AC Milan coach Massimo Allegri has no desire to bring former England international David Beckham back to the San Siro for a third time.
The 35-year-old LA Galaxy midfielder has enjoyed two spells with the Rossoneri in the last two seasons but injured his Achilles tendon in March and was forced to miss this summer's World Cup finals.
Asked if Beckham would be returning to AC Milan this season, Allegri said:"I do not think so.
"He is now recovering from a very bad injury and at that age I think it is very difficult to come back."
Beckham has said he hopes to return to fitness in September – two months ahead of schedule.
Earlier in the week he was linked with a switch to West Ham United but those rumours were swiftly denied.
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AC Milan are currently involved in the Emirates Cup and drew 1-1 with Arsenal on Saturday.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Manchester United's transfer window spending is now over, according to the club's chief executive David Gill.
United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has resisted the temptation to spend big this summer, having brought in just a handful of new signings.
Defender Chris Smalling from Fulham, Mexico starlet Javier Hernandez and Portuguese striker Bebe have been the only arrivals at Old Trafford.
But despite Ferguson still having money available to spend, Gill has declared the summer transfer window closed for the Red Devils.
"Hopefully we've got the right numbers to compete on all fronts for the rest of the year," he explained.
"We've never bought older stars. We turn talented youngsters into top, top stars. We've done it with Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Anderson and Nani.
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"We think Bebe will fit into that profile so our policy hasn't changed.
"But if there's a player who Sir Alex Ferguson thinks would change things we would go with it."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
The boys discuss the 2-0 defeat of a typically attritional Stoke, applaud some top performances by Ashley Cole, Florent Malouda, Mikel, John Terry and Alex, and ponder the forthcoming challenges of the Carling Cup and Champions League.
No 6-0 this week, so we’ll just have to be satisfied with 32 league goals without reply in our last 7 games. The salient point being no goals conceded…seven clean sheets!
As always it was a battle against Stoke, but even with Super Frank missing a penalty and then limping off, we ran out comfortable winners to leave us the only unbeaten team in the league with the small matter of a plus 14 goal difference. That’s why we’re champions!!
Chelsea’s passing and movement gets glowing praise from the FanCast crew. It’s just like watching Playstation football!! Thankfully, Super Frank and JT seem to have got injured just at the right time with international week coming up so will be better for the rest.
We have our usual awards for the Man of the Match; Chant of the Match; Celery and Guinness moments. Also as it’s the end of the month we’ll be nominating our Goal of the month and player of the month.
The boys also have a look at the forthcoming Carling Cup and Champions League where we will be reacquainted with the delights of Slovakia, the bad trip of the Luzhniky stadium and Didier Deschamps at Marseille.
A song for Obi in “We’re out to show the World the way to Sing” is followed, as ever, by the Dr donning his white coat and stethoscope to answer your questions in Dear Mart and a very grumpy Chidge reading out the best posts from the website and facebook group in “You’re on CFFC”…
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The Chelsea Football FanCast: That’s why we’re Champions!
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When a football club relieve a manager of their services, the usual suspects are normally linked with the vacant post. In fact any manager out of work usually makes an appearance in the bookmakers’ odds at some juncture. As the football calendar approaches October and the next international break, clubs across the Football Leagues will be considering wielding the managerial axe. West Ham co-owner David Sullivan recently said that no manager could survive nine successive losses, highlighting that Avram Grant was four ninths of the way there. Whether in the Premier League or in the lower divisions, who are the likely candidates to return to the dugout?
Martin O’Neill
The Northern Irishman unexpectedly walked out of Villa Park less than a week before the start of the new season. James Milner’s protracted transfer may have been the catalyst but a breakdown in his relationship with Randy Lerner seemed to have been covertly brewing for some time. He guided the west Midlands club to two successive sixth place finished based on the recruitment of young home-grown talent. His tactics may have been seen as passé but his 4-4-2 formation was cautious yet dangerous in attack. Prior to managing the Villans he won three SPL titles with Celtic and two League Cups with Leicester. He has been sensationally linked with a return to the Foxes should Paulo Sousa fail to improve the team’s results. O’Neill may be itching to return to management but will presumably wait for an opportunity at an upwardly mobile PL club, capable of challenging for Europe with a few quid in the bank.
Alan Curbishley
It has been two years since Curbishley resigned as West Ham boss, arguing that his hand had been forced in the transfer market. A contractual dispute ensued preventing him from taking up any potential offers from other clubs. These days he can be spotted as mediocre pundit for Sky Sports, leaving viewers with the distinct impression that he feels undervalued. His prolonged spell at Charlton Athletic provided the blueprint for aspiring but sensible clubs to survive in the PL. After winning the old Division One in 2000 The Addicks became a top flight mainstay, finishing seventh in the 2003/04 season. He developed young prospects such as Scott Parker and Paul Konchesky and brought in Darren Bent from Ipswich. He was later at the helm of West Ham’s ‘great escape,’ which culminated in the Londoners winning at Old Trafford on the final day of that campaign. Under his stewardship the relegation threatened side finished tenth the following year but won few admirers for their vigilant style. He unfairly became known as a purveyor of mid-table mediocrity.
Phil Brown
Brown’s plucky Hull City were the toast of the PL in their inaugural top flight season in 2008/09. Would Brown have received greater respect if their season had been played out in reverse? After making an unexpectedly fantastic start which included a famous win at Arsenal, The Tigers could not buy an away victory. The perennially tanned Brown’s behaviour became increasingly erratic. His half-time team talk on the pitch at Eastlands won no supporters. When Hull stayed up on the final day of the season due to the whimpering form of their rivals, he launched into some more on field antics. His karaoke routine roused the crowd but was sniffed at by the media. Yet some had overlooked the magnitude of his achievement, saving the club from relegation to League One in 2007 and winning the play-off final the next season. His bizarre conduct continued last season when he claimed to have talked a suicidal woman down from the Humber Bridge, a scenario not recollected by his players. Indifferent form saw him placed on ‘gardening leave’ as Iain Dowie was charged with securing their salvation. This challenge was too great but the deposed Brown will forever be associated with their remarkable sojourn in the PL. Recently linked with the Southampton job, ambitious clubs seeking promotion could do worse than considering Brown.
Continued on Page TWO
Alan Pardew
The 49-year old former Reading, West Ham and Charlton boss was sacked by Southampton last month. Pardew delivered a seventh place finish in League One last season despite an initial 10 point deduction and winning the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy. The decision was met with bemusement by Saints fans but this was not the first time he had been harshly treated. Pardew restored West Ham’s fortunes taking them back to the PL via a play-off triumph over Preston. A top half finish followed together with a thoroughly entertaining FA Cup final which Liverpool won on penalties. Second season syndrome set in and Pardew seemed unable to cope with the sizeable changes occurring at the club. Shortly after being dismissed by the new Icelandic owners he joined Charlton and although mounting a spirited challenge, they failed to beat the drop. Pardew made astute signings at West Ham, bringing in Carlton Cole, Dean Ashton and Robert Green. He is known for imbuing a sense of passion and belief in his players.
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Jurgen Klinsmann
A favourite at White Hart Lane, this World Cup winning forward has been out of management since leaving Bayern Munich in 2009. In 2004 he succeeded Rudi Voller as manager of the German national team. He noticed the need to introduce young, exciting players following their miserable performance at Euro 2004. Despite being inexperienced he took the host nation to the semi-final of the 2006 World Cup, narrowly losing to Italy after extra time goals from Fabio Grosso and Alessandro Del Piero. His attacking brand of football had won over sceptics in Germany who earlier scoffed at his bold decisions, such as dropping Oliver Kahn. Two summers later he returned to Munich as a manager but failed to last a season after some less than convincing results. As a popular, engaging figure he has previously been associated with Liverpool and Chelsea.
Manchester United have confirmed that the ankle injury Wayne Rooney sustained during Sunday's 2-2 draw at Bolton Wanderers is severe enough to stop the England international travelling to Spain for the Champions League clash with Valencia.
The former Everton star had to be substituted in the 61st minute at the Reebok Stadium.
Rooney joins veteran winger Ryan Giggs on the sidelines. The former Wales international has a hamstring problem and will be out of action for the next two weeks.
United opened their Group C campaign with a disappointing 0-0 draw against Rangers a fortnight ago while Valencia are currently top of La Liga and thrashed Bursaspor in their first group match.
Assistant manager Mike Phelan had played Rooney's injury down after Sunday's match, saying after the draw:"Wayne Rooney had a bit of a knock. He has a little issue with his ankle, we don't know how serious.
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"We'll have a look in the morning but we think he'll be okay for Wednesday. He's been playing with it for a couple of weeks now and, during the game, we decided he wasn't getting into the areas we wanted and he wasn't getting chances, so we had to change it."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Stoke City boss Tony Pulis has rubbished reports of a rift with Turkey playmaker Tuncay.
The 28-year-old forward was reported to have angered Pulis after walking out before a Premier League game against Bolton Wanderers earlier in the month when informed he was not part of the matchday squad.
Tuncay came off the bench to score in Sunday's 2-1 defeat by Manchester United at the Britannia Stadium and Pulis insists there has been no fall-out between the pair.
"Last time he was away in Turkey he brought me two bottles of wine back because I'd been ribbing him about Turkish wine not being as good as the rest of the Mediterranean," he told The Sentinel.
"That just shows I get on smashing with him and it was good wine incidentally.
"As for the taxi thing, he felt tired that day when he wasn't on the bench and I had told him he would definitely be involved against Manchester United.
"He asked if he could get a taxi home before the game and I said 'of course you can'.
"He just doesn't like watching us play. A lot of people are like that, getting uptight and frustrated if they aren't playing.
"I was annoyed a bit in the past, but I understand he has a different mentality, like a lot of players from different countries.
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"I'd be telling lies if I said I hadn't had my moments with him because of my desire to push this football club on.
"Sometimes you expect them to be just the same as you and then find they haven't always got what I've got. But you also realise they have other things to offer."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
One particular statistic stood out for me as I perused my Sunday newspaper this weekend – the fact that as a Premiership manager, Mark Hughes has now drawn 16 of his last 24 league games in charge, which includes both his spells at previous employers Man City and his current employers Fulham, a side which look more and more likely to be dragged into a relegation dogfight this term.
Of course, the above statement may come back to haunt me as the season progresses, as with the league being astoundingly tight at present, only 5 points separate 17th from 5th and the old adage that ‘the league begins to sort itself out after 10 games’ seems to have come a cropper so far this term. In short, this season has become predictable only in its unpredictability.
Many felt Hughes was dealt a raw deal by Man City, and while I agree that his sacking was outrageous and that his successor Roberto Mancini has done little but add unnecessary caution at every turn during his spell in charge thus far, Hughes’s side weren’t delivering the goods on the pitch at the time of his dismissal, but that’s a discussion for another time.
Unbeaten runs in football can take a funny old turn, sometimes largely dependent on just one result. It’s all about how you spin it. Take Man United for example, they are unbeaten since their April Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich, but so far this term they have drawn 6 of their 7 away fixtures, hardly the a record to be proud of. Well Mark Hughes Man City side had, towards the end of his tenure, drawn 7 successive league fixtures which included a run of only 2 wins in 11.
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The reason given for Hughes’ sacking was that he wasn’t on course to make the 70 point mark predicted of him at the beginning of the season. What made this point prediction only seemingly more ludicrous was that with a somewhat easier fixture list, certainly at the start at least, and with half a season to play with, Mancini still fell some 3 points short on 67 points.
At Fulham, Hughes can be credited with the astute signings of Moussa Dembele and Carlos Salcido, two players that have slotted in seamlessly and to good effect thus far. But is the current spate of draws that threatens to hamper Fulham’s progress this season merely a coincidence or is it down in part to their manager?
So far this season, Fulham have played 13, drawn 8, won 2 and lost 3 and their goal difference is at 0 as they average a goal for and a goal against each game. They also started the season with 4 draws out of their first five fixtures in games away to Bolton, Blackpool and Blackburn and at home to Man Utd and Wolves.
A lot of this I would say though, has been down to bad luck. The injury to Bobby Zamora was crucial and he’s key to the way they play their football. Fulham under Hughes haven’t changed their style too much to that under Roy Hodgson. They still like to play the ball on the floor, through the middle and work off a lone front man up top.
Individual defensive errors, namely in the shape of own goals, that player who did so well for Man Utd last season, have proved costly and their away form is, as always will be, been dreadful to say the least. I remember various statistics being bandied about the atrociousness of Fulham’s away form back when Chris Coleman was in charge.
It certainly didn’t get any better under the seriously out of his depth Lawrie Sanchez, under Roy Hodgson and so far Mark Hughes, who has picked up five of his seven draws away from home this term, a run which means that Fulham have not tasted an away victory since the opening day of last season against the circus that is Portsmouth football club.
As I conceded right at the beginning of this article, with the league anything but set in stone at the minute, Fulham could just quite as easily move into the top 8 with a couple of decent results in their next two games both at home to Man City and Birmingham and maybe even their away game to Arsenal. It would be premature to set Hughes a points total to achieve in these three fixtures, let alone the season, but hopefully if one is set, he’ll fare better than he did with the Abu Dhabi Group’s predictions.
A win against his former employers next Sunday could not come at a better time for him, and rather ironically as his successor Roberto Mancini fails to live up to what’s expected of him, a worse time for his opposite number.
Written By James McManus
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The January transfer window always marks a frantic period in British football. Clubs vie for any acquisition that will hopefully slingshot them up their respective league to glory, safety or just mid table mediocrity. We take a look at the looming transfer window and the likely men to join the Premier League.
Firstly, Anderlecht forward Romelu Lukaku has agreed to join Arsenal. According to Talksport, “the 17-year-old is definitely leaving the Belgian club with the Gunners his destination, a coup for the club considering the Belgium striker has been coveted by Chelsea, Inter Milan, Barcelona and Real Madrid.” It is unknown how the Arsenal boss, Arsene Wenger managed to persuade the player to join the club. “Presumably it didn’t involve showing the youngster Arsenal’s trophy cabinet during his tour of the Emirates Stadium”
With Edwin van der Sar’s retirement in the offing, Sir Alex Ferguson has made no secret that he is in the market for a replacement. The most likely contender is 26 year old Swedish international Anders Lindegaard. Officials from Lindegaard’s club, Aalesund FK have confirmed they have spoken to Manchester United and both clubs are supposedly eager to complete the deal as soon as possible.
Rumours coming out Anfield would suggest Roy Hodgson is planning a transfer swoop for Valencia’s Juan Mata, with out-of-sorts Ryan Babel to be used as a bargaining chip. Liverpool have made their worst league start since 1953 and manager Roy Hodgson is under pressure to turn things around. It would seem Mata certainly has the talent to turn Liverpool’s fortunes around. “He hit 14 goals last season in La Liga and racked up more assists than any other player in the league, except Barcelona’s Xavi.” Reports on Spanish radio, suggest that Hodgson is likely to offer a £10m bid for the 22-year-old, using stop starter Ryan Babel as a make-weight.
Newcastle fans should be worried as rumours are apparently circulating under the surface hinting at the departure of their much loved centre forward Andy Carroll. Although already plying his trade in the Premier League, Carroll could leave Newcastle United following his problems off the pitch – and Tottenham are in pole position to land him. The striker is also attracting interest from Manchester United and Liverpool after a stunning start to the Premier League season. With such clubs interested should an acceptable bid come in for the self confessed Newcastle fan, would the offer he simply couldn’t refuse?
In light of Chelsea’s current injury crisis it is thought Ancelotti will be looking to strengthen and add some depth to his squad come January. With a number of players from Chelsea’s back line out injured, Roma’s French defender Philippe Mexes is said to be being coaxed into signing a pre-contract agreement with Chelsea in January, before pitching up at Stamford Bridge when his contract with the Serie A side expires next summer.
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So there you have it! Whether any of these players will find their way to Europe’s top league is a totally different question, however at this moment in time they seem to be the most likely to join us. Transfer rumours never stop circulating and it’s inevitable I have not mentioned others, so why not comment and let me know!
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For Celtic fans, this is an easy task. Celtic are currently carrying a lot of dead wood in their squad and freeing some room on the roster and the wage bill would certainly prove beneficial to the club for a number of reasons. So who would I like to use the Celtic Park exit door?
First up is Glenn Loovens. Loovens turned up at Parkhead from Cardiff on 16 August 2008, joining the Scottish champions Celtic on a four-year contract for a fee of around £2.5 million. Since the Dutch defender’s arrival he has failed to prove that he can be a key figure at the heart of the Celtic back four. Loovens’ form has slowly but surely been sapped in the last couple of years and it has come to the point where I cannot see the player returning to any kind of form that would see him becoming a mainstay at centre half. Moreover, Celtic’s first choice centre half Daniel Majstorović does not at all complement his Dutch counterpart, thus proving detrimental to the success of Loovens.
Next up is Charlie Mulgrew. I feel for Mulgrew, being a Celtic fan, who has already had a less than impressive spell at the club. He must have thought his luck was in when Neil Lennon went back for the left back last summer. For me, this was simply a panic buy as Lennon needed someone to fill the void on the left side of defence. I’ve seen Mulgrew play a few times this season and I have been thoroughly disappointed. Against Braga, he was clueless and at fault for the goal that ruined any chance of the team progressing in the Champions League.
Finally, I feel that Samaras should ply his trade elsewhere as soon as possible. The lanky Greek has never consistently found the net, disappointing considering he is playing in the SPL. Samaras had a very decent spell in Holland and when he joined Celtic I thought the former Manchester City man would once again find the form that he had lost while in Manchester. Although causing problems for some of the better defences, I would like to see the sale of Samaras as it would surely balance the Celtic books, thus releasing some funds for someone else to have a go at Parkhead.
So what do you think?
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Chelsea winger Florent Malouda deliberately goes out of his way to be unsocial. The Frenchman is keen to actively separate himself from any people who could become hangers-on and sees teammate Didier Drogba as his only friend within the game. Bucking the traditional football trend of having many people, agents and an entourage surrounding footballers, Malouda is keen to go it solo.
It marks a stark contrast with the approach of former Blues manager Luiz Felipe Scolari, who bemoaned the lack of camaraderie and togetherness at the Stamford Bridge outfit. Big Phil was keen to set up relationships than transcended the football pitch, a coach-player relationship that is common throughout South American football culture. Both he and Robinho seem most at home when there is more of a family and close knitted feel to the football team, with the coach providing more of a father or mentor role to his players. Both these two have commented on how there was a lack of this kind of relationship off the pitch in the Premier League and were more comfortable with the game in Brazil. Yet it is not just South American culture that encourages this kind of relationship amongst those involved with football.
To a lesser extent a similar process has developed at Old Trafford with Alex Ferguson and what is now the Manchester United Old Guard, with Ferguson being very involved in the early development of Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville, but always secondary to their family.
In light of what these players have been able to achieve and how tough it could be on your own in football if things start to turn against you, it is perhaps strange to see that Malouda is so forthright in distancing himself from a close bond with anyone at the club or involved in football. Yet away from these relationships at clubs between manager and player comes a new generation of over-involved agents and companies. Kia Joorabchian is someone who has come to epitomise an external actor who is too involved with players and exerts too much influence on them and their careers, whilst making huge personal profits. Paul Stretford is another name that springs to mind, these two may be the most infamous, given the recent events in Manchester, but their positions and influence over players are far from unique.
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It would appear that the days that a player just wishes to play for a club with perhaps his dad, as is the case with Ryan Giggs, offering him some advice and handling the necessities of paper work are long gone. Nowadays agents engineer moves in order to secure signing on bonuses and the like. Modern day footballers have no shortage of people wanting to hang on to their coat tails, in an attempt to get a piece of the pie and lots of their influence can be damaging to the players development not only as a player but as a person and ultimately to the game as well. Perhaps Malouda’s stance of not wishing to get too involved with others in a bid to not be adversely is a wise one. By excluding the entourages associated with players, maybe a sense of normality can return to football which would surely be beneficial. So far from being an aggressive and lonely outlook on football, this attitude is in fact a fine example being set by Malouda.
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