West Ham boss Alan Curbishley has revealed Craig Bellamy faces another spell on the sidelines through injury.
Bellamy suffered a recurrence of his abdominal injury during West Ham's goalless draw with Portsmouth and was forced off at half-time.
The former Liverpool and Blackburn striker underwent abdominal surgery last month and he was able to play for Wales in their recent internationals.
Bellamy will miss Tuesday's Carling Cup clash with Coventry, and Curbishley is unsure how long Bellamy could be sidelined for after revealing he has been struggling with the problem since pre-season.
"Craig's injury is not too bad but there's still something niggling there," said Curbishley.
"He won't be playing Tuesday. He has had this abdominal strain through the pre-season and despite the operation which we went off to have in Germany it has come back again. We are not very lucky with injuries at the moment. There's (Dean) Ashton, (Bobby) Zamora, Scott Parker, Julien Fauberdt, Freddie Ljungberg all out. Now Bellamy. He could be weeks out or it could be something that can be sorted out quickly but we have two more games now and then have to worry about the international break again - when I always seem to have players trying to come back from injuries."
27 October 2007
Cardiff have signed Manchester City goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel on a month's loan.
The 20 year old goes straight into the squad for the visit of Scunthorpe on Saturday after a proposed move to Coca-Cola Championship rivals Coventry collapsed earlier this week.
"The Bluebirds confirm the signing of Kasper Schmeichel from Manchester City initially on a month's loan," read a Cardiff statement.
"The keeper will link up with the squad and will take the number one shirt vacated by Ross Turnbull, who has returned to Middlesbrough."
25 October 2007
Coventry manager Iain Dowie is the early favourite to succeed Gary Megson as Leicester boss, who is poised to join Bolton.
Megson's shock departure was confirmed on Wednesday evening, after Foxes chairman Milan Mandaric reluctantly allowed him to speak to the Premier League club.
Now Leicester will have to find their third manager of the season, and their fifth boss in six months, with Dowie being linked as the man who could fill the hot seat.
Reports claim the former Crystal Palace boss is getting frustrated with life with the Sky Blues, who had a transfer embargo slapped on them earlier this week.
Former Leicester defender and Blackpool boss Simon Grayson, ex-Wigan manager Paul Jewell and England Under-21 coach Stuart Pearce have also been mentioned as possible candidates.
25 October 2007
Vincent Pericard will resume training at Stoke City today after being released from prison for a second time - and could be in line for an immediate recall to first-team duties.
Pericard was re-arrested and sent back to prison - where he has spent the last fortnight - on October 12, after his electronic tag fell off his left ankle on two occasions.
But yesterday morning, the 25-year-old striker walked free from a Manchester prison, having served his time wearing the tag as part of his parole conditions.
Pericard was due to be reunited with his City team-mates at training, as the club ponders whether to include him in the squad for Saturday's trip to Championship high-fliers Bristol City.
Assistant manager Dave Kemp said: "I think Vincent is coming into training today, and we will have to see how he is. But it is too early to say whether he will be in contention for the trip to Bristol City on Saturday."
Before his re-arrest, Pericard had already served nearly five weeks of a four-month prison sentence for lying to police over a speeding fine.
Pericard's chances of making Saturday's squad have been heightened by the loss of midweek goal hero Richard Cresswell to suspension and Mama Sidibe, who is still recovering from injuries sustained during an attack while on international duty with Mali a fortnight ago.
Ricardo Fuller and Jon Parkin are also doubts after picking up knocks in Tuesday's 3-1 win at Crystal Palace.
Despite concerns over their fitness for the weekend, Kemp was impressed with how frontmen Fuller and Cresswell combined at Palace as fans saw the new strike partnership for the first time.
Kemp said: "Cressy did brilliantly. He works really hard and does a lot of Ricardo's leg work, which Mama (Sidibe) also does well. It is a potential partnership, but Mama and Parkin can also play - it is important everyone can play. Ricardo and Parkin both took knocks on Tuesday night, but hopefully they will be fine for the match on Saturday."
Meanwhile, Kemp refused to confirm whether the Potters are on the verge of signing Coventry defender Elliott Ward, who has been linked with a big-money move to the Britannia Stadium.
"Ward is one player, out of many, we are interested in," added Kemp.
"It is no closer than that, and nothing will be done before the end of the week."
25 October 2007
Coventry chairman Joe Elliott has revealed that the Championship club will face "serious problems" unless a buyer is found before Christmas.
The Sky Blues are around £38million in debt and on the brink of financial ruin after five potential investors all withdrew their interest in the club earlier this month - forcing chairman Geoffrey Robinson and managing director Paul Fletcher to resign.
The Football League have already imposed a transfer embargo on the club for their failure to keep up with repayments to Southampton for the transfer of Leon Best.
Elliott said: "We have two problems. One, the present where we have a huge debt to manage and two, the future, where we have to get investment or a buyer."
However, he is hopeful there is light at the end of the tunnel after he revealed the club are now in takeover talks with other groups.
20 October 2007
Aloisi Returns To Australia And Central Coast. The Australian striker has joined A-League club Central Coast Mariners.
The former Coventry City and Alaves striker has been out of contract since the summer and it was expected that he would head to Wellington Phoenix but the Gosford side surprisingly swooped for the Socceroo star.
The 31 year-old will arrive in Australia next week.
"I have made my intentions clear that I have wanted to return to Australia and contribute to the A-League and I am delighted to be able to be a part of the league and look forward to getting on the pitch," Aloisi was quoted as saying in a club statement. Since the Hyundai A-League began, it's been an attractive option to play in and I felt now was the right time to return as I am still intending to play for a number of years."
Club chairman Lyall Gorman was delighted with the capture of the forward.
"John Aloisi playing in the Hyundai A-League, put simply, what a momentous achievement this is for the Central Coast Mariners and for the progression of Australian football," Gorman said.
"We are understandably delighted to be welcoming a player of John's stature to our club and we view this as a very significant milestone in achieving our very realistic goal of becoming the centre of excellence for football in Australia. Whilst paying tribute to John's outstanding achievements for his country in the past, we must also remember that here is a player that still forms an integral piece of Australia's future international ambitions."
16 October 2007
Former Australia international forward John Aloisi is set to join his brother Ross at New Zealand outfit Wellington Phoenix.
Former Portsmouth, Coventry City and Osasuna striker John Aloisi is set to join New Zealand side Wellington Phoenix and reunite with his brother Ross in the same team for the first time in his career.
The 31-year old forward said playing along with his older brother, who has been made the captain of the team, was the main reason behind the decision and is interested in signing a long-term contract with the New Zealand club.
Aloisi's penalty strike against Uruguay in 2005, which took the Socceroos to the World Cup finals, was last week voted by the Sport Australia Hall of Fame as one of three greatest moments in Australian sporting history.
06 October 2007
Paul Fletcher has revealed that his decision to resign as managing director of Coventry was prompted by the withdrawal of all five potential investors in the Championship club.
Fletcher stepped down from the post at a board meeting on Friday and the announcement came as a shock with the Sky Blues still seemingly heavily involved in takeover talks.
But he told the Coventry Telegraph: "My resignation is because of the apparent withdrawal of all five potential buyers of Coventry City Football Club."
In February, American consortium Manhattan Sports Capital Partners - the bid vehicle for investors Sean McDevitt and Philip Harris, along with US-based English investment advisor Roger Marment - agreed in principle a deal to buy the club and take on their estimated debts of £28million.
The talks were being spearheaded by business consultant and lifelong City fan Gary Hopkins.
Fletcher revealed last month that the club were in negotiations with other parties about investment and that two firm offers were on the table.
He rejected rumours that the takeover was on the brink of collapse and that the club faced going into administration.
However, Fletcher insists that new developments have now thrown the future of the club into doubt.
He said: "It appears that favourable terms have been agreed in principle with two separate credible purchasers and Coventry City Football Club's major shareholder Geoffrey Robinson. Neither bidder would be acceptable to other parties involved. The failure to agree acceptable terms has meant that the club has little prospect of regaining the traditional income streams, valued at £4million a year and currently in Arena Company Limited (ACL) ownership, which will be required to achieve the objectives of Operation Premiership. Potential investors also seem to have realised this. The football club cannot survive in the current situation, something has to give."
Coventry are £28million in debt and have no tangible assets as they are tenants at the Ricoh Arena, which is run by ACL.
05 October 2007
Coventry have confirmed the departure of managing director Paul Fletcher.
The news came as a shock for The Sky Blues, with Fletcher leading talks with numerous investors about a possible takeover at Ricoh Arena.
The club confirmed Fletcher's departure with a statement on their website.
"The board of Coventry City Football Club can confirm that managing director Paul Fletcher has resigned. The club would like to thank Paul for his dedication and hard work during what has undoubtedly been a difficult time for Coventry City. Coventry City will be making no further statement at this time."
02 October 2007
Plymouth are being linked with a loan swoop for Manchester United winger Lee Martin following his side's Carling Cup exit last week.
Pilgrims boss Ian Holloway is hoping to take advantage of signing a player, who would usually be given a run out in those games, the chance to secure valuable first-team experience at Home Park instead.
And with United crashing out to Coventry, it is being suggested left winger Martin, who has been loaned out to Rangers and Stoke in the past, could be a target for the gaffer.
Holloway successfully brought Chelsea winger Scott Sinclair to the club last season and the boss is hoping to strike a similar deal with the Reds for Martin.
