Official: Sunderland complete signing of Wes Brown from Manchester United on four-year deal

Sunderland have confirmed the signing of Manchester United defender Wes Brown on a four-year deal for an undisclosed fee.

The 31-year-old, who made 361 appearances for the Red Devils, was part of five title-winning sides at Old Trafford, and twice won the Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup.

The former England defender signs a long-term contract at the Stadium of Light with former team-mates John O'Shea and Darron Gibson expected to follow from Old Trafford.

Lionel Messi can learn from Falcao's example

It was the reality that, aside from a handful of sparkling moments that we almost take for granted from a player of his quality, he looked lost and ineffective in his role as a withdrawn No. 9, a centre-forward who could neither create nor define amongst a sea of tenacious defenders.

No-one could make the case that the Porto striker is a better player than the little Argentine, but Falcao demonstrated on Wednesday that he could become the focal point of an attack in the way that Lionel has struggled to over the last week.

Dropping deep, he had the strength to hold off the opposition defence, time and again drawing two markers before releasing a colleague into space. And when it fell to him to beat a man, Radamel proved himself capable of surging past with skill and pace. 

Most importantly, the Colombian did not allow himself to get sucked back into midfield like his opposite number. His territory begins on the edge of the final third and ends in the penalty area, and in this sector there are few who can match him run-for-run, shot-for-shot.  

Arsenal reject Manchester United's £20m bid for Samir Nasri

Gunners reject opening bid for in-demand Frenchman and are thought to be holding out for £25m (€28m) for him, with offer set to trigger bids from other clubs said to be interested.

Nasri could also move abroad with Inter said to be keen on bringing him in as uncertainty remains surrounding the future of Wesley Sneijder.

The Arsenal midfielder was beaten by only Gareth Bale in the PFA Player of the Season award last term after especially impressing in the first half of the campaign.

Since moving to the Emirates from Marseille in 2008, Nasri has made 124 appearances for Arsenal, scoring 24 goals.

Liverpool have reached agreement with Blackpool over a fee for the transfer of long-term target Charlie Adam

Reds boss Kenny Dalglish has been pursuing the 25-year-old Scotland international for a number of months having failed with two bids for the midfielder in the January transfer window.

A statement on the club's official website read, "Liverpool Football Club today announced they have reached agreement with Blackpool for the transfer of Charlie Adam.

"The player will now travel to Merseyside for a medical to discuss personal terms."
Following the Seasiders' relegation from the Barclays Premier League, Adam made clear his intention to remain in the top-flight - a notion that has attracted attention from a number of rival clubs.

With Tottenham Hotspur the only other side to have made a firm offer for the talented playmaker's services, but still falling short of Blackpool's £9million valuation of their sought-after captain.

The path now appears clear for Liverpool to begin contract talks with a view to finalising a deal that will see Adam become the second confirmed Anfield signing this summer after the arrival of Jordan Henderson from Sunderland for an initial £16million.

The 23 year old Portuguese player joins the Spanish club after consolidating himself as one of the best left backs in the world

Fabio Coentrao is Real Madrid's fifth signing for the 2011/12 campaign. His excellent run at Benfica, with whom he won the league and Cup of Portugal titles, and his regularity as a starter for the Portuguese national team have clinched the player a deal with the Spanish club. The left back is solid in attack, has excellent dribbling skills, has a powerful shot and is extremely varsatile, whic allows him to play in any winger position.


Coentrao was born on 11 March 1988 in Vila do Conde. The first important team he played for was Rio Ave, with whom he made his First Division debut when he was just 16. His excellent performances caught Benfica's attention, who decided to sign him in 2007 and loaned him out to Nacional, notching 16 appearances and 4 goals.

Coentrao returned to Rio Ave after a brief spell with Spanish side Zaragoza. His good run in the 2008/09 campaign secured his return to Benfica, with whom he truly blossomed and won his first titles, such as the 2009/10 edition of the league and the 2010/11 Cup of Portugal.
Coentrao first played for his country on the youth national teams, making his first team debut in 2009 against Bosnia-Herzegovina. He's since become a regular starter with Portugal, making a total 15 appearances for his country, four of which were in the 2010 World Cup.

CAREER:
2005-07: Rio Ave
2007/08: Benfica
2007/08: Nacional
2008/09: Zaragoza
2008/09: Rio Ave
2009-11: Benfica
2011- : Real Madrid

HONOURS:
Portuguese league: 2010
Cup of Portugal: 2011

Kolkata Stadium to be repaired before Arg-Ven friendly

As the city awaits arrival of football legend Lionel Messi, the authorities here have swung into action, laying out a revamp plan for the Yuba Bharati Krirangan, which will host the Argentina vs Venezuela friendly match on September 2.

The West Bengal government along with representatives from the Indian Football Association (IFA) chalked out their list of priorities ahead of the international friendly match after a marathon recce found the venue in a pathetic shape.

The entire stadium, having a crowd capacity of 1.20 lakh, will be painted afresh, Sports Minister Madan Mitra told reporters after an inspection today.

"We are short on both time and money. So we have made a list of priorities that includes revamping the turf, dressing rooms among others."


Giving details about their revamp plans, Mitra said "the stadium will sport a new look courtesy a new paint."

The much-maligned floodlights will also be changed but Mitra said with time being a constraint they would now replace only the faulty bulbs.

"In the long run, the entire floodlight arrangements will be replaced. Improving players' changing room, electronic scoreboard are also on the wishlist. Necessary changes will be made to the artificial turf."

Mitra said he had requested the Celebrity Management Group, the organisers of the match, to reduce the ticket prices initially pegged at Rs 1,000-Rs 50000.

However the affiliated units of the state football association will be given their quota of tickets at a reduced price, IFA Secretary Utpal Ganguli said.
Meanwhile the state sports minister directed to stop functioning of a hookah bar on the way to the stadium.

Sir Alex Ferguson prepared to spend big to make Wesley Sneijder the centrepiece of his re-shaped Manchester United side

Sir Alex Ferguson may have admitted defeat in his quest to sign stellar players such as Luka Modric, Samir Nasri and Alexis Sanchez but his refusal to give up on Wesley Sneijder shows just how important he thinks the Dutch midfielder could be as the Manchester United manager crafts what could prove to be the last team of his trophy-laden reign.




The late Sir Matt Busby famously built three teams during his reign as Manchester United manager and while Ferguson has already eclipsed his celebrated predecessor’s achievements he is aiming to repeat the trick in a bid to lead the Premier League champions back to the summit of European football next season with Sneijder the centrepiece of his masterplan.



Sir Alex has already bolstered his attacking ranks with Ashley Young and his defensive

options with Phil Jones as he looks to a long-term future without Ryan Giggs and Rio Ferdinand, but he has identified Inter and Netherlands midfielder Sneijder for the 'here and now' as he sets his sights on Champions League glory after being pipped to the trophy by Barcelona at Wembley last season.

Nationality Issue on Welbeck(Ghana or England)!!

Sunderland’s Danny Welbeck still eligible to play for Ghana despite England call-up

England have given Manchester United loanee Danny Welbeck his first call-up to the senior national side to face Ghana in an international friendly tonight at Wembley. The development is already generating debate whether the player can still opt for Ghana in future.

The Sunderland youngster was born in Manchester to Ghanaian parents and has played for England Under-17, U-18, U-19 and U-21. That made him eligible to play at the senior level for any of the two countries who are meeting for the first time at this level.

Prior to his invitation to join England, the west African nation was working fervently behind the scenes to get his signature with the likes of club and Ghanaian team mates Asamoah Gyan, John Mensah and Sulley Muntari persuading him to opt for the Black and white jersey. But the 20-year-old will now have his wish – to play for England.

Danny, who has bagged six goals in 22 league matches this season, has broken several hearts in his ancestral home with this decision. Already, the media has described it as a major blow to the 2010 World Cup quarter-finalists. Nonetheless, FIFA regulations make it possible for Ghana to still pursue the nationality switch of the winger since this is just a friendly.

Jermaine Jones' case

This brings to mind Jermaine Jones, a German-born American, who played for the U-20 side of Germany and some friendlies for the senior side, but never featured in a competitive senior match for the Europeans. Taking advantage of the FIFA rule, the 29-year-old switched nationality to join the USA in 2009. Jones was eligible for the United States due to his father's nationality.

Therefore, the four-time African champions can still go ahead and pursue the services of Welbeck if they want to because he is still eligible to feature for them as tonight’s game is a mere friendly.

This is what the regulation stipulates:

VII. Eligibility to play for representative teams

Article 15 Principle

1. Any person holding a permanent nationality that is not dependent on residence in a certain country is eligible to play for the representative teams of the Association of that country.

2. With the exception of the conditions specified in art. 18 below, any Player who has already
participated in a match (either in full or in part) in an official competition of any category or any type of football for one Association may not play an international match for a representative team of another Association.

Article 16 Nationality entitling players to represent more than one Association

1. A player who, under the terms of art. 15, is eligible to represent more than one Association on account of his nationality, may play in an international match for one of these Associations only if, in addition to having the relevant nationality, he fulfils at least one of the following conditions:

(a) He was born on the territory of the relevant Association;
(b) His biological mother or biological father was born on the territory of the relevant Association;
(c) His grandmother or grandfather was born on the territory of the relevant Association;
(d) He has lived continuously on the territory of the relevant Association for at least two years.

2. Regardless of par. 1 above, Associations sharing a common nationality may make an agreement under which item (d) of par. 1 of this article is deleted completely or amended to specify a longer time limit. Such agreements shall be lodged with and approved by the Executive Committee.

Article 17 Acquisition of a new nationality

Any player who refers to art. 15 par. 1 to assume a new nationality and who has not played international football in accordance with art. 15 par. 2 shall be eligible to play for the new
representative team only if he fulfils one of the following conditions:

(a) He was born on the territory of the relevant Association;
(b) His biological mother or biological father was born on the territory of the relevant Association;
(c) His grandmother or grandfather was born on the territory of the relevant Association;
(d) He has lived continuously for at least five years after reaching the age of 18 on the territory of the relevant Association.

Article 18 Change of Association

1. If a Player has more than one nationality, or if a Player acquires a new nationality, or if a Player is eligible to play for several representative teams due to nationality, he may, up to his 21st birthday, and only once, request to change the Association for which he is eligible to play international matches to the Association of another country of which he holds nationality, subject to the following conditions:

(a) He has not played a match (either in full or in part) in an official competition at “A" international level for his current Association, and at the time of his first full or partial appearance in an international match in an official competition for his current Association, he
already had the nationality of the representative team for which he wishes to play.

(b) He is not permitted to play for his new Association in any competition in which he has already played for his previous Association.

2. If a Player who has been fielded by his Association in an international match in accordance with art. 15 par. 2 permanently loses the nationality of that country without his consent or against his will due to a decision by a government authority, he may request permission to play for another Association whose nationality he already has or has acquired.

3. Any Player who has the right to change Associations in accordance with par. 1 and 2 above shall submit a written, substantiated request to the FIFA general secretariat. The Players' Status Committee shall decide on the request. The procedure will be in accordance with the Rules Governing the Procedures of the Players' Status Committee and the Dispute Resolution Chamber. Once the player has filed his request, he is not eligible to play for any representative team until his request has been processed.