Crystal Palace Football Club Squad List - as at February 2014

February 6, 2014, 4:08 pm

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Goalkeepers:

#1.Julian Speroni - Age 34 - Date Signed: 12 Jul, 2004.
#25.Neil Alexander - Age 35 - Date Signed 15 Aug, 2013.
#26.Wayne Hennessey - Age 27 - Date Signed: 31 Jan, 2014.

Defenders:

#2.Joel Ward - Age 24 - Date Signed: 30 May, 2012.
#3.Adrian Mariappa - Age 27 - Date Signed: 03 Sept, 2013.
#4.Jonathan Parr - Age 25 - Date Signed: 16 Jul, 2011.
#5.Patrick McCarthy - Age 30 - Date Signed: 12 Jun, 2008.
#6.Scott Dann - Age 26 - Date Signed: 31 Jan 2014.
#19.Danny Gabbidon - Age 34 - Date Signed 16 Sep, 2012.
#21.Dean Moxey - Age 28 - Date Signed: 31 Jan, 2011.
#27.Damien Delaney - Age 32 - Date Signed: 31 Aug, 2012.

Midfielders:

#7.Yannick Bolasie - Age 24 - Date Signed: 24 Aug, 2012.
#8.Kagisho Dikachoi - Age 29 - Date Signed: 04 Jul, 2011.
#11.Tom Ince - Age 22 - Date Signed: 31 Jan, 2014 (Signed on loan from Blackpool for the rest of the season).
#12.Stuart O'Keefe - Age 22 - Date Signed: 18 Aug, 2010.
#13.Jason Puncheon - Age 27 - Date Signed: 31 Jan, 2014.
#14.Jerome Thomas - Age 30 - Date Signed: 01 Jul, 2013.
#15.Mile Jedinak - Age 29 - Date Signed: 11 Jul, 2011.
#20.Jonathan Williams - Age 20 - Date Signed: 01 Jul, 2011.
#28.Joe Ledley - Age 27 - Date Signed: 31 Jan 2014.
#44.Adlène Guedioura - Age 28 - Date Signed: 04 Sep, 2013.
#46.Barry Bannan - Age 24 - Date Signed: 02 Sep, 2013.

Strikers:

#16.Dwight Gayle - Age 23 - Date Signed: 03 Jul, 2013.
#17.Glenn Murray - Age 30 - Date Signed: 31 May, 2011.
#18.Aaron Wilbraham - Age 34 - Date Signed: 04 Jul, 2012.
#29.Marouane Chamakah - Age 30 - Date Signed: 12 Aug, 2013 (Signed on a 1 year deal from Arsenal).
#30.Cameron Jerome - Age 27 - Date Signed: 03 Sep, 2013 (Signed on a season long loan from Stoke City).


*This page will be updated accordingly in the event of any new loan signings.


Management Team:

Manager: Tony Pullis
Assistant Manager: Keith Millen
First Team Coach: Ben Garner
Technical Coach: David Kemp
Coach: Gerry Francis
Goalkeeping Coach: George Wood
Head of Sports Science & Strength and Conditioning: Scott Guyett
Strength & Conditioning Coach: Andy Page
Head Physiotherapist: Alex Manos
Assistant Physiotherapist/Under-21 Physiotherapist: John Stannard
Assistant First Team Physiotherapist: Matthew Roberts
Rehabilitation Coach: Joe Best
Masseurs: Ian Evans and Chris Swallows
Kit Manager: Brian Rogers
Assistant Kit Manager: Danny Young
Club Doctor: Bill Jasper

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Eight Shades of Grey - Why the Ferguson to Moyes transition has faltered!

February 14, 2014, 9:31 am

≫ Next: Shock Results in UEFA Champions League History

≪ Previous: Crystal Palace Football Club Squad List - as at February 2014

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1st shade: Sir Alex Ferguson’s decision to personally recommend David Moyes as the new manager to replace him was a mistake. Instead of hiring someone who had a better or different skill set, Ferguson selected a fellow Scot with a fiery temper. Both men were brought up in the same area of Scotland - Glasgow, and had a mutual respect and understanding of each other. By recommending Moyes for the job, Ferguson selected someone that was his safest bet.

  

Men in the Mirror - Ferguson and Moyes

2nd shade: By letting Manchester United coaches Rene Meulensteen, Mike Phelan and Eric Steele leave United, against Sir Alex Ferguson’s advice, Moyes brought in his own Everton coaching staff including Jimmy Lumsden, Steve Round, Phil Neville and Chris Woods. Manchester United had no comfortable transition from one manager to the next. All of the expertise and inside knowledge of Meulensteen, Phelan and Steele was irreplaceable. Due to Moyes's overconfidence in his own ability, Ferguson’s legacy and system were destroyed in one fell swoop!

Moyes could still have brought in Lumsden, Round and his fellow coaches from Everton without immediately getting rid of the previous coaches. They could have worked in an advisory capacity or alongside them for several months. This would have enabled Moyes and his own backroom team to get a true understanding and inside knowledge of what made United tick so successfully!


3rd shade: Despite winning the 2012/13 Premier League title, Sir Alex Ferguson had covered over the weakness of the team for the past two to three years. Instead of pressurising the owners to bring in more talented players, Ferguson used all of his experience and man-management skills to get the most out of his ageing squad, without spending extortionate amounts of money in the transfer market. Ferguson brought players back from retirement or who were on their last legs to fill holes in his side. Paul Scholes and Henrik Larsson are just two examples. The reality is that Ferguson handed Moyes a side that was in much need of rebuilding.

                                              Larsson and Scholes - 'The Comeback Kings!'

4th shade: After the news came that David Moyes was going to become the Manchester United manager before the 2012/13 Premier League season had even ended, Moyes had to somewhat awkwardly continue on as Everton boss until the season came to an end on 12th May, before he could settle into the Old Trafford hot seat.

Instead of using this valuable time to focus on the summer transfer market, Moyes instead chose to head off on vacation and only returned to Manchester United on 1st July. Moyes in hindsight may have regretted the timing of his family vacation, given that the first United friendly of the summer was in Thailand less than two weeks later. As a result this did not give him much time to concentrate on securing those much needed new signings.


5th shade The summer transfer window of 2013 was a crucial period for United to strengthen in key positions. Unfortunately for United, chief executive David Gill left the club at the same time as Sir Alex. His replacement, Ed Woodward, who had a background in accounting, was not active enough to make the transfer signings that the club so desperately needed. Instead, Manchester United made a 'panic buy' on transfer deadline day, spending £27.5 million on Marouane Fellaini, when United could have signed him for £4 million less just weeks beforehand.

In addition, United failed to sign midfielder Ander Herrera from Athletic Bilbao or Fellaini's former Everton team mate Leighton Baines. Central midfield and left-back were key positions that United desperately needed to strengthen so in last summer's transfer window Manchester United failed to resolve the areas of the squad that needed to be reinforced the most — a creative midfielder alongside quality defensive cover.


6th shade: Every single time Manchester United lose, draw or put in a poor performance, the camera zooms in to catch Ferguson’s reaction immediately after the referee blows the full-time whistle. As long as Ferguson is in the stadium, the focus will be on Ferguson, and how Moyes is not performing at the same level as his predecessor. The sooner Ferguson finds a new Saturday afternoon hobby or watches matches in the comfort of his own home, the better it will be for the current boss. Ferguson by being in the stands is not helping Moyes or Manchester United one iota.

                                    Sir Alex Ferguson looks on from the Old Trafford stands

7th shade: While much has been said of Manchester United no longer being a team to fear at Old Trafford, I'd argue that the problem is more severe. The main concern is not that teams no longer fear United, but that Manchester United players no longer fear the manager, or give him the respect he deserves.

While it’s difficult to know for sure what’s happening inside Old Trafford, the body language and reaction of the Manchester United footballers now that Ferguson has gone has altered dramatically. The players look as if they do not fear Moyes in the same way as they did Ferguson. Granted Ferguson is a United legend who spent 27 years at the Club and Moyes has only had his feet under the table for just nine months, but we have already seen instances of improper player conduct since his arrival.

"Roberto this is Marouane, can I come back to Everton?"

We have witnessed former captain Rio Ferdinand laughing behind Moyes’s back during a game, and going public to share his frustration with Moyes’s methods and Marouane Fellaini on his mobile phone texting, while sitting in the stands at Old Trafford.
These are instances that Sir Alex Ferguson would have not tolerated. But more importantly, these are instances whereby the players would have never acted in this manner in the first place if Ferguson was still in charge.


8th shade: One of David Moyes' most mystifying stances since taking over as Manchester United manager continues to be his handling of Wilfried Zaha. Let's not forget that Manchester United paid £10 million up front to Crystal Palace this time last year to acquire Zaha and could pay an additional £5 million if certain clauses are met. That's a fairly significant sum to spend on a player only to sit him on the bench each and every week. It's almost as if Moyes is trying to stamp his authority on the club by 'making an example' of one of Sir Alex Ferguson's last signings. That way, nobody questions who's running Manchester United.
There was talk about Zaha dating Moyes' daughter Lauren, but that seemed to be a more fanciful suggestion for why he wasn't getting in the first team.

Wilf Zaha - Serial bench warmer under David Moyes

The argument could be made that he lacks the experience to start regularly for a team you would normally expect to be vying for a top-four spot in the Premier League, yet his current club isn't willing to let him gain that experience. If this is Moyes' viewpoint, it would seem extremely hypocritical. It's not as if Adnan Januzaj had a wealth of experience before breaking into the first team. What's the excuse for not playing Zaha?

What's worse is that Ashley Young and Nani have both been far from impressive this season. Nani is his usual hot-and-cold self, when he can actually get on the pitch and Young has turned into a shell of his former self.
Zaha is clearly a talented player, and impressed during United's pre-season tour of Asia, but you'd never guess as much by looking at his Manchester United career statistics.

Unsurprisingly Moyes allowed Zaha to move to Cardiff City on loan in January for the remainder of the season. At least he is getting some Premier League game time under his belt at the Welsh club.

Shock Results in UEFA Champions League History

February 25, 2014, 5:04 am

≫ Next: Babe of the Month - Anouk Hoogendijk. Putting the 'sexy' back into Dutch football.

≪ Previous: Eight Shades of Grey - Why the Ferguson to Moyes transition has faltered!

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Over the next few weeks the outcome of this season's UEFA Champions League round of 16 knockout stage will be decided, and just eight teams will be left to fight it out for Europe's most sought after club trophy. The last 16 teams are a mixture of some of Europe's most glamorous sides steeped in illustrious history and others less so, with many looking to overcome the odds in the hopes of claiming a quarter-final berth and ultimately reaching this years final, to be played at the Estádio do Sport Lisboa in Lisbon on 24th May.
Over the years there have been plenty of shock results at all different stages in the competition. Here are a selection of some of those incredible upsets!


Helsingborgs 1 Inter Milan 0  (Champions League 1st Leg, 3rd Qualifying Round 2000/2001) 

Helsingborgs are remembered by Inter Milan fans as the club that caused them one of the greatest shock Champions League results in the club's history. Club President Massimo Morrati had spent heavily over the summer to add Republic of Ireland striker Robbie Keane to an already star studded squad which included Brazilian magician Ronaldo and Marcello Lippi’s men were not expected to encounter any difficulties in progressing to the group stages. However, a 1-0 home victory and a stupendous goal keeping display by Sven Andersson meant Swede dreams for the Scandinavians as they qualified for the group stages for the first time in their history.


Chelsea 1 FC Basel 2  (Champions League Group Stage - 2013/2014)

Chelsea suffered a shock defeat in the first Champions League game of Jose Mourinho’s second spell with the club, after Basel came from behind to win 2-1 at Stamford Bridge.
Oscar gave Chelsea the lead on the stroke of half time, but gainst the run of play, Mohamad Salah levelled things up in the 71st minute and then Basel sealed a shock win with eight minutes left of normal time remaining, when Cech failed to keep out a header from Streller after the forward had managed to lose his marker inside the Chelsea penalty area. The shock loss came exactly six years after Mourinho took charge of the final match of his first Blues spell, a 1-1 draw against Norwegian side Rosenborg.


Artmedia Bratislava 5 Celtic 0  (Champions League 1st leg, 2nd Qualifying Round 2005/2006)

Described by Gordon Strachan as "out-and-out the worst football night" he had ever experienced, Celtic’s unexpected 5-0 drubbing at the hands of Slovakian Champions Artmedia Bratislava was the Glasgow giants' most embarrassing and biggest ever defeat in Europe. Prior to the game, Celtic, winners of the European Cup in 1967, had been favourites to progress from the tie, especially as no team in Slovakian history had ever made it as far as the third round preliminary stage. However, an incompetent display by the Hoops’ defence saw them concede four second half goals, including a Juraj Halenar hat-trick, ensuring that the men were well and truly separated from the Bhoys.
Celtic crashed out of the competition, despite a 4-0 home win in the return leg in Glasgow.


APOEL Nicosia 1-0 Lyon (agg: 1-1) APOEL win 4-3 on pens.
(Champions League 2nd leg, last 16 tie 2011/2112)

Trailing 1-0 after the first leg, one might have favoured Lyon, by far the more experienced of the two teams having just come off the back of an era of Ligue 1 dominance, to keep their cool and advance to the quarter-finals. A banner behind the goal Lyon were defending in the first period proclaimed 'Feel the terror of Nicosia' and within nine minutes Gustavo Manduca had belied the odds to level the aggregate score. Urged on by their passionate supporters, the hosts pushed for a second but neither they nor their opponents were able to find it. Eventually the duo would have to endure extra time and a penalty shootout, where spot-kicks from Ailton Jose Almeida, Nuno Morais, Nektarious Alexandrou and finally Ivan Trickovscki were enough to seal a 4-3 penalty victory and a historical Champions League upset by the Cypriots.


Real Madrid 0 Arsenal 1  (Champions League 1st leg, last 16 tie 2005/2006)

The Gunners were struggling in the league with their former captain Patrick Vieira having departed to Juventus and current club captain, Thierry Henry’s future in serious doubt. Arsenal went into the game missing senior players and injuries had decimated their defence so that an inexperienced back four including Emmanuel Eboue, Phillipe Senderos and Mathieu Flamini were left to face the likes of Madrid’s Zinedine Zidane, Robinho, Raul Gonzales, Ronaldo, David Beckham and Guti. No British team had ever won at the Bernabeau and Real had not lost at home in 18 Champions League games. The odds were stacked against Arsene Wenger’s young team, but to everyone’s amazement the Gunners took a deserved lead through a fantastic individual goal by Henry.
Incredibly, Arsenal would once again restrain Real's offensive powerhouses in the return leg at Highbury, their 1-0 aggregate triumph seeing the La Liga giants knocked out of the competition.


Deportivo La Coruna 4 AC Milan 0  (Champions League Quarter-Final, 2nd Leg, 2003/2004)

The 2003/2004 Champions League season proved to be remarkable for the number of extraordinary scorelines which transpired in the build up to an ultimately disappointing climax. None was more astonishing than that of the 2nd leg quarter-final between Deportivo La Coruna of Spain and the Italians from Milan, which saw the Spanish seasiders vanquish the six times European Champions and tournament favourites with a ruthless first half attacking display. 3-0 up by half time, Deportivo secured a 4-0 victory to miraculously overturn a three goal first leg deficit and become the first team in the 12 year history of the Champions league to do so, and against a Milan team who up until then had not conceded a European away goal.


NK Maribor 2 Lyon 0  (Champions League 2nd leg, 3rd Qualifying round 1999/2000)

Although not yet recognisable as the team of seven successive league titles and ever-presents in the Champions League, Lyon were still the team that had finished 3rd in the French Ligue 1 and they possessed the league’s top scorer in Brazilian Sonny Anderson. The Slovenian team had already caused a surprise in reaching this stage by beating Belgian team KRC Genk. It was an even bigger upset when they then dispatched the future French Champions by beating them in the 2nd leg to obtain an aggregate 3-0 victory and progress to the Champions League group stage for the first time in their history.


AS Monaco 3 Real Madrid 1  (Champions League Quarter-Final, 2nd leg 2003/2004)

Nine-time champions, Real Madrid had won the first leg 4-2 at the Bernabeau against an unfancied Monaco team. With one foot in the semi-final, Madrid took the French side far to lightly and paid the ultimate price!
Inspired by Ludovic Guily and former Madrid favourite Fernando Morientes, the Monegasques came back in sensational fashion with a 3-1 victory on the night against Los Galacticos, which sent them through to the semi-finals on away goals.
Monaco went on to reach the final in Gelsenkirchen, Germany before losing to Jose Mourinho's Porto side.


Inter Milan 1 Arsenal 5  (Champions League Group Stage - 2003/2004)

Once more Arsene Wenger’s men found themselves underachieving in European competition and under serious pressure to get a result in their penultimate group stage game to have any chance of progressing. Having earlier been humiliated at Highbury 3-0 by Inter Milan and having just managed to scrape past Dynamo Kiev 1-0, the odds were heavily stacked against the Gunners. As Arsenal entered the intimidating San Siro arena with the criticisms of the British media ringing in their ears and minus their injured captain, Patrick Vieira, there was no indication of what was to follow. A quite scintillating display by the North Londoners and a stunning individual performance from Thierry Henry saw the San Siro stunned into silence as the Gunners swept to an emphatic victory.


FC BATE Borisov 3 Bayern Munich 1  (Champions League Group Stage - 2012/2013)

BATE Borisov pulled off a huge Champions League shock, producing a classic display of counter attacking football to beat Bayern Munich 3-1 in Minsk in October 2012.
It was their first ever UEFA Champions League group stage home victory as Bayern's dream of a club-record tenth successive win at the start of a season floundered. Aleksandr Pavlov struck against the run of play midway through the first half, and while Viktor Goncharenko's side spent plenty of time manning the barricades thereafter, Vitali Rodionov doubled the lead on 78 minutes. Franck Ribéry pulled one back late on, but substitute Renan Bressan hit a third for BATE in added time for a famous victory.

Babe of the Month - Anouk Hoogendijk. Putting the 'sexy' back into Dutch football.

February 28, 2014, 4:03 pm

≫ Next: MY England Squad for the 2014 World Cup.......and why!

≪ Previous: Shock Results in UEFA Champions League History

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Anouk Anna Hoogendijk was born on 6th May 1985 in Woerden, Netherlands.

She is a Dutch female international footballer who can play at centre back or as a defensive midfielder.

Anouk joined FC Utrecht in 2007 after a spell training with SV Saestrum.
Hoogendijk realised her ambition of playing abroad when she signed an eight-month contract with English WSL (FA Women's Super League) club Bristol Academy in January 2011.

In February 2012 Hoogendijk returned to Utrecht, before moving on to newly formed AFC Ajax in May 2012. The transfer represented "a dream come true" for Hoogendijk as she had been a girlhood supporter of Ajax's male team. In January 2014, Hoogendijk signed for Arsenal Ladies (right) where she wears the number 6 shirt. The 28-year-old joined the Ladies' setup from Ajax and



and was the club's third defensive acquisition ahead of the 2014 campaign, following the signings of England captain Casey Stoney and goalkeeper Siobham Chamberlain.

Arsenal Ladies' general manager Vic Akers said on completing the signing of Hoogendijk :

"We are delighted to be welcoming Anouk to Arsenal Football Club. 
She's a top quality defender, who has proven herself on the international stage with Holland, in the Eredivisie with Ajax, and of course in the Super League with Bristol."

Anouk added: “I’m excited to be returning to England, and to have the chance to play for Arsenal Ladies. They are one of the leading women’s clubs in the game, with an amazing history, so it is a real privilege to have signed for them. I am looking forward to meeting my new team mates and preparing for the 2014 season.” 

On 6th August 2004 Hoogendijk debuted for the senior Netherlands women's national football team, as a half-time substitute in a 2–0 defeat to Japan in Zeist, Netherlands.

Hoogendijk played in every match as the Netherlands reached the semi-final of the UEFA Women's Euro 2009. In the quarter-final penalty shootout win over France, she struck the winning kick. The Netherlands were eventually knocked out of the tournament by England.

In June 2013 national team coach Roger Reijners selected Hoogendijk in the Netherlands squad for UEFA Women's Euros 2013 in Sweden, and to date Anouk has 94 international caps and eight international goals to her name.

You can follow Anouk on Twitter on Facebook and Instagram

MY England Squad for the 2014 World Cup.......and why!

March 7, 2014, 4:43 pm

≫ Next: A Satirical Look at the Works of AVB - Past and Present!

≪ Previous: Babe of the Month - Anouk Hoogendijk. Putting the 'sexy' back into Dutch football.

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With just 96 days to go until the 2014 World Cup Finals kick-off in Sao Paulo, England manager Roy Hodgson is expected to name his provisional 30-man squad - including seven standby players - in mid-May, shortly after the Premier League's conclusion.

The England boss is then scheduled to cut the list down to 23 for the start of June, two weeks before the tournament in Brazil gets under way.



Following this week’s unconvincing performance against a Denmark side that failed to qualify for the finals, the question on the lips of the nations football fans' is who will be selected to represent England at the greatest football show on earth. So what did we learn from Wednesday's narrow win over the Danes.
Not a lot to be fair, but three things in my opinion stood out!

Firstly Wayne Rooney and Daniel Sturridge (right) do not seem able to play together as a front two. To play together Sturridge needs to play as an out and out striker through the middle with Rooney playing behind him or in a deeper position either side. Either way they are both on the plane. Secondly Adam Lallana must go to Brazil and probably deserves a place in the starting XI and thirdly Luke Shaw is a precocious talent, but this tournament has come too soon for the Kingston upon Thames born Southampton youngster.

As fans we all have an opinion, and rightly so! Up and down the country there will be discussions in the workplace, down the pub, on social media sites, as well as an array of articles by numerous newspaper hacks trying to justify their reason as to who and why 'Woy' should choose certain players ahead of others to wear the 'Three Lions' shirt with its single gold star above the crest, dating back 48 years!

Wednesday nights friendly was the penultimate game for England on home soil before the tournament begins in earnest. Three more friendly games stand between now and our opening Group D fixture against Italy in Manaus on 14th June.

Peru are at Wembley at the end of May before the squad fly out to the USA for their final two friendlies in Miami on 4th June and 7th June. However by the time England take to the field at Wembley on the 30th May, Mr Hodgson will, baring injuries, have selected his final squad to take to Brazil.

England without a shadow of doubt need to go into this tournament with a blend of experience and youth. I think Roy should select only seven defenders, freeing up an extra space in midfield or in attack rather than go for cover in every position. In players like Chris Smalling and Phil Jones he has what I would describe as 'multi-functional players.' In otherwards players that may not be first-choice in certain positions, but should they be required they have enough ability to adequately step-in, in this case as potential cover at right-back and at centre-half, plus Jones also possesses enough competence to play in the defensive midfield role as well if necessary. That versatility is extremely useful, and I think that is why they should go to the tournament ahead of the likes of Joleon Lescott or Steven Caulker.

The centre-halves pick themselves in Gary Cahill (right) and Phil Jagielka. The full-back debate however is a tricky one. Kyle Walker and Glenn Johnson are not good enough to both warrant selection so I would go with the Liverpool man, based on experience, which is key in that area. Walker has more pace,and is particularly good at using that pace going forward, but the full-backs primary function; particularly in tournament football is to defend. Johnson shades it for me on that basis. This discussion also applies to the left-back berth.

Leighton Baines is the stand-out player in that position, but should he get injured 15 minutes into the opening game against the 'Azzurri' then the option is the experienced Ashley Cole (107 caps) or the new kid on the block in Luke Shaw (one cap). For me it has to be Cole, despite his age and lack of regular first team action this season for Chelsea.

Shaw is raw but I admit he looks the real deal and I have no doubt he will be first choice right-back at the 2016 European Championships. The 'no to Shaw' debate is sure to upset many, but if I throw the name Joel Ward into the mix you are left with a similar conundrum. The Crystal Palace right-back has arguably been the South London club's player of the season. Superb reader of the game, great ball winner, pacey and another player who loves to bomb forward. The boy has bags of ability but do I think he could cut it at the highest level in the biggest tournament in world football. Possibly, possibly not! Would I take the risk? No I wouldn't and Ward is 24 year-old and has been playing professional football since 2008. Shaw is only 18 and only turned pro in 2012.

Midfield is key! Adam Lallana's form is impossible to ignore and that means players like Michael Carrick and Tom Cleverley won't feature this Summer. I would also select Lallana ahead of Adam Johnson too. Granted Johnson has been in superb form in a struggling Sunderland side, but Lallana is a better player. Johnson drifts in and out of games, whereas Lallana always seems to want to take the game to the opposition. Lallana is also comfortable playing out wide or in a central position without it impeding his effectiveness as an attacking prowess.

Steven Gerrard has found a role for both club and country and that suits all concerned. Frank Lampard's experience is vital at a major tournament. At 35 he may struggle to get in the starting XI, but what a great player to have as cover or to bring on should the situation dictate. Not only an asset on the field but he would be invaluable to the youngsters in the squad in and around the training ground and the dressing room. Lampard is a born winner!

I would take Ross Barkley (right) as cover in central midfield, He is adept at playing in a deeper midfield role, should Gerrard or Jack Wilshere breakdown. Both are prone to knocks and niggling re-occurring injuries, so Barkley could feature prominently. I would choose Ross Barkley ahead of James Milner, who for me is far too conservative. I'd also go with Jordan Henderson, who is developing into an exciting young player. It's taken a while but he could be the surprise player in the England camp, as he finally fulfills the promise he showed during his time at Sunderland between 2009 and 2011. I think he is going to have a cracking end to the season at Liverpool — and I think he deserves his place as a squad member, although not necessarily as a starter.

Andros Townsend misses out this time because of his downturn in form and the emergency of others especially Raheem Sterling. England have a lot of players with pace but it’s what they do with the final ball that counts. Sterling has impressed me of late, after going through a poor spell around Christmas time.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (right) is also in my opinion a better option than Townsend. Fit again after a long-term injury he like Lallana is at home in central midfield or on the flanks. All are quick and direct but they can't all go!
Townsend however could yet still make it if he has a really decent end to the season at Spurs and depending on whether Hodgson takes 4 or 5 strikers.

Danny Welbeck's adaptability to the left flank is the reason I choose to go with five strikers, therefore broadening the attacking options, particularly when chasing a game. He can play wide left of a three, he works hard for the team and is good in the air. His club form may be a concern, but for his country he remains a real threat. defensively

Up front Jermaine Defoe is the best impact striker substitute we have, and although he has had little game time at Spurs this season, you always feel he is somebody who will get you a goal. His recent move to the MLS will have little or no bearing on his ability to score at a World Cup. Andy Carroll just gets the nod from me ahead of Rickie Lambert. He is an imposing figure and could be a nightmare for defenders. I like both Lambert and his Southampton team-mate Jay Rodriquez, but if Carroll stays fit and plays the final ten games of the season for West Ham I think he will go particularly as I believe he is rated highly by Hodgson.

As for the goalkeepers, Fraser Forster's displays for Celtic means he should get the nod ahead of Ben Foster and Jack Butland would be my third choice, as he is never going to see any action but should go in order to gain valuable tournament experience.

My England Squad for Brazil

1/ Joe Hart - Age 26

2/ Fraser Forster - Age 25  

3/ Jack Butland - Age 20

4/ Gary Cahill - Age 28

5/ Phil Jagielka -  Age 31

6/ Phil Jones - Age 22

7/ Chris Smalling - Age 24

8/ Leighton Baines - Age 29

9/ Ashley Cole - Age 33

10/ Glenn Johnson - Age 29

11/ Steven Gerrard - Age 33

12/ Frank Lampard - Age 35

13/ Jordan Henderson - Age 23

14/ Jack Wilshere - Age 22

15/ Ross Barkley - Age 20

16/ Adam Lallana - Age 25

17 /Raheem Sterling - Age 19

18/ Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - Age 20

19/ Wayne Rooney - Age 28

20/ Daniel Sturridge - Age 24

21/ Andy Carroll - Age 25

22/ Jermain Defoe - Age 31

23/ Danny Welbeck - Age 23

A Satirical Look at the Works of AVB - Past and Present!

March 18, 2014, 5:14 pm

≫ Next: All the latest transfer gossip across Europe!

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André Villas-Boas' managerial merry-go-round had temporarily ground to a halt, but don't worry people because my word the Lord loves a tryer, and yes AVB has managed quite literally to get himself re-ememployed after being presented with his most recent P45 only last December.

So as not to disappoint his 'fans' in Coimbra, Porto, West London and North London, and in order to give newspaper writers more column inches he continues to deliver an unrivaled rollercoaster of 'excitement' - this time by taking his mobile home and footballing managerial expertise to Russia. Following a three month sabbatical 'footballing giants'Zenit Saint Petersburg have unveiled AVB as their new manager in what will be the Portuguese's fifth managerial appointment at a fifth different club in as many years, and he is still only 36 years-old himself - quite an achievement!
As the song goes: "I get knocked down, but I get up again, you're never going to keep me down, pissing the night away, pissing the night away.......!"

André Villas-Boas spent eight months as manager of Académica de Coimbra from October 2009 to the Summer of 2010, then one year as manager of Porto where he was very successful, before resigning, and a further nine months as manager of Chelsea before being relieved of his managerial duties.

On 3rd July 2012, it was announced that Villas-Boas had been named as the new Tottenham Hotspur head coach. On 16th December 2013, after 17 months at Tottenham it was announced that Villas-Boas had left the club "by mutual consent" (in layman's terms, he resigned before being fired), and just yesterday he signed a two-year deal with Zenit Saint Petersburg, replacing the sacked, but wonderfully named Luciano Spalletti, who obviously felt that his Italian tenor voice would be appreciated more in a theatrical setting in the Provincia di Firenze than in the dugout at the Petrovsky Stadium in Northern Russia, located at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea.

André Villas-Boas footballing beliefs mean that in his opinion he has the knowledge to redesign a club structure from the top down, using a blueprint derived from footballing first principles. In London this was not possible as he failed to show enough respect for the parameters within which he was working. In a footballing sense, this meant he was intent on imposing a style of play that didn’t account for the strengths of weaknesses of the players at his disposal - 'the opposite of the point of tactics.'
The result was an ongoing montage of Jan Vertonghen and John Terry lying on their back somewhere near the halfway line as an opposition forward(s) raced clear to score.

He failed to appreciate the need to keep the media, fans, and players on side. It’s unfortunate that Chelsea’s players were so resistant to change, and that Spurs’s best striker was such a notoriously difficult character, whilst he was in charge at least. But dealing with these problems is a part of the hugely financially rewarding job.

Roman Abramovich paid Porto £13.3million in compensation in order to appoint Andre Villas-Boas as the man to succeed Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea.

Leaked: Terry's letter to Abramovich that got AVB sacked!

After his sacking Andre Villas-Boas said he was naïve to try and introduce a new style of play at Chelsea and spoke about how he "should have respected" English football culture after his arrival in the Premier League from Porto.
"Chelsea were a counter-culture team, constructing play from the goalkeeper onwards.
I should have respected that culture from the start. I thought it was possible to establish a different game pattern in a country with a radically different culture."
In otherwards he believed he new best and went into West London all guns blazing in an attempt to completely change a club, that ultimately only needed tinkering with. Did he have to remove his head before walking in and out of any doors or just widen them on his arrival at Stamford Bridge!
                              
At Tottenham his position became untenable not just because of a run of poor performances, which in part was due to his apathetic back-room staff, but AVB also demonstrated a streak of stubbornness that hindered him. His appalling eye for a picking a good player and thus blowing his Gareth Bale transfer budget on what can be best described as a bunch of insipid and at best pretty ordinary players was pivitol. But were they poor players or was he simply unable to manage and motivate them into a single and more effective cohesive unit - square pegs in round holes spring to mind!

Also his failure in controlling popular perceptions of him was central to a huge divide within the club and in particular among the fans. He seemed paranoid about an "agenda" against him by the media, which may have had a hint of truth given some of the things written about him. But he brought this cock and bull situation upon himself by continually sending out mixed messages through post-match conferences and confusing and conflicting interviews.
If the point of the media from a manager's perspective is to communicate his message with the fans, then it is unclear at what AVB was trying to achieve.

So AVB latest venture see's him try and revive the flagging fortunes of another wealthy club, who are having a poor season by their standards, but have a recent history of success. Zenit were the 2007, 2010 and 2011–12 champions of the Russian Premier League, runners-up in 2012-13 and the winners of both the 2007–08 UEFA Cup and the 2008 UEFA Super Cup.

Alexander Valeryevich Dyukov, the President of Zenit is also Chairman of the Management Board of Gazprom Neft, a subsidiary of Gazprom. Gasprom Neft are the fourth largest oil producer in Russia and are amongst one of the largest oil companies in the world by proven reserves.

On 1st January 2007 Gazprom also became the sponsor of the German Bundesliga club Schalke 04 paying up to €25 million a year for the privilege. On 23rd November 2009, the partnership was extended for a further 5 years. The sponsorship is worth $150m (USD) spread over the 5 years.

On 9th July 2010 Gazprom became sponsor of Serbian SuperLiga football club Red Star Belgrade.

On 9th July 2012 Gazprom became sponsor of UEFA Champions League and UEFA Super Cup for three season until 2015.

On 17th July 2012 Gazprom also became the official Global Energy partner of the UEFA Champions League 2012 winners Chelsea for three seasons, lasting until 2015.

According to the BBC: "Mr Villas-Boas will be presented in St Petersburg as Zenit's new head coach on 20th March 2014."

I don't know who has the harder job, Zenit or André Villas-Boas?
Time will tell!

All the latest transfer gossip across Europe!

March 27, 2014, 9:17 am

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With the football season entering the final stages of the current season both in England and abroad, and with the World Cup kicking-off in 77 days many clubs are looking ahead to the Summer for potential new signings, as well as the negotiation of new contracts, in order to strengthen their squads for next season. This is being done in many cases without the clubs knowing for sure what league division or competitions they will be playing in next season. Today (Thursday 27th March) is also the last day of the loan window for those clubs wishing to boost their squads now, in a final effort to end their season on a high!

Here is a round up of all the latest transfer gossip across Europe today!

Is your club involved?

Chelsea, Atletico Madrid, Southampton, Real Madrid, Manchester United, Fiorentina, Aston Villa, Porto, Zenit St Petersburg, Roma, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Benfica, Borussia Dortmund, Inter Milan, Liverpool, St-Etienne, PSG, Juventus, Everton, Dynamo Moscow, Spurs, West Ham, Arsenal, Wolfsburg, Lazio, Dinamo Zagreb, Barcelona, Hamburg, Stoke, Aston Villa, Fulham, Monaco, PSV, Freiburg, Bordeaux, Rennes, Southampton, Valencia, Ipswich, Deportivo La Coruna, Hertha Berlin, Nuremberg, Wigan, Bolton, Nottingham Forest, Leeds, Sheffield Wednesday, Sunderland, Crystal Palace, Colchester, Charlton, Watford, MK Dons and Hartlepool..............are all caught up in the latest transfer news/rumours across Europe, as we speak.


Chelsea are keen to sign Atletico Madrid's Spain international striker Diego Costa (right) 25, in a £40m summer deal - Daily Mail and The Sun

Chelsea are in pole position to sign Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa in a £40 million deal this summer. The buy-out clause of the Brazilian striker is about 38 million euros and Blues can offer in the trade also Fernando Torres- Daily Express

Southampton and England left-back Luke Shaw, 18, is a target for Real Madrid, who are confident of beating Chelsea and Manchester United to sign him - Daily Mirror

Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke's future won't be certain until after the World Cup, the 23-year-old Belgium international's agent has claimed - Daily Mirror and sportsmole.co.uk

Arsenal reportedly have no plans to offer midfielder Mikel Arteta a contract extension. The 32-year-old, who will only have one year remaining on his current deal at the end of the season, could be surplus to requirements at the Emirates Stadium - Goal.com.

Chelsea have stepped up their bid to convince Atletico Madrid's (on loan from Chelsea) Belgian international goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois (right) to sign a new contract and have met with his representatives for more talks - skysports.com

Manchester City are ready to make a move for Arsenal full-back Bacary Sagna. The French defender is set to become a free agent in the summer when his current contract with the Gunners expires - Daily Mirror

Porto are preparing for the imminent sale of 26 year-old defensive midfielder Fernando to Manchester City - Sport TV (Portugal)

Manchester United are reportedly planning to table a bid for Benfica defender Ezequiel Garay. United are thought to be aiming to agree a fee for the centre-back before this summer's World Cup finals, with Manchester City and Zenit St Petersburg also said to be monitoring the situation - The Mirror

Juventus' Chilean star Arturo Vidal (right) has again played down speculation linking him with a move away from the club, insisting he is happy in Turin. Vidal's future has been the subject of conjecture for some time with the likes of Manchester United, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich all credited with an interest in his services - skysports.com and sportinglife.com

Paris Saint-Germain are reportedly preparing to trigger 23 year-old AS Roma midfielder Miralem Pjanic's £29m release clause - Le 10 Sport (French sports newspaper)

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers may renew his interest in signing Barcelona full-back Martin Montoya after the Catalan club revealed a £16.5m release clause in his new contract - International Business Times and givemesport.com

Croatian Alen Halilovic (right) has agreed a switch from Dinamo Zagreb to Barcelona. The 17-year-old attacking midfielder will cost Barca an initial 2.2million euros (£1.8m) with add-ons depending on his achievements at the Nou Camp - transfermarketweb.com and skysports.com

Borussia Dortmund are pondering a move for Spurs defender Vlad Chiriches, 24, who is valued at £8m as Dortmund look to find a replacement for Mats Hummels - The Sun

Aston Villa have decided to prepare a new contract for forward Gabriel Agbonlahor. The 27-year-old only has one year remaining on his current deal. Villa are willing to hand Agbonlahor, who made his debut in 2006, a four-year contract when discussions begin in the summer.
The club are expected to be busy over the next few months, with reports suggesting that both Fabian Delph and Ron Vlaar could put pen to paper on new contracts - The Telegraph

Manchester United's Nani will move to Inter Milan on loan until the summer with an option for a permanent deal - O Jogo (Portuguese daily sport newspaper)

Tottenham are hopeful of beating Liverpool to the signing of exciting Lazio midfielder Ogenyi Onazi (right) at the end of the season - Metro

Chelsea's Demba Ba wants a summer move away from Stamford Bridge, with West Ham interested - Daily Mirror

Arsenal and Liverpool transfer target Jeremy Menez, 26, has hinted that he may join Juventus from Paris St-Germain this summer - L'Equipe (French daily newspaper)

Crystal Palace are weighing up whether to recall Welsh international Jonathan Williams (right) from his loan spell at Ipswich Town. Pulis revealed he watched the 20-year-old score Ipswich's opener during their 2-1 victory over Derby on Tuesday and was impressed - express.co.uk

St-Etienne's Kurt Zouma has decided to join Chelsea but probably only in the summer. However, both sides have still to find an agreement - L'Equipe (French daily newspaper)

Liverpool are eyeing a move for Dynamo Moscow's Hungarian winger Balazs Dzsudzsak in the summer but could face competition from Merseyside rivals Everton - Daily Express

Spurs, Arsenal and Hertha Berlin are all vying for the services of Nuremberg's Switzerland international striker Josip Drmic, 21 (right). The striker would reportedly cost around €5m - Talksport and Bild (German tabloid newspaper)

Tottenham are set to step up their interest in Manchester City defender Micah Richards, who is set to leave the Etihad this summer. There are also claims Liverpool could make a move for Richards amid uncertainty over Glen Johnson's future at Anfield - clubcall.com

Stoke City are keen to sign Wolfsburg's 34-year-old Croatian striker Ivican Olic but could face competition from German club Hamburg - Bild (German tabloid newspaper)

Freiburg defender Fallou Diagne (right) says that clubs from across Europe have expressed an interest in acquiring his services. He claims the likes of Aston Villa, Fulham, Borussia Dortmund, Bordeaux and Rennes are all chasing his signature, and he will make a decision on his future when the summer transfer window opens - Radio station RFM (Bordeaux radio) and The Sun

Juventus are close to signing Dani Osvaldo from Southampton but Valencia are also interested - Gazzetta Dello Sport (Italian sports newspaper)and Corriere Dello Sport (Italian sports newspaper)

20 year-old center back Pablo Insua has extended his deal with Deportivo La Coruna until June 2018 - transfermarketweb.com

Guly do Prado, Jonathan Forte and Lee Barnard look increasingly likely to leave Southampton this summer - The Daily Echo

Ryan Bertrand says he'd be more than happy to consider making his loan move from Chelsea to Aston Villa permanent in the summer - Birmingham Mail

Josh McEachran (right) insists he is loving life at Wigan and would consider a permanent move from Chelsea in the summer - Fulham Chronicle

Monaco boss Claudio Ranieri has said that he feels on-loan Fulham striker Dimitar Berbatov wants to stay at the club past the end of the season - L'Equipe (French daily newspaper)

Fulham's Costa Rican international Bryan Ruiz, who has been on loan at Dutch side PSV Eindhoven since January admits he is unsure as to whether he will return to West London at the end of the season - Nieuwsblad (Belguim newspaper)

Nottingham Forest have confirmed the on-off loan signing of Lee Peltier (right) from Leeds United until the end of the season - sportinglife.com and seatpitch.co.uk

Bolton have signed 21 year-old midfielder Andy Robinson on loan from Southampton for the remainder of the season - skysports.com and BBCSport

Sheffield Wednesday boss Stuart Gray has refused to rule out a summer move for Sunderland striker Connor Wickham, 20, who played on loan for the Owls earlier this season - Sheffield Star

Crystal Palace defender Alex Wynter is set to join Colchester today on loan - skysports.com

Arsenal are keeping a close watch on Charlton's Jordan Cousins - but his only focus is on helping the Addicks avoid the drop - London Evening Standard

Charlton have signed Italian midfielder Davide Petrucci, (right), 22 on loan from Manchester United until the end of the season - South London Press and skysports.com

Watford defender Lloyd Doyley has penned a 12-month extension to his contract at Vicarage Road and The Hornets have also drafted in former Manchester City and Liverpool winger Albert Riera on a short-term deal - skysports.com

Everton youngster Matthew Kennedy has joined MK Dons on a youth loan until the end of the season - transfermarketweb.com

Hartlepool boss Colin Cooper has completed a double swoop by landing Sunderland duo Scott Harrison and Connor Oliver both 20,on loan until the end of the season - skysports.com

Babe of the Month - Surf Bunny Alana Blanchard

March 31, 2014, 4:27 pm

≫ Next: Greatest Club Dynasties in European History

≪ Previous: All the latest transfer gossip across Europe!

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Alana Rene Blanchard was born 5th March 1990 in Kauai, Hawaii, United States of America and is an American professional surfer and occasional bikini model. Alana, 5ft 8ins surfs on the ASP World Tour and her career earnings to date are $153,825.
Alana is sponsered by Rip Curl, GoPro, Reef, Spy, Channel Islands, Futures, Rockstar and is involved in designing Rip Curl bikinis. She is best friends with fellow surfer Bethany Hamilton, and was present when Hamilton suffered the shark attack that cost her an arm in October 2003.
Alana was played by actress Lorraine Nicholson, daughter of actor Jack Nicholson in the 2011 film Soul Surfer.
Alana currently has her own show, 'Surfer Girl' by Network A, which follows her life in Kauai as a professional surfer and model.

You can follow Alana on:Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tunblr

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Greatest Club Dynasties in European History

April 15, 2014, 3:24 am

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Every once in a while a special football team comes along which stands out from the rest. Currently, in the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) one could argue it’s Bayern Munich of the Bundesliga. In the past, others have included: The 1991-1992 AC Milan side that went 58 matches unbeaten in Serie A, The ‘Invincibles’ of Arsenal who went 49 games unbeaten and won the 2003-2004 Premier League, the treble winning Manchester United team of 1999 and the treble winning Barcelona team from 2009. These were all great teams and great seasons, but by themselves do not constitute a sports dynasty.

Judging the ‘greatness’ of a club can be a very subjective issue. In the case of the clubs listed here, European success is the primary measurement of a team’s dominance. That said, domestic success, consecutive titles and the duration of the ‘dynasty’ also factor into how a club is ranked and can help break any ties between teams.

Here are a list of some of the greatest football club dynasties to have existed in Europe over the last sixty years:

Bayern Munich 1974-1976


While the current Bayern Munich side look like they are on their way to building a new dynasty, it was the team of the mid-1970s that made the headlines. Coached by Udo Lattek and Dettmar Cramer, Bayern picked up where the great Ajax team of the early 1970s had left off. The squad contained many German International players, notably sweeper Franz Beckenbauer, defender Paul Breitner, strikers Gerd Müller and Uli Hoeness and goalkeeper Sepp Maier. Unlike the other teams on this list, domestically, Bayern Munich were not overly successful during their dynasty period, winning only a single League title. What more than makes up for this are the three consecutive European Cups the club won from 1974 to 1976, beating Atlético Madrid, Leeds United and Saint-Étienne respectively in the Finals. A fifth trophy was added when they won the Intercontinental Cup in 1976. That 1970's generation instilled the winning mentality subsequent squads have aspired to, more often than not with success, and which is once again a trademark of the Bayern squad of the last few years.

  Gerd Müller and Paul Breitner celebrating in 1974

Barcelona 2006-2011

The most current dynasty on this list, Barcelona have become synonymous with European success. The Catalan side enjoyed a period of domestic and European dominance from 2006 to 2011. Coached by Frank Rijkaard and Pep Guardiola, Barcelona claimed four league titles, five domestic cups, five European titles – including three Champions league titles, beating Arsenal and Manchester United twice in the finals – and two FIFA World Club Cups. Both Rijkaard and Guardiola encouraged a free-flowing, attack oriented strategy and the players helping Barca rise to prominence in this period included the likes of Ronaldinho, Lionel Messi, Xavi, Andrés Iniesta, Samuel Eto’o, Victor Valdes, Gerard Pique, Danni Alves and Carles Puyol.


AC Milan 1988-1994

This Milan dynasty is well known for two reasons; excellent defense and the influence of a Dutch trio of players. Milan’s manager, Arrigo Sacchi, introduced the pressing game to soccer. This defensive method required a team to always attack the ball carrier, challenging the opposition and leaving little room for the opposition player to dribble or pass. This tactic could make it difficult to move the ball upfield and often led to turnovers which were exploited by Sacchi’s team. The team contained the most impressive defence probably ever assembled, a hard-working midfield and flair players up front. The first team was raised to greatness by the trio of Dutchmen namely Frank Rijkaard, Ruud Gullit and Marco van Basten that had won the 1988 European Championships. By 1994 the team had changed in part, with other high profile signings replacing the original star players but with largely the same defensive foundation. They surpised critics by beating a brilliant Barcelona team 4-0 in the 1994 Champions League Final. Some of the other players to grace the Milan team of this era included: Paulo Maldini, Franco Baresi, Carlo Ancelotti, Alessandro Costacurta, Zvonimir Boban, Dejan Savićević, Demetrio Albertini and Marcel Desailly. With such weaponry at its disposal, this Milan dynasty claimed four league titles, four domestic cups, three European Cups/Champions League titles and two Intercontinental Cups.

                                    Marco van Basten, Frank Rijkaard and Ruud Gullit in 1989


Ajax 1970-1973

Much of today’s football would not be what it is without the great Ajax side of the early seventies. Coached by the legendary Rinus Michels, the Dutch team introduced the world to the concept of ‘Total Football.’ This revolutionary method of football saw players interchange positions and move around the field in a fluid and seamless manner. Michels left to coach the Dutch national team, where he used the same system and the same core players. His work at Ajax was carried on in 1971 by new manager Ștefan Kovács. Helping implement ‘Total Football’ on the field were players like defender Ruud Krol, midfielders Johan Neeskens and Arnold Mühren and legendary midfielder-forward Johan Cruyff. In the span of just a few years, this team and its philosophy dominated Holland and Europe by winning three league titles, three domestic cups, three consecutive European Cups, beating Panathinaikos, Inter Milan and Juventus in the finals, and one Intercontinental Cup. Success proved Ajax’s downfall as Cruyff and Kovács were lured away by Barcelona and the French National team, respectively, ending the dynasty in 1973. Ajax’s approach to football notably influenced teams like Bayern Munich, Arsenal and Barcelona. 

                                            Cruyff, 1972 European Cup Final in Rotterdam


Liverpool 1977-1985

It is difficult not to put Liverpool in top spot and they only missed out by a narrow margin. From the late seventies to the mid-eighties, Liverpool were a domestic and European powerhouse. Bob Paisley managed the club until 1983 when his assistant Joe Fagan took over. Under their leadership, Liverpool secured four European Cups in 1977, 1978, 1981 and 1984, six League titles and nine domestic cups and trophies. Of course, management alone can not take all the credit, as Liverpool also benefited from the skills of players like Ray Clemence, Alan Hansen, Phil Neal, Emlyn Hughes, Phil Thompson, Graeme Souness, Terry McDermott, Steve Heighway, Kenny Dalglish, Kevin Keegan and Ian Rush. Unfortunately, Liverpool’s dynasty came to a premature end with the Heysel Stadium disaster on 29th May, 1985. Following the death of 39 Juventus fans before the cup final, Liverpool supporters were blamed and UEFA banned all English clubs from European football indefinitely. In the 1991–92 season, Arsenal were the first team to represent England in the European Cup after English teams were allowed back in.


Real Madrid 1955-1960

The first true dynasty of the UEFA era, the Real Madrid team of the late 1950's was one of the best sides to ever take to the pitch. Although the club had a few managers during this period, the two most successful were José Villalonga, who remains to date the youngest coach to win the European Cup in 1956 aged just 36 and Miguel Muñoz, who won three European Cups as a Madrid player, captaining the side on two occasions, before managing them to European glory in 1960. Madrid's 1960 European Cup Final demolition of Eintracht Frankfurt was watched by a crowd of 127,621 at Hampden Park, and their 7-3 victory was considered by many to be one of the finest exhibitions of attacking football ever seen in Britain up to that point. The team of that era was blessed with an array of talent which included the likes of forwards Alfredo di Stéfano and Héctor Rial, midfielders Ferenc Puskás and Raymond Kopa, left-winger Francesco Gento, defenders Marcos Imaz and José Santamaría and goalkeeper Juan Alonso. Such talent has led many to believe that this was the first true Galáctico era in club history. Domestically, Madrid ‘only’ claimed three league titles during this dynasty. On the European stage, however, Los Blancos stood head and shoulders above everyone, winning five consecutive European Cups from 1956 to 1960. After 1960, Madrid’s European dominance faded. By the time another European Cup was won, in 1966, much of the side which had dominated in the late 1950's had been dismantled.

                            Real Madrid celebrate winning the 1956 European Cup Final in Paris

Biggest Upsets in European Cup/Champions League History

April 23, 2014, 8:22 am

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Footballing tournaments such as the World Cup, the European Championships and the UEFA Champions League, formely the European Cup always leave open a window of opportunity for improbable results to become possible. In the case of the Champions League/European Cup, it’s a much more unpredictable tournament than you might think, despite the best teams in the world squaring off against some of Europe’s minnows. However, results in this tournament have never been particularly cut and dry. In this list, I will be looking at some of the biggest upsets seen in the tournament’s history, both in its current and previous format

Some of these matches involved teams overcoming almost insurmountable deficits to progress to the next round, while other matches were Champions League finals that involved teams having to go to the penalty shootout to decide the winner – at least once after a thrilling lead was cancelled out by the time the 90 minutes were up.


Barcelona 0-0 Steaua Bucharest (Steaua Bucharest won 2-0 on penalties, European Cup Final, 1986)

Steaua became the first Eastern European side to win the European Cup in 1986, as they produced a remarkable victory over the Spanish La Liga champions Barcelona, who enjoyed tremendous support with the final being played in Seville. It is very unlikely that you will see a Romanian side win the biggest prize in European club football again.
Steaua Bucharest defeated the odds and a much stronger Barcelona side managed by Terry Venables. The game itself was dull, with the favourites doing all the attacking and the underdogs playing for penalties from the start.
The Romanian side benefited hugely from the heroics of goalkeeper Helmuth Duckadam, who followed keeping a clean sheet in the match, by going on to save all four of Barcelona's penalties to help win the cup, and a result he was known as the ‘Hero of Seville.’
Steaua, who had not previously triumphed in any European competition, went on to claim the Super Cup later that year, while they finished as runners-up to AC Milan in the European Cup in 1989.


Chelsea 4-1 Napoli (2nd leg, Champions League, round of 16, 2011/2012)

Under the brief management of Roberto Di Matteo, Chelsea’s hopes in the 2011-12 Champions League looked all but dashed against Napoli of the Serie A, after losing 3-1 to the Italian outfit in the first leg of the Round of 16. However, the second leg at Stamford Bridge would see a dramatically different outcome in favour of the Blues: Didier Drogba and John Terry opened the scoring at 2-0, though Chelsea were again in hot water when Gökhan Inler cut the deficit in half for Napoli in the 55th minute. Luckily for Chelsea, a Frank Lampard penalty and an extra time goal by Branislav Ivanović were enough to complete a dramatic comeback leading up to Chelsea’s eventual Champions League victory that season.


Barcelona 0-4 AC Milan (Champions League Final, 1994)

A final remembered not just for the surprising scoreline, but for the fantastic quality of an attacking master class by the Milanese. It was only two years earlier that Johan Cruyff’s Barcelona had won the European Cup at Wembley and defenses in La Liga and Europe continued to be terrorized by a lineup boasting players including Romario, Ronald Koeman, Michael Laudrup and Hristo Stoichkov. Milan went into the game in Athens minus suspended defenders Franco Baresi and Bruno Costacurta, as well as long term injury Michael Van Basten, a two-time World Player of the Year.
The Catalans were heavily fancied but Fabio Capello's AC Milan had other plans: two goals from Daniele Massaro in the the first half put the Rossoneri 2-0 up, before Dejan Savićević and Marcel Desailly added two more before the hour mark. It would be enough to see Milan take home the Champions League trophy in style, by what is still the biggest margin of a defeat in a Champions League final. That same season, Milan went on to win their third consecutive Scudetto.


FC Basel 2-1 Manchester United (Champions League, group stage, 2011/2012)

FC Basel made it into the Champions League round of 16 for only the second time in their history with a stunning 2-1 home win over Manchester United.
It was a result which saw three-time European champions United crash out of the competition at the group stage for only the third time in 17 years.
Needing only a point to knock out Basel and secure their passage into the last 16 from Group C, the Red Devils were the overwhelming favourites and going into the game seemed much more likely to win.
But it all went downhill after Marco Streller put the hosts ahead on nine minutes. United captain Nemanja Vidic went off injured soon after, and the visitors were ultimately made to pay for their wasted chances going forward and vulnerability on the counter-attack, with Alexander Frei putting Basel 2-0 up and out of reach in the 84th minute. Phil Jones put United back in it at 2-1, but it was too little too late for the world football superpower, with Basel securing the most unfancied home win in their history.


Dinamo Tbilisi 3-0 Liverpool (Dinamo Tbilisi won 4-2 on agg: European Cup, first round, 1979/1980)

Teams from behind the Iron Curtain were always shrouded in mystery – in previews they were habitually referred to as "the crack Soviet outfit" or "the ruthless Red Army" but no one knew for sure how good they would turn out to be. Would Tbilisi be as nifty as Ferencvaros and Red Star Belgrade had proved when upsetting Liverpool earlier in the decade, albeit before Bob Paisley had elevated the club to a higher level with two European Cup triumphs?
No. They would turn out to be better than anything the English champions had ever encountered. Already in the first leg at Anfield, where the home side had prevailed 2-1, Dinamo had shown flashes of a technical and tactical sophistication that perplexed the hosts. In Tibilisi came the full onslaught.
Liverpool barely slept the night before the match – some 200 Dinamo fans having staged a torchlight parade around their hotel at 4am – but mostly it was Dinamo's rapid passing and jagged running that made them so sluggish. Dinamo made it 1-0 on the night after a moment that should feature permanently in the Match of the Day intro footage: David Kipiani dazzled past Alan Hansen with a piece of trickery that left the acclaimed denouncer of diabolical defending floundering like a drunk in the dark. Ray Clemence diverted the ensuing cross, but only as far as Vladimir Gutsaev, who slammed it into the net. The Georgians' second arrived in the 75th minute when Georgiy Chilaya collected the ball in his own half, slalomed past three opponents and slipped in Ramaz Shengelia, who casually lifted the ball over Clemence to make it 2-0.
Three minutes later came the third after Phil Thompson conceded a penalty and Alexandre Chivadze converted with ease.
Hansen has since said this was the best Liverpool team he ever played in. Kevin Keegan's Hamburg would avenge them in the next round, knocking out Dinamo.


Barcelona 1 Rubin Kazan 2 (Champions League, group stage, 2009/2010)

The Russians beat defending champions FC Barcelona 2-1 in the Group F game, despite Barca virtually fielding their strongest line-up—with Lionel Messi, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Andres Iniesta, Yaya Toure, Xavi, Gerard Pique, Dani Alves, Eric Abidal and Victor Valdes all starting for Barca.
Aleksandr Ryazantsev gave the visitors a shock lead after just two minutes, with a stunning 30-yard strike.
Ibrahimovic equalised for Barca just after half-time, and despite the hosts brutally asserting their dominance over their inferior counterparts, it was Rubin Kazan who re-took the lead, with Gokdeniz Karadeniz coolly slotting past Valdes to stun the Camp Nou crowd, and the watching world. Before the game, Rubin Kazan were 22/1 to win.


CSKA Sofia 2-0 Ajax (CSKA Sofia won 2-1 on agg: European Cup, second round, 1973/1974)

Ajax had been shocked before – not least in 1960 when they were beaten 4-3 by the Norwegian amateurs Fredrikstad – but those defeats came before they had evolved into the European powerhouse of the early 1970s. This came when they were close to the height of their powers. In 1971, '72 and '73 they had won a hat-trick of European Cups under Rinus Michels and then Istvan Kovacs. Johan Cruyff had departed for Barcelona in the summer of 1973, but this was still the team of Johan Neeskens, Arie Haan, Johnny Rep and Piet Keizer. They had not been beaten in Europe since the defeat to Arsenal in the semi-final of the Fairs Cup in 1969-70. They had won six of the previous eight Dutch Eredivise titles.
CSKA by comparison, despite their domestic success (four back-to-back titles from 1969), had never made an impact on the European scene. They'd reached the European Cup semis in 1967 but in the previous year's European Cup they had been destroyed 6-1 over two legs by the same Ajax side. They'd reached the second round in bizarre circumstances after their second leg with Panathinaikos was replayed after the game had gone to penalties. A Jan Mulder goal gave Ajax a 1-0 victory in the first leg, but that was nullified in Sofia when Dimitar Marashliev scored in the 68th minute.
Extra-time was needed. In the 116th minute, Stefan Mikhailov struck to give the Bulgarians a famous victory and effectively end Ajax's golden era. It was to be 14 years before the once-dominant club won another European title.


Chelsea 2-2 Barcelona (Champions League, quarter-final, 2011/2012)

Following the comeback against Napoli, Chelsea faced much more fearsome opponents in Barcelona in the quarterfinals. A 1-0 victory at Stamford Bridge courtesy of a Didier Drogba goal was hardly a reassuring lead, and the odds against them keeping their lead at the Nou Camp were small. Furthermore, John Terry would get sent off in the 37th minute, reducing Chelsea to 10 men for the rest of the match. However, Chelsea again caused an upset after Sergio Busquets and Andres Iniesta put the Blaugrana up 2-0, the game seemed a forgone conclusion, with even some of the Chelsea players clearly thinking the match was beyond their reach.
Even when Ramires levelled just before halftime, still the game seemed out of Chelsea's hands. But after a missed Lionel Messi penalty and a Fernando Torres equaliser, it was the Londoners who had shocked the world and made it through to only their second ever Champions League final.


Real Madrid 1-3 Spartak Moscow (S.Moscow won 3-1 on agg: European Cup, quarter-final, 1990/91)

Spartak went into this match on the back of early round victories over Sparta Prague and Napoli.
Having ground out a 0-0 draw at Spartak Moscow, Real would have been confident of putting the Russians to the sword back in Madrid during the 1990/91 quarter-finals. That confidence would have only been bolstered once Emilio Butragueno had struck on nine minutes, considering it was Los Blancos’ 22nd goal of the tournament.
That lead didn’t last long, though, and Real were behind before half-time. The likes of Hugo Sanchez had no reply and the final word went to Dmitri Radchenko and Valeri Shmarov, who gave the Muscovites a 3-1 win and a ticket to the semis. Unfortunately Spartak lost the semi-final to Marseille, a Club who were very much in their most succesful era of all-time, and included in their team the likes of Basile Boli, Abedi Pelé, Jean-Pierre Papin and Chris Waddle.


Bayern Munich 1 Manchester United 2 (Champions League Final, 1998/1999)

As the Champions League trophy stood decked out with Bayern Munich’s ribbons and with 90 minutes on the clock, the two teams played out the conclusion to a hitherto unremarkable final.
Bayern Munich looked to have done enough to deserve to win the trophy following a first-half Mario Basler free kick which had put them in the lead. With three minutes of injury time remaining on the clock, Manchester United managed to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat with two quick fire goals from Teddy Sheringham and "super sub" Ole Gunnar Solksjaer. The Germans were left stunned in what was to be Peter Schmeichel’s last game between the sticks for United.


AC Milan 3-3 Liverpool (Liverpool won 3-2 on penalties, Champions League Final, 2005)

The "Miracle of Istanbul", the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final between AC Milan and Liverpool will forever be remembered as one of the greatest finals in world football history.
Almost every football fan knows the tale of this final—played at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul—in which Milan went 3-0 up at halftime.
At that point, it was shaping up to be one of the most one-sided finals ever, with AC Milan playing some of the most beautiful football seen in a Champions League final.
The result seemed a forgone conclusion just 60 seconds into the encounter, when captain Paolo Maldini volleyed home Andrea Pirlo's free-kick cross to put Milan 1-0 up, before a Hernan Crespo brace before halftime seemingly sealed Liverpool's fate.
Even on 54 minutes when Steven Gerrard gave Liverpool a lifeline and scored to make it 3-1, the final result never seemed in doubt. But what happened next changed football history forever.
Given space on the edge of the Milan penalty area, Vladimir Smicer hit a powerful yet hopeful shot which somehow found it's way past the Italian's packed defence and in to the bottom corner past Milan goalkeeper Dida.
With the score at 3-2 and Liverpool now attacking fast and full of hope, nerves got the Milan defence as they conceded a penalty as Gennaro Gattuso fouled Gerrard in the box.
Xabi Alonso stepped up and scored the penalty, putting Liverpool back in the game at 3-3, and, far more remarkably, making AC Milan's certain Champions League win completely crumble in the space of just six minutes.
A penalty shoot-out followed and the comeback was complete with Šmicer, Dietmar Hamann and Djibril Cissé converting for the Reds to win them a fifth European title in one of the greatest comebacks ever seen in the sport.

Babe of the Month - Sydnee Michaels

May 1, 2014, 2:22 am

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Sydnee Michaels was born 15th June 1988 in Upland, a city in San Bernardino County, California. Sydnee is an American professional golfer currently playing on the LPGA Tour.
As a child she trained in figure skating, was a promising young tennis player, and was also a State Champion tap dancer. Sydnee started playing golf at the age of eight, and has never looked back. Michaels played college golf at the University of California, Los Angeles and graduated with a bachelor's degree in History/Sociology. She turned professional in 2010, and joined the Futures Tour on 18th January 2011. Michaels won the last two events of the season and she finished fourth of the Futures Tour official money list in 2011, and won the 'Futures Tour Rookie of the Year' award. She plays out of Bear Creek Golf Club in Murrieta, California. Off the course Sydnee enjoys working out, yoga, music, sports, fashion, photography, visiting friends, red wine and reading a good book.

You can follow Sydnee on Twitter and Facebook or on 

her Website 

The Most Controversial Player Celebrations in Football

May 7, 2014, 6:44 am

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Celebrations and gestures made by players are part of every sport to some degree. The joy and emotion of a player is usually obvious, for example after they score a goal in football. Of course, there are players who let emotion or bad judgment take charge in these instances. Arguing with officials and other players, taunting the opposition or making rude gestures to the crowd are all occurrences observed from time to time.

The world of football is no different. For instance, recently West Bromwich Albion striker Nicolas Anelka, (right) was involved in a controversy caused by one such celebration.
The French striker attracted criticism when he performed a gesture called a ‘quenelle.’ Anelka insists the ‘quenelle’ is an anti-establishment gesture and was done in support of his comedian friend, and ‘quenelle’ creator, comedian Dieudonne M’bala M’bala. Critics of the gesture see it as reminiscent of the Nazi salute and the FA, English football’s governing body, agreed fining Anelka £80,000 and banning him for 5 matches.

Anelka’s case raises the question of other footballers who have celebrated or made gestures deemed inappropriate during a match. There are many, but here are some of the most controversial player celebrations and gestures witnessed in professional football.


Goading Fans:

In September 2009, Manchester City hosted Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium. The game was significant as it saw former Gunner, Emmanuel Adebayor (below) face off against his old club for the first time since leaving North London. Arsenal supporters were disappointed with Adebayor’s departure and by his perceived lack of respect for the club. Having booed and taunted the Togolese striker for most the match, Arsenal supporters were sent into a rage when Adebayor scored in the final 10 minutes and ran the length of the pitch before sliding to his knees to celebrate in front of them. Objects were thrown at the player and a steward was injured in the process. Adebayor was given a yellow card and given a £25,000 fine and a two-match suspended ban.

In a similar action to Adebayor, Manchester United defender Gary Neville was fined £5,000 pounds and warned about his future conduct by the Football Association a few weeks later, after ran to celebrate a late Rio Ferdinand goal in front of the Liverpool fans at Old Trafford.

The Drug User:

Unsurprisingly, any celebration which appears to suggest drug use is deemed unacceptable by footballs governing bodies. Step forward Robbie Fowler.
In April 1999, Liverpool squared off against Merseyside rivals Everton. Before the match, there were reports and accusations by some Everton supporters that Liverpool’s Fowler had a drug abuse problem. The Reds’ striker responded after scoring a goal by pretending to snort up the penalty area line as if it were a line of cocaine.
The FA fined Fowler £60,000 and banned him for 4 matches.

In the Russian League, Spartak Moscow striker Emmanuel Emenike was shown a straight red following his goal celebration against Zenit St. Petersburg. What did he do wrong? Emenike celebration involved slapping the inside of his arm, as if preparing for an imaginary heroine injection. The official deemed it ‘obscene’ and sent him off.

Northern Ireland's David Healy suffered a similar fate in an international match at the Millennium Stadium. Having put Northern Ireland 2-0 up against Wales, he celebrated by high-kicking the corner flag and then indulging in his stock celebration - slapping the muscle on one arm into the palm of his other hand. To Healy it was par for the course, but the referee Domenico Messina perceived it to be an unacceptable gesture. He gave Healy one yellow for that and another for his shaolin on the corner flag. The consequence was one of the most peculiar red cards of all time.

Genital Chomping:

Sevilla midfielder Francisco Gallardo was charged by the Spanish soccer federation's disciplinary committee after he celebrated a teammate's goal by biting the player's genitals back in November 2001.
Jose Antonio Reyes made a dazzling run from the halfway line to net Sevilla's second goal in the 55th minute of their 4-0 win over Valladolid.
After Reyes' brilliant strike, the scorer fell to the ground and was immediately besieged by a group of ecstatic teammates. Gallardo ran to join the melee and instead of hugging Reyes, was seen to bend down and take a momentary nibble at the goalscorer's genitalia.
Gallardo was fined and suspended by the Spanish Football Federation who deemed his actions as violating “sporting dignity and decorum."

Handcuff Celebration:

Players often use goal celebrations to make reference to friends, family or events. The rocking arms or thumb-sucking to rejoice in a new baby, or the kissing of the ring-finger to pay tribute to a spouse are common celebrations. Celebrations which are political or agenda-driven are frowned upon by the governing authorities. The ‘handcuff’ celebration is rare but has been used on more than one occasion. Often to show support for a friend or family member on trial or in jail, this celebration is also used to signify some sort of injustice in the player’s life. It is therefore no surprise that players like Everton’s Tim Cahill in 2008, Chelsea’s Nicolas Anelka in 2010 and Salomon Kalou in 2009, as well as Ipswich’s David Norris in 2008 all celebrated goals using a little post-goal handcuffery, and were all heavily criticized as a result for their behaviour.

The Fascist Salute:

This is a celebration guaranteed to get negative attention, bans and fines. The fascist salute not only crosses the ‘no-political celebration’ line, but is also deemed by almost everyone as totally inappropriate. Perhaps the most well known advocate of this celebration was Paolo Di Canio. After 14 years away from the club he supported as a child, followed as an ultra and served as a young footballer, a 36-year-old Di Canio returned in 2004 to see out his top-level career, yet his two-year stint with Lazio was anything but a retirement break. During his time with the Serie A side, Di Canio was pictured giving the supporters the salute numerous times. After the third occasion in a year in which he had raised his right arm, palm-downwards, to the fans of his team he faced the full wrath of Fifa, with Sepp Blatter, president of world soccer's governing body Fifa, saying players making fascist salutes should be banned from the game for life.

The negative publicity that Di Canio generated for Lazio, including his intimate relationship with club's ultras and their increased influence thanks to his presence in the team, coupled with problems with some teammates and coaches, exasperated club president and majority shareholder, Claudio Lotito, with whom he already had a difficult relationship. As a result, Di Canio's contract was not renewed in the summer of 2006.

Recently, Greek player Giorgos Katidis (right) was handed a life ban from the Greek National team, banned for the season by AEK Athens and fine $82,000 for giving this salute after scoring the winning goal against Veria, in March 2013.
Katidis claims he was dedicating the game winning goal to a friend in the stands. Officials saw it differently!

The Execution:

In recent years, Mexico has developed a reputation for drug and gun violence. In light of this, one would expect soccer players in Mexico to show some restraint when it comes to incorporating anything related to these issues into their celebrations. Marco Fabian de la Mora and Alberto Medina, both players for Chivas Guadalajara, clearly did not pick up on this point. In their 5-2 win over Estudiantes UAG in October 2011, the two celebrated one of the goals with De la Mora pretending to execute Medina with a gunshot to the head. Both players were fined $3,700. De la Mora stated regret for the celebration and but both men paid double the fine, which was then donated, along with offerings from their team-mates - to an orphanage in Ciudad Juarez, a border town known for drug related violence.

The Golf Swing:

Never too far from controversy in his younger days, Craig Bellamy found himself involved in a row with Liverpool teammate John Arne Riise on a trip to Portugal back in
Bellamy made the newspapers after confronting Riise with a golf club when the left back refused to sing karaoke at the team bonding exercise.
Days later, the Wales international was on target against no lesser opposition than Barcelona in February 2007 - as was Riise - and mocked the incident by swinging an imaginary club.

The Hitler Salute:


Yes, I have already had a section related to this type of gesture. Mark Bosnich (right) however, took it to a whole new level when his team Aston Villa played Tottenham Hotspur in October 1996. In a career marked with cocaine use, cross dressing sex tapes and cancelled contracts, the Australian-born keeper made many poor choices. One of those took place at White Hart Lane. Bosnich, after considerable taunting from the Spurs’ supporters, simulated a mustache with his finger and gave the crowd a Nazi salute. As Tottenham have a significant Jewish fanbase, the action did not go over well with the crowd. Surprisingly, the punishment was very lenient in today’s terms. The FA labeled Bosnich’s actions as “an act of stupidity,” yet only censured the keeper and fined him $1,500. Given Anelka’s ‘quenelle’ punishment, one wonders what Bosnich would have received in today’s game.

The Mock Flute:

What could be worse than Nazi salutes, drug and execution simulations and the biting of a teammate’s privates? How about an act that insults fans, aggravates religious tensions, and results in death threats by the IRA?

Glasgow Rangers versus Celtic is one of the fiercest derbies you will find in football. The two Scottish teams are historically divided along political-religious lines with Republican/Catholics traditionally supporting Celtic and Loyalist/Protestants following Rangers. In January 1998, Rangers midfielder Paul Gascoigne tested these divisions by simulating playing a mock flute, a symbol of Loyalists and the Orange Order. The midfielder had done the gesture in 1995, but never at an Old Firm match. Unsurprisingly, Celtic supporters and Catholics did not take well to it. In addition to being fined $33,000 and disciplined by his club for the incident. 'Gazza' also learned from this mistake. Specifically, he learned from the local police how to check mail and look under his car for bombs left by the IRA.

My Alternative Best & Worst Premier League Memories of the 2013/14 Season

May 15, 2014, 5:51 am

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It has been a thrilling Premier League season, full of twists and turns at the top, the middle and the bottom - with Manchester City emerging as champions in the end.
There have been brilliant goals, memorable matches, wonderful performances, as well as some more controversial moments and outbursts. As a Palace fan you may feel the following piece shows some bias towards the South-London Club! However they have been applauded by many this season for their achievements, both on and off the field.


Biggest Gripe:
Crying fans. You know who you are. Get a grip!
Secondly: Stupid kick-off times and inconsiderate scheduling, when all everybody wants is a game on a Saturday afternoon.
Thirdly: Yellow cards for players removing their shirts during a goal celebration.

Best and Worst Fans:
According to a Premier League fans' pole held by The Guardian newspaper Crystal Palace fans were considered the best away support by almost one-third of all Premier League clubs, namely Cardiff, Chelsea, Everton, Southampton, Swansea and West Ham, with Fulham fairing the worst.
The bleacherreport ranked Selhurst Park as the ground with the best atmosphere in the Premier League.
Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville and former Palace and England defender Gareth Southgate also praised the atmosphere at Selhurst Park.
Neville said of the Palace faithful: "They’ve been the best fans this season by a million miles. I don’t know what they’re putting in the water there. They’re mad."

Most Bizarre Goal of the Season:
On 2nd November 2013 Stoke goalkeeper Asmir Begovic scored after 13 seconds in Stoke's 1-1 draw with Southampton.
The goalkeeper's long kick forward got carried in the wind before bouncing over Saints keeper Artur Boruc at the other end of the pitch and finding the net.

Other Premier League goal-scoring goalkeepers:

Peter Schmeichel (Aston Villa) v Everton in 2001

Brad Friedel (Blackburn) v Charlton in 2004

Paul Robinson (Tottenham) v Watford in 2007

Tim Howard (Everton) v Bolton in 2012

Best Goal of the Season: Pajtim Kasami for Fulham at Selhurst Park:
There have been some phenomenal strikes in the Premier League this season. But in terms of technique nothing betters Kasami's effort in Fulham's victory over Crystal Palace in October. Fulham trailed 1-0 in what was a huge game for them. Sprinting at full pelt, the Swiss international burst through the defence, controlled Sascha Riether's long-ball with his chest without breaking stride, and then unleashed a sumptuous right-footed volley which dipped over Julian Speroni's head from a near impossible angle. Shades of Marco Van Basten!

Special mentions also go to Jonjo Shelvey, and whilst Wayne Rooney’s goal at West Ham was truly special, the fact that goalkeeper Adrian was flapping around like a beached seal somewhat ruined it and for sheer bloody-minded Jeeeeeesus Christ-ness its Norwich City’s Norwegian Alex Tettey. His sublime long distance volley versus Sunderland, had everything - technique, pace, power and direction! An unlikely source but a screamer none the less!

Worst Penalty of the Season: Jason Puncheon
On the 11th January 2014 Jason Puncheon, the Crystal Palace midfielder became the first Premier League player to miss a penalty this season. After an atrocious spot-kick at White Hart Lane, blazing high and wide against Spurs, which included a bonus (and appropriate) face palm, it was rightly or wrongly labelled by many as the worst penalty kick of all-time!

Most Significant Own Goal of the Season: John Terry.
The beginning of the end of Chelsea's title ambitions. After thumbing Arsenal 6-0 the week before, Terry's own goal saw Chelsea lose at Selhurst Park and some of the results that followed including a home defeat to Sunderland and a home draw with Norwich saw any chance of them winning the title go up in smoke!

Quote of the Season:"They can die as soon as they want"
Hull City owner Assem Allam decides the best way to endear himself to the club's fans is to attempt to change the name that has stood for more than a century and tell the fans they can kill themselves if they don't like it. (But to his credit he appointed a good manager in Steve Bruce, supported his wise purchases of Shane Long and Nikica Jelavic in the January transfer window and can now look forward to an FA Cup final appearance against Arsenal).

"I want to congratulate again Mike Dean. I think his performance was unbelievable and I think when referees have unbelievable performances, I think it's fair that as managers we give them praise. So fantastic performance"
He hasn't won anything this year but Jose Mourinho has been quote gold. This time he lands himself in hot water by coming across all sarcastic after Sunderland inflicted a first home defeat in 78 matches for the Chelsea manager.

Worst Club Chairman:
Malaysian businessman Vincent Tan was allowed to get away with changing Cardiff City's colours from their famous blue to (lucky) red while the club were heading towards the Premier League. He then attempted to adopt his own transfer policy by signalling his intent to only sign players with the (lucky) number eight in their birthday, and he even booed his own team off the field. But what turned the tide against him was sacking manager Malky Mackay, the man who took them there and was so highly regarded by the fans, despite a poor start to the season. It was a bitter parting and it is hard to see how Tan's relationship with Cardiff's fans can recover, especially after relegation.

Best Match of the Season: Crystal Palace 3-3 Liverpool.
For the sheer drama of the late turn-around, it was one in a million. One of those matches that makes you think the Premier League really is the best most unpredictable league in the world.

Worst Match of the Season: Manchester Utd 0-0 Chelsea.
Back in August 2013 no-one knew quite how bad Manchester United were going to be under David Moyes, and so Jose Mourinho thought he was being really, really ball-achingly clever when his Chelsea side turned up at Old Trafford, opted to play no forwards and bored his way to a goalless draw.
He wasn’t.

Best Signing of the Season: Jason Puncheon.
Having arrived on loan at Crystal Palace at the start of the season, the 27 year-old winger signed a long-term deal in January, and Palace became his 11th club, in his much travelled career. He established himself as a key member of a team which surpassed all expectations. There were seven goals, all of them important, and it is testament to Puncheon's character that he excelled having had to endure the humiliation of that dreadful penalty miss against Tottenham, as Tony Pulis's side cruised to Premier League safety.

Worst Signings of the Season:
1/ Erik Lamela. A £30m signing from Roma as Spurs looked for a replacement of sorts for Gareth Bale. Ten starts in all competitions for Tottenham. One goal. Hardly any memorable moments. Disappeared over the second half of the season with a mystery back complaint. Massive problems learning the language. Hard to know how it could have gone any worse. The Argentine winger was probably the worst replacement since Alberto Aquilani tried to fill a Xabi Alonso shaped hole in Liverpool’s midfield.

2/ Second is Norwich's Ricky van Wolfswinkel. Chris Hughton splashed £8.5m on van Wolfswinkel from Sporting Lisbon as the supposed answer to his goalscoring problems - built his Norwich team around him, got one goal in return (a fortuitous opening-day goal against Everton), saw his team turn into rubbish and got himself the sack to top it all off

3/ Third is Marouane Fellaini. A £27.5m disaster (Tottenham's Roberto Soldado also deserves a mention.)

Most Controversial Moments of the Season:

1/ A manager headbutted a player.
Just take a moment to think about that. Maybe think about your manager at work and imagine if he/she did the same to someone who worked for a rival company. Pardew did just that to Hull’s David Meyler. A seven-game ban followed on top of a £100,000 club fine, during which time Newcastle were abysmal, but Pardew has managed to hang onto his job by his fingernails, but for how long?

2/ Jose Mourinho scares a ballboy:
What is it with Chelsea and ballboys? Last season it was Eden Hazard who gave a Swansea youngster the boot and this season manager Jose Mourinho decided to give a young Crystal Palace ballboy a stern lesson during the match. Unhappy with the boy taking too long to give the ball back, Mourinho warned him he could be “punched” if he continued the delaying tactic.

3/ Chris Smalling dresses as a suicide bomber:
The poor Manchester United press office. Not only have they had to deal with the David Moyes debacle, but Smalling decided to give them a bit of extra work by hosting a fancy dress party and going as a suicide bomber. The tabloids got families of terrorist attack victims to condemn the United defender and he promised to limit his fancy dress options to zombies, cowboys and Fred Flintstone in the future.

Most Deluded Fans in the Premier League:
Newcastle fans are the most deluded in the Premier League, just edging out West Ham's
Yes, Newcastle lost six matches in a row, that led to a mass walk-out at St James' Park during the win against Cardiff. Yes, their manager headbutted an opposition player. But they had secured a top-half finish way back in February. Why then do the Newcastle fans consider their Club to be a laughing stock? Anyway the Geordie fans just edge out London's East End fans as the most deluded in the Country.

Psychologist of the Season: Dr.Steve Peters
Every team will be on the hunt for their own Dr.Steve Peters. The psychologist is said to have worked wonders at Anfield this season, but the meltdown at Crystal Palace suggested that when the pressure was on Liverpool were not quite as in control as they would have liked.

Waste of a Talent: Wilfried Zaha
The £15m man who would save English football was given little chance to impress by David Moyes before being loaned to Cardiff. And no one could make them look good.

Unlikely Hero: Dwight Gayle
Two years after playing in the Conference North, a year after relegation to League One with Peterborough, and with just 88 minutes of Premier League football under his belt in 2014, Crystal Palace striker Dwight Gayle was the unlikely man to end Liverpool’s title hopes and finish the season as the Club's top goalscorer.

Worst Director of Football: Joe Kinnear
“Judge me on my signings,” said Newcastle’s newly appointed director of football last summer. They did and he was sacked in February having failed to bring in a single player on a permanent transfer.

Young Player of the Year: Séamus Coleman
There were a few candidates in here including Ross Barkley, Joel Ward, Raheem Sterling and Luke Shaw, but Coleman was quite simply superb. His seven goals this season were priceless and he was an instrumental part in what made Everton's defence one of the meanest all season (conceding only 39 goals - only Chelsea had a better record).

Worst Refereeing Decision: Andre Marriner’s error in mistakenly sending-off Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain instead of Kieran Gibbs at Stamford Bridge in March, and this despite Oxlade-Chamberlain telling Marriner he was the culprit. To make matters worse Chelsea went on to win the game 6-0.

Defining Moment of the Season:
If Liverpool had won the Premier League then it would have been Philippe Coutinho’s superb winner against Manchester City following a Vincent Kompany sliced clearance.

But as they didn't then of course it is Steven Gerrard’s slip against Chelsea which allowed Demba Ba to score.

It was a moment in time which ensures that, no matter how hard you work, how much you sacrifice, how much you long for success for your team, your fans and your city, you are still susceptible to the crazy storylines which run throughout football.

Changes for Next Season:

Lifetime bans for supporters that leave the stadium while the game is in the balance. You know who you are!

My Premier League Worst XI of the 2013/14 season:

Maarten Stekelenburg (Fulham)

Matt Lowton (Aston Villa)

Fernando Amorebieta (Fulham)

Modibo Diakite (Sunderland)

Aly Cissokho (Liverpool)

Erik Lamela (Spurs)

Marouane Fellaini (Man U)

Mohamed Diame (West Ham)

Andreas Cornelius (Cardiff)

Ricky van Wolfswinkel (Norwich)

Jozy Altidore (Sunderland)

My Alternative Premier League Best XI of the 2013/14 season:

Julian Speroni (Palace)

Joel Ward (Palace)

Marin Skrtel (Liverpool)

John Terry (Chelsea)

Leighton Baines (Everton

Raheem Sterling (Liverpool)

Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal)

Fernandinho (Man C)

David Silva (Man C)

Romelu Lukaku (Everton)

Sergio Aguero (Man C)

All the latest transfer gossip across Europe!

May 26, 2014, 4:44 am

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With the regular season all but complete, and the World Cup just seventeen days away, you might expect Clubs to take their foot of the gas for a few weeks, but you couldn't be more wrong. The transfer rumour mill is in full swing as Clubs begin to prepare for next season.

Here is a round up of all the latest transfer gossip across Europe today!

Is your club involved?

Queens Park Rangers, Liverpool, AC Milan, Arsenal, Southampton, Manchester City, Real Madrid, Manchester United, Tottenham, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Besiktas, Chelsea, Paris St-Germain, West Ham, Juventus, Valencia, Cardiff City, Sunderland, Hamburg, Roma, Hull City, Wigan, Leicester City, Nottingham Forest and Panathinaikos...........are all caught up in the latest transfer news/rumours across Europe, as we speak.

Queens Park Rangers manager Harry Redknapp is poised to move for midfielder Frank Lampard and defender Rio Ferdinand, also 35, as he prepares for a return to the Premier League. Ferdinand was released by Manchester United at the end of the season, while Lampard is out of contract at Chelsea - The Sun and sportsmole.co.uk

Liverpool are set to make a £40m double swoop for Southampton duo Adam Lallana and full-back Nathaniel Clyne (right) - Daily Star and transfermarketweb.com

Liverpool have been told they must increase their offer to £25m for Southampton midfielder Adam Lallana, 26, if they want him to move to Anfield - Metro

Arsenal and Liverpool are again being linked with striker Mario Balotelli - skysports.com

Arsenal right-back Bacary Sagna is poised to pen a bumper contract thought to worth in the region of £120,000 a week to join Manchester City - Daily Express

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has dropped hints he might be ready to make a move for Real Madrid and French international striker Karim Benzema - Daily Star

Manchester United Striker Danny Welbeck, 23, has spoken about his frustration at being played out of position at United and that will alert Tottenham, among others, to his potential availability - Daily Telegraph

Manchester United's Nani will move to Inter Milan on loan until the summer with an option for a permanent deal - O Jogo (Portugal)

Atletico Madrid will fight to keep Diego Costa and Thibaut Courtois at the club this summer despite interest from Chelsea - Daily Mail

Turkish side Besiktas are keen on Chelsea striker Demba Ba, 29, after cooling interest in unsettled Blues forward Samuel Eto'o - Daily Mail

Chelsea have made an enquiry for Paris St-Germain striker Ezequiel Lavezzi (right).
It is understood the Argentine, 29, is keen to play in a more competitive league outside France - Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail

St-Etienne's Kurt Zouma has decided to join Chelsea but probably only in the summer. However, both sides are yet to agree terms - L'Equipe (France)

Liverpool have reportedly shown their hand in the pursuit of striker Loic Remy by offering a bid to Queens Park Rangers.
While reports have claimed that the striker has held talks with both the Reds and Arsenal, it is believed that Liverpool have made their move - footballdirectnews.com

West Ham have agreed a three-year deal with Argentine forward Mauro Zarate, 27, who has had spells in Europe with Birmingham City in 2008 and more recently with Italian giants Lazio and Inter Milan - Daily Star and skysports.com

James Milner's Manchester City future is hanging in the balance with the player undecided on his future - Manchester Evening News

Juventus are close to signing Dani Osvaldo (right) from Southampton on a permanent deal,  but Valencia are also interested  The Argentinian born striker has been on loan at the Turin club since January - Gazzetta Dello Sport (Italy) and Corriere Dello Sport (Italy)

Championship-bound Cardiff City are set to sign free agent Federico Macheda, 22, this week after the striker was released by Manchester United - Daily Mail

Sunderland are leading the chase to bring Michael Mancienne back to England. The 26-year-old former Chelsea defender wants to head home after a three-year spell in Germany with Hamburg - Daily Mirror and The Sun

Roma will turn their attention to Southampton central defender Dejan Lovren if their Moroccan international Mehdi Benatia is lured away to Manchester City - The Sun

FA Cup finalists Hull City are being linked with a £3million move for Southampton defender Jose Fonte - The Daily Echo

Hull City are reportedly preparing to begin discussions with Tottenham Hotspur over the permanent capture of midfielder Jake Livermore (right).
Despite the clubs being quite a distance apart with regards to the initial fee, it is believed that Hull are hopeful of securing Livermore's services for next season - Hull Daily Mail

Tottenham's promising midfielder Alex Pritchard is wanted on loan by Wigan boss Uwe Rosler - Daily Mirror

Leicester City have announced they have signed defender Matthew Upson on a one-year contract along with highly-rated young striker Jack Barmby, 19 from Manchester United on a two-year contract - Leicester Mercury

Nottingham Forest are reportedly tracking Panathinaikos goalkeeper Stefanos Kapino. The 20-year-old, who has been selected in the Greece squad for the World Cup, was the subject of a bid from Napoli last season - Nottingham Post

Babe of the Month - Sexy Brazilian Lineswoman

June 1, 2014, 5:59 am

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Fernanda Colombo Uliana was born 24th April 1991 in Brazil and took twitter by storm recently after she served as the assistant referee in a Brazil Cup match last month.

The 25-year-old ran the line during Sao Paulo’s 3-0 Copa do Brasil win over CRB on the 8th May 2014.
A few days later Fernanda was then appointed for the first time to run the line of a Brazilian Serie A league match, but the female official found herself at the centre of controversy after she made a match-altering call on her Brasileiro Serie A debut.

Cruzeiro travelled to derby rivals Atletico Mineiro on 11th May, but the 'Brazilian babe' denied the visitors a last-minute equalizer at 2-1 through a questionable offside call.
In response to the decision, Cruzeiro director of football Alexandre Mattos told Globo (a Brazilian television network based in Rio de Janeiro):
"That assistant is pretty, but she's not prepared for this. The fans shout and she gets it wrong. She's pretty but you have to be good at your job. If she's pretty, she should go and pose for Playboy."

By the age of 20, she was the assistant referee FHR and acted on the decision of the Access Division Santa Catarina State Championship. Fernanda was the newest in the context of arbitration of the Santa Catarina Football Federation.

She tells how she discovered her passion for the sport, while at University she was a track athlete and her trainer approach her to ask her if she liked football and she said yes. The trainer told her about a course from the federation and she ended up taking it. From that point she became immerse in a world dominated by men.

Fernanda has just been granted FIFA official status And rather than regretting the fact that she will now have abuse hurled at her from far larger crowds, she is delighted that her career has moved on to the next level - both for herself, and for women in general.

"It's one more step towards winning people over," she told local paper Diario Catarinense.
"It's the result of all the dedication I've shown. Who wouldn't want to receive recognition in their chosen career, after all? For me it's a huge victory."

Her words should not be taken lightly: sexism is far more rife in Brazil than most in Europe would credit, as a look at any football club's website might show - they commonly feature naked models and porn stars to attract fans!

Fernando currently resides in Florianópolis, Santa Catarina. She is a personal trainer by profession. She has a Bachelor of Physical Education-UFSC with Specialization in Cardiac Rehabilitation and Special Groups.

You can follow Fernando on Facebook

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Players to watch out for at the 2014 FIFA World Cup

June 5, 2014, 6:33 am

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#1Alessio Cerci  (Italy)

Italy's Alessio Cerci is elite in a free-roaming central role.
Cerci can play as a winger or second striker. He is not exactly a No. 9, nor is he a No. 10, but playing predominantly in a forward role for Torino in Serie A, he ended this season with 13 goals and 11 assists.
Cerci is a naturally left footed player, with excellent technique and remarkable quickness, playing mainly as a winger. He can play on both wings, but prefers the right, from which he can cut inside and shoot with his preferred foot, but if Italy need a game-winning moment, then throw Cerci up front and see what he can do. He is a trump card for Italy.
Internationally, Cerci has represented Italy right through from under-16 to Italy under-21 levels. He made his senior international debut in March 2013 in a friendly match against Brazil.

Italy are in Group D with Uruguay, Costa Rica and England.


#2James Rodriguez  (Columbia)

A strong, powerful, explosive attacking midfield player that loves to run at defenders. The 22 year-old is considered as one of the very best young talents in South America. He is a massively important player for both his club, French giants AS Monaco and his country.
In May 2013, Rodríguez joined French side AS Monaco from FC Porto for a transfer fee of €45 million, thus making it the second most expensive transfer in Portuguese football. At Porto Rodriguez won the Portuguese Golden Ball award in 2012 becoming the second Colombian after Radamel Falcao to win the award, as well as being the youngest player ever to hold the honor.
In his debut season for Monaco he helped them secure a spot in the Champions League, was named in the French Ligue 1 star XI team, as well as becoming the French Ligue 1 top assist player.
Rodriguez is an exiting player and it will be interesting to see how he does in the 2014 World Cup.

Columbia are in Group C along with Greece, Ivory Coast and Japan.


#3Paul Pogba  (France)

Pogba is a French international footballer who plays for Italian club Juventus in Serie A. He began his career at Le Harve before joining Manchester United in 2009. Pogba made his Premier League debut against Stoke City on 31st January 2012. On 3rd July 2012 Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed that Pogba had left the club, after not signing a new contract, and on the 3rd August he joined Juventus on a four-year contract.
Pogba is a French youth international and has earned caps at all levels for which he has been eligible.
Pogba was the captain of the team that won France's first ever FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2012. In that tournament held in Turkey.  He was named the best player of the tournament.
He received the 'Golden Boy' award for 2013, given to the best under-21 player in Europe.
On 22 March 2013, Pogba made his debut for the French senior team in a World Cup qualifier against Georgia.
In January 2014, he was named by The Guardian as one of the ten most promising young players in Europe.

France are in Group E with Honduras, Ecuador and Switzerland.


#4Kevin De Bruyne  (Belgium)

The young Beligian is one of many exiting young talents in a Belgian squad, that have a fantastic set up, with a great mix of experienced players and young talent. The former Genk and Chelsea man is now plying his trade in Germany with Vfl Wolfsburg. Wolfsburg signed De Bruyne for a fee of £18 million in January 2014.
While at Stamford Bridge the West London club loaned the 22 year-old out to Werder Breman. His spell there was hugely successful and he won the 'Bundesliga Young Player of the Year 2012–13.'
He is a great player and he has been capped by Belgium at under-18, under-19, and under-21 level. He made his debut for the Belgian senior team on 11th August 2010.
De Bruyne became a regular member of Belgium's team during the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign, where he scored four goals as the Red Devils qualified for their first major tournament in 12 years.

Belguim are in Group H with South Korea, Russia and Algeria.


#5Josip Drmić  (Switzerland)

Born of Croatian descent Drmić began his playing career at FC Zürich.
In July 2013, Drmić joined Bundesliga club FC Nürnberg. He finished his first season with 17 league goals, the third most by any player in the league, but his team were relegated.
Less than a month ago Drmić agreed to sign a five-year deal with Bayer 04 Leverkusen, for an undisclosed fee, despite interest from Arsenal.
On 11th September 2012, Drmić won his first cap for the Switzerland senior team in a 2–0 2014 World Cup qualifying win over Albania.

Switzerland are in Group E with Honduras, France and Ecuador.


#6Daley Blind  (Netherlands)

Daley Blind has gone from an easy target for disgruntled Ajax fans believing he was only in the team due to his father (Danny Blind, a five-time Eredivisie winner with Ajax) to one of the most complete footballers in the Netherlands.
On 7th December 2008, Blind made his debut in the Ajax first team.
In 2013 Blind was voted 'AFC Ajax Player of the Year' for the 2012/13 season.
He is a high quality left-back who has also has become a wonderful orchestrator of play in midfield.
With Roma's Kevin Strootman set to miss the FIFA World Cup after a cruciate ligament injury, Netherlands manager Louis van Gaal may consider playing 24 year-old Blind in midfield.
Daley Blind made his debut for the Netherlands national team on 6th February 2013, in the starting left back position, against Italy in a friendly encounter at the Amsterdam Arena.

The Netherlands are in Group B with Chile, Australia and Spain.


#7Fernandinho  (Brazil)

Fernandinho may not have the superstar reputation of Neymar or a widely recognised name like Hulk, but the Manchester City central midfielder is one of the best players in his position.
He started his career at Brazilian club Atlético Paranaense before moving to Shakhtar Donetsk in 2005, where he became one of the best foreign players to ever play in the Ukraine Premier League.
With Shakhtar, he won six Ukrainian Premier League titles, four Ukrainian Cups and the 2008–09 UEFA Cup.
He is well known for his blistering pace and ability to shoot from long distances. He is described as 'a defensive midfielder' with a box to box style of play, contributing in large part to the defense and the attack. With a powerful shot and great passing range, Fernandinho plays an important part in breaking up opposition attacks and creating goal scoring opportunities.
The five time tournament winners are hot favorites to be crowned World Champions again, but Fernandinho must start every game if Brazil are to win the tournament for the sixth time.

Brazil are in Group A with Cameroon, Croatia and Mexico.

Brazilian Beauties - The Hottest Babes at the World Cup ..... so far!

June 14, 2014, 7:48 am

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All the latest World Cup 2014 injury news!

June 16, 2014, 7:10 am

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Germany:

Bastian Schweinsteiger (right) will be available for today's World Cup clash against Portugal.

A local Brazilian website - Radar64 - claimed the 29-year-old was airlifted to hospital after taking a knock to his left foot in training on Friday.

But the German FA (DFB) insist the hospital visit was for a routine MRI scan, because of his recent knee injury, and he later rejoined the team in Salvador to prepare for today's Group G match at the Arena Fonte Nova.

The Bayern Munich midfielder has struggled with tendinitis of the knee since the German Cup final a month ago.

Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer has recovered from his shoulder injury and will start today's World Cup match against Portugal, coach Joachim Loew said.
Neuer, Germany's number one goalkeeper for the last four years and pillar of their defence, injured his shoulder in Bayern Munich's German Cup final victory over Borussia Dortmund last month.

Neuer did not play in the friendlies against Cameroon and Armenia.

Germany captain Philipp Lahm, who was also struggling with an injured ankle, is likely to play a holding midfield position rather than in the back four, a visibly relieved Loew told a news conference ahead of his team's Group G opening game against Portugal in Salvador.


Portugal:

Cristiano Ronaldo said he is "100 per cent" fit and ready for Portugal's opening World Cup match against the powerful Germans today. However after an injury-disrupted campaign for Real Madrid there are huge concerns over his fitness.

The Real Madrid star had ice applied to his troublesome left knee after training on Thursday, sparking fears over his fitness ahead of Monday's Group G opener.

The 29 year-old former Manchester United forward, arguably the most recognizable player in the sport, said he wouldn't risk his career by going into such a tough match with a serious injury.


United States:

Timothy Chandler is a fitness doubt for the USA's opener versus Ghana today. The right-back injured his leg in practice last Tuesday.

Stars and Stripes coach Jurgen Klinsmann will be keeping a keen eye on the full-back's progress while DaMarcus Beasley deputises.

Nigeria:

Nigeria will have a full squad for their opening game today against Iran. Defensive midfielder Gabriel Reuben is available having missed two days training with a knee problem.

Although he is not expected to start, the midfielder's return is a welcome boost to Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi, who continues to rue the injury-enforced pre-tournament departure of AS Monaco defender Elderson Echiejile.


England:

England midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (right) has expressed optimism that he will recover from a knee injury in time for his side's second World Cup game against Uruguay on Thursday.

"It's coming along," said the Arsenal player, who damaged knee ligaments in a friendly against Ecuador last week and sat out England's opening Group D game against Italy on Saturday.

Asked about his chances of featuring against Uruguay in Sao Paulo, he told British newspaper journalists: "We are not sure about timescales.

"We are hopeful that would be realistic, but there is nothing set in stone and I can't say whether I will definitely be back or not.


Brazil:

Givanildo Vieira de Souza or Hulk limped out of a training session on Sunday morning but later said his injury was not serious and he expects to be fit for Brazil’s World Cup match against Mexico on Tuesday.

The Zenit St Petersburg striker who was playing for Brazil’s first string against a second string team in a training match.
"I felt a niggle and came off as a precaution,” he told reporters shortly before the squad were due to fly 1,350 miles to the northern city of Fortaleza.


Cameroon:

Samuel Eto'o missed training for a second successive day on Sunday with the striker still struggling with a knee injury as Cameroon prepare for Wednesday's match against Croatia.


Croatia:

Croatia playmaker Luka Modrić (right) should be fit to resume training after being given the all clear following a foot problem, the Croatian Federation said on Sunday.

The 28-year-old Real Madrid star suffered a blow to his foot during Thursday's opening World Cup match, a 3-1 defeat by Brazil at the Corinthians Arena in Sao Paulo.


Spain:

Spanish media reports suggest Spain reserve goalkeeper David De Gea will be sidelined for up to 10 days, ruling him out of the final two Group B matches against Chile and Australia.

The Manchester United player, 23, missed training on Sunday after picking up a buttocks injury. The champions face Chile on Wednesday and then Australia five days later.

Captain and regular goalkeeper Iker Casillas' poor play in Friday's 5-1 loss to the Netherlands had given De Gea a possible chance to take over the starting role.
Pepe Reina is the only other goalkeeper available to the World and European champions going into Wednesday's must-win game against Chile at the Maracana.


Italy:

AC Milan left-back Mattia De Sciglio (right) pulled up in training in Portobello last Thursday with a thigh muscle strain.

Although the injury prevented the 21 year-old from playing against England on Saturday, he is hopeful to be fit again in time for the group match against Costa Rica this Friday.

Meanwhile Italy are waiting on goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon who twisted his left ankle last Friday, forcing the veteran Juventus man to miss the win against England.

Enrico Castellacci, Italy's team doctor indicated that it is to early to know for sure whether either player will definitely be available for selection on Friday.


Honduras:

The World Cup appears to be over for the Honduran center-back Víctor Bernárdez.
He collapsed to the ground in the 18th minute of their opening group game defeat to France following a non-contact injury.

The San Jose Earthquakes defender suffered a right calf injury, and he told reporters in Porto Alegre afterwards that his situation doesn't look good.

All the latest transfer gossip across Europe!

June 18, 2014, 5:08 am

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The World Cup Finals are in full swing and what a fantastic tournament it has been so far!
Meanwhile the Premier League fixtures for the forthcoming season were released today, and with less than eight weeks until the start of the Premier League season clubs right across Europe are busing eyeing up prospective new transfer targets. The World Cup finals provides a wonderful shop window for a player to display their talent and secure a lucrative move this Summer. Unsurprisingly transfer rumours are rife as I speak.

Here is a round up of all the latest transfer gossip across Europe today!

Is your club involved?

AC Milan, Arsenal, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Ajax, Southampton, Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool, Bayern Munich, Tottenham, Al-Arabi, Barcelona, Rubin Kazan, Inter Milan, West Ham, Anderlecht, Juventus, St-Etienne, Chelsea, Galatasaray, Atletico Madrid, Paris St-Germain, Manchester City, Wolfsburg, Sevilla, AS Monaco, Valencia, Everton, Porto, Fulham, Leeds United, Hull, West Brom, Zenit St Petersburg, Benfica, Swansea and Crystal Palace, Spartak Moscow, Middlesbrough, Sunderland, Newcastle, Hertha Berlin, Leicester City, Port Vale, Burton Albion and Stevenage.............are all caught up in the latest transfer news/rumours across Europe, as we speak.


AC Milan striker Mario Balotelli, 23, is open to a move to Arsenal after his agent revealed 'anything is possible' this summer - The Guardian and Daily Mail

Manchester United are likely to bid for Sami Khedira (right), who has also been a target for Arsenal, after Real Madrid told the 27-year-old midfielder he could leave - Daily Express and football-espana.net

Manchester United have moved into the race to sign Ajax and Holland star Daley Blind, with negotiations to sign Southampton's Luke Shaw having stalled - Daily Mirror

Manchester United’s ongoing push to capture long term target Luke Shaw has been boosted by Southampton’s move to bring in Swansea City left-back Neil Taylor as a potential replacement for the England man - Daily Express.

Borussia Dortmund defender Mats Hummels, says he is staying with the German club for the immediate future, despite interest from Manchester United - skysports.com and Daily Express

Liverpool have opened talks with Bayern Munich over the summer signing of Xherdan Shaqiri (right), according to reports in Germany. The Reds are willing to offer £16m for the Swiss international midfielder - Bild (Germany)

Manchester United have made a £20million offer for Benfica winger Nicolas Gaitan and hope to close the transfer in the coming days - The Metro

Manchester United's Nani will move to Inter Milan on loan until the summer with an option for a permanent deal - O Jogo (Portugal)

West Ham have completed the signing of Senegal midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate from Anderlecht on a four-year contract - skysports.com

Tottenham are willing to listen to offers for striker Emmanuel Adebayor with fellow forward Roberto Soldado also set to be sold - Daily Mirror

Al-Arabi coach Dan Petrescu claims Barcelona playmaker Xavi has signed a pre-contract agreement with the Qatari club - skysports.com

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has made £15m-rated Paris St-Germain forward Ezequiel Lavezzi, 29 (right), his top transfer target from the World Cup in Brazil. Wenger faces competition for Lavezzi from both Chelsea and Galatasaray also linked with the Argentinian. - The Sun and skysports.com

Gunners midfielder Santi Cazorla has been linked with a move to La Liga champions Atletico Madrid - The Sun

Rubin Kazan's France international midfielder Yann M'Vila, 23, is set to reject Liverpool and Arsenal in favour of a move to Inter Milan - Daily Star and skysports.com

Manchester City will resist any attempt by Inter Milan to take striker Stevan Jovetic back to Italy - Daily Mail

Juventus are close to signing Dani Osvaldo from Southampton but Valencia are also interested - Gazzetta Dello Sport (Italy) and Corriere Dello Sport (Italy)

St-Etienne's Kurt Zouma (right) has decided to join Chelsea. However, both sides have still to find an agreement - L'Equipe (France)

Liverpool will consider reviving interest in Wolfsburg left-back Ricardo Rodriguez if they fail to agree a deal for Alberto Moreno.
The Sevilla star has been a long-time target for Reds boss Brendan Rodgers, but a move to Anfield appears to have hit the rocks - dailymail.co.uk

Arsenal and Liverpool want Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, 28, who is keen to play in the Champions League after becoming a free agent - Daily Express

Valencia are better placed than Liverpool or AS Monaco for the signing of Benfica's Andre Gomes - Record (Portugal)

Everton boss Roberto Martinez is confident he can land Barcelona winger Cristian Tello, 22 (right), on a season-long loan, but they could face competition from Porto. The Spanish club seem willing to let him out for the campaign, rather than offload him permanently - The Sun, Daily Mirror and skysports.com

Porto are preparing for the imminent sale of Fernando to Manchester City - Sport TV (Portugal):

Fulham are poised to make a £6million bid for Leeds United striker Ross McCormack - Daily Mail

Benfica's Argentine defender Ezequiel Garay has been heavily linked with a move to the Premier League in the past but it seems he is set to join Zenit St Petersburg - skysports.com and ole.com.ar (Argentinian football website)

Newcastle United have offered a deal to Hertha Berlin' for 22-year-old striker Pierre-Michel Lasogga (right) - Daily Mirror and Newcastle Chronicle

Swansea City have reportedly signalled their intent to secure the permanent transfer of Middlesbrough winger Marvin Emnes. Emnes ended the season on loan at the Liberty Stadium, and the Swans are prepared to offer Middlesbrough a fee in the region of £1m for the 26-year-old - skysports.com

Hull City look to have won the nine-way scramble to land ex-England defender Joleon Lescott, who is a free agent after his Manchester City contract expired - Daily Mirror

Joleon Lescott could become the first signing of the Alan Irvine West Brom era as the Manchester City man reportedly prepares for a medical at The Hawthorns - Birmingham Mail

Crystal Palace are moving closer to a £1.5m deal for former Everton midfielder Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, 29 (right), who spent the second half of last season on loan at Anzhi Makhachkala from Spartak Moscow - Croydon Advertiser

Middlesbrough are keeping tabs on Sammy Ameobi, with Newcastle open to offers for the 22-year-old forward - Newcastle Journal

Manchester City keeper Costel Pantilimon has joined Sunderland - and could replace Vito Mannone as first choice - Newcastle Chronicle and Sunderland Echo

Premier League newcomers Leicester City are interested in Port Vale's out-of-contract defender Joe Davis, 20, who has been offered a new deal by the Valiants - Stoke Sentinel

Burton Albion have announced the signing of forward Lucas Akins from Stevenage - skysports.com

'The Beautiful Game' - The World Cup's sexiest fans ......... so far!

June 19, 2014, 11:07 am

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Columbian and Brazilian flag baring babes bursting at the seams!

Foxy South Korean fan puckers up for the cameras!

Argentinian blonde soaking up the attention: lights, cameras, action!

 Elegant Mexican babes looking hot to trot!

Gorgeous Columbian sweetie strikes a pose!

Columbian hottie revs up her fellow fans!

Attractive Bosnian fans can't stop smiling!                         

Glamorous Mexican World Cup reporter Vanessa Huppenkothen

Bikini clad Brazilian senorita dripping wet but whose complaining!

Columbian cutie with a hair flick for the cameras!

Busty Mexican fan takes a selfie!