Jul 01

Premier League countdown: Where to see your team in pre-season

Pre-season fixtures for the Premier League teams ahead of the 2010-11 season

Arsenal

17 July v Barnet (A) 3pm

21 July v Sturm Graz (A) 6pm

27 July v SC Neusiedl 1919 (A) 6pm

31 July v Milan (H, Emirates Cup) 4.20pm

1 August v Celtic (H, Emirates Cup) 4.20pm

7 August v Legia Warsaw (A) 3pm

Aston Villa

24 July v Bohemians (A) 3pm

27 July v Walsall (A) 7.45pm

31 July v Feyenoord (A) 9.15pm

1 August v Benfica (A) 9.15pm

6 August v Valencia (H) 7.45pm

Birmingham City

18 July v Hong Kong League Selection Team (A) 3pm

21 July v Beijing Guoan FC (A) 7.30pm

24 July v Liaoning Hongyun Football Club (A) 8pm

31 July v Derby County (A) 3pm

3 August v MK Dons (A) 7.30pm

7 August v Real Mallorca (H) 3pm

Blackburn Rovers

10 July v Sturm Graz (A) 5pm

17 July v Fleetwood Town (A) 3pm

20 July v Preston North End (A) 7.45pm

21 July v Huddersfield Town (A) 7.45pm

25 July v Rangers (N, Sydney Festival of Football) 3pm

28 July v AEK Aens (N, Sydney Festival of Football) 6pm

31 July v Sydney FC (A, Sydney Festival of Football) 7.15pm

7 August v Hearts (A) 3pm

Blackpool

16 July v Tiverton Town (A) 7.30pm

20 July v Accrington Stanley (A) 7.30pm

22 July v Kilmarnock (A) 8pm

27 July v Crewe Alexandra (A) 7.30pm

31 July v Bristol City (A) 3pm

Bolton Wanderers

14 July v Charlotte Eagles (A) TBC

17 July v Charleon Battery (A) TBC

17 July v Bamber Bridge (A) 3pm

21 July v Toronto FC (A) TBC

23 July v Chorley (A) 7.30pm

24 July v Rochdale (A) 3pm

27 July v Curzon Ashton (A) 7.45pm

28 July v Morecambe (A) 7.45pm

30 July v Fleetwood Town (A) 7.45pm

31 July v Falkirk (A) 3pm

2 August v Johnstone (A) 7.45pm

4 August v AFC Fylde (A) 7.45pm

6 August v Osasuna (H) TBC

7 August v Barrow (A) 3pm

Chelsea

17 July v Crystal Palace (A) 3pm

23 July v Ajax (A) 8pm

1 August v Eintracht Frankfurt (A) 3pm

4 August v Hamburg (A) 8pm

Everton

10 July v Sydney FC (A) 7.30pm

14 July v Melbourne Heart (A) 7.30pm

17 July v Brisbane Roar (A) 7.30pm

24 July v Preston North End (A) 3pm

31 July v Norwich City (A) 3pm

4 August v Everton Chile (H) 8pm

7 August v Wolfsburg (A) 4pm

Fulham

14 July v Brentford (A) 8pm

17 July v Bournemouth (A) 3pm

31 July v Portsmouth (A) 3pm

Liverpool

17 July v Al Hilal (A) 6pm

21 July v Grasshopper (A) 6.30pm

24 July v Kaiserslautern (A) TBC

1 August v Borussia Mönchengladbach (A) 1.30pm

Manchester City

23rd July v Sporting Lisbon (A, New York Football Challenge) 8pm

25 July v New York Red Bulls (A, New York Football Challenge) 3pm

28 July v Club America (A) 8pm

31 July v Internazionale (A) 8pm

4 August v Borussia Dortmund (A) 8pm

Manchester United

16 July v Celtic (N) TBC

21 July v Philadelphia Union (A) 7.30pm

25 July v Kansas City Wizards (A) 5pm

28 July v MLS All-Stars (N) 6pm

4 August v League of Ireland XI (N) TBC

Newcastle United

17 July v Carlisle United (A) TBC

24 July v Norwich City (A) 3pm

31 July v PSV Eindhoven (H) TBC

7 August v Rangers (A) TBC

Stoke City

22 July v Nantwich Town (A) 7pm

22 July v Notts County (A) 7.45pm

24 July v Newcastle Town (A) 2.30pm

27 July v Derby County (A) 7.45pm

31 July v Burnley (H) 3pm

3 August v Bristol Rovers (A) 7.45pm

6 August v Wrexham (A) 7.45pm

Sunderland

17 July v Darlington (A) 3pm

Tottenham Hotspur

10 July v Bournemouth (A) 3pm

17 July v San Jose Earquakes (A) TBC

29 July v Villarreal (H) 8pm

3 August v Benfica (A) 7.45pm

7 August v Fiorentina (H) 3pm

West Bromwich Albion

20 July v Crewe Alexandra (A) 7.30pm

24 July v Bristol Rovers (A) 3pm

West Ham United

24 July v Burton Albion (A) 3pm

Wigan Athletic

20 July v Oldham (A) 7.45pm

4 August v Real Zaragoza (H) 7.45pm

8 August v Dundee United (A) 3pm

Wolverhampton Wanderers

17 July v Bohemians (A) 3pm

20 July v Walsall (A) 7.45pm

24 July v Charleroi (A) TBC

27 July v Reading (A) 8pm

30 July v Cheltenham Town (A) 7.45pm

31 July v Leeds United (A) 3pm

3 August v Hearts (A) 7pm

7 August v Athletic Bilbao (H) 3pm

Premier LeagueArsenalAston VillaBirmingham CityBlackburn RoversBlackpoolBolton WanderersChelseaEvertonFulhamLiverpoolManchester CityManchester UnitedNewcastle UnitedStoke CitySunderlandTottenham HotspurWest BromWest Ham UnitedWigan AthleticWolverhampton Wanderersguardian.co.uk

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Apr 12

Football transfer rumours: Diego Forlán to Liverpool?

Today’s bumpf wants to fly like an eagle. To the sea

Ah, spring is finally in the air chez Mill. For some that means long, lazy walks in the park, frappachinos on the pavement and the tantalising promise of a sizzling summer to come. For the Mill it means rheumy eyes, a runny nose, itchy throat and the sort of wheezy, ragged breath usually only heard on those special grown-up phonelines.

On the bright side, though, the first hints of summer mean the rumour amplifier gets turned up to 11 and the figures start flying. Take the weekend talk around Anfield: Liverpool will this week organise a refinancing package of £300m, Rafa Benítez wants £60m to spend – “a top-class player is about £20m. I think we need three” – and Diego Forlán is a £16m summer target. The Reds will swell their coffers with the £4m sale of Yossi Benayoun to CSKA Moscow and the £5m sale of Albert Riera to whoever will take him.

Any summer spree at Anfield will be a car boot sale, though, compared to the megahypermart of commerce that will be the City of Manchester Stadium. City were yesterday linked with a £50m move for Arsenal’s Cesc Fábregas, but Werder Bremen’s scarily-eyed German playmaker Mesut Özil is also on the shopping list, as is Roma’s fluffy-haired Montenegrin trequartista Mirko Vucinic, Hamburg’s reassuringly robust defender Jerome Boateng, Bari’s horizontally-eyebrowed Italian international centre-back Leonardo Bonucci, and Schalke’s boyishly-smiling Germany Under-21 international defensive lynchpin Benedikt Höwedes. Tuttosport also reports that Juventus are in talks with City over a move for Gianluigi Buffon.

Manchester United’s summer spending will be feeble by comparison, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be some movement at Old Trafford. Fabio will cope with the annoyance of watching his identical twin playing in the first team by heading off on loan to Sporting Lisbon, while Sir Alex Ferguson fancies Napoli’s £16m-rated Marek Hamsik. A goalkeeper is also a high priority. Lazio’s Fernando Muslera has apparently signed a new five-year deal in Rome, so Ferguson will turn his attention to Schalke’s Manuel Neuer. He faces competition from Arsenal, however.

Tottenham want Micah Richards and are willing to pay £8m for the Manchester City defender, which is a bit awkward as City want £15m. Spurs have also offered a trial to Malta’s Under-17 captain Michael Camilleri.

Stoke will pounce on Cardiff’s Joe Ledley like a cat with £6m in used notes in its maw and raid Hull like a pillaging Viking in order to snap up £2m-rated Steven Mouyokolo. And speaking of the Championship, Palace’s Julian Speroni is off to join Neil Warnock at QPR and Middlesbrough clearly haven’t learned the lesson of Afonso Alves because now they’re after FC Emmen’s 10-goal striker Ruud ter Heide.

And finally Sunderland are on the verge of signing Cruz Azul’s Paraguayan midfielder Cristian Riveros, Hilário will tell Sporting Lisbon to stick it, and Everton are back in for Leeds’ Jermaine Beckford.

LiverpoolManchester UnitedTottenham HotspurManchester CityPremier LeagueJohn Ashdownguardian.co.uk

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Feb 02

Robbie Keane’s exit helps Harry Redknapp solve Spurs striker surplus

• New Celtic striker was ‘Mr Angry’ when out of team
• Spurs manager has only two forwards for FA Cup replay

Robbie Keane’s move to Celtic means Harry Redknapp has only two strikers available for tomorrow’s FA Cup fourth-round replay against Leeds United at Elland Road, but the Tottenham manager said that the Republic of Ireland international’s loan deal has saved him from a greater problem in the long run.

Redknapp said it was difficult to tell whether his team’s attacking strength had been improved by the departure of Keane and the arrival of Eidur Gudjohnsen but he felt he had at least one striker too many once it became clear that Roman Pavlyuchenko was staying.

“Pavlyuchenko wouldn’t have gone to Birmingham or Stoke but Robbie was desperate to go and play for Celtic,” he said. “It solved a problem for me as well.”

Keane’s desperation to move to a club he supported as a boy – just 12 months after he returned to Tottenham from another of his childhood teams, Liverpool – stemmed from his falling behind Jermain Defoe, Peter Crouch and Pavlyuchenko in the White Hart Lane pecking order. Defoe and Crouch will start against Leeds because Pavlyuchenko has a groin problem and Gudjohnsen played today in a friendly against Dagenham & Redbridge.

Keane, who has scored only one league goal since getting four in the 5-0 rout of Burnley in September, is expected to return to north London in the summer: “I would be surprised if Celtic have the money to buy him,” said Redknapp, who believes that the former Chelsea and Barcelona forward Gudjohnsen gives him greater options than the disaffected Ireland captain, whom he described as “Mr Angry” when he is not playing.

“It would have been a problem for Robbie, he wouldn’t have been happy not playing. Crouchy and Defoe have done well and I’ve got Eidur Gudjohnsen who can do the same job. He plays the same type of role as Robbie and he can also play in midfield for me.”

Keane’s departure will be felt in the dressing room, according to Redknapp, who has handed the captaincy to Michael Dawson for tomorrow in the absence of Ledley King. The manager had no hesitation in giving the armband to Dawson at a time when Fabio Capello is deciding whether to strip John Terry of the England captaincy following allegations about the Chelsea defender’s private life.

“I don’t want to second-guess what the England manager is going to do, I’m sure he will make his own decision” said Redknapp. “But there have to be standards. Footballers are young men but they are role models and they are setting examples to kids out there – and they have to set the right examples.

Tottenham HotspurHarry RedknappTransfer windowPremier LeagueFA CupMikey Staffordguardian.co.uk

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