Pietersen suffers fresh Achilles setback August 11, 2009 ENGLAND batsman Kevin Pietersen’s place in the squad for next month’s ICC Champions Trophy is in doubt after he suffered a setback in his recovery from Achilles surgery. Pietersen, 29, has had hospital treatment after an infection developed in the stitching of his scar tissue, it emerged yesterday. The Hampshire player was ruled out of [...]
Lampard: Shield row won’t hurt international relations August 10, 2009 CHELSEA’S Frank Lampard is adamant that bad blood between Blues and Manchester United players will not affect the England squad ahead of tomorrow’s friendly against Holland. United were incensed at Lampard’s goal in Sunday’s Community Shield, which Chelsea won on penalties after a 2-2 draw. The midfielder’s strike came while United defender Patrice Evra lay [...]
First blood to Chelsea after United fluff shoot-out lines August 9, 2009 CHELSEA manager Carlo Ancelotti declared himself ready to launch an assault on Manchester United’s Premier League crown after beating the champions in yesterday’s Community Shield at Wembley. Blues goalkeeper Petr Cech saved two penalties as Ancelotti’s men won a shoot-out 4-1, after the traditional curtain-raiser to the top-flight season ended in an entertaining draw. Goals [...]
Ladbrokes chases William Hill in the exodus to Gibraltar as profits slump August 6, 2009 BETTING firm Ladbrokes yesterday confirmed it would be following the fleeing footsteps of William Hill by moving its online gambling arm to Gibraltar, which it says will save £7m a year. Chief executive Christopher Bell blamed “intense competitive pressures” for the move. UK based gambling firms must cough up 15 per cent of their earnings [...]
Spurs pluck 8m Bassong out of Toon August 6, 2009 TOTTENHAM manager Harry Redknapp yesterday moved to patch up his injury-ridden back line by agreeing an £8m deal for Newcastle defender Sebastien Bassong. The 23-year-old has admitted he is leaving St James’ Park following the Magpies’ relegation to the Championship, and is thought to have passed a medical at Spurs. Redknapp, meanwhile, needs cover at [...]
Top Up TV signs deal with ESPN to broadcast Premier League football August 4, 2009 TOP UP TV, the media group that offers premium content to Freeview, yesterday signed a carriage deal with ESPN to show top football this season and signalled that it hoped to offer subscribers Sky Sports 1 & 2 by the end of the first half of next year. Top Up founder and former BSkyB stalwart [...]
Reds agree to sell Alonso to Real for 34m August 4, 2009 LIVERPOOL midfielder Xabi Alonso will today complete his long-awaited move to Real Madrid after the two clubs finally agreed a £34m deal last night. Months of haggling were brought to a close when Liverpool accepted a package thought to be worth £30m up front and a further £4m based on his performance at Real. The [...]
Benitez lines up Aquilani to replace Real-bound Alonso August 3, 2009 LIVERPOOL boss Rafael Benitez has wasted no time in replacing Xabi Alonso by closing in on the signing of Roma’s Alberto Aquilani. Reports in Europe suggest Benitez has already had a £15.2m bid for the midfielder accepted by the Italian club, while his representatives were thrashing out a deal with big-spending Real over the future [...]
KICK OFF AT ESPN UK August 2, 2009 ESPN will today become the first non-UK channel to show Premier League football in the UK, as it launches its ESPN UK channel on Sky and Virgin Media. The channel will show 46 live Barclays Premier League matches – which it bought the rights to after Setanta UK went into administration – plus a selection [...]
Virgin nets a key deal with Disney’s ESPN July 29, 2009 ESPN, the Disney-owned media group that has picked up live Premier League football rights from the defunct Setanta, yesterday agreed a carriage deal with Virgin Media, the cable company. The deal is similar to Virgin’s previous deal with Setanta, whereby Virgin customers paying for the highest television package will get the channel, which will show [...]