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Second-half goals from Pepe (61) and substitute Raul Meireles(90) ensured Portugal got their Euro 2008 campaign off to a winning start against Turkey at the Stade de Geneve.
Man of the match Pepe sent the Portuguese fans into raptures on the hour with a well-taken goal, playing a neat one-two with captain Nuno Gomes before lifting his shot over Volkan Demirel. Raul Meireles made the points safe in stoppage time when he slotted home following a quick counter-attack involving Cristiano Ronaldo and Joao Moutinho.
Tags: Portugal 2-0 Turkey Meireles Pepe
Deco's diary
I am very glad we managed to win the first leg against Schalke 04 in Germany. The tie is obviously not decided yet, but we do have an advantage. We will be playing in front of our home crowd. It was logical that Schalke should put pressure on us during the second half last week, because they needed the goal. And I think they will do the same at Camp Nou as they have nothing to lose. We will try to play the same way, marking well and playing our football. It is important, as always, to impose our style and tempo. I hope I will be ready for this game, but we don't want to take any risks. We have to be sensible about injuries and not rush anything.
It is important, however, we have everybody fit and ready for the crucial final stage of the season. We have more chance of winning trophies if all our players are fit. Leo Messi, for example, is only a few weeks away from coming back. That would be massive for us. It is a shame Ronaldinho won't be able to help us. I don't have much to say about this subject. He was recovering well, regaining his form and now we know he's got bigger physical problems. We will miss him – it is important to have players alongside you who can decide the game in a moment. I wish him the best of luck. One good thing is that Bojan Krkić is gaining confidence and experience and will be able to help Barcelona. He is young, talented, easy-going and very humble. Things are happening too quickly for him, but I think he is coping well. I was very young when I got into the Corinthians first team. Things are completely different in Brazil, though. Bojan has been prepared for this moment all his life. And he hasn't been brought into the first team to solve a problem. In Brazil, youngsters are given too much responsibility straight away – they are thrown into the fire. In my case, Corinthians were going through a crisis and the pressure was much higher. Finally I'd like to mention Cristiano Ronaldo. I have heard some people criticising him for his tricks in the first leg against Roma. I totally disagree with them. This is the way Cristiano plays. He doesn't do it to offend or humiliate anyone. For me, it is completely part of the game. These are the things that make football beautiful, rather than ugly tackles. People have fun watching quality and variety. This is what Cristiano is all about.
Deco was speaking to Julio Gomes Filho
Deco's diary
I am very glad we managed to win the first leg against Schalke 04 in Germany. The tie is obviously not decided yet, but we do have an advantage. We will be playing in front of our home crowd. It was logical that Schalke should put pressure on us during the second half last week, because they needed the goal. And I think they will do the same at Camp Nou as they have nothing to lose. We will try to play the same way, marking well and playing our football. It is important, as always, to impose our style and tempo. I hope I will be ready for this game, but we don't want to take any risks. We have to be sensible about injuries and not rush anything. It is important, however, we have everybody fit and ready for the crucial final stage of the season. We have more chance of winning trophies if all our players are fit. Leo Messi, for example, is only a few weeks away from coming back. That would be massive for us. It is a shame Ronaldinho won't be able to help us. I don't have much to say about this subject. He was recovering well, regaining his form and now we know he's got bigger physical problems. We will miss him – it is important to have players alongside you who can decide the game in a moment. I wish him the best of luck. One good thing is that Bojan Krkić is gaining confidence and experience and will be able to help Barcelona. He is young, talented, easy-going and very humble. Things are happening too quickly for him, but I think he is coping well. I was very young when I got into the Corinthians first team. Things are completely different in Brazil, though. Bojan has been prepared for this moment all his life. And he hasn't been brought into the first team to solve a problem. In Brazil, youngsters are given too much responsibility straight away – they are thrown into the fire. In my case, Corinthians were going through a crisis and the pressure was much higher. Finally I'd like to mention Cristiano Ronaldo. I have heard some people criticising him for his tricks in the first leg against Roma. I totally disagree with them. This is the way Cristiano plays. He doesn't do it to offend or humiliate anyone. For me, it is completely part of the game. These are the things that make football beautiful, rather than ugly tackles. People have fun watching quality and variety. This is what Cristiano is all about.
Deco was speaking to Julio Gomes Filho Source UEFA.
Tags: Barça Schalke 04
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) - FC Barcelona's Thierry Henry is not the player he was at Arsenal. Henry said so himself Wednesday in response to press reports that he was unhappy with his playing time under coach Frank Rijkaard.
Arsenal's all-time leading goalscorer said Rijkaard and Barcelona's 4-3-3 system were not to blame for his current, even season-long, slump. "I played for eight years with a team and a determined position and now I'm at another club, playing another position with another tactical scheme. Stop comparing the Henry of Barcelona with the Henry of Arsenal," the France striker said. "This is the Henry you will see here." Former Arsenal teammate Robert Pires told reporters Sunday after Villarreal's 2-1 win at the Camp Nou that Henry was frustrated at being substituted so often this season after never being so at Arsenal. Henry, who has been replaced 12 times during the campaign, was swapped for Bojan Krkic in the 65th minute - moments before the Catalans scored to tie it at 1-1. "I always expect more from myself and I'm never satisfied when a game ends," the 31-year-old Henry said. "But I'm used to living with criticism." Though Henry said Pires' words weren't completely accurate, he admitted he has endured a tough patch since his ?24 million (then-US$32 million) transfer last June. Henry pointed to his divorce in September, which had left him unable to see his daughter more than "five times in the last eight months." "If I can see my daughter a little more, it will help me," Henry said. Barcelona was expected to be an offensive juggernaut after adding Henry to a roster that already included Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto'o. Barcelona trails bitter rival Real Madrid in the Spanish league by eight points. Henry scored 214 goals in eight seasons at Arsenal. He has notched 13 goals in 33 appearances since his move to Spain.
The term has been traced to Ludlow, Massachusetts, where a report came out that a man absconded with $3,150 raised for the benefit of a local soccer league. It is unclear whether a newspaper story or a television news report was the first to use the term.
It came into widespread use in the 1990s, notably during the 1992 and 1996 presidential campaigns and has been in use ever since.
Literally, soccer moms drive their children to play soccer.
The term has found a life as shorthand for a stereotype, or set of stereotypes, far beyond its literal meaning.
Most widely, perhaps, they are associated with driving Volvos, minivans, or SUVs.
source: wikipedia
Tags: Soccermommoms
MEET HOLLYWOOD UNITED
Having seen LA Galaxy's season come to a limp end with a 1-0 defeat at Chigaco Fire over the weekend, David Beckham is solemnly looking for something to do from now until the MLS season starts again next April. The tabloids are talking of loans to England, while Ipswich Town are hopping up and down at the back of the class hoping he'll notice and go train with them for a few weeks. But we've stumbled across a far simpler option that could help Becks wile away those long LA hours.
They're called Hollywood United and they're probably the most glamourous pub team in the world. Founded twelve years ago by a group of British expats at English-style pub The Cat and Fiddle on Sunset Boulevard, the amateur club is nicknamed the 'Chelsea of LA' and is split into two separate squads: an ambitious first team consisting of former professionals and a 'Dad's Army' team populated by a mixture of over-35 celebrities.
Former Chelsea defender Frank Lebouef, American international striker Eric Wynalda and Galaxy president and former US international defender Alexei Lalas are among those turning out for the A-squad, while film director Danny Cannon, actor Anthony LaPaglia, footballer-turned-actor Vinnie Jones, former Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones and Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy from The Cult appear for the over-35 team.
"It started as a kick-around," manager/coach/secretary/laundry man Ian Carrington tells The Daily Telegraph. "We wore white T-shirts with marker pen on. Then, Vinnie was over here making the movie 'Gone in 60 Seconds' and he started playing. Things began to pick up. And over the past three years, it's really kicked off. Now lots of ex-professionals are playing for us."
Indeed United are quickly becoming one of the most well-run teams in America, thanks mostly to the influence of goalkeeper/president LaPaglia. The Emmy winning star of TVs 'Without A Trace' played pro-football in the 70s while in his native Australia and has piled a six-figure sum into the club, allowing them to improve their facilities and travel to games on private jets. However, he believes there are more than just egos and money to the team and that football is one of world sport's great levellers.
"This is the most democratic sport in the world," he said. "When you cross the white line, it doesn't matter if you are educated, uneducated, poor or rich. Everyone is the same." Cannon agrees, hailing the team's sense of togetherness. "This is a family of sorts," the director tells Yahoo!. "What I like about it here is that nobody gives a **** about what I do for a living and I don't give a **** about what they do. No one is more important than anyone else and you need people who understand that".
So how about in the future? Any chance we could be seeing United lock horns with some of football's elite? LaPaglia's undecided. "Hollywood United is an incredible brand name," he said. "I don't know if Los Angeles could support a third team, but maybe. If you could find a place this side of the city, it is possible. Santa Barbara could be another option, or San Diego or Las Vegas. Either Hollywood could get up to that level or maybe I would have to buy an existing franchise."
However, Lalas is in no doubt that United can become a top-flight, professional club, but doubts Becks would make the cut. "As soccer in the US grows, these little clubs grow into bigger clubs, and the fact that this team is from Hollywood and has this unique make-up just makes it more attractive," he said. "I would love to see a day when the Galaxy, the Chivas [the Galaxy's stadium mates] and Hollywood United are the professional clubs of LA."
"[As for Beckham], he would have to prove he's good enough to make our team,' Lalas joked before Becks moved to LA Galaxy in the summer. "We've got some very good players. I know he's played for Manchester United and Real Madrid, but I'm not sure he could play for a team of this magnitude. He's certainly not playing centre back [where Lalas plays], that's for sure." Sorry, Dave, seems like it's housework for you this winter...
from:http://www.4thegame.com/features/feature/209593/wacky_world_meet_hollywood_united.html
Tags: Hollywood United Soccer Football Los Angeles LA Galaxy Beckham Lalas
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