Category Uncategorized

In light of England’s disappointing World Cup a novel idea to prepare for the next one could be to use Euro 2012 to try out the next group of youngsters.

Although ultimately England probably wouldn’t get very far in the competition and it would be another two years gone by where England hasn’t won anything, it could give them a real chance of winning the big prize of the World Cup. Italy tried the same technique in Euro 1980 and their young team actually managed to finish fourth, they then went on and won the World Cup in 1982. This proves that it could work but of course World Cup success is no guarantee and as England are desperate for some success, they may not be able to afford to squander another tournament.

However although the public haven’t been satisfied with England’s performance, they have also been quick to complain about youngsters not being given the chance such as Adam Johnson, Tom Huddlestone and Michael Dawson. Fabio Capello obviously deemed them too inexperienced to play them in the World Cup and the Euros could be a chance for them to gain experience. But in order for this to happen the public would have to be patient and lower their expectations, they would possibly need to be told in advance that England were not looking to win the competition.

Should England be able to pull it off then these youngsters that England have coming through could really thrive at the Euros. They’ll be less pressure on them as it isn’t a World Cup and then hopefully there would be less expectation from the English public if they were forewarned. England’s Under 21, Under 19 and Under 17 squads all reached the final of their respective Euros last year so it shows that the talent is definitely there, it just needs to be utilised in the right ways. England could consider shelving players like Emile Heskey and instead use technically gifted players which the senior team seems to be lacking. In the senior squad there is only really Joe Cole and he got far too little game time in South Africa, it is possible for England to play exciting, fluid football with a young team if the right players are picked as Germany have shown.

Using Euro 2012 to blood the next generation of youngster could be a tremendous idea for England. But in order for it succeed the main stumbling block would be getting the press and the public to lower their expectations, which would be very difficult to achieve.

Follow me on Twitter

**

Click on image below to see the Argentinean babes at the World Cup

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini has praised midfielder David Silva, and stated that he feels the playmaker is one of the best players in the world.

The Spain international has adapted to life in England well since his move from Valencia in 2009, and is now a key player for the Eastlands outfit.

The Italian manager feels that the diminutive Spaniard is underrated, and would not look out of place at one of the El Clasico sides.

“Silva is a top, top player. I don’t know why he didn’t go to Barca or Real Madrid because he’s Spanish but we are lucky because he’s here,” he told The Daily Mail.

“If he had gone to Barca two years ago everyone would say he’s one of the best players in the world – and he is one of the best players in the world.

“He’s different from Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo because they are strikers and score a lot of goals but I think he’s the same as Xavi and Iniesta,” the coach continued.

City start their Champions League campaign at home to Napoli on Wednesday, and Mancini knows his countrymen will provide difficult opposition.

“They are a very good team and the Champions League is not like the Premier League, we only have six games and you need to win always if you want to go in the second stage.

“It’s strange because our group is a very hard group and all the teams can finish top or in fourth position,” he admitted.

Mancini also has a dilemma over who to play in attack, with Sergio Aguero fresh from a hat-trick at the weekend, Edin Dzeko in spectacular form and Carlos Tevez back in the fray after playing against Wigan on Saturday.

“They may not be happy – that’s impossible because every player wants to play always, but I’m the manager and I need to take this decision,” he concluded.

[divider]

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Fancy a Premier League Box Experience? Click on banner below to find out more

[divider]

Football fans’ willingness to show their dedication comes in all shapes and sizes. One such way is to splay their dedication over their body in the form of a tattoo. I can understand why somebody might choose to tattoo their footballing allegiance onto their body. Whilst women come and go, a football team is for life. It’s the manly man’s equivalent of getting “I love mom’ yet a tattoo is a big commitment, so it’s important to get it right. As you can imagine, this process isn’t always a success.

Below are the top 10 Newcastle United tattoos to be found on the net – the good, the bad and the plain ugly.

[divider]

Click on the tattoo below to unveil the gallery

[divider]

[divider]

Have you got a better Newcastle tattoo? Football FanCast would like to invite the readers to submit their own entry via our Facebook Page. The winning entries will go forward to our grand competition to find the best tattoo in the Premier League.

[divider]

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

[ad_pod id=’fox-mpu’ align=’left’]

[divider]

WAGS, WAGS, WAGS… the media just can’t get enough of them and as we finish the Premier League season we couldn’t resist creating our very own WAG Idol, to find out which player has the loveliest bit of skirt on his arm.

We are running a series of club heats – so please select the wag that gives your club the best chance of taking the Wag crown.

Just click on the individual images of beauties to upload their galleries, so you can get a look of them in greater detail!

Abbey Clancy – First up is lanky Spurs striker Peter Crouch’s long-term girlfriend Abbey Clancy. The blonde bombshell is one of Liverpool’s finest exports and the model has been flying the flag for England ahead of the 2010 World Cup in a Sports Illustrated shoot. The leggy blonde first caught the eye when she appeared in Britain’s Next Top Model in 2006 and since then she has been the lady of choice for a number of TV and magazine ads. Crouch’s fiancé seems to be down to earth and added to her undoubted beauty makes the Tottenham and England striker one lucky man.

Claudine Palmer – Tottenham striker Robbie Keane is currently away from White Hart Lane as he’s on loan until the end of the season to SPL giants Celtic, but as he’s still officially contracted to Spurs then Claudine deserves her spot here. Keane has been with his missus Claudine Palmer for over six years and the happily married couple seem to have a pretty solid relationship. The Irish model is a former Miss Ireland contestant and the pretty blonde got married to Keane in 2008 in Dublin. But how does she compare to Clancy in the battle of the Tottenham blondes?

Kimberley Mills – David Bentley has profited from an injury to Aaron Lennon in recent weeks to earn his place in the limelight once more after an extended period of time left sitting on the bench, but his long-term girlfriend does an admirable job of keeping herself to herself. However, that means that we haven’t got to see much of Kimberley Mills and that’s a real shame as she scrubs up rather well. The blonde hairdresser did make an appearance in Nuts TV’s Real Footballer’s Wives in one of her few public appearances, but a lack of exposure shouldn’t be held against her.

Imogen Thomas – Although apparently single at the moment (watch out ladies), one of Jermain Defoe’s most recent WAGs was Welsh beauty Imogen Thomas. The 2003 winner of Miss Wales appeared in Big Brother in 2006 and by dating Defoe she became one of many reality TV stars to become a footballer’s WAG. She took the conventional route from reality TV to general celebrity but her relationship with Defoe was always likely to be short lived. The glamour model cited that she preferred to stay at home and with Defoe renowned for hitting the nightclubs their time together was quickly over.

Danielle Lloyd – Lloyd is never one to shy away from the limelight. The former Miss England and Miss Great Britain got into strife in the 2007 edition of Celebrity Big Brother during a race row, whilst more recently she has shown a better side of herself by appearing in a documentary about domestic violence. O’Hara isn’t the only footballer that the often unhealthily tanned Lloyd has been involved with either, with the likes of Jermain Defoe, Teddy Sheringham and Marcus Bent all been seen on her arm over the years.

REMEMBER – Just click on the individual images of beauties to upload their galleries, so you can get a look of them in greater detail!

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

So who do you think deserves to be Tottenham’s representative in our search for the greatest Premier League WAG?

[youtube IEu_5sP9F0Q]

Barcelona are ready to make a move to sign Arsenal midfielder Alex Song this summer, The Sun report.

The Cameroon international has grown in stature at the Emirates Stadium in recent seasons, and as such has become an important figure in Arsene Wenger’s squad.

With Jack Wilshere injured and Cesc Fabregas departing this time last year, Song played a key role in steering the north London club to a third-placed finish last term.

The African midfielder’s progression has not gone un-noticed, and the Catalan giants are weighing up a £16 million bid for the enforcer.

The Camp Nou side’s first choice for a new defensive midfielder is Athletic Bilbao’s Javi Martinez, but the Spain international has made his intention to stay at San Mames clear, and Bilbao are asking an extortionate amount of money for their homegrown hero.

As such Tito Vilanova’s men are turning their attention elsewhere, and Song could be the latest target for Barcelona as they look to win back their La Liga crown next term.

By Gareth McKnight

[ad_pod id=’dfp-mpu’ align=’right’]

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Gianluca Vialli is a familiar face in the footballing world. A predatory goalscorer in his time at the top with Sampdoria, Juventus and Chelsea, as well as in 59 caps for Italy, Vialli played in the world’s finest footballing competitions at both club and international level. Over the course of his career, the striker notched up almost 300 senior goals, and won ten senior trophies, including two Serie A titles and a Champions’ League triumph in his final game for Juventus.

All in all, then, Vialli knows a fair amount about football. But how’s his rugby knowledge? In this video, Vialli is quizzed by English rugby legend and TV pundit Will Carling about his knowledge of rugby and asked for a prediction for Italy’s chances at the current 2011 Rugby World Cup. As well as a couple of other comical one-liners, Gianluca opens up about the biggest regret of his career – and it’s one that may surprise you.

[youtube gjjjHhGqQAk]

For more news and views from A-List celebrities into Rugby World Cup 2011 in New Zealand, please visit www.thisisthegame.com.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Heineken is an official worldwide partner of the 2011 Rugby World Cup, as well as Europe’s premier club rugby competition, the Heineken Cup.

Steve Bruce was left deflated by a ‘desperately harsh’ defeat after Sunderland twice gave away the lead to lose 3-2 at Stoke City.

Visitors Sunderland went ahead through Kieran Richardson in their English Premier League encounter at the Britannia Stadium, before John Carew equalised for Stoke.

Asamoah Gyan restored Sunderland’s lead, but this time Robert Huth levelled with seven minutes left.

Centre-back Huth then snatched a late winner for the home side three minutes into extra-time.

“Sometimes it’s cruel when you’ve dominated the game but if you don’t defend properly … we knew what to expect and haven’t dealt with it at all,” Bruce said.

“To score two away from home and not come away with anything is desperately harsh.”

There was a case for offside and fouls to be given in the build-up to the Stoke goals, but Bruce refused to search for excuses.

“There is a debate and you need the referee to be strong, but for all afternoon that didn’t happen.”

“But I’m not going to try and complain, we should be dealing with the ball into the box better than we did.”

“It’s very difficult to replicate it on the training ground. You need the bravery to go and head the ball. You need your goalkeeper to come and catch them.”

Stoke boss Tony Pulis was delighted to see his side fight back to win what was their first match at home since January 15.

“It’s massive, we’ve played four consecutive away games and the spirit of the players is absolutely fantastic,” Pulis said.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

“We gave two silly goals away in the first couple of minutes of each half but we’re very, very pleased with the points.”

Pulis felt that luck evened itself up after a contentious moment in the first fixture between the two teams at the Stadium of Light in November went unnoticed in Sunderland’s favour.

“We played at Sunderland and (Lee) Cattermole flicked it up with one hand and away with the other on the post so whatever we have got today, thank goodness.”

Borussia Dortmund will not sell star striker Robert Lewandowski for less than £35 million, The Daily Mail report.

The Poland international striker has been a key man for the German champions over the last 12 months, with Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal all linked with a move for the hitman this summer.

With Didier Drogba departing Stamford Bridge this summer the Blues have arisen as Lewandowki’s main suitor, with a speculated £13 million offer being cast aside by the Bundesliga champions recently.

With the west London club splurging on Marko Marin, Eden Hazard and Kevin de Bruyne already this summer, Roman Abramovich will have to break out the chequebook once more if he wants to add the eastern European marksman to his growing list of superstars.

Dortmund want Chelsea to at least double their initial offer if they are to even consider selling Lewandowski, who has seen his stock rise after impressive performances domestically and internationally.

Manchester United were initially the side linked most with the striker but this interest is said to have died down, whilst Arsenal’s purchase of Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud mean they will pull out of the running.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

By Gareth McKnight

[ad_pod id=’dfp-mpu’ align=’right’]

In the transfer market Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City operate at the uppermost level, the upper tier. It is quite clear that Tottenham Hotspur, whilst attempting to work on this level, have found themselves in the back row with a restricted view.

To trade at the top you need money and Champions League football and if you don’t have the latter then you need a lot of the former. Despite their best efforts, Tottenham have neither. Unfortunately this means that the calibre of their transfer targets has dropped.

You can still pick up excellent players but there is always a catch. The most common catch in Tottenham’s case is that these players are old. Consider some of Tottenham’s recent targets: William Gallas is now 34, Brad Freidel is 165 (40), Craig Bellamy 32 and Scott Parker 30. These players may once have been at the tip of the market but those years are some way behind them now, in particular the first 3.

If Tottenham’s targets are not old, then they have a problem at their previous club. (Sometimes they are both old and troubled!) Rafael Van der Vaart was surplus to requirements at Real Madrid, Bellamy and Adebayor are both irreparably out of favour at Manchester City and ‘Mr West Ham’ Scott Parker would now much rather be out of the Championship and operating under the controversial new nickname Mr Tottenham Hotspur.

The lack of Champions league football prevents Tottenham from signing stars who are at the top of the game already, but the lack of money prevents Tottenham even investing in average players in their prime unlike the moneyball movements of League rivals Liverpool who are also operating from this restricted tier of the market, except with a bottomless pit of money to work with.

Liverpool are buying players from the same tier, but the difference is these players are in their prime or likely to improve. Carroll, Downing, Adam, Henderson and Enrique do not require Champions League football now and would not demand it, but they have the potential to improve and mature whilst attempting to qualify. (Only Suarez really looks like a player of the utmost quality.) Liverpool have not done particularly astute business but at least they seem to have a plan. Tottenham Hotspur seem to be chasing the old and unhappy and with every new signing the future seems to look less clear, just slightly more chaotic.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Of course Tottenham fans can point to the signing of Sandro and the promising youth players now getting a run in the Europa League to suggest that there is young talent in the squad but the fact that Tottenham are struggling to keep up in the transfer market has never been clearer than now.

[ad_pod id=’unruly-2′ align=’right’]

West Bromwich midfielder Steven Reid is still hopeful of being involved in his side’s Premier League clash with Wigan on Tuesday.

Reid had knee surgery after injuring himself in the club’s 2-1 home defeat to Manchester United on New Year’s Day.

But the 29-year-old has surprised many with his recovery and is already back in training, with the goal of playing when Wigan visit The Hawthorns next week.

“I’m hoping to get back into full training at the weekend if I do enough with the physios over the next few days,” Reid told the club’s official website.

“I need to be in full training then if I’m to have half a chance of being involved against Wigan.”

“Hopefully, I’ll be involved, touch wood. But I don’t want to push it too much as I only had surgery two-and-a-half weeks ago.”

“It still needs to settle down a little bit. Fingers crossed I’ll be back out there in the next couple of weeks.”

Reid was disappointed when he injured himself in the match, having suffered an injury-riddled last few seasons.

The timing of the injury was also poor, given the fact that Reid had just won a starting place in the side, but despite pre-surgery nerves, everything has turned out well for the former Blackburn player.

“I felt pretty comfortable in the United game. I’d not started a league game for four or five weeks before that. Sometimes it does take a little while to get back into it, but I felt really good.”

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

“I was hoping for a little run in the team but, as luck would have it, I picked up that injury and it set me back a little bit. I feared the worst but it wasn’t too painful the next day and there wasn’t much swelling on it.”

“I was a bit nervous going back under the knife. But it was good news and just a little trim of the cartilage.”

Reid also believes his side can avoid relegation, citing the maturity and characters within the squad as a reason as to why they will stay up, as well as mentioning the loyal home support the club gets at The Hawthorns.