Soccer News

The future of the Everton manager Walter Smith was back in the melting pot yesterday with the revelation that the Merseyside club's unpopular former chairman Peter Johnson is considering reassuming control at Goodison Park.

After a six-week break it is understood that Johnson is ready to begin attending first-team fixtures again, believing, perhaps naively, that the public furore which precipitated his downfall has subsided.

Johnson has insisted he is trying to sell and he has not set foot inside the club since standing down on November 30th, after sanctioning the sale of the Scottish international striker Duncan Ferguson to Newcastle for £8 million. The deal was done behind Smith's back. The unrest which followed was sufficient for Johnson to relinquish the chairmanship and become a non-executive director.

The latest news leaves Smith with a dilemma. Having made it clear that he would never again work alongside Johnson, the former Rangers manager would have to decide whether to opt for honourable resignation or unpalatable compromise.

Smith refused yesterday to rule out suggestions of a swap deal involving Graham Stuart's return from Sheffield United and Gareth Farrelly going to the Yorkshire club.

Terry Venables seems set to quit as manager of Crystal Palace by the end of the week as the struggling First Division club face a financial crisis. He and the club chairman Mark Goldberg last night discussed Venables's severance terms for his £750,000-a-year contract only eight months after the former England coach joined Palace.

West Ham yesterday signed defender Scott Minto (27) from Benfica for £1 million.

Manchester United have allowed the Norwegian striker Erik Nevland to join Gothenburg on loan for the rest of the season and may let Jordi Cruyff go to Celta Vigo on a quick-recall basis.

Carlton Palmer's proposed £1 million move to Nottingham Forest has hit a problem. "They seem to be caught between really going for it to avoid relegation and budgeting for next year in case they go down," the midfielder said. "I don't know how much they've got but I'm certainly not holding them to ransom."

Juninho has ruled out the possibility of an immediate move to Premiership title chasers Aston Villa. The Brazilian international has been linked with a £12 million move back to England, however, the former Middlesbrough man has pledged to continue the battle to establish himself in Spain.

Aston Villa full-back Gary Charles could be poised to join Benfica in a £1.5 million deal. Villa have agreed a fee with the Portuguese giants, and Charles will fly out to Lisbon today to have talks with club officials.

Liverpool believe their next round of contract talks with Robbie Fowler will secure the striker's long-term future at the club. Fowler, whose contract at Anfield ends in the summer of 2000, has been linked with a move to Arsenal but angrily denied last week that he had turned down Liverpool's latest contract offer, reported to be worth £35,000 a week.

Dutch First Division side Ajax have told Barcelona that they will not be permitted to sign Holland's World Cup defender Frank De Boer unless they take his twin brother Ronald as well.

The brothers' lawyer, Harald Knijff, said yesterday: "It's a bridge too far for Barcelona. I hope Ajax and Barcelona stay in touch this week. But as long as Ajax insist on a double deal there is a problem."

England are competing with seven other countries - Germany, South Africa, Brazil, Nigeria, Egypt, Morocco and Ghana - for the right to host the 2006 World Cup. Voting takes place in March next year by the 24 members of FIFA's executive committee, who represent the following countries: Europe (8): Norway, Sweden, Belgium, Scotland, Spain, Italy, Turkey, Malta. Africa (4): Mali, Cameroon, Botswana, Tunisia. Asia (4): Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, South Korea. South America (3): Paraguay, Brazil, Argentina. Central and Northern America (3): Costa Rica, United States, Trinidad and Tobago. Australasia (1): New Zealand. FIFA president (1): Sepp Blatter.

ITV chiefs yesterday dismissed claims that flagship football show On The Ball is about to be axed. Newspaper reports suggested that the network had held crisis talks over the programme's future after viewing figures slumped to just 600,000 a week. But controller of sport Brian Barwick hit back, confirming that the show, which is hosted by former Sunderland, Liverpool and Newcastle defender Barry Venison and Gabby Yorath, will run to a second series.