SOCCER

FC Barcelona and Club America Battle to 4-4 Tie

By Robert H. Kelly

(August 20, 2006) Before a record crowd of 70, 550 soccer crazed fans in Houston’s Reliant stadium, FC Barcelona and Club America of Mexico battled to a 4-4 tie.

The international friendly match saw forward Nelson Cuevas score three first half goals to give Club America a 4-1 lead at the half.

The match was dominated by Club America in the first half, with Barcelona managing to find the net only once on a kick by Rafa Marquez in the fifth minute. However the second half was all Barcelona

Club America took the lead early in the third minute as Cuevas found the goal from twelve yards out off an assist from Claudio Lopez.

Cuevas scored his second goal in the 30th minute and his third in the 44th minute.
Barcelona's Oleguer scored an own goal in the 65th minute to give Club America its 4-1 lead.

Forward Javier Saviola stared Barcelona’ comeback in the second half when he took a pass from forward Samuel Eto in the 85th minute to score from 15 yards to take the score to 4-2.

FIFA’s World Player of the Year Ronaldinho sat out the half due to fatigue from the heavy tour schedule. He was the World Player of the Year in 2004 and 2005.

He entered the game in the second half and cut Club America’s lead to 4-3 on a penalty kick in the 89th minute after being knocked down by Jose Antonio Castro.

Eto scored the goal for the tie in the 90th minute to end the game.

The match was preceded by the Los Angeles galaxy beating the Houston Dynamo 1-0 in an MLS match.

MANCHESTER UNITED AND REAL MADRID COMMIT TO DALLAS CUP XXVII

from Dallas Cup Media Release (March 22, 2005)

Tournament manager Randy Jones confirmed Manchester United and Real Madrid as the first two Super Group commitments for Dallas Cup XXVII. Dallas Cup XXVII will be contested April 9-16, 2006.

“This is a great announcement for the Dallas Cup. These two clubs have the two most prestigious histories in football. Many of their top players started their young careers as players in Dallas Cup. It is a testament to the level of competition we have at Dallas Cup that these two teams have already committed to play in next years Dallas Cup,” said Randy Jones, Tournament Manager.

Manchester United is considered one of the most storied professional sports franchises in the world. They are winners of two European Championship Cups (1968, 1999), eight FA Premier League titles (1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2003) and seven Football League Division One championship (1908, 1911, 1952, 1956, 1957, 1965, and 1967).

After over 100 years Real Madrid has positioned itself alongside Manchester United as one of the top football clubs in the world. In 2002, they captured the one piece of football hardware that had eluded them when they captured the Europe Super Cup in Monaco. Real Madrid is the only European team to retain possession of the European Championship Cup five consecutive times and nine times overall (1955-56, 1956-57,1957-58, 1958-59, 1959-60, 1965-66, 1997-98, 1999-00, and 2001-02).

Dallas Cup officials also recently announced that they are planning on expanding the tournament field to include U15 and U13 groups and that Frisco Sports & Entertainment Center will play host to the Olympic-style opening ceremonies as well as feature games and additional matches.

DALLAS CUP XXVI KICKS OFF
 

By Chris Price (March 20, 2005)

One of the largest and most prestigious soccer tournaments in the United States kicks off Sunday afternoon with the fanfare of the Opening Ceremonies and two key matches in the Super Group Division of Dallas Cup XXVI at Lake Highlands Wildcat Ram Stadium in Dallas. 

At 3:30 pm, Aston Villa FC, from England squares off against Maebashi Ikuei from Japan. At 5:45pm, Opening Ceremonies will commence, followed by a 7:00 pm match between Clube Atletico Paranaense of Brazil and local favorite Dallas Texans Red.

The tournament will run from March 20 through March 27, and will feature matches in twelve divisions at various locations around the metropolitan Dallas area. 
 

The Dallas Cup will entertain more than 150,000 soccer fans during the weeklong event, with more than 3000 soccer players and coaches  participating from numerous countries around the world.

COLORADO RAPIDS, REAL SALT LAKE BATTLE TO 2-2 TIE (MARCH 19, 2005)

By Robert Kelly

Real Salt Lake and the Colorado Rapids came to LaPorte High School Stadium to play an exhibition match for soccer fans of the Gulf Coast. After ninty minutes of play, the two Major League Soccer teams battled to a 2-2 tie.

With rain clouds threatening from the west, the two teams took to the field, and the fans did not have to wait long to see a goal.

The Rapids Eric Denton struck first in the third minute of play with a free kick over Real’s four man defense and found pay dirt in the Real Salt Lake net. Goalkeeper D.J. Countness attempted a block with a full body drive, but to no avail.

Four and one half minutes later, in the seventh minute, the Rapids found the goal again. Forward Jeff Cunningham, with the assist from Chris Henderson, scored for the Rapids to take the score to 2-0.

The Rapids goalkeeper Byron Foss came up with three big saves in the twentieth, thirty-sixth, and fortieth minutes, to prevent Real Salt Lake from scoring in the first half.

In the eighteenth minute, a minor altercation between the Rapid’s Alain Nkong and Real’s Kyle Beckerman brought the fans to their feet, but quick action by the officials prevented it from escalating.

Real Salt Lake finally found the goal in the fifty-fourth minute, when a loose ball in the Rapids penalty area was kicked by Jason Kries pass a surprised Foss. 

After a long series of give and take play, Real found the goal again in the seventieth minute when Kreis headed a cross from midfielder Andy Williams. Foss was not quick enough to stop the shot, which tied the game at 2-2.
 
The rest of the game was fairly uneventful with neither team finding the goal again. The game ended with two minutes of added time, however the score remand unchanged. Both teams took the 2-2 tie to the locker room, with no shootout allowed.
 
The fans in attendance were extreemly excited about the game and the fast paced action. "It was a perfect night for soccer. I am glad the rain didn't get here." said Tammy Jones, a young soccer fan from Pasadena.
 
With the Houston area hoping for a Major League Soccer team sometime in the future, many fans were very vocal about the prospect.
 
"Even though the stands were not filled for this game, it shows that the Houston area can and will support pro soccer. We need a team here to show the world soccer can thrive in Houston." said James Brewer, a local youth soccer coach who was in attendance with his sons.
 
For the fans in attendance, they will have to wait a while longer before professional soccer comes to Houston. For the time being, they will have to settle for watching MLS on television. The 2005 MLS seasons kicks off in two weeks.
 
The Rapids will remain in Texas for the next week preparing for their next pre-season match against FC Dallas in Austin, Texas on Saturday, March 26. The game will be at Reagan High School’s Nelson Field, with the game time at 7:00pm.