Liverpool striker Fernando Torres could be back to face Blackburn this weekend, as the Merseysiders look to rebuild their season.
Rafa Benitez saw his team ride their luck in winning the Merseyside derby at Everton, and with his star striker aiming to return on Saturday, Liverpool's fortunes could finally be on the up.

Sandro Ranieri doesn't want to get involved in his own transfer

Watch our FootBrazil special on Sandro Ranieri and other future stars in our: Brazil the talent factory 2009 video

Internacional midfielder, Sandro Ranieri, today denied he'd been in England for a medical at Tottenham.

Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane has sung the praises of Ryan Giggs.

"Ryan is streetwise and very clever. It's a credit that he's pulling the strings at United at the age of 36," said Keane. "Ryan is so professional. He's always on time for training and has a terrific attitude.

Declan Hill, the author of the critically acclaimed 2008 book, The Fix joins us on the EPL Talk Podcast to discuss recent events related to corruption in the game.

Among the topics discussed with Hill include how the UEFA Champions League and Europa League early rounds are susceptible to match fixing, the plight of smaller European leagues, match fixing in Asia and UEFA's attitude towards corruption as contrasted with FIFA's.

Liverpool would not have managed to beat Everton had it not been for a superb display from Jamie Carragher, according to former Reds striker Ian Rush.
Liverpool managed to come away from Goodison Park with a 2-0 win that was in no small part due to the defensive resilience they showed against a determined Toffees side.

I like Aaron's video proposal idea. The only way instant replay works in any sport is if the review occurs outside the run of play. There are only so many times this can happen in a soccer game, so it's by necessity going to be limited.
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I also agree with John about The Group of Death, and whining about same.

UPDATE: According to Sky Sports News, Portsmouth boss Avram Grant approached Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp about the possibility of permanently signing Jamie O'Hara. Redknapp said,

"I spoke to Avram and he said he'd like to keep him if he can .

I wasn't Cristiano Ronaldo's biggest fan in his last season at United, with him appearing to be far more concerned about himself than he was the team.

You might have thought that once he got his 'dream move' to Real Madrid, that maybe this selfish attitude would change somewhat.

However, I was totally shocked at the weekend to see that when Ronaldo's penaty was saved, leaving Karim Benzema to put away the rebound, our former winger was not at all impressed.

A seismic shift in attitude toward next summer's World Cup is utterly palpable among U.S. soccer supporters.

As the day began, U.S. fans had reason to expect the worst. A history of nasty draws and a recent crop of up-and-down performances had churned up a certain bitter cynicism.

By the end of Friday's prolonged-but-stirring proceedings from South Africa, "overwhelming joy" had routed "dread" as the prevailing sentiment among U.

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez is hoping negotiations over a new contract for goalkeeper Pepe Reina can be wrapped up over the coming months.
The Reds boss revealed over the weekend that the club had begun talks over a new contract for Javier Mascherano, with Benitez also keen to tie down the Spanish stopper.

There is little doubt that an athlete's attitude towards practice affects how much is learned and how much improvement is made. Focus, effort, and attention are all important to leaning and developing the skills needed to compete at a high level. In a new study focusing on Dutch youth players, researchers found that the ability of players to reflect on and critically evaluate their own

The Independent has an article about Jose Mourinho not being particularly effusive about Mario Balotelli's scintillating performance against Rubin Kazan. He has had his share of run ins with the mercurial striker regarding his lazy attitude and diva like behaviour. So he held off on the praise.

Supporters call Balotelli a target of racial ignorance and fear in an insular country, while critics say that the real fault lies in his grandstanding attitude on the pitch that rubs people off the wrong way.

Santista Nation,
It's good to be back here and talk to you about one of our greatest passion. I want to apologyze for the time I took away from the blog. I just finished my last semester in school and that kept me pretty busy. Also, as we all know, our team was not doing so great and that also made me pissed and lose the motivation to write.

Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov insists that United fans have only seen glimpses of his talents. The Bulgarian had high expectations put on him following his move from Tottenham to Old Trafford, and many fans and pundits have questioned his languid style, often citing his laziness and laid back attitude.

Just three points separate Manchester United and Chelsea, with the blues yet to visit Old Trafford and arguably their two most important players about to leave for the African Cup of Nations.

Sir Alex Ferguson has looked at all the rivals to our title this week, whilst John Terry and Frank Lampard have talked up their chances.

UPDATE: According to The News, Portsmouth boss Avram Grant admitted once again that he wants to permanently sign Tottenham midfielder Jamie O'Hara. O'Hara's loan deal with the club ends next month. Grant said,

"We are speaking with Spurs.

Long time readers will remember how I criticized Crossley for the following line:

"We need to get out of the ghetto of being a role model for girls," said Andy Crossley, the Breakers' director of business development. "You can't make dads feel like they're visiting Chuck E. Cheese's.

According to the Daily Mail, Wigan Athletic boss Roberto Martinez admitted that the club will be looking for players in every position during the transfer window. Martinez said,

"We are looking for players in every position during the window ...