Kenny Dalglish admits 5-1 win over Oldham Athletic 'flattered' Liverpool

Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish has expressed his delight after putting five past Oldham Athletic in the third round of the FA Cup, but admits the scoreline was too flattering on his side’s part.

Robbie Simpson gave the visitors a shock lead at Anfield with a stunning strike, before goals from Craig Bellamy, Steven Gerrard, Jonjo Shelvey, Andy Carroll and Stewart Downing wrapped up a 5-1 victory for the Reds.
Dalglish told reporters: 'The scoreline was a bit flattering, really. Oldham did their club proud, did their manager proud. They created a couple of threatening situations for themselves, especially in the first half.
'Getting back as quickly as we did with the equaliser was a great help, but I think it was important for us to give the players who haven’t had much time [on the pitch] than the others, to give them a run out as well. Fabio [Aurelio] got his first 60 minutes of the season I think.
'For us there were a lot of positives coming out of today’s game; Stewart Downing scoring, big Andy [Carroll] getting a goal, Jonjo [Shelvey] scored, Steven [Gerrard] with a penalty. A few positives, but I don’t think the scoreline represents the distance between the two teams.'
The Scot also reiterated the need for his squad to gain full fitness and acknowledged the importance of games like this to help players on their way to achieving 100 per cent.

Milan, Juve to battle for top spot in Serie A

AC Milan may be facing a tug-of-war with neighbours Inter Milan over Manchester City forward Carlos Tevez but it is with Juventus that the champions are battling for Serie A supremacy.
Milan managed to finish 2011 on top thanks to a 2-0 win at Cagliari while Juventus were being held to a goalless stalemate at Udinese.
The champions' superior goal difference has seen them edge ahead of the only unbeaten team remaining in Europe's top leagues.
Following a poor start to their campaign, in which Milan won only one of their first five league matches, the rossoneri have gradually reeled in the early pace-setters.
And they will be looking to capitalise on the winter lull in the Champions League to try to pull clear of the pack.
Juve have had the benefit of being free from European competition this season and have used the extra time off in midweek to rest and prepare for their league encounters.
That has seen them remain unbeaten in 16 games -- although with seven draws -- and they start the new year with an easier tie than the leaders.
Juve travel to rock-bottom Lecce while Milan have a difficult trip to Atalanta, who but for a six-point penalty for match-fixing would be fifth.

'The Iron Lady' should have been delayed, says PM

Prime Minister David Cameron said Friday "The Iron Lady" should have been delayed until after Margaret Thatcher's death, as the film showing the former premier's descent into dementia opened in Britain.
The biopic shows Thatcher as a frail, sometimes confused old lady -- she is now 86 and is rarely seen in public -- looking back at her career with the ghost of her late husband Denis looking on.
Cameron, in his first comment on the film, said he had been impressed by Meryl Streep's portrayal of Britain's first woman prime minister, who like him was a leader of the centre-right Conservative party.
But Cameron questioned whether it was right to make the film while Thatcher was still alive.
"It's a fantastic piece of acting by Meryl Streep but I just can't help wondering why do we have to have this film right now?" he told BBC radio.
"It is a film much more about ageing and elements of dementia rather than about an amazing prime minister, and my sort of sense was -- a great piece of acting, a really staggering piece of acting, but a film I wish they could have made another day."

Turkey ex-army chief arrested over alleged plot

Turkey's former army chief Ilker Basbug was arrested for an alleged bid to topple the Islamist-rooted government in the latest confrontation likely to inflame tensions with the powerful military.
"The 26th chief of staff of the Turkish republic has unfortunately been placed in preventive detention for setting up and leading a terrorist group and of attempting to overthrow the government," Ilkay Sezer, a lawyer for Basbug, was quoted as saying by the Anatolia news agency.
He is the first such high-ranking military commander to be held as a suspect since another former chief of staff in the 1960s, according to the Turkish press.
However, dozens of active and retired military officers, academics, journalists and lawyers have been detained in recent years in probes into alleged plots against the government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The United States swiftly urged Turkey to ensure Basbug is treated fairly following his arrest.
State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Washington was monitoring developments in what she called a "high-profile case" that is part of a wider probe into the so-called Ergenekon network.
"We have urged the Turkish government to ensure that the investigations, any prosecutions in... these cases proceed in a transparent manner, that all the defendants be assured due process in accordance with international standards," she said.
Basbug, who retired in 2010, is the most senior officer to be implicated in a massive investigation into the so-called Ergenekon network, accused of plotting to topple Erdogan's Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP).

China warns US over new Asia-Pacific military strategy

BEIJING: China has warned the United States over its new military strategy, which includes a shift in focus to the Asia-Pacific region.The plan for a new, 'leaner' military was unveiled Thursday by President Barack Obama at the Pentagon. Xinhua, the Chinese government s news agency, cautioned the US military against acting 'like a bull in a china shop,' but said the new strategy could help China by creating a 'peaceful environment' in the region.The Xinhua editorial warned the US against 'flexing its muscles':Obama on Thursday announced a plan that will include about $450 billion in cuts to the military over the next decade, The New York Times reported.Obama said that while the US military is in a 'moment of transition' after a decade of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States will 'maintain our military superiority.'

Federer, Nadal shrug off Qatar setbacks

Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer shrugged off their Qatar Open semi-final setbacks and confidently talked up their chances at the Australian Open, the season's first Grand Slam tournament.
Nadal, the world number two, slumped to a 6-3, 6-4 loss to France's Gael Monfils on Friday, while Federer did not even make it on to the courts in Doha, withdrawing from his scheduled clash with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga with a bad back.
French Open champion Nadal, the 2009 winner of the Australian Open, insisted he was happy with his form in the Gulf.
"I am not lying to you, and my feeling is very positive. I think I played a great tournament, much better than what I thought," said the Spaniard.
"So seriously, the only negative thing of today is to lose. For the rest of the things, I am satisfied.
"I played more aggressive than usual during all the tournament. In general, I am doing the things that I have to do to compete against the best players of the world and to try to win at important tournaments.
"Maybe I may not win in Australia, but I have to keep working like this and I'm in the right way to win in the future."

Iranian president to tour US foes in Latin America

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, under increasing pressure from debilitating Western economic sanctions, Sunday begins a tour of Latin America aimed at shoring up ties with his few remaining allies.
Ahmadinejad will meet fellow US foe and firebrand Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on a four-nation trip that coincides with rising international concern over Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
The Iranian leader will arrive in Caracas late Sunday, kicking off a five-day trip that will on Tuesday see him attend the inauguration of the recently re-elected Nicaraguan leader Daniel Ortega.
Stops in Cuba and Ecuador will round off the tour. All four Latin American countries have frosty ties with the United States and their leaders have in the past four years made numerous visits to Tehran to build up diplomatic and business links while relations with Washington have worsened.
Ahmadinejad's international affairs director, Mohammad Reza Forqani, said the visit to "what used to be called the backyard of America shows the dynamism of the Islamic Republic of Iran's diplomacy in the world arena."
The trip also "invalidates the claims of the enemies," Forqani was quoted as saying by Iranian state media on Tuesday, in a clear jab at Washington.

ANC at 100: South Africa celebrations begin with golf

ANC activists are expected to gather in Bloemfontein from across the country

 

 

Celebrations to mark the centenary of South Africa's ruling African National Congress have begun with a golf tournament.

More than 100,000 people are expected over the weekend in the central city of Bloemfontein.
Other events include a candle-lit vigil at the church where the ANC was formed and a major political rally on Sunday, the 100th anniversary.
The ANC was founded to fight white minority rule, which ended in 1994.
It is Africa's oldest liberation movement.

Nursing standards: PM aims to tackle 'care problem'

Nurses have been told to do regular ward rounds, and patients encouraged to carry out inspections to improve hospital standards.

They are part of a package of measures announced by the prime minister for the English NHS to tackle what he sees as a "real problem" with patient care.
David Cameron told the BBC problems in some hospitals had been overlooked out of respect for the nursing profession.
This new move has come after a series of critical reports in the past year.
In November the Patients Association published a report containing 16 "shameful" stories about the care of elderly patients.
It included people being denied pain relief, left to sit in their own faeces and going without food and drink.
'A disservice'