Olympic Football: Previewing Team GB

With the football season still a matter of weeks away, football fans have the opportunity to fill their time with the Olympic football that is taking place right on our doorsteps. With the games being hosted in Britain this year, some of the world's best teams will be competing for the coverted gold medal. Fixtures are to be played in a variety of stadiums in the country, including Wembley, Old Trafford and St. James Park.

picture: mirror.co.uk

Having released the squad only recently, Stuart Pearce is leading the British side for the games. With the exclusion of David Beckham from the squad being met with disappointment, Pearce's squad still contains a lot of talent with a good mix of experience and youth. With the likes of Brazil and Spain involved, chances of a gold medal will be difficult.

Qualifying as hosts, this will be the first time since the 1960 games in Italy that Team GB will compete in the games in the football event. Having failed to qualify for the games between 1964 and 1972, the Football Association stopped recognising the difference between professional and amateur footballers in 1974. This ending the existence of the English national amateur team which was the basis of the Olympic team and because of this, the FA stopped entering a British Olympic side.

The team this year, will be led by Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs who is joined by Craig Bellamy and Micah Richards who all qualify as the 'over age players'. The rest of the squad are all under the age of 23 following the rules of the tournament that all squads must have a mix of experience and youth in their squads.

Despite losing key man Gareth Bale to injury, Team GB will enter the games with a promising squad. Goalkeeper Jack Butland was called up to the England Euro 2012 squad as a replacement for the injured John Ruddy and he is set to be GB's number one. At 19, the Birmingham City stopper is rated very highly. Despite missing out on a Euro 2012 place for England, Micah Richards, Adam Johnson and Daniel Sturridge all take their place and will be key figures if Team GB are to do well. Promising midfielders Joe Allen and Jack Cork get their chance to shine at the games having had good seasons with their respective clubs.

picture: thefa.com

Pearce's side were drawn in Group A alongside Senegal, UAE and Uruguay. With the likes of strikers Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani, the South Americans will be tough opponents for Team GB. Senegal will represent in the games for the first time ever and bring a squad containing Mohamed Diame and Magaye Gueye who both play their trade in England. Final opponents UAE will also be representing at the games for the first time after failing to get through the qualifiers on all previous attempts. Out of the ten games they played in the qualifiers, UAE won seven and drew three.

Team GB's games don't start until the 26th July where they begin their campaign by playing Senegal at Old Trafford. They play their next game three days later where they face UAE at Wembley and finish their group games by playing Uruguay at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on the 1st August.

Stuart Pearce's team will fancy their chances of going far in the tournament especially with Argentina missing this time and only Brazil and Spain as the only other teams that may offer some sort of difficulty. With a promising and youthful squad alongside the leadership of Ryan Giggs, Team GB must expect themselves to achieve a medal by the end.

Team GBR squad: 

Goalkeepers: Jack Butland, Jason Steele, Alex McCarthy

Defenders: Neil Taylor, Ryan Bertrand, Danny Rose, Steven Caulker, Craig Dawson, James Tomkins, Micah Richards, Ryan Bennett

Midfielders: Tom Cleverley, Joe Allen, Ryan Giggs, Jack Cork, Aaron Ramsey, Scott Sinclair, Adam Johnson

Strikers: Daniel Sturridge, Craig Bellamy, Marvin Sordell, Jordan Rhodes

From Hero to Zero: Robin Van Persie

Having seen the likes of Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas leave last season, Arsenal are set to lose their next big star with captain Robin Van Persie announcing that he won't be signing a new contract with the club. The Dutchman scored a mammoth 41 goals in 53 games for club and country last season, as well being chosen for the Professional Footballers' Association and Football Writers' player of the year last season.

picture:  smh.com.au

The announcement comes after constant speculation in the media debating whether RVP would commit his future to the club. Van Persie released his statement on his own personal site stating that: 'in this meeting is has again become clear that we in many aspects disagree on the way Arsenal FC should move forward'  Releasing the statement in the way he did, Van Persie has erased the great memories he once gave to his loyal fans.

Despite saying that he is again meeting Wenger and Gazidis, it very much looks like the statement will end his career at the Emirates. The tone of his statement will be what angers fans, having questioned the clubs challenge and aspirations for silverware. It must be said though, that Arsenal have not won any silverware in the last seven years. However without the goals of RVP, this wait could easily continue.

As well as the lack of silverware, the number of high profile signings the club has made over recent years has been minimal. Aside from Mikel Arteta for £10million last August, Wenger has shyed away from spending big money. However already this season, the Frenchman has spent big bringing in Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud, who have both arrived under double figure fees. However with only the likes of Chamakh, Park and Gervinho remaining with the new arrivals, losing Van Persie would be a huge blow to Arsenal's front line. 

picture: thesun.co.uk

Having stuck by Van Persie during the years the Dutchman was injured, Wenger's next move will have to be looking to sell the Dutchman unless RVP makes a dramatic U-turn. This possibility can't be ruled out having seen both Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard remain at their current clubs having made similar announcements in the past.
So where does Van the man go from here? There are a number of potential suitors for the Dutchman, with Manchester City in the driving seat. The spending power of City will wave off any other potential suitors and the fact they go into the new season as current champions will make them more appealing. Former team mates Samir Nasri and Gael Clichy were lured from the Emirates last season and having seen them pick up winners medals, Van Persie would be temepted to join them if the offer came around. As well as City, it has been known that Sir Alex Ferguson is an admirer of RVP, and with Owen gone and Berbatov likely to leave, the addition to United's front line of Van Persie would certainly add more goals to their team. 

Juventus recently offered £8million for Van Persie but if they are to capture the Dutchman, they will be expected to fork out a lot more than that. Real Madrid and Barcelona are also potential suitors, but with David Villa set to return, and the goals of Leo Messi, the Catalans could do without Van Persie. Madrid could be a good move for both parties, but again with Ronaldo and Benzema both firing in goals, like Barca, the need for Van Persie isn't that necessary. 

If Captain Vantastic does move on, then he will be only remembered for his statement and not the wonderful contribution to the London club. The way he went about it was wrong and had he handed in a transfer request, or allowed the club to make a statement, then the reaction may have been completely different. But instead, Arsenal will have to sell Van Persie this summer as long as he doesn't change his mind, to make sure they receive a big fee for the striker, and not let him see out his contract allowing him to leave on a free. 

England: Euro 2012 review

So just like in previous major tournaments, England once again fell at the quarter final stage on penalties. Despite there being such little expectation before the tournament, every England fan wanted and hoped that they would break the 'hoodoo' of the quarter finals and progress to a semi for the first time since Euro 96. Unfortunately for them, Italy ended England's campaign and sent them home wondering what would have been.

However looking back at England's tournament, there is plenty to take to be positive about. Firstly the group that we progressed from was never as easy as anyone would it out to be. Going into the tournament, France were on a 21 game unbeaten run and looked a real force in their pre tournament friendlies. With the likes of Frank Ribery, Karim Benzema and Samir Nasri all playing to their best, it looked unlikely that England would finish above them.

picture: cantheyscore.com

With Sweden and Ukraine also in the group, England were facing two teams they had struggled to beat in previous encounters. Despite beating them in a friendly in November, England had never beaten Sweden in a competitive game having drawn their last encounter with them in World Cup 2006. The last time England faced Ukraine was in the qualifying group for the World Cup two years ago. Having beaten them narrowly at Wembley 2-1, England's last group game was away in Ukraine and were beaten 1-0 thanks to a goal from Sergiy Nazarenko.

Having only been appointed months before the tournament, Roy Hodgson had very little time to select and prepare a squad to take to the Championships. Despite the limited time, Hodgson gathered a squad full of youth and experience. Dropping Rio Ferdinand out of the squad, caused a massive uproar with both the media and the fans and threw questions into whether Hodgson was right in doing it. The selection of Alex Oxlade Chamberlain though was one that was praised and welcomed by many. Hodgson was not helped with his preparation with the timing of injuries to certain players. Both Gareth Barry and Frank Lampard were ruled out of the tournament before a ball was kicked, while central defender Gary Cahill joined them after suffering a jaw injury during the friendly with Belgium.

Having lost such experience in the centre of midfield, Jordan Henderson and Phil Jagielka were brought in as replacements, questioning whether England's midfield was good enough to cope with their opponents further on in the tournament. With both Steven Gerrard and Scott Parker ageing and injury prone, the lack of experience as back up was something  that caused serious concern.

picture: mirror.co.uk

Having won both their pre tournament friendlies 1-0 against Norway and Belgium, England went into their tournament with no pressure and nothing to lose. The opening game against France ended a 1-1 draw and meant a good start to their campaign. England's second game ended in a 3-2 win over Sweden and by far their best performance under Hodgson. Having gone behind early on in the second half, Hodgson's substitutions gave England more of an attacking threat and resulted in the two goals that won them the game. Needing only a point from their last game to qualify, England battled hard to a 1-0 win thanks to a Rooney header. Despite winning the game, England struggled to create other chances and were penned in their half for much of the game.

The inability to hold onto possession for lengths of the game and the lack of chances created was something that needed to improve if they were to make any progress in the competition. Having topped their group, England faced the task of Italy in their quarter final avoiding the much fancied Spain. At this point expectation back home was a lot higher and a place in the semi finals was a realistic possibility. However this possibility quickly disappeared as England lacked a serious attacking threat throughout much of the game leaving Italy to dominate with Andrea Pirlo dominating the midfield. Having just about got away with similar performaces in the group games, England battled through 120 minutes of the game before falling to the lottery of a penalty shootout. It was fair on Italy who deserved to go through, but for England, the lack of chances and the inability to keep the ball in the game ended their hopes of progressing to the semis.

Despite all this, the progress England made under Hodgson in a short period of time, is something to be proud of. The spirit within the camp was a lot better than in previous tournaments and the inclusion of some promising youngsters in the squad is one step in building a team for the future. Though if England are to compete and cope with the likes of Spain, Germany and Netherlands, then there is a lot of hard work to be done if we are to see an England captain lifting either a World Cup or a European Championship in the near future. 

Euro 2012 result: England 0-0 Italy AET (2-4 pens)

England suffered penalty heart ache in a major tournament once again as they were beaten by Italy in their Euro 2012 quarter final game in Kiev.

England were second best through much of the tie which saw Ashley Young and Ashley Cole miss the decisive penalties resulting in the Italians progressing to the semi finals where they will face Germany.

Despite going out, Roy Hodgson and his team will take great credit in their defensive displays which saw them frustrate the Italians for 120 minutes.

For the opening 20 minutes of the first half, early chances were exchanged for both sides. It was almost a terrible start for England as De Rossi unleashed a swerving left footed half volley which cannoned off Hart's post. Moments later it was England who almost took the lead with Glen Johnson being denied by Gigi Buffon's strong left hand.

Good combination play between, Johnson, Ashley Young and James Milner, saw the Man City midfielder's cross arrive at Johnson's feet who did well to scoop an effort from six yards, only to see Buffon deny him a goal.

picture: ctpost.com

The opening period of the game was by far the best display by England in the tournament and they almost went ahead when Rooney headed over from a well directed cross from Glen Johnson.

With the pressure coming from England, Italy started to work their way into the game with Andrea Pirlo pulling the strings from midfield. Pirlo's ball over the top was collected by Mario Balotelli whose attempted chip was well blocked by the on rushing John Terry.

Pirlo was once again involved in Italy's next chance of the half. The Juventus man sent over a delicious far post ball which was headed across goal by Cassano. With Balotelli waiting for an easy tap in, he could only watch as he was denied by his club team mate Joleon Lescott who cleared the ball over his own crossbar.

Despite losing control of the game, England created one more chance before the break. Having played with each other all season at Old Trafford, the combination of Welbeck and Rooney engineered a chance for Welbeck who could only side foot his shot wide, when really he should have done better.

Italy continued their dominance after the break with Pirlo continually bossing the midfield. Having hit the post in the second half, De Rossi tried his luck again from range. This time Hart palmed it straight to Balotelli, whose shot was saved by the legs of the goal keeper. With the goal gaping, Montolivo managed to hit the second rebound over the bar.

England once again escaped going behind as De Rossi shot wide from the easiest of positions after he had been set up by the head of Marchisio.

With the team tiring and pinned back into their own half, Hodgson made the first move bringing Theo Walcott and Andy Carroll on for Milner and Welbeck. Both were involved in England's notable chance in the second half when Ashley Young's goal bound shot was blocked by the Italian defence out for a corner.

With extra time looming, Italy brought on ex West Ham man Alessandro Diamanti who was denied by a sharp stop from Joe Hart. Glen Johnson did well to deny sub Nocerino when his goal bound shot looked set for the net. At the other end, Wayne Rooney nearly stole it for England as his overhead kick went miles over the bar after Andy Carroll had nodded the ball back across goal.

With extra time to be played, England looked shattered and happy to settle for a penalty shoot out. Scott Parker was replaced by Jordan Henderson to freshen up the midfield early on in the first half.

picture: dailymail.co.uk

With eleven players behind the ball, England escaped once again as a Diamanti cross come shot evaded everyone and struck the base of the post with Joe Hart beaten. Nocerino had a goal rightly ruled out in the second half of extra time for offside which meant the tie would be decided on a penalty shoot out.

With England ahead after the first two penalties, belief started to build that we would make the semis. But after a nonchalant chip from Pirlo to draw the Italians level, Ashley Young saw his penalty smack the bar. Nocerino converted Italy's fourth penalty meaning Ashley Cole needed to score England's next penalty.

Having converted his spot kick in the recent Champions League final, Cole could only stare in disbelief as his kick was saved by Buffon. Up stepped Diamanti knowing if he found the net, he would knock England out. Sending Hart the wrong way, Diamanti ran with his team mates to celebrate the deserved win with Buffon and a semi final tie with Germany on Thursday.

For England, the same old story of losing in a quarter final on penalties continues, but with little expectation before the tournament, England have made some progress. Having only had little time to prepare before the tournament, Roy Hodgson will have great hope for the future of the England team.

Teams:
England: Hart, G.Johnson, Terry, Lescott, A.Cole, Gerrard, Parker (Henderson 94') Milner (Walcott 60') Young, Rooney, Welbeck (Carroll 61')

Italy: Buffon, Balzaretti, Abate (Maggio 90') Barzagli, Bonucci, Marchisio, De Rossi (Nocerino 80') Montolivo, Pirlo, Balotelli, Cassano (Diamanti 78')

Referee: Pedro Proenca (Portugal)

Euro 2012 result: England 1-0 Ukraine

England progressed through to the quarter finals of Euro 2012 last night, beating tournament hosts Ukraine 1-0, thanks to a Wayne Rooney header early in the second half.

The win ensured England finished the group as winners and will face Italy in their quarter final on Sunday. Roy Hodgson's men win meant they finished ahead of France after they were beaten by Sweden in their final group game.

picture: nationalturk.com

The game was marred by controversy though as Ukraine were denied a certain goal when striker Marko Devic's shot looked to have crossed the line before John Terry managed to hack the ball clear.

It was Ukraine that started the better of the sides pinning England in their own half for much of the first period. The first opportunity of the games fell the host's way with Denys Garmash firing a long range effort over the crossbar. The chances didn't stop their for Ukraine as Devic's strike was excellently blocked by Scott Parker.

Devic was involved in much of Ukraine's attacks and was involved in setting up the impressive Andriy Yarmolenko whose shot was comfortably dealt with by Joe Hart.

The inclusion of Wayne Rooney was the only change made by Roy Hodgson, and the Manchester United striker struggled to get into the early stages of the game with poor touches and loose passes. 

England's best chance of the half fell to the striker, glancing a header wide from an Ashley Young cross when really Rooney should have done much better.

Ukraine continued their dominance of the half when Oleh Gusev took advantage of Ashley Young's misjudgement of a cross field pass, before shooting narrowly over Joe Hart's bar.

Despite being under pressure for the majority of the first half, it was England and Rooney that took advantage of some sloppy Ukrainian defending to take the lead. After seeing his corner cleared, captain Steven Gerrard received the ball wide from Glen Johnson. The Liverpool captain skipped past one challenge and after seeing the cross deflected twice, Wayne Rooney lurked at the back post to score quite possibly his easiest goal for England.

The goal struck life into both sets of players with Ukraine needing a win to have any chance of qualification. Breaking from a corner Gerrard played Rooney in on goal who could only hold the ball up and set up Milner whose poor shot was easily blocked by the Ukrainian defence.

The chances were coming thick and fast in the game with Artem Milevskiy heading over from a quickly taken corner when really he should have done a lot better. Joe Hart palmed a dangerous looking Gusev cross over the bar before the games controversial talking point took place.

picture: sportige.com

A long punt forward by the Ukraine defence fell nicely for the offside looking Milevskiy who played in the on rushing Marko Devic. The strikers shot was half saved by Joe Hart's foot who could only watch as John Terry heroically volleyed the ball clear from beneath the bar. To the naked eye the ball didn't look over but TV replays clearly showed the ball was over the line. Despite an assistant referee and an additional assistant, the goal was not given, giving more reason for the introduction of goal line technology.

With the whole of Ukraine aggrieved with the decsion, Scott Parker broke forward only to be brought down on the edge of the box. The resulting free kick though was narrowly stuck wide by Rooney.

Joe Hart was once again showed why he is so vital to England, as he magnificently palmed away a swerving 30 yard effort from Konoplienka with Joleon Lescott on hand to clear away the loose ball.

Changes were made by both teams with Hodgson introducing Walcott, Oxlade- Chamberlain and Andy Carroll with Ukraine's talisman Andriy Shevchenko brought on for his final international appearance. Despite the ex-Chelsea's heroics in the country's opening group game against Sweden, he couldn't inspire a comeback this time.

Chances were exchanged late on with Ashley Cole nearly doubling England's lead late on after his shot was excellently palmed away by the Ukrainian goalkeeper. Yarmolenko shot wide for Ukraine when well placed outside the box.

England's solid defensive unit saw the game through and will now face Italy in their quarter final on Sunday in Kiev. With France losing to Sweden in the other group game, England avoid Spain and from no expectation at the beginning of the tournament, England fans are starting to believe.

Teams:
England: Hart, G.Johnson, Terry, Lescott, A.Cole, Gerrard, Parker, Milner (Walcott 69') Young, Rooney (Oxlade Chamberlain 87'), Welbeck (Carroll 82')

Ukraine: Pyatov, Selin, Khacheridi, Rakitskiy, Tymoshchuk, Garmash (Nazarenko 78') Gusev, Yarmolenko, Konoplienka, Milevskiy (Butko 77'), Devic (Shevchenko 70')


Referee: Viktor Kassai (Hungary)

Euro 2012 result: England 3-2 Sweden

England came back from a goal down to secure a memorable comeback in their second group game against Sweden in Kiev.

Andy Carroll opened the scoring for England with an excellent header before Swedish defender Olof Mellberg scored two quick fire goals to give Sweden the lead. Substitute Theo Walcott inspired the fightback with a long range strike before crossing for Danny Welbeck to complete an extraordinary comeback.

The victory comes as a first competitive win against the Swedes and leaves Roy Hodgson's men only needing a point to qualify for the quarter finals.

picture: news.sky.com

It was England that started the better of the sides with Swedish keeper Andreas Isaksson saving a Scott Parker shot after the midfielder was set up by Welbeck. It was Welbeck who had the next chance guiding a James Milner cross wide of the post with his head.

Just like the game against France, it was England that opened the scoring with an excellent goal. Having been  brought in the team in place of Oxlade-Chamberlain. Andy Carroll bagged his first competitive goal for England heading in a world class cross from captain Steven Gerrard.

Sweden offered very little in the first half with Seb Larsson and Zlatan Ibrahimovich bringing comfortable saves out of Joe Hart. Ashley Young had England's next notable chance of the half dragging a shot into the side netting, when crossing the ball across the box looked a better option for the Man United winger.

Having started the first half well, it was the complete opposite in the second. England found themselves 2-1 down after only 15 minutes of the second half. Hero in the first half, Andy Carroll needlessly conceded a free kick 30 yards from goal. Hitting the wall with his first attempt, Ibrahimovich's second effort fell to the feet of Olof Mellberg. The centre back's shot was brilliantly saved by Hart who could only watch in despair as the ball ricocheted off Glen Johnson's stomach and into the net off the post.

It got a lot worse for England as ten minutes later, Mellberg was once again involved, heading in unmarked past Joe Hart to give Sweden a shock lead. The once solid defensive unit we were so used to before the tournament was no where to be seen as the former Aston Villa centre back gave England a mountain to climb.

Within moments of going behind, Hodgson brought Walcott on for the weary James Milner who had offered little in attack throughout the game. England had to score quickly if they were to mount a comeback to secure the much needed win. The equaliser came so close when John Terry was denied by a superb save from Isaksson at point blank range.

But from the resulting corner, super sub Walcott received the ball 25 yards out and struck a superb effort down the centre of the goal leaving Isaksson stranded. This was Walcott's fourth competitive goal for England having scored the previous three in his hat trick against Croatia four years ago.

picture: uk.eurosport.yahoo.com

With many England teams before, we would have seen them sit back and take a draw. But having seen group rivals France earlier win their game against Ukraine, England needed to take three points. Joe Hart was once again called upon turning round an Ibrahimovich shot past the post before England completed a remarkable comeback. Arsenal man Walcott drove to the byline cutting back a cross to which Danny Welbeck turned home brilliantly.

With ten minutes left to hold on, England dug deep to prevent their opponents from taking anything from the game. It could have been four near the end when Walcott crossed for Gerrard, whose volley was excellently saved by Isaksson.

The win leaves England within a point of the quarter finals, and leaves boss Hodgson with decisions to make over who will start up front with talisman Rooney available after serving his suspension.

Teams:
England: Hart, G.Johnson, Terry, Lescott, A.Cole, Gerrard, Parker, Milner (Walcott 60') Young, Carroll, Welbeck (Oxlade- Chamberlain 89')

Sweden: Isaksson, Mellberg, Granqvist (Lustig 66') M.Olsson, Olsson, Elm (Wilhelmsson 81') Larsson, Svensson, Kallstrom, Ibrahimovich, Elmander (Rosenberg 79')
Referee: Damir Skomina (Slovenia)

Capital One Cup: First Round Draw

With the fixtures for the new season set to be announced next week, the newly named Capital One Cup first round draw has taken place today. Formerly known as the Carling Cup, the competition was renamed after the company Capital One, a credit card company, agreed a four year sponsorship deal with the Football League.

picture: blogs.bettor.com

The draw has thrown up some excellent ties which sees relegated Wolverhampton Wanderers host League Two side Aldershot Town. Blackburn and Bolton, who were also relegated alongside Wolves last season, will enter the competition in round two. Other ties that catch the eye include Fleetwood Town, who were promoted from the Conference last season, host Championship side Nottingham Forest. York City, who also gained promotion to the Football League face a trip to Doncaster Rovers. Runners up in last season's final Cardiff City, start with an away trip to Northampton Town. League Two side Barnet face a tricky tie with an away tie to Championship Birmingham City who reached the Championship play off's last season.

Having suffered poor league form last season, it was Liverpool who claimed victory in last seasons competition. The Premier League side needed extra time and penalties to overcome their Championship opponents Cardiff City. Winger Joe Mason opened the scoring for the Bluebirds before Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel equalised with a scrambled effort.

Dirk Kuyt thought he had won the game in extra time for Liverpool, after scoring an excellent goal from 25 yards. But after indecision in the Liverpool box, Cardiff defender Ben Turner poked home to take the final to a penalty shoot-out. It was the Premier League side though, that came out victors winning 3-2 in the shoot-out.

Teams from the Championship to League Two will compete from the first round with 13 Premier League teams coming into the competition in the second round. The remaining seven teams are all competing in Europe this season and will therefore not enter the competition until the third round to avoid fixture congestion.

Fixtures below:

Derby County v Scunthorpe United
Rochdale v Barnsley
Port Vale v Burnley
Notts County v Bradford City
Hull City v Rotherham United
Fleetwood Town v Nottingham Forest
Carlisle United v Accrington Stanley
Doncaster Rovers v York City
Crewe Alexandra v Hartlepool United
Bury v Middlesbrough
Chesterfield v Tranmere Rovers
Sheffield United v Burton Albion
Blackpool v Morecambe
Leeds United v Shrewsbury Town
Preston North End v Huddersfield Town
Oldham Athletic v Sheffield Wednesday
Cheltenham Town v Milton Keynes Dons
Ipswich Town v Bristol Rovers
Stevenage v AFC Wimbledon
Exeter City v Crystal Palace
Yeovil Town v Colchester United
Birmingham City v Barnet
Bristol City v Gillingham
Northampton Town v Cardiff City
Plymouth Argyle v Portsmouth
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Aldershot Town 
Walsall v Brentford
Millwall v Crawley Town 
Torquay United v Leicester City 
Dagenham & Redbridge v Coventry City 
Peterborough United v Southend United
Swindon Town v Brighton & Hove Albion 
Watford v Wycombe Wanderers 
Charlton Athletic v Leyton Orient 
Oxford United v AFC Bournemouth

The first round fixtures will take place the week beginning August 13th. The final will be held at Wembley on 24th February next year.