By JUSTIN FERGUSON
Now that he is in charge at Old Trafford, David Moyes is making it a first-week priority to sort out some transfer drama involving one of his former Everton stars.
Moyes will meet face-to-face with Wayne Rooney and his agent sometime this week to discuss the striker’s future with the defending Premier League champions.
Rooney made his professional debut with Everton at the start of the 2002-03 campaign, which was also Moyes’s first full season as the club’s manager. After a pair of successful seasons at Goodison Park, Rooney moved to Manchester United following a £27 million ($41 million) transfer.
Moyes’s predecessor, Sir Alex Ferguson, said the 27-year-old England international had made a transfer request just days after his former manager was announced to be next in line at United. Moyes sued Rooney for libel after the striker released his autobiography in 2008, but the case was settled before it went to court.
Rooney, who was linked to Paris Saint-Germain before his transfer request in May, has attracted considerable attention from Premier League rivals Arsenal and Chelsea so far this summer.
Here are some more stories to get your Tuesday started:
FIFA POSTPONES WORLD CUP TICKET PRICE ANNOUNCEMENT
Fans who are ready to shell out the cash for tickets to next year’s World Cup in Brazil will have to hold off for a few more days.
FIFA announced a postponement for the unveiling of ticket prices for the 2014 tournament during a Monday press conference in Rio. The announcement, which was originally scheduled for Monday, will now be on July 19.
While many point to the ongoing national protests in Brazil as the reason for the postponement, FIFA claims logistical reasons forced the date change.
“We want to look at all the issues we have faced at the Confederations Cup,” FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke said. “We want to avoid having 10,000 tickets that are not collected two days prior to the game.”
Valcke said that there will not be a “big difference” in prices from the 2010 World Cup, where tickets ranged from £14 ($21) to £630 ($957).
UCL GETS UNDERWAY WITH FIRST QUALIFYING ROUND
It may still be a few weeks before the preseason schedule begins for the world’s top clubs, but the biggest international club tournament will get underway on Tuesday.
The first of three qualifying rounds in the UEFA Champions League kicks off today as the four smallest member associations send their title holders to the competition. Armenian Premier League champions Shirak will take on San Marino’s Tre Penne, and Andorran side FC Lusitanos host the EB/Streymur, winners of the Faroese Premier League.
After a two-legged matchup, which concludes next Tuesday, the two winners will join 32 other league champions for the second qualifying round. Winners from that round will join the third and final qualifying round, which will include clubs from bigger leagues like Ligue 1 and the Eredivisie.
There have been only four teams to make the group stage after playing in all three qualifying rounds: FC Petržalka of Slovakia, Anorthosis Famagusta of Cyprus, BATE Borisov of Belarus and Premier League club Liverpool. The Reds were a special fifth qualifier from England in the 2005-06 installment, having won the Champions League the year before but not qualifying for the tournament with a top four finish in the Premier League—that rule that was later rewritten to allow defending champions to take the spot of the fourth-placed team from their domestic league.
PAULINHO CONFIRMS TOTTENHAM MOVE
Less than 24 hours after he lifted the Confederations Cup trophy with his teammates at the Maracana, Brazilian midfielder Paulinho confirmed he would be leaving his home country for the Premier League.
In an emotional press conference at Corinthians, the 24-year-old said that he will be joining Tottenham Hotspur soon on a £17 million ($26 million) transfer.
“The other interest we got was from Inter but the only offer came from Tottenham,” Paulinho said. “The proposal came, we sat down, analysed it and decided. It was a big decision to go to a big club. There comes a certain point when you need new challenges.”
The midfielder vowed to one day return to Corinthians, where he made 167 appearances and netted 34 goals. Since his arrival in 2010, Paulinho was a member of Corinthians squads that won the Brasiliero, Copa Libertadores and the FIFA Club World Cup.
QUICK KICKS
New Barcelona teammates Neymar and Jordi Alba will both have surgery to remove their tonsils before joining their club back in Spain. (REPORT)
Arsenal have announced the signing of former Auxerre striker Yaya Sanogo, who has scored twice for France so far at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup. (REPORT)
New Everton manager Roberto Martinez will bring in forward Arouna Kone and defender Antolin Alcaraz from Wigan as his first new signings. (REPORT)
Queens Park Rangers agree to sell Christopher Samba back to Anzhi Makhachkala in Russia, after the defender moved from Anzhi to London to England in January. (REPORT)
Benfica announced that they will keep their broadcasting rights in-house this year, charging fans €120 to watch home games on BenficaTV. (REPORT)
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What do you think of these reports? See Rooney staying at Manchester United? Buy FIFA’s reasoning for postponing the ticket price announcement? Excited for the return of the Champions League?
Share your thoughts below.