Roy Hodgson, West Brom boss, claims that Peter Odemwingie is not available for sale and he will be there for Hawthorns in next season. Rumours were floating around that the Nigerian player will be exchanged for Andrew Johnson and will move to Fulham. However, Hodgson put an end to all these speculations.

Odemwingie has got 10 goals in his pocket for this season inspite of an injury. Not only this, he was the top scorer last season with 15 goals to his credit. According to Roy, Peter is under contract and is a very important player for the team.

He wants to keep the player in the team. What led to all these rumors is the fact that Albion has many players who are out of contract or are in their last year of contract. The list includes Keith Andrews, Jonas Olsson, Nicky Shorey etc. However, Hodgson claims that it is part and parcel of this time and year and the squads won’t be finalized till August, just like every year.

Fabrice Muamba, who is getting his treatment in Intensive Care Unit at London Chest Hospital, has sent his team a good luck message which not only uplifted their spirits but also spread a wave of happiness across them.

The 23 year old Muamba, had a cardiac arrest when his heart stopped beating for 78 minutes a week ago. His message came as a big boost for the players when they had a 2-1 win over Blackburn at Reebok Stadium. His fiancée Shauna and father Marcel delivered the message for him.

Owen Coyle, Bolton Manager, thanked everybody for their efforts and said that players had a tough time physically and mentally but it is very less when compared to Fabrice’s fight. Blackburn Manager, Steve Kean also wished speedy recovery for Fabrice Muamba.

This season Aviva Premiership held at Twickenham saw the record breaking spectators at the ground as the rebellious Saracens had a vicious win with a score of 19-11 against the Harlequins. The astonishing crowd broke all the past records for a regular-season club game. The crowd was also leading any of the premiership matches that Twickenham had seen including any of the Grand Finales. With the entry of the Harlequins firecrackers exploded from the top of the stadium.

At the start of the game Saracens displayed their potential by Owen Farrell kicking 14 points. Harlequins badly stabbed a comeback with Joe Marler but the pass was interrupted by Strettle. Mark McCall’s men opposed the Harlequins’ by playing the match leisurely and digging up penalties. Harlequins demonstrated a signal of their counteract promise when Nick Easter swooped on defeat lineout permitting Maurie Fa’avasalu, Matt Hopper and Seb Stegmann to instigate a retaliation. Saracens jumbled well but passed a penalty and Nick Evans lashed out Harlequins onto the scoreboard. Farrell thrived with the alteration and niches a fourth penalty after admirable work from Andy Saull.

Saracens had made more than thrice attempt as Harlequins but they sustained to make them, shielding courageously to win.

The goals of the match came from Dimitar Berbatov, who posted two goals and another goal came from Javier Hernandez in the second half and recovered Manchester from two goals down. With this, the team moved five points ahead in the Premier League run.

In the first half, Blackpool’s Craig Cathcart put the team ahead after its first goal at 16^th minute. The second goal from DJ Campbell before half-time even made things worst for Manchester United, thereby giving quite trouble to the team’s 27-match unbeaten position.

But the sparking out of Ryan Giggs and Javier Hernandez somehow managed the team in the second half. At 72 minutes, Berbatov with the first goal able to reduce the gap. Soon, Hernandez got the team at draw with the second goal for the team. Later, at 88 minutes, Berbatov smashed with the winning goal.

As a matter of fact, Blackpool has not been able to defeat Manchester United since 1963, though they dominated United till the opening 45 minutes of the game. However, the United team finally got a chance to lead the match and beat Blackpool in the last 20 minutes of the game. With so many exciting moments involved, it was an overall interesting match. 

As the head coach of the Leeds Carnegie camp, Neil Antony Back does not fear or panic as they prepare for the upcoming crucial Aviva Premiership clash. Though the team couldn’t get a single win till now even after eight games, the spirits are not yet dampen as they head to play the Herlequins.

The team is currently at seven points down Newcastle at the Premiership and it is a tough way ahead for them to win, but Back remains focused even under pressure. The Leeds Carnegie needs to put a hard fight to remain in the series now. The team has a host of series coming their way and Back really looks at improving the team performance at Quins soon. Then there is also Newcastle, Gluocester and European action to look forward to, for the team to boast their spirits.

Backs says that they still have 14 games to go this season and are not panicking as they are sure to pick some wins now. They simply need to concentrate on the game.

As per the director Leeds Carnegie, Andy Key, it is difficult to change the current standing of the team but he insisted on keeping mental cool and strength for every player, which is the only way to come up and move ahead in the game.

Berbatov has been in tremendous form this season and has already scored six times this season and it has been a very timely return to form for him as well as United as Rooney has been struggling to find the net. Also he was highly criticized during the last season where he barely managed to keep up pace with the side.

It was a see saw battle that saw Liverpool coming back to level terms after trailing by 2 goals and finally loosing by a solitary goal. The first half was totally dominated by United as they had a number of chances to score but managed to open the account only on the 42nd minute of the first half by a header from Berbatov. Liverpool made a comeback through a penalty kick by Gerrard and then he scored again from a free kick just outside the box bringing Liverpool on level terms. It was Berbatov’s third goal of the game in the 85th minute that clinched the game for United.

It was a dream start for the defending champions Chelsea in the EPL. They defeated West Brom in a one sided affair to kick off their campaign to defend their title. Chelsea displayed some scintillating football during their 6-0 drubbing of the minnows. In another match of the opening day, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur ended their match in a goal less draw. But the biggest shocker of the day come from newly promoted side Blackpool which defeated Wigan Athletic in their own backyard. Blackpool was playing in the division one for the first time in 39 years and what a result to have.

Moving back to the defending champions, it was a perfect start for the Blues as they destroyed West Brom at Stamford Bridge. It was a clinical display from Chelsea and last season’s top scorer Didier Drogba scored a hat-trick and Malouda netted twice. Chelsea will look to capitalize on this fantastic start and claim the coveted title for the second time in a row. Although it is little early to talk about it, but a good start always helps.

In other matches, even the addition of defender Winston Reid couldn’t ensure a good result for West Ham United as they went down 3-0 to Aston Villa. Reid couldn’t make much of an impact on the game and he was fortunate not to have conceded a penalty when he fouled James Milner. Blackburn Rovers defeated Everton 1-0 and Wolverhampton Wanderers beat Stoke 2-0. So, a pretty interesting opening day and it remains to be seen who has the final laugh this season.

Sunderland midfielder Steed Malbranque came under the scanner for violating the discipline of his club and was punished by Steve Bruce, the club manager for his unspecified behavior. The difference between the two was evident from the fact that Malbranque was not even named in the squad that played against Fulham. Sunderland has not managed any win in the Premier League since November. The situation though seems to be under control as Malbranque had been put in the team for the visit to Wearside.

The manager felt the matter was closed as Steed had already taken the punishment. He also blamed the media for revealing what should have remained behind the closed doors of the club. He also added that the important thing for the team was that Malbranque was back in the squad and fans can expect to see him in action very soon. The 30 year old, Frenchman has not played to his potential with the club and the manager is hoping for a better show from him.

There are chances that the midfielders like Jordan Henderson, Kieran Richardson, Andy Reid and Lee Cattermole would not be available for the encounter with Bolton and in that case the onus would be on Malbranque to put a good show for the team. Steve Bruce felt he needed some time to revive the fortunes of the club and was expecting the support of the owners. Sunderland’s last victory came over Arsenal last November and the team has lost 14 games in a row which have left the manager a little baffled.

Following a meeting with the manager of the English soccer team, Fabio Capello, the captain of the England Team, John Terry was stripped of from captaining his side. Fabio Capello’s decision came in the light of the allegations that Terry was going around with the ex-partner of his former teammate.

John Terry though seemed upbeat and said that he would continue to give everything for the national side. Terry, a father of two children admitted to having no problem with the decision of his manager saying he respects it.

Vanessa Perroncel, the woman with whom Terry has been alleged to have an affair has though not given her version to the media. Perroncel, the ex-girlfriend of Wayne Bridge, the England defender seemed really astonished when she was told about the sacking of Terry as the captain. 

Perroncel has been at the receiving end of the speculation and comment made by the media and she felt hard done by it. She also cleared that most of the material which is in the press is not true at all. The false claims and the media glare have caused much pressure to her family she added.

She was very upset with the media as she felt it was trying to pore over her private life along with that of her family. The lingerie model said that her son was her main concern. She also made it very clear that she would not be explaining anything to the media. John Terry and Wayne Bridge played together for Chelsea in the English Premier League before Bridge was bought by Manchester City.

The loss of striker Robin Van Persie has really been a disaster as far as the Arsenal team is concerned. The Dutch striker who is head and shoulder over the other strikers in the team has really left his club looking out desperately for different options. Although, Arsenal has Eduardo who is a brilliant player, the fact is that he has not been performing up to his standards following his injury. Then there is the Mexican ace Carlos Vela who unfortunately has not been given enough chances to prove his mettle in the Premier League.

There are still doubts on Nicklas Bendtner over his ability to compete at the highest stage. There is also a lot of uncertainty about the position at which Andrey Arshavin should play. So Arsenal does seem to have very limited options. Arsene Wenger has the task of finding a decent striker for his team which seems to be difficult if you think of the limited transfers that he has at his disposal.

The possible transfers include names like Rudd Van Nisterlrooy and Edin Dzeko. The former seems quite unlikely considering the spats that he has been involved in with the club when he was at Old Trafford. The latter too seems out of reach of the club when you consider his price range. Carlton Cole apparently seems to fit Arsenal’s bill and with his consistent performance he can be a good buy for the club who are looking for some good fortune in the upcoming festive season.