8 February 2005 Spain U21s Set Record Spain have set a new record victory margin for the UEFA U21 championships by beating San Marino 14-0, three more than the previous record. Soriano scored 4 goals and Jarque scored a hat-trick. PSG Sack Halilhodzic PSG have sacked coach Vahid Halilhodzic. The club are 12th in Ligue 1. Robben Back Next Month "One (break) is a chip on the side of his foot, the other is a small break on the third metatarsal but this is not the traditional metatarsal that has become so famous since the last World Cup and which has kept Scott Parker out for two months, the fractures are tiny and he could be playing next month." - Chelsea physio Mike Banks Brescia Sack Di Biasi Brescia have sacked coach Gianni De Biasi. Serie A to Adopt Spanish Rule For Abandoned Matches As from next season any match abandoned in Serie A will no longer be replayed instead Serie A will follow the La Liga example and play the remaining minutes at a later date. Early Start For Serie A Next Season Next season's Serie A championship will start on August the 28th and run until May the 14th in order to help the Italian national team prepare for the 2006 World Cup. Ronny Johnsen Retires Former Manchester United defender Ronny Johnsen has announced his retirement from football after being released by Newcastle last month. The 35 year old was part of Manchester United's treble winning side of 1999. He struggled with injuries following a shocking foul by Michel Owen in 1999? before leaving Manchester United for Aston Villa in 2002. He put his injuries behind him to make 49 appearances in two seasons for Villa before joining Newcastle this season. 7 February 2005 Owen Has 'Proven Himself' Real Madrid bench warmer Michael Owen feels he has proven himself in La Liga : "If I came home tomorrow, I would know that I have proved my abilities. I think about it a lot because I've got a lot of time to think over here (because he spends most of it on the bench?) and especially when I come back to meet up with England. Every time I join up, I feel I am coming back as a better, stronger player. People wonder whether English players can make it abroad, particularly strikers, and I believe I've passed that test. I'm into double figures (7 in the league) and I'm scoring goals as often as anyone in Spain considering my time on the pitch, or lack of it." Mido - 'Roma Never Gave me a Chance' Talented Egyptian nut job Mido has criticised Roma for failing to give him a chance : "The last period was tough and was like a bottle-neck in my career. Some people in Roma tried to destroy me and didn't give me the chance to prove myself with the team. I'm happy with the decision I took to play for Tottenham which my heart chose. My team-mates have helped me a lot since I came to London. I practiced very well last week under coach Martin Jol and I thank God for the two goals. I am glad to be part of this great team which is considered one of England's ancient clubs." Jol Delight At Free Mido "He (Mido) wanted to come for six months and then I talked with him and he made a decision to come for 18 months. You cannot ask for more. We have a player for 18 months and we don't have to pay a fee." - Tottenham Coach Martin Jol Real Not Interested in Homesick Reyes Real Madrid director Arrigo Sacchi has dismissed reports linking the club with a summer move to Arsenal winger Jose Antonio Reyes : "Real Madrid are not thinking of Reyes or any other player for next season at the moment. Our objective is to work, day to day, in search of success. I don't want to speak about Reyes because he is an Arsenal player and his position is sufficiently covered in the team." Reyes' poor form since returning from injury is blamed on his girlfriends homesickness. 4 February 2005 Mourinho Names his Favourite English Coach "I like Middlesbrough. I like Steve McClaren. However, the coach that I like best in English football is Chris Coleman. He is a great leader. The messages he sends to his team in the good and bad moments mean he can coach a great team. He has presence. He's able to change his team in a game." - Jose Mourinho Edu Begs to Play Edu has pleaded with Arsene Wenger to play him after his move to Valencia broke down because Arsenal were unwilling to let the midfielder go without receiving compensation : "I don't want people to think I am just going to run down my contract, steer clear of injury and get a nice signing-on fee. I am different. I am not a mercenary who just wants to play in the reserves, or go home to Brazil and count the money. Some players are like that, I know that but I am not one of them. I have now been fully fit for six weeks but have not considered, yet I am match-fit and ready to play for the team." Manchester United set to Increase Old Trafford Capacity Manchester United have been granted planning permission to increase the capacity of Old Trafford by an additional 7,900 seats to 76,000. Work is expected to be completed in time for the start of the 2006-2007 season and will bring an additional €7.30 million in revenue every season. Stam Blames Ferguson for Kitchen Nightmare Jaap Stam speaking ahead of his return to Old Trafford : "Manchester United know they made a mistake in selling me, I know they made a mistake but I am happy at Milan. I was settled at Manchester United, I had even just ordered a new kitchen, but they wanted to sell me. If a club want to sell you, there is nothing you can do. You can be sold like cattle. Of course you can refuse to go, but then the club have the power to put you on the bench." Atalanta President Resigns "My expectations for this side have been totally destroyed and consequently I have decided to resign from the Presidency and suggest Giacomo Randazzo as my successor. Choices that seemed right a few months ago have proved to be misjudged but I and my family have been the subject of continual attacks that have left me very bitter about the situation. I did everything I could for the good of Atalanta, pouring my time and money into the club." - Ivan Ruggeri Miccoli Wagers Career on Survival In a really dumb move Fiorentina's Fabrizio Miccoli has wagered his career on Serie A survival : "If a side with this much potential is demoted to Serie B then I’ll hang up my boots. Our objectives have changed. We are no longer aiming for Europe but looking to stay in the top-flight. We have the squad to do well and it really is unthinkable that we could be relegated this season. We need to start winning with the game in Genoa as we are running out of matches." 3 February 2005 Bad Journalism of the Week Award - BBC This week's bad journalism of the week award goes to the BBC's website for claiming 'Uefa sets foreign player limits' in the following news item : http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/4233353.stm Uefa's proposals are to encourage the development of in house talent, there are no restrictions on the nationality of players. Henry Wants Reinforcements "The turning point of our season was not our defeat at Old Trafford after 49 undefeated matches. The key moment is when we lost Gilberto Silva and Edu with injuries and some other players too. I don't want to say bad things about anybody but look at our substitutes and the Chelsea and Manchester ones. We have great, young players but you can't ask them to be present all along during the season. We don't have the same squad as our adversaries and I have said that for a long time." - Thierry Henry Curbishley Calls for Re-Distribution of Wealth In a television interview with Channel Five Alan Curbishley said a fairer distribution of the money received by Premiership clubs would help make the league more competitive. 50% of the revenue is evenly distributed between the 20 clubs, 25% is prize money determined by each clubs league position at the end of the season (the club finishing first receives the most and the club finishing last the least) and remaining 25% is television revenue. Curbishley suggests that 75% of the money is evenly distributed with only 12.5% of the remaining revenue given in prize money and 12.5% in television revenue. Moenchengladbach Defender Retires 33 year old Borussia Moenchengladbach defender Steffen Korell has been forced to retire after losing a two year battle with a knee injury. Korell suffered cartilage damage in training two years ago, He has played 80 league games for Moenchengladbach. Arsenal Against UEFA Proposals Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein is against UEFA's proposals to encourage the development of in house talent, which should be no surprise as the Gunners are one of only five clubs involved in European competition who would not have met the required criteria (2 academy players and 2 association players) last season : "It's misguided and it will almost certainly now be challenged. Few Premier League squads would meet Uefa's current proposals and we think the quality of our league would suffer. We probably have the most successful league in the world and we tamper with it at our peril. Although it has been proposed for Uefa competitions, there is a danger it could eventually be introduced to all levels. We don't think they can do that." UEFA Reveal Plan to Encourage Development of In House Talent UEFA have revealed a serious of proposals in order to encourage clubs to develop in house talent. By 2006-2007 in a 25 man squad clubs playing in the European Cup and UEFA Cup would have to include two players trained by the clubs academy and two players trained by other clubs from the same association. By the 2008-2009 season this number would rise to four academy players and four association players. UEFA define an academy player as a player aged between 15 and 21 who has been registered for a minimum of three seasons with that club. An association trained player is a player aged between 15 and 21 who has been registered for at least three seasons by any clubs in the same association. It is important to stress that there are no restrictions on a players nationality, which a number of websites, including the BBC (who really should know better) have mistakenly reported. UEFA Chief Executive Lars-Christer Olsson said : "We have found out in our studies that some clubs are 'hoarding' players to have bigger squads, or, in some cases, to prevent other clubs having the players and many players who were national-team players when recruited by clubs have not been playing, or not even sitting on the bench in some cases. Perhaps reducing squads (to 25) will also have a positive effect on some clubs' finances." UEFA studies also show that the number of players trained in a national association since the Bosman ruling came into effect at the start of the 1995-1996 season has fell to 30%. UEFA have denied that the proposals contravene the treaty of Rome's freedom of movement laws (see the next news item) : "We don't think there should be any legal problems. Of course (the proposals) could be challenged but we have talked to Brussels about this matter and there is a group in the European parliament called 'Friends of Football' who are very supportive of this initiative, they have even said that more should be done." Had the ruling been implemented last season (2003-2004) Arsenal, Chelsea, Celtic, Rangers and most surprisingly Ajax would not have been eligible to play in European competitions. Treaty of Rome TITLE III. FREE MOVEMENT OF PERSONS, SERVICES AND CAPITAL CHAPTER 1. WORKERS Article 48. 1. Freedom of movement for workers shall be secured within the Community by the end of the transitional period at the latest. 2. Such freedom of movement shall entail the abolition of any discrimination based on nationality between workers of the Member States as regards employment, remuneration and other conditions of work and employment. 3. It shall entail the right, subject to limitations justified on grounds of public policy, public security or public health: (a) to accept offers of employment actually made; (b) to move freely within the territory of Member States for this purpose; (c) to stay in a Member State for the purpose of employment in accordance with the provisions governing the employment of nationals of that State laid down by law, regulation or administrative action; (d) to remain in the territory of a Member State after having been employed in that State, subject to conditions which shall be embodied in implementing regulations to be drawn up by the Commission. 2 February 2005 Euro 2008 Open to Pay TV Bids In what is sure to be an unpopular move UEFA have awarded the broadcasting rights for the Euro 2008 finals to SportFive media in a deal worth €600 million. The move ends UEFA's long term agreement with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). UEFA's chief executive Lars-Christer Olsson said : 'This represents a sea-change for UEFA, a major change of policy for us. The arrangement with SportFive will work in a similar way as the one with TEAM who market the Champions League. SportFive will approach each TV market individually and open up a competition for the rights. In the main our preferred partner would be a free-to-air broadcaster." UEFA have stressed that every nations matches would still be available on free to air (FTA) television in that country i.e. fans of the German national team could watch all the matches involving Germany on FTA TV, fans of England could watch all of England's matches on FTA etc, etc. Sportfive is owned by private equity firm Advent International and satellite broadcaster RTL. Elano Explains Decision to Join Shakhtar Brazilian midfielder Elano, who has been strongly linked with a move to Real Madrid amongst others, has explained his shock decision to join Ukrainian giants Shakhtar Donetsk : "I was a little worried about going to a little-known place. So I went there last year, they showed me everything and I like it a lot. They gave me everything I ask for. I didn't ask for a lot of money. I just wanted me and my family to be comfortable because I know it'll be difficult." Cesar and Celades Free To Leave Real Official statement from Real Madrid : "Real Madrid have not reached an agreement for the (contract) renewal of Cesar and (Albert) Celades. After cordial talks, the club would like to point out the excellent behaviour of both players at all times. Both the goalkeeper and the midfielder will now study offers from other clubs." Pandiani Tells City Fans He Would Rather Be Elsewhere On the eve of his Premiership debut 'El Rifle' Walter Pandiani endeared himself to Birmingham fans and his coach with the following comments in a radio interview : "I'm leaving Depor feeling very hurt. I hope I will not return. I wanted to go to Fiorentina but Deportivo, maybe on purpose, took time sending the fax, and I am in Birmingham, just where I didn't want to be. After my declarations (he criticised coach Irueta) I was looking for a change of scene because I could see Irueta was trying not to play me." Ireland Line-up Friendlies Against Italy and China The Republic of Ireland will play China at Lansdowne Road on the 29th of March and Italy on the 17th of August. Clemence Has Prostrate Cancer Liverpool's legendary goalkeeper Ray Clemence has left his position as England's goalkeeper coach after being diagnosed with prostate cancer : "The news I have had from the doctors so far has been very positive and encouraging. I'm looking forward to getting the treatment out of the way and returning to work as soon as possible." In a phenomenal career Clemence won three European Cups and five league titles with Liverpool as well as 61 caps for England. 1 February 2005 Bully Vieira Backs Down from Keane In a post match interview Roy Keane revealed that Arsenal captain Patrick Vieira tried to intimidate team-mate Gary Neville : "Patrick Vieira is six foot four and he starts having a go at Gary Neville, so I said 'come on have a go at me.' that's it. If their players want to intimidate people then why not look at other players. They think Gary Neville is an easy target and I'm not having it." When questioned Vieira responded with : "I think Gary Neville is a big boy and can stand up for himself. I didn't try to offend anyone but I don't really want to talk about it. I think we should stay on what happened on the pitch, and they deserve congratulations for their victory." Henry Launches Stand Up, Speak Up Campaign Thierry Henry has launched a new wristband as part of Nike's 'Stand Up, Speak Up' anti racism campaign. Henry said : "Racism is the biggest problem facing football across Europe. People may think it has disappeared but it hasn't. It's time for us all to take a stand - players, fans and authorities. It's time to stand up and speak up." Both Arsenal and Manchester United wore a 'Stand up, Speak Up' badge on their shirts during tonight's clash at Highbury. Dugarry Announces Retirement, Again Former France international Christophe Dugarry, who owes a large percentage of his caps to his friendship with Zinedine Zidane, has announced his retirement after cancelling his contract with the imaginatively named Qatar club of Qatar : "Let's say I took my decision about four or five days ago. Even if the best proposition I got came from Benfica. The chairman called me and Giovanni Trapattoni called me. He told me he knows me well and wanted me. Frankly it was dear to my heart. On a financial level it was exciting too but honestly, I can't see myself leaving for a new league and discover a new language. My children are at school in Bordeaux, so I would have left without my family and I didn't want that. I wanted to stay in France and some clubs showed an interest but it was not a rush." Solari Stays at Real Santiago Solari has signed a new four year contract. Solari would have been available on a free transfer at the end of the season but new Real Madrid coach Wanderley Luxemburgo has taken a liking to the gifted winger. Elano Heads East Brazilian international midfielder Elano, recently linked with a move to Real Madrid, has joined Shakhtar Donetsk. Shaktar have paid Brazilian champions Santos €7.70 for the 23 year old. Victor Fernandez Sacked, Couceiro Takes Over In news that didn't receive much press coverage due to the frenzied activity on transfer deadline day, European champions Porto sacked Victor Fernandez yesterday following Saturday's loss at home to Braga in a top of the table clash. Braga lead Sporting by one point with Porto and Benfica a further point behind in joint third place. Jose Couceiro takes over after resigning from 8th place Vitoria. Euro 2012 Bidders Announced The associations of Azerbaijan (!), Greece, Italy, Romania, Russia, Turkey have submitted bids to host Euro 2012. Croatia and Hungary and Poland and Ukraine have submitted joint bids. This is the final list of bidders as the deadline for submitting bids ended yesterday. The candidates will present their dossiers on the 21st of July 2005. UEFA will then draw a shortlist of three candidates in November 2005 before making a final decision in December 2006. In a statement on uefa.com, UEFA Chief Executive Lars-Christer Olsson said : "The candidates will have to return to UEFA with the necessary guarantees and make their proposals and then there will be a first evaluation, followed by a second step, to enable a final decision to be taken in 2006. That means that the preparations for 2012 will last for six years." As Euro 2008 will be held in Austria and Switzerland the smart money would be on one of the traditional powers, in this case Italy, winning the rights to host the tournament. The memorable if somewhat negative Italia 90 (the 1990 World Cup) was the last major international tournament held in the country.