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/ 11 February 2008
Arsenal were left two points clear at the top of the Premier League table as rivals Manchester United and Chelsea both dropped vital points on Sunday. Manchester City completed a first league victory at Old Trafford since 1974 and a season double over Manchester United with a 2-1 victory thanks to goals from strikers Darius Vassell and new signing Benjani Mwaruwari.
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/ 10 February 2008
Everton piled the pressure on Liverpool by grinding out a 1-0 win over Reading that tightens the Toffees’ grip on fourth place in the Premier League. The victory enabled David Moyes’s side to open up a four-point lead over their neighbours — who face a daunting trip to Chelsea on Sunday — in the battle for the final Champions League qualifying spot.
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/ 2 February 2008
For the survivors of the February 6 1958 Munich air crash that took away the heart of the so-called Busby Babes, the 50th anniversary of one of soccer’s worst tragedies — to be marked on Wednesday — is more of an ordeal than simply remembering lost Manchester United teammates.
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/ 29 January 2008
Sir Alex Ferguson believes experienced midfielder Paul Scholes could play an important part in Manchester United’s bid this season to match their treble achievement of 1999. The 33-year-old former England midfielder is expected to feature in Wednesday’s league match at home to Portsmouth.
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/ 25 January 2008
The Africa Cup of Nations is well under way in Ghana and the continental showpiece has already showcased its sparkling talent and delivered a number of scintillating goals. Africa’s greatest goal scorers have for a long time graced some of the world’s most famous leagues. Here are six of the best.
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/ 22 January 2008
Substitute Peter Crouch scored two minutes from time after Marlon Harewood’s over-head kick and an own goal from Fabio Aurelio cancelled out Yossi Benayoun’s opener to earn Liverpool a 2-2 draw against Aston Villa. It was a night that was all about the Liverpool fans directing their displeasure at the plans of club owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett to re-finance their debts.
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/ 18 January 2008
There has been much debate about whether the African Cup of Nations should be held at the end of the European season so that there is not a club-versus-country clash. Two football experts discuss the pros and cons. The continental showpiece kicks off in Ghana on Sunday.
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/ 11 January 2008
French striker Nicolas Anelka has joined Chelsea from English Premier League rivals Bolton, the clubs announced on Friday. A statement on Chelsea’s website said: ”Chelsea Football Club and Bolton Wanderers can confirm that terms have been agreed between the clubs for the transfer of Nicolas Anelka.”
Rafa Benitez has enjoyed hero status among Liverpool fans for much of his reign but he looked distinctly mortal as he trudged across Kenilworth Road’s sodden turf on Sunday. Benitez, brow furrowed and hands thrust deep into his pockets, cut a dejected figure and understandably so after a day he will want to forget in a hurry.
Premier League clubs are waiting for Tuesday’s opening of the month-long January transfer window, some seeking to tweak their squad as they press for the title and others hoping to add players in the fight to stay in England’s most lucrative competition.
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/ 18 December 2007
Brazil and AC Milan’s Kaka has simply been the outstanding footballer of 2007 and proved that claim by winning the Fifa player of the year award on Monday to add to his European Footballer of the Year honour. The 25-year-old Kaka starred in AC Milan’s run to the European Champions League title, then the European Super Cup and the recent Club World Cup.
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/ 9 December 2007
Ryan Giggs’s 100th league goal saw Manchester United on the way to a 4-1 win against bottom-of-the-table Derby County to keep up the pressure on Premier League leaders Arsenal on Saturday. Victory at Old Trafford, where Carlos Tevez scored either side of halftime, left second-placed United a point behind the Gunners
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/ 7 December 2007
Even if Brian Barwick picks up the telephone to make the call almost every England fan is clamouring for, the Football Association might not end up with José Mourinho as the next national manager. But the FA’s chief executive would get detailed insight into what it will take to make England succeed from one of the most successful and intelligent managers.
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/ 5 December 2007
Celtic manager Gordon Strachan insisted it was the overall result and not the performance that mattered after Celtic sneaked into the Champions League knock-out stages despite a 1-0 defeat at the hands of AC Milan. Veteran forward Filippo Inzaghi scored his 63rd goal in European competition to break the great Gerd Muller’s long-standing record.
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/ 2 December 2007
AC Milan’s Brazilian midfielder Kaka was named on Sunday as France Football‘s Player of the Year, winning the prestigious Ballon d’Or award. He succeeds Italy’s World Cup-winning captain and defender Fabio Cannavaro and comes two years after the last Brazilian winner of the trophy, Barcelona’s Ronaldinho.
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/ 1 December 2007
European football’s governing body Uefa has called in police organisation Europol to investigate possible match-fixing by Asian betting syndicates in top-flight European football, Der Spiegel magazine is reporting in it’s Monday edition.
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/ 28 November 2007
Inter Milan, FC Barcelona, AS Roma and Sevilla all advanced to the second round of the Champions League on Tuesday. Inter, Sevilla and Roma advanced with wins, while a point against Lyon was enough for Barcelona. The four teams join Arsenal and Manchester United in the next round.
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/ 26 November 2007
Inter Milan, Barcelona, AS Roma and Rangers are on the brink of qualifying in Tuesday’s Champions League group matches though Arsenal and Manchester United have already reached the knockout stages. Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger intends to give some of his young Gunners another chance to impress in the Group H trip to Sevilla.
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/ 7 November 2007
Arsenal can advance to the knockout stage of the Champions League by beating Slavia Prague on Wednesday. Arsenal, which beat Slavia 7-0 on October 23 to equal the biggest margin of victory in the Champions League, hasn’t conceded a goal in the competition this season and can extend its overall unbeaten streak to 19.
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/ 4 November 2007
Harry Redknapp fears the African Nations Cup could wreck Portsmouth’s European ambitions after his side’s impressive 4-1 victory over Newcastle strengthened their top four credentials. Redknapp acknowledged that Portsmouth’s challenge will be affected more than most of their Premier League rivals by the tournament early next year.
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/ 1 November 2007
Frank Lampard’s hat-trick helped League Cup holders Chelsea snatch a dramatic 4-3 win over Leicester on Wednesday. Avram Grant’s side were slipping towards an embarrassing fourth-round defeat against the managerless Championship side — who lost Gary Megson after just six weeks to Premiership strugglers Bolton — until Andriy Shevchenko equalised with three minutes to play.
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/ 29 October 2007
Arsenal regained first place in the Premier League on Sunday thanks to a Cesc Fabregas equaliser in an entertaining 1-1 draw with Liverpool at Anfield. The Gunners trailed to Steven Gerrard’s seventh-minute free kick but the inspirational Fabregas stole in with 10 minutes remaining to give the visitors a deserved share of the points.
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/ 28 October 2007
Al-Ahly of Egypt closed on a record third consecutive African Champions League title after holding Etoile Sahel of Tunisia 0-0 in the first leg of the final on Saturday. Etoile failed to convert the two chances of a tight, tense clash and finished with 10 men after the 80th-minute dismissal of Mehdi Meriah for a professional foul.
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/ 28 October 2007
Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez fired Manchester United back to the top of the Premier League on Saturday, as Chelsea served warning that their own title challenge is still alive after the departure of Jose Mourinho. United’s 4-1 demolition of Middlesbrough at Old Trafford continued a rich vein of form for the champions, who have won eight consecutive matches in the league.
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/ 26 October 2007
Tottenham Hotspur have sacked their Dutch manager, Martin Jol, the Premier League club said in a statement on Thursday. ”We can confirm that the board has this evening asked Martin Jol, the club manager, and Chris Hughton, the first team coach, to stand down from their positions with immediate effect,” the statement read.
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/ 25 October 2007
Former British European Cup winners Liverpool and Celtic suffered another blow after both lost in the latest round of Champions League matches on Wednesday. Liverpool have just a point after three matches — having gone down 2-1 to Besiktas in Istanbul — while Celtic have three points following a 1-0 reverse away to Benfica.
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/ 24 October 2007
Arsenal and Manchester United moved closer to a place in the next round of the Champions League on Tuesday with big wins that extended the English duo’s perfect starts. Arsenal beat visiting Slavia Prague 7-0 to equal the competition’s biggest win, while English champion United won at Dynamo Kiev 4-2.
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/ 23 October 2007
European giants Barcelona, Manchester United and Arsenal can all take a huge step towards qualifying for the Champions League knockout phase if they win their respective matches on Tuesday. All three have a perfect six points from their first two matches and another victory will leave them virtually assured of progression.
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/ 23 October 2007
Martin Jol’s Tottenham tenure looks almost certain to be coming to an end following his team’s 3-1 loss at Newcastle on Monday night. Sam Allardyce’s side may have hammered the final nail in the Dutch manager’s coffin with a dominant display and deserved victory.
Amine Chermiti scored twice as Etoile Sahel of Tunisia defeated Al-Hilal of Sudan 3-1 this weekend to reach a third African Champions League final in four years. Saber Ben Frej was also on target for Etoile as they squeezed through 4-3 on aggregate, having lost the first leg of the semifinal 2-1 in Omdurman two weeks ago.
Manchester United finally found their goal-scoring touch on Saturday with a 4-0 win over Wigan that lifted them top of the Premier League for the first time this season. Cristiano Ronaldo got two goals and Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez also scored to give United 20 points — one more than Arsenal, who hosts Sunderland on Sunday.
A 27-year-old Celtic fan who invaded the pitch and slapped AC Milan goalkeeper Dida at the end of a Champions League match on Wednesday made himself known to the club on Thursday and was given a life ban. The unnamed individual was also handed over to the police, who were detaining him in custody in Glasgow, Celtic said in a statement on their website.