Celtic manager Neil Lennon has jumped to the defence of Rangers midfielder Ian Black after he was jeered playing for Scotland at Easter Road on Wednesday.
The former Hearts man was back in Edinburgh for the first time since joining Rangers and was a late and controversial call up to the national side by Craig Levein.
Lennon said “It was uncalled for. The kid was making his debut. Part of it is probably banter with the Hibs fans but still, it was a very big day for him and a special moment for him.
“I don’t want to make too much of it, I was booed myself but for different reasons obviously, but it is not nice and hopefully that will be the first and last of it.
“I think he is a strong character and listening to his comments after the game he was still very positive.
“With the venue being where it was, there was maybe always a chance that he might take a bit of stick anyway.
“I think if the venue was either Hampden or (elsewhere in) Glasgow, I don’t think that scenario would have popped up.”
Lennon added: “I got booed everywhere – I got booed in the house. We all know the reasons behind that, because he (Black) was a Hearts player for so long and he was a bit of a rascal as it were – and there is nothing wrong with that – and he rubbed people up the wrong way.
“The majority of those fans at the game wouldn’t have been Glasgow Rangers fans, Celtic fans or Inverness fans, the majority of them were probably at Easter Road to give him a bit of stick.”
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Arsenal are about to embark on a new era; after 22 years under Arsene Wenger, someone new will take the reigns at the Emirates Stadium ahead of next season.
It remains to be seen exactly who that will be, but there has been a glimpse into how the Gunners will run out as an image of their new home kit has been leaked.
It is fair to say that, despite the excitement surrounding the post-Wenger era at Arsenal, there is not the same enthusiasm for the new kit and that has been reflected in the reaction of the fans.
The leaked Puma number has not impressed, with a number of fans calling for a new manufacturer to take over with the production of the kit in the coming years, such as Nike or Adidas.
We’ve taken a closer look at some of the angriest reaction from the Gunners fans on Twitter…
Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel has rejected a new three-year contract with the club after they couldn’t agree on all the appearance-based clauses.
The centre-back is the latest player at Anfield who hasn’t been able to agree terms. This season has been dotted with the Reds players who have been unable to sign their new deals. Steven Gerrard’s predecessor Jordan Henderson and young star Raheem Stirling have constantly been in the papers after talks grounded to a halt at different times over the season.
The 30-year-old has added yet more worry to the Reds’ fans and it looks like manager Brendan Rodgers has a lot to do. Napoli, Wolfsburg and Inter Milan have all expressed an interest and are watching the outcome with great interest.
There are not many who will doubt that Skrtel has been one of the best players for Liverpool this season. While some are not a fan of his playing style he has been consistent and his physical and defence style has been greatly needed throughout the campaign.
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In the club’s recent top of the table clash against Liverpool, the Slovakian defender was one of the stand out players due to his aerial presence and his ability to clear the ball.
Skrtel has grown and developed as a player since he joined over ten years ago, knowing his limitations and doing the “dirty work” while the other members of the back four deal with the marking.
Some believe the Reds have got the new contract offer right due to his limited style and his age. Many believe he is now on the wrong side of 30 and, although defender’s seem to keep their skill for long- you only have to look at the season John Terry has had at Chelsea this season to see there is an argument for it – Skrtel’s last-ditch defensive style needs him to be physically fit which is only likely to decrease as he gets older.
The bosses at Anfield have every right to offer Skrtel the contract they have as they have to protect their outlay, especially if the Slovak’s ability starts to wain. Rodgers loves to bring in young talent who can learn from the veterans he already has at the club – Henderson has come on leaps and bounds under the watchful eye of the Rodgers and Gerrard.
The manager is probably planning to bring in a new fresh pair of legs to replace the 30-year-old, hence why there are a number of bonuses per games played rather than a bigger basic contract, but there is no sign of any acquisitions just yet. While Rodgers is trying to do the best for the club he cannot afford to lose his strongest players due to disagreements with contracts.
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At the moment, Liverpool need Skrtel more than he needs them. They need to get him to sign on the dotted line before some other club draws his attention elsewhere.
What a difference 3 days make. After the dismal and frankly pathetic performance by Wolves on Saturday, confidence was at a low ebb with fans and with 4 awkward games to go, there was only 1 word on the supporters mind, I’ll let you make your own mind up to what that word is. We started the evening with 48 points and were 2nd from bottom, with Bristol City all but relegated below us on 40 points. There was an odd, dare I say, relaxed atmosphere, a sense of inevitability that Wolves were not going to get anything against the team placed 2nd in the Championship. Maybe that helped the team who knows. I did find it funny that almost exactly a year ago Wolves had to play another team in sky blue to stay up, Man City came to the Molineux on the 22nd April 2012 and duly sent us packing to the Championship, with goals from Sergio Aguero and Samir Nasri putting the club out of its long suffering misery. The situation was exactly the same last night, Hull came out, clad in aqua blue, needing a win to all but guarantee automatic promotion, they faced a Wolves team that could not lose otherwise we may find our selves, like Bristol City, cut a drift from the rest of the pack.
After the late win away against the Messiah’s (Mick McCarthy) Ipswich Town on Saturday afternoon, Steve Bruce made 2 changes, in came the former Albion man Robert Koren for Jonny Evans’ younger brother, Corry. Bruce’s second change was the rather amusingly named Ahmed Fathy for another former Albion man, Jay Simpson. With these changes in mind, Steve Bruce lined his team up in a cultural 3-5-1-1 formation, in goal was the Fulham loanee, David Stockdale. In front of him were a trio of centre backs, James Chester, Jack Hobbs and the man mountain Abdoulaye Faye. Bruce’s 5-man midfield consisted of 3 Irishmen, Robbie Brady on the wing, Stephen Quinn and David Meyler (no relation) were the operators in the centre of the park. The 2 Egyptians were Ahmed Elmohamady who operated as the other wingback and the aforementioned Ahmed Fathy partnered Quinn and Meyler. Robert Koren sat ‘in the hole’ behind the Peterborough loanee, and highly rated striker/attacking midfielder, George Boyd.
Wolves were largely unchanged, after O’Hara’s sending off on Saturday, Saunders was forced to bring in Tongo Doumbia for the aforementioned midfielder. With that, Wolves had the impressive Dorus De Vries between the posts. In front of him were Gorkss and Johnson with our young prodigies, Doherty and Robinson, occupying the full back positions. The midfield consisted of the revived Stephen Hunt on the right hand side, Doumbia and Henry were the two midfielders who were tasked with stopping Quinn and co, and Stephen Ward was given his second game at right midfield. Our front two was, the captain, Kevin Doyle and Bjorn Sigurdarson.
The game kicked off in beautiful sunshine, with a hint of breeze, Wolves had the better of the opening opportunities, a Stephen Hunt free kick was caught by Stockdale after Tongo Doumbia was brought down. It was clear to see Saunders set the team up in a 4-4-1-1 formation with Stephen Hunt in behind Kevin Doyle, to solidify the midfield and match the 5 men of Hull. In addition to Hunt’s free kick, Bjorn Sigurdarson picked the ball up and drove at the midfield, something that he is becoming extremely good at, and fed the ball out to Jack Robinson, Hull applied pressure but the Liverpool man held it well and gave it inside to Tongo Doumbia. The Malian midfield general looked up and switched the ball to the other side to the oncoming Matt Doherty who, again, like Robinson, was pressured off the ball and Hull passed their way out of danger. With 15 minutes of the 90 gone, it was clear that Wolves, even with 5 in the middle, had no midfield, the ball was being lumped up to the Doyle or Hunt in the hope that they could perform some sort of miracle with it. Wolves had a surprisingly good passing rhythm they knocked it around nicely, we just seemed to lack any sort of intensity. Wolves’ best chance of the first 45 came when Tongo Doumbia’s presence and strength stole the ball off Quinn and his pass found Jack Robinson, who’s precise cross found our Icelandic striker, who’s header bounced out, Ward found the ball to cries of “shoot!” he duly obliged. The ball, sadly, bobbled out after Kevin Doyle came close from Ward’s deflected shot.
Hull were under the cosh, but, once again, Wolves could not capitalise on the early pressure. Hull got forward on 20 minutes through the Egyptian, and Sunderland loanee, Ahmed Elmohamady. He got the ball deep and displayed a fantastic burst of pace to run roughly 60 yards and deliver a pin point, low cross into the Wolves box, hearts were in mouths for a few seconds, but thankfully, Elmohamady’s cross found no one. Hull had another good chance when the other Egyptian, Fathy, smashed the ball from 30 yards only to see it whistle past the right hand side of Dorus’ goal. The 4th officials board went up for the first time on the half hour mark, Steve Bruce had decided Robert Koren’s evening was up, he was hooked and Jay Simpson replaced. Initially, the thinking was that Bruce wanted to match Wolves’ 4-man midfield by putting Boyd and Simpson up front together. However, Simpson was put out on the wing, an odd move from Bruce I thought.
Halftime came and there was a sense of frustration amongst the fans that were sat in my earshot. I, like them, felt that Wolves lacked any sort of intensity to get a goal, we had some half decent chances and one very good chance we just lacked any sort of ability to take an opportunity if it came along, sound familiar? Hull on the other hand had a very odd first half, it looked as if Bruce had waited to catch Wolves on the break, seeing the way we started on Saturday, can you blame him for doing that? Saunders trumped him, he was happy to keep the ball and containing Hull’s rare bursts forwards, he deserves credit for that. That frustration and annoyance soon dissipated though when Wolverhampton Wanderers’ favourite rude boy, Adam Hammill, came on and gave the crowd, an American football style, half time show. His flicks and tricks dazzled the pie eating, tea-drinking supporters as the temperature took a sudden drop. It really was awesome to watch some with that much ability just ‘larking about’ with a football.
The teams arrived for the second half unchanged, to cheers and mutual applause from both sets of fans. After a rather dull first 10 minutes, fans cockles were warmed when Bjorn Sigurdarson ran down the right in typical, powerful, fashion cut inside with such confidence for a man of such a young age, he was unfairly pulled down and the attack was snuffed out by the diligent Hull defenders.
At around about the hour mark, came a moment, a moment that gave Wolves the slightest notion of a glimmer of safety. Doumbia, impressive all game, pounced on a dawdling Ahmed Fathy just inside Hull’s own half, the tackle wasn’t the best and the ball bounced forward to an eager Bjorn Sigurdarson, he, as he had done all evening, ran at Abdoulaye Faye and co. Sigurdarson spotted the run to his left, of the captain, and ever loyal, Kevin Doyle, who let the ball run across his body, into the 18 yard box, and first time, with his left foot, brushed the ball, Claude Monet-esque, past David Stockdale’s left hand side. Unlike the celebrations on Saturday, these cheers and smiles were not tinged with the nervousness like against Huddersfield, it was utter joy from every home fan there and it was spectacular.
Now the pressure was on, as every one took their seats, Wolves had half an hour to hang on or get another one and kill off The Tigers. The pressure started from the impressive Elmohamady who had another trademark burst down the wing and whipped a ball in, it was deflected out and the young Irishman, Robbie Brady, skied a long-range shot over Dorus’ goal. Another chance fell 8 minutes later when the goal scorer, Kevin Doyle, cleared the aforementioned Irish man’s cross. Hull’s pressure was there but Wolves, surprisingly, dealt with it diligently and professionally there was hardly any drama from Wolves’ defensive play, it was impressive. It was weird if I’m honest.
Wolves, with 30 minutes remaining, created a fantastic opportunity when Stephen Ward’s cross was headed out to Tongo Doumbia who took one touch on his chest and, to coin an Alan Partridge phrase “had a foot like a traction engine”, sadly the midfield general’s shot went inches wide, to many gasps from the Molineux faithful. It seemed that Hull’s main tactic was putting balls in the home team’s box, this was obsolete as Johnson and Gorkss were both rocks at the back and dealt with the deliveries of Elmohamady and Brady with consummate ease.
With 15 minutes left, Bruce brought on Matty Fryatt for Abdoulaye Faye and went for the equaliser. Hull nearly found it with about ten minutes to go, Brady ran at the Wolves backline, he dazzled Doumbia with a few step overs. Brady dropped a shoulder to the right and picked out Jay Simpson with a delightful, Xavi-esque, pass that split Wolves’ offside trap. Simpson, like Doyle, let the ball go in front of him, across his body, he placed it with his left passed De Vries. Time stood still for the South Bank and co as the ball glided past our Dutch goalkeeper. Thankfully the woodwork was on hand to save Wolves’, it was lucky that the ball did not go in, but it was luck we made ourselves.
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Now, one highlight this season has been the introduction of youth into the squad. This was emphasized in a moment by a young man, Matt Doherty produced a match winning tackle on Jay Simpson, it had the timing and awareness of a player 7 or 8 years his senior, it got a standing ovation from every one clad in gold. It was one of those season defining moments, a highlight certainly. As the great golf commentator Peter Allis famously says, “Well done young man”. This tackle created one of the most crazy moments at the Molineux this season, from the resulting tackle Wolves hit Hull on the break with Hunt who scrambled possession from the Hull defenders and hit a tame shot straight at Stockdale who parried the ball to his left onto Sigurdarson, who took a second or two to get the ball from under his feet, his resulting strike hit the underside of the Englishmen’s goal, every single person in the ground had their hands on their heads, in utter disbelief that it was not the goal that sent Hull packing.
Another chance came 7 or so minutes later when Roger Johnson, ran from his own 18-yard box and hit a surprisingly accurate pass to Kevin Doyle, who flicked it to Ward, he delivered a decent ball to the oncoming freight train that was our former captain, sadly, like most British centre backs he was flagged for an offside. The substitutions of Ward and Sigurdarson for Batth and Foley, gave Wolves’ the solidity and stability it needed to see the result out, with relative ease. Hull offered little in the last 10 minutes or rather they did, it was just that Wolves matched the away teams attacks with their solid defensive work.
Andy Woolmer blew his whistle after a questionable 5 added minutes. Relief, pride and joy exuded out from the Wolves fans as the players stood and applauded each side of the ground. “Hi Ho Silver Lining” rang around the ground as the fans made their exits, each one with high fives, smiles and hugs for their fellow supporters. It was nights like that which make me so proud of my beloved club, after such a disaster of a season, which has seen two managers and some truly shocking results, Wolves fans stayed behind and sung their hearts out, till they were puce in the face. It is this sort of positive attitude that has given Wolves a lifeline, one that they simply have to grasp, otherwise we shall be joining The Robins in League 1 next year.
have confirmed that Wally Downes has relinquished current duties as first team coach at Upton Park.
The decision comes as a surprise to both the club and manager Sam Allardyce as the Premier League outfit begin a busy Christmas period. Big Sam has nevertheless allowed Downes, 51, to leave the club almost midway through the season.
The former West Ham first team coach played as a midfielder for Wimbledon’s Crazy Gang, making over 200 appearances between 1979 and 1988. He has been recognised as one of the main characters at the club during the formation of the infamous Crazy Gang spirit.
When Downes’ playing career ended he took up the reins at Brentford for a short spell after Steve Coppell left. He then proceeded to rejoin Coppell at Reading before joining Southampton and then West Ham.
Downes was initially hired in November 2010 serving as the team’s defensive coach under the managerial direction of Avram Grant. Then, when Allardyce was charged with the responsibility of guiding the East London club back into the top flight, Downes was swiftly made first team coach.
His departure signals the end of a successful two-year spell at Upton Park.
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Manchester City star Leroy Sane took some time to find his feet at the club following his switch to the Etihad Stadium last summer.The 22-year-old made the move from Schalke and was eased into the team by manager Pep Guardiola.This season, the attack-minded player who tends to play on the left-hand side, has come into his own.In total, the Germany international has created 14 assists and scored 13 goals in all competitions for the North-West outfit.https://video.footballfancast.com/video-2015/cfc-barca-moments.mp4Sane has been a key figure in City’s Premier League title-win, and that has certainly not gone amiss.On Sunday night, the winger was voted PFA Young Player of the Year in just his second season at the club.
It is difficult to argue with the vote given Sane’s dominance this season at such a young age.
The German beat off competition from his teammates Ederson and Raheem Sterling, who secured third place, while Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane snuck in at second.
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It is safe to say that City fans, who felt that Kevin De Bruyne deserved the main prize ahead of Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, were happy for Sane.
Today’s early kick-off in the Premier League sees Manchester City entertain West Ham at the Etihad – a fixture that could have an enormous impact on the fate of under-fire manager Manuel Pellegrini.The Eastlands outfit’s form has tanked in recent weeks,Âtheir objective for the campaign resultantly shifting from retaining the English title to ensuring they make the Premier League’s top four.History is firmly on the City gaffer’s side today however; the Hammers have beaten the reigning Premier League champions just once from their last six attempts, with an aggregate scoreline of 17-4.That being said, the East Londoners claimed all three points in the reverse fixture at Upton Park back in October, and City are amid a run of just two wins in their last six across all competitions – including four consecutive away defeats.West Ham’s recent form isn’t much better, however, claiming just four points from a possible 16 in recent weeks. So who enters today’s match as the favourites? Perhaps the starting Xis, officially confirmed on Twitter just moments ago, can shed some light on the debate:
Norwich can avoid relegation this season despite having tough games against Arsenal and Manchester City, according to Bradley Johnson.
The Canaries midfielder has spoken out to try and give his team-mates a lift going into the final six matches of the Premier League campaign, following a run of one league win in 15 outings which has left them just four points clear of the drop zone.
Johnson is aware that they must travel to face Arsenal this weekend, while reigning Premier League champions Manchester City await at the Etihad Stadium on the final day.
However, the former Leeds man is confident they can get a result against both clubs while Chris Hughton’s men also have to face fellow strugglers Reading, Stoke and Aston Villa where vital points can be accrued.
“We knew it was going to be tough from the beginning of the season,” Johnson told Sky Sports.
“The Premier League is the hardest in the country and we knew it was going to be hard from the get go and we would love to have been safe now but we aren’t and now every game we go into is a cup final.”
On facing the league’s top teams, Johnson added: “No one expects us to go to clubs like Arsenal and Man Utd and win, but we’ve beaten both of them at home already this season so who says we can’t do it away from home?
“We know it will be a hard game. If we get anything out of it, it will be a bonus.
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“We work hard for each other and we got into Arsenal’s faces at home. We upset their rhythm.”
Pep Guardiola made no room for Sergio Aguero in his innovative Manchester City side that was tasked with overturning the 3-0 deficit from the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie against Liverpool.
The exclusion of the Argentine – valued at £67.5m by Transfermarkt – on a night when goals were the main priority for City raised a few eyebrows and Aguero is also a cult figure among the fans.
It didn’t pay off, of course, as Liverpool won out at the Etihad Stadium and that has left Guardiola staring down the barrel of four straight defeats when he takes his side to Wembley to face Tottenham on Saturday night.
That’s why we asked Manchester City fans whether Aguero should be brought back into the starting eleven for the trip to face Mauricio Pochettino’s side and the result was fairly conclusive.
76 per cent of City supporters want the prolific frontman starting up top and you can check out the full results of the poll below…
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Chelsea star Diego Costa has declared that he will not be changing his style of play, according to reports from the Daily Star.
Costa was recently banned for three matches after an alleged stamp on Liverpool’s Emre Can during the Capital One Cup semi-final, and has also been booked nine times so far this season.
Further to this, the Spaniard has been involved in a few diving controversies, yet Costa has stated that there is no way he will change the way he plays football.
“I’m not going to change my way of playing,” he said.
“I do know now that I have to be a little bit more careful because it’s not the same when I do something or when someone else does it.
“Something I do, it’s talked about much more than another player.
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“I have to be extra careful but I’m never going to change the way I play. That’s what got me here, that’s the way I play.”
Costa’s aggressiveness has caused conflict with opponents and referees, but has helped him to score an impressive 17 goals in his first season in the Premier League.
The Blues will be facing Tottenham Hotspur during the weekend in the Capital One Cup Final, and the former Atletico Madrid star hopes he can help win his first Chelsea trophy by scoring at Wembley on Sunday.
“The truth is I didn’t even know how many games it was. It doesn’t worry me.” he said.
“What worries me is to be in the best physical form to score goals. I don’t pick tournaments to score, or rivals or other teams to score against.
“I’m a striker, every game I play I want to score. If it hasn’t happened in the cup, I’m hoping to god it happens on Sunday.
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“I joined a club like Chelsea to win titles. As we say, finals are not to play them, they are to win them. I’m hoping I can get my first title with Chelsea.
“This is my first final with the club so I will go in with the mentality to win it. We know we are a good team and we have the quality to win.