Soccer Camps

He has the same initials and plays in the same position so David Bentley will hope that his 15million pounds transfer to Tottenham will help him dislodge David Beckham once and for all from the England team.

The 23-year-old has never seemed short of confidence and the midfielder declared that he was ready to step up “to the next level” by leaving the homely surrounds of Blackburn Rovers after just two years for a return to London’s bright lights.

Bentley, of course, began his career in the youth ranks at Arsenal, leaving the club after becoming frustrated by his lack of first-team opportunities. It is not often Arsene Wenger errs in his handling of young players but Bentley may come back to haunt the Arsenal manager if he shines for their north London neighbours.

“I grew up there but it is not a problem for me. My heart is at Tottenham now,” Bentley told reporters after signing in at a nervous White Hart Lane.

Bentley supported Spurs as a boy and said he dreamed of emulating the feats of Paul Gascoigne in the white of club and country. Being at Tottenham has never harmed a player’s England prospects in the past and Bentley is determined to grab his opportunity.

“It is entirely in my hands - it is up to me to perform,” said a player whose impressive dead-ball skills and passing range from the right have earned him six England caps already.

More than once he has been quoted as saying he is ready to replace Beckham in the England team and now is his moment to deliver. If so, it could well be Bentley and not Beckham filling the No7 shirt on England’s journey towards the World Cup in South Africa.

PHOTO: England’s Bentley (l), Beckham (c) and Walcott stand together during a soccer training session in Port of Spain, May 30. REUTERS/David Moir

Source: Simon Hart

Barcelona’s Argentine forward Lionel Messi took a step closer to Beijing on Wednesday when FIFA ruled that clubs are obliged to release players aged 23 or under to play at the Olympics.

Barcelona and Bundesliga clubs Werder Bremen and Schalke, who want to keep Diego and Rafinha out of the Games, will probably fight on in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) but for now FIFA has made the right decision, one that’s for the good of the game as well as the Games.

Seeing Bremen and Schalke threaten legal action against their young Brazilian internationals earlier this month was a sad sight not only for the Olympics but for soccer.

Diego and Rafinha decided (quite nobly, if you ask me) to put their country and the Olympics temporarily ahead of their club careers and defied the orders of their employers — going AWOL in the process and putting themselves in line for large fines and other disciplinary problems on their return.

Barcelona and Schalke have Champions League qualifiers coming up, so it’s easy to see why they in particular want their players back home, but the long-term consequences could be more damaging than the short-term loss.

How can anyone expect a brilliant player like Diego to get excited about playing in Bremen ever again if he is forced to miss the Olympics in order to take part in a pre-season Bundesliga training camp on the North Sea island of Norderney?

Could we expect Rafinha to have his heart in the Bundesliga’s first two matches when his compatriots were trying to win a first gold medal in China?

“(The judge stated that) taking part in the Olympic Games is a unique opportunity for all athletes of any sporting discipline,” FIFA said in its statement.

Shouldn’t everyone have the chance to take that opportunity, regardless of who their employers are?

PHOTO: Messi scores his first goal during Barcelona’s pre-season friendly against Dundee United, July 26, 2008. REUTERS/Russell Cheyne

Source: Erik Kirschbaum

Robbie Keane’s arrival at Liverpool and the long pursuit of Gareth Barry suggest Rafa Benitez is looking more at British Isles players than in the past.

Vlogonthepitch host Owen Wyatt went to his local pub to canvass the opinions of two Liverpool fans.

If Barry does eventually sign, will the new approach from Benitez help Liverpool compete more in the Premier League or might it cause them to suffer in Europe?

Let us know your views.

Source: Mark Meadows

It’s come to something when even the good people at Marca are getting fed up of the whole Cristiano Ronaldo saga.

The Spanish sports paper devoted an editorial and a couple of articles yesterday urging Real Madrid to get on with the job and sign the Portuguese forward asap. Today, they have vox pops from fans saying much the same sort of thing and it looks like their campaign to get things moving is going to continue.

Presumably Marca are seeing a dip in sales as a result of Nothing Much Happening day after day. After all, if there really is no movement you soon run out of ways to spin the story.

Real don’t have to worry about selling newspapers (at least not directly) and they may well feel they can afford to wait. The player himself is currently injured, meaning it matters little if he only makes it on transfer deadline day.

But are they right to sit tight and hope that Manchester United eventually give in and accept whatever offer (reportedly 90 million euros) is on the table?

Only time will tell, but Real may find they have painted themselves into a corner.

This is a good Real Madrid team but not yet a great one. They won the league title last season comfortably but they look some way away from being good enough to win the Champions League. They need some kind of reinforcement, whether that’s in the form of Ronaldo or someone else.

Perhaps it would be wise, as Marca suggest, to make one final push for Ronaldo now and if that fails turn their attention to players like Van der Vaart, Fabregas, Kaka and Villa sooner rather than later.

It would liven up the front pages, anyway.

PHOTO: Cristiano Ronaldo during Portugal’s Euro 2008 defeat by Germany at St Jakob Park, Basel, June 19, 2008. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth

Source: Kevin Fylan

As a new Premier League season comes into focus and the skies of expectation position themselves above White Hart Lane, it’s nearly time for another thrilling adventure for Spurs fans.

The summer’s rebuilding is virtually complete and soon the manager and the team will have to start delivering. With the increased likelihood of Berbatov and Keane sailing off into the distance, it’s already a worrying time.

There will be no hiding place for Ramos this term, no more excuse that he inherited a team. It’s now his team, shaped and prepared by him, and fans will demand results.

A good start to the season will be vital, so wins against Middlesbrough and Sunderland are default requirements, before Ramos’s men face the far tougher challenge of Chelsea.

Winning the Carling Cup last season was something but Spurs need to build on that achievement. That means a decent European campaign and a real crack at fourth place or better (which is, of course, exactly what we said 12 months ago).

Will it be the same old story come the end of the season?

PHOTO: Tottenham Hotspur’s Dimitar Berbatov poses for the media after winning the Bulgarian Soccer Player of the Year award. REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov

Source: Neil Barnaby

As we all saw during Euro 2008, Xavi and Iniesta are two of the best ball-playing midfielders in Europe. Now it’s time they showed it for Barcelona.

Don’t get me wrong — the two little midfielders have been good enough for the Catalans over the past few seasons. But now that Ronaldinho has gone, along with Deco and possibly to be followed by Eto’o, this is the moment for the two gifted midfielders to show they can really carry the team.

They certainly have the skill but do they have the charisma?

Will we see them urging on their team mates, demanding the ball and getting forward into goalscoring positions? Will they take on more responsibility under new coach Pep Guardiola, who certainly led by example as a player.

I’m in Spain at the moment, taking a break between Euro 2008 and Beijing, and expectation is obviously growing about how Guardiola’s new-look Barcelona are going to cope without Ronaldinho and co.

The coach apparently still wants a new centre-forward — Adebayor, Drogba or Berbatov, by all accounts — but I wonder if the inspiration couldn’t come instead from those newly crowned champions of Europe in the midfield.

After all, they already have Henry, Messi, Bojan and conceivably Eto’o to play up front.

Kevin Fylan, taking advantage of the wifi at Bar Alcala, Cullera

PHOTO: Xavi and Iniesta celebrate a Barcelona goal against Levante during at Camp Nou, Feb 24, 2008. REUTERS/Albert Gea

Source: Kevin Fylan

The silly season has been packed with strange stories, none more so than the mafia trying to buy Lazio.

Italian authorities believe a bid by a consortium in 2006 was actually a front for the Casalesi, an organised crime gang within the Camorra - the Naples version of the mafia.

Corruption and scandal have been rife in the Italian game, as proved by the 2006 match-fixing affair and fresh allegations from last season, but nothing could have matched a Serie A club being secretly controlled by the mafia.

One can only wonder what would have happened if their audacious bid had been successful. Would they have made sure Lazio won every game? What would have happened to the coach if they failed?

One thing is sure…the players’ suits would have been extra smart at the cup final.

PHOTO: Lazio supporters cheer for their team during a Serie A match against AS Roma in Rome. March 19 REUTERS/Alessandro Bianchi

Source: Mark Meadows

Very few people believed the story that Samuel Eto’o was considering a move to Uzbekistan’s Kuruvchi.

All of sudden it turned out to be true with Barcelona’s Cameroon striker speaking at a news conference in the country’s capital. Despite mega money being thrown in his direction, Eto’o will probably not end up there but at least they got him to go out and talk. Even if it was just a publicity stunt, it worked.

San Marino champions Murata also tried to coax Romario out of retirement to play in their Champions League first qualifying round first leg. He turned them down but with former Brazil team mate Aldair already on Murata’s books, they almost managed to convince the striker to pull on the boots again.

Tales of unknown clubs bidding for household names make a refreshing change from what has been a turgid transfer window.

It took AC Milan three months to sign Ronaldinho while Inter Milan are still chasing Chelsea’s Frank Lampard and Liverpool seem to be no closer to taking Gareth Barry from Aston Villa. I haven’t even mentioned Cristiano Ronaldo…

Every day the papers have said there will be crucial developments in the next 48 hours and yet we are still left waiting. Why do close season transfers drag on so much? Should a cut off point of ‘three bids and you’re out’ be introduced?

More radically, should soccer take on America’s draft system? Then Eto’o and Romario really could end up in Uzbekistan and San Marino. 

Source: Mark Meadows

Werder Bremen have dashed the Olympic hopes of Brazil playmaker Diego, telling the 23-year-old they will not release him and thus depriving the Games of perhaps one of the world’s most exciting young players

Werder sporting director Klaus Allofs said there was no legal reason for clubs to release their players because, he said, the Olympics are not part of world soccer’s governing body FIFA.

“So I’m not expecting any reaction from FIFA,” Allofs said.

Just last week FIFA said that even though clubs are not obliged to release overage players they must release any players younger than 23. Diego turned 23 on Feb. 28 and he was nominated for Brazil’s Olympic team on July 8 by coach Dunga.

Diego got his first cap for Brazil in April 2003 as a 19-year-old so how are Werder getting away with this? Why will Diego be spending August training with his club on Germany’s North Sea island of Nordeney instead of playing for Brazil in China?

Werder released a statement from Diego that said: “The Olympics are my dream. But Werder don’t want to release me. I’ll respect that. I don’t want to cause any problems.”

But Bild newspaper reported on Tuesday that Diego has not given up yet. “I don’t know yet what I’ll do. I’ll wait to see what FIFA decides,” he was quoted as saying.

AC Milan have stopped Kaka from going and Barcelona said Brazilian compatriot Ronaldinho could not attend. Ronaldinho has just moved to Milan from Barca so all eyes are on what the Italian club decide. 

Is it time FIFA made a definitive ruling.

PHOTO: Diego scores for Werder against Bayern Munich, Feb 10. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach

Source: Erik Kirschbaum

Ronaldinho is finally leaving Barcelona after months of speculation and will sign for AC Milan on Wednesday.

Many questions remain, however. Will Milan let him play at the Olympics? Barca said no and Milan also stopped Kaka going so it seems unlikely he can shoot off to Beijing.

How will he cope playing UEFA Cup football? Milan were poor last term and without a radical change in their style of play another tough season could follow.

Was he ever seriously considering Manchester City?

Most importantly, will unfit Ronaldinho ever regain the form which made him World Player of the Year twice?

Let us know your views. 

Source: Mark Meadows

Amongst all the talk of football and footballers losing touch with the common fan, supporters in Italy are fighting back.

There have been at least four recent incidents where fans have protested against potential signings they did not like. Juve supporters failed to stop Monday’s purchase of Christian Poulsen but did prevent a bid for Inter Milan’s Dejan Stankovic.

Christian Vieri has been abused on his return to Atalanta and Fiorentina fans halted a move for Lazio’s Luciano Zauri.

Read more here.

PHOTO: Christian Poulsen while on national duty with Denmark in 2007. REUTERS/Scanpix Denmark

Source: Mark Meadows

Chelsea’s gain in recruiting Luiz Felipe Scolari as their new manager has spelt pain for Manchester United — at least in the short term.

Carlos Queiroz’s departure from United to take over from Scolari as Portugal coach means that Chelsea have inadvertently inflicted an early blow on their Old Trafford rivals ahead of the new season.

Besides acquiring a World Cup-winning coach in Scolari, they also set in motion a chain of events which has cost Sir Alex Ferguson his trusted right-hand man.

Queiroz played a vital role as Ferguson’s number two, overseeing much of the squad’s work on the training ground and playing an influential role in the team’s tactical development from a traditional 4-4-2 formation to a more flexible approach.

Ferguson once said to reporters that Queiroz had helped to “widen our horizons” and the fact the Scot welcomed him back with open arms in 2004, 12 months after his defection to Real Madrid, underlines how much the manager valued him.  

The 55-year-old’s contacts book also helped United acquire young Portuguese-speaking talents like Nani, Anderson and Manucho, and his departure will do little to help the club’s prospects of holding on to Cristiano Ronaldo.

Queiroz is known to be close to Ronaldo and helped to persuade him to stay in Manchester after the fall-out from England’s 2006 World Cup defeat by Portugal. Indeed, the winger has described Queiroz as a father figure.

It is hard not to conclude that finding a replacement for Queiroz — multilingual and tactically astute — will not be easy.    

That is the task facing Ferguson as he begins the search for the sixth assistant of his long reign — a decision he may well need to get right if United are to keep Scolari’s Chelsea in their slipstream in the season ahead.

PHOTO: Manchester United coach Ferguson and assistant Queiroz speak during a training session, April 8. REUTERS/Nigel Roddis

Source: Simon Hart