Arsenal transfer target Mamadou Sakho is now also being courted by Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish, if reports in The Daily Mail are to be believed.
Liverpool entered the race for Paris St-Germain’s 21 year old defensive rock after Manchester City emerged as the strong favourites for Liverpool target Gary Cahill. Bolton’s huge asking price of £20 million is also likely to deter the Reds.
Former French U21 captain Sakho has now broken into the senior squad and his tough tackling and tireless work rate would be a welcome addition to Liverpool’s backline. Senegalese born Sakho can also fill in at left back and the Parisian’s asking price is likely to be significantly less than the fee the Trotters will demand for Cahill.
Sakho has played in the Europa League with PSG and after winning his first International cap against England recently he has the potential to be an astute piece of business. Liverpool are likely to face stiff competition from the Gunners in any attempt to bring Sakho to Anfield. Liverpool owner John Henry has already shown with the purchase of Andy Carroll that he isn’t afraid to splash the cash, so if it comes down to a bidding war Liverpool should come out on top.
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.
Jose Mourinho has described Real Madrid’s 1-0 win over Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final as a ‘fantastic triumph’ for his side.After a tense 90 minutes at the Mestalla in Valencia, extra-time was required, with Cristiano Ronaldo’s 103rd minute header separating the two sides on Wednesday.
The win signalled an end to Real’s three-year trophy drought, with the club now taking confidence into their two-legged Champions League semi-final with Barcelona beginning on May 27.
“I am thrilled to win the Copa del Rey – it is something special,” Mourinho said.
“It’s a fantastic triumph against a great team like Barcelona – and we deserved it. We can take them on over two games; we have just done that.”
“There is no reason we can’t beat them in the Champions League because we have just drawn once against them and then beaten them. I came here to do a job and change the mentality of the club. We have started to do that and it’s satisfying – but it’s just the start.”
Recently, Barcelona legend Johan Cruyff said that Mourinho’s only existence was to win trophies and that he was not a ‘football coach’, but Mourinho responded by saying he was pleased with the comment.
“Winning titles is winning titles, it’s always good,” he said.
“Only a few days ago someone called me a coach who wins titles and not football. Thank you. I like being a coach who wins titles.”
Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos’s comments after the match highlighted just how much Mourinho’s squad believe in their manager.
“Mourinho is the captain of our ship and we are with him to the death,” Ramos said. “What he is trying to instil in us is working wonderfully.”
Goal-scorer Ronaldo backed up Ramos’ comments and hailed the silverware as ‘really important’ for the club.
“We knew that whoever scored first would win it – and so it proved,” Ronaldo said.
“Mourinho has given us a winning spirit and this is a really important trophy for us – it was an objective we had for this season and we have achieved it.”
Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola was disappointed after the match, but insisted his side will bounce back from the defeat.
“It’s always better to win than to lose,” Guardiola said.
“But life is like that – you can’t always win. We will pick ourselves up – of course we will.”
“We are more sad than if we had won, but that’s part of the game. These players have been playing together for a long time and we’ll bounce back.”
David Moyes heaped praise on Leon Osman after the Everton midfielder’s goal was enough to beat Manchester City.Moyes likened Osman to Everton legend Andy Gray after his second-half header claimed a 2-1 win for the Toffees at Goodison Park.
Yaya Toure opened the scoring in the first half before Sylvain Distin levelled and Osman’s power header won it.
Moyes said: “That was an Andy Gray header! I know Andy’s a few inches taller than Ozzie but it’s a great leap across the big centre,” Moyes said.
“I think he took a knock after the header, he keeps telling me he took one in the back of the head for the team but it was a great goal by Ozzie.”
“I told him I didn’t think he played well today for 60 minutes but once we got a head of steam he became better, the team became better.”
“He’s done that in recent weeks, he’s scored important goals, he’s probably been the catalyst for our good performances.”
Moyes admitted his side deserved to be 1-0 down, but paid tribute to his team for battling back from a losing position to claim the points.
“It’s a great result that didn’t look likely after 45 minutes,” Moyes said.
“We did well to come in only 1-0 down – Manchester City played terrifically well and we were struggling to cope with it.”
“Maybe a couple of alterations in the second half helped make the difference.”
“We started getting a bit closer I thought we started showing what I think we’ve got in abundance here and that is a spirit, a great attitude and determination.”
“We hadn’t really shown that in the first half and we just about hung in there and thankfully got in at half time to ruffle on or two feathers.”
Roberto Mancini bemoaned his side’s profligacy in front of goal, with several excellent chances going begging in the first half.
“In football matches, it is 90 minutes and we have to score,” Mancini said. “It’s important to score the goals and we had too many chances for this.”
“We didn’t deserve to lose this especially after the first half. Everton pushed more and more and played long ball after long ball – and we had many chances to win.”
“I don’t know why they played long balls but it was easy for us. We were deep and had defenders near the box – it was strange as we did not deserve to lose this game.”
It’s been almost an entire season now (just three more games to go now) since I suggested that we should bring Sami Hyypia back in a player-coach role, and in admitting that he had tried to, Roy Hodgson let us in on just about the only sensible thing he tried to do as Liverpool coach.
The news in the last 24 hours that Sami has now announced his retirement from football at the age of 37 has interested me a great deal. If it wasn’t for the fact that he simultaneously declared his intention to coach with Leverkusen and the Finish national side, we’d be stupid not to dive in there and snap him up. However, letting him have a good 12 months to get his coaching schooling and gain some experience might be a wise move for Liverpool; the club he surely feels most of an affinity with, given that he spent 10 very successful years with the club. Don’t get me wrong, I’d snap Sami up in any role to bring back this afternoon, if I thought it was possible but it doesn’t appear that it is at the moment.
This summer is going to be incredibly important for Liverpool, there’s going to be between 20-25 comings and goings if we’re to believe everything we read and given that there is going to be some pretty extensive restructuring at the club, it probably won’t be too far off that. The main focus this summer will undoubtedly be on players – getting the right ones in and moving the dead wood and surplus out.
So perhaps next summer, 12 months on when he’s got a full years experience under his belt and has decided on the role he wishes to play in football, we could look to bringing big Sami back over here and assisting in putting our club back where it belongs. Because if he can influence the side in the way he used to influence the defence when he was here, then we’d be stupid not to get him back at any cost.
Article courtesy of David Tryer from Live4Liverpool
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.
[divider]
Listen to the latest episode of our award nominee podcast – The Football FanCast. – Featuring Razor Ruddock, Gary O’Reilly and King Jacks! Don’t forget to help Razor and O’Reilly become award winners in the 2011 EPL Awards
Clubs from Norway, England and Sweden have each been allocated an extra position in next season’s Europa League.Norway topped UEFA’s Respect Fair Play rankings, while England and Sweden are second and third on that table and will each be rewarded for the conduct of their teams.
The rankings are based upon games played by a country’s club and national teams in UEFA competitions between May 1 2010 and April 30 2011.
Norway’s Aalesund and Sweden’s Hacken have already been awarded their place in the competition, while Fulham is in the box seat to grab England’s spot.
The Cottagers currently sit in second place on the Premier League fair play table behind Chelsea, but Carlo Ancelotti’s side has already qualified for the Champions League.
Tottenham and Blackpool hold down third and fourth place on the fair play table and are still in contention for a place.
However, Tottenham may land a Europa League position through finishing fifth on the Premier League table, which could leave Blackpool as the side in Europe, even if they were to be relegated.
Sepp Blatter has invited opera singer Placido Domingo to join former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger on a ‘council of wisdom’ at FIFA.In a surreal turn to the recent turmoil at world’s football’s governing body, FIFA President Blatter announced the recruitment of 70-year-old Spanish tenor Domingo to his reform program.
He will join 88-year-old Kissinger and former FBI chief Louis Freeh as part of Blatter’s promised anti-corruption initiatives.
“These gentlemen are more or less advisers, they are not the experts but advisers,” Blatter told CNN, after initialling forgetting Domingo’s name in the interview.
“I have also contacted the Spanish singer … help me with the name.”
Promoted by the interviewer, Blatter said: “Placido Domingo will be part.”
“He is happy, he is proud that he is part – as Kissinger also. People say he is an old man, but he is a wise man.”
“What they should be also is the kind of council of wisdom – which my executive committee would not like because they think they are the council of wisdom.”
Blatter also revealed that he does not consider it necessary for FIFA to launch an investigation into Qatar’s bid for the 2022 World Cup.
An enquiry had been mooted after an email was released in which FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke suggested the gulf state had ‘bought’ the tournament.
But Valcke claims the comments were a casual reference to Qatar’s financial strength in the lobbying process and not an allegation of corruption.
After earlier hinting that the bid could come under scrutiny, Blatter has dismissed calls for action.
“I don’t know why we should go in (to an investigation) – then we shall (have to) go to all (bids),” Blatter said.
“I don’t know why we should open something because somebody has said something towards Qatar.”
The 75-year-old Swiss did leave the door open for the FIFA’s independent committees to investigate the bid if they see fit.
“If this committee of solutions or the ethics committee have the impression that they should do something then let them take the decisions.”
A relieved Argentina booked their place in the Copa America quarter-finals with a 3-0 win over Costa Rica on Monday.Two goals from Atletico Madrid forward Sergio Aguero and one from Angel di Maria helped Sergio Batista’s side secure second place in Group A.
They will now meet the second-placed side in Group C – one of Chile, Uruguay or Peru – while Costa Rica could still progress in third if other results go their way.
Argentina came into the match in Cordoba under pressure after failing to win their opening two games of the tournament on home soil.
Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez, together with Ezequiel Lavezzi and Ever Banega, paid the price for the team’s failure to fire in the opening games by dropping to the bench.
Aguero and Real Madrid’s Di Maria and Fernando Gago came into the side at Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes, a decision that bore dividends for Batista.
While the two men who ply their trade in the Spanish capital were the names on the score sheet, it was Barcelona star Lionel Messi – the scapegoat for Argentina’s toothless displays in their first two matches – who was the driving force in a comprehensive victory.
The diminutive forward had a hand in creating the numerous chances Argentina spurned in the first half, with Real Madrid centre-forward Higuain frequently culpable.
Struggling to gain possession and trapped in their own half for much of the opening exchanges, Costa Rica rode their luck and somehow looked set to reach the half-time break with the deadlock intact.
But a minute into first-half injury time, Gago struck a drive that Costa Rica goalkeeper Leonel Moreira was unable to hold, and Aguero was on hand to tuck home the rebound for 1-0.
It took Argentina just seven minutes of the second half to breach Costa Rica’s defences again, with a carefully measured Messi pass setting up Aguero, who duly guided the ball beyond Moreira.
And it was Messi again who could take much of the credit for the third, finding Di Maria in space for the former Benfica man to smash home at the near post.
The win represents a considerable improvement on the Argentina’s earlier displays, but Batista will need his side to produce again against tougher opponents in the last eight.
Liverpool’s transfer policy has come in for some severe stick from naysayers the world over this summer – myself included – however, as Kenny Dalglish begins to make his own indelible mark on a squad that lacks both quality and depth, a larger picture begins to emerge; all of the targets either acquired or in the latter stages of negotiations have been pursued with one aim in mind – getting the best out of and utilising the talents of the club’s record signing, Andy Carroll.
Stewart Downing looks all but assured to complete his move to Liverpool from Aston Villa within the next few days for a fee in the region of £20m – a wholly ridiculous valuation given the player’s actual ability. Even given the inevitable inflated premium that you have to stump up for English talent it seems a tad over the mark to say the least.
However, if you factor in that Downing has had the most completed crosses in the Premier League – 135 to be exact – in the last three seasons and it’s clear why he’s being pursued so fervently.
What has become clear, despite his injury troubles after signing for the club in January, through no fault of his own may I hastily add, is that the club simply did not have the players capable of getting the best out of Carroll. There isn’t a natural winger at the club at the moment and that means you drastically limit Carroll’s sizeable impact in the air.
To put it quite simply, the club have had to reinvest nearly £100m on top of their initial outlay of £35m on the big man to ensure that they get the best out of his undoubted potential. Those are some weighty figures to carry around on your shoulders.
Charlie Adam has also signed for the club for roughly £7m despite being out of contract next summer. The club’s keenness to sign the Scot after just one year of top flight action is in part down to his superb set-piece delivery. Without Adam’s free-kicks and corners last season – which notably rendered 9 assists and 12 goals – Blackpool would have been sunk a lot sooner than the final day of the season.
Even Jordan Henderson, a player that almost everyone can agree that the club have overpaid for, represents a bargain of sorts when you factor in the reasoning behind his purchase.
While Samir Nasri can look to command a fee upwards of £20m this summer despite having just a year left on his contract and Luka Modric is caught in a tug-of-war between his current club Spurs and suitors Chelsea; a battle that’ll surely see his fee soar above the £30m mark – the salient point that Henderson has created just as many goal scoring chances in the last two seasons is worth remembering – 110 to be precise.
Henderson is still somewhat raw and has struggled for form for the second half of last season, the sheer amount of chances he’s created in two seasons in a struggling Sunderland outfit is truly astounding. There are of course, as there are with any young player, a lot of aspects to his game that need improving – however, he possesses that rare thing in an English midfielder – vision. His precise, incision like passes from the heart of midfield will have Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll chomping at the bit.
[ad_pod id=’unruly’ align=’right’]
While I have my reservations about the perceived ‘British only’ transfer policy that appears to be the order of the day at Anfield at the minute, with concerns to the club’s purchases thus far (and nearly purchased in Downing’s case), there at least appears to be an element of strong planning on behalf of the management.
The main aim has to be to get the best out of Andy Carroll; a truly terrifying physical presence when on form. The fact that Liverpool have purchased (or nearly, again) the league’s foremost set piece taker, the most accurate crosser and one it’s most intelligent and creative midfielders is worth taking notice of.
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.
Nobody is certain as to how Dalglish will line his Liverpool charges up this season. It could be 4-3-3, 4-5-1 or 4-2-3-1, but either way, Carroll will remain (fitness permitting, of course) the focal point of the teams attack throughout the majority of the campaign.
Liverpool’s summer purchases so far, while they may not have caught the eye in the same way that Man Utd’s have, are certainly functional and tailor-made to get the best out of the club’s most prized and expensive asset.
The plus point for Liverpool fans at least is that each of the club’s purchases thrived last season in smaller, struggling sides and each of them look capable of getting the best out of Andy Carroll, the club’s most expensive ever player. This coming campaign certainly represents a huge season for Carroll, because Dalglish has staked his entire summer transfer rebuilding programme on the success of the Geordie front man and a system tailored to his talents.
Follow me on Twitter at – http://twitter.com/#!/JamesMcManus1
Paraguay won their second straight penalty shootout to defeat Venezuela and book their spot in the Copa America final.As they did in their quarter-final against Brazil, Paraguay defended grimly for 120 minutes in their semi against Venezuela, holding on for a 0-0 draw before claiming a 5-3 victory in the shootout.
They were reduced to 10 men 13 minutes into extra time when Jonathan Santana received his second yellow card, and Venezuela will be devastated to not have capitalised on the numerical advantage.
Goalkeeper Justo Villar was the hero for Paraguay in the shootout, making the all-important save from Franklin Lucena before Dario Veron smashed home the final spot kick.
The win gives Paraguay the unique achievement of reaching the final without winning a match in regular time, having had three draws in the group stage and two shootout victories in the knockout stages.
Playing in their first ever semi-final at a major competition, Cesar Farias’ Venezuela side took some time to settle as Paraguay enjoyed the better of the early exchanges at the Estadio Malvinas Argentinas in Mendoza.
Martin Caceres put in a dangerous cross which only just missed the waiting Lucas Barrios, before Veron powered a pinpoint header towards goal which Venezuelan goalkeeper Renny Vega did well to save low to his left.
Neither side was providing much going forward, but the match came to life 10 minutes before half time when Venezuela had a goal disallowed for offside.
Oswaldo Vizcarrondo thought he had put his side in front when his bullet header found the back of the net, but the ball took the tiniest of deflections of Salomon Rondon, who was standing in an offside position.
The near miss only spurred Venezuela on though, with Alejandro Moreno hitting the crossbar with a header only minutes later.
There was little action after the break though, with both sides seemingly happy for the match to go to extra time and penalties.
Venezuela were inches from taking the lead in the fourth minute of extra time when Miku deflected Rondon’s long-range effort past Villar, only for it to come back off the inside of the upright.
Paraguay received another blow when Santana received his second booking for a robust challenge on Rondon, but they held on to send the match to penalties.
Venezuela had never taken part in a competitive penalty shootout before and it showed, with Villar saving Lucena’s tame penalty to send Paraguay into the final.
They will meet Uruguay in Sunday’s final in Buenos Aires.
Harry Redknapp has announced that so long as other clubs are willing to pay the “crazy” wages that players are demanding, Tottenham Hotspur will be unable to compete in the transfer market for the top or ‘in-demand’ players that are available.
Spurs have been relatively quiet in the market so far with only Brad Friedel being brought in on a free transfer, however speculation over the future of playmaker Luka Modric has dominated the back pages recently, and again, Redknapp has claimed that the wage packet on offer at Stamford Bridge will inevitably cause players heads to turn. The Spurs boss admitted that “it’s not easy when people come along and offer you double or triple your wages”, and he seems somewhat resigned to thinking that any approaches that the club makes for top players will almost certainly be blown out of the water by Tottenham’s competitors.
Redknapp has insisted that whilst funds are available for transfer fees, when it comes to player salaries, Spurs are unable to offer anything close to the likes of Chelsea or Manchester City. In an attempt to lighten the mood Redknapp joked, “we were interested in Sergio Aguero but he wanted £250,000 a week in wages. We were only £220,000 short.” Upon hearing this some Spurs fans will be wanting to laugh, however there seems to be a harsh reality behind Redknapp’s humour; that failure to compete in the transfer market is ultimately likely to entail failure to compete on the pitch with these clubs as well.
Spurs have often been praised for the reportedly low wage system in place at White Hart Lane, and rightly so. However, in order to attract the likes of Sergio Aguero, and in order to compete at the top end of the league, it seems Spurs must find a way to generate the kind of money these players are looking for. Both Levy and Redknapp know that shipping out the youth or ‘fringe’ players of the squad will not reduce their wage bill sufficiently enough, whereas the money they would receive for the likes of Modric or Bale, combined with their wages coming off the books, would almost certainly provide them with some financial strength in the market.
With Chelsea expected to return with an increased offer for Luka Modric, Redknapp remains adamant the midfielder will still be at Spurs come the start of the season. Should Modric be allowed to leave, the Spurs boss will be wary that others may seek their football elsewhere, and bringing in players on higher salaries may well cause others to seek higher salaries, if not at Tottenham then, again, elsewhere.
Spurs face a rather unenviable task of finding a balance between the players that they want and the salaries that they have to offer. Having missed out on the Olympic Stadium, Tottenham cannot generate the same kind of incomes at Manchester United or Arsenal, and without the kind of backing at Chelsea and Manchester City, Levy will be fully aware his club must aim to live within their means, especially with the financial fair play system set to come in 2014.
Redknapp remains optimistic that the club will bring in one or two players before the window closes at the end of the month. Spurs are believed to have submitted a £22m bid for Juan Mata on Friday, and the Valencia winger is said to have attracted the likes of both Arsenal and Liverpool as well. Spurs may well be drawn in to a bidding war and as things stand, will almost certainly be unable to match the salaries that their rivals will be prepared to offer.
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 fact remains that so long as the clubs around Tottenham are willing to offer these “crazy” wages, Tottenham’s comparably ‘low’ wage system, though highly commendable, ultimately counts for nothing. If Spurs are wanting to sign the top-players, then they must offer something that other clubs cannot, and without Champions League football to boast, it is hardly surprising that they are struggling to do so.
For now, Spurs must hope to replicate their achievements of the 2009/10 campaign in which they did qualify for the Champions League, and without any real ‘big names’ or ‘top signings’ in the transfer windows. However, with Manchester City having improved significantly since then, and the signings that Dalglish has made this summer at Liverpool, Spurs will almost certainly be favourites to miss out on a top four finish again this year. Should they do so, the club risk losing more than just Luka Modric, but their brief reputation as a ‘top four’ side as well.