Getty Images Soccer birthdays: India star Sunil Chetri turns 28. The Sporting Kansas City washout currently plays for Sporting Clube de Portugal B. Alrighty then!
Big Important Story of the Day: The American women take on New Zealand in the quarterfinals of the Olympic tournament. Abby Wambach, Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe. You know the drill. Win, and the gold-medal game is just one match away.
Big Story of the Day that’s not really that important, but still a big story: Terrence Boyd drew a penalty in Vienna’s 2-1 Europa League loss on Thursday night. The man continues to ball.
RASNoD (Random American Soccer Name of the Day): Mia Hamm (maybe not that random)
*Ahead on the blog today: We take a look at some MLS salary figures. Plus, Ricardo Clark returns to where he belongs (Houston), and the comedically brilliant stylings of one Steve Davis.
Twitter daps: A two-fer from our man in Belgium, Sacha Kljestan:
What you should watch on TV:
The US women against New Zealand. 9:30 am. NBC Sports Network.
And then: New York Red Bulls against the Houston Dynamo at the beautiful BBVA Compass Stadium, obviously. NBC Sports Network (doubleheader!), 8:00 pm. Get into it.
PST background noise while blogging today: The Star-Spangled Banner. It’s Olympic season.
*Always subject to change; you know how it is…
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Roberto Mancini takes out full page thank you ad in Manchester Evening News
May 18, 2013, 1:17 PM EDT
Manchester City’s former boss reaches out to his supportive fan base – his first public comments since his Monday dismissal.
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Bayern Munich finish German season 25 points ahead of Borussia Dortmund
May 18, 2013, 12:28 PM EDT
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Mercifully, the season’s come to an end for the 17 clubs who tried to keep pace with Bayern Munich.
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Ferguson, on Mancini’s Manchester City dismissal: ‘It is quite amazing’
May 18, 2013, 11:40 AM EDT
Manchester United’s outgoing boss was amazed but not surprised at his rival’s dismissal.
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England’s top four: Games that matter in the English Premier League’s last round
May 18, 2013, 10:22 AM EDT
Relegation’s decided. So’s the title and two of the league’s Europa League spots. All that’s left? The battle for top four.
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AP
Russian oligarchs, third-party ownership, tax havens, and €60 million moves. This one has everything.
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Jamie Carragher set to close out his 16-year career at Anfield
May 18, 2013, 8:11 AM EDT
AP
One of the Premier League’s one-club men says goodbye at Anfield.
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Wait a doggone minute! Didn’t Philadelphia and Chicago just play?
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Brest and FC Lorient will be the opposition for retiring midfielder’s final two pro matches:
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Something we should fold into the ongoing Landon Donovan-U.S. national team debate:
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David Beckham has an option to purchase an MLS expansion franchise, and that has zero to do with Chivas USA:
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We know that Major League Soccer’s All-Star match is headed to Sporting Park in Kansas City this year – but we remain in the dark about the opposition:
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The second game is under appeal.
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Reuters
Coming off their first loss of the season, the Portland Thorns host the suddenly dangerous Washington Spirit.
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Can San Jose bounce back against a solid Colorado outfit?
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On the issue of lineup revealing and the timing thereof, they share a similar thought:
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Both teams putting their unbeaten streaks on the line, goals galore in Seattle?
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Could USMNT winger Brek Shea be in trouble after he was part of a prank that went horribly wrong?
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Arch rivals Real and Atletico square off for silverware in the Spanish capital…which way will it go?
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Watch every single goal Beckham scored in Major League Soccer, then let us know which one was the best.
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Wigan’s manager has a tough decision to make, would moving away would be the correct one?
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Video: Highlights: Union outlast Fire
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Video: Sir Alex says goodbye
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Video: Morgan committed to growth of new women's league
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Video: Boy with cancer, 8, scores against major league soccer team
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Video: Red Bulls pull off win on the road
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Video: Highlights: Montreal extinguish Chicago
