Assistant boss Eddie Newton could not believe how poor West Brom were in Wednesday's Carling Cup quarter-final defeat to Championship strugglers Ipswich Town.
After beating Everton 4-1 at the weekend, the Baggies were on a high, but contrived to lose to Roy Keane's side, with Grant Leadbitter's 69th-minute penalty proving decisive.
After the loss, Newton said:"We've been changing the side since the start of the competition. We show faith in our players and they've been doing well. So, I have no regrets on the changes.
"But it was a poor performance. Individually and collectively we were poor from the start to the end. We didn't turn up and didn't show enough desire.
"Therefore, we paid a big price, except for James Hurst, who was a debutant and was fantastic. I was really pleased with him, especially in a side that didn't perform very well.
"There were too many poor performances though. We can't carry that amount of poor performances. It happens and you want it to happen as few times as possible in a season.
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Without really playing well enough to warrant an unbeaten record which has seen Manchester United top the Premier League going into the New Year, many of us could have been forgiven in thinking that Sir Alex Ferguson will be looking to improve his squad in the January transfer window. But in typically stubborn fashion, the United manager looks set to stick with what he has and what he knows, and who can blame him?
Considering the players United have either injured or out on loan, lavishly spending money and more on players would only upset the balance of a squad which looks like it is ready to finally kick into gear. Admittedly, United’s frustrating form away from home this season has left even the most optimistic of fans calling for a spending spree in January. You could even go as far as saying that it was about time United joined the likes of Man City and Chelsea in spending big on some world-class names. But form is temporary, and Ferguson would know that better than anyone with regards to his own players.
Often criticised for his transfer policies, Ferguson has resisted all temptation in changing his ways. Considering the steps United’s rivals were taking to ensure they were best equipped to challenge for the league, the summer arrivals of Chris Smalling and Javier Hernandez didn’t fill fans with the greatest of confidence. Once again though, the 69-year-old Scot has been proved right as both have blossomed at Old Trafford.
What amazes me even more though is that we continue to believe he has got it wrong, again and again. Despite the fantastic position United find themselves in without hitting anyway near top form, the newspapers are linking the Red Devils with every world-beater under the sun. Pepe Reina is a perfect example. Obviously, Edwin Van Der Sar’s age will automatically lead to speculation on who will be United’s next number one, but would Sir Alex really try and buy a player from his biggest rivals? And how do we know Fergie hasn’t already unearthed the next Peter Schmeichel in Anders Lindegaard? I certainly wouldn’t bet against him becoming another worthy find from the manager.
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The one area where Fergie may be tempted to reinforce is in the wide areas, but even then, United already have options. Antonio Valencia is expected to be fit by the end of February, which will be a huge bonus going into the business end of the season, whilst Ji Sung Park is back from the Asia Cup at the start of next month at the latest. Nani has been at his inconsistent best, Ryan Giggs has taken it upon himself to roll back the years and Gabriel Obertan is more than capable of stepping in when required.
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There is nothing to say, with some luck along the way, Manchester United cannot challenge for the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League this season, without spending big bucks. Ferguson may not sign the best or the biggest but he knows what he is doing and already this season we are beginning to see signs of another great team forming at Old Trafford. In the meantime, the papers will continue to link every big player with a move to Manchester, but as long as Sir Alex is in charge, I wouldn’t expect too many world-beaters arriving any time soon.
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It is very difficult for an ex professional player to look at modern day football without the odd shake of the head, or questioning how the game has changed in such a short space of time. It has massively, although in some cases not for the better.
I question the professionalism of some current players within the game. Don’t get me wrong, off the pitch a lot of the guys are absolute saints – eating and drinking correctly so they stay in peak physical shape and not falling out of night clubs and bars (well some of them), but on it many choose to cheat and disrespect the game, by diving, feigning injury, trying to get opposition players sent off and in short conning the referees and ruining the spectacle for supporters. It is becoming far more frequent and I question the personal pride of some of these players.
Yes I know some will point the finger at perhaps the lack of professionalism of players in my era off the pitch, and in many cases you are right, but on the pitch you couldn’t question it as we played the game in the way it should be played with 100% honesty and commitment. We didn’t look to get players sent off, throw ourselves to the ground at the slightest touch, or wave the imaginary cards; we had too much self pride and a respect for the game that is sadly lacking today. When I was playing I used to have a huge amount of respect for Thierry Henry, for the way he always attempted to remain on his feet, even after a challenge, and he never looked to show any weakness against the opposition. You compare that with someone like Emile Heskey who on occasions would hit the ground at the slightest nudge. What is frustrating is that whenever you go around a Premier League training ground you will undoubtedly see hard tackles flying in, physical battles throughout, yet as soon as the weekend comes along that goes out the window, leaving the referees with the thankless task of dissecting what is foul play and what is not. Their lack of honesty is destroying the game and in some cases making a mockery of it.
The worst thing about the change in players’ attitudes is that it puts an extra onus on the referees and their assistants to read through the lines to make the correct call. Being an official is an impossible task, made harder by the increase in camera angles and, more significantly, the ever changing laws of the game. Players don’t do anything to make the situation any easier and therefore it is a vicious circle that the refs find themselves in, and where they are simply in a no win situation.
I question whether the refs are given enough assistance over such matters and maybe the introduction of some panel or committee to root out these players, who are cheating and conniving, would go some way in bringing a little more honesty and professionalism on the pitch back to the game. It certainly needs it.
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Wolfsburg have completed the signing of Stoke City striker Tuncay Sanli in a deal worth 5.2 million pounds, both clubs have confirmed.
Tuncay has signed a contract tying him to the Bundesliga club until June 2014, a move that the 29-year-old describes as a dream come true.
“On three occasions, moves to Germany have fallen through at the last minute, so I am delighted, but also relieved, that this time I have been able to make the most of this opportunity,” Tuncay told Stoke’s official website.
“I would like to thank the manager and everyone at the club and, of course, the supporters for making me feel so welcome at Stoke City.”
“I can assure you I would not have joined another English club, but this was too good an opportunity for me to fulfil my dream.”
Potters boss Tony Pulis was delighted to have been able to fulfill the Turkey international’s wish to move to Germany, just 17 months after he joined the Potters from Middlesbrough.
“Tunny came to me at the weekend and asked me if the club would help him to achieve his dream,” Pulis said.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for him, and it is a fantastic deal for the club when you consider what we paid for him when he signed from Middlesbrough.”
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“I spoke to Tunny a number of times about his hopes and ambitions in his playing career and it was quite apparent that he saw Germany as a great opportunity not only to be much closer to home but also to boost his international prospects as well.”
“This move suits Tunny’s needs and everyone here wishes him well in the future.”
Owen Coyle believes Bolton can help striker Daniel Sturridge play for England.
The on-loan Chelsea man is in line for his first Wanderers start against Tottenham on Saturday after grabbing an injury-time winner on his debut against Wolves on Wednesday.
Sturridge came off the substitutes’ bench to seal Bolton’s first win in six English Premier League games after arriving on Monday’s transfer deadline.
Coyle thinks the 21-year-old will be huge success at the Reebok until the end of the season – and can even go on to represent his country.
“I don’t want to get ahead of ourselves but I believe he’s good enough to play at that level,” the manager said.
“But to have that right, he needs to show that week-in, week-out in the Premier League as Jack Wilshere did.”
“To score the match-winning goal is a great start for him but he must continue to do that.”
“I believe he can score goals and he’s more than that – there will be games where he doesn’t score but he can still contribute because he has pace, he has a trick and he’s shown he’s prepared to work hard.”
“It gives the whole club a lift to bring in such a talent and it provides us with some real competition in the forward areas and that bodes well for the rest of the season.”
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Coyle could chose to bring Sturridge in for Kevin Davies as he looks to give his captain a well-deserved rest.
The Bolton talisman, who turns 34 next month, became only the 20th player to reach 400 appearances in the Premier League era in the 1-0 victory Wolves.
Coyle said: “I think it’s an astonishing statistic considering the way he plays the game, and the way people play the game against him. As a manager I feel very fortunate to have him.”
North Queensland Fury have been axed from the A-League after the club was unable to make assurances about their financial viability going forward.Football Federation Australia CEO Ben Buckley and A-League Head of Operations Lyall Gorman met with club officials on Tuesday where it was decided it was too big of a financial risk to continue next season.”Despite the hard work put in, the target of $A1.5m of capital from the ‘Retain the Fury’ campaign was not met, with less than $300,000 being pledged,” Buckley said.”Whilst the club and the advisory board had attracted some very encouraging sponsorship commitments, the projected loss to run the club next season is still in our assessment in excess of $2m.””FFA had been looking for capital from the campaign to set the foundations for a move to local ownership and a long term future for the club.””However with the capital-raising falling well short of the target, FFA has had to make the hard decision that it cannot continue to own and finance the club in these circumstances.”Fury only joined the competition in August 2009, and were immediately under financial strain, despite a strong support for the code in the region.FFA had taken up the funding of the club and Buckley said that in the end the burden was too much. “We need to concentrate our resources on the growth, promotion and stability of the entire A-League competition and this level of investment would prevent us from undertaking programs to achieve the above,” he said.”Many leagues around the world have adjusted the composition of clubs in early years and we feel this move will strengthen the A-League just as it did for Major League Soccer in the United States and the J-League in Japan.””We acknowledge the region is an important development area for football and there are some fantastic supporters and FFA remains committed with Football Queensland to nurturing football in North Queensland.””I would like to thank everybody who supported the Fury including the fans, staff, players sponsors and the Fury Advisory Board.”Two A-League clubs have now failed in the six-year history of the competition, with North Queensland following the New Zealand Knights into the history books.The competition will now feature just 10 teams next season.
Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp is hoping to have Gareth Bale fit for Wednesday’s Champions League match against AC Milan.Welshman Bale, who can play anywhere along the left flank, missed Tottenham’s 1-0 win in the first leg of their round-of-16 tie at the San Siro with a back problem.He returned to action during Spurs’ 3-3 draw away to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the English Premier League on Sunday. The 21-year-old came off the bench in the second half at Molineux.Despite a slight groin niggle, Redknapp is confident Bale will be available for the European match at White Hart Lane on Wednesday. “When Gareth came on and started to run with the ball, it was exciting. We’ve missed that for the last five or six weeks,” Redknapp said.”Hopefully he’ll be okay for the Milan game and he seems all right after the game. He just felt the pitch was a bit heavy and his groin was a bit tight.”Creative midfielder Rafael van der Vaart is in doubt with a calf problem, while holding player Tom Huddlestone remains sidelined by a long-term ankle injury.Spurs also have problems at the back, with full-back Vedran Corluka and centre-backs Younes Kaboul, Jonathan Woodgate and Ledley King all expected to miss out. Milan prepared for the trip to north London with a 1-0 win away over Juventus on Saturday. They lead Serie A by five points, but will also be forced to contend with a number of key absentees.Combative midfielder Gennaro Gattuso scored the winner against Juve, but he is suspended for Wednesday’s match after head-butting Spurs assistant Joe Jordan during an ugly confrontation in the first leg.Gattuso will be joined on the sidelines by first-choice midfielders Andrea Pirlo and Massimo Ambrosini. Former Spurs man Kevin Prince-Boateng is the latest midfielder to fall under an injury cloud after he limped off in the Juventus game with an ankle knock.Striker Alexandre Pato and fullback Massimo Oddo were flu victims at the weekend, while centreback Thiago Silva was fighting a stomach bug.But the extent of Milan’s injury worries means the trio are likely to be pressed into service on Wednesday.
Serie A leaders AC Milan return to league action against Bari on Sunday after the bitter disappointment of their Champions League exit.Milan dominated Wednesday’s clash with Spurs at White Hart Lane, but could not find a way past the Tottenham rearguard, and with the Londoners holding a 1-0 advantage after the first leg in Italy, the 2007 champions were eliminated at the round of 16.Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic claimed his side deserved better, but insisted they would respond from the setback by fighting even harder domestically.”Over two legs Tottenham had one shot on goal and scored,” Ibrahimovic said. “The best team doesn’t always win.””It’s a shame we went out of the Champions League, but we still have the Scudetto and Coppa Italia to focus on.”Ibrahimovic is looking to add to his tally of 14 league goals against bottom-placed Bari, whose defence has leaked 61 league goals this season.With 10 games to play, European champions Inter Milan are five points behind their fierce rivals ahead of their trip to Brescia on Friday. Inter are the only Italian side left in the Champions League, but face a daunting task on Tuesday against the German champions Bayern Munich, who snatched a 1-0 win in the first leg at the San Siro. On Saturday, Juventus will hope to bounce back from Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Milan when they travel to struggling Cesena.Sixth-placed Roma exited the Champions League on Tuesday after a 3-0 loss to Ukraine champions Shakhtar Donetsk left them on the receiving end of a 6-2 aggregate defeat. On Sunday, their caretaker coach Vincenzo Montella will be looking to respond in the best possible fashion, with victory at the Olympic Stadium against fierce rivals Lazio. Also on Sunday, third-placed Napoli – who are eight points off the pace – travel to 15th-placed Parma, while in-form Udinese continue their push for Champions League football next season with a visit to Cagliari.Palermo face a trip to Genoa, Lecce play host to Bologna, Chievo take on Fiorentina while Sampdoria and Catania will be looking to put some more breathing space between themselves and the relegation zone when they meet at the Stadio Angelo Massimino.
Newcastle United are a dream for the media, as you can bet your bottom dollar there is inevitably something on the horizon in Tyneside waiting to stun the football world. It may be the shock sacking of popular manager Chris Hughton, the multi million pound sale of prized asset Andy Carroll or a consensus of popularity towards Mike Ashley from the fans. Okay, so the latter is unlikely to ever be the case, but two out of three isn’t bad! The latest rumbling coming from St James’ Park is the pledge from chief scout Graham Carr that the club intend to splash some cash on six new signings in the summer.
Newcastle made a promising start to the season with some excellent results in the early part, including the thrashings they gave to Aston Villa and arch rivals Sunderland at St James’ Park, not to mention the resilient away victory at the Emirates. It’s fair to say the results haven’t been as good as the fans would have liked recently, with a crushing defeat to Stoke, the latest disappointment which has put the Toon’s Premiership credentials in doubt.
Creative Frenchman Hatem Ben Arfa is soon to be back in first team action and he will add a different dimension to the side and may be the key to survival. So let’s assume Newcastle do avoid the drop and are playing Premiership football again next season. With 35 million at their disposal, would an influx of new players be the answer?
I think we can all agree first and foremost a new striker is imperative, as the void left by Carroll needs to be filled. Lille’s Ivorian striker Gervinho has been touted as a possible replacement and Carr made no secret of the fact he had been in Lille on a scouting mission recently in his interview with Tyneside Weekly. Another new recruit up front could potentially be AZ Alkmaar’s Icelandic powerhouse Kolbeinn Sigthorsson who has been linked with the club.
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If 6 new players are to be the answer for Newcastle, it’s presumably going to mean the end for some of the current squad. There are numerous underachievers at Newcastle who are taking home a tidy wage at the club’s expense – surely they will have to make way. Danny Guthrie, Alan Smith and Xisco could all fall into that category and be surplus to requirements in the summer, therefore opening the door for any new arrivals.
Newcastle United have been guilty of spending large amounts of money on inadequate signings in the past – the likes of Boumsong and Marcelino come to mind. If the club are to bring 6 new faces they need to make sure they find the right men for the job. Furthermore, such an advent of new players will have a major impact on whether or not the squad will gel in time for the new season.
So do Newcastle United need 6 new players? In my opinion the answer is quite simply yes. The squad has been compromised this season when key players have picked up injuries, and the lack of strength in depth has been plain to see. It could be suggested that Joey Barton’s recent injury had an impact on the club’s poor run of form. Barton is the creative spark in the team and when he’s not playing who can the team rely on to take on that mantle? Similarly, in the wake of Carroll’s departure, as well as Leon Best has performed, there is a lack of goals up front.
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I believe Newcastle need to take it one step at a time and the priority is unquestionably in the hands of the current squad. It’s their responsibility to ensure the club stays up. Whether they are to be part of the setup next season remains to be seen. Once safety is assured, the club can focus on new players and stabilising this wonderful football club in the Premier league for years to come.
Sir Alex Ferguson admits he held out little hope of the FA reducing Wayne Rooney’s two-game ban for swearing.Rooney issued an apology within hours of the incident which happened after he scored his third goal in United’s 4-2 English Premier League victory over West Ham last Saturday.
And the club also decided to appeal the initial two-match ban which was given by the FA after the striker admitted a charge for ‘the use of offensive, insulting and/or abusive language’.
Despite the appeal, there was no reduction on the two-match ban, which Rooney thought was ‘excessive’. Ferguson was not surprised.
The manager suggested the media was to blame for the ban, and also addressed the comments of the Midlands policeman who said Rooney would have been ‘locked up’ if he had sworn like that on the street.
“We put an appeal in,” Ferguson said. “But I don’t think we expected to get a result if I’m being honest.”
“That’s the media. They go to people. They ask everyone their opinion. There is an issue in the modern world of a need to be noticed.”
“There is a guy, sitting down there in the Midlands, probably never been recognised in his life, managed to elevate himself to whatever it is in the police force. Have you ever seen Birmingham on a Saturday night? Do police ever arrest anyone for swearing on a Saturday night? Dearie me. That is a good one.”
The first of Rooney’s two-game ban is Saturday’s clash with 10th-placed Fulham at Old Trafford.
And Ferguson revealed the England striker will not be the only absentee, after confirming he would make ‘big changes’ to keep the side fresh for Tuesday’s Champions League quarter-final second leg with Chelsea.
“Rafael won’t make tomorrow,” Ferguson confirmed. “He’s got bruising, we sent him off for a scan.”
“But I’ve got John O’ Shea and Wes Brown fit again (who can replace him) which is good news.”
“I’ll have to think about what team I play with the (Chelsea) game on Tuesday night.”
“There’s always an issue when you have a run of important games. You’re dependent on your squad not your team. There’ll be big changes of course.”