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Football News: Review Of The Day 31st March 2018

Review Of The Day 31st March 2018
Image from: zapsportz.com

Review of the Day

 

Transfers

Scottish club Hamilton Academicals have released Greek midfielder Chrysovalantis Kozoronis.

 

Trust To Make King's Shares Bid

Rangers chairman Dave King is set to make an offer for the rest of the shareholding in the club via a trust company. King had been fighting the need to do so after the Takeover Panel ruled he acted in concert with others, but lost an appeal last month. The South African-based businessman will now have to make a formal bid for the shares he does not already own. King said: "Supporters will be aware of the Takeover Panel's ruling last year that I must make an offer to the non-concert party minority shareholders of the Rangers International Football Club PLC. I have defended this ruling on the basis that any offer should not come from me but should be made by one of my trust companies. The Takeover Panel has relented to my request for which I am grateful. I confirm that it will be announced today that one of my trust companies will now proceed and shall within a short period make a fully funded offer in compliance with the normal requirements of the Takeover Panel."

 

Liverpool V Man Utd In The USA

Manchester United and Liverpool are set to face each other again in the International Champions Cup in July. Man Utd beat Liverpool in the final of the competition in 2014. It is expected that they will play in the second biggest stadium in the world, the 107,000 capacity 'Big House' in Michigan. Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is also set to face his former club Borussia Dortmund in the US.

 

Snus Use Claimed To Be Prevalent In Football

A Daily Mail investigation has been backed up by Charlie Adam and Jamie Vardy in claims that the use of 'snus', a tobacco pouch, is widespread amongst players. The sale of snus in the UK is illegal and it is on WADA's (World Anti-Doping Agency's) watchlist, though not yet banned. Stoke City midfielder Charlie Adam told the BBC that he has seen lots of other players use it and Leicester City's Jamie Vardy admitted using them in his autobiography. Pep Guardiola has revealed that the Manchester City club doctor had spoken to the club's players about it.

 

Moyes Fears Fan Trouble Will Put Off Players

West Ham United manager David Moyes has suggested that the supporters protests and attacks on the directors could put off top players from joining the East Londoners. Moyes said: "I want this club to appeal to really good international players. I don't think what happened against Burnley is going to make those players want to join us. If you're a player, you want to come to a club where the supporters are right behind the team. You don't want to come somewhere where they're not. We've got to show why top players should want to come here."

 

Butch In Critical Condition

Former England midfielder Ray 'Butch' Wilkins is in a critical condition in a London hospital. The 61 year old has played for clubs such as Chelsea, Man Utd, AC Milan, Rangers and QPR in a career that saw him win 84 caps and captain his country. After retirement he had worked in coaching, management and punditry. Get Well Soon!

 

Rafa Tells Players Not To Use Takeover As An Excuse

Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez has warned his players not to look to use the ongoing takeover of the club as an excuse for failing to escape relegation. Club captain Jamaal Lascelles had claimed that the media reports had proved to be a distraction in the dressing room. Benitez was asked whether the takeover talk had affected the form of the team and replied: "I'm not convinced about that - maybe for some players, but it was not affecting the rest of the team. I was not talking with them about this. You were asking the same question and I was saying: 'No.' I was surprised he [Lascelles] said this, but maybe some players [were affected]. I'm sure the majority of the foreign players were into reading the newspapers and going, the takeover is coming. They were training - and they were training well. Maybe for him [Lascelles], maybe for some players, but still, for me it is not an excuse. The reason we were not doing well is because we made mistakes, or because the other team was better than us. We have to be sure the next game we don't have this distraction and we are just focused on football."

 

Nainggolan Admits Rejecting Chelsea

Radja Nainggolan has been much sought after in recent years, but the AS Roma midfielder has admitted that he is not interested in leaving Rome and has already rejected Inter Milan and Chelsea in recent seasons. Nainggolan told Il Tempo: "Inter? There was interest from them because the coach rates me and vice versa, even if you wrote 1,000 stories about it... but let's forget it. I've always had a good relationship with Spalletti, he put me in the best condition to express myself, but ultimately there was no chance that I'd leave Roma. The truth is that in the past, I rejected important offers. Two years ago I could've gone to Chelsea and earn more, but for me it's not all about money."

 

Balotelli Disappointed To Miss Out On Italy Recall

OGC Nice's Italian striker Mario Balotelli has admitted his disappointment at not getting an Italy recall during the recent international break. Balotelli said: "I had been hoping because I felt I deserved it. I'm 27 now and I'm more mature, thanks to my children, and I've stopped hooking up with girls."

 

Jardim Rules Out PSG Job

Rumours have linked PSG with a number of other managers, some of them Portugese, but AS Monaco's Leonardo Jardim has ruled himself out of the running. "The vice-president [Vadim Vasilyev] has already spoken on it," Jardim said. "The next coach of PSG may be Portuguese but he is not called Jardim."

 

Le Havre Defeat Ends In Pitch Invasion

Over 100 fans of 9th placed Ligue 2 side Le Havre invaded the pitch and attempted to reach the players' dressing room after a 2-0 home defeat to struggles Quevilly, who sit in 19th. Stewards managed to hold back the fans from gaining access to the dressing room and the supporters had to be content with merely chanting their unhappiness from the pitch before dispersing.

 

Brandt Sent Home From Training

Bayer Leverkusen forward Julian Brandt was told to go home and rest earlier this week, after the German international turned up for training the following day after playing for Germany against Brazil. The 21 year old had only got home from the match at 4am and was on the training pitch at 10am ready to go. Coach Heiko Herrlich said with a grin: "He really is a teacher's pet. It just shows you how he is [...] but it was too risky. He played for half-an-hour the night before and then didn't sleep very much."

 

Sammer Set For Dortmund Return

Matthias Sammer is to return to Borussia Dortmund as an advisor, 14 years after he left the German giants. Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke said: "We need someone like Matthias Sammer, his ability to analyse, his passion, his identification, his clear view from the outside." Watzke also announced that Dortmund would be appointing a new head of the professional football department.

Written by Tris Burke March 31 2018 07:44:41