A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Jewell not giving up on Andrews
IPSWICH Town manager Paul Jewell has said he has not given up hope of getting Keith Andrews back to Portman Road where he spent six months on loan this season.
“I spoke to Steve Kean (the Blackburn manager) on Monday and asked what the situation with Keith was,” he says. “He said they’d had a bit of a stand-off about it, with the owners wanting a transfer fee.
“He seemed to think something might get resolved in the next few days.
“We’d like to think we’ve got a chance (of signing Andrews), but if we’re up against Premier League clubs it’s going to be difficult for us.”
Senegal's woes are Newcastle's gains
NEWCASTLE United manager Alan Pardew was yesterday preparing for an unexpected bonus with strikers Demba Ba and Papiss Demba Cisse due to return to his squad weeks ahead of schedule.
Pardew sent the pair off on African Nations Cup duty earlier this month knowing they could be away until the middle of next month if Senegal went all the way in the competition.
However, defeats by Zambia and co-hosts Equatorial Guinea in their opening Group A games mean they cannot now qualify for the knockout stages of the competition, and Sunday’s game with Libya will end their involvement.
Pardew is yet to speak to Ba and Cisse, but has not given up hope of having them both available for Wednesday’s Premier League meeting with Blackburn.
He said: “We have to understand the federation of Senegal’s wishes, and also our own. Lee Charnley, our secretary here, will call them and have a conversation as to when and where we can get them back.
“Blackburn on Wednesday? That’s probably tight, but we might try to get them back for that.”
Meanwhile, Ahmed Bashir scored Sudan’s first goals at the African Nations Cup for 36 years to give the rank outsiders a 2-2 draw with Angola in their Group B match yesterday. Ivory Coast beat Burkina Faso 2-0 in the same group.
Onuoha transfer to QPR complete
QPR have completed the signing of defender Nedum Onuoha from Manchester City on a four-and-a-half-year deal for an undisclosed fee
BOLTON have signed defender Tim Ream from the New York Red Bulls for an undisclosed fee on a three-and-a-half-year deal.
READING yesterday confirmed the signing of 34-year-old Blackburn Rovers striker Jason Roberts on an 18-month contract.
SCOTTISH Premier League side Inverness Caledonian Thistle have signed Wolves striker Sam Winnall (21) on loan for the rest of the season
SUNDERLAND manager Martin O’Neill has confirmed striker Nicklas Bendtner’s facial injuries are worse than was first thought.
The Denmark international suffered a broken nose during Saturday’s 2-0 Premier League victory over Swansea.
O’Neill yesterday revealed the damage is more extensive and, as a result, Bendtner is likely to miss several games.
MANCHESTER United midfielder Park Ji-sung (30) yesterday made it clear he will not be coming out of international retirement to help the struggling South Korea national side qualify for the 2014 World Cup.
Barton sets his tweeting sights on English FA
QPR captain Joey Barton unleashed an online tirade against the English Football Association yesterday, labelling them an “Orwellian organisation” in need of a “drastic shake-up”.
The 29-year-old midfielder is widely known for making outspoken comments via his Twitter account Joey7Barton, which has more than 1.1 million followers.
Barton tweeted he had received a warning letter from the FA for predicting the outcome of last weekend’s matches involving Manchester United and Manchester City.
He claims he was warned the predictions could be seen as “insider information” and that he has received around 30 letters from the governing body.
“Just received my weekly warning letter from FA headquarters, this time regarding me tweeting about predicting the weekend’s Manchester double,” Barton said at the start of a series of tweets.
“According to the FA, I am not allowed to give my opinion of possible results in case that is seen as insider information.
“What difference does my opinion of the outcome of a match have on the result? None. #rightinthebin”
He continued: Drastic shake-up needed to move the game into 21st century. Hopefully they stop trying to be an Orwellian organisation and get to grips with the change that’s happening in the world around them.”
Goodwin won't join up with Fenlon
IRISH midfielder Jim Goodwin has dealt a blow to Pat Fenlon's hopes of strengthening his struggling Hibernian side by opting to sign a new deal with St Mirren, writes Emmet Malone.
The 30-year-old former international from Waterford had talks with Fenlon about a switch to Easter Park. It was thought the move would either take place immediately or during the summer, when he would have been out of contract at the Paisley outfit, but in the end he has chosen to sign the improved deal offered by current manager Danny Lennon.
“Hibs had expressed an interest, and out of respect for Pat Fenlon and Hibs it was right that I spoke to them and heard what they had to say,” said Goodwin yesterday. “But I’m confident I’ve made the right choice as St Mirren are a club looking forward with great ambition.”
