Tottenham winger Gareth Bale has stated that the side’s defensive efforts are the platform for the club’s renowned attacking abilities.
With the likes of Rafael van der Vaart, Aaron Lennon, Jermain Defoe and Luka Modric supporting main striker Emmanuel Adebayor, the North London outfit have won 10 out of their last 11 games and sit in third place in the Premier League standings.
Bale has scored five league goals this season and created a number of others, but he was quick to hail the efforts of his backline as the reason the attacking players are given free reign to play.
“I just think we’ve got the balance right,” the wideman told the club’s official website.
“We’ve Scott Parker in the team now and he covers every blade of grass, closes everyone down and gives us that security in midfield.
“Younes [Kaboul] and Ledley [King] have been great, Brad and the full-backs have been playing well and that gives us front five the licence to attack as much as we can and that has got us the goals.
“We’re all playing with so much confidence at the moment.
“Even if we’re on the back foot or teams are attacking us, we’ve got the pace to hit them on the counter-attack. It’s good to have that in our armoury,” he concluded.
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Spurs take on Stoke on Sunday, with their defensive qualities set to be put under pressure by the direct nature of Tony Pulis’ men.
LDU Quito’s up-and-down Copa Libertadores campaign took a turn for the better, while Estudiantes had their own big win on Thursday.Ecuadorian side LDU Quito strengthened their spot at the top of the Group 8 table after trouncing Uruguayan outfit Penarol 5-0 at home, in a game that lacked for nothing.The 2008 Copa winners – who have now won two and lost two in their group games – took at 22nd-minute lead through Carlos Luna, though the Argentine striker had to be substituted through injury two minutes after breaking the deadlock.It mattered little for the 29-year-old’s side, however, with replacement Walter Calderon doubling LDU Quito’s advantage in first-half extra time.On-loan Reggina defender Carlos Valdez then put through his own net to compound Penarol’s woes, with a Hernan Barcos penalty and another strike from veteran striker Calderon making the scoreline complete.The only negative for LDU was the straight red card handed to substitute midfielder Fernando Hidalgo, but it did little to stop his team-mates running out comprehensive winners.Penarol sink to third on the table due to a poor goal difference, though they are level with both LDU Quito and Argentine club Godoy Cruz on six points.Not to be outdone, Estudiantes put five goals of their own past Paraguayans Guarani to move to second on the Group 7 table.The Argentinians had a hat-trick from much-travelled Uruguayan frontman Hernan Lopez as the highlight, with strike partner Leandro Gonzalez weighing in with a brace.Boca Juniors loanee Facundo Roncaglia was sent off for the winners, while Julian Benitez scored a consolation goal for the away side to ensure the match finished 5-1.Colombian club Junior sealed their progression from the group stage courtesy of a come-from-behind 2-1 win at home over Bolivian outfit Oriente Petrolero, making it four wins from as many games in Group 2.Oriente are pointless and appear doomed, with Gremio’s 1-1 draw at Peruvian club Leon de Huanuco helping the Brazilian club more than their opponents in Thursday’s other group game.
Everton captain Phil Neville is pleased with his progress following summer surgery on a knee problem.
Neville will miss the first match on the club's pre-season tour to Australia against Sydney FC on Saturday as he is still recovering from surgery back in May.
However, he is hoping to feature during the tour in order to prove hit fitness ahead of the start of the new Premier League season.
"It has actually been fantastic. It's been nine weeks now and at eight weeks I was allowed to start running," he explained.
"This week has been more of me slowly settling back into training.
"I have been doing one session a day with the team and another session in the gym to keep the strength up in the knee.
"As pre-season gets closer to the full season I will step up my training.
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"I feel really fit, really strong, and for the first time in months I am running without pain in my knee, which is a great sign.
"There are three games this week and it would be great to take part in some of them and get some minutes under my belt."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
The Premier League is littered with talent everywhere you look, though of course it is and has always been defined by its star names. Where would we be without Rooney, Gerrard, Terry, and the rest who light up the stage week in, week out. These are the players we read about every day, and who get all the limelight and plaudits for their efforts on the football field.
In this era of Premier League mega-stars it is easy to forget about the other few hundred players in the league (excluding David Bentley), who work just as hard and make vital contributions to their sides. There is a load of unsung heroes out there on the field every week who put in just as much effort-if not more-as the top names yet don’t get anywhere near the same amount of recognition. Why these players don’t get the recognition they deserve is a mystery. Some probably don’t get the credit they deserve as their vital contributions are within unglamorous sides who aren’t in the big four. Other players simply shun the media limelight and mega stardom, as they are only interested in playing football and putting the team before themselves.
These players are the type who would be the first on the team sheet every week, yet they don’t get the plaudits like a Drogba or a Fabregas. They are just as critical and most are the heartbeats of their sides, who would be much poorer without them. Some have made vital contributions that have saved their sides from dropping out of the division, others have propelled their sides to achieve greater things than expected, yet they barely get mentioned in the same breath as the big stars of the league. It’s time to pay tribute to the Premier League players who don’t get enough recognition.
Click on the image below to see the top ten
[divider]
Compiled by Lauren Rutter
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You have probably woken up this morning to a torrent of Manchester United fans raving about their U18 starlet, Ravel Morrison.
Dubbed ‘the new Ashley Young’, Morrison may promise to have a bright future and he hit headlines recently with a fantastic double to book United’s youth team a place in the FA Youth Cup semi-finals in a 3-2 win over Liverpool.
However, Morrison’s off the pitch exploits had previously surrounded him in controversy after he narrowly avoided a prison sentence in 2009 following an alleged mugging incident. He was promised that he would certainly face jail time if he was to appear in court again any time in the near future.
The youngster has made one appearance for the first team as a substitute for Park Ji-Sung in a League Cup tie against Wolves and should he keep up his good form, you may be seeing him strutting his stuff around Old Trafford once again in the near future.
So what are you waiting for? Check out Ravel’s best bits in the video below.
[ffcvideo file=’mu_r_morisson’]
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West Ham United co-owner David Sullivan has revealed that he had agreed to sign Germany hot-shot Miroslav Klose prior to this summer's World Cup finals.
The Hammers chief insists that a free transfer move was on the cards for the 32-year-old after he endured a torrid campaign in his homeland with Bayern Munich.
But he has excelled on the international stage by scoring four goals and helping his side to the semi-finals in South Africa.
Sullivan now thinks he could join a more illustrious club on the continent.
Speaking to Soccernet, he said:"We had a deal in place before the World Cup, after he had a bad season in Germany.
"However, as a result of what he has done at the World Cup, it's unlikely to happen."
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Meanwhile, West Ham's hopes of signing Frederic Piquionne from French club Lyon also appear to be hitting a snag.
Piquionne, who enjoyed a loan spell at Portsmouth last season, is believed to still have a future with the French giants as coach Claude Puel considers his pre-season plans.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Rafa Benitez’s Newcastle United have enjoyed an excellent season as the North East club finished 10th in their return to the Premier League.
The Spaniard earned a lot of praise from fans and former players for guiding the Magpies to a mid-table finish while working with a limited budget typical of the Mike Ashley era.
Iconic striker, Les Ferdinand, recently applauded Benitez for the “unbelievable job” he has done at St. James Park but all this hard work hasn’t gone unnoticed by rival clubs.
Reportedly Premier league sides Arsenal and West Ham are both keen to speak to the Champions League winner. Although it is understood that the Newcastle manager would prefer to stay in the North East.
“My priority is to stay in England. I’m only talking to Newcastle right now.”
Benitez is entering his final year of his contract with the Magpies and has asked for assurances over the club’s ambition from owner, Ashley, before agreeing to a new deal.
“The main thing is to be sure we share the same ambition. I want to win games and I want to win trophies and I want to have the tools to be capable of competing…Newcastle is a massive football club and we want it to reach its potential.”
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Newcastle fans are terrified that Ashley won’t be able to match Benitez’s ambition and have taken to Twitter to vent their frustrations. Here is a selection of what’s being said:
Tottenham Hotspur surged to an impressive 3-0 victory away to Burnley on Saturday in the English Premier League, inspired by a scintillating Harry Kane performance.
The England striker scored a superb hat-trick to punish the home side, equalling Alan Shearer’s long standing Premier League goal scoring record of 36 goals in a single calendar year, first achieved in 1995.
Kane is now joint-top of the league scoring charts this season with 15 goals from 19 games and appears to be getting better and better as time goes on.
Tottenham fans were in absolute awe of the 24-year-old, with some even exclaiming that he is the best centre forward in the world right now. With performances like the one seen on Saturday, who can really argue against that?
If he remains fit and in form, Spurs’ chances of a top four finish are strong, even if other important players are not quite at their best.
Supporters took to Twitter to share their thoughts on his hat-trick…
Many former Premier League clubs have staged astonishing falls from grace in recent years – Charlton, Portsmouth and Leicester to name a few – but the traditional case study of rapid decline down the football leagues still remains Leeds United.
The Yorkshire club went from a Champions League semi-final to League 1 in less than a decade, with financial implosion, administration and a host of managers along the way, as well as former Chelsea owner Ken Bates overseeing repetitive stagnation in the Championship.
Things are looking brighter for the Whites nowadays however, with new investors from the Middle-East taking over in December, Bates relieved of his duties last week over apparent wrongful expenses claims, a new manager in Brian McDermott and the recent hope of buying back Elland Road, after having to sell it on a lease-back deal in 2004 due to financial insecurity.
However, the club is still a shadow of its former self; gunning for promotion under a new wave of optimism but nothing guaranteed. It begs the question, why hasn’t a serious investor – a multi-millionaire or even billionaire of the Roman Abramovich mould – ever taken a punt on a club with a prestigious history, strong fan base and high-standard facilities?
[cat_link cat=”premiership” type=”tower”]
There is certainly room for scope at Elland Road, especially if the finance of a wealthy individual with too much money to spend were to help push them back into the top flight. As previously mentioned, Leeds have been able to maintain their significant supporter base and high attendance despite their rapid decline, with the stadium’s maximum capacity at 37,914, and a 30,000 turnout expected for their first home game of the season against Brighton this weekend.
The attendance figures outweigh those of a number of Premier League clubs from last season, including Fulham, Norwich, QPR, West Brom and Wigan. Maxing out Elland Road with the promise of Premiership football for budding pundits would undoubtedly produce a steady supply of match day revenue to appease any potential investor. Furthermore, there is the potential to expand the stadium – plans were made in 2009 to increase the capacity to over 50,000 if England’s bid for the 2018 World Cup was successful.
Similarly, financially, the club is still in a precarious position, but Leeds have maintained their healthy youth system throughout. Currently, Tom Lees and Sam Byram, aged 22 and 19 respectively, hold down regular places in the first team, and were two of United’s top performers last term. It’s another attractive prospect for potential investors, with no fear of constantly relying upon inward transfers to source new players as we have seen at Manchester City since Sheik Mansour’s takeover in 2008, whilst Chelsea in comparison, benefitted greatly from John Terry rising through the ranks of the youth set-up.
Furthermore, Leeds’ prestigious past should not be ignored or underestimated. Granted, the last decade has been one of the darkest eras of the club’s history, but previously, they were an established top flight outfit. Since 1921, the majority of their football has been played in the English first tier, and on the continental stage they’re also well-recognised, lifting the European Cup in 1975 and regularly featuring in the modern competitions of the UEFA Cup and the Champions League before their fall from grace. It’s the kind of prestigious history that can be utilised effectively to attract talent from abroad, as well as in England, where there are still strong memories of Leeds being a Premier League institution.
But there are also plenty of reasons why an investor could be put off by the prospect of acquiring Leeds United too. Part of the attraction of foreign investors to Chelsea and Manchester City alike was the added commercial revenue that could be provided by the location of both clubs. London and Manchester are the two biggest cities in the UK, with huge populations and footfalls – 9.8million and 2.5million populations respectively – whilst West Yorkshire lags some way behind, with 1.7million between Leeds, Bradford, Wakefield and Huddlesfield, and a much lesser population density to boot.
Stamford Bridge in particular, is situated in an incredibly affluent district of London, and Roman Abramovich has taken full advantage by expanding Chelsea’s stadium into a complex that includes cinemas, restaurants and bars, and it would be difficult to replicate such a business enterprise to a similar degree in a city with a fraction of London’s population.
Similarly, the club’s debts still remain a big issue. Roman Abramovich cleared the slate for the Blues in 2003, but at that point, Chelsea were a lot closer to the unprecidented revenues of European football and Premier League titles than Leeds are in their current situation, and at the moment, the Championship side’s economic model is unsustainable, despite the new investors arriving around Christmas time.
According to Spoughts.Com, Leeds City Holdings closed with a debt increase from £1.3million to £5million, and in 2012, Leeds United Football Club lost £2.2million before player sales. Ken Bates’ tactic to keep the club’s head above water was to sell the first team’s stars year upon year, and although GFH Capital have alleviated the financial strain, recently selling a 10% share in the club for further profit, it’s hard to see where a more viable solution to improve United’s cash flow problems without immediate promotion.
Perhaps most importantly however, is the fact that the Championship is the most volatile and unpredictable division within the realms of the English football league. Leicester City have spent big year upon year to bring the Championship’s top talents to the King Power stadium, but they are still yet to bring their prolonged absence from the Premiership to an end.
Similarly, clubs like Reading, Burnley, Crystal Palace and Hull have managed promotion on a shoe-string, with more impetus on the ability of the manager and the attitude of the players rather than actual quality, whilst QPR, who were taken over in 2007 by racing tycoons Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone, didn’t make it into the top flight until 2011.
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So maybe there’s more risk than meets the eye in investing in what is traditionally one of England’s most successful clubs, but perhaps it’s for the best. Big-money investment hasn’t served QPR too well over the past few years, although I’m sure plenty of Leeds fans would relish the prospect of a Roman Abramovich or Sheik Mansour arriving at Elland Road.
Then again, you should always be careful what you wish for. A recent article in the Yorkshire Evening Post speculated that energy-drinks giant Red Bull were considering investing in the club. But I can’t imagine too many fans being happy if the company insisted on re-branding as they have with their take-over of Salzburg.
Formerly known as SV Austria Salzburg, the Austrian Bundesliga outfit are now called FC Red Bull Salzburg, don a badge with two red bulls on it, play their games in the Red Bull arena and wear kits consisting of the Red Bull colours (mainly red, white, blue and yellow).
Sometimes in football, there are things more important than money, winning, or the Premier League.
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce has hit out at the critics who have labelled the Hammers as a long-ball team, according to ESPN.
The 57-year-old became infamous during his time in charge at Bolton Wanderers for his side’s direct, physical approach which riled several Premier League managers including former Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez, who once sarcastically compared Bolton’s style of play to that of Barcelona’s.
The addition of Andy Carroll on a season long-loan from Liverpool at the Boleyn Ground has led many to argue that Allardyce is looking to emulate the style of play which saw him bring relative success to the Trotters in the Premier League. Additionally, Allardyce also has three former Bolton players in Jussi Jaaskelainen, Kevin Nolan and Ricardo Vaz Te in his first team.
However, ‘big Sam’ has refuted these claims and argues that West Ham’s style of play is much more subtle and varied than the direct style of play he employed at the Reebok Stadium, “The best way for a team to play is to have variation and we have shown that since the beginning of the season. We go short, we go long, we go forward, we go diagonal and we go in behind. It makes us very hard to play against and luckily we have the players like Ricardo Vaz Te and Mark Noble who can adapt.”
The Hammers’ boss, who spent just under £20 million on new acquisitions this summer, also admitted that he was delighted with the current crop of players he has at his disposal this season, “We have a lot of talent – young, old, home grown and foreign – and it all adds to the mix to form a very strong squad, which you need in this league. Also, we have Matt Jarvis and Yossi Benayoun, who are both ready to make an impact.”
West Ham have made an impressive start to the campaign winning two of their first three Premier League games so far this season. As a result, the Hammers could temporarily propel themselves to second in the Barclays Premier League table if they can overcome a struggling Norwich City side at Carrow Road in Saturday’s early kick-off.
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The newly-promoted outfit will be without newly acquired star striker Carroll who has been ruled out for six weeks with a hamstring injury picked up on debut in West Ham’s comfortable 3-0 victory over Fulham.