Villarreal have signed Colombian defender Cristian Zapata from Serie A side Udinese on a five-year deal.The 24-year-old centre-back has joined the La Liga outfit for an undisclosed fee as they prepare for Champions League football this campaign.
The Spanish outfit revealed the news on Tuesday with the former Deportivo Cali defender still on international duty at the Copa America.
“Zapata will join up with Villareal CF once the Copa America in Argentina has finished,” a club statement said.
Zapata had a contract with Udinese until mid-2012 but had made it clear he would not extend his stay with the club he joined in 2005.
He said in June he was close to joining English Premier League team Liverpool and that Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich had also declared their interest.
But he will instead head to the Estadio El Madrigal to try and help Juan Carlos Garrido and his side enjoy another successful campaign.
He joins veteran goalkeeper Cesar Sanchez as their second capture of the transfer window.
Premier League goal records were broken this weekend as all clubs managed to get on the score sheet to contribute to the full total 41. A large chunk of them came at Old Trafford, where Dimitar Berbatov became only the 4th player to bag 5 goals in one game, joining the likes of Andy Cole, Alan Shearer and Jermain Defoe.
In the papers this morning there is a mixed bag of stories, which includes David Gold explains Downes appointment; Berbatov explains the Rooney factor and Harry Redknapp is going potty over penalties, plus much more…
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Gold explains Downes decision – Sky Sports
Chelsea’s pursuit of Begiristain stalls – Guardian
Hughton hails Carroll – Daily Telegraph
Arsene Wenger planning a ‘strong’ Cup bid – Daily Mail
Real Madrid keen on Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool target Eden Hazard – IM Scouting
Berba: Roo return fired me up – Sun
Harry going potty over poor penalties – Mirror
Hannover to battle Juventus and Roma for West Ham right-back Valon Behrami – IM Scouting
Arnesen’s departure will leave Ancelotti isolated – Daily Telegraph
Court ruling exposes broken promises made by Warner – Guardian
Delegate from ‘worst nation’ may decide England bid – Daily Telegraph
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Liverpool’s 3-2 win at Ewood Park saw a number of unusual occurrences. Firstly, Liverpool won. Secondly, Andy Carroll actually put the ball in that net thing he seems so scared of. And finally, after Pepe Reina’s suspension, we saw a rare outing for not one of Liverpool’s reserve goalkeepers, but TWO. After Alexander Doni, making just his second Premiership appearance, was sent off for a challenge on Junior Hoilett, Brad Jones replaced him to make his Premier League debut, despite signing for the club in 2010. Doni and Jones are good examples of keepers who sit there, collecting their pay packet, whilst not over-stretching themselves. Occasionally they have to bend over and pull the splinters out of their backsides, but life isn’t altogether too taxing. Anyone fancy a bit of first team football anywhere else? Don’t all coming rushing at once… Here’s the Top 10 Back-Up (And Lazy) Goalkeepers:
Many Gers Fans could argue about this as it’s a popular topic when you are all down the boozer. This is going to be the best players that I have seen grace Ibrox in my lifetime and you can leave comments below if you agree or disagree.
Formation:4-4-2
Andy Goram
To Rangers fans he is known as “The Goalie” and with good reason as Andy was and still is arguably the greatest goalkeeper to ever pull on the Rangers number 1 shirt. Throughout his career he made valuable and unbelievable saves for Rangers and at one point people were undecided whether Andy or Peter Schmeichel was the best goalkeeper in Britain. With that being said I am going to make Andy my number 1 in this team.
Alan Hutton
Alan’s career at Rangers was a short one compared to some of the stars in this team. I have chosen Alan at right back due to his ability to rampage up and down the right hand side and use his pace to beat the opposition as well as his ability to defend. His performances for Rangers were outstanding which prompted an 8 million bid from Tottenham for his services.
Richard Gough (captain)
This guy was what you called a captain he was prepared to run through a brick wall for the cause and that’s why not only is he at the heart of my defence he’s also my captain. Players like Gough are a dying breed with only John Terry being as of a similar style.
Terry Butcher
Big Terry captain of England and Rangers very similar type of player to Gough and a rock in defence. That’s why I have chosen him as my number 4.He is a strikers nightmare with his power and presence , and with him and Gough at the back I wouldn’t see them lose many goals
Arthur Numan
This guy had the lot the veteran Dutchman is not only the greatest left back in a Rangers jersey he is possibly one of the best Holland has produced also. Like Alan the Dutchman had the ability to bomb up and down the left hand side all day long, and with frightening pace not many wingers fancied there chances against Arthur and he my Number 5 and left back for this Line up.
Barry Ferguson
In the Heart of the midfield on his day Barry was one of the best midfielders to wear the number 6.With his vision and coolness Barry is an asset to any midfield. A lot of his work goes un mentioned although his ability to read the game is second to none and would be one of the first names on my team sheet.
Brian Laudrup
The great Dane is one of the greats indeed he terrorised defences in Scotland for years and is the best foreigner to ever pull on a Rangers shirt. This is my choice for right midfielder and any manager would be rubbing there hands at working with such a prospect
Paul Gascoigne
The Geordie genius is my choice next to Barry. With Ferguson’s ability to sit back and read the play this would allow Gascoigne to roam forward and work his magic. In my opinion Gascoigne is the greatest player to ever play in Scotland as far as natural ability goes. He may not have delivered every week but when called upon no one could match him for god given talent
Ally McCoist
My first striker slot goes to Super Ally. The all time record goal scorer for the club is a certainty at number 9 and his goals record is frightening to say the least. If the current Rangers boss is half as good a manger as he was a player then we are in for some exciting times ahead.
Mark Hateley
My second striking spot goes to the big Englishman. Mark scored as many goals with his head as he did his feet, and over the years struck up a phenomenal partnership with Ally. The front two of Hateley and McCoist struck fear into any opposition and their goals saw Rangers make it 90 minutes from the Champions League final in 1992.Which saw Marseille lift the trophy to be later found guild of bribing officials and relegated to the lower leagues in France.
Jorg Albertz
I had to find space on the left hand side for The Hammer. With his shot power he was feared all over Scotland and became a firm favourite within Ibrox. Jorg would quite often deliver 15-20 goals a season, and that why I have the German powerhouse on my left hand side of midfield
Substitutes
12. Stefan Klos
13. Rino Gattuso
14. Ronald De Boer
15. Giovanni Van Bronkhorst
16. Michael Mols
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Trudging off down the Old Trafford tunnel after completing less than 5 minutes against Wolves on Saturday, it was hard not to feel sorry for Owen Hargreaves. Making only his second appearance since September 2008 for Manchester United, his other being a 93rd minute introduction against Sunderland towards the tail-end of last season, Hargreaves pulled up, having just crossed from the right, holding his hamstring. Having made only 39 appearances in all competitions over four seasons for Manchester United, and with his contract up for renewal next summer, is it time for Hargreaves to call it a day, or can the 29 year-old force his way back, not necessarily into United’s team, but into football in general?
The forlorn figure, clutching his hamstring, framed by the Old Trafford tunnel, can be placed in stark contrast to the man who was a star performer for England at the 2006 World Cup. His performances that summer in Germany secured his £17m transfer from Bayern Munich to Manchester United in July 2007, and all seemed to be going well, with Hargreaves regularly starting in a team that went on to win both the Champions League and Premier League in his first season at the club. Problems began to occur, however, when, at the start of the 2008-09 season, the England midfielder decided to get a recurring knee problem operated on, and has barely been seen on a football pitch since.
With Sir Alex Ferguson coming out and stating that he thinks Hargreaves’ problem may, in fact, be more mental than physical, this is a worrying sign. It is one thing coming back from a long term injury in terms of being physically fit, but it is an entirely different entity coming back and being psychologically ready. Perhaps Hargreaves should take a leaf out of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s book.
The Manchester United legend was also blighted by injury, and, like Hargreaves, Sir Alex Ferguson stood by him throughout his recuperation. But eventually the Norwegian succumbed to his fragile physical state, and is now employed elsewhere at the club, as the reserve team manager. Having signed his last contract as a player with the club in 2006, Solskjaer, knowing his days as a player were numbered, stipulated in it that he wanted to develop his coaching awards with the club and made his move into reserve team management in the summer of 2008. So with his 30th birthday fast approaching and his contract at United running out in the summer, should Hargreaves follow Solskjaer into coaching?
It is highly unlikely that Ferguson will offer Hargreaves a renewed contract unless he can prove his fitness, and fast. So if he was that way inclined, and wanted to remain at Old Trafford, signing a short-term contract with a view to complete coaching badges would be a deal that should satisfy both parties. The dilemma for Hargreaves is perhaps a similar one that Kieron Dyer faces at West Ham; if their parent clubs aren’t going to offer them a new contract, will they pass a medical at another side?
Although Hargreaves may wish to continue playing football, he has to think realistically about his options and critically assess his own ability to continue playing, both mentally and physically. Despite having not featured over the last two seasons, he will be a great loss to both Manchester United and England, and with his experience, he could yet serve both club and country very well by taking the Ole Gunnar Solskjaer route into coaching.
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One of football’s most tired clichés is that George Graham’s Arsenal was absolutely dire to watch and devoid of entertainment. Perhaps there was a case to suggest that in his later years; however the two Championship winning times were anything but and was full of goals and entertainment. This was down largely to the creative abilities of David Rocastle; an extremely talented football that didn’t get the credit outside of N5 that he fully deserved.
I read tributes upon tributes, watched countless YouTube compilations of the man in the run-up of the 11th anniversary of his death; however I don’t think I saw one that really captured the sheer essence of what an extraordinary talent he was, and in my view it was Graham’s decision to sell him to Leeds that saw the downturn in his reign, certainly in the team’s style and creativity. Rocastle provided the creative spark, something that would be missing from Highbury until the arrival of Bergkamp some years later. It made no sense to cash in on him when he did and I wonder if George Graham privately that rues the day that he did.
Rocastle was one of the most dynamic wingers of his time and if he was playing in the Premier League today he would be considered one of the country’s very best. That isn’t a throwaway comment but the very fact that there was very little that Rocastle couldn’t do with a football and his dribbling skills and famous step-over were ahead of their time. That famous lobbed goal at Old Trafford was an illustration of his great ability and we can only imagine what the media would be making of it now had it been scored by a Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi, especially against a goalkeeper of Peter Schmeichel’s ability. In many ways you could say that goal is the perfect parallel to his actual career in it was totally unsung and was only really appreciated some years later.
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Unfortunately that is football for you and we only tend to appreciate things when they are retired or in David Rocastle’s case, sadly passed away. The term ‘great’ or ‘world class’ is embarrassingly overused in football and few deserve to be showered by such praise; however for four years from the late 80s and early 90s there weren’t many players, other than him and Paul Gascoigne, who were worthy of such an accolade. It is a shame that he didn’t get the appreciation within the game his ability deserved; or had to pass away to get the widespread recognition as to what a worldly talent he actually was. They say only the ‘good die young’ well David Rocastle was very, very good – not only as a footballer, but as a person as well.
The talk of the papers is once again that Manchester City will go on a massive spending spree in the summer. They won’t.
Already City have been linked with Christiano Ronaldo, Xavi, Leighton Baines, Alexis Sanchez, Fabregas, Pirlo…….<4 hours later>………Aguero, Mata, Kaka, Cavani and Rob Earnshaw.
Garry Cook and Brian Marwood are well aware of the Financial Fair Play rules, and will not sanction outlandish spending anymore. Big signings there may well be, but plenty of sales will occur too. The midfield looks fairly settled, so I wouldn’t expect huge changes over the summer.
This is the midfield squad as it stands, in no particular order:
David Silva. Man love. Definition: Feeling of unrequited love that a football fan develops for a silky-skilled creative Spanish midfielder with the touch of an angel. That’s what it said on Google anyway.
Superb first season for one of the players of the year. Magnificent creative midfielder, who has fitted into the City team perfectly, filling the space behind the striker(s). Only flaw is seeming reluctance to shoot sometimes, but with a pre-season under his belt and hopefully a few more goals next season, the sky really is the limit.
Yaya Touré. City legend status duly acquired. The jury was out on this player for many months earlier in the season. Touré seemed to resemble a FIFA 11 player, bursting forwards in occasional sprints when someone pressed the X button. Debates ensued on whether he was a defensive midfielder or an attacking midfielder, or neither, criticism was levelled at his lack of activity when the opposition had the ball, and the press never failed to mention his humongous wage packet. Like most first-season players though he has developed and now it should be clear to see his worth. Absolute powerhouse of a player, and winners in the FA Cup semi-final and final have repaid his fee already.
Adam Johnson. Will the jury always be out on this player? Mancini isn’t convinced by him, and neither am I. On the surface, an excellent wide player, with good ball control, pace and dribbling skills. And while he has proved an excellent impact sub, his performances when starting a match have flattered to deceive, and the manager is apparently not totally impressed with his attitude. With time on his side, I have no doubt he will remain at City next season, but has plenty of work to do to break into the first team.
Shaun Wright Phillips. The sad decline in his career continues. His performances during his original spell at City are but a fading memory. The sad fact is he is not good enough to play in City’s first team, and I see little future for him. The sadder fact is he hasn’t been good enough for at least a couple of years. He would be best-served seeking first-team football elsewhere. Then his dad can slag off City to his heart’s content in his Sun column.
James Milner. When City paid £26m last summer for James Milner (£18m plus £8m-rated Stephen Ireland), the world’s media as one (plus all Villa fans) laughed at how City had been ripped off, and what a wonderful piece of business it was for Aston Villa, as Ireland was actually better than Milner. Well Ireland is currently driving his pink Land Rover to Newcastle to not play football for them, but Milner has hardly been a resounding success either. Excelled on his debut versus Liverpool, but has struggled much of the time since. Excellent energy, a real workhorse, his flexibility and reputation as a utility player has been his downfall. As he showed in the league game against Stoke this week, he is better as a central midfielder, this is where he wants to play. But with stiff competition in that area he has often found himself out wide, and despite being an excellent crosser of the ball, has suffered as a result. Still, he is going nowhere, and will be hoping for a more settled season next time round – and a chance to prove himself in the middle of the field.
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Gareth Barry. The player everyone loves to slag off, he continues to get on with the job, the sort of player that you realise the worth of when they are not playing. Generally not rated mainly because of a severe lack of pace, as it seems you cannot play football nowadays unless you can run really fast. A steadying influence in the midfield, he may not be the world’s best, but a very good player he most certainly is.
And yet…..could his position be under threat? I just get a feeling Mancini may look for a big name to play with Yaya Touré. But either way, like Milner he should be part of the squad next season and get plenty of time on the pitch – it is a squad game after all.
Patrick Vieira. A signing that raised my eyebrow higher than Carlo Ancelotti’s, but I have now seen the light. City were never getting the player that graced Arsenal for all those years, but he is a great presence around the club. A bit-part player perhaps, but great to bring on to steady games, a great influence on the younger players, and hopefully we will keep him in some coaching capacity in the long-term. He could however be a summer exit – he spoke only last week about the uncertainty over his future.
Nigel De Jong. Player of the season. There, I’ve said it. The likes of Stan Collymore would have you believe he is nothing more than a thug, who runs round the pitch maiming opposition players, and laughing about it. At half-time he chews on the carcass of a zebra and karate kicks the dressing room wall.
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What he actually is is one of the world’s best defensive midfielders. City concede a goal every 65 minutes on average when he is not in the team, and about every 115 minutes when he is. Brilliant patroller of the pitch in front of defence, an integral part of the City team in the next few years (hopefully).
Number of red cards this season? Zero.
Michael Johnson. Who? The forgotten man of Manchester City, hampered by crippling injuries for years, there seems little chance he will ever make a significant contribution on a football pitch again, or maybe I am being too pessimistic. Still only 23, he promised to be a supreme talent, and if he can stay clear of injury he still may be, but probably not at City. Expect him to go to Leeds United, the team he supports.
Youth players – Abdisalam Ibrahim, Abdul Razak and Vladimir Weiss are the three youth midfield players with squad numbers. Like in other areas of the pitch, it is hard to see them making much of an impact on the first team in the near-future. But with plenty of games likely to be played each season, there should be the odd opportunity. Weiss especially stood out for me when I saw him destroy Chelsea in the Youth Cup final three years ago. A tricky wide player, he doesn’t seem to have excelled on loan at Rangers, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him leave permanently.
So what will Mancini do in the summer? I have to say, not very much. De Jong, Touré and Silva provide a very strong trio in the midfield, and add to that one of Barry and Milner and it has a settled look to it. Mancini will probably look at extra width, and Alexis Sanchez is said to be on his way (does he count as a midfielder though?!). Otherwise, again the priority may be to buy for the future, and buy potential – the only exception may be to buy an all-rounder midfielder to contest Barry’s spot, and maybe a creative midfielder as back-up to Silva. But with City’s chairman saying only today (19th May) that spending would not be widespread, perhaps Mancini will allow his midfield to develop further and leave it largely as it is.
Rock-bottom West Ham United have been rocked by the news that influential midfielder Mark Noble could be sidelined for a month after undergoing surgery for appendicitis.
The 23-year-old was advised to have the operation after complaining of abdominal pains and was taken to hospital to have his appendix removed during an hour-long procedure on Monday evening.
Noble has started all ten of the Hammers' Premier League matches so far this season, finding the net with penalties against Bolton Wanderers and Wolves.
Meanwhile, boss Avram Grant is convinced that his team's recent improved form will soon start to be converted into victories.
He told the club's official website:"No-one is happy with our position but, at this stage of the season, one win can make the picture look so much different.
"We are only in November and we know we can do it with the matches we have coming up. Many things were very positive at Arsenal. The fighting spirit was good and the players can be proud of the way they played against a very good team.
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"We have a long way to go. We will pick out the many positives from that, work hard in training this week and I know we will take points. We had a tough game in midweek but we deserved to win and even though some played extra time and some were just coming back from injury, they kept going.
"I am pleased with their effort. It was just unfortunate there was no time to respond. We tried but from their point of view they scored in the perfect moment. Arsenal are a very good team but we did a very good job tactically."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Reading boss Brian McDermott has signed a new contract with The Championship club, despite reported interest from Wolves.
The Molineux outfit are looking for a new boss after sacking Mick McCarthy, and reports in the press have stated that the Madejski chief was high in the Midlands’ club’s priorities.
Despite this, McDermott is glad to have extended his stay with The Royals, and denies any contact from Wolves.
“I didn’t speak to Wolves,” he told Sky Sports.
“Wolves are a fantastic club with real good people running that club.
“They’ve got a really good team. I know Kevin Doyle
and Stephen Hunt
really well.
“For me it’s about the club that I’ve got here. The fans that we’ve got, they’ve been really, really good for me.
“It’s a good day for me. I’m absolutely delighted everything’s been sorted out. This has been on-going for the past three or four weeks.
“I’ve had good discussions with Anton [Zingarevich], our new owner. It’s very pleasing.
“We had these conversations a while ago. The most important thing for me was to get it sorted. It’s been sorted, so we now can concentrate entirely on what we have to do against Middlesbrough
on Saturday.
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“It’s important Anton and I work really closely together because the relationship between the manager and the owner is vital.
“On Monday last week he said something to be me that was very, very important and once he’d said that there was only one place for me to be and that was here. That will be something that remains between me and him,” he admitted.
Mexico and Ecuador have shared the honours in a 1-1 draw in their international friendly at Qwest Field in Seattle on Saturday.Mexico defender Jorge Torres notched a rare goal in the seventh minute to hand the host nation the early lead, though his effort was cancelled out by Michael Arroyo 30 minutes later.
More than 50,000 fans showed up to witness the exhibition game at the home of Major League Soccer club Seattle Sounders, and they did not have to wait long for Torres to make his presence felt.
The 23-year-old, who plies his trade at club level with top-flight Mexican outfit Atlas, was on hand to tap in at the far post after Hector Moreno nodded down Andrews Guardado’s cross in his direction.
But Ecuador were equal to the task and tied the scores in the 37th minute through Arroyo.
The San Luis midfielder gained possession in midfield and worked past some lax defending before threading a 25-yard effort beyond Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa.
The draw increases Mexico’s unbeaten run in international friendlies to five matches, dating back to their 1-0 defeat of Colombia in September.