Team GB captain Ryan Giggs has admitted that he is desperate to win gold at the Olympic Games.
The Manchester United man is eager to lead his side to the final on August 11, and states that the competition will be his last hurrah internationally.
“As a footballer, you don’t start out in your career hoping to win the Olympics. You want to win leagues, FA Cups and European Cups,” he admitted to The Sun.
“I’m still disappointed I never got to a major championship with Wales but we weren’t good enough to get to a European Championships or World Cup.
“But to get the chance to play in a tournament at such a late stage of my career is obviously one I’m excited about and looking forward to.
“Of course, you want to win every game and win the tournament. We know it’s going to be tough — but having seen the quality of our team over the last few weeks, we’re hopeful of going a long way.
“An Olympic gold would be up there with my European medals. I don’t like to prioritise any medal or trophy, because it’s always a good feeling when you win.
“It’s always a challenge — no matter what you win — and this is a big challenge.
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“It’s going to be difficult because there’s a lot of quality in the tournament but there’s quality in our dressing room as well,” he concluded.
Manchester United midfielder Anderson is at a crossroads in his career at Old Trafford; one more season interrupted by injury and poor form will surely see him shipped out to bring an end to a frustrating six year-spell at the club, but is he even up to the task in hand?
The Brazilian midfielder signed from the club back in 2007-8 for a fee in the region of £17m from Portuguese club Porto with a burgeoning reputation as a creative attacking midfielder off the back of some superb performances for his country at the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship where he won the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player as Brazil took silver. There is clearly a player there, or was to be more precise, there was, which is what makes him such an infuriating figure.
Upon moving to England, though, Sir Alex Ferguson set about altering his style from a creative attacking midfielder into more of a box-to-box midfielder and it’s been a bumpy transition, with the 24 year-old failing to score in his first two seasons at all, while enduring a series of muscle and joint-based injuries, which would indicate that he struggles to cope with the physical rigours of the position and the league in general.
I’ve long thought that his reputation in his debut season, where it appeared that everyone thought he was brilliant, was built more upon two superb eye-catching performances in the big televised games against Liverpool that term as opposed to any real consistent form and he’s struggled to put together a decent run ever since to be honest, not making more than 20 league appearances in his last four seasons. He plays the game at a lively tempo, which the at times static midfield at the club could do with a bit more of and he’s got a decent range of passing, but he needs to prove it over a sustained period to be truly worthy of another shot.
There’s also the fact that last season, while back in Brazil, that he was fined for refusing to take a breathalyzer test after being pulled over by the police, not to mention his ballooning weight problems prior to pre-season and he starts to represent something of a lost cause. Can the club really afford to carry him for another year?
With Tom Cleverley equally as injury-prone, Darren Fletcher ruled out with a long-term illness for the foreseeable future and both Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs coming to the end of their respective careers, the midfield department at United looks threadbare with options. Anderson featured just three times after the turn of the year last campaign and they simply cannot afford for him to do the same this term. Add into the mix that the club have bought Shinji Kagawa and Nick Powell this summer and it looks as if Ferguson is preparing for the worst-case scenario already.
Anderson said of his injury troubles last term: “The last two years have been very difficult,” he told reporters. No-one wants a player who has a lot of injuries. But I am still young. I am only 24. And I believe I can get through this. All summer I stayed in Europe to work on my knee. Now I am 100%. I don’t have any more injuries. I don’t have a problem. This is a very big season for me. The thing is, if I stay fit, I can be that player. I can be a success at United. You have seen, when I don’t have a problem, I play well. The problems come when I have an injury. After six or seven games last season it felt as though one leg was 30% weaker than the other.”
The problem with Anderson has never been his talent, nor his potential, but his application and his determination, two key values which United fans appreciate more than anything. He doesn’t quite have the discipline to play a holding role, and his partnership alongside Tom Cleverley at the start of last season, which has been cited by the pro-Anderson brigade that he’s worthy of another shot, saw the central midfield area riddled with gaping holes in it as time and time again the opposition just seemed to walk right through it at will.
He can deliver the odd brilliant performance, and somewhat unusually, in big games as opposed to the more routine ones, with decent showings against Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham last term, but it’s that crucial consistency which is sorely lacking and at £17m – it’s bizarre that Alberto Aquilani is often touted as a huge flop whereas Anderson has been just as bad to be honest and cost roughly the same fugure. The club would do well to see any sort of return on their investment at the moment and I’m not entirely sure whether a club in Europe would take such a risk if they did decide to sell him.
Liverpool fans are often mocked for the “this will be our year” schtick, although I can’t say I’ve actually met one of these mythical fans ever before, but Anderson apologists are just as bad, “if he stays injury free, he could be a top-class midfielder, this will be his year” – his continued support from some sections of the terraces is just plain bizarre.
In his defence, he has had a torrid time with injuries and he’s still pretty young, so there’s plenty of time to prove himself over the course of his career, but his time away on the treatment table is far too often used as an all too convenient excuse by his supporters and truth be told, nobody is really sure what he’s capable of delivering over the course of a long campaign, stretched over four competitions, and that’s the most concerning thing of all.
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Hope in this instance is blind and there’s no real evidence that he’s good enough these days. Blinkered fans would do well to remember that after six years at Old Trafford, he is still something of an unknown quantity, which tells you everything you need to know about how poor and frustrating he’s been. Talk about Anderson is always centered on the word ‘if’, but if he has one more iffy season, then you wouldn’t begrudge Ferguson for cutting his losses and getting rid at the end of the season.
Fernando Torres has spoken about his year from hell at Chelsea, and revealed that when he was on the bench he did not want to come on as he was afraid things could only get worse.
The Spanish striker has suffered a dramatic dip in form since a January 2011 move from Liverpool, and was largely used as a substitute as a consequence last season.
Torres admits that he has had a tough time, and thanked the fans for their patience.
“The season was not for me, it was for others,” he told La Razon, translated to English by The Sun.
“Chelsea wins the FA Cup but I don’t play the semi-final nor the final. I didn’t taste anything.
“I feel I participated a bit more in the Champions League but even so it was not the Champions League I wanted to win, not like that. I want to win another Champions League and in a different way.
“The fans helped me a lot — and you don’t understand why.
“You come from outside and you have played well in this league and, with the Spanish mentality, the first who should have turned against you are the fans. You are not living up to expectations but they still support you. These people are special.
“At times I was thinking, ‘I will sit here on the bench, I won’t make any noise, I don’t even want to play.’ But they are demanding that you jump on the pitch and play. They lifted my spirits so many times. Not even my team-mates succeeded in doing that in this way. Whatever I do from now on will be for the fans.
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“That is why I want to win another Champions League. For them,” he concluded.
Manchester United have agreed a five-year deal with Japanese company Toshiba to build a £13 million state-of-the-art medical centre at their training ground in Carrington, according to The Telegraph.
Manchester United’s injury woes last season led many people to argue that it made the difference between Manchester United winning and eventually losing the title to Champions Manchester City last season.
Research carried out at the end of last season showed that the Red Devils had the worst injury list in the Premier League. Manchester United suffered 39 “significant” injuries to their squad last campaign which resulted in a combined 1,681 days being lost to injury by Sir Alex Ferguson’s men. By contrast, Manchester City picked up just seven “significant” injuries with a combined 186 days lost to injury.
Last season, Sir Alex Ferguson responded to criticism by former United and City midfielder Owen Hargreaves after he suggested that the medical team put his career on the line after administering him with the wrong treatment for his chronic knee injury. At the time, Ferguson argued that Manchester United had “some of the best sports medical staff in the world” at the club.
The new medical centre will be built with the aim of fast-tracking players progress back to full recovery and enabling the players to be treated in a more private setting as appose to the nearby hospitals where they currently receive treatment.
The Premier League runners-up have argued that the implementation of the new medical centre is necessary in order for the club to keep up with the constant advances in sport science. The centre is thought to be ahead of schedule and will open in the November of this year.
Meanwhile, United have also completed the signature of talented Chilean youngster Angelo Hendriquez from Universidad de Chile for a fee of £4 million. Ferguson spoke of his delight in being approved international clearance for the 18-year-old striker, “Angelo has made a tremendous impact on the game in his short career so far. His pace is a great asset and he reads the game really well for someone of such a short game.”
United veteran Paul Scholes has also revealed his delight at being able to play alongside another new arrival at Old Trafford this season, Shinji Kagawa. Kagawa has made an impressive start to his Manchester United career after joining the club from German champions Borussia Dortmund.
Scholes said of Kagawa, “Shinji is a top player who did great in Germany and we’re lucky to have him. He is just a clever footballer who gets into those great positions where it’s difficult for other teams to pick him up.”
Sir Alex Ferguson is delighted with the performances of new arrivals of Kagawa and Robin van Persie who arrived from Arsenal who appear to have moulded into Manchester United’s style of play comfortably. We will likely to be seeing more of his other new additions, Henriquez and youngster from Crewe Alexandra Nick Powell, for the Capital One Cup tie against Newcastle United later this month.
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Demba Ba climbed off the bench to earn Newcastle a share of the spoils against Everton who had two goals disallowed in a breathtaking contest at Goodison Park.
The Senegalese striker was sensationally left out of the starting line by Alan Pardew prior to kick off but came on at the break to save the Magpies after Leighton Baines and Victor Anichebe looked to have sealed a deserved victory for the home side. David Moyes’ men also had two clear cut goals from Marouane Fellaini and Anichebe controversially ruled out as they had to settle for a point.
It took the Toffees only 15 minutes to break the deadlock as Baines played a neat one-two with Steven Pienaar before charging into the penalty area and blasting the ball past a helpless Steve Harper. The visitors struggled to get to grips with their opponents but still had chances to equalise with Papiss Cisse volleying wide from close range whilst Vurnon Anita was denied by Baines on the line.
Some slight tweaks by Pardew at the interval worked wonders as Ba was sent on in place of the ineffective Sylvain Marveaux and levelled proceedings just give five minutes after his introduction finishing superbly after being picked out by a pinpoint pass from Yohan Cabaye. Fellaini than had a goal disallowed for offside before Everton were left fuming as Ancihebe’s header crossed the line 12 minutes from time only for referee Mike Jones to wave play on after glancing at his motionless assistant as Mike Williamson scrambled the ball clear.
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It didn’t take the Nigerian long to get his name on the scoresheet as he turned Steven Taylor in the 88th minute before firing low across Harper. But there was more drama to come as Williamson’s long pass was chested down by Shola Ameobi for Ba to touch the ball under Tim Howard and earn Newcastle an unlikely point.
Arsenal playmaker Santi Cazorla has stated that he is relishing added responsibility at Arsenal, and feels his career has progressed since moving to England.
The talented attacker joined the north London side from Malaga in the summer, and has initially impressed with his skill and eye for a pass.
Cazorla has stated that moving to the Emirates Stadium is a new and worthwhile challenge for him.
“It could be that in the few months I have been there people have been talking a lot more about me,” Cazorla told Spanish reporters, published in The Telegraph.
“I feel important at Arsenal and I want to keep developing. The way Arsenal play and the responsibility they have given me is something I have always sought out.
“I think it’s a step forward in my career and I hope to improve a great deal in the future, he continued.
Cazorla is in Spain’s squad for upcoming World Cup qualifiers, and although he is behind the likes of David Silva and Cesc Fabregas in selection terms, wants to play a role in the side’s success.
“I am happy with my role and it’s a privilege to be here.
“Hopefully I can continue to help out as much as possible, I am working every day towards that. I am feeling in very good shape and I consider myself fortunate to have the opportunities I am being given,” he concluded.
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There are a select group of Premier League players, that wherever they go, whenever they touch the ball, will be greeted with a chorus of boos and jeers.
Some will experience this at just one particular ground. For example when Fernando Torres goes back to Anfield, you can imagine the reception he receives from the fans who used to idolize him is frosty to say the least.
But some manage to achieve it at every ground in the country.
Luis Suarez has been in England less than two years, but has already carved out a reputation as one of the most hated players in the league, down to his dramatics on the pitch and incidents off it.
John Terry is exactly the same. The former England captain finds himself the pantomime villain at every ground in the country following off field scandals.
A few Premier League players suffer for their actions with their country. Wayne Rooney receives a fair amount of stick for the times he has not produced it for England, while being so often impressive for his club.
Then likes of Lee Cattermole and Joey Barton when he was plying his trade in the division do little to endear themselves to supporters with their dirty play on the pitch. Players such as these, notorious for picking up cards, are never the object of fans affections.
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There are a fair few to pick from, but who do you think is the most hated player in the Premier League?
Liverpool are considering a £7m swoop for Newcastle striker Demba Ba in their attempt to bring a top-class striker to the club in January, reports The Daily Mail.
The Reds were already looking short in the attacking department after letting Andy Carroll join West Ham on-loan for the season but the situation worsened this week with the news that Fabio Borini broke his foot while on international duty with Italy U21’s.
Brendan Rodgers has been following the progress of South Korean youngster Son Heung-min but the Anfield club have been informed by Hamburg that the one of brightest stars in Bundesliga is not for sale causing them to switch attentions to Newcastle’s Ba.
The 27-year-old Senegal international has an £7m buy-out clause that kicks in again January which may result in a move away from the North East especially with Ba in such fine goalscoring form. He has six goals to his name this season and is currently the leading goalscorer in the Premier League ahead of Liverpool’s very own Luis Suarez.
While it appears that Rodgers can pick up the striker for a bargain price, trying to agree reasonable personal terms with Ba may prove more problematic. Newcastle boss Alan Pardew has already expressed his disgust at the strikers request for an inflated wage package which he deemed as unrealistic and Liverpool will not want to pay over the odds in wages.
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Rodgers will be especially eager to bring in extra firepower during January after missing out on Clint Dempsey on transfer deadline day and Ba could be a proven solution to the problem.
Arsène Wenger has insisted that he wants to keep Theo Walcott and for negotiations to be resolved prior to the end of the year.
Many rumours have been circulating over the future of Walcott, whose contract lasts until summer 2013, at Arsenal, with reports representatives rejected a deal in August, with Walcott apparently wanting higher wages than what was being offered, while also wanting to be a lead striker, causing speculation about interest from clubs including Liverpool.
However, Wenger has made it clear that he wants to fight to get him to stay on. He said: “My desire is to keep Theo. We do what’s needed to keep him and hopefully [as] I told you many times, we can sort this situation out very soon – very soon is before the end of December, one way or another, that is for sure. I don’t want to go into any details [over wage negotiations], but you can believe me [that] we do the maximum we can to keep our best players.”
Wenger also insists that he is not concerned that players are revolting against his tactics, with Lukas Podolski the latest player wanting to be leading Arsenal’s attack.
He said: “I don’t find many players who don’t want to play central. Podolski has 101 caps in Germany and 101 on the left. I brought him as well with the idea that, when needed, he would play through the middle. I like the idea, but we will use him where he is useful for the team.”
Walcott scored in Arsenal’s Champions League draw with Schalke this Tuesday.
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England manager Roy Hodgson has insisted that Wilfried Zaha should be “thankful” to be part of the Three Lions’ squad for their friendly against Sweden.
The Crystal Palace man received a shock call-up following news that established stars such as Wayne Rooney and Theo Walcott were unfit to play.
The winger was actually born in the Ivory Coast, but has spent much of his life in England making him eligible to play for either nation.
Should he fail to make it onto the field of play Zaha will still be free to join the Ivorian set-up, but Hodgson has insisted that this will not force him to play the 20-year-old:
“If any players prefer to play for a national team other than England they are welcome to do so,
“If our national team is not strong enough motivation for them then that they are not the type of player we want anyway.
“Perhaps I naively assume that when you give a player who has played for the Under-19s and Under-21s that they would want to play for the national team.
“I’d expect them to cycle there. I’d expect they’d be thankful for the opportunity.”
Hodgson did admit that he is a big fan of Zaha and has been watching him for a long period of time:
“He has not been chosen on the basis of one short training session,
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“He has been selected on the basis of the past couple of years. He was a target of West Brom when I was there. I know what qualities he brings.
“When the opportunity arose with a gap in the squad to bring him it was an obvious chance to bring him in.”