KNOW YOUR ENEMY | VALENCIA December 6, 2011 PERMUTATIONS Victory would ensure Chelsea a place in the knockout stages, and they could even top Group E if Bayer Leverkusen fail to win at whipping boys Genk. The only draw that will take the Blues through is a goalless one, a seemingly improbable prospect against a team that smashed seven in the last Champions [...]
Dalglish disputes Spearing red as Dempsey makes Reina pay December 6, 2011 FULHAM 1 vs LIVERPOOL 0 LIVERPOOL manager Kenny Dalglish insisted the controversial dismissal of Jay Spearing was the decisive factor in his side’s damaging defeat at Craven Cottage last night, as Clint Dempsey’s late goal helped Fulham move a healthy five points clear of the relegation zone. A contest which Liverpool had largely controlled swayed [...]
Woods eyes 2012 Majors December 6, 2011 FORMER World No1 Tiger Woods insists he’s determined to make up for lost time in 2012 after ending his two-year title drought on Sunday. The 35-year-old rolled back the years with a birdie-birdie finish to win the Chevron World Challenge in California by one shot from compatriot Zach Johnson, to register his first tournament victory [...]
Olympic ceremonies to cost extra £41m December 6, 2011 THE GOVERNMENT has come under fire after pledging to spend an additional £41m on doubling the budget for the London 2012 opening and closing ceremonies. Such costs would normally be met by organising committee Locog, but sports minister Hugh Robertson said he would add to their funds with public cash. “We decided to go in [...]
BoE says bank profitability targets too tough December 6, 2011 British banks’ targets for shareholder returns are too high, and do not reflect the regulatory changes aimed at making banking a lower-risk, lower-return business, the Bank of England said. In a record of their November 23 Financial Policy Committee meeting published on Tuesday, policymakers reiterated that the euro zone debt crisis posed the biggest threat [...]
Wenger has ultimate faith in his Arsenal understudies December 6, 2011 OLYMPIACOS vs ARSENAL ARSENAL manager Arsene Wenger has warned his fringe players not to treat tonight’s Champions League clash against Olympiacos as a glorified friendly. While the Greek champions could progress with a victory, even a defeat in Athens wouldn’t prevent the Gunners from topping Group F following their impressive 2-1 victory over Borussia Dortmund [...]
Klitschko pulls out of title fight December 6, 2011 BOXING: World heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko has pulled out of Saturday’s title fight against France’s Jean-Marc Mormeck having failed to recover from an operation to remove a kidney stone last Friday.
Messi favourite to land hat-trick December 6, 2011 FOOTBALL: Barcelona forward Lionel Messi is the overwhelming favourite to win the prestigious Fifa Ballon d’Or award for the third year in a row after the three-man shortlist was announced yesterday. The 24-year-old Argentine, who scored a staggering 53 goals in all competitions last season, is joined by his Barcelona team-mate Xavi and Real Madrid’s [...]
RATING AGENCY DROPS EUROZONE BOMBSHELL December 6, 2011 RATINGS agency Standard & Poors (S&P) wrecked a mood of growing optimism about the Eurozone debt crisis last night by warning that 15 of the region’s 17 countries face credit downgrades if politicians do not get a grip. Less than a month after the EU threatened a crackdown on ratings agencies, S&P blasted Brussels’ “defensive [...]
Merkozy deal on spending December 6, 2011 PROFLIGATE governments will be punished by other euro states under tough new rules unveiled by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy yesterday. But the Eurozone’s bailout fund will not have the power to negotiate haircuts with private-sector bondholders and overspending states will not be hauled in front of the EU courts, previous [...]
