- Peter Crouch (Tottenham) to Stroke City for £10m
- Raul Meireles (Liverpool) to Chelsea for £15m
- Diego (Wolfburg) to Atl. Madrid on loan
- Mikel Arteta (Everton) to Arsenal for £10m
- Andre Santos (Fenerbahce) to Arsenal £6.2m
- Bendtner (Arsenal) to Sunderland on loan
- Yossi Benayoun (Chelsea) to Arsenal on loan
- Joe Cole (Liverpool) to Lille on Loan
- Owen Hargreaves (unattached) to Manchester City
- Per Mertesacker (Bremen) to Arsenal (Undisclosed)
- Craig Bellamy (Man City) to Liverpool (Undisclosed)
- Royston Drenthe (Real Madrid) to Everton on Loan
- David Ngog (Liverpool) to Bolton (Undisclosed)
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
EPL Transfer Summary After window closed
The transfer market was shut and before the deadline. Some famous players and Big clubs signed the deal. Let's see who's in and out. Here is the summary:
Friday, August 26, 2011
Arsenal’s tough week to end in the eye of a Red Devil storm
After one of the most trying weeks in the club’s recent history, one that saw an ugly home defeat to Liverpool, the departure of the second of its two best players and a gutsy performance in Italy against Udinese, the Gunners now have to hop on the team coach and head to Manchester.
With Arsene Wenger gaining a new wrinkle in his brow by the day, the last thing he needed was a trip to Old Trafford to take on the white hot Red Devils. That is the way of the world though and unless Irene decides to take a sharp right across the Atlantic, the match will be played and Wenger’s men will no choice but to step up.
The test this weekend is something different altogether and Wenger knows this all too well. This match would be a daunting one if his team had started the domestic campaign in good nick. It hasn’t. It would be daunting if it had all its best players available and not transferred away from the club. It doesn’t.
With a winless start to the year already two matches deep, and the Fabregas/Nasri sagas out the door, Arsenal’s season technically starts now.
For the Champion League, Arsenal joined the tough group with Marseille, Olympiakos and Borussia Dortmund. You can see the difficult UEFA games that Arsenal has to get through.
source: Goal.com
 |
| Add caption |
The test this weekend is something different altogether and Wenger knows this all too well. This match would be a daunting one if his team had started the domestic campaign in good nick. It hasn’t. It would be daunting if it had all its best players available and not transferred away from the club. It doesn’t.
With a winless start to the year already two matches deep, and the Fabregas/Nasri sagas out the door, Arsenal’s season technically starts now.
For the Champion League, Arsenal joined the tough group with Marseille, Olympiakos and Borussia Dortmund. You can see the difficult UEFA games that Arsenal has to get through.
source: Goal.com
Sunday, August 21, 2011
David De Gea's troubled beginnings
Edwin van der Sar couldn't believe what he was seeing. This was new and it was not necessarily better.
Rather, it was the 18-yard box on his very first game for Juventus in 1999. In good faith, Van der Sar attempted one of his routine Ajax passes to the centre-half. He had, after all, been told in negotiations that Juventus would adapt the Dutch style in order to integrate their new goalkeeper.
However, on receiving the ball, defender Paolo Montero panicked, pummelled it away and then proceeded to berate Van der Sar. On the line, manager Carlo Ancelotti was doing the same.
De Gea, of course, is only 20. At Juventus in the summer of 1999, Van der Sar was 28. But the Dutchman still had to go to the less demanding surrounds of Fulham to effectively remember how to be a goalkeeper and rebuild his confidence.
The issue raises a wider point about young goalkeepers and world-class level - either in terms of club or quality goalkeepers. Unlike in almost every other position, the two don't come together that often.
With foreign goalkeepers such as De Gea, there are a number of external factors like the language barrier and basic acclimatisation. But, essentially, the problem is experience. At a big club where every error is exaggerated because of the importance of each result and isolation of the position, goalkeepers need an awful lot of experience to complement their existing talent.
Even then, though, both Casillas and Van der Sar were already at big clubs who had invested a lot of time in nurturing them. And Casillas was also at Real Madrid at a unique time in their history.
With the Galactico project gradually leaving the first XI increasingly unbalanced, Casillas was often "overexposed and under-protected". Many goalkeeping coaches argue, however, that this is better for a young goalkeeper as it keeps them busy without thinking while simultaneously building their confidence. Buffon certainly reckons so. He claims picking Parma first was the most important decision of his career.
But the deeper question in all of this, then, is why Sir Alex Ferguson opted for promise instead of proven experience? Might it yet be an unnecessary risk to United's season? While any further De Gea errors are clearly forgivable in that context, Ferguson's in actually buying him wouldn't quite be the same.
But the reason he has is because all at Old Trafford are convinced that the recent slips have been no more than aberrations. De Gea is considered to be another Casillas, to have both the talent and mentality to overcome any shortfall in experience. And many of the most learned voices in Spain echo this.
There was one caveat though: "If nothing odd happens, he will succeed. He is only 20; he will reach his peak at 30. There is loads of time."
Except when it comes to the exaggerated expectations of a very top club, time is rarely afforded.
source: www.soccernet.com
However, on receiving the ball, defender Paolo Montero panicked, pummelled it away and then proceeded to berate Van der Sar. On the line, manager Carlo Ancelotti was doing the same.
The Dutchman was soon nicknamed 'Van der Gol' and routinely mocked by Italian media. As David Winner tells the story, "within a year he was consulting a therapist and telling his agent he no longer trusted himself even to catch a ball."
Given Van der Sar's unflappable image at Manchester United, the anecdote should put a different perspective on David De Gea's anxious first two games for the club. The Spaniard has, admittedly, made at least two awful errors. But, like Van der Sar back then, he's also had to get used to a new country and a new culture.De Gea, of course, is only 20. At Juventus in the summer of 1999, Van der Sar was 28. But the Dutchman still had to go to the less demanding surrounds of Fulham to effectively remember how to be a goalkeeper and rebuild his confidence.
With foreign goalkeepers such as De Gea, there are a number of external factors like the language barrier and basic acclimatisation. But, essentially, the problem is experience. At a big club where every error is exaggerated because of the importance of each result and isolation of the position, goalkeepers need an awful lot of experience to complement their existing talent.
Even then, though, both Casillas and Van der Sar were already at big clubs who had invested a lot of time in nurturing them. And Casillas was also at Real Madrid at a unique time in their history.
With the Galactico project gradually leaving the first XI increasingly unbalanced, Casillas was often "overexposed and under-protected". Many goalkeeping coaches argue, however, that this is better for a young goalkeeper as it keeps them busy without thinking while simultaneously building their confidence. Buffon certainly reckons so. He claims picking Parma first was the most important decision of his career.
But the reason he has is because all at Old Trafford are convinced that the recent slips have been no more than aberrations. De Gea is considered to be another Casillas, to have both the talent and mentality to overcome any shortfall in experience. And many of the most learned voices in Spain echo this.
There was one caveat though: "If nothing odd happens, he will succeed. He is only 20; he will reach his peak at 30. There is loads of time."
Except when it comes to the exaggerated expectations of a very top club, time is rarely afforded.
source: www.soccernet.com
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Puyol and Pique welcome Fabregas to Barcelona
Pique had earlier claimed on Twitter that "today will be a great day" and those sentiments were echoed by goalkeeper Victor Valdes, who announced the deal could be done "in a matter of hours".
Club captain Puyol also expressed his optimism on the social networking site, before Pique all but confirmed the deal as he tweeted, "We now have him here".
Puyol then showed his delight at the prospective move as he wrote: "Welcome home!!! Happy to have you here @cesc4official"
source: goal.com
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Cristiano Ronaldo is put to the test
CRISTIANO Ronaldo is to undergo scientific tests in a TV documentary - to discover what makes him a top footballer.
The Real Madrid star, 26, will be monitored in a high-performance lab for Ronaldo: Tested To The Limit on Sky Sports next month.
Meanwhile, it was sensationally claimed last night that Ronaldo copied Michael Jackson and hired a mystery Mexican to be the surrogate mum of his son Cristiano Jr last year.
The lad's ex-nanny alleged he paid one woman for her eggs and another to "incubate" the child. Both were Mexican, just like the egg donor and surrogate mum said to be picked for Jacko's child Blanket.
source: Thesun.co.uk
Friday, August 5, 2011
Dalglish yet to decide on Suarez
Widespread reports are claiming Suarez will miss the Reds' curtain-raiser against Sunderland at Anfield following a long Copa America campaign that saw the Uruguayan score in the final and pick up the Player of the Tournament award.
Liverpool would be keen to have Suarez available against Sunderland after his impressive showing at the Stadium of Light last season, and Dalglish, contrary to reports, appears willing to give his prized asset as much time as possible to prove his sharpness before the season kicks off.
"Luis will be back next week and we will start thinking about him then," Dalglish said. "He's had a fantastic summer as an individual and as a team player.
"We'll see how he is when he comes in. We can't predict how he is going to be like, but he should be pretty happy with himself and pretty confident looking forward to the start of the season."
Suarez will return to training on Monday before being assessed by both the Liverpool manager and the club's medical staff.
source: ESPN (soccernet.com)
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Is Jurgen Klinsmann the best man for the USA national team job?
Former-Germany manager and player Jurgen Klinsmann has been announced as the new head coach of the USA national side.
The German will replace Bob Bradley, who was fired earlier this week. Details of his contract have yet to be revealed but he will be unveiled as USA boss at a press conference on Monday.
Love
Nobody can deny that Klinsmann loves the United States. The former-Bayern boss loved the USA that much that shortly after his retirement from playing he moved to the States. He even got in trouble with his home nation when he refused to relocate full-time to manage the national team.
He commuted from America to Germany and split his time between the two countries. There is no doubt that Klinsmann considers the USA his second home and this job could be ideal for everybody.
Legend
Klinsmann is a true living legend. He helped Germany win the World Cup in 1990 as a player and also the 1996 European Championship in England. In club football he also won numerous trophies with Bayern Munich, Inter, Stuttgart and Monaco.
Boss
However his managerial experience is very limited. Klinsmann enjoyed a two year spell in charge of national side, in which he lead his country to third place in 2006 World Cup. The 46 year-old then took charge of Bavarian giants Bayern Munich.
He was replaced after less than a year after encountering problems with the Bayern hierarchy, despite being just three points behind Bundesliga leaders Wolfsburg.
Development
Although he hasn’t had a great deal of success as a boss he has so much knowledge of the game to pass on. He could be just the man to take football to the next level in the United States. The national side have enjoyed a creditable rise up the football rankings in recent years and will be hoping to even further under the German.
MLS
The key to the national side has to be the success of the MLS. The league has shown a steady growth in popularity in the last five years and the construction of purpose build ‘Soccer’ stadiums is only good for the development of the game in America.
Attendances at MLS games are also growing and it seems that the beautiful game is finally starting to hold its own against the nations other national sports.
Inspiration
The key ingredient to Klinsmann being the boss of the USA national side is that he will inspire his players to better themselves and hopefully that will lead to the sport kicking up a notch in the USA.
source: www.soccernews.com
Love
Nobody can deny that Klinsmann loves the United States. The former-Bayern boss loved the USA that much that shortly after his retirement from playing he moved to the States. He even got in trouble with his home nation when he refused to relocate full-time to manage the national team.
He commuted from America to Germany and split his time between the two countries. There is no doubt that Klinsmann considers the USA his second home and this job could be ideal for everybody.
Legend
Klinsmann is a true living legend. He helped Germany win the World Cup in 1990 as a player and also the 1996 European Championship in England. In club football he also won numerous trophies with Bayern Munich, Inter, Stuttgart and Monaco.
Boss
However his managerial experience is very limited. Klinsmann enjoyed a two year spell in charge of national side, in which he lead his country to third place in 2006 World Cup. The 46 year-old then took charge of Bavarian giants Bayern Munich.
He was replaced after less than a year after encountering problems with the Bayern hierarchy, despite being just three points behind Bundesliga leaders Wolfsburg.
Development
Although he hasn’t had a great deal of success as a boss he has so much knowledge of the game to pass on. He could be just the man to take football to the next level in the United States. The national side have enjoyed a creditable rise up the football rankings in recent years and will be hoping to even further under the German.
MLS
The key to the national side has to be the success of the MLS. The league has shown a steady growth in popularity in the last five years and the construction of purpose build ‘Soccer’ stadiums is only good for the development of the game in America.
Attendances at MLS games are also growing and it seems that the beautiful game is finally starting to hold its own against the nations other national sports.
Inspiration
The key ingredient to Klinsmann being the boss of the USA national side is that he will inspire his players to better themselves and hopefully that will lead to the sport kicking up a notch in the USA.
source: www.soccernews.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)