Morning Ticker: Injuries plague Chelsea, Man. City; Hargreaves nears return and more

ChelsMCGetty

By AVI CREDITOR

When Chelsea and Manchester City face each other on Saturday, both teams figure to be a bit shorthanded.

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard has been ruled out for the match along with the in-form Salomon Kalou and Yossi Benayoun. Lampard suffered a setback in training while recovering from a hernia operation and is expected to miss the Blues' next three matches. Kalou and Benayoun picked up injuries in Carling Cup play this week.

Manchester City, meanwhile, is facing a defensive crisis. If Micah Richards (hamstring) can't go, Roberto Mancini's side will be down to three fit starting defenders, as Jerome Boateng, Joleon Lescott, Wayne Bridge and Aleksandar Kolarov all are hurt.

Here are a few more stories to get your Friday started:

HARGREAVES RETURNS TO TRAINING

Owen Hargreaves hasn't played for Manchester United in about two years, but his long-awaited return appears to be on the horizon.

Hargreaves, 29, has resumed training with the first team as he attempts to come back from chronic knee tendinitis that has sidetracked his career.

It will be weeks before Hargreaves achieves game fitness, but Sir Alex Ferguson is reportedly impressed with how he looks in training, saying, "If he continues that way, he's going to give me another selection problem."

SPURS AGREE TO TERMS FOR KHUMALO

Tottenham and South African club Supersport have agreed to terms on a 1.5 million fee that will allow South African international defender Bongani Khumalo to join Spurs when the winter transfer window opens.

Khumalo, who scored in the Bafana Bafana's win over France in the World Cup, should help provide depth at centerback at White Hart Lane.

CONCACAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS

Olimpia held off Tolu! ca, 2-1, to pull into a tie for first place in Group D. The Honduran side passed the Puerto Rico Islanders with the victory in San Pedro Sula and is level with Toluca with seven points and two games remaining.

In Group B, Municipal's Sergio Guevara scored in injury time to give his side a 3-2 victory and deliver the knockout punch to Joe Public, which has one point through four matches. Municipal trails first-place Columbus by four points and second-place Santos by two with two matches left in group play.

--------------------

Who do you think will win the Chelsea-Manchester City match? What do you think about Hargreaves' comeback? Like the signing of Khumalo for Tottenham? Who do you see winning Group D in the CCL?

Share your thoughts below.



Watch Free Live Soccer Football Matches Online Here

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Hottest Tour de France 2010 Podium Girls

Image
The annual Tour de France is among the most grueling races in all of sports. But every summer, hundreds of cyclists brave the plains, the mountains, the sun and the rain of France (and often the surrounding countries) to complete the 3,500-plus kilometer trek. But why? Fame? Sure, names like Lance Armstrong, Greg LeMond and defending champion Alberto Contador will go down in the annals of cycling history. Money? Certainly, the winners make some dough from winning and from the sponsorship deals that can result. The challenge of it all? No doubt, there are some competitors just looking to see where they rank among the top athletes in the sport. But there's another reason to race. If you win, you get to stand on the podium with some of the world's most beautiful women. Whether they're delivering handshakes, kisses or the radiant yellow jersey , these ladies serve as serious motivation t
Keep reading

Kolbeinn Sigthorsson scores 5 as AZ Alkmaar smash Venlo 6-1

AZ Alkmaar 6 VVV Venlo 1 (Eredivisie, January 29, 2011) Kolbeinn Sightorsson scored a hat-trick within 26 minutes. Ahmed Musa pulled a goal back for VVV before the break. But a further brace from Sigthorsson and another from Johann Gudmundsson completed the rout. All 5 Kolbeinn Sigthorsson goals are on this video .
Keep reading

The 25 Hottest NFL Cheerleaders

Image
No matter what the situation, you can bet that there will be some sexy ladies on the sidelines cheering them on, just as they have been all season. Cheerleaders are a wonderful part of the game, but it's hard to see all of them during brief appearances during games, and it's way too time consuming to check all of them out online. That's why you have me. I personally looked through each cheerleader in the National Football League and picked out the hottest ones. So for your viewing enjoyment, here are the 25 Hottest NFL Cheerleaders. No. 25: Chiefs—Suzie Kansas City has it rough in professional sports. The Royals are the biggest punchline in baseball and the Chiefs have bombed what looks to be a promising season. KC is lo
Keep reading