Man Utd clinch deal for Phil Jones

Manchester United have confirmed the capture of England Under-21 defender Phil Jones on a five-year deal after agreeing an undisclosed fee with Blackburn Rovers.

United thought they had secured Jones' services last week, only for the transfer to be halted due to an unforeseen snag. It was claimed Blackburn were holding out for more cash and that Liverpool had jumped in with a £20 million offer.

However, Jones, who featured for England U-21's in their opening European Championship match against Spain in Denmark, apparently told Rovers he did not wish to join any other club than United.

And with the Red Devils refusing to budge beyond the figure - believed to be £16.5 million - that triggered a buyout clause in the 19-year-old's contract, Blackburn have been forced to agree a sale.

''Manchester United is delighted to announce it has signed an agreement with Blackburn Rovers for the transfer of Phil Jones,'' said a United statement. ''The player passed a medical in Manchester last week and has agreed a five-year contract. The deal will be completed once the player returns from international duty.''

A statement, released on behalf of the owners, board and manager, on the Blackburn site read: "Much as we would love him to stay on with us - and we made all efforts to convince him to stay - Phil has to finally follow his heart. We are extremely happy with his contribution to our team and we wish him all the very best in his future endeavours."

Jones played alongside fellow United youngster Chris Smalling in the heart of England's defence during the Young Lions' 1-1 draw against Spain U21's on Sunday night and the duo are expected to eventually replace centre-back pairing Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic at Old Trafford.

Speaking after England's draw in Denmark, Smalling said: "Phil's done really well and we've been able to set our stall out. Hopefully we can play together for a few years."

In addition, United are hoping to complete the signing of Spain goalkeeper David de Gea, who produced an excellent performance in Herning on the opposite side to Jones.

However, it is also anticipated Sir Alex Ferguson will land Aston Villa's Ashley Young first, once the Midlands outfit have sorted out their managerial vacancy, and a replacement is also anticipated for Paul Scholes, who confirmed his retirement last month.

By ESPNsoccernet

Terengganu nail FA Cup in dramatic finale

BUKIT JALIL: Terengganu came back from the death to secure the FA Cup title when they defeated Kelantan 2-1 in extra-time at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil last night.

Super-sub Ahmad Nordin Alias was the hero for Terengganu when he scored the all-important winner in the 110th minute of extra-time after both teams were tied 1-1 in regulation time.

Kelantan were seconds away from creating another milestone in Malaysian football after Nurul Azwan Roya had given the Red Warriors the lead in the 80th minute. But Terengganu equalised in a last-gasp attack which yielded an own goal by Kelantan defender Mohd Daudsu Jamaluddin in the eighth and final minute of stoppage time.

Then came extra-time which produced a dramatic finish in the first-ever east coast final in 90 years. In the end, the Turtles’ never-say-die attitude paid dividends as they lifted their second FA Cup title since 2000.

For Kelantan, it was sheer heartbreak for their passionate fans. They came with the hope of seeing their team create history by winning the Cup for the first time in the 22-year-old competition. But it was not their day.

The fans expected an explosive start but the action on the field was disappointing with only one clear goal scoring attempt at both ends of the field in the first-half.

The first real excitement of the game came in the 21st minute. Terengganu’s prolific goal-getter and international Abdul Hadi Yahaya, with 15 goals to his credit this season, shot wide with only Kelantan goalkeeper Khairul Fahmi Che Mat to beat.

Terengganu flankers Mohd Ashaari Shamsuddin and Joseph Kallang were creating the fast breaks upfront while the Kelantan defence led by S. Subramanian and Mohd Farisham Ismail looked vulnerable at the back.

Kelantan forwards Norsharul Idlan Talaha and youngster Mohd Izuan Solahuddin barely had support with both their central midfielders Mohd Badhri Radzi and Mohd Shakir Shaari losing possession in the opponents’ half.

Terengganu skipper Mohd Mazuki Yusof was outstanding in the sweeper role, keeping Kelantan speed demons Nurul Azwan Roya and S. Chanturu at bay.

Kelantan started the second half aggressively and and skipper Mohd Badhri came close with a glancing header in the 50th minute.

Play was stopped for five minutes after a flare was let off near the Terengganu goal area. An announcement was made on the PA system warning the fans to stop shooting flares onto the pitch or they may have to call off the match.

t

Terengganu’s Sarawakian Joseph Kallang, a constant menace in the Kelantan box , nearly put his name on the score sheet with a fine solo effort in the 57th minute. But Kelantan keeper Khairul was again a stumbling block parrying the ball away.

Kelantan brought in fresh legs upfront in Ramzul Zahini Adenan for the ineffective Mohd Izuan at the hour mark.

And it almost paid off when he picked up a poor clearance by Terengganu goalkeeper Mohd Sharbinee and slammed the ball toward an open goal only to see defender Mazlizam Mohd blocking his attempt.

Just when fans thought that the game would go into extra-time, Nurul Azwan Roya broke the hearts of the Terengganu fans with a late goal after he was put through by Mohd Shakir Ali in the 80th minute.

There was nothing national goalkeeper Mohd Sharbinee Allawee could do as Nurul kept his composure to outpace centreback Mazlizam Mohamed before chipping the ball over Sharbinee and into goal.

Terengganu, though, never gave up and with time ticking away, Abdul Manaf Mamat’s last-gasp attempt in the eighth-minute of stoppage time saw Kelantan concede a freak goal. Abdul Manaf’s attempt was tipped away by goalkeeper Khairul but his defender Daudsu headed the ball into his own goal.

Then substitute Ahmad Nordin produced the winner in the 110th minute to seal a great win for Terengganu.

THE TEAMS

Terengganu: Mohd Sharbinee Allawee, Reeshafiq Alwi, Ismail Faruqi (Ahmad Nordin Alias), Joseph Kallang Tie, Abdul Hadi Yahaya (Mohd Zharif Hasna), Mazlizam Mohd, Mohd Zubir Azmi, Mohd Mazuki Yusof, Abdul Manaf Mamat, Helmi Remeli, Mohd Ashaari Shamsuddin.

Kelantan: Khairul Fahmi Che Mat, S. Subramaniam (Mohd Rizal Fahmi), Mohd Farisham Ismail, Mohd Shakir Shaari (Khairan Eroza Razali), Norsharul Idlan Talaha, Nurul Azwan Roya, Mohd Daudsu Jamaludin, Mohd Badhri Radzi, S. Chanturu, Zairul Fitree Ishak, Mohd Izuan Solahuddin (Mohd Ramzul Zahini Adenan).

- theStar

Gosip perpindahan United

• Bebe dilaporkan sedia dihantar ke Turki apabila Besiktas dikatakan akan meminjam pemain dari Portugal ini.
• Antara pemain2 United lain yang dikaitkan dengan perpindahan keluar ialah Tomas Kuszczak (Wes Brom), Nani (Inter Milan), Gibson, Brown, O`Shea (Sunderland) & yang paling lucunya Ferdinand ke Spurs.

• Phil Jones (Blackburn) dilaporkan telah selesai menjalani pemeriksaan kesihatan di OT namun laporan terbaru ialah Blackburn mahupun £25m yg merupakan jumlah yg sepatutnya dibayar untuk menebus kontraknya. United dikatakan sebelum ini telah bersetuju untuk membayar £16.5m.
• Lain-lain perpindahan yang nampak hampir berjaya ialah Ashley Young yang dilaporkan telah diberi lampu hijau oleh Aston Villa. Sedang berbincang mengenai isu gaji & kontrak.
• Hasrat United untuk mendaptkan Sniejder kini hampir pasti terkubur apabila dia dikatakan akan terus kekal di San Siro.
• United dilaporkan akan beralih kepada pemain tengah Arsenal iaitu Samir Nasri & Luca Modric sebagai alternatif.
• Pemain sayap Udinese dilihat bekemungkinan akan ke Catalan apabila Barcelona & City turut bersaing untuk mendaptkan Alexis Sanchez yang dianggarkan tidak kurang £30m.
• United antara lainnya turut dikaitkan dengan Raphael Varane, Alvaro Morata, De Gea & Lassana Diarra.

Hong Kong v Malaysia

Malaysia akan turun menghadapi Hong Kong bagi perlawanan persahabatan antarabangsa & persiapan untuk menentang Taiwan hujung bulan ini bagi kempem kelayakan Piala Dunia Zon Asia.

Who will be United target?

Scholes replacement? Shy genius Paul Scholes is irreplaceable. But United need to close the gap in midfield area. Who will arrive?

Wesley Sneijder - Inter Milan

Eden Hazard - Lille

Luca Modric - Tottenham Hotspur

Ashley Young - Aston Villa

Alexis Sanchez - Udinese

Other prospect :

Mario Goetze - Borussia Dortmund

Charlie Adam - Blackpool

Danielle de Rossi - AS Roma

Lassana Diarra - Real Madrid

Henderson - Sunderland

Our current midfield player

Are they good enough to fulfill the gap? They are talented player but lack of consistency, commanding & obviously not a big name. They must step up their level if they still want to be in United shirt again.

Darron Gibson - similar style of play to Carrick.

Ability on long range shooting but his game play is too predictable.

Michael Carrick - Obviously is a best passer that United have after Paul Scholes. Sometimes give a silly mistakes.

Darren Fletcher - Football genius. We missed him a lot this season after his struggle to get back his fitness.

Thomas Cleverley - Young talent. Successfull on loan at Wigan. Experience will drive him to improvement.

Anderson - Samba boy. Lot of energy & keep moving & passing. Show a lot of improvement this season. But he must learn how to celebrate a goal!

In reserve team, we are looking forward to our young talent. Will the FA Youth Cup 2011 team follow the step of Class of `92? Paul Pogba, Will Keane & Ravel Morrison among the key player in the young champion team. We`ll see.

LEGEND

Mission completion. Now it was 19th.

Shy genius Paul Scholes calls off duty. Now left Ryan Giggs the only member of FA Youth Cup Class of 92 to continue.

What football said about Paul Scholes.

• DWIGHT YORKE, former team-mate: "When you talk about legends of the game, he's up there. Twenty trophies since 1994. He just seemed to get better and better."
• CLAYTON BLACKMORE, former team-mate: "You talk about Ryan Giggs, who has been fantastic at the club, and Scholes is in the same bracket. He has played more than 600 games and scored over 100 goals."
• GORDON MCQUEEN, former United star: "His contribution has been absolutely massive. We'll see now how difficult it is replacing players like that. It's getting harder and more expensive."
• DAVID GILL, Manchester United chief executive: "It is a very sad day for Manchester United fans around the world. "Paul was one of the players who came through the ranks of the academy system in the 1990s and has established himself as one of the greatest players ever to wear the United shirt."
• CRAIG BROWN, former Scotland manager: "He is a great example of a professional footballer and to have played more than 600 times for Manchester United is exceptional."
• DAVID BECKHAM, former United team-mate: "Paul was always one of those people others talk about. Even at Real Madrid, the players always said to me 'What's he like'? They respect him as a footballer."
• MICAH RICHARDS, Manchester City rival: "He's always in the right position, the complete midfielder. He's my favourite player of all-time, unbelievable."
• GLENN HODDLE, former England manager: "There isn't a player of his mould anywhere else."
• TERRY VENABLES, former England manager: "He sees the game unlike any other player."
• ALAN SHEARER, former England striker: "If you ask footballers to pick out the player they most admire, so many of them will pick Paul Scholes."

When his peers were asked about Scholes they were always gushing with praise.

When it was put to Edgar Davids at the peak of his powers that the Dutchman was the best midfielder in the world, he replied: "I'm not the best, Paul Scholes is. "Every one of us is just trying to become as good as him. Everyone can learn from Paul Scholes."

Zinedine Zidane was a Champions League and World Cup winner and regarded as one of the greatest to ever touch a football. Yet he said: "My toughest opponent? Scholes. He is the complete midfielder. He is undoubtedly the best midfielder of his generation."

Scholes played his final game as a sub in Saturday's Champions League final defeat to Barcelona. One man was determined to swap shirts with him. Xavi said: "He was the best central midfielder that I have seen. The most complete. "He can play the final pass, he can score, he is strong, he never gets knocked off the ball and he doesn't give possession away. If he had been Spanish, maybe he would have been valued more."

- The Sun UK