Spurs boss Harry Redknapp is determined to keep Croatian winger Niko Kranjcar at White Hart Lane, despite a bid from Werder Bremen.
The 26-year-old has started just once for Spurs this season and appears to be set on leaving the north London club, but Redknapp is keen to retain Kranjcar, who scored six times from 24 appearances last term.
“There is a German club that have come in for him. They have offered good money for him but I’m not keen to lose Niko,” Redknapp said.
“He is a good player, a fantastic player. I don’t think he wants to go to Germany and play.”
“I don’t think he feels that’s an option for him. If that’s the case then he will stay here and that’s great for us as well.”
With Spurs pressing the leaders in the English Premier League, and relishing the prospect of Champions League football next month, Redknapp is keenly aware of the physical demands on his playing list.
“We have a lot of games coming up. We are going to need a squad,” he said.
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“There’s talk that the Sunderland game that we have coming up could be an evening kick-off on a Saturday and then Tuesday we play AC Milan away, then we have them at home.”
“These games are going to be coming thick and fast. We have a rearranged game with Blackpool to play on a Wednesday night. It’s going to be Saturday, midweek, Saturday, midweek. Niko is going to be an important player for us.”
Pre-season friendlies are a terrible barometer of how the season will pan out but, win or lose, supporters still get carried away. By Will Strauss
OK, it’s time to lay my cards firmly on the table: I hate pre-season. There, I’ve said it.
Pre-season is important for players as they get to focus on fitness, tactics and getting to know their new teammates.
Supporters, unfortunately, get no such benefits. For us pre-season results in: two months of completely hypothetical and rhetorical conversations about transfer policy; inane discussions about the merits or otherwise of the new home shirt; totally unfounded predictions for the new season; and a string of ultimately pointless (pun-intended) football matches.
The latter are particularly galling.
Even if your club has arranged a glamour tie against a big Premier League team or a European footballing giant, the pre-season friendly is a fairly grim experience. Partly because most games are played at walking pace but mainly because supporters have to attempt to watch their team play without caring about the score or, to a certain extent, the performance. Which kind of takes away the whole point of a going to a game of football in the first place.
Chesterfield manager John Sheridan said this week: “I’ve played and managed teams that have won every game in pre-season and got off to a poor start, so the most important thing in my eyes is keeping everyone fit.”
I am a rational man. I know he is right. Yes I can’t help but look at the results and what they might tell us.
In the last couple of weeks Chesterfield have thrashed Staveley Miners Welfare and Matlock Town but failed to beat Telford and lost to Alfreton. On paper the results do not inspire confidence. But, at the same time, they’ve played some very encouraging looking attacking football, created loads of chances and scored plenty of goals.
So I now find myself worrying that the season is going to get off to a bad start. Which is totally insane because these are just friendlies. But I cannot help myself. This is why no good can ever come of pre-season.
Perversely, prior to these first few friendlies, I was desperately reining in my expectations.
Having been relegated last season I was hoping that they’d bounce straight back up. And, with the signings that Sheridan has made, they might do that. But such are the vagaries of pre-season that I now haven’t got a clue how they’ll get on.
With friendly results going awry I’ve even started comparing and contrasting the team with its potential opposition. I don’t usually concern myself with the fortunes of other teams until we get to about Christmas but that’s another curse of pre-season.
There are other clubs, notably newly promoted Fleetwood Town and local rivals Rotherham United, that are also bringing in interesting players and all three clubs have spent well when it comes to wages.
Chesterfield have signed five new players on free transfers and re-signed several more that were at the club last season. The impressive looking Sam Hird has arrived – despite Doncaster Rovers’ best efforts to keep the defender – as has midfield enforcer/water carrier Sam Togwell, a player that they could’ve done with last season.
The Spireites have also gone big on Marc Richards, the former Port Vale striker, reputedly paying him very good money in a division where the average wage is £747 a week.
At the same time Rotherham have signed 11 new players – again, all on frees – thanks, at least in part I would guess, to a wage budget bolstered by the income that will come from their excellent looking new stadium.
Fleetwood are famously wealthy and have made some interesting signings too including players that have previously earned a crust at a higher level such as Damian Johnson and Jon Parkin. According to recent media reports, they’re also going to sign Joey Barton. If that is true it would take them into a completely different realm from the rest.
With all three clubs upping the wages ante the League Two salary cap may play a part in deciding who comes out on top.
For the uninitiated, no club in League Two can spend more than 55 per cent of its turnover on employee wages. To police this rule, budgets are provided to the Football League at the beginning of the season. This information is updated as the campaign progresses and any club breaching the limit will be subject to a transfer embargo.
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In my opinion it is an excellent ruling that stops clubs from buying their way to the title with money they don’t actually have but I can also see how it may cause problems if clubs get their strategy wrong.
According to the Sheffield Star “the annual player wages budget has been reached” at Chesterfield. This shows ambition. But what if Richards, on whose form and goals a lot rests, gets injured for example? Where do we go from there? Is there a contingency plan for a replacement? Presumably the answer is no, unless the club can increase turnover mid-season.
As you can see, this is the kind of hypothetical nonsense that is going on inside my head right now. Ultimately I am none the wiser for the last two months. Curse you pre-season. You’ve sent me mad again.
Perhaps we’ll know more once we’ve played friendlies against Huddersfield Town and Derby. But I doubt it. The football season proper cannot come soon enough.
By Will Strauss. As well as writing about his first love, Chesterfield FC, he is currently coming up with articles about freezer spares for the Leeds-based appliances company ASD.
It is not often you see anything positive written about Arsenal on websites these days, as negativity continues to sweep across the red side of North London as utter frustration pours out of sections of their disgruntled support. Even the most positive of fans are starting to stay clear of their usual ‘in Wenger we trust’ retort and it does appear that discontent is far from the minority anymore.
Six years without a trophy has hit supporters hard and Wenger must surely be under no illusions that this is the last chance saloon for him to land some silverware. A top four finish is no longer deemed a success (although most clubs would give a right arm) and some trophies in the cabinet are needed to lift a football club that has visibly lost its passion and zeal. In 25yrs I have never ever seen such a negative demeanour around the Gunners support; a feeling that hasn’t been diminished by the club’s activity in the transfer market so far. The big spending hasn’t arrived and supporters are rightly concerned as to how this current Arsenal squad can hope to compete with their domestic and Euro rivals. A call for patience is falling on deaf ears, especially for a set of fans that pay the highest price in the Premier League.
The whole Gunners plight got me thinking about the rising expectations in football and whether it has mirrored that of the ever increasing cost of watching it. One comment I read in an Arsenal blog really struck a chord when the writer suggested that at £70 a time he felt it was the club’s duty to respect his investment by ensuing the club did everything in their power to be competitive. He went onto suggest that he finds it unforgiveable that a club that generates the revenues it does, in comparison to its competitors, still fails to compete for the big players in the game. It is hard to argue with his sentiments; football has become an expensive past-time, but it does highlight the changing attitude to the way supporters look upon their investment. I wonder if that same guy would be so uptight if he was simply paying £10 to watch his football club, oppose to the crazy amount that the fans payout now? It would certainly be an easier pill to swallow financially.
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So it begs the question as to whether football clubs should show a greater responsibility to their supporters. Don’t get me wrong I am not naive to think that the fiscal side of football hasn’t changed dramatically and clubs have to operate accordingly, but for those clubs that generate higher revenues and subsequent profits; isn’t it understandable that their supporters will be slightly aggrieved? A club like Everton as an example unfortunately don’t have the sizeable revenues to compete and their supporters want answers as to what is being done to improve their situation; in comparison to a club like Arsenal where there are no such problems, apart from a reluctance of their manager to spend big. The directors are probably right to back their manager and his decisions, but they can’t overlook the growing discontent. I’m not suggesting they should override their manager and bring in players to the club behind his back, but giving Wenger a little gentle shove in the right direction may go some way in bringing a little life back into what is clearly a disgruntled support. A little ambition not only brings hope to supporters, but who knows may encourage certain players that the future is certainly a bright one at the Emirates Stadium.
Derby day concludes with what is, quite simply, one of the biggest games of the season. Everton were good value for their 2-0 win when these two sides met earlier in the year, however the atmosphere for what will be Kenny Dalglish’s return to Anfield should be extraordinary.
David Moyes has allowed Nigerian striker, Yakubu, to leave the club on loan for the rest of the season. Considering the lack of attacking options available to the Scot, such a move is a surprise, however it may be an indication that some added firepower could be added before the end of the window.
Everton won well at home against Spurs last time out, and a repeat performance against Liverpool could well be enough to secure all three points on Merseyside. The difficulty for Dalglish is that his squad has a real lack of quality running through it, and if any of the club’s key players are absent there is a frightening lack of menace or purpose.
Much has been made of a perceived lack of confidence in the Liverpool squad, however if the return of a club legend and a Merseyside derby aren’t enough to spark a revival, then Liverpool fans may be forced to consider a spring time scrap for survival.
Manchester United target Lucas Moura’s valuation is set to increase by £4 million, as Sao Paulo look to get the best price for their star player according to The Daily Mail.
The Brazil international playmaker is one of a generation of exciting young attacking players coming out of the South American nation currently, with the Red Devils fighting against Real Madrid and Inter for the prospect’s signature.
Moura is thought to be valued around the £30 million mark, with the player entitled to 20 per cent of any potential transfer fee.
However, on August 1 the player’s share is said to be ready to increase to 30 per cent, which would take the cost of the player up another £4 million.
United have sent chief scout Jim Lawlor to Brazil in an attempt to broker a deal, however Moura will be in the United Kingdom soon to compete for his country in the Olympics.
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Goalkeeper Renny Vega’s unlikely assist helped Venezuela steal a 3-3 draw against Paraguay in Group B of the Copa America on Wednesday.With Venezuela’s quarter-final spot already assured, Paraguay had seemed destined for their first win of the tournament after leading 3-1 as the game ticked over into extra-time in the second half.
But that changed when substitute striker Miku poked home to pull one back in the 90th minute, with Venezuela desperately pushing forward and winning a corner as the seconds dwindled away.
Vega charged forward to contest the corner and succeeded in nodding the ball on for defender Grenddy Perozo to score a dramatic equaliser, in the last piece action of the game.
It sparked wild scenes of celebrations for Venezuela and Vega, while Paraguay’s players looked about in disbelief.
Paraguay had cancelled out Mikel Rondon’s well-hit opener through Antolin Alcaraz’s 33rd-minute goal, after Lucas Barrios’ header had created confusion in the penalty area.
Paraguay took the lead shortly after the hour mark when Barrios scored from point-blank range after a shot from strike partner Nelson Haedo Valdez – a substitute after Roque Santa Cruz went off injured – had been well blocked by Vega.
They seemingly put the game to bed when Cristian Riveros nodded in a corner at the near post on 86 minutes, but Venezuela forged a tremendous finale to the match by refusing to lie down.
The point was enough to send Paraguay into the last eight, but the injury to Santa Cruz and the manner in which they threw away the win will come as some concern to manager Gerardo Martino.
Martino will at least be back on the touchline for the quarter-final, having served a one-match ban for manhandling the referee’s assistant in Paraguay’s second group game against Brazil.
A pulsating London derby ended in stalemate, as Heurelho Gomes redeemed himself with an injury time penalty stop that ensured the spoils were shared. At the Reebok a last gasp winner saw an unhappy return for Sam Allardyce, while Mick McCarthy will be breathing a huge sigh of relief as Stephen Hunt fired Wolves to victory in the Midlands derby.
In the papers this morning there has been more from the Carlos Tevez fallout at Manchester City; elsewhere Arsene Wenger urges patience with Theo Walcott, while Stephen Ireland is set for crunch talks with Aston Villa, plus much more.
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Furious Tevez slams City with relationship ‘beyond repair’ – Guardian
Moyes admits Everton may sell Steven Pienaar – IM Scouting
Wenger urges Walcott patience – Sky Sports
Fans will dictate future not Pards – Sun
Ireland set for crunch talks with Gerard Houllier – Daily Mail
Rio wants 4 more years at Man Utd – Sun
Houllier has no Villa regrets – Sky Sports
Terry: we’ve lacked passion until now – Daily Telegraph
Giggs sees Nasri as player to fear – Independent
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Chelsea have unveiled new signing Eden Hazard, who joins the club from French side Lille.
The Belgian international is adjudged as one of the most exciting and talented young players in Europe, and was linked with a move to both Manchester United and Manchester City also.
With even Real Madrid and Barcelona thought to have considered a bid for the playmaker, Hazard has explained his decision to move to Stamford Bridge.
“When they won the Champions League I told myself, Why not Chelsea?” the attacking midfielder told French radio station RMC, translated to English by Sky Sports.
“There was a struggle between Chelsea and United but, for me, Chelsea has the best project.
“The team is young and I have a better chance to play there.
“At 21, Real or Barca would have been more difficult for me.
“If I play well enough at Chelsea, I could win my place in the starting team,” he concluded.
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Hazard is the latest new face at the west London club, with Marko Marin and Kevin De Bruyne also joining the Blues this summer.
Nigel Reo-Coker has stated that his release from Aston Villa came as a shock, and that he will now consider a move to the continent.
The former West Ham player ended 2010/11 as the club’s captain, and he has stated that Gerard Houllier had promised him negotiations over a new deal before becoming ill. Despite this, the Birmingham club released the 27-year-old whilst he was on holiday.
“Before Gerard Houllier was taken ill and left the club, he said he wanted to sit me down this summer and negotiate a new deal. When the season ended, there was no contact from Villa to renegotiate my contract,” the robust midfielder told The Daily Mail.
“We never sat down together, which I was told would happen. While on holiday, I was getting texts from friends and reading tweets I’d been released. I was disappointed. It should’ve been handled better and with more respect.”
The Croydon born man has enforced his agent to look for a new club, with options in Europe being considered.
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“It’s a new chapter. I want to go to a club where I can challenge for things either in the Premier League or abroad. There are options in Europe – and I’m seriously considering them,” he finished.
Following the royal announcement that emerged late on Tuesday morning, the news that Manchester United’s owners, the Glazer family, are to settle their £220m Payment-in-Kind loans is unlikely to dominate bulletins in the way that New England Sports Ventures’ takeover of Liverpool did in October. Do the Glazers have a direct line to the Clarence House press office? It’s unlikely, and even if they did, wouldn’t they want their surprise announcement to gain as much exposure as possible rather than be lost amidst the stories about Will and Kate and the inevitable array of commemorative plates already being planned?
In truth, instead of pointing to the eventual resolving of the owners’ debt problems and those of Manchester United, the seeing-off of the PiKs raises more questions about the Glazer administration and addresses none of its problems. This is because nobody knows where the money has come from yet. According to a statement by Red Football Joint Venture Ltd (United’s parent company), they will “prepay 100 per cent from the outstanding loan on November 22.” Red Football Joint Venture Ltd do not have to reveal their funding because only Red Football, the club’s operating company, have to publish quarterly accounts, and the repayment of the PiK loans was made the responsibility of the parent company. It’s one of those peculiarities of business law with which the modern day football fan is becoming increasingly acquainted.
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The Glazers took out the PiK loans in 2005 when they bought United and, despite being renegotiated the following year, they had been tied to an intimidating interest rate of 16.25%. The fear, exacerbated by the terms of a bond issue in January, was that the Americans would take up their option to withdraw up to £70m from the club’s own accounts to help repay the PiKs. As the loans were taken out by the family and so were not the club’s official responsibility to repay, this clause permitting the Glazers to divert funds away from team restrengthening in order to lighten their own financial burden was what triggered the green and gold protests at Old Trafford in the second half of last season and saw the membership of the Manchester United Supporters Trust (MUST) swell to over 150,000. However, on the day that Manchester United’s quarterly accounts were published, the board were adamant that none of the club’s money had been withdrawn by the Glazers in this instance. As a caveat, the accounts do only cover the period up to September 30, but the board must be taken on their word.
Where else might the money have come from? The Guardian suggests three possibilities. The Glazers could simply have taken out another loan with which to repay their existing debts (the daytime television route). Another suggestion is that a small stake in United could have been sold to a third party. Finally, the owners could have traded in one of their US business interests, although this is deemed the least likely option.
Although MUST are promising to present the Glazers with a list of questions regarding United’s finances very soon, a clearer explanation of what is happening at United is unlikely to come easily if the Americans are under no obligation to say how they have managed to repay the PiK loans. The news that club funds can be ruled out appears to be positive but if the loans have merely been replaced in kind or paid off via an unnamed source of investment then the benefits to United of having the PiKs removed from the equation become less clear. Regardless of the repayment next week, however, the club’s gross debt, the legacy of the Glazers’ leveraged buyout, still stands at £509m according to the latest figures. That is a very slight reduction on the amount three months ago but nowhere near enough for United fans to start celebrating over.
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