All posts by h79snht.top

I think it’s fair to say there has been quite a lot of criticism of Arsenal in recent weeks. A Carling Cup final defeat to Birmingham, an exit from Europe at the hands of Barcelona and a loss to Manchester United saw them drop out of the FA Cup. All of this happened within a couple of weeks.

It got me thinking about the days when Arsenal were seen as unbeatable. Constant performances saw them go the whole of the 2003/04 Premier League season unbeaten, a feat which has only happened once before in history, when Preston managed it in in the 1888/89 season – although that was only over a course of 22 games.

It seems that Arsenal could really do with some of those invincibles to return to the club and perform the magic they did this season? Just one question, where are they all now? I’ve found the team that beat Leicester 2-1 on the last game of the season, and have done some digging to see where they have all ended up.

Jens Lehmann

Remained at the club until 2008, the German goalkeeper was always a colourful character. He left for Stuttgart in Germany, where he established himself as a first team regular. Recent reports have linked him with a move back to North London, after injuries to Lucas Fabianksi and Wojciech Szczesny, and a permanent deal might not be far away.

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Lauren

Remained at the club until 2007 before moving to Portsmouth. After failing to nail down a first-team spot, he left the country and moved to Cordoba in Spain – where he finished his career in 2010. He now lives in Seville, but has appeared as a guest on Revista de la Liga on Sky Sports.

Sol Campbell

Left the club on a free transfer in 2006 to join Portsmouth, where he won the FA Cup. After a move to Notts County in 2009 turned sour, he rejoined Arsenal for the remainder of the 2009/10 season before joining Newcastle on a free. Career has again stalled.

Kolo Toure

A major part of the Arsenal team in the season following the title win. A reported bust-up with William Gallas saw him hand in a transfer request at the start of 2009, but remained until the end of the season. Finally moved to Man City for £16 million, where he was a success, but is currently suspended after failing a drugs test.

Ashley Cole

Once a fan’s favourite, now the one the Arsenal (and most of the country) love to hate. Left for Chelsea in 2006 and has become a regular member of their side. Gone on to win the Premier League, three FA Cups and a League Cup.

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Robert Pires

A big part of the invincible side, Pires stayed at Arsenal until 2006. He also opted to move abroad and joined Villareal in Spain. A successful time saw him make over 100 appearances before leaving in the summer of 2010. After spending time training with the Gunners last summer, he joined Aston Villa.

Patrick Vieira

Vieira will go down as one of the best players in the history of the club. Left in 2005 for a big money move to Serie A side Juventus, before a move to fellow Italian side Inter Milan. After an initial good spell, he fell out of favour under Jose Mourinho. Joined up with former manager Roberto Mancini at Man City in January 2010. With the rumours of Fabregas leaving, I’m sure Arsenal fans would welcome him back.

Freddie Ljungberg

A series of injuries meant a lack of first team action, and Ljungberg joined West Ham in 2007. However, more injury problems restricted his time there and he left in 2008. After brief break from football, he moved to the MLS to play for Seattle Sounders, before another move to Chicago Fire. He moved to Celtic last December and has made a handful of appearances for the Scottish side.

Gilberto Silva

The unsung hero of the side, he remained in the Arsenal side in the following years. However, he eventually fell out of favour and left to join Greek side Panathinaikos in 2008. As well as helping them to the last 16 of the Champions League, he won the league and cup double last season.

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Dennis Bergkamp

A true legend of the club, ‘Iceman’ saw out his playing years under Arsene Wenger. After retirement in 2006, he returned to Holland to take a break from the game. Has recently moved into the coaching and is currently working at Ajax with a possible move into coaching in the future.

Thierry Henry

The real driving force behind the title win, Henry is one of (if not the best) strikers the country has ever seen. It was a shame his Arsenal career didn’t end on the highest of notes, as he was injured for a lot of the 2006/07 season. A surprise big money move to Barcelona in 2007 and he continued to shine. However, the power of the youth set-up at the club saw Henry’s action reduced – so he decided to move to MLS side New York Red Bulls. Recently returned to Arsenal to train with the side.

So there we have it, the last game of the Arsenal invincible season. It’s fair to say thing are not going as well this season, after the side fell out of three competitions in the space of just a few weeks. Still, Wenger believes his side can challenge for the title. After such an amazing career, who are we to argue?

However, I’m sure Wenger would kill for the likes of Henry, Pires and Vieira to return to the club and play the magnificent football they did back then. Will we ever see such a great record happen again?

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The board of directors of Eredivise club Ajax resigned on Wednesday following a row with club legend Johan Cruyff.Cruyff, who won multiple league and European titles with the club as a player in the 1960s and 70s, was invited to form a committee charged with providing advice on technical and financial issues.

The 63-year-old reportedly suggested wide-ranging changes, including the installation of former players Dennis Bergkamp and Wim Jonk as assistants to coach Frank de Boer, as well as recommending the dismissal of several long-term employees.

Chief Executive Rik van den Boog refused to implement all of the suggestions, but Chairman Uri Coronel did not feel the board was in a position to oppose Cruyff, who holds an extraordinary influence with supporters.

“The directors of Ajax find that the process, and particularly the resulting and ongoing turmoil surrounding the club, is extremely harmful to Ajax,” the directors said in a statement on the club’s website.

“I feel terrible,” Coronel said.

“Johan Cruyff’s not just anyone. He’s a demi god here or maybe a whole god. The only thing we got from him were dictates. Eight people were supposed to go. The management should decide about that.”

To avoid an impasse, Coronel and the entire supervisory board have resigned, including executive officers Cor van Eijden and Joop Krant.

Van den Boog is expected to continue until new management can be recruited and a new board elected by the Ajax members’ council.

The resignations are expected to result in Cruyff’s suggestions being implemented.

Ajax, who are third in the Eredivisie table, have not won the Eredivisie title since 2004.

J-League champions Nagoya Grampus were held to a 1-1 home draw by Seoul in the AFC Champions League on Wednesday.With the J-League season being postponed due to the earthquake that shook the country, Nagoya entered the match with the risk of being underdone and were facing a Seoul side who had won both of their Group F fixtures so far.

But a lack of football did not seem to affect Nagoya, at least not in the early stages, as Japanese international Kensuke Nagai found the back of the net after 13 minutes to give the hosts an early lead.

But the Japanese side failed to add to their advantage and were made to pay when Hyun-Tae Choi grabbed the equaliser for the Korean side just after the hour mark.

The result leaves Seoul on top of the group with seven points from three matches, while Nagoya are bottom of the group with just one point from two fixtures.

In the other Group F match, Al Ain of the United Arab Emirates claimed a point in a goalless draw with Hangzhou Lucheng in China.

In Group H, Sydney FC played out an entertaining 1-1 draw with Shanghai Shenhua at the Sydney Football Stadium.

The visitors took a sixth minute lead after Dubier Riascos found the back of the net via a deflection, but just seven minutes later Nick Carle cancelled out the opener with a tidy finish.

The other fixture in Group H also ended in a 1-1 draw, with Koji Nakata’s 71st minute strike for the Kashima Antlers cancelling out Ki-Hyun Yeom’s opener.

Zob Ahan of Iran claimed a 3-1 away win against Al Rayyan in Group D thanks to goals from Mohamad Khalatbari Limaki, Igor Castro and Ghasem Haddadifar, while a brace from Alhassane Keita kickstarted Al Shabab in their 4-0 win over Emirates.

In Group B, another Iranian side finished on the winners list, with Esteghlal defeating Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan 4-2.

Dusan Savic fired the Uzbekis in front after just four minutes but first-half strikes from Hawar Mulla Mohammed and Farhad Majidi gave Esteghal a 2-1 lead at half-time, before further goals from Mehdi Salehi and Arash Borhani sealed the result.

AC Milan boss Massimiliano Allegri wants his team to stay focused despite moving a step closer to the Serie A title with a win over Brescia.Although Inter Milan also won on Saturday, Napoli lost at Palermo making AC Milan’s 1-0 win all the more important.

Allegri’s team has an eight-point gap on Inter with four games remaining, but the boss wants his team to remain focused.

“Another four points would secure the Scudetto. Now, we have to focus on having a relaxing Easter break and from Wednesday we’ll start thinking about Bologna, another difficult game seeing as they’re getting sucked back into the relegation battle,” Allegri said.

“We’re not planning any title celebrations right now. We just need to relax over Easter.”

Milan’s superior head-to-head record over Inter and Napoli this season means even if they finish level on points, the title would be theirs.

They had to wait until the 82nd minute for Robinho to find the net at Brescia and Allegri said his team deserved to win.

“We had two or three risky situations with Brescia, as unfortunately we didn’t make our first-half domination count,” Allegri said.

“It’s only natural to have a little fatigue as we played in the Coppa Italia on Wednesday evening, but the lads held out well.”

“The team overall created plenty of scoring opportunities and deserved the victory.”

Midfielder Gennaro Gattuso was a late withdrawal after suffering a muscle injury in the warm-up.

Athletic Bilbao’s Iker Muniain has been likened to the Argentinean wizard Lionel Messi but is he actually as good as him? The 18 year old has been linked with Liverpool in recent days, so what do we know of him?

A product of Bilbao’s youth academy, the Basque became the team’s youngest ever player in July 2009 when he came on as a substitute against Switzerland’s BSC Young Boys in a Europa League qualifier, aged just 16 years, 7 months and 11 days. He then became the youngest player ever to score for the club when he scored in the return leg, helping Bilbao into the group stages.

In August 2009, Muniain made his league debut against Espanyol, and it wasn’t long before he broke another record, by scoring his first league goal against Real Valladolid in a 2-2 draw, making him the youngest player to ever score in La Liga, aged just 16 years and 289 days.

When he initially broke into the side, he played mostly as a support striker, but he prefers to play on the wings, and this campaign he has established himself as a left winger in Joaquin Caparros’s midfield. His style of play is rightly compared to Lionel Messi as at 5ft 6, he possesses great speed and agility on the ball with a similar low centre of gravity, and like the Argentine genius, he is also truly two footed, and possesses great technique and ball control.

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Playing in the top league at the tender age of 16, Muniain has shown a great deal of maturity beyond his years. He has great tactical awareness, and this was emphasised by his manager Caparros when after he provided two assists against Real Zaragoza last season, he said that Muniain possesses a “built-in GPS and eight gears.” Not only is he tactically astute in the offensive third though, he can also track back runners and has a never-say-die attitude which has led some in Spain to compare him favourably to Wayne Rooney.

He never shies away from physical encounters despite his diminutive stature and his hunger for the game is greatly admired. He loves to play the game at high tempo, and he has added goal scoring to his locker this season by scoring nine goals from his left wing position.

Still, there are areas that Muniain will need to improve upon. He is not physically strong, and can be pushed off the ball a little bit too easily. You can imagine that opposition defenders would make mince meat of the player in the Premier League, but with his ball control, speed and skill, he may just be too quick for many defenders, and you only have to look as far as Lionel Messi to know that size and strength isn’t everything in the modern game.

So, in conclusion, Muniain is certainly a promising player. Whether he would be interested in a move to Liverpool is up for debate, but he would certainly fit into the strategy of bringing in quality young players to Anfield.

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Read more of David’s articles at Live4Liverpool

Sunderland have decided to refuse an option to purchase on-loan midfielder Sulley Muntari, and have confirmed that the Ghana international will return to Inter immediately. The 26 year-old, who has also featured in the Premier League for Portsmouth, failed to impress Steve Bruce following his arrival in January, with the Black Cats’ boss politely acknowledging: “Sulley has been a great professional in his time here and naturally we’d like to thank him for his contribution to our season and wish him all the best for the future.”

Although Muntari didn’t do enough to earn a further season at the Stadium of Light, several other loan signings can certainly claim to have contributed enough to their adopted Premier League clubs this season to force their temporary managers to consider splashing the cash. Daniel Sturrdige’s 8 goals in twelve starts for Bolton catapulted the Chelsea striker in to most Premiership managers’ consciousness. The former Manchester City apprentice had struggled to assert himself at Stamford Bridge during his first two seasons following his free transfer from Eastlands, and the £50million January arrival of Fernando Torres suggested a premature end to his time at Stamford Bridge.

But the England Under-21 forward, clearly with a point to prove, outshone his Spanish team-mate, and is likely to attract serious offers from the Premier League’s developing clubs outside of the top four this summer. “It’s great to have this opportunity [playing for Bolton] and it has been good to show Chelsea what I’m all about,” Sturridge told Chelsea’s official website last week. “It was difficult for me not starting as many games as I’d have liked, as a young player with a lot of pressure you have to take the opportunities that are in front of you,” he added.

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He undoubtedly took his opportunity – with both feet – and was curiously ignored by Fabio Capello for England’s Euro 2012 qualifier with Switzerland on June 4th even after Jermain Defoe’s withdrawal left the Italian with just Bobby Zamora, Peter Crouch and Darren Bent as forward options for next month’s Wembley encounter. While Sturridge is likely to attract a plethora of offers from all directions, now his loan contract has terminated, what happens to the other loanees whose short spells away from their parent clubs failed to encourage a turn in form? John Carew was considered a shrewd addition to Tony Pulis’ Stoke squad when he joined the club in January, especially considering his physical attributes are compatible with the Potters’ robust style, but the Norwegian only managed to find the net once in the League, and failed to finish any of his chances during the first six months of the season playing for Aston Villa.

The striker will be 32 within a month of next season’s inauguration, so represents a risky option for a Stoke side who have appeared to alter their transfer tact recently in order to identify younger, more progressive flair. On a more positive note, Jamie O’Hara seems to have won the hearts of his provisional faithful at Wolves, having scored in the club’s final game of the season to secure the Molineux side’s Premiership status for another year. The Tottenham midfielder has almost forged an entire career from being loaned away from White Hart Lane, and Mick McCarthy would do well to seriously consider making a permanent move for the 24 year-old who should himself be seeking some stability at his age. “There’s a deal on the table and Wolves need to say they want me, a fee has been agreed with Tottenham, but the deal has got to be done within a week. That’s up to the chairman and the gaffer to see what they want to do,” the former Arsenal trainee announced this week. “I want to stay. Hopefully the gaffer will want me to stay. Hopefully I’ll be speaking to him over the next week or so and get something sorted,” a confident O’Hara added.

It will be interesting to see where any of this season’s loan signings will end up come August, not least Emmanuel Adebayor, who will face particular scrutiny on his return to Manchester City from his short, and unexpected, stint at Real Madrid. Although loaning out players usually enables them to return with renewed confidence, and signing players on loan represents a low-risk transfer strategy, not all of the short-term additions have flourished this season, and an intriguing summer of transfer activity awaits.

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Who do you think your club should sign this summer? Let me know on Twitter

Imogen Thomas Joins Paddy Power For a Champion Offer! They will refund losing Champions League Final bets if Man United lose the match Make your bets now!

There is always plenty of media speculation doing the rounds on where Cesc Fabregas will be playing his football next season. With the sheer volume of rumours it’s beginning to look like it’s unlikely the Spaniard will be at Arsenal next season. However, before Arsenal fans start worrying about how to replace the midfield star, pause for a moment and consider the silver lining. For the last few seasons we have looked at the Arsenal squad and wondered where the British players are – but could all that be about to change. With Fabregas gone surely Jack Wilshere would move into centre stage and could well be supported by the likes of Kieran Gibbs, Aaron Ramsey and possibly even Henri Lansbury. The player who has been on loan at Norwich, this week said he is targeting the Arsenal first-team and with Fabregas gone his chance might just come.

But let’s come back to Wilshere and consider him as the star of the midfield. However, at the age of 19 you surely wouldn’t dream of handing the captaincy over to him, would you? But even so Wilshere can grow as a leader of that midfield in either his organizational skills or by the example he sets by his play. Recently Wilshere has been playing as a holding midfielder for Arsenal – but he is one of those rare talents that can adapt to any role in the midfield. Therefore, Arsenal can build their team around him without having to worry too much about the position he will play.

However, with news that Wilshere has been selected for the England U21’s the dangers of burn out are there for all to see and could there be such a thing as pushing too much too hard. Well with most youngsters there might be something in that – but Wilshere is a very special talent and I think extra responsibility on his shoulders is the sort of conditions that will allow Wilshere to blossom into both a top level Premier League and England player.

In many ways it’s tempting to throw him straight into the England side now and I can certainly see Wenger’s issues with having him play for both the England U21’s and England national sides. However, Wilshere is still young and needs to get playing a good amount of games to allow him to develop his skills in the best way possible. There is always the mental attitude to consider; surely it can only benefit Wilshere to play in big games in big stadiums now. That level of experience will stand him in good stead in the future – when playing in big games for Arsenal and England; if he has been there before he won’t need to worry about nerves so much so can just focus on his performance. How often do we hear of an England manager’s reluctance to play a youngster in the World Cup because of his lack of experience? Furthermore you can understand why Stuart Pearce is interested in picking the best players he can and who can blame him.

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So with everything being said the future looks very bright for Jack Wilshere, if he continues to develop the way he has done he will be a terrific player. And don’t underestimate the power of having the Arsenal team built around him. Fabregas will be a big loss but with Wilshere coming into his prime maybe it’s just natural progression.

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Follow me on Twitter and join in on the Fabregas and Wilshere debate.

It’s nearly five years since Mick McCarthy first took the reigns at Molineux. The club has seen some drastic changes in that time, converting from a relegation candidate in the Championship – to a Premier League side. A lot of that progress can be accredited to McCarthy, who has been responsible for the vast amount of transfer activity at Molineux these past few years. International stars Kevin Doyle and Matt Jarvis, as well as bargain buys Michael Kightly and Karl Henry, were all McCarthy purchases. After being handed a transfer budget of just £1 million when he first took over, you can’t help but admire the dealings of McCarthy.

But, with more talk of future signings, this got me thinking about the first Wolves team he picked. A bit of research has shown how far the team has truly come since that away game at Plymouth five years ago. Here’s what happened to that side.

Matt Murray – Starred for Wolves in their unsuccessful play-off campaign in McCarthy’s first year. Was forced to retire in 2010 due to a series of injuries, but would almost have definitely gained international honours if it had not been for injury.

Mark Clyde – Another product of the Wolves academy, Clyde was also forced to retire in the middle of the 2006/07 season. After nearly two years away from the game, he joined non-league side Worcester City, where he is currently in a player/assistant manager role.

Gary Breen – A favourite of McCarthy from his time at Sunderland and the Republic of Ireland, Breen spent two years at Wolves. He left in the summer of 2008 and joined League Two side Barnet, before retiring in 2010.

Jody Craddock – A survivor of the early-McCarthy years. Craddock remains at Molineux and has recently been offered a new contract, following a number of impressive performances in defence this season. A firm fan’s favourite at the club.

Lee Naylor – Lasted just a couple of game under McCarthy before joining Celtic, in a deal that saw Charlie Mulgrew move to the Black Country. Naylor spent nearly four years in Scotland, picking up two SPL titles and a Scottish Cup. Joined up with former boss Dave Jones at Cardiff last summer, and missed out on promotion to the Premier League in the play-off’s this season.

Jamie Clapham – Played a bit part in the 2006/07 season, and was transfer listed after the play-off failure. Spent time on loan at Leeds before joining Leicester on a free transfer in January 2008. He was on the move again in the summer of 2008 when he joined Notts County, where he remained until 2010. Joined Lincoln at the start of last season, but was released after their relegation from the Football League.

Rohan Ricketts – Found himself out of favour early on and was sent out on loan to QPR, before being released at the end of the season. A brief spell at Barnsley in the 2007/08 season was followed by time playing in Canada, Hungary and Moldova. Currently playing for SV Wilhelmshaven in Germany, but has been linked with a move back to England.

Karl Henry – Another survivor, Henry was one of Mick’s first signings at Molineux. Went on to lift the Championship trophy as captain in 2009, and remains skipper of the team today. He overcame criticism for ‘full-blooded’ displays last season and is an integral part of the current Wolves side.

Kevin O’Connor – Another product from the youth setup at Molineux, O’Connor made his Wolves debut in the Plymouth game. He also scored in the game, but the goal was later accredited as an own goal. A series of injuries saw his time at Molineux end in 2008 and, after a time away from the game, he joined local side AFC Telford. Now plays alongside Clyde at Worcester City.

Carl Cort – Suffered with injuries throughout the campaign and was released in May 2007. He spent six months with Leicester, before another brief spell at Marbella. He returned to England in December 2008 and joined Norwich, but was released at the end of the season. Cort then signed for newly-promoted Brentford and spent a year-and-a-half there before leaving in January this year.

Jay Bothroyd – A regular in the side that campaign, Bothroyd seemed to be enjoying his time at Molineux. However he found himself out of the side the next season and spent time on loan at Stoke. Joined Cardiff in the summer of 2008, where he went on to become a regular in the side, as well as earning his first senior England cap. Has recently left the club after contract negotiations failed.

The subs…

Michael Oakes – also joined Cardiff, but retired in 2008.

Rob Edwards – promoted with Blackpool in 2010, recently released on a free.

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Lewis Gobern – after a series of loan spells, joined MK Dons in 2009. Also spent time at Grimsby, but is not with Notts County.

Crag Davies – spent time at Oldham and Brighton, won League Two with Chesterfield this season.

Tomasz Frankowski – a loan spell at Tenerife was followed by a move to Chicago Fire. Now playing in Poland. So, there we have it, the first Wolves team Mick McCarthy picked for a league game.

It’s clear that the club have come on leaps and bounds since that day at Plymouth five years ago. Yes, millions have been spent, but promotion has also brought millions into the club. Players have become internationals, the ground is being expanded and the club remains in the Premier League. Mick can sit back and be proud of the work he has done so far.

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Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy insists prized asset Luka Modric is not for sale after holding talks with the Croatia midfielder.Levy met with Modric at White Hart Lane on Wednesday, addressing the 25-year-old playmaker’s apparent interest in moving across London to join Chelsea.

Spurs manager Harry Redknapp has repeatedly stated his desire to retain star players such as Modric and winger Gareth Bale, with Levy backing his manager’s stance.

“We had a very good conversation and, as I’ve said previously, Luka Modric will not be sold,” Levy said.

“That’s the end of it. As I said a few weeks ago, there’s no further discussion on it.”

“He’s been on holiday but we’ve now had the conversation and he understands our position.”

Levy refused to discuss Modric’s position in the talks, simply reiterating Tottenham’s determination to keep hold of the player.

“I’m just telling you what the position is – he won’t be sold,” Levy said.

“I’m sure once he’s back with his team-mates everything will be fine.”

Levy also claimed no figure will entice the club to cash in on Modric, who cost 16.5 million pounds when he joined from Dinamo Zagreb in 2008.

“It would make no difference,” Levy said.

“This is not about money. We’re not selling our best players.”

Milan Pjanic is stuck in a three-way transfer tug of war with Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa and Lazio, according to The Sun.

The highly-rated Lyon midfielder is hot property in Europe after his displays for the Ligue 1 side last season with all three clubs desperate to capture his signature.

A big money move for the Bosnian is expected and it seems that he has his pick of destinations with Tottenham, Villa and Lazio providing him with attractive options.

Spurs boss Harry Redknapp is keen on the 21-year-old midfielder as a ready-made replacement for want away midfielder Luka Modric should he Croatian leave White Hart Lane this summer.

Pjanic’s signing would certainly soften the blow caused by Modric’s proposed exit although it seems Lazio are preparing to rival Spurs with a bid.

The Italians are determined to sign some big name players before the transfer window shuts in August.

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Villa are also interested in the player after losing Stewart Downing and Ashley Young but are unable to offer European football unlike the Lazio and Spurs.

Both teams finished fifth in their respective leagues and gained entry to the Europa League. Whether Pjanic is prepared to sacrifice Champions League football with Lyon is another matter.