Latest EPL Transfer News – Yakubu joins Everton, Belletti joins Chelsea…

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Yakubu all set to join Everton:

Everton have agreed a club record transfer fee of 11.25 million pounds ($27.6 million) with Middlesbrough for Aiyegbeni Yakubu.

Yakubu, who trained with Middlesbrough on Wednesday, is now due on Merseyside to discuss personal terms and undergo a medical and if all goes according to plan he should be available to make his Toffees debut against Blackburn on Saturday.

Over the past four seasons, only former Arsenal striker Thierry Henry has scored more English Premier League goals than Yakubu.

Belletti joins Chelsea:

Chelsea Football Club and FC Barcelona have reached an agreement for the transfer of Juliano Belletti.

The transfer fee is around the 5.5 million Euro mark. Belletti will pen a three year deal after completing a medical and agreeing terms.

Well this has ended Chelsea's search for a right-back. While most of the fans were expecting Chelsea to sign Daniel Alves from Sevilla – but after Sevilla refused to budge from their 36 million euro valuation of the right-back, and in fact even raised it to 40 million - Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho moved quickly for the experienced Belletti, underlining chairman Bruce Buck's insistence that they would not be held to ransom in any transfer deal.

Kasey Keller joins Fulham:

Veteran goalkeeper Kasey Keller has joined Fulham.

The Cottagers have been short of options in goal this season, following an injury to first-choice Niemi and with a lack of cover for Tony Warner in the Finn's absence.

Most of you might remember Keller from his days at Spurs.

Latest EPL Transfer News – Mido joins Middlesbrough and Dyer completes West Ham switch

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Mido joins Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough have completed the £6million signing of Tottenham's Egyptian international striker Mido on a four-year contract.

Boro beat off competition from newly-promoted duo Birmingham and Sunderland to land the 24-year-old, who has been granted a work permit.

Middlesbrough would now like to hold on to Yakubu and the prospects of these two teaming up in the front should assure Boro of a few goals.

Kieron Dyer finally completes West Ham move
Kieron Dyer's on-off move from Newcastle to West Ham has finally been concluded after the two sides agreed terms. The deal should be somewhere between the £6million to £8million mark.

Dyer could even make his debut for West Ham this weekend against Birmingham. He would be joining his ex-Newcastle team-mates Scott Parker, Craig Bellamy and Lee Bowyer at Upton Park. Their team surely looks strong on paper.

Other Transfer News:

Chelsea want Daniel Alves
Chelsea are set to increase their offer for Sevilla wing-back Daniel Alves after the Spanish club rejected an initial bid of £21.5million.

The player's agent remains confident the two clubs will soon reach an agreement - paving the way for Alves to move to Stamford Bridge.

Benfica midfielder Manuel Fernandes is set to join Everton within the next 24 hours. The deal is said to around the £6million mark.

Leeds have agreed to sell verteran winger Eddie Lewis to Derby County for an undisclosed fee.

Via – SportingLife

EPL Results – Chelsea beat Reading, Man Utd held by Portsmouth. Review of all Mid-Week Matches

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Portsmouth 1 - Manchester United 1
Cristiano Ronaldo and new Portsmouth signing Sulley Muntari saw red as Manchester United were held to another battling draw by Portsmouth.

The champions took the lead via a Payl Scholes goal assisted by United debutant Carlos Tevez. Portsmouth leveled in the 53rd minute through Mwaruwari Benjani.

The Manchester derby is up next for United while Portsmouth face Bolton at home.

Reading 1 - Chelsea 2
Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba ensured Chelsea didn’t drop any points at Reading. Both scored shortly after half-time to complete a fine comeback win. Earlier in the match, Andre Bikey capitalized on a mistake by Petr Cech to give Reading the lead.

Chelsea travel to Anfield to face Liverpool on Sunday while Reading play host to Everton.

Man City 1 - Derby County 0
Manchester City continued their perfect start to the season with a 1-0 victory over newly promoted Derby County at the City of Manchester Stadium.

19-year-old Michael Johnson scored a classy goal which was also his first professional goal.

Derby travel to Tottenham this weekend while City play hosts to Manchester United.

Birmingham 2 - Sunderland 2
The Premiership new-boys renewed their Championship rivalry after playing out an entertaining draw. Sunderland continued their late scoring antics as Stern John came off the bench to net the equalizer in the 90th minute.

Birmingham host West Ham United coming weekend while Sunderland travel to Wigan.

Fulham 2 - Bolton 1
Fulham dealt Bolton a second straight defeat after coming from behind to win 2-1 at Craven Cottage.

Ex-Fulham striker Heidar Helguson put Bolton in the front after a mistake by Fulham goalie Tony Warner. David Healy equalized for Fulham and Ex-Chelsea midfielder Alexi Smertin netted the winner.

Fulham play hosts to Middlesbrough this weekend while Bolton travel to Portsmouth.

Wigan 1 - Middlesbrough 0
On a night studded with goalkeeping errors, the costliest one came JJB Stadium when Mark Schwarzer's spill gifted Wigan a 1-0 win over Middlesbrough.

Schwarzer could not hold Antonio Valencia's 55th-minute shot and Antoine Sibierski pounced to bundle the ball home for his second goal in as many matches.

Latest Results – Saturday Review: Sunderland shock Spurs and all other Scores

Aston Villa 1 - Liverpool 2

A stunning free-kick just three minutes from time by Steven Gerrard gave Liverpool a 2-1 win at Aston Villa in their Premier League opener on Saturday night. It had looked that Villa had done enough to claim a draw when Barry fired home a penalty in the 85th minute, but Liverpool captain Gerard ensured that they got their title aspirations to a decent start and slotted home a brilliant 25-yarder shot.

Sunderland 1 - Tottenham 0

Earlier in the day, Roy Keane’s Sunderland shocked Spurs with a 1-0 win at the Stadium of Light. Michael Chopra delighted the Desi followers of the game along with the thousands of Sunderland fans as he side-footed a goal in injury time.

West Ham 0 - Manchester City 2

Sven-Goran Eriksson claimed victory in his first competitive match as a club manager in England as Manchester City beat West Ham 2-0 at Upton Park.

Eriksson’s new signings shone through as Rolando Bianchi tapped home the opener following an amazing run by Elano. Geovanni slammed in late to ensure the victory.

Everton 2 – Wigan Athletic 1

Everton claimed a 2-1 win over Wigan Athletic at Goodison Park thanks to a 26th-minute header by Leon Osman and a 75th-minute goal by Victor Anichebe.

Antoine Sibierski pulled one back for the Latics from close range in the 80th minute but Everton held on for the victory.

Bolton 1 - Newcastle 3

Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce made a stunning winning return to his old club Bolton as his team secured a comprehensive 3-1 win at the Reebok Stadium.

The game was pretty much over by half-time as Magpies were up by 3-0 at the break. The first goal came via a free-kick from Charles N’Zogbia. Martins smashed in an acrobatic second. He scored his second in the 27th minute.

Anelka slotted in a goal in the 51st minute after some clever work by Kevin Nolan – but it proved to be nothing but a consolatory goal.

Middlesbrough 1 - Blackburn 2

Middlesbrough started their campaign badly after throwing away a one goal lead. A curling Stewart Downing free-kick gave them the lead and Blackburn were dealt a massive blow when McCarthy had to be carried off on a stretcher after suffering a head injury early in the second half. However, his replacement Roque Santa Cruz scored the equaliser when he headed in David Bentley's cross from the right (63).

The winner came from young striker Matt Derbyshire in the 79th minute.

Derby 2 - Portsmouth 2

Newly-promoted Derby made a lively start to their campaign with a 2-2 draw at Pride Park against much fancied Portsmouth.

Matt Oakley netted the first for Derby with just 4 minutes having passed. Benjani Mwaruwari equalized for Pommies before new-signing John Utaka gave them the lead. The lead was very short-lived as defender Andy Todd equalized for Derby via a spectacular diving header.

Season Preview - Middlesbrough

Last season: 12th, 46 points; FA Cup sixth round; Carling Cup first round

Transfers:

In: Luke Young (Charlton, £2.5m); Jeremie Aliadiere (Arsenal, £2m); Tuncay Sanli (Fenerbahce, free)

Out: Mark Viduka (Newcastle, free); Abel Xavier (LA Galaxy, free); Stuart Parnaby (Birmingham, free); Danny Graham (Carlisle, free).

Official Website: http://www.mfc.co.uk/

Official Kit: To be updated soon.

A pretty tough season lies ahead of Gareth Southgate and his boys. Many are considering this Middlesbrough squad as relegation candidates.

Middlesbrough haven’t been able to attract talent to the Teeside and lost out on the race to sign Alan Smith – a player who could have really driven the squad. They let Mark Viduka leave and got in Tuncay Sanli from Fenerbache and Jeremie Aliadiere from Arsenal to boost their dwindling attacking options. Luke Young has been a good buy and would definitely strengthen the defense.

Schedule via English Soccer Talk:

Middlesbrough's schedule can essentially be divided into three parts: Two long, extremely difficult stretches of games against teams expected to finish in, or at the very least challenge for, European places this season, and the rest of the games against mid-lower table sides that Middlesbrough will have to take as many points as they can from.

From September 30-December 8, Middlesbrough will play 9 league games. Out of those 9, they'll be favored in just one of them, and even it's no guarantee (an away game at Manchester City). Also in that long stretch are home games with Chelsea, Tottenham, Aston Villa, and Arsenal, as well as road matches at Everton, Manchester United, Bolton, and Reading.

As if that run of games wasn't difficult enough, there's also a killer finish to the season. February 23-April 26, a span of 10 league games, sees just one "gimme" (a home game with Derby County). Trips to Liverpool, Aston Villa, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, and Sunderland are also included, as are home dates with Reading, Manchester United, and Bolton.

Those two stretches make up 19 games in total, half the total schedule. 57 points are possible from those games but one can't see Middlesbrough getting more than 20, certainly no more than 25. That means Middlesbrough will have to take care of business in their other games to assure themselves of another season in the Premiership.

EPL08.com prediction:
League Position – 15
Last seasons 12th to 16th places were separated by only 7 points and it's pretty much going to be the same this year. Not much separating teams at these spots. Gareth Southgate isn't going to find it easy this season either and might be the first manager to lose his job this season. I cannot see a repeat of a UEFA Cup final appearance in the near future. Yakubu definitely really needs to put on his striking boots this season.

EPL08.com - Predictions for the 2007-08 Season

Here's how we feel the tables going to look like at the end of the season:

1. Chelsea
Though there's more pressure on Mourinho to win the Champions League, I feel Chelsea will have to wait for yet another season to lay their hands on the elusive European title. The league will be a consolation of sorts, but something Chelsea should be able to get back from United.

2. Manchester United
Though they have loaded their team up with a lot of stars, I expect Manchester United to slip up in the league and shine in Europe this season. A Champions League final vs Barcelona at Moscow would be a classique!

3. Liverpool
With the massive amount of money which Liverpool have splurged this year - a non-top three finish might see heads roll at Anfield. In fact supporters feel that this is the season where they can actually end their 17 year title drought.

4. Arsenal
Theres not much pressure at the Emirates Stadium this year. Arsene Wenger is building for the future. No one expects miracles this year and this might play to their favour. We might get to see some exciting free flowing football from the young gunners this season.

5. Tottenham
The Spurs have an attacking line-up which could match that of Manchester United. Berbatov, Defoe and Keane - each had in excess of 10 goals last season and the addition of ₤ 16.5 million Darren Bent just adds to their attacking riches. But again, there's going to be lot of expectations at White Hart Lane - especially because of the amount of money spent in the summer.

6. Newcastle
Under-achievers for ages - this is finally going to be a season in which the Magpies will redeem themselves to a certain extent. Mainly because of the genius of Sam Allardyce. They'll need their strike force to remain injury-free too.

7. Everton
Andrew Johnson needs to start slotting in a lot more goals if Everton are to finish anything higher than 6th position. They might a fancy a decent run in the UEFA cup this time around and also expect them to reach the latter stages of one of the domestic cups.

8. Aston Villa
Martin O'Neill has been a winner for too long to accept another season treading water at Villa Park. A lot of names have left Villa this season but they've got in a couple of good players too. I definitely expect them to push for UEFA cup. Watch out for Gabriel Agbonlahor and Ashley Young this season.

9. Manchester City
A top 10 finish might be on the cards. Sven-Goran Erikkson has pretty much bought a truck load of players and that too not for cheap. I bet he's not even see half of them play! Language is going to be a serious problem at City this season, but I still have a feeling that Erikkson might be able to prove his managerial acumen and pull off a top 10 finish.

10. West Ham United
There's absolutely no chance that the Hammers are going to get caught in a relegation battle again. They've acquired some real good players - Ljungberg, Bellamy and Parker and coupled with Alan Curbishley's massive experience, I expect the Hammers to squeeze into the top half.

11. Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn has hardly seen any transfer activity this season with the only major signing being that of Roque Santa Cruz from Bayern Munich. But Blackburn have a pretty strong squad - able mid-fielders and plenty of striking options.

12. Portsmouth
Pompey owner Alexandre Gaydamak handed Harry Redknap a 25-million-pound transfer kitty and Harry's made quite a few signings. Portsmouth might lack the big names but have one of the most balanced squads this time around. Expect them to surprise a few teams but they've got the cruelest of schedules to start off with. After opening the year at newly promoted Derby County, it's home against Manchester United and Bolton, away to Chelsea and Arsenal, back home against Liverpool, at Blackburn, and then home against Reading.

13. Bolton
After four consecutive top 8 finishes under manager Sam Allardyce - the Trotters are going to find the going pretty tough this time around. A lot will depend upon Anelka - who might still leave before the transfer window shuts and even El-Hadji Diouf is keen on a move to Lyon. Kevin Nolan needs to stand up and deliver though I feel a player like him deserves to play in a top 4 squad.

14. Reading
Their fairytale premiership debut - in which they finished 8th - is definitely not going to witness a repeat. Reading over achieved last season and they have also lost arguably their best player in Steve Sidwell, who left for the greener pastures of Stamford Bridge.

15. Middlesbrough
Last seasons 12th to 16th places were separated by only 7 points and it's pretty much going to be the same this year. Not much separating teams at these spots. Gareth Southgate isn't going to find it easy this season either. A cannot see a repeat of a UEFA Cup final appearance in the near future. Yakubu really needs to put on his striking boots.

16. Fulham
Fulham were lucky to survive last season, mainly courtesy of a win against a pretty depleted Liverpool side. New manager Lawrie Sanchez has brought in a host of Northern Ireland players. I expect the Cottagers to struggle this season too - thought Sanchez might be able to survive the drop.

17. Birmingham
Many expect Birmingham to go straight back to the Championship, but I feel that the team has enough quality to avoid relegation. They've got in Liam Ridgewell and Franck Quedrue to bolster the back. The striking options are a little weak, Cameron Jerome and Mikael Forssell have to really perform if Birmingham are to stay up.

18. Sunderland
It's going to be real close dog-fight and the fiery Roy Keane might not be able to retain his cool at the end of it. Keane did wonders in his first year at Sunderland, but even he'll known that the going is pretty different in one of the best top division leagues in the world. We'll keep a special watch on the Desi flavour ala Michael Chopra.

19. Wigan Athletic
Without Paul Jewell in charge, Wigan don't look to have much chance of staying up. Season before last, Wigan surprised a lot of teams by finishing in the top half. Last year they barely managed to avoid relegation by beating Sheffield United on the last day of the season. Things are not going to be rosy for new manager Chris Hutchings.

20. Derby County
In 12 months, Derby County went from third last in the Championship to promotion to the Premiership. The roller-coaster ride should be complete in another 12 months when the Rams find themselves back in the Championship.


Those are my predictions for the coming season and I'd love to hear yours. Been really busy with other work, so haven't been able to put up a team by team season preview yet. Expect
some of it to be up real soon.

Cheers and be sure to stay with us for the entire season.

Review of Satuday's Friendlies - Chelsea Fall. Arsenal Win.

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Arsenal 2 - 1 Paris St Germain
Arsenal completed a 2-1 victory over Paris St-Germain in the Emirates Cup - a friendly tournament in the mould of next week's Amsterdam trophy.Goals from Mathieu Flamini and Niklas Bendtner were enough for the Gunners before Peguy Luyindula pulled a goal back.

Rangers 2 - 0 Chelsea
Nacho Novo and Filip Sebo hit late goals to sink Chelsea and set up Rangers perfectly for their Champions League second-round qualifier against FK Zeta.

Halifax 0 - 4 Wigan
Nigerian Julius Aghahowa came off the bench to score two in Wigan's 4-0 win at Halifax. Emile Heskey and Jason Koumas, scoring for the first time for Wigan, were also on target.

Orlando Pirates 0 - 3 Spurs
Big-money signing Darren Bent struck twice as Tottenham ran out 3-0 winners over Orlando Pirates in their latest pre-season outing in South Africa.

Hibernian 1 - 0 Middlesbrough
Ross Campbell struck a last-minute winner to give Hibernian a win over Middlesbrough. Julio Arca and Stewart Downing both came close for Boro, but could not break through and Campbell eventually stole the game with his last-gasp strike.

Southend 1 - 3 West Ham
New signings Craig Bellamy and Freddie Ljungberg both found the net as West Ham eased to a 3-1 friendly win at Southend.

Tranmere 0 - 1 Bolton
An 83rd-minute goal from Ricardo Vaz Te gave Bolton a 1-0 victory over Tranmere at Prenton Park.

Walsall 0 - 2 Birmingham
First-half goals from Mikael Forssell and Cameron Jerome gave Birmingham a comfortable friendly victory over neighbours Walsall.

Other Results:

Charleroi 2 - 0 Manchester City
Brighton 1 - 3 Reading
Mansfield 2 - 0 Derby
Bohemians 0 - 1 Sunderland

Via: Sporting Life