Aston Villa striker Darren Bent has admitted he is frustrated with Paul Lambert’s rotation system but is working hard for his place in the team.
Bent has scored just two goals in 10 appearances this season and at an open training session at Villa Park today he confirmed that he’s unhappy with the situation.
He told Sky Sports: “Obviously any player who values themselves wants to play week in week out and when you start playing rotation systems it is difficult to find a rhythm, especially when you’re a front man.
“But that’s the manager’s decision and we live by that. We have to keep working hard in training and show him that we want to play.”
Villa have suffered a poor start to the current season having won only one of their opening eight Premier League matches and find themselves just a point above the bottom three following their 1-0 defeat away to Fulham at the weekend.
But Bent is confident that Paul Lambert’s side can improve and begin climbing the table sooner rather than later.
“Sometimes you will run right and the ball will go left, but that is just one of those things. I’m sure that once we blend as a team and start creating chances I’ll start finishing them,” he added.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Aston Villa’s next top-flight game is at home to fellow early season strugglers Norwich City on Saturday before a difficult November sees them travel to Manchester City in between home ties against Manchester United and Arsenal.
According to the Express and Star, Wolves are set to make a fresh bid for Sporting Lisbon’s goalkeeper Rui Patricio.
What’s the story?
Wolves’ interest in Patricio looks set to be one of the ongoing transfer feuds of the summer, with many claims and counter-claims coming from the player’s agency, headed up by Jorge Mendes, and Sporting Lisbon.
It was first reported back in May that Wolves were preparing to make a £30million bid for the Portuguese ‘keeper, but this fee fell over the following weeks to a proposed deal of £15.75million, according to Mendes’ agency Gestifute (translated by Goal.com).
This is where things get tricky.
Patricio had a medical at Wolves but then the deal fell through after Sporting reportedly raised the asking price by £1.75million, but the club claims the agency are at fault for claiming £6million for handling the transfer.
Sporting Lisbon released a statement on Facebook asking for “no more lies or manipulations”, to which Gestifute offered a strong denial.
Patricio has since handed in his resignation to the club but everything remains up in the air.
However, the Express and Star have now reported that a fresh bid from Wolves could be on the horizon which would satisfy all parties and clear up the mess.
Is he worth the fuss?
With so many accusations being banded about, it is easy to forget that a top quality goalkeeper could be on the verge of joining Wolves.
Patricio has played for Sporting for his entire career, amassing 467 appearances in all competitions, along with 68 caps for Portugal, playing a major hand in his country’s Euro 2016 victory.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Although John Ruddy had a stellar campaign for Wolves last season, Patricio offers a wealth of experience and assurance between the sticks that could really benefit the club in the coming season.
At 30, Patricio has plenty of years left and could be a valuable addition to the first team.
[brid autoplay=”true” video=”252976″ player=”12034″ title=”Watch 21 things that will definitely happen at the World Cup”]
Sunday afternoon’s big game sees Liverpool host league leaders Manchester City in a top six clash to get the mouth watering.
Despite the fact that Pep Guardiola’s league leaders are no longer really rivals for any of the rest of the top six – due to being so far ahead they’re almost irrelevant to the battle raging beneath them – this is still a clash with some excitement attached.
This is a battle between the two top scoring teams in the Premier League, and a game which puts together the two most exciting attacks in the division, to boot. It is a game where you’d love attacks to be on top and defences to be found out. Indeed, the last fixture between these two produced five goals.
And yet, that’s where the extra excitement comes in: of those five goals, all scored by City, four came after the sending-off of Sadio Mane, a dismissal which may well have changed the game. Liverpool weren’t on top when their Senegalese attacker was shown red.
They were 1-0 down at the time, and City’s attack was, as we now know, on the form of its life. But there were signs that Liverpool’s own front line was going to cause problems for Guardiola’s defence, who looked like they might have had a soft underbelly if pushed a little more.
Manchester City’s Ederson Moraes (L), is fouled by Liverpool’s Sadio Mane resulting in a red card for Mane at the Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain, September 9, 2017. Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith/File Photo EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or “live” services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account repres
This game might be different, however. City’s defence is the best in the league, and so is their attack. They have a goal difference of +51, double that of Liverpool. And their partnership of John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi will likely be back in full swing.
That means if Liverpool are to become the first team in the Premier League to beat City this season, they’ll have to be able to take their chances on the break, and especially since Jurgen Klopp’s attack will be missing Philippe Coutinho.
Big performance
On the other hand, as good as Liverpool’s attack can be, the focus really has to be on the other end of the pitch. City are comfortably the best team in the division, if not in Europe as a whole, but if Klopp’s side can stop them from scoring – or perhaps just scoring more than once – they may be able to achieve a result.
The addition of Virgil van Dijk will surely help. And although there’s always a bedding-in period for a new signing, and indeed to create a partnership with his defensive partners. On top of that, there’s only so much one man can do to protect a defence which lacks an effective holding midfielder and even a top goalkeeper.
That said, as big a blow as losing a player like Coutinho will be, replacing him with a defender – to all intents and purposes – will help the balance of the team. There is still a lot of attacking talent in the squad, but now there’s more defensive solidity, too.
Likely formation
This has been a Premier League season of reacting to what others are doing.
Last year, when Antonio Conte led his Chelsea side to the title using a back-three formation which took the league by storm, that led to copycat attempts by plenty of other teams this season: pretty much every top six club has tried it at times this year, and when one team uses it, you’ll often see the opponents use the same system to attempt to match it up symmetrically.
This fixture, though, is between two of the most tactically rigid teams in the league when it comes to team structure – strangely, for the two top scorers who are unpredictable in attack.
Both sides will likely line up with 4-3-3 formations, both will rely on pacey and prolific attackers, and both will be hoping that their back fours can withstand the pressure.
Most likely threat
This one is obvious. Liverpool’s attack will worry City’s defence, and has already done so this season.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Losing Coutinho is obviously a blow to their potency for this fixture, but the reality is that against City, the pace of the other main three would have been more important, anyway. The Brazilian brings an ability to create chances and make things happen against deep defences, but against City, counter-attacking pace will be more important.
Mohamed Salah has been on fire over the last few months, and if Liverpool are to spring a surprise and actually beat the league leaders, they’ll have to rely on his goals once again.
Everton manager Roberto Martinez has come out to say his side are not scared to face Arsenal at the Emirates in this weekend’s FA Cup clash, Daily Star reports.
The Merseysiders have not beaten the Gunners away in over 18 years, but Martinez believes a perfect performance will send Arsene Wenger’s men out of the competition in a match that it might be worth placing a Bet with Betfair Promotion Code.
The Toffee’s last win over Arsenal was back in 1996, when Highbury was still their home ground.
They will have to beat the Gunners in their biggest clash of the season in their attempts to make it to the FA Cup semi-finals and end a 19-year trophy drought.
And the Everton boss is confident about the prospects of doing so.
“The worst thing in football – and probably life – is the unknown,” Martinez said.
“The fixture in December gave us all a clear indication of what’s needed if you want to be successful at the Emirates, and I think it’s reaching that level of perfection to which we aspire.
“In the past, when a team has been able to be successful at the Emirates, it’s because they’ve been very clear in what they’re doing and are perfect with it.”
The former Wigan boss is very aware of an Arsenal backlash after the Gunners lost 1-0 to Stoke that dashed their hopes of the Premier League title.
“Playing at home is a major factor for them and they’re going to try to take advantage of that and bounce back from the weekend.
“If you wanted to find a bad time to play them, now is probably the moment.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
“But if you want to be successful in any competition, you need to be able to adapt and find a way in the hardest moments.
Click below to watch West Brom vs Man United LIVE!
midfielder Darren Fletcher has admitted that he cannot wait to step out for Scotland again, and that he is fit to feature in both of their World Cup qualifiers over the next five days.
The Red Devils battler has returned to health and fitness after being diagnosed with a bowel condition that threatened his career.
After making a return to action for the Old Trafford outfit, Fletcher is now relishing the opportunity to represent his country once more.
“I feel ready to play both matches. I feel fit, I feel strong and I feel ready for the games. It’s great to be back,” he confessed to reporters, published in The Daily Mail.
“It’s been a while and I’m just desperate for the game to start. Hopefully I’m playing and I can do my part in getting a good result for Scotland.
“I always believed I would be back and fortunately I’m here today.
“It proves that I always had the belief that one day I would be back and helping the lads qualify for a major competition,” he continued.
In-form striker Steven Fletcher has also returned to Craig Levein’s squad to add quality, but the United man feels that a team effort will be needed for the side to beat Wales on Friday.
“If we beat Wales on Friday it won’t just be because me and Steven are named in the team.
“It will need a good team effort. If it can be a boost to the rest of the players that’s great. You look for any small margin you can.
“But knowing the players, they will be ready for this game irrespective of whether me and Steven are in the team.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
“We’ll be looking to win the match and whoever is playing will give their all and hopefully we can get a positive result for Scotland,” he concluded.
While relegation inevitably means bad news for West Brom, it’s great news for any of their former Premier League rivals looking to pick up players on the cheap this summer. Indeed, that’s the curious thing about the Baggies’ season; when you look at the actual complexion of the squad, barring dearths of quality in certain key departments, it’s laced with players who have proven records in the top flight, alongside a few underrated gems.
Versatile defender Craig Dawson goes some way to filling both categories. He’s made over 150 appearances in the Premier League, having earned his move to the Hawthorns in 2011 by impressing in the Football League with Rochdale, and has unquestionably been amongst the Baggies’ most consistent performers over the last few years. Yet, perhaps because West Brom have been far from a fashionable club during their final few terms in the Premier League, Dawson has rarely received the acknowledgement his form’s deserved – at least, not from those outside of the west Midlands club.
And in truth, that unfashionable style is partly what has made Dawson such an effective and competent defender, especially under Tony Pulis, by mastering the basics of the trade while playing out of position. Clearly a centre-half by nature, Pulis deployed Dawson at right-back and that incredible height and power across the backline became a defining feature of the Welshman’s Baggies side – one which helped push them to an impressive tenth-placed finish last term.
Following Pulis’ departure, Dawson was allowed to undertake his more natural role, alongside Ahmed Hegazi at the heart of defence, and the 28-year-old impressed there too – playing at centre-back during clean sheets against Manchester United, Tottenham and Newcastle, which gave Darren Moore’s side a glimmer of hope of sensationally avoiding the drop.
Indicative of how influential Dawson’s been this season, regardless of position, the Baggies’ win-rate has moved from a mere 9% to 25% when the 6 foot 2 defender’s made their starting XI – the only time he hasn’t being the twelve games he missed between October and December through injury. Perhaps even more tellingly, that was the period of the season when West Brom’s campaign really began to spiral out of control.
That’s not to suggest Dawson’s absence is the primary reason West Brom have failed to beat the drop, but it’s clear the defence struggled at times in his absence and it also took an unlikely source of goals out of the team. Scoring has actually been a key feature of Dawson’s career; he’s finished the last two seasons with four apiece in the Premier League, and netted a staggering 22 in 94 appearances during his time with Rochdale.
Looking around the top flight, West Ham are amongst the clubs most in need of a reliable centre-half. While Declan Rice has established himself as a promising option ahead of 2018/19 and Angelo Ogbonna has been decent when fully fit, Winston Reid is nursing a long-term injury and James Collins will leave the club when his contract expires this summer.
Amid such dire straits, David Moyes was forced to depend on a teenager in Rice and a full-back in Aaron Cresswell to complete the Hammers’ often shaky back three. In fact, throughout the entire campaign, Italy international Ogbonna was the only out-and-out centre-half to make more than 17 top flight appearances for the east Londoners. Moyes’ successor, Manuel Pellegrini, has already told the press he wants “four or five players”, and a new centre-back will surely be on his wishlist.
March reports from Mirror Football suggest Dawson could be available for around £10million this summer, which seems a far price to pay for an English centre-half with a proven record in the Premier League. But potential competition from Burnley, Aston Villa and Middlesbrough could end up elevating that figure somewhat.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
So, West Ham fans, would you back a swoop for Dawson? Let us know by voting below…
According to reports in The Sun, Manchester United could be set to follow up a move to sign Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez by agreeing an exciting new five-year contract worth £250,000-a-week for manager Jose Mourinho.
What’s the word, then?
Well, The Sun says that the Portuguese boss is close to extending his stay at Old Trafford with the club said to be hopeful of announcing the deal in the next 10 days.
Mourinho initially only signed a three-year contract when he replaced Louis van Gaal in 2016 and has never managed longer than that period at any of his previous clubs, but he could be set to achieve a first with the Red Devils.
The Sun says that both parties are happy with each other and the progress that they are making, with the former Chelsea chief determined to win the Premier League title and the hierarchy pleased that he has got the spirit back that had been lost under Van Gaal previously.
How has Mourinho done this season?
Having finished in sixth position in the Premier League last term the Red Devils are much improved this time around, and had it not been for Manchester City’s outstanding campaign they would be right in contention to win the title.
As things stand they are 12 points behind their arch-rivals and while Mourinho won’t have given up hope just yet, it would take a major slip from City to allow their local neighbours to snatch the trophy.
United have also qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League and progressed into the fourth round of the FA Cup, and the Old Trafford hierarchy will hope for at least one trophy by the end of the season after the Portuguese boss delivered two last term.
Will he stay for many years to come?
As we mentioned previously, Mourinho has never lasted more than three seasons at any club and much could depend on their success next term as to whether he will stay for the long-term.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
However, the fact that he is happy with United and the fact that he already seems to have the fans on his side is certainly a good sign, and bodes well for an exciting future.
Cardiff City owner Vincent Tan has given boss Malky Mackay the vote of confidence after the departure of the managers close partner Iain Moody, as reported by talkSPORT.
Mackay is reportedly livid with owner Tan for dismissing his right hand man Moody, who was the head of recruitment at City, and replaced him with friend of the family Alisher Apsalyamov.
Apsalyamov was on work experience at the Cardiff City stadium just two months ago and now has key role at the club, leaving Mackay to ponder his future.
Mackay will attend a board meeting tomorrow to discuss the weeks’ events but unsurprisingly Tan will not be around.
“I have every faith in Malky and his team to lead us through the challenges of the Premier League,” Tan said on the clubs official site.
“I have supported him in the past and will do so in the future for many years to come.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
“I would say to all Cardiff City fans and everyone connected to the club, let us look forward to the future and remain united in our support of the team.”
Steve Harper admits he feared his career at Newcastle United was over; such was the form of the younger Tim Krul last season.
The 37-year-old’s Premier League appearance in Newcastle’s 2-2 draw with Everton on Monday was his first in over a year. Harper conceded it had been tough and that his motivation was faltering.
Speaking ahead of the Toon Army’s Thursday night Europa League clash with Maritimo, Harper said: “I didn’t think a night like this would come again. It looked a long way away.
“It was probably a little bit my fault as well. When Tim started last season, I admit I got the hump and let standards slip. That’s probably the reason I wasn’t involved.
“But the first morning of pre-season the manager came to see me. He said, ‘have you still got it?’ I said, ‘yes’. He told me if I showed him I still wanted it, there would be an opportunity, so credit to him.”
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Dutch international Krul, is currently missing with an elbow injury suffered playing for his country, giving Harper a chance to prove his worth to Alan Pardew.
Aston Villa midfielder Jack Grealish helped his team reach the Championship play-off final following their goalless draw against Middlesbrough at Villa Park on Tuesday night in the second leg of their semi-final tie, and Newcastle United should look to snap the 22-year-old up this summer if Steve Bruce’s men don’t win promotion.
The England U21 international, who earns £20,000-a-week according to The Sun, was impressive on Teesside on Saturday, and another decent performance in the middle of the park for the Midlands outfit in midweek saw them advance to what should be a brilliant clash between themselves and Fulham at Wembley later this month.
Grealish has suffered his fair share of injury issues and controversial moments off the pitch over the course of the last few seasons, but he has stood up to the plate this season.
He began the latest fixture with Boro behind Lewis Grabban in a 4-1-4-1 formation, although as well as playing as a central and attacking midfielder, he has also featured as a left winger.
The 22-year-old showed his quality on the ball with a passing accuracy of 85% against Tony Pulis’ side, while he successfully completed five dribbles and was fouled on seven occasions, as per WhoScored.com.
That proved the threat he can bring to opposition teams, and he also had three shots and made one key pass during the 90 minutes.
He would certainly be a good addition for Newcastle, whose fans on Twitter are fed up of the links to a player with 34 goals this season, as they surely look to provide Ayoze Perez – despite his brilliant end to the campaign – with some much-needed competition in the No.10 role.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
He could also play out wide on the left if a permanent move for Chelsea’s Kenedy doesn’t come to fruition.