Monday's Rumour Mill

Premier League

One of the Bender boys

As the transfer window officially opens for business today, many clubs are completing deals they hope will help them maintain their Premier league status, Norwich for example have finally signed Sporting Lisbon striker Ricky Van Wolfswinkel supposedly to replace the ageing Grant Holt. In contrast Tottenham are looking past the immediate future, with the apparent signing of two of Croatia’s brightest youngsters; Tin Jedvaj and Alen Halilovic. The deal could be worth up to €20 million according to Dinamo Zagreb Club President Mirko Barisic and this could turn out to be something of a coup for Spurs, beating amongst others, Manchester City to the duos signatures. Rumours have also surfaced today that Andre Villas Boas has telephoned want away Barca striker David Villa to try and persuade the Spanish international to move to White Hart Lane. Spurs are in desperate need of another centre forward with Jermaine Defoe the only reliable front man at the Lane. It is being reported that the other team in North London have bid £23 million for Bayer Leverkusen’s Lars Bender, however Arsenal’s bid has been answered with a categorical no, with Leverkusen stating there is no option of negotiation

Yohan Cabaye

It is looking increasingly likely that Newcastle’s star midfielder Yohan Cabaye will leave the North East this summer. PSG are on the verge of confirming their interest in the Frenchman by bidding £20 million, with Newcastle looking powerless to stand in Cabaye’s way, the lure of Champions League football to mighty for the former Lille man to turn down. In my opinion Cabaye’s performances tailed off poorly towards the end of last season, seemingly frustrated with the extra physical attention he was getting from opposition players and perhaps his game may be better suited to Ligue 1.

Better than League One #1

Manchester United look in pole position to make a move for Benfica centre half Ezequiel Garay. The former Real Madrid player was in fine form for Benfica last season, influential in their run to the Europa League Final. Fulham are edging closer to wrapping up a deal for Wolves’s powerful forward Bakary Sako, with the Frenchman pleading with the hierarchy at Molineux to allow him to enter talks with Martin Jol. Following his release from Aston Villa, centre half Richard Dunne is attracting interest from Hull City as they look to add Premier League experience to their squad.

The Football League

Better than League One #2

Former England and Liverpool keeper Scott Carson looks set to return to English football with Wigan. The 27 year old has been plying his trade in Turkey with Bursaspor, but like many British players who make the move abroad he now wants to return for family reasons. Middlesbrough have today signed 31 year old central midfielder Dean Whitehead from Stoke, this is the second time Whitehead has played in the North East having previously been captain at Sunderland. With both Wolves and Blackburn interested it now appears that Leeds have signed Crewe’s captain Luke Murphy on a three year deal with Crewe receiving £1 million. Bristol City have revealed they have already fended off two offers for wide man Albert Adomah, however it is a case of when rather than if the Ghanaian leaves Ashton Gate.

Rest of the World

Adam Maher 

One time Arsenal target Younes Belhanda has joined Ukrainian giants Dynamo Kiev, strangely the contact length and fee have yet to be revealed. One of the brightest youngsters in Holland has joined one of the biggest clubs in Holland, with Adam Maher joining PSV from AZ Alkmaar. Having already gained four caps for Holland he will certainly be one to watch at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. 

Friday's Rumour Mill

Premier League

Spurs's New Midfield Maestro

The standing of Tottenham Hotspur as a football club and Gareth Bale as a player have risen substantially over the last three seasons and both have a lot to thank each other for, Spurs in hiring Harry Redknapp provided Bale with a manager who got the best out of him and Bale’s performances on the pitch have seen Spurs go from mid-table mediocrity to Champions League chasers. This dream partnership has today been given the biggest hint that it will continue on for another year, with impending signing Paulinho claiming he has been assured that the Welshman will not be departing White Hart Lane. As for Paulinho himself, he has demonstrated his abilities for Brazil this summer and should fit in nicely next to Sandro in the Spurs midfield, his imminent arrival does however raise questions about the future of Scott Parker in North London.

Good enough for City?

As I reported on Wednesday Carlos Tevez has departed for Turin, City however have wasted no time in drawing up targets to replace the Argentinian. Top of the list is apparently German international Mario Gomez, having fallen out of favour last season at Munich with Mario Mandzukic preferred by Jupp Heynckes, it remains to be seen whether incoming manager Pep Guardiola will require the services of the big centre forward. Others on City’s radar include West Ham target Alvaro Negredo, Roma’s Pablo Osvaldo and Benfica’s Oscar Cardozo. It may be the case that two of these prospective four arrive at the Etihad with Edin Dzeko rumoured to be attracting interest from Germany. For me City need to go bigger than this list of strikers if they want to compete in Europe, a Lewandowski or Benzema perhaps.

Andrey Arshavin

The rest of the Premier League has well and truly kicked into gear on the transfer front. Yesterday saw Andrey Arshavin return to Zenit on a free transfer, the Russian unplayable in his first two seasons in England soured his reputation somewhat in his last two, failing to adjust his playing style to accommodate his loss of pace. Swansea have added another Spaniard to their ranks, with 21 year old centre back Jordi Amat joining from Espanyol, making the departure of club captain Ashley Williams to Arsenal seem more feasible. Sunderland are interested in Gino Peruzzi of Velez Sarsfield and Arsenal’s Vito Mannone with Paulo Di Canio looking to spend the money from Simon Mignolet's departure. Liverpool are monitoring Mamadou Sakho’s situation at PSG, with the French centre back stalling on a new contract. The new boys in the Premier League are continuing to bolster their squads for the new season, with Crystal Palace having agreed a fee for Peterborough’s Dwight Gayle and Hull completing the permanent signing of Sunderland’s Ahmed Elmohamady.

Football League

Murphy's screamer in the JPT final 

Harry Redknapp made his first signing of what should be a busy summer at Loftus Road and if they continue to be of the calibre of Newcastle’s Danny Simpson then a return to the top flight may beckon. Millwall have today re-signed striker Steve Morison on a season long loan from Leeds, his goal scoring record at the New Den saw him gain a move to Premier League Norwich, but after a tempestuous stint in Norfolk he finds himself returning to East London. Blackpool’s Ludovic Sylvestre has joined Turkish outfit Rizespor having rejected the advances of several English clubs. Blackburn appear to have sealed the signinature of Crewe’s talented midfielder Luke Murphy, another product of their esteemed academy. In League one Colchester have acquired the services of Arsenal youngster Sanchez Watt on a free transfer, Watt has the ability to play at a higher level but needs to produce on a regular basis.

Rest of the World

Isco

Yesterday saw Spanish playmaker Isco complete a £23 million move to Real Madrid, a boyhood Barca fan Real’s board of directors have done well to secure his services. Now to a rarity in Ligue 1, a transfer that doesn’t involve PSG or Monaco as Dimitri Payet has completed a move from Lille to Marseille. A clever wide man, Payet has been capped by five times by France and Marseille hope he will add some much needed strength to their attack. Another Frenchman Frank Ribery, has put pen to paper on a new four year deal at Bayern Munich showing that even at the age of 30 he is at the forefront of Pep Guardiola’s plans. Big Bosnian centre half Emir Spahic has joined Bayer Leverkusen from Sevilla after two years in Andalusia.

Wednesday's Rumour Mill

Premier League

Carlos Tevez

In the last 24 hours the Premier League appears to have lost one of its greatest imports, the enigma that is Carlos Tevez.  A fee in the region of £12 million has been agreed between Manchester City and Juventus for the former Boca Juniors, West Ham and Manchester United forward. Now £12 million may seem to undervalue Tevez when the likes of Cavani are being quoted at £50 odd million, however at 29 Tevez’s value in reality will only depreciate from here on in and with incoming boss Pellegrini wanting to make his mark in Manchester, getting rid of the argumentative Argentinian would appear to be a shrewd move. As for the buyers, Juventus are in my opinion in dire need of a world class centre forward if they want to mount a serious challenge for the Champions League. With Buffon behind a solid back four, Pirlo and Marchisio running the midfield all the Old Lady need is an out an out striker as both Giovinco and Vucinic like to play deeper and wider. This is a deal that perfectly fits all parties concerned and Juve fans will be hoping Tevez can have the same influential effect that his former Manchester City teammate Mario Balotelli has had at A.C Milan.

Simon Mignolet

Another day another Liverpool signing, this time its Sunderland’s first choice keeper Simon Mignolet for £9 million. Rodgers seems pleased with his business saying, "I am delighted that we have been able to sign one of the top goalkeepers in the Barclays Premier League”, however despite the undoubted ability of Mignolet which has seen him keep Thibaut Courtois out of the Belgian National team, I believe Mr Rodgers you’ve got the wrong Sunderland goalkeeper. You should in fact of signed Kieran Westwood, ask any Carlisle and Coventry fans (me included) about Westwood and you will only get rave reviews of Ireland’s number one. Never mind though as Westwood will showcase his credentials this season as Sunderland’s new first choice stopper and this time next year it could well be he who moves to one of the Premier Leagues elite. Rodgers recruitment drive shows no sign of stopping as the move for Armenian Henrikh Mkhitaryan appears to be back on as the player failed to show up to Donetsk’s pre-season training camp. Another target for the reds is Barcelona youngster Gerard Deulofeu who is interesting Rodgers and with 27 goals in 68 games for Barca B from out wide you can certainly see why.

Keisuke Honda

If you have been watching the Confederations Cup you would have admired the football played by the Japanese and one player in particular, Keisuke Honda. The CSKA attacking midfielder has a sensational passing range and an abnormal balance which allows him to use both feet to bamboozle defenders, his performances have not gone unnoticed as Roberto Martinez is rumoured to be very interested in the player. The fact that he is on a free falls beautifully into line with Bill Kenwright’s transfer policy at Goodison Park, however if Everton want to secure his signature they will have to move fast as many of Europe’s elite are interested in the 27 year old.

The Football League

Northern Ireland international Grigg

Good news in Yorkshire this morning as Barnsley have secured the future of their captain and influential keeper Luke Steele, the former Manchester United youngster has signed a 2 year extension. For another Football League club the future of their captain is less than clear, Peterborough’s Tommy Rowe is the subject of interest from Leeds but no bid has been made according to Posh director of Football Barry Fry. From a future Leeds left back to one of their greatest Ian Harte, who has received offers from both Bournemouth and Middlesbrough with the latter most likely to secure his services. One of League One’s hottest properties, Walsall’s Will Grigg looks set to move south and link up with losing play-off finalists Brentford. On a free this is a superb signing for Uwe Rosler, but a bitter blow for the Saddlers who have already lost Febian Brandy to Sheffield United.

Rest of the World

Former Lyon forward Belfodil

With the departure of Andrea Stramaccioni as manager, Inter Milan are pushing forward with an overhaul of their mismatch squad which has never recovered from the departure of Jose Mourinho in 2011. Today they are close to securing the services of Parma’s Ishak Belfodil in one of Italy’s notorious co-ownership deals, with the potential of Antonio Cassano moving in the opposite direction. Other rumours have been circulating that Andrea Ranocchia has been the subject of an offer from a Russian club and the much underrated Samir Handanovic has been interesting Barcelona. The departure of Ranocchia would add some substance to rumours linking Micah Richards with the Nerazzurri

Tuesday's Rumour Mill

Throughout the summer I'll be keeping an eye on all the transfer rumours, gossip and general rubbish that appears at this time of year, whilst giving my own opinion on the business done. The day’s news will be accumulated and posted here before 12pm, with any updates posted throughout the day.

Premier League

Edinson Cavani

If you witnessed the Confederations Cup game between Uruguay and Nigeria a few nights back, if asked which of the players on the pitch would be subject to a £50 million bid from Manchester United, not many would have said Edinson Cavani. With several heavy touches, glaring misses and appearing to struggle to link up with Luis Suarez effectively Cavani looked miles away from the player who has scored 78 goals over the last three seasons for Napoli. However David Moyes is keen to acquire the forward as he attempts to sustain United's ruling of the English top flight, these rumours will again raise questions over Wayne Rooney's future at Old Trafford which is less than clear. With Arsenal 'interested' in the England forward and having already expressed his desire to leave, any sale of Rooney would be sure to cause something of a transfer merry-go-round the like of which football has never seen. 

...to another

From one flop...

With news coming out today that Shakhtar Donetsk's Henrikh Mkhitaryan isn't interested in a move to Liverpool, having posted on his Facebook page that any information of a proposed transfer is false, Rodgers and co have moved quickly onto their next target former Juventus flop Eljero Elia who is currently at Werder Bremen. The Dutch international is still only 26 and having come to prominence in the Bundesliga perhaps he will be more accustomed to the fast pace of the Premier League as opposed to the measured pace of Serie A. With the second coming of Joe Kinnear as director of football, Geordies across the world have been in mourning. However Geordies may seek solace in the fact that the first act of 'Fat Joe' appears to be the signing of Vitesse Arnhem striker Wilfried Bony, Kinnear saw Bony's stats of 46 goals in 65 games and made the decision only a man with his years of experience in the game could to move for the Ivory Coast international. I would stay well away from Bony as for every Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Luis Suarez the Eredivisie produces there are the likes of Mateja Kezman and Alfonso Alves who score countless goals in Holland and fail to replicate their form elsewhere.

Wanyama

Last season was possibly the best in the career of Celtic's Victor Wanyama, the highlight being that header against Barcelona in the Champions League. His form has caused interest from numerous European clubs, having turned down the terms being offered by Southampton it now looks odds on for the Kenyan to sign for newly promoted Cardiff City. The Welsh clubs Malaysian owners are looking to flex their financial muscle having already agreed terms with Tom Ince, the signing of Wanyama would in my opinion take them a step further to securing their survival without a ball being kicked. Rumours are also circulating today that England U21 international Nathan Redmond has been subject to two bids from Premier League clubs, Redmond was one of the bright sparks for England this summer and any move would cost in the region of £2 million.

The Football League

This goal versus the Baggies
seems a long time ago now

Again the demise of Wolves grabs the headlines in the Football League with new gaffer Kenny Jackett placing club captain Karl Henry, Stephan Ward, Roger Johnson and Jamie O'Hara on the transfer list. O'Hara, signed for 3.5 million from Spurs missed the majority of last season through injury and despite his clear ability Wolves are struggling to shift the former Premier league player. With many teams reporting back for pre-season this week I expect the transfers to come thick and fast in the coming days as managers gauge the strengths of their squads.

Rest of the World

Pjanic of Roma

AC Milan CEO Adriano Galliani has been a busy man so far today, ruling out a move for Carlos Tevez and stating that despite interest from Spain Riccardo Montilivo is not for sale. Another person to play down speculation is Roma's Bosnian midfielder Miralem Pjanic who has ruled out any potential move to Borussia Dortmund, the Germans would see him as an ideal replacement for Mario Gotze

Monday's Rumour Mill

Throughout the summer I'll be keeping an eye on all the transfer rumours, gossip and general rubbish that appears at this time of year, whilst giving my own opinion on the business done. The day’s news will be accumulated and posted here before 12pm, with any updates posted throughout the day.

Premier League 

Someone is pleased with themselves

As the days have passed since the end of the 2012/2013 season, all discussion about Arsenal has revolved around the words 'Wenger' and 'money' and it appears that the stubborn Frenchman is finally going to concede defeat in trying to produce title winning teams with products of the academy. The first ready-made star Wenger has reluctantly delved into his purse for looks to be Argentinian forward Gonzalo Higuain, with the players father stating today that, “Nothing has yet been signed but I assure you the negotiations between the clubs are at an advanced stage". The price appears to be set at £22 million, which would smash Arsenal's transfer record currently set at £15 million for the purchase of Andrey Arshavin who is reportedly interested in a return to Zenit St Petersburg. For me the signing of Higuain is one small step in Arsenal be able to again compete with the likes of United, City and Chelsea, nevertheless this move must be followed by several more transfers both in and out of the Emirates.

Thiago Alcantara

As for the Champions Manchester United, their potential move for Spanish U21 star Thiago Alcantara has been dealt both a blow and a boost in the same day. What seems a common occurrence these days the player’s father has commented on the future of the Barcelona man, saying he should chose United ahead of their European counterparts. However Barcelona have today suggested they are considering offering Thiago a new contract, perhaps his performance in the U21 European Championship Final has persuaded them to keep him on. They shouldn't need persuading, in my opinion he has the potential to be one of the world's greatest midfielders, he has a superb eye for a pass, he combines the traits of both attacking and defensive midfielders which is shown through his ability to take a game by the scruff of the neck and dictate. Michael Carrick would appreciate having a more than competent partner alongside him.

Value for Money: Curtis Davies

The future of Wigan’s Arouna Kone appears to lie at either Everton or Norwich, with the Latics looking for £5 million for the Ivory Coast forward. I would expect Kone to move to Goodison Park with neither Anichebe nor Jelavic setting the world alight last season and with Norwich having already secured the signing of Dutchman Ricky Van Wolfswinkel. New boys Hull are close to concluding a great bit of business for Birmingham’s Curtis Davies, the 28 year old has been constant in the Blues team for the last two seasons and £2.3 million for one of the best centre halves outside the Premier League is outstanding value for money. Another fantastic bit of business close to being completed by a newly promoted side is the signing of Thomas Ince by Cardiff, the fee agreed must be north of at least £5 million for a player rumoured to be close to an England call up  

The Football League

Maghoma came through the youth ranks at Spurs

League one’s newest fallen giant Wolves are close to agreeing a deal for Bolton and Wales international Sam Ricketts, with their back four being somewhat abysmal over the past two seasons this could be just what they need. Elsewhere in League one veteran Swindon centre half Darren Ward looks set to join Uwe Rosler’s Brentford. Time is also running out for Coventry, whose attempt to sign Burton winger Jacques Maghoma is under threat with several league one clubs interested in the Frenchman.

Rest of the World

Hernanes of Lazio

After his impressive showing in the group stage of the Confederations Cup, Lazio midfielder Hernanes has admitted he would be open to a move to Ligue 1 with PSG. The move would strengthen PSG’s midfield following the retirement of David Beckham as they try to build a team capable of winning the Champions league. Another Brazilian interesting the French giants is David Luiz, the move would make sense as Luiz would be paired with his International partner Thiago Silva. Jose Mourinho may well be behind the move with Luiz’s erratic playing style not exactly being conducive to how Jose sets up his teams.

England Friendlies Review

As the British football season winds down we were treated to a couple of pointless England friendlies, nevertheless it gave the public a chance to gauge what shape Roy Hodgson’s team were in with the World Cup in Brazil just over a year away. 

Shane Long wheels away
after putting the Irish one up

A respectable 80,000 turned out at Wembley to witness the first meeting between England and the Republic of Ireland since 1995. There has been much debate in the Irish media regarding the Republic’s style of play since their pitiful showing at Euro 2012, but it was England’s tactics that sparked discussion between high profile pundits such as Gary Lineker. The Three Lions set up in that formation I like to call ‘just about good enough for League Two’ 4-4-2 and Ireland followed suit, the Irish started quickly and netted on thirteen minutes when man of the match Seamus Coleman crossed for the diminutive Shane Long who rose above the English defence to head home emphatically. England responded ten minutes later when Daniel Sturridge’s cross from the left was met by Frank Lampard on a typical late run into the box, the thirty four year old celebrated signing his one year extension at Chelsea by finding space in the Irish box and slotting past David Forde.  The rest of the game fell into a pattern of long balls from the Irish being recycled by England who lacked a cutting edge and any real fluency to find a winner, with captain for the night Ashley Cole wasting the best chance by firing over from close range following Theo Walcott’s volleyed cross. Lineker summed up the thoughts of many England fans, myself included saying, “Don't like England playing this system. So easy to play against, predictable and dated. It's not about playing in straight lines, it's about playing between the lines. Depth gives flexibility, passing alternatives, creativity”. 

John Barnes celebrates
scoring that goal in 1984

Next up for Hodgson’s men was a trip to Rio de Janeiro and the redeveloped Maracana, the scene of John Barnes wonder dribble and finish that showed the Brazilians how to play the beautiful game. It was however an energetic Brazil side that preceded to give England a lesson in football throughout the first half with Hulk, Neymar and Fred all going close for the home side. Despite deploying the more favoured 4-3-3, England lacked creativity which was personified with Phil Jones appearing in the hole behind Rooney numerous times in the first half. Unlike England the Brazilians had pace on the counter and were effectively pushing full backs Dani Alves and Felipe Luis forward with Chelsea’s David Luiz spraying balls all over the park. 

The Ox equalises

Rooney stuns the Maracana

Yet at half time it remained 0-0 and saw England sporting their new away kit for the first time come out with a rejuvenated spirit, which was inevitably quashed when second half sub Hernanes curled a superb effort which came back off the woodwork for Fred to pounce and volley home. Hodgson having had questions asked of his tactics previously, used all of his managerial nous by bringing on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain for Glen Johnson and changing to a 3-5-2 system which saw Michael Carrick sit just in front of the centre halves. This allowed the full backs to push up and Chamberlain to orchestrate the play, which he did to perfection as some clever interplay saw him hit a stinging volley into the bottom left hand corner which stunned the Maracana and showcased to the world one of England’s emerging talents. Then as if to defy logic, Rooney cut in from the left and curled a tremendous effort past Julio Cesar and in doing so sent a message to potential suitors interested in the want away Manchester United star, that he was in fact still a world beater. England were unfortunately brought back down to earth as Paulinho exquisitely volleyed Lucas Moura’s cross past Joe Hart three minutes later. Despite the start, England recovered to secure a respectable draw and Hodgson momentarily answered his critics who still crave a perfect ninety minute performance from the Three Lions.   

Champions League Review

The knock-out stages of the UEFA Champions League are always met with great anticipation, even more so this season as the round of 16 kicked off with the small matter of Manchester United versus Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu. When the tie was drawn in late December, Sir Alex was quick to dub it the tie of the round and he wasn’t wrong as a pulsating encounter ensued. With both teams lining up in the fashionable 4-2-3-1 formation it looked, on paper at least, that we were in for a tight game. However what became clear as the early stages of the game progressed was that Sir Alex was operating an astute 6-4 formation with a very flat back four and two incredibly deep holding midfielders in Phil Jones and Michael Carrick, with an attacking midfield three of Wayne Rooney, Shinji Kagawa and Danny Welbeck with Robin Van Persie spearheading the attack. What had been forged here was the perfect counter attacking system, one which Mourinho had used several times in Inter Milan’s victorious UCL campaign in 2010.

De Gea

The game started with Madrid’s Angel Di Maria evading the challenges of Evra and Carrick to flash a shot just wide of the right hand post. Then on his first appearance against the club he left in 2009, Cristiano Ronaldo bamboozled Rafael down the United right and his cut back was met via a deflection off Ferdinand by Fabio Coentrao whose curling shot was magnificently tipped onto the post by David De Gea. All the early pressure was coming from the home side, so it was a shock to essentially everyone when United managed to get into Madrid’s half and win a corner. Rooney expertly delivered an in swinging corner which was met by the head of Danny Welbeck and against the run of play United had taken the lead, but more importantly they had a crucial away goal. 

Ronny 

Madrid responded instantaneously as Di Maria again found space and sent in a low drive which De Gea tipped round the post, Ronaldo then smashed the wall with a free kick but with the rebound he unleashed a rasping volley which flashed past the post. Then that man again Di Maria, curled a superb ball into the united box which was only bettered by Ronaldo’s emphatic header which beat the despairing dive of De Gea and tied the game up at one all. Both sides ended the first half with chances, firstly Kagawa and Van Persie linked up to cross for Welbeck whose improvised finish fell wide of the goal. At the other end Ozil latched onto a long ball and forced De Gea into a save at his near post. 

RVP goes close

The second half saw more of the same from Madrid with Ronaldo and Di Maria again going close, controversy then struck when Evra was seemingly brought down by the last man Varane but nothing was given to United’s dismay. Coentrao was then denied by an unorthodox save from De Gea, who remarkably got his leg up to prevent the Portuguese full back converting from Khedira’s centre. United finished the game with a flurry of chances, all falling to and being spurned by their expert marksman Robin Van Persie. He firstly smashed the bar with a right foot shot after being slipped in by Rooney, he then evaded the Madrid offside trap to beautifully bring the ball down from his chest only to scuff his finish and see Xabi Alonso clear off the line. His final chance saw his intelligent first touch allowing him to test the fingertips of Diego Lopez who tipped his shot around the post. 

Together again

Jose Mourinho was his usual self in the post-match interview saying, “We had a big chance when Fabio Coentrao hit the post. The first chance they had, they scored. In the second half, they played for the result. Now is our time to go Old Trafford. 1-1 is not a bad result and everything is open and we can score more than one goal”. Sir Alex praised the performance of David De Gea and also commented on Ronaldo’s performance, “I'm proud to see how he has flourished. I don't know how you describe a goal like that. I blamed Patrice Evra for not challenging him until I saw the replay. Then I felt a bit stupid”. 

Theo vs Van Buyten

The game that caught Europe’s imagination in the second round of knockout games was that of Bayern Munich’s trip to Arsenal. The Gunners and especially Arsene Wenger were under pressure to put in a performance after being dumped out of the F.A Cup by Blackburn. After resisting the urge for most of the season Wenger started Theo Walcott up front on his own, possibly hoping to take advantage of 35 year old Daniel Van Buytens lack of pace. Bayern had left mainstays from last season’s UCL campaign Arjen Robben and Mario Gomez on the bench. 

Tony Kroos - World class

From the off, the gulf in class was startling and as early as the 6^th minute Bayern were ahead after poor play from Arteta and Koscielny gave possession to the German league leaders, this allowed Ribery to find Muller on the right and his ball unintentionally made its way Kroos who hit a stinging half volley past Szczesny. After more Bayern possession a second followed on the 20 minute mark, the ever impressive Kroos curled over a corner and after breaking away from a ‘tree like’ Mertesacker, Van Buyten flicked a header towards goal which could only be parried by Szczesny and was pounced upon by Thomas Muller. 

As Bayern continued to look slick in possession, Arsenal were bereft of ideas with Walcott looking isolated up front and Ramsey continuously giving the ball away and as half time came, boos rang around the Emirates. The second half remarkably saw no changes for the Gunners, but despite this Lukas Podolski dragged them back into the game when a Wilshere corner evaded everyone allowing the German to head into an empty net. For twenty minutes and to everyone’s surprise Arsenal were back in the game and matching Munich, they nearly equalised when Walcott expertly controlled a long ball out wide and instantly crossed for Giroud, whose snap shot was parried by Neuer. Alas normality was then restored when Mandzukic held off Koscielny and laid the ball off for sub Robben, who spotted the overlap of Lahm and the Bayern captain, drove in a low cross which looped up off Mandzukic and into the net. 

It's all gone Pete Tong

Bayern had three away goals and the tie was virtually over, the mood in the Emirates was summed up when the cameras panned to DJ Pete Tong as if to confirm that it had indeed, ‘Gone wrong’. Almost on the verge of tears Jack Wilshere admitted that the Gunners started slowly and that the blame did not fall at Wenger’s door. Following the result some people have argued that German football could be overtaking the English game, I am of the opinion that it is more down to the fact that Arsenal and especially Arsene Wenger are and have been for several years on the decline.