Italy manager Cesare Prandelli has lifted the lid on Mario Balotelli after admitting he and the rest of his squad are still coming to terms with the controversial striker’s erratic behaviour.
The Manchester City forward scored his second International goal against Republic of Ireland on Monday but a typically emotive response has been criticised by the Italian public and he’s yet to fully convince them after unpredictable performances against Spain and Croatia.
According to the Independent Prandelli is still trying to assess his conduct.
“I have no idea if he was giving vent to his feelings about being named on the bench for the Ireland game.
“I don’t know if the words were directed at me and I haven’t asked him about it because I don’t want to spoil the moment for him. But his 20 minutes against Ireland were his best of the tournament.”
Prandelli’s pragmatic approach is centred on keeping Balotelli grounded because he knows how vital the forward can be if he remains focused and doesn’t destabilise the team’s harmony with his petulance.
“The spirit of the squad is important.
“All the players here have to give it their all. Nobody in our team wishes him ill; he has to understand that we are here to help him become a true champion.
“Look, Mario is a golden boy but he has to make a real jump in quality if he is going to become a champion. He has got to learn to accept criticism or a place on the bench – and, if he doesn’t, the squad is going to become a little more closed off to him.”
Scottish football isn’t exactly receiving the best press at the moment. You can’t discuss anything without mentioning the words ‘Rangers’ and ‘Newco’ and therefore not much attention has been cast towards other happenings in the SPL. For fans of Aberdeen though, bad news could be on the way. It seems that Wigan are about to complete a move for their highly rated youngster Fraser Fyvie after holding talks with the midfielder.
The 19-year-old is set for a move to the Premier League for an expected seven figure sum, offering him the chance to showcase his skills at the highest level. Dons fans will know all about Fyvie’s potential, having seen him make his debut back in 2009 as a mere 16-year-old against Hamilton Academical. That appearance made him the youngest ever player to pull on the famous red shirt and by January 2010, he also held the record for youngest goalscorer in the SPL as well, taking the landmark off David Goodwillie when he notched against Hearts.
Fyvie will hope his move to England goes better than that of Goodwillie’s, who failed to establish himself in the Blackburn line-up last season as the club got relegated. However, if Fyvie does sign for Wigan, he is making the right choice in terms of club. Both James McCarthy and James McArthur made the transition from talented youngster to seasoned professional at the DW Stadium and they have established themselves as first team regulars under Roberto Martinez’s stewardship.
Martinez’s style of football will suit Fyvie down to the ground as well; indeed he refuses to alter from the neat passing and possession-based game that won Swansea so many plaudits last season. Martinez in fact started that revolution at the Liberty Stadium and continued his philosophy at Wigan, a philosophy commendable considering the club seems eternally destined to battle against relegation.
Wigan has also proved a decent place for young protégées to forge a career in the Premier League, as their better players seem to move on almost every season to bigger clubs. This will please Fyvie, who will look to enhance his reputation, before potentially chancing his hand at a higher level by perhaps emulating fellow Scottish midfielders Charlie Adam and Darren Fletcher who ply their trade at the top end of the Premier League with Liverpool and Manchester Untied respectively.
The move could also lead to Fyvie challenging for full international honours, he has already won a place in the Scotland U19 squad and the next logical step would be up into the U21’s. However, with manager Craig Levein looking to bring together a group of players that could end the woe for Scotland at international level, Fyvie could be fast-tracked into the Tartan Army setup in the hope of him one day becoming a quality regular for the national team.
There’s no doubting that Fyvie is a raw talent as he’s made just 58 appearances for the Dons in his career so far. However, he’s certainly worth a punt especially considering how expensive English youngsters can be these days. Compare Fyvie to say Josh McEachran and how much the two players would cost respectively and it’s easy to see why Premier League clubs are now looking north of the border for fresh, young blood.
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With the cream of the Rangers crop having moved down to England as well, there will be a strong Scottish contingent in the top flight next year, something that has been lacking in recent years, with the Scottish influence on English football tending to come from the managerial department instead. It will be a wrench for Aberdeen to lose such a quality young player, but all eyes will be firmly fixed on Wigan’s performances next year to see how Fyvie settles into the Premier League.
New Wolves boss Stale Solbakken is standing his ground in the fight to hold on to his best players and insists they will not be sold unless their target valuation is met by interested clubs.
Just 24 hours after Wolves rejected a £9million bid for winger Matt Jarvis from West Ham, the England international told the club he wanted to leave and handed in a formal transfer request.
Jarvis is the third player this week that has told Solbakken he wants to leave following the example of Steven Fletcher and Christophe Berra, but the Wolves boss admitted he won’t leave unless their valuation is met.
“He wants to leave but it has to be right for Wolves.” He said
“At the end of the day I am not making the final decision.
“We are a little unsettled at the moment and everything is not fine. It is stupid to say everything is fine. We have to fight through this.”
Solbakken claimed that the winger was ill and that is the reason he didn’t feature for the club this weekend: “This is a true story and you can believe it or not but he is actually sick.
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“He is a good guy in a stressful situation at the moment.”
An eager Wayne Rooney has shared his views on new Manchester United signing Shinji Kagawa and seems optimistic their understanding on the pitch will be evident when the season kicks off next week.
Speaking after United came back from two goals down to win 4-3 against Hannover in a pre-season friendly yesterday, and scoring two goals himself, Rooney was quick to praise the Red Devils new midfield man.
“It was end-to-end and we were a bit sloppy at times. We could have done better defending,” the 26-year-old forward told MUTV.
“But I thought some of the play throughout the game was great. Some great link-up play between us.
“We’ve got the four goals which maybe we were lacking in pre-season and it’s great to get them with the season coming up.”
Asked if he enjoyed linking up with Kagawa, Rooney said: “It was great. Obviously he’s a very clever player.
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“The likes of himself, Chicharito and Tom (Cleverley) – there are players capable of getting on the ball and linking the play and it worked well for us tonight.”
Eden Hazard claims he will continue to improve and harass Premier League defences after an impressive league debut.
The £35 million signing from Lille was heavily involved in both Chelsea’s goals in a 2-0 win over Wigan Athletic.
Chelsea’s new Belgian star also stated he is unbothered by opposition attempts to intimidate him. Gary Caldwell in particular gave the 21 year old a ferocious welcome to the Premier League, getting booked for a late and forceful challenge on the former Lille man, who was the most fouled player in the match despite an early substitution.
Hazard told The Sun, “It doesn’t bother me, I already had a taste of these tackles in the Community Shield.
“I was kicked quite a bit in the first half against Wigan but in France it was already like that for me.”
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With Chelsea hosting Reading on Wednesday the Belgium international will get another chance to showcase his ability, he added, “There are a lot of things I can do better. I lost a lot of balls in the second half but I contributed what was asked of me.”
Arsenal will have a fight on their hands to keep hold of Theo Walcott if they cannot agree a new contract with him before the January transfer window, as Inter and Juve want the winger according to Mirror Football.
The England international attacker is in the last year of his current deal at the Emirates Stadium and has rejected a new five-year deal from Arsene Wenger’s men.
After watching Samir Nasri and Robin van Persie manufacture moves away from the north London club, it is believed that Walcott is weighing up his options and could sign a pre-contract agreement with another club in January.
Serie A sides Juventus and Inter are thought to be keeping tabs on the situation, whilst big-spending French side Paris Saint-Germain are also in the frame.
Walcott was initially wanted by Manchester City and Liverpool in the transfer window just gone.
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Arsenal have recovered from going a goal down against Montpellier to win their Champions League opening clash 2-1 on Tuesday night.
Younes Belhanda put the Ligue 1 outfit into an early lead from the penalty spot, but the Gunners rallied and two goals in three first-half minutes from Lukas Podolski and Gervinho ensured victory.
Steve Bould took control of the team due to Arsene Wenger’s touchline ban, and was relieved that his side held on to claim victory.
“It gives you a headache! But we’ve won and the lads have been fantastic,” the assistant manager told Sky Sports.
“That was tough, it was really tough. In the first half we played really well and deserved to come in ahead. In the second half we looked tired physically and dropped a little bit and they played well.
“A lot of our players have had internationals and been travelling. It was warm here, hot and humid and it’s a difficult place to come and play, so we’re delighted.
“It is a really tough place to come and play and we kept the crowd quiet until 50 minutes onwards.
“The lads did what they were asked to do, they defended well and kept the ball well. But we struggled with that in the second half and that made it difficult,” he concluded.
Arsenal travel to take on Manchester City on Sunday.
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Paul Lambert is confident Aston Villa are making progress and believes the positive response of supporters will give him breathing space during what is a transitional period after a host of summer signings.
Lambert took charge over the summer after a difficult season last term, and so far Villa have again struggled for consistency. Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Midlands rivals West Bromwich Albion left them with just five points from six games, but Lambert has been encouraged by the way the fans have got behind the team. Lambert told Sky Sports:
“I always gauge things by the crowd and I can really sense the supporters want us to do well. The lads are only young and they will make mistakes like everyone else but the crowd are right behind us. We are slowly and surely getting there. I am not long in the door here – but we are doing everything we can to make the club a success. We can only do our best. The lads have been absolutely brilliant for me. I have nothing but pride in them.”
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Villa next travel to White Hart Lane to face Tottenham, a team high in confidence after claiming the three points against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
With the sight of Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini generously handing out fruit pastels just after half time during the City game, it made me wonder not just about why Mancini has a fondness for the sweets, but about the other traits managers have become famous for over the years.
Of course we are all used to seeing managers of just about every level getting irate and swearing on the touchline – even getting sent to the stands on occasion, with their job just about the most pressurised one in football. Every substitution is analysed and focused on, every word spoken in a press conference, so is it really any wonder that from time to time a manger loses it or does something slightly out of the ordinary on the side-lines?
Here is a look at the top ten traits of a manager – from ones so recognised they should be copyrighted by the manager who originated them to ones that all manager have been guilty of from time to time.
Click on Rafa Benitez below to unveil the 10
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have suffered an injury blow with the news that Lukasz Fabianski could face another three months on the sidelines, according to The Daily Mail.
The Polish stopper has been unavailable for the north London club since February due to a shoulder injury, but it is thought that the stopper went over on an ankle in training on Tuesday.
This could well keep the stopper out of action until the new year, with initial reports stating that Fabianski could be unavailable for as long as three weeks.
First-choice goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny is still on the sidelines also with injury, as an ankle knock has kept him out of consideration for the Gunners over recent weeks.
It is believed that Szczesny is still at least three weeks off making a return, with rehabilitation ongoing on his injured ankle.
In the meantime young Italian goalkeeper Vito Mannone has been deputising between the sticks for Arsene Wenger’s men, but the inexperienced stopper has shown some nerves whilst playing in big games in the Premier League and Champions League.
Arsenal have a frantic fixture list upcoming over the next month, with Norwich, Schalke, Tottenham and Fulham are ready to take advantage of any weakness in the north London club’s backline.
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At the moment the only other options for Arsenal in goal are Damian Martinez and James Shea, who have yet to make a first-team appearance for the Emirates Stadium side, and Wenger would prefer to continue to assess the pair rather than throw one of them into the dead end.