Following Chelsea’s 1-0 defeat to Manchester United at Stamford Bridge in the first leg of the quarter finals of the Champions League last night, the knives are out once again for Fernando Torres. The Spanish striker who cost Chelsea £50 million from Liverpool in January is still yet to score for the Blues and doesn’t look like doing so any time soon. So that begs the question, is Fernando Torres the biggest waste of money ever?
This is an accolade for which there is plenty of competition, including previous Chelsea signings for starters. This comes in the form of the likes of £30m man Andriy Shevchenko, while Man United can boast Juan Sebastian Veron at £28.1m and Man City spent £32.5m on Robinho. Liverpool fans will want to forget £17m they spent on Alberto Aquilani, while could the £35m spent on Andy Carroll be considered a waste in the future? As like Torres, the former Newcastle striker is still yet to score for his new club. A special mention also has to go to Winston Bogarde who was more than happy to take the £40,000 given to him by Chelsea.
The decision as to which player is the biggest waste of money ever was too difficult a one for a single man to make, so we’re opening it up to you. Who do you think has been the biggest waste of money ever? Vote now!
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
There are reports in the Metro that West Brom striker Peter Odemwingie has become a summer transfer target for Tottenham. This is partly due to his performance against Spurs at the weekend in which Odemwingie scored his 13th Premier League goal of the season.
Odemwingie arrived at West Brom in the summer from Lokomotiv Moscow for a fee of just £2.5m. The Nigerian international has suggested his future remains in England, but the dream of playing in the Champions League is one possible lure.
Odemwingie told Fifa.com “You never know what’s round the corner in football but all I can say right now is that I’m very happy here at West Brom.” But the desire to play in Europe is clear and Odemwingie went on to state “My hope is that, if we stay up, we can start raising our objectives and look at reaching the top half and qualifying for Europe.”
West Brom manager Roy Hodgson has guided the club to the 40 point mark and nearly secured their place in the Premier League for another season. The player’s desire to play at a bigger club could pave the way for a move to North London.
Like this rumour? Follow me on Twitter
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
After months of speculation surrounding the ownership of Glasgow Rangers, Lanarkshire born businessman Craig Whyte has purchased Sir David Murray’s 83.5 percent shares in the club for £1 making him the majority shareholder and owner of the Glasgow side. This has been an ongoing saga which had threatened to deteriorate at times and with the Rangers directors stalling on the deal it looked like the proposed move would fall through. Now that Mr. Whyte has control of the Rangers as part of the deal he will clear the club’s £22 million debt which is owed to Lloyds Banking Group and make available transfer funds in the region of £10 million to strengthen the squad for the season ahead.
Rangers find themselves at end of a era which will conclude a 23 year relationship between David Murray and the club. Mr Murray’s lengthy career at the club commenced with the purchase of Rangers in November 1988 from Nevada based businessman Lawrence Marlborough for a sum of £6 million .
When David Murray first took over Rangers his spending power in the game was hard to match. At one point the Glasgow side, with Mr. Murray’s backing, were the biggest spenders in Britain with even English Premier League clubs such as Manchester United unable to match their spending power.
[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’right’]
This saw players in the English league head north of the border partly due to their clubs being banned from Europe giving them the opportunity to play at the highest level via a Scottish club. This meant that Rangers attracted big names to the club as they signed England captain Terry Butcher and a host of other internationals who included Chris Woods, Mark Hateley, Trevor Steven, Ray Wilkins and Gary Stevens to name but a few.
After years of spending power the times eventually caught up with David Murray and Rangers were in turmoil with debt soaring. In recent years the debt has reached £30 million which the club have struggled to overcome meaning that every single player was available for transfer at the right price. Many fans blame player purchases such as Tore Andre Flo from Chelsea for £12 million in November 2000 (still a record Scottish transfer fee) for the state of the club’s finances.
This lead to uncertainty within the dressing room with players being offered cut price deals. The most notable recently being the sale of striker Kenny Miller to Turkish side Bursaspor. After bagging 21 goals before January, Kenny currently still leads the SPL scoring charts despite no longer playing for the club, many fans believe that Rangers were not paid the appropriate transfer fee for such a player.
Rangers fans have been growing frustrated lately with the lack of movement within Ibrox. This deal which has been struck with Mr. Whyte now leaves Rangers supporters breathing a sigh of relief and they can look to the future entering a new era under new management. Only time will tell if Craig Whyte can live up to his promises and deliver success for the club and their loyal fans.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Article courtesy of William McGill at This Is Futbol
[divider]
Listen to the latest episode of our award nominee podcast – The Football FanCast. – Featuring Razor Ruddock, Gary O’Reilly and King Jacks! Don’t forget to help Razor and O’Reilly become award winners in the 2011 EPL Awards
Aberdeen captain Paul Hartley has announced his retirement from professional football at the age of 34.The midfielder, who made 25 appearances for Scotland since debuting in 2005, had a year to run on his contract but has announced that the 2010-11 campaign would be his last.
Hartley made his last appearance for the national squad in their 1-0 win over the Czech Republic last September.
He last took to the field in March during Aberdeen’s 2-1 win over St Mirren in the quarter-finals of the Scottish Cup, and has been unable to shrug off a medial ligament strain he picked up in that match.
As well as making 32 appearances for Aberdeen, he also represented Hamilton, Raith Rovers, Millwall, Hibernian and St Johnstone but made his name at Hearts, where he played from 2003-2007.
His spell there earned him a 1.1 million pound move to Celtic, where he won two league titles, a Scottish Cup and a league cup.
He now plans to work as a coach, and has been working towards earning the necessary qualifications.
Without doubt, the 2011 Champions League Final will be decided by a midfield duel that Barcelona comfortably negotiated when the two sides met in this fixture just two years ago. It is likely that Sir Alex Ferguson has been plotting his revenge each and every day since that night in Rome, but the Manchester United manager now considers Pep Guardiola’s current side as even better than the team which triumphed at the Stadio Olimpico. So how can the Reds stop Barca this time round and avoid being taken on a “carousel” ride as in 2009?
Heading in to the ’09 Final, many observers highlighted Darren Fletcher’s absence – due to his sending-off in the semi-final against Arsenal and subsequent suspension for the showpiece event – as a significant blow to United’s chances of halting the rampant Catalan attack. That night, Ferguson employed Anderson alongside Michael Carrick and Ryan Giggs in a midfield three, supporting an attacking trifecta of Ronaldo, Park Ji-Sung and Wayne Rooney. The idea was to swarm the midfield, but the system collapsed following Samuel Eto’o’s early goal and Lionel Messi dropping deep in front of Sergio Busquets, Xavi and Andres Iniesta. Anderson was substituted at half-time.
The emergence this year of Javier Hernandez as a considerable goal-scoring threat may force Ferguson to play Rooney in a deeper role, similar to the position Messi played in two years ago, in order to aid a midfield three likely to be flanked wide by Antonio Valencia and Park. “I think Wayne can play anywhere as he has shown over the last few years. He’s such an enthusiastic lad,” former United midfielder Nicky Butt told BBC Sport. “With his work ethic he will work back and defend as well so I don’t see why the manager will not stick with the same line-up. Hernandez has been brilliant all year as well.”
But perhaps United’s biggest concern will be how to get the ball of their opponents and maintain possession. Barcelona’s average ball retention in the Champions League this season is 62%, with the Old Trafford club second best on 58%. Although both these figures are impressive in their own right, it would be naïve to place too much importance on prior statistics, especially considering Arsenal had only 39% possession in the first leg of their last-16 tie with Barca this season, and yet won the game 2-1. What’s more, Ferguson would have taken this in to account already, and used this aspect to cement his team’s counter-attacking principles which have worked so well for every United side the Scot has coached.
It is always difficult to predict the outcome of a game between two European heavyweights, especially as they have encountered each other on just three separate occasions in the past three years, and not once since 2009. Both sides have been close to exemplary during their respective successful League campaigns this season, and been the best two teams in the Champions League this term by a distance. “There is no doubt the two best teams have made it to the final,” claims United midfielder, Paul Scholes, who featured only briefly in the ’09 Final when the game had more or less been decided. “Barcelona are the ultimate. They are what we all look to and want to play like. There is a determination to make sure that [the 2-0 defeat in the 2009 Final] doesn’t happen again. It wasn’t a nice night and the summer afterwards felt very long. This time we intend to at least give it a go,” Scholes added.
And this is perhaps where Ferguson’s greatest attribute needs to be utilised. Albeit without Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez on this occasion – players who have both come nowhere near reaching a Champions League Final since their simultaneous Old Trafford departures in 2009 – Ferguson still retains roughly the same squad as two years ago, and will have stressed to his players continually since United’s progression from the semi-final the importance of retribution and correcting previous mistakes. All in all, Saturday night’s game promises to be an entertaining fixture due to the plethora of talent on display, and with Guardiola’s charges expected to win, Ferguson will enter Wembley in the position he has flourished in year on year for the past three decades; with his back against the wall, aiming to prove his doubters wrong.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Who do you think will win? Follow Josh Sheridan on Facebook – and Twitter
Blackburn defender Phil Jones is set to sign for Premier League champions Manchester United.Jones, 19, impressed at the heart of defence for Rovers during the 2010-11 season and has represented his country at Under-19 and Under-21 level.
The fee is expected to be 16 million pounds, with a five-year-deal on the table for Jones in Manchester.
He had been the subject of a war between rivals Liverpool and Manchester United to secure his services, with the Old Trafford outfit said to have beaten off competition from Kenny Dalglish’s side, who were expected to tie up a 20-million-pound deal for Sunderland midfielder Jordan Henderson on Wednesday.
Arsenal and Tottenham were also keen on signing Jones, who is reported to be undergoing a medical on Wednesday, on the same day he is meant to travel to Denmark as a member of the England Under-21 squad for the European Championships, which starts on Saturday.
Jones partners Manchester United’s Chris Smalling as the duo at the back for Stuart Pearce’s side, with the pair likely to become teammates in the coming hours.
The central defender made 26 Premier League appearances for Blackburn in the season just completed, with his campaign interrupted for almost three months with a knee ligament injury.
Much has been made of Manchester City’s unlimited reserves of wealth since 2008 when their new owners from Abu Dhabi bought the club. Their middle-eastern sheiks have incredibly invested well over £1 billion into the blue half of Manchester, in an attempt to break the monopoly of the established elite in the Premier League, and become a European force.
It is every fans dream. This gift of money (which dwarves every investment made by other billionaire owners at other clubs) sent the City fans into paradise. During the Premier League era, their team had always struggled to stay in the division, never mind compete near the top. Now, Manchester City could build a team to match some of the most passionate, loyal and proudest supporters in Britain. Years of that loyalty was about to pay-off; from sticking by their team through thick and thin as they bounced between divisions, suffering relegations whilst their bitter rivals from the red-half of the city won everything in sight, to now being able to compete for the signatures of the world’s star players whilst challenging for every major title available. They deserved this gift.
City set about attempting to sign many major players straight away, and no other club could match the wages that they could offer. The problem, initially, was that City only had the gift of money to offer these major players – whereas the established elite could offer the glamour, and a proven track-record of competing for, and winning the biggest honours in the game. A point seemingly proven early on by Dimitar Berbatov when City’s attempt to sign him failed: ‘I don’t play for the money. If I want to play for the money, I would have accepted Manchester City’s offer’ the Bulgarian said, choosing instead a move to City’s neighbours Manchester United.
Money is a powerful tool however. Step forward Robinho. The Brazilian star was City’s first major coupe, ending his disappointing spell at Real Madrid by signing a deal that would earn him a whopping £160,000 a week. When City could only manage a 10th place finish that season, they had to pursue a similar tactic the following summer – signing the likes of Gareth Barry, Kolo Toure, Roque Santa Cruz, Joleon Lescott, Adebayor and infamously Carlos Tevez from across the city, on massive wages – Tevez alone, now said to be earning around £200,000 a week. Domestically, this tactic also served another purpose – it ensured no other rival could strengthen by signing these players, and hoped to weaken the teams they signed from.
The following season City narrowly failed to qualify for the Champions League again and changed their manager which brought about a squad restructure. More signings came – David Silva, Adam Johnson, James Milner, Mario Balotelli, and Yaya Toure all arriving for massive fee’s and wages. Toure’s deal in particular is said to be astronomic, with the player allegedly earning in excess of £220,000 per week…plus bonuses!
To some, their progress has been surprisingly slow. What do City have to show for all this investment? One FA Cup…so far. Last season’s cup victory may have been their first silverware in over 30 years, but it also culminated in them finally qualifying for the Champions League (finishing 3rd in the league), earning them extra revenue and competing with Europe’s elite. The gift of money is now beginning to pay off.
But herein lies the curse. The money that’s gotten them this far could now become a burden. Uefa’s Financial Fair Play directive comes into effect this season and marks the start of a three-year monitoring period when clubs can afford to post losses of no more than £45 million. Last checked, City’s was running at £121 million. The need to reduce the wage-bill is paramount and after three years of crazy spending Manchester City have a huge squad, with most players earning money they wouldn’t receive elsewhere. Roberto Mancini’s choice to restructure his playing staff since taking the helm is also being felt. Some of the players he deemed surplus to requirements were loaned out, only to be returning to the club this week, with any tempted suitors possibly put off by the wage demands. Some unwanted players in the squad may not even feel the urgency to leave after getting used to such high wages – why leave to earn less, when the major reason in signing was to earn more in the first place?
Of course not all players are like this. They are professionals after all and most act as such. But it’s a sign of the times that in today’s football, money rules, and some players would rather sit back and collect a wage rather than look to enhance their careers and play for the glory.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Over the years football has produced many eccentrics. Some players show their uniqueness on the pitch, some through their behaviour both on and off it. After Mario Balotelli’s backheel created such a furore this weekend now seems the time to look at those players who are currently baffling the fans with their bizarre behaviour.
The majority of these players are on this list for the simple reason that they are interesting. They are not all nice guys. Bellamy, Barton and Cole are here because they stand out, they are the ones who can’t behave, who don’t seem to respond to discipline or public condemnation. Many of them are complete jerks but they are all entertaining.
Their predecessors are cult heroes: there is the 5’6” Mexican goalkeeper/part time striker Jorge Campos who designed his own offensively loud kits and spent as much time as possible outside his area. He literally lit up my USA ’94. There is the Reading and Cardiff legend of Robin Friday, rumoured to have scored the greatest goal of all time whilst on LSD and then there are the household names; Paul Gascoigne, still as mad as a hatter and Eric Cantona, master of the pitch, poetry, film and Kung Fu.
Whilst the majority of these players may lack the originality to reach the heights of these true showmen, they are still finding new and ingenious ways to generate headlines, whether they are trying to put phones into completely impractical places or confronting bullies at school, at least they aren’t just tweeting about having a nap and playing Fifa. (Well Rooney might be!)
Click on Cisse below to unveil top 10 unpredictable footballers
[divider]
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Who makes your list and what makes them mad? http://twitter.com/#!/philipwroe
Wolves boss Mick McCarthy has reportedly made a move for ex-West Ham defender Matthew Upson, according to The Mirror. The 32-year-old became a free agent after his contract with The Hammers expired on July 1st.
McCarthy plans to bolster his defence as Wolves prepare for another gruelling season in the Premier League, with McCarthy’s priorities in the market said to be experience and quality in defence.
Upson ticks both these boxes, having racked up over 350 first-team appearances in a solid career that includes time at Arsenal, Birmingham and West Ham, as well as loan spells at Nottingham Forest, Crystal Palace and Reading.
McCarthy could face a battle for England defender Upson with Tottenham as Spurs boss Harry Redknapp is also interested. Redknapp too is looking to strengthen his defence, with an assault on the Premier League’s top four spots on the agenda.
Wolves are still eager to find a new defensive option after missing out on Reading captain Matt Mills, who opted for a move to Leicester City, and have also been linked with Tottenham’s Jonathon Woodgate and young West Ham defender James Tomkins.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Talksport reported that Wolves are weighing up a move for Tomkins, 22, who is currently negotiating a new deal at Upton Park but could be persuaded into Premier League action by Wolves. Bolton are also said to be monitoring the Tomkins situation with defender Gary Cahill continually being linked to a move to Arsenal.
In light of the riots, Spurs have been granted another week to bring in any new faces before their season starts. The North Londoners have been linked to half of Europe this summer but have failed to make any significant breakthrough in strengthening their squad. Levy is renowned for leaving his transfer business right until the last minute and this window appears to be no different.
At FFC this week we have seen a mixed bag of Spurs blogs that includes Kyle Walker feels like a new signing; Tottenham’s success lays in its formation, while Levy should take the financial hit.
We also look at the best Spurs articles around the web this week.
*
Should Tottenham take the financial hit to move on
Tottenham chief lays down the path for others to follow
What to expect from Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham’s future success lays in its formation?
Kyle Walker: almost a new signing
The psychological enemy within Tottenham Hotspur?
Keane and Pienaar must wonder if it was worth it
Ruiz reveals Tottenham talks
*
Best of WEB
*
Bilbao win sparks riots – Spurs Musings From JimmyG2
The Tottenham Prophecy – Part One – Dear Mr Levy
€26M Bid On The Cards – Harry Hotspur
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Tottenham Hotspur Season Preview 2011/12. Now Is The Time – Tottenham On My Mind
Ta-Da! The New Season Cometh. But What’re Your Hopes and Fears – Who Framed Ruel Fox?
*
[divider]
Click on Miss Blasi below to see her in all her glory