Scottish Mag

Amercian Idol here

NEWCASTLE legend Peter Beardsley believes Michael Owen can join him in Geordie folklore following his strong finish to last season. Owen misses England’s friendly with the United States at Wembley tonight, as he is currently shaking off the effects of a virus. He will, though, be fit and raring to go come pre-season training in July. Like Beardo, Owen was a real hit in front of the Kop during his days as a Liverpool player, but Newcastle fans are still to see Owen enjoy an uninterrupted campaign. Beardsley today tipped him to join greats like Les Ferdinand, Alan Shearer and Andy Cole in Newcastle’s hall of fame. He told the Chronicle: “Michael is wearing No 10 – but he can be as popular as a No 9. “He is just a fantastic player and I am pleased for him. “He has never changed his outlook on the game – what you see is what you get. “He is very much his own man, and that is fine. “When the goals do not go in and the football is not working around you, which it wasn’t under Sam Allardyce, people say he does not look like he cares. “When he scores a few goals everybody realises what a good player he is.” Owen looked comfortable in his role just behind a front two of Oba Martins and Mark Viduka, and Beardsley feels it brought out the best in the 28-year-old hitman. He added: “He has scored and made goals, and when you look at the role he is playing in now he has played in it really well. “Michael looks comfortable behind the front two and he has done very, very well.” Beardsley insists Owen’s recent form has won the United fans over – especially his two-goal blast in the derby win over Sunderland. Beardsley added: “Michael has proved something to the fans. A few months ago, I think some would have been happy for Michael to go. “Now they are not thinking like that – which is right. They should never have wanted him to go because he is different class. “His ability is there and he thinks quicker than anybody else. “I don’t think anybody else could have scored Michael’s first goal against Sunderland. “He just knew what he was going to do. He went in on the blind side and you just cannot teach that. “Alan Shearer, Les Ferdinand and Andy Cole all had it too.” Meanwhile, United target Bafetimbi Gomis hit two goals on his debut for France during their 2-0 win over Ecuador. However, the 22-year-old St Etienne striker’s double will only mean his asking price of £9m is only likely to go up, especially if he makes Les Bleus’ Euro 2008 squad and excels in Austria and Switzerland. Oba Martins did not star for Nigeria in Graz last night as the hosts took on the Super Eagles. Martins had been at a wedding in Lagos. Andy Carroll will play for England Under-19s in their second game of the European Championships elite qualifying round against Serbia in Borisov today, while Charles N’Zogbia will turn out for France Under-21s against Portugal in a friendly in Malmo this evening.

I saw the 4-5-1 / 4-3-3 as pragmatism, given the players he had / the system they were used to playing. I think his failure to play more attractive football was possibly what did for him. I'm not sure what Abramovich's wants exactly though. Especially given the managers being linked with the job. If he wants good football he should have got KK in Allegedly Abramovich was willing to keep Grant on but some of his advisors were really pushing for him to let Grant go (much like the way Jol was pushed out at Tottenham). Abramovich supposedly listens to these people and decided to get rid. Two of these advisors are meant to be pushing hard for Sparky to get the job.

Hughes now at 9/2 second favourite. Was 14/1 earlier...

Its going to be Sparky Hughes

TRANSFER RUMOURS Sir Alex Ferguson wants to spend his £50m summer transfer budget within the next fortnight, with Micah Richards and Sevilla's Brazilian duo Luis Fabiano and Daniel Alves top of his wish-list. (Daily Mirror) If Frank Rijkaard takes over at Chelsea he will attempt to bring in strikers Samuel Eto'o and Zlatan Ibrahimovic for a combined £50m. (Daily Star) Real Madrid are prepared to pay an estimated £150m to secure the services of Cristiano Ronaldo. They will pay Man Utd £39.8m as well as offering Robinho, Sergio Ramos and Mahamadou Diarra in exchange and will pay the Portuguese winger £7.6m a year. (Daily Express) Blackburn midfielder David Bentley has snubbed a new contract at Ewood Park clearing the way for Tottenham and Chelsea to launch £15m bids. (Various) Jose Mourinho will become manager of Inter Milan in the next 48 hours and wants to make Frank Lampard his first signing. (Daily Mirror) Manchester City are on the verge of smashing their transfer record to sign Brazilian striker Jo from CSKA Moscow in a deal worth around £18m. (The Times) Arsenal are lining up a £20m move for Real Mallorca striker Dani Guiza, 27, and Real Madrid midfielder Ruben de la Red, 22. (Daily Star) Arsene Wenger has said Samir Nasri could complete his move to the Emirates in the next week, while the Gunners are also monitoring Saint Etienne midfielder Blaise Matuidi. (The Times) Man Utd full-back Patrice Evra, who only has one year remaining on his contract, is a target for AC Milan. (The Times) Bristol City defender Liam Fontaine has emerged as a shock £1m target for Liverpool. (Daily Mirror) Aston Villa are interested in Manchester City's £4m-rated defender Richard Dunne. (Daily Mail) Villa boss Martin O'Neill is also keeping tabs on Chelsea midfielder Steve Sidwell and Man Utd goalkeeper Ben Foster. (Daily Mail) Tottenham must pay at least £4m for 20-year-old Norwegian striker Tarik Elyounoussi. (Daily Mirror) Lazio's Swiss midfielder Valon Behrami has also been linked with a move to White Hart Lane and is valued around £9.6m. (The Times) Spurs are favourites to sign Barcelona's Giovani Dos Santos after discussing a £7m deal. (Daily Mail) Man City have also held talks to sign the Mexican midfielder. (Daily Telegraph) Middlesbrough will fund a £3m move for Heerenveen's American midfielder Michael Bradley by selling George Boateng. (Daily Star) Boro are also considering a move for Wolves' £5m-rated goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey as main target Paul Robinson looks set for Man City. (Daily Mail) Lyon winger Sidney Govou and Lens defender Nadir Belhadj are targets for Portsmouth, while Sol Campbell looks set to stay at the club. (Daily Star) West Brom look set to complete a £3.5m deal to sign Aston Villa striker Luke Moore. (Daily Mirror) Rangers will increase their offer for Burnley's 20-year-old striker Kyle Lafferty. (The Independent) Celtic will battle it out with their Old Firm rivals for Lafferty. (Daily Record) Norwich are leading the race to sign Leeds striker Jermaine Beckford but Ipswich, QPR and Reading are also interested. (Daily Star) Nottingham Forest are ready to swoop for Leicester midfielder Matt Oakley. (Daily Mirror) OTHER GOSSIP Man Utd assistant manager Carlos Queiroz wants reassurances he will succeed Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford or he will leave the club. (Daily Star) Arsenal director Danny Fizman insists Arsene Wenger has said there is no limit on the money available for new signings. (Various) Hull midfielder Jay-Jay Okocha has shelved plans to retire following the club's promotion to the Premier League. (Various) Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard has urged the club to spend big in order to close the gap on the top four. (The Independent) Leeds Chairman Ken Bates could sell the club after they failed to gain promotion to the Championship. (Various) Dwight Yorke has been asked to come out of international retirement to make a one-off farewell appearance against England on Sunday. (Daily Mirror) Former Stevenage manager Peter Taylor is been lined up to take over as boss of Wycombe Wanderers. (Daily Mirror) AND FINALLY David Beckham spent 40 minutes on hold after phoning a paralysed British BMX rider to wish him well. When Stephen Murray eventually got to the phone the pair spent half an hour chatting. (The Sun) BBC pundit and former Chelsea and Newcastle midfielder Gavin Peacock is moving to Canada after Euro 2008 to study religion as he prepares for a career in the church. The 40-year-old will begin a three-year masters course in Divinity in July with the aim of becoming a pastor, vicar or minister depending on which denomination he chooses to follow. (The Times)

No shit Sherlock

http://www.oddschecker.com/football/intern.../top-goalscorer

A misuse of imagination by Endemic birds of the Galápagos Islands

NEWCASTLE are again considering replacing Kevin Keegan with top Spanish coach Marcelino, according to sources in Spain. Talk of United’s interest in Marcelino began in March but died down amid their late-season mini-revival under Keegan. However, the Magpies are said to be one of a handful of clubs to have contacted Marcelino’s agents this week following his resignation as Racing Santander coach. And the Sunday Sun understands that United have been in regular communication with the 42-year-old’s representatives via a member of their new scouting network in Spain. Marcelino — full name Marcelino Garcia Toral — stunned Spanish football by securing a sixth-place finish for relative minnows Santander in his first season at the club. But he walked out on Wednesday, insisting Racing do not have the resources to fulfil his managerial ambitions. He has since confirmed that Valencia and “other teams” have spoken to his agents. But with Valencia having only just unveiled Unai Emery as their new coach, it seems unlikely Marcelino will start next season there. And he and Newcastle are directly linked through scout Pablo Longoria. Having identified several new signings for Marcelino at Racing last summer and during his time at previous club Recreativo de Huelva, the Sunday Sun can reveal that Longoria — thought to be just 21 — is now talent-spotting in Europe on behalf of Newcastle. And with the two men remaining close, it is little wonder that talk is rife in Spain of a United approach for Marcelino. Longoria is liaising with Newcastle’s technical co-ordinator Jeff Vetere in scouring Europe for bright young talent. But the young Spaniard has no professional background in football, with his apparently encyclopaedic knowledge of players across the Continent said to be gained from the Internet.

NEWS OF THE WORLD: Avram Grant has launched an astonishing attack on Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich. Rafa Benitez plans to spend £70million at Liverpool this summer - £50million of which will be raised through player sales. West Ham are poised to open the bidding for Everton striker Andy Johnson. West Brom will complete the signings of Luke Moore and Roman Bednar next week. Barcelona want Chelsea strike ace Florent Malouda. West Brom are favourites to re-sign Paul McShane from Sunderland. Birmingham pair Olivier Kapo and Sebastian Larsson are targets for former boss Steve Bruce at Wigan. Thaskin Shinawatra has promised Manchester City fans a £65million summer transfer budget. Wolves, Reading and Derby all want Dwight Yorke. Middlesbrough, Blackburn and Bolton will do battle for Ghana midfielder Anthony Annan. Wolves are set to offload Freddy Eastwood to midlands rivals Coventry. Bolton have their sights on Barnsley's FA Cup hero Brian Howard. Stephen Carr is being chased by Everton, Aston Villa and West Ham. Paul Jewell hopes to reunite Nathan Ellington and Jason Roberts at Derby. Leeds will offer Trevor Sinclair a two-year deal if they are promoted to the Championship. Portsmouth may launch a £2million raid on Ipswich starlet Danny Haynes. Patrik Berger is set to extend his Premier League career by joining Stoke. Sunderland are to use Dean Whitehead in part exchange for Reading winger Stephen Hunt. Middlesbrough are eyeing midfield trio Tom Huddlestone, James Harper and Michael Bradley. DAILY STAR SUNDAY: Chelsea could turn to Mark Hughes after ending Avram Grant's reign as boss on Saturday. Chelsea plan to snatch Aaron Ramsey from under the noses of Manchester United. Younes Kaboul is sick of Tottenham and wants Portsmouth to sign him. Liverpool have had a players-plus-cash offer for James Milner rejected by Newcastle. Everton will have to battle Liverpool for Manchester City midfielder Michael Johnson but Jonas Olsson has begged the Goodison Park club to sign him. Arsenal are checking out Sporting Lisbon midfielder Miguel Veloso. Stoke hope to sign Senegal midfielder Guirane N'Daw for £4million. Fulham want to bring Bernard Mendy back to the Premier League. Middlesbrough are tracking Tom Huddlestone, James Harper and Michael Bradley. Gary McAllister has agreed to sign Trevor Sinclair if Leeds clinch promotion to the Championship. Reading rebel Ibrahima Sonko is a shock target for Rangers. West Ham flop Freddie Ljungberg could be on his way back to Sweden. Paul Jewell wants to bring both Jason Roberts and Nathan Ellington to Derby. Wigan are in the race for £3million-rated Turkish star Mevlit Erding. SUNDAY MIRROR: Thierry Henry was on the brink of a sensational move to Manchester United two weeks ago - but Pep Guardiola has blocked the switch. Real Madrid fans have voted against signing Cristiano Ronaldo. Avram Grant is a shock contender to replace Sven Goran Eriksson at Manchester City. Newcastle will lead the race for £8million-rated Shaun Wright-Phillips. Seven Premier League clubs are chasing Brazil midfield star Edu - including Arsenal who he left to move to Spain three years ago. Espanyol goalkeeper Carlos Kameni has opened the door for Tottenham to clinch his signature. Nottingham Forest are making an ambitious move for Sheffield United striker James Beattie. Leeds have emerged as the top target for one of the world's richest sport empires - the owners of the Toronto Maple Leafs. SUNDAY EXPRESS: Mark Hughes has emerged as one of the top contenders to replace Avram Grant at Chelsea. Kanu will play on at Portsmouth for another year. THE PEOPLE: Sir Alex Ferguson will step down as Manchester United manager before he reaches 70. Mark Hughes is Chelsea's leading target to replace Avram Grant. Liverpool are to make a £12million move for Blackburn star David Bentley. Billy Davies is to hold talks over the vacant managerial role at Leicester. Newcastle want to rescue Shaun Wright-Phillips from his Chelsea obscurity. Marseille's Albanian skipper Lorik Cana is Everton's top summer target. Wigan chief Steve Bruce wants Ghana giant centre-half John Mesnah - but may have to find £7million. Bolton are set to make another move for Swedish star Johan Elmander. Arsenal are considering a bid for Fiorentina's French international goalkeeper Sebastien Frey. Leeds will try to talk Dougie Freedman into staying at Elland Road next season. Blackburn are chasing Espanyol right-back Pablo Zabaleta - but he is rated at £12million. Middlesbrough and Manchester City are in the hunt for Ivory Coast striker Bakary Kone. Sunderland want to re-sign left-back George McCartney from West Ham. Tottenham will try to tempt Portsmouth with a player-plus-cash offer for Sulley Muntari. Fulham want to take Louis Saha back to Craven Cottage. Aston Villa are chasing giant Greek centre-half Sokratis Papastathopoulos. Martin Jol will raid former club Tottenham for midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng.

NEWCASTLE United are cutting the cost for those fans who want to raise the roof at St. James' Park next season - and there are bumper discounts for families too! The Club will be sending out season ticket renewal packs to supporters next week. And the range of exciting developments include: · The creation of 'Leazes Corner' to house those fans who like to generate a noisy atmosphere throughout the game, with prices at just £390 for adults. · The creation of a much larger Family Enclosure - almost treble the size of the previous area - where season tickets will cost just £300 for adults and £100 for children. · A guaranteed price freeze for any fan who signs up to buy their season ticket for the next three seasons. It promises to be a busy summer behind the scenes at St. James' Park as club officials, having spent all year listening to fan feedback, put many suggestions into action. Chairman Chris Mort said: "Over the course of the year I've spoken to lots of fans about how we can improve things at St. James' Park. "Two themes have regularly cropped up in those conversations. One was somehow creating a section in the ground where like-minded fans who enjoy singing can come together to generate a great atmosphere and get behind the team for 90 minutes. "The other issue was getting more of our younger fans into the ground. And I really think with the changes we are making for next season we've been able to deliver on both. "We want Leazes Corner to be a place where the noise and backing for the team really causes a stir, and we've purposely reduced prices for fans to sit in that section of the ground. "The larger family enclosure with reduced prices furthers our commitment to looking after young supporters, something we started last season with the ticket initiatives for the friendlies and which we continued with the very popular ten-game season tickets after Christmas." To almost treble the Family Enclosure, it will move to a new position on Level 7 of the Milburn Stand, while the creation of 'Leazes Corner' will see visiting fans now housed at the far end of Level 7 of the Sir John Hall Stand. The generous offers continue with the 'price freeze' incentive for all fans who commit to buying a season ticket for the next three campaigns. Any fan who chooses to pay up front for their next three years season tickets can also take advantage of the added bonus of a ten per cent discount. Other fans can simply pay for their 2008/09 season ticket now and then pay for the next two in interest-free instalments over two ten-month periods. Prices for the new season are those as set in June 2007 post-renewal for the 2007/08 season. Another change inside the stadium will see the expansion and relocation of the Press Box in the Milburn Paddock. Unfortunately, that will involve the displacement of a small number of fans, but those supporters and others on Level 7 who will also be moving, can call in at St. James' Park during June to meet Box Office staff and look at alternative seats. And any fan who is moving as a result of these changes will NOT have to pay a higher price - even if they are moved to a more expensive area. The deadline for 2008/09 season ticket renewals will be Tuesday, June 17. Meanwhile, United have also decided to name a hospitality suite at St. James' Park after Sir Bobby Robson - and other famous names in Magpie folklore such as Jackie Milburn, Joe Harvey and Bobby Moncur who will also have suites named in their honour. The renaming of the suites follows the success of Club 206, launched last season to mark Alan Shearer's record goalscoring achievement in black and white stripes.

Are there any players who over the last decade you wish we had signed and believe they would have made a difference to our team? When I say this I am of course talking about realistic players taking into account where we were in the league and what our budget was at the time, not your Ronaldos etc Whilst neither were world beaters I always thought we should have went for Southgate and Ehiogu when they both signed for Boro. They were better than the likes of Dabizas and O'Brien and were well within our budget and having played together at Villa worked well as a partnership.

I know Keegan has came out and said that he would like to sign 3-5 players and more recently has stated that he does not want to lose anyone from the current squad how many players can you see us bringing in bearing in mind that regardless of what Keegan has claimed about players leaving a number of our squad is being linked with moves away. The midfield alone has a number of players being linked with moves away with N'Zogbia supposedly unhappy and wanting a move, Emre being linked with Galatassary, Duff being linked with a move away and I am constantly reading that Villa want Milner (and that he is interested in going) and who knows when Barton will be back depending on what happens with the Dabo incident. How many of the above do you see actually leaving and if they do leave how many in terms of numbers of players do you think we will need to bring in bearing in mind that we claimed there was not to be a major overhaul this summer?

PETER Taylor has admitted he would relish the chance to join Newcastle United’s coaching staff, but neither he nor the club are in any rush to make a quick decision over his appointment. The well-regarded former England Under-21s manager met with United’s executive director (football) Dennis Wise last week to talk over the possibility of joining Newcastle, and although those talks progressed well he doesn’t anticipate an appointment in the near future. Taylor has not met with Wise since last week’s talks but he has confirmed for the first time that he is keen on joining Newcastle. The Journal understands, however, the situation could be complicated if he is offered a management role at a football league club – and sources in the West Midlands have indicated he met Walsall chairman Jeff Bonser to discuss possibly taking over at the League One club. Taylor will not be drawn on the position that he has discussed with Wise, but the role of academy director would suit a coach who is well-regarded for the work he did in charge of England’s Under-21s side. There is uncertainty over the position of another of United’s backroom staff – coach Steve Round – whose contract runs out at the end of the season. If former England coach Round did depart St James’s Park that would be another vacancy that Taylor would be well-qualified to fill. But while there is still a degree of uncertainty over the precise remit that Taylor would be handed, the 55-year-old has opened the door for the club to bring him in by admitting he would like to work with Kevin Keegan again – after working with him in the England set-up. “It’s a very good football club and anyone would be interested in working for a club like Newcastle. It is a big football club with a very high profile,” he said. “There’s been no further discussions since we talked last week but at this stage I wouldn’t necessarily expect there to be. As far as I’m concerned there is no time-frame that has been set aside for a decision to be made, and I’m not expecting anything to be said soon.” Taylor has been out of work since he resigned from his position as manager of Stevenage Borough at the end of April after failing to guide them to a play-off place in the Conference. He had dropped into non-league football after an unsuccessful stint at Crystal Palace. He is best known for his work with the England under-21 team, who he managed with great success while Keegan was in charge of the senior team. He was so well-regarded at Soho Square that when Keegan resigned after England’s disastrous start to World Cup 2002 qualification, it was to Taylor that the Football Association turned to take temporary charge of the team. And while it is Wise who appears to be leading the negotiations it is not an appointment the Newcastle manager would oppose. For his part, Taylor sounds enthused at the prospect of joining a coaching hierarchy that is being reshuffled with more of an emphasis on bringing players through their youth system. The board are understood to be keen for United to rival the kind of worldwide scouting network that Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea enjoy, and appointing Taylor to spearhead that would be a major coup. “As I said, I had a cup of coffee with Dennis (Wise) last week and it was a good conversation, and it was interesting to hear what he had to say and hopefully for him to hear what I had to say,” said Taylor. “I have not discussed what the contents of that conversation were or what the job would entail but of course it is an interesting opportunity if something does happen.”

I hope we will be getting added to the sites supporting you bit

£25 for the lot. As you get the xbox remote control with it which can cost up to £19.99 itself I thought I would just go for it. Beetamaxtastic!!

SHOLA AMEOBI was today the subject of an ambitious move from MLS side Toronto FC, who would love to sign the former England Under-21 striker. The BMO Field outfit would join Norwich City and Middlesbrough as teams tracking Ameobi, after the player indicated he did not want to go to Stoke. Former Newcastle coach John Carver is in charge at Toronto, and is keen to bring Ameobi to join him and another ex-United star, Laurent Robert. And while many may think a move to Canada is too premature, Carver insists a deal would instantly elevate Ameobi from a player out in the cold to a terrace idol in Toronto. Carver – who saw Ameobi grow up and go on to star in the Champions League during his successful stint on Tyneside – told me from Toronto: “I need some firepower up front and I am looking for new players, especially a striker. “I’ve got my side organised now and have made Toronto difficult to beat, but I need to sign players in that area. “Shola is a kid I brought through the system at Newcastle United, and a kid I know an awful lot about. “If I can get Shola into this football club he would be a huge, huge asset for us.” Former Sunderland stars Danny Dichio and Carl Robinson are huge stars in Canada these days, as well as Ameobi’s former team-mate Robert. And another former United man, highly-rated strength and conditioning coach Paul Winsper, acted as a personal fitness guru to David Beckham in the last 12 months, and is also at Toronto. Robert has impressed since arriving in Canada, and Carver says he is an example to follow. Carver added: “It’s not about what players have to prove, it’s about the fact they have so much to play for and offer. “Newcastle fans know what Robert’s ability is about. “From what I have seen in the short space of time he has been here, he has some desire back. “He has had a couple of wayward years and he actually seems to want to prove a point. “He’s not here on holiday, he’s working hard and he’s a great professional.” TFC fans have huge banners of their Premier League stars dotted around their BMO Field home, and Ameobi could also expect a rapturous welcome. Carver, who has also been a huge hit in MLS so far, added: “The fans here are so similar to the Newcastle fans. They love the game and they are passionate. “They are similar to myself and are the reason I came here.”