Blues edge closer to £17m Ramires deal August 3, 2010 CHELSEA are set to unveil Brazilian star Ramires as their new £17m signing today. The 23-year-old midfield ace will undergo a medical at Stamford Bridge this morning after the Premier League champions agreed a deal with Portuguese club Benfica. Right-sided Ramires, who has 16 caps for Brazil, is expected to put pen-to-paper on a four-year [...]
Is it the end for Fred after new setback? August 3, 2010 THE longevity of Andrew Flintoff’s career was thrown into question again yesterday when his long-awaited comeback from injury was curtailed by yet another setback. The injury-plagued 32-year-old was due to return to action with Lancashire’s second string this week after spending a year on the sidelines following two knee operations. But the all-rounder wasn’t deemed [...]
Hughes hails perfect fit as Al Fayed slams Hodgson August 3, 2010 MARK HUGHES believes his appointment as Fulham boss as a “good fit” and has targeted a top-10 finish. Hughes, 46, was last week confirmed as Roy Hodgson’s successor after the Cottagers’ move for Ajax boss Martin Jol fell through. And in an unexpected twist at yesterday’s press conference, Cottagers owner Mohamed Al Fayed accused former [...]
SUMMER SALES August 3, 2010 Hammers land Ben Haim WEST HAM have further strengthened their squad after landing Israeli defender Tal Ben Haim on a five-month loan deal. The 28-year-old former Chelsea and Manchester City centre-back played under Hammers boss Avram Grant at Portsmouth and is the fourth new arrival at Upton Park. Grant also says he does not want [...]
SPORT | IN BRIEF August 3, 2010 Tendulkar in record books again CRICKET: Sachin Tendulkar yesterday became the most capped player in Test history after walking out for his 169th appearance for India. The 37-year-old surpassed the record set by former Australia captain Steve Waugh on day one of the third Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo. Tendulkar, however, couldn’t prevent Sri [...]
Move was too dangerous, admits Schu August 2, 2010 MICHAEL Schumacher last night apologised to his former Ferrari team-mate Rubens Barrichello after accepting his controversial blocking manoeuvre at Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix was too dangerous. The seven-time world champion was handed a 10-place grid penalty for the next race after the defensive move forced Barrichello to within centimetres of a concrete wall as the [...]
Huang vows to spend big in Liverpool bid August 2, 2010 CHINESE businessman Kenny Huang has promised to give manager Roy Hodgson big money to spend in the transfer market if he succeeds in his bid to buy Liverpool. Huang, a former Wall Street stockbroker and now head of Hong Kong-based investment company QSL Sports Ltd, announced yesterday he had been in talks with Royal Bank [...]
Beaten Murray on track August 2, 2010 ANDY MURRAY is remaining upbeat despite losing to Sam Querrey in the final of the Farmers Classic in Los Angeles on Sunday. The American Queen’s Club champion overcame the British No1 5-7, 7-6 (7-2) after saving a match point in the second set. Murray, who was playing his first tournament since parting ways with coach [...]
Fisher can now repeat my feat with Irish win August 2, 2010 FOUR great tournaments, four tremendous finishes, what a weekend of golf it’s been both here and across the pond. Ross Fisher may have lifted the Irish Open trophy and taken home the £415,000 first prize, but the big winner at Killarney over the weekend was Colin Montgomerie, who saw Fisher move up to sixth and [...]
SPORT | IN BRIEF August 2, 2010 Thousands mourn Higgins SNOOKER: Past and present snooker stars gathered to remember former world champion Alex ‘Hurricane’ Higgins at his funeral in Belfast yesterday. Stephen Hendry, Ken Doherty and Joe Swail joined the mourners at the service in St Anne’s Cathedral as hundreds more gathered outside. The 1972 and 1982 world champion died last month [...]