Everton boss Mark Rollings was left waxing lyrical about the performance of his latest loan capture Aaron Ramsey, after the young central midfielder pulled the strings in a 4-1 win against League One rivals Leeds United.
Everton had showed a real prolifagy in front of goal before today's game, and had failed to score more than one in any of their previous 6 league and cup games. Fans and pundits alike were baffled by Everton's plight, given the quality they possessed in the final third, but Ramsey's introduction into the midfield may well prove a crucial turning point.
Instrumental all day, Ramsey drew multiple plaudits from his temporary boss;
"Aaron was simply fantastic today - he surpassed any of my expectations. We have to remember he is a young lad, and as such it was difficult to expect him to come in and revolutionise our game - but he did just that. You could see the players around him visibly lift and Cristiano in particular really revelled in the creativity Aaron gave us. Obviously we are lucky and grateful, Lucky that we managed to capture him because we haven't shown much in league one up to now, and extremely grateful to Stuart Price for showing the faith in the club to help Aaron shine."
The result will do nothing to quell recent comments by Steve Davies-Evans that Ramsey "should" bring the title to Goodison - but Rollings suggested that was a tag his side would now have to live with.
"As I said we are lucky that we now have the beneift of a world class central midfielder. I don't mind saying that I believe I underestimated League One this year and again I am lucky really that I "may" be bailed out by Aaron. Quite rightly I should be under pressure as a manager because we have a great young squad here and we should be fighting for the top places in the division. I learnt harsh lessons from my time at Coventry and Bilbao and hopefully I can put a few things right at Everton and show I have developed as a manager. If we fail this season it will only be one persons fault, and as today showed that certainly won't be Aaron Ramsey!"
Ramsey (Above): Creative midfielder sparks Everton into life.
-- Edited by Spartikus47 on Saturday 29th of May 2010 03:30:30 AM
Southampton manager spent over anhour in the dressing room with the players after todays game with Charlton after his side failed to score for the second week running. The Welshman spoke to journalists when he finally left the dressing room.
Nick Collins (SSN) - Steve, how disappointed are you with that?
SDE - To be honest Nick, I think I have to keep my council abit at the moment. I've just told the lads in there what I expect of them and they clearly haven't given it to me today. I have to take a large percentage of the blame as I sent them out there with tactics that they clearly couldn't comprehend. Obviously in training this week, we'll have to strip everything back to basics and start again. The team that wore the shirts today were good enough to get a result and if these players want to continue to play for Southampton Football Club then I expect a re-action from one or two of them next week.
SSN - Steve, You're clearly angered by the result today. Is there anything you would have done different?
SDE - Yeah I guess there is but then we will work hard on changing it about this week and see where that leaves us.
SSN - Mark Rollings has seen his Everton side beat promotion rivals Leeds 4-1 this weekend with Aaron Ramsey playing a massive part in that. Mark himself has come out and praised Ramsey on his performance. Does his turn-around on Ramsey surprise you?
SDE - Well to be fair to Mark, he made his comments before he had Aaron in his team. Aaron isn't a dull lad, you give him instructions and he will go out and do it for you. He dooes it in the Premiership so he will no doubtedly do it in league one. He will do that for them and I don't think it's a coincidence that Ramsey comes into the team and suddenly they win 4-1 against one of their main rivals. This "should" be the start of the Everton sprint for the line now.
Gazzetta news, we have today managed to grab a breif interview with media shy Ascoli manager Dave Davies-Evans.
Dave so what of the season so far then.
DDE "well its been a bit hit and miss so far, we have struggled against the big clubs so far and have brushed the smaller clubs aside.We have a good squad coming together here with a mix of youth and experience. My great friend Jonathan Petty is doing an amazing job at Reggina a club i hold close to my heart and i fully expect to be buying the indian.
GNews. so Dave any singings coming and going over the next couple of weeks, we here Kaka might be joining Ascoli is this true?.
DDE " i would love that lad here but we could not afford his wages and im not going to cripple this club with a player like that. However we can confirm the signing of Ricardo Vaz Te, he is a quality attacking left midfielder with a bonus point who will help us out im sure. On a departure note i have recived a big offer from a huge Seria A club for my GK Andreas Isaksson, i have spoken to Andreas about this and he wants to have another crack at the big time. We at Ascoli are not going to stand in his way and would like to thank him for his services to the club and wish him every success in the future."
Gnews, Big game this week Dave against Udinese, they were tipped as leauge champions.
DDE " this is a big game for us and all my big guns will be playing in this game before a few of them have a well earned rest. 3 points against a former club that came down will be massive for us.
Leeds manager Adrian Davies today spoke of his dissapointment with his first game in charge at the Elland Road club as they went down 4-1 at Everton.
Davies said "I know Everton are a good side but i cannot hide my sadness at our performance, we let the fans who travelled down and all i can promise them is things will change at the club in the forthcoming weeks"
Davies' main priority will be to bring in a right back as the club has no recognised player in this position, however rumours are circulating that he is close to agreeing a swap deal involving striker Inacio Pia.
The new Leeds boss clearly has some work to do with the current squad however if he is to succeed in getting the fallen giants into the playoffs this season.
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Leeds United Football Club - Bringing the glory days back...sssoooonnnn
AC Milan manager Luke Coakley speaks after a 0-7 win over Roma
Luke you must be delighted with a the clean sheet?
(laughes) thats the first time ive heard the first question being asked after a 7-0 win is about the defence.We had a game plan today and it worked very well , people make a lot about our inability to keep enough clean sheets but it seems to annoy the pundits more than anyone.
Even without star defender John Tery who was dropped , how important has the impact of Flamini had since he joined?
First Terry wasnt dropped, he was simply replaced with an excellent replacement in Van Buyten who is massively underrated in my opinion.Both offer a great amount of quality to the team and throughout the season they will play alone together and with Baird. We have a strong mix in defence which im very pleased with.
And Flamini?
Well we all seen his performance and he was excellent, I managed him at Manchester City but he has improved since then.We didnt buy him for his scoring ability but I made him aware I expected him to start getting more goals and he hasnt disappointed.For this teamthere isnt a better defensive midfielder in world football at the moment.
Maxi Lopez has been in sensational form, do you feel you stole him from Manchester United?
I wish we could have stolen him (Laughs). All joking aside we paid a very good fee for him but if you want real quality thats what you have to do? I told him what I expected from him this season and he currently has 13 goals and 9 assists in 7 games so he is only a little under his target.
Do you have any plans to purchase in the scouting market?
No none what so ever.I dont predict any transfers coming in or out other than those on the very fringes of the squad as well.
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Cardiff City manager - PM or Email at ccfc999@hotmail.com
The new Nottingham Forest manager is set to take Billy Kee with him from Leicester following his sacking.
Gareth Gardner is set to take over as new Leicester City manager.
The hottest talent in Spain right now striker Fernandillo is in talks with Real Madrid.
However Fernandillo has told close family a move to Barcelona would fit more with his style of play.
Genoa board of directors are set to sack Jamie Best after less than two months in charge following a poor run of results.
The billionaire owner of Genoa is unhappy cash has been spent on positions other than that earmarked by the board pre-season.
Fans of Genoa are adding to manager Jamie Best's current headache by demonstrating against the sale of fan favourite Kaka back to Spain.
Kaka has told Spanish journalists he's looking forward to playing for a freely attacking Sevilla side, labelling Genoa "toothless".
Real Valladolid striker Benzema has refused to quash rumours of a move to AC Milan, but admitted he was feeling the pressure of now being favourites for the league.
Freshly managerless Leicester players have told Liverpool to beware a backlash in the cup tonight in what could be one of the upsets of the season.
New Bristol City manager Hayden Dando is targeting a loan swoop for Mallorca winger Jose Sosa.
Spurs fans are already growing excited about qualification for next seasons new European tournament, despite the club historically struggling to retain good form.
Unnamed Everton players are disappointed the manager admitted to basing the whole team selection around on loan Welsh teenager Ramsey.
Manchester City striker Adriano believes this is the clubs best chance to beat Chelsea this season and end their English dominance.
Manchester United winger Simon Vukcevic has backed his manager to make the signings needed to challenge for the title as soon as this season.
Some sections of the Cadiz fans have hailed the return of Johndaniel Jaques as the debt ridden club moved away from the bottom of the division.
On loan AC Milan midfielder Danny has been told he must perform tonight against Spurs or risk never playing for Milan again.
Chelsea and Juventus are set to battle it out over CSKA Mosko midfielder Yuri Zhirkov.
Spanish media caught up with Real Zaragoza manager Ashley Harris following his sides 4-1 win over Almeria.
Press: A comfortable win in the end but Almeria gave you a scare being 1-0 up at half time. Pleased with the performance?
AH: In the end i think our quality won through. Almeria played well in the first half and it was certainly a concern that they were leading. However i have faith in the quality of my side and i had a good discussion with the lads to work out where we went wrong and what we could do better and this paid dividends with the 4 goals to turn it around in the second half. A special mention to Adam Prince for his 2 goals, he has been fantastic since joining and i think he has improved already, he's going to be a great player.
Press: Alemeria's goal was the first you have conceded this season in the league. Disappointed?
AH: Dissappointed? I'm gutted! I really thought we were gonna go all season without conceding. No, I'm only joking. It was inevitable that the run was going to come to an end sometime. We still have a great record which reads played 6, conceded 1, you can't really argue with that and i have been delighted with the performance of the defence this season and if we can keep that defensive record up, we might be able to go through the season unbeaten, which would be a great achievement for this club. Here's hoping we can put another little run of clean sheets together now.
Press: You moved clear at the top of the Segunda after Real Betis only drew. Are you pleased with your current position.
AH: Absolutely. You can't get any higher than 1st place can you! It's still early days in the season and there are still some good sides in the Segunda despite what some people might think, so were certainly not getting carried away. We are enjoying being top, but it does mean we are the target for some of the other sides, who may raise there game when playing us so we need to be careful of that, but so far i have no qualms with our perfromances and there's been a great buzz in training all season, so its been an enjoyble start to the season.
Press: Finally, how have you rated the performance of your loan star, Victor Moses?
AH: He has been fantastic. He scored again yesterday and when i talk to the Sevilla manager Liam, its the first thing he asks me! He really rates the boy, the only problem is if he keeps performing like this i won't get him back for the second half of the season, i might have to beg! He's been great in training and its been great to have him around the club.
Press: Thanks for your time. AH: No problem lads.
-- Edited by Ash on Monday 31st of May 2010 02:25:48 PM
Jamie, you have been criticised fairly heavily this week, do you think that's fair?
In a nutshell yes, we have been poor at the start of this season and its taken time for me to find my feet, but i think we're starting to get somewhere and hopefully results will improve like they have done this week. The team wasn't strong when i arrived here but the strength in depth is gradually improving and i hope to keep this going. We are a team in transition and i hope i am given time to prove this.
You are asking for time but surely one win in six doesn't really back up your case much?
Maybe not but i feel i have proven myself in previous jobs and gained success in my second season at Inter Milan after going through an initial season of transition so i would ask my board to be a bit patient on this one.
So you're guaranteeing success next year?
No, nothing is guaranteed in football but i certainly know things will improve. There are a number of strong teams in this division including Juventus, Milan and Fiorentina of which i expect we will finish behind initially but i think with the development of the players in the next season or two we'll be matching them. I've looked at bringing in a lot of new players of which i am happy with and i'll continue to do so whilst i feel it's the right thing.
This transfer policy though has also been criticised and accusations made that certain areas havent been targeted?
Well in some respects i agree with this, but myself and the board agreed that the strikeforce needed improving along with the defence and goalkeeper. Bouazza has been brought in as the third main striker and also Reina in goal to give us that extra strength and experience. The defence is a proiority of which we are trying to focus on and i can assure you that every effort has been made to secure a centre half, and i'm pretty sure you will be seeing activity in this area in the next couple of weeks. A left winger wasn't a priority as far as i was concerned but a deal was agreed for Sanchez (on loan at Bilbao) without my knowledge and that was the boards decision so maybe they should also take some responsibilty for the transfers.
And what about the sale of Kaka?
Unfortunately in every sqaud players have to be sacrificed to bring in younger quality players, i hope his sale will do that. Although the guy is an absolute class act he has not performed so far for Genoa and i wish him all the best at his new club. He is also the wrong side of 30 and rejuvenating the squad is something i want to focus on. If it gets me sacked then so be it, but i want to be hear for the long term so thats what i'm investing in, it's up to the board to decide if i am the right man for that or not, but all i am asking for is time.
Thanks for your time Jamie.
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Jamie Best Newcastle United Premier League
Genoa - Season 7 Arsenal - Season 6 Inter Milan - Seasons 4-5 Wolves - Seasons 1-3
Napoli indicated their intent to develop a superb football club from grass roots up as they opened their 7000 seat extension to their stadium this weekend.
Napoli now boast the 3rd largest stadium in the Italian leagues behind Sampdoria and Juventus.
The superb ground now holds 22,000 fans and there are plans to continue this development over the next few seasons.
Manager Andy Fletcher commented,
"This is fantastic for the club and the fans and means we can offer season tickets earlier to those on waiting lists, it also means we can increase our revenue to move us into the black and continue our plans for the next few years and generations to come"
-- Edited by Fletch on Tuesday 1st of June 2010 10:10:23 AM
After a thrilling 4-4 draw with then table topping Sevilla, Atletico manager Paul Harrington was in no mood to celebrate when facing the post match media scrum.
"Mr. Harrington, how do you feel after being the first side this season to stop Sevilla winning in the league?"
im not exactly thrilled to be honest, the game was there for us to win, we had done amazingly well to lead 3-1, but then seemed to freeze. Perhaps the occasion got to us, i dont know. We sat deeper and deeper and let Sevilla attack us, and with the players they have you cant afford to do that. It wasnt untill they went 4-3 in the 86th minute that we woke up, and got the draw that we deserved, though im still not overly happy we havent ended up with 3 points.
"Eariler in the week, Mr Riste had suggested you were outclassed by Valladoild, did this comment give you and your players extra motivation going into the game?"
Not really, its never a nice thing to hear really, but Liam had a point. we had a strict gameplan, which has worked well for us over the seasons, particulary against Barcelona. We tried to implement that gameplan again against a brilliant Valladolid team, but we were over-run. Its hard to look beyond Simon and his side for the league title this season really.
"And what of your other opposition, its well documented that a top 4 spot is your aim this year, but there is some difficult sides in your way isnt there!!"
Most definatly! I cant see past Valladolid and Barcelona for the top 2 this season. which leaves us needing to finish above 2 out of 3 (Sevilla, Real Madrid and Espanyol) its going to be difficult, and when you see Sevilla spalshing out on the likes of Kaka you know your in for a tough battle, but we can only try, im hopefully we will be there or there abouts come the end of the season.
"Lastly, is there any transfer news regarding your side?"
There is little to report really. We sold Cana this week, and it was a difficult decision to let him go, but we felt it was best for both parties. We have also received 2 offers for Smith in the last few days. Offers we probably would have accepted at the start of the season, however his recent form is convincing me that his place is here with us, and it would now take a very good offer for us to sell him.
-- Edited by paulh_85 on Tuesday 1st of June 2010 12:29:31 PM
Liam Riste gave an exclusive interview on Sevilla FC Television this afternoon.
SFCTV: Your weekend game against Atletico Madrid was described as a 4-4 thriller, what are your thoughts on the game?
LR: I was less than thrilled! We scored early and then dropped off to sleep just before half time and stayed in the dressing room too long as well. At 3-1 down I was very frustrated but as we have done in the past and hopefully will continue when required again in the future, pulled it back around. We have a habit of scoring late goals and when we went 4-3 in front in the 87th minute, I was very pleased to see the players respond well, until they again sat back thinking that a goal and our 100% winning record was safe, only to conceed again with a few minutes to go!
SFCTV: You have been knocked off the top spot and Valladolid look strong, are you worried?
LR: I'm not worried at all. As I've said before, we aren't expected to win the league and the pressure is off us. We have big games coming up in the run in to the halfway stage and we have made a key signing to help us along.
SFCTV: You have signed 'Superstar' Kaka to bolster your midfield and he has recently told the media he is looking forward to playing for freely attacking Sevilla.
LR: Kaka is a massive signing and will bring alot to Sevilla. He is eager to get his first game and prove his value. The fans are anticipating seeing him in the shirt and the reception they gave Kaka at the unveiling was phenomenal. He is here to play a vital attacking role but his defensive ability will give us a strong edge too. He is the best Midfielder in the world and even at 32 I'm sure he has many seasons left in him and his talent and services to any club are always welcomed! I'm just glad we have him here with ours.
SFCTV: Ashley Harris has recently mentioned and feared forVictor Moses as the fact that you rate him very highly along with some shining performances might mean a loan for the second half of the season is off the cards, can you shed some light on this?
LR: Victor Moses is improving every week! I get a match report from Ash who hides nothing, even when he would probably like to as he has stated. I am in awe of Victor Moses' performances and he is coming along as a star of the future at such a rapid speed. I'm unsure of what to do with him for the second half of the season as I have alot of games with some ageing strikers. Although he would probably get more game time for Ash and Zaragoza and play a vital part in their push for the Segunda Championship. You see my problem? I will make a decision closer to the time however.
SFCTV: Fair Enough. And lastly, you play Recreativo Huelva this weekend, what are your expectations and plans for this game?
LR: After a 4-4 draw and dropping off the top spot, I am going to bounce back by trying to demolish Recreativo by as many goals as possible! I don't care that the next few games are Madrid and Barcelona after that! If a player is getting a ridiculous wage that the average person only dreams of, I expect him to play as many games as I want him to, rather than having to give them a weeks rest to prepare for a big job!
New Bristol City boss Hayden Dando is set for his first game in charge of the club tommorow as they host Coventry City. Dando has been handed the tough task of keeping City in the Championship this season and he knows it will be a challenge, but it is one that he feels he can achieve.
Speaking at todays press conference Dando said "I have expirienced relegation once before when i was Blackburn boss and i can tell you it is a bitter pill to have to swallow. The task here is simple, to stay up and i know that it is going to be tough as there are some very good sides in this division but i really believe in what we are doing here and i am confident we can keep this club up and progress on from there."
On the subject of tommorows game Dando said "Coventry are a good side and we know that, we respect that, but what we will not do is fear them or any other side. I want to turn our home ground into a fortress as if we are to stay up it is important that our home record is good, i am excited and hope for a good performance but most of all we want and need 3 points"
Dando does have some money available but revealed he will resist the temptation to blow it all on one player, "Yes we have funds, not an exhorbatant amount but there is some cash available, however that is going to have to be spread around into more than just one player as the squad does need strengthening in a couple of areas, i have made a formal offer for one transfer listed player as well as looking into a couple of loan options, nothing has been decided yet but i am confident we can get some new faces in to bolster the squad"
Dando also said that whilst he would not be happy to see any of his stars leave, he knows that every player has a price, "The thing is there are some very good players here and i know that other clubs would be interested in them, whilst i will not say anyone is unavailable because i never believe any player is, the better the player the bigger the offer it would take to get me to let them go and i will only do it if its in the best interests of Bristol City F.C"
Bristol City manager Hayden Dando has secured the first new signings of his reign. It is understood he has agreed a loan deal for a young english goalkeeper(as yet unamed) to join for the second half of the season as well as being close to agreeing a loan deal for a centre back from an italian side.But the big news concerns his first permanent signing at Ashton Gate as midfielder Daniel Maa Boumsong is set to join from Spanish Giants Real Madrid.
As he arrived at Ashton Gate for his first game in charge today Dando said "We can confirm that we have agreed a deal with Madrid for Boumsong and hopefully he will be a Bristol City player by the end of the day, he is a fantastic player and we are very happy he has agreed to come here and hopefully be the first part of the jigsaw for the ultimate aim of becoming a premiership side within 2-3 seasons"
Boumsong himself was unavailable for comment as he was undergoing a medical with the Bristol side but the fee is believed to be in the region of 1.7 million pounds, in keeping with Dando's comments that he will not blow the budget on one player but will also not be afraid to spend money given the opportunity.
