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Thursday Kickoff: Pearce named interim England boss, Molde to loan Cunningham and more

Pearce:Capello - Getty

By CALEB SONNELAND & JOHN BOSCHINI

Stuart Pearce will take on the seemingly poisoned chalice that is the English national team job — for now.

Following the resignation of former manager Fabio Capello, the country has gone into a frenzy as the Football Association begins its search for a new coach.

Until then, however, U-21 boss Pearce will take the reins and manage the team for its upcoming match with Holland on February 29th.  Pearce has been in control of the U-21's since 2007.

Several names have been touted to succeed Capello as the England manager, with Harry Redknapp seeming to be the overwhelming favorite.  Though, Martin O'Neill and Rafael Benitez have had their names thrown into consideration as well.

The FA insists, however, that it will not be rushed into an appointment with the new man.

Here are some other stories to keep your Thursday rolling along:

FK MOLDE LOOKING TO LOAN OUT CUNNINGHAM

Norweigian champions Molde FK are looking to ship out U.S. Under-20 men's national team defender Sean Cunningham on loan for the upcoming season.

In an effort to get Cunningham more playing time, Molde manager Ole Gunnar Solksjaer is looking to loan the defender after his first year as a pro saw him dress constantly but never play in a league match.

Cunningham, who made his pro debut in an NM Cupen match this past campaign, has most recently been linked with Stabaek. There was past reported interest from Sogndal and Start.

HOFFENHEIM FIRES MANAGER

Bundesliga club Hoffenheim has fired manager Holger Stanislawski following a 1-0 loss to second-division side Greuther Fuerth. Stanislawski was in his second season in charge of Hoffenheim and enjoyed popularity with both players and fans but a recent dip in form sealed his exit.

Besides the embarrassing cup loss, Hoffenheim had won just one of their last 10 Bundesliga games and now sit in eighth place with no realistic change of European qualification. Stanislawski also saw the departure of several key players during the January transfer window.

The firing will have a major impact on the futures of U.S. national team players Fabian Johnson and Danny Williams, as well as U.S. Under-23 national team star Joe Gyau.

REAL MADRID/BARCELONA TOP WORLD'S RICH LIST

The growing gap between the top two clubs in Spain and the rest of the world continues to grow.

Real Madrid saw their revenues increase nine percent during 2011 for a grand total of $636.5 million with Barcelona not far behind, just shy of $600 million. Manchester United was third followed by Bayern Munich and Arsenal rounding out the top five. The most surprising inclusion in the top 10 was Schalke. No clubs outside of Europe made the top 20 with Brazilian sides Corinthians and Sao Paulo barely cracking the top 50.

SNEIJDER WOULD HAVE BEEN TEMPTED BY UNITED OFFER

Once more, Inter Milan's Wesley Sneijder has opened the door to a potential transfer to Manchester United.

The 27-year-old Dutchman admitted that, if an offer had arrived on the final day of the January transfer window that he may have left Inter for the Premier League Champions.  However, there was no contact from the Manchester club.

Sneijder is contracted until 2015 but has seen his current campaign riddled with injuries, only allowing him 11 appearances in Serie A.

Interestingly, Sneijder also admitted, when asked about a move to MLS to join the likes of Thierry Henry and David Beckham, "That is something I think about, but only in the future."

GINOLA HURT IN SKIING ACCIDENT

Former Newcastle and Tottenham winger David Ginola has been taken to the hospital with multiple injuries following a skiing accident in the French Alps. The 45-year-old spent 90 minutes in the snow before an airlift arrived to transport him for medical attention.

Doctors say Ginola has broken five ribs and damage to his neck. Ginola is most famous for a high-profile spat with Gerard Houlier, who blamed the seldom-capped midfielder for single-handedly keeping France out of the 1994 World Cup after a mistake in the final qualifying game. Ginola is expected to make a full recovery.

SEVILLA BRING IN MANAGER UNTIL CLOSE OF THE SEASON

La Liga's Sevilla has brought in Jose Miguel "Michel" Gonzalez until the end of the 2011/2012 season following the sacking of Marcelino Garcia Toral.

However, should Michel guide Sevilla, currently 11th, into a Top 4 finish, guaranteeing Champions League play, his contract will be extended another year.

MIchel takes over after the club's 2-1 loss to Villareal which condemned the club to a seventh straight defeat.  

SWANSEA'S RODGERS PENS NEW DEAL

Brendan Rodgers has been given a three-and-a-half year contract by Swansea City following some impressive displays in the Premier League.

Rodgers guided the club to Premier League promotion in his first season in charge and has since toppled Arsenal in January and held Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham to draws.

The new deal will keep Rodgers at Liberty Stadium until the summer of 2015.

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Who do you think should get the job for England?  Is it good that Molde is looking to loan out Cunningham?  Think Sneijder will ever make the switch to United?  

Share your thoughts below. 

Comments

  1. I think this week’s stint off the bench was Gyau first appearance with the first team so it’s not like the previous manager gave him a lot of chances.

    Reply
  2. They are well positioned in the age of financial fair play, exspecially as transfer fees are set to come down substantially. They are paying down stadium debt so they have more money to spend on players when FFP evens the playing field. Arsenal are very well positioned for the future

    Reply
  3. Arsenal top 5 in revenues but yet doesn’t spend more than round 12million on a player, know it’s revenue and not money necessarily available, but still…

    Reply
  4. Interesting phase for MLS – even a player like Sneijder at 27 mentions it. We’re becoming the premeier euro career extension league. And we’re pillaging talent from less wealthy leagues in the Americas (sorry Colombia). It’s come a long way since the JV days. Good on ya Mr. Garber.

    Reply
  5. Considering the ridiculous manner in which La Liga unfairly split tv revenue between the “big two” and everyone else, it’s no surprise they’re getting richer and the rest of the league is going nowhere. Hopefully financial fair play bites them all in the backside

    Reply
  6. Americans rarely prosper with coaching changes. Even Dempsey had a hard time with it. Not worried about Williams and Johnson so much as Gyau, what awful luck.

    Reply

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