All posts by h79snht.top

In the space of four days, Swansea City have twice fallen foul to a costly refereeing mistake on Merseyside. As if the harsh dismissal of Federico Fernandez against Liverpool in the Capital One Cup last Tuesday was bad enough – the Reds went on to score the winning goal from the resulting free-kick – the blatant, yet unpunished handball by Everton’s Antolin Alcaraz in the penalty area during Saturday’s Premier League fixture at Goodison Park denied the Swans the opportunity to record a famous away victory. Jonjo Shelvey, whose shot was so clearly blocked by Alcaraz’s arm, was later sent off in the game for a second bookable offence, and replays suggest that the man who once called Liverpool his home could also be forgiven for feeling hard done by.

Swansea City manager Garry Monk clearly feels that these are no mere isolated incidents. He first raised his concerns at what he felt were costly decisions going against his team in the aftermath of the defeat to Stoke City in October. Victor Moses’s shameless dive to earn Stoke a penalty, Monk argued, was further evidence of his side being the victims of a footballing miscarriage of justice, and in his post-match press conference the Swansea boss was critical of the fact that his grievances were falling on deaf ears.

“I’ve sent a DVD off, with a letter, but I’ve had no contact from [referees’ chief] Mike Riley,” he said.

“I think that’s very poor leadership from him. He is clearly not listening and I have to go above him, and hopefully we will get the answers.

“We just want to know why there is no consistency in the big decisions that have changed games for us.”

The events on Merseyside last week will have served only to strengthen Monk’s convictions. However, the 35-year-old must be careful not to stray into conspiracy theorist territory. His side have indeed suffered some pretty shoddy refereeing decisions of late, but to intimate that there is some kind of hidden agenda to sabotage the South Wales club’s campaign would be puerile. They are not the first team to endure a prolonged period of misfortune at the hands of the officials, and certainly won’t be the last.

However, what is refreshing about Monk’s approach is that whilst many managers would hesitate to criticise a referee for fear of punishment, he is not afraid to voice his opinions. Those officiating matches should certainly be held accountable for the decisions they make, and Monk has every right to criticise. This is by no means an advocation of slander – Brendan Rodgers’ claim that his Liverpool side were at a disadvantage in a league tie with Manchester City last season due to the fact that the referee came from Greater Manchester was particularly foolish, and his subsequent fine justified – but the way in which managers are threatened with punishment for the slightest criticism is harmful to the game. If referees are completely sheltered from blame, the standards of officiating cannot improve, and the animosity directed towards them will only persist.

On the other hand, by encouraging greater transparency and leniency with regard to what coaches can say about the officials – and perhaps even conducting post-match interviews with the referees themselves so that they can explain their actions – there is room for a greater improvement in the way games are officiated, a greater understanding of why a certain judgement has been made, and a greater possibility for the expression of empathy towards the referee, who is human after all. This can only be of benefit to the game in the long run.

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Pre-season tours have gained more importance in recent years. Travelling to foreign countries allows clubs a great opportunity to expand their brand and helps players get ready for the upcoming season. Here are some of the Premier League’s top Asian tour for this upcoming summer:

Arsenal:

13/14 July: Indonesia national team (Jakarta)

22 July: Nagoya Grampus Eight (Japan)

Arsenal’s 2013 Asia tour will take manager Arsene Wenger to familiar territory. The Gunners will square off against Japanese club Nagoya Grampus, who Wenger managed for 18 months in the mid ’90s. Arsenal will play the Indonesian national team in Jakarta before heading to Japan.

Chelsea:

17 July: Singha Thailand All Stars XI (Bangkok)

21 July: Malaysia XI (Kuala Lumpur)

25 July: Indonesia XI (Jakarta)

Chelsea’s “Here to play, Here to stay” tour will aim to spread the value of football to the Far East. The reigning Barclays Asia Trophy winners hope to spread their Blue Pitch in the City programme while training for their upcoming season. The three-game tour culminates with a match in the 88,000-seater Gelora Bung Karno Stadium.

Liverpool:

28 July: (Bangkok)

Liverpool decided to tour Asia this summer, after signing a three-year deal with Asian airline Garuda Indonesia. The Reds’ players are looking at the summer tour as an opportunity to add to their massive global following.

Jordan Henderson told lfctour.com, “There’s massive support worldwide for such a big team like Liverpool. I probably first noticed it when I first came away in pre-season – the support was unbelievable and we had more fans than the home team.”

Manchester United:

13 July: Singha All Star XI (Bangkok)

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23 July: Yokohama F-Marinos (Yokohama)

26 July: Cerezo Osaka (Osaka)

29 July: Kitchee FC (Hong Kong)

Manchester United, one of the Premier League’s most global teams, has planned an extensive Asian tour. United will play four matches in four different cities. The Reds are perhaps the most popular club in the Far East. Footballers look forward to this opportunity to showcase their talents to new fans.

Defender Phil Jones told mfc.com, “It’s important to give something back to those fans and show our support to them.”

 

This season’s Capital One Cup has been truly historic – the number of giant-killings has been a big surprise and we have seen the return of the romance of cup football. We’ve experienced some significant shocks and amazing score-lines, so here is a list of our unofficial Capital One Cup awards – enjoy!

Player of the tournament – Matt Duke (Bradford City) –  The fairytale story of Bradford City’s rise to the Capital One Cup final would not have been so fantastical had it not been for the wonderful performances of goalkeeper Matt Duke throughout all stages of the competition. The ‘keeper in such fine form had a marked affect on his team-mates, keeping a clean-sheet against Wigan to take the game to penalties where Bradford seized the initiative. Duke’s performance against Arsenal was arguably one of the finest goalkeeping displays this season as he denied the probing, penetrative attacks of the Gunners time and time again. A fine double save against Santi Cazorla in the final minutes of stoppage time kept his team in the game where they would go on to prosper on penalties once more. Duke’s form continued into the semi-final clash with Aston Villa, where a series of fine saves provided the Bantams with a fantastic 3-1 aggregate lead ahead of the second-leg at Villa Park. In this second-leg clash, Duke denied both Villa danger-men Christian Benteke and Gabriel Agbonlahor early on, and besides a wonderful strike later on from Benteke, Duke looked comfortable in a hostile atmosphere. His performances provided the basis for Bradford City to push on and believe they could beat Premier League opposition – and by goodness, have they done so.

Young player of the tournament – Nakhi Wells (Bradford City) – Bradford have had a historic run in this year’s Capital One Cup, knocking out three Premier League sides in Wigan, Arsenal and Aston Villa to reach the final. And, while Bradford’s players have shown fight, determination and organisation in general, a few players in particular have stood out and really made a difference for the Bantams on the big occasions. The youngest of these players, 22-year-old Bermudian Nakhi Wells, has shown skill, stamina and experience beyond his years throughout all stages of the competition. His first noteworthy performance came against Burton Albion, where he bagged two late goals to take the game into extra time, where Bradford prospered 3-2. His performances later in the competition not only saw him score against Premier League side Aston Villa, but also saw a more experienced side to his game, as he held up the ball and ran the channels with remarkable stamina, running the clock down for his team to seal famous victory after famous victory. This season, Wells has epitomised the grit and determination of Bradford City, and has a bright future ahead in English football – he is Bradford’s highest scorer this season, sitting on 18 goals across all competitions.

Goal of the competition – Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal 6 – 1 Coventry) –  Arsenal’s second goal in their 6-1 mauling of League One side Coventry City was a truly wonderful strike from young England international Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. The 19-year-old comes off the left wing, passing to Andrei Arshavin, who proceeds to return the favour as Oxlade-Chamberlain cuts into the middle. With a few yards of space in front of him, the youngster hits a thunderbolt outside-of-the-foot shot with his right from 30 yards out, which curls away from Coventry ‘keeper Joe Murphy at the last moment and finds the back of the net. It’s a truly world-class strike from a fantastic prospect for both Arsenal and England in the future.

Comeback of the competition – Reading 5 – 7 Arsenal –  Reading fans would have expected a tough game against the Gunners on this cold October night. However, the Royals took a remarkable 4-0 lead within 40 minutes, and fans were already celebrating their victory in ecstasy. Minutes later, though, Theo Walcott pulled a goal back for Arsenal just before the break. This proved a vital turning point as Arsenal overcame their huge deficit with goals from Olivier Giroud, Laurent Koscielny and a second from Walcott, taking the game into extra-time. Reading fans felt shocked as their team squandered a four-goal lead, only for Arsenal to score their fifth in the 103rd minute, heaping pressure on the hosts. Reading fans were given another boost as Pavel Pogrebnyak found the net to equalise and make it 5-5. However, it was not to be for the Royals as Arsenal put two more past Adam Federici through Marouane Chamakh and another from Walcott to complete his hat-trick and wrap the game up at 7-5. Both Reading and Arsenal fans had well and truly experienced a roller-coaster of emotions that night.

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Game of the competition – Reading 5 – 7 Arsenal –  For the reasons already stated above, the clash between Reading and Arsenal embodied the very spirit and romance of cup football, with Reading facing a tough tie at the Madejski Stadium. Both teams may have Premier League status, but their fortunes could not have been more different – with Reading rooted to the bottom of the table and Arsenal pushing for a top-four place. However, the Royals found themselves 4-0 up within 40 minutes with goals from Jason Roberts, Mikele Leigertwood, Noel Hunt and a Laurent Koscielny own-goal – and began to believe they may topple the Gunners out of the competition. However, Theo Walcott bagged a vital goal just before half-time and later claimed the equaliser with Olivier Giroud and Koscielny also scoring in the second period to level the scores at 4-4 and take the game into extra-time. In extra-time, substitute Marouane Chamakh handed Arsenal the initiative, only for Pavel Pogrebnyak to level the scores again and make it 5-5, giving the Reading fans another boost. However, it was the Gunners who seized their opportunities and a quick double from Chamakh and Walcott, who completed his hat-trick, to put the game beyond any doubt. Finishing 7-5, the game contained everything that a wonderful cup tie should – the underdog showing fight and determination, a dramatic comeback, and a wonderful performance from a young player – Theo Walcott.

In the history of the Premier League, we have seen some truly terrific players to grace our shores; which has considerably raised fans’ expectations of other players. These fine men on the list represent those who have been put under unnecessary pressure to deliver, with undue criticism occurring as a consequence. These are players with varying abilities, but ones who have either felt like scapegoats or not given enough time to succeed.

Some of these players are undoubtedly talented, but have been portrayed as villains and attracted some unwarranted criticism from some football fans. This has sometimes been caused by making a wrong career move or a few negative headlines appearing off the pitch. Other players on the list have simply been unable to impress at our country’s biggest clubs; and have now forged careers for themselves at smaller teams. As always, the list is purely subjective, likely to cause many of you to scream at your laptops in frustration. But anyway, here is my list of the top 15 players who have attracted unwarranted stick and criticism in their careers during the Premier League era.

Click on Robbie Savage to see the full list

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Angel di Maria is worth every penny:

At just shy, bang on or a little bit more of £60million (it depends on what figure you want to believe), Manchester United forked out a British record transfer fee to bring the Real Madrid ace to Old Trafford.

You’d obviously expect an instant, and big, return on such a price and after opening the scoring today, combined with his overall performance, the Argentina international looks to be worth the astronomical cost.

Manchester United are back!

Okay, it has only been 90 minutes but what a 90 minutes it was for Louis van Gaal’s boys.

The Red Devils performance was full of energy, pace, creativity and goals; four things we were accustomed to during the days of Sir Alex Ferguson.

LvG now has a platform to build upon as the Dutchman looks to get United back into the Champions League.

Robin van Persie is no longer the main man

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Before Louis van Gaal announced his starting line-up for the game today, a lot of the talk surrounded whether it would Wayne Rooney or Juan Mata to lose their place to Falcao.

LvG surprised us all, though, when he started the Colombian on the bench. However, it won’t be long before the man on loan from AS Monaco will be commanding a starting place and, on today’s performance, Robin van Persie may well be the fall guy.

Newcastle United club captain Fabricio Coloccini is the subject of a shock bid from Argentinian club San Lorenzo as reported by the Daily Mirror.

The 30 year old enjoyed 19 games on loan at the club from AC Milan in the 2000/2001 season and San Lorenzo hope that Coloccini being a fan of the club could lure him back to South America.

The curly haired centre half has been a rock at the back for Newcastle in recent seasons and is currently the highest played player at St James’ Park, a factor that could work against San Lorenzo.

It would be a shock if Newcastle let their captain go, especially considering that their central defence is considered their weakest area.

Despite admitting that the deal will be difficult to pull off, the Argentinian club are refusing to rule out the possibility of Coloccini joining the club in the January transfer window.

“We know he is a fan and wants to return, so there could be a possibility,” said club President Matías Lammens on Radio La Red.

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“It’s not impossible but of course the only thing that can accelerate the situation is Fabricio’s intentions.

“It could be difficult but that doesn’t mean it’s fallen through.”

Sam Allardyce has warned his players that they will need to improve their game if West Ham are to bounce back from their disappointing recent form against Norwich on New Year’s Day.

The Hammers were beaten by relegation-battlers Reading on Saturday and have now won just one of their last eight Premier League fixtures.

And Allardyce admits his side have lacked quality in recent matches, after finding the net just three times in their last four league fixtures since defeating Chelsea 3-1 in early December.

“We need to bounce back,” Allardyce told ITV Sport.

“We’ve got to make sure we become better at creating and taking our chances, otherwise it’s going to be tough.

“The balls into the box haven’t been given enough quality to open up a defence as everybody starts tightening up at this stage of the season.”

West Ham will look to return to winning ways in front of their home supporters against a Norwich side who have lost their last three matches since an impressive 10-match unbeaten run.

Despite the Norfolk-club’s recent form, Allardyce is wary of the threat posed by Canaries counter-attacks, and is expecting a tense atmosphere at Upton Park.

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“I think it is going to be a big test for our nerve for the first time this season,” he said.

“Norwich have been very good defensively, particularly away from home and I think that they make life very difficult for you to break them down and play very well on the counter-attack if you leave too many spaces.”

Tottenham Hotspur defender Kyle Walker was forced to shut down his Twitter account after Spurs fans berated him over yesterday’s defeat to Chelsea, as reported by the Daily Mail.

@kyle28walker was bombarded with abusive tweets from his own fans after his mediocre performance in the London derby that saw rivals Chelsea come from 2-1 down to win 4-2 in the second half.

Walker was at fault for the final Chelsea goal in injury time and it seems that despite his full commitment to the club, some sections of online Spurs fans needed to vent their anger.

“Would love to know what I’m doing so different I give 100 per cent every game and still u (have) something to say I’m 22 and learning #embarrassing,” Walker wrote before deleting his account.

“If I said what I thought to these people I would get done humans make mistakes it was 90mins and I though(t it was) a foul end off (sic)!!!!”

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It’s the subject that simply refuses to go away within English football at the moment and for Tottenham Hotspur winger Gareth Bale, he’d do well to pick up a couple of newspapers of late. In a series of weeks that have seen the issue of diving hop straight back up to the top of football’s agenda of malaise, you would have thought that the Welshman would have the nous to avoid a complete PR disaster.

Indeed, while the actions of Liverpool’s Luis Suarez has catalyzed a whole catalogue of fierce debate over the practice of simulation, Bale has played his own part in ensuring it continues to produce column inches. And a further contentious tumble on international duty against Scotland, has shot Bale straight into the spectrum of chief suspects.

But the issue for Bale isn’t one of personal integrity. It’s one that has the ability to cause both himself and his side some serious problems later along the line this season.

The issue of diving isn’t anything new on these shores. As with so many other issues in football, there is something very topical about the way it manages to creep up onto the footballing radar. As the fickle finger of the Premier League spins round on a never ending basis, talk about top flight thespians will usually subside and make way for the two-footed tackle debate or the flailing elbow argument.

But things feel different this time. For many people, Spurs fans included, there was a sense of poetic justice in seeing Luis Suarez get planted over by Norwich’s Leon Barnett for a stonewall penalty, only for referee Mike Jones to wave his claims away. The proverb “you reap what you sow”, has been wheeled out often in the past few weeks and in fairness, it certainly rings true to a certain extent.

But as the Suarez debate rumbles on, it seems to have reopened another and the school of thought that Premier League referees are beginning to judge the Uruguayan on reputation, rather than an incident on it’s own merits, is one that should cause equal cause for concern. And it’s one that Gareth Bale in particular, should give more than a moment’s thought to.

Fans of teams who have been on the receiving end of one of his tumbles (Villa and Arsenal supporters, take a stand), may be happy to dispute this, but Bale bestows a more polished public profile than Luis Suarez. A modest, humble talent, there are no bans for racial abuse or red cards for blatant hand ball on his resume. But if he continues to fall to the ground under little to no contact, that will all count for diddly squat.

Bale has already faced several allegations of diving and despite his claims to the contrary, his justifications for going down easily, hardly endear himself to a wider audience.

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Following critique over his penalty winning dive in the 5-2 defeat against Arsenal last season, Bale responded that his art is more injury prevention, than diving:

“It’s annoying. You have people flying in at you, it’s not really diving, you’re trying to get out of the way of the challenge if anything,” the Welshman said last year.

“It’s a difficult one. You can see why people say you’re diving but at the end of the day I’d rather dive than get hurt.”

While Bale’s viewpoint maintains a certain amount of gravitas, it’s impossible to skirt round the viewpoint that he has more than a tendency to go down to easily. The wider debate surrounding simulation can be extended to very specific and technical instances and whether by launching himself over a full-back’s trailing leg at regular intervals is any better, is highly disputable.

But the stonewall acts of cheating are simply unforgivable and his fall in Spurs’ 2-0 victory over Aston Villas was totally unacceptable. The sight of watching Bale go down under thin air as he pre-empted a kick from Brad Guzan that never came, was really quite hard to watch. It gets worse every time you see it and if anyone was still to doubt the Welshman’s tendency to dabble in football’s darkest of arts, they can surely be in no doubt now.

Although, it’s not just his own morality that he’s damaging by going to ground like that. If Bale waltzes into the penalty area and is hacked down against Chelsea this weekend but the referee waves him away, then Spurs fans will be left with a Luis Suarez situation all of their own. Premier League referees must stay subjective, but does human nature dictate that when they see him go down, his fall against Villa will come into their head? It shouldn’t, but it could well do.

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Even if referees are wrong to not judge each situation on their own merits, but Bale shouldn’t even be putting them in a position for that to become an issue. If he goes down in the penalty area against Roberto Di Matteo’s side on Saturday, you can bet your mortgage that his side will be screaming dive regardless of what happened. Bale’s behavior has only played into their hands.

Regardless of whether Shaun Maloney has claimed that his feeble contact with Gareth Bale constituted a penalty last week, it remains a woefully soft decision. And the problem is, with every ridiculous tumble the Welshman is taking, he is subjecting himself to forensic scrutiny in each incident.

Fans who frequent White Hart Lane love watching Gareth Bale for his barnstorming runs and his gifted ability – not for his acting skills. And when his behavior is set to put his side in jeopardy of getting a fair run, fans have the right to demand he cleans up his act. And fast.

What do you think about Gareth Bale’s antics for Spurs and Wales? Let me know what you think on Twitter: follow @samuel_antrobus and let me know if you think it’s time AVB sorted the Welshman out. 

Arsene Wenger has pleaded to Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna to stay with the Gunners, despite the right back’s concerns over the club’s transfer policy.

The Mirror reports that Wenger will offer the right back a new contract despite the French International’s recent outburst.

In a recent interview with L’Equipe, Sagna admitted his frustration at the club’s failure to keep their best players and win trophies.

The Gunners defender’s contract runs until 2014 but Arsenal are keen to tie down one of their prised assets and end speculation of a potential exit from the club. Kieran Gibbs also only has two years left on his deal and will be offered a new contract.

Sales of Robin Van Persie and Samir Nasri became inevitable due to the club’s failure to place their star players on long contracts, it’s also unclear whether Theo Walcott will leave the club after contract talks have broke down with the England international. Putting the two full-backs on new long contracts is an attempt from the London club to avoid future high profile exits.

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