Soccer News of Saturday, 18 February 2012

Source: mtnfootball.com

Ghana-Chile friendly moved to Philadelphia

Ghana’s friendly against Chile later this month has been moved to Philadelphia after organisers failed to secure a venue in New Jersey.
The Black Stars will play the South Americans on 29 February as the two sides prepare for important matches later this year.
The PPL Park will play host to its sixth international soccer match as the two sides will battle on the pitch.
The match had been originally scheduled to be played in New Jersey but the high costs involved in hiring a stadium resulted in the switch.
The match is on a FIFA international fixture date, so both teams may have top players available.
This will be the first international soccer match at PPL since the U.S. and Colombia played to a 0-0 draw on Oct. 12, 2010.
“We’re excited to begin 2012 with another high-quality international game,” said Union CEO & Operating Partner Nick Sakiewicz.
“We’ve committed to bringing world-class soccer to the Philadelphia region as part of our partnership with the Eagles, and we’ve done that once again with two teams that advanced past the group stage of the 2010 World Cup.”
The game will have its share of stars as Chelsea star Michael Essien will suit up for the 23rd ranked Ghana team and FC Barcelona star Alexi Sanchez will play for the 12th ranked Chile squad.