Arsene Wenger faced the press yesterday ahead of Arsenal's crucial home game against Blackburn, where he is trying to arrest a run of four League games without a win, and he took the assembled journalists to task for always being so pessimistic, even when Arsenal are doing well. "Look, at the moment we are in [.

Will Gary Johnson's Northampton Town be swelled by an influx of new fans come next season?

How willing would you be to switch your allegiance to another team – one based 15 miles away?

Most fans would be recoiling in horror at this prospect, but for one team's supporters, it could be the future.

Glittering past successes for the Diamonds

Yesterday Rushden and Diamonds FC were officially expelled from the Conference, marking probably the darkest day in the very short history of many fans second favourite team (if not just for their unique name). Struggling with debts of nearly a million pounds, and having been docked five points last month for unpaid tax payments, the club now face a winding-up hearing on Monday, whilst also now having to plan for a very uncertain future, having admitted they could not guarantee being able to fulfil next season's fixtures.

Boro travel the short distance up to Northampton in potentially our last away game of the season. Danny Brothers from the 'A load of Cobblers' site has answered some questions ahead of the game. Take a look.

Relegation into the Conference looks a real possibility, especially as Barnet have hit some form.

SAO PAULO, Brazil — Delays in getting Brazil ready to host the 2014 football World Cup could end up with the South American nation being "red-faced" when the time comes, retired soccer legend Pele said Friday. "We are really worried," he told a media conference in Sao Paulo, speaking for the Brazilian Football Confederation and [.

NEW YORK, – Today Major League Soccer and FOX Soccer announced the TV schedule for the upcoming season. year. The premier soccer-only channel in North America will broadcast up to 31 regular-season games, plus three exclusive MLS Cup Playoff matches including a Conference Final – all in high definition.

NEW YORK, NY — Major League Soccer and Fox Soccer Channel have extended their broadcasting deal for one year. The league and the network said Friday that FSC will televise up to 31 regular-season games and three playoff games, including a conference final. The network will broadcast 15 Saturday night games and 14 Friday night [.

ROME, Italy - AS Roma coach Claudio Ranieri was left to fight off loud boos and speculation his days at the club are numbered after an embarrassing 3-2 home defeat by Champions League knockout round debutants Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday. Three Serie A games without a win and the club being up for sale had [.

MILAN, Italy - Peter Crouch's goal 10 minutes from time handed Tottenham Hotspur a 1-0 win over below-par AC Milan in a bad-tempered Champions League last-16 first leg on Tuesday. Milan midfielder Gennaro Gattuso, who will miss the second leg after a booking, is likely to face UEFA repercussions after appearing to headbutt Spurs assistant [.

LONDON, England Premier League Tottenham Hotspur and David Beckham's Los Angeles Galaxy are planning closer ties that could lead to players crossing the Atlantic in both directions. Tim Leiweke, president of the American sports and entertainment giant AEG that owns the Galaxy and is bidding in partnership with Spurs to take over the London [.

SANTIAGO, Chile -Marcelo Bielsa resigned as Chile's national team coach on Friday, ending a three-month saga over his future. Bielsa stepped down at a news conference despite his overwhelming popularity in Chile and attempts by new Chilean football association president Sergio Jadue to persuade him to stay.

TORONTO, Ont. Canadian soccer fans will have to wait a little longer for David Hoilett to make his national team debut. Hoilett was not among the 17 players named to Canada's roster today by coach Stephen Hart for an upcoming friendly against Greece. Canada takes on the former European champions on Feb.

SEOUL, South Korea — Manchester United midfielder Park Ji-Sung said he was retiring from international duty with South Korea to make way for younger players with "enormous potential". Park, who has won 100 caps and played in each of the past three World Cups, officially confirmed he was stepping down after national coach Cho Kwang-Rae [.

NEW YORK, NY Major League Soccer announced today that the Houston Dynamo will move to the Eastern Conference in 2011. Combined with the Portland Timbers and Vancouver Whitecaps FC joining MLS as expansion clubs in 2011, the League now has two conferences of nine teams each. Upon joining MLS in 2006, Houston became the [.

ROTTERDAM, Netherlands The board of Rotterdam football club Feyenoord has announced the suspension of technical director Leo Beenhakker. General director Eric Gudde said there had been a crisis of trust between Beenhakker and the club. At a press conference last week Beenhakker, who had just learned his contract with Feyenoord would not be extended, [.

HARRISON, N.J. Jan Halvor Halvorsen has been hired as an assistant coach of the New York Red Bulls under Hans Backe. Halvorsen replaces Goran Aral, who left after the 2010 season. The 45-year-old Halvorsen has coached in Norway and Sweden since 1996, and steered Sogndal to an eighth-place finish in the Norwegian Premier League [.

DOHA, Qatar — Uzbekistan reached the Asian Cup quarter-finals after drawing 2-2 with China in a topsy-turvy and fiercely contested final Group A game at the Al Gharafa Stadium here on Sunday. Having fallen behind early on, Uzbekistan equalised and then went ahead early in the second period through a fine long-distance effort from one-time [.

DOHA, Qatar — Saudi Arabian football chiefs sacked coach Jose Peseiro on Sunday immediately after his demoralised side slumped to a shock 2-1 defeat at the hands of unfancied Asian Cup outsiders Syria. The 2007 finalists and three-time champions announced that Nasser Al Johar will take over from the 50-year-old Portuguese for the remainder of the [.

DOHA, Qatar — Three-time Asian Cup winners Saudi Arabia desperately need a winning start in Group B on Sunday against Syria to convince the doubters they have what it takes to banish the pain of four years ago. Portuguese coach Jose Peseiro is under huge pressure back home to deliver after he clung on to [.

LONDON, England — Former Manchester United star Roy Keane has been sacked as manager of Ipswich after 20 months in the job, the club confirmed Friday. The club have lost seven of their last nine games and the 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest on Monday left them sitting 19th in the Championship, England's second division.

TORONTO, Ont. Toronto FC's new head coach and technical director Aron Winter answers a question during Thursday's press conference. (Chris Young/Canadian Press) Thursday marked a new era in the history of the Toronto FC, with the Major League Soccer club undergoing a major managerial makeover. TFC named former Dutch national team star Aron Winter [.

SAO PAULO, Brazil — Ronaldinho reached an agreement with AC Milan to officially end his contract with the Italian club on Thursday, clearing the way for his to return to Brazil. Ronaldinho did not announce his new club, however, and three Brazilian clubs remain in contention to sign the two-time FIFA player of the year [.