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Thursday August 21, 2008

A tie, but Pim won't be drawn on line-up

LONDON: Socceroos coach Pim Verbeek insists the defensive frailties evident in Australia's 2-2 draw with South Africa will be dealt with before the World Cup qualifier in Uzbekistan next month.

Wednesday August 20, 2008

Terry named England captain

John Terry has retained the England captaincy with manager Fabio Capello preferring to keep faith with the Chelsea defender over Manchester United's Rio Ferdinand.

South Africa hold Socceroos to draw

Australia played out a 2-2 draw with South Africa in an entertaining soccer international at London's Loftus Road.

Stage debut for Becks' faltering falsetto?

SUCH is old Goldenballs' phenomenal appeal to the public that a librettist is speaking with West End producers this week about staging a musical entitled David Beckham - The Theatre of Dreams.

Unknown Uzbeks cause headaches

SOCCEROOS old hands Lucas Neill and Mark Schwarzer agree next month's trip to Uzbekistan could be the most difficult qualifier of the World Cup campaign.

Tuesday August 19, 2008

INJURY concerns have forced Socceroos coach Pim Verbeek into a late reshuffle of his squad for tomorrow's World Cup warm-up match against South Africa in London, but it is the eagerly awaited return of a fit-again Scott Chipperfield that remains the main focus of the match.

Berbatov stocks rise as Man U strike a rough patch

THE longer Manchester United battered against Newcastle United's well-blockaded back door on Sunday, the higher Dimitar Berbatov's value rose. With Chelsea finding their stride so quickly, last season's double winners know they may have to stump up £30 million ($64.3m) for the Tottenham striker. On this evidence, they cannot wait.

Monday August 18, 2008

Chelsea fly as United struggle

Luiz Felipe Scolari's tenure as manager of Chelsea got off to the perfect start on Sunday, his side sending a message to the rest of the English Premier League with a highly impressive 4-0 victory over Portsmouth.

Resolute Rafa weathers local storm

LONDON: Rafa Benitez pledged to stay at Liverpool after Fernando Torres gave his side a barely deserved 1-0 win in their English Premier League opener at Sunderland on Saturday.

Sunday August 17, 2008

Chelsea expecting a wide-open race

LONDON: New Chelsea coach Luiz Felipe Scolari is talking up three more English Premier League champion rivals ahead of his first match against Portsmouth on Sunday.

Mariners call on troops for Sydney showdown

CENTRAL COAST coach Lawrie McKinna is already looking forward to hosting Sydney FC next week, knowing a number of his regulars should be back on the park.

Fergie bemused by all the fuss over Scolari's Chelsea

THE Premier League and Champions League trophies are locked away in Manchester United's museum - out of sight and out of mind. Time to forget that double and work on victorious domestic campaigns to overhaul Liverpool's record 18 titles in Alex Ferguson's final two years before his planned retirement.

Blackburn appeal to higher power

BLACKBURN ROVERS may have Allah on their side this season. The Premier League club has built a prayer room at its Ewood Park stadium, primarily to accommodate Muslim fans who have to, if possible, pray up to five times a day. Mosques attached to stadiums are common in Arab countries but, last season, all Scottish Premier League sides were required to have facilities for Muslim players to be able to pray before and after games.

Olyroos devoid of inspiration as Arnold leads Australia on another failed campaign

Two tournaments, two disasters. After the Socceroos' failure at the Asian Cup, Football Federation Australia chairman Frank Lowy dropped Graham Arnold as coach of the senior national team and gave him control of the under-23s Olyroos side as a consolation prize. And now that team has failed to achieve the stated goal of a medal in Beijing.

Saturday August 16, 2008

Premier prize comes at a cost

The dream of Premier League promotion often becomes a nightmare, writes Nicholas Spencer from London.

Socceroos missing as new season kicks off

LONDON: The English Premier League kicks off this weekend, but some of its brightest Australian stars will be missing from the action.

Friday August 15, 2008

Man City shocked at home

English clubs had a bitter-sweet night in the UEFA Cup as Aston Villa won in Iceland but Manchester City lost to FC Midtjyllandat and now face a tough task to qualify for the first round.

Thursday August 14, 2008

Lampard signs new five-year contract with Chelsea

Frank Lampard has ended one of English football's longest running transfer sagas by signing a new five-year contract with Chelsea.

Champions League results

European Champions League third qualifying round, first leg results:

Arsenal ride their luck

Arsenal ruined Steve McClaren's FC Twente debut as goals from William Gallas and Emmanuel Adebayor secured an unconvincing 2-0 win in the Champions League third qualifying round, first leg.

Mutu shows champion quality

FLORENCE: Strikers Adrian Mutu and Alberto Gilardino scored as Fiorentina took a big step towards the group stage of the UEFA Champions League with a 2-0 win over Slavia Prague.

Wednesday August 13, 2008

Goals galore but jury's still sitting on defence

TOP-HEAVY with attacking talent, it's not going to be goal-scoring which defines Queensland Roar's season - it will be how an ageing defence copes at the other end.

Tuesday August 12, 2008

Ferguson on lookout for another striker as United lack cutting edge

LONDON: Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson will continue the hunt for a new striker after they needed a penalty shoot-out to win the Community Shield for a second straight season.

Monday August 11, 2008

Man United retain Community Shield

Manchester United have beaten Portsmouth to win English football's season-opening Community Shield in a penalty shootout for the second straight season.