Pedro pounces to add to Barça glory

A 115th-minute goal from substitute Pedro Rodríguez finally ended the resistance of FC Shakhtar Donetsk and gave FC Barcelona a third UEFA Super Cup triumph in Monaco.

Dramatic victorySpain's first treble winners last season, Barcelona had started the new campaign as they ended the old by collecting silverware thanks to last weekend's Spanish Super Cup victory, but Josep Guardiola's team struggled to unpick a well-drilled Shakhtar defence despite enjoying the vast majority of the possession.

Shakhtar, bidding to become the 23rd side to lift the UEFA Super Cup and the first Ukrainian winners since FC Dynamo Kyiv's 1975 triumph, held out to take the game into 30 additional minutes and looked to have earned a penalty shoot-out.

Pedro had other ideas, however, exchanging passes with the tireless Lionel Messi to finally beat Shakhtar goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov with a low shot and add yet another trophy to Barça's ever-expanding collection. Click to read more...

Real fans wait for stars to take Spanish League stage

Real Madrid fans are tingling with excitement at the prospect of seeing Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka and company strut their stuff as their new-look 'Galactico' team host Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday in the curtain-raiser to the 2009/10 Spanish league season.

It has been an unforgettable summer with Real splashing around 250 million euros to build a star-studded team and there are likely to be a number of debutants against Depor with Ronaldo, Kaka, Xabi Alonso, Karim Benzema, Raul Albiol all expected to start.

French striker Benzema has been firing in the goals in pre-season while Ronaldo has been installed as chief free-kick taker as he was at Manchester United. Click to read more...

Villarreal face Lazio, Everton take on Benfica in Europa League

The clash between Spanish side Villarreal and Italian giants Lazio will be one of the highlights of the Europa League group stage after the draw made here on Friday.

Spanish clubs taking on Italians was a theme of the Champions League draw on Thursday night and it continued Friday with Villarreal meeting Lazio in a Group G which also includes Bulgaria's Levski Sofia and Austrian outfit Salzburg.

Another Spanish side Valencia were drawn in Group B with France's Lille, Czech champions Slavia Prague and Italian side Genoa.

Valencia have come back from the brink of bankruptcy last season and are among the favourites in a competition they won three times - 1962, 1963 and 2004. Click to read more...

Robben signs with Bayern

Bayern Munich announced on Friday they have completed the signing of Real Madrid winger Arjen Robben for an undisclosed fee.

The 25-year-old Robben, one of several Dutch players being sold by the Spanish giants, signed a four-year deal with the Bundesliga club which has so far failed to make an impact in the league and currently lie 14th.

Robben trained with Bayern on Friday afternoon and could face Bundesliga champions VfL Wolfsburg on Saturday. Click to read more...

Messi lights up SuperCup gloom

Argentine superstar Lionel Messi lit up the European Super Cup on Friday as Champions League winners Barcelona defeated UEFA Cup holders Shakhtar Donetsk 1-0 after extra-time to claim the trophy.

Messi had the best opportunities in a disappointing match played on a cut-up, cabbage-patch of a pitch at the Stade Louis II and it was fitting that he played the pivotal role in the night's only goal.

With five minutes of extra-time left, and with a penalty shootout beckoning, Messi played a delightful one-two, between a line of defenders, with Pedro Rodriguez before the 22-year-old substitute slotted the ball past Andriy Pyatov in the Ukrainians' goal.

It was Barcelona's third SuperCup and already their second piece of silverware of the season having captured the Spanish Super Cup. Click to read more...

United and Arsenal ready to resume rivalry

Arsenal visit Old Trafford to face Manchester United on Saturday for a fixture which is likely to revive memories of some of the English game's most bitter battles.

After a decade of fighting tooth and nail for the top prizes, images of Roy Keane's tunnel row with Patrick Vieira, Martin Keown's gleeful celebration of a Ruud van Nistelrooy penalty miss and the juicy tales of "pizza-gate" following a United win over the Gunners are etched in the memory.

The rivalry between the two clubs has been less fierce in recent years as Arsenal faded from the picture.

But the meeting between the teams in the Champions League semi-finals last season - a tie easily won by United - and Arsenal's impressive start to the current campaign gives this weekend's game a more combustable look. Click to read more...

Wenger: Bring on the Devils!

Arsene Wenger feels Arsenal will head to Man United full of confidence after sweeping past Celtic in the Champions League.

A somewhat controversial penalty from Eduardo set the Gunners, who were missing injured captain Cesc Fabregas - a doubt for the trip to Old Trafford - on their way just before the half hour.

Emmanuel Eboue made sure there would be no comeback for Tony Mowbray's side with a neat finish before substitute Andrey Arshavin slotted in a third as Arsenal completed a 5-1 aggregate win following a fine volley from Celtic midfielder Massimo Donati in stoppage-time. Click to read more...

Brown ready to gun for Arsenal

Wes Brown could earn a recall for Manchester United's key Premier League encounter with resurgent Arsenal at Old Trafford on Saturday.

Brown's pre-season preparations were hampered by a thigh injury and although the England international was introduced as a substitute in the opening-day win at Birmingham, he subsequently struggled during the shock defeat to Burnley at Turf Moor four days later.

The 29-year-old was left out completely by Sir Alex Ferguson for Saturday's win at Wigan but came through an hour of last night's reserve-team triumph over Bolton, which could put him in line for an appearance against Arsene Wenger's men. Click to read more...

UEFA pondering Eduardo action

Arsenal striker Eduardo could be charged with diving by UEFA today following the incident in which he won a penalty against Celtic.

European football's governing body chose to examine tapes of the moment the Croatia international appeared to throw himself to the ground in the penalty area during Wednesday's Champions League play-off clash at the Emirates Stadium.

UEFA disciplinary officials will decide today whether to act, and Scottish Football Association chief executive Gordon Smith has already called for Eduardo to be punished retrospectively. Click to read more...

Fabregas '50-50' to face United

Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas is '50-50' to face Manchester United on Saturday, according to Arsene Wenger.

The Spaniard missed the midweek meeting with Celtic after aggravating a longstanding hamstring complaint last weekend against Portsmouth.

His hopes of featuring this weekend in the clash with Manchester United appear to have improved substantially in the past few days with Wenger providing a relatively-upbeat injury bulletin on his skipper after training on Thursday. Click to read more...

United and Arsenal ready to resume rivalry

Arsenal visit Old Trafford to face Manchester United on Saturday for a fixture which is likely to revive memories of some of the English game's most bitter battles.

After a decade of fighting tooth and nail for the top prizes, images of Roy Keane's tunnel row with Patrick Vieira, Martin Keown's gleeful celebration of a Ruud van Nistelrooy penalty miss and the juicy tales of "pizza-gate" following a United win over the Gunners are etched in the memory.

The rivalry between the two clubs has been less fierce in recent years as Arsenal faded from the picture.

But the meeting between the teams in the Champions League semi-finals last season - a tie easily won by United - and Arsenal's impressive start to the current campaign gives this weekend's game a more combustable look.

Outsiders and pundits have queued up to tell Gunners boss Arsene Wenger that the best years are behind his team - his best team being the unbeaten 'Invincibles' side of 2003-2004 - but the Frenchman himself begs to differ as he is again backing his side to win the Premier League. Click to read more...

West Ham sign Italian striker Diamanti

West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola solved his striking problems by signing Italian forward Alessandro Diamanti from Livorno on Friday.

The 26-year-old, who joins the Hammers for an undisclosed fee, has signed a five-year contract with the Premier League club.

Diamanti told West Ham's website: "I am very happy to be at West Ham United and to get the chance to play for Gianfranco Zola."

Zola has been keen to land a striker to partner Carlton Cole while Dean Ashton struggles to return from injury.

England forward Cole is West Ham's only fit senior striker at present.
The Hammers had been strongly linked with a move for Diamanti after failing to land Bordeaux's Marouane Chamakh and Lazio's Goran Pandev. Click to read more...

Fergie expects resurgent Arsenal to challenge for title

Sir Alex Ferguson insists Arsenal will be one of Manchester United's main rivals for honours this season as the great rivals prepare to resume battle at Old Trafford on Saturday.

United delivered a crushing blow to Arsenal in last season's Champions League semi-final, cruising through 4-1 on aggregate after beating Arsene Wenger's men 3-1 at the Emirates Stadium.

Ferguson admits that was United's best performance of the season but despite the fact Arsenal have sold Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure to Manchester City during the close-season, the Scot remains convinced the north London club look stronger this year.

He doesn't believe the result of Saturday's game will decide the title, but fully expects Arsenal to be in the mix when the honours are given out in May.

Ferguson has also hailed Wenger's ability to regenerate teams at the Emirates and believes he is one of the best manager's in the world at knowing when the time is right to sell players. Click to read more...

Japan icon Nakamura ready to take on Spain

Barcelona may have signed Swedish superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic in the summer but neighbours Espanyol pulled off a transfer coup of their own with the capture of Japanese star Shunsuke Nakamura from Celtic on a free transfer.

It has been hailed as the most exciting Espanyol signing since 1964 when Argentine great Alfredo di Stefano arrived at the club at the tail-end of a glittering career with Real Madrid.

An estimated 7,000 fans and 300 journalists turned up for the presentation of Japan icon Nakamura who has become a leading Japanese football export after playing in Italy, Scotland and now Spain.

"My first intention when my Celtic contract was up was to return to Japan," Nakamura said in local Barcelona newspaper 'Sport'. Click to read more...

Kaka, the Brazilian's brains of the new Real Madrid

After three years without a real playmaker, Real Madrid can now count on the services of Brazilian star Kaka, who has already proved he is a match for the last great player to take the role - Zinedine Zidane.

The 2007 World Footballer of the Year will not have to shoulder all the responsibility of leading the midfield this season, as Real chairman Florentino Perez -- never one to do anything by halves -- has also signed Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso.

But the 27-year-old, signed from AC Milan in June for 65 million euros, already seems to be the ideal successor to the French legend Zidane.

"Kaka is an ace. If he has achieved anything at all throughout his career it has been to give a touch of brilliance to all the teams he has played for," Real coach Manuel Pellegrini said on the eve of the Spanish league season. Click to read more...