SOCCER SHORTS:Arsenal striker Robin van Persie was named England's Footballer of the Year by the Football Writers' Association yesterday, two days after being picking up the PFA Player of the Year prize.
Van Persie (28), was the first Dutchman to win the prestigious honour since Dennis Bergkamp, also of Arsenal, in 1998 and the third player from the Netherlands to do so following Frans Thijssen of Ipswich Town in 1981.
He topped the poll of journalists with a landslide victory ahead of Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney, who won the award in 2010, and Paul Scholes, who was third after coming out of retirement halfway through the season.
Fulham’s US striker Clint Dempsey was fourth.
Van Persie’s 34 goals in all competitions have lifted Arsenal into the top three in the Premier League, leaving them on the brink of Champions League qualification after a very poor start to the campaign.
FWA chairman Steve Bates said: “Robin was the overwhelming choice of our members this season and deservedly so after a magnificent campaign for Arsenal. The quality of his goals, attacking movement and consistency in a turbulent season for The Gunners has been eye-catching.
“The considerable size of his majority in the votes cast by our members reflected the general view that he has been the season’s most outstanding individual performer.”
The Footballer of the Year award is the oldest of its kind in world football and was first awarded to Stanley Matthews in 1948.
Britain to open against Senegal
Hosts Britain, taking part in their first Olympic soccer event since 1960, will kick off the bid for gold against Senegal at Old Trafford on July 26th after the draw was made at Wembley yesterday.
“We will field our strongest team and see if our players at Newcastle like Demba Ba and Papiss Cisse can be involved,” said Augustin Senghor, the president of the Senegalese FA.
Britain will also meet Uruguay and United Arab Emirates in Group A.
Brazil, never Olympic champions, face Egypt, Belarus and New Zealand in Group C.
Spain, gold medallists in 1992 and the world and European champions, take on Japan, Honduras and Morocco in Group D while seeded Mexico meet South Korea, Gabon and Switzerland in Group B.
The first Olympic event takes place at the Millennium Stadium on July 25th, two days before the opening ceremony, when the British women’s team play New Zealand in Group E. Cameroon and Brazil are in the same section.
The women’s final is at Wembley on August 9th, the men’s takes place two days later.
Pearce will check Beckham out to see if he’s fit for the Olympics
Stuart Pearce will fly to the United States to watch David Beckham play for Los Angeles Galaxy on May 2nd before selecting his 18-man squad for the London Olympics, the British team coach said yesterday.
Ex-England captain Beckham, who will turn 37 on the day Pearce watches him in Seattle, is widely expected to be one of the three over-age players in the under-23 Olympic squad but Pearce said he would select players solely on form and fitness.
“David Beckham will be treated exactly the same as any other individual, whether it is young or over-age,” he said. “Form and fitness will dictate what the make-up of the squad will be. David falls into the same category. I have a duty of care to the Great Britain squad to try and win a gold medal. I will pick the strongest possible squad I can.
“I will know a bit more when I go to the States to see what form he is in.
“He’s made the shortlist and he has been a great ambassador for this country and the Olympics, but that’s no recommendation that he will get in the squad and that’s fair and square across the board for all players.”
Former head of China’s FA on bribery charge
Xie Yalong, former head of the China’s football association, was charged with taking 1.7 million yuan (€205,000) of bribes at the start of his trial yesterday, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.
The 56-year-old Xie faces 12 counts of bribe-taking during the hearing at the Dandong Intermediate People’s Court, Xinhua reported.
Dozens of players, coaches, referees and other soccer officials have been detained since the government formed a committee in March 2009 to crack down on graft in the sport.
Soccer in China, which failed to qualify for the 2006 and 2010 World Cup, has been in disarray as match-fixing, bribery and violence on the pitch have left millions of fans disenchanted with the game.
