Football news round-up 26 Oct-1 Nov

Sunday 1 November 2009

Chelsea scored four goals against Bolton for the second time in a week to maintain their position at the top of the Premier League table. Arsenal won 3-0 at home to Tottenham, who will be replaced in the top four by Manchester City if they do not lose at Birmingham City on Sunday.

Liverpool, who had two players sent off in a 3-1 Saturday defeat at Fulham, face being without injured England midfielder Steven Gerrard and Spain striker Fernando Torres for their important Champions League tie in Lyon on Wednesday night.

Last season’s League Cup finalists Manchester United and Tottenham have been drawn against each other in this year’s quarter-finals. The ties, due to be played week beginning November 30, are: Blackburn v Chelsea, Man Utd v Tottenham, Portsmouth v Aston Villa and Man City v Arsenal.

West Brom’s 5-0 win over Watford moved them back to the top of the Championship table, but Ipswich remain bottom despite securing their first win of the season in the form of a 1-0 win over Derby.

Leeds maintained their impressive start to the season as a 4-0 win over Yeovil moved them seven points clear at the top of the League One table following second-placed Charlton’s defeat at Carlisle.

Second-placed Rochdale closed the gap to two points at the top of League two by scoring a surprise 4-0 win at leaders Bournemouth, partly thanks to two goals from on-loan Oldham player Chris O'Grady.

Oxford United had Damian Batt to thank as his first goal for the club enabled them to beat Altrincham 1-0 and increase their lead at the top of the Conference table to eight points.

Charlton manager Phil Parkinson has signed a one-year contract extension with the League One side. Parkinson succeeded Alan Pardew a year ago and said: “I suppose it can be taken as a sign that the club is progressing.”

West Ham and England duo Kieron Dyer and Dean Ashton are still battling against injury problems. Dyer missed most of last season with a broken leg and suffered a hamstring injury in training last week, as he was attempting to recover from another hamstring problem. Ashton is not close to returning after nearly a year out following ankle surgery.

Celtic goalkeeper and Poland international Artur Boruc will be out for almost a month undergoing a minor knee operation.

Saturday 31 November 2009

Leicester City moved level on points with Newcastle at the top of the Championship after they beat Queens Park Rangers 2-1 on Friday night. Adel Taarabt gave Rangers the lead but a Matt Fryatt double ensured Leicester took all three points at Loftus Road.

In League One, Southend's Lee Barnard scored in injury time as the Shrimpers beat Gillingham 1-0. The result means Southend are now ninth, two points off the play-offs.

England captain John Terry joins fellow Three Lions stars Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Wayne Rooney on the FIFA shortlist for the World Player of the Year. The winner will be announced in Zurich on 21 December.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp believes his side have closed the gap on north London rivals Arsenal. Ahead of Saturday's showdown at the Emirates, Redknapp said: "I feel we're getting closer to them, without a doubt. They play fantastic football but so do we."

Gianfranco Zola says West Ham should not blame their disappointing league position on their financial worries. The Hammers are second bottom in the Premier League and manager Zola said: "As far as I am concerned our financial situation is not affecting our performances, I don't want to use it as an excuse for any of my players."

Middlesbrough have signed striker Marcus Bent on an emergency two month loan deal from Birmingham. Blues manager Alex McLeish said: "He's a big, strong centre-forward with pace and presence - and when he's on top form he's an asset."

Republic of Ireland manager Giovanni Trapattoni has omitted Blackburn Rovers star Steven Reid and Portsmouth's Steve Finnan from his squad to face France in their World Cup qualifying play-off.

Former England captain Sol Campbell wants to join Newcastle. The 35-year-old left Notts County last month and he said: "Newcastle are a big club and could be heading back to the Premier League."

Luton Town have appointed Richard Money as their new manager. Money succeeds Mick Harford, who left the Conference Premier side earlier this month. "I'm looking forward to getting stuck in," Money said. "There's a great base to build on."

Dagenham & Redbridge manager John Still has signed a contract extensionat the club, keeping him at Victoria Road until 2014.

Barcelona captain Carles Puyol has signed a new contract. The Spaniard will remain with the Champions League winners until 2013 at least.

Friday 30 October 2009

Striker Marlon King has been found guilty of sexual assault and actual bodily harm over an incident at a London nightclub and has been jailed for 18 months. Wigan chairman Dave Whelan has confirmed that the player will never play for the club again.

Hull manager Phil Brown believes his players are ‘a million per cent’ behind him and says he has no intentions of leaving the club after chairman Paul Duffen decided to quit his role. The club were forced to issue a statement denying that Brown had been sacked.

Arsenal keeper Lukasz Fabianski has been ruled out for three weeks with a groin injury. The Polish keeper had only just returned from knee surgery and was making his first start of the season in the Carling Cup win over Liverpool on Wednesday night but will now have to spend more time on the sidelines.

Ally McCoist admits he would love the chance to take over as the next Rangers boss if Walter Smith decides to leave when his contract runs out in January. McCoist said: "It would be a dream to remain involved if Walter decides to move on at the end of his contract,"

Portsmouth boss Paul Hart is hopeful that the transfer embargo that has currently been placed on the south coast club will not affect his dealings in the January window. Hart said: "If the ban is still in place in January then that would be a serious situation but we are in the process of dealing with it."

Leicester City have given Dutch midfielder Edgar Davids until Friday to decide if he wants a move to the Championship club. Leicester chairman Milan Mandaric said: "I drew the line once and have extended it but if it is not done on Friday, I am going to call it off."

Peterborough United have signed Manchester United keeper Ben Amos on a month's loan as cover for the suspended Joe Lewis. Peterborough boss Darren Ferguson said: “He comes well recommended. My father [Sir Alex] thinks very highly of him.”

Carlisle United owner and chief executive David Allen has left the club and handed over his shares to three other members of the board. Allen said: "This board is letting down the club and is letting down the fans. I can't see how the club can move forward until we have a complete change at the top.”

Thursday 29 October 2009

Salomon Kalou, Florent Malouda, Deco and Didier Drogba scored for Chelsea as they beat Bolton 4-0 in the League Cup to reach the quarter-finals. England’s Joe Cole continued his comeback from injury by lasting the full 90 minutes.

Roque Santa Cruz scored his first goal for Manchester City as they beat Scunthorpe 5-1 at Eastlands. Stephen Ireland, Joleon Lescott,  Carlos Tevez and Michael Johnson also scored while Jonathan Forte scored for the visitors.

Arsenal’s youngsters knocked Liverpool out 2-1 at the Emirates, Nicklas Bendtner scoring the winner after Emiliano Insua had equalised Fran Merida’s opener. The one consolation for Liverpool was a substitute appearance from £20m signing Alberto Aquilani – his first for the club after recovering from injury.

In Scotland, Celtic were beaten 1-0 at home by Hearts in the League Cup thanks to a penalty from Michael Stewaret while in Italy, Juventus crushed Sampdoria 5-1 to go second in Serie A as AC Milan drew 2-2 with Napoli and Parma moved up to fourth by beating Bari 2-0. In Holland, league champions AZ Alkmaar scored three goals in extra time to save themselves from a giantkilling against amateur side Spakenburg and win 5-2.

Hull City have released a statement to deny they have sacked manager Phil Brown following persistent rumours. The statement said:  "Contrary to media speculation the club can confirm Phil Brown has not been sacked."

Portsmouth have been banned from registering new players by the Premier League until they settle debts to other clubs.

Manchester City winger Robinho is close to a return from injury after two months out with an ankle problem. City manager Mark Hughes said: “We hope it will resolve itself in the next week or so.”

Weymouth of the Conference South have announced their intention to go into administration.

Adam Pearson has stepped down as chairman of Derby County after two years to pursue “new challenges”.

Wednesday 28 October 2009

Michael Owen fired Manchester United into the quarter final of the League Cup as Sir Alex Ferguson’s men defeated Barnsley 2-0 at Oakwell. Danny Welbeck opened the scoring for the visitors before Owen sealed the win for United, who had Gary Neville sent off.

Tottenham Hotspur's quest to reach the League Cup Final for the third year in a row continued after they saw off Everton 2-0 at White Hart Lane.

Blackburn Rovers produced a five-star display to see off Peterborough 5-2 at Ewood Park in their League Cup clash, while there were also wins for Aston Villa and Portsmouth.

Newcastle United have named Chris Hughton as their new permanent manager after he agreed to sign a deal until the end of next season. Meanwhile, Toon owner Mike Ashley has revealed that the club is no longer for sale.

Arsenal director Stan Kroenke has increased his share in the club to 28.9 per cent after buying a further ten shares at £8,500 each. The American billionaire needs 29.9 per cent to launch a takeover bid.

Notts County have appointed Sven Goran Eriksson’s former Manchester City assistant Hans Backe as their new manager.  The Swede, who has previously enjoyed success with FC Copenhagen and Aalborg, has signed a three-year deal at Meadow Lane.

Jermaine Beckford scored twice as Leeds crushed Bristol Rovers 4-0 at the Memorial Ground. The League One leaders were in outstanding form with Sam Vokes and Tresor Kandol also on the scoresheet.

Southend United are set to go into administration after a hearing was set for 4 November. The Essex club were set to face a winding up order today, but that has now been postponed.

Conference South side Weymouth are also in deep financial trouble after director Paul Cocks filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators.  The Terras are expected to go into administration within a fortnight.

Fleetwood Town have signed Blackburn youngster Michael Hall on a one-month loan deal.

Tuesday 27 October 2009

Blackburn Rovers have confirmed that a third player and two of their coaching staff have got swine flu. David Dunn and Christopher Samba missed Saturday’s 5-0 loss to Chelsea after contracting a virus.

AC Milan have claimed they are certain to sign David Beckham on loan in January. "It's 100 per cent certain. The only thing missing is the signatures, the agreement is done," said the club’s chief executive Adriano Galliani.

Tottenham Hotspur hope to be playing in their new 56,000-seat stadium by 2012. The club have submitted planning applications for the new ground, which would back onto their current home, White Hart Lane.

Wigan’s Maynor Figueroa has damaged knee ligaments and could be sidelined for several weeks. The Honduras international injured himself in his side’s 3-1 win at Burnley on Saturday.

Middlesbrough have confirmed Gordon Strachan as their new manager. The Scot succeeds Gareth Southgate, who left the Championship club last week.

Leicester City moved into the Championship play-off places after winning 1-0 at Reading on Monday evening. Martyn Waghorn headed the only goal of the game just before half-time.

Anthony Elding has been told he can leave Crewe by interim manager Dario Gradi. “I've suggested to Anthony he goes on loan or he can go," said Gradi. "I've got lots of strikers and they're all ahead of him."

Southend United have suffered a blow after their attempt to extend the loan of Wolves full-back George Friend has fallen through as the club has an unpaid tax bill.

Chester City have three weeks to secure their future. The cash-strapped club owe money to both Wrexham and Vauxhall Motors, and have been given three more weeks to pay the debts.

Monday 26 October 2009

Liverpool went into their match with Manchester United suffering from their worst spell in 22 years, but Rafael Benitez's men managed to beat the defending Premier League champions 2-0, courtesy of goals from Fernando Torres and David Ngog. Nemanja Vidic was sent off for United, while Javier Mascherano was dismissed late on for Liverpool.

Arsenal threw away a two-goal lead as West Ham salvaged a 2-2 draw at Upton Park. Robin van Persie and William Gallas looked to have given Arsene Wenger a belated 60th birthday present but the Hammers hit back through goals from England striker Carlton Cole and Alessandro Diamanti. Scott Parker was sent off for West Ham.

Fulham were another London side to come from two goals down to sneak a point. Roy Hodgson's men were trailing against Manchester City following goals from Joleon Lescott and Martin Petrov but Damien Duff and Clint Dempsey helped the Cottagers to a point at the City of Manchester Stadium.

Elsewhere in the Premier League, Bolton beat Everton 3-2 in an enthralling clash at the Reebok. Ivan Klasnic was the Bolton hero as his strike turned out to be the winner - Chung-Yong Lee opened the scoring and Gary Cahill doubled the lead but Everton equalised thanks to strikes from Louis Saha and Marouane Fellaini. The match looked to be heading for a draw until Klasnic netted four minutes from time.

Tottenham winger Aaron Lennon limped out of their clash against Stoke on Saturday. Spurs lost 1-0 and Lennon sustained an ankle injury during the game, meaning he is a slight doubt for England's friendly with Brazil in three weeks' time.

Hugo Rodallega scored twice on Saturday as Wigan shattered Burnley's 100 per cent record at Turf Moor and Emerson Boyce, who netted the third in the Latics' 3-1 win, was full of praise for the Colombian."As a team player he is perfect," Boyce said."He is a quiet lad, but he proves how talented he is on the pitch and he is full of confidence in himself in terms of his ability."

England international Phil Jagielka expects to return to action next month. The Everton defender has been out since April with a cruciate knee ligament injury and he said: "Initially, I'd be hoping to be in back in the first week of November, but more realistic now is mid to late-November."

Scottish Premier League side Rangers have received enquiries from prospective buyers but the club have denied reports they have received a firm bid.

Former England captain Alan Shearer is eyeing a return to management. Shearer managed Newcastle United towards the end of last season but couldn't keep them in the Premier League. "If the right post came along somewhere I would definitely look at it," he said.

Sunday night's Ligue 1 match between Marseille and Paris St Germain was postponed due to swine flu. PSG players Ludovic Giuly and Mamadou Sakho contracted the virus and will be in quarantine for 72 hours.