Martin O’Neill has revealed that he may need to alter his Sunderland side for tomorrow’s League Cup tie with Middlesbrough because of injuries.
Boss O’Neill has not named names, but says that some players are having problems.
He said: “We might have to make some changes to our side – a couple of them forced. We’ll see how the injuries are later on, but we’ve got a couple of players with a few problems. We’ll go as strongly as we possibly can and try to win the game. I’m hoping that one (player) can come through, but if not then too bad.
The manager does have options for tomorrow’s fixture, and he could bring in some fringe players.
O’Neill talked about how it is difficult to choose who to play in the fixture, with the manager wanting to progress to the next stage of the competition.
He said: “It’s a difficult call. You want to try and get through. Of course, you want some less players who’ve had less time in the last few weeks to get onto the field of play, but it’s a tough balancing act. The most important issue is to try and win the game.”
Sunderland’s last game was a goalless draw with Stoke in the Premier League this Saturday. This was Sunderland’s sixth draw so far this season and O’Neill talked about this to BBC Sport after the match. He said: “We have drawn a lot of games this season and we are just unable at the moment to turn one or two of those draws into victories.”
If any Sunderland fans are heading to the Stadium of Light on Tuesday night, then don’t forget to download the FREE Screach App – enter code 8 – and vote for your ‘Man of the Match’
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Crystal Palace manager Ian Holloway believes Wilfried Zaha will make the most of his shock England call-up.
The Championship winger has been drafted into the Three Lions’ squad ahead of Wednesday’s friendly with Sweden following a series of impressive performances for the London club.
Despite many suggesting that the 20-year-old may not be ready to represent England at senior level, Holloway feels his man will make the most of the opportunity:
“He’s an untouched, pure talent and everyone knows the more serious you get the harder it is to want take people on.” He told SkySports.
“But he’s so unique, I’ve never worked with anyone like him, he just wants to get the ball and beat people, however many there are, he can do it.
“Before I got to Palace I thought ‘yeah, but is he any better than anyone else?’ Now I’ve seen him, good gracious me, it’s quite unbelievable what he can do.
“Hopefully, if he does play on Wednesday, people will see that and I believe he can do it at the very top level.”
Although he has been impressive for his club, it has been speculated that Zaha’s call-up is merely a method of ensuring he will be eligible for future England squads.
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Born in the Ivory Coast, the winger could represent the African nation so long as he does not play for England at senior level.
These rumours are fuelled further by the inclusions of Raheem Sterling and Carl Jenkinson, who are eligible for Jamaica and Finland respectively.
Last October I was lucky enough to visit Stamford Bridge and bask in the unfamiliar glow of football’s elite, as Chelsea cruised to a 4-1 demolition of Norwich City. These were certainly happier times for Blues fans, but that didn’t mean the team and indeed the manager were devoid of criticism.
As Grant Holt fired in the opening goal of the game, the crowd reacted as if he’d just consigned the club to relegation. A cascade of abuse broke the initial wave of silence, which was a strange response considering Chelsea had been in complete control and were surely only moments away from finding an equaliser.
Now, before I attract the same batch of insults, I remain convinced this is a familiar theme right across the Premier League, especially among fans that are accustomed to success. However, it does strike me that an overwhelming number of people demand perfection as standard and therefore place their expectations on an unattainable plinth.
It stands to good reason that once you’ve witnessed something utterly incredible, take Arsenal’s invincible season or Chelsea’s Champions League triumph, it’s almost impossible for anything else to resemble that same euphoric feeling. Of course, no one expected Arsenal’s silverware drought to last this long or Chelsea to crash out in this year’s group stages, but it’s not unusual for surreal highs to be swiftly followed by all-time lows.
In the past, Liverpool fans have found themselves tainted with a reputation for harbouring unrealistic expectations, thanks largely to their decorated history. Gerard Houllier has even previously claimed their craving for former glories has mutated into an unrelenting obsession.
“There is too much expectation at Liverpool – they expect you to win the Champions League every year.
But the obsession is the league. Rafa finished second and I finished second once but, for all the cups we won, they wanted us to win the league.” (This Is Anfield)
Things do appear different on Merseyside these days, with fans now relaxed and composed, much like the patient build-up play installed under Brendan Rodgers. However, this also demostrates that winning on its own simply isn’t enough anymore, you have to win with style. Barcelona and indeed Spain have set standards at a worryingly high level, with scores of supporters oozing with jealousy as their own team struggles to replicate the same precision passing.
Perhaps fans are fully justified to expect more with each passing year. As ticket prices continue to soar it’s only fair to request that the enjoyment factor of watching football improves as well. It’s natural to expect world records to be smashed every four years at the Olympics, because it is advertised as the pinnacle of physical and mental strength. But if the Premier League wants to merit its title as the best in the world, surely it has to display a similar level of progression?
As a fan of Crystal Palace, I have experienced my fair share of elation and misery. We are the clichéd ‘yo-yo’ club, having been relegated a record four times after achieving promotion to the Premier League. We’ve endured administration on two separate occasions and repeatedly witnessed our most talented prospects poached by clubs with a bigger bank balance.
However, I feel eternally grateful that I get to watch my team on a weekly basis, having nearly faded from existence almost three years ago. The club may sit second in the table at the moment, but I won’t be calling for Ian Holloway’s head should the club fail to gain passage to the top flight.
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I find an increasing number of supporters take their club for granted and I almost pity the likes of Manchester United, because they are unlikely to ever experience the joy of snatching an unlikely last-minute equaliser, against a distinctly superior team. Likewise, now Manchester City have won their first title in 44 years, anything less this season – especially at the hands of Manchester United – will be considered a failure.
Many of you may argue that it’s the new breed of football owners that expect too much, unwilling to share the same tolerance levels as a lifelong supporter. However, when results go awry on the pitch, it is the reverberation of boos around the stadium that prompts the chairman to wield his axe. Unless you’re Roman Ambramovich of course, but no one appears capable of living up to his expectations.
Does the modern football fan expect too much? Leave your thoughts below.
Growing up, I had the pleasure of playing both football and rugby union at a high, competitive level. Both very different sports with completely opposite types of people who both watch and play the sports.
It was by playing these two very different sports every Saturday and Sunday that enabled me to learn and recognise how far apart each game is in terms of respect, competitiveness and sportsmanship. It is at grassroots level where traits that become ‘part-and-parcel’ of the game are learned, and that’s where football seems to be getting it all wrong.
Firstly, respect for the officials is extremely important in rugby. The referee is known as ‘sir’ and the captains of each side are the only ones allowed to speak to him during the 80 minutes, while there are no prizes for guessing what a football referee is addressed as during his 90 minutes of officiating.
However, it is not just the players who are taught to show respect to the referee in rugby. The supporters, or parents in the case of grassroots rugby, are also encouraged to show the same amount of respect. No swearing, no arguing with decisions, no name-calling, and that’s how it should be.
I remember, during one game of rugby against a bitter rival, a parent of one of my newest team mates questioned a refereeing decision and began an obscene rant towards the man in the middle. The game was stopped by the referee and, without any hesitation, he walked over to said parent, showed him a red card and ordered him to sit in the club house for the remainder of the game. Needless to say, we never saw his child again and were told that he had decided to play Sunday league football instead. He and his child can swear, fight and be disrespectful when ever they want now. How nice.
Secondly, the respect shown between both sets of fans are a world apart in football and rugby. In football parents will stand at opposite sides of the pitch and scream at each other and their the players, with every other word being a swear word.
In rugby, opposing fans/parents, mingle before during and after the game. At professional level, they sit together and enjoy the game and the banter together. It’s the word ‘together’ that says a lot about how different these sports are in this respect. Football fans are only together when they are with their own fans hounding opposing fans from across a wall of policemen. Rugby fans are together when they are enjoying a few pints with each other, exchanging light hearted banter and sharing their love for the sport no matter which team they support.
Additionally, there seems to be a very different pain threshold between footballers and rugby players. Footballers fall over a ball or get kicked in the ankle and they are rolling around in absolute agony. Rugby players run at each other at full pace, bounce off each other and then just get up and carry on. Some will have their fingers and noses broken during a game and they will continue playing without any complaint.
People will argue that it’s like that due to the nature of how each game is played, but we must not forget that the professionals who play these sports are all fully grown men all the same. Just how pathetic must these footballers feel when they see themselves rolling ar0und the floor in absolute agony when, in reality, they’ve simply been shoulder barged off the ball? We all know it’s an attempt to influence the referee in to punishing the opposing player but, simply, it’s embarrassing.
Of course, another thing football could learn from rugby is the use of a video official, which is something that has been of increased debate over the years and has been partly put in place with the imminent introduction of goal line technology. A pat on the back for football for that one at least.
I think the main thing I am trying to get at with this post is that, if respect and sportsmanship is not adopted and endorsed at grassroots level then the sport will suffer at all levels all the way up to the highest stage.
I have always loved football and I always will do. But, I owe my parents a lot for introducing me to rugby from such an early age and giving me the opportunity see what sport really should be like.
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But there’s no reason why football can’t be the same. All it needs is for parents and coaches a like to take a leaf out of rugby’s book and think “Do you know what? Rugby does it so much better than us, let’s do it their way from now on.”
Only then will we see a big change in football, it’s culture and the way it is played because, at the moment, the old saying “Football is a gentleman’s sport playing by hooligans, Rugby is hooligan’s sport played by gentleman” could not be more true.
What do you think? Does football still have so much to learn and can it use rugby as a role model? Leave your comments below.
With the January transfer window almost upon us, the rumour mill looks as if it’s about to go into overdrive, but a recent trend that appears to have slipped somewhat under the radar is how more and more, managers are now no longer the be all and end all when it comes to deciding on bringing players in and shifting them out, with Liverpool, Tottenham and Manchester City serving as prime examples of the consistency with which the new model is being utilised.
Of course, we are not talking about either Manchester United or Arsenal here, for having been at Old Trafford for over 25 years and The Emirates (not literally) for 17 years, both Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger have been granted a degree of leeway when it comes to these matters, even if they are still applicable to the financial framework and constraints that most have to live with, albeit on a grander scale.
Nor are we exclusively talking about Chelsea, for they appear to break all the rules when it comes to trying to pigeonhole them as a club – owner Roman Abramovich will set out roughly what he wants from a boss, hand him a significant transfer budget on top of the remit of trying to deliver success with style.
Nevertheless, that hasn’t stopped him from foisting both Andriy Shevchenko and Fernando Torres onto both Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti in the past, while it remains unclear just exactly who is in charge of selling and buying players in January – is it interim head coach Rafa Benitez? Or is it trusted Abramovich lieutenant Michael Emenalo instead? It remains to be seen in the never-ending power struggle that threatens to consume the halls of Stamford Bridge.
At Manchester City, though, the recent arrival of Txiki Begiristain as the club’s Director of Football having previously occupied a similar position at Barcelona has been hailed as a masterstroke, with ‘footballing administrator’ (whatever that means) Brian Marwood being moved into a new role, with Roberto Mancini seemingly the winner when it comes to a battle of wills with the hierarchy.
The mix-ups at the top prevented the club from capturing both of their top transfer targets in the summer of Robin van Persie and Eden Hazard, and they both, crucially, signed for and strengthened rivals Manchester United and Chelsea instead.
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However, this latest step has been welcomed with open arms by the Italian manager and while it should be seen as a move to prep the groundwork for a future punt at securing the available Pep Guardiola’s services, Begiristain has an undeniable pedigree in the field, which coupled with City’s wealth, even after its influence is diminished by Financial Fair Play, makes the mind boggle what they could achieve.
The theory is that the position of Director of Football is not one that can work in English football, and given its history, it’s a fair point after the failures of Dennis Wise at Newcastle and Damien Comolli at Liverpool. To my knowledge at least, it seems an unfair generalisation on the whole, but given the evidence available, a logical conclusion to come to at the same time.
There is nothing inherently different to the way that Premier League clubs are run in a larger sense to say their Spanish, Italian and German counterparts. Some are fan-owned, others elect presidents and board members, while the rest are ruled autonomously, but as Omar Little rather neatly summed up in The Wire, ‘the game is the game’. There is no fundamental reason why it shouldn’t work in the future in the Premier League and these clubs are leading the way.
The powers that be at Anfield have also made a move to ensure that the clubs successes and failures in the transfer market do not rest solely on the shoulders of the manager, despite their dire consequences in terms of waste and gross mismanagement of funds under Kenny Dalglish’s reign.
Managing Director Ian Ayre spoke upon Brendan Rodgers appointment of the desire to establish a more ‘European-style” of set-up before later adding that it would be a “more continental director of football-type structure, a collaborative group working around the football area.” The result was that this collaborative group wasn’t set up in time, leading to the bungling of the summer deadline day which saw Andy Carroll depart on loan to West Ham without a direct replacement lined up, in what Rodgers termed “operational issues.” A repeat performance could have dire consequences on their hopes of a top eight finish in the second half of the campaign.
Elsewhere, at Tottenham, Andre Villas-Boas, familiar with a management structure above him from his time at Porto, has reportedly been frustrated in his attempts to sign players by the movements and tough negotiating stance of chairman Daniel Levy, with the club missing out on his top target Joao Moutinho in the summer as a replacement for Luka Modric.
Levy’s desire to achieve a fair deal for players exiting the club and a bargain on those on the way in has often stopped the club from making the most of their potential over the past few years. It’s clear that the chairman relishes the window and sees himself as something of a deadline day specialist, but when it comes to planning, the constant chopping and changing must only prove a nightmare for a manager and it’s a far from enviable situation that the Portuguese finds himself in.
Klaus Allofs at Werder Bremen, Frank Arnesen at Hamburg, Leonardo at PSG, Uli Hoeneß at Bayern Munich, Giuseppe Marotta at Juventus and Adriano Galliani at AC Milan have all proven that the role can work as a sort of buffer between the manager and the club’s owners.
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At the same time, though, the likes of Gianluca Nani at West Ham, David Pleat at Tottenham and Barry Fry at Peterborough have all proven the exact opposite which just goes to show you that it’s more to do with the people involved as opposed to anything particularly wrong with the function of the role. Both parties have to believe in the position for it to work and traditionally, managers in England are, well, more traditional in what powers they believe to be theirs and theirs alone, which has been the source of the friction.
Along with the birth and spread of the technocratic manager across Europe these past few years; young, fresh, forward-thinking coaches are more likely to find the idea of working with a transfer committee or club executive a more reasonable request.
Power no longer resides in one individual picking and choosing which players he likes and for better or worse right at the top, and this appears to be the direction that the English game is heading in as it seeks to adopt the management structure of our European counterparts.
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers is still looking to add to his squad during the January transfer window.
The Reds’ only arrival this month has been Daniel Sturridge from Chelsea, who signed within days of the window opening.
With his team currently some way off of the top four, Rodgers has admitted that he may need to delve into the market once more, as injuries have revealed a lack of depth in his squad:
“We’ll see what happens over the course of the next few weeks.” He told the club’s official website.
“Daniel was our main priority and we’ll have to see what else is available.
“There’s no doubt we need to support the group. We had 20 players training this morning, of which some of those are our younger players, so we know we need to reinforce and top up the group. That’s something we’ll look to do.
“If we can do it then great and if not, then we’ll wait until the summer.”
One player to have been linked with a switch to Anfield is Inter Milan playmaker Wesley Sneijder.
The Dutchman is believed to be close to joining Galatasaray, but there are rumours that he is holding out for a move to the Premier League.
But, Rodgers has ruled out a move for the 28-year-old, who is said to be earning £200,000-per-week:
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“You could probably rattle off about 20 names and the answer would be the same. The club have been linked with a whole host of players, but I couldn’t see that happening.”
Liverpool have also been linked with Tom Ince, Victor Valdes and David Villa in recent weeks.
Everton winger Kevin Mirallas is confident that manager David Moyes will stay at Goodison Park.
The Scot’s future with the Premier League club is in some doubt, with reports emerging that he has postponed contract talks with the Merseysiders’ hierarchy.
Moyes’ deal with the Toffees expires at the end of the season, and he has been linked with a number of roles at other clubs.
Some have suggested that he could be in line to replace Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, while there is also speculation that he may move abroad in a bid to develop his reputation within European football.
But, Mirallas, who moved to the club from Olympiakos over the summer, wants Moyes to stay put:
“Of course I would be keen if he signed, he showed confidence in me by bringing me to club,” he told Sky Sports.
“He has been Everton for many years and is very popular with the fans, chairman and players and I am sure he will sign, I cannot see why he wouldn’t because of those reasons.”
Everton could only manage a 2-2 draw with Oldham in their FA Cup fifth round tie over the weekend, but Mirallas is hopeful that they can lift the trophy at Wembley, and would sacrifice Champions League football to do so:
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“If it was down to me winning a trophy would be great, but Champions League qualification would be fantastic.”
West Ham United and Newcastle are set to battle it out with Barcelona for the signing of Toulouse defender Aymen Abdennour, according to Talksport
The Tunisian international has been earning rave reviews in the French league this season, interesting a host of top European sides, including Barcelona.
The Catalan giants have already sent their representatives to watch the defender in action as they source a long-term replacement for club legend Carlos Puyol.
But it now looks as though Barcelona won’t have it all their own way as they battle for his signature with Newcastle and West Ham declaring their interest in the defender.
Magpies boss Alan Pardew will fancy his chances of bringing Abdennour to the club having achieved a number of successful Ligue 1 raids over the last couple of seasons, including the signings of influential midfielders Yohan Cabaye and Hatem Ben Arfa.
But Sam Allardyce is also said to be keen on bringing the big Tunisian to the Premier League and the West Ham manager is desperate to provide defensive competition to his backline as he tries to build his defence around New Zealand captain Winston Reid.
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Any move from an English club will of course depend on Barcelona’s involvement as neither side will be able to match a bid from the Spanish side.
Antolin Alcaraz says everyone at Wigan is focused on staying in the Premier League despite an FA Cup semi-final on the horizon.
Latics head to Wembley on April 13 to face Millwall in the FA Cup semi-finals, but, of far more significance, with Roberto Martinez’s side currently in the bottom three, is Saturday’s visit of Norwich followed by a trip to QPR.
Alcaraz admits the players are looking forward to their Wembley date but is well aware there are some crucial league games to be played before then and everyone is focused on survival.
“We have Wembley to look forward to but for me the most important game is always the next one and that is Norwich City,” the Paraguay international told the Wigan Evening Post.
“We will worry about the FA Cup when it comes around next month.
“For now we must concentrate on the league because there are some important games coming up.
“We have shown in the last few games that we can win games in this league and we must keep that up if we are to move away from the bottom of the table.”
Alcaraz has only just returned to the side after more than six months out with a groin problem and he is looking to make up for lost time.
“My season only really started two weeks ago,” he said. “Everything before that I have forgotten about because it was not so good.
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“Fortunately there is still time for me to make a difference – and I hope that is the case.”
David Moyes enjoyed a fitting Goodison Park farewell as Kevin Mirallas’ brace earned Everton a routine win over West Ham.
The Toffees gave their departing manager an appropriate send-off before he takes over from Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United in July and could have increased the winning margin had it not been for Hammers duo Jussi Jaaskelainen and James Collins.
In his 213th final home match Moyes saw his side start in scintiallting fashion and break the deadlock after only six minutes. It was fitting that three of his most trusted lieutenants were involved as Leighton Baines, Steven Pienaar and Marouane Fellaini combined to set up Mirallas, who guided a firm strike into the bottom corner from just inside the penalty area.
It took some steadfast defending from Collins and Jaaskelainen to deny the home side more goals as they kept out efforts from Fellaini and Victor Anichebe, prior to Kevin Nolan volleying narrowly wide at the other end in a rare attack for Sam Allardyce’s men.
Leon Osman fired wide after the break as Everton kept up their hunt for a second that came on the hour mark when Mirallas latched on to a well weighted pass from Darron Gibson and saw his shot loop in off Collins. Everton were in danger of running away with the game but couldn’t increase their goal tally as the Hammers shut up shop towards the end.
A largely anonymous Andy Carroll almost had the final say when he headed against the post from substitute Joe Cole’s cross but the day, inevitably, belonged to Moyes as he bid an emotional goodbye to the Goodison support.
David Moyes post-match…”There’s always a worry when you’re joining another club, but Everton fans were magnificent for me today. David Unsworth scored the first goal of my reign at Goodison 11 years ago after about 25 seconds. And I’m delighted I finished it off here with a win.”
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Sam Allardyce post-match…”I’m bitterly disappointed. It’s always difficult to play at Goodison Park and David Moyes’s record speaks for itself. I warned the players but they chose to take no notice. It left us with a bad performance.”
Man of the Match…Kevin Mirallas: Never stood still for a second all afternoon and pestered the West Ham back four to the point of tears. His brace also illustrated a cool head in front of goal.
Flop of the Match…Mohamed Diame: After a season in which Diame has proved himself one of the Premier League’s most uncompromising of midfield enforcers, this limp display was wholly out of character. Deservedly hauled off at the break.