Tag Archives: relishing

Walcott relishing underdog tag

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Theo Walcott believes that Arsenal (2/1 to win at Eastlands) will relish the fact they are the underdogs when they visit big-spending Manchester City (11/8 in the match betting, 9/4 the draw) on Sunday as they look to go above Roberto Mancini’s men in the table.

Walcott is obviously wary of the threat posed by a City side (11/2 to win the Premier League title) given their start to the campaign so far, but insists the pressure is off the Gunners (15/2), who will go above City with a win as they will have a better goal difference.

“Man City are probably one of the favourites for the league going into Sunday’s game and maybe favourites against us,” Walcott said.

“That’s good for us. We’ll go there with no fear and express ourselves and try to get that result we need.

“City are very strong. They beat Chelsea at their place. They have so much money and have fantastic players and I think they are starting to gel now.

“They are growing every single game but, hopefully, we can stutter their season.”

Walcott (7/2 to score at anytime on Sunday) is back in contention for a starting berth against City for the first time since August after missing the last six weeks with an ankle problem while on England duty.

The 21-year-old came on as a substitute during Arsenal’s Champions League win over Shakhtar Donetsk in midweek is hopeful that he has fully recovered from his ankle injury but is expecting some physical treatment from City when the sides go head-to-head.

“There have been a lot of breakages this season, more than normal,” Walcott said. “I’m a player who gets kicked all the time. I just have to get back up from it and move on.

“With training, hopefully I can get back to the physical side of things with my ankle.

“I’ve been whacked on it once but I think I need a couple more to be sure it’s okay.

“Wayne Bridge will be left-back at City. I’m sure I’ll take a few whacks and bruises but I’ll be fine.”

Captain Cesc Fabregas is back to full fitness and is set to return to Premier League action, while defender Bacary Sagna has also recovered from injury.

However, Laurent Koscielny is struggling with a back problem and Jack Wilshere is suspended.

City could welcome back striker Mario Balotelli to the squad following his knee injury although former Arsenal defender Kolo Toure is a doubt with a hamstring complaint.

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Houllier relishing ‘challenge’

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Gerard Houllier is looking forward to the ‘tremendous challenge’ of trying to take Aston Villa to the next level (9/1 Premiership Top 4 Finish) after the club confirmed him as their new manager.

The 63-year-old former Liverpool manager will return to the Premier League following a six-year absence after ending his current position as technical director for the French Football Federation. And Houllier he is now aiming to carry on helping Villa progress from Martin O’Neill’s reign in which time he guided them to a regular top-six finish and Europa League football.

Houllier said in a statement: “I am very happy and proud to join this great and historic club.

“It was a very difficult decision for me to leave the FFF [French Football Federation].

“But I could not turn down the opportunity to manage a club whose approach, both on and off the pitch, I have long admired.

“Aston Villa is one of England’s biggest clubs and has an amazing set of fans.

“This is a tremendous challenge and one I am very much looking forward to taking on.”

It is not known who will become Houllier’s assistant after his former Liverpool number two Phil Thompson ruled himself out of the running in order to stay working as a television pundit.

The future of Kevin MacDonald, who took over as caretaker manager when O’Neill quit Villa a month ago, is also uncertain as Houllier might want to bring his own backroom team in to Villa Park.

However Villa are delighted to have secured Houllier’s services with chief executive Paul Faulkner revealing that the Frenchman met their requirements of managing a Premier League club and having ‘a strategy for building on the existing strengths in our current squad’.

He added: “In fact, he stands out as a football man who understands the ethos of our club and shares our core values.

“We look forward to working with Gerard and supporting him.

“We ask our supporters to get behind the new manager and the team as we look to build on the progress we have made over the past four years in all areas of the club.”

Houllier’s first game at the Villa helm will be on Monday when they travel to face Stoke City (Stoke 7/5, Villa 9/5, Draw 9/4 – 90 Minutes) in the Premier League at the Britannia Stadium.

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Hodgson relishing ‘biggest job’

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Roy Hodgson claims being Liverpool manager ‘is the biggest job in football’ as he looks to bring the glory days back to the Merseysiders (Liverpool 8/1 Premier League 2010-11 Outright) having signed a three-year contract at Anfield.

The 62-year-old has opted to quit Fulham, whom he guided to last season’s Europa League final against the odds, and will take the first day of pre-season training with the Reds on Thursday before being officially unveiled as Rafael Benitez’s successor.

Hodgson’s good work at Fulham last season, where he was manager since December 2007, saw him guide the unfashionable Londoners to wins against top European sides such as Juventus and Wolfsburg and earned him the League Managers Association manager of the year award.

And it appears that his other work with the Cottagers over the past two-and-a-half-years, where he dragged the club from being relegation certainties to a top-seven outfit, has attracted the Liverpool hierarchy to his managerial credentials.

On taking the job, Hodgson, who has vast management experience having coached clubs sides such as Blackburn and Inter Milan, while enjoying fairly successful stints in charge of the Switzerland and Finland national teams, said on the Reds’ website: “This is the biggest job in club football and I’m honoured to be taking on Britain’s most successful football club.”

The confirmation of Hodgson’s appointment ends a summer of speculation about who would replace Inter Milan-bound Benitez, who quit after a disappointing campaign in which Liverpool finished in seventh spot in the Premier League and missed out on the Champions League.

The hard work now starts for Hodgson as he will look to ensure star players like Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard are not tempted to jump ship for pastures new ahead of the Premier League curtain-raiser against Arsenal at Anfield (Liverpool 5/4, Arsenal 7/4, draw 9/4 90 Minutes) on August 14.

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Gerrard relishing Atletico mission

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Steven Gerrard has said Liverpool will have to play like “heroes” if they are to overturn a 1-0 semi-final first-leg defeat by Atletico Madrid in the Europa League at Anfield next week (4/7 Liverpool 12/5 draw 9/2 Atletico Madrid – match betting).

The Reds appeared heavy-legged off the back of a gruelling 24-hour, 1,200-mile trip to the Spanish capital by road, rail and air because of the flight restrictions imposed by the cloud of volcanic ash when they fell to an early goal by former Manchester United striker Diego Forlan on Thursday.

The setback at the Vicente Calderon means Rafael Benitez’s men must roll their sleeves up if they are to reach their third European final in six years.

England midfielder Gerrard is refusing to believe Liverpool have blown their last chance of silverware this season and is expecting another special European atmosphere at Anfield.

“It is still half-time. We are still confident we can progress and we know we can turn any result around with our fans behind us, especially a 1-0,” said Gerrard.

He added: “If you don’t want to play in that game there is something wrong.

“These are the stages you want to play on, these are the nights when heroes are made.”

The Reds staged one of the most remarkable comebacks in European history when they came from 3-0 at half-time to beat AC Milan on penalties in the 2005 Champions League final.

Gerrard was at his inspirational best in the group stages when he rescued his team-mates in the final game against Olympiacos.

This season they have also trailed against Lille and Benfica before securing second-leg wins.

The 29-year-old expects Thursday will not be the faint-hearted but is confident Liverpool can reach the final in Hamburg on May 12 (3/4 Liverpool – To Qualify).

He said: “We haven’t played well at all on the road in the league or in Europe but we’ve got the experience, the know-how, of turning these results around.”

He added: “Atletico have got fantastic players who can hurt you so we know we need to perform perfectly if we want to get to Hamburg.”

Liverpool must first collect maximum points off Burnley to keep alive their remote hopes of a top-four finish and Gerrard says he expects Benitez to make changes for the trip to Turf Moor.

He said: “I’m sure the manager will make a few changes to freshen things up and we’ll try to get a win against Burnley and then prepare for a massive game, the biggest of the season, next Thursday.”

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