Soccer FanHouse

Alex Ferguson Punished for Questioning Referee Alan Wiley's Fitness

FanHouse Newswire — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:30:00 EST

WEMBLEY, England (AP) -- Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson was banned from the bench for four games - two of them suspended - and fined $32,000 on Thursday for criticizing the fitness of referee Alan Wiley after a Premier League game.

Ferguson received the punishment when he appeared before a Football Association disciplinary panel at Wembley Stadium on a misconduct charge.

After his team drew 2-2 with Sunderland on Oct. 3, Ferguson said Wiley was not fit enough to handle the game. Although he later apologized, the FA has banned him from the bench for two domestic games and left two more suspended until the end of the 2010-11 season.

Ferguson was also warned as to his future conduct.

The chairman of the disciplinary panel, Peter Griffiths, said it took into account Ferguson's achievements in winning 11 Premier League titles in 17 seasons at Old Trafford as well as multiple cup and Champions League titles.

"Each member of the Commission recognized Sir Alex Ferguson's achievements and stature within the game," he said. "Having said that, it was made clear to Sir Alex that with such stature comes increased responsibilities.

"The Commission considered his admitted remarks, in the context in which they were made, were not just improper but were grossly improper and wholly inappropriate. He should never have said what he did say."

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.

Alex Ferguson Punished for Questioning Referee Alan Wiley's Fitness originally appeared on Soccer FanHouse on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Terry's Header Pushes Chelsea Past Manchester United

Michael Cardillo — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 13:11:00 EST

Filed under: European Soccer , English Premier League, Soccer Posts

It's safe to say that hyperbole and armchair psychologists aren't solely the domain of American sportscasters.

Seemingly seconds after Chelsea captain John Terry headed home the eventual game-winner late in the second half Sunday vs. Manchester United at Stamford Bridge, the talking heads were speculating that the goal made up for his famous penalty kick miss in the 2008 Champions League final in Moscow.

Let's say, agree to disagree, though the 1-0 victory certainly was a strong statement for Chelsea, as it tries to end Manchester United's three-year stranglehold on the Premier League.

With the win, Chelsea moved five points clear of Manchester United with 30 points. The Red Devils are now tied for second with Arsenal, though the Gunners still have a game in hand.

All things being equal, Sunday's match was relatively low on incident between two of the marquee teams in the world.

In fact, until about the 70th-odd minute the game was rather forgettable. Things did get interesting when Manchester United defender Jonny Evans jumped in the air and ninja-kicked Didier Drogba in the gut, causing the big Ivorian to convulse on the ground for a few seconds. Bizarrely, Drogba ended up getting a yellow card.

On almost the next possession, Chlsea won a freekick on a challenge by Darren Fletcher, which set up Terry's game-winner. United tried to claim that Drogba had fouled Wes Brown in the box, but the claims fell on deaf ears.

From there Chelsea hung on, as United didn't mount much of a threat.

The biggest thing to take away from this match is it looks more likely that if there's a duel for the title, the participants will be Chelsea and Arsenal, which demolished Wolves 4-1 on Saturday. Manchester United, despite its lofty pedigree, seems to be lacking an edge that's helped drive it to three-straight titles. (The fact Cristiano Ronaldo is now wearing white in Madrid, doesn't help matters either.)

Arsenal hosts Chelsea at the Emirates on Nov. 29.

Terry's Header Pushes Chelsea Past Manchester United originally appeared on Soccer FanHouse on Sun, 08 Nov 2009 13:11:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jozy Altidore Late for Match, Left Out of Squad for Hull City

Michael Cardillo — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:18:00 EST

Filed under: English Premier League, US Soccer, U.S. Men's National Team

Sort of a weird situation that developed Saturday with U.S. teenage striker Jozy Altidore at his Premier League club team Hull City. Altidore wasn't in the lineup, nor was he even on the bench for the Tigers 0-0 draw with last-place Portsmouth.

Apparently Altidore was late to the KC Stadium and posted an apology on his Twitter page. What's weird, is on his actual page, the apology is no longer posted and the most recent tweet is encouraging Hull fans to make a lot of noise at the game.

All things considered, it's hard to read all that much into the situation. Altidore wouldn't be the first player in the history of professional soccer to be late for a match. It was a little distressing that the 19-year-old, who is fighting for a place in the starting XI, would risk being late and nullify any chance of seeing the field.

However this situation is resolved, Hull manager Phil Brown likely has less faith in Altidore than he previously had. You could say Brown was already a little worried about Altidore considering he brought in former Celtic striker Jan Venegoor of Hesselink near the end of the August transfer window to play up top.

Even with Saturday's draw, Hull City is still in the relegation zone, which probably hurts Altidore's chances to play even more. It's unlikely a club is going to pin its survival hopes on an unproven 19-year-old American. It also makes Altidore's fine debut a couple months ago, when he set up a goal on his first-ever Premier League touch seem like happened a long, long time ago.

Hopefully Altidore learns his lesson from today, whatever actually happened, and it only galvanizes his fight for a spot in the team.

Either way, it's another piece of crummy news for U.S. fans this week to go along with the longer-than-expected time on the shelf for defender Oguchi Onyewu after knee surgery and the ongoing worry over Charlie Davies, who remains hospitalized following his horrific car accident earlier this month.

Jozy Altidore Late for Match, Left Out of Squad for Hull City originally appeared on Soccer FanHouse on Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:18:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fenway Sports Group Enters Partnership With EPL's Fulham

Andrew Johnson — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 21:25:00 EST

Filed under: English Premier League

Fenway Sports Group, the sports marketing company owned by the Boston Red Sox, has expanded its media empire, entering into a sponsorship deal with Fulham FC, an English Premier League soccer club.

The company already has a number of similar partnerships in other sports, most famously with Roush Fenway Racing, the NASCAR racing team that features top drivers Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards. Might this be there most impressive partnership yet?

That's hard to say, but partnering with a side from the Premiership can't be a bad thing. The EPL might not register much here in the NFL-centric United States, but its the most popular and powerful professional sports league in the world, with club revenues for the 2007-08 season exceeding $3 billion.

Picking Fulham, though? That's a little strange. The London side is probably more famous for being owned by Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed than for its success on the pitch (that's the field, for those of you that are soccer-illiterate). The Cottagers, as they're known, have never finished higher than seventh in the Premier League.

The Yankees partnered with Manchester United eight years ago, a collaboration that was much more congruous given the championship pedigree both shared. Fulham is more akin to the Minnesota Twins, while the Red Sox are similar to some of the more famous English sides like Arsenal and Liverpool.

The most exciting development for any stateside soccer fan is that Fenway Sports Group is now considering the possibility of bringing a Premier League match to Fenway Park. The oldest venue in the majors has hosted a string of rock concerts in recent years and will host the NHL's Winter Classic, an annual outdoor game, on New Year's Day.

"It's absolutely an idea at this stage," [COO Sam] Kennedy said. "It might not even be a good idea.

"Our mission is to explore all sorts of what we call 'blue chip events' in Fenway Park. It started back in 2003 with the Bruce Springsteen concert. We're having outdoor hockey games with the NHL and Hockey East. The concept of an English Premier League game at Fenway is very, very exciting, and fits in line with our standard of events.

"I don't know that they would be interested in doing it. We need to do some more homework and see if it would work."

OK, so a match on Yawkey Way seems a long way off right now, but for soccer fans in America, it's something to dream about.

Fenway Sports Group Enters Partnership With EPL's Fulham originally appeared on Soccer FanHouse on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 21:25:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Live Blog: Fulham vs. Hull City

FanHouse Newswire — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:25:00 EST

Filed under: English Premier League

Join FanHouse UK's J.P. Shaw as he hosts a live chat for Monday's English Premier League match between Fulham and Hull City.

The match holds special interest for an American audience, as it features a potential meeting between U.S. national team stars Jozy Altidore (Hull City, left) and Clint Dempsey (Fulham).

The match begins at 3 PM ET and will also be broadcast live on ESPN2.

More: FanHouse UK's Complete EPL Coverage

&lt;a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php?option=com_mobile&amp;task=viewaltcast&amp;altcast_code=4472ecfc8b" &gt;Minute-By-Minute Commentary From Craven Cottage&lt;/a&gt;

Live Blog: Fulham vs. Hull City originally appeared on Soccer FanHouse on Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:25:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Furry Furor Growing Over David Beckham's Beard

Randy Kim — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 11:49:00 EST

Filed under: English Premier League

When is a beard more than a beard? When it's attached to the face of an international, metrosexual heartthrob who has one of the most recognizable visages on the globe.

Yes, America, it's time to beard it like David Beckham, as the English soccer star is going grizzly these days.

While this news might only arch a few eyebrows on this side of the pond, in England they're going positively batty over Beckham's facial hair stylings, and not in a positive way. The Telgraph, for one, poses the question as to whether it's the "World's worst beard?" The Guardian doesn't exactly give Beckham's hirsuteness rave reviews either:

It's the way (the beard) reaches far down beneath his chin and his neck, over his Adam's apple, toward the top of his chest, like an unstoppable hairy fungus ... It's colonising him. That beard looks like it leads a sinister life of its own, after dark.

So what led to the beard in the first place? Well, in a weird way, the U.S. is to blame. Or America's copious campgrounds are. More from the Guardian:

Becks says that his grizzled chops are the consequence of "camping with the kids in America ... I got a bit carried away". He added: "It will stay for a while."

What might be a little lost in all of this is Beckham's actual play on the field. While he is no longer starting for England's national team, he does have a spot on the team, which is no small honor in the soccer-mad U.K. Beckham was even named "Man of the Match" by one TV analyst after coming on in reserve duty in England's World Cup qualifying win against Belarus. (The analyst has since come under fire for deigning to give a sub such high praise, but an award's an award, right?)

The bottom line is Beckham is now 34, and will be 35 by the time the World Cup rolls around next summer in South Africa. Smart money says that if he feels the beard is the lucky talisman that's keeping him on the pitch, then don't be surprised if it's down to his knees by next May.

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David Beckham Photos

Los Angeles Galaxy's David Beckham, left, kicks the ball away from Houston Dynamos' Brian Mullan (9) during the second half of an MLS soccer match Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009 in Houston. The match ended in a 0-0 tie. (AP Photo/Dave Einsel)

FR43584 AP

David Beckham Photos

Los Angeles Galaxy's Dema Kovalenko (8) pushes Houston Dynamos' Ricardo Clark, center, away from teammate David Beckham, left, during the second half of an MLS soccer match Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009 in Houston. The match ended in a 0-0 tie. (AP Photo/Dave Einsel)