Red Bulls kick off preseason training in La Manga, Spain

The Red Bulls are currently in La Manga, Spain on a two-week preseason trip. Under new head coach Hans Backe, the Red Bulls tied Russia's CSKA Moscow, 1-1, on Monday. They will also play Poland's Lech Poznan on Jan. 27 and Norway's Stromsgodset on Feb. 1. The squad arrived to La Manga last Thursday, and has held its first official training sessions. The team returns to New York on Feb. 4.

In the match against CSKA, the Red Bulls took the lead when forward Juan Pablo Angel found midfielder Dane Richards, who put in the team's first preseason goal of 2010 in the sixth minute. This season, CSKA qualified for the first knockout round of the UEFA Champions League, where they will face Spain's Sevilla in a two-leg, home-and-home series starting on Feb. 24.

Lech Poznan qualified for the UEFA Europa League but it was knocked out by Belgium's Club Brugge in qualifying rounds on penalty kicks after the teams were tied 1-1 on aggregate. Stromsgodset, a Norwegian Premier League team based in Drammen, are currently 12th in the league standings with 36 points.

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