NYHETER: Ex-player/-manager news, Part IV

[kjelvi]

Watford are to offer Middlesbrough £1million for left-winger Adam Johnson.  (The People)

Middlesbrough's Adam Johnson is the target of four Championship sides - Wolves, Burnley, Sheffield Wednesday and Watford. (The People)

Wolves manager Mick McCarthy wants to sign Middlesbrough's 20-year-old winger Adam Johnson. (Daily Star)

Crystal Palace hope to sign Middlesbrough winger Adam Johnson on loan. (The Sun)

[kjelvi]

Memory lane...



The rise and fall of Albert Johanneson

Albert Johanneson had the distinction of becoming the first black player to appear in the FA Cup Final when he stepped out at Wembley for Leeds United against Liverpool in the 1965 showpiece event. Although the game would ultimately end in defeat, the occasion was to provide the highlight of a career in which the South African faced a huge challenges, both on and off the pitch.
The cultured left-winger joined Leeds in 1961 after impressing on trial. Over the next decade he would go on to make 200 appearances for the Whites, scoring an impressive 68 goals, including two hat-tricks in European ties. Albert would no doubt have achieved even more had it not been for the fact he spent much of his career competing against the legendary Eddie Gray for a place in the side.
Affectionately dubbed the 'Black Flash', he had the ability to turn opposing defences inside out, possessing lightening quick pace and an abundance of skill. However, Johanneson was often the target of racist abuse from both fans and opponents alike. Irish star George Best paid tribute to his immense courage, saying: 'Albert was quite a brave man to actually go on the pitch in the first place, wasn't he? And he went out and did it. He had a lot of skill. A nice man as well…which is, I suppose, the more important thing, isn't it? More important than anything.'
The pressures of the abuse he had to contend with as a black footballer took their toll on Johanneson. He turned to drink to cope with his demons, undergoing treatment for alcoholism on a number of occasions. In the end it proved too big a barrier for him to overcome, ultimately costing him his life. Tragically Albert was found dead in a rundown flat in Leeds in September 1995, aged just 53.

glorygloryleedsunited.com

http://www.leedsfans.org.uk/leeds/players/207.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Johanneson
http://www.bbc.co.uk/leeds/content/articles/2005/10/12/sport_united_johanneson_inside_out_feature.shtml
http://www.southafrica.info/ess_info/sa_glance/sports/greats/albert-johanneson.htm
http://www-users.york.ac.uk/~sph2/lufc/mag/albert.htm

[kjelvi]

LIVERMORE SET FOR TIGRES EXIT
David Livermore looks as though he has played his last game for Hull due to an appearance clause in his contract. The 28-year-old midfielder moved to Oldham on deadline-day despite appearing regularly for Phil Brown's play-off-chasing side prior to his switch.
Livermore, whose contract is due to expire in the summer, would have been automatically eligible for a further year on his contract providing he reached 25 appearances for the Tigers - he left for Oldham having made 23.

Livermore extends Latics loan deal
Oldham manager John Sheridan has managed to secure the loan services of Hull midfielder David Livermore for a further month at Boundary Park.
The 28-year-old joined on a month-long deal on transfer-deadline day after making just eight starts for the Tigers this season.
Livermore has made six starts for the Latics and scored his first goal for the club in Tuesday night's 2-2 draw with Swindon.

TeamTalk

[kjelvi]

MILLER FREE TO LEAVE SUNDERLAND
Sunderland midfielder Liam Miller has been told he can leave the club.
The 27-year-old Republic of Ireland international has been told he is free to find another club 18 months after his arrival on Wearside.
Miller is currently fighting his way back to fitness after a calf injury and Sunderland manager Roy Keane had suggested last week the former Manchester United midfielder could make a possible comeback for the reserves on Wednesday evening.
Transfer regulations mean Miller could only join a Football League club on an emergency loan deal before the end of the season.

Sunderland boss Roy Keane says midfielder Liam Miller can still have a future at the club - but only if he starts to turn up for training on time. (The Sun)

Sundeland chairman Quinn won't give up on Miller  

Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn has declared Liam Miller could still have a role at the club - despite being transfer-listed by manager Roy Keane this week.
"We will back Roy 100 per cent," Quinn told Sky Sports News. "The reason we got Roy is because Roy calls it as it is, he doesn't shirk his responsibilities and he sees the big picture all the time.
"Now Liam is a terrific lad, don't get me wrong we're not throwing him out to the dogs, and maybe Liam will learn a real valuable lesson this week. Who knows, he might have a vital part to play in the run-in.
"He's still our player and I'm still going to pay him so therefore there is a lot that could happen.
"Remember Liam Miller scored one of the most important goals in the recent history of the club, against Derby last year in injury-time in what was a huge match for the football club, and he might just end up doing that again for us.
"But the way football is the lesson was very public, but that's Roy and that's why we have him."

[kjelvi]

Football League honours Armfield   


Armfield was England captain 15 times and won a total of 43 caps

Former England captain Jimmy Armfield will receive the prestigious Outstanding Contribution honour at the Football League awards ceremony.
The 72-year-old BBC broadcaster won 43 England caps and made a record 568 appearances for Blackpool.
Armfield then managed Bolton and Leeds, who he led to the 1975 European Cup final, and has been a respected BBC analyst since 1978.
He will be given the award in London on Sunday and said: "It's a great honour." 
Armfield, who captained England 15 times, has returned to broadcasting with the BBC this season as he continues his recovery from Non-Hodgkins lymphoma, a form of throat cancer.
He said: "I have been in football for 54 years and throughout my playing career, of course, I only played in The Football League.
"I look upon this Contribution to League Football Award as a great honour, especially to be recognised for something I've enjoyed doing."
Football League chairman Lord Mawhinney said: "Jimmy Armfield is a truly worthy winner of our Contribution to League Football award.
"He has been a wonderful ambassador for the Football League as a one-club man in his playing days with Blackpool, as a manager with Bolton Wanderers and Leeds United and as a much-admired broadcaster.
"Jimmy is a widely respected and popular figure across the football community. I look forward to presenting him with his award on Sunday evening."


Armfield leads out England at Wembley for a game against a Rest of the World team in January 1963

Armfield made his international debut in May 1959 against Brazil.
He played in the 1962 World Cup in Chile and was voted the best full-back in the tournament.
He was also included in the 1966 World Cup-winning squad but missed out on the tournament because of injury.
He played his final game for Blackpool in May 1971 and moved into management with Bolton, leading them to the Division Three title in 1973.
After moving to Leeds, the club were beaten 2-0 by Bayern Munich in the European Cup final in 1975.
In his time at Elland Road, Leeds never finished outside the top 10 in the League, qualified for the Uefa Cup and reached FA and League Cup semi-finals.
Armfield joined the Daily Express as a journalist after leaving Leeds, working with the paper from 1979-1991 and was awarded an OBE in 2000.

BBC

[Thomas]

Irish star George Best paid tribute to his immense courage, saying: 'Albert was quite a brave man to actually go on the pitch in the first place, wasn't he? And he went out and did it. He had a lot of skill. A nice man as well…which is, I suppose, the more important thing, isn't it? More important than anything.'
The pressures of the abuse he had to contend with as a black footballer took their toll on Johanneson. He turned to drink to cope with his demons, undergoing treatment for alcoholism on a number of occasions. In the end it proved too big a barrier for him to overcome, ultimately costing him his life. Tragically Albert was found dead in a rundown flat in Leeds in September 1995, aged just 53.

Mener også å ha lest et sted at Best tilfeldigvis møtte på Albert i Leeds en gang i forbindelse med et foredrag Best skulle holde der. Det endte opp med at de begge drakk seg full og Best dukket aldri opp på foredraget sitt.

[kjelvi]

I farta 1/3



16:51 Goal - Burnley 2 (Robbie Blake 88) Watford 2
16:37 Goal - Burnley 1 (Robbie Blake 75) Watford 1


16:31 Goal - Dundee 1 St Johnstone 1 (Jody Morris 72)


16:17 Goal - Darlington 2 (Julian Joachim 59) Brentford 0

[kjelvi]

Juande Ramos is eager to bring Aston Villa keeper Scott Carson to Tottenham as he looks to replace current number one Paul Robinson. (Various)

Tottenham want Scott Carson to solve their goalkeeping crisis. (News of the World)

http://notw.typepad.com/sport/2008/03/ramos-chases-ne.html

[kjelvi]

Juande Ramos is eager to bring Aston Villa keeper Scott Carson to Tottenham as he looks to replace current number one Paul Robinson. (Various)
Tottenham want Scott Carson to solve their goalkeeping crisis. (News of the World)

Spurs target Carson: Villa my No1 choice

Liverpool goalkeeper Scott Carson says signing permanently with Aston Villa is his priority.
Tottenham have been linked with the England international, but Carson says: "I want to settle down next season if I'm not going to be a No.1 at Liverpool. For the last four years, I've been backwards and forwards to Sheffield, Charlton and Villa, that's quite difficult.
"Villa are my No.1 choice though. It's got to be, definitely. I've had a lot of support from everyone at the club."

[kjelvi]

MILLER FREE TO LEAVE SUNDERLAND
Sunderland midfielder Liam Miller has been told he can leave the club.
The 27-year-old Republic of Ireland international has been told he is free to find another club 18 months after his arrival on Wearside.
Miller is currently fighting his way back to fitness after a calf injury and Sunderland manager Roy Keane had suggested last week the former Manchester United midfielder could make a possible comeback for the reserves on Wednesday evening.
Transfer regulations mean Miller could only join a Football League club on an emergency loan deal before the end of the season.

Sunderland boss Roy Keane says midfielder Liam Miller can still have a future at the club - but only if he starts to turn up for training on time. (The Sun)

Sundeland chairman Quinn won't give up on Miller  
Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn has declared Liam Miller could still have a role at the club - despite being transfer-listed by manager Roy Keane this week.

Liam Miller's poor timekeeping has not put off Major League Soccer's Toronto, who want him and Sunderland team-mate Ross Wallace. (Daily Star)

[Stifler]

Cardiff chairman Peter Ridsdale says the club could go into administration if they lose their court case against their creditors on March 10.

[isak]

Cardiff chairman Peter Ridsdale says the club could go into administration if they lose their court case against their creditors on March 10.

og Ridsdale gjer det igjen... heldigvis er det Cardiff det går utover no

[Roy]

Cardiff chairman Peter Ridsdale says the club could go into administration if they lose their court case against their creditors on March 10.

og Ridsdale gjer det igjen... heldigvis er det Cardiff det går utover no

Dette har han taket på 

[kjelvi]

Celtic boss Gordon Strachan's job is safe even if he fails to win the SPL this season, according to Bhoys chief executive Peter Lawwell. (Daily Record)

Micky Adams, Paul Simpson and Chris Casper are competing for the vacant manager's job at Shrewsbury. (Star)

Micky Adams will be interviewed for the vacant Shrewsbury manager's job. (Daily Mail)

Ipswich could try to sign Fulham striker David Healy on loan. (Daily Mail)

[kjelvi]

Football League honours Armfield   

Former England captain Jimmy Armfield will receive the prestigious Outstanding Contribution honour at the Football League awards ceremony.
The 72-year-old BBC broadcaster won 43 England caps and made a record 568 appearances for Blackpool.
Armfield then managed Bolton and Leeds, who he led to the 1975 European Cup final, and has been a respected BBC analyst since 1978.

Jimmy Armfield: My soft spot for Leeds United

In London on Sunday evening, Jimmy Armfield was honoured for half-a-century of involvement in English football with a special award from the Football League.
Armfield was the man charged with redressing the disorderly regime of Brian Clough at Leeds United in the 1970s, and for that alone he deserved a medal.
But recognition of his 54 years within the sport was not something he especially craved.
"Throughout my life I've been paid to do something I enjoy," he said. "That makes me privileged."
Armfield, as history shows, did not receive a medal at Leeds. A contentious defeat in the 1975 European Cup final saw to that.
In so nearly becoming the first English manager to win the continental trophy, however, he displayed the traits of a man who liked to see what life could offer him.
While a member of the squad at Blackpool, the only league club he would play for, Armfield would regularly undertake shifts at his local newspaper, the Evening Gazette, to train him for a future career in journalism.
When Leeds United dispensed with him in 1978 after four years as their manager, he did not look for another managerial position but instead accepted a job with the Daily Express.
It was a sabbatical from which he never returned and next year will begin his third decade in radio, an industry which currently employs the 72-year-old as one of BBC Five Live's matchday summarisers.
"I'm what you'd call a busy person," Armfield said. "There was always
something on the go.
"Back in the 1960s, while I was still playing, I took my FA coaching
badges at a time when they weren't really in vogue. I would also spend three evenings a week at the Evening Gazette because in my mind I imagined that once I finished playing I'd become a journalist. That was the plan.
"But Bolton Wanderers asked me to be their manager in 1971, and a short
while later I took the job at Leeds. I'd turned down a different offer to manage Everton. It's a long time ago now, and a different part of my life, but I look back on it fondly.
"I've got a soft spot for Leeds as a club and I liked the city; the people were very good to me. And in the main I thought I did well."
Armfield was United's antidote to the poison spread through Leeds by the most ill-conceived managerial appointment ever seen at Elland Road.
Clough presided over the club for 44 torrid days, working in the shadow of the renowned Don Revie for as long as he could stand it.
For all his precocious talent, the idiosyncrasies of Clough were not compatible with Elland Road and Armfield was appointed in October 1974 with Leeds submerged near the bottom of the first division.
To his eternal credit, United finished the 1974-75 season eight points behind the league winners, Derby County, and navigated their way to the European Cup final by disposing of Anderlecht and Barcelona in earlier rounds.
Armfield has discussed United's 2-0 defeat to Bayern Munich in the final too many times to re-live it again but the city of Leeds, and more besides, believed the club had been critically hindered by the ineptitude of the match referee.
Supporters at the Parc des Princes in Paris ripped out seats from the terraces, and United were subsequently banned from European competitions for two years.
Armfield would have been the first Englishman to manage a European Cup-winning team, an honour which fell instead to Clough with Nottingham Forest four years later. By then, the mess Clough had left behind at Elland Road was a more faded memory.
"The first job for me was to get the Leeds team back on its feet," said Armfield. "That didn't actually take a great deal of doing.
"The players were very experienced, and they knew their way around England and Europe.
"I'd won a number of England caps and I had more international experience than some of them, but when it came to European experience, they all had more than me. I was working with a squad that should have been doing much better than they were under Brian.
"We got to the European Cup final, and I've always felt we were robbed on the night. What should have been a great day wasn't such a great day in the end.
"I then had the difficult job of breaking up the great team that Don Revie had built. I brought in guys like Tony Currie from Sheffield United and Brian Flynn from Burnley, and I also signed John Hawley from Hull City.
"John's a player who sticks out in my mind because I never actually saw him play for Leeds. He came to us in 1978, and the board decided to let my contract run out later that summer.
"Personally I felt that we were going along nicely, but the club thought differently. I remember after one defeat, when we'd dropped to around seventh in the division, the chairman called a board meeting for the Monday morning.
"The gist of the discussion was him asking me what on earth was going on and whether the team had had it. I was slightly amazed, to say the least, and I said 'you do lose in football, you know'. After four years there, my contract wasn't extended."
Remarkably, United's selection for Armfield's successor was to prove as great a misjudgement as that which brought Clough to Leeds in 1974.
Jock Stein, like Clough, seduced the board at Leeds with his impeccable history and his successful association with Celtic in Glasgow, and a deal was brokered in August of 1978. Two months later, and after a reign which ran for just a day longer than Clough's, Stein uprooted abruptly and accepted an offer to become Scotland's manager.
"The Leeds job wasn't for Jock," said Armfield. "I thought that when he took it, but at that point he didn't have a job.
"He phoned me to ask me about Leeds and I basically told him that the club was ready for him to walk into. There was nothing to do except pick the team up and carry on.
"I suppose the biggest task for me had been to get rid of the sour feeling that existed at Leeds when Brian (Clough) left. For two Christmases running, I got the players to take part in a pantomime at the City Varieties Music Hall in Leeds, and we filled out all our nights there.
"People warned me that there'd be jokes about a pantomime off the pitch and a pantomime on it, but it was that type of thing that removed the sour taste. It needed to be done."
Leeds have been involved in a similar battle for hearts and minds this season, forced to salvage public opinion after administration and relegation from the Championship last summer.
Armfield, who has made a steady recovery after being diagnosed with throat cancer last year, is philosophical about United's league position, as unlikely and unfitting as it seems for a club who were one rung and a competent referee away from the top of Europe's ladder 33 years ago.
"You can argue that Leeds are too big for their division," Armfield said. "But Nottingham Forest would say the same.
"You are where you are, and the sooner a club realises that and accepts the platform they're building from, the sooner the tide will turn. Bad situations are there to be improved."
There speaks a man who knows.

YP

[Thomas]

Flott artikkel om Armfield. Keep 'em coming kjelvi

[kjelvi]

Morecambe fail with Ormerod bid: No deal for Preston striker
Morecambe boss Sammy McIlroy has admitted defeat in his bid to bring Preston striker Brett Ormerod to Christie Park on loan.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brett_Ormerod

[berlin]

Morecambe fail with Ormerod bid: No deal for Preston striker



Morecambe boss Sammy McIlroy has admitted defeat in his bid to bring Preston striker Brett Ormerod to Christie Park on loan.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brett_Ormerod

Nå har Brett Ormerod akkurat signet for Forest ( lån ut sesongen )

http://www.nottinghamforest.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10308~1259177,00.html

[kjelvi]

Sports chief adds support for YEP Give Les A Medal campaign


Les Cocker.

Sports minister Gerry Sutcliffe has thrown his weight behind the campaign for the late Leeds United trainer Les Cocker to be recognised for his part in England's 1966 World Cup triumph.
Les did not get a winner's medal in '66, despite being one of England manager Alf Ramsey's key backroom men during the tournament.
Alf and his other main aide, Middlesbrough trainer Harold Shepherdson, also missed out because at that time the only people who received World Cup medals were the players who appeared in the final.
Now, though, world soccer's governing body Fifa is coming under mounting pressure from fans and ex-football stars to reward the trio posthumously. And their calls for action were today backed by Mr Sutcliffe, MP for Bradford South.
He said: "Winning the World Cup in '66 was this country's finest sporting moment. These days, players, coaches and physios rightly get medals as recognition of their role. I think it would be great if Fifa gives them the recognition they deserve. They were an integral part of the team."
Dad-of-three Les, who died in 1979 aged 55, combined his work in the England set-up with a full-time coaching job at Leeds.

YEP

[Thomas]

http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/Les-Cocker-family-It39s-time.3856585.jp

Tror også det var denne karen som drev med en stafettøvelse på en Leedstrening som er å se på Leeds-videoen "The glory years 65-75"

[kjelvi]

Fulham striker David Healey is wanted by Hull and Ipswich. (The People)

Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand is ready to commit himself to the club by signing a new contract that will keep him at Old Trafford for the rest of his career. (Sunday Mirror)

[kjelvi]

Harry Redknapp is set to offer Mark Viduka a summer switch to Portsmouth. (The People)

[kjelvi]

Former England managers Terry Venables and Steve McClaren are locked in a battle to become the new director of football at Sheffield United, while Graham Taylor is also in with a shout. (Various)

CRYNE: NO RIDSDALE LEGACY
Barnsley owner Patrick Cryne has hit out at Cardiff chairman Peter Ridsdale ahead of next month's FA Cup semi-final encounter between the sides.
Ridsdale had a 12-month reign as Barnsley chairman after he was introduced to the club by Cryne in 2003.
http://www.sportinglife.com/football/transfer_centre/nw_story_get.cgi?STORY_NAME=soccer/08/03/11/manual_101000.html

BLUEBIRDS GEAR UP FOR ANOTHER BATTLE
Cardiff chairman Peter Ridsdale admits the "future of the club is at stake" when their court case with creditors Langston comes to a head on Wednesday.
http://www.sportinglife.com/football/transfer_centre/nw_story_get.cgi?STORY_NAME=soccer/08/03/11/SOCCER_Cardiff_Ridsdale.html

[kjelvi]

Steve Claridge - Scouting report:
Danny Graham, Carlisle United



The young striker has struggled to settle in the past but he and Carlisle look a match made in heaven
Danny Graham's performance in the recent game between Nottingham Forest and Carlisle was a tough one to judge, but in the end he came through with flying colours. Both Carlisle and Graham made a slow start to the match, but the longer it went on the more he and his team-mates showed why they have been doing so well this season.
Graham played up front on his own for the most part and, particularly early on, was left to feed on scraps as Forest took the initiative and applied a lot of pressure. He reminded me of a boy I played with at Millwall called Richard Sadlier. He's not as good - few will be - but he has the same manner that can lull the crowd and, in particular, the opposition into a false sense of security. He is quicker than he looks, better in the air that you'd give him credit for and his fitness never wavered as this specific game wore on.
It took a while for him to retain possession and his hold-up play and positioning from clearances left a little bit to be desired at first, but it didn't take him long to get the pace of the game. It was then that his touch and vision, particularly from one-touch play, set him apart.
He must have played in this role before because his choice of when to exert energy and close down defenders and when to conserve that energy was good. The same can be said for his awareness of people running off him. Players can get frustrated when the support isn't great and they get isolated for long periods in a game. Graham never let his head go down and made the most of the service he received.
Early in the game, when Carlisle did cross the ball he was the only man in the box, meaning he had no chance of scoring. He was prepared to go short for throw-ins and link play in the midfield area. These duties were done very much for the team, which surprised me as I had been led to believe that this was an out-and-out goalscorer in the making. It was pleasing to see a far more rounded player.
He was prepared to work right across Forest's back four and to pick the ball up wide and run at people. He was a threat over the top and is big enough to unsettle defenders in the air. He has real understanding and appreciation of a pass and is always trying to give as good a ball as possible. When Carlisle crossed from wide areas he was very quick to recognise the space at the near or far post. Another pleasing aspect of his game was that he never switched off, even when the ball wasn't in the vicinity. It was from one such occasion that he - more than anyone else - anticipated an opportunity when Forest's goalkeeper and defender got in each other's way. He benefited by scoring a real striker's goal from an acute angle. This proved to be the winner.
It has taken him a while to settle down, as he was loaned out to five different teams by Middlesbrough. He struggled to make an impression with any side apart from Carlisle, but now he has found a club that really does like him and is settling in well. On the evidence of his display against Forest it was not hard to see why.

Age 22
Born Gateshead
Position Forward
Height 5ft 11in
Weight 12st 5lb
From Trainee, Middlesbrough Awareness 9/10
Heading 8/10
Pace 8/10
Shooting 8/10
Passing 8/10
Team responsibility 8/10
Valuation £750,000

Guardian

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Graham_%28footballer%29

[kjelvi]

Ex-player Jonathan Woodgate har den tvilsomme æren å være tema for denne ukas 'The Gallery' i The Guardian:


Neil Pollock riffs on a slam dunkin' classic. Perhaps Chelsea and Spurs should heed the words of Gloria Clemente (played by Rosie Perez): "Sometimes when you win, you really lose, and sometimes when you lose, you really win." Profound. Though not always accurate. On this occasion Spurs won. End of.


This is slightly unsettling. "Oh my God! The Carling Cup! That is like SO HOT!!" pants Mark Boyd.


"Winning trophies was scant reward for Woodgate, because for him, the seen could never be unseen," writes Leo Byrne. Have we missed something? What's so bad about the sight of Robbie Keane eating beefburgers?


"Frustrated he can’t find a decent gaff in London, perhaps Woodgate could lighten his search by losing a bit of the junk collected at former clubs," cackles Sean Kearney.


Rob Schofield reckons Sir Trev could now have a rival in the most-boring-anecdote stakes.


"Jonathan wondered to himself why Spurs had such a bad record with injuries as he visited their training facilities," murmurs Andrew Ferguson darkly, holding a torch to his chin.


"Cheer up Woody, you've just won the Carling Cup," barks Alan Neill.

[Sleivind]

Ikke akkurat ex-players, men tar de med:

Weston på benken for Scunthorpe

Westlake fra start for Brighton

Constantine fra start for Oldham

[kjelvi]

I farta 11/3



21:25 Goal - Sheff Utd 2 (Gary Speed 78) Coventry 0


20:58 Goal - Preston 0 Wolverhampton 1 (Andrew Keogh 52)


20:43 Goal - Scunthorpe 1 (Ian Morris 55) Plymouth 0


20:03 Goal - Notts County 0 Lincoln City 1 (Jamie Forrester 16)

[kjelvi]

Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill is planning a £8million summer swoop for Newcastle winger James Milner.  (Daily Mirror)

[kjelvi]

Ricketts - on trial at Southampton.

RICKETTS GIVEN SAINTS TRIAL
Former England striker Michael Ricketts has been handed the opportunity to resurrect his career by Southampton manager Nigel Pearson.
The 29-year-old ex-Bolton and Middlesbrough forward, whose solitary international cap came in a friendly against Holland in 2002, is a free agent after being released by Oldham in January.
Pearson, who wants to boost Saints' firepower to help steer clear of the Championship drop zone, has given Ricketts a week-long trial at St Mary's.
"It can never hurt to have a look at players and with Michael's record I felt he was someone worth looking at," Pearson told the club's official website.
"He is a free agent so we invited him down to have a look at him in training. He's here for the week and we'll see how it goes."

PA Sport

[lojosang]

Ricketts - on trial at Southampton.

Herlig ironisk skjorte han har på seg, denne Ricketts