International friendly: Netherlands 2 Slovakia 0

The Netherlands avoided a second-straight defeat by beating Slovakia 2-0 in an international friendly in Rotterdam on Wednesday.

After a loss to Bulgaria in an international friendly over the weekend, Bert Van Marwijk’s men made no mistake in front of their home fans as an own goal from Kornel Salata and a strike from substitute Rafael Van der Vaart separated the teams.

Amid a raucous atmosphere at De Kuip, the hosts stormed into the lead after only eight minutes.

Ibrahim Afellay was the instigator, drilling a low centre across the face of goal that was inadvertently turned in by Salata.

The Netherlands could have added a second goal within minutes, but Robin van Persie fired off target after getting past Peter Pekarik.

Slovakia were handed a route back into the match just before the half-hour mark when Maarten Stekelenburg inexplicably elected to pick up a back pass from defender Gregory van der Wiel.

Miroslav Stoch lined up the set-piece from just outside the six-yard box, but could only blast harmlessly into the side-netting.

The Fenerbahce winger went even closer to an equaliser moments later, when his effort from a tight angle rebounded off the post, following a swift counter-attack led by Marek Hamsik.

Neither team seemed in any great hurry to force the issue coming out from the interval, with goalmouth action remaining elusive for much of the second half.

The hosts were handed a chance to break the monotony with just under 20 minutes to go, after Van der Vaart was felled on the edge of the area by Marek Cech.

The Tottenham midfielder stepped up to take the free-kick, but saw a wonderful effort smack back off the frame of the goal, with Jan Mucha completely beaten.

The Dutch went close again a few minutes later when Van der Wiel’s delivery flashed dangerously across goal, and somehow ended up in the arms of Mucha after a touch by Afellay.

They would eventually get their second courtesy of a combination between two substitutes.

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar appeared to have been blocked off by a pair of Slovak defenders inside the area, but did just enough to tee up Van der Vaart for a straightforward drive into the far corner.

Van Marwijk’s side round off their Euro 2012 preparations with their final friendly match against Northern Ireland on Saturday at the Amsterdam Arena.

Source : http://www.soccernews.com/international-friendly-netherlands-2-slovakia-0/95550/

International friendly: Spain 4 South Korea 1

Spain continued their preparations for Euro 2012 with a comfortable 4-1 victory over South Korea at Stade de Suisse in Switzerland on Wednesday.

Spain got off to a good start, and nearly found the net just five minutes into the match when Santiago Cazorla’s blast at goal deflected off Fernando Torres, only for the ball to creep agonisingly by the post.

The early pressure from Vicente Del Bosque’s side paid off just five minutes later when Benat’s fizzed cross from the left-hand side was met by Torres inside the area, and the Chelsea man did well to nod the ball past South Korea goalkeeper Jin-Hyeon Kim.

Jin-Hyeon was a busy man in the opening 45 minutes and kept his side in the match with a couple of accomplished saves, denying both Cazorla and Xabi Alonso.

South Korea almost equalised in the 20th minute when Kim Jung-Woo skipped past a couple of challenges before lashing a shot inches past Jose Reina’s.

South Korea continued to probe for their opening goal and it eventually came a minute before half-time through a stunning Do-Heon Kim strike. The midfielder picked up the ball on the left hand side before smashing a fierce strike from 25 yards into the top corner.

Spain reclaimed the lead in the 53rd minute when Yong-Hyung Cho blocked a Nacho Monreal strike on goal with his hand inside the box. Xabi Alonso stepped up to coolly dispatch the penalty.

Del Bosque’s men kicked on after their second goal, and were able to add a third just three minutes later through a Cazorla free-kick. The Malaga playmaker showed outstanding initiative to fire a strike under the Korean wall from his set-piece on the edge of the box, giving Spain a two-goal lead.

The South Koreans kept up their spirits, however, and came close to grabbing a goal back when Ja-Cheol Koo went on a bursting run through the middle of the Spanish defence, only to smash his eventual shot on to the post.

Cerezo Osaka goalkeeper Jin-Hyeon continued to keep the score respectable with a number of brilliant saves in the second half, denying Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo twice.

Negredo did eventually find a goal for Spain in the 78th minute when Roberto Soldado sent his compatriot through on goal and the substitute scored with a well-taken finish.

Spain’s final Euro 2012 warm up comes this weekend when they take on China in Seville before they head to Poland and Ukraine.

South Korea’s next encounter is also of large importance as they take on Qatar in World Cup 2014 qualifying.

Source : http://www.soccernews.com/international-friendly-spain-4-south-korea-1/95549/

Injury casts doubt on Lampard for Euros

Veteran England midfielder Frank Lampard’s participation in Euro 2012 is in doubt.

Lampard was forced out of training on Wednesday with a thigh injury, a problem that England’s doctors will assess on Thursday before making a decision on his fitness for the tournament in Poland and Ukraine.

Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson has already been notified of the injury and put on standby.

“Frank Lampard has today (Wednesday) pulled up in training with a thigh injury,” the FA confirmed.

“He will have a scan and be assessed by the England medical team tomorrow (Thursday).

“Jordan Henderson has been put on standby notice as cover whilst Lampard continues to be monitored.”

Lampard, who won the Champions League with Chelsea this season, has played in every one of England’s games at international tournaments since 2002.

He was named in the the final 23-man squad for the Euros when it was submitted to UEFA on Tuesday, but players can be still be substituted before the tournament’s start as long as an independent examination from a UEFA doctor confirms that a player is too injured to play.

England are due to face Belgium at Wembley in their final friendly before the tournament begins. Their first game of the group stage is against France on June 11.

England manager Roy Hodgson has already been forced to make one late amendment to his squad, after Gareth Barry was ruled out of the tournament with a stomach tear.

Henderson had been expected to replace the Manchester City midfielder, but Hodgson opted instead to bolster his defensive ranks with the versatile Phil Jagielka.

Barry’s withdrawal came after third-choice goalkeeper John Ruddy was also forced out after breaking his finger.

Source : http://www.soccernews.com/injury-casts-doubt-on-lampard-for-euros/95529/

AFC Champions League wrap: Lee stars for Ulsan

Lee Keun-Ho scored and set up another goal as Ulsan defeated Kashiwa Reysol 3-2 in the AFC Champions League round of 16.

Wednesday’s victory means Ulsan have advanced to the quarter-finals where they will be joined by Guangzhou Evergrande after the Chinese club defeated Tokyo 1-0.

After a scoreless first half, Ulsan sprang into life, with Lee setting up the opener 10 minutes after the break.

The 27-year-old attacker weaved his way through Kashiwa’s defence to the right-hand side of the penalty area and then chipped the ball to the top of the six-yard box where Kim Shin-Wook headed home.

Kashiwa equalised in the 68th minute when Leandro Domingues got his head to a long throw to nod the ball into the back of the net but four minutes later Ulsan were in front again when Japanese defender Naoya Kondo poked the ball into his own net.

In the 89th minute, Lee hit a brilliant third goal for Ulsan.

Lee controlled the ball on his chest on the edge of the area, before thumping it past keeper Takanori Sugeno to seemingly seal Ulsan’s place in the quarter-finals.

But in stoppage time Kashiwa reignited their chances of forcing exta-time when Junya Tanaka struck a brilliant left-foot shot across his body inside the far post.

Ulsan held on, however, ending Kashiwa’s involvement in the ACL.

Guangzhou’s 1-0 home win over Tokyo ensured that no J. League clubs will be involved in the ACL quarter-finals.

The Chinese Super League club moved into the last eight for the first time thanks to a 31st-minute goal from Cleo.

Cho Won-Hee cut in from the right wing and laid the ball off to Brazilian forward Muriqui before bursting into the box.

Muriqui expertly chipped Tokyo’s defence putting the ball in front of Cho, who centred for Cleo to finish.

Source : http://www.soccernews.com/afc-champions-league-wrap-lee-stars-for-ulsan/95524/

International friendly preview: Spain v South Korea

Spain continue their Euro 2012 preparations with a friendly against South Korea at the Tivoli Neu Stadium in Austria on Wednesday.

Since accounting for Serbia 2-0 at the weekend, Vicente del Bosque has named his 23-man squad for next month’s championships.

There are four members missing from the Spanish squad that triumphed over Germany to win the 2008 European championships – Carlos Marchena, Joan Capdevilla and injured pair Carles Puyol and David Silva.

Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo, who netted 14 goals during the 2011/12 La Liga season, was included, along with Barcelona’s Pedro.

Atletico Madrid striker Adrian Lopez was a surprise omission, despite turning in an impressive substitute display in Saturday’s 2-0 friendly victory against Serbia, with Valencia marksman Roberto Soldado also missing out.

Cesc Fabregas has been told to rest for up to ten days after straining his right thigh muscle in Barcelona’s Copa del Rey success and won’t be risked against South Korea.

Following Wednesday’s match, Spain face China in Seville before opening their Euro 2012 campaign against Italy on June 11.

For South Korea’s first match since defeating Kuwait in 2-0 in a February World Cup qualifier, Arsenal Striker Park Chu-Young has been left out of the 26-man squad that is also due to play two World Cup qualifiers against Qatar on June 8 and Lebanon on June 13.

South Korea boss Choi Kang-Hee has included Koo Ja-Cheol (Wolfsburg), Son Heung-Min (Hamburg) and Ji Dong-Won (Sunderland), who missed February’s 2-0 World Cup qualifier victory over Kuwait.

Fellow European-based players Ki Sung-Yeung (Celtic) and Park Joo-Ho (FC Basel) were also named.

But there was no room for Bolton midfielder Lee Chung-Yong despite making two substitute appearances late in the season after recovering from a broken leg.

The remainder of the squad consists of 14 players based in the K-League, four in the J-League and three in the Qatar Stars League.

In four previous meetings, Spain have prevailed twice but the 31st-ranked Koreans claimed a dramatic victory on penalties to advance to the semi-finals of the 2002 World Cup held in South Korea and Japan.

However, Spain won the nations’ most recent encounter – last June – courtesy of Jesus Navas’ goal four minutes from time.

Source : http://www.soccernews.com/international-friendly-preview-spain-v-south-korea/95438/

Roy set for first England session World Soccer Shop

Roy Hodgson will start working with the bulk of the England squad for the first time when they report to their Manchester base on Wednesday.

Hodgson: Preparing for first training session as England boss

Hodgson has had to wait three weeks since becoming manager to link up with new skipper Steven Gerrard and the majority of the players chosen to play at Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine this summer.

The conclusion of the Premier League season and the need for players to take a short break before the summer exertions has delayed Hodgson's involvement with the squad.

It leaves the former West Brom boss just 19 days and two friendly internationals against Norway and Belgium to hone his plans before the Euro 2012 opener with France on June 11.

The players will undergo their first training sessions with Hodgson on Wednesday afternoon and Thursday before flying out to Oslo on Friday for the game with Norway the following day.

It is the first time they have been together since the 3-2 defeat by Holland at Wembley in late February - and it will be next week before a full compliment of players is at Hodgson's disposal.

The Chelsea contingent of John Terry, Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard and Gary Cahill - plus stand-by player Daniel Sturridge - have been given extra time off after the club's Champions League heroics.

They will not report for duty until next Tuesday when England link-up at their accustomed Hertfordshire base ahead of the home clash with Belgium at Wembley on June 2.

Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney is also working to the same schedule after playing with a minor injury during the latter part of the campaign.

But in any case Rooney is suspended for England's opening two Euro games and his first chance to be involved in the tournament will be against Ukraine on June 19.

Hodgson has still to decide whether Rooney will play against Belgium given that he has to make alternative plans against France and then Sweden. Andy Carroll, Jermain Defoe and Danny Welbeck are the other striking options in the squad.

The main injury concern of the players reporting tomorrow continues to be Tottenham midfielder Scott Parker.

Parker, who skippered his country against Holland, was troubled by an Achilles injury during the latter part of the domestic campaign and he will be assessed by the England medical team.

Hodgson was optimistic about his chances when he announced his squad a week ago but will not make a final decision until May 29 - the date the final Euro squad needs to be submitted.

Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson is on stand-by should Parker be ruled out.

Source : http://soccer365.com//news/european_news/general/16922/roy_set_for_first_england_session