The FA Cup saved the best till last this weekend, as League One Leyton Orient earned a replay against Arsenal, and Barry Hearn will reward the players by sending them all to Las Vegas in the summer!
The Champions League is back on the agenda this week, with Manchester United and Chelsea both in last 16 action, but Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti’s job is in danger after Chelsea exited the FA Cup at the hands of Everton.
This is one of the stories making the back pages of the newspapers this morning, while elsewhere Arsene Wenger is targeting two teenagers, Kenny Dalglish is set to raid the SPL for a left back and Harry Redknapp is set to give crock Jonathan Woodgate a new contract.
Arsenal target two teenagers – Daily Mail
Kuszczak in yet another outburst – The Sun
West Ham bond on the race track – Telegraph
Ancelotti’s future depends on Chelsea’s Champions League exploits – Independent
Redknapp to give Woodgate new contract – Mirror
Emilio Izaguirre on Kenny Dalglish’s radar – Daily Mail
Guardiola plays down move for Wilshere – Telegraph
Violent scenes mar Black Country derby – Guardian
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Italian escape route on offer for Ancelotti – Daily Mail
Deschamps offered the Liverpool job before Dalglish – The Sun
Juventus manager Luigi Delneri was relieved his strikers could produce the goods in their 3-1 victory over Cagliari on Saturday.
The Italian boss had seen his side lose their past three games before the clash at Stadio Sant’Elia, scoring just twice in 270 minutes, but an Alessandro Matri brace plus a Luca Toni strike eased fears Juventus were without strike power.
“We always said that Juve paid the price for not having the right players in the right place, especially in the box,” Delneri said.
“Both (Jorge) Martinez and Milos Krasic did well interpreting their roles, but we changed to a 4-3-1-2 giving Alessandro Del Piero and Matri more freedom.”
“Do not forget that at Palermo (2-1 loss) we only had Martinez as a reserve in attack and he’s not really a forward. We should have Vincenzo Iaquinta back soon too, so it’s easier when you actually have strikers.”
“It’s not simple to win at Cagliari, so this result gives us great confidence for the future, even if we have to keep our feet on the ground. We know we’re on the right track.”
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The result created a gap mid-table in the Serie A, with Juve in eighth place on 38 points, six clear of Cagliari in ninth.
Liverpool and Blackpool are no further forward in negotiations for the transfer of playmaker Charlie Adam to Anfield.
The Scottish international impressed in The Seasiders debut Premier League season despite the club being relegated, and has been linked with a move to Merseyside after scoring a penalty against his suitors in the 2010/11 season.
However, with the addition of fellow midfielders Jordan Henderson and Alberto Aquilani, who has returned to England after a loan spell at Juventus, Liverpool are refusing to be held to ransom by the Championship side, who reportedly want £12 million for their talisman.
The former Rangers player will start pre-season with his current club on Monday, and knows his future is out of his hands.
“I go back to Blackpool on Monday and that’s the way it is,’ he told the Blackpool Gazette.
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“Everybody knows the situation – the club have met with Liverpool but that’s as far as it has gone. I had a conversation with the chairman but that will remain private. It’s important that we keep everything in-house – whatever happens will happen,” the 25-year-old concluded.
Charlie Austin couldn’t have timed his return to goalscoring form any better. With Jay Rodriguez looking set to miss the next few weeks with a groin injury, I was concerned about our goals drying up between now and the end of the season.
I needn’t have worried. Austin, who has played second fiddle to Rodriguez for much of the season, came off the bench at Portsmouth and bagged his first career hat trick in the final fifteen minutes. He began the season well, scoring 9 goals in his first 17 appearances, but then a shoulder injury suffered against Leeds United in November set him back, and after missing four matches he struggled to find the net upon his return.
Before his hat trick at Portsmouth, he had scored only twice in his previous eighteen appearances, and I think that was down to a lack of confidence brought about by the dislocation to his shoulder. It can’t have been easy for him to watch his strike partner Rodriguez – who has scored frequently and consistently throughout the campaign – grab the headlines but his goals on Saturday should provide him with the boost he needs.
With Rodriguez facing a battle to return before the end of the season, Austin has a genuine chance to overtake his partner’s league tally of fifteen. He currently stands two shy of that mark, and a fully confident Austin could be about to benefit from a purple patch over the remaining seven fixtures. Three of those games are against teams in the bottom four, and I’m sure Austin will be looking at the next few weeks as a chance to stake his claim for a regular starting berth next season.
Of his 39 appearances so far this season, 13 of those have been as a substitute and often he has only entered the action in the final ten minutes of games. On Saturday at Portsmouth he came on shortly after half time and I think that this is much more suited to his game. It gives him the time to get up to speed with the action; as we saw on Saturday, his first goal arrived twenty minutes after coming on, and two more followed in the next fifteen minutes.
His finishes were all predatory, coming from a combined distance of about fifteen yards and as an out and out goalscorer he brings something different to the squad. Rodriguez is more of an all-round forward who holds the ball up, wins the flick-ons and scores all types of goals. Martin Paterson is a workhorse; never likely to be prolific in the Championship but his high energy performances create chances for others. Danny Ings, who scored his first goal for the club at Portsmouth, looks very sharp but as yet Burnley fans have not seen enough of him to make an informed opinion.
The types of goals Austin scores remind me of watching Andy Payton in the late nineties, and as a Burnley fan I can’t pay him a higher compliment than that. He is not particularly tall, muscular or quick, but he often finds himself in the right place at the right time in and around the penalty area. His partnership with Rodriguez has produced 35 goals so far this season, and if a Premier League club do come in with a good offer for Rodriguez in the summer, Eddie Howe will have to base next year’s campaign around Austin’s goals. His display at Fratton Park on Saturday suggests he is up to it.
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Cesc Fabregas has reignited the speculation surrounding his protracted move from Arsenal to Barcelona after revealing his admiration for the Spanish club's coach Pep Guardiola.
Fabregas is believed to have told Gunners boss Arsene Wenger of his desire to return to the Camp Nou after seven seasons in north London.
Arsenal have already rejected one bid for their 23-year-old captain, who is currently away on World Cup duty with Spain.
But despite claiming he is totally focused on the World Cup , Fabregas has ensured his club future remains a hot topic after describing former Barcelona captain and now first-team coach Guardiola as his "idol".
"Guardiola has always been my idol since childhood," he said. "I played in his position and I noticed him. My coach even gave me a shirt signed by him."
Meanwhile, Fabregas claims the uncertainty surrounding his club future is not a distraction while in South Africa.
"I won't think about anything until after the World Cup," he told Spanish radio.
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"It won't be a problem if I return to Barcelona because Barca is my home.
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Newcastle manager Alan Pardew has admitted that he was happy with his side’s discipline in their 1-0 win over QPR on Sunday.
Leon Best scored the only goal of the game at the Sports Direct Arena, ruining Mark Hughes’ first match in charge of the Loftus Road outfit.
Pardew was pleased with his side’s efforts after the game and spoke of an accomplished performance by the Tyneside team.
“We were disciplined with the goal that we had and tried to look for another,” The Magpies’ boss told Sky Sports.
“And then in the last period of the game we were just seeing it out really, it was a nice disciplined performance from us.
“The most pleasing part was the second half when we took a grip of the match and didn’t really open the game up,” he stated.
The only downside for Pardew and Newcastle was an ankle injury to Yohan Cabaye, but the home team’s coach has stated that it doesn’t look serious.
“It was a strong challenge, but Shaun Derry is a player who makes strong challenges. The referee was right on top of it.
“I thought it was borderline yellow/red, but I think probably it was a yellow. He seemed to get the ball.
“There always controversy about tackling. It’s very, very difficult for referees, so I am not going to sit here and criticise that decision.
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“But Yohan was upset. He felt it was probably a little bit over-exuberant, but the doctor thinks he is going to be okay,” he concluded.
Rangers closed the gap on Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premier League to two points after a 1-0 win at Hamilton on Sunday.Hamilton’s last league victory came way back in November when they won 1-0 at Motherwell. Amazingly, they have not won a home fixture all season, meaning Walter Smith’s side entered the clash as red-hot favourites.
But the reigning champions were given a test by the SPL cellar-dwellers, with the first half almost entirely non-eventful until Nikica Jelavic scored on the stroke of half-time.
Jelavic’s strike was of the highest quality, with his free-kick from the edge of the box curling past the wall and leaving Hamilton shot-stopper Tomas Cerny with no chance.
Throughout a tense second half, Rangers failed to get the all-important second half and left themselves vulnerable to a late equaliser from the hosts.
But it never materialised as Rangers kept the pressure on their arch-rivals Celtic.
Hamilton remain 12 points behind their nearest competitor St Mirren and have amassed just 16 points in 32 league fixtures this season.
Football’s world governing body FIFA have rejected Mohamed Bin Hammam’s appeal against his lifetime ban from the game, but the shamed executive is refusing to let the matter lie.
The Qatari chief, who is the former Asian Football Confederation (AFC) president, was banned from the game back in July after being found guilty of bribery, and FIFA have confirmed that his appeal has been turned down.
“The Fifa Appeal Committee, under the chairmanship of Francisco Acosta (Ecuador), has confirmed today the decisions taken by the Fifa Ethics Committee on 23 July 2011 regarding the ban on Fifa Executive Committee member Mohammed bin Hammam for a breach of the Fifa Code of Ethics,” a statement on the official FIFA website read.
“The appeal made by Mohammed bin Hammam has been rejected and the decision of the FIFA Ethics Committee confirmed.
“The sanction of being banned from taking part in any kind of football-related activity (administrative, sports or any other) at national and international level for life has therefore been maintained,” it concluded.
Despite this, Bin Hammam has refused to accept the governing body’s decision, and will continue in his protest.
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“As expected, the FIFA appeals panel, which met in Zurich today, upheld the 23 July ruling by the FIFA ethics committee, and we will therefore be taking our appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS),” his lawyer Eugene Gulland stated to reporters after the decision.
QPR are still searching for their first Premier League win of the season as West Ham heaped more misery on their London rivals with a narrow win at Loftus Road.
The R’s, who had Samba Diakite sent off in the second half, remain at the foot of the table after losing their fourth game of the campaign as the pressure continues to build on Mark Hughes’ shoulders.
In the opposite dugout Sam Allardyce will be delighted that his side managed to cling on to record their first away win victory and send them up into the heady heights of seventh and just a point outside of a Champions League place.
Allardyce was boosted by the return of on-loan striker Andy Carroll to the substitutes bench following his injury lay-off and also handed record signing Matt Jarvis a second start following his £10.5 million move from Wolves and it was the winger that opened the scoring.
Just three minutes had elapsed when Ricardo Vaz Te skipped past a weak Clint Hill challenge on the right and cut the ball back for Kevin Nolan to cross for Jarvis who headed in at the far post. Bobby Zamora then fired over for the home side and Djibril Cisse drew a superb save from Jussi Jaaskelainen as they chased an equaliser.
But West Ham were by far the better team and doubled their advantage through Vaz Te as he fired home from close range 10 minutes before half time following a goalmouth scramble. Whatever Hughes said at half time had a marked effect as substitute Adel Taarabt halved the deficit just a minute after coming on, smashing a stunning long range drive into the top corner past the despairing Jaaskelainen.
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However Diakite’s red card with 15 minutes left ended any hope of a comeback for QPR as West Ham held on.
But in Sean O’Driscoll’s first week of league games in charge of Nottingham Forest, he’s managed to retain the belief and posotivity of the fans. Emotions of football fans fluctuate at the best of times, but the thousands following Forest at the moment remain quietly optimistic.
It’s tradition for Forest to get off to a slow start. This is a new era, though. New owners, new manager, new team.
As they headed into the opening game against Bristol City at the City Ground, there was a different feel to the game, as if times were about to change, and so they did. Forest ran out 1-0 winners thanks to a goal from Adlene Guedioura on his 2nd debut for the club.
Tapping the shirt as he runs away in elation, Guedioura showed more passion in his celebration than many that represented the club last year did when they played.
Forest had got their first goal on an opening day for so many years, and coupled with that, their first win. A great start to the Al-Hasawi reign, leaving the supporters going home satisfied, and many staying behind to queue at the ticket office, buying for future games. The taste of a convincing victory, the positive atmosphere, and people were left wanting more.
What was the message from O’Driscoll and Fawaz Al-Hasawi?
“Forest will do better in future games”, says Fawaz Al-Hasawi.
“It’s a beginning”, remarks Sean O’Driscoll.
Nobody is getting carried away, and that will be the story for every game. Everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet, with the intention of striving for improvement in the next match. Anything beyond the next game is quickly dismissed in a calm but stern manner.
In the second game of the season, 2,200 Forest fans followed their team to Huddersfield, ready for a testing game from the team that had just gained promotion from League One and were bound to have momentum on their side.
Huddersfield Town were outplayed, and were taught a footballing lesson by a Forest side yet to gel. The much talked about Jordan Rhodes barely got a kick, as the away team left them chasing shadows for long periods. Simon Cox finished brilliantly to put Forest into the lead, and the game was there to be killed off.
It wasn’t, and Dan Harding’s silly mistake in the final minute meant Huddersfield had a penalty, which was put away by Rhodes.
Negativity from Forest fans perhaps, for chucking away 2 points?
Far from it. Despite the obvious initial disappointment, the Reds contingent were in a positive frame of mind. They had witnessed a Forest side who had yet to gel, dominate a Huddersfield team full of very capable Championship players. The new front line of Blackstock and Cox were showing promise, as was Simon Gillett, the free transfer who was receiving plenty of plaudits.
It was always going to be a tougher test against recently relegated Bolton. Their style of play and quality of players meant the Forest players had to be on their game.
They did not disappoint.
It finished 2-2, and it was a fair result at the Reebok. Not many teams will go to Bolton and pick up any points, but Forest did, and were well worthy. They went there and in the first half especially, proved to Bolton and the division they are to be taken seriously.
How did the respective managers of both teams react?
“Give credit to Bolton”, O’Driscoll kindly commented.
“That’s a game we should have won”, Owen Coyle sharply said.
Two totally different reactions. The unassuming Sean O’Driscoll showing respect to the opposition, whilst Owen Coyle’s reaction is one of a man under intense pressure, wanting to convince himself more than anyone his side did enough.
O’Driscoll is under no pressure, which will work in his sides favour this season. The only factor that has worked against O’Driscoll and Forest so far is that two of the games have been chosen for television coverage.
‘SOD’ is known for playing things down, but televised games get neutrals talking. Televised games get the media talking.
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Whilst outside appreciation is nice, it’s not needed.
Nottingham Forest fans are all smiling. That in itself is a very good achievement.
Nobody is sniping unnecessarily. Nobody is expecting. Everyone is just sitting back and watching, as it all takes shape.
Sky Sports, BBC, and any other media outlet: There’s one message… Everything is going just fine, and there’s nothing to see here. Turn around and televise the headline makers.
Who cares if The Football League Show only show 30 seconds of highlights, and it largely gets portrayed as the opposition dominating, when every Forest fan knows different.
The longer Forest go unnoticed this season, the better chance there is of success at the end of it.