It’s just a couple of days until the Premier League’s elite start waggling their chequebooks, and Arsene Wenger has vowed to defy the economic downturn with some big spending. His top target appears to be a Russian with the face of a baby, while Juande Ramos is rumoured to be interested in bringing a Tottenham midfielder out to Spain…
Andrei Arshavin to Arsenal
The Zenit star’s agent has been adding to the speculation that Professor Wenger will break Arsenal spending conventions for a Fabregas replacement in January. He told the Daily Star: “We know that Arsene Wenger likes the look of Arshavin. But I like the look of Angelina Jolie and it doesn’t always mean you get what you want.”
Spoiler truth-o-meter: Arshavin has made his position at Zenit untenable, but all this hype about a move to London could just be a cynical method of raising his transfer fee. Perhaps Spain and Italy beckon for the Euro 2008 sensation.
Jermaine Jenas to Real Madrid
Seemingly on a mission to be linked to every middling-to-average player in the Premiership (see yesterday’s speculation over Jermaine Pennant and Luis Valencia), the La Liga champions are said to “have an interest” in midtable obscurity the Tottenham midfielder.
Spoiler truth-o-meter: Shifting the Spurs vice captain would free up some cash to bring
It’s not long until Manchester City’s bottomless coffer is unleashed, and the press are having a fantastic time linking everyone under the sun to them. Here’s the latest happenings in gossipland…
David Villa to Manchester City The Sun has revealed Man City are in talks to sign Euro 2008 star David Villa after Mark Hughes insisted there would be big name signings in January.
The Spoiler Truth-o-meter: Cash-strapped Valencia would surely accept £60 million and City wouldn’t think twice about breaking the world transfer record. And for around £150,000 a week you’d think the man himself might be quite interested too.
Thierry Henry to Manchester City
Manchester City are keen to bring Thierry Henry back to England after his turbulent time in Spain according to the Daily Mail. Barcelona might be interested if the right money is offered although a sale would most likely follow a guaranteed replacement with Lyon striker Karim Benzema consistently linked with the Catalan giants.
The Spoiler Truth-o-meter: City and Barcelona might both be interested in a deal, but Thierry Henry remains determined to prove his time in Spain has been a success. Following a hat-trick at the weekend he looks keen to win over his detractors in Spain.
Milan to extend loan for Beckham?
AC Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani has revealed he hopes to keep David Beckham for as long as possible. LA Galaxy have already agreed to loan out Beckham in January for the close season of the MLS. Despite competition for places in Milan’s midfield - Kaka, Andrea Pirlo and Ronaldinho to name just a few, Beckham’s England career prospects would be enhanced by proving his quality in Serie A as opposed to in USA. Milan might struggle to match the Galaxy’s asking price or Beckham’s weekly half a million dollar wages but would enjoy significant commercial success if a permanent deal could be agreed with the Galaxy.
The Spoiler Truth-o-meter: Posh might like life in Italy better than LA where she is far less popular than her hubby and might want to stay for Milan Fashion Week in September.
A Manager to Sunderland
Rumoured replacements for Roy Keane include Peter Reid
It’s only four weeks until the January transfer window opens and all eyes turn eagerly towards Manchester City in the hope they they will pump some money around and get a merry-go-round started. What better time than now then for The Spoiler to bring back it’s daily transfer rumour round-up? Here are the latest whisperings that we’ve heard:
Dean Ashton to the highest bidder
Everybody is expecting a FIRE SALE! at West Ham next month but which player do the Daily Mirror think is on top of every Premier League club’s wishlist? Not Robert Green, who starred against Arsenal and Liverpool, nor Matthew Upson, who has established himself as England’s third-choice centre-back. Instead it’s injury-prone pizza fan Dean Ashton, who may not play again this season, who West Ham are supposedly expecting £18 million for.
The Spoiler Truth-o-meter: Any sale would surely happen in the summer and for a seven-figure fee
Congratulations where they’re due, so a doff of the cap to today’s Mirror for running an “exclusive” story about Emile Heskey returning to Liverpool. Great work, guys. Of course, The Spoiler did run the story over a month ago, but perhaps that’s just splitting hairs. It feels new.
Either way, it opens up yet another football debate. Last time around Heskey worked best as the bruiser protecting dinky little strikers like Michael Owen and Robbie Fowler. This time he’d be lining up with Torres, who could possibly beat him in a fight (don’t be fooled by the smooth face, people). Do Liverpool really need him?
Let us know what you think with a vote and/or a comment…
It’s been an interesting week or so, watching England amass eight goals, let in two, and yet still not look entirely convincing. Hence The Spoiler has decided to down tools for a couple of minutes and do Capello’s job for him. At last count, he’d made probably about five mistakes in two games - not involving Ashley Young or Micah Richards in his squads. Allowing Carragher to stay retired. Persisting with the ridiculous Lampard/Gerrard combo. Dropping Owen altogether. And thus we’ve come up with, injuries permitting, the team that will get England where they need to go.
Richards comes into the back four to add a bit of oomph to the right hand side. Wes Brown has been alright, but spends too much time with his mouth wide open watching the midfield pass it around.
After a miserable 5-1 victory over the weekend, it was nice to see England produce something close to decent footie. Rooney - now sprouting terrifying neck hair - had a stonker, the England fans were so passionate about the anthems that they insisted on being a verse out of time, and Heskey got a well-deserved 50th cap. Here’s what else we found out:
1. England will always concede a goal at some point - albeit a fantastic one.
2. Heskey and Rooney work together as a front TWO.
3. We need someone like Hargreaves in the middle hurtling around, yapping away. Too much backing off gave Belarus their goal.
World Cup Qualifier, 7.30pm, Setanta Sports 1, £10 Free Bet
Rather than just telling you why Wayne Rooney might score in Minsk, our friends at chickendinner have examined all ten likely outfield starters for England tonight and assessed each individual’s chances of scoring the opening goal:
Wayne Bridge - The left-back hasn’t scored in 21 months and his one international goal, against Iceland in 2004, was the sixth in that match.
Matthew Upson - He’s the only likely outfield starter without an international goal but his only goal in the last 22 months was an important one: West Ham’s winner against Manchester United last December.
Rio Ferdinand - Has only once managed to score in consecutive games in his career and even then only one was a first goal.
Wes Brown - Scored his first England goal at home to the Czech Republic
It’s only taken five thousand eight hundred and fifty games for everyone to twig that Lampsie and Gerrard simply can’t stand one another so would rather spend the game falling over, slicing the ball, or simply staring mindlessly into the stands than actually forming a decent partnership, so one of them has to go. On current form, that one would be Stevie G. He might be much easier to like, but on current club form, Lampsie is one of the best in the world. Perhaps Capello would be wise to consider having them playing alternate games? Food for thought. Elsewhere on Wednesday, The Spoiler would give left footer Downing an outing, if only to give the side a sense of balance. Upson can sit this one out in the dugout, pondering his stuttering display at the weekend, with Brown shifting inside, and Glen Johnson adding a bit more flair and speed to the right flank. Plus, of course, Wayne Bridge comes in for that injured little oik, Mr Cheryl Cole.
Everyone’s squealing and squabbling with each other about Lampsie and Steve playing in the same team against Kazakhstan, but how about this for a solution? Plenty of pace on the wings, Lamps taking the form of his life into the centre, while Stevie G thunders up and down the right - he’s played there around forty times for Liverpool, most famously when Finnan went off during the epic Champions League win in 2005, and Tommy Smith once declared him Liverpool’s best full-back ever… and that includes Rob Jones.
With the big names at Newcastle (Given, Owen, Duff, um, Butt) likely to demand relocation once the transfer window inches open again, it seems that The Spoiler might have inadvertently predicted the future for dinky little Michael Owen. Only a week ago the big talk was that Benitez was going to wage war on Villa in a bid for Wigan tough guy Emile Heskey, and now the loud clamour in all of the football gossip salons is that Owen is a target too - we joked about that, but it seems that Rafa was reading with a very straight face.
In which case, Benitez, for your next challenge: Ian Rush?
