All posts by h79snht.top

Mark Hughes’s job is safe at QPR

Queens Park Rangers owner Tony Fernandes has asked for “patience” after a 2-1 home defeat against West Ham has kept Rangers rooted to the bottom of the Premier League.

With just two points from six games the London club are in genuine peril, following a large summer spending spree and players being enticed with lucrative contracts, the R’s ambitions were stationed well above a relegation battle.

Despite a disappointing start Fernandes has publicly backed his manager, taking to Twitter last night to show his support for the Welshman. The 48 year old said: “I’m calm I want to build stability which is what most fans want. There are many out there who are clueless.

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“Bad game but I expected it. Need all injured players back. After West Brom. And everyone back to match fitness. Patience. Keep calm. Six games does not make a season. I have learnt from many wise chairmen. Mark will sort it out look at his record. We would have won if we didn’t go down to 10. I am relaxed and confident. Let’s get all our players back and in form and fit and then let’s see.”

No home comforts for Manchester United?

Have England’s most successful domestic side lost their aura of invincibility at the Theatre of Dreams?

Old Trafford isn’t the sort of stadium you hear being described as a happy hunting ground for any team – any team apart from Manchester United. Under Sir Alex Ferguson, they have lost 50 league games at Old Trafford. That may sound like a lot but when you see that the Red Devils have avoided defeat in the other 451, you realise how good a record that is.

In recent years too, it has been excellent. When Ferguson’s side won the title in 2011, they only dropped Premier League points once at home, in a two all draw against West Brom. The home record from that season is the best they have ever had under Ferguson. Since then, it has unsurprisingly dropped off, most noticeably after THAT defeat to Manchester City.

It’s nearly a year to the day since Ferguson had what he described as his worst-ever day with United demolished 6-1 at Old Trafford. That result has set a precedent, even if United have gone onto win 13 of their next 17 home league games.

Away teams playing at Old Trafford don’t have the same inhibitions as they might have before. Look at how Blackburn, a team who went on to be relegated, managed a 3-2 win. Look at how Everton were able to come back from 4-2 down and secure a draw in April.

On the European stage, clubs coming to Manchester haven’t been afraid to attack either. Prior to their victory against Galatasaray in September, United had only won one of their last five European games at the Theatre of Dreams. In that run, they conceded 10. Let’s put that into context – in Ferguson’s other 90 European home games at United, they’d only conceded 70. The performance earlier this year against Athletic Bilbao was the most alarming: for Manchester United weren’t just beaten in both legs, they were outclassed, something that has been all too rare in Ferguson’s reign.

Premier League sides visiting Old Trafford this season have been more courageous too. Fulham, traditionally one of the most goal shy teams away from home, netted two. Wigan on the other hand didn’t score. In fact, they were beaten in the end, 4-0. It looks decisive but the Latics wasted some excellent first half chances before rolling over in the second half. The warning signs then were certainly there prior to Spurs’ visit a few weeks ago. André Villas-Boas’s side were quick and clinical with United appearing unable to cope defensively whenever Spurs drove forward.

Don’t be deceived – United are still an exceptionally strong team at Old Trafford. Last season the Red Devils may have had their worst defensive record at home in the league since 1979 but they also kept an impressive 11 clean sheets. Still, they are not as strong as they have been previously.

United have lost their aura of invincibility at what has been labelled “The Theatre of Dreams.” Indeed, it is many teams’ dreams to come and win at Old Trafford and there has been no better time for those dreams to come true than now. United will no doubt go and finish comfortably inside the top four this season and win a large percentage of their home games. That said teams who have the necessary skill must pluck up the courage to attack at Old Trafford, judging by the results of the last year. As the old adage goes, fortune favours the brave.

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*This author expects Manchester United to comfortably beat on Stoke on Saturday

 Article originally written @ Gone With The Rhind

West Ham ace defends Carroll

Mark Noble has been defending West Ham team mate Andy Carroll amidst claims that the striker does not try hard enough to stay on his feet during games.

Southampton’s Adam Lallana suggested that Carroll had won free-kicks that were “soft”.

He said: “Players are clever nowadays. You kind of draw fouls and it’s up to the referee whether he sees it as a foul or as a player being soft. Obviously they got a lot of free-kicks and put the ball in our area.

“But it’s not just down to that. We dealt with it fine first half but obviously not the second.”

However, Noble says that Carroll has to go down, because referees look at his size and build before making a decision.

“Andy’s a big man and if he doesn’t go down, he won’t win any free-kicks because the referees think that he’s too big to get a free-kick,” Noble told West Ham TV.

Carroll won many free-kicks during West Ham’s 4-1 Premier League victory against Southampton, with two leading to goals. Mark Noble had much praise for his team after Saturday’s victory, with the Hammers scoring all of their goals in the second half.

“You have to give credit to Southampton because they closed us down and made it very difficult for us. We defended very well and at 0-0 we were still massively in the game and knew we had a chance to go on and win it which thankfully we did.

“To get four against Southampton was fantastic but that is what can happen when you have quality players like Yossi Benayoun, big Andy Carroll and Nobby (Kevin Nolan). It was great for the lads,” he added.

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West Ham are currently seventh in the Premier League table with 14 points.

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Are footballers right to speak out over such issues?

In a manager’s ideal world, their players would play when and where they are told with minimum fuss, and constantly hold the thought that they are doing what is best for the team . However, with player power being what it is, this is highly unlikely to ever be the case.

Being played in your unnatural position is one of the pet hates of most top level footballers, or in fact anyone who has played the game. I personally, am still furious at being deployed at centre back for my primary school team, when it  was obvious to everyone but my coach that I was more of a central midfielder.

Lukas Podolski is the latest to vent his frustration at being played in his unnatural position at Arsenal. The German was bought in over the summer with the idea he would be used as a central striker, however has spent the majority of the season playing on the left of a front three.

“I’d rather play as a central attacker,” Podolski admitted.

“On the left I have to do a lot of defensive work, constantly running up and down. I am not a classical winger.

“I am getting along well, for sure, but I demand more of myself. I want to play even better.”

This has simply added to Wenger’s selection headache, as Theo Walcott has also spoken of his desire to move from the wing to central striker on several occasions.

With the problems going on at Arsenal at the moment, the comments from Podolski could be viewed either as unhelpful, or as confidence in his ability to improve things for the Gunners. Speaking about it publicly could be viewed a desperate attempt to win a starting place in his favoured position as a central striker. However, it remains unlikely his manager will see it as favourably, and will probably not enjoy having his selection policy questioned publicly.

It all depends on how well the side is doing when it comes to judging if comments such as those made by Podolski are helpful to the cause. If the team is playing well and getting results, you do not want comments such as these as they can prove distracting to the team ethic. As in Podolski’s case, with Arsenal struggling for results, he perhaps feels he cannot benefit the team fully being deployed as a square peg in a round hole.

There are still those however who play where they are told with minimum fuss and fully for the benefit of the side. A perfect example of this is former Liverpool forward Dirk Kuyt, a man bought in as a striker but who was constantly deployed on the right wing for the duration of his spell at Anfield.

His former manager Rafael Benitez was not known for ever giving out individual praise during his time in the Anfield hot seat. However upon the news Kuyt would be leaving Liverpool for Fernabache in the summer, Benitez offered a glowing recommendation of the man he described as an “excellent professional.”

“I don’t know of many players who have played for the Liverpool shirt like he did from the day he arrived to the last second he played for that red shirt,” Benitez said.

“Never, not once, did he complain about having to play in a different role or out of position to help the cause. Not everyone can say the same. He was always the first to train, to improve, to progress and to set an example, he was a true team mate in all senses of the word on the pitch and a model human being off it.”

High praise indeed for a man who was often criticised for his lack of goals in the Premier League, with many overlooking the many aspects of his play that proved so crucial for Liverpool in their success under Benitez. He proved to be one of the most used and important players of the Benitez era. But again, Kuyt was unlikely to complain about being stuck out wide, with his side winning more often than not, and a certain Fernando Torres firing in the goals up top.

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In my opinion, if Podolski feels he can help the team by playing as a central striker, he should not have said so publicly as it undermines the manager. It may be an attempt to cover his back for his poor performances of late, and you can feel a certain degree of sympathy for him in that case.

But with all the problems going on at Arsenal currently, and the unrest felt by supporters, comments that could be seen to be undermining the manager would have been well advised to have been kept private.

While feeling frustrated, Podolski would do well to remember how quickly everything can change in football. A goal and a win for Arsenal this weekend, will make everything appear rosy once more.

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Top 15 players whose presence ‘simply unsettles’ their team-mates

Every team has a player who makes the fans, the manager and his team-mates very nervous. This could be for many reasons – a lack of talent, a proneness to errors, off-pitch behaviour or simply the prospect they could lose their heads at any moment. Their individual flaws tend to work to the team’s detriment, often throwing away results or causing rifts amongst the dressing room – sometimes with hilarious consequences.

This is a list of the Top 15 Premier League players, past and present, whose presence alone unsettles the rest of their team, with full details of why their team-mates can never fully relax around them. So read on and check out the stroppy stars, aggressive argumentalists and dubious defenders that are a constant thorn in their own club’s side.

Click on William Gallas to unveil the 15

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Has the West Brom bubble burst?

West Brom have been the surprise package in the early stages of this season so far, shooting up as high as fourth place in the league under new manager Steve Clarke, but is their rise sustainable? And will they be able to recover from their mini-blip before their bubble bursts?

Firstly, let’s just state that the club is one of the best run in the entire division (with maybe only Swansea pipping them), from the scouting department, to technical director (outgoing to the FA) Dan Ashworth to former manager and now England head coach Roy Hodgson. After finishing tenth in the top flight last season with an energetic side, there were solid foundations to build upon, but nobody quite expected their start to the league this campaign.

Many, rather rashly, tipped the side to struggle under Clarke’s stewardship this season in what represents his first managerial role. Plenty of respected number two’s have stepped out of the shadows before only going on to fail in the big chair (Carlos Queiroz, Brian Kidd and Colin Harvey to name but a few), but it always seemed odd to tip West Brom to completely fall apart under any new boss, let alone consign them to the relegation scrapheap. Was there ever going to be less than three teams worse than the Baggies’ this term? Of course not, but the 49-year-old has far exceeded even his biggest supporters’ loftiest expectations.

The team currently sit in fifth place just behind Tottenham and three points ahead of their nearest challenger, Everton in sixth. During their climb up the table, which went unnoticed at first, they’ve claimed the scalps of Liverpool, Everton and Chelsea which is easier said than done. They’ve kept a respectable tally of four clean sheets, comparable with most sides in the division and only failed to trouble the scorers on two occasions, the same as both Manchester clubs.

Nevertheless, there are a few worrying signs that this brief soiree in the sun is not meant to last – they have kept just one of clean sheet (v Southampton) in their last 11 games across all competitions. They have have picked up only one point (v Tottenham) from a losing position all season and they have lost their last two games in a row against Swansea and Stoke.

Their strength at the moment is borne out of consistent team selection and getting the best out of a small squad. They are a counter-attacking side that knows their limitations in possession and tries to play it quickly and through the middle, with their power and urgency causing plenty of problems for the supposedly better teams in the league so far. They look hungry to succeed and they can play the nitty, gritty stuff aswell as a probing, threatening passing game and they have an end product.

However, when Clarke made six changes at the weekend, looking for a reaction the the poor performance away to Michael Laudrup’s side, it was clear that several players coming into the side looked a bit rusty. Such runs of form with only a thin squad are not made to last. It is possible to raise your game in certain weeks, but each and every week is going to prove testing.

They were helped in the summer by the fact that they didn’t lose any of their first-team regulars, while the acquisitions of Romelu Lukaku (on loan), Ben Foster (on a permanent deal) and Claudio Yacob have all been excellent and they have superb strength in depth up front in Odemwingie, Long and the aforementioned Belgium international, meaning they can rotate, as Clarke has done, to good effect.

The former Liverpool and Chelsea assistant boss sounded like he was trying to head off a slump in his press conference earlier this week before his side travel to Arsenal at the weekend, telling reporters: “I think the spirit at the club should be high at the moment and I said that to the players after the game on Saturday against Stoke. We were disappointed to lose but all I said was that they should be pleased with their efforts given where we are. If at this stage in the season you’d have said that we’d have 26 points and we’d be level on points with Chelsea and Tottenham, towards the top of the league, I would have grabbed that. I’ve tried to tell the players that we’re not in a bad place and we have to remain positive. There’s no way we can allow negative thoughts to come into our heads.”

To his credit, Clarke has consistently rejected any notion of getting carried away and you suspect that he knows that it will be extremely hard to keep them in the top six for the rest of the season, but he’ll be heartened to know that each defeat which has been hailed as their end of their run has prompted a response so far – after the 3-0 defeat at Craven Cottage to Fulham, they then beat Reading, QPR and drew with local rivals Aston Villa away from home, while after their narrow 2-1 loss at home to Manchester City which was then quickly followed by a 2-1 defeat to Newcastle saw them go on and win their next four on the trot.

As with all surprise packages, observers are simply waiting for the tipping point where they drop off and return to also-ran status; it happened with Newcastle last year, everyone kept waiting for them to relinquish a top six place and return to mid-table, the position many thought the newly-promoted side would occupy at the beginning of the season, but they just kept going.

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As the side heads into the festive period, they have been dealt a reasonably decent-looking run of fixtures – an out-of-form Arsenal away, West Ham at home, Norwich at home, strugglers QPR away before a tricky test awaits them at Old Trafford and they see in the new year at home to a Fulham side in free-fall.

It’s entirely conceivable to see them take around 10 points from a possible 18 during that sequence of games and you suspect that their season hinges on how they come through out of the end of it – will they stop the rot early, or has their blistering start merely been a blip? Intriguingly, it looks too close to call at the moment, but the lack of pressure or expectation surrounding the Hawthorns should stand them in good stead to keep progressing as the campaign goes on and they look certain to improve on last season’s points total and league finish at the very least.

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Is Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain proving an even bigger conundrum?

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain should never have gone to the Euros and he shouldn’t be considered for any England matches in the coming months. The reported wages he’s currently on at Arsenal is undeserving and the club and the FA would have done well to completely protect him from the demand from fans to see something bright and exciting.

The player set the benchmark incredibly high for himself following the performance against Manchester United last Premier League season and the wonderful display against AC Milan. But that should have been it. No trip to Euro 2012 before he was ready and no pay hike that dwarfs a huge number of veterans across Europe.

Forget the criticism of Arsenal’s wage structure for a moment, this is once again about a player who could fall into a trap of failing to live up to the hype of a nation.

At the time it was frustrating for Arsenal fans, but maybe Arsene Wenger was spot on to hook him during that game against Manchester United. He knows what he’s doing but unfortunately the player’s development and first season with the club coincided with the then worst season under the Frenchman’s reign.

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Wenger says Oxlade-Chamberlain can play centrally as well as from the wings, but what we’re seeing isn’t anything new. The player has performed well on one or two occasions from the wide position, but largely he’s been disappointing. But is that the way we should be looking at it? A 19-year-old who is disappointing compared to what? A full England international on huge wages and a regular member of the first team?

Oxlade-Chamberlain will continue his education out on the wing because it’s the right thing to do; not because he can’t play centrally and make an impact, but who would he displace over the three starters in the midfield? He may be called upon when circumstances force the manager to do so, but his pace and direct play is a benefit to Arsenal where he currently plays.

But the issue isn’t where Oxlade-Chamberlain plays for Arsenal: we’ve seen it with Theo Walcott, Nicklas Bendtner, Carlos Vela and many others. The problem is that the player’s development may be hindered by the demand for much more. He’s clearly not ready to perform every week at the highest level, and his display against Wigan on the weekend was arguably his best performance since the away win at Liverpool at the start of the season.

He’s undoubtedly a player who is a better choice on the flanks than some of Wenger’s other options, but that is once again a debate about the manager’s activity in the transfer market. He was always after Oxlade-Chamberlain with the view for the long-term, while I’m totally confident that the manager had no intention of giving the player his debut in that 8-2 humiliation at Old Trafford.

It will be the same with Wilfried Zaha if Wenger gets his target in the next window, and once again it will provide plenty of demand from fans to see a new signing who has been hyped to the hill and back. It’s not the way football should be in this country, but Wenger has had to deal with the need to accelerate a player’s development.

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Cesc Fabregas was a one-off, a superstar at 19 who could have controlled the midfield of any team in world football. Jack Wilshere is another and may go on to have the same impact at Arsenal that Fabregas did. But Oxlade-Chamberlain is just a youngster who happens to be one of the top of his class. He’s ready for one step forward, not five at a time.

It’s easy to overanalyse the player’s contributions on the pitch following his past 12 months, but it would have been so much easier if the player had just been left alone to quietly get on with his game.

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Demba Ba set to reject transfer move

Newcastle United striker Demba Ba is set to reject a move to Queens Park Rangers in January according to The Sun.

The Toon hitman is still set to leave the North East in the new year but West London will not be his new home after rejecting a contract offer of £80,000 a week.

Rangers are continuing to spend big in order to establish themselves as a Premier League club but it seems they haven’t learnt from previous mistakes of the likes of Leeds United, Southampton and Portsmouth when it comes to wages.

Scoring goals has certainly been an issue for the side that Harry Redknapp has taken over and despite their first win of the season last week they still sit precariously in the bottom three.

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Ba is available to leave Newcastle if a bid of £7.5million or more is placed, due to a clause in his contract, and it is expected that clubs will act in January.

A sign of transfers to come at Tottenham?

The streets of North London have always harboured an abundance of pessimism toward their football clubs, but while Arsenal slip further away from their title-chasing ambitions, there are plenty of reasons for a spot of New Year cheer at White Hart Lane.

The decision to replace loveable rogue Harry Redknapp with failed adolescent Andre Villas-Boas left many with an overwhelming sense of dread. A number of media personnel appeared desperate to help orchestrate another downfall, fuelled by an unconvincing start to the season that had some fans reaching for the panic button.

However, this is not the same manager that was seen cowering on the touchline at Stamford Bridge, having instead instilled a sense of balance and rhythm into a side that was once constantly threatened by tactical naivety. As the January transfer window gathers pace, the club find themselves in a similar position to last year, confident in their ability to stay there.

The announcement of Lewis Holtby’s arrival is the latest talented individual set to swap the Bundesliga for the Premier League. It also represents a potential milestone with Spurs fending off the interest of several parties to secure his signature. Does this mean the club are now an attractive and realistic option for the world’s most promising players? Is this the first of many renowned faces destined for the Lane?

It’s difficult to believe that just five years ago Spurs splurged £35m on the look-away-now trio of David Bentley, Roman Pavlyuchenko and Wilson Palacios. But, like any good businessman, chairman Daniel Levy has learned from his mistakes and last summer completed the shrewd captures of Moussa Dembele, Jan Vertonghen and Clint Dempsey.

There was a whiff of déjà vu when the club were lured into the misleading euphoria surrounding Gylfi Sigurdsson, but at just 23 years of age this gamble may still bear fruit in years to come. At present, the tabloid gossip columns are filled with a distinctly superior calibre of names and the purchase of Willian, Leandro Damiao or Younes Belhanda would certainly deliver a formidable sign of intent.

Joao Moutinho is perhaps the most important prospective new signing, in terms of replacing the methodical brilliance of Luka Modric and issuing a prominent gesture of support for Villas-Boas. However, the Portuguese playmaker’s decision is likely to rest solely on the likelihood of obtaining Champions League football next season, which places a fierce onus on the team to achieve another top four finish.

In short, Champions League qualification is essential in completing this transitional phase. It will help distinguish the club from the likes of Everton, Newcastle and even Liverpool as they attempt to make their transfer stall the most appealing in the market. A place in the top four will also surely come at the expense of Arsenal and that alone should provide the greatest incentive of all.

Despite a two-year absence from what is now the most infamous competition in football, the club is still a desirable destination for those looking to resurrect their career as well as build upon it. Both Rafael van der Vaart and Emmanuel Adebayor discovered a platform to reinvent themselves after growing stale from big money moves and while the likes of Dimitar Berbatov and Luka Modric effectively used the club as a stepping-stone, their resulting struggles perhaps indicate the grass isn’t always greener away from the Lane.

Before my promising foresight reaches a state of delirium, it’s worth highlighting the worrying lack of experience that currently resides in the playing squad. Brad Friedel has been ushered away from first-team duty and Scott Parker is still plodding along on the road to recovery, which means many are looking at William Gallas for a sense of leadership and unwavering strength. Hardly reassuring is it?

I haven’t even mentioned the departure of Mr Tottenham himself Ledley King, a talisman the club will perhaps never be able to effectively replace at the heart of the club. It’s not as if there are plenty of candidates waiting in line, especially considering Villas-Boas apparent disdain for the veteran members of his team.

There is a strange and yet somewhat unsurprising feeling among supporters that both manager and chairman are satisfied with the strength of their squad. Perhaps those fears will be allayed by the statistic that Spurs are the third highest spenders in January (£91m) since the transfer window came into force. This is undoubtedly a result of the club trying to revive their ailing fortunes in previous seasons and while this is no longer the case, there will be an even greater desire to cement their position at the summit of the league.

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Former Tottenham director of football Damien Comolli has insisted there will be plenty of opportunities to conduct exciting business this month.

“I’ve never seen a seller’s market as it is now – you’ve got sides in Europe who are ready to write off their seasons and clear their wage bills. They are literally saying, ‘everybody is for sale’.” (BBC)

And when there is a sale on, who better to have at your disposal than Daniel ‘The Bargain Hunter’ Levy?

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5 games where fans made a big difference in this year’s Capital One Cup

This year we have witnessed an historic Capital One Cup competition, with shocks occurring throughout all stages of the competition. It’s been a season of rekindling the romance of domestic cup football, particularly with the ascendancy of Bradford City, who claimed three Premier League scalps on their climb to the final at Wembley. A true year of surprises, the fans have played a huge part in making this year’s competition one for the history books.

Swindon travelled to the Britannia and emerged victorious over Stoke, Leeds fought hard for an epic win over Premier League side Everton, and, most fantastical of all, the Bantams of League 2, Bradford City battled to consecutive victories over Premier League teams Wigan, Arsenal and Aston Villa to book their place in the final. The fans have been vital in turning this year’s competition into a classic – so here are five games where the fans really made a difference.

Click on the Bradford City fan favourite Nahki Wells to start the full countdown!

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