Tag Archives: Saint-Etienne

Neymar Leads Paris Saint-Germain to Coupe de France Win with Sole Goal Against Saint-Etienne

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Neymar’s celebrating a big kick…

The 28-year-old Brazilian professional footballer and Paris Saint-Germain forward kicked a goal early in the game to give his team a 1-0 win over 10-man Saint-Etienne on Friday in a near empty stadium.

Neymar & Paris Saint-Germain

Neymar’s goal gave PSG the Coupe de France as French football came out of a four-month break due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Neymar scored on the rebound in the 14th minute after PSG striker Kylian Mbappe sprinted clear and saw his shot blocked by goalkeeper Jessy Moulin, with only 5,000 fans in the 80,000-seater Stade de France due to strict health protocols.

Earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron had met the players on the pitch but kept his distance and wore a face mask.

The atmosphere in the run-up to the first professional game in France after the long hiatus was far from festive with only a handful of people around the stadium before the match.

The contest got off to an eventful start with Yvann Macon felling Neymar in the opening seconds to earn a yellow card and St Etienne’s Denis Bouanga hitting the post in the fifth minute.

But it was the Parisians who scored when Neymar pounced on Moulin’s save to fire in.

Mbappe was injured in the 26th minute from a rough challengeby Saint-Etienne captain Loic Perrin, who was sent off.

“We won the final and that is what matter(s),” PSG coach Thomas Tuchel said. His team had lost last year’s final to Stade Rennes on penalties.

Tuchel was also not happy with the way Saint-Etienne had played from the start.

“It was complicated with all the fouls to Thilo Kehrer, Neymar and Mbappe. In the last three matches against Saint-Etienne they get a red card in the first 30 minutes. I don’t know what is being said in their dressing room. It is horrible I can’t understand it.

“We won and we have a lot of things to improve, to talk about and analyze.”

With Ligue 1 champions PSG chasing a quadruple of titles 

this season, the few fans in the stands breathed a sigh of relief when Mbappe returned on crutches to the bench after the interval, joking and laughing with his teammates.

Bocanegra Signs with MLS’ Chivas USA

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It didn’t take long for Carlos Bocanegra to land his next contract…

Following the news of his departure from the Scottish Premier League’s Rangers, the 34-year-old half-Mexican American soccer star has officially signed with Major League Soccer’s Chivas USA team.

Carlos Bocanegra

Bocanegra – who spent last season with Spain’s Racing Santander, where he was on loan from the Rangers – will join the team in Philadelphia to prepare for its upcoming July 12 match against the Union.

The U.S. national team captain becomes eligible to play for Chivas USA on July 9, when the international transfer window opens.

”It feels really good to be coming back home,” said Bocanegra. ”I’ve been following MLS a lot more closely this year, and I got my start here in the league, so I’m excited to [be] seeing personally how much the league has grown.”

Chivas USA traded a first-round draft pick in 2014 and an international roster spot to Toronto FC, which owned the first shot at acquiring Bocanegra.

He’s played 116 games for the United States, including World Cups in 2006 and 2010. He began his professional career with the Chicago Fire and was 2000 MLS Rookie of the Year.

In January 2004, Bocanegra moved to Europe, joining English Premier League team Fulham, where he spent four years. He then went to France, playing for Rennes and Saint Etienne before joining Rangers.

Despite being sidelined for a month with a left hamstring injury suffered while on national team duty last November, Bocanegra became a solid defender for Racing, starting in all 23 games played for the Spanish team. The Rangers did not renew his contract when the loan ended, freeing Bocanegra to return to MLS.

Chivas USA currently has the league’s worst defense, allowing 31 goals while going 3-10-3, last in the Western Conference.

”I’m very excited to join the club,” said Bocanegra. ”I know it’s going to be a big challenge because the club hasn’t been getting the greatest results on the field, but it’s something I’m looking forward to.”

Bocanegra Leaving the Rangers, Eyeing Return to MLS

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Carlos Bocanegra is setting his sights on a return to the Major League Soccer…

The 34-year-old half-Mexican American soccer star, who was featured au naturel in ESPN’s The Body Issue last year, is a free agent after leaving the Scottish Premier League side Rangers.

Carlos Bocanegra

Bocanegra, the former captain of the U.S. national team, spent the past season on loan to Racing Santander in Spain’s Segunda División after the Rangers were demoted to the fourth tier of the Scottish soccer league because of financial problems.

The Rangers announced on the team’s website Saturday that Bocanegra’s contract was mutually terminated a day earlier and said he is expected to return to the Major League Soccer. Toronto has the top slot in the allocation ranking and would have the first chance to add him to its roster if he agrees to an MLS contract, league spokesman Will Kuhns said.

Bocangra played for the Chicago Fire from 2000-04, then went on to Fulham (2004-08), Rennes (2008-10), Saint-Etienne (2010-11) and Rangers (2011-12).

Bocanegra has made 110 appearances for the U.S. and was the American captain at the 2010 World Cup. He has not played for the national team since November.