Charlie Wyett speculates in The Sun today that Arsenal may be willing to listen to offers for club captain Thomas Vermaelen over the Summer, and that Arsene Wenger is attempting to ‘freeze-out’ the Belgian out of The Emirates.
Maybe, although I’m not sure starting someone in 25 Premier League games really counts as a freezi [...]
Doubting Arsenal’s reported stance on Thomas Vermaelen
Charlie Wyett speculates in The Sun today that Arsenal may be willing to listen to offers for club captain Thomas Vermaelen over the Summer, and that Arsene Wenger is attempting to ‘freeze-out’ the Belgian out of The Emirates.
Maybe, although I’m not sure starting someone in 25 Premier League games really counts as a freezi [...]
Rio Ferdinand’s contract extension makes perfect sense for Manchester United
It’s interesting to note the difference in reaction to the contractual situations of Rio Ferdinand and Frank Lampard – both have only recently reached a resolution with their clubs, but only one received the bleeding heart press-coverage.
Anyway, Ferdinand now has his year-long extension, and that’s very good news for Manch [...]
Revisiting Oscar’s goal for Chelsea against Juventus
Because it occurred during a failed Champions League campaign, this goal from Oscar doesn’t get nearly the amount of attention it warrants.
There’s an obvious parallel with here with Gianfranco Zola’s FA Cup semi-final goal against Wimbledon in the late 90s, but this is probably more impressive – the Brazilian is unde [...]
Arsenal’s Laurent Koscielny: Season in numbers
From widespread derision, to being arguably Arsenal’s most important defender: it’s been quite a turn-around for Laurent Koscielny over the past two seasons.
Here are his statistics from 2012/13:
– Made 20 Premier League starts this season, and a further 5 appearances from the substitutes’ bench.
– Scored 2 go [...]
Hyperbole around Jamie Carragher’s Liverpool career is doing him a disservice
Here’s a quote from Steven Gerrard on the recently concluded career of Jamie Carragher:
“You name all of the best ones – your Terrys, Ferdinands, Nestas and Cannavaros – and Jamie sits comfortably in amongst all of those names. It was a pleasure to have him behind you as a player.
Inside that man, he’s got somet [...]
Revisiting Robin van Persie’s goal for Manchester United at Upton Park
Actually, I think this is better than the goal Robin van Persie scored against Aston Villa later in the season – maybe that’s just because it doesn’t involve Wayne Rooney.
On a serious note though, this goal wins extra points for being a last-minute equaliser away from home rather than just part of home cake-walk against a [...]
Revisiting Juan Mata’s goal for Chelsea at White Hart Lane
Over six months later, and this is still one of the best goals scored in the Premier League this season.
By late October, the attacking combination between Juan Mata and Eden Hazard wasn’t quite as developed as it would become over the course of the year, but never did the two of them combine better than they did here.
It’s actua [...]
Ilkay Gundogan would be a perfect fix for Chelsea’s problem position
I know plenty of people will disagree with me, but I really don’t believe that Chelsea need to add another forward before next year. For the last six months, that’s all we’ve heard: Radamel Falcao, Edinson Cavani, Wayne Rooney, Mario Gomez etc.
Forwards are exciting, you can watch their goals on YouTube videos, and they sh [...]
Tottenham’s Mousa Dembele: Season in numbers
It still amazes me that other clubs didn’t compete with Tottenham for Dembele’s signature back in August, because £15m for someone of the Belgian’s ability is a steal – here are his statistics from a successful, albeit injury-scarred 2012/13:
– He made 26 Premier League appearances, with an additional 4 from th [...]
Swansea’s Michu: Season in numbers
There’s nothing new to say about Michu, and there’s nothing to add to the lavish praise with which he’s already been showered – what a fantastic season, and what a pick-up by Michael Laudrup.
Here are his statistics from 2012/13:
– Played 35 Premier League games this season, the second-most of all Swansea playe [...]
