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Football: Manchester United injury worries for Aston Villa match

Manchester United have several injury worries ahead of their Premier League match at Aston Villa tomorrow. Dimitar Berbatov and Wes Brown are both definitely out, Rio Ferdinand is unlikely to play and Wayne Rooney is also a doubt after missing England's friendly in Germany on Wednesday.Berbatov picked up a hamstring injury on international duty with Bulgaria this week, limping off during their game with Serbia. Scans revealed he has not suffered a muscle tear, but he will miss tomorrow's match, Tuesday's Champions League fixture at Villarreal and possibly next weekend's derby with City.Brown will be out for several weeks after undergoing exploratory surgery on his ongoing ankle problem, and fellow defender Ferdinand is unlikely to feature at Villa Park because of a back injury. "Rio is very doubtful for tomorrow, I don't think he'll make it," Sir Alex Ferguson said today. "Rooney has a good chance, he trained on Wednesday and Thursday and if he comes through today he should be involved. Wes will be missing for a few weeks. There's no timescale on it, but may be about 4-5 weeks. It's disappointing, but we've got cover with Gary [Neville] and Rafael, and John O'Shea can also play there."Ferguson will have to watch tomorrow's game from the stands as part of his two-match suspension, after being found guilty of improper conduct by the FA for his post-match rant at referee Mike Dean following United's 4-3 victory over Hull. It is the second time Ferguson has been consigned to the stands in the last 12 months, having served a suspension last Christmas for his verbal attack on Mark Clattenburg.Today he admitted that he was to blame for losing his temper, but said the FA's respect campaign may be an unworthwhile venture because managers will always be angered by the human errors of referees. "It happens," Ferguson said. "It is my own fault. The [disciplinary panel's] job is not to consider the performance level of referees. You will always get inconsistent decisions because every referee has their own opinions of things and his own judgement about things. That is one of the great things about our game. That has not changed from the day refereeing started."Manchester UnitedAston VillaPremier Leagueguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Patient Darren Bent gets reward after Fabio Capello's pep talk

Life back at the top of his game is proving revelatory for Darren Bent. The Tottenham Hotspur striker had drifted aimlessly through his first year at White Hart Lane, his confidence drained by a manager who clearly had no faith in his ability. "Juande Ramos said about four words to me in a year," he said yet, on his first evening back among the England set-up, Fabio Capello pulled him to one side and detailed precisely what will be expected of him in Berlin tomorrow. The Italian was supposed to be distant, almost aloof. Compared to the taciturn Ramos, Bent has found it hard to squeeze a word in edgeways.Bent returns to the national set-up scarred by last season's toils under the Spaniard but toughened by life as an outcast. Ramos's four words might as well have been "thanks, but no thanks", such was the stuttering nature of the £16.5m forward's campaign, with opportunities largely limited to cameos from the bench. The summer sales of Robbie Keane and Dimitar Berbatov, following that of Jermain Defoe in January, offered a route back, though it took Harry Redknapp's appointment to make the 24-year-old feel wanted. Under Ramos he was scoring with his backside but these days his finishing appears far more assured. A hat-trick against Dinamo Zagreb in the Uefa Cup offered a reminder of his pedigree.After 11 goals already this season, and with Wayne Rooney injured and Michael Owen ignored, there was an inevitability to Bent's recall to international colours. His last appearance was the dismal evening against Croatia a year ago, the night when Steve McClaren's reign collapsed and England faced up to the reality that Euro 2008 had passed the nation by. Bent, given the last 10 minutes to salvage a 3-2 deficit, blazed his only opening over the bar. He duly returned to the periphery at his club, where he struggled to gain enough playing time to ease his frustration. He returns to the fold at the Olympic Stadium intent on making up for lost time."I remember that miss well but it couldn't really affect my club form because I wasn't playing any games at the time," he recalled. "It was difficult. I'd been called into the England squad even though I wasn't playing that much for Tottenham. There were times when I questioned Spurs' motives for buying me. I have no idea whether Juande wanted me. There were always people saying it was [the former sporting director] Damien Comolli who had bought me but I'd always known it was going to be difficult getting into the team with Jermain, Berba and Keano ahead of me. They've all since left, which was a big disappointment for Tottenham, but it has given me more games and a licence to express myself."A lot of people were saying I was going to leave, but I wanted to stay strong and positive. If I'd thrown it in at the end of the season, it would have given people licence to hurl abuse at me. I was just determined to start the new season fit, sharp and positive because I knew my chance would come. I remember playing against Tottenham for Charlton and they had five or six England internationals in the team, so I thought the move was going to help me get into the national side. Obviously it didn't work that way last season but I've always said that, if I can stay fit and sharp, I'll take the next chance that comes my way."An opportunity presents itself tomorrow. England are without their first-choice frontline and Bent is expected to start ahead of Gabriel Agbonlahor with a chance to demonstrate his improvement. "He deserves this opportunity," said his club captain, Ledley King. "He is a goalscorer, a player who likes to play off the defenders' shoulders. If you play to his strengths, you won't catch him. He gets in behind and is a great finisher."Capello has been impressed by Bent's renaissance. The England coach spoke with Bent on Sunday once the squad had convened at their Hertfordshire base, outlining what is expected of the forward, as if maintaining the "arm round the shoulder" approach that Redknapp has used so effectively at Spurs in the last month. "I didn't ask him, he just came up to me," Bent said. "He told me why he picked me and how he wants me to play. I just listened. He told me to play my own game and not try to overcomplicate things."As a player, that is what you want. You want to know how you are doing and what direction you're heading in, rather than there being no communication whatsoever. Harry's done the same. It's simple management, really. He's instilled belief into the players. He just tells me to go out and express myself and do what I've been doing well for years. Juande tried to complicate it and change bits and bobs. I used to talk to my dad, my agent or people in football like Mark Bright who'd tell me to keep going, but it was hard. Thankfully, that's all in the past." From now on, the four words Bent will cling to are clear: "Tottenham Hotspur and England".EnglandGermanyFabio Capelloguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Football: Capello risks Benítez ire over injured Gerrard

Fabio Capello risked straining his relationship with the Liverpool manager, Rafael Benítez, last night by insisting that Steven Gerrard link up with the England squad at their Hertfordshire hotel despite the midfielder having apparently been ruled out by his club for up to 10 days with a torn muscle in his right leg.Gerrard, who sustained the injury at Bolton, reported to the 23-man squad and will be assessed by England's own medical staff today, with the likelihood of him travelling to Germany tomorrow for Wednesday's friendly at the Olympic stadium in Berlin still slim. A statement released by Liverpool suggested a scan undertaken yesterday had revealed "a tear in the adductor magnus muscle in his right leg", a prognosis the Football Association's medical team will look into today.The Liverpool captain played the full 90 minutes in the 2-0 victory over Bolton Wanderers on Saturday, scoring the decisive goal with 17 minutes remaining, and may play in the next Premier League game against Fulham on Saturday after the club's spokesman, Ian Cotton, said the injury would keep him out "between seven to 10 days".The timing of Wednesday's friendly has prompted criticism from Premier League managers and Capello's insistence to consider Gerrard's fitness at first hand will be seen as the national coach flexing his muscles as familiar club and country tensions flare, particularly after Liverpool scheduled surgery for Gerrard on a groin problem which forced the midfielder to miss the qualifiers against Andorra and Croatia in September.Capello is well within his rights to call up the player but Benítez is unlikely to have been impressed at seeing his captain forced to travel down from Merseyside, particularly after the FA readily accepted the Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart's withdrawal with an ankle ligament injury sustained at Hull City yesterday. The 21-year-old caught his foot in the turf in an attempt to prevent Daniel Cousin from scoring for Hull and will be out for three to four weeks, according to his manager, Mark Hughes."He's obviously out of the England squad, which is a blow to him," Hughes said, "but most importantly it's a blow to us because we have some key games coming up." Hart was replaced last night by the Blackburn Rovers goalkeeper Paul Robinson, who won his last cap in the 2-1 European Championships qualifying defeat in Russia in October 2007.The England captain, John Terry, will also need to be assessed by medical staff today after suffering a foot injury during Chelsea's victory at West Bromwich Albion on Saturday though the centre-half, who missed last month's wins against Kazakhstan and Belarus with a back complaint, has been encouraged by the results of his own scan and expects to be fit enough to feature in Berlin.If so, Terry will be one of the few experienced players available to Capello for the prestige friendly. The national coach was already without Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand, who missed Manchester United's victory over Stoke with calf and back injuries respectively, and will also be without Chelsea's Ashley and Joe Cole, who continue their recoveries from hamstring problems. Add to them the absence of Wes Brown (ankle) and Emile Heskey (calf) and it is likely that five of the side who started England's last match, the 3-1 qualifying win in Belarus last month, will be absent against Germany.Excluded out of choice are Michael Owen and David Beckham, who misses the chance to equal Sir Bobby Moore's 108 caps having not played a competitive game for three weeks following LA Galaxy's failure to reach the Major League Soccer end-of-season play-offs.Darren Bent has earned his first call-up under Capello while the Chelsea defender Michael Mancienne, on loan at Wolves, was a surprise inclusion but is not expected to play against the Germans with his involvement seen largely as an opportunity to gain valuable experience.EnglandJohn Terryguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Arsenal lose points, Capello loses players

It was a bad day for Fabio Capello, and a much worse one for Arsenal. England lost key players Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand for their midweek friendly in Germany, and Arsenal lost ground in the title race with a 2-0 home defeat to Aston Villa while Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United all won easily.Sir Alex Ferguson left out Rooney and Ferdinand with calf and back injuries, respectively, but United did not falter as Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice from free-kicks in a 5-0 home win against Stoke. Ferguson then withdrew both men from the England squad who meet today before travelling to Berlin. United midfielder Darren Fletcher, who did start at Old Trafford, was another casualty and will miss Scotland's game against Argentina because of a knee injury.The top two also won comfortably. Liverpool were value for more than their 2-0 success at Bolton, while Nicolas Anelka took his league tally to 12 with two goals in Chelsea's 3-0 win at West Brom. The best performance, though, came from Aston Villa, who missed a penalty but still won 2-0 at Arsenal.'Where was Fabio today?' asked Villa manager Martin O'Neill after outstanding performances by Ashley Young and Gabriel Agbonlahor. 'I hope he passes my players over because we have a big game against Manchester United next week. But I'm sure he won't.' He didn't. Both are in the squad - along with team-mates Curtis Davies and Gareth Barry, and two surprise selections, Tottenham's Darren Bent and Chelsea's young defender Michael Mancienne, who is on loan at Wolves. Mancienne is unlikely to play.Where was Fabio today?' asked Martin O'Neill after outstanding performances by Ashley Young and Gabriel Agbonlahor. 'I hope he passes my players over,' the Villa manager said, 'because we have a big game against Manchester United next week. But I'm sure he won't.' He didn't. Both are in the squad - along with team-mates Curtis Davies and Gareth Barry, and two surprise selections, Tottenham's Darren Bent and Chelsea's young defender Michael Mancienne, who is on loan at Wolves. Mancienne is unlikely to play.Capello was at Upton Park, to check on the form of David James, Jermain Defoe and Peter Crouch for Portsmouth against West Ham. James was outshone by the busier Robert Green and both strikers were goalless, as was the game. The in-form Glen Johnson was named and Portsmouth, like Villa, have four in the squad.With Emile Heskey injured and Rooney absent, Bent may start on Wednesday. His scoring run came to end, along with manager Harry Redknapp's unbeaten sequence, as Tottenham lost 2-1 at Fulham, but Capello is impressed with the striker.'I knew about him from last season but his confidence has improved. I think he might be the player we need to do Heskey's job. There is also Peter Crouch. Bent is not completely the same as Heskey, but he is fast with very good movement.'The biggest name missing is David Beckham, who has not played since LA Galaxy's season ended three weeks ago. 'I can't pick players who are not playing,' Capello said. 'He might be in the next squad. I don't know.'Michael Owen, overlooked again, scored as a substitute in Newcastle's 2-2 draw with Wigan. 'I saw Owen play for 20 minutes [last week] at Fulham,' Capello said. 'After a month out, that is not enough to establish his fitness.'ENGLAND (v Germany, Berlin, Wed): Carson (WBA), Hart (Man City), James (Portsmouth); Bridge (Chelsea), Davies (Villa), Johnson (Portsmouth), Terry (Chelsea), Lescott (Everton), Mancienne (Chelsea), Richards (Man City), Upson (West Ham); Barry (Villa), Carrick (Man Utd), Downing (Middlesbrough), Lampard (Chelsea), Gerrard (Liverpool), Wright-Phillips (Man City), A Young (Villa); Agbonlahor (Villa), Bent (Tottenham), Crouch (Portsmouth), Defoe (Portsmouth), Walcott (Arsenal).Rick Parry, the Liverpool chief executive, is set to be the surprise choice to head England's 2018 World Cup bid, according to InsideTheGames.com. The former Premier League chief executive played a role in Manchester's unsuccessful bid to host the 1996 Olympics and has been caught in the rows between Liverpool's American co-owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett.EnglandFabio Capelloguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Cristiano Ronaldo scores 100th goal for Manchester United as Stoke City are crushed

Even without Wayne Rooney Rio Ferdinand Ryan Giggs Alex Ferguson's team routed Stoke.

Premier League: I will be proved right in the end, claims ArsèneWenger

Arsène Wenger yesterday put forward a passionate defence of his methods and beliefs, and insisted that the Premier League title will not be decided by the result of today's showdown with Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium.The Arsenal manager railed, not for the first time, against the knee-jerk culture of modern football and the imperative for results alone, while maintaining his conviction that the squad he has assembled will challenge for the domestic game's biggest prize this season. His team have stuttered at times, losing three matches already - the same number of league defeats that they suffered over the course of last season - and Wenger dare not contemplate another one today against United. His team have gone three matches without a win, the morale-sapping 4-4 draw with Tottenham and the stalemate against Fenerbahce in the Champions League coming either side of the 2-1 loss at Stoke City. Pundits have written them off while bookmakers were offering 9-4 on them winning today - the longest odds for a home game under Wenger. "I am always having to answer questions as though we have failed," the Frenchman said yesterday, betraying exasperation. "Let us speak about it in May [at the end of the season]. I would not exchange my position with any other manager because I believe in our qualities. "We have to rise above the pressure and the expectation levels and be guided more by what we want to achieve and how we want to play football than by people who want perfection immediately. I stick to what I believe is right. You have moments that go well and those that go less well. You are not God when everyone says you are, and you are not miserable when everyone says you are. The truth is somewhere in between." Wenger mentioned his team's unbeaten bolt to the Premier League title in 2003-04 on more than one occasion yesterday, pointing out that the unique triumph was achieved playing "in exactly the same spirit". The problem for Wenger is that the third championship in what is now 12 years at Arsenal set the bar high and his team have won only one trophy since, the FA Cup in 2005. "For me, success would be to take the maximum out of this team," he said. "At the end of a season you always look at what you have achieved, what other people see as a success and failure, and your own examination. Did I get the maximum points with this team? Sometimes I think I could have done better, sometimes no. "A trophy is important because you want people who care about the club to be happy but again, what does a Carling Cup trophy weigh compared to the fact that you play in the Champions League again next year? Nothing."Wenger could be forgiven for envying the Old Trafford club's resources. As his stretched and injury-hit squad took on Fenerbahce, United rested star names including Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov at Celtic. But having taken a different path on team building - Wenger has no £15m-plus players in his squad - he suggested that patience has to be the natural by-product. "The way we build the team, you have to accept that you have to get them to grow together," he said. "You take how Chelsea and Man United have been built and how we built and the investment we have made and you have to accept that. It is easier to say, 'OK, we buy him, him and him', but when you go for a team with young players, you have to be strong. You have to give them belief and strength and continue to push them through the criticism."Wenger gave nothing away about his team selection for this afternoon, saying that Arsenal would give fitness tests to the captain, William Gallas, Bacary Sagna and Theo Walcott. "This is a fantastic opportunity to show how strong we are, when everyone is doubting us," he added. "Mental strength is maybe the most important quality to playing for a big club."ArsenalPremier Leagueguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Wayne Rooney writes 'sorry' note to photographer

Wayne Rooney has written a letter of apology to a photographer he allegedly spat on and accepted a caution it has been reported.

Football: Wayne Rooney years from finished article, says Sir Alex Ferguson

Sir Alex Ferguson hopes that Wayne Rooney will eventually mature into a more consistent player

Rooney double as England hit five

Wayne Rooney grabs two late goals as England beat Kazakhstan 5-1 in their World Cup qualifier at Wembley.