Former Liverpool star Kenny Dalglish is hoping the coming week will prove to be the start of a prosperous new future at Anfield.
The under-achieving Premier League side have failed to reach the heights expected of them this term and, with New England Sports Ventures seeking to oust current owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, Dalglish is pinning his hopes on the group to turn their fortunes around.
"These have been depressing times at Anfield," he said.
"It is never nice when your football club are making as many headlines on the front pages as the back.
"This week looks set to be huge for Liverpool but there is still a feeling of uncertainty because nobody can guarantee what is going to happen next.
"I feel particularly for the fans, who must find it difficult to know which way to turn. I am sure the majority of them are quite happy that the club might be sold but what they really want is to see Liverpool move onwards and upwards from here.
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"Let's hope we can and that things work out. Liverpool is usually a glass half-full kind of city, and The Kop are renowned throughout the world for their humour and spirit."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
While Tom Cleverley is making a name for himself on the pitch, off it he isn’t doing too badly either having pulled himself a blonde model that is certainly up there in the current Wag Arena within the Premier League.
The Manchester United starlet is highly thought of at Old Trafford, with many suggesting he destined for the very top in the years to come. There’s nothing to suggest that Miss O’Hara will remain with Cleverley as he steps up week in, week out within the Premier League, however I am sure most United fans will agree that she represents a good place to start.
Click on image below to view our sexiest gallery yet
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Where does Ms O’Hara rank among the Manchester United WAGS – click here to find out
‘While Wayne Rooney is desperate to see new faces, Sir Alex Ferguson has a new golden age knocking on the first team door that could in fact save Manchester United millions in the years to come.’
Do Manchester United fans have faith that the young stars on display against Wolves on Tuesday are good enough to be seen as the new generation. After watching the game on Tuesday, it is obvious Manchester United have some very impressive youngsters but can they break into the first team squad in the future?
The Carling Cup tie against Wolves provided Manchester United fans with another glimpse of what the future holds at Old Trafford. In the main, the youngsters did well against an aggressive and strong Wolves outfit. The first half was a dour affair – Wolves didn’t commit too many men forward whilst United looked off the pace. That isn’t surprising though. What sceptics of this United squad have said is that the team lacked imagination and penetration. There are no reserve fixtures in October for the players. United fielded a squad that hadn’t really played competitive action for a month, so of course it was going to take time for the players to gel and get into the game. Without a doubt the game improved in the second half, and both Manchester United and Wolves were involved in a great second half cup tie.
What are Manchester United’s priories. Do they need to go out and buy top quality players or would the fans prefer to see Raphael, Chris Smalling, Federico Macheda and Gabriel Obertan given their chance in the first team. When Manchester United lost 3-1 to Aston Villa at the start of the 1995/1996 season, not too many people were signing the praises of the youngsters that have gone on to provide the club with so much success. The youngsters need to be given time to gel with one another and fans have to accept with so many youngsters in one team the players are likely to make mistakes. Without a doubt though, they will improve and some could force their way into Manchester United’s first team squad over the next couple of years.
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The question is are some of the players good enough for the Manchester United squad, either now or in the future. For example, Gabriel Obertan hasn’t shown what he can do when given his chance in the team. He was described as the unpolished gem of French football when he arrived – a tag that he hasn’t lived up to. Gabriel Obertan does not have the quality to succeed at Manchester United and should be sold at the earliest opportunity. Federico Macheda is in the same kind of position. Without doubt the Italian has serious potential but he hasn’t ever shown this when given the chance to start a game. Will Macheda ever be able to live up to the goal against Aston Villa? That is what he is always going to be compared against. The problem is when does potential have to turn into something more serious in the youngsters. If the likes of Raphael, Gibson and Macheda were going to make it at Manchester United, wouldn’t they have made the step to commanding a first team place by now. For example, United have issues at right back. It doesn’t seem that Sir Alex Ferguson trusts Raphael to play in this position week in week out.
The youngsters shouldn’t be judged unfairly by the game against Wolves. Ben Amos looked solid in goal, Chris Smalling showed the signs of a very decent defender and Bebe, with a bit of tweaking could be a great addition to the Manchester United squad. The fans shouldn’t be overly worried by what they did or did not see. The game lacked atmosphere, and the players were rusty due the lack of reserve team action in October.
Are United fans torn between wanting to see a new generation of youngsters come through and be as successful as the last, and wanting too see big name signings coming to Old Trafford. In all fairness one will be at the expense of the other. If you look at Manchester United’s bench at the moment, it doesn’t stand up to Arsenal’s, Manchester City’s or Tottenham’s. Manchester United need to sign big players for sure, but somehow need to keep developing the talent in the ranks. United have a great deal of talent away on loan at the moment, something that shouldn’t be forgotten. Sir Alex Ferguson needs to retain a balance between bringing these potential stars through and purchasing talent. This has to be the future of Manchester United. Hopefully the fans will be happy with the results.
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Both teams are doing better than expected so far and, if other results go their way, Bolton could actually move in to a Champions League spot with a win.
It’s a funny old game indeed. Only a point separates the sides but Bolton are certainly on a better run with just one defeat in eight league games.
Newcastle on the other hand have been consistently inconsistent. One thing we can be sure of is seeing plenty of physical forward play. Andy Carroll, 13/2 to score first, will be feeling confident after making his England debut. Johann Elmander, 11/2 to score first, is starting to look as though he hasn’t been a complete waste of money whilst Kevin Davies (13/2) just likes jumping in to people.
Newcastle have some good results on the road so if you don’t fancy going for another draw, they’re a decent price at 13/5.
Since the summer things seem to have calmed down at Liverpool Football Club. However, with the impending transfer window of opportunity looming, are things set to take a turn?
Milan Jovanovic’s agent, Cvijan Milosevic, has recently admitted that his client could exit Liverpool in the January transfer window. The 29-year-old joined Anfield in the summer on a free transfer from Standard Liege but has struggled to make an impact, with Roy Hodgson limiting his appearances to European games. The Serbian’s situation seems less than certain and it would not surprise me if Jovanovic found his way out of Anfield come January.
Another member of the Anfield squad whose future does not seem all that clear is England International right back Glen Johnson. “Johnson has criticised manager Hodgson’s style of play, slamming Liverpool as ‘boring’ recently, and has duly been linked with a reunion with former Reds boss Rafael Benitez at Inter Milan.” Johnson’s future seems even more in doubt as rumours circulate that Hodgson is interested in recruiting right back Rod Fanni from Rennes.
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Pepe Reina’s Liverpool career also looks to be on slightly shaky ground as the Spaniard has made it clear that he would be willing to leave the club if it meant success could be had elsewhere. Recently Reina made the coy remark “I have a contract with Liverpool, that’s all.” When asked about his future. Is Liverpool’s superb shot stopper on his way out of Anfield?
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Finally, is it the manager himself Roy Hodgson who is set for the Anfield Chop this January. With the introduction of Damien Comolli as Director of Football Strategy at the club has Hodgson’ position at the club been weakened? “It has been speculated that Hodgson’s say in transfer deals will be diminished as a result, with the new American owners also reportedly unimpressed with the former Fulham boss’s recent acquisitions.” Could the recent goings on at Anfield move Hodgson closer to the exit door?
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Never one to shy away from voicing his opinions, Arsene Wenger has been in the news again recently for condemning the FA for saying they will take the ‘strongest team possible’ to the European Under-21 tournament in Demark next year. The bone of contention Wenger has is that this will inevitably mean a call-up for 18 year-old Jack Wilshere, who may have already featured just a week earlier for the England senior side in a Euro 2012 qualifier against Switzerland on June 4th.
Wenger has noted that;
“Jack Wilshere will play more than 40 games this season and, at 18, you have to be conscious that every time he plays, when he goes into the fight, he has to put in 200 per cent to win the ball. When a guy like him has played 40 games in the season, he needs a rest.”
Whilst also stating that;
‘The FA have to decide if he is in the first team or the Under 21s. Personally, I don’t believe a player ever performs when he has been in the top team and comes back to the Under 21s.’
We are by now, very used to the Wenger take on things, and love him or hate him, he invariably has an opinion. But is he right to be worried about the national team’s utilisation of one of his side’s prize assets?
It seems to me rather demanding of the FA to expect Wilshere to play for both the senior side and the Under-21s, and as Wenger says, the FA should probably make there mind up as to where they want him, not that this is putting Wilshere himself off the chance to play for both. However, I feel Wenger has a point.
This is perhaps not a typical club vs. country row; for starters Wenger has not expressed his dissatisfaction with Wilshere playing for his country full stop, more that he dislikes the idea of a potential summer off for one of his young talents being dashed by two facets of the national side.
I for one, can sympathise with Wenger, because how many times have we seen prodigious young talent have their career’s ruined by overzealous managers and officials, wanting to utilise their talents at every turn? The issue I believe is that Wenger himself is not in control of England’s usage of Wilshere. Wenger can use Wilshere as much as he likes, after all, Arsenal pay his wages, but with the youngster at the mercy of the FA all summer long, the decision is taken out of his control, and right or wrong, isn’t this the crux of the issue?
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A Danny Allsopp brace all but booked Melbourne Victory’s spot in the finals as the home side defeated Gold Coast United 2-0 at AAMI Park.
In a preview of a likely-first week final, Melbourne dominated the play and thanks to Allsopp’s well-taken goals either side of half-time have moved within touching distance of a confirmed spot in the finals.
Allsopp, who only re-joined the club at the start of January, is now the form striker in the league, having managed five goals in his past four matches.
With Archie Thompson and Robbie Kruse set to come back into the side in the next two weeks, Victory will have their best attacking line-up available for the finals.
As temperatures neared 40 degrees Celsius in Melbourne on Sunday, Allsopp scored a cracking goal on 28 minutes from over 25 yards out and then showed his versatility by turning John Curtis in the box and firing accurately 11 minutes into the second half.
The veteran striker could have had his first-ever A-League hat-trick, spurning several chances, but it mattered little as Melbourne made it two wins in a row.
Elsewhere, a first-half goal from Dylan Macallister was enough to give Wellington Phoenix a vital 1-0 win over 10-man Newcastle Jets in Wellington.
Macallister’s goal in the 20th minute secured a club record fifth straight victory at home for Wellington but more importantly the three points lifted the Phoenix to sixth (35 points) on the table and in the process dented Newcastle’s hopes of reaching the play-offs as they stayed in eight spot with 31 points.
The Jets were not helped by the red card shown to Ryan Griffiths in the 66th minute for abusing referee Chris Beath, who also booked captain Nikolai Topor-Stanley in the first half.
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But the Phoenix did not escape either with Andrew Durante, Troy Hearfield, Vince Lia, Ben Sigmund and Manny Muscat all shown yellow cards by the referee.
Sigmund’s yellow was his eighth of the season meaning he will miss the next two crucial away matches against Adelaide and Sydney.
Borussia Dortmund ace Shinji Kagawa could miss the rest of the Bundesliga season with a broken foot.
Kagawa, 21, has scored eight goals for his club this season as they continue to take all before them, currently sitting 11 points clear of Bayer Leverkusen at the top of the Bundesliga.
But the Japanese midfielder broke a bone in his foot while playing for his country in an Asian Cup semi-final against South Korea, which they won on penalties after the sides were locked at 2-2 at the end of extra time.
The loss of Kagawa will be a blow to Japan, who face Australia in Saturday’s Asian Cup final, but the news will hurt the Bundesliga table-toppers more, with a recovery expected in the final stages of the season at best.
“The news is bad. He was a prominent figure for us in the first half of the season,” Dortmund press-officer Hans-Joachim Watzke told SID.
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“The end of the season (in Germany) is three-and-a-half months away and a broken foot needs time to heal. It will be close (whether or not he plays again this season).”
Eredivisie league leaders PSV Eindhoven gave the chasing pack something to cheer about on Saturday, slipping to a 1-0 home defeat to ADO Den Haag.
Substitute Charlton Vicento’s cross found Wesley Verhoek unmarked at the far post in the second minute of injury time and his cool finish helped lift ADO into fifth place in the Eredivisie.
The result means reigning champions Twente trail PSV by just a single point and can overhaul the leaders if they beat Utrecht on Sunday.
Elsewhere on Saturday, relegation battlers Excelsior shocked AZ Alkmaar after coming from behind to post a 2-1 home win.
Kolbeinn Sigthorsson gave the visitors the lead after 10 minutes but Tom Vincken equalised with a penalty on 65 minutes before a freakish free-kick from Jordy Clasie sealed the three points.
Clasie’s floating free-kick from long-range deceived everyone, including Alkmaar goalkeeper Sergio Romero, and bounced inside the penalty area before crossing the line.
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VVV Venlo remain entrenched in the relegation zone despite cruising to a 3-0 win over 10th-placed NAC Breda, while Heerenveen and NEC Nijmegen played out a goalless draw at the Abe Lenstra Stadion.
It was raining goals in the Premier League once again with impressive victories for Manchester United, Wolves and Aston Villa. The result for United sees Fergie’s side pull clear at the top of the table while Mick McCarthy will be delighted this morning in seeing his team finally moving out of the bottom three. It appears that at both ends of the table it is going to go down to the wire; given it is the most open Premier League table in years.
In the papers this morning there have been a mixed bag of stories that include Ashley Cole shoots student with air rifle; Martinez furious over Rooney elbow, while Manchester City learn the value of Silva.
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Cole shoots student with air rifle – Observer
Martinez furious over Rooney ‘elbow’ – Daily Telegraph
Kenny to Kop new two-year deal – Mirror
Wembley pitch is ‘best it’s ever been’, say officials ahead of Carling Cup final – Daily Mail
Arsene Wenger in for Kop Keeper – Daily Star
City learning value of Silva – Daily Telegraph
Unsettled Everton star Bilyaletdinov hints at Moscow exit in the summer – Daily Mail
Chelsea prove assistants have a key role – Observer
Andy Carroll told to lose the pounds – Express
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Hammers chief reveals why he spared Grant the sack – Mirror