Aston Villa has turned their attentions to Roberto Martinez to fill the managerial shoes at Villa Park. It is believed that Steve McClaren was also in the running, but a fans backlash saw Randy Lerner and his team look elsewhere.
In the papers this morning there have been a mixed bag of stories that include Liam Brady predicts new Arsenal signings, Martin Jol looks to snap up Robbie Keane, while Sunderland launch a triple raid at Old Trafford.
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Villa turn their focus on Martínez – Guardian
Premier League at a loss despite record £2.2bn revenue – Daily Mail
Brady predicts new Arsenal signings – Guardian
£16million Jones was won over by Fergie factor – Mirror
Jol looks Keane on a reunion – Sun
Henderson and Jones lead English revolution – Daily Telegraph
Ashley Young and Villa scrap meeting over new contract – Mirror
Blow for Pearce as crocked Gibbs is forced to withdraw for Under 21s – Daily Mail
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Revealed! The three men Redknapp wants for Spurs – Mirror
Sunderland launch £12m swoop for United trio Brown, Gibson and O’Shea – Daily Mail
Sir Alex Ferguson claims his Manchester United successor must have experience in order to cope with major issues like the Wayne Rooney saga.
Ferguson is widely credited with playing a decisive role in persuading Rooney to change his mind and sign a new five-year contract last week.
The England striker appeared to be on his way out of Old Trafford after citing the club's lack of ambition.
The veteran Scot put the issue into the public domain during an impassioned press conference and Rooney subsequently signed a new deal following an apparent change of heart.
The 69-year-old went on to criticise "difficult" agents and has now followed that up by stressing the need for a club like United to have an experienced hand on the tiller.
"I don't think it's harder for managers to deal with – I've just got the benefit of having been at the club for such a long time," he explained.
"I have experienced a lot of things that do happen and there have been times in the past when I have gone down the same road.
"When you are the manager of our club, you have to have someone strong who can deal with all the issues and we have had to be strong over the years.
"That's why I don't think Manchester United could ever go down the road of having a young manager, to be honest with you.
"It's a job that needs a lot of experience and a lot of experience at the top end of the game.
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"That's something for the future, but at the moment we have the benefit of my 24 years at the club, so fortunately that's the way we can deal with it.
"At Manchester United, you can never be surprised. There is always something happening in the club and there are always issues to deal with.
"I don't think you can deny that we got a lot of publicity that we didn't enjoy last week, but you have to deal with these situations and I think we dealt with it very well."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has rejected Patrick Vieira’s recent claims that his side get the best of refereeing decisions.
The Manchester City football development executive claimed that match officials are scared to award decisions against the Premier League champions at Old Trafford, after a Michael Carrick foul on Danny Murphy in the Red Devils’ box went unpunished in Monday night’s game with Fulham.
However, Ferguson feels that luck evens out through a season.
“From the referee’s position, I can see why he didn’t give a penalty when Danny Murphy was brought down,” the Scot told reporters, reported by Sky Sports.
“The ball moved to the angle as Michael Carrick challenged him. From that position, it wasn’t clear.
“It was a good claim but City could have had a penalty against them at Stoke for a foul by Gareth Barry.
“Every club gets breaks here and there, you get good ones and bad ones.
“It evens itself out over the season, that will never change.
“We had a terrible decision earlier this season when Newcastle got a penalty and Tottenham could claim the same when Mario Balotelli wasn’t sent off and ended up scoring the winning goal.
“You could go through millions of things like that.
“Maybe smaller clubs feel that (decisions go against them when they play big clubs) but someone said some years ago that we get lots of penalties. It is only averaging out at three a year.
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“You can’t say that is a lot when you are attacking teams all the time.
“Most managers believe the breaks even themselves out,” he concluded.
The season is all but over and all that remains to be seen from Arsenal fans’ point of view is whether they automatically qualify for the group stages of the Champions League by finishing third or whether they are overtaken by FA Cup winners Manchester City and finish fourth thereby triggering a potentially difficult qualifying campaign for Europe’s elite football competition.
All of the football talk, in terms of the Gunners, will now focus on the plans for the summer with a majority of fans now calling for changes to be made. A 6% increase in ticket prices (blamed, almost humorously, on high transfer fees) has been a slap in the face to the Arsenal faithful and most will be praying for Arsene Wenger to change his philosophy and spend the money required to get the players that the squad so desperately needs.
But we know all of this. We’ve heard the same talk at the end of every season since 2006. Wenger never spends money, so what is different now? Is there hope for the fans that they might finally get what they’ve been screaming out for?
Let’s start with Wenger himself. His position has never been questioned… up until now. His excuses are starting to wear thin and his stubborn dedication to his football philosophy has not paid dividends and, to be honest, it doesn’t look like it ever will. Wenger has been proven wrong a few times this season and Arsenal fans are starting to wonder if the genius they once adored is turning into the man behind the curtain; pulling the wool over everyone’s eyes. Maybe Arsenal have been happy to ‘make do’ for the past few seasons.
I dug out this interesting quote from only a month ago and it shows how far Arsenal have fallen in the space of four weeks.
“We are second in the league. Is that a disaster? There are teams who invest 10 times more than us, and they are behind us. If we are disappointed at the end [of the season] then OK. Why do you say it’s a disaster when we are second in the league? Do the 18 clubs behind us have a fantastic disaster?” – Arsene Wenger, 9/4/11
I remember thinking at the time that Wenger being content with second showed a lack of grit and determination that I like to see in a football manager. Sure, he was being realistic but there seemed a subtext of defeatism lingering in those words. Wenger was trying to convince us that second place wasn’t a disaster, how is he going to do next week if he has to defend fourth place?
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I’m not one of the ‘sack Wenger brigade’. He IS a talented football manager and HAS kept Arsenal competing at the top for years when the club was in financial difficulty. The club owes a huge debt to him. But Arsenal aren’t in financial difficulty anymore, quite the opposite, they are one of the most financially stable sports teams in the world.
Wenger will cite players like Torres costing a fee of £50 million and use it as a vindication of his tight pursed approach. And this is the problem; Arsene Wenger seems to only see things in extremes. Fans don’t want you to spend in excess of £40 million on a player, Arsene, but they would like you to spend around £20 million on a top class centre back; a position that is in dire need of strengthening and surely worth the money.
To get down to it, the sad truth about football in the modern age is that it’s all about money. Maybe ironically though, this might be the very factor that causes Wenger to invest in his squad this summer.
Wenger has pleased the Arsenal board throughout the years because he has consistently got them into the Champions League without spending a lot of money. This makes good business sense. However, if the Gunners do finish fourth this year it will be a wakeup call to the board. Manchester United, Chelsea, and, especially, Manchester City will invest heavily in players this summer. And given their recent progression it is hard to imagine those teams not dominating the top three come the end of next season. That will leave only one Champions League spot left and if Kenny’s revolution at Anfield is backed with cash by the board, or Tottenham realise how much they miss the Champions League, invest in some new players and keep their stars, will Arsenal still be able to compete if they don’t adapt? It’s a tough question.
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Arsenal’s position in the top four has been challenged for the past few seasons with teams like Man City, Tottenham, Everton, Aston Villa and Liverpool threatening to force them out. I‘d never been worried about it, I always knew Arsenal; had the quality to persevere. Next season, without significant personnel changes? I’m not so sure.
The Champions League is big money and money that the board will simply not do without. It is this simple fact that might force Wenger’s hand in the summer. Next season will be the biggest challenge to Arsenal securing Champions League football since the mid 90’s and the cost of missing out on the competition in 12/13 will surely be greater than the price of a few decent players this summer. It’s just simple business sense.
Everton assistant manager Steve Round has every confidence that the Toffees will recover from a slow start to the season and end in a position towards the top end of the Premier League table.
Round's side have won just once in their opening seven league games, with a Merseyside derby at home to fellow strugglers Liverpool next on the agenda.
He told the Daily Post:"We are not happy with where we are and we began addressing that against Birmingham.
"The team are determined to continue that and the players still believe they can finish in the upper echelons of this division.
"The improved result and level of performance from Birmingham has to continue against Liverpool and if we can do that, then I have every confidence we can go on a great run and end up very high in the table.
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"I have so much belief in these players and when you have a manager like David Moyes, who drives the players every day and won't settle for less than the very best they can give, then you know success is on the way."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
After only one win in twenty games, Tranmere manager Les Parry was sacked on Sunday after a run which has seen the super white army win just one of their last eleven games. It came as a somewhat as a surprise to many who thought it was inevitable that Parry’s job was still safe with the prudent owners unwilling to spend added cash.
It now seems that Saturday’s 1-0 loss at Chesterfield was the final nail in the coffin and after the defeat to one of our relegation rivals Chairman Peter Johnson ended Les Parry’s tenure as manager.
Don’t get me wrong, Parry has been a fantastic servant to the club and his determination to succeed as a football manager is admirable. However, the job has gradually few tougher and tougher for Parry, and ultimately a run of poor form has ended in Parry being sacked.
Parry will be best known for his service as the club’s physiotherapist. He has been at the club for over 1000 games and surprisingly managed to keep Tranmere in the league two seasons ago with a victory on the last day against already relegated Stockport County.
At times, Parry’s ego hasn’t helped him at all. His stubbornness to change things and his inability to change a game has proved his downfall. I’m unsure whether he will get another manager’s job but I know for sure he has a very good CV. As a result “Dr” Les Parry will almost certainly be able to get a physiotherapy job either at a new football club or elsewhere. That is the least he deserves.
I expected Parry’s replacement to be someone associated with the club or a manager who demands a very low wage and Martin Allen’s name had been linked with the job. However the club announced last night that Ronnie Moore will take charge of the club on an interim basis until the end of the season.
Moore previously managed the club for the three years from 2006 but was dismissed after missing out on the League One playoffs at the end of the 2009 season. The decision to bring him back will be welcomed by the fans who still believe that Moore shouldn’t have been sacked in the first place. I am confident that he is the right man to ensure that Tranmere remain in League One come May.
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Aston Villa have experienced a forgettable season this Premiership campaign and the supporters won’t look back fondly on the 2010-11 season. Villa currently find themselves sitting in 13th place, a far cry from the previous three seasons where the club have achieved top six finishes. A month ago there was a very real danger of relegation for the Villians, however some key victories look to have ended any fears of the club going down. If there is one positive to come out of this season it is the capture of England International Darren Bent. Bent is one of the most gifted natural finishers in the country and his seven goals have proved his worth. Randy Lerner splashed out 24 million to bring Bent to the club at a time when the fans were on his back. After a poor start under Gerard Houiller, large sections of the Villa faithful were questioning Lerner’s decision to appoint the Frenchman and they were calling for Houiller’s sacking.
However, Randy Lerner’s second in command, non executive Director, Charles C Krulak, has revealed some honest home truths on how the board have to take a share of the blame for this season’s failure. An article in the Guardian has picked up on Krulak’s suggestions on a supporter message forum, where Krulak lays the blame at the feet of the board. While he doesn’t go as far as blaming Martin O’Neill’s departure for the clubs failure, it’s clear he feels that O’Neill’s departure should shoulder some of the blame. I tend to agree with Krulak as any club that loses a manager of O’Neill’s pedigree is going to suffer initially. O’Neill is blessed with great man management skills, and he brought a large amount of the current squad to the club. When a new manager comes in and has different philosophies and training methods it can affect the players. This was evident in the case of Richard Dunne who had a public bust up with Gerard Houiller.
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Villa’s form against their local rivals has been a major point of concern for the fans and Krulak takes this on board. “All of us are well aware of the disappointment of the fans and the heat that they take when we lose to our rivals, and lose in the manner we saw.” Villa have lost to all of their local rivals this season and to make things worse, not only did they crash out of the Carling Cup at the hands of Birmingham, but they also had to watch their arch rivals lift the trophy.
The first step to getting the supporters on side will be keeping hold of their popular winger Ashley Young. If Young is to leave in the summer there is sure to be outrage among the supporters who won’t see any positive signs in selling, arguably, their best player. I’m sure Randy Lerner will do all he can to keep hold of Aston Villa’s prized asset this summer and I think the Villa are in good hands under Lerner.
Lerner has shown he is willing to support his managers financially and he seems a very humble man who undoubtedly has the club’s best interests at heart. Lerner and Krulak are well aware that the club are in a predicament. They know that whilst they are willing to take the praise when things are going right, they need to accept the criticism when things are going wrong. This candid admission from the American owners may go some way to endearing them to the fans, but the only way for them to fully regain the admiration of the fans is for them to see progression next season.
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Just last month, the face of Liverpool chairman Martin Broughton was emblazoned on a banner held aloft from the Kop entitled, ‘Plague, Famine, War and Death- Four liars of the apocalypse’.
Ironically, the former British Airways chairman ultimately played a major part in saving Liverpool from this ‘apocalypse’ after fulfilling his mandate to find a buyer for the ailing club last week. In striking a £300m buyout deal with Red Sox owner John W.Henry, and his investment firm New England Sports Ventures, Broughton has given the club every chance to re-build its standing and reputation at the top of the English game.
By forcing Tom Hicks and George Gillett out of the club, Broughton has endeared himself to the Liverpool fans who have been desperate for a change of ownership. Jubilant fans sang, ‘We love you Martin, we do’ on the steps of London’s High Court on Wednesday, as the Americans frantic, final attempts to hang onto the club were nearly extinguished. The aforementioned banner has also now been retired too. You may argue that Broughton was simply doing his job; however you cannot deny that he has done it extremely well.
Initially accused by Reds supporters as being a stooge, or a puppet, for reviled owners Gillett and Hicks, Broughton found it difficult to win trust amongst the Anfield faithful. As a season ticket holder at Chelsea, fans were also worried that his Blue allegiance would compromise his position as the club’s chairman. Yet they needn’t have worried.
The 63-year-old was appointed in April after being recommended by Wall Street banker Michael Klein, a close acquaintance of the Americans. The appointment of Broughton as an independent Chairman was fundamental to the sale process, giving the search for a new owner credibility, with Hicks and Gillett’s reputation in tatters. If the duo thought they would still be able to influence the new man in the boardroom then they couldn’t have been more mistaken.
It was Broughton’s insistence to put a clause in his contract, allowing him to have the casting vote on any takeover which has been key. While another clause was also inserted to prevent Hicks and Gillett from blocking a sale. Both these passages in Broughton’s contract stood up in the High Court on Wednesday and were key components in Mr Justice Floyd’s emphatic ruling against the owners.
Since agreeing the club’s sale, Broughton has refused to back down despite intense and relentless pressure from Hicks and Gillett. He also responded to criticism over his lack of interaction with the club’s fans throughout the sale process in a candidly open and revealing interview with the BBC last week. He rightly believed that a running commentary on the sale would have only been detrimental to the club’s chances of securing a buyer. Broughton came across as intelligent and honest in that interview, something he has backed up in his actions over the last week.
Of course, it remains too early to judge if Broughton has made the right decision and secured the best deal in choosing NESV’s offer for the club. Yet there is no denying he pulled off a masterstroke in finally disposing of Hicks and Gillett with some shrewd business acumen. While on the surface, the choice of Henry appears to be ideal given his track record in upturning the fortunes of the Boston Red Sox.
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I personally feel that the club would do well to retain the services of Broughton with a new era in the club’s history around the corner. However other Kopites will want all connections with the Hicks and Gillett era to be completely removed from the club.
Which ever way you feel, Broughton has done his job well and delivered the new owners he promised. And for that we should thank him.
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As the January transfer window closed for business on Tuesday night it would be a total understatement to suggest that the Preston North End that left it was a completely different one to the team that entered it.
Not only have we appointed a new manager, who achieved massive success at Stevenage, but he has gone on to bring in seven new players during the window. With Chris Holroyd, Jamie McAllister, Andy Procter, Alex Marrow, Chris Robertson, Rhys Murphy and Graham Cummings all arriving at the club.
Overall nine players came in as Jake Jervis and Harry Bunn were brought in by the caretaker managers but they have both returned to their parent clubs. Not only were seven players signed but there were a handful of departures as well. Club captain Ian Ashbee was released from his contract just over a year after signing, Juhvel Tsoumou has been loaned out to Plymouth Argyle and Clarke Carlisle has had his loan deal cancelled and he has since gone on loan to Northampton.
Personally I think all three departures are very beneficial to the club and we have certainly left January in a stronger position than we entered it. On the field I believe we badly need these signings to be successful as Preston’s form was highly erratic with one win, two draws and 2 defeats in January. It is almost fair to say that any chance of the play offs have now disappeared.
Subsequently Westley would need to dramatically turn around the fortunes of the club if we were to be plying our trade in the Championship next season. It seems highly unlikely with Preston languishing in fourteenth place in the table and nine points off Stevenage in sixth who also have a game in hand.
With Ashbee out the door we now will also need a new full time captain. Coutts would have been the obvious choice to succeed him, but Westley has since stripped him of the captaincy, citing a poor attitude and a lack of professionalism. As he is suspended for the next two games, he has been granted leave from the club for a few games to get himself mentally in shape again. I think this is crucial to our hopes both this and next season as undoubtedly Coutts is one of our best players and we are a poorer team without him. However I completely agree with Westley’s actions and we have to remember that no man is bigger than Preston North End and that is how it should be.
The Graham Westley revolution is in full swing now and it will be tested by the visit of play-off contenders Brentford. They will be out for revenge after Preston won 3-1 at Griffin Park in September, back when we were on our seven game winning streak.
Any Preston fan would give a lot for a similar winning streak right now and it would certainly make Westley extremely popular at the club. It is very apparent now that it will take a long time before we are pointing in the right direction but I have every faith in Westley turning us into a successful Championship team again.
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Aston Villa assistant manager Gary McAllister has targeted three wins out of three to ensure his sides’s Premier League survival.McAllister will take charge of the side for the third time at home to Wigan on Saturday in the continuing absence of manager Gerard Houllier, who was recently in hospital with heart problems.
Villa have already crossed the magical 40 point barrier and are six points clears of the relegation zone, but MacAllister said they cannot afford to take any chances.
“Everybody is looking at the numbers at the bottom of the league and asking what the magic number is going to be to stay up,” he said.
“I do not know but we have got nine points to play for. That is our target and we have got to be looking to win all three games.”
“Going to The Emirates to play Arsenal is obviously going to be difficult and we have an in-form Liverpool side yet to come here so there are some good games left for us to be involved in.”
The club’s long-term managerial position is not set in stone, but McAllister said he was just focusing on the immediate future.
“I’ve got a job to do and my concern certainly in the games before Gerard had a little bit of a problem was that we had enough points to pull away from the bottom,” MacAllister said.
“Now it is just purely getting Villa as high up the table as we can with the nine points left.”
“The main focus is purely the club and getting it into a better position than it’s in at the moment.”
“The key thing is that everything here is in place for the club to move forward. Everything that they do is second to none and there’s a touch of class about the place.”
Midfielder Stephen Ireland has returned from a loan spell at Newcastle, but is missing with a thigh strain and is McAllister’s only injury problem.