Today's other stories in brief
Flood facing a lengthy recovery
MIDDLESBROUGH midfielder Willo Flood is facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines after dislocating his knee during Saturday’s 3-1 defeat by Ipswich Town.
The 25-year-old suffered the injury during an accidental collision with team-mate Matthew Bates.
Middlesbrough manager Gordon Strachan said: “We’re not going to see Willo for a long time, it’s a bad injury.
“That’s a bad blow because we saw last year when he first joined us that he was a real asset.”
It is Flood’s second major injury since joining Middlesbrough from Celtic in January after he tore a posterior cruciate ligament in March.
Mourinho gives up on signing trio
REAL Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has ruled out a move for Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard, and Chelsea defenders Ashley Cole and Ricardo Carvalho.
Mourinho was linked with a move for Gerrard after taking over at Madrid earlier this summer but has since signed Germany midfielder Sami Khedira as well as wingers Angel di Maria and Pedro Leon, with youngster Sergio Canales also joining from Racing Santander.
The Portuguese believes it would have been difficult to prise Gerrard away from Liverpool in any case and says that, at 30, his value would only have diminished.
“He is part of the history of Liverpool, he belongs to the club – he is too important to them,” he said. “The same thing happened when I tried to take Frank Lampard to Inter Milan.
“The problem exists when a club buys a player that is 30 and that cannot be sold later on.”
Mourinho admitted he did want to sign Cole, but says Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti vetoed that move.
Arteta pledges future to Everton
MIDFIELDER Mikel Arteta has signed a new five-year contract with Everton.
The news ends speculation over the Spaniard’s future after a summer in which he was linked with Arsenal as well as clubs in his home country.
The 28-year-old follows Tim Cahill, Leighton Baines, Jack Rodwell and Ireland under-21 international Séamus Coleman in signing new long-term deals at Goodison Park this summer.
Arteta said he has come to realise “how important I am to the club and how important the club is to me”.
Everton manager David Moyes described Arteta’s decision as “great news”.
“He is a very important player for us and we are delighted to secure him,” added the Scot.
Arteta returned to action in January after almost a year out with a serious knee injury and his impressive form in the latter half of the season, as Everton climbed to eighth in the English Premier League, reportedly attracted the attention of several other clubs.
Deco takes his leave of Chelsea
BRAZILIAN side Fluminense have announced they have signed Deco from Chelsea.
The club claimed on their website the 32-year-old will sign a two-year contract at the Rio de Janeiro-based outfit and be officially unveiled today.
Deco, who was born in Brazil, joined Chelsea from Barcelona in 2008 but failed to shine at Stamford Bridge. He won the Champions League twice, with Barca in 2006 and Porto, under Jose Mourinho, in 2004.
Degen teams up with Stuttgart
LIVERPOOL full-back Philipp Degen has joined VfB Stuttgart on loan for the 2010-’11 season, the Premier League club said yesterday.
The Swiss international joined Liverpool in 2008 after leaving Borussia Dortmund two years ago but played only a handful of games.
“I’m looking forward to the challenge and the wonderful VfB fans,” Degen told the English club’s website. “I really want to make use of my chance. It’s fantastic to be working together with Christian Gross again. I had a very successful time with him in Basle.
VfB Stuttgart manager Gross said: “I know Philipp very well and rate him highly both as a football player and as a person.
“He is a very athletic and fast player, who often looks to push forward. Philipp wants to take his chance at VfB.”
Guardiola agrees with Wenger
BARCELONA coach Pep Guardiola believes Arsenal were right to hold onto Cesc Fabregas.
Barca made two bids to sign the 23-year-old midfielder, but Fabregas announced on Friday he was staying in north London. And Guardiola said he would not have allowed Fabregas to leave either if he was in Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger’s position.
“I understand Arsenal and I understand Wenger, I wouldn’t have let him leave either,” he said after Barca concluded their Asian tour with a 3-0 win over Beijing Guoan yesterday. “I just hope Cesc carries on enjoying what is such a special and competitive league, the Premier.”
Guardiola insists the failure to sign Fabregas will not alter his plans for the coming season. “I’m not worried about those that aren’t here, it won’t affect any of our plans,” he said.
“The market is open until the end of the month and we will look to see what we can find, but there’s no hurry. We have a great squad to compete in all competitions.”
Brown and Robinson retire as England internationals
MANCHESTER United defender Wes Brown has announced his retirement from international football.
Brown (30) was selected in the England squad to face Hungary on Wednesday, having missed out on the World Cup this summer.
But the English Football Association (FA) confirmed Brown visited England’s team hotel in last and told manager Fabio Capello he no longer wished to be involved.
Blackburn Rovers goalkeeper Paul Robinson has also withdrawn from the England squad to face Hungary and retired from international soccer, the FA said.
The 30-year-old former Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur keeper played at the 2006 World Cup but had since slipped down the international pecking order until his call-up on Saturday.
“Only now have I been able to make this decision as previously I haven’t been in contention for selection,” Robinson said in a statement. “I don’t see myself as a number three or four ’keeper.”
