Juventus signing Mirko Vucinic said his new employers’ reputation as a Serie A powerhouse lured him to Turin.The Montenegro international joined from Italian top-flight rivals Roma for a fee of 15 million euros, and the 27-year-old striker said his mind was made up as soon as he found out about Juve’s interest.
“Roma was at the end of a cycle and now I’m here (at Juventus), in the most loved and best-known Italian team throughout the whole world,” Vucinic said.
“The name of the team is enough, as I’ve already said before. Juventus is the most famous team, the best known and the one Italians love most, so when my agent said the word, ‘Juventus’, I had no doubts about it.”
Despite finish last season in seventh spot – some 24 points from champions AC Milan – and not having won a domestic title since 2003, Vucinic said Juventus should always be considered a threat to win the Scudetto.
“Our position in the championship is the Juventus position: we are a great team and I’m not saying anything new, you already know that very well. We are a great team, made to win,” he said.
Vucinic also expressed his delight at getting to work with Juventus boss Antonio Conte at the Juventus Arena.
“I already know my team-mates, I’ve played against them many times, so let’s say they are kind of friends already,” he said.
“Antonio Conte didn’t call me until I had signed the contract. He phoned me after the signature and the impression he gave me was excellent.”
Sven Goran Eriksson has failed in his latest attempt to add to his Leicester City squad as Manchester United goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak rejected a move to the Walkers Stadium. Sven wanted to take Kuszczak on loan after Man United indicated that they would be happy to do a deal, but the Polish goalkeeper had other ideas.
Eriksson told The Sun that “Tomasz doesn’t want to come to us”, with the 28-year-old determined to fight for his place at Old Trafford. Kuszczak is currently Manchester United’s number two in between the sticks, with Edwin van der Sar ahead of him in the pecking order. The experienced Dutchman is set to retire in the summer, giving the Pole his best chance to get an extended run in the first team.
Capped six times by Poland, Kuszczak’s future at Old Trafford is far from certain. The fact that Sir Alex Ferguson was happy to see the back of the Pole, at least in the short term, will be worrying for Tomasz. When you add in the recent addition of Anders Lindegaard, it would seem that Fergie does not see Kuszczak as the long term successor to van der Sar.
As far as Leicester and Eriksson are concerned, they will have to turn their attentions elsewhere as they attempt to complete a return to the Premier League. Currently 13th in the Championship, Leicester are just two wins away from the playoff and with the addition of Everton striker Yakubu on loan and other high profile signings, will think that gap can be overturned in the final months of the season.
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Well who said the off-season was boring and it’s been another busy week at Sixfields. First up the news that the stadium expansion is set to be given the go-ahead and secondly the Bosman signing of Alex Nicholls from Walsall.
I will start with the expansion of Sixfields Stadium as it has been confirmed this week by council officials that we are two weeks away from signing an agreement to extend Sixfields and the surrounding areas.
This has been a long drawn out process that seems to have been talked about for years and the council in this town have seemed more concerned with the plans for the town centre rather than trying to make our local football team a priority. The current plans including making the stadium up to around a 15,000 capacity and will also incorporate more hospitality facilities including executive boxes. The surrounding areas will also be developed with a hotel and casino being mentioned.
I believe for the future of this football club we have needed this to bring more revenue in, and fair play to the Chairman Mr Cardoza he could have so easily given up on these plans and moved on but he has stuck to the task and now it finally appears that his hard work is starting to pay off. Hopefully our council took a look at all the work that has happened at Franchise FC down the road and saw what could be done with the right support, and I have no doubt that we will be overtaking them soon as long as this proposal does finally go through.
I have nothing but praise for Mr Cardoza he has ploughed a lot of money into the football club for little return and now finally the town’s councillors are helping him with his vision in hopefully turning us into a Championship team.
More news on the pitch now and we have signed Alex Nicholls from Walsall on a free transfer. He has made over 200 appearances for the Saddlers scoring 24 goals, most of which in League 1. He was offered new terms at Bescot Stadium but turned them down along with a host of other clubs to make the move to Sixfields Stadium. Nicholls can play on the wing or as the second front man, he has pace to burn, and judging from what a lot of Walsall fans are saying they are sorry to see him go. The minority have also said it depends which Nicholls turns up on his good days he can be good but on bad ones they are saying he need not have bothered playing. However I am going to reserve judgment on him until I have seen him for myself as he has the potential after finishing as the second leading scorer at Walsall last season with seven goals, one behind John Macken.
Last week’s new signing Clive Platt has this week spoken about why he turned down life at Coventry for a two-year deal at Sixfields. He explained that the draw of working with ADB again was to good an offer to miss out on, and that a transitional period at Coventry and their goals didn’t meet his ambitions. He also admitted that Boothroyd’s aim for next season was promotion and that he can’t wait to be part of a team that is going to be going all out to get into League 1 as the manager will not expect much less. I just hope we finish higher than last season and if we can get promotion that will be an added bonus.
I am now excited about the new season as the team is beginning to take shape and Aidy Boothroyd has said there are more signings to come. However we must remain patient and if they continue to be as good as the two we have signed so far things are looking up. Just please make sure one of them is Clarke Carlisle if possible.
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Many of us like to think of ourselves as great football managers who could do a better job than a lot of those in the world of football. This is purely down to our exploits in management games like Championship Manager. Being good in the virtual world doesn’t automatically translate to the real world though, just ask some virtual stars who fell by the wayside when it came to stepping on the pitch.
Cited as a decisive factor in over 30 divorce cases, the addictive Championship Manager (later Football Manager) series successfully managed to develop a cult status amongst football fans the world over. Aside from its groundbreaking eschewal of graphics in favour of text, the series gained infamy for its ability to predict the promising futures of top players before they became famous, having foreseen the development of the likes of Fernando Torres and Wayne Rooney years before the pair gained widespread notoriety.
However, the series is equally as infamous for its ability to unearth duds. The following cult heroes are indicative of when Championship Manager has gotten it wrong, as all of these virtual sensations have found footballing success elusive…
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Click on the image below to see some of Championship Manager’s cult heroes
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Alan Pardew has stressed that he did not agree to become manager at Newcastle before Chris Hughton lost his job.
Hughton was sacked by the club on Monday whilst Pardew was unveiled as his replacement on Thursday.
However, this three day delay has done little to douse rumours that Pardew had been lined up before Hughton had got the boot.
Speaking after the Magpies' 3-1 success against Liverpool on Saturday, Pardew insisted that this was not the case.
"That was never true," he explained.
"In terms of myself, I never really had any contact about this job or any other job. It's a weird situation."
In the wake of owner Mike Ashley's shock decision to replace Hughton, Joey Barton admitted that the managerial upheaval was a 'shame'.
This is something which Pardew admits he understands.
He said:"One hundred per cent, and we talked about it afterwards. I have worked with Chris and he can feel very, very unfortunate that he is not sitting here now.
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"But we all know this game is not easy and can be cruel at times. I had a very similar issue at Southampton."
Pardew got off to a perfect start by beating Liverpool but this will do little to stop critics from scrutinising his performance at the club.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Didier Drogba has announced that he is set to leave Chelsea this summer after 8 years at the club. Drogba has won three Premier League titles, four FA Cup trophies and has scored 157 goals for Chelsea, so is Fernando Torres ready to step up to the mark?
Didier Drogba confirmed his faith in Fernando Torres to fill the void and help Chelsea continue their success. Having only scored 7 times for Chelsea since his £50m transfer last January from Liverpool, many critics have slated Torres for his lack of achievement of the Blues.
Drogba was a significant ingredient to the Chelsea first team against Bayern Munich in the Champions League final on Saturday. He assisted in Chelsea’s lifting of the title by scoring an equaliser in the 88th minute and scoring the deciding penalty to win Chelsea the title. Whereas Torres was left to watch from the bench and revealed his disappointment in not given the opportunity.
With Drogba’s news of leaving the club, it gives Torres the opportunity to step out of Drogba’s shadow and become the foremost strike force for Chelsea. Evidence of his capabilities to fill Drogba’s boots was proven during his period at Liverpool scoring over 20 goals every season in all competitions for the Reds. This was furthermore apparent during 2008 Euros when Torres displayed his scoring ability scoring the winning goal for Spain against Germany in the final servicing his country to victory.
‘When you talk about the Premier League you talk about a lot of players with quality so it’s not easy to pick one, by the is amongst the best’’ – Rafael Benitez 2009
Three years later and many people would read this quote and laugh due to his lack of success at Chelsea even though he was previously considered one of the top players of the Premier League. Although only scoring 7 goals so far for the Blues, the goals have been coming more regularly recently scoring a hat-trick against Queens Park Rangers in April which is a promising sign that he is prepared to step up to the mark.
However, now there will be a lot of expectation from the club, the fans and the critics for his performance to improve and to be demanded into scoring on a regular basis for Chelsea. This therefore places a lot of pressure on the Spaniard which could determine his performance to come.
Torres has shown in previous years that his capability to score goals in inevitable. Whilst at Chelsea he has always been over shadowed by the dominant strike force that is Didier Drogba, yet upon his exit of the club reveals the oppourtunity for Fernando Torres to step up into the limelight.
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If you think Torres has got it in him, Tweet me @gmileham.
Sir Alex Ferguson believes that the MLS is growing at a dramatic rate that he believes that a four league set-up could well be offing. The Manchester United boss was speaking at the Northern leg of their American tour, which has become an annual event in the Red Devils pre-season calendar.
In the papers this morning there have been a mixed bag of stories that include Stuart Pearce signs new England contract; Adebayor has gone AWOL at Manchester City, while Aston Villa agree a compensation package for Alex McLeish.
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Pearce signs new Under-21s contract – Guardian
Soccer is making a Major impact – Sun
Wenger: Big clubs do not sell their stars – Guardian
Villa agree £3m McLeish compensation deal – Daily Telegraph
Adebayor goes missing again – Sun
Spurs to reject improved bid for Modric – Guardian
Liverpool ready to make another offer for Downing – Mirror
Corinthians in Tevez offer – Sky Sports
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Last night England were taught a lesson by an intelligent and well drilled France team. The French for the majority of the game were the better side, and if England had equalised in the final moments it would have been harsh. The French played with fluidity, constantly moving and always looking for space. England again played with little nerve or imagination, but this had to be expected considering the age of the England team and the quality of the French.
However, lets not get over dramatic about last night. Kieran Gibbs, Jordan Henderson and Andy Carroll all started a senior international for the first time. This was great to see. Fabio Capello picked a big game to play these players in, something we all called for after the World Cup. It is unfair to look at the score in too much detail. It was an experiment from Capello, to see what players could cope with senior international football. In the main the three in question as well as other fringe players all had decent games, though need more time to settle. If England had played woeful opposition, like Scotland’s game on Tuesday, what would we have discovered. The youngsters would have been comfortable and the press would have raved about them for the next few days. In a game against a top quality side, they did well, and Capello should be applauded for giving them a chance on the top stage.
Last night seemed so bad because of the way the media portrayed France in the build up to the game. They underestimated France and it came back to bite them. Instead of the press accepting that France were terrific in parts, they have rounded on Capello and his selection. What can the manager do? Where is the media’s integrity? Three months ago they were calling for such a shake up, now they have got it, they round on Fabio Capello. Last night France were the better team but without a doubt England have the better youngsters coming through. This can’t be ignored.
The question has to be can these players provide competition for the senior players. If we look at the England goalkeeping situation, not many people can question the quality England have. Both Hart and Foster are gaining experience and have played well so far this season. Hart is undeniably number one, but Foster will provide excellent competition – something that will benefit the players and the England team.
England do need to look at the centre back issue. Realistically, how many times will Rio Ferdinand and John Terry play together before the European Championships. For the rest of this season, the signs are not good. John Terry could be out for a couple of months and Rio Ferdinand can’t shake of niggling injuries. Fabio Capello should not be looking at Michael Dawson, Gary Cahill, Phil Jagielka and Michael Turner to replace both Ferdinand and Terry. It is time for a shake up defensively and such a shake up will provide greater competition in the domestic and international game.
Continuing on in the hypothetical shake up, Andy Carroll did himself proud last night. The England man’s confidence was there for all too see, and if he had been provided with better service, instead of Joleon Lescott believing himself to be a quarter back, he would have caused greater problems. His build up play was excellent – fashioning a chance for Gerrard after a superb knock down. The service to him was pitiful – Sunday league standard at times. Just because Carroll is big it doesn’t mean to say he can deal with punts up fie.ld. England will need to learn to play with Carroll as they have with Peter Crouch. It is a process that will take time no doubt, but and England squad featuring Andy Carroll. Wayne Rooney, Jermaine Defoe and Peter Crouch has quality all around it.
We should be supporting Capello’s selection last night, not rounding on him. It is too easy to be blinded by a defeat to France. Some sections of the media have used lines like, England loose to the only team worse than themselves at the World Cup. France are in transition, and no one can seriously believe had Laurent Blanc taken that exact team to the World Cup they would have performed as bad. England are in transition, and had big injuries last night.
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Lets put things into perspective. England need to clear out dead wood from the squad, but it will take time. As well as this, the senior players need competition, Capello is providing them with this. It is very easy to look at the result last night and be downhearted about England. Hey, its what we do. We need to back the youngsters, because they have the quality to do play for England. The transition from dead wood to talented youngsters will take time but we are on the right road.
It’s been conceived as a minor blip on the road back to the promised land but Arsenal know they’re not quite there yet. Monday’s home defeat at the hands of struggling Wigan was a tiny hiccup in their pursuit of third spot and an all important place in next seasons Champions League group stage. A win would have moved them eight points clear of their North London rivals and effectively secured automatic passage to Europe’s premier club competition. Arsene Wenger knows his side need to win their remaining games to do so and was hoping to have Jack Wilshere back to provide a boost during the run in. Mikel Arteta’s season ending injury will leave the Gunners boss short in midfield which could prove damaging to their objectives.
This week on FFC the future captain and leading scorer Robin Van Persie is discussed, Wenger’s transfer talk is put under the microscope and Arsenal’s young guns are tipped for future success.
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Best of FFC
The 20 ‘Positives And Negatives’ To Take From Arsenal this season
Have we been here before with Wenger’s transfer talk?
Top TEN – Arsenal should have ‘never’ let them go
The one question Robin van Persie needs to ask himself
Does Arsenal’s ‘next generation’ actually have the potential to become a force?
The Curse Of The Loan Move
Fergie and Wenger rebuffed In attempts to land starlet
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Best of WEB
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Power, Corruption And Lies Invade The Arsenal Brotherhood – A Cultured Left Foot
Why participating in next season’s ‘NextGen Series’ can only be beneficial – Gunnersphere
Spoilt brat approach is costing points – Online Gooner
More fat cloggers please – Arseblog
The Arsenal centre midfield conundrum | Robin goes to negotiate Barca deal at London hotel – Le Grove
Wenger in for Afellay? Robin decides to leave, will it really spell the end?- Highbury House
£7M Is An Absolute Snip And We Say Why… – Transfer Tavern
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Quote of the Week
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“We want more, but where we are at the moment we will be happy with third place because there are great teams who would be very happy if they got there.
“You always want more, but you see that the competition in England is difficult – Chelsea are now in the Champions League [semi-final] against Barcelona,
but they are sixth at the moment, that means it is not easy.
“We want to win our next game and that is the only way we can secure our [Champions League] qualification. We have done remarkably well in the last two months and we want to take advantage of that run we have created and show that (on Saturday).” Arsene Wenger admits he is happy with third after Arsenal’s poor start to the season
Sao Paulo moved five points clear atop the Brazil Serie A with a 3-1 home win over Gremio on Saturday.At the Estadio Cicero Pompeu de Toledo, the home fans were celebrating early as Casimiro scored a 13th minute opener for Sao Paulo.
But he soon turned from hero to villain, as he found the back of the net again, this time with an own goal early in the second half to level proceedings.
The hosts hit the lead 10 minutes later, when midfielder Marlos scored after 62 minutes and the three points were wrapped up when Jean scored late.
Gremio defender Rafael Marques was sent off in first-half stoppage time to add insult to injury as Sao Paulo made it four victories from as many attempts.
In other matches, third-placed Figueirense claimed a last-minute draw thanks to Aloisio’s 89th minute goal, which earned them a point in a 1-1 draw at Vasco Da Gama.
There was more late drama between Cruzeiro and Santos, with the latter also snaring a point away from home in a 1-1 draw.
Walter Montillo’s 55th minute spotkick looked to have given Cruziero all three points but Santos – who played more than 40 minutes with 10 men – salvaged a draw through Borges’ injury-time goal.
Avai claimed their first points of the season in a 2-2 home draw with America Mineiro.
Having lost all three matches of the season so far, Avai seemed destined for another loss until defender Cassio struck in injury time.