Leon Osman has declared he has ambitions of winning his first trophy with Everton ahead of celebrating his 10th anniversary with the side, when the Toffees take on Swansea at the weekend.
The midfielder scored in Everton’s 5-1 triumph at Cheltenham on Monday night, helping David Moyes’ men to reach the fourth round of the FA Cup.
Osman made his Toffees debut in January 2003 as a substitute against Tottenham at Goodison Park.
He has since established himself as a key player in the Merseysiders’ midfield and finally made his England debut last November against Sweden.
But silverware has eluded him, and the 31-year-old has told The Daily Mail he is keen to change that statistic this term.
“I’ve been made aware that this weekend will be 10 years since my debut so it will be a nice occasion.
“I have great memories of those 10 years but I don’t think we’ve won anything since I’ve been playing.
“I’d love to finally win something for the club.’
The FA Cup represents Osman’s most realistic chance of claiming a trophy this season and Everton boss Moyes showed a signal of intent after fielding an almost fully strength side at Whaddon Road.
“The manager signalled his attitude towards the game,” Osman added. “He put a strong team out and we went out there with the attitude that it was going to be difficult and we had to perform.
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“We got to the semi-finals last year and there is a real determination to do well every year.
“You need a bit of luck in the cup and you need to perform on the occasion. We are looking to do that in every round we can this year.”
Manchester City have joined Arsenal and Tottenham in the race to sign promising AZ Alkmaar midfielder Adam Maher, according to the Daily Mail.
The 19-year-old Dutchman has been impressing clubs all around Europe this season and made his 80th appearance for Alkmaar last week, an impressive figure considering his age.
The Dutch club want around £10million for Maher in the summer and he has already been scouted while on international duty by Tottenham and Arsenal, with City stepping up their interest too.
Maher was born in Morocco but has now played three times for Holland after committing himself to the Oranje last year.
The Premier League trio will have to battle it out amongst themselves for the youngster’s signature but also fight off interest from Barcelona and AC Milan this summer.
Newcastle United approached Alkmaar last summer with their interest in Maher but decided against making a formal bid at the time.
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It was surprising to see an Ipswich player make national news for the right reasons last week.
In case you didn’t see the story; Ipswich youngster Tyrone Mings made headlines as he noticed that a fan on twitter was “too skint” to make it to the Bolton game, so sorted him out with tickets to the game.
The best thing about the story won’t be known to most though as only Ipswich fans will see the huge contrast between Mings’ behaviour and that of certain highly paid Ipswich players.
It is hard to remember all of the unprofessional behaviour committed by Ipswich players so I will quickly list as much of it as I can. Paul Taylor – Charged with GBH after an incident outside a pub (also previously banned for failing drugs test), Guirane N’Daw – Charged with assault, Michael Chopra – lost over £2 million due to gambling addiction, Carlos Edwards – Banned from driving. Furthermore, that isn’t even all of it as previous loanee’s Bilel Mohsni and Tyrone Barnett both caused problems at their parent clubs just before joining Ipswich.
As soon as I read the story about Mings’ good deed I imagined the faces of the players that have got their names in the papers for the wrong reasons. It was quite amusing to think of them all taking a long hard look at themselves and realising that they taken far too much for granted.
It is fair to say that Mings is an exception amongst the Ipswich playing staff. I know a few members of the squad do their bit for charity and the community but on the whole they wouldn’t go out of their way to help out a fan.
He is certainly an exception at Ipswich, but is the young Tractor Boys defender a fair representation of typical English footballer? Unfortunately I think there are more players like Ipswich’s trouble makers around rather than good role models. Of course there will be players that never take what they have for granted and remember what the game is about, but overall a lot of players lose sight of that.
It was great to see the story of Ming’s generosity go further than the local news as it may help a few players remember how lucky they are to be in the position that they are. I would hope that the story embarrassed a few of the trouble makers at Ipswich too, although we will never know how they reacted.
It would be wrong to dwell on the negative side of a positive story though and it shows that twitter can be a fantastic tool for establishing a positive relationship between fans and player’s. A lot of people talk about the negatives of twitter and why it is dangerous to let fans have direct access to players thoughts and opinions. My argument would be that it is only dangerous when handled by an idiot, but that is a debate for another day.
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In conclusion, it was great to see Ipswich in the headlines for the right reasons and I think I speak for every ITFC fan when I say thank you Tyrone Mings for doing your part in restoring the damaged reputation of my club.
Sascha Riether and Mladen Petric will boost Martin Jol by being available for Fulham’s home game against Liverpool on Sunday.
Right-back Riether is back following an ankle problem and forward Petric has recovered from his hamstring injury, but midfielder Steve Sidwell is again suspended.
Midfielders Mahamadou Diarra, Ashkan Dejagah and Simon Davies are out for the rest of the season with respective knee, ankle and hip problems.
Jol has spoken out to urge his players to end their current four-match losing streak and get the points required to make them mathematically certain of Premier League football next season.
A Chelsea win at Aston Villa on Saturday would also make Fulham safe before they kick a ball, but Jol wants to end the season on a high.
He said: “We will focus on ourselves to try to get a result to be safe.
“The Wigan result [3-2 defeat to Swansea on Tuesday] helped and of course we need a result, but you depend on other games as well.
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“We will look at other results and even when the results are going for us we have to try to finish the season on a very good note.”
Fulham are reportedly considering replacing manager Martin Jol with Brighton boss Gus Poyet in the summer.
The Telegraph have reported that the Cottagers board are “seriously concerned at their dismal end to the season” and are considering replacing Dutchman Jol at the end of the current campaign.
The Cottagers have suffered five successive defeats and this is believed to have alarmed the Fulham hierarchy, who will reportedly review Jol’s position following their final Premier League fixture at Swansea this weekend.
Poyet indicated that he may leave Brighton in the summer after their play-off semi-final defeat to Crystal Palace earlier this week due to concerns over the club’s budget, and Fulham have now been linked with a move for the 45-year-old Uruguayan.
The former Chelsea and Spurs midfielder has impressed at the Seagulls over the course of his three-and-a-half years in charge, guiding the club to the League One title and successfully overseeing the move to the Amex Stadium in 2011.
However, Poyet is tied down to a long-term deal at Brighton and Fulham may be put off by the reported £2.5million compensation they will have to pay the Championship side to secure the manager’s services.
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Florentino Perez, against his own judgment, was able to secure the signing of rising star Isco, marking the turning point from the Mourinho era to a new dawn under Carlo Ancelotti.
Were it not for the intervention of Zinedine Zidane, the Spanish playmaker may well have been on his way to Manchester City, something that La Liga as a whole is surely happy to avoid seeing. Yet Isco’s switch to the Spanish capital could have short-term effects on the club’s bid for Gareth Bale, of course forgetting Daniel Levy’s complete lack of willingness to negotiate with the La Liga outfit.
Isco’s signing always made the most sense for the club. Where Cristiano Ronaldo has made the left side of Madrid’s attack his own, questions would have been thrown up as to where Bale would have fit in. German technician Mesut Ozil mans the centre of the midfield three, while Angel Di Maria was often preferred on the right flank – a position we’re likely to see Isco in next season.
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But it’s not just the flexibility of the former Malaga star that’s worth taking into account – notably he can play anywhere across the midfield three – Isco’s signing, as well as the return of promising young full-back Daniel Carvajal, signals a potential shift onto Spanish nationals. Perez, with all the glitz and glamour that is associated with this tenure as well as his previous, will not want to completely abandon his go-to approach of signing superstar names from abroad. But there is so much potential from this Isco move that it completely negates the need for Bale – at least for this coming season.
The real matter here is whether Real Madrid can hold onto Ronaldo for next season, with Manchester United in particular taking on an aggressive stance in attempting to recapture the superstar forward. But much like Daniel Levy, it’s hard to imagine Florentino Perez giving up the game on Ronaldo so easily. In addition, couldn’t it be argued that the Portuguese is better placed playing in La Liga, remaining close to Lionel Messi and Neymar as the three battle for supremacy in world football? A Ronaldo move may become a reality at some stage in the future, but for now this whole issue smacks of the player wanting an increase in wages as well as support.
Gareth Bale, on the other hand, couldn’t be better placed for the upcoming season. Who could really argue that Tottenham is a bad place to be at this time? Last summer it could be argued that the club were at a crossroads, eventually opting down the path of Andre Villas-Boas – a gamble in itself – and now seeing the rewards coming into full view on the horizon.
A club in England, or anywhere for that matter, don’t land Hugo Lloris, Jan Vertonghen and Mousa Dembele by holding a reputation as a stagnating club with little to hope for the future. Paulinho, fresh off an impressive Confederations Cup, may arrive, and the club look well-poised to strengthen with very reputable names from the continent. Bale doesn’t need Champions League football now; he’s 23. Trophies in his career will come, and he’s far from his peak as a player. It begs the question as to what the rush is.
On top of Tottenham’s growing reputation, the addition of Franco Baldini to the backroom staff will only help to land transfer targets and open up a market that may yet have been ventured. It says something of the club that PSG were looking to their manager as someone to take over the reins of their lavish project; it says even more about Tottenham that Villas-Boas chose to stay.
Those who lament the failure to reach the Champions League are completely ignoring the progress being made elsewhere. While top-tier European football is a great desire at White Hart Lane, last season’s fifth place finish doesn’t throw a spanner into the works by any means.
Real Madrid, for what their tactical system is likely to be next season, have made the better choice in signing Isco over Bale. And therein lies Tottenham’s bargaining chip when discussing the immediate future with their star player. As good as Bale is, is he guaranteed to play every game for Real Madrid? It’s maybe an asinine question to some, but one with a degree of validity all the same. At Tottenham, he will remain the centrepiece and the star of the show. He can continue to grow into the player many expect him to be, at which point he can command a position at one of Europe’s biggest clubs.
For Tottenham, and provided they continue as they have done so far, the sale of Bale in the future could be offset by how much progress has been made in domestic football. The pieces are in place right across the board, and the income generated from the player’s sale will only act as another boost to the club’s future ambitions.
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Is Bale better placed staying at Spurs for next season?
Last week, Tottenham had a manager whose interviews were full of moans. Andre Villas-Boas felt things were unfair on Spurs – that 3 games in 6 days were putting his player’s careers at risk. With the latter part of that statement questionable, few could argue that 3 games in that short period of time were necessary. A schedule like that is more reminiscent of England’s hectic Christmas schedule than barely a month into the season.
The fixture list for Tottenham over the past 7 days of or so is indicative of the type of commitment clubs have to make to fulfill their obligations these days with the money from TV and media flowing into the pockets of English clubs in droves. The Portuguese is entitled to question why Tottenham were the only club to have to undertake this schedule but two realities far outweigh the inconvenience for Tottenham. First of all, it is doubtful that without the TV money being bounded about to clubs here and abroad he would have been able to sign the string of impressive players to have come through the doors at White Hart Lane over the past month or so. Secondly, players in this era and this stage of the season should be fitter than they ever will be- so playing 3 games in 6 days might be a strenuous challenge to me or you but surely not to a footballer that is paid millions to train their body into athletic condition then rest and recuperate.
Despite the negativity bounded about by Andre Villas-Boas about the schedule, in ironic fashion it has actually provided him with the chance to show that Tottenham are force to be reckoned with this season, not just in the league but on all fronts. 6 days, 3 solid wins, three clean sheets. Not exactly the sign of a club suffering fatigue. If you look closer at the three games, Tottenham were not really challenged by any three of the teams, despite needing a last minute winner at Cardiff on Sunday it was thoroughly deserved as Tottenham dominated throughout. At the same time, they have not needed to play out of their skin or do anything special. The concoction of these factors is reminiscent of title winning sides and trophy winners in general.
Tottenham’s men behind the scenes Daniel Levy and Franco Baldini have rightly been praised for the work they have done making sure the departure of Gareth Bale turned from a negative story for the Lillywhites into a positive one where the world record fee received was put to good use in signing a string of players that not only added quality to the team, but added depth too. Critics bounded about questions about how Villas-Boas would get his players to gel in such a short space of time having so many join from such diverse footballing backgrounds. But, in defiance of a factor bounded about that is increasingly looking mythological, the best players don’t need a settling in period. In addition, the elite do not need time to gel as a team- a world class player remains world class and putting these qualities together on a football pitch is to their advantage rather than their detriment. After all, it takes a team rather than an individual to truly be successful in football. One could say that was where Tottenham were going wrong last season, despite missing out on a coveted Champions League place by just one point, they would have been miles away if it were not for a string of remarkable performances from Gareth Bale.
This time round, it is hard to argue against Tottenham looking an overall stronger team in all areas of the pitch, and results have proved that thus far. The big question will be consistency, but with Andre’s men looking strong across the field it is difficult to leave them out of the favourites for all competitions they are entered into this season.
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Daniel Levy wasn’t going to oblige Real Madrid any favours; it’s not his way.
The Tottenham chairman was in a position of power. Florentino Perez, his counterpart, desperately wanted Gareth Bale this past summer. The Welshman, having reportedly prepared for months for Real Madrid and only Real Madrid, was just as desperate to make the switch. But if the Spanish club were going to get what they wanted, Levy was determined to make sure it was a struggle on all fronts.
It may have been symbolic. Tottenham had lost 6-0 away to Manchester City. A simple 2-0 defeat would have told a story but not an accurate one. The 6-0 final score hit home all the problems of the post-Bale era at Spurs. Only the day before, Real Madrid had won 5-0 away to Almeria. Bale scored again. The following week, he hit his first hat-trick for the club, a “perfect hat-trick,” as Madrid beat Valladolid 4-0 at the Bernabeu. Whatever disadvantage Levy was trying to create for the La Liga side by stalling the transfer, it was not paying off.
Last year, Levy and Perez went to the wire for the first chapter in this war. Luka Modric was lost to Spain. Levy, hoping to extract £40 million from the deal – an offer which Chelsea had previously made – had to settle for something closer to £30 million, a stuttered start to the season off the back of missed transfers, and a flimsy, if non-existent “partnership” with Real Madrid.
It took Modric significantly longer to settle in the Spanish capital, initially branded the worst transfer of the summer of 2012. For Bale, it only really took a few weeks in the team. He’s clearly not at 100 per cent fitness, but he’s much, much further along than he was when he turned up at the Bernabeu on September 1st.
He was excellent in Madrid’s win 7-3 win over Sevilla – a game where “demolition” isn’t an accurate portrayal of a game where both sides had equal opportunities. Bale, starting from the right, scored twice and added two more. One was for Cristiano Ronaldo, with whom he has struck a positive relationship.
On the other side of the table, Levy is witnessing a struggle for both his manager and his new recruits. Andre Villas-Boas doesn’t have Bale to turn matches around. He himself has been involved in fiery exchanges with the media for multiple reasons this season, while the poor displays of the team and the lack of results have raised questions about his future with the club.
Bale’s transfer, in comparison, has been much easier than those who went to White Hart Lane as part of the master plan to replicate or even better his success.
He’s slotted into a team where he hasn’t needed to be the central figure. Even in the absence of Ronaldo, Angel Di Maria has been outstanding, Isco too, and Xabi Alonso continues to prove just how important he is to this team. Real Madrid’s run of form, six wins from their last seven, is also owed to the revival of Karim Benzema.
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But Bale still has work to do. He doesn’t play a part in the build up. Those trademark runs at opposition defences have been absent. Yes, he isn’t 100 per cent fit, but the point is more is yet to come and importantly more is expected of him.
For now, it’s clear who has taken the upper hand in this second battle between Tottenham and Real Madrid.
The feeling of shock wouldn’t just be isolated to Manchester United fans. There is something unfamiliar and unnerving about what’s going on at Old Trafford. Stripping away the matter of rivalry from those who are doubtless enjoying United’s plight, it’s difficult not to feel sorry for David Moyes at this time.
Four home losses in six is a shocking run of form; it’s horrific when it’s that of a club like Manchester United. The worry is that there’s a theme to these losses, one that can’t really be rectified by looking in house.
Manchester United lack imagination and adventure. Against Swansea on Sunday, the home side saw plenty of possession by did very little with it. Questions should be asked of the players and their levels of performance, some of whom simply aren’t doing enough to merit a place in the team and help with bettering the overall picture. But there is a lasting problem of a lack of identity, and I mean that in the way United play.
Javier Hernandez isn’t the same type of centre-forward as Wayne Rooney or Robin van Persie, who are both able to play as No.10s and help to dictate the game if need be. When the Mexican comes into the team in the absence of one or both of the others, the dynamics of the team changes. Hernandez, someone who stays very much in the final third, can look isolated and left feeding off scraps.
It’s worrying therefore that Moyes has stated this January will be a quiet one for the club. The United manager obviously has his targets, who you’d hope are capable of elevating the team and club overall. But he has doubts about their availability midway through the season. Another six months of uninspired performances, then?
I feel sympathy towards Moyes because no one should have expected him to carry on where Alex Ferguson left off. One because he’s not the same manager, nowhere near; and two because this squad have come to the end of their cycle. Youth players are staking their claims as regulars in the first XI, while signings through the market are needed to balance out the lack of quality in certain areas. Patience is needed with one, obviously, but an attitude of wanting to do better is needed for the other.
It’s of little use to anyone for Moyes to dismiss any signings this month, even if he doesn’t believe in what he’s saying. The club need a lift; the players, the fans. That has to come via the market because the club’s star names are either relapsing into old injury troubles or facing problems over general fitness. There isn’t much in the way of a lifeline in the United squad that Moyes can lean on at this time.
The need is a central midfielder, one not only of sufficient class but of high class to go some way to righting the ship. It’s not all United need, but it’s a step in the most obvious direction.
In Tom Cleverley, United have an academy graduate who does little at either end of the pitch. He’s not good enough to be a Michael Carrick, nor is he capable of acting as the team’s anchor or holding midfielder.
Shinji Kagawa, who was a creative dynamo at Borussia Dortmund, sadly looks lost and without purpose. There’s no confidence, the team aren’t set up to work to his strengths, and rotating in and out of the side and in various positions along the attacking midfield three is of benefit to no one. He’s good enough, of course, but he’s a long, long way off from what he produced in Germany.
But even with a full strength squad, there isn’t anything else United have in the way of a positive influence in midfield. Marouane Fellaini may prove to have a position in the team in the future, but from a footballing perspective, he was a signing United could have afforded to look past.
United, rather than looking like a unit who can pummel an opponent into submission, are now overly reliant on the contributions of one or two. Unfortunately, where van Persie helped to take Arsenal over the line into fourth during his final season in north London, he hasn’t been consistently fit this season to help a United team in similar need of inspiration of the leadership of a world-class player.
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It’s an unwelcome distraction for Manchester United, though one that was always likely to rear its ugly head sooner rather than later.
United and David Moyes in particular were always going to be up against it this summer to put right everything that went wrong last year and reshape an ageing and under-performing squad. Nemanja Vidic was perceived to be the only member of United’s back line with an expiring contract worth keeping, but continually the message pointed to an exit in the summer with the club and player unable to reach an agreement.
It’s worth asking whether the reported £200million in transfer funds (which may be less after the signing of Juan Mata) is enough to replace the United defence – possibly all four positions if Rafael also departs – and also address issues elsewhere in the team.
It is a bleak outlook. United are battling to secure fourth place in the Premier League as a means to make their life easier in the summer market. The promise of something positive in the way of world-class signings following the arrival of Juan Mata may be offset by the interview in which Anderson, having just departed on loan to Fiorentina, said a number of players at United were looking for a way out of the club.
Furthermore, you have a manager in Moyes whose continued reliance on excuses for his side’s poor run of form doesn’t fill many with hope that he is able to turn the ship around himself. New players will come in of course, but is he the manager to put all the new pieces of the machine into fluid and effective motion?
That’s one side of the argument. The other is that Moyes will eventually come good in this new environment and perform far better next season with a higher quality of player (you’d assume) in various areas of the pitch. It’s still Manchester United we’re talking about. The fall hasn’t been so great that we’re discussing an impossible task of trying to reclaim the mountain.
The need for a transition was evident. Vidic’s departure may in fact be a good thing. While Phil Jones and Chris Smalling aren’t currently ideal partners for Jonny Evans at centre-back, the loss of such an experienced player in Vidic could and should kick United’s relevant bodies into action early.
There is no room for failure as there was last summer. United needed a midfielder then, but could have gotten away without a Cesc Fabregas or Thiago Alcantara, as they’ve done in previous seasons under Alex Ferguson. This time, impending departures of two veteran centre-backs, who were largely reliable when their two juniors didn’t look up to the task, means United will be considerably weaker, rather than just stagnant in an area of the pitch.
Ed Woodward’s ability to get the deal done for Mata, without ever having to come in direct contact with Chelsea and thus avoiding the topic of Wayne Rooney, will give the club as a whole some encouragement going into this summer’s transfer market.
The mood at United this season is one that changes so erratically that it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly what is on the horizon for the club. After signing Mata, the outlook was one of renewed hope, only to be dashed following the loss at Stoke. It could change completely again over the coming weeks.
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Which is why Vidic’s departure, along with Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra, shouldn’t spell the crumbling of the castle. United very much have the chance to erase the slate and start again during the summer.