Scottish Mag

Here is another of Vic Mackey after the dog had got him...

Jedi Knights were dispatched to Manchester as they are keepers of peace.

Who the fuck is Jerome Alliadiere?

FORMER England manager Peter Taylor is being lined up for a coaching position with Newcastle United. The four-times capped former Spurs winger met United director of football Dennis Wise in a hotel in Waltham Abbey yesterday. And while there was no word from St James’s Park today, it is expected that Taylor whose, last job was manager of Stevenage, will be heading to the North East. There is talk that it could be a director of the Academy, a position currently held by former Barnsley full-back and Consett-born Joe Joyce. On the coaching front, Steve Round, who like Taylor has been with England, sees his contract expire at the end of next month, and he has not heard from United’s top brass whether is going to be renewed or not. The Southend-born Taylor has a wealth of football experience, and when Kevin Keegan resigned the England job in 2000, he was the one the FA turned to in a caretaker capacity for one match against Italy. But Taylor is perhaps best known for his two spells as the England Under-21 manager, when he brought several young players through. Meanwhile, Keegan himself is still around, even though his players have dispersed either to represent their countries of chasing the sun. And Keegan will represent his country again tonight when he makes a cameo appearance for the England legends against Scotland at Southampton in a game in memory of Alan Ball.

CHARLES N’ZOGBIA has insisted he is happy at St James’s Park, but is angry at reports of an alleged bust-up between himself and his Newcastle United colleague Abdoulaye Faye. United’s French Under-21 international woke up to a report yesterday that he had been involved in an altercation with Faye before the final match of the season with Everton at Goodison Park. But N’Zogbia has denied this, and certainly neither Kevin Keegan nor any members of his coaching staff were aware of any row between the two players. The 21-year-old midfielder does not give many interviews, but he told me today: “I am happy at Newcastle United and, to tell the truth, I have always been. “At the moment, all I am concentrating on in playing for France Under-21s in Sweden at the end of this month and then, like the rest of the Newcastle squad, I will be looking at what players we are going to sign.” N’Zogbia was not keen on saying that he will be definitely staying at St James’s next season because he is uncertain as to whether the club will sell him or not. But at least his positive attitude will encourage United fans who know that he has the potential to go on and be a big name in the Premier League. However, he was willing to talk about his alleged bust-but up with Faye, saying: "I have been at Newcastle since I was 17 and I have never been involved in a fight with anyone. "And why would I pick a fight with Abdoulaye Faye? Not only is he a friend of mine but he is also a little bit bigger than me." N’Zogbia started the season with United’s first goal at Bolton Wanderers and he ended it by winning the penalty from which Michael Owen scored in Sunday’s defeat in the finale at Everton. He was a Charlie Woods signing in his time as chief scout at St James’s Park, and I remember reserve team coach Tommy Craig telling me after his first look at N’Zogbia that, after working with him for a month, he would have him in the first-team squad, and this turned out to be correct. Those were happy days for Craig, but he was left devastated today along with thousands of other football fans when it was announced that his big pal Tommy Burns had died at the age of 51. The Celtic first-team coach originally contracted skin cancer in 2006. Although he received treatment, the disease returned in March. Former Scotland international Burns, who spent 15 years as a player at Parkhead and also managed the club for three seasons, had been undergoing treatment in both Glasgow and France in recent weeks. A statement from Celtic on their official website said: "It is with great sadness that Celtic Football Club confirmed this morning that Tommy Burns has passed away. "Tommy, a true Celtic legend and wonderful man will be sadly missed by us all. "Clearly, our thoughts are very much with Tommy’s wife Rosemary and his family at this extremely difficult time." Burns joined Celtic as a teenager in 1973 and went on to play 352 league games for the club.

David Rozehnal has admitted that he would welcome a permanent switch to Serie A side Lazio. The Czech Republic international has been on loan at the Stadio Olimpico from Newcastle since January, after failing to hold down a regular first-team spot on Tyneside. However, he has enjoyed greater success in Italy and admits that he is enjoying his football once more. "In the last five games I have played from the start and it has given me the self-confidence I had when I was playing for Paris St Germain," Rozehnal told Sport. "Everything is looking to be returning to normal, I hope it will continue this way." The centre-half has recently been included in his country's training squad ahead of Euro 2008, but remains unsure what the future will hold for him after the summer tournament. He revealed that he would be willing to extend his stay at Lazio, but only if he can be guaranteed regular opportunities. "I have not played as much I have wanted to," he said. "Now it is up to Lazio to make a decision. "If I was playing then I would definitely come. It is important for me to play regularly. "I would not like to struggle here in a situation where I play one game and sit out the next three."

Playing hangman tbh...

BREAKING GOSSIP Barcelona will offer AC Milan a package of Ronaldinho, Deco and £16m in return for midfield star Kaka. (Italian sports paper Gazzetta dello Sport, 0834 BST). TRANSFER RUMOURS Liverpool are lining up a £10m move for Chelsea winger Florent Malouda. (The Sun) Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill is considering a £5m bid for Chelsea midfielder Steve Sidwell. (The Guardian) Liverpool striker Andriy Voronin is wanted by German outfit Bayer Leverkusen. (The Sun) Chelsea misfit Andriy Shevchenko is a target for Turkish side Fenerbache. (Daily Mirror) Aston Villa are the latest club to be linked to a move for Blackburn winger David Bentley. (Daily Express) Manchester United defender Jonny Evans is hopeful of securing a £5m move to Sunderland following a loan spell with the Black Cats. (Daily Express) Charles N'Zogbia's bust-up with team-mate Abdoulaye Faye has thrown his future at Newcastle into doubt. (Daily Telegraph) Tottenham have moved a step closer to signing Espanyol keeper Carlos Kameni after the Spanish club themselves signed Cristian Alvarez. (Daily Express) Sheffield United hope to hijack Robert Earnshaw's £2.5m move to Nottingham Forest. (The Sun) Following their relegation to the Championship, Reading could lose Stephen Hunt, Nicky Shorey, Kevin Doyle and James Harper. (The Sun) Aston Villa are hopeful of signing free-agent Stephen Carr who was released by Newcastle last week. (Daily Mail) West Ham look set to land Palermo midfielder Mark Bresciano for £4m. (Daily Mail) Paris St Germain's £6m-rated striker Amara Diane has spoken of his desire to join Newcastle. (The Sun) Derby manager Paul Jewell is hoping to make Plymouth right-back Paul Connolly his second new signing. (The Independent) Portsmouth midfielder Lassana Diarra has confirmed that he will be at the club next season, ending speculation of a possible summer transfer. (Daily Express) Cardiff City are hopeful of re-signing Sunderland striker Michael Chopra who they sold to the Premier League club last season. (Daily Mirror) OTHER GOSSIP Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp has revealed he may quit football after Saturday's FA Cup final. (Various) Didier Drogba personally spoke to Lyon and AC Milan about transfers away from Stamford Bridge earlier in his Chelsea career. (Daily Express) Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o has spoken of his desire to play in the Premier League. (Daily Express) Michael Laudrup is in line to take over from Sven-Goran Eriksson, should the Manchester City manager leave the club. (The Sun) Newcastle are in talks with former England under-21 boss Peter Taylor about a coaching role at the club. (The Sun) AND FINALLY Chelsea manager Avram Grant has accused referee Steve Bennett of handing the title to Manchester United. (Various) Lord Coe has called for Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson to coach the Great Britain football team at the 2012 London Olympics. "I would love to see Alex coach the team," Lord Coe said. (Daily Telegraph) Proud Welshman Mike Price will net £58,000 if Cardiff City win the FA Cup on Saturday. Price placed a double bet of £25 on Wales to win the Grand Slam (28/1) and the Bluebirds to win the FA Cup (80/1).

Celtic legend Tommy Burns has died at the age of 51 after losing his long-running battle against cancer. Burns had been undergoing treatment in both Glasgow and France in recent weeks after being diagnosed in March of this year. In 2006, the former Scotland midfielder was treated for skin cancer but it returned two years later. He played for Celtic from 1974 to 1989 and was the club's first-team coach before being granted leave. A statement from Celtic said: "Tommy, a true Celtic Legend and wonderful man will be sadly missed by us all. Clearly, our thoughts are very much with Tommy's wife Rosemary and his family at this extremely difficult time."

I love the notion that the English aren't. There are arses in both countries....

HABIB BEYE feels that Everton have set the standards for those who live outside the cash-laden environment of the top four in the Premier League. The Toffees know the prize money on offer should they win the UEFA Cup next season is merely a drop in the ocean compared with the lucrative sums on offer for each game in the Champions League. But David Moyes’ side have earned the respect of the rest of the top flight, including Beye. The Senegal international has been one of a limited number of plus points for Magpies fans this term and feels that by beating Everton, Newcastle can make a statement for supporters to mull over next term. Beye is keen to spoil the party for Everton by beating them at Goodison Park. He told the Chronicle: “We have one game left and it is very important to have a good finish at Everton. “We’ve beaten Everton 3-2 at home already and we’d like to win again. “Everton are a good team but not better than Newcastle. “I think we’ve got a good chance to have a good finish.’’ And Beye hopes that next season United can be closer to tomorrow’s last-day rivals. He added: “I think the big thing on Sunday is to show we’ll be better for the next season. “The last eight or nine games have shown we can be better next season too. “Now we have one more game and we want to get three points. “Next season it’s important we finish fifth or sixth.’’ United will take a huge following to Everton tomorrow with the Toon Army expecting a good show from their side. And after winning over the supporters with his battling displays, Beye paid tribute to the Geordie Nation. The former Marseille skipper was a terrace idol at Stade Velodrome with some of the most demanding fans in the world in tears at his departure. Beye said: “I think the Marseille fans and the Newcastle fans are a bit different. In England we have more respect from the fans. “In France and Marseille the fans are crazy. “But it’s good to play for both teams and I have enjoyed playing in front of the Newcastle fans this year.’’

NEWCASTLE United’s Mr Versatility Alan Smith is banking on a return to Kevin Keegan’s starting line-up for the first time in two months at Goodison Park tomorrow – against the club that tried to sign him last summer. And Smith has two chances against Everton with his former Leeds United striking partner Mark Viduka ruled out through injury and midfielder Joey Barton unable to travel to his native Merseyside because of his bail conditions in relation to his two assault charges. However, despite his versatility, Keegan has always seen Smith as a striker, and if the England international does get the nod that’s where he hopes he will be playing, even though he will face competition from young James Carroll. Smith has yet to score in a black-and-white shirt and you have to go back to November 2005 for his last goal in the Premier League. Last summer Everton boss David Moyes tried hard to land Smith, then a Manchester United player, but the 27-year-old opted for St James’s Park instead. Smith has had a tough first season with United and has had to wait patiently for opportunities since he was dropped after defeat to Liverpool at Anfield in early February, with Keegan refusing to change a winning team apart from when he had to through Steven Taylor’s illness and Abdoulaye Faye’s injury. Looking at the situation tomorrow with Viduka and Barton out, Keegan said: “Every time a player gets injured, it’s a blow. “All managers are the same. You have a board in your room, and you move that player where it says injured, and you look at what you have left. You say ‘Right – it’s an opportunity for this guy’. That’s the easy part. The hardest part is for the guy to grab that opportunity. “There will be opportunities for one or two players this weekend at Everton, but that doesn’t mean to say it will weaken the side. It may be, by doing this at this time, that we strengthen it.” Keegan will also be without Emre, who has joined up with his Turkey team-mates for a pre-Euro 2008 training camp while James Milner is still short on fitness and will not be involved.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport...icle1142516.ece KEVIN KEEGAN says Newcastle are a million miles away from the Big Four. Well, here’s some news for him — they’re in it! Going back 10 years to the start of the season Arsene Wenger took over at Arsenal, we have some revealing financial statistics. In that time, the biggest spenders in the transfer market, naturally enough, have been Chelsea with an outlay of £475million. Next come Manchester United with £298m, followed by Liverpool on £264m. In fourth place, hang on a minute, that name’s a bit familiar, yes, it’s Newcastle United! The Geordies have splashed out £231m (including £16m on Michael Owen) — just ahead of Tottenham on £229m. So where are Arsenal? A distant sixth with £184m. And here we have the great hole in Keegan’s argument — and one that might be mentioned by Mike Ashley when the former England boss has today’s summit meeting with the Newcastle owner in London. If Wenger can more than manage just to stay in touch despite spending considerably less, why can’t Newcastle? The same applies to Spurs. Had it not been for injuries and drawing too many matches they should have won, Arsenal might well have been champions. Look at the figures over the last five years and Wenger’s achievement is even greater. An outlay of £78m against Newcastle’s £103m and Tottenham’s £140m. In that period, Wenger has recouped £52m in sales — a far greater percentage than Newcastle (£51m) and Spurs (£56m). These sort of spectacular Arsenal returns will be music to Ashley’s ears. Because this is exactly the sort of good housekeeping he is expecting from Keegan. Unlike his manager — and being a hard-nosed businessman rather than a money-no-object philanthropist like Roman Abramovich — he doesn’t believe throwing inordinate amounts of money at a problem necessarily solves it. Keegan, being old school, does. Despite the evidence to the contrary of his own club (£20m wasted on Jean-Alain Boumsong and Albert Luque for starters) and Tottenham. Wenger has proved that if you put in place a network of trusted, well-connected and influential scouts, you can still unearth some remarkable raw material for relatively little. We all know the names — Patrick Vieira, Cesc Fabregas, Kolo Toure, Robin Van Persie, Nicolas Anelka, Mathieu Flamini, Gael Clichy, Abou Diaby and Denilson among them. Harness this talent to the sort of remarkable football education these players get at London Colney and it’s no surprise the Gunners’ production line is so prolific. Sure, there have been a few mistakes — strangely two of them his most expensive purchases, Jose Reyes and Sylvain Wiltord. And because Arsenal stick to a rigid salary cap outside special cases including Thierry Henry and Sol Campbell (a free transfer), some players like Flamini eventually slip through the net. Generally, though, Arsenal maintain their position in the Big Four because Wenger is such an outstanding manager. This is not what his rivals want to hear. Rafa Benitez constantly bemoans a so-called lack of funds — even Jose Mourinho, for all his spending, did the same. And now Keegan. It’s not quite that simple! As for throwing more money away on pay-offs, Keggy will discover today that’s not part of Ashley’s business plan, either.

KEVIN KEEGAN will meet Newcastle United club owner Mike Ashley and director of football Dennis Wise in London tomorrow. There are all sorts of theories that Keegan is going to be hauled over the coals after his comments on Monday night and the defeat by Chelsea at St James’s Park, when the manager questioned which way the club was going. But my information is that there will be no screaming match at tomorrow’s meeting and no parting of the ways from either party – and it is likely to end in handshakes all round. I am told that Keegan has been summoned to London by Ashley to be reminded that when he was appointed in January he was informed of the direction the club was taking, and that things have not changed. However, the situation is still bound to be causing the United fans concern and, after his Press conference for Sunday’s final match if the season at Everton was brought forward 24 hours to today, journalists were instructed only to ask questions about the proceedings at Goodison Park. But United fans will want answers on what is rapidly becoming a worrying situation for them, as there was no official comment from the club today. They have complete confidence in Keegan and they have welcomed Ashley and his No 17 black-and-white shirt into the fold. But those fans know that this is Ashley’s first big chance to act in the transfer market in the close season so that a squad can be built which will get the club back to the right end of the table and even further in time. One question often asked is if Keegan does leave St James’s Park, would Wise be installed as manager. Well I have been told today that having being a manager with Swindon, Millwall and Leeds United, this is the last thing on Wise’s mind, especially as he has a young family in London. Instead, Wise will continue beavering away in his role as director of football, and in the summer he will bring Geordie boy Alan Thompson back to St James’s Park. The 34-year-old Thompson will take a coaching role looking after a certain age group at the United Academy as he gets the badges necessary to move further up the ladder. Thompson was actually sold by Keegan to Bolton Wanderers for £250,000 in 1993 because he could not guarantee the local boy regular first-team football as he assembled a glittering array of inter-nationals.

Newcastle United are understood to have entered the chase to sign Sporting star Miguel Veloso. The highly-rated Portugal international has previously been linked with Manchester United and Tottenham but reports in his homeland claim Newcastle are the only club to make a firm approach for his services. Sporting chief Filipe Soares Franco is extremely reluctant to allow the classy midfielder to leave and fresh terms are on the table in Lisbon. However, sources suggest Newcastle are willing to offer around €20 million (around £15 million) for Veloso, with a five-year contract ready to be drawn up at St James' Park. Sporting have previously suggested they would not sell for less than €30 million (£23.5 million) so any deal could still be a long way off. Newcastle watched the 21-year-old in action during the Uefa Cup tie with Rangers at Ibrox and were impressed with his performance. Nevertheless, manager Kevin Keegan has admitted it is difficult to persuade his targets to head for Tyneside with Luka Modric recently opting for Tottenham instead despite a more lucrative deal being tabled by The Magpies. Keegan is to hold crunch talks with owner Mike Ashley after his recent comments about the harsh reality of the situation at the club amid reports that Dennis Wise and Tony Jimenez's thoughts on the transfer market differ to those of the manager.

How exactly is Wes Brown a reject?

I pray Rangers get beat as it will be a nightmare up here if they win. I must add considering the dislike of the Old Firm on here they don't half get some amount of threads about them...

My aunt yesterday lost her long (and second) battle against Bowel Cancer After some pretty feeble attempts at training and me reaching my all time heaviest weight, I need to get my finger out and do her proud come the Great North Run.

TRANSFER RUMOURS Barcelona are planning an audacious £30m bid for Arsenal's Spanish midfielder Cesc Fabregas. The Catalan club may offer Samuel Eto'o, Deco, Eidur Gudjohnsen or former Gunner Thierry Henry in s part-exchange deal. (Daily Star) Henry will be allowed to leave Barcelona and the France striker could return to the premier League with a move to Chelsea. (Daily Express) Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp will bid £8m for Liverpool striker Peter Crouch. (Various) Brazil stars Kaka and Ronaldinho could be on the way to the Premier League after quizzing Tottenham defender Gilberto about life in England. AC Milan's Kaka and Barcelona's Ronaldinho are targets for Chelsea and Manchester City respectively. (Various) Tottenham look set to miss out on Valencia striker David Villa as Real Madrid have made a £24m bid for the Spain international. (Various) Real Madrid have also made a move to sign Chelsea midfielder Michael Essien and will pay £25m for him. (Mirror) Manchester City owner Thaksin Shinawatra is lining up a £10m swoop for Porto's Portugal international centre-back Bruno Alves. (Mirror) AC Milan's Gennaro Gattuso wants to join a Premier League club. (Various) OTHER GOSSIP Manchester United assistant boss Carlos Queiroz is being lined up by Portugal to take over from Luis Felipe Scolari as the national coach. (Daily Star) Scolari remains tight-lipped about his future, but it appears Manchester City's chances of capturing him to replace Sven-Goran Eriksson are slim as the Brazilian is reluctant to move away from Portugal. (Various) Sunderland boss Roy Keane is considering handing his veteran player Dwight Yorke a coaching role at the club, as he believes the striker-turned-midfielder could one become a good manager. (The Sun) Ryan Giggs can beat Sir Bobby Charlton's record 759 appearances for Manchester United if he plays in the Champions League final in Moscow as statisticians have found the former England midfielder missed one of the matches credited to him. (The Independent) United may be without Wayne Rooney in Moscow as the striker is struggling to overcome the hernia injury he suffered in his side's 2-1 defeat at Chelsea. (Various) AND FINALLY Blackburn striker Benni McCarthy has called former team-mate Robbie Savage "the worst player I have ever seen in my life", ahead of the Derby midfielder's return to Ewood Park on Saturday. "He has no skill at all," added McCarthy.

No show for me again....

I really can't see the Smith/Cueller deal have much truth to it and is probably just another spin on the constant linking us with SPL players with the fact that over the last few years Smith has been linked with Rangers purely on the basis that he watches them from time to time so the Scottish media claim he is a Rangers supporter. That being said I would be happy with the deal if there was any truth in it. Whilst its purely speculation some of the player getting linked in/out seem pretty decent to me for the type of money being banded about. If we recouped a couple of million for Rozenhal yet got Dunne for 5, swopped Cueller and Smith and yesterday I seen Milner was linked with Villa again (that journo over on the Blackburn forum has been saying for weeks that Villa want him for around 5 or 6 million and he wants to go). If we could get someone like SWP for around 10 and bring in 5 or 6 for Milner that would see us with Cueller, Dunne and SWP for around 7 million net leaving Keegan with plenty for his "big signings" that he keeps talking about.

Paris Saint Germain defender Mamadou Sakho has been scouted by Newcastle United as The Magpies compile a lengthy list of potential summer targets. The Paris-born youngster captained PSG at the tender age of 17, a French record, and has also skippered France Under-17s. Respected sources claim Newcastle posted representatives at the Coupe de la Ligue final, when Sakho impressed as his side overcame Lens in a dramatic match in front of Setanta Sports cameras, and a return trip to Paris is on the cards. Directors Dennis Wise and Tony Jimenez have handed manager Kevin Keegan a short-list of targets and the United boss will be clocking up the air miles to see them personally. "As far as their list goes, we'll be flying off over the next three or four weeks to look at the players we don't know," admitted Keegan recently. "We know their names but there are one or two on the list from Dennis that I haven't seen play." The 18-year-old is rumoured to be interested in moving to England, although PSG are likely to resist any approaches for their promising stopper.