Former Chelsea forward Adrian Mutu is likely to raise eyebrows with his claim about Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s situation at Manchester United.
The former Sweden international was a massive hit at the North-West club last season as he scored 17 goals in 28 Premier League performances.
The 36-year-old was proving that age is just a number until he suffered a serious knee injury in the closing stages of last season.
Many questioned whether the striker would ever play again, but he did recover and signed a new one-year deal at United, much to the delight of the supporters.
However, it has not quite gone to plan for the Swede as he has made just seven appearances in all competitions this season and has scored just the one goal.
Ibrahimovic suffered an injury blow in December and has not played since United’s draw with Burnley on Boxing Day.
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Mutu, who played under Mourinho at Chelsea, has now made a bizarre claim that the only reason the former Paris Saint-Germain star is not playing is because he has fallen out with the manager.
In an interview with Telekom Sport Romania, Mutu said:
“I do not care about Mourinho. Mourinho doesn’t care about the performance, only the result. I have the information that Ibrahimovic is not injured, he’s just cold with Mourinho right now.”
Burnley are a ‘nice’ team, but is that worth anything during a relegation battle? Sean Dyche seems like a respectable manager, and he doesn’t get drawn into any slanging matches with other managers or ever try to pass the blame. His squad is built entirely of British and Irish players with one English born Austrian – a remarkable achievement.
Except the quality of their squad quite simply isn’t good enough for the division that they have found themselves in. As expected, of any promoted side, the majority of the squad are of a ‘Championship level’ and it can take a season or two of hard-fought survival to turn that around. In their 25-man squad for the Premier League season only 13 have any previous experience of playing in the Premier League, with most playing around 10 games or fewer in the competition. Compared to that of fellow promoted team QPR who’s 26-man squad contains 19 players who have previous Premier League experience, and a further two loanees from Italy’s top division, Serie A.
Credit where credit is due, Burnley finished 2nd in the Championship last season and fully deserved their promotion. However, after being the final team in England’s professional divisions to pick up a victory this season, it’s clear they are in for a season of struggle. With eleven games gone the Clarets are rock bottom of the league having scored just six goals. One positive note for them so far this season is the fact that they can effectively shut off some opponents, so the lack of goalscoring isn’t completely painful. Early on in the season Dyche’s men managed three bore draws in a row against Manchester United, Crystal Palace and Sunderland, before conceding four to West Brom. After scoring in the opening weekend defeat to Chelsea, they went six games in all competitions without another. And to be fair to them, they’ve hardly had the easiest run of fixtures to start off with.
Having a squad with no standout quality isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as a squad of team-players can sometimes be enough to survive in the top division. But should Burnley stick with Sean Dyche through what seems like an impending relegation?
Any manager who gains promotion from the Championship will be very much aware of the trouble that the following season will create, and although one of the promoted sides usually overachieves the other two ultimately struggle to survive. Then again, is football all about surviving? Burnley supporters will cherish the victories in the Premier League this season even if they are relegated, more than they cherished the 26 victories during the last campaign in the Championship. Dyche led his men up and with little resources made the best squad that he could. It was a fantastic achievement and automatic promotion in the Championship shouldn’t be undervalued.
I believe that Dyche has taken this squad to it’s absolute peak by reaching the Premier League and they inevitable relegation is looming. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that his days are numbered. The money earned and the players gained will only make Burnley stronger for next season should relegation arrive, and the problem isn’t of anyones fault. It’s a rare thing in football for nobody to pick up the blame for poor performances, but the manager is aware of how difficult the Premier League is and how much greater all the other sides are in terms of quality – and he’s right.
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If Burnley do get relegated – as seems most likely – it will be through no fault of the players or the manager. Not the fault of any trouble maker or lazy individuals. But a squad of almost entirely British and Irish players just not being good enough. Perhaps the best way to go down, but still, come on Burnley – it would be one of the greatest triumphs in the Premier League if Sean Dyche can mastermind this rather average squad of players to survive relegation this season.
Peter Crouch was quoted in the papers morning that with no front teeth and a brace in place that it was a good job he was married as he looks a bit of a mess at the minute. It was also he who famously gave the answer “a virgin” – when asked the question ‘What would you be if you weren’t a football?’
The Stoke City striker is married to arguably one of the most beautiful woman in the country, who unlike many other WAGs has a successful career in her own right and breaks the mould that they are simply money grabbers happy to bleed their partner dry. Indeed Rafa van der Vaart said that his Mrs was actually more famous than him, while it is hard to dispute that Helen Flanagan has been getting more air-time at this moment than her Manchester City boyfriend Scott Sinclair.
WAGS come in all shapes and sizes and the Premier League’s player lounges has see some absolute beauties mingle through them over the years. The following list is a collection of the best England’s top division has witnessed over the years.
In recent years, Southampton have become known to most as a selling club.
Since promotion to the Premier League, the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Sadio Mane, Adam Lallana, Luke Shaw and Nathaniel Clyne to name a few, have all been sold. In the Saints’ defence, they’ve managed to do extremely well in English football’s top division considering how many of their star players have been pinched.
Despite the constant array of departures at St. Mary’s, one player that the Saints have been able to retain, is the £18m-rated (via Transfermarkt) Ryan Bertrand.
Bertrand has reportedly attracted interest from former club Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham during his time at Southampton, but a transfer to one of the Premier League giants has failed to materialise. Considering all three clubs have the resources to sign Bertrand, one reason for the England international’s stay may simply be down to a worry of playing time elsewhere.
In Marcos Alonso and Benjamin Mendy, Chelsea and Manchester City have two of the best left-backs in the division, while despite speculation surrounding a move away from White Hart Lane, Danny Rose has remained at Tottenham to battle Ben Davies for a first-team spot in Tottenham’s starting XI.
However, Bertrand himself is one of the Premier League’s leading left-backs and has the ability to cement a place in any top six side.
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At 28, Bertrand is in the prime of his career and is running out of time if he wants to relive success similar to what he enjoyed at Chelsea when he helped the club win their first Champions League trophy back in 2012.
Manchester United returned to second position in the Premier League table with a 2-1 win over Chelsea at Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon.
Willian sent the Blues ahead in Manchester, but Romelu Lukaku netted to equalise against his former club before Jesse Lingard headed a winner for the home team.
It was actually Anthony Martial that departed the field for Lingard, but the former had already played his part having provided the assist for Lukaku to level the scores.
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Martial caused Chelsea all sorts of problems with his movement in the final third as he switched from left to right in a bid to free Alexis Sanchez.
The 22-year-old, who is valued at £58.5m by transfermarkt.co.uk, is enjoying a fine campaign with the Red Devils having scored 11 times and registered 10 assists in 38 appearances in all competitions.
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The United supporters absolutely love the former Monaco youngster, and many took to social media in the aftermath of the Chelsea result to pay tribute to the in-form attacker.
A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:
Crystal Palace boss Neil Warnock has revealed that Wilfried Zaha is desperate to prove his worth to Manchester United this season.
The young winger returned to his boyhood club late on during the last transfer window on a season-long loan after being told that his game time at Old Trafford would be limited by manager Louis van Gaal.
Zaha had only made his switch to the Red Devils proper a year before, but a disastrous season under David Moyes saw him barely given a starting opportunity before he was shipped out to Cardiff for the latter half of the campaign.
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After a difficult spell, the 21-year-old is back in regular action with the Eagles, and speaking ahead of today’s win with Everton, Warnock made it known that Zaha is desperate to ensure that he has a future with his parent club:
“I don’t think his career is in jeopardy,” he is quoted by the London Evening Standard.
“I wouldn’t say we need to save his career, we just need to get games under his belt now and he needs to put himself back in the shop window (for England).
“To do that he has got to consistently be good, week in, week out. That has to be his aim this season.
“He is in that age-group that is breaking into the England squad. He is definitely looking at all these young lads – they deserve it, they have worked hard and done consistency well. It will motivate him.
“The problem has been he has not had enough games. He needs games, last week he ran out of steam a little bit but he is putting the work in on the training ground. Ability and confidence is nothing he has ever been missing.
“He has come here to try and convince the (Man United) manager that he works for that he is good enough to give him a go – that is his aim.
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“His attitude has been spot-on since I met him – there were three or four clubs after him and we got him, but his intention is to try and go back there and get in the team and I think that is great for the young lad.”
Southampton’s summer signing Gaston Ramirez has admitted that he would be open to a move back to Italy in the future and that Fiorentina would be his preferred club, as reported by Sky Sports.
The Saints paid Bologna a club record £11.8million for the Uruguayan this summer and the talented midfielder is starting to come good at St Mary’s. However, with Southampton clearly facing a relegation battle this season, Ramirez is clearly already thinking about his long term future.
“In Bologna I was fine, but now I think about Southampton,” Ramirez told Tuttomercatoweb.
“Coming back to Italy? In England I discovered a fantastic football.
“But in life never say never, in Italy, as well as in England, there are many important teams.
“Me to Fiorentina? It would be nice, they are playing very well and I like coach (Vincenzo) Montella.
“In every game the team are having fun, they have great quality. Why not? I’d come back in Italy, I like it and I was fine there.”
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Cardiff City boss Neil Warnock may seem like an overtly attritional manager, and in the main that’s a fair assessment.
But throughout his lengthy managerial career, the Yorkshireman has always found room in his sides for a maverick winger – whether that’s QPR’s Adel Taarabt, Crystal Palace’s Yannick Bolasie, Leeds United’s El Hadji Diouf or, as Bluebirds fans saw last season, Junior Hoilett.
And upon the Welsh outfit’s return to the Premier League, garnering extra top flight experience this summer is a must to give them the best chance of survival for 2018/19.
Sunderland forward Wabhi Khazri, who has impressed in glimpses for Tunisia at the World Cup, would appear to meet both remits – offering proven pedigree at Premier League level and also the kind of unorthodox creativity from out wide Warnock has demonstrated a recurring capacity to effectively tap into.
The Black Cats forward – who spent last season bagging nine Ligue 1 goals for Rennes – didn’t have much of an impact against England such was the defensive nature of Tunisia’s performance.
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But on Saturday, Khazri was a real thorn in the side of the Belgium defence, whipping in a sizzlingly delivery to assist Dylan Bronn and then scoring himself in stoppage time, tucking home a Hamdi Nagguez cross to ensure the underdogs went home with two goals in an otherwise hefty defeat.
Khazri is valued at just £9million by Transfermarkt but considering how desperate Sunderland will be to get him off their books now they’re in League One, Cardiff could well end up signing him for significantly less should they make a bid this summer. So, Bluebirds fans, would you back a swoop for Khazri? Let us know by voting below…
Leeds United moved to within five points of the English Championship play-off positions with a much-needed 1-0 victory over Brentford at Elland Road on Saturday.It was Leeds’ first win under new manager Paul Heckingbottom and their first in ten matches and could be a major turning point in their season as the race for promotion heats up in the closing stages of the second-tier.The Whites had Liam Cooper to thank for the victory, the defender heading home from a free-kick to respond to criticism after a lacklustre performance mid-week.[ad_pod ]The name on every supporter’s lips though was Samu Saiz, who impressed throughout the 90 minutes and wowed supporters with his skill and dribbling ability. It was the player’s first start since receiving a suspension for spitting in an FA Cup clash.Fans reckon that the team was much improved with him in the side and hope he can stay in the starting eleven going forward.They took to Twitter to share their thoughts…
During his time at Arsenal, manager Arsene Wenger has only lost six of the 44 North London derbies he has been a part of. If there was any time for Arsenal to prove their title credentials, it would be with a satisfying win in tomorrow’s game against Tottenham. Arsenal has won four of their last five meetings with their local rivals, including both of their meetings in the league last season.
The Gunners have not had a bad start to the Premier League season, but things could be better. One of only two sides still undefeated in the league this season (the other is Chelsea), they sit in 4th place with two wins and three draws. The draws against Leicester and Manchester City could have been wins if Arsenal kept tighter at the back, so making sure no repeats of the mistakes that happened in these games will be important this Saturday.
Resilience has been shown this season by Arsenal, after coming back from 2-0 down against Everton to draw 2-2 and picking up a good 3-0 win away at Aston Villa last time out.
Arsenal fans will be hoping their side repeats their performance from the Villa game this weekend. Their passing was accurate with a 90% passing success rate, they were dominant in the air with 79% aerial success, and they had a possession percentage of 71%. They were effective at creating goal scoring opportunities from through balls and from the flanks and they were strong at finishing.
Playing the German Mesut Ozil behind Englishman Danny Welbeck worked perfectly as it helped Arsenal score three goals within the first half of this game. Ozil is beginning to show his value that he is a key player in the squad, forming a good combination with Welbeck which could become deadly force and a big problem for opposition defences in the future.
After picking up his first goal in Arsenal colours against Villa, fans will hope Welbeck can continue his goal scoring, as he has been dubbed by some to follow the same path as Arsenal legend Thierry Henry.
Tottenham haven’t had a satisfying win since the second game of the season and Arsenal should exploit their mistakes with Ozil and Welbeck to pick up a vital three points. A dominant win against Spurs will show the skill class between the two sides and can prove to some doubters that always think Arsenal will be out of the title race come February time.
Arsenal had a horrendous record against the Premier League’s top clubs last season and humiliating defeats at Chelsea, Liverpool and City ended their hopes of winning their first Premier League title since 2004. So far this season though, Arsenal have achieved a home point against Manchester City, which can be seen as two points off a title rival, proving their own title credentials even further.
The Gunners may have been knocked out of the League Cup mid-week after losing 2-1 at home against Southampton, but this shouldn’t damage the confidence of the side in the league.
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Not only is this a must win game because it’s the North London Derby, but also because their next two games, vs Galatasaray in the Champions League and Chelsea in the Premier League, are tough and not far apart from one another. This close game proximity may take its toll on the side and could ultimately cost them points in the league later if they don’t win. Winning the game against Chelsea, a fellow title contender, as well as the game this weekend would prove their title credentials even further as well and sending some of the doubters straight.
Yes, there is still a long way to go in the season but any time is the right time for Arsenal to prove their worth and title credentials.