They are generally the ex-professional footballers that have the unique ability (among footballers) to string a coherent sentence together (sometimes). They have the belief that they have some kind of insight and knowledge of the game which us mere mortals do not possess.
In reality they generally spout the obvious using an array of historical cliches and badly executed metaphors. We are, of course, talking about football pundits and below are our list of the five most annoying:
Jim Beglin
Probably the quintessenial annoying commentator. You may not know his name but you will certainly recognise his voice from ITV. He is the channel’s main co-commentator and is the main reason why I find the BBC sport coverage far superior.
The man has the ability to pronounce the same name a thousand different ways, meaning during a World cup or European championships he really comes into his own. My all time favourite has to be his pronouciation of Paraguay defender Chiqui Arce during the 2002 World cup. Genius!
David Pleat
Pleat has really hung around in the media since his day’s as Spurs manager and I think I know why. He has the ability to fill airtime like no other. Unfortunately he fills it with a stream of incoherent nonsense, often tripping over his words and throwing away sentence after sentence, after sentence in order to make the simplest of points. ‘Get to the point Pleaty!’
Graham Taylor
Maybe my annoyance with Taylor stems from his uneventful term in the ‘biggest job in football.’ More likely it is his reliance on catchphrases. ‘Do I not like that’ he is often heard to cry. If you are referring to your poor grasp of your native tongue Taylor, then I wholeheartedly concur.
Garth Crooks
So what is the most annoying thing about former Tottenham Hotspur man Garth Crooks. Is it the questions he insists on asking, with the answer already in there? Is it his array of extreme facial expressions that could put the most professional mime to shame?
Or is it his constant tendancy to dispute popular opinion, no matter what the evidence to the contray? Surely it has to be his on screen disagreements with fellow pundits which seem to escalate to such heights that Crooks himself looks as though he’s going to stab someone.
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Alan Hansen
For me Alan Hansen has to get the award for most annoying pundit. Imust have sat through hour upon hour of the former Liverpool defender droning on and on about positioning goal side, with endless replays conplete with circling of out of position defenders. His favourite word is abysmal and he seems to use it endlessly. ‘ The defending there was abysimal’.
I believe it was from his mouth that the famously disproved statement, ‘you canna win anything with kids’ was first released into the world. Thanks Alan, but if you really do know so much about defending why not go and coach, and give us all a break!
Legendary football manager Arsene Wenger has today been announced as the official coach for the FIFA Interactive World Cup (FIWC) 2012.
It was recently discovered in a survey carried out by FIFA that 58% of FIWC players believe that playing FIFA 12 can actually improve their performance in real life. The addition of Wenger as coach will add to the overall FIWC experience as he will be delivering football tips and advice helping gamers get the most out of their team and improve tactical knowledge.
Fans will be able to view Wenger’s comments in the FIWC weekly newsletter, on FIFA.com and video content will be available through FIFA’s official Youtube channel.
Wenger commented on his delight at being named FIWC coach saying, “It is an honour for me to be able to act as the FIFA Interactive World Cup 2012 coach. I know that especially young players enjoy virtual football and I see this development as very positive. The love of football is what brings professional players, trainers, amateurs and fans together. There are various ways in which to live out this passion and the FIWC is undoubtedly one of those.”
Wenger also spoke about the similarities between the FIWC and actual football as he said, “The players who play in the FIWC have to make quick decisions just as top class (football) players do. They have to quickly analyse the situations they face at a very quick pace and therefore the players who make the best decisions will win. That is what it is all about, it is analysing the game at a high speed and making the right decisions.”
The FIWC is the world’s largest online gaming tournament, organised by FIFA in association with Presenting Partners EA SPORTS ™ and PlayStation®. The event gives football fans the chance to live out their passion for football by competing against each other at FIFA ’12 with chance of qualifying for the Grand Final in Dubai. Over 1,000,000 players around the world are registered making the FIWC a fiercely competitive tournament, offering the prize of USD 20,000 as well as an invitation to the FIFA Ballon d’Or to meet the biggest football stars in the world.
Any Football FanCast readers Fancy winning a Sony Playstation Vita just by playing FIFA 12 – click here to find out more
Arsenal target Olivier Giroud has today announced that he will not decide his future until the European Championships are over, as The Sun reports.
The 25 year old Frenchman has impressed in Ligue 1 this season, with 21 goals to aid Montpellier to their first ever title. Arsene Wenger is said to be interested in Giroud in an attempt to help take the goal scoring burden from club captain Robin Van Persie.
A reported £12.8 million release clause is attracting Wenger to lure Giroud from Stade de la Mosson, but Champions League runners up Bayern Munich are also said to be interested in signing the French star.
Now both Bayern and Arsenal will be forced to be patient and keep their fingers crossed as Giroud focuses on representing France in Euro 2012.
It is believed that Arsenal scout Giles Grimandi has been closely watching Giroud since March and reporting back to Arsene Wenger inLondon. Giroud himself has said that he ‘loves the French feel at Arsenal’; and this is something that Wenger will no doubt hopes will help the 25 year olds decision after Euro 2012.
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For now Arsenal fans must watch on closely, and see how their summer target fares at the European Championships, especially as his team face England on June the 11th.
Manchester United were pipped to the title on the final day of last season by bitter rivals Manchester City, relinquishing their stranglehold on the league in the process. A key part of manager Sir Alex Ferguson’s gameplan last term was the blooding in of several younger faces, yet the Da Silva twins – Fabio and Rafael – still both struggled for time on the pitch. It begs the question, when will they ever break into the starting eleven?
Liverpool clinched the signings of Florent Sinama Pongolle and Anthony Le Tallec in a joint deal back in 2001 from French club Le Harve to much fanfare, reportedly beating off competition from the likes of Juventus and Barcelona in the process after the pair sparkled in the European U-16 Championships and later the U-17 World Championship. At the time, the move was heralded as something of a transfer coup, beating some of Europe’s elite to the signatures of two of its hottest prospects.
However, while at Anfield, they failed to make the grade in the first-team despite their reported huge promise. They were shifted about on loan to various countries in an attempt to grant them the first-team opportunities that they were being deprived of at their parent club before finally being allowed to move on, with Sinama Pongolle moving to Spanish side Recreativo in 2006 and Le Tallec ending up at Le Mans in France in 2008.
I think it’s fair to say that both struggled to live up to the hype and while the Da Silva twins are clearly players of more potential and greater quality, you have to wonder if the two situations are in danger of mirroring themselves with both players being linked with loan moves away this summer.
The Manchester United defence isn’t in the best of shape. It’s sure to be bolstered by the return of club captain and all-round hard egg Nemanja Vidic, alongside either Jonny Evans or Rio Ferdinand in central defence. Then, of course, there are the likes of utility defenders Chris Smalling and Phil Jones, while Patrice Evra firmly remains the club’s first-choice left-back.
Nevertheless, the defence is in more of a state of flux than in years gone by; these are transitional times for the United back four and, you would think, the ideal period for both the Da Silva twins to make their mark, but a series of niggling injuries and penchant for the treatment table have seriously hindered their progress in recent years.
Manchester United have been heavily linked with a move for Everton left-back Leighton Baines this summer, which would indicate that Ferguson has finally cottoned on to the significant drop in performance of Evra over the past year or so. This would indicate two things – firstly, that the club are in the market for a new left back and long-term heir to the Frenchman and secondly, that Ferguson simply doesn’t trust Fabio yet.
Rafael battled gamely with John O’Shea the year before last for the right-back role and with the Irishman having surprisingly been allowed to move to Sunderland at the beginning of last season, the spot was there for the taking, but he went on to make just 18 appearances in total last term and you have to wonder if his chance has now passed, more by circumstance as opposed to any real fault of his own.
They both clearly have fantastic potential – energetic, committed (sometimes too much) and with an excellent work-rate – the only thing really missing is the fact that they lack positional discipline, which is something that’s easily solved the more that they play, but they’ve made just 44 league appearances between them in the last two seasons.
Injuries have hugely restricted their development at a crucial time in their respective careers. Now should be the time when we are talking about how settled the side are when it comes to the full-back positions for the next decade or so, particularly when you consider their age, but it still hasn’t happened yet.
Ferguson has utilised the loan market to his benefit in the past, with Danny Welbeck at Sunderland and Tom Cleverley at Wigan both earning rave reviews playing week-in, week-out which granted them the platform to push on once they returned to Old Trafford, and the Da Silva twins are more than capable of doing the same.
However, with both Welbeck and Cleverley, you could understand why their route into the starting eleven remianed blocked for the time being, considering the established players and depth of talent that they had in front of them, but that simply doesn’t apply to Fabio and Rafael.
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The French pair of Le Tallec and Sinama Pongolle were expected to achieve great things at Anfield but ultimately, they not only fell well short, they were cast by the wayside and there remains a very real worry that Ferguson is beginning to see a future beyond the talented Brazilian twins, instead choosing to cast his eye elsewhere at more reliable and durable options. If they manage to stay at the club next season, it will remain the biggest of their careers, for even the word ‘potential’ has an expiry date on it.
The English contingent at Liverpool have had a hard time of it of late. Think about Andy Carroll, Jordan Henderson or Stewart Downing and the amount of criticism they’ve received over the past year and you realise that the club needs to start repairing its reputation for possessing quality home grown players like Steven Gerrard or Michael Owen that do the nation proud.
The road to redemption begins with the youngsters. The Reds have a number of talented youth prospects waiting in line, indeed the likes of Jonjo Shelvey and Jay Spearing forced their way into the first team squad last year, while Raheem Sterling also made his debut. The most promising player of them all could be 18-year-old Jack Robinson though, who broke Max Thompson’s 26 year record as Liverpool’s youngest ever player when he came on as a substitute against Hull in 2010 aged just 16 years and 250 days.
It is testament to Robinson’s ability that he hadn’t even featured in the reserve side before Rafa Benitez thrust him into first team contention on that final day of the 2009/10 season and he’s continued his progression ever since. He made a smattering of appearances in the cup competitions in 2010/11, before making his second Premier League appearance against Arsenal off the bench after Fabio Aurelio inevitably picked up an injury. The two sides drew 1-1, but Robinson impressed all onlookers, coping with the pace of Theo Walcott down the right flank quite superbly for a man of such a tender age and he made his first start in the top flight against Birmingham shortly after.
Despite impressing Kenny Dalglish towards the back end of that season, he was restricted to just two senior appearances last year, both in the League Cup. The arrival of Jose Enrique meant Robinson was pushed down the pecking order, but he signed a new long term contract with the club in October nonetheless. The signs are more promising for 2012/12 though, as Fabio Aurelio, the second choice left back has left the club, meaning Robinson is now second choice in that position, fighting with the Spaniard Enrique for first team action. Considering he is just 18 (19 in September), that’s a significant responsibility taking his inexperience into account, but Brendan Rodgers appears to have faith in the young man’s ability, naming him on the bench for his first match in charge, the Europa League qualifier with FC Gomel.
It should be no surprise to anyone at Anfield that Robinson’s rise to the top has been so rapid. He’s been a regular through the England age groups, starring for the U19 side, making 12 appearances, while anyone who watches Liverpool reserves or the Youth Cup for the last couple of years can see that Robinson possesses the talent to go all the way. Like all modern full backs, he’s comfortable on the ball and has the ability to get forward to provide an attacking option, but unlike his right back colleague at Liverpool, Mr Glen Johnson, he’s solid defensively as well. He’s no slouch either, as Theo Walcott will testify. Watching him play can remind you of another English left back, who made the breakthrough early in his career and has gone on to become one of the best in the world in that position. Hopefully Robinson’s personality is a bit more likeable than Ashley Cole’s though.
With Cole still performing at the highest level and Leighton Baines, Kieran Gibbs and Ryan Bertrand waiting in the wings, the Three Lions aren’t short of quality down the left hand side. However, Robinson seems certain to add his name to that list before too long if he continues his current development. It might be better for his career if he was to play regularly elsewhere this season, rather than providing backup to Jose Enrique, indeed Derby manager Nigel Clough has already expressed an interest in taking the player on a temporary deal. For the time being, Robinson remains at Anfield and you know that he won’t let anyone down if he’s called into action. Who knows, he might even claim the first team spot for himself.
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Ambitious Russian outfit Zenit St Petersburg have made a £25 million bid for Manchester United winger Nani, according to The Daily Mail.
The Portugal international is out of favour with Sir Alex Ferguson, and his future is unclear as negotiations over a new contract have broken down with the Old Trafford club.
With added competition for places in the Red Devils’ squad Nani has been linked with a move elsewhere, with Juventus known admirers of the tricky wideman.
However, Zenit are eager to wrap-up a deal for the player before the close of the transfer window and have tested United’s resolve with a large bid.
The player’s representatives are said to have met with the eastern European powerhouses in Amsterdam on Monday, with a move now dependent on whether Sir Alex Ferguson wants to cash in on the star.
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Arsenal have agreed terms with Nuri Sahin, who will now move to north London on a season-long loan according to The Daily Mail.
The Emirates Stadium club are eager to bring in an extra central midfielder after selling Alex Song to Barcelona, and have been in pursuit of the Real Madrid playmaker for the last fortnight.
Sahin has found his opportunities in the Spanish capital limited since moving to the Santiago Bernabeu from Borussia Dortmund last year, and has prospects with Jose Mourinho’s team for 2012-13 were not good.
However, Sahin is eager to reignite his career with Arsene Wenger’s men, who have beaten off competition from Liverpool and AC Milan for the Turkey international’s hand.
There was a stall over the deal between the clubs, but a fee of £14 million has been agreed should the Gunners want to make Sahin’s move permanent next summer.
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Andre Villas-Boas will probably already be making an intricate set of preparations for his side’s trip to Reading this Sunday and there can be no doubts that however he chooses to set his team up, they’re in dire need of attaining all three points.
The set-up in which the Portuguese has adopted since his arrival in North London, has of course been the current 4-2-3-1 set-up, which has certainly not been without it’s set of teething problems. Of course, the fact that he was employed with this ethos in mind, yet failed to attain a set of players able to play it properly till the end of the transfer window, hasn’t helped anybody. Spurs’ chairman Daniel Levy certainly made life tough on the ex-Chelsea man for his team’s first three league fixtures.
Yet when Emmanuel Adebayor is fit enough to lead Spurs’ line of attack on his own and Moussa Dembele is able to start from the off in a deeper midfield role, Villas-Boas should have the tools to get his new system firing on all cylinders. Of course, the touted transfer of Joao Moutinho would have been catalyzed Spurs’ transition to with far, far greater ease, but the side looks far more suited to playing in this way than what it has for their opening games.
However, Tottenham’s well oiled machine of last season may have undergone wholesale changes, but a few of the old cogs are still massively prominent in its post-Redknapp facelift; and it remains to be seen whether these cogs, predominantly to the names of Gareth Bale and Aaron Lennon, can work effectively under Andre Villas-Boas’ stewardship.
Spurs’ opener against Newcastle at St. James Park last month may have ended in defeat, but the suggestions were that their all important wingmen in chief, were up to the task of playing in a more varied role. Gareth Bale seemingly spent the second half of last season auditioning for a more central role and he seemed more than happy to oblige, picking the ball up from a variety of positions and causing all sorts of problems; even hitting the bar with a header at one point.
Likewise, Aaron Lennon seemed to be popping up all over the shop, dinking balls in from both the left and the right. Indeed, Jermain Defoe’s equalizer at the time came as a result from one of Lennon’s forays from the left hand side. It seemed that although there was work still to be done, both of Spurs’ wingers were up to the task of playing in the Villas-Boas’ three behind the frontman.
The last two games, however, seem to have counterbalanced the real positives that fans took from the seasons opener. As stated, it is both unfair and unrealistic to judge Villas-Boas entirely from three games in which he hasn’t had the right players to play the system he’s been brought in to employ- and part of that blame must lie with the chairman. But the problem is, two of his sides’ most lethal assets have carved their reputations playing in a different role. A role that has in no small part, defined a large part of Spurs’ recent success.
Looking backwards is by no means going to help the club move forwards, although Redknapp’s side was focused upon a very traditional sense of wing play. The emphasis of their play has always revolved around getting the balls out to the flanks and letting both Bale and Lennon cause carnage. Be it the balls the pair put into the box, the space they made from searing runs at defenders or their craft at cutting back inside, they have made both their own names and that of their teams’ on the back of such play.
No one can deny that for all it’s success and swashbuckling style, the 4-4-1-1 itself had it’s fair share of tactical faults. But importantly, it was the pair of Bale and Lennon that made it tick. Andre Villas-Boas new system is one that is very much embraced by the top European sides and is very much in keeping with the modern game. Contrary to what the doubters or those of the old-school may say, there is absolutely no reason why it can’t work at Tottenham Hotspur. But whether it can work with both Bale and Lennon in it, remains to be seen.
Because in both home games against West Bromwich Albion and Norwich City, Spurs have looked disjointed- particularly going forward. No one denies that the new regime will take time to implement, but it has been the lack of cohesion and direction that has been particularly worrying. The three behind the striker must be mobile, quicksilver but perhaps just as importantly, they must have a degree of tactical nous. Getting two traditional wingers to play in this way is asking questions of Bale and Lennon- and they’re both giving some uncertain answers.
Gareth Bale has been creating opportunities throughout all three games, but again, they’ve come from his traditional marauding raids down the left-flank. This isn’t to say that Villas-Boas set-up can’t allow for these runs, in the slightest. But both Bale’s and Tottenham’s most prominent opportunities have come from his traditional wing play. Not his stuttering and often ineffective play more centrally. Last season he showed a continuous desire to move in from the left hand side, but bar his virtuoso performance away at Norwich, he often failed to make an impression. He will need time to adapt, but he must show more to suggest he has a real future playing in this role.
Aaron Lennon also has looked uncomfortable at times playing in his newer role. He naturally wants to get chalk on his boots and run at his man. Intelligent movement has never been the fulcrum of his game because it doesn’t need to be- he does one thing, but he does it very well. There is nothing wrong with that. But the problem is if both Bale and Lennon revert back to their natural instincts, then the system will ultimately be doomed to failure. The system needs them to be able to make an impact more centrally as they have to chip in with the goals to make it stick.
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There’s nothing to say that both Bale and Lennon can’t refine their roles in this team. Nothing happens overnight and they’ve both had to play in a system, as the rest of the side has, that hasn’t had the players to cater to it. But unfairly or not, the side is already under a real level of extrinsic pressure and Villas-Boas can’t afford to give them half a season to make it work. He simply doesn’t have the time.
The sticking point is that both Lennon and particularly Bale’s ability are too important for Spurs to leave out- even if he wanted to, there simply aren’t any viable alternatives. Villas-Boas must be brave and he must stick with his philosophy and what he believes in. But these are the tools of which he has to work with and if until January he can’t get them to adapt, he must do whatever it takes to do so. And the realties of that aren’t particularly easy at all.
What do you think about Bale and Lennon’s role in this Spurs team? How long can AVB afford to give them to adapt and can they both co-exist in the new set-up? Let me know what you’d do on Twitter: follow @samuel_antrobus and bat me all your views.
Tottenham Hotspur number one Brad Friedal took to Twitter to share his anger at comments made by former Manchester United and France goalkeeper Fabien Barthez in regards to Hugo Lloris’ situation at White Hart Lane.
Lloris, who impressed on his Spurs debut in midweek, has been told that Friedel is still the number one choice between the sticks by manager Andre Villas-Boas but Barthez felt that was wrong.
“Lloris is one of the five best goalkeepers in the world.” Barthez had said last week.
“He is faster than Friedel, he jumps higher, and he is very strong mentally. What is happening now is incomprehensible, but I am not concerned. He will become the centre-piece for the club.
“Hugo is a calm guy, a good worker. Tottenham will not let him stay on the bench for a long time.”
But Friedel has acted angrily to the comments and felt they were ‘ignorant and disrespectful’.
“Just saw barthez comments. I normally don’t comment on such crap but when disrespected by someone I don’t respect I must.” Friedel wrote on his personal Twitter account (@friedel_b).
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“Barthez was ignorant, disrespectful and out of order to mention my name.”
Gabriel Agbonlahor does not expect to be the next high-profile departure from the Aston Villa squad.
The striker has seen the talents of James Milner, Ashley Young, Gareth Barry and Stewart Downing leave Villa Park since making his first-team debut aged 19 six-and-a-half years ago. Agbonlahor is now one of the longest-serving players in Paul Lambert’s squad, and he is adamant that his affinity for the club he has served through the junior ranks into the senior set-up is as strong as ever. He told Sky Sports:
“You can never say never, but as long as the club want me here – I’ve got two years and an option for another year – then I will stay. If the club wants to keep me and I’m happy, I will stay at the club for the rest of my career. You can say I haven’t had a move, I haven’t had this or that, but I’m happy to be at Aston Villa. If those players (Milner, Young, Barry, Downing) had been home-grown players, you never know what their choice would have been. For me even if a big club had come in for me, they would have known that I wanted to stay here. It’s different for me.”