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Chris Smalling’s move from Fulham to Manchester United raised many an eye brow considering he had only played half a dozen times for Fulham. However, Chris Smalling is playing like a seasoned professional and looks now to have leapfrogged both Wes Brown and Jonny Evans in the defensive pecking order. Evans who played 35 times in the 08/09 season, looked to have established himself but a combination of Smalling’s form and his own dip in form has opend up the covering position once again.

What has happened to Jonny Evans though? Over the past two seasons, Evans has looked assured in defence and looked the man to replace Rio Ferdinand when he hangs up his boots. This season a catalogue of errors from the Northern Irishman has shown that theory up, and it seems Sir Alex Ferguson is looking elsewhere – Chris Smalling.

Jonny Evans does not seem the player to rest on his laurels, but could it be that he has found life at Old Trafford too comfortable. Over the past two seasons he has been the man to step in, expectations of course are high but not impossible to handle. As a covering centre half, much of the responsibility was with either Ferdinand or Vidic. This season, Evans is now a leader in his own right – something he hasn’t been able to handle too well.

So with Jonny Evans completely out of form and injured at the moment, this is the time for Chris Smalling to take aim at getting himself into the Manchester United side regularly. Smalling has settled into life at Old Trafford very quickly, and mirrors the rise that Evans himself had at Old Trafford. Smalling was assured in his play last night and seized his opportunity, something he will look to do over the coming weeks. Ever since Sir Alex Ferguson dropped Jonny Evans, Manchester United have kept five clean sheets in eight games, and Smalling can take a share of the accolades.

After the match last night, Chris Smalling spoke to Sky Sports and his confidence was evident.

“The likes of Rio and Vida have been brilliant,” said Smalling.

“They help guide you through games and I am learning from them all the time.

“They deserve credit too. They have really helped me to settle in and my confidence is sky high at the moment.”

As well as this, Manchester United have been lavishing praise on the young defender. Manchester United’s captain has been highly impressed with the young Englishman.

“Chris did very well but you are not just talking about one night, he has done well over the last few games,” said the United skipper.

“He has proved the boss was right to give him his chance.”

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Such glowing praise from his fellow professionals is what will inspire Chris Smalling at Old Trafford. Manchester United players will not heap praise on a player who does not deserve it, Smalling has definitely earned it. However, the hard work has only just begun for the young defender. At the expense of Jonny Evans, he looks to be the third choice centre half at Old Trafford now. Smalling is by no means a finished article and must continue to work hard, improve and most important not take his place for granted.

The situation with Jonny Evans shows the strength in depth a club like Manchester United has. Only a year ago Evans was destined for great things at Manchester United – and he still could. However if your form drops at a club like Manchester United, there is always somebody who can and will take your place. If Smalling can retain his place it will be extremely hard for Evans to get back into the Manchetser United squad. The challenge is clear for both players and that can only be a long term benefit for Manchester United.

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Oh Fernando. All he wanted was to be loved. Throughout his 25-hour goal drought, he was the black sheep of the family, shunned by those he cared for. Every hour, every minute seemed to last eternally. I was so afraid Fernando. But then the evil Andre Villas-Boas departed. Roberto Di Matteo took over, and a hug and few nice words was all it took. Then came Leicester City in the FA Cup. There was something in the air that night, the stars were bright. Two goals and an assist. Fernando.

Sorry about that. So are we led to believe that all Fernando Torres’ problems were down to bad management? This seems to be his suggestion this week, saying that he finally had a manager who believed in him. So was having a manager who had doubts about him before making him play badly on the pitch? And was this the reason he performed badly for the previous manager too?

Fernando Torres is a player who has performed at the highest level, appeared in a World Cup Final (briefly), a Champions League performer, been in a title-pushing side, and scored the winning goal in Euro 2008. He has commanded a £50m transfer fee. And now we’re led to believe that he can’t perform without a manager with oodles of TLC.

Of course there is complete validity in the idea that managers can improve players by managing them well, reassuring them, saying the right things, and so on. Harry Redknapp’s biggest skill is said to be just this – man-management. I just find it incredible that Torres could see such a spectacular fall from grace just because his manager didn’t treat him well enough.

Some players need handling differently to others of course, but the mercenary/Judas/misunderstood (delete as applicable) Carlos Tevez is able to perform easily enough (should he grace us with his presence on a football field) despite falling out with everyone at some point or another.

And then there’s the old guard at Chelsea.

Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole were left out of the side for the first leg of their Champions League tie against Napoli, which they lost 3-1 in Italy. Lampard admitted he had told Villas-Boas what he thought of that decision, adding: ‘I wasn’t disrespectful. I just told him I thought I should be playing.’

The oft-peddled story in the papers about Villas-Boas freezing out the old guard was a complete lie. Lampard got plenty of time on the pitch – he certainly isn’t the club’s leading goal-scorer again this season by sitting on the bench every week. And the old guard were present on the pitch during plenty of bad results. Was it all down to bad tactics from the manager?

On the rare occasions the likes of Lampard or Drogba have been “excluded”, it was done for a good reason. They are reaching the twilight of their careers, and whoever the Chelsea manager is has to re-build the squad, easing them out and easing in new blood. Tough luck if they don’t like it. I’ve no problem with players wanting to play, it beats the likes of a Winston Bogarde or a Wayne Bridge, but my problem lies with the fallacy that the old guard were pushed out by Villas-Boas, or that a 33-year old being dropped once is somehow a cause for complaint, or worthy of him commenting to the press. It really isn’t.

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But the lies about the old guard being “frozen out” were peddled regularly by the most ignorant of Fleet Street. Shaun Custis in The Sun exclaimed after Chelsea beat Napoli 4-1:

‘That Didier Drogba – what a donkey, eh? John Terry? His legs have gone. And, as for Frank Lampard, there has been a space marked ‘Reserved’ for him for months down at the knacker’s yard. Well, that was the theory anyway – and it is one the sacked Andre Villas-Boas had signed up to. But the gang of three were not ready to stand aside this season. There was still far too much fight left in these proud men who refused to be pensioned off.”

So, these pensioned-off players had been excluded by Villas-Boas eh? Terry has made 30 appearances this season, and would’ve made more but for injury. Drogba has played in 24, missing a few games again because injury but also of course due to the small matter of the Africa Cup of Nations. And Lampard has appeared in 37 games. THIRTY-SEVEN.

As football365.com pointed out, these pensioners were involved in defeats to QPR, West Brom, Aston Villa and Bayer Leverkeusen.

And then there’s people like Alex, who think they know the whole situation, and that Lampard deserved special attention:

“I saw some comments of Lampard recently and I think he deserved more respect. It is true that a player knows he will sometimes have to stay on the bench, especially after reaching a certain age. That’s not a problem. But with Lampard’s history at the club, where he has more than 10 years, he deserves a word or an explanation from the manager. Fundamentally, it was a question of respect for everything that he represents for Chelsea.”

Of course Roberto Di Matteo will take a lot of credit for turning around Chelsea’s form with 4 victories in his first 4 games, but surely what this shows just as much is that the team were not performing to their full ability under Villas-Boas, and the manager cannot take all the flak for that, whatever his tactics. At least John Terry admitted this too:

“Sad for Andre, because unfortunately it falls on his head, when I think the players would hold their hands up and say, ‘Clearly, we’ve not been good enough and we all made mistakes together’.”

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The fact is that player power is an unstoppable force at times. Managers live or die by results, and if the players don’t apply themselves as a group, if their form drops and the results suffer, it is the manager who gets the “bullet” (especially if Ashley Cole is nearby).

But Villas-Boas was moving towards his own Ides of March moment for many a month, let-down and stabbed in the back by many around him. Just look at the press leaks from squad members, and Abramovich and his cronies overseeing training sessions. As a Manchester City fan I have seen first-hand the underhand tactics that players (and playing staff) can take to get rid of a manager, to undermine him, after years of tabloid stories of dressing room bust-ups, training ground fights and poor little players being left to train with the reserves and not getting the love their huge egos demanded.

Chelsea’s old guard are hardly the worst-behaved footballers of recent years, but they did have the time on the pitch to rectify a difficult situation for their manager. Villas-Boas was always a dead man walking with Abramovich as his judge and jury, and he must take much blame for the real prospect of Chelsea not qualifying for the Champions League next season. But let’s not forget that players are the ultimate deliverers of results – it’s just a shame some of Chelsea’s biggest names didn’t stand up to be counted a bit earlier-or am I wrong and Villas-Boas enforced tactics that could never work in the English game?

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Take a look at the latest episode of the ‘Football Coffee Break’

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Barcelona defender Eric Abidal has been selected in the France squad for the first time since surgery to remove a tumour from his liver.Abidal had the surgery in March and he missed almost two months of football before making his comeback in a Champions League match against Real Madrid on May 3.

The 31-year-old left back has now been named in Laurent Blanc’s 26-man squad for their upcoming Euro 2012 qualifier with Belarus on June 3 before friendlies against Ukraine on June 6 and Poland three days later.

Blanc said he was delighted to see Abidal – currently preparing for the Champions League final against Manchester United at Wembley on Saturday – back in French colours.

“I left him a message about 10 days ago to tell him I was really happy to see him back on a football pitch,” Blanc said.

“Hopefully he will be given a starting spot, he is coming back to form.”

“He will be delighted to return to the squad and he can bid for a starting spot at left-back.”

“It is amazing what he has already achieved, this is a good surprise. His return to the squad will boost his morale.”

Real Madrid’s Lassana Diarra is injured, and he is replaced by Sochaux midfielder Marvin Martin, while Lyon star Yoann Gourcuff is also missing with a knock.

France squad:

Goalkeepers: Cedric Carrasso (Bordeaux), Hugo Lloris (Lyon), Steve Mandanda (Marseille).

Defenders: Eric Abidal (Barcelona), Patrice Evra (Manchester United), Younes Kaboul (Tottenham), Adil Rami (Lille), Anthony Reveillere (Lyon), Bacary Sagna (Arsenal), Mamadou Sakho (Paris St Germain).

Midfielders: Yohan Cabaye (Lille), Abou Diaby (Arsenal), Alou Diarra (Bordeaux), Yann M’Vila (Rennes), Samir Nasri (Arsenal), Florent Malouda (Chelsea), Blaise Matuidi (Saint-Etienne), Marvin Martin (Sochaux).

Forwards: Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Kevin Gameiro (Lorient), Guillaume Hoarau (Paris St Germain), Jeremy Menez (Roma), Charles N’Zogbia (Wigan), Loic Remy (Marseille), Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich), Mathieu Valbuena (Marseille).

Liverpool striker Fernando Torres is an early injury doubt ahead of a massive Merseyside derby against Everton.

Torres limped out of Sunday's 2-1 defeat to Blackpool with a fresh adductor muscle problem.

The Spain striker was troubled by a similar injury during the World Cup finals and has already pulled out of the upcoming Euro 2012 qualifiers against Lithuania and Scotland.

He could now miss the trip to Goodison Park on October 17, although the Reds are remaining coy on the extent of his latest injury.

"Fernando was assessed earlier today at Melwood and underwent a scan this afternoon," head of sports medicine and sports science, Dr Peter Brukner, told the club's official website.

"He will have intensive treatment over the next couple of weeks but it is too early to say if he will be fit for the game against Everton."

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Liverpool make the short trip across Stanley Park in desperate need of three points following their worst start to a season since 1953-54.

They have picked up just six points from the first 21 on offer and find themselves in the relegation places after seven games.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

Somewhere, right at this very moment, there is a Newcastle fan staring intently at the Premier League table. A broad smile sweeps across their face as they notice the Magpies nestled comfortably in fifth place, just a point behind Chelsea and nine ahead of rivals Sunderland.

Even the most optimistic member of the Toon Army couldn’t have foreseen the inspired rise up the table after last seasons mid-table finish. Their uprising was ironically set in motion by the sale of the highly popular Andy Carroll, as Alan Pardew’s retention football coupled with his shrewd signings has gradually transformed St James’ Park back into a revered fortress.

The club appears to have emerged unscathed from a difficult period in their history. Their loyal army of supporters have stood by them despite their descent into the Championship and now that certain expectations have been achieved, do they dare dream of more famous nights in Europe?

Only time will tell if Newcastle will be able to cement their place in the European qualification spots come May. What’s more intriguing however is whether they can establish themselves as one of the current crop of ‘big clubs’. Not big in terms of stature but rather their ability to consistently compete at the top of the table. Tottenham and Manchester City have burrowed their way into the coveted ‘top 4’, why can’t Newcastle do the same?

Under Pardew’s leadership Newcastle have seen their direct style of play renovated by a philosophy that focuses on patient build up and maintaining possession. At the heart of this, core midfield players such as Yohan Cabaye and Danny Guthrie have been influential in aiding this transition. The change in mentality will mean fewer goal gluts but it’s proving to stem the flow of goals conceded at the other end of the pitch. This new approach seeks to adopt the mantra of many top European sides like Valencia and AC Milan, with whom Newcastle will soon hope to emulate.

The fortunes of the football club, for this season at least, will revolve around the prolonged good form of striker Demba Ba. The ‘smiling assassin’, as he’s known on Tyneside has announced he is happy at the club despite continued reports of a move away and has spoken of his joy playing alongside Senegalese compatriot Papiss Cisse.

With the transfer window now firmly shut until the summer, the major concern regarding Ba will perhaps surround his troubled injury past. Tony Pulis notoriously cancelled Ba’s impending transfer to Stoke after describing his knee as a “ticking time bomb”. The player himself admitted, “The knee isn’t 100%,” after his transfer to West Ham but has insisted “It’s fine. I can play football; I know how to manage it.” (Guardian)

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At present the fans seem content with Mike Ashley’s ruling at Newcastle. After making a number of questionable decisions throughout his reign, he should be praised for ensuring a swift return to the top flight. Ashley strikes me as an incisive businessman despite his desired portrayel as a supporter and the £35m sale of Andy Carroll has proved to be an inspired decision. In order for Newcastle to progress however, it is vital that they maintain their nucleus of new household names. The likes of Tim Krul and Cheick Tiote have attracted envious glances from rival managers and it’ll be an intriguing test of Ashley’s resolve as to whether they remain at the club beyond this season.

Aside from the inevitable flurry of incoming bids, it’s crucial that Ashley continues his investment in the rapidly evolving transfer market. It’s fair to point out that Newcastle do not currently possess a prominent ‘star’ player who is renowned on the world stage. Whilst this maybe an ingredient to their current success, with the team benefiting their much publicised team spirit, it’s important that a club like Newcastle can attract players of the highest calibre. Could Newcastle realistically attract the likes of Emmanuel Adebayor and Rafeal Van Der Vaart, as Spurs have done?

We’ve seen many surprising teams surpass expectations and clinch a European spot in recent years, but very few have been able to sustain their dominance.  Everton are a club currently wilting under a lack of investment with the club’s transfer policy resembling a top nightclub, one goes in only when another heads out.

Fulham have failed to recover from their defeat in the 2010 Europa League final and the subsequent departure of Roy Hodgson whilst Villa have also seen themselves spiral down the league after a combination of both suspended investment and the exit of a very astute manager.

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The mark of a great side is their capability to replace their existing stars with a new breed of players from the academy. Unfortunately, despite Ashley’s investment at youth level, very few players look likely of making the grade. Nile Ranger heads the list of local produce but his career has become so embroiled in controversy that it looks like he’ll leave the club under a Ravel Morrison shaped cloud.

Pardew remains unfazed by speculation linking him with the vacant England job and appears entirely focused on the job in hand. Much like Arsene Wenger, he seems capable of installing an exciting style of football in amongst a relatively average squad. Whereas Arsenal fans are slowly turning on their manager, I’m sure Newcastle fans would love to emulate the uniterrupted European qualification the Gunners have enjoyed over the past decade.

Agree or disagree. Send me your verdicts on Twitter @theunusedsub

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Manchester United will face Barcelona in the Champions League final, after they crushed Schalke 4-1 at Old Trafford on Wednesday.United led 2-0 from the semi-final first leg, so when Antonio Valencia drilled an angled shot past Manuel Neuer after 26 minutes and Darron Gibson made it 2-0 five minutes later the tie was all but over.

Schalke did reply through Jurado before half-time but United were able to see out the match and even score twice more after the break, both through midfielder Anderson, to complete a 6-1 aggregate win.

Manager Sir Alex Ferguson took a huge gamble on his side’s Champions League future by resting nine of the 11 players that started their English Premier League match at Arsenal last weekend – clearly concerned about a title-deciding fixture against Chelsea at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Only goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar and midfielder Anderson survived the cull, with Wayne Rooney not even included on the bench.

Fortunately for Ferguson’s men, their opponents showed little belief that they could rescue the tie, even against a shadow United line-up, and the home side were convincing victors.

Irishman Gibson set up the opening goal with a wonderful pass for Valencia, who fired low across Neuer for 1-0.

Gibson doubled the lead five minutes later, firing in a shot that Neuer – who had played so wonderfully in the first leg – let slip into this own net.

The Germans did briefly pose a threat, scoring through Jurado, but United were back on the attack after the break and almost scored another through an Anderson curling shot that was well saved.

The Brazilian then tapped home after 72 minutes and converted a pass from Dimitar Berbatov four minutes later to wrap up a remarkably easy victory.

The result means United will play in the Champions League final for the third time in four years.

They won the title by beating Chelsea in Moscow in 2008, but lost to Barcelona in Rome a year later. Now they must face the Catalan giants again – but this time at Wembley on May 28.

Wigan Athletic will be without loanee Tom Cleverley for the next month after the 21-year-old damaged knee ligaments during training.

The Manchester United starlet is set to miss Wigan's next three matches after being a late withdrawal for Sunday's 2-0 home defeat to Manchester City.

He is not expected to return to action until the meeting with Newcastle United in mid-October.

"Tom will probably be out for at least the next two weeks," Latics boss Roberto Martinez told the Evening Post.

"He has a little problem with the medial ligament in his knee. But he is a very strong, fit boy and we hope he'll be able to heal quicker than is expected.

"In training, as you can imagine, it's very competitive with all the talent we have in the squad.

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"Tom got a challenge and unfortunately he opened his knee a little bit. It's not great timing, because he had a real impact when he came on against Sunderland.

"He didn't need any settling in period at all and that's the sign of an excellent player. The good news is it's not going to be a long lay-off, but it's frustrating nonetheless."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

Patrice Evra has been backed by former Manchester United player Viv Anderson to play against Liverpool this Saturday, who feels that any abuse from the Anfield crowd will not affect the veteran defender.

Evra was the subject of racist abuse from Reds’ striker Luis Suarez the last time the Premier League giants met, and rumours dictated that the France international would not feature on Merseyside in the FA Cup clash.

However, with Evra looking increasingly likely to play against Kenny Dalglish’s men, Anderson feels that the left-back will take the occasion in his stride.

”Patrice should definitely play, 100 per cent,” England’s first black international told The Telegraph.

”There will be a backlash, but he did nothing wrong, so why should he not play?

”He is experienced enough and old enough to deal with it. It won’t be the first time he’s been verbally attacked. If you cannot deal with it then you are never going to make a career for yourself.

”Patrice is at Manchester United playing in the Premier League and is a French international.

”He has proved he is able to stand up to all the outside pressures that have been heaped on him as he’s built his career.

”It is not right you have to put up with racial abuse, but I am sure it has happened to him in the past. I don’t think playing at Anfield after what has gone on will bother him.

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”There will always be something else around the corner, and if you keep worrying about something then you will fold and disappear,” he finished.

By Gareth McKnight

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There was a moment during Arsenal’s visit to White Hart Lane on Wednesday night that highlighted just what a quality player Sandro is. The Brazilian midfielder, usually accustomed to seeing out Tottenham’s defensive duties bust a lung to pick up a stray pass, knock it forward and smash a dangerous shot in the direction of Arsenal’s goalmouth. The Gunner’s keeper Wojciech Szczesny may somehow have managed to smother it, but that moment served to underline something a lot of Spurs fans already believed – that this young lad can aid a Tottenham attack, as well as break-up opposition play.

He’s clearly a wonderful young player, who shows no fear in the big games – if this game and his performances against the two Italian giants are any testimony. The trouble Harry Redknapp has, is finding a space for him in an already congested midfield. At the moment Sandro seems to be favoured above the likes of Tom Huddlestone in games against opposition sides that are known for their ‘physicality’, or tough tackling, whilst Thudd is favoured in most home games.

I realise that Harry Redknapp wants his side to play attacking football, and thus the selection of Tom Huddlestone in the midfield seems like a positive thing, but I can’t help but feel as though Sandro would be a better choice. Apart from his goal against Arsenal, I thought Thudd’s performance was a little poor – his passing game was way off and he didn’t look as mobile as he usually does. Can you imagine Arsenal finding the space to create three goals had Sandro been on the pitch from the beginning of the game? It’s little coincidence, I think that Arsenal’s creative juices ceased to flow soon after Sandro’s introduction.

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Of course, Tom Huddlestone’s been out injured for quite some time, so perhaps we shouldn’t expect so much from him so soon. It’s good to see that even when he’s not playing particularly well, he’s still capable of a rare sublime moment.

It’s possible for Tottenham to accommodate both players in a 4-5-1. Play Peter Crouch as the loan striker and have Thudd and Sandro sit a little deeper in the midfield, whilst granting Rafael van der Vaart, Luka Modric and Gareth Bale more freedom to get forward. That’s a fearsome looking midfield by any means. If Tottenham can bring in a decent striker next season and keep hold of their best players, they’re going to be a real force.

Tottenham’s midfield dilemma is one of those ‘good problems’ – they have a batch of quality footballers and not enough slots in the centre of the park to play them all. Sandro has rarely put a foot wrong since he’s entered into this Tottenham side and it’s clear that he’s still improving and adding to his game on a weekly basis. He’s got drive and energy, likes to join the attack and can still fulfil his defensive duties. He consistently delivers and it’s for this reason that if I had to choose between Sandro and Thudd, I’d go for the Brazilian every time.

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Article courtesy of This is Futbol

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It is a shame that former Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez will not be around to reap the benefits of the radical and wholesale changes he made to the club’s youth and reserve set-up during his six-year tenure at Anfield.

When Benitez arrived from Valencia in 2004, the club’s bright young hopes for the future read- Darren Potter, Zak Whitbread, Robbie Foy and David Raven. Captain Steven Gerrard and club stalwart Jamie Carragher remain the last major successes to rise through the club’s youth and reserve sides, nearly 15 years ago. A statistic which remains a major concern for Liverpool fans.

Benitez was fully committed to revolutionising the club’s youth and reserve sides and named it as one of the key terms in his contract negotiations in March 2009. Former Barcelona man Jose Segura was brought in two months later to oversee operations at the club’s Kirkby Academy and was very much Benitez’s man. Benitez also gradually raised the standard of personnel at the club, who are now aiming to become the next generation of first-team Liverpool players.

Despite the positives, Benitez ultimately failed to develop a young player good enough to become a Liverpool regular during his time at Anfield. However, such fundamental core changes to the youth set-up and player recruitment structure could not be made overnight and Benitez’s legacy could yet be the players he signed for the club’s future. These players may or may not make the break through, however I do think this latest crop of youngsters are the best the club has seen in years. It is now increasingly difficult to develop local players and the Reds have now altered their strategy to attract the best talent in England and abroad from an early age.

In reserve, Liverpool now have fresh, young and exciting talent banging at manager Roy Hodgson’s door, desperate for some first-team action. Players such as Spanish starlets Daniel Pacheco & Suso are a testament to Benitez’s efforts, while youngsters JonJo Shelvey, Jack Robinson and Michael Ngoo have all been tipped to have massive futures in the game. One other notable player to look out for is 15-year-old Raheem Sterling.

The attacking midfielder was signed from QPR for an initial £300,000 and the fee could rise to £5m should the player become a regular at Liverpool. England youth international Sterling saw his reputation soar after breaking into the national u-16 side at the tender age of 14 and has both pace and trickery in abundance.

Liverpool beat off competition from the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea to land Sterling, considered to be as good as England star Wayne Rooney during his Everton youth days.

Sterling has been in impressive form for the Rodolfo Borrell’s unbeaten U-18 side so far this season and bagged two goals against Leeds United last Saturday. The winger also became one of the youngest ever players to make an appearance for The Reds in a pre-season game against Borussia Monchengladbach this summer. Academy Director Frank McParland certainly has high hopes for Sterling, revealing:

“The boy is only 15 so it was great that he could play 10 minutes or so. Everyone at the Academy was delighted about that. He is probably the youngest ever player to get near the first team and it was good that the manager showed his trust in our judgment.

“He’s still getting to know everything about the club and we are looking forward to working with him more and more in the weeks ahead.”

His former coach at QPR, Steve Gallen, also revealed: “(Sterling) has loads of natural ability. This boy can pass, shoot, head it, score goals, tackle, defend, anything.”

Sterling certainly has a long way to go before he lives up to his tag as ‘the next Theo Walcott’, but the early signs certainly look promising. Liverpool showed that they are now starting to compete with Arsenal and United with the signing of Sterling and The Reds will hope they are rewarded for their efforts in the future.

Have you seen Sterling in action? Leave your comments below. You can read more of my blogs HERE or follow me on Twitter.

Liverpool old boy taking the Championship by storm

TOP TEN: Upsets

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TOP TEN comebacks of all-time

A look into the future of the Premier League

Watch the youngster in action below:

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