Roy Hodgson will be on a revenge mission when his West Bromwich Albion side host Liverpool in the English Premier League on Saturday. Hodgson was sacked by Liverpool in January after just six months in charge at Anfield – the shortest managerial reign in the club’s history.
The 63-year-old took over at West Brom the following month, charged with keeping the promoted club in the top flight.
The Baggies are unbeaten in five matches under Hodgson, with one win and four draws seeing them climb to 16th on the table, one point above the relegation zone.
They should have beaten second-placed Arsenal in their last match on March 19, but let a two-goal lead slip to 2-2.
Liverpool turned to former player and manager Kenny Dalglish to replace Hodgson and the crowd favourite has presided over a considerable improvement in the team’s fortunes.
The Reds have moved up to sixth place on the table, recording victories over Manchester United and Chelsea in the process.
The club’s new American owners spent big in the January transfer window to bring in strikers Luis Suarez from Ajax and Newcastle United’s Andy Carroll.
Carroll has made just a handful of appearances for his new side due to injury, but has now returned to fitness and scored his first goal for England in a 1-1 draw with Ghana on Tuesday.
Liverpool benefited from a contentious penalty decision to defeat Sunderland 2-0 at home in their most recent outing, with Dirk Kuyt and Suarez on target.
Dalglish will be without his captain Steven Gerrard for the trip to the Hawthorns due to a groin injury.
Young midfielder Jonjo Shelvey is also unavailable, while fullbacks Martin Kelly and Fabio Aurelio are in doubt with hamstring problems.
West Brom have the majority of their squad available, with only defender Pablo Ibanez (hamstring) and Graham Dorrans (ankle) expected to miss out.
If you had to pick any player that divides public opinion with his sometimes outrageous antics both on and more recently off the field writing for the Daily Mirror, most people would look no further than Derby midfielder Robbie Savage and his latest interpretation on Wayne Rooney being seen having a crafty smoke will not doubt do just that.
Perhaps Savage makes a fair point when condemning the way in which players are reproved for their antics away from the football pitch by the media as although the very nature of their work sees them propelled into the spotlight, footballers are human beings just like the rest of us.
Whilst Rooney may light up a cigarette now, I’m sure all his ‘sins’ would be washed away if he provided the spark Manchester United require if they are to wrestle the Premier League crown off Chelsea this season and the media may again laud his footballing ability rather than needlessly plaster such insignificant news across their front pages.
The health risks are obvious, but one cigarette is not going to hamper his performances as suggested this week; in fact it may even help him to relax ahead of a new season in which we hope Rooney can once again encapsulate Premier League audiences with the scintillating displays that they have become so accustomed to.
The legendary Brazilian midfielder Socrates is reported to have smoked two packets a day through his playing career and yet he is remembered for his majestic midfield performances simply because in his era, the national press were not so obsessive over capturing sports stars up to no good. Zinedine Zidane was also captured smoking before the World Cup 2006 semi-final but the Portuguese could do little to stop him dominating the midfield to secure France a place in the final.
Savage’s argument is further vindicated by his referral to Blackburn midfielder Tugay and how the midfielder’s car used to “stink of smoke”. The Turkish midfielder retired as late as 39 after being an integral part of the engine room at Ewood Park.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Ultimately, one or two cigarettes will hardly effect a player that much and it is rather exasperating that the media sensationalise stories such as the one Rooney has been involved with this week as opposed to embracing what will commence on the pitch come Saturday 14th August.
Arsene Wenger is lining up a stunning move to bring Kolo Toure back to Arsenal just over two years after he left the club to join Manchester City according to the Daily Mail.
The Gunners produced a superb performance to beat London rivals Chelsea 5-3 at Stamford Bridge on Saturday although Wenger still has reservations over his defence.
Summer signings Per Mertesacker and Andre Santos were both guilty of naive defending during the victory as the pair along with the rest of the back four made a number of errors during the game.
It’s now thought that the 62-year-old Frenchman is considering a bid to re-sign Toure from City despite the Ivory Coast defender departing the Emirates Stadium in a £16 million deal in 2009.
The 30-year-old is no longer a first team regular at the Etihad Stadium after sitting out the last six months as punishment for failing a drugs test in March.
He is now on a collision course with the club after they moved to withhold substantial image-rights payments which is something Toure is reportedly set to resist.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
His days in Manchester look numbered and he could find himself back in North London with Wenger supposedly keen to bring him back to Arsenal in an effort to shore up his error-ridden back four.
Getting booked for taking off your shirt – Or any kind of booking for over-celebrating. Surely that’s what we want in football for the players to care a bit when they score and so mean it when they celebrate. I agree that deliberately celebrating in front of the opposition fans is not how players should behave, but getting booked for leaving the playing arena to celebrate with the fans or removing their shirt is ridiculous. It seems to me a rule bought in by the power of the sponsors and makes no football sense. As obviously when a player scores, he will be shown on camera and the sponsors want their company name to be shown too.
Insistence to leave out goal line technology – Although not strictly a rule I feel it belongs in this list. As recently as last month UEFA President Michel Platini ruled out the possibility of introducing any kind of technology based on the hawk eye system used in cricket and tennis to assist referees in goal line incidents. Citing what he describes as an introduction of PlayStation football. Certainly we wouldn’t want technology on every aspect of the game as that would be too disruptive. Surely though being able to see if the ball has crossed the line or not would aid the referees.
Pointless fifth and sixth officials – Following on from the lack of goal line technology, these extra officials are UEFA’s alternative in order to help the referee around the penalty area, in the belief that more eyes mean better decisions. However I have failed to see them greatly add to the game and more eyes on the pitch will not always result in correct decisions as you are also increasing the potential for disagreement amongst the officials and people still getting decisions wrong.
Unclear offside ruling – No-one seems to be entirely sure or in agreement about what being in ‘an active position’ entails when deciding if a player is offside. The rule states that a player is not offside until they become active in the play. For some this means that a player is not offside until they touch the ball. But players can gain advantages from being offside and not touching the ball by being in the goalkeepers line of sight or causing an unfair distraction and this is not always called up for being offside.
*
Continued on Page TWO
The Bosman Case – Has transferred too much power in contract negotiations to the players, who are effectively now able to hold their club to ransom for the wages they desire, leaving to clubs that offer better wages when they feel like it. Previously this only affected smaller clubs who were forced to tie players down on longer contracts to ensure they wouldn’t leave on a free when their contract ended. But as the Rooney saga demonstrated not even clubs of Manchester United’s stature are free from this.
The lack of a salary cap – Following on from the implications of the Bosman case having no salary cap for players’ wages ensures that simply the richest clubs are allowed to pay over the odds for players. Manchester City is the most recent and obvious example of a club being able to pull in players from other clubs simply by offering that player a much bigger pay check than his current club could. Also surely it is simply morally wrong for footballers to be earning five or six times the national average wage in a week.
Acceptance of ‘Professional fouls’ – When say a team are counter-attacking and a player on the defending team deliberately fouls a player so a free kick is given in a relatively harmless position and they are able to get numbers back to defend. This is often glazed over by commentators as the defender ‘using their experience’. But I feel it gives an unfair advantage to the defending team through cheating, and more should be done to ensure the attacking team kept the advantage of numbers that they had.
*
Continued on Page THREE
If a player’s been punished on the pitch he cannot be suspended retroactively by the governing body – Even if a player is seen afterwards to have severely broken the rule to the extent that everyone is agreement they should have been sent off, if the referee gave say a yellow card for the incident. The governing body is subsequently powerless to reassess the incident and decide if a more severe punishment is required.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
The January Transfer window – Has been an odd addition to the game since it was introduced in the 2002-03 season. It encourages panic buying, leads to an inflation of transfer fees therefore hindering smaller clubs and allows big clubs that had perhaps faltered an unfair advantage to add to their squads. Its main appeal is not for football reasons but from media who love to sell rumours and feed of the excitement of transfers, along with fans who are encouraged to be excited by who their club could bring in during the window.
Having to leave the field of play before returning if you pick up an injury – The thinking behind this law was to ensure the game could flow as an injured player wasn’t being treated on the field. Yet how it is carried out in today’s game ensures an advantage to the team who have usually been in the wrong by injuring an opposition player. There are countless examples when this man advantage, however brief, has led to goals.
David Ngog is certainly a player who divides opinion on Merseyside. Some view the young Frenchman as a waste of space, while others believe that he has been hung out to dry at Liverpool and not been given the opportunity he deserves to enable him to find his feet at Anfield. I personally find myself somewhere in between, although I do believe that some of the criticism is a little harsh given that he is a young player and still learning his craft.
Unfortunately last season was a harsh one for all Liverpool supporters and it was easy to pinpoint scapegoats. With Torres out injured Ngog was expected to take on the goalscoring burden, which was a tough gig for the youngster and the expectation levels on him were a little high and in my view unwarranted given his inexperience. He did show some promise at times last season and it makes you wonder what Roy Hodgson should do with Ngog for next season.
There have been contrasting rumours in the media in the last two weeks with regards to his future and whether he has one at Anfield. It has been mooted that West Brom are keen to take him on a season long loan, while other reports suggest that Hodgson is putting him up for sale at £6m to raise funds to strengthen the squad. Some of the forums suggest that we should attempt to get as much as we can for him as he is deemed a lost cause; personally I would send Ngog out on loan for a season at least, to give us a better reflection as to whether he can cut it in the Premier League.
So what should Hodgson do with David Ngog? Does the Frenchman deserve one last chance at Anfield?
Click on image to see a gallery of the BEST BABES at the World Cup this summer
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Rafael van der Vaart is not best pleased with life at Tottenham Hotspur of late. He has been effectively marginalised in the first time by a switch in formation and the searing form of Luka Modric; he was incredulous at being left out of Spurs’ Europa League group stage squad, criticising the club for displaying a lack of ambition. Harry Redknapp took action at the weekend to correct the issue – but it backfired on Tottenham, nearly costing the team all three points at St James’ Park.
Redknapp’s tactical basis thus far in the 2011/12 Premier League season has been to stick to an old-fashioned but flexible 4-4-2 system, and it has worked wonders for Tottenham. Since their opening defeats at the hands of the Manchester giants, Spurs were in some of the best form in the league, as demonstrated by superb victories over both Liverpool and Arsenal.
But in an attempt to revitalise van der Vaart, who is not always effective in a wide position and lacks any desire to track back when his team is not in possession, Redknapp chose to return to last year’s unpopular 4-5-1 for the trip to Newcastle on Sunday, restoring van der Vaart to his preferred trequartista role while pushing Modric (right-footed) and Bale (left-footed) onto the left and right wings, respectively.
Clearly, van der Vaart’s low mood has forced Harry’s hand. It is well known of the mercurial Dutchman that he is not blessed with the world’s most resolute mindset. But just as obvious is that Redknapp and Tottenham have not learned how to deal with temperamental star players, despite their previous experience of such personalities (David Ginola springs to mind, for some reason).
[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’left’]
Modric has been quoted this week as saying he is unsure he wants to sign a new deal at White Hart Lane – although since he is already tied down to the club for five years, with Daniel Levy showing no sign of wanting to relinquish his services, it would be fiscally prudent to do so. Now it appears van der Vaart must be accommodated, even if it is at the detriment of the team as a collective.
Redknapp was heavily praised by journalists attending the post-match press conference for a “stroke of genius” in introducing Defoe, but the Englishman brushed that compliment aside. “If I was really clever,” he responded, “I’d have started him and maybe we’d have won the game.”
It should be noted that the blame for the tactical switch cannot be solely laid on van der Vaart’s insecurities. Redknapp himself emphasised that he was switching the shape around to account for Newcastle’s strength in the middle of the park. Yohan Cabaye and Cheik Tiote are one of the more industrious central-midfield pairings in the Premier League at present and a big part of why the Toon are still unbeaten in mid-October. But with Spurs in such strong form themselves, should Redknapp be gambling on switching strategies for a game of this importance, when a strong return was so vital to keep up the momentum of the derby victory following the international break?
The decision to rest Defoe from the start risked hampering his burgeoning relationship with new strike partner Emmanuel Adebayor. Bale and Modric were extremely quiet until they switched over after the first half-hour. Van der Vaart scored the penalty to give Spurs an initial lead, and had a good game, but he would still have been on the park to take the spot-kick in a 4-4-2 and Modric, Bale and Defoe would have performed better (if the 2011/12 season thus far is anything to go by). Take a good look at the video Harry – here’s hoping you switch back to what has been working by the time Spurs face Blackburn next weekend.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Cerezo Osaka kicked off their AFC Champions League campaign in style with a 2-1 victory over Arema in Japan on Wednesday.The hosts took the lead in the 14th minute at Kincho Stadium when Cerezo debutant and Brazilian import Rodrigo Pimpao found the back of the net in the Group G affair.Singaporean striker Noh Alam Shah equalised for the Indonesian club five minutes after the break from the penalty spot, but Pimpao capped a dream start in his first competitive club game off Brazilian soil with a winning goal in the 76th minute.The other clash in Group G saw South Korean club Jeonbuk Motors defeat Shandong Luneng 1-0 after Won-Jae Park netted the winner in the 59th minute for the hosts at Jeonju World Cup Stadium.Ten-man Sydney FC and Suwon Bluewings played out a hard-fought scoreless draw in their opening Group H match at the Sydney Football Stadium.The Australian side were forced to play a man short for nearly an hour after captain Terry McFlynn was dismissed for stomping on Lee Sangho.Suwon fielded their quartet of new signings in defender Hwang Jae-Won, midfielder Lee Yong-Rae, striker Yeom Ki-Hoon and South Korea South Africa 2010 goalkeeper Jung Sung-Ryong.Chinese Super League outfit Shanghai Shenhua were held to a scoreless draw by J-League club Kashima Antlers at Hongkou Stadium in Group H.Iranian Premier League leaders Zob Ahan came from behind to topple Emirates 2-1 in their Group D match.K-League club Seoul’s trip to United Arab Emirates side Al Ain proved a fruitful one, with Dejan Damjanovic’s strike enough for the Koreans to secure a 1-0 victory in Group F.Fifth-placed Qatar Stars League side Al Rayyan were held to a 1-1 draw by Saudi Arabian club Al Shabab in their Group D encounter, with Nasser Al Shamrani cancelling out a 34th-minute penalty from Brazilian Itamar to ensure a share of the points.UAE outfit Al Wahda exchanged late goals with their Uzbekistani opponents Bunyodkor in their 1-1 stalemate at Al-Nahyan Stadium, while a double from Algerian striker Abdelmalek Ziaya spearheaded Saudi Arabian side Al Ittihad’s 3-1 win over Iranian club Persopolis in the other Group C clash.
Injured captain Rio Ferdinand believes England have a "great chance" of winning a "wide open" World Cup.
Ferdinand is back home after picking up a tournament-ending knee ligament injury during England's first training session in South Africa.
A programme of rehabilitation from the Manchester United medical staff will prevent the 31-year-old defender from returning to South Africa, but Ferdinand has given a ringing endorsement of the Three Lions' chances.
Speaking ahead of Friday's Group C encounter with Algeria, he said:"If we win this one, the confidence will build and we'll get back on a high.
"We still have a great chance of winning the World Cup and no team can claim to be the outright favourites. There's no-one who scares us.
"A lot of teams come to a World Cup with an aura about them and, while the Germans and the Argentines have each had good wins, I don't think you could say with conviction any team has stood head and shoulders above the others in the first round of games.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
"And, of course, one of the favourites Spain has lost to Switzerland. So I think the competition is wide open."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
In the traditional football season curtain-raiser at Villa Park last weekend, Premier League champions Manchester City beat ten-man FA Cup winners Chelsea 3-2.
It wasn’t a match without controversy, though, as Serbian right back Branislav Ivanovic was shown a straight red card for a reckless tackle on Aleksandar Kolarov.
Here are Chelsea duo John Terry and Frank Lampard arguing with referee Kevin Friend following the dismissal of Ivanovic in the Blues’ Community Shield loss against Manchester City last weekend.
Can you come up with a funny caption for this picture?
Leave your suggestions in the comments section below…
This week you can win a copy of ‘Chelsea FC – Champions of Europe 2012’ on DVD!
From the group stages right through to Drogba’s winning spot-kick, this DVD features highlights from every game and every goal in a fitting tribute to the heroes in blue.
Extras include exclusive interviews with Chelsea’s top stars, Frank Lampard, Gary Cahill and Petr Cech, a tribute to Chelsea legend Didier Drogba and highlights of the victory parade.
Watch the trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_wvKd-EkTg
Order now here: http://amzn.to/NWKn8V
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
For the FootballFanCast.com Caption Competition Terms and Conditions click here
Check out our Caption Competition Gallery for some inspiration and to see the winners so far.
Last week’s winner: Rob Fletcher – click here to see all entries
Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed that Wayne Rooney will return to the Manchester United starting line-up for the Champions League clash with Otelul Galati on Tuesday night.
The in-form attack was surprisingly left on the bench for the Premier League champions’ 1-1 draw with Liverpool on Saturday, as the Scottish coach felt that his international ban for England was playing on his mind.
Despite this, Rooney will play in the fixture in Romania, after being desperate to feature at Anfield.
“He’ll be playing tomorrow,” Ferguson declared in a pre-match press conference.
“When the initial news came through it was a definite blow for him. He didn’t expect that. None of us did.
“It was a silly action but it wasn’t seriously dangerous. When he realised getting a three-match ban meant missing all the games for England and might not be involved at all, it is not easy to qualify in major championships, that resonated in Wayne’s mind.
“But actually, when he came on he was quite bubbly. He was full of energy and enthusiasm.
“He was desperate to get on, which is good. When he was sat watching the game he probably said, ‘Christ I could be out there’,” Ferguson concluded.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Meanwhile, Rio Ferdinand will not feature against the Romanian champions, as he is being rested for the clash with Manchester City this Sunday.
Nemanja Vidic, who has missed all but one game of the campaign so far this term, is in line for a return however, after recovering from a calf problem.