Manchester City goalkeeper Shay Given has confirmed that he will seek a loan exit from Eastlands if he has not been given a first-team opportunity before the transfer window reopens in January.

The 34-year-old Republic of Ireland international has had to act as back-up to Joe Hart so far this term and is not too happy with that situation.

He told The Sunday Times:"It's very, very frustrating. I know it doesn't matter what I do on the training pitch, I won't be playing at the weekend.

"If I'm flying around like Clark Kent in goals, I still won't play on Saturday. That can be demoralising.

"The club said I wasn't going anywhere and that was frustrating. We'll see what happens come January and hopefully if the situation's the same, I can go on loan and try and get some games in.

"I've never said I want to leave Man City. I believe it's a big club that in the next couple of years is going to do big things. I want to be part of that, but I also want to be playing football.

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"I wouldn't mind where a loan was and wouldn't rule out abroad if it was a good club and a good team, no disrespect to a club that's fighting relegation and getting pummelled every week – though at the minute that probably seems better than what I'm doing."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

For some the dive is a useful weapon in a footballer’s armoury. A well timed, theatrical tumble may just con a gullible referee, thereby securing your team an important advantage. For others (listen to Call Collymore!) use of the dive is flagrant cheating, depriving the players and fans of a fair contest. Whether outraged or discreetly sympathetic of footballers’ amateur dramatics, here are ten memorable moments of diving and simulation.

Eduardo

This was one of the more controversial dives in recent years. The former Arsenal striker Eduardo appeared to dive past Celtic keeper Artur Boruc but subsequently won a penalty. Uefa opted to ban the Croatian for three European matches but this was overturned on appeal.

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Rivaldo

Nobody witnessed the ball rebound of Brazilian’s leg and hit his face but it must have done judging by his Oscar worthy performance. The ball-kicker Hakan Unsal was duly dismissed for Turkey in this 2002 World Cup encounter. Rivaldo was later fined but unrepentant: “Obviously the ball didn’t hit me in the face, but I was still the victim.”

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Diego Simeone

David Beckham’s name was mud after being sent off for kicking out at Simeone in England’s 1998 World Cup last-16 match against Argentina. However the Argentinean fell to the deck in a remarkable dramatic fashion. “I took advantage,” he later said.

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Alberto Gilardino

Some dives can appear deceptively genuine. This could not be further from the case when the former Milan forward Gilardino inexplicably went to ground in a Champions League match at Celtic Park. His bizarre dive provoked the ire of the crowd and the referee.

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Jurgen Klinsmann

The former Tottenham favourite is credited with having initiated the staged dive with the inclusion of a few forward rolls. Football was never to be the same again. In the 1990 World Cup final his histrionics saw Argentina’s Pedro Monzon red-carded instantly.

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Kader Keita

An ill-tempered World Cup group match this year between the Ivory Coast and Brazil culminated in a transparent dive by Keita. The Ivorian ran into Brazilian playmaker Kaka and may have received the slightest nudge to the midriff. The clutching of the face trick ensued as he fell to the ground like a proverbial sack of spuds. Much to his team-mates’ dismay Kaka received a second yellow card.

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Steven Gerrard

For both club and country Gerrard has been something of a serial offender. Say it quietly because Englishmen do not dive and if they do it is surely the malign influence of the league’s foreign contingent. Against Andorra in 2007 the talismanic midfielder was out of options and promptly opted for a tumble in the box. A booking followed.

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Paul Alcock

After some unseemly fisticuffs with Martin Keown, Sheffield Wednesday’s Paolo Di Canio was legitimately shown a red card by referee Paul Alcock. However the ref should have been red carded for simulation after falling backwards for what seemed an eternity following the Italian’s petulant push.

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Kyle Lafferty

Glasgow Rangers’ 6ft 4in striker dropped to the ground with his hands clasped over his face after squaring up to Aberdeen’s Charlie Mulgrew. The left-back was red carded but even the Rangers fans appeared mildly embarrassed by their player’s antics. Lafferty later described the incident as the biggest mistake of his career.

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Slaven Bilic

If a player is contemplating using Lafferty’s feigning frolics it is probably best reserved for a World Cup Semi-Final. Bilic, now manager of Croatia, had appeared to take a knock to the head from Laurent Blanc’s flailing arms whilst defending a French set piece. In practice he had received a minor push to his upper chest. Blanc was penalised and missed France’s 1998 final against Brazil. But the former West Ham defender was defiant: “I am not a cheat. I am honest. I am not to blame. After all, he hit me in the face.”

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Fulham boss Mark Hughes has defended Danny Murphy, after the midfielder came under attack for comments criticising fellow Premier League teams for an over-physical approach.

Murphy named Stoke City, Wolves and Blackburn Rovers as sides he felt stepped over the mark and has since been attacked by the managers of each of those three clubs, as well as a number of other leading figures.

However, Hughes believes that Murphy was merely speaking his mind and making a pertinent point.

He commented:"You must recognise that Danny is at the coalface. In his view in certain games against certain opposition, opponents have over-stepped the mark.

"You have to accept that because even as a manager you don't know the intent of somebody.

"As a player I knew when someone was over-stepping the line or just making a fair and competitive tackle.

"There's a lot been said about Danny being disrespectful to the managers, but having had conversations with him he has huge respect for the managers of the teams he mentioned.

"Maybe the fact we had recent history against the teams he mentioned was fresh in his mind and he was giving examples.

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"We're disappointed by the reaction to it. You must respect he has an opinion. He was being honest.

"He's an honest guy and has forthright views. He's quite prepared to have his say. He's probably been surprised by the reaction."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

Both Manchester United and England fans’ hearts must have sunk when they heard the news that Owen Hargreaves’ long awaited return for Manchester United had only lasted five minutes. Thankfully for Owen Hargreaves, it was only a hamstring injury, that to be totally fair could have happened to anyone on the pitch. However, how long can Manchester United hold onto the hope that Hargreaves will be the same player that won both the Premier League and Champions League in his first season at Old Trafford. When Owen Hargreaves’ contract expires he will be 30. Is it time for Manchester United to move into the transfer market and look to replace the England international.

The worry for Manchester United fans must be the interview from Sir Alex Ferguson directly after the 2-1 win against Wolves. Ferguson spoke to Manchester radio station, Key 103 and gave his thoughts on why Hargreaves broke down only five minutes into his return.

‘It is possibly because of a lack of match fitness,’ Ferguson told Manchester radio station Key103. ‘Maybe a bit of anxiety at playing his first game had a bit to do with it too.’

This is the issue that Ferguson has to contend with. Does the manager have any faith in Hargreaves’ mental state. Before his return against Sunderland last season. Ferguson again stated that it was actually Hargreaves’ own mental state that was holding him back from returning. It is very difficult to damn a player who has worked so hard to get himself into a position where he was ready to play, but if his mental state isn’t right it seems unfair on the player to keep building him up only for his confidence to be knocked every time he breaks down. Owen Hargreaves is an exceptional player, but he is no use to Manchester United on the bench. Unfortunately it is time to look at replacing the midfielder.

In January Manchester United need to enter the transfer market in search of a world class defensive midfielder, who at the same time has the passing ability and work rate of Hargreaves. United’s top target should be Lassana Diarra of Real Mardid. With Jose Mourinho purchasing Sami Khedira it seems that Diarra is not needed at the Bernabeu. Diarra is only 23 and would retain his sell on value, a factor that should interest Ferguson. Diarra has also spoken of his frustration of being on the bench at the Bernabeu and has suggested he will be looking for first team football in January.

Manchester United need a player like Diarra. A strong robust midfielder, who has grown up since his days at Arsenal and Chelsea. Diarra would offer United a greater balance to the midfield. At the moment the problems are clear. Michael Carrick can’t tackle and Darren Fletcher’s distribution is poor at times. Added to this the fact that Paul Scholes can’t play every week, United have midfield issues. Diarra would without doubt give greater stability and freedom to Manchester United’s midfield.

Manchester United have waited too long for Owen Hargreaves to return – and to return the player he once was. The fear must be that Manchester United could wait even longer, to find out that Hargreaves will never be the player he once was. Have United waited long enough for the player to prove his fitness. The reality has to be they have, and they must look at replacing the midfielder. Without doubt, there is so much admiration and respect for Hargreaves in the way he has battled to get back to a position of recovery.

However, when the problem has moved from mental to physical, can Manchester United hold on to much hope of him returning and commanding a starting place in the team. I am not saying for one minute that Manchester United should hang Hargreaves out to dry – far from it. The facts are United need Hargreaves playing week in week out. If this is not possible, and the events of the last week suggest this, its time to look at replacing the midfielder.

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As with any local derby, whenever the two Manchester clubs met there was always that extra bit of tension in the air. Nowadays though, thanks to City’s new found riches, the game isn’t just about local pride. Honours are up for grabs.

The first match between United and the new look City caused a huge stir. Everybody in football was talking about it. For the first time ever, the blue half of Manchester arrived expectant. It was almost supposed to represent a little bit of revenge over Ferguson’s men for all the years they had to sit and watch United lift trophy after trophy.

In Ferguson’s mind, the noisy neighbours had to be silenced and a message needed to go out that there was still only one team in Manchester. It all made for a very entertaining match up and the seven-goal thriller did not disappoint.

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There is a reason that outside of the two godfathers of the Premier League, Arsene Wenger and Sir Alex Ferguson, that David Moyes is the division’s longest serving manager. The Everton board have historically been loath to sack managers, and their decision to stick with the former Preston man has paid dividends over previous years.

However, whilst some may argue that the plight a Moyes managed Everton were in five years ago was far more severe than the situation they currently find themselves, this weekend’s meeting with Wigan is one of the more vital games for Everton since Moyes came to Goodison Park, eight years ago.

Wigan can hardly afford to lose either, a point against Stoke last time out a little fortunate for a side that have not played well since the visit of Liverpool last month. Whilst neither team would admit it publicly, a draw may be enough to edge a little further away from Wolves and West Ham at the bottom of the table. In a season where anything could happen at the bottom of the division, point accumulation is absolutely vital.

Prediction: 1-1

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There is nothing like watching an exciting youngster in the Premier League week-in week-out and seeing them develop at a rate of knots. Every year some youngsters fall by the wayside, while others take the Premiership by storm, and it is the latter that we’re concentrating on here. To be given the FootballFanCast.com Premier League Young Player of the Year award for 2010 you have to be a youngster who has already fulfilled a great deal of their potential, yet you feel there is still more to come from them and this is what makes them such exciting talents. They have to have experience beyond their years and already be in contention for international honours. Which Premier League youngsters have you been impressed with this season? Here are the nominees for the FootballFanCast.com Young Player of the Year for 2010…

Click on the image below to see the nominees

Spurs manager Harry Redknapp is expected to test Aston Villa’s resolve once more by making an offer for England star Ashley Young.

Redknapp, who is well known to be big admirer of Young, was frustrated to miss out on his target over the summer and will pull out all the stops to get his man in January.

It is thought that Spurs are likely to meet the £15 million asking price, as well as giving Gerard Houllier the pick of their squad players which includes the likes of Robbie Keane, Niko Kranjcar, David Bentley and Jamie O’Hara.

Young’s current contract expires in 2012 and Villa are scared of letting him leave for free in a years time. It is thought that Spurs’ cash plus players offer is tempting the midlands club who could increase their own transfer budget as well as being given a ready made replacement for Young.

Redknapp may also use the deal as a chance to give injury-plagued defender Jonathan Woodgate some first-team football. It is thought that Spurs could send Woodgate on loan to Villa as part of the Young deal, an offer which could help to sure up Houllier’s shaky defence.

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The 25 year-old midfielder joined Villa from Watford in 2007 for around £9 million and has made 11 appearances for England since that time. He has consistently been a star performer at Villa Park since his move, but the lure of Champions League football at Tottenham could prove to be too tempting for the ambitious England man.

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Birmingham City boss Alex McLeish is hoping for a little less drama after his side’s latest comeback against Coventry in the FA Cup.

Birmingham came from 1-0 down – 3-1 on aggregate – to beat West Ham United and reach the final of the Carling Cup on Wednesday.

And they were forced to repeat the trick at St Andrew’s on Saturday, fighting back from 2-0 down against Championship club Coventry to eventually win 3-2 and progress to the fifth round.

“I wouldn’t want to live through that too often with the stress levels, but I thought the team played well today,” McLeish said.

“There was a lot of really good stuff.”

“We had to show great strength of character again against Coventry and it underlined the importance of having a squad with quality. The more intense the competition the better from my point of view.”

“We shouldn’t have made it hard for ourselves because we started great,” he added.

“Coventry are obviously very dangerous up front. The big lad (Clive) Platt was a handful and of course we all know about Marlon King. But I knew there was goals in it for us.”

McLeish credited David Bentley with turning the tide – the loan signing from Tottenham struck in the 35th minute to drag Birmingham back into contention.

“Bentley’s was a cracker,” McLeish said.

“We needed that. If we’d gone in 2-0 down it would have been much tougher. The second half was again a measure of this squad’s resilience and their desire not to give up until the final whistle.”

Coventry manager Aidy Boothroyd felt his team’s ambition got the better of them as they surrendered their lead in the second half.

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“I thought it was a terrific occasion and I’m afraid we got caught up in it in the second half and wanted to try to score three and four goals rather than being sensible,” Boothroyd said.

“If somebody’s bigger than you and better than you, you don’t go toe to toe with them – and that’s what we did.”

“For some strange reason, despite what was said at half-time, we went all out to try to beat Birmingham City, a Premier League team, convincingly when really what we should have done was weathered the storm, kept calm and hit them on a sensible counter-attack.”

Chelsea signing Fernando Torres has trained with the Blues on Thursday, heightening speculation he will debut on Sunday against Liverpool.

The 50-million-pound acquisition went through the motions at Chelsea’s Cobham training home alongside fellow signing David Luiz, who transferred to London from Portuguese club Benfica.

It has fuelled belief the Spaniard will face his old side less than seven days after transferring from Anfield to Stamford Bridge.

While Torres could lay claims for an immediate start in Carlo Ancelotti’s side despite Chelsea packing an attack consisting of Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka, Luiz is more realistic about his efforts to gain a place in the back four for the English champions.

“I always knew there would be competition because Chelsea is a big club and you have to be a top player to play here,” Luiz said.

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“It is a big challenge for me, but I have a strong desire to get a space in this group and establish myself and learn from my new team-mates to become a better player and have more skills.”