Friday 31 August 2012

Nike Oshinowo's reason for not going to church raises eyebrows

That Nike Oshinowo is beautiful is no news, but her recent statement that she doesn't go to church because she causes distractions is a little controversial .Maybe it was just an innocent statement,maybe people are reading deeper meanings to it than already is.

“Anytime I enter a church people are always quick to notice me and some may not even concentrate on the service anymore as I always become the center of attraction in such cases. And this also distracts me. Therefore I have preferred to stay at home and worship God, rather than to keep causing unnecessary distractions in church.”

Hmmmn isn't this a little too confident?#justasking#

Premier League Transfer Talk

Arsene Wenger is planning a move to bring in Chelsea midfielder Michael Essien on-loan. (Daily Mail)
Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko could be involved in a part-exchange deal in the club's attempt to sign Theo Walcott. (Metro)
England international Theo Walcott has rejected a new contract, sparking interest from Liverpool and Manchester City. (Telegraph)
In: Olivier Giroud (Montpellier, £12m), Lukas Podoloski (Cologne, £11.9m), Santi Cazorla (Malaga, £16.5m) Out: Alex Song (Barcelona, £15m), Robin van Persie (Manchester United, £22m), Carlos Vela (Real Socieded, £6m), Manuel Almunia (Watford, free), Tom Cruise (Torquay, free), Ben Glasgow (Stoke, free), Gavin Hoyte (Dagenham & Redbridge, free), Jeffrey Monakana (Preston, free), Rhys Murphy (Telstar, free), Oguzhan Ozyakup (Besiktas, undisclosed), Pedro Botelho (Atlético Paranaense, free), Sean McDermott (Sandnes Ulf, free), Alban Bunjaku (Sevilla, free), George Brislen-Hall (Norwich, free), James Campbell (Dundee United, free), Benif Afobe (Bolton, loan), Denilson (Sao Paulo, loan), Joel Campbell (Real Betis, loan), Ryo Miyaichi (Wigan, loan), James Campbell (released), Sean McDermott (released), Daniel Boateng (Oxford, loan), Henri Lansbury (Nottingham Forest, undisclosed)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Late deals for Christian Benteke from Genk and Dale Stephens from Charlton are still on the cards for Paul Lambert. (Daily Mirror)
Paul Lambert is set to increase his bid for Genk striker Christian Benteke, along with bidding for Chesterfield's 21-year-old striker Jordan Bowery. (Press Association)
Middlesbrough left-back Joe Bennett could be joining for £2.75 million, which would push Stephen Warnock closer to the exit. (Daily Mail)
In: Ron Vlaar (Feyenoord, £3m), Matthew Lowton (Sheffield United, £4m), Brett Holman (AZ Alkmaar, free), Karim El Ahmadi (Feyenoord, £2.5m) Out: Emile Heskey (released), Carlos Cuellar (Sunderland, free), James Collins (West Ham, £2.5m), Connor Taylor (Walsall, free), Reece Caira (Western Sydney Wanderers, free), Andy Marshall (released), Jean Makoun (Rennes)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Chelsea
Daniel Sturridge looks set to be sent out on-loan to enable the arrival of Andre Schurrie. (Guardian)
Porto have turned down a €50 million (£39.5 million) offer from Zenit St. Petersburg for Chelsea target Hulk. (TalkSPORT)
Fenerbahce could be set for a double swoop on the Blues with an £8 million bid for Michael Essien and a separate move for Raul Meireles. (Daily Mail)
In: Cesar Azpilicueta (Marseille, £6m), Victor Moses (Wigan, £9m), Eden Hazard (Lille, £32m), Marko Marin (Werder Bremen, £7m) Oscar (Internacional, £25m), George Brady (Cannes, £250,000), Thorgan Hazard (Lens, undisclosed), Cesar Azpilicueta (Marseille, £6.5m), Victor Moses (Wigan, undisclosed) Out: Didier Drogba (Shanghai Shenhua, free), Salomon Kalou (Lille, free), Jacob Mellis (Barnsley, free), Marko Mitrovic (Brescia, free), Thibaut Courtois (Atletico Madrid, loan), Rohan Ince (Yeovil, loan), Jeffrey Bruma (Hamburg, loan), Patrick van Aanholt (Vitesse Arnhem, loan), Tomas Kalas (Vitesse Arnhem, loan), Ulises Dávila (Sabadell, loan), Jhon Pírez (Sabadel, loan), Milan Lalkovic (Vitoria Guimaraes, loan), Matej Delac (Vitoria Guimaraes, loan), Kenneth Omeruo (ADO Den Haag), Kevin De Bruyne (Werder Bremen, loan), Ben Gordon (Birmingham, loan), Romelu Lukaku (WBA, loan), Sam Walker (Bristol Rovers, loan), Jose Bosingwa (released), Josh McEachran (Middlesbrough, loan), Archange Nkumu (Yeovil, loan)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Everton
Blackburn midfielder Steven N'Zonzi is a late target after the midfielder fell out with manager Steve Kean. (Daily Mirror)
Assistant manager Steve Round is adamant that Leighton Baines will not leave the club during the transfer window. (Independent)
AC Milan have beaten the Toffees to the signing of M'Baye Niang. (Independent)
In: Kevin Mirallas (Olympiakos, £6m), Steven Naismith (Rangers, tribunal), Steven Pienaar (Tottenham, £4.5m) Out: Jack Rodwell (Man City, £12m), Tim Cahill (NY Red Bulls, £1m), Adam Forshaw (Brentford, undisclosed), James McFadden (released), Marcus Hahnemann (released), James Wallace (Tranmere, undisclosed) Joseph Yobo (Fenerbahce, £2m), Femi Orenuga (released), Adam Forshaw (Brentford, free), Aristote Nsiala (Accrington Stanley, free)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Fulham
Martin Jol is keen to bring in another striker along with Sunderland midfielder Kieran Richardson. (Fulham Chronicle)
Attempts to bring in Mark Noble from West Ham as a replacement for Moussa Dembele have failed. (Goal.com)
Martin Jol has bid £6.5 million for Lyon striker Bafetimbi Gomis. (Daily Mail)
In: Mladen Petric (Hamburg, free), George Williams (MK Dons, undisclosed), Hugo Rodallega (Wigan, free), Sascha Riether (Cologne, loan) Out: Andrew Johnson (QPR, free), Danny Murphy (Blackburn, free), Bjorn Helge Riise (Lillestrom SK), Orlando Sa (AEL Limassol, free), Dickson Etuhu (Blackburn, £1.5m), Marcel Gecov (AA Gent, undisclosed)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Liverpool
With Andy Carroll now on-loan, Liverpool are set to pursue a loan deal for Daniel Sturridge. (Liverpool Echo)
Andy Carroll's potential departure could signal a move for Athletic Bilbao and Spain striker Fernando Llorente. (The Sun)
A move for Theo Walcott has become a sudden possibility after the Arsenal forward's contract talks broke down. (Telegraph)
In: Nuri Sahin (Real Madrid, loan), Oussama Assaidi (Heerenveen, £3m), Joe Allen (Swansea City, £15m), Fabio Borini (Roma, £10m) Out: Dirk Kuyt (Fenerbache, £1m) Fabio Aurelio (Gremio, free) David Amoo (Preston North End, free), Stephen Darby (Bradford City, free), Maxi Rodriguez (Newell's Old Boys, undisclosed), Alberto Aquilani (Fiorentina, £6m), Craig Bellamy (Cardiff City, free), Toni Silva (Barnsley, free), Lewis Hatch (Accrington Stanley, free), Joe Rafferty (Rochdale, free), Connor Wearing (Shrewsbury, free)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Manchester City
Roberto Mancini is set to make a deadline-day move for Benfica's Javi Garcia. (Telegraph)
Brazilian international Maicon remains on City's radar, with a bid before the end of the transfer window a possibility. (The Guardian)
City could be tempted to battle Liverpool for Theo Walcott's signature after the striker refused a new Arsenal contract. (Telegraph)
In: Jack Rodwell (Everton, £12m), Vlad Marin (Lazio, undisclosed), Jules Olivier Ntcham (Le Havre, undisclosed) Out: Emmanuel Adebayor (Tottenham, £9m), Stuart Taylor (Manchester City, free), Owen Hargreaves (released), Stuart Taylor (Reading, free), Wayne Bridge (Brighton, loan), Greg Cunningham (Bristol City, undisclosed), Vladimir Weiss (Pescara, £1.3m), Gai Assulin (Racing Santander, free), Ahmed Benali (Brescia, free), Andrea Mancini (Real Valladolid, free), Omar Elabdellaoui (Feyenoord, loan), Harry Bunn (Crewe, loan), Adam Johnson (Sunderland, undisclosed)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Manchester United
David Gill has confirmed that Wayne Rooney will not be sold for "any price". (ESPN)
The sale of Dimitar Berbatov could see United make a £27 million loss on their record signing. (Independent)
Wayne Rooney fears that he could be offloaded in a £40 million move. (Mirror)
In: Nick Powell (Crewe, £2.75m rising to £4m) Shinji Kagawa (Dortmund, £17m), Robin van Persie (Arsenal, £22m), Alexander Buttner (Vitesse Arnhem, undisclosed) Out: Tomasz Kuszczak (Brighton, free), Michael Owen (released), Ritchie De Laet (Leicester, undisclosed), Matty James (Leicester, £2m combined), Fabio da Silva (QPR, loan), Park Ji-sung (QPR, £2.5m), Ben Amos (Hull City, loan), Paul Pogba (Juventus, free), Febian Brandy (Walsall, free), Liam Jacob (Oldham, free), Oliver Norwood (Huddersfield, free), Reece Brown (Coventry, loan), John Cofie (Sheffield United, loan), Sean McGinty (Oxford United, loan, Joe Coll (released)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Newcastle United
Long-time target Mathieu Debuchy is a late target for both Newcastle and Real Madrid. (Here Is The City)
Newcastle have finished their pursuits of Gregory Van Der Weil and Mathieu Debuchy as they continue to chase Andy Carroll. (The Journal)
Alan Pardew could accept bids for Fabricio Coloccini and Cheick Tiote if the offer is high enough. (Independent)
In: Vurnon Anita (Ajax, £6.6m), Romain Amalfitano (Reims, free), Gael Bigirimana (Coventry, £1m), Curtis Good (Melbourne Heart, £400,000) Out: Philip Airey (released), Ryan Donaldson (released), Danny Guthrie (released), Tamas Kadar (released), Peter Lovenkrands (released), Alan Smith (released), Leon Best (Blackburn, £3m), Fraser Forster (Celtic, £2m), Daniel Taylor (Oldham, free), Michael Hoganson (Derby County, free), Lee Toland (Glenavon, free), Louis Storey (Accrington, free), Billy Ions (Leeds, free), Jeff Henderson (Sligo, free), Alex Baird (released), Ryan Donaldson (released), Samuel Adjei (released), Stephen Folan (released), Greg McDermott (released), Patrick Nzuzi (released), Ryan McGorrigan (released), Ben Sayer (released)
---------------------------------------------------------------
Norwich City
The Canaries could make a late move for Brighton striker Craig Mackail-Smith. (Norwich Evening News 24)
Goalkeeper Mark Bunn has joined the club from Blackburn. (BBC Sport)
Chris Hughton is closing in on Argentinian midfielder Lucas Biglia. (Mirror)
In: Alexander Tetty (Rennes, undisclosed), Steven Whittaker (Rangers, free), Jacob Butterfield (Barnsley, tribunal), Michael Turner (Sunderland, £1.5m), Robert Snodgrass (Leeds, £3m), George Brislen-Hall (Arsenal, free), Javier Garrido (Lazio, loan), Sebastien Bassong (Tottenham, undisclosed) Out: Zak Whitbread (released), Aaron Wilbraham (released), Josh Dawkin (released), Adam Drury (Leeds, free), Andrew Crofts (Brighton, undisclosed), Daniel Ayala (Nottingham Forest, loan), Matthew Ball (released)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Queens Park Rangers
Marseille midfielder Stephane Mbia has said he is on his way to QPR. (The Sun)
After signing Cesar, Mark Hughes is now targeting Real Madrid star Granero. (Daily Mail)
Rubin Kazan star defender Cristian Ansaldi could be target for QPR and West Brom. (Sun)
In: Jose Bosingwa (Chelsea, free), Park Ji-sung (Manchester United, £2.5m), Samba Diakité (Nancy, £4m), Robert Green (West Ham, free), Ryan Nelsen (Tottenham, free), Andrew Johnson (Fulham, free), Fabio (Manchester United, loan), Junior Hoilett (Blackburn, free) Out: Peter Ramage (Crystal Palace, free), Danny Gabbidon (released), Danny Shittu (released), Fitz Hall (released), Gary Borrowdale (released), Lee Cook (Leyton Orient, free), Rowan Vine (St Johnstone, free), Patrick Agyemang (released), Akos Buzsaky (released) Heidar Helguson (Cardiff, undisclosed), Paddy Kenny (Leeds, £500,000), Danny Shittu (Millwall, free), Clint Hill (released), Bruno Perone (released), Tommy Smith (Cardiff, undisclosed)
---------------------------------------------------------------
Reading
Wales striker Simon Church remains a late loan target for Ipswich Town. (Examiner)
Brian McDermott has ruled any more potential signings, although Simon Church could leave the club on loan. (Sky Sports)
A move for West Ham's Carlton Cole could be on the cards as Brian McDermott is interested in a £5m move for the striker. (Mirror)
In: Stuart Taylor (Manchester City, free), Pierce Sweeney (Bray Wanderers, undisclosed), Pavel Pogrebnyak (Stuttgart, free), Danny Guthrie (Newcastle, free), Garath McCleary (Nottingham Forest, free), Nicky Shorey (West Brom, free), Chris Gunter (Nottingham Forest, £2m rising to £2.3m), Adrian Mariappa (Watford, £3m) Out: Mathieu Manset (FC Sion, undisclosed), Michail Antonio (Sheffield Wednesday, undisclosed), Tomasz Cywka (Barnsley, free), Michael Hector (Shrewsbury, loan), Angus MacDonald (AFC Wimbledon, loan), Joseph Mills (Burnley, loan), Karl Sheppard (Accrington, loan), Gozie Ugwu (Yeovil, loan), Brett williams (Woking, loan), Cédric Baseya (released), Andy Griffin (released), Brian Howard (released), Jack Mills (released), Jacob Walcott (released), Ethan Gage (released), Cameron Edwards (released).
---------------------------------------------------------------
Southampton
Blackpool's Matt Phillips could still move to St.Mary's before the deadline. (Blackpool Gazette)
Saints are working "exceptionally hard" with negotiations to bring in 21-year old Gaston Ramirez. (CrunchSports)
Villa are after Saints striker Rickie Lambert and are possibly lining up a move for the 30-year-old. (Mirror)
In: Jay Rodriguez (Burnley, £7m), Alexander Buttner (Vitesse Arnhem, £3m), Steven Davis (Rangers, £800,000), Paulo Gazzaniga (Gillingham, £2m), Nathaniel Clyne (Crystal Palace, £2.5m), Emmanuel Mayuka (Young Boys Berne, undisclosed) Out: Dan Harding (Nottingham Forest, undisclosed), Harlee Dean (Brentford, free), Ryan Doble (Shrewsbury, free), Jack Dovey (Eastleigh, free), Lee Holmes(Preston, free), Bartosz Bialkowski (Notts County, free), Tommy Forecast (Gillingham, loan), Aaron Martin (Crystal Palace, loan), David Connolly (released), Radhi Jaidi (retired).
----------------------------------------------------------------
Stoke City
Liverpool midfielder Charlie Adam has arrived at Stoke for medical ahead of a £4m move. (Daily Mail)
Arsenal striker Nicolas Bendtner has been offered to Stoke on loan. (This Is Staffordshire)
Tony Pulis is to revive his bid for Tom Huddlestone after protracted negotiations with Spurs. (Stoke Sentinel)
In: Geoff Cameron (Houston Dynamo, £2.5m), Ben Glasgow (Arsenal, free), Jamie Ness (Rangers, free), Goran Popov (Dynamo Kiev, loan), Michael Kightly (Wolverhampton Wanderers, £3m) Out: Danny Collins (Nottingham Forest, £500,000), Andrew Davies (Bradford City, free), Jonathan Woodgate (Middlesbrough, free), Ryan Brunt (Leyton Orient, loan), Florent Cuvelier (Walsall, loan), Matthew Lund (Bristol Rovers, loan). Salif Diao Ricardo Fuller (released), Louis Moult (released), Tom Soares (released), Michael Tonge (released).
---------------------------------------------------------------
Sunderland
Tottenham's Danny Rose is seen as an ideal replacement for the departing Kieran Richardson. (Daily Mirror)
The Black Cats are considering a late move for Liverpool winger Stewart Downing. (Caught Offside)
Martin O'Neill could hijack Liverpool's bid for Fulham's Clint Dempsey (TalkSPORT)
In: Louis Saha (free agent), Carlos Cuellar (Aston Villa, free), David Ferguson (Darlington, free), Wade Joyce (Bury, free), Adam Johnson (Manchester City, undisclosed), Steven Fletcher (Wolves, £12m) Out: Asomoah Gyan (Al-Ain, £6m), Michael Turner (Norwich, £1.5m), Cristian Riveros (Kayserispor, £240,000), Marcos Angeleri (Estudiantes, undisclosed), Trevor Carson (Bury, free), Jordan Cook (Charlton, free), Michael Liddle (Accrington, free), George McCartney (West Ham, free), Liam Bagnall (released), James Brace (released), Brett Elliott (released), Craig Gordon (released), Lewis King (released), Jordan Lavender (released), Oumare Tounkara (released)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Swansea City
Despite a busy summer the club could still make a move for Dutch ace Jerson Cabral. (This Is South Wales)
A bid for Valencia winger and Spain international Pablo Hernandez has been successful. (Daily Mirror)
Crewe captain Ashley Westwood could be set for a move to the Liberty. (Daily Mail)
In: Ki Sung-Yeung (Celtic, undisclosed), Jamie Proctor (Preston, undisclosed), Jose Manuel Flores (Genoa, £2m), Jonathan de Guzman (Villarreal, loan), Michu (Rayo Vallecano, £2m), Kyle Bartley (Arsenal, £1m), Ki Sung-Yeung (Celtic, £6m). Out: Joe Allen (Liverpool, £15m), Ferrie Bodde (released), Casey Thomas released), Joe Walsh (Crawley, free), Jose Moreira (released), Scott Donnelly (released)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Tottenham Hotspur
Spurs will have to break their transfer record to sign Joao Moutinho according to Porto's president. (Daily Mail)
Spurs have had a £11.9 million bid for Willian rejected, but are also interested in his Shakhtar team-mates Fernandinho and Douglas. (Goal.com)
AVB is particularly interested in Joao Moutinho due to his Portuguese links and is close to completing the Moussa Dembele deal. (Mirror)
In: Moussa Dembele (Fulham, £15m), Emmanuel Adebayor (Tottenham, £5m), Jan Vertonghen (Ajax, £9.5m), Gylfi Sigurdsson (Hoffenheim, £8m) Out: Sebastien Bassong (Norwich City, undisclosed), Niko Kranjcar (Dynamo Kiev, £5.75m), Vedran Corluka (Lokomotiv Moscow, £5.5m), Steven Pienaar (Everton, £4.5m), Lee Angol (Wycombe, undisclosed), Ben Alnwick (Barnsley, free), Ryan Nelsen (QPR, free), Oscar Jansson (Shamrock Rovers, free), Bongani Khumalo (PAOK Salonika, loan), Massimo Luongo (Ipswich, loan), Louis Saha (released), Ledley King (retired), Daniel Button (Charlton, undisclosed), Luka Modric (Real Madrid, £30m)
----------------------------------------------------------------
West Bromwich Albion
The Baggies are planning a late raid for Blackburn defender Martin Olsson. (The Sun)
Former West Brom midfielder Giles Barnes is set to join MLS side Houston Dynamo. (Tribal Football)
Rubin Kazan's Argentinian Cristian Ansaldi is on Steve Clarke's radar as the transfer deadline looms. (Sun)
In: Ben Foster (Birmingham, £4m), Yassine El Ghanassy (AA Gent, loan), Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea, loan), Markus Rosenberg (Werder Bremen, free), Claudio Yacob (Racing Club de Avellaneda) Out: Somen Tchoyi (released), Simon Cox (Nottingham Forest, £2m), Keith Andrews (Bolton, free), Paul Downing (Walsall, free), Marton Fulop (Astera Tripolis, free), Joey Mattock (Sheffield Wednesday, free), Nicky Shorey (Reading, free), Lateef Elford-Alliyu (Bury, free), Paul Scharner (Hamburg, free), Jamie Edge (released), Somen Tchoyi (released)
----------------------------------------------------------------
West Ham United
Despite bringing in Andy Carroll the club are looking to add another forward in Ajax striker Miralem Sulejmani. (Goal.com)
A move for Andy Carroll is still on the cards for West Ham. (Daily Mail)
West Ham are ready to make a sensational bid to bring Joe Cole home to Upton Park. (Daily Star)
In: Modibo Maiga (Sochaux, £4.7m), James Collins (Aston Villa, £2.5m), Alou Diarra (Marseille, £2m), Stephen Henderson (Portsmouth, undisclosed), Raphael Spiegel (Grasshopper, undisclosed), Mohamed Diamé (Wigan, free), Jussi Jaaskelainen (Bolton, free), George McCartney (Sunderland, free), Matt Jarvis (Wolves, £10.75m) Out: Sam Baldock (Bristol City, undisclosed), Sam Cowler (Barnet, undisclosed), Jordan Brown (Barnet, free), Julien Faubert (Elazigspor, free), Abdoulaye Faye (Hull, free), Robert Green (QPR, free), Oliver Lee (Barnet, free), Frank Nouble (Wolves, free), Freddie Sears (Colchester, free), Marek Stech (Yeovil, free), Ravel Morrison (Birmingham, loan) John Carew (released), Papa Bouba Diop (released), Peter Kurucz (released)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Wigan Athletic
Young Wigan striker Callum McManaman could be a late loan option for Burnley. (Burnley Express)
Wigan are to launch a bid for 24-year-old Bolton winger Lee Chung-yong who could be available for £7million. (Mail)
Roberto Di Matteo has thanked Wigan boss Roberto Martinez for making new signing Victor Moses the player he is after he left the Latics. (Sun)
In: Ivan Ramis (Real Mallorca, £4.5m), Ryo Miyaichi (Arsenal, loan), Arouna Kone (Levante, £2.7m), Fraser Fyvie (Aberdeen, £450,000) Out: Conor Sammon (Derby Undisclosed), Mohamed Diamé (West Ham, free), Chris Kirkland (Sheffield Wednesday, free), Hugo Rodallega (Fulham, free), Lee Nicholls (Northampton, loan), Adam Dawson (Accrington, loan), Ryan Watson (Accrington, loan), Mike Pollitt (released), Hendry Thomas (released), Steve Gohouri (released), Victor Moses (Chelsea, undisclosed)
----------------------------------------------------------------

Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger relaxed as transfer window prepares to close

Arsène Wenger has launched a renewed and impassioned defence of his transfer strategy as Arsenal again head towards the closure of a window in profit on their player trading.

It has been a familiar pattern for Wenger to at least break even in the transfer market since moving to the Emirates in 2005 and, after the early expenditure for Lukas Podolski, Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla, he has since more than covered that outlay by selling Robin van Persie and Alex Song.

Wenger said that he might still spend today if a “top, top player” became available, and has made inquiries about Chelsea midfielder Michael Essien, although the approach is likely to be rebuffed, but he also stressed that he regarded the squad as strong enough to challenge for major trophies.

It is an assessment that is likely to frustrate many Arsenal fans, especially as Wenger acknowledged that the club did have money available in their transfer budget.

“I am relaxed,” said Wenger. “We have enough players, that is for sure, but you want always to improve your squad. We have resources available so if it is not happening now it will happen in December. But we believe strongly that we have the quality in our squad to do very well.

“We bought Cazorla, Podolski and Giroud so you cannot say we have not bought but, when you listen to people, you always have to buy more.

Asked what could really strengthen the squad, Wenger pointed to the treatment room and the long-awaited returns of Jack Wilshere, Bacary Sagna and Tomas Rosicky.

“Getting our injured players back is the best way for us to strengthen the squad,” he said. “We do not just want to bring average players in. Spending in itself is not a quality. Buying good players is a quality, better players than you have is a quality.”

Wenger also outlined his confidence that Theo Walcott would sign a new contract, despite allowing the 23 year-old to enter the final year of his current deal.

“His situation is simple – that he will stay with us and play for us,” said Wenger. “At the moment it is very difficult to predict what we will do. He loves the club, and maybe we can find an agreement at some stage.

"Theo is 23. He’s English, he basically lives 10 minutes from here. So hopefully we can find an agreement.

“He’s not money obsessed. He does not say, ‘it’s that, or not’. There are little differences in negotiations that can happen. He is developing very well. He is intelligent, a good finisher.”

Walcott has been offered a five-year contract worth £75,000-a-week but, mindful of the going rate for comparable England internationals, is hoping for a deal closer to £100,000 a week.

Wenger, though, indicated that there were clear boundaries for a player of Walcott’s age compared to more experienced professionals.

“It was never a hard line approach [with Walcott], always a soft line approach but with the respect of our wage structure,” said Wenger.

“Every decision we have a general line of conduct that is our wage structure that we want to respect. If we don’t do that we will go nowhere. It is of course different for a 29 year-old player than for a 23 year-old player.”

Wenger is confident that Walcott is “focused and committed” ahead of Sunday’s match against Liverpool, when Laurent Koscielny will be in contention to return to the central defence. Wojciech Szczesny will have a fitness test on Saturday to determine his availability.

Liverpool make loan move for Chelsea's Daniel Sturridge having been frustrated in attempt to sign Clint Dempsey

Liverpool have made a loan bid for Chelsea's Daniel Sturridge in a frantic deadline day effort to replace Andy Carroll. Carroll has joined West Ham for the season after accepting his best chance of playing regularly this season was to leave Anfield.

His former club then began negotiations with Sturridge having earlier been thwarted in a fresh attempt to sign Clint Dempsey from Fulham.

Fulham agreed to sell the American for cash plus Jordan Henderson, but the Liverpool midfielder turned down the move.

Dempsey is now more likely to join Sunderland unless Rodgers can raise more funds to meet an £7m valuation. Arsenal are also believed to be watching Dempsey's situation.

In the meantime, Rodgers has switched his attentions to Sturridge, who would need to complete a medical in Monaco ahead of Chelsea 's Super Cup final if he is to join Liverpool.

Andy Carroll leaves Liverpool to join West Ham United on season-long loan deal

Liverpool striker Andy Carroll has joined West Ham United on a year's loan after the striker reluctantly accepted his best chance of playing regular football this season was to leave Anfield.

Carroll's exit heralded the start of a hectic final 24 hours in the transfer window at Anfield.

He underwent a medical at Upton Park on Thursday night, but there will be no guarantee of a permanent deal at the end of his spell in London after Liverpool agreed to amend the terms of an earlier offer. There will now only be an option to buy the player rather than a commitment to do so.

The softening of Carroll's stance was key to the opening of fresh talks between Liverpool and West Ham. He originally wanted to stay, but having been left out of the squad for the Europa League qualifier with Hearts on Thursday, the 23 year-old opened up to the possibility of a move to Upton Park.

Carroll's position shifted after he was left in no uncertain terms that his career could stagnate on Merseyside.

Last night, Carroll said: "I want to be playing games and obviously hoping to score some goals. I know the manager well and some of the lads, so it is nice for me to come to a place where I know people.

"I'm hoping to add a lot of goals and create a few chances. I know Sam from Newcastle and he was a massive reason for me coming. When I worked with him at Newcastle it was great so it was a no-brainer really."

Allardyce added: "I think for all parties this is a great signing. Andy is an all-round footballer, but because he is 6ft 3in and one of his strengths is his aerial power, everybody dismisses the ability he possesses on the floor.

"Hopefully he can score goals for us and we will be in a very good position at the end of the year in the Barclays Premier League."

Carroll close friend, Kevin Nolan, is at Upton Park and he shares an agent with manager Sam Allardyce. His preference was to remain at Anfield and fight for his place, but Rodgers said Liverpool "couldn't afford to keep a £35 million striker on the bench".

The only complication was the terms of the deal. Since making their initial bid which would have led to a permanent £17 million deal if they avoided relegation, West Ham have invested in their squad, including the £11 million signing of Matt Jarvis from Wolves. They could no longer afford a commitment to sign Carroll at the end of the season, but Rodgers' willingness to remove the bulk of an £80,000 a week salary off his wage bill meant he was happy to renegotiate.

Rodgers said: "It is very simple: the club made a monumental investment in big Andy and at this moment in time he's not playing. He made it clear from when we first met in the summer that he wants to play games and obviously [with the window closing] this is the last chance for him to go and do that."

Liverpool added another teenager to their ranks on Thursday, signing 18-year-old German Youth International Samed Yesil from Bayer Leverkusen for £1 million.

Liverpool also expect Charlie Adam to leave for £5 million, with Stoke City the front-runners, while Jay Spearing could go out on loan. QPR, Bolton, Aston Villa and Southampton are all interested.

Fulham paved the way for Dempsey's departure by agreeing a £5 million deal for Manchester United's Dimitar Berbatov. Berbatov pulled out of a move to Serie A side Fiorentina, failing to attend a medical, in order to conclude his transfer to Craven Cottage.

"Berbatov is finishing his medical and if everything is good he will be one of our players," said Fulham manager Martin Jol, who worked with the Bulgarian during their time together at Tottenham.

Luractive leap sees Robbie Grabarz win the Diamond League and start dreaming of buying a Porsche

Robbie Grabarz delivered the perfect ending to a brilliant season by banking a $40,000 cheque as the overall Diamond League champion in Zurich. The Birmingham-based high jumper was cut from the Lottery funding programme after a dismal 2011 season and admits he was running up debts at the start of the year to pursue his athletic career.

But any financial worries have long since vanished after an astonishing transformation this season, culminating in Thursday's Diamond Trophy and jackpot prize.

A keen classic car enthusiast, Grabarz said his first end-of-season purchase would be an old Porsche for him to restore during the winter, and maybe a racing car as well.

Grabarz, who cleared 2.28 metres in cold and wet conditions in Switzerland, was beaten into second place yesterday by Russia’s Olympic champion, Ivan Ukhov, but his consistency over the summer meant he needed only to finish ahead of American world champion Jesse Williams to take the overall prize. Williams cleared 2.25m to finish fourth, guaranteeing Grabarz’s payday.

“I don’t believe it quite yet,” said Grabarz. “Three major things have happened to me this year – European champion, Olympic bronze medallist and now Diamond League champion. I’m so happy.”

Triple Olympic champion Usain Bolt made light of the poor weather conditions by running his last 200 metres of the year in a winning time of 19.66sec, despite appearing to amble around the bend.

His countryman and training partner, Yohan Blake, looked equally comfortable as he clocked 9.76sec to win the 100m with three metres to spare, despite the distraction of seeing American rival Tyson Gay being disqualified for a false start.

David Rudisha, the Kenyan who illuminated the Olympics by winning the 800m gold medal in a world record of 1min 40.91sec, suffered a surprise defeat at the hands of Ethiopian Mohammed Aman, who triumphed in a national record of 1min 42.53sec.

The final race of the evening featured the rare sight of a British men’s 4x100m relay team getting a baton safely around a track from start to finish. The Olympic quartet of Christian Malcolm, Dwain Chambers, Danny Talbot and Adam Gemili took third place in 38.30sec behind the United States and Jamaica.

Arsenal look to strengthen midfield with loan deal for Chelsea's Michael Essien

Arsenal have made an inquiry for Chelsea’s Michael Essien as Arsene Wenger attempts to reinforce his midfield ahead of tonight’s closure of the transfer window.

Essien is yet to start a game for Chelsea so far this season and it is understood that Arsenal’s interest has centred on the possibility of a season-long loan. Chelsea, though, would be mindful of loaning one of their players to a Premier League rival and, despite his previous injury problems, they do regard Essien as potentially useful cover at the base of their midfield.

Wenger does hope to make at least one signing today, with Montpellier captain Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa another potential target, but there will be no repeat of last year’s deadline day shopping frenzy. Indeed, Wenger launched an impassioned defence of his strategy yesterday as Arsenal again head towards the closure of a transfer window in profit on their player trading.

It has been a familiar pattern for Wenger to at least break even in the transfer market since moving to the Emirates in 2005 and, after the early expenditure for Lukas Podolski, Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla, he has since more than covered that outlay by selling Robin van Persie and Alex Song.

Wenger said that he might still spend today if a “top, top player” became available but he also stressed that he regards the squad as sufficiently strong to challenge for major trophies.

“I am relaxed,” said Wenger. “We have enough players, that is for sure, but you want always to improve your squad. We have resources available so if it is not happening now it will happen in December. But we believe strongly that we have the quality in our squad to do very well.

We bought Cazorla, Podolski and Giroud so you cannot say we have not bought but, when you listen to people, you always have to buy more.”

Asked what could really strengthen the squad, Wenger pointed to the treatment room and the long-awaited returns of Jack Wilshere, Bacary Sagna and Tomas Rosicky.

“Getting our injured players back is the best way for us to strengthen the squad,” he said. “We do not just want to bring average players in. Spending in itself is not a quality. Buying good players is a quality, better players than you have is a quality.”

Wenger also outlined his confidence that Theo Walcott would still sign a new contract, despite allowing the 23-year-old to enter the final year of his current deal.

“His situation is simple - that he will stay with us and play for us,” said Wenger. “At the moment it is very difficult to predict what we will do. He loves the club, and maybe we can find an agreement at some stage. Theo is 23. He’s English, he basically lives 10 minutes from here. So hopefully we can find an agreement.

“He’s not money obsessed. He does not say, ‘it’s that, or not’. There are little differences in negotiations that can happen. He is developing very well. He is intelligent, a good finisher.”

Walcott has been offered a five year contract worth £75,000-a-week but, mindful of the going rate for comparable England internationals, is hoping for a deal closer to £100,000-a-week. Wenger, though, indicated that there were clear wage boundaries for a player of

Walcott’s age compared to more experienced professionals. “It is of course different for a 29-year-old player than for a 23-year-old player,” he said.

Champions League draw: Manchester City face Real Madrid in tough group, United, Arsenal and Chelsea spared

Manchester City on Thursday discovered why the most demanding competition in club football is called the Champions League. The champions of England have been drawn against the champions of Spain, the champions of Holland and the champions of Germany.

Make that Group D for Drama. Sub-plots spill from every team-sheet. The Real Madrid-City duel offers plenty of fascination. Cristiano Ronaldo is back in Manchester, this time in the cacophonous backyard of the noisy neighbours.

“It’s pretty difficult,” said Ronaldo of the group. “In my opinion, and I am sure the opinion of most people, it is the most difficult group and the most competitive. But we are ready. We are champions of Spain and we are ready to compete with anybody. In my opinion the best teams in the world are there in Spain, in Real Madrid and Barcelona.”

More drama clings to Jose Mourinho and Mario Balotelli. Real’s manager once described the mercurial striker as “unmanageable” during their tense Inter Milan days. “Mario is Mario and Jose is Jose!’’ smiled Patrick Vieira, City’s football development executive.

“One thing that is sure is that facing Madrid, Borussia Dortmund and Ajax, Mario will want to play, perform and score goals. With the way he played in the Euros there is expectation for all of us in Mario. He was one of the best players at the Euros.”

He gave Real’s defender Sergio Ramos a few problems when Spain collided with Italy in the group stage.

Yet Balotelli has huge respect for Mourinho, telling City players what a charismatic, inspiring coach he was to play under despite being sent to the reserves at Inter. Vieira himself left Inter during the Mourinho years but held no grudges.

“Wherever Jose has been, he has been successful,” said Vieira. “He went to Chelsea, and was successful. He went to Inter Milan and was a success. He’s successful at Real Madrid. The Premier League does not hold any secrets for Jose. He follows the Premier League 100 per cent. It will be a good match between Jose and [Roberto] Mancini, really exciting.’’

As well as Balotelli, Vieira believes that all of the players in Mancini’s dressing room will be stirred at the prospect of playing at the Bernabéu, where City commence their campaign on Sept 18, at the Amsterdam Arena and then Dortmund’s impressive Signal Iduna Park.

“I’m sure the players are 100 per cent excited to go to the Bernabéu, to go to the fantastic stadium of Dortmund and face a big club like Ajax,’’ continued Vieira.

“It is the most difficult group but you want to face those kind of teams. Roberto will want to win the Champions League because he never won it as a player or manager.

“Winning the FA Cup, then the Premier League last year and having the experience in the Champions League last year will bring the belief that we can win it. It will have a perfect impact for the competition.

“When you look at the way Chelsea went to the end, you need to go through the year with the luck having your best players without injury.”

Vieira was standing in for Brian Marwood at the draw in Monaco because City’s sporting director had been detained at home, bringing in new recruits as transfer deadline day loomed. City will need Sergio Agüero to regain fitness quickly, for Vincent Kompany to be at his most obdurate defensively and Carlos Tévez to maintain his sprightly new mood if City are to progress to the knockout stages.

City are now a force in Europe, a point confirmed by Real director Emilio Butragueño.

“City are a very strong team after an enormous investment in recent years and they will be a rival of the highest level,’’ said the Real legend.

The other English clubs fared better in the draw, especially Manchester United, who were pitted against Braga, Galatasaray and Cluj. Galatasaray brings back dark memories for United. Back in the mid-nineties, Eric Cantona faced a wall of riot police and Phil Neville marched through Istanbul airport with shards of glass glistening on his club blazer after United’s coach was bricked.

The club have moved on from “Hell”, otherwise known as Galatasaray’s smoke-filled Ali Sami Yen stadium, and now play at the Turk Telecom Arena.

“We have the experience of playing against Galatasaray in the past and we will always remember the ‘Welcome to Hell’ banners so it’s always a difficult type of match,” the United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, said.

“We have drawn Portuguese clubs a number of times over the past few years. Braga are one of the improving teams in that country. We’ve never played Cluj before but, after the experience of last year, we don’t want to make any stupid errors this time. We will play our strongest team to make sure we get through.”

Arsenal face a fairly awkward group, although one they should negotiate successfully if Olivier Giroud can find his scoring boots from his Montpellier days. Arsenal play the French side first away on Sept 18 and must also find a path past Schalke and Olympiakos.

“Arsenal are a European great, Olympiakos’s fans are among the hottest and Schalke represent the German seriousness,” said the Montpellier coach René Girard.

Chelsea drew Juventus, kicking off at the Bridge on Sept 19, and also face a trip to Shakhtar Donetsk, a stadium some of their England players like John Terry and Ashley Cole will know well from Euro 2012.

Chelsea also take on the little-known Danish club, Nordsjaelland, who are based just outside Copenhagen. Celtic’s reward for four years of attempting to get into the group stage was a daunting group involving Barcelona, Benfica and Spartak Moscow. Nobody said it would be easy.

Group A: FC Porto, Dynamo Kiev, Paris St-Germain, Dinamo Zagreb

Group B: Arsenal, Schalke, Olympiakos, Montpellier

Group C: AC Milan, Zenit St Petersburg, Anderlecht, Malaga

Group D: Real Madrid, Manchester City, Ajax, Borussia Dortmund

Group E: Chelsea, Shakhtar Donetsk, Juventus, Nordsjaelland

Group F: Bayern Munich, Valencia, Lille, BATE Borisov

Group G: Barcelona, Benfica, Spartak Moscow, Celtic

Group H: Manchester United, Braga, Galatasaray, CFR Cluj

England's players lack of match sharpness is a worry for Roy Hodgson as Moldova and Ukraine games loom

Ashley Young has been omitted from the England squad to face Moldova and Ukraine because of a sore knee but what will worry Roy Hodgson more is the number of players in his outfield 21 not starting for their clubs.

Hodgson’s concerns merely echo sentiments often expressed by Fabio Capello about the number of players in the Premier League eligible for England selection, a figure usually deemed around 40 per cent.

Barring the surprise news of Young’s injury, apparently sustained against Fulham on Saturday, the major talking point of Thursday’s squad was the question marks over players’ match sharpness.

A third of England’s outfield 21 started last weekend’s game on the bench. At least Hodgson’s defence is well stocked with regular starters.

Leighton Baines, Ryan Bertrand (although used in midfield), Gary Cahill, Ashley Cole, Phil Jagielka, Glen Johnson and Kyle Walker began for their teams while Joleon Lescott was on the bench for Manchester City.

John Terry, as expected, is included in Hodgson’s squad, although his recovery from a neck injury will be assessed by England’s medical staff on Monday. If Cole remains England’s first-choice left back, there is a straight fight between Walker and Johnson for the right back role. Hodgson was disappointed that Walker suffered an injured toe on the eve of Euro 2012, so ruling him out.

Johnson started in Poland and Ukraine, although the Liverpool player was rested for the friendly win over Italy in Berne when Walker reconfirmed his talent.

Hodgson’s concerns over his players’ match sharpness increases in midfield. Of the eight listed in his “midfielders” section, only Michael Carrick and Steven Gerrard are guaranteed starters for their clubs.

Two more of Hodgson’s midfielders, James Milner and Tom Cleverley, did start last weekend but are not certain of their starting places.

Frank Lampard, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott all started on the bench while Adam Johnson, having failed to force his way into the first team consistently at Manchester City, made his Sunderland debut in the Capital One Cup on Tuesday.

For all the concerns about game time, there is a good blend of youth and experience in the midfield. Cleverley and Oxlade-Chamberlain offer a glimpse of the future while Carrick and Gerrard provide the 30-something nous. Young’s injury is ill timed; he performed well in the warm-up to the Euros.

The situation is even more problematic for Hodgson in attack. Of his four strikers, only Jermain Defoe started at the weekend.

Defoe on Thursday signed a new three-year deal at Spurs but knows he has Emmanuel Adebayor ahead of him in the pecking order. Andy Carroll is surplus to requirements at Liverpool where Luis Suarez and Fabio Borini are preferred.

Daniel Sturridge’s future at Chelsea remains clouded with Fernando Torres the leading light. Danny Welbeck started for England at the Euros but his chances of regular football this season have been complicated with the arrival of Robin van Persie and Shinji Kagawa.

The one striker who is guaranteed to be starting regularly is Darren Bent, the Aston Villa forward who was overlooked by Hodgson on Thursday despite regaining the fitness that precluded his involvement at Euro 2012.

England’s players report for training at London Colney on Monday before flying out to Chisinau next Thursday for the game with Moldova the following night. Four days later England host Ukraine at Wembley.

There is sufficient ability in the squad to ensure that England get a strong start to their 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign but the number of internationals on club bench remains an issue.

Paralympics 2012: GB's Aileen McGlynn and pilot Helen Scott claim silver in 1km time trial

Aileen McGlynn's attempt to win a third successive Paralympic title in the 1km time-trial came up just short at the velodrome when she and her co-pilot Helen Scott took the silver medal behind Australia's Felicity Johnson and Stephanie Morton, the current reigning world champions.

LATEST

13.52 Real Mallorca have agreed a deal with Spurs for Giovanni dos Santos. He joins the Spanish club on a four-year contract.

13.43 Slight confusion with the Moutinho to Spurs deal and that is that Porto have named their squad to face Olhanense tomorrow night and the midfielder is in it. On the Lloris deal, L'Equipe confirm the £9.5m fee but add that a further £2m to £3m will be paid in bonuses.

13.41 Van der Vaart has agreed terms with Hamburg and the fee is set. Player currently undergoing a medical...that's according to the German media.

13.38 Bit of news for Arsenal fans; Park Chu-Young has joined Celta Vigo on season-long loan.

13.35 Big news for Manchester City fans, Inter have confirmed that Maicon will be joining the Premier League champions.

Has it really come to this for Michael Owen?!

Transfer deadline day: live

It's transfer deadline day, with the August window closing at 11pm tonight. Follow all the moves as they happen with our reporters around the country.
• Moutinho to join Spurs for £22m, club also sign Lloris for £9.5m
• Maicon and Scott Sinclair confirmed as a Man City players
• Charlie Adam joins Stoke on a four-year deal
• Nigel de Jong joins AC Milan from Man CIty
• Dempsey to Villa looks dead in the water - Liverpool lurking?
• Jay Spearing to Bolton for a year-long loan
• Rafael van der Vaart set to join Hamburg
• Nik Bendtner seemingly on his way to Juventus (!)
• Del Piero finally gets his dream move to Sydney FC

Got a transfer rumour? Who have your club signed? Who would you like them to sign? Want to join in our Transfer Deadline Day Totaliser Extravaganza Game Thing? Email enogmaurice@gmail.com with your views.

Abramovich wins biggest private court case in history

Roman Abramovich has won his $6.5bn legal battle with his former mentor and business partner, in the biggest private court case in British legal history.

The Chelsea FC owner, one of the richest and most private men in the world, was accused of black-mailing Boris Berezovsky into selling his interests in the oil company and aluminium conglomerate they founded together at a knock-down price.

Mr Abramovich in turn, accused Mr Berezovsky of extorting money from him for political influence and claimed he had paid him $1.3bn to buy his freedom when Mr Berezovsky fell out of favour with Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Mrs Justice Gloster said that because of the nature of the factual issues "the case was one where, in the ultimate analysis, the court had to decide whether to believe Mr Berezovsky or Mr Abramovich".

She said that because "both the Sibneft and the RusAl claims depended so very heavily on the oral evidence of Mr Berezovsky, the court needed to have a high degree of confidence in the quality of his evidence".

The judge added: "That meant confidence not only in his ability to recollect things accurately, but also in his objectivity and truthfulness as a witness." She announced in a lengthy summary of her judgment: "On my analysis of the entirety of the evidence, I found Mr Berezovsky an unimpressive, and inherently unreliable, witness, who regarded truth as a transitory, flexible concept, which could be moulded to suit his current purposes.

"At times the evidence which he gave was deliberately dishonest; sometimes he was clearly making his evidence up as he went along in response to the perceived difficulty in answering the questions in a manner consistent with his case; at other times, I gained the impression that he was not necessarily being deliberately dishonest, but had deluded himself into believing his own version of events.

"On occasions he tried to avoid answering questions by making long and irrelevant speeches, or by professing to have forgotten facts which he had been happy to record in his pleadings or witness statements.

"He embroidered and supplemented statements in his witness statements, or directly contradicted them."

The judge said "the burden of proof was on Mr Berezovsky to establish his claims".

She referred to his "lack of credibility as a witness".

The judge said she had concluded that "in the absence of corroboration, Mr Berezovsky's evidence frequently could not be relied upon, where it differed from that of Mr Abramovich, or other witnesses".

She added: "I regret to say that the bottom line of my analysis of Mr Berezovsky's credibility is that he would have said almost anything to support his case."

Announcing that she found Mr Abramovich to be a truthful and reliable witness, the judge said she rejected the "serious allegations" that he was a thoroughly "dishonest and cynical witness" who deliberately called witnesses whom he knew would give "as they were intended to do, thoroughly untrue evidence designed only to mislead the court".

The judge added: "Neither the evidence, nor my analysis of it, supported that allegation.

"Likewise I reject the allegation that he manipulated the trial process or engaged in improper collusion with his witnesses, or was part of a 'smears and innuendo' campaign."

The judge also ruled that Mr Abramovich did not make either express or implied threats to Mr Berezovsky with the intention of intimidating him to dispose of his alleged interests in Sibneft.

Boris Berezovsky is expected to take the case to the Court of Appeal.

In a year-long case that became highly personal, one of Mr Abramovich’s associates even accused Mr Berezovsky of sending a threatening text message to a potential witness, signed “Dr Evil”, the pantomime villain from the James Bond spoof films, Austin Powers. The message was never produced.

Mr Abramovich’s lawyers also accused Mr Berezovsky of “truly prodigious powers of self-deception” and giving evidence coloured by his “vanity and his self-obsession.”

They claimed that Mr Berezovksy was an “angry and embittered man” of “remarkable vanity and self-importance” which was “aggravated by a highly personal resentment of Mr Abramovich.”

“Large parts of his evidence can only be described as mendacious and dishonest,” they said in submissions to the court.

“He believes that Mr Abramovich has supplanted him in a position which is rightfully his and that he has acquired a sort of political influence under President Putin which he once enjoyed under a very different regime of Boris Yeltsin.”

Mr Berezovsky was once a “classic power broker” and one of the most influential oligarchs in Russia but the relationship was founded on krysha - political protection – and “the activities of a krysha or protector are inherently corrupt,” Jonathan Sumption QC, for Mr Abramovich, said in a written statement.

Mr Berezovsky "thought he had personally created Mr Abramovich out of nothing and put him in a position where he had only to sit there for vast sums of money to flow into his lap,” he added.

Laurence Rabinowitz QC, for Mr Berezovsky, had told the court that the two men had worked together during the Russian privatisation sales in the mid-1990s that followed the fall of communism to acquire an asset that would make them “wealthy beyond the wildest dreams of most people.”

In the process they “became and remained good friends” he said, but they fell out when Mr Berezovsky, who had adopted a high political profile in Russia through his control of a television station called ORT, fell foul of the Kremlin and was forced to leave the country and seek asylum in Britain.

The television channel had run a number of stories criticising Mr Putin for the failure to rescue 118 Russian sailors from the sunken nuclear submarine, the Kursk.

That, he said left Mr Abramovich in a position where he was “in effect required to make a choice - to remain loyal to Mr Berezovsky, his friend and mentor and the person to whom he owed his newly acquired great fortune, or instead, as we submit, to betray Mr Berezovsky and to seek to profit from his difficulties.”

“It is our case that Mr Abramovich at that point demonstrated that he was a man to whom wealth and influence mattered more than friendship and loyalty and this has led him, finally, to go so far as to even deny that he and Mr Berezovsky were actually ever friends,” he added.

The case rested on a number of key meetings at the end of 2000 in which the two men and a third partner, Badri Patarkatsishvili, a Georgian businessman who died at his Surrey mansion three years ago from a heart attack, discussed transferring their assets to the West.

Security men working for Mr Patarkatsishvili secretly recorded the first meeting at Le Bourget airport near Paris and Mr Berezovsky later bought the tape for $50m.

At the second meeting, at Mr Berezovsky’s chateau near Cap D’Antibes in France, Berezovsky claimed that Mr Abramovich told him the Kremlin would remove his TV station from him if he did not sell it and prevent the release from jail of a close friend of Mr Berezovsky.

Mr Abramovich claimed there was no such meeting and the pair actually met at the French ski resort of Megeve a few weeks later and agreed to a $1.3bn pay-off.

In a last snub to Mr Berezovsky, Mr Abramovich allegedly sold his 25 per cent share of the company Rusal, the Aluminium conglomerate, for £1bn, to Oleg Deripaska, an oligarch with ties to both George Osborne, the shadow chancellor and Peter Mandelson, the former Labour spin doctor.

The sale meant Mr Deripaska owned 75 per cent of the company and Mr Berezovsky and his partner were forced to accept just £289m for the remaining 25 per cent.

Oliha: Dont Underrate Liberia

Former Nigeria international, Thompson Oliha, has charged the Super Eagles to try and avoid defeat in the first leg of the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against the Lone Star of Liberia in Monrovia on September 8.

“One thing that one should take into consideration is that there are no more small countries in football anymore, so my expectation is that we get at least a draw; we must not lose that game,” the 1994 Cup of Nations winner in Tunisia told Complete Sports.

Oliha went on to commend coach Stephen Keshi on the 11 foreign-based players invited for the game, and also bared his mind on the movement of Nigerian players in the transfer market.

“I believe it’s a good thing the coach has done because we can’t toy with our matches- especially the game against Liberia. We need the best legs to prosecute the game, and I think the coach has done so well.”

Speaking on the European transfer market as it concerns the Nigerian players, he said:

VICTOR MOSES FIRST CHELSEA INTERVIEW: I’M READY TO PLAY ANYWHERE

The 21-year-old was sat down with the official Chelsea website for this first interview…

Your possible transfer to Chelsea was in the news throughout the summer. It must be good to have your future settled now.

When I first heard that Chelsea had come in for me I was surprised, but I had a call from my agent saying they were really interested in me and what did I think. I said they are the European champions and anyone would like to play there and now that everything is sorted, I am delighted to be here.

I am happy to come back to London as I grew up here and it is a great honour to play for the club that won the Champions League.

You’ve decided to join a squad with a lot of competition for the attacking places in the side.

There are a lot of world-class players here and I am here to do my best for the team and to help them win more trophies. The club has done well for the past few years, they have achieved a lot, and for me to be able to play with these world-class players, I am delighted to be here.

How did the opening day fixture go for you when Chelsea played up at Wigan?

I thought I did alright. It took me a while to get into the game but in the second half we came at Chelsea - but that is in the past now. I was a Wigan player then and I am a Chelsea player now.

You managed to go past the Chelsea full-backs during the match.

We all know Ashley Cole is one of the best left-backs in the word and he is a consistent player, so if I go past him I am happy because he is a great player.

You arrive with a reputation for being versatile. Please give a short history of the positions you have played.

Growing up I used to play centre-back in a Sunday league team but I had the feeling I could play further forward.
When I was scouted by Crystal Palace I started playing in centre-midfield. Then I ended up playing as a striker, left wing, on the right - everywhere really. I went to Wigan to play left wing mainly but then the manager saw the way I was playing and he mostly used me on the right. Last season I played more on the right but sometimes on the left.

I can also play up front or behind the striker, I can play anywhere up front. I’m comfortable wherever the manager wants to play me.

Roberto Di Matteo has highlighted your dribbling ability.

That is one of my strengths, I love getting the ball and going past defenders. You don’t want defenders tackling you all the time when you get the ball, you need to make them work hard, and that is what I love doing.

When you were at Whitgift School in Croydon, you were taught football by Colin Pates (pictued below), a popular captain of Chelsea in the 1980s. How was that experience?

He is a great man. He always used to talk to me and tell me about when he used to play and how I needed to be more professional about my football. He is a person you can call on and he will advise you in the right way. When we played with the school team he used to teach us all about movement and finishing and he was great to work with. We won a national school tournament when he was our manager.

Growing up around in the Norwood area of south London, the Crystal Palace academy must have been a natural place for you to develop.

It was easy for me after training to go home. It was nice playing for Palace. There were a lot of Chelsea fans around there and Palace were playing in the Championship so all I used to hear when I was little was Chelsea, Chelsea! I didn’t know then that one day I would be playing for them.

You moved to Wigan midway through the 2009/10 season.

When the season first started we were doing pretty well, fighting for a play-off spot for the Championship. Then we heard the club was going into administration, that is when Wigan came in and Palace hadn’t a choice but to sell me.

Do you know anyone at Chelsea already?

I know quite a few. I used to play with Ryan Bertrand and Daniel Sturridge for England Under 19s, Under 20s, Under 21s. I know Ashley Cole and Michael Essien and Mikel I know from playing for Nigeria. It is good to see everyone here and it is a lot easier for me.

For Nigeria I have games coming up against Liberia and I am looking forward to them. They are home and away and whoever wins will qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations in January.

Do you have a message for the Chelsea fans?

I just want to say to the fans to sit tight, there is more to come from Victor Moses and I hope to do my best for the club and that there are more trophies to come in the future.

Via Chelseafc.com

UNFAIRLY LANCED

The US Anti-Doping Agency finally stripped Lance Armstrong of his record seven Tour de France wins and handed him a lifetime ban for cheating.On the other hand, the fall from grace cyclist is of the view that the decision to give up the fight against the charges is not an admission of guilt

SUPERMAN CAUGHT DOPING?
Anyone who can watch a film of Pele dummying the goalkeeper in the Mexico World Cup or Muhammad Ali beating Foreman in Zaire — anyone who can watch those things without tears in their eyes, without being moved in the same way as they are by a work of art is a philistine — there’s no other word for them. — Geoff Dyer in The Colour of Memory


EVEN more than the jaw-droppingly beautiful game of Roger Federer, the Michelangelo of tennis, even more than the gasp-inducing perfection of a Nadia Comaneci on the horizontal bar, even more than the bewitching beauty of a Shane Warne’s wizardry, it is raw courage in the face of extreme adversity that often moves you to tears in the world of sport.


For a long time, nothing brought tears to my eyes as readily as did Lance Armstrong’s story, his epic battle with cancer and his subsequent record-breaking conquest of an event, the Tour de France, that tests a man’s endurance much more than any other sporting spectacle. The American’s achievements seemed to be imbued with an emotional resonance unmatched in the world of sport. He became a universal symbol instead of being yet another great champion.


SHATTERING
But the recent turn of events — with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency stripping Armstrong of his seven Tour titles following the champion cyclist’s decision not to challenge USADA’s doping allegations against him — have left me a shattered man. Somehow, I personally feel cheated after having wasted all those emotions on a man who may have been nothing more than a chemically-boosted uber-champion at best, and one of the greatest frauds in the history of modern sport, at worst.


And the tears I shed now are as much because of the moral outrage that I feel as because of memories that I hold of cancer victims I have interacted with; men and women who saw in Armstrong a hugely inspirational figure whose life helped them embolden themselves in their own fight against a disease that still seems to be a mystery to the best of science.


“You know, I am going to do an Armstrong,” said my dear friend and cricketer T. E. Srinivasan — who finally lost his courageous battle with malignant brain tumour two years ago. We were sitting at the pavilion of the Madras Cricket Club and talking everything but cricket.
I am glad T.E. did not live to see the shaming of his idol. He would have been devastated.


HALL OF SHAME
Every sport has its own Hall of Fame. It is a sort of temple where the game’s icons are enshrined so that their tall deeds may continue to be celebrated by posterity. In the world of cycling, nobody doubted where Armstrong’s place in the gallery of greats is. Now, it might be equally clear where his place in the game’s Hall of Shame is.
Armstrong, to be sure, is not a man to walk away from a fight. In the event, the fact that he has decided to give up fighting the allegations of doping levelled against him means that there may well be incontrovertible evidence of wrongdoing on his part.
How quickly great heroes come crashing down in front of our eyes time and again in the world of sport. And the bigger the hero, the harder the fall, as in Armstrong’s case.


Then again, in the world of sport, if success is magnified, then so is failure, particularly moral failure of the kind that Armstrong has been found guilty of. Although very few of us in this tainted world of ours may be qualified to pass moral judgements, one of the exquisite pleasures of being an ordinary citizen is in being able to label someone a villain at the first available opportunity.
For, in Armstrong’s case, everything that he stood out as an icon for — character, integrity, courage, a never-say-die spirit — has now become questionable in a morality play that is unlikely to end anytime soon.
As a champion who fought his way through an obstacle-strewn path, Armstrong’s life and career became so encrusted in myths that the real person became almost invisible. Even now he perhaps is, for many of his fans — and he himself — might still be in the denial mode.
Now it is obvious that the chutzpah that he wore as a protective amulet made sure that the dissonance between his public and private persona was well hidden from our eyes.


ETERNAL RECURRENCE
But in this Nietzschean world of eternal recurrence, these things are bound to happen again and again and again. In an age of avarice when virtue is often of no value on the heady road to success, many a legend is bound to dismantle himself sooner than later.
Ben Johnson, Diego Maradona, Mike Tyson… just three of tens of dozens who have fallen from grace in modern times. Career-suicide may not be a chosen option, but it is likely to happen some day when a great star believes that the public perception of his character will protect him from almost anything.


As science advances, and prize money and rewards increase exponentially, the number of chemically-enhanced athletes would certainly increase. And all the smartness of the anti-doping officials may not help to bring every one of the wrongdoers to justice.
For all that, you still cannot take away from Armstrong what his foundation — which collected $500 million — has done for cancer survivors. But even those who have been benefited by his charity work would perhaps feel a bit let down.

Paralympics: Nigeria’s Adesokan wins first gold, breaks World record

The medal that eluded Team Nigeria during the London 2012 Olympics came tumbling in Thursday as Nigeria’s Paralympians begun their quest for medals and also to redeem the image of the country as a super power in sports. Team Nigeria’s outing at the main Olympics was colourless.

Yakubu Adesokan struck the goldmine yesterday in a refreshing manner in Powerlifting where he also sent the World record crashing with his amazing 178 kg lift in his men’s 48 category which was over three times his body weight.

Adesokan’s feat was celebrated by the country’s flagbearers in London Thursday as they hoped to win more medals. And back home, it was a double joy for the country that watched gleefully on television as the Falconets dumped Mexico 1-0 in a nail-biting quarter-final thriller to berth into the semi-final of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup semi final.

Sports Minister and Chairman of National Sports Commission, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi heaved a sigh of relief yesterday when the cherry news came and urged the Nigerian heros and heroines not to relent in their efforts to win more medals.

”The Minister is happy with the feat of Yakubu Adesokan in winning the first gold for Nigeria at the Paralympics and also over-joyed at his feat of breaking the World record. ”It is one thing to win gold and another super feat to break the World record”, the Minister’s Special Adviser on Media, Julius Ogunro quoted the Minister.

Adesokan was a full 10kg ahead of silver medallist Vladimir Balynedc of Russia, while Taha Abdelmagid of Egypt claimed bronze with his 165kg effort.

Amodu Eagles Can Beat Liberia In Monrovia

Former Super Eagles coach, ShuaibuAmodu, believes that with focus and right selection, the senior national team should not have problem beating the Lone Star of Liberia away on September 8.

Both the Super Eagles and the Lone Star will clash in the first leg of the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier billed to hold in Moronvia.

Speaking at the weekend, the Edo State-born soccer tactician said Keshi has a good programme that will help the nation to reposition its football glory both on the continent and in the world.

“Let me start by saying Keshi needs a lot of support from every Nigerian to excel because if you look at what he is doing now,  you will discover that his programme is not just for today but for the future, and I must commend him for that,” says the soccer tactician.

“If the NFF can give him the support he needs and soccer loving Nigerians as well, in few years, we will all sit down and enjoy the home-based players because all they need is good exposure that will give them confidence.”

“Liberia should not be a team that will give us sleepless nights if we prepare well.  With right selection and focus, I am sure that the Super Eagles will excel in the match.”

Meanwhile, the team will jet out on September 6 for the away match in Monrovia.

Golden Eaglets Set For Rwandan Test

Golden Eaglets’ officials have said that they are now ready for the upcoming international matches starting with Friday’s friendly match against Rwanda at the U.J Esuene Sports Stadium in Calabar.

After many weeks of preparation, playing and winning a string of friendly matches, the wards of coachGarba Manu will face their biggest test yet in this high profile game against the Rwanda.

Both teams are using the two- match series on Friday and Sunday as tune up as the 2013 African Under-17 African Youth Championship gets underway.

 While the Golden Eaglets open their account with a first round qualifier against Niger next week, the Junior Wasps are drawn bye into the second round against either Malawi or Botswana-following their impressive performance at the last tournament where they nearly won the trophy in front of their home fans but for the 2-1 loss to Burkina Faso in the final.

“We are ready for the friendly match against Rwanda since it would put the players in serious condition as well as opportunity of having a  closer look at the players ahead of our game against Niger next week,” said NdukaUgbade, the Golden Eaglets’ assistant coach who incidentally captained Nigeria to win the maiden  Under-16 FIFA World Cup in 1985. “These two matches against Rwanda are crucial because they offer us a clear-cut chance of looking and picking players for the trip to Niger.”

Team’s Coordinator, Suleiman Abubakar, said the fight for positions in the team, meanwhile, has been intense with none of the players guaranteed a shirt.