Torn to tatters at Naples a few weeks ago, who would have thought Chelsea could stand their ground and show the character they demonstrated against Barcelona on Wednesday night. I don’t want to be drawn into the argument whether André Villas Boas could have ignited such a performance from slumped Chelsea team but for just this moment Roberto Di Matteo merits the Chelsea job on permanent basis. He might not be the glamorous of coaches but ask Sir Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho and you would notice that organizing your defence to see Barcelona through 90 minutes without them scoring a goal is no easy task.
Forget about the second leg in seven days, Chelsea, the only English side left in UEFA’s elite club competition were calm, organized, discipline, never lost concentration and above all portrayed a class in their defending that has so much been missed in years against the Spanish Champions and deserve their praise for now irrespective of the outcome at the Nou Camp.
They stuck to their game with Didier Drogba using the strength that most defenders would not relish upfront. John Terry showed what a true leader is made up of and his partner at the heart of defence, Gary Cahill, also made it known that he was no push over and Petr Cech put up a performance every manager would desire from a goalkeeper.
From the electric pace of Ramires through the genius passes from Frank Lampard, the potency of Ivanovic and the ‘mega mind’ of Roberto Di Mateo, all football fans around the globe will agree with me that even though Barcelona were terrific in their attacking football as always, Chelsea Football Club deserve a standing ovation even if their celebration might last for just seven days.
What did Chelsea fans make of events at Stamford Bridge?
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Champions League semi-finalists Real Madrid are reportedly looking to plug their problem right-back spot with the signature of either Kyle Walker or Glen Johnson this summer, according to the Daily Star.
Jose Mourinho is looking to negotiate his expertise of the English top flight to prize away a solution to the poor form of current full-back Alvaro Arbeloa, and the club believe an offer of £16.5 million will be enough to seal a deal for one of their targets.
21-year-old Walker has blossomed in his first full season at White Hart Lane and has been virtually an ever-present for Harry Redknapp’s side with neck breaking speed and assurance down the right flank. He has even been dubbed the new Roberto Carlos in some Spanish quarters.
The older Johnson has endured a spell on the side lines for Liverpool more recently and would come at a far lesser price considering his 27 years, but Mourinho worked with the right back and knows him well from his time spent at Chelsea.
Los Blancos still lead La Liga and their great rivals Barcelona by six points but it is clear that Mourinho is already making provisions for the summer, with scouts having been sent to watch both players over the course of the current Premier League campaign.
It remains to be seen whether either Walker or Johnson, who both may feature at Euro 2012 for England, will be attracted by the bright lights of the Bernabeu.
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Goal-line technology will be introduced in England’s international friendly against Belgium on June 2nd.
The footballing world have been split over whether additional technology should be used to help official make correct decisions regarding whether the ball crossed the goal-line.
However, Fifa have confirmed that they are dabbling with the idea of introducing technology after seeing success in other sports, and the Hawkeye system will be used for The Three Lions game a week on Saturday.
“Such tests could lead to the International Football Association Board (IFAB) approving the introduction of GLT at its special meeting at the beginning of July,” a statement reads.
“Only the EMPA observers, IFAB and FIFA representatives at Wembley will have access to the GLT system readings.
“Therefore, should a goal-line incident occur at this or any of the ‘test’ matches, the system will not be utilised by the match officials.
“It means the GLT system will have no influence on the outcome of the matches in which the system is being tested.
“FIFA would like to place on record its sincere thanks to the Football Association for their willingness to support the live match tests, a critical part of Test Phase 2 for goal-line technology.”
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Jamie Carragher has not often been lauded for his insight into footballing matters so far at Euro 2012, though was far superior to his colleagues in his recent comments about the extension of the European Championship to 24 teams in 2014. The crux of Carragher’s argument focused around denouncing the dilution of quality in pursuit of UEFA’s commercial gain, a nugget of applaudable sense in an otherwise ludicrously tame selection of punditry at the tournament.
Like Paul Merson, Michel Platini seems to have forgotten that the best things in life should enjoyed in moderation. Modern football has reached the stage whereby action is available on prescription, the unbridled excesses of television companies and consumers alike resulting in the dampening of football quality. No longer is it a treat to be able to watch live football. If you own either a television set or have internet access is it inconceivable to go a single day without being subjected to a game of football at one level or another. Watching live football is part of our daily routine: get home, put the kettle on, put the dinner in and watch Linfield vs Glentoran on Sky Sports 3.
Platini has been openly forthright in his reasoning behind enacting the measures: more teams = more matches = more viewers = more money. There is barely even a hint of suggestion that it is being done in the interests of smaller national associations not afforded sufficient opportunities to qualify for the tournament. UEFA appear to be chugging hazily along behind the FIFA gravy train, destined for overindulgence. When money takes precedence, football suffers.
The beauty of the European Championships lies in its concise, dignified structure which allows for the control of quality. No match is a lame duck. Much like a poet who ponders at great length over every choice of word, every syllable, there is no room for filler – every verse of the Euros is of the highest caliber. If the current version of the European Championships is comparable to poetry, then the extended version of the World Cup could be a Coldplay song: vague, ambiguous and utterly meaningless until the final chorus kicks in.
As much as it was something of novelty to sit down and witness New Zealand vs Slovakia in 2010, the intensity of the group stages at Euro 2012 are far more appealing. It is unlikely that a fixture such as England vs France or Holland vs Germany would ever sprout up until the Quarter-Finals at the World Cup, with a splattering of mediocre, predictable ties preceding. At the European Championships, such high profile games are a daily occurrence.
This is not to begrudge the smaller nations of Europe the chance to assume a greater stage. The new regulations may well enhance the Home Nations’ prospects whilst also ensuring that England (probably) never experience the mortifying failure of 2008 again. The fact that the Republic of Ireland are at Euro 2012 is all the more impressive because of the stringent qualification criteria, but a similar achievement in a tournament of 24 teams may taint this. Much like opening up a fourth domestic spot for Champions League qualification, the extension of the tournament in fact degrades achievement.
The current format ensures that the best of Europe rise to the top, without the ignominy of having to see off lower ranked opponents in the group stage. It sorts the men from the boys, the poets from the prosaic lyricists.
Extending the European Championships may be inevitable, but it will not be the benefit of football. There will be more football to watch, more official corporate sponsors to attain and more television companies clambering for rights. Eight nations will gain something. UEFA will gain everything. Football will gain nothing.
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The Sun have revealed that Theo Walcott is ready to leave the club after being devastated at the news that Robin van Persie will not extend his contract in north London.
The Gunners captain has one year left on his current deal at the Emirates Stadium, and despite a new improved offer from Arsene Wenger’s men has opted to leave the side after his contract expires.
The England international is in a similar position in that his current contract also expires next summer, and it is believed that Van Persie’s decision has had a major impact on Walcott’s thought process.
The pair are close friends off the pitch and Walcott is believed to think that Van Persie’s choice to leave the club shows a lack of ambition and urgency from the north London outfit.
A deal to increase Walcott’s wages from £55,000-a-week to around £80,000 is supposed on the table, with a new four-year deal being offered by Arsenal.
However, it is believed that Walcott will spurn this offer and instead make plans to look for a new club, either this summer or next.
Should Walcott follow in Van Persie’s footsteps it would be a hammer blow for the already hurting Arsenal fans.
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There is a renewed sense of optimism at White Hart Lane this summer after the club appointed Andre Villas-Boas to take over the reins. The new manager has set his sights high, with early talk dominated by the future possibility of a title tilt. With that in mind, the club need to look at pressing ahead with the restructuring of the playing staff, moving on some of the more experienced fringe members of the squad, with Jermain Defoe prime among them.
The 34 year-old Portuguese manager arrives at the club looking to rebuild his burgeoning reputation after having it damaged by the fiasco at Stamford Bridge last term, where he was cruelly sacked for merely doing the job that he was appointed to do in the first place, but ahead of schedule.
Despite that setback at Chelsea, the club clearly have a forward-thinking manager at the helm now as opposed to a media lackey in Harry Redknapp – he comes with a set style of play, an ethos and system that he likes to use, with 4-3-3 predominantly his formation of choice at both Chelsea and Porto, but does Defoe fit into such a system?
If you were going on strength in depth, there is of course an argument for keeping Defoe around. In just 25 league games last year, during which he started just 11 as he fell out of favour with Redknapp, he still managed to bag 11 goals, which is a tidy return considering his relative lack of action, but he usually works best in a partnership and with somebody up alongside him.
Gylfi Sigurdsson or Rafael van der Vaart look likely to fill in the slot at the tip of the midfield trio over the course of the coming campaign and the role does dictate the pressing need to get closer to the lone central forward, but Defoe lacks the one-touch ability and hold up play usually required for the position that Emmanuel Adebayor is more than comfortable with. Daniel Sturridge excelled under Villas-Boas out wide on the right despite fancying himself in a more central role, but it looks as if Gareth Bale and Aaron Lennon will occupy both these roles on the flanks and yet again, Defoe’s face doesn’t quite fit.
There also has to be some concerns about Defoe’s consistency over the course of a long campaign. Taking into account the three seasons between 2008-09 and 2010-11 season, Defoe scored 37 goals. In 2008-9 they came against Burnley, Wigan, Newcastle and Manchester City (before they were the club they are today).
In 2009/10 his goals were against the following sides – Chelsea (1), Blackburn (1), Wigan (1), Bolton (1), Leeds (3), Birmingham (1), Peterborough (1), West Ham (1), Manchester City (1), Everton (1), Wigan (5), Portsmouth (1), Preston (1), Manchester United (1), West Ham (1), Hull City (3). Of his 24 goals that campaign, he scored 11 of them in just 3 games against the likes of world-beaters Wigan, Leeds and Hull.
Before striking a double in the league against Wolves in 2010-11, during a campaign beset by injury and suspension troubles, he went 17 games without a goal, a run that stretched over the course of two seasons. The myth often propagated by Redknapp was that Defoe was lazily referred to as a 25 goal a season striker – at no point has he ever scored 25 goals in a season – he has only scored over 20 goals across all competitions twice; once in 2003/4 (9 of which came in the early rounds of the Carling and FA Cups) and in 2009/10, 11 of which came in the three aforementioned games above. That’s simply not good enough to earn himself a starting role under the new boss.
Retaining Defoe as an impact player off the bench clearly carries some merit, as his record last term will surely testify to, but whether that would be enough for the player remains to be seen and he seemed to be getting itchy feet towards the end of last season with his reduced role, later stating that he thought about leaving the club during the January transfer window.
At 29 years of age, he is in danger of falling off the international scene unless he can secure regular guaranteed first-team football soon, after already falling behind the likes of Danny Welbeck and Andy Carroll in the pecking order under new boss Roy Hodgson. This can’t be looked at solely from the fan’s perspective of ‘well he’s a good player so let’s keep him’, there’s far more to look at when judging an issue like this.
He served a purpose before, helping the club get the point where they are now, but both the club and player are faced with a genuinely tough decision over the next few weeks – he doesn’t quite fit into the new system and isn’t good enough to warrant regular selection, while at this point in his career, that is what Defoe requires above all else.
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Any move has to be predicated on getting a replacement into the club first, but with the club shopping around the calibre of Santi Cazorla, Oscar and Joao Moutinho, the club’s aspirations clearly outstrip the abilities of the player in question. It’s a new era, an exciting one at that, and Defoe should be thanked for his service and edged politely towards the exit door. That’s not a slight on the player, more a dawning realisation of where the club are and what they want to achieve going forward.
In recent years, something of a trend has developed in the Barclays Premier League for promoted teams. Indeed, whilst many might perceive something of a struggle for teams bridging the gap from the Championship, the reality is that promoted teams seem to be more than adept at holding their own.
But as the Premier League seems to grow in competitiveness every season, next term is set to be just as cutthroat as ever. For both Reading and Southampton, the top flight of English football is hardly a walk into the unknown. But they’ll know better than anyone how ruthless this league can be and unless they start making some inroads in the transfer market, they could be served a painfully quick reminder.
The omens would look, on paper anyway, reasonably good for West Ham, Reading and Southampton. In the last five seasons, 11 of the 15 teams promoted from the Championship have remained in the Premier League at the end of their returning/debut season. That represents a pretty good survival rate for all involved and seems at odds with the bookies’ usual doom mongering at the start of the season.
And indeed, that trend hasn’t veered away much before the start of next term. Sky Bet will give you odds of 11/10 on Reading and 5/4 on Southampton being relegated, making them the unsurprising favourites for the drop. West Ham though, appear to be receiving a similar sort of backing that Newcastle did when they returned to the Premier League.
Popular opinion suggests that Sam Allardyce’s team and the seasoned top-flight experience of players such as Kevin Nolan and Carlton Cole, will be enough to see them safe this season. An interesting opinion, considering they had to resort to the play-offs to gain promotion, after finishing behind both Southampton and Reading.
But they do have Premier League pedigree in their ranks; the additions of Jussi Jaaskelainen and James Collins only boosts their chances. But most importantly, they have a manager in Sam Allardyce, who has been there and done it. He knows what it takes.
Again, you could ask whether managerial experience is really even that important in today’s world. Paul Lambert and Brendan Rodgers haven’t done too bad for themselves since they got promoted. Nigel Adkins and Brian McDermott won’t have too many worries about their failure to manage in the top flight as of yet.
But what they may be worrying about is the strength of their squads. Only last week, Adkins admitted: “We are looking to improve on what we have, and the players are aware of that. There is still a bit of work to be done.”
Southampton feel like something of an unknown quality going into next season. The likes of Rickie Lambert, who has been prolific within the lower leagues, as well as Richard Chaplow and Guly do Prado, have all lighted up League One and the Championship during Southampton’s epic journey under Adkins. Both Jack Cork and Adam Lallana are gifted footballers and with an academy as prolific as Southampton’s, prodigious talents such as that of James Ward-Prowse are never far away.
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But how they all adapt to the top flight will be the defining element for Southampton’s season. Adkins has a lot of faith in his current team, many of which seem to have been tipped to a move to the top flight for an eternity.
But although many have spoken highly of Lambert, Lallana and co, no Premier League team has seen fit to take a punt on them. Lambert is now 30 and Lallana can’t be classified as a fledgling young player any more at 24. Richard Chaplow failed to really make the grade during his time at West Brom and both Kelvin Davies and Danny Fox have more than a point to prove in the Premier League. Comparisons will be made with Norwich, but if Adkins can keep them up, it could arguably supplant the efforts that Paul Lambert made last season – a lot of players are going to need to step up for him if this is going to happen.
Up at the Madjeski, Brian McDermott has done a fantastic job to get the Royals back into the Premier League and the ex-Arsenal midfielder sees his side go into the new season with at least a few familiar faces. Pavel Pogrebnyak didn’t spend long at Fulham, but he showed enough goal-scoring prowess to suggest he can knock a few in for Reading next season. Securing the Russian on a Bosman certainly seems like a safer bet than the £7 million that Adkins spent on Jay Rodriguez anyway.
Newly signed Danny Guthrie is someone who can do a decent job at Premier League level and the veteran Jason Roberts may well bring the experience to chime in with a few important goals. But there still feels like a lack of real quality in this Reading squad, especially defensively. Alex Pearce was superb at centre-back last season and how he handles the step up will be crucial.
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But Shaun Cummings and the veteran Ian Harte will have a real job on their hands next season. McDermott has spoken of his pleasure at having two players for every position. But Nicky Shorey isn’t the player he was in his first term at the Madjeski, Chris Gunter’s game still needs to mature defensively and for Adrian Mariappa it could be a case of sink or swim following his switch from Watford. We’ve seen time and again how promoted teams can be undone by a shoddy defence – Ian Holloway’s Blackpool side were mercurial going forward, but that wasn’t enough to prevent relegation. McDermott could do with an experienced Premier League head back there.
A lot of what’s being discussed here, such as the need to step-up and the experience of their respective squads, may seem like a routine analysis of any promoted team. But Reading and Southampton seem to lack some of the stardust of the promoted three of last year bestowed – Brendan Rodgers’ brand of football, Paul Lambert’s golden mentality and in the case of QPR, a slew of investment come January. This isn’t to say that McDermott or Adkins don’t have the talent nor the drive to keep their teams up.
But you can’t help but feel that the pair could do with a few more, preferably Premier League experienced, acquisitions. Both teams are carrying a lot of talent that has been highly rated at Football League level – whether they can all do the trick within the Premier League remains to be seen. History suggests that luck may be on their side. Let’s hope the law of averages doesn’t work against them.
How do you feel about Reading and Southampton’s chances next season? Can they step up to the plate or will next season finally see the demise of the promoted team? Tell me what you think and how you see it on Twitter: follow @samuel_antrobus and bat me your views!
Steve Clarke has rubbished claims by Liverpool’s owners, the Fenway Sports Group that finishing inside the top-four is not vital.
The former assistant manager, now West Bromwich Albion Head Coach, was sacked along with Kenny Dalglish at the end of last season after a disappointing eighth-place finish- a massive 37 points behind title winners Manchester City.
He said: “A club like Liverpool have to be there challenging for the top four – I don’t think they can accept anything less”, he told the Daily Mirror.
Despite performing poorly in the League, Clarke and Dalglish led the Reds to two cup finals, winning the Carling Cup- the club’s first trophy in six years.
He added: “If you are reaching cup finals, you know you have a team who can compete. It is not an easy achievement. Not many teams do it.
Clarke also revealed that his departure had nothing to do with the incoming Brendan Rodgers, but the owners, who wanted to completely revamp the coaching set-up.
It allowed him to land his first managerial position, having built-up a good reputation as a steady number- two at Chelsea, West Ham and Liverpool respectively.
Tomorrow’s opening day match at the Hawthorns against Clarke’s former employers offers the chance for redemption, but he is focusing on the tough task to emulate Albion’s success of a tenth-place finish last season and to permanently remove the “boing boing Baggies” tag.
He said: “There were two or three jobs still available and I was fortunate to get this.
“It is a big game for me because it is the first game in charge at West Bromwich Albion.”
Blackpool rejected a bid from Newcastle United for young star, Tom Ince.
The Mirror report Alan Pardew attempted to prise away one of Ian Holloway’s brightest prospects for just £4 million and will bid again in January.
Son of former England midfielder Paul Ince, the youngster alongside fellow highly rated winger, Matt Phillips has taken the Championship by storm, having netted four times already this term.
After agreeing to move from Anfield to Bloomfield Road the youngster has been an instant hit scoring eight league goals including netting at Wembley in the play-off final in the 2011/2012 season.
Differing from his all-action central midfielder father, Ince is a winger with pace and trickery which would wouldn’t look out of place in the top division.
Obtaining the 20 year old from Blackpool could prove difficult for potential suitors, as the England under 19 international is important to the Seasider’s promotion charge. Blackpool sit top of the championship, after claiming nine points from their opening four fixtures.
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Markus Rosenberg insists he has more to offer Steve Clarke’s West Bromwich Albion side ahead of Sunday’s derby-day clash at Villa Park.
The Sweden international made his full home debut in Albion’s 2-1 Capital One Cup third-round defeat to Liverpool at The Hawthorns on Wednesday. Rosenberg arrived at The Hawthorns in August on a Bosman, having not trained with a team in seven weeks after exiting Euro 2012 on June 19. And the former Werder Bremen striker, who turned 30 yesterday, believes his performances will continue to improve as he gains more game time. He told West Brom’s official website:
“I have trained a lot but I have not played as much so I really needed 90 minutes and I got it. That was positive but the result of the game was not so positive. It feels better and better but you can still see that the last pass is not there. There were too many times when I lost the ball, but it’s getting better and better and I think in the second half I came into it better. I started well in the first 15 minutes, then I came into the middle and the whole team lost their game, including me. Then in the second half it was more 50/50.”Rosenberg gained experience of intense local rivalries during his time at Werder Bremen, whose matches with Hamburg, known as the Nordderby, are renowned for their hostility. And the 6ft attacker is excited by the prospect of playing in his first West Midlands derby as Albion and Villa meet for the 159th time in all competitions. He continued:”“The players have told me it’s good. They say the biggest derby is Wolves but now it’s only West Brom and Villa in the Premier League and it’s going to be great.”