Arsenal striker Robin van Persie has said he would like to be held in the same regard as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney next season.
He missed much of the later half of the season after injuring his ankle while on international duty with Netherlands in Italy last November, but he made an instant impact on his return to the Gunners first-team and he now wants an uninterrupted campaign to prove his worth.
Speaking to reporters, he said:"Arsene Wenger said at the end of this season, once I'd come back into the team, that people would have been talking about me like Lionel Messi if I had not been injured.
"I can see what the manager meant when he said those things. But I still think I am not in the same class until I have gone a long period without an injury and I want to go through next season where I score 30 goals and have 20 assists.
"Only then I will turn around to the manager and say, 'Yes boss, you are right'.
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"But I admit that I have a massive desire to get to the level of Messi, Rooney and Ronaldo and I'd rather do it today than tomorrow.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina has admitted that he is concerned about the futures of team-mates Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard.
Both Spain striker Torres and England captain Gerrard are reported to be wanted by some of Europe's leading clubs.
Torres has been linked with moves to Manchester City and Chelsea while Gerrard is believed to be on Real Madrid's radar.
Financial problems at Anfield, which have led to Tom Hicks and George Gillett putting the club up for sale, have led to suggestions that one or both of the prize assets could be sold off this summer.
That is causing Spain goalkeeper Reina some concern despite being thousands of miles away on World Cup duty in South Africa.
"Of course there is concern about Fernando and Stevie," he admitted."Any team would count on them and for us it's the same. Without them, it will be really tough to be up there at the top.
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"Fingers crossed, once we sort out the situation with the manager and the owners, which we hope is soon, hopefully we can focus on building a squad. We are all on the same boat and we want to redecorate the ship."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Former Scotland international Barry Ferguson has pledged his future to Birmingham City by signing a one-year contract extension that will keep him at St Andrew's until the summer of 2012.
The 32-year-old revitalised his career last term following his switch from Rangers and is hoping he can help Alex McLeish's side improve on last term's eighth-placed finish.
Speaking from the club's pre-season tour of Hong Kong and China, Ferguson said:"Before I left on the tour it was all agreed and I signed on the dotted line. I can now concentrate on another two years at Birmingham.
"It was kind of a dual thing, they came to me and had a chat, and I was always interested. I loved my first season down there. I've never hidden that. I was more than happy to extend the contract by another season. I can now focus on trying to do the job I did last year, and do it even better."
Ferguson has also explained why he opted to retire from international football. The midfielder had been stripped of the Scotland captaincy by former boss George Burley after a late-night drinking session following a World Cup qualifier against Iceland and then making obscene gestures from the bench at Hampden Park.
He added:"It was a major decision I took. I spoke to (current Scotland manager) Craig Levein at the end of February and I honestly didn't then think about it until the end of the season.
"I said to Birmingham I would give them everything when I came down, and I'm a firm believer in keeping my word. I wanted to make sure I finished the season as good as I could and then I went away and thought about it.
"I spoke to various people and came to a decision. It's been put to bed now and now I can focus on Birmingham.
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"I was going to leave it until the start of August, but I just felt that Craig was a guy who came down to see me, we spoke a couple of times on the phone, and I thought I had to let him know before pre-season started.
"I wanted to concentrate on my pre-season here and, at the same time, there was my contract as well, and I wanted to get something sorted."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Liverpool, England’s most successful football club, have witnessed some truly wonderful players at Anfield throughout the course of their 118 year history. Although the current Liverpool side only utilises the talents of three British-born players, Liverpool’s past is littered with many gifted and distinguished Brits. In my opinion, the following 11 players make up Liverpool’s Greatest British XI of all time.
Ray Clemence (Goalkeeper)
LFC Career: 1967-1981
Apps/goals: 665/0
Honours: 5 League Titles, 1 FA Cup, 1 League Cup, 3 European Cups, 2 UEFA Cups
Signed for just £18,000 in 1967, ‘Clem’ is widely considered to be the finest custodian in Liverpool’s history. Famed for his consistency and reassuring presence, Clemence is one of European football’s most decorated goalkeepers. Although his Anfield medal haul reflects a multitude of glittering moments upon Merseyside, Clemence’s most memorable saves include crucial penalty stops during Liverpool’s successful UEFA Cup campaigns of 1972/73 and 1975/76. Despite facing stiff competition from Peter Shilton, Clemence managed to attain 61 caps for England. Fittingly, Clemence’s last game for Liverpool before departing for Tottenham Hotspur saw the club beat Real Madrid to win their third European Cup.
Alan Hansen (Centre-back)
LFC Career: 1977-1991
Apps/goals: 620/14
Honours: 8 League Titles, 2 FA Cups, 4 League Cups, 3 European Cups
Ubiquitous television pundit Alan Hansen, nicknamed ‘Jockey’ amongst the Anfield faithful, is regarded by many as the finest defender ever to have graced Anfield. Arriving on Merseyside in 1977, Hansen enjoyed a glorious trophy-laden spell during his 14 years with the club. Eschewing the traditional British stereotype of the ‘heart-on-sleeve’, bruising defender, Hansen was known for his elegance and class, exemplifying the qualities of a top-class, ball-playing centre-back. After being awarded the captaincy in 1985, Hansen skippered the side to their first League and FA Cup double in 1985/86. Unfortunately Hansen’s last few years at Anfield were disrupted by knee problems, with these injuries leading to his eventual retirement in 1991.
Emlyn Hughes (Centre-back)
LFC Career: 1967-1979
Apps/goals: 665/49
Honours: 4 League Titles, 1 FA Cup, 2 European Cups, 2 UEFA Cups
As Liverpool’s first European Cup-winning captain, ‘Crazy Horse’ is held in high regard amongst Reds fans. A player who performed with great distinction at full-back, centre-back and midfield for Liverpool, Hughes earned the nickname ‘Crazy Horse’ after a ferocious tackle on Newcastle United tackle Albert Bennett. A committed and versatile player, Hughes was named FWA Player of the Year on the back of his performances during Liverpool’s successful European Cup campaign of 1976/77. Capped 62 times by England, ‘Crazy Horse’ skippered his country on 23 occasions.
Phil Neal (Right-back)
LFC Career: 1974-1985
Apps/goals: 650/59
Honours: 8 League Titles, 4 League Cups, 4 European Cups, 1 UEFA Cup
The most decorated player in Liverpool’s illustrious history, reliable right-back Phil Neal was the model of consistency for Liverpool during his 11 years at Anfield. Signed from Northampton Town in 1974, Neal became a staple of Liverpool’s starting line-up and made a staggering 365 consecutive league appearances between December 1974 and September 1983. Neal managed to score in two separate European Cup finals, netting a penalty in the 1977 final with Borussia Moenchengladbach and a close-range effort against Roma in the 1984 final. Although Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs recently eclipsed Neal’s record of being Britain’s most decorated footballer, Neal is still the most decorated Englishman in football history.
Alan Kennedy (Left-back)
LFC Career: 1978-1985
Apps/goals: 359/20
Honours: 6 League Titles, 4 League Cups, 2 European Cups
Nicknamed ‘Barney Rubble’ on the basis of his resemblance to Fred Flintstone’s best friend, foraging full-back Alan Kennedy is best known for scoring the winning goal in two separate European Cup finals. Having netted the only goal of the game against Real Madrid in 1981, ‘Barney Rubble’ scored the winning penalty in the 1984 European Cup Final shootout with Italian side Roma. After impressing at first club Newcastle United, Kennedy moved to Anfield in 1978 and swiftly made the left-back berth his own.
Steven Gerrard (Midfield)
LFC Career: 1998 – Present
Apps/goals: 532/132
Honours: 2 FA Cups, 2 League Cups, 1 European Cup, 1 UEFA Cup
Widely considered to be the finest midfielder of his generation, current Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard epitomizes the spirit and ethos of Liverpool Football Club. Blessed with tenacity, determination, technique and a tremendous eye for goal, Gerrard has, at times, single-handedly lead his side to glory over the past ten years. Although the legendary European Cup Final of 2005 represents the zenith of Gerrard’s Liverpool career, the 2006 FA Cup Final (one known as ‘the Gerrard Final’) highlighted Gerrard at the peak of his powers. Having won both the PFA and FWA Player of the Year awards (2006 and 2009 respectively), Gerrard was also named in the PFA Team of the Year for six straight seasons between 2004 and 2009. Despite a disappointing 2009/10 season, Gerrard still remains the most important player at Anfield, and central to Roy Hodgson’s plans.
Graeme Souness (Midfield)
LFC Career: 1978-1984
Apps/goals: 359/59
Honours: 5 League Titles, 4 League Cups, 3 European Cups
Despite an unsuccessful stint as Liverpool manager during the early 1990s, Graeme Souness is still regarded as one of the club’s best ever midfielders. Having made his name at Middlesbrough during the mid-1970s, ‘Souey’ was signed by Bob Paisley in 1978 as a replacement for Ian Callaghan. Blessed with fearsome tenacity and delicate elegance, Souness was regarded as the most complete midfielder of his day. After being named captain in 1981, Souness lead the side to three league titles, three League Cups and one European Cup, before departing for Sampdoria in the summer of 1984.
John Barnes (Midfield)
LFC Career: 1987-1997
Apps/goals: 407/108
Honours: 2 League Titles, 2 FA Cups, 1 League Cup
Affectionately known as ‘Digger’ (after his initials JCB) amongst Liverpool fans, Jamaican-born John Barnes is one of the most exciting players to have ever graced the hallowed Anfield turf. Having made the move up north from Watford in the summer of 1987, Barnes (along with Peter Beardsley and John Aldridge) formed one third of Liverpool’s electrifying attacking trio of 1987/88, with the threesome terrorising defenders up and down the land. Barnes’s best season in a Liverpool shirt occurred during 1989/90, when the England international scored 22 goals from the left-wing, as Liverpool secured their last league title. Barnes was also named FWA Player of the Year in recognition of his stellar efforts. Barnes moved to a more central position later on his Liverpool career, before departing for Newcastle United in 1997.
Kenny Dalglish (‘In-the-hole’)
LFC Career: 1977-1989
Apps/goals: 515/172
Honours: 6 League Titles, 1 FA Cup, 4 League Cups, 3 European Cups
Recently named as the greatest striker to have played in Britain since WW2 by FourFourTwo magazine, Kenneth Mathieson Dalglish is considered by most to be Liverpool’s greatest ever player. ‘King Kenny’, voted number one in the list of ‘100 Players Who Shook The Kop’, signed for Liverpool in 1977 for a then record transfer fee of £440,000 as a replacement for Kevin Keegan. Despite initial doubts over his ability to replace Keegan, Dalglish quickly proved his worth, scoring the winning goal in the 1978 European Final against Bruges at Wembley. Forming and developing a legendary strike-partnership with Welshman Ian Rush, Dalglish was named FWA Player of the Year twice (1979 and 1983) and PFA Players’ Player of the Year once (1983). Dalglish also enjoyed a successful spell managing the side, leading the club to three league titles and two FA Cups between 1985 and 1991.
Robbie Fowler (Striker)
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LFC Career: 1993-2001; 2006-2007
Apps/goals: 369/183
Honours: 1 FA Cup, 2 League Cups, 1 UEFA Cup
Toxteth-born Robbie Fowler, a man who enjoyed two stints with Liverpool, is regarded as one of the best strikers in Liverpol’s history. Bursting on to the scene as an 18-year-old in 1993, Fowler scored on his senior debut against Fulham in the League Cup and followed it up by scoring all five goals against the London side in the return leg. Scorer of the fastest hat-trick in Premier League history (three goals in four minutes and 33 seconds against Arsenal in 1994), Fowler was widely considered to be the best natural finisher in England after scoring more than 30 goals for three consecutive seasons between 1994 and 1997, with such feats leading to him being named PFA Young Player of the Year for two years running (1995 and 1996). After being forced out of Anfield by Gerard Houllier in late 2001, ‘God’ returned to Liverpool to much fanfare in 2006, managing 12 goals in his second spell at the club.
Ian Rush (Striker)
LFC Career: 1980-1987; 1988-1996
Apps/goals: 660/346
Honours: 5 League Titles, 3 FA Cups, 5 League Cups, 1 European Cup
Signed as an 18-year-old from lower league Chester City in the spring of 1980, Ian Rush went on to establish himself as Liverpool’s all-time record goalscorer. The ultimate finisher, Rush broke a string of English football records; the Welshman is the highest 20th century scorer in both the FA Cup (44 goals) and League Cup (49 goals), the record FA Cup Final goalscorer (5 goals) and the record Merseyside Derby goalscorer (25 goals for Liverpool against Everton). Although Rush enjoyed many glorious years at Anfield, he can consider 1984 to be his annus mirabilis; in addition to helping his side to an unprecedented league, League Cup and European Cup treble, Rush was named both FWA and PFA Player’s Player of the Year, as well as winning the European Golden Boot after scoring 47 goals for Liverpool during 1983/84. After an unsuccessful year with Juventus in 1987/1988, manager Kenny Dalglish brought Rush back ‘home’, and the Welshman swiftly resumed usual goalscoring duties.
Any glaring omissions? Let me know what you think!
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Click on image to see a gallery of the BEST BABES at the World Cup this summer
With only four days until Manchester United kick-off their season with the Charity Shield, the misdemeanours of two of his players will be cause of both frustration and anger for Sir Alex Ferguson. Anderson can count himself lucky that the car crash he was involved in didn’t cause himself further harm; being dragged from a car that then burst into flames is not how you recover from injury. The fact that he was in a two-seater car, with two other people, at 7:30am on his way home from a club will surely get Fergie warming up his hairdryer. Rooney on the other hand, kept things closer to home, being photographed leaving a Manchester club, smoking, appearing to urinate in the street, dancing down the road and singing football chants at 5:30 on Sunday morning. All not great preparation for a title push.
If football players are going to have a night out, and a chance to put their rigorous training to one side, then the summer break is surely the time to do it, but one would think a little earlier in the holiday period might suit all concerned a bit better, not when pre-season is underway. Hardly Ferguson’s favourite player, Anderson was fined £80,000 for returning to Brazil last January without Sir Alex’s permission, and this latest incident will be a real test of his patience with the midfielder. Considering the amount of games that United play, and the competitions that they compete in, Anderson has the potential to play a key role in this season’s campaign, and Ferguson will need to call on the depth of his squad to challenge for trophies. Maybe now is the time for Anderson to start appreciating the position he is in, the club he plays for and the opportunity he has been given. Anderson is a good player, but Ferguson will have no qualms about moving him on and giving his place at United to someone with greater displays of commitment should he continue to frustrate.
For Rooney, considering his almost unparalleled high-profile, incidents such as this have been at a premium – a night with a grandma seems to have taught him a lesson – so there is a chance that Fergie may go easy on him. The World Cup was the first moment in the 24-year-old’s career that he seemed fazed, and that he could be the victim of pressure, although it was pressure of a weight and burden that few will ever experience. Rooney’s performances were of a freakishly high-standard last season, and he will need to go close to replicating that if he is left to compensate for his strike partners in the same way; United fans will hope that Javier Hernandez can help solve this problem.
At the end of last season, Sir Alex Ferguson said that his side would have won the league had it not been for the injuries that they suffered, so there must be a large part of him that thinks the group of players he has are enough to win this year, especially considering the lack of transfer activity his rivals have been involved in (Man City excluded). For this to happen, these incidents cannot. With the money, time and effort invested in these players, the least Ferguson can expect in return is a modicum of restraint and self-control. The problem will probably be a bigger one for Anderson than Rooney. The latter is likely to have another good season, and is clearly a more important player to United’s cause than Anderson, although that is not to say Anderson does not have the potential to show his worth. Anderson’s due date for a return is around late September, and nine months without competitive football will take some hard work and discipline to overcome, not what he has shown this week. Sir Alex Ferguson will do everything within (and slightly beyond) his power to succeed this season, he is right to expect that his players do the same.
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Patrick Vieira has defended Manchester City amid accusations that they are needlessly stockpiling star players.
Vieira, who arrived at Eastlands in January from Internazionale, has seen City spend an estimated £120million on new players during the summer transfer window.
England international James Milner was the final big-name signing following the earlier arrivals of Aleksandar Kolarov, Jerome Boateng, David Silva and Yaya Toure.
That has led critics to suggest that manager Roberto Mancini will struggle to juggle a squad containing too many high-profile players.
However, Vieira claims every member of the first-team squad will be needed during a gruelling Premier League and Europa League campaign.
"When you look at the Chelsea bench they also have a good team on the sidelines," said Vieira.
"But if you want to go from the start to the end you need everyone, and for everyone to be fully committed.
"Anything can happen in the first few months. Eleven players will start the first few games, but there are so many games to play, in so many competitions.
"The team which starts will not be the team that finishes the season, so everyone has to get focused.
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"It will bring some frustration, because quality players do not like to be on the bench.
"But at a club like City which is ambitious, you have to accept it, and what we can do is put the manager in a difficult position when he picks the eleven who will start."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti has allayed fears that Frank Lampard is facing a lengthy period on the sidelines despite ruling the midfielder out of Saturday's trip to Manchester City.
Lampard will miss his fifth consecutive game for the Blues after undergoing surgery on a hernia problem during the recent international break.
The 32-year-old England international could also miss next week's Champions League encounter with Marseille plus the home game against Arsenal on September 3.
But despite fears over Lampard's long-term fitness, Ancelotti claims the lay-off is designed to ensure the injury does not return in the future.
"He has a weakness on his adductor and we want to strengthen that to avoid a problem when he comes back to play," he explained.
"The surgery was very good. There's no problem there, but his adductor is weak.
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"We want to avoid an injury."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
As everyone get to grips with the recent shocking news that Wayne Rooney wants out of Old Trafford, discussion and debate starts to circulate amongst everyone involved with football whether or not we should be surprised with reports linking the England striker with a move across the City to Manchester United’s bitter Rivals.
In previous years we have seen Sol Campbell go from Tottenham to Arsenal and more recently Carlos Tevez from Manchester United to Manchester City. So is Wayne Rooney’s prospective move from Old Trafford to Eastlands that much of a shock?
It would seem it isn’t. Having informed United that he is no longer interest in renewing his contract it would seem the England striker is ready mull over a potential move across the city to his current clubs bitter rivals. If this is true, is Wayne Rooney crazy? We know he hasn’t always made the best of decisions in life but this one seems ludicrous.
Now, potential suitors queue up to propose and present their credentials. It would seem that Manchester City at this time moment in time are sitting in the healthiest position to gain Rooney’s signature.
With the financial clout that Manchester City’s owners possess it is thought that they would be willing to offer the rumoured £250,000 a week wages to the striker. Furthermore It was reported that Manchester United were not willing to offer such an astronomical figure to their prized asset, thus resulting in the breakdown of contract negotiations and his relationship with Alex Ferguson.
It has then been reported that Rooney has already made it known to sources at his current club and team mates that he would be open to the idea of moving to Eastlands. Furthermore with the language barrier that comes along with a prospective move abroad I really cannot see Rooney packing his bags and fully immersing himself within a new culture. That would most certainly rule out a potential move to either Real Madrid or Barcelona.
It would be unfair not to discuss Chelsea’s suitability. Carlo Ancelotti has already admitted that “he would be interested in Rooney if he could establish any sense on the player’s part that he would be willing to move to Stamford Bridge. But the reigning Footballer of the Year is leaning more towards City, acutely aware of the potential riches of joining the wealthiest club in England.”
Rooney is also not alone in making his decision. “His wife, Coleen, is reluctant to be apart from her 12-year-old sister, Rosie, who suffers from the brain disorder Rett syndrome.” It would therefore seem that staying in the North West would be major part of the decision making process, and therefore reinforcing the idea that Manchester City is Rooney’s most likely destination. It seems to me that all signs state that it is only a matter of time before we see Rooney don the sky blue shirt of Manchester City. let the discussion begin!
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There are few in the English game that are better judges of young talent than Sir Alex Ferguson. But letting Gerard Pique go back to Barcelona, while still just 21, must wrangle the Old Trafford boss. The Spanish centre back managed to go from United reserve, to integral cog in the best footballing side on the planet, in the space of a couple of months. It wasn’t even as if there was an element of progression at the Nou Camp; he was already a good player, and one that Fergie could do with now.
There has been a whole host of players that have failed to make the grade at Old Trafford. Such is the depth within the club’s academy that there are bound to be players that are released, believed not to be up to the job. For all the Giggs, Nevilles’, Scholes et al, there are those that fall either into lower league football, or out of the profession all together. Players that Ferguson releases from their United duties tend to be more of the Ben Thornley mould, not players who go on to win the Champions League within a year of leaving.
Having originally been at Barcelona as a boy, Ferguson had done the hard work in snaffling a young talent from Barca’s cantera, and his time at United (which he maintains he enjoyed and is thankful for) went along the usual lines. He performed well in the reserves, earning him a full contract, he then went on loan to Zaragoza upon which he struck up a good bond in defence with Gabriel Milito, and then back to Manchester to try to break his way into the first team. The latter never really happened however; restricted to just 12 senior appearances in his time with the club.
It is not as if Ferguson doesn’t give young players enough opportunities. Consider how the careers of the likes of John O’Shea, Wes Brown and Jonny Evans started. Even in relatively important games, they managed to gradually pick up more and more starts until they eased their way into the senior squad with little fuss. There must have been something that Ferguson either didn’t like about Pique, or even more worrying, didn’t notice.
At this moment in time, Ferguson really only has half of his backline playing regularly at their optimum level. Patrice Evra and Nemanja Vidic are world-class in their respective positions, but there is rarely continuity in who they are partnered with. Obviously Rio Ferdinand is Vidic’s partner in the middle, but his fitness is always an issue, and although he is pretty much back from his latest injury, the next visit to the physio is only a matter of time. As for the right back spot; I genuinely have no idea who is Ferguson’s preferred option. United fans I’m sure will have a better idea than I will (and I’d be grateful if they could tell me) who should be playing there: Neville, Rafael, O’Shea or Brown. Or even someone else? Maybe that should be the source of Fergie’s next big purchase?
In a defence that has been crippled by injuries – least we forget the games that paired Darren Fletcher and Michael Carrick in the centre of defence last year – having a world-class centre back, with all the attributes needed, plus the extra ability of being comfortable on the ball, could make all the difference to a United backline. His fitness is seemingly far more reliable than that of Ferdinand’s, or even Vidic’s, and he has proved at Barca, and for his country, how good he is. Football’s very own Neanderthal man, Carles Puyol, can be rattled in games, and having Pique’s reassurance alongside has seen him improve vastly. There are few players that Ferguson regrets letting go (he probably doesn’t regret any if we’re being honest), but there must be a part of him that see’s Pique lifting the Champions League, and then the World Cup, that thinks a mistake was made.
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After some big results last week for Wolves, Liverpool and Newcastle, what can this week’s fixtures offer us? How will the Premier League look when round 11 is all said and done? Here are the 10 Big Questions we want answered this weekend.
1.Could West Brom seal Mancini’s fate?
It doesn’t take much for pressure to build on a manager nowadays, but when you’re manager at a club like Manchester City where expectations are so high any pressure is magnified. Three defeats in a row is bad enough, but continued talk of unrest between players and manager certainly doesn’t help. The fixture fairy hasn’t been smiling on Mancini either, just when he would be hoping for a cushy home tie against a lowly ranked Premier League, he gets West Brom away. This will be a very tricky match for City. Despite West Brom lying sixth in the league and only suffering one defeat in nine, they still hold the tag of a ‘newly promoted side’, thus fans still expect their team to beat the Baggies. A win would go a long way in shining the spotlight away from the Sky Blues, but a defeat would leave Mancini in increasingly hot water.
2. Will Liverpool’s climb up the league continue against Chelsea?
In an attempt to lift the pressure from his own team, Petr Cech has said that all the pressure is on Liverpool prior to their clash on Sunday. Cech believes that Liverpool need to win the game in order to show their fans that they are still contenders and can raise themselves for the big games, and as the home team they will be under even more scrunity. Despite wins in their last two league games taking them up to 13th, Liverpool know that, with the table as tight as it is, a defeat could plunge them straight back into trouble. Chelsea, as we all know, are flying high at the summit of the Premiership and will be a daunting prospect for Roy Hodgson and his men.
3. Can Wolves repeat their feat at Old Trafford?
A week and a half ago Wolves went to Old Trafford and lost 3-2. Yes, it was only the Carling Cup but it was a significant game in Wolves’ renaissance and not many teams manage to score two goals at Old Trafford, especially a team who were firmly in the bottom three of the league. Wolves played very well that night and pushed the Red Devils all the way to the final whistle, and a few days later went on to beat Manchester City. The tough games just keep coming for McCarthy and his auld gold troops and a return to Old Trafford will be another tricky match. But Wolves are arguably the Premier League’s most improved team of late, and what better way to test your progression than a trip to Manchester United?
4. Can Gareth Bale recreate his Champions League form in the Premiership?
Despite Gareth Bale’s Champions League heroics, as any frustrated fantasy football manager will be able to testify, he has failed to put up the numbers in the Premiership. He has yet to score since his brace at Stoke and only has one assist to his name. His reputation now means that he’s constantly being marked out of games which has reduced his productivity, but can he reaffirm his place amongst the world’s best at Bolton?
5. What will the bottom look like by Sunday night?
At present we see West Ham, Wolves and Blackburn occupying the bottom three spots in the Premier League, but how will it look when all the fixtures are done and dusted? As it stands there are only three points separating 18th from 10th, so on Monday morning we could see some new teams plunged into trouble. There are two big bottom of the table clashes at the weekend: Birmingham vs. West Ham and Blackburn vs. Wigan. All of the afore mentioned teams are in the bottom six places and these games will go along way to determining who lie in the relegation places. With the Premier League so tight, teams like Aston Villa and Liverpool, who themselves have hard games, will also be nervously looking over their shoulders.
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6. Can Spurs get their first ever Premier League win at the Reebok Stadium?
We’ve all been told of late about Tottenham’s failings when they go away to the big four, but another stat that’s been quietly building up is that Spurs haven’t won away at Bolton in the Premier League since March 1996 – when they played at Burnden Park. In the 10 games since Tottenham’s last win at Bolton their record reads: played 10, won 0, drawn 4, lost 6. Spurs’s record following Champions League matches is good, only one defeat in five, so they’ll be hoping to put this jinx to rest. Kevin Davies is one player who looks forward to this tie more than most, he has four goals in his last three goals against Tottenham at the Reebok.
7. Which way will the Blackpool rollercoaster go this weekend?
Blackpool are a fantastic team to watch. They play a good brand of football, they entertain, score goals and you have no idea what’s going to happen. The latest chapter in Blackpool’s topsy-turvy season sees them take on Everton at Bloomfield Road. After their trademark poor start to the season, Everton are starting find some form, but a game at Blackpool is proving to be a tricky seaside trip so as ever, how this one will turn out is anyone’s guess.
8. Will Steve’s Bruce and Sunderland respond to last week’s humiliation?
What’s the only thing worse than getting soundly beaten on a football pitch? Getting soundly beaten by your nearest and most hated rivals. This is the nightmare that Steve Bruce’s side and the Sunderland faithful had to endure last week after their 5-1 mauling by Newcastle. Steve Bruce is saying all the right things:
“The mark of everything is how you respond. I try to get up off the floor and come out fighting. I didn’t speak to anyone for two days. You batten down the hatches, you take it, you try to be dignified and you try to respond, that is all you can do. There is no hiding place for us. It has happened and we must not let it derail our season.”
But can he inspire his team to bounce back against Stoke at home? The Sunderland we’re seeing at the moment is looking rather familiar to that of last season: three red cards already, inconsistent league form and Darren Bent’s goals are still carrying the team. Stoke have a very average away record so this could be the perfect chance for Sunderland to show some steel.
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9. Will Lampard make a goalscoring return to the Chelsea starting XI?
What is going on with Frank Lampard? For what seems like ages, we’ve been told that he is one week from a return, only to then be told he’ll be out for another two weeks. This ‘will be play, won’t be play’ saga now seems to be over. During the week, Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti said that Lampard is fit and will go straight into the team, but with Chelsea going fantastically well without Lampard, he will have to make a good return to show that he is worthy of his place.
10. Can Dempsey keep the doubters quiet?
There has been some debate about whether or not Clint Dempsey is worth a place in the Fulham side. Some fans believed that Simon Davies was a better option in the Fulham midfield during Dempsey’s poor run of form following the World Cup. However, after his match winning performance last week surely now he is back to his best, and another good showing against Aston Villa will silence any doubters.