Archive for September, 2008

Gerrard: Keane will strike soon

September 20th, 2008

Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has expressed his faith in out-of-form striker Robbie Keane, who has not scored even once since his arrival at Anfield.

Keane was one of the most discussed players in the transfer season, but his present form suggests nothing worthy of it.

Former Spurs striker has been unable to find the back of the net in the four premiership matches, which he has played for Liverpool.

It is noteworthy that it was Keane’s consistency and scoring rate that grabbed attention of Liverpool in the first place.

According to Gerrard, the first goal Keane scores for Liverpool will be the most important for him as well as the club and more goals will follow afterwards.

Gerrard also stressed on the fact that Keane has behind him all the supports of fans and players, thanks to his play outside the rivals’ box.

England International also added that the team is impressed by the selfless efforts the striker in putting up and he is too good player to run without a goal for such a long spell.

Focusing on the whole squad, Gerrard noticed that all the players in the current lot at Anfield are match-winners and Keane was no exception.

Keane will try his best to end this goal drought when newly promoted club Stoke City visit Anfield this weekend. If he does break the deadlock, this will be his first goal for Liverpool in eight matches in total.

Talking of their chances for winning the premiership this year, Gerrard, who is one short of a hundred goals for Liverpool, avoided making any claims. He said that the main idea for the team was to be in contention before the final 10 games.

Wenger: We need to capitalize on United-Chelsea result

September 20th, 2008

Arsenal Boss, Arsene Wenger, is hoping that his side will be able to capitalize on the result of Manchester United and Chelsea game at Stamford Bridge on Sunday and take the top position of the Premier League.

Gunners will be looking forward to be at their best in Reebok Stadium against Bolton Wanderers, who recently have got a good home record against them.

Speaking to Arsenal TV Online, Wenger said ‘We need to score full points from our game against Bolton and then hope the two sides to drop points.’

‘If we eventually come up with the goods, then there will be an eight point gap on the Premier League Champions, Red Devils. Although the gap is manageable, still such a significant gap might work in our favor.’

‘There are many games during the season where side drops points during important games. If we hold on to our position, then capitalizing on those situations will become easier for us.’

Wenger didn’t overlook the fact that with this game, Man U would have played their rivals in away games, which would then leave the Old Trafford Club in a stronger position.

Meanwhile, Sir Alex Ferguson, Red Devils Boss, continued his mind games against London opponents, Chelsea, when he said that playing against Gunners was far more difficult for him.

With chances of Portuguese Star, Ronaldo, to be back in the starting eleven, Ferguson will be looking forward to get his side back in form after a recent slump and move into title contention once again.

Ronaldo: It’s very tough to intimidate me

September 19th, 2008

Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United winger, has told Chelsea players that they should forget about kicking him down to lumps when the two sides meet on Sunday.

Portuguese Star, who is referred as mercurial dazzler by most experts, made a long-awaited return for the Red Devils on the pitch against Spanish Club, Villarreal, in the Champions League.

He was a second half substitute for his side in what was a disappointing goalless draw for the European Champions.

He could have made an impactful return, but his header just fizzed wide of the Villarreal goal post. There is probability that the player is in shouting distance of starting in the massive face-off against the Blues on Sunday.

23-year-old player, whose stint in the Premier league has already spanned five years, cleared that he is already accustomed to rough nature of important games, especially when you’re the star of the opponent.

Ronaldo, PFA player of the year, even heated the ongoing explosive cauldron by challenging the London Club for employing rough tactics.

While speaking to The Sun, he said ‘I am sure that there will be attempts made for intimidating me on and off the field. But, they will soon find out that it’s very difficult to get on my nerves.’

‘I’ll not think of retaliating but get booted again, if such rough tactics are used by Chelsea. My toughness will be on show during the game.’

‘When it comes to payback, I’ll do in a way that I do best: By scoring Goals!’

Meanwhile, Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard, who yesterday said that his side was not intimidated by Ronaldo’s return, said that he was relieved after getting Terry back to tackle the forward men of Manchester United.

Ferguson optimistic ahead of match against Chelsea

September 19th, 2008

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is quite optimistic about the club’s chances of winning against Chelsea this weekend, despite a bad start to this season.

Red Devils have won just one match and scored only four goals in their first five competitive matches of this season. The defending premiership champions lie at the 14th place presently.

According to Ferguson, United will get back into the driver’s seat much sooner than later.

As good news for Man U, midfielder Paul Scholes is available for this match, after his suspension.

Though no doubt United need to take their strongest possible combination to London, there are still a couple of questions to be answered on the part of Ferguson.

Firstly, there remains a shadow of uncertainty over winger Christiano Ronaldo’s availability for the clash. He had more than two months on the sideline, since 2008 Euro Cup. Though he played as a second-half substitute against Villarreal on Wednesday, there is doubt on him starting the game at Stamford Bridge.

Secondly, Bulgarian forward Dimitar Berbatov, this season’s biggest signing at Old Trafford, is out injured with a knee trouble that he received in his debut match against Liverpool at Anfield. He also missed the Champions League match, which ended in a goalless draw.

Berbatov is still not fully recovered, but Fergie insists that he can play the match.

A suspended Nemanja Vidic adds to the Red Devils woes. But, Jonny Evans can fill his place well, as he did in the match against the Spanish Club.

Middlesbrough marred with injuries

September 18th, 2008

Middlesbrough is a side marred with injuries and that too at the start of the season when there is no tiredness or unrest to be taken care of.

The latest addition to the injured list of players at the club is Turkish frontman Tuncay Sanli.

Striker Tuncay will be out for action at least for the coming six weeks thanks to a knee (second medial ligament tear) injury.

He was injured while playing for his country Turkey against Belgium in the World Cup 2010 qualifier match last Wednesday.

The present international break has left Tunkay and Shawkley with injuries. Therefore with David Wheater fighting a bout of tonsillitis along with the other two, Egyptian player Mido had to make up to the first team along with Chris Riggott and Didier Digard.

Again, Nathan Porrit had to be named as a substitute, because of which Middlesbrough had an all academy bench in the first game of September.

As expected according to this injury marred squad, Boro were the least dominating team in the weekend’s match against Portsmouth, which they lost 1-2, thanks to a second half strike by Jermain Defoe.

According to manager Gareth Southgate, quite surprisingly, having so many players out for injuries is not a ‘big’ thing as he has a lot of other options in the squad or filling the vacted boots.

He further added that Tuncay’s absence will provide much needed exposures to other lads in the squad. However, there was a sense of disappointment in the statement of the Middlesbrough Boss.

Lampard: We are not afraid of Ronaldo

September 18th, 2008

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard insisted that his side has nothing to worry even if Manchester United’s hit man Cristiano Ronaldo is declared fit for the coming game.

Luiz Felipe Scolari’s men will face European Champions on Sunday at Stamford Bridge with high morale after they scored seven goals in the last two wins over City and Bordeaux.

Ronaldo received PFA Player of the Year after he was instrumental in United’s double in the previous season.

Reports confirmed that the Portuguese winger was edging back from his ankle surgery. However, Lampard said ‘I have no idea about what his current situation and I’m not concerned too.

‘Going with the present form, Ronaldo might be the world’s best player. After what he achieved during the previous season for his club, you are ought to be impressed by the player. However if Red Devils put him on the field, we will have no other options but to deal with him.’

‘Our current lot can handle United’s strongest team. There is no reason why will we be looking to face a weakened side. The only thing in our mind is to beat them.’

Meanwhile, the availability of John Terry for the crucial encounter has also given a boost to Chelsea’s preparation.

A red card decision, which could have ruled England International Terry out for 3 games, has been overruled by a panel after Blues filed an appeal against it.

United’s boss Sir Alex Ferguson, whose midfield star Michael Carrick will miss out with injury that he sustained during the Liverpool Game, will be looking forward to have his best men on the field against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Terry free for facing Manchester United

September 17th, 2008

John Terry, Chelsea captain, has been freed to play against Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on Sunday in a crucial Barclays Premier League encounter.

Chelsea officials made an appeal against the red card that was shown to Terry during their 3-1 victory against Manchester City.

Terry was shown the red card for bringing Jo, City striker, down. He made the move during the 77th minute when the Brazilian star was threatening the Blue defense.

According to referee Mark Halsey, this challenge was a professional foul and the player deserved the response from him. However, Chelsea made a protest against the decision and submitted an appeal for overturning it.

During the appeal, it was confirmed that Jo had a distance to travel before reaching the goal. Even, Ricardo Carvalho, Chelsea defender, who was in close attendance to the scene, stated that the foul from Terry came at a distant position from goal.

If the decision would have stood, then Terry would have been disallowed from serving his club for the coming 3 Premier League games including the most important one against the Red Devils.

The appeal was heard by an independent regulatory commission. They revealed that Chelsea’s claim has been upheld and the defender will no longer be required to serve a 3-match ban.

This news will only add to the woes of United Boss Sir Alex Ferguson, who was disappointed with the team’s performance at Anfield. Sir Alex will be looking for all his stars to stand up and create an impression against a strong Chelsea side at Stamford Bridge.

Newcastle midfielder Guthrie to apologize to Hull striker Fagan

September 17th, 2008

Newcastle midfielder Danny Guthrie, who just received his first red card with Newcastle in Saturday’s 1-2 loss to Hull City, has revealed that he wants to ‘personally’ apologize to the Tigers’ striker Craig Fagan as soon as possible.

This was Newcastle’s first match since manager Kevin Keegan had left the club.

It was revealed by Hull manager Phil Brown that the striker has got a broken right leg. The tigers revealed on Monday night that Fagan has suffered a fractured right tibia in the bone breaking challenge that earned the red card to Guthrie.

It is still not sure whether Guthrie’s apology will be able to satisfy Hull, as following an X-ray report, Fagan is expected to stay out on the sidelines for at least three months.

Guthrie, after the incident, answered that though the tackle was wrong, it was in part due to the frustration of losing the match. The player stated that it was quite different from his real self.

He also added that Newcastle are in constant touch with Hull to keep themselves updated on the issue, and assured that he wanted to talk to Fagan at the earliest possible.

Meanwhile, another Magpie midfielder, Argentinean Jonas Gutirrez has been injured after a shoulder push in a South America World Cup qualifier against Peru.

The Argentinean Football Association has confirmed that as a result of talks with Newcastle, the midfielder is to stay in Argentina for his rest and rehabilitation.

There’s also news that Mike Ashley has asked for a staggering US$ 860 millions from an investor group of Dubai for selling Newcastle United.

Tottenham Hotspurs Vs Aston Villa: Spurs dismal run continues with 2-1 loss

September 16th, 2008

Tottenham Hotspurs lost their third game of the season, as Aston Villa defeated the North Londoners 2-1 at White Hart Lane.

This is the worst start from Spurs, as they have only scored 1 point from four games.

Goals from Ashley Young and Reo Coker were instrumental in architecting a disappointing loss to North Londoners.

However, Spurs cannot point finger at the transfer saga of Dimitar Berbatov for their current defeat. This defeat has come primarily for some good attacking display by Martin O’Neill’s side. They dealt with everything that their opponents threw at them.

Heurelho Gomes, Spurs keeper, did make a good save in the game that prevented the Villa lead to be doubled after Reo Coker scored the opener in the first half (fifth minute of the game) for the visiting side. However, Gomes was at fault when it was his lapse in concentration that saw Villa doubled the lead through Young.

Although Darren Bent scored a fortunate goal in the dying stages of the game, it was too late for the home side to achieve a point from it. Again, the late goal did not see any lapse in concentration from the Villa defense, which consistently persisted on and didn’t give any opportunity.

With their 3rd loss in four games, now Spurs will have to dig deep and make the best use of their resources. Players like new draftee Pavlyuchenko, Bent and Woodagate will have to play at their best for their side to come back to winning ways.

Ferdinand: United’s poor showing baffled me

September 16th, 2008

Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand today stated that he was not exactly amused by the Red Devils’ performance on Saturday against a Liverpool side, who were without top players in their starting eleven. The game ended with a disappointing 2-1 loss to Manchester United at Anfield.

He said ‘I am not able to explain the good-for-nothing performance that the team put on in the crucial Northeast derby encounter. However, we will surely look forward to get things in the right order before the match against Chelsea this weekend’.

This defeat at the hands of Liverpool has ended United’s five win streak against them in the Premiership.

United started in a good fashion, and had the first goal of the match to their credit, when Carlos Tevez struck for good. However, they saw an equalizer thanks to a defensive lapse that made Van Der Sar push the ball to Wes Brown’s shin and it just went in, much to the amusement of home fans.

The second goal was scored by substitute Ryan Babel in the dying stages of the match.

Liverpool clinched all three points and United was deprived of the point that was theirs had the match been drawn.

Rio could not help himself saying that Liverpool was just ‘fortunate’ to score both their goals, but then quickly added that they must be quite happy with that only.

Meanwhile, goalie Tomasz Kuszczak has been given a two year contract extension at Man U, which will make him stay at Old Trafford at least till 2012.