Arsène Wenger admits that he was interested in signing Salomon Kalou during the summer. The Chelsea striker lined up against Arsenal on Sunday three months after his manager, Luis Felipe Scolari, told reporters that Wenger had enquired about Kalou during the close season. Wenger was asked about Scolari's comments at his pre-match press conference and admitted that he had shown an interest in the Ivory Coast striker. "We were interested in him but it didn't go very far," said Wenger. "Would I be interested again in the future? Not necessarily now, no."

 Martin O'Neill insisted his side had not been guilty of "choking" as they missed out on the chance to move into third spot in the Barclays Premier League. Villa were held at home to a goalless draw by Fulham - a stark contrast to their previous two matches which earned them four points against Arsenal and Manchester United. The manager said: "I think from the outside it is easy to throw at us that we have choked but I don't believe that. We went into the game full of confidence and with our hopes high after the previous two games. It is tough. Fulham were cock-a-hoop after their draw at Liverpool, played the same system, and it was tough for us to break them down. But as regards choking, I do not accept that. Every game is hard and we are not brilliant enough at the moment to steamroller teams but we are doing fine. The result is disappointing for us. We had three opportunities in the game and it would have been great to take one of them. But we should have carved out more although there was no lack of effort in the team. It was an opportunity for us and we did not grasp it. We have to remember that we have good players who are in their early 20s. It is all about learning but I do think this team can grow into something."

 Paul Ince bemoaned the same old story after Rovers' defeat at Portsmouth, saying his side deserved something from the encounter. After bossing the first half but failing to score, Rovers were to regret those missed chances when Crouch and Defoe fired the home side in front. Ince's side showed great spirit to come roaring back thanks to strikes from Matt Derbyshire and Tugay. Derbyshire had a second chalked off, before Sean Davis fired home the winner from close-range. Ince said: "I think we deserved all three points, I think on the balance of play and the way we played and the chances we had. It is frustrating and disappointing. In the first half I felt we were by far the better side and had two great chances, one from Roque and one from Stevie Warnock that we should have stuck away. We then lost our shape after that and before we know it we were 2-0 down. But no-one can question the spirit of the team and the players, they are willing to die for each other and get us out of where we are."

 Gary Megson insisted he always had confidence in his side moving into the top half of the table after their third consecutive win lifted them up to seventh. Megson said: "There's no secret and the only thing we're doing differently that we weren't doing beforehand is scoring goals. Our performances are not much different except in terms of confidence. When we score goals all the other aspects of our game come to the fore and people start to realise what we've got."

 Luiz Felipe Scolari was disappointed following his side's 2-1 home defeat to Arsenal on Sunday. Robin van Pesie struck twice in the second half to condemn the Blues to their second defeat against their 'top four' rivals of the season, after Johan Djourou opened the scoring with an own-goal. Scolari said: "We have now lost three points - and in the last five games we have not played well. But that is my mistake and the players' mistake. The players are very angry about the first goal - but they understand they have not played well. Now I have a week to work with the players and try to make it better to get in a good position. When we play away against our title rivals, we need to win. The gap will sometimes be six points, sometimes three - and in the last two or three games of the season, that will decide who is the champion."

 Segundo Castillo is desperate to earn a first-team chance at Everton - but insists he is happy to wait his turn. The Ecuadorian midfielder has made just four appearances for the Blues since joining on loan from Red Star Belgrade in August. "With every training session and every appearance I get for the reserves and the first team it's important I improve, and do so on a day-to-day basis," said Castillo. "I'm just dying for that opportunity to show again what I can do and what I can bring to the team. You've always got to aim for the first team but I've been having to show a bit of patience so far. The main thing is to be ready and to keep on working so I'm at the disposal of the manager when he needs me."

 Jimmy Bullard believes Fulham are now showing the resolve needed to pick up points away from Craven Cottage. Roy Hodgson's side are still searching for their first away victory of the campaign and have managed only two goals in seven matches - the worst scoring record in the division. But in the past week Fulham have earned a goalless draw with Liverpool at Anfield and repeated that result against another top-four side in Aston Villa on Saturday. They restricted Villa to few clear-cut chances and only a superb late save from home keeper Brad Friedel - to keep out Clint Dempsey's pile-driver - denied them three points. Bullard said: "We have picked up a bit away from home. Drawing at Liverpool was a great result for us and getting a point at Villa was another big lift. They are in good form, pushing to break into the top four this season, but we played really well and thoroughly deserved the point. We kept them at bay a little bit. They had a few chances but we also had the odd sniff. They pushed a lot of men forward and it is always a tough game coming to Villa Park. In the first half we took it to them, we passed the ball better and could have got in a few times. In the second half they were a bit more on top of us. I'd love to control a game for 90 minutes but you can't do that at this level. We got the draw and points are what really matter come the end of the season for us. We are hopefully getting tougher to beat on the road and we want to keep it going." 

 Manager Phil Brown believes his side were unlucky not to gain another Barclays Premier League away win after fellow new boys Stoke City levelled through a late penalty in the 1-1 result at the Britannia Stadium. Brown was unhappy with the decision by referee Keith Stroud to award the spot-kick in the 73rd minute after Ricardo Fuller tumbled under the challenge of goalkeeper Boaz Myhill. Fuller converted from 12 yards to cancel out Jamaican team-mate Marlon King's opener on the stroke of half-time. Bown said: "It was a poor decision, in my opinion. It wasn't a spectacle by any stretch of the imagination. But we came in 1-0 up - I said the first goal would be important and it should have been enough to win it - but we were a little bit undone by a dubious decision."

 Neil Mellor is relishing the opportunity to face his former club when Liverpool visit Preston North End in the FA Cup third round. Since leaving Anfield for Deepdale in 2006, Mellor is now playing regular football for Alan Irvine's team and was their leading scorer last season. "I watched the draw and when Liverpool's name came out to play us I just couldn't believe it," he said. "There will be a full house at Deepdale and there is a stand called the Bill Shankly Kop so there will be a special atmosphere. Hopefully I will be fit and the manager picks me. I won't eat over Christmas so I can get in top shape for the game! I'll never forget my time at Liverpool. The staff were brilliant and it's such a special club to play for. I have some great memories from my time at Anfield and hopefully I'll get a good reception from the Liverpool fans."

 Mark Hughes has told of his derby day disappointment following the 1-0 defeat by Manchester United at the City of Manchester Stadium. Wayne Rooney's 42nd minute strike was the difference between the two sides and talking afterwards the Blues manager said: "We're disappointed today and in the first half we didn't really ask enough questions of them. We sat off too much and allowed them too much space to play and dictate the tempo of the game. That obviously wasn't our game plan, we wanted to force the issue, but you have to factor in the game on the Thursday (away to Schalke in the UEFA Cup). It was a huge effort by everybody and it took us a while to get going. We lacked that little bit of sharpness that we've seen in recent weeks. I'm disappointed that we didn't get to half time level and gave the goal away on 42 minutes but we changed a few things around and regrouped in the second half and we were better for it. We got a second wind and forced the issue more but the sending off (of Cristiano Ronaldo) didn't help us as much as people would have thought because they very quickly got people behind the ball and defended our efforts to attack."

 Wayne Rooney was so focused on putting Manchester United ahead in Sunday's crucial derby with City that he forgot it was his 100th club goal. "I didn't really think about it being my 100th career goal," he said. "It was more the fact that it was City away. For it to be the winning goal as well really made it something to be pleased about. But of course it is a great achievement. I am delighted to reach 100 and, as I have said before, I am looking to score more often."

 Gareth Southgate was a satisfied man despite seeing his side held at home by derby rivals Newcastle United. The Teessiders fought out a 0-0 draw with their Tyneside rivals on a cold, foggy afternoon as they bounced back from last weekend's 3-1 home defeat by Bolton Wanderers. Southgate said: "It was very much a point gained, a hard-earned point, but one we certainly deserved. We had the majority of the game, certainly in the second half - it was pretty much one-way traffic for long periods of the second half. We allowed them a few breaks and they had a chance near the end which we shouldn't have allowed them to have, but I am very pleased with how we played. Sometimes you draw a game and you are disappointed with the performance, but I thought bar the finishing touch, we had pretty much everything. We defended solidly, passed the ball well, created not clear-cut chances, but we looked a threat all the time. I am pleased with how we played."

 Striker Mark Viduka is backing Joe Kinnear to drag the club away from trouble after the uncertainty over his short-term future finally came to a close. The 61-year-old was appointed Magpies manager until the end of the season on Friday, and celebrated the fact with a derby draw at Middlesbrough 24 hours later. Viduka, 33, came off the bench for his first appearance of the season and almost snatched victory against his former club at the death. He is convinced the new-found stability after Kinnear's elevation from interim manager at St James' will prove vital in the weeks and months ahead. He said: "Definitely. It's a great thing for all people concerned with the football side of the club because we know what is going on. Up until Friday, anybody could have been in in any amount of time. It's a great thing for us, a bit of stability. Joe is a nice guy. To be honest, I have just started to get to know him and hopefully he can push us forward." 

 Sean Davis looked the most miserable match-winner you will ever see after his late strike saved Portsmouth from another defensive disaster at Fratton Park. Davis' goal - his first since March 2006 - gave manager Tony Adams a 3-2 win, his first at home since he took over from Harry Redknapp just over a month ago. Davis, who came on as a 77th-minute substitute for Armand Traore, said: "It was was nice to score but I've been very disappointed not to be playing regularly lately. I thought I had been playing well for most of the season but I've been put on the bench the last two games and that's disappointing for me. Hopefully the goal will put me back in the public eye a bit more because people always take a bit more notice of you when you score."

 Manager Tony Pulis defended his side's equalising penalty after Ricardo Fuller tumbled under the challenge of goalkeeper Boaz Myhil. He said: "I have just seen it on the television and he definitely caught his back leg. From one angle it doesn't look like he is anywhere near it but when they show it from the side angles you could see he definitely caught that back leg. If I had seen just one view I would have said it was a debatable one."

 Roy Keane takes full responsibility for his side's slump into the relegation zone after admitting he cannot be certain he is still the best man for the job. Keane issued a brutally honest assessment of his side's dismal 4-1 defeat by Bolton Wanderers at the Stadium of Light and had no answers for his side's sorry plight. Keane said: "I ask myself every single day if I am the right man for Sunderland. I asked myself in the morning and I said that I was. Sunday morning if the answer's no we will have to look at it. I have to be honest in my assessment. It's not about what's best for Roy Keane. It's Sunderland Football Club. I might wake up on Monday morning and think I'm the right man. On Tuesday it might be different. I'm the manager of this football club and ultimately I'm responsible and I've never shied away from that. That's part of being a manager and that's why I take full responsibility for Saturday's game and the run we're on and everything else."

 Harry Redknapp was disappointed with the manner of Tottenham's 1-0 defeat to Everton on Sunday. Steven Pienaar punished a lack of concentration to maximum effect in the 51st minute to score the only goal, picking up a quick free-kick from Mikel Arteta before firing home via a slight, but telling deflection off Vedran Corluka. The defeat was Redknapp's first at home since taking over the reins at White Hart Lane, and he admitted the visitors made it tough for his side. He said: "Everton are a difficult team to play against. We gave a terrible goal away, we switched off at the free-kick, they played a short one and it's in the back of the net with half of us not looking at the ball. They are very difficult to beat when they have their noses in front. We had no space to pass the ball and Everton shut the space down with five men in midfield. It was difficult to play through them so we then resorted to high balls and we can't play that way, it's not us. We didn't work hard enough as runners to create space for the pass so our possession wasn't good enough and if you don't pass it well you don't give yourselves a chance."

 Tony Mowbray was not short of inspiration for Albion's Barclays Premier League plight in the aftermath of Saturday's defeat to Wigan. In his post-match press briefing, Mowbray was reminded by journalists that Wigan were two points worse off than the Baggies at the same stage last term and ended up finishing 14th. Dean Kiely has also jogged the Albion chief's memory of how the veteran keeper helped steer Portsmouth out of huge trouble - at the Baggies' expense - after moving to Fratton Park in January 2006. And, of course, he needs look no further than his own club's Great Escape in 2005, all of which leaves Mowbray believing there is still plenty of cause for optimism for the reminder of the season. "There's lots of clubs who have been in our position and ended up doing okay," said Mowbray, whose side remain bottom of the Barclays Premier League. "I was only talking to Dean recently about when he stayed up with Portsmouth.If we were a hopeless team that didn't look like scoring and were getting battered every week, we'd be sitting here thinking 'we just haven't got enough quality, we're really struggling here'. But I don't think that's the case."

 Gianfranco Zola has tipped Liverpool to be strong challengers for the Barclays Premier League title this season, but believes Monday's trip to Anfield has come at a good time. The Reds were held to a goalless draw by Fulham last weekend and then scraped past Marseille in the Champions League on Wednesday. They will also be shorn of striker Fernando Torres, who has been ruled out for three weeks with another hamstring injury, while West Ham head into the match rejuvenated after recording their first league win in eight attempts last weekend, a 1-0 victory at Sunderland. "I don't think Liverpool are having their best moment," said Zola. "But we are focused and we know we cannot afford any mistakes. We know a lot about them, we've seen them a lot. And I think we have prepared as well as we can so we'll see what happens. It could be a good year for them. They've already won two big games (against Chelsea and Manchester United) and that is important. It makes a big, big difference in your confidence. This year I've noticed they're playing better football so they're a team to watch." Asked if Liverpool can win the title, Zola replied: "I think they've got a very good chance."

 Manager Steve Bruce has given an insight into Chris Kirkland's training regime, which he believes will help the goalkeeper reclaim the England number one jersey. Kirkland, who has been troubled by back problems, made a string of superb saves in their 2-1 victory over West Bromwich Albion. Bruce said: "We have to thank our goalkeeper - he was fantastic - and in my eyes is one of the best goalkeepers in the country if not the best. With his fragile back we have decided to put the reins on him and keep him fresh. That's why we have changed his training regime. He was one of the old-fashioned types who just wanted balls blasted at him from six yards. He was a workaholic. He would be on the pitch at 9am and still there at 2pm. That work left him a bit stiff. Now he works a lot in the gym on strength and conditioning work. If he goes with England he trains twice a day but he can't do that. We have had this conversation with England. They understand that until he gets himself into the right condition, which we hope is around the corner."