By Eduardo A. Encina, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, June 11, 2011
FC Tampa Bay will face English team
FC Tampa Bay will play its first international friendly this summer when it hosts the English Premier League's Bolton in mid July at Al Lang Field in St. Petersburg. An official announcement is expected early this week. A date has not been confirmed, but it likely will be July 10-15, before Bolton plays in Orlando on July 17.
Bolton reached the semifinals of this year's FA Cup, an all-division tournament that features 759 English teams. This season, Bolton was eighth in the 20-team Premier League with six games left but struggled down the stretch and finished 14th.
The Wanderers' best-known player is 25-year-old U.S. national team member Stuart Holden. But the midfielder is out with an undisclosed right knee injury and will not be healthy in time for July's game.
Eduardo A. Encina, Times staff writer