Walter Mazzarri has declared Napoli’s intention to win the Coppa Italia following Tuesday’s victory over Bologna.Napoli trumped Bologna 2-1 at the Stadio Sao Paolo to set up a quarter-final meeting with resurgent Inter Milan.
Algeria international Hassan Yebda and Argentina forward Ezequiel Lavezzi combined to put Napoli two goals ahead in the first half, before Inter youth product Riccardo Meggiorini pulled one back for Bologna from the penalty spot 10 minutes after the break.
Speaking after the match, Mazzarri said he was pleased by the energy and enthusiasm shown by his side but disappointed by Emilson Cribari’s foul on Meggiorini that gifted Bologna their only goal.
“We wanted to do well this evening,” Mazzarri told RAI Sport.
“We intend to do well in this competition – and all the others.”
“I decided to play a team that was more rested, knowing how much energy my players had. And our start to the match reflected this.”
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“We pressed a lot and constructed many chances until we scored our two goals. Once we had the lead, we relaxed a little, and this was my only gripe from the match.”
Mazzarri’s men host Leonardo’s Inter next Tuesday, with the winner assured of a trip to the semi-finals.
With just one week to go until the start of Euro 2012, the England boys have been relaxing ahead of their opening encounter with France.
Roy Hodgson and his players have been on the golf course, playing in the England Vauxhall Golf Day at The Grove Hotel in Hertford.
Here is Chelsea defender Gary Cahill with Liverpool and England captain Steven Gerrard, as the pair share a joke.
Can you come up with a funny caption for this picture?
[divider]
Leave your suggestions in the comments section below…
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Stuttgart have confirmed the signing of Francisco Rodriguez for an undisclosed fee from PSV, with the centre-back penning a three-year deal.The Mexico international, also known as Maza, has been added to cover an area where Stuttgart have been looking to strengthen.
“In Maza, we have signed an experienced central defender,” sporting director Fredi Bobic told the club’s official website.
“Following the loss of Matthieu Delpierre through injury, we wanted to have a further option in that position. Maza is familiar with European football and won’t need a long period of integration before he can help our team.”
The 29-year-old, who signed for Dutch club PSV in 2008 and spent three successful seasons there, spoke of the next step in his career.
“Stuttgart are a huge club which is highly renowned in Germany and across Europe. I have spoken with Fredi Bobic as well as [head coach] Bruno Labbadia. Their ideas and the concept behind them have impressed me,” Rodriguez said.
“For me personally, the move from Eindhoven to VfB is a new sporting challenge. I want to get to know the players and the style of football in the Bundesliga as quickly as possible in order to be able to help the team achieve their goals.”
We’re nearly half way through the season and Arsenal find themselves top of the Premier League and in the semi final of the Carling Cup, where the second highest placed team remaining is 14th in the top division. For a side that haven’t won a major trophy since their FA Cup triumph in 2005, things are shaping up well for at least some silverware to make it way into the Emirates trophy room. But with all of Arsenal’s undoubted talent, one question still remains; have they rediscovered the killer instinct to finish the job?
The Carling Cup may not be top on the list of priorities for many teams, but it is still a major trophy up for grabs, and with all due respect to the clubs left in the competition, Arsenal must be favourites, especially having drawn Championship side Ipswich in the semi finals. The Carling Cup, being the first piece of silverware (apart from the Community Shield) available in the season, also represents an excellent springboard for the rest of the Premier League season. To win the competition from such a powerful position, with all other major sides having been dumped out of the Carling Cup, will provide a timely confidence boost at a time when the race for the title will really be hotting up.
Results in the league also provide hope that this Arsenal team are made of sterner stuff than their predecessors of the past 5 seasons. After an energy-sapping and soul-destroying defeat against local rivals Tottenham, Arsenal have responded well with an impressive victory over Aston Villa, and a hard fought victory over Fulham, both of which included late goals to seal victory.
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The real test for Arsenal will come in the second half of the season, as that is when their title aspirations have so often faltered in recent years, most notably in the 2007-08 season when they were top of the pile as late on as the 28th game of the season. Even as recently as last season, Arsenal were in 1st as late on as the 31st game before eventually finishing 3rd, so the true test will come in the early part of next year, and with the possibility of a confidence boosting piece of silverware coming their way in February, that could well provide the platform for a title push come May.
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It may not have been the highest quality, but it was certainly one of the most entertaining seasons in living memory, with the most amazing climax. In the end, Manchester City claimed their first top-level title in 44 years, beating Manchester United on goal difference, whilst Arsenal claimed third place, neighbours Spurs finishing in fourth, pipping a gallant Newcastle to a Top 4 Spot. No Premier League title has ever been decided on goal difference before, and it is only the 6th time the top division has been decided this way.
At the other end of the table, Wolves went down with a whimper after the sacking of Mick McCarthy, and were eventually joined by Steve Kean’s Blackburn Rovers and Bolton Wanderers, who ended an 11 year run in the top division. In between, and the three promoted teams stayed up, only the second time this has ever happened.
Here’s a look at the hi and lowlights of the season:
Pre-Season Predictions:
No review can be complete without crying tears of laughter at how the “experts” saw the season panning out. Predictions are a dangerous game, and we have all made some terrible ones, but some of what follows was drivel right from the start.
BBC: Only six teams featured in the predictions, and their survey found that Manchester United were the overwhelming favourites to retain their title, with only three votes going to Manchester City and one to Liverpool.
Mark Lawrenson: 1 Man Utd 2 Man City 3 Chelsea 4 Liverpool.
“Sir Alex Ferguson always gets the pre-season training right to gear United up for their traditional strong finish at the end of season. They have got a squad to cope with all the cup competitions, and the Champions League, and real competition for players and a winning mentality too. They have got the best team, the best squad and the best manager. Basically, they have got the lot.”
Mark Bright: 1 Liverpool 2 Man Utd 3 Man City 4 Arsenal.
“Liverpool finished 22 points behind United last season but only Sir Alex Ferguson amassed more points than Kenny Dalglish since the ‘king’ took over from Roy Hodgson. Why will they win it? The Reds have four players who could grace any team in the Premier League: Pepe Reina, Steven Gerrard, Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll, then add to the mix promising youngsters like John Flanagan, new faces like Charlie Adam and Stewart Downing plus team spirit, desire and 21 years of hurt.”
Nigel Adderley: 1 Man Utd 2 Liverpool 3 Chelsea 4 Arsenal.
“I can’t see beyond United winning the title again. There will be no World Cup hangover for players like Wayne Rooney this season which should help their youngsters integrate into the team. Liverpool have so much attacking flair now so Steven Gerrard should benefit from not being overburdened. Chelsea need Fernando Torres to start scoring quickly and also develop an understanding with whoever plays alongside him. Arsenal should scrape into the top four providing the Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri money is spent on the right areas of the team. Despite the millions lavished on their squad, I think City may miss out on the top four – rather like Tottenham last season – a decent run in the Champions League could have a negative impact on their domestic results.”
Oliver Holt (Daily Mirror) – “Charlie Adam could be the buy of the season.” (a view backed up by Phil Thompson).
Paul Merson
Champions: Man Utd
Second: Chelsea
Third: Man City (but lower if Tevez goes)
Bottom three: QPR, Swansea, Norwich
Top scorer: Fernando Torres
Best buy: Charles N’Zogbia
Charlie Nicholas
Top scorer: Javier Hernandez
Best buy: David de Gea
Worst buy: Sergio Aguero isn’t value for money
[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’left’]
The Season Itself…..
Early Season Madness:
Manchester United 8 Arsenal 2, Tottenham Hotspur 1 Manchester City 5, Manchester United 1 Manchester City 6. Were defenders taking the season off? Well no, nothing had changed really, It was a momentary lapse in the space-time continuum, and soon we returned to normal. Well except for Arsenal 5 Tottenham 2, Manchester United 4 Everton 4, Chelsea 3 Arsenal 5, or…..
Racism & Off The Field Controversy
This was the season when much of the talking points revolved around events away from the kicking of a football. Whilst Carlos Tevez was busy reducing his golf handicap, this was also the year of racism scandals. The biggest domestically came at the end of the year as Luis Suarez was banned for eight games for racist comments made towards Patrice Evra. The row rumbled on as Liverpool refused to accept their lot, but with John Terry due in court after the Euros, the topic is going to remain in the news. If only everyone had taken Sepp Blatter’s advice and shaken hands at the end of the match – problem solved. Needless to say, Anton Ferdinand and Patrice Evra were portrayed as the guilty parties in all of this by some of the cretins that reside in our green and pleasant land, and death threats inevitably followed.
Tragedy
The end of 2011 also plunged the world of football into deep shock, as Gary Speed took his own life. It was a story that people struggled to comprehend, a man who seemingly had it all, but it turned out didn’t. A reminder, along with the tragic death of Gary Ablett in the New Year, that it is only a game. It will never be more important than life or death. Never had a disputed penalty or a last minute equalizer seemed less important. Football had lost one of the great servants of the Premier League era. At least for Patrice Muamba, there was a happier ending, but the occurrences of natural athletes suffering with heart problems seems to be more problematic than ever before. Italy has some of the most stringent tests in this area. Let’s hope the English game follows suit as soon as possible.
Returning Heroes
Paul Scholes and Thierry Henry decided they couldn’t stay away, and did their bit in pushing on their respective teams. Even Robbie Keane showed his face again for a short while. What it showed more than anything was that two of the big teams were short on depth of quality to resort to such moves, and whilst talk of Scholes returning to the England team is ludicrous, it also hints at the paucity of talent available to England manager Roy Hodgson.
Tottenham Hotspur and the FA’s Role In Their Decline
On the day Harry Redknapp left court a free man, Fabio Capello and the FA called it a day. Fabio got the TV, the house and a few million pounds, but for Redknapp, presumed by the world’s media to be Capello’s successor, it all went downhill thereafter. Many blamed it on the speculation about the England job distracting Spurs, but it’s a weak argument. They thrashed Newcastle before their form fell away, the more likely reason being Redknapp’s reliance on key players, who understandably became jaded. In the end, they were relying on a Chelsea Champions League defeat to gain access to next year’s competition.
Promotion and Consolidation
Quite an achievement, as all three promoted sides stayed up, and stayed up playing good football. There was no compromise in style, though QPR had the resources to expect a stay in the top league. Either way, they were, and will be, worthy additions to the premier league. Brendan Rogers has turned down an approach from Liverpool, but Grant Holt’s transfer request (declined) shows that with success comes a whole new set of problems and challenges.
Another Varied Season For Arsenal
Same old, same old. Some brilliant play, some suspect defending, low points and calls for the manager’s head before a resurgence which ultimately left them where they began. This could go on forever, or else at some point Wenger has to compromise on his principles and bring in some established big names, and go for the title. If they don’t, we will all be subjected to playground bully Piers Morgan’s expert opinions for the next 20 years. And no one deserves that.
Chelsea’s Season Of Two Halves
Another big name manager under pressure, who eventually fell on his sword. With hindsight, Villas Boas and his methods seemed doomed from the start, and by the time he left, Chelsea’s season resembled a train-wreck. It just goes to show the fine lines in football, as under Roberto Di Matteo, the club have picked up the FA Cup, and tonight will aim to become the first London side to win the Champions League. If they don’t, it’s the Europa League for them next season. No pressure then.
Never Go Back
Liverpool might go back to Rafa Benitez this summer, but going back to King Kenny ultimately didn’t work out. Were they close to usccess or a million miles away? Well Dalglish brought a trophy back to the club, and almost a second, but the league form was far from acceptable, his big money purchases utterly underwhelming, and they finished the season below neighbours Everton. It was a bridge too far for Liverpool’s American owners.
He Came From Italy, To Manage Man City
Hard to imagine, but only a month ago, Mancini’s job was on the line. Obituaries had been written on him and City’s season. Now, he has delivered the first title to the blue half of Manchester in 44 years. A week is a long time in football, and judging by the QPR match, so is 15 seconds.
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Awards:
Manager of The Year
How do you choose the best manager? Many think the winner should be the manager of the Champions. Fair enough. All three promoted teams stayed up, so there are merits to choosing Brendan Rogers or Paul Lambert, but for me Alan Pardew is a worthy winner – fighting for Champions League football until the last day of the season, they were a team I expected to struggle for survival after losing key players in the summer.
Player of The Year
Robin Van Persie would be a perfectly acceptable winner, but in the end he was probably pipped by the inspirational Vincent Kompany, who led his team to the title by example, scoring the crucial winner in the Manchester Derby on April 30th.
Biggest Flop
Stewart Downing – it’s quite some achievement to have no goals or assists over a whole league campaign (when regularly picked). This led to a million tweets about the sacking of Kenny Dalglish being his first assist of the season. Still, I have vague memories of him scoring against Oldham, as did Roy Hodgson clearly, who amazingly thinks he’s good enough for the England squad.
André Villas-Boas wasn’t far behind, but he’ll be back, and stronger for it.
Best Goal
Papiss Cissé’s second v Chelsea. An astonishing feat to beat a goalkeeper of Petr Cech’s quality from that angle, that distance and with a half-volley with the outside of the right foot, though the little voice in my head still insists he just swung his foot and got lucky.
Runner up prizes for Hatem Ben Arfa for Newcastle in a 2-0 win v Bolton in April, and Peter Crouch’s volley against Manchester City.
Best Match
Manchester City 3-2 QPR. What more could you ask for? Great goals, defensive howlers, red card madness, the risk of relegation, then being saved from relegation, the lead changing hands three times, an injury-time comeback and a title won with the last kick of the season. Not bad, when all said and done. Other contenders can be found in the high-scoring madness mentioned earlier.
And In The End…
And on the 7thday, god created a Manchester City title – a true miracle. Steve Kean is still in a job, but many more fell at the hurdles. A crazy season full of talking points delivered right to the end. It wasn’t always pretty, it wasn’t always pleasant, but it was never boring. Long may it continue…..
Fulham have set up a tie against Northern Irish side Crusaders in the Europa League qualifiers after progressing past Faroe Island part-timers NSI Runavik on Thursday night. The London club here held 0-0 in the away leg of the tie, but move to the next round after winning the first leg 3-0 at Craven Cottage.
Whilst most clubs are just getting back to pre-season training this week, Martin Jol’s side have had to start early in the pursuit of European football next season after qualifying through The Fair Play league.
The Cottagers sent a strong team to the Faroe Islands, however Aaron Hughes and Chris Baird did not travel and were replaced by Stephen Kelly and Philippe Senderos. Jonathan Greening deputised for Simon Davies on the left of midfield, whilst Steve Sidwell replaced Danny Murphy.
The second leg against the Faroese minnows was not one for the purist, but Damien Duff came the closest to breaking the deadlock by hitting the bar after five minutes. Strikers Bobby Zamora and Andy Johnson had chances to give the English side victory, but were also both denied by home goalkeeper Andras Gango.
Fulham will now travel to Belfast in the first leg of the second round of qualifying next Thursday; Crusaders finished second in their domestic league last season.
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‘Tasty’ is the only way to describe the Premiership fixtures we can look forward to this weekend. Aston Villa’s new signing Robert Pires will face his former club Arsenal at Villa Park on Saturday, when Manchester United and City will both be looking to strengthen their title credentials at home to Blackburn and away to Stoke respectively. Fantasy football players would be well advised to fill their team with players from both sides of Manchester, especially Wayne Rooney! Sunday sees Chelsea attempt to end their poor run of form at Newcastle, while entertainment should be on the cards as Tottenham host Liverpool. Throw in a East Anglia derby from the Championship as Ipswich travel to Norwich and your weekend of football is complete! But who will come out on top? You can see this week’s Premiership predictions in full here.
Patrick Barclay:
[youtube t5TlpS9Wcx4]
Andy Dunn:
[youtube STdulLhqo1o]
Steve Bates:
[youtube aJ1mJ7CN09o]
Do you agree with the Premier League predictions made this week?
Football Writers’ Association Predictions – Week 16
Overall standings
1. Steve Bates – 69
2. Andy Dunn – 69
3. Martin Lipton – 68
4. Shaun Custis – 67
5. Des Kelly – 67
6. Danny Fullbrook – 64
7. Glenn Moore – 61
8. Patrick Barclay – 57
–
November standings:
1. Andy Dunn – 15 (6)
2. Shaun Custis – 13 (4)
3. Steve Bates – 12 (5)
4. Martin Lipton – 12 (3)
5. Patrick Barclay – 10 (6)
6. Danny Fullbrook – 10 (1)
7. Des Kelly – 9 (4)
8. Glenn Moore – 9 (4)
–
Patrick Barclay (The Times)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Blackpool
D
Everton
V
West Brom
H
Fulham
V
Birmingham
D
Man United
V
Blackburn
H
Stoke
V
Man City
A
West Ham
V
Wigan
A
Wolves
V
Sunderland
D
Newcastle
V
Chelsea
A
Tottenham
V
Liverpool
D
Norwich
V
Ipswich
D
Everton v West Brom: Baggies’ bad run will end – but not at Goodison.
Des Kelly (Daily Mail)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Blackpool
H
Everton
V
West Brom
H
Fulham
V
Birmingham
H
Man United
V
Blackburn
H
Stoke
V
Man City
D
West Ham
V
Wigan
A
Wolves
V
Sunderland
H
Newcastle
V
Chelsea
A
Tottenham
V
Liverpool
H
Norwich
V
Ipswich
A
West Ham v Wigan: The game that West Ham must win, if their stricken manager is to survive. But I fully expect Avram Grant to be out the door after a Wigan triumph in this relegation six pointer.
Shaun Custis (The Sun)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Blackpool
H
Everton
V
West Brom
D
Fulham
V
Birmingham
H
Man United
V
Blackburn
H
Stoke
V
Man City
A
West Ham
V
Wigan
H
Wolves
V
Sunderland
H
Newcastle
V
Chelsea
A
Tottenham
V
Liverpool
D
Norwich
V
Ipswich
H
Newcastle v Chelsea: Both teams are in the doldrums at the moment but Chelsea surely cannot suffer three Premier League defeats in a row.
Head to the next page for more football predictions…
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Andy Dunn (News of the World)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Blackpool
H
Everton
V
West Brom
H
Fulham
V
Birmingham
D
Man United
V
Blackburn
H
Stoke
V
Man City
A
West Ham
V
Wigan
H
Wolves
V
Sunderland
D
Newcastle
V
Chelsea
H
Tottenham
V
Liverpool
D
Norwich
V
Ipswich
D
Tottenham v Liverpool: Spurs are becoming notoriously unpredictable on the post-Champions League weekends. Liverpool – even without Steven Gerrard – should have enough to leave with a point.
Martin Lipton (The Mirror)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Blackpool
H
Everton
V
West Brom
H
Fulham
V
Birmingham
D
Man United
V
Blackburn
H
Stoke
V
Man City
D
West Ham
V
Wigan
D
Wolves
V
Sunderland
H
Newcastle
V
Chelsea
A
Tottenham
V
Liverpool
D
Norwich
V
Ipswich
H
Fulham v Birmingham: Mark Hughes’ side need points quickly but Birmingham are resourceful and solid and will be good enough to get at least a draw at the Cottage
Steve Bates (The People)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Blackpool
H
Everton
V
West Brom
H
Fulham
V
Birmingham
H
Man United
V
Blackburn
H
Stoke
V
Man City
A
West Ham
V
Wigan
H
Wolves
V
Sunderland
A
Newcastle
V
Chelsea
A
Tottenham
V
Liverpool
H
Norwich
V
Ipswich
H
Man United v Blackburn: United stretched their unbeaten run to 27 games after last weekend’s victory over Wigan and although Blackburn have poicked up good points recently with Wayne Rooney back in harness it’s got to be a home win..
Danny Fulbrook (Daily Star)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Blackpool
H
Everton
V
West Brom
H
Fulham
V
Birmingham
H
Man United
V
Blackburn
H
Stoke
V
Man City
A
West Ham
V
Wigan
D
Wolves
V
Sunderland
D
Newcastle
V
Chelsea
A
Tottenham
V
Liverpool
H
Norwich
V
Ipswich
D
Bolton v Blackpool: Whatever game Blackpool are involved with is exciting, but for me Bolton are too strong at home
Glenn Moore (The Independent)
Home Team
Away Team
Bolton
V
Blackpool
H
Everton
V
West Brom
H
Fulham
V
Birmingham
D
Man United
V
Blackburn
H
Stoke
V
Man City
D
West Ham
V
Wigan
H
Wolves
V
Sunderland
D
Newcastle
V
Chelsea
A
Tottenham
V
Liverpool
D
Norwich
V
Ipswich
H
Stoke v Man City: City will be confident after last week’s unexpectedly comprehensive victory at Fulham but Stoke are a difficult side to combat at the Britannia
Dirk Kuyt’s agent has admitted that the Dutch striker may well leave Liverpool this summer, with a switch to Roma a possibility.
The Netherlands international has been a bit-part figure this season at Anfield, and reports in the British press yesterday indicated that he could be on his way out of the Merseyside club when the transfer window reopens.
With speculation continuing, Rob Jansen confessed that Kuyt was keeping his options open.
“Kuyt is considering his future,” Jansen told pagineromaniste.com, translated to English by Sky Sports.
“He still has a contract with Liverpool which expires in 2014.
“AS Roma could be an option for Dirk. They are a prestigious club that is fighting for important objectives. With (Roma’s sporting director, Walter) Sabatini there is an excellent relationship.
“I can say that Roma is part of the list of clubs that Kuyt would take seriously into account,” the representative concluded.
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Schalke sporting director Horst Heldt insists that the club have still not accepted Bayern Munich’s bid for goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.The 25-year-old shot-stopper caught the eye as Schalke reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League, eventually losing out to English Premier League heavyweights Manchester United.
The Gelsenkirchen outfit also won the German Cup, but only managed a 14th-placed finish in the Bundesliga.
The form of Germany number one Neuer prompted interest from Schalke’s Bundesliga rivals Bayern, who are rumoured to lead the chase for his services.
But it appears Neuer’s move to Bavaria is still some way off being completed.
“There is nothing new. We had a meeting scheduled today in which we presented the offer Bayern Munich made for Neuer. We have talked about that but we haven’t made any decisions yet,” Heldt said on Tuesday.
“First of all, Manuel said in his press conference – in which I sat beside him – that he has a contract with us until 2012. It is my belief that one should honour such words. He never said that he wanted to leave the club right now, even while admitting that he has thought about it, and despite the fact that Bayern wants him.”
A Tottenham visit to the red side of Manchester wouldn’t be the same without another referee balls up and tonight proved no different as a shocking call by Clattenburg preventing us from going on to snatch a potential late equaliser. The referee has form here, after all he is the one that failed to see that Pedro Mendes shot was four yards over the line.
It was incredibly frustrating and a real blip on what was a highly entertaining game that was played at a frenetic pace throughout. There seemed no rhyme and reason behind the decision and we all wait for his actual verdict behind the giving of the goal.
Taking the result out of the equation, I for one was extremely impressed with the performance of the team. I feel Harry made a grave mistake in starting with Keane, as I felt that Pavlyuchenko would have proved the better option, but there were times when we were absolutely dominating the proceedings in terms of possession. Unfortunately the lack of a top quality striker is really hampering us in these big games and Levy needs to deliver Redknapp a top class forward in January.
So how do Tottenham fans feel about the performance today and who do you think deserved the man of the match award today?
[poll ]
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