Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Lampard still out for Blues
Chelsea have confirmed midfielder Frank Lampard is still at least a fortnight away from returning to first-team action.
Lampard
He has subsequently sat out Chelsea's
Football transfer rumours: Fernando Torres to Manchester City?
Over the past few weeks the Mill has been ruminating on the tabloids' attempts to coin a nickname for Liverpool's manager Roy Hodgson. "Uncle Roy" has done the rounds as have "Hodgy" and "Hodgo" but none have stuck. But today's Mirror backpage splash of Steven Gerrard under the headline "Don't panic" has opened up a whole Dad's Army world to explore and makes Hodgson perfect casting as ARP Warden Hodges, the officious bane of Captain Mainwaring's life who has a tendency to undermine his authority by falling into rivers. And the drenched pictures of Hodgson from Wednesday night which get another airing alongside scores of handwringing analyses of Liverpool's decline do have a certain slapstick appeal. It also allows the Mill to think of Sammy Lee as Hodges' pettifogging sidekick, the Verger, and Alan Hansen as Private Frazer forever uttering "we're doomed", which is always a bonus.
Most papers are so busy sticking the boot into Liverpool that they've forgotten to print any transfer tittle-tattle at all. But the Star has done its duty with a story that does both. Fernando Torres, "Britain's most successful newspaper" says, "is ready to quit Liverpool in dismay at the club's progress under new boss Roy Hodgson". His representatives are already trying to engineer a move away from Anfield, apparently, alertingManchester City who are preparing a £50m bid. Stop us if you think that you've heard this one before.
Derby v Middlesbrough
Bueno's first two goals in English football ended a seven-match winless streak for Derby; the on-loan Real Valladolid forward showed why he was recommended by Spain coach Vicente del Bosque as Nigel Clough's side won for the first time since the opening day of the season.
It took only 17 seconds on Saturday for Middlesbrough to demonstrate their defensive frailty, when David Wheater's poor back-pass allowed Watford to open the scoring in a 3-1 win.
Boro have only managed one point from their last six away matches since April, and currently look a long way short of the side tipped for promotion at the start of the season."
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Newcastle deny Given return rumours
Newcastle boss Chris Hughton has dismissed speculation that keeper Shay Given could make an emotional return to St James' Park as cover for the injured Steve Harper.
Republic of Ireland international Given, 34, has lost his Manchester City place to Joe Hart this season and is desperate for regular football.
However, despite seeing 35-year-old Harper, the man who for so long acted as back-up to the Irishman during his 11-and-a-half-year stay on Tyneside, suffer a nasty shoulder injury at Everton on Saturday, Hughton will not be contacting City counterpart Roberto Mancini.
Asked about the speculation, he said: "I can understand that one and it is a very emotional one as well, but no, I can categorically say that won't be happening."
Newcastle's position on Given is perhaps equally understandable with the keeper having finally lost patience with life at St James' in the wake of a humiliating 5-1 home defeat by Liverpool in December 2008.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
THE PREMIER LEAGUE MYTHS DEBUNKED
"Is Tottenham striker Peter Crouch’s first-touch really that great? I mean it’s not bad for a big man, but not thatexceptional to keep harping on about it. On my Football Manager game it’s rated as 15 and I even think Sega were being a bit generous to the England international with that score. You hear so many commentators raving about Crouch having a ‘good touch for a big man’ that you start actually believing it is true.
I highlight this as a reference to the common myths and misconceptions that I believe are rife throughout the Premier League. This article attempts to deflate such fallacies, although I’ll let you to decide about Crouchie’s first touch.
The Premier League is the best in the world
This summer’s World Cup exposed the myth that the English Premiership is the best league in world football. While England were clinically dispatched in round two, Germany marched to the semi-finals alongside the delectable trio of Holland, Spain and Uruguay. So do the majority of players from the top four sides in world football come from the English league? In short, they most certainly do not.
Before the summer the entire Germany squad were playing their football in the Bundesliga, while Uruguay did not have a single player in their squad playing Premier League football. Meanwhile Spain had just three England-based players. Holland are the slight exception to this, but the majority of their squad were still playing away from the Premier League." More here at http://www.footballfancast.com/2010/09/football-blogs/the-premier-league-myths-debunked
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Champions League: Arsenal hit six, Chelsea stroll
"Fabregas' ninth-minute penalty set the tone of a thoroughly one-sided affair on a big night for English clubs, with the Gunners' Premier League rivals Chelsea also routing Zilina in Slovakia.
Andrei Arshavin and Jack Wilshere put Arsene Wenger's men out of sight by half-time and after Fabregas' second it was left to the man who replaced him, Vela, to round off the victory.
The other game in Group H saw Shakhtar Donetsk beat Partizan Belgrade 1-0 thanks to a goal from Darijo Srna.
Chelsea enjoyed a resounding success against MSK Zilina in Slovakia with Nicolas Anelka's double steering Carlo Ancelotti's men home to a 4-1 win."
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=823627&sec=uefachampionsleague&cc=5739