Is Wenger finished?

 

Next month Arsene Wenger will celebrate being the Arsenal manager for fifteen years although if there is not much change in the next few weeks there will hardly be cause for celebration!

Wenger in his time at Arsenal has built great teams, brought through young talents regularly to the team and won Eleven honours at the club.

He has guided Arsenal to the  Premier League three times, the FA Cup four times and the FA Community Shield four times as well however Arsenal have not won a trophy since the 2005 FA Cup over six years ago and fans are starting to grow tired of winning nothing every season.

Selling star players like Thierry Henry and this season losing Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas has also angered fans who think it makes them look like a seller club and many paired with some of the media are building pressure against the man the fans once adored.

But is Wenger really finished?

Losing Fabregas and Nasri recently has left the squad looking depleted and even though there are many young talents at Arsenal waiting for a chance, A marquee signing is needed to appease angry fans.

Eden Hazard, Mikel Arteta and Kaka have all been linked with the club and Arteta or Kaka could be a great replacement for Fabregas whereas Hazard would provide quality on the wing. Arteta would be more likely as there is little chance of Arsenal wanting to pay 30 million plus nearly 200k a week for Kaka!

Wenger has many young talents coming through which was shown on their Champions League qualification victory over Udinese, they may not have played Udinese off the park in both legs but they were up to the challenge and showed they are not a poor team as well as being capable of playing the "Arsenal way."

Wenger is like he has been for the past few seasons three or four players from a team that can hold a Premier League challenge again as there is talent at the club already like Gervinho, Van Persie, Arshavin, Ramsey, Wilshere, Walcott and many others.

A solid central defender is needed which Wenger knows with constant links to defenders like Gary Cahill and Phil Jagielka, a goalscoring strike to partner Van Persie, a midfield playmaker like Arteta or Kaka and a top defensive midfielder like Nigel De Jong at Manchester City to hold the midfield together and protect the defence.

If Arsenal could sign four players like that then they would have a really good team and even signing two of the four would leave them in a better place. 

Wenger has given so much to the club over the past fifteen years and even though the days of Keown,Bergkamp,Henry and co are over, there is signs Wenger is far from finished and is capable of  building a new successful team if he manages to get the owners and fans appeased and on his side believing in the team. 

A marquee signing would do just that but he will have to move quickly, the Transfer Window shuts on the thirty first of August.

Season Predictions

This is not a full article this is just predictions on who i will think will win their respective leagues and who will be relegated etc in all the Scottish Leagues and the English Premier League:

Scottish Premier League:
Winners: Rangers
Runners Up: Celtic
Third spot: Hearts
Fourth Spot:Motherwell
Relegated : Dunfermline

Scottish First Division:
Winners: Hamilton
Runners Up: Ross County
Ninth and First Division Play-Offs: Ayr United
Relegated: Queen Of The South

Scottish Second Division:
Winners: Stirling Albion
Runners Up and  First Division Play-Offs: Cowdenbeath
Third and First Division Play-Offs: Forfar
Fourth and First Division Play-Offs: Brechin
Ninth and Second Division Play-Offs: Albion Rovers
Relegated: Arbroath

Scottish Third Division:
Winners: Peterhead
Runners Up and Second Division Play-Offs: Alloa
Third and Second Division Play-Offs: Queens Park
Fourth and Second Division Play-Offs: Clyde
Bottom of League: East Stirling

English Premier League:
Winners: Chelsea
Second Place: Manchester United
Third Place: Manchester  City
Fourth Place: Liverpool
Eighteenth place and Relegated: Wolves
Nineteenth place and Relegated: Swansea City
Twentieth place and Relegated: Norwich City

Football clubs and the "problem" of Social Networking

Controlling a workforce is never an easy task.

Companies are always trying to make sure their staff stay in line with the rules and regulations and Football clubs are no different.


Football clubs have always had trouble trying to keep in control of their players but it is easier said than done.

Every year there are always players unhappy who want changes or even want to leave and there always will be, however the ways the players are expressing their discontent continues to change.

Going straight to the manager or owner is still the correct way to deal with problems and is the best way to make sure your concerns will be dealt with. This was once virtually the only way to express concerns however times have changed and continue to do so.

The Newspapers always have liked exclusives and a discontent player or problems at a football club is always going to sell papers to interested or worried football fans. Radio stations , TV channels and Internet sites have also cashed in on this as technology advanced over the years and they all joined at some stage the race for exclusives and big stories.

Clubs have had to try and stay private to make sure nothing leaks to the press that they don't want but this is difficult and continues to be a worry for clubs when trying to make sure they control their club and everyone linked to it.

However over the last few years a new threat emerged that is more dangerous to an extent than the press to football clubs in regards to news leaking out from clubs:  Social networking.

Private profiles means not just that news can leak quickly from journalists or sources before a club has time to release a statement, but also that players and staff can  leak information or say things they shouldn't say, giving the press a story without the press having to do any work to get it.

Social networking is like a microphone on players at all times and is very popular among players. Many high profile players such as Rio Ferdinand, Jack Wilshere and Wayne Rooney having countless amounts of followers so the spotlight is on players at all times watching what they say.

Ryan Babel, Carlton Cole and Darren Bent are some of the most famous cases of players going out of line on Twitter and all three have had to pay fines to their club or footballing authorities after comments they have made that were out of line.

One of the biggest stories in football right now is the Joey Barton episode at Newcastle and his Twitter account is the cause.

Joey Barton more than once has stated on his twitter page his concerns or unhappiness with Newcastle due to reasons such as breakdown in contract talks between him  and the club or the surprise transfer of his friend Kevin Nolan from Newcastle to West Ham.

Things have got to the stage where Newcastle had enough and have said he can leave for free and have fined him two weeks wages . Even this has not stopped him and Barton has laughed off his fine and said they are "kicking a man when he is down."

Whether Joey Barton is right to have concerns is not the big story, the fact that he has publicly stated them before talking directly to the club has caused a stir. Incidents like this are why clubs are trying to find ways to prevent situations like this with social networking sites.

Former Rangers boss Walter Smith banned his players from using social networking sites near the end of last season due to a poor run of form and it seemed to work a treat as with less distractions Rangers went on to claim their third successive league trophy and also won the League cup to complete a league and cup double.

Leeds United have banned their players from using Twitter recently after a pre-season game in which striker Davide Somma was taken off injured and he leaked into the public domain on his Twitter account that he would be out for six months before the manager Simon Grayson and his staff could tell certain personnel who needed to know the information first.

Banning Twitter and other sites altogether may seem extreme but some clubs will see it as the right thing to do. I am sure Mike Ashley and other owners will think of George Orwell's 1984 and wish they had a way of controlling their players like that but thankfully free will stops a situation like that happening!

Time will tell if it works out for Leeds but until clubs can to an extent find a way to control what players say on social networking sites you can safely guarantee stories like the Joey Barton one will continue to surface and cause a stir.

Changes needed at Ibrox so McCoist can avert danger.

Two games, zero wins, one draw and one loss.

Not the start Alistair "Ally" McCoist wanted to have in charge of his beloved Rangers.

An opening day 1-1 draw with Hearts at Ibrox did not get Rangers' quest  to retain the Scottish Premier league off to a great start and some fans began to grumble about problems that seemed to have already surfaced.

Poor defending, lack of creativity, disappointing performances from players, the list goes on and with an Important Champions League qualifier against Malmo at Ibrox a few days later the fans hoped Rangers would "Step up and play" as can be heard in Sammy King's "Penny Arcade"  when it is played before kickoff at Ibrox.

Rangers did not "step up and play" against Malmo.

The negatives brought up from the  Hearts game were all on show again as poor defending, lack of creativity and disappointing performance's led to Malmo picking up a shock 1-0 win at Ibrox and left Rangers needing to win by at least two next week in Sweden or face an early Champions League exit on the same level of Kaunus a few years ago.

Rangers were poor against Malmo. McCoist set up his team like his predecessor and mentor Walter Smith would with a lone striker in a 4-5-1 formation and it did not work. Errors were being made by many and an error by Steven Whittaker (who did not look like a player who recently signed a long term deal,) on the right side of his own box in the eighteenth minute led to Daniel Larsson scoring and grabbing an important away goal for Malmo. Daniel of course not being the first Larsson to break Rangers' fans hearts.

Whittaker's mistake at the goal was not the only mistake made by him or any of his team mates as most of the Rangers team struggled to make an impact.

Lee Mculloch and Maurice Edu in the heart of Rangers' midfield was not working for the second game in a row.Both are trying but neither player has the creative spark to control and boss the midfield and there is little pace between the two. Steven Davis is Rangers' best central midfielder but he is played out of position wide right yet he is still covering for Mculloch and Edu.

Madjid Bougherra continues to look like a disinterested player and McCoist will surely let the Algerian part ways with Rangers as soon as he finds another centre back to join Dorin Goian joining the club and create a new central defence.

In fact only newbie Lee Wallace, Nikica Jelavic and the outstanding  Allan McGregor in goals came out of the the game with any positives.

Wallace on his debut did not look out of place at Rangers or on the Champions League stage and was industrious going froward all night as he put in a solid shift trying to stop the Malmo attack down the right while contributing to Rangers' attacking options.

Nikica Jelavic looked a class act at times but looked a lonely figure up front most of the time. Even when Rangers went for it and put Steven Naismith up front with him, Jelavic was still isolated which was frustrating for him as he won many balls but there was no support and Rangers were constantly punting the ball up front to him and he could do nothing with them which would frustrate the fans sick of seeing the same tactics fail constantly.

Allan McGregor recently signing a new deal at Ibrox and saying he wants to end his career at Ibrox is fantastic news for the club as his fantastic performance against Malmo proved. McGregor was flawless and pulled off at least three important saves to keep Rangers' deficit a manageable one, his fingertip save from Figueirdo's long range drive was world class. McGregor's performance was one of the few positives to come out of the Malmo game.

The season is only two weeks old so Rangers fans and McCoist will not be too overly critical. There is a lot of football to play and if Rangers win by two next week in Sweden which is manageable, they will be closer to Champions League football. Kyle Lafferty is also missing through injury right  now and he is sorely missed . The Ulsterman is a threat in front of goal which from the evidence of the first two games, is sorely missed.

However changes are needed and whether McCoist rallies his current squad together or signs fresh new  faces, Rangers need to change a few things to make sure they will have a successful season and help McCoist be a success as manager as well as being a legendary player at the club.

Do fans like Pre-Season Friendlies?

Do fans like Pre-Season friendlies?

With big clubs competing in money spinning friendlies all over the world and other clubs using the summer to lure bigger teams to face them. There is plenty of money on offer for  the clubs but what is in pre-season friendlies for the fans?

I conducted a survey of  one hundred football fans today asking them one simple question; Do you like pre-season friendlies?

The results were even. Fifty percent of fans said they enjoyed pre-season friendlies while fifty percent of fans did not like pre-seaon friendlies. Even results but the reasons for choosing varied.

Reasons from Fans why they do not like pre-season friendlies:

They are a waste of money- Paying over the odds for bounce games that are not competitive.

Outcome means nothing- No matter what the score some fans believe nothing is gained from the games as the games have no importance.

Poor Quality of game- Friendlies can sometimes be boring affairs with little quality on display due to lack of competition and lots of substitutions usually taking changes.


Reasons from Fans why they like pre-season friendlies:

Gets team in shape for new season- friendlies help managers get their team in shape for a new seasonand know what positions they need to strengthen.

Chance to see players/teams you don't normally see- Glamour friendlies can be great for the fans as they will get to watch players they don't normally see and there is a chance to see teams they don't normally see their team play every year or if they might even get to see their own team if they live abroad.

Fun to watch as no pressure - no pressure on the players to perform so they will be relaxed and can show off skills and try things like long shots they would get shouted at for if in a competitive game.

A 50/50 split in the survey was interesting. There are ways to make friendlies appeal to most people:

Screen friendlies live on tv- One off games would be great for armchair fans. For example Rangers vs Chelsea on August the 5th this year would have an audience and so would many other friendlies if they were on free tv.

Cheaper tickets - Charging less for friendlies would bring in bigger crowds. Maybe even doing deals like kids go free or family discount prices would bring in younger kids and the chance to see their team in a more relaxed atmosphere than when the competitive season starts.

More pre-season tournaments- For fans who say they mean nothing. Even though the tournaments would be only friendly affaurs they would bring a little competitveness and excitement for fans. Tournaments like Arsenal's Emirates Cup has been interesting over the last few seasons and the Renfrewshire Cup is always a tasty affair between St.Mirren and Greenock Morton. Hardly a "friendly."


Pre-season friendlies will never be completely loved by fans but they are important for clubs to generate money and have a look at their squad before the season starts to know what is ahead of them and what they can change. Making friendlies cheaper to attend and putting them on free tv could help people get excited by them more but no matter what pre-season is like a support act before the main event that is the Season starts and it always will be. Fans just need something to fill the gap when the season is not on.

A new era at Ibrox

It has been a whirlwind few months for the blue side of Glasgow.

Craig Whyte’s takeover, a third successive league title, Walter Smith leaving and Ally McCoist taking over. There has been a lot to take in for the fans but they are not complaining!

Craig Whyte’s takeover seems to have ended years of financial uncertainty at Ibrox. With the bank in control money was tight as Rangers were repaying debts but now there is hope that the club will steer clear of financial troubles and stop having to keep the wallet closed. Whyte has promised to clear the debt and finance Ally McCoist so the future seems bright.

Walter Smith’s left Ibrox with another league title and as one of the clubs most successful managers and has handed the reigns to his assistant and Rangers legend Ally McCoist.

McCoist will have money to spend and the small squad he has needs at least five additions. Two central defenders, a central midfielder, a wide midfielder and a striker.

The Rangers defence needs some new faces. Club captain David Weir is 41 and if he does sign a contract it will likely only be short term and McCoist will be looking to find a defence he can base his team on. Madjid Bougherra will not be part of that defence.

If the rumours are true Bougherra wants away from Ibrox then McCoist should let him go. His replacement will be top of McCoist’s spending list. Danny Wilson or Kyle Bartley returning on loan would be a good short term signing but full time signings should be the priority.

The rumours about Carlos Cuellar are a promising start as Cuellar was key when first at the club and led them to the 2008 UEFA cup final. His return would be a crowd pleasing move.

 The midfield  needs a few additions urgently. A wide player is needed. Steven Naismith and Greig Wylde have done great but cover is needed or a winger to start as Wylde is still young so should not be under pressure and Naismith was originally a striker. 

Steven Davis in the centre of the midfield is one of the key players in the Rangers team. He needs a central midfielder to help him out as Maurice Edu and Lee Mculloch don’t seem to work with him and when Davis is not in the team Rangers are not the same.

As the season finished Kyle Lafferty and Nikica Jelavic were on fire. Jelavic has been great for Rangers since he signed and is paying back his heavy price tag of four million pounds.

Lafferty has had three up and down seasons for Rangers. When on form he has been great but at times his stupid actions have held him back. A striker to cover these two would be beneficial to Rangers as they lack cover up front. The rumours of David Goodwillie signing would be good news for Rangers as he is a talented player and McCoist is a known long time admirer of him.

McCoist could not have taken over at a better time at Ibrox. New owner, money to spend, McCoist and his familiar coaching team will have more at their disposal than Walter Smith had and if their results are the same then the Rangers fans will be very happy and it will lead to McCoist to be a successful manager as well as player.

Is this the Premiership Title decider ?

This Sunday Manchester United host Chelsea at Old Trafford and what is usually a big game has everything at stake for both clubs regarding the outcome of the Premiership title.

Manchester United lead the Premiership by three points which is crazy compared to the eleven point lead Manchester United had over Chelsea on the ninth of April.

Chelsea have been on blistering form in the past few months since defeating Manchester United 2-1 at Stamford Bridge while Manchester United have struggled at times , stuttering and only just grasping the advantage in the title race.

Manchester United fell at the hands of Arsenal last Sunday while Chelsea overcame Tottenham 2-1 at Stamford Bridge. This will give Chelsea the advantage in terms of form in the league however Manchester United have just qualified for the Champions League final at Wembley this year where they will face Barcelona and this could lead to confidence from Sir Alex Ferguson’s men.

Manchester United are chasing a historic double. If Manchester United win the Champions League(which they knocked Chelsea out of this season), it will be their fourth European Cup with three under Ferguson and the League which will hold even more prestige would be their eleventh under Ferguson but more importantly a record breaking nineteenth league title which would beat Liverpool’s record. These incentives help build belief that Manchester United have the edge and experience under Ferguson to win this match and a win would almost guarantee the historic nineteenth title.

Chelsea however have no other chance of silverware after crashing out of the other domestic and European cups. Carlo Ancelotti was on a shaky peg job wise a few short months ago. Fernando Torres’ lack of form or goals since his 50 million transfer in January has also put Ancelotti under a pressure as he just can’t drop a 50 million pounds striker and has had to try and help Torres out but Torres has still only returned a single goal and is being substituded regularly as he struggles.

A win at Old Trafford and a second Premiership title in a row however would surely change Ancelotti’s job safety. Two in a row would leave Ancelotti sighing with relief after a rollercoaster season.

After this clash both sides will have two games left. If Manchester United win they will be six points clear. If Chelsea win they will be top on goal difference.

With so much counting on this game would it surprise anybody if it ended up a boring 0-0 draw? I didn’t think so.

The Crazy World of Mario Balotelli by Calvin Berry

Since coming to England Mario Balotelli has managed to go from problem to problem.

It was not a new thing for Balotelli as his time with Inter Milan was full of problems as well. Even the “Special One” Jose Mourinho could not control him.

Roberto Mancini who had coached Balotelli before Mourinho at Inter decided that Balotelli could help Manchester City to glory.

Since then Balotelli has been a mixed bag.  At times he has been great and there is no question that he has the quality to succeed if he keeps his head but more often or not he will lose his head. That is where the problems begin.

Soon after his arrival he began to hit the headlines with his off field antics with girls and antics like crashing his Audi and escaping unscathed. He also became an internet sensation recently when a video of him having trouble to put on a bib being watched over and over on the World Wide Web.

His antics did not just stop off the field, they spilled on to the football field  and he has picked up a few stupid Red cards. The red card he received in the Europa League against Dynamo Kiev for a karate kick on an opponent was crazy and these problems have led to his skill being overshadowed by his stupid antics.

After the FA Cup semi final Manchester derby he was at it again causing trouble. He celebrated Manchester City’s victory in front of the Manchester United fans and this led to a heated clash between Balotelli and Manchester United’s Rio Ferdinand which threatened to overshadow City’s win for a little while.

Manchester City are having a successful season.. They are in a great position to win the FA cup and finish in the top four of the Premiership which would lead to City gracing the Champions League for the first time and Balotelli could still prove to be important for the rest of the season.

The problem is that he has to calm down and keep his cool. Too often does he descend into red mist and this could lead to him leaving City as continues to cause trouble.

Balotelli is only twenty one so he has time on his side to overcome his problems and if he can keep his head then he could go on to become a star for City and help lead them to glory in England and Europe as City continue to throw money at players and clubs as there onslaught for success continues.

Time will tell if Balotelli will calm down and the only thing for sure is the fact that no matter what Mario Balotelli will continue to hog the headlines. Whether it is the back pages or front pages is up to him.

Champions League Predictions

The UEFA Champions League has reached the Quarter Finals stage and the draw has made some cracking ties for Football fans to enjoy.

Here are predictions for the Quarter Finals matches.

Inter Milan vs Schalke 04:

Inter Milan will go into the first leg of on the back of a crushing 3-0 defeat at the hands of rivals AC Milan and Leonardo will hope they can bounce back quickly and that may lead to a completely different Inter taking the field against Schalke.

Inter look to have too much for Schalke over two legs however Schalke are a good side and with the experienced Raul who loves scoring in the Champions League leading the attacking line, don't expect Schalke to be pushovers.

I reckon Inter will have too much over two legs but Schalke will push them close.

1st leg: Inter, 2 Schalke  0

2nd leg: Schalke 1 Inter 1

Aggregat score: Inter (3) Schalke (1)

Real Madrid vs Tottenham:

After a surprise home defeat on Saturday which was coach Jose Mourinho's first home defeat in nine years, Real Madrid will come out fighting against Spurs and will be boosted by the news that Ronaldo is likely to feature in the first leg.

Spurs have been very impressive in their first ever Champions League appearence and they will hope to spring an upset like they did to AC Milan in the round before and they too will be boosted by the news that Gareth Bale is fit to play as he has been so important for them this season.

Real Madrid however, look too much for Tottenham but Tottenham will give their all in what will be an exciting tie.

1st leg: Real 3 Tottenham 0

2nd leg:Tottenham 2 Real 1

Aggregate score: Real (4) Tottenham (2)

Barcelona vs Shaktar Donetsk:

Barcelona have looked unbeatable at times this season and with Lionel Messi and company on blistering form , not many will give Shaktar a chance but the facts show Shaktar will put up a fight.

They have a higher win ratio in this seasons competition ,87.5 per cent to Barca's 62.5 per cent and have scored 18 goals in the competition, the same amount of goals as the high flying Barcelona and an incredible home record to match, Lucescu's side will certainly put up a fight.

Barcelona look unstoppable and i think a victory by a few goals in the first leg at the Nou Camp should kill off the tie with a draw in the return leg.

1st leg: Barcelona 2 Shaktar 0

2nd leg: Shaktar 1 Barcelona 1

Aggregate Score: Barcelona (3) Shaktar (1)

Chelsea vs Manchester United:

The English media will be drooling over this tie as two of "the big four" go head to head in what looks like an exciting tie.

Chelsea will be looking to avenge their 2008 final defeat on penalties to Manchester United by putting them out of this years competition and the Champions League looks like Chelsea's only realistic chance of winning silverware and they are hoping Didier Drogba, Nicholas Anelka and the misfiring Fernando Torres will start to click and the two that start the ties will put United to the sword.

Premiership leaders Manchester United will go into the tie slight favourites with Wayne Rooney getting back to his best form and if they can hold off Chelsea at Stamford Bridge they will fancy their chances of victory at Old Trafford.

I reckon Chelsea may sneak this tie over two legs with a victory on aggregate or by one goal.

1st leg: Chelsea  2 Man United 1
2nd leg: Man United 1 Chelsea 1
Aggregate: Chelsea (3) Man United (2)

Should standing areas return to British Football?

Could safe standing areas be reintroduced to British football soon?

If the Football Supporters Federation (FSF) have their way then the answer will be yes.

At the end of March the FSF launched a campaign to bring in safe standing areas to football grounds and the move has been backed by a large number of football fans who see the campaign as welcome move in bringing back an atmosphere to football stadiums.

There are many teams in the lower leagues of football in Britain who still have standing areas and the amateur and junior leagues have terraces as well with no problems so there is evidence to show no problems would be created if safe standing areas are reintroduced.

German football has incorporated safe standing areas successfully which has led to bigger crowds at the games and the FSF claim that following the lead set by the German leagues, a more enjoyable experience at football games would be created.

Many people claim that all seated stadiums have ruined the atmosphere at football games and when some fans try to stand up and sing their support for their team they are singled out as troublemakers and advised to sit down.

This would not happen if areas are created so fans are able to stand for the whole game if they like and sing away while the fans who want to sit down can sit in the seated areas of the ground. The FSF believe this would be ideal for all football supporters.

However, the campaign could be over before it gains any momentum.

The 22nd anniversary of the Hillsborough Disaster is this month and the 96 people who tragically lost their lives will never be forgotten. The disaster paved the way for a radical overhaul of British stadiums to make sure they were changed to be all seated stadiums to avoid any further fatalities.

Any move to bring back terracing would be met with the response that another disaster could happen which would be the main stumbling block if the FSF try to push the campaign.

Another would be the statistics on women and family attendance of football games.

Women make up 20 per cent of the English Premiership alones attendance with many more woman supporting their teams up and down Britain. This is double the number of women who attended football in the 90s.

Children at the football has also increased as the football grounds have become more hospitable and family friendly.

 The main reason for the higher attendance from women and kids however is safety as grounds are much safer than they were in the 80s and early 90s are there are strict rules and regulations to ensure the safety of the supporters.

The debate will go on if safe standing areas should be introduced however, unless the FSF can prove that there is no chance of another Hillsborough , safe standing areas in football grounds will stay as only a debate heard in the local pub or stadiums up and down Britain.