Chelsea: The Football Association and Premier League have agreed to conduct a joint inquiry into allegations made by Leeds United against Chelsea. The FA said yesterday that the inquiry "will look into the alleged conduct of Chelsea FC in relation to three Leeds United academy players last season. The inquiry will be carried out by both the FA and the FAPL as the allegations relate to FA and FAPL rules."
Thatcher Suspended: Man. City have suspended Ben Thatcher for six games and fined the fullback six weeks' wages for his nasty challenge on Portsmouth's Pedro Mendes. Thatcher crashed elbow first into the Portuguese midfielder early in the second half of last week's Premier League match as both players chased a ball over the touchline. Two weeks of the ban and fine were suspended meaning Thatcher will miss next month's league games at Reading and Blackburn plus the second round League Cup tie at Chesterfield.
Middlesbrough: Robert Huth and Jonathan Woodgate agreed to join Middlesbrough yesterday. Centre half Huth signed a five-year deal for £6 million from champions Chelsea while injury-plagued Woodgate agreed a one-year loan from Spanish giants Real Madrid. Middlesbrough also confirmed the signing of Charlton Athletic midfielder Jason Euell.
Chievo: Poland international winger Kamil Kosowski has signed a one-year loan deal with Serie A side Chievo, his Polish club Wisla Krakow said. Kosowski has scored four goals and made 46 appearances for Poland but he has struggled for first-team football while on loan at both Kaiserslautern and Southampton during the last three seasons.
Charlton: Senegal defender Souleymane Diawara has joined Charlton Athletic from Ligue 1 side Sochaux for 5.5 million euros, the Premier League club said yesterday. The 27-year-old central defender started his career at Le Havre before joining Sochaux in 2003.
Codrea: Romanian international midfielder Paul Codrea has moved from Palermo to Siena on a three-year deal, local media reported yesterday. Codrea rejected an offer from Romanian side Rapid Bucharest last week, saying he wanted to continue playing in Italy.
Rosicky: Arsenal midfielder Tomas Rosicky will captain the Czech Republic in their Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, the Czech Soccer Union said yesterday. The 25-year-old playmaker will become his country's youngest skipper and replaces Nuremberg's Tomas Galasek.
Israel: Israel will play their Euro 2008 Group E qualifying match against Andorra behind closed doors in Nijmegen next Wednesday. UEFA have ordered Israel to play their home matches at neutral venues due to the security situation in the Middle East.