Rascist 
KIB, can I stick that up on the front page or are you retaining intellectual property rights over your rants?
Ya you can. I’ll have you know I once got an A in Intellectual Property Law (or something like that) so dont try pulling a fast one
Someone get onto John Delaney, we might have a chance yet
French sex scandal deepens as two more players are named• Franck Ribéry ‘admits to relationship with prostitute’
• Karim Benzema and Hatem Ben Arfa say they are innocent
Lizzie Davies in Calais
France’s national football team was further drawn into the sex scandal involving Franck Ribéry yesterday after two more players’ names were cited in connection with an investigation into underage prostitution.
Unnamed judicial sources told the French media that Karim Benzema, the Real Madrid forward, and Hatem Ben Arfa, a striker for Marseille, are expected to be questioned in coming days as “witnesses” in the inquiry.
The scandal engulfing Les Bleus, which began when Ribéry was questioned by police in connection with a prostitution ring, also deepened after judicial sources said the 27-year-old had admitted having sex with a 17-year-old prostitute but denied having known she was underage. In France it is illegal to buy sex from someone under 18.
The Bayern Munich forward’s lawyer, Sophie Bottai, has insisted that, while the footballer did provide witness testimony to French investigators looking into a ring allegedly run out of a Paris nightclub, he was being heard simply as a witness and not as a suspect.
No charges were filed against him, said Bottai, and he was not held in police custody.
However, the rumours swirling around the team have not ceased since reports surfaced at the weekend that Ribéry and his fellow player Sidney Govou had been questioned by French investigators.
On 12 April police had searched the Zaman Café, a restaurant and nightclub on the Champs Elyseés, and arrested a dozen people, among them prostitutes and a man suspected of being their pimp.
Refusing to say whether or not his client had been questioned by police, Govou’s lawyer, Thierry Braillard, said the 30-year-old had “never set foot” in the Zaman.
But the player’s name has been cited repeatedly in connection with the investigation being led by the investigating judge André Dando. A judicial source said that, while his married team-mate Ribéry remained a witness in the affair, “it is up to the judge to decided whether to formally investigate him [Ribéry] or not”.
In France, prostitution is legal but several activities surrounding it are against the law. If found guilty of paying an underage sex worker, a client could go to prison for three years and be fined up to €45,000 (£39,000).
Yesterday the two other players drawn into the scandal vehemently denied involvement in alleged activities at the Zaman, which has now been shut down. “It’s absolutely not me,” Ben Arfa told L’Equipe TV. Even if his client were summoned by the police tomorrow, added his lawyer, “that would change nothing”.
Benzema’s agent, Karim Djaziri, also spoke out in defence of his client. “Karim has not been questioned. He has nothing to do with this affair,” he told LePost.fr.
As speculation mounted in Paris, the French football federation (FFF) issued a terse statement saying it was aware of the investigation and certain players’ involvement “as mere witnesses”. But it said it would “refrain from all comment” until the police had done their job.
Anyone got the odds for the WC as things stand. As discussed in the Spanish League thread, Spain are in serious bother now with Cesc, Torres and Xavi all in serious danger of missing the competition.
The title is Englands to throw away now I imagine.
Can we as a forum adopt a team. We can go drinking then whenever they are playing. Not spain or anyone that good. Someone who’s likely to get knocked out in the QF’s so we can all have our hopes raised then dashed.
I propose u-r-gay.
As an aside, for those of you with:
- Lax firewalls at work
- A good internet connection at home
- Some expendable income
- A wish to watch the world cup at work
…I suggest you buy a slingbox.
Just got mine back up and running after moving house.
This is the one I have:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BRAND-NEW-SLINGBOX-PRO-UK-SPECIFICATION-/250611818978?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_ConsumerElectronics_WirelessVideoTransmitters_CA&hash=item3a59a0e1e2
I will have my own private TV stream coming from my house during the world cup.
You can change the channels at home and everything.
Nice.
anyone care to put up a few players who will catapult themselves onto the world stage and make a name for themselves at the world cup…
Marek Hamsik, Angel Di Maria and Jesus Navas(for the non spanish football fans on here) if he gets over his anxiety are my three picks
seeing as you actually thought ibra was/is one of the best players in the world(probably still do) your opinion on a player cannot be taken seriously…
totti is the best player in the world mate- he proved it again last night
Gareth Barry waits to learn injury fate
Manchester City and England star Gareth Barry is awaiting a specialist’s verdict on his injured right ankle amid concerns over his World Cup chances.
Barry met the specialist on Thursday evening and will find out the full diagnosis later on Friday.
The 29-year-old midfielder suffered the injury falling over a team-mate in the second half of the 1-0 Premier League defeat by Tottenham on Wednesday.
England boss Fabio Capello names his provisional 30-man squad on Tuesday.
Capello will then cut his selection down to 23 players after friendlies against Mexico and Japan, with England starting their campaign in South Africa against the United States on 12 June.
Barry, who has won 36 caps, has become an established part of Capello’s midfield and played in eight of England’s qualifying games.
The midfielder has definitely been ruled out of City’s final game of the season against West Ham on Sunday.
Barry has made 43 starts for City this season, scoring three goals as City qualified for the Europa League.
He joined City from Aston Villa in June 2009 for £12m, citing Villa’s failure to qualify for the Champions League as one of his reasons for leaving.
Best of all time. All time. Prime Time Zlatan.
I think Solomon Kalou is one to watch. Think Nani could have a serious championship while Wayne Rooney will prove a disappointment yet again in a disastrous English adventure.
Ah, fuck this - the World Cup won’t be the same if Gareth Barry doesn’t make it.
A serious WTF if ever I’ve seen one. I thought he was commonly thought to have had a poor season?
Jamie Carragher looks set to be selected in Fabio Capello’s 30-man provisional squad for the World Cup. Photograph: Barry Coombs/Empics Sport
Fabio Capello intends to select Jamie Carragher in England’s provisional 30-man squad for the World Cup after the Liverpool defender indicated a willingness to come out of international retirement for the tournament in South Africa.
Carragher made himself unavailable for selection after the friendly against Brazil in the summer of 2007 having grown frustrated at a perceived lack of opportunities in his favoured centre-half role. Capello’s predecessor, Steve McClaren, failed to persuade him to change his mind and the defender also politely declined when the current manager revisited the issue on his appointment over two years ago.
The defender, capped 34 times, had preferred to concentrate on club commitments and has been a consistently fine performer for Liverpool over the last decade. Yet Capello and England’s general manager, Franco Baldini, who are braced to be without their first-choice defensive midfielder, Gareth Barry, at the finals because of an ankle injury, became aware of a shift in Carragher’s stance and have seen an opportunity to integrate more experience into their squad.
The 32-year-old has been sounded out over a possible return and, although the situation is still delicate, Capello is intent upon picking him for his initial 30-man party, to be named on Tuesday, ahead of the pre-tournament training camp in Austria. Carragher’s worth as a seasoned centre-half is clear and is more significant because Rio Ferdinand and Ledley King, who will also be in the squad, have struggled with injuries.
Ferdinand has started only 11 Premier League games all season having suffered from back and groin complaints but could begin Manchester United’s game tomorrow against Stoke City. King, long since restricted by chronic knee problems, has played only four times since the end of February but impressed Capello by excelling twice in five days against Bolton and, on Wednesday night, at Manchester City.
John Terry and Matthew Upson will retain their places, though there is a certain irony in the appeal of Carragher’s versatility given his preference for playing at centre-half. He has been employed at full-back and in defensive midfield for England in the past and, in the likely absence of Wes Brown and Joleon Lescott with foot and hamstring injuries respectively, he could potentially be utilised in either wide defensive role yet again.
Whether he features at Hull tomorrow remains to be seen because he is troubled by a slight ankle injury. His international return would still represent an eye-catching selection, with the England management team seeking to bolster a squad disrupted by a recent spate of injuries.
Michael Dawson and Phil Jagielka have impressed in recent weeks, though it is uncertain whether either has done enough to get into the squad that will play friendlies against Mexico and Japan this month before being slimmed down to 23.
Capello was initially due to attend Arsenal’s game against Fulham on Sunday but will now be at Stamford Bridge where Chelsea hope to win the Premier League title for the first time in four years. The head coach has dispatched Baldini to Upton Park to scrutinise the credentials of West Ham’s Scott Parker given the potential absence of Barry for the finals.
The Manchester City midfielder damaged ankle ligaments during Wednesday’s defeat to Tottenham and his club manager, Roberto Mancini, fears Barry could be absent for up to a month. “I’m very sorry for Gareth,” said Mancini. “He is a fantastic guy and a fantastic player. I hope he can play in the World Cup, but I think that’s a decision for the England medical staff and Fabio Capello.”
The loss of a player who has been a consistent selection under successive England managers would represent a considerable blow to England’s chances in South Africa and, aside from Parker, could yet earn Michael Carrick or the Spurs midfielder Tom Huddlestone, capped against Brazil last November, inclusion in the squad.
+1, gutted for him.
Spain have named their 30-man provisional World Cup squad:
Goalkeepers: Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Jose Manuel Reina (Liverpool/ENG), Diego Lopez (Villarreal), David De Gea (Atletico Madrid), Victor Valdes (Barcelona).
Defenders: Raul Albiol, Sergio Ramos, Alvaro Arbeloa (all Real Madrid), Joan Capdevila (Villarreal), Gerard Pique, Carles Puyol (both Barcelona), Carlos Marchena (Valencia), Cesar Azpilicueta (Osasuna).
Midfielders: Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid), Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal/ENG), Sergio Busquets, Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta (all Barcelona), Marcos Senna (Villarreal), Javier Martinez (Athletic Bilbao), David Silva (Valencia).
Forwards: Daniel Guiza (Fenerbahce/TUR), Juan Manuel Mata, David Silva, David Villa (all Valencia), Alvaro Negredo, Jesus Navas (both Sevilla), Fernando Torres (Liverpool/ENG), Santiago Cazorla (Villarreal), Pedro Rodriguez (Barcelona), Fernando Llorente (Athletic de Bilbao).
is that a joke??.. :unsure: Real are meant to be making a € 34million bid for him…thats before a ball is kicked in world cup…so he’s certainly on the radar already…
Aaron Clapham is a surprise inclusion in New Zealand’s 23-man squad. I must admit, I didn’t see that one coming.
Englands 30 man squad.
Hart
James
Green
Baines
Carragher
A Cole
Dawson
Ferdinand
Terry
G Johnson
King
Terry
Upson
Warnock
Barry
Carrick
J Cole
Gerrard
Huddlestone :lol:
A Johnson
Lampard
Lennon
Milner
Parker
Walcott
Wright Philips
Bent
Crouch
Defoe
Heskey
Rooney
No Hargreaves. I thought he did enough in that 1 minute of football he played this season.