Defence of the Scudetto start and end date. No third star but a message. Peluso player linked.2012 World Football Challenge: featuring Chelsea, Real Madrid, Juventus, Milan and MLS sides
The summer lull in the football season is not apparent over June, July and August this year, as we are spoilt by the Euro 2012 championships and the Olympics Games. Despite this, British and European clubs will also travel stateside in late July and early August to take on each other in front of American and Canadian fans, and go face-to-face with the best that the MLS has to offer in the World Football Challenge.
With the likes of Chelsea, Juventus and Real Madrid in attendance, preparations for the 2012-13 season will be well under way, and all competitors will look for victory to build momentum going into next term. The latest new faces and big-name signings will be unveiled for the first time with their new teams, and players will look to get match fit.
The World Football Challenge is in its third year an is growing in popularity as the game takes off across the Atlantic. In 2009 only four teams competed in a round robin format, with Chelsea emerging as the eventual winners. In 2011 the number of teams increased to 13, with 14 games in total played. MLS teams were also included, and Real Madrid were crowned as champions.
The 2012 series lasts just over three weeks and is opened on July 18th when Chelsea take on Seattle Sounders. The competition includes Champions League winners Chelsea, Serie A champions Juventus and La Liga champions Real Madrid. Here’s a list of fixtures in full:
July 18th – Seattle Sounders (MLS) vs Chelsea (Premier League) – Century Link Field, Seattle
July 21st – Toronto FC (MLS) vs Liverpool (Premier League) – Rogers Centre, Toronto
July 22nd – Chelsea (Premier League) vs Paris Saint-Germain (Ligue 1) – Yankee Stadium, New York
July 28th – Chelsea (Premier League) vs AC Milan (Serie A) – Sun Life Stadium, Miami
July 28th – D.C. United (MLS) vs Juventus (Serie A) – RFK Stadium, Washington DC
July 31st – Juventus (Serie A) vs Paris Saint-Germain (Ligue 1) – Olympic Stadium, Montreal
August 2nd – LA Galaxy (MLS) vs Real Madrid (La Liga) – Home Depo Centre, Carson
August 5th – Real Madrid (La Liga) vs Juventus (Serie A) – Sam Boyd Stadium, Whitney
August 8th – Real Madrid (La Liga) vs AC Milan (Serie A) – Yankee Stadium, New York
August 11th – Real Madrid (La Liga) vs Celtic (SPL) – Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia
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Juventus will start to guard their Scudetto on 26 August, when the Serie A championship which will finish on 18 May 2013, will begin. Serie A League announced the new match schedule which will also see three midweek games on Wednesday 26 September, Wednesday 31 October and Wednesday 8 May 2013.
In addition to the Christmas break from 30 December 2012 to 6 January 2013, three further breaks will be included to address National sides’ fixtures: Sunday 9 September, Sunday 14 October and Sunday 24 March.
The date of the Italian Super Cup between Juventus and Napoli was also announced. It will take place on Sunday 19 August, unless the international fixtures will suggest to change the date using one of the two extra dates available: Saturday 11 or Saturday 25 August. The place where the encounter will occur is to be arranged. The choice will be between Beijing and Turin.
Moreover, Coppa Italia fixtures were also announced. The competition will start on Sunday 5 August with the first qualifying round. The second one will occur on Sunday 12 August, while the third one will take place on Saturday 18 August and the fourth one on Wednesday 28 November. The qualifying heats were scheduled on Wednesday 12 December, the quarter finals on Wednesday 9 January 2013, the first round semi-finals on Wednesday 23 January while the return games on Wednesday 30 January. The final will occur on Sunday 26 May, with an extra date on Saturday 1 June.
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The Bianconeri sparked outrage by refusing to acknowledge the fact that they were stripped of two Scudetti because of their alleged involvement in Calciopoli,
have decided against sewing a third golden star onto their shirts but the words “30 won on the pitch” will appear beneath the club crest. The Bianconeri lifted the Scudetto last month and angered many of their rivals by revealing that they would put a third gold star on their jerseys in recognition of what they believe is their 30th Serie A title, even though they were stripped of two championships in the Calciopoli scandal. However, Juve commercial director Francesco Calvo has now revealed that the club has had something of a change of heart.
“The new Juventus shirt will not have the third star on it,†the Bianconeri official told Sky Sport Italia. “Instead, under the club logo, will appear the words: 30 won on the pitch. “Our shirt represents Juventus and their people. Only the club, along with all the fans, can define our identity.†Juve lifted the title after becoming only the third side in history to go through an entire Serie A campaign undefeated.
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Juventus set sights on Peluso…
The Serie A champions are keen to secure the services of the 28-year-old defender but will need to up their offer to meet Atalanta’s valuation of the player.
Juventus are lining up a summer move for Atalanta defender Federico Peluso,
Bianconeri coach Antonio Conte is eager to fine-tune all areas of his squad to mount a serious Champions League challenge next season. Genoa-owned striker Mattia Destro is understood to be Juve’s top priority, and the Serie A champions have now turned their attention to reinforcing their back line. It is believed that Juve have put together a first offer of €4.5 million for Peluso, which falls short of Atalanta’s valuation of player, as the Bergamo-based club are asking for €7m. Juve are also keeping tabs on Atalanta striker Manolo Gabbiadini, though they have not yet made an offer for the Italy Under-21 international.
