News sport : Eagles' team-owned stores not carrying Sam Bradford jerseys

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If you believe that the Philadelphia Eagles are planning on flipping quarterback Sam Bradford in Chip Kelly's plot to land Marcus Mariota, the Eagles are providing the conspiracy theorists some fuel.


NJ.com surveyed the three Eagles Pro Shops in the Philadelphia area. They had DeMarco Murray and Byron Maxwell jerseys, two of the three biggest acquisitions this offseason. But none of them had a jersey of Bradford, the quarterback the Eagles acquired from the St. Louis Rams in a trade. Bradford was acquired before Murray or Maxwell.


The Eagles stores, owned and operated by the team and located in Cherry Hill, Philadelphia and Lancaster, had zero No. 7 Bradford jerseys in stock and employees told NJ.com they didn't have information on any Bradford shipments coming in.


Maybe that means nothing, but it is a little bit interesting.


Kelly, since taking over the personnel reigns this offseason, has quickly grown a reputation as either an active mastermind or a compulsive shopper, depending on your thoughts on him. There have been rumors seemingly since Kelly left Oregon that he'd want to position himself to draft Mariota, the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback from the Ducks. No matter that Kelly said he wouldn't and painted himself into a corner by saying that paying a tremendous price to get Mariota would be bad for the franchise. Or that Kelly expressed how much he likes Bradford. People won't let go the idea that Mariota is coming to Philly and Bradford is just a trade chip in that process.


The Eagles not selling any Bradford jerseys doesn't exactly stop that line of thinking. Even online, as the NJ.com report points out, only one version of the Bradford jersey is available on the Eagles' site. It's a men's jersey. Murray's jersey is available in men's, women's and youth sizes. Hmm.


The Philadelphia Daily News had already pointed out that sporting goods stores in the Philadelphia area didn't want to stock up on the jerseys of any new Eagles, especially Bradford, because they're doubling down on the "compulsive shopper" reputation for Kelly.


It seems like the Eagles themselves aren't too sure what will happen either.


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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdowncorner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!






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News sport : Kings' Sim Bhullar becomes first player of Indian descent to play in NBA

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With 16.1 seconds remaining in Tuesday night's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, George Karl went to the end of his bench and summoned Sim Bhullar, the 7-foot-5, 350-plus-pound center that the Kings recently called up from their D-League affiliate to finish out the season. With that quick trip to the scorer's table, an inbounds pass after a made free throw, and a few seconds of garbage-time play in a 116-111 Kings win, Bhullar made NBA history, becoming the first player of Indian descent ever to play in an NBA game.


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It wasn't exactly an action-packed debut — the "highlight reel" of Bhullar's premiere consists of a sarcastic six-second Vine — but every career's got to start somewhere. The 22-year-old Bhullar — who was born and raised in Toronto, but whose parents come from the state of Punjab — recognizes that he's a long way away from establishing himself in the big leagues, but he still cherished the moment and said he hopes his presence in the NBA can "help grow the game in India," according to the Times of India:


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"It was a great feeling and I'm happy to be kind of an ambassador. This is just the beginning. I really think today was the moment, the big moment for me. There is a lot more to go and hopefully I get another chance like that soon," he said.

"Hopefully more kids growing up will see there's a player of Indian descent on the court and hopefully they can follow the game a bit more and grow passion for it to pursue it in future and we can get a couple more Indian NBA players," he added.

Bhullar's status as a "non-resident Indian," a designation that carries a stigma among many native Indians, introduces some complicated questions about positioning, appropriation, marketing and hypocrisy; Do yourself a favor and read Amar's piece on this over at SLC Dunk. The gap between "of Indian descent" and "Indian" has also led some observers to suggest the importance of Bhullar's NBA call-up among Indian fans has been overstated; some young Sacramento-area Sikhs seem to disagree, calling Bhullar's presence "very historic" and "an inspiration."


While the larger cultural meaning of Bhullar's rise will likely remain a subject for debate for quite a while, in the here and now, the mammoth New Mexico State product finds himself in the somewhat awkward position of representing something much larger than himself while serving as a bit-part player trying to earn more opportunities on a team playing out the string. It seems like a difficult spot to be in, but Bhullar's teammate, Omri Casspi — who knows a bit about life in the fishbowl, as the first Israeli-born player in league history — is advising him to just appreciate this chance for what it's worth.


"I told him to enjoy the ride," Casspi said after Tuesday's win, according to Michael Wagaman of The Associated Press. "You got 2 billion Indians looking up to you. Be the best role model you can be and have fun with it."


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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!



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Wilshere ready for Arsenal return

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Jack Wilshere is ready to return to first-team action after recovering from an ankle injury he picked up in November.


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London - Jack Wilshere is ready to make his return to first-team action after recovering from an ankle injury he picked up in November and the Arsenal midfielder is hoping he can make an impact before the end of the season.


The 23-year-old England international sustained the injury during Arsenal's 2-1 defeat by Manchester United in November and has since undergone two operations on his left ankle.


Wilshere played 90 minutes for Arsenal's under-21 side on Tuesday and hopes to play his part in the Gunners defending the FA Cup title, starting with their semi-final against Championship (second tier) side Reading at Wembley on April 18.


“You can train as much as you like but you can't get that match fitness unless you play,” Wilshere told the club's website (www.Arsenal.com).


“I feel like I'm ready to play some part. When you're injured you look at your comeback date and the games around that time.


“The one that stands out is the FA Cup semi-final but even before that we've got big games and we've got to got to Man United as well so there's a chance to play this season.”


Arsenal, who have won 10 of their last 11 Premier League matches and are second in the table, travel to 19th-placed Burnley on Saturday.– Reuters






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News sport : Baylor RB Silas Nacita ruled permanently ineligible

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Former Baylor running back Silas Nacita is will not be able to play NCAA football again.


Nacita, who was ruled ineligible and dismissed from Baylor's football team earlier in the year, has been told he's permanently ineligible for NCAA competition. Per Bleacher Report, he was informed of the decision on March 25, a month after he was told he was no longer a member of the team.


According to the site, Nacita still wants to play football and is looking at his NAIA options after he met with Baylor officials a few weeks ago.


From Bleacher Report:



"I didn't shed a tear in the meeting. I wasn't angry. I shook their hands," he said. "It was a pleasant conversation. I didn't go into the meeting expecting good news. I went in expecting confirmation, and that's what I got. I had a little hope in the back of my heart, but when they told me, it was almost a relief. I could start thinking about my future."




Although playing for an NCAA program is no longer an option, the process of continuing his football career has already begun. It began only hours after the word became official, and in reality, the brainstorming began far earlier than that. Nacita has started researching NAIA schools in the area, and he is encouraged that he will be able to continue to play football somewhere.



Nacita was dismissed from the team in February after he had accepted housing against NCAA rules. The formerly homeless running back instantly became a sympathetic figure and a symbol of the NCAA's injustice.


However, after Nacita's plight became widely known, the NCAA said it never ruled Nacita was ineligible. Baylor had ruled him ineligible without taking the case to the governing body, meaning that the school had little doubt about the severity of Nacita's violations. It was also reported that Baylor had provided Nacita a list of options for housing within NCAA guidelines.


A day after he was dismissed, Nacita apologized for blaming the NCAA for his plight and said he disregarded Baylor's advice regarding what he could and couldn't accept.


Is it an unfortunate ending for Nacita? Absolutely. However, this still isn't a good guy/bad guy scenario. Similar to former Georgia running back Todd Gurley, Nacita is paying the price for disregarding the advice of his school's compliance department.


For more Baylor news, visit SicEmSports.com.


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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!







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News sport : Derrick Rose to return to game action, six weeks after knee surgery

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How excited are the Chicago Bulls to have Derrick Rose back in the lineup?


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Try, “we’re having a shootaround and meeting with the media at 8:30 Chicago-time-level-excited.”


Derrick Rose is back:



Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau told the media that Rose would only play for about 20 minutes against Orlando on Wednesday. Chicago has five games left in its season, which wraps up one week from Wednesday.


Rose then met with the media, via K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune:



"I've been putting a lot of work in, busting my ass to get back," Rose said before shootaround. "I'm just happy that I’m able to come back to a team where I think we're playing all right basketball. I think defensively we're playing good. Offensively, I shouldn't have to worry about it, just come back and play the way I normally play."



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The Bulls don’t know which play Rose re-tore his right meniscus on in late February, just that the meniscus would have to be repaired for the second time in 16 months. Rose underwent a shorter operation this time, one that will be more damaging to his future prospects but would leave him with a quicker recovery time. Rose is nearly six weeks removed from his Feb. 27 surgery:



"This one is totally different than my last ones. I was only out six weeks," Rose said. "The other ones I was out four or five months. I just have to pace myself this time. I got a lot of confidence in myself. But who knows how many games it’s going to take me (to find rhythm). All I can do is just continue to work on my game and push my teammates for this playoff run.




"It gave me a little time to rest. Everybody else is beating each other up. I'm coming in fresh. I will come in better. So it’s a little bit of excitement on my end."



The Bulls and Rose cited conditioning problems as the final roadblock getting in the way of Rose returning to action, as the team’s point guard started practicing with the team last week. Derrick was unable to keep in typical NBA shape while staying off the knee for most of March, so it’s understandable that he’s going to need a few games to catch his breath:



"I'm going to be winded for sure. Just missing so many weeks, so many days, you’re going to be winded. That comes along with coming back from surgery and not playing the game in a couple weeks. (But there's) relief that I got enough time to get some games under my belt and see where I am."



Our thoughts on Rose’s return and his team’s play prior to the final week of the regular season were included in our stretch-drive collective that went up on Ball Don’t Lie on Tuesday:



Chicago has gone 10-10 in Rose’s absence. They’ve improved slightly defensively, but they’ve also had to play center Pau Gasol big minutes and push Joakim Noah into games and situations his surgically repaired right knee (still recovering, ten months later) shouldn’t be working in. The dream of Gasol and Noah acting as frontcourt stunners, whipping the ball around and filling the holes in one’s head with bumps from another, hasn’t been fully realized. Both players are unselfish and they’ve been stellar at times, but both also play far better in lineups that don’t pair the two together.



Rose himself wasn’t exactly stellar in his healthier moments this season, he managed 18.4 points and five assists a contest but he also took a ridiculous 5.5 three-pointers a game (in only 31 minutes a contest) despite shooting 28 percent. His defense, once passably-bad, was miserable.

This doesn’t mean Chicago is a squad to be overlooked:



Rose will need every bit of those final five games (it is unclear if he will play in Miami on Thursday, the second night of a back to back) to regain his conditioning. From there the Bulls’ best hope is that 15-4 record, and the ability for the coaching staff to shorten its rotation, define specific roles, and hone in on a singular target as the NBA playoffs start in a week and a half.


The Bulls went 10-10 in Rose’s most recent absence, and while they lost some games they shouldn’t have the team probably played better than that mediocre record indicates. The Bulls currently are slated to take on the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs, a team they have beaten three out of four times this season. It is quite possible that Chicago could line up against the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team Rose downed in perhaps his most impressive game of the season this year just two weeks before his surgery, a full nine weeks after his operation.


It starts on a random Wednesday in Orlando. The Bulls, albeit winded and unfamiliar with each other, are in full.


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Kelly Dwyer is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at KDonhoops@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!






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Pirates looking for strong finish

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Orlando Pirates’ quest to finish the season on a positive note continues when they host Platinum Stars at the Orlando Stadium.


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Orlando Pirates’ quest to finish the season on a positive note continues with the chance of getting second spot on the league table when they host Platinum Stars in an Absa Premiership encounter at the Orlando Stadium.


The Buccaneers are slowly but surely reaching their goal following an improved performance at the beginning of the year. Last year, inconsistency was a huge factor in the Bucs camp, which saw them lose five games.


Pirates are third on the league table with 43 points and are yet to lose a league match this year. Their good league run sees them trail log leaders Kaizer Chiefs by 11 points, whereas three points separate them from second-placed Mamelodi Sundowns, who have 46 points with a game in hand.


With just six games remaining, Eric Tinkler’s men seem capable of collecting all 18 points on offer when one considers how well they have been playingr. Their improved showing this year has even displayed itself in the CAF Confederations Cup, after they progressed to the next round of the competition by beating Uganda’s Revenue Authority 4-3 on aggregate.


They won 2-1 at home a fortnight ago, before grinding out a 2-2 draw over the weekend in Uganda.


Going into this game, Pirates might probably feel at ease. After all, they face a side that have only registered three wins against them, while the Soweto giants have secured 15 victories over Dikwena, with six of the clashes ending up as draws in their 24 meetings.


To Tinkler’s delight, his strikers are getting goals. Currently, Lehlohonolo Majoro has managed to score 12 in all competitions this season, while Kermit Erasmus has 10 to his name.


On the other hand, things haven’t been so sweet in the Dikwena camp, which led to their coach Alan Freese being released from his post. He has since been replaced by Cavin Johnson, who takes charge of the team for the second time.


Dikwena managed to clinch a 2-1 victory against Ajax Cape Town in Johnson’s first game in charge since rejoining the team. Two goals from Robert Ngambi sealed the win for Johnson’s charges.


Before the Ajax game, they suffered two consecutive losses at home. First it was a 2-1 setback against Maritzburg United, followed by a 3-1 defeat by Mamelodi Sundowns. They are currently 11th on the log with 27 points, just seven points ahead of bottom side Amazulu. In 2012/13, Johnson led the team to second position in the league, finishing behind Chiefs with just one point ahead. This time around, they need him to help them escape the relegation threat.


The last time the two sides met, Pirates emerged victorious by a 2-0 margin, with Majoro and Lenox Bacela on the score-sheet. Now this encounter promises to be an entertaining one with Stars players looking to impress their new coach by getting a win, while Pirates will be looking to maintain their unbeaten run in the league this year. - The Star






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News sport : Wes Welker finally get a free-agent visit, with the Miami Dolphins

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Things have been slow when it comes to Wes Welker news. Almost a full month into free agency, we finally have Welker's first known visit.


It's with a team that knows Welker well: The Miami Dolphins.


Welker's visit, which was reported by Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald and others, would reunite him with the team that he estabilshed himself in the NFL with. The Dolphins picked up Welker after he spent one game with the San Diego Chargers as a rookie, then traded Welker to the New England Patriots before the 2007 season. And from there Welker redefined the slot receiver position and became a borderline Hall of Fame candidate. No big.


The Dolphins wouldn't be getting that Welker. Age, concussions and other injuries have seemingly caught up to Welker, which is what happens to every NFL player who is lucky enough to play as long as Welker has. Welker, who will turn 34 on May 1, has seen sigificant dips in receptions, yards and yards per catch each of the past two seasons. Last year, in 14 games, he had just 49 catches for 464 yards. When he didn't get any interest for the first few weeks of training camp, it seemed like he might be at the end of the line. But he's is still as good of a third-down receiver as the NFL has ever seen, and perhaps could help a team in a manageable role.


The Dolphins have been looking at veteran receivers. They talked to Michael Crabtree and Greg Jennings recently. The Dolphins have young receivers Jarvis Landry and Kenny Stills on the roster. Landry did most of his best work in an impressive rookie season from the slot last year, but presumably he'd slide into a bigger role on the outside if the Dolphins signed Welker.


Just because Welker visited with the Dolphins doesn't mean he'll get signed. But it would be nice to see one of the best receivers of the past decade get another shot.


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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdowncorner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!






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News sport : All-Star Race adds 20 laps in 2015

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The Sprint All-Star Race will be 110 laps in 2015.


The format for the race was revealed Wednesday and, like 2014, will consist of five segments. The first four segments will be 25 laps (up from 20 in 2014) and the final segment will be 10 laps.


The average position of the field through the first four segments will determine the order cars head to pit road before the final segment. Teams are mandated to change four tires, before the 10-lap segment and the order off pit road will determine the restart order.


The winner of the race will once again get $1 million. While the purse is a selling point to drivers and teams, we understand how it can be hard for fans to get excited about millionaire drivers and multi-million dollar teams running for a seven-figure check.


The race will also be run with the 2015 rules package. NASCAR has said that it was looking to have the specifications for 2016 cars to the teams by about the time of the All-Star Race and the exhibition race would be a perfect opportunity to showcase the new rules. However, NASCAR's release about the event made it clear that the current configuration would be used.


After making downforce and horsepower changes following the 2014 season, NASCAR is widely expected to make more changes to cars for the 2016 season.


There's also an eligibility change for the race. Previously, all Sprint Cup Series champions and All-Star Race winners from the past 10 years were eligible. Now, all Cup champs and All-Star Race winners are eligible, meaning 2003 title-winner and 2004 All-Star Race-winner Matt Kenseth and 2002 All-Star Race-winner Ryan Newman are eligible.


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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!







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Gabon to host 2017 Afcon

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Gabon has been named hosts of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations after a vote by the CAF Executive Committee.


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Cairo, Egypt - Gabon has been named hosts of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.


They beat Ghana and and Algeria to the hosting rights of the 31 st edition of Africa Cup of Nations.


CAF Pesident Issa Hayatou announced the winner on Wednesday, 8 April 2015 following votes by the CAF Executive Committee. Delegations of the bidding countries presented their bids to the CAF Executive Committee.


Gabon co-hosted the 2012 edition of the Africa Cup of Nations with neighbours, Equatirial Guinea.


ANA






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News sport : Tevin Coleman played 7 games in 2014 with a broken foot

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Former Indiana running back Tevin Coleman was playing hurt in 2014 But you're forgiven if you didn't realize he was given how well he performed.


According to Bleacher Report, Coleman played the final seven games of 2014 with a broken sesamoid bone in his right foot. Coleman ran for 2,036 yards last year and, as the math works out, 1,195 of those yards came while Coleman had the injury.


How crazy is that?


Coleman apparently first hurt the foot against North Texas in early October. Yet running backs coach Deland McCullough told BR that "He downplayed it completely to me."


The injury was initially diagnosed as turf tue.


From Bleacher Report:



Turf toe and a sesamoid fracture are closely related injuries. Turf toe, an innocuous name for an injury that can be excruciating for athletes, is soft tissue damage around the big toe joint, usually caused by hyperextension. The sesamoids are tiny seed-shaped bones in the knuckle of the big toe that act as "pulleys" for the tendons in the foot. Fracture the sesamoid, and you get symptoms similar to an acute case of turf toe: swelling, some limited motion and pain whenever you try to use your toe for something like running, cutting, planting or walking.



With three weeks to go the break was diagnosed. But since there was no risk of making it worse, Coleman kept playing. And playing well.


Coleman's 2014 was easily one of the best seasons of any player last year. He was the offensive focal point on a team that couldn't keep a quarterback healthy and had a struggling defense. As defenses kept keying on him, he kept running away from them. Two of his three biggest rushing totals came in the last three games of the season.


And the first sentence of the last paragraph doesn't even take into account Coleman's foot injury. When it's considered, it's hard not to wonder how many Heisman votes Coleman would have gotten if the injury was widely known.


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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!







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News sport : West Virginia DL Kyle Rose arrested in bar incident

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West Virginia defensive lineman Kyle Rose is facing four misdemeanors after an incident at a bar on Sunday.


Rose allegedly struck a police officer and was eventually tased early Sunday morning. According to police, Rose had said he was drinking.


From MetroNews.com:



The incident occurred around 2:30 a.m. at Bent Willey’s bar on Chestnut Street. Security informed police that Rose had been tossed out of the bar earlier but returned and shoved a bouncer upon re-entering. Police ultimately took the 6-foot-4, 294-pound Rose to the floor after he allegedly shoved an officer in the face. The senior nose guard subsequently continued resisting officers’ attempts to put him in handcuffs and had to be tased, police said.



Rose is facing charges of public intoxication, obstructing an officer, battery on an officer and disorderly conduct. He was released on bond.


The redshirt senior in 2015 played in all 13 of West Virginia's games last season and had 35 tackles and a sack. Coach Dana Holgorsen released a brief statement about discipline for Rose.


"We are aware of the situation and the matter will be handled internally," Holgorsen said.


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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!







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Last chance saloon for Liverpool

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Liverpool face Blackburn Rovers in an FA Cup replay at Ewood Park on back of defeats to Arsenal and Manchester United in the Premier League.


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On the day of his arrival at Liverpool in June 2012, Brendan Rodgers struck an emotive theme, telling stories of afternoons at his grand-father’s house in County Antrim spent watching the great Liverpool teams of the 1970s and ’80s competing in domestic cup finals.


Rodgers has, it must be said, always had an understanding of the importance of domestic silverware to the club.


Tonight at Ewood Park, he must only hope his modern Liverpool side can raise themselves above recent modest levels and take another step towards a Wembley final that could yet go some way to rescuing his season.


Speaking ahead of the replay at Blackburn, Rodgers would not go so far as to say the FA Cup could save this campaign for Liverpool. He cannot be seen to be writing off his team’s top-four Barclays Premier League hopes just yet. Nevertheless, an FA Cup final would be more than useful, for all kinds of reasons.


‘I don’t want to go down the route of saying that it saves our season,’ said Rodgers. ‘Our objective at the start, though, was to win a trophy.


‘So I think if we didn’t get in the top four and we didn’t have a trophy this year, we would be disappointed. I think certainly the FA Cup would give us a great boost as a team with lots of young players and players coming into the club.


‘That’s the expectancy we want. We want to be able to be challenging every year.


‘That was the key thing for me, to get the group challenging at the top end of the league and for trophies. The FA Cup would mark a good step forward for us.’


Coming towards the final part of a season that saw Liverpool start badly, improve markedly and then disappoint once again, the problems facing their manager are familiar.


Daniel Sturridge and Luis Suarez scored 55 club goals between them last season but this time round the club’s top scorers are Raheem Sterling and Steven Gerrard with 10 each. Meanwhile at the back, familiar failings re-emerged in the 4-1 defeat at Arsenal on Saturday as Liverpool defended poorly and were left asking questions — for the first time in a while — of their goalkeeper Simon Mignolet.


Asked if a defensive repeat would see Liverpool lose to a Championship side tonight, Rodgers said: ‘I think so, yes. We didn’t defend at Arsenal. We didn’t defend the ball well enough, we gave the ball away in poor areas for two of the four goals.


‘Over the last few months we defended really well, we had six clean sheets against good opponents and defended very well away from home.


‘The minute you come off it and if you come off it against good players you can get punished and that is what happened.’


Worryingly for Rodgers (below), his best two defenders — Martin Skrtel and Emre Can — are suspended for tonight’s match, along with captain Gerrard.


There remains a genuine desire to reach May’s Wembley final in order to let Gerrard leave the club in memorable fashion, something that was outlined by midfielder Joe Allen last week.


‘There is no getting away from that,’ said Allen. ‘That is something that drives us. We all feel we owe Steven a lot.’


If it is to happen, Liverpool must overcome what should be a stiff challenge from Gary Bowyer’s team. Blackburn did more that frustrate Liverpool in the 0-0 draw at Anfield exactly a month ago. They could have won and we can expect them to again trouble a defence that may have to feature two of Rodgers’ weakest links, Kolo Toure and Dejan Lovren.


Certainly Liverpool must lift themselves tonight if they are to prosper. The fact that they have already overcome a similar challenge in round four — winning a replay at Bolton — will perhaps encourage them but that was a Liverpool team trending upwards in form. Currently, there is a sense that the opposite is happening.


The obvious beneficiary of all this is the grand old competition itself. With Arsenal, Aston Villa and Reading already in the last four, the FA Cup is guaranteed to find itself with semi-finalists who desperately want to lift the trophy.


Deep down, the FA will long for an Arsenal-Liverpool final. That will evoke some classic memories involving the likes of Charlie George and Michael Owen.


Rodgers would surely give much for the opportunity to avenge last weekend’s league defeat on such a grand stage.


‘There is everything still to play for and we can still make it a really successful season,’ he said.


Whether those words were spoken in hope or expectation, only he will really know. – Daily Mail






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City - from champs to chumps

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This has been a lamentable defence of the title by Manchester City, just like their previous defence of the Premier League.


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If Manuel Pellegrini leaves the Barclays Premier League at the end of this season — and it is by no means certain — then he will leave behind barely a trace.


Inside Manchester City, the Chilean has always provided a welcome contrast to the emotional stresses of life epitomised by his predecessor Roberto Mancini but — on the field and across the landscape of English football — Pellegrini has made the shallowest of footprints.


Progress at the Etihad Stadium has in recent years been slight. Indeed, you could say there has been none, particularly in relation to money spent. At City, however, the fact is that the identity of the manager represents only a small part of the problem.


As reported in Sportsmail after City’s defeat in Barcelona last month, there is no particular desire at the club to sack Pellegrini. More poor results, more points separating his team from champions-elect Chelsea may cause the ground to shift a little further but any decision regarding the manager will be motivated much more by what happens next rather than what happened over the past eight months.


Certainly, this has been a lamentable defence of the title, as bad as when conceding it by 11 points in 2013. At the Etihad there is, however, a recognition that problems are not all down to the manager.


There are some issues with Pellegrini. Some City players think he is too nice — a soft touch who does not inspire with words or his substitutions and who displays a fondness for a 4-4-2 formation that they feel leaves them vulnerable.


Pellegrini has not alienated or even polarised his dressing room, however. The majority are happy to work and play for him. The more significant problem is that City’s squad, constructed carefully and expensively, is too old, too foreign and has not been improved by recent transfers.


City have had a very good team for quite a while now. Signing David Silva and Yaya Toure in 2010 and Sergio Aguero a year later lifted them to their current level but nothing since the first Premier League title has hinted at the further progress many presumed would be inevitable.


Recruitment has, on the whole, been poor, thus allowing established players to coast, perhaps subconsciously, without the pressure of in-house competition.


Football director Txiki Begiristain has been largely responsible for this and his contribution, at least that which we can see, has been disappointing given the reputation earned at Barcelona.


At all clubs, teams and players must move forward to thrive but too many at City have stagnated. Vincent Kompany, for example, no longer seems capable of looking after his own performances, never mind that of his team. For a club captain, his popularity in the City dressing room is limited.


Elsewhere, players such as Samir Nasri contributed when City were playing well but disappeared once things became harder. Since hacking at Neymar during the Barcelona defeat, an act that earned him the cheapest of yellow cards, the France international has played only 13 minutes of two games. It is understood that the two things are not unrelated. Nasri is just one who may fret a little about his future this summer.


Wary of Financial Fair Play restrictions, City cannot spend enormous sums on targets such as Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba without first selling. Others who are vulnerable include Stevan Jovetic, Bacary Sagna and even Toure.


The Toure debate is not new but what should be kept in mind is that the Ivorian will not be going anywhere until someone matches a salary that exceeds £1million a month.


It could be that City’s climb back to the very top will be slow. They will need to be shrewder in the market and hope investment in their academy pays off. Better decisions are required from top to bottom.


As for Pellegrini, he would be daft to think he is not vulnerable and a late-season surge would help him. Odd as it sounds, however, the identity of the manager is currently not City’s biggest issue. – Daily Mail






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Mauritius won’t be easy for Bafana

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Shakes Mashaba has warned South Africa against excitedly expecting Bafana Bafana to saunter into the next round of the African Nations Championships qualifiers.


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Shakes Mashaba has warned South Africa against excitedly expecting Bafana Bafana to saunter into the next round of the African Nations Championships (CHAN) qualifiers.


Bafana have been drawn to face Mauritius in the preliminary stage of the tournament for players who ply their trade in their domestic leagues, a tie many will anticipate the South Africans to have no problem winning given their history against the Indian Ocean islanders.


But Mashaba was quick to caution against over-confidence: “Some may be thinking we are playing Mauritius so it will be a walk in the park, but there are no easy teams anymore in international football.


“Every team wants to do well and if they believe you are a powerhouse they come at you firing on all cylinders, so we must prepare well and work hard for our success.”


That is likely to be the case with Mauritius, who have yet to beat Bafana since South Africa’s readmission to the international stage back in 1992.


Bafana will host the Mauritians in the third weekend of June with the return leg scheduled for the first weekend of July.


The winner of the tie will face either Swaziland or Angola for a spot in the 16-nation tournament that will be hosted by Rwanda from January 16 to February 7 next year.


Mashaba is aware of South Africa’s poor record in the showpiece that provides many local-based players an opportunity to play at an international tournament given that most African nations use overseas-based players for the more prestigious Africa Cup of Nations.


“The last time, we did not do well at home in the CHAN tournament and many will still be making reference to that so we have to improve on that. We need to pick a strong team that will represent this country well because we have many capable players who are home-based and can hold their own against other nations.


“I am confident we will succeed.”


Bafana could not get out of the group stages, failure that led to Sport Minsiter Fikile Mbalula controversially referring to the team as “a bunch of losers”. While their performances under Mashaba have since got Mbalula singing a different tune, Bafana would love nothing more than to get much further in next year’s edition and even possibly win the tournament.


That done, they will add their name alongside those of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tunisia and Libya who are the previous winners of the tournament that was only launched in 2009.






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Keane pleads not guilty to road rage

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Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane has denied committing a public order offence in an alleged road-rage incident with a taxi driver.


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Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane has denied committing a public order offence in an alleged road-rage incident with a taxi driver.


Keane, 43, is said to have behaved aggressively towards driver Fateh Kerar, 44, near traffic lights in Altrincham, Greater Manchester on January 30.


He did not attend a brief hearing at Trafford Magistrates' Court in Manchester on Wednesday but a not guilty plea was entered on his behalf by his lawyer.


Keane will face trial at Manchester Magistrates' Court on June 19.


Earlier this season, he stepped down as assistant manager of Premier League strugglers Aston Villa to concentrate on a similar role with the Republic of Ireland.


The former Ireland midfielder, who was renowned for his aggressive, no-nonsense playing style, also works as a television pundit. – AFP






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