Saturday 30 March 2013

Mario's Milan Adventure

Mario “Barwuah” Balotelli. I only have to say his name and I bet you’re imagining the mischief he caused at Manchester City. His camouflage car, the famous ‘bib incident’, and of course the firework he let off in his own house. The list goes on and on and on, (and even more on). However, the controversial striker recently made a $20 million move to the Rossoneri and has somewhat been outstanding for them. Have Manchester City just lost out on a potential world class player? Or have Milan been handed a bad case of Balotelli?

Monday 25 March 2013

Why It Could Be a Crazy Summer Transfer Window

After reading the title you might be thinking - where has he got all this from? Well, here I was sitting on twitter reading all the latest rumours and gossip and I began to consider what could happen this Summer in the transfer window. It then dawned on me that it could easily be one of the most exciting we've ever had. Not just in terms of the amount spent but also the amount of deals, it's all set up beautifully to be an enticing Summer and a well needed replacement for the weekly fixtures!

Well, where to begin? Where better than arguably the best league of them all, the English Premier League. I think the Premier League will be the hub of activity and the catalyst for the madness that might ensue. Why do I think this I hear you cry! My answer? The way this season has panned out so far. With Manchester United rampant at the top of league as I write, I think there will be a massive response from their neighbours, City. They have been outclassed in every way possible this season by United and have come out an easy second best to their arch rivals. With billionaire owners on board you've got to expect them to spend and spend big. They won't be happy with the season and will be looking for a way of fixing it for the next one. City will undoubtedly want to blow United out the water and regain their crown next season and I think they'll do this by throwing their money around. Don't be surprised if they attempt to break the world transfer record! 

Saturday 23 March 2013

Manager Madness


Southampton, in their first season back in the Premiership, are sitting quite comfortably in 15th place in the table. They are playing good football; they are winning matches. All is rosy. Indeed, they even manage to come back from 2 goals behind to draw with Chelsea – at Stamford Bridge too. There is an excellent squad harmony, and a belief around St Mary’s stadium that this Southampton team could go places. So how should they proceed?

I’ll tell you what they shouldn’t do: sack Adkins. And I’ll tell you what they did do: sack Adkins.

Saturday 16 March 2013

The Torres Effect

What happened to Fernando Torres, where did the once prolific forward go? He has been at Stamford Bridge long enough to have sorted himself out but still he remains a joke to most football fans. Here, we have a look at the Spaniard's demise and what it is that might have gone wrong.


Since joining Chelsea Torres has been one of the biggest flops in history, the laughing stock of the Premier League in many respects, especially after the infamous open goal miss against Manchester United! He began his Premier League life at Liverpool when he joined from Atletico Madrid in 2007. It's fair to say that he had a blistering start to his career in England. He racked up an astonishing 33 goals in 46 games in all competitions in his debut season. A great achievement for his first season in England and Liverpool looked to have found a new hero. He continued to impress and built up a fearsome partnership with Steven Gerrard however in the 2010-2011 season struggled with injury and could only manage 9 league goals.

Thursday 14 March 2013

The FIFA Financial Fair Play Rules


The latest financial figures posted from QPR have been nothing short of astonishing - announcing losses of nearly £90 million in just the last year. Alongside breaking their record transfer twice within the January window, the club has seen their wage bill rocket from £27million to £56million. Despite this substantial outlay on players since promotion, they still find themselves rooted to the bottom of the Premier League.


With the FIFA financial fair play rules widely expected to be introduced in time for the 2013/14 season, fans up and down the country are waiting with bated breath to see if the much mangled governing body can implement their rules effectively.

Well, if the fiasco over the World Cup bribes is anything to go by, then football fans may be waiting for a long time.

According to the UEFA website, their "football family" have agreed on the following:

• To introduce more discipline and rationality in club football finances 
• To decrease pressure on salaries and transfer fees and limit inflationary effect 
• To encourage clubs to compete with(in) their revenues 
• To encourage long-term investments in the youth sector and infrastructure 
• To protect the long-term viability of European club football 
• To ensure clubs settle their liabilities on a timely basis.

Monday 4 March 2013

Juan Mata vs David Silva vs Santi Cazorla

Juan Mata, David Silva and Santi Cazorla are all considered to be amongst the best in their position in the Premier League and even in the world. All are undoubtedly extremely talented but we're going to take a look at what happens when they're compared.



Saturday 2 March 2013

Why Chelsea Should Keep Frank Lampard

Frank Lampard has become a Blues' legend in his playing time as he built up a reputation of the typical goalscoring midfielder but rumours are rife that the London club won't be offering him a new contract in the Summer. Many have criticised the club for this and jumped to Frank's defence so here's why Chelsea should keep him!

Lampard started his career at West Ham, joining the West Ham youth team in 1994. He came through the ranks and established himself in the first team in the years following. Eventually his Father, Frank Lampard Snr was sacked as assistant manager and Frank decided to leave for Chelsea in a deal woth £11m. Since joining Chelsea, Lampard has worked his way into the fans' hearts, becoming a club legend.  Lampard spent the majority of his career as a box to box midfielder, although played in a slightly more attacking role than his midfield teammates.