Newcastle United front man Andy Carroll is confident he can form a potent partnership with Wayne Rooney in the England side.
The Magpies sensation has impressed in the Premier League this term after helping the club land the Championship title in May and his performances were rewarded when Three Lions manager Fabio Capello called him into the squad for the recent friendly clash with France.
Despite Les Bleus winning the friendly 2-1, Carroll was one of England's stand-out players and, although he had concerns about making the step up, he now wants to retain his place in the team.
"Wayne is a great player so to have people talking about me and him playing up front for England means a lot," he said.
"I definitely think we could form a decent partnership. The way we both play I reckon we'd go well together.
"I knew I was capable of playing for England. In my head I wanted to step up and I knew I could do it. Now I've played one game, I have to try and keep my place in the squad.
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"Turning up at the England hotel was good. The rest of the lads were there and I just walked in all normal, like – as if I should be there. We had a bit of banter and that was that."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
An action packed Premier League weekend lays in store with four local derbies; Arsenal’s trip to Old Trafford, while Alan Pardew prepares for a likely baptism of fire at St James’ Park this afternoon. I get the feeling that referees will have their work cut out this weekend, and there will be yellow cards and controversy aplenty.
In the news this morning there has been a mixed bag of stories with David Dein being touted as the man to take over the FA; Kevin Keegan doesn’t understand Mike Ashley, while Roy Hodgson admits he ignored advice over Liverpool sale.
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Houllier apology fails to ease Villa turmoil – Daily Telegraph
It’s a Dein deal for FA job – Sun
Wenger shrugs off Evra barb – Sky Sports
Ancelotti told he will not be sacked despite Chelsea’s slump – Guardian
Ferguson: ‘Sir Matt helped me survive’ – Daily Telegraph
Keegan: I still don’t get Ashley – Sun
Anichebe angers Moyes after snubbing new three-year deal – Daily Mail
Tottenham interested in Inter Milan right-back Davide Santon – IM Scouting
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I ignored board over sales, says Hodgson – Guardian
There are three FA Cup third round replays to look forward to tonight, giving you some excellent betting opportunities. All three ties see Premier League teams up against Championship opposition, as Stoke City travel to Cardiff, Manchester City host Leicester City and Wolves are home to Doncaster. If you’re a new bet365 customer then you can claim your £200 FREE BET right now, but what are the hot tips for this evening’s FA Cup matches?
The tie at the Cardiff City Stadium is a tough one to call, after the original fixture ended 1-1. These are the sort of matches in which Craig Bellamy likes to make a name for himself, and odds of 2/1 for him to score anytime during the match aren’t too bad. As for the result itself, Cardiff are well priced at 7/4 to win.
The Manchester City v Leicester tie looks like a foregone conclusion, and odds of 1/3 on for City to win aren’t exactly great value. If you’re looking for a decent bet then the correct score market may well be the route to go down, and with City likely to score goals, it may be worth plumping for Roberto Mancini’s men to win 3-1 at 9/1.
Completing the line-up tonight is Wolves v Doncaster. This is a fixture that’s hard to call. The original tie ended 2-2 and you can get odds of 14/1 for that to happen again tonight. With all of Doncaster’s last six containing at least three goals, it looks like a sure thing that there will be more than 2.5 goals at Molineux, for which you can get odds of 8/11.
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Tonight’s Tip: With Wolves in the Premier League relegation zone and Mick McCarthy focused on survival, why not back a Doncaster win at 9/2?
Sir Alex Ferguson has produced many great teams over the years. But the one that everyone remembers is the Manchester United side who swept all before them in the Treble winning year of 1999. But where are those stars now?
Peter Schmeichel: The Great Dane can usually be found these days hosting the European edition of the show ‘Dirty Jobs’. Quite different from goalkeeping but after appearing as a pundit on Match of the Day, Schmeichel looked destined for life as a TV star!
Gary Neville: The United legend is, as we know, still a part of Alex Ferguson’s side. At 35, his first-team opportunities are now limited and this could well be his last season. Who’d bet against the right-back becoming an honorary representative such is his status at Old Trafford?
Denis Irwin: Another former player to go into the media, Irwin is a regular presenter for Manchester United’s television network, MUTV. He also worked at the 2010 World Cup for RTE Sport, the Irish public service broadcaster.
Ronny Johnsen: The former Norwegian international now deals in real estate in his home-land. He can be found now and again representing United’s Masters side.
Jaap Stam: The big Dutchman did return to Old Trafford as a scout back in 2008 and has been credited for bringing the Da Silva twins to United. He is now on the coaching staff at Dutch second division side FC Zwolle.
David Beckham: I’m not really sure you need me to tell you that Becks is currently training with Tottenham, although the chances of him appearing for Spurs are looking thin. Still going strong at LA Galaxy when he’s not trying to prove his worth to England manager, Fabio Capello.
Nicky Butt: The 35-year old midfielder has recently signed for South China FC who play in the Hong Kong First Division. He signed after appearing in a guest match in which he scored and missed a penalty. Butt has been quoted as saying once his three-month contract is up, he shall be starting his coaching badges on his return to England.
Ryan Giggs: Another one still playing who seems to be defying the ageing process. At 37, Giggs is still a regular in United’s first-team and his performance against Liverpool in the FA Cup two weeks ago would suggest he doesn’t feel like giving up any time soon!
Jesper Blomqvist: The Swede has only just left his post as a player-coach at Hammarby IF. He was assistant manager but made six appearances before leaving in November of 2010 by mutual consent.
Andy Cole: The former striker is now working with ex Newcastle team-mate Lee Clark at Huddersfield Town as a forwards coach.
Dwight Yorke: The ‘smiling assassin’ has recently completed his UEFA B coaching badge and is looking to get into coaching.
Subs:
Raimond Van Der Gouw: United’s stand-in keeper worked as a coach under Roy Keane at Sunderland before moving back to the Netherlands where he coaches at Vitesse.
David May: Once voted in the 50 top players to grace the Premier League, the former defender has been importing wine into the country!
Teddy Sheringham: Can now be found cleaning up in the professional poker tournaments around the world.
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Phil Neville: Not only a United legend any more. Neville is Everton’s current captain and has recently been linked with a move to Tottenham despite coming to the end of his career.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: The Old Trafford legend has recently left his post as United’s reserve team manager to take over at Norwegian club Molde.
Wes Brown: Still on the books at United and could have featured a lot more had it not been for injuries and the form of others in front of him. He recently played in a reserve team semi final which United won 8-0.
Jonathan Greening: Moved from United to Middlesbrough and after a spell at West Brom, the midfielder now plays his football at Fulham.
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Another day and another Athletics chief has had their say about the Olympic Stadium and what its legacy should be after the games. Lamine Diack believes that England’s sporting reputation will be ‘dead’ if Tottenham are allowed to rip up the running track, given the assurances the British Olympic bid made when they were originally canvassing to host the Olympics back in 2005.
In the papers this morning there have been a mixed bag of stories that includes Balotelli heading to the US for treatment; Steve Bruce slams Houllier, while Steven Pienaar reveals why he snubbed Chelsea.
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Athletics chief rages at ‘big lie’ if Spurs win Olympic Stadium – Guardian
Mario Balotelli heads to America for treatment – Daily Telegraph
Nic is sticking to his Gunns – Sun
Bruce slams Houllier over Bent’s move – Guardian
Robertson: football is worst-governed sport – Daily Telegraph
Michel is such a stupid Plat – Sun
Pienaar: Why I snubbed Chelsea – Mirror
Welbeck blow for Black Cats – Sky Sports
Hammers’ poor track record – Sun
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Dalglish eyes big signing to lift Liverpool – Guardian
Carlos Tevez may have been omitted from Argentina’s latest squad as punishment for pulling out of a match against arch-rivals Brazil.
Manchester City captain Tevez has been left out of the squad to play Portugal in a friendly on Wednesday.
And Argentina Football Association President Julio Grondona has strongly hinted that the exclusion is a direct result of the striker’s failure to make himself available for the match against Brazil in November 2010.
Tevez pulled out of the high-anticipated fixture citing a muscle problem, but was fit enough to play for City a few days later.
“I think that Tevez’s absence is because of his attitude when he didn’t come to play (against Brazil) and shortly after he took the field for his club,” Grondona told Radio Pop.
“That attitude didn’t go down well with the coaching staff; it was a lot easier to tell us that he didn’t want to come.”
The match against Brazil was Sergio Batista’s first after being promoted from caretaker to full-time coach.
It has been speculated that Tevez’s decision not to play was a sign of his loyalty to departed coach Diego Maradona, but Grondona rejected the notion out of hand.
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“Tevez’s absence has nothing to do with Maradona. We cannot go down that road,” he said.
As part of the feature on FootballFanCast.com this week looking at the bright future of the beautiful game we have highlighted some talented players who have the world at their feet, however things don’t always go to plan and of those tipped for stardom some will inevitably fail to fulfil their promise.
Before the start of the season I wrote a piece about the young Premier League starlets to watch out for. Amongst these much heralded and discussed youngsters were the likes of Marc Albrighton, Jack Wilshere, Jack Rodwell and Phil Jones.
Whilst these players undoubtedly have promising futures, football is full of talented players tipped by managers, team-mates and fans who did not make the grade. Below are ten of those who were lavished with praise but failed to match expectations.
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Click on the Neil Mellor on the bench below to see the Top TEN
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Arsenal brought Leyton Orient back to reality at the Emirates on Wednesday, while Manchester City advanced at the expense of Aston Villa.The Gunners, who fell victim to a last-gasp equaliser in their trip to Orient in the FA Cup fifth round, ensured there would be no such surprises in the replay with an emphatic 5-0 thumping of the League One outfit.Danish striker Nicklas Bendtner endeared himself to Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger with a hat-trick, accompanied by goals to Maroune Chamakh and Gael Clichy, to set up a tantalising visit to fellow Premier League title contenders Manchester United in the quarter-finals.Wenger, whose hopes of an ambitious quadruple of trophies were dashed when Arsenal lost to Birmingham City in the Carling Cup final on Sunday, retained only Tomas Rosicky from that side and handed debut starts to 19-year-old midfielder Conor Henderson and 18-year-old defender Ignasi Miquel.If the Gunners were not showing respect to Orient in their make-up it certainly did not affect their attitude on the pitch, and after bursting out of the blocks they deservedly took the lead in the seventh minute through Chamakh.The Moroccan striker, struggling for regular first-team appearances behind the likes of Robin van Persie, Theo Walcott and Andrei Arshavin, tapped home from close range after being picked out on Rosicky’s surging run down the right.Bendtner, whose last goal came in Arsenal’s 3-0 defeat of Ipswich Town in the Carling Cup semi-finals, nodded a superb header past Orient custodian Jamie Jones on the half hour and made it 3-0 with a quality individual move 13 minutes later.Bendter completed his hat-trick – Arsenal’s first in the FA Cup for 18 years – from the penalty spot shortly after the hour, and French defender Clichy put his own exclamation mark on the proceedings in the 75th minute, meeting Emmanuel Eboue’s cross at the far post with his left boot.Manchester City set up a quarter-final meet with Reading after defeating a weakened Villa line-up 3-0 at the City of Manchester Stadium.Villa boss Gerard Houllier made eight changes to his first-team line-up, opting to leave the likes of Marc Albrighton, Ashley Young, Stewart Downing, Nigel Reo-Coker and Robert Pires warming the bench.The sweeping changes turned the fifth-round clash into a lopsided affair as Yaya Toure, Mario Balotelli and David Villa all found the net.Toure opened City’s account in the fifth minute after Patrick Vieira’s corner kick fell fortuitously into his path and Balotelli nabbed his 10th goal in City colours 20 minutes later, collecting Toure’s pass and volleying from 15 yards out.Silva, returning from an ankle injury, fired off a third goal in the 70th minute after being played in by Pablo Zabaleta’s cross from the right.
Last week Tottenham agreed to a sponsorship deal with American sports brand Under Armour. The deal will see them replace Puma as the shirt manufacturer for the 2012/13 season. It might seem like it a boring subject, but there are some interesting points to discuss.
As an American brand, and a relatively unknown one in Europe, Under Armour was keen to secure the sponsorship of Tottenham to raise their brand awareness. For this reason, they are apparently paying £10m a year, for the rights to make Tottenham’s training kit and replica shirts. This is twice the figure that Deloitte reported Puma to be paying for the same rights.
However, being a big American company on a mission of expansion, Under Armour will want to make a big impression. Here are three ways they might try to be different, and the reasons that Under Armour could split the opinion of the fans.
Firstly, Under Armour currently makes the kit for football clubs Hannover 96 and Estudiantes Tecos (Mexico). One thing to note about these kits is that they are both tight fitting around the chest. Tottenham fans might, here, think back to the Kappa kit of the 2005/06 season. While this looks great on a professional athlete, it doesn’t on the average football fan.
Secondly, the kits are innovative and not classic, with big blocks of colour contrasting each other. The colours that have been used so far for Hannover are new and futuristic opposed to classic shades. Estudiantes’ deal with Under Armour coincided with a rebranding of their club. This saw them change their club kit colours from White and Red to ‘Wine and Yellow’ with Under Armour. (Their new kit is pictured above). I hope Tottenham do not follow that path. I was never a massive fan of the yellow trim on the kit and I think a Tottenham kit should be a simple Lilywhite and Blue.
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Thirdly, Under Armour produces American Football kits which feature the ‘E39’ technology. Basically, the shirts are fitted with a micro chip that is able to record heart-rate, body temperature and other vital statistics. Furthermore, it allows a coach to see exactly how fast a player is moving, how quickly they change direction and how many yards they cover during a game.
This helps managers in their analysis of players and also helps them in deciding substitutions. In football this information would allow viewers to know just how high Rooney’s heart rate is when he screams at a referee, or just how cool Berbatov is in front of goal.
Personally, I think that is ridiculous. It is invasive and unnecessary. It is an example of the extent of corporate influence in sport in America. I hope Tottenham don’t use it and I hope it doesn’t catch on in the Premiership. It would just be a distraction to the beautiful game.
I just hope Under Armour don’t try too hard to promote their brand before that of Tottenham. Most importantly, I hope Under Armour stick to the basics of making a football kit. Sadly, they have not done that so far and are unlikely to do it now.
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But all in all, I don’t have a massive problem with the new sponsors as it is a good way for Tottenham to increase their revenue. If Under Armour are willing to pay £10m a year, that is a good thing. This will give the club more money to spend and shows that Tottenham, as a club, is becoming a bigger brand.
What do Tottenham fans make of the new deal with Under Armour? You can let me know at www.twitter.com/joeaustin8
Having been appointed official captain of England, after temporarily sharing the honour with David Platt, Tony Adams led his country through an international tournament to the semi-final stage, a feat which has not since been replicated by any of his successors. Speaking on Glenn Hoddle’s decision to strip Adams of the armband in favour of Alan Shearer, the ex-Arsenal skipper conceded to a fans’ forum in 2008: “I have some resentment over the way Glenn Hoddle gave the captaincy to Alan Shearer instead of me but I can let that go. I reacted positively.” Although Adams’ attitude following the change was never questioned, England, spearheaded by Shearer, crashed out of France ’98 less than two years later in the first knock-out round.
Fast-forward to February 2010 and yet another England captaincy reshuffle. On this occasion, John Terry, denounced for his off-field misdemeanors, was removed as captain following a close association with what most regard as one of the lowest periods in the national team’s history. That said, Terry’s leadership qualities and status as one of Europe’s finest centre-backs never weakened. Since his initial appointment back in August 2006, Terry had guided Chelsea to two FA Cup triumphs, one Carling Cup, a Champions’ League final and been selected in UEFA’s Team of the Year on three occasions.
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The features which define Terry; his strength of character and ability to motivate others, should have surpassed his relationship with Wayne Bridge’s ex-girlfriend as justification for remaining captain. Unfortunately for Terry, Bridge’s position within the England set-up forced Capello to make a decision he otherwise shouldn’t have. It seems unlikely that Terry would have been punished to such an extent had it not been a relationship with a team mate’s girlfriend in question.
Capello, stirred by a widespread roasting of Terry in the media, opted to promote Rio Ferdinand to full-time captain, before reinstating Terry just over a year later. The Italian’s handling of the captaincy situation has come under heavy criticism, but for Capello, and perhaps more importantly, the England team as a whole, the means justify the ends. During the thirteen months Ferdinand was captain, England competed in thirteen matches with the Manchester United defender completing 90 minutes just twice; the unconvincing World Cup warm-up friendly against Japan and the goalless yawn-fest at Wembley against Montenegro last October.
What’s more, the most expensive British defender in history has had little impact on England’s more promising conquests since the capitulation in South Africa last summer, most notably away wins in Switzerland and Denmark, Ferdinand being absent for both. Whilst it remains to be seen whether Ferdinand will react to Capello’s change of heart in the same manner Adams did nearly a decade and a half ago, the decision to reinstate Terry has come at the right time, as England’s European Championship Qualification bid progresses from its earliest phase.
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Capello will struggle to ever convince England fans of his man-management methods, this latest episode providing more evidence of his inability to keep the peace. But, having originally stated his indifference to the significance of the captain’s role – Italians traditionally awarding the responsibility to the squad’s oldest player – his reassessment should be vindicated, provided he stands by his captain this time round in spite of future offences Terry is likely to be accused of.