Football News: Review Of The Day 10th October 2019

Image from: freelargeimages.com

Review of the Day

Contracts

Brentford's former Liverpool winger Sergi Canos has signed a new 4 year deal.

Tranmere Rovers captain Scott Davies has agreed a new deal which runs until 2022.

Fiorentina midfielder Gaetano Castrovilli has signed an extended deal running until 2024.

Aaron Cresswell has extended his West Ham United contract until 2023.

Injury Round-Up

Aston Villa goalkeeper Tom Heaton has pulled out of the England squad with an injury and been replaced by Sheffield United's on-loan Manchester United keeper Dean Henderson.

Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe has withdrawn from the France squad due to an injury. Alassane Plea from Borussia Moenchengladbach has been called up to replace him.

Juventus midfielder Aaron Ramsey is to miss Wales' Euro 2020 qualifier with Slovakia due to injury. It is hoped he will be fit to play against Croatia.

Scotland lose Norwich City midfielder Kenny McLean to injury. The 27 year old has returned to his club for treatment.

League Two Clubs Fined

An on-pitch melee between Leyton Orient and Port Vale players on 28th September during their League Two match has led to the two clubs being fined by the Football Association. Orient were given a £2,000 fine and Vale £1,750. Both clubs had been charged with failing to ensure players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion and/or refrained from provocative behaviour.

Former Cobblers Chairman Faces Losing Home

Northampton Borough Council is attempting to recover a £10,25m loan that was given to Northampton Town and then "misappropriated". The High Court found David Cardoza and his father Anthony had "breached their fiduciary duties" as directors of the club and the borough council took action against David and his wife Christina in an attempt to recover debts of £365,975. The pair had used some of the loan money to build their home and now the council is looking to seize the property. Anthony Cardoza has been ordered to repay £2.1m, he has now conveniently declared bankruptcy. £7m was passed to a company called 1st Land, which is in liquidation with £5.6m of the money untraceable.

Donald Claims Ross Was Sacked To Boost Promotion Chances

Sunderland chairman Stewart Donald has told the BBC that he chose to sack Jack Ross as he feels a different manager would have more chance of earning promotion for the Wearsiders. Donald said: "My judgement call would be that our best chance of promotion would be to change it. The only thing that is going to prove that is at the end of the season - whether or not we do get promoted. Jack certainly felt he probably had to win every game and any time we lost a game it was very difficult for him. That is a high-pressure environment, but that is Sunderland in League One. The reality of this club is we have the best travel arrangements, the best medical investment, we have the best facilities, we have got the best budget. I believe we have got the best squad. We are, I would have thought, the most professional League One club there has ever been in lots of ways. With that set-up, I think it is fair to expect us to deliver success. At any other club in League One, there is probably very little chance of being sacked being sixth in the table. The decision with Jack was one that I sat down and made. I can't talk about the investment. If there wasn't any potential investment, I'd be able to talk about it. The fact I can't talk about it means it is ongoing. I am responsible for looking after the club and trying to make the right calls. I am trying to find quality individuals or groups of people that will invest in the future of the club in the long-term. In the short term we do not need anybody's help to get out of League One financially. We have got plenty of money to do what we need to do."

Barton Denies Charges

Joey Barton has entered a plee of not guilty to a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm. He was given unconditional bail ahead of the trial. Barnsley have made formal complaints to the English Football League and the Football Association over the incident when Barton is alleged to have confronted Stendel and left him with a damaged tooth.

Another Manager On The Scrapheap

Reading have fired manager Jose Gomes after 10 months in charge with the Royals sat third from bottom and winless in their last 6 Championship matches. Gomes led Reading to 20th place and survival in the division last season, after taking over from Paul Clement. A club statement read: "I strongly believe that the quality of the players that the club has at its disposal is sufficient to finish the season in the battle for promotion. However, I understand the world of football and accept the decision taken by the club, about which I will never have a bad word to say and to whom I will forever be grateful for giving me the chance to work in English football. I sincerely wish Reading FC and the new manager all the very best of success in the future and I can tell you that, as of today, the club has itself another fan."

Bhoys Increase Anti-Pyro Steps

Celtic have pledged to take "further measures" to clamp down on their fans that continue to use fireworks despite the club being fined repeatedly due to the fans' constant use of pyrotechnics during European games. They have another case due to be dealt with UEFA on 17th October after Thursday night's 2-0 win over CFR Cluj. A club statement read: "The club has been sanctioned on numerous occasions and yet, very disappointingly, this behaviour by a small minority persists. The serious safety concerns associated with such behaviour are obvious, as is the reputational damage which this behaviour and these charges have on the club. In addition, the numerous financial penalties placed on Celtic continue to come out the pockets of supporters who invest in the club. Celtic will be introducing further measures in order to deal with this behaviour. It has to stop. The club does not want it, our supporters do not want it and UEFA will continue to punish the Club whenever it occurs as it is a clear breach of their regulations. It really is as simple as that. Given the number of repeated offences, we should also be very aware that there could be further, very serious repercussions which could have hugely detrimental consequences for the club and our supporters. It is hugely unfair that the enjoyment of Celtic matches could potentially be affected by the negative behaviour of a tiny minority."

Silva Given Extension

Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva has been given until 21st October to respond to a Football Association charge over a tweet that the FA believe was racist. He had originally been given until 9th October to respond but now has a few more days to put together his reply.

Palace Take Action After Zaha Racially Abused

Crystal Palace attacker Wilfried Zaha has been the victim of racial abuse on social media, which the club have stated they will take all possible action to deal with the abusers. Their statement revealed: "We will not tolerate this behaviour being directed at any of our players. We will fully support them in dealing with such incidents. Any action we can take unilaterally as a club will be taken immediately and we will also seek cooperation from other clubs where relevant. Following that, we will pursue the matter criminally with the full force of whatever the law allows."

Milan Appoint Pioli

Despite the top trend in Italy being the hashtag PioliOut, AC Milan have appointed Stefano Pioli as their new manager after sacking Marco Giampaolo. There had even been one fan who felt strongly enough to hold a solo protest at the club's HQ, while the club's ultras released a statement advising against employing him. Must be nice to be so popular.

UEFA Charges

Eintracht Frankfurt's appeal against Ante Rebic's five game suspension for rough play and insulting a match official has been partially upheld. Rebic is now suspended for one less game, but the 4th game is suspended for a probationary period of 2 years. Slovan Bratislava, on the other hand, had no joy with their appeal against punishment for the racist behaviour of their fans. They will now have to face Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Europa League in a behind closed doors match, as well as pay a 50,000 euros fine.

Another Spanish Football Star In Court For Tax Evasion

The latest in a long line of football stars to be taken to court for tax fraud in Spain is former Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich midfielder Xabi Alonso. Just after Barcelona star Lionel Messi revealed that he almost walked away from Spanish football due to the way he was treated during his trial, Alonso has appeared in court in Madrid. He is accused of three counts of tax fraud, of creating a tax haven and unpaid taxes on image rights revenue. Alonso told reporters that he has no plans to plea bargain.

Cech Changes Career

Former Chelsea and Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech has signed with an ice hockey side called Guildford Phoenix as a goaltender. He had previously been training with another Guildford ice hockey side, the Guildford Flames.

Written by Tris Burke October 10 2019 08:35:30