Richard Dunne has revealed that he bears no grudges over Manchester City s decision to offload him to Aston Villa.
Instead, the former City captain says he is happy to have had the uncertainty over his future ended so that he can concentrate on Ireland s important World Cup qualifier against Cyprus in Nicosia on Saturday.
Dunne was deemed surplus to requirements at City following the transfer window signings of centrebacks Kolo Toure and Joleon Lescott.
They told me they had accepted an offer so I said okay but what if I want to stay and fight for my place?’ Dunne said ahead of the Irish squad s departure for Nicosia. They said it s funny, we need the money .
But I am not bitter about leaving, I really enjoyed my time there and wish them all the succes…
Angola is on track to host the 2010 Nations Cup, African Football Confederation president Issa Hayatou said in Cairo Wednesday.
A South African media report suggested the biennial tournament might be moved to the hosts of the 2010 World Cup because Angola were battling to complete construction of four stadiums.
Danny Jordaan, a senior World Cup organising committee figure, said before the Cairo meeting that the readiness of Angola to stage the 16-nation African football showcase would be discussed.
Hayatou, a Cameroonian who has run the continental football body since 1988, congratulated Angola 2010 chief Antonio Mangueira for the efforts of his organising committee.
Luanda is scheduled to host a November 20 draw that will split the 16 qualifiers into fo…
Mauricio Pochettino has insisted Roberto Soldado has a future at Tottenham and rejected speculation he will leave White Hart Lane.
The Spanish striker moved to Tottenham from Valencia ahead of the 2013-14 season, but has struggled to make an impression contributing just seven league goals.
He has been strongly linked with a move away, Villarreal reportedly leading the chase for the 30-year-old as they look to strengthen ahead of a return to the UEFA Europa League.
However, Pochettino intends to use Soldado as part of his squad for the forthcoming campaign.
He [Soldado] is our player and in our plans, Pochettino said ahead of the Audi Cup friendly tournament.
I can t confirm that [he will be leaving].
…
A 0-0 draw with North Korea meant South Korea passed up the chance to secure the East Asian Cup trophy.
Uli Stielike s side came into Sunday s meeting at the Wuhan Sports Centre top of the table on four points, one clear of both their opponents and China.
A victory would have sealed the title their third in six attempts but the stalemate means 2013 runners-up China can lift the trophy with victory over defending champions Japan later on Sunday.
The draw sees North Korea leapfrog China into second place temporarily at least while their neighbours face a nervous wait on the outcome of the final clash of the tournament.
…
Ghostrunner 2 continues the story from the first game, after Mara and the Architect were defeated and mankind was saved within Dharma Tower. However, as you may expect, that’s not the end of it, as the council is under threat from a new enemy, one that threatens to destroy far more than the foes in the first game. But exactly how long is Ghostrunner 2, and what are the names of all the missions?
How long to beat Ghostrunner 2
The Ghostrunner 2 story will take roughly 12 hours to complete, give or take. It’s not a particularly long game, but it is significantly longer than the first game, which could be beaten in around seven hours. For the most part, Ghostrunner 2 is a linear game with missions that are split up by a hub area,…
Antoine Griezmann and Neymar are not on the shortlist for The Best FIFA Men s Player award, with Barcelona team-mate Lionel Messi up against Cristiano Ronaldo and Eden Hazard for this year s prize.
Griezmann completed his long-awaited €120million transfer to the Spanish champions in July but his 15-goal contribution to Atletico Madrid s second-place finish in the 2018-19 LaLiga table was not enough to impress FIFA s panel.
Liverpool trio Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk are in contention after helping the Reds to glory in last season s Champions League, while Matthijs de Ligt and Frenkie de Jong have been recognised for their part in helping Ajax to the semi-finals and to a domestic title.
There is no place for 2018 winner and Ballon d Or holder Lu…
Argentina can breathe again. Nigeria have blown World Cup Group D wide open in the race for second spot behind Croatia, and set up a tantalising showdown between Gernot Rohr s side and the South Americans on matchday three.
It was fitting that Nigeria, on Russian soil, managed what England could not in France in 2016: namely, beat Iceland. It was fitting because it was Ahmed Musa who inspired them. The forward never settled at Leicester City, never showed enough of his qualities to a Premier League audience, but Volgograd Arena witnessed the real deal, the man who has excelled at CSKA Moscow.
At half-time, it looked as though the entertaining 2018 finals, still without a goalless draw, was about to be hauled down into the doldrums.
Nigeria became the first team…
African superstars Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto o and Michael Essien will discover Friday who they face at the 2010 African Nations Cup in Angola.
A draw ceremony in the capital of the oil-rich south-west Africa state divides the 16 qualifiers into four groups from which the winners and runners-up advance to the quarter-finals.
Chelsea striker Drogba is the main source of Ivory Coast goals, Eto o of Inter Milan serves a similar role with Cameroon and Essien, also from English Premiership table-toppers Chelsea, drives the Ghana midfield.
And with the top 10 football nations on the continent among those securing places, the stage is set for an intriguing January 10-31 tournament as Egypt seek a record third consecutive title.
Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast and …
They will not admit it publicly, but England will regard a group containing the United States, Algeria and Slovenia as just about as easy as they could have hoped for from the World Cup draw.
The United States won the only previous World Cup meeting between the two countries and their 1-0 win in Belo Horizonte, Brazil in 1950 still ranks as one of the greatest shocks in the history of the tournament.
But that remains the only time England have lost to their transatlantic allies and, despite the United States beating Spain on their way to the Confederations Cup final last year, it would be regarded as another upset if Bill Bradley s side were to take three points from the group opener in Rustenburg on June 12.
England have recent experience of playing both the Un…
Premier League champions Manchester United will start their bid for a record fourth successive English title at home to newly-promoted Birmingham on August 15.
Sir Alex Ferguson s team discovered their fixtures for the 2009-10 season on Wednesday and the three-time champions follow the Birmingham clash with a trip to Burnley, who were promoted via the Championship play-offs.
Carlo Ancelotti begins his reign at Chelsea at home to Hull, while Liverpool travel to Tottenham on the opening weekend and Arsenal face a trip to Everton.
Championship winners Wolves play West Ham at Molineux and Burnley visit Stoke on their return to the top flight.
Big-spending Manchester City travel to Blackburn on the opening day before hosting Everton at Eastlands on 19 August.…