Last Tuesday, Jermain Defoe commented publicly on his frustration of not being picked for Tottenham as often as he would like. He told the Daily Mail: “It’s been hard. You start to think: ‘What am I doing here?’ I’m used to playing in big games.” This attitude is just what Tottenham could do without in what is going to be a massive few months at White Hart Lane.
“I remember playing against Charlton (in the FA Cup in January) and scoring two goals, then the next weekend I missed out. And it was like when I decided to leave here and went to Portsmouth (in 2008) because I got to a situation where I thought: ‘I’m not sitting on the bench.’” – Defoe.
He is only going to be more angry now that he did not feature against Milan at White hart Lane, after scoring a brace against Wolves the weekend before. To an extent, I can understand his frustration, but to say he thought about leaving in January is just selfish and ridiculous.
Defoe has clearly got something to offer, his goals not his opinion. His two goals against Wolves came out of nothing, and that is the kind of thing Tottenham need from a striker at the moment. Not this sort of sulking in the media’s eye. I find it so frustrating that some footballers think the game revolves around their individual success and not their team’s. Corluka and Kranjcar, who have not kicked up a fuss despite playing well, put the likes of Defoe to shame.
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I admit, Defoe has suffered as a result of the Van Der Vaart influence. Harry plays one man in attack with Van Der Vaart just behind him, this season that has rarely been Defoe. But he has been injured for a lot of the season, or banned. He can hardly expect to get into the Tottenham team that has played so well in the Champions League without him.
As an aside, Tottenham do not need any players moaning, they need a squad of players focused on playing their best and contributing to the best of their ability. Deofe has often shown his ability and last season he scored 24 goals. But even then, he dominated the smaller teams and has not produced goals often enough against bigger clubs.
In the last three years against Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, Aston Villa and Manchester City, Defoe has scored just 4 goals in 27 appearances. Meanwhile, against Hull, Portsmouth, Burnley, Wigan and West Ham he has scored an impressive 16 goals in 17 appearances.
People remember the hat-tricks and the 5 v Wigan and label him as a reliable goal scorer. But what they forget is that he is ineffective against the best teams. He is not, by any stretch of the imagination, invaluable to the team.
Tottenham are going through one of the most exciting periods in their history. They do not need these distractions from a player who is more interested in his own success than the team’s. If he cannot tolerate being on the bench and wants to leave, like he did in 2008, then so be it. If his attitude does not change, Tottenham should let him move in the summer.
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The Italian Football FanCast is the podcast for fans of Serie A, Calcio and the World Cup.
In the final edition of the Italian Football FanCast of this season, we look back at the Azzurri’s disastrous World Cup campaign.
A floundering performance against Slovakia made sure Italy finished rock bottom of their group with a measly 2 points.
Who is to blame for this mess… the players, the FIGC or the coach, Marcelo Lippi?
To help us discuss the 3-2 defeat to Slovakia, we have the ‘Man in Milan’, Kris Voakes on the line plus a special guest appearance from the one and only Marco Materazzi.
Join the Facebook group – Italian ‘Serie A’ Football FanCast.
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QPR are still searching for their first home win of the season after being held by Blackburn who slipped to the foot of the Premier League table despite gaining a well earned point.
Rangers boss Neil Warnock will be delighted with his sides response after their hiding at London neighbours Fulham a fortnight ago but will be tearing his hair out after they squandered yet another chance to win on home turf. His opposite number Steve Kean will be delighted by Rovers’ resilience as they ended a sequence of back-to-back defeats. They were lucky though not to make it three on the bounce as the R’s dominated the game and should have had a late penalty only for referee Mark Clattenburg to wave away the host’s appeals. Both goals came within the first half hour with Heidar Helguson scoring his 100th goal in English football and his first in the top flight this season. But they couldn’t hold that lead for very long as Christopher Samba rose highest in the penalty area to head home past Paddy Kenny.
It was a welcome change for Kean as his side battled admirably to keep the R’s at bay whilst protests over his tenure at Ewood Park subsided for a week although more are planned for next week. As for the Hoops it’s yet winless game at home although the point did take them into the top half. Both sides endeavoured to attack with some shoddy defending aiding their causes. The visitors were almost gifted the lead when Anton Ferdinand clipping his own crossbar after a calamitous attempt at clearing the ball. Rovers were also guilty of making mistakes and they should have done better in clearing Helguson’s header from a corner as the home side took the lead after 16 minutes. The Icelandic international reacted quickest though punishing the away side as he floated the ball into the far corner out of Paul Robinson’s grasp.
Warnocks men increased their pressure and should have doubled their lead with Joey Barton and Shaun Wright-Phillips both denied before Samba equalised with 24 minutes on the clock. The Congolese defender outstripped Fitz Hall in the air to power the ball past Kenny give Rovers a huge confidence boost. It also seemed to spark them into life with Junior Hoilett going close to giving them the lead only too his curling effort cleared off the line by Ferdinand.
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The second half saw a dip in tempo with Adel Taarabt, dropped to bench after he stormed out of Craven Cottage two weeks ago, outpaced Michel Salgado only to miscue his shot with Samba breathing down his neck. The Moroccan then tangled with Salgado in the penalty area only for Clattengburg to wave away any appeals. Rovers had the final chance of the game only for Kenny to save smartly from Martin Olsson’s rasping 30-yard drive as both sides settled for a point.
With the emergence of Conor Wickham in recent months and Jack Wilshere’s devastatingly effective performance against Barcelona last week seemingly the talk of the town, now, more so than ever before, people are clamouring to know where the next teenage prodigy will spring up from. Here, we’ll take a look at six youngsters currently plying their trade for Liverpool which are destined to make the grade in the very near future – some you may have heard of, some have already featured for the first-team whereas one or two are products of Rodolfo Borrell’s increasingly successful youth-team policy at the club and still play for the academy.
Borrell recently opined: “I think we have some really exciting players coming through and I am very proud that some of them were involved in the build-up to the match against Sparta Prague.” Liverpool have placed special emphasis on integrating and producing first-team worthy youngsters over the last 18 months, and with Kenny Dalglish now at the helm, you could be catching a glimpse, if you haven’t done so already, of all of the players listed in the coming seasons. Let’s kick off with the list shall we?
Conor Coady – Coady had the honour of captaining the England under-17 side to the European Championships last summer and he has recently forced his way into the first-team picture at Anfield after a string of impressive performances for the academy. Capable of playing at centre half or in midfield, Coady is tough but with a touch of class to his play. The 18 year-old recently made the bench for the club in their Europa League knockout away fixture to Sparta Prague and current manager Kenny Dalglish is known to be a fan.
Andre Wisdom – Coady’s partner at the heart of defence during England’s victorious European Championship campaign. Bounced back from heartache in the final against Spain after initially scoring an own goal, to score the equaliser that set England on their way to victory. Great strength of character aside, Wisdom looks comfortable with the ball at his feet and is capable of playing all across the back four. The 18 year-old defender has drawn comparisons in some quarters with Sol Campbell.
Raheem Sterling – The Jamaican born forward has grabbed all the headlines in recent weeks for his, shall we say, sterling efforts for the Liverpool youth team in their recent 9-0 victory in the FA Youth Cup over Southend, with Sterling bagging five goals. Poached from QPR in 2010, the 16 year-old travelled with the first-team squad for Liverpool’s recent Europa League clash away at Sparta Prague. Although he eventually failed to make the bench, big things are expected of Sterling and with the ball at his feet and in full flight, he bares an uncanny likeness to a certain John Barnes.
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Martin Kelly – Technically, defender Martin Kelly appears to have already made the grade at Liverpool, but it’s worth remembering that the young England hopeful is still just 20 years of age and relatively inexperienced despite his mature performances for the first-team to date. The fact that he’s keeping current first-choice England right back Glen Johnson out of his preferred position at the club, with Johnson having been shunted over to left back to accommodate the ever-improving Kelly, says it all. Superb performances against Everton and Chelsea this season mark Kelly out as a fine defender with a great temperament and he could well be England’s first-choice right back by the next World Cup. Kelly has already made 21 appearances for the club across all competitions this season and he could have a huge impact if he keeps going at this rate over the next few years, for both club and country.
Conor Thomas – Amidst all the furore of transfer deadline day at Anfield, you’d be forgiven for letting slip from your mind the signing of 17 year-old Conor Thomas on loan from Coventry with a view to a permanent move. The midfielder has been hailed as Coventry’s brightest prospect for years and there was outcry among sections of the club’s faithful support that they had let such a talent slip through their fingers so easily just days after he’d made his first-team debut in the FA Cup against Birmingham. The nature of the deal is a strange one to say the least, but Liverpool were said to be tracking Thomas for months prior to his switch. Apparently the club decided to swoop quickly in the January transfer window to ward off any potential interest from rival Premier League clubs in the future, which in itself, tells you the youngster must have bags of potential.
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Jack Robinson – The all-action left back made headlines last season when he became the youngest ever player to make a first team appearance for the club after a cameo appearance off the bench in the final game of last season against Hull. A regular at England youth team level, the 17 year old attacking minded full-back is also known to love a crunching tackle. Liverpool vice-captain Jamie Carragher has stated of Robinson: “He’s really young and playing in a higher age group – for England as well. I’ve heard a lot of positive things about him. I wasn’t even in the youth team when I first went full-time and he was a regular at 15 which shows you he has something about him.” With the club’s relative paucity of first-team options at left back, Robinson could well be one to watch for next season as he continues his meteoric rise up the footballing ladder.
“In the tunnel we planned to look them in the eye, to show we were as big as they were. They had the feeling they were invincible – you could see it in their eyes…While we waited I tried but I couldn’t do it. They made us feel small.” –Bernd Holzenbein, West Germany.
It is surprising to think that any member of the German team would articulate such inferiority against an opposition who had a relatively non-existent history in the competition – until the 70s Holland had failed to even qualify for a World Cup since 1938. The Dutch did however boast a talent pool of near dream like capacity. They had also dominated European club competitions in the early 70s (Feyenoord won the 1970 European Cup and the 1974 UEFA Cup and Ajax, of course, were triple European Champions between 1971-1973) meaning their talented stars were proven, winning professionals. And in Johan Cruyff they had a footballing avatar of the Dutch zeitgeist of the time.
Going into the final they were feared. But they would not have even made it to the World Cup had it not been for a wrongly disallowed goal in the deciding qualification game against Belgium. Rinus Michels, former Ajax coach, was appointed as head of the national team after qualification. His desire was to instil the principles of total football, principles that had guided his former club to unprecedented European domination, into all the Dutch players. Two friendlies within a month of the opening group game charted their rapid progression. The first was a 2-0 loss to a German second division team. The second was a 4-1 victory against Argentina. Michels’ only focus was the opening group game and, crucially, after beating Argentina in Amsterdam, his team had belief.
The Dutch footballers arrived last in Germany for the World Cup. In interviews Cruyff had always been articulate, intelligent and calm. There was an understated but palpable confidence in his demeanour that extended onto the pitch (the latter probably shaped the former). He encapsulated much of the rapidly transformed post-war Dutch culture. And like the country’s swift progression on the social front, the Dutch players mirrored it on the pitch with a dominating 2-0 opening game victory against an utterly bemused Uruguay. The game could easily have seen six or seven goals but Johnny Rep’s header and short range finish sufficed. Uruguay looked genuinely baffled and helpless every time the Dutch launched into their intense, high pressing defensive game.
An anticlimactic 0-0 draw with Sweden followed, its defining moment being the debut of the ‘Cruyff turn’; Jan Olsson remains proud to be the first man so completely duped by the movement. Holland’s 4-1 defeat of Bulgaria set the nation alight and caused a usually indifferent population to become encumbered with the need to passionately support their team.
Continue reading on page 2…
Knowing they had the full attention of millions back home, the Dutch played their irrepressible best and demolished Argentina 4-0. Despite torrential rain the players were able to impose their passing game with Cruyff scoring two – both assisted by the sublime Van Hanegem – and taking the brunt of every illegal tackle from the Argentineans.
East Germany were then dispatched 2-0, leaving a date with the defending World Champions (Brazil) in what was effectively the semi final. Brazil were not the pretty outfit from the previous competition. Instead they played a very aggressive and physical game and could have scored two in the opening twenty minutes. Despite the pressure in the early stages it was the white shirts of Neeskens and Cruyff who netted the goals in a bruising encounter. The Dutch had beaten the World Champions. The only people seemingly not surprised by the victories – what spellbound the watching public more than the victories themselves was the manner in which the team played – were the Dutch players. After all, many had won back to back European titles at the pinnacle of club football; Cruyff had captained Ajax to a triplet of European Cups and was now playing for Barcelona. They were not unknown quantities. The romanticism surrounding the Dutch leading up to the final – and compounded by their eventual loss – occurs when considering the nation’s development in the decades leading up to it. It seems a patently self referential (and superficial) comment but everything about the team – the players’ demeanours, the principles of football, their style, their captain as an embodiment of all the aforementioned – was so…well, it was just so Dutch.
The final in Munich against West Germany remains etched into the psyche of the Dutch football-watching public (probably more so than the 78’ defeat). The match kicked off and, after two whole minutes of play, the first German to touch the ball was Maier – the goalkeeper – picking it up out of his net. Holland had caressed the ball around the park since kick off and as the German fans booed, Cruyff jinked with pace and accuracy past two defenders, and was brought down in the box by Hoeness. Neeskens scores. What follows is always difficult to explain. The Dutch refused to press for a second. Instead they stubbornly, arrogantly, kept the ball. Johnny Rep tries to explain:
“We wanted to make fun of the Germans. We didn’t think about it but we did it…We forgot to score the second goal…It was our fault.”
1-0 is never enough until the whistle is blown. Despite the entire Dutch aura, the intelligence, the style, the passing, and the praise; 1-0 was not enough on 7th July 1974. Holzenbein cut inside from the left and threw himself to the floor in the penalty box. Breitner scored the resulting spot kick. Germany continued to attack incessantly and in the 43rd minute the portly, and legendary, Gerd Muller scored with a clever snap shot from twelve yards out. The second half saw Holland apply themselves, dominate, and come painfully close to an equaliser. But it never materialised. Holland remains the historic romantics and Germany the serial iconoclasts.
As I said earlier, there is a quixotic attachment to Cruyff and his men of 74’. This sentiment pervades history and holds a tangible, morbid allure for the Lost Final and its Dutch Masters. In retrospect, every hallmark literary device is at work to make this a great tragedy, for all the ages: a culture represented by a group of individuals, turning heads and revolutionising opinions as they progress, only to be conquered by their hamartia – that very Greek notion of the fatalistic flaw. What was their undoing? Hubris? Maybe. I don’t know. But one thing I am sure of is that not winning it, contradictorily, intensifies their romanticism. As Jan Mulder eloquently said, ‘We are still talking about the great team that lost because they lost. If they’d won, it would be less interesting, much less romantic.’
If you enjoyed this, you may also enjoy these articles (you can follow me on Twitter too):
The Media and its effects on international football
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The Dutch Influence: a history and its affects on football
Sources:
Brilliant Orange, David Winner
Here’s a video of some of their highlights (you may want to watch this on mute)
As Tottenham look set to lose Luka Modric to Real Madrid, Andre Villas-Boas is considering making a move for Malaga ace Santi Cazorla as a replacement for the Croatian playmaker, according to Talk Sport.
Cazorla is currently said to be unhappy in Malaga following a dispute over wages, and Spurs will be hoping to lure him to White Hart Lane as they look to offer double his current earnings.
Having cost Malaga £17 million from Villarreal last summer, the Spanish international could be moving away from La Rosaleda just one year on.
However, north London rivals Arsenal have also been linked to the 27 year old, as they look set to part company with Andrei Arshavin, who is looking for a permanent move to Zenit St Petersburg.
The arrival of Santi Cazorla to the Premier League would no doubt add to the wealth of talent that England’s top flight has to offer, as the Spaniard featured in both of Spain’s European Championship winning campaigns, only missing the 2010 World Cup due to injury.
Andre Villas-Boas has already stated his intent at revamping the Spurs squad this transfer window to turn them into genuine title contenders, and Santi Cazorla would mark another high profile signing this summer having already secured the services of Gylfi Sigurdsson and Emmanuel Adebayor.
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Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish is set to further strengthen his defence in January with a bid for Ajax’s Jan Vertonghen in the pipeline, the Metro reports.
The Liverpool boss isn’t entirely satisfied with his defence, despite already strengthening it this summer with the signings of Jose Enrique from Newcastle and Uruguayan starlet Sergio Coates.
Vertonghen was linked with a move to Merseyside and Premier League rivals Arsenal during the transfer window although both failed in persuading Ajax to sell.
That could all change in January with Dalglish set to renew his interest in the 24-year-old Belgian international who has become a key figure at the Amsterdam Arena.
Fresh interest in Vertonghen comes off the back of criticism aimed at current Reds defender Jamie Carragher after the stalwart’s mistakes against Bolton and Stoke.
Dalglish spoke out in defence of the 33-year-old and insisted that his place in the side was down to his consistent displays and not based on reputation.
He said: “I don’t know what I can say to you about him because there is nothing that I would like to change about him.
“Jamie Carragher will do me just fine the way he is.”
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With Liverpool reviving their interest in Vertonghen, and with a January bid expected, it could nonetheless spell the end of Carragher’s regular first team opportunities at Anfield.
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.”
Tottenham will complete the £12 million signing of Hugo Lloris, but only once Luka Modric is sold according to The Sun.
The north London club are adopting an aggressive transfer strategy this summer, with Jan Vertonghen and Gylfi Sigurdsson already having completed moves to White Hart Lane.
However, Andre Villas-Boas is eager to sign a new goalkeeper to replace ageing Brad Friedel between the sticks, with the Lyon man the Portuguese manager’s preference.
After negotiations between Spurs and the Ligue 1 club, a fee of around £12 million is thought to have been agreed, but Tottenham need to wait until they are given a cash injection from Modric’s sale.
The Croatia international is in the process of moving to Real Madrid, with negotiations ongoing.
Lloris’ father has also confessed that the goalkeeper’s move may hinge on the future of Modric and the money received from his sale.
“I’m sure that Hugo’s move will be accelerated if Modric joins Real,” Luc Lloris is believed to have said.
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Football chairmen are rarely liked. Whilst it may be a position that millions dream of having, it can often be a thankless task. As a chairman you are not judged on the things that you hold most dear: revenues, profit margins, net gains and all those other juicy financial buzzword goals. You are judged by the fans and on their terms, judged on the scale of your ambition and your generosity in pursuit of that ambition. This disparity between what the Chairman and the fans consider success is the fundamental reason why their relationship is so often so strained.
To a chairman, success is financial stability, maybe even making a profit, or for the less ambitious, steering a club away from administration. To fans a successful football club is one that wins games. Consider Arsenal’s current situation. As a club, their revenues are phenomenal and their business model is the envy of every club in the Premier League but their fans are despondent, desperate for Wenger to spend some of the ‘warchest’ the media refer to every year. The fans don’t care that their club is generating record profits, they’re paying hundreds of pounds for a season ticket as the quality of football declines.
Football fans will only be happy when the chairman’s ambition matches theirs, of course this is only possible at the upper echelons of the game. Your Manchester City or Crawley Town type clubs. Any attempts at consolidation and financial security are simply seen as the end of the club’s ambitions. Ken Bates has managed to find himself on Leeds fans’ hitlist this summer for investing in corporate facilities rather than players. He attempted to explain this as improving the club’s infrastructure and long-term earning capacity but he was preaching to the wrong crowd. (It didn’t help that he then called them morons). The fan wants short-term success and instant results, they have no financial stake in the club, just a permanent, incredibly hard to satisfy emotional stake.
Mike Ashley is considered a villainous chairman by many Newcastle fans following various terrible decisions at boardroom level. He is displaying all the traits that football fans despise. He sold Andy Carroll and did not reinvest the money back into the squad. He sold the Captain Kevin Nolan and is in the process of releasing Joey Barton. He couldn’t display less ambition if he wanted too.
Chairmen are of course within their rights to run their clubs however they wish, but when their decisions show a lack of ambition or generosity like Ashley’s or are judged to affect results on the pitch like Bates, they will be blamed. It’s lonely at the top and the only way to win over the fans is to start winning games.
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