London: West Ham United edged closer to a Premier League return with a 3-0 home win over Cardiff City on Monday, completing a 5-0 semi-final aggregate triumph to ease into the Championship play-off final. Kevin Nolan and Ricardo Vaz Te scored in the first half and a late Nicky Maynard strike sealed a crushing win for the east London club, who were relegated from the top flight a year ago....
08:35 AM, May 08, 2012
London: Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Luka Modric is irreplaceable and the club must hold on to the Croatia international and their other top players to avoid becoming a mid-table team again, feels manager Harry Redknapp. "He [Modric] is a fantastic player, great professional, top bloke. You can't replace him. You can sell him but you can't replace him with someone as good," said Redknapp. "That's why the other clubs want to...
04:10 PM, May 07, 2012
Madrid: Spanish champions Real Madrid have no intention of letting striker Gonzalo Higuain leave, but may need to buy a back-up goalkeeper if Antonio Adan cannot be persuaded to stay, coach Jose Mourinho said. Mourinho told Spanish daily ABC that Argentina forward Higuain, reportedly a target of several clubs including Paris St Germain and Chelsea, would remain to compete for a starting place with Karim Benzema next term. "He has...
01:18 PM, May 07, 2012
London: Chelsea defender David Luiz is adamant he will do everything he can to ensure he is fit to play in the Champions League final against Bayern Munich in two weeks' time. The defender has been sidelined since being stretchered off the field during his side's 5-1 FA Cup semi-final win over Tottenham last month, and missed Saturday's victory over Liverpool in the final at Wembley. However, the former Benfica...
12:20 PM, May 07, 2012
London: France rightback Bacary Sagna will miss the European Championships after suffering a broken leg during Arsenal's 3-3 Premier League draw with Norwich City on Saturday. Sagna was carried off on a stretcher at the Emirates Stadium in the 32nd minute. The 29-year-old broke the same leg in October and was ruled out for three months of the current campaign. "It is a broken fibula, the same leg," Arsenal manager...
12:10 PM, May 07, 2012
Milan: Antonio Conte has spoken of the significance of claiming his first Serie A title as Juventus coach, after hinting that he wants to win many more during his time in charge. The Bianconeri secured their first Scudetto since 2003 with a comprehensive 2-0 win over Cagliari on Sunday, while AC Milan's 4-2 reverse to arch-rivals Inter ended the race for supremacy with one match left in the league. After...
10:36 AM, May 07, 2012
Milan: Zlatan Ibrahimovic's fantastic record of having won eight consecutive league titles came to an end after his AC Milan side's 4-2 defeat to Inter at the San Siro on Sunday, despite an Ibra double, which handed Juventus the Serie A crown for 2011-12. Juventus wrapped up the Scudetto with one round remaining thanks to their four-point lead after a 2-0 win over Cagliari on Sunday, and for the Swede...
10:17 AM, May 07, 2012
Manchester: Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has once again insisted the title race is not "finished", despite his side's 2-0 victory over Newcastle United at Sports Direct Arena on Sunday. A second-half double from Yaya Toure ensured the Italian's side remained top of the Premier League going into the final game of the season against QPR next week at the Etihad Stadium. Even with this weekend's 1-0 win over Stoke...
10:04 AM, May 07, 2012
Manchester: Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has refused to throw in the towel on the Premier League title race after his side's 2-0 victory over Swansea as they sit behind city rivals Manchester City on goal difference with one game left to play. The club currently trail Roberto Mancini's side on goal difference after they secured a huge victory of their own by beating Newcastle United 2-0 away on Sunday,...
09:45 AM, May 07, 2012
London: Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich's Chelsea have bid for the London landmark Battersea Power Station site where they could build a 60,000-seater stadium, the Premier League soccer team said on Friday. The derelict power station on the south bank of the Thames, a familiar site with its four white, 300-foot chimney stacks, "one of London's most famous buildings ... has the potential to become one of the most iconic football...
02:18 PM, May 05, 2012
London: Blackpool will take a slender lead into the second leg of their Championship play-off semi-final after beating Birmingham City 1-0 with an own goal by Curtis Davies on Friday. Davies deflected a low shot from Tom Ince past his goalkeeper Colin Doyle a minute before half-time to give the hosts the lead ahead of the return leg next Wednesday. Blackpool had a great chance to double their advantage in...
11:17 AM, May 05, 2012
Manchester: Manchester City's visit to in-form Newcastle United on Sunday will be more difficult than last Monday's match against title rivals Manchester United, according to manager Roberto Mancini. The Italian said fifth-placed Newcastle would approach the game against Premier League leaders City in an extremely confident mood after their 2-0 victory at Champions League finalists Chelsea on Wednesday. "Newcastle played a fantastic game at Chelsea and I think this game...
10:01 AM, May 05, 2012
London: Arsenal are confident striker Robin van Persie will sign a new contract at the end of the season and finish his career at the club, manager Arsene Wenger told reporters on Friday. "My desire and my wish is to find an agreement with Robin to extend the contract and [he will] stay with us for [a] longer time... and hopefully we can reach that," Wenger said. "If that would...
09:26 AM, May 05, 2012
London: By winning the FA Cup this weekend and achieving the first part of a possible trophy double, interim Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo can make what is already being seen as an irresistible case for taking the job on a permanent basis. Since coming in as a replacement for the fired Andre Villas-Boas at the start of March, Di Matteo has helped transform a Chelsea season that was threatening...
08:20 PM, May 04, 2012
London: Tottenham Hotspur rightback Kyle Walker, recently voted the PFA Young Player of the Year, has signed a new five-year contract, the Premier League club said on Thursday. Walker, whose performances for Spurs have earned him an England call-up and a likely place in the Euro 2012 squad, has played in 47 of the club's 51 matches this season. He scored a stunning free kick last week in the 2-0...
04:09 PM, May 04, 2012
Madrid: Cristiano Ronaldo has led Real Madrid's charge to their first La Liga title in four years, and still has the chance to overhaul Lionel Messi to retain his league topscorer award before the end of the season. The Portuguese forward has rattled in 44 goals, four more than his record-breaking tally from last year which earned him a second European Golden Boot award, but is now two short of...
04:00 PM, May 04, 2012
London: West Ham United took another step towards returning to the Premier League at the first attempt when Jack Collison scored twice in a 2-0 win at Cardiff City in their Championship play-off semi-final first leg on Thursday. Collison headed in after his first effort was saved on nine minutes and his deflected effort from outside the box made it 2-0 four minutes before the break. Blackpool and Birmingham City,...
03:56 PM, May 04, 2012
Rome: The Serie A title chase has taken a surprising turn with only two rounds remaining, leaving Juventus with just a one-point lead over AC Milan. Juventus looked set to keep their three-point lead intact until an error from goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon handed 10-man Lecce a late equalizer in a 1-1 draw on Wednesday. "It was like missing a score two metres from the goal," Juventus manager Antonio Conte said....
03:45 PM, May 04, 2012
London: Manchester City's hopes of beating great rivals Manchester United to the Premier League title could hinge on suppressing a striker whose blistering run of goalscoring form has left Newcastle on the brink of Champions League qualification. Papiss Demba Cisse has been tearing defences apart since his move in the January transfer window, with a pair of stunning strikes in Wednesday's 2-0 win at Chelsea taking his tally to 13...
03:32 PM, May 04, 2012
Madrid: With the league title decided, Spanish champions Real Madrid and rivals Barcelona still have some club and individual records to bolster before the end of the season, as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi continue their unprecedented scoring duel. Madrid clinched their record 32nd domestic crown on Wednesday with two rounds to spare, and a victory at Granada on Saturday would put a league record 100 points in a season...
03:18 PM, May 04, 2012
