ague title with a single trophy last season, finishing 11 points behind United in second. Talk of dressing room disharmony has melted a

LONDON -- For English football, it has long seemed unthinkable: a league season starting without the finger-jabbing, combative colossus of management on the touchlines. Alex Ferguson will be a bystander for the first time since 1986, watching from afar as Manchester United starts its pursuit of a record-extending 21st English title. David Moyes now carries that responsibility. Widely admired during 11 years at Everton despite failing to collect a major honour, Moyes was hand-picked by Ferguson in the biggest decision -- gamble, perhaps -- taken by the owning Glazer family. "People are asking whether we can win the trophy again. Can we still be champions?" captain Nemanja Vidic acknowledged. Although he openly flirted with United in the months before Fergusons retirement was publicly disclosed, Jose Mourinho -- one of the most talented but temperamental managers of his generation -- wasnt approached for the job. The charismatic Portuguese is back in the Premier League, though, after six years collecting trophies with Inter Milan and Real Madrid. Claiming to have mellowed since leaving Chelsea after a fall-out, Mourinho is widely expected to return to his combustible self once the season begins and produce the touchline tantrums Ferguson can no longer provide. Just a week into the season, the 50-year-old managers will get a chance to size each other up in a match that could set the tone for the opening weeks, with United hosting Chelsea. "That game will not decide who is going to be champions," Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic said. "But it will decide a lot of things about the confidence." By then, the Blues may have gained an edge by having played an extra game. United will only have played once -- its title defence begins Saturday at Swansea, following last weekends 2-0 win over Wigan in the Community Shield. Ill-feeling between the sides has been inflamed by Chelseas hostile pursuit of United striker Wayne Rooney. Mourinho insists hes not engaging in "mind games" with Moyes, but has still offered a few pointed words of advice. "One of the most difficult things in the club is to create a victory culture, where you walk through the door and you smell the success, you smell confidence, you smell self-esteem," said Mourinho, who has won league titles in England, Spain, Italy and Portugal. "David is in a big club and that is a big help -- everybody knows how to win. Of course, it is up to him now." And he knows just how daunting the task is. "There has to be an element of fear that comes with managing a club like Manchester United," Moyes said. With the spotlight on Mourinho and Moyes, Manuel Pellegrini has been able to make a quiet start to his first job in English management. The 59-year-old Chilean left Malaga for Manchester City after Roberto Mancini was fired for failing to follow up the 2011-12 Premier League title with a single trophy last season, finishing 11 points behind United in second. Talk of dressing room disharmony has melted away as Pellegrini started to re-shape the squad, spending more than $130 million on strikers Stevan Jovetic and Alvaro Negredo, midfielder Fernandinho and winger Jesus Navas. Such a lavish outlay was easily affordable for the oil-rich Abu Dhabi ownership, but the spending could pose a challenge in complying with UEFA Financial Fair Play regulations, a requirement of playing in the Champions League. By contrast, United failed in its pursuit of Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas, and even more ambitious thoughts of bringing Cristiano Ronaldo back to Old Trafford from Madrid. Chelsea might have missed out on Rooney, but around $40 million has still been spent on signing striker Andre Schuerrle and midfielder Marco van Ginkel. As for Arsenal, which finished behind Chelsea in fourth, not a penny has been spent. Thats despite chief executive Ivan Gazidis raising the hopes of fans in June by pledging to "escalate" spending. Moves to entice Luis Suarez from Liverpool for more than $60 million have been rebuffed by Liverpool, which is insisting that the Uruguay striker honour his contract after the club backed him through racism and biting controversies. The Gunners have seen north London rival Tottenham invest $65 million in the squad, although manager Andre Villa-Boas could still be faced with losing arguably the leagues most potent player in Gareth Bale before the transfer window closes Sept. 2. Real Madrids pursuit of the Wales forward threatens to destabilize Tottenham in the opening weeks of the season unless quickly resolved. Bale would be leaving a Premier League that will feature two Welsh teams for the first time after Cardiff gained promotion to join Swansea, which will find it hard to repeat last seasons 11th-place finish and League Cup success. The Cardiff-Swansea derby is shaping up to be one of the fieriest fixtures of the season. The manager to watch out for, though, will be Paolo Di Canio, the confrontational and divisive Italian who succeeded in keeping Sunderland in the top flight after being hired in the closing stages of the season. Sunderland is one of the six Premier League clubs under American ownership. Alongside Man United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Aston Villa, Fulham is the latest, with Shad Khan buying out Mohamed Al Fayed last month. The attraction of teams to foreign businessmen is underscored by the new riches being injected into the Premier League, notably from the United States, where NBC has captured the TV rights and covered New York subway trains with its advertising. New rights TV deals will generate around $8.5 billion over the next three years, with a record share of $90 million per season guaranteed for even the bottom team -- and it is newcomers Crystal Palace, Cardiff and Hull who are tipped to go straight back down. Another landmark, highlighting the global allure, will be when Southamptons Victor Wanyama becomes the first player in the Premier League from Kenya, making the African nation the 100th country from outside Britain to be represented in a game. Yet for all the new arrivals and the dramas that unfold in the 20 grounds in the coming months, the absence of one man is still likely to be felt most. Moyes job is to ensure United fans dont hanker after the 71-year-old Ferguson and plead for his return. "It has to be a new era," Moyes said. "My job now is to make my history ... make sure now that my history and my time is something which the fans and people in the future talk about."Kemba Walker Jersey . 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The New Westminster, B.C., native plowed three yards into the end zone for the last score of a heated, see-saw battle between the two teams with the best records in the CFL.TAMPA, Fla. -- Brian Boyle picked the perfect time for his first career shootout goal.Boyle scored in the fourth round of the shootout and the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Washington Capitals 2-1 Saturday night to snap a four-game losing streak.Simple game ... he just goes down there and shoots at the net, Lightning coach Jon Cooper said.Tampa Bay won the shootout 2-1 when Boyle put a shot between Braden Holtbys pads. The Lightning forward was 0 for 4 in his previous shootout attempts.Come down with some speed, and try and use my reach. the 6-foot-6 Boyle said. Open up a hole.Brayden Point also scored in the tiebreaker for the Lightning and Evgeny Kuznetsov scored for the Capitals.Tampa Bay got a regulation goal from Nikita Kucherov. Ben Bishop stopped 34 shots.Nicklas Backstrom scored for the Captials, who have lost three in a row (0-2-1). Holtby made 32 saves.Theyre in the same situation as us, Holtby said. A game like that can go either way, really.Kucherov opened the scoring with 7:22 left in the second for his 13th goal, coming from the top of the right circle during a power play that came about due to Alex Ovechkins second penalty in the game.Tampa Bay, which entered with the NHLs second-best power-play, went 1 for 3.It was just the sixth time this season that Washington allowed the first goal of a game.Ovechkin had four shots but saw his goal-scoring drought reach four straight gamess.ddddddddddddBackstrom tied it at 1 on the power play at 6:24 of the third. Washington has three man-advantage goal on the road this season in 28 chances, including a 1-for-6 effort against the Lightning.Its better than nothing, Backstrom said about the Capitals getting a point. We had the opportunity (to win) but didnt do it.The Capitals got two shots but failed to score during a power play over the final 33.5 seconds of overtime.A little bit of a bend but no break, Bishop said. Obviously they had a little momentum but the penalty kill came up big.Bishop had a nifty save on an in-close chance by Kuznetsov during the first of two unsuccessful Washington power plays late in the second.Holtby made a glove save on Joel Vermin during a 2-on-1 and turned aside Kucherovs breakaway shot over a minute span early in the second.Game notesBishop is 2-6-1 in 10 games against Washington. ... Holtby is 7-2-2 in 13 games against the Lightning. ... Tampa Bay D Jason Garrison, who took a shot off the knee in Thursdays game at St. Louis, didnt play. ... Washington swept the three-game series last season, outscoring the Lightning 11-6. The Capitals were 10-1-1 in their 12 games against Tampa Bay.UP NEXTCapitals: Host Buffalo on Monday night.Lightning: At Carolina on Sunday night. ' ' '