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Monday Ticker: Man City trounce ten-man Newcastle; Funes Mori completes Benfica move; and more

DavidSilvaManchesterCity2-Newcastle2013 (AP)

By DAN KARELL

Manuel Pellegrini couldn’t have asked for a better start to his Manchester City reign.

The Sky Blues ran riot at the Etihad Stadium on Monday evening, downing ten-man Newcastle, 4-0, to open up their season on a bright note. David Silva and Sergio Aguero both scored inside 22 minutes, with teammate Edin Dzeko turning provider on both goals.

The game was effectively put to end when Newcastle defender Steven Taylor was sent off in first half stoppage-time, putting his side at a disadvantage for the entire second half. Man City added a third with a terrific free kick from Yaya Toure, and the fourth goal was put home by Samir Nasri as Newcastle manager Alan Pardew looked on in disbelief.

Three of Man City’s four signings this summer played, with substitute Emmanuel Negredo having a goal disallowed to what looked to be an incorrect offside decision from the assistant referee.

Here are some more stories to catch you up around the world:

FUNES MORI MOVES TO BENFICA

A former Sueño MLS winner has officially moved to Europe.

Argentine forward Rogelio Funes Mori has completed a move to Portuguese side Benfica, signing a five-year contract at the Estadio da Luz. The 22-year-old spent the last four years at River Plate, scoring 20 goals in 100 league appearances for the club, finally gaining a starting place in the side last season.

But before Funes Mori even ended up in Buenos Aires, he lived in Texas, spending 2001-2008 in Arlington with his family, including fellow professional, his twin brother Ramiro. In 2008, Funes Mori won the second ever Sueño MLS tournament and won a chance to join the FC Dallas youth set up. Just a few months later, River Plate came in with an offer and both Funes Mori’s moved back to their nation of birth.

Funes Mori represented Argentina once, in a friendly match against Brazil this past winter. He also represented Argentina U20 at the South American U20 Championships in 2011.

CHIVAS APPOINTS NEW MANAGER

Less than a day after firing Benjamin Galindo as Chivas head coach, the club have already found his replacement.

On Monday afternoon, Chivas Guadalajara Sporting Director Dennis Te Klose introduced Juan Carlos Ortega as the club’s new manager, making the former Chivas assistant coach the 19th manager of the club since Jorge Vergara bought the organization in 2002. Ironically enough, it’s the second time that Ortega has taken over for Galindo at Chivas, which he did on an interim basis on 2005.

Ortega most recently was the technical director of the Mexican Youth National Team setup. In addition to the coaching hire, Chivas announced that arguably their best player, Marco Fabian, is on his way to either Benfica or a team in Qatar in a permanent transfer.

MONTERO SCORES HAT-TRICK IN SPORTING DEBUT

In his first official game with Sporting Club de Portugal, Fredy Montero had a debut to remember.

The 26-year-old striker scored a hat-trick against recently promoted side FC Arouca in the first week of the Portuguese league as Sporting went on to win, 5-1. Montero finished off his hat-trick in style, controlling a cross in the box, lobbing a defender with his right foot, and finishing with his left foot.

After a half-season with Millonarios in his native country, the Colombian forward was loaned out by the Seattle Sounders to Sporting in Lisbon, allowing Montero to achieve his goal to play in Europe.

QUICK KICKS

Former Real Madrid manager Bernd Schuster has advocated for doping as long as it’s only used in the recovery processes from injuries. (REPORT)

Tottenham midfielder Scott Parker has completed a transfer move to fellow London club Fulham, on a three-year contract. (REPORT)

Manchester City right back Pablo Zabaleta has signed a new four-year contract extension. (REPORT)

Turkish side Fenerbahce will have their appeal against a ban from UEFA competitions heard by CAS on Wednesday, with the verdict to come on August 28. (REPORT)

Claudio Marchisio is set for up to one month on the sidelines after he was forced off during his club Juventus’ 4-0 Italian Super Cup triumph. (REPORT)

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What do you think of this news? Do you see City as early title contenders? Do you feel Benfica is a good landing stop for Funes Mori? Do you believe Ortega can lift up Chivas from the bottom half of the Liga MX table?

Share your thoughts below

Comments

  1. After the car accident, Argentina’s senior team dropped Hoyos… he was lucky to survive and just have a normal life. He is now trying to come back and has commented that he will be ready when and if Jurgen calls him on the phone to represent USA…

    Very talented attacking midfielder… might not ever be the same as before his injuries.

    His story reminds me of that of Charlie Davis who lost it all after his car accident.

    Reply
  2. Funes Mori is not coming to MLS.
    Sueno MLS was supposed to get him a pro contract and cash but MLS didn’t deliver on anything.
    I’ve seen interviews with him where he talks about how he got ripped off.

    Reply
  3. Mori did not have a green card and was here illegally.

    Of course it’s easier to balst MLS and US Soccer blindly without knowing any facts.

    Ignorance is bliss.

    Reply
  4. So MLS was aware of Funes Mori, who won their talent competition and featured for Dallas U18 team, but never offered a contract to him. We are talking about a player, who is good enough to be signed by River Plate and Benfica and play for Argentina’s national team in a friendly against Brazil. What’s the excuse from MLS for failing to recognize a player with this level of talent since they can’t claim that they did not know about him? How many FC Dallas players are good enough to be invited to play for Argentina’s national team, if they had eligibility?

    Reply
      • I am not paid to evaluate the talent, but MLS managers and scouts are – and they missed on him big time even though he was right under their noses. It’s not like he did not have talent when he played for Dallas U18 – River Plate saw his talent and signed him – MLS whiffed.

      • I don’t think it was a simple, they didn’t see his talent. I’m sure Dallas offered him a contract, but maybe his dream was to play in Argentina or with River Plate. Or more likely River Plate offered him more than what Dallas was going to offer. I’d do some fact checking before you just claim MLS whiffed.

      • Dude, MLS whiffed big time on this one. I did check the facts and I suggest that you do the same. If you are so sure that Dallas offered him a professional contract, you should read Funes Mori’s interview to Diaro Ole, a respected Argentinian publication. It is in Spanish, but I am sure you can use something like google translate to understand it. Funes Mori expressly stated that he was to be offered a professional contract, but MLS did not make an offer. And if you read his interview, you will realize that, if anything, I understated MLS’s whiff. He was actually noticed by Chelsea, when he was with FC Dallas youth team, but he couldn’t sign in England due to the lack of EU passport and then River Plate swooped in. It well may be that he would have chosen a South American or European club if presented with the choice between them and MLS, but it was never the case. The point is that the kid was noticed and pursued by big European and South American clubs, but MLS did not think that he merited a professional contract.

  5. The car crash was Michael Hoyos. Also Argentinian. Who also has a brother (younger, not a twin).

    Did Funes Mori have his US citizenship prior to playing for Argentina, and if not, does that mean he’s cap tied as he wasn’t a dual citizen at the time?

    Reply
    • From what have read on yanksabroad and other places is that Mori is not a citizen but might have a green card… Might be interested and i believe jurgen has contacted him but i would put zero to long odds on him ever joining the USNT..

      Without getting political: ussf seems to be a lot more progressive than our citizenship process..

      Reply
  6. Although Funes Mori has Argentinian citizenship, he did have a green card and expressed an interest in playing for the US should he get his citizenship. He did have a big setback about two years ago when involved and injured in a car accident. It looks like he has fully recovered though. He is a talent and the US should still keep tabs on him.

    Reply

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