A Changing Squad …

Posted: June 25, 2011 by footiefun in Lazio
Tags: , , , , , ,
0

With the season approaching Lazio’s squad is starting to take shape, Europa League qualification will mean that the team needs to be strengthened.

2010/11, was a good season for the Biancocelesti – making players wanting to join the club but on a negative it means that other clubs have started to show interest in some of the side.

Making the Move …

Whilst nobody has left to date, it is expected that Stephan Lichtsteiner will move to Juventus in the near future once a figure is agreed, and Fernando Muslera is likely to join Galatasaray.

The Uruguayan followed up an excellent World Cup with a very good Serie A campaign. With only a year left on his contact, Muslera has failed to agree new terms with Claudio Lotito. This has led the club’s owner to looking to cash in rather than risk losing him on a free next season.

It is unclear whether Pasquale Foggia will still be at the club at the start of next season, he could head north to Cesena. They are believed to be admirers but they may struggle to match his wages.

New Blood …

The signing of Miroslav Klose signalled Lazio’s intention as a club that wants to continue to build. At 33, the German international still has a lot to offer – For the national team he has an excellent scoring rate of 61 goals in 109 games.

After four seasons with Bayern Munich Klose is ready for a new challenge and sees that in the Italian capital with Lazio – there were other big clubs from around Europe after him, but after meeting with the management he opted to become an Eagle.

Bosnian defender Senad Lulic signed a five-year contract with the club, having moved from Swiss club New Boys for around €3 million. He has been compared to former Lazio player Aleksandar Kolarov who made a big money move to Manchester City last summer.

With Muslera leaving, a new goalkeeper is needed – The replacement is thought to be Federico Marchetti, who has fallen out of favour at his current club Cagliari having had a transfer request turned down.

Whilst a fee is yet to be agreed, Marchetti is first choice to become Lazio’s number one. The former Italian international would be an excellent choice, before being frozen out by the Cagliari hierarchy he had impressed so much that he was picked to represent Italy in South Africa.

Claudio and Edy Reja are chasing Genoa’s Abdoulay Konko as a replacement for the departing Lichtsteiner, but their could be issues over the defender’s wage demands.

There are also ongoing talks with Panathinaikos, over a move for ex-Liverpool striker Djibril Cissè. The French international has scored 47 league goals in 60 games in the Greek league and would make a good signing.

Going Nowhere …

Some excellent news is that Stefan Radu signed a new five-year contract on the 17th June, which will fend off any interest and put an end to speculation that the Romanain wants a move away.

Stand-in skipper Stefano Mauri has stated that he wants to stay at the club even though there has been speculation linking him with a transfer to big spending Russian club Zenit St Petersburg where ex-Roma boss Luciano Spalletti is in charge.

News that will delight Lazio fans all over the World is that Mauro Zarate has stated his intention to stay at the club, whilst last season was not his best there were still rumours that the Argentine would be leaving but he seems happy at the club.

The season ahead is likely to be an exciting one, the new look side will be hoping to take the next step towards Champions League football and having a good run in the Europa League.

By Scott Balaam
Twitter @footiefun

New Season … New Manager Needed

Posted: June 18, 2011 by footiefun in Watford
Tags: , , ,
0

As a Watford fan, I have got used to players and managers using my club as a stepping stone, but this time I thought it would be different.

On Friday, Cardiff announced that their new manager was going to be Malky Mackay – The Scotsman had been in charge at Vicarage Road for two seasons and looked to be building a decent young squad.

In year one, he led the team to finish 16th - this was then improved on last season when the team ended up finishing 14th but continuously flirted with the play-offs. Whilst Malky had built up a decent youthful squad he felt his future was away from the club.

A major positive was Danny Graham, he scored 41 goals in 98 games since joining the ‘Orns from Carisle – he impressed everyone this season when he managed 27 goals in 49 games, and finshed the Championship’s top scorer.

Sadly for Watford, all the goals got him noticed by bigger clubs and bids started to arrive from various suitors – West Brom, QPR and Swansea came knocking with bids of £2.5 million.

In the end, it was Swansea who got their man when ex-Watford boss Brendan Rodgers bid £3.5 million and gave the ex-Boro striker a chance to return to the Premier League.

As for current Swans’ boss Rodgers, he had a brief spell in-charge at Vicarage Road – Having come to the club following Aidy Boothroyd’s departure. During that spell he also impressed when he used his contacts to bring in players like Jack Cork.

As the season came to an end, the Northern Irishman talked about his plans for the club and what he was building only to also walk away – This time it was Reading who wanted our manager, having played and coached at the Berkshire club he said they were too close to his heart so reject.

So, after losing two good young coaches what next for the ‘Orns? Sky Sports reported that Paul Dickov is in the running and the bookies have Stevenage boss Graham Westley as favourite. Other names linked include Brian Laws and ex-Luton player Gary Waddock – Two options that would not appeal to Hornet fans.

I just hope that whoever takes charge stays to build something rather than use us a stepping stone to a bigger club.

Scott Balaam

Spurs Reject £22m bid for Luka Modric

Posted: June 16, 2011 by footiefun in Chelsea, Spurs
Tags: , , ,
2
It is thought that Tottenham rejected a £22m bid by the Blues for Croatian star Luka Modric.

Sky Sports reported last night that they had rejected the bid, at the weekend Harry Redknapp highlighted that the tricky midfielder is crucial to the team's success next season - he even stated: "If we sell Luka we are just a selling club basically."

Since moving to the Premiership in 2008, the Croatian has regularly impressed - so much so that he know finds himself on Chelsea and Manchester United's wanted list.

The Blues have made the first move by putting in the offer of £22m - the rejection is not thought to have put the Chelsea hierarchy off and they are likely to return with an improved bid. 

Despite being without a manager, Roman Abramovich seems happy to invest in redeveloping the squad following a season without winning anything. 

Whilst London rivals Spurs managed to get to the quarter-finals of the Champions League, they failed to finish in the top four this season meaning they will have to settle for Europa League football next season.

By Scott Balaam

Chelsea Youngsters on the Move

Posted: June 2, 2011 by footiefun in Chelsea
Tags: ,
0
Only three days ago we saw ex-Chelsea youngster Scott Sinclair star for Swansea in the play-offs, well two more youngsters have left and it looks like a third could follow.

Michael Mancienne, left Chelsea on Tuesday for pastures new after the Blues accepted a £3 million bid from Hamburg for the player .

The move will see him link up with Frank Arnesen, the man who was once the Technical Director at Stamford Bridge who decided to bring him to the club where he is now the Sporting Director. 

Mancienne, would have been under Arnesen’s supervision at the Bridge and feels that his new club is the perfect place for the youngster to develop. 

Whilst he has made 97 league starts, only two were in Chelsea colours. During his spells with Wolves and QPR, he regularly impressed - but not enough to break through to the first-team.

Then there is Fabio Borini, the Italian youngster who joined the club from Bologna in 2007. The 20-year-old has spent the last two months on loan at Swansea and played alongside Scott Sinclair on Monday at Wembley.

During his loan spell he impressed with six crucial goals in eight league games which helped his loan club to finish third.

Due to limited chances he decided it was best to leave the Bridge and return to Italy, despite his young age and limited appearances Parma have seen something they like and have decided to give him a five-year contract. 

The third player who could be on his way is young Jack Cork, having played for six different clubs on loan, it looks like he could well make a permanent move away from Stamford Bridge this time.

Whilst on loan, Jack has collected many admirers. It is thought that both Blackpool and Southampton have had bids of £750,000 accepted, he previously spent five months on loan with the latter back in 2008 as well as spending the previous season with Scunthorpe who were managed by Saints’ current boss Nigel Adkins.

Leeds and Nottingham Forest could also be interested as well as Swansea City whose manager Brendan Rodgers coached Cork at the Bridge and when he was in charge of Watford.

It is always sad to see young talent leave, let’s just hope that this is not something that Chelsea regret in the future just like Manchester United do with the likes of Gerald Pique and Giuseppe Rossi.

Will they Return???

Posted: June 1, 2011 by footiefun in Lazio, Serie A
Tags: , , , , , , ,
2
Many ex-players move into management positions, they head back to clubs where they are legends, some succeed but the majority fail and end up damaging their reputations.
This week saw Paolo di Canio named as the Swindon Town manager, many Laziale are unlikely to have even heard of the Robins – A side that holds the record for the most goals conceded in top flight football when they shipped 100 in just one season in the 1993/94 season.
Paolo has stated that his reason for joining the Wiltshere club is due to their hunger to succeed and ambition. Another factor that may have helped him make his decision was that back in 1969, just a year after ‘Il Padrino’ was born, Swindon took on Lazio’s bitter rivals Roma in the now distinct Anglo-Italian Cup and destroyed them 5-2 thanks to an Arthur Horsfield hat-trick.
There is no doubt that Paolo would want to return to Rome one day and manage Lazio, admittedly it is unlikely to happy anytime soon but if he impresses in England maybe he will get the chance.
There are various ex-Lazio players who became legends on the pitch as they played with their hearts and were worshipped whilst they wore the Biancocelesti shirt … but will they ever return to manage the club?
Siniša Mihajlović, represented Lazio for six years and was a key member of the ‘Dream Team’ in 1999/2000 that completed the double, he featured in 126 league games for the club and scored 20 goals. The Serbian started his career in a more attacking position before playing at the back, on the field he will be remembered for being one of the best free kick takers of all time and even holds the record for scoring 38 top flight free-kicks in Italy.
Sadly, he left Lazio under a cloud when his close friend Roberto Mancini left for Inter, the Serbian followed and since then when he has come up against the club he has received abuse from the Ultras. Despite this, Siniša still holds a candle for the club and has admitted that he would like to return to coach the club.
His career in management has been mixed, after playing for Inter he joined
Roberto’s coaching staff before taking over at Bologna. A move that quickly turned sour as was sacked after just 22 games, then he took over struggling
Catania where he managed to get them to finish 13th in Serie A. The Serbs next move was to join Fiorentina who had seen Cesere Prandelli depart for the national job – in his first season he finished a respectable 9th and could be one to watch.
Catania’s current boss is Diego Simeone, the Argentine was a rock at the heart of the Lazio midfield during the golden years. He got his managerial career off to an excellent start when he led Estudiantes de La Plata to their first league title in 23 years, Diego also won the Primera Division in his home country with River Plate before joining San Lorenzo, but after a poor season he quit and found his way back to Italy in January 2011 when to took charge of Catania.
Like his ex-team mate, Diego also guided the Sicilians to safety after taking over when they were fighting for their safety, as the season came to an end they enjoyed an impressive 2-1 win over Roma which would have given the Argentinean personal satisfaction as it meant his side stayed up as well as ending Roma’s hopes of Champions League qualification.
If he continues to impress with Catania there is no reason that Diego will not end up back at the club where he made 90 league appearances and enjoyed winning the league and cup double.
Another star from those happy times was Pavel Nedved, the Czech player was incredible the centre of the park – he scored 33 times in 138 league games and was the last ever scorer in the Cup Winners’ Cup after scoring the winner against RCD Mallorca in 1999. Pavel moved to Juventus for a mammoth €41 million in 2001 after Zinedine Zidane headed to Real Madrid, during which time he won two league titles.
The Czech star showed his loyalty when Juve were demoted to Serie B for financial irregularities and he opted to stay and help the Turin side get back to the top flight whilst others jumped ship and headed for pastures new.
Since retiring from playing, Pavel has taken up a role with the Juventus board where he is a director, whilst there is no sign that he will make a move into the day-to-day world of management, I for one would love to see him lead the team out as head coach.

Who will be next Chelsea boss???

Posted: May 23, 2011 by footiefun in Chelsea
Tags: , , , , , ,
0
It’s less than 24-hours since Carlo Ancelotti was relieved from his duties as the Chelsea boss, and the rumours are flying about who will be next to take over.
There is a real variety of names being linked but who will be the seventh manager in seven years???
Marco van Basten – 7/4                                                                                                                                                                                                         
There is no doubt that the Dutchman was in a class of his own as a player, for those of you who can remember Euro 88 will know his goals were instrumental in his side lifting the trophy, but his managerial CV is not as impressive.
He started his coaching career coaching Ajax’s second team before being named the Netherlands boss, a role that saw him lead his team to the quarter-final of Euro 2008 before losing to Guus Hiddink’s Russia.
His next move was to return to of Ajax after the tournament, only to resign on the 6th May 2009 after they failed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League.
==========================
Guus Hiddink – 3/1                                                                                                                                                                                                                     
After impressing on a temporary basis in 2009 when he led Chelsea to FA Cup victory the Dutchman is being linked to the job, last time his position with the Russia made it hard for Roman to make a permanent move for him – Could this be the right time?
Hiddink is now in charge of Turkey and could well join Chelsea, but it’s more likely as a Director of Football rather than Head Coach. There are questions over whether at 64-years-old the Dutchman would he want to return to a day-to-day management role.
==========================
 Andre Villas-Boas – 5/1                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
The young Portuguese coach is only 33-years-old, has worked with old boss Jose Mourinho at Chelsea and Inter. He has even been called ‘mini-Jose’ but that is not a label he enjoys as he sees himself as his own man.
This role may be too soon for the coach who has impressed in his first season of management, his side remained undefeated whilst getting his team playing excellent football and setting records for the most wins in Europe in one season by a Portuguese club. Then also getting the most points in a 30-game Portuguese league season and the biggest margin over the second placed team in the league.
Should Hiddink join in a senior role then bringing in Villas-Boas would be an excellent move.
==========================
Harry Redknapp – 5/1                                                                                                                      
Tottenham will not like to hear that Harry is 5s to be the next boss, before taking on his current role he would never have been linked to such a high profile role but after impressing in North London he is thought to be in Roman’s sight.
Harry managed to lead Spurs to the last 16 of the Champions League and with his management style he tends to get the best out of his players and whilst he is enjoying life at Spurs, but this would be a different challenge.
==========================
Pep Guardiola – 6/1                                                                                                                            
The Barcelona coach is expected to leave either at the end of this season or next, he has all the credentials Chelsea want in a manager but would he want to join?
Over the years, Chelsea and Barcelona have not had the best relationship and this could put the Spaniard off, plus he may wait for Sir Alex to retire and see if he is wanted at Old Trafford.
 ==========================
Jose Mourinho – 10/1                                                                                                                      
Will the Special One return? People say never go back, the flamboyant Portuguese coach is still adored by fans and will want to keep it that way. Then there is the Roman factor, the initial thought was that he would be to proud to admit he has made a mistake getting rid of Jose but it is thought that they have now made up.
Jose will think he still has a job to complete at Real Madrid and may want to stay and try to win La Liga and another Champions League before his inevitable return to England.
==========================
There are a host of other names being linked with the job, ex-Barcelona boss Frank Rijkaard is an outsider at 14s, whilst Louis van Gaal is 16s and Italian boss Cesare Prandelli is 20s.
When it comes to old boys,  legend Gianfranco Zola is 20s but is only likely to get a coaching role if he is to re-join the club. Ex-Juve boss Didier Deschamps is 25s and current Fulham boss Mark Hughes is 33s whilst Ray Wilkins and Avram Grant are both 50s to come back to the club as boss.
I suppose it is a case of watch this space …..
By Scott Balaam
Twitter @theshed11 and @footiefun

Porto vs. Braga – Europa League Final Preview

Posted: May 18, 2011 by footiefun in Europa League
Tags: , , , ,
0
It was expected that Dublin would host an all-Portuguese final, but with Porto facing Benfica, instead it is  plucky Braga against the champions of Portugal .

Benfica led 2-1, after the first leg but after another tight defensive display by Braga they managed to win 1-0 and go through on away goals. Opponents Porto had a comfortable journey to Dublin, having coasted to a 7-4 aggregate win over Spanish side Villarreal.

Should Portuguese champions win tonight then 33-year-old Andre Villas-Boas will become the youngest coach ever to win a Uefa club competition, the man who is seen as a young Jose Mourinho will go with his favoured 4-3-3 with the impressive Falcao, Hulk and Varela leading the line.

Meanwhile Braga’s coach Domingos Paciencia has announced he will leave the club no matter what the result. This is after two years in charge. His side last beat tonight’s opposition back on the 19th September, 2009.

Porto will be missing defender Jorge Fucile and midfielder Cristiano Rodriguez whilst Braga injury concerns over defenders Rodriguez and Miguel Garcia as well as striker Paulo Cesar.

The Portuguese champions have had an excellent season, that has seen them remain undefeated and having scored more than 130 goals including 36 in the Europa League. Striking pair Hulk and Radamel Falcao have scored 63 of those goals between them. They are clear favourites at 5/11 whilst Braga are 15/2 to pull off a shock.

It is always hard to call who will score first, especially with Porto‘s striking prowess but Falcao should be backed at 7/2, he has scored four times against Villarreal and Spartak Moscow in the first leg’s of the last two rounds.

Previous Europa League finals have been tight and normally under 2.5 goals should be backed at 10/11 but with the trio of forwards should mean there will goals, so 4/5 will be worth backing.

Porto are evens to be leading by half-time and to win, whilst a draw then a Porto win is 3s and for it to be level at 45 minutes and for Braga to win is 16s.

By Scott Balaam
Older Entries
Newer Entries