Category Uncategorized

This weekend’s action was far from boring,

Fulham stopped van Persie from scoring,

A welcome double for Adebayor,

Hodgson’s West Brom need to find more

United fail at home against the Toon,

Title hopes fading like a burst balloon,

Sunderland’s Bruce becoming quite the ranter,

Early festive gift for Wigan, from Franco Di Santa

(Apologies for that shocking pun,

More likely to find that in The Sun!)

Chelsea goals from Terry, Sturridge and Mata,

A great performance by the latter,

Finally at Anfield to our old friend Mario,

Sent off as the fans said “Cheerio,”

Nevertheless for Balotelli this wasn’t the end,

For he would cuse the dressing room door to bend!

[divider]

Game of the Weekend

Manchester United’s encounter against Newcastle it was a tight but still interesting clash. United took the initiative when it came to attacking but Alan Pardew’s side always looked dangerous on the break. The Red Devils have played worse this season and come away with all three points. Perhaps Saturday’s result was a bit of karma then as Ferguson’s troops turned in a good performance lacking a clinical edge. For Newcastle though, a great result with some brilliant last ditch defending to boot.

[divider]

[divider]

Save of the Weekend

Tim Krul may have been the busier of the two keepers at Old Trafford. However, David De Gea’s save from Fabricio Coloccini’s half volley early in the second half was terrific. The young Spaniard displayed brilliant reflexes in tipping the Argentinian’s effort over the bar. After a midweek mistake against Benfica, saves like that can only help to rebuild his confidence.

Player of the Weekend

Whilst those with attacking flair nearly always take the plaudits, this weekend saw some magnificent performances between the sticks. The Newcastle ‘keeper Tim Krul had to be at his very best to keep United at bay. He was unlucky to concede in any case as Steven Taylor’s clearance rebounded kindly off Javier Hernandez. However, Krul pulled off a string of saves late on to earn a valuable point for Newcastle in their quest for European football.

Surprise of the Weekend

Aside from Robin van Persie not scoring, the fact the Gunners didn’t overcome Fulham was a sizeable shock. The Cottagers are notorious for their poor away form. However, they turned in a disciplined performance at the Emirates on Saturday evening to ensure they got a share of the spoils. The result ended Arsenal’s run of five consecutive league victories. Arsene Wenger will be hoping that his side can get back on track at the DW Stadium.

Defensive Mishap of the Weekend

Once upon a time in the North East, there was the Newcastle centre back partnership between Titus Bramble and Jean Alain Boumsong, somewhat cruelly known as the Chuckle Brothers Live Show. In what appeared to be a tribute act in nearby Sunderland, Wes Brown and ‘keeper Keiren Westwood decided to play about with the ball in their own half in the final minutes of their clash against Wigan. However, Brown was tackled by McArthur and he rolled in Di Santo for a simple tap in leaving the Sunderland pair red faced. The Latics with an important victory thanks to a lapse in concentration.

As an impassioned football fan, it was terribly sad to see the news on Sunday morning that Gary Speed had passed away. Condolences go out to his family and friends at what must be a very difficult time.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

#RIPGarySpeed

[divider]

 FREE football app that pays you CASH

[ad_pod id=’qs-2′ align=’left’]

[gigya_chat]

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.

Manchester City outcast Robinho is desperate to remain in Brazil, after ending his initial loan spell with Santos.

The 26-year-old was farmed out by the Citizens in January after struggling to make his mark in his second season at Eastlands and enjoyed his time back at one of his former clubs.

Robinho told reporters: “It’s not easy to convince the English to agree a deal but I trust the leaders of Santos to be successful. I think I belong in Brazil more than the Premier League.

“My agents have received several offers from clubs in Europe, but everything is on hold until Santos meet City.”

Meanwhile, City’s move to snare Internazionale’s talented young striker Mario Balotelli appears to have hit a major stumbling block.

Personal terms for the 19-year-old are reported to be the problem, with agent Mino Raiola telling Sky Italia: “As long as there’s hope, there’s life.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

“He’s calm but anxious to come to an agreement, that’s normal for a lad of 19. We’re working and we’re hoping.”

The best place to start this weekend’s evaluation,

At Stamford Bridge, where Arsenal shocked the nation,

Robin Van Persie continues to score,

John Terry meanwhile wages war,

Up in Manchester, people were vexed,

What on earth could Balotelli do next?

After last week’s shenanigans, sadly not a lot,

Despite taking their time, City won at a trot,

Referees make their mark at Norwich and West Brom,

The Linesmen looked so lost, could have done with a Tom Tom,

Bale rounded off Sunday by scoring two,

But now it’s time to get on with this review.

Game of the Weekend

The Chelsea v Arsenal game was undoubtedly entertaining. This doesn’t necessarily mean the match was full of high quality throughout. Much of the defending on show will be giving Alan Hansen nightmares for weeks. Stamford Bridge though was lit up by some moments of individual brilliance through Juan Mata and Theo Walcott in particular. Robin van Persie’s hat trick was also something to behold.

Chelsea haven’t kept a clean sheet at home in the league since last April. Villas Boas now faces a big test in trying to revive Chelsea after two consecutive defeats. After stringing three wins together Arsenal are approaching the area of the table they’ll be expecting to finish in come the end of the season.

[divider]

[divider]

Goal of the Weekend

Gareth Bale’s well worked second goal narrowly beats off competition from Walcott and Hoilett. It wasn’t just the finish that so impressive. The complex build up play prior to Bale’s finish completed a goal that would have received much greater coverage had it been scored by Barcelona.

Honourable Mentions: Theo Walcott, Junior Hoilett

[divider]

[divider]

Player of the Weekend

Robin van Persie continued his dazzling form with a hat trick at Chelsea on Saturday. The Dutch striker now has nine goals in his last five games and is unsurprisingly the leading goal scorer in the Premier League. The composure he displayed for his second goal when he rounded Petr Cech further emphasises the confidence flowing through him at the moment.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Honourable mention: Gareth Bale

Controversy of the Weekend

Take your pick. Lee Mason’s decision to award a spot kick for Luis Suarez’ tumble in the area along with Anthony Taylor’s judgement that Steven N’Zonzi had handled in the box left many perplexed. In all honesty though, West Brom offered little against their Merseyside counterparts and their defeat was vindicated. As for Blackburn, it will have been tough to stomach having lead 3-1 midway through the second half. However, they didn’t help themselves by dropping deeper and inviting pressure from the Canaries. Nevertheless, Steve Kean was understandably frustrated having seen a chance to briefly silence his detractors slip away.

Miss of the Weekend

If you’d switched off Match of the Day by 11.40pm in the incomprehensible excitement of getting an extra hour sleep, then you will have missed Gary Caldwell’s shambolic miss. The Wigan Captain managed to head the ball over the bar from about two yards when it appeared easier to score. What’s more, it would have given the Latics the lead at the time compounding the Scottish player’s misery.

If you’d like to hear some more cringey rap/poetry elsewhere or just want to debate the issues of the day in the Premier League or the Ryman Premier, then why not follow me on Twitter! @arhindtutt

[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’left’]

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.

[ad_pod id=’fox-mpu’ align=’right’]

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.

Continue to the NEXT PAGE…

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.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

[ad_pod id=’unruly’ align=’left’]

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?

[ad_pod id=’racing’ align=’left’]

Touted as the next John Terry, Michael Mancienne has endured a frustrating time so far at Chelsea. The England Under-21 international has been at the club since he was a schoolboy but despite his enormous potential has only started twice for the senior side in his 14 years with the Blues.

His lack of opportunities at Stamford Bridge caused Mancienne to look elsewhere for first-team football and Chelsea duly sent the youngster on loan. Mancienne joined Chelsea’s West London neighbours QPR on loan where he spent two successful seasons from 2006-2008. His impressive displays at Loftus Road attracted the attention of Wolves who subsequently loaned Mancienne twice; once in 2008 and again last season where he helped Wolves stay in the Premier League. His performances at Molineux caught the attention of England boss Fabio Capello who named Mancienne in his England squad to face Germany in November 2008 while on loan with Wolves in the Championship.

With his future seemingly bright, Mancienne has returned to Chelsea this season on a mission to break into the first-team. However, he is faced with a seriously uphill task. At his preferred position at centre-back, Chelsea already boast a number of senior players including club captain John Terry, Alex, Ricardo Carvalho and Branislav Ivanovic all vying for a place in the team. Not only that, Mancienne has to compete with another up and coming talent Jeffrey Bruma.

Bruma was integral to Chelsea’s FA Youth Cup success last season and has impressed Carlo Ancelotti enough for him to give the Dutchman a couple of substitute appearances last season. Like Mancienne, Bruma has been called up to the national team, with Bert van Marwijk naming the Chelsea starlet in an upcoming friendly against Ukraine on 11th August.

Despite the fierce competition, Mancienne has expressed a desire to remain at his boyhood club and fight for a place in the starting line-up. Chelsea have issued a statement denying that Mancienne has handed in a transfer request amidst speculation that the defender would be interested in re-joining Wolves.

His desire to stay at Chelsea could be a result of the Premier League’s new squad rules. Under the new regulations, each Premier League squad must have 25 players of which 8 have to be ‘home-grown’. Having spent his entire career so far on the books at Stamford Bridge, Mancienne would comfortably qualify as one of the eight ‘home-grown’ players that have to be included in next season’s squad. With the prospect of inclusion in Ancelotti’s squad, there is still hope that Mancienne could feature more prominently for Chelsea in the coming season.

Like my article? Follow me on Twitter or subscribe to my RSS feed.

Click on image to see a gallery of the BEST BABES at the World Cup this summer

Yesterday’s game was not a classic or even the best match of the weekend but it did tell us a lot about the teams. It showed that Chelsea have given up on their strong defensive ability in favour of trying and failing to play Barcelona-style football. It also showed that Liverpool no longer needs Steven Gerrard, with their energetic style and harassment of opponents paying off with a great result. But perhaps most importantly for both teams, it showed that the most expensive transfer of 2011 was a horrific decision by the Blues.

Fernando Torres was again left on the bench again yesterday as his new team was beaten 2-1 by the Merseysiders. Didier Drogba was chosen to spearhead the attack from the start and then Daniel Sturridge was sent on before the Spaniard as they chased the game in the second half.

Although the 27-year-old came on for the final 10 minutes of the game his most significant contribution was to win the ball on the left and cut inside with power and tenacity only to clip the ball harmlessly out of play when attempting a cross come shot that was awful and misplaced whatever it was meant to be.

Football’s fourth most expensive player has had a nightmare start to his time in London. He made his debut against his former employers and looked completely impotent as they were beaten 1-0 and it took him more than 15 hours to score his first goal for his new side having played terribly below-par as the club fell away from the title race.

The lethargic performances that were seen during his final weeks on Merseyside and were put down to playing in a poor side were replaced by over-enthusiastic displays, running round like a headless chicken in an attempt to make an impact.

This season has been a vast improvement as he made a man-of-the-match performance against Stoke, only failing to score because of a world-class display from Asmir Begovic, and scoring four goals in 13 games. However, the form that has seen his last two transfers total more than £76 million still seems to desert him. During the game against Manchester United at Old Trafford in September he bagged his first goal of the season but after rounding David de Gea to leave the net gaping at the Stretford End he could only put the ball in the side netting, a miss that put the game out of sight for his team and plunged his confidence back to rock bottom.

Since then he has been sent off for a two-footed tackle against Swansea having scored again and looks like a man so anxious to impress that he is struggling to cope with the self-induced pressure.

The latest error in his short Stamford Bridge career smacked of desperation. This is the man who was meant to spark a change in style and bring goals to a club that is falling back from the top. It appeared to be an unwritten plan to move Drogba out over the summer and use Torres as the main man but all of this was thrown out of the water by his failure to shine and even the introduction of Juan Mata to drag his compatriot into form has fallen flat.

Rather than being the first-choice striker, Chelsea’s number nine is falling down the pecking order, with the Ivorian still first choice despite constantly being linked with a move and now Daniel Sturridge being considered a better choice than him. Nicolas Anelka is another who is more fancied by Villas-Boas for the big games and while Romelu Lukaku is still getting used to the Premier League, if Torres doesn’t start scoring soon it won’t be long before he’s even further down the line.

[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’left’]

In recent games, he can be seen looking at the bench every time he makes a mistake and that is not a sign of a man likely to improve any time soon. Although the club are trying to incorporate a new, Spanish style of play under their latest coach, it appears that the boss is not a fan of the expensive front-man signed by Carlo Ancelotti and is tentative about trusting him but that is what is needed to bring the best out of the player.

At Liverpool he was main man, a guaranteed name on the team sheet and loved by everyone, a formula that produced goals whereas at Stamford Bridge there is a wider choice of quality forward and that has left him needing to turn on the style when required rather than building up his confidence.

The move was the biggest transfer deadline day deal for many years. It was inconceivable that he could be taken away from Anfield, especially to join a rival club. Although £50 million made the blow softer, the image of a fan burning the Spaniard’s no. 9 shirt will remain a sign of how the Kopites felt.

During his three and a half years there he bagged 81 goals in 142 games, including 33 goals in his first season to make him the most prolific debut season goalscorer in the league’s history. His strike from the left-hand side of the box against Sunderland, his continuous beating of Nemanja Vidic and the goals he scored against Chelsea had elevated him to hero status alongside past forwards such as Fowler, Owen and Rush so his decision to jump ship enraged fans. But it seems they will have the last laugh.

From the sale of the Spaniard (plus £8 million), the club were able to bring in Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll. While the £35 million man has failed to hit the form he showed at Newcastle, he has managed five goals in 20 games since the move, compared to Torres’ five in 31. But it is the Uruguayan who has really stolen the show. He has been in mercurial form, almost single-handedly dragging Liverpool up the table last season with some superb displays including his jinking run to set up Dirk Kuyt in the 3-1 win over United and his sublime narrow angle finish against the Black Cats in the final weeks of the campaign.

Add to that Craig Bellamy, who looks like he never left Anfield, forming a formidable partnership with Suarez and showing a sharp mind yesterday to play in Maxi Rodriguez when many would have taken the shot themselves.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Those fans that stood outside Melwood burning Torres’ shirt and bemoaning the decision to sell him must now look back with a smile on their face while Chelsea fans will be wondering when the real Fernando will arrive.

You can comment below or follow me on Twitter @jrobbins1991 to talk football.

[divider]

 FREE football app that pays you CASH

[ad_pod id=’qs-2′ align=’left’]

Arsenal’s loss to Barcelona seemed almost inevitable the moment Lionel Messi opened the scoring at the end of the first half.

Sergio Busquets own goal equaliser gave the Gunners a small glimmer of hope, after all as it stood they were now actually going through to the quarter finals of the Champion’s League, the only problem being that, there were still over 30 minutes of football to play, which when your facing Barcelona at the Nou Camp can be an eternity.

Robin Van Persie’s sending off poured sand on any fire Arsenal were hoping to ignite and from then on it was literally a passing masterclass in the Total Football mould of the 1970′s Dutch teams, with the average spectator being forgiven for not having a clue just what position each Barcelona player was meant to be playing, such was the magnitude of their attacking interplay.

The problem was that regardless of whether Van Persie’s sending off was arguably a moot point as it’s highly unlikely an eleven man Arsenal would have been able to cope with such a rampant Barca- he should not have been sent off and the game should have been played out evenly- at least in terms of the amount of personnel.

Van Persie’s second yellow card for shooting when through on goal, despite the referee blowing for offside was one of the most ridiculous decisions I’ve seen since, erm, Sunday. What makes the referees decision even worse is the fact that he’s considered one of Europe’s best, but for some reason seemed totally bereft of any common sense.

Anyone who’s been to the Nou Camp will tell you the noise and the atmosphere, particularly on a Champions League night can be deafening and this is surely something that cannot have escaped Massimo Busacca. Although you’d expect the players to hear the whistle, when a striker goes through on goal, he’s always likely to have a shot, even if he thinks he’s heard a whistle, or isn’t sure.

It was in the earlier rounds that Barcelona’s Mauel Pinto- the Catalans reserve goalkeeper, tricked Copenhagen’s Cesar Santin into believing he was offside by whistling to the striker as he went through on goal.

I’m not claiming striker’s have a god-given right to ignore the whistle, but there’s got to be a level of common sense prevailing when it comes to the situation the forward was in at the time of the ‘offence.’

Many will argue that the game was beyond Arsenal anyway- despite the score being in their favour- so what does it matter? Well let me ask you this if Teddy Sheringham had been sent off for an innocuous challenge in the 88th minute in the Nou Camp in 1999, wouldn’t many have still claimed that with Bayern Munich ribbons already on the trophy, the game was over? Or if that prime example of cheating pond life Steven Gerrard had been dismissed at half time in Istanbul, would that have also been irrelevant?

I don’t think Arsenal would have won had Van Persie stayed on the pitch, but the fact is we’ll never know. Later on when Niklas Bendnter went through on goal, and duly fluffed his chance, there may have been one or two Gooners wondering whether Van Persie would have buried that opportunity.

I sympathised with the striker and his club for two reasons. Chelsea and Liverpool away.

After both games, my social networks were alive with Red after Red, screaming, ranting, threatening and despairing at the ineptitude of the referees and how they’d robbed us.

While I thought both losses were due to more than just poor officials, I could more than understand the feeling of outrage that many felt. If United had gone down to ten men in the same manner against any team, then I shudder to think how I’d feel, I doubt I’d be able to publish it on here, as there’s not much internet access in Strangeways, where I’d arguably be locked up for attempting to attack the ref. Oh and I know it’s now called HMP Manchester, my mates all write to me from there regularly.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

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 is far too often this season it’s been referees that have been the centre of attention and while I’ve got no great love for Arsenal or Robin Van Persie, I couldn’t help but feeling a little sympathy with him after the game and agreed with his summation that it’s a “joke” and as one man once sang “that joke isn’t funny anymore.”

Read more of Justin’s articles at the excellent Red Flag Flying High

[divider]

[ad_pod id=’fox-mpu’ align=’right’]

1. We made it…narrowly

One horrendous performance doesn’t make us a terrible side. But, equally, one victory doesn’t make us the best. It was a marked improvement from the previous outing against Algeria and, crucially, three points guarantee one more match in South Africa. England pressed better, played with more urgency, and addressed many of the fans’ concerns following Friday evening. Slovenia were disappointing considering the circumstances; it was an unremarkable push for an equaliser considering England took the lead so early and there was little evidence of a plan B. In general it’s good to be through but we will need to play a lot better to get past a young and technically proficient Germany team.

2. Wayne Rooney is, now, unequivocally injured…until the next match

We’ve all seen a slightly more laboured looking Rooney thus far and, in the second half, he was forced to be substituted after picking up a knock. There have been question marks surrounding his fitness ever since the Champions League quarter final first leg played in Munich and his increased irritability and evident frustration hints as much to unhappiness with the team as it does to his own lack of sharpness. It was however encouraging seeing Ashley Cole involved as much as he was. It’s not a new fact that England’s success is heavily contingent on the left back’s involvement; I have long thought that he is absolutely key to England’s success (more so than Gerrard, Lampard and, definitely at the moment, Rooney). His defensive qualities are supreme; pace, positional sense, experience at the highest level, and proven class performances against the best…done in an England shirt as well. As an attacking full back he is certainly among the very best in the world.

3. John Terry’s face dive was brilliant

Glen Johnson actually got the block but Terry’s face dive for the ball was amazing. No doubt there’ll be calls for him to be knighted. It was in the middle of a flurry of blocks and last ditch defending and you can imagine, mid flight, he was thinking of all the fans who questioned the team’s passion. Have some of that.

4. David James was solid

James made a few potentially damaging moments look pretty steady. Maybe we’re just not used to anything resembling safe-hands in net and so, in contrast, James looked good doing what should be standard.

5. Milner’s positional sense key to victory

Milner hugged the touchline and provided an outlet throughout. The knock on effect of this for the entire team was noticeable; whereas Lennon’s central movement in the last match (coupled with Gerrard’s inset role) caused England to look narrow and cut options in the final third, Milner listened to instructions and forced the Slovenian defence to be stretched. Other changes also led to the better play in the final third: Rooney’s slightly deeper role meant he found possession more often and his interplay with Gerrard was promising. Gerrard also looked more disciplined on the left hand side and England generally played with greater positional sense. Gerrard’s central tendency allows Cole to push forward but the midfield does not become congested so long as the right flank is occupied by a player who stays wide. Milner did this and his crossing was superb, resulting in England’s only breakthrough. A danger for England, looking forward, is against better opposition it will be harder to cross as early and relatively unopposed from the flanks (especially given Milner’s threat is not his speed).

If you enjoyed this, you can follow me on Twitter

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

**

Click image below to see a gallery of the German babes at the World Cup:

Montenegro assistant manager Savo Milosevic has stated that his side will attack England on Friday night, and are confident of finishing top of Euro 2012 Group G.

Fabio Capello’s men only need a point to ensure automatic qualification, but a home win could mean the Eastern European nation can finish top of the pile if they win their remaining fixture against Switzerland on Tuesday.

Despite the visitors’ quality and tags as favourites, the former Aston Villa striker has promised an attacking outlook in Podgorica.

“Everybody in our camp is very confident,” Milosevic told Vijesti.

“We know what we are capable of and we have the mentality of winners, of champions. We know we can play against every opponent.

“We will attack England, that is for sure, but we won’t be careless – that is just what Fabio Capello wants from us.

“But I know we can beat England. It won’t be easy, we will have to show a lot of courage, but we have everything in our hands. We can finish first in our group,” he concluded.

Montenegro have over achieved in the group, and The Three Lions must be aware of Juventus striker Mirko Vucinic in particular, who has the ability to cause Capello’s men problems.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

By Gareth McKnight

[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’left’]