Football News: Review Of The Day 24th September 2019
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Review of the Day
Transfers
Veteran winger Lloyd Dyer has returned to Burton Albion. The 37 year old, who spent 2 seasons with Albion in the past, has signed a short-term contract after spending a month training with the club.
Scunthorpe United have signed Jamie Ward until January. The 33 year old was released by Nottingham Forest at the end of last season.
Injury Round-Up
Lionel Messi's first appearance of the season for Barcelona, after recovering from a calf injury, ended early after he picked up a thigh injury. Barca manager Ernesto Valverde said: "When something happens to Messi, everyone stops, not only on the field, but in the stands as well. As a precaution we have decided not to risk it. In theory, it is nothing more but we will see tomorrow how it is." He described it as a "small problem in the adductor".
Charles Dunne, the Motherwell defender, is set to miss the next four months of the season after surgery on a groin injury. He was initially only expected to miss a few weeks but a scan showed the injury was more serious than first thought.
Spurs Players Have Agendas
Mauricio Pochettino has said he needs time to get his Tottenham Hotspur squad pulling together as one due to "different agendas" in his "unsettled" squad. Pochettino said: "When you have an unsettled squad always it's difficult and you lose time, then you need time to recover the time you lose. That's where we are. Maybe our performances are good but you need this extra, which is mental, connection. It's energy to be all together, not to have different agendas in the squad. We are in a period where it's a bit tough for us, but we keep working to find a solution. When this type of thing happens it's about staying clear and fresh and calm. We're trying to find solutions and we only need time."
Back On Their Perch?
Liverpool CEO Peter Moore has ludicrously claimed the club are "back on our perch" despite still not having won the league since before the Premier League began. Alex Ferguson had claimed his first job on becoming Manchester United manager was to "knock Liverpool right off their ****ing perch". Moore said: "We are back on our perch, as we famously say. What the Fenway Sports Group have done at Liverpool over the past nine years is nothing short of miraculous. They have gone through ups and downs but have stayed the course and never taken a penny out of the club. Football is a virtuous cycle. You drive revenues so you can afford to buy a goalkeeper or a centre-half that will win you games. When you win games, sponsors want to be part of your story, so they write you a cheque. You take that money and buy better players. They win you more games."
Horse Punched At South Coast Derby
Clashes between rival fans of Southampton and Portsmouth led to five men being arrested, with a 52 year old held on suspicion of animal cruelty after a police horse was punched. Social media footage showed a series of scuffles between fans and police both before the match and afterwards. The horse, Luna, was said to be uninjured by Hampshire police.
Agent Fees To Be Capped
FIFA have announced new measures which will see international loan deals and agent fees capped. The agents acting on behalf of the selling club will now be eligible for a maximum of 10% of the transfer fee. The buying club's agent will be capped at 3% of the player's fee, as will the player's agent. From next season clubs will be limited to 8 international loans in and out, dropping to 6 from 2022-23 season. There will also be allowed no more than 3 loans in and 3 out between the same two clubs.
Ten Fans Compensated By Police
Ten Bristol City fans have been compensated in an out of court settlement. They claimed to have been falsely imprisoned by West Midlands Police before an away match at Birmingham City and were deprived of their liberty. The chairman of the Bristol City Supporters Club & Trust, Stu Rogers, said: "We always believed that these supporters were unfairly treated. West Midlands Police delayed, hindered and frustrated the process throughout in the hope we would just go away. We didn't. Whilst we will not now have our day in court to seek a ruling, we believe this is a moral victory and sends a clear message to police forces up and down the country. Do not misuse these dispersal powers. Fans simply will not stand for it."
Rams Duo Charged
Two Derby County players have been charged with drink-driving following a crash on Tuesday night. Tom Lawrence and Mason Bennett were arrested after a Range Rover Sport and Mercedes GLC collided in the Allestree area of Derby and will appear in court next month. Neither player were injured but Lawrence was taken to hospital as a precaution.
EFL To Vote On Bury Reinstatement
The 71 member clubs of the English Football League are set to vote on a proposal for "compassionate re-entry" of Bury to the league but to League Two, rather than League One, the division they were in prior to expulsion. The meeting on Thursday will also be asked to endorse the appointment of the utterly inept Rick Parry as new chairman of the EFL as the board recommend. Which should tell you all you need to know about the ability of the EFL board to run the game!
2 Charged Over Attempted Robbery Of Gunners Duo
Two men, Ashley Smith and Jordan Northover, are charged with attempted robbery and threatening a person with an offensive weapon. The pair are alleged to have been the armed men who targeted Arsenal pair Mesut Ozil and Sead Kolasinac, before being chased off by the latter footballer. After the incident the two players were left out of a number of games after there were fears of revenge attacks.
Dons Suspend Manager
AFC Wimbledon have suspended their manager Wally Downes after he was charged by the Football Association for betting on matches. A club statement read: "Given the seriousness of this breach in regulations, the club has decided to suspend Wally with immediate effect. [This will give] time for the club and Dons Trust boards to look at the allegations more closely and make a further announcement in due course."
Argyle Owner Clears Debt
The majority owner of Plymouth Argyle, Simon Hallett, has cleared a £4m loan he made to the club and increased his stake in the club as a result. Hallett now has 97% of the shares in the League Two club.
Zahoui New CAR Coach
The man who led Ivory Coast to second place in the 2012 AFCON, Francis Zahoui, has been appointed head coach of the Central African Republic. The CAR Football Federation's acting president Celestin Yanindji said: "I confirm that François Zahoui will be the coach of the Les Fauves. He will be paid initially with the funds of the federation for the first two games in the Africa Cup of Nations of qualifiers against Burundi and Mauritania in November, while waiting for our government to take over."
Sudan Name Squad
South Sudan have named a squad for next month's African Cup of Nations qualifiers which includes 12 Australian-based players.
South Sudan squad:
Goalkeepers; Majak Mawith (Port Melbourne Sharks, Australia), Ramadan John Mayik (Rabita FC), Emmanuel Rubangakene (Vipers, Uganda)
Defenders: Michael Agele (Universiti Teknologi Mara FC, Malaysia), John Kuol Chol (Kariobangi Sharks, Kenya), Peter Deng (Heidelberg United, Australia), Santino Deng, Peter Maker Manyang (both Amarat United), Mathiang Mathiang (Brunswick City, Australia), David Omot Sebit (Al Merreikh), Ruon Tongyik (Central Coast Mariners, Australia)
Midfielders: Dhour Chol (Moreland Zebras, Australia), Peter Chol (Kator FC), Koang Thok Kerjok (Al Hilal Kadougli, Sudan), Dominic Angelo Komelid (Munuki FC), Maker Maker (Port Melbourne Sharks, Australia), Jackson Morgan (Stirling Lions, Australia), Jose Kuch Nyuar (Amarat United), Jimmy Michael Omer (Atlabara FC), Dominic Abui Pretino (Al Khartoum, Sudan), Emmanuel Thomas (Amarat United), Friday Zico (Armadale SC, Australia)
Forwards: William Akio (University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, USA), Kenny Athiu (Melbourne Victory, Australia), Atak Lual (Al Ahli Shendi, Sudan), David Majak (Tusker FC, Kenya), Abraham Majok (Central Coast Mariners, Australia), Yacoub Mustafa (Perth SC, Australia), Tokmac Nguen (Ferencvaros, Hungary), Khamis Leon Uso (Al Merreikh), Makueth Wol (Mbarara, Uganda), Denis Yongule (Geelong SC, Australia).
Akpom Changes Allegiance
Former Arsenal player Chuba Akpom has opted to pledge his international future to the country of his parents, Nigeria. The striker, who plays for PAOK in Greece now, was an England youth international but never made the step up to senior level. The 23 year old told the BBC: "I've only just recently switched my allegiance, so I've signed the documents and hopefully in the next few weeks it will be approved to enable me play for Nigeria. I've been wanting to do that for many years now but not many people know this. It's just been a matter of sorting it out, which is now in a process. I'm looking forward to it. It was a personal decision. I'm Nigerian and my whole family feel very Nigerian and it will be nice to represent Nigeria. It will also be nice to link up with Alex [Iwobi] again and play for the national team. We started playing when we was younger together and to make that step to play for the national team together will be amazing."
Carabao Cup 4th Round Draw
Everton v Watford
Aston Villa v Wolverhampton Wanderers
Manchester City v Southampton
Burton v Leicester
Crawley v Colchester
Chelsea v Manchester United
Oxford v Sunderland
Liverpool v Arsenal
Puyol Rejects Barca Offer
Carles Puyol has rejected an offer from the club to become their new sporting director. The 41 year assisted Andoni Zubizarreta in the role before leaving the club in 2015. Puyol posted on social media: "After weighing a lot, I have decided not to accept the club's offer. It has not been an easy decision, since I have always said that I would like to return to what I consider my home, but several personal projects in which I am immersed (mean) I would be prevented at this time from giving you the exclusive dedication that the position deserves. I would like to thank the club for the trust placed in me by offering me this position of so much responsibility."
Written by Tris Burke September 25 2019 23:16:23
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