Inter Milan came from a goal down to beat Cesena 2-1 on Saturday, keeping the Serie A title race alive until the next round of fixtures.Inter trailed through Igor Budan’s 55th minute goal at the Stadio Dino Manuzzi and looked to be heading for defeat until substitute Giampaolo Pazzini struck to level the scores in the 91st minute.
The striker netted again five minutes into injury time to secure an unlikely comeback victory for the defending champions.
Inter, second in the table, are five points behind league leaders Milan, who play Bologna at home on Sunday.
With three rounds of the season still to come, even if Milan beat Bologna they must wait until next weekend at the earliest to secure their first Scudetto since 2004.
In Saturday’s other match, third-placed Napoli beat Genoa 1-0 to secure their first win in three matches.
Slovak Marek Hamsik scored the winner for Napoli with eight minutes remaining at the Stadio Sao Paolo.
Napoli are six points behind Milan and one back from Inter, but hold an eight-point buffer ahead of fourth-placed Lazio.
Hard-Fi, the guests of the first Football FanCast video show of the season (which you can watch here), have just released their third album, ‘Killer Sounds’. Following on from ‘Stars of CCTV’ and ‘Once Upon a Time in the West’, ‘Killer Sounds’ is Hard-Fi’s latest offering and we’re giving you the opportunity to win a copy of the album signed by lead singer Richard Archer and drummer Steve Kemp in our Hard-Fi competition.
The four-piece have been busy working on their third studio album for the past eighteen months, which was released last month. The album was co-produced by the band’s frontman, Richard Archer, with assistance from big names such as Stuart Price (Killers, Madonna), Grey Kurstin (Lily Allen) and Alan Moulder (Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Killers) and recorded in Cherry Lips Studios as well as Los Angeles.
Following a triumphant return to Glastonbury 2011 to headline the Leftfield Stage, four years after their last appearance at the festival, Hard-Fi plan to play a string of shows in September. The tour kicks off in Norwich on September 21 and includes a sold-out London Forum show on September 23. Tickets are continuing to sell fast and are not to be missed. With the band’s million-selling debut ‘Stars of CCTV’, the number 1 follow-up ‘Once Upon A Time In The West’ and two BRIT award nominations (2006’s ‘Best British Group’ and ‘Best British Rock Act’) already under their belts, Hard-Fi are set to reign the charts once again.
See what Richard and Steve have to say about their love of football…
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To win a signed copy of ‘Killer Sounds’ answer this simple question…
Where are Hard-Fi originally from?
A) Aldershot
B) Staines
C) Slough
To enter this fantastic competition, email your answer to [email protected]
The competition closes on Monday 26th September at 9am so make sure you get your answers in now!
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Here’s Razor asking Richard and Steve some (not so) quickfire questions…
Shakhtar Donetsk are in the box seat to make the Champions League quarter-finals after a 3-2 away win against Roma on Wednesday.
Roma took a 28th-minute lead through Simone Perrotta, but the Ukrainian side hit straight back and produced three goals in a 13-minute burst to see them head back to Donetsk with the advantage.
Claudio Ranieri’s side will have their work cut out trying to win in Ukraine, with Skakhtar unbeaten in their last 53 matches in all competitions at home. Their last loss at the Donbass Arena came in October 2008.
After successive Serie A defeats to Napoli and Inter Milan, Ranieri’s side came out firing and dominated the early stages of the contest.
Nicolas Burdisso and Mirko Vucinic went close to scoring before Roma took a deserved lead through Perotta, who nodded Rodrigo Taddei’s cross into the back of the net with Shakhtar defender Razvan Rat getting the last touch.
But the celebrations did not last long as Jadson’s right-foot shot from 18 yards took a wicked deflection of Daniele De Rossi, leaving Roma goalkeeper Doni stranded.
The goal spurred Shakhtar on and Jadson was again involved when the Ukraine side scored its second, finding countryman Douglas Costa who hit a curling left-foot strike from the edge of the area.
Things got even worse for Roma on 41 minutes when left-back Jon Arne Riise slipped on the touchline while he had the ball.
Riise’s mistake allowed Douglas Costa to steal the ball, and the Brazilian took his time before picking out compatriot Luiz Adriano to sidefoot into the back of the net.
The goal capped a horrendous spell for Roma and the hosts certainly knew what the crowd thought of their performance, with Ranieri’s men booed by the Stadio Olimpico fans as they entered the field for the second half.
But as they did in the first half, Roma began strongly and Frenchman Jeremy Menez scored a splendid goal to bring his side back into contention just after the hour mark.
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Menez beat Jadson for the ball in a show of strength before streaming forward and producing a sensational strike into the top right corner from 25 yards.
Shakhtar continued to search for a fourth as Luiz Adriano and Henrikh Mkhitaryan went close, while Roma also had a chance to score but Andriy Pyatov kept out Francesco Totti’s late effort.
The visitors held on for the victory – their first in the last 16 of the Champions League – and the 2008/09 UEFA Cup winners can feel confident of reaching the quarter-finals given their brilliant home record.
Edin Dzeko headed the only goal at the DW Stadium as Manchester City regained their three point lead at the top of the Premier League after beating Wigan.
The Bosnian rose headed home David Silva’s left wing free kick to end an 11-game goal drought and put Robert Mancini’s side back ahead of rivals Manchester United in the title race. The Red Devil’s had drawn level on points after beating Bolton on Saturday but Dzeko recovered City’s advantage over the reigning champions ahead of their clash with Tottenham at the weekend. They were made to sweat for victory by plucky Wigan who missed out on the chance to lift themselves off the bottom and leapfrog Blackburn who moved out of the relegation zone on Saturday. Despite defending resolutely they made hardly any impact in the final third of the field as the league leaders recorded their first away win since the start of November.
Consecutive cup defeats had left City reeling going into this game but were boosted by the sight of Silva taking his place in the starting lineup following a stint on the sidelines with an ankle injury. The Spaniards influence was evident from the first whistle and he was involved heavily in most of the visitors play as zipped the ball around the DW although it was Wigan who looked the more likely to score in the opening exchanges. Hugo Rodallega failed to capitalise on a mistake from Joleon Lescott before Jordi Gomez was up in arms after being denied a penalty following a nudge from Gareth Barry in the penalty area. James McArthur then saw his strike deflected wide as City rode an early storm dominating possession. Dzeko headed an early chanced wide from Gael Clichy’s cross but wasn’t to be denied a second time nodding in Silva’s free kick mid-way through the first half for his 13th of the season. The Latic’s did have their moments with Victor Moses firing over and McArthur stinging the palms of Joe Hart although their endeavours forward left them open at the back.
Sergio Aguero couldn’t put the finishing touches to a breathtaking City counterattack just before the break before Ali Al Habsi kept his side in the game with some superb goalkeeping in the second half. The Oman international pulled off a superb double save to keep out Dzeko and then Silva before Aguero dribbled into the box but failed to get an effort away. Wigan were far but out of the game and came close to equalising once again only for Hart to too James McCarthy’s strike wide after he was played through by Rodallega. The killer second goal just wasn’t going to come for the leaders though as Aguero and Dzeko wasted late chances to put the game beyond doubt. It didn’t matter though as they held on to move clear at the top once again leaving rivals United to play the chasing game.
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It has been some five years now since Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsey made his debut in senior football. His first touches came at the KC Stadium at Hull in April 2007, where he replaced Paul Parry on the Bluebirds left wing during stoppage time.
Jump forward to present day and Ramsey finds himself embroiled in the engine room of Arsenal’s midfield three pairing, aiming to thread through those intricate passes to the likes of Robin Van Persie to convert. But is the central midfield position the best that the man from Caerphilly can vacate? Let us identify why he may be better suited elsewhere going forward.
Ramsey’s major attributes include his innate passing abilities. Being two-footed he has the ability to pick a pass; whether long or short, and is one of the few Gunners players to often employ the cross field pass amidst the clubs tippy-tappy culture.
According to the Opta Index, Aaron Ramsey ranks a high fourth amongst 20 Premier League players judged upon their distribution abilities. He achieves 86.5% productivity per minute whilst on the ball.
Although it may be argued that Ramsey fulfils his current central position by spotting runners either side, gaining the full picture of Arsenal’s attack ahead of him, his talents could be much better employed further forward.
The attacking midfield position or glorified ‘number 10’ role requires skill, agility and the ability to create space. Ramsey is this man.
Mikel Arteta may disagree but a fully fit Arsenal side would include Alex Song sitting at the base of the midfield, Jack Wilshere slightly advanced and on his favoured left foot, with Ramsey at the forefront of this trio in a new attacking position.
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Whilst Aaron creates many assists, he would be the first to admit he doesn’t score enough goals. His last Premier League goal and fifth league goal of his Arsenal career came way back in October in the defeat to Tottenham. At international level he has too notched five goals but in much fewer appearances; 20 compared to 56 league games at Arsenal. But why such a contrast?
Indeed, it was the late, great Gary Speed who used Ramsey in the attacking midfield mould and actually gave the midfielder the number ten jersey in the latest friendly international with Norway. Andrew Crofts and Joe Allen were employed as sitting midfielders in behind him. Ramsey is much more of an attacking menace in this position and can use his intricate passing skills to thread those eye-of-a-needle passes to the Bellamy’s, Morison’s and Van Persie’s of this world. Ramsey notched a goal from this very position in a rejuvenated Wales’ sides triumph against Montenegro, in the country’s final Euro 2012 qualifier back in September.
Arsene Wenger heavily relies on the goals of Van Persie as all Arsenal fans would admit, with the Dutchman hitting 22 in the league with second placed Mikel Arteta managing just four. Ramsey still remains on one but a move to spearhead the Arsenal midfield may heighten his fortunes.
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It has been a long time since Arsenal fans purred over consistent goal tallies from the midfield positions including impressive hauls in the past from the likes of Robert Pires and Freddie Ljungberg.
It is now time for Wenger to alter his 4-3-3 formation and use Ramsey in an attacking midfield role to feed Robin Van Persie and kick start their most unpredictable of seasons to date.
Agree with me or is Ramsey already at home in central midfield? Join the debate @http://twitter.com/Taylor_Will1989
This week Ashley Young finalised a move to Premier League champions Manchester United in a deal worth in the region of £17 million and a weekly salary of a colossal £130,000. Ashley Young is highly rated and was considered the star at Aston Villa before his switch, but is Ashley Young overrated and a victim of the ‘hype machine’ that exists for exciting young English talent? In this article I will argue that, despite his impressive talent, Ashley Young is overrated and not an upgrade on the exciting Nani and the returning Antonio Valencia .
Ashley Young burst onto the Premier League scene with Watford in 2006 and had an impressive season which earned him a move to Aston Villa for a reported £8 million fee. Many thought this was overpriced for the young winger at the time, but Young paid back this trust with a large number of goals and assists for his new club nearly firing them into the Champions League in 2009 only to be overtaken by Arsenal late into the season. Ashley Young has matured into a very competent winger who is equally adept at playing on either wing which will serve him well at Old Trafford if he is to successful oust either Valencia or Nani from the starting line ups.
Whilst I believe that £17 million and weekly wages of £130,000 is ridiculously excessive for a player like Ashley Young one can’t doubt his durability, his strength and his experience of playing in the Premier League week in and week out. Over the last 4 seasons Young’s league appearances have been very impressive, with 37 league starts in 2007/8, 36 league starts in 2008/9, 37 league starts in 2009/10 and 34 league starts in 2010/11. These remarkable stats show that Ashley Young has only missed 8 league games in 4 years and has averaged 36 league games a season over that time. His injury record is thus very attractive to Manchester United who will know that Young isn’t likely to be in the treatment room all season like the rather unfortunate Owen Hargreaves.
Nigel Reo-Coker was gushing with his praise for the winger this week when asked about what Ashley Young could offer a team such as Manchester United, saying:
“I’m sure Ashley can live up to expectations and deliver for the United fans, who will love him.
People have said United are lacking a bit of flair and creativity, since Ronaldo left.
I think that is something he will definitely add to Manchester United.
He has great vision and I am sure he will create a lot of goals for them, as well as scoring himself.”
I would agree with Reo-Coker to an extent, Ashley Young on form can be a genuinely exciting player to watch yet far too often I feel he flatters to deceive. In the league last season Young created 10 assists and scored 7 goals himself whilst taking the penalties. The season before Young assisted 7 goals and scored 5 himself. If we compare this to the much maligned Andrei Arshavin at Arsenal we see that these stats aren’t all that impressive for a player on a reported £130,000 a week. Arshavin only started 25 games in the Premier League in comparison to Young’s 34 games yet he still managed to create 11 assists and score 6 goals.
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All in all I feel Ashley Young is a decent squad player at a club like Manchester United and will probably enjoy a decent level of success there, yet some of the hyperbole surrounding his signing is verging on the insane with comparisons to the ultra-effective Ronaldo completely unjustified. Whether Young enjoys a successful career at Old Trafford remains to be seen, but one feels he doesn’t justify the fee or wages currently on offer.
Article courtesy of George McNeil at This is Futbol
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Alberto Aquilani would be willing to return to parent club Liverpool next season if a proposed deal with Juventus fails to goes through.Aquilani, 26, joined Liverpool from AS Roma in 2009, but endured an injury-plagued first season in the English Premier League.
The midfielder made just 18 appearances in all competitions before being sent out on loan to Juventus at the start of the 2010/11 campaign.
A permanent transfer to the Turin club has been discussed, but with Liverpool reportedly seeking a fee of 14 million pounds, it remains to be seen where the Italy international will be plying his trade next season.
“The future? I’m at Juve, but I don’t know what will happen,” Aquilani told La Gazzetta dello Sport .
“I’m on loan and if I’m not redeemed in any case I’d go back to Liverpool in the best championship in the world. We’ll see.”
Juve take on Roma away from home in Serie A on Sunday, with Aquilani apprehensive about the reception he will receive at the Stadio Olimpico.
“When I went to Juve, I thought: ‘What will happen when I have to play in Rome? ‘ Sunday for me is a delicate game. I hope that I’ll be welcomed with affection, but I don’t know if it will happen,” Aquilani said.
“Certainly if I score, I won’t cheer. My memories are all positive.”
“Was I sent away? It is not the right word. When they proposed that I leave, I realised there was no more room for me.”
The capital city club have been purchased by an American consortium led by business Thomas Di Benedetto.
The takeover has led to speculation that Aquilani could be in line for a surprise move back to his former club.
“It is a delicate question. I would do, but I think it will be difficult,” he said, referring to the prospect of re-joining Roma.
“As a fan I’m curious to see what happens with the new property, especially if they begin to buy players and to revolutionise the team.”
Arsenal goalkeeper Lucasz Fabianski has admitted that he may leave Arsenal in the next transfer window, as opportunities in the Emirates first-team are becoming limited for the stopper.
The Poland international has had to play second fiddle to countryman Wojciech Szczesny for the bulk of this campaign, after a number of high-profile blunders cost him his place in the team.
The 26-year-old is motivated in trying to win the number one jersey back, but has admitted he will have to wait and see what happens in January.
“It is really difficult. Of course not playing doesn’t make me happy. I want to play, that’s my goal,” he told Mirror Football.
“But as well, sometimes you have to be patient. Like I said, I am just fighting, fighting.
“If there is an opportunity, I want to play as well as I can and help the team. We will see what happens.
“At the moment, I focus on Arsenal. There is still time until January, almost two months. We will see what happens.
“I am going to keep fighting for the place. Wojciech is doing well, but I have to fight, work hard and see what happens,” he concluded.
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Before Hodgson starts his managerial campaign at the Hawthorns in earnest, I want to revisit one last time, the topic of his time at Liverpool.
I read this week that Roy Hodgson should receive some credit, at least, for the signing of Raul Meireles. It appears that despite his poor record, both in collecting points and playing attractive football, Roy’s legacy at Liverpool could be defined through the Portuguese player. The midfielder has scored 5 times in his last six games since Hodgson left. If Meireles goes on to become a great player, Hodgson will have to take the plaudits. His goals have pleased those in defence of Hodgson, who have criticised the Liverpool team as a whole, saying that the players have been good enough all along, but just not been up for it.
I disagree with this on two levels. Firstly I think a manager’s job in the modern game is just as much about motivation as it is about tactics, and secondly, Hodgson played Meireles out of position.
I have always been a fan of Hodgson, I think he is dignified and should be respected for a long and successful career, but I just don’t think the style of football that he was insistent on, was suited to Liverpool.
He did well at Fulham, building his side around a solid defence. But teams would go to Fulham and try to win, consequently leaving themselves more exposed and open for Fulham to score. But against Liverpool, opposing teams expectations were lower. The majority of teams are happy to draw with Liverpool, home and away, so sit back and play them on the counter, or look to defend. This was something that Hodgson proved himself unable to cope with.
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Since Dalglish has arrived, he has allowed Meireles to play a more offensive role. Firstly this lets the player, who has great technique (evidenced by his string of volleys), get into goal scoring positions. Secondly it gives Lucas a more defined role. Before Lucas was one of two deep, holding midfielders, he is now on his own. In this new system, Lucas seems surer of his defensive duties and attacking limitations, he knows what is expected of him. When both central midfielders sat back it seemed that neither was sure who’s turn it was to attack or defend.
Benitez saw great success with this tactics where he had top class players in Javier Mascherano and Xabi Alosno. Once he lost Xabi, neither Lucas nor Aquilani filled this role effectively. This is part of the reason his side failed to succeed and he was sacked. Hodgson, to his own detriment, tried to replicate Benitez’s failed tactics, but since Xabi Alonso and Mascherano had already left the club, he had no chance.
Sad as I am to say it, it seems Dalglish is more in touch of what positions and roles to play the Liverpool players in. But not only does he get the best out of them tactically, he also seems to be able to motivate them in a way that Hodgson could not. You only have to look at some of the most successful managers around, see the relationships they have with their players, to believe how important being a motivator is in a modern manager. That is why Avram Grant, despite all of his tactical knowledge has been unsuccessful at Portsmouth and now West Ham, it is also one of the reasons that Holloway, and at the other end of the spectrum Mourinho, have been so good. Tactics are one thing but motivation is equally important, especially at somewhere with expectations like that of Anfield. Rather than Meireles being a beacon of what Hodgson achieved at Anfield, he will remain as a reminder of Hodgson’s tactical flaws and lack of motivational ability.
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Despite his failure at Liverpool, it is too soon to write off Hodgson as a manager, or ‘head coach’ for that matter. He can still be a great coach at WBA and his organisation of the defence would no doubt do them wonders. I hope he keeps WBA up, which won’t be an easy task, but it is a good thing for Liverpool that he has left.
The key to football is having the ball. It may seem an obvious statement but one that is understated by many. Barcelona are the masters of it and success comes as a result.
If you keep the ball then you create chances, score goals and, most importantly, don’t concede. If you do this well then you win a football match.
To have a good football team, you need players who are capable of passing the ball to a player in the same colour. Whether it’s three-yards backwards or a 40-yard wonder ball, keeping the ball ultimately wins you matches.
It is a trait which Michael Carrick is very good at. The Englishmen has been a vital part of Manchester United’s trophy machine for the past five seasons, playing 143 times since his move from Tottenham in 2006.
There can be no doubt that he was one of many reasons why United won the league three times in a row between 2006 and 2009, his superb range of passing creating many goal scoring opportunities.
Since then, though, Carrick has played in a different role. It was a move forced upon Sir Alex by the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, arguably the best player in the world, and Carlos Tevez in the summer of 2009.
But what hasn’t changed is the quality he brings to the side, it may not be as obvious but just as important as before.
Carrick’s job now is to sit in front of the back four, break up moves and begin an attack for his own team. It’s something which he excels at but is yet criticised by many observers.
Perhaps the stats will explain why he is considered such a valuable member of the team. Not only does he boast the highest amount of interceptions a game at 4.38 but he also has the highest pass success ratio of any starting regular in the league having completed 780 out of 898 attempted passes, in other words 86.9%.
Now, they’re pretty impressive stats by anyones standards but it won’t satisfy some people. The main criticism of Carrick is that, although he passes well, he only passes it backwards or 3 yards.
Not only is this view reactionary but it also comes back to what I stated earlier. Football is all about keeping the ball, it is vital in the modern game. Passing the ball to defenders and fellow midfielders is what you do in order to start moves.
There’s no point of picking the ball up in your own half and then attempting a 40-yard pass which will more than likely fail. Why not keep your composure and simply slide it a few yards to your left or right and slowly create an attack.
Anyway, this view of Carrick is simply not true. Take a look at these graphics below from the Champions League match with Marseille. The chart on the left is particularly interesting as it shows that Carrick completed four out of seven ‘long’ passes and 30 ‘medium’ range passes.
You can also see that from the graphic on the right, Carrick is very willing to play the ball to the wide men, thus allowing for an attack to build.
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Another criticism of Carrick is that he’s not very mobile and stays central. Well again this is simply not true. On Tuesday, he travelled the most distance than any other player on the pitch, 11.5k, emphasizing his superior fitness and desire to succeed.
Add to this that Carrick is very disciplined, having not picked up a single yellow card all season, and you have the complete defensive midfielder. Yes, he may not be as directly involved in goal scoring opportunities as he was in previous years but he is just as important, perhaps more, in his new role.
Maybe a fourth league title in five years since he joined United will convince fans that he is an integral part of the side and will be for years to come.
Written by James Heneghan at the excellent Red Flag Flying High
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Listen to the third episode of our brand new podcast – The Football FanCast. – Featuring Razor Ruddock, Gary O’Reilly and singer/songwriter Alistair Griffin, who performs a live version of his cult tribute to Mark Viduka, with Razor on backing vocals!