Football News: Review Of The Day 15th December 2018

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Review of the Day

Cooper Signs New Deal

Millwall central defender Jake Cooper has signed a new 'long-term' contract with the Londoners. The 23 year old joined 'Wall from Reading in the summer of 2017 and was a regular for the club last season winning the club's young player of the season award.

Livermore Gets Baggies Contract

Former England international Jake Livermore has inked a new contract with West Bromwich Albion, extending his stay with the Championship side until 2022. The 29 year old has missed just one league match this season, when he was suspended following a sending off against Wigan Athletic.

Dons Win Dive Appeal

Aberdeen have won an appeal against a yellow card shown to Sam Cosgrove for simulation. The 22 year old forward was booked by referee Craig Thomson after he went down under a challenge from Scott Robinson. The booking has now been rescinded.

Europa League Fines Handed Out

Spartak Moscow have been fined £24,000 by UEFA for a number of incidents involving "throwing of objects", "setting off of fireworks" and "blocked stairways". Rangers were fined £14,000 as well as given a warning for "field invasions by supporters" and "throwing of objects" during a match against Villareal. Rangers manager Steven Gerrard was also given a warning after the game against Spartak kicked off late, while Spartak coach Oleg Kononov has his disciplinary proceedings for the late kick-off closed.

CAF Awards Shortlists Announced

The shortlists for the CAF awards see Arsenal's Alex Iwobi in the running for African Player of the Year, up against Arsenal team-mate Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, as well as last year's winner Mohamed Salah.
African Player of the Year
1. Alex Iwobi (Nigeria & Arsenal)
2. Andre Onana (Cameroon & Ajax)
3. Anis Badri (Tunisia & Esperance)
4. Denis Onyango (Uganda & Mamelodi Sundowns)
5. Mehdi Benatia (Morocco & Juventus)
6. Mohamed Salah (Egypt & Liverpool)
7. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon & Arsenal)
8. Riyad Mahrez (Algeria & Manchester City)
9. Sadio Mane (Senegal & Liverpool)
10. Walid Soliman (Egypt & Ahly)
Youth Player of the Year
1. Achraf Hakimi (Morocco & Borussia Dortmunmd)
2. Franck Kessie (Cote d'Ivoire & AC Milan)
3. Wilfred Ndidi (Nigeria & Leicester City)
Men's Coach of the Year
1. Aliou Cisse (Senegal)
2. Herve Renard (Morocco)
3. Moine Chaabani (Esperance)
Men's National Team of the Year
1. Madagascar
2. Mauritania
3. Uganda

Rafa Gets Manager Of The Month

Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez gets the Premier League manager of the month award for November after picking up 3 wins in a row, following 10 games without a win at the start of the season. Their good run in November lifted them out of the relegation zone and into mid-table.

Hassenhuttl Gets The First Round In

New Southampton manager Ralph Hassenhuttl has sent season ticket holders a free drinks voucher as he looks to get the fans behind his team following the early season struggles under his predecessor Mark Hughes. Hassenhuttl said: "I'm a guy who always brings everyone in our boat to row with us. You never know, maybe on Sunday comes the first win for a long time at St Mary's. You have to build up your credit. It's like an account - if you always take money off sometimes it's empty. Now we have to put money on the account. We try to invest something and show them that we are working harder and put more in games." The Austrian also said that he would push the players "to their limits" in an "intensive and very hard-working environment".

Transfer Round Up

Free agent keeper Jake Kean has signed a month-long contract with Mansfield Town, who lost first-choice goalkeeper Bobby Olejnik to a season-ending injury. Kean was released by Sheffield Wednesday in the summer.

DC United full-back Nick DeLeon has moved on a free transfer to fellow MLS side Toronto FC.

Real Salt Lake City have signed Donny Toia on a free from Orlando City SC.

Rodney Wallace (no, not the former Leeds forward) has moved on a free transfer from New York City FC to Sporting Kansas City.

Schelotto Quits Boca

Boca Juniors coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto has left the club following their defeat to arch-rivals River Plate in the Copa Libertadores final on Sunday. A former player at Boca, Schelotto had been in charge for over 2 years and lifted 2 Argentine league titles under him.

Salah Retains African Footballer Of The Year

Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has become the first player to retain the BBC African Footballer of the Year award since Jay-Jay Okocha in 2003 and 2004. The BBC revealed that they had received a record number of votes for the award this year.

Henry Turns To Distance Runner For Survival Help

With Monaco struggling badly to survive in Ligue 1, new head coach Thierry Henry has welcomed the appointment of a former distance runner, Bouabdellah Tahri, to the medical staff to aid mental preparation. Tahri is in charge of "the performance, re-training and mental preparation of the professional team".

Mayor Of Rome Hits Out At Frankfurt Fans

The mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi, has labeled the Eintracht Frankfurt fans as "beasts" after they ran amok through the city. Raggi said: "There's a game of football going on and these hooligans came down from Germany tonight and they have substantially looted and devastated areas of our city. I would like to say this: we welcome football fans to Rome with open arms because football is a fantastic sport which can unite people, but we don't want hooligans anymore. Rome is not a city where you can just go on the rampage and damage things. These beasts should stay at home. We want the fans, but not the beasts." There were further incidents inside the Stadio Olimpico, as Lazio took on Frankfurt, including fans attempting to invade the pitch but being stopped on the running track around the pitch, and clashes with police outside the ground before the game. Police also said 2 German fans were attacked over night with clubs and bottles. Difficult to have sympathy with Rome, when this is a city that allows local fans to greet opposing fans by stabbing them in the buttocks.

Dembele Ordered To Pay For Damages

Barcelona forward Ousmane Dembele left behind a lot more than just a bad taste in the mouth with his antics while at Borussia Dortmund. The French forward has been ordered by the Dortmund district court to pay his former landlord 20,725 euros for back rent and damages.

Bologna Directors Threatened

Three directors at Bologna have received disturbing threats as crosses bearing their names were left outside of the gates of the club's training ground. The team has been struggling with just 2 wins in 15 games leaving the club in the relegation places. The names of CEO Claudio Fenucci, sporting director Riccardo Bigon and scout Marco Di Vaio were on the three crosses.

Written by Tris Burke December 15 2018 04:03:39