Mail 10/1/12
Heads up! Keown gets smacked on the head by wayward ball at
Arsenal
Thierry Henry may have grabbed the limelight at The Emirates Stadium on Monday night with his winner against Leeds - but another former Arsenal favorite also showed he could still cut it.
Sportsmail columnist Martin Keown rolled back the years to produce an impromptu bullet header while working as a pitch side pundit for ESPN.
Keown was talking to presenter Rebecca Lowe and fellow pundit Robbie Savage when a wayward ball smacked against the back of his head.
But, after years of clearing the lines as part of the Arsenal back four, Keown was able to brush off the accident with a smile and a thumbs up like a true professional.
The miss-hit ball was believed to have been hit by a Leeds player while he was warming up before the game.
Yorkshire Post 10/1/12
Grayson is left feeling proud of Leeds’s Cup endeavours
By Richard Sutcliffe
SIMON GRAYSON feels Thierry Henry’s match-winning return to English football was “written in the stars”.
The 34-year-old came off the bench to settle a hard-fought third-round tie in Arsenal’s favour with a trademark finish after being picked out by Alex Song.
Henry’s goal meant United crashed out at the third round stage for a second consecutive year at the hands of Arsenal.
Grayson, however, insists there were plenty of positives from last night’s defeat.
He said: “I thought our young boys did extremely well. We had an average age of 23 to 24 and they never looked fazed.
“They left with their heads held high but we were disappointed. I felt we defended well and our shape was good. The desire and attitude was fantastic and we came very close to getting a result.
“It was probably written into the stars what happened but that is the class of Thierry Henry. How many times has he been in that left-hand channel and bent one into the bottom corner?
“He is someone who can do something out of nothing. I just wish he had signed for Arsenal a week earlier so we might not have had all this furore about him ahead of our visit. Even after that, though, we had opportunities through Ross McCormack and Mikael Forssell. But we can be proud of what we did.”
The Cup exit means United’s sole focus for the rest of the season is the Championship promotion race and they return to action this Saturday at Crystal Palace.
Robert Snodgrass, who has missed the last two games following appendicitis, returned to training yesterday and could line-up against the Eagles.
Grayson does, however, want to add to his squad with Leeds understood to be interested in a host of players including Blackburn Rovers midfielder Keith Andrews, Leicester City defender Sean St Ledger and Liverpool full-back Martin Kelly.
While neither confirming nor denying his intended targets, Grayson said: “We know we need a couple of players in the window to make us better. A lot of work is still to be done but we have made contact with clubs and their representatives. Hopefully, we can do something before Palace.
“Based on the Arsenal game, though, maybe the younger lads deserve an opportunity to play on a regular basis.
“But we know we need players because it is going to be a long second half to the season.”
Heads up! Keown gets smacked on the head by wayward ball at
ArsenalThierry Henry may have grabbed the limelight at The Emirates Stadium on Monday night with his winner against Leeds - but another former Arsenal favorite also showed he could still cut it.
Sportsmail columnist Martin Keown rolled back the years to produce an impromptu bullet header while working as a pitch side pundit for ESPN.
Keown was talking to presenter Rebecca Lowe and fellow pundit Robbie Savage when a wayward ball smacked against the back of his head.
But, after years of clearing the lines as part of the Arsenal back four, Keown was able to brush off the accident with a smile and a thumbs up like a true professional.
The miss-hit ball was believed to have been hit by a Leeds player while he was warming up before the game.
Yorkshire Post 10/1/12
Grayson is left feeling proud of Leeds’s Cup endeavours
By Richard Sutcliffe
SIMON GRAYSON feels Thierry Henry’s match-winning return to English football was “written in the stars”.
The 34-year-old came off the bench to settle a hard-fought third-round tie in Arsenal’s favour with a trademark finish after being picked out by Alex Song.
Henry’s goal meant United crashed out at the third round stage for a second consecutive year at the hands of Arsenal.
Grayson, however, insists there were plenty of positives from last night’s defeat.
He said: “I thought our young boys did extremely well. We had an average age of 23 to 24 and they never looked fazed.
“They left with their heads held high but we were disappointed. I felt we defended well and our shape was good. The desire and attitude was fantastic and we came very close to getting a result.
“It was probably written into the stars what happened but that is the class of Thierry Henry. How many times has he been in that left-hand channel and bent one into the bottom corner?
“He is someone who can do something out of nothing. I just wish he had signed for Arsenal a week earlier so we might not have had all this furore about him ahead of our visit. Even after that, though, we had opportunities through Ross McCormack and Mikael Forssell. But we can be proud of what we did.”
The Cup exit means United’s sole focus for the rest of the season is the Championship promotion race and they return to action this Saturday at Crystal Palace.
Robert Snodgrass, who has missed the last two games following appendicitis, returned to training yesterday and could line-up against the Eagles.
Grayson does, however, want to add to his squad with Leeds understood to be interested in a host of players including Blackburn Rovers midfielder Keith Andrews, Leicester City defender Sean St Ledger and Liverpool full-back Martin Kelly.
While neither confirming nor denying his intended targets, Grayson said: “We know we need a couple of players in the window to make us better. A lot of work is still to be done but we have made contact with clubs and their representatives. Hopefully, we can do something before Palace.
“Based on the Arsenal game, though, maybe the younger lads deserve an opportunity to play on a regular basis.
“But we know we need players because it is going to be a long second half to the season.”