General Football Thread

[EddieG]

SSN said Anelka's a player-coach.

[stokeriño]

I was reading The Guardian which seemed to say Tigana was still there...

[Lineker]

Tig got sacked and Anelka has brought in three of his own coaches.

[Gazz]

Tig got sacked and Anelka has brought in three of his own coaches.

Chelsea reunion!

[Adam]

Great achievement for Quevilly, and it's only been 12 years since amateur club Calais made it to the final as well.

Quevilly's ground has a capacity of 2,500. Remarkable.

[stokeriño]

Chinese outfit Shanghai Shenhua have clarified the situation regarding striker Nicolas Anelka's coaching role at the club. On Thursday it was reported that the former Chelsea, Bolton and Arsenal forward had become player manager, but team spokesman Ma Yue has commented: "He is now both a player and a coach, but he is not the main coach."

So sayeth the BBC.

[Lineker]

So who is the manager?

[Colly]

Jim Neidhart.

[The Lusophone]

He's in jail.

[Lineker]

Former England and Birmingham striker Trevor Francis is recovering in Birmingham Heartlands Hospital after a suspected heart attack.

The 57-year-old was the first player in British football to be transferred for £1m when he joined Nottingham Forest from Birmingham in 1979.

Francis, who won two European Cups with Forest, returned to Birmingham as manager between 1996-2001.

A Blues statement read: "We'd like to wish Trevor a speedy recovery."

Francis, who won 52 England caps and scored 12 international goals, spent two years with Forest before joining Manchester City, and then had spells with Italian clubs Sampdoria and Atalanta.

After a season with Rangers he joined Queens Park Rangers, where he soon became player-manager, and performed a simlar role at Sheffield Wednesday.

Francis formally retired as a player in 1994, shortly before his 40th birthday, having played 632 games and scored 235 goals.

He spent five years as manager of Birmingham, losing the 2001 League Cup final to Liverpool on penalties, and two years in charge of Crystal Palace, before returning to a successful media career.

Get well soon Trev!

[9 to 5]

Great achievement for Quevilly, and it's only been 12 years since amateur club Calais made it to the final as well.

Now that final was a heartbreaker to watch.

[Lineker]

Paraguay international Salvador Cabanas has made his competitive return to football after recovering from being shot in the head 27 months ago.

Cabanas, 31, received a near-fatal gunshot wound to the head during a disagreement in a Mexico City bar on January 25, 2010 and still has the bullet lodged in his brain.

However, after a long period of recovered he played for Paraguayan third division 12 de Octubre, the club where he began his career in 1997, on the opening day of the Primera B third-tier championship on Saturday.

He started the game against Martin Ledesma, a 2-0 win, and played for 40 minutes before being substituted.

"Nobody survives what happened to me," he said. "That's why I always appreciate all the people who prayed for me and also the president of Doce [Club 12 de Octubre] who's let me be with them. Having faith was fundamental for me. That's why I'm here right now."

Cabanas began his career at the Itaugua-based side in 1997, moving to Audax Italiano of Chile and then Mexican club Jaguares de Chiapas before joining Club America in 2006, where he scored 66 goals in 115 league games for the Estadio Azteca side.

He was shot during his stint at the Mexican club and missed Paraguay's 2010 World Cup campaign. He had scored ten goals in 44 appearances for the national side.

[Colly]

Wonder if Sunderland are still interested.

[IAceI]

Good on him, a real feel good story to see he's survived the seemingly unsurvivable and is back doing the thing he loves as well. Truly remarkable.

[Lineker]

Cambridge United manager Jez George says his decision to pay for the admission of 80 travelling fans to Saturday's 3-1 win at Barrow was a "big thank you" for their support.

The U's manager covered the cost of away fans' tickets - thought to be around £1,120 - out of his own pocket.

And the players chipped in by buying supporters pizza for the journey home.

"It's a very, very small gesture from us, just as a big thank you," George told BBC Radio Cambridgeshire.

"It's for the many hours travelling, and money they've spent all season.

"It was a small thing we wanted to do quietly. We didn't really want any publicity. It was just a way of showing we really appreciate the support they give us.

"We work for them. We want to make them happy every weekend."

It was the second gesture made by the club this season, after the entire squad joined the fans' supporters trust, Cambridge Fans United, in February at George's request.

CFU have helped the club financially in the past, including a loan of £20,000 in 2006 to pay players' wages.

[Lineker]

Raul is leaving Schalke at the end of the season as his contract isn't being renewed. Surely with his recent for he'll get picked up by someone?

[TCO]

Don't think this goes in the La Liga thread but just realised Cristiano Ronaldo had 107 goals in 96 games for Real Madrid, That is fucking ridiculous.

[Grounded Wingman]

Raul is leaving Schalke at the end of the season as his contract isn't being renewed. Surely with his recent for he'll get picked up by someone?

He's said he won't be staying in Europe and is looking for a lesser quality league, where there is a league structure that means he can spend more time with his family. I wouldn't be shocked to see him in the MLS.

[Lineker]

Fenerbahce and Turkey's Emre Belozoglu has been handed a two-match ban for insulting Ivory Coast's Didier Zokora by the Turkish Football Disciplinary Committee (PFDK).

Trabzonspor's Zokora accused Emre of using a racial slur during Sunday's league game between the two clubs.

On Thursday, Trabzonspor filed a civil law suit at an Istanbul court accusing Emre of abusing Zokora.

Emre has denied racially abusing the Ivory Coast midfielder.

Former Tottenham player Zokora first levelled the accusation against Emre at a news conference following Fenerbahce's 2-0 home win in Istanbul over Trabzonspor.

"Emre and I had an argument during the game. I beg your pardon for saying this, but he insulted me by saying nigger," Zokora said.

"What upsets me more is how disgraceful it is for a player who has African team mates like [senegal's Moussa] Sow and [Nigeria's Joseph] Yobo to insult an African from another team."

The following day, ex-Newcastle player Emre told a news conference he had abused Zokora verbally in English without using racist terms, and that such abuse was common during matches.

"If I have even a little bit of racism, may God take my heart away from this body," Emre said.

The Turkish Football Federation subsequently referred the matter to the disciplinary committee, which decided on the ban.

"Due to the insult to the player of the rival team, it has been decided with the majority of votes to punish Fenerbahce player Emre Belozoglu by sanctioning a ban for two official games," the PFDK said on its website.

Had the committee decided the abuse was racial, Emre could have received a lengthier ban of four to eight matches.

In December, the FA banned Liverpool's Luis Suarez for eight games for racially abusing Manchester United defender Patrice Evra.

[Colly]

Gutted. Alongside Nobby Emres pretty much my football hero, absolutely wonderful player and better than lowering himself to that kind of stuff. Could start wearing a Suarez-esque t shirt in support, although because I'm not a massive dick I won't.