| Scotland's Brown Sidelined For Up to 10 Weeks LONDON (Reuters) - Celtic captain Scott Brown has been ruled out for at least two months with a foot injury, the Scottish Premier League club said on Wednesday. feeds.nytimes.com |
Liverpool sale: John W Henry claims NESV have 'binding agreement' • Boston Red Sox owner believes takeover will be done soon• Sale possible following RBS court victory over Hicks and GillettLiverpool are poised for new American owners after John W Henry claimed to have "a binding agreement" with regard to the sale of the club.The battle for control at Anfield, which follows an overwhelming victory in the high court for creditors Royal Bank of Scotland and Liverpool against current owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, may be a short affair if Henry's New England Sports Ventures already have a signed and sealed deal.In a statement from NESV, Henry maintains his £300m bid is legally the only one on the table that has credence."NESV welcomes today's High Court judgment, which is a huge step forward for Liverpool FC," said Henry. "NESV has a binding agreement in place with the board of Liverpool FC and we are looking forward to concluding the deal."We are ready to move quickly and help create the stability and certainty which the club needs at this time. It is time to return the focus to the club itself and performances on the pitch."Writing on his Twitter account, Henry praised Martin Broughton, the Liverpool chairman, the managing director, Christian Purslow and the commercial director, Ian Ayre, for fighting Hicks and Gillett over their attempts to block the sale of the club.Henry wrote: "Well done Martin, Christian & Ian. Well done RBS. Well done supporters!"John W HenryLiverpoolguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Juventus's Krasic banned 2 games for diving Juventus winger Milos Krasic has been banned for two matches for diving to earn a penalty kick in his club's 0-0 draw at Bologna over the weekend. cbc.ca |
Goal: Barcelona 5, Real Madrid 0 Barcelona routed Real Madrid, 5-0, in Monday's Clasico at the Nou Camp, and there really isn't much more to say than that. feeds.nytimes.com |
Scott Parker to miss West Ham's Carling Cup tie with Manchester United • Scott Parker struggling with a chest infection• Hammers hope Tomkins and Piquionne will be fitScott Parker is expected to miss West Ham United's Carling Cup quarter-final against Manchester United tomorrow evening with the Premier League's bottom club anxious not to risk the midfielder's fitness as they continue their struggle against relegation.Parker, whose training has been disrupted over the past fortnight by a chest infection, has been consistently West Ham's most impressive player this term but is likely to be on the bench at best tomorrow night despite the Londoners being been badly depleted by niggling injuries.That will mean Avram Grant, whose team recorded their second league win of the season against Wigan Athletic on Saturday, selecting something of a makeshift side against United with one eye on the trip to Sunderland on Sunday.Grant is hopeful that James Tomkins and Frédéric Piquionne will shake off knocks sustained on Saturday and be fit to play – the former would undoubtedly benefit from another appearance alongside Matthew Upson at the heart of the side's defence – but players such as Valon Behrami, Danny Gabbidon, Herita Ilunga and Kieron Dyer have all reported problems and are not expected to feature. Furthermore, Mark Noble and Manuel da Costa remain sidelined, with hip and ankle problems respectively, while Jack Collison and Thomas Hitzlsperger are long-term absentees and Lars Jacobsen is cup-tied."The medical department are doing all they can to get the players ready to play as much as they can," Grant said. "But we have to wait and see. We made seven changes against Sunderland [in the third round] and won, and now we want to win this game. But I don't know yet who will play. I think Manchester United will make changes but they have good players."Many of the players we have in the squad this season have had long-term injuries, so we have to manage them differently. We are doing all we can so they can play: sometimes we succeed, sometimes not. It is not very often that West Ham comes to a quarter-final of any competition, so we will try to win this game."Robert Green should start his first game in the competition this season, replacing Marek Stech who began the victories over Oxford, Sunderland and Stoke City, with Grant aware of the need to maintain the much-needed momentum built up in the morale-boosting victory against Wigan. The West Ham manager can ill afford to see his side embarrassed by what is expected to be United's second string.United, in contrast, arrive having not lost a game since April and fresh from the 7-1 drubbing of Blackburn Rovers on Saturday. "When I was at Chelsea, Alex [Ferguson] described that season as the best season ever, but even then they did not start so well," Grant said. "You don't need to be at your best in the first few months, but at the end of the season. Alex is very clever. He does it every year. I can't remember one season when United started with full power."West Ham UnitedAvram GrantManchester UnitedCarling CupDominic Fifieldguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |