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.”
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.
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.”
As footballers speak to the media of any form, be it print, television or online, so often is there the capacity for comments to get misconstrued. But as ex-Spurs midfielder Niko Kranjcar began voicing his somewhat toxic views on the Luka Modric situation, the Croatian certainly didn’t seem to lose anything in translation.
But whilst Kranjcar may simply have been indulging in his right of free speech, when do such comments overstep the line of footballing etiquette, a bit of dignity and a touch of class? Any remaining goodwill Spurs supporters held towards him has evaporated in the blink of an eyelid. But however you frame it, it’s certainly not done the North London club any good during a period of high tension.
Niko Kranjcar’s arrival at Spurs in 2009 was heralded as an all-round good bit of business for the football club. His three-year spell at Portsmouth had showcased his exquisite technical skills amongst a backdrop of classy midfield play. Having just turned 25, his best years of football were still ahead of him and his past relationship with Harry Redknapp suggested that his acquisition could be a fruitful one for Spurs.
Unfortunately though, as Spurs began to taste further successes in the Barclays Premier League, the Croatian’s influence steadily declined at White Hart Lane. But that isn’t to say that his spell was an overwhelming failure.
Kranjcar made 72 appearances in all competitions for the Lilywhite’s. Of course, the Croatian only started just over half of those, but his spell couldn’t quite be compared to the ill-fated spell of Giovani dos Santos (who ironically may have a future at the club if reports are to be believed).
Kranjcar played a pretty prominent role in the team that first acquired Champions League football during the 09/10 spell and it’s hardly like he was completely disposed of the following year. He featured in six of Spurs’ Champions League fixtures, including away trips to Werder Bremen and AC Milan. Granted his final season was more Stevenage and Shamrock Rovers, but he tasted some champagne moments as well as the lemonade ones.
This is what makes his current comments a little bit sorer for Spurs fans. The club didn’t treat him like dirt. He had chances to showcase his talents; the beginning of last season saw the Croatian start the opening two fixtures against Manchester United and Manchester City respectively. After those two performances, it’s difficult to imagine he had half of Europe queuing up to take his signature.
Tongue in cheek aside, you can however, relate an element of sympathy with Kranjcar. Spurs supremo Daniel Levy is a hard-nosed businessmen and he will squeeze every penny out of transfer deals. That can have its well-documented disadvantages, but it’s his steely policy that has seen Spurs elevated as one of the nation’s best-run clubs. Did that necessarily provoke these sort of comments though?
“Levy did everything to protect the interest of the club and make a profit. He has also used lies to deceive the public, which is allowed in business, but if you were in Luka’s shoes, you would probably do the same as him.
“In my three years at White Hart Lane, I never had lunch or a serious talk with the president. There was no need. It’s not customary for bosses to invite you for a cup of coffee, even if you’re their next-door neighbour like I was, in Cuffley.
“I know from my own experience how difficult these people are and how hard it is to break out of a contract with them…that is their speciality: they set unreasonably high transfer demands, but the absurd thing is they always get what they ask for.”
Now whichever way you view that, calling out your ex-employer as a liar, is a pretty damning incitement. Kranjcar is well within his right to say whatever he wishes now that he plays for another football club. Although this feels like he’s overstepped the line, no matter how frustrated he may have been.
The club paid him a good wage whilst he played for the club, introduced him to Champions League football and the fans thought highly of him whenever he played. Looking to support a friend and a fellow countrymen is one thing, but divulging you’re personal relationship with the chairman is unnecessary.
Furthermore, lampooning Levy wasn’t enough for Kranjcar, as the Croatian also saw fit to deem Dynamo Kiev a bigger club than his former employers. And it’s this sort of comment that sees the tides of favour turn against him.
Players want to win the affections of their new club; fans understand that. But what Kranjcar has done is cheap and tacky. It’s not even his choice of words- he could have picked a far more offensive line. But it’s the principal. He has chosen to publicly badmouth the chairman and aim a sly dig at the club, whilst he defends his mate who has spat his dummy out because his employers won’t let him renege on a lucrative long-term contract, he signed only two years ago.
And it’s this point that seems to personify the real issue of relatability between fans and players. Some may disagree, but the fact is a lot of supporters can understand an element of Luka Modric’s point. If one of the best companies in the world tried to headhunt you and double your wages, you’d probably be looking to leave too. Modric isn’t a Spurs fan by birth and Real Madrid are one of the biggest clubs in the world.
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.
But the immoral manner in which he’s gone about it is simply wrong on every level. And seeing players such as Niko Kranjcar, someone who has always come across relatively intelligent and astute, defend such a stance, only serves to push supporters further away.
Spurs stil have more than a few loose-ends to tie up before the season begins. The Modric situation was fraught enough as it is. The airing of dirty laundry in public won’t help anyone, especially not Tottenham Hotspur.
How do you feel about Niko Kranjcar’s tirade? Well within his rights or well out of line? Let me know how you see it, get involved in the Spurs talk on Twitter: follow @samuel_antrobus and bat me your views.
An eclectic and eccentric view of football, business and management by media entrepreneur Chris Ingram.
Let’s face it they call it “Soccer” (or “Soh-cerr”) which always brings a patronising smile from football fans in Europe.
Lets’ get our bragging rights out there now: There is only one truly global sport: football. The English Premier League is received in 206 countries which is more countries than there are members in the United Nations (197). It’s enough to impress anyone, particularly Americans who, for all their talk about “World Series” don’t have a truly international sport at all.
But forget the gloating, the answer is less straight-forward than it seems.
I’m in New York regularly but it was only this Spring that I was calling on investment bankers with the subject of sport very much in mind. I was exploring avenues for funding having recently taken a controlling stake in Sports Revolution, the sports media and marketing group.
The size of the American market and the huge amount of money there has enabled specialist expertise in funding to be created that would be unprofitable anywhere else. I’d come across investment banks specialising in media years ago when I was building the international media agency, CIA. This depth of expertise also exists in Sport. I only visited four firms but discovered that, between them, they had arranged just about all the funding for the Glazer acquisition of Man United and the Hicks and Gillett purchase of Liverpool. Now you can criticise one or both of those deals for being over-leveraged or whatever but what impressed me was their huge knowledge of the Premier League, the issues and `who was doing what to whom’. Here I was 3,000 miles away on the other side of the Atlantic and these guys knew more about the Premier League than most directors of Premier League Clubs. Because I didn’t realise this, it made for some initially very confusing conversations. I was talking about “Soh-cerr” whilst they were saying “football” which I thought meant their American Football, whereas they were talking about well, football. (That’ll teach me to be so patronising). Anyhow, I rapidly learned that most of these guys were only interested in deals worth more than a billion dollars, which at this stage of the Company’s development was way out of my class.
Nevertheless, behind the big investment banks wanting to do big, high profile corporate deals sits a large number of high net worth individuals who want their bank to come up with some “fun investments” to go with the solid, reliable investments which take up most of their money. So, at the end of one of my meetings, I was amazed to hear one director ask:
“Hey, do you know of any interesting Championship sides that are available? Three or four of my clients want to have some fun and they’d like to buy a club between them”.
And by extraordinary chance, at my very next meeting, I met a much smaller investment bank where I learnt that they’d already invested in a famous Championship Club on exactly that basis (without much success to date, as it happens. But that’s another story).
The point of this story is that some Americans know a great deal about our beautiful game and the reason why, is that they’ve learnt that there is a huge amount of money in football and in New York they do money very, very well.
Chris Ingram is as passionate about football as he is about business. Owner of Woking Football Club, and a majority shareholder in the fast growing sports media business Sports Revolution, Chris is one of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs.
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.
Recently celebrating 50 years in the media industry and still actively involved with Woking, Chris is ideally placed to comment on the business side of football.
*
READ more of Chris Ingram’s work at our Football Business Section
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.”
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.
“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.”
Tottenham Hotspur are keeping an eye on Atalanta midfielder Bryan Cristante, according to The Telegraph.
What’s the story?
The majority of transfer gossip surrounding the North London outfit has been centred around the futures of their current players, rather than new arrivals.
Mousa Dembele is one of those members up for discussion, but according to The Telegraph regardless of whether the 30-year-old stays or leaves, the club are keen on bringing in a new central midfielder.
The publication claims that Cristante, who has scored 11 goals in 39 appearances in all competitions this season, is on Spurs’ radar.
There is no mention of how much the 23-year-old, who is currently on loan at Atalanta from Benfica, would cost the Premier League outfit, but Transfermarkt has the midfielder listed with a valuation of £18m.
Do Tottenham need the Italian?
Goals have not been an issue for Mauricio Pochettino and his men this season thanks to Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen chipping in.
In fact, the North London outfit currently have the third-best attack in the top flight, behind Manchester City and Liverpool, having scored 62 times.
In the centre of the park, though, goals have been few and far between, with Dembele, Eric Dier, Victor Wanyama, Moussa Sissoko and Harry Winks contributing two league strikes between them this season.
Having Cristante within the pack could potentially boost Tottenham’s goal threat significantly, and he has already shown that he can perform against English opposition.
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.
In the Europa League group stage, the midfielder scored in both fixtures against Everton, who were eliminated before reaching the knockout rounds.
Although they still sit behind Manchester City in the Premier League table, on current from, there is only one side that appears like they can stop Mourinho’s side. Arsenal is the form team in the league, with nine games to go, are they now in the title race?
Wenger’s men were in scintillating form at home to West ham, playing with the kind of dynamism that makes them a threat to any side in the country. Since the first leg defeat to Monaco in Europe, Arsenal have reacted strongly, winning their next three games.
Mesut Ozil, finally looks like he may be putting a consistent run of performances together, the type that made him one of the best players in the world. Since his signing from Real Madrid, many have been quick to get on the German’s back, however recent outings are beginning to persuade even the most fervent anti-Ozil supporters.
In Alexis Sanchez, they have one of the stand-out performers of the season, 13 league goals has been more than Wenger could have wished for from the Chilean star. Ironically, Arsenal’s recent strengths have coincided with the former Barcelona man’s first dip in form. When Sanchez clicks again Arsenal have yet another potent arm to attack with.
For what has seemed like years, Arsenal have lacked a real top quality striker. Since the departure of Thierry Henry and the retirement of Denis Bergkamp, the Gunners have been a knife without an edge.
[ad_pod id=’ffc-video-small’ align=’left’]
Now they have Olivier Giroud.
Still chastised by some Giroud continues to deliver the goods, he himself acknowledges how disappointing he was against Monaco, but his goal against West Ham highlighted the kind of quality he has. He could still yet fire Arsenal to an amazing end of season party.
With fixtures against Manchester United, Liverpool and title rivals Chelsea to play, Arsenal could still enter the title race.
Chelsea are faltering, it is beginning to look distinctly similar to the late season collapse last year. They threw away the title last time around with poor results against teams they would expect to beat. It could happen again.
With Man City’s season seemingly fall apart too; second place seems a good bet for Wenger’s men. If everything clicks together from now till April, Arsenal could be on the cusp of something they haven’t achieved in a decade.
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.
Still in the Champions League (just), still in the Premier League race (just) and the favourites for the FA Cup, we could be a few months ago from the greatest ‘shock’ treble in the history of football.
However, this season ends, Arsenal are entering the business end of a season and are genuinely in the tile race. It has to be seen as genuine progression, Mourinho may be looking over his shoulder and he will be more worried to see the Red of Arsenal, than the Sky Blue of City.
After Reading boss Brian McDermott revealed that the club had an offer in the region of £10m turned down for Tottenham midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson towards the end of the January transfer window, you have to question the logic in keeping around such an obvious square peg in a round hole, so will the north London outfit come to regret turning down such an attractive offer in the future?
It’s worth noting that Sigurdsson was very much a Daniel Levy signing, put in place even before the Portuguese manager had walked through the door. Andre Villa-Boas was certainly asked his opinion on his first signing in charge, and after such a successful six-month spell at Swansea the campaign before, for a fee of about £8m, with Rafael van der Vaart being ushered towards the exit door, it made sense to bring in a suitable replacement.
Nevertheless, after starting just six league games so far this season and eight across all competitions, it’s become clear that life at White Hart Lane has proven more of a struggle than even his biggest critics would have previously assumed. There’s a sense that unless the 23-year-old is scoring, that he doesn’t really contribute a whole lot less, but he’s still reasonably young and learning his trade, so is there a future still for him at the club?
Villas-Boas would seem to think so, telling reporters why he blocked the deal towards the end of the window: “Obviously he’s a player that means a lot to Reading. But he’s a player that we rate very highly. We brought him here after his amazing contribution [on loan] for Swansea last year and he’s a player that we have high expectations for. Probably this season at the moment he is not going to the level that he wants, but he’s a player that we believe a lot in, and in his future here. We couldn’t allow him to leave.”
The arrival of Clint Dempsey as a utility forward towards the end of the summer and the January acquisition of Lewis Holtby, brought forward a full six months ahead of schedule would seem to complicate matters even further, with Villas-Boas clearly earmarking the latter for that role behind the lone striker, whoever that may be next season. The fact that a deal had already been put in place for Holtby to arrive in the summer when his contract runs out from Schalke, but that a £1.5m switch was secured last month is a sad indictment of the faith they place in Sigurdsson at the moment, who looks bereft of confidence whenever he has featured these past few months, even being tried out in an unfamiliar wide left position.
McDermott revealed that Reading made three offers which were all turned down by Tottenham, so that shows a degree of persistence on their part just as much as it does a stubborn refusal to give up on a player so soon after buying him in the first place.
The club’s fans haven’t quite taken to him either and there’s a sense that he’s something of a forgotten man around the place; not quite quick enough, not quite tricky or technical enough, nor dependable enough to have any sort of lasting impact on the starting eleven and he’s been forced to make 19 of his 27 appearances this term off the bench.
He was bought with a specific role in mind but has faced increased competition in the position he is most effective in and Villas-Boas has even preferred picking Emmanuel Adebayor just behind Jermain Defoe at times in a more traditional 4-4-2 formation, with Dempsey pushed out wide to cover Gareth Bale’s absence, rather than trust Sigurdsson to fill the gap temporarily.
The final offer made by Reading would have seen Tottenham make a £2m profit in terms of the fees involved and you have to wonder whether they’ll ever get as an attractive offer as that further down the line, particularly while his stock continues to fall. Cutting your losses can often be quite embarrassing for every party involved, but with Villas-Boas set to add to his squad once more in the summer, perhaps with another move for Joao Moutinho, you have to ask yourself, how much longer do you wait before coming to the same inevitable conclusion? That’s he’s just not up to the standard required for a side with Champions League ambitions.
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.
The logic behind his decision to reject Liverpool’s advances and continue to work under a manager in Brendan Rodgers at Anfield that he had a good relationship with at the time looked a strange one, but with every passing fixture, as his rivals continue to stake their claims, it looks even worse. Sigurdsson can only watch from the bench now, frustrated at his lack of prominence and inability to change the tone of the narrative, with the route back looking ever more distant and difficult to travel.
Chelsea hosted Tottenham in the biggest match of the Premier League weekend, a game that would go a long, long way to deciding who will qualify for the Champions League next season.
It was the visitors who came into the game on the better form as Chelsea have endured a period of struggle since the turn of the year – although both sides have managed to qualify for the last four of the FA Cup.
The Blues and under-fire Conte knew his side really needed to win if they were to keep their top four hopes on track but Christian Eriksen and a double from Dele Alli meant the Blues lost out 3-1.
That scoreline means that the gap between the two sides is now eight points and gives Spurs a real boost in pursuit of a seat at Europe’s top table next season.
Understandably, the Chelsea fans had plenty to say after a heavy loss in such an important match and we’ve taken a closer look at some of their reaction…
[ad_pod ]
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 feels like only yesterday it’s summer counter-part slammed shut, but the January transfer window is now upon us, in what often constitutes a rather chaotic time of year for Premier League clubs.
And rumour has it that it could be an exceptionally busy one for Arsenal; currently a point short of a Champions League spot, there’s plenty of speculation suggesting the north Londoners will look to strengthen ahead of the second half of their campaign.
Even if Arsene Wenger decides not to dip into the piggy bank, there are a number of integral transfer issues that require his attention this month. Being the helpful bunch we are at Football Fancast, we’ve listed the four we view as the most important. So without further ado…
A back-up centre-back
//www.youtube.com/embed/ZpiVFCUXbz0
With the absence of a back-up centre-back already having such a detrimental impact on Arsenal’s Premier League campaign – either Mathieu Debuchy and Nacho Monreal, both attacking full-backs measuring in at 5 foot 11, have filled in at centre-half eleven times already this term – there’s no way the Gunners enter the second half of the season without signing another central defender.
There’s been worryingly little discussion of the issue on the transfer front this month, with the majority of speculation dedicated to the Gunners’ near-completed deal for Krystian Bielik, but The Daily Mail have reported a scouting trip to Espanyol this week to run the rule over Mexico centre-back Hector Moreno, suggesting a bid could be imminent.
In addition to impressing at the last two World Cups, the 26 year-old has been regarded as one of La Liga’s most consistent defenders for some time.
Should that not be the case however, the other options available to Arsenal are well-known; West Ham contract rebel Winston Reid – a master of the nuts and bolts of the defensive trade, albeit, slightly lacking on the technical front – has been strongly linked with an Emirates move, as has FC Basel prodigy Fabian Schar.
The Swiss international has continually impressed in the Champions League over the last 18 months – last season, averaging an incredible 3.3 tackles, 4 interceptions, 6.7 clearances and 1.8 successful aerial duels per match – and boasts all the aesthetic, ball-playing qualities one could want in a modern day centre-half.
All can likely be signed for under the £10million mark – but failing to sign any this month, in classic Wenger style, could well cost the Gunners their Champions League status.
MOUSSA SISSOKO – IS HE THE MIDFIELDER ARSENAL NEED?
//www.youtube.com/embed/mDoF4p7eyqQ
Reports linking Arsenal with a £16million bid for Newcastle star Moussa Sissoko have remained regular and consistent this month, suggesting there could be some legitimacy to the rumour – but is the France international the midfielder the Gunners really need?
It’s the 25 year-old’s pace, power and industry that’s believed to have struck a chord with Arsene Wenger, having revealed his desire for a ‘physical presence…like Vieira or Petit’ back in September, and Sissoko would provide some much needed diversity in Arsenal’s engine room from their otherwise diminutive playmakers.
But Sissoko’s physicality, thus far in the Premier League, has been better felt in offensive capacities. Last term, he recorded six assists as an unorthodox right winger and this season he’s being utilised almost as a poor man’s Yaya Toure; a battering ram of attacking brawn in the No.10 role.
The last thing Arsenal need this month is another offensive midfielder, or at Sissoko’s most conservative description, a box-to-box. It’s the exact reason Wenger gave for not signing Real Madrid contract rebel Sami Khedira last summer.
What the Gunners require most is an out-and-out enforcer, which brings us nicely on to…
Defensive midfield – is Krystian Bielik ready?
//www.youtube.com/embed/gELm5Gb3ACU
Measuring in at a lofty 6 foot 4 and famed for his physicality, impending Arsenal signing Krystian Bielik appears to fit the category of a tough-tackling, imposing holding midfielder. But is the 17 year-old, of Polish side Legia Warsaw, ready for regular first team football at Premier League level?
The immediate assumption, based on his limited experience and age, would be a resounding ‘no’, in which case, Arsenal still need to sign another defensive midfielder this January – especially with Mikel Arteta ruled out for the next three months.
Top level defensive midfielders aren’t in copious supply at the minute but anonymous author ‘The Secret Footballer’ claims Arsenal have reached an agreement for Southampton star Morgan Schneiderlin, who’s currently joint-seventh in the Premier League’s tackle charts, as reported by The Express.
Still an unconfirmed rumour however, it’s worth considering some alternatives. Bayer Leverkusen’s Lars Bender – a lung-bursting ball of robust challenges, work-rate and determination – has been linked with Arsenal before and as recently as November by the Metro, who claim a £19million bid.
Or how about an audacious swoop for Bayern Munich’s Javi Martinez? A 6 foot 5 monolith, capable of playing in midfield or defence, with considerable technical ability, the Spain international would bring huge improvement to Arsenal’s starting Xi. He’s been sidelined for the entirety of the current season season but will struggle to reclaim a first team place following the summer arrivals of Xabi Alonso and Mehdi Benatia, suggesting the 25 year-old could be interested in a move away from the Allianz Arena.
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.
Loan destinations for younger players
//www.youtube.com/embed/Svb-vARDHs8
As ever, the Emirates is brimming with promising young talents, but not all are getting the amount of game-time they’d like to this season.
Particularly, Costa Rican World Cup sensation Joel Campbell. He impressed at Brazil 2014 and on loan last season with Olympiacos, scoring an incredible goal against Manchester United in the Champions League, but has so far seen just 39 minutes’ worth of Premiership action.
Arsene Wenger claimed he ‘loves’ the 22 year-old winger-forward back in November, but he needs to gain some experience in the English top flight if he’s ever to become a recurring feature in Arsenal’s starting XI.
Newcastle have recently been linked with a loan bid by The Metro but it’s a rather turbulent period at St. James’s right now, with the Magpies currently between managers.
Resultantly, Wenger needs to find Campbell a more viable loan destination this month, preferably in the Premier League. My recommendation would be Everton – Roberto Martinez’s progressive philosophy is reminiscent of Wenger’s, and the Spaniard proved his capability with loanees last season, bringing a high level of performance out of Gareth Barry, Romelu Lukaku and Gerard Deulofeu.
Others that could, and probably should, go out on loan this month include Serge Gnabry, Chuba Akpom, Isaac Hayden and Gedion Zelalem – all of whom appear ready to ply their trade at a competitive level.
UEFA’s Financial Fair Play has good intentions and the European governing body intends to stand by their latest move. It said as much when the hammer came down on Malaga and a number of other clubs scattered around Europe for their outstanding debt. However, you have to ask whether UEFA would have taken the same action against teams with much higher standing in European football. At this stage, it looks as though UEFA were taking a stance over clubs who were big enough to get noticed but not big enough that they’d face a fiery backlash.
But can FFP really work with it’s current principles? Doesn’t it need a few added elements to make it seem like a legitimate move towards fair play?
At some point or another, the football world has to start taking pages out of the American sports book. Unfortunately, as fantastic as the draft system is in American—albeit with it’s own flaws—it simply wouldn’t work in the structure of European football. But what about salary caps? Doesn’t that play into UEFA’s stance of living within your means? And what about player trading rather than purchasing?
It’s probably a wacky idea that may seem as though it has no place in modern football. After all, how would dynasties form if clubs couldn’t buy their way to the top? But UEFA don’t want that, and yet it appears that Michel Platini’s group want the rich and powerful to stay rich and powerful, while the unattractive stay well away.
But how could player trades work? Well again, the American leagues seem to have it figured out. Would it put a halt to big clubs growing and staying at the top of the mountain? Well no not really. Smart clubs stay at the top. Well-run clubs stay at the top. Clubs who don’t make bad calls in transfer negotiations stay at the top.
I was laughed out of town (well it was more of a restaurant) for suggesting back in August that the Washington Redskins would do something impressive this season in the NFL. Prior to this season, I have never known the Redskins to be a successful or winning team. Their last NFL championship came back in the 1991 and it’s been a long time since they had a truly great quarterback. That did change this past summer when they traded three first-round picks to St. Louis for the right to pick second in the most recent draft, selecting Robert Griffin III. The Redskins have since beaten the New Orleans Saints, the Dallas Cowboys, the New York Giants, and are currently in the postseason. I’d go as far as to say Robert Griffin III is one of the most spectacular athletes I’ve seen in all of sports.
[cat_link cat=”wayne-rooney” type=”grid”]
There was no money involved in the trade; the Redskins didn’t stroll into the Rams’ HQ and slam a blank cheque down on the table. And as of this proposal to coincide with UEFA’s apparent desire, clubs like Manchester City or Chelsea wouldn’t be able to do that either.
But that’s just within the Premier League. As I said, it’s very difficult to follow the Americans’ rule book to the letter because of the difference in structure. It’s simply a proposal that states Premier League clubs, or La Liga, or Serie A clubs get something substantial back for their assets. Purchases can be made from foreign leagues, but player trading within one league would help in the matter of finances as well as helping to form a far more competitive league.
What if Manchester City have no one they wish to send over to Fulham in order to land their best player? Well the deal doesn’t go through. It’s an idea that would also help to lessen player power in the modern game and restrict bigger clubs bullying the selling club into submission.
Rick Nash moved from Columbus to the New York Rangers last summer because the Rangers had a package deal that suited Nash’s old team. Well that would be a stretch too far. The Rangers actually had a deal that was slightly better than what everyone else offered but was still well short of what Columbus initially wanted. The player wanted the move and he got it, showing that player power can never truly be eradicated from sports.
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.
Columbus picked up two players who would help them out, as well as a prospect and a first round pick in the next draft. There’s no guarantee they’d move forward significantly, as other factors such as their market and management could have a different say. Similarly, following the Texas Rangers’ trade of Mark Teixeira to the Atlanta Braves in 2007, the return package from Atlanta helped the Rangers to form a team which went to back-to-back World Series. They lost both, but that’s not the point.
At some point, more and more people in football are going to catch onto the idea that the numbers switching hands in transfers is taking it’s toll on the game. It’s not to say there won’t be big figures exchanged between two clubs from different leagues, but trading players within the same league is an idea that could be a benefit to every club and would also strengthen Financial Fair Play.