Transfer news...

[h=1]Manchester United's Sir Alex Ferguson dispels retirement talk – again[/h] • 'Nucleus of young players' backed to deliver 20th league title
• 'I will keep going, working,' says United manager at 69




  • Ewan Murray
  • guardian.co.uk, Thursday 11 August 2011 23.26 BST Article history
    The Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, said he had confidence in his young players. Photograph: David Cheskin/PA

    Sir Alex Ferguson says he still harbours no thoughts of retiring from management on the eve of his attempt to win a 20th Premier League title for Manchester United.
    In 2002 Ferguson, who is now 69, famously backtracked on an earlier announcement that he would retire. Since then intrigue has surrounded how much longer he will remain in office at Old Trafford.
    "I did that silly thing where I said I was going to retire some years ago," said Ferguson, before referring to his wife. "Cathy put a stop to that.
    "Now the situation has changed. You come to realise as you get older that you have been on the treadmill for such a long time, you don't want to get off it. So I will keep going, working."
    Ferguson, speaking before an audience in Dunfermline on behalf of the Mary Leishman Foundation, believes his youthful United team can claim another championship. "I am confident because I trust the players and I feel we have had a nucleus of young players developing for a while," Ferguson said.
    "We had a few out on loan last year and they have come back as better players. We had 13 players under the age of 22 in the United States [for pre-season games]. So it is looking like a very young squad. Darren Fletcher is one of the older ones, at 27."
    Fletcher missed the end of last season with a virus. His manager revealed the Scotland international is stepping up his rehabilitation in what is also a boost to his country ahead of Euro 2012 qualifying matches next month.
    "Darren is back training now," Ferguson said. "He will play for the reserves on Monday. He has put weight back on and is doing great.
    "When Darren joined us at 15, he had a lot of problems with his ankles and missed a lot of foundation work at the club. He had the resolve and perseverance after that to get to where he is, he has worked his socks off. He is a big-game player; he excels in temperament and discipline, obeying instructions to the letter of the law. In big games you need that."
    Asked as to how he keeps a wealthy group of players in check, the United manager cited basic principles. "All they want to do is play football," said Ferguson. "That's the hold I have over them, that's my strength. No matter about their private lives, their egos, they all want to play football and all want to win.
    "Most of these boys say they are working class but they are not. Their fathers or grandfathers might have been but they're not. I try very hard to make them think as if they are working class. It's an important issue that, a quality. You have to know what it means to be working class and what a working-class ethic is."

 
[h=1]Roberto Mancini hits out at Manchester City board over slow transfers[/h] • 'I asked for Nasri two months ago but I don't have him'
• Carlos Tevez will not play in opener against Swansea




  • Daniel Taylor
  • guardian.co.uk, Friday 12 August 2011 22.45 BST Article history
    Arsenal's Samir Nasri had been expected to sign for Manchester City before Friday's registration point so that the midfielder could play against Swansea on Monday. Photograph: Andreu Dalmau/EPA

    Roberto Mancini has renewed his criticisms of the Manchester City board, describing himself as "worried" going into the new season because of the club's inability to conclude their transfer business earlier in the summer.
    Samir Nasri's proposed transfer from Arsenal would once again establish City as the biggest transfer-window spenders in English football, with a net spend in excess of £60m. Mancini, however, is becoming increasingly impatient with the length of time it is taking for his squad to be completed.
    The Italian had expected Nasri to be confirmed before Friday's registration point to play against Swansea on Monday, and he still wants at least one more signing. "Last year was the same too," he said. "I don't understand this. I thought we could get all the players we needed three or four weeks ago. But here we are and the deals aren't closed.
    "We need this player [Nasri]. I asked for this player two months ago. I'm worried because I don't have this player today and I probably won't have him tomorrow. We play three games in August and I am worried."
    The Nasri deal has been held up because the clubs are arguing about the structure of the payments for a deal that would cost City in the region of £23m.
    It has been a complex process – Arsenal began the summer by stating unequivocally that Nasri would not be sold to an English rival – and the fact the London club are now willing to sell could be construed as a personal triumph for the City chief executive, Garry Cook, and the football administrator, Brian Marwood. But Mancini's relationship with the two men has been fractious at times over the summer and he remains unsatisfied.
    "I haven't spoken with Garry or Brian, so I don't know the situation," Mancini continued. "I hope that we can get the players I asked for two months ago. Monday is the start of the season for us and we have not completed our team. I hope we can do this very quickly because we need other players."
    One of those might be Alessio Cerci, the Fiorentina winger. "Cerci is a good player," Mancini said. "He is young and he could be an option but there are other players."
    The City manager expects Carlos Tevez to stay at the club, pointing out "it is going to be difficult for him to leave (because) there isn't a team that wants to take him." Tevez, he said, was "not 100%" after being given extra time to recover from the Copa América and will not be ready to start against Swansea, and the same applies to Sergio Agüero, the £38m signing from Atlético Madrid. "Sergio is getting better but he is not ready to play a full game. Maybe he can play 40 or 45 minutes. The season is long and it's important for him to find his fitness."
    As for the lingering question of the City captaincy, Mancini was asked whether he should give it to Vincent Kompany on a permanent basis now it is clear Tevez is at the club against his will. "I will decide this, not anyone else. I've made my decision but I haven't told the players and when Carlos next plays you will see who is the captain. Right now, it's not important. It's more important to get in the new players we need."

 
[h=1]Arsenal sign Costa Rica's Joel Campbell from Deportivo Saprissa[/h] • Teenage striker has 'great ability,' says Arsène Wenger
• Left-sided 19-year-old has scored twice in six internationals




  • Press Association
  • guardian.co.uk, Friday 12 August 2011 22.00 BST Article history
    Arsène Wenger has agreed terms with Costa Rica's Joel Campbell. Photograph: Andrew Yates/AFP/Getty Images

    Arsenal have agreed terms with the Costa Rican side Deportivo Saprissa to sign the striker Joel Campbell. The 19-year-old was in his country's squad for the Copa América and the Under-20 World Cup.
    Arsenal revealed on Friday that the transfer is subject to the completion of "formal agreements and processes". The manager Arsène Wenger told The Official Website of Arsenal Football Club | Arsenal.com "Joel Campbell has already shown that he is a player with great ability and has also performed well on the international stage at a young age.
    "We look forward to the formalities of the transfer being completed and working with Joel when he joins us at Arsenal."
    Campbell is predominantly left-footed and has made six full international appearances, scoring twice. He scored on his debut in a 5-0 win over Cuba at this year's Concacaf Gold Cup, helping his side reach the quarter-finals.
    Campbell has had two seasons in his native Primera División, where he played for Deportivo Saprissa and on loan at Puntarenas, making a total of eight league appearances.

 
[h=1]Arsène Wenger defends Gervinho after his sending off at Newcastle[/h] • Wenger: 'I don't think Gervinho deserved to be sent off'
• Joey Barton given full backing by manager Alan Pardew




  • Paul Wilson at St James' Park
  • guardian.co.uk, Saturday 13 August 2011 22.20 BST Article history
    Arsenal's Gervinho is sent off by referee Peter Walton after clashing with Newcastle's Joey Barton. Photograph: Lee Smith/Action Images

    It was no eight-goal thriller but Arsenal's visit to Newcastle still ended as contentiously as last season's game, with Joey Barton as the agent provocateur when the visitors had a player dismissed in the second half.
    Last season it was Abou Diaby, this time it was Gervinho, making his English league debut. Alan Pardew insisted he dived, Arsène Wenger claimed he did not, but the salient point was that after Barton had hauled him brusquely to his feet and told him to get on with the game the Ivorian became involved in a scuffle and clearly slapped the Newcastle man.
    "I think I saw more than the referee did," Wenger said, making an unusual case for the defence. "It was just an argument, the referee could have produced two yellow cards or two red ones. I don't think Gervinho deserved to be sent off and certainly Barton was not hit hard enough to lie down for two minutes in the way he did. I will have to have a good look at it again before we decide whether to appeal."
    That much is true, though the letter of the law is that raising one's hands constitutes violent conduct, so Gervinho will now be looking at a three-match ban, unless Arsenal manage to successfully appeal. Pardew advised them not to bother.
    "First of all Gervinho dived, there's no question about that," the Newcastle manager said. "Joey's reaction was to chastise him, which you can understand, and then there was a tussle and Gervinho slapped him. You can't do that. I'm not going to defend Joey to the hilt, I've had my run-ins with him too, but on this occasion he was calm. He was just incensed at an opponent attempting to con the referee and I don't think that makes him a villain. He's just an opinionated boy, that's all."
    Even Wenger could not disagree with that assessment. Showing remarkable good humour in the circumstances, the Arsenal manager noted that Barton was the obvious link between the two dismissals in the last two games and claimed he had "got away with it" on both occasions.
    When it was put to Wenger that Arsenal had been linked with Barton in transfer speculation over the summer, he smiled and did not rule out the possibility. "That may be the solution to sort out our problem," he said. "We do not seek to provoke opponents though, we try to play football. I am concerned that maybe sometimes our players overreact to provocation and that is an area where we must try to improve."
    Wenger was somewhat less relaxed about the visiting Arsenal supporters telling him in no uncertain terms to spend some money as his players ran out of ideas in the second half. Clearly frustrated by the apparently inevitable departures of Cesc Fábregas and Samir Nasri, and the lack of replacements being lined up, the Arsenal fans high up in the Leazes End twice chanted that Wenger needed to get his chequebook out.

 
[h=1]Sir Alex Ferguson has Manchester United in shape for a flying start[/h] Fitness-first Manchester United manager believes his side will hit the ground running in a hard series of opening games




  • The Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, left, has been pleased with his side's pre-season progress. Photograph: John Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images

    Sir Alex Ferguson feels Manchester United have been handed a trickier start to the season than defending champions have a right to expect, with an opening game away from home and then Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea all visiting Old Trafford in the space of a month. He is not though complaining about getting the three big London sides out of the way early and believes his players have already demonstrated they are ready to get off to a flier.
    "I'm very pleased with the way pre-season has gone," the Manchester United manager said before Sunday's trip to West Brom, an away game on a Sunday being a far cry from the 3pm Saturday start with which the traditionalist in Ferguson believes champions ought to kick off a new campaign. "The great benefit of bringing in a few new young players is that they bring their enthusiasm and hunger into training. The training sessions have been fantastic and I always say that what you see in training comes through in the way you play in games. You could see that quite clearly at Wembley last week. I know it was only the Community Shield but Manchester City weren't as fit as we were, they didn't have the same intensity. I'm not saying we can keep that up all season, but when you start with a hard run of games, as we do, you have to make sure you are as well prepared as possible. The fitness of the players at the moment is excellent."
    Tom Cleverley and Danny Welbeck, both returning from loan, were among the United newcomers who impressed at Wembley, and Ferguson believes he has another young player of rich promise in 18-year-old Paul Pogba, a goalscoring French midfielder who has been compared with a young Patrick Vieira. "That's just because of his height and build," Ferguson said dismissively. "You don't want to be putting the lad under that sort of pressure yet, but he's got all the equipment all right. He's strong and athletic and he's almost ready to be considered. We are just trying to work on his distribution. He has been playing a short passing game and we think he could do with a bit more range. We will be giving him opportunities this season because if you don't use good players you end up losing them. We can't hold him back, and wouldn't want to do anyway."
    Unlike Cleverley and Welbeck, Pogba will not be sent out on loan to gain experience elsewhere. "There's no need to do that in this case, he's still learning here," Ferguson said. "We sent out Cleverley, for instance, because of his physique. He was making slower progress and needed games for his development and confidence, but we were always going to bring him back. From our point of view the loan system works when the end result is a better player, as is the case with Cleverley. You need games, and because reserve football is not what it used to be you now have to look at getting them with someone else.
    "In the old days there might have been a stigma about being sent out on loan, a player would naturally be disappointed because he thought it meant he wasn't good enough to play here, but now players can see it might work in their favour you can sell it to them more easily. As long as they know they will get games they will see the point, and I don't think there is any doubt that Cleverley and Welbeck have benefited from going out and coming back again. The only thing we don't like is loaning out players to clubs who then don't use them. That has happened once or twice and everyone finds it disappointing."

 
[h=1]Andy Carroll still looking to let out his inner monster for Liverpool[/h] The striker did not justify his £35m transfer fee with a struggling display against Sunderland



  • Andy Carroll failed to impose himself in Liverpool's 1-1 draw against Sunderland at Anfield. Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters

    In January's great striker sale, £85m worth of goalscoring talent passed through Anfield. Fernando Torres went out for £50m and Andy Carroll came in to break the record fee for an English footballer. There is no certainty of a return on either splurge.
    Starting a new campaign in the No9 jersey, Carroll was sometimes lumbering, off-target with his heading and often loose in his distribution of the ball. This is not to say that the £35m bank-transferred from Liverpool to Newcastle United is already burning around the edges. Plenty of good judges say this giant pony-tailed bruiser is England's next top-class centre-forward. But already we see that his evolution from home-town prodigy to big-stage star is going to be more complicated than Kenny Dalglish might have liked.
    Dalglish's faith in Carroll expressed more than a desire to hit straight back after Torres fled to Chelsea. His acquisition was no desperate grab at the nearest available tool. But as Dalglish's predecessor, Roy Hodgson, is fond of saying, "you can lead a player to water but you can't make him drink". Carroll, not Dalglish, is the ultimate master of his own destiny, and to fulfil his potential he will need to practise dedication as well as knocking opponents out of the way.
    From the pictures and general reports, it would be fair to say the £35m man didn't spend his summer at a yoga retreat. Not that he returned to training fat or dissolute. The point is that at this high level every nuance is visible, on and off the pitch. His huge price tag intensifies the scrutiny, especially here at Anfield, where Carroll's shortage of speed across the pitch and lack of accuracy stood out in a Liverpool display featuring intermittently bright contributions from Charlie Adam and Stewart Downing.
    Dominant for one half, Liverpool lost rhythm and purpose after the interval. There were league debuts for Adam, Downing, Jordan Henderson and José Enrique, the new left-back who spent much of the game taking positional lectures from Jamie Carragher. As the young right-back, John Flanagan, began to struggle against Sunderland's Sebastian Larsson, Henderson failed to impose himself and Luis Suárez (the first-half goalscorer) started to tire following his exertions at the Copa América, it fell to Carroll to seize the narrative in classic Anfield fashion, but the task was beyond him.
    Liverpool's injured captain, Steven Gerrard, can explain the special expectations that all players carry into combat here. In adversity, the top names are meant to make the difference. Starting alongside Suárez in a 4-4-2 formation, Carroll was expected to be the beneficiary of Downing's arrival on the flank. In the most obvious analysis he would mooch around the box waiting for Downing to locate his forehead. Rarely will it be that simple. The modern striker is no static finisher.
    Mobility is the religion, and Carroll's handicap is that his size can make him appear laboured at full gallop. Some of this may be attributable to a lack of match-sharpness. To acquire that he will have to stay fit, eager, and attentive to the wisdom Dalglish and his coaching staff impart on the training ground.
    The Carroll-Suárez partnership is certainly promising. "Andy came to the club injured and he's a lot fitter now. Those two will be all right," Dalglish said in the wake of Larsson's acrobatic equaliser. Alan Shearer, who managed Carroll for eight games at Newcastle, says: "He will get better. He will score goals as well because he's not frightened to miss. That's very important in a striker.
    "You can see strikers who shirk away because they're frightened to miss chances because of the reaction, not only of their own players but the crowd as well. He's not bothered about that, which is a great sign. You can see strikers who miss a chance and don't want to get in there for another in case they miss again. He's not like that."
    Immunity to crowd pressure is an asset in these parts. Liverpool started the campaign cheerily. Not every Kopite is yet convinced by the new signings, but there is an authentic sense of stability and renewal.
    Henderson started ahead of Dirk Kuyt, the warhorse in residence, but will need to offer more to keep his place. There is little of the outside-right about Henderson, so picking him on the flank may be Dalglish's way of handling an excess of central midfielders. Nor could Raul Meireles claim a first XI jersey here. When Gerrard returns the surfeit in the centre will grow. Dalglish's challenge is to find a shape that best accommodates these individual assets; and plans B and C for when things go wrong.
    Chasing a winner, he tried several combinations against an increasingly assertive Sunderland: Downing in the hole with Kuyt right, then Downing right with Kuyt central and Meireles marauding on the left. In all this time (33 minutes, from Larsson's equaliser) Carroll remained willing but was unable to shake off Wes Brown, a Manchester United discard who displayed his latent class at centre‑half.
    With nine minutes left, Carroll set off on a hopeful dribble but lost the ball and fell over. On the touchline Dalglish shook his head. Next weekend brings an opportunity for this £35m weapon to terrorise Arsenal's defence again in London.
    There is a monster of a striker inside Andy Carroll. But only he can let it out.

 
[h=1]Tony Fernandes poised to buy Bernie Ecclestone out of Queens Park Rangers[/h] • Asian businessman could be named as new owner on Monday
• He will take charge alongside Lakshmi Mittal




  • Jamie Jackson
  • guardian.co.uk, Saturday 13 August 2011 22.00 BST Article history
    Tony Fernandes is set to take over the ownership of QPR alongside Lakshmi Mittal Photograph: Lai Seng Sin/AP

    Tony Fernandes could be announced as the new owner of Queens Park Rangers on Monday in a deal that would mean the Asian businessman taking control of the club from Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore, in partnership with Lakshmi Mittal, who already owns 33%.
    If the deal goes through it is not yet clear if Ecclestone will sell all his 66% holding in the west London club and whether Briatore will retain his 1% stake. However, given the strained relationship Mittal and his son-in-law, Amit Bhatia, have with the Formula One impresario and the former grand prix team principal Briatore, it is thought Ecclestone is likely to sell all his shares.
    Ecclestone has said in the past that QPR would be for sale for £100m but the financial details of the deal being struck by Fernandes and Mittal are unknown.
    Bhatia, who resigned as chairman in May in protest at ticket-price hikes and the direction the club was taking is likely to return to the board if Fernandes is successful in his attempt to take control.
    A source close to the Air Asia and Team Lotus team owner told Observer Sport: "Until the deal is done [it] is not done. But we are hopeful that by Monday it could be complete. It will involve Tony buying into the club and taking charge alongside Mittal."

 

[h=4]Series: Said & Done[/h] Previous | Index

[h=1]Said & Done[/h] The summer's top gestures, threats, loyalty pledges and exits, plus Rio on riots




  • David Hills
  • The Observer, Sunday 14 August 2011 Article history


    [h=2]Man of the week[/h]@Rioferdy5 on riots: "I can't tell the youths exactly what to do but stealing tv's + trainers+burning innocent peoples houses+shops aint solving nothing at all … seems these kids/people have no fear or respect for the police." 2009: Get Rich or Die Tryin star 50 Cent signs up for Rio's new gangland drugs movie. "I'm inspiration to a lot of people. Not just in the US, but in the ghetto, period, worldwide."
    (Also from Rio's tweets, in March: "Morning tweeps, its 14yrs since Notorious BIG died, #timeless. The school run is all Biggie 2day.")
    [h=2]Summer awards: best gestures[/h]• $1m: Fifa's donation to aid famine relief in Somalia. Somalia's FA praised Fifa's focus on aiding the "most vulnerable".
    $1m: Sepp's annual basic salary. "Or perhaps a bit more. I'm not ashamed by that."
    • 1 August: A Man City insider tells the Sun how Gareth Barry is letting a charity use his Spanish villa to give holidays to kids hit by poverty. "It's a smashing gesture. It's refreshing when players give back." (£135k: Barry's tax saving in 2009 via a legal avoidance scheme used by "dozens of footballers", costing HMRC £100m.)
    [h=2]Best Fifa men[/h]• July: Brazil's FA head Ricardo Teixeira telling Piaui magazine how he'll be handling corruption claims from the UK press ahead of the World Cup. "I do not care. In fact, shit. **** you lot. In 2014, I can do whatever I want to the press. The most slippery, unthinkable, Machiavellian cruelty to them … They cannot touch me."
    • Argentina's FA head Julio Grondona, looking to boost his re-election chances by promoting all second division clubs to one big 38-club top division following River Plate's relegation. Grondona backed down after fans threatened mass protests. "The idea is suspended. I don't like change."
    [h=2]Best crusade[/h]Ken Bates, Monaco-based millionaire tax-exile, on MPs investigating football: "They should get proper jobs and find out what it's like in the workplace instead of living gilded, cloistered lives as so many of them do."
    [h=2]Best fresh start[/h]July: Adrian Mutu joins Cesena after his nine-month drugs ban. "With my experiences I can be an example to my team-mates. I will show I have improved as a man". August: Banned for life by Romania for drinking before a friendly.
    [h=2]Top moves[/h]• May, Nigel Reo-Coker: "I've had interest from foreign clubs in the Champions League. I am a footballer who has ambitions of playing at the highest level. I am not a footballer just for the show of it. I am serious about my profession and about what I want to achieve and do." July: Joins Bolton
    • 1 June, Kevin Nolan: "When my daughter walks round telling everyone I am captain of Newcastle, that's when you realise it affects a lot of people. Genuinely from the bottom of my heart, I love playing for this club." 15 June: Joins West Ham.
    • Plus Gaël Clichy, July 2009: "I really believe if you are a player who only thinks about money then you'll end up at Manchester City."
    [h=2]Best calculated decision[/h]24 May, Keith Hill, Rochdale, on why he and assistant David Flitcroft rejected Barnsley: "I've been in discussions with Barnsley but it just wasn't right. I've done a lot of deliberating - you know what myself and Flicker are like, we analyse, deliberate, then make a calculated decision. We work for good people here, we've created a very good team … we're happy in our work." 1 June: Joins Barnsley.
    [h=2]Best newcomer[/h]Bulat Chagaev, friend of Chechen pacifist Ramzan Kadyrov ("he's like a brother"), now owner of Swiss club Xamax. Highlights so far: sacking all coaching staff, sacking the goalkeeper, and storming the changing rooms shouting: "I will kill you all." New coach Joaquín Caparrós: "I can handle this."
    [h=2]Biggest victim[/h]Leading the reaction in Colombia to national coach Hernán Darío "Bolillo" Gómez resigning for punching a woman: FA vice-president Alvaro González Alzate: "It was his personal business. We should not have let him go."; former player Víctor Hugo Aristizábal: "This is so harsh. He's only human"; plus Conservative senator Liliana Rendón: "This woman must be partly to blame. Us women are manipulative, we have this strand in our pathology. People should back off Bolillo."
    [h=2]And finally: Romania[/h]Setting the tone for a fresh season: former agent Giovani Becali, cousin of Gigi, denying he tried to bribe the former Romania coach Razvan Lucescu. "I never give bribes to men – not even pretty men. It's not my thing. If Lucescu talks of bribes it's because he wants one. He's a baby in a dirty nappy, crazed by his own stench." Becali told the press he's clean. "But I do like to be evil. I like it when people fear me."

 
[h=2]Britannia Stadium[/h] [h=1]Stoke City v Chelsea[/h] • Hit F5 for all of the latest updates from the match
• Stats centre: league tables, top scorers and much more
• And you can email jacob.steinberg.casual@guardian.co.uk





[h=2]Premier League 2011-12[/h]

Stoke City 0
Chelsea 0




  • Jacob Steinberg
  • guardian.co.uk, Sunday 14 August 2011 12.36 BST Article history
    André Villas-Boas looks relaxed before Chelsea's first Premier League game under his control at Stoke. Photograph: Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images

    Stoke (4-4-2): Begovic; Huth, Shawcross, Woodgate, Wilson; Pennant, Delap, Whelan, Etherington; Jones, Walters. Subs: Sorensen, Collins, Pugh, Diao, Whitehead, Wilkinson, Shotton.
    Chelsea (4-3-3): Cech; Bosingwa, Alex, Terry, Cole; Ramires, Mikel, Lampard; Kalou, Torres, Malouda. Subs: Hilario, Ivanovic, Benayoun, Drogba, Ferreira, McEachran, Anelka.
    Referee: Mark Halsey (Lancashire)
    Some early team news for you. Fernando Torres starts for Chelsea. He suffered concussion during Spain's defeat to Italy on Wednesday, but is deemed fit to play. Well. That's a big vote of confidence in the Spaniard from Villas-Boas. Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka are apparently left on the bench.
    So can Andre Villas-Boas do it on a dry, warm Sunday afternoon in Stoke? There are probably better places than the Britannia Stadium for the manager – who is 33 years old and used to work for Jose Mourinho – to get acquainted with English football. In this fixture last season, Stoke gave Chelsea a good going over and were desperately unlucky not to come away with all three points, the match ending in a 1-1 draw. There shouldn't be too many surprises from Stoke: no-nonsense defending, set-pieces, a reliance on Matthew Etherington to provide the creativity, plenty of long balls and no end of endeavour from their two attackers. It sounds simple, but then Adrian Mole thought Animal Farm was a pleasant novel about a group of animals on a farm.
    Although Chelsea have a new look in the dug-out, not much has changed on the pitch. In fact, three years after Sir Alex Ferguson suggested that Chelsea were too old to win the title, there squad largely remains the same from then, barring a few tweaks here and there. The days of big spending at Stamford Bridge increasingly appear to be over, the splurge on Fernando Torres and David Luiz in January the exception rather than the rule. From 2003 to 2006, Chelsea bought the likes of Hernan Crespo, Juan Sebastian Veron, Didier Drogba, Arjen Robben, Michael Essien, Petr Cech, Ricardo Carvalho, Michael Ballack and, er, Andriy Shevchenko. This summer, they've bought Oriol Romeu and Thibault Courtois, with Romelu Lukaku on the way. Not quite the same, is it?
    The problem for Villas-Boas's predecessor, Carlo Ancelotti, during Chelsea's dodgy spell last season was a thin squad and that problem hasn't been rectified. Today Chelsea are likely to have a clutch of youngsters, squad players and Fernando Torres on the bench. Perhaps Luka Modric will be signed. Wesley Sneijder's available as well. Hint, hint. Right now, Chelsea do not have a team capable of keeping up with the Manchester clubs, let alone one that can harbour realistic hopes of winning the Champions League, the holy grail for Roman Abramovich. No pressure, AVB.

 
[h=1]Sunday 14 August 2011[/h] [h=2]Live scores and fixtures[/h]
[TABLE="class: m-team-matches six-col"]
Premier League 2011-12 [TR]
[/TR]
[TR="class: vevent first odd"]
[TD="class: kick-off"]LIVE
[/TD]
[TD="class: home-team"]Stoke City [/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"]0 - 0[/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]Chelsea [/TD]
[TD="class: player-rating"] Player Ratings [/TD]
[TD="class: reports"] Live report
 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: vevent last"]
[TD="class: kick-off"] 16:00 [/TD]
[TD="class: home-team"]West Brom [/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"]v[/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]Manchester United [/TD]
[TD="class: player-rating"]
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[TD="class: reports"]
[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
[TABLE="class: m-team-matches six-col"]
Championship [TR]
[/TR]
[TR="class: vevent first odd"]
[TD="class: kick-off"] 15:00 [/TD]
[TD="class: home-team"]Cardiff City [/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"]v[/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]Bristol City [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: vevent last"]
[TD="class: kick-off"] 15:00 [/TD]
[TD="class: home-team"]Blackpool [/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"]v[/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]Peterborough [/TD]
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[TABLE="class: m-team-matches six-col"]
Scottish Premier League [TR]
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[TR="class: vevent first odd"]
[TD="class: kick-off"]LIVE
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[TD="class: home-team"]Kilmarnock [/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"]2 - 1[/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]Hibernian [/TD]
[TD="class: player-rating"] Player Ratings [/TD]
[TD="class: reports"] Live report
 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: scorers vevent first odd"]
[TD="class: kick-off"][/TD]
[TD="class: home-team"]
  1. Heffernan 3,
  2. Hanlon (og) 41
[/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"][/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]
  1. O'Connor 13
[/TD]
[TD="class: player-rating"][/TD]
[TD="class: reports"][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
[TABLE="class: m-team-matches six-col"]
Ligue 1 [TR]
[/TR]
[TR="class: vevent first odd"]
[TD="class: kick-off"] 16:00 [/TD]
[TD="class: home-team"]Auxerre [/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"]v[/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]Marseille [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: vevent"]
[TD="class: kick-off"] 16:00 [/TD]
[TD="class: home-team"]Evian Thonon Gaillard [/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"]v[/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]Nice [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: vevent last odd"]
[TD="class: kick-off"] 20:00 [/TD]
[TD="class: home-team"]Lille [/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"]v[/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]Montpellier [/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
[TABLE="class: m-team-matches six-col"]
Bundesliga [TR]
[/TR]
[TR="class: vevent first odd"]
[TD="class: kick-off"] 14:30 [/TD]
[TD="class: home-team"]Kaiserslautern [/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"]v[/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]FC Augsburg [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: vevent last"]
[TD="class: kick-off"] 16:30 [/TD]
[TD="class: home-team"]Bayer Leverkusen [/TD]
[TD="class: score-line"]v[/TD]
[TD="class: away-team"]Werder Bremen[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
 
[h=1]United want their own super Mario - report[/h] Published 11:11 14/08/11 By Football Spy

http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/new...etze-of-Borussia-Dortmund-article785327.html#


Manchester United have watched Borussia Dortmund's Mario Goetze after giving up on Inter Milan's Wesley Sneijder.
Old Trafford scouts saw the 19-year-old score and stand out as Germany beat Brazil in a friendly last week.
Now they could move for him after failing to persuade Sneijder to take a large wage cut to join United.
Goetze, who is also being tracked by Real Madrid and Barcelona, would cost around £20m, says the Sunday Express.

Sneijder is now tipped to join Manchester City in a swap deal for Carlos Tevez.



​
 
[h=1]Chelsea losing faith in Fernando Torres[/h] Published 22:59 13/08/11 By Paul Smith

http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/new...ando-Torres-lack-of-goals-article784995.html#


Publicly Fernando Torres retains unwavering support.
But privately the concerns over the striker's form are increasing inside Chelsea.
Senior figures at the club are bemused that he scored just one goal in 18 games last season, following a record breaking *£50million move from Liverpool in January.
Torres recently said: "It was a difficult four months for me last season but now I am settled and really happy.

"It's a new start for me and I am feeling sharper and fitter.
"Now I am feeling good and ready to start the new season."
But observers claim Torres body language remains the same. In six pre-season games the Spanish striker has found the net just once against Aston Villa in the final of the Premier League Asia Trophy.
New boss Andre Villas-Boas claims the only people *really obsessed about Torres lack of form is the media. But that isn't the case according to a highly placed source deep inside the Blues camp.
"Torres desperately needs a goal and a much needed *injection of confidence," said the Chelsea insider.
"He's carrying the weight of expectations on his shoulders.His confidence is shot to *pieces. It's not down to a lack of *effort. If anything he is trying too hard and that appears to be having an adverse effect.
"And while the goals don't come the problems seem to escalate.
"The enormous fee that Chelsea paid last January to secure his services from Liverpool has brought enormous pressure to bear on his shoulders.
"Strangely enough *people are so focused on his lack of form that other players mistakes are being completely *overlooked. He desperately needs a break in front of goal and until that *happens things are unlikely to *improve."
Torres should be fit for the Premier League opener at Stoke today despite *suffering mild *concussion during Spain's midweek *defeat to Italy.
There have been suggestions that some of his Chelsea team-mates are not *helping and have *little sympathy for him.
After all he's the club's record signing and is the highest paid player at Stamford Bridge.
"Players aren't going deliberately out of their way to ensure he fails," said the Chelsea source. "There is a great deal of sympathy for him. But his lack of form has not gone *unnoticed at the highest level. Naturally people are very concerned. But there is no quick fix. His lack of confidence is *obvious to see.
"Strikers thrive on confidence in front of goal and when you go a long time without scoring it starts to mess with your head."
While form continues to elude him the pressure on Torres remains.
Owner Roman Abramovich is mystified by his expensive buy. But it's not the first time he has faced a major dilemma over a misfiring striker.
The comparisons with Andry Shevchenko are alarming. The Ukrainian was signed by Abramovich for £31m in 2006 but failed to live up to expectations, scoring just 22 goals in 77 games.
But Villas-Boas believes a media feeding frenzy has worsened the striker's plight. He said: "In my opinion it became a complex media obsession in the sense of criticism.
"I'm not criticising your job, and your opinion making, because I will never do it and I respect it to the *maximum. But the fans are asking the same thing.
"A small problem became a bigger problem and a *bigger problem became an even bigger problem.
"I think this guy needs confidence by getting it into the back of the net. And the most often as possible in training and in games. In games is more difficult and comes with time. But it will happen. I think it will happen."
 
[h=1]Transfer news, rumours and gossip from Sunday's papers[/h] Published 11:02 14/08/11 By Football Spy

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The summer transfer window is hotting up as the new season draws ever closer. Keep on top of all the latest news, rumours and gossip from the printed press and the web here.
And don't forget you can use your football knowledge to win hard cash by playing our Fantasy Football game You The Manager. There are 2,800 ways to win - and if you sign up NOW then your first team is on us .
Transfer stories from today's Sunday Mirror
Guardiola: Cesc deal 'very advanced' but not complete

Premier League clubs chase Real Madrid winger
City have to pay to send striker to Spurs
Transfer stories from today's The People
City to land Sneijder in Tevez swap deal
Man City chief to snatch Brazil star from Barcelona and Real Madrid
Spurs set to make final bid for West Ham star
Everton target Spurs midfielder in loan deal
Spurs plot sensational swoop for Arsenal defender
Arsenal to profit from Cesc success
Sunderland and Newcastle to battle for Arsenal flop
Wenger rules out buying Juan Mata
Bolton plot swoop for Rangers youngster
Newcastle target Enrique replacements
Forest to snap up ex-Blackpool defender
Crystal Palace close to capture of Mexico striker
Today's transfer stories from other papers and websites
Manchester United have watched Borussia Dortmund's Mario Goetze after being priced out of a move for Inter Milan's Wesley Sneijder (Sunday Express)
Harry Redknapp is prepared to sell Luka Modric to Chelsea - but Tottenham owner Daniel Levy won't let him (Mail On Sunday)
Andre Villa-Boas will be given £40m of Roman Abramovich's cash to bid for Neymar (Daily Star Sunday)
Chelsea will let Gael Kakuta join Lille on loan (Daily Star Sunday)
Liverpool will make a renewed bid for Bolton's Gary Cahill (Metro)
Newcastle want Manchester City rebel Craig Bellamy to form a shy, retiring partnership with Joey Barton. They also fancy Wayne Bridge, for some unknown reason (Daily Star Sunday)
Arsenal will use the Cesc Fabregas money to bid again for Everton's Phil Jagielka - but will offer less than David Moyes' £20m asking price (Mail On Sunday)
The Gunners are also keen on Sochaux midfielder Marvin Martin and Marseille winger Andre Ayew (Metro
 
[h=1]Messi: Aguero will be exceptional at City[/h] Published 22:59 13/08/11 By Paul Smith

http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/new...guero-will-be-exceptional-article784904.html#


Lionel Messi is convinced Sergio Aguero will spark Manchester City's title charge this season.
City paid Atletico Madrid £38million to sign the 23-year-old striker.
And Messi has no doubts his *Argentina team-mate will be a big success in the Premier League.
The Barcelona wizard would have loved Aguero to join him at *the Nou Camp.

But even the Spanish *giants weren't *prepared to compete with City's *financial muscle in the *market.
Messi said: "I have no doubt that he will be *successful at City.
"He will give them a real cutting edge. He's unique – he has immense power, strength and an *incredible work ethic. He will certainly stand out in terms of what he will bring to City.
"Defenders will find him so *difficult to play against.
"There is no doubt in my mind that City have signed a very *exceptional player."
Aguero, who is still gaining match sharpness, is set to start on the bench tomorrow. But Messi is convinced his mate will have no problems adapting to life in the Premier League.
Messi explained: "He's *flexible and can play in a number of positions. Adapting to the pace of the Premier League won't be a problem.
"Carlos Tevez has been a huge success in England and Aguero will be no different.
"I think it shows the serious intent of *Manchester City when they are signing a player of his quality.
"Personally I would have loved to have seen him stay in Spain and preferably move to Barcelona.
"But he was excited by the challenge and ambition of City. Money isn't a motivating factor for him. He loves a challenge.
"More importantly, he wants to win trophies and *obviously feels the move offers him that *opportunity in *England."
Messi also feels City are building a team that will strike fear into *opponents at home and abroad.
"They have the vast financial power to compete and *therefore they will become a real threat if they are *managed properly," he said.
"It takes time to make your mark but every season you see them improving. And they will continue to improve when they are signing players
like Aguero."
Messi maintains it's City's neighbours United who carry the greatest threat
this season.
"They remain the team everyone needs to beat. They have the vast experience and success behind them," addd Messi.
"You can't buy that. Like Barcelona, they seem to get better every *season. They are hungry for more success.
"I expect United to carry the greatest threat to our defence of the European crown."



​
 
[h=1]City have to pay to send striker to Spurs[/h] Published 22:58 13/08/11 By Simon Mullock

http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/tra...-him-to-Tottenham-Hotspur-article784835.html#


Spurs have told Manchester City they will have to *continue to pay Emmanuel Adebayor £100,000 a week if they want to send the *£25million striker on loan to White Hart Lane.
The Londoners are unwilling to break their wage structure to land the former Arsenal *hitman and are only prepared to pay £60,000 of Adebayor's £160,000-a-week salary.
It is a nightmare scenario for City, with Roberto Mancini insisting he will never pick the Togo forward again.
City hoped Real Madrid would pay the £14m asking price for Adebayor after he went there on loan in January last season.

Even then, City paid a huge chunk of the striker's wages – and Madrid have not taken him on a permanent deal.
If they can't shift him, City may be forced to take up *Tottenham's outrageous offer just to get him out of the club.
Craig Bellamy is in a similar situation. City's unwillingness to subsidise the Welshman's £90,000-a-week wages is *holding up a possible switch back to Celtic.
Mancini also wants Wayne Bridge and Roque Santa Cruz out of the club but their high earnings have put clubs off.



​
 
[h=1]Sunderland and Newcastle to battle for Arsenal flop[/h] Published 22:55 13/08/11 By MirrorFootball

http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/tra...-Sunderland-and-Newcastle-article785218.html#


A full version of this story appears in today's People. Read it online at People.co.uk
Sunderland and Newcastle are going head-to-head in a battle for Arsenal's unwanted striker Nicklas Bendtner.
Both clubs were represented when the 23-year-old striker played the first half of Denmark's friendly with Scotland at Hampden on Wednesday.
Arsenal are asking £14million for Bendtner but Newcastle have only offered £9m.

And Black Cats boss Steve Bruce is confident he can win the battle for Bendtner – just like he did with fellow Scandinavian Seb Larsson.
Read the full version of this story here



​
 
[h=1]Spurs set to make final bid for West Ham star[/h] Published 22:55 13/08/11 By MirrorFootball

http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/tra...cott-Parker-from-West-Ham-article785219.html#


A full version of this story appears in today's People. Read it online at People.co.uk
Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp will make one last bid for West Ham and England star Scott Parker – and try to buy him this week.
Redknapp has looked around at options after being snubbed by the Hammers because of the cost of the move and the bad blood between the clubs.
However, the Spurs chief keeps coming back to Parker and will make a final attempt to land him.
 
[h=1]Premier League clubs chase Real Madrid winger[/h] Published 22:58 13/08/11 By Jim Hughes




Everton, Aston Villa and Fulham are locked in a battle to sign Real Madrid winger Pedro Leon after he turned down a move to Getafe.
Leon has failed to secure a regular first-team place under Jose Mourinho and is set to leave the Bernabeu.
Everton boss David Moyes is keen to strengthen his squad and has been tracking the progress of the 24-year-old winger.
But he faces stiff competition from Aston Villa and Fulham who have also been linked with a move for the Spanish midfielder.

Reports in Spain suggest that Leon will hold talks with Real Madrid to discuss his long-term future but he is set to move into the Premier League.



​
 
[h=1]Man City chief to snatch Brazil star from Barcelona and Real Madrid[/h] Published 22:56 13/08/11 By MirrorFootball

http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/tra...ea-for-Neymar-from-Santos-article785189.html#


A full version of this story appears in today's People. Read it online at People.co.uk
Roberto Mancini is *dreaming of signing Brazilian superstar Neymar as the final and *decisive piece of Manchester City's *multi-million fantasy team.
The Italian is desperate to land the young attacker who would turn City from hopefuls to real title contenders – and he wants his money men to make a British record swoop.
Neymar has been linked with Chelsea, Real Madrid and Barcelona for months, but the City chief has the cash to blow them all away – and the burning desire to do it.
 
[h=1]Spurs plot sensational swoop for Arsenal defender[/h] Published 22:56 13/08/11 By Alan Nixon

http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/tra...nal-defender-Bacary-Sagna-article785216.html#


A full version of this story appears in today's People. Read it online at People.co.uk
Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp is plotting a sensational swoop for Arsenal full-back Bacary Sagna.
And it is believed Sagna would be prepared to make the move to the Gunners' bitter north London rivals.
Redknapp is keen to sign a top-notch right back despite the emergence of England Under-21 star Kyle Walker.

Read the full version of this story here



​
 
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