THE FINAL THIRD

Chelsea have a special player on their hands in Josh McEachran. This kid has plenty of skill and knows how to finish plays in the middle, on the wing or in front of goal.

The London Evening Standard says manager Carlo Ancelotti is a confirmed admirer and handed McEachran, who joined the club as an eight-year-old, a squad number last January (51) and invited him to travel with the first team for last season’s Carling Cup tie at Blackburn.

He has continued progressing during pre-season and has been involved in all three Chelsea games so far as they build towards the new campaign and their defence of the Premier League title.

SEE THE JOSH MCEACHRAN COMPILATION VIDEO AFTER THE BREAK

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Sunil Gulati will be doing his best this week to win over a six-man FIFA delegation from FIFA that will be inspecting 5 potential World Cup sites for the 2018 or 2022 World Cup. The FIFA group will be led by Federación de Fútbol de Chile president Harold Mayne-Nicholls and will be escorted by U.S. Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati as well as local officials in each city.

Here is the breakdown of the scheduled trip:

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Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas has hinted that if it was down to him, he would have secured a switch to Barcelona this summer. No surprise here don’t you agree?

The midfielder was strongly linked with a return to his Catalan roots throughout the transfer window, with both parties making it clear that they wished to reach an agreement.

However, the deadline for deals passed last week and Gunners skipper Fabregas remains on the books at Emirates Stadium.

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Arsenal are set to repeat their Cesc Fabregas raid on Barcelona’s youth team by snapping up Oriol Romeu, according to the Daily Mail.

Romeu, 18, is a highly rated defensive midfielder and shone at the heart of the Spain under-19 team that lost in the final of the recent European Championship.

The youngster is yet to hold discussions about a contract extension at the Nou Camp and this has left the door open for the Gunners.

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He’s arguably the most significant American soccer player ever. He was the first draft pick in MLS history, the first American to score in two World Cups, and he was a legend and former captain of English Premier League club Fulham, where they thought so highly of him the club named a stadium pub in his honor.

On Friday, Brian McBride, 38, announced that he will retire at the conclusion of the MLS season. The news gives teams and fans around the country time to recognize and congratulate a once-in-a-generation player who genuinely deserves it.

Born outside Chicago, McBride was a true product of the American game. He won a state championship in high school, was an All-American at Saint Louis University (from which he also graduated) and then spent the 1994 season with a minor league team in Milwaukee. After giving German soccer a shot, he returned home to cast his lot with MLS and was drafted first overall by the Columbus Crew.

When I was a freshman we made the trip out to St. Louis to take on Brian McBride, Mike Sorber, and the rest of the high ranking Billikens (yes that is the name of their mascot). I was told at the time by my coach that he wanted me on the field as a freshmen but the only place I could fit in was outside back. Of course I jumped at the opportunity and found myself learning the position in a matter of weeks before the match.

We went up one and it looked like we had a chance of stealing the points at St. Louis. At around the 75th minute mark Sorber (now Bob Bradley’s assistant) won the ball in the midfield combined with one of the strikers and finished the play scoring the equalizer. At this point we would have definitely taken the point and gotten out of their with a smile on our face.

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When the move was made you knew it had disaster written all over it. Temperamental Brazilian star leaving a team ( Real Madrid ) that did not understand him, going to the cold north of England and a club trying to find it’s legs. Surprise, surprise, it was a complete and utter mess almost from the beginning.

Robinho has said his managers at Manchester City failed to understand him and admits he found the city “an awful place to live”. What a shocker!

Robinho struggled to adapt to life in England

Despite his fee breaking the British transfer record when he left Real Madrid, Robinho ended a two-year spell at Eastlands on transfer deadline day when he moved to AC Milan, having earlier spent a spell at former club Santos on loan.

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The USMNT U20′s have arrived in Peru for a “friendly” tournament in Arequipa. Here is a video and also the schedule and roster for the tournament. USMNT U20 coach Thomas Rongen has assembled a squad comprised only of professional players, no college players on this trip. Surely this sends a message that Rongen is looking to players training in a professional environment. Also, habla bíen en espanol el Sr. Dave van den Berg!!

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SPORT Magazine asked Xavi and Iniesta to participate in a debate / interview prior to Spain’s departure for Argentina. It is pretty interesting seeing them go back and forth on everything from their teammate Lionel Messi, comments by Ibrahimovic, what they think of Pep Guardiola and more. The original source was in Spanish so the translation could be a little dodgy.

Xavi: First I want to congratulate Andrés because you know you’ve been my soft spot for a long time. For me, you deserve the Golden ball.

Iniesta: You and I think that what matters is the collective awards and not the individual ones, but in any case Xavi, if we take into account your career and your quality, you have everything to win.

X: But to be fair, just above you and me, there is Messi. He’s the best player in the world, but this year, because of the the World Cup, he could be left out.

I: Yes, indeed. Leo is above everyone. He alone can make a difference with such superiority.

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