Good morning folks. If you have been waiting for your morning sampling of soccer news and notes, wait no longer.
Here are some interesting news tidbits from today and the weekend:
Harewood says no to Barbados. The U.S. national team’s path through World Cup qualifying almost got a bit tougher, and still might, after word surfaced that Barbados is courting Aston Villa striker Marlon Harewood.
Barbados is facing Dominica in the first round of World Cup qualifying and was hoping to add Harewood for the decisive second leg on March 26 in Barbados. The teams tied 1-1 in the first match of the home-and-home series. Harewood, whose parents are from Barbados, would not rule out playing for Barbados in the future though so we could see him against the United States in June IF Barbados advances.
Egypt is Africa’s champion again. Mohamed Aboutriaka’s game-winning goal gave Egypt its second straight African Cup of Nations title on Sunday. Here is the game winner.
When someone figures out what Cameroon veteran Rigobert Song was thinking please let me know.
Chelsea eyeing Van Der Vaart. So much for Ronaldinho. Reports out of England revealed that Chelsea is scouting Dutch playmaker and Hamburg star Rafael Van Der Vaart. Does this mean the Blues are no longer on the Ronaldinho hunt? Good question.
Trapattoni set for Ireland job. Italian manager Giovanni Trapattoni is set to become Ireland’s new coach once his contract with Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg expires in May. No word yet on whether Bruce Arena will apply for the soon to be vacant Red Bull Salzburg job.
Capello hints at Beckham recall. England manager Fabio Capello has hinted that David Beckham could be in line for his 100th cap when England face France in Paris on March 26. That sounds like good news for Beckham, but is it for the LA Galaxy, which plays its season opener on March 29 in Colorado? Probably not.
Real Madrid drops a touchdown on Vallodolid. The performance of the weekend went to Real Madrid, which thoroughly demolished Vallodolid on Sunday, 7-0. Yes, 7-0. Here are the goals:
That’s all for now. Enjoy the rest of your morning and be sure to check back in to Soccer By Ives for more news, notes and opinions as the day goes on.