Great news, all Liverpool fans! Injury treatment in Serbia has reaped handsome rewards and the injured are now fighting fit!
Albert Riera, Yossi Benayoun, Fabio Aurelio, Steven Gerrard, David Ngog and Glen Johnson are all declared fit and ready to take on draw specialists, Manchester City. Click to continue reading...

Africa
Arguably the headline match of the day was the special play-off match between Algeria and Egypt to decide the final World Cup qualifier from Africa.
Both teams had finished with identical records in Group 3 of the final qualifying round which led to this hastily-arranged one-off match in Sudan to decide the winner. Click to continue reading...

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger says Samir Nasri will not replace Alex Song in a defensive midfield role in the New Year.
Song will be lost to the Gunners due to Cameroon's African Nations Cup campaign.
But on Nasri, Wenger told arsenal.com: "No, [he is not a replacement].
"I do not say that he could not, Samir is very tactically astute, but he is attracted forwards. Click to continue reading...

According to Andrew Dillon at The Sun, Chelsea captain John Terry expects to see new faces at the club this January especially since there is no telling if the club's transfer ban might be enforced again. He said,

"It's good news about the transfer ban being suspended but we lose four good players to the African Nations Cup in January anyway.

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When I wanted to write a preview of the Bafana Bafana vs Jamaica match in Bloemfontein this evening, I thought I would just go and see what the online experts say.

Kickoff.com Bafana's One problem is Two Shoes

Former Bafana Bafana midfielder John "Shoes" Moshoeu says that while South Africa has not been doing very well in their last few international games, all is not yet lost.

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Nigeria have released the new home shirt that they will wear at the 2010 World Cup after qualifying by one point over closest group challengers Tunisia. Nigeria always place well in the African Nations Cup and will be hoping that the tournament at the start of 2010 will be an excellent ... Click to continue reading...

This weekend was the World Cup qualifying climax in Africa, and there was plenty of qualification drama to go around. The winners of each of the five groups qualified for World Cup 2010, and everyone else missed out. But there was a pretty decent consolation prize for the ten second and third placed teams, as World Cup qualifying doubles as Africa Cup of Nations qualifying and the top three in each group qualified for the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations (also known as the African Nations Cup, ACN and CAN) in Angola.

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When we last left Chelsea they had just beaten Manchester United to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League to five points and everything looked great at the Bridge.

Then the injury big hit. First came the news that right-back Jose Bosingwa is out for three months after knee surgery.

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So now that the CAS have suspended the transfer ban that had been imposed on Chelsea by UEFA over the Gael Kakuta affair, the press are going to town about how Chelsea will be spending big money in January to cover players leaving for the African Nations Cup and also to plan for the future transfer windows just in case the ban is upheld after appeal. Click to continue reading...

So now that the CAS have suspended the transfer ban that had been imposed on Chelsea by UEFA over the Gael Kakuta affair, the press are going to town about how Chelsea will be spending big money in January to cover players leaving for the African Nations Cup and also to plan for the future transfer windows just in case the ban is upheld after appeal. Click to continue reading...

The biggest match of the weekend ended up being a tense but boring affair. It was so bad that in the end, the most eyecatching incident turned out to be off the field as shown by the picture on the left.
Just what this man was thinking is beyond comprehension but perhaps he DOES know what he was up to. Click to continue reading...

The Court of Arbitration for Sport has granted Chelsea's request to suspend their two-year transfer ban pending a final decision into their case.
Chelsea were handed a two year ban by UEFA for the Gael Kakuta situation, Chelsea have appealed to the CAS and the statement released today is as follows:
''The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has granted the request for a stay filed by Chelsea Football Club Ltd and Mr Gaël Kakuta in relation to the decision taken by the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber on 27 August 2009. Click to continue reading...

And now, a moment of self-regarding nonsense on our part, if you don't mind.
What you are reading now may seem fairly ordinary by our standards (and indeed it is), but this is in fact a very special post. Put simply, this is Some People Are On The Pitch's 1,000th post.
We appreciate the sentiment and sense of achievement might be lost on most of you but when this humble little football blogsite started out in 2006, it was difficult to believe that one day we might end up with 1,000 articles to our name. Click to continue reading...

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- QPR REPORT...UPDATED THROUGHOUT THE DAY: Checkout the TWO QPR Reports! This QPR Report site. And, the second combination messageboard and quasi-blog QPR Report Messageboard. If you're interested in constantly-updated news re anything QPR-related and also QPR nostalgia, this site has both - along with assorted eclectic non-QPR football material. Click to continue reading...

Sulley pours cold water on potential Premier League move.

Portsmouth Vs Tottenham Tickets Still Available!

Watch Ukraine Vs England Live Online!

"I have not heard anything about this transaction, I honestly don't know anything about it," Muntari told Sky Sport 24 as he left Appiano Gentile on Thursday.

Click to continue reading...

If the Premier League season is a party, consider us (very) fashionably late. But now that we're six games in, the standings are starting to take shape: who would bet against the top four being the same come May? Not yours truly, that's for sure.
After a series of 1-0 wins, Manchester City proved they're for real by tonking Arsenal and giving neighbors United a run for their money. Click to continue reading...

The imagined community of millions seems more real as a team of eleven named people.
- Eric Hobsbawn

One of the many intriguing things about a World Cup is the rare but vivid display of nationhood. When else do countries from all corners of the world have the chance to present themselves as one coherent entity?

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An idea that may not be as crazy as it first sounds.

Let me make this clear from the outset this suggestion is borne totally out of my mind and not the creation of some mad scientist. First read the latest twist in the "Shevchenko has no Chelsea future" saga.

Andriy Schevchenko's Chelsea career seems finally over after the Ukrainian was told he will be dumped from the Blues' Champions League squad.

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Morning all, hope you're well. Been a bit busy over the last week or so so I haven't had much of a chance to write quality articles, and in my opinion it's better to post a few quality articles than post shite ones all the time.
What a start to the season we've had then, eh? I'll admit I was worried that we might draw or even lose at Everton to start the season. Click to continue reading...

So it's official Kolo Toure has joined Manchester City.

That it is a sterling piece of business is undeniable around £15m for a player who has lost some of the recovery pace that defined his game and covered for his stray positioning is huge, especially given how he would have missed a large (and critical) chunk of the season with the African Nations Cup coming up.

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Let me get this straight.
So Alex Ferguson sells Cristiano Ronaldo, a player who is about to hit his peak and is recognised as the best player in the world, for a massive profit, right? He is seen as a genius who made a hell of a lot of money on a player.
Arsene Wenger has sold two players to Manchester City for a massive profit too. Click to continue reading...

Before Bob Ley was a familiar face on ESPN's SportsCenter and Outside the Lines, he called soccer games from high school to the pro ranks of the NASL and MISL. He also has done commentary for several World Cups.
With South Africa hosting the 2010 World Cup, Ley is able to combine his soccer interest with the sociological issues he explores in Outside the Lines. Click to continue reading...

Barcelona are ready to bid for Javier Mascherano, having been told by Liverpool that they would consider a sale at the right place.
The Blaugrana have been chasing Mascherano for some time, but Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez had been adamant in his refusal to let the player go. However, according to El Mundo Deportivo, he appears to have conceded that Mascherano has his heart set on a move to the Camp Nou, and is willing to sanction a sale. Click to continue reading...

South Africa failed to qualify for the Confederations Cup finals after the narrow defeat to Brazil but Joel Santana's side matched the high-profile opponents for large periods of the game and they thus once again showed they had the potential to create a few surprises at the World Cup 2010, which they will host.

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Watch the Brazil v South Africa semifinal live online - right here.

Spain v USA (1st Semifinal)
Date: Wednesday 24th June 2009
Venue: Bloemfontein
Kickoff: 19:30 GMT

Brazil

On paper alone Brazil should win this - such is the gulf in class when talent between the two sides is compared.

Click to continue reading...

ESPN recently released a new app for the iPhone entitled ESPN ScoreCenter, which is a must-have app for soccer fans.

The free app features real-time score updates, live game details, schedules, stats, game summaries and more for an exhaustive number of leagues and tournaments, such as:

• Premier League,
• Champions League,
• La Liga,
• Bundesliga,
• Serie A,
• MLS,
• USL-1,
• Championship,
• Confederations Cup,
• World Cup qualifiers,
• International friendlies,
• UEFA Cup,
• African Nations Cup,
• AFC Champions League,
• Copa America,
• and many many more.

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Egypt proved they were the surprise package of this year's Confederations Cup by beating Italy in the second round and they are now on the verge of booking their place in the semi-finals. Hassan Shehata's team had hinted they could surprise one of the big guns having played really well against Brazil, narrowly losing the game 4:3.

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Considering that the season has ended in all major leagues and that the clubs are busy looking for possible signings, Confederations Cup and Under 21 European Championship are in the centre of attention at the moment. South Africa, the host country of the Confederations Cup, is a talented footballing nation but not too many of the national team players have attracted interest from Europe.

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Courtesy of U.S. Soccer:
U.S. Men's National Team Confederations Cup Update
Tshwane/Pretoria
June 12, 2009
CONFED CUP KICKS OFF AGAINST ITALY: Less than 72 hours remain before the U.S. begins play in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, with no less than defending World Cup champion Italy waiting to greet them. Click to continue reading...

It was never a secret that Guardiola preferred Busquets and Keita to Toure when he started his reign at Barca. He entered into compromise with Eto early on the season but convincingly overlooked Toure many times during the start of season. But there are some talents you can't keep on bench, and Toure proved to be one of them. Click to continue reading...

Transfer rumour mill is heating up with many players being linked to Arsenal, but our old favourite appears to be top of the list.  Yaya Toure is being tipped as wanting to come to Arsenal and team up with his brother. Wenger is a fan of Yaya, we had home on trial several years ago, but due to work permit problems, we were unable to sign him.

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by GIANFRANCO PANIZO

As they chase for their third successive Spanish title, Real Madrid will be without centerback Pepe as he was given a ten game suspension Friday for his violent actions against a pair of Getafe players in a league game earlier this week.

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by GIANFRANCO PANIZO

As they chase for their third successive Spanish title, Real Madrid will be without centerback Pepe as he was given a ten game suspension Friday for his violent actions against a pair of Getafe players in a league game earlier this week.

Click to continue reading...

The Wasps, who have never qualified for a FIFA World Cup and who have only made one African Nations Cup (2004), have advanced into the third round of the Confederation of African Football's 2010 World Cup qualification tournament.
20 nations will advance into this third round hoping to land one of the 5 spots open for the 2010 World Cup. Click to continue reading...

Now that South Africa has been eliminated from the 2010 African Cup of Nations, will South Africa coach Joel Santana get the boot?
A South African newspaper editorial from the Cape Times doesn't seem to think so.

The South African Football Association must stay calm and resist the urge to fire coach Joel Santana after Bafana Bafana failed to qualify for the African Nations Cup in Angola in 2010.

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