The Malaysian Insider :: Sports
The Malaysian Insider :: Sports |
| England forward Young joins Manchester United Posted: 23 Jun 2011 08:01 AM PDT
Young (picture), who agreed a five-year contract in a deal estimated to be worth around £15 million (RM72.62 million), is manager Alex Ferguson's second June buy. The United boss is bidding to strengthen his ranks following last season's 19th Premier League title and Champions League final appearance in which they were largely outclassed by a rampant Barcelona side. The 25-year-old winger, who can also play as a second striker, joins England under-21 defender Phil Jones, who moved to United from Blackburn Rovers in another big-money move earlier this month. "Manchester United is delighted to announce it has reached agreement with Aston Villa for the transfer of Ashley Young," the club said in a statement on their website (http://www.manutd.com). "The player passed a medical in Manchester this week and has agreed a five-year contract." Young joined Villa from Watford in 2007 and has since built a reputation as a consistent Premier League performer with an impressive change of pace and an eye for a pass. His international career has been stop-start, however, and he has collected only 15 caps since making his debut in 2007. He did not even make Fabio Capello's England squad for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. But he forced his way back into the international setup and showcased his ability to change a game when he came off the bench to score the equalizer in England's 2-2 draw with Switzerland earlier this month. He was Villa's creator-in-chief last season, notching his team's highest number of assists as he helped them to a ninth-place Premier League finish following a poor start to the campaign. "The opportunity to come and play for one of the biggest clubs in the world is one I couldn't turn down," Young told the club website. "It's a prospect I always looked at from being a child." Young is unlikely to be United's final summer capture, with Atletico Madrid goalkeeper David De Gea expected to arrive at Old Trafford following Spain's European under-21 championship campaign. – Reuters Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
| Serena reaches Wimbledon third round after beating Halep Posted: 23 Jun 2011 07:42 AM PDT  Serena Williams of the US celebrates defeating Simona Halep of Romania at the Wimbledon tennis championships in London June 23, 2011. – Reuters pic The American seventh seed, just four matches into her comeback after 49 weeks out through injury and serious health issues, was initially blown off her stride by the tenacious Romanian teenager before breezing into the third round. Dispatched to Court Two, the atmospheric sunken bowl in the heart of the All England Club, the 29-year-old resembled a powerful sports car without enough room to manoeuvre in the early stages as Halep struck the ball with real freedom. Despite being largely outplayed in the opener, there was never a sense of panic and once she began middling the ball sweetly she moved smoothly through the gears. "It was a little windy out there today and I was a little tight," the American, who has only once failed to reach the third round in 44 grand slam appearances, said courtside. "I just want to play longer matches so I can get more practice," added Williams, who had sobbed into her towel after also needing three sets to beat Aravane Rezai on Tuesday. The trauma of a calamitous 11 months in which she first lacerated her foot on broken glass and then suffered life-threatening blood clots on her lung overwhelmed her in the first round but this was much more like the old steely Williams. While the 19 unforced errors she committed will be a minor concern, her swings were clean off both wings and her serve was grooved despite the gusty conditions. The 58th ranked Halep, playing her first Wimbledon, offered enough to suggest she can rise higher in the rankings. She began with real intent and capitalised on some wayward play from her opponent to break for 3-1 when a Williams backhand whistled over the baseline. Leading 5-2, Halep slipped while pushing off to return serve and gingerly held her knee. However, it did not appear to effect her level and another Williams backhand error gave her the first set. Former French Open junior champion Halep, who had breast reduction surgery in 2009 to help her mobility, received lengthy treatment on her knee while Williams put back on her white cardigan and limbered up near the umpire's chair. Once play resumed the match quickly turned in Williams' favour. Halep suddenly began hitting the net with her groundstrokes and Williams needed no second invitation to seize control. Williams squandered three match points at 5-0 in a one-sided third set but made no mistake in the following game when she powered down a first serve to end the contest. She will play 26th seed Maria Kirilenko in the next round. – Reuters Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
LONDON, June 23 – Premier League champions Manchester United continued their close-season restructuring and acquisition of home-grown talent when they signed Aston Villa and England forward Ashley Young today.| You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Sports To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
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