Wayne Rooney could be rested for Manchester United's trip to Bolton Wanderers on Saturday amid fears that his niggling knee injury is getting worse.
The striker limped away from Old Trafford following Sunday's 2-1 victory over Liverpool and is thought to be suffering from an inflamed tendon.
Rooney was initially informed the knee issue would clear up in one month but the irritation persists. Although the problem does not prevent him from playing for United, it is causing discomfort and swelling after matches.
The 33-goal striker is central to United's hopes of winning silverware this season and with a key clash with Premier League title rivals Chelsea and a Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich on the horizon, Rooney may well be spared Saturday's trip to the Reebok Stadium.
The knee problem first arose ahead of the Carling Cup final and Ferguson left the 24-year-old on the bench to give him a rest but had to call on his services after Michael Owen got injured just 30 minutes into the match.
Rooney then played again on the heavy Wembley pitch days later for England and was heavily criticised by United boss Sir Alex Ferguson for staying on for 86 minutes of the friendly against Egypt.
United are unable to give their star player much rest during the title run in and with just 80 days to go before the World Cup starts England coach Fabio Capello will be keeping a close eye on his prized asset.
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Mar 23, 2010
Jul 21, 2009
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Carlo Ancelotti has vowed John Terry's Chelsea future will be settled within a week.
Ancelotti insists Terry is staying put.
The Blues boss is determined to keep Terry at Stamford Bridge, despite a huge offer on the table from Manchester City.
Mark Hughes wants to take the England captain to Eastlands in a deal that could be worth up to £40m, but Ancelotti has now enlisted owner Roman Ambramovich to help persuade Terry to stay at Stamford Bridge for the rest of his career.
And the Italian has promised a resolution in the next seven days. Ancelotti said: "For John it is not a distraction this question because he is very concentrated and focused. I think that in one week nobody will have a problem about John Terry.
"John wants to stay in Chelsea and Chelsea want john terry to be captain for more years. It is normal other teams want him because he is a great player and all teams want to buy a great player.
"These are normal questions but he stays in the same team because he is a captain for Chelsea, it is impossible to sell John Terry. There is no problem with Manchester City. If Manchester City want to improve and buy the best players.
"Paolo Maldini never thinks to go away from Milan, and I think John Terry also thinks this. Loyalty is very important because Terry like Ashley Cole, Lampard, Drogba is a very important player.
"Not only as players but as men, they are great men and they present an example for other players. This is very important for the club."
German midfielder Michael Ballack will miss Tuesday's friendly with Inter Milan and ex-Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho who faces his former club for the first time.
Ballack has a toe injury and the rest of his tour is in doubt.
Ancelotti: Terry saga to be resolved this week
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Carlo Ancelotti has vowed John Terry's Chelsea future will be settled within a week.
GettyImages
Ancelotti insists Terry is staying put.
The Blues boss is determined to keep Terry at Stamford Bridge, despite a huge offer on the table from Manchester City.
Mark Hughes wants to take the England captain to Eastlands in a deal that could be worth up to £40m, but Ancelotti has now enlisted owner Roman Ambramovich to help persuade Terry to stay at Stamford Bridge for the rest of his career.
And the Italian has promised a resolution in the next seven days. Ancelotti said: "For John it is not a distraction this question because he is very concentrated and focused. I think that in one week nobody will have a problem about John Terry.
"John wants to stay in Chelsea and Chelsea want john terry to be captain for more years. It is normal other teams want him because he is a great player and all teams want to buy a great player.
"These are normal questions but he stays in the same team because he is a captain for Chelsea, it is impossible to sell John Terry. There is no problem with Manchester City. If Manchester City want to improve and buy the best players.
"Paolo Maldini never thinks to go away from Milan, and I think John Terry also thinks this. Loyalty is very important because Terry like Ashley Cole, Lampard, Drogba is a very important player.
"Not only as players but as men, they are great men and they present an example for other players. This is very important for the club."
German midfielder Michael Ballack will miss Tuesday's friendly with Inter Milan and ex-Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho who faces his former club for the first time.
Ballack has a toe injury and the rest of his tour is in doubt.
Carlo Ancelotti has vowed John Terry's Chelsea future will be settled within a week.
GettyImages
Ancelotti insists Terry is staying put.
The Blues boss is determined to keep Terry at Stamford Bridge, despite a huge offer on the table from Manchester City.
Mark Hughes wants to take the England captain to Eastlands in a deal that could be worth up to £40m, but Ancelotti has now enlisted owner Roman Ambramovich to help persuade Terry to stay at Stamford Bridge for the rest of his career.
And the Italian has promised a resolution in the next seven days. Ancelotti said: "For John it is not a distraction this question because he is very concentrated and focused. I think that in one week nobody will have a problem about John Terry.
"John wants to stay in Chelsea and Chelsea want john terry to be captain for more years. It is normal other teams want him because he is a great player and all teams want to buy a great player.
"These are normal questions but he stays in the same team because he is a captain for Chelsea, it is impossible to sell John Terry. There is no problem with Manchester City. If Manchester City want to improve and buy the best players.
"Paolo Maldini never thinks to go away from Milan, and I think John Terry also thinks this. Loyalty is very important because Terry like Ashley Cole, Lampard, Drogba is a very important player.
"Not only as players but as men, they are great men and they present an example for other players. This is very important for the club."
German midfielder Michael Ballack will miss Tuesday's friendly with Inter Milan and ex-Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho who faces his former club for the first time.
Ballack has a toe injury and the rest of his tour is in doubt.
Jul 3, 2009
Owen set to have medical at Old Trafford
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Michael Owen has arrived at Manchester United's training ground as his shock move to the Premier League champions gathers pace.
The striker will then have a full medical at Carrington on Friday and could put the finishing touches to a pay-as-you-play deal as early as next week.
The England international is without a club following the expiry of his contract with Newcastle United and it appeared only Stoke City and Hull City were interested in offering him a contract.
But now it appears Sir Alex Ferguson is ready to snap up a player who is fourth in the all-time goalscorers list for his country.
Newspaper reports suggest the contract will be purely incentive based, depending on minutes played and goals scored.
Sir Alex tried to sign the player - a boyhood Everton fan - as a teenager but instead he opted, on the advice of his father, to pen a contract with Liverpool where he scored 118 goals in 216 games.
United have been searching for a new forward since the departure of Carlos Tevez at the end of his loan deal. They had been linked with the likes of Karim Benzema and David Villa, but now it seems Owen will be arriving.
The 29-year-old suffered an injury-ravaged time at St James' Park but still managed to score 10 goals as the Magpies dropped out of the Premier League.
The former Liverpool and Real Madrid striker will be hoping a move to Old Trafford will push him back into the thoughts of England coach Fabio Capello ahead of next summer's World Cup finals.
United's policy is not to comment on transfer stories, but some Red Devils' messageboards have been lighting up with negative comments.
''Not happy. From what I've seen he is nowhere near as good as he was,'' was one; while another discontented fan lamented: ''Owen hasnt been the same for years!''
Michael Owen has arrived at Manchester United's training ground as his shock move to the Premier League champions gathers pace.
The striker will then have a full medical at Carrington on Friday and could put the finishing touches to a pay-as-you-play deal as early as next week.
The England international is without a club following the expiry of his contract with Newcastle United and it appeared only Stoke City and Hull City were interested in offering him a contract.
But now it appears Sir Alex Ferguson is ready to snap up a player who is fourth in the all-time goalscorers list for his country.
Newspaper reports suggest the contract will be purely incentive based, depending on minutes played and goals scored.
Sir Alex tried to sign the player - a boyhood Everton fan - as a teenager but instead he opted, on the advice of his father, to pen a contract with Liverpool where he scored 118 goals in 216 games.
United have been searching for a new forward since the departure of Carlos Tevez at the end of his loan deal. They had been linked with the likes of Karim Benzema and David Villa, but now it seems Owen will be arriving.
The 29-year-old suffered an injury-ravaged time at St James' Park but still managed to score 10 goals as the Magpies dropped out of the Premier League.
The former Liverpool and Real Madrid striker will be hoping a move to Old Trafford will push him back into the thoughts of England coach Fabio Capello ahead of next summer's World Cup finals.
United's policy is not to comment on transfer stories, but some Red Devils' messageboards have been lighting up with negative comments.
''Not happy. From what I've seen he is nowhere near as good as he was,'' was one; while another discontented fan lamented: ''Owen hasnt been the same for years!''
Jul 1, 2009
Forward Benzema joins Real Madrid from Lyon
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Lyon have accepted an offer from Real Madrid for striker Karim Benzema.
Madrid and Manchester United have been vying for the services of the 21-year-old but Lyon continued to insist before today that the France international would remain at the Stade Gerland for another season at least.
However, Les Gones announced on their official website this afternoon that they have accepted a fee of at least 35m euros (£30m) from Madrid for the player, with performance clauses set to see that fee rise to 41m euros.
The statement on Lyon's website read: ''Lyon announce they have reached an agreement with Real Madrid on the details of the transfer of their international attacker Karim Benzema.
''A few days ago Karim Benzema informed the club president Jean Michel Aulas of his desire to move to the Madrid club, which had always been his favourite club after Lyon, earlier than he had foreseen.
''The player wanted to seize the opportunity which Real Madrid offered him to be one of the major elements in their new ambitious project based around the greatest players of the world.
''Lyon accepted Karim Benzema's decision and negotiated the conditions of a transfer which satisfies all the different parties. The club wishes Karim the greatest success with Real Madrid.''
Benzema will become Florentino Perez's fourth signing since returning to the Madrid presidency a month ago, following the arrivals of Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo and Raul Albiol. The deal will take Madrid's summer spending to over 200m euros.
The France forward came through the ranks with the French giants and burst onto the scene in the 2007-08 season with 31 goals in 51 games, a streak that saw him named Ligue 1 player of the year as well as top the league's scoring charts.
The last campaign was less impressive for both club and player, as Lyon ended the season without the Ligue 1 title for the first time in eight years, but Benzema nevertheless scored 23 goals in all competitions - an average of a goal every other game.
Lyon have accepted an offer from Real Madrid for striker Karim Benzema.
Madrid and Manchester United have been vying for the services of the 21-year-old but Lyon continued to insist before today that the France international would remain at the Stade Gerland for another season at least.
However, Les Gones announced on their official website this afternoon that they have accepted a fee of at least 35m euros (£30m) from Madrid for the player, with performance clauses set to see that fee rise to 41m euros.
The statement on Lyon's website read: ''Lyon announce they have reached an agreement with Real Madrid on the details of the transfer of their international attacker Karim Benzema.
''A few days ago Karim Benzema informed the club president Jean Michel Aulas of his desire to move to the Madrid club, which had always been his favourite club after Lyon, earlier than he had foreseen.
''The player wanted to seize the opportunity which Real Madrid offered him to be one of the major elements in their new ambitious project based around the greatest players of the world.
''Lyon accepted Karim Benzema's decision and negotiated the conditions of a transfer which satisfies all the different parties. The club wishes Karim the greatest success with Real Madrid.''
Benzema will become Florentino Perez's fourth signing since returning to the Madrid presidency a month ago, following the arrivals of Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo and Raul Albiol. The deal will take Madrid's summer spending to over 200m euros.
The France forward came through the ranks with the French giants and burst onto the scene in the 2007-08 season with 31 goals in 51 games, a streak that saw him named Ligue 1 player of the year as well as top the league's scoring charts.
The last campaign was less impressive for both club and player, as Lyon ended the season without the Ligue 1 title for the first time in eight years, but Benzema nevertheless scored 23 goals in all competitions - an average of a goal every other game.
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