Tottenham Hotspur may battle Liverpool in the signature of Manchester City forward Craig Bellamy.
According to the Mirror, City have agreed to let Bellamy leave Eastlands on a free transfer which would open the door for a return to Liverpool after the Reds insisted they weren’t prepared to pay a transfer fee for a player who left Anfield in 2007.
However, Tottenham could yet scupper a deal by making a move for the 32-year-old themselves. Harry Redknapp’s side have already secured a loan deal for Manchester City’s Emmanuel Adebayor and could also add Bellamy to their ranks.
Bellamy’s national team coach Gary Speed has promoted a potential move back to Liverpool. “Liverpool are a fantastic club and if that’s true and it comes off, that would be great,” said Speed.
“Hopefully by the end of the transfer window things will be sorted out.”
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Article courtesy of Matt Wood from the excellent Clean Sheets All Round
It’s always a sad moment when one of the great players who you grew up watching decides to hang up his boots. Edwin Van der Sar recently announced that he was going to retire from all forms of the game when the season ends in May. So in honour of the 40 year-old stopper, here is a rundown of the long and decorated career of Edwin Van der Sar.
Ajax (1990 – 1999)
Van der Sar’s first club in his native Holland was Ajax and he made his debut after graduating from their much heralded youth academy in 1990. He was at Ajax during a golden period for the Dutch giants and played in the same team as fellow Dutch greats Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf, Marc Overmars and the De Boer brothers. During his nine year spell in Amsterdam, Van der Sar not only helped Ajax win numerous domestic honours, but also the UEFA Cup in 1992 and the Champions League in 1995. It was while at Ajax that Van der Sar netted his only senior goal – a penalty against De Graafschap in 1998. Under the guidance of Louis van Gaal, Van der Sar became one of the best goalkeepers in the world and won awards such as the ‘UEFA Club Goalkeeper of the Year’ and the ‘Dutch Golden Shoe’.
Juventus (1999 – 2001)
Van der Sar joined Juventus during an uncharactically quiet spell for the Turin side – they failed to win a single major trophy during his two year stay and only triumphed in the now defunct Intertoto Cup in 1999. Juventus finished second to Lazio and Roma respectively in 99/00 and 00/01 but during these two seasons Van der Sar only conceded a total of 47 goals, by far and a way the fewest by any team during this time period. However, Van der Sar’s days in Italy were numbered when Juventus splashed out an astonishing £32.5 million for goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon in 2001.
Fulham (2001 – 2005)
Van der Sar then shocked many when he made a £7 million move to newly promoted Fulham in 2001. It was thought that Van der Sar, who had just turned 30, had gone to Fulham to see out the remainder of his career, but that was not the case. Fulham secured their Premier League status in their first season and Van der Sar, who made 127 total appearances for the club, played in 37 league games that year. He continued to add to his medal collection when Fulham won the Intertoto Cup in 2002.
Manchester United (2005 – 2011)
Alex Ferguson finally ended his quest for a top quality goalkeeper when he signed Van der Sar from Fulham for a fee believed to be £2 million. While at Old Trafford, Van der Sar’s career experienced something of a renaissance. 14 years after winning it first time around, Van Der Sar won the ‘UEFA Club Goalkeeper of the Year’ in 2009. Domestic honours were the norm during his time at Old Trafford where he has added a further nine medals to his collection. In the 2008/09 season Van der Sar went 1,311 minutes without conceding a goal, breaking Premier League, English, British and world records along the way. United won the league that year and only conceded 24 goals along the way.
International career (1995 – 2010)
Van der Sar made his international debut in 1995 against Belarus at the age of 25. He represented Holland in six major tournaments and, at the age of 38, was included in the ‘Euro 2008 Team of the Tournament’. He had the ill-luck to be knocked out of three consecutive tournaments on penalties between 1996 and 2000. Van der Sar retired from international football after Euro 2008, but was convinced to play on two more occasions in the build up to World Cup 2010. He kept clean sheets in both games and took his total international cap tally to 130. Van der Sar has played more minutes in European Championships than any other player.
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At the time of writing, Edwin Van der Sar has 776 league appearances, 130 international caps and 25 honours to his name to his name.
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Surely It is hard to see the new Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules being anything but a good thing for football as a whole.
More and more clubs have over stretched themselves over the last 10 years, built up a huge amount of debt and as a result have crippled their future aspirations. The real fans are the ones who suffer the most too as they will have supported their team through thick and thin, only to be left with a future-less club.
FFP should hopefully stop clubs from wasting their money and taking the enormous financial risks that they were previously taking. However, many confuse the FFP rules for a system that will bring “a level playing field” where any club will have a shot at success.
In actual fact the best way of describing the impact it will have is to describe it as a system where clubs are forced to live within their means. By that I mean that clubs will now find it harder to over achieve and it should also be harder for clubs to under achieve. Clubs are being recommended to spend up to 60% of their turnover on wages, so the bigger their attendances are the bigger their wages will be and in theory bigger wages mean better players.
So theoretically if you made a list of every English football club ranked on attendances then that should be a highly accurate indication of what each division will look like. Some critics of the FFP rules believe that this is how the rules will change the game and they believe everything will become set in stone before a ball has even been kicked. This is a very depressing outlook in a lot of ways because the beauty of football is how completely unpredictable it currently is and the last thing fans want is for football to lose its unpredictable nature.
This idea is only theoretical of course as in reality (especially in football) anything can happen. Personally, I don’t think that financial fair play will have such an obvious and predictable effect on each clubs future purely because money doesn’t guarantee success, in the same way that a lack of money doesn’t mean the club is doomed.
Last season Manchester City did use their spending power to basically buy the Premier League title but looking beyond that there are more examples of money not being essential. Everton have limited resources but still finished above Liverpool who have spent huge amounts and Chelsea’s money only got them to 6th place. If money brought success then Ipswich would have been promoted when Marcus Evans pumped his first load of money into the club.
I believe that the FFP rules won’t change as much in the game as people think they will. First of all, without money you may well struggle like how Coventry and Doncaster did last season but you can also build a good team with little money like how Brighton and Watford did. Reading topped the table without a huge amount of money or big attendances and they are very similar to Ipswich in terms of their size as a club. The key is in how you build the squad from top to bottom and more importantly how well the money is invested, rather than how much money is invested.
I have heard fans saying that Ipswich will never be able to gain promotion unless we bring in another 4,000 to 5,000 fans each week but I couldn’t disagree more. I read some thorough calculations done by a fan a few days ago that stated Ipswich’s wage budget will be around £215,000 a week with the new rules. Further calculations show that you could have 4 star players on around £18,000 a week and the rest on an average of £3,200 a week. It seems that a lot of fans are worried that this budget will leave Ipswich struggling to compete in The Championship but I do not believe there is reason to worry.
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Like I said earlier success will depend on how well money is invested, not on the amount invested. I am guessing that at least two of the teams that gained promotion last season had a budget of around £215,000 a week or maybe even less. So you can’t really argue that the FFP rules will prevent Ipswich from gaining promotion and any fan who believes that the club will be held back by low attendances alone has a weak argument. Ipswich have wasted vast amounts of money over the last 3 or 4 seasons by having the wrong approach in the transfer market and that is why they haven’t been promoted.
In conclusion, I do not think that the FFP rules will hinder Ipswich’s chances of gaining promotion in the future. The new rules will encourage the club to search harder for players like Aaron Cresswell who are young, cheap and very talented rather than simply buying players on reputation alone like Grant Leadbitter.
Brazilian Serie A leaders Corinthians lost their second match of the season on Sunday, going down 3-2 away to Avai.The visitors had led through a goal from Emerson 31 minutes into the match at Estadio Aderbal Ramos da Silva.
They held the lead going into the half-time break, but three goals in succession, the first from William followed by two to Rafael Coelho, marked an impressive turnaround for the home side.
Jorge Henrique pulled one back for Corinthians in the 90th minute, but it was too late to prevent a surprise defeat to the strugglers.
It was just Avai’s second win of the season and lifts them off the foot of the table into 18th place.
Corinthians remain top despite the defeat, but are now just one point ahead of second-placed Flamengo.
Elsewhere on Sunday, Fluminense were comprehensive winners with a 4-0 victory over Ceara.
Fred opened the scoring for the home side 35 minutes into the match, with second-half goals from Souza, Rafael Sobis and Rafael Moura completing the rout.
The visitors had to play the entire second half with just 10 men following the sending off of Heleno in the 45th minute.
Santos’ poor start to the season continued, as they went down 3-2 away to Atletico Paranaense.
The home side were 2-0 up just 10 minutes in, courtesy of goals from Cleber Santana and Manoel.
Neymar pulled one back on 13 minutes, before Borges struck to get Santos back on level terms just past the hour mark.
But a last-minute winner from Marcinho sealed a 3-2 victory for the home side.
Vasco da Gama climbed to fifth with a 2-0 win over Sao Paulo, with Eder Luis and Felipe striking in the second half.
In other matches, Internacional were held 0-0 at home by Atletico Goianiense, hosts Bahia saw off Figueirense 3-1, while Coritiba won at America Mineiro by the same score-line.
Defender Gabriel Milito is intent on staying at La Liga club Barcelona, despite being linked with a move away from the club.
The Argentina international has struggled to make an impact at Barcelona since his move in 2007 from league rivals Real Zaragoza, with an ACL knee injury one of several fitness setbacks during his time at the club.
Milito, 30, has made just six appearances for Barca in all competitions this season and has reportedly been targeted by clubs in the English Premier League and Italy’s Serie A.
But, after careful consideration, Milito has announced his intention of staying at the La Liga powerhouse.
“I have had a few days to make a decision, to take stock of the situation, when I haven’t been playing through injury,” he said.
“But I’ve realised that now is not the time to leave the club.”
“I enjoy the day-to-day atmosphere at the club, I like my teammates, I like watching the team when I can’t participate.”
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“I think that the best thing for me is to stay, to continue, and to respond when it is my turn to play.”
“I’m set on staying and am keen to play. I want to help the team to take points, and that is one of the reasons behind me staying. There are different situations, but I feel differently now.”
After Paul Jewell’s capture of young right back Elliot Hewitt the Ipswich manager will now be looking to strengthen the centre of his defence.
It is understood that Jewell’s number one transfer target was Joel Ward, but he has now moved to Crystal Palace, so Ipswich will be eyeing up any decent centre back they can find to fill this crucial position.
Ipswich are short of quality at centre back and now that Ibrahima Sonko has left the club Ipswich only have two players who can play in central defence. Tommy Smith and Damien Delaney formed a solid partnership at the end of last season but Ipswich desperately need another player to give the squad the quality it needs.
Neither Smith nor Delaney have played consistently well for Ipswich so it is key that they find someone who will command a first team place; that way Jewell can use Smith or Delaney depending on who is in the best form at the time. Additionally, Ipswich need a leader now that they do not have a real captain figure. Grant Leadbitter captained the side for the majority of last season and his lack of leadership qualities guided the team to a poor league position. Carlos Edwards took the captains armband for the last part of the season but he will be 34 years old in October and may not feature in every game next season, so the team really need another player to lead the team in the long term.
It seems like Coventry City’s Richard Keogh would undoubtedly be the right man for Ipswich. At 25 years old Keogh has played a good amount of football and has been voted the Fans’ Player of the Year for the last two seasons at Coventry. His defensive capabilities are obviously highly regarded and he would definitely strengthen the Ipswich defence. If Tommy Smith improves next season and Paul Jewell manages to capture Keogh then the defence will certainly be looking very formidable, additionally, Keogh has a characteristic that Ipswich are in dire need of, a strong leader.
It is looking very likely that Ipswich will be contacting Coventry at some point over the summer to enquire about Keogh. Coventry have supposedly already rejected a £250,000 bid from Bristol City and a £800,000 bid from Cardiff for Keogh. Judging from those figures Keogh could well cost Ipswich a 7 figure sum but it would be a great investment.
It is obvious that he is capable of playing at a much higher level than league one so Ipswich may be the ideal club for Keogh. Something fans might be surprised to hear is that Keogh was once a ball boy at Portman Road when he was an academy player at the club.
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After not impressing the youth staff at Ipswich Keogh moved onto Stoke, Bristol City, Carlisle and a number of lower league sides on loan before arriving at Coventry in 2010. However, Coventry are trying to persuade Keogh to stay and will be trying to get him to commit to the club over the next few weeks so it will be interesting to see what happens over the summer but it is obvious that Keogh would be a great addition to the Ipswich Town squad.
When the highly rated 16-year-old Theo Walcott made the switch to Arsenal from Southampton on a pre-contact deal for an initial £5m, it looked like he could be the next Thierry Henry and comparisons were made between the two.
However back in 2006, then Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp, who had given Walcott his debut during his time at Southampton, warned against making any comparison with Henry. “He is a million miles away from Thierry Henry and if he ever gets anywhere near his standard he will be one of the best players we’ve ever seen in this country.” This warning has proved to be quite accurate but maybe now is the time to test Walcott in the striker position.
In the last five years there have been glimpses of Walcott’s potential including in 2008 when he single-handedly destroyed Croatia in Zagreb but these moments of quality have been quite rare and I feel his potential is being wasted on the wing where he lacks the ability to succeed.
Arsene Wenger made the decision to turn him into a right winger due to his young age and slight figure but with the 22-year-old declaring that he wants a move up-front to help his progress, it could be finally time to test the winger in the central attacking position.
Walcott said: “I hope I’ll move inside. It just depends on the players the boss brings in. I was signed as a striker, I want to play up front. I’ve done my trade out on the wing. A lot of people forget I’m not a winger.”
There has been evidence that Theo has worked on his all-round game this season, he has always looked like a natural goal-scorer but now his finishing is more composed and with his blistering pace he could cause problems to any defence.
However he still lacks consistency and common sense as a footballer, often taking the wrong option, and his passing is typically wayward. If he wants to succeed as a striker he will need to work on his distribution especially in holding the ball up as he would be required to do playing in a central attacking role. His on-field intelligence, although improved, is still holding him back from fulfilling his potential.
With the current formation that Wenger employs it is difficult to see where Walcott would fit in alongside Robin Van Persie especially if the Dutchman can continue his impressive end of season form in a one man attack. I think a move back to a 4-4-2 looks unlikely but after the acquisition of Gervinho this summer, there may be the possibility that Wenger could turn to a new 4-3-3 formation, with Gervinho on the right, Van Persie down the middle and Walcott on the left. This formation would be effective on the counter attack but could leave the team fallible in the midfield.
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Walcott scored goals as a youngster and although he has taken time to adapt to the top-level, with his useful attributes there is no reason why Walcott would not make it as a striker, something that Wenger has always believed would happen. Although for this season it looks to be ambition rather than a genuine reality as Wenger would need to change tactics to complement him in the team. He may never be as good as Henry was but one day he could well be a successful out and out striker and finally become the talent he looked six years ago.
Do you think Walcott deserves a chance to prove himself as a striker? Do you believe he is still a work in progress or is now the time to give up on his potential? Let me know your thoughts!
A professional performance ensured a vital 3pts in the kick-off to Tottenham’s festive programme. Harry Redknapp’s men sit comfortably just outside the top four and in striking distance as they approach the second half of the season.
At FFC we have seen a mixed bag of articles which includes a power shift in North London; Benzema the ideal acquisition and Tottenham swoop highlights plight.
We also look at the best Tottenham articles around the web this week.
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The TEN Premier League Players of the season so far…in my view
TOP TEN Grand Entrances in Football sponsored by Heineken
If I can only sign one player for Spurs this January, it would be him
In light of George Graham’s comments, do Tottenham play more attractive football than Arsenal?
The FIVE most frustrating things about being a Tottenham fan
Tottenham’s young duo gives Redknapp food for thought
ITV’s insincere support for Tottenham is not welcome
Tottenham’s approach provides a refreshing change from the norm
There’s no power shift in Manchester, the real shift is in London
FIVE strikers Harry has his eye on to strengthen Spurs
Tottenham swoop simply highlights Liverpool’s plight
* The best TOTTENHAM blogs around the web this week. *
Me like Meelan – Dear Mr Levy
It’s a (Xmas) cracker – Spurs Musings From Jimmy G2
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I’m Not Modric’s Agent But… – Who Framed Ruel Fox?
Aston Villa 1-2 Spurs: The Barcelona Five Minutes – All Action No Plot
Harry & Levy Crash Spurs Player’s Christmas Party – Harry Hotspur
The Unwritten Rules of Football – Dear Mr Levy
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Celtic dropped more points at home in the Scottish Premiership on Wednesday night, drawing 0-0 at home to struggling Dundee.
On the march to a seventh successive league title, all the Hoops need to do is secure a couple of more wins to celebrate yet another major honour under Brendan Rodgers.
They were underwhelming against the Dark Blues however, failing to produce the chances to see off the visitors and were even at risk of conceding and losing the match.
One point of contention fans had coming out of the match was the absence of Chelsea loanee Charly Musonda, who was again an unused substitute.
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The 21-year-old hasn’t had any minutes for over a month, since coming on as a substitute in a Scottish Cup match against Greenock Morton. He hasn’t started since 18th February, one of only three since joining in January.
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Fans are now calling on him to be selected more, believing he possesses the kind of creativity that can break down deep defences like the Dees’.
They took to Twitter to share their thoughts after last night’s match…
When Pedro first broke onto the scene with Barcelona circa 2008, the fiery Spaniard was walking into a team that simply saw no task as impossible. ‘Tiki-taka’ was the choice of phrase used to describe Pep Guardiola’s preference for possession based play at the Nou Camp, and as trophies galore started raining down for Pedro for both club and country, Spanish football was in a very good place indeed.
However, with Carlos Puyol’s retirement, the addition of several new foreign players, and the moving on of Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez, subsequent Barca managers have failed to maintain their side’s imperial dominance in Europe, and have seen the team become far more transitional than the complete Barcelona squad of just a few years ago.
As Pedro, another of Barca’s more experienced faces, is reported to be gaining the interest of Arsene Wenger this winter, will this January transfer window represent a new chapter for the Spaniard, or will Pedro remain at Barcelona and become a true Nou Camp hero?
The general footballing consensus seems to agree that the answer to the latter part of that question remains a resoundingly clear. No. Twenty-seven-year-old Pedro may have already sounded himself out as a real star of Catalonian football, but as Barcelona’s conveyor-belt of talent is constantly being added to in their quest to dominate Europe, remaining at the Nou Camp would be a tough ask for the no. 7.
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In the wake of Neymar’s and Luis Suarez’ arrival at Barca, Pedro has seen his game time largely restricted to a place on the bench, and his form has therefore taken a dip as a result. Only three La Liga goals this season simply doesn’t shine the forward in the greatest of lights.
That said, for all the distinct lack of sensation and excitement surrounding Pedro at the moment, Barcelona’s somewhat forgotten man could still do a great job elsewhere, and get his career truly up and running again. With Arsenal said to be great admirers of the Spaniard, perhaps a move to the Premier League wouldn’t be too far off in the near future for the current Barca man.
Pedro initially made a mark on the scene with his lightening quick turn of pace, ability to send in a great whipped cross, and impressively keen eye for goal for a winger. He was highly thought of throughout Europe and even played an important, but albeit understated role, in helping Spain dominate international football.
Whilst his lack of physicality may need addressing if he were to ever make it in the English game, Pedro could offer Arsenal a brand new outlet as the Gunners seek to regain their title chasing status in the Premier League. He would give Wenger that added outlet of pace whenever such a tool was needed, and whilst Pedro may prove a bit steep in terms of his price tag and wages, the link up play with ex-teammate Alexis Sanchez would be something for the Emirates faithful to behold.
However, although such a deal would certainly excite Arsenal fans, the Barcelona winger wouldn’t really do much in terms of addressing their side’s defensive problems. A holding midfielder, several new faces at the back, and perhaps even a new centre-forward will all be needed if Arsenal are to ever regain their dominance in the Premier League.
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Overall, Pedro remains a very much sought after player, even if his current form doesn’t quite do him justice. It ultimately seems likely that he will be on his way out of the Nou Camp sooner or later, and despite the fact that many big teams throughout Europe will be after his signature in the coming months, it is thought that Arsenal’s long term admiration of Pedro will hold them as front runners in any potential move.
Whilst it would be great to see such talent in the Premier League, Pedro’s tendency to go down far too easily may see him face a brand new set of critics should he make the plunge into the English game.