Virgin Media calls on Ofcom to delay £4bn Premier League TV auction January 28, 2015 Virgin Media last night made an 11th-hour bid to block the Premier League’s multi-billion pound auction by calling on media regulator Ofcom to use its emergency power to halt the bidding which is currently expected to conclude next Friday. Virgin, which met with Ofcom two weeks ago to discuss a separate ongoing competition investigation into [...]
Christian Eriksen stokes Tottenham’s trophy quest January 28, 2015 TOTTENHAM manager Mauricio Pochettino admitted his relief after Spurs navigated a potentially treacherous Sheffield United comeback at Bramall Lane last night to seal their place in the Capital One Cup final. Denmark playmaker Christian Eriksen scored late to complete a classy double and secure Tottenham’s progress but not before teenage substitute Che Adams inspired an [...]
Costa set to miss City clash after violent conduct charge January 28, 2015 CHELSEA face fielding a depleted side in Saturday’s Premier League summit clash with Manchester City after striker Diego Costa was last night charged for an alleged stamp on Liverpool’s Emre Can. Costa faces a minimum three-match ban if found guilty of violent conduct, after referee Michael Oliver was yesterday given the chance to view an [...]
Pochettino wary of Cup upset as Wembley looms January 27, 2015 TOTTENHAM boss Mauricio Pochettino has cited greater intensity as the key defence against his side becoming the latest giant-killing victim of Sheffield United in tonight’s Capital One Cup semi-final second leg at Bramall Lane. Spurs head to South Yorkshire in possession of a slender one-goal lead courtesy of England winger Andros Townsend’s second-half penalty in [...]
Draw sees Pardew primed for reminiscences January 26, 2015 CRYSTAL Palace boss Alan Pardew faces a potential quirk of fate in the FA Cup fifth round, should Liverpool keep their end of the bargain and navigate a potentially treacherous replay at Championship side Bolton Wanderers. Pardew’s Selhurst Park coronation earlier this month was greeted with recollections of his most famous moment in a Palace [...]
Premier League bids heat up as TV broadcast deadline nears January 26, 2015 WITH a fortnight remaining until bids are due in the multi-billion pound auction for the TV broadcast rights of three seasons of the most-watched football league in the world, BT, Sky and Discovery are preparing for battle. Before Christmas the Premier League said it had opened up bidding for seven packages of live broadcasting rights [...]
Arsenal strikeforce is my best ever, says Arsene Wenger January 25, 2015 Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes his current repertoire of attacking players is his deadliest yet after the FA Cup holders swaggered into round five and assumed the status of favourites. Theo Walcott and Mesut Ozil both scored their first goals since lengthy injury absences, while evergreen playmaker Tomas Rosicky crowned a man-of-the-match display with a [...]
Football Comment: Blues stars unprofessional and City disrespected cup January 25, 2015 I DON’T blame Jose Mourinho or Manuel Pellegrini for their teams’ shock FA Cup defeats to lower-league opponents on Saturday; I believe the fault is with the Chelsea and Manchester City players, who have let their managers down. Mourinho’s pre-match remarks about the disgrace of losing to inferior sides show that he would have prepared [...]
Diafra Sakho returns to save below-par West Ham January 25, 2015 WEST Ham manager Sam Allardyce hailed top scorer Diafra Sakho after the striker returned from injury to head the Hammers into the FA Cup fifth round for the first time in four years. Sakho showed few signs of the back problem that controversially precluded him from joining Senegal’s squad for the Africa Cup of Nations [...]
Jose Mourinho defends Chelsea preparations and downplays knock-on effect January 25, 2015 CHELSEA manager Jose Mourinho has issued a robust defence of his approach to the FA Cup after his decision to field a much-changed team against Bradford backfired spectacularly on Saturday. The Blues suffered one of the biggest shocks in the competition’s storied history when they crashed out 4-2 at home to the League One side, [...]