Barcelona president Sandro Rosell has stated that he is unsure whether his club are interested in signing Tottenham winger Gareth Bale, and fears that the Premier League club’s asking price would stall any potential deal.
The Wales winger has been a revelation over the last 12 months, and excellent performances domestically and in the Champions League led the wideman to win the PFA Player of the Year award last season.
Reports in the press have linked the Catalan giants with a move for Bale, who allegedly feel that the Spurs man would provide an excellent attacking option at left back.
Despite this, the European champions’ executive has refused to state an interest in the former Southampton starlet.
“I do not know if Bale interests us,” Rosell told Al Jazeera.
“If he did, I would not say, because his price would go up. [Tottenham] would not ask for €40million [£33.2m], but €50m [£42.8m].
“In any case, even if we wanted him, we would never pay €40m for him,” he concluded.
Bale is currently in contract at White Hart Lane until June 2015, after putting pen to paper on a new deal back in March.
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Newcastle eased their relegation worries but intensified Wolverhampton?s with a 4-1 win at St James? Park.The home side had the first chance after just five minutes after Joey Barton was fouled by George Elokobi in his own half. The midfielder picked himself up to float in a deep free kick that Mike Williamson headed towards the bottom corner only for Wayne Hennessey to palm the ball away.
Hennessey was in the right place at the right time again, as Barton found Kevin Nolan with another free kick but the captain?s header was directed straight at the Wolves stopper.
Hennessey was finally beaten on 22 minutes after Williamson’s free kick from well inside his own half was flicked on by Ameobi to find Kevin Nolan, who ghosted between both centre halves and poked the ball through the goalkeeper?s legs.
Newcastle doubled their lead just before half-time when Peter Lovenkrands crossed from the left and Ameobi rose highest to power home a header.
The hosts had a pair of chances to kill the game off after the interval. Barton’s shot from six yards was deflected wide, and Lovenkrands hit the post from a tight angle after going around Hennessey.
Lovenkrands did not have to wait much longer to get his name on the scoresheet, however. Fabricio Coloccini did well to steal the ball on the halfway line before feeding Barton, who crossed for the Dane to complete the move.
Wolves found a way back into the game on the hour mark, with England winger Matt Jarvis crossing for Sylvain Ebanks-Blake on the edge of the six yard box to steer past Steve Harper.
But it was a case of too little too late, as Newcastle added insult to injury with a fourth goal in injury time by Jonas Gutierrez.
Barcelona star Lionel Messi has joined the chorus of voices calling for Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas to rejoin his former club.
Fabregas was part of Spain's successful World Cup winning squad, but his time in South Africa was overshadowed by continuing speculation surrounding his club future.
The 23-year-old midfielder was the subject of one unsuccessful bid from the Catalan giants before the summer after reportedly telling Gunners boss Arsene Wenger of his desire to return to the Camp Nou following seven years in north London.
Wenger has vowed to fight hard to keep hold of his influential skipper, who was used mainly as a substitute by Spain during the World Cup.
But now Messi has added his weight to previous calls from the likes of Barca players Andres Iniesta, Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol for Fabregas to join them this summer.
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"I would be delighted if he came," said the Argentina forward. "We played together as kids and he knows the club."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
According to reports in the Yorkshire Evening Post, Leeds United are waiting to see if left-back Tom Pearce will accept the new contract he has been offered, and Whites fans have been quick to have their say on the situation.
The 6ft 1in tall left-back’s current deal is due to run out next month, and the Yorkshire Evening Post says that the club are set to confirm on Friday that he has been offered new terms to stay at Elland Road having become a regular in the XI towards the end of the campaign.
The 20-year-old made five Championship appearances in total, and scored his first senior goal for the club in the 2-1 win against Barnsley last month.
Leeds supporters, who have been fearfing the worst about the discussions between the two parties on Twitter, took to social media to give their thoughts on the story, and they were clearly unhappy.
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While one said they “really would not be too bothered if he went”, another said “who does he think he is?”
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Arsenal supporters have taken to Twitter to express their thoughts following the Gunners’ highly entertaining 3-3 draw with Liverpool.
One of the main criticisms that have been aimed at Arsene Wenger in recent times has been Arsenal’s inability to perform and dictate in the ‘big fixtures’.
The Gunners’ fans must have thought that they were going to witness another defeat against one of the more accomplished teams in the Premier League, as Philippe Coutinho’s early goal was coupled by Mohamed Salah’s 21st goal of the season.
However, much to the sheer amazement of everyone watching, the Gunners responded in style. The FA Cup winners scored three goals in the space of four minutes and 45 seconds to take a surprising lead.
Nonetheless, the North London side were unable to secure all three points as Roberto Firmino scored Liverpool’s third goal of the evening.
Here’s how the Arsenal supporters responded to the draw on Twitter…
Liverpool and Tottenham are both emerging as potential heirs to the Champions League throne. Both have undertaken something of a rebirth in recent seasons, and the future looks unusually bright for clubs at opposite ends of the country.
Money drives success in the Premier League, and it comes as no surprise that Rodgers appears envious of Spurs’ £100m+ transfer crusade. Success for both clubs will not be imminent, and this will represent much more of a long-term project that most would have you believe. A recent report in the Metro would suggest the Northern Irishman very much has his eye on dealings down in North London:
“We still need to make improvements. Tottenham have spent £100m to try and get in the top four. It will take another few windows to get that quality in the group.”
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“We can be better. We have shown in stages the quality we can have with the passion, resilience and desire. We just need to keep getting results. It is important to maintain that and we have to be vigilant. We need to keep the feel-good factor going.”
Rodgers here alludes to the excellent start that Liverpool have made, and many may question as to whether the squad really needs much work. The reality though as it stands is that Liverpool do not possess the strength in depth to maintain a push for titles, and even a Champions League qualification race will be a close run thing. Rodgers doesn’t mention the need for improvements as a means for just lowering expectations; I think he is actually spot on here.
Spurs have spent over £100m on what looks like a genuinely quality crop of recruits, and many still tip them as outsiders for the top four, surely Liverpool have a long way to go?
Both clubs have a similar financial outlook it would seem; not averse to spending but keen to balance the books in some way. Few have been keen to mention that Spurs turned a transfer profit this summer and actually cut their wage bill, if Liverpool want to make these so called improvements I believe the same thing will have to happen.
The bulk of Spurs’ summer spending power was due to the loss of their talismanic winger Gareth Bale for a world record fee. My opinion is that Liverpool may look to fund future transfer acquisitions through a potential sale of their star man Luis Suarez.
Suarez is a man of undoubted class and ability, but whose off field debacles and general demeanour have made him something of hassle for the ‘reds’. Still viewed highly on the continent, bids in the region of £50-60m have been bandied around and from a Liverpool perspective in January this may be a wise move.
Criticised as a one man team for much of last year, the Liverpool side that has started this season looks to have flourished without the Uruguayan. World-class players are few and far between but is Suarez really that crucial to Liverpool in the next few years, or would the signature of 3-4 quality players be more prudent for the club?
The acquisitions of Aspas, Coutinho and Moses would suggest that Rodgers is very much preparing for the loss of Suarez by bulking out his attacking options. As a manager he would surely prefer the potential to remould his squad in January, than having to re-integrate the troublesome Uruguayan.
50 odd million in the hands of Rodgers at a club with the prestige of Liverpool’s opens the door for all manner of potential captures. Many approached the Bale saga with a sense of despondency, but as time has passed it has seen Spurs develop the strongest squad that I can actually remember. As difficult as it may be for fans to accept, would the sale of Suarez be the stepping-stone back to greatness for Liverpool?
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The re-integration of Suarez after his ban will be an interesting one. He looks to have put his differences with the club behind him, but is this more of a show than any real substance. The Uruguayan may be world-class but as it stands it will be difficult for him to break into such an in form side.
Who knows Suarez may be the one to fire Liverpool back to the upper echelons of European Football, but for me his sale will be the turning point in Liverpool’s future.
Should Rodgers look to mirror Spurs and sell their star man?
Dark, ominous clouds have become a permanent fixture at Villa Park in recent times, as evident from the club’s recent kit launch. The aftermath of Martin O’Neill’s resignation coupled with huge financial losses and the departure of key players has seen the club plummet towards the foot of the table. Even the appointment of promising manager Paul Lambert has failed to lift the spirits of fans still reeling from the soul-destroying reign of Alex McLeish.
The recent activity from the summer transfer window offered more questions than answers, as the club steered clear of experienced Premier League professionals and instead decided to supplement their already significant number of promising youngsters. However, the return of striker Gabriel Agbonlahor – without wanting to endorse an overused cliché – will feel like a new signing.
Agbonlahor can no longer hide behind his tag as ‘a star in the making’, instead the onus will be on the 25-year-old to act as a talisman as Lambert begins his rejuvenation process. Incredibly, this will be his eighth season as a member of the Villans first-team but few could argue that he has reached his full potential. His lightning speed is his best and sometimes only positive attribute, with many supporters acknowledging that a vast improvement is needed if he is to torment the league’s best defenders.
In recent weeks, the former England international has voiced his desire to play a central role in the heart of Villa’s attack. In order to fashion these claims into a reality he must first match or perhaps better the strike-rate of team-mate Darren Bent, a tall order for a player who struggles to nudge his goal tally into double figures. Furthermore he will have to fend off the challenge of Andreas Weimann and new signing Jordan Bowery, who have replaced Agbonlahor as the talented youngsters trying to infiltrate the starting XI.
The fortunes of Aston Villa will rely heavily on Lambert’s ability to coax the very best out of his players, especially as the squad is littered with individuals desperately clinging onto former glories or struggling to fulfil their much-publicised promise. The former Norwich manager is also renowned for his love of big, burly target men as evident from his affection towards Grant Holt and Steve Morison. This may also highlight why he decided to spend £7m on Genk’s 6 foot 6 inch behemoth Christian Benteke on transfer deadline day.
Whereas Darren Bent harbours the capability to be deployed as a lone striker, I can’t see Agbonlahor effectively shielding the ball away from the physically more dominant defenders. Despite his reluctance to do so, he may have to give up the limelight and begin reinventing himself as winger who can also operate as an inside forward. He may currently lack the creative flair to conjure up an inch perfect cross but his pace and trickery is far more likely to be effective up against a lone full-back. It’s no secret that Villa have failed to replace the attacking wide players of Ashley Young or Stewart Downing and even with the emergence of Marc Albrighton, there is still a vacant role on the flanks waiting to be filled.
If Agbonlahor is gifted his chance to operate as Villa’s fixed point of attack, he must reproduce the sort of displays that previously raised fans to their feet. If his shooting boots desert him then he must continue to hound the opposition with tenacious displays, even if it means letting someone else hog all the goal-scoring headlines. In the absence of Stilian Petrov, the club has lost its influential leader and who better to take up the mantle than a local lad and lifelong fan of the club.
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I still believe there’s a world-class footballer desperate to break free from within Gabriel Agbonlahor; I just hope this is the season we finally get to see him.
Everton fans can’t decide on the latest managerial links, after a report claimed the club have made inquiries to sign Arsene Wenger.
According to Paul Brown of the Daily Star, Everton are now certain to axe Sam Allardyce this summer, despite the former England manager already making his transfer plans.
The report claims Arsene Wenger has had plenty of offers since he announced he would step down from Arsenal at the end of this season, and the Toffees have reportedly added him to their shortlist.
David Dein, the former vice-Chairman for the Gunners, is reportedly acting as an intermediary in the talks.
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Wenger is yet to decide whether he will stay in coaching or move to a different role at a new club, but Everton have been making “regular inquiries” about bringing him to Merseyside.
Of course, the biggest criticism of current manager Sam Allardyce is his negative brand of football, certainly not something Wenger could be criticised for.
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However, some fans have expressed concerns about taking on “rejects” from other Premier League clubs, and fans are now completely split on the links.
Some of the best Twitter reactions can be found below…
In what will undoubtedly be a cause for celebration for the majority of Tottenham fans, £17million flop Paulinho has joined Chinese outfit Guangzhou Evergrande, as confirmed by the club – and The Daily Mail – this afternoon.
The Brazil international arrived at White Hart Lane in summer 2013 following his impressive performances at the Confederations Cup and the £87million departure of Gareth Bale to Real Madrid, but needless to say he’s struggled to live up to his billing in north London.
Indeed, Paulinho’s managed just 45 Premier League appearances for Spurs, with around half of those outings coming from the bench and the majority of them spent disappearing in the middle of the park.
So what better way to celebrate the 26 year-old’s departure than reminiscing over some equally terrible Tottenham signings? In honour of Paulinho, we’ve created Tottenham’s Transfer Flop XI of the Premier League era – detailing their biggest deals that turned the most sour.
How does the flopped Brazilian compare to this mob?
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GOALKEEPER – HEURELHO GOMES
Heurelho Gomes certainly had his moments in a Spurs jersey and the Brazil international’s exemplary shot-stopping abilities were never in doubt.
Yet every stellar save was counteracted by sudden sprees of goalkeeping madness; with fluffed parries into the back of his own net, inexplicable expeditions thirty yards from the goal line and hilarious attempts to skill his way past onrushing strikers galore. More shots passed through his body than Charlie Sheen on a Friday night.
The now-Watford No.1 made nearly a centenary of Premier League appearances for the Lilywhites and ended up becoming a bit of a cult hero at White Hart Lane. Rather interesting, he’s also the only person on Wikipedia with the first name ‘Heurelho’.
But at a cost of £7.8million – which actually makes him one of the most expensive Premier League goalkeepers of all time – Spurs never got anything close to their money’s worth.
RIGHT-BACK – ALAN HUTTON
Many will point to Paul Stalteri as Tottenham’s worst right-back of the Premier League era, a Canadian international famed for playing several positions equally terribly yet juxtaposing it by a rather incredible goal to clinch a 4-3 win against London rivals West Ham in 2007.
But it’s long forgotten the infamous Juande Ramos (also the purchaser of Heurelho Gomes) once coughed up a rather incredible £9million for Alan Hutton – which, back in January 2008, made him the most expensive defender in White Hart Lane history.
He was billed as some sort of Scottish Dani Alves after proving particularly formidable going forward for Rangers in the SPL. But what turned up in north London was a right-back about as ordinary and unexceptional as you can get in the Premier League.
Hutton stuck it out for three years with Spurs, eventually making 51 Premier League appearances, before being flogged to Aston Villa for a pittance in 2011, who quickly decided to loan him out to Mallorca, Nottingham Forest and Bolton Wanderers.
CENTRE-BACK – RAMON VEGA
Back in 1997, £3.75million was a heck of a lot of money – especially for a Spurs side who hadn’t finished higher than 7th since the turn of the decade – so naturally, fans expected big things from Swiss international Ramon Vega.
He was billed as an intelligent centre-back who could speak five languages and had a degree in banking but with a rough-n-ready side comparable to Tony Adams, according to Gerry Francis.
Unfortunately, neither the savvy Vega nor the thuggish Vega turned up at White Hart Lane. Instead, the Lilywhites fan-base witnessed five arduous years of bumbled, calamitous defending to the point Vega became the benchmark all woeful Tottenham centre-halves have since been judged upon.
He did, however, win the League Cup with Spurs in 1999, and has made £15million as a city trader since retiring. Tottenham fans will argue they’re due nearly a quarter of that in compensation.
Centre Back – Mbulelo Mabizela
In the grand scheme of things, £1.5million, even back in 2003 when a bus ride was just 40p in London, isn’t a huge sum of money. But at the resulting cost of £214k per league appearance and eventually seeing his Spurs contract put through the shredder due to disciplinary problems, there is no doubt the once highly-rated Mbulelo Mabizela was a huge flop at White Hart Lane.
Indeed, Glen Hoddle saw great potential in the former Orlando Pirates prodigy, who had become the youngest ever captain of the South African national team at the age of 20 and produced an apparently incredible Man of the Match display against Spurs during their 2003 pre-season tour. Never mind that he’d never kicked a ball in Europe before. Never mind that he was a centre-back who measured in at just 5 foot 10.
Needless to say, Mabizela’s north London stay didn’t work out as planned. He managed just seven Premier League outings, producing a sensational goal against Leicester City, before deciding to skip several training sessions and resultantly see his contract terminated by ‘mutual’ consent. A few months earlier, he’d also gone AWOL during an international break, ending his Bafana Bafana captaincy.
After an unsuccessful trial at Fulham, Mabizela joined Norwegian outfit Valerenga (who?) before returning to South African football for the remainder of his career.
LEFT-BACK – GILBERTO
A by no means unanimous decision here at Football Fancast. Many Spurs fans hold a particular disliking towards Crazy Gang graduate Ben Thatcher, who joined the club from Wimbledon for £5million in 2000 and spent the next decade committing GBH on a weekly basis in the Premier League, shattering shins and cheekbones for fun and infamously almost severing Pedro Mendez’ head in 2006 whilst at Manchester City.
But Thatcher can at least lay claim to 46 appearances for the Lilywhites. Brazilian Gliberto, on the other hand, despite representing Selecao on 35 occasions, managed just 10; seven in the Premier League, and three of which he was hauled off at half time.
After 18 months at White Hart Lane the £2million signing was shipped back to Brazil, costing Spurs £200k per woeful appearance.
RIGHT MIDFIELD – DAVID BENTLEY
David Bentley’s Tottenham tenure was so terrible it forced him into retirement at the age of 30.
The seven-cap international was billed as the next David Beckham during his time at Blackburn Rovers, sharing Golden Balls’ unique free-kick style and potency from dead ball situations, convincing Spurs to splash out a whopping £15million fee for his services in summer 2008.
Unfortunately, however, Bentley echoed more the Beckham of the socialite modelling world than on the pitch during his lengthy north London stay, and barring one sensational appearance against former club Arsenal spent the rest of the time flicking his admittedly rather luscious parting from side to side for the cameras.
After falling out of favour under Harry Redknapp – probably due to him throwing a water keg over the Spurs gaffer during an end-of-season interview – the midfielder went out on loan to Birmingham, West Ham, FC Rostov and Blackburn Rovers as his Tottenham contract wound down, before calling it quits (and pocketing five years’ worth of wages) last summer.
Most humiliatingly of all, almost half of Bentley’s transfer fee – the eighth largest in Spurs history – went to local rivals and ex-employers Arsenal through a sell-on fee agreement.
CENTRAL MIDFIELD – PAULINHO
The inspiration for this list and the definition of the word ‘fraud’. Half of the continent were linked to Paulinho after his impressive performances for Brazil at the 2013 Confederations Cup, where his robust box-to-box style and knack of hitting the onion bag seemed perfect for European football.
So when he arrived at White Hart Lane for a then-club record £17million in the wake of Gareth Bale’s departure to Real Madrid, Spurs thought they were onto a real winner – beating some of Europe’s top clubs to one of summer 2013’s most sought-after players.
Yet, the Paulinho heralded as a world-beater at Corinthians never truly turned up in north London. Far from an all-action box-to-box, the 26 year-old’s individual style seemed to be based around doing as little as possible before ghosting in for the very, very occasional goal. More passive than Joe Allen in a friendly; less aggressive than a Buddhist peace rally.
After playing a pivotal hand in getting Andre Villas-Boas sacked for his woeful performances and left out in the cold by Tim Sherwood and Mauricio Pochettino, Paulinho has now agreed a move to China – cementing his reputation as one of the biggest disappointments in both Tottenham and Premier League history.
CENTRAL MIDFIELD – Milenko Acimovic
Unlike the rest of the players in this flops XI, free signing Milenko Acimovic didn’t disappoint in price. Rather, the attacking midfielder emphatically failed to live up to his reputation as one of the best talents outside of Europe’s leading top flights at the time.
Indeed, he’d generated quite the hype at Red Star Belgrade, netting 34 times in 102 league appearances, and also impressed at Euro 2000 and the 2002 World Cup with Slovakia, leading to a bosman move to White Hart Lane in summer 2002.
Far from transitioning his goal-scoring displays to the Premier League, however, Acimovic found himself continually overpowered in midfield and disastrously short on confidence – by no means helped by him committing what is regarded as one of the most shocking Tottenham misses of all time.
In total, Acimovic made just 17 league appearances in two years, before being offloaded to Lille.
LEFT WING – ERIK LAMELA
Erik Lamela’s certainly had his moments for Spurs – most particularly, his Europa League Rabona goal against Asteras Tripoli last season.
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But considering the 23 year-old’s prior reputation from his days with Roma as a future Ballon d’Or contender and his status as Tottenham’s most expensive signing of all time – costing the club £30million including potential add-ons – he’s undoubtedly fallen some way short of the mark.
Indeed, the flopped winger has managed just 38 Premier League appearances since his arrival in summer 2013, scoring only twice and providing eight assists; hardly what you’d expect from a player dubbed ‘the Argentine Ronaldo’.
If Lamela still has one thing working in his favour, it’s his youth. He’s still nowhere near his footballing peak and Spurs appear adamant the ten-cap international will eventually fulfil his potential at White Hart Lane.
STRIKER – SERGEI REBROV
Spurs have endured a hilarious amount of flops in the striker department throughout the Premier League era, ranging from infamous loanster Andy Booth to England international Darren Bent, with the likes of Grzegorz Rasiak, Bobby Zamora, Roman Pavlyuchenko and Heider Postiga somewhere in between.
But purely in terms of transfer fees combined with performances on the pitch, ten-in-sixty frontman Sergei Rebrov, who arrived at White Hart Lane for a whopping £11million back in 2000, has to top the list.
They say every great partnership is made of one sensational footballer and another mediocre one in the right place at the right time. Rather tellingly, Rebrov made his name as partner to Andriy Shevchenko at Dynamo Kiev.
And whilst the latter went on to become one of the greatest goalscorers of a generation, the former ended up costing Spurs £1.1million per Premier League goal, before joining bitter rivals West Ham on a free transfer, just to rub in that extra little bit of salt.
Rather incredibly, Rebrov took things a step further in 2008, when he warned Pavlyuchenko about all the ‘dark skinned people’ and ‘high crime rate’ around White Hart Lane. Racist flop.
STRIKER – ROBERTO SOLDADO
We’ve had the third-most expensive signing in Spurs history, the first-most expensive signing in Spurs history and now the second-most expensive signing in Spurs history – Roberto Soldado – completing the trifecta of unforgivably woeful flops from summer 2013.
In the interests of fairness, it’s worth pointing out the Spain international was considered to be one of the best finishers in Europe before arriving in north London, generating 101 goals in 207 appearances throughout his La Liga spells with Real Madrid, Getafe, Osasuna, and Valencia.
There were always doubts over the pintsized striker’s compatibility with the Premier League, however, especially at the age of 28, and they soon proved justified.
In stark contrast to his successes in Spain, the £26million signing has managed just seven goals in 52 league outings for Spurs, four coming from the penalty spot.
Soldado’s performances have transgressed from promising to unfortunate and hardworking to Fernando Torres level hopeless, epitomised best by his harrowing fluff against Fiorentina in the video above.
He’s now being linked with a move to Galatasaray, with Spurs taking a £15million loss in the process.
Former Wigan manager Roberto Martinez has been named the new manager of Everton.
After weeks of speculation, the Spaniard has finally been installed as the boss at Goodison Park and will set about strengthening the Toffees in time for the upcoming season.
The 39-year-old is replacing former Everton boss David Moyes who took the Manchester United job after Sir Alex Ferguson retired last month.
His first job may well be raiding his former club, after Wigan chairman Dave Whelan admitted that he would not stand in the way of any Latics players who wished to follow Martinez to Goodison Park, if the offer was right.
Two players that are thought to have been targeted are midfielders Shaun Maloney and Callum McManaman who will certainly add to the Toffees midfield after an impressive Premier League season at the DW Stadium.
He may also have a fight on his hands to keep Everton players Marouane Fellaini and Leighton Baines after former their former boss Moyes has been rumoured to be preparing bids for both, in order to bring them to Old Trafford.
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