Random News from around the globe 2011

If this was an American who suggested this instead of an English goalkeeper, he would have been roasted.

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It should be one of the greatest rivalries in the history of the world's most popular game. Why hasn't it happened?

Wenger figures out that money is key to retaining good players.

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"No, it's not that [players have to leave to win titles]," said Wenger
on the French radio station RTL. "The problem isn't that. Frankly, if
you compare what Manchester City have won in the past and what Arsenal
have won, then you don't go to Manchester City to win titles. Players go
to Manchester City because they pay much better than Arsenal.

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It hardly comes as a surprise that the so-called New Cosmos group is in
turmoil. The high-flying Paul Kemsley, the hyper-Brit who has been
telling everyone that the rebirth of the New York Cosmos which he was
supposed to be engineering “is going to be huge.”

Now
Kemsley has suffered a huge come-down, the fate of the classical
high-flier Icarus, who flew too close to the sun, melted his wings and
ended up plummeting into the sea.

The people who have been
financing this strange venture -- they are, I believe, from Saudi Arabia
-- have had enough of Kemsley’s extravaganzas and extravagances. To
take the most obvious examples -- a huge billboard in Times Square,
visible for a few days, and immediately forgotten; the signing of Eric
Cantona as the club’s Director of Soccer -- someone with no connection
whatever with the Cosmos and, anyway, not exactly a big deal in New
York; to which was added the decidedly bizarre appointment of Cobi Jones
as Cantona’s associate director; and the farcical appearance of a
“Cosmos” team to play in Paul Scholes’s testimonial game in Manchester
-- a team made up mostly of one-time guest players.

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The English Football Association will replace the FA Cup medal
former England midfielder Peter Reid auctioned off to help pay the wages at a
cash-strapped club he managed.

Despite Reid selling the treasured medal and helping to pay a heating bill
at Plymouth out of his own pocket, Reid was fired last month as manager of the
bottom club in the fourth tier of English football.

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With his shirt muddied by his numerous falls, the referee Tomas Fidra
then sent off three Jestrabi players in the game against
Tynec-nad-Labem.

gwar0127 wrote:

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I agree with him that we need to have more lenant rules on Red card for pk's. Half the time refs already just give a yellow and you more or less get your head chopped off when you follow the Laws of the game. Offsides really isnt that hard it just leaves room for the AR to make a decision which at the lower levels of refing is not a good idea, but i think at the World Cup/EPL level its fine

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[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]A total of 16 tickets printed with Sir Alex’s name were
uncovered after a covert police operation into illegal activities on
match days close to the Theatre of Dreams. It is understood Manchester
United launched a top secret internal investigation after police told
them of their findings. Sir Alex was interviewed by club bosses as part
of the probe. He said he had given the tickets to acquaintances and had
no knowledge of the illegal operation. The club confirmed the tickets
were legitimate and had originally been allocated to Sir Alex.

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Violence erupts during Sunday's game between Romanian clubs Petrolul
Ploiesti and Steaua Bucharest when a fan invades the pitch and punches
Steaua defender George Galamaz in the head.

A mass brawl ensues as Galamaz's team-mates attack the fan, resulting in red cards for two players.

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On Thursday the 69-year-old did allow himself the briefest of
reflections on a career that has brought him glory way beyond what
anyone could have imagined when he succeeded Ron Atkinson on 6 November
1986.

Since then, Ferguson has lifted 27 trophies and overseen the rise of numerous world-class players.

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As Gadhafi’s long and brutal regime came crashing down and his life was
brought to a violent end, a former professional soccer player in one of
the world’s top leagues suddenly became one of the most wanted men on
the planet.

The man in question is Gadhafi’s third son, Al-Saadi, who used his
father’s political influence to gain contracts at three teams in Italy’s
Serie A – Perugia, Udinese and Sampdoria – while also training with
Lazio and Juventus.

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For North Carolina faithful, the positive side to the Tar Heels' 1-0
loss to Florida State in the ACC quarterfinals -- its first loss ever in
the ACC championship and third straight defeat, another first -- is
that they got an extra week to prepare for the NCAA Tournament, which
begins Saturday against William & Mary.

“We’ve never had this opportunity to train for an extended period before the NCAA tournament,” UNC coach Anson Dorrance[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] the Daily Tar Heel. “So it’s allowed us to get a bit healthier and a bit fitter.”

Injuries have hurt Carolina, especially in the back, where Dorrance has been starting two walk-ons, Megan Brickman and Caitlin Ball.

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Dour local officials warned
players when they laughed, and confiscated items including bananas,
chewing gum, and instant noodles, the Nikkan Sports and Sports Nippon
newspapers reported.

The airport experienced three power outages during the lengthy process.

The team began their official practice around 8:00 pm—three hours
later than intended—wearing hats and gloves in a bitterly cold Kim Il
Sung Stadium, reports said.

The communist regime is widely despised in Japan, where feelings run
high over the unresolved abductions in the 1970s and 80s of young
Japanese citizens who were used to train Pyongyang's spies in Japanese
language and customs.

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When asked here on Monday if Beckham had any chance of making
England's Euro 2012 squad Capello said: "No. I think he will only be
involved in the Olympic Games. But I have time to decide."

The England manager was speaking ahead of Tuesday's
friendly against Sweden at Wembley and when pressed as to whether
Beckham was in his plans now he replied simply: "No."

The competition for the FIFA Goal of the Year is now open. Included is the USA's own Heather O'Reilly! Click on the link for the video to all ten goals in the finals.

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American Samoa had played 30 men’s soccer matches since starting
international play in 1994. It had lost all 30, by a combined score of
229-12, and was tied for last in the [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.].

On Tuesday, the tiny, unincorporated [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] finally broke through, defeating [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.], in a prequalifying match for the 2014 World Cup.

The American Samoa defense was bolstered by Johnny Saelua, who is
believed to be the first transgender athlete to compete in a World Cup
qualifying match. Saelua is part of the [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.], biological males who identify as a third sex that is widely accepted in Polynesian culture.