The latest football news from around the country and beyond.
Sunday 16 August 2009
Cesc Fabregas showed his commitment to Arsenal by scoring twice in their 6-1 rout at Everton. The Spanish midfielder is wanted by Barcelona, but Arsene Wenger ssaid there is “no chance” of selling such a key player, as shown in the win at Goodison Park.
Coventry City are the pacesetters in the Championship after their 2-0 win at Barnsley gave them the division’s only 100 per cent record. Clinton Morrison scored his third goal in two games for Chris Coleman’s side after Leon Best gave them the lead.
Newcastle’s Damien Duff is due to complete his transfer to Fulham this weekend. The Republic of Ireland winger was left out of the squad that thumped Reading 3-0 in their first home game of the season, and had a medical in London.
Colchester United followed their 7-1 thrashing of Norwich last week with a 2-1 win over Yeovil to keep the lead at the top of League One, ahead on goal difference of Leeds and Charlton, the only other sides with 100 per cent records.
Awayday specials dominated the opening day of the Premier League, with six of the eight games played on Saturday won by the visiting sides. Only Chelsea and Stoke recorded home victories, over Hull City and Burnley respectively.
Didier Drogba scored twice, the second in stoppage time, as Chelsea beat Hull 2-1. New signing Emanuel Adebayor was on target in the third minute for Manchester City in their 2-0 win at Blackburn. Stephen Ireland scored City’s other goal. Darren Bent was another new boy to score, the former Spurs striker grabbing the only goal of the game as Sunderland won at Bolton.
Notts County continue to set the pace in League Two, with a 4-0 win at Macclesfield following their 5-0 win over Bradford last week. The Magpies, with Sven Goran Eriksson as director of football, are ahead of both Bournemouth and Dagenham and Redbridge, the only other sides with perfect records.
Luton Town have made a good start to life in the Conference, leading the Premier table on goals scored from Altrincham and Oxford United. Former QPR striker Kevin Gallen scored the winner for Mick Harford’s men in their 2-1 victory over Gateshead.
Saturday 15 August 2009
Liverpool striker Fernando Torres has signed a new contract that could keep him at Anfield until 2014. The striker, 25, had agreed the deal in May and Liverpool confirmed yesterday it is now complete. Manager Rafa Benitez said: "Fernando is one of the best strikers in the game and, at his age, can only get better.”
Wigan have completed a deal to sign Spanish centre-back Antonia Amaya on a three-year contract from Rayo Vallecano, subject to international clearance. Wigan manager Roberto Martinez said: "Antonio is someone I have admired from a distance for a long time, and I am very happy we have convinced him to come to us.”
Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, 36, has signed a new one-year contract at Craven Cottage which keep him at the club until 2011. Fulham manager Roy Hodgson also confirmed the club has bid £4m for Newcastle winger Damien Duff.
League One side Norwich City have fired manager Bryan Gunn just two matches into the season. Norwich were crushed 7-1 at home by Colchester on the opening day of the campaign and even though they recovered to win 4-0 at Yeovil in the Carling Cup in midweek, the Carrow Road board acted quickly.
Newcastle United have signed Manchester United Danny Simpson, 22, on loan until January.
League Two side Notts County have swooped to sign Manchester City goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, son of Manchester United legend Peter, on a permanent transfer. Schmeichel, who has signed a five-year contract, played under Notts County’s Director of Football Sven-Goran Eriksson when the Swede was in charge at Eastlands.
Bolton Wanderers have signed South Korean winger Lee Chung-Yong from FC Seoul for an undisclosed fee. The 21-year-old impressed during a loan spell at the club and has signed a three-year deal.
Nigerian striker Kanu, 33, is to stay at Portsmouth, at least on a short-term basis, after signing a one-month deal with the south coast club.
Friday 14 August 2009
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed he turned down a move to Real Madrid this summer. "I want to go to the end of my job here. I built this team, I want to deliver with this team and I feel that if I left I would in some way have betrayed my beliefs," Wenger told The Times. "It is nothing to do with what Real Madrid have done. I just couldn't see leaving this team at this stage of their development."
England star David Beckham has confirmed that AC Milan are his first choice for a loan move in January when the season in the United States is over. And that means he is unlikely to make an emotional return to the Premiership.
Portsmouth have completed a loan move for Belgian international Anthony Vanden Borre from Genoa. Manager Paul Hart has also agreed an exclusive option to turn the one-year loan into a permanent transfer if the 21-year-old, who can play in defence or midfield, does well at Fratton Park.
Chelsea defender Michael Mancienne, who was called-up to the England Senior squad last season, has completed a loan move to Wolves. The 21-year-old, who also spent two months at Molineux last year, has agreed a season-long deal this time. But Chelsea have moved quickly to secure his long-term future by signing the centre-back on a new four-year contract which will keep him at Stamford Bridge until 2013.
Birmingham City have agreed a one-year deal for Liverpool and Glasgow Rangers defender Gregory Vignal pending a medical.
Burnley have handed striker Jay Rodriguez and midfielder Chris McCann new two-year deals.
Hull City have completed a double deal to sign Irish winger Stephen Hunt from Reading and striker Kamel Ghilas from Celta Viga, taking their tally of signings to four in the space of a week.
Championship hopefuls Plymouth Argyle have signed 20-year-old Celtic striker Cillian Sheridan on-loan subject to international clearance.
American international Clint Dempsey has signed a new contract at Fulham that will keep him at Craven Cottage until 2013.
Brazilian veteran striker Romario, has revealed he is to come out of retirement at the age of 43. He will play for Brazilian Second Division outfit America, where he is already the manager and plans to add to his career tally of 1003 goals.
Brentford have taken their transfer tally this summer to 12 after agreeing a deal to sign winger Cleveland Taylor from Carlisle United.
Thursday 13 August 2009
Scotland's World Cup hopes took a major blow after they were beaten 4-0 by Norway. George Burley's side need to win their last two games if they are to stand any chance of playing in South Africa next summer.
Republic of Ireland crashed to a 3-0 home defeat against Australia in a friendly in Limerick. Everton midfielder Tim Cahill scored two goals for the visitors. Wales lost 2-1 against Montenegro while Northern Ireland managed a 1-1 draw against Israel.
Hartlepool caused the biggest upset of the night in the League/Carling Cup when they beat Coventry to set up a second round tie with Premier League new-boys Burnley. The big games to come out of the hat for the second record saw Doncaster drawn at home to Tottenham and Crystal Palace paired against big spending Manchester City.
Sunderland have completed the £6m signing of midfielder Lee Cattermole from Wigan. Cattermole, 21, signed a four-year contract and reunites with his old Wigan boss Steve Bruce at the Stadium of Light.
A Birmingham statement has confirmed that Carson Yeung's Grandtop International Holdings Limited have made an approach to increase their investment in the club. The Blues were responding to speculation about a second attempted takeover from Yeung, and warned: "shareholders will be aware, previous approaches did not proceed - and the issue of the funding of any possible offer will be a major factor in determining how the company responds to the approach."
Aston Villa have signed goalkeeper Andy Marshall on a one-year deal as back-up to Americans Brad Friedel and Brad Guzan. The 34-year-old was a free agent after his contract with Coventry finished at the end of last season.
Out-of-favour Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko insists he plans to stay at Stamford Bridge this season despite reports linking him with a move away from Stamford Bridge. The Ukranian was not even on the bench for last weekend's Community Shield clash with Manchester United but said: "I still have a year left on my contract with Chelsea and I want to stay in London until it expires."
Manchester City boss Mark Hughes expects to be without £17m summer signing Roque Santa Cruz until the end of August as the Paraguayan striker is still suffering from a knee injury. "If we can, we want to give him the time he really needs, rather than getting him back early and having him at 70 per cent," said Hughes.
Wednesday 12 August 2009
Jonathan Woodgate will miss the start of the season after an operation on the hernia problem that has dogged him for some time. The Tottenham and England defender had surgery at the end of the season and a second operation recently in the United States in a bid to clear up the groin problem that has limited his effectiveness.
John Hartson has left hospital for the first time since undergoing surgery to remove a brain tumour. The former Wales striker had been critically ill with cancer and has been in hospital near his home in Swansea for the past three weeks but has improved enough to be discharged.
Martin Ling has returned to Cambridge just days after walking out of the manager’s position. The former Orient manager left last week after only a few days in the job, citing irreconcilable differences with chairman George Rolls, who has since resigned.
Everton manager David Moyes has rejected a transfer request from Joleon Lescott. The England defender is wanted by Manchester City but Moyes has rejected all offers so far and is determined to hold on to Lescott.
Derby County were among the biggest victims of the first round of the Carling Cup on Tuesday evening. Nigel Clough’s side were beaten 2- 1 by Rotherham.
Sheffield United were other big-name victims, losing 2-1 at home to Port Vale. Marc Richards scored twice for the visitors.
Norwich bounced back from their opening day league thrashing by Colchester in style, winning 4-0 at Yeovil. Grant Holt scored a hat-trick for the Canaries.
Tuesday 11 August 2009
Manchester United midfielder Nani believes he can recover from his dislocated shoulder he suffered in the Community Shield and be fit for Portugal’s clash with Lichenstein on Wednesday. "I think I can recover in time," said Nani. "We'll see how it turns out.
Enoch Showunmi netted the only goal of the game as Leeds beat Darlington to reach the second round of the Carling Cup on Monday night.
Jozy Altidore, 19, has joined Hull City on a season-long loan from Spanish side Villarreal. A work permit for the United States striker has been agreed and he said: "Hull City is a good club, up and coming, and to have the opportunity to play for them in the Premier League is a great thing."
Nikola Kalinic has also secured a work permit and will now join Blackburn Rovers from Hajduk Split for £6million. The 21-year-old has clearly impressed Sam Allardyce: "He has a terrific goalscoring record. He is only 21 and scores one goal every 1.6 games. That is why we have forked out as much money as we have."
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has backed Lucas Leiva to fill the void left by Xabi Alonso's £30million move to Real Madrid. Liverpool have signed Alberto Aquilani from Roma but Benitez believes Leiva has a big part to play at Anfield this season. "Lucas has been the best player in pre-season. He is really focused, working hard and is showing quality," Benitez said.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has faith in his squad ahead of the new Premier League season. The Frenchman has not been too active in the transfer market – £10million signing Thomas Vermaelen his only business – but Wenger said: "I am very optimistic about the season and I am very positive about this team. We always have to listen to peoples' opinions, but you also have to trust what you see in the games and in training."
Portsmouth have parted company with assistant manager Brian Kidd, after the former Manchester United assistant and Blackburn manager rejected the offer of a new contract. Portsmouth manager Paul Hart said: "He did a great job for me after turning down a number of other jobs but he's a family man and Manchester is a long way."
Two Norwich football fans have received police cautions after they ran on to the pitch during Norwich's 7-1 defeat at home to Colchester on Saturday. The fans appeared to throw their season tickets at Canaries manager Bryan Gunn.
Gary Cahill has signed a new three-year contract at Bolton. The defender, called up by England in June following an impressive season in the Bolton defence, will remain at the Reebok Stadium until 2012. "Gary is the best young centre-half in the country by an absolute mile," said Bolton manager Gary Megson.
Monday 10 August 2009 Manchester United winger Nani is set to miss the start of the Premier League season after dislocating his shoulder during the Community Shield defeat against Chelsea. The Portugal international will miss next Sunday’s opener against Birmingham.
Harry Redknapp says he does not expect Aston Villa winger Ashley Young to join Tottenham this summer. Redknapp said: "Everybody would like to have him but I don't think there is a chance we would get him. He's a fantastic player and Aston Villa do not want to sell him, I don't think he's available."
Carlos Tevez could miss Manchester City’s opening game of the season against Blackburn. The forward has pulled out of Argentina’s friendly against Russia on Wednesday and will face a late fitness test on his heel injury ahead of the clash with Rovers.
Clinton Morrison scored twice to give Coventry a 2-1 win over Roy Keane’s Ipswich at the Ricoh Arena. Jon Walters pulled a goal back for Town but the home side held on for the points.
Hull City suffered a 1-0 home defeat by Aberdeen in Dean Windass’ benefit match at the KC Stadium. The 40-year-old striker played for both teams during the tie which was won for the Scottish side by Lee Miller’s 38th minute effort.
Swansea midfielder Joe Allen has been ruled out of Wales’ Under-21 friendly game with Hungary after limping out of the 2-1 defeat at Leicester with a hamstring injury.
Alfreton Town boss Nicky Law has bolstered his squad with the signings of winger Andy Todd and goalkeeper Paddy Gamble on one-year deals.
