Friday, February 27, 2009

10 years since last all-English Premier League squad: Where are they now?




Stan Collymore: 38-year-old columnist needs no introduction after retiring in 2001 and moving into the media.


The Rest

Spain: La Liga Weekend Preview


Barcelona face a tough trip to Atletico Madrid while Real Madrid go to Barcelona to face Espanyol...

Preview

Italy: Serie A Weekend Preview





Inter host Roma in the weekend's marquee match-up...

Preview

England: Carling Cup Final



Who:
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Manchester United
What: Carling Cup Final
Venue: Wembley Stadium, London, England
Date: Sunday, 1 March
Kick-off: 1500 GMT
Preview One
Preview Two

England: Premier League Previews & Predictions


Leaders Manchester United are otherwise engaged with the small matter of the Carling Cup, but Liverpool will go to Boro, Chelsea welcome Wigan to Stamford Bridge, Villa host Stoke, Arsenal host Fulham, West Brom go to Everton, Hull host Blackburn, Bolton play Newcastle and West Ham welcome Manchester City.

Preview One
Preview Two

Nick Webster's Previews


Lawro's Previews

The 50 Greatest Manchester City Players




All Fifty







Uhh....no.

England: FA Cup Report + Upcoming Fixtures


Hull City 2 - 1 Sheffield United
Blades cut to the quick by Hull own-goal.


Upcoming Fixtures:


Fifth Round Proper

08 Mar 2009 13:30 Arsenal vs. Burnley


Sixth Round Proper

07 Mar 2009 12:30 Coventry City vs. Chelsea

07 Mar 2009 17:15 Fulham vs. Manchester United

08 Mar 2009 16:00 Everton vs. Middlesbrough

TBA Arsenal /Burnley vs. Hull City

Europe, the last refuge for Premier League nearly men





England's 'Big Four' all feel they can win the Champions League but only Sir Alex Ferguson expects to win the Premier League.

UEFA Cup Wrap


AC Milan was knocked out of the UEFA Cup on away goals Thursday after surrendering a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with Werder Bremen.

England will also have just one representative in the round of 16 after Aston Villa and two-time UEFA Cup winner Tottenham were knocked out after fielding weakened teams.

WRAP

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Top 10: Football superstitions to rival Arsenal's Kolo Toure



The curious case of Arsenal's Kolo Toure missing the start of the second half of his side's Champions League win against Roma – waiting for William Gallas to emerge so that he could be last onto the pitch – is the latest in a long line of footballing superstitions.

FA Cup: Middlesbrough enjoy night of light relief





Middlesbrough 2 - 0 West Ham

Boro on to final eight

Ambivalent Villa and Spurs are a testament to Uefa Cup's falling stock





The Uefa Cup's rebranding as the Europa League cannot mask its diminished appeal to clubs with more pressing concerns.

UEFA Champions League: Wednesday Results

Chelsea 1 - 0 Juventus
The Insider at Stamford Bridge

Richard Williams: Hiddink rekindles battle skills lost under Scolari
Player Ratings

Real Madrid 0 - 1 Liverpool
Liverpool expose Real's lack of ideas
Torres exits early but leaves with a win
Player Ratings

Sporting Lisbon 0 - 5 Bayern Munich
Ribery inspires rout
Player Ratings

Villarreal 1 - 1 Panathinaikos
Karagounis' precious goal
Player Ratings

Big Montreal crowd takes in winter soccer


Five years after the Montreal Expos left town, Olympic Stadium filled up Wednesday night, a big change for the mostly idle and mostly problematic home of the 1976 Summer Olympics.

A near-capacity crowd of 55,571 took in a CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal game, a 2-0 win for the Montreal Impact of the United Soccer League over Mexican club Santos Laguna.

Roberto Gotta in London




With the first leg of the Italy v England three-headed hype monster behind us, a little reflection on how the Italian teams did.

You’re Just A Juventus Piece Of Shit, Michel Platini Is Told By Inter VIPs - Report




Former Juventus playmaker and current UEFA president Michel Platini endured a number of insults from Inter VIPs during the Champions League clash against Manchester United on Tuesday night, according to La Stampa.

Juventus Star Pavel Nedved To Quit Football


'Czech Fury' has announced he will hang up his boots at the end of the season...





He plans to surf and rob banks...

Property slump hits Arsenal's Highbury legacy




Concern is mounting among Arsenal shareholders over the club's financing of a £133.5 million loan for the Highbury Square development after it emerged they will not meet their own repayment expectations.

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

UEFA Champions League: Wednesday's Information

Chelsea vs. Juventus
Stamford Bridge, London, England
U.S. TV: ESPN2 at 2:30pm EST (also ESPN360)
Ranieri returns to The Bridge
Preview

Real Madrid vs. Liverpool
Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid, Spain
U.S. TV: Setanta Sports USA, tape-delay on ESPN Classic at 5:00pm (also ESPN360)
Sid Lowe: Rafa's return could haunt Real
David Pleat: Key clashes
Preview

Sporting Lisbon vs. Bayern Munich
Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal
U.S. TV: Live on ESPN360
Preview

Villarreal vs. Panathinaikos
El Madrigal, Villarreal, Spain
U.S. TV: Live on ESPN360
Preview

Drunken Manchester United Fans Roam Milan City Centre




A group of drunken English supporters have left the centre of Milan “looking like a cemetery of bottles and cans”.

England: FA Cup Wrap




Dempsey scores as Fulham advance to the quarters and a meeting with Manchester United...

Wrap

The curious case of Juande Ramos




Few in England would have agreed with Rafael Benitez's assertion that Juande Ramos was a "great manager" in the wake of his unceremonious departure from Tottenham in October.

Mellberg back on familiar ground




Olof Mellberg will walk out on to the Stamford Bridge turf on Wednesday and will relish the claustrophobic conditions that come with being within almost touching distance of 40,000 raucous Chelsea fans.

UEFA Champions League: Tuesday Results

Although there were not any goals, the clash of the titans in Milan lived up to expectations. Elsewhere, Arsenal continued to have massive problems in front of goal, Thierry Henry's late header salvaged a draw for Barcelona in France and Porto scored two in Madrid in another draw...

Inter Milan 0 - 0 Manchester United
Manchester United's class act lacks lavish reward
Richard Williams: First act demands encore
United and "un magnifico" Carrick gain Italian media's seal of approval
Player Ratings

Arsenal 1 - 0 Roma
RVP gives Arsenal slender advantage
Amy Lawrence: Van Persie leads from the front
Player Ratings

Atlético Madrid 2 - 2 FC Porto

Lisandro on the double
Player Ratings

Lyon 1 - 1 Barcelona
Henry hands Barca the edge
Player Ratings

Uli Hesse-Lichtenberger in Germany


The other day I finally started reading a quite unusual book. It's unusual because it was written in English by a Dutch woman living in France about a German company-cum-family. It's also unusual because it's currently available under two different titles in English and also under two different titles in German, none of which corresponds to either of the English titles.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

UEFA Champions League: Tuesday's Information

Inter Milan vs. Manchester United
San Siro, Milan, Italy
U.S. TV: ESPN2 at 2:30pm EST (also ESPN360)
"Worried" United are heading out says Mourinho
Paolo Bandini: Ibrahimovic has to live up to his billing as the best
Special One and Boss: Jose and Sir Alex prove opposites attract
Team News
Key Match-Ups

Arsenal vs. Roma
Emirates Stadium, London, England
U.S. TV: Setanta Sports USA at 2:30 EST (also ESPN360)
Jonathan Wilson: No room for both Totti and Vucinic on Roma's island
Team News
Preview

Lyon vs. Barcelona
Stade de Gerland, Lyon, France
U.S. TV: Live on ESPN360 at 2:30pm, tape-delay on ESPN Classic at 5:00pm
Lyon coach labels Barcelona ''best in the world''
Ben Lyttleton: Barcelona coming at the right time for Lyon
Preview

Atlético Madrid vs. Porto
Vicente Calderon, Madrid, Spain
U.S. TV: Live on ESPN360
Atlético aim to put league form behind them.
Preview

Sid Lowe in Spain



Billed as a one-sided mismatch, the Catalan derby ended up providing the shock of the season and one Barcelona struggled to come to terms with.

De La Peña summons Espanyol miracle in Camp Nou to resurrect title race.

'Boot Thief' Jens Lehmann Defends Himself





Stuttgart keeper Jens Lehmann has defended the fact that he threw Sejad Salihovic’s stray boot over his crossbar at the weekend.

Man Utd player's home raided, family threatened




Armed men have raided the home of Manchester United midfielder Darren Fletcher while the player was away in Italy, stealing jewellery and threatening his fiancee with a knife.

Paolo Bandini in Italy





La Viola
's prolific strikers are masking deficiencies elsewhere in the side.

Fortunate Fiorentina find wins but not form.

Raphael Honigstein in Germany



Eventful times continue in Europe's most open top flight, as Köln cause an upset in Munich, Hamburg press their claim and sparks fly at Stuttgart and Karlsruhe.

Bayern's loss is the league's gain as Cologne pile pressure on Klinsmann.

England: Premier League Report + Table





Jonathan Woodgate heads Spurs towards safety.

Hull City 1 - 2 Tottenham









Team GP W D L Pts
1. 26 19 5 2 62
2. 26 15 10 1 55
3. 26 15 7 4 52
4. 26 15 6 5 51
5. 26 12 9 5 45
6. 26 11 8 7 41
7. 26 9 8 9 35
8. 25 8 9 8 33
9. 26 9 6 11 33
10. 26 9 5 12 32
11. 26 8 7 11 31
12. 26 9 3 14 30
13. 26 7 8 11 29
14. 26 7 7 12 28
15. 26 6 10 10 28
16. 26 7 7 12 28
17. 26 6 7 13 25
18. 25 5 8 12 23
19. 26 5 8 13 23
20. 26 6 4 16 22

Eduardo Alvarez in Spain




A couple of minutes before kick off, a respectable-looking man sitting on my right, his face bearing a striking resemblance to Clint Eastwood, rises and screams off the top of his lungs: "Come on lads, by the end of tonight we'll be three points closer to Barça!" Most people around him simply laugh.