The draw for the FA Cup Quarter Finals was made earlier today, and here is what the hat pulled out!
Arsenal v Everton
Brighton/Hull v Sunderland
Sheff Utd v Sheff Wed/Charlton
Manchester City v Wigan
Matches to be played over the weekend of March 8-9.
More to follow..
Many medie outlets reported that Rooney had signed a new four-and-a-half year deal worth £300,000 a week to stay at Old Trafford.
However, the club have insisted that the 28-year-old has yet to sign a contract extension, which was reportedly worth £70m until summer 2018.
There is no deal, which is why we haven’t announced it,” a United spokesman said.
Negotiations, which have been taking place for some time now, are believed to be still continuing.
Rooney has been linked with an exit ever since the end of last season, when former manager Sir Alex Ferguson said he had made a transfer request, and Chelsea were reported to be interested in a swoop for his services.
United’s dip in form – they are seventh in the Premier League table, 11 points off the top four – appeared to be another cause for concern regarding Rooney’s future, but the opening of talks several weeks ago appear to have allayed fears of him leaving.
Written by Steve Milne @stevenmilnelive
Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere has admitted that today’s opponents Liverpool are the toughest team they have faced so far this season.
The two Premier League giants will go head-to-head once again today in the FA Cup at the Emirates Stadium, just a week after The Gunners were thrashed 5-1 by The Reds at Anfield in the league.
Wilshere and co. found themselevs 4-0 down after just 20-minutes in Merseyside last Saturday and speaking ahead of today’s massive game, he admitted that they were the toughest side they have faced so far this season.
The Englishman also gave special praise to countrymen Jordan Henderson and Steven Gerrard, as well as Luis Suarez and Phillip Coutinho.
‘Liverpool were the best team I’ve played against this season.
‘Jordan Henderson was tough this year. He’s got a great attitude to football. He’s not nice to play against. You walk off and you’re knackered.
‘Coutinho was good. Suarez can be unreal. His brain seems to work quicker than that of other players. He’s on the ball and you think, ”What are you doing?” and all of a sudden he’s gone.’
Regarding Gerrard, Wilshere said: ‘His passing range is still amazing, the best in the Premier League.’
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles
According to reports in the Sun on Sunday, Liverpool and Galatasaray are set to go head to head to sign Manchester City defender, Micah Richards.
The Englishman has been allowed by the club to depart the Etihad at the end of the season, so the Reds will be keen to claim the 25 year-old’s signature.
Richards has found games hard to come by since the arrival of Manuel Pellegrini, and has only featured in 9 games in all competitions this season. Two of which have come in the Premier League, and the attacking full-back still managed to get one assist.
His current deal with Manchester City is set to expire in June 2015, and City have decided to sell Richards for just £8m in the summer, with both Liverpool and the Turkish champions desperate to land the player.
During the recent January transfer window, Liverpool boss brenden Rodgers tried to tempt Richards into a 6 month loan deal, but the Manchester club decided to reject the offer and refuse the defender the chance to leave. However the Reds boss is hopeful of singing the Englishman in the summer, but the deal is only likely to happen if the Merseyside club can secure a Champions League spot this season.
By Phil Wellbrook
The duo are long-term colleagues in the Germany team. On Wednesday they will come face to face in Champions League combat when Schweinsteiger’s Bayern Munich team visit the Emirates.
Schweinsteiger, the midfielder who makes the reigning European champions tick, said: “For many seasons Arsenal have been admired across Europe for their attacking play – but perhaps where they sometimes let themselves down was in defence.
“Per has made them one of the most defensively solid teams in England – and they look to have addressed their problems.
“It was always going to take Per time to adjust to a new league – but now we see him for what he is which is one of the best central defenders in Europe with fantastic positional awareness and real leadership qualities.”
Bayern won 3-1 at the Emirates last season en route to winning their Champions League crown. Arsenal’s 2-0 second leg win in Munich was not enough to get Arsene Wenger’s men through.
Bayern are widely seen as favourites to progress but Schweinsteiger insists on caution.
He said: “Arsenal have led the Premier League in England for a lot of this season – so we are aware it will be a very big test.
“We got a very good result in London last season – but I think Arsenal are much improved now. We want to retain the Champions League – and believe that another positive result in London is very possible if we play at the level we are capable of.”
Written by Steve Milne @stevenmilnelive
Arsenal’s attaxking midfielder Mesut Ozil says he is looking forward to Arsenal’s midweek fixture with Bayern Munich.
The Gunners face the Bundesliga side on Wednesday Evening, in a repeat of last season’s fixture, were Bayern scraped through, as the Germans beat the Gunners on away goals.
Arsenal won 2-0 in the Allianz Arena, but were knock out following a 3-1 defeat at the Emirates.
Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny set Arsenal to a two goal lead, however, Bayern held on to advance.
However, Ozil believes the Gunners are up against it against the Bundesliga side, who won the treble last season.
Ozil is confident that his side will be able to hold their own against the all conquering Germans.
“I have huge respect for Bayern,” he told Germany’s Bild am Sonntag newspaper.
“They are even better than they were last year, but we’re not going to hide.
By Ben Reardon
@BenReardon1
Manchester United’s plan to raid Germany this summer has been given a double boost.
The fallen champions have put Borussia Dortmund pair Ilkay Gundogan and Marco Reus as well as Bayern Munich’s Toni Kroos on an extensive list of targets after arming David Moyes with the biggest transfer budget in Old Trafford history.
United’s chances of doing business with Dortmund have been lifted by the interest that last season’s Champions League finalists are showing in Shinji Kagawa.
The Japanese international won successive Bundesliga titles with Dortmund before moving to Manchester for £16million in 2012, but he has made little impact at United and his failure to impress Moyes has opened the door for a return to his former club.
Gundogan, who has been sidelined for six months with a back injury, is a more realistic target for the Reds than Reus.
The German international is moving towards the final year of his contract and his agent father , Irfan, has said his son will be open to offers.
Dortmund will lose Robert Lewandowski to rivals Bayern this summer when his contract expires and they will not want Gundogan to depart for free in 2015.
If the German club firm up their interest in Kagawa then United will look to use him as a makeweight in a deal that involves Gundogan or Reus.
But they will also continue to monitor Kroos’ deteriorating relationship with Bayern in Munich.
Especially after it was revealed that he’s 15th on the club’s wage ladder and earns only a third of the £180,000-a-week salary being paid to Franck Ribery and Mario Gotze.
Written by Steve Milne @stevenmilnelive
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has hailed Philippe Coutinho as the bargain of the season.
While Mesut Ozil is still to justify his £42million transfer fee at Arsenal and Manchester United have lavished £37m on Juan Mata, the 21-year-old has brought some Brazilian brilliance to Liverpool after arriving from Inter Milan for just £8.5million.
Coutinho pits his wits against Ozil today when Liverpool travel to the Emirates in the fifth round of the FA Cup.
And Rodgers said: “Philippe has been a snip. He’s an absolutely wonderful talent. There are very few players at this level now who can penetrate with a pass and play through teams like he does.
“The quality and weight of his passes is sensational.”
Rodgers added: “When I worked at Chelsea I used to watch Deco.
“He was a bit older than Coutinho is, but I still remember his first training session when he got a round of applause.
“Coutinho is like that. He has pure quality and can make the difference in games.”
Written by Steve Milne @stevenmilnelive
According to Bayern Munich captain Philip Lahm, moving to Premier League side Manchester United would be a step down for Toni Kroos.
The Red Devils have been closely monitoring Kroos for several months now and may be ready to make a formal bid for the German in the Summer, and with contract negotiations stalling between Kroos and Munich, a deal could be in place if all parties can reach an agreement.
The 24-year-old’s current deal ends in 2015 and with no extension in the pipeline, the midfielder has attracted interest from some of the biggest teams in England as; Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea are all interested.
Despite a move on the cards, Kroos’ captain believes a move to United would be a step down for the German international.
“It is normal that one explores their position and negotiate,” Lahm said.
“But if you currently play for Bayern there are few alternatives, if any. It is, in my eyes, an absolute privilege to play here because the team simply has the mentality to win.
“Many players want to come to Bavaria. So you have to think carefully about whether you leave a club like this at the moment.”
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles
Wayne Rooney has agreed a record-breaking new contract that will keep him at Manchester United for the rest of his playing career.
The England striker’s future has been a huge talking point in recent weeks, with speculation mounting that he is ready to stay at Old Trafford despite the Premier League champions’ worrying form this season.
As yet there has been no official word from the club, however, according to reports in the Sunday Sun and the Sunday Times, United fans will not have to wait too much longer.
Rooney is apparently on the verge of putting pen to paper on a deal that will tie him to the club until 2018, when the striker will be 33.
The contract will net Rooney a staggering £300,000-per-week – a Premier League record – a rise of £50,000-per-week on his current wages.
There had been doubts over the forward’s future at Old Trafford, but Rooney and his representatives are satisfied that manager David Moyes is the right man to take the club forward, with the signing of £37.1m Juan Mata believed to have played a major role in persuading the 28-year-old to stay.
Written by Steve Milne @stevenmilnelive
Premier League side Chelsea are desperate to secure the signings of both Paris Saint-Germain’s Edinson Cavani and Southampton’s Luke Shaw before the start of this Summer’s World Cup.
It is also being reported that The Blues will gain the funds to sign these two players by selling Demba Ba and also Romelu Lukaku, despite the Belgium’s impressive scoring record in the Premier League with both West Bromwich Albion and Everton.
Mourinho is eager to sign two blockbusters this Summer in order to strengthen his side for next season, and it is believed that Cavani and Shaw are his too main targets, with a deal for the Uruguayan already in the pipeline.
It’s reported that the Chelsea boss WILL NOT be attending the World Cup in Brazil this Summer, so he is keen to wrap up his two main signings before the tournament.
It was revealed last month that Cavani was not happy in Paris due to playing second-fiddle to Zlatan Ibrahimovich, and according to reports, his representatives were in London a few weeks ago discussing a move to the Premier League.
The Blues would have to pay well over the £50million they spent on Fernando Torres from Liverpool, so it means they will have to break the English transfer record, but they are ready to sell Ba and Lukaku in order to raise the funds.
As for Shaw, he is highly wanted by both Chelsea and Manchester United, but as he was a Blues fan as a child, a move to Stamford Bridge seems to be his favoured destination.
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles
Arsenal legend Bob Wilson has labelled Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho as ‘boring and a bully’ after his latest comments about Arsene Wenger.
The Blues boss reacted badly to Wenger saying he doesn’t like failing by saying that the Frenchman is a ‘specialist in failure’ due to his nine years without a trophy.
Mourinho has been known for his mind-games in his press conferences, but many have viewed these comments as disrespectful and a personal attack on a fellow-colleague, and former-Gunners goalkeeper, Bob Wilson, believes ‘The Special One’ is getting boring now with all his games.
“I think at it’s best it’s disrespectful, at it’s worst despicable,” Wilson told BBC Radio 5 live. “I find him boring in the extreme.”
One day later, Mourinho’s Chelsea were beaten in the FA Cup by Manchester City.
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles
Depriving Jose Mourinho’s side of a single shot on target, City recorded a convincing 2-0 win to end a run of two games without a goal – however, the City boss refused to take any credit for the win and ruled out vengeance as the motivation for his team’s dominant performance.
MANAGER MANUEL PELLEGRINI:
“It wasn’t revenge that drove us – of course we don’t want to lose two games to Chelsea at home,” the Chilean declared.
“Today we played very well in all senses. Defending, in possession, attacking – Chelsea didn’t have any chances to shoot and that was important to us.
“That’s why we had a little down in our performances against Norwich and Chelsea but from what I saw in training on Friday, I was absolutely sure that we would play a very good game tonight and we did.
“It’s so easy for me to talk about tactics because we won – I don’t think we had any tactical problems against Chelsea the other day – we know how they play, we know how we play.
“In the other game, we had two clear chances at the beginning, we missed and they scored. Today was not a tactical masterclass from me – I don’t believe in those things.”
“It’s one step more in a competition, I think for me the most important thing we did today was to beat a great team and also, I had a lot of questions after Chelsea, if we’re going to change our way of playing but I repeat: we will not change the way we play.
“Today was important to show why we continue to play in the same way.”
JOSE MOURINHO:
“I don’t think my team failed – I’d say City played much better than us,” Mourinho reflected.
“They deserved to win more than us – when the best teams wins, football is in peace.
“Credit my team for what they did two weeks ago and today, City were the best team, they deserved to win and they won.
“We were never close to scoring or being dominant, or bringing a scare to the game.
“One team had one week without a game, one didn’t – I think that also made a difference.”
Written by Steve Milne @stevenmilnelive
