Liverpool striker David N'Gog does not harbour any desire to leave Anfield on a permanent or temporary basis.
The 21-year-old was criticised by many Reds fans for his poor displays in a lack-lustre team last season although he did manage to score eight times in 36 matches.
The former Paris St Germain star has been linked with a summer switch to West Brom but is keen to stay on Merseyside and show new boss Roy Hodgson what he can do.
"I know speculation is part of football and we have to deal with it. If we bring in new players, it is good for the team," he said.
"But I am a Liverpool player. I want to be involved in the first team at Liverpool.
"My confidence is good. Now I have to do my job and give my best for the team.
FootballFanCast General: Subscribe and never miss what matters 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 am more experienced now and I want to be involved, play as many games as I can and score goals to help the team win.
"The club had a difficult season last year but I want to prove we can get back into the top four. I am confident about this."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Micah Richards was once considered one of the hottest properties in English football. Strong and athletic, with seemingly excellent defensive abilities, many believed he would succeed Gary Neville in the England team and make the right-back position his own for years to come. When he won his first cap for England in November 2006, he became the youngest defender ever to be called up to the England squad, at the tender age of 18. For a defender to be called up at such a young age is remarkable, but such was the talent and potential displayed by Richards that his selection was absolutely justified. After breaking into the Manchester City team Richards became one of the clubs top performers, and there was no shortage of suitors that sought his services. In the past few seasons however, Richards’ form has tailed off, and his immense potential gone unfulfilled. After picking up 11 England caps and one goal in a year, Richards has not been capped since England’s disastrous 2-3 loss to Croatia in November 2007. After a couple of frustrating seasons, Micah Richards will be looking to get both his club and international career back on track, and start fulfilling the potential he once displayed. With supposed interest from Tottenham Hotspur amongst other clubs, the question of whether he can do this at Manchester City is open to debate.
Richards, who can play at right-back or at centre-back now has a lot of competition in the Man City squad. Kolo Toure, Joleon Lescott, Jerome Boateng, Vincent Kompany, Pablo Zabaleta and Nedum Onuoha will all be competing with Richards for a starting berth. Richards though, played primarily as a right-back last term and the main competition here is Pablo Zabaleta, though Jerome Boateng despite preferring a position in central defence can play as a full-back on either side. Roberto Mancini has not however signed an out and out right-back this summer, hinting that Richards has a future at Eastlands and will get chances to play this season.
In an interview with the Manchester Evening News, Mancini stated “Micah is part of my plans. He’s played here for four or five years, and I think that he must improve.” The Italian also said “It is better for him that we work to improve every day, because he has everything he needs to be a strong player.”
The City manager clearly sees Richards as having a future at the club, and judging by his words has faith in the player’s ability to become a good defender. Micah Richards will get chances at Manchester City this season, but he if he doesn’t take them there is no shortage of players to take his place. This though, would also be the case at most Premier League clubs of the level that Richards would join. The question is whether Richards has stagnated at Man City, and if joining a new club would give him the fresh start he needs to become the top-class defender he has the talent to become. It is possible that this is the case; some players do need a move to kick-start their career. At Manchester City though, Richards is part of an ambitious and growing club, and his manager has shown that he has faith in him. If Micah Richards is to have a successful season, it is down to him to knuckle down and try his damndest to perform well and cement his position at right-back. If he can do this, Richards will have a long career ahead of himself for both his club and his country.
*
If you liked this article follow me on Twitter. https://twitter.com/MaxLintzgy
Subscribe to my RSS feed. https://www.footballfancast.com/author/max-lintzgy/feed
*
With the PL season nearly upon us, let’s see the WAGS that will be keeping the players on their toes. Click on image to VIEW gallery
FootballFanCast General: Subscribe and never miss what matters 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.
Defender Martin Skrtel is the latest Liverpool player to pledge his future to the club by signing a new contract.
The Slovakia defender has penned a two-year extension which ties him to the Anfield club until summer 2014.
The new deal for Skrtel follows the pledges of allegiance made by key duo Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres following Roy Hodgson's arrival as manager earlier in the summer.
"I have been at Liverpool for nearly three years and I really like it here. I like the city, I like the club and I like the fans so I'm happy I am able to sign a new contract," he told the club's official website.
"Liverpool is one of the biggest clubs in the world so I am proud I can play here for four more years.
"Before I came here a lot of people thought I wasn't good enough to play for Liverpool, but I think I have shown I am."
Liverpool paid Zenit St Petersburg £6million for the centre-half in January 2008 and Skrtel has gone on to make 55 Premier League appearances.
He added:"Lots of things have changed at the club this year with new players, a new manager and new medical staff.
"The spirit is very good and we showed that against Arsenal with a great performance. We can build on that and carry it on.
FootballFanCast General: Subscribe and never miss what matters 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 have quality in the dressing room and I know we will do better this year.
"A club like Liverpool deserves to win trophies and I will help them do that, hopefully this season."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Harry Kane sounds like a gangster from a Guy Ritchie movie, but he is actually Spurs’ latest young star to have been tipped for great things. Whilst he is not yet a household name amongst football fans, that could well change in the next few years. The 17 year old is regarded as one of the club’s top academy prospects, on Kane’s biography on the official Spurs’ website it says,
“Playing just behind a central striker, Harry made a huge impact during his first full season in our Academy, establishing himself as one of the most highly-rated young players at the club.”
Harry Kane is a product of the Spurs’ youth system and in the 2008-09 season played in the Under-16’s side that competed in the Copa Chivas and Bellinzona tournaments in Mexico, scoring three goals.
In the 2009/10 season Kane played 22 times for Tottenham’s Under-18’s, scoring an impressive 18 goals, he was also named on the first team bench for two matches last season, which is no mean feat for a 17 year old in what is a strong Spurs’ squad. Kane’s good form for Tottenham did not go unnoticed, and he made his international debut for England Under-17’s during the campaign. So far he has made three appearances for England Under-17’s, scoring two goals in the process. Upon his call up to England, Spurs’ Under-18 coach Alex Inglethorpe stated on the club’s website that,
“It’s fantastic for the academy and Harry that he’s been recognised in this way. He’s a lovely lad, a terrific young player with a great work ethic and one who will keep on improving.”
Kane is also renowned as something of a dead ball specialist, scoring two free kicks in one game for the Under-17’s against Watford last season. With set-pieces becoming an increasingly important part of the game, this will stand Kane in good stead to make an impact as he steps up to the next level.
Goals are the currency of football and any player who can score a lot of them will always be in high demand. Harry Kane’s youth career has so far yielded a good number of goals, and this is what has made him really stand out in the Spurs’ academy. Kane is amongst some other highly rated young prospects at Tottenham, with Dean Parrett and John Bostock the most notable of these. These players add to the already large stock of exciting young English players Spurs’ have on their books, including Danny Rose, Kyle Walker and Kyle Naughton to name just a few, whilst Aaron Lennon and Tom Huddlestone are still only 23.
Harry Kane may not be a name known by many outside Tottenham Hotspur, but if he can continue the excellent form he has showed in his fledgling career to date his reputation is sure to grow. Goalscoring will never fail to get a player noticed, and Spurs’ and England fans will be hoping he is just as lethal as his career progresses.
If you liked this article please follow me on Twitter. Subscribe to my RSS feed.
It will be interesting to see if Kane will be able to take full advantage of a talent that seems really remarkable. It could be just what Tottenham needs to get back into contention for the Premier League and be relevant again in Europe as well.
FootballFanCast General: Subscribe and never miss what matters 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.
Online bookmakers in the UK and around the world seem likely to give young Kane credit as a reliable prospect. The English talent is being credited as a potential top scorer for the new Premier League season. We are confident that many football betting enthusiasts will pick Hurricane as their king of goalscorers.
A good way to find the best odds on Premier League’s next leading scorer is to check out the list of the best betting sites offered by CasinoPilot. You will also find exclusive tips and guides for your football bets that will help you increase your chances of landing good winnings.
After being deducted nine points, entering administration and eventually relegated from the Premier League last season, it’s fair to say Portsmouth are due a bit of luck.
Yet after seven games, five defeats, two draws and no wins in the Championship, Pompey remain rooted to the foot of English football’s second tier. New manager Steve Cotterill has been working with a paper-thin, skeletal squad and non-existent budget as he aims to stop the rot and keep Portsmouth in the Championship this season.
The south coast club remain in administration after their unfeasible financial planning came crashing in around them following the global recession, around the time of Harry Redknapp’s departure to Tottenham in October 2008. It later emerged the club were spending an astonishing £50m-a-year on player’s wages, which represented a whopping 90% of their total income. Such an inoperative business plan was never going to work as a long-term strategy for the club and their borrowing finally caught up with them last season, when they risked going bust.
The club were losing £23m-a-season and were left unable to pay players their wages, as well as having to enforce a numer of reundancies. By January this year the club were desperate for any cash they could raise through player sales in an attempt to defy a winding-up order from the High Court.
One piece of business which now symbolises the chaos surrounding the club’s finances was the sale of defender Younes Kaboul and goalkeeper Asmir Begovic to Tottenham Hotspur during the winter transfer window. While a deal for Kaboul was quickly concluded, there was a hitch in the Begovic move. The deal for the Bosnian eventually fell through, when the 23-year-old opted to sign for Stoke instead, meaning Pompey had inadvertently pocketed £1m of the North Londoners cash as a down payment on top of the Kaboul deal.
In contrast to the previous free-spending Pompey regime, just before the club entered administration they were scrambling around trying secure funds with add-on fees. The Premier League have since ordered Pompey to pay Spurs who filed for compensation after losing out in the deal. Portsmouth are however contemplating appealing the decision.
FootballFanCast General: Subscribe and never miss what matters 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.
Despite the current doom and gloom at Fratton Park, the future could be much brighter for Portsmouth. The club are close to ratifying a takeover with Hong Kong based businessman Balram Chainrai, who is believed to have the finances to take the club out of administration. Portsmouth administrator Andrew Andronikou believes a takeover is essential and is keen for the Football League to approve the move.
Andronikou said: “The board will sit to decide whether to approve Mr Chainrai’s takeover and whether the club’s golden share in the league should be transferred to his company or not.
“I hope they say yes. They absolutely should do. But everything about this club has been like pushing a cart up a hill. But if it goes through it will be watershed. I can see blue sky ahead; the club will effectively be out of administration and out of the clutches of the Football League. It will then be down to the management and current board and playing staff.”
Leave your comments below. You can read more of my blogs HERE or follow me on Twitter.
The noises from NESV this week, with regards to the long term plans at Anfield, has brought a mixed response among Liverpool supporters. One aspect that will have pleased all fans though was Henry’s claim that there will be no January departures for any of their stars, in response to all the recent speculation.
This week at FFC we have seen a mixed bag blogs which has included…£30m splurge to save Liverpool, the brains behind the Reds lucrative deals and Inter look to hijack Liverpool bid.
Plus we have taken a look at the best Liverpool stories on the Web this week.
Featured Articles of the week
Liverpool’s Top 10 Transfer Bargains Of All Time
Are these the worst Liverpool Kits of our time?
The £30m splurge that might just save Liverpool
–
Other Liverpool Blogs
Is blaming Rafa Benitez a little short sighted?
Liverpool’s Greatest British XI Of Our Time?
Liverpool’s bold NEW transfer policy
How long before Liverpool let wonderkid off the leash?
EXCLUSIVE: Liverpool in bad transfer rumour shocker
Has Roy Hodgson let his talisman down?
The REAL brains behind Liverpool’s deals
Inter look to hijack Liverpool and Man United with January bid
Click on PAGE 2 to see the BEST LIVERPOOL ARTICLES around the Web this week
Best of WEB
FootballFanCast General: Subscribe and never miss what matters 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.
Who is that bloke apparently upsetting all of our players? – Live4Liverpool
Roy Of The Ravers – Kopblog
Inside a disaster – Keith Salmon’s moving chapter on Hillsborough – This is Anfield
Iain Macintosh: Don’t blame Benítez – Guardian
THREE Issues that need to be resolved sooner rather than later – Live4Liverpool
Everton boss David Moyes has admitted his Merseyside derby record remains a source of frustration ahead of Sunday's showdown with Liverpool at Goodison Park.
The Toffees have lost eight of the last ten league derbies on home soil, much to the frustration of their Scottish coach.
On Sunday he will lock horns with friend Roy Hodgson for the first time since he took the Liverpool reins in the summer.
However, a rueful Moyes will not let sentiment stand in the way of a rare derby success for the blue half of the city.
"At Everton it's been difficult to win as many derbies as I'd hoped to have over the years," he explained.
"I could say that I've had a chance to bed down and Roy is just trying that now. He's at a new club.
"Liverpool's record against us is very good, but then you've got to mention that our debt is far, far less than Liverpool's so it's always been more difficult to get results."
Everton will be without five key players in Marouane Fellaini, Phil Jagielka, Louis Saha, Jack Rodwell and Victor Anichebe through injury and Moyes is only too aware of the threat posed by the Reds.
FootballFanCast General: Subscribe and never miss what matters 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 added:"I go into the game knowing we have a good team good players, although obviously we're missing a host of players.
"Liverpool have some fantastic individual players who can win games at any moment."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Peter Crouch divides opinion, with his awkward style and ridiculous body shape he is not to everyone’s taste. And a scoring record of 18 in 62 games at Tottenham is not an overly prolific return for a centre forward often deployed alone this season. The most common criticism thrown at Crouch is that for a big man he is not commanding enough in the air when the ball is in the box and when he is this is usually done by conceding a foul. He rarely attacks the ball in the air, often over jumping and having to bend down in order to make contact. It is at this point he tends to get penalised for climbing on the defender. Although I feel his size tends to count against him here, with referees, particularly in Europe, being too quick to pull him up on this.
Where he is good is winning flick-ons and knock downs for a strike partner or runner from midfield to latch on to. His partnership with Defoe was developing quite well based on this fairly route one style. However he is now partnered with Van der Vaart who is not that type of player, lacking the pace to exploit any flick ons from Crouch. This is not to take away from Crouch’s technical ability on the ground as he is more of a footballer than just a route one target man. This was demonstrated the other night against Inter by juggling the ball brilliantly to evade two challenges out on the wing.
[divider]
[divider]
However he is often crowded out too easily by defenders when he has the ball at his feet and not clinical enough in front of goal to be the main striker at a club with genuine European credentials. The lack of a true goal scoring instinct is the most infuriating aspect of Crouch. The recent game against Everton cried out for a clinical striker to finish one of few chances made. Instead these chances fell to Crouch who was wasteful with timid finishes, that were little more than handling practice for Everton keeper Howard. The most notable being a free header just six yards out being cushioned rather than attacked to the goalkeeper’s grateful arms. The result was two points dropped that wouldn’t have been had a more convincing striker been leading the line. Compare this to a truly world class forward in rich scoring form, Samuel Eto’o was shown the other night. The latter taking his sole chance expertly after stepping inside Gallas and dispatching his shot into the bottom corner from the edge of the box. Contrasted with Crouch who seemed too desperate to score, taking the wrong decision to go for goal on the volley from Bale’s cross when Van der Vaart was crying out for it to be rolled along the six yard box for him to tap home.
The tendency when playing Crouch, through no fault of his own, is to loft the ball up from the back, not only is this route one football sore on the eyes it bypasses Spurs’ best technical players in Modric, Bale and VDV. It also rarely results in any sustained pressure and is a sign of desperation more that a tactic designed to best threaten the opponents goal. As such it should only be used as something different when Spurs’ traditional passing game is not working. Crouch has shown he does not have the quality to be a lone striker that can be relied upon to find the net if only presented with one or two chances in a tight game, where things are perhaps not going all Tottenham’s way. If Spurs wish to cement themselves in the top 4 and become regulars in Europe’s premier competition, they need a more lethal forward. However Crouch can offer a different dimension from the bench if and when required, for this reason he adds something as a squad player. But due to his finishing limitations and age, he turns 30 in January, he can offer little more than this option from the bench, if Spurs want to join the established Premier League elite.
Fancy playing your mates every week in a Premium Fantasy Football game?
FootballFanCast General: Subscribe and never miss what matters 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.
Article courtesy of the excellent Live4Liverpool website
*
What, above all, strikes me is the accuracy of the phrase ‘mid-table’ as it currently stands. Six points behind the Champions’ League Places, Five above the relegation zone. Few Liverpool supporters would openly admit it, but that represents six very good weeks for the new regime and for Roy Hodgson and his men. It was a mere 39 days ago that Everton quite frankly dismantled the Reds in a very one sided Merseyside Derby, leaving them marooned firmly in the bottom three.
Of course, the pessimists will point to Wigan and particularly Stoke as dropped points and poor performances, but six league games have seen four wins, including two against sides in the top five, signs that things are going in the right direction.
I have been very interested to see the criticism being thrown in the direction of Roy Hodgson, particularly as much of it would appear to come from internet and media forums, as opposed to those supporters inside Anfield on match day itself. It is not my place to decide on Hodgson’s future, although I will openly admit that I do not think that he is the appropriate manager to rebuild the club.
However, I do believe that he has the right to more respect than that afforded by some of the derisory and derogatory comments that I have noticed on various sites. In fact, anyone deserves more respect than some of the vitriol that has been aimed from certain quarters at the Liverpool manager.
Liverpool supporters need to be absolutely honest about where the club is right now. That status is as a former giant brought to its knees and rocked to its very foundations by the previous regime, and with a playing squad boasting some enviable talent but lacking in depth.
Bolton, Stoke and Sunderland apart, Liverpool are finally very much on the periphery of the battle that supporters expect them to be fighting this season, and that is competing with Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur for the final Champions’ League place.
[divider]
[divider]
In this respect, Sunday afternoon’s clash at White Hart Lane becomes Liverpool’s most important game of the season. Defeat is not an option as it would leave the Merseyside club some six points behind Spurs, and potentially nine points behind the top four. A draw would be no disaster, whilst a win would be a real confidence boost.
There are no reasons why Liverpool should not head to North London with confidence. Although they have lost on their last two visits to the Lane, it has historically been a good ground for the Reds. Spurs have notoriously struggled this season after midweek European fixtures, and Liverpool should be brimful of confidence after last week’s victory, albeit against a very poor West Ham. Whilst the loss of Steven Gerrard is an undoubted blow, it has afforded Raul Meireles with an opportunity to play in a more natural position, in which he seemed to thrive last weekend. In addition, Fernando Torres is looking more like himself with every passing week.
FootballFanCast General: Subscribe and never miss what matters 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.
This does bring me to a real area of concern with regard to Roy Hodgson, and those are his terribly negative tactics away from home. I understand that he might wish to employ a 4-2-3-1 counter attacking formation, but even counter strategies work only if you get enough bodies forward to support the lone front man. Torres has, at times, been woefully isolated away from Anfield, and this will have to be remedied if Liverpool are to have any success. Such is the gap behind the deep midfield and the front man, that possession is consistently ceded.
I, like many others, grew up in a period when Liverpool Football Club dominated British and European football. It gives me absolutely no pleasure to speak about Liverpool in peripheral battles and fighting to rise from mid-table obscurity. However, that is the reality of things right now. There is talent in the squad, if not depth, and certainly Mr Hodgson needs to be more demanding of them.
They said that Rome wasn’t built in a day, yet Liverpool Football Club conquered it twice. Liverpool Football Club was certainly not built in a day, but two utterly despicable men brought it to its knees. Time is an enemy in modern life, but time is exactly what will be required to rebuild this club from its foundations. For now, Liverpool supporters should be grateful to have banished the Texans to the past, and to be climbing what is a very tight Premier League table.
Read more Liverpool blogs at the excellent Live4Liverpool website
Carlton Cole is one of the most divisive characters to grace Upton Park in recent years. Signed from Chelsea in 2006 after a journeyman existence of loan moves whilst contracted to the west London club, Cole struggled to establish himself in the West Ham side before Gianfranco Zola took charge of the team, when he began to flourish. But since the Italian’s departure earlier this year, the 27 year-old appears to have regressed, and with Cole, as well as many fans, unhappy with the state of affairs at the club, is it time for West Ham to cash in?
There was plenty of interest from Anfield for the striker back in the summer, but all advances were respectfully declined in east London. However, with Cole’s outburst that he felt he has been ‘starved’ in Avram Grant’s defensive formation, perhaps it is time for West Ham to listen to any overtures for the striker in January. After the Liverpool game Cole said;
‘That was diabolical. We didn’t even turn up. We had lost the game in the first 10 minutes, psychologically anyway. I had just one cross. Apart from that I had nothing and, as a striker, that’s starvation, that’s famine. What am I supposed to work on?’
With Cole clearly frustrated with his manager and team mates, Avram Grant rather surreptitiously laid the finger of blame squarely at Cole;
‘Some players, when they don’t perform well and are a little bit disappointed with themselves, say some things,’
So with life running anything but smoothly at Upton Park, dissenting voices are the last thing the club needs, and as chairmen David Gold and David Sullivan are all too willing to note, the club’s finances are also not in great shape. With Cole’s price-tag apparently being around £10m in the summer, if those kinds of offers come in for the striker in January, West Ham surely won’t be able to resist.
After grabbing a couple of goals in the demolition of Manchester United in the Carling Cup last week, Cole once again came to the fore, but perhaps only served to up his asking price in January, especially after once again disappointing, and looking vaguely disinterested, having been given a starting place ahead of Frederic Piquionne in Sunday’s match against Sunderland.
All these factors conspire to leave the door wide open for a January exit, and judging by the mood of some around Upton Park, there won’t be too many tears if he goes.
FootballFanCast General: Subscribe and never miss what matters 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.
If you liked this and would like to read more, then why not check out my blogs, or follow me on Twitter.
Holy Crap – its live fantasy football! Become part of Man United v Valencia and play Picklive for FREE Watch and bet live – spices up any game!