All posts by h79snht.top

This week the world of rumours is abuzz with the news that Nicklas Bendtner is on the verge of signing for Sporting Lisbon for £9 million. (Seriously, people can’t stop talking about it). But does that represent value for money?

For £9 million Sporting are getting two players. The Nicklas Bendtner who failed to break into Arsenal’s first team and has gradually slipped further and further down the pecking order and the Nicklas Bendtner future self who apparently will become one of the greatest strikers in the world within the next 5 years.

If the first Bendtner turns up which is more than likely as the second is yet to be seen, then £9 million is a high fee for a relatively unproven goalscorer. Bendtner has always talked a good game but seldom plays one. True, he has played nearly 100 Premiership matches and is experienced for a 23 year old, but his goal return has been underwhelming especially considering he has been playing in an Arsenal side that creates so many chances. He will not be presented with such clear and regular opportunities at Sporting and must improve his goal ratio dramatically if he is to succeed.

They are however buying an incredibly hungry player. Perhaps the most impressive thing that Bendtner has achieved at Arsenal is scoring 10 out of 9 in a ‘self perceived competence’ test. He is firmly convinced that he will become one of the greatest strikers in the world in the next 5 years. Whether he envisaged a move to Sporting Lisbon from Arsenal as a crucial stepping-stone in his five-year plan is not known. The Arsenal psychologist Jacques Crevoisier said “when Bendtner misses a chance, he is always genuinely convinced it wasn’t his fault.’ If Bendtner was correct in this belief he is the unluckiest footballer ever.

If this moves successfully kick-starts Bendtner’s career then he could prove a very good signing for £9 million, however, he has had 4 years to make an impression at Arsenal and has failed to do so. Since he spurned the advances of Lyon and A.C. Milan in 2007 to concentrate on breaking into Arsenal’s starting eleven, his talent has stagnated, to the point where he started just 3 premier league games for the Gunners last season and demanded a transfer. Unfortunately the calibre of his suitors has declined along with his potential. Whilst this may not be a problem for most players looking to get a fresh start, Nicklas Bendtner is not most players, he is exceptional.

It may be a tough blow to accept that he needs to step down, but if there’s one ego that can bounce back, it’s his.

Does Nicklas Bendtner have the ability to reach the top? Or is he destined to disappoint himself?

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

http://twitter.com/#!/philipwroe

[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’right’]

The appointment of Andre Villas-Boas as Chelsea manager is expected to entail a change in playing style at Stamford Bridge, with the former Porto boss now widely recognised for his attacking philosophy in football, having racked up a total of 73 goals in just 30 league games in his first, and only, season with the Portuguese champions. Villas-Boas will be hoping to get the very best out of his front men, who last season managed just 18 league goals between them. Whilst on loan at Bolton, Daniel Sturridge managed 8 goals in just 12 games, and looks set to return to Stamford Bridge and compete with the likes of Anelka, Drogba, and Torres for a place in the Chelsea side.

At just 21, Sturridge had generally been considered a player ‘for the future’ at Chelsea, but his performances at Bolton last season are believed to have impressed Villas-Boas to such an extent that he is unwilling to consider loaning the forward out again in this campaign. Sturridge has expressed his desire to remain at Chelsea before and fight for a place in the side, and it looks as though this season he may well be given that chance. If he is able to replicate the kind of form that he demonstrated in his brief spell at Bolton then the youngster may well stand a chance of keeping his seniors out of the starting eleven. Sturridge has been tipped to become one of England’s top forwards, and this season may well be the platform he has been waiting for to prove his ability at the very top level.

Speculation over the future of Nicolas Anelka has been evident throughout this transfer window, with a move to the MLS believed to be very much on the cards at one stage. Both David Beckham and Thierry Henry moved to the USA at the age of 32, and with Anelka having reached this age now, his time at Chelsea looked to be coming to an end. Again, like Sturrdige, Anelka has vowed to fight for his place in the Chelsea team, and can play in any forward role should the Chelsea manager stick to the 4-3-3 formation we have become accustomed to at Stamford Bridge. Should Villas-Boas revert to a 4-4-2, then Anelka’s role in the side is sure to be limited, with the likes of Torres, Sturridge, and Drogba likely to be preferred up front in such a scenario. This season is surely the Frenchman’s final opportunity to show that he still has what it takes to play at the top level, and should the goals dry up, we can probably expect Anelka to be crossing the Atlantic this time next year.

[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’right’]

At 33 years of age, Didier Drogba is the oldest option Villas-Boas will have to put up front. As Chelsea forwards go, he is probably also the most prolific. Despite struggling to find the form of recent years last season, those cynics who have written the Ivorian off as ‘too old’, do so at their peril. Drogba has demonstrated the consistency required at the top level throughout most of his Chelsea career, and despite some speculation over his future this summer, he looks set to see out the final year on his contract, if not even longer. The ‘Drogba or Torres’ debate is certainly an interesting one, and one that is likely to chop and change as the season goes on. In a 4-3-3 it seems only one of the two is likely to be involved from the start, but if Villas-Boas were to opt for a 4-4-2 in which this partnership could work, then this would undoubtedly be one of the strongest and most formidable strike forces in the league. It is a rather large ‘if’ at the moment, but one that Chelsea fans will certainly be hoping that their new boss can deliver.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

After his £50m signing in January, Fernando Torres has come under heavy criticism from both the media and the public, and was only able to manage the solitary goal in 14 league appearances with the Blues. Torres’ teammates and manager insisted that the Spaniard was not entirely fit throughout this period, and remained adamant that with a full pre-season behind him, we would start to see the best from their number 9. Torres will be relatively pleased with his pre-season thus far, with goals against both Wycombe Wanderers, and then Aston Villa in the Asia Cup final last weekend. It is surely to early to draw comparisons with Shevchenko’s brief spell at the club, and if we are honest, most of us would probably be surprised if Fernando Torres struggled to find the net again this season, instead, I think we can expect to see the kind of ability from El Nino that we saw during his time both at Liverpool and Atletio Madrid – ‘form is temporary, class is permanent.’

How do you think Chelsea will fare this season? Let me know either below or on Twitter @sixthofficial

Jordan Henderson and Charlie Adam scored their first goals for Liverpool in a 3-1 win against Bolton, which see’s the Reds soar to the Premier League summit leapfrogging Chelsea in the process.

The summer signings struck either side of a Martin Skrtel goal to secure an easy home victory against the Trotters who scored in injury time through Ivan Klasnic.

Kenny Dalglish’s side dominated the match from start to finish and it was England midfielder Henderson who opened the scoring after 15 minutes with a sumptuous curling shot from 20 yards.

Jussi Jaaskelainen was by far the busier of the two keepers saving efforts from Stewart Downing, Daniel Agger and Dirk Kuyt in the first half.

Bolton had no answer to the home sides attack and two goals in as many minutes sealed the Trotters fate.

Firstly, Skrtel got on the end of Adam’s whipped corner to bury a header past Jaaskelainen in the 51st minute .

Barely 60 seconds later the Scottish midfielder went from provider to goalscorer lashing home from just outside the penalty area to make it three goals without reply to send the Kop wild.

Bolton, for all their endeavour, were always second best throughout the game and boss Owen Coyle will have to pick up the pieces of a second consecutive defeat.

Klasnic did manage to grab a consolation a minute into stoppage time finishing from close range but the day belonged to Liverpool and King Kenny who find’s himself on top of English football once again.

[divider]

See the match stats from Anfield here

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

[divider]

Watch all the action by checking out ESPN’s New GOALS APP

[divider]

[divider]

Check the winning the numbers from this week’s Goaldash here

Andre Villas Boas has stated that he is happy with Chelsea’s 1-1 Champions League draw away to Valencia on Wednesday night, but admitted frustration that his side were not more clinical in front of goal.

Frank Lampard, who was reinstated to the Stamford Bridge outfit’s starting XI, gave the visitors the lead early in the second half, but the Premier League team were pegged back by a late Roberto Soldado penalty.

Despite being close to getting a valuable away win, the Portuguese coach is content with the result.

“It was a strong performance from the team but we just need to find that prolific touch in front of goal and eventually, when it comes, we’ll be able to get more solid results and reach that two-goal advantage,” he told Sky Sports.

“I think it was more deserved for us to win this game. I’m happy with the display of everybody. Before the game, if you’d told us we’d draw in Valencia, maybe we would have taken it.

“But to be so near and be in that position in the game, it leaves us with a feeling that we don’t like. I think Diego had four fantastic saves in front of our players. He changed the result of the game,” he stated.

Chelsea now have back-to-back games against Genk to negotiate, and AVB is looking forward to taking on the Belgian side.

“So near to a win, it leaves you with a strange feeling but we’re in a good position still in the group.

“We’re looking forward to the Genk game – they’re going to be difficult games, of course. But if we get six points out of them, we’re almost ensured qualification,” he concluded.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Fancy watching Chelsea as a VIP this Saturday – click on the banner to find out more

In the Premier League era, players from every corner of the globe have travelled to England to play in the greatest league in the world – from Canada to New Zealand, from Japan to Argentina, from Iceland to Oman. A lot of these international imports have been massive successes, and some of the finest players we’ve all been so fortunate to watch over the past two decades have come from far-off foreign lands.

That said, there have been many players down the years who’ve travelled to the Premier League only to almost instantly be uncovered as a Premier League misfit. This might not necessarily mean that the player in question lacks the talent for the division – though there are plenty of those in this list. Some have suffered injury problems that ruined their time in England; others were simply playing under far too large a price-tag.

Whatever the reason, though, they didn’t belong in the Premier League, and now we bring you the top 20 misfits of the Premier League era.

Click on William Prunier below to unveil the top 20 misfits

[divider]

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

List compiled by Rob Schatten

[divider]

A FREE football app that pays YOU to watch ads[ad_pod id=’qs-2′ align=’left’]

After another really worthwhile international break, during which England played two friendly games at Wembley, several issues came to light – pre match the English media were claiming we didn’t have a hope in hell of beating Spain. Post-match Sky Sports and expert pundit the wally with a brolly Steve Mcclaren were telling us that we were in with an excellent chance of winning the whole tournament this summer, and after the game last night it became clear that the only thing worse than getting hammered in those games was winning both as the ridiculous post match analysis is showing.

However, more worrying than all of this is the so called ‘support cast’ for Wayne Rooney up front. By now the world and its wife are aware that the big bad FIFA have banned Rooney for the opening stages of the tournament in the summer, and England must now find a way to navigate the group and score goals without him. It’s not that we don’t have options, it’s just that they aren’t very good.

Capello has the choice of going with an older and supposedly more experienced player, such as Darren Bent, or Peter Crouch, even Bobby Zamora, but are these really top class strikers who should be playing for the national side? None of the above strikers play for a so called ‘top club’ with both Crouch and Bent having been tried at international level on multiple occasions, with both coming up short. Andy Carroll cannot even start for Liverpool, and is not really tried and tested at International level.

There is the option of going for youth, with both Daniels – Welbeck and Sturridge impressing for their clubs and the England youth teams in the past – however they still lack experience at the very top level and it is more than reasonable to question if they could really take the pressure heaped on England at an International tournament. Both are in form at the minute and playing well for their clubs but it is just as feasible for them to have a long spell on the bench due to the competition for places at their respective clubs.

One thing that can be said about the young boys is that despite their experience at the very top level of international football, they are both comfortable playing in the Champions league – a competition that is arguably at a higher standard than the group stages of an International tournament.

[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’left’]

An option that people seem to forget about to replace Wayne Rooney in the group stages is that of Jermain Defoe. Say what you will about the player, but in Defoe you get not only a proven goal scorer but also someone that has experience at the highest level of football and has shown he can deal with the pressures and expectations of playing for England.

Yes, none of these players are Wayne Rooney, but dwelling on his absence for any longer will have a greater effect on the team in a negative sense and will only hamper the prospects of England.

If you look at the top international teams – take Spain for instance – if you take out David Villa or even Negredo or Torres, it obviously matters, but then you look at the players they have in the middle of their park – Xavi, Iniesta and Busquets – far, far more quality than England have.

Whilst it is the job of the chosen striker to get the majority of the goals, there has to be a contribution from elsewhere in the team, and England struggle with this. There is no really special player in the England side, who can make the difference in the tight games, and perhaps it is time, as Gary Neville has suggested, to start bringing through the younger generation in order to eventually win an International tournament – Walker and Rodwell showed last night England’s younger generation have more than a bit of talent between them.

Yes omitting players such as John Terry or Lampard may not be the way forward for everyone, but had Aragones not left Raul out of the Spanish squad before Euro 2008 and effectively changed the whole mentality of the squad, they could well still be waiting to win a trophy.

When England inevitably falter at the Euro’s, blame will be levelled at many factors, and should they fail to make it out of the group, whoever is chosen to replace Rooney will be the national scape goat, or perhaps it will be the referee, whatever the case, it is not the fact we are without a world class candidate to replace Rooney that will see us fail yet again.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

It is the entire mentality of the squad, manager – who has kept his promise to pick players on form about as well as Kim Kardashian kept her marriage vows– the media and their hype and the fans.

[divider]

 FREE football app that pays you CASH

[ad_pod id=’qs-2′ align=’left’]

The business that is Premier League football is moving on rapidly, with foreign billionaires pumping money into clubs and sponsorship deals boosting finance for all of the owners. Football has moved on in the past ten years with money now becoming one of the biggest, if not biggest, aspect of modern day football. Off the field issues are now publicised in the press and chairman and owners now have more say than ever in Premier League football.

Last week Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley sold the rights to St James Park, and it will now be called the Sports Direct Arena. The Magpies supporters were outraged at the decision to change the name of their historic stadium, just another move from the owner that has not been appreciated by the fans. Ashley claimed that the sale of the naming rights could bring the club around £10million a year that could be spent on improving the squad; something that is surely the most important thing for the club in the long run.

It is time for supporters to let the owners deal with the off the field situations and try to make money for the club that can be spent on moving the club forward. Ashley knows the meaning of St James Park to the fans but he, rightly, feels that moving the club forward to the next level is more important than the words on the top of a stand or being mentioned in newspapers.

[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’left’]

Geordie supporters can call the ground what they want, but if Ashley spends the extra finance on a goal-scorer or a pacey winger will the fans be upset then, pushing the club on to challenge for European football and becoming the force that they used to be in the Premier League. The most important thing in a football club is how they are doing on the pitch, if they are not playing well and losing games then the fans will be the first to jump on the bandwagon for new players, management and ownership.

I understand the history of St James Park, but it is just a name that the fans can still stick with if they please but they must think of the long term future. Manchester City are a club that are not short of money, but they find every way possible to keep topping up the bank balance. They sold the naming rights of their ground for over £100 million to Etihad, something that can now be reimbursed into the club; a win-win for supporters and owners alike.

Fellow North East clubs Sunderland and Middlesbrough have had to move grounds in recent years that have not worked out well for them, moving to a new area that produces lower attendances and unsatisfied supporters. Ashley needed to make some money some and this was a clever idea to improve the side for the supporters to be able to acknowledge his work.

Clubs such as Leicester City and Coventry City have moved to new stadiums away from the city centres that have affected attendances and support, making the move looking pointless and money making. Newcastle have not moved stadiums and abandoned their historic home, they simply changed the naming, something that can be ignored if necessary by the Magpies loyal followers. It is surely time to take a reality check of situations similar to this, if the team is improving on the pitch; something which Newcastle have undoubtedly done in recent years; then fans should back the players and staff to make the correct decisions.

The decision that Ashley made to just come out and tell the supporters of this name change may have been pre-meditated in the fact that the club are on good form and that may calm the fans reaction to the decision, but it did not work. I am not sure he would have made the statement on the confirmation of The Sports Direct Arena if the club were in the bottom three at this stage of the season.

It would have been a better decision to put it out to the fans and explained exactly what was going to happen, rather than come out with it at this stage of the season. Hopefully though, Newcastle supporters will see the benefits of money coming into the club on the pitch.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

[divider]

 FREE football app that pays you CASH

[ad_pod id=’qs-2′ align=’left’]

Didier Drogba has rejected a Chelsea offer of a new contract and a loan deal to AC Milan, and instead will leave Stamford Bridge in the summer in search of one final pay day according to his agent.

The Ivory Coast international is in the last year of his deal with Andre Villas Boas’ men, and has not been guaranteed a starting place in the Premier League side’s starting XI this season.

The African forward’s representative Thierno Seydi has clarified that money will be a deciding factor in the veteran attacker’s choice of destination at the end of the campaign.

“Milan came in for Didier, but I said no straight away. Their offer, for a loan with an option to buy, did not interest us,” Seydi told reporters.

“He’s had the offer of a one-year extension from Chelsea, but that does not suit us. At his age, he has nothing left to prove as a player.

“Once you are well into your thirties, you have to go to a club where you can be certain you’ll be able to pay your bills.

“He will go where he is offered the most money. It could be the United States, Qatar, Russia or somewhere in Asia. He’ll go wherever he feels good from a financial point of view,” the agent concluded.

Nicolas Anelka is in the same boat as Drogba in that his contract at Stamford Bridge is running down, and both of the veteran strikers are expected to leave the London team come the summer.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

By Gareth McKnight

[ad_pod id=’writer-1′ align=’right’]

Like most 90s kids there are several reunions I’d love to see S Club 7, Ash Ketchum and Pikachu and Vanilla flavouring with Coca Cola (remember that?) but unlike most Arsenal fans one reunion I’m not in favour of, is the return of our all time goalscorer and legend, Thierry Henry.

Arsene Wenger for all his success and attributes, has to be the most frustrating manager, no correction, the most frustrating man on the planet. The Frenchman continually refuses to buy, much to the annoyance of everyone associated with the Gunners and instead scans the globe for a cheap short term alternative which usually results in such signings as Sebastian Squilacci. Le Professeur should be looking not to cover Gervinho and Chamakh while at the African Cup of Nation but to be replacing the Moroccan and offering the Ivorian some strong competition for his place.

The era of Henry & Co. was a great time to be a Gooner and probably something that will never be eclipsed by Arsenal or any other team. The current Arsenal team is different in every way from the time of Pires, Bergkamp and Henry and for that reason it is time for the likes of Song, Vermalean and RVP to make this Arsenal team their own and successful in their own way. Bringing back Henry would undermine the current Arsenal squad, especially with the incessant media coverage that will continually highlight what Henry achieved in his time in North London compared to the success since he has left.

For once I’d love Arsenal to be linked with the players that the likes of Manchester City and Barcelona are chasing, I know we couldn’t compete financially but wouldn’t it be nice for Neymar to spotted at the Emirates having talks with the Gunners hierachy? Rather than talking loan deals for a player that left Arsenal for bigger and better things (a lot of people forget this, I mean if you loved us so much Thierry, why leave?).

You also have to look at Henry as a player, at 34 years of age will he still be able to run from box to box leaving an entire Spurs team for dead? Because that’s what we would all expect from the former Juventus winger, we all vividly remember the Henry that lobbed Barthez with his back to goal, could he still give us that va-va voom? It is true you don’t lose your natural talent but the former Barcelona player will have definitely lost a yard or two and despite having scored 15 goals in 29 games for the New York Red Bulls, which is an impressive record that Arsenal could do with ; you have to remember that Juan Pablo Angel was deemed prolific out in the States.

Think I’m being too harsh on our former skipper? Let me know at www.danieltblazer.com

[divider]

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

FREE football app that pays you CASH

[ad_pod id=’qs-2′ align=’left’]

New QPR manager Mark Hughes has stated that he is not concerned about Joey Barton’s frequent Twitter messages, as long as they don’t compromise dressing room morale.

The combative midfielder displays his thoughts on the game, which are not always positive, on the social networking site and has previous slated fellow players, manager and club owners.

The latest controversy surrounds Neil Warnock’s dismissal, where Barton personally attacked the sacked coach over his conduct in losing his job.

Despite this, Hughes feels for the time being he does not have to address the issue.

“No, not at this stage. Joey understands what happens in the dressing room stays there and I don’t think it will be a problem,” he told The Daily Mail.

“If ever I felt that it was going to compromise us then we’d have a conversation and talk it through, but certainly I haven’t felt the need to do that up to this point.

“He’s a big personality, he thrives on it,” Hughes concluded.

Despite Barton’s controversial past, Hughes has recently stated that the midfielder will keep the Loftus Road captaincy.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

By Gareth McKnight

[ad_pod id=’writer-1′ align=’right’]