English Premier League Soccer Online

Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City on alert as Kaka eyes January move from Real Madrid

2010-10-10T23:42:00.000+05:00

Kaka is set to be offered a January move to England after failing to live up to expectations at Real Madrid.

Inter Milan had looked the most likely destination for the Brazil playmaker, but the Italians are ready to ditch their interest for fears of intense competition from Barclays Premier League sides looking to make an impact signing when the transfer window reopens.

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti is a confirmed admirer of the 28-year-old, while Manchester City and Liverpool have also been identified as potential destinations.

Inter are instead likely to battle Juventus and Manchester United for Karim Benzema - another out-of-favour Real Madrid striker - and believe they can win the race by offering Brazil right back Maicon in exchange.

Kaka will have no shortage of suitors despite a poor first season at the Bernabeu following a £56million move from AC Milan.

His former club are believed to be interested in taking him back to replace Ronaldinho - who is wanted for a lucrative move to the Los Angeles Galaxy - but they cannot compete financially with English interest after already splashing out on Robinho and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Chelsea may be best placed to sign Kaka because of the close bond between the player and Ancelotti, who got the best out of the midfielder during their time together at the San Siro.

However, it is unclear whether the Blues would be willing to splash out a hefty transfer fee after considerable belt-tightening at Stamford Bridge.

City have the resources and boss Roberto Mancini has indicated he will re-enter the market in January. Relations between City, Milan and Kaka were damaged by a botched bid to take him to Eastlands in January 2009, but the landscape has changed.

The player’s standing has declined, while City’s status has rocketed since then and a deal may now be attractive.

Liverpool have also been mooted as a potential suitor by sources in Italy, with Kaka tipped as the kind of signing that would be a coup for the new Anfield owners.

Kaka is recovering from a knee injury which will keep him out for most of the rest of the year, but the indications in Spain are that he has already fallen out of boss Jose Mourinho’s plans.

Mesut Ozil was brought in from Werder Bremen in the summer to occupy the same position and has already impressed.

Should Madrid opt to keep their patience with Kaka, who arrived to much fanfare when Florentino Perez took over as president last year, they could decide to send him back to Brazil on loan until he regains form and fitness. Sao Paulo have already shown interest in a short-term deal.

Benzema is being widely tipped for the exit as well after struggling to get a start in his favoured centre forward position under Mourinho.

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has previously admitted interest, but a move to Italy now seems more likely for the France striker.

However, Mourinho will not sell unless he can bring in at least one new striker in January, with Manchester City’s Emmanuel Adebayor in his sights.

Tottenham Hotspur to join £15m race for Real Madrid hitman Benzema

2010-10-10T23:30:00.000+05:00

Sources in France have revealed that Tottenham Hotspur are also in the hunt for want-away Real Madrid hitman Karim Benzema. The striker has been the subject of much transfer speculation, with rumours of numerous clubs such as Manchester United, Inter Milan and Juventus interested, and on the prowl.

With Tottenham Hotspur manager, Harry Redknapp wanting to boost his strike force for next season, Benzema has been added to his wish list despite the players reported on/off temperament. With the likes of Robbie Keane and Roman Pavlyuchenko not performing to the sort of standards the White Hart lane require, Redknapp has almost been forced to change his hand, especially where strikers are concerned.

It is also believed that Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho, has given the Frenchman until January to show his worth to the first team, whilst he has been scoring a few goals, there are still apparent issues regarding training that the Portuguese manager is not happy about and he may end up offloading him to the highest bidder during the January transfer window.

Should Tottenham boss Redknapp be able to curb the players reported antics then Benzema may be worth the £15m the Spanish club would demand for the youngster. With Redknapp making no secret regarding Tottenham Hotspurs’ bank balance, a bid for the player before the start of next season would be very likely considering the talent of the young man.

Sanchez open to United move

2010-10-10T23:22:00.000+05:00

Udinese star Alexis Sanchez has revealed that he would 'like to play for Manchester United'.

Old Trafford boss Sir Alex Ferguson has reportedly been tracking the attacking Chilean international for some time.

Sanchez could be one of Ferguson's prime targets in the January transfer window, although 'the Wonder Boy' is under contract with the Italian club until 2014.

United would have to pay in excess of £17 million for the 21-year-old starlet.

The player told Spanish newspaper As: "United? Obviously I'd like to play for a club
like that.

"Malaga? Why not. Whatever the side, all this is dealt with by my agent, as he is the one who talks to the clubs.

"I am not interested in knowing anything until negotiations are at an advanced stage."

Manchester City v Newcastle United Sun 3rd October Live Streaming

2010-10-03T14:14:00.000+05:00

Watch Manchester City v Newcastle United Sun 3rd October Live Streaming

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Liverpool v Blackpool Sun 3rd October Live Streaming

2010-10-03T14:11:00.001+05:00

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Watch Liverpool v Blackpool Sun 3rd October Live Streaming

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Chelsea v Arsenal Sun 3rd October Live Streaming

2010-10-03T14:09:00.000+05:00

Watch Chelsea v Arsenal Sun 3rd October Live Streaming

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January 2010 English Premier League Transfers

2010-10-03T13:17:00.000+05:00

Last Updated: 5 February 2010

Arsenal
In: Sol Campbell (unattached), Samuel Galindo (undisclosed, Real America)
Out: Kerrea Gilbert (loan, Peterborough United), Jack Wilshere (loan, Bolton Wanderers)
Aston Villa Transfers
In:
Out: Barry Bannan (loan extension, Blackpool), Craig Gardner (3m, Birmingham City), Nicky Shorey (loan, Fulham)
Birmingham City Transfers
In: Michel (3m, Sporting Gijon), Craig Gardner (3m, Aston Villa)
Out: Krystian Pearce (loan, Huddersfield Town), Jordan Mutch (loan, Doncaster Rovers), Martin Taylor (free, Watford), Gary McSheffrey (loan, Leeds), Damien Johnson (free, Plymouth Argyle), Marcus Bent (loan, Queens Park Rangers)
Blackburn Rovers Transfer
In: Amine Linganzi (free, St. Etienne), Yildiray Basturk (loan, Vfb Stuttgart)
Out: Andrew Haworth (loan, Rochdale), Gavin Gunning (loan, Rotherham United), Marcus Marshall (loan, Rotherham United), Zurab Khizanishvili (loan, Reading), Frank Fielding (loan, Rochdale)
Bolton Wanderers Transfer
In: Stuart Holden (free, Houston Dynamo), Vladimir Weiss (loan, Manchester City), Jack Wilshere (loan, Arsenal)
Out: Nicky Hunt (loan, Derby County)
Burnley
In: Frederic Nimani (loan, AS Monaco), Leon Cort (1.5m, Stoke City), Nicky Weaver (free, Dundee United), Danny Fox (undisclosed, Celtic), David Nugent (loan, Portsmouth), Jack Cork (loan, Chelsea)
Out: Brian Easton (loan, Hamilton), Jay Rodriguez (loan, Barnsley), Jonathan Lund (loan, Rotherham)
Chelsea Transfers
In:
Out: Tom Taiwo (undisclosed, Carlisle United), Jack Cork (loan, Burnley)
Everton Transfers
In:
Out: Jo (loan return, Manchester City)
Fulham Transfers
In: Nicky Shorey (loan, Aston Villa), Stefano Okaka (loan, AS Roma), Cristopher Buchtmann (undisclosed, Liverpool)
Out: Chris Smalling (undisclosed, Manchester United), Diomansy Kamara (loan, Celtic), Toni Kallio (loan, Sheffield United), Wayne Brown (loan, Bristol Rovers)
Hull City
In: Amr Zaki (loan, Zamalek)
Out: Nathan Doyle (free, Barnsley), Daniel Cousin (loan, Larissa), Peter Halmosi (loan, Szombathely Haladas)
Liverpool Transfers
In: Maxi Rodriguez (free, Atletico Madrid)
Out: Andriy Voronin (1.8m, Dynamo Moscow), Andrea Dossena (undisclosed, Napoli), Nathan Eccleston (loan, Huddersfield Town), Christopher Buchtmann (undisclosed, Fulham)
Manchester City Transfers
In: Jo (loan return, Everton), Patrick Vieira (undisclosed, Inter Milan), Adam Johnson (6m, Middlesbrough)
Out: Felipe Caicedo (loan, Malaga), Jo (loan, Galatasaray), Vladimir Weiss (loan, Bolton), Donal McDermott (loan, Scunthorpe United), Robinho (loan, Santos), Javan Vidal (loan, Derby County), Benjani (loan, Sunderland)
Manchester United Transfers
In: Chris Smalling (undisclosed, Fulham), Mame Biram Diouf (loan return, Molde)
Out: Danny Simpson (undisclosed, Newcastle United), Danny Welbeck (loan, Preston North End)
Portsmouth
In: Jamie O’Hara (loan, Tottenham), Ricardo Rocha (free, Standard Liege)
Out: Marlon Pack (loan, Dagenham & Redbridge), Paris Cowan-Hall (loan, Grimsby Town), Luke Wilkinson (loan, Northampton Town), Mike Williamson (undisclosed, Newcastle United), Younes Kaboul (undisclosed, Portsmouth), Asmir Begovic (3.25m, Stoke City), David Nugent (loan, Burnley)
Stoke City Transfers
In: Asmir Begovic (3.25m, Portsmouth)
Out: Richard Cresswell (undisclosed, Sheffield United), Andy Griffin (loan, Reading), Leon Cort (1.5m, Burnley), Michael Tonge (loan, Derby County), Ben Marshall (loan, Carlisle United)
Sunderland Transfers
In: Matthew Kigallon (1.75m, Sheffield United), Alan Hutton (loan, Tottenham), Benjani (loan, Manchester City)
Out: Jack Colback (loan extension, Ipswich Town), Russell Anderson (free, Derby County), Daryl Murphy (loan, Ipswich Town), David Healy (loan, Ipswich Town), Nyron Nosworthy (loan, Sheffield United)
Tottenham Hotspur Transfers
In: Younes Kaboul (undisclosed, Portsmouth)
Out: Sam Cox (loan, Torquay), Andros Townsend (loan, MK Dons), Jake Livermore (loan, Peterborough United), Alan Hutton (loan, Sunderland), Robbie Keane (loan, Celtic), Kyle Naughton (loan, Middlesbrough), Troy Archibald-Henville (undisclosed, Exeter City), Jamie O’Hara (loan, Portsmouth)
West Ham United Transfers
In: Benni McCarthy (undisclosed, Blackburn Rovers), Mido (loan, Middlesbrough), Ilan (free, St. Etienne)
Out: Nigel Quashie (free, Queens Park Rangers), Josh Payne (loan, Wycombe)
Wigan Transfers
In: Vladimir Stojkovic (loan, Sporting Lisbon), Steve Gohouri (unattached), Gary Caldwell (500k, Celtic), Marcelo Moreno Martins (loan, Shakhtar Donetsk), Victor Moses (2.5m, Crystal Palace)
Out: Olivier Kapo (loan, Boulogne), Daniel de Ridder (loan, Hapoel Tel Aviv)
Wolverhampton Wanderers Transfers
In: Geoffrey Mujangi Bia (loan, Charleroi), Adlene Guedioura (loan, Charleroi)
Out: Darren Ward (free, Millwall), Neill Collins (undisclosed, Preston North End), Carl Ikeme (loan, Queens Park Rangers), Matt Hill (loan, Queens Park Rangers)

10/20 Newcastle Utd v Manchester City (2 - 2) Highlights

2008-10-22T20:21:00.000+06:00

Watch Newcastle Utd v Manchester City Video Highlights

Robinho

S. Ameobi

Dunne

Ireland

10/19 Stoke City vs Tottenham Hotspur (2 - 1) Highlights

2008-10-22T20:20:00.000+06:00

Stoke City vs Tottenham Hotspur Video Highlights

Higginbotham|Darren Bent

Delap

Penalty Miss

10/21 Manchester Utd v Celtic (3 - 0) Highlights

2008-10-22T20:19:00.000+06:00

Manchester Utd v Celtic Video Highlights

Berbatov

Rooney

Highlights

10/21 Fenerbahce v Arsenal (2 - 5) Highlights

2008-10-22T20:18:00.000+06:00

Fenerbahce v Arsenal Video Highlights

Guiza

Ramsey

Highlights

Adebayor

Walcott

Silvestre (own Goal)

Diab

Song

Man Utd Ready To Axe Tevez

2008-10-20T00:36:00.002+06:00

Manchester United are ready to axe Argentine starlet Carlos Tevez in favour of a striker that can score at least 20 goals a season.

Argentina international Tevez is currently on a two-year-long loan at Old Trafford, and Sir Alex Ferguson has the option of buying him at the end of that loan, next summer.

The only problem is that Tevez will cost Man Utd around £34m, and it has been reported that Ferguson is not willing to meet that price tag set by the player's owner Kia Joorabchian.

This could mean that Ferguson is ready to axe Tevez and find himself a striker that can score 20 plus goals a season. The rumoured, big-name candidates are David Villa, Karim Benzema and Klaas Jan Huntelaar.

David Villa has just signed a new contract at Valencia and is unlikely to move anytime soon, but Ferguson is reportedly keen on the 26-year-old Spanish star. The player claimed during the summer that he was a big fan of Arsenal and said he would be happy to play with them, and Liverpool apparently made an approach towards him in the summer, but Valencia repelled them and Villa decided to extend his stay at the Mestalla.

Klaas Jan Huntelaar is reportedly in negotiations to sign a new deal with his current club Ajax, and looks unlikely to leave, and Karim Benzema of Lyon has spoken of his desire to stay at Lyon and win a European title with the French champions.

This means that Man United's search for an out and out striker continues and Tevez could well be the one to suffer if they do find their man.

10/18 Manchester United vs West Bromwich Albion (4 - 0) Highlights

2008-10-19T22:54:00.000+06:00

Watch Manchester United vs West Bromwich Albion Video Highlights

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Manchester United vs West Bromwich Albion Video Highlights

Wayne Rooney

Cristiano Ronaldo

Berbatov

Nani

10/18 Fulham vs Sunderland (0 - 0) Highlights

2008-10-19T22:53:00.000+06:00

Watch Fulham vs Sunderland Video Highlights

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Fulham vs Sunderland Video Highlights

10/18 Bolton Wanderers vs Blackburn Rovers (0 - 0) Highlights

2008-10-19T22:52:00.001+06:00

Watch Bolton Wanderers vs Blackburn Rovers Video Highlights

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Bolton Wanderers vs Blackburn Rovers Video Highlights

10/18 Arsenal vs Everton (3 - 1) Highlights

2008-10-19T22:50:00.000+06:00

Watch Arsenal vs Everton Video Highlights

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Arsenal vs Everton Video Highlights

Highlights

10/18 Aston Villa vs Portsmouth (0 - 0) Highlights

2008-10-19T22:49:00.001+06:00

Watch Aston Villa vs Portsmouth Video Highlights

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Aston Villa vs Portsmouth Video Highlights

10/18 Liverpool vs Wigan Athletic (3 - 2) Highlights

2008-10-19T22:46:00.001+06:00

Watch Liverpool vs Wigan Athletic Video Highlights

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Liverpool vs Wigan Athletic Video Highlights

10/18 Middlesbrough vs Chelsea (0 - 5) Highlights

2008-10-19T22:43:00.002+06:00

Watch Middlesbrough vs Chelsea Video Highlights

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Middlesbrough vs Chelsea Video Highlights

Chelsea Highlights

Rooney double leaves Capello's England cruising

2008-10-17T21:36:00.002+06:00

MINSK (AFP) — Another Wayne Rooney double fired England to a 3-1 win over Belarus as Fabio Capello's squad made it four wins out of four on the road to South Africa 2010.

Steven Gerrard's 11th-minute long-range strike had given the visitors a perfect start before Capello's men were pegged back by Pavel Sitko's deserved equaliser.

But two superbly-taken strikes by Rooney settled the contest after the break and England, 4-1 winners in Croatia last month, will enjoy their winter break from competitive internationals in the knowledge that they are firmly in command of group six.

Rooney, who also hit the net twice in the 5-1 win over Kazakhstan on Saturday, has now scored five goals in his last three international outings, helping England to their best-ever start to a World Cup qualifying campaign.

From the outset, Rooney was at the centre of England's best work.

After having complained bitterly that he had been impeded as he stretched to reach Theo Walcott's dangerous third-minute cross, the Manchester United forward was soon clipping the ball over a defender's head before teeing up Gerrard to open the scoring.

Cutting in from the left, the Liverpool midfielder's shot was placed rather than driven and it slipped pleasingly past the left-hand glove of Yury Zhaunou on its way to the bottom corner of the net.

It was exactly the start required by both Gerrard, who had admitted before the match that his place in Capello's starting XI was on the line, and England, but the initiative was quickly surrendered.

Dmitry Molosh, who had tested David James with an early freekick, caused greater problems with another long range strike that the England goalkeeper needed two attempts to gather.

Belarus's impressive left-back then set up Sitko for an edge-of-the-area drive that James deflected away.

The home side's pressure finally paid off in the 28th minute after a move that began with Zhaunou rolling the ball out of his own area.

With the 22nd pass of the move, Vitayly Kutuzov played Ihar Stasevich into the box in the inside right channel.

Wayne Bridge dived into an all-or-nothing challenge and the midfielder was able to cut inside and chip the ball towards the back post, where Sitko had glided away from his marker Walcott to nod past James.

The hosts deserved their equaliser but it was England who finished the opening half stronger.

Heskey spurned a good chance when he directed his near-post header from an inviting Lampard corner wide and there was another example of Walcott's sometimes suspect decision making.

Having broken clear of the Belarus back four, the Arsenal winger opted to shoot from a tight angle when a further touch into the box or an attempt to find Rooney in the middle might have served England's cause better.

The sense that the momentum had swung back to the visitors was confirmed five minutes after the break, when Heskey got round the back of the Belarus defence wide on the left.

Pulling away from Molosh at the near post, Rooney finished off his hard-working forward partner's low cross with a deft sidefoot finish across Zhaunou.

Walcott's subdued performance saw him replaced with Shaun Wright-Phillips while Heskey made way for Peter Crouch for the final 20 minutes.

But it was to be the players who started who wrapped up the victory with quarter of an hour left.

Running on to Bridge's pass, Gerrard played a first-time ball into the box for Rooney, who deftly sidestepped a challenge before clipping the ball past Zhaunou.

A reassuring night for Gerrard should have been capped by a second goal but after going round Zhaunou with three minutes left the Liverpool midfielder clipped what should have been a routine finish against the post.

10/15 Belarus v England (1 - 3) Highlights

2008-10-17T21:29:00.001+06:00

Watch Belarus v England Video Highlights

Gerrard

Sitko

Rooney

England hit five in Wembley win

2008-10-12T00:53:00.001+06:00

England made it three World Cup qualifying wins out of three with a 5-1 win over Kazakhstan at Wembley in which man of the match Wayne Rooney scored twice.

After a goalless, increasingly frustrating, first half, a header from stand-in captain Rio Ferdinand and an own goal from Aleksandr Kuchma gave England a two-goal lead they had not yet merited.

An error from Ashley Cole ushered in Zhambyl Kuzeyev to halve the deficit but Rooney headed England’s third and squeezed home a fourth before Jermain Defoe completed the rout.

After last month’s 4-1 win over Croatia the triumphant homecoming envisaged materialised only in a second-half barrage of goals that was helped immeasurably by the introduction of crowd favourite David Beckham.

Like so often at Wembley, England laboured under the pressure of an expectant home crowd and offered few signs of encouragement in the first half.

Emile Heskey was unable to turn home a cross from Theo Walcott after the Arsenal man had scampered down the right.

Rare moments of danger when they did come at the other end were inevitably of England’s own making. Cole was the first to offer a sight of goal to the visitors’ most able and willing runner Tanat Nusserbayev.

Matthew Upson, deputising in central defence for the injured John Terry was more culpable. First allowing Nusserbayev to turn inside him, a short pass back then required a frantic clearance from David James.

England carried their greatest threat down the right. Walcott turned inside and fired in a left foot shot which curled a metre or so wide of the goal.

On one rare occasion when England’s players were able to link up effectively in the first half, Gareth Barry and Heskey combined to give Frank Lampard a shooting chance that was blocked.

Lampard then dispatched another shot from 25 yards out that grazed the side netting and had a section of the 90,000 crowd cheering goal.

As the minutes ticked by, so did the number of stray passes. A poor touch from the initially promising Walcott wasted a break following Rooney’s run down the left.

A feeling of frustration so familiar to fans at Wembley led to a smattering of boos at the interval, while Shaun Wright-Phillips’s introduction at half-time for Barry actually benefited the visitors initially who, afforded more space in midfield, began to have a threat of their own.

Sabyrkhan Ibrayev’s cross from the right was headed down by Sergey Ostapenko Nusserbayev but, from six yards out, he skewed his shot horribly.

Seven minutes after the break the deadlock was broken. Lampard’s inswinging corner drifted over the floundering Alexandr Mokin and Ferdinand had the relatively simple task of heading the ball into an unguarded net.

Still Nusserbayev troubled England’s goal more than he should have done. A powerful shot from distance appeared a fairly comfortable save for James who instead allowed the ball to squirm between his palms.

Kukeyev then made a mockery of England’s goalscorer reaching into his box of tricks to haul out a mesmeric run. Ferdinand, though, was not the only England player to be wearing a red face. For times in the second half, the side under the caretaker charge of Bernd Storck played the better football.

You could have forgiven Wayne Rooney for his understated celebration in giving England a two-goal lead on 64 minutes.

As it was, Rooney had realised that it was the defender jumping just behind him, Kuchma, who had diverted Lampard’s free kick with his head as the ball beat the diving Mokin at his near post.

Ashley Cole held up his hand too two minutes later but the look of embarrassment on his face was genuine. The defender’s lofted pass missed Upson and landed at the feet at Kukeyev who, after touching the ball twice, then thrice, beat James with a low finish to send a tiny corner of Wembley into hysteria.

After Heskey had headed wide, Rooney restored his side’s two goal advantage with a convincing header low into the bottom corner after Wes Brown had stood up a cross from the right.

An even bigger cheer followed for the arrival of David Beckham.

England’s idol was the creator of England’s fourth as Rooney doubled his day’s haul five minutes from full time. Beckham’s outswinging free kick was deflected into the path of Rooney who managed to squeeze in a shot at the near post.

England were at last peppering the Kazakhs’ goal as had surely been the plan from the start. The visitors’ resolve had long waned and a flattering fourth goal was added to by a fifth. Substitute Jermain Defoe got his name on the scoresheet. Freed by Heskey’s pass, the Portsmouth striker raced clear to slide a shot under Mokin.

10/5 West Ham United vs Bolton Wanderers (1 - 3) Highlights

2008-10-11T11:53:00.000+06:00

West Ham United vs Bolton Wanderers Video Highlights

Davies

Cahill

Carlton

Taylor

10/5 Portsmouth FC vs Stoke City (2 - 1) Highlights

2008-10-11T11:52:00.000+06:00

Portsmouth FC vs Stoke City Video Highlights

10/5 Everton vs Newcastle United (2 - 2) Highlights

2008-10-11T11:50:00.001+06:00

Everton vs Newcastle United Video Highlights

10/5 Chelsea vs Aston Villa (2 - 0) Highlights

2008-10-11T11:49:00.000+06:00

Chelsea vs Aston Villa Video Highlights

Joe Cole

Anelka

10/5 Tottenham vs Hull City (0 - 1) Highlights

2008-10-11T11:46:00.000+06:00

Tottenham vs Hull City Video Highlights

Geovanni - Freekick

Charlton confirm Dubai takeover interest

2008-10-11T01:22:00.002+06:00

Charlton Athletic have confirmed a Dubai-based investment company is looking at the club for a takeover.

Zabeel Investments were last month linked with Newcastle as unpopular billionaire owner Mike Ashley looks to sell up, but have now turned attention to the Addicks.

A statement by the club confirmed an "indicative cash offer" had been made, subject to a number of preconditions including due diligence.

Charlton's statement continued: "Should the offer be made formally to shareholders, the board would recommend shareholders to accept it.

"There is, however, no certainty that a formal offer will be made.

"Zabeel Investments had been looking at the opportunity to invest in a leading English football club and had been monitoring the situation at Charlton Athletic Football Club closely.

"In spite of being approached by various English football clubs, as well as a number of well-known clubs in Europe and South America, Zabeel Investments believes Charlton is the right club for them."

Zabeel Investments executive chairman Mohammed Al Hashimi said: "We feel now is the right time to make a strategic, long term investment in Charlton and get CAFC back to the English Premier League where they belong.

"The passion of the fans at Charlton, the heritage of the Club and the unique status it enjoys in the community make it an exciting proposition for us.”

Hull is for heroes as minnows thrive in Premier League

2008-10-11T01:14:00.003+06:00

Ten years ago, Hull City were propping up the entire English football league with 91 other teams separating them from the summit of the top flight.

Incredibly, a decade later, the unfashionable team from the humble northern coastal town, are third in the Premier League, with only Chelsea and Liverpool above them. But it was a different story on October 9, 1998.

Then Hull were beaten 2-1 at home by Cardiff, a loss which left them a point adrift at the bottom of the old Third Division. Within weeks they had fallen nine points behind and relegation to the Conference was on the cards.

"It was pretty grim most of the time," former defender Ben Morley told the Press Association. "I think we were getting 4,000 at Boothferry Park (the club's old stadium).

"To have said we would be third in the Premier League 10 years from now would have been ludicrous."

Then manager Mark Hateley, the former England striker, was replaced by journeyman midfielder Warren Joyce who began engineering a dramatic turnaround in the fortunes of the embattled club.

They survived the drop that year but went close to folding in 2001 when they were locked out of Boothferry Park by former owner David Lloyd.

A boardroom takeover headed by Adam Pearson eventually eased their financial plight and the kickstart the club needed was delivered with the move to the council-owned KC Stadium in December 2002.

Three promotions followed and, with 25,000 sell-outs, the future is certainly looking bright.

"It is absolutely fantastic and they way things are going at the moment, they should make the most of it!" said Terry Dolan, who managed the club from 1991-97.

"One of the main differences is the new stadium, when they moved there things changed. The club is having the success now, and at least we kept the club going in those days."

Source: AFP

10/5 Manchester City vs Liverpool (2 - 3) Highlights

2008-10-10T00:47:00.003+06:00

Manchester City vs Liverpool Video Highlights

Highlights

English Premier League Transfers 2008-09

2008-10-10T00:17:00.001+06:00

English Premier League 08/09 Transfers

Player	From	To	Price (Euros)

Aaron Ramsey	Cardiff City	Arsenal	undisclosed
Amaury Bischoff	Werder Bremen	Arsenal	undisclosed
Mikael Silvestre	Manchester United	Arsenal	undisclosed
Samir Nasri	Marseille	Arsenal	€15million
Brad Friedel	Tottenham	Aston Villa	€3.5million
Brad Guzan	Chivas USA	Aston Villa	undisclosed
Carlos Cuellar	Rangers	Aston Villa	€14.7million
James Milner	Newcastle	Aston Villa	€12.4million
Luke Young	Middlesbrough	Aston Villa	€7.7million
Nicky Shorey	Reading	Aston Villa	€4.5million
Steve Sidwell	Chelsea	Aston Villa	€6.3million
Carlos Villanueva	Audax Italiano	Blackburn	Loan
Danny Simpson	Manchester United	Blackburn	Loan
Keith Andrews	MK Dons	Blackburn	undisclosed
Paul Robinson	Tottenham	Blackburn	€4.5million
Vincenzo Grella	Torino	Blackburn	€5million
Ebi Smolarek	Racing Santander	Bolton	Loan
Fabrice Muamba	Birmingham	Bolton	€6.3million
Johan Elmander	Toulouse	Bolton	€13.8million
Deco	Barcelona	Chelsea	€10million
Fabio Paim	Sporting Lisbon	Chelsea	Loan
José Bosingwa	FC Porto	Chelsea	€20.5million
Lars Jacobsen	Nurnberg	Everton	Free
Louis Saha	Manchester United	Everton	undisclosed
Marouane Fellaini	Standard Liege	Everton	€18.5million
Segundo Castillo	Red Star Belgrade	Everton	Loan
Andy Johnson	Everton	Fulham	€15.2million
Bobby Zamora	West Ham	Fulham	undisclosed
David Stockdale	Darlington	Fulham	undisclosed
Dickson Etuhu	Sunderland	Fulham	undisclosed
Fredrik Stoor	Rosenborg	Fulham	undisclosed
John Pantsil	West Ham	Fulham	undisclosed
Julian Gray	Coventry City	Fulham	Loan
Mark Schwarzer	Middlesbrough	Fulham	Free
Toni Kallio	Young Boys	Fulham	undisclosed
Zoltan Gera	West Brom	Fulham	Free
Anthony Gardner	Tottenham	Hull City	€3.1million
Bernard Mendy	Paris Saint-Germain	Hull City	Free
George Boateng	Middlesbrough	Hull City	1.25million
Kamil Zayatte	Young Boys	Hull City	Loan
Marlon King	Wigan Athletic	Hull City	Loan
Peter Halmosi	Plymouth Argyle	Hull City	€2.5million
Tony Warner	Fulham	Hull City	Free
Albert Riera	Espanyol	Liverpool	€10million
Andrea Dossena	Udinese	Liverpool	€8.8million
David Ngog	Paris Saint Germain	Liverpool	€1.9million
Diego Cavalieri	Palmeiras	Liverpool	undisclosed
Nikola Saric	Herfolge	Liverpool	undisclosed
Peter Gulacsi	MTK Hungaria	Liverpool	undisclosed
Philipp Degen	Borussia Dortmund	Liverpool	Free
Robbie Keane	Tottenham	Liverpool	€25.8million
Vitor Flora	Botafogo	Liverpool	undisclosed
Zsolt Poloskei	MTK Budapest	Liverpool	Loan
Glauber Berti	Nurnberg	Manchester City	Loan
Jo	CSKA Moscow	Manchester City	€19.5million
Pablo Zabaleta	Espanyol	Manchester City	€8.4million
Robinho	Real Madrid	Manchester City	€40million
Shaun Wright-Phillips	Chelsea	Manchester City	€12.4million
Tal Ben Haim	Chelsea	Manchester City	€7.6million
Vincent Kompany	Hamburg	Manchester City	undisclosed
Dimitar Berbatov	Tottenham	Mancester United	€38million
Fabio	Fluminese	Manchester United	undisclosed
Rafael	Fluminese	Manchester United	undisclosed
Didier Digard	Paris Saint Germain	Middlesbrough	€5million
Justin Hoyte	Arsenal	Middlesbrough	€3million
Marvin Emnes	Sparta Rotterdam	Middlesbrough	€4million
Danny Guthrie	Liverpool	Newcastle	undisclosed
Fabricio Coloccini	Deportivo La Coruna	Newcastle	€12million
Ignacio Gonzalez	Valencia	Newcastle	Loan
Jonas Gutierrez	Real Mallorca	Newcastle	undisclosed
Sebastien Bassong	Metz	Newcastle	undisclosed
Armand Traore	Arsenal	Portsmouth	Loan
Ben Sahar	Chelsea	Portsmouth	Loan
Glen Little	Reading	Portsmouth	Free
James Hurst	West Bromwich	Portsmouth	undisclosed
Jerome Thomas	Charlton	Portsmouth	undisclosed
Nadir Belhadj	Lens	Portsmouth	Loan
Omar Koroma	Banjul Hawks	Portsmouth	undisclosed
Peter Crouch	Liverpool	Portsmouth	€13.8million
Younes Kaboul	Tottenham	Portsmouth	€6.4million
Abdoulaye Faye	Newcastle	Stoke City	€2.9million
Amdy Faye	Charlton	Stoke City	undisclosed
Andrew Davies	Southamption	Stoke City	€1.9million
Danny Higginbotham	Sunderland	Stoke City	undisclosed
Dave Kitson	Reading	Stoke City	€6.9million
Ibrahima Sonko	Reading	Stoke City	€2.5million
Thomas Sorensen	Aston Villa	Stoke City	Free
Anton Ferdinand	West Ham	Sunderland	€10million
David Healy	Fulham	Sunderland	undisclosed
David Meyler	Cork City	Sunderland	€200,000
Djibril Cisse	Marseille	Sunderland	Loan
El-Hadji Diouf	Bolton	Sunderland	€3.8million
George McCartney	West Ham	Sunderland	undisclosed
Nick Colgan	Ipswich	Sunderland	Free
Pascal Chimbonda	Tottenham	Sunderland	undisclosed
Steed Malbranque	Tottenham	Sunderland	undisclosed
Teemu Tainio	Tottenham	Sunderland	undisclosed
Cesar Sanchez	Real Zaragoza	Tottenham	undisclosed
David Bentley	Blackburn	Tottenham	€19million
Fraizer Campbell	Manchester United	Tottenham	Loan
Giovani Dos Santos	Barcelona	Tottenham	€6million
John Bostock	Crysal Palace	Tottenham	€875,000
Luca Modric	Dinamo Zagreb	Tottenham	€21.2million
Paul-Jose Mpoku	Standard Liege	Tottenham	undisclosed
Roman Pavlyuchenko	Spartak Moscow	Tottenham	€17million
Vedran Corluka	Manchester City	Tottenham	undisclosed
Abdoulaye Meite	Bolton	West Bromwich	€2.6million
Borja Valero	Real Mallorca	West Bromwich	€6million
Gianni Zuiverloon	Heerenveen	West Bromwich	€4million
Jonas Olsson	NEC Nijmegen	West Bromwich	€900,000
Kim Do-Heon	Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma	West Bromwich	€690,000
Luke Moore	Aston Villa	West Bromwich	€4.4million
Marek Cech	Porto	West Bromwich	€1.8million
Roman Bednar	Hearts	West Bromwich	€3.2million
Ryan Donk	AZ Alkmaar	West Bromwich	Loan
Scott Carson	Liverpool	West Bromwich	€4million
Balint Bajner	Liberty Arad	West Ham	undisclosed
David Di Michele	Torino	West Ham	Loan
Herita Ilunga	Toulouse	West Ham	Loan
Jan Lastuvka	Shakhtar Donetsk	West Ham	Loan
Orn Eyjolffson	HK Kopavogur	West Ham	undisclosed
Valon Behrami	Lazio	West Ham	€6.3million
Amr Zaki	Zamalek	Wigan Athletic	€7.5million
Daniel De Ridder	Birmingham City	Wigan Athletic	Free
Oliver Kapo	Birmingham City	Wigan Athletic	€4.3million

Is West Ham for sale?

2008-10-09T23:20:00.000+06:00

WEST HAM have insisted that the club is not for sale, but events over a thousand miles away in Reykjavik may well force the hand of Icelandic owner Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson, writes DAVE EVANS.

Another week of economic meltdown in Iceland has seen Landsbanki - the bank which the West Ham chairman owns a 40 per cent stake in - put into administration under the authority of the Icelandic government.

With the whole country threatened with bankruptcy, the government is looking for the banks to sell off their foreign assets and return currency to the country, and that could lead to the sale of West Ham United.

With the loss of £6million from doomed club sponsor XL Holidays last month as well as the prospect of a £30million compensation pay-out to Sheffield United next year, many would have thought that Gudmundsson would jump at the chance to offload the club.

But unless he is forced to do so, it seems that he is looking to hang on to his east London asset.

Chief Executive Scott Duxbury issued a statement on the club website on Tuesday, dismissing the prospect of a sale.

"The position of Landsbanki has absolutely no effect on West Ham United and Mr Gudmundsson's ownership of the club," he insisted.

"Mr Gudmundsson is an investor with a large portfolio, of which Landsbanki was just part. He remains as committed as ever to West Ham United and is not looking to sell the club."

Just how committed that is remains to be seen. Obviously his major preoccupation is in Iceland and their economic woes at the moment, with West Ham likely to remain on the backburner for some time to come.

The prospect of a new stadium, and the announcement of a new training facility has not come to fruition, while players were sold in the summer transfer window to help balance the books.

Indian billionaire Anil Ambani was linked with a takeover of the club over the weekend, and though West Ham have confirmed that they have received no approach from him, if they were, it may be a difficult offer to turn down.

Ambani, a communications and energy tycoon based in Mumbai, India, was quoted as the sixth richest man in the world in 2007 with a personal wealth of over £20billion.

He has already been linked with possible takeovers at Newcastle United and Everton in the Premier League.

The club's vice-chairman Asgeir Fridgeirsson, also speaking on behalf of the chairman, confirmed that there had been interest from possible buyers.

"We have not been accepting any offers," he said on Tuesday afternoon.

"Agents have been contacting us and we have told them that we are not interested."

Just how long the club can afford to do that remains to be seen. Gudmundsson's personal wealth is still considerable, but it seems he has decided not to put any more capital into the club for the forseeable future, and that cannot be good news.

Keane blasts Chelsea and Arsenal over youth development

2008-10-09T23:15:00.000+06:00

Sunderland Roy Keane has accused Arsenal and Chelsea of poaching top youngsters rather than developing their own talent.

Keane believes Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger's reputation for turning rough diamonds into polished gems is undeserved because he brings in talented teenagers from other clubs at home and abroad rather than working with players from Arsenal's own catchment area.

The former Manchester United star is convinced Chelsea do the same, while Sunderland struggle to lure young talent to the Stadium of Light because of their location.

"The word on the street is they (Arsenal) have a group of kids coming through that will be absolutely outstanding," Keane said.

"But you go on about the kids coming through but a lot of them have been bought from other clubs, not through the academy at Arsenal. It's the same with Chelsea."

Wenger paid big money to sign Theo Walcott from Southampton as a 17-year-old and also splashed out on Cardiff's teenage midfielder Aaron Ramsey this close-season, while Cesc Fabregas was lured from Barcelona's youth system.

Chelsea have also poached a number of young players from other clubs' academies, notably Leeds United duo Michael Woods and Tom Taiwo.

"We have tough battles up here in terms of signing young players and are restricted in terms of our location," Keane added.

"You can only bring in kids from a certain radius and a lot of our radius is in the water. Any good fish out there?"

Torres In Man City Snub?

2008-10-09T23:03:00.000+06:00

Reports suggest that Fernando Torres has rebuffed advances from spend-happy Manchester City...

Spanish daily Marca reports that prolific Liverpool striker Fernando Torres instructed his management company to rebuff Manchester City's recent interest.

Cash-rich City supremo Sulaiman Al Fahim apparently called the Euro 2008 star's management team, Bahia, to make his interest in their client clear and promise that the Spaniard's current wages would be doubled at Eastlands. This would mean that Torres could potentially earn £200,000 per week.

The Sheikh was stunned by Liverpool's Torres-led comeback win at the City of Manchester Stadium recently, wherein the hitman bagged a deadly double. Now, he wants the former Atleti star to be a part of the all-star City squad he's planning.

However, Torres told City, via his managers, that he won't be leaving Anfield, regardless of the ridiculous amounts of money promised. He is apparently not interested in the City project in the slightest.

The newspaper continues to say that Torres could still leave Liverpool in the summer, especially if boss Rafa Benitez doesn't stay on for another term in the hotseat. The Reds are keen to extend his deal, which runs till 2014, but the 24-year-old is very relectant.

Rumours linked Torres with a switch to rivals Chelsea over the summer, with the Blues willing to pay up to £85m for his services.

Liam Black, Goal.com