F1: Alonso going Ferrari in 2008

Fernando Alonso is reportedly off to Ferrari next season in a £20million per year deal, with Felipe Massa tipped to join Toyota.

Alonso's position at McLaren has become more untenable with the FIA's confirmation that it was the Spaniard's emails that resulted in the team being stripped of their 2007 Constructors' Championship points and handed a £50million fine.

And with Ron Dennis admitting that his relationship with his driver is "extremely cold" and that Alonso's unhappy with the team's equality policy, the double World Champion's time at McLaren appears to be running out - and fast.

In fact, according to the News of the World, Alonso has just three more races as a McLaren driver having already agreed to join Ferrari.

According to the tabloid, the Spaniard has agreed a £20 million a year deal to join Ferrari for 2008, leaving Felipe Massa out in the cold.

Massa, though, is already making plans for the future with the Daily Mail claiming that he 'opened preliminary negotiations with Toyota last weekend'.

The newspaper went on to say that Massa's decision to leave Ferrari could be based on team boss Jean Todt's pending retirement in order to make way for Ross Brawn's return.

The Ferrari tech director, who is nearing the end of his year-long sabbatical, is expected to return to the Scuderia next season as team boss. And should this happen it could place Todt's son, who is also Massa's manager, in an uncomfortable position.

'Massa is acutely aware that if Jean Todt, as expected, loses an impending internal power struggle within Ferrari, he will be instantly vulnerable as he is managed by the Frenchman's son, Nicholas,' the Mail surmised.

Source: FoxSport.com

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EPL Result: Bolton 1-1 Tottenham

	Bolton 1 - 1 Tottenham 34' 0 - 1 Robbie Keane 39' Ivan Campo 1 - 1
1		1

Bolton manager Sammy Lee saw his side move off the foot of the table on goal difference by securing a 1-1 draw against Tottenham at the Reebok Stadium.

But despite moving ahead of fellow strugglers Derby, Lee will know they are not out of the woods yet with victories still hard to come by.

It is a similar story for Tottenham boss Martin Jol, although expectations are much higher at White Hart Lane.

Wanderers boss Lee brought back Ivan Campo for his first appearance of the season and it proved to be a shrewd move.

The Spaniard not only grabbed the equaliser but also helped galvanise a struggling side.

He was given a rousing reception by the supporters, who cheered his name from all corners of the ground.

Campo soon got into his stride and delivered a marvellous angled ball to Kevin Davies in the fifth minute.

The Bolton striker squared it into the area only for Michael Dawson to make a hurried clearance.

Tottenham nearly took the lead, however, in the 26th minute when Robbie Keane picked out Dimitar Berbatov at the back post.

He rattled in a shot from an acute angle which goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen did well to parry.

Tottenham took the lead in the 33rd minute through Keane's first league goal of the season.

It was poor defending by Bolton after Jaaskelainen got a hand to Jermaine Jenas' close-range effort.

The ball broke to Campo but he only succeeded in setting up Keane, who took advantage from close range.

Campo made amends five minutes later by grabbing the equaliser with a thumping header into the corner following a free-kick from El-Hadji Diouf.

Joey O'Brien, however, almost handed Tottenham the lead on the stroke of half-time when he sent Teemu Tainio's cross narrowly past his own post.

Bolton's struggles in the early part of the season were reflected in the attendance with a crowd of only 20,308 present.

Tainio then came close to restoring Tottenham's lead with a rasping 20-yard drive.

However Jaaskelainen was equal to it and turned the midfielder's effort around the post.

Bolton won a free-kick in the 58th minute when Dawson barged into Davies. However Anelka sent his effort straight into Robinson's arms.

Tottenham looked dangerous on the break and Malbranque narrowly cleared the bar three minutes later after a weak punch by Jaaskelainen.

However there was a moment of danger for the visitors in the 63rd minute when Davies flicked on a throw in from Campo but Anelka just failed to get a vital touch.

Bolton were working tirelessly to get only their second win of the season and that must have pleased Lee.

Davies again got clear of his marker in the 70th minute when Campo floated in a free-kick but his header failed to test Robinson.

Tottenham boss Jol decided to switch things around and brought on Darren Bent and Aaron Lennon in the space of six minutes for Berbatov and Tainio.

Keane came close to restoring their lead in the 86th minute but Jaaskelainen made a marvellous block.

Jaaskelainen then had a heated disagreement in stoppage time with Abdoulaye Meite as Tottenham pushed forward.

Fingers were pointed and words exchanged but Bolton secured a point and their display was a marked improvement on the one against Rabotnicki Kometal in the UEFA Cup on Thursday when they salvaged a draw after a poor performance.

Source: Soccernet.com

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EPL Result: Blackburn 0-1 Portsmouth

	Blackburn 0 - 1 Portsmouth 25' 0 - 1 Nwankwo Kanu
0		1

A solitary strike from Kanu was enough to give Portsmouth their first away victory of the year and consign Blackburn to a second defeat in four days.

Harry Redknapp's side had not savoured a win on the road since a Boxing Day triumph at West Ham, since when they had suffered eight defeats and five draws.

Kanu's 25th-minute strike was his third goal of the season, adding to Blackburn's woes after their shock loss to Larissa on Thursday in the first leg of a UEFA Cup first-round tie.

That loss had ended a 15-match unbeaten run, with Blackburn eager to atone as they bossed the game prior to Kanu's goal, and should have had the points wrapped up by then.

But football again proved what a cruel game it can be as from virtually nowhere Portsmouth scored what proved to be the winner.

Kanu's eventual finish had been preceded 60 seconds earlier by a sensational double save from Brad Friedel to deny the Nigerian.

Stealing in behind the Rovers defence, Kanu met John Utaka's cross with a powerful header from seven yards, only for Friedel to claw the ball off his line.

However, the rebound fell at the feet of Kanu, and looking more certain to score at the second time of asking, his stabbed shot was blocked at point-blank range by the American.

If Rovers thought they had enjoyed a fortuitous, yet fantastic escape, they were made to think again almost instantly.

From the halfway line Sylvain Distin pumped a long ball forward that was nodded down into Kanu's path by Papa Bouba Diop.

At that stage Kanu had more work to do than with his two previous chances combined, but he proceeded to shrug off Christopher Samba, rounded Friedel and then brushed aside Stephen Warnock.

From a tight angle the 31-year-old Samba then drilled a shot in between the left-hand post and Samba, who had recovered his ground.

The goal drew the sting out of Rovers, who had been rampant prior to those moments, and looked like a team more in keeping with the one that had enjoyed their unbeaten run before Thursday's Greek tragedy.

That 2-0 defeat was more of a shock given the manner of the lethargic performance.

Even Hughes had described it as ``a mystery``, so there was no real surprise when Blackburn flew out of the blocks at the start of this game, with David Bentley inspirational.

It was the England winger's fourth-minute cross that resulted in Roque Santa Cruz cracking a seven-yard header against the bar.

David James then denied Bentley from a 25-yard free-kick before the latter delivered a piercing cross to the far post that was initially chested down by Morten Gamst Pedersen.

The Norway winger flicked the ball back to Benni McCarthy for a sidefoot volley from 11 yards that flashed past the right-hand post, an opportunity from which the South Africa striker should at least have been on target.

Moments later the all-action Bentley drilled over the bar a 20-yard drive from the corner of the area after being teed up by Santa Cruz who had hustled Hermann Hreidarsson off the ball.

Playing a 4-5-1 formation up until then, Redknapp displayed his tactical nous by switching Sean Davis to a holding role in front of the defence.

That gave the midfield and lone striker Kanu more stability and greater breathing space, to which Blackburn never found an answer.

Portsmouth stifled Rovers for the remainder of the first half, and even after the break they struggled to find a way through.

The visitors could even have had a second but for the outstretched fingertips of Friedel as Samba had headed a goal-kick from James goalwards, and but for the intervention, Kanu would have pounced.

Then Davis should have showed a selfish side as he was left with only Friedel to beat after powering into the area, but opted for a pull back that came to nothing.

Rovers huffed and puffed, but other than a save from James to deny Santa Cruz with a low, curling shot and another Bentley free-kick that was inches wide, they barely threatened.

Instead, it was Pompey who came closest to adding to their tally, only for Friedel to again perform heroics in denying Matt Taylor with his first touch in the 85th minute after he had replaced Niko Kranjcar.

Source: Soccernet.com

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EPL Result: Aston Villa 2-0 Everton

	Aston Villa 2 - 0 Everton 14' John Carew 1 - 0 60' Gabriel Agbonlahor 2 - 0
2		0

Aston Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor's liking for Everton continued as he grabbed the decisive second goal in the Barclays Premier League clash with David Moyes' side.

The England Under-21 player had scored on his Villa debut against the Toffees 18 months ago and then netted the equaliser in last season's corresponding game at Villa Park.

This time he doubled Villa's lead after 62 minutes, after John Carew's first half opener - his first domestic goal of the campaign - had put them on the way to a 2-0 win.

Martin O'Neill would have been pleased with the response of his players after Villa's poor performance at Manchester City a week ago.

It was not in the same class as their win over Chelsea on the same ground three weeks ago but was still achieved with relative ease against the Merseysiders.

Everton never moved out of second gear and appeared to be suffering a hangover from their disappointing midweek result against Metalist Kharkiv in the UEFA Cup, when Andrew Johnson missed two penalties.

Moyes made three changes, including leaving out £11million summer capture Ayegbeni Yakubu, but the visitors seldom posed a threat to the Villa defence.

The only downside for Villa was seeing Carew, who had defied a groin injury to play in recent weeks, limping out of the action early in the second period.

Villa did not fire on all cylinders but the pace of Agbonlahor and Ashley Young, the power of Carew before he was injured, the midfield guile of Gareth Barry and Nigel Reo-Coker and the defensive strength of Martin Laursen gave them the edge.

Predictably Everton's former Birmingham striker Andrew Johnson, without a goal for six months, was booed every time he touched the ball - and he seldom looked like ending that barren sequence despite a hard-working display.

Young attempted the first effort on goal for Villa but his 25 yard drive set the tone for a generally mediocre first half as it flew high and wide.

But after 13 minutes Villa broke the deadlock through John Carew's first goal of the campaign.

Wilfred Bouma's left-wing cross was headed straight up in the air by Joseph Yobo and then Leighton Baines only succeeded in clearing the ball straight to Carew, who steadied himself before firing a low shot past Stefan Wessels.

Agbonlahor had the ball in the net again four minutes later but Young's cross was adjudged to have curled out of play before finding his England Under-21 team-mate.

Johnson made a telling break down the right flank after Jagielka's pass over the top of the Villa defence but his low centre was cut out by Scott Carson who was being watched by England goalkeeping coach Ray Clemence.

Johnson's trickery won him a free-kick just outside the Villa box after being upended by Zat Knight but Leon Osman crashed his low shot straight into the Villa defensive wall.

The Everton midfielder would also have been disappointed to curl a cross straight at Carson after taking up a good position wide right.

In first half injury-time Tony Hibbert came to Everton's rescue when he cleared Agbonlahor's header off the line after Wessels had failed to deal with an Ashley Young corner.

Reo-Coker presented Everton with a chance early in the second half to get back on level terms when he brought down Phil Jagielka on the edge of the Villa box.

Up stepped Johnson to curl the free-kick around the defensive wall - but Carson was alert to the situation and had his body right behind the shot.

Johnson had his first clear-cut chance after 52 minutes but he mishit his shot just past the post from a knockdown by Victor Anichebe.

Martin O'Neill was forced to make a change after 52 minutes when Carew limped out of the action to be replaced by Craig Gardner.

It led to Agbonlahor being pushed up front - and after 62 minutes he showed great control to double Villa's lead with his third goal in four matches against Everton.

Carson's long clearance over the Everton defence was brought down with one touch by Agbonlahor - and his second slid the ball wide of the dive of Wessels.

It was his second strike of the season after also netting in Villa's previous home game - the win over Chelsea three weeks ago.

Moyes brought on Yakubu for the final 20 minutes but Everton never threatened to force their way back into the match.

Source: Soccernet.com

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EPL Result: Newcastle 3-1 West Ham

	Newcastle 3 - 1 West Ham 2' Mark Viduka 1 - 0 32' 1 - 1 Dean Ashton 41' Mark Viduka 2 - 1 76' Charles N'Zogbia 3 - 1
3		1

Mark Viduka announced his arrival on Tyneside with a first-half double as Newcastle saw off West Ham 3-1.

The Australian got his side off to the perfect start with a second-minute bullet header, and then converted Charles N'Zogbia's cross four minutes before half-time.

In the meantime, Dean Ashton had dragged the visitors back into it with his second goal in as many games since his return from injury, and the Hammers could count themselves unfortunate to go in behind at the break after pinning their hosts back for long periods.

Keeper Steve Harper had to produce excellent one-handed saves to deny first Mark Noble and then former team-mate Lee Bowyer, but the Magpies dominated the second half and were rewarded when N'Zogbia slotted home their third goal after 76 minutes.

The win was just what manager Sam Allardyce needed after an insipid display in defeat at Derby on Monday evening, and the fact that it came courtesy of a less than fluent performance will not spoil his enjoyment of an important result.

The home side had taken to the pitch for the warm-up wearing tee-shirts bearing the slogan ``Rock Steady'', a message of solidarity with troubled bank Northern Rock, the club's shirt sponsor.

Allardyce could have been forgiven as he headed for the dressing room at half-time for wishing the same could have been said of his defence.

In an intensely uncomfortable 45 minutes, David Rozehnal and Claudio Cacapa, the latest recruits in the seemingly endless quest to stem the tide of goals which has blighted Newcastle for so long, were given the sternest of examinations by Carlton Cole and Ashton.

It was no surprise when the pair combined on 32 minutes to beat Harper, Cole climbing well to flick on Lucas Neill's long throw for Ashton to fire into the bottom corner.

The goal came as the visitors recovered from a disastrous start which had seen Viduka power home a second-minute header from N'Zogbia's near-post cross, and for much of the half, they were the better side.

Allardyce's men lacked width on the right with Alan Smith sitting in-field and Habib Beye getting forward from full-back only fleetingly.

That left Viduka and Michael Owen isolated, and the Hammers prospered with Noble forcing a fine one-handed save from Harper.

Owen, whose fitness has been the subject of an intense debate all week, was a largely peripheral figure, although he almost opened the door for Viduka once again six minutes before the break after running on to Nicky Butt's ball over the top.

The striker looked up before sending in an inviting cross, and it took a good block by Anton Ferdinand to keep out the Australian's header.

However, there was nothing Ferdinand, or anyone else for that matter, could do to deny Viduka four minutes before the break as he provided further evidence of the wisdom of Allardyce's summer swoop for him.

Once again, it was N'Zogbia who created the opening, bursting past former Magpie Bowyer from Rozehnal's clearance before crossing to the far post for the former Middlesbrough front man to bundle home his second goal of the game and his third in a black and white shirt.

N'Zogbia wasted a 47th-minute free-kick in a promising position after Owen had shown a rare burst of pace to round George McCartney, but was felled in the process.

That proved to be Owen's last contribution of any note and he was replaced by Obafemi Martins four minutes later with the England international worryingly heading straight down the tunnel.

Rozehnal almost caught keeper Robert Green on his heels with a left-foot drive from distance on 53 minutes, and Butt tested the keeper with an equally well-struck effort two minutes later.

But referee Mike Riley had to stop the game two minutes later after Noble reacted furiously to a robust challenge by Nicky Butt.

Harper saved well from Ashton's 64th-minute free-kick, which bounced dangerously in front of him, and Ashton flicked a header wide as West Ham rallied, but the home side were defending with greater resilience than they had before the break.

However, Harper had to be at his best once again in the 72nd minute when Bowyer latched on to Rozehnal's weak header and forced a fine save low to the keeper's right.

But N'Zogbia made sure of the points with 14 minutes remaining when he fed Martins on the left and then met his cross to make it 3-1, and the Nigerian should have added his name to the scoresheet three minutes from time, but fired wide after rounding Green.

Source: Soccernet.com

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