The protest at the weekend against Steve Kean at Blackburn after only four games of the new season demonstrates the instantaneous demands of football supporters. I don’t for one minute believe that Kean is the best manager in the league but it still appears harsh to protest against a manager who is trying doing his best for the club and who actually kept them up last season. Shouldn’t the blame instead be placed on the Venky’s who appointed him on a long-term deal especially after sacking Allardyce who would have surely ensured survival?
This growth of foreign investment in English football has made owners increasingly impatient for results and has consequently increased the threat of managers losing their jobs. Managers are made scapegoats for the bad management of a football club with the unfounded belief that a change in management will reverse the fortunes of the club in question.
On Monday, League Two side Plymouth Argyle announced that Peter Reid had been dismissed as manager despite giving everything to the club. Pilgrims chairman Peter Ridsdale still thought it was right to sack Reid after a poor start to the season, all Reid has done for club off the pitch was forgotten to the general disgust of football fans everywhere.
There is no doubt that the business of football is an volatile industry and this season has seen a high number of dismissals before teams have even played games and the average tenure of manager reached an all-time low last season with managers being given less and less time to deliver success on the pitch.
Undoubtedly there will be a large number of sackings in the next few months as football owner convince themselves that the current underachievement can only be resolved by changing the man in charge. With the transfer window closed until January, club owners are unable to radically change their squad and they cannot blame themselves for egotistical and self-preservation and so find a scapegoat in a manager.
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In football the desire for results set against a backdrop of intense media scrutiny creates an extremely challenging working environment. It seems that many of those controlling our football clubs have forgotten that not every team can play in the Premier League and not every club can avoid relegation. While there will always be a point where a manager can instil confidence in his players or display any sign that things can improve, a system where nearly half of clubs change manager cannot be sustainable particularly when there is a large settlement has to been paid out for each one.
It is clearly the decision of club chairmen whom they hire and fire, and when, but the statistics show that a club is likely to end up worse off when the manager is sacked and they are often significantly out of pocket due to compensation and paying off contracts. As a result clubs in the lower leagues in England cannot not afford to keep sacking managers. Not only is it expensive but it is hugely destabilising to a club and its staff, and a new manager wishing to stamp his own mark on the playing squad brings with him the additional cost of the transfer budget needed to do so.
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However there is the argument that if you don’t do your job properly then you should be fired and no member of staff should be exempt from this. A football manager should be given time to improve things but where it is clearly causing a downward and relegating threatening trend, a board has to take the decision to change things. In which other business could a manager who is sacked for consistently failing to deliver results walk straight into another managerial post, often equally well-paid while still continuing to be paid by the organisation he had failed. If you are willing to accept that is will probably be a short term position where you will be constantly be under threat of losing your job, there are financial benefits of being a football manager, as long as you don’t mind traveling around the country for a new opportunity.
One can only imagine the shade of purple Fergie and co turned upon the news that not only do they have to wait through the duration of the Euros with baited breath hoping that their players return unsaved, now they have to contend with the prospect of players also playing for ‘team GB’ to boot.
The club v country debate has is always bubbling under the surface, with ill-timed international friendlies and injuries being sustained on international duty – we all remember the injury to Owen and his club at the time Newcastle’s reaction – but expect the issue to rear its ugly head with gusto once more as we head towards the summer.
With the Olympic team now able to consist of players who have participated in the Euro’s, albeit minimally, with England’s record at such tournaments, it is not impossible to envisage our players not only playing in Poland and Ukraine this summer, but also for team GB, further placing strain on their bodies and taking away their down time, something that is vital for them given that most will have played a full season for their clubs and will be going into another one straight away.
Should players such as Rooney be called up to take part in team GB, they could potentially miss the majority of their club’s pre-season training, and also the Community Shield match, which takes place on the same weekend as the Olympic final. Not only will this anger player’s clubs and their managers – after all it is the clubs who are paying the hundreds of thousands of pounds for the players wages and their medical bills, but it could also potentially cause anger amongst fans who want to see their clubs do well and players performing up to the level they expect.
Should players be fatigued after a summer of international duty and this then impact on their performance for the clubs throughout the coming season, don’t expect this to go unnoticed by the fans – they are the ones spending their money on football tickets, and deserve players to be at the top of their game, not suffering from the effects of playing for ‘team GB,’ having been denied both a rest in the summer and also a full pre-season – or any at all.
A good pre-season is vital to clubs for a variety of reasons, allowing new players to link up and form understandings with current players, getting the players fit after a summer away from the club and conditioning them to prevent injuries. More than a couple of people have remarked on the fact that Barcelona’s pre-season left a little to be desired, and attributing the vast amount of muscular injuries their players have sustained at the beginning of the season to this.
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It is also worthy of note that players will credit full pre-seasons as a reason for improved form during the season – Anderson has stated that this summer has been the first time he has participated in full pre-season and his form has improved for it. Likewise, the scintillating form of Wayne Rooney – who this debate may affect more than most due to his ban for the first three games meaning that he will, especially should England go home early, have played less games than most – can be put down to the player having a proper rest in the summer. This is something that would not happen anyway due to the Euro’s this summer, but would be magnified further should a player be included in team GB, removing any chance of a break for players should England crash out early.
It is not just English players that are candidates for the Olympic team, but Northern Ireland, Wales and despite strong objection from the SFA, Scottish players. Again these players although not playing in the Euro’s would lose the chance of a break during the summer and the chance of pre-season, and possibly playing in the Community Shield. For a player such as Ryan Giggs, whose name has been mooted as a potential squad member, a rest in the summer and a good pre-season is vital, and one can only imagine Fergie’s reaction to this potential situation.
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The issue of players sustaining injury playing for team GB would also be a problem, especially if managers have objections to their players taking part when they should be with their clubs, and potential litigation seems a likely outcome should this situation arise.
Either way, with managers already uncomfortable with the prospect of Euro 2012 approaching, the prospect of them losing key players for an extended period of time which will directly impact on the club’s pre-season and potentially the season to come, expect this debate to gain momentum as the summer gets ever closer.
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The FA, the Premier League and the Football League, the three bodies involved in the administration and delivery of youth development, have all pledged to improve existing practices over the last eighteen months. Zarif Rasul looks at the measures which could eventually turn England into world beaters.
LAST year, The Premier League, in consultation with the Football League and the FA, produced the Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP), a proposal designed to revamp the existing youth development system. It was ratified by all 20 Premier League shareholders at their AGM in June, and a final draft has been sent to the Football League for approval.
The Premier League says that the central aim of the EPPP is to “enable clubs to develop more and better home grown players in their Academies”. Under the proposal, clubs’ youth operations will be put into one of four categories. Those in the highest tier, category one, will have far fewer restrictions placed upon them in terms of the age at which a child can be trained and the amount of coaching time they can provide per week.
For clubs which run the top tier of Academy, rules regarding how far young players are permitted to travel (Academy/Centre players must live within 90 minutes’ drive of their club) will be inapplicable. Clubs will be expected to provide boarding school-style lodgings and team up with local schools in order to ensure those players’ educational needs are met. This will however, allow category one clubs to triple the existing amount of contact time they have with their players.
The cost of equipping a category one or category two training facility means that these groupings will be out of reach for a large proportion of Football League clubs. Unlike category one and two clubs, those operating in category three or four will not be able to access players until a later age. Category three clubs won’t be able to sign players until 11, whilst those in the category four will have to wait until a player is 16, effectively leaving them to sign players discarded by other clubs.
Manchester City have already announced plans to develop a brand new, state-of-the-art training facility. Undoubtedly aiming for category one status, the plans, which were unveiled last month, include 16 football pitches, on site accommodation for junior and senior players, a 7,000 capacity stadium for youth matches and an Academy designed to cater for 400 young players.
Football League Chairman Greg Clarke has expressed doubts over the EPPP, fearing that it may force several clubs to abandon youth development operations.
Jim Briden, Youth Development Business Manager at the Football League Trust, believes the Football League must guard against the disenfranchisement of smaller clubs.
“We have to try and ensure that the broad base of youth development that is often provided by a number of Football League clubs isn’t eroded. The fact that players who start out at fairly small Football League clubs often finish up at Premier League clubs demonstrates that those clubs have got a role to play in the programme,” he said.
The developmental makeup of the most recent England squad vindicates Briden’s assertion. Thirteen out of the 23 players called up for England’s squad to face the Netherlands earlier this month spent all or part of their formative footballing years at a club currently outside of the Premier League. Joe Hart, for example, emerged from League Two outfit Shrewsbury. Club team-mate Gareth Barry spent six years at Brighton before moving to Aston Villa as a trainee.
The EPPP will also seek to address the controversial issue of compensation for young footballers. Fair compensation has long been a bone of contention amongst ‘selling’ clubs. Former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan infamously described the £700,000 fee set by the Football League tribunal for teenager John Bostock’s transfer to Tottenham in 2008 as “scandalous”.
Briden says that ensuring clubs are adequately compensated for the loss of young talent is essential if the EPPP is to receive the approval of the Football League’s shareholders.
“From our point of view, the EPPP clearly requires clubs to invest more money in their youth programmes. And yet, there is a proposal at the same time, to reduce the amount of compensation that they might be able to achieve for those players that they’re developing. And that seems a bit of a dichotomy to me and to Football League clubs.
“They’re being asked to invest more and yet the assets that they’re investing in, the players, could move for less money. Until the compensation levels are deemed to be reasonable and appropriate, I think it will be difficult for Football League clubs to adopt the EPPP.”
Once all parties are in agreement, the implementation of the EPPP could happen as early as 2012. With UEFA’s financial fair play regulations to take effect from 2013, having a healthy and productive Academy will be even more important for elite Premier League clubs.
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Football League clubs recently reiterated their commitment to improving youth development, by agreeing to increase expenditure on young players and the minimum number of ‘home-grown’ players required in matchday squads. The 72 clubs agreed to introduce a one-percent levy on all transfer spending, with the anticipated extra £600,000 per season to be invested in Youth Development programmes. Teams must now name a minimum of six domestically-registered players in their squads.
The FA is also doing its part to improve programmes and coaching for young footballers. Mini-Soccer was first introduced for children under 10 years of age in September 1999, and now proposals have been put forward to extend small-sided formats to under-11s and under-12s.
“It’s because you go from six years old to ten years old playing 7v7 on smaller 60 by 40 pitches,” says Middlesex FA County Development Manager Stuart Allen.
“Overnight you go from playing 7v7 to playing 11v11 on a full-sized pitch, but overnight you don’t actually grow twice your size. You don’t become twice as fast or twice as physical. You end up having a ten-year-old kid standing in a goal, trying to defend the same size goal that Petr Cech has to defend.”
Nick Levett, the FA’s National Development Manager for Youth Football, has spent time over the last two years working on a review of youth development in England. He recommended the switch to smaller-sided games for 11-and 12-year-olds and explains why it is needed if young footballers are to develop better technical skills.
“With a big pitch and small players the game becomes a territory-based activity where the teams are encouraged to shift the ball as far away from their goal as quick as possible whilst moving it towards the opposition goal,” he said.
“This ends up being a game that does not encourage our children to ‘play through the thirds’ and work the ball up the pitch, rather get the ball from one end to the other in the shortest amount of time. Teams find they can become successful and score goals by having a player with a large kick in defence and a fast player in attack.”
The governing body has also introduced a range of new age-appropriate coaching courses, designed to help coaches to understand the needs of players. The FA Youth Award was launched 18 months ago, and is split into three modules. Module one was launched last year, and the second module debuted this summer.
English football finds a home
The long-awaited National Football Centre is set to open in Burton-upon-Trent next summer, 30 years after the idea was first mooted. Whilst it might be far-fetched to suggest that St George’s Park (SGP) will lead to an immediate upturn in England’s fortunes, the FA believes that it will help to create a centralised footballing philosophy in this country.
Howard Wilkinson was Technical Director at the FA when the freehold for the 330-acre site was acquired in 2001. He explains why it has taken a further ten years for plans to come to fruition.
“Money! When I first got it passed in the early part of the 21st century it had the full backing of the FA, and then Wembley was allowed to explode at Monty Python-esque proportions. There was not at times a great political will to see it finished, because there were people that didn’t understand the concept,” he said.
“I’d like it to be the Oxford and Cambridge of education in football. It’s the place where cultures will be trained, and cultures for specific jobs will be trained. It’s a place for research, a place for development; it’s a place where you bring the top minds in sport together. It’s a place that services the football industry in this country at all levels – boys, girls, men, women and all the associate disciplines to do with the development of football.”
In addition to providing a high-quality base for all of England’s teams, the FA hopes that SGP will raise coaching standards and the importance of the profession as a whole.
The number of UEFA-qualified coaches (at Pro, A and B level) in England is substantially lower than numbers in France, Spain, Italy and Germany; England has less than 10% of the average number of UEFA ‘B’ coaches in these countries, 16% of UEFA ‘A’ coaches and 12% of UEFA ‘Pro’ coaches.
SGP intends to boost these statistics by aiming to train 250,000 new coaches by 2018, offering a wider range of qualifications and introducing a raft of age-appropriate coach education courses.
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Fact box – Facilities:
Eleven full-size pitches, accommodating 11-a-side and 7-a-side football
One full-sized indoor pitch and running track
Multisport indoors sports hall
Hydrotherapy suite
Strength and conditioning gyms
Biomechanics and screening area
Read my investigation into the current youth development system here.
Follow me on twitter at www.twitter.com/zarifrasul
The 2011/12 Premier League season may still be in it’s infancy with 11 games not really enough to gauge how certain teams will do over the course the year. However one thing is becoming certain with each passing week – relegation is a strong possibility for Wigan Athletic. Roberto Martinez’s side have had a disastrous start to the campaign taking only five points from a possible 33 and finding themselves rooted to the bottom of the table after a club record eight defeats on the spin.
The Latics have escaped the dreaded drop for two years in a row narrowly surviving by the skin of their teeth as others perished, dropping into the gloomy waters of the Championship. Martinez, who took over the reins at the DW Stadium from the relatively successful Steve Bruce, has failed to build on the progress made by his predecessor. Last season they clung onto their Premier League status by the narrowest of narrow margins but their current crusade to extend their Premier League stay to an eighth year looks to be a lost cause as they find themselves embroiled in yet another battle to avoid relegation. Is their time in the top flight finally coming to an end?
Answering this question is simple and although it might cause angry Latics fans to point and snarl at the number of games played this season, Wigan’s performances have been frighteningly poor. Draws in their opening two games were followed by their only win of the season against QPR on the 27th August with Sunday’s defeat against Wolves their eight in succession. It’s rather bewildering to see the club in this position once again because they actually do play some quality football at times. Martinez has always been an advocate of controlled, passing football and he has instilled that philosophy into his players. I was at St James’ Park two weeks ago to watch them take on Newcastle and for large parts of the game they were the better side. Their disciplined defending and smooth passing and movement to retain the ball frustrated the Magpies although it all meant nothing in the end as Yohan Cabaye won the game with a phenomenal goal in the dying embers. But watching that performance highlighted two key aspects of Wigan’s play that have contributed to their rapid slide to the foot of the table.
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I will say that their midfield impressed me a fortnight ago with Ben Watson, James McCarthy, Mohamed Diame and Victor Moses all look competent footballers who could perform key roles in better teams. If they had a goal getting centre forward and a solid back four either side them then Wigan would be in business. Regrettably they have neither they are the two biggest issues that currently exist in the squad. Again it’s mystifying as to why the Latics have struggled to find the back of the net this season with their fans treated to only seven league goals this season. With a front pairing of Hugo Rodallega and Franco Di Santo you’d expect the net to be bulging on a regular basis. That isn’t the case and whilst the latter started the season in prolific form his goals have dried up and performances become substandard. Worringly the same affliction has fell at the feet of Rodallega who has yet to score this season despite being gifted a countless number of chances to break his duck. The once deadly Colombian seems to have lost his knack of scoring, snatching at chances he would normally bury and it looks as if his confidence has sunk to rock bottom. The simple fact of the matter is that you need a goalscorer in your ranks to survive in the top flight. Wigan have suffered ever since the departure of Charles N’Zogbia in the summer as the Frenchman single handedly kept them up last season before moving to Aston Villa and his source of goals has yet to be replaced. Di Santo, Moses and Rodallega have three between them and with backup in the shape of the relatively unknown Connor Sammon staying up is going to be a tough ask.
The same goes for a defence which has been breached on 20 occasions already this season and has shown no signs of tightening up. The once ingredient that is missing from the Wigan back line is pace with players like Gary Caldwell, Antonio Alcaraz and Maynor Figueroa hardly blessed with natural speed. Heading, tackling and booting the ball away from danger are their main attributes but when it comes to a simple foot race they get beaten each and every time. At times it can be too easy for teams to saunter through a defence that appears to lack little or no structure with players constantly out of position giving teams the opportunity to break the offside trap. Steve Gohouri has to be the worst culprit and I don’t know how many times i’ve seen him make a mistake that has proved costly to his team. A lack of quality, discipline and structure in the back four is giving teams an easy ride and three home defeats in a row is a worrying sign for the DW fans. I’ll go out on a limb and say that they will be playing Championship football next season. Despite possessing a good set of midfield players its those in front and behind that are under performing and in the cut and thrust of the Premier League it’s not enough to keep your head above water. Relegation could be a blessing in disguise for Martinez and his men and as much as I hate making assumptions at such an early stage of the campaign the writing is on the wall for Wigan.
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So it’s December and the countdown to Christmas is under way. For the next few weeks, you won’t be able to go anywhere without hearing Wizzard or Wham. With this though comes football in all its glory. Whilst other European leagues go into hibernation for a few weeks, we are fortunate enough to still be able to enjoy football in the festive period (even though a winter break might benefit English football, but that argument is for another day!).
As the Premier League enters its 14th round of fixtures this weekend, let’s examine who will be making the headlines come Sunday.
The Captaincy Debate
The goals dried up for Robin van Persie last weekend at the Emirates but for one former Gunner, they just seem to keep on coming. Emmanuel Adebayor may need quite a few bites at the cherry to score at the moment but the creative talents he has behind him guarantees goals. He will go up against Bolton at White Hart Lane this weekend and you’d back him to score against the Premier League’s leakiest defence.
Perhaps though, you do favour the man in the red corner of North London, Robin van Persie. One banner read at the Emirates last weekend, “Who needs Batman when we’ve got Robin?” Even though he failed to find the net against the Cottagers last weekend, expect van Persie’s superhuman powers to return soon. The Gunners travel to the DW Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Although Wigan will be buoyant after their smash-and-grab win in the North East last weekend, the Dutchman must be backing himself to bag a goal or two.
Then you look to Manchester City’s fixture though and your mind becomes all the more convoluted. The league leaders face Norwich City at the Etihad Stadium. Granted, the Canaries have not taken a beating in the Premier League this season. Then again, they’re yet to face David Silva and friends. It will be interesting to see what side Mancini puts out ahead of City’s pivotal clash against Bayern Munich on Wednesday. You’d assume the Spanish maestro will be on the pitch though. An assist or if you’re fortunate a goal or two might come your way should you select Silva.
However, do not discount Newcastle’s lethal hit man Demba Ba. He netted at Old Trafford last weekend, albeit in controversial circumstances. This took his tally to nine for the season. Now usually, one wouldn’t see Chelsea at home as an opportunity for goals. However, with the high line which André Villas Boas has taken to, there’ll be space in behind for Ba to exploit. The Blues have only kept two clean sheets this season and that run could well continue after their visit to the North East on Saturday.
Having backed Robin van Persie for the last few weeks, it’s time to do a Claudio Ranieri and tinker…
The Captain – Emmanuel Adebayor – The Togolese forward keeps finding the net for Spurs at the moment and it’s hard to see this run ending against Bolton on the weekend.
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Vice Captain – Robin van Persie – Let’s not leave him completely out in the cold (after all its freezing). Just in case Adebayor sustains an injury, have RVP in reserve.
Chelsea winger Florent Malouda has admitted that he may be forced to leave the club should first team opportunities not be more forthcoming in the near future.
The France international has been a fringe figure at Stamford Bridge since Andre Villas Boas was appointed as manager in the summer, and has had to make due with bit-part appearances this term.
Malouda has stated that he wants more time on the pitch, and may well have to find a new club to get this.
“I’m not getting enough playing time. It’s too limited for the ambitions I have. I can’t be happy with that. If it is necessary, I will leave,” he told The Telegraph.
Malouda has been linked with a move back to his homeland, with Paris Saint-Germain reportedly interested, but the veteran attacker has poured cold water on rumours that he is set to sign for Russian team Anzhi Makhachkala.
“I couldn’t even manage to pronounce the name of this team.
“I don’t know from where these rumours come, when they don’t have any base in reality. Me, I am someone who prefers transparency. I don’t have anything to hide, so I’m telling you the truth,” he concluded.
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Everton are reportedly locked in negotiations with Rangers over the possible purchase of Nikica Jelavic.
The Croatia international has impressed at Ibrox and has been linked with a move to Liverpool and QPR also, but Sky Sports indicate that David Moyes’ men are the frontrunners to sign the attacker.
The Goodison Park club are eager to bolster their attacking options before the transfer window closes on Tuesday, and have money to spend after offloading winger Diniyar Bilyaletdinov to Spartak Moscow.
Jelavic missed Rangers’ 4-0 win over Hibs on Saturday through illness, and the Scottish club’s boss Ally McCoist is starting to think of life without the eastern European marksman.
“There’s not just life beyond Nikica, there’s life beyond us all,” he stated after the victory.
“There are bigger players who have left this club and the club always goes on. That’s the most important thing because the club is the most important thing.
“Nikica, if he went, would be a big loss. He’s a fantastic player and he has been a great talent here.
“I’d also like to tell you I wouldn’t like to lose him. Of course I wouldn’t because he’s a good player.
“But I understand the economics of our club and I understand the economics of football.
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“Sometimes they dictate and determine what happens rather than other things,” he admitted.
Former Arsenal defender Nigel Winterburn has stated that the current Gunners rear-guard lacks the organisation and commitment to lead the club to success.
Back-to-back defeats against Fulham and Swansea have dented Arsenal’s chances of a top four finish, with defensive errors in both games costing Arsene Wenger’s men.
Winterburn has little confidence in the side’s defenders, and feels their attitude is wrong.
“I feel that the players technically are very good, but sometimes they don’t sense danger or show a ruthlessness in certain situations to win games,” Winterburn told talkSPORT.
“When Arsenal lose control of the game, it just goes disastrously wrong for them.
“It’s great to see Thierry Henry back for six or eight weeks, but it’s a short-term fix. They need another quality centre forward to help Robin van Persie. If Henry wants to come back and help, anyone given that opportunity should take him up on it.
“I still look at the squad. They’ve got a lot of midfield players and a lot of them are very, very similar. You can’t keep looking back to your Patrick Vieira’s and Emmanuel Petit’s.
“They haven’t got that real type of character who can boss a game and then you can have your more technical players around them who can try and express themselves.
“You could see at times they were being over-run. When you get over-run, you need good organisation from back into midfield and it didn’t look like that.
“I always expect Arsenal to concede goals and it disappoints me to say that.
“The worrying thing was the way they collapsed against Fulham. They were leading 1-0, we can debate the Djourou sending off, but then the way they conceded two goals in the last 10 minutes was a team that didn’t show any composure or any real desire to hold onto the game.
“Again at Swansea, at times, I think Arsenal took unnecessary risks in and around their own area. I’m sure people even when they go 1-0 up, people are always saying, ‘This is not the end of the game.’ They’re always likely to make a mistake,” he concluded.
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Arsenal take on Manchester United next, with the crunch tie in London a test to see how far the side have come since their 8-2 mauling by Sir Alex Ferguson’s men earlier in the campaign.
Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny has stated that he feels star striker and captain Robin van Persie will stay with the club, despite stalling on signing a new contract.
The Netherlands international has proved himself to be one of the best attackers in the world over the last year, but with his contract due to expire in the summer of 2013, the north London club are at threat of losing their talisman.
However Szczesny believes that Van Persie will opt to stay with The Gunners and renew his current deal.
“We really don’t discuss that, it is not our business,” Szczesny told the London Evening Standard.
“We just want to have him at the club. We are trying to make the most of it while he is here, he is a great captain and leader of the team and we are very pleased to have him.
“I’m personally confident that he will stay at Arsenal. That is where he belongs and that is where he is at his very best.
“Robin does his talking on the pitch by scoring all the goals for this club and I think that shows you his commitment. We are confident that he will be staying at Arsenal,” he concluded.
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We’ve recently looked at some of the most hated players, and some of the biggest divers. All this has left me with a bad taste when it comes to players these days.
But I’m determined to be optimistic, and think that no, not all footballers have to be shallow, flash, idiots. And so to celebrate those they go against the image of a modern Footballer we look at 5 of the smartest players at the moment.
Seyi Olofinjana
Seyi has made a decent career helping out teams at the bottom end of the Premiership/top end of Championship, as he is currently doing just that with Hull, but the player is also preparing for his life after the game.
The 31 year old graduated with a BSC in Chemical Engineering from his native Nigeria, before moving to Europe to play. Still not being content with the life of a top flight footballer, Seyi also earned his masters in the same field whilst playing for Wolves.
Frank Lampard
I know it’s hard to believe at times but Frank is well known for his 150+ IQ. That’s 50 points above average, and places him in the top 1% of the country. He attracted top grades in school, including an A* in Latin. Shame all this intelligence has led to him sometimes thinking he’s smarter than the manager.
Clarke Carlisle
Officially (well, if you consider a game-show official) Clark is ‘Britain’s Brainiest Footballers’.
He achieved 10 A’s at GCSE and went on to study Politics and Maths at A-level.
The former QPR and Leeds man now uses this brain of his to guide other players in his role as Chairman of the Management Committee for the PFA.
Hopefully all this education will stand him in good stead off the itch, as he’s not performing that great on it, and currently finds himself on loan to League Two’s Northampton.
Jean Alain Boumsong
Apologies for bringing back bad memories Newcastle fans. Boumsong may have been entirely useless on the field, but it appears he wasn’t so bad off it, as he holds a degree in mathematics. He can use all those number skills to calculate how many goals he was responsible for at St. James park. Now playing for Famous Greeks Panathinaikos
David James
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Maybe not educated as such, but definitely seen as the England team’s man o’ culture.
The countries former No.1 has had his own weekly column for the high-brow Guardian for several years, where he can be found discussing such weighty issues as Racism in the game, Gay footballers, and, erm, Dave Bessant.
Now finishing up his football days at Brsitol City, before retiring to become a beat poet, or post-modern wax sculpture artist, or some such.
Other Clever clogs: Nedum Onuoha, Fabrice Muamba, Enoch Showunmi (A successful poet – yes, seriously) , apparently Joey Barton (although I’m not inclined to agree), and former NASA employee Shaka Hislop.