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SOCCER NEWS. haha :)
Alan Smith made his first appearance since suffering a serious leg injury in February when he played for Manchester United's reserve team on Monday night. Smith featured for 66 minutes of United's 7-2 Lancashire Senior Cup win over Preston at Deepdale. He did not find the net but played in his usual bustling style. The 25-year-old broke his leg and dislocated an ankle during the FA Cup defeat to Liverpool and was expected to be out for the rest of the year. Smith declared himself satisfied with his performance, saying: "I have worked hard for that all through the summer. That is what my goal has been. Playing for the reserves is a step up from training and hopefully, in a few weeks time I will have had some more reserve games and be able to make the step up to the first team. The first half I felt okay but I started to get a bit tired 15 minutes into the second half, which is why I came off. I just need a few matches under my belt, although I think I could have played all night and not scored. But my movement was okay and I just need to build up my strength a little bit."
Chelsea have completed the signing of Dutch international defender Khalid Boulahrouz from German club Hamburg for an undisclosed fee. The 24-year-old passed a medical and agreed personal terms at the weekend, and was at Stamford Bridge to see his new side beat Manchester City 3-0. Chelsea are thought to have paid in the region of £6m for the defender, who can play anywhere across the back. Nicknamed Khalid the Cannibal, he has been capped 15 times by Holland. Bhoulahrouz said: "I am happy to play for Chelsea, the biggest club in the world, and I will try to give my best and play with my heart on the pitch. I have played central defender for the last couple of years. That is the position where I can show all my qualities. But right defender is not a problem for me. I have not played a lot of games in pre-season but I am fit and I am okay. I know what to do as a defender. That is the most important thing." Chelsae boss Jose Mourinho added: "In a short squad and in a country where you can have only 16 players for a match, it's important to have cover for many positions. So now I can have Boulahrouz, Ricardo Carvalho and John Terry - three options for the centre. I can have Paulo Ferreira and Boulahrouz - two options for the right side; I can have Boulahrouz and Wayne Bridge - two options for the left side." "He is a good competitive player and will be a good addition to our squad," Chelsea's assistant manager Steve Clarke told Chelsea TV. "It is important to have one or two players around the squad who can play in a number of different positions."
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho said he had been pleasantly surprised by his side's powerful display in the straightforward 3-0 win over Manchester City. "We played very well, maybe even better than we were expecting," Mourinho told BBC Sport. "I don't think it was a message to other teams because everyone knows the team we were over the last two seasons. It's just a good start at a difficult time with so many injuries and without the time to have a proper pre-season. We will get better, but so will other teams. From kick-off the team played well and pressed well, not giving Man City the chance to control things."
Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard has reiterated his desire to stay with the Premiership champions for the rest of his playing career. The 28-year-old England star was linked with Spanish club Barcelona in 2005. However, when asked by BBC Five Live's Sportsweek programme whether he would like to end his career at Chelsea, Lampard said: "I think so, I hope so. I'm very happy at the moment. I'm so lucky to be at a club where I have such a great relationship with everyone." Lampard has three years left on the five-year deal he signed in the summer of 2004. "We have real potential to be successful as long as hopefully I'm playing football and that is my aim," added Lampard. And asked whether he would like to play Spain, Lampard said: "I don't have that desire at the moment. When I came to Chelsea it was such a big thing for me in my career. I have done so well at Chelsea. A lot of that is down to me working hard but it also what is around me at Chelsea - the team-mates, the fans, the club - and I respect that and it has become a real part of me. I see myself being here for a long time."
England and Chelsea football captain John Terry has been fined £100 for not telling police who was driving when his car was clocked speeding in Surrey. The 25-year-old's vehicle was caught going over the 50mph limit by a speed camera on the A3 Esher bypass, near Chelsea FC's Cobham training ground. He was then charged with not providing details as to the driver's identity. He was not at a Guildford magistrates' hearing in July, and was also not present for his sentencing on Friday. Terry had three points put on his driving licence and was also ordered to pay £200 court costs. The speeding incident took place on 18 October last year. "Despite several letters Mr Terry failed to respond with details of who was driving on the day," a spokesman for Surrey Police's safety camera partnership said.
Alan Smith made his first appearance since suffering a serious leg injury in February when he played for Manchester United's reserve team on Monday night. Smith featured for 66 minutes of United's 7-2 Lancashire Senior Cup win over Preston at Deepdale. He did not find the net but played in his usual bustling style. The 25-year-old broke his leg and dislocated an ankle during the FA Cup defeat to Liverpool and was expected to be out for the rest of the year. Smith declared himself satisfied with his performance, saying: "I have worked hard for that all through the summer. That is what my goal has been. Playing for the reserves is a step up from training and hopefully, in a few weeks time I will have had some more reserve games and be able to make the step up to the first team. The first half I felt okay but I started to get a bit tired 15 minutes into the second half, which is why I came off. I just need a few matches under my belt, although I think I could have played all night and not scored. But my movement was okay and I just need to build up my strength a little bit."
Chelsea have completed the signing of Dutch international defender Khalid Boulahrouz from German club Hamburg for an undisclosed fee. The 24-year-old passed a medical and agreed personal terms at the weekend, and was at Stamford Bridge to see his new side beat Manchester City 3-0. Chelsea are thought to have paid in the region of £6m for the defender, who can play anywhere across the back. Nicknamed Khalid the Cannibal, he has been capped 15 times by Holland. Bhoulahrouz said: "I am happy to play for Chelsea, the biggest club in the world, and I will try to give my best and play with my heart on the pitch. I have played central defender for the last couple of years. That is the position where I can show all my qualities. But right defender is not a problem for me. I have not played a lot of games in pre-season but I am fit and I am okay. I know what to do as a defender. That is the most important thing." Chelsae boss Jose Mourinho added: "In a short squad and in a country where you can have only 16 players for a match, it's important to have cover for many positions. So now I can have Boulahrouz, Ricardo Carvalho and John Terry - three options for the centre. I can have Paulo Ferreira and Boulahrouz - two options for the right side; I can have Boulahrouz and Wayne Bridge - two options for the left side." "He is a good competitive player and will be a good addition to our squad," Chelsea's assistant manager Steve Clarke told Chelsea TV. "It is important to have one or two players around the squad who can play in a number of different positions."
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho said he had been pleasantly surprised by his side's powerful display in the straightforward 3-0 win over Manchester City. "We played very well, maybe even better than we were expecting," Mourinho told BBC Sport. "I don't think it was a message to other teams because everyone knows the team we were over the last two seasons. It's just a good start at a difficult time with so many injuries and without the time to have a proper pre-season. We will get better, but so will other teams. From kick-off the team played well and pressed well, not giving Man City the chance to control things."
Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard has reiterated his desire to stay with the Premiership champions for the rest of his playing career. The 28-year-old England star was linked with Spanish club Barcelona in 2005. However, when asked by BBC Five Live's Sportsweek programme whether he would like to end his career at Chelsea, Lampard said: "I think so, I hope so. I'm very happy at the moment. I'm so lucky to be at a club where I have such a great relationship with everyone." Lampard has three years left on the five-year deal he signed in the summer of 2004. "We have real potential to be successful as long as hopefully I'm playing football and that is my aim," added Lampard. And asked whether he would like to play Spain, Lampard said: "I don't have that desire at the moment. When I came to Chelsea it was such a big thing for me in my career. I have done so well at Chelsea. A lot of that is down to me working hard but it also what is around me at Chelsea - the team-mates, the fans, the club - and I respect that and it has become a real part of me. I see myself being here for a long time."
England and Chelsea football captain John Terry has been fined £100 for not telling police who was driving when his car was clocked speeding in Surrey. The 25-year-old's vehicle was caught going over the 50mph limit by a speed camera on the A3 Esher bypass, near Chelsea FC's Cobham training ground. He was then charged with not providing details as to the driver's identity. He was not at a Guildford magistrates' hearing in July, and was also not present for his sentencing on Friday. Terry had three points put on his driving licence and was also ordered to pay £200 court costs. The speeding incident took place on 18 October last year. "Despite several letters Mr Terry failed to respond with details of who was driving on the day," a spokesman for Surrey Police's safety camera partnership said.