Features news coverage of Rangers and its players, including match reports, transfer rumours and general football news.
It won’t be long now until Rangers prepare to take on Zenit St Petersburg in the UEFA Cup Final as part of their quest for an unprecedented quadruple of trophies in the 2007-8 campaign, but how will the host city of Manchester cope with the anticipated invasion of between 80,000 and 100,000 fans for this fixture?
Written by Anthony. One comment
The North East of England is often described as a ‘football hotbed’ – an area that is widely accepted to be rich in the culture, tradition and passion of the beautiful game. Three big clubs, hundreds of thousands of loyal supporters and a breeding ground for talent through the eras, there can’t be many parts of the world that top Tyneside, Wearside and the Tees on the hotbed thermometer ?
Well of course there are. Bobby Charlton, Alan Shearer and Paul Gascoigne apart, how many world class players has the ‘hotbed’ produced ? And how many trophies have their teams won on a national or international stage ?
I know it’s not all about glory and home grown talent, but I can make a case for ten diverse areas on this planet all being bigger hotbeds than the North East (population: 2,515,442):
Written by Betfair. 15 comments
Uefa’s Under-17 Championships have revealed many a burgeoning young talent to a wider audience in the last six years. It is the stage where Wayne Rooney (2002), Cesc Fabregas (2004), Nuri Sahin (2005), Toni Kroos (2006) and Bojan Krkic (2007) strutted their stuff and won the ‘Golden Boy’ award.
You have to wonder what happened to David Rodriguez after his 2003 performance, such is the mark of quality that goes with the recognition of being the best player on show. But who are this year’s likely lads ? Who cares which nation takes the trophy, we all want to know where the next generation of star names are going to come from!
From what I hear, he could come from an area of Liverpool called West Derby, via Madrid and Argentina and go by the name Gerry Brown (local translation), but we will have to wait and see. I’ve picked out eight names to keep an eye on for the duration of the event - May 4-16 in Antalya, Turkey.
Written by Betfair. 13 comments
Rangers stunned Sporting Lisbon in Portugal on Thursday with a 2-0 victory to book their place in the UEFA Cup semi finals.
French striker Jean-Claude Darcheville had put the Scottish side ahead against the run of play in the 60th minute and in injury time substitute Steven Whittaker scored a brilliant second to clinch the historic victory.
Rangers have never reached this stage in the competition before but their success came at a price.
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The recent debate over whether or not Welsh FA members Cardiff City should be allowed to compete in the UEFA Cup should they win the (English) FA Cup should have at least the one positive side-effect. On and off for several years the debate has raged on as to whether or not Rangers and Celtic should be allowed to play in the English leagues. Each time the question always seems to be placed back on the shelf only to be revisited a year or so later.
But would the removal of the possibility of European football should they join the English leagues put an end to this tiresome saga? Over the years the argument has been that the Old Firm cannot compete in Europe because of the lack of money generated in the Scottish Premier League compared to its English counterpart. If Rangers and Celtic were to play in England however, they too along with Cardiff would surely only have associate memberships with the FA.
If this is the case, then even if the Old Firm were to battle their way in the Premier League and finish in the top 5, or indeed win either cup competition, they also wouldn’t be permitted to enter European competition under the banner of a ‘guest club’, and therefore the entire basis of their argument falls apart.
Written by Alan Worrall. 2 comments
Kevin Thomson is fit for Rangers’ UEFA Cup tie against Sporting Lisbon. I am so relieved because I thought he might be seriously injured. He took an awful clattering from Celtic’s Georgios Samaras when he deliberately moved his leg to the side so that he could make minimal contact with the Celtic player before throwing himself to the ground.
In my non-expert opinion that incident was as clear a dive as you will ever see. I feel that the injury and the carrying off were simply to divert attention away from what he did.
Written by Graham Fisher. 10 comments
See, being eliminated from the UEFA Champions League isn’t the end of the world.
Rangers and Sporting both finished third in their respective Champions League groups, not good enough to advance to the knockout round, but enough to earn a place in the UEFA Cup round of 32.
Both teams have taken full advantage of their continued European stay, and now face one another in the UEFA Cup quarterfinals.
Written by Eddie Griffin. Leave a response
With now only 8 teams remaining in each respective tournament, UEFA’s headquarters in Nyon (Switzerland) will host the draws on Friday afternoon for the Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals of the 2007/08 UEFA club competitions, the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Cup.
The UEFA Champions League draw will be made at 13.00CET and conducted by the UEFA General Secretary (David Taylor) and the ambassador for the final in Moscow on May 21st (Russian goalkeeping legend Rinat Dasaev). The UEFA Cup draw will follow at 14.00CET and will be conducted by Mr Taylor and the ambassador for the May 14th final in Manchester (1964 European Footballer of the Year Denis Law).
Soccerlens brought to you the draw LIVE as each of the 4 UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup matches were drawn. FULL RESULTS after the jump
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Written by Marco Pantanella. 30 comments
It was a great night, for the most part, for British sides in the UEFA Cup on Thursday night, as four of the five British participants still in the competition advanced to the round of 16.
Written by Eddie Griffin. Leave a response
BBC Scotland unimpressed with their recent decision regarding the broadcast of this week’s UEFA Cup matches.
As some will know, Rangers take on Panathinaikos in Greece on Thursday and Bayern Munich play Aberdeen at the Allianz Arena in Germany that same day. But unfortunately for non-travelling fans, both matches are contested at roughly the same time. Which means that the BBC can only broadcast one - out of interests of “fairness” to viewers.
They’ve gone for the Rangers match. Which means that any Aberdeen fans unable to make the journey to Germany won’t be able to watch the second leg of the tie, where they still have a chance of making it to the last 16.
Written by Alan Worrall. 13 comments
Things are looking good for the English clubs in the UEFA Cup after Everton, Tottenham, and Bolton each won the first legs of their round of 32 ties.
Written by Eddie Griffin. 3 comments
Back at the end of August last year I previewed the season ahead in Scotland, including my predictions for each league based on the first couple games of the season. Naturally, I haven’t gotten everything 100%, but as part of a mid-season update and part of a review of my future-telling abilities, here’s how the Scottish Premier League, and the other leagues, are shaping up as it enters the final third of the season.
Rangers, as I predicted, lead the way. Their current four point gap over Celtic is hardly insurmountable, but that being said they’ve impressed on league business this season. Not that Celtic haven’t of course, but as the present gap shows, Rangers at present have the edge that could bring them the title. Rangers acquitted themselves well on the European stage and were perhaps unlucky not to go through to the last 16. Instead a last 32 UEFA Cup meeting with Panathanaikos beckons, along with a CIS Cup final against Dundee United.
Written by Alan Worrall. 6 comments
There was, as expected, plenty of deadline-day craziness, and while there are several deals to report, I’ll start by talking about the deal that didn’t happen, and one that did, at the same time.
With Manchester City coming in for Benjani, Portsmouth went about looking for a replacement, and found one in Tottenham’s Jermain Defoe.
While Defoe was able to wrap up his deal before the deadline, things went a little bit differently for Benjani and City.
There weren’t any issues with the fee (9 million pounds) or the work permit (granted), but Benjani didn’t arrive at City’s training ground headquarters until an hour before the deadline, and time ran out before the deal could be finished.
Now, the easiest thing for anyone to do right now would be to laugh hysterically or shake your head, unless you’re Sven-Goran Eriksson, Benjani, or Portsmouth.
If you’re Sven, you’re pissed, maybe not so much because of this particular deal falling through (I’ll expound upon this shortly), but because you tried to sign about 25 strikers and only got one, though I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with Felipe Caicedo, as he might turn out to be a City star.
Granted, the fact that both parties were waiting on one another to get their respective deals done in time created a little bit of a problem, but Portsmouth did the smart thing and got the deal for Defoe done in time, just to make sure they weren’t left high and dry.
Unfortunately, the fact that the deal didn’t get done means that the money for the transfer is going to have to come from somewhere else, as Benjani’s move was going to finance the Defoe swoop.
So, Benjani has to go back to Portsmouth, where his spot in the starting XI might no longer be guaranteed, with Pompey having signed two strikers in the last several days. He did net a hat trick against Derby recently, but he’s gotten goals in only 3 of his last 16 starts, so Harry Redknapp might be glad that he has options now in case the well starts running dry again with the streaky Zimbabwean hit-man.
If you’re Defoe, you might be wondering ‘Oh shit, what did I get myself into?’ as I’m sure he doesn’t want to just be a super-sub/part-time starter all over again.
But, I’d bet that his chances of cracking Portsmouth’s starting lineup on a regular basis are much better than at Tottenham, where his chances of being getting past Keane or Berbatov were almost slim to none, unless one got injured, or he started scoring hat tricks every time he came on for his late second-half runouts.
Defoe does have his streaky tendencies as well, but having a change of scenery/renewed enthusiasm and hope/a new, but familiar face at manager might do wonders for what he does on the pitch from here on. There’s also the matter of him getting back his place in the England squad as well, so we might be seeing one determined Defoe, but if he justifies the fee Pompey paid for him will depend on him and him only.
If you‘re Old ‘Arry, you don’t have to worry about about having enough strikers while Kanu and John Utaka are away at the African Cup of Nations.
Now when they get back, that’s another issue entirely…
Does anyone have David Nugent’s address? It would be nice for us to send him our sympathies.
Now, if you’re City, you might be wanting a do-over right now, after the final week of the January transfer window didn’t go so well for them.
Then again, given the aforementioned streakiness, they might be better off having spent just the 5 million on Caicedo, and seeing if he can live up to his great potential.
Or, they might be wishing they had gotten their hands on Afonso Alves, who’s finally, finally, finally!!! (for extra effect) a Middlesbrough player, after his 12 million pound deal was wrapped up on deadline day.
Boro, however, lost out on promising Inter forward Goran Slavkovski, who will be moving to Championship side Sheffield United on loan instead of Boro, which was his expected destination.
The biggest deal of the day might not be either of those, and it might not even be done either, as Liverpool had supposedly wrapped up the permanent signing of Javier Mascherano. They all but have, but everything’s not signed on the dotted line for now. The number being tossed about for the deal to be made permanent was 18.6 million pounds, just a shade higher than the 17 million that had been previously mentioned as the necessary price to tie him up.
After Nottingham Forest went in for Dundee United’s Barry Robson, Celtic acted swiftly and got their man, bringing in the goal-scoring midfielder in a deal that will see 1.25 million pounds and Celtic’s Jim O’Brien (on loan) go the other way.
Manchester United were quiet during January, with the exception of Angolan striker Manucho, who has impressed at the African Cup of Nations thus far, scoring three goals in helping his country advance to the quarterfinals. When the 24-year old gets back to Europe, he’ll be heading to Greece, where he’ll play for Panathinaikos, who United have loaned him out to until the end of the season.
Fulham have signed veteran Finnish striker Jari Litmanen to add a little punch and experience to their front line. Don’t expect him to score as many goals as his current age, but I’m sure he’s still got a few left in him, otherwise Roy Hodgson wouldn’t have gone in for him.
They have also signed another Finn, in defender Toni Kallio, and they’ve also snapped up Tottenham’s Paul Stalteri, who can play either in defense or midfield.
The Cottagers have also allowed midfielder Steve Davis go to Rangers on loan for the rest of the season, even though Davis had been a starter for the side all season long.
Tottenham have signed Hertha Berlin defender Gilberto for an undisclosed fee, after reports that there’d been issues with the 31-year old Brazilian’s medical.
Derby have signed Everton’s Alan Stubbs to bolster their defense, with the 36-year old center back signing an 18-month deal to link up with Paul Jewell’s Rams.
Meanwhile, Everton have signed Tottenham center back Anthony Gardner on loan until the end of the season.
Lazio have signed Newcastle’s David Rozehnal on loan for the remainder of the season, and yes, Magpies fans, he may not be coming back, so you can celebrate just a little. Now, as for the others, well, it’s a little late.
On the same front, Newcastle failed in their bid to sign Czech starlet Lubos Kalouda, as they and FC Brno could not finalize the transfer quickly enough.
I’m not done yet! Wigan have signed Norway international defender Erik Hagen on loan from Zenit St. Petersburg for the rest of the season. The 32-year old has 24 caps and two goals for his country, and is known for a very aggressive playing style.
Bolton signed Southampton striker Grzegorz Rasiak, but came up empty in their 7 million pound bid for Reading’s Leroy Lita. 7 million seems a little high for Lita right now, considering the striker has all of one goal this season, but I suppose Steve Coppell wants to see what Lita does between now and the end of the season before seeing if he wants to cut his losses or hold on to him.
And, for the final run through from the month of January, so you best enjoy it…Aston Villa’s deal for American goalkeeper Brad Guzan fell through because his work permit was rejected, as he doesn’t have enough international appearances…Werder Bremen have signed Schalke’s out of favor midfielder Mesut Ozil for 5 million euros…Hamburg SV have signed Blackburn’s 18-year old midfielder Mamadi Keita on a two and a half year deal, bringing the former Germany youth international back home…Hertha Berlin have signed Southampton’s Rudi Skacel on loan…Osasuna have signed Alaves midfielder Martin Astudillo on loan for the rest of the season…Brescia have beaten Rangers to the signature of striker Andrea Caracciolo, who returns to the club he played for from 2001-02 and 2003-05.
And with that, the January transfer window is now CLOSED.
Written by Eddie Griffin. Leave a response
Well, after a month filled with a few moves and a lot of speculation, we’ve finally reached the final day of the transfer window. I’ll be reporting later on all of the action from what should be a frantic day, but for now, here’s all of the latest from yesterday and the early part of today.
Written by Eddie Griffin. Leave a response
It’s been a busy month with far more speculation than actual moves, but with only a few days left in the January transfer window, you can expect to see a lot of movin’, shakin’, and possibly shankin’ in the next few days.
Written by Eddie Griffin. One comment
It’s Friday, so if you’re going out this weekend, be safe, and don’t do anything that Cristiano Ronaldo wouldn’t do.
Written by Eddie Griffin. 5 comments
Fulham’s glaring need for attacking improvements was quite evident in their FA Cup shootout defeat to Bristol Rovers on Tuesday night, but Roy Hodgson may finally be getting his prayers answered. The Cottagers have signed American international striker Eddie Johnson from the Kansas City Wizards, with the 23-year old penning a three and a half year deal to be the latest American to ply his trade at Craven Cottage.
Written by Eddie Griffin. One comment
Now that Kevin Keegan has taken over at Newcastle, it‘s time to kick their transfer speculation into fifth gear.
Written by Eddie Griffin. Leave a response
It’s Friday, so I know that you who are reading Soccerlens at work, you can’t wait to skate through the rest of your day and get home for the weekend, but that doesn’t mean you can do the same with the transfer roundup, because if you click, you read to the bottom - no return policy, and no money-back guarantees.
Written by Eddie Griffin. One comment
As opposed to ending the roundup with the signings as I usually do, I’ll start today’s with the signing news.
Written by Eddie Griffin. 4 comments
If at first you don’t succeed, pull out the checkbook and try again.
That’s the situation Chelsea are in right now, after having their offer for Nicolas Anelka rejected by Bolton. As for what the offer was, the reports don’t say, but I can confirm, without a shadow of a doubt, that whatever it was, it wasn’t enough.
Then again, Bolton could be trying to do Chelsea a favor and take a lower price for Anelka. Right…
Written by Eddie Griffin. 2 comments
After the World’s Top Goalscorer of 2007, the IFFHS (International Federation of Football History & Statistics) has done the impossible: make yet another controversial ranking, and make some more thousand-something fans pissed off about it.
This time, it’s the All-Time Club Rankings.
Written by Marco Pantanella. 19 comments
Finally, we have some signings, because it can get a little boring talking about speculation sometimes.
Written by Eddie Griffin. One comment
It’s time to take a trip around Europe once again to see how some of the other leagues in the continent are shaking out as we head towards the new year (you did know that there was football beyond the English Premier League, right?).
Written by Eddie Griffin. 2 comments
After 12 enthralling nights of action, the Champions League group stage came to an end on Wednesday night, as the last two places in the round of 16 were decided.
Written by Eddie Griffin. Leave a response
Our European tour starts in France, where Lyon, as is to be expected by now, are standing alone atop the Ligue 1 standings, but aren’t running away with their seventh straight title just yet.
With their upcoming Champions League clash with Rangers in mind, Lyon manager Alain Perrin sat several key players for Saturday’s tie at Caen, and as a result, may have sacrificed three points, as the home side used an early goal to pick up a 1-0 victory.
Written by Eddie Griffin. One comment
So we have another stupid suggestion by another Scottish team, and again we have the same stupid outcome.
This time Rangers asked if they could postpone their game with SPL minnows Gretna so that they could fully concentrate on the Champions League game with Lyon in midweek. Surely this shouldn’t be allowed!
This is clearly an unfair advantage in Rangers’ favour, one feels. Especially when you couple it with the fact that Lyon have also this week asked if they would be allowed to postpone their game with Caen so that they could focus on their clash at Ibrox, but no, big round of applause to the French FA who have got the call right and have told them to bugger off. You would think that as Lyon are French Champions they would have a better chance of a fixture reprieve but no, the FA stood strong and fair play to them.
