Southampton announce £33.4m profit

Southampton have announced a post-tax profit of £33.4million for the year ending June 30, 2014.

it is the first time the club, who finished eighth in the premier league last season, have posted such profit since entering administration in 2009, when they were relegated to league one.

The club's total revenue increased to £106m (from £71.8m the previous year), with the rise accounted for by the lucrative television rights deal.

The St Mary's Stadium outfit expanded the wage bill from £41.4m to £55.2m and showed debts of approximately £50m.

Chief executive officer Gareth Rogers told the club's official website: "There are lots of positives to take from these financial results. Recording the first profit and positive net asset position for the first time since administration in 2009 is very pleasing.

"It shows the health of the club and the group is strong and the foundations are there to be built on.

"The opening of the Staplewood Campus training ground in November was an important step for the football club. A substantial investment was ploughed into the development and the state-of-the-art facilities will further enhance the staff's ability to maximise the potential of our first team and academy players.  

"Our focus remains on developing significant commercial growth which will support our vision to create a sustainable business model.

"We have a strong business plan in place and we're already seeing the green shoots of that plan. We believe it is possible to be a well-managed, well-structured football club that is successful both on and off the pitch."

Injuries offer Kane chance of first England start

Roy Hodgson looks set to give Harry Kane his first England start on Wednesday after confirming he will likely be without the trio of Danny Welbeck, Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling.

The Tottenham striker came off the bench to score within 79 seconds of his international debut in Friday's 4-0 Euro 2016 qualifying win over Lithuania, with Hodgson's side now turning their attentions to Tuesday's friendly against Italy in Turin.

While Hodgson stopped short of confirming that the in-form Tottenham striker would feature from the start against Antonio Conte's men, the England boss acknowledged he was short on options.

"We'll see, obviously his chances get bigger all the time we're losing all these players," Hodgson explained.

"There's no Welbeck possibly, there's certainly no Sturridge, there's certainly no Sterling.

"I haven't got front players coming out of a hat so he's one of the ones who is there and is available, but we'll wait and see."

On Sterling, Hodgson also confirmed that the forward is due to have an injection on a troublesome toe injury.

Hodgson, who was at the centre of a club-versus-country dispute over the fitness of fellow Liverpool team-mate Sturridge last year, stated there is no need for Sterling to play through the pain barrier against Italy. 

"I think it's his toe, he's been playing through a situation and getting himself ready to get out on the field of play," he added.

"He's done it again [on Friday], which is terrific, but there's no doubt in my mind that he doesn't need to continue those shows of bravery.

"It's very important for us and for Liverpool that he gets it put right. They think this injection will help him get through the rest of the season."

Pienaar to resume training with Everton

Everton midfielder Steven Pienaar is to return to training on Monday, manager Roberto Martinez has confirmed.

The South African has been out of action since December because of a knee injury and has made just 10 appearances all season.

"We had very good news on Steven," Martinez told Evertontv. 

"He's going to join the group on Monday and we'll take it from that point on, making sure that slowly but surely we give him the right path to being fully fit and being able to enjoy his football again. 

"We've missed Stevie massively throughout this season and it's important we'll be able to see him on a football pitch before the season ends."

The Spaniard also gave positive updates on the progress made by Kevin Mirallas, Bryan Oviedo and Tony Hibbert.

Mirallas has been out with a leg problem, Oviedo has a hamstring issue and Hibbert has a knee injury.

Martinez added: "The international break is always important for the injured players because you can really focus on their needs and it gives them time to set individual targets.

"Kevin Mirallas has improved immensely over the past couple of days, Bryan Oviedo is steadily getting a lot stronger and Tony Hibbert is very close to joining the group as well."

Hull City fined £30,000 for misconduct

Hull City have been fined £30,000 by the Football Association for failing to control their players during a Premier League clash at Leicester City earlier this month.

The FA charged Hull following a flashpoint in the 68th minute of the goalless draw at the King Power Stadium after referee Jon Moss booked Alex Bruce for a challenge on Riyad Mahrez, which prompted an angry reaction from visiting players.

Hull subsequently denied the charge, with Steve Bruce hitting out at Leicester's "whinging" and the manner in which they surrounded his son in what he felt was an attempt to get the defender sent off.

The Hull boss also vowed to "vigorously defend" the action of his players.

However, the Regulatory Commission found the allegations proven and the club was hit with a financial penalty on Friday.