London: Newcastle United defender Ryan Taylor could miss all of next season after his comeback from a serious knee injury in August was cut short, the Premier League club said on Wednesday. The 28-year-old had returned to training after he suffered the cruciate injury in a Europa League qualifier last year. "It is likely that Taylor will miss the majority, if not all, of next season," the club said on...
10:24 PM, Apr 17, 2013
Manchester: Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero has apologised to David Luiz for his ugly two-footed stamp on the back of the Chelsea defender's thighs during Sunday's FA Cup semi-final at Wembley Stadium. Aguero says in a Twitter post that he has contacted Luiz to say sorry for the 85th-minute tackle in City's 2-1 win, adding that it was an "impulse reaction that shouldn't have happened." Luiz used Twitter to thank...
07:04 PM, Apr 17, 2013
London: With Manchester United and Manchester City set to finish first and second, Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur have been jostling for the remaining two Champions League spots for the last three months. Three of these teams - United, City and Chelsea - will be involved in mid-week encounters in the Premier League on Wednesday. United - who need just seven points from their last six matches to win the...
09:22 AM, Apr 17, 2013
London: Cardiff City were promoted to the English Premier League on Tuesday after a 0-0 draw at home to Charlton Athletic guaranteed the Welsh side a top-two finish in the Championship (second division). Cardiff, who have agonisingly missed out in the playoffs for the last three seasons, will play in the top flight next season for the first time since 1962. Their promotion was greeted with joyous scenes at the...
08:45 AM, Apr 17, 2013
London: Arsenal missed a chance to tighten their grip on third place in the English Premier League on Tuesday after being held to a 0-0 draw at home by Everton. Both sides have hopes of playing in the Champions League next season, but Arsenal will be left to rue the missed chances after carving out opportunities in both halves for French international striker Olivier Giroud. "We should have won the...
08:22 AM, Apr 17, 2013
London: Rafa Benitez will continue to rotate his Chelsea players as they bid to deal with a fixture pile-up and rebound from two consecutive defeats, the club's interim manager said on Tuesday. The Spaniard left out senior players John Terry and Frank Lampard for Sunday's FA Cup semi-final defeat by Manchester City but says he will stick to his guns amid growing pressure to retain a settled side for their...
12:17 AM, Apr 17, 2013
London: Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said he "rushed" midfielder Jack Wilshere back from injury too early for Saturday's dramatic comeback victory over Norwich City. Wilshere, who had missed six weeks with an ankle problem, played the first 59 minutes of the 3-1 victory before being substituted following a subdued display. "I rushed Jack back a bit. He was not completely ready," Wenger said on the club website (www.arsenal.com). "I will...
11:58 PM, Apr 16, 2013
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
