Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel has called on the squad to unite as they battle to avoid relegation from the English Premier League.Villa are 14th in a congested bottom-half of the table, just one point clear of the relegation zone.
Reports of indiscipline and unrest have dogged the club this season, with players allegedly rebelling against the reign of French manager Gerard Houllier.
But American shot-stopper Friedel insists the players have the talent to secure their survival, if they can overcome their internal divisions.
“We have got a tremendous squad of talented players,” Friedel said.
“We have obviously had ups and downs this season, but we have eight games now to get as many points on the board as possible.”
“We need to all be one. All the stories that have been going about, a lot of them are untrue, it’s people just trying to stir things up because things haven’t been going well on the pitch.”
“But we need to put all that to one side, starting on Saturday (at Everton).”
A veteran of 14 English Premier League campaigns, 39-year-old Friedel has been able to witness first-hand where Villa have gone wrong this season.
“Yes, I have been there every day and I have watched it unfold in front of me,” he said.
“In today’s game players have to take a lot more responsibility than perhaps they do on a daily basis.”
“Once you cross the white line there is no-one there to hold your hand. You have to be out there and you have to win the games.”
“It’s up to us to get enough points to keep us in this division. There is nothing more that needs to be said. Everything that has transpired this season needs to be pushed to one side. There’s no hiding place.”
Football fans’ willingness to show their dedication comes in all shapes and sizes. One such way is to splay their dedication over their body in the form of a tattoo. I can understand why somebody might choose to tattoo their footballing allegiance onto their body. Whilst women come and go, a football team is for life. It’s the manly man’s equivalent of getting “I love mom’ yet a tattoo is a big commitment, so it’s important to get it right. As you can imagine, this process isn’t always a success.
Below are the top 10 Liverpool tattoo’s to be found on the net – the good, the bad and the plain ugly – click on image below to unveil gallery:
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Have you got a better Liverpool tattoo? Football FanCast would like to invite the readers to submit their own entry via our Facebook Page. The winning entries will go forward to our grand competition to find the best tattoo in the Premier League.
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Juan Carlos Cubeiro, author of the book ‘Mourinho versus Guardiola’, believes Wednesday’s ‘El Clasico’ Copa del Rey final is a dead heat.Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid meet for the second time in four days to contest the final of the cup, following their 1-1 stalemate in La Liga on Saturday.
That draw left Barcelona on the verge of winning the Spanish top-flight, but manager Pep Guardiola still has Wednesday’s clash at the Mestalla and Barca’s upcoming Champions League semi-final tie against Jose Mourinho’s Real to contend with.
Anticipation for the El Clasico duels is reaching fever pitch in Spain, and Cubeiro insists the battle between the two charismatic managers is as intriguing as whatever happens on the pitch.
“Both use a very scientific method,” Cubeiro said.
“Starting with Mourinho, he says that he combines university and sport. His mother is a university professor and his father was a famous Portuguese soccer player.”
“So what he creates in his training sessions is what will take place on the pitch during 90 minutes, with the same variations of the match.”
“In the case of Guardiola, he has been trying to dampen the euphoria. It’s more of a state of mind.”
“His players know perfectly how to play together, the famous ‘tiki taka’, the pass and possession of the ball, therefore what he is teaching is to maintain their style and their hunger for victory.”
Mourinho moved to the Bernabeu at the conclusion of last season, having led Italian club Inter Milan to a prestigious treble.
He may not win any silverware this year as his side come up against Barca in the league, the Copa del Rey final and in Europe, but Cubeiro expects Los Blancos to only get better as their continue their tutelage under the Portuguese manager.
“Mourinho will be more successful in his second season. Everyone recognises that,” he said.
“He is building a team and creating a playing style at Real Madrid that they did not have before, very much centred on Cristiano Ronaldo.”
“A Guardiola that may be a bit more tired in 2011/12 and a Mourinho who knows the club better suggests the best is yet to come.”
“This season has already been spectacular but next we will see perhaps the two best teams in history.”
There was once a time when Michael Carrick was a permanent fixture in the Manchester United team.
Not so any more.
The former West Ham and Tottenham midfielder made only his second competitive appearance this season against Valencia and was largely disappointing on his return from an Achilles injury.
Carrick has been hampered by a lack of form which had its beginnings towards the end of last season. Granted, the Valencia game was his first game back from injury but his performance will have done little to shake off the cobwebs of last season.
The problem for Carrick is that he has set himself such high standards and to perform to anything less than that is considered a failure.
Since joining from Tottenham in 2006, Carrick has been an integral part of United’s success. His first season at United was a revelation with Carrick bossing the midfield with his positional intelligence and excellent range of passing. He was inspirational in the Champions League against Roma where he put in a performance of real class, scoring two goals as United romped to a 7-1 victory.
In his first three seasons at the club, Carrick helped United to three successive Premier League crowns as well as a Champions League success in 2007.
Carrick’s strengths have been well-documented. He provides an excellent shield to the back four and does an unfussy job of intercepting and breaking up opposition play while passing the ball with accuracy and efficiency.
Despite all of his talents, he has a tendency to underperform in the big games. He saw the Champions League final against Barcelona pass him by as United’s midfield were overwhelmed by the Catalan’s mesmeric display of passing.
Since that night in Rome, Carrick has looked a shadow of his former self. He had a highly indifferent season last season when compared to his previous campaigns and fell way down the pecking-order at United.
In Carrick’s absence this season, Paul Scholes and Darren Fletcher have featured regularly for Manchester United in the centre of midfield.
With the injuries that have been plaguing United’s midfield, Sir Alex Ferguson has chosen more often than not to play 4-4-2 this season in the Premier League which is a system that Carrick is not ideally suited to.
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Many teams who play Manchester United like to play 4-5-1 and crowd the midfield which doesn’t allow the United midfielders much time on the ball. This is not too much of a problem with a player like Scholes in the team who is able to pick out a killer pass in an instant.
A player like Carrick however thrives when he has time on the ball. Therefore, he is far better suited to playing in a 4-5-1 system where the extra midfielder will give Carrick more time to pick his pass.
As seen by his first two seasons at the club, Carrick is a player who thrives on confidence. He would benefit from an extended run in the team to rediscover some of the belief that made him such an important player for United.
He has shown that he can be a useful player. He just needs to believe it.
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After all the hype, anticipation and build-up, the FA finally revealed Fabio Capello’s 23-man squad for the World Cup at 4pm yesterday (an hour later than scheduled I might add). Unlike previous years, the squad selection sprung no major surprises or shocks, with Capello, for the most part, sticking with the tried and trusted players who saw him through the qualification process. As I mentioned on Sky News last night, the only really divisive decisions amongst supporters were the omissions of Arsenal winger Theo Walcott and Sunderland hitman Darren Bent.
Following the announcement of the squad, Spurs manager Harry Redknapp unsurprisingly felt the urge to air his opinion on the subject. Aside from criticising the intermittent manner in which the squad was announced, Redknapp condemned Capello’s treatment of Tottenham defender Michael Dawson and West Ham United anchorman Scott Parker, claiming that the pair felt like ‘ghosts’ within the initial 30-man squad.
Speaking to The Sun, Redknapp said “People on the inside who I know tell me Scott [Parker] was fantastic in training every day. He worked his socks off and could not have done any more, but whatever he did he wasn’t going to go.
“Someone said to me he felt like a ghost on the trip, like Dawson – they were there but not there, and they could sense that. They never kicked a ball and the manager didn’t really speak to them or give them much feedback. Capello might as well have taken 25 to Austria instead of 30. They made up the numbers.”
Given the fact that many were unsurprised by their eventual failure to make the cut, Redknapp questioned the decision of Capello to call up the duo even though he had no actual intent of taking them to the World Cup. This view is supported by the fact that neither of the pair received the chance to feature in England’s recent warm-up games against Mexico and Japan. The England manager is clearly aware of what likes of John Terry and Rio Ferdinand are capable of in defence, and aware of how well the likes of Steven Gerrard, Michael Carrick and Frank Lampard perform in midfield, so eschewing the opportunity to try out the relatively untested pair of Dawson and Parker seems questionable. If Capello was not willing to give the pair the chance to prove themselves worthy of a berth within the final World Cup squad, then why did he call them up in the first place?
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Things aren’t exactly that rosy at Anfield right now. After suffering an embarrassing home defeat to newly promoted Blackpool in the Premier League, Liverpool finally looked to have got their ownership issues sorted. But things can never be straightforward when Tom Hicks and George Gillett are involved, can they? The Americans are trying to block the £300 million takeover club by New England Sports Ventures, so the Reds are struggling to even swap one lot of Yanks for another. If the sale of the club to the Boston Red Sox owners is not completed by October 15th then Liverpool could even go into administration as the Premier Club plunge deeper and deeper. The situation off the pitch combined with poor performances on it are proving too much for many Liverpool fans and they’re not alone, as here we see the frustration boil over for Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson and his number two at Anfield Sammy Lee. It’s amazing what anger does to you…
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Check out our Caption Competition Gallery for some inspiration and to see the winners so far.
Last week’s winner: Craig Morris – click here to see all entries
Louis Saha scored four goals against Blackpool on Saturday as Everton beat Blackpool 5-3. This showed what a really great player he can be on his day. Looking back on his career, I wonder what he could have achieved if the French striker had stayed fit. Sadly though, he will never be as good as he might have been because of his injuries and will be remembered along with the likes of Michael Owen as a player whose fitness hampered a potentially great career. After all, who gets injured as often as Louis Saha?
People may have had worse injuries that have caused them to quit the game, but few have had as frequent and as varied injuries as Louis Saha. Back, knee, hamstring, calf – Saha has done them all, and it begs the question; are his legs made of glass?
Saha began his career at ambitious Fulham and showed his potential and ability before being signed by Manchester United for £12.8m. Despite a bright start at Old Trafford, his career became riddled with injuries in the 2004–05, 2006–07 and 2007–08 seasons.
In Saha’s five seasons at Old Trafford, he featured in only 86 games, and scored a respectable 28 goals. Many of these appearances were as a substitute while trying to return to fitness. But when fit he was good; Saha scored 15 goals in 2005–06 and his partnership with Wayne Rooney as well as his own goal scoring form were part of the reason why Sir Alex Ferguson allowed Ruud van Nistelrooy to leave for Real Madrid. He also represented France during this period and scored 4 times. Saha showed his class and displayed a good goal scoring record against the bigger clubs too, but never managed to put a few seasons together and become the great player he could have been at United.
When Saha joined Everton it was a bit of a gamble from David Moyes as his fitness was unknown. He played on a ‘pay-as-you-play’ deal because of his reputation, but he managed to prove his fitness over the next two years where he played quite regularly. With a fit Saha Everton did well in the Premier League, finishing 5th in 08-09. When he doesn’t play Everton miss him and they have been overly reliant this year on goals from Tim Cahill in midfield. They will welcome his return to fitness and form. Moyes’s gamble on Saha has paid off but he probably still needs a second striker, I don’t think Jermaine Beckford is ready to lead the front line quite yet, though he is showing promise.
Saha’s lack of fitness must have been frustrating for his fans but even more so for Louis himself, and I am as happy as anyone to see him back playing regularly and now scoring. I hope he stays fit this year and builds on the 6 Premier League goals he has now notched up, to back up the 14 he scored last year. He is definitely Everton’s answer if he starts firing. He might be 32 but I imagine he is still hungry for football as he has missed out on so much, so injuries aside, he could play for another few years.
The fact that he has maintained a good scoring record despite the constant interruptions from injuries shows what a good player he is, but let’s not get carried away. Before this weekend he had only scored 2 times in 17 appearances, he shows glimpses of the player he could have been but is by no means that player at the moment. Like David Moyes said after his 4 goals against Blackpool, on his day he is “unstoppable”, personally I don’t think there are many in the division as dangerous from 18 yards as Saha, but his day has not come enough this season.
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He will be remembered as one of the most injury prone players in the last ten years of the Premiership along with Hargreaves, Rosicky and Kieron Dyer, but like I said at the beginning, who else gets injured as often as Louis Saha?
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Concerned Newcastle United manager Chris Hughton fears that the shoulder injury Steven Taylor suffered in Saturday's pre-season friendly at Carlisle United could force the defender to spend a spell on the sidelines.
It had been the 24-year-old's first taste of action since he sustained a knee injury against West Brom in January but he had to be substituted after just 36 minutes at Brunton Park.
Hughton told the Chronicle: "The fact he's come off is obviously a big concern for us. I won't find out the extent until later on. He felt his shoulder and we hope it's minimal."
On the 3-0 win for the Magpies, Hughton added:"It was probably as we expected. Carlisle were a week in front of us in their preparations.
"We knew because of the quality they've got it would be a tight affair in that first half.
"What generally happens is that the game opens up over a period of time and it's who's able to capitalise on that.
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"We were, and I think we could have got more, but it was certainly a competitive game in that second half as well."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
As the 2011-12 season ticks to a close, many players will have one eye on the upcoming transfer window. Whether certain individuals have disappointed, failed to settle, or performed to a level beyond that which was expected, it’s likely that numerous players will be moving on this summer.
Footballers are not known to stick around nowadays, with the one-club man becoming a dying breed in the Premier League, as a result another busy transfer window is all but guaranteed, with clubs across the nation searching for new players and look to remove certain stars from their wage bills.
This list looks at 20 players who are likely to have a long summer ahead of them, as they search for a new club for the start of the 2012-12 campaign.
Click on Gylfi Sigurdsson to unveil the 20
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What are your thoughts? Find me at @Alex_Hams to have your say
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Not much to report at Old Trafford this week where most of the column inches has been about Rooney’s outburst last Saturday. On the transfer front it has been relatively quiet with the only thing to report was the suggestion that United had dropped out of the running for Cole, as they are not prepared to meet his wage demands.
This week at FFC we have seen a mixed bag of Man United blogs which has included…Why Piers should keep his opinion to himself; Park Ji Sung shows the PL are missing a trick and what will Fergie make of Evra World Cup actions.
Plus we have taken a look at the best Man United stories on the Web this week.
Does Wayne Rooney make a valid point?
Rooooooney…
What would Fergie and Wenger make of their player’s actions?
Why Piers should keep his views on Wayne Rooney to himself
Park Ji Sung is living proof that the PL is missing a trick
Joe Cole prices himself out of move
‘One to Watch in 2010′ – Federico Macheda
The Top TEN Premier League ‘dirtiest’ players
PL suitors need to cough up as World Cup quartet add millions to…
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Best of Web
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A Big Thanks To John Terry… Again – Republik of Mancunia
Captain Evra central to French implosion – United Rant
How long do you have to wait on the “waiting list”? – The Andersred Blog
Will we let history repeat itself at Old Trafford? – The Busby Way
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Rooney is England scapegoat: What next another mock hanging? – A kick in the grass
If the season began tomorrow Part 1 : The defence – The Busby Way
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Click image below to see a gallery of the SPANISH babes at the World Cup: