simpson contract closer to completion

the last tyne-talk poll indicated that 83% of voters would prefer danny simpson to be signed on the back of his loan deal over the other three loaned players. now it would seem simpson himself is set for a permanent move to st james' park as manchester united put the finishing touches to a deal. 23 year old simpson is out of contract with manchester united at the end of the season and if everything goes to plan could be chris hughton's first incoming transfer of the window and in time to face rivals west bromwich albion in the league next monday, the same day his current loan deal expires. whilst the rumour mill has been churning out stories surrounding jermaine beckford, matt kilgallon and simpson, hughton has remained tight-lipped over any incoming and outgoing players. however, manchester united manager sir alex ferguson appears to have given the go ahead for this deal to progress and it looks likely. simpson told the chronicle; "i'm loving it and i don't want it to end. it's been a good first half of the season for me and the team, and to leave that would be a shame. i would be disappointed, but hopefully i'll do enough to get a contract and get everything sorted out and kick start my career." speaking ahead of tonight's fa cup 3 rd round replay he added; "the fans are unbelievable, and if i can stay here for the next few years, i would be buzzing. i'm just taking it day by day. stuff's being sorted out, but i'm just concentrating on the games. around the training ground, day in day out, you have to think about it. it's on your mind, but once you're on the pitch and playing, you want to win, and you forget about it.
it does play on your mind, but, at the end of the day, you're a professional, and you've got to put it out of your mind. hopefully, you're thinking ‘it'll happen, but at the same time, it might not'."
fa cup replay match preview: newcastle united v plymouth argyle here

roberto mancini uncorks the red wine to shake up manchester city diet

... and the road ahead is long

arsenal put their faith in sol campbell again

sol campbell will complete a remarkable return to arsenal today by signing a contract at the emirates stadium until the end of the season. the former england defender played in last night’s reserve-team match against west ham united at upton park and then revealed that talks about a permanent contract are already at an advanced stage. it was campbell’s first appearance in an arsenal shirt since may 2006 and he coped well before coming off at half-time.

barry ferguson breaks duck – and nottingham forest's fa cup hopes

... cameron jerome pulled down sebastian larsson’s long through-pass only to turn and shoot into lee camp’s hands with christian benítez better placed, but then birmingham went ahead in the 62nd minute

time for kevin pietersen to get in touch with his swaggering former self

... is there a lingering resentment at the way he was treated by his employers when all he was doing, in his estimation, when he “got rid” of peter moores, was putting the interests of the team ahead of his own? all these are the added complications, layer upon layer, of a career in the spotlight

rafael benitez assured that he can spend cash from ryan babel sale

... ” but with manchester city having illustrated their determination to win a place in next season’s champions league, liverpool can ill afford to allow their squad to be further depleted by the possible departure of babel, who is interesting several european clubs, without benitez being given the go-ahead to find a replacement

wounded eagles wary of falling prey to the cup curse

... coached by local man faouzi benzarti, who was snapped up after being sacked by libya, tunisia are seeded to go through with group favourites cameroon ahead of zambia and gabon

anfield up for grabs- liverpool fans rage over new stadium naming rights

... 'liverpool will press ahead with building work once an initiative to raise £120m extra investment is concluded in the next couple of months

japan looking forward to tough korea and china tests

... with japan travelling to europe and africa in recent months looking for tough tests ahead of the 2010 world cup, a chance for some competitive games at home is just what coach takeshi okada ordered

fa cup match preview/stats/thread: newcastle utd v plymouth

... hughton has hinted that he may play kevin nolan giving him some match time ahead of their next league game against west brom

hughton calling on nolan for cup success

... " looking ahead at the plymouth replay tomorrow night he said; "it will be an experienced team that plays tomorrow night