Sporting briefs

Lindegaard: Anders Lindegaard has signed a new four-year contract with Manchester United. The Den-mark goalkeeper has made a big impression at Old Trafford and had become Alex Ferguson’s first choice until he suffered a serious ankle injury in January.

Etuhu: Fulham midfielder Dick-son Etuhu has signed for Blackburn for an undisclosed fee. The 30-year-old has agreed a four-year deal with the Championship club, joining ex-Fulham team-mate Danny Murphy at Ewood Park.

Yobo: Everton have confirmed they are in discussions with Fenerbahce regarding a transfer of Joseph Yobo to the Turkish club. The 31-year-old has spent the last two seasons on loan with the Super Lig side, helping them to the title in his first season. Yobo made 42 appearances for Fenerbahce last season as they finished second in the table.

City academy: Manchester City have been granted Category One academy status. It confirms the Premier League champions as one of the first clubs to achieve the top level under the new Elite Performance Player Plan and fundamentally allows them to recruit young players between 12 and 16 from across the country, rather than a limited area at present.

Helguson: Heidar Helguson has joined Cardiff on a one-year contract for an undisclosed fee from QPR. The 34-year-old scored nine Premier League goals last season and 28 in 80 appearances in all competition for the London club.

Federici: Reading keeper Adam Federici has signed a new contract committing him to the club until the summer of 2015. The 27-year-old Australian joined Reading in 2004 and his previous deal had less than 12 months to run.

Rio charge: Rio Ferdinand has denied a FA charge of improper conduct following comments he made on Twitter at the end of the John Terry trial. In the aftermath of last month’s trial, when Terry was acquitted of racially abusing Ferdinand’s brother, Anton, the United defender responded to a tweet that characterised Chelsea defender Ashley Cole, a defence witness, as a “choc-ice”.