Lille climbed back to the top of Ligue 1 despite being held to a 1-1 draw by Lyon on Sunday.Rudi Garcia’s side were shuffled back into second spot courtesy of Rennes’ 2-0 win over Lens on Saturday, but were on track to hit back and reclaim the league lead when Moussa Sow scored in the ninth minute at the Stadium Nord Lille Metropole.But Swede Kim Kallstrom pegged back the home side with a 28th minute goal, earning fifth-placed Lyon a point.The result sees Lille regain top spot from Rennes by account of goal difference. Paris Saint-Germain moved into fourth on the table with a 2-1 win over Toulouse.The home side at Parc des Princes were cruising after Sylvain Armand and Mathieu Bodmer scored in the first half, and the momentum was well and truly with the Parisians after Paulo Machado had missed an earlier penalty for Toulouse.Franck Tabanou pulled a goal back for the 11th-placed Toulouse, but it did not save them from a third straight defeat.Andre Ayew was the hero as Marseille came from behind to win 2-1 away to Nancy.Ayew had earlier cancelled out Julien Feret’s opener at the Stade Marcel Picot, before netting an 87th minute winner that ensured his side maintain third place on the table.
Veteran goalkeeper David James is understood to be unhappy with Fabio Capello after the Italian left him out of England's starting eleven for Saturday's 1-1 draw against the USA.
Capello opted to start with Robert Green rather than the Portsmouth shot-stopper but he then made a disastrous error that allowed Clint Dempsey to grab the USA's equaliser after Steven Gerrard had fired England into an early lead.
The England management believe James is still struggling with a minor knee complaint although the player disagrees with that opinion and says he is 100 per cent fit.
James was left out of England's final warm-up match against the Platinum Stars last Monday when Green and Joe Hart played for 45 minutes each.
Capello will have to decide whether to persevere with the hapless Green in Friday's game against Algeria or start with James or Hart.
He said:"We have to wait to decide on Green. We will think about this problem psychologically.
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The Midlands club have appointed former Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund assistant coach Michael Henke as their new head of European scouting.
The German, 55, coached Villa manager Paul Lambert while he was a player at Dortmund in the 1990s. He was assistant to Ottmar Hitzveld at Dortmund and Munich when they won Bundesliga and Champions League titles. Henke also had a spell in charge of analysis and scouting at Bayern Munich, first under Hitzveld and then Jurgen Klinsmann, before another assistant role at FC Koln.
“It’s great to have a man with Michael’s experience and track record to come in to this role”, Lambert told BBC Sport, “I’m delighted that we’ve been able to bring him here. In the European game he has an unbelievable wealth of experience and an enviable network of contacts. It’s a great thing for Villa that we have been able to attract a man of his calibre.”
Villa are currently in talks to loan out midfielder Jean II Makoun to French Ligue 1 side Rennes for the approaching season, and have also been linked with a move for Tottenham forward Jermain Defoe.
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Arsenal will have to wait to see the extent of Theo Walcott’s knee injury, as the player undergoes a scan on Monday.
The England winger pulled up whilst sprinting for the ball late in the game against Bolton on Saturday, and initially was thought to have strained a hamstring.
However, it has been revealed that the attacker has actually damaged his knee, and may miss some important upcoming fixtures for The Gunners.
We don’t really know the extent of it,” manager Arsene Wenger told Sky Sports.
“It looked like a classic hamstring injury when Theo went down but he said he had a sharp pain in his knee.
“He’ll need a scan so we can assess what kind of damage it is,” he concluded.
Arsenal host Olympiakos at the Emirates in the Champions League on Wednesday, before taking on North London rivals Tottenham on Sunday.
A serious layoff would compound Wenger’s misery, as he is already without a number of key players, including Jack Wilshere, for the foreseeable future.
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Fulham manager Mark Hughes has insisted that he is keen to prolong Andy Johnson’s career in West London, despite the striker’s injury record.
The English striker, 29, has suffered a torrid time with injuries during his two and a half years at the club but is now showing signs of a return to his best form, having scored twice in 2011 after almost two years without a goal.
He netted the Cottagers’ first goal in their 2-2 English Premier League draw with Aston Villa on Saturday, and also scored a dramatic equaliser at the DW Stadium to rescue a point for Fulham against Wigan on January 15.
His upturn in personal fortunes has prompted Hughes to back Johnson for an extended stay at Craven Cottage.
“Andy has 18 months of his contract left. Do I want to keep him? Yes, absolutely,” said the Welsh manager.
“He’s missed a lot of football and we’re hopeful now that he’ll have a run of games and his career will progress without injury.”
“We’re starting to see the best of Andy Johnson now. He had a significant injury and he’s been out for a considerable length of time.”
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“In fairness to him, he’s played a number of games now and his performance levels have been good. All that’s been lacking have been goals. Now thankfully he’s added goals. He’s in good shape at the moment.”
Johnson will be hoping to continue his fine vein of form when Fulham host local rivals Chelsea in the west London Derby on Monday.
Liverpool have made a clear and deliberate attempt to plan for the future this summer with their transfer business so far, with both Fabio Borini and Joe Allen 22 years of age or younger, but the switch that saw the latter move to Anfield just a few days ago could have a knock-on effect on yet another young player at the club, Jordan Henderson, so just what does the future hold for the midfielder?
Joe Allen arrived from Swansea for £15m in a move that saw boss Brendan Rodgers go back on a supposed gentleman’s agreement between the two clubs – the price may be worth value for money in the long-term, but in the short-term at least, it looks a lot to pay for a player with just one season’s worth of top flight experience under his belt.
What the club’s pursuit does tell us, though, as they paid out Allen’s release clause in his contract, while reportedly tripling his wages and offering him a £2m signing on deal, is that Rodgers was extremely keen to get Allen into the club and on board. Of course, the young Welshman is less of risk when you approach it from the viewpoint that he is familiar with Rodgers ethos, style and what he wants from his players, so in that regard, he should take less time to settle than you would normally expect, and he looks set to secure a starting berth alongside Lucas Leiva in the heart of the midfield, with Steven Gerrard just ahead of them both in something of a free role.
Henderson, lest we forget, is still just 22 years of age himself and despite a rocky first season on Merseyside, where he failed to justify the £16m fee forked out for him from Sunderland, he is still undoubtedly a fine player in the making with huge potential and he’s shown good strength of character in being able to cope with all of the criticism that has come his way, which is wholly unfair when you consider his age.
Much in the same way that Theo Walcott is hampered by lofty expectations at Arsenal, Henderson isn’t a very typical English style of player – quietly effective, composed and with a tidy range of passing – there are no barnstorming forward runs, last-ditch tackles and headline-grabbing performances and the talk of him being the club’s long-term heir to captain Steven Gerrard upon first completing the move has given some people unrealistic expectations and the result is that some appear to have an extremely loose grasp, let alone appreciation, for what kind of player he actually is.
Instead, he’s disciplined, tactically aware and as fit as a fiddle, with possessing the ability to play the ball on the deck and you suspect that he fits in rather neatly into Rodgers vision for the club going forward and his much-talked about footballing philosophy, but the signing of Allen does mean that his path into the starting eleven, when everybody is fit at least, is blocked off to an extent.
Here’s what Rodgers had to say on Henderson to the Liverpool Echo last month: “I look at the young kid Jordan Henderson who got a wee bit of stick last year but do you know what, this is a boy who was 21 years of age. I thought when I first saw him at Sunderland that this kid is going to be a really good player. He’s coming to a massive club and massive expectation. He moves away from home, he is on his own and he has to be a world beater straight away. It was never going to happen.
“This kid can play football. If he is in a certain system – in an environment which is going to help him and educate him in the game – you will see that. The biggest thing for me that I’ve heard about Jordan is his attitude. He has got an incredible attitude. If you have got a player like that who has got the ability and the thirst to learn – he can run all day, he is physically good, he is strong, he is quick – and you can remodel him.”
While obviously sounding a bit like the voice-over to the six billion dollar man: ‘Gentlemen, we can rebuild him. We have the technology. We have the capability to make the world’s first bionic man. Jordan Henderson will be that man. Better than he was before. Better…stronger…faster’, Rodgers does have a point regarding Henderson and the main problem for him last term was that he lacked a clearly defined role under previous boss Kenny Dalglish, often being shunted out wide into an unfamiliar position on the right – a top flight version of what every Sunday League club does when they stick the young lad up front even though he doesn’t play there, just because he might be quicker than everyone else.
Henderson flourished at Sunderland in a three-man midfield and it looks as if Rodgers is keen to replicate the system he used at Swansea during his time at Liverpool and with a European campaign in mind, Henderson will surely start upwards of 30 games over the course of the season. If anything, not being a guaranteed starter, but a relied upon squad member could be exactly what was needed to take the spotlight away from him and the near-constant talk about his hefty fee.
You only have to look at the competition in midfield to realise that Henderson, despite the Allen signing, will be seeing a lot of playing time. If the club manage to clinch the signing of Fulham’s Clint Dempsey, which everyone now assumes they will do now that their priority target of Allen has been secured, then that leaves five players into three positions.
Alberto Aquilani has already been moved on to Fiorentina this summer to create space in the squad and room to manoeuvre in the wage budget for the Allen switch, while Charlie Adam looks like he’s going to be moved on if the club receive a suitable offer for him with Fulham mooted as a potential destination after he struggled for consistency last term, and the Scot clearly lacks the necessary fitness and mobility to play in a Rodgers side.
There has been talk of youngster Jonjo Shelvey being moved out on loan again this season, but the new-found maturity he displayed during his composed display at the heart of the midfield alongside Lucas during the club’s 3-0 win over FC Gomel surely provided food for thought for the new boss. Jay Spearing looks set be kept around if for no other reason than he provides a decent understudy to Lucas should he get injured again.
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Henderson may not be assured of a starting place in the same way that he was under Dalglish last season, but the same can be said for both Stewart Downing and Andy Carroll too as Rodgers looks set to rotate his squad a lot more, relying on past performances as opposed to the player in question’s transfer fee.
This competition for places should serve the side well, while Henderson’s versatility means he could also play a key part in a number of different roles and while he may not perhaps be as integral as before, with the inevitable injuries you’ll suffer from competing on four fronts over the course of a long season, his style means he has the potential to be Liverpool’s answer to Ramires should he find his feet in the new-look side and system.
Newcastle have completed the signing of Davide Santon from Inter Milan on a five year contract, with the fee undisclosed by the Premier League club.
The Magpies have been in the market for a left back following the sale of Jose Enrique to Liverpool, and the 20-year-old is expected to slot straight into the St James’ Park first team.
The seven-times capped Italy international first broke through at the Giuseppe Meazza under Jose Mourinho, but has found opportunities in Serie A limited of late, and spent the second half of last season on loan at Cesena.
“We are delighted to bring to Davide to Newcastle. He is a quality left-back and an established international who also gives us flexibility in defence,” manager Alan Pardew told the side’s official website.
“Davide is a young lad and a great signing for us and I am sure he will adapt to the Premier League very quickly.”
The player was happy to sign for the Tyneside outfit also, and his agent revealed yesterday that he chose Pardew’s men over Roma.
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“I am really pleased to sign for Newcastle. The chance to play in the Premier League and in front of 50,000 fans at St. James’ Park was too good to turn down. This is an ambitious club who want to move forward and help them achieve,” he stated.
Meanwhile, Newcastle’s search for a new striker is set to go down to the wire, as they chase Manchester United’s Federico Macheda and Sochaux’s Modibo Maiga.
Real Madrid assistant coach Aitor Karanka has sung the praises of in-form striker Karim Benzema.
Benzema’s goal in Wednesday’s Copa del Rey first-leg clash with Sevilla handed his side a 1-0 lead to take into next week’s second leg at the Bernabeu.
After struggling to cement a place in the starting line-up for much of the season, the 23-year-old Frenchman is starting to have an impact for Jose Mourinho’s side, also scoring the winner in their last La Liga match – a 1-0 win over Mallorca.
“Karim looked good from the start, and when the manager has spoken about him it has spurred him on,” Karanka said.
“Karim scored and went over to the manager, so I think that shows the affection that we have for him. We’ve said a thousand times that he is an important player.”
“A first leg is always difficult. It’s a game that could have been 0-2 or 0-3 -or maybe 1-1 with the chance that they had at the end. It’s a good result, but not definitive by any means.”
“I think that the fans in the Bernabeu will be supportive next Wednesday. It’s a positive result, but it’s not over by any means.”
Sevilla boss Gregorio Manzano, meanwhile, thinks his side were unlucky to lose the tie and believes Luis Fabiano’s shot was over the line before it was cleared by Real defender Raul Albiol.
Although replays were inconclusive, Manzano is adamant Fabiano should have been credited with the goal.
“In my view, football-wise my team were unlucky to lose,” Manzano said.
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“I think that we made a great effort and had a great attitude, and we fought back well when we conceded a goal against a great team like Real Madrid.”
“However much it will be debated tonight and tomorrow, it was a goal. It’s a difficult move that was hard for the linesman to judge, but we had a similar situation at home against Almeria, and that was a goal. “
“There is still a second leg to play, and we have to think that we can play the same in Madrid as we did here.”
Everton boss David Moyes is considering making a move for former Wigan forward Hugo Rodallega according to The Daily Mail.
The cash-strapped Merseysiders are eager to push on by bolstering their squad this summer, but do not have an abundance of money to spend due to financial constraints.
The Colombia international’s contract with the Latics has expired, with the South American leaving the DW Stadium and now available on a free transfer.
Meanwhile, Toffees legend Trevor Steven ha stated that the side need to get off to a good start next season, and the fact that January signing Nikica Jelavic has settled in at Goodison Park should aid this.
“Every team changes their squad in some shape or fashion, whether players are coming out of contract, whether they choose to leave, or whether management wishes that they move on to get someone else in, because you need to freshen it,” he told the club’s official website.
“But the beauty of this season was being able to go into the transfer market last January and spend a considerable amount of money on Jelavic, which was a bargain – he was probably a good 40 per discount on what he might have been had the situation at Rangers not been what it was. So that was an intelligent purchase,” he admitted.
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Universidad Cesar Vallejo were not able to make home advantage count in the first round of the Copa Sudamericana.The Peruvian side had to settle for a 1-1 draw in the first leg of their tie against Colombia’s Santa Fe on Tuesday.
Cesar Vallejo controlled the early stages, with Uruguyan forward Mario Leguizamon giving them a fourth minute lead – an advantage they would hold until half time.
But Oscar Rodas salvaged a draw for the visitors with the equaliser on 52 minutes, giving them the advantage heading into the second leg in Bogota on August 28.
In Tuesday’s other first round tie, Uruguayan side Bella Vista could only muster a 1-1 draw at home against Universidad Catolica.
The hosts went ahead on 24 minutes through an Ignacio Nicolini penalty, but Pablo Calandria’s goal for the Universidad side 12 minutes later ensured the Chilean side have the upper hand ahead of the return leg in Santiago on August 17.