Runners-Up – SKY BLUE FC (USA)

3rd Place – FK ENERGIYA VORONEZH (Russia)

4th Place – FORTUNA HJØRRING (Denmark)

MVP – Manon Melis (LdB FC)

Best Goalkeeper – Thora Helgadottir (LdB FC)

Best Defender – Janni Arnth (Fortuna)

Best Midfielder – Allie Long (Sky Blue FC)

Best Forward – Elena Danilova (FC Energiya)

Best Coach – Martin Sjogren (LdB FC)

Alanya Oba Stadium, Alanya, Turkey
17.03.2011 (Match 1 – Semifinal 1), KO 12:00 GMT
LdB FC Malmö (Sweden) vs FC Energiya Voronezh (Russia) 4:0 (2:0)
Goals: Nilla Fischer m.2, Linda Forsberg m.9, Sara Björk Gunnarsdottir m.60, Manon Melis m.90
Lineups:
LdB FC Malmö: 1.Thora Helgadottir – 2.Emma Wilhelmsson, 4.Malin Levenstad (C), 16.Lina Nilsson (13.Christina Øyangen Ørntoft), 19.Linda Forsberg (22.Nera Smajic) – 3.Amanda Ilestedt, 5.Nilla Fischer, 7.Annika Kukkonen (10.Sarah Storck), 8.Frida Nordin (9.Elin Rubensson) – 14.Manon Melis, 18.Sara Björk Gunnarsdottir.
FC Energiya Voronezh: 29.Irina Saratovtseva – 3.Yulia Zapotichnaya, 4.Adriana Parente (C), 14.Anastasia Kostyukova, 25.Efioanwan Ekpo (19.Anna Astapenko) – 5.Yulia Shubunova (17.Nana Gelbakhiani, 12.Lyudmyla Tsukanova), 11.Wanessa Ferreira (13.Nadejda Bosikova), 18.Olesya Mashina (10.Elena Terekhova), 23.Augustine Ejangue – 31.Ajara Njoya (9.Elena Danilova), 6.Veronica Phewa.

17.03.2011 (Match 2 – Semifinal 2), KO 15:00 GMT
Fortuna Hjørring (Denmark) vs Sky Blue FC (USA) 1:1 (1:1) Sky Blue FC win 8:7 after PKs
Goals: Sine Hovesen m.6, Allie Long m.23
Lineups:
Fortuna Hjørring: 1.Melissa Barbieri – 2.Mette V. Jensen, 3.Janni Arnth, 5.Camilla Mogensen, 10.Janne Madsen (C) (8.Megan Manthey) – 6.Lisa-Marie Woods, 9.Kristine Pedersen, 12.Chi-Chi Igbo (11.Leah Morales), 19.Sine Hovesen (7.Coralie Ducher), 21.Line S. Jensen – 4.Lise Munk (14.Caroline Rask).
Sky Blue FC: 23.Jenni Branam – 4.Kendall Fletcher, 5.Anita Asante, 14.Brittany Taylor, 15.Danielle Johnson – 10.Allie Long, 11.Therese Sjogran (6.Angie Kerr), 21.Laura Kalmari, 31.Carolyn Blank – 18.Eniola Aluko, 27.Casey Nogueira.

19.03.2011 (Match 3 – 3rd Place Match), KO 12:00 GMT
Fortuna Hjørring (Denmark) vs FC Energiya Voronezh (Russia) 0:2 (0:1)
Goals: Elena Danilova m.45, Elena Danilova m.53
Lineups:
Fortuna Hjørring: 1.Melissa Barbieri – 2.Mette V. Jensen, 3.Janni Arnth, 5.Camilla Mogensen, 10.Janne Madsen (C) – 7.Coralie Ducher, 9.Kristine Pedersen, 12.Chi-Chi Igbo (11.Leah Morales), 19.Sine Hovesen ((8.Megan Manthey), 21.Line S. Jensen – 4.Lise Munk (14.Caroline Rask).
FC Energiya Voronezh: 1.Veronika Shulga – 3.Yulia Zapotichnaya, 4.Adriana Parente (C) (6.Veronica Phewa), 14.Anastasia Kostyukova, 23.Augustine Ejangue (19.Anna Astapenko) – 5.Yulia Shubunova, 2.Erika Prado (18.Olesya Mashina), 10.Elena Terekhova (17.Nana Gelbakhiani), 13.Nadejda Bosikova – 31.Ajara Njoya, 9.Elena Danilova.

19.03.2011 (Match 4 – Final), KO 15:00 GMT
LdB FC Malmö (Sweden) vs Sky Blue FC (USA) 1:0 (1:0)
Goal: Sarah Storck m.13
Lineups:
LdB FC Malmö: 1.Thora Helgadottir – 22.Nera Smajic, 4.Malin Levenstad (C), 13.Christina Øyangen Ørntoft, 19.Linda Forsberg – 10.Sarah Storck (3.Amanda Ilestedt), 5.Nilla Fischer, 8.Frida Nordin (16.Lina Nilsson), 18.Sara Björk Gunnarsdottir – 9.Elin Rubensson, 14.Manon Melis.
Sky Blue FC: 1.Karen Bardsley – 4.Kendall Fletcher, 5.Anita Asante, 14.Brittany Taylor (C), 15.Danielle Johnson (3.Kiersten Dallstream) – 10.Allie Long, 11.Therese Sjogran (6.Angie Kerr), 21.Laura Kalmari (33.Alyssa Mautz), 31.Carolyn Blank – 18.Eniola Aluko, 27.Casey Nogueira.

New stadium in the Turkish resort town of Alanya will play host to the Inaugural International Women’s Tournament of Champions pitting 4 of the best club teams in the world.

Brand new Alanya Oba Stadyumu, tucked away in a picturesque spot overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, will stage all four internationally televised matches involving the current or former champions of the USA, Russia, Sweden, and Denmark in March 2011.

The 15,000 capacity all-seater soccer specific stadium was inaugurated last month with a friendly match between Turkish giants Galatasaray of Istanbul and high-flying German Bundesliga side Hannover 96. It is the future new home of the local team Alanyaspor.

Sky Blue FC of New Jersey, FK Energiya Voronezh, LdB FC Malmö, and Fortuna Hjørring will showcase their squads full of international talent during March 17-19 Tournament of Champions in Alanya. Often referred to as ‘The Pearl of the Turkish Riviera,’ on the coast of the Mediterranean and bordered by the breathtaking Taurus Mountains, Alanya is a fitting venue for the top-level international women’s football tournament.
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Click here for more information about the 2011 International Tournament of Champions

Notre Dame Fighting Irish Women’s Soccer team coached by one of the most celebrated coaches in the history of the US women’s soccer won the 2010 USA National Championship by beating top ranked Stanford University 1:0 in the final on Sunday.

The match that took place in Cary, North Carolina, was decided by a single goal scored by freshman Adriana Leon on the assist from Melissa Henderson. Reportedly, 7,833 spectators witnessed the Notre Dame team lift the National Championship Trophy for the third time in their history. It’s the second National Championship title for Randy Waldrum since another brilliant NCAA College Cup run in 2004.

The highly decorated coach represented by LTA Agency, Waldrum holds both UEFA and USSF coaching licenses. Apart from a highly successful career with Notre Dame, he has also coached Trinidad and Tobago Women’s National Teams and has been a staff coach for the US Soccer Federation.

See the official Notre Dame Press Release here: Final Recap

See the Championship Match Video Highlights here: Final Highlights

See Randy Waldrum’s Post-Match Interview here: Randy Waldrum’s Interview

LTA Agency’s Spanish striker Maria Ruiz, better known as Mery, scored a crucial second goal and provided two assists for her Zvezda-2005 teammates as they defeated Norwegian Champions and Cup Winners Røa IL 4:0 in the second leg of the UEFA Women’s Champions League round of 16 to qualify for the spring quarterfinal stage 5:1 on aggregate.

The result represents the reverse of the last-year’s round of 16 tie between the same opponents when Røa went through on away goals after 1:1 and 0:0 draws. It marks the second time the Russian club from the most eastern European city of Perm makes it to the spring stages of the competition after a run to the final in 2008-2009 season. Zvezda-2005 joins the other 7 European powerhouses in this Friday’ s quarterfinal draw in Nyon, Switzerland along with English Arsenal and Everton, French Juvisy and Lyon, German Turbine and Duisburg, and Linköpings of Sweden.

Mery is the last remaining representative of Spain in Europe’s best 2010-2011 women’s club competition after last year’s Superliga Champions Rayo Vallecano were eliminated by Arsenal in London. The Madrid-born striker was also named player of the match in the previous round of the tournament when she scored a goal and had an assist in Limassol against the Cypriot victors of the giants from Umea – FC Apollon. Zvezda-2005 won the match 2:1.

Along with Mery, LTA Agency’s Mexican midfielder Fatima Leyva, South African forward Busi Ndimeni, and Bulgarian strength and conditioning coach Kaloyan Petkov were part of Zvezda’s success and will be preparing for the quarter final matches in March of next year.

All eight quarter-finalists in focus from UEFA.com: 2010-2011 UEFA Women’s Champions League Quarter-Finalists

Goalkeeper Anna Maria Picarelli, forward Pamela Conti, defender Sara Gama, and the team captain Patrizia Panico will now have to wait until November 8 to find out their final opponent on the way to Germany. Italy will have to defeat the country which will finish third at the ongoing CONCACAF qualifying tournament over two legs on November 20 and 27 to qualify for the World Cup finals for the first time in twelve years.

Official UEFA.com release here: Italy defeat Switzerland

The left-footed first touch cracker Del Rio scored against the inaugural WPS Champions Sky Blue FC came at number 2 of the top 10 goals of the 2010 season.  In August 15 home match against the New Jersey outfit, Del Rio playing for Boston Breakers picked up the rebound from her own cross and sent a scorching shot into the top corner of the net past helpless Sky Blue goalkeeper Jenni Branam. This goal completed Boston’s 4:0 rout of New Jersey.

See the video of all WPS Top Ten Goals of 2010 here:

LTA Agency’s striker Maria Ruiz, better known as Mery, scored two goals in as many games in La Copa de La Reina Final Four tournament in Basauri to help RCD Espanyol de Barcelona retain their Spanish Cup crown.

The win caps a highly successful season for Espanyol which lost the Superliga Final by one goal to Rayo and won the Spanish Cup for the second time in a row. Mery and LTA’s Italian international forward Pamela Conti were instrumental in Espanyol’s impressive run this season by notching 17 and 27 goals respectively. They both add the first Spanish Cup title to the Cup triumphs they have previously experienced in the USA and Italy. Mery was part of FC Indiana’s 2008 US Open Cup winning team, and Conti has 4 Coppa Italia titles to her name won with Eurospin Torres in her native Italy.

Both prolific strikers are subject to a number of potential offers from leading clubs in Spain, Europe, and the US, but RCD Espanyol seems to be in the pole position to retain the services of Mery and Conti for the upcoming 2010-2011 season.

LTA Agency is delighted to announce that another player represented by the agency will join Women’s Professional Soccer league in the USA. Italian Women’s National Team Captain, Patrizia Panico will sign for none other than defending WPS Champions Sky Blue FC from New York.

One of the best pure goalscorers in the world Panico has recorded close to 500 tallies over her illustrious career both in Italy and internationally. She has been the “capocannoniere” (best goalscorer) of the Italian Serie A 9 times, won 6 Italian Championships, 4 Coppa Italia, and 4 Italian Supercups. She has just wrapped up another scudetto with her most recent club ASD Torres CF of Sassari.

The Roman born and the ardent Lazio supporter, Panico has been just as clinical on the European and World stage. She has scored 42 goals in 64 games in official UEFA competitions, reached UEFA Champions League Semifinals on two occasions, and also played in the final of the UEFA European Women’s Championship. She has a unique achievement of scoring a hat-trick against Germany in the last official qualifying game that Germany failed to win (4:4 tie in 1999). She scored three goals in three games at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 1999 in the USA.

“Patrizia brings a special combination of qualities to Sky Blue FC – experience, a proven record in the international arena and a great force for us up front,” General Manager Gerry Marrone commented. “She is an exciting player and someone we have been looking at for a long time. In addition, she will be a great draw for the large and passionate community of Italian soccer fans in our area.”

Panico, nicknamed “the Scorpion” for her ability to strike goals quickly and lethally, is expected to join her new team following the crucial World Cup qualifiers with Italy against Slovenia and Finland later this month. She becomes the first Italian in WPS, and her signing follows in line with LTA’s motto “ingen grænser” (no borders) as the agency continues to broaden the range of countries of women’s football players represented in the best league in the world following the signing of the first Spanish player in Laura Del Rio by Boston Breakers.

Read the official Sky Blue FC press release on Panico’s signing here:

Sky Blue FC Signs Italian National Team Captain Patrizia Panico

Profile

Name: Patrizia Panico
Place of Birth: Rome, Italy
Date of Birth: February 8, 1975
Nationality: Italy
Height: 1,64 m
Position: Forward
Preferred Foot: Right
Current Club: Sky Blue FC NY/NJ
League: Women’s Professional Soccer, USA
National Team Caps: 145
National Team Goals: 79

]]> http://lta-agency.com/2010/06/il-bomber-panico-joins-wps/feed/ 0 http://lta-agency.com/2010/05/picarelli-adds-damallsvenskan-onto-her-resume/ http://lta-agency.com/2010/05/picarelli-adds-damallsvenskan-onto-her-resume/#comments Tue, 25 May 2010 07:32:34 +0000 admin http://lta-agency.com/?p=1400 LTA’s Italian National Team Goalkeeper, Anna Maria Picarelli, has just completed a highly successful three-weeks loan spell with Kristianstads DFF (KDFF) in Sweden’s Top League.

American born Picarelli who will now return to California powerhouse Ajax America in the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL) was contracted to step in when KDFF was left with no experienced keepers for almost a month due to injuries. The unorthodox keeper proved an instant hit by saving a penalty from Sweden’s best player and a perennial WPS target Therese Sjögran albeit KDFF narrowly lost to the League leading LdB FC from Malmo. Picarelli went on to feature in two more games with KDFF (who also boast LTA’s New Zealand international Kirsty Yallop in their ranks), both of which were wins, and she left the Sweden’s south coast outfit in the highest ever third place in the Damallsvenskan table behind LdB FC and Göteborg FC.

“Sweden was a fantastic experience,” Picarelli said. “The soccer there is treated as it should be, very professional and very competitive.  KDFF is a great club that suited me as a player because it is not the team everyone expects to be at the top but is making its mark in the Swedish League, and I am grateful to have been a part of that.”

Picarelli, who has been capped 18 times by Italy will next feature for Le Azzurre on June 19th and June 23rd in crucial FIFA Germany 2011 Women’s World Cup qualifiers at home to Slovenia and away to Finland.

]]> http://lta-agency.com/2010/05/picarelli-adds-damallsvenskan-onto-her-resume/feed/ 0 http://lta-agency.com/2010/05/notre-dame-legendary-coach-randy-waldrum-signs-with-lta/ http://lta-agency.com/2010/05/notre-dame-legendary-coach-randy-waldrum-signs-with-lta/#comments Wed, 05 May 2010 09:57:56 +0000 admin http://lta-agency.com/?p=1373 LTA Agency is delighted to announce the signing of one the most successful and well-known women’s soccer coaches in America, current University of Notre Dame Women’s Soccer Head Coach, Randy Waldrum.

2004 NCAA National Champion with the Fighting Irish, Waldrum took his team to the six of the last ten NCAA Final Four Championships. In his time in charge, he won 9 out of 10 possible Big East Regular Season Conference Championships and six Big East Conference Tournament Championships. Having compiled 3rd best career winning percentage on NCAA winningest coaches list among all-time coaches, Waldrum has been named Big East Coach of the Year unprecedented five times in 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, and 2008.

Waldrum’s Notre Dame team produced multiple US Women’s National Team players who went on to play in the World Cups and win the Olympic Games as well as many players who now play in the new Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) League, considered the best women’s league in the world.

Having ventured into international football by defeating a number of full national teams with Notre Dame (including wins over Mexico and Republic of Ireland WNTs), the Texas native, Waldrum, took charge of the Trinidad & Tobago U17 Women’s National Team program in 2008 and led them to the highest ever finish in World Cup qualifiers – 2nd in group (failed to advance on goal difference).

Randy Waldrum is the former president of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA), which is the largest football coaches association in the world with almost 30,000 members, and he has also worked as a staff coach for the US Soccer Federation. He holds both UEFA and USSF coaching licences.

Profile

Name: Randy Waldrum
Place of Birth: Irving, TX, USA
Date of Birth: September 25, 1956
Nationality: USA
Current Club: Notre Dame University

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