TheDailySoccerNews.com

Archive for the ‘Premier League’ Category

Liverpool have completed the signing of midfielder Charlie Adam from Blackpool.

The Scot, 25, signed a contract on Thursday after successfully completing a medical, the club’s official website said. The length of the contract or the fee have not yet been disclosed.

“I am absolutely delighted to be here,” Adam told Liverpoolfc.tv.

“It has been a long process but now I can’t wait to get started and hopefully this will be a successful period in my career and in the club’s history.”

He added: “Liverpool is a massive club with terrific players and a terrific manager.

“I see this as the perfect development for me to come here, play with such wonderful players and hopefully help the team to win trophies, because that’s the most important thing. Read the rest of this entry »

Carlos Tevez has told Manchester City that he wants to leave this summer.

The striker is quoted in an interview on an Argentinian radio station as saying he is ready to walk away from Eastlands.

Tevez desperately misses his two daughters who live in Buenos Aires, and came close to quitting City midway through last season.

It now appears that Tevez – who has again been overlooked for a place in Argentina’s squad – is ready to force his exit at the end of the season.

He is reported to have told Radio del Plata, said: ‘I want to leave Manchester City. Football has changed a lot for me and I don’t know if I will even make it to the next World Cup.

‘And that has nothing to do with whether I’m selected or not. I’ve been treated very well here and I’m grateful. I also gave my everything for the club to receive the results it has had. But I need a change of scene.’ Read the rest of this entry »

Manchester United duo Sir Alex Ferguson and Nemanja Vidic have won the Barclays manager and player of the year awards.

It is the 10th time Ferguson has won the award, voted for by representatives of governing bodies, the media and fans, and defender Vidic’s second win.

This season, the pair helped inspire United to a record 19th league title.

The team will be hoping to finish the season with yet more success when they take on Barcelona in the Champions League final at Wembley next Saturday.

Vidic’s reward for his consistent performances at the heart of United’s defence will make up for missing out on the Professional Footballers Association’s and Football Writers’ player of the year awards, which were announced last month. Read the rest of this entry »

Liverpool are closing in on a deal for Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel.
The 39-year-old is out of contract in the summer and has attracted interest from Germany but the chance to return to a resurgent Liverpool side could be appealing.

Friedel is earmarked as competition for Pepe Reina but would be in a stronger position if Arsenal follow up their interest in the Spain stopper with a £20m offer.
Reina wants to stay at Anfield but big investment by Arsene Wenger may change his mind.

LIVERPOOL captain Jamie Carragher declared himself “absolutely fine” after being knocked out during a dramatic 1-1 draw at Arsenal.

There was a lengthy delay in the second half when Carragher was left unconscious after a clash of heads with youngster John Flanagan.

The former England defender was eventually carried off on a stretcher, his neck in a brace, and given oxygen.

However, after treatment at the Emirates Stadium, the veteran Reds centre-half had recovered enough to run onto the pitch at the final whistle to celebrate a dramatic draw when Dirk Kuyt slotted home a last-gasp penalty just moments after Robin van Persie’s spot-kick deep into eight minutes of stoppage time looked to have won it for the Gunners.

“I can’t remember anything. As soon as I came round I was absolutely fine,” the 33-year-old said. “It was a little clash of heads and these things happen in football.

“The main thing was to get the three points. I watched their penalty in the dressing room and then saw that we got our own. Read the rest of this entry »

Liverpool will turn to France’s next major star Mamadou Sakho if their campaign to land Gary Cahill ends in failure.

Anfield boss Kenny Dalglish has earmarked the Bolton and England centre half as a major priority when he is given funds in the summer.
But the Reds manager is painfully aware that Wanderers are determined to hold out until the bidding reaches £20million.

And with moneybags Manchester City also in the race, Dalglish has wisely lined up a back-up, with 21-year-old Sakho his preferred choice.

The Paris St Germain defender has already made a massive impact in France after winning his first full cap in the recent victory over England.

Sakho is doubly attractive because he can also play left back as well as centre half, and would cost only half the fee Cahill is likely to command.

Dalglish has other targets, with Aston Villa’s Ashley Young, Charlie Adam of Blackpool and Ipswich wonderboy Connor Wickham, who only turned 18 last week, on his list.

The Liverpool boss wants to concentrate on exciting young stars, after presiding over a massive improvement in the youth structure at Anfield since he returned to the club 18 months ago. Read the rest of this entry »

Anything other than a Liverpool victory will end their faint hopes of snatching a Champions League spot, and dent their chances of qualifying for the Europa League.
The Reds may have won six of their last nine league games, but injuries are beginning to expose the lack of depth in the squad Kenny Dalglish inherited. The Merseysiders ended the 2-1 defeat at West Brom with four centre-backs in defence, a ploy they may have to repeat on Monday.
City fans may have one eye on Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final against neighbours Manchester United, but manager Roberto Mancini has made it abundantly clear that a top-four finish is his priority this season.
On the evidence of the 5-0 win against Sunderland last time out, that should not be a problem for City, who played with the kind of verve and swagger rarely seen under Mancini.
The challenge for the Italian is to reproduce that form away from Eastlands; City have yet to win on the road in 2011 in either league or cup.

Liverpool are without injured defenders Daniel Agger and Glen Johnson, while captain Steven Gerrard has been ruled out for the rest of the season.
Fabio Aurelio and Jonjo Shelvey are back in training but lack fitness, while David Ngog returned from injury in a reserve match on Monday.
Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini reported no new injury concerns following the win against Sunderland.

City are again without injured duo Jerome Boateng and Micah Richards.
Liverpool:
Doubtful: Aurelio & Shelvey (both fitness)
Injured: Agger (knee), Gerrard (groin), Johnson & Kelly (both hamstring)
Man City
Injured/unavailable: Boateng (knee), Given (shoulder), Richards (hamstring), K Toure (suspended) Read the rest of this entry »

No longer a regular at Arsenal and often criticised for lack of commitment, midfielder Andrey Arshavin is facing similar problems with his National side as he was criticised for his below-par performance against Armenia.

Former Soviet international Sergei Andreev described the first half of the midfielder as a “catastrophe” as he explained that it looked as if the Russian doesn’t want to play football anymore as he spent his time on the pitch walking, standing in the middle and pointing his finger to his team mates instead of running and fighting for the ball.

Ex defender Dmitri Kuznetsov was also critical of the performance of the Arsenal man as he said that it was as if Russia were playing with only ten men as he added that his team mates should have spoken to their captain about his behaviour.

The 29-year featured and captained his country last night in a friendly game against Qatar, turning provider for Roman Pavlyuchenko’s 34th-minute equaliser in Doha. Read the rest of this entry »

Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp is set to be reunited once again with his one-time prodigy Joe Cole after the Liverpool midfield player conceded that is future may not be at Anfield much past the end of this season.
The England international only arrived on Merseyside on a lucrative free transfer from Chelsea last summer, commanding wages of £90,000 a week, however, the 29 year old has endured a horrific first campaign at Anfield that has been disrupted by a combination of a total loss of form, injury and suspensions.
And, with his mentor Redknapp reported to be waiting in the wings to bring the player back to London, Cole has admitted in a frank interview that his future most probably now lies away from Liverpool.
“It has been difficult this season,” Cole said.
“I find myself playing these Europa League games trying to catch up but I am still nice and positive, still myself.”
Read the rest of this entry »