Chelsea to make final offer in pursuit of Robinho

Chelsea are ready to broker a deal with Real Madrid for Robinho in a bid to bring the acrimonious transfer saga to a conclusion before tonight's midnight deadline.

EFE

The Brazilian's future is still in doubt.

The Brazilian claimed he wanted to move to England at a press conference yesterday and also criticised Real coach Bernd Schuster for denying him the chance to move to Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea have been criticised over their pursuit of the winger and now look ready to return with a late bid, having been rebuffed in their earlier attempts to sign him.

The club refuted criticism from Real Madrid on Sunday night, stating: 'There is nothing wrong with publicly confirming our interest in a player when the club involved is well aware of it, has been in receipt of two bids and is negotiating to sell the player. So we completely refute any criticism from Real Madrid.'

However, their hopes of bringing Robinho to the club took a blow when Real president Ramon Calderon insisted, 'There will be no player coming in and no player leaving'', before the the closure of the transfer window at midnight.'

With the player himself keen to make the move, the deal may hinge on Real signing a replacement and it seems as though the Blues' long-running pursuit may go down to the wire.

Meanwhile, Chelsea boss Phil Scolari has claimed that he turned down a bid from Arsene Wenger for Salomon Kalou.

'He wanted Kalou two or three months ago when we started negotiations for some players. I said no,' the Brazilian said.

'If you ask Arsene Wenger, he wants Kalou as a centre-forward and Arsene is an intelligent man,'' he said.

'If he loves Kalou as a number nine, I try it sometimes. But I have (Nicolas) Anelka, (Didier) Drogba and (Franco) Di Santo.''

source: soccernet

Real Sink for 17 Straight Years at Deportivo

MADRID, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Champions Real Madrid crashed to an opening day 2-1 defeat at Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday evening.

Real had not won at the Riazor stadium for seventeen years and Deportivo ensured that winless run continued for another year. Mista, making his debut for the home side, almost opened his account in the first minute when he got ahead of Pepe to meet Pablo Alvarez's cross only to see his effort crash off the Real crossbar. An Arjen Robben run ended with some half-hearted Real shouts for a penalty but the referee waved play on. Deportivo took the lead in the 26th minute when Mista again rose unchallenged to head home unconvincingly from six yards out with the Real defence in disarray. Ruud Van Nistelrooy replied for Real just two minutes after the break, poaching an instinctive volley after Raul's deflected shot had looped towards him. Depor restored the lead just two minutes after that when Alberto Lopo steered a header past Iker Casillas from a corner as Pepe was sleeping once again. Real were unable to respond as Bernd Schuster's men turned in a disappointing performance. Promoted Numancia spoiled Pep Guardiola's league debut as Barcelona coach, beating their illustrious opponents 1-0 at home in the Primera Liga on Sunday. The second division champions broke away to score through midfielder Mario early in the first half and Barca wasted a host of chances as they laboured to react. Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi both hit the woodwork but Numancia's rearguard held firm to give their new coach Sergio Kresic a winning start instead. The performance of the day came from Atletico Madrid, who qualified for the Champions League group stage during the week, and stormed to top of the standings with a 4-0 demolition of another newly promoted side, Malaga. Netherlands defender John Heitinga opened the scoring on his league debut and Uruguay striker Diego Forlan added two more before the break, the second from the penalty spot. French striker Florent Sinama Pongolle made it four near the end. Last year's runners-up Villarreal were held to a 1-1 draw away to Osasuna when Marcos Senna's glorious free kick was cancelled out by Iran midfielder Javad Nekounam's penalty. Another touted contender for a top four finish, Sevilla, were also held to a 1-1 draw away to Racing Santander. In the late game, champions Real Madrid kick off the defence of their title away to Deportivo Coruna.

FC Porto agree to sell Quaresma to Inter Milan

Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan have agreed to sign Portugal winger Ricardo Quaresma for an undisclosed fee, the player's agents Gestifute said on their website on Sunday.

Portuguese media reported that Inter would pay around 20 million euros ($29.48 million) for the 24-year-old who leaves for Milan on Monday for medical tests.

A statement read: 'Ricardo Quaresma will be a Internazionale player and Pele will represent Porto.

'The transfer of the Porto number seven to Jose Mourinho's team is complete, in a deal that involves the sale of Pele to the Portuguese club.

'The agreement between the two clubs was completed this Sunday and driven by Jorge Mendes, owner of Gestifute.'

Quaresma, who has 23 caps and has scored three times for Portugal, joined Porto in 2004 after a season at Barcelona and won three titles in a row with the northern side.

source: soccernet

Tevez included in Argentina squad for qualifiers

Manchester United's Carlos Tevez has been named in the Argentina squad for the upcoming World Cup Qualifiers against Paraguay and Peru.

Tevez is one of five England-based players in the squad while Boca Juniors playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme and Lionel Messi of Barcelona are both included after helping the Olympic side take gold in Beijing last month.

Liverpool's Javier Mascherano, Newcastle's Fabricio Coloccini and Jonas Gutierrez and Manchester City's Pablo Zabaleta have all been called up.

'I hope I can do the job everybody is expecting as I am enjoying good form at Manchester United,' said Tevez.

Argentina lie second in the World Cup South American Qualifying Zone on 11 points, two below leaders Paraguay, who they play on September 6 in Buenos Aires. Four days later, Argentina travel to Peru, who are without a win at the bottom of the standings.

Squad: Roberto Abbondanzieri (Getafe), Juan Pablo Carrizo (Lazio), Sergio Romero (AZ Alkmaar); Javier Zanetti (Internazionale), Daniel Diaz (Getafe), Pablo Zabaleta (Manchester City), Gonzalo Rodriguez (Villarreal), Martin Demichelis (Bayern Munich), Fabricio Coloccini (Newcastle), Gabriel Heinze (Real Madrid); Juan Roman Riquelme, Sebastian Battaglia (both Boca Juniors), Jonas Gutierrez (Newcastle), Javier Mascherano (Liverpool), Fernando Gago (Real Madrid), Esteban Cambiasso (Internazionale), Angel Di Maria (Benfica), Andres D'Alessandro (Internacional); Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Carlos Tevez (Manchester United), Sergio Aguero (Atletico Madrid), German Denis (Napoli), Lisandro Lopez, (Porto).

source: soccernet

Tottenham agree to sign Corluka from Man City

Tottenham have announced that they have agreed a deal to sign Croatian Vedran Corluka from Manchester City for an undisclosed fee.

AlexLivesey/GettyImages

The Croatian wants to link up with Luka Modric.

The 22-year-old joins Croatia team-mate Luka Modric at White Hart Lane, and leaves City after making 41 appearances since arriving in August 2007.

'We are delighted to announce that we have reached agreement with Manchester City for the transfer of Vedran Corluka to the club,' read a statement on Spurs' official website.

Corluka added: 'I am delighted to be here because I am coming to a big club with great players, great ambition and also my best friend [Luka Modric] is here so it is a very happy day for me.'

The defender has been capped 24 times by Croatia, playing in every match of the recent European Championships.

Corluka had handed in a transfer request at City following previous interest from Tottenham.

His move south move follows City's signing from Espanyol of Argentinian defender Pablo Zabaleta, who agreed a five-year deal with Mark Hughes' side yesterday.

Thaksin Shinawatra Sold Manchester City

Manchester City have reportedly been taken over by the Abu Dhabi United Group for Development and Investment (ADUG).

Shinawatra: Manchester City's controversial former owner.

The move sees the club's former owner Dr Thaksin Shinawatra, former Prime Minister of Thailand, leave Eastlands after agreeing a deal.

ADUG will be represented on the new board of Manchester City by Hydra Properties CEO Dr Sulaiman Al Fahim.

Al Fahim confirmed on Monday the deal had been struck and told Arabian Business: 'We will release details later, but this is a great event for both the club and Abu Dhabi.

'Our goal is very simple - to make Manchester City the biggest club in the Premier League, and to begin with, to finish in the top four this season.'

The club's future has been uncertain following legal problems faced in Thailand by Shinawatra, who will stay on as honorary president of the club without any administrative responsibilities.

It is understood that negotiations began three weeks ago, and were completed on Sunday night at Emirates Palace Hotel in Dubai.

Al Fahimadded: 'We in Abu Dhabi United Company for Development and Investment are keen to develop ways to provide support and care for various sports activities to help build and develop a new generation of young State, which represents the real wealth and the future of this nation and the cornerstone for building the future of our civilisation.

'As embodied in our mission to open new horizons in all kinds of sports, it will enable them to enjoy healthy body and mind, thanks to the lessons we have learned from the wise leadership in Abu Dhabi.'

He added: 'We will adopt marketing plans that reflect positively on the club and the company from investments in all sectors of television marketing and purchasing of the stars players, as well as development of infrastructure facilities at the club.'

Toons to keep Owen..

Newcastle striker Michael Owen has been offered an improved three-year deal to keep him on Tyneside.

The club has confirmed that the 28-year-old, who is in the final year of his current deal, will be offered a new contract amid speculation he could leave on a free transfer at the end of the season. A spokesman said: 'Newcastle United can confirm that captain Michael Owen has been offered an extended and improved three-year contract. 'The proposed terms of the new deal include an increased salary for Michael and demonstrate the club's commitment to keeping him. 'The club hopes that this enhanced contract offer will keep him at St James' Park.' Reports during the week suggested that Keegan had been told at a meeting with owner Mike Ashley that Owen would be offered only a one-year extension and a reduced £85,000 a week. However, the latest offer - formal details of which it is understood are yet to reach Owen's representatives - represent an improvement on his current salary of £103,000 a week.


source: soccernet

Ronaldo may return Early

Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo believes he could be playing again by the end of September.

The Portuguese underwent ankle surgery in July and initial forecasts were that he could be out of action until late October and possibly November. But Ronaldo, who scored 42 goals last season to fire United to the Premier League title and Champions League, has been told to step up his rehabilitation after making better-than-expected progress. 'I am feeling fine. I am feeling really good and my recovery is going well,' the 23-year-old said. 'I am more than happy with my progress and I hope to be back playing for United by the end of September - that is my target and it is a realistic one. 'It has been frustrating to miss the start of the Premier League season but I am pleased with my rehabilitation and, hopefully, I'll be ready soon.'


source: soccernet

Final Day Signings for Liverpool?

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez is confident the signing of Espanyol midfielder Albert Riera will finally be completed on the last day of the current transfer window.

Riera is expected to tie up a move to Anfield today for a fee believed to be in the region of £8million.

And Benitez is also anticipating that Xabi Alonso will remain a Liverpool player.

But his joy may be tempered if the news regarding Fernando Torres' hamstring injury is not encouraging.

The Spanish star pulled up suddenly during the first half of the Reds' goalless draw at Aston Villa yesterday and will undergo a scan today to determine the extent of the damage.

Benitez said: 'The deal for Riera is nearly done. We are waiting and hopefully it will be done.

'I have confidence that it will. It can improve us and give us a bit of balance.

'It is nearly done. We are in contact with Espanyol.

'Maybe it not done yet because it was the weekend. I also think that Alonso will be staying.

'But as regards Torres we will have to wait and see how serious the injury is.

'He will have a scan today. Clearly when you lose Steven Gerrard and then you lose Torres, it is always a problem.

'The only positive news is to have an international break now. At least they will have time to recover and we will see.

'It will be 10-15 days and Gerrard can maybe lose only one game. Torres could be more or less the same. It will be important to lose them for one game but not the worst situation.'

source: soccernet

This week manager Recap

Sunderland 0-3 Manchester City

Roy Keane: can't think of one player today who performed to the level we know they can. In the Premier League, you lose games sometimes if two or three are under-performing, never mind all of them, so 3-0 was always going to happen if we were not quite at the races."

Mark Hughes: "I thought he [Wright-Phillips] was excellent, not only the goals, but his general play. Every time he was in possession, it looked like something was going to happen. He is going to bring a new element to our game and a new threat to opposition teams because he has proved once again that he is an exceptionally gifted football player."

Chelsea 1-1 Tottenham

Luiz Felipe Scolari: "For me we played well. I think we need to respect Tottenham and the quality they have. Sometimes it is impossible to win. It was an interesting derby and a draw for me is a normal result because we had more chances but made mistakes in the final shot. They put eight or nine players at the back and it is difficult to create."

Juande Ramos: "Let's hope this result can ignite the season. It was a great performance and result and let's hope it is positive ahead. We needed something to kick-start the season, to lift spirits and give the players confidence for what lies ahead."

Aston Villa 0-0 Liverpool

Martin O'Neill: "It was a tough game and I thought they have come here and played a physical game. I think that's probably the right result. We have a habit of scoring goals so I think we keeping a clean sheet is an absolute positive for us."

Rafa Benitez: "In the first half both teams had more or less same opportunities and in the second half I thought we started well. In the last 15 minutes they were pushing quite a lot. It was a game that we could have won and so could they have done. It is not that we should have finished quicker. I think you have to give credit to the defenders."

Arsenal 3-0 Newcastle

Arsene Wenger: "I am very pleased with the performance, both offensively and defensively. It was a complete one, there was great balance in the team, with movement. Apart from at the start of the second half, we were always in control and played the game we love, and showed the way we can play."

Kevin Keegan: "We have got a small squad anyway but we've been hit by injuries and what happens then is you play the same players a lot. We came up against a side who were on their game and had a key player back in Cesc Fabregas. But the penalty was a blow for us and made the game very hard."

Everton 0-3 Portsmouth

David Moyes: "We are not in condition to win Premier League matches. We have not got players in the right slots and senior players are not playing the way they should be. We've got a lot of young players in the side but it's not those players who are letting us down."

Harry Redknapp: "I'd been waiting for Jermain Defoe to come good - him and Peter Crouch - and it was nice to see them link up together. And David James is different class. That was a world-class save in the first half from Mikel Arteta to keep us 1-0 up and then to save the penalty from Yakubu as well - he's a fantastic goalkeeper."

Bolton 0-0 West Brom

Gary Megson: "We had four players missing and the people who have come in have done very well. But it's better for us to have a big squad and more players to turn to. I would like to think we can get one more in definitely, and maybe get two. The transfer window's a real nonsense."

Tony Mowbray: "Bolton are very, very physical. That's what their game's about. There's a bit of intimidation. I've never known a more physical team get so many free-kicks."

West Ham 4-1 Blackburn

Alan Curbishley: "It's difficult with fans having a go at you after only two games but West Ham fans are second to none when they get behind the team and that's what we want. I can take any flak."

Paul Ince: "Everything went against me today and everything went for Curbs. I'm not happy because we had enough chances to change the course of the game. Curbs is obviously a lucky manager but I know he's also a top manager and I'm pleased for him."

Middlesbrough 2-1 Stoke City

Gareth Southgate: "In the end we've just had enough to win it. It is the poorest we have played but the points are the important thing for us. The way they play they cause you problems and we were a bit off it and didn't pass the ball as well as we should have done."

Tony Pulis: "The players have done fantastically. We don't roll over and die and we'll need that commitment to see us through."

Hull City 0-5 Wigan Athletic

Phil Brown: "It was a harsh reality check today. Wigan have had five shots on target and scored five goals. It's that little bit of detail where you're going to get found out if you're not a million per cent right and today we weren't."

Steve Bruce: "We were unfortunate against West Ham, we were unfortunate against Chelsea, but we've had the rub of the green today which we needed. It was fairly comprehensive in the end but it was always going to be a difficult game."

Source: Eurosport

Online scammers prep for Gustav, say researchers

Nearly 100 domains related to Hurricane Gustav have been registered in the past 48 hours, security experts said Sunday, some of which may be used by bogus charity and relief scams after the storm strikes the U.S. Gulf Coast.

According to television station KTAL in Shreveport, La., the office of Louisiana's Attorney General Buddy Caldwell has warned residents of Gustav phishing attacks already in progress.

On Saturday, Marcus Sachs, the director of the SANS Institute's Internet Storm Center (ISC), noted that numerous domains containing the word "gustav," "charity," "hurricane," and "relief" had been recently registered.

"On the day [Hurricane] Katrina hit New Orleans [in 2005] hundreds of donation sites appeared online, many if not most were scam sites," said Sachs in a post yesterday to the ISC research blog. "Well this time around it looks like the people who like to register domain names in anticipation of a storm's arrival have already started registering them for Gustav."

By Sunday, Sachs had listed almost 100 Gustav sites culled from the DomainTools' Web site. "Most of these sites are parked domains and many of them are for sale," he said. "They will be worth monitoring, particularly if 'donate here' messages appear."

Several of the domains, in fact, do appear to be parked, or registered but not fleshed out with content. Others, including helpgustavictims.com and helpgustavvictions.net, were for sale on eBay as of mid-day Sunday.

A few, however, led to legitimate charities. The domain gustavcharity.com, for example, redirected users to the Web site of the evangelical Christian organization "Samaritan's Purse," while contributegustav.org took users to the Baton Rouge Area Foundation's site.

Another security expert, Gary Warner, director of research in computer forensics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, also posted a list of parked domains that may be used for scamming purposes. "Anytime we've seen a natural disaster, we've been on the lookup for domains which might be abused for fraud," said Warner Sunday on his blog. "It was only natural then that I retuned my settings at DomainTools yesterday to alert on Gustav domains."

Warner also pointed out a handful of domains that led to legitimate content.

Three years ago, before and after Hurricanes Katrina slammed into New Orleans, security researchers noted a similar run-up of domain registrations. Enough were used for phony relief scams, often by identity thieves hoping to trick consumers into divulging personal information, that the U.S. Department of Justice set up a Katrina anti-fraud task force.

More than a year later, two brothers were convicted on federal charges for running a fake Salvation Army site that solicited money, supposedly for Katrina relief efforts. The pair, Steven and Bartholomew Stephens, were sentenced to more than 100 months in prison for the scam last December.

source: Gregg Keizer

Final England Team Chosen

England coach Fabio Capello has sprung a major surprise by including Jimmy Bullard in his squad to face Andorra and Croatia in the World Cup qualifiers which get under way next weekend.

The Fulham midfielder has never previously been thought of as potential England material but with Steven Gerrard, Owen Hargreaves and Michael Carrick all injured, Capello has turned to the 29-year-old to give the Three Lions a shake-up as they start on the road to South Africa.

There was no place in Capello's 23-man squad for Michael Owen, who the Italian watched make his first full appearance of the season at Arsenal on Saturday, or Peter Crouch, who was again omitted despite his goal for Portsmouth at Everton.

Micah Richards, who had originally been picked for the England Under-21s' European Championship qualifier with Portugal on Friday, has also been ruled out through injury, leaving Glen Johnson as back-up for Wes Brown at right-back.

Once again, Emile Heskey takes his place in a strike quartet that also includes Arsenal's Theo Walcott, plus Wayne Rooney and Jermain Defoe, who started the unconvincing friendly draw with the Czech Republic on August 20.

West Ham keeper Robert Green returns to the England squad, as does Everton's Joleon Lescott, who replaces Jonathan Woodgate.

Capello has also kept faith with David Beckham, despite the former England skipper receiving severe criticism for his performance against the Czechs.

Squad:

Goalkeepers: David James (Portsmouth), Robert Green (West Ham United), Paul Robinson (Blackburn Rovers)

Defenders: Wayne Bridge (Chelsea), Wes Brown (Manchester United), Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United), Glen Johnson (Portsmouth), John Terry (Chelsea), Joleon Lescott (Everton), Matthew Upson (West Ham United)

Midfielders: Gareth Barry (Aston Villa), Jimmy Bullard (Fulham), Jermaine Jenas (Tottenham Hotspur), Joe Cole (Chelsea), David Bentley (Tottenham Hotspur), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Stewart Downing (Middlesbrough), David Beckham (LA Galaxy)

Forwards: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), Jermaine Defoe (Portsmouth), Theo Walcott (Arsenal), Emile Heskey (Wigan Athletic)

Taiwan's blame game with Microsoft

Like a lot of people, I find that many of the things Microsoft does drive me crazy. A perfect example is the attempt to mask its late arrival to the software-as-a-service game by claiming that SaaS is so two years ago, and that now it's really all about "Software + Services."

As I indicated in my "Raining Mud" column a few weeks ago, coining a different term so you can pretend you're the star player in a new and improved variation of the game, while quintessentially Microsoftesque, just confuses the marketplace. Shut up and compete in the same stadium with everybody else instead of trying to draw the crowd onto Microsoft Field.

That said, I'm driven equally crazy by mindless Microsoft-bashing, and even crazier by some of the absurd charges that are routinely leveled against Microsoft by government bodies. The arena where the lights have been lit in the most recent display of government nonsense is Taiwan.

As we reported last week, the Taiwan Fair Trade Commission has launched an investigation into whether Microsoft is abusing its overwhelmingly dominant position in the island's software market. The probe follows a study by Taiwan's Consumers' Foundation that found that Microsoft has a 98% share of Taiwan's operating system market.

It also follows, by about six years, a very similar TFTC investigation into whether Microsoft was using its dominance to inflate prices. That six-month effort was inconclusive, and Microsoft settled with the government by lowering its prices by an average of 26.7%. It's not what has happened since then, but rather what hasn't happened, that prompted the TFTC to take action against Microsoft once again.

What hasn't happened is the adoption of Linux in Taiwan in any meaningful way, despite the government taking a stand in favor of Linux. Like many other countries that have pursued initiatives to advance open-source alternatives to Microsoft, Taiwan has adopted policies aimed at promoting the proliferation of Linux. But in Taiwan's case, it seems to be more show than substance.

For example, there's the 2006 mandate that all PCs purchased by the government be certified as Linux-compatible. Of course, Linux compatibility and Linux use are two entirely different things, so the government didn't actually have to undergo the inconvenience of switching to Linux. In fact, Taiwan has little to show for all the Linux bluster beyond the operating system's expanded use in embedded systems and mobile devices. Since that has had almost no impact on Microsoft's dominance, the halfhearted Linux push has been an abject failure.

There's no failure like a government failure to arouse blame-shifting and finger-pointing, and what better scapegoat than the U.S. corporate monster that spurred the failed effort? So it's little surprise that the TFTC decided to exhume a dead investigation and prop it up as a response to Microsoft's continued dominance of the local software market.

The problem was finding a way to keep this probe from being as inconclusive as the first one. The TFTC needed a way to breathe some life into the cadaver. How could it gain the upper hand? Easy: Tap into widespread anti-Vista sentiment.

The Consumers' Foundation survey found that 56% of respondents who had recently bought a new PC were forced to buy Vista instead of Windows XP. Bingo — the TFTC would look into complaints that Microsoft was limiting consumer choice by restricting the availability of XP.

It may well turn out to be an effective strategy, but it's a hollow one. Microsoft could face a fine of nearly $800,000 if it's found that the company's championing of Vista over XP is in violation of Taiwan's antitrust laws. But by the same reasoning, Microsoft could be held liable for restricting the availability of Windows 95 and Windows 3.1. It's ridiculous.

If I didn't believe so strongly in engagement, I'd suggest that Microsoft just pull up stakes and wish Taiwan's government the best of luck. At least then Taiwan might get serious about Linux.

source: Don Tennant

Next Fixtures for Premier League

Saturday, September 13, 2008
Time	Home		Away	VENUE
12:45 UK	Liverpool	v	Man Utd	Anfield
15:00 UK	Blackburn	v	Arsenal	Ewood Park
15:00 UK	Fulham	v	Bolton	Craven Cottage
15:00 UK	Newcastle	v	Hull	St James` Park
15:00 UK	Portsmouth	v	Middlesbrough	Fratton Park
15:00 UK	West Brom	v	West Ham	The Hawthorns
15:00 UK	Wigan	v	Sunderland	JJB Stadium
17:30 UK	Man City	v	Chelsea	City of Manchester Stadium

Sunday, September 14, 2008
Time	Home		Away	VENUE
13:30 UK	Stoke	v	Everton	Britannia Stadium

Monday, September 15, 2008
Time	Home		Away	VENUE
20:00 UK	Tottenham	v	Aston Villa	White Hart Lane

Spurs agree deal to sign striker Pavlyuchenko

Tottenham have confirmed they had reached agreement to sign Russian striker Roman Pavlyuchenko from Spartak Moscow - a move which could pave the way for Dimitar Berbatov to leave Spurs for Manchester United.

Pavlyuchenko arrived in England yesterday as the deal moved nearer to completion, but he will not be present as Spurs take on Chelsea tomorrow. He will instead link up with Russia for their opening World Cup qualifiers. The fee paid by Tottenham has not been disclosed but it is understood to be around £14million. Meanwhile, the president of Real Zaragoza, Agapito Iglesias, is reported to be in London to discuss the possible transfer of Diego Milito and Sergio Garcia from the Spanish club to Spurs.

source: soccernet

Chelsea blasted by Real over Robinho

Real Madrid have criticised Chelsea for their conduct during the ongoing Robinho transfer saga.

The Brazilian forward has been the subject of speculation linking him with a move to Chelsea all summer.

The 24-year-old took the unusual step of calling a press conference for this morning when he re-iterated his desire to leave the Spanish champions for Stamford Bridge.

He has so far been refused permission to talk to Chelsea, despite club president Ramon Calderon saying he would not hold the player at the club against his wishes, and today stressed he does not want to play for Real again.

On Thursday, Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon insisted the club were close to signing the player and expressed confidence Robinho would sign before the transfer window closes tomorrow night.

The transfer saga took a strange twist when Chelsea advertised a shirt on their website with Robinho's name on the back.

That move appears to have infuriated Madrid, who said in a statement: 'Real Madrid profoundly regret the conduct of the Chelsea directors, who despite knowing perfectly well the decision not to transfer the player, have continued making declarations and have gone as far as to sell shirts of the player through their official website.

'All this has done nothing but cloud the situation and confuse public opinion.'

The statement also criticised Robinho for calling the impromptu press conference with Madrid's opening match of the season due to take place against Deportivo La Coruna.

'Just before an important official match, Real Madrid believe that all their attention should be focused on themselves, something that has been totally ignored by the player Robinho, who made his declarations just a few hours before the start of the encounter,' the statement continued.

'In relation to those declarations, the club refers to the content of their last statement which said if the final decision of the player was to unilaterally rescind his contract, we would have no alternative but to accept it.'

Robinho spoke for seven minutes at the press conference in which he hit out at coach Bernd Schuster for denying him the chance to move to Chelea, and said he had his heart set on joining Luiz Felipe Scolari's team.

'Before I thought I would be here for 10 years, but now that is not possible and I only want to leave,' said Robinho.

'The coach thinks that he can recover me, but my head is with Chelsea.

'Until now I have not had any problem with him.

'The president and Pedja (Real's football director Predrag Mijatovic) are allowing me to go, the club is in agreement with me, but not Schuster because he has promised to retain me.

'If he thinks this, it's his problem, I don't want to continue at Real Madrid.

'If I have to spend a year without playing I will do it. I will recover because I'm young, I'm 24 years old, and it is destiny.

'(But) I am not going to refuse to play, I have a contract. If they made me play I would, but I would not be happy.'

source: soccernet

Cellular operators say they're ready for Gustav

With tropical storm Gustav threatening to clobber the U.S. Gulf Coast, the nation's major cellular network providers say they are prepared, having learned from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina three years ago.

Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel Corp. separately issued statements this week saying they each have spent about $140 million in the Gulf states in the aftermath of Katrina. A spokesman said AT&T Inc. has spent "hundreds of millions" in the region on both wired and wireless infrastructure.

The spending was on many areas of emergency management, including the building of new digital cell sites. But a big focus, Sprint said in a statement, has been on maintaining power to cellular operations with various forms of power generators.

"One of the primary reasons for the loss of wireless service in a hurricane is the loss of commercial power to the cell site," Sprint said. In 2007, the company spent nearly $60 million on construction of permanent generators at 1,300 locations in the Gulf Coast region to power critical wireless locations and network facilities, as well as for portable generators and cell sites on wheels. If power goes out to a cell site or a group of cell sites, such equipment can provide a backup.

Sprint also said it has invested $27 million to expand its emergency response team to aid first responders such as police officers and firefighters. That group is deploying proprietary technology in the region, called Satellite Cell on Light Trucks, to improve communications among emergency responders. A major concern during Katrina was that emergency personnel could not communicate with one another because of radios running different frequencies or different protocols.

Sprint and Verizon said they have disaster-response vehicles at the ready. Verizon said it has a new 35-foot trailer devoted to emergency response in the region and has added 59 new digital sites, most with their own on-site generators.

AT&T is already activating plans to set up base camps with tents and bathrooms for its Texas-based repair workers to be located at the best spot when Gustav's eventual track becomes clearer. Dan Feldstein, an AT&T spokesman based in Houston, said the carrier has already responded to two hurricanes earlier this season, Dolly and Edouard, and he feels better prepared as a result.

"Neither caused terrible damage, but they were serious, and our crews got a good workout," Feldstein said in a telephone interview. "The crews got in fast with generators, and it was very impressive. Every storm that happens, including Katrina, presents lessons to be learned."

One tip: Use text instead of voice

All the cellular providers offered tips to users in the event a storm hits and wireless networks become congested, as they did with Katrina. One of the common tips was to urge users to send text instead of using voice if a crisis occurs, since text places less demand on the network.

For land-line users, Feldstein said to remember that a cordless phone in the house might not work without power, so might be time to pull out an old conventional phone to load into the phone jack directly, since some power is transmitted over the phone line.

Other tips include carrying extra batteries for cell phones and to use an adapter for recharging the phone battery in a car.

source: Matt Hamblen

Mozilla renews Google cash cow deal

Mozilla Corp. has renewed an agreement with Google Inc. that pays the browser maker for assigning Google's search engine as Firefox's default, Mozilla's former CEO said this week.

The three-year deal is good through November 2011, said Mitchell Baker, currently the chair of Mozilla Corp., in a post to her blog on Tuesday. "This agreement now ends in November of 2011 rather than November of 2008, so we have stability in income," she said.

Mozilla generates the bulk of its income from ties to Google, according to the company's latest financial figures. For the 2006 tax year -- the most recent numbers make public by Mozilla -- 85%, or about $57 million of the company's $67 million in annual revenues for the year, came from Google.

Firefox assigns the Google search site as the default for the browser's search bar; users can, however, change that to a rival search site if they wish. The browser also defaults to a Google URL for its home page.

Mozilla and Google last inked a two-year deal in 2006 that was to expire in November.

Last year, Baker said that she would not hesitate to walk away from the lucrative partnership if that was what was necessary to remain independent. "We've spent a lot of time and energy making sure that Google understands that it cannot turn us into an arm of Google," Baker said in an interview with Computerworld in October 2007. "If the protection of [our independence] would come into conflict with Google, or any of our search partners, we would opt for the community who built Firefox and love Firefox."

In the two years since Mozilla last signed with Google, the open-source developer's browser has increased its market share from 11.8% to 19.2%, according to Web metrics vendor Net Applications Inc.

source: Gregg Keizer computerworld