ESPN Soccernet - Paper Round
soccernet blog
Soccernet Home Soccernet Home
Soccernet  Home Blogs Home
RSS feed
Paper Round
Posted by Jon Carter on 08/13/2009

Fabio Capello is on most of the back pages today, as he reacts to England's two awful errors to gift the Dutch team a couple of goals in the first half in Amsterdam.

The Sun reckon Fab was furious at the lack of proper defending, with the headline reading 'Dam fools'; but quotes from the Italian show he wasn't that angry after all: "I was really calm, really calm. You have to understand what you have to do,'' he insisted.

Someone who was definately calm was Jermain Defoe. 'Jermain man', as the Daily Mail have him, came off the bench to save the day - still doesn't mean he'll start for Spurs this season though.

As bad as England fans may have it, head over to the Daily Record for news of Scotland's 4-0 defeat by Norway. The first comment sums it all up really: ''effin shocking...terrible choice of players.''

Meanwhile, away from the international scene, Steven Gerrard (still recovering from that nasty groin injury which kept him out of the England game, but means he should be fine for Liverpool this weekend) has turned his attention to the Premier League - not for the first time.

He told the Sun that Manchester City can push all the way to the title this season if they gel. "They're definitely going to be gunning for that top four,'' he added.

Liverpool fans, fear not, as the departure of Xabi Alonso to Real Madrid might have upset the balance of the midfield, but Lucas is there to sort things out. The unpopular Brazilian is in the Daily Express today, claiming that he can step into the Spaniard's shoes with ease. Although he also had to fend off rumours that he would be interested in a move back to Brazil with Corinthians.

Also in the same paper, Chelsea are poised to make midfielder Nemanja Matic their fourth signing of the summer in a £5m deal. Chelsea have been watching Matic, a Serbia Under-21 player, for months and regard the talented playmaker as one for the future.

The Blues will offload Michael Mancienne to Wolves on loan, allowing him regular football to push for a place in Fabio Capello’s squad for next summer’s World Cup finals. The Times think he'll sign a new four-year deal at Stamford Bridge, and then move out on loan. Odd.

Arsenal have ruled themselves out of a move for Marouane Chamakh, which has sparked interest from other 'big clubs' such as West Ham and Fulham. The Daily Mirror have this, but will he be allowed to move?

The Gunners may not be bringing anyone in, but that's probably because they are trying to keep players at the club instead. The Sun claim that Barcelona are weighing up an offer for Cesc Fabregas and have until Tuesday (the Champions League qualifiers) to up their bid to around £40m.

Over at Tottenham, Harry Redknapp is ignoring all calls to sign more defenders and is, instead, going for Crystal Palace star Victor Moses. The Daily Star think Redknapp will use his friendship with Eagles boss Neil Warnock to steal a march on his rivals in the race for the England Under-19 international - but he could cost £5m.

And finally, perhaps it has become clear why Rio Ferdinand was so lazy against Holland. He had his mind on other things: namely the fact that the film he funded with Ashley Cole - Dead Man Running, starring 50 Cent - was getting its first screening in Central London. Gripping stuff, we bet.

Comments

© ESPN Soccernet 2009
Cricinfo
Soccernet
ESPN