Aston Villa’s Alan Hutton is closing in on a loan switch to La Liga outfit Real Mallorca, according to reports from Sky Sports.
The Scottish international is believed to be surplus to requirements under manager Paul Lambert, and has been loaned to Championship side Nottingham Forest this term.
This has led to speculation that he will be allowed to leave the club this month if he can find a willing suitor.
Real Mallorca are reportedly interested, and are keen to take him on a temporary basis with a view to a full transfer this summer.
Talks are at an advanced stage, with the Spaniards setting a deadline of early next week to have a deal tied up.
Hutton is open to the prospect of playing abroad and would relish the opportunity to play regular football at the highest level.
The 28-year-old started his career with Rangers, where he was dubbed as one of the rising stars of Scottish football.
Tottenham swooped for his signature in 2008, but he failed to match expectations at White Hart Lane.
He was loaned to Sunderland two years later, before completing a permanent switch to Premier League rivals Aston Villa in 2011.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Despite his below par domestic form, he has won 28 caps at international level and is keen to remain a part of the Scottish international set-up.
It’s hard to sum up the general feeling around Elland Road at the minute. Worryingly, I can’t decide whether that’s due to the amount of different opinions flying around, or whether it’s simply a fact that there just isn’t much feeling at all.
Our fans are renowned for their passion and commitment to the cause. We wont ever give up a fight even when it seems like all is lost and we’ve been written off by the rest of the watching world. Being Leeds is more to people than just football, there’s a sense of a pride that surrounds the club, an aura, the mere fact that we are still scrapping away despite being down for the count numerous times over the last few years shows just how much belief, at times blind belief, we have.
Unfortunately, over time that belief has been tested and stretched to breaking point, and it appears that this time there is no quick fix. The club as a whole has lost that spark that has always been the difference between us and anybody else.
You can look at attendances as proof of this, but my worry goes deeper than that.
What reason do the younger generation have to support Leeds? In the past we’ve always been one of the bigger clubs, battling it out in the Premier League and in Europe with the elite teams from around the world, not only that, but we still had that spark that made us different from the rest.
When kids grow up, they look at their friends who all support the usual big teams, Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City etc and have a decision to make. Most of them will just go with the popular choice at the time, but there are always a few that want something different.
That has always been our advantage.
No crowd roars like an Elland Road crowd. It amazes me watching fans from other teams celebrate when they score, barely even bothering to applaud. Any youngster that gets given a taste of Elland Road at its best wont ever look back.
But as it stands, they wont have that option. The passion is dwindling and for the first time in my existence I can see people starting to care less about what happens to their club. They’ve put that much effort in to sticking at it through low after low that it’s got to the point where they don’t have the energy for it anymore.
It pains me to say it, but we are slowly but surely turning into just another average football team. The difference between us and the other clubs now is disappearing. We are no longer a big draw in the Championship, teams don’t fear Leeds United anymore.
I don’t blame GFH for this, they’ve inherited a club on it’s knees and they’ve been making an effort to get the fans back. The transfer window closed last week and most rational thinking fans will understand that despite not spending endless amounts of money, we have improved the squad and we’re quite clearly happy to pay the wages of better quality players. I’ve no doubt that we’ll see what GFH are truly made of in the summer, but by then who knows what position we will be in.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Leeds need their spark back. Our recent win over Tottenham in the cup was a timely reminder of just how things could be, a capacity crowd filled with pride and passion, the players working hard together and our name back in lights for all the right reasons.
This really could be the breaking point. If the next few months go well for us then there is still hope for our recovery, if they don’t, I fear that the damage may become permanent.
Nuri Sahin blamed Brendan Rodgers for his unsuccessful Premier League stage at Liverpool, as the manager made him play in a position he was not used to.
The midfielder, who joined his former club Borussia Dortmund in January, thanked God for not being any longer under Rodgers’ management, The Metro Reports.
“I did not fail at Liverpool. Brendan Rodgers wanted me to play as a number 10. But I do not play behind the strikers”.
“I talked to him and asked him why he was playing me there. It is not my real position. The coach could not answer me”, he assured.
And the Turkish added: “I thank God I have left Brendan Rodgers”.
Nevertheless, the 24 year-old, who joined the Reds on loan from Real Madrid before returning to Germany in the January window, keeps a good memory of his days at Anfield.
“Still, I have no regrets. To play at Anfield was a wonderful experience. And maybe if I had not gone there I would not have been able to return to Borussia Dortmund. For that, I am happy”, the Turkey international said.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Sahin, who only played 12 games with Liverpool, is not a regular yet in Jurgen Klopp’s plans and has featured mainly as a substitute with Dortmund.
Roberto Martinez insists Wigan will continue to play passing football as they battle to stay in the Premier League.
Latics again turned on the style to defeat Millwall 2-0 in Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final and the Spaniard has vowed to stick by the same principles as his side fight another relegation battle.
Positive results for Sunderland and Aston Villa over the weekend mean Wigan are back in the bottom three and face battle to beat the drop over the remaining games of the season.
However, while Martinez wants his players to fight for survival, he also wants them to play good football.
“I have never been tempted to change,” he said. “From starting as a manager at Swansea in 2007, it hasn’t been easy.
“Everyone looks at Swansea now and thinks they have played that way for 20 years. It took six months. It was very new and people had to be educated.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
“But since I left my country to join the British game I would never change my football beliefs.”
Spurs defender Younes Kaboul could return from injury in time for the clash with Manchester City on Sunday.
The France ace has been out for the entire season, bar a few minutes, and underwent surgery on his knee last August but he played for the development side last week against West Ham and is now set for another run out.
Kaboul returned to training last week and is set for a 90 minute outing on Monday afternoon, and if he comes through that without any problems then he could be in line for a place in the squad on Sunday.
William Gallas is a doubt for the City clash so Kaboul’s return would be a timely one but the boss is unlikely to risk him if there is any doubt about his fitness.
Spurs U21 coach Chris Ramsey was delighted with Kaboul’s performance against West Ham, “He did well, had no problems really,” Ramsey told Sky.
“He wanted to play an extra 15 minutes as well, showed a fantastic attitude and wanted to push his fitness a little more.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
“Overall, when you look at the fact that a player like Younes returns to action after eight months out and the experience the younger lads gain playing alongside him, it’s another great exercise for us.”
A Fernando Torres in his prime is something every Arsenal fan would love to see at the Emirates. But that Torres is long gone, now replaced by a shadow of the player who once lit up the Premier League and could be considered the best in the world.
There is work to be done for both Arsenal and Torres, and off the bat it is far from a partnership that could work. The lack of patience for the Spanish forward would be astonishing at the Emirates, only likely to further his underwhelming performances and lack of cutting edge in league games. How far do we go in entertaining this rumour that was thrown out over the weekend? Arsenal have been linked with everyone there is to name ahead of this summer; why wouldn’t someone throw Torres’ name in the hat just for kicks?
[cat_link cat=”arsenal” type=”list”]
But the issue here is that Torres does need a move away from Chelsea and away from English football. He won’t line up for Real Madrid, for reasons beyond his diminishing status in the game, while even Barcelona and their apparent need for a Plan B would seem a stretch.
It wasn’t too long ago that Torres himself claimed to be returning to his best. What he defines as “best” I’m not quite sure, but it’s far from what he produced in his debut season at Anfield. The pace is gone but surely the intelligence hasn’t deserted him too. Torres should still be capable of scoring 20 league goals in a season if he adapts his game and, importantly, people stop baying for something comical. The Premier League as a whole won’t be so kind.
Napoli is another club who have been linked with the Spaniard, though that could just be due to the convenience of Rafa Benitez taking over at the San Paolo this summer. Much like at the Emirates, how would those in Naples greet the idea of Torres replacing the possibly outgoing Edinson Cavani? It just amounts to another dead end for the striker, unless of course he can muster a season-long effort that resembles something above a decent striker.
Torres would have been one of the most disappointed by Spain’s loss to Brazil in the final of the Confederations Cup. For long spells in the game, Julio Cesar had very little to do. Juan Mata, likely through fatigue, had one of his worst and most ineffectual games in recent memory. But Torres is seen as the senior striker in the squad, even ahead of David Villa, who often plays wide when Torres is in the team. It only takes a poor season from him and a very good one from a collection of his compatriots for him to be completely out of the squad for next summer’s World Cup. He surely knows that, Vicente Del Bosque, who has stood by the striker through difficulties, can surely not be so kind after the Confederations Cup exposed a number of weaknesses.
A move to Arsenal for Torres would simply represent a half-hearted attempt by the club’s board to rectify the glaring problems and appease the fans. Torres is as big a name in European football as you’re likely to get; he’s won the lot bar a league title. But his arrival would be such a far cry from what Arsenal actually need. It would be hugely underwhelming to go into a season with your marquee signing being propped up by the ropes after a near-disastrous last two seasons in English football.
I question how keen Atletico Madrid would be to taking him back, though the obvious bond between the player and club could disguise his shortcomings. AC Milan are unlikely to look to a striker who is nearing his 30th birthday after they made it quite clear that youth is their policy going forward. That doesn’t mean there isn’t a good club on the continent for Torres, nor does it mean he can’t be an asset somewhere. Yet the obvious clubs that spring to mind are not the best fit, while Torres himself needs to get as far away from the damaging nature of English football and repackage himself ahead of what should be another enormous summer for him and Spain.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Would Torres be a disaster at Arsenal or is it a match made in heaven?
Many Everton fans could have been forgiven for thinking David Moyes’ departure was inevitable the moment Manchester United identified him as a replacement for Sir Alex Ferguson.
Even more concerning for them was the matter of replacing a man who they hired as a relative unknown in Premier League circles from then Championship club Preston in 2002. It was this season that Everton were one of the favourites for relegation. The club hasn’t looked back since. Moyes has taken them from perennial strugglers to top half finishes in all but one of his 11 seasons at the helm of Goodison Park. This left a gaping hole in the club once he vacated his position to take up the same post at Old Trafford, bringing several of his background staff with him to enhance the loss in Merseyside.
Everton’s chairman Bill Kenwright was quick to identify the ideal replacement he felt could bridge the gap for his beloved club. That man was Wigan manager Roberto Martinez- a man who had just pulled off one of the shocks of the season in defeating big spending Manchester City in the final of the FA Cup. Despite this, it looked likely that he would also be taking Wigan down to the Championship and would have to endure the clear dent in his CV that inevitably came with it. Wigan were eventually relegated in a classic display of the highs and lows one can experience in a very short space of time in the world of football.
This did not put Kenwright off his number one target. If anything Everton’s position was strengthened by the fact that Martinez was a manager who was playing the ‘correct’ style of football with Wigan that was surely too smart for him to remain a boss in the Championship. Despite relegation, it is clear Wigan won many admirers for their passing style during their remarkable 8 year stay in the Premier League. If anything Martinez received even more plaudits.
Meanwhile, season after season the same, often boring words were bounded around about Moyes and Everton. ‘Everton will challenge for a top six position but nothing beyond that’. ‘Moyes needs more resources to be able to compete in the very highest echelons of the Premier League’. Some football fans could be forgiven for forgetting Everton in the Premier League. The question is, did the immense progress made by Moyes in the earlier stages of his time at the Toffees eventually become stagnation? By the time the call from the Old Trafford hierarchy came around, it was the right time anyway for Everton to say thanks but no thanks to Moyes and employ someone whose style of football could challenge the very top of English football.
In some eyes the move towards a manager like Martinez could be seen as risky. Wigan were known for their rather blasé defending style which often resulted in them shipping silly goals. However, at the same time Manchester United were not exactly filling the coffers of supporters with a defending master class last season. Neither were any of England’s other Champions League teams. This era of shambolic defending is understood by Martinez in his attacking style. He has already drawn upon the services of three former Wigan players in a bold move to enforce his style upon the current crop at Everton. Meanwhile, Moyes has faltered, if not been embarrassed in the transfer market so far.
Martinez’s fluid style will provide Everton with more adaptability than they possessed under Moyes- the sort of risk that is needed to make that giant leap into a top 4 or FA Cup win. Meanwhile, Moyes will inevitably stagnate the Manchester United side he has at his clutches if he does not learn to encourage his players to take a few risks. In the past few seasons Moyes played it safe at Everton and got away with it because he could fall back on the lack of resource at Everton. Yet Martinez at Wigan always had inferior resources and wowed the football public at times with the quality produced at the DW Stadium, which worked for a club who were always viewed as the whipping boys before the start of the season and went on to prove everyone wrong with their flamboyant style.
This season, don’t be surprised to see Everton closer to Manchester United in the table than you think. Simultaneously, it will be Martinez winning all the respect for the fluency of his Everton side whilst Moyes simply plods along behind the wealth and resource at one of the biggest clubs in the world.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
AC Milan will turn to Newcastle defender Davide Santon if Ignazio Abate completes a move to Arsenal in the New Year, according to reports from The Express.
The Italian international is being lined up by the Gunners who are searching for replacements for Bacary Sagna, and could be the subject of a serious offer in January.
Milan are keen to keep their full-back, but are aware that if he does move on that they will need to draft in a new man to replace him.
Santon is believed to be their top target.
The former Inter Milan man was once heralded as one if Italian football’s top emerging talents, and was even compared to Azzurri and Rossoneri icon Paolo Maldini.
But, injuries curtailed his progress, and he eventually left Serie A to rediscover his form and fitness with Newcastle.
Milan have continued to monitor his development, and are now ready to offer him a route back to his homeland.
The 22-year-old is thought to be happy at St James’ Park, but he could be open to a switch to Italy ahead of the World Cup, which may benefit his chances of making his nation’s squad for the showcase tournament.
Should Newcastle do all they can to keep Davide Santon?
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s first start since the opening day of the season saw him bag a second-half brace to send Arsenal back to the top of the Premier League.
Tony Pulis set his Palace side out to frustrate Arsenal and saw his plan pay off in the first-half as the visitors defended well to go in at half-time still level.
But Arsenal notched up a gear in the second-half and Oxlade-Chamberlain marked his return to first-team action two goals and brilliant performance.
Here’s how the game was covered on Twitter…
HALF-TIME: A fairly eventless opening 45 minutes, with Palace doing well to frustrate the hosts…
47 minutes: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain latches on to a Santi Cazorla through ball to give Arsenal the perfect start to the second-half…
51 minutes: Wojciech Szczesny pulls off a superb point blank save to deny Cameron Jerome’s back post header…
73 minutes: Oxlade-Chamberlain gets his second of the game after a brilliant solo run ended with him cooly smashing low past Speroni…
David Moyes is ready to bring back forgotten man Rio Ferdinand, with Manchester United facing a defensive crisis following injuries to Jonny Evans and Phil Jones last week, reports the Daily Star.
England defender Jones suffered concussion during the defeat at Stoke, and is set to be sidelined for two weeks.
Meanwhile Evans has damaged his calf and is also expected to be out for a fortnight.
The injuries means Moyes finds his defensive options stretched ahead of this weekend’s clash with bottom club Fulham.
Nemanja Vidic is set to return to the first team following suspension, but Ferdinand will have to be called in from the cold.
The former England captain has been frozen out by Moyes in recent weeks, despite having returned to full training last month following a knee injury.
Ferdinand is out of contract at the end of the season, and is yet to be offered a new deal.
He is widely expected to leave Old Trafford in the summer, especially considering he has played just once since December.
“Rio is back and we will continue to use him at the right times and the right moments,” Moyes said.
“Rio has made a great contribution especially in the first half of the season. I played him in nearly all the opening eight to ten games.”
Reports had suggested the pair had fallen out after Ferdinand criticized Moyes’s decision to name his team as late as possible before games.
But Moyes has rubbished those reports, claiming Ferdinand remains a valuable member of his squad.
FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.
“He was a big part in helping me to settle in. He helped me get my feet under the table a little bit,” he added.
“He has competition for centre half, but he is very much valued and looked at as one of the senior players here.”