Vacation Day

I'll be back on Monday with a wrap-up of all the weekend's action...

Phil McNulty: Is Pardew Right for Newcastle?

Alan Pardew walks into Newcastle United with his personal rating plunging off a cliff and an atmosphere of simmering unrest swirling around St James' Park.

Pardew will have got the hint that the welcome mat is unlikely to be thrust out before him on Tyneside after collecting less that 2% of more than 1,000 votes cast in local newspaper poll to find out who Newcastle fans wanted as their new manager.

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Thursday's Rumours



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Tom Adams: Rewind to 2004

On Monday night, Arsenal visit Old Trafford to take on a Manchester United side that are still unbeaten in the Premier League this season. Due to their unconvincing form, Sir Alex Ferguson's side have been dubbed 'The Crap Invincibles' in ironic homage to the Arsenal side that went the season unbeaten in 2003-04. However, six years ago, it was at Old Trafford that Arsenal's 49-game unbeaten run eventually came to an end in a poisonous game that became known as 'The Battle of the Buffet'.

Sir Alex Ferguson calls for end to sick chants aimed at Arsène Wenger

Sir Alex Ferguson is to make a personal plea to Manchester United's supporters to put an end to the sick chants that are aimed at Arsène Wenger whenever Arsenal visit Old Trafford.

United are so embarrassed by the nature of the songs Ferguson has decided to take the matter into his own hands to back the man he used to regard as a sworn enemy.

First XI: Harshest Dismissals

Having restored stability to a club many believed to be in freefall and taken them back to the Premier League, Newcastle owner Mike Ashley decided to sack Chris Hughton with the club sitting comfortably in mid-table after 16 games. Hughton is not the first manager to have been on the wrong end of a harsh dismissal, though. ESPNsoccernet selects a First XI.

Paul Gascoigne's car pushed out of snow outside court

The 43-year-old was given an eight-week sentence, suspended for a year after he admitted driving while more than four times over the legal limit.

UEFA Champions League: Wednesday's Round-Up & Reports

Arsenal survived a nervous night at Emirates Stadium to defeat Partizan Belgrade and book a place in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League, but already-qualified Chelsea suffered their first defeat of the campaign at Marseille. Elsewhere, Roma reached the knockout stages after a draw with CFR Cluj, while Bayern Munich made light work of Basel, and Spartak Moscow came from behind to defeat MSK Zilina in a match affected by crowd trouble. A Karim Benzema-inspired Real Madrid cruised to victory over Auxerre, and Ajax recorded a rare away win at AC Milan.

Review

Arsenal 3 - 1 Partizen Belgrade
Kevin McCarra at Emirates Stadium
Phil McNulty at Emirates Stadium
Richard Williams' Analysis


Marseille 1 - 0 Chelsea
Dominic Fifield at Stade Vélodrome

MSK Zilina 1 - 2 Spartak Moscow
Crowd trouble mars Spartak win

Final Champions League Group Stage Tables

Steve Davis: U.S. domestic soccer will continue to grow despite World Cup bid loss

What does the U.S. Soccer establishment require to progress? Two measures essentially establish a country's place in the global soccer order: strong national team programs and a strong professional game, starting with a robust, tier-one association. Every nation you might view as a "strong soccer land" has one or both, right?

Perhaps MLS isn't your cup of tea. There are plenty of you out there, supporters who love the game but haven't bonded with an MLS club for whatever reason. You may not like to hear it, but MLS is the most visible, ongoing soccer property within the U.S. soccer structure. Betterment of MLS is a major element of the way forward.

Norman Hubbard: Clubs benefit from World Cup absentees

Being Welsh may permanently preclude Bale from participating in a World Cup. Others who didn't qualify include the Swedish striker Johan Elmander, who has been reinvigorated at Bolton, Marouane Chamakh, whose excellence for Arsenal has been camouflaged by Nasri's luminous displays, and Vincent Kompany, staking a claim to be the division's most solid defender.

The 2010 tournament, meanwhile, came too soon for emerging talents like Jack Wilshere and Andy Carroll, who provided early-season evidence of their abilities. Others would have been there but for injuries that seem to have suited their respective employers. Michael Essien has been the sole source of dynamism in the centre of the Chelsea midfield while Nani is providing consistent invention on Manchester United's right flank.

This season's competitive Premier League table doesn't add up

Sir Alex Ferguson believes the lower clubs are condensing the Premier League into a much tighter competition.

UEFA Champions League: Wednesday's Previews

Arsenal will be hoping that they can secure a safe passage into the knockout stages, with the Gunners having made hard work of Group H. Arsene Wenger would have hoped to have had a top-two finish sewn up by now, but the Frenchman knows his side must take three points from a home date with Partizan Belgrade to guarantee scraping through and avoid becoming the most notable scalp of this season's competition. Braga will be lying in wait should there be any mishaps at the Emirates, with the Portuguese champions desperate to keep their dreams alive when they go to the Ukraine to face Shakhtar Donetsk - who could still drop out if results go against them. The only other group with something still riding on it is Group E, with two teams set to battle it out for second place. Basel are outsiders to snatch a late entry into the last 16, with the Swiss outfit set to face German giants Bayern Munich. Bayern may take their eye off the ball with top spot already wrapped up, but Louis van Gaal knows he cannot afford any slip-ups on home soil as he attempts to ease some of the mounting pressure on his shoulders. Anything less than a victory for Basel will see Roma safely through, but they can get the job done themselves and avoid any anxiety if they take a point or better from a trip to CFR Cluj.

Preview

Arsenal vs. Partizen Belgrade
Jon Carter's Preview

Phil Munshull on Shakhtar Donetsk
Jonathan Wilson on Shakhtar Donetsk

Dominic Fifield on Drogba's return to Marseille

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Wednesday's Rumours



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Fifa's Goal of the Year List

With Glentoran's Matthew Burrows nominated alongside the likes of Lionel Messi and Samir Nasri on Fifa's shortlist for the Goal of the Year 2010 award, Telegraph Sport looks at all 10 nominees.

Russia 2018 Fifa World Cup: Artist's Impressions of Stadiums

The Stadiums

Roberto Gotta: Benitez must bring home the World

There's an old Italian song, which people born before the '80s will recall with ease, whose first sentence goes "If you're nice, they'll stone you". However difficult it may be to label someone as nice simply based on his exchanges with the media, those lyrics may well apply to Rafael Benitez.

UEFA Champions League: Tuesday's Round-Up & Reports

Tottenham progressed to the knockout stages as Group A winners with a thrilling 3-3 draw away to FC Twente, while Manchester United's defence was finally breached as they hit back against Valencia to top Group C following their 1-1 draw. Inter Milan missed the chance to claim the leadership of Group A as they were humbled 3-0 away to Werder Bremen, who finished bottom of the pile. Schalke retained top spot in Group B courtesy of their victory away to Benfica, who go into the Europa League, with Lyon progressing in second place following their 2-2 home draw against rock-bottom Hapoel Tel-Aviv. FC Copenhagen qualified for the knockout phase behind Group D winners Barcelona courtesy of their 3-1 victory over Panathinaikos, with Pep Guardiola's men seeing off Rubin Kazan at Camp Nou as the visitors had to settle for the Europa League.

Round-Up

Manchester United 1 - 1 Valencia
Daniel Taylor at Old Trafford

FC Twente 3 - 3 Tottenham
David Hytner at De Grolsch Veste

Champions League Tables

Italy: Strike 'very likely' to be called off

Serie A fixtures this weekend are expected to go ahead after talks to avert a players' strike were described as ''positive'' by the league's president, Maurizio Beretta. The row centres around a collective bargaining contract between the Italian Players' Association (AIC) and Serie A, which expired in the summer.

Pardew Set For Newcastle job

Alan Pardew is set to be named the new manager of Newcastle United in the next 48 hours. ESPNsoccernet sources have revealed that Mike Ashley decided to bring in the former West Ham and Southampton manager "some time ago".

UEFA Champions League: Tuesday's Previews

Manchester United and Tottenham will have their sights firmly set on the top spots in their groups in European action on Tuesday night. Rangers will visit Bursaspor in a dead rubber tie having already been eliminated from the competition last time out. Inter Milan will be keen on clinching pole position in Group A from Spurs when they make the trip to eliminated Werder Bremen.

Preview

Dominic Raynor previews Manchester United vs. Valencia

Walter Smith bids adieu to the Champions League