Monthly Archives: July 2010

Birmingham eye spending spree

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Birmingham City boss Alex McLeish with goalkeeper Ben FosterBirmingham are 9/4 to finish in the top 10 of the Premier League and Blues boss Alex McLeish is hoping to boost their chances of doing so by adding another four players to his squad.

The Blues were one of the surprise packages of last season when, after winning promotion from the Championship, they managed to finish in the top 10.

Many had them down as relegation fodder but McLeish built a side that upset the form book and the Scot is now hoping for much of the same in the new campaign.

McLeish has already made a couple of shrewd signings when drafting in Nikola Zigic and Ben Foster but he wants more and is also keen on Wigan winger Charles N’Zogbia.

The Blues boss admits that the Frenchman might be out of his reach for now but the ambition is there and McLeish is clearly intent on trying to move the club on to the next level.

“That one looks as if it is dead at the moment,” he said of the N’Zogbia move. “I’m not saying totally dead, but it looks like a difficult one, given the asking prices.

“Whether we can go to that level I’m not so sure, so maybe that’s for another day. We are looking at three or four other situations.”

McLeish has the backing of new owner Carson Yeung and the money is there for him to spend where he sees fit. The main problem for the Blues is that other clubs in the Premier League have much more and trying to bridge the gap with the top clubs is becoming almost impossible.

It is not too long ago that clubs like Birmingham could start the season with a real hope of making the top seven, which could lead to a place in Europe, but now it looks as though the top seven are starting to forge a gap between themselves and the rest.

Manchester City, Aston Villa and Tottenham have emerged as serious Champions League contenders and when you add them to the ‘big four’ that have dominated in recent seasons, it is hard to see Birmingham getting into Europe via the league.

The Blues are 22/1 to make it into the top six but that looks highly unlikely unless the likes of Villa have a shocking campaign and Birmingham capitalise.

McLeish will no doubt say that staying in the Premier League is the number one objective but he will have his sights set high again and a top 10 finish will again be the order of the season.

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Trotters target goal machine

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Bolton Wanderers star Ivan KlasnicBolton are 4/1 to be relegated from the Premier League next season but Ivan Klasnic could get them the goals to ensure that this is not the case if he re-signs from Nantes.

The Croatian impressed while on loan with the Trotters last season and managed to chip in with eight goals despite struggling with injury.

Klasnic has an eye for goal and Wanderers boss Owen Coyle would love to get him back on board if a deal can be hammered out with Nantes and the player.

The French club are happy to let him leave on another season-long loan deal but want Bolton to pay his wages, which are said to be as high as £60,000 a week.

Bolton want Nantes to foot some of the bill and unless a compromise can be reached, the deal will not happen.

“I have said all along that if we can get something sorted financially with Ivan, then I would love to have him back at the football club,” Coyle revealed.

“But finance does play a part – and without getting into the bits and pieces, he’s on a fantastic contract at his club. That’s the only thing standing in our way, nothing else.

“I think Ivan is a top class player who will score goals in my team. But if it’s too rich for the football club, it’s too rich.”

Strikers who can score goals in the Premier League are a rare commodity and Coyle has so far struggled to find one at the right price, meaning he has turned his attentions back to Klasnic.

The Croatian has already proven himself and if Coyle is not careful he could lose the player to a Premier League rival. Most clubs are in the hunt for a new striker with Blackburn, Birmingham and Newcastle in particular all keen to strengthen.

Coyle wants to move Bolton on to the next level and a top 10 finish (10/3) is not out of the question if he can get the right striker on board, and Klasnic could be that man.

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Wenger wants Fab year in league

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Arsene Wenger has told captain Cesc Fabregas the best way to follow up his World Cup glory is to help Arsenal win the Premier League this season (Arsenal 7/1 – Premier League 2010/11 Outright).

The gifted midfielder helped Spain to become world champions in South Africa earlier in the summer with his club future in the balance.

Fabregas, 23, is wanted by former club Barcelona whose stars – including Lionel Messi, Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Carles Puyol – have all gone on record backing the deal.

The Gunners, naturally, do not want to lose their best player although Fabregas himself is understood to be keen to make the move to his boyhood club.

However, Wenger insists Fabregas still has his whole career in front of him and wants the versatile midfielder on board for a title tilt in 2010/11.

The Frenchman said: “The best way to show you are committed is that you give your best when you walk on the football pitch and he has always done that.

“When you sign a contract it means we are committed to a player to pay him and keep him no matter what happens.

“There is a great attitude and spirit inside the squad and Cesc Fabregas can help us achieve these targets.

“He is now at an age, 23 years old, and he has just won the World Cup. I believe he will grow in authority again for next season.”

Wenger added: “The biggest achievement for him now is to help us win the championship.”

Arsenal have not won the Premier League since 2004 and their last silverware came a year later when they beat Manchester United on penalties in the FA Cup final (Arsenal 7/1 – FA Cup 2010/11 Outright).

They continue their build-up to the new season in the Emirates Cup without Fabregas who has not returned to training yet after the World Cup.

Wenger’s men take on AC Milan on Saturday evening with fellow midfielders Abou Diaby, Denilson and Alex Song also ruled out with slight knocks (Arsenal 8/11, draw 12/5, AC Milan 16/5 – 90 minutes).

Wenger told reporters: “You will see some young players like Emmanuel Frimpong and Jack Wilshere, also the new players like Marouane Chamakh and Laurent Koscielny.

“It will be good to see them in a competitive environment. That will be interesting.

“I will also learn what condition we are in physically, because we have worked quite hard and with two weeks to go it is important that we can last in the games.

“The third point is how ready are we with our team play? How sharp is our passing, and quick movement off the ball?”

Celtic and Lyon are also involved in this summer’s Emirates Cup.

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Harry escalates Parker row

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Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp is adamant he did nothing wrong when making a bid for West Ham captain Scott Parker (West Ham 9/2 – Premier League Relegation).

The White Hart Lane chief is trying to strengthen his squad ahead of the Champions League qualifier and former Chelsea and Newcastle midfielder Parker is one of his targets (Tottenham 3/1 – Top 4 Finish).

However, Hammers co-owner David Sullivan is unhappy with Spurs’ pursuit and insisted the the combative ace would not be sold by the east London outfit this summer.

West Ham also released a club statement which read: “The club informed Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy prior to him making the offer that we would not welcome any approach to unsettle the player.”

However, Redknapp insists Spurs have acted in the proper manner and hinted there could be more to it than has been revealed.

He asked rhetorically: “Who made it public that we made an offer?

“You can make an offer for a player if you want to. You can make an offer for anybody.

“I’m sure the chairman must have got some encouragement or he wouldn’t have made an offer. So I’m not sure the full story has been told about that one.

“The chairman wouldn’t have made an offer unless he thought there was a chance that they wanted to do something.”

Sullivan is stuck between a rock and a hard place over Parker who just missed out on making England’s World Cup squad.

At the end of last season Sullivan insisted he would not allow the 29-year-old to leave, despite putting the entire squad – including the England trio of Rob Green, Matthew Upson and Carlton Cole – up for sale.

At the time Sullivan said: “If we get the right bid we will sell any player, apart from Parker.”

He added: “Parker is not for sale. He has several years left on his contract and has intimated on several occasions he wants to stay.”

Meanwhile, former England captain David Beckham has told the Hammers they have no chance of landing him on loan in the middle of the 2010/11 Premier League season (West Ham 7/2 – Top-half Finish).

The LA Galaxy midfielder is closing in on a return following Achilles trouble but with no major tournament next summer, the 35-year-old is likely to have a break following loan spells with AC Milan during the last two Serie A campaigns.

A spokesman for Beckham told PA Sport: “Whilst it’s flattering to hear of interest there has been no contact with, or offer from, West Ham.

“David is happy at the Los Angeles Galaxy and has no interest in leaving, and is looking forward to returning to the team on August 9.”

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Real swoop for Germany ace

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Stuttgart have revealed that midfielder Sami Khedira is poised to join Real Madrid (4/1 to win 2010-11 Champions League), after the two clubs agreed a deal.

The 23-year-old impressed during the recent World Cup in South Africa, when he played a big role in helping Germany reach the semi-finals.

After hearing of Real’s interest, Khedira had expressed an interest to move to the Bernabeu and Stuttgart ‘reluctantly’ allowed him to leave.

The German club’s managing director Fredi Bobic accepted: “We can understand Sami’s wish to further his career at Real. We wish him great success with his new challenge in Madrid.”

Khedira, who came through the ranks at his home town club Stuttgart (20/1 to win 2010-11 Bundesliga), is set to become Real’s second major capture of the summer, since the arrival of Jose Morinho

The new coach has already made his stamp on the squad, with the capture of Angel di Maria from Benfica and the departures of veteran duo Raul and Guti.

More new signings are expected to follow soon, with the likes of Inter Milan full-back Maicon and Juventus striker Amauri.

Meanwhile, the Spanish giants have arrived in the US for their North American pre-season tour and Cristiano Ronaldo says the squad is feeling upbeat.

The Portuguese ace said: “We are very excited and working very hard. We have to keep this level of excitement up in order to win titles.”

Ronaldo has been handed the number seven shirt this season, after it was vacated by Raul’s departure.

The former Manchester United man has been full of praise for the Spain striker, who he describes as “a great professional”.

Ronaldo added: “I would like to have the number 7 shirt and I’m sure Raul would be happy if I had it because he knows how I am and how I think.”

Real (Evs to win 2010-11 La Liga) will play their next pre-season friendly on Wednesday, when they come up against Mexican outfit Club America.

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Robins seal James deal

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Bristol City (18/1 to win the Championship) have secured a shock summer deal by signing England goalkeeper David James.

The deal will keep the former Portsmouth captain at Ashton Gate for a year with an option for an additional 12 months.

Earlier in the week it looked as though the 39-year-old would be moving to Scottish giants Celtic when he was set to go up to Glasgow to discuss terms.

However he failed to agree terms with the club, who then decided to state that they were no longer interested in the keeper just hours before he was confirmed as signing for City (11/2 to win promotion from the Championship) on Friday.

James was also linked with Premier League side Sunderland but the type of deal the Robins offered and the proximity to where the former Liverpool player lives seems to have been the deciding factors for the move.

The veteran keeper revealed that he had offers from clubs in the top flight but decided to take up the challenge at Ashton Gate.

He said: “I’ve had offers to stay in the Premier League but it is more important that I play football – which I love – for the right club and be a family man.

“I had a long conversation with the chairman Steve Lansdown yesterday and I liked what he said about the club and his ambition. I know all about the plans for a new stadium and desire to win promotion to the Premier League.

“The club is ambitious and that’s what I am. The South West has not had a club in the Premier League and that needs to change,” he added.

James played in three of England’s four World Cup games in South Africa this summer as he battled for a starting place with Robert Green and Joe Hart.

After Green’s mistake in the opening game against the USA, which ultimately cost the Three Lions the win, James was brought in and performed well in the remaining group fixtures.

The player’s contract will begin on August 1 after he completed a medical at the club on Friday.

Bristol City begin there campaign to try and reach the top flight against newly promoted Millwall at Ashton Gate on August 7.

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Puyol talks up Cesc deal

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World Cup winner Carles Puyol has become the latest Barcelona star to put pressure on Arsenal to allow Cesc Fabregas to return to the Catalan giants (Barcelona 4/5f  2010/11 La Liga Outright).

Puyol’s fellow Barca and Spain team-mates, Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Sergio Busquets, have already gone on record over their desire to see 23-year-old don the famous blaugrana shirt – and now Puyol has also come out to lend his support.

Arsenal are understood to have already rejected a bid from Barcelona for their captain who moved to north London as a teenager in 2003, going on to make almost 200 appearances for the Gunners (Arsenal 7/1  2010/11 Premier League Outright).

Arsenal’s fans are hoping Fabregas is still on board to make many more appearances for them, but he won’t be if Puyol and co get their own way.

Speaking to The Sun,  versatile defender Puyol said: “He is having to stay at a club where he no longer wants to be for another year.

“I wonder how intelligent it is keeping a player who doesn’t want to be there.

“After seven years of great service, I thought Arsenal could have granted him his dream move.

“Cesc has given everything to Arsenal to try to win a trophy but they haven’t matched his expectations.

“I won’t say he is in a prison, as we know how privileged we are as football players.

“But after how clear Cesc made it that he wanted to be in Barcelona, I thought they would have granted him that.”

Whether or not Fabregas is still a Gunner by the end of the transfer window remains to be seen.

But if he is, boss Arsene Wenger has told the midfielder he stands a chance of playing his part in taking the Premier League title back to north London for the first time since 2003/04.

The Frenchman told Arsenal’s website: “We know in England that the Premier League is the biggest league in the world and everybody invests a lot of money.

“We invest in our work, in our beliefs, in the quality of our behaviour and I am confident that will pay off.

“We finished third last year and we hope we can improve on that – but the race will be tough.”

The Gunners host the Emirates Cup again this weekend, kicking off against AC Milan on Friday night.

Arsenal (7/4 – 90 Minutes) kick off the season at Liverpool (5/4) on August 15.

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Woodgate must prove fitness

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Tottenham (3/1 to finish in the top four) manager Harry Redknapp wants Jonathan Woodgate to prove his fitness in the next three weeks in order to earn a place in the first-team squad.

Woodgate has not featured for Spurs since November last year and is looking likely to miss out on the 25-man squad that Redknapp will need to select ahead of the new Premier League campaign.

The squad must be selected by the end of August, according to the new guidelines, and the defender is on the verge of missing the cut.

The 30-year-old has had a career which has been marred by injury, which also affected the amount of appearances he has made at international level with England.

Woodgate’s current contract at White Hart Lane is due to run out at the end of this season and Redknapp believes that he may have to look for a replacement central defender, if the former Leeds and Middlesbrough player cannot recover in time.

The Spurs boss admitted: “Woody’s nowhere near at the moment. Nowhere near. It must be really hard for him. He’s nowhere near kicking a ball.

“He’s been out for a year, been in America and Australia, but he’s still nowhere near. I just couldn’t put him in my 25. It’s impossible at the moment.”

Woodgate’s groin injury meant he only featured on three occasions for Spurs last season and was forced to miss the club’s pre-season tour of the United States.

Redknapp, who also has doubts over the fitness of Ledley King, insists the ex-Newcastle man is facing a race against time to make the Spurs squad.

The manager added: “If he doesn’t start playing before the start of the season he’s got no chance.

“You can’t have somebody in who’s never going to play. He’s got to really prove it (that he will be fit) between now and the start of the season.”

Spurs (9/1 to be the highest finishing London club in the Premier League) will look to continue their strong form from last season, which saw them finish fourth in Premier League and secure them a place in the Champions League qualifying stages.

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Hodgson confirms Masch wants out

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Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson has confirmed Argentina international Javier Mascherano is keen to leave Anfield, but insists striker Fernando Torres is happy to stay (Liverpool 7/4 Premier League top four finish).

The tough-tackling midfielder has been linked with a summer move away from Liverpool for some time and now Hodgson has revealed the player has expressed his desire to move on.

“Yes he wants to leave the club. He’s made that perfectly clear,” said Hodgson.

“I think he wanted to leave a year ago. He wants to leave now as well.”

Italian giants and European champions Inter Milan have been linked with a swoop for the 26-year-old, where he would link up with former boss Rafael Benitez.

However, despite Mascherano’s desire to leave Anfield, Hodgson refused to rule out the possibility that the Argentinean will stay and is adamant the club will make the final decision.

He added: “The mere fact that the player is a little bit unhappy with his situation and will prefer to leave doesn’t necessarily mean he will leave.

“Yes, it disappoints me, but it’s not unusual. I think in every football club through the Premier League and all throughout the world there will be players playing in a team that would prefer to leave.

“Some are allowed to, some are not allowed to. So that’s the situation with Mascherano.”

Mascherano still has two years left on his current contract at Anfield and Liverpool will not allow the midfielder to leave on the cheap.

There has also been plenty of speculation surrounding the future of striker Fernando Torres.  The former Atletico Madrid man is a known target of Manchester City, with boss Roberto Mancini confirming his interest earlier in the week, and it is thought current champions Chelsea are also chasing the Spanish star.

Hodgson is desperate to retain the services of the talented striker and the former Fulham boss believes Torres is happy to remain a Liverpool player (Liverpool 12/1 to win the Premier League).

“He’s spending a lot of time with his family. As far as I know he’s keeping a very low profile and not really speaking to anybody. But he has told us that he’s looking forward to Monday and getting back to work,” said Hodgson on Torres.

“He’s looking forward to playing for Liverpool next season. That’s what I know and I would suggest that any other reports are erroneous.”

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Hodgson turns to young guns

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Roy Hodgson is set to rely on his youngsters as Liverpool get their Europa League campaign underway on Thursday with a third qualifying round first-leg clash against Macedonian outfit FK Rabotnicki (Liverpool 2/9, Rabotnicki 9/1, draw 4/1 – 90 Minutes) in Skopje.

The former Fulham boss, who took charge at Anfield earlier this month, has opted not to risk the majority of the Reds’ senior players in what is his first competitive game in charge of the club.

Martin Skrtel, Daniel Agger, Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Lucas, David Ngog and new recruit Milan Jovanovic are the only experienced players who could be on show.

However, England quartet Steven Gerrard, Joe Cole, Jamie Carragher and Glen Johnson have not travelled, despite returning to training since last week.

Javier Mascherano and Maxi Rodriguez only came back this week while Fernando Torres, Jose Reina, Dirk Kuyt and Ryan Babel are still on holiday following their World Cup exploits.

So Diego Cavalieri, Martin Kelly, Stephen Darby and Jay Spearing are all set to feature against Rabotnicki and will be charged with keeping Liverpool’s Europa League bid (11/1 Outright) on track.

The likes of Jonjo Shelvey, Nathan Eccleston, Peter Gulacsi, David Amoo, Lauri Dalla Valle and Tom Ince have also travelled to Macedonia and could play a part.

Hodgson said: “It is not sink or swim – it would be very harsh to write off a player’s chances of becoming a good player on the evidence of a game.

“I think it is more an opportunity to swim than to fear for them sinking.

“But we are obliged to put our European fate into the hands of many inexperienced players.

“We can only hope that, because they have got talent, they will come through these ties against an experienced and well-versed team in European football like Rabotnicki.”

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