FIFA Presidential candidate Mohammed Bin Hammam has called for new blood at the governing body as he continues his election campaign.Bin Hammam has been in South America, along with current President Sepp Blatter, at the South American Football Confederation, as they both look to gain support ahead of the vote on June 1.
And despite supporting Blatter in the past, Bin Hammam said it is time for change.
“I was with Blatter and I was honored to work as a member of the executive committee with him,” bin Hammam said.
“I supported him a lot, of course during 1998 and 2002. But, I think also, it is time for change , this is actually one thing I believe in. And I believe also the competition and democracy is something very good for our organization.”
The pair were guests were guests at CONMEBOL where both sat at the top table with federation president Nicolas Leoz.
And Blatter was confident that he would be getting Leoz’s backing.
“I want to congratulate the 62nd Congress of the South American Football Confederation CONMEBOL, especially Nicolas Leoz for his 25 years, also to the presidency that will continue these next four years,” Blatter said.
“I also want to thank this congress for its support of me to continue my mission in FIFA.”
CONMEBOL holds 10 of the 208 votes at the FIFA congress.
Blatter believes he has about 50 percent support from Africa and Asia and a majority in the rest of the world, but Bin Hammam believes the issue is not settled.
Controversy seems to follow Emmanuel Adebayor everywhere he goes, and so it is only fitting that he should be linked with his former employer’s Arsenal’s local rivals, Tottenham Hotspur. The Togolese striker is currently on loan at Real Madrid from Manchester City, and with the Lilywhites obvious troubles up front, is signing the former Monaco forward worth the aggravation he will no doubt cause?
The former Gunners ace has proven his ability at the highest level, time and time again; averaging just over a goal every two games for the Gunners, and the same ratio for Manchester City. Adebayor has all the attributes of an ideal target man, very much like Peter Crouch, but the difference between the two is that Adebayor actually uses these attributes. The Togo star is strong in the air, holds up play and has a huge presence when in and around the final third.
The problem with Adebayor is that for every fantastic goal or entertainment he produces, there are always outspoken, controversial and blunt actions or comments. You have the infamous celebration against the Gunners, the ‘stamp’ on Robin Van Persie and the continual argument via the media with Roberto Mancini. It is these moments of madness that can overshadow a season, cost you a Cup Final or bring down a team’s morale, can Spurs really risk such an occurrence on their quest for Champions League football?
Liability or not, the fact of the matter Spurs are desperate for new faces in their frontline after the abysmal form of Defoe, Crouch and Pavlyuchenko this season. Yes Adebayor poses a risk, but what decision is football doesn’t? The knock down price that Adebayor will be available for, the guaranteed goals he will bring and yet another chance to get one over on Arsenal, after the success of Gallas, I think Spurs fans should embrace such a signing as Adebayor despite his ‘baggage’. Some of the games current greatest managers have seen real talent in big forward, and no doubt in true Adebayor style, he will endear himself to the White Hart Lane faithful, but for how long is a totally different question?
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Imogen Thomas Joins Paddy Power For a Champion Offer! They will refund losing Champions League Final bets if Man United lose the match Make your bets now!
Highpoint- The big number 19. In the years after the 26 year title drought was finally broken in 1993, we were still taunted by Liverpool fans telling us we’d never beat 18 titles. This is the year we officially ‘knocked them off their perch’, with it clearly meaning as much to Fergie as it did to the fans.
Lowpoint- Men against boys, a centre forward we couldn’t handle, and over ran in midfield. Not the Champions League final, the League Cup defeat at Upton Park. Standing in the cold snow, watching a reasonably strong United team being taken apart by Carlton Cole and Jonathan Spector. Jonny Evans’ season never recovered from that, Bebe and Obertan played like, well, Bebe and Obertan. The disappointing performances from Smalling and Hernandez fortunately proved to be an exception in excellent seasons for them both.
Player of the season- Nemanja Vidic. Honourable mentions go to Hernandez and Van der Sar, but Vidic has been a rock at the heart of the defence all season. The partnership of Vidic-Ferdinand often looks unbeatable, and he has also played his part in the impressive development of Chris Smalling.
Best Away Trip- Schalke in the Champions League Semi final. An absolutely fantastic stadium was a suitable setting for one of the best European away performances from United in recent years.
We will miss you- Edwin Van Der Sar. The big dutch keeper enjoyed arguably his best season since joining the club, cementing his place as a fans favourite and leaving us with plenty of happy memories.
Season of two halves- Dimitar Berbatov. With Rooney carrying his England form into the start of the new season, it was left to Berbatov to pull the team through. However, once Rooney started to find form, Berbatov seemingly lost his, cumulating with him losing his place in the squad for the Champions League final.
Hats off to- FC Barcelona. There is no shame in losing to a team that could easily rank as one of the best club sides of all time. Fergie was brave with his tactics and picked the team that most of us wanted him to, but we were still outplayed. Messi, Xavi and Iniesta play football with such ease that you can only admire.
Comeback of the season- Antonio Valencia. Came back from a horrific leg break, arguably a better player than he was pre injury. His return offered the team more balance, and enabled the rotation of Giggs and Nani.
Remember me – Owen Hargreaves. After a single 4 minute appearance in 2010/11, United decided not to renew Hargreaves’ contract. He will now surely figure on every ‘big money flops’ list that the tabloids spew out, but rememeber that without Hargreaves there would have be no Moscow.
Bizarre fans moment- In Ibrox, Rangers fans singing ‘England’ with United fans singing ‘Argentina’.
Don’t mention- FA Cup Semi Final
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A legend- Gary Neville. A lifelong United fan who made over 600 appearances for the club winning domestic, European and world honours, and despite a couple of shaky years at the end, has proved himself as United best ever right back. If that’s not enough of a ‘schoolboys dream’ career, he got Ian Brown to sing for him at his testimonial. Legend.
Hopes for next season- With a couple of players already on the way, and a few more seemingly packed and ready at the exit door, it looks like we might be looking at a bit of an overhaul at Old Trafford this summer. A keeper is obviously vital, and a goalscoring central midfielder is needed. It would be nice to see a few youngsters given a chance, Cleverley and Welbeck have both had decent seasons out on loan and deserve an opportunity. Fergie says there is money available but it needs to be spent wisely and I would be happy with a couple of solid players and a couple of exciting youngsters rather than one big marquee signing.
CONCACAF acting president Lisle Austin has been provisionally banned from the federation for allegedly violating rules.Austin – who is deputising for the suspended former president Jack Warner – will be the subject of a hearing in July, but details of the case were not specified on Saturday.
“Mr. Lisle Austin, is hereby provisionally banned from taking part in any kind of football related activity within CONCACAF and at the national level,” a CONCACAF statement said.
Austin only assumed the interim presidency on Sunday and quickly made an enemy in CONCACAF general secretary, Chuck Blazer, whom he suspended from duty before the pair traded insults through the week.
This provisional ban can be appealed, but Austin would have to file a written notice of appeal to the CONCACAF Executive Committee before June 13.
Warner, alongside Asian Football Confederation chairman Mohammed bin Hammam, are the subject of an alleged bribery investigation, with Blazer the whistle-blower in that case.
Newcastle manager Alan Pardew has stated that he hopes highly rated Jose Enrique will remain at the Tyneside club.
The Spanish full-back has been subject to transfer speculation after an impressive 2010/11, with Arsenal and Liverpool reportedly interested in the ex-Villarreal defender. However his boss knows that it will be difficult to convince the 25-year-old to stay at St James Park.
“No-one is more keen for him to stay than myself. He was a terrific player for us last year and he has been terrific for the club,” the former West Ham coach told BBC Radio Newcastle.
“We are trying to persuade him to stay, but with a year running on his contract and his desire to play Champions League football at his age, it’s going to be difficult to keep him. It’s one of those situations where we just have to keep watching and hoping that it falls our way,” he stated.
The 49-year-old is also hoping further success on the pitch in 2011/12 will be the key to keeping his starmen, as the northern club are struggling to compete with the top six financially.
“As it stands financially at the moment, we can’t compete with those top teams in terms of trading players. But of course we can compete on the football pitch, so what we have tried to do is bring in players that we feel have an improvement in them and a desire to play for Newcastle, and that’s why we targeted the players that we have.
“Now the most important thing to keep those players is to put success in front of them. When you are building a new side, it needs to have progression, and that’s something we are going to need this season, we are going to need to see a progression in our form, in our consistency and get as close as we can to those top teams.
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“If we see that, I think we an keep them another year, and then when we go into that second or third year, then you really, really need to be very, very close because then they are going to start looking, as Jose is now, for those trophies, and I think we can do that. The likes of [Cheick] Tiote, Cabaye and people like that, we are going to have to have success on the pitch to keep them, 100%,” he concluded.
Pardew also stated that he has a good working relationship with Joey Barton, and hopes the midfielder remains in his squad for the forthcoming season.
With all the talent on display at Manchester United, it can be very easy to overlook some of the players who have stayed out of the media limelight, yet have made a huge contribution in helping the club achieve the success that it has. One player who undoubtedly falls into this category is Park Ji-Sung.
It has recently been announced that Sir Alex Ferguson has offered a two-year contract extension to the South Korean, who retired from international duty back in January in order to focus on his club career. This is a just reward for a player who has worked tirelessly during his time at Old Trafford, helping the club to 4 League titles and 3 League Cups. And yet he has not always been given the credit that he deserves. He may have played alongside some of the world’s greatest and most renowned midfielders, such as Christiano Ronaldo, Nani and Paul Scholes, but he has quietly gone about his job, not created anywhere near as much controversy as his counterparts and, throughout his career at United, barely put a foot wrong.
When you look back at the highlights of Park’s career at Manchester United and with South Korea, it is difficult to see why there has not been more of a fuss made about him:
14 June 2002 – Scored a memorable goal for South Korea against Portugal in the World Cup to help them through to the knock-out stages of the tournament for the first time in their history.
9 April 2006 – Scored his first Premier League goal for Manchester United in a 2-0 win over Arsenal
29 April 2008 – Voted Man of the Match in United’s Champions League semi-final win over Barcelona
21 September 2008 – Scored for United in a 1-1 draw against title rivals Chelsea
13 December 2008 – Made his 100th appearance for the club in a 0-0 draw against Spurs
5 May 2009 – Scored against Arsenal in a 3-1 win the Champions League semi-final
27 May 2009 – Became the first Asian player in history to play in the Champions League final
31 January 2010 – Scored a crucial goal in a 3-1 win at Arsenal in the Premier League
10 March 2010 – Scored for United in their 4-0 win over AC Milan in the Champions League
21 March 2010 – Scored the winner in a 2-1 win over Liverpool
12 June 2010 – Became the first Asian to score in 3 consecutive World Cups, scoring in South Korea’s 2-0 win over Greece
November and December 2010 – Won the club’s Player of the Month award 2 months in a row
13 December 2010 – Scored the winner in a 1-0 win over Arsenal
25 January 2011 – Made his 100th appearance for South Korea in their Asian Cup semi-final match against Japan
12 April 2011 – Scored in United’s 2-1 Champions League quarter-final win over Chelsea
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These highlights prove that Park is a player who loves the big time and has played a pivotal role in some of United’s biggest matches of the last five years.
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He is also one of the most versatile players in English football, with his ability to play anywhere across the midfield. He works well in both defensive and attacking positions and his work ethic and movement off the ball are superb. He also has very high fitness levels and his discipline is exceptionally good. He may not be one of the most glamorous or celebrated players in United’s squad, but he is undoubtedly one of the most useful. He is arguably the greatest Asian to have ever played in the Premiership.
As a new season approaches and now that Paul Scholes has retired, competition for places in United’s midfielder will be greater than ever. Ashley Young has been drafted in and youngsters such as Darron Gibson, Danny Welbeck and Tom Cleverley are proving themselves to be stars of the future. Park may have a difficult time convincing Sir Alex that he is good enough to play in the first team on a regular basis. But given his track record at United thus far, his versatility and his commitment to the club, it will be impossible to ignore him. A regular first team spot is the least a player like Park Ji-Sung deserves.
Read more of Sam’s articles at http://diamondformation.wordpress.com/. Also follow him on Twitter: @DiamondFormat.
Last season was undoubtedly the best that Nani has enjoyed since making his move to Manchester United in 2007. Having been largely in the shadow of fellow countryman Christiano Ronaldo during his first seasons at Old Trafford, Nani finally emerged as a player who is starting to fulfil the potential that led Sir Alex Ferguson to bring him to England.
But up until the start of last season, questions were being raised as to whether his manager was beginning to run out of patience with a player who promised much but often failed to deliver. In contrast, Nani’s form over the course of last season made him one of United’s stand out performers and put pay to any doubts as to whether the winger had what it takes to become a United superstar.
From early in the season, Nani was performing consistently and was rewarded with an extended run in the starting eleven. The player repaid the faith shown in him by his manager by delivering 18 assists during the season, comfortably more than any other Premier League player and finished the season as United’s third highest scorer behind Dimitar Berbatov and Javier Hernandez .
It is this end product and delivery, something that had often been missing from Nani’s game, which also led Nani’s fellow players to vote for him as their player’s player of the season. Rumoured to have been on his way out of United just 18 months prior, the turnaround in Nani’s form and fortunes last season was particularly marked.
Nani has always had the raw attributes to suggest that he could become a great player for United and worry opposing defences. He has pace and power combined with trickery, enabling him to beat players with ease, and has two great feet which leads full-backs to question whether he will come inside or try and get to the by-line.
He possesses a great shot from outside the box and is also a real threat on set-pieces with his pacey delivery. But it was Nani’s all round game which seemed to develop last season as he played with greater discipline in staying out wide and showed signs that he was prepared to track back in order to help out in defence when needed. However, whilst it is widely accepted that Nani had a great season last year, based on his manager’s team selection in the Champions League Final at Wembley, it is clear that Nani still has some way to go to convince him that he should be in the starting eleven for the crunch games.
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Ferguson’s decision to start with Ji-Sung Park and Antonio Valencia for that game will certainly have wrangled with Nani, particularly given his fantastic displays throughout the course of the season. Whilst it could be argued that this decision was as a result of his manager’s apprehension about facing the team widely regarded as the best in the world in Barcelona , Nani will need to keep improving in order to ensure that the same does not happen again should United go all the way to the final this season.
If last season’s displays were vitally important in elevating Nani’s importance to United and delivering a turnaround in his career, this season represents an opportunity for the 24-year old to continue his development and truly become one of the best players in Europe.
Whilst United have great depth in wide areas, and have strengthened through the signing of Ashley Young from Aston Villa, no other United winger possesses quite the same ability to turn a match single handedly and create opportunities through his ability to dribble past multiple defenders. He will certainly be an important player for United next season and it could be argued that his form could be inextricably linked to United’s hopes of retaining the Premier League title; such is Nani’s importance to the team.
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Nani must overcome the disappointing end to last season and build on his excellent displays to once again cement his side in the United starting eleven. If he is able to do that show the appetite to track back whilst continuing to deliver in the attacking third of the pitch he will once again win plaudits next season. It will be interesting to watch just how much better he can become over the coming seasons and whether he will truly be regarded as one of the best in Europe.
After an impressive performance off the bench in last Sunday’s Charity Shield comeback against City, a surprise England call-up on Monday, there is the chance that Cleverley could make his first start for United in the Premiership opener against West Brom on Sunday.
After an impressive performance against City, Cleverley has certainly earned himself many fans, including Fabio Capello, who named the 21 year old in his squad for the friendly against Holland this week, before it was postponed. While it was only a friendly and we shouldn’t get that carried away, it at least shows the midfielder is on Capello’s radar and with a few more good performances, Cleverley could soon be following in the footsteps of close friend Jack Wilshere and appear for the national team.
After a string of excellent performances in pre-season and on Sunday, Cleverley certainly has impressed several United players, with Patrice Evra saying:
“You saw [at Wembley] that he is not afraid. He has a lot of energy and Manchester United need a player like this.
“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.”
What does this season hold for Cleverley then? The youngster can certainly make an impact for United this season, and offers a more attacking option in central midfield compared to the likes of Anderson, Carrick and Fletcher. With Sir Alex always keen to give young players a chance, Cleverley should get his chance to shine this season, even if it is mostly off the bench.
The comparisons with Scholes are a bit early at the moment – we need to see how Cleverley performs on a regular basis against top competition before we even attempt to make those comparisons – but even if Cleverley can partially fill Scholes’ boots, then it’s a good thing.
And with the likes of De Gea, Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, Cleverley and Welbeck to replace retired legends like Van Der Sar and Scholes this season, there is an emphasis on youth this season, with Sir Alex keen to get the youngsters playing together regularly to create a new legacy at United when the great man retires.
The only thing that could affect Cleverley’s progress this season would be whether Wesley Sneijder completes his on-off move to Old Trafford before the end of the month. With the club apparently ready to pull the plug on a move for Sneijder this would see Cleverley’s playing time increase and give the youngster a chance to try and fill the Scholes void at Old Trafford and earn his place in the United side.
What do you think – how much of an impact can Cleverley have at United this season?
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Read more of Tom Jinks’ articles at The Busby Way
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Andre Villas-Boas recorded his first victory as Chelsea boss at Stamford Bridge this evening.
Goals from Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda ensured a 2-1 turnaround after falling behind to an early Shane Long strike.
In a game that ebbed and flowed, Chelsea certainly didn’t have it their own way as West Brom were more than match for the Blues and Roy Hodgson can take a lot of heart from the way his Baggies side has performed in the opening week of the Premier League season. They have certainly matched the top two sides in the country and on this performance they will certainly be challenging for a top half finish this season. Roy Hodgson has made them a tough and organised side to beat and nobody will relish facing them this season.
As for Villas-Boas he will happily take the points on this occasion but he will know that a lot of improvements will be needed if Chelsea are going to challenge United and take back their title crown.
Click here to see the stats from Stamford Bridge
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Watch the goals from today’s game by checking out ESPN’s New GOALS APP
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Check the winning the numbers from this week’s Goaldash here
Manchester City have made an excellent start to the season and seem to have stamped their mark as one of the ‘big four’ at the top of the league, but do they have enough arrogance and self belief to take them to the title?
You can assemble a side with all the quality in the world but it counts for little if you don’t have the self belief to take you over the finish line. In the past few seasons it has been this self belief that has set the title winning sides apart from the rest. Manchester United and Chelsea have shown that they have the arrogant edge that sets them apart from their rivals. They feel that they belong at the top, as it is their rightful place and their sides act accordingly to this. To be the best, you have to believe you are the best, and this is something Manchester United in particular have no trouble with.
Take the United side from last season, it wasn’t filled with the most talented individuals of all time, but an iron self belief runs through the side, that sees them come back from the brink game after game, with late second half performances and late goals. Their gutsy self belief more than makes up for their lack of flair. They always have faith in themselves and never lose hope, continuing to give everything until the final whistle. Every player is involved in that and dedicated to the cause, and it has been the difference between them and the other sides around them.
Jose Mourinho brought the same kind of self belief to Chelsea. He assembled a team of winners, with his arrogant streak rubbing off on his players, and they gained much success throughout his term. He turned Chelsea into winners, and his psychological impact on the side was arguably more important than his tactical contribution. Chelsea believed they were the best and this paid off over the course of his reign.
We only have to look at the Arsenal side to see that you can create a side of hugely talented individuals, but it counts for little if they don’t have the required self belief to take them the next step. It is arguably more important than the talented personnel in the side, and sets the good teams apart from the trophy winners. You need that self belief to pull you through over the course of a long season.
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Manchester City will have benefitted from winning the FA Cup last season, as it will give them confidence, and certainly help to instill some of the belief necessary to take the side on to the next level. There is now an expectancy of success at the club, which although brings pressure, also demands higher standards. It is this belief that they are good enough that will take them even further.
There is a question of having potentially too much arrogance, which is always a problem when assembling a side full of world class players. Too much arrogance, could create an expectation that you are going to win without even trying, which could cause problems. Players need to be of a certain mould and you certainly need a bit of an arrogant streak to be the best. It is important that a side fears no one and doesn’t give any other team too much respect.
Manchester City are just in their infancy as a successful title challenging side, but they seem to be gathering all the elements together to achieve success at the club. As well as an array of star names, they are now starting to believe that they have enough class, and as they continue on this path, and the more successful they become, the greater their self belief will be and the harder they will be to knock off the top. As their rivals have done before them, if they believe they are the real deal then they will be, both domestically and in Europe. All the players are aware of the clubs history and they are the ones now tasked with changing it, it is not an easy task, and will require enormous amounts of bottle off the field as well as on it, but it seems like they just might have enough self belief to get there.
Do you think Manchester City have enough self belief to go to the next level? Let me know your thoughts by commenting below or following me on Twitter @LaurenRutter
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