Guess who's back, with an EPL Transfer Update:

Hello and welcome to my first EPL Update in over a week.... Wow. It feels weird, but I MUST continue.


This will be a VERY long update, because a lot has happened over the last 10 days, including the official start of the London 2012 Olympics and some more EPL transfer activity, not to mention lots of football friendly action at the men's Olympic toournament has started.


So, without further ado, let me begin:

Chelsea have confirmed the £25million signing of Sao Paulo midfielder Oscar.

Promising startlet: Brazillian International Oscar has joined Chelsea for £25million.

American club New York Red Bulls have announced the signing of Everton midfielder Tim Cahill, subject to international clearance. 

It's official: Everton midfielder Tim Cahill has moved to New York Red Bulls for an undisclosed fee.

I'm here: Cahill talks the walk out into the Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey.

Interesting or what?: Tim Cahill has not ruled out a move back to Everton (on-loan)

Cahill said this on the club website:
'I am very happy to start a new chapter of my career with the New York Red Bulls'
'As we have seen over the past few years, MLS has developed into a very competitive league with many talented players.' 
'I am impressed with what the Red Bulls are trying to accomplish in MLS and within American soccer and I am looking forward to this new challenge. I will do everything I can to help bring New York its first MLS Cup'





Does anyone remember the news article that I had last post about Lens winger Thorgan Hazard?


Well, he has signed for Chelsea now, and will link-up with his brother next season.

It's official: Winger Thorgan Hazard will join Chelsea next season.

He will slide into the U21 squad, and may be loaned out for some first-team experience..


Interesting transfer done deal here: 


QPR have signed Blackburn Rovers winger Junior Holiett after agreeing a four-year contract deal.

Back to the EPL: He will fit into the way QPR play football, and will be their star player next season.

He wants to play EPL football next season, so you cannot blame him for wanting to move from a relegated club Blackburn.
He will be their young gem, and could score a lot of goals next season.

The following video proves that he has a lots of potential in the future and his talent from this video:

EPL Transfer Rumours:

Fulham forward Clint Dempsey has dropped a big hint fore his future, after missing The Cottagers pre-season trip to Switzerland. He has been linked with a move to Liverpool as he looks to play CL football before the end of his career.

Not surpirsing: Clint Dempsey may NOT play for Fulham next season, as he tries to force his way into a CL club.

Newcastle have made a £4milllion bid for FC Twente defender Douglas Texeira.

FC Twente may accept the offer, considering the fact that he only has one year left on his contract and he can leave next season on a free transfer.

England bound, surely? Newcastle have made a £4million bid for FC Twente defender Douglas Texeira (right).

Liverpool have rejected a £13million bid from Manchester City for defender Daniel Agger, who are looking to bolster their defence.

Hard decision: Defender Daniel Agger could be on his way out of Liverpool, to move to City or Barcelona.

Chelsea are ready to sign Wigan winger Victor Moses for £7.5million now after having being rejected twice already. 

Sunderland are looking to replace Asamoah Gyan with a decent striker who can give them a mid-table finish next season. 

They have had a £12million bid rejected from Wolves for Steven Fletcher.

If I was Wolves, I would accept the bid, because for a Championship club £12million is a lot and they want to return to the PL next season. They should be able to replace him anyway.

Liverpool reportedly have made a £12.5million bid for Swansea midfielder Joe Allen.

Chelsea chief executive Ron Gourlay says that the club are still in the transfer market for a few more signings.

Tottenham are considering a £7million bid for Liverpool's 17-year-old winger Raheem Sterling. 

Wanted: 17-year-old Liverpool winger Raheem Sterling is wanted by Tottenham Hotspur.

There is just over 2 weeks left until the start of the EPL 2012-13 season begins. It would not be fitting to start the season without a montage of the last, so please watch this 4 minute video to remind you of why this is the best league in the world.  

Everton have completed the signing of Tottenham midfielder Steven Pienaar for £4.5million on a four-year contract deal.

Guess who's back again: Midfielder Steven Pienaar re-joins Everton for his 4th spell at the club.

He will be Everton's talisman along with Nikica Jelavic after the departures of Mikel Arteta and now Tim Cahill in recent seasons.

He joined Spurs 18 months ago, but was not given a chance to shine and only started 5 matches.  Everton signed him up on a season-long loan in January where he scored 4 important goals.  

EPL Poll:  

Goal of the EPL Season:    

A: Papiss Cisse vs Chelsea: B: Fraizer Campbell vs Norwich City C: Peter Crouch vs Stoke City D: Robin Van Persie vs  E: Stilyan Petrov vs Everton F: Hatem Ben Arfa vs Bolton       ALL THE GOALS ARE ON THE FOLLOWING VIDEO BELOW:

   

Friendlies and The Olympics: 

Arsenal 0 Manchester City 2, in Beijing - July 27th

Midfielder Yaya Toure and defender Pablo Zabaleta both scored for City as they beat Arsenal by 2 goals to nil. 

Promising start: Midfielder Yaya Toure slots the ball out of goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski's reach into the net.

EPL Champions City celebrate Yaya Toure's 45th minute goal to give them a 2-0 lead against Arsenal in China.

Arsenal's brick wall: Defensive midfielder Alex Song prevents Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez from scoring.

Do not be fooled by the scoreline though because:

Arsenal played better football throughout the match, and had all of their youngsters on. Much fitter than City and passed the ball better.

They look very promising for the next season.

Arsenal 2 Kitchee 2, Hong Kong - July 29th

Arsenal continued their pre-season preparations with a 2-2 draw in Hong Kong against Kitchee.

Midfielder Thomas Eisfeld who joined the club for £450,000 in January from Borussia Dortmund equalised with 12 minutes to go of the match.

Forward Theo Walcott who has been subject to transfer speculation also scored for The Gunners.

Make it seem easy: Theo Walcott cooly slots the ball into the net to give Arsenal a goal against Kitchee.

MLS All Stars 3 Chelsea 2, Pennslyvania(USA) - July 25th

Chelsea suffered their first pre-season defeat in their America tour against the MLS All Stars.

Happy faces: Chelsea defender John Terry shakes LA Galaxy midfielder David Beckham's hand before the match.

Defender John Terry and Midfielder Frank Lampard both scored for The Blues, but it was not enough for them to win the match. 

Thank you very much: Midfielder Frank Lampard has played over 560 matches for Chelsea.

Notable faces for the All Stars included Arsenal legend Thierry Henry and David Beckham.

Chelsea 0 AC Milan 1, Sun Life Stadium, Miami(USA) - July 28th

Midfielder Urby Emmanuelson scored the only goal of the match for AC Milan as they beat Chelsea 1-0.

Notable faces including Fernando Torres returned to the Chelsea side but were not able to prevent The Blues from losing against the Italian giants.  Manchester United 1 Shangai Shenhua 0, Shangai Stadium - July 25th  United continued to send a message to local rivals City that they would challenge to regain their EPL title next season. This time, £17million signing Shinji Kagawa stole all of the headlines against a Chinese club who snapped up both Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba from Chelsea over the past year.

Raring to go: Manchester United winger Shinji Kagawa scores his first goal for the club against Shangai Shenhua.

Golden Boy: Kagawa is mobbed by his team-mates after a great start to his United career.

EPL, Here I come: The Japanese winger could be United's secret weapon in the next few seasons.

He scored the only goal of the match, and fitted in well playing for United. Looks promising for the future, and could even dominate the EPL. Watch this space.

 

London 2012 Men's Football Olympics:

Team GB's Results:

Great Britain 1 Senegal 1 - July 26th at Old Trafford

Liverpool forward Craig Bellamy scored the only goal of the match for Team GB as they drew against African side Senegal.

19-year-old Pape Moussa Konate equalised for Senegal in the 81st minute to give them 1 point.

Great Britain 3 UAE 1 - July 29th at Wembley Stadium

Chelsea striker Daniel Sturridge, Swansea winger Scott Sinclair and Manchester United midfielder Ryan Giggs were all of the scoresheet for Team GB as they cruised to a 3-1 win against United Arab Emirates.

Golden Oldie: Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs heads Team GB into the lead against UAE after 16 minutes.

 FACT: Ryan Giggs has become the oldest football player to score at the Olympics.

Deadlock broken: Ryan Giggs does the trademark fist pump as he celebrates his goal.

'Flying like a Swan': Swansea forward Scott Sinclair celebrates make it 2-1 to Team GB in the 73rd minute.

Recovered: Chelsea striker Daniel Sturridge recovered from meningitis to score for Team GB with a delightful chip to make it 3-1.

Other Groups News:

Spain have been knocked out of the Men's Olympics Football Tournament after 2 losses against Honduras and Japan. 

Japan and Brazil and the first two teams to go through to the Quarter-Finals. 

Thank you for reading my EPL Blog.

Please spread the word to your family and friends (who like soccer/football!). 

I truly appreciate all the support from daily views and my followers. If you like what you are reading, then do nto forget to follow me for updates when I post.

I will speak to you all very soon for my next update.

Saturday FA Cup and EPL Special LIVE:

Saturday FA Cup and EPL Special LIVE:

The quarter-finals of the FA Cup and Round 30th of this season's EPL, merged into a Super Saturday!

FA Cup:

Sunderland vs Everton: LIVE

Defender Phil Bardsley put the home side in-front after only 12 minutes, after a short free-kick was hit by him from 25 yards out into the net.

Phil Bardsley and Sunderland celebrate taking the lead against Everton after 12 minutes at The Stadium of Light.

Midfielder Tim Cahill equalised for The Toffees after taking a shot after Nikica Jelavic's header fell to him into the net from a corner - to score his second goal in 41 matches for Everton!

Midfielder Tim Cahill scores an equaliser for Everton in the 23rd minute to keep the away side in the FA Cup tie.

Halfway through the second half (65 mins), 1-1.

Tottenham Hotspur vs Bolton Wanderers: LIVE from 17:30pm

Team news from White Hart Lane at 17:00pm...

EPL:

Fulham vs Swansea City: LIVE at 15:00pm

10th placed Fulham host 11th placed Swansea in a mid-table battle at Craven Cottage. If either team wins, they could move up to 8th place. 

Swansea will have high morale after their 1-0 home win against 2nd placed Manchester City last Sunday, while Fulham lost late on at Villa Park against Aston Villa.

Wigan Athletic vs West Bromwich Albion: LIVE at 15:00pm

Bottom club Wigan host 14th placed WBA at the DW Stadium.

Wigan will be looking to push out of the relegation zone today provided that they win, while West Brom could be 8th at the end of the day (if the result at Craven Cottage goes their way).

The Stadium of Light,

FA Cup Quarter-Final,

Sunderland vs Everton:

Team line-ups:

Everton: Howard, Neville, Heitinga, Distin, Baines, Coleman,Fellaini, Osman, Drenthe, Cahill, Jelavic. Subs: Hahnemann, Hibbert, Jagielka, Stracqualursi, McFadden, Gueye, Anichebe.

Sunderland: Mignolet, Bardsley, O'Shea, Turner, Bridge, Larsson, Colback, Gardner, McClean, Campbell, Bendtner. Subs: Gordon, Wickham, Kilgallon, Vaughan, Meyler, Kyrgiakos, Elmohamady.

70: Header by striker Nikica Jelavic from 12 yards out..... COMFORTABLE SAVE!! by Simon Mignolet...

72:

Everton SUB:

Seamus Coleman OFF

Magaye Gueye ON

73:

Sunderland SUB:

Fraizer Campbell OFF

David Vaughan ON

79: 5 yellow cards in this match, 27 fouls...... Dangerous and stuck-in game. I predicted that it would either be a slender win or a replay. I should (but won't) be a betting man... :)

Let's digress for a few minutes, and look at some news:.

Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov is reportedly on his way back to Germany due to a lack of first-team action, with Hannover 96 leading the race.

Berbatov is actually under-rated at United... They need to give him a chance because every match he has played for them this season, he has at least scored once....

Dimitar Berbatov: Lack of first team action for the striker at Manchester United, means that he WILL leave in the Summer.

Anderlecht want Arsenal flop Chu-Young Park to join them to boost their strikeforce.

Chu Young Park: Leaving Arsenal after only one season at The Gunners?

£2million is in the works...

Harry Redknapp has confirmed Tottenham are ready to smash their record transfer fee to land £35million Lille wonderkid Eden Hazard.

Eden Hazard: The Lille winger is wanted by up to 6 different EPL clubs.... including Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Manchester United.

Sunderland have a big fight on their hands to hang onto key midfielder Stephane Sessegnon, who is struggling to settle in the North-West.

Should I stay or should I go? Sessegnon is wanted by PSG and Arsenal....

EPL LIVE Line-ups:

Wigan v West Brom:

Wigan: Al Habsi, Alcaraz, Caldwell, Figueroa, Boyce, McCarthy, McArthur, Beausejour, Moses, Di Santo, Maloney. Subs: Kirkland, Crusat, Ben Watson, Gomez, McManaman, Diame, Stam.

West Brom: Foster, Jones, McAuley, Ridgewell, Shorey, Thomas, Morrison, Mulumbu, Scharner, Brunt, Long. Subs: Daniels, Andrews, Dorrans, Dawson, Tamas, Cox, Fortune.

Fulham v Swansea City:

Fulham: Schwarzer, Kelly, Senderos, Hangeland, John Arne Riise, Ruiz, Dembele, Diarra, Dempsey, Johnson, Pogrebnyak. Subs: Stockdale, Baird, Murphy, Duff, Hughes, Etuhu, Frei.

Clint Dempsey and Pavel Pogrebnyak both start for the home side, along with Bryan Ruiz and Moussa Dembele.

Very strong Fulham side....

FACT: Mahamadou Diarra is going to start his first match for Fulham since moving from a free agent when he left Real Madrid last Summer.

Swansea: Vorm, Rangel, Caulker, Monk, Taylor, Allen, Britton, Sigurdsson, Routledge, Graham, Sinclair. Subs: Tremmel, Tate, McEachran, Lita, Moore, Gower, Richards.

Danny Graham and Scott Sinclair both start in strike for The Swans along with in-form goalkeeper Michel Vorm and striker Gylfi Sigurdsson. 

Michel Vorm: Has to be on top-form to prevent players such as Clint Dempsey and Pogrebnyak from scoring at Craven Cottage this afternoon...

FULL-TIME:

Sunderland 1 Everton 1

This means that the quarter-final, will go to a replay.

Replay will be played on the 27th of March at 19:45pm.

15:00:

The two 3oclock EPL kick-offs have started at Craven Cottage and the DW Stadium...

15:10:

DW Stadium,

Wigan vs West Brom:

Wigan have had four shots at goal, and it is still goaless.... 

This is the difference between relegation and mid-table....

Although I give them credit for coming out of the starting blocks quick against a tough WBA side.

15:13:

Craven Cottage,

Fulham vs Swansea City:

Full-back/midfielder John Arne Riise takes a shot from 20 yards out.... OVER THE BAR!!

Unlucky by Riise, who used to score from over 20 yards a LOT in his Liverpool days... still looking for his first Fulham goal since moving last Summer.

Goals clip at Liverpool:

15:16:

DW Stadium,

Wigan vs WBA:

Defender Emmerson Boyce takes a shot from 6 yards out... HITS THE POST!

Cleared away by the WBA defence...

Wigan are really pushing for the first goal here... That is their 5th shot of the game.

15:27:

Craven Cottage,

Fulham vs Swansea:

Midfielder Clint Dempsey takes a shot from 25 yards out... MISS!!!

15:29:

Craven Cottage:

Fulham vs Swansea:

Gylfi Sigurdsson takes a shot from 18 yards out... MISS!!

Fulham vs Swansea:

30: Cross by Riise to Bryan Ruiz who takes a shot from 25 yards out... SAVED! by Michel Vorm.

31: Shot by Swansea striker Scott Sinclair from 6 yards out... PARRIED OUT!! by Mark Schwarzer!

36: Cross delivered into the box by Scott Sinclair, finds Sigurdsson who takes a header from 6 yards out... GOAL!! 

Swansea are ahead at Craven Cottage!

Striker Gylfi Sigurdsson heads Swansea ahead at Craven Cottage against Fulham after 36 minutes.

Swansea celebrate their opening goal of the match against Fulham, courtesy of striker Gylfi Sigurdsson.

15:49:

HALF-TIME:

Fulham 0 Swansea 1

Gylfi Sigurdsson scored his 4th goal in 8 matches for the away team to put The Swans ahead at Craven Cottage. Fulham have to step up in the second half if they want to win this match against a tough Swansea side.

Wigan 0 WBA 0

10 chances for Wigan, to West Brom's 4 but no-one has been able to convert so far in this match-up.

Surely this will not be the final scoreline?

16:02:

The second halves have started in the EPL....

No substitutions at Craven Cottage or the DW.

16:08:

DW Stadium,

Wigan vs West Brom:

Striker Shaun Maloney takes a shot from 25 yards out.... SAVE (caught)!! by goalkeeper Ben Foster...

Still goalless...

16:14:
DW Stadium,
Wigan vs WBA:
The deadlock has finally been broken here!
Midfielder James McCarthur scores for the home side with a sweet finish from 6 yards out after winger Victor Moses crossed the ball to him. 1-0.

Scrappy goal: Midfielder James McCarthur puts Wigan in-front against West Brom.

As it stands: Wigan are out of the bottom three, into 17th place.
You cannot say that this was not coming... Wigan have been pressing since the first whistle...


16:17:
Craven Cottage,
Fulham vs Swansea:
Fulham SUB:
Bryan Ruiz OFF
Damien Duff ON


16:23:
DW Stadium,
Wigan vs West Brom:
Corner whipped into the box by Chris Brunt, finds defender Paul Scharner who heads the ball goalwards from 6 yards out.... GOAL!! Scharner equalises for WBA, against his old club Wigan. 1-1.

Sign of respect: Defender Paul Scharner equalises for West Brom against Wigan, but refuses to celebrate against his old club.

16:25:
DW Stadium,
Wigan vs WBA:
There has been a heated argument between both sets of players here, after a late tackle by Wigan midfielder James McCarthur on West Brom's Youssouf Mulumbu. 
Mulumbu, Jerome Thomas and Emmerson Boyce have all been booked for descent and their part in the argument. 


16:26:
Craven Cottage,
Fulham vs Swansea City:
Winger Wayne Routledge finds striker Gylfi Sigurdsson with a precise pass who shoots from 12 yards out... GOAL!!  Sigurdsson doubles Swansea's lead and his tally for the afternoon!


16:39:
Craven Cottage,
Fulham vs Swansea:
Scott Sinclair with a pass to midfielder Joe Allen who takes a shot from 20 yards out... GOAL!!! Swansea have surely sealed three points away from home after this latest goal!?




16:53:
FULL-TIME:
Fulham 0 Swansea City 3
Sigurdsson scored twice and Joe Allen also scored for the away side as The Swans move up into  place with an impressive 3-0 victory over Fulham.


FACT: Today is only the third time that Swansea have scored 3 goals in an away match in the EPL - in their history.


Wigan 1 West Bromwich Albion 1
Midfielder James McCarthur gave the hosts the lead in the 54th minute, before defender Paul Scharner equalised for The Baggies in the 65th minute, which means that the two teams have to settle for one point each.






Analysis:


Wigan will feel disappointed that they did not win and get out of the bottom three, as they took lots of goal-scoring chances but only converted 1 out of 20 taken.


West Brom will feel good that they took a point away from home and are now in 12th place, but could have taken all three today against a Wigan side who did not take their chances. You would have thought that they would capitalize on their opponent's poor run of form, but it is hard to do without key player Peter Odemwingie who was missed today.


The match was dirty towards the end with both teams getting frustrated and there were 18 fouls, and 6 yellow cards.


Fulham will also feel upset that they could not impress their home supporters and get the result that they needed today, despite taking 14 shots and not scoring. Plus, they had a very strong team meanwhile Swansea's team was just above average; with the pace of Scott Sinclair and the clinical finishing of Gylfi Sigurdsson.


Swansea will feel good, after winning 2 in a row against very decent opposition (City and now Fulham), and now will push for a top 10 finish.


17:10:
Now onto the last football action today with the 2nd of 4 FA Cup Quarter-Finals this weekend:

Tottenham v Bolton:

Tottenham: Cudicini, Walker, Nelsen, Gallas, Assou-Ekotto, Van der Vaart, Parker, Modric, Bale, Defoe, Saha. Subs: Friedel, Kaboul, Giovani, Kranjcar, Rose, Livermore, Sandro.

Carlo Cudicini starts in-between the sticks for Spurs, defender Ryan Nelsen comes back into the squad.

Emmanuel Adebayor is out of action due to a hamstring injury so Louis Saha takes his place, while central defender William Gallas starts his first match for 10 weeks.

A strong Spurs side, that should be easily able to get the job done.

Bolton: Bogdan, Alonso, Boyata, Knight, Ricketts, Pratley, Muamba, Reo-Coker, Petrov, Miyaichi, Klasnic. Subs: Jaaskelainen, Eagles, Sanli, Kevin Davies, Ngog, Ream, Vela.

Ivan Klasnic and Ryo Miyaichi both start for Bolton, which will strengthen their strikeforce and attacking flair against a strong Spurs side.

17:30:

White Hart Lane, 

Tottenham vs Bolton:

The referee blows the whistle to start the first half.

17:36:

A Bolton corner, whipped into the box by Martin Petrov, falls to defender Darren Pratley who heads the ball towards goal... hits Gareth Bale and falls into the net past Cudicini. 1-0 to Bolton after only 6 minutes, with Gareth Bale scoring an own goal.

17:41:

Gareth Bale speeds past the Bolton defence, before whipping a cross into the box for full-back Kyle Walker to put his head onto.... GOAL!! Spurs are level in less than 5 minutes after conceding! Bale repays Tottenham after his own goal and it is 1-1.

17:43:

Striker Louis Saha takes a shot from 20 yards out towards goal... SAVE! (caught) by Bolton 'keeper Adam Bogdan. 

17:53:

Full-back Benoit Assou-Ekotto crosses a ball into the Bolton 16-yard box for Bale, who heads the ball towards the net.. MISS!!

17:58:

Shot by Bolton midfielder Martin Petrov from 18 yards out....

MISS!

18:04:
Spurs corner, crossed into the box by winger Rafael Van Der Vaart to defender Ryan Nelsen who heads the ball towards goal..... MISS!!


18:13-18:55: Bolton midfielder Fabrice Muamba is down in agony.... Both sets of medical staff rush onto the pitch now to treat him...
This looks VERY serious...., now the supporters around the ground are gobsmacked and are chanting his name.
He collapsed near the half-way line, on his own without any physical contact from anyone else.
CPR is being performed.... but I think he needs more.
He is not breathing, and is being rushed to hospital.
Referee Howard Webb has called off the match.
Smart decision...

Bolton midfielder Fabrice Muamba recieves CPR from the medical staff after collapsing on the pitch in the 42nd minute against Tottenham.

Tottenham winger Gareth Bale comforts striker Jermain Defoe who is distressed by what is being seen.

Horror show: Tottenham players Assou-Ekotto, William Gallas, Carlo Cudicini and Bolton manager Owen Coyle are in absolute shock at what they have seen regarding midfielder Fabrice Muamba.

Get well soon Muamba, stay with us please.
I will pray for you.


A distressing end to a Saturday.....
I hope his family are ok and he gets better soon in hospital.


See you tomorrow everyone.
Please continue to support me by viewing frequently and following my EPL Blog
I am sure that you all will pray for Fabrice Muamba and his family at this disturbing time.
Thank you.