jose - soccer

Liverpool have now knocked both Manchester clubs out of cup competitions in the space of four days, which counts as success in these parts whatever the league situation. Last week Kenny Dalglish was scathing of his players' efforts in losing to lowly Bolton Wanderers, this time the smile was back, at least until he was asked a question about the Liverpool fans' constant booing of Evra. Before considering the football, what there was of it, you will be wanting to know about the chanting. Liverpool obviously won the volume contest. There were far more people singing: "There's only one lying bastard," than were rejoining with: "There's only one racist bastard." With all the pre-match debate focusing on Evra's participation, United's goalkeeping situation had been overlooked, Ferguson sprang a surprise by choosing this high-profile encounter to reintroduce David de Gea to first-team duties. It was not a decision that paid off.

Liverpool began to crowd out the young goalkeeper at corners and took the lead after 21 minutes when Steven Gerrard swung one over from the left and De Gea came for the ball but found himself blocked by Andy Carroll, leaving Daniel Agger an easy header. United had begun the match looking the more threatening, with Antonio Valencia striking a post after a good run, though until the first goal there was little apart from the rivalry between fans to quicken the pulse and almost no chance of the occasion being remembered for the football, as had been the wish of both managers beforehand. Playing with only Carroll up front Liverpool rarely bothered De Gea apart from set pieces, and though United also lacked their usual attacking edge in the absence of Wayne Rooney they managed to get back into the game with a well-worked goal before the interval. Antonio Valencia sent Rafael da Silva racing down the right with a backheel flick and, though José Enrique was still favourite to reach the ball first, the United full-back took on his opposite number and delivered a low cross, met perfectly at the near post by Park Ji-sung with a firm finish that surprised Pepe Reina.

Liverpool had an appeal for a penalty turned down at the start of the second half when Chris Smalling stumbled in the area and appeared to put his hand on the ball in falling, then a minute later a rare chance fell Danny Welbeck's way and he failed to take advantage, pushing the ball past Reina towards an empty goal but not firmly enough to prevent Martin Skrtel arriving to tidy up behind his goalkeeper. Charlie Adam came on for the last half-hour and immediately offered a more direct threat than Jamie Carragher had managed from defensive midfield, launching a high cross intended to test De Gea and presumably gaining encouragement when the goalkeeper fumbled it to concede another corner. When Gerrard tried the same tactic from a similar distance it was clear Liverpool had been instructed to play on De Gea, though the Liverpool captain left the field shortly afterwards, making way for Craig Bellamy. Just when it looked as though the afternoon would end in a tame draw, Liverpool struck. (guardian.co.uk)

Gerrard was replaced by Liverpool's midweek hero Craig Bellamy with just under 20 minutes to go as both sides pressed for a winner. The game looked to be heading towards a draw until Kuyt — another second-half sub — became the hero with his first goal of the season. Reina's long boot forward was flicked on by Carroll over the head of Evra and the Dutch striker found himself clear through on goal to fire past De Gea at his near post. Kuyt should have put the game to bed moments later after Carroll had hit the bar but it wasn't to matter for the Reds who can now look forward to Sunday's draw. (thesun.co.uk)

Barry was close to moving to Liverpool a year ago but the clubs could not agree a fee and the deal eventually fell through amid acrimonious exchanges between the player and manager Martin O'Neill. In total contrast, Tuesday's deal was done in a matter of hours following Villa's lunchtime announcement that their captain was in talks with City. "Gareth is widely acknowledged as one of the top midfielders in the Premier League and that is a recommendation in itself," City manager Mark Hughes told the website. "When players of his quality become available then you have to be in the market for them. "With Gareth we get the experience of someone who has played week-in, week-out in the hardest league in the world. He plays at a level that has an impact on the game and we are thrilled that he is joining us. "I like players that have the sort of flexibility that enables you to change your tactics if you need during a game, and Gareth has that. He also has a range of passing that I'm keen to introduce to the team, and he has got great delivery at sets plays as well. He will bring a lot to City."

Barry said: "It didn't take much persuasion from Mark Hughes, they are heading in the direction I want to go. "There is great potential here, and I'm sure there will be a few more additions to the squad this summer."

Predominantly a left-sided midfielder, Barry has also impressed in a more central role and is a favourite of England coach Fabio Capello. He is currently with Capello's squad preparing for Saturday's World Cup qualifying match in Kazakhstan and next week's home game against Andorra when he will expect to add to his tally of 29 caps.

His signing could be the first of many at City in the close-season as manager Mark Hughes looks to use the millions of the club's Arab owners to build a squad to improve upon the team's 10th-place finish.

Hughes, who last year paid a British record 32 million pounds to Real Madrid for Brazil striker Robinho, added: "I was looking to get a number of deals done as soon as possible and we have had a great start with Gareth joining us. "I hope we can conclude some more so that when we come back for pre-season training we have everybody fit and well and set for a successful campaign."

FC Bayern München have confirmed that Louis van Gaal has agreed to become their new coach. The German giants have been searching for a new boss since Klinsmann's exit last month.Van Gaal has been Bayern's top target, but they had been struggling to reach an agreement with AZ Alkmaar to release the Dutchman. However, a compromise has been struck and Bayern general manager Uli Hoeness says Van Gaal will take charge from the start of July. "We understand that he will become our head coach on 1st July," he said. Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge added: "We are happy to have signed an experienced and successful football coach for Bayern Munich such as Louis van Gaal." Van Gaal will sign a two-year contract upon his arrival at Allianz Arena.

Bundesliga outfit Bayern Munich opted to give head coach Juergen Klinsmann the sack after the 1-0 league defeat against Schalke’04 some three weeks ago and the Bavarians immediately targeted AZ coach Louis van Gaal as his replacement.

Reports in the Dutch media earlier this week already claimed that Bayern Munich were on the verge of announcing the former Ajax coach as their new trainer, but AZ were reluctant to let go of the successful tactician and frustrated the move.

However, according to NOS, the Dutch champions have now reached an agreement with Bayern about a transfer fee and van Gaal will be in charge at the German giants starting this summer. Further details about the deal haven’t been announced yet.

Van Gaal’s AZ deal was due to expire in 2010, but the 57-year-old made it clear that signing for Bayern Munich was like a dream for him. His excellent relationship with AZ chairman Dirk Scheringa eventually made the latter decide to let go of Van Gaal.

(source: goal, goldenfoot.com)

Liverpool, who have shown when they attack, can be one of the most entertaining teams in the league, went ahead 2-1, but then found themselves trailing three times before finally leveling the score for good at four all. To nobody’s surprise it came in injury time after Arsenal went up 4-3 in the 90th minute. It was the sixth goal of the second half. Arshavin, who the genius Arsene Wenger left to rot on the bench for 75 minutes in Arsenal’s FA Cup loss to Chelsea on the weekend, was deadly in his finishing, while Fernando Torres and Yossi Benayoun scored twice for Liverpool. And when you throw in two goals that were ruled offside by Arsenal, the ball hit the back of the net 10 times. Well actually nine, as one of Benayoun’s just managed to cross the goal line. Benayoun impresses me every time out. I think he’s a very underrated player and has been a key in Liverpool’s push for the title. While Liverpool have one point more than they had yesterday, and have temporarily moved into first place in the EPL on goal difference, they actually dropped two points in the race for the title. While Liverpool fans no doubt witnessed a match of epic proportions, this will soon sink in and it will be Man United and Chelsea fans who will actually benefit most from this game. It just goes to show how exciting a football match can be when both teams go for goals as mistakes are usually forced. Every manager in the league should be forced to watch the tape of this match.

(source: tribal, goal, William Hill Tennis Betting)

Chelsea are happy for Carlo Ancelotti to have a say on a summer squad clearout, it has been revealed. The Telegraph says AC Milan boss Ancelotti is understood to have finally made a commitment to leave the San Siro and join Chelsea on a three-year contract. According to a report in the British broadsheet The Telegraph, Carlo Ancelotti has been promised huge financial backing for transfers after agreeing to take over as Chelsea manager.

Apparently, the Italian has decided he will depart Milan at the end of the season to take over at Stamford Bridge on a three-year contract. As part of the deal, it is claimed that Blues owner Roman Abramovich has promised to give the 49-year-old at least €56.6 million (£50m) to strengthen the squad during the summer.

Apparently, Arsenal forward Emmanuel Adebayor is a top target, with the west London club setting aside in excess of €22.6m (£20m) in order to land him. It is also thought that Chelsea will pay €17m (£15m) to acquire the services of Russian international winger Yuri Zhirkov from CSKA Moscow. The west London club are also said to be keeping tabs on Argentina international Carlos Tevez, whose loan deal with Manchester United is due to expire this summer. It is uncertain whether the Red Devils will pay the reported €22.6m (£20m) being asked for the 25-year-old's rights, with Chelsea allegedly ready to pounce should he become available.

Chelsea will also conduct a clear-out of some of their underperforming stars in the overhaul that they want Ancelotti to oversee. Among those under scrutiny are French internationals Florent Malouda and Nicolas Anelka, along with Deco.

(source: tribalfootball, goal.com)

Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink was delighted with his team's 1-0 victory over Manchester City at Stamford Bridge today, and believes it offers ample proof that the Premier League title race is far from over, especially after Liverpool's Old Trafford mauling of Manchester United on Saturday. The gap between United and Liverpool and Chelsea is now only four points, though the Red Devils do have a game in hand on their immediate rivals. "If it was just four points, it would be very close,” Hiddink told The Times. "They have that game in hand, but it’s clear that after [Saturday’s] unexpected result that the tension has come back in the league, which is good. It’s a boost. "But if we want to track them, we have to keep on winning. That’ll give tension to the end of the league season, which is good for everyone, unless you are [the one being] chased. “It gives a blow [to United]. It depends on their calmness. When you are chased, when you are in the driver’s seat and someone else is coming, and tries to occupy your back seat, then you can get a little bit nervous. The door is a little bit open."

Hiddink also showed his canny side, when he refused to be drawn in to any of the 'wars of words' and so-called 'mind games', so beloved by Alex Ferguson and, to a much lesser degree, Rafa Benitez. He concluded, "I have my head in Chelsea so I don’t want to talk too much about what happened and what went wrong with Manchester United. "That’s a question for Sir Alex. It’s not a battle between the managers, it’s a battle between the players. "They might change their minds about me when I put them on the bench or not even in the squad," Hiddink said. "But there is a good atmosphere of work here and we are very demanding of each other. If they are happy with the way we are working and it's going well with results it's all okay. "I have been very happy not just with the regular starters but with all the other players, who I've been watching and observing. Everyone is committed. "But I made it very clear a few weeks ago - and again recently - what the future will be after 30 May. I don't have to do that again."

Hiddink's side take on Manchester City in the league on Sunday, a match dubbed as the 'Clash of the Cash' due to Roman Abramovich's ownership of Chelsea and the wealthy Abu Dhabi United Group's acquisition of City last September, but while the former's riches have helped establish Chelsea as a dominant force in Europe, Hiddink believes it requires more than money for City to take on the elite four of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and United. "It can happen, nothing is impossible in this country, especially when you have power. But there are also the clubs with history, who have played as champions and fought for championships," Hiddink said. "They have the advantage of their history and the experience of being on top of everyone, if not every year then for a lot of them. This experience is very valuable for the big clubs. It's not easy to come between those teams if they are well managed. "If they continue as they have for the last few years it will be difficult to come in, but it's always good to have more competition for the title." "It's not always a matter of money to make a team. You have to be very careful about positions and the balance of your squad. It is not simply because of money that you have success as a team."

(source: goal, guardian.co.uk)

Manchester United keeper Edwin Van der Saar has set a new clean sheets' record by going 14 games without conceding a single goal. The FIFA approved International Federation for Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) announced that Van der Saar broke the previous record which was set by Egypt's Essam Al-Hadari. Ending by the United against Fulham game on Wednesday, Van der Saar has now gone 1302 minutes without conceding, surpassing Al-Hadari's 1288 minutes. The Dutch guardian's net was last hit on November 12th 2008, when Arsenal's Samir Nasri scored against Manchester United.

Manchester United players were first to salute Van der Saar, confirming that the 38-year-old's achievement is a massive boost for the whole team. "It's unbelievable. Edwin deserves it; he's a great man, a great goalkeeper. He works a lot - for his age! - and I'm really happy for him," said Cristiano Ronaldo. "Not just for him, the whole team, all the lads, especially the defenders, who support him a lot."

From his side, United manager Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed that Van der Saar has played a great role in the team's victories over the last couple of years. "Edwin brings absolute calm and assurance to the players in front of him," said the United boss. "We have changed he back four I don't know how many times and not conceded. That says a lot for every player who has come in and done a job."

former Forest keeper Chris Woods has poured cold water on Edwin van der Saar's record attempt. The Man United stopper bids to break Woods' record – of going 1,196 minutes without conceding a goal – against West Ham tomorrow. But Woods, who set the record playing for Rangers in the 1986-87 season, insists Van der Saar has a long way to go to beat it. "Nobody seems to be counting the goal he conceded in Japan in the Fifa Club World Cup," said Woods, who is currently coaching at Everton. "If you count that, his record is nine games, or 810 minutes. "It was a Fifa recognised fixture. We are not just talking about league fixtures because my record covered both league and cup games."

Woods, who was a League Cup hero at Forest, never played a league game for the Reds because of the form of Peter Shilton. He left for QPR in 1979 to find regular first-team football. Woods, who also played for Norwich, Sheffield Wednesday, Reading, Colorado Rapids, Southampton and Burnley, was good enough to win 43 full England caps.

(source: filgoal, thisisnottingham.co.uk)

Manchester United’s dominance of English football, on and off the pitch, is underlined today with the release of a financial survey that shows a £45m leap in United’s year-on-year income. Thanks in large part to last season’s Premier League and Champions League double, United’s turnover grew by 21 per cent in the 2007-08 season to £257.1m. This makes United by far the highest-earning club in Britain, ahead of Chelsea (in second place, with income of £212.9m in the same period), Arsenal (£209.3m) and Liverpool (£167m).

The figures are revealed in the latest Football Money League report by Deloitte, in a survey that shows Real Madrid remain the world’s richest club in terms of revenue, ahead of United in second, then Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Chelsea. Only a drastic slump in the value of sterling has prevented United from reclaiming the title of “world’s richest club” from Real. Real Madrid’s income for 2007-08 rose a relatively modest four per cent to 365.8m euros, or £289.6m when converted at the June 2008 exchange rate of £1 = 1.2632 euros. United’s income at the same rate equated to 324.8m euros. But sterling has crashed significantly, and if Deloitte had used the same exchange rate as in their previous report (£1 = 1.4856 euros, from June 2007), United’s latest income would have been 381.9m euros against Real’s 365.8m euros.

One of the most intriguing aspects of today’s report is that Deloitte, rather than the clubs themselves, has become the vehicle of choice for headline income figures to be released. United will provide more details of their results in due course, including data on large profits, but Chelsea are expected to remain conspicuously quiet this week about their own results. A press conference and briefing, scheduled for Friday, has been indefinitely shelved, and it is understood that this is partly because of the sacking of Luiz Felipe Scolari. His pay-off, of around £7.5m, would not have been in the 2007-08 accounts but would have prompted embarrassing questions about Chelsea’s huge and ongoing losses.

An annual loss of £74.8m in 2006-07 on turnover of £190.5m meant the club had posted cumulative losses of £384m in four years. Haemorrhaging of money at such levels has always heaped ridicule on the long-standing claims of Chelsea’s chief executive, Peter Kenyon, that the club can break even by 2010. Yet further losses in the tens of millions are expected in the 2007-08 figures. And combined with the latest change in manager and wobble in form (and the financial ramifications of both) any suggestions of financial self-sufficiency soon are hollow jokes, as, increasingly, are Kenyon and Roman Abramovich themselves.

As the Deloitte report points out, Chelsea’s annual income growth of 12 per cent (£22.4m) in 2007-08 was driven mainly by increased TV cash, “but the club needs new successes with its match day and commercial revenues to deliver future growth and keep pace with its biggest European rivals.”

1 (1) Real Madrid £289.6m
Real Madrid's 4 per cent revenue growth is more modest than recent years, but the club have doubled their revenues since 2002

2 (2) Manchester United £257.1m
Manchester United's success in winning the Premier League and Champions League has contributed to significantly-increased revenue in 2007/08, but the depreciation of the pound against the euro means they remain in second position.

3 (3) FC Barcelona £244.4m
Barcelona's revenue increased by only 6 per cent.

4 (7) Bayern Munich £233.8m

5 (4) Chelsea £212.9m
Chelsea enjoyed a rise of 11.5 per cent.

6 (5) Arsenal £209.3m
Arsenal enjoyed a rise 18 per cent

7 (8) Liverpool £167.0m
Liverpool have gone up a place to seventh with a 25 per cent rise in turnover.

8 (6) AC Milan £165.8m

9 (11) AS Roma £138.9m

10 (9) Internazionale £136.9m

(source: independent.co.uk)

Bookmakers in England have moved quickly to install current Russian national team coach Guus Hiddink as the favourite to take over from Luiz Felipe Scolari, today sacked as Chelsea manager, at Stamford Bridge. Bookmakers Ladbrokes are quoting the Dutchman at odd of 5/2 to be the next Chelsea gaffer. However, the coach himself 'dead-batted' suggestions by reporters that he was in line to take over from the Brazilian in west London, as he works with his Russian squad at a warm weather training camp in Turkey. "I have no news for you," the Dutchman told Reuters earlier. "I'm not concerned with what has been said about me elsewhere, I'm working here now."

Guus Hiddink was announced as Chelsea's interim manager this week, and yesterday he attended his first training session since arriving at his new club. The Dutchman took plenty of positives from his orientation day at Cobham, but he also identified the need to unify the 'team' he has inherited from Luiz Felipe Scolari. "They are very committed, I have seen them training but sometimes you can have a little bit of a different approach to get even more efficiency out of the players," Hiddink told Chelsea TV last night. "That's what I'm aiming for and if you can add those individuals together and make a team, then everyone can bring a little bit more. "I don't like to give anyone much time, not me and not the players. It is too easy to talk commitment because everyone has an obligation to be committed, but in the tactical and the strategic approach during the game we might gain some profit."

Guus Hiddink was this week announced as Luiz Felipe Scolari's successor in the Chelsea hot-seat. With the Blues lying fourth in the Premier League standings, the Dutchman faces the unenviable task of resurrecting a richly talented but under-performing team's season. How will his successes and failures over the years influence his reign at Stamford Bridge?

As mentioned earlier, the league title is all but off the cards for the London giants. Thus, Hiddink will have to gear his squad for European success. In his favour is his relative success with national teams in knock-out tournaments. No, he's never actually won the World Cup or the European Championship, but he's taken some middling teams a heck of a long way.

However, Chelsea aren't exactly an Australia or a South Korea. The quarter-finals or the semis mean nothing to a club who have come to expect trophies season after season. They are yet to win the Champions League, and it is the one crown Abramovich wants more than any other.

Hiddink's done it before, of course, albeit not in the modern format. But that was as a young up-and-comer building his reputation. As an experienced, well-travelled trainer who's been focused on 'project teams' over the past few years, it is hard to say how he will handle this sudden return to the elite level of club football.
(source: goal.com)

Chelsea assistant manager Ray Wilkins admits his side’s title hopes are receding after the Blues were held to a surprise 0-0 draw at home to Hull. The west Londoners were jeered off after an insipid performance against the Humbersiders on Saturday, who contained their illustrious hosts with ease and produced several clear-cut chances of their own. Chelsea could fall 11 points behind the leaders Manchester United if the reigning champions win their two games in hand and manager Luiz Felipe Scolari may even start casting anxious glances over his shoulder towards fifth-placed Arsenal unless he can arrest his side’s current slump in form.

This dismal display against a side who have not tasted victory in the English Premier League since December added to the gloom created by last weekend’s tame defeat at Liverpool, and sections of the Stamford Bridge support turned on the Brazilian World Cup winner as his side laboured in the second half.

Scolari’s decision to replace debutant Ricardo Quaresma just after the hour provoked chants of ‘You don’t know what you’re doing’ from the Matthew Harding Stand and the 61-year-old gave anther hint that he is struggling to cope with the pressure of fulfilling Chelsea’s grand ambitions by refusing to attend the post-match press conference. Instead, it was Wilkins who was left to explain this latest sorry display and the former England mdfielder did not attempt to disguise the size of the task that faces Chelsea in the final three months of the season.

‘At the moment, it will be very difficult to catch Manchester United, with the way they’re playing,’ he said. ‘We will try to catch them but they have games in hand on us and they’re quite a few points in front of us as well, so it will be hard. ‘There is pressure, of course, but there always is pressure when you’re at a club as big as Chelsea. Second is never good enough for Chelsea because over the last few seasons, we’ve been a power in the Premier League. We strive to be number one and we would never say that second is good enough. ‘That’s why we’re not giving up on the title - you can’t when you have the kind of talent in our squad. We’ll keep going until it’s mathematically impossible to catch United.’

Wilkins also issued a withering assessment of the supporters who turned on Scolari after their side proved unable to pierce Hull’s exceptional defence. ‘It’s never pleasant to hear that kind of thing,’ he added. ‘It’s pretty evident that Luiz does know what he’s doing: he’s been in the game a hell of a long time and won an awful lot of trophies. ‘It’s unnecessary and it shouldn’t be heard around our stadia. It’s their prerogative to boo if they want to because they pay their money. But to say that someone doesn’t know what they’re doing, when they’ve achieved so much in the game, is a tad out of order.’

The criticism heaped on Scolari might have been yet more venomous had Craig Fagan taken one of two good second-half chances or Dean Marney’s low shot across goal sneaked inside the post rather than just out. Chelsea produced precious little in response, although Wilkins was justified in claiming that the afternoon might have boasted a very different narrative had John Terry not spooned haplessly over the crossbar in just the second minute. That weakness means that most teams visiting the Londoners now do so in the belief they can score.

Phil Brown, the Hull manager, was understandably proud of his players’ efforts, which - if replicated during the remainder of the season - should see them escape relegation with something to spare. ‘If we keep showing that mentality then we will be okay,’ he said. ‘The work rate was phenomenal and, as manager of this side, I’m very proud to have come here and got a point. ‘We didn’t put men behind the ball or park the bus in front of the goal, we played a bit.’

And for Hull City - heading south on the back of a miserable run that has brought just one win in 15 league matches - belief is something that has been in short supply of late. So good was their start to the campaign that they dropped out of the top half of the table for only the first time this season last weekend after a home draw with basement club West Bromwich Albion. Manager Phil Brown hasn’t had much more luck in the transfer market after narrowly missing out on AS Roma’s Christian Panucci and seeing new five million pounds signing Jimmy Bullard quickly crocked by a knee injury. Striker Daniel Cousin has also been ruled out for ten days after undergoing surgery and the only upbeat note for Brown has been struck by the support of his chairman Paul Duffen in the face of unexpected criticism from some of the club’s supporters. Even that, though, confounded the manager who said: "I like to fight my own fights, put it that way."

(source: khaleejtimes.com, thetimes)

Inter is leading the league by one point over Roma going into the last game, but the club has had a clamorous end to the season after a series of faltering performances and dressing room clashes.
The Daily Telegraph says yesterday, the club's tailor, Domenico Brescia, 55, was revealed to be a convicted murderer who is close to the Crisafulli Mafia clan.
Brescia is also thought by police to be a cocaine dealer, and his conversations with several Inter players and Roberto Mancini, the manager, were recorded by investigators
The transcripts of over 2,000 phone calls between Brescia and Mancini, Marco Materazzi, Sinisa Mihajlovic and other members of the club were leaked. The vast majority of the phone calls were mundane and concerned tickets to matches, or alterations to clothes.
However, in one call Mr Mancini is recorded discussing Daniele Bizzozzero, a Mafioso associate of Brescia's who had fled to Monte Carlo and then Paris in a bid to escape the police.
"What happened to him," Mr Mancini is heard asking. "How was he arrested? I told him to stay [in Paris] and wait for a pardon."
Brescia then said that Bizzozzero was stupid, to which Mr Mancini replied: "He has always behaved well with me."
Questions were immediately raised about why Mr Mancini was discussing the fate of a criminal, and why he advised him to remain on the run. In other phone calls, Mr Mancini demanded "two coathangers" urgently and another Inter employee referred mysteriously to "packs of stuff" left in Brescia's car.
However, the police said they had no intention of prosecuting anyone at the club. The club cut all ties with Mr Brescia one month ago, when the full extent of his criminal past became known.
"We have only had commercial relations with Domenico Brescia," said a spokesman for the club. "He was our emergency tailor, seeing as his shop is very close to our Pinetina training ground. He has never been an Inter employee."
Brescia's lawyer, meanwhile, insisted he was close friends with several Inter players and had been visiting the training ground daily for 30 years.
The leak of the documents at such a sensitive time provoked a storm of outrage among Inter's fans, who insisted that the media was trying to unsettle the team.

Prior to football club Inter’s big match against Parma to win the scudetto, it was revealed that FC Inter players and managers had had phone conversations with known criminals tapped as part of an investigation into a drug dealing ring.

The Milan team’s former tailor, Domencio Brescia, is said to also be involved in cocaine deals, and has a record for murder and robbery to boot. Strange associations for the team who has always claimed to be the honest ones in the competition, especially after the "we was robbed" claims over the Juventus match fixing scandal a couple of years ago.

You might think the conversations between said tailor and club management would provide something juicy. But in one conversation between team manager Roberto Mancini and Brescia, they discussed trim cut trousers, team line-ups and a friend’s arrest in France (although a photo of a topless woman and mutual friend did change hands).
(source: tribalfootball.com, blogdolcevita.com)

Tottenham Hotspur bukan termasuk klub hebat di Inggris, jika dibandingkan dengan Liverpool dan Manchester United. Tapi klub berjuluk The Spurs ini pernah memiliki kkebesarn di era 1980-an. Dan, penyihir yang membawa kebesaran itu tak lain adalah Glenn Hoddle. Gelandang yang membuat permainan Tottenham selalu efektif, berbahaya dan menarik.
Padahal ketika Hoddle masih remaja, nyaris tak ada yang memperhatikan kemampuannya. Maklum, waktu itu Hoddle belum memiliki klub karena hanya bermain dari satu klub ke klub kecil lainnya di Middlesex, kampung halamannya. Beruntung ada teman yang juga striker Tottenham, Martin Chivers. Atas sarannya, Hoddle masuk The Spurs sebagai pemain magang. Bahkan Chivers memberi rekomendasi, sehingga Hoddle diterima.
Belum lama magang di Tottenham, manajer The Spurs kala itu, Bill Nicholson dipecat. Ini justru memberi berkah buat Hoddle. Manajer baru Terry Neill, tak memandangnya sebelah mata seperti pelatih sebelumnya. Neill melihat bakat Hoddle luar biasa dan dengan berani memberi kepercayaan kepadanya saat masih berusia 18 tahun. Agustus 1975 ketika Hotspur berjumpa Norwich, Hoddle diturunkan sebagai pengganti Ian Smith. Sejak itu Hoddle sering dipasang dan menunjukan bakatnya sebagai gelandang kreatif dan punya tendangan keras. Lalu memasuki tahun 1976, dia sudah menjadi pemain inti dan mulai tampil penuh saat lawan Stoke City di bulan Februari. Bahkan berkontribusi untuk kemenangan 2-1 tim ibukota lewat gol tendangan jarak jauh yang memperdayai kiper kenamaan Peter Shilton.
Inilah awal kebintangan Hoddle, tak berapa lama dia segera jadi pahlawan White Hart Lane, markas Tottenham. Permainannya selalu mengundang kagum dan punya gocekan maut serta akurasi umpan yang berbahaya. Meski begitu, baru di era 1980-an, Hoddle membawa kebesaran bagi tim London. Bukan cuma dalam negeri tapi juga tingkat Eropa. Puncaknya dia mempersembahkan gelar Piala FA 2 tahun berturut-turut dan trophy Piala UEFA 1983-1984 kepada klub. Publik White Hart Lane ingat betul, pemain kesayangannya ini berandil besar dalam sukses tersebut. Salah satunya pada partai final FA Cup 1982, Hoddle mengukir gol untuk menaklukan Liverpool.
Terakhir, dia memperkuat Tottenham di final Piala FA tahun 1987, namun sayang The Spurs kalah dari Coventry City 2-3. Setelah itu Hoddle pindah ke Liga Perancis bersama AS Monaco dengan transfer 750.000 pounds. Torehan kenangan Hoddle selama berkostum The Whites adalah 490 laga dan mengoleksi 110 gol.
Meski tergolong uzur, 30 tahun, Hoddle ternyata masih tampil bagus berseragam Monaco yang saat itu diarsiteki calon “Professor” Arsene Wenger. Bahkan Hoddle menjadi motor serangan klub. Puncaknya dengan raihan juara Ligue 1 musim 1987-1988. Ini satu - satunya gelar kompetisi liga yang pernah diraih. Usai membantu Monaco merengkuh trophy Le Championnat, cedera lutut kanan yang dia derita sejak di Hotspur sering kambuh hingga Hoddle jarang diturunkan pelatih.
Tahun 1993 dia pindah ke Chelsea sebagai pemain nonkontrak, bertahan dua bulan kemudian hijrah ke klub Divisi I, Swindon. Hoddle merangkap menjadi pemain – manager dan menunjukan kemampuan sebagai calon manager brilian. Berkat sentuhannya pula Swindon promosi ke Premier League season 1993. Musim itu juga dia langsung kembali ke Chelsea juga sebagai pemain merangkap manager. Sekali Hoddle menjalankan tugasnya dengan baik. Chelsea seperti bangun dari tidur dan mampu bersaing di papan atas dengan para raksasa Premiership lainnya. Cedera yang terus menjerat memaksanya pensiun lalu berkonsentrasi sebagai pelatih.
Bagi public White Hart Lane, Hoddle dinobatkan menjadi pemain terbaik sepanjang masa dan rakyat Inggris menilainya sebagai pemain berbakat St. George Cross era 1980an. Memperkuat The Three Lions 53 caps dan 8 goal.

(reference: soccer classic 23th dec03)

Defender Wayne Bridge has become the first signing of what seems sure to be a busy transfer window for Manchester City after completing his expected transfer from Chelsea for a fee in the region of £10 million ($14.5 million). The England left-back completed his medical on Saturday morning and agreed personal terms on a four-and-a-half-year contract, before being introduced to supporters prior to City's FA Cup tie at home to Nottingham Forest. He watched on as his new team were humbled 3-0 by the second-flight side in a big upset.

The 28-year-old Bridge, who largely played second-fiddle to England colleague Ashley Cole during his spell at Stamford Bridge, is expected to make his debut against Portsmouth at Fratton Park next Saturday. "I played alongside Wayne at Southampton and saw him come through the ranks," City manager Mark Hughes told the club's Web site mcfc.co.uk. "He was an outstanding young player and he's progressed year on year in his career. He is an England international and has just played for one of the top four sides in the country. "He is of the right quality and is the type of player we need to attract. We need good players that understand this league and we will look to carry on in that way and add more if we can."

It is expected Hughes will return to old club Blackburn for Roque Santa Cruz early next week as City's Abu Dhabi-based owners begin to flex their vast financial muscle. Manchester City intensified their bid to sign Roque Santa Cruz from Blackburn Rovers last night as Mark Hughes looked to reassert his authority over a demoralised squad. Hughes, the City manager, has been forced to contend with a series of problems in recent weeks, having identified Tal Ben-Haim and Elano among those responsible for a growing sense of disquiet in the dressing-room. But having sent a forceful message yesterday to any disgruntled players, it emerged that City have finally established formal contact with Blackburn as they try to secure the signing of Santa Cruz in a deal worth in the region of £15 million. Reports of an £8 million bid to sign Shay Given, the unsettled Newcastle United goalkeeper, were not confirmed by City officials.

John Williams, the Blackburn chairman, was quoted as saying yesterday lunchtime that he had yet to receive a formal offer from City for Santa Cruz, but contact has since been made between the clubs at boardroom level, with Hughes hoping that a deal for the Paraguay forward can be concluded sooner rather than later.

Hughes has spoken to Paul Aldridge, the City chief operating officer, to express frustration over the time taken to complete the proposed signings of Santa Cruz, Kolo Touré, the Arsenal defender, and Scott Parker and Craig Bellamy, the West Ham United duo. City have been frustrated by West Ham’s intransigence and have indicated that they will be forced to look elsewhere if the London club, having sought to sell Calum Davenport to Bolton Wanderers and Matthew Etherington to Stoke City, do not play ball.

The City manager has other targets, having identified Joleon Lescott, of Everton, as an alternative to Touré, and, with the signing of Wayne Bridge from Chelsea completed, Hughes maintains that his squad will be far stronger by the end of the month. He hopes to offload players such as Ben-Haim and Elano, but, in the meantime, has urged the malcontents in his squad to speak directly to him. “All the players know if they have any complaints, they can knock on my door,” Hughes said. “That is how it has always been. You are going to get these kind of stories when things are not going as well as you would like.”

(source: edition.cnn.com, timesonline.co.uk)