Portsmouth – Everton: what a streak!

On Saturday, 26 September, Portsmouth host Everton in search of their first point of the season in the Premier League. They have lost their first six league matches so far this season.

According to Infostrada Sports, Pompey can become the fourth club to lose the first seven English top flight matches. Portsmouth is already the first team in the Premier League to lose their first six matches of the season (since 1992/1993).

Losing most consecutive matches from start of season – English top flight

# Club Start date Match that ended streak

12 Manchester United 30 Aug 1930 Manchester United - Birmingham (01 Nov 1930) 2-0

8 Liverpool 02 Sep 1899 Liverpool - Notts County (21 Oct 1899) 3-1

7 Bolton Wanderers 06 Sep 1902 Bolton Wanderers - Liverpool (25 Oct 1902) 1-1

6 Portsmouth 15 Aug 2009 Still running

6 Small Heath 02 Sep 1895 Bury - Small Heath (12 Oct 1895) 4-5

6 Cardiff City 27 Aug 1921 Cardiff City - Middlesbrough (24 Sep 1921) 3-1

6 Everton 23 Aug 1958 Manchester City - Everton (13 Sep 1958) 1-3

6 Leicester City 27 Aug 1983 Leicester City - Stoke City (24 Sep 1983) 2-2

Zlatan Ibrahimovic goals video in Barcelona: he is on fire!

On Saturday, 26 September, FC Barcelona play their fifth La Liga match of the season at Málaga CF. Zlatan Ibrahimovic has scored in all four matches for FC Barcelona.

The Swede can equal the club record of scoring in the first five matches of the season for FC Barcelona.

According to Infostrada Sports, the all-time La Liga record is in the hands of Vilanova (Hércules CF; 1939/1940), Pruden (Atlético Madrid; 1940/1941) and Quini (Sporting Gijón; 1979/1980). They all scored in the first seven matches of the La Liga season.

Ibrahimovic is the first debutant to score in the first four league matches for Barcelona.

Scoring in most successive matches since start of season for FC Barcelona in La Liga

# Name Nation Season

5 César ESP 1950/1951

4 Zlatan Ibrahimovic SWE 2009/2010

4 Ladislao Kubala ESP 1953/1954

4 Cayetano Ré PAR 1964/1965

3 Arocha ESP 1930/1931

3 José Samitier ESP 1931/1932

3 César ESP 1947/1948

3 Fusté ESP 1963/1964

3 Zaballa ESP 1966/1967

3 Bernd Schuster GER 1981/1982

3 Hristo Stoichkov BUL 1990/1991

3 Luis Enrique ESP 2002/2003

3 Samuel Eto'o CMR 2006/2007

Paul Pogba: Reds deny Le Havre claims

In response to the wholly unfounded comments widely reported in the media of Le Havre AC President, Jean-Pierre Louvel, Manchester United wishes to categorically confirm that as a matter of club policy, and in accordance with the applicable football regulations, it does not offer inducements to the parents of players that sign for the club, such as monetary payments or the purchase of houses.

Manchester United has today written to Le Havre AC to put it on notice that action will be taken if such allegations are repeated in relation to the transfer of Paul Pogba.

Manchester United is entirely satisfied that the transfer of Paul Pogba has been conducted in accordance with the regulations set down by the world governing body, FIFA. Manchester United is ready to defend any claim brought against it by Le Havre at FIFA.

It is to be noted that all contractual documentation relating to the player’s registration with the club has already been fully ratified by The Football Association and the Premier League.

Manchester United Press

Michael Owen goals vs Shay Given: Manchester United – Manchester City preview

Michael Owen has scored 10 PL goals past Manchester City goalkeeper Shay Given, including two hat-tricks for Liverpool – more PL goals against him than any other goalkeeper he has faced in his career.

Most Premier League goals against a goalkeeper - Michael Owen

Total Keeper Club(s)

10 Shay Given Newcastle United

9 David James Aston Villa, West Ham United, Manchester City, Portsmouth

6 Brad Friedel Blackburn Rovers

6 Shaka Hislop Newcastle United, West Ham United, Portsmouth

5 Paul Jones Southampton

5 Thomas Sørensen Sunderland, Stoke City

Grafite goals: he is on fire!

On Tuesday, 15 September, Grafite helped his side VfL Wolfsburg to a 3-1 win over CSKA Moskva by scoring a hat-trick on his Champions League debut. According to Infostrada Sports, Grafite is only the sixth player to score three or more goals in his first Champions League appearance.

Most goals by a player making his Champions League debut

Goals Player Nation Club Date

4 Marco van Basten NED AC Milan 25 Nov 1992

3 Faustino Asprilla COL Newcastle United 17 Sep 1997

3 Yakubu Aiyegbeni NGR Maccabi Haifa 24 Sep 2002

3 Wayne Rooney ENG Manchester United 28 Sep 2004

3 Vincenzo Iaquinta ITA Udinese 14 Sep 2005

3 Grafite BRA VfL Wolfsburg 15 Sep 2009

Champions League live stream TV links

Feel free to add links

September 15

Group A
20:45 Juventus - Bordeaux
20:45 Maccabi Haifa - Bayern Munich

Group B
20:45 Besiktas - Manchester U.
20:45 Wolfsburg - CSKA Moscow

Group C
20:45 Marseille - AC Milan
20:45 Zurich - Real Madrid

Group D
20:45 Atletico Madrid - APOEL Nicosia
20:45 Chelsea - FC Porto

September 16

Group E
20:45 Liverpool - Debrecen
20:45 Lyon - Fiorentina

Group F
20:45 Dynamo Kyiv - Rubin Kazan
20:45 Inter Milan - Barcelona

Group G
20:45 Sevilla - Unirea Urziceni
20:45 Stuttgart - Rangers

Group H
20:45 Olympiakos Piraeus - AZ Alkmaar
20:45 Standard Liege - Arsenal

Liverpool announce new jersey: Liverpool FC and Standard Chartered Bank together in the shirt

Liverpool FC and Standard Chartered Bank announced today they had agreed a four year deal for the bank to become the club's main sponsor - the largest commercial agreement in Liverpool's history.

The agreement, which starts in July 2010 and runs through to the end of the 2013-14 season, will see the bank's name and logo appear on the Liverpool shirt.

Liverpool FC is the most successful club in English football, enjoying a global following most recently evidenced in its highly successful pre-season tour of Singapore and Thailand. As official club sponsors, Standard Chartered will enjoy a major rights package which will provide the platform to significantly step up the Bank's brand awareness across its core markets in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

standardchartered2Standard Chartered PLC, listed on both London and Hong Kong stock exchanges, ranks among the top 25 companies in the FTSE-100 by market capitalisation. The Bank has more than doubled its revenue and profits over the last five years and has performed consistently well, delivering record results throughout the recent financial crisis.

Christian Purslow, Managing Director of Liverpool Football Club, pictured above signing the contract alongside Standard Chartered chairman John Peace, commented: "This partnership brings together two highly successful organisations with a really strong cultural and strategic fit. The sponsorship opportunity attracted a huge level of interest from a wide array of globally recognised brands and in Standard Chartered we believe we have the ideal partner to move forward and help develop our global ambitions for the club. It is a real sign of the progress we have made at Liverpool that we have been able to secure the largest ever commercial deal in our history."

Peter Sands, Group Chief Executive of Standard Chartered PLC, said: "This is a great partnership. We are excited to be working with such a famous global brand as Liverpool Football Club for the next four years. This is an outstanding opportunity for Standard Chartered, our customers and shareholders, and for Liverpool, its players and fans

"We see many opportunities to continue growing our business, particularly as Asia, Africa and the Middle East are emerging from the global downturn more quickly than the West. This sponsorship will drive a step change in brand recognition in our key markets and will provide an additional catalyst for our business growth."


Liverpool FC Press

Celtic legend book: Tommy Burns: A Supporter Who Got Lucky by Paul Cuddihy

A new book to be published this month tells the extraordinary story of Tommy Burns, a man who was born to play for Celtic and who epitomised everything that is good about the football club.

Tommy Burns: A Supporter Who Got Lucky by Paul Cuddihy charts the life of the Celtic legend, from Soho Street in the Calton all the way to Celtic Park.

With a foreword by Aiden McGeady, the book is a moving story filled with hope, glory, love, despair, triumph and defeat and, sadly, the ultimate loss when Tommy passed away at the age of just 51 after a brave battle with skin cancer.

However, on that journey Tommy Burns never walked alone – at the end of the storm he held his head up high with family, faith and football as his ever-present travelling companions.

A supporter who got lucky? The green and white masses on the slopes of Celtic Park watching Tommy Burns were the supporters who got lucky as they willed on one of their own who was simply fulfilling the hopes and dreams of every single one of them.

Do you like it? So, it is time to pre-order your copy here

Arsenal kit for PlayStation 3 Home avatar

Arsenal Football Club can today announce that the official kit is now available in PlayStation’s 3D world, Home.

Check out the kits and dress your PS3 Home avatar in the famous Arsenal strip by first signing up for a free PlayStation Network account on your PlayStation 3. Then download PS Home, visit the Shopping Mall, and pop into the "Threads" store. You'll see an Arsenal logo - click on this and you'll soon be kitting yourself out like Andrey, Theo, Robin or Cesc! The shirts are £1.99 each and the shorts and boots come free!

Daniel Hill, Home Business Director, said; "We're delighted to welcome Arsenal into PlayStation Home, a 3D social gaming platform for PlayStation 3 users. Our audience is loyal, and passionate about entertainment, two qualities embodied by the football club itself, so there is a great fit. We're looking forward to further integration with Arsenal as the Home platform evolves."

New to PlayStation Home?
PlayStation Home is the 3D, online, social gaming service from PlayStation. Set in a beautifully rendered High Definition world, you'll be able to create a unique avatar, hang out with your friends, play games online, watch videos, attend exclusive events and chat to other PlayStation fans about the latest news and gossip. It’s always evolving, with new games, activities and spaces being added all the time. It’s customisable and yours to use however you like.

Connect with friends
Meet up with friends and meet new people to chat with and to play with online, then come straight back to PlayStation Home to hang out, discuss your game and arrange the next one.

Explore the 3D world
Home is a gorgeous, High Definition experience, where you can explore the Central Plaza, Bowling Alley, Shopping Centre, Home Theatre, your personal apartments, special themed game spaces and much more.

It's free to get involved
As long as you have a PlayStation Network account and access to PlayStation Store, you can download Home for free.

Jerome Rothen ready at Rangers

Walter Smith has dropped a heavy hint that Jerome Rothen will start tomorrow’s SPL clash against Motherwell.

The Frenchman looks set to make his debut as Rangers attempt to make it four wins out of four in the league before travelling to Germany to face Stuttgart on Wednesday night.

Kyle Lafferty is expected to be out of action for two weeks but Rothen's first outing in a Light Blue jersey is sure to add an air of anticipation prior to kick-off at Fir Park.

Smith said: "Jerome is ready to play. "He has had a good pre-season behind him and a number of games as well so the sooner we get him involved the better."

Jim Gannon is now in charge of the Steelmen and, despite a painful European exit to Steaua Bucharest, the club are unbeaten in the league and sit fifth in the table.

The Gers gaffer is expecting another tough 90 minutes but hopes his Scottish and Northern Irish international stars can bounce back from painful midweek defeats to Holland and Slovakia respectively.

He said: "Motherwell have had a new manager come in and I don't think there has been a club that has had a bigger change in terms of playing staff.

"I looked at one of their teams from a game earlier this season and there were only two players from last season in it.

Source: Rangers Press

Gary Neville eyes injury-free run

While many of his team-mates are away on international duty, Gary Neville has been working hard at Carrington preparing to play his part in a busy month ahead.

The Reds' skipper is now back to full fitness following a frustrating run of injuries over the last two and a half years, and insists he'll do his utmost to stay away from the treatment table for as long as possible.

"The injuries I've had over the last few years have been a concern, but it's something I've had to deal with," he told ManUtd.com. "I hope that I can stay as fit as possible and keep playing games for the club - I'm certainly doing everything I possibly can to do that.

"Injuries are the most frustrating part of being a footballer, but it's not something I think about every day. You just get on with things and do the best you can to stay fit. The club's medical team do the best they can to help me."

Neville and fellow stalwarts Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes may be in the twilight of their careers, but their influence remains as important as ever.

"All the players in the dressing room make a contribution - the manager wouldn't have people here if he didn't think they contributed in some way," explained the 34-year-old. "I can contribute a lot more when I'm fit and, as I said, that's the most important thing, to try and stay fit. I'm doing all I can to make sure that happens."

Andy Cole excited by forwards

Ex-Red Andrew Cole says United's strike trio of Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Michael Owen will bag plenty of goals this season.

Speaking at MUTV's Wednesday Night at the Red Cafe programme, Cole, now a regular visitor to Old Trafford as a fan, said: "Rooney has started the season really well. He's ready to step into Ronaldo's shoes. His attitude is 'I'm top, and I'm going to prove it'. He's the man to get 25-30 goals this season."

Cole is well placed to judge the abilities of United's front men, having scored 121 goals in 275 appearances for United. And it's not just Rooney he's impressed with. "It's not easy coming to United in your first season," he adds. "The spotlight is on you straight away and everyone expected Berbatov to get 30 goals last year.

"I don't think he's that type of player, but he brings something different to the team. He's so elegant. Then there's Michael Owen. There aren't many natural finishers around. Sir Alex told me that if he keeps Owen fit he'll get goals."

Ronald Koeman count five: Olympiacos vs AZ Alkmaar

On Wednesday, 16 September, AZ visit Olympiacos for their first ever Champions League match with coach Ronald Koeman setting a record as he will coach his fifth club in the CL.

Koeman previously coached Ajax, Benfica, PSV and Valencia CF in CL matches. Koeman won the Champions Cup twice as a player, with PSV in 1988 and with FC Barcelona in 1992.

AZ played in the Champions Cup once, in 1981/1982 when they lost to Liverpool in the second round.

Their best result in European competition was reaching the final of the UEFA Cup in 1980/1981, losing 0-3, 4-2 to Ipswich Town, then managed by the recently deceased Bobby Robson.

Most clubs coached in Champions League

# Name Nation Clubs

5 Ronald Koeman NED Ajax, Benfica, PSV, Valencia CF, AZ

4 Fabio Capello ITA AC Milan, AS Roma, Juventus, Real Madrid

4 Mircea Lucescu ROU Internazionale, Galatasaray, Besiktas, Shakhtar Donetsk

4 Carlo Ancelotti ITA Parma, Juventus, AC Milan, Chelsea

3 Llorenç Serra Ferrer ESP FC Barcelona, Real Betis, AEK Athinai

3 Radomir Antic SRB Atlético Madrid, FC Barcelona, Celta de Vigo

3 Guus Hiddink NED Real Madrid, PSV, Chelsea

3 José Mourinho POR FC Porto, Chelsea, Internazionale

3 Alberto Zaccheroni ITA AC Milan, Lazio, Internazionale

3 Claudio Ranieri ITA Chelsea, Valencia CF, Juventus

3 Bobby Robson ENG FC Porto, PSV, Newcastle United

3 Trond Sollied NOR Rosenborg BK, Club Brugge, Olympiacos

3 Claude Puel FRA AS Monaco, Lille OSC, Olympique Lyon

3 Eric Gerets BEL PSV, Galatasaray, Olympique Marseille

3 Dick Advocaat NED PSV, Rangers, Zenit St. Petersburg

3 Louis van Gaal NED Ajax, FC Barcelona, Bayern München

Bert van Marwijk making a perfect Netherlands

On Wednesday, the Netherlands won their eighth and final 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying match, giving “Oranje” a perfect campaign, only the fifth by a European team involved in qualification for a major championship.

According to Infostrada Sports, only three countries, West Germany, France (twice) and Czech Republic achieved the feat before Holland.

By the time Holland had completed their September 9 match, Spain and England are also still in contention to card a perfect qualifying campaign.

Perfect qualifying campaigns for European Championship and World Cup – European countries*
Edition Nation Tournament Matches Goals Result at following tournament
2010 Netherlands World Cup Qual. 8 17-2 TBD
2004 France European Championship Qual. 8 29-2 Quarterfinals
2000 Czech Republic European Championship Qual. 10 26-5 Group Stage
1992 France European Championship Qual. 8 20-6 Group Stage
1982 West Germany World Cup Qual. 8 33-3 Final

* Only campaigns with at least eight qualifying matches are included

World Cup South Africa 2010 Qualifying: TV live stream links

Feel free to add links

Time / City / Match

Europe

09/09/09 17:15 Toftir Faroe Islands Lithuania

09/09/09 17:20 Uherske Hradiste Czech Republic San Marino

09/09/09 18:30 Ta'Qali Malta Sweden

09/09/09 19:30 Vaduz Liechtenstein Finland

09/09/09 19:45 Belfast Northern Ireland Slovakia

09/09/09 19:45 Cardiff Wales Russia

09/09/09 20:00 Zenica Bosnia-Herzegovina Turkey

09/09/09 20:00 Minsk Belarus Ukraine

09/09/09 20:00 London England Croatia

09/09/09 20:00 Andorra La Vella Andorra Kazakhstan

09/09/09 20:30 Tirana Albania Denmark

09/09/09 20:45 Budapest Hungary Portugal

09/09/09 20:45 Maribor Slovenia Poland

09/09/09 20:45 Hanover Germany Azerbaijan

09/09/09 20:45 Bucharest Romania Austria

09/09/09 21:00 Ramat Gan Israel Luxembourg

09/09/09 21:00 Yerevan Armenia Belgium

09/09/09 21:30 Chisinau Moldova Greece

09/09/09 21:30 Riga Latvia Switzerland

09/09/09 22:00 Merida Spain Estonia

South America

09/09/09 15:00 La Paz Bolivia Ecuador

09/09/09 18:00 Montevideo Uruguay Colombia

09/09/09 19:00 Asuncion Paraguay Argentina

09/09/09 20:30 Puerto La Cruz Venezuela Peru

09/09/09 22:00 Salvador De Bahia Brazil Chile

North, Central America and Caribbean

09/09/09 19:00 San Salvador El Salvador Costa Rica

09/09/09 19:11 Port Of Spain Trinidad and Tobago USA

09/09/09 20:00 Mexico City Mexico Honduras

Africa

09/09/09 15:30 Yaounde Cameroon Gabon

Asia

09/09/09 22:15 Riyadh Saudi Arabia Bahrain

International friendly matches

September 8

20:30 Ireland - South Africa

September 9

12:00 Angola - Cape Verde

12:00 Japan - Ghana

16:00 China - Senegal

21:00 Qatar - Oman

21:30 Iceland - Georgia

21:30 Jordan - New Zealand

September 10

12:00 Norway - South Africa

England vs Croatia: British goes for a new national record: 10 in a row

On Wednesday, England host Croatia in a 2010 World Cup qualification match. England would set a new national record of winning most successive World Cup qualifiers if they beat Croatia, having already won their last nine World Cup qualification matches.

The only previous time England won nine consecutive World Cup qualification matches was between 1949 and 1957. The last time England lost a World Cup qualifier was in an away match against Northern Ireland on 7 September 2005 (1-0).

The all-time European record of winning successive World Cup qualification matches is in the hands of West Germany. According to Infostrada Sports, they won 16 consecutive matches between 1969 and 1985.

Most consecutive matches won by England in World Cup qualification

# Start date Match that ended streak

9 08 Oct 2005 Still running

9 15 Oct 1949 Republic of Ireland - England (19 May 1957) 1-1

6 08 Sep 2004 Northern Ireland - England (07 Sep 2005) 1-0

5 24 Mar 2001 England - Greece (06 Oct 2001) 2-2

4 30 Mar 1977 Romania - England (15 Oct 1980) 2-1

4 18 Nov 1981 Romania - England (01 May 1985) 0-0

4 17 Nov 1993 England - Italy (12 Feb 1997) 0-1

Coaching changes in Serie A, why now, why so early?

On Tuesday, AS Roma parted ways with Luciano Spalletti, making him the first coaching casualty of the 2009/2010 Serie A season. Spalletti was in his fifth season as Roma head coach. Anyway he is already talking with Zenit stewards.

Fabio Capello (1999-2004) is the only coach who was longer in charge at Roma than Spalletti.

Early coach departures are not uncommon in Italy. According to Infostrada Sports, in 2004 Roma parted ways with Cesare Prandelli before the first matchday.

Earliest coaching changes per season in Serie A – last 10 seasons
Season Departing coach Club Date After matchday

2009/2010 Luciano Spalletti AS Roma 01 Sep 2009 2
2008/2009 Stefano Colantuono Palermo 04 Sep 2008 1
2007/2008 Fernando Orsi Livorno 09 Oct 2007 7
2006/2007 Giovanni De Biasi Torino 07 Sep 2006 0
2005/2006 Massimo Silva Ascoli 25 Aug 2005 0
2004/2005 Cesare Prandelli AS Roma 27 Aug 2004 0
2003/2004 Francesco Guidolin Bologna 27 Aug 2003 0
2002/2003 Giancarlo Camolese Torino 25 Oct 2002 5
2001/2002 Cesare Prandelli Venezia 09 Oct 2001 5
2000/2001 Marcello Lippi Internazionale 03 Oct 2000 1

Liverpool FC: Reds name Champions League squad

Liverpool have named a 28-man squad for the Champions League group stage. The Reds will kick off their European campaign at home to Debreceni VSC on September 16 before travelling to Italy to face Fiorentina.

A double header with Lyon will then follow ahead of a trip to Debreceni VSC. The group fixtures are concluded at home to Fiorentina on December 9.

Goalkeepers

Diego Cavalieri, Pepe Reina, David Martin.

Defenders

Glen Johnson, Daniel Agger, Fabio Aurelio, Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Emiliano Insua, Jamie Carragher, Stephen Darby, Martin Kelly, Martin Skrtel, Andrea Dossena.

Midfielders

Alberto Aquilani, Steven Gerrard, Yossi Benayoun, Javier Mascherano, Lucas Leiva, Jay Spearing, Damien Plessis, Albert Riera.

Forwards

Fernando Torres, Andriy Voronin, Dirk Kuyt, Ryan Babel, David Ngog, David Amoo, Nathan Eccleston.

Barcelona UCL Group: European rivals up and running

Barca’s three rivals in the Group Stage of the UCL this season will all be going into the competition with more games under their belts than Guardiola’s team, with the Russian team Rubin Kazan actually reaching the end of their season.

When Barca visit Milan to take on Inter in 11 days time, they will have just played their second league game, away to Getafe, having already beaten Sporting in the league opener and taken the Spanish and European Super Cups in August. Their rivals have all had the benefit of a few more games and the Russians are almost at the end of their season.

Inter Milan

Barca’s first game in the Group Stage is in Milan and Inter have already played one more league game than their visitors, boasting a 0-4 win over Milan and a draw against Bari. Sampdoria lead the Scudetto with Inter lying fifth alongside Parma, who Mourinho’s team play the weekend before the clash with Barca.

Dinamo Kiev

On 29 September, Barca entertain Dynamo Kiev at the Nou Camp. The Ukranians top their league with 16 points, three more than Shaktar Donetsk, having won 5 of the six games played so far and drawn the other, scoring 24 goals and conceding just 4.

Rubin Kazan

The third Group Stage game will be against the Russian team Rubin Kazan. There are just 10 games to go in the Russian league and Rubin have a 4 point lead over second place Spartak Moscow, who beat them 0-3 in the last league game. Rubin have won 12 games, drawn 4 and lost 3 games in the league so far.

Sandra Sarmiento / FC Barcelona Press

Chelsea banned until 2011: what has happened

It seems that we have confirmed Chelsea Squad 2009/2010/2011

Take a look at this very interesting report via Daily Mail

England World Cup squad: Capello names players for Wembley double

Fabio Capello names a 24-man squad for games against Slovenia and Croatia.

Manchester United goalkeeper Ben Foster returns from injury to join Robert Green and Paul Robinson in forming Capello's three goalkeeping options in the 24-man list.

Meanwhile Spurs duo Aaron Lennon and Peter Crouch, who both scored in Spurs' win over Birmingham City on Saturday, are in the squad.

Manchester United defender Wes Brown is also in Capello's selection for the friendly next Saturday, which will be followed by the important World Cup Qualifier a week on Wednesday,

The England Squad

Goalkeepers
Ben Foster - Manchester United, Robert Green - West Ham United, Paul Robinson - Blackburn Rovers

Defenders
Wayne Bridge - Manchester City, Wes Brown - Manchester United, Ashley Cole - Chelsea, Glen Johnson - Liverpool, Joleon Lescott - Manchester City, John Terry - Chelsea, Matthew Upson - West Ham United

Midfielders
Gareth Barry - Manchester City, David Beckham - LA Galaxy, Michael Carrick - Manchester United, Steven Gerrard - Liverpool, Frank Lampard - Chelsea, Aaron Lennon - Tottenham Hotspur, James Milner - Aston Villa, Shaun Wright-Phillips - Manchester City, Ashley Young - Aston Villa

Forwards
Carlton Cole - West Ham United, Peter Crouch - Tottenham Hotspur, Jermain Defoe - Tottenham Hotspur, Emile Heskey - Aston Villa, Wayne Rooney - Manchester United

Source: The FA

Calendar:
England v Slovenia - International Match - 5.30pm Saturday 5 September - Wembley Stadium

England v Croatia - World Cup Group Six Qualifier - 8.00pm Wednesday 9 September - Wembley Stadium

Gigi Buffon: “We have to have more team spirit”

“We have to find the team spirit that was missing in the Confederations Cup. We can find it only by playing well, winning, and suffering all together. We want to give everything we can for the upcoming World Cup, remember we are the World champions”: a clear message that Gianluigi Buffon launched from Coverciano, where the national team is preparing for the two qualifying matches against Georgia and Bulgaria.

Juventus, Cassano and the league season are the main issues during the press conference with the goalkeeper. “I do not know whether the Juventus block here on the national team is an advantage – said Buffon, refereeing to the presence of eight Juventus players on the team.

But Lippi made his choices based on the league season. Juve is a high level team and has decided to count on Italian players: it is normal that the head coach follows up closely on what the Juventus team is doing”. With regards to Cassano: “Lippi explained his decision, and I do not think the doors are closed for Cassano. The team has neven been opposed to any player.

From now until the World Cup anything can happen. It is pointless to say that there are situations that can make some people unhappy, but we have to be coherent. First comes the group, and the decisions are up to the coach”.

An answer to the Inter coach, Mourinho: “Juventus fans have the right to dream about winning the league title. We have to be realistic: it will be very difficult. Inter is the best team all-around. And even though they took two titles from us, they cannot take away our dreams.”

Source: FIGC