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SuperSport battle past Pirates

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SuperSport United held out for a 1-0 win over Orlando Pirates in their interrupted Premiership match.

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Johannesburg – SuperSport United held out for a 1-0 win over Orlando Pirates in their interrupted Premiership match at Peter Mokaba Stadium, in Polokwane, on Wednesday afternoon.

The match originally began on Tuesday evening, but play was suspended due to a floodlight failure. One of the floodlights went out at 8.50pm during the 62nd minute which caused play to be halted. SuperSport had led 1-0 after debutant Michael Boxall scored the opener in the 23rd minute of the match.

With the match still delayed at 10.25pm, Premier Soccer League officials suspended the contest. It was later decided the remaining time in the match would be resumed at noon on Wednesday.

Kermit Erasmus pounced on a loose ball in the 74th minute, but his effort was straight at Ronwem Williams in the SuperSport goal.

In added time, Erasmus had another chance from close range but scuffed his attempt across the face of goal. Yet another chance followed less than a minute later, with Erasmus reeling off a powerful strike but Williams again made the block.

On Tuesday, In the fifth minute Pirates threatened for the first time. Thabo Rakhale made the run down the right flank losing SuperSport defender Bongani Khumalo, crossed for Menzi Masuku who in turn laid the ball off for Tendai Ndoro, but the final shot was lofted over the crossbar.

SuperSport worked their way into the game, and had two chances in the 19th minute. With a dangerous ball sent into the area, Issa Sarr did well to head the ball out. From the resultant corner, Boxall met the cross and unleashed a powerful header which Brighton Mhlongo in the Pirates goal did well to punch away.

Ndoro had another chance in the 21st minute, but was off-balance when he met the ball sent into the area and his headed effort did not trouble Williams.

Boxall scored the opener for the visitors in the 23rd minute. David Mathebula launched a cross into the area from a setpiece, and Boxall showing good vision met the ball in an unmarked position and deflected the ball into the back of the net to take a 1-0 lead for his side. - ANA

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Van Gaal ‘destroys’ players - Stoichkov

Hristo Stoichkov has warned Barcelona's Pedro he must not join Manchester United because Louis van Gaal is a "mediocre" manager.

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Former Barcelona striker Hristo Stoichkov has warned Barcelona forward Pedro he must not join Manchester United because Louis van Gaal is a “mediocre” manager who will “destroy” him.

United are understood to want to sign Pedro as a replacement for Angel Di Maria. The 28-year-old, who came off the bench to score Barcelona's extra-time winner in last night's Uefa Super Cup game against Sevilla in Tbilisi, is regarded as one of the best attackers in Spain but has become frustrated at his lack of first-team football.

But Stoichkov thinks the Canary Islander would be making a huge mistake if he moved to Old Trafford, because he believes his former manager Van Gaal is a poor coach. The Bulgarian, who clashed with Van Gaal during the Dutchman's first spell in charge of Barcelona, said: “I would never be under the orders of this Dutchman. I would never leave if I was Pedro because if he goes there he would no longer be a footballer. I hope Pedro listens to me and he tells them [United] 'I am staying at Barcelona'.”

The Bulgarian, who was sold by Van Gaal to CSKA Sofia 17 years ago and branded Van Gaal “scum” in March, added yesterday: “He makes players suffer. He is destroying all the players because he is so mediocre, players have left because of him. He destroys clubs, he did it with Barcelona, and after they take years to build.

“He has spent £200m [at United] and the other day I saw his first game of the season: disastrous.”

Speaking on the eve of the match in Georgia, the Barcelona coach, Luis Enrique, said: “Pedro's future will be resolved shortly”. Last night there were reports that the player has formally asked Barça to leave, with Manchester City also interested.

Another report said that United were chasing the £21m-rated Benfica winger Nicolas Gaitan. – The Independent

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Chelsea doc demoted after Jose moans

Eva Carneiro, the highest-profile woman doctor in the Premier League, could be on her way out of Chelsea after Jose Mourinho radically downgraded her duties.

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Eva Carneiro, the highest-profile woman doctor in the Premier League, could be on her way out of Chelsea after Jose Mourinho radically downgraded her duties, including her removal from the bench for matches, just three days after his trenchant criticism of her and head physiotherapist Jon Fearn.

Carneiro, 41, of Spanish and British parentage, will continue to be the first-team doctor but now will only work from the club's Cobham training base. She will not travel with the team to games, home or away, nor will she attend training sessions outside on the first-team pitch at Cobham.

Chelsea refused to comment on her specific situation yesterday. A spokesman for the club said: “We don't comment on internal staffing matters.”

Whether Carneiro continues in her new, more limited role is debatable, especially given the high regard in which she is held in her profession and the very public nature of her demotion.

Mourinho criticised his on-field medical team of Carneiro and Fearn for being overzealous in treating Eden Hazard in the closing moments of Saturday's draw with Swansea at Stamford Bridge. It is understood that there will be some minor changes to the role that Fearn plays in his position as head physiotherapist, and it is not clear whether he will continue as one of the on-field team. He was the first of the two medical staff who ran on to the pitch to treat Hazard on Saturday, provoking a furious reaction from Mourinho.

The decision on Carneiro asks serious questions of just how Mourinho reacted to her subsequent response to his public criticism of her. Having been lambasted by Mourinho for her and Fearn's lack of understanding of the game in ruling Hazard out of the next phase of play, Carneiro posted on Facebook on Sunday evening thanking people for having sent supportive messages over the weekend in light of the incident. She wrote: “I would like to thank the general public for their overwhelming support. Really very much appreciated.”

Chelsea keep a tight rein on any public statements from their backroom staff and they have previously refused any interview requests for Carneiro. She has never spoken to a British newspaper since she was appointed by Andre Villas-Boas to take responsibility for first-team duties in 2011.

Her only major public speaking engagement, at a seminar for the Swedish football federation last year, was approved by the club first.

The club's medical director, Paco Biosca, who joined from Shakhtar Donestk in 2011, will continue to run the whole medical department. Carneiro's role was to monitor treatment of injuries and administer medicines. The club was not able to say who will be their pitchside doctor when they play Manchester City on Sunday.

The changes are equally surprising given that they come just days after Mourinho praised his medical department's work on Friday when he was discussing Diego Costa's ongoing injury problems. Then Mourinho said: “There is nobody to blame [for Costa's problems] and that is very important. I can't blame the player, because the player works hard, and the medical department, I completely trust in them.”

On Saturday Mourinho was angry that Fearn and Carneiro's entry on to the pitch had ruled Hazard out of the subsequent phase of play as Chelsea were already down to 10 players. Mourinho said his staff had to be sure that players who went down “had a serious problem” before they treated them and necessitated the player's removal from the pitch until permitted to come back on by the referee.

“I wasn't happy with my medical staff because even if you are a medical doctor or secretary on the bench, you have to understand the game,” Mourinho said. – The Independent

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United get Pedro boost

Manchester United have been cleared to make a bid for Pedro after Barcelona confirmed that he has asked for a transfer.

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Manchester United have been cleared to make a bid for Pedro after Barcelona confirmed last night that he has asked for a transfer.

United are yet to make a formal offer but are ready to meet the £22million release clause in Pedro’s contract following confirmation from Barcelona sporting director Robert Fernandez that the 28-year-old may have played his last game for the club.

Pedro started on the bench for Barca’s Uefa Super Cup thriller against Sevilla in Tbilisi last night, even though manager Luis Enrique had insisted that the speculation would not influence his selection.

Fernandez told Spanish television: ‘Pedro has told me that he wants to leave. Right now there is nothing (no offers). Pedro’s clause is not negotiable, but this could be his last game.’

Manchester City have also been linked with the Spain forward, but Louis van Gaal is understood to want Pedro as a replacement for Angel di Maria.

Earlier, ex-Barca favourite Hristo Stoitchkov urged Pedro to stay at the Nou Camp instead of moving to play under Van Gaal.

Stoitchkov, who blames the Dutchman for driving him out of Barcelona in 1998, pointed to Van Gaal’s treatment of former Barca goalkeeper Victor Valdes at United as an example of his poor management style.

The Bulgarian said: ‘I would never be under the orders of Louis van Gaal. He’s mediocre. The first time at Barca he destroyed them and he is destroying Manchester United. It turns out he needs £130m to spend and the other day I saw his first Premier League game. It was a disaster.

‘With what he has done to Valdes he has shown he is a bad person. Hopefully Pedro listens to me and doesn’t leave.’

Meanwhile, United goalkeeping great Peter Schmeichel has called on the club to grant David de Gea’s wish to join Real Madrid and sign Tottenham’s Hugo Lloris as his replacement.

The Dane criticised the way the issue has dragged on, but believes United should not stand in De Gea’s way if his heart is set on a return to Spain.

‘I’d really like De Gea to stay,’ said Schmeichel. ‘Two years running he’s been player of the year, but if he wants to go, let him go and let United move on.

‘It’s sad that it has dragged into the season. If the player is not happy, his agent, himself and the club that want him should have sorted this a long time ago.’

Schmeichel believes Van Gaal should sign France keeper Lloris from Spurs instead of pursuing a £25m deal with Ajax for Holland No 1 Jasper Cillessen.

He added: ‘If De Gea goes I would love Lloris to come to United. He has exactly the style of play and he is proven in the Premier League.

‘Cillessen is a good goalkeeper, but Van Gaal took him off for the penalty shoot-out (against Costa Rica) at the World Cup and I think he doesn’t trust him 100 per cent. I wouldn’t like a goalkeeper like that at Manchester United.’ Schmeichel’s former team-mate Bryan Robson believes De Gea could still stay at Old Trafford for another year, just as Cristiano Ronaldo was made to wait for his move to Real Madrid.

Robson said: ‘He’s a professional and he will have to get on with the job whichever way it goes.

‘Ronaldo had to get his head around it. The club weren’t prepared to release him for a year but Ronaldo went about it in a professional way, had a great season, then got his dream move.’ – Daily Mail

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Chelsea lose Courtois red card appeal

Chelsea’s appeal against goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois’s red card against Swansea has been rejected by the Football Association.

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Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois will miss the champions' visit to Manchester City on Sunday after an appeal against a red card for the Belgian international was rejected by the Football Association.

Courtois was sent off for denying a goal scoring opportunity in the 52nd minute of Chelsea's 2-2 draw against Swansea City at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

An independent regulatory commission rejected Chelsea's appeal against the red card and upheld a one-match suspension, the FA said.

The ruling will give back-up keeper Asmir Begovic, signed from Stoke City earlier this summer as a replacement for Petr Cech, the chance to make his first Premier League start for Chelsea. – Reuters

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I’ve never been gone - Yaya

The Manchester City midfielder Yaya Touré said that his form never went away despite a relatively low-key season last season.

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Manchester City midfielder Yaya Touré said that his form never went away despite a relatively low-key season last time around when his club surrendered the Premier League title to Chelsea and the Ivorian was beset with off-field problems.

Touré scored once in City's 3-0 win over West Bromwich Albion on Monday and had a major role in the first goal, an impressive performance that augurs well for the season. The death of his brother Ibrahim last year, as well as the furore over his relationship with the club and infamous birthday cake saga the previous May cast a shadow over the performance of one of the most influential players in the league.

Touré said: “I think last season people are talking all the time [about his performances]. For me, I'm quite surprised. Last season was not the best season for us, but second in the table I think is not bad at all. There's been a lot of criticism of me but it's not been a bad season. Twelve goals, and I won the Copa [African Nations Cup] for my country, it's not bad at all. I know what I want, I know what I have to do, I don't care what people are saying about me.”

Asked whether he was back in form, Touré said; “I'm not 'back', I'm always there. People have to understand football is not talking about one player, it's about the team. The team did a massive job [against West Brom], we played very well, against a difficult side. West Brom have a good manager, good players and experience in the Premier League and the team played brilliantly. Full credit to the team.”

He added: “Sometimes people [have to] understand we are human beings. Things can go wrong when you're fully focused in your job, when you love your job and want to win all the time. My job is to make people happy and myself happy as well.”

Touré said he would try to claim the first goal that went in via David Silva and Craig Dawson. His goalscoring dropped by half last season and his lacklustre performances, especially in the Champions League, drew criticism from pundits. Nevertheless, his manager Manuel Pellegrini said after the game that he had full faith in the player, who has one year left on his contract after this season.

The former City defender Joleon Lescott, now at West Brom, conceded that his team gave their opponents too much space on Monday night in the first half. Their manager Tony Pulis said afterwards that he had got his tactics wrong with a 4-4-2 formation that allowed City, and Silva in particular, too much space.

Lescott said: “Their movement and technical ability is a very high standard. We knew it would be tough but we were disappointed with the way we went about it.” – The Independent

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Barca, Sevilla in nine-goal thriller

Barcelona substitute Pedro scored deep into extra time to secure the European Super Cup with a 5-4 win over Sevilla.

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Barcelona substitute Pedro scored deep into extra time to secure the European Super Cup with a 5-4 win over Sevilla in a thriller on Tuesday after they surrendered a three-goal lead in Tbilisi.

Barca said before the game that Pedro wanted to leave the club but the 28-year-old came on to win the trophy, just as he did in 2009, pouncing on a rebound from a Lionel Messi shot.

Messi had himself scored a double with two stunning early free kicks while Rafinha and Luis Suarez also netted for the Catalans, who led 4-1 with just over half an hour left.

Barca's fifth triumph in the competition, which means they have now won four trophies this year, moved them level with AC Milan on the all-time Uefa Super Cup winners list.

“I got the goal but it was down to the work of the team and I am happy with the win,” said Pedro. “When you know you may leave it is difficult. I was angry about not starting the game but as always I tried to be professional and go out and help.”

Ever Banega had given Europa League winners Sevilla the lead with a free-kick after three minutes but Messi stamped his mark on the game with stunning free-kicks after seven and 16 minutes.

The Argentine's double for the Champions League holders means he is again joint record scorer in European competition with Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo on 80 goals.

Rafinha slotted home a Luis Suarez pass just before the break and the Uruguayan scored himself after the restart having been found by Sergio Busquets to put Barca firmly in command.

Sevilla, though, fought back with goals from Jose Antonio Reyes, after 57 minutes, and Kevin Gameiro, with a penalty in the 72nd, before Yevhen Konoplyanka equalised with 10 minutes left to force the game into extra time.

“We went out looking to be creative and to cause danger,” Sevilla coach Unai Emery told a news conference

“To get to European finals you need to earn respect and so attack the opposition which is what we did.

“I don't think that we got the reward we deserved from the game. We had clear chances at the end and Barca were looking worried.”

With Neymar out due to mumps, Barca coach Luis Enrique chose Rafinha ahead of Pedro in attack but three minutes into extra time the Canary Islander got his chance and made the most of it.

Pedro fired the winner into the roof of the net from close range with five minutes left as Barca stayed on track to win six trophies this calendar year on the back of last season's treble.

Pedro also came off the bench in the 2009 Super Cup final against Shakhtar Donetsk to score in the 115th minute and secure a 1-0 victory for Barca after they had won their first treble.

“We knew that this would be a difficult game and this really showed the merit of the team. It is difficult to win trophies and games,” the Barca coach said.

I am very happy with the way that we won and showed the hard work that is necessary.

“We didn't know what to expect and it shows what you have to do to win a trophy.

“It was great for the fans and after 50 minutes it looked as though the game was over but against a rival like that you never know.” – Reuters

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Lawyer to lead Fifa’s reform push

Fifa has named Swiss lawyer Francois Carrard to lead the soccer body’s Reform Committee.

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Zurich - Fifa on Tuesday appointed Swiss lawyer Francois Carrard, who helped restore the Olympic movement's credibility after the Salt Lake City scandal, to lead the world football governing body's Reform Committee.

Carrard, 77, previously guided the International Olympic Committee through its own governance reforms in the wake of the bribery scandal-hit Winter Olympics of 2002.

Fifa is currently reeling from its own corruption turmoil after seven football officials were arrested in a raid on a Zurich hotel on the eve of a Fifa congress in May.

“It is vital for the future of global football to restore the integrity and reputation of its governing body,” said Carrard.

“It's a very significant crisis, on a par with what I came across at the IOC between 1998 to 2000,” he told a tele-conference call.

“Once again we have accusations of corruption, structural reforms to put in place, interference from the political world and sponsors.

“There are similarities (with the Olympics), even if the situations are different and that the world has changed in the past 15 years.”

He said he had accepted Fifa's call to help as he considered it “important to find reforms which are acceptable to all to restore Fifa's credibility”.

“I've got this experience of already having sporting crises to manage,” he added.

Carrard was appointed following consultation with the six football confederations and he will be assisted by representatives from two of each.

“As the independent chairman, I am committed to delivering the necessary package of credible reforms, working with representatives from within football and wider society.

“To that end, I will establish an independent advisory board, made up of representatives from outside football, to support the work of the committee and provide an additional layer of independent expertise.”

The Reform Committee will provide a preliminary update to the Fifa Executive Committee at its regular quarterly meeting on September 24-25, Fifa said in a statement.

Fifa President Sepp Blatter, who is due to stand down in February next year when a new election will be held, said Carrard was the “right man” with a “proven track record”.

He added: “We are confident that he can help Fifa to strengthen its governance structures in a credible and meaningful way.”

The corruption scandal hit Blatter hard, with the Swiss chief, 79, subsequently vowing to step down despite winning a fifth term in May's elections in Zurich.

The vote came two days after the arrests of the seven Fifa officials, who are among 14 people facing charges in the United States over more than $150 million of bribes for marketing and broadcasting contracts.

In parallel, Swiss investigators are looking into the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar respectively.

The scandal led high-profile Fifa sponsors McDonald's, Coca-Cola and Visa to back calls for an independent reform commission.

Blatter said: “Fifa's commercial partners will also play a key role in the reforms, and we will be discussing with them the most productive way to include their views.”

Those commercial partners will also appoint two representatives to the commission.

AFP

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Floodlight failure delays Pirates match

Play was suspended due to a floodlight failure in the Premiership match between SuperSport United and Orlando Pirates.

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Polokwane – Play was suspended due to a floodlight failure in the Premiership match between SuperSport United and Orlando Pirates at Peter Mokaba Stadium, in Polokwane, on Tuesday evening.

One of the floodlights went out at 8.50pm during the 62nd minute which caused play to be halted. SuperSport led 1-0 after debutant Michael Boxall scored the opener in the 23rd minute of the match.

If no further play were possible on the night, the match would resume from the same point and scoreline at an agreed date between the clubs.

ANA

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English players struggling to make it in EPL

The percentage of English players in top-flight starting line-ups fell below one third during the opening weekend of the Premier League.

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The percentage of English players in top-flight starting line-ups fell below one third during the opening weekend of the Premier League, fueling the FA's concerns about a lack of opportunities for home-grown youngsters, the Times reported.

Of the 220 players who started for Premier League clubs at the weekend, only 73, or 33.2 per cent, were eligible to play for England, the Times said (http://thetim.es/1J8B3f5).

The numbers represent a dip from last season's 35 per cent and a steep fall from 69 per cent in 1992-93, when the Premier League was launched.

The English top-flight already has the lowest proportion of players among Europe's leading leagues.

This season's opening day figures were inflated by newly promoted Bournemouth, who started eight English players against Aston Villa, the Times said.

But fellow new boys Watford, along with Arsenal and Newcastle United, started with just one Englishman.

Champions Chelsea started with two, but one of those was John Terry, who retired from international football three years ago.

Reece Oxford, the 16-year-old sensation who impressed on his debut with West Ham United, was one of just five English teenagers to start a Premier League game at the weekend. The others were Brendan Galloway for Everton, Joe Gomez and Jordan Ibe for Liverpool, and Matt Targett for Southampton.

Greg Dyke, the FA chairman, has already warned that English football is a “tanker that needs turning”, but his efforts to tighten rules to improve prospects for home-grown players have met with resistance from Premier League clubs.

The majority of club managers and chairmen feel they should not have to consider nationality when building their teams and that English players are often too expensive.

Reuters reported last week that the Premier League Chief Executive was also more in favour of helping develop grass-roots football rather than “artificially” increasing quotas for English players in Premier League squads. (http://reut.rs/1J14BcN)

But with many of the English players who did feature already in their late twenties and thirties and therefore unlikely to be called up to the national team, the question of how to boost the numbers of young Englishmen in the top-flight is more pressing than ever before.

Of the more than 500 million pounds ($780 million) spent on top-flight transfers this summer, just over a fifth has been spent on English players, according to the Times.

Nearly half of that 100 million pound outlay was due to Manchester City spending a reported 49 million pounds to buy Raheem Sterling from Liverpool.

With the Premier League sticking to its position that improvement will come through the Elite Player Performance Plan, which requires better standards and facilities as well as more contact hours for academy players, the dearth of young English players in the top-flight seems likely to continue in the near term. – Reuters

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Igesund eyes PSL milestone

Along with Ted Dumitru, Gordon Igesund has won four championships since the advent of the Premier Soccer League in 1996.

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With only one of the Absa Premiership title favourites having begun the season on a victorious note, SuperSport United and Orlando Pirates meet at the Peter Mokaba Stadium tonight keen to put down a marker in the championship race.

Both Matsatsantsa a Pitori and the Buccaneers have been installed as championship contenders along with holders Kaizer Chiefs and Mamelodi Sundowns – who were both held goalless in their opening matches at the weekend.

It was Gavin Hunt’s Bidvest Wits who justified their billing as potential winners of the 19th instalment of the Premiership when they overcame Ajax Cape Town 2-1 on Saturday night, with Sundowns failing to score at Platinum Stars and Chiefs unable to breach a Chippa United side reduced to 10 men.

Tonight Gordon Igesund begins his quest to become the sole owner of a championship-winning record when he leads SuperSport against a Pirates side that had a fantastic 2-0 win over CS Sfaxien in a CAF Confederations Cup group match on Saturday night.

Along with Ted Dumitru, Igesund has won four championships since the advent of the Premier Soccer League in 1996 and with ‘Ol’ Loud Mouth’ no longer involved in club football the SuperSport coach has a chance to to claim the record alone.

But he faces a tough challenge from the aforementioned four clubs, with Hunt on course to catch up with Dumitru and Igesund should he lead the Clever Boys to their maiden championship triumph.

Both Pirates and SuperSport go into the league encounter on the back of exits from the MTN8.

Yet with Pirates having bounced back with that fantastic win over Sfaxien, Eric Tinkler’s men will probably descend on the Limpopo capital’s arena the more confident of the two sides.

Tinkler, along with Chiefs’ Steve Komphela, are newcomers to the championship contenders billing with the coaches of the other three sides (Igesund, Hunt and Pitso Mosimane of Sundowns) having already tasted league title glory.

But the Pirates man is unlikely to be overawed by the challenge and will be keen to show club chairman Irvin Khoza that he didn’t err in entrusting him with one of local football’s most difficult tasks.

And while he is already doing so in the continental competition it is on the local front that Tinkler will need to also do well.

Pirates will look to start the league challenge on a positive note and to this effect Tinkler will hope Thabo Rakhale and the rest of his team transfer their continental form to the local scene.

Out in Polokwane though, they will find that SuperSport will be a different outfit to the one they saw struggle in pre-season.

Igesund has shown over the years just how great a specialist he is in the league, the Durbanite having won all his four championships with different teams. While he has spoken down his team’s chances, only an inexperienced campaigner will take him for his word.

While tonight’s result will not determine the destination of the title, there can be no denying that nothing sets the tone for a good run than a positive start. - The Star

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United set to lose out on Ramos

Manchester United are facing an uphill struggle in their battle to secure Sergio Ramos from Real Madrid.

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Manchester United were last night facing an uphill struggle in their battle to secure Sergio Ramos from Real Madrid, with the 29-year-old defender thought to be tempted by a new deal at the Bernabeu in which bonuses would take him to the annual €10m (£7.1m) he has been demanding.

United's hopes of signing the player are not entirely lost, but Real's in-house TV station is preparing pieces for the announcement of a new contract, which seems more likely than not to be agreed.

Rancour between Ramos and the Real president, Florentino Perez, led to the player openly agitating for a move in June. United have retained hopes Ramos would provide some badly needed experience in central defence and that the player's discontent would bring their moves for him to fruition, despite a £28.6m bid being rejected by Real. Ramos staying put would be a blow, as United have also failed to secure Mats Hummels from Borussia Dortmund.

Such an end of the Ramos saga, which has been drawn out all summer, would also call into question whether David De Gea will leave for Madrid this summer. Real appear content with their two goalkeepers, Kiko Casilla, signed from Espanyol this summer, and Keylor Navas.

United's interest in the Barcelona forward Pedro is not under threat of Manchester City hijacking the deal, despite reports to that effect on the Continent. City are not interested in buying either Pedro or Real's Karim Benzema. Their focus is on Kevin De Bruyne, in a deal which is likely to cost €60m (£42.5m) with add-ons, which would take City to the £47m Wolfsburg are thought to be asking. – The Independent

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Blind backs himself at centre-back

Manchester United midfielder Daley Blind insists he possesses the footballing intelligence to flourish as a centre-back.

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Daley Blind may lack the height and power but the Manchester United midfielder insists he possesses the footballing intelligence to flourish as a centre-back.

Manager Louis Van Gaal started the 25-year-old Dutchman alongside Chris Smalling against Tottenham Hotspur in United's Premier League opener, having tried his compatriot out in central defence during pre-season.

United won the game 1-0 thanks to an own goal from Tottenham's Kyle Walker.

Blind was pleased with his performance and the team's clean sheet, and was especially happy about managing to keep the prolific Harry Kane quiet for 90 minutes.

“I got a chance on this occasion and I tried my best. Of course, people always say I don't have the height or the power but I think I'm clever enough and smart enough,” the 5ft 10in Blind told the club's website (www.manutd.com).

“I've said many times before that I just want to play,” he added.

“If you see what everyone can add to the team, then it's a real battle for places and everyone had to fight for a position.

“I think we did well at the back, together with Chris, Luke (Shaw) and Matteo (Darmian) and we get a clean sheet so I was happy,” he said. – Reuters

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Toure produces vintage performance

Yaya Toure is one of the most dominant midfielders in English football but those games were few and far last season.

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London - Yaya Toure rekindled memories of the blockbusting performances that helped Manchester City win two Premier League titles in three seasons, scoring twice in an impressive 3-0 victory at West Bromwich Albion on Monday.

When on song the imposing Toure is one of the most dominant players in European football but those games were few and far between as City finished well adrift in second place last season.

Manuel Pellegrini's side needed to make a statement of intent in their league opener and did so with the long-striding central midfielder Toure leaving the West Brom players floundering in his wake on numerous occasions with powerful runs and incisive passing.

His first goal had an element of fortune, with a double deflection, but a sublime second saw Toure scythe through midfield, exchange passes with compatriot Wilfried Bony, and fire into the top corner.

“I think we saw the Yaya of one season ago, not like last season when he had so many problems,” City manager Manuel Pellegrini told Sky Sports.

“I like attacking football. I like to see good players playing in a technical way so I think the first 30 minutes we did really well.”

With Toure, 32, dominating midfield, Spanish maestro David Silva had the freedom to float undetected between the ranks of West Brom defenders and he was able to pick holes in the hosts' defence at will in another effortless display.

“David, especially in the first half, had a brilliant performance,” Pellegrini said.

Captain Vincent Kompany added a third and the Belgian said he was keen to banish memories of a poor season on a personal and team level and send a message to those who were discounting City as credible title challengers.

“I think for us we have something to prove as last season was below what we are used to,” Kompany said. “This is a team with a lot of intent.

“Obviously there is a lot of favourite teams now and we're not part of it I've heard. It's something that gives us extra motivation.

“We came out here today knowing we had a point to prove. As a team we all have to improve this season.” – Reuters

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Chelsea to appeal Courtois red card

Chelsea have decided to appeal against the red card shown to Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in the draw against Swansea City.

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London - Premier League champions Chelsea have decided to appeal against the red card shown to Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in the 2-2 draw against Swansea City, according to several media reports on Monday.

The 23-year-old was dismissed in the 52nd minute at Stamford Bridge on Saturday after bringing down Bafetimbi Gomis as he raced through on goal in the opening-day fixture.

France forward Gomis went on to equalise from the resulting penalty.

If the appeal is unsuccessful Courtois will be replaced by close-season signing Asmir Begovic for Sunday's trip to Manchester City who finished second in the league last season. – Reuters

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