Tag Archives: admits

Fergie admits to Owen mistake

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Sir Alex FergusonOwen Hargreaves made his first start for over two years in Manchester United’s 2-1 victory over Wolves on Saturday but he lasted just a few minutes before injury forced him off the field again (United 7/2 to win the Premier League) and boss Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted it was a mistake to play the midfielder in the game.

A bewildered Ferguson has revealed it is a hamstring problem that has affected the midfield star this time, rather than a recurrence of the long-standing knee injury that has sidelined him for the best part of two years.

“We thought by doing that it would give us a compact midfield with experience. But he only lasted five minutes. It was a disaster,” revealed the Old Trafford chief. “He has hurt his hamstring, which is unbelievable.”

United left it late yesterday, with Ji-Sung Park scoring the winner in stoppage time, as they keep the pressure on league-leaders Chelsea, who visit Liverpool on Sunday.

The shock result of the day perhaps came at the Reebok Stadium as Bolton Wanderers secured an impressive 4-2 victory over Tottenham.

Spurs went into the game on the back of a famous European victory over Champions League holders Inter Milan but they struggled to cope with a compact and determined Bolton side.

Kevin Davies opened the scoring for the hosts, before Gretar Steinsson and a Davies penalty appeared to put the Wanderers out of sight.  Spurs did hit back through Alan Hutton and Roman Pavlyuchenko to set Bolton’s nerves jangling but Martin Petrov added a fourth to ensure the home side secured all three points.

Wanderers boss Owen Coyle was understandably delighted with the result and believes Bolton are heading in the “right direction.”

“I like to think we are improving. Hopefully we are moving in the right direction. It is very much a work in progress,” Coyle said.

“The players are showing a lot of quality, and I thought it was an outstanding performance today.”

Bolton have been beaten just twice this season and look a strong and well organised unit, with players such as Chung-Yong Lee, Stuart Holden and Petrov providing pace and skill.  The Wanderers are a very attractive 20/1 to secure a top-six finish, they are currently fifth in the league, and although very much an outside bet it is not out of the question that Coyle could lead them into Europe this season.

Spurs boss Harry Redknapp turned his attentions to Gareth Bale and defended the midfielder’s performance against Bolton.  The Welsh wizard produced some glimpses of magic at the Reebok but failed to make the same impact he did against Inter Milan in midweek.

Bale is without question one of Spurs’ best players but Redknapp is eager to ensure the youngster is not put under too much pressure after he praised the youngster despite the defeat at Bolton.

“There was nothing wrong with Gareth today. He was probably my best player,” said Redknapp.

“He had some fantastic runs and crossed a couple of great balls. If people had got on the end of them he could have made two or three goals.”

Spurs are pushing for fourth spot but could fall further behind the pack if Manchester City end their losing streak and secure a victory at West Brom (Match Betting – West Brom 9/4, draw 12/5, City 23/20).

However, with players such as Luka Modric, Rafael van der Vaart and Bale amongst their ranks it would be foolish to count Spurs out at this stage (Spurs 3/1 to finish in the top four).

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Tevez admits he could quit football

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Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez has admitted he is disillusioned with football and could quit the game (City 15/2 to win Premier League).

The Argentine forward has reiterated the comments he made over the summer, when he said he could quit professional football because he struggles to motivate himself.

He admits that he currently feels drained and that the stress of being one of the most high profile players in the Premier League is affecting his body and mind.

Despite this, he has been instrumental in the improvement of City’s form so far this season, which has seen the Eastlands outfit overcome a shaky start to the season to sit in second place in the Premier League.

The striker has also lead by example as City’s captain after being handed the armband by boss Roberto Mancini. However, this has done little to reinvigorate him and he has now told The News of the World that he is thinking of quitting, citing the number of games he has played this season as being contributory to his tiredness.

The 26-year-old said: “I’m an old guy now, and I started to think about some stuff. For example, I am less tolerant as a person today than I was a few years ago.

“Then I think – what happens if I quit football as long as I am okay in my life?

“When I talk about quitting, I mean quitting football, not just the national team. But at the moment I still don’t know if this is going to be in one month, one year, three or five years.

“I have the idea of quitting in my mind. Maybe one of these days, I will just wake up and say no more football.”

As well as professional issues, Tevez has admitted that his workload is affecting his family life. He says that since playing in England he has not shared a single Christmas or New Year with his nearest and dearest and this is contributing to his lack of enjoyment with life as a footballer.

City fans will be hoping that Tevez does not decide to hang up his boots just yet, particularly as he is in such influential form, having scored five League goals this season. They currently sit four points behind League leaders Chelsea but they are the team in form having beaten the Blues 1-0 at Eastlands before backing this up with a 2-1 success against Newcastle.

Roberto Mancini will be hoping that this form continues in City’s next game against Blackpool next Sunday.

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Grant admits Hammers worries

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Avram Grant believes his West Ham side are lacking the belief they will need to survive in the Premier League this season after watching them scrape past Oxford in the second round of the Carling Cup (West Ham 5/2 to be relegated).

The former Portsmouth and Chelsea coach took over at Upton Park in the summer after the Hammers board decided to sack Gianfranco Zola following their brush with the drop.

The east London side narrowly avoided relegation last year and had hoped with Grant at the helm they would be challenging for a place in the top half.

However, so far it hasn’t worked out for Grant’s men, losing their first two matches in the Premier League.

West Ham (40/1 Carling Cup Outright) are one of three teams without a point from their opening fixtures and could easily have been on the wrong end of a cup upset on Tuesday night.

They welcomed League Two side Oxford to Upton Park expecting to roll over the Yellows and boost their confidence ahead of this weekend’s match against Manchester United.

Instead they had to rely on skipper Scott Parker to get them out of jail again with a 90th-minute winner after surviving a number of close shaves.

Despite West Ham getting their first win of the season under their belts Grant was unhappy with the manner of their performance and pointed to the players’ delicate mindset as to why they are currently struggling.

“Mentally it is not just because it is the first win but that we did it in the last moment,” said Grant. “This team carried a lot of psychology problems.

“When everything goes well we are OK, when it does not we are a bit nervous.”

The Israeli will be desperate to get his player’s heads right ahead of this Saturday’s match against Manchester United (1/6 to beat the Hammers) at Old Trafford.

West Ham have won one of their previous seven meetings at the Theatre of Dreams, shipping nine goals in their last three matches there.

With a match against champions Chelsea to come the week after Grant is hopeful that Tuesday’s victory will give his side a much needed confidence boost.

“Tonight [Tuesday] they saw that if you don’t give up and keep trying to do the right things you can score in the last moment,” he added.

“When you play against a team not from our league they will always defend. I liked that the players continued to pass the ball and were not crazy to score.

“We are in the next round and that is the most important thing.”

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Hodgson admits Torres doubts

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Fernando TorresLiverpool’s chances of keeping Fernando Torres on board for next season’s title push (12/1 to win Premier League) are hanging by a thread after Roy Hodgson admitted the striker is looking to leave Anfield.

Hodgson may have signed Joe Cole and convinced Steven Gerrard to stay but his attempts to talk Torres around appear to have fallen on deaf ears.

The new Reds boss has been talking to Torres ever since taking charge but it looks as though the player’s mind is already made up and he wants to quit Anfield.

The most frustrating thing for Hodgson is the fact Torres’ problems stem from matters that have gone on in the past and there is nothing more he can do to convince him to stay.

Hodgson would not divulge too much and say whether Torres is angry with the American owners, former boss Rafa Benitez or any other Liverpool official, but he is obviously unhappy with the club and that could spell the end of his time at Liverpool.

“Unfortunately, I cannot do much more,” Hodgson revealed. “His beef is with the club and not me.

“Fernando’s situation has nothing to do with me, he made that perfectly clear over the phone during the World Cup and when I met him face-to-face.

“He knows what I would like to do with the club. He knows how much I value him. But his issues are with what has gone on in the past rather than the future.

“If he has problems with the club for things in the past, it is difficult for me to dismiss that.”

Hodgson’s comments are sure to alert Manchester City and Chelsea who are both interested in the striker and have the cash needed to prize him away from Anfield.

Torres is 11/2 to top the Premier League goalscoring charts next season but there is every chance he could be banging in the goals for either City or Chelsea.

Hodgson will still hold out some hope of keeping the player, who is under contract, but if Torres has made his mind up then there will be little the club can do.

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Rovers boss admits struggles

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Sam Allardyce has admitted he is struggling to lure a striker to Blackburn Rovers (7/1 to be relegated) in order to boost his squad ahead of a long Premier League season.

The former Bolton and Newcastle manager currently only has Jason Roberts and Nikola Kalinic as established top-flight strikers on his books, with untested forwards such as David Hoilett, Aaron Doran and Maceo Rigters his only other attacking options at this point in time.

He was forced to stand and watch his Blackburn (25/1 Premiership without Top Six 2010/11) side go down to a 3-0 defeat to Championship side, and north-west rivals, Preston North End in a friendly game at Deepdale this week.

Allardyce admitted it was “not great” from his side and he will certainly be wanting to bring more out of his players if they are to improve on their 10th-placed finish in the Premier League last season.

Blackburn kick off their Premier League campaign against Everton (Blackburn 7/5 to win, Everton 8/5, draw 11/5) on August 14th and their experienced manager is hoping he can have secured the signature of more attacking firepower.

Allardyce has been linked with moves for ex-Manchester City forward Benjani, David Nugent and even Real Madrid legend Raul this summer.

He is also reportedly interested in bringing former Rovers striker Matt Derbyshire back to the Premier League from Greek side Olympiakos.

The Blackburn manager faces competition to get the signature of any of the above-mentioned attackers and he has admitted that the club’s finances are making it hard for him to get quality strikers to Ewood Park

“When you haven’t got as much money as everyone else, it makes it difficult to find the right player to make an impact for you,” said Allardyce.

“It is not a striker we are looking for to make the numbers up, it is a striker we are looking for to make an impact by challenging Jason Roberts and Niko Kalinic. That is extremely difficult for us at the moment.”

One of the forwards currently at Ewood Park remains convinced he could be the one to get goals for the club next season.

Dutch forward Rigters has failed to impress since arriving from NAC Breda in 2007, making only two appearances, but has issued a rallying cry to Allardyce.

He told the Lancashire Telegraph: “I know I can play football and I know I can score goals here.

“I’ve scored a lot of goals in the reserves but I have to see where I’m going to start playing football. I hope it?s at Blackburn because I like the club and I really want to play in the Premier League.”

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Holloway admits Blackpool transfer fears

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Blackpool manager Ian Holloway says he is looking to add nine players to his squad (6/4 to win their opening match against Wigan) before the start of the season, but admits it is going to prove very difficult.

Following last season’s play-off success, the Tangerines boss has spent all summer trying to add new faces to his squad.

But without a massive transfer kitty and with one eye on the future, Blackpool have found it hard to sign new players as they prepare for their first Premier League campaign.

So far, the Premier League new-boys have not be able to make any signings, with just five weeks to go until the start of the new campaign.

Holloway admits that Blackpool did not plan to go up last season and that is another reason why they have struggled to make an impact in the summer transfer window.

The former QPR boss told the Blackpool Gazette: “I have to try to get myself six to nine extra players because I’ve only got 16 at the moment and we need a squad of 25.

“We might not get to 25 and I hope we don’t have any injuries or suspensions before January because that could kill us.”

Holloway has conceded that Blackpool only have one scout, which has made it difficult for the Tangerines to check out players in Europe and further afield.

The manager has already indicated that he will look to bring in younger players and try and build for the future, with big-money signings out of the question.

Holloway added: “We’ve never watched a player who is worth a million quid. So how on earth can we now try and get a player – in fact nine of them – to keep us in the Premier League?

“That’s the reality of it. Until you get to the top flight you haven’t got the money to put these structures in place. So it’s a vicious circle.”

Blackpool kick-off the new season with a home clash against Lancashire rivals Wigan (9/1 to win 2-0 at Bloomfield Road) on Saturday August 14, before an away trip to Arsenal on August 21.

Holloway is keen to keep the team spirit at the same level as last season and that means looking to bring in a certain type of player.

The manager concluded: “What I want to do is get the characters right because I don’t want to lose what we’ve got here, I think it’s really special.

“They’ll have to come for the right reason, which isn’t their wage packet – it’ll be wanting to play in the Premiership for Blackpool.”

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Dawson admits to crazy day

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Michael Dawson has been forced to make a hasty change of plans for the summer after being called up to the England (7/1 in the outright winner market) squad for the World Cup, after Rio Ferdinand was ruled out of the tournament with a knee injury.

The Tottenham centre-back had been preparing his holiday plans after getting the chop from Fabio Capello’s 30-man preliminary squad, when the final 23 was announced on Tuesday.

However during England’s first training session in South Africa, captain Ferdinand suffered an injury to his left knee ligaments following a tackle from Emile Heskey, and after a trip to the hospital, the Manchester United star’s World Cup dream is now over.

Dawson had been asked if he was available while Ferdinand was undergoing scans, and has now been called over to South Africa following confirmation of the bad news.

“It’s a crazy game and things can change in a split second,” Dawson told Tottenham’s official website.

“One minute I’m trying to arrange my holiday, then I get a call asking if I was on holiday because Rio had pulled out of training.

“I said ‘no’ and then I was just waiting by the phone before getting a call saying I would be picked up in an hour. It’s been a crazy day.”

Ferdinand had been about to take part in his fourth World Cup, with the added honour this time around of actually skippering the side, and Dawson knows that there will be no words to make the devastation of missing the sport’s biggest tournament go away.

“For Rio to get injured, there would be no worse feeling for him as a player. To miss the biggest tournament in the world as the captain, I feel for him,” said Dawson.

“I missed the Carling Cup final in 2008, and there was nothing anyone could have said to me that could have made me feel any better. For Rio, the feeling will be the same.”

Liverpool playmaker Steven Gerrard, who wore the armband in Capello’s first game in charge of England, has now been confirmed as captain for the upcoming showpiece.

Dawson will be vying with Ledley King, Jamie Carragher and Matthew Upson for the central defensive position alongside former skipper John Terry for England’s opening game against USA next Saturday.

The Three Lions are 4/9 favourites in the match betting to kick off their campaign with a win, with the Americans on offer at 6/1 and the draw at 3/1.

Capello’s men are 2/7 favourites to win Group C, ahead of USA at 4/1, while Slovenia are available at 11/1 and Algeria the outsiders at 18/1.

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Xavi admits England fear

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Spain midfielder Xavi has admitted he sees England as strong contenders to emerge victorious at the World Cup in South Africa (England 6/1 to win the World Cup).

The Barcelona star was instrumental in Spain’s Euro 2008 success, a tournament England were absent from, but he feels the Three Lions could enjoy a very successful World Cup.

Spain remain the favourites ahead of the tournament, despite a less than convincing 3-2 win over Saudi Arabia yesterday, but Xavi feels England are just as strong as his own nation.

“People say that the strongest nation is Spain – but after us I really think it is England,” explained Xavi. “Perhaps their goalkeepers aren’t world class but apart from that you struggle to see a weakness.

“The World Cup isn’t won on paper but after us I think England have the second-best team. It’s not a surprise really when you consider so much of the England set-up is made of players from Manchester United and Chelsea.”

England boss Fabio Capello is yet to whittle down his 30 man squad to 23, but the Italian claims he knows 20 players who will be going and has just three places left to fill.  However, the likes of Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand, John Terry, Ashley Cole and Frank Lampard will almost certainly be involved in South Africa and Xavi believes England’s strong contingent from Manchester United and Chelsea will help them progress in South Africa.

In the betting markets Spain remain favourites, with Brazil second and England third.  However, Xavi believes Argentina will be a threat in South Africa due to the talents Lionel Messi, Xavi’s Barca team-mate, possesses.

The 30-year-old believes Messi is the best player in the world but he also feels there is a “group of players” who are not far behind the Argentine superstar and he classes Rooney in that bracket (Wayne Rooney 14/1 to win the Golden Ball (player of the tournament)).

Many pundits feel the United striker could be instrumental England’s World Cup campaign after his impressive exploits for the Old Trafford side last season.  The former Everton man has always been a goal-threat but last season, following Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Real Madrid, Rooney shouldered the burden of scoring the majority of United’s goals and the 24-year-old demonstrated he could also be an excellent positional player and find the net with his head as well as from range.

Xavi believes England have a strong spine, he highlights defender John Terry and midfielder Frank Lampard as the other players who he feels can lead England to glory.  Spain and England cannot meet until at least the semi-final stage, with England drawn in Group C and Spain Group H, with Xavi wary of the threat Capello’s side could pose.

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Schwarzer admits Aussie concerns

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Australia goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer is nervously watching the clock as the fitness clouds hanging over the Socceroos (15/2 to win Group D) continue with three weeks to the World Cup.

Several players went into what is sure to be a gruelling pre-tournament training camp lacking full fitness – notably Harry Kewell and Tim Cahill.

Schwarzer admits the situation is a worry, and hopes that time will be a great healer.

“It’s always a concern when guys are injured heading into a big tournament,” Schwarzer said.

“You want to have as many of your players fit as possible, especially your experienced players.

“But we’ve still got three weeks or so until the beginning of the World Cup, so it still gives players the opportunity to find their fitness, to overcome any niggles or injuries they’ve had over the season.

“Hopefully come the first game they’ll all be fit.”

Kewell’s groin injury is the most talked-about fitness concern ahead of Australia’s World Cup opener against Germany in Durban on June 13.

He trained lightly with the team at their first training session at Melbourne’s AAMI Park.

But he is likely to be eased through as the intensity rises with double sessions each day in the lead-up to the friendly against New Zealand (12/1 to qualify from Group F) on Monday night.

Schwarzer and his teammates are expecting Pim Verbeek to employ the same sort of physically demanding training schedule previous coach Guus Hiddink used ahead of the 2006 tournament.

“It will be very intense – from last time I can tell you it will be a very intense situation,” Schwarzer said.

“The first week is usually a bit lighter because of the many commitments we have here in Australia.

“But once we knuckle down, get away from the outside world a little bit, and get down to concentrate on training it becomes quite intense.”

Meanwhile, Cahill believes Australia’s work ethic and experience from 2006 will be the keys to their performance in South Africa next month.

And he has also stressed the importance of Australia getting their first-choice players in peak condition to tackle the World Cup.

“First of all we have to keep players fit and then try to get the consistency,” Cahill said.

“If we prepare right and try and be as fit as we can for this World Cup like we were for the last World Cup, our natural talents will hopefully shine through.

“We’ve got great character, great work ethic within the team and a team that sticks together.”

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Cahill admits Australia battle

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Tim Cahill claims he knows Australia (15/2 to win Group D) face a tough challenge to make it into the knockout stages of the World Cup this summer, but he remains confident they can surprise a few people.

The Everton midfielder is one of Australia’s footballing superstars and may need to be on top of his game as the country has received a tough World Cup draw after being placed in Group D with Germany, Serbia and Ghana.

Cahill played in the World Cup four years ago as Australia made it into the second round and only went out due to a late penalty to eventual winners Italy (12/1 – World Cup 2010 Outright).

The 30-year-old told Fifa.com that he is looking to add to his 19 international goals in 37 appearances for Australia in South Africa, but it is a “difficult” task they have ahead of them – starting with a match against Germany (14/1 – World Cup 2010 Outright), one of the pre-tournament favourites, in Durban on June 13th.

Speaking about their opening opponents, he said: “We know they’re very disciplined and tactically very strong but, as it’s the first game, there’s no reason why we can’t catch them cold.”

He claims that a draw and a win in their three group games could be enough to get Australia out of Group D, but even then they could face the likes of England (11/2 – World Cup 2010 Outright) or USA in the second round if they qualify.

“I think the most important thing for us is to take each game at a time and not get ahead of ourselves,” stated Cahill.

One attacking option which will be unavailable to Australia boss Pim Verbeek in South Africa is Melbourne Victory striker Archie Thompson.

The forward has scored 21 goals in 33 appearances for Australia (9/4 to qualify from Group D) but ruptured his anterior cruciate and medial ligaments in the A-League grand final and has been ruled out of the World Cup.

While Australia have been hit by an injury blow, their Group D rivals blow have received some good news as their number one goalkeeper Rene Adler has returned to training after a broken rib.

The Bayer Leverkusen stopped suffered the injury in a game with Stuttgart and his speedy return to fitness could be a real boost to Germany boss Joachim Low.

Meanwhile, Ghana (2/1 to be eliminated in the last 16), who Australia face in their second game on 19th June, are hoping that Portsmouth midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng will be able to play for them in the World Cup.

He has previously played for Germany at under-21 level but is currently waiting for his nationality switch to be ratified by Fifa so he can play a part for Ghana in South Africa.

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