Manchester United versus Liverpool is up there with some of the most bitter rivals in world football, so it is no surprise that former Manchester United defenderÂGary Neville and Liverpool centre-back Jamie Carragher have continued their ‘war of worls’/banter – whatever you want to call it – into retirement.Ever since Carragher followed Gary Neville into Sky Sports for the sport broadcaster’s Monday Night Football show, the duo can’t resist a sly dig at one another whenever they get a chance.[ad_pod id=’football-friends’ align=’center’]The latest ‘banter exchange’ – I genuinely cringed after writing that – was instigated by Neville, who represented the Red Devils from 1992-2011, with a cheeky dig at Carragher’s inability to win a Premier League title during his time on Anfield – the closest the former England international came was in the 2008/09 campaign when Neville’s United finished four points clear of the Reds at the top.Take a look at the latest Twitter conversation between the duo, although, I’m a little sceptical this is becoming something of a staged occurrence to drum up interest in MNF – with Everton taking on West Bromwich Albion tonight, I suppose they need all the help they can get.
Harry Kane’s last minute spot-kick against West Ham on Sunday may have been the cause of great frustration for the many Hammers fans who made the trip across London, but it has seemingly gone down as just another penalty, in just another exciting Premier League match, for the majority of those within the footballing community.
Tottenham triumphantly fought back against Big Sam’s side after going down 2-0 to the visitors. Danny Rose initially struck home after a somewhat chaotic corner-kick for West Ham’s Spanish shot-stopper Adrian, but Harry Kane once again stole the headlines for firing home the equaliser in the dying embers of the match.
Seemingly ignoring the fact that extra-time had long been up after Kane’s penalty was initially saved, referee Jonathan Moss, allowed the 21-year-old rising English star to shoot home the rebound and record a dramatic draw for Mauricio Pochettino’s determined Spurs side.
While such drama seems to have caused great discussion and even further animosity between the two sets of opposing fans, the likes of Mark Lawrenson, Rio Ferdinand and Michael Owen (for the BBC and BT Sport respectively) responded to the incident on TV by claiming that the ref got it right, and ultimately made the correct call.
So then, was Harry Kane tumbled over in the box unfairly, or did the in-form man and current favourite among many Premier League pundits simply take a dive to win back some valuable points for his team?
Although it would be unfair to single out Harry Kane as a diver and a cheat for this one incident – as West Ham themselves have faced their own simulation accusations with James Tomkins’ theatrical face-holding against Everton earlier this season – the answer on this one is simple, he dived.
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Kane is justly made out to be a strong centre-forward who is not easily knocked off the ball. He is meant to be a burley top-man and the proposed future England no. 9, but if he can’t keep on his feet after merely being touched in the box, he really is no different to the rest of them.
There was once a time when English players stood stall against the growing tide of diving and simulation growing in Europe, but with the likes of Wayne Rooney, Raheem Sterling, Ross Barkley and now even Harry Kane, giving in to the temptation of late, those days are now sadly long gone.
However, if you are of the opinion that Kane’s penalty claim was a just and deserved one, then it must be conceded that football is slowly turning into a non-contact sport. If it has in-fact been deemed a correct penalty call, fans of the Premier League may have to turn to the likes of basketball and netball for future indications of how the game will be played. Physicality will soon be ruled out football if such opinions have their way, and as Harry Kane’s weekend tumble clearly highlighted, more and more games will be senselessly decided by overly ambiguous referring decisions.
Pundits use the word ‘contact’ as if it is no longer allowed. Contact this and contact that – if contact happens in the penalty box as it did last weekend for Tottenham, then all a player has to do is go down and plead innocence. Nine times out of ten naive English officials fall for such behaviour, and as such trends continue to take place in the ‘Beautiful Game’, players who display a degree of honesty in the opposition’s penalty box are seemingly left ignored and unrewarded.
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This is sadly the way the game is going today, and although many fans may turn their nose up at such theories with their sides seemingly profiting from the trend, the truth really is obvious in the cold light of day – no matter what certain pundits have to say about the topic.
Everyone is for player protection and the abolition of recklessly cynical challenges, but the state of the game today is just getting silly. If you are seemingly not bothered by the new direction that football has taken in the last decade or so however, then good luck to you, but for the apparent minority of us who are simply tired of this current lack of dignity and integrity in the game, it seems the unwanted theme of play-acting looks set to continue, at least for the foreseeable future.
For the majority of the season Leicester City have looked certain to be relegated after only one year in the top-flight.
The Foxes were sitting rock bottom up until as recently as last week, but out of nowhere the Midlands club have fought back. Picking up maximum points from their last three fixtures has moved them up to 18th, giving a real chance for Nigel Pearson’s men to mastermind a truly great escape.
This well-timed run of good results has lifted the club to within a point of survival in the process, drawing Hull dangerously close to the drop zone with only six games left for them to fight back.
If you compare the two clubs’ remaining fixtures you can’t help but feel that the Tigers might be doomed. Games against Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester United are unlikely to offer Hull the chance to pick up any points whatsoever, while in contrast the Foxes will be playing three of the bottom five.
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With only six points separating the bottom six teams there are possibly more surprises to come and if we are lucky we might just get an exciting final day of the season, where fates will be decided on the day. And that’s what football fans want. The Premier League title has all but been decided so a dog fight on May 24th will add a thrilling and compelling end to the season.
Leicester will still need to stay focussed as their survival is far from confirmed though if they continue in this manner then they should be safe.
Fortunes began changing when the Foxes held Hull 0-0 at the King Power Stadium last month. It was important not only to register a point but to also stop a direct rival from getting the best of them. A defeat to Spurs followed but with three goals finding their way into the oppositions net Leicester had shown that they were not down and out just yet.
Leicester started believing in themselves or perhaps with nothing left to lose they just begun playing without fear. A trio of wins against West Ham, West Brom and Swansea followed, providing nine important points and a potential springboard to finally give themselves something to cheer about. Whether this eleventh hour push has come too late remains to be seen, though.
Leicester gained promotion into the Premier League by topping the table but have found the adjustment just too challenging. They drew their first league game against Everton but didn’t record a win until four matches later, which was surprisingly a 5-3 drubbing of Manchester United.
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Following that spectacular result the Foxes season took an epic turn for the worse waiting until the last match of 2014 before picking up another three points. Stuck in bottom Leicester continued their poor form into the new year but Pearson has kept his job and might be about to repay the boards faith in him.
There are still likely to be a few more twists and turns to this story but if the Foxes do survive then it is a tale that will live long in supporters’ memories. And if they do drop then at least they’ll be able to hold their heads high knowing they didn’t give up without a fight.
Arsene Wenger’s best signing of last season was Alexis Sanchez, so you’d see why Wenger would feel protective of the Chilean attacker.
Sanchez is meeting up with his Chile teammates this month ahead of the start of the Copa America this summer, and the Arsenal manager is wary of his prized asset suffering from overexertion. He’s even promised to give Sanchez four weeks off at the start of next season. Burnout is a problem very much a la mode in modern football, but it’s a very real problem.
Wenger does love a whinge, but this time he’s quite right.
Sanchez is part of a large group of players blighted by the modern way. He’s a superstar, one of the best players in the world who plays week in and week out for a top club. He’s a hero in his country, and a hero to many who have no links even to his continent. He flies around the world to fulfill sponsorship obligations and everyone wants a piece of him.
And then there’s the football. Apart from the physical exhaustion of playing and training – not to mention fixture pile-ups – he also plays for his country. But games for Chile take him all over the world – he doesn’t simply get to stay within a short plane ride of his base.
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But that’s not the main problem. All of that is simply an unavoidable part of modern sport. He’s Chilean, Chile’s games are in South America, so Sanchez has to play some games there.
But that’s not quite what Wenger is worried about. Wenger is not so worried about the intensity of Sanchez’s schedule, more about the length of time he’s had to keep it up.
Sanchez played a full season for Barcelona the season before last. Then went to the World Cup with Chile. He was crucial for Arsenal this season and will now fly off to South America once again to play in another tournament. That’s almost three years without a break.
And that’s the modern way. Football is such big business that the big players need to play all the time. The game reaches so many people that we want to see it on our screens all of the time. Sanchez is paying the price for this, and his body might pay the price much later in his life.
There’s no sympathy for footballers who earn tens of millions of pounds per year, and that’s fair enough – if Sanchez is paying the price for his part in modern football, modern football is certainly giving him a fair salary in return.
But sympathy is not what Wenger is complaining about either. He’s complaining about burnout. Fans might not have sympathy for tired players, but their managers have to. Not from a kind and caring point of view, but simply from a pragmatic point of view. One of Wenger’s responsibilities as a manager is to protect his players.
And that’s also a responsibility for football administrators too. In England there is no winter break, players play at a high intensity throughout the whole season. Then the best players go off to summer tournaments and continue that workout. Then it’s pre-season and fitness work and then it’s a new season.
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Surely if Sanchez only played in half of those games he’d be a much better player – even two thirds of those games. Wenger isn’t worried about tiredness as such, he’s worried about how tiredness affects performance. And for South American players this summer, who have played in a two full seasons and a World cup already over the last two years it’s going to be a hard summer.
And by the middle of next season, when the rest of Europe gets some sort of break, Sanchez will surely be feeling the effects of two and a half years without an extended period of rest. It’ll be a huge feat of professionalism – and indeed of man management on Wenger’s part – if Sanchez can perform for a whole season next year. And given how crucial he was to Arsenal this season, it’s easy to see how Wenger could be upset.
The dreaded Financial Fair Play restrictions have been lifted from Manchester City’s shoulders, allowing manager Manuel Pellegrini unlimited access to the reported £100m war chest afforded him by the Citizens’ owners. Summer transfer windows have been a funny thing for the blue side of Manchester since Sheikh Mansour took control of the club in 2008, yielding varying levels of success. Stellar signings have become a fixture at the Etihad Stadium, however, so to have frustrating flops. This summer is among the most important in City’s history, as the squad needs major work.
Get it right, and City can keep up with their rivals both domestically and in Europe. Get it wrong, and they’ll be left behind.
A pattern has emerged for the Manchester side of late. Step 1: Make some quality additions to the squad that will win you the league. Step 2: After winning the league, sign some distinctly average players who will lose you the league. Rinse. Repeat.
After securing their first Premier League title in the most sensational way you can possibly imagine, they were expected to crack on in the transfer market and build on their momentum. So of course, Jack Rodwell and Scott Sinclair walked through the door. City would then go on to lose their title to arch rivals Manchester United, after they, sensibly, signed Robin van Persie.
That year, City were the new kids on the block and some leniency must be afforded to them. It was their first transfer window following a title-winning campaign, and City were not well-versed enough in how to approach it. After relinquishing their crown, the Sky Blues signed a raft of players who would go on to spur them on to a second league title. The likes of Alvaro Negredo, Fernandinho and Jesus Navas were brought in and played their part in the 2013/14 title-winning campaign.
So City now had the experience in how to approach a title defence. They could now press on, leave struggling arch rivals Manchester United in the dirt and focus on building a successful team for many years to come. UEFA had other ideas, though, and imposed restrictions on the club’s spending that year, so City simply couldn’t go out and buy the players to fend off Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea (although FFP cannot be blamed for the fact £42m was spent on Eliaquim Mangala!)
City ultimately lost the title (shock), as Chelsea usurped them at a canter. But, with FFP restrictions now lifted, City can splash the cash. Top class names have been linked, and the likes of Paul Pogba and Raheem Sterling are reported to be at the top of Pellegrini’s wish list. Those are the sort of names City should be chasing, and this summer they have the chance to add them to their ranks. If City get their signings right, Chelsea can indeed be caught at the top of the league. There are no longer any excuses for the blue side of Manchester, they must get their recruitment right.
If the reported £100m is spent wisely, a rejuvenated City would add an extra edge to the Premier League. The idea of Arsenal, Chelsea and the Manchester clubs fighting it out with squads full of superstars at the top of the league is mouth-watering. In the age of European super squads, the right signings can make up for lost ground in the Champions League. City have the resources.
Should City mess up another transfer window, their Premier League rivals will overtake them. Arsenal are finally buying established stars, and Manchester United are building a team to once again compete at the top of the league. Chelsea will be long gone under the stewardship of Mourinho and Manchester City will be an afterthought.
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City have shown the difficulty in establishing a team as a footballing powerhouse. They’ve enjoyed success domestically, but their struggles in defending their title and early elimination in the Champions League show how competitive top level sport is. Signing expensive players is all well and good, but it’s clear establishing yourself amongst the European giants is not simply a case of making blockbuster signings.
The excuses have run out for City now, they simply have to get this summer right or face being left in the wilderness.
Although Tottenham fans were sad to say goodbye to Gareth Bale in the summer of 2013, the splurging of multiple millions after his departure promised to see some top-notch players arrive at White Hart Lane.
Of all the new faces that were purchased by the North London club using the Welshman’s world record fee, Brazil international midfielder Paulinho was arguably the most exciting. Playing for Corinthians at the time, the box-to-box man was a regular fixture in his national team and was being linked to some of European football’s biggest clubs. Spurs landing Paulinho was seen as something of a coup; the midfielder had been an ever-present in the Selecao side that scooped the Confederations Cup the summer before arriving, and was even talked of as one of the tournament’s best players.
Fast forward two years and the South American has sealed his White Hart Lane exit, with the Brazilian making the move to Chinese Super League club Guangzhou Evergrande.
It is fair to state that Paulinho was a dramatic failure at Tottenham, but where did it all go wrong?
Initially the signs were positive, with hints that the samba star could be the driving force in the team’s midfield and help Spurs secure a top-four place. With good reading of the game and excellent movement off the ball, Paulinho regularly found himself in excellent goalscoring positions in his first campaign in English football.
However, despite the 26-year-old finishing the 2013-14 campaign with six Premier League strikes to his name, Paulinho was largely wasteful in front of goal. The number of chances that the Brazilian spurned throughout the season added up, with the White Hart Lane faithful becoming frustrated with his inability to capitalise on the positions that he took up.
In Andre Villas-Boas’ 4-2-3-1 formation, Paulinho was most commonly utilised in the centre of midfield – the same position that he took up for his country. However, despite the ex-Corinthians man building up something of a reputation for being an enforcer before moving to England, he failed to live up to the physical side of the game in the Premier League.
Missed tackles and being beaten in the air was the tip of the iceberg, and the Spurs supporters lost faith in him when it started to become apparent that he did not have the appetite to fully engage in 50-50 challenges. Ryan Mason has since become a fans’ favourite for his attitude in this part of the game.
Not trusted to feature in front of the side’s defence, Paulinho’s chances to play were minimal under Mauricio Pochettino; largely because Christian Eriksen commandeered the ‘No.10’ role that the Brazilian was seen as an alternative for.
The last nail in the coffin came in a dull 0-0 draw against Burnley at Turf Moor towards the end of the campaign, where the outcast was given a rare start, but put in a dire performance – his infamous dragged shot at goal seemed to sum up his entire spell in North London.
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Winning 32 caps for Brazil is no mean feat and with time Paulinho could maybe have adapted to the English game and won the fans over, but instead he becomes another Brazilian player to fail to make an impact in the Premier League.
He will now embark on a new challenge in Asia, with Spurs fans scratching their heads wondering what might have been.
As reported by the Daily Mail, Everton are interested in signing Besiktas striker Cenk Tosun in the upcoming January transfer window.
What’s the story?
Of the teams in the top half of the English Premier League table, only Burnley have scored less goals this season than Everton. The Toffees have struggled to hit the back of the net after the loss of Romelu Lukaku to Manchester United and signing a long-term replacement should be seen as a priority next month.
One striker Sam Allardyce is interested in is Besiktas forward Cenk Tosun.
That’s according to the Daily Mail, who say that Everton are ready to meet the Turkish side’s £20m valuation of the in-form goalscorer.
However, they’ll face competition from Newcastle and Crystal Palace for his signature say the paper.
Ready for the Premier League
Tosun has been a key player for Besiktas this season, scoring 13 goals in 23 matches, including four in the UEFA Champions League group stage, helping his side top a group that included Porto, RB Leipzig and Monaco.
Scoring at that level would indicate he is ready to cope with the demands of the English top-flight.
He’s also not a one season wonder having scored 24 goals last term and another 15 in the season prior to that.
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It’s clear he has the ruthless ability to find his way to goal and could complete Everton’s attacking line-up, with Allardyce seeking the player that can add the finishing touch to win games.
As reported by The Daily Mail, Arsenal are interested in signing Bordeaux winger Malcom during the January transfer window.
What’s the story?
Arsenal are again struggling to make the top four of the English Premier League this season and with star man Alexis Sanchez on the brink of leaving the club, they badly need some attacking reinforcements to give Arsene Wenger’s squad a boost.
One man said to be high on their list of Sanchez replacements is Brazilian youth international Malcom, currently plying his trade in Ligue 1 with Bordeaux.
That’s according to The Daily Mail, who say the French side are looking for a £45m transfer fee if he is to move in January.
The paper say that rivals Tottenham Hotspur are set to drop their interest in the winger, giving the Gunners a clear path to his signature should they match his valuation.
Good enough?
Malcom isn’t close to Alexis Sanchez’s ability or experience yet but is certainly catching the eye in Ligue 1 after a series of impressive performances over the last couple of seasons.
So far this term he has seven goals and five assists in 19 appearances for Bordeaux, the kind of attacking contribution that would go some way towards helping Arsenal out after the Chilean departs the Emirates.
With the ability to play on each flank, possessing plenty of pace and having a ruthless streak in and around the box, he appears destined to make a move to a bigger club sooner rather than later.
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Still just 20 years of age, he has every chance of developing into an elite player and investing in that future early could work out perfectly for Arsenal at a time they need more creativity and a spark in the final third.
Despite a positive start to his time in charge at the club, recent poor results have seen Sam Allardyce’s popularity among Everton fans disappear somewhat.
Having picked up just one point from their four Premier League games so far in 2018, it seems that the Blue half of Merseyside are in for a real end-of-season slog.
The arrivals of Theo Walcott and Cenk Tosun have certainly strengthened the ranks at Everton but Allardyce has now conceded that the squad is “too big” and departures are likely.
One of these departures, according to latest reports is Ademola Lookman, who the club are happy to send out on loan for the remainder of the season.
The 21-year-old, who is valued at £6.3million by Transfermarkt, has impressed in cameo appearances this season but now looks set to move elsewhere until the summer.
Upon hearing the news of a potential loan-deal for Lookman, Everton fans took to Twitter, and it’s safe to say they were not impressed…
Liverpool and Tottenham will face each other for the 52nd time in the Premier League this weekend and there is once again much on the line as both clubs know Sunday’s result could have a decisive impact on the complexion of the top four when we reach the end of the season.
But can history tell us who will triumph and who will toil in the 4.30pm kickoff at Anfield? Here’s the complete Premier League history of Liverpool vs Tottenham…
Head-to-Head
Tottenham may have beaten Liverpool last time out at Wembley, but that victory was very much the exception to the rule. Indeed, Spurs have won just 14 of their 52 encounters with Liverpool, the same number of games they’ve drawn, and the victory in this season’s reverse fixture was their first over the Reds since November 2012. And it only gets worse for the Lilywhites at Anfield, where they’ve taken all three points just twice throughout the entire Premier League era and averaged less than one goal per game.
Tottenham, however, will take comfort from the fact they’ve still managed to keep eleven clean sheets against Liverpool and with Harry Kane chasing down his 100th Premier League goal, another this weekend has a strong chance of resulting in a huge Spurs win. Liverpool, however have averaged 1.7 goals per game against Spurs in the Premier League and the overall gap between the two sides is 28 goals.
The Top Scorer
This fixture’s top scorer chart is unsurprisingly dominated by Liverpool legends, not least including Robbie Fowler, who scored all six of his Premier League goals against Tottenham while playing for Liverpool in the space of eleven games. Robbie Keane, meanwhile, has featured in this fixture for both clubs, but scored all of his goals for Spurs – only managing an assist during his single outing in a Liverpool jersey.
But the big boost for Tottenham is that they boast the only member of the top five who will be involved in Sunday’s game; Kane’s six top flight outings against the Reds have produced four goals and two assists – including a brace and a setup last time out in October. And should Kane bag a hat-trick this weekend, which certainly isn’t out of the question, he’ll overtake Fowler as this fixture’s top scorer.
The shared (cult) hero – Peter Crouch
Some more illustrious names fall into the category of playing for both clubs in the Premier League; Jamie Redknapp, Robbie Keane, Danny Murphy, Nicky Barmby and Brad Friedel to mention a few. But few players struck such a perfect equilibrium of appearances for both teams and few went on to earn cult hero status in quite the same way as Peter Crouch.
While neither group of fans completely warmed to the towering striker, who was often seen as a rather unfashionable front-man, his strike-rate for the Reds wasn’t half bad – 42 goals in 132 appearances across all competitions, despite often featuring as a substitute – although three seasons at White Hart Lane produced just 24 goals. Perhaps most tellingly of why he was never the beacon of popularity, however, his two tenures produced just one trophy – an FA Cup in 2006.
The Classic Contest – Tottenham 3-3 Liverpool
With the end of the season on the horizon, Tottenham and Liverpool both entered this March fixture at White Hart Lane desperate for a win – the 16th-placed former looking to push themselves clear of the relegation zone and the latter needing all three points to have any hope of closing the gap on Manchester United in the title race. Inevitably then, both teams drew. But the fans were left more than satisfied as the players put on a six-goal thriller in which Tottenham took the lead three times and the Reds equalised three times, no leveller coming less than 15 minutes after the prior goal.
Jurgen Klinsmann, during his much-fabled loan spell back in north London after leaving in 1995, opened the scoring after just 13 minutes with a trademark header, but the Reds hit back shortly after as Michael Owen jinked down the left flank before squaring the ball to Steve McManaman for a relatively routine finish.
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The iconic David Ginola then put Tottenham ahead once again with a delicate curler that sneaked into the bottom corner under a flailing Brad Friedel, only for Paul Ince to acrobatically net a bicycle kick to make it 2-2.
That lead to a thrilling final ten minutes in which Ramon Vega rose highest at a corner to put the Lilywhites in front. However, McManaman soon capitalised on the Swiss defender’s rather shambolic efforts at the other end to poke home a rebound off the post and ensure the spoils were shared.