MEDELLIN, Colombia -- Brazil defeated Spain on penalties Sunday in a match that, despite being only a quarterfinal, will be viewed by many as the "real final" between the two best teams in the Under-20 World Cup In the end it came down to chance with Brazil winning 4-2 in the shootout after a 1-1 draw after 90 minutes and a 2-2 stalemate after 30 minutes of extra time.
www.seahawksjerseyforsale.com/Marshawn-Lynch-Jersey-For-Sale/ . In Sundays other semifinal, France defeated Nigeria 3-2 in extra time. That sets up Wednesdays semifinals with Brazil facing Mexico in Pereira, and France up against Portugal in Medellin. The winners play for the title on Saturday in Bogota. Brazil has won the title four times and Portugal has claimed two. Mexico and France will be trying to break through for their first. Spain coach Julen Lopetegui made it clear he thought the better team lost. The Iberians led in possession, outshot Brazil 26-17 and took 12 corners to Brazils 5. "I feel very proud of these kids," Lopetegui said. "I think overall they were better than Brazil and deserved to advance. Today, the best team in the World Cup is out." In truth, there was nothing to choose from. The two best teams in the field thrilled the crowd with end-to-end football, possession passing and counterattacking to keep the other side off balance. Spain came back twice, and Brazil was rock solid to pull through on penalties. "As we anticipated, it was a very difficult match against a very top team -- strong and excellent," Brazil coach Ney Franco said. "We had great penalty takers and a keeper who made the difference." Willian gave Brazil the lead in the 35th minute, before Rodrigo -- who was born in Brazil -- equalized for Spain in the 57th. Brazil went ahead with Dudus goal in extra time, but Spain answered two minutes later thanks to Alvaro Vazquez. Vazquez is the tournaments leading goal scorer with five. First to take its kick, Spain fell behind when its first penalty-taker, Jordi Amat, was stopped by a diving Brazil keeper Gabriel. Vazquez also missed Spains fourth penalty when Gabriel kicked the shot away. In the meantime, Brazil converted its four from Casemiro, Henrique, Danilo and Dudu. Mexico is on a roll and will have plenty of motivation against Brazil. Mexicos senior team won the regional Gold Cup title in June, defeating the United States 4-2, and added the Under-17 World Cup title in July, beating Uruguay 2-0 in the final at Aztec stadium in Mexico City. Were it not for the drama of Brazil vs. Spain, Frances 3-2 win over Nigeria in extra time would grab more headlines. Nigeria won its first four matches and was seen by many as a match for Brazil or Spain. France changed that. Level at 1-1 after 90 minutes, Gueida Fofana gave France a 2-1 lead in extra time and Alexandre Lacazette picked up his second goal of the match two minutes later to seal the win. Maduabuchi Ejike scored his second goal in extra time to give Nigeria hope of a comeback, but the west Africans couldnt score again. France should have won in regulation, but Nigeria equalized in the final seconds of second-half stoppage time with a header by Ejike. Lacazette gave France the lead in the 50th with his first goal of the match. This is the first time France has reached the semifinals of the Under-20 World Cup. "This is the achievement of a new generation," France coach Francis Smerecki said. "This showed when Nigeria tied the match. I think we can end up as champions, but we are aware there are some strong rivals." Nigeria came into the match having won its first four decisions and was the highest scoring team in the tournament. But France managed to slow the Nigerian attack for most of the game, giving up possession but few threatening chances. The elimination is another disappointment for the Nigerians, who have finished second two times -- in 1989 and 2005. "It is sad to go out like this," Nigeria coach John Obuh said. "We believe this is a game we should have won."
www.seahawksjerseyforsale.com/Bobby-Wagner-Jersey-For-Sale/ . Redman began training camp expecting to compete for the starting job but struggled to stay healthy. He managed just 12 yards on 10 carries this season and saw his playing time decrease behind rookie LeVeon Bell and veterans Felix Jones and Jonathan Dwyer.
www.seahawksjerseyforsale.com/Paul-Mcquistan-Jersey-For-Sale/ . Bonds much-anticipated criminal trial ended inconclusively April 13 when a jury convicted the seven-time MVP on an obstruction of justice count but deadlocked on three perjury charges, the allegations at the heart of the governments case.Here they stay, for now. In an emotional saga that has dragged on for nearly three years, the NBAs relocation committee voted unanimously Monday to recommend that owners reject the application for the Sacramento Kings to move to Seattle, the latest -- and by far the strongest -- in a long line of cities that have tried to land the franchise. Despite the recommendation, investor Chris Hansen pledged to "move forward with the transaction" he signed with the Maloof family to buy and move the franchise anyway. In a post on his Seattle arena website late Monday night, Hansen said he plans to pitch the NBA Board of Governors at its meeting the week of May 13, when league owners will vote on the issue. "When we started this process everyone thought it was impossible," Hansen wrote. "While this represents yet another obstacle to achieving our goal, I just wanted to reassure all of you that we have numerous options at our disposal and have absolutely no plans to give up. Impossible is nothing but a state of mind." Hours earlier, the feeling was far more festive in Californias capital city. Moments after the league announced the committees recommendation, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson wrote on Twitter: "Thats what Im talking about SACRAMENTO!!!!! WE DID IT!!!!!" At a packed pep rally at a downtown restaurant, fans serenaded Johnson with chants of "Sac-ra-mento!" He called the recommendation a "big day for the city of Sacramento" but stopped short of declaring victory. "We do not want to dance in the end zone. We do not want to celebrate prematurely," Johnson said. TIBCO software chairman Vivek Ranadive, the head of the Sacramento investor group Johnson assembled to mount a competing bid to keep the Kings, also expressed excitement. "Im speechless. Thanks to all of the amazing people who supported this great effort," tweeted Ranadive, a minority owner of the Golden State Warriors who could become the first Indian-born majority owner of an NBA team. He would have to sell his share in the Warriors if his groups bid for the Kings is successful. "We did it, baby," said California Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg. The Sacramento Democrat joined Johnson and Republican state Senator Ted Gaines at the rally in a show of bi-partisan support. Barbara "Sign Lady" Rust, as she has become known by Kings fans, waived a sign as Johnson spoke that read: "Love found a way, now here we stay!" "You should have seen me a few hours ago," she said. "I totally lost it. First I jumped like a crazy woman for a minute. Then I cried." Who will own the Kings next season is still unclear. The Maloof family reached an agreement in January to sell a 65 per cent controlling interest in the team to Hansens group at a total franchise valuation of $525 million, topping the NBA-record $450 million that Joe Lacob and Peter Guber bought the Warriors for in 2010. Then Hansen increased his offer to $550 million, which implies buying the 65 per cent stake for about $357 million. Hansen hoped to move the team to Seattle and rename it the SuperSonics, who moved to Oklahoma City and renamed the Thunder in 2008. Instead, those plans suddenly seemed to crumble. But Hansen insisted again that his group has a more solid arena plan, offered more money and "placed all of the funds to close the transaction into escrow." At the bottom of his post, Hansen attributed a quote to boxing great Muhammad Ali that ended with the famous line: "Impossible is nothing." The NBA Board of Governors is expected to follow the recommendation by the relocation committee, coincidentally headed by Thunder owner Clay Bennett, already a reviled figure in Seattle. The other owners on the committee are Miamis Micky Arison, Washingtons Ted Leonsis, Utahs Greg Miller, Indianas Herbert Simon, Minnesotas Glen Taylor and San Antonios Peter Holt -- whos also the chairman of the board. Even still, the Maloofs are not bound to sell the team to the Sacramento group -- and the threat of lawsuits always looms. Johnson said he was unsure what the next step is in the process or whether the NBA would -- or could -- take a role in streamlining the teams sale. In a letter sent to the relocation and finance committees during its April 17 meeting, the Maloofs said they preferred to sell to the Seattlle group and expressed discontent with Sacramentos latest bid, saying it falls "significantly short.
www.seahawksjerseyforsale.com/K-J-Wright-Jersey-For-Sale/. ." NBA Commissioner David Stern has said the offers are in "the same ballpark." Stern said owners felt leaving Sacramento just didnt make sense. He also reiterated his long-held stance that expansion is unlikely at this time. "As strong as the Seattle bid was, and it was very strong, theres some benefit that should be given to a city that has supported us for so long and has stepped up to contribute to build a new building as well," Stern said on NBA-TV. A Spokesman for the Maloof family declined to comment on the committees recommendation. Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn pledged that his city will continue to fight for an NBA team. "Im proud of how Sonics fans have rallied together to help Seattle get a team," McGinn said in a statement. "Were going to stay focused on our job: making sure Seattle remains in a position to get a team when the opportunity presents itself." While the odds often seemed stacked against Sacramento, the city rallied each time. In 2011, the Maloofs made plans to move the Kings to Anaheim, Calif., before Johnson convinced the NBA to give the city one last chance to help finance an arena. At one point, Johnson seemed so certain the team was gone he called the process a "slow death" and compared the citys efforts to keep the Kings to a "Hail Mary." Johnson delivered on his promise of a new arena plan -- which Stern helped negotiate -- before last season. But in a stunning move, the Maloofs backed out of the tentative deal for a downtown arena, saying it didnt make financial sense. The city of Sacramento and the owners broke off talks, reigniting fears the franchise could relocate. Cities such as Virginia Beach, Las Vegas and Kansas City surfaced as potential new homes. In January, the Maloofs caught Sacramento -- and to a certain extent, the NBA -- by surprise when they announced the deal with Hansens group, which includes Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and members of the Nordstrom department store family. Led by Johnson, Sacramento fought back to make the sale and relocation of the Kings tough for the league to recommend. He pushed a non-binding financing plan for a $447 million downtown arena through the Sacramento City Council -- complete with a $258 million public subsidy -- and lined up an ownership group to try to compete with the powerful Seattle contingent. The potential Sacramento ownership group also includes 24 Hour Fitness founder Mark Mastrov, former Facebook senior executive Chris Kelly and the Jacobs family that owns communications giant Qualcomm. Johnson has touted the group as a "California team" with members from all over the countrys most populated state. Johnson, a former NBA All-Star point guard known best by his initials "KJ," also commended Seattle for its efforts and wrote that the Pacific Northwest city "no doubt deserves a team in the future." "Just not ours," he said. "I feel good for KJ because hes worked so hard," said interim Brooklyn Nets coach P.J. Carlesimo, who worked with Johnson at NBC and coached the Sonics in their last season. "If it goes down that way, theres no question who deserves the credit because, I mean, they couldve rolled over a long time ago. Kevin just really made this happen, which is great." Seattle is now back to wondering when, and if, the NBA will ever return. Hansens purchase agreement with the Maloofs seemed the perfect solution for the heartache that has lingered in the Puget Sound since the Sonics -- and their 41 years of history -- were moved to Oklahoma City. Hansen spent nearly two years working to get an arena plan approved by the city and county governments and spent more than $65 million buying land in Seattles SoDo neighbourhood where the arena would be built. In the last few months, fan interest and support seemed to be at its highest since before Bennett purchased the team from Howard Schultz in 2006. Now those same fans are stuck waiting to see what the next move by Hansen and Ballmer will be, including mounting an effort for expansion or buying another team. Hansen has a five-year memorandum of understanding with the city and county on the arena plan. Whether momentum for the NBA in Seattle will remain also is unclear. ' ' '