Bolton agree Cohen deal

Sochaux appoint Gillot

The Scottish Premier League have postponed Wednesday’s Old Firm derby between Celtic and Rangers as a mark of respect following the death of Motherwell captain Phil O’Donnell.

Bolton have agreed a deal with Maccabi Netanya to sign 23-year-old Israel midfielder Tamir Cohen on a two-and-half-year deal if they can gain international clearance.

Queens Park Rangers have signed Gavin Mahon from Watford on loan with a view to a permanent deal.

West Bromwich Albion are prepared to let John Hartson leave the club.

Sochaux have appointed Francis Gillot as their new coach.

Nathan Davies

Premier League round-up

Cagliari appoint Ballardini

Manchester City held Liverpool to a goalless draw in front of a record crowd of 47,321 at the City of Manchester Stadium - where City remain unbeaten in the Premier League.

Derby County came from behind to beat Derby County 1-2 at Pride Park. Matt Oakley put the home side ahead after 27 minutes but Rams striker Steve Howard then saw his penalty saved by Brad Friedel. This miss was decisive as moments later Roque Santa Cruz notched an equaliser before David Bentley fired the winner from 25 yards after 42 minutes.

Dean Windass scored the only goal of the game after 33 minutes as Hull City beat Sheffield Wednesday 1-0 at the KC Stadium. The win lifts Hull into eighth spot in the Championship table, while Wednesday remain third from bottom.

Gretna’s Scottish Premier League clash with St Mirren at Fir Park on January 2 has been postponed following the tragic death of Motherwell’s Phil O’Donnell yesterday. Meanwhile, following a plea from the O’Donnell family, the match between Motherwell and Celtic on January 6 has also been postponed. O’Donnell, 35, died shortly after suffering a suspected seizure during the match against Dundee United on Saturday.

Cagliari have confirmed Davide Ballardini as their new coach.

Nathan Davies

Premier League round-up

Namibia coach passes away

Motherwell midfielder Phil O’Donnell has died after collapsing during his side’s 5-3 win over Dundee United at Fir Park. O’Donnell collapsed to the ground as he was about to be substituted and received five minutes’ treatment before being stretchered to an ambulance. The 35-year-old - who also played for Sheffield Wednesday and Celtic as well as winning one cap for Scotland - died after going to hospital.

Motherwell manager Mark McGhee said:

“I don’t want to say anything more than how devastated everyone at the club is for his wife and his young children. That’s what we are all feeling tonight, nothing else matters. Obviously from the club’s point of view we’ll gather round to give his family as much support as they need.”

Motherwell’s match with Hibernian on January 2 has been postponed as a mark of respect.

Arsenal moved back to the top of the Premier League after a 1-4 victory over Everton at Goodison Park. Top spot was available after Manchester United lost 2-1 against West Ham United at Upton Park. The Red Devils took the lead on 14 minutes through Cristiano Ronaldo but he also contrived to miss a second-half penalty before the home side took control. Substitute Anton Ferdinand headed home after 77 minutes and eight minutes from time Matthew Upson scored the winner with a firm header. West Ham have now beaten Alex Ferguson’s men in the last three league meetings.

Elsewhere, Dimitar Berbatov scored four goals as Tottenham Hotspur beat Reading 6-4 at White Hart Lane, Sunderland jump out of the relegation zone with a 3-1 home win over Bolton Wanderers, Wigan Athletic replace the Black Cats in the bottom three after a 1-2 defeat by Aston Villa at the JJB Stadium, Chelsea beat Newcastle United 2-1 a Stamford Bridge courtesy off a controversial 87th minute strike from Kalou who appeared to be yards offside, Fulham’s Hameur Bouazza was sent-off but the West Londoners held on for a 1-1 draw with Birmingham City at St Andrews and Portsmouth’s goalless home streak continued as Tuncay Sanli helped Middlesbrough to a 0-1 success at Fratton Park.

On a sad day for football, it was also announced that Namibia coach Ben Bamfuchile has died following a short illness. Bamfuchile, 47, died in his home country of Zambia on Thursday night.

Nathan Davies

Villa and Chelsea lose appeals

Former Blackbun Rovers boss Roy Hodgson is the new manager of Fulham and will officially take charge at Craven Cottage on December 30. Ray Lewington and his assistant Billy McKinlay will take charge of the game with Birmingham City at St Andrews before Hodgson starts his “long-term contract”.

Aston Villa and Chelsea have lost appeals against the red cards shown to Zat Knight and Ashley Cole during the 4-4 thriller on Boxing Day. The FA upheld the decisions made by referee Phil Dowd and both players will now serve one-match bans tomorrow. Knight will miss Villa’s trip to face Wigan Athletic while Cole is unavailable for Chelsea’s home clash with Newcastle United.

Nathan Davies

Lampard suffers thigh injury

Hearts players in crisis talks

A brace from Roque Santa Cruz earned Blackburn Rovers a point in a 2-2 draw against Manchester City at the City of Manchester Stadium. The home side took the lead through Darius Vassell on 27 minutes but Santa Cruz equalised just a minute late. Visiting defender Ryan Nelsen scored an own goal on the half-hour mark to complete an explosive three-minute period. Santa Cruz grabbed the equaliser with only six minutes left to end City’s 100% home record in the Premier League and continue his personal run of form. The Paraguayan has now scored seven goals in his last four games.

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard will b sidelined for the next “few weeks” with a thigh injury. A club statement read:

“Scans have revealed a tear in Frank Lampard’s right thigh. The tear is not the same leg that Frank injured earlier in the season. He will begin rehabilitation immediately and we hope to have him back playing within a few weeks.”

Chelsea and Aston Villa appeal against the red cards shown to Ashley Cole and Zat Knight during yesterday’s 4-4 draw at Stamford Bridge. The pair will learn their fate at a Football Association hearing on December 28. Meanwhile, Chelsea defender Ricardo Carvalho, who was also dismissed by referee Phil Dowd, has apologised for his two-footed lunge on Gabriel Agbonlahor.

Dalton Steele has left his position as Altrincham assistant manager.

Blue Square Premier club York City have appointed Colin Walker as their new manager on a permanent basis. Walker had been in caretaker char since November’s sacking of Billy McEwan.

Heart of Midlothian players held emergency crisis talks following their 0-1 home defeat to St Mirren yesterday and then again this morning. The Edinburgh club are third from bottom of the Scottish Premier League. Hearts goalkeeper, Steve Banks, said:

“A few of the senior players in there thought the players needed to have a meeting without any staff there, which we did. There were a few things said that maybe had not been said before. I certainly hope that everyone is well aware of the threat of relegation. It’s becoming a bit more realistic as time has gone on. I think the club is too good to go down, whether the players are at the moment I don’t know. We are not getting the results. The club, as far as I’m concerned, deserves to be top of the league and be winning cups every year because it is a great club with a lot of tradition. It’s just not happening at the moment. Not only was it a bad result for us, it was probably one of the worst performances as well. We need to knuckle down and get results and not be too concerned about performances, although it is important to play well. We just have to get three points at the end of the 90 minutes and get some confidence back and hopefully the performances will start coming with the wins.”

Nathan Davies

Premier League round-up

SPL round-up

On a spectacular day of Premier League action, Chelsea and Aston Villa drew 4-4 at Stamford Bridge. Villa raced into a two-goal lead, courtesy of a Shaun Maloney double, but in first-half stoppage time Zat Knight bundled over Michael Ballack in the penalty area, was sent-off and Andriy Shevchenko scored the resulting penalty. Five minutes after the restart, Shevchenko netted the equaliser before Alex put the home side ahead. Martin Laursen then put Villa level before Ricardo Carvalho was dismissed after a crude challenge. Chelsea appeared to have won the match when Michael Ballack scored from a free-kick on 88 minutes but there was still time for Ashley Cole to receive his marching orders for handling in the box and Gareth Barry made no mistake from the penalty spot.

Chelsea had Petr Cech back in goal as his injury against Blackburn Rovers on Sunday was not as bad as first feared.

Manchester United are top of the Premier League after beating Sunderland 0-4 at The Stadium of Light while Arsenal were held to a goalless draw at Portsmouth. Liverpool are fourth after a last-gasp Steven Gerrard effort secured a hard-fought 1-2 win at Derby County.

Elsewhere, Tottenham Hotspur beat struggling Fulham 5-1 at White Hart Lane, West Ham United and Reading drew 1-1 at Upton Park, Birmingham City beat Middlesborough 3-0 and Wigan Athletic jump clear of the relegation zone with a 1-0 home win over Newcastle United.

Everton beat Bolton Wanderers 2-0 at Goodison Park.

West Bromwich Albion are back on top of the Championship on goal difference after thrashing Bristol City 4-1 at The Hawthorns. The Baggies took thei opportunity after Cardiff City held Watford to a 2-2 draw at Vicarage Road. Stoke City are in third position after a last-minute Liam Lawrence penalty secured his hat-trick and a vital point for the Potters in a 3-3 draw. Crystal Palace’s fine form continued with a 0-2 win at Coventry City to make it 11 games unbeaten and Leicester City beat Ipswich Town 2-0 to secure their first win in eight.

Swansea City are back on top of the League One ladder after beating Cheltenham 4-1 at the Liberty Stadium. Nottingham Forest remain second despite being held to a goalless draw at Oldham Athletic while Leeds are third after Jermaine Beckford’s last-gasp strike in the 1-1 draw at Hartlepool United. Bournemouth are off the foot off the table after beating Leyton Orient 2-0. Luton Town picked up an unlikely point in a 1-1 draw at Bristol Rovers despite being reduced to 8-men. Chris Coyne, Steve Robinson and Anthony Grant all saw red.

Milton Keynes Dons stretched their lead at the top of League Two to six points as they came from behind to defeat Notts County 1-2 at Meadow Lane. Mansfield Town are off the bottom of the table after a 2- 0 home win over promotion chasing Peterborough United. Wrexham, who lost 0-2 to Rochdale at the Racecourse, replace them at the bottom.

In the Scottish Premier League, Celtic beat Dundee United 0-2 at Tannadice while Rangers triumphed over Motherwell at Ibrox 3-1. Celtic still lead the way at the top of the SPL by two points but Rangers have two games in hand. Kilmarnock picked up a 2-1 home win over managerless Hibernian, Gretna are now up to double figures at the bottom of the table after a 1-1 draw with visitors Aberdeen, Falkirk beat Inverness Caldedonian Thistle 1-0 at the Falkirk Stadium and Heart of Midlothian slumped to a 0-1 home defeat against St Mirren.

Nathan Davies

Nathan Davies

Spurs to sign Gunter

Speed set to join Blades

Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech, who was taken off injured during Sunday’s 0-1 victory at Blackburn Rovers, could miss the festive games against Aston Villa, Newcastle United and Fulham after suffering bruising in a clash with Roque Santa Cruz. An official statement said: “Scans have shown bruising around Petr’s hip and side. We will continue to monitor the situation over the coming days. We hope to have him back playing as soon as possible.” With Carlo Cudicini also out injured, Hilario will deputise but Chelsea refused to determine exactly how long Cech will be missing for.

Tottenham Hotspur will sign Cardiff City defender Chris Gunter during the January transfer window after the two clubs agreed a £3m deal for the 18-year-old. It is thought that the transfer includes an up-front sum with add-ons for appearances and a sell-on clause. Gunter is a Welsh international and won three full Wales caps in 2007.

Everton have rejected an approach from Celtic to sign Scotland striker James McFadden on loan in January.

Sheffield United will sign Gary Speed from Bolton Wanderers on January 1. The 38-year-old will join the Championship side on a short-term loan before signing permanently for a fee around £250,000. According to United chairman Terry Robinson, Speed will sign an 18-month playing contract with an option for a further 12 months as a coach.

Nathan Davies

Premier League round-up

Rangers held at Pittodrie

Manchester United kept the pressure on Arsenal at the top of the Premier League with a 2-1 victory over Everton at Old Trafford. Cristiano Ronaldo put the home side ahead on 22 minutes but Tim Cahill equalised just five minutes later. It seemed as if Everton would hold on for a point until Steven Pienaar’s clumsy challenge on Ryan Giggs two minutes from time allowed Ronaldo to score his second from the penalty spot after 88 minutes. The result ended the Toffees’ 13-match unbeaten run in all competitions and moved United to within a point of the Gunners.

Joe Cole scored the only goal of the game as Chelsea beat Blackburn Rovers 0-1 at Ewood Park. Mark Hughes’ men have now won just one of the last eight league games.

Newcastle United twice came from behind to draw 2-2 with bottom-placed Derby County at St James’ Park. Giles Barnes gave the visitors the lead after only six minutes only for Mark Viduka to level on 27 minutes. Kenny Miller’s second-half effort looked like it might be enough to give the Rams only their second win of the season but Viduka was on hand again with only three minutes left to ensure the points were shared.

Ten-man Rangers were held to a 1-1 draw by Aberdeen at Pittodrie. Charlie Adam gave the visitors the lead on the half-hour but seven minutes later Lee McCulloch received a straight red card for an off-the-ball incident on Scott Severin, which was spotted by the linesman. Lee Miller grabbed the equaliser on the stroke of half-time.

Nathan Davies

Premier League round-up

Charlton release figures

Arsenal beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 in this North London derby at the Emirates Stadium. Emmanuel Adebayor put the Gunners ahead after 48 minutes but Dimitar Berbatov levelled in the 66th minute. Robbie Keane then had a great opportunity to put Spurs in front from the penalty spot but Manuel Almunia dived to his right to save. Nicklas Bendtner then headed the winner on 76 minutes. It was a goal that left Spurs without a victory against their rivals in eight years.

Liverpool remain in fifth despite comfortably beating Portsmouth 4-1 Anfield. Yossi Benayoun and an own-goal from Sylvain Distin put the home side 2-0 up at the break. Benjani pulled one back for Pompey on 57 minutes but a Fernando Torres double made sure of the points for the Reds.

Wigan Athletic and Manchester City both drew 1-1 away from home at Fulham and Aston Villa respectively. Meanwhile, Bolton Wanderers beat Birmingham City 3-0 at the Reebok Stadium with all the goals coming in the second half. El Hadji Diouf opened the scoring on 72 minutes before a late brace from Nicolas Anelka. At the Madjeski Stadium, Reading beat Sunderland 2-1 after benefiting from Stephen Hunt’s controversial stoppage time winner, which did not appear to cross the line. Sunderland remain without an away win this season. Scott Parker scored a last-minute winner as West Ham United beat Middlesbrough 1-2 - the first time the Hammers have won at the Riverside Stadium.

Watford are back on top of the Championship table after a 0-1 victory at Sheffield Wednesday. Aidy Boothroyd’s replaced West Bromwich Albion who lost 3-1 at the Britannia Stadium as Stoke City extended their unbeaten run to seven games thanks largely to a Ricardo Fuller hat-trick. Elsewhere, Queens Park Rangers climbed off the bottom of the table and were replaced by Colchester United who they beat 2-1 at Loftus Road.

Nottingham Forest are the new leaders of League One after a 2-0 win over Port Vale at the City Ground. The match between Carlisle United and previous leaders Swansea City at Brunton Park was postponed yesterday due to a frozen pitch.

The League Two match between Rochdale and Barnet at Spotland was postponed due to a frozen pitch. Peterborough United stay second after a 2-1 win over Bradford City, third placed Darlington won 0-4 at Lincoln City and Morecambe beat Hereford United 0-3 at Edgar Street, ending the home sides 11-match unbeaten run.

In the Scottish Premier League, Celtic were held to a 1-1 draw at Celtic Park by Hibernian. The Bhoys are now just three points ahead of Rangers at the top of the table, with the second-placed side having three games in hand. Gretna secured their first away win of the season with a 1-2 win over Dundee United at Tannadice to record their second SPL victory over the Terrors this season.

Charlton Athletic made a net loss of £9.9m in the financial year ending 30 June 2007 compared to a loss of 8.1m for 2005/06. Despite such figures, turnover has increased from £35.9m to £41.9m. There was an overall operating loss of £11.8m before player sales, which brought in £11.3m, and amortisation.

Nathan Davies