Football: Horton aiming to hold on to Quinn: Everton's pursuit of City man is rebuffed as Keegan seeks to harvest Rieper

BRIAN HORTON, Manchester City's new manager, yesterday rebuffed Everton's interest in Niall Quinn, saying that the lanky Irish striker was not for sale, writes Henry Winter.

Howard Kendall, Horton's Goodison counterpart and a recent tenant of Maine Road's ejector seat, paid pounds 800,000 to bring Quinn to City in March 1990. His search for a target man to beef up Everton's front-line inevitably lead him to being linked with the 26-year-old Quinn. But Horton said: 'None of my players are leaving. Nobody wants to lose their best players.

'One club did enquire about a player but I told them to let me get my feet under the table first. Some players have been to see me and I have asked them to give me a couple of months. Some have long-term contracts which I think should be honoured.'

Marc Rieper, the highly regarded Denmark centre-half who has faced Quinn in Copenhagen and Dublin over the last year, is again the subject of interest by Newcastle United. Kevin Keegan, the Tynesiders' manager, yesterday flew to Denmark to watch the Brondby defender. 'I have to check him personally because it's my neck that's on the line,' Keegan said, 'but it's still early days on this one.'

Jim Smith, the Portsmouth manager, has been charged with bringing the game into disrepute following an angry confrontation with Steve Dunn, the Bristol referee, at the end of Pompey's opening-day defeat at Oxford United. Smith has video evidence which he says will justify his anger over one of Dunn's decisions.

England, Scotland squads, Leeds report, page 35