Kevin-Prince Boateng (From Portsmouth to AC Milan, Loan)
The financial details of this deal are still unknown but it looks likely to be a loan deal with an option to buy. Regardless, Boateng has gone from the Championship to the Champions League via the World Cup - a meteoric rise for a guy who's talent was never in doubt though their are still question marks over his consistency and his attitude when the chips are down. The opportunity is now before Boateng to prove himself to be the real deal at one of the World's most famous clubs.
Hernanes (From Sao Paulo to Lazio, £10m)
Once considered amongst the brightest young talents in football, Hernanes made no impact Internationally and all of his accomplishments in Brazil have been taken with a pinch of salt. It will be interesting to see how the playmaker adjusts to the Italian league as Lazio coach Edy Reja has hinted at giving Hernanes a deeper role saying, "he will give us depth in midfield, he can play in all three midfield roles, I think he'll adapt easily." Hernanes must add goals to his game before the games Elite clubs take a serious look at him.
Tuesday, 17 August 2010
La Liga Transfer Update : Part 3 (Ozil, Carvalho)
Mesut Ozil (From Werder Bremen to Real Madrid, £12.4m)
With 12 months left on his contract, it was inevitable that Werder Bremen would try to cash in on their star player now for fear of losing him for free next summer. Manchester United were rumoured to be interested but Ozil's Madrid come-and-get-me-plea has been answered. As you may have read in our Real Madrid Squad Analysis article, competition for places in Mourinho's midfield is huge. Ozil will slip directly into the battle for the creative spot - usually reserved for Kaka. The Brazilian's injury would have given hope to van der Vaart and Canales but the arrival of Ozil will likely put paid to their first team chances. The World Cup star will have at least a month to sink or swim at the Bernebau before the master returns.
Ricardo Carvalho (From Chelsea to Real Madrid, £8m)
Jose Mourinho was keen to put his stamp on this Madrid side and no Mourinho side is complete without Ricardo Carvalho. The centre-back has now played under the Special One at Porto, Chelsea and Real Madrid. The likelihood is that Pepe will be the one to miss out in the Galacticos' back line.
With 12 months left on his contract, it was inevitable that Werder Bremen would try to cash in on their star player now for fear of losing him for free next summer. Manchester United were rumoured to be interested but Ozil's Madrid come-and-get-me-plea has been answered. As you may have read in our Real Madrid Squad Analysis article, competition for places in Mourinho's midfield is huge. Ozil will slip directly into the battle for the creative spot - usually reserved for Kaka. The Brazilian's injury would have given hope to van der Vaart and Canales but the arrival of Ozil will likely put paid to their first team chances. The World Cup star will have at least a month to sink or swim at the Bernebau before the master returns.
Ricardo Carvalho (From Chelsea to Real Madrid, £8m)
Jose Mourinho was keen to put his stamp on this Madrid side and no Mourinho side is complete without Ricardo Carvalho. The centre-back has now played under the Special One at Porto, Chelsea and Real Madrid. The likelihood is that Pepe will be the one to miss out in the Galacticos' back line.
Saturday, 14 August 2010
Premier League Predictions : 14th August 2010
Aston Villa vs West Ham
A story of two teams in transition. It remains to be seen how Villa will adapt to life after O'Neill but it is likely James Milner will start despite his impending move to Manchester City. West Ham have offloaded two of their surplus players and have improved their squad with the additions of Ben-Haim, Barrera, Hitzlsperger and Piquionne.
The machine put in place by Martin O'Neill is an impressive one and West Ham's new look side will need time to gel. The home supporters are likely to pull their favourites over the line.
Prediction - Aston Villa 2 : 0 West Ham
Blackburn vs Everton
Both of these sides remain relatively unchanged since last season which would immediately suggest Everton have the edge. The Blackburn wall is notoriously hard to break down so Everton will be delighted to have Artera fit to play.
Prediction - Blackburn 1 : 3 Everton
Bolton vs Fulhan
Fulhan are often unbeatable at home but it can be a different story at the Reebok. The Cottagers found an impressive balance under Roy Hodgson but must now look to start again. On the other hand, Bolton have added Martin Petrov to their side which includes impressive talents such as Cahill, Lee and Davies.
Prediction - Bolton 1 : 0 Fulham
Sunderland vs Birmingham
Birmingham were surely the surprise package of last season and have managed to keep their squad together. Sunderland have added a mixture of proven and unproven talents to their mix and will look to the talismanic Darren Bent to pull them through these tricky fixtures.
Prediction - Sunderland 2 : 1 Birmingham
Wigan vs Blackpool
You would expect the quick passing Wigan to have too much for Blackpool. The addition of Mauro Boselli gives Wigan a formidable attack which should win through against a Championship level side.
Prediction - Wigan 3 : 0 Blackpool
Wolves vs Stoke
One of those games you'd rather not watch. Both sides will opt for long ball and it may turn into Jones vs Fletcher. Both managers will take a draw and they'll probably get it.
Prediction - Wolves 0 : 0 Stoke
A story of two teams in transition. It remains to be seen how Villa will adapt to life after O'Neill but it is likely James Milner will start despite his impending move to Manchester City. West Ham have offloaded two of their surplus players and have improved their squad with the additions of Ben-Haim, Barrera, Hitzlsperger and Piquionne.
The machine put in place by Martin O'Neill is an impressive one and West Ham's new look side will need time to gel. The home supporters are likely to pull their favourites over the line.
Prediction - Aston Villa 2 : 0 West Ham
Blackburn vs Everton
Both of these sides remain relatively unchanged since last season which would immediately suggest Everton have the edge. The Blackburn wall is notoriously hard to break down so Everton will be delighted to have Artera fit to play.
Prediction - Blackburn 1 : 3 Everton
Bolton vs Fulhan
Fulhan are often unbeatable at home but it can be a different story at the Reebok. The Cottagers found an impressive balance under Roy Hodgson but must now look to start again. On the other hand, Bolton have added Martin Petrov to their side which includes impressive talents such as Cahill, Lee and Davies.
Prediction - Bolton 1 : 0 Fulham
Sunderland vs Birmingham
Birmingham were surely the surprise package of last season and have managed to keep their squad together. Sunderland have added a mixture of proven and unproven talents to their mix and will look to the talismanic Darren Bent to pull them through these tricky fixtures.
Prediction - Sunderland 2 : 1 Birmingham
Wigan vs Blackpool
You would expect the quick passing Wigan to have too much for Blackpool. The addition of Mauro Boselli gives Wigan a formidable attack which should win through against a Championship level side.
Prediction - Wigan 3 : 0 Blackpool
Wolves vs Stoke
One of those games you'd rather not watch. Both sides will opt for long ball and it may turn into Jones vs Fletcher. Both managers will take a draw and they'll probably get it.
Prediction - Wolves 0 : 0 Stoke
Saturday, 7 August 2010
Chelsea vs Manchester United Preview
FA Community Shield
Wembley Stadium
8th August 15:00
Despite all the summer activity, these two clubs are still considered the favourites to win the League and the Community Shield game will give one of them an important psychological edge.
Unusually, Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti has already names his starting lineup. Didier Drogba only makes the bench for the tie at his happiest hunting ground and Cech, Alex and Bosingwa miss out entirely - all nursing minor injuries or simply short of fitness after the World Cup. Chelsea have had a mediocre pre-season winning at Crystal Palace before suffering consecutive defeats to Ajax, Eintracht Frankfurt and Hamburg and Ancelotti knows the importance of carrying momentum into the new season saying, "we need to win because we have lost too many games - we are not happy."
Manchester United have their own injury concerns ahead of Sunday's game. Michael Carrick is out for two weeks with an ankle injury, Gabriel Obertan also has an injured ankle, Rio Ferdinand has not recovered from the knee injury which kept him out of the World Cup, Anderson too has a long-term knee inury, Patrice Evra has been given time to recover after France's horror of a World Cup and the Da Silva's have food poisoning. Sir Alex Ferguson has also stated that Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen will both only play 45 minutes - the former needing time off after the World Cup and the latter short of match fitness. Ferguson also suggested that the other World Cup participant Nemanja Vidic will have a limited game on Sunday saying, "there is no point pushing players too early, so I don't think we will get the benefit of these players until the third week of the season". The belief being Rooney and Vidic will be starters coming off at half time for Owen and possibly Smalling. All signs point to a Manchester United 4-5-1 with Rooney on his own up top although United may switch to a 4-4-2 to test the resolve of Hernandez, Macheda or Berbatov.
Clearly Manchester United are staring down the barrel at the prospect of being outpaced by the Chelsea front line and outpassed in the midfield. The deeper midfielders Mikel and Essien should have no problem dealing with the sluggish and predictable Fletcher and Scholes and though Ryan Giggs can provide the occasional monet of brilliance, the midfield tussle should mainly result in Frank Lampard getting too much space in his box-to-box role. United's defense also looks vulnerable with the mistake-prone Wes Brown and Jonny Evans likely to start with the task of nullifying the rapidly improving Florent Malouda who will be looking to take out his frustrations after an embarassing World Cup. United's greatest threat comes through their own wingers. Antonio Valencia and Nani will need to be on top of their game as they are responsible for that all important service to the front man Wayne Rooney - who could have a field day against the out-of-position Paulo Ferreira (though he will have John Terry lending a helping hand if United do indeed only play one striker).
Prediction - Chelsea 3 : 1 Manchester United
Line-ups:
Chelsea (4-3-3) : Hilario, Ivanovic, Terry, Ferreira, Cole, Essien, Lampard, Mikel, Kalou, Anelka, Malouda
Manchester United (4-5-1) : van der Sar, Brown, Evans, Vidic, O'Shea, Valencia, Fletcher, Scholes, Giggs, Nani, Rooney
Wembley Stadium
8th August 15:00
Despite all the summer activity, these two clubs are still considered the favourites to win the League and the Community Shield game will give one of them an important psychological edge.
Unusually, Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti has already names his starting lineup. Didier Drogba only makes the bench for the tie at his happiest hunting ground and Cech, Alex and Bosingwa miss out entirely - all nursing minor injuries or simply short of fitness after the World Cup. Chelsea have had a mediocre pre-season winning at Crystal Palace before suffering consecutive defeats to Ajax, Eintracht Frankfurt and Hamburg and Ancelotti knows the importance of carrying momentum into the new season saying, "we need to win because we have lost too many games - we are not happy."
Manchester United have their own injury concerns ahead of Sunday's game. Michael Carrick is out for two weeks with an ankle injury, Gabriel Obertan also has an injured ankle, Rio Ferdinand has not recovered from the knee injury which kept him out of the World Cup, Anderson too has a long-term knee inury, Patrice Evra has been given time to recover after France's horror of a World Cup and the Da Silva's have food poisoning. Sir Alex Ferguson has also stated that Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen will both only play 45 minutes - the former needing time off after the World Cup and the latter short of match fitness. Ferguson also suggested that the other World Cup participant Nemanja Vidic will have a limited game on Sunday saying, "there is no point pushing players too early, so I don't think we will get the benefit of these players until the third week of the season". The belief being Rooney and Vidic will be starters coming off at half time for Owen and possibly Smalling. All signs point to a Manchester United 4-5-1 with Rooney on his own up top although United may switch to a 4-4-2 to test the resolve of Hernandez, Macheda or Berbatov.
Clearly Manchester United are staring down the barrel at the prospect of being outpaced by the Chelsea front line and outpassed in the midfield. The deeper midfielders Mikel and Essien should have no problem dealing with the sluggish and predictable Fletcher and Scholes and though Ryan Giggs can provide the occasional monet of brilliance, the midfield tussle should mainly result in Frank Lampard getting too much space in his box-to-box role. United's defense also looks vulnerable with the mistake-prone Wes Brown and Jonny Evans likely to start with the task of nullifying the rapidly improving Florent Malouda who will be looking to take out his frustrations after an embarassing World Cup. United's greatest threat comes through their own wingers. Antonio Valencia and Nani will need to be on top of their game as they are responsible for that all important service to the front man Wayne Rooney - who could have a field day against the out-of-position Paulo Ferreira (though he will have John Terry lending a helping hand if United do indeed only play one striker).
Prediction - Chelsea 3 : 1 Manchester United
Line-ups:
Chelsea (4-3-3) : Hilario, Ivanovic, Terry, Ferreira, Cole, Essien, Lampard, Mikel, Kalou, Anelka, Malouda
Manchester United (4-5-1) : van der Sar, Brown, Evans, Vidic, O'Shea, Valencia, Fletcher, Scholes, Giggs, Nani, Rooney
Thursday, 5 August 2010
Real Madrid : Squad Analysis
I'll go on record saying Real Madrid's best signing will be Jose Mourinho. The Special One brings the perfect stability to a Real Madrid side that has had it's lack of unity and direction exposed whenever faced with World class opposition. Despite this, Madrid have arguably the strongest squad in football and Mourinho could be the ideal candidate to bring the egos together.
Goalkeeper
This is perhaps the one position of the pitch for which there is only one cadidate. Captain Iker Casillas has had the gloves for almost ten years at the Bernebau and despite insisting he is "not a galactico", the 29-year-old is widely considered the best in the business. Jerzy Dudek will likely remain the back-up with few other alternatives on the books.
Defenders
Much in the same way Casillas is the undisputed Real Madrid goalkeeper, Sergio Ramos is the right-back. Competition comes from Alvaro Arbeloa meaning Ramos has nothing to worry about. Raul Albiol is another sure starter after his £11m move last summer. There are a few candidates for the other central spot with the aforementioned Arbeloa as well as Ezequiel Garay in the running. My vote however would go to Pepe. The Portugese missed the bulk of last season with a ruptured cruciate ligament but did play a part in the recent World Cup. The left-back spot seems to belong to Marcelo - again there is not much in the way of competition. This is a problem Mourinho wants to address however, telling Portuguese newspaper Record, "I think the club can still give me a defender but it's difficult to find quality players and youngsters with a lot of potential."
Midfielders
This is the point where we need to figure out what formation Mourinho will employ at Madrid. According to reports, the base formation will be a 4-3-3 with a 4-2-3-1 employed in European fixtures. If this is true, Madrid will be going man-for-man with Barcelona in a bid to regain the La Liga title. A 3-man-midfield would likely contain Mourinho's own signing Sami Khedira. Another name you cannot really leave out if you are trying to win a title is Xabi Alonso. So with one defensive man and one ball player, the midfield is just lacking one creative spark. Madrid have a decent one in Kaka. He would likely be in the middle of the 3 with Khedira and Alonso either side of him. The Brazilian is however facing the first two months of the season out with a knee injury leaving a temporary spot open. Any one of Higuain, Benzema, van der Vaart or even Ronaldo could play useful hands in this role but the most likely pick is 19-year-old Sergio Canales. Real Madrid were keen on the youngster, securing his signature in February through fear of rival bidders. He was key to Racing Santander's survival last season and his touch, creativity and vision is sure to make him a hit next season. Madrid's midfield looks very well balanced though there may be a few guys fearing for their futures and looking for the exits. In Granero and Canales, Real have two seriously gifted footballers for the future and will almost certainly look to hold onto the two - possibly even involving them in first team duties. The Kaka injury may persuade van der Vaart to stay and fight for a place. Fernando Gago is apparently unfazed by the competition for places saying, "I do not care if there is talk of signing players in the same position as me. That is not my problem - I am here to work and play and I will not change the way I go about things." Lassana Diarra has been linked with debt-collector-dodging Manchester United while Mahamadou Diarra apparently also wants to stay and fight, depite links reporting him with a move to Milan, saying, “The decision is with the club but I would like to play more matches than last season.”
Strikers
Royston Drenthe and Pedro Leon will have their eyes on the left wing spot but it is almost certain to go to the emperor's new clother Angel di Maria. Mourinho was very clean to bring the Argentine to Spain and the fans will be waiting anxiously to see what he can do. The right wing spot. Any guesses? It will, of course, go to Real Madrid's number 7. Not Raul. Cristiano Ronaldo. The winker has shown himself to be more than capable of playing up-front but Mourinho has expressed his preference to sign a new man to lead the line allowing Ronaldo to do his damage between the boxes. "I prefer for him to have more freedom, to feel comfortable. He has too much talent to be limited to that position(up-front). That's why I would like to have someone else, let's see if it's possible." The new man (if there is one) would have to compete with Gonzalo Higuain and Karim Benzema for a place - and I'm expecting the former to get the nod. Higuain has taken himself to the next level in the last couple of years, scoring 22 times in 34 La Liga games in the 2008/2009 season and 27 times in 32 La Liga games last season.
I worry for Madrid that there is simply too much that can go wrong in every game. Marcelo may be exposed defensively, the 3-man-midfield could fall flat if "the third man" has a quiet game, di Maria may not make the transition to the highest level of football or Barcelona may simply never drop any points. If anyone can make it work it's surely Jose Mourinho though I expect him to add a centre-back and an out and out target man striker as well as offloading a central midfielder or two.
Real Madrid (4-3-3) : Casillas, Ramos, Albiol, Pepe, Marcelo, Khedira, Kaka, Alonso, Ronaldo, di Maria, Higuain
What do you think is Real Madrid's strongest eleven?
Goalkeeper
This is perhaps the one position of the pitch for which there is only one cadidate. Captain Iker Casillas has had the gloves for almost ten years at the Bernebau and despite insisting he is "not a galactico", the 29-year-old is widely considered the best in the business. Jerzy Dudek will likely remain the back-up with few other alternatives on the books.
Defenders
Much in the same way Casillas is the undisputed Real Madrid goalkeeper, Sergio Ramos is the right-back. Competition comes from Alvaro Arbeloa meaning Ramos has nothing to worry about. Raul Albiol is another sure starter after his £11m move last summer. There are a few candidates for the other central spot with the aforementioned Arbeloa as well as Ezequiel Garay in the running. My vote however would go to Pepe. The Portugese missed the bulk of last season with a ruptured cruciate ligament but did play a part in the recent World Cup. The left-back spot seems to belong to Marcelo - again there is not much in the way of competition. This is a problem Mourinho wants to address however, telling Portuguese newspaper Record, "I think the club can still give me a defender but it's difficult to find quality players and youngsters with a lot of potential."
Midfielders
This is the point where we need to figure out what formation Mourinho will employ at Madrid. According to reports, the base formation will be a 4-3-3 with a 4-2-3-1 employed in European fixtures. If this is true, Madrid will be going man-for-man with Barcelona in a bid to regain the La Liga title. A 3-man-midfield would likely contain Mourinho's own signing Sami Khedira. Another name you cannot really leave out if you are trying to win a title is Xabi Alonso. So with one defensive man and one ball player, the midfield is just lacking one creative spark. Madrid have a decent one in Kaka. He would likely be in the middle of the 3 with Khedira and Alonso either side of him. The Brazilian is however facing the first two months of the season out with a knee injury leaving a temporary spot open. Any one of Higuain, Benzema, van der Vaart or even Ronaldo could play useful hands in this role but the most likely pick is 19-year-old Sergio Canales. Real Madrid were keen on the youngster, securing his signature in February through fear of rival bidders. He was key to Racing Santander's survival last season and his touch, creativity and vision is sure to make him a hit next season. Madrid's midfield looks very well balanced though there may be a few guys fearing for their futures and looking for the exits. In Granero and Canales, Real have two seriously gifted footballers for the future and will almost certainly look to hold onto the two - possibly even involving them in first team duties. The Kaka injury may persuade van der Vaart to stay and fight for a place. Fernando Gago is apparently unfazed by the competition for places saying, "I do not care if there is talk of signing players in the same position as me. That is not my problem - I am here to work and play and I will not change the way I go about things." Lassana Diarra has been linked with debt-collector-dodging Manchester United while Mahamadou Diarra apparently also wants to stay and fight, depite links reporting him with a move to Milan, saying, “The decision is with the club but I would like to play more matches than last season.”
Strikers
Royston Drenthe and Pedro Leon will have their eyes on the left wing spot but it is almost certain to go to the emperor's new clother Angel di Maria. Mourinho was very clean to bring the Argentine to Spain and the fans will be waiting anxiously to see what he can do. The right wing spot. Any guesses? It will, of course, go to Real Madrid's number 7. Not Raul. Cristiano Ronaldo. The winker has shown himself to be more than capable of playing up-front but Mourinho has expressed his preference to sign a new man to lead the line allowing Ronaldo to do his damage between the boxes. "I prefer for him to have more freedom, to feel comfortable. He has too much talent to be limited to that position(up-front). That's why I would like to have someone else, let's see if it's possible." The new man (if there is one) would have to compete with Gonzalo Higuain and Karim Benzema for a place - and I'm expecting the former to get the nod. Higuain has taken himself to the next level in the last couple of years, scoring 22 times in 34 La Liga games in the 2008/2009 season and 27 times in 32 La Liga games last season.
I worry for Madrid that there is simply too much that can go wrong in every game. Marcelo may be exposed defensively, the 3-man-midfield could fall flat if "the third man" has a quiet game, di Maria may not make the transition to the highest level of football or Barcelona may simply never drop any points. If anyone can make it work it's surely Jose Mourinho though I expect him to add a centre-back and an out and out target man striker as well as offloading a central midfielder or two.
Real Madrid (4-3-3) : Casillas, Ramos, Albiol, Pepe, Marcelo, Khedira, Kaka, Alonso, Ronaldo, di Maria, Higuain
What do you think is Real Madrid's strongest eleven?
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