Two teams that find themselves at the bottom of the form table, meaning this fixture can go either way. The Baggies have recorded impressive victories earlier this season at Arsenal and Everton but have only won once in their last six games, losing the other five. Wigan on the other hand have only a single victory to their name in their last 11 games; this is a game both teams will be looking to start a winning run of form.
Baggies boss, Roberto Di Matteo, could give a debut to new loan signing from Arsenal Carlos Vela, whilst the versatile Steven Reid could make a comeback from injury. A win would be very useful for the Albion as they face other teams around them at the bottom of the Premier League table in their next few games.
As far as Wigan boss Roberto Martinez is concerned, he should be able welcome back his first team regulars who were rested for their FA Cup tie at the weekend. A win would lift Wigan ahead of their hard run of fixtures that remain this season; if they are to try and keep their status in the top division victories are vital.
There has never been a goalless draw in a fixture between both clubs but West Brom have one of the worst defensive records this season, while Wigan have one of the worst records in regards to putting the ball in the back of the net.
Prediction: 3-1
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The languid, elegant striker with the balletic touch looks set to be heading towards the exit door at Old Trafford this summer, with both and manager suggesting he is best served finding a new club, but has the Bulgarian been a success or a failure during his time at Manchester United?
The short answer is a bit of both – Berbatov has failed to live up to expectations and to an extent, he hasn’t really justified the £30.75m fee forked out for him, but his goalscoring record is pretty good and he’s won two league titles in his four-year stay, which isn’t a shabby haul by anyone’s standards.
Berbatov sounded like a man resigned to his fate when he stated last week: “I love this club, but I am not going to be useful to anyone if I am not playing. I want to play, I want to help, but for unknown reasons it’s not going to happen. So it’s better for everyone if we say goodbye. If not, I am professional and I will keep doing everything I can to help my team and my teammates, whenever I have the opportunity to do so.”
Originally bought to add an extra attacking dimension to the at times breathtaking triumvirate of Cristiano Ronaldo, Carlos Tevez and Wayne Rooney, Berbatov sometimes acted as a brake to their more blistering attacks when he was supposed to be the side’s focal point and furthest forward outlet. With Rooney and Tevez both best playing off a front-man and Ronaldo given something of a free role, Berbatov was supposed to act as the tip of the attack, but far too often, he found himself frustrated and went in search of the ball – the sight of seeing him pick the ball up inside his own half was not only frustrating, it was needless.
His record in Europe was also extremely patchy – scoring just five goals in 26 appearances (11 as a substitute) and four of those came in his first season back in 2008-9. At one point, he went a three-year period and a stunning 21 games without a goal in Europe. Despite being the club’s top goalscorer in 2010-11, he was left out of the squad for the Champions League final against Barcelona in favour of Michael Owen, a part-time footballer backed to make more of an impression off the bench – that in itself rather sums up his time at Old Trafford.
Only at Manchester United would the league’s top goalscorer the season before struggle to make an impression the following campaign, and he made just 12 league appearances last year as he fell behind Danny Welbeck in the pecking order. Interestingly, though, he still managed to score seven times in the league in just five starts.
He also earned the tag as something of a flat-track bully, much like Jermain Defoe has during his time at Tottenham, filling his boots when the going was good. In 2010-11, when he managed his best goalscoring season in a red shirt with 20 league goals, he bagged hat-tricks against both Blackburn and Liverpool while hitting five against Blackburn; this means that he scored just nine goals in the remaining 29 league games, which is about par when looking at his form over the previous two seasons. Most Premier League bosses would much prefer having a striker that scores once or twice every few weeks as opposed to a player that only deals in bunches and spells of good form and Berbatov lacked that crucial consistency needed for a top-level side.
Of course, that hat-trick against Liverpool perfectly encapsulates his United career, brilliant on occasion, but far too often lacking at the highest level – the caveat of which being that Hodgson’s side were fifth from bottom at the time of the fixture, which fits in just nicely with the flat-track bully theory.
In 26 league appearances against Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham and Manchester City, he struck just five times, which includes his hat-trick against the Merseyside outfit. The truly telling statistic, though, is that he was left out altogether or forced to sit on the bench twiddling his thumbs a staggering further 41 times against the very same opposition. He was always something of a square peg in a round hole.
The fact that he is the most expensive player ever signed by Sir Alex Ferguson and that over the last 18 months he has completely lost the trust of his manager would suggest that he was more of a failure than a success – that horror miss in the FA Cup semi-final back in 2010 at Wembley against bitter rivals Manchester City quite possibly proving to be the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Ordinarily, statistics such as 48 league goals from 82 starts and 24 substitute appearances are the sort that any striker would be applauded for, but he has not started against a top six club for 14 months now – which just further reinforces the school of thought that he’s not quite cut out for when when the going gets tough against top quality opposition.
His partnership with Rooney never really captured the imagination either – much like his Old Trafford career in general, it flickered into life from time to time, promising much but delivering very little. In Berbatov’s first season at the club, he and Rooney only set up one another to score on two separate occasions, which when you account for the fact that they scored 34 goals between them that year, tells its own story of an unfulfilled partnership.
Berbatov was signed to provide an alternative to the destructive and clinical directness of the rest of Ferguson’s side; a composed force to unlock the tightest of defences, but it’s just not quite worked out for him. The club’s fans are known to be appreciative of an enigma’s talents, Eric Cantona serving as a prime example, but the Bulgarian always remained a hugely divisive figure at the club, splitting the supporters right down the middle. Some castigated him for a perceived lack of effort, while Berbatov rather understandably maintained that his job wasn’t to run around like a headless chicken.
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It would seem a tad churlish to label Berbatov a ‘flop’, but things certainly haven’t gone according to plan and he has by and large failed to live up to expectations. The crux of the problem was that he was signed to fulfill a role he was never capable of performing consistently, he was never going to be the club’s answer to Alan Shearer or Michael Owen, a pure goalscorer, more a creative fulcrum to supplement the team’s existing talents and if you judge him with that solely in mind, history will prove kinder to him.
Success is often termed and quantified by something tangible, like silverware, and in that regard Berbatov has been a success at Old Trafford. However, upon closer inspection, setting aside all sentiment and personal stylistic preferences, in pure footballing terms, Berbatov’s four-year spell at Manchester United will go down as a failure. It may seem like a Trevor Brooking-style cop-out, sitting on the fence in such a fashion, but it seems the only fair way of judging his undoubted talent.
Versatile Arsenal midfielder Henri Lansbury spent much of last season on loan at Norwich City and now several national newspapers are suggesting that Lansbury will make the move to Carrow Road full time in a deal worth £1.5m. Something about the story doesn’t seem right considering Arsenal only recently turned down a £1.5m bid for the England U21 player. However, there is rarely smoke without fire, so there might just be something in it.
Paul Lambert had seemed to have completed his summer transfer business after acquiring seven new players. Lambert confirmed after the capture of Tottenham defender Kyle Naughton that was the end of his summer business. Certainly a strange stance to make if he thought Lansbury was going to be available. But of course it was always possible that there was a U-turn at some point from Arsenal that made Lansbury available. Lansbury certainly won’t be able to return to Carrow Road on loan, because Norwich already has two loan players from Premier League clubs.
The question that should be asked though is there any real credibility to the rumours? Paul Lambert is a known admirer and Lansbury will be wondering if he will find first-team football at Arsenal, so you can certainly see why the media might think that he is Norwich City bound. The 25 man squad may also restrict Norwich, but with certain players not receiving a squad number, a number of players under 21 and other players with an uncertain future at Norwich City, there does appear to be space for Lansbury, if a deal can be reached with the player.
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From a personal point of view, I have felt that the signing of Henri Lansbury would be the icing on the cake for a productive summer in the transfer market. Some supporters would be concerned about what would happen if Wes Hoolahan was to get injured. Henri Lansbury has the creative spark that perhaps Norwich City’s other central midfielders don’t have. As many good managers state he offers something different and from that point of view, it would be no real surprise to see Lambert make a move. Furthermore, Lansbury is a player who can play in the hole behind the strikers as cover for or as an alternative to Hoolahan.
There is no doubt in my mind that Henri Lansbury would be an excellent addition to the Norwich City squad, even if he was back-up for Hoolahan initially. Some Arsenal supporters may think that Lansbury wouldn’t benefit from the move, if he isn’t going to be first-choice. However, Lansbury would be very much part of the squad and see his share of Premier League football. This is arguably a lot better for the player compared with playing reserve team football with Arsenal or being sent out on loan to the Championship again.
The player showed on loan last season what a good player he is and also that he has an eye for goal. Finding goals from multiple different sources could prove to be vitally important, if Norwich City is going to be successful in their return to Carrow Road. That all being said I fear that this link is a case of putting two and two together and coming up with five. I would love to see Lansbury back at Carrow Road, but I doubt it will happen, at least not in this transfer window. However, I would truly love to be proved wrong and Norwich City fans would welcome Lansbury back with open arms, if it was to happen.
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Four years ago BBC Five Live football correspondent, Alan Green, a closet Liverpool fan, savaged the football style of Bolton after the Trotters had ridden out a red storm to secure an important draw with Arsenal. Green described the Bolton way of football as “garbage” something that he “wouldn’t pay to watch.”
Move the clock forward five years, and there are rumours surfacing that Green’s beloved Liverpool are looking to tempt current Bolton boss, Owen Coyle, to Anfield at the end of the season. There may be several obstacles to Coyle’s appointment on Merseyside, not least the burning desire of Kenny Dalglish to keep his job full time, however for Coyle it is a endorsement of the quality he has brought to the Reebok during his 12 months in charge.
Pundits, like fans, can be extraordinarily fickle. Gary Megson was arguably right to feel aggrieved after being sacked by Bolton halfway through the 2009-10 season, and Coyle’s appointment as his successor was deemed a positive move, if a risky one considering the Scotsman’s relative inexperience in the top-flight.
For a side famed for their physical, almost ‘Crazy Gang’ style of football, 2010 was something of a watershed for the Trotters. It would be one eyed to suggest that Coyle has suddenly transformed his new club into a team pursuing total football, however he has been able to incorporate the tools left to him by previous regimes and instil in them a more aesthetic approach to the game.
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The selection of Kevin Davies by England manager Fabio Capello was the first indication that the Bolton system was beginning to make people take notice of the club once derided by Green. Coyle’s pairing of club captain Davies with Johan Elmander, has convinced many that Davies is not simply a big target man, and Bolton not simply an unattractive side.
Undoubtedly, their success has come at a time where many other Premier League clubs are going through a transitional phase, enabling Coyle’s men to scale heights they may have been unable to in previous seasons.
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It is an indication of the bizarre phase of Premiership history in which we currently reside that Coyle may find accepting the Liverpool job to be something he shies away from, such is the state of the red half of Merseyside.
The former Burnley manager will have seen Roy Hodgson’s tumultuous reign draw to a close this week and acknowledged the difficulty in walking into a club where you are not the man the fans want to see. However, if King Kenny does not deliver the passion and, more importantly, results required over the next five months, a prolonged period of Bolton success could mean the knock on Coyle’s door becomes too loud to ignore. He may even find Alan Green leading the welcoming party.
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The manager at any club is often seen as the most pivotal role at a football club yet Chelsea’s recent Champions League success has brought questions over a coach’s influence. Indeed both times the Blues have reached the major European final they have been guided by a relatively unproven manager, but that does not mean that the manager is insignificant in the success achieved by a club.
Roberto Di Matteo had minimal experience at the top level before being handed the job as interim-manager at Chelsea but managed to restore harmony to a squad in a state of discord. He returned the senior players to their key positions in the first team, something that Andre Villas-Boas had originally been brought in to change. He outstripped all expectations, securing the west London outfit their first ever Champions League title. It was not too dissimilar from the outlook that Avram Grant was introduced into. Chelsea arguably performed at their best when the pressure was not on them.
It is believed that the restoration of the power wielded by John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba within the team was the key to Chelsea’s win in Munich. While it is true that these players who had become disruptive at being forced into the background, allowing them to assert themselves on the squad once again was not the only reason that the Blues ended as winners.
Di Matteo may have taken a backwards step as he reinstated the old guard but it was wholly necessary given his remit to return the team to winning ways. He ensured morale became positive by seemingly handing power back to the senior players. It was exemplary man management. In order to get the best out of the club’s key players he needed to make them pivotal in taking the club forward. The players showed their appreciation with some fantastic performances, turning a potentially awful campaign into a double-winning season.
Jose Mourinho’s fantastic managerial career is the perfect example of the influence that a head coach can have at a club. He recently became the first manager to win domestic league titles in four different countries, but perhaps most impressively each came within just two years of taking the position. He took a suffering Porto to the top in his first full season and then brought Chelsea their first League championship in 50 years with his debut campaign. That was followed by two Scudettos in two years with Inter, his second and final season being a treble winning campaign. Most recently, at the end of his second year at Real Madrid, he overthrew Pep Guardiola’s magnificent Barcelona side to win La Liga. His impact wherever he goes shows that there is more to the game then just putting players on a pitch and at just 49-years-old you would not bet against him achieving even further success.
The manager gets a complete overview of the whole game from the touchline and can analyse the occurrences and develop ways to defeat the opponents. This is one of the key reasons that player-managers have become so rare. It is difficult to judge your team’s performance and formulate solid tactical ideas whilst under the additional pressure of playing. Mourinho again is the perfect example of live tactical alterations and tweaks as he scribbles down notes furiously which he then sends on to the field of play. Sam Allardyce also frequently watches the first half of a game from the stands so he can get a top-down view of the action and infer what changes are needed for the second half. It is such meticulous attention to detail that determines the success of a manager.
Ultimately he is the man that determines the direction of the club. He is first to receive the blame when times are bad, but equally the centre of the praise in contrasting situations. They determine the style of play and sometimes even the philosophy of the club. Arsene Wenger has instilled a belief in Arsenal’s youth system that is admirable and though he has not won a trophy in over 7 years, the club and its fans remain committed to the ideal. Sir Alex Ferguson has also built countless teams at Manchester United that has seen him lift 27 trophies whilst spending an unbelievable 25 years at Old Trafford. Such a bounty would never have been achieved without Ferguson.
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The quick-to-sack nature of past Premier League seasons is gone as clubs realise the necessity of having a strong figurehead to guide the team. While Chelsea’s Champions League triumph may have been largely down to the players, it was Di Matteo’s man management that restored faith in the team and led their late charge to glory. Get the right man for the job, and any team can go anywhere.
Harry Redknapp has no time for the Europa League. After tasting the money and glamour of the Uefa Champions League last season he is right to see it as a step down, a distraction. Tottenham Hotspur need to concentrate all their efforts on getting back into the top four.
When it became clear in May that Spurs would be playing in the Europa League this season, Redknapp could not make his disappointment clearer, describing it as: “one of those competitions that teams get in and they try to get out of.” His stance hasn’t softened and he remains adamant that he will concentrate on the domestic campaign and play Tottenham’s youth and squad players in Europe. “The young lads will get plenty of games in the Europa League because otherwise I think it’s a killer…. You’ve got no chance in the Premier League with that.” While Spurs are still capable of competing for the top four it makes sense to throw everything at this domestic goal.
Manchester City and Liverpool have invested heavily while Spurs continue to struggle to lure top players because of the wage structure. There is a danger that they could fall behind these big spenders. Spurs may not be as close to their rivals again for some time and it would be foolish to chase Europa League glory when they can still aim higher. (Considering they have only had 1 season of Champions League football it is a triumph that they have kept up for so long).
Redknapp’s dismissal of Europa this season is not a slap in the face for the fans, it is a statement of intent and ambition at the football club. Europa is a bloated, second tier European competition with a dwindling prestige. With the prize money for winning the whole tournament estimated at around £5 million and a Champions League run dwarfing that amount, it is no surprise that the competition is now grudgingly accepted.
I will turn on my T.V. on Thusday night’s Channel 5, remembering that Europa did bring us some exciting European nights not so long ago and I will support Niko Kranjcar and Andros Townsend playing in a 2,000 capacity stadium in Georgia, but I will follow the Premier League with far greater concern and interest, because like Redknapp, I know that the only way Tottenham can move up a level is by finishing the season in the top four, and that’s going to take everything we have this season.
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Steven Gerrard has not suffered a setback in his bid to return from a hamstring injury claims Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson.
The talismanic midfielder has not been available for the Reds since tearing his hamstring during England's friendly defeat to France a fortnight ago.
Reports had suggested that he aggravated the injury in training in midweek but Hodgson has stressed that the damage was only minimal.
He said:"There's no problem with Steven.
"It turned out that he just tweaked a bit of scar tissue. I spoke to him after Tuesday's training and he did say he felt he had tweaked something.
"But the medical people have had a look at him and said it was nothing, it was only scar tissue."
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Liverpool will be without Gerrard for their game against Aston Villa on Monday but he could line up to face Newcastle next Saturday if his rehabilitation remains on track.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
After watching Match of the Day 2 the other week, something struck me, something troubling – just why were the pundits so bad? On the sofa we had Alan Shearer, a person incapable of threading together a single coherent sentence and Robbie Savage, an excitable male hairdresser simply using his footballing pulpit as an excuse to partake in little more than that most dreaded of football dressing room clichés – ‘banter’. This was most certainly the C-team that had been sent out, which makes me wonder, just why is the standard of punditry on our big shiny boxes so poor?
On RTE, Irish viewers are regularly served up a mixture of lively debate, unfounded opinions and controversial judgements. On the whole, then, the exact opposite of what we have been treated to over here in England for quite some time. Graeme Souness, a regular on RTE, stated earlier in the week that he’d never be invited back on Sky if he actually said what he thought half the time and that the boundary lines between RTE and Sky are huge.
The main problem appears to be the reluctance of former players to speak out against players they may have played against, or have shared a dressing room with in the past. Alan Shearer, the king of the mundane pundits if ever there was one, often pipes up with pearls of wisdom such as ‘he’ll be disappointed that he’s let a goal in there’ and ‘it’s hit the woodwork, but he couldn’t have struck that any better’. What? I’m sorry, but, what? What does that even mean? What have I gained from listening to that?
Shearer is now the bane of my existence. I let out a huge exasperated sigh whenever I see him on the Match of the Day sofa. He’s a pointless individual that lacks the rudimentary knowledge to actually say anything worthy or of note. His presence ensures it’s going to be an arduous watch. The thought of simply sitting there with the programme on mute has often crossed my mind.
He sums up the unprepared state of mind that most pundits go on Match of the Day with these days. He seems to think punditry is basically talking us through with what happens on the screen. The whole point of having an ex-pro in your employ is that they have garnered a degree of expertise over the years; knowledge passed down to them from both their coaches and managers, which in theory should be reflected in their ability to dissect incidents in minute detail. In short, their main role is to tell us what we can’t see on the screen as laymen’s of the footballing fraternity.
This is clearly a concept well beyond Shearer’s capabilities. Rarely do we see him talking us through patterns of play or highlighting a player’s movements. The shocking thing, though, is that he is far from being alone in that respect, he’s simply the worst of a rotten bunch.
Can anyone forget the now famed example of his, ahem, ‘knowledge’ at work, after Hatem Ben Arfa’s impressive debut for his beloved Newcastle? Shearer confidently opined in reference to Ben Arfa that ‘no one really knows a great deal about him’.
This is Hatem Ben Arfa. A player that has been capped 8 times by France and has played for the country at every level right up to the senior side. A player that has played Champions League football on a regular basis for Lyon. A player that cost his next club Marseille £11m. If I know that, Alan, then why don’t you?
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Even just a cursory glance at his Wikipedia page would have increased his knowledge of Ben Arfa tenfold. It was an astounding display of both arrogance and ignorance in one fail swoop – quite the feat.
My main gripe though, is the sheer laziness of it all. After all, we can assume, they are paid handsomely by the BBC for their so called ‘expertise’. This is now their full-time job. They are paid to talk about football, yet appear to know nothing about it and simply cannot be bothered do even the bare minimum amount of research that such a prestigious position should require.
Over at ITV we have Andy Townsend, a man more interested in making friends it would seem than actually saying anything worth listening to. With Gareth Southgate, you get the feeling he knows what he’s talking about and would like to expand on it in more detail, but simply can’t due to time constraints – after all, Corrie is on afterwards and ITV have got to squeeze in another advert beforehand.
The lack of preparation from the pundits may be galling, but the assumption that this sub-standard fare is both palatable and insightful is close to insulting. When did we start demanding so little from our experts?
Switch over to Sky for their cricket coverage and it’s quite simply fantastic. The contrasts are stark. They don’t appeal to the lowest common denominator. If you don’t understand what they’re talking about, then tough, you’ll have to listen and learn. They impart wisdom; your knowledge of the game grows. Sadly, with concerns to football coverage, right across the board, it’s absolutely rubbish.
Gary Neville has made an excellent start at Sky so far. The change has been refreshing. While he may not quite stick the boot in as far as he should do on occasion, quite possibly through fear of upsetting someone, he at least isn’t afraid to criticise.
Replacing Andy Gray with a younger face was a wise move. Gray had long since stopped trying and had merely turned into a pantomime caricature of his younger self.
Jamie Redknapp or ‘top,top’ as most refer to him as now is a nice enough fellow. He dresses smartly and he obviously takes the job seriously enough, but he can often be found talking in circles, contradicting himself and then running out of breath and collapsing in a heap. Must have something to do with the incredibly tight trousers he wears. Whenever Souness is put next to him, besides looking scared stiff, Redknapp just looks woefully out of his depth.
On Match of the Day, Lee Dixon is decent on occasion, but appears to have fallen into a malaise recently. Mark Lawrenson is way past his sell-by-date and Alan Hansen, when he can be bothered at least, can still offer up a few kernels of constructive critique. However, during the World Cup, his disdain with which he treated the so called ‘lesser’ fixtures bordered on a dereliction of duty. He was there for the final, free booze and a nice tan, nothing more than that.
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Match of the Day should be held to a higher standard. It used to be the pinnacle of televised punditry. Looking around the studio at last weekend’s offering, those days have never seemed quite so far away.
Liverpool midfielders Raul Meireles and Alberto Aquilani could both be playing in Italy next season as they await offers from Serie A clubs Inter Milan and Fiorentina respectively, according to reports in The Daily Mail.
Meireles, 28, who was voted PFA Fans’ Player of the Year in his debut season at Anfield, could be parted with and it is believed Liverpool would be willing to accept a bid of £12.5million for the Portuguese star, following the Anfield club’s summer captures of Charlie Adam and Jordan Henderson.
Meanwhile Italy international Aquilani’s agent has claimed that he wanted to stay in Italy after impressing last season on a loan spell at Juventus, ESPN reported.
“Alberto’s thoughts were to stay in Italy, but this was not possible,” Aquilani’s agent Franco Zavaglia said to Radio Sportiva. “He had a positive season (at Juventus).”
Liverpool will be prepared for these departures as the new signings, combined with captain Steven Gerrard’s presence and the emergence of Lucas Leiva, have established a healthy competition for the position of central midfield at Liverpool.
Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish will use the funds from the Meireles deal to launch an improved bid for Aston Villa winger Stewart Downing, according to The People.
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The Kop club could become locked in battle with Arsenal for £20m-rated Downing with the North London outfit also said to be interested.
After Wednesday’s disappointing defeat from a young England side to a very tasty looking France outfit at Wembley, we finally got to see messrs Andy Carroll and Jordan Henderson in an England shirt for the senior team as well as catching another glimpse of Kieran Gibbs. The results were mixed with Carroll delivering a decent performance forced to feed off scraps, Gibbs looking comfortable despite his lack of match practice and Henderson looking a little lost in an unfamiliar holding role. With these three and of course Jack Wilshere sure to be playing for the national team for years to come, just what other youngsters are knocking on the door of the squad? Here’s a list of 10 for your perusal.
Some of these English youngsters are likely to be the mainstay of England’s squad at their home World Cup should their bid to host the 2018 World Cup be successful, but which ones will make the grade?
Click on the Back the Bid poster below to see the 10 English youngsters with bright futures:
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