Roma midfielder Miralem Pjanic says that he is happy to stay in Italy, despite speculation linking him with a move to Manchester City.
The Premier League champions are believed to be keen to swoop for the Bosnian playmaker this summer, as manager Roberto Mancini looks to overhaul his squad.
His attacking set-up has been the main source of the Italian’s frustration this season, with a number of his stars failing to produce the required levels of performance on a regular basis.
As well as bringing in one or two new strikers, Mancini is looking to inject some creativity into his side, and has highlighted Pjanic as one of his top targets.
Current City forward Edin Dzeko recently praised his fellow countryman, saying that he would like to play alongside him at club level.
Although Pjanic was flattered by the compliment, the 23-year-old said that he’s fully committed to, and happy with, Roma:
“It is nice to hear that Edin has spoken well of me, but I have a contract here,” he is quoted by talkSPORT.
“Perhaps one day we’ll get the opportunity to play in the same club side, but, for now, I’m proud to be able to wear this shirt.”
Pjanic joined Roma from Lyon in 2011, and has been impressive for the Italian club.
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As well as being known for his eye for the killer ball, the midfielder has also built up a reputation for being an expert from direct set-pieces.
With all the darkness which football can sometimes bring, often a ray of light can shine through and show us all, why we really love football. In this instance the ray of light is the story of Panyee FC.
The story of how Panyee FC originate is an encapsulating tale and here’s how it starts. Panyee FC comes from Koh Panyee which is a small, floating, fishing village built on stilts out in the sea.
Its population is only 1685 and before football, it had no kind of recreational facilities. The only sort of activities the villagers had were to catch fish and have boat races. That is, until a young group of children, all friends, watched the 1986 World Cup and were inspired to create their own football team. However, with the floating village being cramped for space, there was nowhere for them to play. Taking matters into their own hands, the children collected spare bits of wood and worked tirelessly in their free time to build an incredible floating football pitch just off the village’s perimeter.
The ball went into the water often which made the playing surface slippery and there were lots of odd nails sticking out here and there. But this didn’t stop the dedicated youngsters, in fact it actually helped them build up good close control and excellent footwork. One day a poster came through from the mainland about a football tournament. Unsure about what to do the boys entered and decided to give it a shot. Preparing to leave, they were unaware that the entire village had been watching them play the whole time and had pitched in to buy them all a proper football kit.
All suited and booted they made their way via boat to the tournament, followed by a group of villagers for support. Arriving at the tournament, the boys were nervous about the quality of their opponents. However when they kicked off, they were actually better than they thought. Playing in boots gave them more balance, it wasn’t slippery and the goals were a lot bigger than what they were used to. The boys made it to the semi-final losing 3-2 after a battling effort. The villagers were overwhelmingly proud and the boys were very happy with what they achieved. Taking to the podium on third place, attention was drawn to Koh Panyee, a small fishing village which floats in the sea.
After the success at the tournament, football became Koh Panyee’s favourite past time, they built a new smooth floating pitch and had much larger participation. Panyee FC went on to win the 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 & 2010 Youth Championships of Southern Thailand. The club who started with nothing are now one of the best youth football clubs in the country.
This is a tale of inspiration with a touch of magic, something recent football seems to be missing. Not only did this group of young boys manage to create space from nothing so they could play, they created something so much more than that. By building a pitch and representing their village in a tournament it raised awareness of both the game and the village.
With the help of football, mass community participation was introduced and a sense of togetherness was formed. A new sport is now being played in Koh Panyee and the success of itself speaks volumes. To create your own football team in the UK is a complicated task, paying the FA a fee, then hiring out pitches and game fees – that doesn’t even include the cost of kit or nets and flags. In total it can cost as much as £2000.
It’s not a surprise with the amount the FA charge that new teams just do not form that easily. There are a lot of villages and in fact young players that want to form their own team with their friends because they believe they have what it takes. We have twice the facilities and accessibility that the young lads from Koh Panyee had, yet still this country’s youth system struggles.
I don’t doubt every young footballer was as eager to play as the young villagers of Koh Panyee, I think what lacks is the support in place. If this could be nailed we may have a very different International set up. Something that can happen in a first world country is that things too often get taken for granted. England in truth has more than enough money to put in place an excellent youth set up.
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This is something which has only just been introduced with Mini-Soccer being played till aged ten. After this are 9v9 games with new goals until you are 13 where it will go on to the traditional 11v11 format. Hopefully with this new format we will have increased success. It’s no secret that the reason Spain and Brazil have had such emphatic success is due to their impressive youth setup. Brazil for example start their youth off by playing ‘Futsal’, which is a five-a-side game with a heavier ball which was developed in the 1930’s.
This is to build up close control, foot skills and technique. If you haven’t already seen the video of Ronaldinho as a youngster playing in a ‘Futsal’ tournament, it’s a worth a watch. It shows a clear correlation with then and now and how it has been infused in his game to make him twice the player. If this can be introduced into an England set-up with the money we have, a pretty powerful outcome can be produced.
The story of Panyee FC is something that world football and the FA can learn from, more magic, less tragic.
Newcastle United have unveiled the club’s brand new away kit for the 2013/14 Barclays Premier League season.
Fans can pre-order the strip NOW via www.nufcdirect.com and can be the first to wear it today when it goes on sale at official club stores and online at 9am.
The Magpies 2013/14 PUMA away kit features insignia blue shirt, shorts and socks, with light blue trim to complement both the colouration in the iconic Newcastle United club crest and the logo of new principal sponsor, Wonga.com.
Stuart Middlemiss, head of retail at Newcastle United, said: “The new away kit has a very distinctive look and the initial feedback we have had about the design and feel from players has been very positive.
“We are delighted to be offering fans the opportunity to purchase their kit ahead of their summer holidays. I’m sure it will prove to be extremely popular.”
Featuring all of the technological excellence expected from a PUMA kit, the innovative new replica strip is inspired by the Sportslifestyle brand’s Spirit product line and incorporates Dry Cell technology for improved player performance.
Dry Cell technology enhances body performance by dragging moisture away from the body, improving air-flow and keeping the body at the ultimate performance temperature. Meanwhile, the four-way stretch underarm panel, cuffs, and back mesh offer the same freedom of movement as the match kit.
Roger Harrison, marketing director, PUMA UK, said: “Newcastle United have one of the most iconic home shirts in British football. Our challenge was to deliver an away shirt that both enhanced player performance and inspired fans to wear it with pride.
“We’re proud to achieve both requirements with the integration of Dry Cell technology and our Spirit graphic.”
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Darryl Bowman, marketing director, Wonga.com, said: “It’s great to finally see our brand on a Newcastle United shirt and we’re looking forward to our sponsorship officially starting on Monday 20th May.
“We’ll be kicking it off with something special to celebrate the return of St James’ Park and there’s lots more planned for Newcastle’s huge and loyal fan base over the coming season.”
Supporters can pre-order their 2013/14 away kit NOW by visiting www.nufcdirect.com.
Liverpool are close to signing winger Christian Atsu from Porto, according to the Guardian.
The Premier League side are in talks with Atsu, who has just one year left on his current contract.
Atsu, a fast and trickery winger, could be sold for as little as £3million. The Ghanaian international scored his first goal for Porto in February, and has been tipped to become a talented star in European football.
The winger only turned 21-years-old in January, and has impressed a number of clubs, including Tottenham. Spurs are managed by former Porto boss Andre Villas-Boas, who brought Atsu into the first team squad when he managed the Portuguese side.
Atsu would join a list of new Liverpool players this summer, as Brendan Rodgers looks to do his transfer business as early as possible. The Northern Irishman has already signed Kolo Toure on a free transfer, whilst he closes in on bringing Iago Aspas and Henrikh Mkhitaryan to Anfield.
Rodgers has already raised funds for his transfer spending, by selling forward Andy Carroll to West Ham, after the England forward completed his medical with the Hammers on Tuesday.
Atsu could rival Stewart Downing for a place in the first team next season, as Rodgers looks to push the Reds into a European place in the table.
Would Atsu be a good signing? Is Rodgers targeting the right players?
Share your thoughts below!
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Ipswich Town have announced the loan signing of Ryan Tunnicliffe, the second player to join from Manchester United this season after Frederic Veseli signed a two year deal.
It appears that Mick McCarthy has used his reputation and contacts to secure these deals as both players have mentioned that they were recommended to join Ipswich by their reserve team manager Warren Joyce.
It is safe to say that if the Tractor Boys were still stuck with one their previous managers then they would not have been able to sign half the players that have joined Ipswich this summer
Tunnicliffe is a strong central midfielder who seems most comfortable in a defensive role. He is a ball winner who gets stuck in and has the footballing brain to see what others may not.
The obvious downside is that Tunnicliffe is unlikely to be much of a goal scoring threat considering he hasn’t scored a professional club goal yet. That said, you wouldn’t expect many defensive midfielders to chip in with goals and the Manchester United loanee will probably spend a lot of the time sitting just ahead of the back four.
It is thought that Tunnicliffe will be used mainly as a back up option or substitute for Luke Hyam, but some believe that he may well command a place in the starting eleven more regularly than that. He is held in high regard by the Red Devils and he could surprise a few fans with what he has to offer in the center of the park.
The other player to join from the Premier League winners is much more of an unknown quantity. Some Manchester United fans were baffled by Frederic Veseli’s release from the club as the only news they had heard was that he happy and was impressing in the youth and reserve sides.
Manchester United had gone through a lot of effort to sign Veseli from their rivals Manchester City so Sir Alex Ferguson must have seen a lot of potential in him too. Somewhere along the line something must have gone wrong, for some reason either the player must have wanted to leave or what is more likely is that he was deemed surplus to requirements at Old Trafford.
Throughout last season interviews with both Veseli and the reserve team manager suggested that everything was going smoothly. Apparently he was a player who always maintained a place in the reserve team and a player who would put in a solid shift regardless of what position he played.
The most likely explanation is that upon closer inspection Manchester United decided that whilst Veseli was a solid performer, he was also a utility player that would never be good enough in one position to come close to their first team.
One thing to expect with the Swiss youngster is that you may see him at right back one game then see him in midfield the next. In the Manchester United reserves side he played mostly as a defensive midfielder but it appears that McCarthy will mostly use him at right back.
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The good news is that despite Veseli’s failure to master one position it has been said he has the potential to develop into “the ultimate utility man”. Every team needs a versatile player in their squad that his highly reliable and Veseli could be that man for Ipswich.
Overall it looks unlikely that either of these players will set the Championship alight but they are great additions to complement a squad that is already looking strong.
You can forget your Navas’ and Soldado’s, the standout player for me so far this term has perhaps been someone that has slipped under the radar amongst the droves of foreign talent entering our shores.
Everton’s revolution under Roberto Martinez has not been spearheaded by a multi million pound import but instead by a young Englishman by the name of Ross Barkley. The only unbeaten team left in the Premier League, Everton appear resurgent under the new regime and this has in no small part been down to the tireless efforts of their precocious young talent.
I’m not the only one getting excited about the midfield maestro, with a recent England call up just reward for his impressive start to the campaign. Barkley may well be the one to fire Everton back into Europe but does he also have a big part to play for our national team?
The glowing report his Roberto Martinez recently gave to the Mail would suggest this is very much a possibility:
[cat_link cat=”premiership” type=”list”]
“I look at Ross and you tell me what weakness he has. He hasn’t got one,’ said Martinez. ‘He takes in information, which for a young lad is incredible. He can use both feet, he can switch the play, he has a range of passing and can receive the ball in any area.”
“He has a great shot and has incredible energy. He reminds me of Michael Ballack. When Ballack was younger, nobody knew what his best position was; could he be a sitting midfielder, an attacking midfielder or play up front? Ross is that impressive.”
Now maybe this appraisal is to be expected from his manager, but Barkley’s fans don’t stop there with praise being received from all quarters of our game. Emerging from a serious leg break, the 19 year old may still have a long way to go but for me he is the answer to our national midfield conundrum going forward.
England performances of late have been dull and stagnant. A team playing at a painfully low tempo and whose first thought is to go sideways above all else. Sturridge, Rooney and Welbeck offer the national side quality in the final third, but as it stands they just simply don’t get anywhere near the supply they require.
Hodgson’s perseverance with the failing old guard is crippling. Gerrard, Lampard and Milner may all still do well for their respective clubs, but together for England they have created the most monotonous of midfields. I can only assume the plan if we actually make it to Rio is to bore the opposition to death because as it stands this isn’t a team to get the pulse racing is it?
The Euro’s should have been a lesson to those in charge that the current set-up just isn’t working, and why not change when you have such prodigious talents waiting in the wings?
For me Barkley even at such a young age is the answer. Destructive as much as he is creative, the Englishman offers the kind of balance that many hoped Wilshere would bring to the side. Two players not too dissimilar in style, these are very much the new breed of English midfielder that we need to foster.
So what is the current balance of power?
Jack Wilshere continues to fall short of the high expectations many have for him both domestically and internationally. Dogged by persistent stress fractures and other niggling injuries, the development of someone with undoubted potential is being slowed. Barkley at 19 may be younger and less experienced, but if Hodgson wants to pick on form then the bow much go to Barkley.
For me the difference between the two lies in the goal-scoring department. Barkley has as many goals this season as Wilshere has in his whole Arsenal career. Wilshere offers creativity and solidity but for me Barkley offers so much more. The Everton midfielder has an eye for goal as much as he does for a pass and this is a trait in remarkably short supply for England.
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So forget your Gerrard’s and Lampard’s, the real battle for an England berth should be between Jack Wilshere and Ross Barkley.
For me the clear winner at the moment is the Everton boy who continues to go from strength to strength on the biggest of stages.
Am I right? Or am I getting caught up in the Ross Barkley hype?
Sunderland manager Gus Poyet has backed January’s Player of the Month Adam Johnson to force his way into the England squad for the World Cup.
The winger has been in excellent form since the turn of the year, playing a key role in the Black Cats’ rise from the foot of the table to 14th position and their run to the Capital One Cup final.
His dramatic turn in form has led to talk of an England call-up, with Roy Hodgson said to be considering the 26-year-old ahead of his upcoming friendly fixtures.
Johnson – who had been written off as a £10m flop just a matter of months ago – is firmly in the running according to his manager, who believes that if the World Cup was due to take place next week he’d be in the Three Lions’ ranks:
“I’m sure if the World Cup was next week, Adam would be there,” he said. “I’ve no doubt about that.” He is quoted by the Daily Star.
“The idea is that he maintains his current level so he has a chance at the end of the campaign.
“There are a group of 17, 18 or 19 who pick themselves but there will always be a few places left.
“And they will go to those who are playing at such an incredible level, they can’t be left behind.
“Adam was the best player in the Premier League last month and thoroughly deserves his award. Let’s hope he can win another one because that would mean we are safe.”
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Johnson enters this weekend’s games with seven goals in his last seven games, and is in, arguably, the best form of his career since his emergence with Middlesbrough.
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Forget about Manchester United’s current Premier League standing of seventh place, the biggest condemnation of the troubling start to David Moyes’ Old Trafford career is the club’s fall in stock price from $19 to $15. For those business enthusiasts out there, that equates to a loss in value of £153million.
You can hardly blame the investors. Behind the scenes, the Carrington club is still a well-oiled corporate machine, but if there’s one thing the new Red Devils boss has proved so far this season, it’s that he’s not the type of gaffer who will be able to provide nine major honours in the space of a decade through his managerial abilities alone – unlike his predecessor.
The solution? Undoubtedly the transfer market. If you can’t replace Sir Alex Ferguson’s almighty talents as a manager, the kind of talent that can make one of the weakest midfields in the Premier League’s top half into title material, you have compensate with undisputed quality in the playing personnel.
That appeared to be a viewpoint shared by David Moyes whom, after a summer window in which he secured the signing of just a single senior player in the form of Marouane Fellaini, was expected to be exceptionally busy this January, to such an extent several online and tabloid sources including ESPN.co.uk and the Express claimed the Scot would have a £100million war chest at his disposal. Some have even alleged the United hierarchy would grant their struggling gaffer twice that amount to kick-start a new era at Old Trafford.
But as you may have noticed, it’s all quiet on the Red Devils transfer front. Even the rumour mill has been incredibly bare in comparison to the summer, in no small part due to the fact Moyes has declared that there just aren’t any decent players out there this month – the kind of statement you’d expect from January transfer-phobe Arsene Wenger.
Perhaps that’s slightly harsh. It’s no secret that January is rarely an ideal time to buy – especially for the major clubs, who can be held to ransom if their need for reinforcements is glaringly obvious.
At the same time, it could be a delicate ploy. Arsenal’s Ivan Gazidis claimed back in June that the Gunners were amid a drastic ‘escalation in financial fire-power’, so it should have been no surprise when Real Madrid demanded an extra £10million for Gonzalo Higuain and Liverpool fell over laughing at the idea of selling Luis Suarez for £40million to a club that clearly had a lot more to spend.
But the idea that there just aren’t the right players out there for Manchester United this January is simply untrue.
Take Real Sociedad winger Antoine Griezmann for example. The 22 year-old Frenchman has been in prolific form this season, netting 12 times in 16 La Liga starts. That’s the kind of outrageous attacking output Manchester United’s widemen used to be famous for, but this season, Ashley Young, Antonio Valencia and Nani have found just three top flight goals between them.
Furthermore, being particularly tenacious off the ball and donning considerable speed and stamina, Griezmann’s prolific counter-attacking game strongly adheres to United’s traditional destructive efficiency on the break. It’s hard to think of a more suitable club for the former France U21 than the Red Devils, and his current release clause is just £25million – although a number of clubs are keen to sign him for significantly less.
Then there’s Borussia Dortmund duo Marco Reus and Ilkay Gundogan, two of the Westfaldenstadion outfit’s stand-out performers in their Champions League run last season, in which they reached the tournament’s final. BVB won’t be in the mood to let any more of their first team stars leave following news that Robert Lewandowski will carry out his wish of instigating a bosman move to Bayern Munich at the end of the season, but there’s little they can do about Reus’s £30million release clause or Gundogan entering the final 18 months of his contract this January and continually refusing to extend his current deal.
And what about Atletico Madrid’s Koke? The kind of flamboyant playmaker who could solidify the foundations of David Moyes’ midfield revolution. The 22 year-old has been ripping apart La Liga this season with four goals and eight assists in 18 starts. He’s also made over 100 senior appearances in his career, claiming three pieces of silverware with the Mattress Makers, and has already featured seven times for Spain, so it’s not as if he’s a flash in the pan that could suddenly emerge as a transfer blunder of Juan Sebastian Veron proportions. Koke is a player with undoubted world-class potential and a release clause of just £17million.
Real Madrid’s Angel Di Maria and Fabio Coentrao, Athletic Bilbao’s Ander Herrera, former Red Devil Paul Pogba, Atletico’s Diego Costa, Porto’s Alex Sandro and Elaiquim Mangala, and Cruzeiro’s Everton Ribeiro are some more examples of high-quality players well within United’s financial grasp.
So once again, the idea there aren’t players available to the Red Devils this January is a myth, especially with the untold millions of pounds at the club’s disposal. Rather, the issue is how much Manchester United are willing to pay for these sought-after stars and starlets.
You can certainly understand David Moyes’ reluctance to spend big. The biggest purchase of his management career to date – £28million for Fellaini – has decisively blown back in his face, all the more so for the fact he could have joined the Red Devils for £5million less if the Belgian’s acquisition had come a matter of weeks earlier. At the same time, Sir Alex Ferguson instigated a transfer culture during his 27-year reign of Manchester United being a club that spends the right amount on the right players, avoiding the value hyperbole you’d associate more with Manchester City and Chelsea.
A point perhaps best represented by the fact United’s record transfer fee of £30.5million for Dimitar Berbatov in 2009 has since been surpassed by Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool, and nearly matched by Tottenham in the summer.
That £30million barrier appears to hold significance with the Carrington boss. He was prepared to pay £30million for his much-desired target Ander Herrera in the summer, but refused to up the ante by another £6million and activate the rated Spaniard’s release clause.
But that’s the level of transfer arrogance David Moyes must avoid if he’s going to get the Red Devils back on track via a much-needed turnaround of playing personnel. Just as the Premier League champions’ reputation has counted for nothing in regards to opponents travelling to Old Trafford this season, Ferguson’s retirement, in addition to the resignation of former Chief Executive David Gill, has also weakened their reputation when it comes to the transfer market.
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Of course, going down the dangerous path of overspending and you end up buying Stewart Downing and Andy Carroll for a combined £55million – if there’s one blueprint of transfer failure the Red Devils must learn from, it’s Liverpool’s.
That being said however, David Moyes must not insist upon maintaining the transfer morals of the previous era when he looks to instigate his Old Trafford revolution. The fringe benefits of a manager with Sir Alex Ferguson’s monolithic presence have long gone, and that includes in the transfer market. Paying premium prices for premium players is the only thing that will stop the Carrington rot, or else, the Premier League giants could find themselves caught in a downward spiral.
Pay £50million, £70million or even £100million – the most important thing now is signing players that will improve United’s league position and stock price, even if it does require eating some humble transfer crumble in the process.
Back when I was a young whipper-snapper, in my glory days where I could sit on a toilet without fear of my knees cracking and fully participate in Sunday morning football matches without coughing up my lungs, Tottenham were always kind of a novelty side.
The Spurs squad boasted quality for sure – especially up front – yet it was undermined by players such as Hossam Ghaly and Paul Stalteri, players whose names alone suggested a mixture of inadvertent comedy and inevitable incompetence.
I look at the White Hart Lane side now and it’s like a portal back to the early 2000s. My lungs yet to be exposed to unhealthy smoking habits, my knees capable of enduring any lengthy bend on the bog and Tottenham representing a rabble of globally-sourced mercenaries whose abilities, or rather, lack of, will one day be lost to the cult hero status of obscure football trivia. Can you name a Japan international who appeared only four times for Spurs in 2003 before being sold to Eredivisie side ADO Den Haag? Kazuyuki Toda.
Perhaps Tottenham’s list of summer signings, equating to a total transfer spend of £110million, aren’t quite Toda territory. Paulinho for example, is a Brazil international, Christian Eriksen is regarded as one of the most impressive recent products of the Ajax total football academy, and Roberto Soldado has been one of La Liga’s leading homegrown goalscorers since his first loan spell away from Real Madrid back in 2006.
But earlier in the season, fans and pundits alike came to the same conclusion that Andre Villas-Boas was holding back Spurs’ newly-arrived summer cast through his impetus on incredibly boring, chess-like football.
Revisionists have since argued that relinquishing the Portuguese was a knee-jerk mistake on Daniel Levy’s part, but you can’t argue with the stats; Spurs averaged less than a goal per game under AVB, and had suffered hefty defeats, 6-0 and 5-0 respectively, to Manchester City and Liverpool – two clubs that Tottenham’s £110million spending spree was meant to leave them competing with for results and league standing.
Yet not much has changed under geezer-gaffer Tim Sherwood. The former Tottenham and England midfielder has the gift of the gab that his predecessor didn’t, and far from discussions on double-pivots, pass success rates and other moot tactical misnomers, everything about Sherwood and the style of play he insists upon suggests typically English, laddish and chavish, bold, basic and direct football. He’s made Spurs the Premier League’s equivalent to a cafe-bought beans on toast; traditional, filling, lacking in flavour, predictable and not even a hint of foreign influence.
Despite this reinvention of the wheel at White Hart Lane, the change in hands of two management regimes and the incredible contrast in their personal and philosophical styles, Premier League results have been nearly identical. Under AVB, Spurs claimed 27 points out of a possible 48, losing 1-0 to Arsenal, 6-0 to Manchester City, 5-0 to Liverpool and drawing 1-1 with Chelsea. Under Sherwood, Spurs have claimed 29 points out of a possible 48, losing 1-0 to Arsenal, 5-1 to Manchester City, 4-0 to Liverpool and 4-0 to Chelsea.
There’s a recurring theme here, and it’s not the customarily superficial -yet often official – explanation that leadership from the dugout just hasn’t been good enough. Have Tottenham just splashed out £110million on 2014’s answer to Timothee Atouba, Teemu Tainio, Goran Bunjevcevic et al? Is Tottenham’s final reckoning, headed by Hossam Ghaly’s undead reincarnation upon us? The names ‘Vlad Chiriches’, ‘Etienne Capoue’ and ‘Nacer Chadli’ suggests that could be the case.
I jest about their names fitting the bill of mild obscurity, but there is some method to the madness. For example, with the exclusion of Paulinho, and perhaps Christian Eriksen, it should have been a glaring warning sign for Tottenham that interest in the cast of summer arrivals wasn’t rivalled by any of their divisional competitors.
When they splashed out a then-club-record £26million on Roberto Soldado, the rest of the Premier League said ‘you’re welcome to him’. When they sourced Etienne Capoue from Toulouse, a few Serie A sides were disappointed but not to the extent in which any other suitors were prepared to match the £9million Daniel Levy had put on the table – English clubs were more interested in the immediate fate of Tom Huddlestone. When Spurs broke their record fee again on Erik Lamela, the overwhelming feeling of the top flight was surprise, rather than envied anticipation. The fact the Premier League’s top four weren’t interested in these players, and the fact Spurs now find themselves some way off the pace of a Champions League finish, is no unfortunate coincidence.
In terms of quality, Tottenham’s summer signings are clearly a cut above that aforementioned, obscurely-named clan of the early 2000s. Back then, Spurs were amid a period of disturbing mid-table mediocrity, and although they haven’t met expectations this year, those days are obviously far behind them.
But the prevailing flaw of Spurs’ summer acquisitions is that few make sense in a Premier League context. Paulinho for example, has spent the last four years of his career in South America; Erik Lamela has just two European campaigns under his belt, only one of which his goal-return had reached double figures; Vlad Chirches is 24 years of age and has never ventured outside of Romania before; Roberto Soldado, for all his obvious quality and intelligence as a footballer, measures in at just 5 foot 10, lacks any noteworthy pace and none of his 24 goals for Valencia last season came from outside the box. A direct footballer of the Premier League variety, the 28 year-old is most certainly not.
Perhaps the benefits of a second season in England will prove me wrong about Tottenham’s summer arrivals, but thus far in their Premier League careers, it’s become patently obvious that none have bettered the level of talent previously at Spurs’ disposal.
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The need to replace the world-class quality of Gareth Bale is duly noted, but as they often did in the days of Glen Hoddle and Martin Jol, the Lilywhites can be rightly accused of collecting players, with no clear plan of how they might fit in at White Hart Lane and far more impetus on reputation rather than requirement when it came to the recruitment process.
In many ways, AVB was made a scapegoat for Levy and Franco Baldini’s transfer failings, and subsequently, although Sherwood is often his own enemy at times, he’ll inevitably suffer a similar fate at the end of the season.
But knowing what we do now, 32 Premier League fixtures on from Tottenham’s all-or-nothing, £110million transfer revolution, could it simply be the case that the North Londoners have spent their way into the world of Hossam Ghalys, Paul Stalteris, and Alan Huttons they’ve spent the last near-decade trying to escape from?
Four seasons after establishing himself as a regular in the Arsenal team, Jack Wilshere is still waiting on that big break, the career-defining step up.
There have of course been announcements from the midfielder of his talent. His performance against Barcelona in the Champions League in 2011 was outstanding, heightened further by his inexperience yet comfort moving the ball around such refined superstars as Xavi and Andres Iniesta. And there was that international game against Brazil last year, where Wilshere was voted Man of the Match.
But going into the World Cup, talk about the Arsenal midfielder is muted, as if to indirectly say there isn’t really much in the way of expectation. Daniel Sturridge should be England’s starting centre-forward, coming off a season where he was the highest scoring English striker; Roy Hodgson is being encouraged to start Raheem Sterling due to the unpredictability and explosiveness the Liverpool starlet provides; both Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Ross Barkley had a fine game against Ecuador last week and few would have complaints about either’s inclusion in England’s starting XI in Brazil.
But Wilshere isn’t part of the conversation. He should be, there’s no doubt about it. His reputation as one of the best English midfielders warrants it. Those games against Barcelona and Brazil weren’t flashes in the pan; he produced performances like that for the majority of his first full season in the Arsenal team, with that 18-month injury halting any further development.
This past season, Wilshere has been a mixed bag. He didn’t look at home in the centre of midfield in the big games, with Arsenal on the receiving end of a 5-1 hammering at Liverpool and the midfielder giving the ball away deep inside his own area in a 6-3 loss at Manchester City.
His better games came against the likes of Aston Villa, where his goal and assist added to the perception that Arsene Wenger had genuine depth in quality in that midfield position, with Aaron Ramsey and Wilshere able to rotate in and out of the side.
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The problem is they haven’t been enough. For every Brazil, there’s a Liverpool. There is an uncertainty surrounding Wilshere that needs to be put to bed for good. The doubters are becoming full-blown detractors, though it would be fair to say they’re being clouded by general disillusion and disappointment.
Wilshere is 22; his regular involvement with both England and Arsenal, coupled with him being a father, means he’s no longer a youngster. There’s a degree of responsibility that needs to be adopted by the midfielder in order to get his career going.
There can be no better place than this World Cup. Stopping well short of suggesting Wilshere can be the inspiration that sees England deep into the competition, he simply needs high-level, consistent performances throughout. We know he’s capable. Injuries and the fear of ending up on the sidelines long term can provide mental lapses; a criticism of Wilshere is that he needs to move the ball quicker and not allow opponents to get close enough to deliver a potentially damaging challenge.
The setting is ideal. It’s the biggest stage a footballer can perform on, but the spotlight is well away from the 22-year-old. It’s a big help, the expectation is elsewhere, mainly on Liverpool’s group, and there are still many who are waiting on Wayne Rooney to deliver. It’s that kind of shelter that allowed him to flourish as he did alongside Cesc Fabregas and Alex Song in Arsenal’s midfield. That season, 2010-11, Arsenal had Fabregas, Robin van Persie, Samir Nasri, and Andrey Arshavin as established stars who took on the responsibility. It would be fair to say that due to Wilshere’s injury problems over the years, he hasn’t been quite ready to shoulder a burden that was previously divided among so many.
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Wilshere has had the fortune, in a way, of a shortened league season due, one again, to injury, out of action from March to May. He’ll go into the World Cup equipped with a freshness that would make him the envy of many of his teammates. It’ll be important that he uses that advantage to its max.
Four seasons on and we’re still waiting for Wilshere to permanently take that next step in his career. This World Cup must be that springboard his club and country are impatiently waiting for.