Barca beat AC Milan 3-2 to win Group HLONDON (AP) ― Arsenal might be the only English club that makes it through to the knockout rounds of the Champions League this season.A day after Manchester United and Manchester City both missed the chance to qualify, Chelsea conceded a last-minute goal to lose 2-1 at Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday and risk missing out for the first time since Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003.Leverkusen advanced alongside Arsenal, which beat Borussia Dortmund 2-1 thr

Nov. 24, 2011

Benfica seals last-16 place by drawing at Manchester UnitedLONDON (AP) ― Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and Benfica earned places in the knockout phase of the Champions League on Tuesday, while the hopes of the two Manchester clubs were left hanging.Franck Ribery scored twice and Bayern Munich beat Villarreal 3-1 to grab the top spot in Group A with one round remaining.Inter, the 2010 champion, qualified for the last 16 before its match at Trabzonspor, courtesy of Lille’s earlier 2-0 win at CSKA Mos

Nov. 23, 2011

Arsenal hosts Borussia Dortmund in a UEFA Champions League game that could pit South Korea captain Park Chu-young against Japanese star Shinji Kagawa on Wednesday but which prevents either of them being named as the 2011 Asian Player of the Year.It is a cause of controversy every November because the Asian Football Confederation decrees that only players who attend the ceremony in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia are eligible to receive the continent’s major individual football prize.Since the rule came i

Nov. 22, 2011

ANKARA (AP) ― Guus Hiddink is out as Turkey’s soccer coach, leaving a day after the team failed to qualify for next year’s European Championship.Turkey’s soccer federation said Thursday it had reached a mutual agreement for the 65-year-old Dutchman to depart. He began in May 2010 and had a contract due to expire next August.“We thank Guus Hiddink for services rendered during his term and wish him a healthy and happy life,” the federation said.Hiddink coached South Korea to the 2002 World Cup sem

Nov. 17, 2011

Ireland, Portugal, Croatia and the Czech Republic clinched European Championship berths on Tuesday night to complete the 16-nation field for next year’s tournament in Poland and Ukraine.Knocked out of World Cup qualifying two years ago by France with the help of Thierry Henry’s hand ball, Ireland tied visiting Estonia 1-1 to win the home-and-home playoff on 5-1 aggregate and qualify for its first major tournament in a decade.“This has been a long time in coming,” Irish goalkeeper Shay Given said

Nov. 16, 2011

South Korea head coach Cho Kwag-rae has expressed his disappointment after watching his side’s shock defeat to Lebanon on Tuesday. Lebanon, which suffered a humiliating 6-0 defeat against Korea in September, stunned the Taegeuk Warriors by defeating the visitors 2-1 at Sports City Stadium in Beirut. It was their first defeat in five games in the third round of the Asian qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup. Cho blamed the defeat on the lack of first-team players including striker Park Chu-young of

Nov. 16, 2011

National team to attack Lebanon without captain Park Chu-youngKorea has long been a powerhouse in Asian football, and this year the Taegeuk Warriors are on the path to qualify for their eighth consecutive appearance in the World Cup.Just one more victory will seal a berth in Asia’s final qualifying round for the 2014 World Cup. It can be clinched on Tuesday when Korea, which sits on top in Group B, faces runner-up Lebanon in Beirut.In its previous encounter in September, manager Cho Kwang-rae’s

Nov. 14, 2011

WEMBLEY, England (AP) ― Frank Lampard scored on a header four minutes into the second half to lead England past Spain 1-0 Saturday, the fourth loss for the Spaniards since they won the World Cup.Lampard struck after Darren Bent’s header came off the post, giving England a victory at Wembley Stadium after being outplayed most of the way.“The fact England only got near the goal with that chance from the free kick did show we dominated the game,” Spain coach Vicente del Bosque said through a transl

Nov. 13, 2011

Korea could qualify after two away games in Middle EastSouth Korea’s qualification for the 2014 World Cup faces a crucial few days, with away matches against the United Arab Emirates on Friday and Lebanon on Tuesday. Korea, which aims to qualify for its eighth consecutive appearance in the World Cup, is grouped with Kuwait, Lebanon and the UAE in the third round of Asian qualifying.There are five groups of four teams in the third round with the top two from each group advancing to the final roun

Nov. 10, 2011

Asian stars struggle for playing time in EuropeA shortage of club playing time for Asia’s top players is causing headaches for the region’s national teams ahead of World Cup qualifiers in the coming week.South Korea, Japan and Australia are three nations expecting to reach the 2014 World Cup, but their qualification campaigns are being hampered by many of their top players warming the bench with their club sides in Europe.Sunderland’s Ji Dong-won and Arsenal’s Park Chu-young, who have both had l

Nov. 8, 2011

Injuries are inevitable in football, but Jeonbuk Hyundai striker Lee Dong-gook has had a harder time of it than most players. And the 32-year-old blamed himself for the team’s failure to win the AFC Champions League final after losing to Qatar’s Al Sadd on Saturday.“Although we played a good game, we lost in the end. And I think it’s because of me,” Lee said after the game.The Jeonbuk striker was referring to his injury that prevented him from playing a full match against Al Sadd in front of hom

Nov. 6, 2011

MANCHESTER, United Kingdom (AFP) ― Sir Alex Ferguson has leapt to the defense of Sunderland manager Steve Bruce as he prepares to celebrate 25 years at Old Trafford against the Black Cats on Saturday.Sunderland are four points above the bottom three after just two wins in 10 league games this season.Bruce’s position at the Stadium of Light has come into question but Ferguson, who marks his 25th year in charge of United on Sunday, has backed his former captain to come through a difficult period.B

Nov. 4, 2011