Official Press Release The Football Association of Ireland today (November 19) confirmed that it will lodge a complaint with FIFA, following last night's World Cup play-off match between France and the Republic of Ireland in Paris. Conclusive video evidence of a deliberate hand ball by Thierry Henry, which led to France's additional time goal, has been seen [. Click to continue reading...

Image via Wikipedia With Ireland reeling from "Le Hand of God" bookie Paddy Power have issued a whole host of special bets on the man who will forever be known as "cheating Thierry." Unfortunately for Irish fans and Justice Minister Dermot Ahern, the likelihood of justice prevailing look slim with odds of 33/1 the match gets [. Click to continue reading...

Image via Wikipedia Although many have called it unfair, the seeding system adopted for the play off matches to decide the final four European teams that will make it to the 2010 World Cup Finals in South Africa, has produced four potentially exciting match ups. The two leg matches will be played on November 14th [. Click to continue reading...

Manchester United has reached the English League Cup quarterfinals defeating legend killers, Barnsley, who had defeated both Liverpool and Chelsea last season en route to the semifinals. Red Devils fielded a second string but included Michael Owen, who returned the favor with flying colors by scoring the second goal for United. Click to continue reading...

With the Ballon d'Or nominations finally releasing this weekend, the headlines have mostly been devoted to the fact that world champions Italy have no representation whatsoever. But why blame the press for paying excessive attention to an irrelevant detail? After all, the award itself is destined to be heading Lionel Messi's way, which means very little is there to be talked about in terms of debating the winner, right?

Click to continue reading...

While Arsenal skipper Cesc Fabregas has clearly enjoyed his Spain side cruise to the World Cup 2010 finals with a perfect record (and no goals conceded at home), he has spoken to Arsenal.com to offer some backing to a couple of his teammates who won't be appearing in the showpiece event next summer.

Click to continue reading...

Beyond the nation's borders, Italian football has certainly faded into the background in recent years. A devastating match-fixing scandal in 2006 bitterly overshadowed the country's World Cup triumph that year while the domestic league has clearly become a one-horse race ever since. Reigning champions Inter Milan have shown no signs of a slip up in the Serie A for the last three seasons and that trend continued with their strong start to the current season as well.

Click to continue reading...

Uefa World Cup 2010 Qualifying Belgium vs Turkey : Live Stream here Belgium - Turkey : Highlights here Pre-register at the NEW football site 11×2 today Click to continue reading...

Fifa U20 World Cup Egypt 2009 Brazil vs Germany : Live Stream here Brazil - Germany : Highlights here Pre-register at the NEW football site 11×2 today Click to continue reading...

. Cheryl Tweedy via last.fm There's another 8 months to wait before the 2010 World Cup kicks off so WorldCupOdds.eu have compiled a huge list of World Cup Top 10s. You can have your say + vote who you think is the best team, worst villain, hottest wag! Brazil's 1970 World Cup side is generally considered to be [. Click to continue reading...

The title to this article might suggest that I am providing some late coverage on Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner's recent car accident while driving to practice in his Aston Martin. In reality, though, this article is written in vehement defense of the player, who has certainly had more than his fair share of critics, to put it bluntly.

Click to continue reading...

Antonio Cassano has reinvented himself. Not only has he changed his physical approach by losing weight, he has changed his mental approach too, becoming not only more mature, but also a leader. He is now someone who visits hospitals and gives signed shirts to sick children. He is now someone who can carry a team on his back, provide assists for his teammates, and entertain the crowd.

Click to continue reading...

With the arrival of the weekend, football fans across the world are returning to following their respective teams in another series of cracking fixtures. However, excitement is going to reach a whole different level next weekend, when the much awaited FIFA 10 releases in Australia (October 1) and Europe (October 2).

Click to continue reading...

Arsenal will face Liverpool in the Fourth Round of the Carling Cup.

Arsène Wenger's young Gunners were handed a mouthwatering challenge on Saturday afternoon and will welcome Rafa Benitez's team to Emirates Stadium on October 27 or 28.

Arsenal eased into the Fourth Round with a 2-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday night.

Click to continue reading...

They Think It's All Over... talks Carling Cup? Is it worth taking seriously? Click to continue reading...

While he was honored as Estonia's best player in the past half a century by the nation's football association, Mart Poom could not earn even remotely the same kind of respect on club level. Despite boasting a variety of Eastern European and English clubs on his resume during his early days as a player, the legendary former Estonia goalkeeper is best remembered for an extremely inactive spell as a back-up keeper at Arsenal F.

Click to continue reading...

Rewind back to 2003 and you'll see that Jonathan Woodgate had everything. From critical acclaim to a huge fan following, he had all the essentials required to go down in the Newcastle folklore as one of the very best defenders of all time. However, the only obstacle that could stop him injuries came into play very early into his career at St.

Click to continue reading...

When the Carling Cup Round 3 draw was first made, it was very difficult to imagine West Bromwich Albion providing much of a competition to Arsenal at The Emirates. Granted, Arsene Wenger uses the competition to provide some first-team action to his reserves, but even those teenagers usually prove to be a handful for the opponents.

Click to continue reading...

English Carling Cup Manchester United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers : Live Stream here Manchester United - Wolverhampton Wanderers : Highlights here Pre-register at the NEW football site 11×2 today Click to continue reading...

English Carling Cup Leeds United vs Liverpool FC : Live Stream here Leeds United - Liverpool FC : Highlights here Pre-register at the NEW football site 11×2 today Click to continue reading...

After experiencing a promising start in the top flight by defeating the current Premiership champions, Burnley's form went crashing down with two heavy road defeats at the hands of Chelsea and Liverpool, 3-0 and 4-0 respectively. Now, they have to defend their perfect record at home against Sunderland, who come pumped and ready after thrashing Hull City 4-1 at home.

Click to continue reading...

After experiencing a promising start in the top flight by defeating the current Premiership champions, Burnley's form went crashing down with two heavy road defeats at the hands of Chelsea and Liverpool, 3-0 and 4-0 respectively. Now, they have to defend their perfect record at home against Sunderland, who come pumped and ready after thrashing Hull City 4-1 at home.

Click to continue reading...

Domenech reflects on his French future

With France's spot at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa still unclear, the FFF must surely be pointing the finger of blame at the manager rather than the squad. Â Another draw last week leaves France chasing the leaders in the table and looking over their shoulders at who may take their place in the playoffs.

Click to continue reading...

There is absolutely no doubt that Fulham's gritty displays of late are deserving of their newfound reputation as the people's club in the Premier League. The masses can relate to their mid-sized squad and down-to-earth players while tourists from all over the world simply cannot resist the amazing atmosphere at the conveniently located Craven Cottage.

Click to continue reading...

With the commencement of the UEFA Champions League group stages this midweek, an important piece of news was relegated to the back of most reporting outlets. Perhaps another reason behind the lack of coverage for the story in question was the refusal, on part of most football lovers, to recollect any part of the uninspiring internationals break.

Click to continue reading...

How long does he have left?

With Portugal on the verge of non-qualification for the World Cup in 2010, manager Carlos Queiroz is under extreme pressure and has the very real possibility of unemployment looming over him. Given this threat, and inevitability that this will occur, I ask you.

Click to continue reading...

PFA chief Gordon Taylor has urged football fans, pundits, and the FA to put a stop to the lynch mob mentality that is surrounding Manchester City striker Emmanuel Adebayor. The targetman stirred up controversy over the weekend by first stamping on Robin van Persie's face before scoring a goal and sprinting the length of the pitch to celebrate in front of the angry Gunners fans.

Click to continue reading...

This weekend's headlines were stolen by Emmauel Adebayor even before a ball was kicked. Saturday morning, Adebayor finally lashed out at his former club Arsenal, moments before the Gunners kicked-off a challenging visit to the Eastlands.

Click to continue reading...

Seldom has a talented football nation witnessed the kind of humiliation that the Czech Republic has suffered in the entire last year. In a World Cup qualification campaign where they were placed in perhaps the most competitive of groups alongside Slovakia, Slovenia, Poland, and Northern Ireland, perfection was almost always essential for the Czechs.

Click to continue reading...

Some moments are never meant to be forgotten. The entire world of football witnessed one such shocking moment a little less than two years ago in London. On a rainy evening at Wembley, hosts England were expected to advance to the finals of Euro 2008 with just a draw needed against visiting Croatia.

Click to continue reading...

.Brazil have beaten Argentina 3-1 in Rosario to qualify for next year's World Cup finals. The first half was played at a breathless pace. Brazil took the lead in the 24th minute, Elano's free kick being headed home by Benfica centre-back Luisao. The Selacao doubled their lead in the 30th minute. Elano's free-kick being blocked, [. Click to continue reading...

.World Cup qualifiers Europe (Group 1) Denmark 1 1 Portugal Hungary 1 2 Sweden World Cup qualifiers Europe (Group 2) Moldova 0 0 Luxembourg Israel 0 1 Latvia Switzerland 2 0 Greece World Cup qualifiers Europe (Group 3) Poland 1 1 Northern Ireland Slovakia 2 2 Czech Republic World Cup qualifiers [. Click to continue reading...

Pre-register at the NEW football site 11×2 today Watch the Argentina vs Brasil LIVE: LIVE STREAMING! HIGHLIGHTS Click to continue reading...

Another week of Premiership action is now in the books, and Thursday means one thing: it's time for the Thursday Throwdown from A to Z. Here we go...

AÂ is for Anelka. Chelsea fans should be counting their lucky stars that both Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba are in spectacular form.

Click to continue reading...

It seemed like every week last season somebody from Everton was deserving of the Wednesday Wonder. This season, though, as short as it has been, has not been the case. With expectations extremely high at Goodison Park after a fantastic season for an exciting Everton squad, their start to this season has been less than impressive.

Click to continue reading...