The Midlands club have appointed former Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund assistant coach Michael Henke as their new head of European scouting.
The German, 55, coached Villa manager Paul Lambert while he was a player at Dortmund in the 1990s. He was assistant to Ottmar Hitzveld at Dortmund and Munich when they won Bundesliga and Champions League titles. Henke also had a spell in charge of analysis and scouting at Bayern Munich, first under Hitzveld and then Jurgen Klinsmann, before another assistant role at FC Koln.
“It’s great to have a man with Michael’s experience and track record to come in to this role”, Lambert told BBC Sport, “I’m delighted that we’ve been able to bring him here. In the European game he has an unbelievable wealth of experience and an enviable network of contacts. It’s a great thing for Villa that we have been able to attract a man of his calibre.”
Villa are currently in talks to loan out midfielder Jean II Makoun to French Ligue 1 side Rennes for the approaching season, and have also been linked with a move for Tottenham forward Jermain Defoe.
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Liverpool have recorded a 1-0 win over Hearts in the Europa League play-offs in Scotland.
The Anfield club struggled to break down the stubborn SPL club, but an Andy Webster own goal on 78 minutes separated the sides and gives Brendan Rodgers’ men the advantage to bring back to Merseyside.
Reds defender Jamie Carragher feels that his side are starting to take to their new manager’s tactics and mentality, and that they will be up to speed soon.
“It doesn’t have to be a slow process,” he told ITV Sport.
“Pre-season’s gone really well, obviously we’ve got a bit of a bump at West Brom.
“It was nice to come here, it was a difficult game, we’ve got the result now and now we look forward to Man City. It’s a massive game, and as I said, a new manager coming in, finding his feet if you like and we’re all getting used to each other.
“But it doesn’t have to be slow, we want it to be as quick as possible,” he concluded.
By Gareth McKnight
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Reading striker Jason Roberts is determined to make a quick recovery from a calf injury.
The 34-year-old has been out of action for the past month and insists that he is doing all he can to resume playing. He told the Reading Post:
“I’m doing all sorts of stuff. Pilates, core work, everything. I’ve been doing loads. My recovery from the injury has been slower than I would have liked, but when you’re injured it can give you the opportunity to improve on other things too.”
However, Roberts is not willing to risk suffering the same problem again by rushing his comeback and is refusing to pin a date on a Royals comeback, but he has assured fans that he is doing everything he can to make his Premier League return. He continued:
“I need to make sure when I come back that I’m not coming off with the same issue again. I haven’t had a calf problem before, but luckily I haven’t missed many games. I’m a really bad injured player because I just have no patience.”
Roberts joined Reading from Blackburn Rovers in January 2012, and manager Brian McDermott will be desperate for the striker return to action as his team face tough fixtures against Tottenham, West Brom, QPR and Newcastle before the month is out.
Chelsea fans got their first glimpse of what summer signing Oscar can do during last night’s 2-2 draw with Juventus at Stamford Bridge.
The £25million signing from Sao Paulo capped an impressive performance with a brace, with his second goal being described by Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp as “a computer game goal.”
Baring in mind the previous Chelsea number 11 was club icon and legend Didier Drogba, Oscar has huge boots to fill. As well as being a different type of player, it is also far too early to draw any sort of comparison, but Chelsea fans will have been extremely excited by what they witnessed last night.
The maturity the 21-year-old displayed in the heart of the Chelsea midfield was evident in the manner in which he dealt with Andre Pirlo, not allowing the Italian veteran to get on the ball and dictate games as he does so often.
He showed superb energy, willingness, and above all class. There was no sign of nervousness or unwillingness to play his natural game, which deserves great credit considering he is a 21-year-old making his Champions League debut for the European cup holders. It is clear he has become accustomed to playing under pressure from an early age, having being hailed as Brazil’s new number 10.
Oscar’s performance gave an indication as to the way Roberto Di Matteo is trying to evolve Chelsea this season. He will prove pivotal in the Italian’s attempt to get his side playing a more expansive passing game, playing in the role of the central playmaker.
Di Matteo has done some excellent transfer business this summer. Eden Hazard looks a class act, whilst Marko Marin and Victor Moses will provide healthy competition for places, whilst no doubt chipping in with their fair share of goals and assists.
But last night’s emergence of Oscar will have really got the fans dreaming.
For me there is no reason why Chelsea should not be considered favourites for the title alongside Manchester City and Manchester United. Their squad is second to none, and their start to the season has been impressive.
What is exciting for Chelsea fans, is that they are only going to get better as the new signings continue to settle. The form of Fernando Torres will arguably prove most crucial to determining how far they can go this season, but with the likes of Hazard and Oscar able to provide assists, you do not hold the same concerns for the Spaniard as previously.Whilst not on the scoresheet last night, Torres looked busy and showed hunger that was at times missing from his game last season.
Frank Lampard has slotted into a more defensive role with ease, looking at home playing alongside Jon Obi Mikel, spraying passes and getting attacks started. The partnership of Lampard and Mikel provides a solid base for Oscar to go and express himself.
It is still early days for the Brazilian, but last night was an exciting indication of what we can expect from him over this season and many to follow. He has a tough job on his hands to earn a place in Chelsea’s star-studded line up and to keep out Juan Mata in the role of the central playmaker.
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Di Matteo has something of an embarrassment of riches at his disposal. It is now his job to try and keep them all happy and at the level they have been performing so far this season. If that is achieved, Chelsea fans could be very happy come May.
Thanks to Darius Henderson’s last gasp winner against Bolton, the Lions have gone from winless in five to unbeaten in three, and this win was fully deserved.
The Lions were the liveliest in the early exchanges, and had a goal disallowed when man-mountain Danny Shittu was judged to have fouled Adam Bogdan, from replays it seemed unjust. The 20th minute saw the Lions open the scoring, and finally get a bit of luck, with Daruis Henderson’s shot taking a couple of deflections before rolling into the net.
And the Lions should have doubled their lead soon after as Chris Wood headed just wide from a James Henry cross, the ex-Reading winger was having a stormer as the Lions went in at half time with the lead.
Early in the second half saw Wood again with a glorious chance to make it 2-0 from a Henry cross, but Bogdan somehow managed to save it and typically just minutes later ‘Wall rued missing that chance when Chris Eagles rolled a free kick smartly under the wall to make it 1-1. Watch out for Eagles name in this.
Just after the hour mark Alan Dunne fouled Eagles in the area, but lets just say he certainly made the most of it. After diving in the area to not much avail minutes before, you can imagine the abuse he got walking up to take the spot kick.. So imagine the delight when he skied it over from 12 yards.
The Lions kicked on for the winner with Bogdan having to be at full stretch to keep out a Henderson free kick. But Hendo would have the last laugh with a drilled finish to win the game late on, six goals in nine now for Hendo, and this turned out to be the last game Bolton had under Owen Coyle as he was sacked on Tuesday morning.
This may have pushed ‘Wall out of the drop zone but this win will be marred by Marvin Sordell’s allegations that he was racially abused along with a few other team mates.
He took to twitter to express his thoughts, also saying that he has reported it. But then Millwall made a statement saying that there was nothing reported and the claims were “nonsense”. Even the metropolitan police came out and said that “no complaints had been made before, during or after the game” so someone is lying here….
How bad a club image Millwall has, Sordell’s claims found their way to Sky Sports breaking news, but did they report that the police or Millwall stated that Sordell didn’t report it? No. Got me thinking, if Bolton had won the game, would Sordell have come out with the allegations in this sort of way? I’m not so sure….
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Right, now that the vital win is on the board, roll on Palace away in two weeks time, any other ‘Wall fans counting down the days for the first derby of the season?
Whenever England disappoint and in the opinion of a few more negative members of the public, they did so on Friday. The argument and statistics on how few English players start week in week out in the Premier League is always one of the many talking points surrounding the Three Lions. But in my opinion there is no real hunger and desperation to change the current domestic league set up. The Premier League dwarfs international football in the eyes of many English football fans for excitement and as much as people would hate admit it, many are happy with the current equilibrium of an average national team and one of the best domestic leagues in the world. I’ve spoke to many people over the past few days that see international breaks as an inconvenient break from the gripping 38 game narrative that is Premier League football.
Ideas such as Sepp Blatter’s 6+5 ruling have been discussed in terms of improving the number of English starters in the Premier League. While EU laws provided an instant and difficult barrier for the FIFA president’s concept, there also appeared to be little hunger among Premier League fans to see their beloved league tampered with. Were the rules ever implemented it’s hard to imagine Chelsea fans being thrilled at having to see for instance, Juan Mata sold back to Spain to accommodate Ryan Bertrand as a regular starter for Chelsea. Or Arsenal fans instantly accepting a philosophy and squad overhaul, which would be detrimental to their chances of continuing to remain among England’s elite football clubs.
From a personal stand point as someone who supports the national team reasonably strongly but loves club football far more and cares far more passionately about the latter. I would happily welcome the changes, out of curiosity to see just how much worse the top teams in the country become. And also because my team of choice, Sunderland, would barely be effected by the changes. Four players eligible for England selection represented the Black Cats away at Manchester City, and although having to sign a couple over-priced Englishmen or promoting Fraizer Campbell and Titus Bramble may be slightly harmful, it is unlikely to make the Wearsiders much worse.
Currently the one appeasement in place to offer a false sense of helping England’s cause is the 25 man squad complete with eight home grown players required for Premier League. This has done nothing other than help players of modest ability move to club’s above their station to help fill the quota. Ross Turnbull has traveled to Stamford Bridge in the knowledge he’s never likely to be the London club’s number one. Brad Jones although Australian did qualify for the home-grown ruling, in what is the only explanation for a club like Liverpool keeping such an inept goalkeeper on their books. Other signings involving the Premier League’s biggest clubs could be scrutinised further, Daniel Sturridge’s arrival at Chelsea, and summer additions at Manchester City Jack Rodwell and Scott Sinclair may have been picked up due to nationality more than ability. But the key point is no system in place in the Premier League currently caters for the national team.
While a divisive figure and also a biased observer Arsene Wenger’s comments on the situation of altering a Premier League to help the national team have always rang true in my opinion. “The Premier League is the most watched league in the world and you only get that if you focus on quality not artificial rules.” This reaction to the 25 man squad rule, sums up my feelings on the situation, any more dramatic change would directly damage the quality of the Premier League, which is something most fans would be directly against. There is also an argument that the best English talents are likely to breakthrough any way. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain at just 19 is already looking likely to contribute to Arsenal’s battle in all competitions for the season, while Tom Cleverley and Danny Welbeck have both seen plenty of game-time at Manchester United this season.
There is obviously an argument that numerous foreign players in the league clog up the route to the first team for young English talent. Jack Hobbs said you have to “world-class” to breakthrough at Liverpool. While the club policy appears to have changed at Liverpool in recent years this defeatist mentality is easy to understand when you see how few players breakthrough at top clubs. John Terry remains the last home-grown product to establish himself in the Chelsea first team. Other less pragmatic options could improve the way the Premier League treats prospects. I’m in the minority in despising the current loan system in this country. The biggest clubs often keep players on their books, who are never likely to make the breakthrough. Chris Eagles is 26 but spent five years after his first start for Manchester United in vain trying to progress at the club. An age limit of 21 on the loan system would likely have seen him reach his level much sooner. Scott Sinclair also traveled in vain across the country, being regularly loaned out. He only truly developed and flourished after completing a permanent deal at Swansea City. Regardless of the faults and merits of a major overhaul in the number of foreign players playing in the Premier League, any change is unlikely to happen because the fans aren’t clamouring for it.
Discuss this and other footballing topics with me further on Twitter: @jimmylowson.
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have sent scouts to watch Netherlands under-21 goalkeeper Jeroen Zoet, who they have identified as a possible transfer target according to The Daily Mail.
The Tyneside club have a recent reputation for snapping up bargains on the continent, with their scouting network bringing the likes of Yohan Cabaye, Cheik Tiote and others to the club for affordable transfer fees.
One such success story is current goalkeeper Tim Krul, who was bought by the St James’ Park outfit back in 2005 for a paltry €220,000, and is now one of the most consistent stoppers in the Premier League and a full international.
Newcastle are eager to snap up another bargain in Holland, and have identified Zoet as a potential superstar in the making.
Chief scout Graham Carr and coach Andy Woodman travelled to watch the tall keeper in action for Netherlands under-21’s against Slovakia on Monday night, and saw the 21-year-old keep a clean sheet in a 2-0 victory for Cor Pot’s men.
Zoet is registered as a PSV Eindhoven player but has never made an appearance for the senior side; he has been on loan at RWC Waalwijk since last year and is gaining first-team experience in the Eredivisie.
Zoet has also made 14 appearances for the Dutch under-21’s and is highly regarded back in his homeland, where a number of world-class goalkeepers have been produced in recent years.
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Newcastle are weighing up a move for Zoet once the transfer window opens in January, who would provide first-team competition for Krul and back-ups Steve Harper and Rob Elliot.
Tottenham bounced back from a disappointing draw in the Europe League on Thursday night to inflict more pain on lowly Southampton whose defensive errors are costing them badly.
Just seconds after Jermain Defoe missed a sitter for the visitors, former Saints winger Gareth Bale headed a Tom Huddlestone cross back across goal and into the far corner to end a fantastic week for him personally after becoming a father.
Clint Dempsey then doubled Spurs’ lead before half time as Defoe’s shot was blocked on the line before the American strolled in to tap the ball home as Southampton’s leaky defence continues to struggle in the top flight.
Spurs dominated the first half of the game and despite only having one striker in their 18 man squad; they looked very dangerous going forward with the pace of Aaron Lennon a notable worry for the hosts.
Southampton however did try and get back into the game in the second half with Rickie Lambert recalled to the starting line-up causing problems with his physicality and heading.
It was Lambert’s strike partner Jay Rodriguez who poked home a consolation goal for the hosts though after Jose Fonte’s header was saved by the recalled Brad Friedel from a corner.
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Spurs did manage to hold on for the vital three points after a late onslaught and Andre Villas-Boas’ team are now in the top four with Southampton still second bottom with just four points.
Sometimes the media bandwagon gets a little too much to stomach, and lets pull no punches, the reaction to Joe Hart’s poor performance against Sweden is about as strong a shout for ‘over reaction of the year’ as Ibra’s sublime fourth goal will be for ‘best goal ever.’ A shoo in.
All day long whilst perusing the papers and internet forums I have come across varying opinions, and some have been very valid. Howard Hockin wrote for this very site about how the lack of competition for the number one shirt is a problem for Hart and keeping him on his toes. I doubt anyone would argue with that. Look at Ronaldo and Messi – each competing with the other to be the best in the world (although I think ego-himavich may have something to say now after the zlat-trick and fourth goal) push each other to new levels. This is seen in clubs too and can only be a good thing. Hart does not profit from this and yet somehow the lack of competition is his fault? Bizarre but then again this is the British public and media.
The allegation Roy Keane made however of Hart being now too ‘cocky’ is something Hart has refuted on yes you’ve guessed it the fountain of all that is pure in the world – twitter – and even took the time to do a Q and A session with fans perhaps to prove his head is not too big to fit through the door after all.
That was bad enough but of course the Daily Mail had to weigh in, with Neil Ashton going one further from calling the keeper cocky and went as far as to conclude his ‘article’ by stating that England should look to other options for the game against Brazil in February. One wonders who exactly he is referring to – yes Celtic keeper Forster had a sublime couple of games against Barcelona but to replace Hart? Really? I can only assume Ashton fancies a flutter on a Neymar rout.
Hart himself will testify to the fact that his last few games have not been up to the standard he set for himself – in fact since the game against Spanish Champions Real Madrid he has looked a little off the pace, but all players go through dips in form and as a goalie it is more noticeable than any other position on the field.
Wonder striker Ramadel Falcao has now gone two games without scoring – very poor by his standards, but he gets away with the mistakes and misses by being a forward. Imagine if an England keeper suddenly exhibited the form Torres shows week in week out – there would be a national enquiry.
Whilst we can all agree on the fact that Hart better return to form and quickly, the fact that we are one step away from mocking up his face on wanted posters shows just how quickly England fans do jump on the bandwagon and seem to live to criticise sometimes.
Hart may need to develop a very thick layer of skin if he wants to be our number one for the next 10 years although it could be worse. He could be team mate Scot Sinclair who must be looking for a transfer to any country that ‘I’m A Celeb’ isn’t screened given the stick he has been taking since his Wag Helen entered the jungle. Chin up Joe, there’s always someone worse off than you!
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Manchester City club captain Vincent Kompany has ruled out the possibility of City feeling sorry for themselves after they were knocked out of the Champions League in midweek.
City were beaten in Dortmund on Tuesday night and failed to even qualify for the Europa League putting pressure on the players and boss Roberto Mancini.
Arch rivals Manchester United visit the Etihad today in the first Manchester derby of the season and last season’s champions will be looking to leapfrog their opponents and regain top spot in the Premier League.
Kompany is pleased that their first game after such disappointment is against their rivals as it gives them a chance to instantly pick themselves up and restore some faith from the fans.
The Belgian also believes that neither side will go into the game as favourites despite City holding home advantage and that he expects every player to be at the top of their game.
“The best way for us to react is to perform on the pitch, and we’ve done it time and time again in the past so I’m sure we’ll do it again,” Kompany exclusively told talkSPORT.
“It’s the kind of game where you expect yourself to perform well. You expect yourself to have a good game because you know that the challenge is huge.
“The passion that goes into that game is quite special so it’s probably a good game to pick yourself up but there is always a risk attached to a game like this.
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“It’s probably very difficult to call a favourite in these kind of games whether you play at home or away.”