Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez has no desire to hold contract talks with the club until after the January transfer window, according to The Telegraph.
What’s the word?
There is a sense of deja vu at St James’ Park as once again, questions have been raised over Benitez’s future due to a lack of transfer activity.
In the summer there were rumblings that the Spaniard was unhappy with the minimal spending on new players.
With the club now officially up for sale, there is confusion over how much money current owner Mike Ashley will provide for Benitez’s transfer kitty.
Only nine days remain before the window slams shut, which means that the time is ticking for Newcastle to strengthen their side in the hope of avoiding relegation from the Premier League.
According to The Telegraph, the North-East outfit are keen to extend Benitez’s contract, but the manager has decided not to discuss this matter with the club until the transfer window is over.
Should Newcastle be concerned?
At this moment, it makes perfect sense for the ex-Liverpool coach to prioritise getting new players over the line rather than his own future.
However, it needs to be said that the Spaniard’s future could be up in the air depending on how the season pans out.
Benitez still has 18 months left on his reported £6m-a-year deal, but if the Magpies suffer relegation, it would not be a huge surprise if he decided to walk.
There has always been a sense that Newcastle were incredibly lucky to land the manager in the first place.
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The 57-year-old has coached the likes of Liverpool, Inter Milan, Chelsea and Real Madrid, and you feel that they would be no shortage of offers elsewhere if he decided to leave Newcastle.
The next couple of weeks could play a huge role in Benitez’s future at the club.
Alan Pardew has reignited his interest in Borussia Monchengladbach striker Luuk de Jong, according to the Metro.
The Magpies have been heavily linked with Dutch striker on several occasions in the past, with Pardew attempting to lure the 23-year-old from FC Twente, before he opted for a £12.6million switch to the Bundesliga.
However De Jong has failed to recapture the form in Germany that saw him labeled one of the most promising young forward’s in Europe, managing just six league goals in 23 appearances since his move in the summer of 2012.
Pardew is keen to add more firepower to his frontline this month, with Loic Remy only on loan until the end of the season, and Shola Ameobi entering the final six months of his contract.
The Magpies have also been linked with the loan signing of former striker Demba Ba from Chelsea, although the strikers wages could prove a stumbling block.
Pardew is also desperate to hang on to the stars he already has at his disposal, and is bracing himself for offers from France for midfielder Yohan Cabaye, who has been linked with a move to Paris St Germain.
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Premier League rivals Arsenal and Liverpool have also been linked with a move for the French midfielder.
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has shown a certain degree of fondness for the press in recent times and they in turn appear to be indulging his somewhat pretentious rants about his footballing ‘philosophy’, but rather than spend press conference after press conference talking about himself, it would be better if he focused more on helping the team higher up the table.
Saturday’s win over Norwich was certainly a step in the right direction, during which Liverpool cruised to a 5-2 victory over Chris Hughton’s side and it could have been a lot more ugly than that scoreline suggests such was their dominance both on and off the ball, even if they did concede two more sloppy goals borne out of slack individual errors.
The main talking point about Liverpool this season under Rodgers has been how the manager would take to stepping up a level and how the players would take to his new footballing methods. The accepted truth has been that results haven’t quite matched performances and they certainly out-played both Manchester clubs at Anfield despite only taking one point away for their troubles.
In that respect at least, it appears to be going along a very similar path to that of Kenny Dalglish’s second spell in charge of the club, during which a mixture of goalkeeping heroics, poor finishing and a penchant for hitting the woodwork ultimately cost them the points that their displays merited culminating in a deeply disappointing eight-placed league finish last season, leading to Rodgers taking charge.
That is where the similarities end with Dalglish, though and in terms of how they handle the media, they couldn’t be more different. The media always like a rent-a-quote manager, that’s why they’ve always championed Harry Redknapp’s cause to a cult-like extent while bashing his infinitely better successor Andre Villas-Boas simply because he doesn’t like talking to them all that much (by the way, if you haven’t seen him putting down The Sun’s Paul Jiggins in his press conference over Hugo Lloris and the subsequent ‘Spurs in turmoil’ article from the bitter and embarrassed journalist, you should check out both as soon as you can).
Brendan Rodgers clearly has something going for him; he’s been praised by both Jose Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson in the past, and he did a marvellous job at Swansea, first getting them to the top flight and then keeping them there. However, I’m not the first, nor will I be the last to have been put off by his needless managerial jargon. During pre-season, he seemingly created news where none existed just because he loved talking about himself and his methods so much.
There is a certain David Brent streak which runs through Rodgers, which is fine in itself, but it’s when this pretentious nature bleeds into other areas and we have to listen to it over and over again that it begins to grate. He talks at length about his ‘philosophies’ like he has just more than one and uses the phrase ‘going forward’ all of the time, which as we all know, is usually the reserve for suits in soulless jobs in middle-management.
Real people don’t actually talk like this, so lord only knows where he’s picked it up from; it’s all geared to make him sound more intelligent than he really is, but in the end all he sounds like is a thick pseud. Whether its insecurity that sees him ramble on for hours at the simplest of questions or that he simply likes the sound of his own voice remains to be seen, but he seems to be the perfect fit for the club at the moment on the pitch, it’s just the frequency which he likes to open his mouth that’s the problem.
On the pitch, though, this Liverpool side really look like they’re starting to take to his methods and Joe Allen has proven an inspired signing in the middle of the park. His willingness to grant first-team opportunities to a swathe of the club’s exciting young crop of talent has also been welcome and while the situation may have been foisted upon him to an extent by the tightening of the purse strings, he seems to genuinely care what happens to these players and how they develop, even if on Being Liverpool he did state “I see every player as like a son”. Cringe.
It’s this managerial speak, of which Villas-Boas himself is also somewhat prone to, that is most irritating. They’ll throw words like ‘connectivity’ and ‘transitionality’ at you but none of it rarely actually means anything, it’s just talking for the sake of it and it lacks both substance and a point. The media are lapping Rodgers up at the moment because he’s filled that Harry Redknapp-shaped hole in their column inches, while the supporters like that he’s already played up to his audience by calling them ‘intelligent’.
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Despite all of this, there is very much a decent manager in there somewhere and he’s starting to have more of an affect on the side and their style of play. I’m always suspicious of football managers when they lean too heavily on the word ‘philosophy’, because after all, it’s only a game with a ball at the end of the day, there’s no need to hype it up and make it sound more complicated than it actually is, but there’s no denying that he is as much a coach as he is a manager and this hands-on approach should reap dividends.
What Rodgers does have going for him is that he’s clear in his methods and where he wants to go, and with the pay-off finally coming in the shape of his first league win at Carrow Road, he needs to continue this upward curve rather than continuing to talk about himself every chance he gets; at least he’s not referring to himself in the third person yet. The idea of Rodgers is sound, the practice so far has been pleasing, but I just wish we didn’t have to listen to him too.
Liverpool have made their a £52.5m (60m euros) bid for Lyon playmaker Nabil Fekir, 24, according to French outlet Le Parisien.
What’s the story, then?
Links between Fekir and Liverpool have been swirling for weeks now but Le Parisien report that the Reds have only just made their first concrete bid for the French international.
The report also claims that Fekir wants to have his future resolved by the time the World Cup starts but that the bid still doesn’t fully match Lyon’s valuation of the playmaker.
It also goes on to say that the ‘deadline’ of June 16, when France play their first match of the tournament against Australia may well not be met due to complications to be ironed out with the deal.
Liverpool must act fast again
The capture of Monaco man Fabinho was as impressive as it was sudden. Liverpool’s interest in Fekir has rumbled on for a while already and it would be in everybody’s interests for a deal to be concluded snappily once more.
Transfer sagas that run into World Cups are not a great idea for anyone; the club cannot adequately plan for next season, and the player is distracted through what should be a hugely enjoyable experience.
If Liverpool could snare another of Ligue 1’s top talents before the Russian showpiece begins, it would also lay down a major marker that they mean business next season.
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Reported Totteham Hotspur target James Maddison played for Norwich City in their FA Cup third round replay tie against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night, and Spurs fans have given the club the green light to sign the attacking midfielder.
The Evening Standard reported earlier this week that Spurs are considering a move to bring the highly-rated 21-year-old to Wembley before the transfer window slams shut, although they face competition from Liverpool and Manchester City and will have to pay £20m to do so with the Canaries already selling Alex Pritchard to Huddersfield Town for £11m this month.
The No 10 took his fine form this season – he has scored eight goals and provided a further eight assists in 30 appearances this term – into the clash against the Premier League holders, impressing before he scored his penalty in the shoot-out as the Championship club were beaten on spot-kicks.
Tottenham supporters were quick to have their say on his display via social media, and while one said the north London outfit “should definitely sign him”, another said he is “100% perfect for Spurs”.
Can you remember the Norwegian invasion on English football in the 90’s? Back in the days when premiership footballers had fathomable salaries and 40-yard back track followed by a studded tackle to the knee-region was applauded as much as a cup winning 30-yard strike in injury time? Norwegians left their mark on the premiership back then, playing important roles for the biggest club’s in the country. In the early days of the Premier League, Norwegian footballers were held in high stature. Their Norse bravery and fierce professionalism prompted an army – perhaps not as brutal as the Viking invasion in the 10th century, but equally purposeful – of Norwegians to cross the pond to fulfil their dream in the spiritual home of football. Now, there are two Vikings – Fulham’s Brede Hangeland and John Arne Riise – left with realistic starting credentials in the Premier League.
What happened? How come one of England’s prime markets for foreign talent has so completely seized to be exploited?
As a Norwegian myself, I know how prestigious the English Premier League is for young footballers and aspiring talents in our country. It is only one- and a half hours flight away, and it is by our estimates the strongest, biggest and most spectacular league in the world. Most Norwegian kids who play football will grow up supporting an English team above any Norwegian side. Either it be Arsenal, Liverpool or Manchester United (or the poor sod whose dad forced him to wear Leeds kit), Premier League teams are the biggest influence on Norwegian footballers. We are Anglophile, and in football terms there is nothing better than the magnificent grandness of the English Premier League. Our Promised Land.
This became self-enforcing in the 90’s. When our best footballers started succeeding here, there was suddenly an inclining to support a team from Merseyside rather than the unglamorous local club, however sharp their performance in Tippeligaen – the Norwegian top tier – might be. I can remember myself having kick-abouts wearing a tiny replica of the Man United kit with ‘SOLSKJAER 20’ written across the back. I think the shirt was too small for any print, but a nice man in the local supporter shop sorted it out. The back looked crammed, but I had the name of my idol written on the back of the kit of my favourite team.
And players like Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Henning Berg and Tore Andre Flo made dominating figures in the premiership. They rarely made a fuzz off the pitch, won titles, and – most importantly – became crowd icons. At Old Trafford’s Stretford End you can still find the ‘2OLEgend’ banner, as a tribute to the man who won the 1999 Champions League final. There was never any awkward questions asked with Norwegian players. I believe this is one of the few factors that made them so appealing. In terms of professionalism, Norway was actually ahead of England. A Norwegian player would gladly sit on the bench, work his socks off for 45 minutes in whatever position necessary, and go home to get in bed at an appropriate time. This is all part of the professional attitude expected from the modern footballer, but the reality in England in the two decades ago involved a tad more beer, and possibly showing up for training with a hangover.
However, the biggest reason for the decline of Norwegians in the Premier League is directly connected with the decline of Norwegian football. It’s simply not on the level it used to be. When the internationals made it to our two only World Cups ever in 94 and 98, with coach Egil ‘Drillo’ Olsen at the helm, Norway was a considerable force internationally. With a rigid defensive style, and a rapid counter attack, Norway created history, most memorably when they beat Brazil 2-1 in Marseille in the final group game in 98. This is still one of Norway’s greatest sports moments of all time. It took us to a sensational (and questionable) second place on the newly initiated FIFA-ranking. We played a type of football that stifled even the toughest opponents on the planet. But since then, Norway only made an abysmal appearance in the Euro 2000’s – the last championship we have played in to date.
Part of the problem with our football is that we are struggling to find an identity. Other teams found us out eventually, and the long ball towards a big target man with a runner rushing onto the through pass is too predictable for the modern game, and most countries are more than capable of securing themselves from getting caught on the brake. Likewise, we have failed to create players that are technically adept to play modern football. The standard of the national team has been in steady decline, and never really made a transition to an adamant way of playing football. Drillo made a comeback as national coach in 2009, but failed to make it through the World Cup qualifiers in a group containing Switzerland, Island, Cyprus, Albania and Slovenia. His pragmatic approach never agreed with the young players’ desire to move the ball along the floor. There was no plan-B, and Norway missed a phenomenal chance to play in Brazil.
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So the golden generation of Solskjaer, Flo, Berg and Ronny Johnsen has passed, and no one has really managed to form an effective side since. However, better times could be approaching for Norwegian football. Some of you might remember this summer’s Under-21 European Championship where Norway hammered an English side that fielded players like Wilfred Zaha and Thomas Ince 3-1. There is an interesting new generation coming through in Norway. Former Manchester United academy player of the year, and current Molde midfielder Mads Daehlie, has been described by coach Solskjaer as a Scholes-esque player maker, and Juventus are expressing major hopes for their 17-year old prospect Vajebah Sakor.
In a few years, with a little push in the right direction, the Norwegian might launch yet another crusade to the British isles.
Having tattoos is a fashion that many football players have adopted, with likes of Tim Cahill and Lukas Podolski having a teams crest tattooed.
But with news that Podolski is planning to get an Arsenal tattoo done on his left arm, to go with his Cologne tattoo on his right, lets look back at some of the terrible tattoos in football.
10 – Torsten Frings
At number 10 is Toronto FC’s Torsten Frings, formerly of Bayern Munich. Frings sports not so fashionable tribal tattoos on both arms, reminiscent of the days when tattoos were an uncommon in society.
9 – Wayne Rooney
Man Uniteds Rooney somehow thought it was a good idea to get a tattoo of skin ripping away, revealing words from his favourite band Stereophonics, lyrics that remind Rooney how he left education without any GCSE’s.
8 – Clint Dempsey
Having recently signed for Spurs, Tottenham fans can look forward to seeing Dempsey’s tattoo of a Roman, Jesus, Angel person on his left shoulder. A tattoo which also has someone lying on floor. I wonder what the meaning is?
7 – Christian Vieri
Vieri had no idea what the Chinese symbols he now has tattooed on his right arm meant. Luckily enough they mean strength, thunder and intelligence, a quality I think Vieri was lacking when also decided to have a quite unmissable arrow tattooed above.
6 – Djibril Cisse
Cisse is a man with many tattoos and a player you seems to love using his body as a canvas, a canvas which has leopard prints on it. Not just a few though, alot, apparently a new spot every time he scores, considering he has scored over 200 goals in his career.
5 – Marco Materazzi
Materazzi is another player with numerous tattoos, some good and bad. Most notably the diamonds tattooed on his left arm, diamonds that you could relate to a computer game.
4 – Fernando Torres
Chelsea’s star man clearly has a thing for Lord of the Rings as he decided to have his first name inked on his left forearm in Elvish. The language of the elves. As in hobbits and trolls, as in fictional characters. I am not sure what the translation for ridiculous in Elvish is, but I hope some one will tell Torres.
3 – Zlatan Ibrahimovic
To the top 3, and we start off with Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Yet another man with numerous tattoos, again some good and some bad. But the one that stands out are the out of place playing cards on his side. Supposedly for luck, I’ll let you decide whether it has worked or not.
2 – Stephen Ireland
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The Villa midfielder has one major tattoo, on his back. Now, it is not the most conventional tattoo and all that needs to be said about it is that, well… Stephen Ireland has a pair of angel wings tattooed on his whole back.
1 – Artur Boruc
In first place is former Celtic shot stopper Artur Boruc. Boruc has a monkey tattooed on his belly, the monkey being upside down by the looks of it. To myself, one of the most ridiculous tattoos I have seen and one that makes me laugh at Boruc and his monkey.
Wojciech Szczesny became surplus to requirements at Arsenal before he permanently left the club in 2017.
Petr Cech and David Ospina were first and second choice respectively under manger Arsene Wenger, who ended his 22-year spell in charge of the Gunners last week.
Szczesny began dropping out of the team in 2015 when he was sent on loan to Roma, where he spent two years before sealing a permanent switch away from Arsenal.
The 28-year-old moved from Rome to Turin in a transfer to Juventus, but he had to settle for a drop in the pecking order due to Gianluigi Buffon standing in his way.
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Szczesny would have known that he had little chance of breaking through due to the legendary status of his teammate.
However, this week it was announced that Buffon will leave Juve following a 17-year stint with the Italian giants.
The nine-time title winner’s departure frees up the number one spot, and club chairman Andrea Agnelli has confirmed that Szczesny will be promoted to the top spot.
Arsenal fans reacted to the news on Reddit.
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Chelsea are reportedly keen to sign West Ham United striker and former Liverpool flop Andy Carroll during the January transfer window, and Reds fans have been quick to have their say on the rumour.
According to reports in the Daily Mail, the Blues have made enquiries to bring the 28-year-old to Stamford Bridge on loan this month to provide cover and competition for Alvaro Morata over the course of the rest of the season, with Michy Batshuayi failing to impress Antonio Conte.
The centre-forward’s time with the Irons has been plagued by injury, and Liverpool certainly don’t have too many fond memories of the player they bought for £35m in 2011 either, as he went on to score just 11 goals in 58 appearances in all competitions across one-and-a-half seasons before joining the east London outfit.
Liverpool supporters took to social media to give their thoughts on the latest story, and while one said “please let this happen”, another said it was “surely some twisted joke”.
Arsene Wenger has said the Premier League is a marathon not a sprint, ahead of the crucial Champions League tie away to Napoli. Despite approaching fixtures against Manchester City and Chelsea in the league, Wenger is placing far more importance in the Champions League, where Arsenal can qualify first from their group with a draw in Naples.
There is far too much importance placed in the points gained from the big league matches, especially this season. But such has been the inconsistency of those who are considered title challengers – Chelsea conceding three in back-to-back games against Sunderland and Stoke; Manchester City still shaky away from home; and Manchester United fighting for a top four place as of now – that it is simply doesn’t matter how the title winner finishes first.
Arsenal have been criticised in the past for their inability to get maximum points from the “lesser” teams in the league, often failing to turn up mentally and with the idea that a win was already in the bag. But this season, Wenger has added urgency to his team. They’re no longer careless in their approach, for the most part going for the win from the off.
It’s the kind of results that do separate title winners from the chasing pack. Arsenal have taken points and even won at grounds where others have failed, and notably those with greater resources. If Arsenal fail to pick up maximum points against Manchester City and Chelsea over the next two games, it shouldn’t matter too much. Neither side is void of problems, while Arsenal have a cushion of five points on second and third placed Liverpool and Chelsea.
But does it really matter how the title is won? Is a champion any less a champion because they haven’t won all of the big games? Why should it matter as long as they do eventually finish higher than the rest due to a consistency that others failed to establish in low-key games?
Manchester United won the title in 2011 and yet lost away games against Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea, while also drawing away to both Spurs and Manchester City. United didn’t have to win the individual sprints; over the course of the marathon, they were better than everyone else.
On paper, Arsenal are better than the teams they have beaten in the league this season. It was important, though, to take points from that position of superiority, where in the past they likely would have conceded late or simply failed to get out of the starting gate.
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Arsenal don’t have to win each of the heavyweight match-ups this season. At the midway point of the season, Wenger’s side are showing a consistency that is lost on others.