Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas is confident his ageing squad can win the league title, but he is keen to sign younger players.The Portuguese manager, 33, is aiming to better their second-place finish in the English Premier League last season after taking the reins following the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti.
Villas-Boas said he was confident his experienced contingent, including captain John Terry (30) and Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba (both 33), could take the London club to their fifth league title.
“The market that we have moved in at the moment, and the players we have shown interest in, they are also of a young age so they are also looking into the future – the future of this club,” Villas-Boas said on Friday.
“You might see similar moves in the future from us because the squad is old – it’s one of the oldest squads in the Premiership.”
“But we respect them and we are happy we have enough quality – we have to be able to challenge for the title. But we are also looking into the future and the options we are looking at in the market at the moment are also looking into the future.”
The Stamford Bridge outfit edged Manchester City to second spot on goal difference last campaign, finishing nine points adrift of champions United.
Villas-Boas said he expected the big six – Chelsea, United, City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham – to contend for the title.
“Manchester United are the title holders and will be a reference for everybody, but you can see the amount of activity that Manchester City have had in the market, which shows pretty clearly that they have a title objective as well,” he said.
“Liverpool did more or less the same (as City). Tottenham want to get back to the first four of the Premiership so they’ll be challenging as well and Arsenal is always a threat.”
Chelsea complete their tour of Asia against Aston Villa in the final of the Asia Trophy on Saturday.
They face Scottish champions Rangers on August 6 before beginning their Premier League campaign against Stoke City eight days later.
Wolves chairman Steve Morgan has admitted that Alan Curbishley has the calibre to take over as manager of the club, but that there are other people in the frame also.
The Molineux outfit parted company with Mick McCarthy on Monday, with a 5-1 home defeat to West Brom at the weekend the last straw.
With Wolves looking to avoid Premier League relegation, Morgan has admitted that Curbishley in on the side’s shortlist of potential new bosses.
“He’s got a great track record,” Morgan told Sky Sports.
“He’s been there and done that before. He’s exactly the calibre of person we’d be looking for. There are a number of other candidates as well. I don’t really want to be drawn into a conversation about who we’d be talking to just yet.
“Clearly we’d be interested in someone of his calibre.
“We’ll have to see who’s available and the right fit for the club, somebody’s personality who suits Wolverhampton Wanderers.
“It’s very, very early to say yet, but we won’t be hanging around. We need to take some action in the coming days.
“This has all happened very, very fast. We have spoken about potential candidates, but we’ve not spoken to anybody.
“We wouldn’t speak to anyone while Mick was in place and quite rightly so.
“Now that Mick is no longer with the club we will be having a number of conversations with a number of people in the coming days,” he admitted.
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Wolves are currently in 18th place in the table with 13 games remaining.
Chelsea have boasted some great British talent since they were founded in 1905 even though they are not always recognised for it, especially during the 1990s when the club had many foreign players treading the turf at Stamford Bridge.
In this article I will highlight who I think is Chelsea’s greatest British XI of all time and I have decided to opt for a 4-3-3 formation:
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Goalkeeper: Peter Bonetti
Bonetti, nicknamed ‘The Cat’ because of his quick reflexes, agility and grace is Chelsea’s second highest appearance maker of all time playing 729 times for the club. The former England goalkeeper will be best remembered by Chelsea fans for his part in the FA Cup run in 1970 which saw the Blues win England’s most prestigious domestic cup for the first time against Leeds United. He also played between the sticks when the Stamford Bridge club beat Real Madrid, Europe’s most decorated club, in the 1971 European Cup Winners’ Cup after a replay at the Karaiskakis Stadium, Athens.
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Left Back: Eddie McCreadie
The Scot became a crucial part of the Chelsea defence for over a decade at the club and was blessed with great timing and pace. One of his most memorable moments would have been his goal in the 1965 League Cup final when he dribbled 80 yards and finished by slotting the ball past Leicester City’s Gordon Banks, who was probably the best goalkeeper in the world at the time. His goal proved vital as it proved to be the winner after the two legs were played out. McCreadie was also part of the 1970 FA Cup winning side and later managed Chelsea after his retirement.
Centre Back: John Terry
The former England skipper currently wears the armband for the Blues and his their most successful captain ever after lifting three Premier League titles, three FA Cups as captain (four in total), twice winner of the league cup and has also won the FA Community Shield on two occasions. Affectionately known as ‘JT’ he first moved to Stamford Bridge at the age of 14 and is that last major talent that has come through the Blues’ ranks to make it in the first XI. Terry represents the final bastion of the old English centre-half and often fearlessly puts his head where most wouldn’t dare, but that’s his game and the reason why there is a banner draped over a hoarding at the Matthew Harding stand which reads ‘JT. Captain. Leader. Legend.’
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Centre Back: Ron ‘Chopper’ Harris
Chelsea’s record appearance maker with 795 games certainly lived up to his nickname during his career at the club in the 1960s and 1970s. Chopper was one of the toughest defenders of his day and as Blues’ skipper became the youngest captain at 22-years-old to lead a side out into an FA Cup final (1967), a competition he eventually won just three years later. He would never get away with his unforgiving physical style today, but his hard challenge on Eddie Gray eight minutes into the FA Cup final in 1970 left the Leeds man as a passenger for the rest of the game, which proved vital as he was one of their biggest threats.
Right Back: Steve Clarke
Most of Chelsea’s younger fans would mostly recognise Steve Clarke for his work as Jose Mourinho’s and Avram Grant’s assistant manager, but to most he will always go down as one of the best right-backs the club have had and was voted as the best Chelsea player to occupy that position in the club’s centernary XI. Clarke made 421 appearances in a Chelsea shirt and had won a few honours during his time at the club including the Full Members Cup (1990), FA Cup (1997), League cup (1998), with his final performance for the club coming in the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup final in 1998 against Stuttgart. Clarke was always reliable, even at a time when the team were struggling in the league during the early days of Glenn Hoddle’s tenure which is just one of the reasons he deserves to be in this list.
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Midfield: Charlie Cooke
The skilful left-winger was signed from Dundee FC by Tommy Docherty for £72,000 in 1966 as part of the restructuring of the Chelsea side replacing Terry Venables, who moved to London rivals Tottenham. Cooke was a star in a flamboyant but unpredictable Chelsea side and became a bane for many defenders, including England World Cup-winning captain Bobby Moore who Cooke waltzed past on his league debut against West Ham before scoring Chelsea’s winner. In his two spells at Stamford Bridge Cooke made 373 appearances and scored 30 goals for the club.
Midfield: Dennis Wise
If Cooke represents the flamboyant and skilful aspect to this Chelsea British XI, then Wisey definitely represents the aggressive and competitive aspect which is important to many teams. Wise was the club’s most successful captain before JT came along winning two FA Cups (1997 and 2000), FA Charity Shield (2000), League Cup (1998), UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup (1998) and the UEFA Super Cup (1998). Wise made 445 appearances for Chelsea and scored 76 goals, the most famous being at the San Siro against AC Milan with 10 minutes to go during a Champions League fixture in 1999. Wise’s famous goal is still sung about at Stamford Bridge to this day.
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Midfield: Frank Lampard
Many thought after Roman Abramovich took over the Stamford Bridge club in June 2003 players like Lampard would fade into the distance as the club spent vast fortunes on new players. But Lampard has grown as a player since then and 157 goals for Chelsea from midfield during the club’s most successful period in its history easily makes him an absolute shoo-in for this list. The England midfielder is currently third a list of the Blues all-time goal scorers and has also laid on 94 assists for team-mates during his time at the club. Lampard has been The Blues’ Mr Consistent for the club scoring 20+ goals a season five consecutive years and played a record 164 consecutive Premier League appearances.
Forward: Kerry Dixon
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Dixon was blessed with great aerial ability as well as being able to use both feet, which is why he was so successful at Chelsea and scored a fantastic 193 goals for Chelsea making him their second highest goal scorer of all time, as well as being 7th in their all-time appearance list. Whilst at Stamford Bridge the forward enjoyed a good relationship with fellow striker David Speedie (despite an initial personality clash) and winger Pat Nevin, the trio scored over 200 hundred goals between them (1983-1986).
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Forward: Peter Osgood
The late Chelsea striker will always be a legend amongst the Stamford Bridge faithful who sign “Osgood, Osgood. Osgood, Osgood, always the king of Stamford Bridge.” Osgood made 150 appearances for the Blues in 380 appearances and famously scored in every round of the 1970 FA Cup run, as well as one in each of the games against Real Madrid European Cup Winners’ Cup final in 1971. Ossie was arguably the biggest celebrity during his time at Chelsea when the club were not the most successful, but he epitomised England’s most fashionable and glamorous outfit. “Osgood is good,” as the fans on the Stamford Bridge terraces used to chant during his days there and that makes him an obvious choice for this list.
Forward: Bobby Tambling
Couldn’t really do a Chelsea’s all-time British XI without putting their record ever goal scorer in the team, could I? After the departure of one prolific forward in Jimmy Greaves, for AC Milan the Sussex-born Tambling became Chelsea’s primary goal threat and scored 202 goals in the club’s colours. Despite scoring so many goals for the club it is a shame that he only managed to win one trophy during his time at the club, the League Cup in 1965, but it was an exciting season as Chelsea were challenging for a domestic treble.
These lists are obviously always open for debate, so who do you think should make Chelsea’s all-time British XI?
Back at the start of the season, Heart of Midlothian were 150-1 to win the SPL and become the first non-Old Firm club since Aberdeen in 1985 to take the league championship. After beating Rangers 1-0 on Saturday, those odds shrunk to a remarkable 7-1, the bookies it seems are slowly warming to the idea of a serious title challenge from the Edinburgh club.
However, the club have been here before, and not so long ago. Back in October 2005 a Hearts side managed by former, Ispwich Town manager, George Burley stood six points clear at the top of the division after a scorching start to their league campaign.
Almost inevitably, it could not last. Hearts owner, Vladimir Romanov, already had a reputation for erratic behaviour behind the scenes, and in the months after his takeover in January 2005 it was becoming increasingly clear that he would not take a backseat in team affairs.
Even so, the news coming out of Tynecastle after the Jambos’ 2-0 win over Dunfermline that Burley had been removed from his post was a major shock, one that registered on the back pages across Europe.
It would be naïve to suggest that Burley’s departure cost the club a shot at the title that season, considering the experience contained within both of the biggest clubs in Scotland, there was every chance that with over two thirds of the season to be played that the championship could have gone anywhere.
The dismissal of Burley, followed by a controversial and fractured spell in charge for former Arsenal midfielder, Graham Rix, signalled a slump in the Jambos’ fortunes. A solitary Scottish Cup, the only silverware to show for the last five years.
Looking around the division, Hearts could not have chosen a better time to rise again. Both Old Firm clubs are in some considerable strife, and are in genuine jeopardy of seeing the championship trophy leave Glasgow for the first time since the first Police Academy film was in cinemas.
Rangers, in major financial trouble, have had to kiss goodbye to the league’s top goalscorer, Kenny Miller, no longer able to pay the wages many Championship sides would be able to handle. As a club they did themselves great credit as they pushed Manchester United and Valencia all the way in their Champions League group, however a lack of penetration at the highest level was blindingly obvious, and with the loss of Miller, the second half of the season will be tough.
It is not by any stretch a vintage era for Scottish football. The national team have not appeared at a major tournament for 13 years, and very few players see football north of the border as a viable option, either financially or in terms of career development. The period of UEFA Cup and Champions League glory nights look to be a thing of the past.
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Celtic head the division, and meet their rivals from Edinburgh in a crunch clash on Wednesday night. The Bhoys were well beaten when the two clubs met at Tynecastle earlier on in the year, however, were Hearts to repeat the trick the title race would genuinely be wide open.
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There are few moments that carry as much pressure as having every eye on the stadium on you as you step forward to take a penalty. The goal is just 12 yards away from the penalty spot, but because you’re expected to score, the pressure on the striker’s shoulders is immense. Some players have managed to deal with it expertly, with former Newcastle striker and all-time Premiership top scorer Alan Shearer one of many penalty specialists alongside Matt Le Tissier who had an incredible record from the spot for Southampton.
While the pressure is incredibly high, some players still have the confidence to show off their skills and take a somewhat cheeky penalty. Here are some of the current Manchester United squad showboating from the penalty spot:
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However, a real game situation is completely different and those players that have taken a ‘cheeky’ penalty have to be applauded. We have picked out 10 of the best for your viewing enjoyment.
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Head to PAGE TWO for the TOP 10 Audacious Penalties…
10: There’s no better way to start this list than with a chipped penalty. Here’s France legend Zinedine Zidane’s effort in the 2006 World Cup final made even better by the underside of the bar action:
9: Not a particularly cheeky penalty, but audacious nonetheless. Goalkeeper Kevin Pressman steps forward to take a penalty in a shoot-out and this is the incredible result:
8: The chip has become the penalty of choice for many people, including former Manchester United striker Dwight Yorke. Here’s Antonin Panenka leading the way in the 1976 Euro Championships for the Czech Republic:
7: German defender Andreas Brehme was known for taking penalties with his left foot, but in the 1990 World Cup final of all places he switched to his right foot:
6: Penalty shootouts are incredibly tense situations. Uruguay’s Sebastian Abreu clearly thinks otherwise as this effort from the 2010 World Cup shows. Arguably the best chip of the lot:
[youtube PLrE5VBMHDQ]
5: Classy effort from former Leeds and Liverpool midfielder Harry Kewell. Shame it was in training and not at Elland Road or Anfield:
4: Spanish U19 international Ezequiel Calvente made the headlines earlier this year for this audacious switch-hit penalty. They were 2-0 up at the time:
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3: However, Calvente wasn’t the first to try this. Gerardo Reinsos did the same thing in an Argentina friendly in 1991 and has to be ahead of Calvente for sheer originality:
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Head to PAGE SIX to see which Audacious Penalties top the list…
2: This isn’t in a real game situation but it still had to be included. If Totti did this in an actual Serie A match it would definitely be top of the pile:
1: The originality of this penalty has helped it top the list. What Johann Cruyff and Jesper Olsen did for Ajax isn’t easy, just ask former Arsenal pair Thierry Henry and Robert Pires!
[youtube MQ-l2QaUExs&feature=fvw]
So what do you think? Have we missed any cheeky penalties off of our list and would you have the courage to pull off one of these audacious pens?
The modern day player’s power over his employers is becoming a massive issue within the world of professional football.
It’s an all too common occurrence to see players submitting transfer requests, feeding stories to the media or even plainly refusing to play in a bid to get their own way, whether that be a move to another club or a pay rise.
Sir Alex Ferguson spoke out about this trend, claiming that a player no longer being tied to their club is damaging the game:
“When I first started out in management 37 years ago there were no agents. Imagine that!
“There was no freedom of contract either, so players were totally tied to their clubs.
“A change in that sense was inevitable, though I think that now the scales tipped completely in the other direction and I’m not sure it’s good for the game.”
Love or loathe him, its fair to say that the Scot has a point, with a player’s influence and power at a particular club becoming a dangerous problem.
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Sir Alex knows this all too well thanks to the Wayne Rooney episode of 2010. Rooney declared that he was going to leave the Manchester club due to serious differences with his manager and a lack of ambition on the part of the Red Devils. But, what do you know, a matter of weeks later the striker has signed a new deal on wages of around £200,000-per-week. All of this came with great influence from his agent, Paul Stretford.
Fergie would not have let this happen in the past, as we saw with David Beckham’s departure from the club, but Rooney’s influence and the threat of other clubs, namely local rivals Manchester City, meant that United could not allow their man to move on.
Whether or not Rooney wanted to leave isn’t clear, but the whole episode worked out well for the ex-Everton man, who increased his pay packet, and increased his level of authority around the club. Coincidence or carefully planned between agent and player?
It’s a similar case with Carlos Tevez at City. The Argentine forward wanted to move for personal reasons, so he refused Roberto Mancini’s request for him to come on a substitute against Bayern Munich. This sparked an almighty bust-up between the two, resulting in the Italian claiming he would never pick the striker again. Tevez could not find a club anywhere willing to meet his inflated wage demands, so as a result apologised in a bid to re-enter the Manchester City first-team squad. It remains unclear whether Tevez actually wants to be playing in the sky blue shirt, or whether he is simply looking to showcase his undoubted talents in a bid to manufacture a move elsewhere to secure another big pay day for himself and his representative, Kia Joorabchian.
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Whether we like it or not, players’ influence within clubs is a massive factor. They know their importance, both on and off the field of play, and some cynical individuals will always seek to use this to their advantage. Sir Alex may well have a point.
Carlo Ancelotti has hinted that he would relish a return to management in England with the big clubs in England. The Italian suggested that Wenger is up against it Arsenal, while claiming that with Capello set to be replaced by an Englishmen for the national team there is likely to be a vacancy to fill at the end of the season (Tottenham job anyone?)
Elsewhere in the news today Everton pledge action on unruly fans; Maiga wants Newcastle move, while Chelsea toy with Stadium move.
Capello wants a win in Montenegro
Ancelotti wants management role in England
Chelsea toying with Stadium move
Revenge on Scholes’ mind
Everton pledge action on unruly fans
Wenger gives up on title ambitions
Niall Quinn moves roles at Sunderland
Maiga wants Newcastle move
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Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish is unhappy with his side’s upcoming fixture list, that will see The Reds play two games in the space of 48 hours.
The Anfield outfit take on Manchester City on Sunday 27th November in a 4pm kick-off, before travelling down to London to face Chelsea in the Carling Cup on the following Tuesday night.
The Scottish coach has admitted to trying to shuffle the fixtures around, and is frustrated by the lack of understanding from the Football League.
“It is disgraceful in this day and age that players are being asked to play a key Premier League game and then a League Cup quarter-final in London just 48 hours later,” he stated to Liverpool’s official website.
“It’s understandable with the Spurs v PAOK Salonika (Europa League) match and the TUC rally that the Met Police have said that our game cannot be played on the Wednesday.
“But it’s surely the duty of the football authorities to think of other solutions which consider the welfare of the players and this clearly hasn’t happened.
“When we ask the Football League to move our game to a later date, we’re told it’s impossible. Where’s the logic in that?
“If the Football League want to devalue their own competition, that’s up to them, but they shouldn’t then be upset if people use these games to help in the development of young players.
“The one thing I will say to our fans is to think carefully before buying tickets for the League Cup game.
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“We do not want them spending their money and then we decide there is no other option but to use only young players in the tie,” he concluded.
Liverpool Football Club will be staying at Anfield after the club decided to scrap plans for a new stadium in Stanley Park reports the Liverpool Echo.
While there has been no official confirmation from the club, an announcement about plans to redevelop Anfield will be revealed on Monday as part of a housing regeneration scheme in the area.
Reds owner John Henry has always had the intention for the club to remain at Anfield, rather than relocating to a new purpose built ground on Stanley Park and the club have now looked into adding an extra tier while also including extra corporate facilities in the existing ground.
It was thought that Liverpool had to leave Anfield if they were to stand any hope of generating the commercial revenues required to compete at the top of the Premier League with the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea.
However Henry has dispelled this ‘myth’ telling BBC Sport that:”A belief has grown that Liverpool FC must have a new stadium to compete with [Manchester] United, Arsenal and others.”
“While a new stadium or an expansion of Anfield is beneficial over the long term for the club, the financial impact of adding seats and amenities should be put into perspective.
“That’s why I say that it is a myth that stadium issues are going to magically transform LFC’s fortunes.
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“Building new or refurbishing Anfield is going to lead to an increase from £40m of match-day revenue to perhaps £60-70m if you don’t factor in debt service.
“Our future is based not on a stadium issue, but on building a strong football club that can compete with anyone in Europe. This will be principally driven financially by our commercial strengths globally.”
Peter Odemwingie says he will learn from his mistakes after seeing red in West Brom’s first defeat of the season.
The Nigerian striker was shown a straight red card for lashing out at Fulham’s Sascha Riether in the first half after the Baggies had fallen behind at Craven Cottage. The 31-year-old fronted up to the media after the game to air his regrets over the dismissal, which struck a sour note in what had been a good start to Steve Clarke’s tenure as West Brom manager. He told Sky Sports:
“It made things harder for my team. One man advantage is a big advantage. Hopefully when I come back playing I will compensate my team with some good actions and contributions to the next win. s a team we need to bounce back. We are a united group and I had encouragement from my team-mates to forget about it. I will be more worried if it happened more often than one or two times in my career.”
Odemwingie will now serve a three-match ban but is keen to keep his cool when he does return to action, which could be on the 6th October as West Brom take on QPR at The Hawthorns. The striker continued:
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“It is something I will learn and hopefully it won’t repeat itself and next time I play in an important game for the club, I hope I remember this even if someone provokes me or not. That moment happens, it doesn’t happen often, but for some reason I lost my temper and I regret it. Now I’m thinking about bouncing back for my team.”