Souness to put his case

Graeme Souness will request a personal hearing in response to being charged by the Football Association. The Blackburn Rovers manager was this week charged with "improper conduct and abusive and/or insulting language" to match officials during Rovers' Worthington Cup quarter-final at Wigan last month.

Lucas Neill's yellow card in Tuesday's Worthington Cup semi-final first leg with Manchester United will stand, despite the Blackburn defender protesting his innocence after being booked for diving.

Blackburn's veteran Norwegian defender Henning Berg, who is returning to his home country when his contract expires in the summer, has turned down the chance to become Brann Bergen's player-coach.

Rovers have failed to lure the Monaco defender Philippe Léonard. They had hoped to sign the 28-year-old on a six-month loan deal. Rovers' England midfielder David Dunn is to see a specialist about his troublesome calf injury.