The Transfer Merry Go Round

Well now the season is done and the world cup is on the horizon transfers will be a plenty so i will keep a post here to keep track of all the summers big deals.

Wednesday May 31st

Andriy Shevchenko - AC Milan to Chelsea = 30m

Chelsea have completed the signing of striker Andriy Shevchenko from AC Milan for a fee of around £30m.
The 29-year-old signed a four-year contract on Wednesday after agreeing personal terms and passing a medical.

"I am here for the challenge and the excitement of the Premier League," said the Ukraine captain.

Because the exact fee has not been disclosed, it is not known whether it beats the £30m Manchester United gave Leeds in 2002 for Rio Ferdinand.

It is however a club record fee for Chelsea, eclipsing the £24.5m they paid for Lyon's Michael Essien in 2005.

Tuesday May 30th

Andrew Johnson - Crystal Palace to Everton = 8.6m

Everton have completed the £8.6million signing of Andy Johnson from Crystal Palace.

The fee is a club record, beating the previous high of £6million spent by manager David Moyes to bring James Beattie from Southampton in January 2005.

Johnson and Beattie - close friends off the pitch - will now form Everton's new strike force for next season.

Salomon Kalou - Feyenoord to Chelsea = Undisclosed Fee

Chelsea have completed the signing of Feyenoord striker Salomon Kalou on a three-year deal. The Stamford Bridge club signed the 20-year-old after he completed a medical and agreed personal terms. Kalou was born in Ivory Coast but failed in a bid to obtain Dutch nationality in order to play for Holland at the World Cup.

Thursday May 25th

Robert Pires - Arsenal to Villareal = Free Transfer

Tuesday May 23rd

Tomas Rosicky - Borussia Dortmund to Arsenal - Undisclosed fee

Rosicky joins Arsenal

Arsenal have completed the signing of Czech international midfielder Tomas Rosicky from Borussia Dortmund for an undisclosed fee, believed to be around £7million. Rosicky said: 'I'm really happy to be here at Arsenal, it is a great day for me. This is the best club in Europe and I will give everything.'

Wednesday May 17th

Dimitar Berbatov - Bayer Leverkusen to Tottenham = 10.9m

Tuesday May 16th

Michael Ballack - Bayern Munich to Chelsea = Free Transfer

Chelsea announce their first signing of the summer with German captain Michael Ballack on a three-year contract

Monday May 15th

Jimmy Bullard - Wigan to Fulham = 2.5m

World Cup Blog..... 10 Days to go

England 3-1 Hungary

England put an unconvincing opening 45 minutes behind them to comfortably dispose of Hungary in their penultimate World Cup warm-up international, against Hungary at Old Trafford. Second-half goals from Steven Gerrard, John Terry and Peter Crouch gave Sven-Goran Eriksson's side a confidence-boosting 3-1 victory.

Listened to the game on 5 live at work, plus points that i noticed from the game: Gerrard scoring, Crouch on target, Beckham 2 assists from set pieces, Ashley Cole looking solid and back to fitness. Negative points: Gary Nev injured but not serious, Owens form, Lampard quiet, Svens system !

The Crouch robot dance celebration was hilarious, see the pic right and click here to see the video in full!

1 more warm up game before the WC starts. Lets get in gear !

World Cup Blog....11 Days to go

Rooney scan switched

The next scan on England striker Wayne Rooney's injured foot has been brought forward by a week to 7 June.

The change, which was announced on Manchester United’s official website, is designed to afford Sven-Goran Eriksson the flexibility to replace the 20-year-old in his 23-man squad should it be shown that his broken metatarsal is not healing quickly enough to enable him to participate in the FIFA World Cup™.

Originally, it had been planned that the Manchester United striker would fly out with the England squad on 4 June before returning to Manchester ten days later for the CT scan that will determine whether he will be able to take any part in Germany.

World Cup Blog.....12 Days to go

Here are some of my fav world cup sites that are out there right now:

http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/section?id=worldcup&cc=5901
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_cup_2006/default.stm
http://worldcup.itv.com/
http://home.skysports.com/worldcup/
http://football.guardian.co.uk/worldcup2006/0,,1661503,00.html
http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/worldcup
http://worldcup.sportinglife.com/football/

Here are some fun World Cup links along with the fantasy football comps i am running:

http://en.fifaworldcup.fantasysports.yahoo.com/
http://www.fantasyfacup.com/worldcup/
Player masks
BBC World Cup predictor
Best and Worst World Cup Kits
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/chrismoyles/worldcup/

Bonds passes Babe with 715 homers

Giants slugger now 40 away from Aaron's all-time mark

Watch Barry Hit Homer 715

Barry Bonds' long journey toward Major League Baseball's all-time home run mark became a race against one man Sunday as he sailed past Babe Ruth into second on the all-time list with the 715th of his 21-year career.

Bonds, 41 years old, is now 40 behind the righty-swinging Hank Aaron, the Hall of Famer, who is the all-time leader with 755.

"It's a great honor, but Hank Aaron, to me, is the home run king and I won't disrespect that ever," Bonds said on a day when the Giants' 6-3 loss to the Rockies at AT&T Park provided only a minor subtext. "Babe Ruth has 714 home runs, but Hank has 755. Hank Aaron is the home run leader. I have a lot of respect for Babe Ruth. I have a lot of respect for what he did for the game of baseball. But I have to give the heads up to Hank Aaron because he is the home run king."

Jays can't close out series sweep of Sox

Chicago White Sox 7 Jays 5

The Jays nearly overcame an early five-run deficit, drawing to within a run in the seventh, but dropped a 7-5 decision to the White Sox on Sunday. Lyle Overbay powered a pair of home runs, the second of which followed a two-run shot by Troy Glaus. 

Boston 30 18 .625 -
NY Yankees 28 20 .583 2.0
Toronto 27 22 .551 3.5
Baltimore 23 28 .451 8.5
Tampa Bay 21 30 .412 10.5

Shea saves the day for Jays

Hillenbrand's 11th-inning shot delivers win over Sox

A horde of Blue Jays players stood at home plate as Shea Hillenbrand came running around third base, waiting to give him a proper "thank you" after he ended Saturday's marathon against the White Sox. Hillenbrand ran down the line and disappeared into the crowd, which circled around him and quickly become a bouncing mob.
The celebration ensued after Hillenbrand sent a slider from Chicago's Jeff Nelson into the second deck in left field at the Rogers Centre to seal a 3-2, 11-inning victory over the World Series champions -- a game that took three hours and 32 minutes to finally put in the books.

What a game to go too as well, as me, John, mikey, Les and Kim all went along to this Saturday afternoon affair and sat in the 500 level seats in the baking sun.

To top the day off me and John got on the Jumbotron as well, my first time in almost 6 years of going to the Jays ! well chuffed.

World Cup Blog.....14 days to go

Rooney to miss England group ties

Rooney had the scan in Manchester
Wayne Rooney will definitely miss England's World Cup group stage games - after a scan revealed he cannot train for at least another three weeks.
Rooney's club, Manchester United, confirmed the 20-year-old will require another scan on 14 June to determine when he can return to action.

If the striker's broken metatarsal is given the all-clear, he would have 10 days to get fit for a last-16 tie.

England have to decide by 9 June whether to replace Rooney in the squad.

So not good news for Wayne as we all feared the worst and they were realsied, lets hope England can go all the way to give Wayne a chance on the World stage he so richly deserves and help us win it....heres hoping !

England B 1-2 Belarus

England B lost to 10-man Belarus but their first World Cup warm-up game was marred by an injury that is set to rule out Robert Green for the finals.
In the second half Green ruptured his groin making a save and when he took a goal-kick he collapsed, allowing Vitaly Kutuzov to sidefoot an equaliser.

Sergey Omelianchuk was sent off but Sergey Kornilenko fired in the winner.

Michael Owen had helped set up Jermaine Jenas' goal to give England the lead before he was replaced by Theo Walcott.

World Cup Song Out June 5th

Check out the new England World Cup Single "World at your feet" performed by Embrace

My thoughts are that its no 3 Lions or World in Motion, maybe it'll catch on with more air play who knows.

World Cup Blog: ....15 days to go....Rooney, United, England B

Wayne Rooney underwent an MRI scan on his broken foot on Thursday but the result is not expected until Friday.
Specialists will analyse the result with Manchester United's assistant team doctor Tony Gill before informing England's team doctor Leif Sward.

Fifa has imposed a deadline of 30 May for England to indicate whether Rooney is likely to be fit to play.

"Each team has to confirm by May 30 that their players are fit," said Fifa medical officer Dr Jiri Dvorak.

"If Rooney is on the list that is confirmation it is anticipated he will have recovered in time to participate."

However, if Rooney broke down with the foot injury between 30 May and 9 June coach Sven-Goran Eriksson would still be able to replace him in his squad.

stay tuned for tomorrows scan results and fingers crossed.......

Well i thought i'd make a post of all the United lads involved in the tournament, good luck to you all and please, please, please come back safe and fit !

Rio Ferdinand (England)
Gary Neville (England)
Wayne Rooney (England)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
Park Ji Sung (South Korea)
Nemanja Vidic (Serbia and Montegnegro)
Tim Howard (USA)
Ruud Van Nistelrooy (Holland)
Gabriel Heinze (Argentiina)

Other news today....England play a warm up 'B' international against Belarus tonight with may of the fringe players involved, Theo Walcott will start and Michael Owen will captain, heres hoping for a good result.

Jays bid for sweep falls short

Tamba Bay 10 Blue Jays 8

The Blue Jays missed out on their first sweep of the season by a whisker last night.

Josh Towers' shortest start of the season will be his last with the Toronto Blue Jays for a while.

Towers allowed four runs in just 1 1-3 innings Wednesday as the Tampa Bay Devil Rays defeated Toronto 10-8 on Wednesday to salvage the final game of their three-game series. After the game, Towers was outrighted to triple-A Syracuse.

Toronto rallied despite Towers' poor start but reliever Jason Frasor gave up Toby Hall's game-winning homer in the seventh before 20,187 spectators at Rogers Centre.

Boston 26 18 .591 -
NY Yankees 26 19 .578 0.5
Toronto 25 21 .543 2.0
Baltimore 21 26 .447 6.5
Tampa Bay 21 26 .447 6.5

Jays Swept For 1st Time this Season

Rockies 5, Blue Jays 3

Lilly makes quick exit

Ted Lilly had his shortest outing of the season on Sunday.

Ted Lilly lasted just 1 2/3 innings, allowing five runs -- four earned -- on six hits, as the Jays were swept by the Rockies at Coors Field. Alex Rios hit a three-run homer in the fifth, providing all the offense for the Jays.

Boston 25 16 .610 -
NY Yankees 24 18 .571 1.5
Toronto 23 20 .535 3.0
Baltimore 20 24 .455 6.5
Tampa Bay 20 24 .455 6.5

Bonds ties Ruth with homer No. 714

Bonds ties Ruth with homer No. 714

With one more home run to go until he passes Babe Ruth into second on the all-time list, Giants slugger Barry Bonds said on Saturday that tying the Bambino at 714 gave him a sense of relief.

"I'm glad it's over with," Bonds said after the Giants defeated the A's, 4-2, in 10 innings at McAfee Coliseum. "This took a lot off me. This is good."

Bonds, 41 years old, is now 41 behind Hank Aaron, who is the all-time leading home run hitter in Major League Baseball history with 755. But he's not even thinking about that right now. He'll have a shot at passing the Great Bambino on Sunday against Oakland right-hander Joe Blanton, another pitcher he has never faced. It's then back across the bay to open a six-game homestand on Monday night against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Barcelona Champions Of Europe

Barcelona 2-1 Arsenal

Barcelona scored twice in the last 14 minutes to beat 10-man Arsenal in the Champions League final in Paris.
Sol Campbell's thumping header gave Arsenal a 37th minute lead - after goalkeeper Jens Lehmann had been sent off for bringing down Samuel Eto'o.

Thierry Henry missed a crucial chance to give Arsenal a two-goal lead before Eto'o fired home with 14 minutes left.

Henrik Larsson then set up fellow substitute Juliano Belletti four minutes later to sink the Gunners.

It was a good match but it would have better had the sending off not happened, it sort of spoiled it a bit, i'm glad Barca won, especially watching it in scallywags surrounded by loads of Gooners ! (why was kevin singing arsenal songs i dont know!?)

Wenger left frustrated by defeat

Wenger felt Barcelona's equaliser from Samuel Eto'o was offside
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger was left frustrated by the manner of his side's 2-1 defeat by Barcelona in the Champions League final in Paris.
Barca scored two goals in the last 15 minutes to win, and Wenger said: "The referee made a big mistake at a crucial moment - their first goal was offside.

"The way we lost is very difficult to take because we played fantastically, like we have the whole European season.

"But in the final, people only remember the team that has won."


Furious Henry hits out at referee

Arsenal captain Thierry Henry was disgusted with referee Terje Hauge's display as his side's Champions League hopes were ended by Barcelona in Paris.

Henry told BBC Sport: "We haven't got anything out of the final, despite all our hard work.

"I was kicked all over the place. I expected the referee to do his job. I don't think he did."

Henry also reacted angrily when asked about his future: "Listen, let's talk about some proper questions."

Swansong for Larsson

Henrik Larsson has no regrets about quitting Barcelona despite playing a key role in the club's victory over Arsenal in the Champions League final.

The striker, who set up both goals in the 2-1 win in Paris, turned down a new contract to sign an 18-month contract with hometown club Helsingborg.

World Cup Prediction League Invites Sent

Today i started to send out my World Cup prediction League invites.

http://www.fantasyfacup.com/worldcup/

Set up a mini-league called "The Josephs World Cup"

Champions league Final Preview: Arsenal v Barcelona

Well tonight its the champs league final and memories come flooding for me of that famous night in '99 when we did it in the Nou Camp !

I'm actually cheering for Barca tonight as i detest the Arse as every good united fan should.

I see it as a showdown between Ronaldinho and Henry, whichever of those players is on their game could win it single handed, watch out for Messi for Barca if he plays too this kid is shit hot !

Whoever scores first is key, if Arse scores first they will defend and hit on the break, if Barca score first it will bring Arsenal out and barca could hit them on the counter, its gonna be a good open game i think.

I predict a 3-1 win for Barca

Greys Anatomy Finale

After last nights excitement with the Survivor finale tonight its Greys Anatomys turn.

After watching part 1 earlier than the 2 hour finale it was left on a cliffhanger as izzy had just cut Dennys heart support wire and Burke had just been shot, who was going to save Denny now.

The show opened with lots of excitement as all the interns were in Dennys room trying to save him from dying after Izzys stunt to make him sick so he can have a new heart.

After lots of panic Bailey comes in, bollocks them all ,saves Denny and suspends all the interns from the O.R.


Dennys condition is now so bad that he does get the heart after all and after a long surgery it finally takes and all is well and he's on the mend.

he asks izzy to marry him and the hospital prepares for a prom thrown for the chiefs niece, as the party is in full swing Meredith and McDreamy clap eyes and end up shagging in one of the patient rooms , kelli walks in after they are done as she announces an emergency.

izzy goes to Dennys bedside to show him her prom dress and hang out ...but its too late, he suffers a stroke and dies while she is getting ready, she is heartbroken and its all very sad, Denny dies !!! (i predicted he would)

After lots of tears and wallowing all the interns follow izzy out of the hospital as she admits to cutting dennys wires and issues her resignation from the program.

The cliffhangar is when Meredith has the 2 guys in her life to choose between wen both McDreamy and the vet ask her to leave with them. see you in season 3 Greys !

Really enjoyed this show on a sunday night as i only got into it about 2 or 3 episdoes into the 2nd series.

http://abc.go.com/primetime/greysanatomy/ - the Official Site

Aras Wins Survivor 12

Aras is sole survivor

Aras was crowned sole survivor of Panama Exile Island last night, the 24yr old yoga instructor beat Danielle in the final, a deserved winner i think, he played the game proper and well whilst Danielle just tailed off others to get her through, still cant believe she won the last challenge to get to the final 2

Cirie also won the web vote and won a car she finished 4th in the end losing the tie breaker fire challenge against danielle.

Terry "captain america" finished 3rd

This was one of the better survivors of recent times with many likeable people in it especially my fave Shane, the class clown, he was great comedy value !

Next series is Survivor: Cook Islands which will begin in the autumn.

Blue Jays 8, Devil Rays 3 - Jays 1 game back now !

Blue Jays 8, Devil Rays 3

Jays take series

Josh Towers got his first win of the season, pitching eight-plus innings and allowing two earned runs on five hits. Alex Rios homered and Vernon Wells had three hits and two RBIs as the Jays took the series.

Boston 21 14 .600 -
NY Yankees 21 14 .600 -
Toronto 21 16 .568 1.0
Baltimore 18 20 .474 4.5
Tampa Bay 15 23 .395 7.5

World Cup Blog ....Coming Soon !

Stay tuned for my World Cup blog that will be up and running once the tourney begins on the 9th June right here on "JITEB".

I'll be in England then for 10 days so i may have to log on at there and keep up to date with posts, that or i will take my laptop over.

There will be match reports, photos, personal comments, fantasy updates and more, so stay tuned should be one of a month !

Come on Engerland !!!

Jays 8 Oakland 3

Toronto Blue Jays : News : Toronto Blue Jays News: Jays blast their way past Oakland

Strong start by Lilly punctuated by three Toronto homers

TORONTO -- Ted Lilly has been a source of consistency amidst the issues and injuries that have plagued Toronto's starting staff this season. The Blue Jays' offense was at the forefront of an 8-3 win over the Athletics on Thursday, but in the background was Lilly -- holding Oakland in check with another strong performance.

NY Yankees 19 12 .613 -
Boston 20 13 .606 -
Toronto 19 15 .559 1.5
Baltimore 15 20 .429 6.0
Tampa Bay 14 21 .400 7.0

Poor Boro Badly Beaten in UEFA Final

Middlesbrough 0-4 Sevilla

Steve McClaren's final game in charge at Middlesbrough before he takes over as England coach ended in misery as Sevilla deservedly won the Uefa Cup.

Luis Fabiano headed Sevilla in front after 26 minutes and they added three more in a desperate last 12 minutes.

Mark Viduka saw Boro's best chance brilliantly saved by Andres Palop.

Enzo Maresca scored from close range after 78 minutes and added a third from 20 yards six minutes later, leaving Fredi Kanoute to complete the rout.

England World Cup Squad Named

1 Paul Robinson (Tottenham)
2 Gary Neville (Manchester United)
3 Ashley Cole (Arsenal)
4 Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)
5 Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United)
6 John Terry (Chelsea)
7 David Beckham (Real Madrid)
8 Frank Lampard (Chelsea)
9 Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)
10 Michael Owen (Newcastle)
11 Joe Cole (Chelsea)
12 Sol Campbell (Arsenal)
13 David James (Manchester City)
14 Wayne Bridge (Chelsea)
15 Jamie Carragher (Liverpool)
16 Owen Hargreaves (Bayern Munich)
17 Jermaine Jenas (Tottenham)
18 Michael Carrick (Tottenham)
19 Aaron Lennon (Tottenham)
20 Stewart Downing (Middlesbrough)
21 Peter Crouch (Liverpool)
22 Robert Green (Norwich)
23 Theo Walcott (Arsenal)

Standby:
Carson (Liverpool)
Young (Charlton)
Reo-Coker (West Ham)
Defoe (Tottenham)
Johnson (Crystal Palace)

McClaren Is New England Manager

ESPNsoccernet - The World's Site for the World Game: McClaren gets England job

Middlesbrough boss Steve McClaren has been confirmed as the new England manager by a unanimous vote by the Football Association today.
The appointment comes 99 days after current boss Sven Goran Eriksson announced he will quit his post with England after the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
McClaren has signed a four-year contract, which encompasses Euro 2008 and World Cup 2010, that will begin in August.

McClaren said: 'This is the biggest honour that any coach can have, and is obviously the highlight of my career. It's a massive challenge and one that I welcome. I have hugely enjoyed my time at Middlesbrough and am very grateful to the club.

'However, this was an opportunity I couldn't refuse. My immediate priority is next week's UEFA Cup final with Boro, and then working with Sven and his coaching team to achieve success in Germany this summer, before I turn my thoughts to the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign.'

McClaren named as England manager - BBC Sport
McClaren named new England boss - Sky Sports
The Rise Of McClaren - BBC Sport
McClaren's career in photos

First Scorcher of the Year

We got up to 22c today here in TO, tshirt weather is here !

things of note today:
made roast spuds for first time (and jolly good they were too)
gox xbox s-video cable (better quality than dodgy component cable)
bought ipod dock on eBay
at around 1am this morn the time wil be 01:02:03 04/05/06 !

Toronto Blue Jays : Game Wrapup

Toronto Blue Jays : Game Wrapup: "Adams' hit wins it for Jays

Blue Jays 7, Red Sox

Russ Adams delievered the winning hit in the ninth inning to help Toronto take the opener from Boston. B.J. Ryan came on in the bottom half to face the heart of the Red Sox lineup and pitched a scoreless ninth to pick up the save.

Team W L PCT GB
NY Yankees 14 11 .560 -
Boston 15 12 .556 -
Toronto 14 12 .538 0.5
Baltimore 14 15 .483 2.0
Tampa Bay 11 17 .393 4.5

Oilers Knock out Wings

Edmonton Oilers: "OILERS ADVANCE!!

Hemsky scores with 1:06 left to clinch series

Ales Hemsky's goal with 1:06 left in the third period was the difference as the Edmonton Oilers completed a comeback from a two-goal deficit to defeat the Detroit Red Wings 4-3 at Rexall Place Monday night. Hemsky and Pisani each scored two goals to lead the way for the Oilers as they move on to the Western Conference Semi-Finals to face either Calgary or San Jose. "

May Day, May day !

Not only is it May Day monday but its a may day for England and for Wayne Rooney, reports now say that he may not make the world cup at all, Fergie reckons he's done and sven says he needs a miracle. Poor lad !....we live in hope

We dont get a bank holiday in Canada today unlike England, no fair i say ! we gotta wait 3 more weeks for ours here.

Things today of note:
Its Giggs on May on United calendar
Its very sunny
United draw again at home this time to boro !
The Apprentice is down to final 6
Edmonton Oilers knock out #1 seed Detroit red Wings in Stanley Cup Playoffs
Jays win