MANCHESTER UNITED
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Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that he failed with a deadline-day bid to revive a deal for Marcos Senna, the Villarreal and Spain midfield player, after missing out on signing Owen Hargreaves from Bayern Munich.
PORTSMOUTH
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The club have been given a suspended fine of £7,500 by the FA Premier League after changing the design of their home kit a year early. Fans who bought last season’s shirt are being offered £15 reductions on this season’s kit.
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EVERTON
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Phil Neville has praised James Beattie’s response to losing his place. “Andy [Johnson] has come in and added a new dimension, but the pleasing thing is that James Beattie’s attitude since being left out has been spot on,” Neville said.
CHELSEA
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The club paid almost £14,000 at Christie’s in London yesterday for the FA Cup winners’ medal presented to Ron Harris, the captain, at Old Trafford in 1970. It will become an exhibit in the museum at Stamford Bridge.
ASTON VILLA
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Milan Baros scored twice in a 2-1 win over Portsmouth reserves on Tuesday and immediately pronounced himself fit to face Watford on Saturday, having recovered from the foot injury he suffered during the World Cup finals.
BOLTON WANDERERS
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Sam Allardyce is hopeful that Kevin Davies will be back in action before the end of the month. The forward suffered a fractured cheekbone against Charlton Athletic nearly three weeks ago.
FULHAM
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Chris Coleman is delighted with the form of Franck Queudrue, the defender who signed from Middlesbrough in July. “Franck’s an aggressive defender with a nice left foot and good in the air — he’s been great for us,” the manager said.
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READING
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Nicky Shorey believes that Saturday’s trip to Sheffield United will be among the hardest games of the season. “We’ve played them a lot over the past couple of seasons and Bramall Lane is a tough place to go,” the defender said.
WEST HAM UNITED
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Alan Pardew has a fight on his hands if he wants to sign Cicinho, the Real Madrid defender, in January. AS Roma have confirmed that Cicinho nearly joined them on loan but Real were holding out for a £7 million permanent transfer.
LIVERPOOL
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José Manuel Reina hopes that his clean sheet against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Tuesday will help him to forget his mistake in the defeat by Everton. “I have to turn the page and learn from it,” the goalkeeper said.
MANCHESTER CITY
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Micah Richards, the England Under-21 defender, may be dropped from the starting line-up against Blackburn Rovers on Sunday as punishment for his petulant reaction to being substituted during the defeat by Reading on Monday.
MIDDLESBROUGH
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George Boateng is likely to miss the next three matches after being advised to rest his injured knee for ten days. The captain is suspended anyway for Saturday’s game away to Bolton Wanderers.
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WIGAN ATHLETIC
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Paul Jewell believes that Everton’s illustrious history was the reason Andrew Johnson chose Goodison Park over the JJB Stadium. Wigan will face Johnson on Saturday and the manager said: “It was the tradition that swayed him.”
NEWCASTLE UNITED
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Antoine Sibierski, who joined the club on transfer deadline day from Manchester City, is under no illusions about his position on Tyneside. “I know I’m not what the Newcastle fans expected,” he said. “They wanted a big name.”
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
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Michael Dawson is relishing the propsect of playing in a European competition for the first time. “I’m excited and from the club’s point of view it’s great to be involved again,” the defender said. “It will be a new experience and everyone involved is looking forward to it.”
CHARLTON ATHLETIC
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Djimi Traoré, the defender, fractured his left leg during the defeat away to Chelsea on Saturday. “It’s a small fracture, but it’s enough that Djimi has trouble putting weight on it,” Wayne Diesel, of Charlton’s medical department, said.
ARSENAL
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Arsène Wenger believes Theo Walcott must get stronger if he is to become a regular starter. “He’s a bit behind physically so I don’t know if he’s ready to start every game,” the manager said. “If I play with wingers he might play.”
SHEFFIELD UNITED
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Claude Davis, the Jamaica defender, may make his Premiership debut on Saturday at home to Reading. The £3 million record signing from Preston North End has been out with a knee injury since pre-season.
BLACKBURN ROVERS
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Mark Hughes believes people are expecting too much of Benni McCarthy, the South Africa striker, too early. “I think expectations are a little bit high, but he is a European Cup winner and will be a success,” the manager said.
WATFORD
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A scan on Chris Powell’s injured calf has confirmed that the 37-year-old defender will be out for at least another two weeks. Powell’s place in the team was taken by Jordan Stewart in the 1-0 defeat away to Bolton Wanderers.