Leeds United are reportedly interested in re-signing Swansea City centre-back Kyle Bartley for the 2018-19 campaign.
Bartley spent last season on loan at Leeds – scoring six times in 50 appearances during an impressive year before returning to his parent club last summer.
The centre-back has only made five Premier League appearances for Swansea this term, and is widely expected to seek another exit in this summer’s transfer window.
Leeds boss Paul Heckingbottom addressed the rumours during his press conference on Friday ahead of this weekend’s match against Queens Park Rangers, with the 40-year-old insisting that he is aware of how impressive Bartley performed for the Whites last season.
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The Leeds fans have been discussing a potential return for the 26-year-old this summer, and not everyone is in agreement about the Manchester-born defender’s future.
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It is certainly an interesting one to watch ahead of the opening of the summer window.
A selection of the Twitter reaction from the Leeds fans can be seen below:
Manchester City’s summer business is yet to really click into gear and their high profile targets seem to be slipping away. Paul Pogba looks to be on his way to Barcelona, Kevin De Bruyne’s future is seemingly in Germany and Raheem Sterling’s move is stalling and dragging, despite the Reds’ own moves.
Pedro, linked with the Citizens of late, has been marginalised even further at Barcelona with the signings of Neymar and Luis Suarez and the Spaniard looks a long way from even competing for a starting berth. In fact, Pedro’s best chance of a regular place is, probably, a Suarez ban for some insane behaviour.
Despite signing a new contract, it is likely the Spain international could be lured away from the Camp Nou if more starts were offered. Even with only 15 league starts last season, Pedro still managed six goals and six assists – the sort of end product that City sometimes find hard to come by.
Notably, Manchester City are often short on width and rely heavily on their overlapping full-backs. When Pablo Zabaleta and Gael Clichy/Aleksandar Kolarov are more restricted the game becomes severely cluttered in the centre, and breaking teams down increases in difficulty. Jesus Navas was signed to be the answer to this, but even with his electric pace his end product is often disappointing – he failed to find the net at all last season.
Pedro would bring a different approach to Navas’ and is more of a wide goal-scorer than creator, as he shows regularly at Barcelona. However, it is not just Navas who has been tasked with providing width at City, as previously James Milner was often used in a wide role. In failing to retain Milner for the 2015/16 campaign, City have lost not only a massively versatile player, but one of their more natural wide men.
Although Pedro is not a wide player in a traditional sense himself – do not expect to see him with chalk on his boots – he is could bring more width to City’s attacking moves than the likes of David Silva and Samir Nasri.
City are at risk of becoming further reliant on Silva if they are to use a 4-2-3-1. Edin Dzeko and Stevan Jovetic are both likely to be sold and the revenue could be used to fund a move for Pedro, who will allow tactical flexibility and bring goals from deeper in the team. While Manuel Pellegrini wants to stay with his 4-4-2, City often look at their best in a 4-2-3-1 and Pedro would fit perfectly into that system, while allowing Silva to pull the strings in the ‘No.10’ position.
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With the move for Sterling still alive, Pedro could play on the opposite flank and allow their most creative force, in David Silva, to play in between the lines and create for Sergio Aguero. The cost of signing Pedro is far outweighed by the benefit of the extra goal threat, particularly when Aguero gets his regular injury.
Manuel Pellegrini’s wealth of experience will stand him in good stead when he takes over at Manchester City. The lack of trophies won’t matter, nor will his solitary season at a ‘big’ European club count against him in the Premier League – at least it shouldn’t. Manchester City, provided they take on a realistic approach in what they want from Pellegrini, could reap the rewards of one of Europe’s better managers in the game today.
There is nothing not to like about the Chilean manager. He is the anti-Mourinho, persistent in his desire to steer clear of the eye of the storm and remain utterly dignified in his attitude to management. Manchester City, for their achievements with Roberto Mancini and his recent firing, do not want to hold themselves in the same line as Chelsea. Pellegrini won’t write headlines for the wrong reasons, accusing his counterparts of voyeurism, exposing club captains and declaring war on anyone who seeks to challenge him. Pellegrini is here for the football, and that should be the biggest headline.
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Manchester City need to regroup and rediscover the level of football they reached during their title-winning season. Under Pellegrini, the emphasis will be on players like David Silva and, should he arrive, Isco. The biggest breakthrough this coming season, however, will be in taking Sergio Aguero back to the top as the team’s premier striker.
And success is almost guaranteed under Pellegrini on this front. He has a sensational record of getting the best out of his players, overcoming obstacles and delivering aesthetically pleasing football. His teams at Villarreal and Malaga were built around small schemers, excellent technicians in the midfield just ahead of a robust central midfielder or midfield pairing. Mancini must be wondering what he had to do to get Fernandinho last summer; under Pellegrini, the soon-to-arrive Shakhtar player will be City’s Jeremy Toulalan, their Marcos Senna: the undeniable and necessary balance to the flair forwards.
If this is a project Manchester City are serious about, Pellegrini will deliver success on numerous fronts. The most obvious goal is to reclaim the Premier League title and justifying the incredible outlay by the club over the years; many have been quick to question whether Fernandinho is worth the reported £34 million. Manchester City will also need to become a force in Europe, doing away with the tag of disappointment from their two recent ventures into the Champions League. Pellegrini has a phenomenal record in UEFA’s premier club competition. Some will look to Real Madrid, but that short spell does little to discredit the fine work put in with Villarreal: the excellent football on display at El Madrigal, the Champions League semifinal. It’s difficult to forget Malaga’s fairy tale adventure last season, and there is almost a certainty that Pellegrini will pull off something equally spectacular with a club and squad who dwarf Malaga on every front.
One of the biggest successes, though, could be Pellegrini’s promotion of youth players. Again, if City are serious and look past the somewhat idiotic notion that all managerial appointments work in cycles of two or three years, they’ll see a rediscovery of the youth system at the club. For all their wealth and ability in the market, the goal should still be to bring through academy players. John Guidetti is a name who could benefit greatly from Pellegrini’s presence at the club.
The media in England might find some disappointment in Pellegrini, as the manager will do little to feed their appetite for a controversial story. But that’s exactly what City will want. The club will be represented by one of Europe’s classiest and most likeable managers. Pellegrini won’t plant battles with his players in interviews and he most certainly won’t lose or create divisions within the dressing room. There will be some who won’t easily forget the short spell with Real Madrid, but that was a project that was never truly Pellegrini’s, and City should learn a lot from the lack of control the manager had at the Bernabeu. It’s been said that if Jose Mourinho had not been available following his single season at Inter, Pellegrini would likely have stayed on. Barcelona, too, are not oblivious to the Chilean’s credentials, singling him out as a possible replacement for Tito Vilanova should his health continue to play a factor in his management at the Camp Nou.
Pellegrini has a history of overachieving, doing so much more than what is expected of him. Martin Demichelis was a player reborn at Malaga, Borja Valero’s career was turned around completely at Villarreal, and Joaquin experienced his best years in Spanish football under Pellegrini at Malaga.
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Pellegrini finally gets the reward he’s been deserving of: a very real opportunity at silverware in European football. There’s absolutely no doubt that Manchester City have made one of the best managerial appointments of the summer.
Arsene Wenger has stated that he is relaxed over his transfer strategy and feels that his squad is strong enough to compete for silverware this season.
The Gunners have added Lukas Podolski, Santi Cazorla and Olivier Giroud to their squad this summer, but have lost Robin van Persie and Alex Song.
The French coach is expected to potentially dip into the market on the last day of the transfer window, but Wenger is happy with how things have panned out for the north London side.
“I am relaxed. We have enough players, that is for sure, but you want always to improve your squad,” The Telegraph report Wenger as saying.
“We have resources available so if it is not happening now it will happen in December. But we believe strongly that we have the quality in our squad to do very well.
“We bought Cazorla, Podolski and Giroud so you cannot say we have not bought but, when you listen to people, you always have to buy more.
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“Getting our injured players back is the best way for us to strengthen the squad. We do not just want to bring average players in. Spending in itself is not a quality. Buying good players is a quality, better players than you have is a quality,” he concluded.
Newcastle fans have been reacting to reports claiming the club is still up for sale this summer, and let’s just say they aren’t totally convinced.There will probably never be a less popular figure on Tyneside than Newcastle Mike Ashley, well besides from Alan Pardew that is.The 53 year-old businessman bought the Magpies back in 2007, and has taken plenty of stick from fans for his penny-pinching tactics in the transfer market.Fans have often felt Ashley uses the club as a business more than a football club, and they are desperate for him to either back the manager in the transfer market or sell to someone who will.[ad_pod ]Rumours of a sale to Amanda Staveley have been on-going for months, and a statement from Wednesday’s fans forum read: “The position has not changed (in response to the club being up for sale). If or when there is anything to update, the club would do so.â€This statement might be music to the ears of a more gullible fan base, but Newcastle fans have been here before, and they are convinced Ashley will not sell the club.With Rafa Benitez’s future at the club hanging in the balance, Newcastle fans are hoping for the best but expecting the worst, and some of the best Twitter reactions can be found below…
With the final ball of the 2014/15 Premier League season kicked, the title, the relegation places, the European qualifying rankings and everything in between now decided, it’s time to reflect upon what has been a typically gripping year in English football.
We’ve already had the Player of the Year awards and the PFA Team of the Season, but we at Football FanCast believe it’s time some of the division’s lesser decorated stars are given their spot in the limelight as well.
Therefore, we’ve created this honorary select Xi of rather ambiguous criteria. It’s not so much for those who fall into the ‘unsung hero’ category; rather, for those who haven’t received the recognition that their emphatic form deserves this term.
So without further ado, sit back and enjoy Football Fancast’s underrated XI of the year, filled with the Premier League’s most under-appreciated.
Are these eleven names the real stars of the show in the English top flight?
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GOALKEEPER – Costel Pantilimon
Football FanCast’s Underrated Glove award goes to, without a doubt, Sunderland’s Costel Pantilimon.
Last season, striker Connor Wickham was the miracle that kept Sunderland in the top flight. This year, it’s been the Romanian international, epitomised by his Man of the Match performance during a scoreless draw with Arsenal last Monday that affirmed the Black Cats’ survival.
Despite starting the campaign as understudy to Victor Mannone, the 28 year-old has gone on to record the sixth-most clean sheets and seventh-most saves of any Premier League goalkeeper from just 28 appearances.
Perhaps most tellingly of all, his save success rate of 78.4% is by far the best in the division, outclassing Thibaut Courtois (71.8%), Joe Hart (71.6%) and Manchester United’s David de Gea (69.4%) by quite some way.
RIGHT BACK – KIERAN TRIPPIER
Danny Ings has been the talk of the town at Burnley this season but the performances of right-back Kieran Tripper deserve equal praise.
Last term Trippier added 14 assists to the Turf Moor outfit’s promotion bid and he’s had a similar effect this year, recording the joint-most set-ups of any Burnley player, four, along with the aforementioned Ings.
The 24 year-old also been Burnley’s most prolific creator, with 1.7 chances per match, whilst his 2.4 accurate crosses per match is the strongest return throughout the Premier League.
A lack of top level quality ultimately cost the Clarets in their bid for survival, but Trippier has been providing it all year from right-back.
CENTRE-BACK – JORES OKORE
Tim Sherwood and Christian Benteke will be seen as the definitive factors in Aston Villa’s survival this season, but youngster Jores Okore deserves a noteworthy mention too.
Big things were expected of the 22 year-old when he first arrived at Villa Park two summers ago, only for an ACL injury in September 2013 to rule him out for over a year. The Danish international returned to first team action in November and his performances at the heart of defence have been pivotal.
From his 22 Premier League outings this term the Villains have kept five clean sheets, but perhaps most crucially conceded more than twice on just eight occasions – six of which have come against sides that finished in the Premier League’s top seven.
Regularly filling the void of ever-crocked skipper Ron Vlaar, Villa – who finished just three points off the drop – might not have been so lucky this term if Okore’s return to fitness had happened a few weeks later.
JOSE FONTE
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I’d describe public and punditry appreciation of Southampton’s Jose Fonte as largely in accordance with his abilities, but the Portugal defender makes it into this select Xi for one predominant reason – his shock exclusion from the PFA Team of the Year.
No doubt, Chelsea duo John Terry and Gary Cahill have been absolutely fantastic this season, but the Saints finished the campaign with just one more goal conceded and two less clean sheets than the Premier League champions.
Skipper Fonte, who claimed the Player of the Year award at St. Mary’s this season, played in every single minute of their Premier League campaign barring a single game’s absence due to suspension.
In the process, he’s averaged the third-most interceptions per match, 3.2, of any Premier League centre-half.
DALEY BLIND
He may not have the awesome goalscoring record of Radamel Falcao or a record-breaking transfer fee like Angel Di Maria, but pound for pound Daley Blind has proved to be Manchester United’s best signing of summer 2014.
Utility men of the Netherlands international’s variety tend to fall into two categories; they’re either equally terrible in every position or equally brilliant.
Blind firmly belongs in the latter, producing equally strong displays at left-back, left wing-back, central midfield, defensive midfield and even making a few outings as an emergency centre-half, whilst his two goals of the campaign clinched United vital draws against West Bromwich Albion and West Ham – just as the pressure was beginning to mount on Louis van Gaal.
Clearly a victim of his own versatility, Blind will likely always dodge his fair share of the praise at Old Trafford. But in my opinion, the 25 year-old would be a huge asset to any top European club.
Defensive Midfield – KI SUNG-YUENG
So underrated he didn’t even claim Swansea City’s Player of the Year award, Ki Sung-Yueng might well be the most underappreciated central midfielder in the Premier League.
He’s been the metronome in a Swans side that have now recorded their highest ever points total of the Premier League era, conducting traffic with deft flick-ons and neat one-twos to record a pass completion rate of 89.9%, whilst shielding the back four with his exceptional anticipation – epitomised best by his 1.8 interceptions per match.
But most impressive of all is the 26 year-old’s goal tally. Eight goals makes him Swansea’s top scorer in the league – with the exception of Wilfried Bony, now with Manchester City – whilst Yaya Toure and Steven Gerrard are the only Premier League centre-mids to have scored more this year.
There isn’t too much speculation in the tabloids at the moment but something tells me England’s top clubs will be considering bids for the South Korean this summer.
Central Midfield – JASON PUNCHEON
Yannick Bolasie is the first name that comes to mind when reflecting upon Crystal Palace’s many fantastic performances under Alan Pardew – but Jason Puncheon has been the real star of the show.
With six goals and seven assists in 31 Premier League starts, he trumps the Congo winger in terms of output and has been the driving force in the Eagles’ midfield, epitomised best by his impressive averages of 1.8 shots, 1.8 chances created, 1.6 successful dribbles, 1.8 tackles and 1.1 interceptions per match.
Pardew hailed the 28 year-old as Palace’s best performer earlier this month as he signed a contract extension until 2019 and Football Fancast firmly agree. The south London outfit’s Player of the Year award, however, went to Scott Dann.
Central Midfield – JAMES MILNER
The undisputed king of modern day unsung heroes in the Premier League, despite receiving more adulation than normal this season James Milner was always going to make this select Xi. In fact, he’s wearing the captain’s armband.
The England international has just ended his strongest campaign to date for the Citizens, claiming five goals and seven assists in the Premier League whilst also netting a vital Champions League goal against Spartak Moscow, but received just 18 league starts from Manuel Pellegrini.
Yet to extend his contract past the end of the season, the 29 year-old will most likely leave the Eithad this summer – hopefully for a club with a much better appreciation of his many talents.
Right Wing – WILLIAN
If James Milner were to pass on his crown as the Premier League’s least-sung of unsung heroes, his successor would undoubtedly be Chelsea’s Willian.
The 26-year-old will never be a world-class talent in the same vein as Cesc Fabregas, Diego Costa or Eden Hazard, largely due to his ever-underwhelming output. This season he’s bagged just two goals and three assists in 36 Premier League appearances.
But the Brazil international’s incredible industry and work-rate has been equally as pivotal to the Blues’ successful title bid this season, providing intrinsic balance to Hazard on the other flank and epitomising everything about the Jose Mourinho philosophy.
Likewise, he’s absolutely lethal on the counter-attack, with his power, pace and dribbling ability laying the framework for countless Chelsea goals this year. He’s very much the assistor to the assistor, the instigator of attacking moves others take statistical credit for.
Perhaps most tellingly of all, Willian’s importance to Chelsea has increased as the season’s gone on.
LEFT WING – Nacer Chadli
Admit it. You thought Nacer Chadli was a waste of space and so did we at Football Fancast. He’s one of many Tottenham signings who left an underwhelming impression last season but the Belgium international has hit back in emphatic fashion, bagging eleven goals and five assists in 28 Premier League starts.
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Harry Kane has been the talk of the Lane this season with supporting act Christian Eriksen not too far behind – largely due to his unique ability to bag last minute winners for the north London club.
But Mauricio Pochettino’s side wouldn’t have finished in fifth without Chadli’s goals either. In fact, the 25 year-old’s strikes have proved decisive on five occasions this term – earning the north Londoners four draws and one win.
Striker – MAME Biram Diouf
Due to the fact strikers are by nature the habitual stars of the show, choosing a front-man for this select Xi was the toughest task Football Fancast faced.
Crystal Palace’s Glenn Murray, Southampton’s Graziano Pelle and Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy were all in the mix but we’ve gone with Stoke City’s Mame Biram Diouf – purely because his fantastic form in front of goal hasn’t received the column inches it deserves this season.
The 27-year-old may not be the greatest front-man to ever face the Premier League but his eleven goals for the Potters is a significant achievement in itself. No striker has scored more for the Britannia outfit in a single campaign throughout their Premier League history.
It caps off a sensational season for Mark Hughes’ side, in which they recorded the highest ever points total and joint-highest league standing of the Premier League era.
Subs Bench – Honourable Mentions
Adrian – The Spaniard rarely gets discussed as one of the Premier League’s top goalies but he’s been in sensational form for West Ham yet again this year.
Ashley Williams – As consistent as ever, if Ashley Williams wasn’t already held in high regard he would’ve made the starting XI.
Ahmed Elmohamady – The wing-back can hold his head high despite Hull City’s relegation. He’s been their biggest threat going forward and made significant contributions in defence too.
Lucas Leiva – Liverpool’s upturn in form around Christmas time coincided with the Brazilian’s return to the starting Xi. He’s averaged the most tackles per match, 3.9, of any Premier League player this year.
Gylfi Sigurdsson – The Swansea midfielder is little too unappreciated the PFA Team of the Year but a little too appreciated to make our starting Xi.
George Boyd – The Scotland international has given Burnley absolutely everything this year, grabbing five goals and two assists whilst averaging the eighth-most tackles per match of any Premier League player.
Jamie Vardy – Only an England call-up has stopped Jamie Vardy making the starting Xi. Five goals and eight assists doesn’t tell anywhere near the whole story of the striker’s influence on Leicester City’s survival.
Everton have set their sights on Cardiff boss Malky Mackay if David Moyes decides to leave the club at the end of the season.
Moyes has admitted his side look set to miss out on a top-four finish following Saturday’s defeat at Sunderland and a top-five finish, which would secure a place in the Europa League, also looks unlikely following Spurs’ win over Manchester City on Sunday.
There has been speculation throughout the campaign that manager Moyes could walk away from Goodison Park when his contract comes to an end in the summer if the club miss out on European football.
The Sunday Mirror have now reported that Mackay, who led Cardiff to the Championship title this season, is a leading contender to take charge of Everton if Moyes decides to call time on his stay with the Merseyside club.
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However, Cardiff are keen to keep hold of the Scottish manager and Everton could face a big battle to secure their reported top target.
Everton fans can’t quite believe how highly Sam Allardyce rates himself, as the ex-England manager compared himself to Diego Simeone in his Friday press conference.
If there’s one thing that has annoyed Everton fans more than Sam Allardyce’s tactics this season, it’s his attitude.
At a club like Everton, an essential part of the manager’s job is to “get” the club, to connect with the fans, and to understand their frustrations when things go wrong.
Big Sam hasn’t ticked any of these boxes, and fans are in sheer disbelief at his latest comments ahead of Saturday’s trip to Huddersfield.
“What is entertainment? Is Diego Simeone entertainment?” the manager asked.
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“He’s the master of the defensive trade. Atletico Madrid have conceded four goals at home all season, but I’m seen as too negative. We’ve achieved some extremely entertaining games.”
Allardyce is referring to the praise being heaped on Simeone after his ten-man Atletico Madrid side grabbed a 1-1 draw at the Emirates on Thursday night, but it doesn’t seem like fans appreciate the sentiment.
“I think we’re more entertaining now than when I arrived here,” Allardyce continued.
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Fans were delighted with a report today that claimed owner Farhad Moshiri has refused to publicly back Allardyce, and they’re absolutely crucifying him for his press conference comments.
Some of the best Twitter reactions can be found below…
What a difference a month makes in the Premier League. After an FA Cup loss at home to Arsenal saw people questioning whether Louis van Gaal was truly the right man for the job at Old Trafford, three hugely impressive victories against Tottenham, Liverpool and now Manchester City has seen the Dutchman’s side climb to third in the table, with a second-placed finish an easy target. United are playing their best football at the most crucial moment of the campaign, and with a number of big-money signings being touted in the summer, surely the aim will be the title next season rather than another top-four finish.
2. Pellegrini’s days are numbered.
The parallels between Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini’s sophomore season and that of his predecessor Roberto Mancini are worrying. An excellent debut campaign has been followed up by a hugely disappointing second year, and after this crushing derby loss – City’s fifth away defeat in a row in all competitions – the club’s oil-rich owners may have decided that enough is enough. Pellegrini can have no excuses for how poorly his players have performed given how much money he spent in the summer, and it seems increasingly likely that he will pay for it with his job.
3. Kompany continues descent from hero to zero.
Touted as one of the best centre-halves in the game last season, City skipper Vincent Kompany’s fall from grace has been alarming and has come to embody his side’s underwhelming campaign. The Belgian was withdrawn at half-time against United having performed poorly in the opening 45 minutes, and was lucky to remain on the pitch after a desperate, ill-disciplined challenge on Daley Blind. Kompany has the air of a man completely devoid of confidence and belief in his own abilities. Much like his manager, is his time at Eastlands also up?
The last week for Coventry City was supposed to be a defining week in the clubs history and whilst in many ways it has been, there are still so many questions that have been left unanswered.
The confusion which now surrounds the club began late on Thursday evening when out of nowhere owners Sisu chose to put Coventry City FC Limited (CCFC Ltd) into administration. The statement released detailed that CCFC Ltd a ‘non-operating subsidiary’ had been put into administration but CCFC (Holdings) Ltd was not suggesting the club itself had been spared administration.
Confusion was the overriding emotion following this statement and the scheduled court case which would have seen the club as a whole go into administration was postponed to allow for further investigation into the club.
The other important aspect which was the only thing that we seemed to be a hundred per cent certain on was that Sisu’s actions had voided the contract between them and ACL meaning Coventry City FC now had no home, with there now being no rental contract between the two parties.
Rumours and possible scenarios began to circulate around the social media sites as City fans tried to understand the implications of Sisu’s actions. Rumours of new owners looking to invest as well as potential grounds to play our remaining home fixtures, and whether or not the club will get a points deduction.
Then on Friday it emerged that the club was clearing out stock from the club shop at the Ricoh arena. It was later confirmed that staff and stock had been moved to a different location which was later confirmed as city’s Ryton training ground. This seemed to signal the end of City’s time at the Ricoh but now where does the club go.
Saturday arrived with pretty much all of the questions still left unanswered and attentions turned to the match against Portsmouth. Does this match even matter was the question on a lot of fans minds but being football fans we got on with it and got behind the boys in Skyblue.
It was a game where the players could be excused from being distracted by what’s been going on at the club but the players seemed to respond relatively positively. An early penalty looked to give the Skyblue fans something to cheer but McSheffery stepped up and had is penalty saved by an impressive Eastwood. Things kind of went downhill from there and despite a number of good chances for City it wasn’t to be their day. 2-0 to Portsmouth was the final result and it seemed like things couldn’t get any worse for City.
How wrong I was as new continued to break over the next few days. News emerged that ACL and others believed the club had made a mistake and was actually in administration as a whole. For this reason ACL went into court on Tuesday with the intention of withdrawing their application for CCFC to be put into administration.
This has all come down to where a so called ‘golden share’ lies. This ’golden share’ refers to the clubs membership of the football league and it is now understood to lie with CCFC Ltd and not as Sisu suggested with CCFC (Holdings) Ltd. This should have meant the club were going to be confirmed as being in administration but continued discrepancies mean we are still left wondering although a point’s deduction looks more and more likely as time goes on.
One thing that is very interesting as well as worrying is that the court was informed that the club is actually £60million in debt. Now Sisu have consistently stated that the club has no debt so once again it would suggest that we have all been lied too on an even bigger scale then we could have imagined.
The club has taken some positive steps in that a short term deal is now being talked of too enable the club to play its last three home matches at the Ricoh Arena. No matter what happens I think everyone can agree that this is a favourable scenario for all involved.
Our club is in crisis and we are undoubtedly looking for a saviour. Former life president Joe Elliot this week has stoked the fans hopes by publicly talking about an American millionaire who is apparently interested in the club.
His name is Preston Haskell and has in the past shown strong interest in another UK based football club, Leeds United. On the face of it he seems like the real deal. He has a fortune worth an estimated $250 million (£157 million), is a genuine sports fan, great business knowledge and so far have only heard good things about this millionaire from Texas.
We have heard all this before though and had our hopes raised only to be left with the likes of our current owners. At this moment in time though anyone other than Sisu seems like a good option and for that reason I welcome administration and I never thought I would say that.
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It is a huge shame that it has come to this for our beloved club but administration does offer he club a potential fresh start. We have been going downhill as a club for as long as I can remember and just maybe this could finally be the beginning of revival for the club. My only concern is how far we are going to have to fall before we begin to rise again.
Sisu’s dealings with this club are far from over and there is plenty of drama still to come that I am sure of. It does have to end at some point though and one way or another I cannot wait for a resolution to this so once again we can concentrate on the football side of things.