Snak

Santa Fe looks for a miracle against Olimpia in the El Campín

The ´Red Express´ will play a do or die game in the 2650 meters above sea level altitude in the Colombian capital. They will rely on the speed and effectiveness of scorer Cristian Martínez Borja, and the Argentinians Omar Perez and Jorge Emanuel Molina.

"Bogota is another beast all together. We are very confident because playing in El Campín is an advantage. We are going to play our best and leave it all out on the pitch," declared Argentinian Perez.

"We will overturn the result. We have the conditions to do so. It should be a perfect match and we want to reach the final. We´re going for the victory," said Wilder Medina, who is top scorer of the Colombian Apertura scoring 12 goals and currently has three goals in the Copa Libertadores.

After falling 2-0 on July 2 in Asuncion, Santa Fe has focused all its efforts on preparing for the international match.

Santa Fe is looking to reach the final stages of the Libertadores for the first time after seven appearances. In contrast, Olimpia seeks to conquer its fourth Copa Libertadores, after those obtained in 1979, 1991 and 2002.

The Paraguayan squad, led by Ever Almeida, arrived in Colombia determined to get a draw or score a goal to seal their qualification to the final.

"As always we come to win. We Know that we face a very good team playing very good football and it will be difficult," said midfielder Wilson Pittoni.

Although Uruguayan striker Juan Manuel Salgueiro will not play after his expulsion in the last game, Olimpia still has Nelson Benitez, Wilson Pittoni, Fredy Bareiro, Argentine Juan Carlos Ferreyra and star goalkeeper Martin Silva.

Santa Fe and Olimpia collide starting at 7:50 pm local time (00H50 GMT Wednesday) under the direction of Uruguayan referee Martin Vazquez. The winner will play in the final against either Argentina´s Newell´s Old Boys or Brazilian club Atletico Mineiro.

Salas, coach of Chile: "In the future these players are going to be the base of the national team"

"In the future these players are going to be the base of the national team. Now they have the sour taste of defeat in their mouths and I hope it can be a learning experience," Salas said in the press conference after the game.

Salas admitted that the Africans deserved the victory as they put the pressure on his team and attacked more.

"Ghana was better than us. We missed having more possession, we didn´t control their offensive players, we were somewhat weak in fighting for the ball. Two times during the game we could go forward but then we lost the ball quickly, we couldn´t keep it," he summarized.

The coach does not think their physical conditioning and their effort could take a toll on his men at the end, although it appeared evident in extra time where Ghana came back in the last eight minutes from being 3-2 down to win 4-3.

"Physical fitness is the end product of the effort of the players, but we had a good form in this tournament, it hasn´t been a problem," he said.

América formalizes sale of Ecuadorian Benítez and purchase of Colombian Andrade

Club América, reigning Mexican champion, confirmed on Sunday the sale of Ecuadorian striker Christian Benítez and at the same time the purchase of Colombian midfielder Andres Andrade for the upcoming Apertura.

"It´s now official, ´Chucho´ Benitez is in Qatar football", reported Ricardo Pelaez, president of América, to Televisa regarding the signing of the 27 year old Ecuadorian striker by club El Jaish.

"We also make official the signing of Andres Andrade, offensive midfielder from Deportes Tolima", Peláez Linares said.

The manager said to the fans of the Eagles that "we made every effort" to retain Benitez, who won three consecutive individual scoring titles and the league championship in the 2013 Clausura with América.

"Chucho leaves on the best of terms and at some point he could come back," said the coach.

As for the ´Rifle´ Andrade, 24 years old, Peláez said he "is a player who can run the field, especially on the right where we lacked a bit of depth."

The Colombian Andrade will join the roster which also includes his countrymen Aquivaldo Mosquera and Luis Gabriel Rey as well as Argentine Rubens Sambueza, Paraguayan Osvaldo Martinez and Ecuadorian Narciso Mina.

Pizzi: "La meta es ser primeros"

BUENOS AIRES -- El entrenador Juan Antonio Pizzi afirmó que San Lorenzo por historia y plantel tiene que aspirar a ganar los tres torneos que a jugar en este semestre: el Torneo Inicial, la Copa Argentina y la Copa Sudamericana.

"La meta es ser primeros en las tres competencias, San Lorenzo es el único equipo que va a participar en tres torneos y por una deducción lógica, tomando en cuenta la historia, el plantel y el cuerpo técnico deberemos intentarlo...veremos si somos capaces", señaló el DT en conferencia de prensa.

Pizzi, quien habló con las periodistas en un hotel de la localidad bonaerense de Los Cardales, en donde el equipo realiza la pretemporada, también argumentó sobre el motivo por el que los futbolistas eligen jugar en San Lorenzo por sobre otros clubes.

"Los jugadores desean venir porque San Lorenzo presenta el atractivo de poseer una estructura de equipo, con una manera determinada de jugar y porque además es un club ordenado", enfatizó el DT.

Pizzi señaló que tanto Martín Cauteruccio (delantero de Quilmes) y Emmanuel Más (defensor de San Martín de San Juan) están muy cerca de firmar contrato y que probablemente el jueves próximo sean jugadores de San Lorenzo.

Copa Libertadores 2013: Santa Fe vs Olimpia preview

Santa Fe vs Olimpia
El Campín, Bogotá
Semi Final 2nd Leg; Olimpia lead 2-0 on aggregate
09/07/2013; 20:50 (01:50 BST)
TV: Fox Sports (Latin America); ESPN (UK)

Here in Asunción you can feel it in the street, taste it in the air even there is a yearning for another Copa Libertadores final. Paraguayans aren’t necessarily very vocal but the number of Olimpia shirts on sale at the side of the road, the sharp increase in black and white flags on cars, the prevalence of “1979, 1990 and 2002″ overheard in conversation all point to this sense of expecation. El Decano fans can feel the final coming they are already picturing Ever Almeida with his hands on a third Libertadores trophy with the club. But before we get too carried away, let’s remember that El Campín situated at 2560 metres above sea level is not the easiest place to visit. Olimpia have only ever won once in Colombia and they’ve never scored in this stadium, drawing their first ever Copa Libertadores game here vs Millonarios (1960) and losing 2-0 in the 1989 semi-final against Atletico Nacional.

Olimpia fans flocked to the airport to see of the team – Photo: D10.com.py
We saw in the previous game that Almeida is so adaptable and seemed to get the better of Wilson Gutierrez responding with the Alejandro Silva substitution following the double sending off that ended up being decisive. The Uruguayan wing back was involved in both goals and his pace and positivity unnerved the Colombians. Undoubtedly they will look for a more defensive approach in the second leg but Silva could be used in a more attacking role allowing for the more conservative Mazacotte to retain his place in the starting XI. One of the key figures could be another Silva, Martin the goalkeeper was incredible against Fluminense in the previous away game in this tournament and if he keeps a cleansheet or only concedes one then Olimpia are definitely through.

There is no Bedoya due to his supsension but the front three of Cuero, Pérez and Wilder Medina will remain intact from the first leg. Jefferson Cuero certainly has the pace to trouble all of Olimipa’s three central defenders should he catch them one-on-one – the defensive role of the wing backs and Eduardo Aranda will be crucial once again. Assuming they don’t overstretch themselves they should be able to contain Santa Fe who have only managed more than 2 goals on one occassion in this year’s tournament.

Olimpia XI (probable): Martín Silva; Julio Manzur, Herminio Miranda, Salustiano Candia; Ricardo Mazacotte, Nelson Benítez; Wilson Pittoni, Eduardo Aranda, Matías Giménez; Alejandro Silva, Fredy Bareiro

Santa Fe XI (probable): Camilo Vargas; Juan Roa, Carlos Valdés, Francisco Meza, Marino García; Daniel Torres, John Valencia, Yulian Anchico, Jefferson Cuero, Omar Pérez , Wilder Medina

Prediction: 1-0

Santos vice-president: I hope Robinho will lower his wages again

Santos vice-president Odilio Rodrigues says Robinho must lower his wage demands again if he is serious about returning to his former club.

The Peixe are eager to tie up a deal for the Milan forward before the Brazilian transfer deadline on July 15, but are still struggling to meet his demands.

Robinho has long been linked with a return to his homeland but financial constraints have so far prevented a move, and negotiations could be set to stall yet again.

"I hope Robinho will lower his wages again," Rodrigues told Gazeta Esportiva.

"Milan have set a very high valuation on the player and we hope this can be cut to make the operation more do-able."

Santos have already overcome their biggest hurdle after the Rossoneri reportedly agreed to drop their €10 million valuation of the 29-year-old to €8.5m.

He scored just two goals in 23 Serie A appearances last season and found himself on the fringes of the side for much of the campaign.

Vasco manager Paulo Autuori resigns

Vasco have announced that the team´s manager Paulo Autuori has resigned, despite attempts to convince him to stay.

A meeting took place at Vasco Monday night but the club´s president Roberto Dinamite and directors Cristiano Koehler and Ricardo Gomes could not change Paulo Autuori´s decision.

Paulo Autuori was Vasco´s manager for three months, winning only four games, drawing twice and losing five times.

He had previously complained that the club were not paying the squad´s salary as they had originally promised.

Vasco issued a statement about Paulo Autuori, it says: "Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama informs that Paulo Autuori is not the manager anymore. Vasco thank him for his dedication and for what he has done for the club and wish him luck in his career."

The club have not announced a replacement yet, but Dorival Júnior is one of the options, while Paulo Autuori is among the favorites to replace Ney Franco as São Paulo´s next manager

Moutinho, Rodriguez eye Monaco glory

They may not be the standout names of Monaco´s significant transfer spending, but Ricardo Carvalho and Nicolas Isimat-Mirin could prove crucial signings nonetheless.

Joao Moutinho and James Rodriguez set their sights on adding to Monaco´s trophy cabinet after being officially presented to the media by their new club on Tuesday.

The pair were picked up by the principality club from Porto last month in an estimated €70 million double swoop.

And having both penned five-year deals at the Stade Louis II, Moutinho and Rodriguez insisted they are just as ambitious as their new employers.

"Monaco have a great list of honours and want more. We want to show ourselves in Europe," Moutinho said. "The first season will be difficult to go out and try to qualify for the Champions League. After that, we want to be in it as often as possible to be able to hope to win it one day.

"The project that was presented to me was mid-to-long-term, over two or three years. It includes excellent players, a great team. It´s a winning project, which is exactly what I wanted. We´re going to battle to win all the competitions in which we´ll play, I hope to contribute to the team winning titles."

Colombia international Rodriguez, who won the Portuguese Liga title alongside Moutinho last season, is looking forward to being joined on Monaco´s quest for silverware by another familiar face, in fellow former Porto man and international team-mate Radamel Falcao.

"Monaco is a club with a great history, a big club, and they give me the chance to play again with players like Joao and Falcao. That´s what motivated me to come here," Rodriguez, who reportedly accounted for €45 million of the transfer fee, said.

"When you´re a player, you want to go as far as possible, and I hope that Monaco will help me to do that. That´s all I´m interested in."

C. Riaño: "Un salto muy importante"

BUENOS AIRES -- El delantero cordobés Claudio Riaño definió su reciente llegada a Boca como "un salto muy importante" en su carrera y anticipó que tratará "de aprovecharlo".

Riaño se presentó a sí mismo como un atacante "muy aguerrido, muy luchador. Trato de aguantar las pelotas que puedo, empujar siempre para adelante y las que tengo, trato de convertirlas".

Respecto de sus primeros contactos con el director técnico Carlos Bianchi, el ex jugador de Racing y Talleres de Córdoba y San Martín de San Juan comentó que "solamente me dio la bienvenida delante de todo el grupo, me deseó mucha suerte y que pueda demostrar mis habilidades".

"Desde el momento en que llegué, el grupo me recibió de la mejor manera -añadió-. Trataré de adaptarme lo más rápido posible, acoplarme a la forma de trabajar de ellos para rendir al máximo. El sueño grupal es conseguir el campeonato, para eso desde ahora ya estamos trabajando".

En rueda de prensa, Riaño comentó que "por ahí el semestre pasado no fue muy bueno, pero es una nueva etapa. Estamos trabajando al ciento por ciento en la pretemporada para mejorar y obtener resultados positivos".

"En realidad, me gusta estar por el centro del ataque -confesó-, pero no tengo problema en salir a los costados y tirarme un poquito atrás para tratar de recibir la pelota. En lo personal, vengo de mi mejor semestre por el nivel de competencia, estar en Primera. En los últimos partidos pude agarrar continuidad, convertir varios goles".

Reveló el delantero que "cuando se me planteó la posibilidad de venir a Boca, no lo dudé ni un segundo. Comimos un asado en casa de mi representante, con mi familia, ahí me lo comunicó y desde el primer momento fue una gran alegría y una posibilidad enorme".

"Desde chico uno quiere jugar en el club más grande de la Argentina -afirmó-, empiezo a cumplir un sueño. Espero rápidamente poder debutar y terminar de cumplirlo. Yo estudiaba Administración de Empresas en Córdoba, jugaba en la Liga porque me gustaba. Un día hice un clic en mi cabeza y le dije a mi viejo que iba a dejar la facu un año para probar. Gracias a Dios hoy estoy acá. Estudiar es peor, ser jugador profesional es lo más lindo que te puede pasar"

Erviti y Silva siguen licenciados

BUENOS AIRES -- La práctica de Boca el martes comenzó a las 9.30 en el predio Pedro Pompilio de Casa Amarilla y la mayor expectativa estaba puesta en si acudirían o no Erviti y Silva, pero el club evitó suspicacias y les extendió las licencias para que definan su futuro en otra entidad.

Erviti, quien hizo público su deseo de dejar Boca a pesar de que le resta un año de contrato, podría continuar su carrera en Argentina o bien en Estados Unidos, siempre y cuando ingrese dinero en las arcas xeneizes, ya que hace dos años y medio se gastó casi cuatro millones de dólares para adquirirlo a Banfield.

El uruguayo Silva, en tanto, solo recibió sondeos pero también saldrá del club ante la primera oferta seria, ya que el entrenador Carlos Bianchi dejó claro que no lo tendrá en cuenta, algo similar a lo que le sucedió a Lucas Viatri, prestado al Jaguares de Chiapas mexicano.

En tanto, el resto del plantel entrenó a puertas cerradas y prevaleció el trabajo físico, es decir que no se practicó fútbol y seguramente se hará mañana ya que Bianchi les dio la tarde libre y recién este miércoles se volverá al doble turno.

Boca, mientras espera el arribo de Daniel Cata Díaz entre miércoles y jueves, ensayó con los dos únicos refuerzos que tiene por el momento, Franco Cángele y Claudio Riaño, y se prepara para el primer amistoso de pretemporada que será el domingo desde las 19.30 ante Estudiantes en el estadio Ciudad de La Plata.