Arsenal
Arsene Wenger says Arsenal should not be “ashamed” by their efforts this season – whatever the outcome of the Barclays Premier League title race. Manchester United moved back to within a point of leaders Chelsea following a 3-0 win over West Ham on Tuesday, albeit now having played a match more. The third-placed Gunners are currently six points off the pace with 11 matches left. While Wenger’s youngsters may have come up short in the direct clashes against the top two this season, the remaining fixtures appear to be kind to the Gunners. Chelsea, meanwhile, host top-four contenders Manchester City on Saturday, and travel to Old Trafford next month. Wenger maintains given Arsenal’s relative little comparable investment, to still be in the hunt for the top prizes is an achievement in itself. “There are three clubs in the fight for the championship – when you see how much money the others have invested, we have not to be ashamed,” Wenger said. “There are two main trophies in our job – the Champions League and the Premier League; today, we can still win them both. In addition, the club is in a healthy situation and we have a fantastic young side. If that is still not enough, I can understand, but we are fighting very hard to deliver. I believe that Arsenal fans can be very proud of their club, and that is at least what we try to give them – pride.”
Aston Villa
Captain Stiliyan Petrov is winning his battle to be fit for Sunday’s Carling Cup final against Manchester United at Wembley. The Bulgaria international has been laid low with a virus and missed the FA Cup fifth-round replay success over Crystal Palace at Villa Park. But Petrov was given the all-clear to resume training and is set to lead Villa’s attempt to lift their first major trophy for 14 years. Petrov, who played for Celtic in the 2003 UEFA Cup final against Porto in Seville, said: “The virus is okay. It is better. I’ve been on antibiotics for the last three or four days and we are expecting every day for it to get better and better. I’ve done a bit of training this morning, I am going to train with the team this afternoon as well to try to catch up. I think it should be okay for Sunday.”
Birmingham City
Alex McLeish says he will “not dismiss out of hand” any possible signings put forward to him by Birmingham City owner Carson Yeung and the board. McLeish is looking to concentrate on a list of four to five players he feels can enhance the Blues squad this summer. And he dismissed as “ridiculous” reports that he is locked in a battle for control of playing affairs with Yeung and his back-up staff. The former Scotland manager said: “There have been big headlines about control which have been ridiculous. The relationship I’ve got with Carson and the board is terrific. If they recommend players to me, I’m not going to dismiss them out of hand. I’m going to do due diligence on these players. I have to see if they can improve this club but I do get thousands of players thrust at me every week. If we can stick to a list of four or five players, with some back-up along the way, it is better than going through all these names and travelling all over the world to see what these guys can do. DVDS can help and (football vice-chairman) Sammy Yu can help by saying ‘this player will definitely enhance your squad’ and that is the kind of feedback I am looking for.”
Blackburn Rovers
Striker Junior Hoilett has agreed a new two-and-a-half-year contract with the club. The 19-year-old is becoming an increasingly important part of manager Sam Allardyce’s first team squad and, as a result, has earned himself a new deal which will keep him at the club until the summer of 2012. Canadian-born Hoilett has been with Rovers since he was 13 and, after two seasons on loan in Germany with SC Paderborn and St Pauli, he has worked his way into the squad this season after a successful work permit appeal. Hoilett, who was out of contract in the summer, scored his first senior goal in the Carling Cup victory at Gillingham in August but has yet to find the net in the Barclays Premier League.
bolton wanderers
Stuart Holden hopes his debut for Bolton Wanderers on Wednesday night will stand him in good stead for the remainder of the campaign. The midfielder made his first start since crossing the Atlantic in January as Owen Coyle’s men lost 4-0 at tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup. But he is hoping that a regular role with Wanderers will put him in contention for a World Cup berth with the United States. He said: “I thought we had some good chances, but when you play against that type of quality you are going to get punished if you don’t take them. I felt good out there I was helped by the lads and the manager. They have really made me feel part of the set up and so I was pleased to get the chance to show people what I can do. The game was quick and I thought we did play some good stuff at times, but unfortunately the result doesn’t show that.”
burnley
Brian Laws says Burnley are still in a “great position” despite the club’s slide to 19th place in the Barclays Premier League. The Clarets made an impressive start to their first top-flight campaign in 33 years, but have won only once in the league since October and find themselves mired in a relegation dogfight with 12 games to go. Last weekend’s 5-2 defeat to Aston Villa made it just one victory in Burnley’s last 15 outings, but they are far from being cut adrift, with just three points separating them from 14th place. “The pressure is not on us, it is on everyone else, the established teams who know that if they go out of this Premier League, financially they are going to be in trouble,” Laws said. “They are going to have real serious issues to sort out, but we won’t. Therefore we are not panicking about that. We are enjoying it and we are not feeling that kind of pressure. In the end, maybe that is what will help us because if you are composed out there and not showing you are nervous, then you have a chance of winning games. That is where we can do a little bit of catching up.”
Chelsea
Midfielder Frank Lampard labelled Petr Cech’s loss as a “huge blow” after the goalkeeper was carried off on a stretcher during their Champions League defeat to Inter Milan. Cech was carried off in the second-half of Tuesday’s 2-1 defeat after damaging his calf collecting a cross and will be further assessed later on. The injury has certainly ruled him out of Saturday’s Barclays Premier League meeting with Manchester City at Stamford Bridge and he could still be missing by the time Jose Mourinho makes an emotional return for the second leg on 16th March. However, despite the loss of Cech, Lampard believes that understudy Hilario has shown before that he has all the necessary qualities to replace him. “It is a huge blow to lose Petr,” admitted Lampard. “He has been in fantastic form as everyone knows and he has always been up there with the best in the world and no-one wants to lose that. But Hilario has never let us down at all. He has been brilliant every time he has come in whether it is for one game or a run of them.”
everton
Striker Louis Saha has been called up to the France squad to face Spain on 3rd March. He has been rewarded for his performances by his first call up since November 2006. Les Bleus take on the Euro 2008 champions at the Stade de France on Wednesday in their first match since November’s controversial World Cup play-off against the Republic of Ireland.
Fulham
Fulham’s Under 18 and Under 16 home Academy games against Chelsea on Saturday will now be played at Chelsea’s training ground (Kick-off 11am). No Academy matches will be played at Motspur Park this weekend.
Hull City
Season Tickets for the 2010/11 season will go on sale to existing season ticket holders from Saturday 27th February. Supporters renewing by Friday 12th March will be able to take advantage of the club’s price freeze.
Liverpool
Rafael Benitez believes captaining England next week will bring the best out of Steven Gerrard. With new skipper Rio Ferdinand injured, Gerrard is expected to take the armband in the friendly against Egypt. Benitez thinks the occasion could boost Gerrard’s confidence – benefiting both club and country. The Reds manager said: “I think captaining England will be good for his confidence and could also have a good effect on him. We know he is important for us, and also important for England. I think he has to take the responsibility as a positive sign.”
Manchester City
Wayne Bridge has said his position in the England squad is “untenable” and he has decided to make himself unavailable for selection, in a statement released by his lawyers. The Manchester City defender released a short statement claiming his presence within the national squad was potentially “divisive” and that he did not wish to be selected. It leaves Fabio Capello without his two senior left-backs for Wednesday’s friendly with Egypt. Bridge said: “I have thought long and hard about my position in the England football team in the light of the reporting and events over the last few weeks. It has always been an honour to play for England. However, after careful thought I believe my position in the squad is now untenable and potentially divisive. Sadly therefore I feel for the sake of the team and in order to avoid what will be inevitable distractions, I have decided not to put myself forward for selection. I have today informed the management of this decision. I wish the team all the very best in South Africa.”
Manchester United
Arsene Wenger may have described it as a “non-trophy” but Sir Alex Ferguson feels the Carling Cup is worth winning. Not even the knowledge Sunday’s encounter with Aston Villa at Wembley will lack the raw emotion and drama of those two memorable semi-final confrontations with Manchester City last month can shake Ferguson’s determination to add another trophy to his incredible Manchester United CV. So, while Wenger disputes the notion a Carling Cup win would represent the end of his Arsenal trophy drought, it is a stance Ferguson does not share. “Wembley is an occasion. It has always been that way,” said Ferguson. “But the only way you can enjoy Wembley is by winning. We have got an opportunity to win something on Sunday. It is not a nice day when you lose.”
Portsmouth
Seven Portsmouth players have been called up by their countries for next week’s round of international friendlies. Nadir Belhadj and Hassan Yebda – who recently helped their nation finish fourth in the Africa Cup of Nations – have been selected in the Algeria squad to face Serbia on Wednesday 3rd March. Hermann Hreidarsson has been selected in the Iceland squad to play Cyprus on the same night, while Tal Ben Haim will be hoping to figure for Israel against Romania. Loan stars Quincy Owusu-Abeyie (Ghana) and Aruna Dindane (Ivory Coast) will also be looking to feature against Bosnia-Herzegovina and South Korea respectively. Defender Marc Wilson could win his first cap for Ireland after being selected on Monday in Giovanni Trapattoni’s squad to face Brazil at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium on Tuesday 2nd March.
Stoke City
Ryan Shawcross feels it is about time Stoke started to earn praise for the more attractive elements of their play. Shawcross benefited from the Potters’ most infamous tactic as he decisively put his side ahead in their FA Cup fifth-round replay win over Manchester City by heading home a Rory Delap throw-in. But Tony Pulis’ men also scored well-worked goals through Dave Kitson and Tuncay in their stunning 3-1 extra-time success over the expensively-assembled visitors at the Britannia Stadium. Shawcross now hopes such play is not overlooked when people come to assess the merits of the Stoke side. The defender said: “They took their goals well and it shows the calibre of players we have got. Mine was a bit more direct but you have to go for them. I think we showed what a good football team we are. We get tagged for kicking and heading it but we have got some very talented footballers, big international players. I think we played some good football.”
sunderland
Sunderland midfielder Andy Reid could be back in action within a fortnight after making a quicker than expected recovery from a hamstring injury. The 27-year-old Irishman looked to be facing at least a month on the sidelines when he damaged his hamstring during the 1-1 Barclays Premier League draw at Portsmouth on 9th February. But, assistant manager Eric Black said: “Reidy will probably be back in another 10 or 12 days. He’s ahead of schedule and has been working extremely hard in the gym. He trained a little with the players on Tuesday – he’s doing well and getting him back will be a major plus for us.”
Tottenham Hotspur
Harry Redknapp believes he may have finally got through to Roman Pavlyuchenko after watching the Russian striker fire Tottenham into the FA Cup quarter-finals. Redknapp has been critical of Pavlyuchenko’s attitude in the past and the
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