London: Everton can take a huge step towards an unlikely top-four finish and Champions League soccer next season if they can maintain their recent run of great form by winning at Arsenal for the first time in 17 years on Tuesday. To do that, Everton will have to overcome opponents who have risen to third in the table on the back of a superb run of results just as the...
09:27 AM, Apr 16, 2013
London: Newcastle United will impose lifetime bans on "so-called fans" who created mayhem in the city cente after the team was beaten by arch-rivals Sunderland in Sunday's Premier League derby, the club said on Monday. A statement on the Newcastle website said the club was "embarrassed and appalled" by the violence that followed the 3-0 home defeat. "Newcastle United have been working with Northumbria Police, and will continue to do...
10:24 PM, Apr 15, 2013
Stoke: Robin van Persie ended his two-month goal drought to wrap up Manchester United's 2-0 win over Stoke on Sunday, restoring the leaders' 15-point cushion and inching them closer to the Premier League title. The Netherlands striker had gone 10 United matches without scoring before slamming home a 66th-minute penalty - his 20th goal of the campaign - to add to midfielder Michael Carrick's opening goal from close range in...
08:50 PM, Apr 14, 2013
London: Arsene Wenger would have been forgiven a wry smile on Saturday after Arsenal staged a dramatic comeback to beat Norwich City, displaying the fighting spirit they were accused of lacking earlier in the season. "We needed spirit and we needed nerves as well," Wenger told reporters after his side had come from behind to win 3-1 at home. We have shown both, I think, and in the end got...
12:48 PM, Apr 14, 2013
Reading: Reading ended their club's record eight-game losing run with a 0-0 draw against Liverpool in the English Premier League on Saturday that did little to ease their relegation fears. The hosts were indebted to goalkeeper Alex McCarthy, who was playing his first match in more than five months and produced a string of stunning saves to almost certainly ensure Liverpool fail to qualify for the Champions League for a...
10:14 PM, Apr 13, 2013
London: Arsenal climbed to third in the Premier League by coming from behind Saturday to beat Norwich 3-1 on Saturday, making a strong finish to the season to make amends for its miserable start. Michael Turner put Norwich in front at the start of the second half. But Mikel Arteta leveled from the penalty spot in the 85th minute before Arsenal benefited from Sebastien Bassong's own goal and Lukas Podolski's...
09:58 PM, Apr 13, 2013
Phil Jagielka will take over as captain when former England international Phil Neville leaves Everton at the end of the season, manager David Moyes said on Friday. England defender Jagielka has worn the skipper's armband this season when ex-Manchester United full back Neville, who is leaving Goodison Park after eight years and more than 300 appearances for the club, has been unavailable. "His play has been excellent and his performances...
01:18 AM, Apr 13, 2013
International soccer interferes with clubs' ambitions rather than the other way round as England boss Roy Hodgson has declared, Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson said on Friday. Hodgson has accused Premier League clubs and players of treating international breaks as a holiday and says this attitude is undermining the national team's prospects. "I think if you look at the opposite side of it, international football interferes with the club's ambitions,...
11:04 PM, Apr 12, 2013
London: Andrey Arshavin's unhappy spell at Arsenal is set to end this summer, with manager Arsene Wenger saying it is unlikely to offer the Russia winger a new contract. Arshavin is in the final year of his deal at the English Premier League side and has found first-team opportunities hard to come by over the last two seasons, with his work rate often criticized by fans. Wenger says on Friday...
07:58 PM, Apr 12, 2013
London: Manchester United winger Ashley Young faces two weeks on the sidelines with an ankle injury, manager Alex Ferguson said on Friday. Young limped off in Monday's 2-1 defeat by Manchester City, where the second-placed champions narrowed the gap on leaders United to 12 points although they have already conceded the title race is over with seven games to go. "He got a sore whack on his ankle, maybe two...
04:47 PM, Apr 12, 2013
London: Chelsea manager Rafa Benitez played down the argument between Frank Lampard and David Luiz in Thursday's Europa League match at Rubin Kazan, an incident that hinted at internal discord heading into the season's climax. With an FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City to come on Sunday and the fight for Champions League qualification hotting up, Benitez refused to question his players' passion for the cause and said it was...
04:04 PM, Apr 12, 2013
London: Southampton captain Adam Lallana has signed a new five-year deal at the Premier League club, Saints announced on Thursday. The attacking midfielder, who turns 25 next month, follows goalkeeper Kelvin Davis, striker Rickie Lambert, as well as midfielders Morgan Schneiderlin and Jason Puncheon who have all signed new contracts in recent months. Lallana struck his third top-flight goal in last weekend's win over Reading, which took him to a...
09:04 AM, Apr 12, 2013
London: Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers says failing to qualify for the Europa League could be a "blessing" if the club want to fight their way back into top-four contention. Rodgers's team are seventh in the Premier League and have an outside chance of finishing fifth and snatching a Europa League qualifying place. With a fourth-place finish and Champions League qualification all but a distant dream, he acknowledged a season without...
11:23 PM, Apr 11, 2013
London: Everton midfielder Kevin Mirallas's future at the club was thrown into doubt when manager David Moyes questioned whether he could cope with the physical demands of the English Premier League. Moyes is not sure the flamboyant Belgian international, who has scored in three of the last four league games, can combine the necessary level of toughness to his natural pace and ability. The 25-year-old has suffered a series of...
06:37 PM, Apr 11, 2013
Manchester: The English Premier League is the first leading club competition to approve the use of goal-line technology, and Hawk-Eye will be deployed at stadiums from next season. The Spanish and German leagues, however, said on Thursday they would hold off from giving referees high-tech aids for at least two years, while the Italians are less enthusiastic for now. The English have championed Hawk-Eye for several years, but FIFA opposed...
06:25 PM, Apr 11, 2013
Liverpool: Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva signed a new long-term contract on Wednesday, underlining his importance to the Premier League club after returning from a lengthy injury absence this season. Lucas, who had a mixed start to his Anfield career, became a fans' favourite with a string of dynamic displays before he suffered a serious knee injury that ruled him out for six months last season. His return to the starting...
09:07 AM, Apr 11, 2013
London: Everton captain Phil Neville will leave the Premier League club at the end of the season after eight years with the Merseysiders, the former England international said on Tuesday. The 36-year-old Neville joined Everton from Manchester United having won six Premier League titles, three FA Cups and the 1999 Champions League. "I want to continue to play at the top level as long as I physically can, and will...
04:57 PM, Apr 09, 2013
London: Tottenham Hotspur forward Clint Dempsey says there has been a tense atmosphere at the Premier League club in recent weeks as they pursue a top four spot and a chance to qualify for next season's Champions League. Spurs have been in the hunt for third place all season but lost twice in March and drew against Everton on Sunday to drop to fourth, with fifth-placed Arsenal now breathing down...
04:40 PM, Apr 09, 2013
London: English Football Association (FA) general secretary Alex Horne believes the Premier League will approve the introduction of goal-line technology from next season at a meeting this week. Horne told the BBC he thought the equipment was always an "ideal piece of technology to allow into the game" ahead of the Premier League clubs meeting on Thursday. "I'm expecting it to go through at that meeting," Horne said on Tuesday....
03:04 PM, Apr 09, 2013
Manchester: Manchester City's 2-1 win over Premier League leaders Manchester United on Monday was too little too late for manager Roberto Mancini who is already focusing his attention on next season's title race. Sergio Aguero's outstanding 78th-minute winner allowed champions City to close the gap on their neighbours to 12 points but it was more of a 'nice-to-have' result than a fate-changing victory for this campaign. "We know we can...
09:07 AM, Apr 09, 2013
