Liverpool bounced back from their disappointing Carling Cup exit with a slick display which ended Portsmouth’s six-match winning run on the road.
Yossi Benayoun fired the Reds ahead with a powerful volley and Pompey’s Sylvain Distin inadvertently deflected home for an own goal to make it 2-0.
Ewood Park
Sunday, 23 December
Kick-off: 1610 GMT
BBC coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio Five Live & highlights on Match of the Day.
Old Trafford
Sunday, 23 December
Kick-off: 1200 GMT
BBC coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio Five Live & highlights on Match of the Day.
Lorena Ochoa is not just the best female golfer. She is also the best women’s athlete of 2007, according to The Associated Press.
No argument here.
Horrible defending by Birmingham gifted all three goals as Gary Megson and the Trotters can look forward to Xmas with three points. Arsenal’s Johan Djorou was culpable in the second goal as his back throw to Maik Taylor fell way short and Anelka pounced on the ball scoring his 100th Premiership goal. Congratulations to Anelka who remains a transfer target for many top clubs.
Canadian Soccer
Canada will open its Olympic qualifying campaign against defending CONCACAF U-23 champion Mexico.
The national team, led by new manager Nick Dasovic, will face "Los Tricolores" in its first Group B game of the CONCACAF Under-23 Championship on March 12, according to the tournament schedule released Saturday.
Gary Klein Los Angeles Times
USC’s Brian Cushing was selected as the defensive player of the game in last season’s Rose Bowl despite a knee injury that had forced him to miss most of the Trojans’ final preparations.
The junior linebacker from New Jersey might have inadvertently set himself up for a similar scenario Friday.
                     Â
Former Yankees lefthanded pitcher Tommy Byrne, known for his slow-working on the mound and walking tons of hitters early in his career and for his anchoring the pennant winning Yankees pitching staff in 1955, passed away on Friday at 87.
Byrne pitched in both the 1949 and 1955 World Series winning and completing the 2nd game in 1955 series.  He was awarded a World Series ring in 1950 (although he didn’t pitch in the Series against the Phillies) and was an All Star that season as well, although he didn’t pitch in the game.Â
Former world number two Anastasia Myskina is apparently pregnant, but at the moment without a man by her side.
In an interview for Russian newspaper Tvoi Den, Myskina revealed that she is four months pregnant and is due in May. Myskina has broken up with her most recent boyfriend, Russian hockey player Konstantin Korneev, and therefore was reluctant to talk about the baby’s father.
Floyd Mayweather Jr., the world’s No. 1 boxer, is strongly considering a revolutionary jump to mixed martial arts under a deal being discussed with Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.
Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather’s adviser and best friend, told ESPN.com Friday night that the five-division world champion, who generated 3.25 million pay-per-view buys and more than $200 million in revenue in two mega fights in 2007, came away from a Thursday meeting with Cuban giving serious thought to taking his game and considerable drawing power to MMA.