Hannover and Mainz kept the pressure on the Bundesliga leaders on Saturday as both sides recorded hard-fought away wins.Hannover had an 89th minute header from defender Christian Schulz to thank for their 1-0 victory over St Pauli, a result that temporarily lifts them into third place on the table ahead of Bayern Munich’s clash with league leaders Borussia Dortmund later on Saturday.A 2-1 win over Hoffenheim ensures Mainz remain in fifth spot on the table.Mainz took the lead through Andreas Ivanschitz at Rhein-Neckar-Arena, but the hosts looked to have salvaged a share of the spoils when David Alaba equalised seven minutes from time.Enter Elkin Soto, and the Colombian midfielder secured all three points for Mainz just two minutes later when he found himself on the end of a Marcel Risse cross to fire home the winner.Elsewhere on Saturday, Cologne moved five points clear of the relegation zone with a surprise 1-0 win over Freiburg thanks to a Lukas Podolski goal.Relegation battlers Kaiserslautern claimed a valuable point at home with a 1-1 draw against Hamburg, while Schalke and Nuremberg also drew 1-1 when Raul cancelled out Jens Hegeler’s opener for the visitors.
England goalkeeper Robert Green insists he has the mental strength to recover from his calamitous World Cup mistake.
Fabio Capello's side had taken an early lead thanks to Steven Gerrard's well-taken goal and were in control of the match until Green inexplicably allowed Clint Dempsey's weak shot to slip out of his grasp and trundle over the line in a 1-1 Group C opener in Rustenburg.
The West Ham keeper could be dropped for Friday's second game against Algeria with David James and Joe Hart pushing for the number one jersey.
But despite his high-profile mistake, Green believes he can cope with the scrutiny he will be under should Capello keep faith with him.
"It was a mistake," he said."The important thing is not to let it affect you for however long is left in the game.
"That is what you prepare for mentally. You don't prepare mentally for making great saves and playing the perfect game. You prepare for trauma.
"It is regrettable and not what you want to happen but that's life and you move on, you hold your head up high and get to work in training.
"It won't affect me psychologically. I'm 30, I'm a man and you have hardships in life and prepare for them.
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"I'm strong enough to move on. At a younger point in my life it would have affected me more.
"But you hold your hand up and say 'that's gone, move on and don't let it affect you'."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
The Premier League season is edging ever nearer with just a couple of days till the big kickoff, ensuring the excitement of football fans across the country is reaching almost breaking point. There’s nothing better than success on the field, but what can be even more satisfying is achieving that success using young, homegrown players.
Alan Hansen once said ‘You win nothing with kids’ but that Manchester United class of 1996 went on to prove him dramatically wrong. Those players, the likes of Giggs, Beckham and Scholes made up a vast proportion of the first team for many of the Premier League seasons and United will still rely on Giggs and Scholes this season for experience in the midfield. Hopefully other teams will start to promote talented youngsters into their first teams this season and give the youngsters a chance to show what they can do. We’ve picked out 15 talented young Premier League starlets who are ready to make their breakthroughs this season.
Click on Raheem Sterling to unveil the list
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One of the most important days of the footballing calendar is nearly upon us – the first Merseyside Derby of the season. As the 216th recorded Merseyside Derby takes place at Goodison Park this Saturday, let’s remind ourselves about all that makes a Derby day special with a look back on the Top 10 Merseyside Derbies of all-time. There’s blood, sweat and with it, the obligatory tears to boot. Let’s take a look.
1. Liverpool 4 Everton 4 (Anfield) – FA Cup Fifth-Round, 1991 – Quite rightly regarded as the best Merseyside Derby of all-time and memorable for the fact that it was Kenny Dalglish’s final game in charge of his first spell at the club with the Scot resigning the next day. Peter Beardsley drew first blood after Ian Rush dispossessed Kevin Ratcliffe and had his shot saved by Neville Southall, with Beardsley banging in the rebound. Graeme Sharp equalised right after the break before Beardsley bagged a spectacular left-footed effort from 25 yards into the top left-hand corner. A mix-up between Steve Nicol and Bruce Grobelaar saw Sharp equalise once more with a tap in from two yards before Ian Rush saw Liverpool take the lead for the third time in the 77th minute with a deft header from a Jan Molby cross. A hopeful punt up field led to Tony Cottee, on as a sub, bagging Everton’s third to make it 3-3. John Barnes handed Liverpool the lead in extra-time until Cottee once again pegged Liverpool back with a 114th minute equaliser. Everton went onto win the replay 1-0. Simply put, one of the best FA Cup ties of all time and a great advert for the Merseyside derby.
2. Liverpool 3, Everton 2 (Wembley) – FA Cup Final, 1989 – Held just five weeks after the shocking, traumatic and deeply upsetting events of the Hillsborough disaster where 96 fans lost their lives, this game went some way to cathartically healing the wounds for many across Merseyside. On the footballing front, the final didn’t disappoint. John Aldridge gave Liverpool a crucial early lead before Stuart McCall struck back in the 90th minute. In extra-time Liverpool sub Ian Rush put his side ahead once more. Stuart McCall, the unlikeliest of scorers, then struck a sensational second before Rush once again, the scourge of Everton fans everywhere, bagged his second and Liverpool’s third and with it the FA Cup on a very moving day for all connected with either club and the city.
3. Everton 2, Liverpool 3 (Goodison Park) – Premier League, 2001 – Both clubs approached the tie with very different priorities in mind. Liverpool were on the cusp of an infamous treble, Everton under Walter Smith, were trying to stave off relegation for a further season. This has to go down as the finest Derby of the Premier League era, notable for the final kick of the game, a 40-yard free-kick by Gary McAllister that crept into Paul Gerrard’s net – a truly astounding goal. This game had everything. Liverpool surged into a two-goal lead courtesy of Emile Heskey and Markus Babbel before terrace favourites Duncan Ferguson and Dave ‘Rhino’ Unsworth reduced the deficit and levelled the tie. Igor Biscan was sent off, there were 12 cards in total and even an uncharacteristic Robbie Fowler penalty miss to throw into the mix until McAllister stepped up with an unlikely and breathtaking winner. Pulsating.
4. Liverpool 0, Everton 1 (Anfield) – First Division, 1984 – The turning of the tide? Everton announced themselves as the new dominant force in English football with an era defining victory over Liverpool at home. Liverpool were the reigning European Cup champions, but on this display, it was to be Everton that were to go onto bigger things that season. Graeme Sharp’s thunderous volley that later went onto be named Goal of the Season was the difference in the score lines, but the difference in performance was startling. Everton went onto claim the league title, European Cup Winners Cup and narrowly lost out on a momentous treble with a defeat to Man Utd in the FA Cup.
5. Liverpool 3, Everton 1 (Wembley), FA Cup Final, 1986 – The first ever all-Merseyside FA Cup final. A close-run league campaign eventually saw Liverpool edge out their close rivals. At Wembley, Gary Linekar continued his only ever campaign in an Everton shirt in predictably prolific fashion giving Everton the lead. However, perennial thorn in the side Ian Rush struck twice and Craig Johnston added the icing on the cake.
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6. Liverpool 2, Everton 2 (Maine Road), FA Cup Semi-Final, 1977 – What is is about the FA Cup that brings the best out of these Merseyside Derby encounters. Perhaps the most controversial on the list, Liverpool fans the world over will still be left wondering quite how they came away from this game with a draw and a replay. Bryan Hamilton had a goal unfathomably disallowed by referee Clive Thomas in the dying moments with the scores level after Jimmy Case and Terry McDermott had scored for Liverpool and Bruce Rioch and Duncan McKenzie had done the same for the Toffees. Liverpool went onto win the replay 3-0 to further add insult to injury.
7. Everton 0, Liverpool 5 (Goodison Park), First Division, 1982 – Ian Rush completely destroyed his boyhood heroes with a four-goal salvo. Everton weren’t helped by having debutant Glen Keeley sent off early on, though. Mark Lawrensen added the other with a tap in from a Kenny Dalglish cross. This game is memorable most for the true finishing masterclass put on by Rush.
8. Everton 3, Liverpool 0 (Goodison Park), Premier League, 2006 – A game personally memorably for me for so many reasons. Could it be the tortuous four-hour long journey home in a car with three Everton fans? Could it be the one-word riposte of Phil Neal in the stands when asked what he thought of the performance…’disgusting’? Or could it be the now infamous chant of ‘Reina drops keep falling on my head’ that was sung in the crowded streets after the game in reference to the third goal of the game? Everton recorded their biggest victory over Liverpool in 42 years with a display of clinical finishing. Tim Cahill notched the first before an Andy Johnson double ended the contest.
9. Liverpool 3, Everton 2 (Anfield), Premier League, 1999 – Liverpool went into this game seeking their first victory over their nearest rivals since 1994 in a run that stretched to 9 games. Olivier Dacourt put Everton ahead inside the first minute with an excellent strike from 30 yards. Marco Materazzi then gave away a penalty after clumsily lunging for the ball and bringing down skipper Paul Ince in the process. Robbie Fowler dispatched the penalty before then celebrating with the now infamous ‘snorting the line’ celebration which manager Gerard Houllier bafflingly laughed off stating that Fowler was “eating the grass”. Fowler added a second with a header before Patrick Berger added a third with a fine volley from the edge of the area. Francis Jeffers got Everton’s second late on with a neat turn and finish. There was still time for more drama, though, as an 18 year-old sub by the name of Steven Gerrard managed to clear off the line from Danny Cadamarteri in the dying embers of the game.
10. Liverpool 0, Everton 1 (Anfield), Premier League, 1999 – A typically feisty Derby day encounter saw Kevin Campbell’s 12th goal in 19 games since arriving back from Turkey prove the difference in the fourth minute. Francis Jeffers and Sander Westerveld were both shown a red card for what can only be described as handbags at dawn and Steven Gerrard was also given his marching orders for a scything (not the first time that could be said of his challenges in a Derby game) challenge on Campbell late on.
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You can follow me on Twitter @James McManus1
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Manchester United striker Javier Hernandez has been named in Mexico’s squad for next week’s friendly against Bosnia-Herzegovina in Atlanta.
It will be coach Jose Manuel de la Torre’s first game in charge of the national team after he took over from World Cup coach Javier Aguirre.
De la Torre also named former Spurs midfielder Giovanni dos Santos, who recently joined La Liga’s Racing Santander on loan, and Fulham defender Carlos Salcido in the 22-man squad for Thursday’s match.
Dutch-based defenders Francisco Rodriguez (PSV Eindhoven) and Hector Moreno (AZ Alkmaar) were also selected for the match at the Georgia Dome.
The friendly is the first of three on Mexico’s US tour as De La Torre prepares for the CONCACAF Gold Cup in the US in June and the Copa America in Argentina in July.
Mexico will also face Paraguay in Oakland on March 26, and Venezuela in San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium on March 29.
Goalkeepers: Jesus Corona (Cruz Azul), Alfredo Talavera (Toluca). Defenders: Carlos Salcido (Fulham), Héctor Moreno (AZ Alkmaar), Francisco Javier Rodríguez (PSV Eindhoven), Paul Aguilar (Pachuca), Iván Estrada (Santos Laguna), Edgar Dueñas (Toluca), Jonny Magallon (CD Guadalajara), Jorge Torres Nilo (Tigres).
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Midfielders: Gerardo Torrado (Cruz Azul), Israel Castro (UNAM), Jesus Zavala (Monterrey), Antonio Naelson Sinha (Toluca), Luis Perez (Monterrey).
Forwards: Javier Hernandez (Manchester United), Giovanni dos Santos (Racing de Santander), Pablo Barrera (West Ham United), Edgar Pacheco (Atlas), Nestor Calderón (Toluca), Jose María Cárdenas (Santos Laguna), Aldo de Nigris (Monterrey).
New Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert is having to plan his start to the season with three key players after Marc Alrighton became the latest player to be struck off.
The born and bred Villa winger could be out for around a month after breaking a metatarsal during pre-season and will certainly miss the opening few games of the Premier League season.
Disappointment of last season has quickly turned to optimism at Villa Park after the arrival of former Norwich boss Lambert, but key injuries could put a holt to any mass transformation.
Albrighton has joined Gabriel Agbonlahor and Richard Dunne in the treatment room after the pair also suffered pre-season injuries that will definitely keep them out of the opening fixture away at West Ham a week today.
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However, all three are expected to return at some point in September and Lambert will finally have a fully sit squad to choose from.
Andre Villas-Boas takes his new-look Chelsea outfit to Wearside this weekend with a few new signings on show but the big news is that first-choice keeper Petr Cech could make his return from injury. Both sides will be hoping to kick-start their season with a much needed victory.
Sunderland have made a disappointing start to the season with only two points from three games, not enough for a side who have top 10 ambitions. They have bolstered their below average strikeforce with the signing of Danish international Nicklas Bendtner from Arsenal and he should make his debut on Saturday. Anton Ferdinand has left to join QPR and John O’Shea is still struggling with an injury so Titus Bramble is likely to be drafted back in the centre of defence.
For Chelsea, Branislav Ivanovic started at centre-back alongside Captain John Terry in their last game but it is thought David Luiz may make his first start of the season. Against Norwich, Torres started up front partnered by Dider Drogba but they again failed to gel. Villas-Boas may bring Anelka in for Saturday’s game as it appears Drogba has not fully recovered from the concussion he suffered in their last game. After failing to secure Modric from Spurs, Chelsea managed to snatch Raul Meireles from Liverpool at the eleventh hour and he will add some creativity to their midfield if he is fit enough to feature while Juan Mata is likely to make his first start in Chelsea colours.
If Bendtner can live up to his self-assured attitude for once to add some impetus to the Sunderland attack then the Blacks Cats may stand a chance but if Chelsea play anything like we all know they can I think Chelsea should have a comfortable away win especially if Petr Cech does return in goal at the Stadium of Light.
Key Player
Juan Mata: The Spanish winger, who netted on his debut in Chelsea’s victory over Norwich and also for his country in mid-week, will cause all sorts of problem for the Sunderland rearguard after his brief but productive cameo against Norwich.
Wes Brown: The experienced central defender has a big game on his hands trying to keep the under-pressure Torres quiet, something he has tried and failed to do during his time at Old Trafford.
Verdict: 1-3
To see the Premier League round-up and preview ahead of the weekend fixtures – download the excellent ESPN Goals App
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Everton manager David Moyes wants his side make amends for one of their poorest performances of the season when they face Arsenal on Tuesday.
Moyes still has bad memories of his team’s display that saw them lose 2-1 against the Gunners at Goodison Park in the English Premier League in November.
Arsenal raced into a two-goal lead through Bacary Sagna and Cesc Fabregas, though the scoreline could have been a lot higher.
Midfielder Tim Cahill pulled a late goal back for the home side but Moyes never expected to get anything from the game.
Everton have suffered just one defeat in their last ten games but they won just three of those encounters, and Moyes is keen to see his side get back to winning ways.
“I think one of our poorest performances this season was at home to Arsenal this season,” he said.
“I didn’t think we got to the standards we had in other games. We will try to do better than we did in that game at Goodison Park.”
“Arsenal have good sides every year. There is no question of the quality they have got there. They try to compete at the top of the league which is very difficult.”
“It is always a hard game because of the quality players they have in their side but we have quality players as well.”
“We have drawn a lot of games – some we could have won. Getting a win is important and we have not got enough of them. We need to win instead of drawing them – that would be the answer.”
Moyes is banking on Louis Saha to continue his good form in the second half of the season.
The former Manchester United forward netted his third goal in just four games during the 1-1 FA Cup draw against Chelsea on Saturday.
After scoring just four goals in the whole of 2010, Moyes is praying the Frenchman can regain the form which saw him net 12 strikes in the first half of last season.
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Moyes added: “Goals change centre forwards and everything they do feels a lot better.”
“At the start of last season he scored a lot of goals in the first half of the season so let’s hope he can score a lot of these goals in the second half of this season.”
“He is playing with a lot more confidence and belief. I would like to think he can keep it going.”
Moyes has no fresh injury worries for the trip to north London but will make a decision over the inclusion of defender Tony Hibbert, who has been suffering from illness.
Frank Lampard has admitted that new Tottenham manager Andre Villas Boas has a great squad to work with, but has a big job on his hands to follow in the footsteps of Harry Redknapp.
The Portuguese coach has been installed as the new White Hart Lane boss, and has been given money to spend, with Gylfi Sigurdsson and Jan Vertonghen already signed this summer.
Chelsea midfielder Lampard feels his former trainer has a big job ahead of him in north London.
“AVB has inherited an exceptional squad of players,” Lampard confessed to The Sun.
“A squad that’s good enough to bring Champions League football and contend for the Premier League title. A team that’s played some terrific, thrilling attacking football and scored goals for fun.
“So AVB is a lucky man taking over at Spurs because the players are so very good.
“Admittedly that can be a double-edged sword, though, because Harry Redknapp will be an extremely tough act to follow.
“Harry lifted Spurs to an amazing level. The way he turned that club around was remarkable. They were at absolute rock bottom when Harry came in.
“Then all of a sudden they’re playing in the Champions League and competing at the very top. So he did an incredible job there and he definitely didn’t deserve to lose his job.
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“That’s why I was really surprised when Harry left. He did wonders at Tottenham and I thought him leaving was a terrible shame,” the England international concluded.
It was a worrying week for the football press-pack last week. All their worst fears came true when attempts to update an eight-year old agreement and agree what rights reporters, photographers and the like would have to cover Premiership and Football League matches this season broke down. Disagreements sprung up around the new methods of in-match reporting such as live photos, tweets etc. Thus, no journalists or photographers were allowed into matches to report on proceedings.
Left with no matches to report on, and out of ideas on how to re-spin Cesc Fabregas transfer news, they wrote instead on the horror of not being able to attend matches. Replete with a picture of him looking suitably disgusted, Henry Winter was FORCED to pay £25 to watch Nottingham Forest play, and the sporting world held its breath.
Winter and others (such as Sam Wallace at the Independent), argued that this was bad news for all fans of football. Winter argued that “newspapers, whether in print, online or via Twitter, keep fanning the flames of supporters’ interest in clubs.”
“On Sunday morning they will turn to their newspapers for a neutral’s verdict to find an absence of match reports.
“…the report is part of the match-day experience, fans’ reading up on the game, agreeing or disagreeing. I could spend an hour or more a day dealing with tweets, emails and letters sparked by a report of the previous night’s match.”
Sam Wallace said:
“But without us, and the other members of our dysfunctional press family, who is left? The answer is, the clubs’ own media. I have nothing against the website and TV personnel of our clubs, many of whom started life on our side of the fence and are very capable journalists. But are we sure the clubs are going to strive to give us the real, inside, uncomfortable story on their organisations?”
“…..I fear that my industry is getting elbowed out of the way by certain wealthy clubs who dislike not being in total control. I fear that some of these young men and women may end up in a ghastly PR-version of journalism where their questions are restricted.”
“…..I do not believe any football fan thinks that the clubs’ curtailing of press freedom is something to be celebrated.”
Thankfully a deal was struck just in time for the start of the Premier League, a brand that cannot be damaged at any time, or else the world would shift on its axis.
And this was good news for all concerned. Yes?
As already mentioned, when the ban kicked in it covered the Championship and below. But for fans of non-Premier league teams, the question is this? Was there a huge chasm in your life last weekend, a sense that something was missing, that you weren’t as up-to-date and educated with the goings-on of your football team? Or was it business as usual? Probably the latter.
When I was very young, before the days of Premiership football, live steaming, Super Sundays and message boards, I relied on newspaper match reports. Their words shaped much of how I thought about teams and players. Only when I became a regular attendee did I realised what drivel was being written.
Ok, not drivel – but I realised that people were seeing games very differently to how I was, and the match reports were nothing more than opinion pieces much of the time. Many a time you can watch a match with a friend and see things in a totally different way. Your man of the match is someone your friend thought was terrible. Even with 100 slow-mos and multiple angles you’ll still get wildly different opinions on whether an incident was a penalty, or a red card or a dive.
The most reliable of match reports was often the Football Pink, because it was a match report that simply reported what had happened, rather than trying to crowbar in a particular angle or agenda, and without some sub-editor’s misleading headline. On the downside, it did have a tendency to suddenly end after 67 minutes.
In the modern world of access-all-areas, how much do we need match reports? I never read them as one way or the other I will have seen the match, and so don’t need someone else to summarise it for me, but that’s just a personal choice. Sunday papers are known to sell better during the football season, so it seems their coverage is important to many. You may have seen a match, but when your new signing has scored a hat trick on his debut, you may want to read every match report possible. But if you support a small, lower-league club, there will be little of interest in antional newspaper anyway.
But Winter’s theory that fans’ interests in their clubs is kept burning brightly by the press is laughable in the extreme. I, like millions of others, have supported my team for decades, and I managed to do it just fine without having to read newspapers to gee me up.
The problem journalists have is that their reputation is besmirched by the minority. Fans have become tired by lies, false rumours, sensationalizing of minor events, and perceived agendas and injustices. This used to be the style of the tabloids alone, but is is depressing how many broadsheet reporters have been reduced to spreading tittle-tattle and speculation. In the world of 24-hour news, there is not enough proper news to go around. When under 20% of transfer rumours turn out to be true, then it is hard to believe anything you read.
According to journalists, Wesley Sneijder has joined Manchester United five times, the first time being over a month ago. He has joined Manchester City twice. He has snubbed City twice too, United have ended their interest three times, terms have been agreed four times, and a fee agreed five times. Nasri signed for Manchester City three weeks ago, but then he was staying at Arsenal, this all coming after United had closed in on his signing, then he has since signed again four times, and the latest news is he will sign again once more later this week (for City).
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Sam Wallace is probably right in saying the recent dispute is fuelled partly by the desire of clubs to have more control on the release of information, and more power in deciding what stays behind closed doors. The new tradition of players to tweet information will only have increased their paranoia. But the newspapers do not help themselves by writing critically of clubs – often it is deserved of course, but it is no surprise trust breaks down with clubs.
And journalists alone do not have access to breaking news. Twitter will break any story instantly, with or without journalists, and will spread malicious rumours in much the same way. The age of instant news has also put great doubt over the newspapers themselves. Exclusives are no longer the domain of the morning paper, as by then most people will already know the story. Add to this that agents and the truthful “in-the-knowers” can keep fans up to date with transfer stories, and that plenty of normal fans have an inside line to clubs, and what are reporters providing that’s unique? What’s more, quality bloggers like the Swiss Ramble have no constraints on space, and no deadlines.
Even Joey Barton, in a week of tweeting Nietzsche, the musings of Wittgenstein and calling Brian Woolnough a nugget, found time to say that the press won’t exist in ten years’ time. Wishful thinking on his behalf, but you can see the logic of his point.
What football journalists do have is contacts and access to areas we normal fans don’t (Old Trafford excepted). They get interviews with players and managers, get briefed on stories and get into press conferences. They have plenty of worth in what they can tell us. With experience comes relationships with those in the game, which bring sinsight and information that might not otherwise be known.
And many write excellently of course, such as Martin Samuel, Daniel Taylor or the financial investigations of David Conn. Quality football “writers” are plentiful (see also Jonathan Wilson). But this is more about the need for reporters rather than writers.
Times have changed, and the way news is reported has entered a new era that has made many old methods redundant. Newspapers have faced difficult times for decades, and the football journalists are no different, as they are no longer the sole bearers of news. Increasingly they know that times have changed, and have looked to branch out, be it appearing on radio shows, podcasts, or nibbling on a croissant on the Sunday Supplement panel. There will always be a role for sports reporting in newspapers in this country, but in future, it may well be less about exclusives and more about fulfilling a much broader media role. The competiiton for them is now huge, but they still have a vital role to play.