Today's other stories in brief
Hughes gives Richards support
MANCHESTER City manager Mark Hughes has offered Micah Richards his full support after the England defender was arrested over an alleged assault.
The 20-year-old was questioned by police on Wednesday after the alleged attack on a man in Hale, Greater Manchester, at around 12.30am on Christmas Eve.
Hughes has, however, suggested Richards could even figure in Saturday’s home game against Middlesbrough.
When asked whether the defender was in the right frame of mind to be considered for selection, the Welshman replied: “Absolutely.”
He added: “We are very supportive of Micah. He went to the police station in a pre-arranged appointment. It is an ongoing situation; we are aware of that and we are supportive of him.”
Richards has been bailed until April. A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said: “A 20-year-old man has been arrested after an 18-year-old man was assaulted in Hale.”
Explanation about Arshavin satisfies
ANY lingering doubt surrounding Andrei Arshavin’s protracted transfer from Zenit St Petersburg to Arsenal appears to have been removed after the English Premier League provided a full explanation of the reasons why the deal was not formally confirmed until after Monday’s 5pm deadline.
Aston Villa were among the clubs seeking clarification, but Paul Faulkner, Villa’s chief operating officer, was last night said to be “totally satisfied” with the Premier League’s version of events.
It is understood that Villa, who are one place and five points ahead of Arsenal, have no plans to pursue the matter further.
That news will come as a relief if not a surprise to Arsenal. Although there were unconfirmed reports that the paperwork had not arrived from Zenit until after the deadline, Arsenal have maintained that they had not breached any rules.
Harte to sign for St Mirren
FORMER Leeds United and Republic of Ireland left back Ian Harte has agreed to sign for Scottish Premier League outfit St Mirren until the summer and will undergo a medical today.
St Mirren manager Gus MacPherson moved for the 31-year-old after he finished a short spell with Championship outfit Blackpool this week.
Harte, capped 64 times for Ireland, spent nine seasons with Leeds and then the next three with Levante in Spain.
Larsson agrees to go another year
STRIKER Henrik Larsson has agreed to continue playing for Swedish first division club Helsingborg during 2009, the club said yesterday.
Larsson, who played for Feyenoord, Celtic and Barcelona before returning to his home club in 2006, won his 102nd Sweden cap in November.
The Swede, who turns 38 this year, had a brief spell on loan with Manchester United in 2007 having joined Helsingborg after the 2006 World Cup. The Swedish League begins on April 4th.
FA want answers after ITV cup slip
THE ENGLISH Football Association have demanded an explanation from ITV over the blunder that prevented some fans from watching the winning goal in Monday night’s Merseyside derby.
After 118 minutes of goalless football in the FA Cup fourth-round replay at Goodison Park between Everton and Liverpool, the live match coverage was interrupted by adverts moments before Dan Gosling’s extra-time decider.
Some just managed to catch the goal after a number of ITV regions and digital channels returned to the game seconds before the teenager’s strike. But for others the adverts continued and the first fans knew of the goal was the Everton team’s celebrations.
ITV apologised yesterday but the FA have asked for the reasons behind the mishap to be explained by the broadcaster. An FA spokesman said: “Clearly we are seeking a full explanation from ITV as to why this happened.”
Scholes and Giggs to soldier on until new guard is ready
PAUL Scholes is to be offered a new contract at Manchester United as Alex Ferguson tries to tempt his long-serving midfielder away from any thoughts of retirement, writes Daniel Taylor.
Scholes has expressed frustration recently that he no longer has the influence of old, but Ferguson still regards him as important enough to keep him at Old Trafford beyond his 35th birthday.
The first talks have already taken place and Ferguson confirmed the year-long agreement during an interview in which the United manager also announced that Ryan Giggs would sign a new deal until the summer of 2010.
The defender Gary Neville, who will turn 34 later this month, has already been promised a final, one-year contract.
After that, the last remaining players from United’s golden generation of homegrown talent are all expected to make way for a breed of younger players led by Anderson, Rafael da Silva and Zoran Tosic.
