Spain rounded off their preparations for the UEFA EURO 2012 with a harder than expected 1-0 victory over China on Sunday.

Manchester City striker David Silva grabbed the winning goal with six minutes remaining as a well-organised Chinese side proved difficult to break down.

With several Spanish players looking to press claims for a place in Vicente Del Bosque's side for their EURO 2012 opener against Italy next Sunday, it was Santi Cazorla, Fernando Torres and Silva who most caught the eye.

When United, a drama based on the true story of the Busby Babes and the 1958 Munich Air Disaster, premiered on BBC Two in Spring 2011, it was met with an overwhelmingly positive reaction. It's out on DVD and now on demand; and we review it below, with the help of director James Strong .

Chris Powell's Charlton Athletic romped away with League One this season

Following our look at the Championship, it's now time to cast our eyes towards League One, the launchpad for both Norwich and now Southampton's march to the Premiership. How did the early season predictions pan out?

Graham Alexander is a true legend. After moving from Burnley to nearby Preston, the 40-year-old Scotsman retired from professional football yesterday after 1023 matches, after Preston's last game of the season against Charlton Athletic at Deepdale. Thankfully, the game was memorable for the veteran. He was brought on by manager Graham Westley in the 83rd [.

Npower Championship 2011/2012: Promotion and Relegation Review - originally posted on Soccerlens.com

The 2011-12 Championship league fixtures have come to an end and finally the automatic promotion positions have been confirmed. However, at the other end of the table, the relegation picture had been clear for some time.

By Alan Duffy

Once a pretty decent Premier League outfit, Charlton Athletic have struggled in recent years, dropping all the way down to League One. However, with Addicks legend Chris Powell in charge, the south London side have blossomed in the third tier of English football this season and, courtesy of a 1-0 win away at Carlisle on Saturday, can now look forward to Championship football next season.

As the end of the 2011/12 league campaign draws near, Bristol City have improved their ranks – and their chances of surviving relegation – by bringing in some fresh blood.
The Robins have signed QPR's Hogan Ephraim and Andre Amougou, of Burnley fame, on loan until the end of the season.

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Rodney Marsh
- Rodney Marsh will be the Guest on QPR's Official Site "London Calling" on Thursday
- Flashback: Forty Years Since the Rodney Marsh Era at QPR Came to an End
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- Bleacher Rerport - Michael Cummings - 10 Soccer Players Who Have Perfect Hair During Games
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- Follow QPR REPORT on TWITTER!

Buckle up girls and boys it's getting serious in the FA Youth Cup! Tonight promises to produce real barnstormer of a match as Manchester United host Charlton Athletic at no less than the Theatre of Dreams. Tonight will make-or-break the hopes of these teams as we play to a finish, but at 16 to 18 [..

Since the transfer window came into force during the 2002-03 season, Spurs have been one of the most active clubs in terms of players arriving at and leaving White Hart Lane.

After a fairly quiet window by their standards – signing trio Yago Falque, Louis Saha and Ryan Nelsen all on free transfers, let's take a look at seven players signed for big money during the January period.

Featured image: Bobby Moore, Gerry Francis and Pele before the Team America vs. England game at JFK

The news that PPL Park will be host the 2012 MLS All-Star Game means that Philadelphia will be the host of a major pro sport All-Star event for the first time since the NBA came to town in 2002.

By FRANCO PANIZO

It took Clint Dempsey nine years to score the first hat-trick of his career, a feat he accomplished on January 7 in an FA Cup win over Charlton Athletic.

It did not take much longer for him to do it again.

Dempsey became the first American to net a hat-trick in the Premiership on Saturday.

Two weeks ago Clint Dempsey made headlines with his first career hat trick, hitting the back of the net three times in Fulham FC's 4-0 FA Cup Third Round win over Football League One (English second division) side Charlton Athletic.

Now, just a day after being named 2011 U.S. Soccer Male Athlete of the Year, Dempsey is in the news again, with another three goal performance.

Resultados FA Cup 2011/2012 Tercer Ronda Ida
Viernes 6 de enero de 2012 5 Liverpool vs Oldham Athletic 1Sábado 7 de enero de 2012 0 Birmingham vs Wolverhampton Wanderers 00 Dagenham & Redbridge vs Millwall 02 Barnsley vs Swansea City 41 Brighton vs Wrexham 11 Coventry City vs Southampton 21 Crawley Town vs Bristol City 01 Derby County vs Crystal Palace 00 Doncaster Rovers vs Notts County 22 Everton vs Tamworth 01 Fleetwood Town vs Blackpool 54 Fulham vs Charlton Athletic 01 Gillingham vs Stoke City 33 Hull City vs Ipswich Town 12 Macclesfield Town vs Bolton Wanderers 21 Middlesbrough vs Shrewsbury Town 01 Milton Keynes Dons vs Queens Park Rangers 12 Newcastle United vs Blackburn Rovers 14 Norwich City vs Burnley 10 Nottingham Forest vs Leicester City 00 Reading vs Stevenage 13 Sheffield United vs Salisbury City 12 Swindon Town vs Wigan Athletic 13 Tottenham Hotspur vs Cheltenham Town 04 Watford vs Bradford City 24 West Bromwich Albion vs Cardiff City 21 Bristol Rovers vs Aston Villa 3Domingo 8 de enero de 2012 2 Manchester City vs Manchester United 34 Chelsea vs Portsmouth 01 Sheffield Wednesday vs West Ham United 00 Peterborough United vs Sunderland 2Lunes 9 de enero de 2012 1 Arsenal vs Leeds United 0 Gracias por tu visita Estadísticas de Fútbol

photo by Michael Janosz/ISIphotos.com

By FRANCO PANIZO

A trio of Americans saw the field for one team this weekend, but it is not the trio you might first think of.

Mexican-Americans Edgar Castillo, Joe Corona and Greg Garza received minutes for Club Tijuana in its Clausura opener, a 1-1 draw with Morelia.

Clint Dempsey had the standout performance for National Teamers Abroad over the weekend, scoring three times as Fulham advanced 4-0 over Charlton Athletic in the FA Cup. Playing at home, Dempsey had Fulham's first goal eight minutes in, adding a second in the 61st and converting an 81st minute penalty to finish off the hat-trick.

Fulham Football Club seem to be on a roll since the Festive Period in England and Clint Dempsey has been right in step with his team. Dempsey scored a hat trick in a 3rd round FA Cup game against Charlton Athletic on Saturday defeating them 4-0. Despite the 5-0 drubbing by Manchester United on December [.

The Legend of Clint Dempsey continues to grow at Craven Cottage.

Just over a month removed from eclipsing Brian McBride's record 36 career goals scored by an American in the English Premier League, the former Revolution midfielder pulled the trigger three times in a 4-0 FA Cup tournament victory over Charlton Athletic on Saturday.

In a day of very few shocks, two Premier League sides Bolton and Wigan were surprised by lower league opponents in the 3rd round of the FA Cup.

Wigan's troubled season took another turn for the worse as they crashed out 2-1 too League Two side Swindon Town. Calum McManaman had put Wigan 1-0 up but Swindon, managed by Italian Paolo Di Canio, struck back to claim a famous win with goals coming from Alan Connell and Paul Benson.

It wasn't a bad day for Americans in England as Clint Demspey, Brad Guzan and Landon Donovan impressed in the third round of the FA Cup.

Dempsey continued his impressive goal-scoring form with a hat trick in Fulham's 4-0 victory over Charlton Athletic at Craven Cottage.

Dempsey opened the scoring against the League One leaders in just the eighth minute, taking control of a deflected through ball and beating John Sullivan in Charlton's goal.

Tim Howard and Landon Donovan hope to guide Everton to victory as they take on Tamworth FA Cup play, while Clint Dempsey and Fulham take on Charlton Athletic in cup play as well.

By FRANCO PANIZO

Landon Donovan did not lead Everton to victory in his return match for the club, but he will not have to wait long to get another chance at that.

Donovan and Everton will take on lowly Tamworth of England's fifth division in a third round FA Cup match on Saturday.

Gary Ablett obituary

Defender who won the FA Cup with both Everton and Liverpool Such is the rivalry between Liverpool and Everton that footballers rarely play for both Merseyside clubs, but Gary Ablett, who has died aged 46 of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, enjoyed long and happy spells with the two sides.

Viernes 6 de enero de 2012 Liverpool vs Oldham Athletic 14:00 hrsSábado 7 de enero de 2012 Birmingham vs Wolves 6:30 hrsDagenham & Redbridge vs Millwall 7:00 hrsBarnsley vs Swansea City 9:00 hrsBrighton vs Wrexham 9:00 hrsCoventry City vs Southampton 9:00 hrsCrawley Town vs Bristol City 9:00 hrsDerby County vs Crystal Palace 9:00 hrsDoncaster Rovers vs Notts County 9:00 hrsEverton vs Tamworth 9:00 hrsFleetwood Town vs Blackpool 9:00 hrsFulham vs Charlton Athletic 9:00 hrsGillingham vs Stoke City 9:00 hrsHull City vs Ipswich Town 9:00 hrsMacclesfield Town vs Bolton Wanderers 9:00 hrsMiddlesbrough vs Shrewsbury Town 9:00 hrsMilton Keynes Dons vs QPR 9:00 hrsNewcastle United vs Blackburn Rovers 9:00 hrsNorwich City vs Burnley 9:00 hrsNottingham Forest vs Leicester City 9:00 hrsReading vs Stevenage 9:00 hrsSheffield United vs Salisbury City 9:00 hrsSwindon Town vs Wigan Athletic 9:00 hrsTottenham Hotspur vs Cheltenham Town 9:00 hrsWatford vs Bradford City 9:00 hrsWBA vs Cardiff City 9:00 hrsBristol Rovers vs Aston Villa 11:30 hrsDomingo 8 de enero de 2012 Manchester City vs Manchester United 7:00 hrsChelsea vs Portsmouth 9:00 hrsSheffield Wednesday vs West Ham United 9:00 hrsPeterborough United vs Sunderland 9:30 hrsLunes 9 de enero de 2012 Arsenal vs Leeds United 13:45 hrs Gracias por tu visita Estadísticas de Fútbol

By Alan Duffy

Thedraw for the third round of the FA Cup was made on Sunday afternoon, with the occasion throwing out a few tasty looking ties, none more so than the meeting of City and United.

Sir Alex Ferguson will no doubt have wanted a rather easier draw, although the chance to get some revenge for the 6-1 mauling at Old Trafford might well give United an extra incentive in this game.

The draw for this season's FA Cup 3rd round was made today with Manchester City drawn Manchester United at hom in what is the draw of the round. There will be only one other all Premier League tie with Newcastle at home to Blackburn, while non-league Tamworth got a dream tie with Everton at Goodison Park.

Sending young players out on loan to build experience is standard practice at top Premier League clubs, and Liverpool is no exception. However, Reserve team coach Rodolfo Borrell is worried that some loan moves can be counter-productive, and he argues that this has been the case for promising young striker Nathan Eccleston.

FA Cup tickets up for grabs

We've teamed up with Budweiser, lead partner for The FA Cup, to give football fans the chance to win second round FA Cup tickets. We have a pair of tickets available for each of the below ties, all taking place on Saturday 3 December: - Charlton Athletic v Carlisle United - Bradford City v AFC Wimbledon - Barnet v MK Dons To be in with a chance of winning, simply fill in the competition form below along with your name, age, postal address, contact details and match choice:

View the full story here: The Mirror

A news article on 2011-11-28 15:22:43 from: The Mirror

This news item has been reproduced from today's media.

By 1970's GoonerI remember when I had the chance about four years ago to watch Alex Song play against Manchester United at Old Trafford. He was then on Loan at Charlton Athletic when they were in the Premier League.I was astounded. I was extremely pleasantly surprised. Or rather than extremely pleasantly surprised its better to say ‘shocked'.

Saturday Fox Soccer has the England - Spain friendly at 12pm. FA Cup on Fox Soccer Plus: Newport County - Shrewsbury Town at 7:30am, Swindon - Huddersfield at 10am, and East Thurrock - Maclesfield Town at 9pm. On Fox Soccer: Alreton - Carlisle at 10am and Fleetwood - Wycombe at 2:30pm. All Times Eastern Sunday FA Cup on Fox Soccer Plus: Halifax - Charlton Athletic at 8:30am.

George "Geordie" Armstrong died of a brain haemorrhage after collapsing on the training field 11 years ago on the first of this month. He was a year younger than me and joined the club as a 17-year-old, two years after I had first claimed my permanent place on the terraces as a 15-year-old. He was my first footballing idol and was to be associated with the club on and off for 39 years.

October was a tough month for Boro. It started with 3 straight defeats to the likes of Scunthorpe, AFC Wimbledon and Huddersfield. It soon picked up though and the win against Charlton kicked off another unbeaten run.

Stevenage 1-0 Charlton

A Stacy Long goal was enough for Boro to beat unbeaten, table-toppers Charlton Athletic.

Mike Ammann, owner/founder of 247GK, will be hosting an online auction to benefit the Malia Crushes Cancer Fund. Ammann has gathered an amazing collection of autographed sports memorabilia and other impressive items to be auctioned online at http://www.247gk.com/ from October 19th - 26th.

Liverpool midfielder Jonjo Shelvey joins Blackpool on loan until December 31

The 19-year-old has struggled to make an impact at Anfield since arriving from Charlton Athletic in 2010

View the full story here: Goal

A news article on 2011-09-30 10:28:00 from: Goal

This news item has been reproduced from today's media.

1 Charlton Athletic 7 17 5
2 Sheffield Utd 8 17 5
3 Huddersfield 8 16 4
4 Milton Keynes Dons 7 16 5
5 Brentford FC 8 16 5
6 Stevenage FC 8 13 3
7 Hartlepool Utd 7 13 3
8 Preston NE 6 13 4
9 Notts County 8 13 4
10 Sheffield Wed 8 13 4
11 Carlisle Utd 8 13 4
12 Tranmere Rovers 8 11 3
13 Oldham Athletic 8 11 3
14 Colchester Utd 8 10 2
15 Walsall FC 8 8 2
16 Yeovil Town 8 8 2
17 Chesterfield 8 8 2
18 Rochdale 8 8 2
19 Bury FC 8 7 2
20 Bournemouth 8 6 2
21 Scunthorpe Utd 8 5 0
22 Wycombe 7 5 1
23 Exeter City 8 5 1
24 Leyton Orient 8 2 0

By Chris Wright

Ten more wonderful vintage photos picked at random from the Pies' archives...

England captain Bobby Moore shows off a particularly dapper shirt from his new line of stylish fashion products, 1972

Chelsea's Dick Spence and Len Goulden play head tennis during training at Stamford Bridge, 1947

Sheffield Wednesday forward Derek Dooley (and his wife) travels home from Preston Royal Infirmary in an ambulance after having his leg amputated following a gangrene infection to the broken leg he suffered against Preston North End, 1953

West Ham footballers play leapfrog during a training session on the beach at Southend, 1951

The bare feet of Nigeria's Justin Onwudiwe.

By Chris Wright

Here we see Charlton Athletic's Dale Stephens taking evasive action to clear a three-pronged sliding tackle (one of which appears to be of an unorthodox 'head-first' variety) from the Sheffield Wednesday backline during the two side's 1-1 draw at The Valley last night pretty cool photo, thought we'd share it.

By Chris Wright

Here we see Charlton Athletic's Dale Stephens taking evasive action to clear a three-pronged sliding tackle (one of which appears to be of an unorthodox 'head-first' variety) from the Sheffield Wednesday backline during the two side's 1-1 draw at The Valley last night pretty cool photo, thought we'd share it.

It's been another eventful week for Alan Pardew at Newcastle. Haris Vuckic top youngster at Newcastle aiming for the stars Newcastle were reported to FIFA by French club Sochaux over their approach for striker Modibo Maiga, and Alan's former club Charlton Athletic reported the Tyneside club to the Premier League over their approach for their [.

Sochaux have referred Newcastle's apparently illegal pursuit of Modibo Maiga to FIFA. Sochaux President Alexandre Lacombe reported Newcastle to FIFA And Charlton Athletic have reported Newcastle to the Premier League over their move for 25 year-old goalkeeper Rob Elliot. To make things just a little worse, Newcastle were fined £30K by the English FA today, [.