Heskey off the mark as Newcastle Jets beat Del Piero's Sydney FC - Goal.com

Emile Heskey scored his first A-League goal for the Newcastle Jets in their thrilling 3-2 win over Sydney FC at the Allianz Stadium.

The 34-year-old put the Jets 2-1 up in the 41st minute with an emphatic volley past Ivan Necevski in the home goal, after fellow big-name import, opponent Alessandro Del Piero, had cancelled out Ryan Griffiths' 12th minute effort with a trademark free kick.

Craig Goodwin gave the visitors a two-goal buffer with a chipped effort just after the hour before they were pegged back to 3-2 by Blake Powell but the visitors managed to hold off the hosts' onslaught in the closing stages to claim all three points.

Heskey's last goal came for Aston Villa in their 3-1 win over Blackburn in August 2011.

The strike against Sydney ended a torrid run for the Englishman, a record of just one goal in his previous 41 games.
 
The former Liverpool and Leicester City striker joined the Australian outfit on a free transfer this summer and helped them record their first win of the season against Sydney.

Next up for the Jets is the visit of the Central Coast Mariners to the EnergyAustralia Stadium.

Arsenal forward Theo Walcott urges team-mates to deliver silverware to ... - Telegraph.co.uk

Walcott explained that he was happy to have signed a renewed contract with the club last month and that he believes his form is improving now that he is settled.

"It was a long process and it was difficult for both sides. In the last two or three games before it was sorted it was playing on my mind more than it had been beforehand but I'm happy it's all done and I'm enjoying my football again.

"Things are going well. I'm working hard, staying after training and seeing what I can improve. I just enjoy working hard, scoring goals and trying to help make this team the team we should be. That was one of the main reasons for signing – there is huge potential in this team and I want to be part of it.

"I've been happy with the last couple of seasons, but this year has stood out. I've had a more consistent run of games, playing well, scoring goals. Things always go well when you're scoring, it's how you react when they're not going so well.

"At the start of the season I wasn't playing at all and I reacted in the right way on the pitch. You want to make sure you're in the starting line-up and the manager can't leave you out. So hopefully I've proven that to him."

Premier League - Match facts: Liverpool v Aston Villa - Yahoo! Eurosport UK

Aston Villa have won just one of their last 16 Premier League away matches (W1 D6 L9), scoring just seven goals in that run.

The Villans have won just one of their last 10 Premier League trips to Anfield (W1 D3 L6).

This will be the fourth Premier League meeting in a row at Anfield between Liverpool & Villa where both sides will have different managers in the dugout. (Benitez v O'Neill, Hodgson v Houllier, Dalglish v McLeish and now Rodgers v Lambert).

Liverpool have won three of their last four Premier League home games (W3 D1 L0) after winning just three of the previous 15.

The Reds have kept four clean sheets in their last five league matches at Anfield, conceding just one goal in the other game.

Steven Gerrard has scored nine goals against Aston Villa, more than versus any other opponent in his Premier League career.

The last player to score a winning goal for Aston Villa against Liverpool was Stewart Downing in May 2011 in his final appearance before he signed for Liverpool. Since then he has played 43 PL games without scoring for the Reds.

All three of Joe Cole's Premier League goals for Liverpool have come as a substitute.

Only Manchester United (27) and Manchester City (24) have taken more points over the past 11 Premier League games than Liverpool (20).

Liverpool have won at least 10 corners in each of their last three Premier League home games.

Newcastle risk losing Papiss Demba Cisse for Swansea game in row with Senegal - Telegraph.co.uk

"I want to be diplomatic," said Pardew. "I don't want to fall out with Senegal. Hopefully the communication, the lines will come together and we can put it right because they aren't happy at the moment and believe he should have appeared for them.

"We gave a report and an email straight after the game that at half-time he was feeling his back and we took him off the pitch.

"Somewhere along the line something has been lost in translation. We have Demba and Papiss so we don't want this. Nobody wants there to be bad feeling."

Newcastle's relationship with Senegal was not helped by Pardew's decision to block Cisse's call-up for the Olympic Games in the summer, but they have asked the Football Association to support them in their discussions and have offered medical evidence to support their case.

Having failed to add a striker to their squad in the summer, despite the sale of Peter Lovenkrands and Leon Best, Newcastle do not have much strength in depth in attack and Pardew is already grappling with Cisse's loss of form, without worrying about a ban.

The £10million arrival from Freiburg scored 13 goals in 15 Premier League games last season, but has managed just one in 10 this term.

"It is not an ideal scenario leading up to a game when a guy we are trying to get to hit his best form has this over him," added Pardew.

Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany insists he is happy with his side's ... - Telegraph.co.uk

"If we can still step it up, it's going to be a great season for us again."

Kompany's form and fitness have been the subject of conjecture recently.

Until the Sunderland victory, which Kompany missed with a calf injury, City had been unusually shaky at the back and the captain's own performances were below his best.

The 26-year-old appeared to put concerns on both fronts behind him with an impressive, and goalscoring, display in Belgium's 2-0 win over Scotland on Tuesday.

Kompany said: "I've always been good. It's just that we set such a ridiculously high standard last season that people are expecting a lot.

"That's fair enough, I've got no problem with that. I just keep working hard. I never really change my vision of the game, I always try to give my best."

City face West Brom at The Hawthorns on Saturday and will be looking to step up their campaign by recording only their second away win.

Kompany said: "I just look at the league now and we are in a good position. We've done what we needed to do and we've managed to keep ourselves at the right place.

"Chelsea are obviously doing great at the moment. We never said it wasn't going to be a tough season."

Arsene Wenger loses transfer touch - The Sun

ARSENE WENGER has lost his touch in the transfer market, according to George Graham.

Arsenal are in danger of finishing outside the top four for the first time under the Frenchman.

And former Gunners boss Graham, who was in charge at Highbury from 1986 to 1995, said: "In the last few seasons, the standard has slipped because the players coming into the club are, in my opinion, inferior to the players that were there seven years ago.

"His first spell at the club was phenomenal — three League Championships, four FA Cups, finishing in the top four for 15 years.

"But he has raised his own bar and he has to ask himself if he has fallen a little bit."

Arsenal have sold top stars like Cesc Fabregas, Robin van Persie and Samir Nasri in the last few years.

And they are heading for an eighth consecutive season without winning a trophy under Wenger.

Graham won two titles for the Gunners while in charge. And he added: "Arsenal have never been big spenders, but when Wenger first came he was buying players at bargain prices and making them into world-class players.

"He has been brilliant but the last few seasons it's been slipping gradually.

"It used to be all about winning the league, now it's about making the top four.

"You have to ask, who is bringing the players to the club? Arsene or the scouting staff?"

Mario Balotelli will join Milan from Manchester City, say Italian club - The Guardian

Mario Balotelli is on his way out of Manchester City with a deal having been struck for the striker to return to Italy with Milan.

It is believed the Serie A side have agreed to pay around £20m, with some of the fee being made up by bonuses.

City have yet to comment officially but Balotelli was reported to have flown out to Italy. The Milan director Umberto Gandini tweeted: "Transfer agreement for Balotelli signed with Manchester City. Medicals tomorrow in Milan, then personal terms until 2017."

Providing there are no unforeseen hitches, Balotelli is likely to join Milan ahead of Thursday's transfer deadline, thus ending a remarkable two-and-a-half-year stay in Manchester, during which time the forward has attracted almost as many headlines for off-field incidents as success on it.

He has made just two substitute appearances since a disappointing performance against Manchester United at the beginning of December, when he was handed a surprise start, but did little of note before being substituted in the second-half.

Though his manager Roberto Mancini and his assistant David Platt have repeatedly stressed since then that Balotelli is going nowhere, the move to Italy has gained strength.