England stars earn new deals

David James and Joleon Lescott have both been rewarded for their fantastic performances this season with contract extensions for their respective clubs.

James, 37, is in the form of his life in what ought to be the twilight of his career, and has signed a deal which runs until summer 2010 with an option of an additional year, potentially seeing him playing top flight football until he is 40. He also appears to be the front-runner as Fabio Capello’s first choice keeper, despite the fact he will be 39 by the time the next world cup comes around (should England qualify).

Lescott, 25, has been in equally fantastic form this season, scoring more Premiership goals than any other defender (equal with Martin Laursen) and earning plaudits for how seamlessly he has made the transition from Wolves to Everton. He has also featured regularly in recent England squads, where his versatility makes him a real assett.

Both Portsmouth and Everton have exceeded expectations this season. Portsmouth are the only Premiership club to make the FA Cup semi-finals and are firm favourites to win the competition. Everton are still chasing fourth place and until last week were unbeaten in the UEFA Cup. Both James and Lescott have obviously benefitted from this, but also have played a huge part in their clubs’ successes. James’ 12 league clean sheets and general performance level have meant Portsmouth, particularly at home, have been extremely difficult to break down, and Everton have kept 7 clean sheets in their last 9 league games.

Hard work rewarded then and great news for them, but more importantly, great news for my fantasy league team. I’ve had both of them pretty much all season.