Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has stated that Didier Drogba’s departure from Chelsea is a boost for their title rivals.
The Ivory Coast international has joined Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua on a free transfer after his contract at Stamford Bridge expired.
The Blues are now looking for a new big-name player to take the African’s place, but the Red Devils coach is glad to see the back of Drogba.
“When you think of the season he’s just had, I must say it is a big boost for us that Drogba is leaving Chelsea,” Ferguson said in The People.
“He scored that fantastic goal in the final with two minutes to go and his goalscoring record in the big games, in big finals, is incredible.
“As far as I was concerned, he won the Champions League for Chelsea,” he concluded.
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Ryan Giggs finally made his entrance on the international stage yesterday against Senegal for Team GB at the Olympics. It was fitting that Giggs’ introduction, and prelude to his final bow in international football, took place at Old Trafford, and many would be citing a disappointment at not seeing Giggs much more prominently in international football over the past 20-years.
Here’s the thing: It’s disappointing and a great shame that Ronaldo never lifted the Champions League during his playing career; it’s also disappointing that The Netherlands have never managed to win the World Cup, despite possessing some of football’s greatest talents. However, should we really bow our heads and take a moment to think of Ryan Giggs missing out on international football?
This isn’t a player who only really had an opportunity in the limelight through playing for his country. Instead, this is the most decorated footballer in England. Countless Premier League trophies, Champions League wins and even more domestic cups. His career has hardly been held back due to his nationality.
There’s also been an argument that the Champions League is a better stage to witness the best football has to offer, rather than the World Cup. Indeed, Giggs has been a prominent figure in club football’s premier competition, as have those who are not likely to figure greatly at international tournaments. A better reflection of what football has to offer? Absolutely.
But as for Giggs himself, does he really hold international football in that high regard that he’d consider it a shame that he’s largely missed out throughout his career? If, for example, Giggs did play for England, the tournament appearances would be there, and he’d more than likely be one of the first names on the squad list prior to a tournament. But like with many players, specifically his club-mates at Manchester United, he’d probably be forced out of international friendlies or qualifiers by a manager who (rightly) rubbishes the notion of such disruptions during a domestic campaign.
Wayne Rooney has been pulled out of England duty on a number of occasions, so are we really supposed to feel sorry for a player who might have treated international football in a similar way? It’s hard to believe that Giggs, despite how good he was, could have had a major swing on the fortunes of England over the years. Maybe it’s best to avoid all such disappointments and embarrassments.
Giggs may be relishing this opportunity with Team GB this summer, and it’s a positive way to help close out his career. He’s captaining the side and he’s been entrusted, as one of the over-age players, to oversee the development of the younger talents. However, I doubt too many tears would have been shed had Stuart Pearce overlooked him. The Olympics are hardly held in high regard here, despite the significance it holds across South America, so the London games really just round out to a nice bonus at the end of a hugely successful club career.
In no way have we been deprived of one of the Premier League’s best performers due to his minor international career. English football and the Champions League will always be of higher priority to a majority of football fans, while tournaments such as the World Cup and European Championship caters greatly to an audience who normally would not be interested in a United League Cup semifinal against Fulham.
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Ryan Giggs’ international career is more than compensated for by his trophy cabinet. And I doubt he’d trade his two Champions League medals for a jolly old outing away to a country where it’s too hot for football and where disappointment is guaranteed.
Hatem Ben Arfa will miss the start of Newcastle United’s Europa League campaign due to a suspension dating back to 2010.
The French international is unavailable for both ties against Greek side Atromitos due to a three game suspension picked up at former club, Marseilles.
Man of the match in the Toon Army’s Premier League victory over Tottenham Hotspur, the 25 year old misses out after seeing red for the French side in a 2-1 home defeat to Benfica.
It is doubtful whether Saturday’s match-winner would have been selected for Thursday’s clash in Athens anyway, with several key players likely to be rested for the Geordie outfit. Magpie manager, Alan Pardew is said to be prioritising Saturday’s league clash with Chelsea over Europe’s secondary competition.
Pardew may use the mid-week fixture to blood youngsters such as Sammy Ameobi and Harris Vuckic, whose first team opportunities were restricted last term.
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The Toon Army are back in European competition after a six year hiatus, after upsetting the odds to finish fifth last season.
Jack Rodwell’s move to Manchester City raised a few eyebrows up and down the country last week. Rodwell was regarded as Everton’s next big star, but has swapped dark blue for sky blue in exchange for £12million, and faces a battle to earn a place in the Champions star-studded lineup.
But whilst one homegrown player closes the door on Goodison Park, it could be about to open for another. 18-year-old midfielder Ross Barkley will be hoping to vill the void left by Rodwell and the New-York-bound Tim Cahill, although it is thought David Moyes is willing to send the youngster out on loan, with Sheffield Wednesday being touted as his most likely destination.
Moyes said: “I’m thinking about getting him some Championship experience maybe in the coming month or two.
‘I can’t do it right now until the squad is strong enough. I want him to go out and play. It seems right.”
Barkley is a product of the Everton youth academy, and has been touted as the most promising player to emerge since Wayne Rooney in 2003. He was a key part of the side that won the Premier Academy League in 2011, and has also represented England at under-19 level alongside Everton academy teammates Jake Bidwell, Luke Garbutt and John Lundstram, as well as featuring for England at under-21 level.
Quick, skilful, strong and with an eye for goal, Barkley’s performances have drawn rave reviews and reportedly attracted interest from a number of top Premier League clubs.
Barkley suffered a double leg break in 2010, which somewhat curtailed his development. Now back to full fitness, the Wavertree-born-midfielder has spent the summer impressing for England in the European Under-19 Championships in Estonia, putting in a man of the match performance against Greece.
It begs the question as to whether Moyes needs to dip into the transfer market when Barkley is available for selection, or whether he feels the chance to play regularly at a lower level, will have a bigger long term benefit for Everton.
The youngster started Everton’s first game of last season against QPR, and has impressed in small cameos since. Able to play in central midfield or just behind the striker, Barkley could play a big part for Everton this season after Moyes has already said his squad is thin, and could fill either role left by Rodwell or Cahill.
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With ten days of the transfer window remaining, if the Everton boss finds himself struggling to pull of the deals he is hoping, he could do a lot worse than turn to this gifted 18-year-old.
Newcastle goalkeeper Tim Krul has been sent home from international duty with Netherlands after picking up an injury in training, The Daily Mail report.
The Tyneside stopper played in the Oranje’s 2-0 win over Turkey on Friday night, but picked up an elbow injury in training on Saturday and as such has been sent back to the Premier League club.
As such Krul will not feature for Louis van Gaal’s men against Hungary on Tuesday night, and Alan Pardew will now deploy his medical staff to ascertain the severity of the knock.
Krul has been in a battle with Roma’s Maarten Stekelenburg to claim the No.1 jersey for the international side, and will be frustrated by the injury.
Newcastle take on Everton next Monday at Goodison Park, and it is yet to be revealed whether Krul will be able to play or if the visitors will need to rely on back-up Steve Harper.
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Maya Yoshida is excited by the new challenge facing him at Southampton after making his debut at Arsenal on Saturday, The Southern Daily Echo reports.
The 24-year-old arrives at St Mary’s after spending two years at Dutch Eredivisie side VVV Venlo, and is helped by the fact he speaks fluent English and has fellow compatriot Tadanari Lee with him at the club.
Yoshida captained Japan to a fourth-place finish in this summer’s Olympics and is marshalling the centre of the defence in his country’s charge to World Cup qualification.
He told the Daily Echo: “I’m really excited to play for Saints in the Premier League, but first I have to know what I should do and how the team are going to play.”
Yoshida was thrown straight into the deep end in his first-ever Premier League appearance, coming on as a substitute in the 6-1 drubbing at the Emirates, but admits he chose a move to the Premier League in order to challenge himself.
“I think the Premier League is a much, much higher level than the Eredivisie, so I have to get used to the speed and physicality,” he added.
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He is aware of the club’s financial problems in the past and their seven-year struggle to return to the top-flight, but was impressed by the ambition of the south coast side.
“There are new owners and they have good ambitions, and I have also,” he added.
Jonas Olsson is expected to end speculation on a possible move away from the Hawthorns after entering contract negotiations with Baggies Sporting and Technical director Dan Ashworth.
The Swedish defender announced his intentions of leaving West Brom in the summer, and was linked to several other clubs including Everton, Fulham and Galatasaray. A £4million move to Tottenham seemed most likely however, until Harry Redknapp’s departure from White Hart Lane.
Now the player’s contract is up at the end of this season, and the club’s management are keen for him to renew his current deal. This Wednesday, Olsson’s agent Martin Dahlin and Dan Ashworth opened discussions on a new contract at the club’s training ground.
Baggies Boss Steve Clarke said: “Jonas’ discussions are ongoing. The fact that his agent was here tells you that.
“In the matches he has played since I have been here, Jonas has been terrific. The contract talks certainly haven’t been playing on his mind.”
Goalkeeper Ben Foster had similar praise for the Swede: “It’s people like Jonas we need to be keeping. He is such an important part of our team.”
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The contract talks are by no means a done deal however, with Galatasaray and Atletico Madrid expressing their interest in luring the centre back away from the Premier League.
Two weeks ago the situation looked as dark as ever at Ipswich and it looked like Paul Jewell had to do something radical to turn things around.
It was obvious that the Liverpudlian manager wouldn’t last until January if the results didn’t start to improve and I came to the logical conclusion that Jewell had two options; either rebuild the team with loans and free transfers or make radical changes to his tactics.
The other conclusion I came to was that loan signings and free transfers were not the long-term solution but it seems like the 48-year-old Ipswich boss feels otherwise.
The previous loan signings of Giovanni Dos Santos, Keith Andrews and Jimmy Bullard were all useful in the short-term but did not help the club in the long-term. If there are bigger problems at the club then loan signings aren’t the solution.
The same applies with free transfers, normally there is no problem with picking up a player out of contract but if a player has waited until October to find a club then there is good reason to be skeptical.
You have to think; if this player loves playing football and has a lot of talent then why has he sat around for months waiting for a club to sign him?
The answer is that the player is waiting for a club like Ipswich to start struggling so he can exploit them. As soon as a manager like Jewell is desperate, he will give the player whatever wages he can in an attempt to keep his job. It is obvious that Reo-Coker has played his cards well and he has secured himself a contract that lasts only until January. This means that the midfielder keeps his options open and has nothing stopping him from moving on to better things later in the season.
I pointed out the issues with these signings two weeks ago and since then Jewell has signed an additional four loan players and signed Nigel Reo-Coker on a free transfer.
On paper it looks like great news for Ipswich as the club can now put names like DJ Campbell, Danny Higginbotham, Richie Wellens, Bilel Mohsni and Reo-Coker on their team sheet.
However, any Ipswich fan will know all too well you don’t win football matches with just a good team on paper. In fact the names are almost the least important part of a successful team. Everything needs to be perfect, from the tactics to the harmony within the squad and only once those are right can the club start to think about promotion.
Ipswich have started every season with relatively big names by Championship standards but they have struggled to even bring the club a mid table finish because they only ever have the names and they forget what else is needed.
So whilst these new loans and free transfers may improve results temporarily and bring the team out of the relegation zone they won’t help Ipswich avoid their usual mid table finish. If Ipswich want to break free from mid table obscurity then they need to change their philosophy and come into games with a different approach tactically.
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Jewell has done a decent job in the transfer market and he has secured some great signings without spending as much as previous managers like Roy Keane did. The former Wigan man clearly has a good eye for bargains and this is without doubt his strongest attribute as a manager.
Unfortunately the Ipswich manager hasn’t had much success with any other part of the job as the team have always been a step behind their opposition tactically and are figured out too easily once the season gets going. If Ipswich are to improve then they have to look at becoming more tactically astute rather than changing their personnel.
Sunderland centre back Carlos Cuellar is adamant that he is in peak physical condition for the Black Cats’ upcoming fixtures.
The former Aston Villa star arrived at the Stadium of Light on a free transfer this summer and has been keen to make his mark.
The 31-year-old was all too aware of the frustrations of being away from the limelight of Premier League football, and is keen to use his chance to prove his quality.
The Spaniard started off the season in fine form, before suffering an injury for two games prior to returning last time out, to taste his first defeat in red and white at the hands of Manchester City.
Cuellar was aware that he made a shaky return against the champions, but is keen to make amends on derby day.
It is clear that the international break arrived at an ideal time for the defender as it gave him a chance to boost his fitness levels.
The importance of giving a good showing for the fans this Sunday is not lost on Cuellar, with it being his first Tyne-Wear derby.
Sunderland’s latest defensive acquisition was ready to state his ambition to impress against Newcastle, telling the Shields Gazette, “This is a good opportunity for me, it’s a derby game.
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“We’ve had the opportunity to have a break, to relax and prepare for the game on Sunday.”
This is a clear illustration that confidence is high in the Sunderland camp ahead of their 1.30 match up with the Magpies. They seemingly have good reason too, as prior to their defeat to the current Premier League champions, they had a five match unbeaten start to the season.
In modern culture the only truly cherished anchorman is Will Ferrell. On the football pitch, strikers grab the headlines, wingers dazzle the crowds and even defenders evoke a manly roar from supporters when they put their body on the line.
What about the defensive midfielder? Those devoted few whose sole function is regain possession while resisting the urge to flock forward. Even since the departure of Rafa ‘two holding midfielders’ Benitez and Claude ‘big tackle’ Makelele, the Premier League has favoured the Namby Pamby ball-retention footballers such as Joe Allen and Leon Britton.
No more I say, sure we have Scott Parker and Lucas but both appear to be rapidly disintegrating on the sidelines. Plus, I think Liverpool fans would forget their Brazilian lynchpin pretty quickly if Xabi Alonso or Javier Mascherano ever returned to Anfield. Nevertheless I have decided to compose my top ten defensive barricades that I think deserve praise in print, even if they rarely receive it from the stands.
Click on Sandro below to start the countdown
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Join me on Twitter @theunusedsub
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