Steven Gerrard, Liverpool FC
Carling Cup Semi Final Second Leg – Liverpool FC 2-2 Man City
The Carling Cup final will mark Liverpool's first visit to the new Wembley stadium.
'It’s been too long for this club to not be in a major cup final, so it’s nice to finally get there,' said Liverpool Captain, Steven Gerrard.
'It’s going to be superb for myself. I’ve led the boys out at Cardiff before but to lead them out at the new Wembley stadium is going to be a special occasion for myself.
'Tonight was a tough game but we were brave, we were bold and we attacked, and we got our reward.'
This weekend, Liverpool face arch rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup fourth round.
'We’ve got to dust ourselves down and get our recovery in because in just over 48 hours we’ve got a massive game in the FA Cup and we want to do the same in that competition - we want to go a long way.'
After their 2-2 defeat of Man City on aggregate, Liverpool Captain Steven Gerrard remarked that the fans are probably already making plans for Wembley, but his mates should be cautious.
'I’m sure the fans are going home very happy and already planning their trips to Wembley.
Gerrard celebrated scoring his team’s first goal from a penalty with Craig Bellamy and Dirk Kuyt during the Carling Cup Semi Final Second Leg match between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield on January 25, 2012 in Liverpool, England.
Liverpool FC beat Manchester City on aggregate on Wednesday night to advance to the Wembley showdown with City on Sunday February 26.
Liverpool Captain, Steven Gerrard, warned his teammates to be prepared for the game of their lives.
‘A big well done to everyone who has taken part in the Carling Cup so far, but the key message now is that it’s not done,’ he said.
‘Arsenal slipped up against Birmingham last year when they were massive favourites.
‘I’m sure we’ll be massive favourites but we’ve got to show Cardiff respect and put in the kind of performance we put in tonight.
‘It’s going to be the game of their lives, they’re going to be right up for it. They are going to play at a level they’ve not played at before so it’s important that we don’t drop our standards.
‘We’ve got to raise our game and if we do, I’m sure we can lift the cup.’
Gerrard suggested that Craig Bellamy could have a big an impact at Liverpool.
'Craig has been superb since he’s come in, he’s a fantastic professional who works really hard and he got his rewards here,' said Gerrard.
'He was a menace all night - that’s what type of player he is.
'He’s in your face, he runs in behind, he doesn’t let you settle on the ball and I’m sure if he carries on he can have the impact at this club that Gary McAllister did.'
'People sign for this club to play in front of atmospheres like that,' Gerrard said of the Liverpool fans' support during the match.
'The lads are talking about it now, all the new signings.
'We knew it, we knew if we could stay in this tie until the second leg that we’d have a huge advantage with our supporters. They were the key tonight.
'It was the kind of response we all wanted. The manager had a go at us and rightly so, and it was important that we showed the fans a massive reaction.'
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Harry Redknapp, Tottenham Hotspur Mananger
Spurs’ Manager, Harry Redknapp, Accused of Tax Evasion
Tottenham Hotspur boss, Harry Redknapp, has spoken to his assistant Kevin Bond before and after each day of current his tax case, with much of the discussion related to the team selection for Friday night's FA Cup fourth-round clash with Watford.
Harry Redknapp is accused of two counts of cheating the public revenue when he was manager of Portsmouth Football Club. Redknapp will be tried alongside the then Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandaric.
Both men deny the charges and a two-week trial is due to began at London’s Southwark Crown Court on January 23.
In a police interview played to the jury on the fourth day of his trial, Redknapp explained that he left all financial management to his accountant.
Redknapp is charged with receiving a transfer “bung” of £187,000 from former Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandaric during his time as manager of the club.
Reportedly, the funds were paid into a secret Moncao bank account opened under the codename ‘Rosie 47’ to avoid tax.
“My accountant runs my life, I don’t have wage slips, I have not seen a wage slip in 10 years.I don’t see bank statements,” said Redknapp.
“I have a big problem, I can’t write, so I don’t keep anything. I’m the most disorganised person and I’m ashamed to say in the world, I can’t work a computer, I don’t know what an email is, I can’t, I have never sent a fax and I’ve never sent a text message.
“Malcolm Webber runs my life - he writes the cheques for me and my wife. I have never wrote a letter in my life. I write like a two year-old and I can’t spell. You talk to anyone at the football club, I don’t write, I couldn’t even fill a teamsheet in.”
“Malcolm rang me up three weeks ago and said, ‘Harry, I’ve got some good news’, I said what was that, he said: ‘You have got a £70,000 bonus for getting to the Carling Cup final.’ I don’t have my contract.”
“Malcolm rang me and said: ‘Harry where’s your payments from The Sun.’ I said I don’t know. Where are they, in the bank aren’t they? You ring The Sun, they hadn’t paid me for 18 months.”
Redknapp also told police that he had refused a £200,000 pay-off from Portsmouth when he left the club because “he did not want their money”.
“We fell out, I got fed up with him,” Redknapp said. “Milan got the needle, I became bigger than him at the club and he didn’t like that.”
“I said I don’t want their money,” Redknapp told police. “Tell them to give it to the youth football in Portsmouth. So I’m not going to be involved in a tax fiddle in Monaco, it’s impossible. Why was I going to fiddle £20,000 to £30,000 when I walked away from £200,000 of their money. I don’t need to fiddle.”
Redknapp’s defence counsel, John Kelsey-Fry QC, detailed a list of Redknapp’s failed investments including a £250,000 loan to a friend who was bidding to buy Oxford United that “disappeared into the mist”.
He asked about Redknapp’s bank relationship manager Alan Hills: “Do you remember an occasion when he was persuaded to loan, at very short notice, £250,000 to buy Oxford United and that money just disappeared into the mist?”
Hills replied: “I have never seen it, yes.”
Kelsey-Fry put it to Hills that “to describe Mr Redknapp as a hard-headed businessman with considerable financial acumen is putting it rather high?”
“Mr Redknapp has a very good knowledge of property and when it comes to property he has been involved he has done well. But when it comes to share investments done on the indexes it is fair to say they were very unsuccessful.”
Hills also told the court he was given conflicting explanations as to why more than £187,000 in alleged “bungs” was paid into the Monaco bank account, and that he was not told about the account until six years after it had been opened.
Hills said he was originally told the money in the account was a gift from Mandaric, but was later informed that it was connected with a bonus owed to Redknapp from the sale of Peter Crouch to Aston Villa in 2002.
Redknapp and Mandaric both deny two counts of cheating the public revenue. The trial continues on Friday, with Redknapp expected to attend Tottenham’s FA Cup fourth-round tie against Watford at Vicarage Road tonight following proceedings.
Redknapp was born in Poplar, London. His previous Clubs are: AFC Bournemouth, West Ham United, Southampton, and Portsmouth before coming to Tottenham Hotspur. His honors include FA Cup: 2008; First Division: 2003; Third Division: 1987; InterToto Cup: 1999.
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Zlatan Ibrahimovic, AC Milan
Zlatan Ibrahimovic was awarded the AIC Trophy during the Gran Gala del Calcio Aic 2011 awards Ceremony at Teatro dal Verme on January 23, 2012 in Milan, Italy. The Oscar del Calcio are awards given by the Italian Footballers’ Association (the AIC) to the players, the coach and the referee who has been considered to have performed the best over the previous Serie A season. The winners of the prizes are chosen by the league’s footballers.
Along with Ibrahimovic in the 2011 AIC Team of the Year were: Antonio Di Natale, Edinson Cavani, Kevin Prince Boateng, Thiago Motta/Claudio Marchisio (joint winners), Marek Hamsik, Pablo Armero, Andrea Ranocchia/Alessandro Nesta (joint winners), Thiago Silva and Christian Maggio.
At mid-season in an exciting Italian Serie A campaign, AC Milan’s superstar striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has moved to the top of the list of the Italian League’s top goalscorers along with Antonio Di Natale at 14 goals each.
Juventus is one point ahead of AC Milan at the top of Serie A, AC Milan has won the most matches to date – 12, and scored the most goals of any club – 40. Juventus has lost the fewest matches – 0, and scored the most goals per match – 2.16. AC Milan, Fiorentina, Juventus, Udinese each have 10 clean sheets – the most in the league.
SERIE A TOP GOALSCORERS
| 1 |
Zlatan Ibrahimovic |
AC Milan |
14 |
| |
Antonio Di Natale |
Udinese |
14 |
| 3 |
Germán Denis |
Atalanta |
12 |
| 4 |
Edinson Cavani |
Napoli |
11 |
| 5 |
Miroslav Klose |
Lazio |
9 |
| |
Stevan Jovetic |
Fiorentina |
9 |
| |
Rodrigo Palacio |
Genoa |
9 |
| 8 |
Diego Milito |
Internazionale |
8 |
| |
Sebastian Giovinco |
Parma |
8 |
| |
Emanuele Calaiò |
Siena |
8 |
| 11 |
Alessandro Matri |
Juventus |
7 |
| |
Pablo Daniel Osvaldo |
AS Roma |
7 |
| 13 |
David Di Michele |
Lecce |
6 |
| |
Adrian Mutu |
Cesena |
6 |
| |
Fabrizio Miccoli |
Palermo |
6 |
| |
Claudio Marchisio |
Juventus |
6 |
| |
Antonio Nocerino |
AC Milan |
6 |
| |
Marek Hamsik |
Napoli |
6 |
| |
Marco Rigoni |
Novara |
6 |
| 20 |
Marco Di Vaio |
Bologna |
5 |
| |
Simone Pepe |
Juventus |
5 |
| |
Goran Pandev |
Napoli |
5 |
| |
Francesco Lodi |
Catania |
5 |
| |
Giampaolo Pazzini |
Internazionale |
5 |
| |
Mattia Destro |
Siena |
5 |
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Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick, Man United
Carling Cup, FA Cup, Man Utd, Man City, Liverpool, Chelsea FC, Arsenal, Spurs, Liverpool FC and Champions League Football Tickets Available For All Matches
Do not miss the chance to watch your favorite clubs and players in action including Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie, Gareth Bale, Fernando Torres, Sergio Auguero, and Edin Dzeko. Manchester United is only 3 points behind Manchester City at the top of the Premier League, followed by Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea FC. All the top teams are clashing with other popular clubs this week.
POPULAR ENGLAND FOOTBALL TICKETS
Liverpool v Manchester City Tickets Carling Cup 25 Jan 2012 19:45 Anfield Road Liverpool, United Kingdom VIEW LIVERPOOL V MAN CITY TICKETS
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Antonio Valencia Scores Opener For Man Utd
Manchester United 2-1 Arsenal FC
Manchester United's win over Arsenal FC today took them to within three points of Manchester City at the top of the Barclays Premier League.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger received criticism for his substitution of Russian Captain Andrey Arshavin for 18 year-old Oxlade-Chamberlain just after Robin van Persie scored Arsenal's opening goal with his aid.
The defeat puts Arsenal five points behind fourth-placed Chelsea.
Robin Van Persie, Arsenal celebrated by Revealing a T-shirt Marking His Grandfather’s 91st birthday.
‘It leaves us in a very difficult position,’ said Wenger, ‘It’s a game we couldn’t afford to lose.’
"I can understand that the fans are upset about the substitution, especially when it doesn't work, but he had started to fatigue,' Wenger said.
'He was sick in the week. Arshavin is captain of the Russia national team.
'You have an 18-year-old kid making his first Premier League start and a player who's captain of his country and they are querying the substitution? Let's be serious.
'I've been a manager for 30 years and have made 50,000 subs. I do not have to justify every decision I make. I stand up for it.'
Arsenal Squad
Szczesny, Djourou (Yennaris 46), Mertesacker, Vermaelen, Koscielny, Rosicky, Song, Ramsey (Park 83), Walcott, Van Persie, Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arshavin 74)
Goal: Van Persie 71
Man Utd Squad
Lindegaard, Jones (Rafael 17, Park 76), Smalling, Evans, Evra, Valencia, Carrick, Giggs, Nani (Scholes 75), Rooney, Welbeck.
Goals: Valencia 45+1, Welbeck 81
Great football tickets are available now for all upcoming Premiership matches:
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2012 Carling Cup - Liverpool FC v Manchester City
Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish was angry with his men following their 3-1 defeat today to Bolton Wanderers - warning that they can find other clubs if they continue to perform in a poor manner.
"As well as they did, I think we were equally as bad, " Dalglish said. "If anybody has any aspirations of staying any length of time at the football club then they'll not be here for much longer if that's the way they want to perform. We expect a much higher level than that.
"It's all well and good saying they might have been distracted because there is a game on Wednesday and another game on Saturday, but every game is a massive game for us. And if they think they can turn the clock on and off, then they won't be turning it on and off at this club."
"The result is disappointing, but the most disappointing thing for me was that I don't think we were ready to play the game," the Scot continued. "I don't think the approach was correct and I don't think the way we went about our work was correct.
"The foundations of the football club have always been built upon respect for other people and the philosophy that the next game is the most important one - not the one that is two or three [games] down the line.
"If they needed a lesson to be taught to them then today was it. If they think they can just turn up and get a result, not be as competitive and not match the opposition for effort and commitment then they've got a lesson today.
"If they've learned it then fine. Without trying to take anything away from Owen [Coyle] and the way Bolton played, we have to look at ourselves and see what we can do to try and prevent it from happening in the future. That's what we'll do."
Liverpool go into the Carling Cup tie against Manchester City on Wednesday at Anfield with a 1-0 lead, and then play host to Manchester United in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday.
Asked whether he felt his players may have had one eye on the cup ties, Dalglish replied: "I never asked them what they were thinking about, but I would assume people would have that idea in their mind. If they did it's not correct. It's not correct in the sense that it is not the right way to go about representing this football club.
"We lost a goal after four minutes, but we've got to make sure we're in there and ready to go before we start the match, and I don't think we were. That's probably why we lost a goal after four minutes.
"There's nobody been at this football club that's not had respect for other people. If that is what the problem was then, that they thought this game wasn't as important a game as the next one, then fine but they'll not be here."
CARLING CUP
Liverpool FC defeated Manchester City in the first leg of their matchup in the Carling Cup Semi-Finals, and the Reds will now try to make it two for two at Anfield this coming Wednesday.
Steven Gerrard’s penalty shot gave Liverpool a hard-earned 1-0 victory at Manchester City in their semi-final first leg. Gerrard converted after 12 minutes when Stefan Savic brought down Daniel Agger in the box.
Liverpool then managed to hold out for the rest of the match to take a one goal advantage in to the second leg at Anfield on January 25th
The ROUND DATES for the 2011/12 Carling Cup are:
Carling Cup Semi Final 2
Carling Cup Final Sunday 26th February 2012 (Wembley Stadium Carling Cup Final Tickets 2012
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Wayne Rooney, Manchester United
Super Sunday Matches
Arsenal FC v Manchester United
If Arsenal hope to be playing in Europe next season they need to beat United in this clash. If City win and Man United loose, the gap at the top of the table will be six points. Arsenal Tickets – Arsenal Football Tickets 2012 - Manchester United Tickets – Man Utd Ticket …
Manchester City v Tottenham Hotspur
If the Spurs are going to be serious title contenders they are going to have to come away from the Etihad Stadium with at least one point.
Tottenham Hotspur Tickets
The energy will be exciting and supporters will be gathered to watch the exciting clashes coming up this Sunday – Super Sunday. Fans of Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal FC and Manchester United will be gathered in stadiums in England - and millions of football enthusiasts world-wide will be watching on TV as well.
Premium
football tickets are still available for the mouth-watering fixtures – do not miss out!
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Manchester United Update
Manchester United is tied with Manchester City up at the top of the Premier League table after a victory against Bolton.
Paul Scholes scored his first goal after his surprise return from retirement and Danny Welbeck and Michael Carrick contributed a goal each in the second half to give Manchester United a 3-0 win over Bolton and draw level with Manchester City at the top of the Premier League.
Carrick advanced in the closing minutes to place a well placed 30-yard shot into the bottom-left corner.
Man Utd manager, Sir Alex Ferguson commented about United’s icy relationship with Arsenal FC in the past and their improved relationship today …
“I don’t think that is the issue. I think it’s because they are different types of teams,” said Ferguson. “The type of player they had, the likes of Vieira, Petit, Henry, Tony Adams and Steve Bould, has been replaced by a different type now. It’s a younger player, a different type altogether. Arsène has not changed his philosophy and it has paid dividends for Arsenal over a long period. He is still trying to do the same things. He is still trying to entertain and to play their football their way.
“You have to go back five or six years for when it was last combustible, when Keane and Vieira had that slanging match in the tunnel. You have to go back a few years. I don’t think it has been anything like that for the last three years. It has calmed down a bit. Do I miss it? That’s a good one.”
He added: “You’ve got to remember that for probably a decade it was us and Arsenal. Then for six years it was us and Chelsea. Now you have City and Tottenham. I always thought that two teams would dominate the final parts of the season but you haven’t got that now.
“You’ve got six teams trying to get into the top four. That is a big change. Tottenham’s progress over the last two years has been fantastic, City’s progress has been fantastic and you’ve got Liverpool. The rivalries are there but it is spread out now.”
“There is no chance it will be as open as that. Arsenal have recovered well, they had a really good period and have qualified for the next stage of the Champions League so I don’t think there is an awful lot wrong there,” he said. “They have also had to contend with a lot of injuries to defenders, particularly to Sagna and Gibbs and it is not easy to be without your two regular full-backs for a long period.”
United face Liverpool in the league and FA Cup, Chelsea away and Spurs away in upcoming clashes.
“We’ve had a couple of wins but only two and we want consistency,” Ferguson added. “Hopefully we can navigate this clutch of games because they will be important for where we end up this season.”
Manchester United Tickets
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Alexandre Pato and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, AC Milan
Copa Italia Quarter Finals Fixtures
| Tue |
24/01/12 |
Juventus |
v |
Roma |
|
|
| Wed |
25/01/12 |
Chievo |
v |
Siena |
|
|
| |
|
Napoli |
v |
Internazionale |
|
|
| Thu |
26/01/12 |
Milan |
v |
Lazio |
Pato scored for Milan in the additional period to seal a 2-1 Coppa Italia win for AC Milan securing their spot in the Copa Italia quarter-finals with a clash with Roma FC.
Alexandre Pato will miss four weeks of action after picking up a thigh injury during the recent match.
The forward, who came close to joining Paris Saint-Germain last week before committing his future to the Serie A champions, picked up the muscle strain during the club's 2-1 extra-time victory against Novara in the Coppa Italia round of 16 on Wednesday.
Coppa Italia or Italian Cup, is an annual knockout football cup tournament in Italy with Telecom Italia Mobile (TIM) the current sponsor of this event.
This competition began in 1923. All professional soccer clubs from both Serie A and Serie B are invited to partipicate. The winner of the Coppa Italia championship, is elegible to play in the UEFA Europa League competition.
At the end of 2010-2011 Italia soccer season both AS Roma and Juventus currently have the most Coppa Italia championships (total 9 titles).
Copa Italia Tickets are available now securely online:
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Manchester United v Arsenal FC Preview
Both Paul Scholes and Thierry Henry may play in the mouth-watering upcoming clash between old rivals Manchester United and Arsenal FC on Sunday, 22 January.
Henry has suffered a calf-strain that may keep him out ot the match.
Midfielder Paul Scholes has now scored 151 goals for the Man Utd in all competitions, making him their 10th highest-ever scorer – moving ahead of Ruud van Nistelrooy’s 150.
Manchester United have the best away record in the Premier League. At this stage last season they are second in the Premiership talble.
The Red Devils have gone 40 league matches without taking part in a goalless draw.
Man Utd superstar, Wayne Rooney has missed two consecutive Premier League penalties. In total, he has missed six of 14 career Premier League penalties (including four of his last eight).
Arsenal have suffered back-to-back league defeats for the second time this season.
Superstar striker, Robin van Persie, has scored 18 Premier League goals this season – equalling his best-ever total in a league season.
Recent Results:
- Swansea City 3-2 Arsenal 15 January 12Premier League
- Man Utd 3-0 Bolton 14 January 12Premier League
Premium Arsenal tickets are available now! FC Arsenal tickets are for sale online.
FA CUP FINAL TICKETS
Sat, May 5 FA CUP FINAL 2012 Tickets – Wembley Stadium, London
FA CUP 4TH ROUND FIXTURES
Saturday, 28 January 2012 Arsenal v Aston Villa Tickets Emirates Stadium 15:00
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