A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Wilshere returns to full training after 14 months
Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere returned to full training yesterday after 14 months out with a persistent ankle problem.
The 20-year-old had become a regular for the London club and forced his way into the England side before being struck down.
“We are so pleased Jack is back in full training. It’s been 14 months and that’s a long time for someone at his age. It’s an eternity, but it’s great news,” manager Arsene Wenger said.
“We have to give him a few training sessions to see how he copes and responds to it. That’s the delicate, sensitive stage – to choose when to bring him in and out. We’ll have to handle that day-by-day.”
Fellow midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong has also resumed full training after injuring his cruciate ligaments on loan at Wolves in February.
Fulham fear Mahamadou Diarra could be out for the majority of the season.Diarra injured a knee playing for Mali this month. Manager Martin Jol confirmed Diarra required of surgery and would miss at least another three weeks. But if it transpires he has damaged his cruciate ligament, he could be out for up to five months.
Stoke defender Andy Wilkinson will serve a three-match ban after the club decided to accept his violent conduct charge. Wilkinson caught Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli in the face with his elbow during Saturday’s 1-1 draw at the Britannia Stadium.
The incident was not spotted by referee Mark Clattenburg, but the independent FA disciplinary panel decided the 28-year-old had a case to answer.
Vidic calls on supporters to set example at Anfield
NEMANJA VIDIC has called on Manchester United supporters to set an example at Anfield on Sunday by being on their best behaviour and paying respect to the 96 Liverpool supporters that lost their lives at Hillsborough 23 years ago.
In the first match to be played at Anfield since the Hillsborough Independent Panel report was published last week, Vidic and Steven Gerrard, the two captains, will release 96 red balloons before kick-off as a tribute to the victims.
Alex Ferguson has empathised with the families and promised Liverpool unqualified support on Sunday. Vidic said: "I am aware of the sensitivity of the day. Everybody is. There is a lot of talk in the papers and the media. I think our fans will respond well," he said. "The whole country is on test in this one. All over the world they will be watching this game. There is a lot of history with these two clubs. I think we should respect each other because we are big clubs and clubs that are respected in the world. We have to be on top of the bad situation and behave well and, I would say, be an example."
Demba Ba's future in doubt
Demba Ba's future with Newcastle United has been thrown into doubt with manager Alan Pardew admitting the release clause which might have triggered his departure during the summer will become active again in January.
Newcastle have attempted to tie the 27-year-old Senegal international to a new deal which would not include a similar clause, but have yet to reach an agreement with the Ba camp looking for a significant increase in the player's current weekly wage of around €62,000.
The matter came to a head this week when the striker admitted after scoring both his side's goals in Monday's 2-2 draw at Everton after coming off the bench that he has been unhappy with certain things.
Newcastle owner Mike Ashley and managing director Derek Llambias, who have worked hard to slash costs in recent years, will not contemplate awarding a contract which would smash the wage structure they have put in place. That could leave Pardew anxiously awaiting the closure of another transfer window and wondering if anyone will come up with the €9 million required to activate the clause.
Club face charge over banner
Celtic face a Scottish Football Association charge over an alleged offensive banner among their fans in their pre-season friendly against Norwich. The SFA yesterday issued a notice of complaint alleging four rule breaches over the banner relating to Rangers, which appeared in the Celtic support in the July 24th contest at Parkhead.
The SFA charges allege Celtic have fallen foul of the rules by failing to prevent fans from bringing the banner into the ground and displaying it. The club are also accused of failing to deal effectively with an instance of unacceptable conduct, "by allowing spectators to retain possession of the banner after it had been initially displayed, which allowed them to display the banner on a second occasion during the above match".
The banner is understood to have featured a gunman shooting a figure next to a gravestone with the Rangers badge on it. A line of figures depicting a reverse evolutionary process from man to ape was drawn on the opposite side of the grave.
Celtic have until Thursday to respond with a hearing date set for October 11th.
