Football News

Real Madrid win at Barca in Cup

2013-02-26T21:27:00.001-08:00

Barcelona - R Madrid footyroom.com by footyroom

Milan outdo Barca

2013-02-21T10:00:00.001-08:00

AC Milan v Barcelona

Toyo | Myspace Video

Fair play? To the Premier League's gang of four, that means a ban on dreamers like Jack Walker

2013-01-16T02:24:00.000-08:00

No more of this: Success like Blackburn's, aided by Jack Walker, would be prevented under the proposed rules

All you need to know about the latest proposal for financial fair play in the Premier League is that, if the rules were passed, Venky’s catastrophic takeover of Blackburn Rovers would still be permitted. Jack Walker’s title win, however, would not.
Yes, he could have bought the club just the same, but Walker would not have been allowed to do much of worth with it. He would not have been able to invest at a level that could bring quick success; he would not have been able to challenge the established elite effectively.
So no Alan Shearer, no Chris Sutton, probably no Kenny Dalglish either, because what would be the point? And no league title. Manchester United would have won the championship in 1995, as they did in 1993, 1994, 1996 and 1997 and the modern era’s greatest achievement would never have happened.
Walker could still have purchased Blackburn, the club he loved, but only to manage their mediocrity, perhaps with small incremental improvements each year. The revolution, the great leap forward, the dream of every supporter across the land, would have been thwarted by supposed fair play.
Venky’s plans, meanwhile, would pass on the nod. There are to be no restrictions on those who want to buy a club and ruin it. Sell their best player, under-invest, bring in a cabal of clowns to run the show, get relegated. The elite are more than happy for the new money men to do that.

History: A young Blackburn Rovers fan poses for a photograph next to Walker's statue

More from Martin Samuel...

It is Walker, and those like him, that have them running scared. They fear competition, not tame bottom feeders. Manchester United are fine with Blackburn selling them Phil Jones; they just don’t like being taken on over Shearer or Carlos Tevez.
On Tuesday, December 18, when Premier League chairmen met to discuss the latest financial fair play proposals, four elite clubs attempted a coup. Until that moment, the general consensus had been that regulation was required to prevent another Portsmouth, but not another Manchester City, which seems reasonable.
There is a significant difference between owner investment and owner loans. There can be no repeat of the chaos at Pompey, but this can be achieved without restriction on fresh funds coming into English football to make the league more competitive.
And then the game changed.
On Arsenal headed notepaper, a letter was handed out, signed by four clubs — Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur — stating the existing FFP proposals did not go far enough and that greater limitations should be placed on owner investment.
David Gill, the chief executive of Manchester United, rose to speak. He questioned why the Premier League had to serve the needs of oligarchs and oil-rich Sheiks. Manchester United were focused on the health of the competition, he said — at this point it would have taken a heart of stone not to laugh — and he would go a stage further. The league should consider implementing UEFA financial fair play proposals to the letter, even getting UEFA in to regulate and ensure their strict application.
The rest of the clubs are thinking over this proposal before their next meeting. Some may even be stupid enough to consider it seriously.

FFP plans: The letter with the Arsenal header which says the proposed regulations do not go far enough

Effectively, what Gill wants is for a man like Bill Kenwright, chairman of Everton and the leading theatrical impresario in the world, to check his business dealings with Jean-Luc Dehaene, the former chairman of the bank that could yet do for the European economy what Lehman Brothers did for the fiscal stability of the United States.
Dehaene is the figure Michel Platini, UEFA president, has made chief investigator and chairman of the Investigatory Chamber of the Club Financial Control Body and, therefore, one presumes, the man Gill would have rooting through the finances of Premier League football clubs, too.
He would certainly have more time to concentrate on the project, having resigned as chairman of Dexia Bank on July 1, 2012. You may recall that Dehaene was due to speak on financial propriety at a Leaders In Football conference in London in 2011 but couldn’t make it because his bank had gone skint requiring a £3.45billion bail-out from the Belgian government. This in addition to the £5.18bn it had received to stay afloat in 2008, when Dehaene took over.
Dexia Holdings confirmed a loss of £9.73bn for 2011 and was subsequently embroiled in a scandal after the revelation that, between 2006 and 2008, Dexia Bank Belgium had loaned £1.3bn to two of their largest institutional shareholders to buy shares in other arms of the company to keep their stock price afloat.

Platini's main man: Former Belgian-French financial services group Dexia chairman, Jean-Luc Dehaene (left)

Since resigning from Dexia, where a further £70.2bn is to be spent to allow what is termed the ‘orderly resolution’ of their financial problems, Dehaene has been taking his rather personal interpretation of financial fair play to new levels.
Now a member of the European Parliament, he was forced to issue a revised declaration of interests after failing to detail £4.41million of share options in a Belgium-Brazilian beer conglomerate AB InBev.
This is the man Gill would place in charge of the financial policing of the English game.
So what is in it for Manchester United and friends? Money, obviously.

Aims: If the proposal is agreed, teams like Roman Abramovich's Chelsea and Manchester City would be punished

If clubs like United and Arsenal, with the biggest grounds and revenue streams, can limit spending to percentage of turnover, they will always have the biggest transfer pot and therefore the greatest chance of success. That is why owner investment terrifies them. Forget this guff about the health of the league. If they wanted that, the elite would be advocating some of the wealth redistribution initiatives that exist in American sport.
Profits from a Manchester United shirt sold beyond their catchment area — in the West Country, for instance — would be split throughout the 20 Premier League clubs, as happens to New York Yankees merchandise sold outside club shops or the New York metropolitan area.
Not going to happen here, is it?
Gill will not be giving too many speeches in favour of that one.

Self-interest: David Gill would not, of course, be in favour of sharing shirt sale profits with other teams

This is about exclusion, not fairness, and the established elite do not like the idea of another Sheik Mansour coming along. They don’t like Roman Abramovich buying the best players, either.
And, if they can rope in enough dopes who see the plan simply as a way of saving money and cutting expenditure, this naked self-interest may carry the day. So far, only Chelsea, Manchester City, Fulham, West Bromwich Albion and Aston Villa are against it and 14 votes are needed to alter the rulebook.
Once secured, forget the dream of your very own Jack Walker. All any new owner will be able to do is maintain the status quo.
As for Gill, his plan to deliver English football to Europe’s governing body, not so much wrapped in a bow as trussed like a turkey, coincides a little too neatly with his campaign to get elected to UEFA’s executive committee at the next UEFA Congress in May. Call it his dowry.
Ivan Gazidis, the man whose vision has helped make Arsenal the club they are today, is another with serious political ambitions.
He has already wormed his way on to the executive board of the European Clubs Association, as their representative on UEFA’s Professional Strategy Council, as well as holding a position on the ECA Legal Advisory Panel.

Divisive: Ivan Gazidis (left), with Arsene Wenger, wants his club's rivals wound up in red tape

In addition, there is his slot on the FA’s Professional Game Board, the FA Council, FIFA’s Dispute Resolution Chamber and the Premier League’s Working Group for Elite Player Performance. Quite the busy boy, considering he joined Arsenal as chief executive only in 2009. A cynic would think he had an agenda: or a plan.
A better plan than selling the best player to Manchester United and ramping up the ticket prices, one hopes. No wonder Gazidis wants his Premier League rivals bound in financial red tape. How else are his club to get back in the game?
It has been another illuminating week at Arsenal with the admission that manager Arsene Wenger knew selling Robin van Persie to Manchester United would take the title to Old Trafford, proof if any were needed that he no longer regards Arsenal as title contenders.
‘It is painful to see United so far in front of us,’ Wenger said. ‘You know when you sell Van Persie to United that this will be the case.’
Yet, if Wenger thought Arsenal could win the league, surely he would not have agreed the transfer that took this hope away.

All about the money? Robin van Persie's sale betrays Arsenal's supposed ambitions

One can only presume from his analysis, therefore, that he did not see Manchester United as rivals even before the season began. Then followed Wenger’s justification of Arsenal’s extortionate ticket prices, with Manchester City returning 900 seats for yesterday’s game after fans balked at the £62 cost.
‘The only way we can pay the wages and compete without any external help is through ticket prices,’ Wenger insisted.
And don’t say you were not warned. The fans will be the collateral damage of financial fair play. There is a going rate for player wages and it cannot fall without triggering free contract clauses. So, if the owners pass a mess of rules that stop them paying the bill, who do you think is going to get stuck with it?
Not Stan Kroenke. Not Gazidis, either. His big idea involves handing the title to Manchester United, creaming off the profits while trying to negotiate Chelsea and Manchester City out of contention with politics, lawyers and sneaky little closed-door carve-ups. Until that works, you pick up the tab.
Liverpool and Tottenham are clearly vying to gobble the meagre crumbs from Arsenal and United’s table, but why any of the other clubs are supportive, who knows?
West Ham United could soon move to the Olympic Stadium, with a genuine chance for expansion.

Surprising: West Ham could soon move to the Olympic Stadium - why would they shoot themselves in the foot?

Why would they vote to limit their possibilities simply to ensure the success of an established few? Why would any club with potential, from Aston Villa, to Sunderland or Southampton? Maybe it’s the Arsenal-headed paper reeling them in.
It always stood for something in the days when the club were the province of tradition, old Etonians and old money. Arsenal had class.
Arsenal had never been relegated. The chairman was posh and his name was hyphenated. When he talked, football listened.
This missive, however, is the work of an absentee American chairman and a chief executive whose grand plan would as good as hand the title to United each year, with his team coming an expensive second. Expensive for those watching, that is.
And who will preside over this, the world’s dullest league: why our old mate from Bank de Potless in Belgium. Thirty five quid a month on Sky, if you’re interested.

On ice: Katherine Copley and Deividas Stagniunas

No plastic Lithuanians

Deividas Stagiunas is a Lithuanian ice dancer. At the 2009 World Championships he and partner Katherine Copley, of America, placed 14th and earned qualification for the Vancouver Olympics.
To compete as a pair, Copley needed to be granted Lithuanian citizenship. President Dalia Grybauskaite denied the request. Copley retired.
Stagniunas took up with another partner, Isabella Tobias, also American. They won a bronze medal together at 2011 Skate America and established a training base in Novi, Michigan.
With the Olympics in Sochi looming, Tobias has also applied for Lithuanian citizenship. This, too, has been refused. Stagniunas may feel his needs have been ignored, but President Grybauskaite would appear to place greater importance on national sporting identity than many of the opportunists at the helm of Olympic sport in plastic Britain.

Vote with your feet

The Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield could soon close due to lack of funding from Sheffield City Council. The stadium needs £1.6million of renovation work and each visit requires the equivalent of a £5 council subsidy.
The stadium, built for the 1991 World Student Games, accounted for £29m of the £658m cost, a debt the council will still be paying in 2024. ‘Vote with your feet, complain, campaign and lobby,’ said Lord Coe.
Better still, vote with your feet — go to watch athletics. Few do, which is why saddling London with the same white elephant Sheffield has on the books was always the height of administrative arrogance.

Demolition plans: The Don Valley Stadium where Jessica Ennis (right) trained could be removed

Source:Daily mail

Lionel Messi wins record-breaking fourth consecutive Fifa Ballon d'Or in Zurich

2013-01-09T01:59:00.000-08:00

The 25-year-old took the honour ahead of Barcelona team-mate Andres Iniesta and Real Madrid striker Cristiano Ronaldo at an awards ceremony in Zurich.

The Argentina forward enjoyed a remarkable 2012 even by his own high standards, most notably surpassing Gerd Muller's 40-year-old record of 85 goals in a calendar year, finishing with an incredible 91.

Messi, wearing a polka-dotted dinner jacket and matching bow tie, said: "To tell you the truth this is really quite unbelievable. The fourth award that I have had is just too great for words.

"I would like to recognise my other colleagues from Barcelona; Andres it has been great to train and play alongside you.

"I would also like to recognise all of my friends in the Argentinian national team, everyone that has worked with me, coaches and staff and my family and my friends. Also my wife and my son. Thank you."
Messi polled 41.60 per cent of the votes, with Ronaldo taking 23.68 per cent and Iniesta 10.91 per cent.
Although he missed out on both the Primera Division and Champions League crowns, Messi racked up a host of personal achievements last year.
He scored an unprecedented 50 goals in a La Liga season, a record 14 goals in a Champions League season and became the first player to net five times in a Champions League match.
He also shattered the myth that he does not perform as well for Argentina as he does for his club by scoring 12 goals for his country in nine games.
Messi's fourth award took him past the three Fifa gongs won by both former Brazil striker Ronaldo and former France midfielder Zinedine Zidane.
France great Michel Platini, and former Holland forwards Johan Cruyff and Marco van Basten all won the old Ballon d'Or trophy for European footballer of the year three times.
Speaking at the pre-gala press conference, Messi claimed he did not consider 2012 his best year yet.
He said: "I'm more interested in team awards than I am about what I might win individually. There have been years where we won more titles that have been better."
Messi's team-mates and rivals were quick to pay tribute to him.
Barca midfielder Cesc Fabregas wrote on Twitter: "Congratulations Leo, forth time as the best player of £ballondor, you deserve it. And also to @andresiniesta8, huge to be there."
Argentina team-mate Sergio Aguero simply Tweeted: "Messi, Messi, Messi, Messi."
Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand Tweeted: "Congrats to Messi! Wow,4 yrs in a row!! Messi has added something else to his list of 'the only person to....' £isMessiTheBestOfAllTime ??"
The award was voted for by national team coaches and captains plus invited journalists.
Fenerbahce's Miroslav Stoch won the Fifa Puskas Award for goal of the year, Spain boss Vicente Del Bosque was named World Coach of the Year and United States international Abby Wambach won Women's World Player of the Year.
The FIFPro World XI was named up entirely of players based in Spain with Barcelona's Dani Alves, Gerard Pique and Xavi, Real Madrid's Iker Casillas, Marcelo, Sergio Ramos and Xabi Alonso and Atletico Madrid's Radamel Falcao joining the three Ballon d'Or nominees in the team.
Franz Beckenbauer received the Fifa Presidential Award.

Theo Walcott edging towards new £25m deal with Arsenal

2013-01-09T00:33:00.000-08:00

Theo Walcott, having rejected a contract in August, has scored 14 goals this season for Arsenal. Photograph: Clive Mason/Getty Images

Arsenal's tortuous negotiations with Theo Walcott over a new contract finally appear to be edging towards a favourable conclusion with the Premier League club expected to make an improved offer that will effectively be worth £25m in a bid to retain the England forward's services.
The 23-year-old, whose current deal expires at the end of the season, would be paid about £90,000-a-week with a significant signing-on bonus, thought to be worth around £3m, written into the agreement should he agree to extend his stay at the Emirates stadium for a further five years.
Arsenal will reopen talks with Walcott's representatives in the next 24 hours and, while the deal is unlikely to be signed before the weekend, the management are confident they will be able to announce the player has committed his long-term future to the club, perhaps even next week.
Player and club have been in limbo since the forward rejected what was dressed up as a "final offer" worth £75,000 a week back in August. Walcott found himself cast to the fringes of the first-team while communications between his employer and his representatives remained fractured, dialogue having dried up, though efforts were made to build bridges with Arsène Wenger last month.
Walcott asked for reassurances over his future, clarity over his role in the team and details of the club's long-term ambition in that meeting with the manager and was duly restored to the side in his favoured central striking role for the league game at Reading, in which he scored.
His form since, including a stunning hat-trick in the 7-3 trouncing of Newcastle, has justified that switch with Wenger impressed by the mature and professional manner he had displayed during that period out of favour. The Frenchman has consistently insisted he considers Walcott key for the team's future, despite his failure to select him in his starting line-up in domestic and European matches over the first few months of the campaign, and was determined to retain the player's services despite mooted interest from Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool.
Walcott, who would have been available on a free transfer in July 2014, has scored 14 goals this season to establish himself as the club's leading scorer and is expected to be granted a further opportunity in the striking role, starting with Sunday's visit of Manchester City to north London.
An Arsenal target, the Barcelona forward David Villa, will not be moving to the Premier League after the Catalan club's president, Sandro Rosell, said the Spain international would definitely remain at Camp Nou. "I completely rule out the transfer of Villa during the winger window," he said. "He is ours and we need him."

Balotelli will not bite back

2013-01-09T00:32:00.001-08:00

Mario Balotelli: Refusing to be drawn into a war of words

Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli is prepared to shrug off comments aimed at him by AC Milan president Silvio Berlusconi.

Balotelli has been strongly linked with a move to Milan for some time, with speculation resurfacing during the current transfer window.
There would, however, appear to be little chance of the Italy international completing such a switch any time soon, with Berlusconi having openly criticised the fiery frontman.
When pressed on transfer rumours last week, Berlusconi said he was not convinced by Balotelli 'as a man' and has followed that up by branding the 22-year-old 'a rotten apple'.
Balotelli could have been forgiven for biting back at the Rossoneri supremo, given that he has only had positive things to say about Milan in the past, but his representative claims his focus is locked on returning to form and repaying City's faith in his ability.
Mino Raiola told Mediaset: "I talked with Mario and he was sorry to hear the words of Berlusconi. But Balotelli has asked me to be quiet because he appreciates that he is loved by the president at City.
"I know him well and he has a big heart. Berlusconi is free to have any opinion he wants, but it seems strange that he wishes to pass judgement on a person he doesn't know anything about."

Van Persie thanks United fans

2013-01-09T00:30:00.001-08:00

Robin van Persie: Thanks fans for their support since joining Manchester United in August

Robin van Persie has thanked Manchester United fans for their support since arriving at Old Trafford.

United sit seven points clear at the top of the Premier League, and Van Persie, who has netted 20 times in all competitions since joining in August, has fuelled their title bid.
The Dutchman, voted United's player of the month for December after scoring five goals in their six league games during that period, thanked United fans for their support.
Speaking to the club's official website, Van Persie said: "It's always nice to be recognised by the fans.
"I have settled into the club quite quickly and I am really enjoying playing in this team. I would like to thank the fans for all their support.
"It's not all about scoring goals, but obviously that does help. It's great that so many players have scored goals over the season so far.
"December is always a difficult month and I feel we have come through this period as we wanted to and hopefully we can now push on for the rest of the season."

Yaya Touré named African player of the year for second successive year lkkl

2012-12-20T22:18:00.002-08:00

• City midfielder sees off Didier Drogba and Alex Song
• Samuel Eto'o has won award a record four times

Yaya Touré helped Manchester City to the 2012 Premier League title. Photograph: Michael Regan/Getty Images

Yaya Touré has been named the 2012 African Player of the Year for the second year in succession.

The Manchester City and Ivory Coast midfielder beat his countryman Didier Drogba into second place with Cameroon's Alex Song, of Barcelona, in third.

He joined the Senegal and Leeds United forward El Hadji Diouf on two victories although he has some way to go to eclipse the Cameroonian Anzhi Makhachkala striker Samuel Eto'o, who has won four titles.

Touré was crowned at an awards gala in Ghana's capital, Accra, today after being voted for by the head coaches or technical directors of Africa's national teams. The Africa Cup of Nations winners Zambia were named team of the year with their coach Hervé Renard named coach of the year.

Manchester City 2 : 3 Manchester United

2012-12-09T11:35:00.001-08:00

อิืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืืื... by footyroom

arsenal passing 38 against tottenham

2012-11-18T20:33:00.002-08:00

Adebayor 'sorry' for red card

2012-11-18T06:01:00.000-08:00

Emmanuel Adebayor: Tottenham striker says sorry after red card against Arsenal

Tottenham Hotspur striker Emmanuel Adebayor has apologised for his red card against former club Arsenal and insists there was no malice in his challenge on Santi Cazorla.

Adebayor had given Spurs a dream start at Emirates Stadium by scoring the opening goal after 10 minutes, but he was sent off just eight minutes later for a lunging tackle on Cazorla.
Spurs went on to lose the North London derby 5-2 and Adebayor has accepted he let everyone down by being dismissed.
"I completely understand my sending off changed the entire outcome of the game and I whole-heartedly apologise to my team-mates, the manager and all the Tottenham fans for letting them down," Adebayor told The Sun.
"But I must stress that my challenge was not malicious in any way whatsoever.
"I was genuinely trying to win the ball and probably stretched my foot out a bit too far in the heat of the moment.
"Nobody could have felt more devastated than me as I walked off the pitch.
"I so much wanted to help Tottenham win and thought for a moment that I'd actually set that win up when I scored, but football changes so quickly.
"One minute a hero, the next a villain."

CSKA Moscow 3 : 0 Amkar Perm

2012-11-18T05:59:00.000-08:00

Barcelona 3 : 1 Real Zaragoza

2012-11-18T05:56:00.002-08:00

BARCELONA 3 ZARAGOZA 1 by acosart

Norwich City 1 : 0 Manchester United

2012-11-18T05:55:00.000-08:00

แอิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิ... by footyroom

Manchester City 5 : 0 Aston Villa

2012-11-18T05:54:00.000-08:00

M5-0A www.fasthighlights.com by fasthighlights-2013

West Bromwich Albion 2 : 1 Chelsea

2012-11-18T05:52:00.002-08:00

ปแอิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิิ... by footyroom

Reading 5 : 7 Arsenal

2012-10-31T05:05:00.005-07:00

Р-А footyroom.com by footyroom

Alaves 0 : 3 Barcelona

2012-10-31T05:05:00.000-07:00

Alaves 0-3 Barcelona footyroom.com by Futbol2101

Palermo 2 : 2 AC Milan

2012-10-31T05:03:00.000-07:00

Palermo 2-2 AC Milan footyroom.com by Futbol2101

Chelsea allege official made inappropriate remark to John Obi Mikel

2012-10-28T23:01:00.000-07:00

The race issue exploded again in English football last night when Chelsea made an official complaint about referee Mark Clattenburg who is alleged to have made a comment of a racial nature to John Obi Mikel following the club’s controversial defeat 3-2 to Manchester United yesterday.
The club said in a statement that Clattenburg used “inappropriate language” towards two of their players in separate incidents during the game. Although early reports said that the players in question were both black it is understood that one was Mikel and the other was a white player who was allegedly the subject of another inappropriate comment that time of a non-racial kind.

The complaint was made to the Premier League match delegate at Stamford Bridge who is duty bound to pass it on to the Football Association today in his report. Clattenburg attracted criticism from Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo after the game for two crucial decisions. He dismissed Fernando Torres for a second yellow card awarded for what was judged by the referee as a dive and permitted Javier Hernandez’s clear offside goal to stand.

Crucially all Clattenburg’s conversations during the game would have been audible to his two assistants Michael McDonough and Simon Long as well as the fourth official Michael Jones, who are all connected by audio headsets. There is no black box equivalent which records those exchanges. The evidence of those three men will be vital should, as seems inevitable, the incident be investigated by the FA.

Roberto Di Matteo, who was critical of Clattenburg’s decisions, is understood to have visited him after the game. Mikel, whose identity as the player involved in the incident has not been officially confirmed, is also understood to have visited the referee’s room after the game to see Clattenburg.

In a statement, Chelsea spokesman Steve Atkins said yesterday: “We have lodged a complaint to the Premier League match delegate with regards to inappropriate language used by the referee and directed at two of our players in two separate incidents in today’s match.”

Professional Game Match Officials (PGMO), which is the organisation responsible for the administration and development of Premier League referees, said in a statement last night: “PGMO is aware of the allegations and they are being treated with the utmost seriousness. Mark will co-operate fully and welcomes the opportunity for the facts to be established. No further comment will be made until this matter has been properly investigated."

The incident came when the Chelsea, and the game as a whole, was hoping to draw a line under the John Terry saga and his guilty verdict on a Football Association charge of racism towards Anton Ferdinand. The Chelsea captain was at the game yesterday and was around long after the final whistle on the pitch with friends.

Chelsea also had a major contribution from the Kick It Out anti-racism campaign before the game and referenced by Terry in his matchday programme notes. Both sets of players wore Kick It Out t-shirts in the warm-up, apart from Ashley Young although it was unclear why not.

Rio Ferdinand, brother of Anton, was booed by the home support although he did shake hands with Ashley Cole before the game. When Hernandez celebrated scoring the winner in front of the home supporters in the Matthew Harding stand, items were thrown from the crowd. A steward required treatment although the club said it was because he was knocked over in a crowd surge in the aftermath of the goal.

Di Matteo was very critical of Clattenburg’s decisions in his post-match press conference. “We are massively disappointed that these key decisions were wrong,” he said. “It always seems to be in favour of the opposition. That’s a massive disadvantage for us.

“I thought, at 2-2, we looked like the team that were probably going to win the game. So it’s a shame, because it was a good game of football with two good teams and the officials ruined it.”

Sir Alex Ferguson said after the game that Torres was to blame for his second yellow card following a challenge with Jonny Evans. “Did he intend to dive? He could have gone on,” the United manager said. “I would never have gone down. I think it’s his own fault. He had already been booked.”

Chelsea rubbish Terry rumours

2012-10-25T22:37:00.001-07:00

John Terry: Linked with Valencia move

Chelsea have branded claims they are negotiating the sale of captain John Terry to Valencia as "nonsense".

Spanish agent Francois Gallardo claimed on Thursday morning that Terry was mulling over a move to Valencia after deciding to leave Stamford Bridge.
"Valencia are negotiating, and I am involved in person," Gallardo told Radio Intereconomia. "The offer is on his table. The player is out of contract in June and will not renew there for several reasons at Chelsea and he wants to come to Spain.
"He asked to leave. It's real. This has been going on for 15 days and two meetings have already took place. I think he will accept."
The Blues were quick to rubbish the claims, however, with a club spokesman insisting the story is "nonsense."
Terry, who has 18 months left on his deal at Stamford Bridge, is currently serving a four-match ban for racially abusing Anton Ferdinand.
The former England skipper has played for the London club throughout his professional career.

Celtic midfielder Victor Wanyama rejects improved contract offer

2012-10-25T22:35:00.001-07:00

Victor Wanyama: The midfielder has been linked with a move to the Premier League

Celtic midfielder Victor Wanyama has rejected an improved contract offer from the club, according to his agent.

The 21-year-old Kenya international is under contract at Parkhead until 2015 after signing in the summer of 2011 from Belgian side Beerschot.
However, his performances have seen him linked with a move to England and Celtic reportedly turned down an offer for him in the summer.
His agent, Rob Moore, told STV: "Victor has informed Celtic the contract offer fell short of his expectations.
"There were a number of aspects that fell short - he turned it down.
"He is very happy with the job he is doing at the moment. He is a great professional and his commitment cannot be questioned.
"But it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that he lost great earning potential in the summer."

Arsenal must stay united, Arsène Wenger tells grumpy supporters

2012-10-25T22:33:00.000-07:00

Arsène Wenger told the Arsenal AGM that groups with differing opinions must work together for the ‘common strength of the club’. Photograph: Wang Lili/Xinhua Press

The scene was set by a group of geezers loitering in the drizzle outside the entrance to the Royal Oak Suite with their black banner hung for all the Arsenal shareholders to see as they made their way to the AGM. "Let's Kick Greed out of Football" was their message writ large, and their leaflet had a none too complimentary list of Ivan Gazidis's job description as they see it. Among the key points of their satirical take on the CEO's role was to ensure that the best players are sold each summer, to keep on that the top four is a trophy, and to claim a package of £2.15m a year. They even came up with a new Latin motto for the club – Lucrum Super Omnia. Profit Over Everything.
Arsenal have never seemed further removed from their original dictum. Victoria Concordia Crescit (Victory Through Harmony) seemed like a distant memory as supporters made clear their discontent, and the board members snapped back. Some of the exchanges were personal, prickly, and the atmosphere became quite sour. It was not such a surprise to see the shareholders aiming verbal bullets at the board members on the plinth, but it was highly unusual for the snipes to be returned. All in all, it was the spikiest AGM since the days long before Arsène Wenger arrived in the mid-1990s.
At one point, Stan Kroenke namechecked a representative of the Arsenal Supporters' Trust whose line of questioning evidently left him cold. At another, Gazidis had a sharp retort for someone who lamented that Robin van Persie's departure was humiliating. "I'm not sure if that is a question or an expression of angst," smarted the CEO, before ticking off another dissenter for monopolising the microphone as he tried to restore order.
The octogenarian Peter Hill-Wood demonstrated some old-school hierarchy. When it came to the motions to re-elect the members of the board who stand down by rotation, he dismissed the hands raised in protest: "Anybody against? Same lot. Carried." The mumbles spoke volumes.
Inside the cavernous hall, as long as the sidelines of the Emirates pitch, it was apparent that there were a number of different fan groups all trying to plug their own campaign. The Arsenal Supporters' Trust had its manifesto, the Arsenal Independent Supporters' Association its pamphlet, the WherehasyourArsenalgone gang loitered outside. A tall Russian lady was in attendance to represent Red and White, the vehicle for Alisher Usmanov to buy shares. There was only one possible conclusion to draw, and it was down to the man most experienced in football politics to air it.
Wenger's speech tends to be a high point of these gatherings. The Arsenal manager gauged the mood and did his best to soothe it through persuasive reasoning. "We have to be united. I accept every different opinion but it looks to be like the modern world produces little groups of little opinion. The little communities need to live together for the common strength of our club, for the good of Arsenal," he preached.
Wenger went on to elaborate on why he feels qualification for the Champions League is so important, even if there is a craving for silverware which the club has struggled to sate since the move from Highbury. He recalled a recent coaching convention in Geneva, in which the whole meeting revolved around the dilemma of a coach who had to prioritise between a Europa League semi-final and a decisive match to qualify for the Champions League three days later.
"What came out was a 90% conclusion: all the managers said, 'If you take care about you, you go for the semi-final, if you take care about the club, you go for the Champions League position'. That's what we do. Always. If people convince me that's wrong, I'm listening. I am ready to do that.
"For me there are five trophies – the first is to win the Premier League, the second is to win the Champions League, the third is to qualify for the Champions League, the fourth is to win the FA Cup, and the fifth is to win the League Cup. I say that because if you want to attract the best players they do not ask: 'Did you win the League Cup?' They ask you: 'Do you play in the Champions League?'"
Arsenal remain, for now, a club caught between their internal ideal of a sustainable business and external pressure to be bolder with their resources in search of success. Such was the strength of feeling, Kroenke was compelled to issue a rare statement of intent on Arsenal's official website in the afternoon, once the shareholders had departed. "I am ambitious for the club and we all share the same goal. The reason I am involved in sport is to win. It's what it's all about. Everything else is a footnote.
"I can assure you no one is more ambitious than me. Arsenal is a tremendous club with a track record of consistent performance at the top level. That is very rare but we have managed it. I know that will continue as we move forwards. We have an exciting future and our goal is to win trophies."
Arsenal's board have pinned their hopes on Financial Fair Play, and a slew of new commercial deals in 2014, to help them to find a silver lining. In the meantime, the outlook remains cloudy.

Ferguson admits striker dilemma

2012-10-24T00:27:00.003-07:00

Javier Hernandez goals leave Sir Alex Ferguson with striker decision

By Phil McNulty BBC Sport chief football writer at Old Trafford

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson admits Javier Hernandez has handed him a selection dilemma after his match-winning display in the Champions League against SC Braga.

Hernandez has been in the shadow of Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie and Danny Welbeck this season, but scored twice as United came back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 and move closer to qualification for the knockout stage.

Analysis

Phil McNulty Chief football writer, BBC Sport

"Hernandez has the ability to make more than one movement in the same passage of play, hence his ability to find space in the most congested of penalty boxes."

Read more from Phil's blog

Ferguson now prepares for a crucial Premier League game against leaders Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday - and the 24-year-old Mexican striker has stated a powerful case for inclusion.

"The boy is improving all the time," Ferguson said. "He is fantastic in training and he's always practising.
"His goal ratio for us is fantastic. For his second goal he bends around the back of the defender. It is a great ball in from Tom Cleverley but his movement is terrific.
"He's given me a problem - but that's a good thing."
However, the United manager was not so pleased with his side's defending as they conceded two early goals to the Portuguese side - falling behind for the eighth time in 12 games this season.

A waiting game

Javier Hernandez now has three goals from four starts for Manchester United this season after his double strike against Braga on Tuesday. The Mexican has made five further appearances from the bench.

"I can't understand our defending," he said. "I can't get to the bottom of it. We certainly make it difficult for ourselves. If you analyse the goals we are conceding they are all different types.

"It is difficult to put my finger on it and it certainly doesn't give us a good start to games that's for sure. It is always at home as well. It is not a problem away from Old Trafford, at least not in terms of early goals. We will sort it though, I'm sure of that."
Ferguson has a fitness concern ahead of the Chelsea game after Japanese midfielder Shinji Kagawa was forced off at half-time with a twisted knee. He will be checked on Wednesday.

Manchester United 3 : 2 Sporting de Braga

2012-10-24T00:25:00.004-07:00

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