Around this time of year I make an annual pilgrimage to the old country to visit family and friends. This year’s tour has been a veritable road trip, featuring stops in London, Leicester, Yorkshire, Southampton and the Isle of Wight.

European and South American soccer is all I used to really care about. When Toronto FC came to town in 2007, I started watching Major League Soccer for the first time (having previously ignored the league since it launched in 1996) and now I'm hooked - I even splurged and bought MLS' on-demand package so I could watch games on the web.

Accepting MLS as a legitimate league was a big step for me as an admitted soccer snob, but I absolutely drew the line at watching the USL First Division, one level below MLS and home to the Montreal Impact.

Ever since I was a child, I've cheered for the bianconeri. Friend and co-workers can attest to my passion for the club - countless of their social invitations have been turned down over the years just so I could stay home and watched my beloved Juve.

My bias aside, I can say with complete conviction that Alessandro Del Piero's goal against Zenit St. Petersburg in the Champions League Wednesday night is one of the greatest goals I have ever seen.

Canada lost 2-1 to Mexico Wednesday in a crucial World Cup qualifier, a result that leaves the Canadian team's chances of qualifying for the 2010 tournament looking pretty bleak.

Mexico leads its CONCACAF qualifying group with nine points, followed by Honduras with six, and Canada and Jamaica with one apiece. Canada will travel to Honduras on Oct. 11 and welcome Mexico to Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium on Oct. 15 before wrapping up the qualifying round at Jamaica on Nov. 19.

Nor has the team's current winless skid stopped him from thinking about his future with the club.

Carver is on a one-year deal with Toronto FC that expires at the end of the 2008 campaign. His contract doesn't automatically roll over once the season is over, which means he has to negotiate a contract extension with the club if he hopes to return in 2009.

The under-23 rule has been on the books for a while now, but the hypocrisy of the rule bothers me.

"Taking part in the Olympic Games is a unique opportunity for all athletes of any sporting discipline," FIFA said in a statement.

If it's so important, why doesn't FIFA mandate that clubs must release all players, regardless of age, who have been called up to play for their respective Olympic teams?

I just sat there transfixed, staring at him and studying his every move, listening to every word he spoke. He didn’t change my opinion about him as a player, but I have to admit that I walked away with a newfound respect for David Beckham.

Regular readers of this blog know my feelings about Beckham: mainly that he is a one-trick pony, that his skills as a footballer are nowhere near commensurate with the media attention he receives, and that England will never - repeat NEVER! - win the World Cup as long as Beckham is on the team.

Still, when I was offered the chance to meet Beckham on Wednesday - my reward for helping CBC Sports commentator Brenda Irving prepare for her one-on-one TV interview with the former England captain - I took it.

"Just a second," Carver warned before starting the press conference. "I want to make sure everyone is here and they hear what I have to say. Have your pencils sharpened."

We all knew what was coming - or so we thought. The Englishman was about to tear a strip off his club for its uneven performance (despite dominating possession and carving out more scoring chances) and its failure to beat the Earthquakes, the worst team in the league.

On Tuesday, AC Milan agreed to pay FC Barcelona $33.4 million US for the services of the two-time FIFA player of the year. Milan will fork over an additional $6.3 million to the Spanish outfit if it clinches a place in next season's Champions League.

Is it money well spent by the rossoneri? You better believe it.

It's hard to say - for my money, Euro 2000 is still the best - but I could easily change my mind, depending on what happens in the next two games of Euro 2008.

The past three tournaments were all fantastic, producing some of the greatest games and moments in the game's history. Euro '92, although not at the same level, saw the most shocking result in the history of the tournament with Denmark winning it all.

It didn't quite pan out that way. In fact, it wasn't even close as the Azzurri bowed out in the quarter-finals after needing a helping hand from the Dutch to even make it to the knockout stage.

So, what went wrong for the Italians?

The Portuguese were touted as one of the favourites prior to Euro 2008, and why wouldn't they be with the best player in the world, Cristiano Ronaldo?

But after cruising through the first round - we won't count the loss to Switzerland - Portugal lost the plot Thursday, dropping a 3-2 decision to Germany in the quarter-finals.

Following France's 2-0 defeat at the hands of Italy Wednesday, a result that eliminated Les Bleus from Euro 2008, the French coach was trotting out the excuses.

Domenech took issue with referee Lubos Michel's decision to reward Italy a penalty and show French defender Eric Abidal a red card for his clumsy tackle from behind on Luca Toni in the 24th minute.

There wasn't much doubt it was a penalty and that Abidal deserved the red card - he was the last man back and the rules are quite clear on that - but somehow Domenech thinks the French were jobbed by the ref.

Not for knocking out the Czech Republic with your stunning, come-from-behind 3-2 victory Sunday at Euro 2008, because I don't have anything against the Czechs

But I'm thankful, nonetheless, for Turkey's amazing victory because it reminded me, once again, why the "beautiful game" is the greatest sport on the planet.

Down 1-0 and and looking like a sure bet to lose its second consecutive game, Austria was rewarded a penalty in injury time and Ivica Vastic converted from the penalty spot to help the tournament co-hosts earn a 1-1 draw with Poland on Thursday.

While a loss would not have technically eliminated the Austrians, it certainly would have killed off any legitimate chance they had of advancing to the quarter-finals.