Frank Lampard isn't ruling out a move across the Atlantic. The Chelsea midfielder refused to deny a potential move to the MLS when asked about the possibility after Chelsea's 1-1 draw with Paris St. Germain on Sunday. Lampard has repeatedly said that he would prefer to end his career at the English club, where he has played since arriving from West Ham in 2001, but that the decision isn't his. The 34-year-old has a year left on his contract and said he was willing to talk to Chelsea about his future but isn't expecting a decision until the end of... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI In the end, Germany proved to be way too much for upstart Greece to overcome. Despite a short-lived equalizer by the Greeks in the second half, Germany steamrolled the 2004 European champions, as a 4-2 victory booked the Germans' place in the semifinals. Philipp Lahm, Sami Khedira, Miroslav Klose, and Marco Reus provided the goals for Germany, while Greece got a goal just after halftime from Georgios Samaras and a late consolation penalty from Dimitris Salpingidis. Germany, which left Mario Gomez, Lukas Podolski and Thomas Muller on the bench, could have been up as early as the... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI In the face of lowered expectations, England is excelling at Euro 2012. Wayne Rooney marked his return from suspension with a goal as England, with the help of a controversial refereeing decision, weathered a relentless Ukraine attack to claim a 1-0 victory, first place in Group D and a date with Italy in the quarterfinals. Ukraine was the more dangerous side but could not find the back of the net en route to a scoreless first half, and England went ahead just after halftime. Steven Gerrard whipped a cross into the box and Ukraine goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI Germany is making survival in the Group of Death look rather clinical. The Germans won their second straight tough match at Euro 2012, dispatching the Netherlands 2-1 behind two goals from Mario Gomez to maintain first place in Group B and all but seal their place in the knockout stage. The Netherlands, on the other hand, are on the verge of failing to advance out of the group stage two years after advancing to the World Cup Final. The Dutch have yet to earn a single point from their two group games and face a must-win scenario... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI At the kickoff of Survival Sunday in England, most believed that Manchester City would be champions for the first time since 1968. What they couldn't have predicted, however, was the hysteria that was to follow over the next couple of hours. Edin Dzeko and Sergio Aguero scored in second-half stoppage time to give Manchester City a thrilling 3-2 victory over Queens Park Rangers to capture the Premier League championship in heart-stopping fashion. Pablo Zabaleta had put City ahead in the first half and it looked to be all over but QPR turned in a heroic performance and... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI For Manchester City, the Premier League title is within their grasp, but standing in the way is a familiar face. Former City manager Mark Hughes takes his Queens Park Rangers side into Etihad Stadium on Sunday with a chance to spoil his old club's run to the title. Hughes was sacked by City in 2009 and was replaced by Roberto Mancini; however, revenge won't be the only thing on Hughes' mind as QPR needs at least a draw to guarantee safety from relegation. Manchester City can wrap up its first English title since 1968 with a win,... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI As Real Madrid and Ajax officially wrapped up their league titles in midweek, three of the six major leagues in Europe have already crowned their champion. The question of who will raise the Scudetto hinges on the penultimate weekend in Serie A as the Milan derby looms large and the league leaders jockey for position. AC Milan took advantage of Juventus' midweek draw to move within one point of pole position. They can retake the lead this weekend but looming large is a resurgent Inter Milan squad that is unbelievably in the hunt for a Champions League... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI The Manchester derby is always a tense affair, but when the Premier League title is on the line it becomes one of the must-see games of the season. Manchester United have seen their eight-point lead from two weeks ago shrink to a mere three points, and Manchester City now control their own destiny because of their superior goal differential. Mario Balotelli led City to a stunning 6-1 victory at Old Trafford back in October and gave them a five-point lead over United at the time. An inconsistent City followed in the early part of 2012, but the... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI Either Bayern Munich will be hosting the UEFA Champions League final, or Jose Mourinho will be bringing another team to Europe's grandest stage. One way or another, it's all on the line in Spain's capital city on Wednesday. Bayern Munich take a 2-1 lead over Real Madrid back to Estadio Santiago Bernabeu for the second leg of their Champions League semifinal. Madrid have been impressive at home in this season's Champions League campaign, and the away goal scored by Mesut Ozil could prove vital in Mourinho bringing his second team to the UCL final in three years.... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI Bayern Munich are one step closer to playing a Champions League Final in their home stadium as they dispatched Real Madrid 2-1 in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League semifinal. Mario Gomez scored from very close range off a Philipp Lahm cross in the 89th minute to break a 1-1 deadlock. It was Gomez's 12th goal in his last 10 European games as Bayern Munich dominated the latter stages of both halves. Franck Ribery fired the home side ahead early in the first half with a well-taken shot after a failed clearance from Madrid off... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI Despite the dominance Real Madrid have exhibited in this season's UEFA Champions League, speculation lingers that their route to the semifinals has something to do with poor opposition along the way. Jose Mourinho's men have yet to play a team from England, Spain, Germany or Italy in their 10 UEFA Champions League matches, but all that will change when they travel to the Allianz Arena to take on German powerhouse Bayern Munich in the opening leg of their semifinal tie. Madrid are searching for their first Champions League title in 10 years, while Munich have the added... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI As the Bundesliga turns down the home stretch, rivals become allies as Borussia Dortmund threaten to run away with another league title. Dortmund's 1-0 victory over Bayern Munich Wednesday saw the defending champions move six points clear at the top of the table with only four games to play. Now Bayern must hope third-place Schalke can get a result when they welcome Dortmund on Saturday. Schalke has plenty of incentive to get a victory, as they try to hold off a challenge from fourth-placed Borussia Monchengladbach. That feat could be made a bit more difficult as Mario... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI Real Madrid and Chelsea are through to the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League after holding on to first-leg advantages with home victories. Chelsea were able to book their date with Barcelona despite long stretches of poor play in a 2-1 win over Benfica resulting in a 3-1 win on aggregate. Frank Lampard converted a penalty that was drawn by Ashley Cole midway through the first half. The game looked to be over for the visitors when Maxi Pereira was sent off for two yellow cards, but Javi Garcia equalized five minutes from time to give Benfica... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI Despite all of the strife surrounding Chelsea this season, the Blues are a result away from another trip to the UEFA Champions League semifinals. If Chelsea are able to make their 1-0 lead against Benfica stand up at Stamford Bridge, a berth in the semifinal against Barcelona -- in what would be a rematch of the classic, yet controversial, 2009 semifinal -- will be on tap. Benfica have been underestimated before and will hope to take advantage of a Chelsea side that struggles to hold on to leads. Real Madrid's game against APOEL is something of a... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI An inspired defensive performance from AC Milan kept Barcelona at bay during a 0-0 draw in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarterfinal tie, but things won't be nearly as easy this time around. Barcelona have been unstoppable at home in all competitions this season, winning 20 of their 25 games at Camp Nou. However, AC Milan did manage a 2-2 draw when the two teams met in Barcelona on September 13 with Alexandre Pato and Thiago Silva getting the goals. Injuries may take their toll on both teams, with Thiago Silva and Mark Van... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI It's all square heading back to Camp Nou as Barcelona and AC Milan battled to a scoreless draw at the San Siro in the opening leg of their UEFA Champions League quarterfinal tie. AC Milan wasted early chances from Robinho and Zlatan Ibrahimovic but didn't threaten much after the opening half-hour. Barcelona, meanwhile struggled to break down Milan's organized and inspired defense, which became the first unit to shut out Barcelona in the Champions League since Rubin Kazan accomplished the feat in November, 2009 -- a span of 30 matches. The Italian side will take hope that... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI AC Milan and Barcelona are set to square off for the third time in this season's UEFA Champions League as the Serie A leaders welcome the defending European champions to the San Siro for the first leg of their quarterfinal tie. Lionel Messi arrives in Italy with an astounding 12 goals in this season's Champions League, but Barcelona struggled to impose themselves when the two teams met back in September. Alexandre Pato scored in the first minute, and a 90th-minute header from Thiago Silva earned a 2-2 draw for Milan. Since then, Barcelona have been imperious, winning... Continue reading

It took awhile but Chelsea and Real Madrid both scored late to take leads back home. Chelsea won away in Europe for the first time in 13 months when Salomon Kalou scored late in the second half to give the Blues a 1-0 win against Benfica. The home side had the majority of possession and registered 25 shots but didn't create many real chances. Ex-Benfica defender David Luiz and John Terry anchored a Chelsea back line which was surprisingly well organized. Real Madrid scored three in the final 16 minutes to effectively end the Cinderella run of APOEL. Karim Benzema... Continue reading

The oldest cup competition in the world and the most prestigious tournament in the modern game are on display as the quarterfinals of both the FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League kick off this afternoon. Chelsea take their circus on the road to Portugal as Roberto Di Matteo's men face Benfica (2:45, Fox Soccer). Chelsea's emotional victory over Napoli two weeks ago has given way to the return of inconsistent play and Benfica will look to take advantage. Things could be a lot less competitive when APOEL takes on Real Madrid in Cyprus (2:45, Foxsoccer2go.com) An emotional fixture is... Continue reading

To say it's David versus Goliath would be an understatement. APOEL Nicosia are in the midst of one of the more remarkable Champions League runs in recent memory but the powerhouse that is Real Madrid threaten to put an emphatic end to the feel-good story. Cristiano Ronaldo and his Madrid cohorts will travel to Cyprus, a country with a fourth of the population of city of Madrid, to take on APOEL. Real Madrid have steamrolled through the competition with a plus-20 goal differential and were comfortable in their quarterfinal victory over CSKA Moscow. APOEL have been in impressive in their... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI Manchester City are back atop the English Premier League but it came in less-than-convincing fashion with a 1-1 draw away to Stoke. Peter Crouch scored one of the goals of the season to give the home side a second-half lead. A long ball from deep inside Stoke's half was headed by Crouch to Jermaine Pennant who then returned a pass to the 6'7 striker. Crouch kept the ball in the air and rifled a shot from 30 yards out past Joe Hart. The ball didn't touch the ground from the time it left goalkeeper Asmir Begovic's foot... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI After a dream start to the season, Tottenham are in danger of ending their 2011-2012 campaign in disaster. Ever since rumors of Harry Redknapp's possible departure to take over the vacant England job emerged, Spurs have had a major dip in form, winning just one point from their last four games. A few key injuries have exposed the lack of depth on the Tottenham bench, and they find themselves in fourth place with fifth-place Chelsea playing host when the two teams clash in Saturday's match. Chelsea have been far from consistent, however. The brief return to form... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI Juventus finally saw an offensive outburst after weeks of low-scoring tilts, but the unbeaten club failed to move any closer to AC Milan despite a 5-0 romp over Fiorentina. Five different players scored goals for Juve, which stayed within striking distance of AC Milan, who kept their four-point lead atop the Serie A standings after a 2-0 win against Parma. Zlatan Ibrahimovic continuing his outstanding run of form, scoring the winning goal. Struggling Spanish striker Fernando Torres enjoyed a superb game and scored a brace to end a goal-less streak of nearly 26 hours in Chelsea's 5-2... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI FC Basel will look to write another chapter to their Cinderella story today when the plucky Swiss champions take a one-goal lead into the Allianz Arena to face Bayern Munich in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16. FC Basel is no stranger to playing the underdog. Back in the fall, it was all but assumed Manchester United would easily dispatch Basel on their way to the knockout stages, but goals from Marco Streller and Alexander Frei eliminated the 2011 finalists. It was much the same story three weeks ago when a late... Continue reading

By JOHN BOSCHINI Manchester City's march to the Premier League title hit a significant stumbling block over the weekend with the former league leaders losing 1-0 to Swansea in Wales. Substitute Luke Moore headed home the game-winning goal just seven minutes from time to give the Swans a shocking upset. It was a game in which both sides failed to convert early chances with Swansea missing a penalty and Mario Balotelli and Sergio Aguero failing to convert golden chances. Micah Richards also had a goal ruled out for offside in the dying minutes. Swansea are now 14 points clear of... Continue reading