Lampard Gets Le Tissier Backing

Matt Le Tissier has backed Frank Lampard to continue as England's first-choice penalty taker despite his recent misses.

The Chelsea midfielder has a good record from the spot but his miss in the FA Cup final was followed by another in the friendly win over Japan on Sunday.

Former England midfielder Le Tissier was one of the best from 12 yards, converting 48 of the 49 penalties he took during his career.

He said of Lampard: "If he backs himself then you've got to take that on board. Half the battle is if the player wants to be there.

"Obviously if he misses five in a row then you might have to take the decision out of his hands but if he's still confident then let him have them."

And Le Tissier's advice to his countrymen is simply to be positive.

"For me it was a case of getting every negative thought out of my mind," said Le Tissier.

"Coming in visualising the crowd erupting when the ball hit the back of the net was the thing for me and I always looked forward to taking penalties because it was the best chance I was going to get to score a goal in a game."

England's record in shoot-outs is famously woeful but Le Tissier, who won eight caps for England in the 1990s, does not believe that should be a major factor in their fortunes this time.

He said: "It might have an effect because everybody talks about it so much but you just have to try and put that our of your mind.

"At the end of the day, they've got to stand up there and be confident and be arrogant enough to think, 'this is a free shot from 12 yards, surely I'm going to score'."

The confidence surrounding England's chances in South Africa has subsided somewhat with injuries and indifferent form affecting a number of players but Le Tissier is backing Fabio Capello's men to go far.

"I'm pretty confident," he said. "I think we can at least make the semi-finals and from that point on it's anyone's competition."

The 41-year-old, meanwhile, has also tipped Diego Maradona's Argentina and Holland to challenge for the trophy.

He continued. "Brazil and Spain are everyone's favourites but I'd be watching out for Argentina. I know they've struggled in qualification but often you find teams that do struggle a little bit all of a sudden pick up when they get to the World Cup finals and they could be one of those teams. Holland are a pretty good bet, they could be dangerous."

And it is a Dutchman that Le Tissier is predicting will be the star of the show.

He added: "Obviously Lionel Messi had a fabulous season with Barcelona and he'll be one a lot of people will be looking for to be top man at the tournament.

"But I'd go for a little dark horse who didn't play much at the back end of last season but is now fit again and that's Robin van Persie. I think he's a fabulous footballer and if he fires he could be the tournament's top scorer."

Chelsea Close To First Deal Of Summer For Darijo Srna

Chelsea will discover if they have succeeded in their bid to sign Croatia international Darijo Srna from Shakhtar Donetsk in the next few days.

Standard Sport revealed last December that coach Carlo Ancelotti wanted to bring the 28-year-old to Stamford Bridge and negotiations have already begun with the Ukrainian club, who are demanding a £20million fee.

Shakhtar are willing to sell because Srna has only one year left on his contract and the player is understood to be keen to move to the Premier League champions.

It is believed Chelsea are prepared to pay Srna up to £79,000-a-week for his signature and will make room for him in the squad by selling of Juliano Belletti and Paulo Ferreira.

Ancelotti sees Srna as a useful addition because he can not only play at right back, but also at right midfield, where the club has little competition for places.

Talks have been delayed while Srna has been away with the Croatian national team, but he hopes to meet with Shakhtar's president Rinat Akhmetov this week to discuss the situation.

A source close to the player believes that as things stand the chances of him moving to Chelsea is 80-20 in their favour, but Real Madrid and Barcelona are also monitoring the situation.

Chelsea Tracking Victor Mugabe, Brother Of Inter Milan Midfielder McDonald Mariga

Premier League champions Chelsea are tracking Inter Milan star MacDonald Mariga’s brother Victor Mugabe, who plays for Belgian Jupiler Pro League side Germinal Beerschot.

According a report appearing in the Evening Standard, Chelsea were on the trail of the Kenyan midfielder for the whole of last season and they sent scouts to watch him on four occasions.

According to Jean Baptiste, chairman of Belgium children’s fashion dealer JBC who also owns half of Mugabe’s club’s stake, Chelsea’s interest in the player is not strange considering that English clubs have traditionally worked closely with their Belgian counterparts.

"Manchester United, Fulham and Arsenal have working relationships with some clubs in Belgium and from time to time they send scouts to look for talent and we are excited about the possibility of Mugabe playing in England," he said.

Baptiste, who is currently in Kenya for a three-day scouting mission, said the English club have not said anything about their interest in Mugabe, but again stressed this was not strange as they required more time to be satisfied with his ability.

"It may not happen next season because Mugabe needs to play more matches at his current club. Next season will be very crucial for him if he is to land such a lucrative move," he said.

"English clubs respect talent and Mugabe has what it takes, but he needs a lot of matches," he pointed out.

Mugabe confirmed the interest from Chelsea and said he was aware that they had sent scouts to look at him on four occasions.

"It is of course exciting to know that a club like Chelsea is interested in you, but I am not letting it get to my head. My focus is to get more matches and see what happens after that," said Mugabe.

Chelsea Boss Ancelotti In Ibrahimovic Talks In Miami

Chelsea coach Carlo Ancelotti has met with Barcelona striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic in Miami to discuss a move to Stamford Bridge, Spanish daily Mundo Deportivo reports.

Ibrahimovic and Ancelotti are staying in the same holiday resort in Miami and whether that it is coincidence or not, Mundo Deportivo claims that they are discussing a possible move to Chelsea.

On paper, Ibrahimovic has enjoyed a good first season in Spain, scoring 20 goals in 41 appearances for Barcelona since his high profile move from Inter Milan last summer. However, his performances have been criticised by the notoriously harsh Spanish media.

With Barcelona having just signed Valencia hitman David Villa, speculation that Ibrahimovic will leave has intensified, with Manchester City also thought to be keen on signing the Swedish striker. However, Chelsea is thought to hold the upper hand, given the lure of Champions League football which City cannot offer.

Stamford Bridge boss Carlo Ancelotti knows that although Chelsea won the Premier League title, the experience of a player like Ibrahimovic could be important in capturing the elusive Champions League.

Real Madrid To Sign Manchester United And Chelsea Target Di Maria

Real Madrid will complete the signing of Benfica winger Angel Di Maria before the World Cup, disappointing both Manchester United and Chelsea, according to Spanish daily AS.

Reports in recent months claimed Chelsea had sent Frank Arnesen on scouting trips to watch Di Maria, whilst Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson viewed him as a possible long-term replacement for Ryan Giggs. However, new Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has reportedly prioritized a move for Di Maria and wants to tie up a deal before the World Cup.

The Argentinian just completed his third season at Benfica and enjoyed another excellent term, scoring nine goals and impressing during the Portugese side's Europa League campaign. He reportedly has a buyout clause of 40 million euros, but AS claims that Di Maria will move to Real Madrid for a fee of 35 million euros.

Di Maria's agent is Jorge Mendes, who has very good relations with Real Madrid and negotiated the world-record deal which took Cristiano Ronaldo to the Bernabeu last summer from Manchester United.

With Franck Ribery having committed his future to Bayern Munich, should Di Maria end up at the Bernabeu, it would leave both Manchester United and Chelsea scratching their heads in the search for additional left-sided options.

Di Maria has eight international caps and is set to star at the World Cup for Diego Maradona's Argentina side.

Juventus & Atletico Madrid Chiefs In Talks Over Chelsea Target Sergio Aguero

Juventus and Atletico Madrid transfer chiefs are holding talks in Turin over the futures of Sergio Aguero and Tiago, according to Tuttosport.

Giuseppe Marotta and Fabio Paratici are discussing the possibility of signing Aguero with Garcia Pitarch, the Atleti sporting director.

Talks centre around the Spanish side's hopes of signing Tiago on a permanent deal. He has convinced coach Quique Sanchez Flores to keep him, and the clubs are set to agree on a transfer fee that will take the midfielder to Spain permanently.

Juventus will use that window to lay down plans for Aguero. It's no secret new manager Luigi Del Neri has asked for reinforcements at the Italian club and the Argentinian, who turns 22 today, is admired by club chief Andrea Agnelli.

However, he has a €50 million (£41m) release clause in his deal - a figure Juve cannot meet. Marotta is now thinking about clearing that obstacle by offering Tiago, Diego and €20m in cash for the hitman.

Aguero has reportedly been a long term target of Premier League champions Chelsea, who are expected to move for a striker in the summer. Manchester City have also been touted as a possible destination for the young striker.

Ghana's Michael Essien 'Cursed By Father' Out Of World Cup 2010

Ghana and Chelsea star Michael Essien can blame the crushing of his World Cup dream on a jinx by his estranged father, according to South African Independent Online.

The Black Stars’ captain was ruled out of this summer's tournament after failing to recover from a knee injury picked up in January.

According to reports in Africa the reason for the midfielder’s long-term injury is that of a bad luck curse, known as a juju, issued by his estranged father.

James Essien, who resides in a mud hut in rural Ghana, is currently very ill from a self-imposed hunger strike after hearing the news of his son's inability to play for his national side in South Africa.

Essien has apparently made many attempts to contact his son, who he hasn’t spoken to in 15 years, without receiving a reply.

Ghana's first match of the World Cup is against Serbia on June 13.

Clean Sheet For Ivanovic

Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic played 90 minutes in Serbia's disappointing 0-0 draw with Poland on Wednesday night.

The defender returned to the side after sitting out the weekend's defeat to New Zealand, and will be pleased to have kept a clean sheet, though the team's poor form continues.

Ivanovic played at right-back, the position he has become accustomed to both at club and international level, but was not partnered on the night by Manchester United's Nemanja Vidic.

The Serbs had the better of the game, but again proved impotent in front of goal, Birmingham City's new signing Nikola Zigic having little sight of goal, while Arsenal's Polish goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski was on hand to prevent Danko Lazovic.

The Serbs have one more game to prepare for the World Cup, against Cameroon on Saturday, before they start their campaign against Ghana on June 13.

Summary Of A Season: Yury Zhirkov

The Russian arrived from CSKA Moscow in the summer with a reputation as a pacy winger capable of beating players that could also fill in at left-back.

Injury to Ashley Cole meant we certainly saw the latter, but the form of others, largely Florent Malouda, meant the 26-year-old's attacking prowess only came to the fore in flashes.

Fitness problems of his own prevented Zhirkov from a competitive Chelsea debut until late September, a troublesome knee meaning all Blues fans had seen of him to that point was an impressive bow against AC Milan in Baltimore, in which he scored the winner from a tucked-in midfield position.

The player himself admitted the two months that followed were a struggle as he adapted to a new country and a new club without the day-to-day involvement that full training allows.

Speaking just before Christmas, by which time he had still only played a handful of matches, Yury announced he had not 'done anything special so far' but chances would come in 2010.

He impressed against Watford and Sunderland, creating goals in each, and figured regularly during a January where we were missing key players at the African Cup of Nations.

Then came Cole's injury in early February, a fractured ankle that would keep him out two months. Such luck then that just two games into his spell at left-back, Zhirkov suffered injury of his own - a knock on the calf against Wolves resulting in him missing our Champions League first leg against Inter.

Back for the second leg, he found himself marginalized by the excellent Maicon and too often sucked inside on the defensive. If that night was a low in the season, then his highlight was undoubtedly against Aston Villa 11 days later.

Given free rein to attack, he galloped forward time and again, twice beating his man inside the area before being brought down for penalties, and then supplying the pinpoint cross for Malouda to volley home the goal of the game.

Cole's return to fitness in late April meant Yury featured less in the run-in, but with a season of adaptation under his belt, and a more comfortable grasp of the language, expect him to be a key player in 2010/11, when he will be hoping to up his goals return to something like the levels he achieved in Russia.