The last two years have produced something of a footballing anomaly – happy Wolves fans. Forever bemoaning their ill-luck at being unable to escape the Championship, they not only go and win it, but they survive their return to the Premier League with games to spare. With the risk of finally losing their tag as sleeping giants, Mick McCarthy will be looking to strengthen the squad and make Wolves a permanent fixture in the Premier League calendar.
For all the good that Wolves did last year, their weakness was stark. A mere 32 goals in 38 league games will only keep you up if you can defend well – which luckily they could. Of the strikers in the team only Doyle earned any plaudits while Iwelumo, Maierhofer and Ebanks-Blake failed to match expectations.
Let’s not do Wolves and injustice though, 15th was a fantastic achievement, but finishing on 38 points meant that they only did 5 points better than their last attempt in 2003 when they finished bottom. So you could argue that they were playing in a weaker league in 09/10. As Jez Moxey has said, next year will be a trickier affair, facing Newcastle and West Brom will be a tougher than Burnley and Hull.
So how has Mick done thus far?
I think he has gone about his business very shrewdly. He has been the only Premiership manager to have really made any moves in the transfer market as yet and by bringing in players early in the summer he is giving them maximum time the to become familiar with the rest of the squad. He has added strength and depth to his reasonably strong defensive unit with the additions of Van Damme and Mouyokolo who will be pressuring Berra, Stearman and Craddock for roles in the centre of defence.
Brought in as the player to solve Wolves’ goal scoring problems, record signing Steven Fletcher will be the one who will excite the Molineux faithful. He has shown he can flourish in a struggling side, and while the fans in old gold won’t want to see him in adverse circumstances next season, his credentials are very good. Even though he only scored 8 goals last year, you feel that he can add to that tally with better service – something that will be the test of Wolves next year.
Everyone sees goals as the reason the Molineux men struggled last season, which is true, but if you don’t create them then you can’t score them, and creative and attacking midfield players must be McCarthy’s focus for next season. Stephen Hunt is a good signing for the left of midfield. Even with the risk of him being unavailable until October you feel that Mick would have carefully weighed up his options before making the move. With the form of Jarvis as a cause for celebration last year, Kightly coming back from injury and talks of Jermaine Pennant arriving, it seems it will be an area much improved for next season. With Milijas failing to shine, a central attacking midfielder to partner Henry must also be on Mick’s wish list to pose a threat from the middle as well as out wide.
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A few pieces of the puzzle are in place for Wolves to do well next year, but what pieces are left and just how well they’ll do remains to be seen. At only £7 million, Fletcher is a good piece of business and with him partnering Doyle up front with better service from those behind I think Wolves can stay up again in the Premier League next year.
As expected, last week’s north London derby between Tottenham and Arsenal was a heated affair, as much off the pitch as on it. Many of the chants from the fans inside White Hart Lane cannot be repeated, as ex-Gunner Emmanuel Adebayor was the subject of plenty of abuse.
On the pitch Kyle Walker became a Spurs hero by smashing home a winner from all of 30 yards, but as the final whistle blew that wasn’t the end of the action. Much like the whole John Terry and Wayne Rooney situation, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger and Tottenham coach Clive Allen didn’t shake hands. What’s being said between the pair here?
Leave your suggestions below…
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This week you can win a copy of Arsenal – The Making of a Modern Superclub!
Based on unprecedented access granted to the authors, including exclusive interviews with Arsene Wenger and key board members, current and former players, this book looks in detail at the club’s transformation into a global superpower under the stewardship of their French manager right up to the end of the 2010/11 season.
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Everton manager David Moyes has reacted angrily to reports he played an unfit Marouane Fellaini in last weekend’s 2-0 win over Sunderland.
The midfielder and joint leading scorer Tim Cahill are both missing for Saturday’s trip to Newcastle United.
“Who would do that? No-one would do it,” Moyes said on Friday.
“We certainly wouldn’t risk Marouane Fellaini, who has been arguably our best player this season. We would never do that, it’s a load of rubbish. We had to hold the boy back from training on the Tuesday and the Thursday but he trained on the Friday.”
Fellaini’s father Abdellatif this week lashed out at the club after the player was ruled out for the rest of the season with an ankle injury he picked up against Chelsea two weeks ago.
“Marouane is really in a desperate state,” Abdellatif Fellaini told Gazet van Antwerpen.
“He should never have played that last game against Sunderland. He should never have been allowed to play because he was already injured.”
Everton have been unable to find steady form this season and Moyes has not been able to identify their problem.
“I’ve been asked if I can put my finger on why we have lacked consistency and I have said no. We want to be more consistent,” he said.
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“The game is a chance to get three points. We have 10 or 11 games left of the season and we need to win as many of those as we can. It will be a big test and Newcastle have done well- as have all the teams who were promoted from the Championship at the end of last season.”
“I don’t think anybody has been surprised by Newcastle because they are a big football club and they have done well this season. Alan Pardew has kept things going for them. I have got a lot of respect for Chris Hughton [former Newcastle manager] and the work he did for them.”
“I’m sure Alan also respects him but Alan has taken over now and will be trying to put his own mark on the team.”
Football is known as the beautiful game across the globe, yet sometimes beauty is accompanied by malice.
Footballer players around the world all have different characteristics and play the game in a diverse manner. Some players have more brain than brawn, others are very skillful and possess a lot of flair. Conversely, several players (with the trades mentioned) also love to get stuck in and play the game rough.
This article lists my personal top 10 ‘dirtiest’ players in the Premier League. It wasn’t easy to decide, but after much deliberation, these are the players who made my official list, enjoy:
10. Paul Scholes (Manchester United)
If a tackle is named after you then surely you must be doing something wrong, right? The 35-year-old veteran midfielder looks as if he will never learn how to tackle properly. Scholes may appear to some that he is not a dirty player, and may use the excuse of ‘Scholes doesn’t know how to tackle’, but let me assure you, this is absolute garbage. The fact is, he goes in late on players for a reason and has continued this trade for 16 years now. Even at 35, the Manchester United man is still fairly in the mix. Last season the Englishman committed 30 fouls, which led to 9 yellow cards and a red one as well. You would think after 16 years of trying he would have given up on tackling.
9. John Obi Mikel (Chelsea)
As a defensive midfielder for Premier League champions Chelsea, Mikel’s job is to break up attacks and regain possession by any means necessary. Unfortunately, the 23-year-old cannot tackle with precision and as such gives many free-kicks away. His overall intent in going in for a challenge is bad as well. Having watched several games in which the Nigerian had featured in last season, it is clear to see that he loves to go in hard on opposing players even though he doesn’t need to. Mikel gave away 35 free-kicks and picked up 3 yellow cards last season, ok it may not appear bad, but it’s evident that the player does have bad intentions in his mind. His 4 year disciplinary record at Chelsea can vouch for this.
8. Craig Bellamy (Manchester City)
Craig Bellamy has a great level of passion and desire for the game, which again is commendable, but like Stephen Hunt, the winger can boil over. The Manchester City man is known for his fiery temper and as such can (and most of the time) be a dirty player if he wants to be. The 30-year-old may have not committed as much fouls (24) and received as much coloured cards (5 yellow, 1 red) as the other players on this list, but whenever Bellamy is tackled or goes flying into one, it is clear that the Welshman is a nutcase. A number of fans may be divided of Bellamy’s inclusion in this article, arguing the fact that he is more of a zealous than a dirty player. This maybe the case, however, Bellamy has lost his mind at times last season and the City man always likes to involve himself in feuds on the pitch as well.
Continue 2 page to see the rest of the list
7. Wilson Palacios (Tottenham)
Palacios is a hardworking player, but he does get a few tackles wrong and is considered a midfield hacker by many Premier League fans. The Spurs man committed 58 fouls last season and picked up 8 yellow cards along the way as well. Palacios has cut down these statistics from 2 years ago and credit to him, but the Honduran international is still very much a fouler and a prolific one in the Premier League.
6. Stephen Hunt (Wolves)
The Former Hull City (now of Wolves) has got to be in this list, if he weren’t then there would have been an outrage from many readers who didn’t see his name up. Stephen Hunt is one of the slyest players in the Premier League, he may appear innocent to many when going into a challenge, but deep down a number of fans know what the Irishman is up to. It’s good to see a level of determination, but sometimes it can boil over and eventually it will come out in a different form, this is what has happened to Hunt over the years. Who could forget the 28-year-olds collision with Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech at Stamford Bridge several of years ago, many still wonder to this day if the clash was intentional or not. Nevertheless, Hunt is a dirty player end of.
5. Fabrice Muamba (Bolton)
Although, the Bolton man did not receive a red card, Fabrice Muamba was statistically the most booked Premier League player last season. The 22-year-old defensive midfielder committed 63 fouls last season and received 11 yellow cards a long the way. Bolton are not known for their flair and attractive style of football in the Premier League, but more for their rough and tumble method which see most of their players commit a lot of tackles and Muamba is just one of them. The Englishman is not a ‘leg-breaking’ player, far from it, but with these statistics and the current holder of the yellow card holder, it is evident that the midfielder had to be apart of this list.
4. Michael Ballack (Chelsea)
A great player but Ballack simply doesn’t know how to tackle and win a ball cleanly in the process. The German international is a strong midfielder and does a good job for Chelsea, but he does manage to give a lot of free-kicks away. 50 fouls, 3 yellow cards, 1 red card, may not look as bad as others in this article, although, whenever Ballack is live on TV it is almost certain during the 90 minute match, that you will see the 33-year-old either be in conversation with the referee or standing by an opposing player who is on the floor.
Find out who made the top 3 on page 3
3. Javier Mascherano (Liverpool)
The Liverpool midfielder spends more time bringing down opponents than actually kicking a ball. He is a hardworking player but at times his raw emotion does get the better of him.
The 26-year-old Argentinean international was the third highest player in the list of committing fouls last season (he committed 66 in all). With those 10 fouls came 10 yellow cards and 2 red ones as well. It’s great to see the Argentine commit a foul (not a bad one of course) just for his pure reaction when the whistle is blown. Mascherano somehow feels that when he does bring down a player in a bad manner, loves to think there is nothing wrong with it, and as such, pleads his innocence to the referee…very entertaining to watch. A defintate ‘dirty’ player in the English game (his record speaks for itself), and if he were to leave the Premier League this summer, his antics will be certainly be missed by many of the fans, including me.
2. Kevin Davies (Bolton)
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Would anyone disagree with his enrolment into this list? Certainly not. The Bolton striker committed an astonishing 103 fouls in 38 games last season and holds the record of the dirtiest player in the English game…well done Kevin. The 33-year-old Englishman is known for his strength up front and loves to irritate and punish his opposing defenders by any means necessary. Davies picked up 9 yellow cards and surprisingly no reds in the process. However, for the sheer fact that he has committed so many fouls and his inability to actually play the game right earns him a place in this hall of fame.
1. Joey Barton (Newcastle United)
The prodigal son returns to the Premier League this season to recapture his crown as the official dirtiest player in the English game. Many would agree that the 27-year-old midfielder is one of the dirtiest, ruthless, and most vicious players that the Premier League has ever seen in recent times. Joey Barton will no doubt be contributing in more fouls, yellow and red cards rather than goals and assists. He has got to be my number one on this list.
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Click image below to see a gallery of the Italian babes at the World Cup:
When all the talk should have been about Tottenham doing one over their fiercest rivals, we found ourselves talking about sickening and
distasteful chants aimed towards Adebayor.
We know Adebayor likes to cause controversy, in the past he has done things that he has openly regretted and said things he wishes he could take back, but that is no excuse for the verbal bashing he received at the hands of Arsenal supporters (only a minority). Wenger, Redknapp, players and fans came together this week and said it has gone too far, a line has to be drawn because it has gone too far.
Hearing the fans chant such disregardful songs, must have brought such nightmares and horrific images back to Adebayor. What he had to witness back in Cabinda, and then being reminded and hearing people rant “it should have been you, it should have been you, shot in Angola,” you cannot imagine what kind of emotions were running through the Togolese striker.
We all love a bit of banter, that’s what gets the fans ticking aswell as the players, but the horror scenes witnessed at White Hart Lane was just pure sick. How can people wish death upon another person, he hasn’t done anything wrong, all he did was move from one club to another, and for that he deserves to die. What is wrong with people?
Adebayor was not the only player to be attacked this past weekend. We saw scenes of fans throwing items at the Liverpool players during their 2-0 win over rivals Everton. This has to stop or someday someone can actually get hurt. Football is meant to be a game of passion not violence.
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Roberto Carlos was a victim during his match against Krylya Sovetov when fansstarted to throw bananas at him. Maybe fun to a minority of people, but it certainly wasn’t for him or his family to witness. It affected him in such a way that he was forced to walk off the pitch.Maybe that is the answer, players should just walk off, or the match should be postponed. Something has to be done, because by simply just banning the culprits, it doesn’t change anything, someone will just follow the antics.
It was a strange sensation watching Tottenham’s Champions League victory at AC Milan the other night – a genuine throwback. Not because I was watching two of my former clubs but because the match really did, despite the many nationalities on show, have a genuine sense of a typical English team facing a typical Italian one. These days familiarity breeds contempt, even at World Cups, where nothing is a surprise and opponents often know each other through club matches.
Back in the day, though, there used to be a lot of mystique about playing foreign sides and great contrasts in the way they played. The way Brazilians would kill the ball in the air rather than trap it, having been brought up playing on beaches or pot-holed roads, was a wonder to me. And then there were the infamous dark arts of Italian football – as recalled in such graphic detail by AC Milan on Tuesday.
Just after I was transferred from Chelsea to Milan in 1961, but before I had joined my new club, England played Italy in Rome (the sort of fixture we call a ‘friendly’, but was nothing of the sort back then). We won 3-2, having been 2-1 down with five minutes remaining. Gerry Hitchens, another Englishman who played in Italy, scored twice, then I got the winner.
This was considered a very famous victory at the time and so our captain, Johnny Haynes, decided to lead us on a lap of honour. Not a sensible policy, given the locals had just started lighting bonfires on the terraces of the Olympic Stadium and were busily ripping out seats to hurl at us! I suddenly thought ‘what the hell have I done agreeing to play here?’
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Playing away in Italy has never been anything other than hostile. It is the most beautiful nation on Earth, full of the loveliest people, but when it comes to football, they are cynical and ugly. And the longer the Italians are losing a game, the nastier they get. They ruled the world once or twice in their history, of course, and I think they saw football as a reprise of the Christians v Lions … with us strikers very much on the side of Jesus.
I can particularly remember Omar Sivori, an Argentinian-born striker who was a naturalised Italian and a big mate of John Charles at Juventus. He had a party trick which consisted of sticking two fingers into your eyes to temporarily blind you. When I played for Milan, the dark arts were known by every defender – the kick on the ankles, the knee in the back, the over-the-top tackle. You never received the ball without first getting some physical contact from your marker.
Even though I only played in Serie A for a few months, I always felt I went to Milan a boy and came back a man thanks to all the physical treatment I withstood from their defenders. And I think Spurs really came of age as a Champions League team the other night, too. I liked the way Peter Crouch kept literally grinning and bearing it, every time he was fouled or roughed up by Gennaro Gattuso or one of his pals. Tottenham still have 90 minutes of cynical football to overcome and even with that one-goal lead going into the home leg, they’ll need that same calm, level-headed attitude if they are to make the quarter-finals.
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I was asked a few times last week whether Wayne Rooney’s Manchester derby goal was the best I’ve ever seen. Well, as a man who used to make his living scoring goals, my response has been: ‘I couldn’t care less. What is this, Dancing On Ice? Have they started giving marks for artistic impression?’. I was accused of many things during my career but nobody ever told me I’d scored a bad goal.
Your best goal is always your next goal. I can remember an FA Cup tie at Walsall when Spurs got battered and I scored a late winner, which was such a scruffy old shot on a mudheap of a pitch that it only just went over the line and didn’t come close to hitting the back of the net. It was almost embarrassing. But you know what? We got one for that goal and Rooney got one for his! He was having a miserable day until then but went and scored an absolute stunner.
Which makes you wonder why Carlo Ancelotti subbed Fernando Torres after about an hour of his first two Chelsea matches. I had plenty of terrible 89-minute performances, only to score a winner – a manager simply has to keep his best goalscorer on at all times. What sort of message does it send to the player himself, to his team-mates and to the bloke who just forked out £50million?
Fabio Capello has revealed he knows the identity of 20 of the final 23 members of his England World Cup squad.
England take on Japan in a warm-up game in Austria on Sunday with Capello closing in on the make-up of his final squad for South Africa, which he will unveil on Tuesday.
The Italian has taken a 30-man preliminary squad to Austria for a pre-tournament training camp.
"I more or less know," he admitted."Not 23 but maybe 20.
"It will be disappointing when I have to tell some of the players that they must go home because all the players here have trained really well.
"I am really happy with their focus and the job they have done. But I have to choose."
Striker Darren Bent and midfielder Tom Huddlestone have been handed starting spots against Japan.
Fellow fringe members of the squad Michael Dawson, Shaun Wright-Phillips and Scott Parker are not included which could suggest they will not be part of the final squad.
One player Capello is hoping to include is Manchester City midfielder Gareth Barry.
Barry is currently sidelined with an ankle ligament injury but has been given every opportunity to prove his fitness before the squad is reduced to 23 men on June 1.
"Barry has improved a lot. The last news was good," said Capello.
"But we have to wait and see what the doctor says. After that, we will know if he will be fit in a short time and ready to train with us, or whether he won't be ready.
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"He has to be able to train normally the day after the first game.
"He is doing a lot of physiotherapy to get the movement going and is following what the doctor says.
"But I don't know if he is running yet."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
I know it’s pretty impossible to tell what will happen in the Premier League, mainly because no one expected last season to end in the outstandingly entertaining way it did, but I would like to try. Here is my potential top five for the Premier League:
1. Manchester City:
In Villa Park yesterday it felt as though City were laying down a gauntlet in the 12 second half minutes in which they scored three goals. They still haven’t made a new signing, although a deal for Jack Rodwell is soon to be finalised, but do they really need to? Considering the fact Stefan Savic is back up to either Joleon Lescott or the imperious Vincent Kompany a top class defender is essential and Daniel Agger would fit the bill. All the talk of bringing in Van Persie seems a bit pointless considering they have a choice in attack between Balotelli, Aguero, Dzeko and Tevez.
Carlos Tevez will be vital for City this season as he will act like the new signing if he can stay as focused as Mancini claims he is. His link up play with Aguero could be one of the factors the boys in the MOTD studio are raving about if City reclaim the title next season. Although a lack of signings tends to be seen as negative City fans will gladly settle for a new centre back as well as Jack Rodwell, as long as reborn Carlos Tevez can play like we all know he can. If he does then I can’t see City finishing below first again.
2. Manchester United:
Although we haven’t had a revolution of new signings in the red half of Manchester this season Shinji Kagawa looks to be an astute one. After all the theatrics involved with Eden Hazards move, United fans will be pleased to hear that Kagawa has better stats lasts season than Hazard and played in a league viewed by many as playing at a higher level. However, something strange has been happening at Old Trafford this pre-season, instead of plenty of enthusiastic fans getting excited about a new season, a split is starting to appear.
Due to his uncompromising backing of the increasingly dodgy looking Glazer regime, Sir Alex Ferguson no longer has the total backing of the majority of the fans. Petitions are being written, letters sent to the Scot and fans even questioning that the reason for his almost blind loyalty is down to money not the love of the club.
If you told this to anyone in football ten years a go they would have laughed in your face before assuming you were a City fan incognito. With uncertain times off the pitch at least Fergie can rely upon Vidic to return and sort out a defence that looked nervy at best during last season. Not only that but United had 14 players missing through injury when things looked worrying and won’t be expecting the lightning strike of bad luck to hit twice in two seasons.
Even with all that in mind, I think they need to step up the pursuit of Van Persie or bring in another striker as they could be looking to the FA or League cup for realistic silverware. City’s potential dynasty could have begun last May and with the momentum on their side it’ll take a lot to stop them.
3. Chelsea:
With a dazzling array of creative and exciting stars added to the midfield line up at Chelsea, you’d expect them to improve on their worst league finish since Roman Abramovich took control of the club. Although the glory of that final in Munich will still be sung about in the crowd the challenge for Di Matteo starts now.
With the addition of Hazard, Marin and Oscar means that Chelsea have addressed the lack of creativity in the midfield and after a good summer for El Nino picking up the golden boot, perhaps Torres will finally come good in blue. I am very excited about the new Chelsea line up as they now potentially have the best midfield in the league. For this reason I believe that they will finish top of the London league, which has some way to go to better the Manc alternative. Arsenal and Spurs have made changes but I think that due to the defensive resilience shown toward the end of last season, mixed with the creativity added this summer, all that is needed at Stamford Bridge is someone to convert the chances into goals. This could be the season that Torres returns.
4. Arsenal:
Thanks to Manchester mania taking over the race for the Premier League last season, Arsenal’s third position in the League was under rated in my opinion. We all remember the atrocious start to the season Wenger’s team made, after what he described as ‘the most disturbed pre-season I know’, and to finish in third was a feat unfairly ignored. To replicate that finish will be even more difficult considering the reinforcements brought in at Chelsea and the threat of Tottenham under AVB.
In Santi Cazorla, Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podolski are signs to be optimistic at the Emirates this season. For me Arsenal will do well to finish fourth as one of the reasons they did so well in the league last year was thanks to a terrible run by Spurs in the second half of the season and Chelsea’s own disaster start under AVB. Arsenal were able to capitalise on others hiccups tremendously last year so if I am wrong and they do replicate third in the league or better then I hope it is the start of something and not just the final hurrah under a Premier League legend in Arsene Wenger.
5. Tottenham:
The debate about AVB will go on and on but it won’t be decided until Tottenham’s season begins. AVB’s time at Chelsea is better left as a bad sporting memory and will either be looked back on as a minor blip on an outstanding managerial career or it’ll be the first piece of evidence people use when damning him into the pit of Premier League failures.
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Luka Modric looks set to finally leave much to the dismay of the White Hart Lane faithful. This could be a blessing in disguise with the money they should receive for him will allow them to finally add to an attack that, right now, only consists of Jermain Defoe. Deals are in progress, we are told, for Adebayor and Leandro Damiao, the latter could prove to be a fantastic signing, but with the kick off to the 2012/13 season just around the corner it’s hard to see where the goals will come from on a regular basis.
On the bright side though the addition of Vertonghen and Sigurdsson will make the lose of King and Modric, if/when he leaves, easier to deal with. Vertonghen’s arrival from Ajax is a real coup with many in the Dutch sides camp saying that he is better than Vermaelen was when he left Ajax for another North London club a few years a go.
For me though this is a year of transition for Spurs and a finish in the top four should be viewed as nothing short of excellent. However if we see any of the suicidal defending present this time last year at Chelsea we may not see AVB around for very long.
Man United are scoring goals for fun and Rooney is certainly living up to his promise of trying to emulate Lionel Messi’s goal record this season. Wazza is on fire at the moment and shows what a real difference 12months make in football.
At FFC this week we have seen a mixed bag of Manchester United blogs that includes Park Ji Sung the better alternative; Jose looks to gazump Fergie, while United keep tabs on Brazilian duo.
We also look at the best Manchester United articles around the web this week
Sir Alex Ferguson’s Greatest Premier League XI?
Do transfer deals suggest the age of the ‘selling club’ is over?
Why Barca isn’t United’s objective…for now anyway
Why Park Ji-Sung will prove the better alternative
Rooney v Aguero
Can Manchester keep setting the pace?
Hernandez v Welbeck v Berbatov – who should get the nod?
Jimmy Greaves: Easy for Manchester clubs to make capital
Fergie and Wenger warned off £30m+ bids…for now!
Fergie keeping tabs on Vitesse duo
Jose looking to gazump Fergie with offer
Best of WEB
Scapegoats For When Man Utd Don’t Win – Fashionable? – Red Flag Flying High
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Anderson and on and on – United Rant
VIDEO: Wayne Rooney talks ‘that’ goal with Nike – The Busby Way
How The Football Association Has Outdone Itself – Yet Again – The United Religion
The news that Fernando Torres no longer loves the club he claimed to love only months ago and has moved to Chelsea, has been met with a mixture of amusement and indifference by many United fans.
Chelsea’s signing of Torres isn’t the coup some sections of the media are already claiming it is. Liverpool are going nowhere-regardless of the epic victories against Wolves and Fulham that Dalglish has masterminded, while Chelsea are still in the Champions League and the current Premier League champions.
Torres may have finally realised that a footballer’s career is only short and there’s no time to waste playing postmen from Estonia on Channel Five on a Thursday night.
Torres signing for Chelsea would be nothing more than long overdue really, when it comes to pulling of real surprise striker signings, no one can touch Sir Alex Ferguson in that department.
As he did last season with Michael Owen, every so often Sir Alex Ferguson will shock many in the footballing world by signing a striker, no one ever expected. Whether it’s a rivals leading scorer, a costly teenager, an experienced loan signing, or an unheard of Norwegian, Fergie can be full of surprises. Here’s a top five of the united manager’s surprise striker signings.
5. Henrik Larsson
Signing a 35 year-old, striker, with no Premier League experience, on loan from Swedish Club Helsingborgs, must have sounded like one of the worst ideas Fergie had come up with since the Massimo Taibi fiasco. However when said striker is Henrik Larsson, it’s not as daft as it sounds. Larsson’s time at Old Trafford may have been brief but his impact was enormous. Any doubts that he was fit enough for the English game were quickly dispelled on his debut an FA cup tie against Villa. Larsson ran around like a 17 year-old, creating chances and bagging a goal. Fergie was so impressed with the diminutive stars efforts that he asked the Premier League for special dispensation so Larsson could receive a winners medal- he’d only played 7 games. The Premier league said yes, obviously recognising his contribution as United stopped Chelsea winning a third successive title.
4. Wayne Rooney
Right now, Wayne Rooney looks like something of a bargain at £27 million, having already won every trophy there is and last season spearheading United’s campaign. However back in 2004 Fergie forking out a huge sum for an 18 year-old whose goal-scoring record was one in four was something of a surprise. Rooney though, has already paid back his fee and then some. He’s well on his way to becoming a United legend, after being in the shadow of Van Nistelrooy and then Ronaldo, the ‘white Pele’ seems to have raised his game a level to become much more than just a striker. Despite his injury problems of late and the debacle of his contract saga, there’s no denying he’s arguably the most naturally talented player at the club.
3. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
Practically no-one outside of Norway had heard of the baby-faced assassin prior to his move to Old Trafford. It didn’t take long for him to make his mark though, coming off the bench to score on his debut against Blackburn back in 1996. Coming off the bench to score would become something of a Solskjaer trait as he was often used as a sub while making over 200 appearances for United. Three games seem to sum up his career more than any during the 1999 treble winning season. In the FA cup at Old Trafford he scored a last minute winner to knock out Liverpool and send Old Trafford into delirium.
Later that season coming off the bench away at Nottingham Forest he grabbed four goals in just 11 minutes as United romped to an 8-1 win. A few months later he scored one of the most important goals in United’s history -an injury time winner against Bayern Munich in the Champions league final- after coming off the bench-again. You’d have to go a long way to find a more popular man amongst the Old Trafford faithful.
2. Andy Cole
Just as Fergie had relieved one of his main rivals of their prized asset in 1992, he did the same again in 1994, when he managed to convince Kevin Keegan to sell goal king Andy Cole. Amazingly United bit-part player Keith Gillespie-along with 6 million quid- was the carrot that convinced the emotional manager to part with his record-breaking striker.
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The transfer shocked everyone in the football world not least of all the Newcastle faithful, some of whom went to see Keegan at his office to ask how he could do such a thing. King Kev said he had a long-term plan, unfortunately for him so did Fergie, who’s United side would go on to win the double the following year. Both United’s and Cole’s greatest triumph came in 1999 when they won the treble in the Nou Camp. Although it was Sheringham and Solksjaer who scored the goals few could forget Cole’s influence. His goal in the semi-final against Juventus was one of his finest moments. “Yorke’s been brought down…penalty surely…..Cole!! Full speed ahead Barcelona!”
1. Eric Cantona
The story of how the impossible became possible and King Eric made the trip across the Pennines is now part of United folklore. Howard Wilkinson called Manchester United chairman Martin Edwards to enquire about Denis Irwin. Fergie sat on Edwards’ desk said: “No chance” and then almost as an afterthought “Ask him about Eric Cantona.” Amazingly, of course Sergeant Wilko had fallen out with his mercurial striker and was willing to let him leave.
There can be little doubt that, this one conversation changed the course of Premier League history and a Cantona-led United brought the title to Old Trafford for the first time in 26 years kicking off United’s dominance of the nineties and noughties in the process. The £1.2 million price only seemed to add insult to injury. Many a Yorkshire man must still shake his head at just how foolish Wilkinson could have been.
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