The Korea Herald

Real Madrid wins Copa del Rey

VALENCIA, Spain (AP) ― Gareth Bale filled the void left by the injured Cristiano Ronaldo, sealing Real Madrid’s 19th Copa del Rey title with a late goal in Wednesday’s 2-1 win over Barcelona.Ronaldo’s extra-time play gave Madrid the 2011 Copa del Rey title at Barcelona’s expense. In his absence Wednesday, Bale scored in the 85th minute ― his first goal in three “clasico” matches ― to make sure Madrid repeated the feat.Angel Di Maria scored Madrid’s opener from a counterattack in the 11th minute,

April 17, 2014

Liverpool outlasts City, nears title

LIVERPOOL, England (AP) ― Liverpool took command of the captivating Premier League title race by beating Manchester City 3-2 in a match of wide-ranging emotions at Anfield, although the destiny of the trophy is also in Chelsea’s hands after its win at Swansea on Sunday.Liverpool is two points ahead of Chelsea in the Premier League, while Atletico leads La Liga by three points over Real Madrid following a 2-1 win at Getafe.Philippe Coutinho scored in the 78th minute to help Liverpool become the f

April 14, 2014

Hong hopes Park will rehab at home

Hong Myung-bo, head coach of South Korea’s national soccer team, said Monday he hopes the injured striker Park Chu-young will stay at home for rehab instead of returning to his English club.Park, who plays for Watford in England’s second division, arrived in South Korea on April 3 to treat his injured right foot.Doctors said he would need two to three weeks of rehab. With Watford’s season scheduled to end on May 4 and Park still not 100 percent, Hong said the player would be better off rehabbing

April 14, 2014

The future is now

Son Heung-min is part of a new wave of players aiming to enhance South Korea’s status at the World Cup, no longer content with merely being Asia’s most successful performer on soccer’s biggest stage.The South Koreans have progressed past the group stage in two of the last three World Cups, reaching the semifinals as cohost in 2002 and the last 16 in 2010.Approaching its eighth consecutive appearance at the World Cup, South Korea boasts a young team full of players with European experience and le

April 13, 2014

Barcelona loses again

LONDON (AP) ― Barcelona isn’t used to such demoralizing weeks. After being eliminated from the Champions League on Wednesday, the Catalan giant made a miserable return to Spanish league action, losing 1-0 at Granada on Saturday and dropping to third place.It also looked like a bleak day for Arsenal until Arsene Wenger’s side scraped into the FA Cup final by beating second-tier club Wigan in a penalty shootout.Barcelona’s loss ensured the same Atletico Madrid that ousted it from the Champions Lea

April 13, 2014

Korea pushes for match with Ghana

The South Korean men’s national soccer team is pushing for a warm-up match with Ghana in June in its buildup to the FIFA World Cup in Brazil this summer, officials said Sunday. The Korea Football Association said it hopes to arrange a friendly match with Ghana on June 10 as the last warm-up match during the South Korean national team’s pre-World Cup training camp in Miami. “We will announce the exact schedule and place once the friendly is confirmed,” the KFA said.Ghana, ranked 38th in the lates

April 13, 2014

Bayern, Atletico storm into semifinals

MUNICH (AP) ― Bayern Munich woke up against Manchester United only after falling behind.Mario Mandzukic, Thomas Mueller and Arjen Robben scored second-half goals for a 3-1 victory Wednesday night that advanced the defending champions to the Champions League semifinals for the third straight year.“I think it was very important we scored straight after they did,” Robben said after the 4-2 aggregate win. “It was crucial today. It looked like a wake-up call because the first 10 minutes of the second

April 10, 2014

Chelsea, Real Madrid reach semis

LONDON (AP) ― A boyhood fan of Paris Saint-Germain, Demba Ba showed any lingering affection he has for the club is in the past.With Chelsea facing Champions League elimination, Ba scored just his sixth goal of the season in the 87th minute Tuesday night, evening the total-goals series at 3-3. The Blues’ 2-0 win enabled them to advance to the semifinals on away goals following a 3-1 loss in the French capital last week.“It happened so quickly,” Ba said. “I was on the floor, just looked at the goa

April 9, 2014

Tottenham beats Sunderland 5-1

LONDON (AP) ― Christian Eriksen scored one goal and set up two more as Tottenham recovered from an early defensive howler to rout Sunderland 5-1, leaving the visitors rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table.Tottenham put aside speculation about manager Tim Sherwood’s future and the early mistake to produce a comfortable victory at White Hart Lane to stay in the hunt for a European place.

April 8, 2014

Chelsea takes lead in EPL

LONDON (AP) ― Chelsea reclaimed the lead in England ― at least for a day ― Atletico Madrid remained in front in Spain and Bayern Munich’s record 53-game unbeaten run in the Bundesliga ended with a 1-0 loss to Augsburg on Saturday.Chelsea provisionally dislodged Liverpool from the top spot by cruising to a 3-0 victory over Stoke, while title rival Manchester City routed Southampton 4-1.Atletico found it tougher, only overcoming Villarreal 1-0, while Barcelona beat Real Betis 3-1 and Real Madrid r

April 6, 2014

[Photo News] World Cup Trophy Tour

April 4, 2014

Juventus, Basel grab wins in Europa League

Juventus scored late to beat Lyon 1-0 and take a big stride toward the Europa League semifinals while Benfica and FC Basel also won to move within sight of a second straight appearance in the last four on Thursday. Leonardo Bonucci poked home Juventus’ 85th-minute winner in its quarterfinal first leg at Stade Gerland, keeping the Italian league leaders and competition favorites on course to reach the final in their own stadium on May 14. “It’s a pity,” said Lyon midfielder Maxime Gonalons, whose

April 4, 2014

Juventus, Basel grab wins in Europa League

World Cup roster '90 percent' complete: head coach

The South Korean men's football team for this year's FIFA World Cup is nearly set with about two months remaining, the national head coach said Friday. "Our final roster is more than 90 percent complete," Hong said during the media showcase of the FIFA World Cup Trophy in Seoul on Friday. "I am also trying to draw up alternative plans in case of injuries to key players." Hong said he and his coaches are keeping a close tab on players' form, saying it is important for them to avoid injuries b

April 4, 2014

PSG and Madrid roll to victories

With first-leg victories, Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid are in good position to reach the Champions League semifinals.PSG took advantage of Chelsea’s sloppy defending in a 3-1 win Wednesday night as substitute Javier Pastore scored a brilliant late goal on a solo run. Madrid won 3-0 at home against Borussia Dortmund as Cristiano Ronaldo got his record-tying 14th goal of this season’s competition.Ezequiel Lavezzi put the hosts ahead in the fourth minute following a poor headed clearance by

April 3, 2014

Man United holds Bayern to draw

After an entertaining 1-1 tie at home against defending champion Bayern Munich, Manchester United believes it can reach the Champions League semifinals.Bastian Schweinsteiger scored in the 67th minute to offset a goal by Nemanja Vidic on Tuesday night, then was ejected near the final whistle of the first leg of the home-and-home, total-goals series. “Tonight’s performance was more than you’d hope for,” United manager David Moyes said. “Hopefully tonight shows we will go there and go toe to toe w

April 2, 2014

West Ham beats Sunderland

SUNDERLAND, England (AP) ― Sunderland’s relegation fears worsened with a 2-1 home loss to West Ham in the Premier League on Monday.Andy Carroll helped the visitors take a major step toward securing their own status for next season by powering in a header from a corner in the 10th minute, and Mohamed Diame doubled the lead five minutes into the second half.Adam Johnson gave Sunderland hopes of a comeback when he pulled one back with a good finish in the 65th, but goalkeeper Adrian pulled off a do

April 1, 2014

Work halted at WC stadium marked by death

SAO PAULO (AP) ― Labor officials are halting construction in part of the World Cup stadium where a worker died this weekend, creating a problem for Brazilian organizers trying to get the venue ready for the tournament’s opening match in less than three months.Fast Engenharia, the construction company in charge of the temporary seats, said in a statement that it received the notification from Sao Paulo’s labor secretariat late Monday.The officials said the installation of the temporary seats must

April 1, 2014

Chelsea loses but stays top; Spain’s leading 3 win

LONDON (AP) ― While Spain’s top three all won, none of the England’s leading sides could produce a victory on Saturday.Chelsea remains top of the Premier League despite losing 1-0 at lowly Crystal Palace after title rivals Arsenal and Manchester City drew 1-1, presenting Liverpool with the chance to go top on Sunday with a win at Tottenham.La Liga’s star forward all found the net as Diego Costa’s Atletico Madrid remained top, followed by Lionel Messi’s Barcelona, and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Real Mad

March 30, 2014

Chelsea loses but stays top; Spain’s leading 3 win

Hiddink appointed new Netherlands coach

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) – Guus Hiddink will take over as Netherlands coach after the World Cup, when Louis van Gaal is stepping down, the country's football association announced on Friday.Hiddink will lead the Netherlands until the end of the 2016 European Championship in France and then be replaced by Danny Blind.Blind and former Manchester United and Real Madrid striker Ruud van Nistelrooy were appointed as 67-year-old Hiddink's assistants.Hiddink said he was honored to return for a secon

March 28, 2014

Madrid slips in race as Barca rolls

BARCELONA (AP) ― Real Madrid lost 2-1 at Sevilla on Wednesday to slip behind Atletico Madrid and Barcelona in the race for the Spanish league title Wednesday.Cristiano Ronaldo put Madrid in charge with his league-leading 27th goal of the season in the 14th minute, but Sevilla striker Carlos Bacca scored twice, in the 19th and 73rd, to complete the comeback.Diego Costa’s second-half header gave Atletico a 1-0 victory at home over Granada as it moved three points clear of Madrid with eight rounds

March 27, 2014