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Osasuna 0-2 Real Madrid | Copa Del Rey match report
Tottenham prepare to sell Etienne Capoue as Sherwood streamlines squad
Arsenal recruit head of sport science Andy Rolls from West Ham
Victoria Beckham 'too chic' for Girls, says Lena Dunham
Manchester City v Blackburn Rovers – live! | Toby Moses
Man City 5-0 Blackburn Rovers
Webb chosen among 25 referees at Brazil World Cup
Rooney injury fears mount for Moyes
Leicester sign 40-year-old Phillips until end of season
Chris Hughton's job is safe provided Norwich City stay above drop zone
Hull sign Everton's £6.5m Nikica Jelavic on three-and-a-half-year deal
Jonathan Wilson on José's Matic move
Chelsea re-sign £20.75m Matic
Blootering the overly intricate SAS into a cocked hat | The Fiver
Hillsborough relatives demand answers over Met chief's conduct
Carlos Mané scores stunning goal in Sporting Lisbon's 3-0 win over Maritimo – video
Sport picture of the day: street soccer in Kabul
Sergio Agüero to return for Manchester City in FA Cup clash with Blackburn Rovers – video
Pochettino future in doubt after Saints chairman Cortese quits
Arsenal keep José Mourinho guessing as to who will emerge top dogs | Paul Wilson
Neymar: 'nothing illegal' in transfer
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti: I want more goals from Cristiano Ronaldo – video
Fifa transparency in Ballon d'Or votes should extend to World Cup bids | Marina Hyde
European leagues review: players, teams and Alvaro Negredo's goals
Monaco's Lacina Traoré granted work permit for West Ham move

Osasuna 0-2 Real Madrid | Copa Del Rey match report

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 03:34 PM PST

• Forward scores first-half free-kick in 2-0 win over Osasuna
• Manchester United target Fábio Coentrão sent off late on

The Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo scored the opening goal as 10-man Real Madrid beat Osasuna 2-0 on Wednesday to qualify for the Copa del Rey quarter-finals 4-0 on aggregate.

Osasuna have held Barcelona and Real to draws at El Sadar in La Liga this season but the visitors, full of confidence after a 2-0 win in the first leg, had far too much for them in attack.

Ronaldo, named the Fifa World Player of the Year on Monday, was fortunate to score, however, with a free-kick after 20 minutes. His curling 25-yard effort was straight at the Osasuna goalkeeper Andrés Fernández, who tried to punch it out but ended up sending it down off the ground and between his legs into the net.

Ángel di María also struck in the second half to seal a comfortable victory even though the Real defender Fábio Coentrão was dismissed after receiving a second yellow card six minutes from time.

Real will play Espanyol in the last eight after they secured a 4-3 aggregate win by beating second-tier Alcorcón 4-2 on Wednesday.

Tottenham prepare to sell Etienne Capoue as Sherwood streamlines squad

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 02:30 PM PST

• Capoue told he is at bottom of midfield pecking order
• Lewis Holtby may be sold and Nacer Chadli wants move

Tottenham Hotspur will listen to offers this month for Etienne Capoue, who has fallen from favour under the new manager, Tim Sherwood.

The France international, who joined from Toulouse for a fee rising to £11m last August, has said that he loves the passion of the English game. But it has been made clear to him that he is at the bottom of Sherwood's midfield pecking order and he may benefit from regular football elsewhere, particularly as he looks to force his way into France's World Cup squad.

Sherwood did start Capoue in midfield alongside Mousa Dembélé at Manchester United on New Year's Day, in Tottenham's 2-1 Premier League win, but the manager has tended to prefer the France youth international Nabil Bentaleb, whom he knows from his previous role as the club's academy co-ordinator. Capoue is aware that Sherwood's options in midfield will swell further when Sandro, Paulinho and Gylfi Sigurdsson return from injury and that the manager would play any of them ahead of him.

Capoue looked imposing at the beginning of the season and it was notable that André Villas-Boas, the then manager, started him ahead of Sandro against Swansea City and Arsenal. He suffered an ankle injury at the Emirates that ruled him out for two months but Villas-Boas reintegrated him, before his fortunes turned again following Sherwood's appointment and Bentaleb's elevation.

Lewis Holtby, who has also struggled for playing time under Sherwood, although he has been hampered by a minor injury, has emerged as a target for his former club, Schalke. But while Tottenham would not block the midfielder's permanent sale, they would demand a fee considerably in excess of the bargain £1.5m they paid to Schalke in January of last year. The Bundesliga club would prefer a loan deal.

Nacer Chadli's agent, meanwhile, says that his client wants to leave Tottenham in order to protect his World Cup ambitions with Belgium. Chadli, like Capoue, was signed in the summer and has failed to hold down a starting place. His agent, Daniel Evrard, said: "The World Cup is arriving so it's a problem."

Arsenal recruit head of sport science Andy Rolls from West Ham

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 02:30 PM PST

• Injury-cursed West Ham replace Rolls with Dominic Rogan
• Colin Lewin remains Arsenal's head of medicine

Arsenal have moved to fill a gap in their medical department by signing West Ham United's head of sport science and medicine, Andy Rolls.

The north London club are to lose one of their physiotherapists, Simon Harland, and they have responded by taking Rolls, who left West Ham this week and will begin to work with them in February. Colin Lewin remains as Arsenal's head of medicine.

Rolls had overseen a department at West Ham that has been besieged by injury problems, with the most damaging being that to Andy Carroll, the £15m record signing. The striker only made his first appearance of the season as a substitute in the 2-0 win at Cardiff City on Saturday, having suffered from a long-term foot problem.

Sam Allardyce, the West Ham manager, has cited the club's injuries as the chief reason for their Premier League toils – the Cardiff result lifted them out of the relegation places on goal difference.

West Ham have replaced Rolls with Dominic Rogan, a Lancastrian, who spent six years at Everton before going to Anzhi Makhachkala last year as the Russian club's head physiotherapist. "The manager is obviously one of the pioneers of sports science and sports medicine," Rogan said. "It's a privilege to work at West Ham."

The club said, in a statement, that they thanked Rolls "for his hard work and wish him all the very best for his future career".

David Hytner

Victoria Beckham 'too chic' for Girls, says Lena Dunham

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 02:29 PM PST

Former Posh Spice had been linked to cameo role in the hit US series after she professed to loving the New York-set show

Girls creator and star Lena Dunham has joked that Victoria Beckham is "too chic" to be on the US show as she launched its third series in London.

The 27-year-old – who also produces and writes the award-winning show, as well as starring as aspiring writer Hannah Horvath - admitted that rumours about the Spice Girl-turned-fashion designer making a cameo appearance had been greatly exaggerated, after she said she was a fan.

"Victoria Beckham mentioned she loved the show in an interview and this has been metastasised into 'Victoria Beckham is the fifth Girl'," she said on the red carpet at Cineworld Haymarket in the West End. "We love Victoria Beckham but she's a little chic for us."

Jennifer Konner, the show's executive producer, said she would welcome Beckham and her ex-footballer husband David on the show. "I've heard those rumours but they have not been directly put to us. Why not? It would be amazing!" she said, adding: "And I would insist on David as well."

Dunham, who looked glamorous in a monochrome 50s-style floral dress by Erdem, was joined at the screening by co-stars Allison Williams, who plays her screen best friend Marnie Michaels, and Zosia Mamet (Shoshanna Shapiro) as well as long-time fan Richard E Grant, who guest stars in the coming series.

"I have a 25-year-old daughter who obsessively watches the show," said Grant. "All the things she's going through are the things the characters are going through so it's a real window into the world of the young, who have left home and finished college or university and trying to make their way into the world - and the sexual politics are eye-opening, to say the least."

Grant admitted he was not allowed to divulge details about his character, except that he has "a relationship with one of these younger ladies", and hopes to reprise the role in the future.

"They all really get on with one another so it felt like going to someone's house except it's work. And Lena is a very unassuming boss – she is astonishing. She has such authority but does it effortlessly without being diva-ish," he said.

The third series of Girls will premiere on Sky Atlantic on 20 January.

Manchester City v Blackburn Rovers – live! | Toby Moses

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 02:07 PM PST

Minute-by-minute report: Can Manchester City beat Blackburn Rovers at the second attempt? Toby Moses has the latest from the FA Cup replay

Toby Moses

Man City 5-0 Blackburn Rovers

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 02:02 PM PST

This season's Manchester City are maturing into a vintage to savour with every outing. The only side still in with a shout of an unprecedented quadruple, Manuel Pellegrini's side are a slickly smooth threshing machine that eases through the gears at will while piling up the goals for a tally that now stands at a breathtaking 99 in all competitions.

Having pushed Blackburn Rovers aside with ease, City meet Watford in the next round of the FA Cup on 25 January as Cardiff City, the next visitors on Saturday to what has become the house of pain in Manchester's blue zone, start to contemplate damage limitation.

Satisfaction was sealed here when Sergio Agüero ended a nine-game layoff due to a calf problem by entering after 72 minutes and promptly registering the fourth goal in this easy win.

Pellegrini made a particularly prescient point in his pre-game notes when discussing Sunday's 2-0 win at Newcastle United. "What was pleasing was that we didn't have the majority of possession but even without that we had more goals and more clear chances," he said. "In that sense, we are improving. Maybe at the start of the season we would have lost the game but we are better now, much tougher, and we won."

This was a reference to the stumbles away from the Etihad Stadium that had featured four away losses before mid-November. While City had not lost since on the road, the problem for Gary Bowyer's Blackburn side was that in their own cathedral the Citizens have been on a season-long goal rush terrorising just about all opponents, with the hammerings of Arsenal, 6-3, Tottenham Hotspur, 6-0, and Newcastle, 4-0, among their prize scalps.

If Bowyer thus secretly hoped to escape the Etihad without his side suffering severe damage he could hardly be blamed. Yet he could send out Blackburn having told them that they were one side to have stalled the City juggernaut in their past 10 games, the 1-1 draw they managed at Ewood Park in the initial tie the only time Pellegrini's men had not won in this span.

Under driving rain City created the first opportunity when Fernandinho's cross was met by a feathered-volley of a pass by Álvaro Negredo that set up his partner, Edin Dzeko, but the striker blasted over.

Javi García unloaded a 25-yard effort that bounced as Paul Robinson made the save but the rebound did not fall to a City player. Dzeko, who has prospered in the absence of Agüero, repeated his wildness when attempting to finish a Jesús Navas free-kick.

Before this Rovers had threatened on one or two occasions. Tom Cairney raced at Matija Nastasic, who has lost his first-team place to Martín Demichelis, and after being slipped by the midfielder conceded the foul near the D of City's area. Ben Marshall stepped up but placed the dead ball straight into Costel Pantilimon's hands, much to Bowyer's annoyance, the manager smacking his hands in frustration in the technical area.

Perhaps the visiting manager had identified the Romanian as a weak link as there had been an earlier moment when DJ Campbell put the keeper under pressure by charging down a back-pass that Pantilimon only just managed to clear.

The closest the contest came to having its first strike arrived as half-time approached. Navas, in for the injured Samir Nasri, drove down the right and when he fired the ball low across the Rovers goal first Negredo, then Fernandinho, came agonisingly close to finishing into the empty net.

The Spaniard got in behind but his pull-back failed to find Dzeko. There was then the sight of James Milner's deflected cross bouncing in front of Robinson and, in slightly farcical fashion, over a flailing Micah Richards. Now, though, came the City opener. Fernandinho looped over a ball from the right and Negredo headed home to bring the familiar cries of "Beast" from the home crowd as the sides walked off for the interval.

The XI Pellegrini had sent out was missing Yaya Touré and David Silva, who have minor injuries, as well as Agüero and Nasri, in a side that showed eight changes from the one the manager fielded on Tyneside. As the second half began the Argentinian was spied warming up on the touchline and as he was regaled by the adoring congregation with cries of "Sergio, Sergio", Negredo decided he would quite like to score again.

This time Aleksandar Kolarov, on for Fernandinho at the break, put the ball through and the City No9 calmly collected the 21st goal in 30 appearances of what is starting to vie for the garland for best debut season in recent memory.

When these numbers are put alongside the 19 Agüero had struck in 20 games before his calf injury, a clue is given as to why City had 94 goals in all competitions coming into this match.

Dzeko, whose radar had been off, proved he too could be lethal by scoring twice before the end. The first came when Navas controlled possession, scampered to the dead-ball line and fed Dzeko, whose crashing shot was as emphatic as his final strike in the rout.

Jamie Jackson

Webb chosen among 25 referees at Brazil World Cup

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 12:24 PM PST

• Fifa picks Webb ahead of fellow Englishman Mark Clattenburg
• Webb's assistants will be Michael Mullarkey and Darren Cann

Howard Webb has been selected by Fifa as one of the 25 referees who will officiate at the World Cup in Brazil. Webb, who showed 14 yellow cards and one red in a bad-tempered World Cup final involving Spain and Holland in 2010, was selected ahead of his fellow Englishman Mark Clattenburg.

Each referee was chosen with his regular team of two assistants, meaning Webb will be accompanied by Michael Mullarkey and Darren Cann.

Fifa said the referees were "chosen based especially on their personality and their quality in football understanding by being able to read the game and the teams' tactical approaches towards each game".

Europe provides nine of the officiating teams, South America has five, Asia four, Africa and the Concacaf region three each and Oceania one.

Rooney injury fears mount for Moyes

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 12:01 PM PST

• Rooney may be out for three weeks with groin injury
• Moyes accepts misconduct charge for Sunderland rant

Manchester United's hopes of finishing in a Champions League position could suffer a severe blow as fears grow that Wayne Rooney may be out for three weeks with a groin injury.

As David Moyes's squad were given the day off on Wednesday, the manager will have a clearer idea of Rooney's condition when the players return to training at their Carrington base on Thursday.

Last week the striker was sent away for a warm-weather break in Egypt with his family and one of United's fitness experts to help his recovery from an abductor problem. But it now seems that he will miss Sunday's crucial trip to Chelsea and could be out for the rest of the month.

If so, Moyes's hopes of clawing back United's deficit of five points on Liverpool in fourth place would take a severe hit as the forward could miss three Premier League games, with Robin van Persie still recovering from a thigh problem.

Rooney would also miss Wednesday's Capital One Cup semi-final second leg against Sunderland at Old Trafford, a tie in which United must overcome a 2-1 deficit from the first match.

Moyes has accepted a Football Association charge of misconduct for questioning the officiating after the game at Sunderland, with the manager requesting a non-personal hearing from the commission that will decide his punishment.

The manager is likely to receive a fine, with Liverpool's Brendan Rodgers receiving an £8,000 penalty last week when accepting the same charge for questioning the integrity of the referee, Lee Mason, who officiated his side's defeat at Manchester City on Boxing Day.

Rodgers erred by asking why Mason, who hails from Greater Manchester, had taken charge of the match. Stoke City's Mark Hughes and Chelsea's José Mourinho have also each been fined £8,000 for accepting the same misconduct charge from the FA.

Moyes was charged after his criticism of the "terrible" officiating at the Stadium of Light. The Scot was unhappy with the free-kick awarded by Andre Marriner that led to Ryan Giggs's own goal and with the second-half penalty awarded by the referee. The manager said then of the officials: "We're having to play them as well as the opposition at the moment. It's really terrible, it really is. We're actually beginning to laugh at them, that's the thing."

Moyes remains hopeful of taking Real Madrid's Fábio Coentrão on loan until the end of the season. Although Carlo Ancelotti, the Real head coach, has repeatedly claimed that no players will leave during this transfer window, a deal is in place between the left-back's agent, Jorge Mendes, and United regarding the player's terms, with the sticking point potentially being if Real can get a replacement to cover the position.

Rio Ferdinand has revealed he has ambitions to manage in the Premier League when he retires, with the defender also insistent that United can finish in a Champions League berth this season.

Ferdinand, answering fans' questions on twitter, was asked where he would like to be in five years time. "Alive.....in London & managing in the PL!!," he tweeted.

Nemanja Vidic is also confident that the champions can improve their form in the latter part of the campaign, with the captain identifying the next few weeks as vital. "We have to win regularly and in the next month we will know exactly where we are," he said. "By the end of January and start of February we will show what our position is and what our capability is in the Premier League. Then, of course, the Champions League starts up again. This is an important time for us and we all want to do well."

He also backed Moyes, who is enduring an inaugural season as manager. "The manager is a good character and does that [manages the squad] but it's up to the players too. We're a group and it's a group responsibility to deal with those situations," Vidic said.

Jamie Jackson

Leicester sign 40-year-old Phillips until end of season

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 10:49 AM PST

• Phillips a free agent since Crystal Palace contract expired
• Nigel Pearson delighted to sign 'a fantastic professional'

Leicester have signed the 40-year-old striker Kevin Phillips until the end of the season. The former England international has been a free agent since last weekend after his contract expired with Crystal Palace, where he won his fourth promotion to the Premier League last season.

He scored the match-winning penalty against Watford in the Championship play-off final at Wembley but made just four appearances from the bench for Palace in the top flight.

Leicester's manager, Nigel Pearson, said: "The opportunity to sign a player of Kevin's experience and knowhow doesn't come along too often so I'm delighted that we've been able to add him to our squad.

"He's a player I know well, he's a fantastic professional with multiple promotions to his name and he will bring some great qualities to the group, both on and off the pitch."

Chris Hughton's job is safe provided Norwich City stay above drop zone

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 10:29 AM PST

• Manager's brief was to move club up table
• Norwich on run of eight matches without a win

Chris Hughton's position as the Norwich City manager is secure as long as the club do not fall into the bottom three in the Premier League, the chief executive, David McNally, has said.

Norwich are on a run of eight games without a win in all competitions and slumped to a 3-0 defeat at Fulham in their FA Cup third-round replay on Tuesday. A number of the club's supporters have started calling on the board to act, with Malky Mackay's name sung by the travelling contingent at Craven Cottage.

The former Cardiff City manager was a fans' favourite during his time as a player at Norwich but for now Hughton's job is safe, although McNally insists he will do anything he deems necessary to keep the club in the top flight.

"He [Hughton] is preparing the team for Saturday's game," McNally told BBC Radio Norfolk. "The brief to Chris was to keep us out of the bottom three. We are not in the bottom three and it is to keep us out of the bottom three, so that is what we have to do. We would not contemplate relegation at our football club. In a sporting sense it [relegation] is worse than death."

Norwich are 15th in the table on 20 points, two clear of the bottom three. "We are absolutely focused on ensuring that this great football club stays in the Premier League," said McNally. "Too many people have worked too hard and for so long to put the club in the Premier League, so we would do everything in our power to ensure that it not only stays in the league but thrives in the league.

"The brief for Chris when we were in the bottom three earlier in the season was to get us out and keep us out of the bottom three and move us up the table.

"There is no change there. If you don't produce the results then ultimately that is how you will be measured."

Hughton has been in charge at Carrow Road since he succeeded Paul Lambert in June 2012, and led the club to an 11th-placed finish last season, their highest final league position since 1993.

He is likely to venture into the transfer market againthis month, having recruited the Newcastle midfielder Jonás Gutiérrez on loan for the rest of the season, but has said Wes Hoolahan will not be leaving. The Republic of Ireland midfielder was the subject of a bid from Aston Villa, driven by their former Norwich manager Paul Lambert.

Norwich's board rejected the offer outright and have since refused to countenance the idea of Hoolahan leaving Carrow Road in the winter transfer window. Hughton has confirmed he wants to keep the 31-year-old and is focused on bringing in reinforcements rather than seeing players depart.

When asked if Hoolahan could be sold this month, Hughton said: "At the moment our concentration is on adding to the squad, improving the squad, not on letting players go out.

"We've had a few injuries, especially in midfield, and then Michael Turner will be out for a while as well. We are trying as hard as we can [to sign players], the same as everybody else, but January is a notoriously bad time to bring in players. But they also have to be right for the club."

Hull sign Everton's £6.5m Nikica Jelavic on three-and-a-half-year deal

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:55 AM PST

• Croatia international striker completes Hull move
• Fee understood to rise to £7.5m if relegation avoided

Nikica Jelavic said he has a "great opportunity" at Hull City after signing in a club record move from Everton.

The Croatia striker, 28, has agreed a three‑and-a-half-year deal and is expected to make his debut in Saturday's Premier League match at Norwich.

The fee, officially undisclosed, is understood to be £6.5m, rising to £7.5m if Hull stay in the Premier League.

Jelavic said: "As soon as the manager [Steve Bruce] called me I realised straight away that he was really interested in signing me and that it is a great opportunity for me to come here.

"It is a good club, and we have a good squad. We talked a little bit, but it didn't take long to realise that it was right for me.

"It's a newly promoted club but I can see straight away that there is a lot of ambition here and I hope that we can build on the great start to the season and become a really strong Premier League team over the coming years."

Jonathan Wilson on José's Matic move

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:20 AM PST

Serb is perfect fit for José Mourinho's lopsided squad after three years away from Stamford Bridge at finishing school with Benfica

Twice a year, on transfer deadline day, English football is gripped by an incomprehensible mania but, even in that context, what happened at Stamford Bridge on 31 January 2011 stands out. Signing Fernando Torres for £50m was bad enough but letting Nemanja Matic leave as a makeweight in the deal that brought David Luiz to Chelsea now looks just as bad. Matic completed a £20.75m return to Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, which is an awful lot to pay for three years at finishing school.

Chelsea, perhaps, deserve some sort of credit for swallowing their pride and it may be they considered the alternative to be even worse. Manchester United were very interested in the player in the summer, and however galling it may be to have to pay £21m to recover a player who was once your own, it would be even worse to see him reinvigorating an ailing rival.

Matic, powerful and combative but good on the ball and capable of scoring goals, is exactly the dynamic midfielder United are lacking. Chelsea's immediate need for him is less obvious but it does perhaps indicate the direction in which José Mourinho is taking the squad.

The decisive moment for the Chelsea manager seemed to be the 2-1 defeat to Sunderland in the Capital One Cup quarter-final in December. "We may have to take a step back in order to be more consistent at the back," he said. "It's something I don't want to do, to play more counterattacking, but I'm giving it serious thought. If I want to win 1-0, I think I can, as I think it's one of the easiest things in football. It's not so difficult, as you don't give players the chance to express themselves."

The suggestion was he would switch from the 4-2-3-1 he inherited from Rafa Benítez – and that he himself played at Internazionale and Real Madrid – and return to the 4-3-3 he had deployed so successfully in his first spell at the club.

Sure enough, for the next game, away to Arsenal, he did just that, closing the game down with Mikel John Obi, Frank Lampard and Ramires in the middle, ensuring a stalemate. Since then the 4-2-3-1 has returned but so too has a steeliness that had dissipated in the autumn: in Chelsea's past six games in all competitions, they have conceded once, as though that quick re-immersion in 4-3-3 served as a reminder of defensive responsibility. Whether that means Mourinho sees 4-2-3-1 as the future is less clear.

After all, this is a squad that has seemingly been designed – in as much as anything at Chelsea is designed – to play 4-2-3-1. There is an abundance of attacking midfielders – Eden Hazard, Oscar, Willian, Juan Mata, André Schürrle and Kevin De Bruyne (plus Victor Moses, on loan at Liverpool) – and few who can play at the back of midfield – Frank Lampard, Ramires, Mikel and Marco van Ginkel (plus David Luiz, although Mourinho has made clear he does not see him long-term as a midfielder). Playing a 4-2-3-1 means perming three from six creators and two from four deeper players, or three in Van Ginkel's absence, which is a lot healthier than perming two from six and three from four as would be the case with a 4-3-3.

By bringing in Matic and selling De Bruyne to Wolfsburg, though, Mourinho changes that balance, and at least gives himself more options if he wants to play 4-3-3 more regularly – or, if he wants to carry on with 4-2-3-1 but use Ramires high on the right to check a marauding full-back, something Benítez did fairly frequently but which he has done only in the away defeat to Basel in the Champions League.

It is easy to see why Matic appeals to Mourinho. At a touch over 6ft 4in, he is physically robust, and offers both a goal threat from set pieces and extra security in defending them – an area in which Chelsea were surprisingly deficient towards the end of last year. He is also mentally resilient. This, after all, is a player who was rejected repeatedly before finally finding regular first-team football at Benfica.

Crvena Zvezda and Partizan Belgrade turned him down, so he was still playing third-flight football in Serbia with Jedinstvo Ub when he moved to the Slovakian club Kosice as a 19-year-old. He was fortunate there to be seen by Vladimir Vermezovic, a Serb coach who was working with Spartak Trnava.

He recommended Matic to Serbia's Under-21 coach, Slobodan Krcmarevic and it was after impressing at the European 2009 Under-21 Championship in Sweden that he moved to Chelsea. He made only two appearances there – and 27 on loan at Vitesse Arnhem – though, before being off-loaded to Benfica.

Even there it took some time to become a regular, but after Javi García had moved to Manchester City he blossomed, with Jorge Jesus, then Benfica's coach, insisting he was a better in the holding midfield role than the Spaniard. The proof of that came in July when Matic was named Portugal's player of the season.

At Benfica, Matic tended to play either as the lone holder in a 4-1-3-2 or as one of a pair of holders in a 4-2-3-1. In that sense he looks like direct competition for Mikel, the great survivor who seems to be rated by hardly anybody around Chelsea apart from Mourinho.

It would be misleading to say Matic is a more complete player than Mikel, who has shown for Nigeria that he can play further forward, but it is certainly true to say that if he played alongside him, Matic would probably be the holder who stepped forward, and there is no reason why he could not play to the left of a central three.

Given he is left-footed, in fact, Matic may end up being Lampard's long-term replacement, although he will never offer the same late runs into the box or goalscoring record. He is such an obvious fit for this Chelsea midfield that it remains mystifying that he never got his chance first time round.

However embarrassing it may appear, it could be that £21m is not too great a price to correct the error of that day in January 2011.

Jonathan Wilson

Chelsea re-sign £20.75m Matic

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:20 AM PST

• 25-year-old Serb seals £20.8m move back to Chelsea
• Made three substitute appearances for club in 2009-10

Chelsea have bolstered their Premier League title challenge by completing the eye-catching signing of Nemanja Matic from Benfica, with the Serbia midfielder's €25m (£20.75m) arrival the most expensive outlay by a British club in the transfer window thus far.

Matic has signed a contract until 2019 and rejoins the London club, who sit third in the table and just two points from the leaders Arsenal, having spent three years establishing his reputation in Portugal. The 25-year-old passed a medical at Cobham on Wednesday and, once international clearance has come through, will be in line to make his second debut for Chelsea in Sunday's eagerly anticipated meeting with Manchester United.

The size of the fee feels startling given that Matic had been considered little more than a £3m makeweight in the £23.5m deal that brought David Luiz from the Estádio da Luz three years ago. Yet Matic has developed rapidly at Benfica as a key member of Jorge Jesus's side and, having been linked heavily with a return to London last summer, pushed for the deal this month. José Mourinho had indicated to Chelsea's board that Matic should be prioritised as part of the continuing reinvention of his side.

"I am very pleased that Nemanja is returning to Chelsea," said the manager. "He has grown as a player in Portugal and has become a fantastic all-round midfielder. I am sure he will become a very important member of the squad and help us to achieve our ambitions." The fee will largely be offset by the sale of the unsettled Kevin De Bruyne to Wolfsburg for £18m, representing a profit on the Belgian of around £11m.

Matic, capped nine times, will compete with Mikel John Obi, Frank Lampard – who has recovered from a hamstring injury and is contention to feature against United –and Ramires for a starting place in central midfield. The Serb had originally moved to Chelsea from Kosice for £1.5m in 2009, having been recruited by the then sporting director Frank Arnesen, but made only three appearances as a substitute before heading to Vitesse Arnhem on a season's loan. Benfica earmarked him then as a priority makeweight when the London club sought to recruit David Luiz and he impressed against his former club in May's Europa League final.

"I am very happy for this opportunity to be back at this club," said Matic, who had blossomed with responsibility in Portugal after Javi García departed the Lisbon club for Manchester City in 2012. "I feel very good because of that and just want to say I will give my best to help the team and make the Chelsea fans happy." The 6ft 4in midfielder will wear the No21 shirt, with Chelsea having insisted this time around that no young players would be moving to Portugal in part-exchange.

The Serb will not be eligible for his new club's Champions League campaign this season having featured in the competition for Benfica, and it remains to be seen whether Chelsea now sanction the veteran midfielder Michael Essien's departure with six months of his contract to run. Matic's signing may conclude Chelsea's incoming business this month, though strong interest is retained in the highly rated St-Etienne defender Kurt Zouma. That deal may be progressed in January but, if no agreement is reached, the club may revisit the issue at the end of the season. Southampton's young left-back Luke Shaw is also attracting their attention, with events at St Mary's being closely monitored.

Dominic Fifield

Blootering the overly intricate SAS into a cocked hat | The Fiver

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 08:06 AM PST

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BIG SAM MAKES ROY AND KENNY'S DREAM COME TRUE

Like many a fellow football fan, the Fiver loves to while away the hours mulling over counterfactuals. What would the outcome of the 1966 World Cup final have been if Jimmy Greaves had been picked ahead of Geoff Hurst? Where would Sheffield Wednesday and Manchester United be now if the former had gone through with the signing of Eric Cantona? What if referee Trelford Mills had given Coventry City a penalty when Tony Adams felled Micky Gynn in the box at Highfield Road in December 1987, therefore giving the Sky Blues a chance to turn a dour 0-0 draw into a staunch 1-0 win? What then, dear reader? What then?

Rare is the chance that these posers are ever answered in real life. But one of football's more enduring questions will soon be answered at Upton Park. Liverpool supporters have often asked themselves what would have happened if their fondly remembered manager Roy Hodgson had managed to secure the signature of Carlton Cole, as he was desperately trying to do, just before the club sent him bouncing down Walton Breck Road on his thoroughly average, tactically intransigent, expectation-dampening, middle-management buttocks? What if, freshly resplendent in red, Cole was soon paired up front with another new signing, Andy Carroll? A partnership of Carroll and Cole, so close and yet so far! We can sense the Anfield faithful shudder, no doubt in impotent despair, as they consider the hand fate dealt them.

And so for three years, Liverpool fans – these days resigned to watching Luis Suárez and Daniel Sturridge pointlessly flicking it about – have dreamed dreamy dreams of what could have been. But now, with Cole having today signed an 18-month contract extension at West Ham having been ushered out of the club at the start of the summer, the full horror of what they're missing is to unfold in front of their faces. With Cole having scored four times this season, and Carroll having broken into a run for a sum total of four minutes, the pair are sure to form a partnership of direct brilliance that blooters the overly intricate SAS into a cocked hat (or at least within 10 feet of it, either side). West Ham are also set to sign Lacina Traoré on loan from Monaco, his work permit confirmed, though whether the 6ft 8in Ivorian will get a game once Sam Allardyce realises he's not just about going up for headers but is fond of dropping deep and playing a bit of football is a moot point, and yet another question nobody is able to answer with 100% conviction.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY

"Working with kids for Southwark council" - asked what he would be doing if he weren't a footballer Rio Ferdinand reveals that, but for his ability to kick a ball, the deprived kids of Southwark might face one more difficulty.

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BITS AND BOBS

Southampton chairman Nicola Cortese has unsheathed a sword and threatened to fall on it, promising to offer his resignation over frustrations with the club's owner Katharina Liebherr.

Barcelona have expressed their "energetic indignation" over claims there were irregularities in Neymar's transfer to the club. "If anyone has any doubts, they should ask my dad because I'm concentrating on my job, which is playing football," sniffed Neymar.

Clearly impressed with his record flashing of 14 yellow cards in the 2010 World Cup final, Fifa have asked Howard Webb to repeat his performance by reffing in Rio this year.

Forest Green Rovers's Conference Premier tie against Grimsby was called off last night after floodlight failure at The New Lawn. Forest Green Rover's chairman's job? The founder of an electricity company.

In much the same way as Radiohead followed The Crimea's decision to give music away for free, Bradford Park Avenue are following Albion Rovers' decision to allow fans to pay what they want for entry. "This is a good initiative," said Park Avenue captain Nathan Hotte, before unveiling a minimalist solo project.

STILL WANT MORE?

Marina Hyde sharpens her pen and sticks it in Fifa's eye.

Ever wondered what happened to Andrew Driver, the England U-21 poached by Scotland? So did Ewan Murray.

José Mourinho would like to beat Manchester City to the title, if that's alright with everyone else, writes Paul Wilson.

Nerd nirvana The Knowledge reports on the most complicated FA Cup draw of all time.

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TO TEACH THEM A LESSON

Scott Murray

Hillsborough relatives demand answers over Met chief's conduct

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 08:05 AM PST

Bernard Hogan-Howe, then an inspector with South Yorkshire police, says he tried to help at boys club on day of disaster

Relatives of the 96 people who died in the Hillsborough disaster in 1989 have called for full disclosure of the actions on the day and afterwards of Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, then an inspector with South Yorkshire police and now the Metropolitan police commissioner.

Hogan-Howe, who volunteered for duty at a Hillsborough boys' club where anxious families waited for news of missing relatives, has spoken about his conduct for the first time since he was referred last month for investigation by the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Asked on a Metropolitan police Twitter Q&A session whether he had any regrets over his role at Hillsborough, Hogan-Howe replied: "I tried to help at the boys' club. Great confusion on the day. I don't believe I've done anything wrong."

The then archdeacon of Sheffield, Stephen Lowe, who organised priests to help families at the boys' club, has described the police operation there as "utter chaos".

Bereaved families, who allege that South Yorkshire police orchestrated a cover-up of their own faults and blamed supporters, want to know how the boys' club fitted in to the wider police operation.

Police at the club told relatives and friends desperate for news to remain there, and provided almost no information. Then, beginning at 9.30pm, families were taken in buses to the gymnasium at Hillsborough where the bodies of those who died were assembled.

The families have always bitterly resented the police operation at the gymnasium, where they were asked to identify bodies and then, with grief-stricken people screaming, immediately taken to be interviewed. CID officers were on duty, and their questions focused on whether the victims had been drinking.

Barry Devonside, whose son Christopher was among the dead, told Professor Phil Scraton, principal author of the Hillsborough independent panel report, of his "'disgust' that minutes after identifying his dead son he was being subjected to what 'felt like an interrogation'". The families believe the police operation to claim supporters had been drunk and misbehaving began even as people were dying.

Trevor Hicks, chairman of the Hillsborough Family Support Group, said: "We want full disclosure of what Hogan-Howe did, what he was being told about the gymnasium while he was at the boys' club, and any involvement he had with Hillsborough after that."

An IPCC spokesman said the investigation included "the treatment of relatives in the disaster's immediate aftermath. The boys' club was part of that and Sir Bernard was on duty there. If we identify individuals whose actions should be formally investigated, we will pursue that." The IPCC is investigating a specific complaint against Hogan-Howe by the family of Adam Spearritt, who died at Hillsborough but was wrongly named as "safe and well" at the boys club by a still-unidentified senior police officer. Hogan-Howe has also been referred to the IPCC for comments he made more recently, saying he had originally given a statement to the official Taylor inquiry, which appears not to be correct.

David Conn

Carlos Mané scores stunning goal in Sporting Lisbon's 3-0 win over Maritimo – video

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 07:59 AM PST

19-year-old Carlos Mané scores a superb top-corner goal in his starting debut for Sporting Lisbon during their League Cup win over Maritimo

Sport picture of the day: street soccer in Kabul

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 07:58 AM PST

Though the majority of this frame is in shadow, the unorthodox composition and the vibrant vista in the background work in tandem

Sergio Agüero to return for Manchester City in FA Cup clash with Blackburn Rovers – video

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 07:16 AM PST

Manchester City striker Sergio Agüero is poised to return to the side in Wednesday's FA Cup tie against Blackburn Rovers

Pochettino future in doubt after Saints chairman Cortese quits

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 06:41 AM PST

• Mauricio Pochettino said to be reluctant to stay without Cortese
• Katharina Liebherr takes over as non-executive chairwoman

Southampton were a club coming apart at the seams on Wednesday night after the executive chairman, Nicola Cortese, quit and left the owner desperately trying to convince the manager, Mauricio Pochettino, not to follow suit before Saturday's visit to Sunderland.

Cortese, who had smoothed Markus Liebherr's £14m purchase of the south coast club in 2009, walked away having originally offered to resign to the current owner, Markus's daughter Katharina, last October once it was clear he did not share her vision for Southampton's future. His exit was accepted only after lengthy talks between the pair's legal representatives throughout Wednesday, with an early-evening statement issued that Katharina had taken over as non-executive chairwoman.

She expressed regret at the Italian-Swiss banker's decision to leave having overseen the club's rise from administration in League One to mid-table in the Premier League, though her claim that "it is business as usual" ignored the reality that Pochettino is now considering his position. It is only a year since the Argentinian took up the reins but he has made no secret of the fact he would not countenance working at St Mary's without Cortese, who had recruited him.

The manager's instinct was to quit but he was at the stadium on Wednesday night and spoke with his outgoing chairman and with the owner, with both attempting to persuade him to remain at the club. Pochettino is considering his options and is due to hold his regular pre-match press conference on Thursday, where he will be reminded of his comments last May in support of the chairman. "I would not understand staying in this role if Nicola was not here," he said then. "The person who actually called me from the start, told me about the project and put the faith in me was Nicola."

Katharina has made clear she will continue "to back and support" the manager for the foreseeable future, yet senior players who had bought into Cortese's vision to challenge for Champions League football are also understood to be dismayed at his departure. The highly rated Luke Shaw is interesting Chelsea and Manchester United, both of whom will sense an opportunity to prise away the left-back. Shaw tweeted on Wednesday night: "Gutted with that news, but would just like to thank Nicola Cortese for everything he has done for me and the club." West Ham have also not given up hope of recruiting the England forward Rickie Lambert, whom they value at around £7m, and are increasingly confident they can secure his services this month.

The relationship between the executive chairman and owner at Southampton had fractured beyond repair over Katharina's apparent desire to sell the asset left to her when Markus died in 2010. Cortese had opposed a swift sale and, having come close to quitting last May, the pair remained distant even after a tentative truce had been struck. Matters came to a head again in the autumn, when the team were third in the table, with Cortese resistant to the Liebherr Group playing more of a role in the day-to-day running of a club he had effectively and impressively overseen since 2009.

It is understood there were also differences of opinion over how much Cortese would be due should the Liebherr Group push through a sale, all of which convinced the 45-year-old that the time had come to leave. Regardless, Katharina recognised the impact he had made at the club and had made offers described as "eye-watering" and "insane" by sources close to the negotiations in an attempt to persuade him to stay on. Those were rejected, with Cortese departing with Southampton comfortably placed in ninth.

Liebherr intends to implement a reconstitution of the board to ensure the everyday running of the club does not come down to one individual, and is looking to appoint a chief executive at the earliest opportunity. Yet, having converted £33m in loans into equity last year to demonstrate the family's continued financial commitment, the owner is well aware that the club's value has escalated over recent years, and saw Fulham bought by Shahid Khan for £150m last year.

"With great regret we have accepted the resignation of Mr Cortese," said Katharina in a statement. "He has done a wonderful job at the club and we very much wanted him to stay. A search has now begun for a successor. In the meantime, it is business as usual and we will ensure that the manager, the team and all the staff at the club have all the help and support they need."

Dominic Fifield

Arsenal keep José Mourinho guessing as to who will emerge top dogs | Paul Wilson

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 05:57 AM PST

Chelsea manager sees Manchester City as his biggest title rivals but Arsenal's new-found grit gives food for thought

"It is a whole new competition," José Mourinho said when asked for his thoughts on his first six months back in England. "This Premier League is completely different to the one I knew before."

Not all that different, surely. Yes there are a couple of Welsh teams on the fixture list, a dearth of Lancashire sides and an unfamiliar owner at Fulham, but the Premier League changes to that extent every season without losing its essential character. Mourinho was probably talking about the top end, the cluster of clubs attempting to win it, and in that sense he is perfectly correct. The league has changed considerably.

When Mourinho left, in September 2007, don't forget, his Chelsea side and Manchester United were the big two title rivals, actually the only two title rivals, with the rest usually nowhere in sight after Christmas. In September 2007, Arsenal were beginning their second season at the Emirates and struggling to come to terms with the loss of Thierry Henry, Ashley Cole and Sol Campbell.

They didn't realise at the time that their wait for a title to follow the 2004 Invincibles would last for at least another nine years, though judging by his comments Mourinho seems to have had a shrewd idea. The then Chelsea manager had never seen Arsenal win anything in the league, and seemed to think Arsène Wenger and his team were there to be wound up rather than worried about.

Manchester City were even less of a threat in that period. Though installed at the Etihad and with big money to spend, in September 2007 they were managed by Sven-Goran Eriksson and owned by Thaksin Shinawatra. There were signs that something fairly significant was beginning to take shape in Manchester, but it would take another buyout and a couple more managerial changes to achieve anything of note. Not to mention a clearout of players such as Elano, Martin Petrov, Gelson Fernandes, Vedran Corluka and others.

When Mourinho last encountered City in the Premier League they were still recognisably their inconsistent, unpredictable old selves, only much wealthier.

Looking around the top group now, Mourinho finds himself below City and Arsenal, locked in a three-way fight for top spot with Manchester United nowhere. Traditionally one might suppose the team from Old Trafford would hit form at this time of year and make a late run to at least get in contention, but transition, rather than tradition, looks like being the United story this season.

David Moyes and the United hierarchy have become the new Spurs. They would be delighted beyond their wildest dreams just to finish fourth this season so as to continue their acquaintance with the Champions League. Meanwhile the old Spurs, who really have only themselves to blame after so many seasons hanging around on the periphery, have been overtaken in the race to claim a top-four spot by Liverpool and Everton.

Whether that remains the case at the end of the season is anyone's guess, though Liverpool and Everton look strong enough to deny not only Spurs but United fourth place.

Neither have particularly large squads, and injuries to key players could yet impact on results, though by the same token neither are playing in Europe this term which could given them a slight advantage over the teams above them when the Champions League starts again next month.

As long as Liverpool have Luis Suárez in his present form they remain capable of beating anyone, and with Everton, Arsenal, City and Chelsea still to come to Anfield they must be given an outside chance of the title, though Brendan Rodgers has been talking of steady rather than spectacular progress and one has the impression a Champions League finish would be a more than acceptable reward. Especially if it is gained at the expense of United.

For Liverpool to succeed, the present top three would have to slip up, and as Mourinho has suggested, that doesn't look like happening. The old Arsenal would have thrown away a few points through defensive blunders by now, or been frustrated by an inability to score goals that turn draws into victories, but Wenger appears to have corrected all those faults and added a touch of steel.

City still have a few defensive faults, particularly if anything happens to Vincent Kompany, but seem to have got over their early season wobbles away from home and are scoring enough goals to stay firmly in contention. Chelsea, unusually, are the quiet threat this season, the dark horses, but they play United on Sunday and City a fortnight after that.

Arsenal have home games against Fulham and Crystal Palace in the same period, sandwiched around a trip to Southampton.

So while it may be too early to determine whether Arsenal's new grit and fighting ability will keep them on top, it could easily do so for the rest of January and possibly until the return of the Champions League.

So is Mourinho tipping them for the title? Of course not. "Manchester City, in terms of the power of their squad, are in another dimension," the Chelsea manager said. "It would be my greatest achievement if we beat them to the title this year."

A likely story, but with Mourinho going on to add that United are not happy but calm, and that he doesn't think Moyes is under any pressure, the verbal preliminaries are clearly under way in advance of Chelsea's games against the Manchester pair.

Arsenal do not get a mention, but then Arsenal do not have to play Chelsea until mid-March, when they crop up in a series of difficult and possibly season-defining fixtures that also include Spurs and Everton away, and City at home.

By the end of March, it should be clear whether Arsenal are going to stay on top or not. Until then, Wenger can keep on giving Mourinho something to think about.

Paul Wilson

Neymar: 'nothing illegal' in transfer

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 05:45 AM PST

• Spain's public prosecutor asks courts to investigate move
• Barcelona defend £47m signing as 'complex' but 'impeccable'

Neymar has insisted there is "nothing illegal" in the contract that saw him join Barcelona in the summer despite Spain's public prosecutor asking the courts to investigate a possible case of "simulated contracts".

Neymar joined in a deal that Barcelona said cost €57.1m (£47m), €17.1m of which went to his former club Santos, but those figures and the destination of the money have been challenged by a Barcelona member who made a legal complaint. The public prosecutor has requested that the courts consider his case.

Jordi Cases wrote to the courts claiming that the true beneficiaries of the €40m paid to a company owned by Neymar's father are unknown, and the public prosecutor has also expressed doubts about the exact amount received by Santos. Barcelona's president, Sandro Rosell, has been open about the total figures involved but insisted that confidentiality clauses applied to some aspects of the deal.

Cases insists that his complaint is against the club's president rather than the club itself and has reiterated that he is not accusing Rosell of benefiting personally from the deal. As a result of the complaint, Barcelona were obliged to hand all relevant documentation to the court, after which the public prosecutor's report determined that there were sufficient grounds for the case to be taken on.

Now Felipe Izquierdo, the lawyer representing Cases has sent a further letter to the court outlining an additional €10m payment, the justification for which he has described as quiméricos‚ or fanciful.

Barcelona have expressed their "energetic indignation" at the fact that the case is set to proceed, calling the operation "complex" but "impeccable" – an act of "business engineering".

According to Barcelona's published accounts, which they handed to the courts, the club paid €57.1m for Neymar: €17.1m to Santos and €40m to a company called N&N, owned by Neymar's father. Barcelona also paid €7.9m to secure the future rights of three Santos players and €9m for two friendlies between the two clubs.

The €17.1m was paid to Santos to secure Neymar last summer. His contract at Santos was due to run out in 2014.

Barcelona had made a first payment of €10m to N&N in advance, effectively as a deposit to guarantee the completion of a €40m move, with the amount paid defined as an interest-free loan. The €10m appears in Barcelona's accounts in 2012, not in 2013.

The €40m paid to N&N was described as a "penalty clause"‚ applicable in order to complete the transfer this summer. Should Neymar have wanted to break the agreement, he would have been liable to pay that fee to Barcelona. Any club that sought to hijack the deal, as Real Madrid did, would also be confronted with that extra €40m fee.

The public prosecutor's report concluded that there are grounds to suspect that the contract signed between the club and the player may be "simulated"‚ with the details and descriptions of payments failing to accurately reflect what they were.

Here, the definition "penalty clause" comes under scrutiny. The public prosecutor insisted that the cash amount received by Santos remained "unclear". Courts will now ask Fifa for all relevant paperwork and request that Santos hand over documentation relating to the case.

That paperwork, Barcelona have said, will be the same paperwork that they have already presented to the courts. In a statement, Barcelona described it as "incredible" that the public prosecutor had requested the paperwork from Fifa, thus ignoring the fact that Barcelona had already handed it over and made a formal statement as defendants. The club called the attitude of the public prosecutor "reckless".

"The contractual complexity, referred to as a 'contractual simulation' by the public prosecutor in his report, never constitutes in itself a crime," Barcelona's statement said. "We believe that the public prosecutor commits a mistake in his report by understanding otherwise … Given the seriousness of the facts … we will act with determination in defence of the honour of Barcelona and its president."

In an interview with the Catalan newspaper Sport, Neymar said: "I know that a lot is being said about my contract. I have spoken to [my father] to see what they were talking about exactly. My father was the one who signed the contracts and he is someone in whom I have total trust.

"There is nothing illegal. In any case, if anyone has any doubts, they should ask my dad because I'm concentrating on my job, which is playing football."

Sid Lowe

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti: I want more goals from Cristiano Ronaldo – video

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 05:04 AM PST

Carlo Ancelotti says he wants Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo to score more goals

Fifa transparency in Ballon d'Or votes should extend to World Cup bids | Marina Hyde

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 04:03 AM PST

The world governing body released the full breakdown of votes cast in Cristiano Ronaldo's anointment, but the workings of its more significant ballots remain a matter of the utmost secrecy

Tory MPs have long described themselves as "the most sophisticated electorate in the world" – and that verdict dates back even to the time before they triumphantly revealed their new party leader was to be Iain Duncan Smith.

Quite how the Ballon d'Or electorate would classify themselves is unclear. They are certainly not the least sophisticated electorate in the world – as we have seen, you could hardly deny Conservative members that honour – but they are unquestionably Fifa's most exposed electorate. Or rather, its only exposed electorate, the workings of its more significant ballots being a matter of the utmost secrecy.

Since Fifa assumed responsibility for the award in 2010, when it merged with its player of the year gong, world football's governing body has scrupulously released the full breakdown of votes cast in the Ballon d'Or, possibly imagining that this single piece of transparency will serve as an effective decoy for its pathological obscurantism on all other electoral matters.

So perhaps it is because we have been starved of all other candour as far as Fifa is concerned that there has been so much poring over the Ballon d'Or results. The first thing to note is that this electoral college didn't garland the footballing equivalent of IDS, with arguably the only surprise about Cristiano Ronaldo's anointment being that it was in any way close run.

Ronaldo himself? Well, he continues to resist his relationship with Lionel Messi being shoehorned into my ill-fitting Salieri-Mozart analogy. He declined to acknowledge even grudgingly the genius of Messi – a non-favour cordially returned by the Barcelona forward.

Perhaps the pair felt trapped in the football awards version of the prisoner's dilemma and, having spent the past few weeks miserably game-theorising about the possible outcomes of working together, ended up opting for total non‑co‑operation. Then again, perhaps both really are convinced that the other one is no better than the fourth-best player in the world.

They would certainly not be alone in appearing parti pris in their deliberations, with the tally of "Really? Really?" votes this time round including Vincent Kompany's for Yaya Touré, and the Spain coach, Vicente del Bosque, completely ignoring both Ronaldo and Messi in favour of Xavi and Andrés Iniesta (alongside Franck Ribéry).

As for Fifa, it remains encouraging that it should be so willing scrupulously to reveal the voting caprices of the game's biggest stars, while the game's biggest suits are effectively able to award multibillion dollar contracts away from prying proletarian eyes.

You have to question whether this one stagy piece of transparency is quite the fig leaf for its other electoral activity that it might desire, conferring a veneer of probity on darker matters. After all, the executive committee's voting on World Cup bids has somehow failed to entice analysis by the defining psephologist of the age, the brilliant Nate Silver – presumably for the same reason that Silver declines to get involved in examining certain TV phone votes, or predicting small swings one way or the other in key Zimbabwean districts.

The last time the World Cup bids went to the polls, you'll recall, 2018 hopefuls England were promised the votes of everyone from Jack Warner, whom they bizarrely and amusingly appear to have believed, to Uncle Tom Cobleigh. When the anonymous tally came in, they were revealed to have scooped just the two, one of which came from our own ex-co member, the brilliant and brave Geoff Thompson. Or rather, one of which is always said to have come from Thompson. On the basis of absolutely no evidence whatsoever, I nurse hopes that it will one day be revealed that Thompson actually voted for someone else by mistake because he found the process defeatingly complex. One for a later volume of his coolly anticipated autobiography, anyway.

Still, the morning after the Ballon d'Or gala felt like the right moment for a call to Zurich, where a Fifa press officer audibly drew in her breath when asked whether there were any plans to extend the transparency of Ballon d'Or voting to ex-co votes. "It's not the same!" exclaimed madame. Why not? It's a vote. It could be.

"Well I mean … you know how it works."

Yes, I think we all know how it works.

"I could not possibly give comment on this."

You don't feel able to be open about openness?

"As you know," came the reply, accompanied by a theatrical sigh, "we have many, many committees and task forces working on this …"

Of course. Has any of them groped their way toward the idea that transparency would be something to which an organisation as serially mired in corruption allegations as Fifa might usefully aspire? Are there any plans, ever, to offer ordinary football fans a glimpse of the process via which decisions are taken for the greater footballing good?

These, alas, were instantly deemed questions that can be put only by email – so I shall let you know the second, or indeed the year, that Fifa gets back to me. Somewhere in a lead-lined chamber carved beneath the peak of an Alp, presumably, and next to Fifa's long-range ballistic arsenal – must lie the results of every World Cup ballot for decades. And assuming that the entire lot is not blown up by Sepp Blatter in his final showdown, we should continue to press for openness on Fifa votes that actually matter, until we are deemed worthy of a peek at them.

Marina Hyde

European leagues review: players, teams and Alvaro Negredo's goals

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 03:42 AM PST

Best XIs from the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A and Ligue 1, plus analysis of Manchester City's goalscoring home and away

Premier League team of the weekend

La Liga team of the weekend

Serie A team of the weekend

Ligue 1 team of the weekend

Tactical talking point: Alvaro Negredo's goalscoring

That Manchester City won again this weekend was hardly the most surprising news. That they scored a couple of goals, taking their tally in all competitions to 94 this season, one more than the whole of last campaign, was only surprising in the sense that they only scored twice. That Alvaro Negredo was on the scoresheet once again, too, was far from untoward, but it shouldn't really have been expected.

When Negredo and Roberto Soldado came to England in the summer, people debated which La Liga import would be best, given that the duo ranked behind only Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Radamel Falcao in the Spanish top flight's goalscoring charts last season.

Even disregarding the fact that City paid nearly £10m less than Tottenham for their forward, there is simply no argument; in almost every area that Soldado has failed, Negredo has prospered. However, while Soldado's home and away performances have been equally, well, uninspiring, Negredo has been unstoppable at home but much less effective on the road.

When James Milner put him clean through on goal in the 95th minute of their win over Newcastle at St James' Park on Sunday, it was easy to assume he would put the result beyond doubt. He did, but the manner of the goal was different from each of his strikes in his hat-trick against West Ham in midweek.

He had a great deal of time to steady himself and pick his spot, but neither chipped the ball over an approaching Tim Krul nor placed it past him. He required a fortunate double ricochet to score. It is hard to believe that an unfamiliar stadium and away atmosphere can affect a player that significantly, but if ever there was an example of just that, Negredo is it.

The former Sevilla man scored 17 of his 25 league goals last season on home soil, and his fortuitous strike at Newcastle was only his second on the road this season. All five of his Champions League goals have come at the Etihad and so have three of his five goals in domestic cup competitions; his two away strikes in the cups came at a tiring Newcastle in extra time and at second-tier Blackburn.

Of course, much has been made of City's home form and the staggering contrast with their away results and performances. However, while their home form has remained consistent – they have won every home game this season bar Bayern Munich's masterclass back in October – their away form has improved drastically in the last few months. Having lost four of their first nine away games this season, Manuel Pellegrini's side have won six and lost none of the subsequent eight, in spite of Sergio Agüero's recent absence through injury.

Negredo, though, hasn't shown the same kind of improvements. His home matches in the league have produced scores of 7.65 in our ratings, compared to 6.75 in away games; the difference of 0.9 is one of the greatest in the Premier League.

In the Champions League he has an average rating of 8.04 at home and 6.56 away; a difference of 1.48. While City as a whole have improved on the road, Negredo's inconsistencies have remained. Sandwiching a decent showing at Fulham are two of his worst performances in a City shirt – at Southampton and Swansea.

It's not just his lack of goals. He is completing fewer of his passes away from home (73.5% to 78.5%), being tackled more frequently (twice per game to 0.8 times per game) and has been less effective at holding the ball up, conceding possession due to a poor first touch 1.6 times per game on the road compared to 1.1 at home. Slight variances are to be expected, but there are arguably too many at present for Negredo.

That being said, the Spain international has made a successful start to life in England. City have already scored more Premier League goals this season (59) than 14 teams managed in the whole of 2012-13. He has proved himself capable of adapting to play either as the lone striker or alongside different types of strike partners in Agüero and Edin Dzeko.

He is comfortable coming short or looking in behind and can be found running the channels tirelessly or dropping deep to allow City's many runners space to exploit in behind defences. Given how attack-minded Pellegrini likes his full-backs to be, this is a key aspect to Negredo's game that the Chilean obviously values.

However, making an average of just 20.3 passes per appearance and having registered just three assists this season, a large part of Negredo's work is off the ball, and largely gets overlooked given his fantastic goal return. Perhaps this is why Dzeko, undeniably the most one-dimensional of City's forwards, has four goals in his last five appearances while Agüero sits out injured. Negredo might not be setting up those strikes directly, but his clever movement certainly plays a part.

When Agüero was first ruled out, City looked like they might struggle to maintain pace at the top of the Premier League, particularly given Arsenal's early form. They have dispelled those fears, and are now favourites for the title despite a shaky start to the season, with Negredo at the heart of their recent success.

All statistics courtesy of WhoScored, who provide you can find yet more stats, including live in-game data and unique player and team ratings.

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Alistair Tweedale

Monaco's Lacina Traoré granted work permit for West Ham move

Posted: 15 Jan 2014 03:33 AM PST

• West Ham sign 6ft 8in Ivory Coast striker on loan
• Carlton Cole agrees 18-month deal at Upton Park

West Ham's attempt to avoid relegation has been boosted by confirmation that Lacina Traoré has been granted a work permit, with the club confident of completing the Ivory Coast striker's loan move from Monaco before their weekend game against Newcastle.

Traoré, a 6ft 8in forward, only moved to the French club from Anzhi Makhachkala for £8.6m earlier this month but was immediately made available for loan with his chances likely to be limited in the short-term behind Radamel Falcao at Stade Louis II.

West Ham moved quickly to agree a deal with Monaco but, with the 23-year-old's seven caps for his country failing to qualify for a work permit, they were forced to lodge an appeal to gain clearance for his move under the "exceptional talent" criteria.

Sam Allardyce appeared in front of a panel made up of representatives of the Football Association, Premier League and Professional Footballers' Association on Monday, with their approval having prompted the green light from the Home Office for the move to be finalised.

The player has already been medically assessed in France and, while he may not be match fit given that he arrives after the winter break in the Russian domestic season, he is expected to complete the formalities of the transfer in the next 24 hours.

Traoré will compete with Andy Carroll, who featured for the first time this season as a substitute at Cardiff, and Carlton Cole for a forward berth, with the latter having agreed a new 18-month deal.

Cole had been released at the end of last season only to re-sign a short-term agreement under freedom of contract in the autumn. That expired on Monday but, having scored four Premier League goals in 11 appearances this term, he has now committed his future to the club.

Dominic Fifield

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Thursday, 16 January 2014

Football news, match reports and fixtures | theguardian.com

07:48

Football news, match reports and fixtures | theguardian.com

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Thursday, 16 January 2014

Football news, match reports and fixtures | theguardian.com

07:48

Football news, match reports and fixtures | theguardian.com

BIG SAM MAKES ROY AND KENNY'S DREAM COME TRUE

LIVE ON BIG WEBSITE TONIGHT

QUOTE OF THE DAY

FIVER LETTERS

JOIN GUARDIAN SOULMATES

BITS AND BOBS

STILL WANT MORE?

SIGN UP TO THE FIVER

TO TEACH THEM A LESSON

Premier League team of the weekend

La Liga team of the weekend

Serie A team of the weekend

Ligue 1 team of the weekend

Tactical talking point: Alvaro Negredo's goalscoring

Written by TBMU Admin

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