Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admits he was impressed with goalkeeper Vito Mannone’s performances against Stoke City and Liverpool, according to the club’s official website.
The 24-year-old is normally third choice at the Emirates, but deputised for the Gunners after injuries were sustained to the Polish duo of Wojciech Szczesny and Lukasz Fabianski.
Despite this, Szczesny is expected to return to the starting line-up when Arsenal entertain Southampton tomorrow following a rib injury.
However, Wenger admits he has been impressed by Mannone’s application and attitude, “He has done really well. Vito was allowed to move at the start of the season to play somewhere.” Wenger added, “Now he has been No. 1 for two games and has at least moved into being a serious candidate to be fighting for the place. At the moment, Wojciech is there but there is a fight and it is interesting.”
The Arsenal boss says that he sees competition for places in the goalkeeping department as healthy for any side, “We have three goalkeepers who have the talent to play in the Premier League and to fight for the No. 1 place.”
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.
Complete the survey below to be in with the chance of winning a football shirt of your choice…
Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world’s leading questionnaire tool.
There’s no way to get around it, Rangers have had another abysmal season.
While challenging Celtic for the Scottish Premiership was always going to be a big ask, the manner in which they surrendered the fight both in direct competition with the Hoops and over the course of the season has not been good enough for Rangers supporters.
Added to that, they are again struggling to even finish second ahead of teams with resources far less than theirs. There is even a chance that they finish fourth if results go against them this week. That’s unthinkable.
The appointment of Steven Gerrard has added a bit of much needed optimism, but the realities of the job ahead of him will be difficult to navigate.
While bringing in fresh talent is obviously a priority, just as important is shedding players from a squad that simply hasn’t been good enough.
These are the three players that must be first out of the door this summer by any means necessary…
Bruno Alves has been a massive disappointment and flop since arriving as Pedro Caixinha’s first signing in last summer’s transfer window.
His signature was supposed to be a signal of intent, but his spell at the club has turned into more of a symbol of failure.
Reported to be one of the squad’s highest earners, he simply hasn’t delivered a return on that investment, starting less than half of Rangers games in all competitions this season.
When he has played he’s often failed to impress, looking a shadow of the towering defender who won so many trophies with Porto, FC Zenit and Fenerbahce.
Getting him off the wage bill must be a priority for Steven Gerrard, whose resources will be stretched to the limit as is. Sadly for the Liverpool legend, Alves has another year on his contract at Ibrox, so he’ll have to hope that a buying club comes in for him.
If Bruno Alves’ spell at the club has been a disappointment, Carlos Pena’s has been nothing but a disaster.
Heralded as one of the club’s marquee signings last June, he took over three months to make his first start for the club and ended up making only eight in total before being sent on loan to Cruz Azul in his Mexican homeland in January, unbelievably signed by Pedro Caixinha for the second time in a single season.
However, the shambles didn’t end there, with the midfielder reportedly sacked last month for urinating in a fountain in the team’s hotel while drunk.
With two years left on his current Rangers deal, his status at the club is in limbo but it’s fairly clear he has no future at Ibrox in the short-term and the Gers must look at every option to ensure he is moved on.
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.
Completing the trio of disastrous Pedro Caixinha signings is Eduardo Herrara, who was announced as a Rangers player on the same day as Carlos Pena.
A 9-cap Mexican international, there was a keen sense of intrigue about the target man striker when he arrived and after scoring four games into the league season, there was some hope he could do a job.
With just one solitary League Cup goal since then though, it’s fair to say he’s failed to make an impression and hasn’t even played in a league match since December despite being fit for the vast majority of the time since.
He needs to go to make way for other signings and strikers that Steven Gerrard wants to pursue.
Like your nan probably used to tell you when she gave you some money, ‘Don’t spend it all at once.’
The same holds true in football. Liverpool blew their Luis Suarez money on a collection of players that failed to gel together: split like a bad hollandaise sauce. Tottenham did even worse with their Gareth Bale money, the flops from that venture are being offloaded as we speak. Etienne Capoue is now a Watford player and Roberto Soldado might flee back to Spain with his tail between his legs.
So the windfall Aston Villa have come into after the sale of Christian Benteke to Liverpool should be regarded in the same caution. It’s not quite so spectacularly large, but Villa would do well to replace him and build the team as they would’ve done with the burly Belgian.
And so it makes complete sense to see Tim Sherwood raid his old club Tottenham for Emmanuel Adebayor.
Is it a risk? Yes, Benteke is a great striker with a real future ahead of him. His goals have kept Villa in the Premier League in at least two season. Adebayor, on the other hand, hasn’t shown his quality since Sherwood was in charge at the Lane. And before Sherwood was in charge it was much longer ago than that.
But Adebayor is definitely a quality footballer. He’s also big and strong, and like Benteke he knows where the goal is. And Sherwood is confident he can get the best out of the Togolese once again.
So it might be a risk, but it looks like a calculated one that learns from the mistakes of other clubs. We’ll have to wait and see if Villa spend their money on other players too, of course. But if Villa do get their man, they’ll be able to build just as they would’ve done had they kept hold of Benteke.
We would call him a traditional number 9. In Brazil, the lone striker is known as the point of the lance. Benteke has been Villa’s bayonet, and with the direct style employed by Sherwood since his arrival, favouring pace in and around the lone striker, Benteke has been effective. Adebayor would surely fit the bill as a striker who can play in that role.
But replacing Benteke at the point of the lance will only be effective for Villa next season if the point is sharp. Adebayor played only eight times last season, scoring two goals, so it’s not clear that he’ll still be a striker with the quality to do it in the Premier League.
And Villa perhaps rely on their lone striker too much as it is. Benteke’s goals have been crucial in Villa’s survival bids over the last few years, but clearly that shows that the blade at the end of the lance is sharp. There’s something to be said for a blunt instrument too, of course, but it doesn’t have the penetrating power that a sharp one does.
And that’s the gamble that Sherwood is taking if indeed he does plump for Adebayor. If he does, he’ll be getting a striker he knows and trusts, a striker with obvious class and pedigree and someone who is very comfortable and totally adept at playing in the role that Sherwood wants him to play. But is he still up to the task?
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.
Tim Sherwood needs a new bayonet, and there are lots of plusses to choosing Adebayor for the job. But the two questions are: is he sharp? And is he rusty? Because if Adebayor can still do it Sherwood won’t have to build his team in a different way and he won’t have to buy lots of new players to create new options for the team like Spurs and Liverpool did.
But if Adebayor isn’t up to the task it could be a long season ahead for Villa. Playing a direct and pacey style with no one up front to score the goals could turn out to be hugely frustrating and ultimately a knife through the heart of Villa’s Premier League survival hopes.
The controversies surrounding Carlos Tevez’s initial move to England with West Ham have been replaced by other equally infamous stories. The transfer from the red half of Manchester to the blue; the retreat to Argentina following the episode at the Allianz Arena against Bayern Munich; the persistent stories linking him with a move away.
Is it so bad that no other English club – a fourth English club – has found use for the 29-year-old? Almost as if to say, collectively, the Premier League is sorry to let go of such a headline-producing figure.
£10 million rising to £12 million may seem like peanuts in today’s market – because it is. Tevez may be at that stage of his career where it’s his ‘last big contract,’ but he’s still a 20 goal-a-season striker, more than capable of leading the charge for any of the top teams in Europe. Yet it isn’t such a bad thing that Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham have failed to capitalise on his move out of the Etihad Stadium.
[cat_link cat=”premiership” type=”list”]
The unwavering power in his game, the desire shown on the pitch and the capacity to match the very best he’s thrown in against would indicate that Juventus have indeed landed a star striker, the club now fully able to launch potentially devastating tandem with Fernando Llorente also in the fold as they seek their third Serie A title in as many years. But Italy is new to Tevez, it’s a different adventure and one where the poorly taken steps of his career in England won’t be so pronounced.
Juventus don’t need a star to legitimise their efforts for this season. The Italian champions have Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal, a monster three-man backline headed by Giorgio Chiellini; Tevez is joining a proven group of winners and adding to their bid to transfer domestic success onto the European stage. It would be completely different at any of the three suggested teams in England.
It shouldn’t be misinterpreted: for his abilities and contributions on the pitch, Tottenham and Arsenal would both see value in Tevez, combined with the minimal fee Manchester City have reduced themselves to. It’s the off-pitch personality that neither team need.
Spurs are already dealing with the persistent nuisance from abroad with regards to Gareth Bale and Andre Villas-Boas is trying to reshape a squad in his own image – one that saw him to such success while managing in Portugal. Like their north London rivals, Tottenham also need a marquee name in attack, someone who can finally take them over the line and help to secure Champions League football on a regular basis. Tevez, however, isn’t the long-term fix they need. On the pitch he’ll do what they need and probably more. Off it, you never know what you’re going to get. Coupled with his wage demands that were unlikely to deviate too far from his previous contract at Manchester City, it just rounds out to a deal that Spurs could have afforded to miss.
The lack of interest from within the Premier League for Tevez – his most notable suitors ahead of Juventus were Monaco and PSG – should also say a lot about the value English clubs have found abroad. Tevez isn’t the only 20 goal-a-season striker who could be had for a financial package that amounts to a good investment. Can anyone really argue that Arsenal haven’t picked up a better deal in Gonzalo Higuain if the mooted £22 million deal goes ahead? What about Tottenham and the links they have with Leandro Damiao and Roberto Soldado? One is a proven goal scorer in Europe, while the former is a Brazilian international with the potential to further enhance his reputation in the Premier League.
For Brendan Rodgers and Liverpool, it makes absolutely no sense. The club are targeting bargain buys in the most literal sense of the phrase, all the while ensuring that they remain smart in their building and receive the best return for their meagre outlay. Should Luis Suarez depart Anfield this summer, a replacement like Tevez might not do a lot to totally appease supporters. The Argentine isn’t a player who you can invest a lengthy project in. Adding his age into the mix, it doesn’t fit the bill for what the club are looking for on the transfer front.
An interesting (or damning) stat is that Tevez hasn’t scored in the Champions League since his final season at Old Trafford. Of course, there was the fallout from the incident at the Allianz Arena, but then City could have done with someone of his experience in the competition last season when they failed to advance out of the group stage yet again. The player himself doesn’t need a project; he needs to go where the pressure is lessened significantly.
Manchester City may have an immediate feeling that they didn’t quite get value for money in the sale of Tevez – Robin van Persie and Andriy Shevchenko are comparable transfers. But Premier League clubs haven’t missed a beat by any means. There are far better options suited to the needs of Liverpool, Spurs and Arsenal. At 29, the Argentine isn’t quite at the age anymore to be considered a signing of great intent.
Have Tottenham, Arsenal and Liverpool missed out on Carlos Tevez?
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.
Gossip plays a big part in the world of football today, indeed where would we be without the transfer rumours that fill up the empty space in the summer vacated by the actual games themselves? The papers comply fully with people’s desires to hear shocking stories about their clubs and which potential superstars they’ve been linked with this week.
Unfortunately, the Internet has ensured the business of transfer rumours has been taken to a whole new level, with numerous sites dedicated specifically to the subject. This means that all sorts of stories can be broken to the world, and many of them without a shred of truth behind them. Fans now have to decipher between the accurate rumours, the unlikely rumours and the ‘not a chance in hell that’s happening’ rumours. This summer has been no different and therefore we bring you ten of the worst transfer rumours to hit the press this transfer window.
Click on Hulk to see this summer’s dodgiest deals
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.
Former Liverpool striker John Aldridge has looked at the positives from this afternoon’s Premier League stalemate against Stoke City.The fans were not entirely happy, particularly with Joe Gomez’s performance, due to the fact that Jurgen Klopp’s attacking stars misfired.In the end, the club recorded a goalless draw, although they should have been awarded a penalty when the ball struck Erik Pieters’s arm in the box.Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Jordan Henderson were among the first XI, despite the fact that the Reds have a huge Champions League semi-final second leg against Roma next Wednesday night.Salah unusually missed an opportunity that he normally would have buried as his attempt missed the target despite being through on goal.Even though it was not the desired result against relegation battlers Stoke, the team still picked up a point and are three away from securing a place in the top four of the table.Trent Alexander-Arnold and Jordan Henderson suffered knocks, but the injuries are not thought to be serious enough to affect their chances of playing in Italy next week.After the final whistle, Aldridge took to Twitter to post the positives, and he could not help but throw a cheeky dig at Stoke.
Former Bayern Munich striker Roy Makaay has claimed that it “wouldn’t surprise” him if Bastian Schweinsteiger leaves his old side to join Manchester United this summer.
The German World Cup winner has recently been aligned with a switch to the Red Devils, amid claims that Louis van Gaal is keen to set up a reunion with his former star.
LVG coached the all-action midfielder during his spell at the helm of the Bavarian giants, and is widely credited as the man who turned him into a bombarding central player after spotting his talent in a wide role.
WANT MORE? >> Manchester United transfer news | Latest transfer news
Makaay was also involved in Bayern’s set-up with ‘The Commander’, and he says that it would be no shock to see the Allianz Arena idol relocate to Manchester in the coming months:
“He’s an amazing player, a world champion,” he told Goal. “If you saw him at the World Cup final he was bleeding everywhere but he came back on the pitch.
“He and van Gaal had a good relationship so it wouldn’t surprise me [if he joined United]. I hope he stays at Bayern. He’s a kid from the club and he has to stay there. But if he decides to move it wouldn’t be a surprise if he changed to Man United knowing the good relationship he has with the manager.
“When you listen to Van Gaal, there were players he had a good relationship with. Thomas Muller [is one], but he was quite clear and said ‘I’m going to stay at Bayern’ and Schweinsteiger, I don’t know what’s going to happen.”
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.
Schweinsteiger has enjoyed a glittering career with Bayern, graduating from their youth set-up before winning eight Bundesliga titles and the Champions League.
Former Chelsea midfielder Nemanja Matic is thought to be on Manchester United’s radar after becoming a key member of Benfica’s team, according to Sport 360.
United boss Sir Alex Ferguson is thought to be in the market for reinforcements in the middle of the park for next season, with Paul Scholes tipped to retire for a second time in the summer and question marks existing over the long-term future of illness stricken Darren Fletcher.
The Serbian enforcer is one of the names being looked at by Ferguson and his scouting network and another standout performance against Newcastle in the Europa League won’t have gone unnoticed.
Magpies manager Alan Pardew was extremely impressed with Matic’s display for the Portuguese league leaders on Thursday and made a point of commenting about it in his post-match interviews.
He said: “The way they kept the ball was fantastic, but Matic in particular. The way he has grown since he has gone away from Chelsea, he’s a terrific player for them.”
Matic’s opportunities were restricted to just three first-team outings during his two-year stay at Stamford Bridge, before moving to Portugal in January 2011 as part of the deal that saw David Luiz head in the opposite direction.
However, he has clearly developed with a regular run in Benfica’s starting eleven after finally getting his chance for them following Javi Garcia and Axel Witsel’s transfers to Manchester City and Zenit St Petersburg respectively.
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.
Excluding teenager Nick Powell and the return of Paul Scholes, Sir Alex hasn’t signed a central midfielder since Owen Hargreaves in 2007.
Back in 2002, Aston Villa beat Everton in the FA Youth Cup Final 4-1, hammering an opposition that featured a certain Mr W. Rooney on their team sheet. The strikers for Villa that day were a pair of brothers, Stefan and Luke Moore, who Villa fans thought were just as talented, if not better than the Manchester United and England superstar was back then. While Luke’s career hasn’t exactly gone according to plan, at least he still plays in the Premier League for Swansea City. As for Stefan, well he’s an absolute goal machine still. Unfortunately, those goals are scored for St Neots Town in the United Counties Football League.
Moore actually made his professional debut for Chesterfield, who he joined on loan in 2001 to gain some first team experience. Villa recalled him after just three appearances from that loan spell to get him involved in the first team squad and by the summer of 2002, Stefan was firmly in the frame for regular football. He appeared in the Intertoto Cup, before making his Premier League debut in September, scoring a belter as well against Charlton Athletic. As we all know, Moore wasn’t the only young starlet to score a sensational goal after breaking into the first team in 2002, but that’s where the comparisons with Rooney have to stop.
Injuries then wrecked the rest of that promising campaign and Moore struggled to get into the starting line-up the next season, making just eight Premier League appearances and scoring one goal against Blackburn. An ankle injury put paid to the 2003/04 season and all of sudden, Moore’s prodigious talent was in doubt. Villa manager at the time, David O’Leary, decided to send his talented striker out on loan to give him first team experience and Moore spent time at Millwall and then Leicester in the 2004/05 season, failing to find the net at either club. The writing was on the wall for Moore and he left Villa and his brother behind in the summer, signing for QPR.
While Luke began to make his mark at Villa Park, bagging a hat trick against Middlesbrough, Stefan was struggling to make things work at Loftus Road, managing just three goals in 39 league appearances at the club. Having spent time on loan at Port Vale and not managing to have any impact on proceedings there, he signed for Walsall in 2008, a couple of months before his brother completed a £3.5 million move to West Brom. Moore then pulled out his customary trick of scoring on debut, but things simply didn’t work out at the Bescot Stadium, his strike against Luton turned out to be his only one for the club and after just five appearances, his deal was terminated.
Moore’s journey into the nomadic world of non-league football began after an unsuccessful trial with Melbourne Victory, a tell-tale sign that his career was sliding down the drain. Australia is the common destination for washed up footballers, just ask Francis Jeffers or Michael Bridges. Kidderminster was his first port of call though, where he lasted just 14 games for the Harriers, before he signed for Silhill 4th XI in the Birmingham and District AFA League Division Five to maintain his fitness. Five goals in two games showed he still had the ability to trouble defenders and he soon joined Halesowen Town in the Southern Premier League. Proving he was far too good for that lowly level, Moore scored 39 goals in 44 games for the club in the 2009/10 season, prompting interest from a number of clubs, including two football league sides.
For whatever reason, any proposed move never came off and Moore fell out with the Halesowen board after accusing them of a lack of ambition and ineptitude. He moved to St Neots in the United Counties League, continuing his sensational goal scoring record in the lower leagues, having notched 62 in his 75 league games so far.
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.
Moore’s tale is a harrowing one for any young footballer who makes the breakthrough as a promising young player. Villa fans always talk about the two brothers Stefan and Luke, with a misty look in their eyes, remembering the pair of home grown strikers who were supposed to fire them to Premier League glory. Injuries did affect Stefan’s career, but his dramatic fall from grace is rather inexplicable. There are no obvious disciplinary issues and his passion for the game is clearly still what it used to be, considering he still plies his trade in the lower leagues when many others would have simply quit. At the age of 28, he now runs a taxi firm, balancing his off-field commitments with his scoring feats for St Neots, but you imagine that Stefan Moore would have expected quite a different life when he and his brother fired the Villa youth team to victory all those years ago.
Liverpool fans are absolutely crucifying Alberto Moreno, after the Spaniard struggled in his return to action against West Brom.
Everything looked rosy for Liverpool fans around 14:00 on Saturday afternoon, but in the space of ten minutes their comfortable 2-0 lead at the Hawthorns evaporated.
The capitulation felt all too familiar to Liverpool fans, who until the arrival of Virgil van Dijk suffered through plenty of late collapses.
Van Dijk has made a huge difference for the Reds, but he wasn’t enough on Saturday as several key players were rotated, leaving the likes of Moreno to prove themselves.
Unfortunately for Moreno, he only proved himself as unreliable, as late goals from Jake Livermore and Salomón Rondón ruined the Reds’ party.
Liverpool are still in a very strong position to secure top four despite the 2-2 draw, but fans are absolutely furious with Moreno’s performance.
The flying full back has certainly had a fair few ups and downs at Anfield, but he was playing his best football since coming to the club before his ankle injury.
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.
It’s not hard to see why Andrew Robertson has kept him out of the team even since he’s returned to fitness though, and some of the best Twitter reactions can be found below…