Feb
04
2012

International return: Carragher doesn’t think so!

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Jamie Carragher is a hot property these days. His rock solid performances in the center of Liverpool’s defense have been a key to the club’s appearance in the last two Champions League finals. Unfortunately this form will not be translated for England after his decision to retire from the international arena. Capello, having taken over as England’s man in-charge, has his work cutout if tries to bring Carragher back into international squad. Fabio Capello is trying to bring back some of England’s best players who have admittedly made themselves unavailable for international fixtures. Of course, Carragher was on top of his list. Jamie, however, has point blank refusal in store for anyone trying to get him to play in England’s colors again. Here’s what the 29-year-old said on Liverpool TV: I don’t think so (returning to international duty). I’m happy with the way things are now and I get to have a break with the family as well now (in international weeks). I cannot see that changing. That’s a pity for England’s fans, but even more so for Capello. After George Terry breaking three bones in his foot, the Italian has a very limited choice for his defensive lineup. Capello’s first match at the helm is in a month’s time against Switzerland on February 6. Looks like he’s already running out of options! Well, that’s what you get for accepting a lost cause. Image Via

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Feb
04
2012

Manchester United’s Jonny Evans accused of rape!

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Upcoming footballer and 19 year old MU player Jonny Evans is perhaps having an unexpected twist of fate – he is being accused of rape by a 26 year old woman at a late night Christmas party at Boutique Hotel, Great John Street in Manchester. Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand were also known to be present at the party that took place on Monday night. It all started when cops received a phone call at around 4.15 AM in the morning that said there has been a rape at the hotel. Evans spent last night in the police custody after the victim accused him of attack and rape while he was drunk. He was to be questioned today by the police. Meanwhile, the woman has also been briefly interrogated. Though Evans has strongly denied any wrongdoing, claims of the woman may not be ‘impossible’ either as 100 women present at the party have alleged all Manchester United players of treating them like a ‘piece of meat in a cattle market atmosphere’. The players had reportedly paid £100,000 for Monday’s party and invited around 100 girls back to the £395-a-night Manchester hotel. Wives and girlfriends of players had not been invited. "Did you do threesomes?", "You know two girls and a lad?" are a few of questions players have asked to the girls after 13 hours of drinking session! Evans is a young squad member who plays at international level for Northern Ireland, let’s cross our fingers so that he walks free of the allegation and that the teenager’s career doesn’t end before it just begins to bloom! Source: Dailymail

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Feb
04
2012

Liverpool dumped out of Carling Cup by Chelsea

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The last four days for Liverpool have been one of their poorest of all season. They lost their second English Premier League match of the season when Manchester United outmuscled them 1-0 at Anfield on Sunday and now their 2-0 defeat to Chelsea in the Carling Cup quarter-final has put them out of contention for one cup triumph. The 2-0 shoreline in favor of Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday evening might have been a trifle harsh on Liverpool who clearly weren’t poor in spite of playing with several youth team players. The Reds’ backline was of course breached several times in the match and even the midfield didn’t look solid or creative in the absence of Captain Fantastic Steven Gerrard but Rafael Benitez’s men weren’t poor at all. They were basically outclassed by a stronger Chelsea side that appears to have taken this competition seriously. Manager Avram Grant decided to play Frank Lampard, Michael Essein, Andriy Shevchenko, John Obi Mikel and Petr Cech in the starting line-up and that was telling throughout the match. While the first half was pretty much entertaining, the second half was even more so. 15 minutes into the second half and Frank Lampard scored with the aid of a huge deflection off Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher and then Liverpool striker Peter Crouch got himself sent off stupidly. He lunged at Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel and sent him crashing to the advertsing boards and Liverpool were down to ten men. Crouch was shown a direct red. Liverpool didn’t exactly crumble down after that goal but they couldn’t find the energy or the motivation to equalize. Andriy Shevchenko was rewarded for his hard work throughout the match when he scored in the last minute of stoppage time. Image Credit: Football Source: The Daily Mail

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Feb
04
2012

Ronaldo’s magic does Everton in

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Christiano Ronaldo ensured that Manchester United moved to within a point behind the leaders Arsenal. His double against Everton ruined what was otherwise was a very spirited display by The Toffees. The Red Devils looked to be headed towards a stalemate after Tim Cahill had canceled out Ronaldo’s 22nd minute opener. However, a clumsy challenge by Everton’s Piennar on Giggs inside the penalty box saw United being awarded a penalty 3 minutes from the full-time. The charismatic Portuguese winger held his nerve from the spot and handed over a defeat to Everton – their first in the last thirteen outings. The result was a fair reflection of the events on the afternoon. Both of United’s strikers, Tevez and Rooney, had seen their efforts either go wide or being saved by Everton’s goalie Tim Howard. Ronaldo provided the initial breakthrough after creating a goal out of nothing. A superb curling left footer in the 22nd minute put the hosts in front. Thereafter, the game saw a spate of rash tackles from both the sides, as Everton pushed for an equalizer. Blues were lucky within five minutes of the opener. Piennar delivered a inch-perfect cross over Cahill’s head, who out-jumped United’s left-back Evra to head into the net. Rooney was denied by a goal-line clearance before the first half ended. Sir Alex reorganized his team at the break. But Unite were unable to break down Everton’s resilient defense. It was only three minutes before the end of the match that Piennar’s misjudgment inside the box helped United secure all three points. The scoreline read 2-1 in favor of Manchester United. The pressure was on United after Arsenal had moved to four points clear at the top of the table with a win on Saturday. The things would only get more interesting with holiday’s fixtures starting in two days. But one thing’s for certain, United need Ronaldo to continue firing in order to be sure of retaining their crown. Image Via

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Feb
03
2012

Man Utd go top of the Premiership on an ill-tempered Boxing Day

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There was absolutely no indication of Christmas cheers and goodwill across the English professional football setup on Boxing Day where match officials had the busiest of outings compared to club players and managers. A shameful record number of red cards were on display across the four league divisions of England. In the country’s top most tier, the Premiership, there were five red-cards on show with two of the sending-offs being due to the dreaded two footed challenges. It is surprising to see that professional players are failing to heed the warnings of officials not to indulge on these career-destroying tackles. May be the competitiveness and rigours of the Premiership are taking a toll on the players’ tackling mentalities. It is upto the respective clubs, now, to set the standards of fair play and introduce tough measures to rein down on ill-tempered behaviours. Coming back to the business of proper football, Boxing Day, 2007, got off to an enthralling start as title-contenders Chelsea were held to a sensational 4-4 draw by a thrilling Aston Villa side. The Blues went two goals down at Stamford Bridge early on in the first half courtesy of a Shaun Maloney double (one of the goals was due to a Petr Cech horror mistake) and the Midlands side deserved their lead. But Zat Knight’s dismissal just before the half-time and Andriy Shevchenko’s goal from the resulting spot-kick turned the match around with further two goals in the second-half from Shevchenko and Alex. But Martin O’Neil’s Villa kept on pushing and equalised via a Martin Laursen close-ranger from a free-kick. Ricardo Carvalho was sent-off for Chelsea following a desperate two-footed lunge but an expert free-kick from Michael Ballack seemed to have won the match for Chelsea only for a harsh decision to send-off Ashley Cole for handling the ball inside the penalty area denied Avram Grant’s team all three points as Villa skipper Gareth Barry coolly tucked away the the penalty deep into injury time to share a well-deserved point. But defending champions Manchester United went top of the table after beating struggling Sunderland 4-0, thanks to a remarkable first-half. Roy Keane’s team started the match well but Wayne Rooney set the tone of the evening with a classic finish and Louis Saha and Christiano Ronaldo adding two more goals in a largely one-sided first half. United completed the stroll with a further strike from Louis Saha late in the match. The win and Arsenal’s disappointing goalless draw away to Portsmouth meant United go ahead of the Gunners in the league table separated by just one point. Source Link: Dailymail

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Feb
03
2012

‘Giant-killing’ en masse in FA Cup

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There’s something special about FA Cup. Say what you may but it brings out the best in lower division clubs. The true spirit of competition is manifested especially when the top sides get knocked out by their less fancied opponents. Saturday’s results were another great representation of this fact. As many as four Premiership clubs were eliminated by teams from lower divisions. Everton, Blackburn, Birmingham and Bolton Wanderers were all dumped out in the third round. Oldham a side from League One produced the biggest upset of the day when they beat Everton 1-0 (wait it gets even better) at the Goodison Park. The Toffees produced a real lackluster performance and Gary McDonald’s 30-Yard wonder strike was enough for Moyes’ men. Blackburn have been the opposite of consistency this entire season and this trait was exposed yet again as Coventry thrashed them 4-1. Sheffield United managed to embarrass Bolton Wanderers 1-0. Carney’s 42nd minute effort was enough for the visitor’s to beat the London based club. The final casualty of the afternoon was produced by another League One side. Huddersfield beat Birmingham City 2-1. Breckett and Brandon scored for Huddersfield while O’Connor’s 19th minute effort for the Blues went in vain Manchester United beat Villa, yet again Manchester United and Chelsea negated the trend of the afternoon and won their respective matches to move in to the next round. The Red Devils produced two goals in last nine minutes to stretch their successive winning streak over Villa to 13 matches. Rooney and Ronaldo both scored to knock Aston Villa out 2-0. the match was watched by none other than Capello, England’s new manager, and he was quite impressed by Rooney’s form. Meanwhile the holders Chelsea were made to work hard for their 1-0 win over Queens Park Rangers at Stamford Bridge. It was QPR’s goalie’s 29th minute own goal that ensured Chelsea moved into the fourth round. Underdogs on Saturday proved that this competition is not about getting intimidated. If anything FA Cup epitomizes the fearlessness of some of these smaller clubs who play uninhibited come the big day. The romance continues… Via

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Feb
03
2012

Chelsea get their man in the ‘Nic’ of time

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The time for the traveling French striker Nicolas Anelka to settle down for good has come. There is no dearth of talent for the 28-year-old nomad, who scored goals at will, at all the clubs he had played since starting off as a teenage trainee at childhood club Paris St Germain. His latest 15 million pound transfer to Chelsea from Bolton Wanderers is the 8th club in 11 years for the former Arsenal and Real Madrid sharpshooter. Well, the question of loyalty always remains with the temperamental Frenchman, but there is no denying the fact that Stamford Bridge would be mightily relieved in signing Anelka. The current move to London makes Nicolas Anelka the most expensive footballer in the world, leaving behind Argentine Juan Sebastien Veron. A remarkable sum of 86.8 million pound has been spent on Anelka by various clubs in transfer fees. Leaving the monetary issue aside, many soccer pundits believe that Chelsea could be the Frenchman’s final stop in a dramatic traveling career, although one can never say that for certainty in Anelka’s case. What can be said for sure is the fact that the Chelsea fans would not miss Didier Drogba’s services during the Ivorian’s participation in the African Cup of Nations. Nicolas Anelka would bring a similar goal-scoring touch that Drogba possesses. A playing career at Chelsea provides Anelka a renewed chance to prove himself in the European stage as well. Many thought that the player was doing no justice to his rich talent by traveling a lot and playing for smaller clubs like Fenerbahce and Bolton. A successful career at Chelsea would make him one of the greatest European strikers, even though he is still regarded like that by many, despite all the mind-blowing transfer antics over these years. Nicolas Anelka’s arrival at Stamford Bridge gives rise to more speculations regarding Didier Drogba’s future at the club. Although manager Avram Grant has made it clear that the fans are looking forward to a deadly Anelka-Drogba striking partnership, when the latter returns from international duty, the footballing world knows that both the strikers love to operate upfront alone, and that is where they are most dangerous. Furthermore, Drogba had already announced his intentions to move elsewhere since the departure of Jose Mourinho earlier in the season. If Chelsea somehow manages to keep Didier Drogba at the club, it means other strikers might have to leave sooner rather than later. With Roman Abramovich, favorite Andriy Shevchenko is slowly finding his deadly old touch(as was proved against Aston Villa on Boxing Day) despite currently being injured. It looks as if Salomon Kalou and Claudio Pizarro need to make their agents busy for lives outside the Bridge. Source: Thisislondon

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Feb
02
2012

Beckham says Capello was ‘fair’ in leaving him out of the squad

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Beckham says Capello was ‘fair’ in leaving him out of the squad :

Probably Fabio Capello and Real Madrid made a huge mistake when they let former English captain David Beckham go across the Atlantic to sign for LA Galaxy Tickets, but no such mistakes were made when he was not picked in the squad for England’s friendly against Switzerland on Wednesday. According to the most popular soccer player on the planet himself, his lack of match practice was the reason he was left out of the national squad. David had received plenty of backing from Capello during his final days at ‘the Galacticos’, but was not picked for the Wednesday’s match due to his long stay away from the game. Beckham told reporters that the coach had personally talked to him about the matter and he could understand and agree with Capello’s point of view. Beckham had not played a competitive match since November, a period in which others had played over 15 Premier League games. Beckham had trained with Arsenal before heading for the Major League Soccer preseason with the Los Angeles Galaxy last week, and had hoped to reach his 100th England appearance against Switzerland. He hoped the training would convince the manager that he had done enough to win back his place, but he was apparently wrong. He said that he had ‘half hoped’ to play his 100th international for England this Wednesday, but could understand the reason why he was not considered for the squad. When asked about his recent visits trips to Africa, for UNICEF, and Brazil, to open to a soccer academy, he stated that they were mere 4 days tours and did not influence the selection or rather the non-selection at all. He also went on to say that he just didn’t have enough matches to stake a claim for the place and he was fine with Capello and his selection policy. While wishing the national side the very best, the master of free kicks did tell that he would be back for his place very soon. Knowing David, you can pretty much take his word for it. It will also be interesting to see how England deals with dead-ball situations now that Becks is no longer around to bend it into the top corner.

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Feb
02
2012

Chelsea romp Liverpool to advance into Champions League Final

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How I wish that it should have been an all red final for the Champions League title in Moscow, but that were not to be and now it would be the Blues from Stamford versus the Reds from Manchester. As far as I am bothered Liverpool deserved to be in the final for the show they put up against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, but for the denial of a deserved penalty at the dying moments of the second half in extra time when Didier Drogba willingly brought down Hypia. The Score read 3-2 at final time and Chelsea stormed into their first ever European final on an overall difference of 4-3. With this victory Avram Grant has been able to achieve something which his predecessors couldn’t do for Chelsea. Jose Mourinho was a much hyped coach but even his ways couldn’t teach Chelsea how to reach a European Final. Avram Grant bending down on his knees at the sidelines after the finish was thus understandably emotional. It was also an emotional day for Frank Lampard who returned after a week of his mother’s demise and managed to score from the spot, a goal which he then devoted to his mother which made for an emotional celebration. All this drama came to a celebrated end at Stamford Bridge and now it would be a brutal battle between the two biggest forces in English Football , namely Chelsea and Manchester United who would do anything to clinch the European Title. Sir Alex Fergusson was present at Stamford to witness Chelsea playing Liverpool and he would have already started devising ways to battle the strong emerging Blue force which seems to have hit form just at the right moment. [Image] [Source]

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Feb
02
2012

Chelsea stay in the hunt, beat Everton by a solitary goal

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Michael Essien was to the rescue again as Chelsea kept up the pressure to come to within two points of leaders Manchester United. A disjointed performance against a depleted Everton side almost cost Chelsea the match at the Goodison Park. In the end, however, a beautiful move by Essien sealed the match and kept them in the hunt for the league title. Starting without Cahill, Arteta and Osman, David Moyes’ Everton side was expected to put up a meek display. Neville and Carsley had other plans and put up a great display in the middle of the park, providing Chelsea’s players minimal room. Everton came quite close to inflicting some pain on the visitors themselves as Peter Cech had to pound away a Manule Fernandes freekick, which bounced just in front of him. Salomon Kalou took the initiative for Chelsea and created two opportunities in a matter of minutes. The only goal of the game came in the 41st minute. Michael Essien combined with Shawn Wright-Phillips to slot home from close in. that moment of brilliance was enough to seal the deal as the second half produced little from either side. Chelsea defended in numbers but Everton had little going forward. The meek display from the challengers to the title must be a cause for concern for Avram Grant who had called in several players after resting them on Monday against Wigan. Grant cut a weird figure at the press conference and fumbled for words, looking disinterested and unwilling to communicate. Manchester could go five points clear again if they win against Blackburn on Saturday. And yet things might stretch out to Stamford Bridge, where both sides meet in eight days’ time. Surely this won’t go to the wires! Via: Independent

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