Baggies announce Scharner deal

West Brom have announced the signing of Paul Scharner on a two-year deal.

Scharner, 30, has been available on a free transfer since leaving Wigan at the end of last season, and he has been linked with a number of sides in the Premier League and Europe.

However, West Brom have now completed the deal and boss Roberto Di Matteo feels he will be a major asset for the newly-promoted side.

"I'm delighted to welcome Paul to the club," he told the official West Brom website. "He is exactly the type of player we've been looking to bring in because he is a proven Premier League player, having performed consistently well for the past four-and-a-half years.

"Paul is a powerful, competitive player who is good on the ball, excellent in both boxes, can play in numerous positions and also chips in with goals.

"He is obviously short of match practice at the moment but, when he's fully up to speed, I'm sure his experience will prove invaluable as we strive to establish this club in the Premier League."
Scharner is capable of playing in midfield or defence.

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Fixture Monday, September 13, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
19:00 GMT	Stoke City	v	Aston Villa	Britannia Stadium

Fixture Sunday, September 12, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
15:00 GMT	Birmingham	v	Liverpool	St Andrews Stadium

Fixture Saturday, September 11, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
11:45 GMT	Everton	v	Manchester United	Goodison Park
14:00 GMT	Arsenal	v	Bolton Wanderers	Emirates Stadium
14:00 GMT	Fulham	v	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Craven Cottage
14:00 GMT	Manchester City	v	Blackburn Rovers	City of Manchester Stadium
14:00 GMT	Newcastle United	v	Blackpool	St James' Park
14:00 GMT	West Bromwich Albion	v	Tottenham Hotspur	The Hawthorns
14:00 GMT	West Ham United	v	Chelsea	Upton Park
14:00 GMT	Wigan Athletic	v	Sunderland	DW Stadium

Sunderland in talks with Rennes over Gyan

Sunderland have opened transfer negotiations with Ligue 1 club Rennes over what is expected to be a club-record transfer for Ghana international Asamoah Gyan.

Black Cats officials are holding talks as they attempt to recruit a replacement for Kenwyne Jones, who joined Sunderland for £8 million earlier this month, ahead of Tuesday's transfer deadline.

Their need for new striker became more acute on Sunday when Fraizer Campbell, who had been partnering Darren Bent, suffered suspected knee ligament damage during the 1-0 Premier League victory over Manchester City.

After win at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland manager Steve Bruce said: "It's imperative that we try to bring a body in because we are a bit short there and if [Campbell] he is going to be missing for the next couple of months, which could be the situation, then we need to act if we possibly can."

Gyan, 24, an international colleague of on-loan defender John Mensah, was one of the stars of the World Cup finals and has been in Bruce's sights all summer.

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Reds complete Meireles deal

Raul Meireles has insisted he is not a Javier Mascherano clone after completing his move to Liverpool.

Meireles has joined Roy Hodgson's side for 14 million euros (£11.5 million), the Premier League club announced on their official website.

Portugal international Meireles has signed a four-year contract and will add weight to a Reds midfield which was looking short on numbers following the departures of Mascherano and Alberto Aquilani.

And, quoted in the Sunday Express, he said: ''Roy Hodgson was key to me coming here because he worked so hard to sign me. I am Meireles and not Mascherano and that will be clear to the fans. I hope one day the Liverpool fans will remember me for being successful.''

Meireles has won four titles with Porto and been capped 38 times by Portugal, playing in all four of his country's games at this summer's World Cup.

Liverpool on Friday agreed a deal to send Mascherano to Barcelona after the midfielder, whose family could not settle on Merseyside, was reportedly unprepared to play for the club.

Aquilani also departed for Juventus in a loan deal which brought to an end, at least temporarily, an underwhelming and injury-hit spell in the city in which he failed adequately to replace Xabi Alonso.

With Liverpool financially constrained as owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks attempt to sell the club, fans have had to make do with limited arrivals this summer - Christian Poulsen from Juventus and Joe Cole on a free transfer from Chelsea being the headline names.

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Result Sunday, August 29, 2010

Status	Home	Score	Away	VENUE (ATT.)
FT	Bolton Wanderers	2 - 2	Birmingham	Reebok Stadium (18,139)
FT	Liverpool	1 - 0	West Bromwich Albion	Anfield (41,194)
FT	Sunderland	1 - 0	Manchester City	Stadium of Light (38,610)
FT	Aston Villa	1 - 0	Everton	Villa Park (34,725)

Result Saturday, August 28, 2010

Status	Home	Score	Away	VENUE (ATT.)
FT	Blackburn Rovers	1 - 2	Arsenal	Ewood Park (25,059)
FT	Blackpool	2 - 2	Fulham	Bloomfield Road (15,529)
FT	Chelsea	2 - 0	Stoke City	Stamford Bridge (40,931)
FT	Tottenham Hotspur	0 - 1	Wigan Athletic	White Hart Lane (35,101)
FT	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1 - 1	Newcastle United	Molineux Stadium (27,745)
FT	Manchester United	3 - 0	West Ham United	Old Trafford (75,061)

Liverpool lead race to sign Cole

Liverpool and Sunderland have indicated that they are ready to launch bids for West Ham United striker Carlton Cole.

Soccernet has been informed that neither club have, as yet, made an official bid, but the Hammers are well aware of the interest mounting from the two clubs.

Soccernet first revealed that the Hammers were asking £15 million for Cole and that the player's preference was a move to Anfield. Now Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson is ready to make the long awaited swoop after failing with a succession of moves for other strikers.

Sunderland are the latest club to be linked with the centre-forward this week, while Stoke and Birmingham have been in hot pursuit without success in turning Cole's head.

Cole made it clear he would only quit Upton Park for a big club and West Ham have been anticipating a move from Liverpool.

With the expected sale of Javier Mascherano to Barcelona for more than £20 million, Hodgson has lined up a move for Cole.

Once Liverpool have sold Mascherano, who was rescued from the Hammers bench by his £18 million move to Anfield, the Reds can offer West Ham the inducement of paying a large chunk of the fee up front, which in turn can aid the Hammers' transfer business in the final days of the window.

Co-owner David Sullivan has been busy lining up a replacement for Cole and, once the England international departs, two more strikers are earmarked for Upton Park.

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Fixture Sunday, August 29, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
12:30 GMT	Bolton Wanderers	v	Birmingham	Reebok Stadium
14:00 GMT	Liverpool	v	West Bromwich Albion	Anfield
14:00 GMT	Sunderland	v	Manchester City	Stadium of Light
15:00 GMT	Aston Villa	v	Everton	Villa Park

Fixture Saturday, August 28, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
11:45 GMT	Blackburn Rovers	v	Arsenal	Ewood Park
14:00 GMT	Blackpool	v	Fulham	Bloomfield Road
14:00 GMT	Chelsea	v	Stoke City	Stamford Bridge
14:00 GMT	Tottenham Hotspur	v	Wigan Athletic	White Hart Lane
14:00 GMT	Wolverhampton Wanderers	v	Newcastle United	Molineux Stadium
16:30 GMT	Manchester United	v	West Ham United	Old Trafford

Barton grounded after Magpies maul Aston Villa

Opening goalscorer Joey Barton was delighted with Newcastle's 6-0 thrashing of Aston Villa but insisted no-one at the club would be getting carried away.

The Magpies stunned Aston Villa with a sparkling performance, after John Carew had missed an early chance to give the visitors the lead from the penalty spot.

But Barton opened the scoring on 12 minutes before Andy Carroll notched a hat-trick, and captain Kevin Nolan chipped in with two goals.

The midfielder was part of the team beaten 3-0 at Old Trafford in Newcastle's opening fixture but he says no-one at the club was too concerned about that reverse. "We weren't too bothered about Monday - a lot of teams will get beaten by more than we did at Manchester United," Barton told ESPN.

"It was important to make a statement today and now we want to carry the momentum forward. One swallow doesn't make a summer but we've got to put in the same kind of shift in our next game at Wolves.''

On his goal the former Manchester City midfielder added: "I thought I would chance my arm and it took a dip at the last minute. But three points is the important thing. We want to stabilise this club in the Premier League and we have given Villa a game today.''

Hat-trick hero Andy Carroll was understandably overjoyed after his three-goal salvo paved the way for the Magpies' impressive victory.

"It's a great feeling (to score a hat-trick). The lads worked hard and we deserved the win," Carroll told ESPN. "Obviously people say there is extra responsibility [wearing the No. 9 shirt] but I enjoy playing football whatever number it is.''

Magpies boss Chris Hughton said: "I watched Aston Villa last weekend and thought they were emphatic in everything they did - and we expected a tough game.

"But once we got the first goal it lifted any fears we might have had and after half-time we managed to keep it going.

"There was an intensity to our play but you have got to have goalscoring opportunities. We were able to go right through to the end and as it got more open it suited us more.''
 
On Carroll, Hughton added: "He is still developing but what he has is great desire and aptitude to improve. He's a bit of a throwback, a local lad and he took his goals very, very well.''

Villa caretaker manager Kevin MacDonald struggled to contain his disappointment after watching his side be destroyed at St James' Park, though he pointed to John Carew's missed penalty as a decisive moment in the match. "We started the season well last week so it's disappointing to get well beaten by a decent Newcastle side," Macdonald said.

"It might have been a bit too much playing a couple of young kids who had done very, very well... maybe I was a bit wrong with my team selection. The missed penalty changes things to certain extent.

"We started very, very brightly but it was probably the second and third goals which killed us just before half-time. Momentum is a big thing in football. The players felt hard done by at 3-0 but thought if we got next goal we could get back into the game. But it wasn't to be.''

Source : ESPN Soccernet

Result Monday, August 23, 2010

Status	Home	Score	Away	VENUE (ATT.)
FT	Manchester City	3 - 0	Liverpool	City of Manchester Stadium (47,087)

Result Sunday, August 22, 2010

Status	Home	Score	Away	VENUE (ATT.)
FT	Newcastle United	6 - 0	Aston Villa	St James' Park (43,546)
FT	Fulham	2 - 2	Manchester United	Craven Cottage (25,643)

Result Saturday, August 21, 2010

Status	Home	Score	Away	VENUE (ATT.)
FT	Arsenal	6 - 0	Blackpool	Emirates Stadium (60,032)
FT	Birmingham	2 - 1	Blackburn Rovers	St Andrews Stadium (21,394)
FT	Everton	1 - 1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Goodison Park (37,767)
FT	Stoke City	1 - 2	Tottenham Hotspur	Britannia Stadium (27,243)
FT	West Bromwich Albion	1 - 0	Sunderland	The Hawthorns (23,624)
FT	West Ham United	1 - 3	Bolton Wanderers	Upton Park (32,533)
FT	Wigan Athletic	0 - 6	Chelsea	DW Stadium (14,476)

Neymar signs five-year contract with Santos

Brazil striker Neymar has broken the mould by rejecting the chance to join a big European club, instead opting to sign a five-year contract extension with Brazilian club Santos.

The 18-year-old mega-talent was subject to strong interest from a number of leading European clubs, Premier League champions Chelsea chief among them, but he has followed the advice of Pele and new national team coach Mano Menezes to stay in Brazil, at least for now.

Neymar, who scored on debut for Brazil against United States last month, said: "The final decision always rests with the player. My father always will want what is best for me. I talked to him and decided to stay. Money alone does not bring happiness. I'm happy here and I want to continue being so. It was a complicated decision, very difficult. But God gave us the wisdom and power to make the best decision. Now it's time to only think about Santos and winning more titles.''

Santos' president Luis Alvaro lauded Neymar for his "courageous decision'' to stay in Brazil and said he hoped the move would spark an end to the relentless talent drain to Europe.

"We've built a different possibility,'' Alvaro said. "We no longer accept the idea that we're an underdeveloped nation always at the mercy of the powerful European clubs.''

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Gallas set for Spurs medical

Former Arsenal captain William Gallas will undergo a medical at Tottenham on Friday ahead of a free transfer move to White Hart Lane, Soccernet understands.

Gallas, 33, looks set to be added to Spurs' defensive ranks as Harry Redknapp looks to strengthen his squad before the end of the transfer window.

Spurs looked decidedly unconvincing at the back during their 3-2 Champions League qualifying play-off defeat to Young Boys, and the arrival of Gallas would offer them some much-needed top level experience.
Gallas has been available on a free transfer since June, having been released by Arsenal after being unable to agree a new contract at Emirates Stadium.

And the France international, who played for Les Bleus during their disastrous World Cup campaign, will become only the sixth player to have joined Spurs having played for their bitter north London rivals.
The last player to do so was David Bentley, while Rohan Ricketts, David Jenkins, Laurie Brown and Jimmy Brain are the others to have crossed the divide.

Gallas played for Arsenal for four years after moving from Chelsea in 2006, making 101 Premier League appearances for the Gunners.

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Fixture Monday, August 23, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
19:00 GMT	Manchester City	v	Liverpool	City of Manchester Stadium

Fixture Sunday, August 22, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
12:30 GMT	Newcastle United	v	Aston Villa	St James' Park
15:00 GMT	Fulham	v	Manchester United	Craven Cottage

Fixture Saturday, August 21, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
14:00 GMT	Arsenal	v	Blackpool	Emirates Stadium
14:00 GMT	Birmingham	v	Blackburn Rovers	St Andrews Stadium
14:00 GMT	Everton	v	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Goodison Park
14:00 GMT	Stoke City	v	Tottenham Hotspur	Britannia Stadium
14:00 GMT	West Bromwich Albion	v	Sunderland	The Hawthorns
14:00 GMT	West Ham United	v	Bolton Wanderers	Upton Park
16:15 GMT	Wigan Athletic	v	Chelsea	The DW Stadium

Result Monday, August 16, 2010

Status	Home	Score	Away	VENUE (ATT.)
FT	Manchester United	3 - 0	Newcastle United	Old Trafford (75,221)

Result Sunday, August 15, 2010

Status	Home	Score	Away	VENUE (ATT.)
FT	Liverpool	1 - 1	Arsenal	Anfield (44,722)

Result Saturday, August 14, 2010

Status	Home	Score	Away	VENUE (ATT.)
FT	Tottenham Hotspur	0 - 0	Manchester City	White Hart Lane (35,928)
FT	Aston Villa	3 - 0	West Ham United	Villa Park (36,604)
FT	Blackburn Rovers	1 - 0	Everton	Ewood Park (25,869)
FT	Bolton Wanderers	0 - 0	Fulham	Reebok Stadium (20,352)
FT	Sunderland	2 - 2	Birmingham	Stadium of Light (38,390)
FT	Wigan Athletic	0 - 4	Blackpool	DW Stadium (16,152)
FT	Wolverhampton Wanderers	2 - 1	Stoke City	Molineux Stadium (27,850)
FT	Chelsea	6 - 0	West Bromwich Albion	Stamford Bridge (41,589)

Parker to commit future

West Ham midfielder Scott Parker is close to signing a new five-year contract.

Parker, 29, has been linked with moves to Liverpool and Tottenham over the summer but is set to commit his future to the Hammers.

"As I understand it the club wants Scott to stay and have given him a long contract," West Ham boss Avram Grant said. "It's good for the club and good for Scott. He's very important to this club and I hope it will be done."

Grant has brought in five new players so far this summer but has failed in his bid to land Miralem Sulejmani after the Ajax midfielder failed to obtain a work permit.

"We didn't succeed in the deal and we are looking forward - I can't look back on things I can't change," Grant added.

The Hammers are understood to be close to agreeing a deal for Manchester City striker Felipe Caicedo.

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Man City sign Balotelli, Milner to follow

Manchester City have completed the signing of Italy striker Mario Balotelli from Inter Milan for a reported fee of £24 million.

Balotelli, 20, passed a medical in Manchester on Friday and signed a five-year deal to complete his switch from Serie A to the Premier League.

City manager Roberto Mancini, who worked with Balotelli at Inter before moving to Eastlands, said: "I think that Mario is one of the best players of his age in Europe.

"His style of play will suit the Premier League, and because he is still so young there is a big chance for him to improve. He is a strong and exciting player, and City fans will enjoy watching him.''

Although the deal was completed too late for Balotelli to be included Saturday's opening Premier League clash with Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane, he will be available for the home clash with Liverpool on August 23.

Mancini also said James Milner was close to signing from Aston Villa, although they are still sorting out the details of the deal. "I think it will be okay but we need another two or three days," he said. "When you do a deal, everything must go in a good way for everybody, so we probably need another two or three days for this situation."

It is reported that the Milner deal is being held up because Stephen Ireland - who is due to be part of a part-exchange deal - is demanding a £2 million pay-off. Asked whether that was the case, Mancini replied: "I don't know about that."

Aston Villa caretaker manager Kevin MacDonald said on Friday: "The latest about Milner is that talks are still ongoing. Nothing can be done today in terms of him being signed in time to play tomorrow. James has been put in the squad and will be available to play for Aston Villa against West Ham."

Mancini was non-committal about Robinho's chances of remaining at Eastlands, but there is no place in his plans for Craig Bellamy, who is attracting interest from Fulham, Tottenham, Sunderland and Celtic. "I have to choose 25," Mancini said. "The rest must find another team. Craig is out of the list."

Bellamy this week claimed he had not spoken to Mancini in several months, but the Italian said: "What he has said is not important because it is false. I speak with the players every day and Craig always played for me last year. This year I choose other players. I am the manager and it is my choice."

Mancini also rejected suggestions City are set to buy Benfica defender David Luiz and Barcelona striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, with Balotelli and Milner set to represent the final deals of the summer. "After these two players - finished," Mancini said.

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Ramires signs for Chelsea

Chelsea have signed Benfica midfielder Ramires on a four-year contract.

The Premier League champions had been in negotiations with Benfica for more than two weeks over the transfer of the 23-year-old, for a fee believed to be in the region of £17 million.

Ramires underwent a medical on Sunday but completion of the deal was held up due to work permit problems as the Brazilian had not played the required 75% of matches for his country. The former Cruzeiro player was granted the required documentation on appeal on Friday.

Former Cruzeiro player Ramires will miss the opening Premier League game against West Brom and instead join up with his new colleagues next week.

"Every player in the world would love to play for Chelsea and it's a great opportunity that was given to me, I will give my best to repay this chance, and I am very happy,'' he told the club's official website.

Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti said: "He is a fantastic player, a fantastic midfielder, he is very young and will be the future of the Brazilian national team, and I hope he will be the future of Chelsea.''

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Ferguson explains Bebe signing

Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed Manchester United made a quick decision on the signing of Bebe as other clubs were beginning to show interest.

Bebe, 20, is joining from Portuguese club Vitoria de Guimaraes after United agreed to pay his release clause, believed to be in the region of £7 million. He had signed from Estrela da Amadora in the Portuguese third division only five weeks earlier.

However, it was reported that Real Madrid were keen on the player and, after Ferguson received a recommendation from Portugal boss Carlos Queiroz, he decided United should make their move.

"It's one of these things that when you identify someone of potential we normally would assess over a longer period but we do scout Portugal and he's very bright and he's got tremendous instinct," he said. "He's two footed and he's very quick. There's material there.

"Other clubs were starting to hover on the boy and so we made a quick decision and said, 'Well, why don't we go for it?' He's got material and I'm sure we can work with that. He's young and we're good at young players really, so that's the reason."

Bebe played football in a homeless team during a brief spell on the streets and Ferguson added: "It is a fairytale when you read about his background, but it is one of those things that happens when you identify someone with potential.

"He doesn't speak any English, so that needs to be addressed, and we need to allow him to settle in, but sometimes you have to work on an impulse."

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Liverpool announce signing of Juve's Poulsen

Liverpool have confirmed the signing of Juventus midfielder Christian Poulsen for a fee of €5.475 million.

Poulsen, 30, joined Juventus from Sevilla in 2008 and made 33 Serie A starts in two seasons in Turin. He also anchored the Denmark midfield in all three of the country's appearances at the World Cup finals.

A statement from Juventus read: "Juventus Football Club can announce that it has completed the agreement with Liverpool FC for the outright transfer of Christian Poulsen for a fee of €5.475 million (£4.5 million) payable in two instalments.

"The fee will further increase by up to €1.2 million depending on his achievements during the contract period.''
Liverpool also confirmed the deal on their official website and revealed that Poulsen has signed a three-year contract with the Reds.

Roy Hodgson has recruited the player as a like-for-like replacement for Javier Mascherano, who revealed on Thursday morning that while he enjoys playing for Liverpool, he is keen to leave England for a new challenge. Both Inter Milan and Barcelona are known to be interested in the Argentina captain.

"It's a very special club both in England and worldwide," Poulsen told sporten.dk. "I'm incredibly happy to have joined.

"We'll see in the coming days what kind of shape I'm in. I obviously trained at Juventus, but as the move to Liverpool drew closer, I wasn't involved in training, and I haven't played the Europa League matches so I would still be available [for Liverpool]."

Poulsen joins Joe Cole, Danny Wilson, Jonjo Shelvey, Fabio Aurelio and Milan Jovanovic in joining Liverpool this summer, and his international colleague Daniel Agger expects him to be a success at Anfield.

"Christian would be a perfect addition to most of the big clubs in Europe, so he will certainly fit in here," Agger said recently. "He is a top player and will make us stronger. We need to have big signings so we can compete and he is one of those players.

"Christian will improve the team. But we need more improvements if we want to be at the top of the league this season."

Martin O'Neill quits as manager of Aston Villa

Martin O'Neill has resigned as manager of Aston Villa just five days before the start of the Premier League season.

There had been speculation over his future at Villa Park with the impending sale of James Milner and interest in Ashley Young from Premier League rivals.

O'Neill was close to leaving Villa at the end of last season but opted to stay after talks with owner Randy Lerner.
"Aston Villa can confirm that Martin O'Neill has resigned as manager of the football club with immediate effect,'' the club said in a statement.

"Kevin MacDonald, reserve team manager, has assumed the role of caretaker manager and will prepare the team for the opening Premier League game of the season against West Ham on Saturday at Villa Park.''
Martin O'Neill added: "I have enjoyed my time at Aston Villa immensely. It's obviously a wrench to be leaving such a magnificent club.

"I would like to pay tribute to the Villa players, my coaching staff and the Villa supporters for all the support and encouragement they have given both the club and me personally during my time as manager.
"I wish them all the best for the future. I will obviously be assisting the club in the immediate short-term with regard to the handover of my duties."

O'Neill took charge of Villa almost four years to the day, replacing Irishman David O'Leary at the helm. Afterguiding the club to 11th in his first season in charge, Villa then finished sixth in each of the following three seasons.

He also led the club to the Carling Cup final last term, where they lost 2-1 to Manchester United, and also the FA Cup semi-finals - only for Chelsea to oust them at Wembley.

But O'Neil's tenure at Villa Park was tainted by poor performances in the second half of the season, which cost them the chance of Champions League football.

O'Neill, who enjoyed successful spells in charge of Leicester City and Celtic before moving to the Midlands, is thought to have grown frustrated with a lack of funds to push the club on to the next level.

That was not helped by the sale of Gareth Barry to Manchester City last summer, and with James Milner almost certain to walk the same path, speculation is rife that a frustration at not being able to strengthen is to blame for O'Neill's departure.

Paul Faulkner, chief executive of Aston Villa, said: "The club would like to thank Martin for the great work he has done at Aston Villa over the past four years.

"He has helped to establish the club in the upper echelons of the Premier League, has taken us to Wembley and we have also qualified for European competition for the past three seasons under his management. We wish him the best in the future."

The League Managers' Association released a statement from chief executive Richard Bevan which read: "The LMA shares Martin's disappointment at him leaving Aston Villa. He has achieved great success not just with Villa but throughout his managerial career.

"He is a great example to all aspiring managers having built the foundations in non-league football to then go on to successfully manage at the highest level in the game."

Jonathan Fear, editor of the Villa fans' website Vital Villa, said: "I'm not altogether surprised that Martin has left but I am shocked at the timing. The timing will make it really difficult for the board to get the type of manager we need quickly.

"I thought it had run its course and maybe the end of last season was the time to go. Maybe this could be a good thing for both parties because frustration seemed to be growing.

"But the timing does seem crazy just before the start of the season. I believe the board have got to go for a 'name' to show the ambition is still there.''

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Fixture Monday, August 16, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
19:00 GMT	Manchester United	v	Newcastle United	Old Trafford

Fixture Sunday, August 15, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
15:00 GMT	Liverpool	v	Arsenal	Anfield

Fixture Saturday, August 14, 2010

Time	Home		Away	VENUE
11:45 GMT	Tottenham Hotspur	v	Manchester City	White Hart Lane
14:00 GMT	Aston Villa	v	West Ham United	Villa Park
14:00 GMT	Blackburn Rovers	v	Everton	Ewood Park
14:00 GMT	Bolton Wanderers	v	Fulham	Reebok Stadium
14:00 GMT	Sunderland	v	Birmingham	Stadium of Light
14:00 GMT	Wigan Athletic	v	Blackpool	The DW Stadium
14:00 GMT	Wolverhampton Wanderers	v	Stoke City	Molineux Stadium
16:30 GMT	Chelsea	v	West Bromwich Albion	Stamford Bridge

United claim Community Shield success

Manchester United won the Shield for a record 18th time.

Scoring Summary
Chelsea	Manchester United
Salomon Kalou (83)	Antonio Valencia (41)
	Javier Hernandez (76)
	Dimitar Berbatov (90)

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Coyle hoping to bring Klasnic back to Bolton

Bolton Wanderers manager Owen Coyle is hoping to re-sign Ivan Klasnic on a free transfer after the striker's contract was cancelled with Nantes.

Klasnic spent last season on loan and impressed the Wanderers boss in the last five months of the season he was in charge at the Reebok Stadium.

Coyle's limited budget meant he felt there was only an outside chance of recruiting the 30-year-old, but now that Ligue 2 club Nantes have cancelled the final two years of Klasnic's contract the possibility of a return has increased.

"Ivan is a great lad who's well liked by the fans and well liked in my dressing room," Coyle told the Bolton News. "If we can find a way to bring him back to the club, I'd love to do it.

"A few financial things have got to fall into place for that to happen - but we're definitely working on it."
But Bolton could face competition to sign the striker with Klasnic claiming a number of other clubs have shown an interest.

"I know I will find a new club," he said. "I am under no pressure and I have two or three options."

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Holloway pessimistic over Coleman

Blackpool boss Ian Holloway admits he is unlikely to be able to bring Seamus Coleman back to the club.

Everton defender Coleman, 21, impressed during a loan spell at Bloomfield Road at the end of last season as the Seasiders won promotion to the Premier League. He has featured regularly in pre-season friendlies for the Merseysiders since then and Holloway feels it will be difficult to convince Everton boss David Moyes to part with Coleman again.

"He is playing so well that David Moyes won't want to let him go," Holloway told the Blackpool Gazette. 
"I've asked him, I've left messages, I've spoken to Moyesy's brother (agent Kenny), so I'm trying all I can.
"However, I think the honest answer is probably no, but I've got other targets I'm waiting on as well."

Meanwhile, Blackpool are reported to have had a bid rejected by Leicester for striker DJ Campbell, another player who enjoyed a successful loan stint with the Tangerines last term.

However, Holloway may yet have more luck in his efforts to sign Swansea defender Angel Rangel.
Rangel was the subject of a failed bid from Blackpool last week, but Swans coach Alan Curtis expects the 27-year-old to leave the Welsh side before the end of the transfer window.

"I think the club are trying to persuade Angel and trying to open talks over a new contract," Curtis told the BBC, "but obviously the lure of playing in the Premier League is something he is probably going to find very difficult to turn down."

He added: "It looks likely that he may well move on, but that might not be for a couple of weeks yet. The (transfer) deadline is not until the end of August and the shame is he's such a good player for us."

Source: ESPN Soccernet

Vidic never considered exit

Nemanja Vidic insists there was never any question he would leave Manchester United despite reported interest from Real Madrid this summer.

Vidic, 28, has long been linked with a move away from Old Trafford, with speculation that his partner was keen to move to a warmer climate as well as suggestions he was demanding higher wages.

A representative of the player said before the World Cup that they had "requested some time from United to think about things", while Sir Alex Ferguson said he could not clarify the situation when asked during a press conference late last month.

However, United chief executive David Gill revealed soon afterwards that Vidic had verbally agreed a long-term contract to remain at Old Trafford and the defender says he had always wanted to stay at the club.

"I don't know why people think it was a difficult decision," he said. "I always said I am happy here. I never spoke about my future. I know there was all this speculation but I never said I wanted to go. There was nothing new. I am very happy to be here."

Source: ESPN Soccernet