Here’s some news items you may have missed during the week:

• Kaz Patafta: Released by Benfica, under-utilised by the Melbourne Victory, young Kaz runs to the wide open arms of Gary Van Egmond.
• Mark Byrnes: The former Victory player has signed a short-term deal with Apia Leichardt in the NSW Premier League. He’s hoping to make his way back into the A-League.
• A-League expansion: There are plenty of people jostling for a piece of the pie, with no less than three Melbourne teams hoping to become the second Melbourne club. Meanwhile, billionaire Clive Palmer has thwarted the Gold Coast Galaxy franchise, wooing the FFA with his own – more lucrative – club, Gold Coast United, which he hopes will become the new Bling FC.
• Carlos Hernández: The injury he picked up against Juventus has forced him to forego a spot in the Costa Rican World Cup qualifying squad.

For all the latest news, you can follow two other feeds I’m updating simultaneously throughout the week. If you’re on Twitter, follow my profile. Otherwise, this page is updating regularly and has an RSS feed.

Under the youth marquee system, every A-League club is allowed to pay one local player under the age of 24 up to $150,000 outside the salary cap. 23-year old Ward, who came to Melbourne on a six-month contract back in December, extended his contract to run till the end of April 2009.

Ernie Merrick said:

“It was just one of those training incidents with no one near him. He turned and his foot got stuck and twisted his knee.”

Six weeks means that the Costa Rican will miss Melbourne’s first three matches in the Asian Champions League.

Hernández’ absence will be sorely felt. His form at the end of the season was excellent, earning him a call-up to the Costa Rican national team. Suddenly, this injury throws a proverbial spanner into the works. Even if he recovers sufficiently to play in the latter half of the group stage, it will undoubtedly take him a few extra weeks to regain form.

Meanwhile, it appears to be confirmed that Grant Brebner will not be getting a game in the ACL group stage. This means that both Tom Pondeljak and Joe Keenan will be able to be drafted into the squad as injury replacements.

After weeks of speculation and rumours, it’s been confirmed: Adrian Caceres has left Melbourne for the greener grasses of Gosford.

The Central Coast Mariners have added the attacking midfielder to their squad list for next year. Caceres will, however, be available for the group stage of the Asian Champions League.

I’m sad to see him go. Caceres is a player with flair and creativity; a player who proved to be instrumental in the Victory’s late resurgence this season; and a player who deserved more game time than he was given. No doubt many fans will blame Caceres’ move on Ernie Merrick’s refusal to play him more, especially in the early stages of this season.

Source: Sydney Morning Herald

Elasi, a striker, has played for the Young Socceroos on three occasions and was recommended to Ernie Merrick by Sebastian Ryall, who captains the Young Socceroos.

“We brought him down and he impressed us so much, not only with his skill, positioning and his knowledge of how to play the strikers role, but he’s only just turned 18 and he has the build of a 25-year-old.”

He’s also fast:

“Another huge benefit for him is his background in athletics and his speed; he’s a 100 metre sprinter and a hurdler as well, so we think he’s got the capabilities of an excellent striker and he’s a signing we want to keep for the longer term.

That’s the official word at the moment, but for now Elasi is on a six-month contract.

So, one player signed, eight more to come.

Related post: Profile: Nathan Elasi

Adelaide United, meanwhile, have been drawn in Group E with Changchun Yatai (China), Pohang Steelers (South Korea) and Binh Duong (Vietnam).

Here’s who we’re up against, and how they made it to the Champions League:

• Chonburi FC won the 2007 Thailand Premier League to secure their spot at the Asian Champions League. It will be their first appearance at the Champions League.

• Gamba Osaka came 3rd in the J-League and failed to beat the Urawa Red Diamonds in the final of the 2006 Emperor’s Club, but that was enough to pave the way for them to compete in the Champions League.

• Chunnam Dragons have won the Korean FA Cup the last two years, knocking out the Pohang Steelers earlier this month. In the K-League, however, the Dragons have only managed to finish 8th this year.

If you haven’t read it yet, check out my previous post about how the Asian Champions League works.

Ward is a midfielder, and an attacking one at that. Sounds like just what Melbourne needs to reinvigorate a tired, overly defensive midfield.

He joins Melbourne on a six-month contract – enough to see out the rest of this A-League season and the group stage of the AFC Champions League.

Perhaps the bright spark Melbourne needs to kick into gear?

One Australian team will play the MLS Cup Champion, the Houston Dynamo, while David Beckham and the LA Galaxy will face the J-League’s Gamba Osaka.

Details on how the Australian team is selected are somewhat vague. The A-League website states that “an Australian side that will qualify on the basis of results from the Hyundai A-League finals series.” You’d assume the Grand Final winner gets through, right?

But the A-League Grand Final is to be played on the 24th of February – a day after the Pan-Pacific Championship kicks off. As a result, the loser of the preliminary final will get to compete in Hawaii.

Pretty sweet consolation prize, if you ask me.

The 24-year old defender signs over from the Preston Lions. In a 2-week trail with the Victory did, he obviously did enough to warrant his inclusion on the Victory payroll:

“Steven reads the game well, has excellent speed, good distribution and possesses great maturity.” (Ernie Merrick)

Pace’s signing doesn’t come as a huge surprise, with the FFA handing Steve Pantelidis a 3-match suspension, Ljubo Milicevic still out with injury, Sebastian Ryall away for international duty, and Daniel Piorkowski out for the season. And don’t forget Adrian Leijer’s sudden departure to Fulham during the pre- season.

Meanwhile, Eugene Galekovic is leaving the Melbourne Victory and making the short trek over to Adelaide United. Adelaide coach Aurelio Vidmar offered to take Melbourne’s second-choice goalkeeper off its hands yesterday – an offer quickly accepted, by the looks of it. Galekovic joins Adelaide as a replacement for Daniel Beltrame, who tore a quad muscle in Sunday’s match with the Wellington Phoenix.

More details The Age and Herald Sun.

Ah, we just can’t get away from Kosmina, can we?

Unfortunately for Sydney and Kosmina, the FFA has insisted that the former Adelaide United coach serve out his five-game touchline ban, of which he has only served one match so far. That was against the Melbourne Victory in the Grand Final. Now it looks like Kosmina will again be directing his team from the grandstand at Telstra Dome when the Victory host Sydney on the 10th of November.

Suffice it to say that that news forced a chuckle:)