Arsenal have made it two wins from two Champions League games on Wednesday night with a 3-1 victory over Olympiakos at the Emirates Stadium.
Gervinho continued his recent strong goalscoring form with the opener on 42 minutes, but Kostas Mitroglou equalised on the stroke of half-time for the visitors.
Lukas Podolski put the Gunners back into the lead midway through the second 45, with Aaron Ramsey’s late strike securing all three points.
Steve Bould praised Olympiakos after the game, and was happy with the win.
“It was tough,” Bould told Sky Sports.
“They made it really tough for us and I thought they defended really well.
“We kicked the game off not too badly, but then we looked a little nervous. Maybe the result from the weekend drained us a little bit and we lost a bit of confidence, but overall it was just a fantastic result.
“They’re a good side, technically very sound and they made it really hard.
“We’ve watched tapes and we knew they were very good technically and they set the 4-1-4-1 with the big fella sat in front of the back four.
“Santi [Cazorla] couldn’t get on the ball in the first half and we tried to correct that at half-time, and I thought we improved,” he concluded.
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Arsenal top Group B after Schalke and Montpellier drew 2-2 in the other pool match.
Jamaal Lascelles has once again been snubbed by Gareth Southgate’s England, and Newcastle fans are not happy about it.
Sky Sports reported on Sunday evening that James Tarkowski has withdrawn from England’s World Cup standby list, as the Burnley defender requires surgery on a groin problem.
Newcastle fans were furious when both Jamaal Lascelles and Jonjo Shelvey were denied spots in Southgate’s original squad, and Lascelles has still not been called up to the standby list despite the Tarkowski injury.
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According to a further report from Sky Sports, it is “unlikely” that Southgate will call anyone else up to the standby list, as nearly every footballer that isn’t on international duty is already off on their holidays.
England’s standby group now consists of just Tom Heaton, Jake Livermore, Lewis Cook and Adam Lallana, so it is certainly surprising to elect against adding an emergency defender to the list.
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Today marks three weeks until England’s opening group game against Tunisia, and Southgate has until June 4 to submit his official squad list to FIFA.
Newcastle fans have been giving their verdict on the England’s boss’ decision, and you can find some of the best Twitter reactions below…
As reported by The Scottish Sun, Celtic are not interested in signing experienced international defender Dusko Tosic this January.
What’s the story?
Celtic had earlier this week been linked with a move for the Besiktas man by Turkish media outlet Aksam, with the Hoops thought to have even tabled a bid for the UEFA Champions League stopper.
However, latest reports from The Scottish Sun suggest that not to be the case.
The paper say there is absolutely no interest in the player from the Scottish champions, shutting down the prospect of the Serbian international arriving in Glasgow this month.
Rated at £1.8m by Transfermarkt, the player could have been a cost effective solution to the Hoops’ defensive problems this season, but it seems Brendan Rodgers is either happy with what’s available or will look to new targets.
Do Celtic need a player like him?
On paper, Tosic certainly appeared to fit the bill for the Hoops. With over 200 appearances for clubs in France, Serbia, Turkey and elsewhere in his career, he’s consistently played at a level that would suggest he could make an impact in the Scottish Premiership.
He also has extensive European experience and has shone for Besiktas in the group stages of the Champions League this season, helping his side into the last 16 of the competition.
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If not him, then Celtic should be looking at players who have similar experience and quality. Perhaps new signing Marvin Compper will play a similar role, but with defensive improvement needed, bringing in another senior first team defender at that level can only be a benefit to the treble winners.
Alex Ferguson was the Manchester United boss – it’s the simple fact and one that doesn’t need much explanation. Nor is it altered by Mike Phelan’s revelation that he was the true boss of the past few seasons.
It’s not totally surprising that Ferguson’s assistant feels that way. It’s not uncommon for managers to delegate much of the coaching of the team to his assistants. Ferguson, however, remained the glue holding United together. He was central to key decisions that needed to be made. If there is an indication as to how much power – power importantly being different to responsibility – Phelan had, he has thus far been the only person to mention this status as boss instead of assistant.
That doesn’t take away from Phelan’s importance to Manchester United. Ferguson always liked to freshen up his backroom staff, and however good the Scot was as a manager, success is normally built on the strong foundations of an entire management team.
Phelan isn’t uncredited, nor is Rene Meulensteen. They are what they are: assistants to the manager. Perhaps there was a misinterpretation on Phelan’s part when he discussing his unofficial title at the club. He spoke of wanting to take up management elsewhere, though it’s telling that he’s been out of work and largely out of the spotlight since leaving Manchester United in the summer. In comparison, Meulensteen has picked up a coaching job at Fulham with possibilities of taking over as manager.
It was always unlikely that Phelan would stay on when David Moyes took over. The former Everton manager, like most, wanted to bring in his own people. It helps, in a way, to ease the transition. And while some may have argued that it would have been sensible to retain some of the old coaching staff, Phelan has clearly been overlooked for any role under the new regime.
The struggles or inconsistencies under Moyes indicate that there isn’t much substance to what Phelan had to say. Ferguson may have offered Phelan the responsibility to run the coaching of the first team, but success and the acquisition of players, among many other things, are rooted to Ferguson himself. Delegating jobs, no matter how small, can be seen as intelligent managing of a club as big as United. Again, maybe Phelan simply got the wrong impression. Phelan’s contribution shouldn’t be overlooked, but Ferguson’s influence preceded most things at the club.
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Phelan may eventually end up taking a job as the head boss of a club in England, but it will be interesting to see how he fares. There won’t be someone with the reputation of Ferguson to fall back on, nor is the assistant’s job in any way similar to that of the manager. For now, his side of the story doesn’t carry much weight.
Liverpool youngster Jonjo Shelvey is hoping to establish himself as an England regular after making his debut against San Marino on Friday.
Roy Hodgson handed the 20 year-old his first cap when he brought him on as a second half substitute.
The former Charlton Athletic player was expected to head back to the under-21 squad for their clash against Serbia in their playoff second leg.
Shelvey has impressed the England coaching set up and has retained his place in the senior squad for their trip to face Poland.
“It’s what dreams are made of, Shelvey told the Liverpool Echo.
“I was buzzing to have played my first game for England, especially with it being at Wembley.
“I got told to keep the ball moving and to keep the game flowing, and I think I did that. It was a great team performance and we won comfortably in the end. We could have had more goals but their keeper made some great saves.”
Shelvey is no stranger to Hodgson, who he worked under in Hodgson’s brief time as manager of the Anfield Club.
Shevley signed in 2010 for a fee of £1.7 million from Charlton, who received a further £150,000 as the Romford born midfielder made his England bow.
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Writing was on the wall from an early age that Shelvey would go far in the game. At just 16 years and 59 days old he became Charlton’s youngest ever player. He has previously represented England under -16, under-17, under-19 and under-21 levels, and also captained the under-19 squad.
According to The Mirror, West Ham United are interested in signing Newcastle United captain Jamaal Lascelles in this summer’s transfer window.
Indeed, the Hammers are expected to have as much as £75m to spend this summer following the arrival of Manuel Pellegrini as their new head coach.
The Newcastle fans recently claimed that Lascelles was worth £75m when suggestions of interest from Liverpool emerged.
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Now West Ham are being linked with the centre-back, but the Newcastle supporters have no concerns that he could leave for the London Stadium in this summer’s transfer window.
Indeed, it would not be a surprise to see Lascelles depart for a club in the Champions League, but the club’s fans are finding it hard to believe that the 24-year-old would swap Newcastle for top-10 rivals West Ham at this stage of his career.
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It is certainly an interesting one to watch over the next few weeks.
A selection of the Twitter reaction in relation to the transfer rumour can be seen below:
If Rangers ever needed a win against Celtic it is right now. Currently 11 points behind the reigning Scottish Premiership champions in the league table, the Light Blues are again struggling to keep pace with Brendan Rodgers’ side.
Even when looking more vulnerable this season than last, the Hoops have surged ahead at the top and victory against their visitors on Saturday would surely end all hope of Rangers closing the points gap in the second half of the season.
All hope is not lost yet however. If Rangers can muster what it takes to defeat their arch rivals in the derby on Saturday and the top-flight heads into the Scottish winter break with an entirely different complexion to it.
Not only would it give Aberdeen renewed purpose, potentially finding themselves just five points behind with plenty of football left to play, but it would cut Celtic’s lead over Rangers into single figures, a far more manageable obstacle for Graeme Murty’s men.
Celtic are on the brink of securing another league title before the new year is here, their seventh league title in a row. This is again Rangers’ last chance saloon, the only opportunity they’ll get to bruise the green machine.
How do they go about defeating a team that has been almost unbeatable for over 18 months?
Celtic have had a long tumultuous December, already dropping five points and losing a European game in a month that has seen them play eight matches already with another energy sapping 90 minutes set to come on Saturday before the break allows them to recharge.
There are few teams around Europe who have played the 37 matches that the Hoops have racked up so far since the start of July, almost a full season’s worth by most other standards.
Rangers must capitalise on that potential tiredness with a high tempo, high pressing game. It needs to be physical within the laws of the game, the kind of display that saw the Light Blues themselves defeated against Motherwell in the League Cup semi-final, or that saw the Hoops blown away by Hearts at Tynecastle.
Celtic may be sitting atop Scottish football but they are at their most vulnerable on Saturday as they have ever been under Brendan Rodgers. It would be silly not to make them favourites, but in order to get something out of the match, Murty’s side must have belief in themselves and their ability to finally win one of these matches.
The Murty factor is an interesting one, since the only time Rangers have gotten close to Rodgers’ outfit is when he took interim charge of the Light Blues in the wake of Mark Warburton’s departure back in March.
Celtic huffed and puffed at Celtic Park, looking unconvincing despite holding a lead well into the second half thanks to Stuart Armstrong. However a late Clint Hill effort sent the away support into raptures. It was arguably the most like a cohesive unit Rangers have looked like in all of 2017 and credit has to go to the new Rangers appointee for that draw. While not an important match on Celtic’s march to a treble, it did prevent a whitewash and gave the Ibrox side a small nugget to cling onto.
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Under Pedro Caixinha, Rangers looked lost during these derby matches, devoid of any belief or strategy and completely overwhelmed by dominant Celtic performances. It’s time to see whether that draw in March was a one off or whether Murty is a man who knows what it takes to get a result in these high stakes, high pressure matches. The recent double header wing against Aberdeen, while a test below the level of Saturday’s, points to a man who can get the job done in difficult circumstances.
If Celtic turn up and play to the best of their abilities, they will likely win, but that hasn’t happened enough for most fans’ liking so far this season and Rangers need to be ready to capitalise if they are again below par. Failure to do so will see a seventh title fall out of their grasp, do the unthinkable and they’ll take real momentum heading into the new year.
At the start of the season, it would have taken a brave individual to suggest that Arsenal were genuine title contenders.
Entering their ninth term without a trophy and with no major squad additions other than Mesut Ozil to speak of, the outlook for the Gunners if anything looked decidedly bleak as opposed to prosperous.
Yet barely three months down the line, they sit top of the Premier League, five points clear of second placed Chelsea and without defeat in their last nine league games.
Since overcoming a shock opening day loss to Aston Villa, which had some ready to hammer the final nail into Arsene Wenger’s managerial coffin, the Emirates outfit haven’t looked back, producing some scintillating displays and showing they’re not the soft touch many had started to take them for.
Now, as we enter November, the question that is beginning to be asked is; are Arsenal true title contenders?
On the one hand, with the season still in it’s infancy, to talk about any team winning the league seems a little premature, however, in reflecting upon the North Londoners’ impressive start to the current campaign, it would appear that in fact, yes they are, contenders at least.
However, it is important to be realistic. Aside of Tottenham and Liverpool, both of whom gave only a lukewarm accounts of themselves, both at the Emirates, Wenger’s men are yet to face any of the England’s other top clubs.
That is by no means Arsenal’s fault, they can after all, only beat the opposition they’re up against, but it does make it harder to form a clear picture of the squad’s character when facing more accomplished opposition. Certainly, whilst there may be no ‘easy’ Premier League games, there are without doubt more difficult ones and it is these that are likely to have the defining impact on any title-chasing season.
That is set to change, however, as up next come Manchester United at Old Trafford, with an away trip to Manchester City next month.
Will it then be here, that Arsenal’s title hopes will be realised once and for all? No. But it will definitely provide a more all-encompassing insight into this season’s chances.
This too, can be said of the ongoing exploits of the Gunner’s defence, which has at times looked shaky, after conceding a late winner against Dortmund in the Champions League, and having Mikel Arteta sent off for fouling Crystal Palace’s Marouane Chamakh after the Morrocan speared a counter-attack.
If a challenge for the title is to remain on track, silly errors such as these will need to be eradicated, especially when it comes to facing the bigger sides. A point recently made by Match of the Day’s Alan Hansen.
Hansen similarly questioned the mentality of the Gunners, opining a dip in form would expose an underlying brittle confidence, which would ultimately be their undoing. This assertion, though, was strongly rejected by vice-captain Arteta, though he opted not to mention Hansen’s convicted “you’ll win nothing with kids” statement from some years ago.
It is of course, impossible to predict for sure how any stutter to the current progress made would affect the Arsenal side. But it is not difficult to imagine how the lack of trophy-winning experience in the team could hinder their chances, an issue that will require careful man-management by the hugely experienced Wenger.
A further important factor in Arsenal’s ongoing hunt for a trophy, be it the league title or otherwise, will be the performances of star-signing Mesut Ozil, who’s two goals and four assists in his first seven league games have been an inspiration to teammates and fans alike.
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The German international seems to have provided a much needed boost to the potency of the Arsenal front-line, which combined with the form of striker Olivier Giroud, has proven to be a formidable partnership.
But the Gunners impressive form so far has in fact been an ensemble achievement, with players like Wilshere, Szczesny and the sudden emergence of a mature and goal-scoring Aaron Ramsey all similarly playing their part.
In order to continue their good start, all will have to maintain their current levels of performance and do so against the big clubs.
As mentioned before, the season is but young and any talk of titles can at this stage be merely speculative. However, with big fixtures coming up, it is clear that a much more educated assessment will available in the not-too-distant future.
Arsenal fans should, however, remain confident, especially if these challenges can be overcome, that they do in fact have a real chance to end their exile from the winning of silverware.
Manchester City are on the verge of securing star playmaker David Silva on a new contract, with the Spaniard set to put pen to paper on a £200,000-a-week deal according to The Daily Mail.
The talented attacking midfielder has been at the helm of the Etihad Stadium side’s rise to become Premier League champions, and has thoroughly impressed since moving to England from Valencia.
It is believed that contract negotiations over an extended deal for the diminutive schemer have been ongoing for some time, with Silva keen to stay with Roberto Mancini’s men.
The stumbling block over a new deal has been the potential salary, with City keen to try and streamline their wage bill with Financial Fair Play regulations on the horizon.
However, the club’s executives will give in to Silva’s demands given the importance the player has to the team, and will pay him £200,000-a-week to stay with the club for the foreseeable future.
It is also thought that Real Madrid are keeping tabs on the situation, but Silva will opt to remain with the Premier League outfit.
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According to the Daily Mail, Aston Villa are interested in signing Crystal Palace midfielder James McArthur in this summer’s transfer window.
What’s the story?
Villa’s summer transfer plans are currently on hold as the club battle to secure promotion to the Premier League via the Championship playoffs.
Steve Bruce’s side have already drawn up a list of targets, however, and according to the Daily Mail, Palace midfielder McArthur is high on their wish-list.
The 30-year-old, who has also been linked with Rangers and Cardiff City, still has two years left to run on his contract at Selhurst Park.
However, it is understood that Eagles boss Roy Hodgson is looking to sign at least one new central midfielder in this summer’s transfer window, and McArthur could be available for the right price ahead of the 2018-19 campaign.
Would McArthur be a good signing?
The Scotland international, who is valued at £5.4m by transfermarkt.co.uk, has proved over the last eight years that he is more then capable of performing at Premier League level.
Three of McArthur’s full seasons with Wigan Athletic were in the Premier League, whilst he has operated at that level of football since joining Palace in the summer of 2014.
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It would actually be a surprise to see McArthur leave Palace this summer when considering that he has scored an impressive seven goals in 34 appearances in all competitions this season.
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Villa are clearly confident that they can entice the Scot, however, and it would be some signing if they managed to pull it off.
As mentioned, Bruce’s side will not be able to finalise any transfer plans until they know whether next season will bring Premier League football, but it is not a surprise that they are already registering an interest in a very dependable Premier League midfielder.