James Milner, the Aston Villa midfielder who is the subject of a possible move to Manchester City, has been named in caretaker-manager Kevin MacDonald's squad to play West Ham United. City are believed to be offering a player-plus-cash deal involving Stephen Ireland for the England midfielder. But MacDonald, in charge since the resignation of Martin O'Neill, said: "The latest about Milner is that talks are still ongoing. Nothing can be done in terms of him being signed in time to play [today]."
Alex McLeish, the Birmingham City manager, has taken stock of words from his Stoke City counterpart Tony Pulis. McLeish guided Birmingham to ninth spot last season, but Pulis claims staying up should be his main aim this time. McLeish, whose team travel to Sunderland today, said: "Just staying up sounds negative but we have got to be realistic at the club. We're not a surprise to anyone any more."
Owen Coyle, the Bolton Wanderers manager, expects Fulham and Mark Hughes to be a winning combination this season. Hughes, who replaced Roy Hodgson at Craven Cottage, has had only a fortnight to prepare, but Coyle, whose side host Fulham today, said: "There is no doubt that he'll mould that team the way he wants. Fulham will show everyone this season that they are a quality side."
After signing Kenwyne Jones from Sunderland for a club record fee, Stoke City off-loaded one of their forwards yesterday as James Beattie joined Glasgow Rangers, the Scottish giants. Stoke visit Wolverhampton Wanderers today, who finished 15th last season. Of their aim this time, Wolves manager Mick McCarthy said: "I want better than 15th. But come on, if we ended up 15th, 16th or 17th and stayed in the league, people would take it."
* Agencies
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Results:
5pm: Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m | Winner: AF Tahoonah, Richard Mullen (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
5.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh90,000 1,400m | Winner: Ajwad, Gerald Avranche, Rashed Bouresly
6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m | Winner: RB Lam Tara, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m | Winner: Duc De Faust, Szczepan Mazur, Younis Al Kalbani
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Dh70,000 2,200m | Winner: Shareef KB, Fabrice Veron, Ernst Oertel
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh90,000 1,500m | Winner: Bainoona, Pat Cosgrave, Eric Lemartinel
Day 5, Dubai Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Given the problems Sri Lanka have had in recent times, it was apt the winning catch was taken by Dinesh Chandimal. He is one of seven different captains Sri Lanka have had in just the past two years. He leads in understated fashion, but by example. His century in the first innings of this series set the shock win in motion.
Stat of the day This was the ninth Test Pakistan have lost in their past 11 matches, a run that started when they lost the final match of their three-Test series against West Indies in Sharjah last year. They have not drawn a match in almost two years and 19 matches, since they were held by England at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi in 2015.
The verdict Mickey Arthur basically acknowledged he had erred by basing Pakistan’s gameplan around three seam bowlers and asking for pitches with plenty of grass in Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. Why would Pakistan want to change the method that has treated them so well on these grounds in the past 10 years? It is unlikely Misbah-ul-Haq would have made the same mistake.
FA Cup quarter-final draw
The matches will be played across the weekend of 21 and 22 March
Sheffield United v Arsenal
Newcastle v Manchester City
Norwich v Derby/Manchester United
Leicester City v Chelsea
MATCH INFO
France 3
Umtiti (8'), Griezmann (29' pen), Dembele (63')
Italy 1
Bonucci (36')
Du Football Champions
The fourth season of du Football Champions was launched at Gitex on Wednesday alongside the Middle East’s first sports-tech scouting platform.“du Talents”, which enables aspiring footballers to upload their profiles and highlights reels and communicate directly with coaches, is designed to extend the reach of the programme, which has already attracted more than 21,500 players in its first three years.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Naga
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Women’s World T20, Asia Qualifier
UAE results
Beat China by 16 runs
Lost to Thailand by 10 wickets
Beat Nepal by five runs
Beat Hong Kong by eight wickets
Beat Malaysia by 34 runs
Standings (P, W, l, NR, points)
1. Thailand 5 4 0 1 9
2. UAE 5 4 1 0 8
3. Nepal 5 2 1 2 6
4. Hong Kong 5 2 2 1 5
5. Malaysia 5 1 4 0 2
6. China 5 0 5 0 0
Final
Thailand v UAE, Monday, 7am
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League last 16, first leg
Liverpool v Bayern Munich, midnight, Wednesday, BeIN Sports