Stoke boss Tony Pulis has defended his record while in charge of the club and insists the Potters have never had it better.
Pulis has come in for some heavy criticism this season as the club have battled to beat the drop and there have been calls from some sections of the Britannia Stadium faithful for him to be replaced.
The future of the Welshman will be discussed at an end-of-season meeting with Stoke owner Peter Coates but it will come as a big surprise if he is relieved of his duties.
Pulis has worked wonders during his time at the club but he is well aware that he could become a victim of his own success.
“If people want to give their opinion about me, then fine,” he revealed. “If you look at the past six years, we got promoted from being a lower-half Championship side.
“We have been to an FA Cup final, Europa League last 32 and have more players playing international football than ever. But expectations are going through the roof.”
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In this modern age of fame and celebrity, even footballers are sometimes grouped into that category and many fall victim to criticism.
Manchester City star Raheem Sterling is not one to regularly open up about his personal life away from the pitch, but he is followed by paparazzi when carrying out day-to-day activities.
The Daily Mail ran a piece documenting the winger returning to his Mercedes after going out for some breakfast in Alderley Edge, Cheshire.
The publication claimed that Sterling’s trip came the morning after he missed out on winning the PFA Player of the Year award, which was won by his teammate Leroy Sane.
The non-story managed to capture the attention of City fans, but for the wrong reasons, as they laid into the media for even running the piece.
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On Reddit, supporters mocked the article with a an array of sarcastic comments.
Comment from discussion Damn it Raheem, how dare you treat yourself to a breakfast after losing out on YPOTY. You should be ashamed of yourself smfh.Comment from discussion Damn it Raheem, how dare you treat yourself to a breakfast after losing out on YPOTY. You should be ashamed of yourself smfh.Comment from discussion Damn it Raheem, how dare you treat yourself to a breakfast after losing out on YPOTY. You should be ashamed of yourself smfh.Comment from discussion Damn it Raheem, how dare you treat yourself to a breakfast after losing out on YPOTY. You should be ashamed of yourself smfh.Comment from discussion Damn it Raheem, how dare you treat yourself to a breakfast after losing out on YPOTY. You should be ashamed of yourself smfh.Comment from discussion Damn it Raheem, how dare you treat yourself to a breakfast after losing out on YPOTY. You should be ashamed of yourself smfh.Comment from discussion Damn it Raheem, how dare you treat yourself to a breakfast after losing out on YPOTY. You should be ashamed of yourself smfh.
Sterling’s finishing has drawn criticism from fans and pundits alike this season, but there is an argument that the former Liverpool star is being judged purely on his errors.
It’s all going Pete Tong over in Germany with every hipster’s favourite team Borussia Dortmund appearing to fall apart. After failing to adequately replace Robert Lewandowski, we then heard the news that Jurgen Klopp will be leaving the club at the end of current campaign and, just moments ago, the Bundesliga outfit revealed that Ilkay Gundogan will not be renewing his current deal that ends in 2016.
The central midfielder has been linked with a whole host of Premier League clubs, most notably Arsenal and Manchester United, and no doubt there will be a scramble for his signature after the announcement.
It isn’t known whether Borussia Dortmund will cash in on Gundogan this summer or lose their prized asset for free at the end of next season, however, that hasn’t stopped the Manchester United faithful dreaming of the midfielder pulling on the Red Devils jersey sometime soon.
Anders Lindegaard has revealed he’s frustrated about his lack of game time at Manchester United, suggesting he’s ready to leave the club.
Despite sharing the goalkeeping duties with David De Gea last season, it has become apparent that the Spaniard is Ferguson’s number 1 choice for the club. Lindegaard hasn’t featured for United in 2013.
The Dane spoke to the Mirror about his lack of game time, as he’s watched from the stands for most of the season:
“For me at the moment it’s not easy being on the bench when the team is performing as well as we do. We live for the thrill of playing and the adrenaline you get when you step out on the pitch.”
The 28-year-old added: “Everybody wants to play and I’m not different from anyone else. I’m sure all the players who are not in the starting line-up every game would say the same.”
The goalkeeper’s lack of games could be enough to see him move to a different club, offering him first team football. West Ham have been linked with the Danish ‘keeper, who could replace the ageing Jussi Jaaskelainen.
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Lindegaard has only been capped five times for Denmark, but wasn’t involved in all 3 of their last World Cup qualifiers, and isn’t expected to feature during the current international break.
According to ESPN FC, Arsenal have joined the race for Chelsea attacker Kenedy, and could move for the Brazilian in this summer’s transfer window.
What’s the story?
Kenedy joined Newcastle United on loan in January after finding himself out of favour under Antonio Conte at Chelsea in the first half of the 2017-18 campaign.
The versatile attacker has been in fine form for the Magpies – managing two goals and two assists in eight Premier League appearances since his arrival.
It has been reported that Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain have both asked to be informed if Chelsea decide to sell Kenedy this summer, and according to ESPN FC, Arsenal are also closely monitoring developments as the Gunners consider a move.
It would be quite something if Chelsea allowed the 22-year-old to join their London rivals this summer, but it has been claimed on a number of occasions that the Blues will be open to permanent offers at the end of the current season.
Would Kenedy fit in at Arsenal?
The Brazilian, who is valued at £6.3m by transfermarkt.co.uk, has only actually managed three goals in his 27 appearances for Chelsea since making the move to Stamford Bridge from Brazilian side Fluminense in 2015.
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The fact that Kenedy can play in a number of different positions made it difficult for him to secure a regular spot with the Blues, but it is that versatility that makes the attacker an attractive proposition for Arsenal.
Indeed, Kenedy has shown at Newcastle that with regular minutes, and the confidence of the manager, he is capable of producing excellent performances at Premier League level.
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Arsenal are in need of some fresh blood this summer, with the likes of Danny Welbeck and Alex Iwobi consistently struggling to impress in the forward positions.
Chelsea would be extremely naive to sell the former Brazil Under-23 international to a Premier League rival this summer according to their fans, and Arsenal would be getting a passionate and indeed impressive winger if they managed to pull off the deal.
Manchester United’s defence has looked a little leaky this season, yet it has only shipped 27 goals in the league – and only Chelsea (who have played a game fewer) and Southampton can better that.
The question, then, should really be, why does it look so leaky? It seems that, when you watch the games and then look at the stats, the two don’t really match up.
The answer lies in United’s new style of play this year, and how Louis Van Gaal has been getting his team to play in a way that they were not used to at the start, and it has also looked like some of his players did not have the feel for the positions they were playing in during some of the games where they’ve looked rocky at the back.
The biggest revelation from Van Gaal this season was his use of wingbacks. When he played 3-5-2 or with a diamond, both times he employed wingbacks to provide the team with width.
These wingbacks are really just deep-seated attackers who give an option out wide whenever the team has the ball, and so it makes sense that Van Gaal would use Ashley Young, Antonio Valencia or even Adnan Januzaj in there from time to time. But when playing with a back four, as United have been doing more often of late, having wingbacks bombing forward can leave your centre backs exposed.
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The wingbacks will only bomb forward when United have the ball, of course, so the defence will only be exposed when they lose it. But they do lose it from time to time. To combat this, Van Gaal’s centre backs split, and leave a gap between them, which in turn leaves a lot of space in the middle, and this is when United look leaky.
The idea is that the defensive midfielder slots into this space, allowing him not only to offer defensive solidity, but also to control the game from deep. But this hasn’t been the problem with United’s defence. The tactic works fine. But just like most tactics, it lives or dies by the players implementing it.
And this is why United have been wobbly at the back this season – or at least, it has seemed like it. Because Daley Blind, who has been playing in that position a lot, isn’t cut out to play there. At least, he hasn’t got his head around it just yet.
When United are hit on the break, Blind finds himself attracted to the ball, and sometimes pushes too far forward to press, or drawn out to the wings to try to make the tackle. With both centre backs already pushed wide, Blind moving out of position is a big problem, leaving United with a gaping hole in defence.
But the answer for United seems to be Michael Carrick. He’s not played a huge amount of games all season, but when he’s been on the pitch, United have a player perfectly suited to playing that role.
Carrick gets a hard time because he doesn’t have the rampant physicality that we seem to expect off English central midfielders, and fans are usually suspicious of English players with half a brain. Carrick is, I think, unfairly criticised for this, but ability to sit deep and distribute passes and read the game makes him perfect for this role. In fact, United have lost only one game all season when Carrick has started.
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He’s getting on a bit now, but has just signed a new one year extension to his contract, and so at least in the short term, he looks to be Van Gaal’s answer to United’s defensive frailty. Blind just looks unsure in that role, but perhaps he will be able to learn from Carrick himself.
Defensive worries or not, United are exactly where they want to be at this stage of the season, and if they can keep Carrick fit, he will be the piece that keeps the defence solid and links in to the wealth of attacking talent they have ahead of him.
Spurs boss Andre Villas-Boas has been credited with an interest in Fiorentina’s Spanish midfielder Borja Valero.
Valero, who spent the 2008/09 season in the Premier League with West Brom, has been in fine form for La Viola this season and Villas-Boas is believed to have already contacted the Italian side with regards to a summer transfer.
The 28-year-old Spaniard only joined Fiorentina last summer from Villarreal and has since established himself as a key player in Vincenzo Montella’s side. The central midfielder will want to add to his one cap for Spain which he received in 2011.
Valero has given no indication that he is looking to leave Fiorentina but the lure of Champions League football could convince the midfielder to move to White Hart Lane if Spurs step up their interest and make a concrete move.
Fiorentina are currently 6 points behind AC Milan for the last Champions League place after a successful campaign under Montella. Fan favorite Valero is a major reason for that success, which lead him to say “perhaps this is my best season.” He has been one of the top passers in Italy during his time at Fiorentina, who play an expansive style of football.
Tottenham are currently in third place with seven matches left to play in the season. If they do qualify for the Champions league, they will be looking to get more depth in both attack and midfield this summer.
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Manchester City face Manchester United on Saturday in what is shaping up to be one of the most significant Manchester derbies of all time. A win will not only see City do the double over the Red Devils in the Premier League this season, but will also clinch them the top flight title against their local rivals.
After being unexpectedly thumped 3-0 by Liverpool in midweek, Pep Guardiola has some key decisions to make for Saturday’s game – chiefly whether a historic win against United should take priority over the return leg of the Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday.
Bearing that in mind, we asked City fans earlier this week whether they would risk starting 5 foot 8 striker Sergio Aguero against United, with his state of fitness yet to be confirmed after sitting out the clash on Merseyside due to injury.
And according to our poll, a slim majority of City fans – 57% – would risk starting the Argentine assassin up front, perhaps because Gabriel Jesus struggled in that role at Anfield, despite him being notoriously injury-prone.
How would you line up Guardiola’s side against the Red Devils? Let us know by commenting below…
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It’s boarded on inexplicable in a number of ways, because there doesn’t appear to be any logic or safe rationale to justify it. Why are Everton so utterly mediocre this year?
You can usually point to some defining moments of a club to plot the root of their downfall. Hindering finance, changing personnel, injuries. None really bare true in a consistent manner. Romelu Lukaku’s permanent residence on Mersyside has undoubtedly bolstered the strength of their squad in a permanent manner. Roberto Martinez is steering his way through a second season, where you’d think his players would now be more susceptible to his methods and ideologies. Leighton Baines has signed a new contract, ending the distracting uncertainty over his long-term future.
Instead, the same base of players vying to implement their possession-orientated gameplan are falling short, consistently. It’s now got to the point where people are genuinely considering whether the club could get relegated. There’s been mindless-myopic-mutterings of Martinez getting axed.
The fact of the matter is, Everton are now ‘barb-wired’ in no-man’s land, glued to a sort of liminal medium of disappointment. In no uncertain terms, there’s absolutely no way they’ll get relegated, yet they are so far from salvaging any form of points tally that will rescue them a respectable Premier League finish. Their domestic campaign is effectively over. Barring a miraculous run in the league, their domestic-cup exits mean all of their hopes rely on the Europa League, where the paradox of their strange form takes a further twist.
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Martinez now finds himself in the absurd situation where he can legitimately rest his key players on the weekend to keep them in fine health for Thursday nights. This is their only pathway to retrieve any commendable status from a season that is now skewed upon on a competition that is usually a liability for most title-aspiring teams.
In an ironic twist, it would strangely make perfect sense for Everton to now take this tournament by storm. Martinez’s possession-based dogma has seemingly found fertile soil on European nights, reaping lucrative rewards in games gone by. That challenge looks to be an Italian one for now; all five of their entered teams (Napoli, Fiorentina, Roma, the Parma-replacing Torino and Internazional) have made decent headway, and you’d suspect one of them to challenge for the trophy to re-deem Italy’s diminishing reputation upon Europe’s elite.
Everton’s devoted fanbase will naturally be hugely disappointed that their season has succumbed to just one knockout competition, but in that there’s probably more positives than meet the eye. They don’t have to worry about balancing this run with the overly-competitive top four race, which might have over-stretched their squad to a medium where they failed to meet their best in both.
They can forget about the strains of the Premier League and now solely focus on a competition that has long tempted teams into competing but yet always never really lived up to its name.
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Everton, and Martinez, will probably never find themselves in this bizarrely unique situation again, and it’s time they put their disappointments behind them and appreciate that they may never get a better shot at Europe’s second tier competition, an opportunity that could pay big dividends.
Arsenal’s Bacary Sagna is having a troubling season to say the least. The French right-back has been continually struggling with injury throughout his time in the Premier League, but now, having been given the run of a few games in the first team, it seems he is past his best, and his times on the sidelines have unfortunately taken the best of him.
Another good player ruined by injury; it’s certainly a shame. But Arsene Wenger must move on, and it seems he’s well aware of the situation, with Sagna set to be shown the exit door at the Emirates in the summer.
So who will replace the french defender? Carl Jenkinson is a solid right-back, but he’s still learning his trade. A new right-back will certainly be one of Wenger’s top priorities in the next transfer window, but who is the Gunners gaffer even looking at?
Well here’s five suggestions of footballers who will be on Arsene Wenger’s shortlist, as he attempts to find a replacement for Bacary Sagna.
Click on Sagna to find out who could be Arsenal’s new right-back next season
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