AVB battles to fend off Barca & Real interest in Bale

 

Gareth Bale's superb Premier League form may be a dream for Andre Villas-Boas this season as Tottenham battle to earn a Champions League spot, but come the summer, the Welshman could be his biggest headache.

La Liga giants Barcelona and Real Madrid have long been credited with interest in the 23-year-old, and his return of 10 goals since the start of 2013 will have only strengthened their resolve to sign the attacker.

Yet Villas-Boas has moved to persuade Bale not only to reject a switch to either of the Spanish sides, but also a move away from the Premier League, insisting the English top-flight is the best place for him to fulfill his potential...
 

Tweet Follow @omomani

Beckham takes centre-stage amid Deadline Day madness

 

In a typically entertaining and frantic January transfer window, if not a spending one, there were many sagas and late deals that caught the eye.

Peter Odemwingie tried, but ultimately failed, to take his transfer into his own hands by effectively abandoning West Brom, only to be refused entry to QPR - despite Harry Redknapp showing his desire to flash the cash once again.

Tottenham's chase for a striker was unsuccessful, though north London rivals Arsenal managed to sneak a late signing in the shape of full-back Nacho Monreal, while Anzhi proved their muscle with a deal for Willian which broke the £30 million barrier.

However, there was only ever going to be one winner for the move of the window award when PSG announced that David Beckham was joining them until the end of the season - and is donating the wages from his five-month contract to charity.

Tweet Follow @omomani

Premier League casualties pile up during week of Cup giant-killings

 

It may well be a cliche but the 'magic of the FA Cup' returned with a vengeance at the weekend as Premier League clubs far and wide found themselves dumped out of the competition by lower league opposition.

Millwall got things started on Friday night, adding to Aston Villa's woes by sending Paul Lambert's men packing with a 2-1 win at The Den.
Saturday saw yet more surprises with MK Dons thrashing QPR and non-league Luton upsetting Norwich at Carrow Road.

And Sunday saw yet more shocks with Leeds humbling Tottenham, Brentford holding European champions Chelsea and Liverpool booted out of the competition by Oldham.

Tweet Follow @omomani

Bale too hot for Spurs as he begins escape to Madrid

 

It looks like we'll have another never-ending transfer saga on our hands soon as Gareth Bale is primed to tell Tottenham that he wants to join Real Madrid.

Goal.com revealed on Friday morning that the Wales international feels that the time to leave White Hart Lane is next summer, but Jose Mourinho will have to part with £50 million in order to land the winger.

With Luka Modric having already left for the Bernabeu in August, will Andre Villas-Boas be able to keep hold of another prized asset when the Spanish club come calling again?

Tweet Follow @omomani

Chelsea boss Benitez sat on ticking time-bomb at the Bridge

 

After Roberto Di Matteo's dismissal on Wednesday morning, Chelsea swiftly moved to appoint Rafa Benitez as interim manager to get the European champions back on track.

Despite winning the FA Cup and Champions League last season, the Italian was axed by Roman Abramovich after failing to win his last four Premier League matches and denting the club's chances of qualifying for the European competition's knockout stage following a 3-0 defeat to Juventus on Tuesday evening.

Benitez becomes Chelsea's ninth manager since Abramovich purchased the club in 2003, but if the Spaniard suffers an inconsistent campaign similar to his six-month reign at Inter in 2010, his time at Stamford Bridge could also be cut short.
 

Tweet Follow @omomani

Rodgers the deadline day loser as transfers pass Liverpool by

 

As Premier League clubs frantically tried to tie up deals for players on Friday, Liverpool were caught on their heels as rival clubs stole the march on their summer transfer targets.

Liverpool's unwillingness to meet Fulham's valuation for Clint Dempsey resulted in the forward ending up with a move to Tottenham.

Another of the Reds' reported targets, Gaston Ramirez, was also involved in the deadline day furore as he made a switch to Southampton.

Brendan Rodgers' is now faced with the prospect of keeping Luis Suarez in bubble wrap and away from sharp objects until January as the Liverpool boss faces the first half of the campaign with reduced numbers in attack.
Tweet Follow @omomani

Tottenham jump into bed with Real Madrid

 

The summer's longest transfer saga was concluded on Monday as Luka Modric finally joined La Liga champions Real Madrid for a fee of £33.2 million.

But it was Tottenham's announcement of a partnership agreement with the Spanish club that really raised eyebrows. In an opaque description typical of tie-ups like this, Spurs said: "The partnership agreement will see the two Clubs working together in respect of players, coaching, best practices and commercial relationships."

The cynics will suggest the deal provides the north London club with a venue for an annual friendly, an opposition for Ledley King's testimonial and a high-cost destination for Gareth Bale...

But for now, enjoy Goal.com's take on Tottenham's latest coup.

Tweet Follow @omomani

Van Persie & Modric break free at last to land their dream moves

 

Two of the longest-running transfer sagas of the transfer window look to set to reach their conclusion before Saturday's Premier League kick-off, with Arsenal and Tottenham both accepting bids for Robin van Persie and Luka Modric respectively.
The Spurs midfielder's move to Real Madrid has been touted since last summer, and the Croatian is believed to be jetting out to the Spanish capital on Thursday to complete his switch to Santiago Bernanbeu.

Yet Gunners fans will no doubt find their captain's departure harder to swallow, particularly with the Dutchman joining fierce rivals Manchester United...

Tweet Follow @omomani

Mourinho must splash the cash for Modric

 

In a transfer saga that doesn’t look like ending anytime soon, Tottenham boss Andre Villas-Boas has rejected Real Madrid’s latest offer for Luka Modric.
As exclusively revealed by Goal.com on Wednesday, the Spanish giants have proposed a player-plus-cash deal involving Nuri Sahin and Ricardo Carvalho plus a lump sum to convince the north Londoners to part with the influential Croatian.

However, Tottenham have turned down the offer as they look for strictly cash to fund a move for a replacement, thought to be Porto playmaker Joao Moutinho.

Tweet Follow @omomani

Pearce stunned by Bale's miracle recovery

 

Team GB kick off their Olympic campaign against Senegal at Old Trafford, but one player who will not be present is Gareth Bale.
The Tottenham winger was initially named in Stuart Pearce's squad for London 2012, but was forced to withdraw due to continuing problems with his back.

Bale travelled with Spurs on their pre-season tour of the USA however, playing 74 minutes and scoring in the 1-1 friendly draw with LA Galaxy.

If Team GB coach Pearce was tuning in, he can be forgiven for being shocked at the sight of the Welsh star striding around in the California sun...
 

Tweet Follow @omomani

Madrid-bound Modric ditches Spurs

 

Luka Modric looks set to finally get his move away from White Hart Lane this summer, with the Tottenham man continually linked with a switch to Real Madrid.

New boss Andre Villas-Boas has already conceded he will allow the Croatian to leave the club for the right price, but that does not seem to be enough for the 26-year-old, who is desperate to seal a switch to Santiago Bernabeu.

Instead, Modric has decided to ditch Spurs and boycott their pre-season tour of America as he looks to force his move to the Spanish capital…
Tweet Follow @omomani

And the Oscar goes to ... Chelsea!

 

Brazilian starlet Oscar is hot property at the moment and Chelsea look to have gazumped Premier League rivals Tottenham with a £20 million bid for the talented teenager, as exclusively revealed by Goal.com.
Andre Villas-Boas had hoped to tempt the Internacional man to White Hart Lane with a £15m bid but their London rivals are now in advanced negotiations with the South American side ahead of a summer move.

The youngster has already been likened to compatriot and Real Madrid man Kaka, a man who has often been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge, but this time it seems that the Blues have got their man

Tweet Follow @omomani

Villas-Boas first in line for Man City's summer sale

 

With Emmanuel Adebayor edging closer to a permanent move to Tottenham, Manchester City are set to complete the first sale in what is likely to be a large clear-out at Eastlands this summer.

The Premier League champions are keen on significantly shrinking their staggering wage bill by getting rid of several fringe players, with Roque Santa Cruz, Kolo Toure and Adam Johnson all tipped to leave the Etihad Stadium before the end of August.

Spurs boss Andre Villas-Boas may have pounced first, but he is likely to be joined by other managers in a summer sale which could offer some real bargains.
Tweet Follow @omomani

John W. Henry left scratching his head

 

They must have thought it would be easy to fill the void left by the recently-sacked Kenny Dalglish in the Anfield dugout, yet so far Liverpool's managerial targets have been dropping like flies.

Ajax boss Frank de Boer has become the latest boss to rule himself out of a switch to the Reds, joining Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and Brendan Rodgers in saying 'thanks, but no thanks' to club owner's FSG.

Now, John W. Henry is set to choose between Roberto Martinez and Andre Villas-Boas to take the hot seat, or opt for a blast from the past with Rafa Benitez.

Tweet Follow @omomani

Big baby Abramovich throws away another toy

 

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is on the hunt for his eighth permanent manager at Stamford Bridge after sacking Andre Villas-Boas on Sunday. 

The dismissal came as little surprise following the Blues' 1-0 defeat to West Brom which further extended a miserable run of form for the west London club. 

The 34-year-old is the latest in a long line of coaches to have been shown the door by the Russian billionaire, with the likes of Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti having already been dumped at the club after relatively short tenures. 

The only question that remains is who would dare take the role on next?

Tweet Follow @omomani

AVB's facing the chop

 

Andre Villas-Boas is walking the proverbial tightrope after goals from Ezequiel Lavezzi and Edinson Cavani condemned his error-prone Chelsea side to a damaging defeat at Napoli that leaves their Champions League hopes hanging in the balance. The former Porto coach, whose tactics and team selection in Naples have come under intense criticism, now looks to have exactly 90 minutes of the return leg at Stamford Bridge to salvage his "project" and avoid getting the sack from notoriously impatient owner Roman Abramovich.

Tweet Follow @omomani

Chelsea 3-0 Manchester United - this looks like a job for Howard Webb!

 

Manchester United had a familiar saviour on Sunday afternoon when they slipped to a three-goal deficit at the hands of Chelsea. But it was not Wayne Rooney nor Javier Hernandez who rescued a point for the champions, it was Howard Webb who performed his (now perfected) deus ex machina act and awarded two soft penalties against the hosts to allow Sir Alex Ferguson's side to eventually complete a Superman-like recovery.

Tweet Follow @omomani

Lampard & Terry refuse to boogie with AVB

Last month Andre Villas-Boas dismissed reports that he had asked his Chelsea players to include him in their goal celebrations as nothing more than spurious speculation.

But on Monday afternoon his players, instructed or not, did swarm to their manager on the touchline to give him a great big hug after Ramires slotted home the opening goal against Wolves.

However, while David Luiz, Ashley Cole, Ramires and Raul Meireles were all keen to boogie with their boss, stalwarts John Terry and Frank Lampard stood bemused as their team-mates crowde round their manager  

 
Tweet Follow @omomani

Abramovich eating Villas-Boas

Tweet Follow @omomani

Wenger's Arrows

Tweet Follow @omomani