Everton manager David Moyes has revealed that the club are ‘very close’ to agreeing a new contract for midfielder Marouane Fellaini.
The Belgium international midfielder cost a club record £15 million fee back in 2008, and has become a mainstay in the Merseyside team, impressing this season with excellent performances.
With his current deal expiring in June 2013, Moyes has been keen to extend the versatile player’s deal, and feels this is close to being completed.
“I think it is very close to getting done,” the Scottish coach told the club’s official website.
“The chairman and the chief exec have been working on it for a while and I’ve been waiting on the good news and hopefully it’s not too far away.
“He has been a really good player for us over the last few seasons and if we can keep him it will be really good,” he concluded.
Everton’s financial troubles are well documented, and the Goodison Park outfit were forced to sell star player Mikel Arteta to Arsenal in the last transfer window to balance the books.
Moyes knows that if Fellaini does not sign a new deal soon he may be forced to sell the player amid the risk of losing him on a Bosman, but an extension would be a major boost for the club.
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Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson believes the advantage lies with his side after the draw with Marseille in their Champions League tie.Ferguson admitted the 0-0 stalemate at Stade Velodrome in Wednesday’s first leg was far from entertaining, but the Scot said knowledge that a win at OId Trafford in the second leg on March 15 would guarantee progress to the last eight was comforting.”The result is fine, I think it was a fair result,” Ferguson said.”I don’t think Marseille presented any great problems to us in an attacking sense, they only had one strike on goal.”Ferguson heaped praise on defensive pair Chris Smalling and Nemanja Vidic for quelling the French club on their own turf, allowing them no time or space to construct forward thrusts.”I thought our two centre-backs were very good. In the first half both teams cancelled each other out. Nothing really happened in the match and I don’t think it was a good match to watch,” he said.Marseille manager Didier Deschamps agreed with Ferguson that United had the upper hand heading to Old Trafford.”I am very happy with my players because they have done their best tonight as Manchester United showed what a good team they are,” Deschamps said.”Maybe we will have an opportunity to score in the second leg. It is not a bad result for us but it is a good one for United.”Marseille’s defence was able to limit the influence of English Premier League leading goalscorer Dimitar Berbatov, and Deschamps said the clean sheet was one aim of their encounter.”It was very important we didn’t concede a goal and we did that. It was a tough, hard game because Manchester United are a good team. It was not easy. We had a very good time in the second half for 20 or 25 minutes but we didn’t find a goal,” he said.”At the end it was more difficult because United changed their system to 4-4-2 and we were behind the ball a lot. They had some players missing but those who came in were excellent. It shows what a high level they are at.”
I know, I know – there’s no ‘I’ in team and football is a team game blah blah blah – but that doesn’t mean that players aren’t more valuable than others right? That’s why the fat boy at school, (e.g. me,) was always picked last in P.E and all the cool kids just so happened to be amazing a sport of some description. When it gets to international football – it’s similar. (I’m not suggesting that Capello is going to stick Lampard or Heskey in goal or anything like that; I’m just saying that despite what the managers, pundits and players say about it being about the squad rather than the individual – it is no secret that there are a number of ‘star men’ that are vital to England’s success.) Everybody knows who the most talked about ones are – but are they strictly speaking the most crucial? After spending the last 10 or so minutes studying the squad, I’ve devised my list of the most ‘crucial’ players… though I’m sure that many of yours will be different to mine.
1. Wayne Rooney
I think that this is one that we can all agree on right? Wayne has had the season of his life and he literally is our only world class striker. Crouch and Defoe are good, don’t get me wrong, but they’re nowhere as lethal in front of goal as this man can be. An injury to Rooney or a couple of unnecessary bookings for rash challenges could prove to be disastrous for England’s World Cup campaign. I’ve been saying for a few weeks now that becoming a father may have made him more mature and that he’ll be harder to wind up… let’s find out if I’m right! (By the way, yes I did deliberately leave Emile Heskey out of the ‘good strikers’ list.)
2. Ashley Cole
Hardly a popular figure across the country for his infamous off-field antics but he is without a doubt our best left-back by a country mile and arguably one of the finest in the world. The man is both sensational and direct when going forward as well as strong and brave at the back. Warnock as cover is a reasonable option but he isn’t the same. The good thing about Ashley is that he has a real desire and hunger to win and I think he’ll be one of the mentally tough ones off the field who gives those around him a lift when they need one. Probably one of my spot-kick takers too for the same reason.
3. Steven Gerrard
The new captain for the summer is 30 years old now and realises that, like many others in the England squad, this is probably his last chance to win the World Cup. A poor season in club football for Stevie G & his Liverpool chums may well work out nicely for England as he looks to prove his worth on the biggest stage of all. Something else that Stevie probably loves about playing with England is that he doesn’t have to do all the work. He knows as well as anybody else that he has struggled to carry his club form over to international level in the past but hopefully the added pressure of the armband and that ‘last chance’ feeling could be that little extra that he needs.
4. Aaron Lennon
Fortunately Azza enjoyed a good season during the 08/09 campaign as well as the one just gone; otherwise the injury that kept him out for a few months may have seen him slip through Capello’s net. I was relieved when the off-form Walcott didn’t make the 23-man squad solely because I think that Capello would’ve been tempted to pick reputation over form and that would’ve seen one of the fastest players going to South Africa be limited to substitute appearances. Wright-Phillips is quick… but Lennon is lightning quick. The fact that other areas of his game such as crossing, passing and shooting have all improved drastically over the last 2 years is such a relief – he could be a real worry for defenders in South Africa. Who knows, he may even get tripped in the box a few times… not that we’d score the resulting penalty if he did though.
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5. John Terry
The injury to Rio puts even more pressure on John to prove his doubters wrong this summer. He will need to be back to his best both on and off the pitch – although he’s not the designated captain anymore, he still has the attributes of a leader and that will never change. John is without a doubt a trooper and he’ll be willing to risk life and limb to help the country that he adores lift the World Cup next month. Whether it’s an inch-perfect last ditch tackle or blocking a shot from point-blank range – Terry can be a hero this summer. God knows he needs to be.
Somewhere in the office of every chairman or owner at a major European club lies a red light that will frantically flash when Pep Guardiola announces his intention to return to football management. While the football world may seem a little more bleak without one of the most important figures in the sport‘s recent history, the next 12-months will surely fly past, by which time many managers will start to become uncomfortable and many more owners will start to get itchy trigger fingers.
At the moment, it appears that Roberto Di Matteo is keeping Guardiola’s seat warm for him at Chelsea. However, to assume that is the case would completely ignore the circumstances which led to Guardiola’s departure from Barcelona.
It’s well known how difficult the manager’s job at Chelsea can be, and for that, there’s reason to question why Guardiola would be willing to jump into that environment. The owner’s patience stretches about the length of a football match, yet are we supposed to believe that the former Barcelona coach is preparing for a life in London?
Guardiola left Barcelona for a number of reasons that could come to a head once again at Stamford Bridge. Originally given the job by Joan Laporta, the manager and president of the club shared a good relationship. The working environment, while stressful, was positive. The introduction of Sandro Rosell, however, changed such matters. Instead of working closely with his president, Guardiola was left to fend for the club on his own, while the new man in charge took a backseat to controversial matters. Respect was there, but there was no comparison to the relationship Guardiola shared with Laporta. Why would the Spaniard throw himself into a position where circumstances will be greatly similar?
Guardiola is an attractive option for any major club in Europe, however, the fit needs to be right from his point of view as well. The players and the setup at Chelsea may be to the manager’s liking, but can he be sure of enough time to really establish himself and his ideals at the club?
Likewise, Manchester City have a good relationship with their manager Roberto Mancini, so why disrupt that? The appointment of Guardiola to replace Mancini will hardly set the club back years in terms of their goals. But with Mancini providing silverware to the club over the past two seasons, continuity will be important for immediate future success. Moreover, there’s no guarantee that Guardiola will be happy with the players on offer at City. For example, the former Barcelona manager parted company with Yaya Toure while they were both at the Nou Camp. And while the midfielder remains an outstanding performer in the Premier League, there may not be a working relationship between the two.
Links to Arsenal have come and gone, but it does appear that Arsene Wenger will have a big say in who replaces him. With Guardiola, it does just appear to be an extension of the north London club flirting with big name players, only to let them go and finally land on an unknown. While Arsenal may be one of the better fits in Europe, it seems unlikely that the two will forge a lasting partnership.
Again, Guardiola would be the ideal candidate for most of the big clubs in European football. But to suggest he’d fit in well anywhere would also be a great discredit to the good work other managers have put in. Di Matteo should not go quietly should the issue come up in the next year—he’s brought the club a level of success that Abramovich has longed for since arriving in England.
Moreover, there are those who doubt Guardiola can replicate the success he had at Barcelona. A nonsense theory in my view, but surely that level of reservation will be shared by a number of clubs.
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Guardiola is highly coveted, certainly; and with him will come the pillars for lasting success in the future. But Guardiola is suited to a select view clubs in Europe. The kind of selection process from the manager that eliminates many clubs and helps to safeguard the future of a great number of managers.
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To celebrate the launch of the game our next article looks at the top 10 footballers tantrums
Footballers are a strange breed of person. They appear more prone to irrational behaviour than most. Like a whole sub-species of under-developed children with a penchant for petulance; spats, fallings-out and strikes are now common place in the modern day game. Following on from the fall-out of Carlos Tevez’s apparent refusal to come off the bench against Bayern Munich in the last set of Champions League fixtures, here are my top 10 footballing tantrums.
Click on Temuri Ketsbaia below to unveil the top 10
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I sometimes wonder if Manchester City fans suffer from bipolar disorder. It could be a condition that comes on after a few years of supporting a club that shoots itself in the foot at any given opportunity, or it could be something innate that means subconsciously we all tend to lean towards the Citizens. There isn’t really much room for a grey area: Championship challenge or relegation. Brilliant signing or total flop. “I love you” or “**** off”. There doesn’t seem to be any middle ground.
After Wednesday night’s 2-2 draw at Birmingham, I would hazard a guess that The Samaritans were busier than usual, as City did what they do best and struggled against a hard working side at the wrong end of the league. To be fair to Birmingham, though, they played well and deserved their point. Even if the penalty for the equaliser was dodgier than a pub-bought DVD being played on the latest laptop bought on a second-hand market on the cheap. From a guy known locally as ‘Dodgy Terry’.
But, off the back of a game where City were twice leading and should have seen out the final whistle in a winning position yet didn’t, you would have thought that the club had been doomed to a season of mid-table mediocrity or, worse, confirmed as relegated. In no particular order, I heard or read comments from a large number of fans along the lines of: “Hart should be dropped!”, “That’s it, the season’s over!”, “Dzeko is no better than Jo!”, “Adebayor scored, why did we let him go?!”, “We need to get Mourinho in to save us!”, “Vieira should be taken out the back and shot!”…
Roll that forward to the evening of a routine home victory against West Brom and, with the help of a Manchester United defeat and an unlikely Arsenal draw, suddenly the title challenge is back on (conditional, of course, on City winning the upcoming Manchester derby, which they will naturally do now they’re world beaters again – they’re either awful or awesome, remember).
Though, in fairness to those blues, they do have a bit of a point – the defence that is supposed to be leakier than a Julian Assange whistle-blowing website was the only defence in the league that kept a clean sheet last Saturday. And, by virtue of the fact City have played one more game than Chelsea, it’s also the best defence in the league. Still.
I suppose it’s easy to jump to irrational conclusions on the back of a game that was within City’s control and they have let slip away. I’ll be honest, I was quite frustrated on Wednesday evening and I don’t think it would have been right not to be. But we still need to calm down before shouting our mouths off.
Joe Hart’s had a blip in form recently, but has shown his ability for most of the season and won City many points. The season isn’t over because there’s also the FA Cup and Europa League to play for (and were City ever really to be considered title challengers unless they’re still in with a shout in, say, April?). Dzeko is gradually getting better, Adebayor and Mancini clearly don’t see eye to eye, changing the manager now is a ridiculous suggestion and Vieira’s knowledge and experience will be invaluable at the end of the season, if not on the pitch.
Though I do think someone might have shot at Vieira and hit the wrong man on Wednesday evening, given what happened to Phillips in the box. Even strippers working on stag nights wouldn’t have gone down that easily. Vieira’s foul was, at best, obstruction, for which an indirect free kick should be given and not a penalty. Unless you believe Football Manager, but that’s wrong and it winds me up when it gives penalties against me for that.
Anyway… A penalty was given, a penalty was scored and a draw was the result. It felt like (and, in truth, was) two points dropped because City had twice led. But United and Tottenham only managed a draw at St Andrews and Chelsea lost there, too, so it’s clearly not an easy game in Birmingham. And the defeat at Molineux doesn’t look so bad now that United and Chelsea have lost there as well, though I suppose that makes it more of a missed opportunity.
But, despite that negative feeling leading up the West Brom fixture, City did the unlikely – they did what they were supposed to do. They won the game and played well. Instead of giving several fans in the stadium premature coronaries, a skill they’ve perfected down the years with stunts of sheer lunacy, usually in the last minute, as well. But there was none of that on Saturday.
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The problem is, with an increased level of performance and a big investment comes a higher level of expectancy. Fans, perhaps wrongly, go to matches against the teams towards the bottom of the table and expect an easy game and a big win; a sentiment summed up by Angry Lady, sitting behind me at Eastlands, who shouted towards a West Brom defender “get out of his way!” as Zabaleta tried to get a cross in. Teams won’t roll over and die, defences will try and stop attacks and Angry Lady will always be shouting that Tevez should “earn his wages” (that one came when he spooned a shot over the bar, despite already having a hat-trick).
It doesn’t make sense to get agitated when City haven’t scored inside the first twenty minutes. I don’t like using clichés, but there are no easy games and no team is in this division by accident (I lied, I love using clichés). What counts is that City at least win the game, without a good performance, if necessary. Though a good display is always preferable.
On the other side of the fence, one win doesn’t make the season. True, results went in City’s favour last weekend and they were the only side in the top four to have won. And they are only five points off the top (which would become just two, should they win their next game). But they have played a game more – and I think we, as fans, ignored that there were games in hand to play when we were sitting top of the league and talking of the title. Optimism got the better of us.
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We should be optimistic, though, don’t get me wrong. City are better than last season. And, in my opinion, will finish higher than last season. But the idea that this would be a bad season for not winning the title or being out of the ‘title race’ in February is ludicrous and is perhaps symptomatic of the “I-Want-It-Now” McSociety we’re living in. I’m sure the title challenge will come in future, but fourth was a priority at the start of the season. And it’s not unreasonable to reassess to third (possibly even second) given the current standings.
Results could go City’s way and they could be within reach of the title with five or six games to play. But nobody should be too upset if that isn’t what happens. We shouldn’t be thinking of dropping ten players, changing the manager, or shooting Patrick Vieira if we don’t win the league. Maybe if we don’t finish in the top four.
We’re in a marathon, not a sprint (cliché alert). One result doesn’t define the season and the collective mood swings of the large proportions of the fans aren’t necessary. We’re not fighting relegation; we’re not sitting mid-table with nothing to play for; we’re still in two cup competitions as well… So let’s sit back, relax and enjoy the (good) ride, for once.
Anyway, it’s derby day on Saturday… Lithium on standby.
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Manchester United are eager to bring Malaga winger Isco to Old Trafford this summer, according to Metro.
The tricky midfielder played a key role in helping the Andalusian side finish in fourth place in La Liga last term and was included in Spain’s preliminary squad for Euro 2012 before being omitted in the final cut.
However, with Malaga facing a financial meltdown the Spanish side need to sell their star players, with Santi Cazorla poised to move to Arsenal and Salomon Rondon wanted by a host of European teams.
United are set to take advantage of the situation and make a move for Isco, who has a £16 million buyout clause in his contract but could be available for much less than this.
The Red Devils have already signed Nick Powell and Shinji Kagawa this summer, whilst negotiations with Sao Paulo over a deal for Lucas Moura are continuing.
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Kenny Dalglish is desperate to complete the signing of at least one more player before the closing of the transfer window next week, and it is Wolves striker Kevin Doyle who is reported to be top of his wish list.
Doyle joined Wolves back in 2009, and his highly successful spell with the club at caught the attention of a number of top European sides. Dalglish is reported to be keen on luring the centre forward to Anfield before his rivals can make an offer, and is preparing to launch an offer of around £11m in the coming days for the Irishman.
In just 60 league appearances at Wolves, Doyle has bagged himself 14 league goals and put in numerous man of the match performances at Molineux. Manager Mick McCarthy has expressed his intention to keep Doyle at the club despite a reported array of interest from the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal and even Juventus. McCarthy claimed that allowing Doyle to leave the club would be devastating for the players and fans, and could severely harm their chances of remaining in the top flight of English football, after narrowly escaping the drop back in May.
However, as we all know by now, money does talk in football and Dalglish will be hoping to blow his competitors out of the water with an offer exceeding £10m. The Liverpool boss will also be hoping this kind of fee will be enough to persuade the Wolves manager to part ways with one of his key players. Doyle has proved his ability in the Premier League and would undoubtedly relish the opportunity to play for a club like Liverpool.
With Carroll still to prove his worth to the Anfield faithful, first team opportunities on Merseyside are not necessarily out of the question. Thankfully the transfer window closes in just over a week, and so any ‘saga’ that might have developed a month or so ago will surely not now. Saying that, a lot can change in a week.
Article courtesy of Thomas Kenny from the Transfer Tavern
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Aston Villa manager Gerard Houllier has insisted he has no intention of letting prized asset Ashley Young leave the club.
“I can confirm that Ashley is a highly rated player and highly liked by everyone at Aston Villa. No way is he going to leave,” Houllier said at a press conference ahead of Tuesday’s trip to Manchester United.
“No official bid has been made,” he added about the England winger, who was signed from Watford for 10 million pound four years ago by former manager Martin O’Neill and could be worth at least double that fee in the current market.
The Villa boss does not want Young to leave the club but the only stated last Friday that midfielder Stephen Ireland was going nowhere before the Irishman undertook a medical at Newcastle United ahead of a potential loan deal.
Houllier said he expected a lot from loan signing Michael Bradley, who joined from Bundesliga club Borussia Moenchengladbach on Monday.
The son of USA manager Bob Bradley, Villa’s new man is a box-to-box midfielder that represented his country at the 2010 World Cup.
“We’ve got to prepare for the future and Michael is 23 and a very hard-working midfielder who can score goals,” said Houllier.
The Frenchman sees the Premier League clash with Manchester United as a test after their recent improvement, which has seen them take seven points from their past three games.
“We are not the favourites, we are the underdogs,” Houllier said.
“But it will be an exciting challenge; it is always a good game against Manchester United. I loved the first game when we played them at home (on November 12, ending 2-2).”
“I thought that day I realised they had a good chance of winning the title. Don’t forget they were not top of the table at the time.”
“But when you come back from 0-0 to 2-2 and the way they came back shows some experience and a real desire to win things. I was impressed by the team.”
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Houllier has put Villa’s progress down to clearing players out of a busy treatment room.
He said: “It came from the fact that some senior players came back and came back into form; we worked harder physically to a stage where we can score goals in the last stage of the game or hold a result.”
“We are more solid physically and mentally – that is a very important thing. There is probably better understanding from the manager and what he thinks about his players.”
Houllier’s main injury doubt for Tuesday’s trip to Old Trafford is striker Gabby Agbonlahor, who is nursing a hamstring complaint.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp made a handful of changes for the visit of Stoke City at Anfield this afternoon.
With one eye on next Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final second leg, the German coach made five changes.
Sadio Mane, James Milner, Dejan Lovren, Andy Robertson and injured Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain made way, making room for Danny Ings, Georginio Wijnaldum, Joe Gomez, Alberto Moreno and Ragnar Klavan.
Overall, it was a lacklustre performance from the Reds, who dominated the ball but failed to get past Stoke’s defence as the match ended goalless.
One man who received criticism from the fans was Gomez, who recently lost his position at right-back to Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Today, the 20-year-old – valued at £16.2m by Transfermarkt – was included in the lineup, but struggled defensively and when moving forward.
The performance will not go down as one of Liverpool’s best, but they were unlucky not to be given a penalty late in the second half when the ball struck the arm of Erik Pieters.
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Despite the injustice, plenty of the fans’ focus was on Gomez’s disappointing display.