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Apertura 2013: No frills for Santos Laguna

The budgets have been squeezed in Santos Laguna; the abundance of past times is over. The list of outgoing players of the last two season breaks has included Daniel Luduena, Christian Suarez, Ivan Estrada, Edgar Gerardo Lugo, and Herculez Gomez, to just mention a few. However, the team remains competitive.

Pedro Caixinha had a very good first season in Mexico. He progressed far in both of the competitions he tackled, but the way in which his team was eliminated was very abrupt. The team did not recover from losing the final of the Concacaf Champions League to Monterrey; and they were ejected and overrun in the semifinals of the Cruz Azul League.

For the Apertura 2013 they have three new additions who were substitutes in the teams they came from: Eduardo Herrera (ex-forward for Pumas who arrived traded for Candido Ramirez), Javier "Chuleta" Orozco (who had eight goals for Cruz Azul although he started on the bench) and Nestor Araujo (a central defender who was a substitute at the Olympic Games and at Cruz Azul with good potential).

Caixinha is charged with polishing the three new players and developing their potential, something which is also necessary for the Colombian striker Andres Renteria who had very little playing time in the Clausura 2013 and showed he was still in good shape. The Portuguese coach has many virtues, and one of them happens to be the development of players.

Santos works solidly as a team, however, it is the skill of individuals that makes them dangerous opponents. This is why they missed Oribe Peralta so much at the end of the season. He was injured during the Concacaf final and did not return; in fact, he missed the Confederations Cup and the Gold Cup. "El Cepillo" (the brush) has become a key player; they need him healthy. Without him, they only won two of the nine games in which they played.

Oswaldo Sanchez will be 40 in September, which did not prevent him from being the least-scored-against goalkeeper of the Clausura 2013. He produced solid performances early in the tournament, but against Cruz Azul he collapsed dramatically. Felipe Baloy leads the defense, Juan Pablo Rodríguez the midfield, and Carlos Darwin Quintero provides firepower upfront.

Watch out for Mauro Cejas -- he has a lot of football. During the last tournament, he spent nearly four months recovering from an injury. The fact that he is healthy from the start is good news for Santos.

There are gaps to fill, but there is still a squad and coach which are solid enough to compete.

Magallán, cerca de Rosario Central

BUENOS AIRES -- El marcador central Lisandro Magallán, cuyo pase pertenece a Boca, tiene casi todo acordado para jugar en Rosario Central un año a préstamo.

Paralelamente, Central negocia con Boca el regreso del mediocampista Jesús Méndez, una de las figuras del equipo que logró el ascenso a Primera División durante la temporada pasada.

Sólo falta que Magallán arregle su contrato con los dirigentes de Central para que la cesión por parte de Boca sea confirmada oficialmente.

Magallán, de 19 años e integrante del seleccionado argentino Sub 20, llegó en junio del año pasado a Boca, donde tuvo escasas chances de mostrarse.

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Flamengo sign Arsenal´s left-back André Santos


Flamengo have signed Arsenal´s left-back André Santos in a two-year contract, after he passed the medical this Thursday.

André Santos managed to cancel his contract with Arsenal, despite early reports that he would join Flamengo on a one-year loan deal. The left-back will own 50% of his own rights, while Flamengo will own the rest.

The negotiations advanced quickly as the international transfer window in Brazil will close on July 20.

As part of the agreement, Flamengo are expected to let either João Paulo or Ramón leave the club, so there will not be too many left-backs in the squad.

The official annoucement is expected to happen on Monday, André Santos has previously worked with current Flamengo manager Mano Menezes at Corinthians.

Spurs target Santos youngster Neilton

Tottenham Hostspur are preparing a £7million bid for highly-rated Santos striker Neilton after being convinced that he is the next big thing to come out of Brazil.

Tottenham have been scouting the player and have been raving about the youngster, who has already been dubbed the new Neymar, after he broke into the Santos side earlier this year, reports suggest.

Boss Andre Villas-Boas is now willing to splash the cash to make sure he continues his development at White Hart Lane.

Neilton, a winger by trade who can also play up front, has made himself a regular in the Santos team in recent weeks following the sale of Neymar to Barcelona, and it appears the club have found an instant replacement.

Not only did the two graduate from the same academy and play in the same position, but it’s thought that Neilton can also go on to have the same career.

And after Spurs failed to act when they spotted Neymar’s potential as a 15-year-old, they are determined not to miss out on Neilton.

The player is rumoured to have a £5million buyout clause, but it’s reported that the clause is only open to Brazilian clubs so Spurs would have to pay if they want to land their man.

CONCACAF Gold Cup Preview: Last-gasp Cuba meet in-form Panama

Cuba will look to maintain momentum going in their CONCACAF Gold Cup quarter-final after their last-minute qualification.

Walter Benitez´s men only made it through to the last-eight meeting with Panama thanks to a stoppage-time goal, which meant they went through as the second-best third-placed side in the group stages.

Following their 4-0 win over Belize, which saw Ariel Martinez score a hat-trick before Jeniel Marquez grabbed the all-important goal, Benitez declared the victory "a great achievement" and "like winning the World Cup".

The quarter-final will be Cuba´s first since 2003, when they were beaten 5-0 by the USA, and Benitez´s men are likely to face a tough challenge when they meet group A winners Panama.

Julio Dely Valdes´ side are unbeaten in the competition so far, winning two and drawing one of their games, conceding just one goal in the process.

After seeing off Mexico and Martinique, Panama drew a blank against Canada, knocking Antonio Fonseca´s side out of the competition.

Dely Valdes said after the draw that he felt his team´s fitness would be crucial to their overall chances.

"A rested team in these short tournaments is very important. It can be a determining factor on the field," he told the CONCACAF website.

He will be looking for joint-second-top scorer Gabriel Torres to continue his good form in the tournament so far.

Torres is level on goals with Cuba´s Martinez and is the only member of his side to score at the competition.

The two countries have met 11 times in total, with Panama being victorious on six occasions and the sides´ only previous Gold Cup meeting ending in a draw.

The winners of the last-eight tie will meet either Mexico or Trindad and Tobago in the semi-finals.

CONCACAF Gold Cup Preview: Costa Rica boss eager for Honduras clash

Costa Rica manager Jorge Luis Pinto cannot wait for his side´s CONCACAF Gold Cup quarter-final against Honduras on Sunday.

Both sides have lost once and won twice in their opening three Gold Cup fixtures, with Costa Rica missing out on a 100 per cent group C record following their defeat against the USA on Tuesday.

However, despite the loss against the Americans following a late Brek Shea goal, Pinto was pleased with his side´s efforts.

"We feel that we played very well," he told the CONCACAF website.

"We’re going to continue to improve on what we´re doing. I´m happy that collectively we improved our game and we have been able to do things better."

He also told of his excitement at facing rivals Honduras in the quarter-finals.

"I always love playing Honduras. They´re always tough games. All we have to do is play with the mentality that we always have and hopefully it will put us through.

"One of the things I always say is that Honduras-Costa Rica is always a type of derby. We expect a great game."

Prior to the defeat against America, Costa Rica had gone 785 minutes without conceding, helping them to victories over Cuba and Belize, finishing in second and three points clear of Cuba as a result.

Honduras on the other hand have been more clinical in their matches, if slightly less lethal than Costa Rica in front of goal.

Three goals have been enough to secure them wins against Haiti and El Salvador, while they conceded their first goals of the competition against Trinidad and Tobago in their last game, losing 2-0.

In the 54 games that the two sides have played one another, Honduras have taken 19 wins while Costa Rica have 22, suggesting that the fixture could go either way.

One man who is likely to have a say in the result is Costa Rica´s Michael Barrantes Rojas, who is joint-third-highest goalscorer in the competition with two.

Díaz se entrenó por 1ª vez con Boca

BUENOS AIRES -- El defensor Daniel Díaz se entrenó en la tarde del jueves por primera vez con el plantel de Boca Juniors en Casa Amarilla, después de concretar su retorno al club desde el fútbol español.
El marcador central, quinto refuerzo del plantel dirigido por el DT Carlos Bianchi, se sumó al trabajo después de firmar en la mañana del jueves su nuevo vínculo por tres años con el club.

Además del ex-Rosario Central y Colón de Santa Fe, también se entrenaron otras tres incorporaciones: los delanteros Emmanuel Gigliotti, Franco Cángele y Claudio Riaño.

Después de un breve calentamiento, Díaz participó del ensayo de fútbol en el que Bianchi paró un equipo con vistas al clásico amistoso con San Lorenzo, el domingo próximo, por el Torneo de Invierno.

El equipo dispuesto por el Virrey fue el siguiente: Agustín Orión; Leandro Marín, Matías Caruzzo, Guillermo Burdisso y Emanuel Insúa; Guillermo Fernández, Pablo Ledesma y Juan Sánchez Miño; Juan Román Riquelme; Juan Manuel Martínez y Nicolás Blandi.

Del lado opuesto se pararon: Manuel Vicentini; Alan Aguirre, Daniel Díaz, Claudio Pérez y Nahuel Zárate; Joel Acosta, Jesús Méndez, Federico Bravo y Fernando Evangelista; Cángele y Riaño.

En otro orden, el zaguero central Guillermo Burdisso se retiró con un traumatismo en el tobillo izquierdo y no completó la práctica del plantel principal que conduce Carlos Bianchi, con miras al ensayo del domingo ante San Lorenzo, en el marco del cierre del denominado triangular de Invierno.

Por último, el arquero Emanuel Trípodi, quien ya arregló su llegada como quinto refuerzo para el plantel, todavía no se presentó a las prácticas.

AMISTOSO EN SAN LUIS

Boca Juniors jugará un amistoso en San Luis contra un seleccionado local elegido por los habitantes de esa provincia a través de Internet, el sábado 27 de este mes.

La venta de entradas comenzó el jueves en las sucursales del Banco Supervielle de la capital provincial, de Villa Mercedes y de Merlo.

La oferta se extenderá hasta el viernes 26, con descuentos para quienes compren de forma anticipada.

En tal caso, un lugar en las popular costará 30 pesos, uno en la platea descubierta, 50, y uno en la cubierta, 100.

El mismo día del partido, las entradas se podrán adquirir en el estadio Juan Gilberto Funes por 50, 75 y 120 pesos, respectivamente.

Erviti destrabó su salida de Boca

BUENOS AIRES -- El mediocampista Walter Erviti que había sido separado del plantel de Boca y se entrenaba con la división Reserva, destrabó la situación conflictiva que mantenía y viajará a México para sumarse al Atlante.
De acuerdo a lo revelado por el representante del jugador, Martín Guastadisegno, "el tema se resolvió hace dos años, se terminaron las negociaciones", comentó el empresario, con entusiasmo.

El marplatense Erviti queda con el pase en su poder, tras el pago de un dinero a manera de resarcimiento a la entidad xeneize, y se marchará a la entidad con sede en Cancún.

El exmediocampista de Banfield y San Lorenzo se entrenó este jueves, por última vez, junto a sus ex compañeros auriazules. Lo hizo con el plantel de la Reserva (también estuvo el uruguayo Santiago Silva) y participó del fútbol informal que se llevó a cabo.

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Jeg vil nok vente med at juble til jeg fik historien verificeret andet sted end i et radioprgram også - særligt når Porto er inde i billedet jvf BMG.