Gerrard surprised but happy at player of the year honour May 13, 2009 LIVERPOOL’S trophy charge may seem destined to end fruitlessly but captain Steven Gerrard’s efforts have not gone unrewarded after he was voted Footballer of the Year by writers. Gerrard, 28, saw off competition from PFA Player of the Year Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney – both of Premier League champions-elect Manchester United – in the [...]
Arsenal chief backs Wenger ahead of shareholder grilling May 13, 2009 ARSENAL manager Arsene Wenger will face disappointed shareholders today – but goes into the meeting with a ringing endorsement from club chiefs. Wenger is due to attend a question and answer session in which the Frenchman’s failure to win a trophy for a fourth year in succession is sure to be scrutinised and dissected. Another [...]
Test cricket has priority, says Strauss May 13, 2009 ENGLAND captain Andrew Strauss last night hit back at West Indian counterpart Chris Gayle insisting Test cricket should remain the most important form of the game. Strauss sparked the row in the build-up to the first Test at Lord’s last week, criticising Gayle for joining his West Indies team-mates just two days before the series [...]
Hammers’ ultimatum for Croatia boss Bilic September 8, 2008 West Ham have warned Croatia coach Slaven Bilic that they will not hold the manager’s job open for the former Hammers player. Bilic features on a four-man shortlist to replace Alan Curbishley, along with Italians Roberto Donadoni and Gianfranco Zola and former Getafe boss Michael Laudrup. Hammers officials plan to hold talks with Bilic later [...]
Bilic set for Hammers return after angry Curbishley quits September 4, 2008 Croatia boss Slaven Bilic is being lined up to take over as West Ham manager after Alan Curbishley resigned in disgust yesterday. Bilic, an Upton Park favourite during a 16-month spell as a player, has already been sounded about a return to East London, sources close to the club told City A.M. last night. The [...]
First Robinho, now City go for Ronaldo, Torres and Cesc September 3, 2008 Manchester mega-rich new owners revealed the staggering scope of their ambitions yesterday by boasting that they would smash the world transfer record and buy Cristiano Ronaldo from local rivals Manchester United in January for £135m. Having underlined their vast spending potential on Monday by outbidding even Chelsea to sign £34m Real Madrid forward Robinho, Arabian [...]
Benitez gets his man as £8m Riera arrives from Espanyol September 2, 2008 Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez finally ended his long search for a leftwinger last night when he completed the £8m signing of Albert Riera from Espanyol. The Spain midfielder, who spent a loan spell at Manchester City during the 2005-06 season, signed a four-year contract at Anfield after rejecting interest from other Premier League clubs. Riera, [...]
Berbatov granted dream United move while Spurs land trio on deadline day September 2, 2008 Manchester United last night beat the clock by a matter of minutes to finally land Tottenham striker Dimitar Berbatov for £30.8m and bring a dramatic end to a nerve-jangling transfer deadline day. Old Trafford chiefs were locked in negotiations with Spurs over the Bulgarian hitman right up until the midnight deadline. But the Premier League [...]
Premier appeal for England’s leading football clubs September 2, 2008 Even 24 hours earlier, few would have believed that Manchester City would be the name on everybody’s lips on transfer deadline day. But City, rather than their more illustrious neighbours Manchester United, dominated much of the gossip and discussion yesterday, in the increasingly bizarre world that is modern football. First came the unexpected news of [...]
Arabs snatch Robinho as they buy City from Thaksin September 2, 2008 Manchester City’s new owners Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG) showed the rest of the football world they mean business by snatching Real Madrid star Robinho from under the nose of rivals Chelsea for a British record transfer fee of £34m last night. Earlier, ADUG revealed it had agreed a multi-million takeover with owner Thaksin Shinawatra. [...]