Richards to referee Quins September 1, 2009 RUGBY UNION: Harlequins’ bid to put the embarrassing “bloodgate” scandal behind them suffered an unlikely setback yesterday when a familiar name was selected to referee their first game of the new season. Quins’ game against Wasps at Twickenham will be overseen by Dean Richards – not the club’s disgraced former director of rugby, but the [...]
Big spending days of top flight are finished September 1, 2009 SPENDING by top-flight clubs shrank by 10 per cent this year – and experts say a more “risk-averse” climate means Premier League outlays will fall again in 2010. Teams in England’s top tier spent an estimated total of £450m before the summer transfer window closed yesterday evening, a reduction of around £50m on 2008’s record [...]
Villa land Collins but Dunne deal delayed September 1, 2009 ASTON VILLA boss Martin O’Neill will have to wait until this morning to parade his deadline-day defensive pair after the Premier League requested more time to ratify Richard Dunne’s move from Manchester City last night. O’Neill is confident Dunne will be confirmed as a Villa player today with the ex-City captain having already completed a [...]
SUMMER SALES Round-up of the day’s activity September 1, 2009 AS largely expected, Portsmouth boss Paul Hart was the busiest Premier League manager of the day, securing three new faces for the major loss of midfielder Niko Kranjcar to Tottenham. Hart began to day by securing the capture of midfielder Hassan Yebda on a season-long loan deal from Benfica before completing a double swoop by [...]
Harry gets his man as Niko completes Spurs switch September 1, 2009 TOTTENHAM boss Harry Redknapp was last night revelling in the capture of Niko Kranjcar despite suffering mixed fortunes on a modest day of activity to end the summer transfer window. The Spurs chief secured the signing of Portsmouth ace Kranjcar, who will join fellow Croatian internationals Luka Modric and Vedran Corluka at White Hart Lane [...]
Gunners hit out as Eduardo lands two-game ‘diving’ ban September 1, 2009 ARSENAL chiefs told of their frustration last night after striker Eduardo was handed a two-match ban by Uefa for diving. The Croatia international was found guilty of deceiving referee Manuel Gonzalez as he fell under the challenge of Celtic goalkeeper Artur Boruc in last week’s Champions League qualifier. It means the striker will now miss [...]
Moyes joy as Lescott gap is filled by Heitinga September 1, 2009 EVERTON boss David Moyes admitted he was finally happy with the depth of his squad after completing the deadline day signing of Dutch international Johnny Heitinga from Atletico Madrid. The 25-year-old will form a new defensive partnership with fellow Toffees new boy Sylvain Distin following Joleon Lescott’s £24m move to Manchester City last week. Heitinga [...]
Blues chief Gold lambasts Croatian conspiracy claim September 1, 2009 BIRMINGHAM chairman David Gold yesterday hit back at Croatian claims that Blues players deliberately injured Luka Modric and Eduardo, branding them “ridiculous”. Tottenham star Modric broke his leg against Birmingham at the weekend, meaning he will miss Croatia’s crucial World Cup qualifier against England next week. The injury came just 18 months after Arsenal striker [...]
Murray prepares to dig deep in search of first Grand Slam August 31, 2009 ANDY MURRAY admits he must be prepared to slog it out in the early rounds if he is to fulfil his dream of landing the US Open. The world No2 finished runner-up to Roger Federer at Flushing Meadows 12 months ago and arrives at New York this week on top of his game having already [...]
Relief for Federer after easy opening win August 31, 2009 WORLD NO1 Roger Federer began his bid for a record sixth consecutive US Open title in convincing fashion with a straight sets victory over American teenager Devin Britton. The top seed ran out a comfortable 6-1, 6-3, 7-5 winner over the 18-year-old to set up a second round clash with Germany’s Simon Greul. Federer was [...]