De Gea insists Man Utd capable of Champions League comeback

Manchester United
goalkeeper David de Gea feels they're capable of defeating Champions League opponents Olympiacos tomorrow night.
The Reds have work to do in the second leg of the Champions League last 16 tie against the Greek champions after falling to a tame 2-0 defeat in Athens.
"We know we didnﾡﾯt play a good match in Greece," the goalkeeper told UEFA.com. "They were better than us and they won.
"But now there is the return leg at Old Trafford and I think that, with our fans behind us, we have to go onto the pitch and fight and attack from the first minute. By playing and pressing well, we still have a good chance.
"We will give everything we have and play a lot better than we did there. With the atmosphere and the team we have, we can succeed and hopefully reach the next round."

DO WHAT?!! Man Utd now bundled out of Lancashire Senior Cup by Bolton!

More misery was suffered by Manchester United
yesterday after they were knocked out of the Lancashire Senior Cup.
United conceded a late equaliser to Bolton Wanderers
and were beaten 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out in the Lancashire Senior Cup quarter-final.
Warren Joyce's holders lost the grip on the trophy despite leading for much of the game through a Joe Rothwell spot-kick as Zach Clough popped up with a late equaliser for the dogged Trotters.

Olympiacos coach Michel saw Liverpool thrash Man Utd

Olympiacos
coach Michel was at Old Trafford on Sunday to see Champions League opponents Manchester United lose to Liverpool.
The Athens-based side secured their 41st title with five games to spare after a 2-0 win over Panthrakikos.
ﾡﾰAfter the celebrations and the joy, we will be ready for United,ﾡﾱ he said. ﾡﾰThe league title will make the trip more enjoyable. But we need to stay focused.
ﾡﾰIf we think we have the upper hand in the tie, we will fail.ﾡﾱ

Liverpool to launch ?25M bid for Benfica attacker Rodrigo

Liverpool
are preparing a massive bid for Benfica attacker Rodrigo Moreno.
The Mirror says Liverpool
are plotting a ?25million summer swoop for Benfica striker Rodrigo.
The forward, 23, has been in fine form this season with 10 goals so far.
He scored in Benfica
's 3-1 win at Spurs last week in the Europa League.
Reds' boss Brendan Rodgers is monitoring Rodrigo closely this season and is ready to step up his interest in the summer to get his man.

Man Utd player-coach Giggs furious over Moyes bust-up claims

Manchester United
player-coach Ryan Giggs is furious over claims of a bust-up with manager David Moyes.
The Manchester Evening News says Giggs is angry that the rumour mongers have turned to an alleged but unfounded break up of his relationship with the beleaguered manager as the latest focal point to fuel a crisis at the Reds and de-stabilise the Moyes regime.
Giggs was appointed to Moyesﾡﾯ coaching staff when he took over from Sir Alex Ferguson
but has used the veteran sparingly this season.
His absence from Unitedﾡﾯs starting XI since the win at home to Cardiff City
at the end of January and four bench appearances before being overlooked for the 18 on duty against Liverpool has sparked the latest allegations of dressing room unrest.

Man Utd striker Bebe scores for Pacos de Ferreira

Manchester United
winger Bebe was on the mark for loan club Pacos de Ferreira on the weekend.
Portuguese winger Bebe was on the mark again as he helped Pacos de Ferreira to a 2-1 Primeira Liga win over Vitoria de Guimaraes - the club he left to join Manchester United
.
His celebrations following the strike were somewhat muted, out of respect for his former employers, but Bebe will be pleased with his latest goal for Pacos as it takes his tally up to four in 16 appearances.

Vieira excited about Man City whizkid Lopes

Manchester City
academy chief Patrick Vieira is delighted with the development of Marcos Lopes.
The 18 year-old has tasted first team football this season.
Vieira told the Manchester Evening News: ﾡﾰMarcos is a fantastic talent. He shows it week after week at youth level, but when you go to the first team it is a different level. He played really well at West Ham, and showed he can be a player for City in the next few years.
ﾡﾰWhat is important is he showed how good he is but at the same time he knows he has not finished improving and learning.
ﾡﾰHopefully next year he will be with the first team, and being with the likes of Yaya Toure and David Silva
will help to make him a better player."

Australia lands top seed for 2015 Asian Cup

Hosts Australia have been named the top seed for the 2015 Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup.
The Socceroos will compete in just their third Asian Cup finals next year and will hold the mantle of number one seed after organizers released the draw process on Monday.
Australia will occupy the A1 position of Pot 1 of the four pots ahead of Iran, Japan and Uzbekistan despite the fact they are ranked sixth in the region on the FIFA rankings.
The four highest ranked countries, according to the AFC, will be slotted in Pot 1 with the remaining 12 teams to make up Pot 2, Pot 3 and Pot 4 for the draw which will take place in Sydney
next Wednesday.
The 2015 Asian Cup seedings are:
Pot 1 (teams ranked 1-4): Australia, Iran, Japan, Uzbekistan
Pot 2 (teams ranked 5-8): Korea Republic, UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia
Pot 3 (teams ranked 9-12): Oman, China, Qatar, Iraq
Pot 4 (teams ranked 13-16): Bahrain, Kuwait, DPR Korea and Challenge Cup 2014 winners.
The 2015 Asian Cup takes place in Australia from January 9-31, 2015. Matches will be played in Melbourne, Sydney
, Brisbane, Newcastle and the capital Canberra.
Australia currently sit sixth behind Iran, Japan, Uzbekistan, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates in FIFAﾡﾯs Asian rankings.

Mabbutt calls for patience from Spurs fans

Former Tottenham
captain Gary Mabbutt has urged patience from fans.
Spurs face missing out on the top four this season.
Mabbutt told talkSPORT: "It is a work in progress. Our latest acquisitions - the seven or eight players we signed last summer - have been at the club for the last six months.
"All of us want things to happen immediately, but it doesn't happen that way in football. Look at Liverpool
. They were successful throughout the 80s, they have had a bit of a lull over these few years, but suddenly now they are developing, building up, and coming back to full strength. That is where we are at the moment."

Fulham winger Dejagah reveals greater defensive focus

Fulham
winger Askham Dejagah has revealed a new defensive role he's being asked to do.
Dejagah knows Felix Magath only too well from their time together in Germany where the manager earned a reputation as something of a slavedriver, and expects even more hard yards over the next vital six weeks.
Dejagah said: ﾡﾰThe manager said: ﾡﾮyour job is to score goals and work in defence as wellﾡﾯ. He told me this all the time and in Germany as well.
ﾡﾰThat is why he put me on the left side so I can I can cut in and shoot.
ﾡﾰItﾡﾯs not easy if you play every week with pressure, but maybe we can now be a little more relaxed in games."

Espanyol battling to keep hold of Everton target Sergio Garcia

Espanyol
are moving to open new contract talks with Sergio Garcia.
The experienced striker is a £3 million target for Everton
boss Roberto Martinez.
Espanyol
are in contact with Sergio Garcia's agent. Xavi Diaz, about extending his deal, which has just over a year to run.

Chunnamﾡﾯs Cornthwaite still holding World Cup hope

Robert Cornthwaite says he will do everything in his power to force his way into Australiaﾡﾯs World Cup
squad.
The 28-year old centre-back, currently with South Korean side Chunnam Dragons, has played for the Socceroos on eight occasions but is hoping he can string some solid months together in order to win a surprise call into Ange Postecoglouﾡﾯs roster for Brazil 2014.
ﾡﾰThe World Cup
is a few months away and the clock is ticking and people are running out of time,ﾡﾱ Cornthwaite told au.fourtfourtwo.com.
ﾡﾰBut until that squad is named in May, Iﾡﾯll be doing everything I can to get my name in there. The only way to do that is to start playing here regularly and playing well.
ﾡﾰThe K-League is a really competitive league, a high standard, so if Iﾡﾯm playing regularly thatﾡﾯll help. Itﾡﾯs always encouraging to see Wilko (Jeonbuk Hyundaiﾡﾯs Alex Wilkinson) or (Shandong Luneng) Ryan McGowan
, in China, get selected to know the selectors are watching.
ﾡﾰFingers crossed but even if things donﾡﾯt work out for the World Cup
, Iﾡﾯve still got my eye on the (2015) Asian Cup. Iﾡﾯm only 28 so I still feel like Iﾡﾯve got something to offer the Australia set-up if I get the chance.ﾡﾱ

Burnley striker Ings calm over Southampton, Liverpool rumours

Burnley
striker Danny Ings has shrugged off fresh transfer speculation.
Ings is being linked with Liverpool
and Southampton.
"Obviously you're aware of it, you can't really miss it nowadays with social media and stuff like that," he said.
"But the way I see it is that I use it as confidence to take it to my season with Burnley
."

Arsenal midfielder Rosicky amazed by wide open title race

Arsenal
midfielder Tomas Rosicky is amazed by this season's title race.
Rosicky struck the winner at Tottenham
on Sunday.
"Since I have been in England and playing for Arsenal
, it is the first time it has been like this, with four teams basically fighting for the title.
"You can see how unpredictable it is - we lost at Stoke (last weekend), Chelsea
lost at (Aston) Villa (on Saturday), so every game is very important for everyone.
"It can change very, very quickly in two games and of course you talk about Chelsea
and Man City, but you have to talk about Liverpool also."

Javi Garcia determined to win over Man City boo-boys

Javi Garcia is determined to win over Manchester City
fans.
The Spaniard is yet to convince the City support.
He said: "When you play regularly, you can show your quality, and the most important thing for me is to win three points and keep working for the Premier League title.
"I try to hear nothing from the fans! Maybe six months ago, 10 months ago, people maybe didn't say anything good to me and now I try to do my job.
"Now maybe the fans are happier with me, but I just try to do my job, and I try to do the same things I did six months ago.
"I feel better now in the country, in the team and in the club."

Man City midfielder Javi Garcia: Improving English helping form

Manchester City
midfielder Javi Garcia feels his improving English is helping his form.
Garcia has made an effort to learn the English language in a bid to fit in.
He said: "For me it is so important to speak with my team-mates, and from the beginning it was so difficult.
"At the training ground I like to joke with my team-mates. At the beginning that was difficult, but now I can speak a little bit with my friends.
"When you feel good off the pitch, you feel better on it. Maybe this season after Christmas I have done my job better."

Ex-Liverpool, Rangers, Athens defender Kyrgiakos joins Sydney Olympic

Greek veteran Sotirios Kyrgiakos has signed with National Premier League NSW club Sydney
Olympic.
The 34-year old centre-back has signed on with Olympic for a two-game guest stint in a bid to raise the profile of the club.
The former Liverpool
, Rangers and AEK Athens man said it was a great opportunity for him to return to a country where there is so much Greek history.
"When I met Sydney
Olympic Technical Director Arthur Diles in Athens I was instantly excited by the opportunity to visit a country I briefly visited in 2006 when Greece played Australia in Melbourne,ﾡﾱ Kyrgiakos said during a media briefing.
ﾡﾰAlthough just a friendly match I will never forget nearly 100,000 people at the stadium that night and the amount of support we had from the Greek Australians.
ﾡﾰWhen I was briefed on the great history of (Sydney
Olympic) and the formation of the Pan-Hellenic Soccer Club in 1957 by Greek migrants, I was on board.
ﾡﾰGreeks in foreign countries have achieved so much.
ﾡﾰI am aware of the great progress football is making in Australia, attracting star players like (Alessandro) Del Piero, (William) Gallas and (Emile) Heskey. I cannot wait to play this Sunday."
Kyrgiakos started his professional career with Athens-based Panathinaikos
in 1998 before joining Scottish side Rangers in 2005 where he helped the Glasgow outfit win that seasonﾡﾯs Scottish Premier League title.
A 2006 move to Germanyﾡﾯs Eintracht Frankfurt
followed before he returned to Greece with AEK in 2008 prior to his move to Anfield in 2009. The 61-times capped Greece international then found himself back in Germany with Wolfsburg, where he was sent for a brief loan to Sunderland, before ending his time with die Wolfe last year.

Dnipro president reveals Spurs talks over Konoplyanka sale

Dnipro president Ihor Kolomoyskyi has revealed Tottenham
are in talks for Yevhen Konoplyanka.
Konoplyanka was close to signing for Liverpool
in January after Anfield bosses flew out Ian Ayre to Ukraine to negotiate a transfer.
"I have contact with the Tottenham
president. I am talking with him," Kolomoysky told Ukrainian TV channel 2+2.
"He is interested in Konoplyanka. We are in the stage of negotiations and are perhaps close to signing a contract if Yehven agrees.
"I would choose Tottenham
- London - not Liverpool.
"There are matches only once or twice a week, and at other times he will still need somewhere to live.
"I believe London life is preferable to Liverpool
."

Ashworth happy seeing Collison make it at West Ham

English FA chief Dan Ashworth is delighted seeing Jack Collison
make the grade at West Ham United.
Ashworth was Collison's Academy coach at both Peterborough United
and Cambridge United.
"Yes, that was a good few years ago now!" Ashworth told West Ham TV. "Jack initially came through the youth system at Peterborough when I was there and then came to Cambridge before he got a move to West Ham at the age of 16.
"Jack was always an exceptional player and he was always very professional in his approach to everything he did and I'm delighted he's become an established Premier League player.
"He is another one who graduated at West Ham, who have a fantastic track record of producing young players for their own team, for other teams and of course for the national team. He is another one to come off the conveyor belt of talented West Ham players."

Stoke keeper Begovic flattered by Man Utd, Real Madrid rumours

Stoke City
goalkeeper Asmir Begovic is flattered by rumours linking him with Manchester United and Real Madrid.
Begovic has established himself as one of the leading goalkeepers in the Premier League with the Britannia Stadium outfit.
The Bosnian international said: "There is no truth as far as I'm aware. I've not had contact with either club.
"From my point of view it's flattering to hear those words - two of the biggest clubs in the world - but I'm just enjoying playing my football here.
"I've enjoyed my time here and don't want that to change but everyone has ambitions to go as far in the game as possible but there's been no contact."

FIFA insist no Qatar corruption for WC 2022

Footballﾡﾯs world governing body FIFA have made it vehemently clear that there was no wrongdoing in Qatarﾡﾯs successful World Cup
hosting bid.
The Arabic nation won the rights to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup
back in 2011 amidst claims that there was plenty of corruption surrounding their bid.
The Daily Telegraph has claimed that former Asian Football Confederation president Mohammed Bin Hammam ﾨC a Qatari native ﾨC made payments of millions of dollars via his company to fellow former FIFA executive committee member Jack Warner to win over the Caribbean Football Unionﾡﾯs vote.
Both men have seen their careers as football administrators ended as a result but FIFA have made it clear that there was absolutely no sinister actions during the Qatari bid process.
"The 2022 Bid Committee strictly adhered to FIFA's bidding regulations in compliance with their code of ethics,ﾡﾱ read a FIFA statement issued to Sky Sports News.
"The Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy and the individuals involved in the 2022 Bid Committee are unaware of any allegations surrounding business dealings between private individuals."

Man Utd fullback Rafael up until 5am before Liverpool thrashing

Manchester United
fullback Rafael was knackered going into their thrashing by Liverpool.
The Mirror says Rafael only had a few hours sleep before the 3-0 home defeat to Liverpool
- as he was at the birth of his latest child.
Right-back Rafael gave away the penalty that handed the Anfield side the lead and was also booked for a wild tackle on Steven Gerrard
.
However the Old Trafford star at least had a genuine excuse for his display as he only got to his bed about 5am after being with his wife in hospital.
Rafael wanted to be at the birth - with the blessing of boss David Moyes - and his pre-match plans were disrupted as a result.

Gibbs: People have questioned Arsenal character

Arsenal
fullback Kieran Gibbs hailed the character shown for victory at Tottenham.
Gibbs admits Arsenal
weren't at their fluent best at White Hart Lane, but praised the resilience shown by the team after Tomas Rosicky's early goal.
He told Arsenal
Player: "I think we all know what we're capable of. But a lot of the time we're questioned for our character. I think today we've proved people wrong and now that's finished we have many big games left in the season and we have to show that character again and again. That's what will lead us to success.
"We've had to work really hard and we soaked up a lot of good pressure. We got the goal and in the end won convincingly."

Man Utd defender Smalling suffers hamstring injury setback

Manchester United
defender Chris Smalling is out for a month with a hamstring injury.
The centre-half could be missing for three to four weeks just as David Moyes faces a crisis in his defence.
The giant defender damaged his hamstring in training before the Liverpool
thrashing - and now he should be out for the next few games.

Villa boss Lambert: Delph could be anything

Aston Villa
boss Paul Lambert feels the sky's the limit for Fabian Delph.
Delph struck the winner against Chelsea
on Saturday.
ﾡﾰHeﾡﾯs been excellent over the course of the 18 months Iﾡﾯve been here.
ﾡﾰWhat sort of player can he develop into? Youﾡﾯve seen what heﾡﾯs got, thereﾡﾯs massive potential there to be a really top player and if he keeps his feet on the ground, keeps learning, keeps doing what heﾡﾯs doing then weﾡﾯll see where he goes.
ﾡﾰHeﾡﾯs got great energy. Sometimes he wants to hold on to it too long. That will come with more experience, heﾡﾯll release the ball at the right times."

Labour MP backs Rooney's ?300,000 weekly Man Utd wage

Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls says Manchester United
striker Wayne Rooney deserves his ?300,000 weekly wage.
Balls says Rooney deserves the money as its 'genuinely the talent getting pay'.
He told BBC Radio 5 Live's Pienaar's Politics on Sunday night: "Wayne Rooney
now gets paid more a week than all of us probably, certainly me, get paid a year.
"On the other hand I guess there's only one Wayne Rooney
and he plays for Manchester United, he could go anywhere in the world and maybe that's genuinely the talent getting pay.
"And somebody who has a great idea, like Steve Jobs, who invents an iPhone and it gets sold all around the world - in the end you can't say we're going to cut if off at some point."

West Ham academy chief Carr heaps praise on 2-goal Djair Parfitt-Williams

Djair Parfitt-Williams struck twice for West Ham United
U21s in victory over Leicester City.
Bermuda-born Parfitt-Williams struck in either half to fire Steve Potts' men to an impressive seventh successive league success.
"He's a very talented boy," Academy director Tony Carr told whufc.com. "He's still coming to terms with the European and British game, as his background is American.
"He's only in his first year with us as a scholar and hopefully he can progress. But he's very talented, good on the ball and has got an eye for a goal."

Chelsea boss Mourinho big fan of Turkish players

Chelsea
boss Jose Mourinho is a big fan of Turkish football.
Chelsea
meet with Galatasaray in the Champions League tonight.
"I like lots of them but I don't think about them," said Mourinho. "Turkish football pays a lot to the players, sometimes it looks like Financial Fair Play doesn't work there, and we can't compete with the salaries. I have an eye, I know them all and there are some good players."

Tottenham eyeing West Hamﾡﾯs Reid

Tottenham
are believed to be showing considerable interest in West Ham United defender Winston Reid.
The 25-year old centre-back, who captains the New Zealand national team, has emerged as a target for Spurs according to tuttomercatoweb.com who suggest that the north Londoners are pondering a summer move.
Reid, who has also recently been linked with Arsenal
and Manchester United, joined the Hammers from Danish side Midtjylland in 2010 after an impressive World Cup with the All Whites and has since gone on to make close to 100 appearances in all competitions for the east London outfit.
Hammers boss Sam Allardyce was without Reid for around three months earlier this season as he nursed an ankle injury but the Kiwi was back in West Hamﾡﾯs starting line-up for the weekendﾡﾯs 3-1 loss at Stoke City
.
Allardyce would be loath to lose Reid at the end of the season but Tottenham
are reportedly keeping tabs on him as they look to strengthen their central defence which currently consists of injured skipper Michael Dawson, Belgium international Jan Vertonghen (who could move on if they fail to make the Champions League), injury-prone Frenchman Younes Kaboul and Romanian Vlad Chiriches who has at times struggled in England.

Hull beat Villa, Swansea to signing non-league whiz Johan Ter Horst

Hull City
have clinched a deal for non-league striker Johan Ter Horst.
The Hull Daily Mail says Ter Horst has signed a three-year deal at Hull City
, but will remain at non-league Folkestone Invicta for the rest of the season.
Ter Horst has broken the 20-goal barrier in his first full season in senior football to attract the interest of several Premier League sides, including Stoke City
, Swansea City and Aston Villa.
But it is the Tigers who have won the race for his signature and the 18-year-old will go straight into Stephen Clemenceﾡﾯs development squad, although he will still play for promotion-chasing Invicta for the rest of the season.

(Image) MLS Conference standings.

Eastern and Western conferences still extremely competitive at this stage. 
Both the Eastern and Western conferences in MLS remain very close in the race for a play off position, attesting to the competitiveness of MLS.

Although some may bemoan the lack of a super-club in MLS, few can argue with the excitement that the relative parity between teams brings. Eight teams in both the Eastern and Western Conferences are in with a shout at making the play-off positions, and such a constantly changing competitive environment will help the development of the League as a whole. Last year’s MLS Cup finalists, LA Galaxy and Houston Dynamo, are both seeded 5th in their respective conferences.

Henry and Cahill could return in time for New York Red Bulls

Henry missed RBNY’s 2-0 loss to Columbus Crew.
New York Red Bulls could have two designated players back in contention for their home game against the Philadelphia Union on Saturday, according to MLSsoccer. Henry missed Saturday’s 2-0 loss to the Columbus Crew due to an inflamed Achilles, and Tim Cahill has been out of contention since suffering a torn PCL in a tackle with Yordany Alvarez in the Bull’s match against Real Salt Lake at the end of July.

“I fully expect Thierry to be available this weekend, 100 percent,” said  Red Bulls coach Mike Petke. “It was something that I was aware of all (last) week. I didn’t know exactly what was going to happen and then on Thursday, we made a precautionary decision. It was acting up and we went with it.”
“Cahill practiced fully today, 100 percent, no limitations,” added Petke. “That’s a phenomenal sign, obviously. Judging by today’s performance. I’d expect a very good possibility that he’ll be available but we still have three practice sessions to go.”
Despite Cahill’s injury being the more severe of the two, Petke said that Henry’s is one that will always linger.
Still, Petke insisted he was not losing too much sleep over Henry’s recurring Achilles issues.
“It’s been lingering for years but I’m not overly concerned because the one thing I learned from Thierry is he’s finally at a place in his playing career where he wasn’t in the last couple years,” he said. “He would throw caution to the wind (in the past) and not worry about the next day just to get on the field and that’s when he gets the problems. That’s how I was as a player and that’s, in my mind, why I wasn’t able to play a bit longer.
“I’m not concerned. I think (resting him) was the right thing to do and that enables him to, what I consider, be 100 percent available for this weekend, a big game at home against Philly.”
Petke also reported that he would give an update on the fitness of Lloyd Sam on Thursday, who suffered a knock to his left quadriceps in his man of the match performance against Sporting Kansas City on August 3rd, which New York won 3-2.