jack wilsheres precocity may make arsène wenger think twice about vieira

arsène wenger will, over the coming days, turn his thoughts as to whether he can offer patrick vieira a short-term contract at arsenal and he remains optimistic that a deal can be struck for his former captain and one-time midfield inspiration. the frenchman\'s general policy is not to re-sign players but he insisted yesterday that the practice is not set in stone and he hinted that vieira, now at internazionale, may prove to be an exception.

how the premier league contenders have shaped up in pre-season

arsenal strength of team/squadthomas vermaelen, a left-footed centre-half signed from ajax for £10m, featured in the first four pre-season matches and looked composed, albeit against limited opposition. he has suffered a slight hamstring injury, however. tomas rosicky made a welcome return against barnet, playing the first 45 minutes, and has featured at the emirates cup against atlético madrid and rangers.

the first goal is the hardest

goalscorer salomon kalou believes we can take heart from saturday\'s comeback at reading as we approach the season-opening community shield game with manchester united. the ivorian was on target at the madejski stadium, coming off the bench to score the first of our two late goals that earned a draw and kept carlo ancelotti\'s unbeaten start to chelsea life intact. coming in the 89th minute, it looked as though the 24-year-old forward\'s strike had come too late to salvage a result, but a late own goal from royals captain alex pearce saved the day.

womens committee to meet tomorrow

back in june, fifa dropped india from the rankings for being inactive for the more than 18 months or so. all india football federation (aiff) acting president, praful patel was quoted saying that an ad-hoc committee shall be formed which shall look into the matters of women’s football. the indian fa stated that they are committed towards developing women’s football from the grassroots and that poor displays of the women’s team forced them to think about the future course of action.

dharamjit expected to join dempo sc

the left winger couldn’t play for east bengal last season due to injuries and hence, is to be loaned out. last year, dharamjit switched to east bengal from mohun bagan and was expected to replicate his good form with the green and maroons, which never happened unfortunately for the red and gold’s. dharamjit had spent six seasons with the mariners and previously was part of salgaocar sc for five years.

we can host i-league matches - goa football associations (gfa) savio messias

amongst those who have informed the all india football federation (aiff) over the unavailability of the ground for the i-league, gfa are one of them, according to the national football federation. the turf of the fatorda stadium is being re-laid and hence, the stadium wouldn’t be available until mid-october.

age group tournaments dates and venues to be announced soon

it’s not uncommon to hear from coaches, clubs, state associations and the indian fa about the importance of youth development. the afc too has been stressing on this project as it’s the only hope for a better footballing future. while india is dreaming these days of a place in the coveted afc champions league, it’s high time to concentrate on the domestic front.

espanyol’s luis garcia elated after scoring first cornelia-el prat goal against liverpool

espanyol opened their new estadi cornelia-el prat in style after cruising to a convincing 3-0 win over liverpool in a pre-season friendly. luis garcia had the honour of becoming the first player to score on the new ground when he netted in the 19th minute and the forward was lost for words when asked to describe his feelings after the game. “it’s very difficult to describe what i felt and what was going through my head at that time.

uae champions al ahli want arsenal and chelsea meetings

al ahli are hoping to test themselves against the likes of arsenal and chelsea this summer as they prepare to defend their league title. the uae champions are getting ready to leave for england where they plan to play five matches.as well as the london giants, a game with southampton is also on the cards. striker faisal khalil is excited about the prospect of testing himself against the best in europe.

maxi rodriguez after emirates cup: atletico madrid have to improve in all areas

atletico madrid only managed a draw in the two-game emirates cup competition after securing a 1-1 tie with paris st. germain on sunday evening. the result followed a 2-1 defeat to hosts, arsenal in the opening clash and midfielder, maxi rodriguez has acknowledged that his side still have a lot to improve on. “we have to adjust things in all departments, for example, we can’t afford to lose possession so often because that really exposes us,” he was quoted as saying by as.