Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger insists he is more than happy with his current crop of players and he believes they could end their five-year wait for a trophy this term.
The Londoners take on Premier League basement boys West Ham United at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday and the Frenchman is delighted with the way his youthful squad are going about their business.
Arsenal sit five points behind leaders Chelsea in the league table, but following their emphatic 4-0 Carling Cup success over Newcastle United at St James' Park in midweek, Wenger is ecstatic with their recent run of results.
A fine 5-1 Champions League triumph over Shakhtar Donetsk on October 19 before last Sunday's exceptional 3-0 thumping of Manchester City at Eastlands has raised morale tenfold and their shrewd coach is hopeful that their hunt for silverware will end sooner rather than later.
"There is a lot more to come out of this team," he said.
"I feel the ingredients of teams which I had before who were successful are in there. It is just how much we can get them out and of course we need to keep all of our players fit.
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"As long as the attitude is right and at the end of the season when you look back you think 'this team has given absolutely everything they could', you will be proud of them."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Arsenal and QPR are the latest teams to be linked with Alessandro Del Piero, according to Talksport.
The 2006 world cup winner is expected to leave Juventus after 19 years and has since been linked with a move to the Premier League.
The player’s brother and agent Stefano would prefer his brother to play abroad rather than stay in Italy and as a result, a number of Premier League clubs have been linked with the Italian international.
“There is no direct contact with any English clubs, but our position is to listen to anyone who might be interested in him and then decide what is best.
“I think it would be very difficult to see him playing in Italy and wearing a shirt other than that of Juventus.”
It has been said that Arsenal are interested in the Italian veteran and will look to gain his services next season, however, they will face tough competition form the likes of Paris Saint Germain.
Del Piero admits he’s in no rush to move but is eager to start a new challenge. His brother said “There are no restrictions from our part. It all depends on what type of project a club has and what is exactly behind the proposal and the kind of football which would attract Alex, but the main interest is the project.”
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Del Piero has scored 287 goals in 694 games for Juventus in his illustrious career.
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.
Scotland coach Craig Levein hailed the heroic team performance which almost resulted in a sensational European Championship qualifying victory over Spain.
The reigning world and European champions won 3-2 at Hampden Park on Tuesday evening but were given an almighty scare when the home side fought back from two goals down to level the match.
Steven Naismith's first international goal and Gerard Pique's own goal had given Scotland hope of a major scalp until substitute Fernando Llorente netted a 79th minute winner.
"It's very frustrating," said Levein."I was immensely proud of the players tonight.
"They were heroes every one of them – from the first minute to the last.
"I didn't think it was over and the reason I say that is I believe I've got a group of players that will work, work and work till they drop.
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"I believe I've got players that have got good quality on the ball and have good team spirit and belief in themselves.
"To get one back, then I realised we had an opportunity to keep pressing forward, and I'm just sick that we didn't manage to take anything from the game."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Stephane Sessegnon scored Sunderland’s extra-time winner to secure a memorable FA Cup with Budweiser triumph in this Tees-Wear Fourth Round derby clash. Sunderland will now host Arsenal in a Fifth Round tie.
Championship side Middlesbrough gave as good as they got against the Premier League’s form team and pushed Martin O’Neill’s men all the way after coming back from a goal down.
Overall, Sunderland were probably good value for their win, however, and seemed set for victory after Jack Colback gave them the lead shortly before half-time with a great striker from the edge of the penalty area in the 42nd minute.
Middlesbrough bounced back, though, and equalised in impressive fashion in the 57th minute through Lukas Jutkiewicz. Curtis Main got the assist with a superb header to Jutkiewicz, who found the space to finish strongly past Mignolet with a headed effort of his own.
O’Neill said:
“Middlesbrough did very well, but I felt we were better and I am delighted we won the game.
It was a fantastic effort and how many times have I said that in the last two months or so? It was a fantastic Cup tie.”
O’Neill was right as the Riverside rocked to a cracking soundtrack of two sets of passionate fans as the match went into extra-time.
But it was as good as over once Sessegnon struck in the 113th minute. The Benin international drove strongly into the area and was fortunate when the ball came back to him, allowing him to finish with a first time low right foot shot.
Substitutes not used Westwood, Ji, Elmohamady, Lynch, Reed
Referee Anthony Taylor
Attendance 26,707
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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
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A familiar face from Arsenal’s past can currently be seen at the club’s London Colney training ground, and his name is Robert Pires. The French winger is a free agent after being released by Spanish outfit Villarreal in the summer, and Pires has been training at the club in order to keep up his fitness. It is a remarkably similar situation to one that occurred last season, when Sol Campbell trained with the club and was then given a contract by Arsene Wenger after he impressed the Arsenal boss. So will the same thing happen with Pires? And would it be a good move for the Gunners?
Many fans would be delighted to see a firm favourite in the form of Pires return to the club and pull on the red shirt of Arsenal once more. In a six year career in North London Pires delighted the Gunners faithful with some sensational performances on the wing, he had trickery, technique, was strong on the ball and also scored a good number of goals. During his time at Arsenal Pires won two Premier League titles, three FA Cups and won the FWA’s Footballer of the Year award in the 2001-02 season, and in 2008 he was voted as the club’s sixth greatest player of all time in an online poll on the official Arsenal website. Safe to say then that Robert Pires is something of an Arsenal legend.
Many fans believed that Pires was let go by Arsene Wenger too early in his career, he was 32 when he left England for Spain and joined Villarreal. Pires had a good spell at Villarreal as the club confirmed themselves as one of the best teams in La Liga. Pires provided great experience and was a mainstay before being released by the club this summer, and Wenger was more than happy to allow him to train at Arsenal to keep his fitness up.
So is a move back to the playing ranks of Arsenal likely? Going on Wenger’s words you couldn’t really say. The Gunners boss stated in French newspaper Le Parisien
“He is sparkling. He’s happy on the ball and physically he is fine. He can be of service in Ligue 1.”
Wenger obviously believes that Pires has still got it then, but whilst he believes Pires can still do it in the French Ligue One, he doesn’t actually state that he could definitely still perform in the Premiership, which as we know is a much more competitive league. But Wenger did not exactly rule it out, and he was speaking to a French audience when he made his statement. It could be imagined then, that there is an outside chance of Wenger signing up Pires on a short term contract.
One thing Robert Pires would certainly add in abundance is experience, and this could be very useful for a squad that is still young. I obviously haven’t seen Pires in action in London Colney, but you imagine he could still do a job for Arsenal, and he would not be having to play week in week out which would be questionable. Pires best work might in fact come on the training field though, imagine what players like Samir Nasri, Jack Wilshere and a host of others could learn from him, it would only improve them as players.
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Arsene Wenger showed last season that he is not averse to signing up veterans who have played under him in the past, and Sol Campbell was on the whole a success. If Wenger sees enough in Pires I am sure he will have no hesitation in giving him another opportunity to play for Arsenal, and it would certainly be an exciting prospect to see him walk out of the tunnel as a Gunner once more.
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Marc Albrighton’s strike against Arsenal was the 20,000th goal in Premier League history. Since Sheffield United’s Brian Deane scored the first goal in the league’s history in 1992, we have been treated to every different type of goal, from tap-ins to long range rockets, back-heels, overhead kicks, free kicks and more.
Now this landmark has been reached, I have selected my top ten favourite goals. It’s a difficult task but there’s a bit of everything included and while we might disagree on what should be included, no one can say these aren’t worth watching.
10. Thierry Henry v Manchester United 2000-01
The living legend showing exactly why Arsenal fans love him. With a defender close behind him and his back to goal, it looks like an unmenacing situation and with most players it would be. But Henry flicks the ball up on the turn and unleashes a looping effort into the top corner, leaving Fabien Barthez stranded.
[youtube 7pXknz6XBjY]
9. Johan Elmander v Wolves 2010-11
Oh how Bolton wish they could have him back. When times were rosier last season, the big Swedish striker showed some great footwork in a tight space to wriggle through the Wolves defence and coolly slotted the ball past Marcus Hahnemann.
[youtube fYDImeM4M_8]
8. Dietmar Hamann v Portsmouth 2003-04
Not usually known for his golascoring prowess, their is no way of keeping this strike off the list. From the left wing, Michael Owen clips the ball towards the edge of the D and the German meets it with the perfect volley into the top corner. Credit to Sami Hyypia’s reactions to get out the way of this thunderbolt.
[youtube FJLFjVoYUuA]
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7. Paul Scholes v Bradford City 1999-2000
In one of the Premier League’s most memorable goals, David Beckham plays a corner to the edge of the area and Scholes meets it perfectly in his stride to direct an extraordinary swerving volley into the bottom corner. A training ground tactic finished to perfection by one of this country’s all-time greats.
[youtube 3gOnxDBX9u8]
6. David Beckham v Wimbledon 1996-97
Possibly the goal that turned him into an international superstar. On the opening day of the season, a Wimbledon attack breaks down and when the ball arrives at Beckham’s feet you can see there’s only one thing in his mind.
[youtube GKqqkW3ymxs]
5. Dennis Bergkamp v Newcastle United 2001-02
The Dutchman’s skills were a beauty to behold and this goal typifies it. From a swift Arsenal counter-attack, Pires playes the ball into Bergkamp on the edge of the area. He flicks the ball round Nike Dabizas to the right and runs to the left leaving the defender completely beaten and slides it calmly past Shay Given.
[youtube k3n4CTLDn_w]
4. Tony Yeboah v Liverpool 1995-96
During his time at Elland Road he scored some incredible goals but none are better than this. Nodded back to him about 25 yards out, Yeboah is running parallel to the goal but manages to adjust his body to hit a sweet volley into the net. The way the ball bounces off the under-side of the bar, into the ground and back into the net increases just how fantastic this goal is.
[youtube 44sO4PLCDRM&feature=related]
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3. Robin van Persie v Charlton Athletic 2006-07
It is said that the best players can create something out of nothing and this strike proves that. Emmanuel Eboue plays in a lazy, unimaginative cross and there are no Arsenal players in the penalty area. But 2011’s goalscoring sensation comes steaming in, leaping high in the air to unleash a ferocious left-foot volley into the top corner. The Dutch commentary on this clip makes it even better.
[youtube RzUQQQMIhUI]
2. Wayne Rooney v Manchester City 2010-11
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The most recent goal on the list and thoroughly deserving of its place. With time ticking on in the Manchester derby something superb was needed to seperate the sides and this goal is worthy of winning any match. Nani’s cross takes a little deflection but the athleticism of Rooney to set himself and perfectly execute the overhead kick, leaving Joe Hart with no chance.
[youtube 7_Sv9jKT6ek]
1. Paolo Di Canio v Wimbledon 1999-2000
Worthy of Andy Gray’s ‘Take a Bow’ and worthy of topping the list, a sublime piece of skill from one of the most charismatic players in Premier League history. Rightly labelled ‘sensational, even by his standards’ by Martin Tyler, Di Canio met Trevor Sinclair’s deep cross by unleashing a sumptuous scissor kick with the outside of his right-foot in mid-air that ended up flying into the far corner from an impossible angle. A moment of pure genius.
[youtube zsgLQe5ms0I&feature=related]
Follow me on Twitter @jrobbins1991 and let me know which goals you would include in your top ten.
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.”
Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson believes there is reason to for optimism after watching Fernando Torres put in an improved performance during the Merseysiders' 3-2 loss at rivals Manchester United on Sunday.
The Spain World Cup winner has struggled to regain form after a number of troublesome injuries, but the former Fulham boss is confident he is beginning to come good.
Liverpool were undone by Dimitar Berbatov's hat-trick, but the Reds showed resilience as they tied things up after falling 2-0 behind.
Steven Gerrard scored from the spot after Torres was chopped down by Jonny Evans and the England captain curled a free-kick through the wall to restore parity before Berbatov's late intervention.
Despite the setback, Hodgson was pleased with the second-half performance.
"It was a lot better, there's no doubt about that," he said.
"Fernando is still a player who needs more games and needs more time and more training. We will get a lot of tremendous use out of him over the course of the year.
"I think he was a lot better than the game against Birmingham, but I don't think he's firing on all cylinders.
"Having said that, we are playing against a very good team in Manchester United who don't surrender the ball to you that often.
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"I thought our second-half performance was good and I think we deserved to get back in the game.
"I thought we were a bit unlucky to go 2-0 down when we did and, of course, to concede late on is always tough.
"The three goals were from crosses – one a corner kick – and there is disappointment in that, but otherwise I thought we made a really good effort in the second half to bring us back in the game."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email