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The battle for the future ownership of Liverpool has taken a fresh twist, with current co-owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks gaining a temporary restraining order to block the sale of the club.

Gillett and Hicks took action in a Texas District Court after the High Court in London had earlier dismissed their attempts to prevent a takeover by New England Sports Ventures.

Law firm Fish & Richardson, acting for Gillett and Hicks are seeking damages of $1.6billion, alleging that the duo have been the victims of an 'epic swindle' and a 'grand conspiracy'.

A statement from Fish & Richardson continued:"The director defendants were acting merely as pawns of RBS, wholly abdicating the fiduciary responsibilities that they owed in the sale.

"RBS has been complicit in this scheme with the director defendants. For example, in letters from RBS to potential investors obtained just within the past few days, RBS has informed investors that it will approve of a deal only if there is 'no economic return to equity' for Messrs. Hicks and Gillett.

"In furtherance of this grand conspiracy, on information and belief, RBS has improperly used its influence as the club's creditor and as a worldwide banking leader to prevent any transaction that would permit Messrs. Hicks and Gillett to recover any of their initial investment in the club, much less share in the substantial appreciation in the value of Liverpool FC that their investments have created."

A statement from Liverpool's current board responded:"Following the successful conclusion of High Court proceedings, the boards of directors of Kop Football and Kop Holdings met tonight and resolved to complete the sale of Liverpool FC to New England Sports Ventures.

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"Regrettably, Thomas Hicks and George Gillett have obtained a Temporary Restraining Order from a Texas District Court against the independent directors, Royal Bank of Scotland PLC and NESV to prevent the transaction being completed.

"The independent directors consider the restraining order to be unwarranted and damaging and will move as swiftly as possible to seek to have it removed."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

After a scintillating, if somewhat unexpected, start to the season, West Bromwich Albion find themselves in 6th place after 10 games, and had things have gone a little differently at Bloomfield Road on Monday night, the Baggies could have found themselves occupying a Champions League position. Having already played Manchester United, Tottenham, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea in their opening fixtures, with notable results at The Emirates and Old Trafford, this is not a case of an easy run of fixtures translating into an artificially high league position. But having seen the likes of Hull City and Burnley go into freefall after good starts, are West Brom about to make a rapid descent towards the relegation zone?

In the 2009-10 season Burnley occupied 11th spot after 10 games and surprised everyone by overcoming Manchester United at Turf Moor with a solitary Robbie Blake goal, before struggling to make an impression later in the season, culminating in the Clarets’ relegation back to the Championship. Having accumulated 12 points in the opening 10 games, Burnley then collected just 18 points from their remaining 28 fixtures, contrasting starkly with their early season form.

Another comparison comes in the shape of Hull City. In the 2008-09, Hull were in 5th place after 10 games, and, like West Brom, produced a remarkable result at The Emirates, with a Daniel Cousin goal proving to be the winner. Subsequent to this though, Hull went the rest of the season only winning two more games and finished only one point off relegation. But is this going to be the case for the Baggies?

Hull City player during the 2008-09 season and West Brom goalkeeper Boaz Myhill certainly doesn’t think so, with comparisons inevitable, but misguided. Speaking to the Sunday Mercury Myhill stated;

‘I don’t see any similarities… It’s a different club, different manager, different styles – the only thing we have in common was winning at Arsenal’

Myhill certainly has a point. On the pitch Hull and West Brom lack similarities, with the Baggies far more organised and relying far less on the set-pieces that proliferated the East Yorkshire side’s rise up the Premier League table. Off the pitch things are certainly different too. West Brom are no strangers to the Premier League, and know what it takes to survive having been the only side bottom at Christmas to have eventually lived to tell the tale in the Premier League the next season. Compare that with Hull, who had never previously been in the top division of the English league.

West Brom also seem to have found a nice balance in their squad, with new striker Peter Odemwingie, settling in very nicely after his move from Lokomotiv Moscow, scoring 3 goals in 6 games for the Baggies. What is also nice to see is a side all moving together in the same direction, with players, fans and board supporting Roberto Di Matteo and his footballing ideals. But as Phil Brown will tell you, that can all change very quickly.

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The comparisons with Hull are, as Boaz Myhill correctly asserted, incidental, and the differences between the two clubs far outweigh the similarities. So although I highly doubt West Brom will finish in their current elevated position, there is no cause for concern that Championship football could be on offer at The Hawthorns during the 2011-12 season.

If you liked this and would like to read more, why not check out my blogs, or follow me on Twitter.

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Netherlands midfielder Rafael van der Vaart has praised Spurs boss Harry Redknapp for keeping things simple.

The 27-year-old has made a flying start to his White Hart Lane career, scoring seven times in 12 appearances, having decided to leave Real Madrid to kick-start his career.

Van der Vaart told The Sun:"Harry is a very special man, that's why I already feel at home at Spurs. It feels like I'm back on the street.

"There are no long and boring speeches about tactics, like I was used to at Real Madrid.

"There is a clipboard in our dressing room, but Harry doesn't write anything on it. It's not that we do nothing – but it's close to that."

Meanwhile, Spurs have been boosted by the news that England striker Jermain Defoe has returned to full training well ahead of schedule.

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The 28-year-old has been sidelined since late August after suffering ankle ligament damage during the European Championship qualifier against Switzerland and had initially been thought to be facing a three-month absence.

However, he may yet be ready to feature as a substitute in this weekend's North London derby against Arsenal.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

At this stage we have no idea how fast she is, but she can take as long as she likes as far as many Tottenham fans are concerned.

Height:

165 cm / 5ft 5in

Hips:

93 cm / 37in

Weight:

55 kg / 121 lbs

Shoe size:

4.0 UK / 5.5 US / 37.0 Euro

Ethnicity:

Other

Hair colour:

Brown

Eye colour:

Brown

Hair length:

Long

Chest:

81 cm / 32 in

Dress size:

8

Waist:

66 cm / 26in

She’s a model, she’s a dancer, Performing arts student; studying, practising and performing all styles of Dance including: Contemporary, Urban, Jazz, Musical theatre.she’s a Slush Puppy fan she’s a hat wearer, she’s…. you get the picture. Or you will do when you hit the image below and launch the Gallery!

Yes, I’m as amazed as anybody else that Manchester City were willing to shell out £26 million for James Milner’s services. What I find even more amazing is the way that City have acted since completing the purchase. If you’re going to spend that kind of cash, you should at least attempt to get value for money. Milner was a star for Aston Villa because he was given the confidence of his boss and the time and space to showcase his talents. He can’t really count on either at the moment.

Milner finds himself in a crowded team where competition for places is so strong that he’s hardly getting a look in at the moment.

It’s my opinion that if City are to get the best out of Milner, he should be brought in off the wings. Give him some freedom in the centre of midfield to roam and pick out his passes and City could really find themselves opening up teams. Unfortunately for Milner, there are too many players ahead of him in the line-up that would start before him in the centre of the midfield (De Jong, Yaya, Barry, Silva, etc).

The competition for places means that when Milner does get an opportunity to play he finds himself out on the wings. It’s not a perfect situation for either the club, or the player. Playing down the left, Milner can sometimes look slow and lethargic, and his final ball often leaves something to be desired. It’s a far cry from the man we saw playing for Aston Villa last season.

Still, there is evidence that Mancini holds Milner in some regard: With City leading Bolton by only 1 goal to nil, it was Milner that Mancini sent on in an attempt to revitalise their fatigued midfield and put a stop to any potential Bolton comeback. City do have a reputation for conceding during injury time after all.

It seems to me that beyond the goalkeeping position and possibly Carlos Tevez, there are no nailed on ‘starters’ present at the club. Players can’t rely on a couple of good performances to keep them in contention for a starting position. Such is the strength of competition that you can perform well one day and find yourself on the bench the next. This makes it even more difficult to impress when you’re just coming on for a couple of minutes towards the end of the game.

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I genuinely hope that Milner comes good at City. At the moment he just has to bide his time and grab any opportunity that he can. If that doesn’t work and he isn’t getting regular first team football by the end of the season, then perhaps it’ll be time to move on.

Do you want to see more of Milner, or is he very much a City squad player? Feel free to leave a comment, or follow me on Twitter: @ThePerfectPass

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Avram Grant is on the defensive as he prepares West Ham for the first leg of the Carling Cup semi final. The Israeli boss doesn’t think he has been given enough respect for the Hammers’ progress in the competition this season that also included the 4-0 scalp of Manchester United.

In the news and papers this morning there have been a mixed bag of stories that include Babel being charge for his twitter image of Webb; Maradona claims that a Premier League club wants him and Damien Comolli claims that Dalglish certainly fits the bill at Anfield.

*

Comolli – Dalglish fits the bill – Sky Sports

Lionel Messi wins Ballon d’Or – Daily Telegraph

Maradona: Prem club wants me – Sun

Babel charged for Twitter image of Webb – Guardian

Upson puts future on hold – Sky Sports

Beckham plans to take wage cut at Spurs – Guardian

Owen: Liverpool too reliant on ‘couple of stars’ – Daily Telegraph

Villa to launch new £3.5m Adam bid – Sun

Napoli dismiss Tottenham link with Edinson Cavani – IMScouting

West Ham set to seal loan deal for Bridge – Daily Mail

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Socceroo star Tim Cahill remains in some doubt for the Asian Cup quarter-final with the striker missing training due to a corked thigh.

Cahill injured himself late in the 1-0 win over Bahrain on Tuesday and Australian medical staff have opted to take cautious approach ahead of Sunday’s knockout clash with Iraq.

The Everton man will be given every chance to prove himself while David Carney and Luke Wilkshire, who have overcome shoulder and groin injuries respectively, should play at least some role in the game. Brett Emerton will sit out the match through suspension.

Meanwhile, midfield pair Mile Jedinak and Brett Holman have denied there is any sense of revenge against the Iraqis for Australia’s loss to the Lions of Mesopotamia in the 2007 Asian Cup group stages.

“I don’t think revenge is the word,” said Holman. “But it would be nice to get a win as they’ve won the last couple of games against us and had the upper hand.”

Jedinak said: “Personally, not being there last time, I’m not thinking about that, though I’m not sure about the rest of the boys and this is a different game.”

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“But let’s not kid ourselves – they are the defending champions for a reason. They are a good side and we are expecting a tough game.”

Wellington Phoenix are through to the A-League finals series after beating North Queensland Fury 3-1 on Sunday.

Needing just a point from the last match of the regular season to secure the sixth and final play-offs spot ahead of Newcastle Jets, the Phoenix did it with relative ease against a team that has not won a match since mid-December.

They will now travel to South Australia to play Adelaide United onFriday.

Chris Greenacre got the opener in the seventh minute and Dylan Macallister doubled the lead four minutes later.

But it was the penalty by goalkeeper Danny Vukovic – in his final home game for the Phoenix – that got the biggest cheer from the 12,718 crowd in the 93rd minute to seal the win in dramatic fashion.

Brett Studman’s goal in the 66th minute had given the Fury some hope of a comeback.

But when he pulled back substitute Mirjan Pavlovic in the box in the dying stages of the match he went from hero to villain as referee Peter O’Leary had no hesitation in pointing to the spot and showing Studman a straight red card.

Vukovic also left no one in doubt he wanted to take the spot kick.

“I went straight over to (coach) Ricki (Herbert). I’m not sure what he said but I didn’t really care what he was going to say to be fair,” said the keeper with a grin.

“I knew it was the last kick of the game and there’s probably no more perfect way for a goalkeeper to score a goal than with the last kick of the game.”

“There were probably four or five boys putting their hand up. But once they saw me up there they were happy to give it to me.”

Meanwhile, a last-gasp goal from attacking midfielder Patricio Perez gave the Central Coast Mariners a 1-0 win over Newcastle.

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Perez was in the right spot to tap home from close range for his sixth goal of the season after a great run and cross from defender Josh Rose in the 90th minute.

In the first half Perez had a host of great chances to open the scoring but failed to hit the target.

The Mariners now take on Brisbane in the first leg of the major semi-final at Gosford on Saturday, but will have to be more decisive in front of goal to challenge the premiership favourites.

The excellent run of form for Premier League clubs in Europe continued last night, as both Liverpool and Manchester City secured their places in the next round of the Europa League. There they will be joined by Rangers, as the SPL giants went through on away goals against Sporting Lisbon.

In the newspapers this morning much of the coverage on the back pages concerns Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas, with the Spaniard claiming he is fit to play on Sunday despite being ruled out by Gunners manager Arsene Wenger. Elsewhere Tottenham are looking to strengthen their defence in the summer with right back Gokhan Gonul and Newcastle have tied down Cheik Tiote to a long term deal at St James’ Park.

Arsenal fitness trainer: Cesc could have played on Sunday – Mirror

Dzeko disappointed with display – Guardian

Glazers set to announce their commitment to Man United – Telegraph

Redknapp leads chase for Gokhan Gonul – Mirror

Tiote signs new Newcastle deal – The Sun

Moyes scouring the Championship for Sven’s stars – Daily Mail

Top clubs face tough TV schedules – Telegraph

Barry Hearn threatens to sue ‘everyone’ – Guardian

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It’s referees and not just players getting into trouble on Twitter – The Sun

Owen Coyle eager to sort out Elmander’s future in the next fortnight – Daily Mail

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Benfica were forced to come from behind to beat Maritimo 2-1 to reduce their gap to leaders Porto to eight points on Sunday.The league’s 13th-placed side stunned the title contenders when Angolan striker Djalma scored in the 76th minute, which threatened to all but end Benfica’s hopes of a championship defence.But Eduardo Salvio equalised for Benfica, before a 90th minute winner to Fabio Coentrao completed the quick turnaround for the hosts.Strugglers Portimonense racked up just their third win of the league season when they beat Beira-Mar 1-0 away at the Estadio Municipal de Aveiro.Ricardo Pessoa’s 64th minute penalty was enough to see the visitors snare the three points.Joao Tomas went from hero to villain in Rio Ave’s 1-0 win over Uniao de Leiria at Estadio do Rio Ave Futebol Clube.Tomas scored the game’s only goal in the 10th minute, but was sent off in the dying stages of the match.Nacional upset third-placed Sporting Lisbon 1-0, denying them with just ten men for the final half-hour.Mateus scored the winner in the 20th minute, before Joao Aurelio was given his marching orders in the 63rd minute.