Pro Eleven Headline News

Duo set for City debuts

New signings Craig Bellamy and Nigel de Jong are in line to make their Manchester City debuts against Newcastle at Eastlands on Wednesday night.

The pair arrived from West Ham and Hamburg respectively at a combined cost of around £24million last week and are expected to go straight into Mark Hughes' side as City look to extend a three-match unbeaten Premier League run.

Captain Richard Dunne begins a four-match ban so Nedum Onuoha and Micah Richards are expected to be paired together in central defence.

Newcastle will be without the suspended Nicky Butt.

The former Manchester United midfielder is banned after being sent off at Blackburn, while it remains to be seen whether or not City target Shay Given is included in the squad with Fraser Forster and Tim Krul standing by.

New signing Peter Lovenkrands is available, as is Geremi after recovering from a groin injury, while Mark Viduka (Achilles), Claudio Cacapa (knee) and Alan Smith (foot/ankle) have all returned to training. Obafemi Martins (hernia surgery), Shola Ameobi (knee), Habib Beye (ankle) and Tamas Kadar (broken leg) remain on the casualty list.

Teams

Manchester City (from): Hart, Schmeichel, Zabaleta, Onuoha, Richards, Bridge, Ball, Garrido, Ben Haim, Wright-Phillips, Kompany, Fernandes, De Jong, Elano, Ireland, Robinho, Sturridge, Bellamy, Jo, Vassell, Caicedo.

Newcastle (from): Given, Harper, Forster, Krul, Enrique, Bassong, Coloccini, Taylor, Edgar, Guthrie, N'Zogbia, Duff, Gutierrez, Lovenkrands, Geremi, Donaldson, Doninger, Godsmark, Owen, Xisco, Carroll, LuaLua, Ranger. SportingLife


Man United crush West Brom 5-0

Manchester United thrashed bottom club West Bromwich Albion 5-0 at the Hawthorns to move three points clear at the top of the Premier League Tuesday.

Cristiano Ronaldo struck two late goals for the rampant Reds after Dimitar Berbatov, Carlos Tevez and Nemanja Vidic had put the champions in control against 10-man West Brom.

United, who have 50 points from 22 games, also set a new top-flight record of 11 consecutive clean sheets, eclipsing Chelsea's feat in 2004-05. Goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar also surpassed Petr Cech's top-flight streak for not conceding a goal.

Aston Villa climbed into third place on 47 points with England striker Emile Heskey scoring on his debut in a 1-0 victory at Portsmouth.

Tottenham Hotspur eased their relegation fears with a 3-1 home defeat of Stoke City and Sunderland beat Fulham 1-0 thanks to a goal from striker Kenwyne Jones.

Second-placed Liverpool travel to Wigan Athletic on Wednesday when they can move level on points with United.

Liverpool, who set the pace this season but appear to be running out of steam, are now staring up at United who, after a cluster of 1-0 victories, put on a dazzling show of firepower at West Brom.

"The score was important to us and we showed a ruthless streak for the first time this season," United manager Alex Ferguson told Sky Sports.

"Goal difference could play a part and we've always had that over our opponents."

INJURY LIST

West Brom were not helped by having captain Paul Robinson harshly sent off shortly before halftime when they trailed only 1-0 but United, despite a lengthy injury list, were a class apart as they topped up their goal difference.

After the kickoff was delayed by traffic congestion, United took a while to get going and could have fallen behind when the experienced Gary Neville made an uncharacteristic error to allow Jay Simpson an early chance.

Berbatov broke the deadlock with a cool finish past Scott Carson on 22 minutes and after Robinson's dismissal things got worse for the home side when Tevez reacted quickly to score after Carson dropped a cross.

Ryan Donk was unlucky not to pull a goal back for West Brom when his shot struck the woodwork before Vidic headed in a Ryan Giggs corner on the hour to make it 3-0.

Ronaldo then capped a near-perfect night for United with two goals in eight minutes to round off his team's fifth league victory in a row. Reuters


Ancelotti pleased with form

AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti is pleased with the Rossoneri's current form ahead of their home tie with high-flying Genoa.

The Diavolo, currently in third place and six points behind Serie A leaders Inter Milan, thrashed Bologna 4-1 last weekend and will be aiming for a third consecutive win.

"We are in good shape and if we can continue like this we will be able to obtain great success," Ancelotti, who notched up his 400th match at the Rossoneri helm in the last round of matches, told the Milan Channel.

"At Bologna we played a good game, which in turn has given us enthusiasm and confidence for the next few rounds.

"The sensation amongst the players is good and we are hoping this positive spell lasts a long time. On Sunday we demonstrated that we are in form and can do some real damage," he warned before focusing on Wednesday's opponents.

"In the reverse fixture against us, Genoa demonstrated to be a strong and competitive side that in the arc of the first part of the season has remained as such.

"They are a dynamic side with players that run a lot and make use of the wings. We must be wary of their dynamism when they have the initiative.

"However, the Milan side will definitely be different to the one at the Marassi. We want to up the tempo and improve our position in the table."

Ancelotti looks set to make a couple of changes to the side that won at Bologna.

Left-back Marek Jankulovski returns from suspension and will replace Giuseppe Favalli while Ronaldinho is expected to take over from Clarence Seedorf.

Daniele Bonera, Marco Borriello, Emerson, Gennaro Gattuso, Kakha Kaladze and Alessandro Nesta are all unavailable through injury.

Genoa president Enrico Preziosi has called on his side to play at the San Siro without any fear.

The Grifone are in good form and currently occupy fourth place having collected an impressive 36 points so far.

"We are hoping to gain another positive result against Milan," Preziosi told the official club website, www.genoacfc.it.

"Milan are stuffed full of champions, some of whom are real phenomena, but allow me to add that this Genoa side is not easy for anyone to confront.

"We will need to be cynical and make the most of any opportunities that come our way. We will play our cards without the worries that come with being obliged to gain a result. With a free mind we will be free to have a go," he concluded.

Rossoblu coach Gian Piero Gasperini is expected to make a number of changes to the side that was held 1-1 at home by Catania on Sunday.

Sokratis Papastathopoulos will take over from the suspended Matteo Ferrari in defence while fellow defender Salvatore Bocchetti will start on the bench.

The versatile Domenico Criscito will drop back into the defence with Ivan Juric joining the midfield.

Marco Rossi will take over from Giandomenico Mesto while striker Diego Milito could start on the bench with Ruben Olivera his replacement.

Andrea Gasbarroni, Raffaele Palladino, Matteo Paro, Alessandro Potenza and Alessio Scarpi remain in the Grifone treatment room. SportingLife


Pfannenstiel - globetrotting German goalie with 24 clubs

Never mind Kaka or Zinedine Zidane. When it comes to record transfers, the man with a suitcase permanently at the ready is Lutz Pfannenstiel, a globetrotting German who's just signed for his 24th club.

After Malaysia, Canada, Australia and Albania - to name but a few - Pfannenstiel recently headed for Norway, where last week he signed a contract as player-coach of Oslo-based third-division club Mangerud Star.

The career of the 35-year-old goalkeeper certainly doesn't compare to that of the world's most expensive player, France's Zidane, who moved from Juventus to Real Madrid for 75 million euros in 2001.

But he has probably seen more of the world as well as experiencing at first hand the game's underbelly.

It has also given him, in place of a bulging trophy haul, a unique title - he is the first professional footballer to have played on the six continents defined by world governing body FIFA, which classes North and South America separately.

"It's not something that I planned. It's all been completely by chance, but I'm proud of the record," said the keeper.

However Pfannenstiel (which translates as 'panhandle') got very close to never leaving Germany, or even his native Bavaria at the start of his career.

In his youth, he was capped by his country at various age levels, but at 20 he found himself at a third division club.

He prompted interest from the Bayern Munich, but never made it beyond their reserve team. So Pfannenstiel packed his bags and started his footballing odyssey. His first stop was Penang in Malaysia.

Then followed 23 transfers in 15 years, featuring well-known clubs, such as Wimbledon and Nottingham Forest in England, then the Orlando Pirates in South Africa, before stops in Malta, New Zealand and Brazil.

During his travels, the 'Phileas Fogg of football' has found himself penniless in Armenia, faced a brush with death in 2002, following a serious collision with an opponent in England's seventh tier, and spent three and a half months behind bars after being suspected of corruption in Singapore.

If he hasn't quite amassed the riches of Kaka or Zidane, Pfannenstiel still has causes close to his heart, like the fight against climate change.

In 2009 he hopes to organise a charity match of football legends in Antarctica, the only 'continent' missing from his list of conquests. AFP