Archive for March, 2010
Gallas out for season – Wenger
Author: Michael
Gallas: Out for season
Arsenal defender William Gallas could miss the rest of the season after the defender picked up an injury during the 2-2 Champions League draw with Barcelona.
Gallas was carried off on a stretcher just before the halfway stage of his side’s match against the Catalan giants, with manager Arsene Wenger revealing the 32-year-old had pulled a calf muscle.
It means the Frenchman is certain to miss the return leg at Camp Nou next Tuesday – along with suspended captain Cesc Fabregas – and could miss the remainder of the Gunners’ domestic run-in.
The former Chelsea man had to be replaced by midfielder Denilson, with Alex Song moving from his central midfield berth to the back four to cover for the injured stopper.
The news provides Wenger with another headache after seeing Fabregas battle through 90 minutes, despite suffering the effects of an underlying knee problem as the game went on.
Arsenal sit third in the Premier League table – four points behind league leaders Manchester United with six games remaining – and Wenger was resigned to losing one half of his preferred centre-back pairing.
The Gunners boss told Canal Plusafter the absorbing Emirates affair: “He pulled his calf muscle and I think it’s the end of the season for him.”
Wenger said Gallas may yet feature in France’s World Cup plans, though, with the tournament getting under way in June.
He added: “I do not include the World Cup. I think he will be ready for the World Cup.”
View full post on FIFA Updates – MSN
Milito goal gives Inter 1-0 victory over CSKA (Reuters)
Author: Michael
* Milito nets winner at San Siro
* Inter spurn host of chances in first leg
By Antonella Ciancio
MILAN, March 31 (Reuters) – Wasteful Inter Milan spurned a
host of chances and needed a second-half strike from Argentine
forward Diego Milito to earn a 1-0 win over CSKA Moscow in their
Champions League quarter-final, first leg on Wednesday.
Milito rifled in a right-footed shot into the bottom corner
from the edge of the box in the 65th minute at the San Siro
after a strong run by Wesley Sneijder.
CSKA closed down Inter well in the first half, but showed
little ambition as the Italian champions increased the tempo
after the break.
The hosts failed to put away a series of chances either side
of Milito’s goal, with CSKA keeper Igor Akinfeyev making some
fine saves. Inter striker Goran Pandev also had an effort
cleared off the line.
CSKA, who upset Sevilla in the previous round, gave away no
signs of stage fright in the early exchanges, with Milos Krasic
making a good break down the right straight after kickoff.
Inter, without suspended centre back Lucio and midfielder
Thiago Motta, looked to be struggling to find a way through the
Russians’ defensive maze.
But they woke up after seeing their keeper Julio Cesar push
away a powerful Yevgeny Aldonin effort on one of CSKA’s rare
foray forward 10 minutes into the second half.
Jose Mourinho’s side, who ousted Chelsea in the last 16 but
have been in poor form in Serie A recently, had the Russians
under unrelenting pressure and Milito gave them their reward.
Akinfeyev did well to deny Samuel Eto’o, Dejan Stankovic and
Esteban Cambiasso and Pandev afterwards and Sneijder hit a great
chance wide in the closing stages.
Krasic and Aldonin will miss next week’s return leg after
being booked.
(Writing by Paul Virgo, Editing by Justin Palmer
To query or comment on this story email
sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)
View full post on FIFA Updates – Yahoo News
Posted in FIFA Updates | 
Tags: CSKA, gives, goal, Inter, Milito, over, Reuters, Victory | 
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Capello sweating on Rooney fitness
Author: Michael
Fabio Capello will pick up the phone to make the call he dreaded desperately hoping to hear some good news from Wayne Rooney.
Manchester United wasted no time in getting a medical assessment on the ankle injury their star man suffered against Bayern Munich last night. After waiting patiently on the Finnair flight that brought him back to England for his fellow passengers to disembark, Rooney limped off, with the aid of his crutches, straight to a waiting car that whisked him off for a scan.
Rather more time will elapse before Sir Alex Ferguson reveals the extent of the injury in his normal Friday briefing ahead of the key English Premier League encounter with Chelsea, which Rooney now seems certain to miss.
By then, Capello will have made his call, his fingers tightly crossed the news is not bad. “I will speak to him today or tomorrow morning,” said Capello. “I was not happy, but I’m not happy whenever any England players get injured. It is too early to say how badly he is injured. We need to wait for a scan.”
Although he could not say it, privately Capello must think if the injury keeps Rooney out for two or three weeks, it will have worked out perfectly. After all, as what is thought to be a sprained ankle heals, Rooney will be getting some rest that could prove vital to England at the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ next summer.
Longer than three weeks gets slightly worrying, double that would have the sweat beads running down Capello’s neck. Any injury at all is bad news for Ferguson, yet it appears inevitable given the pain Rooney was in as he went down under Mario Gomez’s challenge last night in the build-up to Bayern’s fateful UEFA Champions League winner.
In the next week, United’s campaign will be shaped, given the Chelsea clash is followed next Wednesday by the second leg against Bayern, which Ferguson’s men must now win. Beyond that, matches against Blackburn and Manchester City await, before the resumption of European duties against either Lyon or Bordeaux should Bayern have been beaten.
England hopes
This is what was immediately at risk when Rooney left the Allianz Arena on crutches last night, images that were instantly flashed around the world. He still had them with him as he was allowed to bypass the normal check-in procedures at Munich Airport this lunchtime and was also whisked away from Manchester airport without going through passport control, highlighting what a special case the 24-year-old is.
Not that everyone is aware of England’s most famous footballer. Asked to return Rooney’s crutches, which had been taken to the back of the plane for safe-keeping, a well-meaning steward walked past the former Everton star without so much as a second glance and had to be turned back in the striker’s direction by another member of the cabin crew.
All the TV cameramen, photographers and interested observers knew who they were looking for though. And, whilst Capello is likely to be one of the first to find out, a nation will be holding its breath to discover what Ferguson has to say on what, for England at least, they hope will be good Friday.
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Sven defends salary
Author: Michael
Eriksson: Pleased
Sven Goran Eriksson insists he has no concerns over his reported salary for Ivory Coast.
The former England and Mexico boss has been appointed manager of Ivory Coast on a contract through to the end of the World Cup finals.
He is reportedly on a six-figure deal with bonuses, and some have questioned his salary.
But Eriksson insists he has no qualms about his wage.
“I don’t think I am paid that well, but I’m happy,” he told TALKsport.
“I don’t think I’m even close to what the England manager has. But that’s okay for me; I have no problems with that.
“What is most important is to do a good World Cup.
“It’s a World Cup and a good team, a lot of good football players and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Eriksson’s agent Athole Still also defended his salary.
“The deal that I did for Sven with the Ivory Coast was done extremely amicably,” he said.
“There was no hard bargaining. The money that he is being paid is money that was offered by the Ivory Coast. I did not get it enhanced in anyway at all.
“If I had wanted I could have negotiated much more for Sven. We didn’t do so.”
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