SPORTS AND GAME, GOSSIPS AND TRANSFERS

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti is leading the chase for Blackburn Rovers defender Phil Jones after sending director of football Frank Arnesen to look at the England Under-21 international at the weekend.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson is looking to sign highly-rated Wolves winger Matt Jarvis.
Full story: caughtoffside.com

Bolton's top scorer Johan Elmander is being chased by Turkish club Fenerbahce who are set to put in £3m bid for the Swede in the January transfer window.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Stoke City are set to extend winger Jermaine Pennant's stay when his loan spell from Real Zaragoza expires in January.
Full story: Daily Mirror

OTHER GOSSIP

Former Manchester United great and current reserve team manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is in talks to end his 14-year association with the Old Trafford club and become manager of the Norwegian side Molde.
Full story: The Guardian

Wolves goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann is considering quitting the club at the end of the season to return to his native America.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Police will impose a drink ban for Wednesday's Manchester derby amid fears of trouble between rival United and City fans.
Full story: Daily Mirror

AND FINALLY

Stoke boss Tony Pulis says he is on the worst run of refereeing decisions in his 800-game managerial career after his side were denied a penalty, if not a goal, when Kenwyne Jones's header was cleared by the arm of Sunderland's Lee Cattermole's on Saturday.
Full story: Daily Mirror

UK PREMIER LEAGUE ROUND UP
Fernando Torres made it seven goals in eight appearances against Chelsea as his stunning double gave a resurgent Liverpool a deserved 2-0 victory against the Premier League leaders.
Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson was hoping to build on wins against Blackburn, Bolton and most recently Napoli and the Reds, inspired by star striker Torres, gave their manager some breathing space with a tremendous performance.


It didn't take long for Liverpool to grab the initiative, the returning Dirk Kuyt floating a glorious pass over the Chelsea defence for Torres to bring down and finish superbly past the advancing Petr Cech.
The second was a real sucker-punch for the visitors as, with half-time approaching, Ashley Cole was dispossessed by Raul Meireles, who then charged forward before feeding Torres in the penalty area. The Spaniard cut in from the left and then curled a glorious strike into the far corner.

Andy Carroll scored his sixth goal of the season as Newcastle United upset Arsenal 1-0 at Emirates Stadium. Less than a fortnight after Arsene Wenger's side enjoyed a 4-0 win in the Carling Cup, Newcastle had their revenge as they moved up to fifth in the Premier League.
Carroll's header shortly before half-time condemned Arsenal to a second straight defeat in all competitions following their defeat to Shakhtar Donetsk in midweek.
With England manager Fabio Capello watching from the stands, Carroll did his chances of an international call-up no harm as he caused problems for the Gunners defence and used his aerial presence to good effect. Lukasz Fabianski came out to deal with Joey Barton's free-kick, but Carroll beat him to it to give the Magpies a half-time lead.
Marouane Chamakh had a chance to equalise for Arsenal shortly after the break, after Alex Song dragged the ball across the face of Tim Krul's goal, but Danny Simpson did enough to steer the ball out of the danger area. Andrei Arshavin crossed for Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas but his diving header was straight at Krul. The Gunners continued to press for an equaliser, but the Newcastle defence were well drilled.
Laurent Koscielny added to Arsenal's woes when he was shown a red card in stoppage time after bringing down the pacy Nile Ranger.

Mario Balotelli showed all parts of his game, scoring twice before seeing red, as Manchester City helped ease the pressure on Roberto Mancini with a much-needed 2-0 victory against West Bromwich Albion at the Hawthorns.
The strain on Mancini has been gradually building after City lost for the third time in a row against Lech Poznan in midweek but his side stopped the rot with a workmanlike performance to move back up to fourth in the table.

With Albion unbeaten at home in the league, City faced an ominous task and the home side nearly made their fast start count when Chris Brunt almost forced an own goal from Kolo Toure. City soon found their rhythm, however, and, although their possession lacked penetration at times, they went ahead when Balotelli met the returning Carlos Tevez's low cross to steer home his first Premier League goal.
It wasn't long before City were two goals to the good, the impressive David Silva picking out Balotelli who, despite a poor first touch, held off Gabriel Tamas before firing past Scott Carson. City looked set to take three points back to Eastlands until Balotelli showed his dark side by kicking out at Youssuf Mulumbu to earn a straight red card. West Brom pressed hard for an opening but City were resolute in defence and Hart was rarely called upon.
West Brom lost their extra-player advantage when Mulumbu was dismissed for going through the back of Tevez and, consequently, they appeared rudderless for the remainder of the game.

LA LIGA ROUN UP
Real Madrid powered on at the top of the Primera Division standings after continuing their overwhelming dominance of local rivals Atletico this evening in a 2-0 win.

 

Real have not lost home or away to Atletico since 1999 and that run never looked like coming to an end after Jose Mourinho's in-form side scored early goals through Ricardo Carvalho and Mesut Ozil.

That is the way the scoreline finished as Real remained a point clear of Barcelona at the summit and extended their unbeaten run under Mourinho to 15 games in all competitions, 11 of which have finished in victories.

Gerard Pique was sent off as Barcelona claimed a 3-1 win at Getafe in the Primera Division to maintain their perfect away record.
Pique handled in the area midway through the second half and was shown his second yellow card of the night.
Manu del Moral converted from the spot, but Barcelona were already three goals up at that stage. The Catalans went in 2-0 ahead at the interval following strikes from Lionel Messi and David Villa.
Pedro then extended Barcelona's lead with a third goal after 64 minutes and the victory never looked in doubt for Pep Guardiola's side, even after they had been reduced to 10 men.

Getafe also finished the match with 10 men after Derek Boateng was sent off with 10 minutes left.

Fernandez Gabi scored a 95th-minute penalty to earn struggling Real Zaragoza a precious 3-2 win over

Real Mallorca that moves them off the bottom of the table on goal difference.
Goals from Pierre Webo and Michael Pereira, either side of Angel Lafita's strike, looked to have won it for European hopefuls Mallorca, but Nicolas Bertolo equalised with five minutes to go, before Gabi struck from the spot to complete a stunning turnaround.

Sporting Gijon picked up just their second point of the season away from home with Nacho Novo's second-half strike earning them a share of the spoils at Almeria.
The home side led through Miguel Angel Corona's 16th-minute goal but were pegged back when former Rangers striker Novo volleyed home with 17 minutes to go.

Osasuna stormed to a comprehensive 3-0 win at home to promoted side Hercules in a one-sided match at the Reyno de Navarra.
Goals from Nacho Monreal, Lolo and Krisztian Vadocz gave the Pamplona-based side a deserved victory as Jose Antonio Camacho's men reacted positively following last weekend's dismal 4-1 defeat at Racing Santander to move up to 12th place in the table after 10 rounds of the Primera Division.

Villarreal showed off their title credentials with a 4-1 thrashing of Athletic Bilbao.
However, they had to come from behind to do it as Fernando Llorente's seventh-minute strike stood up for most of the first half. Nilmar levelled five minutes before the break, and then Santi Cazorla turned the game on its head on the stroke of half-time.
Giuseppe Rossi added a third with six minutes left and Jefferson Montero added the fourth in the final minute.

THE REAL WYNE ROONEY ACCORDING TO LAMPARD
He's one of the most famous players on planet football, the highest-paid star in the Premier League and the jewel in the crown of the England team.
But despite the intense scrutiny of his every action, very little is actually known about Wayne Rooney. And that's why BBC Radio 5 live embarked on a journey to find out more, speaking to his friends, team-mates and those who come from the same neighbourhood in Liverpool. The result is The Real Wayne Rooney.
We started with Frank Lampard, the striker's England team-mate for nearly eight years and someone he counts as a friend.

He's a lad's lad and that's what I love about him Lampard on Rooney

And contrary to the stereotype of 'Wazza' as brash, arrogant and stupid, Lampard revealed that there is much more depth to him than most would imagine.
"He's a confident boy but not over-confident," Lampard told 5Live. "I think there's a sensitive side to him. I've spent a lot of time with him, we get on very well and at the World Cup we'd sit in a room together and watch the other games.

"I don't think people understand, they just read the big headlines in the papers, particularly in the last few weeks, and get an impression of someone. He's a very sensitive lad, you can have a very good conversation about anything you want.
"I think he's a very cute, worldly lad for how young he is. He had no problem with relating to the older players. With Wayne, everyone's the same. He'd talk to David Beckham the same as he'd talk to a new player coming into the squad who plays for Stoke or Bolton. That's the beauty of him, I think, as a person."
Lampard also revealed that Rooney was instrumental in breaking down the cliques which existed in the England squad and caused tension among the players.

 

"He's a very social lad," said the Chelsea midfielder. "He crosses all the boundaries of factions within a squad that you always have, not in a bad way but there's always slight little groups and different teams when you turn up with England.

"From that very early stage he flitted between everyone and had a mini-friendship with everyone. People who call him thick - it's just a lazy thing to say. He's sharp. The people who call him thick have a certain element of thickness about them. How can you call someone thick who you've never met?"
To find out more about Rooney, we travelled to his native city and spent a day in Croxteth, the tough estate he was born into and that shaped his personality.

UFC cage fighter Paul Kelly is familiar with the good and bad in 'Crocky'. He gave us a tour and it became clear that Rooney's boxing background wasn't just about the sport. Meanwhile Derek Hatton, the former politician and scouse spokesman, explained how proving the world wrong is part of the DNA of scousers.
Bob Pendleton, the Everton scout who discovered Rooney as a nine-year-old on the public parks of Croxteth, also re-lived his experiences of the young player and his family.
And when asked to sum him up, Lampard could not have been more honest: "Confident, very good to be around, funny, and one you want next to you as a mate if you go to war or if you just want a laugh. He's a lad's lad and that's what I love about him."

BEST OF THE WEEK END
Bolton 4 Tottenham 2

In truth, the first half of this match was largely turgid as both sides struggled to find their rhythm. But Bolton nonetheless took the lead in the 31st minute as an offside-looking Kevin Davies slotted in. And the Trotters doubled their advantage when Gretar Steinsson arrowed home with quality. Bolton then found themselves in dreamland as they took a 3-0 lead, with Davies dispatching from the penalty spot. But then came something of a fightback from Spurs, with Alan Hutton scoring a wonderful individual goal before Roman Pavlyuchenko made it 3-2. However, Bolton ended any hope of a comeback when Martin Petrov raced clear to cap a thrilling six-goal encounter.

Player of the weekend

Kevin Davies

In front of England manager Fabio Capello, Bolton striker Davies was again a thorn in Tottenham's side. The bullish striker ran Spurs' defence ragged, scoring twice and assisting once. His first goal, albeit being offside, was a smart finish taken early before he coolly slotted in from the penalty spot. And in the dying stages, Davies' deft flick of the head assisted Petrov.

Performance of the weekend

Newcastle

Three Premier League wins in a row say it all. What a run of form by the Magpies, and what a way to notch said third triumph as they stunned Arsenal at Emirates Stadium. Also, surely Newcastle should be handing manager Chris Hughton a pen right now to ensure he does sign a new deal with the club. Hughton's men played superbly in North London, with Andy Carroll Carroll bagging the decisive goal. For the entire 90 minutes, the Toon were committed and organised, and worthy of their three-point haul.

Goal of the weekend

Fernando Torres

What a classy goal. Torres lands this weekend gong, but only narrowly after Roman Pavlyuchenko dazzled with a super strike of his own. First, let's touch upon the Russian's goal at Bolton. The Tottenham forward focused on a high dropping ball inside Bolton's penalty area before executing the sweetest volley that whistled home and would likely have decapitated a player had it caught a player on its route in. The winner, Torres, meanwhile, picked up possession against Chelsea on the left side and dinked into the box. The Liverpool attacker got his head up and then curled home into the far corner in sumptuous fashion to make it 2-0 to his team.

Pass of the weekend

Barry Bannan

This boy looks a very exciting talent. The 20-year-old Scot shone for Aston Villa at Fulham as he pulled the strings in midfield. The highlight of his display came on 41 minutes as he assisted Marc Albrighton in style. Bannan angled a splendid cross-field pass over Fulham's defence to Albrighton, who took a super first touch and netted. In the weekend's other matches, Liverpool's Dirk Kuyt picked out team-mate Fernando Torres with a fabulous pass. Also, West Ham midfielder Luis Boa Morte threaded through a gorgeous delivery into the path of Frederic Piquionne, who did not have to adjust his stride before striking in.

Controversy of the weekend

Lee Cattermole

Stoke City can rightly feel aggrieved at this decision at the Stadium of Light. Kenwyne Jones rose in the box and directed a header at goal. Sunderland midfielder Cattermole was standing on the post and looked to block the shot away. He did so, but question marks were raised over whether the ball crossed the line. Upon viewing the replay, the ball may have crossed the line, but even worse for Stoke was that Cattermole quite clearly handled the ball away from dropping into the net. Nothing doing from the referee, leading to a furious Tony Pulis. Elsewhere, Spurs' Tom Huddlestone could/should face action for his alleged stamp on Johan Elmander at Bolton.

Save of the weekend

Ben Foster

This was quite a sensational piece of goalkeeping by Birmingham City's No.26. West Ham striker Carlton Cole did really well to divert a deflected cross goal-bound from inside the box. The ball looked set to nestle home, but Foster got down expertly to get a strong arm on the shot, deflecting the ball onto the post and out. Marvellous. Elsewhere, Newcastle's Tim Krul deserves a huge pat on the back for his brilliant save that thwarted Arsenal's Samir Nasri as he got a hand to a thunderous effort to turn it round the post.

Gaffe of the weekend

Lukasz Fabianski

Oh, Lukasz, what have you done? After, following a quick count, arguably seven appearances without a mistake, 'Flappyhandski' reverted to type. The Arsenal shot-stopper tried to claim a high ball into Arsenal's penalty area against Newcastle on Sunday, but ultimately failed. Indeed, Fabianski swiped at thin air as the towering Andy Carroll won the header and planted the ball into an empty net, which had become vacant due to said goalkeeper's poor decision making. That goal cost Arsenal as they slipped off the pace in their title push.

HERI KWAO WENYE "MAINI MENGI"
The biggest game in the Premier League this weekend ended in a 2-0 win for Liverpool against Premier League leaders Chelsea at Anfield. Fernando Torres scored twice in the first-half to demolish the Blues and extend the Reds' unbeaten run to five matches in all competitions!