Arsene Wenger has confirmed that Kieran Gibbs will miss Arsenal's top-of-the-table clash against Manchester United next Monday.
The defender had to be replaced in the first half of the 3-1 victory over Partizan Belgrade after picking up an ankle injury and Wenger has said the 21-year-old will not travel.
Gibbs has endured a difficult period over the course of the last year, with numerous injuries including a metatarsal problem as well as knee and ankle complaints.
Wenger revealed that, although Gibbs could face a spell on the sidelines, the injury is not as bad as was first feared and the defender has suffered a problem with his right ankle – not the left ankle which has caused him problems in the past.
"Kieran Gibbs has a twisted ankle, an ankle sprain," said Wenger following the victory over Partizan on Wednesday.
"I don't know how damaged his ankle is – he will have a scan tomorrow.
"He is unbelievably unlucky. No, (it is not the same ankle he injured recently), it is the right one tonight.
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"I spoke to him, he is quite down. He is on crutches. I cannot tell you more.
"We will know tomorrow, but he is already out for Monday night."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Sunderland defender John O’Shea has warned former club Manchester United that they will not be in for an easy game on the last day of the season at the Stadium of Light.
The Premier League champions are locked on points with cross-town rivals Manchester City, but are in second place due to an inferior goal difference.
United need to beat Sunderland on the last day and hope QPR can take points off City, but O’Shea is predicting a difficult day for the Red Devils.
“First and foremost, you want to do well for yourself and your own team,” the Black Cats man told The Guardian.
“It could be a huge game for United, depending on how City do, but we want to finish with a win for our fans and we want to try to get in the top 10.”
Roberto Mancini has stated in the media that United would have an easy game against Sunderland, but O’Shea disagrees wholeheartedly.
“Believe me, the two times City have played against us this season, they knew it wasn’t an easy game. We’ve taken four points off them, and it should have been six if we think about the game at their place [a 3-3 draw in which Sunderland led 3-1].
“He had obviously forgotten to check the fixtures list properly.
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“I think he is starting to enjoy his psychological games but, as the gaffer said, to call the integrity of the Premier League into question is disappointing. He’s going for the title and he’s going to try certain things. But he doesn’t need to do that,” he concluded.
Andre Villas-Boas has been named the seventh Chelsea manager in only the last eight years and whilst his appointment may have come as a surprise to some, the 33-year old has brought an air of optimism and excitement to Stamford Bridge that already appears to have Chelsea fans itching for the season to get underway. Ashley Cole yesterday insisted that, with the addition of more new faces at the club, he sees no good reason as to why his side could not compete strongly on all fronts, and confidently claimed that even the treble was on the cards at Chelsea for the first time in the clubs history. It seems then, that while Cole’s comments may seem somewhat unrealistic for a club that have just failed to pick up any silverware for the first time in three years, this air of optimism and confidence is being felt not only by the fans, but by everyone involved with the club.
We must remember however, that this kind of optimism and excitement has been evident before at Chelsea, and although the likes of Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti were able to fulfil their promises of success and silverware during their reigns, those managers who were not so successful put their reputation on the line, and ultimately faced public humiliation in joining the Abramovich firing line. Whilst Mourinho was able to leave Chelsea with his reputation intact and go on to lead Inter Milan to an historic treble, it seems his successors at Stamford Bridge have been far less fortunate or successful in the jobs they have landed, or have remained out of a job since leaving the club altogether.
Avram Grant took over from Mourinho in 2007, and despite guiding the club to their first ever Champions League final, he was given his marching orders by Abramovich after less than a year in charge. Since leaving Chelsea, Grant was appointed at Portsmouth and later West Ham, both of whom he was unable to keep in the Premier League. Although Grant’s CV may not be full of the trophies and honours that one would expect of a Chelsea manager, he was still considered to be the ‘right man for the job’ after Mourinho’s departure. Nowadays however, he seems to be considered only for clubs fighting for survival, rather than those fighting for silverware.
After Grant’s sacking, Abramovich opted to bring in Luiz Felipe Scolari. Here was a manager with a vast amount of honours to his name, including a World Cup with the Brazilian national side. After 8 months at Chelsea however, Abramovich called an end to the Scolari reign, and the initial buzz and excitement that had surrounded his appointment had quickly diminished, as Chelsea fans came to recognize what was now a recurring chain of events at their club. Scolari went on to manage in the Uzbek League before returning to Palmeiras, the Brazilian side he had left nearly 10 years earlier. Whilst he may not like to admit it, this can surely only be seen as a step back Scolari’s managerial career, and one that he will ultimately hold the Chelsea hierarchy to be responsible for.
Most recently of course, we saw the departure of Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea. After completing a domestic double at the club for the first time in its history, an inconsistent second season saw his side finish only second in the league and without a trophy to boast. Defeat on the last day of the season saw Ancelotti facing the inevitability of losing his job, and despite being linked with positions at both Aston Villa and QPR, Carlo has opted to take time away from coaching, at least for the time being.
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Abramovich’s appointment of Villas-Boas is certainly a brave one. However, it seems that Villas-Boas’ decision to take on such a role may in fact be even braver. Abramovich knows that should his dream of Champions League glory not be fulfilled sooner rather than later, then there are others who he can bring in to have another go. For Villas-Boas, failure at Chelsea may ruin the name and reputation that he has built himself as a manager in Portugal. His CV, although relatively short, does speak for itself, and his appointment is certainly an exciting prospect for any football fan, not just those in West London. Whilst there are those who are worried that Abramovich may be taking a risk with Villas-Boas, one cannot help but fear that Villas-Boas has taken an even bigger risk with his career by taking charge at Chelsea football club.
There comes a time almost every season for sides exceeding pre- campaign expectations to experience a reality check. With the inconsistent nature of the majority of the title contending teams, however, this year has presented a major opportunity for an unheralded club to really compete with the biggest sides.
Bolton were excellent in beating Blackburn last time out having spent a large proportion of the second half with only 10 men. The team spirit developed by Owen Coyle has become very evident at the Reebok, and this will surely be tested by a Sunderland side with arguably one of the strongest forward lines in the league.
Steve Bruce will be missing a number of key players defensively. With Titus Bramble still out and Anton Ferdinand struggling, the Trotters may well return to their tactics under previous managers and put physical pressure on makeshift centre-half Nedum Onuoha. How he handles Kevin Davies will be key.
Tottenham’s hopes of finishing in the top four hang in the balance after a disappointing 2-1 home defeat to Norwich on Monday.
Anthony Pilkington gave the courageous visitors the lead after 13 minutes, before Jermain Defoe equalised with a deft chip over John Ruddy just after the half hour mark.
However, an Elliott Bennett strike in the second half gave the Canaries victory at White Hart Lane, meaning that Spurs stay two points behind Arsenal in the standings.
Harry Redknapp admitted that it was a poor result for his team, and prioritised finishing in the top four rather than winning back third place.
“We have not been in bad form the last few weeks, but today was a setback. We had a bad day,” he confessed to Sky Sports.
“It is all still to play for though.
“It is going to be close, but there are still five games to go. It is the team who wants it most.
“We would settle for finishing fourth, Champions League football is the key.
“It would be lovely to finish above Arsenal, but that is going to be tough now.
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“It is still all to play for – Chelsea have to play Arsenal, Newcastle have to play Chelsea, Chelsea have to play Liverpool away, so who knows?” he stated.
So it seems Roberto Mancini wants to replace Manchester City’s mercurial Argentinian with a fellow countryman. The Italian has earmarked Atletico Madrid’s Sergio Agüero as the man he wants to step into the soon to be vacated shoes of captain and talismanic goal scorer Carlos Tevez. According to The Sun, City are in advanced talks with Atletico over a £35 million pound deal for the 23 year old.
Mancini sees him as the ideal successor to Tevez who looks likely to leave Eastland’s once and for all after months of grumbling about his future at the club. Off the field we had it all from Tevez last season with the player slapping a transfer request in, considering early retirement and falling out with a number of executives at the club.
But in his two years on the field he’s proved to be simply invaluable during the clubs rise up the Premier League. His commitment and intensity on the pitch coupled with him consistently finding the back of the net and boasting record better than any City forward over the last 10 years. Sadly though it looks like Tevez won’t be wearing the famous light blue next season and Mancini want’s Agüero as City’s new idol.
But, if he does finally leave Atletico and take up residence in the blue half of Manchester will he be able to replace his fellow countryman? It would be foolish of Mancini to expect him to replicate what Tevez offers to City not just in attack but also all over the field. The pressure on the club to win trophies and perform at the high end of the Premier League is 100 times more intense than it was five years ago.
Only in the last two years have City finally started to show some sort of progress and that coincided with Tevez’s arrival at the club. Everyone knew how good he was at neighbours United but he has taken things to a whole new level at City, which culminated in winning the FA Cup last season and qualification to the Champions League.
Tevez plays like a bulldog. His stocky physique is perfect for the high paced rough and tumble Premier League. His ability to barge people off and hold up the ball despite his diminutive five foot eight height is remarkable. Agüero is a similar size but not as well built as Tevez. Then there’s his insatiable nature to chase down and be a nuisance to defenders which is something City fans haven’t seen since the days of the Wasp himself Paul Dickov. Can you see Agüero chasing lost causes and make defenders run scared?
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When it comes down to technical ability Agüero probably edges it. His light footedness on the ball and ability to glide past defenders without breaking a sweat is a joy to watch at times. He has a footballing brain that so many of us dream of possessing. Then again you do get around thirty minutes on the ball in Spain to decide what you want to do. It would be risky to bring Agüero in and expect him to adapt to his new surroundings and pace of the Premier League whilst also replacing Tevez. The pressure on his shoulders could turn him into another expensive City striking flop.
Impatient City fans have already seen the likes of Emmanuel Adebayor, Roque Santa Cruz, Craig Bellamy, Jo, Felipe Caicedo and even Edin Dzeko sign for big money and perform at a standard well below where the club aspires to be. However for a player who made his debut at 15 for Independiente before making the move to Atletico aged 18, pressure would be something he’s used too. But playing in the Premier League with fans screaming at you every week and expectations exceedingly high it can be a daunting prospect even for the most experience of players.
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There is no doubting Agüero’s abilities as a footballer in La Liga but coming to the Premier League and trying to fill the boots of Tevez will be a tough task if it does transpire. At 23 he does have time on his side but in the burdensome environment that is England’s top division time is a luxury that might not be afforded.
It’s all become a bit familiar hasn’t it? I don’t know what it is, but every time England are due to play, whether it’s a friendly or a major tournament, you can’t help but be embraced by the anticipation that this time, we have really turned a corner.
Unfortunately, we have been let down. Again. The stale performance against France prolonged the feeling of embarrassment felt post world cup, whilst our opposition, who had a similarly awful summer, seemed to have firmly put their disgraceful time in South Africa behind them.
Fabio Capello now has to deal with everything which is inevitably going to thrown at him. Liverpool’s physiotherapist, Darren Burgess, used Twitter to vent his frustration at how long Steven Gerrard played, the media have decided the youngsters aren’t good enough, despite feeling they should have gone to the World Cup and Gareth Southgate even suggested pre match that Andy Carroll should have been left in the stands, to warn him about him future off-the-field conduct.
None of this is new, though. The fallout from an England game is as predictable as Audley Harrison hitting the canvas, but we must look for positives in time for the next England game so we can become full of expectancy once more.
Here’s five things I learnt from England last night:
1. Gerrard should be captain. I’m a huge fan of Rio Ferdinand and I think the assurance he brings to England and Manchester United’s defence is irreplaceable, but if we are going to get the best out of Steven Gerrard, then the only way is to hand him the armband. It shouldn’t take something like this for the Liverpool skipper to step up, but he seems to thrive on the added responsibility and becomes Beckham-like in his one-man mission to win games for his country when he is captain. I got the feeling that had he been wearing the armband, he wouldn’t have let Mathieu Valbuena run past him quite so easily for France’s second goal.
2. The kids need time. After that joke of a World Cup, Capello had no option but to look to the future. Marcel Desailly said last night that the youngsters aren‘t ready, but they’re never going to be unless they are given chances, and last night was the perfect opportunity for that. Andy Carroll was fighting up top on his own with little service, which isn’t uncommon for an England striker, and I’m sure Jordan Henderson would have learnt a thing or two about international football after having a tough night, to say the least. But they weren’t alone. The senior players didn’t exactly shine so the kids by no means disgraced themselves. International football is another step-up from the Premier League which is why we so often struggle, but the more exposed the younger players or to it, the better they will become.
3.Phil Jagielka is not a right back. In the interest of using these friendly games to look at other options, why did Capello start Jagielka at right-back? He has been a rock playing centre back for Everton and England when called upon, so we know he’s good enough and an option should Ferdinand and Terry continue to be plagued by injuries. Micah Richards was on the bench and is much more acclimatised to life as a full-back. He is a real prospect for England and now he seems to be back to form and fitness, there is no reason why he can’t be competing with Glen Johnson.
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4. Adam Johnson and Peter Crouch have to start. Peter Crouch must be starting to think he’s done something to really annoy Fabio Capello. 22 goals in 42 international game speaks for itself, irrespective of who it’s against. I can understand not starting him last night; the game represented a chance for Carroll among others to show what they can do. During the summer, though, Crouch was ignored to the point where he might as well have not been in South Africa, but every time he plays, he seems the only one likely to threaten the oppositions goal. Similarly, Adam Johnson looks a breath of fresh air whenever he comes on. Admittedly he’s not been playing as regularly as maybe he should at Man City, but I don’t see a better option to fill that jinxed left-hand side slot. He provides energy and is direct in attack, plus he can actually cross and score goals!
5. England miss Rooney. Like it or not, there is no denying Wayne Rooney was sorely missed against France. When Capello’s troops needed someone to take the game by the scruff of the neck, they were found wanting. His aggressive nature and ability to creative something out of nothing gives England an extra edge, even when things aren’t going to plan. If Capello can make sure he stays forward to work alongside Carroll (or Crouch) instead of coming deep, then England would look much more of a threat than they did against France.
The most notable point from England’s defeat, was the gulf in class between ourselves and the French. They seem to have forgiven and forgotten the summer’s antics and are now building with a togetherness which Capello’s men lack. The future looks bright but it’s going to take time. There was no disgrace in being beaten as long as the game was useful – food for thought Mr. Capello.
An 11th home defeat of the season earned Leeds United another unwanted record in one of the most disappointing campaigns in recent memory. The 2-1 loss to Leicester City on the final day ensured that the Whites ended the season having suffered more home defeats than in any previous campaign.
The game was United’s season diluted into a handy ninety minute bite sized chunk. Leeds showed promise in the early stages of the game, with some neat and incisive football causing Leicester some early problems. However, the Whites lost the iniative and handed the visitors the lead with some characteristic comedy defending. Michael Brown sliced the ball horribly into the air in the centre circle putting the hapless Danny Pugh under pressure from Martin Waghorn. The former Manchester United man was caught in two minds, and used neither of them as he failed in his attempts to get the ball back to Andy Lonergan, allowing the Foxes striker to stride on and fire past the United keeper.
The majority of the second half was a non-event until Leeds stepped up a gear in the closing moments, roared on by the ever faithful Elland Road crowd. It looked as if the fans were to be rewarded with a point when Danny Webber forced the ball over the line for his first (and probably only) Leeds goal following good work by Robert Snodgrass with just eight minutes remaining.
However this season has seen Leeds find new ways to add to the suffering of the fans, and they allowed Leicester to snatch the points right at the death as the ball ricocheted into the path of substitute Harry Panayiotou to deflect the ball past Lonergan.
The game itself was of little or no importance to either club, although the result ensured Leicester finished above the Whites in the final table, with Leeds finishing the season in a lowly 14th place.
One of the major talking points of the match was the reception afforded to Jermaine Beckford on his first return to Elland Road since his departure following his promotion winning goal against Bristol Rovers two years ago. The Leicester striker was serenaded with the song commemorating his goal at Old Trafford in the famous FA Cup victory over Manchester United, and he showed his affections to the crowd with waves and blown kisses. This apparent love-in must have infuriated Nigel Pearson who withdrew the striker at the interval.
The likelihood of Beckford returning to Elland Road are slim, but it will be one of the rumours that will begin to circulate now that the season has drawn to a close. Neil Warnock’s real work as Leeds United manager will start now as he begins to dismantle the current squad and begins to assemble his own. With the signing of Portsmouth centre half Jason Pearce expected to be announced this week, United fans will be hoping that he is the first of the many signings that will be required if Leeds are to challenge for promotion next season.
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If the signings are not forthcoming, then Ken Bates can expect more afternoons like the uncomfortable one he had yesterday. The Leeds United Supporters Trust arranged a “party” in his new East Stand development, and spent the majority of the match berating the Whites chairman, and his chief executive Shaun Harvey.
With a disastrous season consigned to the history books, Leeds face a make or break summer. Just two years ago the club seemed on the up, with a return to the Championship, average crowds close to 30K and a general feeling that the good times were about to return. Two years on, all that good feeling has disappeared, crowds have dwindled and there is a definite feeling of malaise around Elland Road. The club have launched their new kit for next season with the tag line “New Shirt, New Start.” It’s time for the club to ensure that is more than just words and show the supporters that the good times are just around the corner.
Melbourne Victory say their interest in Harry Kewell is ‘very real’ as speculation continues to rage on which club the Socceroo will join.Kewell has left Turkish powerhouse Galatasaray, with Victory said to be rivalling fellow A-League clubs Newcastle Jets and Sydney FC in their bid to bring the 32-year-old back to Australia.
While the MLS, English Premier League and clubs in the Middle East have also been touted as a potential destinations for the former Leeds United and Liverpool forward, Melbourne Victory chief executive officer Richard Wilson confirmed the club’s interest to theworldgame.com.au on Friday.
The report linked the Victory with a package involving a wage plus image rights, a percentage of profits from new memberships sold and a share of gate takings and new sponsorship deals. It is claimed the Jets deal includes a salary of up to AU$2 million a season.
“Our interest in Harry Kewell is very real and on-going,” Wilson said.
“We can’t say too much right now, other than to say we are very keen.”
“Harry’s value to the A-League and Australian football in general would be fantastic. It would be as good as anything that has ever happened in the competition and probably better.”
Wilson said ‘sometimes you are not in control of deadlines’, intimating that he was unsure of when Kewell and manager Bernie Mandic would make a decision on a new club.
Manchester City's England midfielder James Milner has hit out at continuing rumours of a dressing-room split at Eastlands.
The papers seem convinced that there are problems at City following two consecutive defeats, but Milner insists that such talk is far from being true.
He told reporters:"When we see nonsense written in the papers it pulls us closer together.
"When it seems like the whole world is against you, that is when you pull together.
"These things will make us stronger as a football club. You go through times when things aren't quite right and it's important to keep things right off the field.
"I've been at Newcastle and Leeds where the press seemed be outside the training ground whenever you drove in. We can't control what's off the field, we can only control results.
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"Having on-field disagreements says we're very hungry to win football matches. We'd be worried if there wasn't that hunger because we're desperate to win trophies.
"In changing rooms up and down the country you'll see people disagreeing, but it's forgotten as soon as you step off the pitch. We're a tight group."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email