Baros brace sinks Liverpool! 3-0 yet again!

kenny; not a happy at all with his team's performance.

An understrength Liverpool side lost 3-0 to Galatasaray in Istanbul, their second successive pre-season defeat by that scoreline.

Having been defeated at Hull on Saturday, manager Kenny Dalglish sent out a virtual reserve side in the first half at the Turk Telekom Arena, with only Andy Carroll considered a genuine first-team starter.

Such was the make-up of the team there were five full-backs on the pitch at the start and the disjointedness cost them as former Reds striker Milan Baros hooked home an eighth-minute volley and added a far-post header just before half-time.

Goal-line technology: FIFA takes final decision March 2012

FIFA will make a final decision on goal-line technology in March next year, according to president Sepp Blatter.

The debate over whether or not a review system should be introduced to the game has been a bone of contention for some time now, with Blatter previously against it.

But with support for it mounting, the Swiss has opened investigations and has not ruled out using such technology at the next World Cup.

As a result, FIFA is talking to nine potential suppliers who are conducting tests to meet strict criteria including being 100% sure within a single second whether the ball has crossed the line.

“We will have on the next international board at the beginning of March next year a final decision on goal-line technology,” Blatter told reporters at a news conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, ahead of Saturday’s World Cup qualifying draw.

Andoni Zubizarreta: “Alexis brings things to the squad that we don’t have”

The sports director for professional football, Andoni Zubizarreta, has spoken about the versatility of FC Barcelona’s latest signing, Alexis Sánchez, who he believes can play in several positions.

In his first press conference as an FC Barcelona player, Alexis Sánchez was joined by Josep Maria Bartomeu, the director responsible for the football area, and by Andoni Zubizarreta. Both of these gentlemen played an active role in signing the Chilean, and spoke about what a useful acquisition he is likely to be.

26 million plus 11.5 in variable bonuses
The man charged with introducing Alexis Sánchez to the media was Josep Maria Bartomeu. In front of a packed Sala París, Bartomeu said that Alexis “was an express request from the technical secretary” and commented that the agreement settled on a fixed transfer fee of “26 million plus 11.5 in variable bonuses”. He also explained that the Chilean“turned down better financial offers” and therefore “collaborated in being able to come to Barça”. 

More attacking options
Andoni Zubizarreta described the club’s latest signing as “versatile and able to play in several positions … he will give us an extra edge and some aggression” as well as “offering us more options in attack”. Zubi also believes that “Alexis brings things to the squad that we don’t have right now”. 

Udinese, future Gamper opposition
During the presentation he also said that part of deal with Udinese to bring Alexis Sánchez to Catalonia involves the participation of the Italian outfit in at least one edition of the Joan Gamper Trophy over the next three years, as well as one friendly match between the two clubs. 

source: www.fcbarcelona.com

Messi and Xavi, candidates for European Player of the Year

FC Barcelona’s Leo Messi and Xavi Hernández have been nominated for UEFA’s award for the best player of the 2010/11 season, along with Cristiano Ronaldo. The award will be presented on August 25 in Monaco before the draw for the Champions League.

               

 

 

The UEFA Club Footballer of the Year  recognises the best player, regardless of nationality, who played in one of the 53 UEFA member states over the previous season. The jury is made up of 53 journalists from each of those nations and announced today that the three short-listed players are Leo Messi and Xavi Hernández of the latest Champions League winners, Barcelona, and Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo. 

Four FCB players in Top 10
As well as the top three, the positions of the other players in the top ten were also announced. Two of these were Barça players, Andrés Iniesta, who came fourth, and Gerard Piqué, who cam ninth. 

Voting on August 25
The winner will be announced on August 25 at the UEFA Champions League group stage 

draw. The 53 journalists will be casting their votes on the same day as the announcement.

By: Subhan Rathore

All glamour & Galacticos - but Barcelona and Real Madrid's signings could leave them defenceless next season

The biggest names in football have been linked to Barcelona and Real Madrid this summer, and many have arrived.

Chile forward Alexis Sanchez was unveiled at the Catalan club on Monday, while Jose Mourinho's side are currently on tour with a handful of new recruits, including left-back Fabio Coentrao (who is being used in a more advanced role in the United States), winger Jose Callejon, and midfielders Nuri Sahin and Hamit Altintop. On top of all that, Madrid still hope to bring in a striker, with Neymar, Sergio Aguero, Carlos Tevez and Emmanuel Adebayor all mentioned, while Barca turn their attentions to Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas.


But what about the defenders?

Barca's backline was notoriously difficult to breach last season as the Catalans conceded just 21 goals in their 38 league games. Nevertheless, coach Pep Guardiola was forced to shuffle his squad in the absence of defensive leader and lynchpin Carles Puyol. Barcelona lost five games in total last season and Puyol was absent in all of those. His presence lifts the players around him and brings the best out of central defensive partner Gerard Pique. Puyol's troublesome knee injury saw him restricted to just seven games after Christmas - a total of just 377 minutes.

Argentina sack coach Batista after Copa America

The Argentinian Football Association has terminated the contract of the Albicelestes' coach, Sergio Batista.

AFA spokesman Ernesto Cherquis Bialo announced the move in the wake of the team's disappointing campaign in the Copa America, at which they were hosts. Argentina were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Uruguay, who went on to lift the trophy with a 3-0 win over Paraguay in Buenos Aires on Sunday evening.

Cherquis Bialo told reporters: ''The national team's committee has decided to rescind the contract that attached Mr Batista with the Argentinian Football Association. 'In a very good natured, mature telephone conversation, Mr Batista and Mr Julio Grondona (the AFA president) talked and Batista left his situation in the hands of the AFA.

Pulis wants 'four or five' new signings at Stoke

Stoke manager Tony Pulis is keen to bring in ''four or five'' players this summer in order to keep his squad competitive.

So far only defender Jonathan Woodgate has arrived after being released by Tottenham. But Pulis has been linked with a number of players, not least Woodgate's former team-mates Peter Crouch and Wilson Palacios, Juventus midfielder Mohamed Sissoko and Birmingham's Scott Dann, yet he has not been able to make real headway.

The Potters boss is keen to strengthen his squad to maintain the progress they have made since arriving in the Premier League in 2008, since when they have not finished below 13th. He also has to factor in the possibility of an extended European campaign, although that will become clearer in the next 10 days when they play Hajduk Split in the Europa League third qualifying round.

''If by the end of August we haven't got four or five players in who can come into the side and improve us, I will be very disappointed,'' said Pulis. ''It's massively important not to be caught standing still, so we definitely want to be active if we can.

''I think we need to shake things up a little bit for the sake of the team so I will be trying to do that.''

That means some departures are likely from the Britannia Stadium. ''We have fringe players here who need to be playing football games now because they are footballers,'' he said. ''I have had them here for a while now, and whilst they are a fantastic group, they are obviously chomping at the bit to get out there and play games.''

Source: msn

David de Gea adjusting well to life at Manchester United despite language barrier

The 20-year-old made an impressive debut in United’s 3-1 against Chicago Fire on Saturday and admits he is looking to master the English language to help settle into Premier League football as quickly as possible.

"I'm slowly getting used to life here," told MUTV. 

"I look forward to learning very quickly.

"There's some players I can speak to. Some of them speak a bit of Spanish and I'm learning English little-by-little and communicating better with the team.

Villa agree £9.5m fee for N'Zogbia

Aston Villa have agreed a £9.5 million deal with Wigan for winger Charles N'Zogbia and are close to completing the move.

Wigan had rejected Villa's bid of £9 million for the former Newcastle player. But the two clubs held further discussions over the weekend and are believed to have reached a compromise figure of around £9.5 million.

New Villa boss Alex McLeish needs a new winger after the departures of Ashley Young and Stewart Downing to Manchester United and Liverpool respectively this summer. He will take nothing for granted after failing to sign N'Zogbia when Birmingham boss last summer.

N'Zogbia will hold talks over personal terms in the next 24 hours and undergo a medical before signing what is expected to be a five-year deal.

He would be likely to have to wait to join up with Villa's first-team squad. McLeish's team are currently on a pre-season tour of Hong Hong and N'Zogbia does not have the required work visa.

Source: espn

Celtic steal early march on Rangers with Hibs win

Defending SPL champions Rangers are already chasing Celtic this season after Neil Lennon's side opened their campaign with a 2-0 win over Hibernian at Easter Road.

In a performance of real contrast to their Glasgow rivals, Celtic seemed to heed the warning of Rangers' lacklustre opening against Hearts, which saw Ally McCoist's men concede a half-time advantage before battling back for a draw.

Celtic ensured that did not happen on Sunday, taking the lead after 14 minutes. Anthony Stokes showed superb composure to find the roof of the net after keeper Graham Stack had flapped at a cross.

Stokes also had a hand in Celtic's second just after the hour, first failing to slide a ball behind the fullback and then squaring the ricochet into the path of Ki Sung-yueng, who drilled into the bottom corner from 20 yards.

The only stain on a good day for the Bhoys was a missed penalty by Gary Hooper, who saw his spot-kick brilliantly turned onto the right upright by Stack. Emilio Izaguirre had won the penalty when he faked to cross inside the area.

Source: msn

Woes of trio fans

Lets look at the grievances being faced by the fans of Manchester United, Arsenal and Manchester City. Each club steered by renowned  managers who have carved a niche for themselves in this competitive world of English football; Sir Alex, Wenger and Mancini respectively. Chelsea are also a competitive force in the premier league but i don't see their fans having to worry about much seeing what a wonderful setup they have got for themselves, all their fans have to do is keep their fingers crossed for trophies!

Manchester United:

19 times champions, recently featuring in every other champions league final, well u would expect the fans wouldn't have much to complain about. That is where your're mistaken, ManU is under a butt load of debt. And the annual  interest having to be paid is increasing every year because of the refinancing the Glazers did to shift the debt onto the club which they had taken to buy the red devils in the first place. So even though the red devils are the most profitable club right now, the debt is only ever going to increase unless the Glazers sell the club, which doesn't seem to be happening in the near future. But it hasn't stopped Alex Ferguson from splashing cash over this transfer window on the likes of  De Gea , Young etc. SO even though the burden of debt hangs upon Old Trafford, the ManU faithful can keep on basking in their success , for now.

Arsenal:

Poor poor gunners, empty trophy cabinet gathering dust in recent years. With money flowing into Manchester City and Chelsea in recent years, the gunners have been left to scavenge the left overs in the transfer market lately. With no luck in the transfer market this summer either.Wenger a shrewd operator in the transfer market but what can he do with the coffers depleted and his transfer kitty nowhere near his rivals ( specifically Mancini  and Andre Villas-Boas). So the gunner supporters look forward to another trophy less season. I know how frustrating it can be; with Wenger taking the brunt of the fans ire! Its a job i wouldn't wanna take! SO Arsenal really have to find their pot of gold; run to the end of a rainbow gunners run! Or else they could perhaps ask one man for his help, as for who that man is, follow this link and put two and two together (loads of money and doesn't know where to spend):

http://ghosttribune.blogspot.com/2011/07/billionare-makes-his-name-visible-from.html

Manchester City:

To put it simply, too much money, too many people influencing the manager, too many players they are interested in BUT only a select few willing to join! Those already there wanting out because of the competition for one place in the starting eleven is too much! Apart from being rebuffed by star players the city faithful don't have much to worry about. Last season finally they got their first trophy after decades and now this year it seems they are going to wrestle the red half of Manchester for the premier league title. As for money matters they are safe and sound, with their wealthy Arab Sheikh pumping black gold into the city coffers! So far he has invested over 1 billion pounds into the club! wow! And of course their recent 10 year deal with Etihad worth 400 million pounds their treasury is overflowing and as a result their fan following booming especially in the Arab world.

This is by no means a complete detailed analysis, it just touches the tip of the iceberg. With only a few weeks left for the new season to kick off we wait to see the teams head to head on the field.


By: Hammad Ali

CHELSEA TO SIGN BARCA YOUNGSTER

Chelsea have reached agreement with Barcelona for the signing of young Spain Under-20 defensive midfielder Oriol Romeu.

Blues boss Andre Villas-Boas confirmed the news at a press conference in Bangkok, although 19-year-old Romeu is yet to have a medical or agree personal terms as he is currently with Spain preparing for the FIFA U20 World Cup in Colombia.

Romeu made his debut for the Barcelona first team at the end of last season, but is not part of Pep Guardiola's long-term plans at the Nou Camp.

A statement on the Chelsea website read: "Chelsea Football Club has agreed terms with Barcelona for the transfer of Oriol Romeu."

Chelsea's 'valued squad' deserve respect, says André Villas-Boas

André Villas-Boas has defended Chelsea's patient approach in the transfer market this summer and insisted his squad are more than capable of regaining the Premier League title, despite their relative toils last season.

Chelsea's spending under Villas-Boas has been restricted to deals for the teenage goalkeeper Thibault Courtois from Genk and the Barcelona B midfielder Oriol Romeu. While talks remain on-going with Anderlecht over the signing of Romelu Lukaku, who could cost up to £15m, the pursuit of Luka Modric and Scott Parker has dragged. Other Premier League challengers have strengthened early and significantly.

Manchester United, who last season finished nine points clear of Chelsea, then managed by Carlo Ancelotti, have spent £50m on new recruits, though Villas-Boas is convinced his squad can bridge that gap. "Each club is responsible for the money they put into the market," the manager said. "We put a lot of money in in January [when David Luiz and Fernando Torres were signed]. You have to value, as well, the kind of approach we are taking this summer.

"It's an approach made on taking wise decisions, evaluating what we have, paying respect to the valued squad we have. It's not a case of spending straight away when we don't need to do that. We hope it will prove to be the successful approach. Clubs have to spend what they have to spend. United have decided to sign players after losing some to retirement and they've reinforced those sectors. We will decide what sectors we need to reinforce in our own team."

Inter plot loan move for Tevez with a view to permanent switch next summer

Italian giants Inter Milan have stepped up their efforts to prise Carlos Tevez away from Manchester City by setting up a meeting with club officials later this month.

The Serie A outfit are expected to request the Argentine join them on loan for the whole of next season with a clause inserted into the deal which would make it mandatory for them to buy him in a year's time.

The deal would be similar in set-up to the one which saw Sweden international - and former Inter star - Zlatan Ibrahimovic join rivals AC Milan from Barcelona for the 2010/11 season before completing a switch earlier this summer.

Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon would like to coach the United States or China once his playing career ends

Gianluigi Buffon has stated that he intends to finish his playing career at Juventus, but would like to coach a national team such as China or the United States once his time on the pitch is over.


The 33-year-old's future has been in doubt, but he recently committed himself to the Turin giants and is in North America on the Italian side's pre-season tour.

"I have never thought of coming here [United States] to end my playing career," he told American reporters.

"I’ll stay at Juventus for as long as they trust me."

However, the ex-Parma goalkeeper admitted that a future coaching role may appeal although that was still some way off. He added: "In three or four years I’ve got the crazy idea in my head that I’d like to be the coach for USA or China. Both would be incredible experiences."

Roberto Mancini wants 'more control over the team' at Manchester City

Roberto Mancini has called for Manchester City bosses to give him more authority to guarantee success next season.

The Italian is demanding more power in terms of transfer dealings as well as in determining how the club is run, citing Sir Alex Ferguson’s control at rivals Manchester United as the perfect model.

“I agree with him [Sir Alex], but he has been at United for a long time so for him it is easy,” Mancini told reporters.

The City manager appears eager to push away from a director of football model and wants more of the influence currently enjoyed by both chief executive Garry Cook and football administrator Brian Marwood to be bestowed on himself.

Mancini was asked if he shared the same views as his bosses, and replied: "I think so, because we want to win. Maybe we had a different way but now we have a good relationship.

Didier Drogba 'on verge' of signing one-year contract at Chelsea

The Ivory Coast international has made no secret of the fact he would like to remain at Chelsea and now looks set to stay at the club for another year after his current contract runs out.

'We've started talking and it's very interesting. Everybody knows what I feel about Chelsea and what I want,' he said.

'I will definitely be here next season. I said a few years ago that I will be here until the end of my contract, and I am here.'

However, while Drogba's future at Chelsea may be safe, his place in the first team is another matter.

The 33-year-old will have to compete with Fernando Torres for a starting spot as the Blues' new manager Andre Villas-Boas is known to be a fan of the 4-3-3 formation.

Players such as Nicolas Anelka and Daniel Sturridge will also be fighting for a place in the first team.

'If I deserve to play then I will play. If I'm not good then I won't. It's good for the team to have some competition,' Drogba added.

Earlier this week it was reported that Chelsea have launched a bid for 18-year-old Belgian star Romelu Lukaku, who has been dubbed the 'new Didier Drogba'.

Source: www.metro.co.uk

Aguero talks to begin

Aguero emerged as City's top transfer target as Carlos Tevez'sfuture at the club remains far from clear.

At first Roberto Mancini suggested any bid was dependent on whether Tevez stayed or not, but it is no apparent that they will go for Aguero no matter what.

Aguero, who has made it clear he wants to leave Atletico, has been linked with Real Madrid andJuventus - but City are now clear favourites, and the player is known to be keen on a move to Eastlands.

It is believed that one of Aguero's lead agents Hernan Reguera held talks with City earlier this week and that went well.

Now Atletico sources have told Sky Sports that official talks are expected to begin this weekend.

Belief

City boss Mancini has reiterated his belief that Aguero would be a great signing for the club.

"Aguero is young and can start to score a lot. He will become a top striker. He is 23 and now is his time," he said.

"He is like Carlos Tevez and could play with Carlos, or Edin Dzeko or Mario Balotelli.

"He can play as first striker or second striker. He has good technique. After many years in a top club likeAtletico Madrid he can play Premier League.

"Aguero is a good player, like Samir Nasri, like Cesc Fabregas, like Robin van Persie - there are a lot of good players in England."

Source: skysports.com

Blues warned over Modric price

Tottenham Hotspur boss Harry Redknapp has warned Chelsea that it is likely to take "an awful lot more" than £35 million to sign Luka Modric.

Modric has expressed his determination to secure a move to Stamford Bridge and Redknapp, who reiterated this week that he "understands" the player's desire to leave, has claimed many of the world's top clubs are interested.

On Thursday, he said: "Everyone wants Luka. Just ask Alex Ferguson what he thinks of him, ask Roberto Mancini at Manchester City - they all want him. He could play for Barcelona."

However, Chelsea - who have already seen offers of £22 million and £27 million rejected - have been told that they will need to dramatically up their bid.

Paraguay coach Gerardo Martino handed touchline ban for Copa America final with Uruguay

Paraguay coach Gerardo Martino has been given a two-match touchline ban after taking part in a post-match brawl following his country's Copa America semi-final win over Venezuela.

With emotions running high after a 5-3 victory for Paraguay on penalties, players and staff from both sides were involved in an unruly scuffle. Martino had himself already been sent off during the match for dissent and he saw his side reduced to 10 men following the dismissal of Dario Veron.

As a result, Martino, who has been coach of the national team since 2006, will have to watch Sunday's final against neighbours Uruguay from the stands.