Manchester United star Van Persie out of Liverpool clash

Robin van Persie is out of Manchester United's Capital One Cup clash with Liverpool on Wednesday due to injury.

The striker picked up a groin problem prior to the 4-1 defeat to Manchester City on Sunday and did not feature at the Etihad Stadium.

David Moyes has confirmed the Dutchman will not be involved at Old Trafford, but has an "outside chance" of featuring against West Brom in the Premier League on September 28.

Speaking at press conference ahead of the Liverpool match, Moyes said: "I don't think Robin will play on Wednesday. But I think he'll have an outside chance for Saturday.”

Moyes also believes it is time to move on from their convincing derby day weekend defeat and believes he will learn more about his players character in the coming weeks.

He continued: "It's gone now. I can't do anything about it so we move on and get ready for the next game.

“I'm still getting to know all the players. I'll get to know a few more this week and see what they can do."

Finally he talked up the rivalry between Manchester United and Liverpool and hinted he will include a number of established players for the Capital One Cup clash, in a match which could mark Luis Suarez's return to competitive action for Merseyside outfit.

He added: “It's a big rivalry and it could take on a bigger significance than people might expect.

"I think it means that Liverpool have a got a really good player. Does it change the complexion? I don't know. I'm not looking at Liverpool too much except that I know the quality of Luis Suarez is very good.

"The cup has been a route to giving young players an opportunity, but obviously this is a really big tie."

Manchester United currently sit in eighth spot in the Premier League, having taken seven points from their opening five league matches.

'Messi defied Guardiola in front of Barcelona team-mates'

Lionel Messi deliberately went against the orders of his former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola, according to ex-New York Red Bulls boss Hans Backe.

The 61-year-old has never previously had any direct association with Barca, but his tenure in charge of the Red Bulls coincided with the stays of Thierry Henry and Rafael Marquez, both of whom were Blaugrana players when the alleged incident occurred.

Backe told Sweden's TV4 that Messi intentionally disobeyed instructions from Guardiola in front of the entire Barcelona squad before a game in 2009, though, he refused to reveal his source.

"It was three hours before the game when all the players were sitting and eating, and Messi said he wanted a can of coke," he said.

"Guardiola replied that no player should drink cola three hours before a game.

"So Messi got up and left, returned a few minutes later with a can of cola and drank it right in front of Guardiola and the rest of the team.

"Imagine what would have happened when a player with the profile of Messi goes against the coach in this way?

"It was a war Guardiola could not win; it was impossible."

Walcott out of crucial England World Cup qualifiers

Theo Walcott will miss England's final two World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland with an abdominal injury.

Arsene Wenger has confirmed the Arsenal forward will undergo a minor procedure on Wednesday and be unavailable for "a few weeks".

Walcott missed the Gunners 3-1 win over Stoke City, and will now sit out a crucial Champions League clash with Napoli as well as domestic encounters with West Brom and Swansea City.

"Theo will be out for a few weeks," Wenger told the club's official website. "He has developed some damage to his posterior abdominal wall. It's not a hernia, but it's a little structural problem in his abdomen.

"He will have the procedure in Germany on Wednesday and, because it’s so minor, we can begin his rehab immediately.

"We are pleased it’s being dealt with quickly and he shouldn’t miss too many Arsenal matches. But he will miss the forthcoming international matches with England."

The 24-year-old has started the season in impressive fashion and netted his first goal of the campaign in Arsenal’s recent 2-1 Champions League victory over Marseille.

Khedira unhappy with madrid start

Sami Khedira has called on Real Madrid to improve on the slow start they made to Sunday's 4-1 win over Getafe.

Carlo Ancelotti's side fell behind to Lafita's fifth minute strike but struck back through goals from Pepe, Cristiano Ronaldo (2) and Isco.

But though Khedira applauded the quality of los Blancos' goals, the Germany midfielder admitted last season's Liga runners-up cannot afford to start so sluggishly.

He told the club's official website: "We played a great match and got a good result, even though the first 15 minutes were not good. After that we turned the score around and we are very happy. Cristiano Ronaldo and Isco scored two great goals."

The 25-year-old was linked with a summer exit following the departure of Jose Mourinho, with Khedira himself revealing that Manchester United had enquired about his services.

A move failed to materialise, however, with the former Stuttgart man happy at the Santiago Bernabeu and delighted with the competition for places at the club.

He added: "It is very important to for us to have a team in which anyone can play because we have many high-level and high-intensity matches. We have a quality squad and we are all happy."

Khedira was named Germany's ambassador for football for 2013 on Monday in light of his performances and conduct in representing German football over the past year.

Isco almost as good as Zidane

The talented 21-year-old was brought in from Malaga in the summer for a fee of €30 million and has already demonstrated his class with a stunning start to the campaign, with four goals in five Liga matches.

Zidane, Ancelotti's assistant at Madrid, was reowned for his technical ability and Ancelotti insists that Isco is developing into a player of the France legend's ilk.

"Comparing Isco to Zidane is not a bad thing. He is very close to Zidane with their ability," he told reporters.

"They have a lot of similarities. Zidane is obviously in a better position to judge and he said Isco isn't there yet, but said he could come close in the future."

Meanwhile, Ancelotti has also defended Karim Benzema against recent criticism and feels the Frenchman has been playing well of late.

The former Olympique Lyonnais striker was jeered by fans in their 4-1 win over Getafe at the weekend after missing a number of good chances, yet the Italian has insisted that he is happy with the 25-year-old's performances.

"Benzema has put in some good performances," he added.

"I like his hard work on the pitch, regardless of whether he scores.

"I don't think it's a big problem for him that the fans whistled him. Sometimes it can even be a good thing, because it can motivate the players."

Finally, Ancelotti confirmed that Gareth Bale should have recovered from his thigh injury to face Atletico Madrid this Saturday.

"He trained individually today. He should be fit for Saturday's match," the Italian said on Tuesday.

"Atletico Madrid are the team that have surprised me the most. They are playing well." 

Ribery best in Europe, says Messi

<p>
Barcelona star Lionel Messi has conceded that Bayern Munich ace Franck Ribery deserved to win Uefa's Best Player in Europe award.

The Argentine and Cristiano Ronaldo were pipped to the award at a Uefa ceremony in Monaco in August and the 26-year-old says Ribery's treble success with Bayern Munich meant the right man walked away with the prize.

"It was an honour to be in this race again, among the best three players in Europe," he told Uefa.

"There are so many great players in the world and it is a real pleasure to be in the competition, but he [Ribery] deserved to win the trophy."

The Blaugrana were humbled 7-0 on aggregate by the German giants en route to the Champions League crown last season.

And while Messi admits that the defeat left a "bitter taste" in his mouth, he believes the team must not dwell on the past if they are to bounce back from last year's disappointment in Europe.

"We always want to achieve more. Winning the league was very important because of what it signified – winning it back after Real Madrid had won it last year," he added.

"There's also a bitter taste after what happened in the semi-final against Bayern München, where there was a big gap between the two teams – we didn't go into it in our best shape.

"But that's the past and we have to look forward."

The Catalans resume their Liga campaign following the international break by welcoming Sevilla to Camp Nou on Saturday.</p>

Mesut Ozil is the signing of the summer. 10 reasons why Ozil is the signing of the summer

1. He can do this. And this. 2. He's the best of an insanely talented group of young Germany playmakers - Julian Draxler, Marco Reus, Mario Gotze. And Ozil's the original. 3. He's the only player with a world-class reputation coming into the Premier League this summer. And he immediately becomes (at worst) the second best player in the Premier League (behind Robin Van Persie). 4. He's as good as Lionel Messi - at least in terms of providing assists. Only the Barca superstar set up as many goals as Ozil over the past two years. 47 assists in 24 months. 5. He plays a key pass every 22.1 minutes. Olivier Giroud is happy. 6. At 24, he's just reaching his peak. 7. Jose Mourinho says so. The Special One called him the 'best number 10 in the world' and compared him to Luis Figo and Zinedine Zidane. 8. He's got great nicknames - 'Der Rabe' (The Raven), 'German Messi', 'German Zidane', 'Nemo' - and everyone knows great nicknames mean great player. Not to mention, Arsenal have a strong tradition in this department - from their very own 'Little Mozart' to the 'non-flying Dutchman'. 9. He's got the best eyes in football. Just look at them. Actually don't. Don't look into the eyes. 10. Cristiano Ronaldo's reaction to his departure. When the world's second best player throws a strop because you've been sold, you must be good. In truth, Ronaldo probably recognises his supply line has just taken a massive hit.

Cristiano Ronaldo ‘Angry’ Mesut Ozil Has Been Allowed To Join Arsenal

Portuguese says former team-mate was the Real player who knew his game best. Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo has claimed that he is “angry” about the Spanish giants’ decision to allow playmaker Mesut Ozil to leave the club and join Arsenal this season, according to reports in the Daily Mail. The highly rated Germany international moved to the north Londoners in the final hours of transfer deadline day for a club-record fee of £42.5m, with Ozil agreeing a five-year deal worth a whopping £200,000 per week with the Gunners. And with reports emerging in Spain that it was los Blancos’ decision to allow the 24-year-old to leave the Santiago Bernabeu this summer, with Madrid needing to raise funds in order to help repay some of the world-record 100m euros transfer fee that they recently splashed out on Tottenham Hotspur wide man Gareth Bale, not everyone at the club it seems is happy with the decision. One man in particular who is understood to be disappointed at Ozil’s move to the Emirates is Portugal international Ronaldo, who has apparently made his feelings on the matter clear to his compatriots while away on international duty with his country preparing for the upcoming World Cup double heades. “The sale of Ozil is very bad news for me,” Ronaldo is quoted as saying in Spanish sports daily AS. “He was the player who best knew my moves in front of goal … I’m angry about Özil leaving.”

Wayne Rooney lashes out at England doubters as he reveals pictures of "horror" forehead gash Check out all the latest News, Sport & Celeb gossip at Mirror.co.uk http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/pictures-wayne-rooneys-horror-injury-2250860#ixzz2dw8RuNJ1 Follow us: @DailyMirror on Twitter | DailyMirror on Facebook

Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has taken aim at his critics who had slammed him for withdrawing from the England squad with a facial injury. The forward was caught in the face by Phil Jones while taking part in a training session at United's Carrington base, and after medical attention he was deemed unfit to play for England this week. Rooney posted two images of the gash on his Facebook page, along with the comment: "Some people seem to be questioning my commitment to the England squad and the fact I had to pull out of the 2 games. "There's nothing I would like more than to be helping the lads in the qualifiers. I'm sure people will see from these images the reason why I won't be able to play." Three Lions team-mate Theo Walcott yesterday told the media: “I have seen the actual injury and it is not a nice sight to be honest. It is not going to help his looks I wouldn’t think. “I have seen a picture and it is a very, very big gash. It’s not nice to see. It’s like something out of a horror film.” Rooney also missed Manchester United's heated clash with Liverpool on Sunday, a game the champions lost as their bitter rivals went top of the Premier League. Rooney was spotted out and about with his family this morning, with his healing wound in full view. He had taken his son out to Apple Jack's farm in Warrington where he was enjoying a day off. The 27-year-old has endured a difficult summer, with persistent rumours over his future at Old Trafford. Chelsea made several bids for the former Everton man, but after refusing to submit an official transfer request , the striker was forced to accept he would be staying at Man United.

Madrid ditched Ozil for his poor finishing

Former Real Madrid star Mesut Ozil was released by the club due to his poor goal-scoring record, according to ex-Germany international Oliver Kahn. The Gelsenkirchen-born recently completed a switch to Arsenal in a transfer worth €47 million and Kahn feels the deal was only possible because Carlo Ancelotti saw no future for the 24-year-old at the Spanish capital. "Mesut Ozil failed to make himself indispensable at Real Madrid," the former Bayern Munich goalkeeper wrote in his column for Bild. "Last season, he only scored nine goals in La Liga - in his position, behind the attackers, this is not enough. Especially if you consider that it's normal for Real Madrid to score a combined 100 goals per season. "Those who want to survive at a club like Real must prove themselves in every match and show that they're the best of the best. "It will be interesting to watch if Ozil can prevail in the English Premier League with his filigree way of playing." Ozil scored 19 goals during 104 appearances for los Blancos since his arrival in 2010. For his country, the German with Turkish ancestry was able to mark 14 times in a total of 47 outings.

Tottenham Hotspur FC squad numbers 2013/2014

Tottenham Hotspur squad numbers: 1 - Heurelho GOMES 2 - Kyle WALKER 3 - Danny ROSE 4 - Younes KABOUL 5 - Jan VERTONGHEN 6 - Vlad CHIRICHES (Premier League only) 7 - Aaron LENNON 8 - PAULINHO 9 - Roberto SOLDADO 10 - Emmanuel ADEBAYOR 11 - Erik LAMELA (Premier League only) 12 - Vlad CHIRICHES (Uefa Europa League only) 14 - Lewis HOLTBY 15 - Etienne CAPOUE 16 - Kyle NAUGHTON 17 - Andros TOWNSEND 18 - Jermain DEFOE 19 - Mousa DEMBELE 20 - Michael DAWSON 21 - Nacer CHADLI 22 - Gylfi SIGURDSSON 23 - Christian ERIKSEN 24 - Brad FRIEDEL 25 - Hugo LLORIS 28 - Thomas CARROLL 29 - Jake LIVERMORE 30 - SANDRO 32 - Benoit ASSOU-EKOTTO 33 - Erik LAMELA (Uefa Europa League only) 35 - Ezekiel FRYERS 37 - Harry KANE 41 - Shaquile COULTHIRST 43 - Ryan FREDERICKS 46 - Simon DAWKINS 53 - Cameron LANCASTER 54 - Laste DOMBAXE 56 - Jordan ARCHER 57 - Jonathan MILES 59 - Kevin STEWART

Arsenal's squad compared before and after the transfer

Heading into the final day of dealings, the pressure seemed to be mounting on Arsenal and Arsene Wenger, with the Gunners making just two signings up until that point. That all changed however, with the arrival of Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid in a club-record signing. It was a summer in which more players left than arrived at the Emirates, so to assess the level of change at the club, talkSPORT have compared Arsenal's squad lists at the beginning and end of the window (we have not included players sent out on loan by Arsenal or those more likely to feature for the U21 side than the first team).

It must be noted that there are some omissions from the current squad list, with the likes of Gedio Zelalem, Serge Ganbry and Nico Yennaris not included. Despite being named in matchday squads this season, they are still technically in Arsenal's reserve squad, although they would be expected to feature at some point this season, possibly in the Capital One Cup.

Ramos: I'd have stopped Ozil joining Arsenal

The Germany international secured a deadline-day switch to Arsene Wenger's side in a €50 million deal. Ramos concedes he will miss Ozil on a personal level and believes the 24-year-old is a "unique" player. "It's obvious that he is a special team-mate and friend," Ramos told reporters. "I've always had a real friendship with him, and it's a shame. He's a great footballer, unique. "Everyone is free to choose the best for themselves, but if I were to decide what was happening at Madrid he would be one of the last who would be going. "But he has decided, and the club too. We have a great team and I hope it will be a big year [for us]."

Arsenal transfer news: Ba set to follow Ozil

The Gunners have agreed a fee and personal terms for German international Ozil and the deal will be completed later today, appeasing many of the fans desire for new players. However, there is still clamour for Arsenal to sign a striker to help take the burden of goals off Olivier Giroud. SportsDirect News has learned that the Gunners are set to bid for former Newcastle striker Demba Ba. The Senegalese striker is surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge with new boy Samuel Eto’o joining last week as well as Romelu Lukaku and Fernando Torres also ahead of him in the pecking order. Ba, who joined Chelsea in January, is a proven goalscorer having scored 29 times for Newcastle in a season and a half at St James’ Park and would provide just the potency in front of goal the Gunners require.

Tottenham's new signings stall in premier league

Tottenham are a very good side, and have started the season in a solid fashion, with wins over Crystal Palace and Swansea, and a 1-0 loss at the Emirates stadium against Arsenal on Sunday but Tottenham are yet to score from open play in the league yet. However, it seems that Spurs' new attacking signings still need a little time to adjust to life in the Premier League and the rest of the team need to adjust to life without Gareth Bale. Tottenham have made some excellent attacking signings in Roberto Soldado, Erik Lamela, Nacer Chadli and Christian Eriksen, who are all sure to make a big impact in the league once they are settled down. However, apart from scoring two penalties thanks to Soldado, Spurs don’t seem to have found there eye for goal just yet this season. Spurs have been impressive in the games they have played, playing well in midfield and putting pressure on opponents, however, the problem for Spurs fans at the moment is that the pressure isn’t yet leading anywhere. Spurs haven’t found their cutting edge yet both in terms of finishing and chances created. They have been playing well in midfield and getting the ball to their wide men on several occasions, however, the creative forces at Spurs are yet to havecarved out any meaningful chances and, apart from the penalties, Soldado has not had anything to pounce on.