Bulgarians Add Flair to D.C. United
Ray Hudson, coach of Washington D.C. United, has given the Major League Soccer club a Bulgarian boost by adding forward Hristo Stoitchkov and defender Galin Ivanov to his roster.
Stoitchkov, who led Bulgaria to the semifinals of the 1994 World Cup, was obtained Monday from the Chicago Fire for a second-round pick in the 2004 MLS draft. Stoitchkov, 36, will also serve as assistant coach for D.C. The Fire made the move to free room under the salary cap.
“Hristo brings a mother lode of world-class experience and majestic skill,” Hudson said. “He’s a living legend and will be an inspiration on and off the field.”
Ivanov, 27, was acquired Tuesday from CSKA Sofia of the Bulgarian league. He has played five times for Bulgaria’s national team.
“He is a high-quality, blue-blood defender with a lovely touch, superb tactical awareness and great athleticism,” Hudson said.
Hejduk to MLS
United States national team defender Frankie Hejduk, the only American player to play in the 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games and the 1998 and 2002 World Cups, was released by his Swiss club, St. Gallen.
The move frees the 29-year-old former UCLA player to join MLS, with the Columbus Crew his most likely destination.
Moore Returns
Forward Joe-Max Moore, who scored 37 goals in 77 games for the New England Revolution between 1996 and 1999 before joining Everton of the English Premier League, has returned to his former club.
The 31-year-old former UCLA and current U.S. national team striker signed a one-year contract with MLS after being released by Everton this month.
Mexico Threat
Alberto de la Torre, president of the Mexican soccer federation, warned two of the country’s leading clubs, Chivas of Guadalajara and UNAM of Mexico City, that they face stadium bans unless they control fan behavior, Mexico’s Notimex news agency reported.
An unidentified 21-year-old man lost an eye and suffered other head injuries Sunday when he was hit by a firework thrown by Chivas fans celebrating a 2-0 victory over Chiapas at Estadio Jalisco.
At UNAM’s Olimpico Univeristario stadium, meanwhile, Monterrey Coach Daniel Passarella, a 1978 World Cup winner with Argentina, was struck on the head by an object thrown by fans during Monterrey’s 3-2 victory over UNAM.
Passarella was not seriously injured.
Van Gaal Fired
Former Netherlands national team coach Louis Van Gaal’s second stint in charge of Barcelona ended Tuesday when he and the Spanish club parted company.
Van Gaal, 51, agreed to step down even though the team is in the final 16 of the European Champions League and has won a record-tying 10 consecutive Champions League games.
Fans were unhappy at Barcelona’s continued struggles in La Liga, however, and after the latest loss Sunday left the team in 12th place, well out of the title race, Van Gaal paid the price.
Carles Rexach, Barcelona’s sporting director, will assume control of the team until a new coach is named.
Italian Arson
Cagliari defender Gianluca Grassadonia, who scored an own goal during his team’s 3-0 Serie B loss to Venezia on Sunday, awoke in the early hours Monday morning to find that his car had been set ablaze and destroyed, presumably by angry fans.
“Maybe they targeted me as a symbol of the team because I have been here for seven years,” Grassadonia told the Italian daily newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport.
Brazil’s Lineup
Brazil Coach Carlos Alberto Parreira named 12 members of last year’s World Cup-winning team to a squad of 19 European-based players for his first game back -- on the road against China in February.
Included in the squad were strikers Rivaldo, Ronaldinho and Ronaldo -- the “Three Rs” of World Cup fame -- but more surprising was the inclusion of Adriano, the Parma forward whose last and only game for Brazil was in 2001.
Nowotny Hurts Knee
Defender Jens Nowotny of Bayer Leverkusen and Germany, who missed the 2002 World Cup after being sidelined for nine months with a right knee injury suffered in April, has again torn the ligaments in that knee and will miss the rest of the season.
