According to reliable West Ham United insider @ExWHUemployee on his latest ‘The West Ham Way’ transfer blog (June 24), the east London outfit want to sign of Chelsea trio Danny Drinkwater, Ross Barkley or Ruben Loftus-Cheek on loan with a view to a permanent deal, and Irons fans have been quick to react.
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@ExWHUemployee suggests that Manuel Pellegrini wants to bring one of the three players to the London Stadium this summer as he believes that one of them will be allowed to go, and as the Hammers look to boost their home-grown quota of players.
Loftus-Cheek shone during a season-long loan spell with Crystal Palace last term, while Drinkwater and Barkley struggled to make an impact at Stamford Bridge following moves from Leicester City and Everton last summer and during the January transfer window respectively.
[brid autoplay=”true” video=”257647″ player=”12034″ title=”Three reasons we love to hate… Brazil and Argentina”]
West Ham supporters, who have urged their club to sign a 25-year-old World Cup attacking ace, took to social media to give their thoughts on the latest rumour, and while one said “I don’t understand” seeing as they are all different types of midfield players, another said “please not Drinkwater”.
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West Ham fans have been reacting to the news that Brazil international Bernard has opted for the mega bucks in China over a move to East London, and they’re convinced they’ve dodged a bullet.
According to journalist Alfredo Pedulla, Bernard has opted to move to China when his Shakhtar Donetsk contract expires this summer.
The little 25 year-old has been linked with a move to West Ham as a possible replacement for the injured Manuel Lanzini, but it seems the allure of China’s mega money was just too much.
Bernard has 14 Brazil caps, and securing his signature on a free signing would have been an excellent way for the Hammers to atone for Lanzini’s injury without spending too much.
Who do you think will win the World Cup? Let us know here and win any World Cup shirt of your choice.
The crafty little speedster grabbed three Champions League goals for Shakhtar last season, and his pace and skill would have certainly got fans off their seats at the London Stadium.
Fans think they’ve dodged a bullet though, as they want players who are 100 per cent committed to Manuel Pellegrini’s cause, not just looking for a big wage packet.
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While moving to China isn’t the career suicide many make it out to be (just ask Paulinho), fans aren’t impressed by the playmaker’s decision, and you can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…
According to a report from Sport1, Liverpool are one of a few Premier League sides interested in landing Tottenham attacker Son Heung-min this summer. The Reds will be on the lookout for reinforcements during the close season in a bid to bridge the gap to champions Manchester City, and while the addition of Naby Keita will go some way to boosting their midfield ranks, the arrival of Son would be a bigger summer signing for the Merseyside giants.
The Breakdown
Ultimately, the front three of Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane, and Mohamed Salah at Liverpool are arguably the best attacking unit in Europe having scored a staggering 91 goals between them last season, and indeed laying on a sensational 42 assists between them as well.
However, outside of the terrifying trio, the attacking ranks at Anfield simply aren’t up to that lofty standard, with Danny Ings and Dominic Solanke the only really offensive options Jurgen Klopp has on his bench.
And while Ings showed genuine goal-scoring ability at Burnley to earn a move to Liverpool, injuries have put pay to his progression, while it took former Chelsea youngster Solanke until the final Premier League game of last season to open his account for the Reds – thus, they simply aren’t good enough.
And with Klopp seemingly not a fan of striker Daniel Sturridge, who spent the second half of last season on loan at West Brom, the Reds chief will surely be looking to enhance his forward options to give the likes of Firmino, Mane, and Salah the competition needed to make them even better – Son’s arrival would do just that.
The South Korea international enjoyed a wonderful season at Tottenham last term in netting 18 goals and laying on 11 assists for Mauricio Pochettino’s men, finishing above Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen in the goal-scoring charts, and only behind the excellent Harry Kane.
Who do you think will win the World Cup? Let us know here
In fact, the 25-year-old is arguably one of the most underrated players in the top-flight given how much of the focus at Spurs is on messrs Kane, Alli, and Eriksen, yet Son also produces the goods on a regular basis for the North Londoners to underline his ability as one of the division’s most influential attackers.
And adding him to the Reds ranks will give Klopp another viable option in the attacking department, with Son able to lead the line if needed, as well as play out wide as both a natural winger or indeed in a front three – he’d give Klopp plenty to think about.
Yes, Keita’s addition is one that has excited several of our resident Liverpudlians given his fine efforts for RB Leipzig in recent years, but the Reds are reasonably well-stocked in the midfield department with the likes of Jordan Henderson, Adam Lallana, and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, to name but a few – that’s not to say that Keita won’t seriously bolster those ranks.
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Yet outside of the front three, there options simply aren’t there for Klopp if and when injury, suspension, or a lack of form strikes the lethal trio, and with the Reds again looking at a title challenge as well as success on the European stage, he needs quality options in every area of the squad.
As such, while Keita is an excellent signing, the addition of £45 million-rated Son (as per Transfermarkt) would be a bigger summer signing for the Merseyside giants.
Another week has come and gone, and once again Sheffield Wednesday have failed to win.
Their draw with Birmingham on Saturday made it just one win in 12 league games for the Owls, but they came painfully close to picking up all three points on Saturday.
Wednesday scored three away from home, but their defensive frailty cost them dearly.
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To be fair, problems may have been inevitable after Osaze Urgohide’s red card last week left them short, but the reality is that it wasn’t Urgohide’s indiscipline that cost the Yorkshire club, it was Garry Monk’s stubbornness.
The solution to Monk’s problems seemed rather simple, stick Dominic Iorfa at right-back and bring in someone to cover at centre-half, but the manager didn’t see it that way.
You can read more on this and other top stories via our Sheffield Wednesday news page.
Instead, he changed his whole system to a five at the back, moving the heavily-criticised Joey Pelupessy to full-back.
Predictably, this didn’t work and at half-time Monk took Pelupessy off.
Unfortunately, this was the sign of another tactical reshuffle as Iorfa was also substituted, with Connor Wickham and Morgan Fox entering proceedings.
This didn’t solve anything for Wednesday as they went on to draw 3-3, but this may have all been avoided if Monk wasn’t freezing out Sam Hutchinson.
Statistically, Hutchinson is Wednesday’s best defensive option, and if Monk wanted to play a five at the back system he would have been a great addition to the side alongside Tom Lees and Julian Borner.
This would have allowed Iorfa to move out to the right, meaning Pelupessy wouldn’t have had to fill in a spot he’s only played in seven times in his career.
Monk overcomplicated things just to avoid bringing Hutchinson back into the fold, and in the end that cost the Owls with strong attacking output being undone by the three goals they shipped at the other end.
In other news, Wednesday fans are fuming with Garry Monk’s recent comments.
After the excitement of yesterday, the first game of the day was a damp squib settled by a lovely team goal. Tottenham weren’t fluid and Sunderland were much improved, unlucky even as they hit the bar twice. Talk, though, turned back to yesterday as there just wasn’t enough on the pitch to help us out.
But then came the second game of the day, and we turned our attention to our TV screens again. Aston Villa looked comfortable against Leicester, they raced into a two goal lead after a smart finish from Jack Grealish and beautiful curling shot from Carles Gil, easily Villa’s best player. Gil was silky on the ball and definitely the one composed Villa player in the opposition half. So when Sherwood subbed him off we knew trouble was coming.
And then it came. Leicester huffed and puffed, were given a goal after a lovely cameo appearance from goal-line technology, equalised through Jamie Vardy and then won the game with a brave goal from Nathan Dyer on his debut just before he was flattened by the onrushing goalkeeper.
There were some great moments on social media to accompany it all, and here are some of the best
It wasn’t old Gil’s fault that Villa couldn’t close the deal
Tim Sherwood’s ditched the gilets in favour of a stylish cardigan combo
Up until Leicester’s comeback this was telly to doze-off to with a belly full of Yorkshire pud
This is easily the most monstrous thing I’ve seen all season
An escalation sending Sherwood to new levels of self-loathing and despair
Over the last three years I’ve interviewed plenty of big names for Football Fancast, including England greats Chris Waddle and David Seaman, Arsenal legend Ian Wright and even the iconic ringmaster of the Premier League’s 3pms Jeff Stelling, yet none had me quite as nervous as Jimmy Bullard – who was speaking as part of Ladbrokes Rugby’s ‘Who’s Got The Balls’ campaign.
That may seem irrational, considering the ‘best £2million Fulham ever spent’ played every game for Peterborough, Wigan, the Cottagers, Hull City, Ipswich Town and MK Dons with a smile on his face and since retiring has made a habit of appearing as the cameo court jester on shows like Play to the Whistle and Soccer AM.
But Jimmy’s wit is razor-sharp and a weapon he often uses to assert social dominance. He decided to ‘break the ice’ at Craven Cottage by placing his manhood on the back Papa Boupa Diop’s head during a massage – yes, the 6 foot 5 defensive midfielder from Senegal who looked and played like he’d survived a civil war – and spent last year’s edition of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! reminding Edwina Currie (along with the cringing British nation) of her affair with former Prime Minister John Major on a daily basis.
If Jimmy didn’t mind ripping into players twice his size and the former Secretary of Health, he certainly wouldn’t pull any punches against me.
He’s also a bit of a local hero in my ‘hood, as the younger generation would say. Jimmy was born in East Ham but attended Erith School in the heart of Bexley – the London borough I’ve spent my entire life in – and now owns a pub just a few miles down the road in Crayford. So if I became the latest victim of the unique brand of Bullard banter due to one slip of the tongue or poorly-worded question, I’d not only have the whole of the internet on my back but also half of my hometown. At least you can unplug a modem.
I’m not too far from your pub actually, Jimmy. I’m in Welling.
What are you doing there mate, you’ll get robbed!
It’s where I live, Jimmy.
Oh, you’ll be the one doing all the mugging then.
In fairness to Jimmy, not much happens in Welling apart from the occasional furtive misdemeanour. Nonetheless, I could sense his comedic senses tingling at the other end of our crackling phone line and brought the conversation back to business. What’s this Ladbrokes’ ‘Who’s Got the Balls’ campaign all about then, Jimmy?
Basically, we’re doing a running gag – who’s better, who’s the more thuggish type, out of footballers or rugby players. So obviously they try to make the footballers look like thugs and the rugby players look like royalty. They just put me up against Austin Healey and the first thing we had to do was a diving contest. It was all a big stitch up really because I’ve never dived in my life and Healy was doing backflips off the ten-metre board. It was outrageous! But he’s got a group of eight rugby boys, I’ve got a group of eight football boys and we went head-to-head in a load of different challenges.
I saw you sporting what can only be described as a self-inflicted wedgie during the diving contest.
Well because I didn’t have anything to offer on my dive, my artistic impression had to be up there from the start.
Any truth to the rumour it was a publicity stunt for Calvin Klein?
No, it wasn’t Calvin Klein. What kind of Calvin Klein model would look like me? It’s impossible. I’m much better than that!
Do things like this give you a new lease of life after retiring? You’re doing a lot of TV work at the moment too.
Did I tell you I’ve got my own show coming out?
Is it on London Live?
You’ve heard about it, son!
At this point, Jimmy warned that if I didn’t mention Jimmy Bullard Kicks Off in this article he’d send some heavies down to Welling high street – a threat I imagine most retired footballers have the finance and connections to follow through with. Give us the lowdown then Jimmy.
It’s a football-based show with different sorts of guests coming on that I’m going to interview, from musicians, come actors, come sporting stars and then we’ve got a lot of social media stuff for it – saying to tweet in and ask me anything you want – alongside Kiri Bloore, the other presenter – the professional one. We’ve also got some fans in the studio and we’re going to be talking to journalists from up and down the country, telling me what they think they know but they actually don’t know nothing.
Speaking of TV work, it’s been a year since you entered ‘the jungle’ for ITV. If you had the chance, would you go back in?
No I wouldn’t, I don’t want to go back in there. I’ve had enough. It’s so tough food-wise, the hunger. I’ve done my stint and I enjoyed it immensely, in a very weird way, but once you’ve done one I don’t think you’re going to go back in there unless you’re mad.
Jimmy and former England back Austin Healey square off before the diving contest
In addition to the aforementioned incident involving the back of Papa Boupa Diop’s head, some of Jimmy’s greatest comedy moments include charging £2000-worth of food and drink, including a few rounds for the Real Madrid team, to Chris Coleman’s hotel room during a pre-season tour of Germany, gazing in baffled awe at Duncan Ferguson after watching the Everton hardman punch Paul Scharner and of course, re-enacting Phil Brown’s notorious half-time on-pitch telling off after scoring against Manchester City. Apart from yourself, who’s the funniest footballer you’ve come across?
David Bentley. He’s crackers.
Got any stories for us?
Yeah I got a few. Have you heard the one about Postman Pat? Well, Fabio Capello looks like Postman Pat doesn’t he? So I said to Bents, ‘who can go up to him and say Postman Pat the loudest?’ Because when you’re away, I know it sounds silly and boring now, everyone gets a bit all like kiddies. So I went ‘Postman Pat’ under my breath and David went straight up to him and went ‘POSTMAN PAT’ right in his face. I said ‘you can’t be doing that’ so he spoilt the game. But also he was just a madman. He’s just really down to earth and really not bothered by most things. He wasn’t your norm for a footballer.
Flipping that on its head, was there anybody you met who really couldn’t take a joke?
Oh… all of them! You get a lot of dry lunches. A lot of boys who take it far too seriously. If you just said something like ‘oh you’re not very good on your passing you have to work on that’ they get the hump! Some of them were just very, very serious. Aaron Hughes is the most serious man ever.
Do you think football – and particularly the Premier League – is beginning to lose its sense of humour?
Yeah, I said that about eight years ago. That’s what David said as well. He didn’t like football because there’s no characters – it’s too rigid, there’s too much structure. There’s not enough characters and there’s too much politics involved in football. He just wanted to have a laugh and do what he wanted to do at certain times, so he gave up and went to live in Spain!
When researching for this interview, something I read particularly surprised me – Jimmy revealing that he was about as nervous as a cow at a beef factory when he was a teenager. When did the cheeky Jimmy Bullard we all know now first start to emerge?
Well, we’re talking about a great time ago. At 16 I was at Dartford Football Club and I didn’t even have the minerals to phone up my manager to tell him I didn’t want to play for him anymore. I wanted to play somewhere else. So I got my dad to do it.
But I think football gave me the confidence. The more I was around different people in football and the more I moved away and started living on my own, I got to meet all different characters. I quickly became confident. You have to in an environment like that. But I quickly found out I had to become my own sort of man and that’s what I developed into – a really confident guy.
Such a cheesy line, sorry! But I don’t know really. It slowly built up like this, I don’t know how. But I was very shy, you’re right. It was embarrassing – I wouldn’t even say hello to people! Now I love a good chat.
Looking back on your career, what do you consider to be your defining moment?
I few things stuck at Wigan like getting into the cup final, coming second in the Championship and winning promotion. Playing in the Premier League, all that kind of stuff. So just Wigan in general! And also I loved playing under Barry Fry.
Any regrets? Anything you’d do differently if you had another chance?
No way, I loved it! I wish I’d signed for Celtic when I had the chance. That was one regret because I didn’t play for a huge, huge club but the timing wasn’t right. I think now if they said ‘we want to sign you for four years’ I would’ve done it you know? But I had I right laugh!
I know you were studying your coaching badges last year. Is that something you’re still pursuing?
Yeah I’m doing my B and A licence this year – well next year now, the summer – because I aim to be a manager further down the line. At the minute I’m concentrating on my TV career.
Is that something you’ve always wanted to do?
No, I didn’t even think about it when I played. As soon as I finished I didn’t think about it either. It’s only lately when I’ve thought ‘hang on a minute, I might want to do this. I might want to coach one day’.
Do you think you’ve got something different to offer younger players?
I do actually, because I feel like as kids we were coached, well speaking on my own behalf here, I wasn’t coached great. I believe we’re being taught the wrong way by a lot of coaches that are still out there. I believe there’s a better way, there’s a better philosophy to playing football – not just all about power and pace and gaining yardage – it’s about technical ability and playing correct in the right way.
So yeah, I believe we’ve been taught wrong for a long time – not by everyone but by a lot of coaches I’ve seen and been around in my time. There’s not a wrong or right way, sorry I might have worded that wrong. But I believe there’s a better way of playing football and that’s why I believe English football has struggled for so long.
Jimmy trying to make Austin squirm with a leg wax
Four of your former clubs are in the Championship this year. Which one are you rooting for?
I’d love MK dons to go up. I believe Karl Robinson is a top manager. He’s one that plays the right way. His philosophy is correct – what a great word for me that, philosophy!
Hull… who’s the manager at Hull?
Steve Bruce still.
Is he still there? He’s got to go, he’s had his time.
Fulham – another great manager who plays the right way in Kit Symons. Knows exactly what he’s on about. And Ipswich. Yeah, very good. Like the manager and I know the players love him down there, so them three. I’d love to see all them three go up but mainly MK dons because Karl’s a top manager.
Have any of those clubs, Wigan or Peterborough stolen your heart or are you still a West Ham fan?
Yeah still, always West Ham. I bleed claret and blue don’t I? It’s what I do.
Was Slaven Bilic the right choice to succeed Sam Allardyce?
Awesome. Cracking choice. But you know what they’re like down at Upton Park – in a few months time they’ll be crying ‘OUT!’. But I love Slaven Bilic I think he’s a right character; I think the fans love him and the players love him. At the minute it’s a club that’s really on the rise. They’ve got some good players and Dimitri Payet’s been playing awesome.
Where do you think they can finish up this year?
Top six. I think if there’s ever a year they can do it it’s this year because everyone’s losing games. Very crazy start so it’s right open. If there’s ever a chance, it’s this year.
Time for Football Fancast’s world famous, internationally revered, legendarily popular and totally-not-copyright-infringing-upon-Sky-Sports’-One-2-Eleven segment… Fantasy Five-A-Side! Jimmy, your first player is the best player you’ve ever played with.
Paolo Di Canio.
The second player – the best you’ve ever played against?
Paul Scholeee….. Ronaldo
The third, your footballing role model growing up?
Georgie Best
Fourth, someone in the Premier League today you wish you could’ve played alongside?
I like David Silva for his football. I’ll go with that.
And finally, any goalkeeper.
Erm… Petr Cech
One last question, Jimmy. If you went bald, would you put a Wigan?
I am bald. This ain’t a real barnet son!
Thanks Jimmy, you’ve been a blast!
Watch Austin Healey and Jimmy Bullard challenge the values of football and rugby in ‘Who’s Got The Balls?’ at LadbrokesRugby.com #RealBalls
Without doubt the story of the Premier League season has been Leicester City’s rise. The Foxes ended 2014/15 in good form, but many just saw this as Nigel Pearson getting a late response from his side as relegation threatened. So when he was sacked and replaced by Claudio Ranieri over the summer, more than a few fans were sticking a fiver on the King Power Stadium being a Championship venue in late 2016.
Alas, football has a habit of making fools out of us all, and Leicester are joint leaders of the top tier in DECEMBER. Jamie Vardy’s performances have grabbed headlines with his 13 goals – 11 in his last 11, which has broken a record… apparently – but the 28-year-old, who once upon a time played in the non-league (another fact we haven’t had rammed down our throats yet) has been ably supported by a cast of decent players.
Manchester United are thought to be interested in Vardy, who has a £30m price-tag heading into January, but the stats show that at least two other names should be under serious consideration… Riyad Mahrez and N’Golo Kante.
Mahrez:
WhoScored’s number crunching tells us that Mahrez is the BEST player in the Premier League on form. The Algerian has been simply stunning to watch, combining the pace and neat skills you may expect from any flashy winger with the end product managers crave. Seven goals and six assists is a mighty return for a player few had given a second glance since his 2014 arrival in England, and such numbers, combined with how exciting he is to watch, suggest that he could quell Louis van Gaal’s need for creativity and speed in the final third.
Kante:
Behind only Mahrez and Vardy in terms of contribution so far this season is Kante. Signed over the summer, the 24-year-old has been an absolute machine in the Foxes’ midfield, winning the ball regularly to help kick-start the club’s trademark counter-attacks. The Frenchman has made 55 tackles (the most of any player in Leicester’s blue shirt), averaging out at 3.9-per-match, while his 4.3 interceptions-per-game is equally impressive. With Bastian Schweinsteiger and Michael Carrick’s legs slowing, Kante could be a great option for LVG.
Given Chelsea’s demise and Manchester United’s inconsistency, Tottenham have an excellent opportunity to finish in the Premier League’s top four this season and return to Champions League football.
Spurs have been ticking along nicely under Mauricio Pochettino in 2015-16, with a young and able side showing more resilience and fortitude this season.
That said, the Argentine trainer will be weighing up potential new faces over the next month, with these five possible additions having the ability to see the White Hart Lane side seal a place back amongst English football’s elite…
Oumar Niasse
Tottenham’s major transfer priority this month will be a new striker to complement Harry Kane and take the pressure off the England international.
Lokomotiv Moscow forward Niasse has been heavily linked and fits the bill; he is strong, fast and has an eye for goal.
The Senegal international is also at the right stage of his career and would be an excellent choice as a striking alternative to Kane.
Ezequiel Lavezzi
Spurs are also believed to be interested in landing explosive Argentine forward Lavezzi, who is in the last six months of his contract with Paris Saint-Germain.
A proven performer, the South American will be available at a cut price and would be a shrewd acquisition.
Although he doesn’t fit into Tottenham’s ethos of buying players for the future, Lavezzi has star quality that could be an inspired addition.
Saido Berahino
Whether Tottenham go back in for Saido Berahino remains to be seen, with reasons against trying to sign the West Brom forward evident for all to see.
However, despite the Baggies attacker not being in the same impressive form as last season, he is still an able player and one that could be a useful new face for Pochettino and his team.
With West Brom not as reliant on him this term, a more reasonable price could well be negotiated for Tottenham to finally get their man.
Lewis Cook
The success Spurs have had with Dele Alli this season has been remarkable and as such the North London club should have one eye on the Football League for more gems in the rough.
Cook is an England youth-level international and one of the most promising young talents in the Championship.
With Bournemouth reportedly interested and Leeds willing to cash in on the youngster, Spurs should make a move to land another gifted homegrown starlet.
Riyad Mahrez
Arguably the best player of the Premier League’s first couple of months, the scintillating winger will surely be hot property come the summer.
Mahrez would be a stellar addition to the Tottenham team, with his ability to create and score making him a unique talent and one that the White Hart Lane outfit should move for.
With young winger Leicester signing Demarai Gray from Birmingham last week, the Foxes have a replacement and could be tempted by a sizeable offer.
Although Manchester City hardly provided the Premier League with its biggest set of spenders throughout the course of the January transfer window, the Etihad faithful were dealt their fair share of breaking news yesterday when Pep Guardiola’s upcoming summer appointment at their club was finally made official.
The former Barcelona head-coach will see out the remainder of the season with Bayern Munich, and although Manuel Pellegrini has been handed the rough end of the deal, the man currently tasked with manning the Man City dug-out will depart the Etihad in the summer once Guardiola eventually makes his much anticipated arrival.
So in light of all the recent drama and sensation surrounding the 45-year-old Bayern boss, will Pep Guardiola launch a new era of success at Manchester City and turn these hopeful Premier League title contenders into an out-and-out force across Europe.
[ffc-gal cat=”manchester-city” no=”5″]
Whilst it takes a lot more than simply landing the biggest names possible to guarantee success at your club, the upcoming appointment of Pep Guardiola will provide the Etihad faithful with enough excitement to likely keep them satisfied throughout the rest of the campaign.
Alongside the recently displaced Jose Mourinho, Guardiola represents the most desirable name in world management at the moment, despite only operating at clubs with a huge amount of resources on offer behind the scenes, and enough talented players to keep the wheels turning in rather successful style.
The current Bayern Munich head-coach clearly knows what it takes to succeed on Europe’s grandest stage, the style of football adopted by his respective teams has been rather captivating and as the Spaniard has worked with the most impressive plethora of talent available, Guardiola’s links across the European circuit could come in very handy for City throughout the upcoming summer transfer window.
Yet although many Manchester City fans are quite understandably over the moon with this recent appointment at their club – especially as Pep Guardiola has supposedly selected them over arch rivals Manchester United in recent weeks – does Manuel Pellegrini really deserve to be cast aside under such unceremonious circumstances at the end of the season?
Getting some of the most over-priced and well-paid players in the world to work effectively with one another on a consistent basis has been something that Manchester City have arguably struggled with for years now. Although Guardiola certainly possesses a reputation worthy of developing something truly incredible at the Etihad, he possibly won’t fare any better than Pellegrini upon his initial introduction within the Premier League.
But as this is the manager who oversaw one of Barcelona’s most decorated eras not too long ago, Pep Guardiola has far more potential to build an impressive legacy with Manchester City, as opposed to the ageing and often forgettable figure of Manuel Pellegrini.
As all clubs must sacrifice in order to grow successfully with future plans on the horizon, it seems the Etihad boardroom have indeed made the right call behind the scenes this winter – with an exciting new era seemingly waiting round the corner for Manchester City and highly coveted Pep Guardiola himself.
That was the view from the majority of English football fans this afternoon as Roy Hodgson named his squad to play Germany and Holland next week.
But there was one particular set of fans who were in a completely different level of rage following the announcement, and rightly so.
West Ham trio Mark Noble, Aaron Cresswell and Michail Antonio have been the some of the Premier League’s best and most consistent English performers this season, but each of them were subsequently ignored by Hodgson.
And Hammers fans far and wide took to Twitter to vent their anger and frustration and club legend Mark Noble being overlooked more so than the other two, while the decision to pick Arsenal’s Theo Walcott – arguably the Gunners’ worst player this season – over Antonio has the East End of London blowing smoke from their ears.
You have to feel to sorry for Noble more than anyone else in England. He captained England at U21 level for a number of years but is still waiting patienly for his maiden senior squad call up. The fear is that it will never happen, and that has to be one of the biggest disgraces in the modern English game.
He’s one of the very few one-club men left and a player who has been consistently brilliant for West Ham for over ten years, yet still no international recognition from a country seemingly only interested in ‘big clubs’ and ‘big names’.