There was an incredible Under 21 match Saturday between Italy and England. The game ended in a 3-3 tie, which seemed about right. But what made this match even more interesting was the fact that it was played at Wembley, which has been undergoing some renovations in the last few years.

This was the first International to be played at the new venue, and it put to rest any worries that the FA Cup Final, scheduled for May, would be held at Cardiff or some other facility. Italy's Gianpaolo Pazzini scored a hat trick and the Fiorentina player scored what should stand as the New Wembley's fastest goal, in the first minute of play, with a relative long-range shot that beat Rio Ferdinand's brother, Anton. No wonder West Ham are leaking goals!

yet another test


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I watched some of Tuesday's Champions League match between Celtic and AC Milan on ESPN Desportes, so it was strange to hear some of the Scottish/English names being pronounced by the Spanish-language announcers. Still, I thought the match commentary was fair and informative and it was great to see Celtic on television. The great thing about having Celtic play Milan was that AC Milan has its own channel and usually broadcasts, in English, any match AC plays in Europe, usually two or three days after it is played.


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Celtic in the Quarter Final of UEFA Cup

'Tic had a great match in Germany, with two quick goals by, ironically, our two English players, Sutton and Thompson. It was a great game, and Celtic moved forward on aggregate, even if they lost the match 3-2 to Stuttguart. Our next opponents: Liverpool. This should be an even bigger "Battle of Britain" than our matchup against Blackburn Rovers last year.

Ryan Giggs

Score two away goals in the Champions League and what happens? Trade talks abound! Poor Ryan. It seems he's off to the
lesser of the Milan teams, Inter, at season's end. A tricky move, certainly. Few English players have done well in Serie A lately. I think Giggs is one
of the best players Scumchester United have. It would be a shame to see him go, but then again.......

Crowd Trouble at Torino

This have been quiet in Seria A lately, but that changed when the Torino fans tried a pitch invasion at the Stadio delle Alpe, a huge motherload of a stadium they share with Juventus. RAI International had this match as their featured match Saturday, and the invasion came just after Inter of Milan scored their third goal, just moments into the second half. Coverage suggested the fans, by throwing plastic seats onto the large running track that surrounds the football field, caused the match to be stopped, but it was clear that police use of tear gas (which the Torino fans threw back at the police) caused the match to be stopped. I understand the coach of the Torino team was sacked and the youth coach promoted. Juventus play Scumchester United today in the same stadium, so it will be interesting to see if the damage to the Plexiglas has been replaired. I also wonder if the visiting Inter fans (who seemed to be changing, "juve, juve" Torino's arch enemies) had anything to do with the invasion.

Henrik's Injury

Henrik Larsson was injured 9 Feb. during the match against Livingston. The official site says his jaw was broken in two places. The injury could not have come at a worse time for Henke and the team, as we're about to enter the next stage of the UEFA cup against Stuttgart, the German side near the top of the German Bundesliga. The odd thing is that the challenge on Henke didn't seem bad at all. The Livingston defender went up in the air to get the same ball as Henke and the replays didn't even suggest there was much contact. Still, some Celtic fans were upset enough at the injury that they threw stones at the home of the match referee, blaming him for the injury. As a Celtic supporter, this upsets me. We're acting like the Huns!

This is a site where we can discuss the world's most beautiful game. Football. Not American football, which is staged and boring, but the real deal, played the world over.

Word!