Transfer news...

Transfer news...

[h=1]Manchester United will be hard to knock off their Premier League perch[/h] While their domestic rivals search desperately for a recipe for success United already have the winning ingredients


Sir-Alex-Ferguson-007.jpg
Sir Alex Ferguson's Premier League know-how means it will take a genius manager to outdo him in a title race. Photograph: Tom Jenkins

Thanks are due to Joey Barton for enlivening the dog days of summer, but though a new Premier League campaign is finally upon us it remains difficult to ignore last season's news. Manchester United are now out on their own in terms of league championships garnered, with a ridiculous 12 of the record-breaking total of 19 titles being won on the present manager's watch.
That sort of statistic makes everyone else's arrangements look temporary, no matter how many years Sir Alex Ferguson sails on past his free bus pass. Nothing is ever new these days at United, just about every situation has been seen before, recognised and responded to. The history books indicate that you have to be a certified coaching genius – José Mourinho, or the early versions of Arsène Wenger – to disturb the Manchester monolith, unless you inherit a strong team and get lucky with a United collapse, as Carlo Ancelotti did at Chelsea two seasons ago. Either way, the odds are that you or your success rate will fall by the wayside before long, leaving the master of the long game to make a couple of close-season tweaks and prepare for much more of exactly the same.
All United have done over the summer is freshen up with Ashley Young and Phil Jones, in much the same way that they added Javier Hernández to the mix last season and, though bringing in Wesley Sneijder would allow them to play in a slightly different way in Europe, one suspects the ingredients for another title challenge are in place at the club already. That is because all their domestic rivals are in some form of transition.
André Villas-Boas at Chelsea is not yet established as the new Mourinho. He may be young and promising, but he does not arrive on the back of a Champions League triumph, and his squad is old and more than a little creaky without the energy of Michael Essien. As a general rule it normally takes foreign coaches a good few months, if not a whole season, to adapt to England – Mourinho and Ancelotti won the title at the first attempt, as did Wenger, in his first full season, though these were exceptional feats in exceptional circumstances – and Chelsea appear to be placing a lot of faith in the belief that the eventual arrival of Luka Modric will simultaneously boost their creativity and turn Fernando Torres back into a lethal threat.
Tottenham, even with Modric, cannot be guaranteed to do any better than Harry Redknapp's gloomy prediction of fifth or sixth, and without any European distractions this season Liverpool look more likely to break back into the top four. That's assuming Andy Carroll is as good as Kenny Dalglish thinks he is, Steven Gerrard gets better soon and Stewart Downing, Jordan Henderson and Charlie Adam prove worth the money. It could be a good or even great season for Liverpool, though not even the most optimistic scouser is pitching his sights higher than a top-four finish. Knocking United off their perch is going to have to wait.
The noisy neighbours may appear to be in a far stronger position to get right up United's nose this season, especially if any more signings of the calibre of Sergio Agüero are added before the transfer deadline, yet the simple fact is that City are making their first excursion into the Champions League, while United have been presenting a joint threat in Europe and at home for the past 16 seasons. That makes a huge difference. City will do well, one feels, to hold their own in Europe and requalify for the competition next year, avoiding Tottenham's fate of blazing gloriously but briefly.
That in itself would represent significant progress. While City may be in a position to challenge United for the title were they to make it their sole priority – although Roberto Mancini would need to stamp his authority on the squabbling egos within his squad, determine his best team and prevent the impression continually leaking out that being paid a fortune to live and work in Manchester is some sort of unendurable hardship – experience suggests that Champions League debutants find European highs and lows equally distracting to their attempts to achieve league consistency.
All of which might indicate Arsenal should be United's closest challengers this season. Sadly, almost all of last season indicated the opposite. Wenger is Ferguson's closest counterpart in terms of longevity, and he, too, has become expert at the modern requisite of competing in Europe while staying in contention at home, but without the cash backing and perhaps the scale of United's ambition the Arsenal model operates on slightly lower returns. It is still an incredible achievement to entertain crowds and enjoy Champions League football every year for more than a decade, but Wenger has discovered over the past 12 months that players as well as supporters favour achievements of a more tangible, silver-plated nature, and that six seasons is too long for promise to go unfulfilled. Where Arsenal finish probably depends on what happens in the remainder of the transfer window, though even if Cesc Fábregas and Samir Nasri stay it is hard to look at last season's evidence and conclude that United need be unduly worried.
Where Arsenal did score last season was in giving Barcelona a game, if not exactly a scare. The Gunners won the home leg of their Champions League knockout tie and, though outplayed, were a tad unlucky in the circumstances that led to their defeat in the Camp Nou. They offered more, in other words, than United managed against Barcelona in their past two Champions League finals. No matter how exciting, controversial and entertaining the Premier League manages to be this season, the bottom line is that every leading English club, with the possible exception of Arsenal, are hoping someone else knocks Barcelona out of Europe.
United, in particular, seem to be in denial over what it may take to counter the Catalans' successful brand of possession-based, contact-free football, with players, manager and even the chief executive repeating the mantra that the club simply need to carry on doing what they do best and Europe will eventually be conquered. In reality it may not be, at least not for some time. United have certainly cracked England, where more of the same will almost certainly suffice, but in admitting that his side took a hiding at Wembley in May Ferguson confirmed that the best this country can offer is some way short of good enough. If it is any consolation the same is true of Italy, Germany and the rest of Spain, though the fear is that continental sides will adapt more easily to the tiki-taka style that Fifa's rule changes and refereeing directives have helped foster, while the traditional English virtues of pace, strength and aggressive determination will find themselves out of fashion and out of favour with officials.
And you thought Fifa only discriminated against England when handing out World Cups? At least over the next nine months the Premier League can be relied upon to give the world a show, and if the title ends up at a familiar destination the rest of it remains gloriously unpredictable, even including the top four positions for so long set in stone. Predictions? United top, QPR bottom. Blackburn and Swansea relegated, unless Newcastle make another unnecessary nosedive into the Championship. Liverpool to make the top four, with Arsenal. Wheels to come off slightly at Chelsea and spectacularly at City. Football Association to invite Wenger, rather than Redknapp, to succeed Fabio Capello as England manager. Just guessing.
 
[h=2]Manchester United v Manchester City, Community Shield, 2.30pm Sunday 7 August[/h] [h=1]Manchester United's magnificent seven get ready to ride at Wembley[/h] Sir Alex Ferguson has a posse of strikers at his disposal this season with Manchester City the first to feel the force




  • Wayne-Rooney-and-Javier-H-007.jpg
    Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernández are Manchester United's first-choice front two, with five top-class strikers in support. Photograph: Jon Super/AP

    Manchester City and Liverpool have been doing most of the big spending this summer yet the defending champions still have the attacking numbers. Sir Alex Ferguson has no fewer then seven strikers on his roster going into the new Premier League season and he has no plans to ditch any of them before the end of the transfer window.
    "I'm happy with the situation, I'm not going to complain about it," the United manager says. "Some clubs would love to have seven strikers. There is a difficulty in terms of managing the situation in the sense of the number of games they can get but I've got all those players and I plan to keep them and get on with it.
    "I expect them all to be here at the end of the transfer window, we'll compensate those that can't play by making sure they train well. You might get an injury down the road, you never know. At the moment I've no intention of changing."
    Javier Hernández already has a slight injury that will keep him out of Sunday afternoon's Community Shield against Manchester City. In addition to his exertions in the Copa América the Mexican was concussed on United's pre-season tour and will be given a couple of weeks off to recover.
    It remains to be seen how many games Michael Owen and Dimitar Berbatov will start this season, never mind Mame Biram Diouf, Federico Macheda and Danny Welbeck, but Ferguson is not sending anyone out on loan and all five of the support acts behind the first-choice front two of Hernández and Wayne Rooney are proven Premier League goalscorers. Berbatov, in case anyone has forgotten, shared the Golden Boot with Carlos Tevez last season.
    Tevez will also be absent at Wembley on Sunday, though plenty of interest resides in how well Sergio Agüero fits into the City attack. It has been universally agreed that City have not just spent big this time but have bought themselves a player of genuine class and, though Ferguson may have reservations about how the neighbours will cope with the demands of their first Champions League season, he counts himself among Agüero's admirers.
    "He is a good player, City's squad is very strong now, with Dzeko and Silva and Balotelli and Tevez," he says. "I don't know exactly how they will play Agüero, who they will pair him with or whether he will be on his own. He always played with Diego Forlán at Atlético [Madrid] so it will be interesting."
    Ferguson says he is surprised City have not bought more players during the window. He expected them to strengthen even more and fears they still might, though he was most amused at the comment made by André Villas‑Boas on signing the 19-year-old Oriol Romeu from Barcelona that Chelsea want to sign players at a younger age.
    "Well, they don't," he says. "Or at least they haven't done. We have always had a good nucleus of young players at the club. We've always been that way but there was a period about five years ago when I had a rethink about how we develop the club when young players came back into my mind. The younger you get them and the more work you do then, the longer they will be with you."
    Barcelona appear the embodiment of that philosophy, though United's youth ranks have yielded impressive results in the past and may do so again. Already there is a younger feel to this season's squad with the additions of Phil Jones, Ashley Young and David de Gea, though Ferguson is just as pleased with players who have come all the way through the club's system and are set to make their mark this season.
    "Tom Cleverley and Danny Welbeck gained important experience of playing in the Premier League with other clubs on loan last season," he says. "Cleverley in particular played a lot of games [at Wigan], Welbeck would have played more [for Sunderland] but for a couple of injuries. They have come back challenging for first-team places here and this season I think they will. I don't have any worries at all about them needing time to settle back in. Welbeck has been with us since he was eight. Cleverley joined us at 13. They have already been at the club a long, long time. They have grown up and been educated here.
    "Generally speaking it is transfer purchases who sometimes take time to settle in. Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra, for example, did not integrate immediately, though we did sign them in January which can sometimes be a problem. It is not always easy to switch countries and leagues in the middle of a season."
    City are making their first appearance in the Community Shield since losing to Burnley in 1973, an event so far back in time it predates the now accepted customs of league champions playing FA Cup winners and the game automatically being staged at Wembley.
    United have been involved on no fewer than 18 occasions since and, while not quite all the visits have been in Ferguson's time, the manager is sufficiently familiar with the drill to sound superbly blasé about it. "The Community Shield has no bearing on what happens during a season but we always like to view it as a stepping stone to the first game," he says. "When you play at Wembley, you always want to win. I think that's the only significance."
    When the season proper starts next weekend, Ferguson believes a lowish number of points will win the title. He predicts the necessary total will be around 84, nothing like the Premier League record of 95 that Chelsea set in José Mourinho's first season in 2005 or even the 91 United managed in 2000.
    "Our points total was high that year because we only had Arsenal to worry about," he explains. "Then Chelsea came on the scene with an incredible performance. But what you saw last year was teams in the middle of the league taking points from the top teams.
    "There are six sides fighting to get into the top four now and even mid-table teams are spending hugely. That's why I still think this league is the best product around, because it's so hard to win. But last year we won with 80 points and I don't think it will take too many more this time."

 
[h=1]Nani scores twice as Manchester United overcome Manchester City[/h]




[h=2]Community Shield[/h]

  • Smalling 52,
  • Nani 58,
  • Nani 94

  • Lescott 38,
  • Dzeko 46

Manchester United 3
Manchester City 2




  • Kevin McCarra at Wembley
  • guardian.co.uk, Sunday 7 August 2011 16.48 BST Article history
    Manchester-Uniteds-Nani-c-007.jpg
    Manchester United's Nani celebrates scoring the winning goal against Manchester City in the Community Shield. Photograph: Laurence Griffiths - The Fa/The FA via Getty Images

    The Community Shield match was both hard-bitten and full of incisive football. Nearly all of the attacking flair came from Manchester United, who rallied from 2-0 down to win 3-2 when Nani capitalised on a missed challenge by the Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany to run clear, take the ball round goalkeeper Joe Hart and score in injury time. The game was gripping but not always edifying.
    It is as well that they retired the old title of the Charity Shield, which had far too altruistic a tone for a match that as hard-fought and sometimes ugly as this. City collected five bookings. Even so, it had to be relished for the intensity and, on sufficient occasions, for the skill. United, for a while, looked as if they would find events at Wembley difficult to bear and not just because their opponents looked set to have a fillip for the Premier League campaign to come.
    The 20-year-old goalkeeper United David de Gea, seen as promising successor to the retired Edwin van der Sar, was all but motionless as Edin Dzeko's shot went past him in first-half injury time to send City into a 2-0 lead. Neither De Gea nor his defenders can be pardoned either for the scope they gave Joleon Lescott when he had headed in from a David Silva free-kick after 38 minutes. Prior to that, it had often been United who looked both eager and effective.
    Sir Alex Ferguson made three substitutions at the interval and this continued to be an uncompromising occasion. The first United goal, after 52 minutes, will, however, have been much too simple for the liking of the City manager Roberto Mancini as Chris Smalling turned in an Ashley Young set-piece. United's leveller six minutes later gleamed with both style and the intuitive understanding of players linking perfectly. Passes rippled between Wayne Rooney, the substitute Tom Cleverly and Nani before the Portuguese clipped the ball into the net for the first of his goals in the 58th minute. City, to their cost, could not contain him.

 
[h=2]Manchester City v Manchester United, Community Shield, 2.30pm, Sunday 7 August[/h] [h=1]Roberto Mancini rues mental slide as new season dawns[/h] • 'When I was a player we were mentally stronger'
• Manchester City face rivals United in Community Shield




  • Louise Taylor
  • guardian.co.uk, Saturday 6 August 2011 23.00 BST Article history
    Roberto-Mancini-drags-Mar-005.jpg
    Roberto Mancini drags Mario Balotelli out of trouble the last time both Manchester clubs met at Wembley in the FA Cup. Photograph: Tom Jenkins for the Guardian

    Roberto Mancini believes that the increased physical strength, speed and stamina of modern footballers has been matched by a decline in their mental robustness. This conviction helps explain why Manchester City's Italian manager has retained patience and sympathy with his immensely gifted but sometimes errant young striker Mario Balotelli.
    "When I was a player 15 or 20 years ago we were mentally stronger than they are now," said Mancini as he prepared to meet Manchester United in the Community Shield. "Why are they less strong?" mused the 46-year-old, who, in his gloriously creative attacking heyday, won trophies galore with Sampdoria. "We were hungry then, we had less money and we wanted to become top players. We were prepared to give up everything for this.
    "We were serious. When I was young, 17 or 18, I made mistakes like all of you. But when you are 20 it is time that you change because a player's career is not long – 10 or 12 years. It is important that Mario [incidentally, aged 20] understands this.
    "But I have more patience with players that are young. I understand Mario is homesick and I am patient with him although sometimes I am really disappointed with him but he needs experience and he understands that he needs to improve his behaviour.
    "When I spoke to him last time he said: 'Boss, I want to be here.' I have known him since he was at Inter. Mario's a fantastic guy and I don't say that because I bought him or because I'm his manager, it's because he is a fantastic guy.
    "He sometimes does incredible behaviour on the pitch, sometimes he doesn't think but, off the field, Mario is often very kind to people. He's fantastic. I trust him because I know him very well and off the pitch he's an incredible man. I also think Mario is one of the top players in the world."
    Mancini will need Balotelli to be at his best this season when City strive for the title while also craving Champions League success. The dangerous diversion of competing on such double front explains why Sir Alex Ferguson regards Liverpool as Premier League dark horses. "It's a bonus for Liverpool that they don't have that distraction. It's difficult having those European nights and then you come home and have an early kick off on a Saturday which is absolutely ridiculous," Ferguson said.
    "The Champions League is not easy. It's a fantastic league but it's the game after it that's difficult to prepare for because the Premier League is just as important. I always look at the fixtures right away and see whether we're home or away after the European games and what time we kick off.
    "It's not fair, for every club. No team in Europe should have an early kick off on a Saturday after a Champions League game; it's ridiculous but Sky dominate that. Sky are running the game now. What do you do? Sacrifice the points?"
    It remains awkward for a manager to bite the hand which has made English football excessively rich, but Ferguson believes there is a downside to the game's lucrative television deal with Sky. "France are the best at protecting their teams because they have Friday games," United's manager said.
    "We played Lille and Lyon over the years and they always played their games on Friday before we met them. We can't do that because of the control of Sky and they are going to pick the best [Premier League] games aren't they? That's the problem."
    Carlos Tevez is expected back by Manchester City for training on Monday as joins up with Roberto Mancini and has squad for the first time since the club won the FA Cup in May.
    Tevez's future is still unclear with the Argentine still wanting to depart City, despite his proposed move to Corinthians earlier in the summer not happening due to the Brazilian club not providing the requisite finance.
    Whether the 27-year-old will feature in City's opening Premier League at Eastlands against Swansea City on Monday-eek is doubtful as Tevez has not played since the Copa America last month.

 
[h=2]Community Shield: Manchester United 3-2 Manchester City[/h] [h=1]Five things we learned from the Community Shield[/h] City have work to do, Nani could be the player to watch and it is too early to compare David de Gea to Massimo Taibi



  • Manchester-City-v-Manches-007.jpg
    Tom Cleverley celebrates after Nani scored Manchester United's winning goal in the Community Shield. Photograph: Ian Walton/Getty Images

    [h=2]1 Manchester City are still a work in progress[/h]The banner in the City end read "England's Barcelona" but, in truth, it did not feel that way. The passing was unusually careless at times, the defending was totally out of keeping from the City of last season and there were moments – Aleksandar Kolarov kicking a corner straight out for a goal‑kick, Yaya Touré directing a six‑yard ball into the path of Wayne Rooney – when Roberto Mancini could be seen on the touchline, screaming to the skies. City's manager maintains they will not be good enough to win the league unless they bring in at least two more players. The truth or simply a ploy to put pressure on his board? The answer probably lies somewhere in between but, on the balance of play, it is difficult to take issue with his sentiment before the game that City are "five yards" behind Sir Alex Ferguson's team.
    [h=2]2 Let's not call David de Gea the new Massimo Taibi just yet[/h]It was always likely there would be a mistake early in David de Gea's Manchester United career. He is 20 years old, in a new country, and it would have been unreasonable to imagine he could go about the job of replacing Edwin van der Sar without the odd moment when United fans must have pined for the older man. The important thing is how he reacts and, specifically, whether he has the strength of character to get it out of his system quickly – because the Premier League can be an unforgiving place. The issue for Ferguson, though, is whether to persist with him against West Bromwich Albion next Sunday or to bring in Anders Lindegaard? Only the worst form of kneejerker would start to compare him with Massimo Taibi – there were, for instance, two splendid, morale‑boosting saves in the second half – but there is a case that, temporarily at least, Lindegaard might make better sense.
    [h=2]3 Nani could be the player to watch[/h]The Portuguese could be forgiven for feeling aggrieved at times since the latter stages of last season. First, he did not even make it on the Professional Footballers' Association player‑of‑the‑year shortlist, despite the penetrative, sometimes mesmeric wing play that eventually led to his winning United's own award. He lost his place to Antonio Valencia for the Champions League final against Barcelona and then Ferguson began the summer by splashing out around £14m for a like-for-like player in Ashley Young. Some players would sulk. Yet Nani has merely set about the business of reminding us why the PFA got it so badly wrong. Afterwards Sir Alex Ferguson talked of the 24-year-old having "never been in Cristiano Ronaldo's shadow". That might have been stretching the truth somewhat but on this form there can be few more devastating wide players in the world.
    [h=2]4 A bit more consistency please, Mr Balotelli[/h]The problem when writing about Mario Balotelli is that he is that rare breed of player who can warp opinion from one match to the next. You praise him one week and he will be sent off the next. You criticise him and the following weekend he is liable to score the winner. The safest option is probably never to look too far into the future but, on this evidence, Mancini clearly has some more work to do before Balotelli can be regarded as even close to being a reliable first‑team pick. This was the classic Balotelli bad-day performance: a nose-to-nose with one opponent, some play-acting, a few decent passes here and there but nothing very productive at all, resulting in the almost inevitable substitution, the mandatory strop and the feeling once again that City need more. The next time we see him, of course, it might be a Balotelli good-day performance and he might just have stuck the ball in the top corner. Welcome to the weird and wacky world of Mario Balotelli.
    [h=2]5 Tom Cleverley can threaten Michael Carrick's place[/h]In fairness Michael Carrick had been troubled by an achilles injury in the build-up to this match; Sir Alex Ferguson, true to form, had actually ruled him out on Friday. morning But it was still noticeable how United's performance moved up a notch once Cleverley came off the bench to replace him at half-time. He was bright and inventive, wanting to make things happen, eager to impress and he brought a vitality to a part of the pitch where United are often lacking. This is not to denigrate Carrick's ability to pass the ball but there was one moment after 19 minutes that typified the player he has become. Nani laid the ball into his path, 25 yards from goal. The crowd howled for what seemed an inevitable shot and yet, with no defenders in proximity, Carrick did not feel confident enough to strike the ball, tried an extra pass, got it all wrong and the chance was gone. At the very least Cleverley – much like Chris Smalling – has made a powerful case to be in Ferguson's thoughts.

 
[h=1]Andy Carroll off to flier as Liverpool beat Valencia in fiery friendly[/h] • Liverpool 2-0 Valencia




  • Andy Hunter Anfield
  • guardian.co.uk, Saturday 6 August 2011 20.27 BST Article history
    Liverpool-v-Valencia---Pr-007.jpg
    Andy Carroll puts Liverpool ahead in their friendly against Valencia at Anfield. Photograph: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images

    This will be the season Liverpool judges its £35m investment in Andy Carroll and he appears primed to leave his mark. He left it on the scoresheet, defenders' ankles, their ribs and the referee's notebook against Valencia.
    A previously lax pre-season ended well for Kenny Dalglish's team against the third best team in Spain as Liverpool recorded their first clean sheet of the summer – having conceded 15 goals in five matches beforehand – and witnessed their centre-forward rouse himself into form in front of the watching Fabio Capello. "I was delighted with Andy's performance, absolutely delighted," said the Liverpool manager. "You can see he's over his knee injury problems and he was flying about out there. He can train properly now, and hopefully we will see the benefits of that."
    The reason in parting with £20m for Stewart Downing became evident within five minutes of the former Aston Villa midfielder's Anfield debut as he delivered two delightful crosses from the left. His first picked out Daniel Agger and though no Liverpool forward pounced on the Dane's header across the goalmouth, nor when Downing's low centre evaded Carroll moments later, his supply is tailor-made for a forward of the England international's stature. "With Andy up front and Stewart hanging them up in the box, you can see why people will get excited," added Dalglish.
    Carroll was central to the outcome and mood of a fractious friendly. With six minutes gone he was sent clear by an under-hit back-pass from Valencia's veteran captain, David Albelda, and opened the scoring at the second attempt after his initial shot through the legs of goalkeeper Diego Alves struck a post and rolled across the line. He then placed the contest on simmer with a dreadful lunge on the Valencia central defender, Adil Rami, having been riled by referee Martin Atkinson's refusal to penalise the France international for an earlier trip.
    Rami and Carroll squared upfor a contest that would enrich the heavyweight boxing division as players from both sides raced across the pitch, before Liverpool's No9 received a yellow card that on an competitive occasion would have been red. He was also the victim of swift retribution as Albelda took his captain's responsibilities too far and planted his studs into Carroll's thigh, although the striker showed no lasting effects. Club and country did lose Glen Johnson, who pulled up lame with a thigh injury after only seven minutes.The full extent of the problem will not be known until an assessment at Melwood on Sunday.
    This was Anfield's first look at £47m worth of midfield investment and they produced a mixed review. Liverpool lined up in a 4-4-1-1 formation with Alberto Aquilani playing off lone striker Carroll and in front of a midfield of Jordan Henderson, Jay Spearing, Charlie Adam and Downing. While Downing impressed with his delivery and movement and Adam worked diligently in the centre, Henderson had a quiet game on the right and will do well to dislodge Dirk Kuyt from that position when his former club Sunderland open the Premier League season at Anfield.
    Focus on Valencia was largely concentrated on the Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur target Juan Mata, who, with the exception of a well-taken volley that Jamie Carragher diverted wide, was overshadowed by Pablo Piatti, the visitors' £7.5m summer signing from Almeria. The usual procession of second-half substitutions inevitably ruined the rhythm of the contest but Sotirios Kyrgiakos made it a good evening for Liverpooland their pony-tailed contingent when he turned in from close range in the dying moments.

 
[h=1]Six new Premier League signings to watch, by those who know them best[/h] Managers and coaches give their opinions on the players whom clubs have lavished the cash on in the transfer window




  • Interviews by Joel Richards, Sid Lowe, Matt Scott, Jonathan Wilson, Ewan Murray and Stuart James
  • guardian.co.uk, Saturday 6 August 2011 22.55 BST Article history
    Sergio-Ag-reo-007.jpg
    Sergio Agüreo made his professional debut at the age of 15 but may take time to adapt to the Premier League. Photograph: Henry Browne/Action Images

    [h=2]SERGIO AGUERO Manchester City £35m[/h]Ricardo Bochini, four-times Copa Libertadores winner and youth team coach at Independiente:"Agüero joined the club at the age of nine or 10. We immediately saw he was special: he had great confidence on the ball and was an excellent finisher. We'd see him beat a couple of players and then go round the keeper to score in games time and time again. At that age he was still very small, but when we took him to play indoor football on a smaller pitch you could see just what great natural ability and technique he had.
    "He made his first-team debut very young, when he was 15, with Oscar Ruggeri as the coach. To be honest I think Ruggeri wanted to be remembered as the one who gave him his debut, because after that Sergio didn't play for some time.
    "He took a while to settle into the first team, but quickly became very important for the club and for the fans. After the team that I played in in the 1970s and 1980s, along with Daniel Bertoni up front, Agüero is probably the player that Independiente fans have most identified with in recent years, and is the idol for a younger generation. They have a very strong relationship with him, even though he left the club to move to Spain at such a young age and didn't stay with Independiente so long.
    "Perhaps he will take some time to settle into English football, it's faster and much more end-to-end than he'll be used to having played in Spain. But his record with Atlético Madrid is excellent. I believe he's capable of fitting in anywhere, he has great technique and has a strong physique now as well. He is one of the best players around on the ball and is able to beat players with his skill.
    "He's a different type of forward to Carlos Tevez. Tevez is more likely to work down the wings and drop off the front man. Agüero is comfortable, and better suited, in a more central role and closer to goal than perhaps Tevez is."
    [h=2]DAVID DE GEA Man Utd £17m[/h]Abel Resino, the former Atlético Madrid manager who gave De Gea his debut: "David has always been so self-assured. Not in a cocky way – it was just that he was so confident of his own ability. He is very complete as a goalkeeper but does not stand out especially for any specific quality: he is good at everything without being incredible at anything. What makes him different, and there are very few like him, is his attitude. He is not scared of anything. He dominates his area more than most because of his attitude. That is particularly important in England, where the game is more direct and the ball is crossed more than in Spain. If nothing odd happens, he will succeed. He is only 20: he will reach his peak at 30. There is loads of time."
    [h=2]GERVINHO Arsenal £10.5m[/h]Sven-Goran Eriksson, former Ivory Coast manager: "He's certainly an Arsenal player. What I mean by that is he's quick, he has good technique and he can score. He is exactly the sort of player Arsène Wenger will like. He has personality, but is also quiet, a family man. I had him for five or six weeks at the World Cup and he was very professional. He worked very hard, was very fit. He can play wide as a winger or centrally as a forward. He's very, very quick: he will score a lot of goals at Arsenal. He's always scored goals."
    [h=2]CONNOR WICKHAM Sunderland £8m[/h]Brian Eastick, England Under-20 coach: "He's still learning but I think Steve Bruce has made a terrific signing. He has great physical presence. You've got to remember he's still a young man though – a 1993 birthday – so to ask him to go in and lead the line for Sunderland week in, week out would be a bit too much for him. I'm sure Steve and Eric Black will be working very hard on the training ground to develop his technique and his game understanding. In my opinion, he's a good investment for the future."
    [h=2]CHARLIE ADAM Liverpool £7m[/h]Craig Levein, Scotland manager: "It's a real rags to riches story for Charlie, and what an example to set for any kid who has suffered some form of rejection. Leaving Rangers and starting again has been the making of Charlie – Blackpool was a real Godsend for him. I watched him a dozen times last season and, in the first half of the campaign particularly, he was unbelievable. He's a studious footballer. Charlie is very interested in asking questions, how the game works, how to play his position and what that position entails. His improvement at Blackpool was the biggest I have ever seen in one player."
    [h=2]ASHLEY YOUNG Man Utd £15m[/h]Chris Cummins, Reading's development coach, who was working for Watford when he spotted Young at the age of 10. Watford rejected him when he was 15: "You always want your first million-pound player when you're in youth development and to see somebody like Ashley, who has come all the way through the system from 10 years old, go on to play for one of the biggest clubs in the world is great.
    "I think he's going to cope with it really well at United. He's a very level-headed guy and he takes everything in his stride. His parents are a massive influence on him and I don't think they'll allow him to sit back. He's got the kind of attitude where he strives to be the very best and you can see that from the way he reacted to rejection at Watford, proving people wrong. He'll blossom at United with outstanding players around him. The key thing, especially with the way United play, is that he can play anywhere along the front."

 
[h=2]Community Shield: Manchester City 2-3 Manchester United[/h] [h=1]Tom Cleverley assumes Paul Scholes's United mantle with youthful zest[/h] Tom Cleverley was the pick of the young Manchester United substitutes who turned the tide against Manchester City



  • Tom-Cleverley-tangles-wit-007.jpg
    Manchester United's Tom Cleverley, right, tangles with Manchester City's Joleon Lescott at Wembley. Photograph: Ian Kington/AFP/Getty Images

    Less than 48 hours after Paul Scholes took off a Manchester United shirt for the last time, the answer to Sir Alex Ferguson's midfield dilemma materialised from an unexpected quarter on Sunday. As the champions roused themselves to mount a convincing second-half revival against their local rivals, Tom Cleverley, one of three young substitutes sent on by Ferguson after the interval, added the dynamism and the continuity that United, despite enjoying a preponderance of possession, had been missing in the opening period.
    Cleverley, who will be 22 on Friday, comes from Basingstoke and has been at Old Trafford since he was 15. In recent seasons he has been sent on loan first to Leicester City, where he played a part in promotion from League One, then to Watford, where he was voted player of the year after scoring 11 goals in 33 appearances in the Championship, and finally to Wigan Athletic, where he earned praise last season. He has 16 England Under-21 caps, and Ferguson called him United's best player in the 2-1 defeat of Barcelona on their recent US tour. It would be no exaggeration to say that his zest and imagination made the difference on Sunday as United averted what would have been an awkward start to the season.
    United played most of the joined-up football before the interval, without threatening to make a real incision. Wayne Rooney looked full of purpose, Ashley Young saw plenty of the ball, Danny Welbeck worked hard at dropping deep to drag markers out of position and Nani flitted hither and yon, but the danger came at the other end, with two goals which exposed flaws in Ferguson's defence.
    The manager's first set of substitutions suggested that he recognised the problem and was not going to wait until later in the season to do something about it. Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand had been on either side of Joleon Lescott when the City defender headed the first goal, while Vidic had also failed to close down Edin Dzeko for the second. Both these vastly experienced men were withdrawn, as was Michael Carrick, who had provided the most insubstantial of midfield shields while contributing nothing to the attack.
    On came Jonny Evans, aged 23, and Phil Jones, 19, in central defence, with Cleverley replacing Carrick, and the immediate temptation was to conclude that here was Ferguson sending a message, at 2-0 down, that this fixture had never been anything but a frivolous exhibition. Nothing, as it turned out, could have been further from the truth, and 13 minutes into the second half United were on level terms.
    Chris Smalling, 21, struck an early blow for youth when he guided Young's free‑kick past Joe Hart. Then Cleverley played a full part in a delightfully intricate move which reached its climax when he put Nani in to score with a cool chip. These goals were the reward for greater dynamism and more relevant movement but while Cleverley was pushing up in support of his forwards, Evans and Jones were ensuring that the middle of the defence remained solid.
    Ten minutes into the half, in between United's two strikes, Evans made a vital tackle on Dzeko and then carried the ball 60 yards upfield, hurdling several tackles at speed before Yaya Touré ended his run. A further 10 minutes later, when Micah Richards robbed Young and charged upfield, Jones made the sharpest of interventions to cut off a pass that could have been claimed in a dangerous position by any one of three City forwards.
    As the two sides fought their way towards what seemed to be the inevitability of penalties, Cleverley continued to make his presence felt, whether dispossessing Touré in the centre circle with a very precise and un-Scholeslike tackle, cunningly crowding out Adam Johnson on the touchline, or narrowly failing to make clean contact with an instinctive swipe at Rooney's improvised knockdown.
    He was the pick, then, of United's younger men on a day when David de Gea's poor attempt at saving Dzeko's 25-yard drive appeared likely to grab the headlines. The question of whether the 20-year-old, £18.3m Spaniard will be following the path of Peter Schmeichel and Edwin van der Sar or that of Mark Bosnich, Massimo Taibi, Fabien Barthez, Tim Howard and Ben Foster can safely await the judgment of another day.
    Welbeck, keeping a place warm for Javier Hernández, provided no definitive guide to his future prospects. Young, smartly handled for the most part by Richards, failed to make capital on the occasions when City's adventurous right‑back was caught upfield, and will have better days.
    The armband, having passed from Vidic to Patrice Evra at half-time, was worn for the last 20 minutes by Rafael da Silva, Evra's direct replacement and now, at 21, among the youngest players to lead United, even if only briefly and temporarily. Faith in youth is a proud tradition at Old Trafford and one from which Ferguson, approaching his 70th birthday, continues to extract the maximum profit. The careful nurturing of Thomas William Cleverley could be the next example to bear handsome fruit.

 
[h=1]Champions League 2011-12: A dream team to beat Barcelona[/h] How do you overcome the best team in the world? Just pick Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and Wesley Sneijder



  • Barcelonas-Lionel-Messi-c-004.jpg
    Barcelona's Lionel Messi celebrates his goal in the Champions League final against Manchester United. Photograph: Felipe Trueba/EPA

    Summer reflections on Barcelona's Wembley display … perchance to dream. Selecting a team is easy but uniting a group of individual talents to find a way of defeating the master magicians of Barça is more difficult. A balanced team is essential and it must be a team that can counter the intricate passing and interplay of positioning that the Catalans produce.
    The team has an attacking bent as chances may be few and far between, but Barça do play a high line and push up the field with their full-backs ever raiding. Proven goalscorers will be essential and they will need pace to counter quickly after the inevitable periods of Barça possession. A consistent threat upfield must be maintained to attract and hold the attention of the opposing defenders. This makes them uncertain to leave space and surge forward, as Gerard Piqué and Sergio Busquets do from deep, particularly when Barça's opponents play with only one forward.
    Tevez would be my choice to lead the line with his work rate. Drifting into midfield and wide positions – not dissimilar to Lionel Messi – he would not only be a threat on goal but also help in midfield. Should Dani Alves and Eric Abidal maraud forward the Argentinian would utilise the space down the sides. Indefatigable energy and the ability to cross and shoot from distance would gain Wayne Rooney a place but displaced from the centre.
    Cristiano Ronaldo on the left has speed and power enough to assert himself and deter Alves from his supporting runs. So there are goals here, but can the remaining seven outfielders contain the mesmeric movement of Xavi, Andrés Iniesta, Messi and Pedro, with Busquets the overseer?
    To support a brave attacking formation, two experienced players are required to hold the area in front of the back four. Prerequisites are tackling ability, mobility, capable passing and, importantly, discipline. They will use their nous to hold their ground when our two centre-backs move forward in possession. Here, maybe surprisingly, I have selected the ageless Javier Zanetti who can show his defensive qualities alongside Steven Gerrard, whose career in various positions may come to rest as a passing midfielder at the base of a formation.
    With attacking full-backs required the system would mirror Barça's although we would have two holding midfielders. This would give Wesley Sneijder the responsibility as the foremost midfielder to create and score from his position behind the front three. A creative talent who can drop in deeper when possession is lost, the Dutchman would try to protect Gerrard and Zanetti from getting pulled too far adrift from the hub of Barça's rotating passing.
    Against Manchester United in the Champions League final, Barça's cunning middlemen induced United into challenges, then nicked the ball past them into the tightest of areas. Gerrard, Zanetti and Sneider would be the key factors, able to disturb possession, pounce on Messi's movements and move the ball quickly to our willing front men.
    All my selected back four can use the ball well. Sergio Ramos and Ashley Cole are at their best in the middle-to-attacking third going forward. Cole might face problems from Pedro or Messi inside, but this is a team picked for its strengths, rather than any perceived weaknesses. That is why I selected Vincent Kompany and Lúcio as central defenders. They are probably not as strong as Nemanja Vidic or John Terry, but both are able to move forward with the ball and overload the midfield, which will be essential. Lúcio can drive into supporting positions knowing Gerrard or Zanetti are sound insurance.
    Finally, I have selected Petr Cech in goal and if the team is as good as my dream he can bring a deckchair!
    This team has a big emphasis on being comfortable with the ball. Physically, the group is strong enough and has the worldliness to combine naturally with each other. Playing great teams, there is often a mental barrier. I'm sure these players would approach the possibility of victory with a positive attitude. Food for thought.
    David Pleat's team: Petr Cech; Sergio Ramos, Lúcio, Vincent Kompany, Ashley Cole; Javier Zanetti, Steven Gerrard, Wesley Sneijder; Cristiano Ronaldo, Carlos Tevez, Wayne Rooney.

 

[h=2]Community Shield: Manchester United 3-2 Manchester City[/h] [h=1]We've shown City who's boss, says Manchester United's Wayne Rooney[/h] • Striker says Manchester City were given 'footballing lesson'
• 'We can win the title,' says defiant Roberto Mancini




  • David Hytner at Wembley
  • guardian.co.uk, Sunday 7 August 2011 20.25 BST Article history
    Wayne-Rooney-celebrates-w-007.jpg
    Wayne Rooney, left, celebrates with Anderson after Manchester United's victory over Manchester City. Photograph: Glyn Kirk/AFP/Getty Images

    Wayne Rooney said that Manchester United had shown their neighbours City who was boss in their 3-2 Community Shield comeback victory, handing them what he described as a "footballing lesson" which set down a marker for their Premier League title defence.
    The striker, who was central to Nani's wonderful equaliser as a youthful United turned round a 2-0 half‑time deficit, revelled in his team's superiority and the bragging rights that accompanied the result. Nani, the man of the match, scored the winning goal in the third minute of injury time.
    "This shows who the best team is," Rooney said. "All game we dominated. The difference the young lads made was outstanding. We never know when a game is finished. We took them apart. The scoreline is deserved. We're champions and we're the team to beat. We want to prove that."
    Rooney was asked whether the victory tasted sweeter because it had come against City, who defeated United at Wembley in last season's FA Cup semi-final, a tie that the striker missed through suspension. "Of course," he replied. "Obviously they are wanting to try to fight for that title and today I think there was only one team that was going to win. We dominated the first half and they had five minutes when they scored two goals from nowhere but we showed our character to come back and win."
    Rooney later tweeted to his million‑plus followers: "Have to say. I think today was a footballing lesson. Great win for the champions."
    Sir Alex Ferguson, the United manager, felt that the most pleasing aspect of the game was the way that his young players showed their mettle. He made three half‑time changes, sending on Phil Jones, Jonny Evans and Tom Cleverley, who was outstanding, and when he replaced Patrice Evra with Rafael da Silva in the 71st minute his team's average age was 22. Dimitar Berbatov came on for Danny Welbeck in the last minute to alter the statistic slightly.
    "For us I think it just confirms what I've thought," Ferguson said. "People were saying that we're not the best United squad and things like that but you've got to remember a lot of young players will improve. We are very confident with this group of young players."
    The blot on United's afternoon was provided by David de Gea, the goalkeeper who was signed for £18.3m from Atlético Madrid. He might have come for the David Silva free-kick from which Joleon Lescott glanced City ahead while he was horribly slow to get down and across to Edin Dzeko's 25-yard blast that made the scoreline 2-0.
    "City are a big team and the delivery of the ball [for the first goal] was good ... goalkeeper no chance with that," Ferguson said. "The second goal I thought we could have closed them down but the shot swerved a bit and just caught the goalkeeper on the wrong foot. But I think that you have to cope with these things and he's [got] no problem."
    The City manager, Roberto Mancini, who made his players watch and applaud as United lifted the trophy, faced more questions after the game about Mario Balotelli. The maverick forward had walked straight off down the tunnel when he was substituted in the 59th minute, although he did return to the bench. Gary Neville, in the Sky Sports studio, called him an "embarrassment" to City.
    "None of my staff told Mario to come back," Mancini said. "Every time he does something, people read things into it. He can play better than he did today."
    City needed to show a "strong mentality", Mancini said. "I think that they played better than us but, when you go 2-0 up, you need to control the game. Maybe at the end the correct result would have been 2-2 but this is football. United is a top squad ... it's better than any other team. But we can win the title."
    He denied that City had an interest in the Internazionale midfielder Wesley Sneijder, who is coveted at United, but he hoped to make further signings before the end of the month. Arsenal's Samir Nasri is prominent on his wish list. "We need to complete our squad. We have the targets we had at the start of pre‑season. Sneijder said yesterday: "All I know is that Inter need money and apparently I'm for sale for the right amount. I have spoken with neither Manchester City nor United so I cannot say anything about my future."
    Ferguson said Danny Welbeck had picked up an ankle injury and the striker can be expected to be withdrawn from the England squad who face Holland at Wembley on Wednesday.

 
[h=1]Stay with me at Tottenham, Peter Crouch urges Luka Modric[/h] • 'I know I will get my fair share of games,' says Crouch
• 'The fans here love him. We all want Luka to stay'




  • Nick Ive
  • guardian.co.uk, Sunday 7 August 2011 23.13 BST Article history
    Peter-Crouch-celebrates-w-007.jpg
    Peter Crouch celebrates with Gareth Bale after scoring Tottenham's opening goal in the 2-1 win against Athletic Bilbao. Photograph: Jed Leicester/Action Images

    Peter Crouch is determined to remain with Tottenham Hotspur and has urged Luka Modric to do likewise. Crouch, the England striker, has been linked with moves away from White Hart Lane, with Stoke City and Queens Park Rangers interested in his services. Reports on Sunday suggested he could move to Everton in a swap deal for the midfielder Jack Rodwell.
    But the 30-year-old, who scored for Spurs in their 2-1 friendly victory over Athletic Bilbao on Saturday, said: "You know you are competing for things and I know I will get my fair share of games. I know the manager has put a lot of faith in me. If I'm here I know I'm going to get chances to play."
    The big concern for the Tottenham manager, Harry Redknapp, is the future of Modric who has made no secret of his desire to leave, with Chelsea having had two bids rejected. The Croatia international was given a warm welcome by Spurs fans when he appeared as a second‑half substitute and Crouch is hoping that may convince him to stay.
    "I think he might have been a bit concerned about which way it would go but he got a great reception," Crouch said. "It certainly makes it harder for Luka that the fans are right behind him. He knows the fans love him and hopefully he can stay here for as long as he can.
    "We all want him to stay. He's going off for international duty and we were saying: 'Make sure we see you on Thursday'. He is a top player. We love him at the club. He is a great lad to have about."
    Modric would probably like to see Spurs show their ambition and land a couple of signings that would significantly boost any title hopes the club insist it has. So far only Brad Friedel, a 40-year-old keeper, has arrived – on a free. That is hardly a signal of intent, especially when Chelsea are shelling out for top stars.
    But Crouch remains confident the squad, who finished fifth last season, can again push the bigger clubs all the way.
    "It's amazing when you look at what the other teams around us have spent. It's a hell of a lot of money," he said. "I look round our dressing room, though, and there are a lot of players who I wouldn't swap for theirs. I still believe that we have more than enough ability. We have no one who is going to have to settle into the side, we have played together before.
    "I still believe this could be a really big season for us. I think the aim has to be to get into the top four. It is going to be difficult. There are some top sides. Liverpool have strengthened. It will be difficult to beat them. Man City have strengthened. But I would still put ourselves right up there with a chance."

 
[h=1]Sam Allardyce: Sir Alex Ferguson always knows when to rebuild[/h] As more fresh faces arrive at Manchester United, the West Ham manager gives his perspective on how the Scot stays fresh



  • Sam Allardyce
  • The Guardian, Monday 8 August 2011 Article history
    Sir-Alex-Ferguson-007.jpg
    The Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, holds the Premier League trophy at the end of last season. Photograph: Carl Recine/Action Images

    There is no doubt that Sir Alex Ferguson looks for a certain type of player when he builds his Manchester United squads. Basically, he is after the footballer who has the mentality to play for United. That's the crucial element when I speak to him about this: he assesses the mental side, not just the skills-based side.
    He is, in particular, trying to understand whether the player can handle performing for United and the pressures the club suffer in terms of how every game must be won, and so can they be part of the club's relentless winning campaign. There is no let-up to that drive from Sir Alex, and from the club. Losing two games on the trot at Manchester United is a crisis, it's a disaster, it is talked about everywhere.
    So selecting the type of player who has the winning mentality to carry this on throughout the years is one element he has mastered on many occasions.
    Spotting talent is pretty easy but whether that talent will be able to produce its best in the high-pressure games is one of the hardest things to gauge. I think that's why Sir Alex often tries now to buy players younger [as he has this summer], with Phil Jones [19] and the Spanish goalkeeper [David de Gea, 20].
    This allows him to ease them in slowly, accustom them to the Man United way, how it's done at Man United now, and how he views them as part of the year-in, year-out regeneration there.
    What's kept Sir Alex ahead of the game is how he focuses on the match in hand, the season in hand, while also looking at the future. His foresight in selecting players has been crucial. He had a year or two when it didn't quite work for him. But out of 25 [since joining United] that's not too bad. Everybody has a few bad signings here and there, but I think he'd had fewer than anybody else.
    The second thing is that he's always sensed the right time to rebuild another team – his timing has been immaculate when getting rid, say, of those huge players that have had immense influence at Manchester United. You can go way back to the early days of him knowing when it was time for Bryan Robson, who was the leader, to [move on, in 1994]. Then you've got the Guv'nor [Paul Ince, who left in 1995], [David] Beckham [2003], and other big players such as these.
    He always seemed to master the right time for players to leave the club, and always seemed to find the right ones to replace them. That's another part of why he's as great a manager as he is.
    And then, he changes his staff, he regenerates his staff. It's a modern-day game, and most managers of his age tend to find a winning formula that's successful and then stick with it. But they can lose sight of change and fall by the wayside. Sir Alex has always implemented change on and off the field. His staff has grown in many different departments to work in the new areas that modern football has created.
    Many of the changes off the field he's researched, and thought about, and then decided how best to move forward with them.
    He still has some old-fashioned values and he's obviously never going to lose those. But he's kept up to date with the changes in football such as sports science, the psychology side, the strength and conditioning, the live data and analysis you can get.
    Now, he probably holds one of the biggest staffs in the country. In the early days it might only have been five or six people. It has risen to 25 or 26, so he is right up there regarding having the right people in the right jobs.
    He's in his late 60s and he's still there with it, he's still interested in it, he still craves it and that's the real reason why he has been so successful: his desire and ambition is greater than anyone else's at his club. I think that's what makes him so great.
    His biggest challenge now is to knock Barcelona off their perch, isn't it? When you see them in the Champions League final [beating United 3-1 at Wembley], you know he's not going to stand still and just take that. He wants to be the best all the time, and he's always felt he should have won more Champions League trophies [than two].
    So, now, he's gone and rapidly done something about this [with his summer buys, which also include Ashley Young]. His was a side that won the Premier League by nine clear points, he adapted it to make sure they won the title – it was not the most creative team he ever had but it was one of the most effective.
    He wants, though, not only to be challenging for the league, but for the club to be better and more equipped to challenge Barcelona next time round in the Champions League. So he went out straight away and bought new players as soon as possible, which we'd all love to do.
    As for those new players – Young, Jones, and De Gea – if Sir Alex Ferguson comes calling for you it's an honour. It is not something that you can turn down – there's really only Real Madrid and Barcelona that are on a par with Manchester United.
    They are the three clubs, aren't they? Unless a player wants to choose money. Manchester United pay good money but they won't be paying as much as Chelsea or Manchester City. But as a footballer, if you're going for money you're going for the wrong reason anyway.
    And Sir Alex wouldn't want you. He wants players who want trophies.

 
[h=1]Arsène Wenger is still the man to manage Arsenal, says David Dein[/h] • Former vice-chairman says Wenger is still hungry
• Arsenal have not won a trophy since 2005




  • Press Association
  • guardian.co.uk, Sunday 7 August 2011 12.32 BST Article history
    Arsene-Wenger-007.jpg
    Arsène Wenger has not won a trophy since 2005 at Arsenal. Photograph: Lai Seng Sin/AP

    The former Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein has said that Arsène Wenger is still the best man to lead the club, despite six seasons without a trophy at the Emirates Stadium.
    Dein has remained in close contact with Wenger since leaving Arsenal, after the pair spent 11 years working together. Wenger's last trophy was the 2005 FA Cup.
    "Arsène Wenger will admit he has had the most difficult couple of years of his career, for two reasons," Dein told Radio 5 Live. "One is the fact the game is getting more competitive, we have seen more money coming in so the competition out there is more intense. Secondly, he has had to contend with the fact he hasn't achieved what he would have hoped to achieve, albeit he has done remarkably well in the quality and style of play."
    Dein said that Wenger still had the hunger to succeed at Arsenal: "Arsène is very focused and very determined. I see him regularly, I see a man who still has as much fire in the belly today as when he started. He wants to win. I believe in his ability and I know for a fact he is trying very hard to improve the squad this year and I hope he does it.
    "People have got to remember what he has achieved. It is easy in life to get rid of people. Then what? How do you follow Arsène Wenger? That is going to be the trick for the board and it is not going to be an easy exercise."

 
[h=1]Romelu Lukaku crosses the bridge from dream to reality at Chelsea[/h] Teenage striker hailed as the 'new Didier Drogba' knew it was his destiny to pull on a Chelsea shirt



  • Romelu-Lukaku-knew-he-had-007.jpg
    Romelu Lukaku took a tour of Stamford Bridge as a 17-year-old and just knew he had to play for Chelsea. Photograph: Eric Lalmand-Virginie Lefour/EPA

    It is one of football's most risible cliches. The new signing arrives and promptly declares how he has always loved and supported the club. Yet for Romelu Lukaku, the most eye-catching purchase of Chelsea's summer so far, the sentiment will bristle with real emotion.
    The 18-year-old, who joins from Anderlecht in a deal that is initially worth £11m and could rise to £18m subject to add‑ons, has not only followed Chelsea closely from afar but he has long considered it to be his destiny to play at Stamford Bridge. And if the cynics should require authentication, they need only look at the clip on YouTube from the documentary De school van Lukaku, which followed the striker's life at Sint-Guido Instituut, with which Anderlecht have an educational link.
    On a field trip with his class-mates to London last year, Lukaku, who announced on his website that he would be having his Chelsea medical on Monday, visited Stamford Bridge and he was filmed gazing across the pitch from the stands. He was almost overcome as he outlined the dream that he will now fulfil.
    "The day I play here in this stadium will be the single time in my life that you would see me cry," he said. "I'm going to succeed. I'm not dreaming. I'm going to play here someday, I'm sure. What a stadium this is."
    Lukaku has had the pick of Europe's leading clubs. In England, he has been linked with Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur. In Spain, José Mourinho at Real Madrid is a confirmed admirer. But the pull of Chelsea has proved irresistible. He will be handsomely rewarded yet the romance of the move underpinned the decision.
    His affection for the club is based, in no small measure, on his admiration for Didier Drogba, in particular, and Nicolas Anelka. Unsurprisingly, given his hulking frame, he has been labelled the "new Drogba"; he is even taller and heavier than the original.
    Lukaku's goal is to supplant his heroes in the starting XI. Drogba is expected to agree a new contract until 2013 while Anelka, who is running down the final 12 months on his deal, is set to leave as a Bosman free agent.
    In the short term, Lukaku is happy to serve as an understudy, developing his game in training under André Villas-Boas and also, when opportunities knock, in the first team. With Villas-Boas considering Anelka more as a attacking option from the flank, Lukaku believes he will start life at the club as the third-choice centre-forward, behind Fernando Torres and Drogba.
    It will not be easy for him to enjoy regular football, particularly as Villas-Boas has demonstrated in pre-season that he prefers a single spearhead; surely Torres has to play?
    But Lukaku recognised that the transfer might be a one-off chance, which had to be taken, and he is hopeful that if Chelsea compete strongly on four fronts, he will get reasonable game-time this season. It will be interesting to see how his arrival impacts on another young striker, Daniel Sturridge, who has been impressive in pre-season.
    Lukaku has the ingredients to succeed in the Premier League, being quick, hard-working and extremely powerful. His physique is, in his words, a "gift from God", although it has led to irritating questions about his age. In youth football, he sometimes needed to produce his passport to show that he was not older than he said he was. Lukaku is of Congolese origin but he was born in Antwerp and he is a full Belgium international. His father, Roger, was capped by Zaire, as the country was then called, and played professionally in Belgium.
    Lukaku is prolific and, like every natural-born goalscorer, he knows precisely how many he has managed each season. His best was 76 in 34 games as a 12-year-old. Yet he is raw, his technique needs polish and he appears to be more of a signing to revitalise the squad in the longer term, which Villas-Boas has acknowledged he must do.
    In the immediate future, Lukaku will simply revel in the elevation to elite company. On his school visit to Stamford Bridge, he wore a Drogba shirt and posed for pictures in front of a poster of the Ivorian, which he posted on Facebook. He also had the chance to speak to him the day after his 17th birthday.
    "I was with the national team and Vincent Kompany was talking to Drogba and he gave me the phone," Lukaku said. "We spoke for about 30 minutes and I asked him a thousand questions. It was a very emotional moment. These opportunities don't come along very often in a lifetime and you have to make the most of them."

 
[h=1]Swansea agree fee for Dutch international goalkeeper Michel Vorm[/h] • Utrecht player is named in Holland squad to face England
• Welsh club hope to do deal in the next few days




  • Agencies
  • guardian.co.uk, Sunday 7 August 2011 00.28 BST Article history
    Swansea-manager-Brendan-R-007.jpg
    Swansea manager Brendan Rodgers hopes to seal the deal for Michel Vorm in a few days. Photograph: Alex Morton/Action Images

    Swansea City have confirmed they have agreed a fee with the Dutch club Utrecht for the goalkeeper Michel Vorm.
    The 27-year-old Vorm, named in the Holland squad to face England in a friendly at Wembley on Wednesday, is in the process of agreeing personal terms with the Welsh club, who said the transfer fee was around £1.5m.
    "He's the Dutch number two and I think it says it all that we can attract a player of that calibre," the Swansea manager, Brendan Rodgers, said on the club website.
    "We hope that we can get that completed in the next few days. If we end up doing the deal that gets him in, it would be fantastic for the club."
    Vorm was understudy to Maarten Stekelenburg in the Holland squad that finished runners-up to Spain in last year's World Cup in South Africa.

 
[h=1]Striker Romelu Lukaku says new club Chelsea are his 'dream team'[/h] • Striker set to sign after Chelsea agree deal with Anderlecht
• 'I am entering a team full of experienced guys and winners'




  • Press Association
  • guardian.co.uk, Sunday 7 August 2011 15.15 BST Article history
    Romelu-Lukaku-007.jpg
    Romelu Lukaku has described Chelsea as his 'dream team'. Photograph: Virginie Lefour - Bruno Fahy/EPA

    Romelu Lukaku has declared he is joining his "dream team", after Chelsea reached an agreement to sign the striker from Anderlecht. The Blues' long pursuit of the 18-year-old finally bore fruit when they announced they were poised to complete a deal for him, subject to the player passing a medical and agreeing personal terms.
    Lukaku, who is reportedly valued at between £15m and £20m, made no secret of the fact he was a Chelsea fan while he was being linked with Stamford Bridge. And despite last week claiming that he had not ruled out a move elsewhere, the teenager has made it clear there is nowhere else he would rather be.
    While responding to questions on Twitter, Lukaku was asked what his favourite thing about Chelsea was. He replied: "The fans… the players… it's just my dream team."
    Lukaku, who is already a Belgium international, faces a real fight to break into the Blues first team. He warned earlier this week that he would not want to be sent out on loan if he moved to Stamford Bridge, and the forward believes he can only benefit from training and playing alongside the likes of Fernando Torres and Didier Drogba, to whom Lukaku has long been compared.
    He wrote: "I think I am entering a team full of experienced guys and winners. And I'm very happy about that."
    Lukaku is also aware he will arrive at a team under pressure to deliver silverware this season after finishing empty-handed last term. Describing the Premier League as the "best league in the world", Lukaku added: "We have to improve ourselves year after year."
    Should the new manager, André Villas-Boas, decide not to loan Lukaku out, it would arguably leave Chelsea with too many forwards. That would doubtless increase speculation over the futures of the likes of Drogba, Nicolas Anelka, Salomon Kalou and Florent Malouda.
    It is understood that Drogba, who finished last season strongly, is being offered a new contract to replace the one which expires next summer. There have been no such noises about Anelka, whose deal also has a year left to run, while Kalou has long been linked with moves away from the club, due to his fringe status.
    The Ivorian's chances could become even more limited this term thanks to the form of Daniel Sturridge, who has impressed in pre-season. The England Under-21 international struck twice yesterday as Chelsea came from behind to win their final pre-season friendly at Rangers, 3-1.
    After the game, Villas-Boas would not be drawn on whether Chelsea had made or would make a third bid for the Tottenham Hotspur playmaker Luka Modric.
    Asked whether his side needed more imagination, he said: "The imagination comes out when you exploit the talent that you have and that is what we try to do.
    "We try to get the most out of people and, without repeating myself, I think these people are enjoying the freedom they are given to exploit new things that they thought that they didn't have before. We will let them express themselves."
    The Portuguese was also coy about whether he had decided upon his forwards for Saturday's Premier League opener at Stoke. Many of his players will be on international duty this week.
    "It is going to be a very important week still to make decisions," he said. "Fernando goes away, Didier goes away, Anelka and Sturridge are staying, Malouda is going with the [French] national team. A couple of forwards will be in action, some won't, so let's see what happens."

 
[h=1]Arsenal open the door for Samir Nasri's £25m move to Manchester City[/h] • Club's hand forced by Nasri's reluctance to agree new contract
• Arsenal complete transfer of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain




  • David Hytner
  • guardian.co.uk, Monday 8 August 2011 23.00 BST Article history
    Arsenals-Samir-Nasri-in-a-007.jpg
    One of the summer's transfer sagas may be coming to a conclusion as Arsenal await a bid from Manchester City for Samir Nasri. Photograph: Peter Cziborra/Action Images

    Samir Nasri stands to get his move to Manchester City this summer as Arsenal's resolve to hold him to the terms of his contract has softened. Arsène Wenger, the Arsenal manager, said at the beginning of Arsenal's tour of east Asia four weeks ago he was so determined to keep Nasri this season that he would rather lose him at the end of his deal next summer as a Bosman free agent and, in the process, write off upwards of £20m in lost fees.
    Yet there is now an acceptance at the club that if and when City formalise their interest in the midfielder with a sizeable offer, in the region of £25m, they would be wise to accept, particularly as the player wants the transfer.
    Nasri, who has stalled on signing the new contract on offer at Arsenal, which is worth £90,000 a week, knows that he could take home as much as double that at City. Arsenal's hand is being forced further by the reality that Nasri is extremely unlikely to agree to fresh terms at the club.
    The City manager, Roberto Mancini, spoke after Sunday's Community Shield defeat to Manchester United of the need to "complete" his squad. "We have the targets we had at the start of pre-season," he said, as he ruled out the possibility of the Internazionale midfielder Wesley Sneijder being one of them. Mancini is on record as stating his admiration for Nasri, which has irritated Wenger. Arsenal, who signed the winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain from Southampton on Monday, are now braced for a bid.
    Nasri has told team-mates that he is relaxed about whether he stays or goes this summer but his conviction to leave has hardened in recent days and the situation has fuelled the feeling of unease behind the scenes at the London club.
    Some of the squad have been demoralised by the Cesc Fábregas saga. The club captain is more intent than ever to return to Barcelona yet he remains at the club and with the armband, as the European champions have so far failed to approach Arsenal's £40m valuation. They are poised to improve on their original £27m offer and Fábregas is also prepared to help by waiving a £4m payoff in his contract. Fábregas has not featured in pre-season and he has hardly trained, which Wenger has attributed to a hamstring injury.
    Nasri, meanwhile, did not travel to Lisbon at the weekend for the 2-1 friendly loss to Benfica because of what Wenger described as a "muscular problem" but, to general angst at Arsenal, he has joined up with the France squad in Montpellier, ahead of the friendly against Chile on Wednesday. Nasri trained and will start.
    The disquiet in the Arsenal dressing room has not been helped by Wenger's relative lack of activity on the transfer market, although it is proving difficult for many managers to force various issues. As Wenger has admitted, Arsenal need a central defender with Premier League experience but he has been frustrated so far in his pursuit of Everton's Phil Jagielka and Bolton Wanderers' Gary Cahill.
    Wenger completed the signing of the 17-year-old Oxlade-Chamberlain for a fee that could rise to £12m subject to add-ons but with the clamour for established stars who could fire a title challenge, the timing of the deal feels unfortunate. That is not Oxlade-Chamberlain's fault and the player who can also be used as a second striker in the same mould as Theo Walcott, who made the same move from Southampton to Arsenal in 2006, is relishing the opportunity to test himself in the Premier League. He underwent his medical on Monday.
    When Wenger outlined his hardline stance over Nasri in Malaysia, he also said Arsenal could not be considered a "big club" if they sold both Nasri and Fábregas this summer. "Because a big club holds on to its big players and gives a message to all the other big clubs that they cannot come in and take them away from you."
    But Wenger's preparations for the Premier League season opener at Newcastle United on Saturday have been thrown into turmoil by the prospect of him losing his two best midfielders.

 

[h=1]Tom Cleverley could be given a starting role by Manchester United[/h] • Midfielder may make his full debut at West Brom
• 'He's a bit like Scholesy,' says Patrice Evra




  • Daniel Taylor
  • guardian.co.uk, Monday 8 August 2011 23.03 BST Article history
    Tom-Cleverley-could-start-005.jpg
    Tom Cleverley could start for Manchester United against West Brom in the Premier League on Sunday. Photograph: John Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images

    Sir Alex Ferguson is giving increased consideration to starting Manchester United's title defence with Tom Cleverley in the centre of midfield because of the form that has now elevated him into the England squad before making a single start for his club.
    Cleverley's introduction for Michael Carrick at half-time of Sunday's Community Shield against Manchester City helped United turn a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 win and persuaded Fabio Capello to call him up for the friendly against Holland on Wednesday.
    The opening occurred because Carrick has withdrawn with an achilles injury while Jack Wilshere is also injured. Capello was impressed with Cleverley's drive and enthusiasm and is aware that Ferguson sees a role for the player this season despite United's ongoing attempts to bring in another central midfielder, predominantly Wesley Sneijder of Internazionale.
    Sneijder's admission that Inter have told him he can leave the San Siro follows sustained interest from the Premier League champions, despite repeated denials to the media behind the scenes, and United's lawyers have now been employed to work on the details of his proposed move. Sneijder is open to the idea but, as yet, has not been offered the salary he wants because United have reservations about the huge sums involved for a player who is 27 and would, in effect, have little resale value towards the end of a four- or five-year contract.
    While that remains the case, Cleverley is one of the few naturally forward-thinking central midfielders at the club and now appears to have realistic hopes of rounding off the most satisfactory week of his professional life by being involved in Sunday's game at West Bromwich Albion. Ferguson was suitably impressed with the player's contribution at Wembley and acknowledged after the match that he was now faced with a difficult decision when it comes to finalising his team.
    While Carrick is regarded as United's best passer of the ball, Cleverley provides a more attacking option, occupying an advanced role at Wembley, with Anderson in a holding position. Ferguson described Cleverley as a "strong possibility" to start the season after an impressive performance in the pre-season friendly against Barcelona in Washington DC, and what he saw at Wembley may have helped to dispel any lingering concerns about whether a player who spent last season on loan at strugglers Wigan Athletic can make the step up.
    Cleverley's team-mates have also been impressed by his impact. "I hope he will get a lot of opportunities this season," the defender Patrice Evra said. "You saw [at Wembley] that he is not afraid. He has a lot of energy and Manchester United need a player like this."
    Evra added: "He's a quiet lad – he's a bit like Scholesy in that way. He never talks much, he just does his job on the pitch. Players like him are the future and, to win the league, the boss is not going to be afraid to give young players a chance. He knows they can help us to win more titles. That's the United way. It's always been that way."
    Ferguson must also decide this week whether he should persist with David de Gea in goal or bring in Anders Lindegaard and give the 20-year-old Spaniard more time to get used to his new surroundings. De Gea made a bad mistake for City's second goal and, though he partially redeemed himself with a couple of good saves in the second half, there is a feeling behind the scenes at Old Trafford that the £18.3m signing may be prone to making more errors in his first few months in England.
    Lindegaard was impressive on the pre-season tour of the United States and the Denmark international, speaking before the Community Shield, made it clear he does not want to be De Gea's understudy following his arrival from Atlético Madrid.
    "The boss told me when I came that, if you're good enough, you're going to play. The best man plays – that's how it is and how it should be. A lot of people in the media have said that I am here to be No2 but that is not how I see it at all. It's the most attractive goalkeeping job in the world. It's the job everybody wants and I'm no different. I want that job."
    Lindegaard was signed from the Norwegian club Aalesund in January for around £3.5m, not even a fifth of the amount United paid Atlético for De Gea, but the 27-year-old does not believe the smaller fee will have any influence on Ferguson's selection during the course of the season. "You have players coming to the club who are not huge signings but still make their way. Chicharito [Javier Hernández] was maybe the best player last season but he wasn't brought in as a huge star. He made his way and he's a real example of how to do it."

 
[h=1]Football transfer rumours: Alberto Aquilani to Milan?[/h] Today's tell-all is curious to know for how long one helicopter can hover?



  • Alberto-Aquilani-002.jpg
    Are AC Milan going to put Alberto Aquilani out of his Anfield misery. Photograph: Dave Thompson/PA

    Sitting in the charred remains of its King's Cross crawlspace, the Rumour Mill is finding it difficult to concentrate on the peddling of baseless football speculation in the wake of last night's horrors, when we played a lengthy rendition of When the Saints Go Marching In (to the Emirates) on our own trumpet, then treated ourselves to a celebratory brandy and cigar for nailing yesterday's speculation about Southampton tyro Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain going to Arsenal, only to pass out mid-revel and cause our non-fire-resistant, classic double-ended chaise longue in cream regency stripe on mahogany ball and claw legs to ignite.
    In Liverpool, it seems Alberto Aquilani's dreams of signing for Milan may also be about to go up in smoke, with the midfielder's agent having declared that the Serie A side have yet to make a concrete offer, despite their vice president Adriano Galliani stating that a bookish-looking Italian international with a touch of the Harry Potters about him is exactly what the club needs.
    "The Rossoneri, for now, haven't stepped forward for him," said Franco Zavaglia. "There were the words of Galliano, but no other signal. As a result I can't tell you what kind of offer the club could potentially make for my client – in regards to a loan or a permanent switch. We'll just have to wait."
    Sibneft will go head to head with the Qatar Investment Authority in what's likely to be an unseemly cash-soaked scrap, if Daily Mail reports that Chelsea are "facing a battle" with Paris Saint-Germain in the race to sign Porto's Uruguayan wing-back Alvaro Pereira are anything to go by. A first-team staple at the Portuguese club when André Villas-Boas was in charge, Pereira had been valued at £15m, but that's all changed now he's found himself in the enviable position of being coveted by two clubs currently positioning their money-cannons outside the Estádio do Dragão and preparing to fire.
    Having made his position at the Bernabéu untenable a couple of weeks ago by telling an ESPN interviewer that Barcelona are not just better than Real Madrid, but one of the best sides in history, Fernando Gago is available to interested parties, despite not having pulled up too many trees during his time in the Spanish capital. The Argentina midfielder did not say anything that isn't true, but Real Madrid fans quickly took to cyberspace to register their disapproval at what they perceived as an outrageous act of treachery by a bitter ingrate, when in fact the interview in question was conducted in a fairly jovial and lighthearted manner.
    The upshot is that Senor Gago is now being offered to Manchester City in part exchange for Emmanuel Adebayor, who is diplomacy itself and would obviously never dream of upsetting fans of any club he plays for with disaparaging, ill-advised remarks or, indeed, goal celebrations. Should Gago end up at Eastlands or any other Premier League club, he can at least relax safe in the knowledge that English football fans generally don't take things too seriously and would never waste their time scrutinising the most bland remarks in search of offence where none is intended.
    Adebayor is also wanted by Harry Redknapp at Tottenham Hotspur, as is Real Madrid's £20m-rated French international midfielder Lassana Diarra, even if Spurs are reported to be reluctant to shell out that much dosh.
    This morning's super soaraway Sun reports that West Bromwich Albion are about to "smash" their transfer record to bring Shane Long to the Hawthorns. One of the Rumour Mill's spies reports that the Reading striker missed training with the Republic of Ireland on Monday to conduct a medical with the Baggies, who are hoping he'll put pen to paper in time for their Premier League opener against Manchester United this Sunday.
    And having seen his porous defence ship 15 goals in six admittedly meaningless pre-season friendlies, Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish is concerned enough to line up an £8m bid for Scott Dann, whose current club Birmingham City might still be a Premier League side if their 24-year-old centre-half hadn't missed the second half of last season with a twanged hamstring.

 
[h=1]Tottenham hold talks with Real Madrid over Lassana Diarra[/h] • Harry Redknapp targets former Portsmouth midfielder
• Move could be hindered by Frenchman's wage demands




  • David Hytner
  • guardian.co.uk, Monday 8 August 2011 23.00 BST Article history
    Lassana-Diarra-has-worked-005.jpg
    Lassana Diarra of Real Madrid worked at Portsmouth with Harry Redknapp, who now wants to take him to Tottenham. Photograph: Denis Doyle/Getty Images

    Tottenham Hotspur have held talks with Real Madrid over the possibility of signing the long-term target Lassana Diarra, although the midfielder's wage demands have made the prospect of a deal unlikely.
    Harry Redknapp, the Tottenham manager, signed Diarra for £5.5m in January 2008, when he was in charge at Portsmouth, and he has previously attempted to bring him to White Hart Lane.
    Redknapp might appear well stocked in central midfield, where he has Luka Modric, Tom Huddlestone, Sandro, Jermaine Jenas and Wilson Palacios. Tottenham are adamant that Modric will not be allowed to join Chelsea, who have offered as much as £27m for him so far this summer, although they will listen to offers for Jenas and Palacios.
    Redknapp, though, is always on the lookout for players he thinks can improve his squad and he would like to take Diarra, who is surplus to requirements at Real.
    He has had an interest in the West Ham United midfielder Scott Parker but Tottenham say there will be no deal for him, partly because of his wages. Diarra earns much more than Parker at Real, taking home £120,000 a week, which is far in excess of Tottenham's wage ceiling.

 
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