La "U" campeona del Apertura de Chile: su hazaña para el final 4-1 sobre la UC

La intimidad del festejo azul por la estrella número 14 de la "U"

Los jugadores celebraron, con champaña, un bombo y cánticos contra la UC y Colo Colo. Estaban molestos con la actitud de Católica al llegar al estadio.

"Si ellos venían celebrando quizás era porque alguien estaba de cumpleaños. Y ahora la celebración se les fue por la borda". Marcelo Díaz refleja el sentimiento del camarín de Universidad de Chile tras conseguir el título. Un lugar donde los jugadores incluyeron a todos en la fiesta, con champaña, copa y bombo incluído.
Y es que a los azules les molestó enterarse de la llegada de Universidad Católica al estadio, con globos y serpentinas en el bus. Por eso, no cuidaron ningún formalismo en el festejo y decidieron mostrar parte de su intimidad. Así, de repente se abrió la puerta del vestuario y el propio Díaz, junto a Puch y Juan Abarca, eran los encargados de llevar el ritmo con un bombo.
Las botellas de champaña ya estaban abiertas y fueron usadas para mojar al que apareciera, incluso, al presidente de Azul Azul Federico Valdés.
Frente a todos los medios, el bombo sonó fuerte y empezaron los cánticos con dedicatoria. Primero, para sus rivales en la final. "Un minuto de silencio, por el cuico que está muerto...", "¡Eliminados! ¡Eliminados!" fueron parte del repertorio de los jugadores.
Después, un recuerdo para Colo Colo, entonando que "el indio ya ha pasado y ha quedado demostrado que el 'Bulla' es más popular".
También hubo espacio para despdir a Felipe Seymour, cantándo que jamas lo olvidarán. Y para las bromas, con un cántico que le pedía a Jorge Sampaoli que no pusiera a Diego Rivarola porque está muy viejo.
Todos, obviamente, estaban de excelete humor. De hecho, el canto sobre "Gokú" sacó sonrisas del DT, quien incluso rompió su norma y no sólo dio declaraciones en la conferencia de prensa.
Y mientras hablaba con una radio, Edson Puch pasó por detrás y amagó con quitarle el gorro.
Los jugadores se fueron sin ducharse, para llegar rápido la celebración. Uno de los últimos en retirarse fue Marcelo Díaz, el encargado del bombo. Y se fue golpeándolo con fuerza, recordando como había llegado al estadio la UC y como se retiraban ahora ellos, dueños de la fiesta.

La "U" campeona del Apertura: tenía reservada su hazaña para el final

En un emocionante partido, Universidad de Chile venció 4-1 a la UC y logró la diferencia que necesitaba para quedarse con su estrella 14.

Las historias del "Ballet azul",los 25 años de espera. La emoción en El Salvador. Las campañas contundentes del '99 y 2000. Los penales de Calama en 2004. Hoy, los azules sumaron otra historia, una hazaña, una de esas que le gusta al fanático de la "U". Porque con coraje. contra las apuestas y frente a un clásico rival, sumó la estrella 14 de su historia, tras derrotar por 4-1 a Universidad Católica.
La historia debe partir diciendo que la UC ganó el duelo de ida por 2-0, y que por haber quedado mejor ubicada en la tabla, tenía que perder por una diferencia de tres goles la revancha.
Dirá que tras ese duelo, Jhonny Herrera dijo "no nos den por muertos" y que los hinchas le creyeron, agotando las 15 mil entradas dispuestas por ser visita.
Dirá que fue una gran final. Sin importar el nivel de juego, la emoción que se vivió en el Nacional estuvo a la altura de la definición del título.
A los 2', Eduardo Vargas avisó que los azules jugarían a "matar o morir".A los dirigidos por Juan Antonio Pizzi se les borró rápidamente la sonrisa que traían en el bus, en una llegada con globos y serpentinas. 
Eduadro Vargas asustó ya a los 2' y a los 16' sufrió el penal que permitió a Canales abrir el marcador (16'). 
Los cruzados sintieron el golpe y comenzaron a acumular amarillas. La "U" creció, tanto que tras el empate de Lucas Pratto (23') respondió rápidamente, con un tiro de Charles Aránguiz que terminó en autogol de Juan Eluchans.
La desesperación cruzada hizo que el equipo terminara el primer tiempo, además de la desventaja en el marcador, con un hombre menos por la doble amarilla para Tomas Costa.
La hazaña estaba a la mano. Los cantos azules sonaban más fuerte y los cruzados no entendían nada. Menos cuando a los 50' Andía comete un claro penal sobre Canales, quien pone el 3-1. Siete minutos después, por fin apareció Puch, quien realizó la jugada que permitió a Canales anotar el 4-1. Sí, 4-1, la diferencia que necesitaba el equipo de Jorge Sampaoli.
A los 66', Parot se fue justamente expulsado, y con nueve jugadores, ahora era la UC la que debía buscar el milagro.
La expulsión de Canales le dio algo de esperanzas a la UC. 
Pero la hazaña ya tenía nombre. Fue un desenlace tenso. La "U" pudo liquidar, mientras que los pelotazos cruzados no pasaban de un intento desesperado por recuperar lo que tenían en la mano. La copa del Apertura, que le quitó jugando como es el estilo de Jorge Sampaoli, como le gusta al hincha azul, como quedará en la historia: A matar o morir.

La derrota más dolorosa en la historia de Universidad Católica

Por como se desperdició la chance de lograr un inédito bicampeonato, el 1-4 de ayer ante la "U" fue la caída más fuerte de los cruzados.

Lo decía Juan Antonio Pizzi: la derrota en la vuelta de la final del Apertura 2011 ante Universidad de Chile fue "un golpe muy doloroso para todos". Y no exagera el entrenador argentino, considerando que la increíble pérdida del título ante los azules dolió enormemente en el alma más profunda de los cruzados.
Claro, porque ni el más amargo vaticinaba un desenlace tan desastroso luego del 2-0 a favor el jueves pasado, en el duelo de ida. 
De hecho, tras ese duelo, los seguidores del club de la franja vaticinaban un triunfo más que seguro, apelando incluso a la creación de afiches aludiendo a los alimentos "Milo" Mirosevic y a Tomás "Costa", autores de los goles en el primer duelo.
Por eso es que el 4-1 de ayer en el Estadio Nacional fue un golpe que noqueó el orgullo más puro. De seguro, los hinchas de Católica que llegaron al recinto de Ñuñoa pensaban que luego de dos horas de sol dominical lo abandonarían como protagonistas de un inédito bicampeonato... pero, en concreto, se retiraron masticando la derrota y viendo cómo los azules festejaban en sus caras.
De todas formas, inesperado lo de ayer considerando que la UC no recibía cuatro goles en un partido desde el 17 de agosto de 2008 cuando cayeron por 0-4 ante Huachipato en San Carlos de Apoquindo, por el Torneo de Clausura de ese año.
Además, Universidad de Chile no le ganaba por tres goles de diferencia desde la temporada 1996, cuando por la fecha 13 se impuso 3-0 ante el conjunto católico.
En todo caso, hay otras derrotas que se recuerdan con dolor. Pero nunca tanto como la de ayer ante Universidad de Chile.
Por ejemplo, la caída por 5-1 en Morumbí ante Sao Paulo, por la final de la Copa Libertadores de 1993. Hubo consuelo, pues los cruzados no tuvieron opciones ante el elenco que posteriormente ganaría la Copa Intercontinental.
O las derrotas ante Colo Colo, en las finales del Torneo de Clausura 2002 y 2009. Si bien hubo mucha frustración, al menos en estas llaves decisivas no se estuvo tan cerca como en la final de ayer de hacer historia... la misma que se volvió esquiva y que les negó el anhelado bicampeonato.
Aunque para consuelo de los de la franja azul, el historial ante Universidad de Chile en llaves definitorias les es ampliamente favorable pese al traspié (doloroso) de ayer: 10-3.

El uno a uno de la "U"

Gustavo Canales se "robó" la película en un cuadro azul que casi no tuvo puntos bajos para quedarse con el título

Jhonny Herrera: Bien en los balones altos, pero no pudo hacer mucho en el gol de Pratto. Se quedó en una salida que podría haber significado el 4-2. Tuvo muy poco trabajo y fue un líder para el equipo.
Matías Rodríguez: El argentino fue constante salida por la banda y una jugada suya motivó la expulsión de Costa. En defensa no tuvo muchos problemas.
Marcos González: Una "pifia" terrible del defensa le dio el gol del empate a la "UC" tras el disparo de Pratto. Luego se afirmó y estuvo muy bien en el juego aéreo. No venía jugando de forma constante, pero cumplió. 
José Rojas: Bien en las coberturas, sobre todo en una escapada de Costa y estuvo muy preciso en otra ante ante Mirosevic ante de que se metiera al área. Sólo estuvo débil en el gol de Pratto.
Eugenio Mena: Bien en las coberturas, pero con problemas en la entrega. Tuvo el despliegue de siempre y debió luchar con las constantes subidas de Meneses. Se perdió el 5-1.
Charles Aránguiz: Ejecutó el tiro libre del 2-1, fue el mejor del mediocampo, e incluso tuvo un buen despliegue por las bandas. Aportó en ataque y en materia defensiva.
Felipe Seymour: Al principio se le notó el nerviosismo y se equivocó en una jugada que podría haber costado un gol. Pero después ayudó a empujar al equipo y sacó el balón del área cuando Pratto aparecía sólo. 
Guillermo Marino: Intentó llevar al equipo, y aunque sin tanta velocidad como sus compañeros, aportó con rapidez mental para generar juego en el equipo. No brilló, pero fue un aporte.
Eduardo Vargas: A los 3' generó la primera opción de riesgo y luego le hicieron el penal del 1-0. Fue el mejor complemento de Canales en la delantera azul y llevó peligro de forma constante con sus debordes. Se ganó una tonta amarilla.  
Gustavo Canales: La gran figura. Asistió de muy buena forma a sus compañeros, colaboró en defensa y le cometieron un penal tras una gran jugada. Convirtió el penal del 1-0 y del 3-1 demostrando sangre fría y luego puso en 4-1 con notable desvío. Se ganó amarilla por un encontrón ante Toselli y luego fue expulsado por una simulación de Eluchans.
Edson Puch: Fue uno de los más bajos del equipo, pero realizó la jugada que permitió que Canales anotará el 4-1.
Marcelo Díaz: ingresó a los 63' por Marino. Entró para tener más la pelota. Se perdió el gol que setenciaba el partido.
Albert Acevedo: entró a los 66' por Rodríguez. No llevaba ni un minuto en cancha y le cometiron una falta que significó la expulsión de Parot. 
Diego Rivarola: ingresó a los 77' por Puch. Le llegó pocas veces el balón, pero generó un par de ocasiones de riesgo para sus compañeros. Tuvo una opción, pero la pelota dio en el poste.

 La revancha fuera del campo de juego y en la Internet

La revancha que tuvo Universidad de Chile no fue solamente en la cancha. Es que el primero triunfo de la UC había incitado a la creación de una gran cantidad de afiches donde los cruzados se burlaban de los azules por la derrota por 2-0.
Pero eso ya quedó en historia y los dirigidos por Sampaoli supieron revertir el resultado y terminaron quedándose con el título número 14. Esto incitó a que los fanáticos de la "U" tuvieran su propia revancha en el mundo cibernauta.
Divertidos y creativos afiches fueron publicados por la parcialidad azul, donde se burlan del resultado final y festejan un nuevo título.  

CONCACAF GOLD CUP 2011: Canada boosts Gold Cup hopes with 1-0 win

TAMPA — A second-half penalty kick from Dwayne De Rosario gave Canada a 1-0 victory over an undermanned Guadeloupe on Saturday, and revived its hopes of reaching the quarterfinals at the Gold Cup.

The win improved Canada to three points in Group C, while Guadeloupe lost its second in as many games and will need a win against the United States on Tuesday in its first-round finale to have any chance of advancing.
"We got the three points, that's all it came down to," Canada striker Simeon Jackson said. "We're glad we got three points, and now we just look forward to the next game."
The Canadians next face Panama in Kansas City, Kansas, on Tuesday, before Guadeloupe takes on the United States.
The Gwada Boys were reduced to 10 men in the fourth minute when Jean-Luc Lambourde was ejected for a lunging studs-up challenge on Will Johnson just outside the Guadeloupe penalty area. It was the second consecutive match in which the Caribbean islanders had to play with a man disadvantage.
"We want to show that in Guadeloupe we have good football and good players," captain Stephane Auvray said. "Having one down man for the whole game was hard for us, but we showed that we have good players and a good team. Unfortunately we lost, but we showed something good tonight."

The goal for Canada didn't come until the 51st minute. Canada was awarded a penalty after Stephane Zubar pulled the shirt of Canadian striker Ali Gerba and shoved him down. De Rosario then bounced the penalty to the right as goalkeeper Franck Grandel dived the other way.
"I think you've got to give some credit to [Guadeloupe]," Canada midfielder Terry Dunfield said. "Once we got that goal it was a sense of relief, and it definitely gives us something to build on for Tuesday night."

Canada had the advantage early with Lambourde's ejecting, enabling it hold possession and make Guadeloupe chase the ball. Its patience led to some attractive build up play and pinned Guadeloupe in its own half for much of the opening half.

Ali Gerba appeared to have given Canada the lead in the 15th minute, but his swift turn-and-chip past Grandel was ruled offside. Gerba had another chance in the 33rd minute, but he scuffed it wide after receiving a pass from Josh Simpson inside the six-yard box.

After a long stretch in which both teams slowed the pace, Canadian defender Mike Klukowski nearly put his side ahead a couple of minutes before halftime. The left back burst into the area and an exchange of passes, but his shot went just wide of the right post.
"It was a tough situation to play in," De Rosario said. "Obviously their going down a man helped us out a lot in terms of finding space and keeping the ball. That was our main focus -- controlling the tempo of the game."

Despite being a man down, the Gwada Boys seemed fresher to start the second half. David Fleurival forced Canadian keeper Milan Borjan into a reaction save less than a minute after the restart.

The pressure wouldn't help Guadeloupe, however, and they went down to De Rosario's penalty in the 51st minute.
The goal brought about more tentative play from both sides, as neither team could muster anything threatening for the remainder of the match.

"We didn't want to change what we set out to do [after scoring], just be patient, it was very, very hot," coach Stephen Hart said. "We wanted to keep the ball moving, and sort of make them do the bulk of the running."

Panama ends U.S. streak at Gold Cup

TAMPA -- Panama ended the United States' 26-game unbeaten streak in group play at the Gold Cup, withstanding a second-half charge to upset the Americans 2-1 Saturday and assure itself of a place in the quarterfinals.

Luis Tejada and Gabriel Gomez scored first-half goals to put Panama ahead 2-0 before the United States tried to rally with a 68th-minute tally by Clarence Goodson.

The win, the first by Panama over the United States in nine tries, put "los Canaleros" atop Group C with six points, three more than the Americans and Canada.

The United States faces winless Guadeloupe in its group finale Tuesday in Kansas City, Kansas, while Canada will play Panama. Two teams from each group are assured of qualifying along with two of three third-place teams.

The United States walked dejectedly off the field, while the Panamanians celebrated with their small contingent of fans behind one of the goals at Raymond James Stadium.

"Panama usually doesn't need a reason to celebrate, but this will definitely make them celebrate," Panama coach Julio Cesar Dely Valdes said.

"It's an historic moment. We, as a coaching staff, have to keep our feet on the ground to make sure that we are successful in the other games."

Panama had been outscored 18-4 in their eight previous encounters with the United States.

Dely Valdes said he told the team after defeating Guadeloupe on Tuesday that it was going to beat the United States.

"I guess it was the faith the players had in themselves and in the coaching staff," he said. "When they make up their minds to do something, they go ahead and do it."

Valdes said there was nothing in particular about the Americans that he concentrated on in his game plan."As anyone does, they do have faults and we took advantage," he said.

The Panamanians did so in the 19th minute, taking advantage of some shoddy American defending in front of 27,731.

Armando Cooper sent a diving header off a Gabriel Gomez left-wing feed that goalkeeper Tim Howard knocked away. But the ball rebounded into the middle of the area, where Goodson appeared to get a foot on the ball, but Tejada was able to knock over the line for his seventh goal in Gold Cup competition.

"On the night, we were not good enough," U.S. coach Bob Bradley said. "But Panama certainly was, and then some.
"Give Panama a lot of credit," U.S. midfielder Landon Donovan said. "They started the game well, took the initiative to be aggressive. When you dig yourselves a hole that huge sometimes you can't get out of."

The Central Americans doubled their lead in the 36th minute on a penalty by Gomez.

U.S. defender Tim Ream tripped Blas Perez at the right edge of the penalty area and referee Marco Rodriguez of Mexico immediately pointed toward the penalty spot. Gomez shot into the upper left corner for a 2-0 advantage.

"You can't start that way," Donovan said. "For some reason we were a little lackadaisical, a little complacent early. We had some of the ball and we felt OK about ourselves. They put us on our heels a few times and they made a play that changed the game. And then the penalty's a little fluky and now we're chasing the game."

The Americans pressured Panama in the second half and cut the deficit to 2-1 in the 68th minute. Donovan sent in a free kick from the left side that Michael Bradley headed backward to a diving Goodson, who headed it home from four meters.

The Americans replaced Goodson with Chris Wondolowski, Major League Soccer's leading scorer last season, as it shifted to a three-man backline in an attempt to equalize. The move almost paid off in the 81st minute as Wondolowski, off a Jozy Altidore feed, missed an open goal from inside the six.

The Americans almost equalized again in the 90th minute when Bradley volleyed a 16-yard attempt that sailed just wide right of the net.

"We had the ball in pretty good spots, but we didn't finish off well enough," Bob Bradley said.

http://www.canadasoccer.com/

Lavolpe set to face familiar foe Mexico

CHICAGO - Costa Rican players kicked balls back and forth through the wet grass of Soldier Field Saturday night.
They dribbled, volleyed and sprinted after balls through cones with several assistant coaches watching under light showers.
Every person on Costa Rica's roster was counted for except for its head coach. Ricardo Lavolpe was absent. Lavolpe didn't want to be part of the practice session that was open to the media during only the first 15 minutes.
Where was Lavolpe? Why was the former Mexico coach missing?
A team spokesperson did not give many details other than Lavolpe chose not to attend the training session.
Costa Rica practiced earlier in the day with Lavolpe present.
Lavolpe could be avoiding all media in anticipation to Costa Rica's match against his former team.
Mexico takes on Costa Rica Saturday night at Soldier Field in what is being considered El Tri's toughest challenge in this Gold Cup.
The game will decide the Group A winner.
But this match goes beyond a berth in next week's quarterfinals. There is some bitter history between Lavolpe and Mexico.
The Argentine-born coach with a bristly black mustache coached El Tri from 2002 to 2006. He led Mexico to the second round of the 2006 World Cup, where it lost to Argentina with a spectacular second half goal by Maxi Rodriguez.
Many in the soccer community say Mexico had never played a better World Cup match than that one. And Lavolpe was at the helm. Lavolpe was later fired.
Lavolpe is well known in Mexico. He has coached several of its first-division clubs. Many of the players on Mexico's current roster have stopped to chat with Lavolpe on several occasions in between training session during this tournament. They even hugged on several occasions.
"There will always be respect for him because he was an important person in my development as a player," Mexico midfielder Andres Guardado said. "We know his style of play and what he likes to do, and we know it's going to be a real challenge."
("Siempre Habra un tipo de respeto porque el fue una persona importante en mi desarrollo como jugador. Sabemos su estilo en la cancha y lo que le gusta hacer y sabemos que tenemos una tarea grande que enfrentar.")

So, why all the hype prior to this match?
Mexico coach Jose Manuel de la Torre played down the scenario. There is no hype in his eyes.
"There is nothing more other than the fact that we know (Lavolpe) well," de la Torre said during a news conference Saturday. "It's not Ricardo against me. It is the Mexican national team against the Costa Rican national team. There is the same hype that there is when we face any other team."

("El hecho que tenemos conocimiento, queda ahi nada mas No es yo contra Ricardo. Es la selección mexicana contra la selección de Costa Rica. Y el sabor sigue siendo el mismo que cuando nos enfrentamos a cualquier otra selección.")

De la Torre was asked what he has learned from Lavolpe while Lavolpe was in charge of Mexico.
"It is not only about Ricardo," de la Torre said. "It's also about other coaches. He always managed his teams well. It's not just him but other coaches in Mexico."

("No solo es de Ricardo si no de siempre de otros (tecnicos). Siempre sus equipos como los manejo es agradable. No es solo el pero otros tecnicos en mexico.")

In Mexico, Lavolpe is disliked. Even in the United States.
Lavolpe was jeered several times in Dallas and in Charlotte when his picture was displayed on the scoreboard screens. The boos echoed throughout each stadium.
Lavolpe responded to the jeers after Costa Rica's 5-0 win against Cuba in Dallas.
"The fans sometimes make decisions but they forget that we qualified to the Olympic Games (Athens 2004), we won the Gold Cup (2003) that qualified us to the Confederations Cup," Lavolpe said. "The fans let the media drive them and by some people. For me, Mexico is a thing of the past."
Lavolpe has mostly been very vocal in the past. He continued his diatribe in Dallas.
"It's been a while since they've made it to the Olympic games," Lavolpe said about Mexico. If they boo me, they should bomb or shoot the coaches that came after me.
"If they are booing me, let's remind them about the development of (Ricardo) Osorio, (Carlos) Salcido, (Aaron) Galindo, (Pavel) Pardo, all players who were responsible for how the team functioned. What am I going to say about the fans? "
Lavolpe hasn't said much to reporters since.
Most of his training sessions have been closed. Perhaps he has something in store for Mexico. It might be something that was worth leaving his team to the assistant coaches at Soldier Field.

El Salvador seeks win against reeling Cuba

CHICAGO - Cuba coach Raul Gonzalez answered questions about leaving the Gold Cup during a news conference in Charlotte. His team was coming off a 5-0 loss to Mexico.
Gonzalez might have not been aware his team still has a chance of advancing despite being losing second consecutive game by a lopsided score. It lost to Costa Rica 5-0 in Dallas on June 5.

Cuba must beat El Salvador Sunday to keep its hopes alive. The group winners and second-place teams advance, along with the two best third-place teams.
Coach Gonzalez's squad would need a lot of help since it has yet to score a goal and has allowed 10. Only Grenada has given up as many goals in the tournament. Grenada finally scored in a 7-1 loss to Honduras Friday night.
The odds of Cuba advancing are bleak. Gonzalez probably knows it. That is why he answered questions about leaving the tournament. He didn't give the impression his team would still be in contention.
"We have faced two rivals that are the powerhouses of CONCACAF," Gonzalez said. "The first one wasn't in the last World Cup but it is a team that is always tough and interesting. The second one owns CONCACAF."
The second one was Mexico, the defending champion and five-time winner of the Gold Cup.

Cuba held Mexico to one goal in the first 45 minutes before El Tri exploded with four second-half goals, leaving the island nation helpless, unable to defend.
"I think Cuba had plenty of discretion in the defense during the first match," Gonzalez said. "We stood better on the field defensively in this last game. Cuba is under a building process. We hope that the future of this national team gets better."
Gonzalez could help his team become better if he sends them out to beat El Salvador. That is a task that might not be any easier than Costa Rica and Mexico.
El Salvador is coming off a 1-1 draw against Los Ticos in Charlotte. La Selecta thought it had earned the three points and it was going to be a true contender to qualify for the quarterfinals. It led 1-0 with a goal by Rodolfo Zelaya into injury time of the second half.
But a right-footed shot across his body from right to left by Costa Rica's Marco Ureña killed the moment.
That play changed the outlook of the group. El Salvador must now beat Cuba to finish group play with four points and hope that Mexico, who has already qualified, beats Costa Rica by a considerable amount of goals. If that doesn't happen, El Salvador could still sneak in as a third place team if it gets some help from other teams.
El Salvador defender Luis Anaya said the team had some miscues that led to Costa Rica's late goal.
"The truth is that we were marking their key men well," Anaya said. "They were attacking as much as we were. They had not scored. But it still bothers us that we couldn't finish the game. We were not 100-percent focused and it caused us the game."

Anaya said El Salvador will play Cuba as if it was a tournament final. They understand this is the opportunity they cannot waste.

"There can be a variety of results, that's the good thing" Anaya said. "We are thinking that we must go with everything against Cuba. This is our advanced final. We need to give more than before. We are dreaming of the next round."

	DALLAS - Cowboys Stadium	COSTA RICA 5  CUBA 0 MEXICO 5  EL SALVADOR 0
MONDAY, JUNE 6TH	LOS ANGELES - The Home Depot Center	JAMAICA 4  GRENADA 0 HONDURAS 0  GUATEMALA 0
TUESDAY, JUNE 7TH	DETROIT - Ford Field	PANAMA 3   GUADELOUPE 2 USA 2   CANADA 0
THURSDAY, JUNE 9TH	CHARLOTTE - Bank Of America Stadium	COSTA RICA 1  EL SALVADOR 1 CUBA 0    MEXICO 5
FRIDAY, JUNE 10TH	MIAMI - FIU	JAMAICA 2    GUATEMALA 0 GRENADA 1   HONDURAS 7
SATURDAY, JUNE 11TH	TAMPA BAY - Raymond James Stadium	CANADA 1   GUADELOUPE 0 USA 1   PANAMA 2
SUNDAY, JUNE 12TH	CHICAGO - Soldier Field	EL SALVADOR vs. CUBA MEXICO vs. COSTA RICA
MONDAY, JUNE 13TH	NEW YORK - Red Bull Arena	GUATEMALA vs. GRENADA HONDURAS vs. JAMAICA
TUESDAY, JUNE 14TH	KANSAS CITY - LIVESTRONG Sporting Park	CANADA vs. PANAMA GUADELOUPE vs. USA
SATURDAY, JUNE 18TH	QUARTERFINALS DOUBLEHEADER NEW YORK - New Meadowlands Stadium	A2 vs. B2 A1 vs. B3 or C3
SUNDAY, JUNE 19TH	QUARTERFINALS DOUBLEHEADER WASHINGTON DC - RFK Stadium	B1 vs. C2 C1 vs. A3 or B3
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22ND	SEMIFINALS DOUBLEHEADER HOUSTON - Reliant Stadium	GAME 1 GAME 2
SATURDAY, JUNE 25TH	FINAL PASADENA - Rose Bowl	FINAL

Canada’s National Teams summer broadcast schedule

Fans across Canada will have the opportunity to cheer on Canada’s National Teams from the comfort of their home this summer. In addition to all of the Women’s National Team matches at the FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011™ being broadcast live on CBC, fans will be able to follow the Men’s U-17 Team as they compete in the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Mexico.

Women’s National Team
From 26 June to 17 July, Canada will be competing in the FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011™. Soccer enthusiasts from across the country will get the chance to follow the team live on CBC. Additional coverage of the competition will be available on Sportsnet One and Sportsnet Regional.

To preview CBC coverage of the FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011™, visit http://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/.

Men’s U-17 National Team
Canada is heading to Mexico for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, which runs from 18 June to 10 July. Every Canada match will be streamed live on CBCSports.ca and broadcast on BOLD. Encore presentations will also be available on CBC television.

For a complete schedule of the FIFA U-17 World Cup Mexico 2011 broadcast, visit http://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/story/2011/05/30/spf-u17-broadcast.html

Also of note, the Men’s National Team continues its battle in the CONCACAF Gold Cup 2011. Canada matches can be watched live on Sportsnet One or online at sportsnet.ca and concacaf.com.

To get all the stories, rosters and results for Canadian National Teams competing this summer, visit CanadaSoccer.com or follow us on Twitter at @CanadaSoccerEN.

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L’horaire de diffusion estival des équipes nationales du Canada

Les partisans à travers le pays auront l’occasion d’applaudir les équipes nationales du Canada à partir de chez eux cet été. En plus d’avoir l’occasion de suivre tous les matchs de l'équipe nationale féminine à la Coupe du Monde Féminine de la FIFA, Allemagne 2011™ en direct à la télévision de CBC (en anglais) et de Radio-Canada (en français), il sera également possible de suivre les matchs de l’équipe masculine U17 à la Coupe du Monde U-17 de la FIFA 2011 au Mexique à la télévision de CBC en anglais.

L’équipe nationale féminine
Le Canada sera en compétition à la Coupe du Monde Féminine de la FIFA, Allemagne 2011™ cet été du 26 juin au 17 juillet. Les amateurs de soccer de partout au pays auront la chance de suivre l'équipe en direct à la télévision de CBC et de Radio-Canada respectivement. Une couverture télévisée complémentaire de la compétition sera également disponible en anglais sur Sportsnet One et Sportsnet Regional.

Pour avoir un aperçu de la couverture offerte par CBC/Radio-Canada de la Coupe du Monde Féminine de la FIFA, Allemagne 2011™, visitez http://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/ et http://www.radio-canada.ca/sports/soccer/

L’équipe nationale masculine U17
Le Canada a rendez-vous au Mexique d’ici peu pour la Coupe du Monde U-17 de la FIFA, qui se déroule du 18 juin au 10 juillet. Une webdiffusion en direct de chacun des matchs du Canada sera offerte à CBCSports.ca et télédiffusée sur BOLD. Des présentations en rediffusion seront également disponibles à la télévision de CBC.

Pour l'horaire de diffusion complet de la Coupe du Monde U-17 de la FIFA, Mexique 2011, veuillez visiter http://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/story/2011/05/30/spf-u17-broadcast.html .

De plus, rappelons que l'équipe nationale masculine continue son parcours à la Coupe d'Or de la CONCACAF 2011 à l’heure actuelle. Les matchs du Canada peuvent être visionnés en direct sur les ondes de Sportsnet One ou en ligne via sportsnet.ca et concacaf.com.

Pour obtenir tous les rapports de matchs, les alignements et les résultats des équipes nationales du Canada en concurrence cet été, visitez CanadaSoccer.com ou suivez l’action avec nous en ligne via Twitter à @CanadaSoccerFR.

Canadian Soccer Association • Association canadienne de soccerLeading Canada to victory and Canadians to a life-long passion for soccer
Mener le Canada à la victoire et les Canadiens à une passion pour le soccer leur vie durant

CanadaSoccer.com

Lionel Messi y Copa América: "¿Hay algo más lindo que jugarla en tu país

El jugador de Barcelona descartó estar presionado por la obligación de Argentina de ganar el torneo continental como anfitrión.

El delantero de Barcelona y seleccionado de Argentina, Lionel Messi, se refirió a la próxima Copa América que se disputará en ese país y en donde la escuadra albiceleste tiene la obligación de quedarse con el título.
Lo anterior puesto que la escuadra adulta albiceleste ganó su último torneo internacional en 1993, cuando conquistó la Copa América de Ecuador.

"Argentina tiene siempre la exigencia de ganar un título. Pero es un lindo desafío. Se va a jugar ante nuestra gente y es una gran oportunidad”

Messi apeló a la reflexión: “¿Hay algo más lindo que disputar éste torneo en tu propio país?”.

“En Argentina se vive el fútbol con mucha pasión, eso está bueno. Pero nosotros no lo tomamos como una presión, sino como una linda exigencia”, complementó-

También tuvo palabras para lo que fue la temporada recién pasada con la camiseta de Barcelona. “Fue una temporada dura, difícil, pero inolvidable”

“Por lo que fue la definición de la Liga, por haber sumado otra Champions, a veces no somos conscientes de lo que estamos haciendo”, dijo.

WOMEN WORLD CUP 2011: Germany Hoping for Another Summer Fairytale

Women's Soccer World Cup

Germany Hoping for Another Summer Fairytale

Germany is all set to host the 2011 Women's World Cup later this month. Fans are hoping for a "summer fairytale" to rival that enjoyed during the men's tournament in 2006, and many in women's soccer are hoping the sport will enjoy a global boom. Most players, however, just want things to get a little better.

It is a spring Sunday in Hamburg and a football match is underway in a stadium on Hagenbeckstrasse. A line of fans snakes away from the sole ticket booth and the food stand is doing a brisk trade in packets of muesli "hand-signed" by the home team, Hamburger SV, or HSV. Hamburg's coach is ranting on the sidelines, accusing the referees of colluding with the other team's manager, claiming they spoke before kickoff. Meanwhile, the woman guarding Hamburg's goal is urging a teammate, "Don't just stand there, Meike, come on!"

The game is HSV versus 1. FFC Frankfurt, both teams members of Germany's Frauen-Bundesliga, or women's national league. The setting could just as easily be that of a men's game in a regional league, but that's an unwelcome observation here. These players reject comparisons with men's soccer. After all, they say, no one would measure a female sprinter against a man's time in the 100-meter dash.

The next Sunday, a game takes place at the Karl Liebknecht Stadium in Babelsberg, just outside of Berlin. There are 6,000 spectators inside the stadium and another 1,000 still pushing their way in. The German president and the governor of the state of Brandenburg are both in attendance and the fans are chanting and singing their club's song. Still, it's occasionally still possible to hear the players from up in the stands. "We need a guy over there," Potsdam's co-coach calls out. Babett Peter, playing sweeper, warns a teammate, "Man on!" And when she assigns another teammate to a specific opposing player, it's "Your man."

The Language of Men's Soccer

It is the language of men's football. The women and girls who play, now believed to number over a million in Germany and around 30 million across the globe, have adopted the rituals of their male counterparts -- the songs, the high-fives, the post-game celebrations in which they spray one another with champagne as confetti rains down. After the cup final in Cologne, Rolf Töpperwien, a men's football commentator, acted as an emcee for the winners from Frankfurt and made a very male joke when he mentioned the bank that sponsored the team's "chests," referring to their shirts.

Female football players want to be seen as independent and not comparable to their male counterparts, but they're also still looking for their own identity, their own profile. This summer, though, is the moment when women's football is expected to make it big. The German Football Association (DFB) has declared this "the year of the woman" and urged all fans to come together to make the upcoming Women's World Cup "a collaboration." When Germany organizes an international football tournament, it doesn't do half measures.

Doris Fitschen, manager of the German women's national team, believes this World Cup should help bring about at least semi-professional status for all players in the women's national league, as well as an increase in viewers, respect and professionalism in the sport. It has certainly never had a higher public profile -- all 32 World Cup games will be shown live on either ARD or ZDF, German public broadcasters.

The future of soccer is female, FIFA president Sepp Blatter declared in 1995, and it seems this future may finally be starting. Everyone is looking to Germany as the land of women's football, the country that has won the Women's World Cup twice and boasts the globe's strongest league. If a World Cup here doesn't achieve the "quantum leap" functionaries in the sport are talking about, nothing will. That's how they see it, at least.

Following in the Kaiser's Footsteps

Steffi Jones is the world's biggest advocate of women's football. There could scarcely be a better candidate to explain how to build up a successful national team than the woman who played for Germany 111 times, including at the 1999 and 2003 World Cups, and was national champion six times in Germany, as well as once in the United States with the Washington Freedom.

Jones, 38, was known as the "Kaiserin", or "Empress", during her playing days, because she marshaled her defense like football legend Franz Beckenbauer -- famously nicknamed the "Kaiser." Now Jones is stepping into a Beckenbauer-type role once again, serving as president of the organizing committee for the 2011 Women's World Cup and traveling to all the participating countries, just as Beckenbauer did when he fulfilled the same role for the men's World Cup in Germany in 2006. Jones is an ideal representative for women's soccer, not least because of her ability to inspire -- and because of her own history.

Jones says she wants to increase her sport's popularity around the world and to open doors in countries where women's rights are something of an unknown concept. She doesn't see herself as a "front woman," she says, and she's not a women's libber. She's simply speaking from experience.

Lacking the Structures to Support Young Players

On a recent stop in Brazil, part of her global tour, Jones was gazing out at the ocean and cliffs shrouded in fog from her fifth floor Rio de Janeiro hotel room. She was there in part to meet with Joana Havelange, one of the organizers of the 2014 men's World Cup in Brazil. Havelange was looking for a few tips.

Brazil is a football country, but not a women's football country. The women were runners up at the last World Cup in 2007, fielding the world's best and most popular female player, Marta. But the association doesn't have a functioning league -- nor even a national championship -- and the best players go abroad. Brazil also lacks the necessary structures to support young players, precisely Jones' area of interest.

She heads to São Januário Stadium in the Vasco da Gama district of the city. The local club is the only one of Rio's four large clubs to also maintain a professional women's division. Jones stands in the middle of the field, where several girls' teams have lined up, and holds a speech in the rain. "You are all ambassadors of women's soccer," she says through an interpreter. The girls beam. Roberto Dinamite, former national player and now club president of CR Vasco da Gama, hands Jones a jersey, which she pulls on immediately. The president stares at her tattoos.

Girls Disappearing from Soccer

Her next appointment takes Jones to a football school run by Zico. A former star on the pitch, he works with around 400 promising young players on the outskirts of Rio. He relates that he had 70 girls here, but when they reached 16 or 17, they abandoned the sport, because there were no teams for them, no league. Steffi Jones looks discomfited at the news, but there's nothing she can do about it at the moment.

She herself was miserable when she was no longer allowed to play with the boys. DFB regulations stipulate the separation of boys and girls at age 13, which meant Jones had to switch to a girls' team in Praunheim, a different district of Frankfurt. As a child, she believed she had to be a boy to be allowed to play soccer and begged her mother to cut her hair short, "or I'll kill myself."

Steffi Jones' book about her career and her life, "Der Kick des Lebens" ("The Kick of Life"), published in 2007, served as a sort of therapy for herself and her mother. The alternative to writing, Jones says, would have been a visit to a psychologist.

The book describes a childhood in Bonames, a disadvantaged neighborhood in Frankfurt. Jones' father, an African-American US soldier, left the family when she was four, and her life was marked by racism and financial difficulties. Her older brother became addicted to drugs, ending up in a home and later in prison for theft. Her younger brother, a professional soldier with the US Army, lost both legs in the Iraq War. Steffi Jones believes she was "born on the shady side" of life. Football has been her stabilizing force since childhood, when others called her names like "little n****r" and "curly head."

Paying Female Players a Living

Still, the game didn't provide a living. Up until the point she moved to the American league, Jones had to earn money elsewhere, for example as a supermarket manager, and her clubs sometimes didn't fulfill the terms of their contracts. She once resigned from the national team over absences her employer had complained about -- she needed the income.

Now, Jones has formulated a plausible goal for her time as a FIFA functionary: for all female national league players to be able to live off the sport. After the World Cup, Jones will become director of women's football at the DFB. Her mother, who once wanted to forbid her daughter from playing the sport, is "very proud," Jones says.

The spring evening in Rio belongs to the Germans, as they present their Women's World Cup to 150 invited guests in the century-old Villa Riso. The logo for the tournament looks like a queen bee standing upright. In one video clip, German star Martina Müller calls Wolfsburg, one of the host cities for the Women's World Cup, "a city full of dynamism." A brochure offers a description of another host city: "Leverkusen's most important sight is the water tower."

Loss of Feminine Grace

Of course, this self-fulfilling boom also has to do with creating new markets for the sport. Player numbers have been stagnating in Germany, with only the number of women and girls still on the rise. Women's soccer is the fastest growing team sport, according to DFB President Theo Zwanziger.

Until 1970, the DFB forbade its clubs to establish women's divisions. Soccer, it was thought, meant the loss of feminine grace. When an unofficial World Cup took place in 1981, Germany sent the team SSG Bergisch Gladbach to Taiwan, since it lacked a national team. In 1989, a win at the European Championships earned the team a coffee set from Villeroy & Boch. Now, a World Cup win would see each player receive €60,000 ($86,800).

Siegfried Dietrich, 53, manages 1. FFC Frankfurt, the club considered the women's football equivalent of perennial men's powerhouse Bayern Munich. The club has signed Germany star Lira Bajramaj of Turbine Potsdam for next season, as well as Kim Kulig of HSV. Dietrich considers them "leaders of the new generation." He has also been Kulig's personal manager since 2009, a double role surely tolerated only because of his unusual position: Dietrich is essentially Mr. Women's Football.

A New Career

Dietrich was once a massage therapist for the national figure skating team, and describes how he met Katarina Witt and put together an ice skating gala for her. He then opened an agency alongside his massage therapy practice, launching a new career.

In the early 1990s, someone in Frankfurt introduced Dietrich to women's football. He put the club in contact first with a partner for stadium advertisements then with a jersey sponsor. Eventually, he obtained marketing rights to the club and has since guaranteed it a yearly advertising payment in exchange. It was a risky investment. Dietrich adds: "I knew this sport could go on a downward spiral -- because that's football."

Dietrich isn't shy about praising his nose for talent. He had Nia Künzer signed long before she attained fame for her golden goal which won the World Cup for Germany in 2003. He also provided Steffi Jones with advertising revenue. He establishes personalities, Dietrich says, and around 15 female players in his club now make their living from the sport. "We give them security," he says. "The World Cup will be the starting shot into a new dimension."

At the moment, the women's league remains a business reliant on subsidies. The DFB pays each national league team €180,000 per year. That brings Turbine Potsdam, recently German champions three times in a row, to a budget of €1.5 million. The club also benefits from a neighboring elite sport school, which supplies it with young talent.

Women's Football has "Reached its Limits"

Bernd Schröder has been the trainer of Turbine Potsdam for four decades, minus a brief interruption. His office is on the grounds of the sport school. Once again, his team has reached the Champions League final. Turbine Potsdam began as part of a sports group supported by a publicly owned East German utility company. Schröder has supervised the team on a volunteer basis since 1971. He refers to players' agents as "hypocrites" and views with suspicion anyone who wants to make money from the amateur sport of women's soccer. "Women's football has reached its limits," he says. "There won't be a sustainable boom." Why would more than 1,000 spectators, on average, come to a game, he asks, and "why would a man identify with women's football?"

Schröder studied mining science and says he doesn't really hold with "subjunctives." He's clearly the spoilsport in this World Cup year, and he offers his views to visitors from his spot behind his desk, between stacks of yellowed newspapers.

Many of his players are semi-professionals, working other jobs by the hour or participating in sport promotion groups run by the German military, the Bundeswehr. Schröder says he could have had Bajramaj too, but he "wasn't interested in horse trading." Besides, he says, the hype surrounding her is damaging. "Overly promoting her like this won't make her better."

Unter den Linden, Berlin's famous boulevard, hosted a reception a couple months ago for ambassadors from the countries participating in the Women's World Cup. On the menu were meatballs and fig mustard. Steffi Jones, president of the organizing committee, declared: "We're going to see good games and have good weather."

Jones has a marionette hanging in her Frankfurt office -- Jim Knopf, a character known both from a German children's story by Michael Ende and an adaptation of the same story at the famous puppet theater in Augsburg. The character fits her, Jones says: an orphaned child with dark skin, who arrived in the fantasy kingdom of Morrowland one day by mail.

Augsburg, in fact, is one of the World Cup's nine venues, and its puppet theater has created a play specifically for Jones. The title, "Steffi - ein Sommermärchen" ("Steffi - A Summer Fairytale"), references the "fairy tale" summer of 2006, when Germany hosted the Men's World Cup.

And Jones no longer has to be a boy.