Arsenal will have Tomas Rosicky available
again following a hamstring injury for Tuesday night's Champions League
clash with Napoli.
The news of Rosicky's return comes as a boost to boss Arsene
Wenger, who still has a number of key players missing as the Gunners
look to build on their impressive start to the season.
Elsewhere,
England forward Theo Walcott has responded well to surgery on a minor
abdominal problem, but is now set for up to five weeks recovery time.
Spanish
ace Santi Cazorla (ankle), Yaya Sanogo (back), Lukas Podolski
(hamstring), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Abou Diaby (both knee) are all
still sidelined.
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho’s decision to send Romelu Lukaku
could be his biggest mistake – but Everton are reaping the rewards.
Romelu
Lukaku was described by Everton manager Roberto Martinez as
“unplayable” in his team’s 3-2 victory over Newcastle United at Goodison
Park, and it was hard to disagree.
The Belgium international scored twice and provided an assist for
youngster Ross Barkley, and his acquisition by Everton on a season long
loan already looks one of the best signings of the summer.
Players that provide the creativity for their teams to succeed.
In
modern football the No.10 plays such a prominent role and the Premier
League boasts some of the finest playmakers in the world.
Santi Cazorla – Arsenal
The
Spaniard has been injured for much of this season and is yet to play a
match with club record signing Mesut Ozil – a mouthwatering prospect for
Gunners fans.
When the Champions League group stage was drawn back in August, the bringing together of Arsenal and Napoli in Group F looked likely to provide two matches of anguish for fans of the North London club.
Paolo Bruno/Getty Images
Higuain slipped through Arsenal's finger-tips in August and is now lighting up Serie A.
Romelu Lukaku, the striker Jose
Mourinho didn’t want at Chelsea, continued his sensational start to life
on loan at Everton with two more goals last night.
The
big Belgian 20-year-old starred as Everton ripped Newcastle United
apart in the first half to pile more pressure on manager Alan Pardew.
And Goodison boss Roberto Martinez revealed that Chelsea do not have an option to recall Lukaku. ‘You need to remember the strikers Chelsea have,’ said Martinez. Scroll down for video
Bayer Leverkusen are battling to keep hold of Arsenal target Lars Bender.
The Daily Star says Bender is a major transfer target for Arsenal, but is also admired by Manchester United who are under renewed pressure since their weekend defeat against West Brom.
But both Premier League rivals have been told by Bayer Leverkusen with general manager Michael Reschke insisting the Bundesliga club have no plans to let the 24-year-old leave.
"We have no intention to sell Lars," Reschke told Kicker when asked about Bender.
Manchester United will hand David Moyes £50 million to spend in January.
United owners the Glazers recognise the Premier League has become
more competitive this season, with their immediate rivals having made
significant investment in their squads, and are willing to hand Moyes
the cash he needs, says the Mirror.
Although United were reluctant to meet Athletic Bilbao midfielder Ander
Herrera’s £31m buy-out clause in the last window, despite tracking him
for two-and-a-half years, their poor start to the season may persuade
them to pay what it takes to land him.
Chelsea players celebrating their Europa League victory in Holland... on Wednesday. Chelsea beat Benfica 2-1 in the final.
Chelsea
will attempt to kick their Champions League campaign into gear at the
second attempt on Tuesday when they visit Steaua Bucharest for their
second Group E fixture.
The London club were stunned 2-1 by FC
Basle in their first group outing and can ill afford further setbacks
with a double-header against Schalke to come.
Gary Neville had his say about Manchester United’s 2-1 loss to West Brom last night on Monday Night Football.
Instead of singling out any individuals
for the loss, he placed an emphasis on how poorly United played in the
ten minutes following the equaliser from Wayne Rooney, and I found
myself nodding along to Neville.
Owen is backing Moyes to get it right at Manchester United [GETTY]
The surprise home defeat to West Brom at the weekend condemned
Moyes and his United side to a third defeat from their opening six
matches.
But the ex-United star is positive the former Everton
manager is still the right man to fill void left in the dugout by the
retiring Sir Alex Ferguson and lead the club to another title challenge.
Owen is backing Moyes to get it right at Manchester United [GETTY]
The surprise home defeat to West Brom at the weekend condemned
Moyes and his United side to a third defeat from their opening six
matches.
But the ex-United star is positive the former Everton
manager is still the right man to fill void left in the dugout by the
retiring Sir Alex Ferguson and lead the club to another title challenge.
"It was always going to change quite dramatically," Owen told fifa.com.
"When
someone has been there for over 25 years, whoever was going to take the
job was going to have big question marks put against them.
"It was going to be a change for everybody within the club.Moyes has come under pressure after a poor start to the new season [GETTY]
“I'm sure they'll get it right though and will still be one of the main challengers at the end of the season”
Michael Owen
"Manchester United have appointed the right man in David Moyes,
he has had a good career so far and has done fantastically well at
Everton.
"In time he will prove to be a very good choice.
"They've had a bit of a slow start to the season, but they've had a difficult start to the season.
"I'm sure they'll get it right though and will still be one of the main challengers at the end of the season."
United
travel to the Ukraine to face Shakhtar Donetsk in their second
Champions League group match, before visiting Sunderland in the Saturday
evening kick-off.Owen played under Ferguson at Old Trafford for three seasons [GETTY]
Leaving the Spaniard and Luiz on the best continually baffles everyone but the manager.
Chelsea’s
1-1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday could well be seen as a
positive result, but Jose Mourinho’s failure to find a preferred
starting XI is worrying for Blues fans.
As yet under the returning Mourinho, the west London club have
failed to give a truly dominating performances in the English top tier.
The Northern Irish manager may have overseen a
surprise 2-1 victory over the Camp Nou outfit last season, but he is
expecting a sterner test when the two sides meet on Tuesday
Celtic's priority against Barcelona will be containing the Catalan gaints' attack when the sides meet in the Champions League, boss Neil Lennon has admitted.
Barca
have a perfect record in La Liga this season, scoring 24 goals in their
seven wins, and also netted four times against Ajax without reply in
their Champions League opener.
Those words from Morrissey
have rarely been as relevant as they were on Saturday leaving Villa
Park. City fans who had been riding the crest of a wave after a week
which saw three comfortable wins in three competitions, were reduced to
moaning wrecks after 90 minutes which defied belief. But should we draw
too many harsh conclusions from such an odd game?
Roberto Mancini taking over at Galatasaray was first broken by Sportsmail a week ago
Roberto Mancini has been confirmed as the new manager of Turkish giants Galatasaray. Manchester City sacked Mancini at the tail end of last season after losing the FA Cup final against Wigan in a shock result.
Now,
having taken over the helm at Galatasaray, his first match in charge
will be back in his homeland of Italy in a Champions League tie against
Juventus.
Turkish delight: Roberto Mancini arrives in Turkey to take charge of Galatasaray
Owen is backing Moyes to get it right at Manchester United [GETTY]
The surprise home defeat to West Brom at the weekend condemned
Moyes and his United side to a third defeat from their opening six
matches.
But the ex-United star is positive the former Everton
manager is still the right man to fill void left in the dugout by the
retiring Sir Alex Ferguson and lead the club to another title challenge.
"It was always going to change quite dramatically," Owen told fifa.com.
"When
someone has been there for over 25 years, whoever was going to take the
job was going to have big question marks put against them.
"It was going to be a change for everybody within the club.Moyes has come under pressure after a poor start to the new season [GETTY]
“I'm sure they'll get it right though and will still be one of the main challengers at the end of the season”
Michael Owen
"Manchester United have appointed the right man in David Moyes,
he has had a good career so far and has done fantastically well at
Everton.
"In time he will prove to be a very good choice.
"They've had a bit of a slow start to the season, but they've had a difficult start to the season.
"I'm sure they'll get it right though and will still be one of the main challengers at the end of the season."
United
travel to the Ukraine to face Shakhtar Donetsk in their second
Champions League group match, before visiting Sunderland in the Saturday
evening kick-off.Owen played under Ferguson at Old Trafford for three seasons [GETTY]
The Northern Irish manager may have overseen a
surprise 2-1 victory over the Camp Nou outfit last season, but he is
expecting a sterner test when the two sides meet on Tuesday
Celtic's priority against Barcelona will be containing the Catalan gaints' attack when the sides meet in the Champions League, boss Neil Lennon has admitted.
Barca
have a perfect record in La Liga this season, scoring 24 goals in their
seven wins, and also netted four times against Ajax without reply in
their Champions League opener.
And while the Scottish champions
recorded a famous 2-1 victory over Tuesday's opponents in last season's
competition, Lennon believes his side have a tough task trying to stop
Gerardo Martino's men this time around.
"It will be, at times, containment. Limit them to as few chances as we possibly can," said Lennon.
"They're
not like any other team. Barcelona, in my personal opinion, are a class
above, and have been consistently the best club side for 10 years now.
"Barcelona
don't change their system, their style of play and that is what they
believe in. When they get the ball in the final third, the speed of the
ball is phenomenal at times."
Celtic opened their Champions
League campaign with a 2-0 defeat to Milan, but their hopes of causing
another upset against Barca have been boosted by the absence of Lionel
Messi.
Lennon believes his side need to start picking up points
in the competition sooner rather than later, and feels the Spanish
champions will still pose a significant threat, even without the
Argentina international.
"If we don't prevail in this game, and
Milan beat Ajax it will be increasingly difficult [to progress]," he
continued. "But it won't be the end of the world if we don't win with
the Ajax double header and Milan still to come here.
"Like last
year we didn't budget for anything out of the Barcelona games, but if we
do get something it would be huge going forward.
"[Messi's
absence] is obviously very good news for us because for me he is the
best player in the world. But it is also tinged with sadness as it is
always good to see the best players here in Glasgow."
The Welshman has struggled since a
career-threatening injury in 2010, but a run of eight goals in eight
games has his team-mate pondering the lasting personal effects on the
player
Jack Wilshere has backed Aaron Ramsey to keep improving after a stunning start to the season with Arsenal, adding that the Welshman has only just recovering from his double leg break in 2010.
The
22-year-old has notched eight goals in his last eight games, which is
double his career record for an entire season, after moving into a more
prominent role this term.
Luis Suarez marked his Premier League return with two goals
Luis Suarez scored twice on his first Premier
League appearance of the season as Liverpool increased the pressure on
bottom club Sunderland with a 3-1 win at the Stadium of Light.
Liverpool
broke the deadlock with a controversial goal in the first half as
Daniel Sturridge turned the ball in with his arm, before Suarez quickly
doubled their lead.
Emanuele Giaccherini reduced Sunderland's arrears on 52 minutes but,
despite a spirited performance, Kevin Ball's men could not find an
equaliser and Suarez netted again in the closing stages to lift
Liverpool to within two points of leaders Arsenal.
Swansea City boss Michael Laudrup has warned Arsenal not to get carried away after their win on Saturday.
The Dane believes it is far too early to try to predict if Arsenal have what it takes to still be on top of the pile come mid-May.
"I don't know if they are title contenders, there have been some surprise results this weekend," he said.
"Manchester United lost to West Brom and Manchester City have lost two games away to Aston Villa and Cardiff.
"So Arsenal and Tottenham are on top, but there are 32 games to play. But no one can take what you already have on the board away from you."
JOSE MOURINHO is poised to offer John Terry a new Chelsea contract.
John Terry will be offered a new contract at Chelsea [EPA]
Terry scored his first goal of the season on Saturday to snatch a
point for Chelsea in a hot-tempered London derby against Tottenham.
He
struggled to gain a regular place in the side under Rafael Benitez last
year but the 32-year-old has played every minute of the Blues' Premier
League campaign this term.
John Terry will be offered a new contract at Chelsea [EPA]
Terry scored his first goal of the season on Saturday to snatch a
point for Chelsea in a hot-tempered London derby against Tottenham.
He
struggled to gain a regular place in the side under Rafael Benitez last
year but the 32-year-old has played every minute of the Blues' Premier
League campaign this term.
Chelsea
left it until the end of last season before renewing Frank Lampard's
contract but Mourinho insists Terry need not worry about his future.Jose Mourinho has been impressed with John Terry [EPA]
“He is a very good player and very good players have no problems with their contracts”
Jose Mourinho
The Special One smiled: "I think he always has a future the way
he is playing - he has a future in here (at Chelsea), in China, or
wherever he wants to have a future."
Terry was linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge during the summer with Monaco willing to offer him a tax-free salary of around £150,000 a week.
But Mourinho has made no secret of his intentions to keep the centre-half.Terry found the net against Spurs on Saturday [EPA]
He added: "I have always told him from day one - don't speak
(publicly) about signing a new contract, just speak about working very
hard from a physical point of view so you don't have the same kind of problems you have had in the past two years and then you play regularly.
"He is a very good player and very good players have no problems with their contracts."
After a good start to this term's Premier League Liverpool
striker Daniel Sturridge is focusing on immediate rather than long term
goals.
The Reds demolished Sunderland 1-3 at the Stadium of Light on
Sunday, and Sturridge was the man who opened the scoring, albeit
somewhat controversially.
The former Manchester City player appeared to control the ball
with his arm before it went in the back of the net but this was not
picked up by the officials.
Former Manchester United assistant boss Eric Steele has
revealed new manager David Moyes had rejected Sir Alex Ferguson's
suggestion not to alter the coaching setup at Old Trafford.
Moyes took over at United following his Scottish compatriot's
retirement at the end of last season, with goalkeeping coach Steele
being shown the door, along with assistant manager Mike Phelan and
first-team coach Rene Meulensteen.
Moyes then brought Chris Woods, Steve Round and Jimmy Lumsden
with him from Everton, while former United player Gary Neville was also
brought into the coaching setup.
PSG striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has continued his tirade against Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola.
Ibrahimovic remains bitter over the way he was treated by Guardiola at Barcelona.
The Swede told Der Spiegel: "He's a fantastic coach, but only when things are fine.
"He sacrificed me for Messi and did not have the courage to tell me.
Lionel is a great player, but I scored more. Guardiola did not have the
b***s to tell me.
"Messi was his star and he sacrificed me."
Ibra added: "Differences with Mourinho? I would have died for him. He's fantastic, very intelligent, an incredible motivator."
Belgium
playmaker Eden Hazard will take no part in Chelsea's Champions League
Group E clash with Steaua Bucharest on Tuesday night.
Eurosport - Eden Hazard
The Blues confirmed on their official website that Hazard is injured and joins compatriot Kevin de Bruyne in missing the trip.
Having failed to impress manager Jose Mourinho in the League Cup
match at Swindon, De Bruyne was not selected in a 20-man squad which
travelled to the Romanian capital.
Chelsea’s new Brazilian winger is easily the flop of the season so far… 5) Andreas Cornelius – Copenhagen to Cardiff City for £8m
This
may be harsh on the 20-year-old, but for a newly promoted club to shell
out £8m on a relatively unknown Dane is surprising to say the least.
He’s only made one appearance in the Premier League so far, where he
offered very little, and it seems very unlikely that Cornelius will
justify his transfer fee this season.
The Ajax boss feels the Italy star can get his
team results on his own, but he is confident of getting a result against
Milan if his team can maintain the right attitude
The Argentine netted a hat-trick during the Blaugrana's 4-0 rout of the Dutch giants in their first Champions League match of this season a fortnight ago.
The Chelsea midfielder believes Spurs can mount a
challenge for top spot after their summer spending spree, but is unsure
how the inexperience squad will handle the higher stakes
Frank Lampard believes Tottenham are capable of mounting a title challenge, but only if they can cope with the high-stakes pressure.
Chelsea
were held by their London rivals on Saturday, with Gylfi Sigurdsson's
opener being cancelled out by John Terry before Fernando Torres' sending
off stunted the visitors' charge for all three points.
And Lampard, who has won the Premier League three times, believes
Spurs' transfer spree can ignite a chase for England's top prize - a
situation he can relate to after 12 years at big-spending Chelsea.
"They’re a very good team," Lampard told reporters. "They are going to be looking at winning the league.
"That’s
what you have to do when you spend that money. We’ve lived for the last
eight years with that pressure, year in year out, and that’s what
Tottenham have to deal with if they want to win the league.
"You have to get a level of consistency and it’s not easy. It's a difficult league."
Tottenham
currently sit third in the Premier League standings, level on points
with second-placed Liverpool after six matches - two points better off
than Chelsea.
Chelsea's Dutch international midfielder Marco van Ginkel could be out of action for six months after knee surgery on Thursday.
R Marco van Ginkel
The 20-year-old Dutchman injured his anterior cruciate
ligament during the first half of a Capital One (League) Cup match at
Swindon on Tuesday. Chelsea said in a statement that the surgery had been successful.
Van Ginkel, who joined the west Londoners in July from Vitesse Arnhem
on a five-year contract, has made only two starts under manager Jose
Mourinho.
He made his senior international debut last November and the layoff
will be a blow to his hopes of selection for next year's World Cup in
Brazil. Louis van Gaal's Dutch side have already qualified for the
finals.
Manchester United are eyeing Barcelona midfielder Sergi Roberto. Sport says United are interested in Roberto leading up to the January market and believe he is unsettled at Barca.
The 21 year-old has been likened to Xavi and was expecting to see more
first team action this season following the departure of Thiago
Alcantara to Bayern Munich.
But Roberto has remained on the outer and is now weighing up his options.
United are preparing a €6 million offer for the midfield schemer ahead of the winter transfer window.
The goalkeeper is unwilling to comment on the Belgian’s club.
Thibaut
Courtois is currently enjoying the Belgium international’s third season
on-loan at Atletico Madrid from Chelsea, helping the side to victory
over Real Madrid at the weekend.
The win was the first time Atleti had beaten their city rivals in
La Liga since 1999 and Courtois is so involved with life at the Vicente
Calderon Stadium, that the goalkeeper does not want to talk about the
Blues.
“It’s too early to talk about them as the season in recently starting,” the 21-year-old was quoted by FootyNews24.
![Moyes has come under pressure after a poor start to the new season [GETTY]](http://images.dailystar-uk.co.uk/dynamic/58/photos/821000/31821.jpg)
![Owen played under Ferguson at Old Trafford for three seasons [GETTY]](http://images.dailystar-uk.co.uk/dynamic/58/photos/820000/31820.jpg)
![Jose Mourinho has been impressed with John Terry [EPA]](http://images.dailystar-uk.co.uk/dynamic/58/photos/602000/31602.jpg)
![Terry found the net against Spurs on Saturday [EPA]](http://images.dailystar-uk.co.uk/dynamic/58/photos/603000/31603.jpg)
Sturridge: Staying humble
Steele & Phelan: Ousted
Marco van Ginkel
