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Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly today praised his fast bowlersfor the discipline they showed in the second Test but said somethingneeded to be done about their seeming inability to polish off thetail. “I think it is creating a bit of a problem for us. We will tryto do something about this (in the third Test) in Colombo,” he saidreferring to Muthiah Muralitharan’s blistering knock of 67 whichenabled Sri Lanka to fight back from 157 for nine to 221 in theirsecond innings.Ganguly rated his own match-winning knock of 98 as one of the betterones and said his prolonged poor run with the bat had been hurtinghim. “I think it is one of my better Test knocks because it helpedIndia win,” Ganguly said referring to his brilliant knock which toolIndia to a seven-wicket win in the second Test against Sri Lanka.Ganguly, who had gone without a half-century in the last 13 innings ina frustrating poor trot, finally got his act together and played abrilliant innings yesterday. “The lack of runs was very upsetting,especially since I am the captain,” he said. Ganguly’s scintillatingknock was blemished by two dropped catches but the Indian captain feltit was only justified as he has had a number of hard decisions in therecent past. “It’s all equal now.”Meanwhile, Sri Lankan captain Sanath Jayasuriya refused to accept thatKandy was a jinxed venue for his team which has lost the last threematches on this ground. Every time they have squandered a 1-0 leadtaken in Galle. “We can’t complain about this venue. Just because weare not playing well, we can’t put the blame on the venue,” he said.Jayasuriya insisted that it was below-par performance by the batsmenthat let the team down. “This is bound to happen if the batsmen arenot performing. We got a lead of 42 runs in the first innings and thenthrew it away,” said the captain who himself failed to impress scoringthree and six in the two innings.He said the turning point of the match was when Sri Lanka lost fourwickets in the opening session on the third day and hoped that in thedeciding Test in Colombo, his team would come up with a performancesimilar to the one in the first Test in Galle. “We have to playpositive cricket in Colombo, like we did in Galle. The batsmen have abig responsibility,” he concluded.

Martin O’Neill will be hoping he can maintain Sunderland’s renaissance by leading his side to victory at Chelsea in a similar manner to that of his predecessor Steve Bruce last season.

The Black Cats ran out 3-0 winners at Stamford Bridge last season hammering the first nail into the coffin of former Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti. His replacement Andre Villas-Boas has endured a testing start to his tenure in West London seeing his side exit the title race before the New Year and perform way below the expectations of owner Roman Abramovich. Their form over Christmas was indifferent once again with three wins followed by a similar number of draws before the home defeat at the hands of Aston Villa put more pressure on the shoulders of Villas-Boas. However his side started 2012 off in the best possible manner as winning at Wolves to stay in touch with Tottenham in third. Despite securing victory the game highlighted their defensive vulnerabilities once again with David Luiz failing to inspire confidence yet again although Gary Cahill’s imminent arrival should push the Brazilian to the sidelines. Still, they’ll need to improve at the back if they are to avoid another embarrassing defeat at the hands of rejuvenated Sunderland.

Relegation is a forgotten term on Wearside after the arrival of O’Neill after he led them to four wins from six over Christmas to catapult the Black Cats into the top half. The Irishman has worked wonders since agreeing to replace in Bruce bagging the manager of the month award for December and providing a huge lift to both football club and city. Whatever the former Aston Villa man has done at the Stadium of Light the effect has bred instant results giving supporters cause to look up rather than down in 2012. Their rapid change in fortunes has stunned a lot of doubters who predicted O’Neill’s task would be harder than he had anticipated. Despite losing against Tottenham in his second game in charge wins over Blackburn, Wigan, QPR and sandwich the stunning victory over league leaders Manchester City on New Years Day. The sheer grit and determination displayed by Sunderland in that game was indicative of the effect their new manager has had on the players. His decision to promote youngster James McLean into the starting lineup has been inspired whilst his well-documented man management skills are now getting the best out of Lee Cattermole. The Black Cats skipper has been instrumental in the clubs rise up the table in December and will be expected to rough Chelsea up on Saturday.

Chelsea 4th : 37 points

Last six: W L D D D W

Team news: Chelsea will be without leading scorer Daniel Sturridge who has a thigh injury. Jon Obi Mikel and Branislav Ivanovic also remain out.

Key Player: Juan Mata

A terrific start to life in England has seen Mata become one of the most feared wide men in the Premier League and he’ll be hoping 2012 will be just as good. His intelligent movement from his left midfield berth causes mayhem and Sunderland will need to be wary of his penchant to drift inside.

Sunderland 10th : 24 points

Team news: Martin O’Neill will be without key defenders Wes Brown and Titus Bramble meaning Matt Kilgallon is likely to keep his place.

Key Player: Lee Cattermole

We’re seeing a new side to usually ill disciplined Cattermole with a change of management bringing the best out of Sunderland’s skipper. His bulldozing displays in a withdrawn midfield role gives the back four some much-needed protection that will be vital against a rampaging Chelsea side.

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PREDICTION

Although their title hopes are all but shot Chelsea still harbour ambitions of a top four finish and should have enough to see off a Sunderland side born again under Martin O’Neill.

Score: 2-1

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Goals will be at a premium for Sunderland when they tackle Fulham at home on Saturday.The Black Cats go into the match without a recognised senior striker, after Asamoah Gyan and Danny Welbeck picked up hamstring strains in the 4-2 win over Wigan last Saturday.

They join long-term casualty Fraizer Campbell on the injury list, leaving boss Steve Bruce with 19-year-old rookie Ryan Noble, who has yet to start a first-team game, as his only available out-and-out striker.

“It looks like we will be without Welbeck and Gyan for the rest of the season now, which is a massive blow,” Bruce told the Sunderland Chronicle.

“Danny has already gone back to Man United because they want to assess him.”

“He will not come back to us unless they can get it 100 per cent right, say in time for the last game of the season against West Ham, but that is unlikely given how close to the end of the season we are.”

“Gyan has had a scan and we are still waiting for that report.”

But on-loan Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha insists there is no need to panic despite the striker crisis.

Onuoha points to the performances of Stephane Sessegnon and Steed Malbranque, who were pressed into action as emergency forwards against the Latics, as a sign that Sunderland will cope.

“Being at home on Saturday, the emphasis is on us to win the game, whether we have any of the big-name strikers or not.”

“It’ll be the time for someone to go and step up because we’ve relied on the strikers too much to score goals this season.”

Fulham, meanwhile, can contemplate another season in the top flight after beating Bolton 3-0 at Craven Cottage on Wednesday.

On New Year’s Day Fulham were 18th in the Premier League table and looking bound for the Championship.

But since defeating West Bromwich Albion on January 4 they have not returned to the relegation zone and now hold ninth position.

“I’ve always said my teams are always stronger in the second half of the season,” manager Mark Hughes said.
“That’s because of the work we do [with the players] on a daily basis. I’ve said before that we are a top-10 team and now it’s up to us to stay there.”

A goal in each half from Clint Dempsey and a third from Brede Hangeland gave the home side the points in their first outing at the Cottage since a 3-0 win over Blackpool at the start of the month.

Dempsey is confident his team can continue on their winning ways against Sunderland.

“We’re in the top half and it’s always better to be looking up than looking down,” the US international told the Fulham website.

“Hopefully we can keep pushing on from here and finish in the top half, because I think we’re a top half team and if we’d have had a few more results we’d be even higher than we are.”

“So we just need to keep pushing, keep working hard and hopefully we can add some away wins to help us in that aim.”

“There are still four games left and you don’t want to be stressing come the last game, so we’re trying not to think about slipping down the table.”

“We’re trying to look up because we feel that we have the quality to be a team in the top half, and that’s the main goal now with four games left.”

Joe Cole’s move to Liverpool was one of the more exciting summer transfers. Initially expected to join a club offering Champions League football he opted for a side he depicted as ‘the biggest in the country.’ His arrival was a timely boost for the fans, team-mates and the manager. Roy Hodgson certainly has faith in the England international, handing him a four year deal and the coveted No10 shirt. He wore the same jersey at Chelsea but it has renewed symbolism for the West Ham academy graduate. Traditionally it is the shirt adopted by a team’s central playmaker, the creator who can unlock defences and support strikers and wide men through incisive passing. It remains his favoured position but will he flourish in this crucial role?

It is not a sentiment shared by Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti who upon signing former Liverpool player Yossi Benayoun said, “Tactically Yossi is better. He understands what I tell him.” Fellow Italian Fabio Capello additionally had little fiath in deploying Cole as a playmaker or second striker at the World Cup. It is, however, an ambiguous position with a contested definition. The Guardian’s Jonathan Wilson has attempted to explain the background of this position and believes it has returned to prominence because of the widely used 4-2-3-1 system employed in South Africa. Mesut Ozil, Xavi and Wesley Sneijder all played in this role, acting as a creator in a line of three behind a main striker. In recent times it has been a position cultivated by the likes of Riquelme, Maradona, Gullit, Zidane, Mancini and Zola.

It is agreed that the No10 provides the link between defence and attack. A player embued with this sizeable task must have specific characteristics. Contributing with goals is welcome but it is pivotal to use skill, dribbling and inventive passing when supplying the forwards and wingers. The creative hub of the team cannot merely rely on skill and technique as spatial awareness, the ability to keep possession and wait before supplying that surprise pass, is essential. It is a role associated with flair and artistry and is often viewed as a luxury which many clubs cannot afford. Yet it is the job envisaged for Cole and one endorsed by Steven Gerrard who has shifted to a deeper midfield role to accommodate him.

The Liverpool and England captain has no doubts over Cole’s creative abilities comparing him to Lionel Messi. At Chelsea he was invariably played on the wing where he could exhibit his skills but was not the quickest. But how has he fared in his preferred position? Most pundits are united in the view that that he could not have got off to a worse start at Anfield. He was sent off on his league debut after a reckless lunge on Arsenal’s Laurent Koscielny. It was a clumsy challenge typical of a player eager to impress and assert his authority on the game. Whilst on the pitch his movement behind David N’Gog was too static against a high Arsenal defensive line. He failed to unsettle their defence or find space to receive the ball and then locate a forward pass.

Against Trabzonspor in the Europa League last week the No10 missed a penalty, the first he had taken in his professional career. Away from the spot he was periodically frustrated, dropping ever deeper to receive the ball from Lucas Lavier and Christian Poulsen thereby stretching the midfield and forward lines. There were glimpses of his creative, attacking play as he spun away from the defence and assisted Ryan Babel with a beautifully weighted ball which the Dutchman calmly dispatched. The focus will be on Cole again for the away leg tonight in the absence of Gerrard, Fernando Torres and Milan Jovanovic. The anxiety to impress has suppressed Cole at Liverpool so far. It may take time to relearn this difficult position before he can prove Ancelotti wrong.

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Antonio Valencia’s agent has confirmed that Juventus are interested in signing the South American in January, but he has no thoughts of leaving Manchester United.

The Ecuador international has found first-team opportunities more of a commodity this term due to the summer signing of Ashley Young, and reports in Italy have detailed that the Turin giants will make a move for the winger come the new year.

Despite this, the former Wigan wideman’s representative has confirmed that the player has no intentions of leaving Old Trafford, and is eager to fight his way back into Sir Alex Ferguson’s starting XI.

“I am aware of rumours of Juventus’ interest, but he is very happy in Manchester and I see it as very difficult that he leaves United,” Diego Herrera Larrea told Mirror Football.

“Antonio recently signed a new four-year deal, and both he and his family are settled and well living in the city, and playing for a big club.

“For my part, there is nothing concrete. There has been interest from Italy, but I don’t think that Juve has spoken with United because I was not informed – though I cannot exclude it as a possibility,” he concluded.

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By Gareth McKnight

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Celtic increased their lead at the top of the Scottish Premier League to five points on Saturday with a 1-0 win over St Mirren at Parkhead.Kris Commons scored the only goal of the game with 12 minutes remaining to hand the Celts full points, after they struggled to break down a resolute Saints defence.

The win moves Celtic five points clear of second-placed Rangers – who play Hamilton on Sunday – while St Mirren remain second from the bottom.

Fourth-placed Dundee United continued their good run of form with a 2-0 win over St Johnstone at Tannadice, moving five points clear of Kilmarnock in the race for the final Europa League qualifying berth.

A week after his side beat Rangers 3-2 at Ibrox, Johnny Russell gave the hosts the lead on the stroke of half-time, before David Robertson made sure of the result five minutes from the end.

Kilmarnock did their cause no favours when they were held to a 1-1 draw at home against Inverness, Liam Kelly cancelling out Jonathan Hayes’ opener for the visitors.

Hibernian climbed to eighth with a 1-0 win over Aberdeen, courtesy of an Akpo Sodje goal after 15 minutes, while third-placed Hearts could only gain one point on Rangers as they played out a 0-0 draw with sixth-placed Motherwell at Tynecastle.

West Bromwich Albion have signed former loan striker Marc-Antoine Fortune on a two-year contract from Celtic for an undisclosed fee.

The 29-year-old spent the second half of the 2008-09 season at The Hawthorns, scoring five times in 18 games before opting to head north to join the Bhoys.

However, Fortune is now back in the Black Country, with boss Roberto Di Matteo telling the club's official website:"I'm delighted to welcome Marco back to the club.

"The great thing about this signing is that it won't take him long to settle in because he knows the club inside out. He also knows what this league is all about.

"Marc got on really well with the other players during his loan here and they're all delighted to see him back.

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"He is a powerful striker who can hold the ball up and bring others into play and having also signed Peter Odemwingie last week, we now have plenty of competition up front."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

Football fans are often accused of having a short memory and it’s never as short as when it comes goalkeepers. Never has the potential to go from hero to zero been more possible than when playing between the sticks. Not only are individual errors remembered for all time (Massimo Taibi, Rob Green, Paul Robinson, etc) but it takes an age for their good form to be recognised. Much like the defensive midfielders in the game they are often the unsung heroes of the team. They rarely grab the headlines and you’d struggle to find many people willing to buy a goalkeeper’s jersey given the choice. However that doesn’t make them any less important, keeping out goals is just as important as scoring them and there’s no substitute for a world-class goalie.

One way you can prove this is by the defensive records of the Premier League winning teams. People tend to forget the defensive side to title winning teams more often than they forget their scoring exploits but since 2000 the team that has conceded the least in the league has won the title seven times, the same amount of times as those teams that have scored the most. And whilst the defence obviously plays its part in that behind every good defence is a world-class keeper. In that period the goalkeepers behind those league titles have been Edwin van de Sar, Petr Cech, Jens Lehmann, Fabien Barthez and David Seaman. All national goalkeepers, all world-class players.

But what is even more interesting is that the defensive side to the game appears to be becoming more important than ever. If we compare the league winners since 2000 to those in the ten years previous then we can see a remarkable difference. In the decade before 2000 only two of the title winners had the best defensive record. All this denotes a huge change in tactics over the last two decades in England and as big a part as the defenders have to play the goalkeeper is vital to how they play.

Take Arsenal’s unbeaten season for example; yes they had a good defence but the authority with which Jens Lehmann organised the defence was vital. Similarly at Newcastle this season, their defence is far from world class but having Tim Krul behind them makes their job that much easier. Newcastle have only conceded fifteen goals so far this season, a record that only the Manchester clubs can better and a lot of the praise has been heading Collocini’s way but after watching Krul’s performances against Chelsea and current champions Man Utd can you really say that their position would be as healthy without the Dutchman. His performances throughout the season have been remarkable yet it has taken until now for pundits to pick up on it at all.

Similarly Joe Hart has been on the form of his life this season. Manchester City’s defensive record is the best in the league so far this year but player for player their defenders are not the best in the league. What makes them so effective? Joe Hart. Before Szczesny Arsenal were enjoying a torrid time defensively in domestic competitions and as much as that was down to their style of play it was also down to their goalkeeper. Their defenders during this time were actually very good (Toure, Gallas, Vermaelen, Clichy, Sagna) but the lack of confidence that they played with was born out of a mistrust of the abilities of Fabianski and Almunia. Similarly Ledley King recently spoke about how although Parker is getting most of the credit for his defensive work at Spurs new keeper Brad Friedel has done wonders for the team. King championed both his calming presence and his experience as vital factors is Tottenham’s defensive stability this season. It’s not just at the top of the table either where it counts. Does anyone really think that Wigan would have stayed up last year had it not been for the season-long heroics of Ali Al Habsi who, game after game, made vital contributions to the cause; far more than Wigan’s strikers did arguably. Goalie will always be the position that no kid wants to play in the park, and who’d blame them, but that doesn’t mean we should go through life ignoring their applaudable exploits and scrutinising every mistake they make. Hart, Krul and Szczesny are proving themselves to be three of the best young keepers in world football at the moment, perhaps it’s about time fans started to take notice.

For more news and stories follow me on Twitter @H_Mackay

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Cruzeiro took the outright lead at the top of the Copa Libertadores Group 7 table with a 2-0 win over Guarani in Asuncion.The Brazilian outfit took the lead in the 17th minute through Thiago Ribeiro, and Cuca’s men sealed the three points when Jose Ortigoza doubled their lead in the 92nd minute.

For the Paraguayans, it was their fifth loss in as many games and it will keep them anchored to the bottom of the group table.

In the remaining Group 7 clash, Deportes Tolima were held to a 1-1 draw with Estudiantes at their Estadio Manuel Murillo Toro home in Ibague.

The visiting Argentines went ahead after 23 minutes when Federico Fernandez scored, but the Colombians equalised eight minutes later from the penalty spot through Felipe Noguera.

Estudiantes are in second spot in the group, three points from leaders Cruzeiro, while Deportes Tolima have taken five points from five games.

Internacional thrashed 10-man Jorge Wilstermann 3-0 at the Estadio Jose Pinherio Borba in Beira-Rio in their Group 6 encounter.

Oscar, Andres D’Alessandro and Ze Roberto all got on the scoresheet for the Brazilians, and Lucas Fernandez was sent off for the Bolivian club.

Internacional remain top of the group on 10 points, while Jorge Wilstermann prop the group up with no points from four matches.

Despite Manchester City’s shopping, not many Premier League clubs have flaunted cash as you may have expected given recent trends and Spur’s Harry Redknapp is now said to be considering loan deals as opposed to buying players outright.

His decision is somewhat questionable with the inflated ambitions that attach themselves to Spurs’ qualification to the Champions League but it would hardly be outrageous to suggest that it is a decision dictated by the current market.

Football clubs finances are set for much scrutiny with business experts warning that the current level of spending is simply not sustainable and UEFA have implemented “Financial Fair Play”.  The financial fair play rules will require clubs to break even over a rolling three-year period if they want to play in the Champions League or Europa League.

It is unlikely we will see a huge increase in spending from top flight clubs from now until the window slams shut on 31st August and it may be a shrewd move from Redknapp if he can acquire the talents to which he has been linked with.

Craig Bellamy was arguably one of Manchester City’s best players last season and would be a major coup on loan, whilst Klaas Jan Huntelaar will fancy a crack at the Premier League after a frustrating time at the San Siro with AC Milan. His desire to succeed in what is often touted as the world’s best football league will no doubt be intensified by the mere nature of the deal.  Often clubs get the best out of player through loaning him with a view to a permanent contract if the player performs well and Redknapp will hope it will be no different if a deal can be struck.

The White Hart Lane chief will continue undeterred despite the fact he has seen a loan move for AC Milan striker Klaas Jan Huntelaar rejected and an almost cheeky £4million bid for Manchester City marksman Craig Bellamy turned down believing that the waiting game will pay dividends.

“If we can pull off the deals you are talking about £8million or £9million for three players. Loans would certainly be a real possibility.

“People are going to loan players from all over the world; there will be loads because clubs are struggling to pay the wages. There will be high earners they have to loan out” he said.

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In what appears to be mere shadow on the usual transfer merry-go-round Redknapp’s style of wheeling and dealing may play right into Tottenham’s hands as he looks to strike a stable balance between the quality of player and financially sensible deals.