El Espectacular - The Latin American Football Blog

Aguero Linked With Juventus Move; Milito On His Way to Manchester City

2007-12-13T01:50:00.001-08:00

Italian sports paper Tuttosport believes that Juventus are interested in making a move for Atletico Madrid striker Sergio Aguero.

El Kun scooped up the best player and top goalscorer awards at this summer's World Under-20 Championship and has continued that form into the start of the Spanish season, scoring thirteen goals in all competitions so far this term. He has drawn comparisons with Romario for his short frame and lethal finishing ability.

Elsewhere, Tuttosport also believe that Manchester City could be set to make a move for Zaragoza's Argentine striker Diego Milito.

Milito, 28, scored twenty-five goals for Zaragoza last season, although he has struggled to replicate similar form in the current campaign. Sven Goran Erikkson is desperate to add a top quality striker to his squad and has earmarked Milito as one of his targets come January.

Boca Book Their Place in World Club Championship Final

2007-12-13T01:29:00.000-08:00

Boca Juniors secured their place in the final of the World Cup Championship by defeating Etoile of Tunisia 1-0 in a closely fought game in Tokyo.

Neri Cardozo proved to be the difference between the teams, dispatching from close range from Rodrigo Palacio's pass in the 37th minute.

Both sides had plenty of chances throughout, with Palacio himself going close for Boca and Etoile forcing a few good saves from Mauricio Caranta. Gilson Silva struck the post for Etoile in the final minute of the game.

Boca midfielder Fabian Vargas will miss the final on Sunday after he was sent off in the second half for two bookable offences.

AC Milan and Urawa Red Diamonds face off in today's other semi-final, with the winners to face Boca in Sunday's final.

Newcastle Will Wait Until The Summer for Edmilson

2007-12-12T02:28:00.000-08:00

Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce has confirmed that he is content to wait until the end of the season to sign Barcelona defender/midfielder Edmilson.

The Premiership side had been expected to make a move for Edmilson in January, but concerns over his fitness have necessitated the wait until the end of the season.

Allardyce explained:

"I am afraid he is now not an option for us in January. He has not played at all this season and it would be too much of a risk to bring him here next month."

Edmilson, 31, will be available on a free transfer in the summer when his Barcelona contract expires and Newcastle are likely to face competition from a number of sides for his signature at that time.

Breno in Germany For Bayern Medical

2007-12-12T02:21:00.000-08:00

Sao Paulo's young defender Breno is on his way to Germany in order to undergo a medical with Bayern Munich and agree personal terms with the Bundesliga club.

It is thought that Bayern have not yet come to an agreement with Sao Paulo over the transfer fee, but the Brazilian club are resigned to seeing their young star leave in January and are likely to accept the $18million offer than is on the table within the next couple of weeks.

Breno, 18, was named in Placar's team of Brazilian League 07/08 and has also attracted the interest of Fiorentina and Real Madrid in the last year.

Argentine Media Goes Japan Crazy as Boca Face Etoile In World Club Cup

2007-12-12T02:00:00.001-08:00

Argentine sports paper Ole are turning Japanese today to mark Boca Juniors' World Club Championship semi-final against Etoile of Tunisia in Tokyo, by writing all of their main headlines in Japanese (see picture).

The expectation in the worldwide media is that a Boca versus AC Milan final is a certainty, but Boca will have to be wary of their Tunisian opponents today. Etoile performed impressively against Pachuca, soaking up a lot of pressure before scoring on the counter attack five minutes from time and should not be discounted.

Juan Riquelme has been training with the Boca squad in Tokyo, but is ineligible to play during the competition and is only there to lend his moral support to the cause. Ever Banega is expected to take up his playmaker role today.

The full expected lineups are as follows:

Boca: Caranta; Ibarra, Maidana, Paletta, Morel Rodríguez; Battaglia, Vargas, Banega, Cardozo; Palacio and Palermo.

Etoile: Balbouli; Frej, Ghezal, Falhi, Bejaoui; Ogunbiyi, Narry, Ali Nafkha, Gharbi; Chermiti and Dhifallah.

The game kicks off at 7:30pm local time, which is 10:30am in the UK; 5:30am US Eastern; and 2:30am US Western.

Corinthians Try To Hold Onto Felipe

2007-12-11T02:43:00.000-08:00

Having suffered the first relegation in the history of the club, Corinthians are now facing the possibility of losing their star player, goalkeeper Felipe.

Felipe, 23, put together a string of impressive performances during the campaign and it thought to have attracted the interest of clubs in Spain as well as in his homeland. However, he seems content to stay at Corinthians as long as they can match his increased wage demands.

Corinthians have offered him a rise of 80%, but it seems that this will not be enough to appease Felipe and his advisers, who are looking for an even larger increase.

Despite the current difference in opinion, Felipe's advisor believes that a deal can be reached:

"What the club offered is some distance from what we require, but we do not want to attack the club. He [Felipe] is calmer to negotiate based on the most recent offer rather than the original one. It is better now to talk with the staff, who are intelligent. I am confident in arriving at a common denominator."

Pellegrini Signs New Villarreal Contract

2007-12-11T02:37:00.001-08:00

Manuel Pellegrini has extended his contract with Villarreal until 2010, following the side's impressive start to their La Liga campaign.

Pellegrini's contract was due to expire at the end of this current season and the Chilean coach had been previously linked with the positions at Chelsea and Valencia before extending his deal.

Villarreal currently lie fourth in the Primera Division after fifteen games, five points behind league leaders Real Madrid.

Ardiles Resigns as Huracan Coach

2007-12-10T02:11:00.000-08:00

Ossie Ardiles has resigned as coach of Huracan just three months after taking charge, citing disagreements with chairman Carlos Babington as the reason for his swift departure.

Speaking after Huracan's 2-1 victory against Velez Sarsfield on the final day of the Apertura, Ardiles said:

"Ever since I stepped on Argentine earth, Babington did not fulfill any of its promises...

"For that reason, I resign."

Reports in the Argentine media suggest that Ardiles and Babington have been on bad terms for the last month or so and that their parting of ways was inevitable. Despite this, Babington himself seemed surprised when told that Ardiles had resigned, saying:

"It is lamentable, but it is his decision."

Ardiles will now return to his residence in England, whilst Huracan will begin their search for a new coach. Early contenders for the position are thought to be Daniel Passarella, Pedro Monzon and Carlos Ischia.

River Plate to Make Simeone Move Today

2007-12-10T02:04:00.000-08:00

River Plate will open negotiations with Diego Simeone for their vacant managerial position today after Simeone resigned from Estudiantes at the weekend.

The Buenos Aires giants had previously given up on Simeone due to the excessive compensation that Estudiantes were seeking for his services, but with the former Argentine international now openly available, River's board are confident they can persuade him to sign on before next year's Clausura.

Pachuca Lose in Club World Cup

2007-12-10T01:46:00.000-08:00

CF Pachuca of Mexico fell at the first hurdle in Japan, going down 1-0 to Tunisian side Etoile Sportive Du Sahel in the quarter final of the Club World Cup 2007.

Pachuca dominated for large periods of the game in Tokyo, but were unable to capitalize on their advantage with efforts from Damian Alvarez, Juan Carlos Cacho and Gabriel Cabellero all going close in the first-half and a goal disallowed early in the second half.

The Mexicans were made to pay for not hammering home their advantage five minutes from time when Moussa Narry's deflected 35 yard strike slipped past Miguel Calero in the Pachuca goal. Etoile held on for the remaining five minutes to book their place in the semi-final.

Etoile's next opponents will now be Copa Libertadores winners Boca Juniors on the 12th December.

Manchester City to Move for Adriano in January

2007-12-07T08:44:00.000-08:00

In an interview with the Hong Kong media, Manchester City chairman Thaksin Shinawatra has confirmed that the club are considering making a move for Inter Milan striker Adriano in the January transfer window.

Shinawatra said:

"We're looking to see whether we'll do a swap deal or not.

"Adriano was a top player, but he lost form when his father died, and he put on weight. Now he's returning to form."

Adriano, 25, was recently back in his homeland of Brazil receiving treatment and it is thought that Inter are looking to offload him for good in January.

Romario Named Vasco Player/Manager

2007-12-07T02:31:00.000-08:00

Despite being embroiled in an alleged doping case that could see him suspended from playing for anything up to a year, Romario has been named as Vasco da Gama's new player/manager ahead of the Rio State Championship 2008.

Romario, 41, had already had a small taste of management when he took temporary charge for Vasco's Copa Sudamericana tie against America in November, but will now coach the side full time.

Bebeto, Romario's strike partner at the 1994 World Cup, has been suggested as an early favourite to be his assistant once he takes over in January.

El Portero Esta Loco

2007-12-06T07:53:00.000-08:00

Goalkeepers are a strange bunch. Growing up playing park football, those who would willingly spend some time between the sticks were either maniacs, overweight kids who could not play outfield, or unpopular kids, desperate to play some sort of part in the game. The one thing that all of these children had in common was a general lack of technical skill with a ball at their feet.

In Latin America, things are done slightly differently. This year’s Guinness Book of Records included, for the first time, a section for the highest scoring goalkeeper of all time. The record is held by the Brazilian goalkeeper Rogerio Ceni, whose tally of sixty-six goals between 1997 and 2006 has displaced the previous record holder, Jose Chilavert of Paraguay, who finished his career on sixty-two goals.

Jorge Campos, the former Mexican national goalkeeper, also figures highly on the list, having made a career out of his ability to play both as a keeper and as a striker should his team need him. It was as a striker that he first got a regular starting berth with Pumas, scoring fourteen goals in the 1989/1990 season, before being made first-choice goalkeeper for the following year’s championship victory. He finished his playing days on thirty-five goals.

A lot of the Latin American dominance of goalkeeper scoring has to do with their more open, technical approach to football, which lends itself to keepers getting involved with the taking of attacking set-plays. In addition, flamboyance is pretty much a pre-requisite for any Latin American goalkeeper. Despite this, Rogerio Ceni has admitted that he received some funny looks when he first raised the idea of taking free-kicks at Sao Paulo. He told their then goalkeeper Zetti that he would be the first keeper to score a free-kick for Sao Paulo and duly obliged on the 15^th February 1997, scoring against Uniao Sao Joao, having struck the crossbar the previous week against Flamengo.

It was the excellent free-kick work of Ceni and Jose Chilavert that gave more acceptance to the idea that goalkeepers could play a vital role at the other end of the pitch. Chilavert became the first goalkeeper to take a direct free-kick in a World Cup game, for Paraguay against Bulgaria at the 1998 World Cup. He was also the first goalkeeper to ever score a hat-trick, when he scored three penalties in Velez Sarsfield’s victory over Ferro Carril Oeste in 1999.

In European football there is much less openness to the idea of goalkeepers taking set plays, such as free-kicks or penalties, because the risks if they miss are too high. It is only when you look much further down the list that European goalkeepers start to appear and even then, it is only really Peter Schmeichel that is of any particular note, having scored eleven goals. The solitary situation where goalkeepers usually get a chance to score in Europe is in the dying moments of a game, when their manager may allow them to come up for a corner or free-kick to try and cause confusion in the opposition penalty area.

The fact that European clubs only tend to use goalkeepers as a last desperate attempt to get a much-needed goal usually dictates that when they do score, it is of massive importance to their side. The most famous example is probably Jimmy Glass, whose goal ten seconds from time in the last game of the 1998/99 season saw Carlisle avoid relegation and the likely financial uncertainty that would have followed their demotion to non-professional football.

Also worthy of mention is Sevilla goalkeeper Andres Palop, whose headed goal in injury-time took their UEFA cup game against Shakhtar Donetsk into extra time. Sevilla won the game in the extra period on the road to lifting the 2007 trophy.

These occasions are more than rare, especially in the top European leagues such as England, Italy or Spain. In England, there have only ever been three goals scored by goalkeepers in the Premiership, the most recent of these being Paul Robinson’s goal for Tottenham against Watford last season.

With the increasing globalisation of football, it would be a shame to see Ceni as the last of a generation of Latin American goalkeepers who have proved to be just as proficient with the ball at their feet as they have with it in their hands. Although it is unlikely that the practice of goalkeepers taking attacking set-plays will ever take on in Europe, one would hope that in Latin America the tradition will continue, as it is certainly one of the more interesting unique asides offered by football in the region.

Arsenal Win Copa Sudamericana

2007-12-06T03:22:00.000-08:00

Arsenal de Sarandi claimed their first Copa Sudamericana title, defeating America of Mexico on away goals after a 2-1 loss last night in Buenos Aires.

In an ill-tempered match, which yielded seven yellow cards and two red, America took the lead mid-way through the first half: Christian Diaz putting through his own net.

America then took the aggregate lead after sixty-three minutes, Juan Carlos Silva firing an unstoppable shot past Mario Cuenca in the Arsenal goal.

Guillermo Ochoa pulled off a string of saves to keep America in front, but not even he could stop Martin Andrizzi's well placed shot in the eighty-fourth minute, which sent the home crowd into raptures, as Arsenal took the lead via the away goals rule.

America had run out of the steam and were unable to mount a serious attack in the remaining minutes. Their frustration boiled over, with both Duilio Davino and Lucas Castroman sent off with one minute remaining for serious foul play.

The dramatic nature of Andrizzi's strike summed up a tournament that has certainly seen its fair share of late drama and is hopefully just a precursor of the sort of quality that will be on show at the Copa Libertadores next year.

Manchester City Lining Up Move For Mascherano

2007-12-05T03:01:00.000-08:00

Manchester City are thought to be interested in taking Javier Mascherano to the Eastlands stadium if Liverpool do not tie up a permanent deal to keep the Argentine international.

Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez is currently embroiled in an argument with the club's owners over stumping up the £17million required to sign Mascherano, who is on loan at Anfield until the end of the current season.

City are keen to take advantage of this and have already held talks with the consortium headed by Kia Joorabchian that owns the rights to Mascherano.

Radamel Falcao Tempted by Fluminense Offer

2007-12-05T02:18:00.000-08:00

River Plate striker Radamel Falcao Garcia has confirmed that he is tempted by the offer that Brazilian side Fluminense have made to him to join the club in January.

Speaking to Ole, Falcao said that "the supply of Flu is very tempting," but admitted that the decision may not be down to him as "it is the leaders that must agree the terms between the clubs."

Fluminense are looking to strengthen their squad ahead of their Copa Libertadores campaign next year and are thought to have offered 5 million Euros for 50% ownership of Falcao. River have rejected that initial approach, but Fluminense are expected to come back with an offer of 8 million Euros, which may be too good to turn down for River.

Hector Veira The Latest Manager Linked With River Plate

2007-12-05T02:04:00.000-08:00

Hector Veira is the latest manager to be linked with the vacant position at River Plate and appears to have jumped to the top of their shortlist.

El Bambino has been out of work since leaving San Lorenzo in 2004 and is happy to have been linked with the River post:

"I like that the partners of River remember me because I was always wanted and respected by people there."

Veira, 61, had a previous spell in charge of River during the eighties, winning Primera Division, Copa Libertadores and Intercontinental Cup trophies in his two year reign.

River have turned to Veira after effectively giving up on luring Diego Simeone to El Monumental. River president, Jose Maria Aguilar, confirmed as such, saying that Simeone "today is not on the list from which River can choose."

Hector Cuper has emerged as another possible candidate after being sacked by Real Betis at the weekend, but it seems that Veira is currently in pole position to make a return as River Plate manager.

Romario to Face Suspension for Drug Taking

2007-12-05T01:47:00.000-08:00

Romario may face a one year suspension from football after testing positive for a banned substance after Vasco da Gama's game with Palmeiras on the 28th October.

The substance in question was part of a hair-loss prevention drug that Romario was taking in order to try and halt his balding and it is therefore thought that the ban is likely to be closer to four months, rather than a year.

Internacional player Marcao was banned for 120 days for using the same product, but had this reduced to 60 under appeal, so there is a chance that Romario could be back in action within a couple of months.

He has been registered to compete in the 2008 Rio de Janeiro State Championship and fully expects to return to the side, even if he should serve a four month ban.

Despite the bad news, Romario was still on good form in the press conference, rounding up proceedings by saying:

"I do not know if Marcao has hair or no. It helped me very much and I would have less hair but for that remedy."

Monterrey Target Silvera Skips San Lorenzo Training

2007-12-04T03:22:00.000-08:00

San Lorenzo striker Andres Silvera skipped training on Friday in an attempt to force through a transfer to Mexican side Monterrey, who have offered 1.8million Euros for his services.

Silvera, 30, previously played in Mexico for Tigres between 2003 and 2006, and is thought to be keen to return to the country for the 2008 Clausura.

However, San Lorenzo are hopeful that he will turn up for training today, with coach Ramon Diaz demanding "explanations" for Silvera's no show on Friday.

El Cuqui was a vital part of the San Lorenzo side who won this year's Clausura championship and losing him ahead of their 2008 Copa Libertadores campaign would be a massive blow for Los Cuervos.

Thiago Neves Wins Placar's Best Player of Brasileiro 2007

2007-12-04T02:48:00.000-08:00

Fluminense's attacking midfielder Thiago Neves has been named the best player of Brasileiro 2007 by Brazilian sports paper Placar.

Neves, 22, enjoyed a superb season as Fluminense finished fourth in Brazilian Serie A and lifted the Copa Do Brazil. He was muted as being a possible pawn in Fluminense's attempts to secure Juan Riquelme for their Copa Libertadores campaign, but with Riquelme having re-joined Boca, Neves will now lead the side into the South American equivalent of the Champions League.

As well as naming their best overall player of the year, Placar also named their team of the year, which was as follows:

GK Rogerio Ceni (Sao Paulo)
RB Leonardo Moura (Flamengo)
CB Thiago Silva (Fluminense)
CB Breno (Sao Paulo)
LB Kleber (Santos)
DM Richarlyson (Sao Paulo)
DM Hernanes (Sao Paulo)
AM Thiago Neves (Fluminense)
AM Jorge Valdivia (Palmeiras)
FW Leandro Amaral (Vasco da Gama)
FW Acosta (Nautico Recife)

Jorge Valdivia is the first non-Brazilian to be named in their team of the year since Carlos Tevez in 2005.

Defensor Sporting Claim Uruguay Apertura

2007-12-04T02:08:00.000-08:00

Defensor Sporting sealed the Uruguayan Apertura 2007 with a 2-1 victory over Central Espanyol at the weekend; their first title since 1991.

Defensor are not a rich club, but are able to obtain success on occasion due to their excellent youth system, which has seen players such as Sebastian Abreu, Dario Silva, Nicolas Olivera and Gonzalo Vargas pass through their doors in the last ten years or so.

The standout youngster in the Championship winning squad was Sebastian Fernandez, who alongside experienced campaigners such as Pablo Gaglianone, Martin Parodi and Carlos Morales was able to take Defensor to a 10:2:2 record with one round of games to play.

Luis Insaurralde, head of sports development at Defensor, drew parallels between Defensor's success and that of Lanus in the Argentine Apertura:

"Defensor is a development model in Uruguay, to the Lanús style"

Coach Jorge da Silva must now concentrate on building on this success as they attempt to defend their title in the Clausura and gain a qualifying place for the 2009 Copa Libertadores.

Ustari: "This is The Worst Moment of my Career"

2007-12-04T01:56:00.000-08:00

Getafe's second-choice goalkeeper Oscar Ustari has confirmed that he is unhappy with his current role as backup to Roberto Abbondanzieri.

Speaking to the Argentine press, the former Independiente goalkeeper said:

"This is the worst moment of my career. I need to play. In the club I am settled, but at the end of the month I will think on my future."

Ustari, 21, has only made four appearances for Getafe so far this season having joined for a fee of 6million Euros in the summer.

We Break From Our Regularly Scheduled Program...

2007-12-03T04:09:00.000-08:00

to bring you news of some exciting offers from our affiliate, UK Soccer Shop.

During the Christmas period, they will be offering a different special deal every day on football kits, further reducing their already competitive prices.

Today's deal sees Liverpool home shirts reduced to £27.99, with the possibility of adding either Gerrard or Torres to the back of the shirt for a total of £36.99.

Check them out on the link below and if you like what you see, please always use our link on the right hand toolbar to access the site, because by doing so you are helping to keep this Blog running.

Thank you for your time.

Middlesbrough Bid £10million for Ronaldinho

2007-12-03T03:30:00.000-08:00

In a very ambitious, if unrealistic move, Middlesbrough are thought to have offered Barcelona £10million for Brazilian forward Ronaldinho.

If Spanish newspaper reports are to be believed, the Premiership club have offered Ronaldinho a bumper wage package in the hope that they can persuade him to follow in the footsteps of fellow Brazilians such as Juninho and Branco, who have previously lit up the Riverside stadium.

Jose Luis Carazo, columnist for Sport, broke the story and had this to say:

"The only firm offer that Barcelona have received for Ronaldinho has come from Middlesbrough who have bid £10m although the offer to the player in wages is much more lucrative."

Ronaldinho is thought to be frustrated with his lack of first-team opportunities this season, with the arrival of youngster Bojan Krkic into the senior squad meaning that Ronaldinho has seen himself consigned to the substitutes bench on a number of occasions.

The situation boiled over this weekend, when a journalist asked Ronaldinho why he had only been on the bench for the game against Espanyol, to which he replied:

"You'll have to ask the coach. I'm working every day in training so I can play from the start of matches."

Barcelona boss Frank Rijkaard was quick to respond, saying:

"Everything I do is for the good of the team. When Ronaldinho gets back to his best, it will be good for us."

If Ronaldinho is to leave Barcelona is it much more likely to be for another big European team such as Chelsea or AC Milan, rather than Middlesbrough, but you cannot fault them for at least trying. You never know what might happen...

Kaka Wins European Player of the Year Award

2007-12-03T03:21:00.000-08:00

AC Milan playmaker Kaka has been awarded France Football's 2007 European Player of the Year award, beating off strong challenges from Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, who finished second and third respectively.

Kaka has already scooped up the FIFPro World Player of the Year award, as voted for by his fellow professionals and is the favourite to take FIFA's World of Player of the Year award later this month.

Speaking after receiving his prize, Kaka said:

"It's the top prize around and the only way to win something like this is to play for a team like AC Milan.

"It's great to be part of a team that wins.

"I won the Champions League and was the competition's top scorer. That's what made the difference with the others.

"That is the key. You have to play in a winning team."