Sturridge says sorry to Rodgers after angry touchline confrontation

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Jan 29, 2014

Police have launched an investigation after coins were thrown at Luis Suarez during Tuesday night’s Merseyside derby.

Television pictures showed the Liverpool striker picking up coins by the corner flag during the first half.

It is believed around 12 coins were thrown from the contingent of Everton fans in the Anfield Road End.

Police will use CCTV evidence to review the incident and are also asking members of the public to come forward anonymously and provide further information.

Suarez told referee Martin Atkinson about the coin-throwing during the game and Everton could face a separate FA investigation if the official mentions it in his match report and the matter is pursued.

A police statement said: ‘Merseyside Police can confirm it is investigating following reports of some missiles being thrown during the Liverpool v Everton football match on Tuesday, 28 January.

‘The incidents took place during the first half of the game when a number of coins and other small objects are believed to have been thrown from the stands onto the playing area.

‘Officers are requesting CCTV from the stadium and will review any footage as part of inquiries to establish the full circumstances surrounding the incidents.

‘Anyone with information is asked to call the police non-emergency 101 number or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.’

Written by Steve Milne

Ian Ayre defends Reds transfer policy

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Jan 29, 2014

Liverpool FC managing director Ian Ayre defended the club’s transfer policy following the announcement of another lucrative commercial deal at Anfield.

Garuda Indonesia will be the Reds’ first official training kit sponsor after penning a two-season agreement which starts in June.

They were already Liverpool’s official airline partner and the increased profile will take the total value of the sponsorship to around £16million per year.

It has been a successful month for the Reds off the pitch with profitable deals also being struck with Dunkin’ Donuts and Vauxhall but fans are still waiting to see the first new signing of the January window.

Liverpool missed out on top target Mohamed Salah who opted for a move to Chelsea after the Reds failed to agree a fee with Basel. Ayre insists the club do have the cash to strengthen Brendan Rodgers’ squad but says they won’t pay over the odds.

“We haven’t been held back from completing a deal, the player (Salah) has decided he doesn’t want to come to Liverpool,” Ayre said. “We will always compete and know the value of a player and how far we are prepared to go.

“That is something myself, Brendan and others involved in that discuss regularly. We won’t over pay but when the right player is available and wants to be at Liverpool they will be here and our success previously shows that.

“There is no one not here because we didn’t do what we needed to do. There has been no lack of ambition or effort on our part. We will win some and lose some, that is the case in every transfer window.”

The Reds have an estimated 65 million fans in Indonesia and the deal with Garuda will further raise their profile across Asia.

“I am not talking about the value but it is competitive and a very large contribution to our commercial revenue,” Ayre added.

“It really isn’t just about the money. It’s about how many people that sponsorship reaches and how it develops the club in other areas of the world.

“Having a global airline partner which flies to 60 destinations across the world with our brand alongside theirs – that’s where the value is.

“In terms of commercial achievements we are right at the top of that league. The club is in a very good place.

“For those of us with good memories we know we had nearly £300million of debt three and a bit years ago and we’ve worked hard to chip away at that. The club is sustainable and in a good position to invest in the transfer market.”

Written by Steve Milne

Snodgrass tells home fans to ‘f*** off’ after heckling

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Jan 29, 2014

Norwich winger Robert Snodgrass was involved in an X-rated altercation with his own fans on Tuesday night.

Being held by Newcastle, and with the home side’s frustration boiling over, the winger lost his temper telling them to ‘f*** off’ after they had sarcastically applauded his corner, which was easily cleared by the Newcastle defence.

The retort apparently came after a fan shouted ‘Can’t you beat the first man?’

Canaries fans then responded to Snodgrass’s rant by singing for Nathan Redmond, who started Tuesday’s Premier League game against Newcastle on the bench.

Norwich were booed off at the interval as they were being held by Newcastle.

Snodrgass has been linked with a move to Celtic during the transfer window.

And speaking earlier this month, the 26-year-old, who was born in Glasgow, spoke warmly of his boyhood club.

He said: It’s my hometown and I stay five seconds away from the stadium. I’m a Celtic fan.

‘When that happens and so many people were texting me, I believe it’s in the newspapers back home.

‘There’s so much speculation especially during the transfer window but I’m here at Norwich and have 18-months left on my contract.

‘I’m actually focused on doing as well as I possibly can at this minute.’

At the final whistle, Snodgrass marches straight to the place where he swore at fans, and applauds them sheepishly.

They applaud back. He sticks both thumbs up. All is forgiven, it seems. And a good point for Norwich.

Written by Steve Milne

Mourinho thinks Hazard can rival Ronaldo and Messi.

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Ben Reardon

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Jan 29, 2014

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has stated that he thinks that Belgian playmaker Eden Hazard can rival Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, and become one of the best players in the world.

Hazard has been one of Chelsea’s key players after moving from French Ligue 1 side Lille in the summer of 2012, and has starred in Mourinho’s sides title challenge this season.

Both Messi and Ronaldo have dominated the awards over the last few years, and Mourinho has touted his player to be there and there abouts in the future.

“Yes, he can reach that level,” said Mourinho. “Because his evolution is great. I think, because of the positions Cristiano and Messi played, they are also top goalscorers.

“It’s not just the quality of the players, but the number of goals they score that makes them even more special. Eden is a winger, a pure winger. Okay, we are giving him freedom to go to other areas, but he’s an attacking winger.

“I don’t think it’s possible for Eden to be top scorer in the league. That normally affects people’s judgement. But if he can be a match-winner, a player with high performances during a season… without injuries, Messi and Ronaldo start and finish strong, players with big stability in their performances.

“But if he wants the Ballon d’Or, he must build the entourage politically for that. Without the entourage and the politics, he doesn’t get the Ballon d’Or. It’s a different story.

“If he wants to be a great, great player and arrive where Cristiano and Messi arrives, he has the space to go – he’s 23, and Cristiano is 28 or 29, Messi 26 or 27… still young players, but four or five years older than Eden.

The Belgium internation himself stated his desire to emulate the duo of Messi and Ronaldo.

“Of course I want to be the best in the world,” he told Het Laatste Nieuws. “Previously I was more worried about the game itself: football was just a game for me, I wanted to amuse myself and didn’t bother what the people thought about me.

“But since I’ve been here at Chelsea, I’ve become more aware of my qualities, I guess. Before, I knew I was a good player, but not one of the better players in the world.

“Now I realise that I can compete with Messi and Ronaldo in the near future, if I put in some more effort. I don’t know if I will ever reach their level. It’ll be hard, they have incredible stats, but I accept the challenge.”

Chelsea can move top of the table tonight, if they beat West Ham United at Stamford Bridge.

By Ben Reardon

@BenReardon1

Jose Mourinho is on a collision course with Thibaut Courtois.

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Jan 29, 2014

Courtois wants to talk to the Chelsea manager before deciding his future. But when asked about the prospect of allowing the 21-year-old to extend his spell in Madrid to a fourth season, Mourinho said: ‘Will he stay with Atletico? No. No.’

The Belgium goalkeeper’s agent will come to London next month for talks with Chelsea chiefs about their plans for his man.

Courtois has already proved that he is one of the best young keepers in Europe during his two-and-a-half years on loan at Atletico. Chelsea are keen for him to return to Stamford Bridge next season to compete with Petr Cech.

However, the former Genk keeper, having become accustomed to regular first-team football in La Liga, does not want to spend a season on the bench.

He will seek assurances from Mourinho that he will be given a fair chance to replace Cech next season. If he does not get that pledge then he would be happy to sign permanently for Atletico, who want to keep him.

While Courtois, who has a Spanish girlfriend, wants to prove his worth at Chelsea, he is settled in Madrid and is happy to stay in La Liga knowing he can play regularly there.

Courtois’s Chelsea deal still has two-and-a-half years to run, though, leaving the Blues in a position of strength.

The player’s representatives fear Chelsea will price him out of the market by setting a fee of around £40million should he decide he wants to leave this summer.

Chelsea aim to make it eight wins in a row when they take on struggling West Ham at Stamford Bridge.

Hammers boss Sam Allardyce has told his fit-again record signing Andy Carroll and new Italian front man Marco Borriello they have to score the goals to take West Ham to safety.

‘If they want to be in the headlines, they have got to take up the challenge and do that,’ he said.

Written by Steve Milne

Arsene Wenger reveals two regrets after Saints draw

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Jan 29, 2014

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed the two regrets he has from his side’s 2-2 draw with Southampton last night.

The Gunners put in a below-par performance at the St Marys Stadium and ended the game with just 10-men after Mathieu Flamini got sent off, but despite the poor showing and being a man down, Wenger’s side still came away with a point.

Speaking to the club’s official website after the game, Wenger admitted that he was frustrated to see his side concede just moments after taking the lead thanks to Santi Cazorla, and he also admitted it was hard to push for a winner when down to 10-men.

“Maybe we switched off for a moment when they we scored for 2-1 and that’s the regret I have,” Wenger told Arsenal Player. “A double regret, the first is we conceded quickly the second goal and secondly we were down to 10 men.

“After you cannot really push on for a third goal, that made it very difficult. But I must give credit to my team, we responded very well in the second half.”

Both Chelsea and Manchester City could now overtake Arsenal in the Premier League, but Wenger insists that his team are his only focus and that drawing away at Southampton isn’t a disaster.

“We haven’t lost in an away game and what is important for me is the response we have shown,” he said. “We are not overtaken and yet and every away game is difficult for everybody.

“I think more than looking at Man City, Chelsea and others, it’s better we focus on our performances and push on.”

Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles

Southampton defender Jose Fonte has spoken for the first time since he was brutally attacked by team-mate Osvaldo

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Jan 29, 2014

The centre-back came up with the perfect response by scoring the opener in Southampton’s 2-2 draw with Arsenal on Tuesday night.

He now wants to put the incident behind him and insists there is no lasting damage.

‘It has been eventful obviously and what happened wasn’t nice at the training ground,’ Fonte said.

‘But I am man enough and I have moved on and I hope everyone can move on and focus on what is important which is Southampton, the club and winning games of football.

‘There is no problem with me, I am fine, so I just want to keep playing.’

The attack added to a turbulent period for the South Coast club, but Fonte claims the players are not letting it effect them.

‘This group is very strong mentally and the togetherness is there,’ he added.

‘We know each other really well and know what we are all capable of.

‘We are professional and know that we have to do a job on the pitch because this is our careers and our lives and we need to deliver.’

It appears Osvaldo may be feeling penitent over his brutal training ground assault on his team-mate.

The Italian striker was retweeting images of Fonte celebrating after scoring.

Tweets he shared were from Southampton’s official account, with one simply reading #JoseFonteBaby.

Written by Steve Milne

Arsene Wenger defends Mathieu Flamini despite two-footed lunge

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Jan 29, 2014

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has defended Mathieu Flamini for his challenge last night that saw him receive a straight red card, despite it being a two-footed tackle which is forbidden in today’s game.

With the game tied at 2-2 and with 10-minutes on the clock, the holding-midfielder threw himself into a challenge with Morgan Schneiderlin and rightfully got shown a red-card, however, after the game, Wenger defended his player and said that the rules should be changed back to how they were in the old days.

Wenger believes if a player gets the ball, then it should be classed as a fair tackle, and he believes Flamini did get the ball, despite being off the floor when doing so.

‘To me it looked harsh,’ Wenger said. ‘He got the ball. At some stage we all have all the feet off the ground.

‘If you say every time a guy makes two-footed tackle its red, he deserved a red. If you say it was a violent tackle, I would say no.

‘We went down to 10 men and we at least went home with a point.

The Frenchman will now miss the next four-games which will damage Arsenal’s title-push, especially after it was confirmed that Aaron Ramsey has suffered a setback in his return.

‘Aaron Ramsey is out for longer than we expected as he had a little setback yesterday in training so I couldn’t bring him here,” Wenger confirmed.

‘It is the same muscle. He felt it a bit again so we have to be cautious this time.’

Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles

Ryan Bertrand may make Aston Villa loan-move a permanent one

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Jan 29, 2014

On-loan Chelsea defender Ryan Bertrand has refused to rule out making his temporary move to Aston Villa a permanent one in the Summer as he is desperate for regular game-time.

The English left-back has played second-fiddle to Ashley Cole for several seasons now at Stamford Bridge, and with reports suggesting that Southampton’s Luke Shaw could be on his way to The Bridge in the Summer, Bertrand’s first-team opportunities may still be limited under Jose Mourinho.

The 24-year-old is now enjoying a loan spell at Villa Park under Paul Lambert and when questioned about his future, he refused to rule out making his loan move a permanent one.

“I’m just here to concentrate on each game as it comes and to get back playing regularly,” Bertrand told The Birmingham Mail.

“I’ll leave all that stuff until the end of the season.

“You can’t rule anything out. It’s important, first and foremost, that my performances are good enough. I need to concentrate on each game.

“I’ve settled in quite easily. It’s fortunate, to be fair, because I know half the team through England at younger ages. It has been good. It’s great to be involved in a derby for my first home game.”

When questioned about Bertrand, Lambert admitted that he was delighted to have him at the squad, but was then cautious about when asked whether the deal could be made a permanent one.

“He’s Chelsea’s player and we’re thankful to them for letting him come here,” Lambert said.

“What Ryan’s value is I haven’t a clue. He’s played in the biggest club competition and won it so he knows how to do it.

“That’s the main thing, the value of him. If you are buying him you’re not buying a novice, you’re buying someone who has won the European Cup and I’m pretty sure they won’t come cheap.”

Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles

Luke Shaw wants Chelsea move in Summer

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Jan 29, 2014

According to reports, Southampton left-back Luke Shaw will remain at St Marys this month and will wait until the Summer to force a move to boy-hood club Chelsea.

A formal bid for the Englishman was made last week by Manchester United, but their £22million offer didn’t match Southampton’s asking price and the bid was turned down.

However, it is now being reported that Shaw is happy to remain a Saint, at least until the Summer anyway, when he hopes that he can complete a dream move to Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea, who are very interested in his signature due to Ashley Cole coming to the end of his career.

A potential move may still be on the cards this month if a club matches the asking price, but it looks more likely that it will be a Summer deal from Southampton to Chelsea for the defender labelled as the new Ashley Cole.

Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles

Arsenal make official bid for Julian Draxler

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Jan 29, 2014

Arsenal have made an official bid for Schalke midfielder Julian Draxler.

The Gunners have been interested in the German international all month and enquired about his availability, only to be told that no deals would be in place this month and that he would only be sold in the Summer.

However, as time progressed, Schalke eased their stance on the situation after Draxler told the club he wanted to leave.

The Bundesliga outfit then quoted Arsenal £35million for the 20-year-old, but the have only offered £24.7million for him, nearly £10million sort of what Schalke are after.

The potential deal will also have add-ons for the German side, but Arsenal are desperate to wrap up the deal before Friday’s deadline.

Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles

Newcastle make £8million bid for Lyon’s Clement Grenier

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Jan 29, 2014

Newcastle have this morning made a bid of £8million for Lyon’s Clement Grenier.

But the club’s offer is set to be rejected by the French side as it falls around £5million short of the Ligue 1 side’s valuation.

The 23-year-old French midfielder has scored five goals in 24 appearances this season – and has three caps for France.

And he could be the ideal replacement for the Toon as they prepare for the departure of Yohan Cabaye.

Cabaye is expected to sign a three-and-a-half year deal at Paris Saint-Germain in a deal thought to be worth £23million to Newcastle.

Luuk de Jong is also expected to join Alan Pardew’s squad today from Borussia Moenchengladbach when he completes a medical later today.

Written by Steve Milne

Arsene Wenger and Mauricio Pochettino full of praise for Saints

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Jan 29, 2014

Premier League leaders Arsenal were held to a 2-2 draw in last night’s encounter with Southampton, but after ending the game with 10-men, it could have been much worse for Arsene Wenger’s men.

A sloppy first-half, which was even labelled by some as the worst 45-minutes they’ve ever seen under Wenger, meant The Saints lead at half-time 1-0 thanks to a Jose Fonte header, but with just seven minutes gone in the second-half, it was 2-1 Arsenal after Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla turned the game on it’s head.

However, Arsenal’s lead lasted just two minutes as Saints captain Adam Lallana made it 2-2, and that is how it remained until full-time, despite Mathieu Flamini seeing red for a two-footed challenge.

After the game, both Mauricio Pochettino and Arsene Wenger were full of praise for Southampton after they managed to hold the league leaders.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger: “We played in second gear and Southampton in fourth. They played at a higher pace than us, decided to stop us from playing and did it very well.

“You want the three points in every game but it is a difficult place Southampton. When you look at the overall record it can happen sometimes away from home you take only one point.

“Flamini got the ball. At some stage we have all the feet off the ground – when you want to run you need to put the feet off the ground.

“If you say that every time a guy makes the two-footed tackle it is a red card he deserved a red card. If you say was it a violent tackle I would say no as he played the ball. I don’t know, the referee made the decision, we have to cope with it.”

Southampton manager Mauricio Pochettino: “I thought the team was outstanding. We were sensational in the first half and did really well.

“It was total football. In the second half we didn’t start so well and conceded two quick goals.

“I would highlight fact we were able to get back into it – we showed amazing character and we deserved to win in the end.”

Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles

Brendan Rodgers hopeful of ‘major signings’

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Jan 29, 2014