Football: After first taste of glory, Messi's Miami target treble

NASHVILLE -- Lionel Messi and Inter Miami have their first silverware, barely a month after the Argentine’s move to the Florida club, and are now turning their aim on a unique treble.

Messi scored one of his trademark wonder goals, to put Miami 1-0 up in the Leagues Cup final at Nashville on Saturday but the Tennessee side fought back for a 1-1 draw, forcing penalties where Miami emerged victors for their first title in their three year history.

"Very happy to get the first title in this club's history. Everyone's hard work and commitment made it possible. Hopefully this is just the beginning," Messi posted on Instagram.

The Argentine World Cup winner has scored 10 goals in his seven games so far, finding the net in each match, and he left club owner Jorge Mas beaming in delight as his audacious move to bring in the game's top player delivered its first title.

"To see Lionel with that smile, all the guys how they are playing. This will be the first of many trophies for this team," he told reporters.

David Beckham, who created the club before bringing in Mas as the key investor, reflected on the years he spent trying to make the team a reality but even he appeared taken back by how quickly the team has gone from strugglers in MLS to a team being watched around the world.

"A lot can happen in five weeks, a lot has changed for us," he said.

"We will enjoy this but now we have to look to the future and continue to build because we have some of the best players in the world out their on the field wearing pink but also, more importantly we had a bunch of academy players out there with them and that is important for us as a club and indeed for the country," he added.

The jubilant players interrupted the press conference of victorious coach Gerardo Martino, spraying him with champagne, but they will have to sober up quickly because their next challenge comes in Ohio on Wednesday when they face FC Cincinnati in the semi-final of the US Open Cup.

Then Miami return to the main business of the Major League Soccer regular season, where the team will be looking to climb from bottom of the Eastern Conference into the playoff places to give themselves a chance of another trophy – with 12 games to go they have little room for error.

As the players chanted in the locker-room at the end of an entertaining, unbeaten seven games in Leagues Cup, Martino’s thoughts were turning to the next test.

"There's not a long time to celebrate. On Wednesday we have another game and we will continue playing and competing like this in the different tournaments," said Martino.

"This one is in the past. And now we are thinking about the match against Cincinnati."

Former Barcelona and Argentine coach Martino said the intense format of the month-long tournament had helped Miami gel together as a team after the arrival of Messi and Spanish pair Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba.

- Growing and dreaming -

“I remember the first days and I felt we needed to do more training sessions to give shape to the team and I was thinking, how convenient it is to have this tournament, because we can take advantage of this month to play more,” he said.

"And after this month, we are champions, so it feels great, and it helps us continue growing, keep dreaming. I think we clearly understand now what we can do looking forward. We better understand the future, and it's more clear," he said.

The Leagues Cup just concluded its first year as a competition bringing all top flight teams from Mexico and Major League Soccer together for a mid-season, World Cup-style tournament.

MLS Commissioner Don Garber said that the tournament had been a huge success with Messi's impact lifting it to unimagined heights.

Garber said the Argentine's arrival "accelerated the popularity and interest in the tournament. Our television ratings have been spectacular. Our Apple TV ratings have been, for us, dramatically more than we expected," he said.

Messi's presence and Miami's run to the title had been "the talk of the football world," said Garber.

DeAndre Yedlin, Miami's captain before handing over to Messi on his arrival, said the team had undergone a total change.

"We walk in to places now, we expect to win. I can't say that was a factor every time we played before," he said.

"It is our seventh game together as a group. It is strange, we are still kind of learning on the go," he said before he too focused on the next step.

"Now we have a semi-final. It's an opportunity for another trophy."

Agence France-Presse

Football: Messi will need time to adapt to MLS, says Beckham

FORT LAUDERDALE, United States -- David Beckham believes Lionel Messi will need time to adapt to Major League Soccer, even though the standard of play is at a "different level" from the European game.

Inter Miami co-owner Beckham, the former Manchester United and Real Madrid midfielder, watched Messi take part in his first training session for the club on Tuesday after signing a two and a half year contract.

Spanish midfielder Sergio Busquets, a former team-mate of Messi's from Barcelona, also trained at the club's complex, after signing on Saturday, with former Barcelona and Argentina coach Gerardo 'Tata' Martino leading the session.

"Leo's still going to need, no matter how good he is, no matter what his stature is, he and Sergio are going to need time to adapt no matter," said the Englishman.

"They might surprise us, we might start winning every single game, but we have to be patient," he said.

Miami's fans may need to show that patience at Friday's Leagues Cup game against Mexicans Cruz Azul, with Beckham saying the Argentine may not necessarily start.

"Leo will play some part of the game but that will be down to the coach (and) it'll be down to Leo to decide if he's ready because we know that he's been away for a few weeks with his family but he looks sharp, he looks great but he's going to need time to adapt as well," said Beckham.

Beckham was the biggest name to have moved to MLS when he signed for the Galaxy in 2007 when the league had just 13 clubs, compared to 29 today and the standard of play was significantly lower.

But Beckham said that there was one area where nothing had changed.

"One of the similarities will be, when I came, all of a sudden, everyone thought: LA are going to win everything. LA are going to win every game, 7-0, 8-0, and that's it, nobody else is gonna win anything," he said.

But despite Beckham's arrival, the Galaxy weren't even able to make the playoffs in his first two seasons.

LA finished next to bottom of the Western Conference in 2007 and 2008 but then in 2009 were beaten finalists before winning MLS Cup in 2011 and 2012.

"Those first two years for me, it was a challenge, getting used to everything, bringing the club and the league to be a little bit more professional, but things changed very quickly," he said.

"I started enjoying the soccer a lot more, not just because we were winning (but) because I could see the change that was being made -- the academy stuff coming into each of the clubs... we're now at a stage where things are definitely different to how they were in 2007," he said.

While the standard of MLS is still well below that of the top leagues in Europe, where Messi has spent his entire club career, several foreign players who joined the league late in their career have found it difficult to thrive.

The frequent travel across time-zones, playing on artificial surfaces at some stadium, and having team-mates who might not be on the same wavelength or have the expected technical ability, are some of the challenges players have faced.

Beckham has no doubt that Messi will be a success but accepts his impact on the field might not be as instant as some may be anticipating.

"It's a different style of football, it's  a slightly different level to what obviously some of the players that are coming in are used to," he said.

"But at the end of the day, this level of football in this country now is a good level, it's a great level, so there are going to be moments where we have to be patient," he said.

Agence France-Presse

Beckham makes ballot for U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame

Former England captain David Beckham, who won two Major League Soccer (MLS) titles with the Los Angeles Galaxy, was among the first-time candidates named on the ballot for the U.S. National Soccer Hall of Fame on Wednesday.

The 42-year-old former Manchester United and Real Madrid midfielder played six seasons in MLS, all of them for the Galaxy, and helped his team to win championships in the last two of those seasons, 2011 and 2012.

His arrival in Los Angeles in 2007 put MLS on the map and brought a level of legitimacy and visibility that otherwise may have taken the North American league decades to reach.

Beckham, who is currently trying to get his proposed MLS franchise off the ground in Miami, met the Hall of Fame's eligibility criteria given his seasons in MLS, during which he scored 18 goals in 98 games.

The voting pool includes past and present men's and women's U.S. national team coaches, active MLS and National Women's Soccer League management, U.S. Soccer leadership, Hall of Famers and media members.

The National Soccer Hall of Fame closed its Oneonta, New York, location in 2010 with a new facility in Texas expected to open next year.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Lampard makes losing MLS debut for New York City FC

Former Chelsea and England midfielder Frank Lampard had an unhappy Major League Soccer debut on Saturday when his new club New York City FC were beaten 3-2 by the Montreal Impact.

The 37-year-old received a rousing ovation from the Yankee Stadium crowd when he came on as a substitute in the 69th minute, with New York FC already 2-1 behind.

Montreal went further ahead when Ignacio Piatti scored from the penalty spot in the 84th minute, his second goal of the game, before New York FC managed a consolation through Thomas McNamara one minute later.

It was a satisfying away win for the Impact over a New York team that also included Spaniard David Villa and Italian Andrea Pirlo.

More than a year has passed since New York City, a new team in their first MLS season announced they had signed Lampard, who spent 13 years with Chelsea.

Lampard however played for English Premier League team Manchester City, who are majority owners of the New York side, for the 2014-15 season, before joining the MLS though his debut was further delayed by a calf injury.

Montreal are sixth in the Eastern Conference on 27 points, three ahead of New York City, who have played three more games.

(Reporting by Andrew Both in Cary, North Carolina; Editing by Greg Stutchbury)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Beckham could bring US-like boost to PSG

WASHINGTON - David Beckham gave Major League Soccer a huge boost from his arrival in 2007 to his departure two months ago, raising the US profile of the league and football far above his $32.5 million contract.

Now at Paris Saint-Germain, the 37-year-old former England captain who played for Real Madrid, AC Milan and Manchester United is in position to raise the profile of France's Ligue 1 and notably the team from the City of Light.

Beckham joined the French club last week after leading the Los Angeles Galaxy to the past two MLS titles, the buzz around him having boosted the value of every team in the US league and strengthened the sport's American foothold.

"Seldom does an athlete redefine a sport. David not only took our franchise to another level but he took our sport to another level," said Tim Leiweke, president of Anschutz Entertainment Group, owners of the Los Angeles Galaxy.

And because Beckham's contract included a deal to become an MLS owner at less than the market value he helped create, Beckham might yet return to America as owner of a new or existing club.

"My commitment to the league stays the same," Beckham said. "I still want to be part of this league... My ambition is to be part of the ownership structure in the future."

In his injury-hit first US campaign, "Beckhamania" saw 300,000 jerseys bearing his name sold, higher attendance and television ratings whenever he took the field and new investors who boosted the league from 12 to 19 clubs.

"There's no doubt that MLS is far more popular and important here and abroad than it was when he arrived," MLS Commissioner Don Garber said. "David has achieved great things on and off the field during his time with the Galaxy."

MLS attendance reached a league-record 18,807-a-game average last season. That's 3,300 fans a game better than when Beckham arrived.

In addition to helping create new teams in such hotbed markets as Seattle and Portland, Beckham helped spark the construction of football-only stadiums for many MLS teams, helping ensure their long-term financial health.

"The foundations are now there for this sport to continue to grow," Beckham said. "I've seen it grow in the last six years and we all want it to continue. My commitment as an ambassador for this sport and this country won't change."

Beckham says European football supporters are more interested in US clubs than before and US clubs are definitely interested in European talent, bringing over veterans such as Frenchman Thierry Henry and Ireland's Robbie Keane in Beckham's wake.

"What have I seen from myself firsthand?" Beckham said. "I've seen the new franchises. I've seen the attendances grow in this league to where they are competing with baseball and basketball. I've seen the quality of players that have come into this league. And we've seen huge TV deals.

"We've also seen the interest and the fact that this league is taken very seriously in Europe and in different parts of the world now. I'm very proud to have been part of that."

While France has no need of awakening football interest, Beckham can boost profits.

Souvenir sales, especially to his huge Asian fan base, have helped offset the cost of every Beckham signing.

Forbes magazine indicated Beckham was a major factor in Real Madrid's huge increase in merchandise sales, which topped $600 million in his four years with the Spanish side -- a 60 percent rise within two seasons of his arrival.

And in America, Beckham took a second-tier sport dimmed since Pele's 1970s stint with the New York Cosmos and gave it a new lustre that has boosted US interest in European leagues as well.

"What we were looking for was a long-term partner in building this league, someone committed to working with us in creating more value for everyone," Garber said.

"David has delivered for us on all aspects beyond our expectations. MLS wouldn't be what it is today if David didn't decide in 2007 to come play."

source: abs-cbnnews.com