which Frances Coquelin showed why the flanks are so important. In which Kos outsprinted Junior Hoillet in a foot race.
The sub headers were many. But they all pointed to a day when Arsenal played like the side they are capable of. The passing was crisp, incisive, and most tellingly the finishes were lethal. Arsenal were also able to slice the Blackburn open because of the meaningful movement down the channels. In one match, Arsenal solved their eternal conundrum of passing the ball to death without anything to show for it. The greatest feeling was to get the Emirates crowd back into it and by the end of the match on one of the coldest days, there was plenty of warm feelings going around. Not a moment too soon, a look around the stadium revealed many empty seats and whether it was the weather, the spotty train service, or a general malaise towards the club over their recent performances, the fact was Arsenal needed a giant size boost.
The margin also goes a long way in erasing an adverse goal differential which if the race continues to tighten up will be key in deciding who lands that coveted fourth spot. Arsenal are back in fifth awaiting Chelsea, Liverpool, and Newcastle. But the nuts and bolts can wait.
Today, RVP got things started in the first minute and a half flicking in Frances Coquelin's finely placed cross.
Morton Gamst Pedersen's very nicely struck free kick broke the one way flow. Wojciech Szczesny was able to get his fingertips on the ball but not enough to push out of the way. Just when Blackburn looked like getting a toehold on the match, Gael Givet was red carded as he clattered into RVP with a mindless two footed lunge clipped RVP, a deserved sending off. To his credit, the French defender made amends by signaling his contrition to Wenger as he walked off the field.
Arsenal got back on track as Song's beautifully measured pass that quadrisected (yes, it sliced through 4 defenders) was reeled in by Walcott to find RVP for his second goal. Song is becoming that hidden layer after peeling away the strikers, beyond the midfield supply line, lying deep to which the cover can't get to - his passes were more incisive and visionary than Arteta and Rosicky. The third goal showed the damage a rampant Ox could do as RVP with sublime trickery got the ball onto his left foot to send the ball scooting forward. The winger streaming from the left got a heavy touch and the ball squirted across goal but a burst of acceleration allowed him to recover and squeeze it past Paul Robinson.
Mikel Arteta got into the act as Blackburn could not clear their lines from a corner kick and the ball fell invitingly for the former Everton player to blast the ball on the half volley to get Arsenal's fourth after a helpful deflection. Then it was the Ox finishing off Walcott's heads up play, as the winger showed signs of cognition to match that speed. RVP collected his hat trick and Arsenal's sixth as Coquelin fed him another beautifully incisive cross. By this time a goal by the King would be the cherry on top and it duly arrived as RVP passed up a definite scoring opportunity to oblige Thierry Henry with a pass which he duly put past through Paul Robinson, a familiar victim.
The result lifts the Arsenal faithful whose mood before this match resembled something of a black hole of emotions. Next, a revitalized Sunderland under Martin O'Neill before their Champions League first leg against Milan. No rest for the weary.
Valencia served a reminder of its proud heritage as a football team holding Barca and then denied Leo Messi a PK goal in the Copa Del Rey semi-finals first leg.
Jonas gave the home side the lead at the Mestalla but Carles Puyol who seems to have made a career scoring very important headers equalized for the Blaugrana.
Valencia's goalie, Diego Alves became a hero after he guessed right and stopped Messi's PK awarded after Thiago Alcantara had been brought down.
At least 74 soccer fans died as deadly riots broke out in Port Said after a soccer match between Al Masry and visiting Al Ahly. Fans from Al Masry invaded the pitch after their team beat Al Ahly, 3-1 and clashed with their rivals. Most of the deaths were attributed to the ensuing stampede as supporters desperately tried to make for the exits.
Al Ahly players were chased into their locker rooms as the security forces stood by doing nothing.
"The security forces left us, they did not protect us. One fan has just died in the dressing room in front of me," veteran playmaker Mohamed Abou-Treika screamed during a phone call with the club's channel.
The army had to fly in two military aircraft to Port Said to airlift Al Ahly fans and players.
The violence led Zamalek and Al-Ismaily to suspend their match in mourning for the dead, which caused aggrieved fans to set some of the stands in Cairo Stadium on fire.
Egyptian Football Association (EFA) chairman Samir Zaher announced the league had been postponed for an indefinite period in the wake of the deadly clashes.
Clashes between Al Ahly and Al Masry, traditional soccer rivals, is nothing new but this scale is completely different. In the wake of the post Mubarak era, such rivalries have taken on a powerfully poisonous subtext. The security of Egypt has increasingly been taken over by the army and the powerful interior ministry with its draconian emergency laws. The police have been removed and replaced by the military thus causing a vacuum in law and order.
There appears to be a feeling amongst many Al Ahly Ultras that this violence was orchestrated against them in retaliation for being instrumental in organizing the Tahrir Square demonstrations that finally brought down the Hosni Mubarak regime. However, millions of Egyptians believe that the chief of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, Field Marshal Hussain Tantawi, the de facto head of the government, a right hand man of Mubarak is continuing his policies.
Liverpool, a club haunted by the Hillsborough and Heysel stadium tragedies, issued a statement:
"Following the sad news from Port Said we'd like to send our condolences to all in Egypt affected by this tragic event. You are in our thoughts tonight," the Reds said on their official Facebook page.
For those singling out Egypt, those tragedies remind us it can happen anywhere. What is important is the response by the Egyptian government to ensure that this does not happen again.
What does it take for any other player other than RVP to score goals? It is now official, he's not pretending any more - Theo Walcott has a mind made of mush in front of goal. Always. Aaron Ramsey is another. The Ox too for all his brightness was presented with a clear chance. He missed.
We have all the supply in the world, in and around, over and beyond, back and forth, to and fro, creating multitudes of opportunities to score. Once again there was that familiar lack of composure in front of goal. Why does Arsenal always pick the worst options?
There will be fingers pointed to the inactivity in the January transfer but surely, that has little bearing on Walcott one on one with Adam Bogdan and no one breathing down his neck for miles prematurely ejaculating 6 yards out straight to the goalie when he could have done practically everything else. A goldfish with two broken fins, flapping on the grass, with its dying breath would have scored. How does one deal with players who seem to be stuck in a developmental cul de sac? This match was ours to win with the squad we had on the pitch.
RVP looked flabbergasted at those misses because he practically spoonfed those passes to Ramsey and the Ox. He also had to deal with a familiar nemesis, the woodwork denying him. Twice. The second a Bergkampesque chip that struck the crossbar.
Nice, bright start as predicted. But the more Arsenal go further where they don't score, triggers a neuroses. Bolton got back into it nicely in the end. David Ngog muffed a simple chance and then there was the heart in the mouth bit where Per Mertesacker pulled Mark Davies outside the box and Wojciech Szczesny dove at his feet but clipped the ball away. A sigh of relief as Chris Foy made the right decision not to give a penalty.
The upshot is we are now in seventh spot with Liverpool and Newcastle overtaking us. This is square in Europa territory as a 4th place finish fades away from us. Blackburn is next and thereafter a good Sunderland side before our attention turns to the Champions League and Milan. Time is running out. March is even harder.
Oh, well we picked our first point in the new year and Wenger avoided his fourth defeat, which would have been a new low for him. Always look on the bright side of life. So which will be your choice? Gun? Rope? A bottle of codeine?
Darron Gibson, did his former club Man Utd a huge favour by striking the one lethal blow last evening. Landon Donovan continuing his great assist work. City were undone before one could say Denis Stracqualursi.
Goodison Park is not exactly happy hunting grounds for City, winning only two of their last 15 encounters in that venue. The result leaves City on top edging out Man Utd on goal differential even as they draw level on points.
There was some fond hope that the man handcuffed to the goalpost was making a grandiose statement about the unholy sums of money destroying football (read City). Or maybe he had tried handcuffing himself to a badger the previous evening with unsatisfying results and wanted something different.
It turned out he was protesting Ryanair unfairly terminating his daughter in 2010. John Foley is his name and he had staged other such protests around this issue, just not as bizarre as this.
Anyway, it made for good theatre, but it got Roberto Mancini in a tizzy and he made a sending off gesture which got Wayne Rooney all mad. He later twittered about Mancini being against working class men. The last part is all rubbish. But it could be true.
Sudan's chances in Group B resting on slim hopes were realized yesterday as they beat Burkina Faso through Mutahdir's brace and an underwhelming Angola lost to Cote D'Ivoire, 0-2. Former Arsenal full back Emmanuel Eboue gave the Ivoirians the lead and the second goal was a comedy of errors.
Sudan squeak through on goal difference to the second round even as both teams tied on points.
Novak Djokovic beat Rafal Nadal in a herculean Australian Open finals that lasted 6 hours. The same day Arsenal had to summon every fibre to overcome a two goal deficit to overcome Aston Villa and prevent a FA Cup exit.
And then there is the US Women's team that blanked Canada, 4-0, en route to winning the CONCACAF qualifiers to the London Olympics. In five matches the US poured in 38 unanswered goals. It was Armageddon. Yesterday's match saw Abby Wambach collect her 130th and 131st goal to go past Kristine Lilly and become second to Mia Hamm on the all time goalscorer list. And in Alex Morgan and Sydney Leroux you see the next generation who could overtake Wambach, eventually. And we haven't gotten to the midfield that score a ton of goals. The US is also blessed by one of the best defenses and goalkeeping talent.
The depth in this women's team is stunning. The danger of course is to become so caught up in this game of inflated expectations as demonstrated in last year's World Cup finals. But one doesn't see it in the players. Each one of them shows up to play and play hard.
Lowly Lecce knock of Inter leaving it reeling. Here is the reaction to their loss. Great commedia dell'arte! No milk of human kindness from Massimiliano Benassi who was immense in goal for Lecce. Here is a clip of the match >>
Alessandro Matri gives the Bianconeri the lead but Udinese answer through Antonio Floro Flores. However, Matri would not be denied the winner. Would it be hyperbolic to say Claudio Marchisio is the preeminent midfielder in the Serie nowadays? Juventus sit on top of the Serie in a dogfight with Milan. Udinese and Lazio follow making it an interesting race to the top.
Today was a must win for Arsenal. Not just to reverse the perception of a club descending into a familiar and vicious cycle of self inflicted wounds and low self esteem. But to resurrect the career of a manager under fire.
A defeat would have tipped the scales between the two camps, the AKB and the ASG (Arsene Should Go) resting at a precarious 50-50 irrevocably in favour of the latter. The first half saw an Arsenal bolt out of the gates in the first 15 minutes but as the game went on, Villa came on strongly, with a corresponding sense of trepidation at the other end. With Fabianski in goal, opposing teams always look to exploit his history of self immolation and early on there was plenty of signs that would happen.
Arsene Wenger mercifully did not take the is "Arshavin better off playing in center midfield" debate seriously, preferring to start Tomas Rosicky who can protect the ball a lot better than the Russian. All that movement and recycling of the ball did not pay off as Arsenal succumbed to a familiar failing, the set piece killer, this time Villa going short as Robbie Keane collected Stilian Petrov's back heel and floated the ball to Richard Dunne, who just like Antonio Valencia a week ago, rose above an Arsenal defense which went asleep at the right moment to put them on the board. It was their first set piece as Arsenal at the other end poured in corner after corner and free kick after another in a familiar pattern of futility.
This aspect of the game consistently eludes this club even though they win so many. Why? It would take the pressure of RVP immensely. Rosicky in particular was guilty of swinging in a number of ineffectual corners. That Swede who analyzed how many refereeing decisions go against Arsenal would be better off doing a more useful study as to why Arsenal are just useless when it comes to delivering on set pieces.
It got a lot worse as Darren Bent broke loose in a counterattack started by Keane and just before half time unleashed a shot that Fabianski was able to parry but only straight back to the striker who did better with his acute angle. Arsenal down two and the boo birds descended on the Emirates. It was not as if they had lacked ambition at the attacking end but it was familiar shortcomings resurfacing. The headlines were writing themselves. Arsenal on a death spiral. Wenger admitted to a safehouse in a strait jacket.
What happened in the locker room at half time is anyone's guess but Wenger might have questioned the legitimacy of their births. The first 15 minutes of the second half were all Arsenal and in a now famous (yes, even it is just a couple of hours old) turnaround starting with Alex Song's amazingly prescient pass which led to Aaron Ramsey brought down by Dunne.
The foul led to RVP's spot kick sparking Arsenal's revival. A few minutes later, in a huge lucky break, Theo Walcott breaking down the right had his shot parried by Shay Given but the ball rebounded off him into goal as he remained blissfully unaware of it all. Arsenal went ahead finally as Koscielny in an immense charge galloped down the left and was brought down by Bent. RVP collected his second PK and in a span of 7 minutes, Arsenal had swung the game around a 180 degrees.
Would this mean Wenger would take off Ox and introduce Arshavin? The thought did cross many a mind. But in an indication that the Frenchman might not have given into the voices in his head, opted for Arteta, a safer choice to replace Rosicky. Arsenal gradually took the foot of the accelerator allowing Villa to give them a few anxious moments. The last few minutes saw both Thierry Henry and Bakary Sagna being introduced, the latter to a standing ovation after months of injury. Welcome back, Bac!!
These are the sort of soul searching wins where teams who finds themselves at the doorstep of the devil, reeled in by glossy brochures of an indulgent life, check themselves, and then do the right thing, climbing back to ugly and imperfect reality. This is not a win as much as it is back to square one. But we reset to start February to take on Bolton, Blackburn, and Sunderland in our upcoming fixtures before traveling on the road to Milan for the CL knock out round with some wind on our back. Wenger on the win:
" I was very impressed because I felt that when you come out of a bad period like we are, and you are 2-0 down, you can feel sorry for yourself or you can show you have the mental qualities to play for this club. I was very proud that the team came out and showed they are not ready to lie down. "
Rosicky was industrious and sharp although his passing could do with more incisiveness, Song showed his eye for a telling outlet while continuing his disruptive presence, Koscielny in that third goal was immense along with some stellar defending, and the Ox continues to grown in strength. Walcott was far more assertive although his performance was still a bewildering mix of the sublime and the ridiculous. Fabianski was shaky but had an improved second half.
Group D at the ACN is at a knife's edge as it heads to the last group match with Ghana, Guinea, and Mali in contention for the two spots to the knock off stage. The only one out is Botswana. Yesterday, the Black Stars got the better of Mali as Asamoah Gyan (Sunderland could have done with his finishing skills today against Boro) scored his first goal and Anthony Ayew added another.
Guinea punished Botswana, 6-1 and it all could come down to goal difference on the last day, as Ghana take on Guinea and Mali take on Botswana.
The US WNT overcame early match nerves and a very game Costa Rican team through goals scored by Tobin Heath, Carli Lloyd, and Alex Morgan. This win qualifies them for the London Olympics. In the other semi-finals, Canada held off Mexico, 3-1, to also book their spot. The final will be played tomorrow and pits two of the most potent goalscorers in the game. Both Abby Wambach and Christine Sinclair are tied at 129 goals apiece, joint third in the goalscoring charts, one behind Kristine Lilly. Mia Hamm holds the record with 158 goals.
One of the nail biting moments came when Los Ticas's Carol Sanchez drove in a 30 yard shot that struck the upright and with Hope Solo sprawled helplessly on the ground, Rachel Buehler had to tussle with Fernanda Barrantes, to prevent her from scoring into an empty net.
Abby Wambach paid due diligence to their 41st ranked opponents.
''There were moments where I think Costa Rica were outplaying us, and it just shows you how important it was to all of us,'' forward Abby Wambach said. ''Nobody wanted to make that mistake. And luckily we didn't.''
The US women are looking to win the 2012 Olympics which will make it a hat trick of wins and erase memories of that bitter loss to the Nadeshiko in the last World Cup.
SoccerBlog.com is a fan-driven site founded by Christian and Shourin. Our goal is to cover the beautiful game and talk about some of the issues that may not be covered elsewhere. Since we aren't any good at playing, we decided to talk about soccer instead!
