At 3.00pm GMT, today, it will be exactly 12 days until the first round of Premier League fixtures get underway.
At Ewood Park, Craven Cottage, Anfield, Loftus Road, White Hart Lane, The DW Stadium and at St. James' "We-don't-know-quite-what-the -stadium-will-be-called" Park, the first whistle of the season will blow, and with it, absolute joy will wash over millions of football fans up and down the country!
After the (shorter-than-it-seems) Summer period where limited football is played and the back pages become filled with news of Cricket and Golf, we will finally start to see normality return as football will start to dominate
The fixture list in full, then, for the weekend of 13th-15th August: Saturday, 13 August 2011 Blackburn v Wolverhampton, 15:00
Fulham v Aston Villa, 15:00
Liverpool v Sunderland, 15:00
QPR v Bolton, 15:00
Tottenham v Everton, 15:00
Wigan v Norwich, 15:00
Newcastle v Arsenal, 17:30
Sunday, 14 August 2011
Stoke v Chelsea, 13:30
West Brom v Man Utd, 16:00
Southampton Football Club, more affectionately known as the Saints, have long had a record for producing fantastic young players, with an academy to be proud of- perhaps the finest outside the top flight.
In the past, the likes of Gareth Bale, Leon Best, Wayne Bridge, Theo Walcott and Chris Baird have been a product of their system, alongside Arron Davies, Scott McDonald, Tim Sparv and Jake Thomson, all representing their respective countries. To a lesser extent, Dexter Blackstock was another talent who started at Southampton (although he came through the Oxford United youth academy before Saints paid compensation of Ł275,000 to bring him to St. Mary's).
So it was of no surprise, then, that another starlet would come through at some time, and in Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, they have that starlet. At the age of 16 years, 199 days, he made his first-team debut, becoming the 2nd youngest Saints player ever to take to the pitch (behind Theo Walcott, who was just 16 years and 143 days when he made his debut- and only 15 years and 175 days when he made his Reserve Team debut).
Alex made 36 appearances in his first season, scoring 10 goals along the way, and naturally has been courted by several Premier League clubs, most notably, Arsenal and Manchester United.
In fact, he has been linked strongly with a move to the Emirates this summer.
But Southampton manager, Nigel Adkins, has urged the teenage winger to spend another year on the South coast.
"Obviously in the last couple of days there have been a few comments that have come out nationally," Adkins said on Sky Sports News.
"The expectation for a 17-year-old boy and his parents to be linked with big football clubs obviously will play on people's minds, but I think he's handled himself ever so well, and he's loved at Southampton. We believe it's better for him to stay at Southampton and play his football and keep developing. We've got to try to make sure we look after a young boy who's handled himself ever so well but has been placed in a situation with speculation. It's speculation with big football clubs people always dream about."
Oxlade-Chamberlain expressed fears earlier this week that delaying a move to a big club could hamper his future prospects, saying he feels ready to make the step up immediately.
Another round of fixtures produce some shocking results...
Darlington 0-2 Newcastle United
Firstly, on Friday evening, Newcastle United travelled to the Darlington Arena to take on Blue Square Premier League side, Darlington, who finished 7th last season.
A comfortable 2-0 victory for the Toon Army, through Barton (3) after a cross from Leon Best, and a strike from Ameobi (55), 10 minutes into the second half, were marred when Newcastle fans rushed onto the pitch and scenes turned ugly. Half-Time: 0-1
Full-Time: 0-2
Managing director, Derek Llambias said: "On behalf of everyone at Newcastle United FC, we wholly condemn the behaviour of a number of our supporters who invaded the pitch during the second half of the club's friendly against Darlington this evening (July 15). The club will be seeking to obtain footage of the disorder from Darlington FC and the police and will be taking the strongest possible action against those individuals responsible for the shameful behaviour.
This behaviour is not typical of the vast majority of our fans, however this incident gives a poor impression of Newcastle United and its loyal supporters."
On Saturday 16th July, six Premier League clubs played.
We'll start with the convincing victories- first Liverpool..
Malaysia XI 3-6 Liverpool
Charlie Adam got his first goal as a Red, converting a penalty in the convincing 6-3 victory over a Malaysia XI. Adam converted on 27 mins, after Jasuli's soft contact had taken down the big man, Andy Carroll. A Rahim goal levelled things on 43, giving a disappointing half time scoreline. Half-Time: 1-1
It took a further 23 minutes for Liverpool to regain the lead, with Ngog (68) first making it 1-2, then 2 minutes later on 70, making it 1-3. Rodriguez (76) made it 1-4, before Sali (79) got the first of his 2, making it 2-4, before adding Malaysia's 3rd on 82. At 3-4, and the scoreline the same as their earlier fixture, Liverpool turned it up a notch, hitting 2 stoppage time goals through Rodriguez (91) and Dirk Kuyt (94). Full-Time: 3-6
Gorleston 0-7 Norwich
An emphatic victory for Premier League newcomers, Norwich City, over Ridgeons Premier League side Gorleston at Emerald Park.
Captain Holt (6), Whitbread (12) and a Holt penalty (30) gave the Canaries a 3-0 lead. A Smith strike made it 4 and Jackson hit a 5th before half time. Half-Time 0-5 Johnson (49) and Wilbraham completed the rout, to set Norwich on their way to the Premier League. Full-Time 0-7
Blackburn Rovers 2-1 Accrington Stanley
At Morecambe's Globe Arena, Premier League Blackburn Rovers failed to convince against Accrington (Who are they? Exactly...) Stanley, but took the lead on 15 minutes through Keith Andrews. Half-Time: 1-0
Stanley equalised 9 minutes into the second half, through trialist, Kurtis Guthrie's 54th minute strike, before a Kalinic strike concluded the fixture. Full-Time: 2-1
Portsmouth 0-1 Chelsea
At Fratton Park, Chelsea fans had their first opportunity to see Andres Villas-Boas' line-up and match approach. Having played Wycombe behind closed doors in mid-week, fans were able to catch a glimpse in a damp squib of a match.
Former Chelsea defender, Ben-Haim headed past his own keeper on just 7 minutes. Half-Time: 0-1
A penalty for Portsmouth, taken by Luke Varney, and saved by Hilario, was the only thing of note in the second half. Full-Time: 0-1
Hangzhou Greentown 1-1 Arsenal
A desperately poor performance by the Gunners, as after just 16 minutes, Hangzhou took the lead through Sebastian Vazquez following a mistake from goalkeeper Vito Mannone. Carlos Vela drew Arsenal level on the stroke of half-time with a close-range strike. Half-Time: 1-1
Despite making a full 11 changes in the half-time interval, Arsenal failed to break down vastly inferior opponents and the 1-1 scoreline stood until the full time whistle blew. Full-Time: 1-1
Kaizer Chief's 1-0 Tottenham
A disappointing match for Tottenham at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane. Twice denied by top-drawer saves from keeper Itumeleng Khune, the last in the 90th minute sparked the counter-attack that George Lebese scored the winner from.
Luka Modric, who handed a transfer request in this week was ruled out with an ankle problem, while fellow midfielder Sandro is expected to miss three months of action with a knee injury. Half-Time: 0-0
Full-Time: 1-0
A couple of new signings to report tonight:
Firstly, and the most high profiled, is the Ł7million transfer of French defender, Gael Clichy from Arsenal to Manchester City.
Having completed his medical earlier today, most of the rest of the day was spent meeting the club officials, before signing to become Roberto Mancini's first summer deal. He will join former Arsenal-team mates, Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure (though Adebayor is currently on loan at Real Madrid).
At the end of the season and about to enter his final contract year, Arsene Wenger was keen to tie Clichy down for an extension. Therefore the 'hands were tied' and they had little option but to cash in.
Clichy said: "I am really happy to be joining such a great club," Clichy told the club's website. I hope I can add to the quality we already have here because we have a fantastic squad who I believe will continue to get better. I can't wait to get started and I think anything is possible with this team."
Meanwhile, across Manchester, Wigan Athletic completed a deal for Ł3m less than City's as they signed Bolton Wanderers', and Oman international, goalkeeper Al Habsi for Ł4m. Having spent last season on loan at the DW Stadium, he was keen to return, but dispute over a fee held the deal up.
The Latics ended up meeting the valuation of the Trotters, and Al Habsi made his move permanent.
As Wigan's player of the season last year, manager Roberto Martinez was obviously pleased: "We are delighted to announce the best possible news for Wigan Athletic in securing Ali permanently. During his loan at our football club last season, Ali brought a great degree of professionalism in his daily work and put in many outstanding performances in the Premier League."
Al Habsi said: "I am very happy. I want to thank everyone at Bolton for helping me get established in this country but I need to be playing first-team football, and hopefully, if I can stay fit and keep doing my best, I will get the chance again at Wigan."
BATE Borisov* 1 - 1 Levski Sofia
Dinamo Zagreb 1 - 3 Shakhtar Donetsk*
FBK Kaunas 0 - 2 AaB*
Olympiacos 1 - 0 Anorthosis Famagusta*
Steaua Bucuresti* 1 - 0 Galatasaray
Marseille* 2 - 1 SK Brann
Dynamo Kiev* 4 - 1 Spartak Moscow
Atlético Madrid* 4 - 0 Schalke 04
Fenerbahce* 2 - 1 Partizan Belgrade
Arsenal* 4 - 0 Twente Enschede
FC Basel* 2 - 1 Guimaraes
Liverpool* 1 - 0 Standard Liege
Slavia Prague 0 - 0 Fiorentina*
*denotes qualifiers for the group stages of 2008-09 UEFA Champions League.
SUMMARY:
English Premier League giants Arsenal cruised through to the group stages of Europe's premier club competition with a comfortable 4-0 (6-0 agg) win over Dutch side FC Twente but five-times European champions Liverpool only just managed to scrape through with an extra time winner against Standard Liege at Anfield.
The Gunners were just too classy for FC Twente, a side managed by former England boss Steve 'Brolly' McLaren, and the home side controlled the tempo of the game from start to finish, such was there dominance all over the park.
Arsene Wenger's men completely passed the visitors off the pitch with some imaginative football which resulted in four different players getting on the scoresheet - Samir Nasri (27), William Gallas (52), Theo Walcott (66) and Nicklas Bendtner (89).
It wasn't so easy for Rafa Benitez's at Anfield as Liverpool's woeful early season form continued but once again, they were left off the hook by Belgian champions Standard Liege.
The visitors gave the five-time European champions a torrid time at home with a spirited and organised performance which highlighted Liverpool's lack of width on several occasions. Both sides had chances to win the game - the first leg ended with a draw - and it took until the 118th minute for Liverpool's Dirk Kuyt to find the winner to send the Reds through to the lucrative group stages of the competition.
Arsenal's new away kit for the 2008/09 season featuring a yellow and blue shirt with a red stripe down the sleeves and body is based on the iconic kit worn when the Club won the League Championship in dramatic style in 1989.
As with the new Arsenal home shirt, ‘Gunners’ is stamped on the neck to welcome the return of the Club's motto 'Victory through Harmony' from the Latin inscription 'Victoria Concordia Crescit', which is included in the inside neck of the shirt.
Manufactured by Nike, the kit features DRI-FIT technology to enhance player performance by drawing sweat away from the body through to the fabric’s surface to evaporate, while its three-dimensional construction allows for more air space around the skin to reduce clinging.
In a special promotion, the first 500 supporters that buy the away kit in an official Arsenal store on August 1 will have the opportunity to attend a screening of the historic match from 1989 at Emirates Stadium later that day. The evening will also feature a Q&A session with Paul Merson and Alan Smith - two of the players from that remarkable night.
English giants Arsenal have confirmed the signing of highly-rated Wales Under-21 international Aaron Ramsey from under the noses of Premier League rivals Manchester United and Everton for a fee in excess of Ł5 million.
The talented 17 year-old midfielder has been signed on a long-term contract from Championship side Cardiff City and will now be nurtured by one of the world's best managers in Arsene Wenger.
Despite Arsenal coming up short domestically and in Europe for the past few seasons, Wenger has made the talented and promising youngster his first signing of the off-season rather than a proven world-class player many pundits feel the Gunners require to challenge the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea for the Premiership crown.
Ramsey is the youngest player ever to represent Wales at Under-21 level in a 4-3 victory over Sweden Under-21s in August 2007 and has already received call ups to the full Welsh squad for their friendly international matches in Iceland and Holland, but was an unused substitute on both occasions.
His last match for Cardiff City was a spectacular cameo role in the FA Cup final against Portsmouth. Despite playing as a substitute, he delighted the crowd with his mazy runs and wizardry on the ball in the showpiece final.
Manager Arsene Wenger was delighted the youngster opted for the Gunners over other potential suitors and said: “We’re delighted to have signed Aaron Ramsey. He is a young player who has shown huge potential with his performances for both Cardiff City and Wales at under-17 and Under-21 levels. He is still only 17, but has already shown that he is a very intelligent and mature player with great quality. Although he mainly plays in midfield, Aaron is a versatile player and can also play across the defence. We are all looking forward to welcoming Aaron to the Club for our pre-season preparations.”
The player said that meeting Arsene Wenger and his track record for nurturing young talent was a big factor in his decision to join the club
Aaron Ramsey said: “I’m so happy to have signed for Arsenal. I am joining one of the biggest clubs in the world and can’t wait to meet my new team mates. I recently met with Arsčne Wenger and he was a big factor in my decision to join Arsenal. He talked to me for a long time about the Club and the plans for the future, which really excites me. Arsenal is a Club which always gives young players an opportunity at the highest level of the game and I am going to work my hardest to be part of future successes here.
“It was a really difficult decision to leave Cardiff City, they are my local club with great supporters and I would just like thank everyone at Cardiff City for their support and help in my early career. I will still look out for their results and there will always be a place in my heart for the Bluebirds.”
Arsenal has released a new goalkeeper kit to match the new home kit for the upcoming 2008/09 English Premier League season.
The Gunners' first-choice goalkeeper Manuel Almunia will be dressed in a black kit featuring a grey curved stripe for all home matches next season. Manufactured by Nike, the goalkeeper kit features the same 'Dry Fit' technology on all Nike kits which is designed to keep players cool yet durable in all conditions.
The official launch day for the kit is August 1st with pre-orders available now.
Arsenal have released their new home kit for the 2008-09 season of the Barclaycard English Premier League and it is exactly what the rumours suggested earlier last month.
The Nike manufactured strip features engineered mesh on the shirt which gives a dynamic and modern look whilst helping players stay cooler for longer periods due to the positioning of the mesh around the spine - the area of the body which generates the most heat.
Finished in traditional red and white with claret inserts on the sleeves and down the side of the body, the shirt detail also brings a welcome return to the Club's motto 'Victoria Concordia Crescit', the latin inscription for 'Victory through Harmony'.
The Gunners could be wearing this same home kit beyond next season as there appears to be conflicting dates on the Arsenal website which says this is the 2008-09 and 2008-10 kit on separate pages.
Both Arsenal's home and away kits have expired this month with new kits due for the upcoming season and possibly to 2010.
While the Gunners have remained tight lipped on when the new kits will be unveiled, several images of what appears to be the new kits have been circulating around the internet for a few months now.
According to several sources, these are the two new home and away kits for the upcoming season. The home kit remains similar in design and colour to the 2007/08 version, the V-neck collar makes a return while the red part of the shirt has been extended to the underarm section of the sleeves. The home kit also features white and claret colours.
The new away shirt is a lot different from the 'Chapman' away kit of 07/08 and is finished in yellow for the first since the 'Sega' sponsored kit of the 90s. Featuring a blue round collar and sleeves with a claret stripe running from the collar bone and down the shoulder blades to the end of the sleeves, the new away kit looks quite good if these images prove correct.
Highly-rated Spanish striker David Villa has revealed that he would love to play for Arsenal because of the club's stylish football.
The player currently plays for Spanish side Valencia and has been continually linked with a move to the English Premier League at clubs such as Chelsea and Liverpool, who signed his national team strike partner Fernando Torres last summer.
Fly Emirates?
As reported in The Sun newspaper, David Villa said: "I watch the Premier League a lot and the team I’m most attracted to is definitely Arsenal.
"Their brilliant one and two-touch football and the whole style of rapid counter-attack which dominates the top level of the Premier League now is the one which suits my game best of all.
"I think I’m made to succeed in England but of course it’s one thing saying it and quite another getting there and then doing it.
"The Valencia president always told me he wouldn’t sell me until summer 2008. If an offer comes in I’m hungry to test myself in England."
Rated at Ł20 million by his club, Villa has most recently been linked with Chelsea after manager Avram Grant reportedly made contact with Valencia over a move. His price tag would not be a problem for the cash rich London club who is backed by the big-spending Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich.
However, The Sun newspaper has reported that David Villa's preferred destination in England is actually London rivals Arsenal. The club is likely to strengthen their squad this summer after falling short in the league and Europe despite promising so much after their bright start this season. Gunner's boss Arsene Wenger is reported to have access to a transfer kitty in excess of Ł30 million which should easily cover the cost of signing the striker.
If a deal from Arsenal fails to materialise, then Chelsea remains the favourite to sign the player, possibly as a replacement for Andriy Shevchenko who has been continually linked with a move back to former club AC Milan.
Tues, Apr 8: UEFA Champions League (Quarter-Final 2nd Leg)
Liverpool 4 - 2 Arsenal (Liverpool through on 5 - 3 Agg)
Chelsea 2 - 0 Fenerbahce (Chelsea through on 3 - 2 Agg)
SUMMARY:
Liverpool and Chelsea have been reunited in the Champions League semi-final for the third time in four years courtesy of wins over Arsenal and Fenerbahce overnight.
Liverpool went into the return leg with a slender away goal advantage but it was Arsenal who started the brighter of the two sides and it came as no surprise when they went in front in the 13th minute through an Abou Diaby strike.
The Kop was silenced but not for long as defender Sami Hyypia restored parity on the half hour mark with a trademark headed goal and the home side began to dominate with new found confidence.
The Reds then took the lead in the second half when goal machine Fernando Torres gratefully latched onto Peter Crouch's flick on to fire a shot into the top corner. But with just seven minutes left, Arsenal stunned the hosts with an equaliser through Emmanuel Adebayor to make it 2-2 and it was advantage Gunners on the away goals rule.
A minute later, Liverpool were awarded a penalty when substitute Ryan Babel was adjudged to have been brought down by Toure. Up stepped captain marvel Steven Gerrard to fire the spot kick into the top corner to restore the home side's lead.
But the action was not over yet. Arsenal surged forward in search of the equaliser that would send them through to the next round but were caught out by a Ryan Babel breakaway goal which sealed a 4-2 victory on another famous European night at Anfield.
In the other quarter-final clash of the evening, goals from midfielders Michael Ballack and Frank Lampard gave Chelsea a 2-0 win at home over Turkish side Fenerbahce to book a place in the semi-final for the fourth time in five years.
Wed, Apr 2: UEFA Champions League (Quarter-Final 1st Leg)
Arsenal 1 - 1 Liverpool
Fenerbahce 2 - 1 Chelsea
SUMMARY:
Last season's Champions League finalists Liverpool hold a slender away goal advantage heading into next week's return leg at Anfield after a 1-1 draw against Arsenal in the quarter-final first leg overnight.
The home side took the lead through Emmanuel Adebayor's header only for the visitors to equalise just three minutes later after a moment of genius from captain marvel Steven Gerrard. Bursting his way past three Arsenal defenders, the England midfielder then crossed for Dutch striker Dirk Kuyt to bundle the ball home for a crucial away goal.
Both sides had opportunities to take the lead thereafter including a strong penalty claim for the Gunners after Alex Hleb appeared to have his shirt tugged by Kuyt as he made his way inside the box only for referee Pieter Vink to wave play on.
Arsenal and Liverpool face off again on Saturday in a Premier League clash before meeting for the return leg at Anfield next Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Chelsea suffered a shock 2-1 defeat at the hands of Turkish giants Fenerbahce at the Sukru Saracoglu in the second Champions League quarter-final match last night.
The London club took the lead in the 13th minute courtesy of an own goal by Deivid but the home side kept at it and were rewarded for their efforts when substitute Colin Kazim-Richards equalised on the 64th minute.
Own goal villain Deivid then made amends for his earlier error by scoring the winner in the 80th minute with a spectacular 35-yard shot that gave Cudicini no chance.
Chelsea will need to go all out for a win at home in the return leg to reach their fourth semi-final in five years.
It is hoped that Arsenal's Croatia striker Eduardo will make a full recovery from his horrific leg break in nine months.
Eduardo will have his leg in plaster for the next six to eight weeks before beginning a rehabilitation programme. If all goes well, he should be running again inside six months.
Since the incident, Martin Taylor the Birmingham centre half who caused the injury has been targeted by some angry fans, including from Croatia, who have posted threatening messages on various internet sites.
Security personnel had to restrain Croatian journalists who ran on to the road and tried to get into Taylor's car as he left the club's Wast Hills training complex on Monday.
But Croatia manager Slaven Bilic, who will now be without his prolific striker for the European Championship finals this summer, has been quick to defend the 28-year-old centre-half.
"The injury made the tackle look bad," Billic told BBC Radio 5 Live. "You see many tackles like that, almost every week."
He continued, "That's perhaps wrong for football but I'm sure Martin Taylor is a sportsman and he wanted to play the ball. On another occasion Eduardo could have received a worse tackle and got away without injury. Everything went wrong but Eduardo knows Taylor didn't do it deliberately."
I hate players getting sent off, and I hate the fact that football is becoming a non-contact sport. Having said that, the FA must be consistant in its decision making or the game falls into disrepute.
Over the past few weeks, Arsenal have had two heavy defeats. The Carling Cup defeat at Tottenham and the FA Cup defeat at Manchester United will have hurt their pride terribly. They may not have had their strongest teams out, and the competitions may not be regarded as being as important as the Champions League or the Premiership, but defeats like that hurt.
On both occasions, Arsenal players have behaved poorly. Nobody likes losing and their actions might be understandable, but not condonable.
In the Tottenham game, Adebayor clearly head butted his team mate Nicklas Bendtner,unseen by the referee, and in the United game, Gallas clearly kicked Nani from behind, also unseen by the referee.
Both cases were referred to the FA to review the video evidence, which was quite clear. In both cases, the FA have decided to take no action.
As I say, part of me is glad about that as I don't like seeing payers being suspended, but another part of me asks how the FA can possibly say that neither incident amounted to violent conduct.
I think Arsenal have been very lucky to escape punishment in both these cases, and it would be really nice to hear Arsene Wenger speak out against the actions of his players. By saying nothing, he is seen to condone what they did.
During Arsenal's humiliating 5-1 defeat at Tottenham last night in the Carling Cup semi-final, two Arsenal players came to blows.
With things going horribly wrong for the men from The Emirates, they were waiting for Cesc Fabrigas to deliver a corner when an argument erupted between Adabayor and Bendtner. The argument developed and as other players tried to pull them apart, Adabayor appeared to head butt his team mate. The blood on Bendtner's nose afterwards confirmed that there had been contact.
Referee Howard Webb saw the incident and spoke to both players but took no action. Arsenal captain on the night, Willian Gallas, saw what happened and gave no excuses for their conduct. He said that both players had behaved badly and would have to explain their actions.
Arsene Wenger was asked about the incident, and to nobody's surprise, he replied that he hadn't seen it.
Wenger sees every poor decision, foul, or incident that goes against his team, but never sees anything that Arsenal players do. It beggars belief, and would be so nice if just for once he would be honest and condemn any bad actions taken by his players.
Arsene Wenger is a fine manager and an excellent technician. I just find it hard to respect any man that is so blinkered.
Tottenham Hotspur ended eight years of hurt against bitter London rivals Arsenal overnight with an emphatic 5-1 win in the Carling Cup at White Hart Lane.
Spurs ended the Gunners stranglehold over them in all competitions since 1999 and for a total of 21 encounters to book a place in the final to be played at Wembley. Despite the inclusion of first-team regulars William Gallas, Alex Hleb and Cesc Fabregas and Emmanuel Adebayor on the bench, a largely young Gunners side were unable to hold off an experienced Spurs outfit with Jermaine Jenas and Robbie Keane running riot to land new coach Juande Ramos one win away from a trophy in his maiden season at the club.
Goals from Jermaine Jenas (3), an own goal from Nicklas Bendtner (27) and further efforts from Robbie Keane (48), Aaron Lennon (60) and Steed Malbranque (90) sealed a famous victory for Ramos' men.
The Spurs manager hailed his team as 'perfect' in the aftermath of the win, saying: "In order to beat a team like Arsenal, you have to play well. We didn't make mistakes and were perfect in all areas of the team,' said Ramos.
The effort that the players have put in to reach this final means they are the architects of this victory."
Spurs will play the winner of the match between Chelsea and Tim Cahill's Everton in the final.
LA Galaxy midfielder and global footballing icon, David Beckham, recently took part in his first training session with English giants Arsenal after accepting an offer from Gunners boss Arsene Wenger to train with the London club during the MLS off-season.
The former Manchester United and Real Madrid player is working with the Premier League leaders in a bid to reach peak physical condition before the start of MLS pre-season and more importantly, to win his 100th cap in England's friendly against Switzerland on 6 February.
A delighted Fabregas is joined by Becks in training
Arsenal's training ground is based conveniently in Colney, just minutes from Beckham's Hertfordshire mansion.
It has been reported that Beckham will mainly train with Arsenal's reserves and will only join up with the first team occasionally when they are short of players.
Judging by how delighted Arsenal's midfield sensation Cesc Fabregas looks in some of these snaps, it appears Becks has settled in well with the lads.
Arsenal's classy youngsters and and ten-man Tottenham advanced through to the semi-finals of the Carling Cup overnight with wins over Blackburn and Manchester City respectively.
Fielding an entire reserve side, Arsene Wenger's team of youngsters look set to emulate last season's runners-up with a gritty extra time win over Blackburn. The visitors started sensationally and took a 2-0 lead through Abou Diaby's volley and Eduardo's low finish.
The home side returned fire with a brace from the classy Roque Santa Cruz but Arsenal striker Eduardo slotted the winner in extra time to send the Gunners into the semi-final despite losing Denilson to a red card at the end of normal time.
Meanwhile, at the City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester City's proud 100% home record under Sven Goran Eriksson was ended by ten-man Spurs courtesy of goals from England striker Jermain Defoe and Steed Malbranque.
Tottenham were reduced to 10 men as early as the 21st minute when Zokora was sent off by referee Steve Bennett for a lunge at Elano with the score at 1-0 to the visitors.
Understandably, Spurs were soon on the back foot but dug deep to hold off the attacking Manchester City to seal the win in the 82nd minute with Malbranque's strike.
Provided that both Arsenal and Tottenham progress through to the finals, we shall witness an interesting clash between London's most bitter rivals.
Birmingham 1 - 1 Reading
Derby 0 - 1 Middlesbrough
Man City 4 - 2 Bolton
Portsmouth 0 - 1 Tottenham
Sunderland 1 - 1 Aston Villa
West Ham 0 - 2 Everton
Wigan 5 - 3 Blackburn
Fulham 0 - 1 Newcastle
Sun, Dec 16:
Liverpool 0 - 1 Man Utd
Arsenal 1 - 0 Chelsea
Sun, Dec 16:
The Premiership 'Big Four' went head to head over the weekend with Manchester United and Arsenal coming out on top with 1-0 victories over Liverpool and Chelsea respectively.
Despite dominating the match at Anfield, Liverpool failed to make any in-roads pass the United defence and were made to pay when Carlos Tevez pounced on a Ryan Giggs corner to fire home the winner late in the first half.
The win for Sir Alex Ferguson's men has left United nine points in front of their fierce north-west rivals.
Meanwhile at the Emirates, Arsenal captain William Gallas made his former club pay by heading home the only goal of the game on the stroke of half-time. The Frenchman cashed in on an uncharacteristic error from Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech to give his side victory and a six-point cushion over their London rivals.
The match of the weekend - an eight-goal thriller - took place on Saturday between Wigan and Blackburn at the JJB stadium.
Marcus Bent and Roque Santa Cruz both completed hat-tricks in a pulsating match which saw Wigan throw away a three-goal lead before eventually overcoming 10-man Blackburn 5-3 to end their 14-match winless run.
In other matches, wins were recorded for Middlesbrough, Man City, Tottenham, Everton and Newcastle.
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