All posts by h79snht.top

In a day and age where transfer fees are continuing to soar upwards each year, signing a player for a relatively small sum of money and watching him turn in performances that outstrip those of a £30m pounder is a glorious sight. In the midst of these over expensive footballers there have been a few cheap gems to wade through the crowd and make a name for themselves in the Premier League. Looking back over 20 years of England’s top flight, players bought for something like £3 million,which was still considered a huge fee back in the early nineties, who went on to become legends and the focal point of success during their time at the club aren’t as common anymore.

There is nothing more satisfying then seeing your club sign a relative unknown for a nominal fee and watch him tear the Premier League up like he’s prowled the football fields of England for years. Over the years there have been some unbelievable footballers who have commanded a few that pales in comparison to what some modern day players earn in a month. Unearthing an unpolished jewel for peanuts and polishing it into an 24 carat diamond isn’t as common as it used to be and you could say that some of the romance that used to exist in football is lost because of that.

But lets not get lost in the doom and gloom of all that and celebrate the top ten cheap Premier League revelations that have cropped up over the years.

Click on Ole Gunnar Solksjaer to reveal the top 10

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Written by Jak Penny

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Arsene Wenger is reportedly set to make a club record bid to sign Spanish U21 star Juan Mata. The signing of Mata would certainly prove a coup by the Frenchman and will certainly go some way of appeasing his doubters.

In the papers this morning there have been a mixed bag of stories that include a plot to bribe Carlos Tevez; Chelsea deny that Hiddink was first choice, while Manchester United eye up a move for Thiago.

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Southgate wants major change – Sky Sports

Plot to bribe Tevez – Sun

Arsenal make club record £18m bid for Juan Mata – Daily Mail

Taxpayer stumped up £311k for multi-millionaire Gerrard’s legal aid bill – Mirror

Hiddink ‘not approached’ – Daily Telegraph

Arsenal’s Song fined by Cameroon FA after bust-up with team-mate Eto’o – Daily Mail

Villas-Boas must win over players, says Wilkins – Independent

Magpies reject Barton rumours – Sky Sports

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Harry Dos deal for Gio’s Spurs exit – Sun

United’s shock bid for Spain and Barca hero – Mirror

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Liverpool fans must be a collective of nervous wrecks with the type of football that they have been subjected to this season. What’s made more nail biting are the whole plethora of players that they’ve been linked to purchase in the January transfer window. Roy Hodgson isn’t, to many Liverpool fans, the manager that inspires majestic football or even the type who has well laid plans that will soon come to fruition. Maybe that last statement was slightly unforgiving and that the January transfer window will present the opportunity for Hodgson to bring in players who will reflect his ideology more coherently.

All we have are previous events and decisions to inform us of the sorts of players that will likely be turning up, kitbag in hand, at Anfield over the January period. The first player signed by Hodgson, but instigated by Rafa Benitez, was Milan Jovanovic who operated originally as a striker, but has been finding himself on the wing and more recently the substitute’s bench.

His second recruit was Joe Cole, who has been a disappointment after the potential he displayed at West Ham and Chelsea. But players such as Cole, after being injury stricken, require time to adjust and gain match effectiveness, he seemed a brilliant acquisition but has yet to produce. We’ll grant these two mentioned signings as unsuccessful so far.

The most notable signings during the summer were Christian Poulsen, Paul Konchesky, Raul Meireles and Fabio Aurelio. Poulsen was obviously an attempt to fill the void left by Javier Mascherano and not a very successful one by all observations. The loaning out of Alberto Aquilani absolutely baffled me, he was bought for £17 million and looked to be a player of quality, much of the same mould as Xabi Alonso, who could sit, dictate play and free Steven Gerrard. Liverpool will ultimately lose the player to Juventus, who will no doubt grasp at the option to make his loan permanent.

Meireles, for me, appeared a decent signing after having watched him during the World Cup for Portugal, he has a perpetual engine and while he may not be as technically gifted as one may wish, he still could act as decent defensive midfielder. The abundance of destroying players is probably the one downfall of Liverpool, as without Fernando Torres firing they lack goals and creativity.

This attacking deficiency should have been identified by Hodgson during the height of summer and given recourse to remedying. But thankfully for Hodgson, life is full of chances that present themselves to be either made the most of or squandered in haste. January is this chance to placate the fans and sign some truly superior players who will fabricate the kind of football that Liverpool requires.

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There are so many reports day after day of tenuous calibre linking players to Liverpool that fans must either receive them with delight or utter dismay. How apprehensive are you over Hodgson having January to buy what he deems as adequate for the club? Will he mould a resurrection of fortunes or leave the club floundering languidly from game to game?

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Chelsea are set to rival Arsenal and Fulham for the signature of Brighton star Lewis Dunk, the Metro understands, after the 19-year-old defender has established himself in Gus Poyet’s side.

Dunk, a product of the Seagulls’ academy, has impressed for Poyet’s side after the Uruguayan was forced into playing the teenager due a host of injuries to key defenders, including Adam El- Abd and Tommy Elphick.

A string of eye-catching performances alongside captain Gordan Greer in the heart of defence have seen his stock rise considerably after Brighton’s strong start to the season.

With a reputation as a tough, no-nonsense defender Dunk has proved to be unfazed by the physicality of the Championship and has attracted admiring glances from the Premier League.

Arsenal and Fulham have already sent scouts to the Amex Stadium to watch the defender in action during last week’s Carling Cup defeat to Liverpool. Chelsea, who have followed Dunk’s progress through the ranks, had representatives watching him in Friday’s draw against Leeds.

Despite his emergence as a first team regular on the South Coast and Poyet’s eagerness to build a team capable of a promotion push it’s thought a bid of £5 million would be enough to see him leave the club, with further scouting trips expected from all the interested parties.

Fancy watching Chelsea as a VIP this Saturday – click on the banner to find out more

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A 2-1 victory to West Ham in the first Carling Cup semi-final leaves the tie wide open and Birmingham will be confident of overturning the deficit at St Andrew’s. Now it’s time to turn our attention to the second semi final between Championship strugglers Ipswich and Premier League high flyers Arsenal. A foregone conclusion you might think, but if Ipswich are to make the tie interesting they must perform well at Portman Road tonight. So which Ipswich players will be key to that?

Let’s get the bad news out of the way. On-loan pair Jake Livermore and Rory Fallon are ineligible, but perhaps even worse that that, is that Grant Leadbitter is still suspended. This is not a good run-up to the game for Ipswich, as Leadbitter is the leading Picklive points’ scorer for the Tractor Boys this season. He has racked up 149 points in Ipswich’s two Picklive encounters up to now, so he’s a big loss.

It is also pretty hard to take any positives from Ipswich’s 7-0 FA Cup hammering at the hands of Chelsea, but it should fire the players up to perform better against the Gunners. David Norris played in that game and he is Ipswich’s second highest Picklive points’ scorer this season, just ahead of Andros Townsend who has since returned to Tottenham.

Next in the rankings Jason Scotland, who could be a good selection as he’ll be desperate to score and show that he can perform against Premier League defences after all. His probable strike partner Connor Wickham is another one looking to catch the eye and show why so many Premier League managers are tracking the youngster. With Arsenal’s fallibility at the back, there’s a good chance that Ipswich will register their name on the score sheet tonight.

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As far as Arsenal go it’s the usual pretenders for the Gunners. Cesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri and Alex Song are still leading the way in the Picklive standings, but with Arsenal’s congested fixture list becoming even busier due to an FA Cup third round replay against Leeds at Elland Road, Arsene Wenger may select a youthful eleven tonight.

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Theo Walcott looked like a threat when he came on at The Emirates against Leeds on Saturday, and if he gets a start in the Carling Cup tonight you should definitely consider him for your Picklive selection. Nicklas Bendtner was largely ineffective on Saturday, but if Wenger employs him through the middle expect the Dane to put in a much better showing.

Who are you going to select as your Picklive trio for Ipswich v Arsenal tonight? Our friends over at Gunnersphere.com are hosting a game so make sure you join them at 19:45 and try your hand at LIVE fantasy football, for free!

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Love fantasy football? Love live footy? You’ll love live fantasy football! Take part in the Ipswich v Arsenal match and play Picklive for FREE Go on, give it a go!

Lowly Cesena came back from two goals down to stun 10-man Juventus 2-2 and steal a point at the Stadio Dino Manuzzi in Serie A on Saturday.Juventus travelled to Cesena on the back of a three-match losing run, and they looked to have put that behind them as Alessandro Matri scored a first-half brace.But a penalty to Luis Antonio Jimenez in the shadows of half-time gave their relegation-threatened opponents reason to believe, and Juve’s worst fears were realised in the 80th minute as Marco Parolo nabbed a deserved equaliser.The result is a further blow for Juve boss Luigi Delneri, who is under increasing pressure to keep his job following a poor run of results for the proud Italian club.Matri, on loan from Cagliari until the end of the season, was in threatening form early and had already seen a goal ruled out for offside before his 19th-minute opener.The Italian striker applied to the finishing touch to a magnificent link-up move with Alessandro Del Piero, threading his shot from a tight angle to put Juve up 1-0.Cesena should have equalised near the half hour through Emanuele Giaccherini, who missed an easy follow-up to his original shot with Juve goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon beaten and the goal his mercy.The seesawing momentum swung back the way of Juventus as Matri picked up his second in the 35th minute, finishing where Giaccherini could not after Del Piero’s shot struck the crossbar.But Cesena had pulled one back six minutes later through Jimenez, who converted from the spot after Buffon was punished for tripping up Parolo, and two minutes later Juve defender Marco Motta received his marching order after picking up a second caution.Cesena came out after the break looking lively and dominated the second half, though Buffon repelled their initial attacks with a number of fine saves.But Parolo would not be denied, smashing in a half-volley after Jimenez’s free kick fell invitingly at his feet 20 minutes from time to heap further pain on Juventus.Juve remain seventh on the table for the time being, though they could fall as far as ninth once the weekend’s round is completed.Cesena move a point clear of the relegation zone in 17th place, though they will fall into the drop zone if Lecce can pull out something special at home to Bologna on Sunday.

Tottenham look to get their winning run back on track as the Mackems arrive at White Hart Lane tomorrow afternoon. It represents a stiff test for Harry Redknapp’s men who will be keen to get the three points to strengthen the club’s push for a top four finish.

At FFC this week there has been various Tottenham blogs that include what next for Luka Modric; not a transfer necessity for Harry, while January represents the defining moment for Spurs.

There is also a selection of the best blogs from around the web:

Not a transfer necessity for Tottenham

The defining moment for Tottenham Hotspur

Simply a marriage of convenience at Tottenham?

What next for Luka Modric?

Freidel, Hart, De Gea…who has had the greatest impact?

Villas-Boas looking to gazump Spurs’ January move

Spurs face tough competition to sign Lawal

The TEN things we can ‘expect’ in the January transfer window

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Best of WEB

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The name is Foy. Chris Foy. Licence to Kill. – Dear Mr Levy

Modric Wins Coveted Award. – Spurs Musings From Jimmy G2

Lump On Tottingham – Harry Hotspur

I Couldn’t Handle It. We Were Winning – Tottenham On My Mind

Van der Vaart, the Tottenham romantic who loves to entertain – Guardian

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Click on Roger Johnson’s misses below to unveil our current Premier League Wag XI

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Former Chelsea boss Ruud Gullit has urged the Stamford Bridge club to try once-more to sign Luka Modric from Tottenham come the January transfer window.

Andre Villas Boas’ men had at least three bids for the Croatian midfielder rejected by Spurs chairman Daniel Levy over the summer, with a deadline day offer of £40 million knocked back by the White Hart Lane outfit.

Despite this, and Modric’s willingness to continue to play for Harry Redknapp’s team despite the speculation, the Dutch coach feels another attempt should be made to pry the playmaker away from Spurs come the new year.

“The player Chelsea still need, for me, is Modric,” Gullit told Mirror Football.

“They have great players all around the pitch but he has something Chelsea doesn’t have at the moment. He is creative and dominates the passing game in the midfield – he could be like Xavi or Iniesta are to Barcelona.

“I was surprised Tottenham didn’t accept £40m because they are known to sell their best players for good offers. I think Chelsea will try to sign Modric again in January and maybe this time they will get him,” he concluded.

Harry Redknapp has previously stated that Modric is pivotal in Spurs’ development as a team, and the North London side are reportedly set to offer the Eastern European a pay rise to keep his suitors at bay.

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By Gareth McKnight

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After watching Rob Earnshaw squander an absolute sitter for Wales against England, I want to discuss the psychology of missing an open goal. I don’t want to pile any more misery on Earnshaw. You can only feel a horrible gut-wrenching sympathy with the Cardiff City lad. Whatever has occupied him since that miss – shopping, driving or trying to drown his sorrows in a bar – he’ll have been reliving that moment approximately once every 10 seconds.

I missed a couple of shockers myself, all forwards do, so I know it’s the worst feeling in the world. But to understand what it is that makes a professional striker miss one of the most high-profile and glaring opportunities of his career, you have to know what it is that makes a goal-scorer tick. Goal-scoring is a gift given by whichever God you believe in. It cannot be taught, which is what tends to make managers so distrustful of my breed. They know there is nothing they can do to influence us. No, it is all about instinct and nerve.

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Personally, I spent every moment of my football career riddled with self-doubt – except for the 90 minutes a week when I was out on the pitch. I know plenty of footballers who have been exactly the opposite. Cocky as hell when they’re not playing, always talking a good game and never playing one. Off the pitch, I was a typical young bloke who didn’t want to take any responsibility for anything. On the field of play, I was a different person entirely.

I knew it was my responsibility to score goals and I made damned sure I scored them. When they talk about a sportsman being ‘in the zone’ I understand what they mean. It’s not quite as extreme as being a sniper, who’s able to get his target into a viewfinder and pull the trigger in the knowledge that he’ll be taking his victim out. But you need the same sort of mindset, the same coldness. You must have no feeling, you must pick your spot and, more often than not, pass the ball into the net.

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There are many strikers who have all the talent in the world, who are outstanding in training, but could not hit a barn door in front of 100,000 people. Missing an open goal is usually caused by a moment of fear or panic. It’s about flinching under pressure, rather than holding your nerve. I can watch certain players go clear on goal, one-on-one with the keeper as the crowd rise to their feet, and I just know they are going to miss. There are a few, such as Wayne Rooney, who have simply ‘got it’ – that coldness, that nervelessness that I remember in myself and you know more often than not, they’ll snap up a chance.

Missing an open goal is not the worst offence a striker can be guilty of. Every time you arrive in the box and sniff out those chances you are taking a risk – you are gambling on being a hero or looking an absolute prat. There are a hell of a lot of so-called goalscorers who simply aren’t brave enough to take those gambles often enough. And while he’ll never be the greatest striker in the world, Earnshaw cannot be accused of being one of those.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is excited ahead of tough Premier League clashes with Arsenal and Chelsea, believing they could go a long way in deciding who lands the title this season.

The Red Devils take on Blackpool at Bloomfield Road on Saturday before welcoming the Gunners to Old Trafford on December 13.

Ferguson's side then face a daunting trip to Stamford Bridge six days later and the Scot is looking to get the best out of all his squad players over the busy festive period.

"You always want to win those games because they are really significant," Ferguson said.

"We have managed to claw ourselves into a position where we are two points ahead of Chelsea, so the game at Stamford Bridge and Arsenal's trip to Manchester will certainly be very important, there's no doubt about that.

"We saw that last season – some big decisions didn't go our way in the two matches against Chelsea and they ended up costing us important points.

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"You are aware that you have to use your squad well because there are so many games, particularly during that week between Christmas and New Year.

"Three matches in six days is a lot. It is a hectic period but we have the players to cope. Hopefully we're in the right position come the start of January."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email