Latest From Box-18

Paul Scholes Cautious Of Liverpool

Focus on Messi at Ballon d’Or Nominations

Manchester United Focused On CSKA Moscow

Ade Says United Shouldn’t Have Won If He Had Played.

Man United Confirmed Foster’s Injury

Get More Update From Box-18

Latest Update from New Site!

Welbeck Saves The Day

Ngog rescued Liverpool from Leeds by 1-0

Craig Bellamy escape being charge.

Mark Hughes says they can win.

Arsenal youngsters defeated W.Bromwich 2 – 0.

Latest Update from Box-18.com

Rebranding Box-18

It is a proud moment to share with all my viewers that i have fortunately moved the site as wished to it’s own domain, So for all lack of update all this while i sincerely apologies and now tell you such wouldn’t occur again. For now http://www.boxeighteen.wordpress.com as now been changed to http://www.box-18.com. Visit and get more fun.

Clichy – I didn’t say Ade moved for the money

Gael Clichy has denied saying that Emmanuel Adebayor left Arsenal purely for financial reasons.

Over the weekend, the English media carried stories suggesting the left back had accused his former team-mate of moving for the money.

Speaking to Arsenal.com at the Club’s training camp in Austria, Clichy, 24 on Sunday, flatly denied he was directly referring to Adebayor.

Eto’o: “I’m where I wanted to be”

APPIANO GENTILE – “I’m Samuel Eto’o and I don’t want to compare myself to anyone. I believe the victories I have earned up to now can contribute to giving the right value to my name.” With these words, Inter’s latest signing presented himself to the Italian media.
The Cameroonian striker, who put pen to paper on a five-year deal yesterday, greeted a stand full of screaming Inter fans at the training ground before making his way to the press room for his debut news conference as an Inter player.
Eto’o sat alongside José Mourinho, technical director Marco Branca and transfer market consultant Gabriele Oriali as he thanked his former club before talking about his ambitions with the Nerazzurri.

Milan end the American tour, Now in Germany.

BOSTON – Third consecutive defeat for Milan. In Boston the Rossoneri end the tournament and the American Tour losing the last match against Inter. At the end the faces are quite dark, disappointed, but everyone knows that from now on work needs to be done to improve the physical condition and the tactical aspect. Today on the pitch for 90 minutes were Massimo Ambrosini, Pato, and again Ronaldinho, who in the second half showed some good things. Here are the voices of coach Leonardo, Jankulovski and Oguchi Onyewu.

Happy that I scored my first goal for Real Madrid

Although happy to have scored his first goal as a Madridista, Cristiano Ronaldo stressed the importance of reaching peak form after Tuesday’s match.

“I am very happy to have scored my first goal for Real Madrid. It isn’t always possible to do those plays because opponents don’t let you. One objective is crossed off the list, but all that matters is getting in form, taking one match at a time and improving.”

“The coach is running tests and we must respect his work. We are just starting off and need to stay calm. This isn’t very important. Winning is important, but even more important is reaching peak form.”

Dunne reflects on SA tour

Despite his early exit from Saturday’s defeat to the Kaizer Chiefs, Richard Dunne thinks that his and City’s preparations for the new season are right on schedule.

The Blues skipper left the fray in Pretoria after 36 minutes, by which time Javan Vidal had already been carried off with a gashed shin. The Blues’ win over the same opponents the previous Tuesday seemed to have fired up the Chiefs, and the Blues left South Africa knowing they had been in a real contest – just what Richard says the team needed.

“There were some strong challenges going in, it’s difficult to know how to play it at this stage of the season, whether to go full on or not. But it was a good work out for us, we got the fitness out of it that we needed and although we didn’t win we got that aspect out of it.

Yakubu can’t wait to get back scoring for Everton.

The Toffees striker is getting ever nearer to a return and told evertonfc.com users that he wants to fire the Blues into another FA Cup final this year.

The Yak was taking part in a LIVE webchat, direct from the Blues’ training camp in Utah, USA.

“I have never scored below ten, so I want to score more; it would be nice to score as more than 20,” was his reply to a question about his targets for this season.

Giggs’ glee at first hat-trick

Ryan Giggs couldn’t help grinning after grabbing three goals in the Reds’ closing Asia Tour match and no wonder… “I’ve never scored a hat-trick for United so it was a first.”

The Welshman’s triple helped his team to beat Hangzhou Greentown 8-2 and thrilled the local fans who were excited just to see him come on as a substitute for the final thirty minutes.

“I think when the lads arrived here, both at the airport and the hotel, the support was just unbelievable,” reflected Ryan on MUTV.

Ibrahimovic to take medical on Monday

Zlatan Ibrahimovic will arrive in Barcelona on Sunday evening to put the finishing touches on his transfer from Inter Milan.
The Swedish striker will have a series of medical tests on Monday morning, first at the Hospital de Barcelona and then at the Centre Mèdic d’Assistència Sanitària at FC Barcelona. If the medical is satisfactory and the deal is finalized on Monday, Zlatan Ibrahimovic could be publicly presented on Monday evening in the Sala París at the Stadium.

‘Ibra’ will then be presented for his first appearance before the fans at the Nou Camp once the new turf has been laid.

CHELSEA 2 AC MILAN 1

The winning goal capped a promising start for Yuri Zhirkov, Milan having equalised a stunning early strike from Didier Drogba.

Once again a bumper crowd watched Chelsea in action in America, this time 71,203 East Coast fans inside the M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. They witnessed Chelsea looking good again.

AC Milan did strike woodwork twice in addition to Clarence Seedorf’s goal but against his former team, Carlo Ancelotti’s new side were especially dominant in the first half. The second period was more even but again the Blues troubled the Italians as both sides made several changes and chances.

Sir Alex expects plenty from Owen

Sir Alex Ferguson agrees with ManUtd.com readers – he believes Michael Owen will reach a double-figures goal tally in his maiden campaign with United.

Speaking at a pre-match press conference in Hangzhou, China, the boss replied “I hope it’s plenty” when asked how many times his new striker would score in 2009/10.

“If you look at his goal-scoring record over the years, even the last two years at Newcastle in difficult times, he’s scored at one in two,” said Sir Alex.

Pre-season starts with a draw (1-1)

Barça drew their first pre-season game of the season against Tottenham Hotspur in the Wembley Cup. Pep Guardiola gave several players a chance to shine and Bojan Krkic scored for the Catalan outfit during the first half of an entertaining encounter.

Kicking off the 2009/10 campaign, the Blaugrana produced a positive display in a game that saw them use 22 players as the team that began was completely replaced at half-time. No less than 15 of those players came from the club’s youth system, while Víctor Valdés, Rafa Márquez, Maxwell, Aliaksandr Hleb, Lionel Messi and Thierry Henry watched from the sides as they were not in the squad.

Despite the number of youngsters, Barça showed some great touches and enjoyed their fair share of possession against a Tottenham side that were playing in their fourth first-team friendly of the summer.

Boss talks up Macheda chances

Federico Macheda scored his second goal in as many starts on the pre-season tour of Asia in the 3-2 win over FC Seoul, prompting Sir Alex to declare that the 17-year-old Italian striker can make a real impact at Old Trafford this season.

Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Michael Owen may be Sir Alex’s main striking options, but Macheda’s rapid adaptation to first-team life means he is knocking on the door. The United boss has already highlighted Kiko as “a hero in the making”, saying that he can make a similar impact as Cristiano Ronaldo did as a young emerging talent.

RAFA’S REACTION TO GERRARD VERDICT

Rafa Benitez today admitted he was ‘really pleased’ after Steven Gerrard was found not guilty of affray at Liverpool Crown Court.
Benitez learned of the decision during a training session in the national stadium of Singapore.

“We are really pleased,” said the boss. “He is very important for us and he can now focus just on football.

“We are all pleased at the club and over here at the training camp.

Djourou – This can be my breakthrough year

Johan Djourou wants to follow in the footsteps of Theo Walcott this season.

The England star made a major breakthrough last term, scoring a hat-trick in a World Cup qualifier in Croatia and nailing down a first-team spot at Emirates Stadium. Djourou also enjoyed a productive campaign – making 29 appearances in all competitions – but now he wants to step up to the next level.

Walcott did exactly that last year and Mathieu Flamini went from fringe player to first-team regular the year before. Djourou believes 2009/10 could be his season.

James Dunne has joined Exeter City

James Dunne has joined Exeter City after completing a successful trial with the League One side.

The former Wimbledon midfielder, 19, signed professional terms with Arsenal in 2007 and was a Reserve team regular in the 2008/09 season. However second-string appearances were limited last term and he went on-loan to Nottingham Forest in October but didn’t appear in their first-team.

SHEVCHENKO: NEW STARTS

It is rare that a player is in the same position as Andriy Shevchenko heading into today’s game.

Not only does the striker who has returned from a year’s loan at AC Milan know his current manager well, he is also as familiar as anyone with the opposition.

On top of that, Carlo Ancelotti indicated after the Inter game that he will give playing time in the M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore to Sheva. If that is the case, the Ukrainian is ready following his time away.

TEJERA JOINS MALLORCA

Sergio Tejera today (Friday) joined Real Club Deportivo Mallorca on a permanent transfer.

The Spaniard originally came to Chelsea three years ago from Espanyol and began his time in London playing similarly to a classic ‘No. 10’ position.

However, his second year saw him frequently played more deeply in midfield, with benefit to his form and he was one of the stars of the 2007/08 FA Youth Cup campaign, scoring the Academy’s Goal of the Season in the semi at Villa Park.

Chelsea Pre-Season Game

It all with a stand-alone match against MLS side, Seattle Sounders. Followed by the 2009 World Football Challenge tournament featuring clashes against Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan, Ancelotti’s former side AC Milan and Mexico’s best-supported team, Club America. The Blues then return to England to play Reading away.

Henry praises Barça’s home-grown talent

French international Thierry Henry, speaking at his first press conference of the season, praised the numbers and quality of the players coming through the Barça academy: “It’s an extraordinary achievement.
Henry is coming up to his third season with FC Barcelona and compares the situation at the Club with his experience at Arsenal: “Wenger did the same thing at Arsenal, but here there are many more”.

Few comparisons

“Last year we played a lot of important matches with eight or nine home-grown players. Nobody’s done that and there are few clubs in Europe that could apart from Barça. I can only remember one example when Beckham, Scholes, Giggs and Keane made their debuts for Manchester United round about 1997”.

Arsenal’s 28-man squad list for Austria

Arsenal jetted off to their Austrian training camp on Monday afternoon.

Below is the full list of players who travelled:-

Simpson – My loan showed what I’m capable of

Jay Simpson won plenty of plaudits during his loan spells with Millwall and West Brom. Now the bustling striker wants to fight for a place in the Arsenal team.

The 20-year-old was back in a Gunners shirt at Barnet on Saturday and then started Monday night’s victory at Lincoln City.

Verhoeven out for six weeks

Jeroen Verhoeven suffered an injury during the training on Monday. An examination in the hospital has shown that the goalkeeper has broken a bone in his left hand. He is expected to be out for six weeks.

,,In the past five years I may have had one bruise, as a matter of spreaking”, said the disappointed goalkeeper, who recently transferred from FC Volendam to Ajax.

Eduardo hungry for starting place on Monday

Eduardo is set to make his pre-season bow on Monday at Szombathelyi Haladas.

In past few days rumours have started circulating that the Croatian striker had picked up an injury that would keep him sidelined for a couple of months.

Felipe out on loan

Manchester City can confirm that Ecuador international striker Felipe Caicedo has joined Sporting Lisbon in Portugal on a season long loan.

“Since I was a boy I’ve carried Barça in my heart”

FC Barcelona’s new signing, Brazilian striker Keirrison de Souza, arrived in Barcelona on Thursday evening and immediately spoke about his love for the Club: “Since I was a boy I’ve carried Barça in my heart”.

Despite being born thousands of kilometres away from Barcelona, Keirrison assured Barça TV and http://www.fcbarcelona.cat that he has always felt a special affection for FC Barcelona: “I’ve always followed Barça and the great Brazilian footballers who have played here. Since I was a boy I’ve carried Barça in my heart and at the age of 20 I have the pleasure of playing at this great club”.

A dream come true

Keirrison signs a five-year deal

FC Barcelona has agreed a deal with Brazilian club Palmeiras to bring star striker Keirrison da Souza Carneiro to the Club. Barça will pay 14 million euros plus a variable of up to 2 million extra depending on the number of matches played.
The 20-year-old striker has signed for the next five years but will spend next season out on loan.

Keirrison will arrive in Barcelona on Thursday and go straight to the Club’s offices at approximately 4.30 pm where he will take part in a photo shoot.

14+2 million transfer fee

Owen’s made for United

Sir Alex Ferguson’s capture of one-time Kop idol Michael Owen from Newcastle represents a colossal coup for the Old Trafford boss.

So says Phil Chisnall, the last man to move directly between the two footballing superpowers of the north-west, when United transferred the creative inside-forward to Liverpool for £25,000 in the spring of 1964.

Nearly half a century on from that deal, displaying a unique qualification to comment on Owen switch allegiances, Chisnall is unequivocal: “It’s a brilliant piece of business. Michael’s had his injury problems, but he didn’t become a bad player during his time at St James’ Park. If you’d put George Best into that Newcastle team he’d have struggled!