Unai Emery has been granted a one-year contract extension as manager of Valencia, the Spanish club has announced.Emery has put pen to paper on a new deal tying him to Valencia until June 30, 2012, rewarding him for guiding the club to the Champions League for a second successive year.
That Emery managed to do so despite the absence of star players David Villa and David Silva – sold to ease financial strain at the club – makes the achievement all the more remarkable.
Expectations of Valencia were tempered prior to the season given the loss of Villa and Silva, but Emery still managed to lead his side to a third-place finish in La Liga behind Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Valencia President Manuel Llorente was delighted to have retained the services of his coach, who he believes can take the club to even greater heights in the next campaign.
“Unai has proven himself. To go directly into the Champions League is very valuable and we greatly appreciate his desire to improve us and his ability to do so,” Llorente said.
“We are growing, giving hope and joy to the fans. The challenge is to take another step forward in performance and be better every year and Unai is ambitious.”
“He has all the requirements and the confidence of the club.”
Emery added: “I am very happy to have another year with one of the best clubs in the world. It is my intention to keep developing this club and that project drives me.”
“The goal we have set is to improve and take further steps to make the most of our performance. We have a great team and they can give us great joy.”
Today, football is bigger than ever. The number of followers is ever-increasing and the money involved has reached epic proportions. But what has actually happened to the standard of play and how does it compare to years gone by?
There is no doubting that advances in technology and the increasing money in the sport has led to some major changes being implemented throughout the sport, even at grass roots level. When Arsene Wenger joined Arsenal much was made of the way he was able to change the philosophy of how a professional footballer should live their life. Never before had the diets and the training regimes of players been so closely monitored. The almost instantaneous success he achieved made others take notice.
It could be argued that these improvements have made people more athletic. In fact, perhaps they have contributed to the evolution of the human race. If you were to look at the world record for the 100m sprint, over time it has kept dropping – maybe people are evolving and becoming faster. The same could be said for the marathon.
Either way, there has clearly been a step up in terms of the standard of athlete. This is no exception for football. Many people talk about the great players of the past such as Maradona and Pelé. Whilst it is almost impossible to compare players of different eras, it would be very interesting to see if these players would still be stand-outs if they played in today’s game. You often see players with a very high standard of technical ability struggle in the top leagues today. It has become a requisite that every player is not only technically brilliant, but also a super athlete. I often ask myself whether Maradona would have been able to keep pace in a league such as the Premiership today with the lifestyle he used to live.
It seems clear that to excel in the world of football today you must be incredibly dedicated. Players cannot afford to live the lifestyle that many footballers did in the past otherwise the results will be obvious on the pitch. Two of the greats of English football, George Best and Bobby Moore, could be seen down the pub after the game on a Saturday. If that were to happen in today’s game, it would lead to them being fined or even sacked.
In the modern game, not only do players train more, but they train in more sophisticated, scientific ways. The improvements in technology (e.g. the pitches, the boots and the training equipment) have led to more effective time spent on the training ground. In my opinion, this has resulted in players also being technically better than they ever have been. With players being stronger, fitter and quicker, it seems almost inhuman the way Lionel Messi can waltz round a whole team. In older times, when George Best used to play, teams would often only have very small squads. This meant that players often had to play through injury, especially with the medical facilities being far less effective. When you look at it this way, does what George Best did compare to what Messi does today? In my eyes it is a clear no.
Yet there is still a majority who would regard the great players of past generations as the best ever. I often wonder whether people consider the overall improving standards or just judge it by who stood out the most from their generations.
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It is disappointing that we will never find out how many of these players compared, but judging by the improvements that have been made in the last fifty years, the future of football looks very exciting indeed.
Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard appear to be friends as well as teammates, having emerged through the Manchester United youth setup at the same time.
The pair both annoy the more old-school football fan to a similar degree due to their confident personas, on-pitch dancing and large social media presence with the strength of feeling exacerbated by their wages being paid by a currently underperforming club.
However, their footballing journeys to this point have been markedly different. Pogba, along with Ravel Morrison, was identified early on at United as a player with all the natural talent to make it to the top.
The Frenchman developed earlier and was more impatient, moving to Juventus aged just 19 in 2012, having demanded greater first-team opportunities.
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He was justified in deciding to leave having watched Park ji-Sung and Rafael toil in central midfield in a 3-2 home defeat to Blackburn and his career went from strength to strength in Serie A with Juventus.
Yet, in the four years was Pogba away was winning four Serie As and making the 2015 Champions League final, Lingard was toiling away at United, forced to remain hungry and patient, trusting that he would come good and step off the carousel of loans – Leicester, Birmingham, Brighton and Derby – to become a regular for club and country.
It took until 2015/16, the year before Pogba returned to United as the most expensive player in the world, for Lingard to break into the team at Old Trafford under Louis van Gaal, adding pace and vigour to a pedestrian team and scoring the winner in the FA Cup final.
Soccer Football – World Cup – Group G – England vs Panama – Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia – June 24, 2018 England’s Jesse Lingard scores their third goal REUTERS/Matthew Childs
Now valued at £31.5m by Transfermarkt, when England manager Gareth Southgate decides which key players should be rested for his side’s final Group G game against Belgium, Lingard should be viewed just as important as anyone, bar Harry Kane.
By contrast, Pogba has come into his second World Cup on the back of yet another season of constant debate over his best position and his worth to Jose Mourinho’s United side and underperformed for a disappointing France side.
A recent poll saw 73% of Les Bleus fans call for Pogba to be dropped. He has become a genuine global superstar, under intense scrutiny but he is failing to embrace that pressure on the pitch.
Lingard takes the joy he shows off the pitch onto the field as well and looks to be enjoying this World Cup as much as anyone, which could lead to further rewards upon his return to club football at United.
Pogba’s favoured position is on the left of a three-man midfield, and that is the exact role that Lingard switched to and shone in as England swept aside Panama 6-1, scoring the pick of the bunch with a curling first-half strike.
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It helps Lingard that England’s 3-1-4-2 is more flowing than United’s 4-3-3, but his mini-reinvention poses an interesting tactical dilemma for Mourinho.
Lingard is playing in Pogba’s favourite position and playing better than him in it. The Englishman could not be putting forward a stronger claim to take his good friend’s starting spot at Old Trafford.
Mourinho reportedly wants warriors, who have the personality to fight for everything, and judging Lingard and Pogba on that metric, there is only going to be one winner.
The first piece of silverware for the 2017/18 season is up for grabs this Sunday as Arsenal and Manchester City prepare for the Carabao Cup final at Wembley.
Pep Guardiola’s side inevitably enter the 4.30pm kickoff as the favourites having obliterated almost everything in their path this season, but the Gunners will take comfort from their impressive recent record at the home of English football, and the fact City’s seeming invulnerability took a significant hit on Monday night as third-tier Wigan eliminated them from the FA Cup.
So, can Arsenal pull off something of an upset, or will the Carabao Cup become the first trophy of Guardiola’s immaculate City project? Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Sunday’s heavyweight clash…
Route to the final
Manchester City managed to avoid the Premier League’s big six before encountering Arsenal on Sunday but their route to the final has been far from straight forward.
Wins over Championship side Wolves and Leicester City both required penalty shootouts, while Bristol City gave City perhaps the biggest test they’ve had at the Etihad Stadium this season and were essentially only spared a shock exit by stoppage time goals in each leg. Curiously, City are yet to win any Carabao Cup match this season by more than one goal.
Arsenal’s semi-final double-legger with Chelsea represents the biggest challenge either finalist have faced in the Carabao Cup this season. Both were edgy encounters and the semi-final was essentially settled by two scrappy Arsenal goals at the Emirates Stadium.
That being said, Arsenal have also faced the most modest challenge of either finalist – a home tie with League One’s Doncaster. Additionally, while City’s route to the final has involved three away games, the first leg of the semi-final at Stamford Bridge was the Gunners’ only Carabao Cup outing on the road.
Form Guide
There’s no doubt Manchester City have produced the more consistent form leading up to Sunday’s final, winning four and drawing one of their last six outings – that draw being at Turf Moor where Burnley always give their opponents a game – while scoring more goals and keeping more clean sheets than the Gunners.
However, Sean Dyche’s side represent the toughest opponents City have faced during that time, whereas Arsenal have encountered Chelsea in the Carabao Cup semi-final and Tottenham in the Premier League.
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Likewise, for whatever doubts might linger over City after losing to Wigan, Arsenal enter the Wembley clash on equally suspect terms having narrowly avoided a shock comeback from Ostersund in the Europa League on Thursday night.
What will concern the Gunners most though, is the form of Sergio Aguero, who has netted six times in City’s last six fixtures, especially in light of the fact Arsenal have managed just one clean sheet during their last six.
Team News
With Henrikh Mkhitaryan cup-tied for Sunday’s clash, having represented Manchester United in the Carabao Cup earlier this season, Arsene Wenger will have to re-jig his attacking personnel this weekend, although we’re expecting the structure of the team to stay largely the same from the north London derby, with the Gunners deploying three in midfield and Mesut Ozil on the right-hand side.
It’s essentially a tossup between Danny Welbeck and Alex Iwobi for the left wing berth, but the latter appears likelier after being taken off early on Thursday night.
All in all, Arsenal look set to make seven changes from the side that lost to Ostersund, with David Ospina, Jack Wilshere, Hector Bellerin, Mohamed Elneny and Iwobi expected to keep their places in the side despite struggling to impress against the Swiss outfit.
While most of Manchester City’s starting XI picks itself at this point in the season, particularly the midfield, there are still a few points of contention.
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For starters, it’s unclear whether Raheem Sterling has recovered from a muscular problem to start on Sunday and with Guardiola privy to a more than capable alternative in Bernado Silva, it’s likely City won’t risk the England international from the start – he may have to settle for a role from the bench.
But the real selection dilemmas for Guardiola come in defence, particularly left-back with Benjamin Mendy still injured and Fabian Delph suspended after being sent off against Wigan.
The likelihood is that he’ll opt with the experience of Danilo over Oleksandr Zinchenko’s youthful creativity, and we believe that will be a common theme throughout the backline – with Vincent Kompany and Nicolas Otamendi coming in for John Stones and Aymeric Laporte.
Don Hutchinson has called on his old side Sunderland to pull out of their potential £14m move for Liverpool’s Fabio Borini.
The Italy international has been linked with a big money switch to the Stadium of Light in recent weeks after impressing while on loan there last season.
Borini was expected to have a future at Anfield with Champions League now a factor for the Reds, but Brendan Rodgers’ side have shown a willingness to offload him by accepting an offer from the North East outfit.
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However the player himself is reluctant to leave Merseyside, and Gus Poyet wants a final decision made by quickly as he plans other transfer dealings.
Although he enjoyed Borini’s performances in the red and white shirt, Hutchinson believes that it may be a blessing in disguise for Sunderland if the deal falls through:
“He’s a good player and he made a big difference for Sunderland in some really big matches last season, but I look at the valuation that Liverpool have attached to him and I’m really not sure about it,” he wrote in his column for The Journal.
“Fourteen million pounds is a lot of money to spend, and I think if the move doesn’t go through Sunderland will have dodged a bit of a bullet.
“Borini can play to the left of a striker or to the right, and he will probably go on to get you double figures next season – just. I don’t think he’s a really prolific striker who Gus Poyet can hang his hat on, and for £14M Sunderland might be asking themselves whether they can get a bit better.
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“Is Borini half of a Lukaku? I don’t know about that, but they’re both players coming through. It’s a gamble for Sunderland to go and spend that kind of money on someone like Borini.”
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A more precise game isn’t more beautiful. Mistakes keep the sport exciting, be they in a pub match or a World Cup final.
Opposing goal-line technology appears, on the face of it, to be a fool’s errand. Who doesn’t want referees to make the right decisions? Which English football supporter, remembering Frank Lampard’s wrongly disallowed goal against Germany in the last World Cup, wouldn’t dream that maybe the national team might have avoided ignominious defeat had that goal been allowed?
Football fans, however, should be careful what they wish for. The drive to GLT is not the result of a desire for fairness and accuracy. Instead the words its proponents routinely invoke when demanding its introduction are: “With so much at stake …” By which they mean, with the rewards for success and the costs of failure at top-level football so immense, human error is unacceptable.
Why so? The beauty of football is that every officially sanctioned game is the same. The pitch must be of a size conforming to the strictures of the laws of the game; the goals are the same size regardless of the teams; the officials apply the same laws, whether it’s a World Cup final or a Sunday league game between two pub teams. GLT will destroy this thread of consistency running through the game: economics dictates that cameras (and officials to study their pictures) will become too expensive only a little way down football’s pyramid. The park players on a weekend morning will be playing a different game to the professionals in the afternoon. Indeed, most of the professionals will be playing a different game to the elite few at the very top level, which is where GLT will likely find its home. And once GLT is in place, the demands will begin for further technological aids – to decide offsides, penalties and so on.
The only logical way for the referee to maintain his authority and work with technology is for technology to be applied to every element of the game. Then he can be tucked up in an office somewhere in the stadium with a load of blinking screens analysing every blade of grass, every tugged shirt and every sleight of hand. With all this information available to him, he’ll be top dog, free to interpret every subtle nuance in line with the Laws of the Game. He’d need an assistant on the pitch to actually enact his decisions, and there’d be lots of pauses to double-check possible offsides, bad tackles, handballs etc.; but so be it.
For me, and for many other fans, one of the beauties of football is its imperfection. Your favourite player might be capable of beating six opponents then calmly sidefooting the ball wide of the target. Your goalkeeper might make a wonder save then inexplicably throw the ball to the other side’s centre-forward. And it is the very same with referees and their assistants: most of the game they get everything right, but then – to the bafflement and anger of 30,000 people – they’ll make a decision so wrong it beggars belief. And you know what? I’m fine with that. It is a reminder that we are all but human, and our lives are littered with errors.
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The imperfect, in fact, is celebrated above all else in football. Players and managers cut deep with flaws are celebrated above the metronomes who do their job without incident. That’s why we still talk about Diego Maradona and Eric Cantona or Pele. It’s why one of the best-known TV clips, from the 1970 World Cup, shows Pelé missing a goal, not scoring. It’s why people watch compilations of terrible mistakes.
More to the point, though, disputes make football more exciting. Where commentators view an on-pitch fight and pompously declare “No one wants to see scenes like that”, fans see the same thing and bellow their approval. Equally, everyone who’s ever crowded into a stadium knows the up-swell of anger and adrenalin that follows a horrible call by the referee. They know the way the atmosphere picks up, the way voices rise, the way the fans exhort the team on to greater heights to compensate for the perfidy of officialdom – until 20,000 people are singing “You don’t know what you’re doing” at the referee. Those moments, when passion becomes uncontainable, are exactly what makes football great. Why on earth would anyone want to take them away from the game?
West Bromwich Albion are keeping tabs on Derby County forward Matej Vydra ahead of a possible move, according to the Yorkshire Evening Post.
What’s the word?
Darren Moore is attempting to shape a team that can challenge for promotion following last season’s relegation from the Premier League.
The Baggies are in danger of losing a handful of players asa result of dropping into the second tier, but there is plenty of Championship talent up for grabs.
[brid autoplay=”true” video=”252976″ player=”12034″ title=”Watch 21 things that will definitely happen at the World Cup”]
One man who could be available is Vydra, who has been at Derby since 2016, but there could be a scramble for his signature given the forward’s exploits in front of goal.
The 26-year-old, who has earned 20 international caps for the Czech Republic, scored an impressive 22 goals in all competitions last season.
According to the Yorkshire Evening Post, the Baggies are looking to rival Leeds United for Vydra and they have the upper hand due to the fact that they can offer better wages.
Is this a good idea from West Brom?
There is no doubt that Vydra was a key figure in the Championship during the 2017-16 campaign, but the Baggies do not have the best memories of the forward.
The Czech joined the club for the 2013-14 season, but could only muster three goals in 25 outings for the club.
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Having said that, though, Vydra started just seven league matches, and if he was to rejoin he would be used more often.
Given the importance of this season for West Brom, it is imperative that they make the right choices in the transfer market, and the Derby forward falls into the ‘risk’ column.
Javier Hernandez’s arrival at West Ham United last summer was met with overwhelming approval from the club’s fans.
The Mexico international joined the East London outfit with a decent pedigree due to his previous spells at Manchester United and Bayer Leverkusen.
When David Moyes replaced Slaven Bilic as manager in November, things started to change.
Hernandez struggled for game time, and in his first nine outings under the Scotsman, the forward did not play a full 90 minutes.
It is only in his last three appearances in all competitions when the ex-United man has competed for the whole game, but that could be down to the fact that Marko Arnautovic has been injured.
There were rumblings throughout the widespread media that Hernandez could leave in January, but a transfer never came to pass.
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Now, during an interview with Radio Marca Claro, the 29-year-old has opened up about his relationship with the manager.
“We get along, there has never been anything, no personal problem, we have never had frictions, or those negative moments, we have not had anything. I’ve never had a problem with him or anyone, no personal problem, thank God. There will be people with whom I get along better than others, but that does not mean they are my enemies, the truth is that the situation [with Moyes] is fine, there is nothing wrong that I can say.”
Former Everton forward Graeme Sharp believes that his old side will be unable to keep Romelu Lukaku at the club if they miss out on Champions League qualification.
The powerful Belgian striker has enjoyed an excellent season on loan at Goodison Park from Chelsea, banging in 13 goals to keep the Merseysiders in contention for a top four finish.
But following their shock midweek loss against Crystal Palace, Everton are now a point off of Arsenal in the pursuit of the last spot in Europe’s top competition, and face a more difficult run-in than their London rivals.
Lukaku has hinted in the past that he is ready to play Champions League football, and Sharp believes that Roberto Martinez will need to guarantee him just that to make his stay a permanent one when the transfer window opens:
“The Lukaku situation will take care of itself. He’s said he wants to play in the Champions League. Now if Everton don’t get in that fourth spot, that answers its own question there.” He is quoted by talkSPORT.
“Where does he get Champions League football from though? I don’t think Chelsea will take him back to be honest.”
Sharp also doesn’t know if Everton can afford to fund a move for Lukaku, who is valued at over £20m:
“I honestly don’t believe Jose Mourinho fancies Lukaku, I think if he can sell him and bring somebody else in, he will do.
“But he wants the best price for Lukaku and in the last couple years he’s got a great goalscoring record with West Brom and Everton as well, so the price goes up.
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“I don’t know what the transfer budget at Everton is and what Roberto Martinez has got to spend in the summer but if he loses [Gareth] Barry and [Gerard] Deulofeu, I don’t know whether he can afford to spend it all on a centre-forward.”
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Manchester United winger Nani is reportedly the subject of much interest at the moment with as many as six clubs thought to be chasing his signature after it became clear that the club would be willing to listen to offers for him for the first time after a series of disappointing displays this term, but should they really be looking to move him on?
The 25-year-old has been at Old Trafford for six years now and has always provided a steady and consistent stream of end product. Having scored 38 goals in 201 games so far for the club and he finished last season with 11 assists in the league, with only Antonio Valencia providing more as they were pipped to the league title by local rivals Manchester City by the narrowest of margins on the final day of last season. This is a player who had the joint-highest combined goals and assists record in the Premier League two seasons ago, with nine and a remarkable 18 respectively, as well as scoring eight and assisting 10 in 2011-12.
Nevertheless, there’s been a growing frustration at his performances over the past year or so and as he approaches his 26th birthday, it becomes harder and harder to explain away his poor decision-making. Cristiano Ronaldo suffered from a similar weakness in his initial years at Old Trafford and simply due to the nature that the two are from the same country, his apologists have often pleaded patience with Nani arguing that he will come good just in the same way that the Real Madrid man did, but it looks unlikely at the moment.
When you compare Nani to Valencia, his rival for a right wing berth, then it’s clear why Sir Alex Ferguson has largely favoured the Ecuadorian given that his delivery from wide areas is dependable and even if he may be something of a one trick pony, it’s a trick that works most of the time. Whereas with Nani, you simply don’t know what you’re going to get, which in itself can have an impact on the rest of the side with other players less willing to make a run off the ball for the fear that he’ll simply have a crack from distance or pelt one into the nearest man from out wide.
There’s also the fact that Ferguson has brought in two simply superb attacking options this summer in Shinji Kagawa and Robin van Persie. The Dutch striker is likely to be the focal point of the club’s attack while Wayne Rooney drops off behind him, with both Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez displaying good form at home and abroad of late.
This saw Ferguson go with three up front in their last home game against Stoke and start with a midfield diamond against Braga, with neither system lending itself to what United have become traditionally known for, which is playing two recognised wingers every game, which also decreases Nani’s chances of regular football.
His ego has also been a problem and had an impact on performances, and for every wonder goal he strikes from range, he balloons ten into the stands and why he insists on taking free-kicks from ‘Ronaldo range’ is beyond me. He’s a strange player to characterise fully, though, given that during some games he can be unplayable, with the 4-4 draw against Everton last term an example, and others absolutely appalling, which points to a player with a confidence level that’s more fragile than we are often led to believe.
The financial aspect is also worth considering and the club have spent a sizeable amount this summer and with over £50m spent on potentially crippling interest repayments in the year ending June 2011, with the promise of more to come, if the club could seal a deal for a fee in the region of £25m, particularly with his contract entering its final 18 months, would be far too tempting to turn down.
Much in the same way that Anderson frustrates but always offers a ray of hope every now and again with a superb showing, Nani does the same and they are probably the two most divisive players at the club right now. He is inconsistent yet creative, egotistical yet fragile and he flits between terrible and unplayable with the sort of consummate ease not normally associated with a Manchester United player.
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There’s no denying his talent, but with the numerous attacking options available at the moment, he’s far from a guaranteed starter, yet at the same time, while the money on offer may be extremely appealing, would the squad be in better shape if they did let him go? When discussing the rumoured departure of any player, that above all else is the question that needs to be asked and in his case, I’m not so sure it would be. He may have his flaws, plenty of them even, but he’s a player capable of unlocking doors and every side needs someone of that caliber from time to time.