Leeds owner Andrea Radrizzani’s company have won the rights to broadcast La Liga football, and fans are using it to bash the Italian once again.The big news from Leeds this week was nothing to do with the club itself, but with its owner and chairman Andrea Radrizzani.The Italian businessman has taken plenty of stick since taking over at Elland Road, although fans would surely agree he’s better than Massimo Cellino.[ad_pod ]This week, news broke that Radrizzani’s company, Eleven Sports, have won the rights over Sky to broadcast Spanish football, but fans don’t seem all that happy about it.While he is definitely an improvement on Cellino, the Elland Road faithful have not exactly enjoyed Radrizzani’s reign, particularly his trust in the infamous Victor Orta and his bizarre rant about Wolves’ transfer business.Some fans may feel the owner’s big news will give them a boost pursuing Spanish players in the transfer market, but most are annoyed that the 43 year-old isn’t spending more money and time on his club.Some of the best Twitter reactions can be found below…
Although all bar the relegation battle between Hull and Newcastle was decided heading into the final day, the Premier League still delivered. Thrills, spills, odd incidents, horror showings, it was all on show. Okay we didn’t get this drama…
The greatest ever Premier League final day, back in 2012. pic.twitter.com/7aOYoCZjf8
— BeforeFootball (@BeforeFootball) May 24, 2015
… But there were still some stories. We at FFC Towers set out with our popcorn to watch it all unfold, and here’s our trip through the hour and a half of incident!
Ashley makes it a must win…
“Now it’s to win something – and by the way, I won’t be selling it until I do. Not at any price.”
If Newcastle fans weren’t praying for a win before KO, then they certainly were after Ashley’s words on Sky Sports. Not even relegation will get rid… may as well win then, lads!
Emotion sets in…
Wipe away those tears… Gerrard, Lampard and Drogba will be no more in just over under two hours’ time…
We’re gonna win EURO 2016!!!!
Who said he only got called up due to England’s U-21 commitments and injuries. All hail King Vardy!
Arsenal are the best when it doesn’t matter…
3-0 up in 17 minutes… Arsenal the kings of games that have no consequence…
Heartstopper!
Hull score, disallowed. Elmohamady forces a fine save with the above header. Quinn offside after the ball hits the net. Scenes.
Defo win the EUROs
As if Vardy hadn’t made it clear enough, Kane nets his 31st of the season. We’re gonna win it, aren’t we…
Just odd…
We all love the Drog, but what on earth is this?!
Rodgers out!
The cap an awful week for Liverpool, Rodgers’ men undered the berak 5-0 down at Stoke… against Charlie ‘midfield schemer’ Adam’s side…
Riviere the villain…
Riviere misses a sitter… Perez watches on from the bench… John Carver: Managerial Genius!
The bomb is dropped…
GOALLLLLLLL Moussa Sissoko with a bullet header. Steve Bruce will need to sink a few pints of gravy to get over this one tonight…
Elsewhere…
Man City’s 1-0 scoreline keeps Liverpool in the Europa League…
The endless debate…
Only one winner today… Man City 1-0…. Liverpool 5-0 down…
King Carver…
https://vine.co/v/eZYq2KBWTxX/embed/simple
Could he do it? After losing eight games on the spin? Madness.
Oh well. All is saved for Liverpool
So what if it’s 5-1. Gerrard has scored. That’s. All. That. Matters.
Straight up brawlin…
Abel Hernandez gets away with punching Phil Jones in the stomach… Wayne Rooney donning his gloves for a bout…
https://vine.co/v/OVZZg09h6p3/embed/simple
Frankie goes to Hollywood…
Farewell Frank, it’s been a blast!
The dream still alive…
Fellaini off…
Naughty from Fellaini. #mufc pic.twitter.com/7hoMaYLH6P
— Back Page Football (@bpfootball) May 24, 2015
What’s that about leopards and now changing their spots? Stamp on McShane’s privates!
https://vine.co/v/OizdWgFuWv9/embed/simple
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How are they staying up?!
Newcastle can’t make a four on one count…
Game set and match… 2-0
Jonas ends the final day early with a lovely goal. We’ll let him off, though!
First Adam, now Crouch…
The beanpole makes it 6-1… 47th headed Premier League goal, taking the record from Alan Shearer. Breaking records and hearts…
PEEEEEEEEEEP
It’s all over. Months of action and the highs and lows are finished. Newcastle stay up, Steve Bruce’s Hull go down alongside QPR and Burnley.
Esteban Granero has admitted he is seeking an exit from QPR following relegation but is keen on staying in the Premier League.
The 25-year-old was a big-name summer arrival from Real Madrid but he has failed to hit the heights expected of him in England and could do nothing as Harry Redknapp’s side slipped miserably down into the Championship last month.
Granero, who has been linked with a move back to Spain recently, with Real Betis among a clutch of clubs thought to be interested, says he does not want to play in the second tier and appears to be inviting offers from around the Premier League.
“Now I do not plan to play in the second tier because I think it is not the place for me,” he told Spanish newspaper AS.
“I mean that in the most humble way but it’s how I feel. We will see what happens.
“The Premier League experience has been very good and I would love to play here more.”
Granero could interest the likes of Fulham or West Ham if he intends to stay in London but he insists he only wants to play and is not motivated by the lure of a lucrative contract elsewhere.
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He added: “For me, the most important thing is football. I’ve never given priority to economic issues or other things.”
Everyone loves Fantasy Football, it dominates our thoughts the closer we get to a new Premier League season, we can spend hours pouring over the information before we settle on our side. A key component of this is picking players that will score goals in positions that don’t normally rely upon them, such as a goalscoring centre-half or full-back. With this in mind, do we overrate goalscoring defenders? Ando do we let them off lightly when it becomes to their defensive deficiencies because they happen to be good at finding the back of the net? Fantasy Football has a lot to answer for….
I’m a sucker for goalscoring defenders may I just say begin with. My fantasy football teams at school always, always included Everton’s David Unsworth (45 goals in 445 games) and Leicester’s Matt Elliott (70 goals in 589 games), with the occasional nod to Julian Dicks (55 goals in 379 games). They were invaluable, the poorness of the defences they played in was completely counter-acted by the points they’d get me for their inevitable solid five-goal a season return. Heck, I even had Gary Cahill (21 goals in 234 games) and Mats Hummels (17 goals in 162 games) in my Euro 2012 side until injury cruelly robbed me of the former, while the other never bloody scored.
The short but simple fact is that everyone loves a goalscoring defender. We love the unexpected nature of their forward forays up the pitch. We love the fact that because they can clear the ball a whopping great distance means, this all of a sudden qualifies them as a free-kick expert. However, does this mean that we shy away from criticising them for doing the job that they are actually paid to do, which is defend?
According to the Premier League’s own player performance index, Arsenal’s Thomas Vermaelen was the 58th best player in the top flight last term. His season was interrupted by injury on ocassion, but he still managed to complete 29 league games, scoring six goals in the process. He made 29 clearances, 11 blocks and helped his side to 11 clean sheets during his time in the starting eleven. At the other end of the pitch, though, he finished the campaign with 37 shots, five crosses and one assist – not too bad at all for a centre-back it has to be said, certainly more than a lot of the deadwood currently at the club are capable of (I’m looking at you Park Chu-Young and Marouane Chamakh).
On the face of things it would seem like he had a very good season, would it not? However, Vermaelen has developed a worrying propensity to get dragged out of position, as was clearly in evidence during the 3-3 draw against Norwich last season at home, where he was quite frankly all over the place. He was far from his best throughout the course of the campaign, with partner Laurent Koscielny the superior partner for the most part.
Upon arriving in England, it was noted that at just 6ft tall, he looked a tad on the short side to be a commanding centre-half, but his aerial ability is one of his greatest strengths and plays a large part in his prowess in front of goal. To talk about Vermaelen in terms of criticism, he rarely comes in for any flak considering his poor positioning. He’s quick on the ground, mobile and decent on the ball, so anything that isn’t seen as a positive is conveniently glossed over.
Jonny Evans last season was the main beneficiary of Nemanja Vidic’s season-ending knee injury, going on to play 27 times for Manchester United as they were pipped to the post for the title by bitter rivals Manchester City. He has often been made out to be a scapegoat by many fans, yet he managed 30 blocks, 56 clearances and 16 clean sheets in less games than Vermaelen. The crucial difference is he doesn’t offer anything going forward and any mistake at the back is magnified tenfold, whereas with Vermaelen it is not.
We often gloss over the glaring weaknesses in a defender if they manage to chip in with the odd goal. John Arne Riise had an excellent first few years at Liverpool, but then spent his last two seasons trying to replicate his goal against Tottenham from 40 yards out every single time he crossed the halfway line. Matt Taylor suffers from a similar flaw. To call it frustrating to watch would be an understatement, yet at Fulham last season, shorn of his pace at 31 years of age, he looked a much better defender than his final couple of years at Anfield, but he had no goals in 40 appearances to show for it, despite his best efforts at breaking his duck.
Taye Taiwo managed to score 23 goals in 253 games at Marseille, where his job was to bound beyond the winger down the left-hand flank and he became a key part of their style of play. He then moved to AC Milan but struggled, as it seemed nobody actually checked first if he was any good at this defending lark before being farmed out to QPR on loan in the second half of last season. He’s full of energy, built like a tank but seems oddly unsure of where to actually stand when he’s on the back foot and is hugely susceptible to a ball played in behind him, a common occurrence for pacy full-backs these days.
Andreas Granqvist managed to bag 11 goals for Groningen in the Eredivise the year before last, but Wigan fans will remember a defender frightfully out of kilter with the pace of the top flight, yet AC Milan and Inter are rumoured to be interested in the Swede this summer after a decent first year at Genoa in Italy. It’s all about striking the right balance.
Ian Harte, Marco Materazzi, Daniel van Buyten, Naldo, Alex all made headlines for their goalscoring exploits in their respctive leagues over the years but they all have obvious flaws to their game. It’s when the goals become solely what they are remembered for that you start to worry and Vermaelen is in danger of falling into that trap.
The likes of Brazilian centre-half Juan, Sami Hyypia, Robert Huth, Sergio Ramos and Diego Lugano are all remembered for their defending first and foremost, with their attacking prowess just an added bonus, which is why they’re quite rightly regarded as superior players to the aforementioned list above, Vermaelen aside.
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It may not solely be the result of Fantasy Football, but something has become distorted along the way – goalscoring defenders are judged on their abilities further forward just as much as they are on their ability to stem an attack at the back and that’s a worrying trap to fall into. We should treat the goalscoring defender as a positive, they bring unexpected joy to the terraces and every side likes to have one in their side, but they have to be good enough defenders first, otherwise, that’s a slippery slope to head down.
Real Madrid are willing to pay £190m to sign Liverpool star Mohamed Salah, according to Don Balon.
What’s the story?
The Egyptian international’s scintillating form for the Merseyside outfit has attracted the attention of many figures in the football world.
The 25-year-old has scored 41 goals in all competitions, including 31 in the Premier League.
On Sunday night, the attacker was crowned the PFA Player of the Year, which has sparked worry in some Liverpool fans that they will lose their key star.
According to Don Balon, Real Madrid hold a strong interest in Salah and are now willing to pay £190m to seal his signature.
The report suggests that the figure is in the region that the Reds would consider, but they are expected to be tough negotiators.
Should Liverpool fans be worried?
At this stage, everything seems rosy at Anfield, and there would be nothing to suggest that Salah is an any way unhappy.
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How could he be? The Egyptian is the main man at Liverpool, he cannot stop scoring and is potentially three results away from lifting the Champions League trophy.
However, Real Madrid do not come calling every day, and there may be a part of Salah that wonders if this will be his only chance.
At the end of the day, if the former Chelsea player decides to leave, Liverpool can only do so much before he gets his way.
Romelu Lukaku’s agent has put a cat amongst the pigeons with comments that the Everton striker is better than Chelsea’s Diego Costa and will be looking for a Goodison Park exit soon.
The Belgium international’s future has been a point of contention for a number of months, with the powerhouse striker linked with a move away from the Merseyside club.
Lukaku recently changed his agent to the outspoken Mino Raiola, who also represents Paul Pogba and a host of other top players.
The Italian representative has stated that Lukaku is too good for Everton and will be playing in one of the continent’s top teams in the near future if he has anything to do with it.
“If we had met each other earlier, he wouldn’t have played for Everton,” Raiola is quoted as saying by The Guardian.
“Maybe somewhere else, maybe he would still be at Chelsea. I want to be clear: Romelu is a better striker than Diego Costa and could have done the same as the Spaniard did this season.
“But the Chelsea directors had decided to buy another star than giving confidence to one of their young boys.
“Juventus was interested in him last summer but I want to be clear: I don’t think one of the Italian teams can pay that amount of money for one player. It’s almost impossible.
“We have never said he would leave at the end of this season. We will see what happens in the summer, but the Everton directors don’t have to think Rom will play there for the rest of his career.
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“Later on, he’ll play for one of world’s best teams: PSG, Manchester City, Manchester United or Bayern Munich. Big names, but nothing is impossible as Rom has great potential.”
Lukaku lit up Goodison Park while on loan from Chelsea last season but has struggled to find his best form consistently since a £28 million move to Merseyside last summer.
Raiola’s words are sure to be a frustration for Roberto Martinez, who previously stated that Lukaku had not changed agents in order to fashion a move away from Everton.
Roberto Martinez hailed Wigan’s performance despite losing at Manchester City and is convinced the Latics will beat the drop.
A goal from Carlos Tevez seven minutes from time earned City all three points to leave Wigan in the Premier League relegation zone but Martinez says there are plenty of positives to take from the game.
Wigan created enough chances to win the game with Shaun Maloney, Arouna Kone and Franco di Santo all going close and Martinez admits they paid the price for not putting them away.
However the Spaniard says if they continue to play the way they did at the Etihad Stadium, they will get out of trouble.
“We didn’t take the chances, it is as simple as that,” Martinez revealed. “I thought we were magnificent from start to finish. We created four very good chances. I don’t think many teams come to the Etihad and create four very good chances in open play.
“Those chances need to finish in the back of the net and that’s why we lost the game. If we do that in every game, we will get a lot of points. I couldn’t be prouder of the performance.
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“We limited them to two shots on target, I don’t think many teams have done that. My players deserve huge credit. The performance is exactly what we need.”
According to reports in the Daily Mail, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is ready to sell winger Anthony Martial, who earns £70,000-a-week according to the Daily Mail, this summer.
What’s the word, then?
Well, the Daily Mail says that the Portuguese boss is willing to move a number of players on this summer as he looks to close the gap to Manchester City next season, with Martial among the individuals that could leave Old Trafford at the end of the season – along with Paul Pogba, Daley Blind and Matteo Darmian.
The France international has found first-team starts hard to come by following the arrival of Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal during the January transfer window, and looks to have fallen behind both the Chile international and Marcus Rashford in the pecking order on the left wing.
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How has Martial done in general this season?
The 22-year-old started the campaign well with one of his main highlights being when he scored one and assisted three more in the Red Devils’ 4-1 win against CSKA Moscow in the Champions League in September.
In total, the wide man has scored 11 goals and provided a further 10 assists in 41 appearanes in all competitions for United during the current campaign, but he has only played 96 minutes of Premier League football since the 1-0 defeat against Newcastle United at St James’ Park at the start of February.
Would Mourinho be right to sell him this summer?
It’s difficult to say.
The France international clearly has plenty of ability and often makes an impact when he is on the pitch, but if the Portuguese manager feels he isn’t doing enough on a consistent basis then there shouldn’t be too many arguments if he leaves Old Trafford.
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With Sanchez and Rashford available on the left he certainly has plenty of attacking options, but United fans may point to the former’s disappointing form following his January move from Arsenal as a reason to keep hold of Martial, who came under criticism from his own supporters following the 1-0 defeat against West Brom on Sunday.
What’s the verdict, then?
Well, with just over one year left on his contract Mourinho may well be tempted to sell Martial if he receives a big offer, but he should also consider that he moved Mo Salah and Kevin De Bruyne on previously.
Martial has the potential and time to replicate the performances of those two at this level, and it would be a mistake to sell him in that regard.
He’s been labelled a Premier League flop, but that has not stopped rumours circulating that Radamel Falcao will be on his way to Anfield at the end of this season.
For many, this is a bit of a left field rumour. A Manchester United player joining Liverpool is almost unheard of these days as there is definitely no love lost between the two sides.
Regardless of a deep routed rivalry, if Falcao were to join Liverpool, is there a danger of him being the Reds’ next Mario Balotelli?
It is no secret that Falcao has not lived up to the expectation this season. But let’s not forget this player regrettably missed the World Cup due to injury. The World Cup brought James Rodriguez to the forefront of football fans’ minds, and even secured him a move to Real Madrid.
Falcao’s injury has plagued him ever since. He has not been fully fit for large chunks of the season, but despite not being on form, he has still managed four assists and four goals for goals for Van Gaal’s men. He has been somewhat of a let down, but he does not get the minutes needed to make a real difference on the pitch.
But would Liverpool really sign a Manchester United player? Unlikely. The rivalry runs all too deep. Manchester United fans may not want him any longer, but do Liverpool want a player who isn’t scoring goals, and played at Old Trafford? It would be a bad move.
Liverpool are also linked with Burnley striker Danny Ings and QPR goal machine Charlie Austin. They should try to move for these players, as one or even both could be set for life in the Championship if their respective sides cannot win their battles for Premier League survival.
Falcao and his £43million price tag currently appears to be too much of a gamble, particularly if you see how Balotelli turned out, and he only cost Liverpool £16million.
Falcao needs another venture where he can thrive, and more importantly, play first team football. But Liverpool, and perhaps even the Premier League, certainly isn’t it.
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Park Ji-Sung is on the verge of retiring from professional football as a result of QPR’s battle against relegation from the Premier League, according to his father.
The South Korean midfielder joined the Super Hoops from Manchester United in a £2m deal last summer, and has endured a tough spell in London.
His stint at Loftus Road has been blighted with injuries, limiting him to just 22 appearances.
During his brief playing time he has been helping the club in their battle against the drop, but has been unable to drag them from the foot of the table.
His father, Park Jung-Song, says that the toils of this season have effected his son, and confessed the could consider quitting the sport:
“Nobody knows the future, but I think he has made his mind up to retire. He thinks he’s played enough,” he is quoted by The Metro.
“He’s never had times like this with PSV Eindhoven or Manchester United. My son has had difficult times at QPR this season; it was a new experience to him.
“Ji-Sung said it’s difficult to keep his feel for the game as his playing time is inconsistent, but he doesn’t have any hard feelings.”
The 32-year-old retired from international football in 2011, in a bid to prolong his club career.
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He is set to discuss his future with manager Harry Redknapp at the end of the season.