QPR have come back from two goals down against Liverpool to win 3-2 at Loftus Road on Wednesday night.
After a goalless first half, Sebastian Coates and Dirk Kuyt gave the Reds a 2-0 advantage, and what looked like all three points.
However, Mark Hughes’ men fought back admirably, levelling things up through Shaun Derry and Djibril Cisse, before Jamie Mackie grabbed the winner in injury time.
Kenny Dalglish was left shell-shocked by the defeat, but gave QPR credit for their comeback.
“I think for us, we were a little mindful of opinions about how we would play after getting into the semi-finals [of the FA Cup] but I think they started fantastically well,” he told Sky Sports.
“For most of the game they controlled it, they passed it, they moved it. They scored two goals and could have been four or five up by half-time and they weren’t.
“They came out for the second half and started quite brightly again, and they went on and got two goals and out of nowhere they have got three.
“For us, we don’t really have an explanation other than to say they deserve a bit of credit for what they did.
“We should have been out of sight before it even got to that stage. It’s a difficult one to take because there was so much that was very positive about the game,” the Scot concluded.
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Liverpool remain in seventh place, whilst QPR move out of the relegation spots and up to 17th position.
A humble Pep Guardiola paid tribute to Manchester United and committed himself to Barcelona following Saturday’s emphatic Champions League win.Guardiola was on the touchline to witness one of the all-time great performances as Barca ran riot at Wembley, trouncing United 3-1 to lock up their third Champions League title in six years.
The 40-year-old, who was rumoured to be considering departing the Camp Nou should Barca win Saturday’s final, flatly denied those reports in his post-match remarks and said he was committed to seeing out his contract with the Catalan giants.
‘I will say it again, I have another year on my contract and I intend to work it out,” Guardiola told TVE.
”I feel privileged to have these players. Everyone has worked towards this. We are very happy. But I have to look inside of me. I am happy to be here as coach of these guys, but it is not an easy job.”
“We must congratulate Manchester United for the great match they have played. We are pleased because we know how hard it is to win the Champions League.”
“We had some time to prepare this encounter and I thought we played excellently tonight.”
“We went 1-0 up but we knew that with all of United’s history and stature in the game they would come back at us. In the end, though, we managed to control the match and we won very well.”
Lionel Messi, who has already attracted plaudits as the greatest player in the modern game, was hailed by his manager as the best ever after a scintillating goal in the 54th minute put Barca ahead for good.
“Lionel is the best player I have seen and probably the best I will ever see,” Guardiola said.
“He made the difference. Messi is unique, a one-off. I just hope he doesn’t get fed up. “
“When he doesn’t play well it is because something is wrong with his environment. Let’s hope he can continue playing well.”
The Barcelona coach was less sure if his side could be labelled the greatest of all time however, deferring to greats teams of the past led by the likes of Alfredo Di Stefano and Johan Cruyff.
‘I don’t know (if Barcelona are the best ever),” Guardiola said. “It is impossible to say.”
“I didn’t see the Real Madrid of Di Stefano and the Ajax of Cruyff. We try to play as well as possible.”
“I hope in the next 10 or 15 years the people will remember them and have enjoyed them.”
There’s an obvious comparison to make here: this save is very similar to Gordon Banks’ save against Pele in 1970. This was a tough call: there a so many wonderful Schmeichel moments, but this save was truly outstanding. The Dane’s save from Rapid’s Rene Wagner came in an otherwise unremarkable, straightforward 2-0 victory for United, but it remains one of his best.
This save is as good as it is bizarre. With three minutes gone at the Nou Camp, Claudio Cacapa (whom Newcastle fans should remember from a recent North-eastern stint) under pressure from Rivaldo, hit an outrageous backpass to Coupet. With the all sailing over Coupet’s head, the Frenchman managed to backtrack and head the ball onto his own crossbar. The onrushing Rivaldo powered a close-range header toward goal, but Coupet somehow got back up to produce a stunning save.
The then-Premiership champions Arsenal had been expected to crush second tier Sheffield United at Old Trafford in this FA Cup semi, but found themselves struggling to add to Freddie Ljungberg’s 35th minute opener. With time running out, Sheffield United begin to throw men forward, and following a bit of a scramble in the area, the ball breaks to Paul Peschisolido, three yards out, with an open goal. The now-Burton Albion manager’s header was goalbound, until Seaman, showing incredible agility for a 39-year old, managed to claw it away from goal. Breathtaking.
The inclusion of this save is a little dubious, given that the ball seems to cross the line, only to be missed by the liner. It’s a save too great to ignore, though. Christian Brocchi’s shot takes a huge deflection off Ajax’s Petri Pasanen, and with the ball heading for the top corner, the Romanian stopper somehow manages to scramble across goal and claw the ball away. Not before it crosses the line, mind.
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Perhaps not quite on a par with the others, this is one of the Irishman’s finest moments. With the score at 0-0, in the days when Irish-French footballing relations were a little better, Zinedine Zidane lines up a free kick just outside the area. His strike is flying towards the top corner, but Given, cat-like, flies across his goal to palm the ball away. An excellent stop.
I’m aware that there’s plenty I’ve missed here, and as such am a moron who probably doesn’t even watch football. So, inevitable haters, what should I have included here?
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Last Saturday I watched in disbelief as Argyle scored twice in the last five minutes to gain a dramatic point against promotion chasing Southend United.
The Green’s had trudged off at half time looking disheartened and even the most optimistic of Argyle fans would have struggled to predict that they would snatch a point from the game. But something almost magical happened in the second half. Argyle’s performance was much improved and resilient. Indeed they had the better of the second half yet the Southend defence was proving tough to break down. Finally in the 86th minute a snapshot by Nick Chadwick pulled a one back for Argyle and from then on the Southend defence was quaking, the fierce Home Park crowd roared the Pilgrims on and two minutes later they had rescued a point.
This is not the first time in recent weeks that Argyle have pulled off such a recovery however. Against Burton Albion they kept going and Simon Walton scored a dramatic 89th minute winner. The following week Argyle faced more tough opposition in Crawley and trailed from the stroke of half time. Argyle rarely threatened one of the fiercest defences in the league but in the 90th minute Frenchman Maxime Blanchard equalised emphatically with an overhead kick.
Despite their lowly league position, it is obvious that team spirit in the Argyle camp is sky high, and Carl Fletcher has installed the kind of mentality that saw Norwich gain so many late points last season in the Championship – it’s not over until the final whistle.
Although these late points don’t do much at a glance for Argyle’s survival hopes, you have to look at the bigger picture. These late comebacks have been against some of the divisions promotion hopefuls, who Argyle were expected to lose heavily too. If our relegation rivals fail to take anything from their games against these sides then it is immediately a point gained on them. The other thing is that these results will be keeping the squad’s morale high, and going into some crucial games we have coming up in the next few weeks, high morale will hopefully lead the way to some more positive results.
In the coming weeks, weather permitting, Argyle face Macclesfield, Barnet, Accrington and then the most crucial game of them all, Dagenham at home. Three of those games are highly winnable for the greens. Macclesfield are in terrible form and are dropping down the league table like a stone. Barnet and Dagenham & Redbridge are two of Argyle’s relegation rivals and they will look to take three points from both games anyway, but with the Green’s playing at home I am very confident of victories over these sides.
Since Fletcher took over the managerial reigns Home Park has become a bit of a fortress and Argyle have only lost twice on their own patch since Fletcher became manager. Fletcher himself has even credited the point taken against Southend to the Home Park crowd who kept the noise levels up despite being 2-0 down for most of the game.
It won’t be until we get a lot closer to the end of the season that we start to see the impact of those points that Argyle have gained. But I am sure that come the end, those points could be the difference between survival and relegation for Argyle this season.
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By Plymouth blogger Sam Barker. Check out his blog at: http://samtbarker.wordpress.com/
How many more hits can any club endure before you begin to question the very fabric of our footballing establishment?
Sunday’s game at the Emirates was yet another example of why it’s become increasingly obvious the FA are determined United will not beat the lovable, media friendly scousers to that 19th title.
Michael Owen gets his achilles practically detatched from his leg a mere three yards from referee Chris Foy in the 88th minute at the Emirates yet the Merseyside born official fails to see it.
A day earlier a linesman doesn’t see Frank Lampard’s shot beat Tottenham ‘keeper Gomes, yet he pretends that he does. Then the other linesman in that game cannot see Salomon Kalou is a yard offside for the winner.
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Go back a few more months and Martin Atkinson fails to send off David Luiz for a second yellow card who subsequently earns a penalty that wins Chelsea the game against United. Did I mention the fact that John Terry committed a blatant handball in the area that went unpunished?
Go back even further Fulham are awarded a last minute penalty against Chelsea and Didier Drogba is three yards in the box when Clint Dempsey misses but the referee allows the miss to stand.
Jamie Carragher savages Nani enough to knock on the changing room door and apologise.
Michael Essien commits a red card tackle on Jermaine Pennant and doesn’t even get booked.
Don’t even get me f*cking started on the inconsistencies of f*cking sweargate.
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Last season, it has been argued by some that, Steven Gerrard gave away the title on purpose and was rewarded with the England captaincy for the world cup. Oh and Didier Drogba was awarded an offside goal to make sure Chelsea won the title with a win at Old Trafford.
Go on then tell me I’m wrong………..
Read more of Justin’s articles at the excellent Red Flag Flying High
Five games, maximum points, 21 goals and four clean sheets. Chelsea have done everything and above what is required of reigning champions. Even at this ludicrously early stage of the season they are four points clear of both Arsenal and Man Utd, and early or not, it is still part of the season none the less.
The easy criticism to make of Chelsea’s start is the opposition that have faced. West Brom, Wigan, Stoke, West Ham and Blackpool all present opponents that Chelsea are expected to beat, but few could have predicted the swagger with which Carlo Ancelotti’s men have dispatched those teams set out in front of them. Scott Parker is the only player to have breached Chelsea’s defence, and at the other end they have rattled in goals with unashamed ease: watching them this season has been like seeing the biggest boys in the school playground steal a ball from the first years and refuse to give it back.
The next two weeks will obviously offer sterner tests: a trip to Eastlands is swiftly followed up by hosting London rivals Arsenal. Last season saw Arsenal humbled 3-0 at the Emirates and a 2-0 at Stamford Bridge – at no point in either game did anything other than a Chelsea win look unlikely to happen. Little has changed since last season, and although difficult, Chelsea will remain confident. In regards to Man City, the sky blue millionaires did the double over Chelsea last season, and the 4-2 victory will still wrangle in west London. Man City have been hot and cold so far this season, they should have really lost at Spurs, but put Liverpool to the sword. Chelsea will be a step up from both.
What Chelsea possess over Man City, and United for that matter, and Arsenal, and virtually every other team in the league, is that they know their best team. Any fan of the Premier League could recite the Chelsea starting eleven, and could probably name their replacements as well: Kalou for Malouda, Zhirkov for Cole – the players that support the first team are of such a high standard. And while they may have been relatively quiet in the transfer market over the summer, the re-introduction of Michael Essien to the first team after injury, is as good as a new signing as you can get. The most complete midfielder in the Premiership has been nothing short of imperious, adding goals to his horse-like strength and energizer battery stamina.
Chelsea did not choose their fixtures, and with a poor pre-season and defeat to Man Utd in the Champions League, all the talk was of World Cup hangovers and an ageing squad. But as the whistle blew for the beginning of their defence of the Premiership crown, things clicked into gear. Any defence in the league will struggle to cope with the front three of Drogba, Anelka and Malouda, who have 13 goals between them already.
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If Chelsea were favourites before the start of the season, those odds have been slashed even further, and their start has led to greater pressure on them to deliver. City will see Chelsea as the current benchmark, and will want to prove what they can do. If Chelsea come away with a victory next week, the league will take one deep gulp, and Arsenal will be next in the firing line.
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Tottenham Hotspur have been linked to numerous midfielders over the last few weeks and months.
One of those individuals is Inter Milan’s Matias Vecino, who is valued at £18.9m by Transfermarkt.
The 26-year-old made 31 appearances in all competitions last season, and in that time he scored three goals and created three assists.
The midfielder predominantly plays centrally, but can drop deep or further forward.
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At the moment, Vecino is in Russia representing Uruguay in the World Cup, and judging by reports in Italy, Tottenham are interested in signing him.
According to Tuttosport, Inter are prepared to sell the midfielder if they receive a decent offer for the player.
Chelsea and Everton were also named in the report, and it seems that the majority of Tottenham fans would prefer if the Uruguayan chose another club.
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Vecino only moved to Inter from Fiorentina last season, so from his point of view, it would be odd to depart so soon.
Tottenham fans took to Twitter after hearing the speculation about the Uruguayan midfielder.
West Ham United boosted their chances of avoiding the drop from the Premier League this season following their 2-0 win against Watford at the London Stadium on Saturday.
The Irons had taken just two points from a possible nine following an impressive 4-1 win against Huddersfield Town at the John Smith’s Stadium early on in January, but despite a number of injuries and a suspension they bounced back against the Hornets through goals from Javier Hernandez and the returning Marko Arnautovic.
The result means that they lie in 12th position in the standings and are four points above 18th-placed Southampton, and while there is still plenty of work to do they look to be in a better place to survive than they were when Slaven Bilic was sacked earlier in the campaign.
While the club has plenty left to play for in the coming three months as they look to reach the magic 40-point mark as soon as possible, there are a number of their players that will be fighting hard to prove they have a future with the east London outfit, with that looking to be in severe doubt for some of them right now.
Here are three West Ham players that have 11 matches left to save their Irons careers…
James Collins
The experienced West Ham centre-back’s contract is due to run out at the end of June, and with no new deal on the cards as thing stand the 34-year-old could be on his way out of the London Stadium at the end of the season.
With Angelo Ogbonna, Jose Fonte, Winston Reid and Declan Rice for competition, it looked as though Collins would be leaving whatever happened, but injuries to Fonte and Reid in more recent times have finally given the Welshman the extended opportunity in the first team that he was looking for.
While he was disappointing in the 3-1 defeat against Brighton and Hove Albion, he has started all of the club’s previous five Premier League matches and has done reasonably well, and he will be looking to keep his spot in the side and continue impressing in the final 11 matches in order to extend his stay with the Irons.
Arthur Masuaku
Masuaku was really becoming a key player for West Ham and a real fans’ favourite on the left-hand side – until the FA Cup defeat at League One outfit Wigan Athletic last month that is.
The 24-year-old was dismissed for spitting at a Latics player in the 2-0 defeat and subsequently handed a six-match ban, and David Moyes’ disappointment with the player after the match suggested it may not be an easy route back into the team for the Frenchman when he returns to the fold.
It is the kind of incident that has the potential to end a player’s career at a club and completely lose the trust of his manager, and Masuaku will need to work hard in training and have an impeccable attitude if he is to become a key first team player before the end of the campaign and in to next season too.
Javier Hernandez
The West Ham striker has hit a bit of form with three Premier League goals in his previous four appearances, and they were much needed after what has been a tough campaign overall for the Mexican following his summer move from Bayer Leverkusen.
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The 29-year-old had only hit four in his previous 17 top flight fixtures, and he had often struggled when asked to play the lone strike role by Slaven Bilic and then David Moyes.
The Telegraph reported in January that the club were willing to listen to offers for the former Manchester United man, and he may still need to convince Moyes in the final 11 matches of the season that he has a future at the London Stadium beyond the summer – although his link up with Marko Arnautovic in recent weeks suggest he is already making the required impact.
Louis van Gaal’s management qualities have never been in doubt; a CV including spells with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and a Champions League-winning Ajax side speaks for itself.
If David Moyes’ fatal flaw was struggling to shoulder Manchester United’s monolithic weight as one of the largest clubs in world football, in sharp contrast, his successor has forged a career out of handling big egos and even bigger expectations.
But having never plied his trade in the Premier League before, you would be excused for holding reservations over a manager whose reputation as a borderline psychopath tends to precede him – and often takes precedent over his trophy-laden managerial record.
Hence, the World Cup in Brazil is seen by many as the ideal opportunity for LVG to showcase his abilities with the Netherlands, before taking over official duties at Old Trafford. Thus far, the account van Gaal has given suggests he possesses all the right qualities to bring success back to Manchester United.
During Oranje’s opening World Cup fixture for example, a surprise 5-1 victory over Spain that will likely be remembered as the match of the tournament, LVG demonstrated a mixture of tactical astuteness and ambition that Moyes decisively lacked last season.
La Roja enthusiasts will argue a subsequent 2-0 defeat to Chile suggested Vincente del Bosque’s men entered Brazil 2014 intrinsically flawed, caught between the tica-taca philosophy of the old guard and the directness of inexperienced internationals breaking through, such as misfiring striker Diego Costa.
But in my opinion, Spain were ripped apart by simple yet precise and intentional direct passes. From the first minute to the last, the Netherlands knew that Spain’s arrogance in possession, pushing their defence up to the halfway line, would eventually cost them dearly. In other words, van Gaal had them sussed before a ball was struck and his game-plan proved true with tremendous effect.
Likewise, rather miraculously, making the right substitutions has become a major factor in Holland’s World Cup campaign. Interestingly, 29 of 154 goals scored in Brazil have come from the bench – an unusually high trend for an international tournament.
But in that regard, van Gaal’s Netherlands have been particularly proficient; the Dutch have recovered from 1-0 down to win on three occasions, with four of seven goals from their last three games coming via the bench. A unique phenomena of an incredibly unique World Cup, perhaps. Yet LVG’s ability to positively change a match in his favour should not be overlooked.
Furthermore, a major concern for Red Devils fans last season was their side’s lack of goals. 64 from 38 league fixtures is by no means disappointing, but compared to Manchester City and Liverpool, both of whom finished up with over 100 goals each, it’s understandable how David Moyes quickly became viewed as a dangerously pessimistic manager.
Thus, Louis van Gaal will bring a return to more free-scoring traditions at Old Trafford. Not only were his Oranje outfit the top scorers in World Cup qualifiers, netting an outrageous 34 times in just ten matches, but they’ve also transitioned that proficiency into the World Cup. Their twelve goals from four matches is only rivalled by Colombia with eleven, whilst the rest of the pack, including hosts Brazil (9) lay some way behind.
A major factor in that goal-getting philosophy has been the form of Robin van Persie. In my opinion, another manager taking the Carrington helm could have soon resulted in the Dutchman’s departure – fitting him, Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata into the same starting line-up is a disturbing conundrum yet to be solved; now 30 years of age, the former Arsenal star is by far the most expendable.
But if LVG can motivate the Oranje captain to maintain his World Cup form into next term, then issues of age or wage packages are relatively moot. The two have a unique bond, and the last time van Persie reached an equilibrium of fitness and form, he fired the Red Devils to their 13th Premier League title.
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But perhaps most importantly of all in regards to Manchester United – a club whose ethos was once immortalised by Alan Hansen’s ill-fated quip, ‘you can’t win anything with kids’ – van Gaal has constructed an impressive Netherlands side, despite lacking the quality of its many predecessors, centred around the ambition, fearlessness and energy of youth.
Just one player in the entire squad, Dirk Kuyt, is over the age of 30, whilst over half of the 23-man roster are 26 or under. Joel Veltman, Memphis Depay, Daley Blind and Stefan de Vrij to name a few have all been given the opportunities to impress, and thus far have completely thrived.
Of course, international football is incredibly different to club football and the expectations of the Netherlands national team can’t be justifiably compared to that of the most dominant club in the Premier League era.
But thus far, van Gaal’s efforts at the World Cup, through his impetus on youth, ambitious philosophy and astuteness to tactical detail, suggest he is everything the Red Devils want and need in a manager. Should those three integral pillars of management style be transitioned into his Manchester United tenure, a club which has consistently championed the promotion of young players and an attacking mentality, it won’t be long before the Premier League title returns to Old Trafford.
Southampton manager Nigel Adkins accepted the blame for his side’s 3-0 Capital One Cup defeat to Leeds.
The Saints chief made 11 changes to the side that lost 2-1 to Tottenham on Sunday, handing starts to the likes of Kelvin Davis and Tadanari Lee.
The Championship side, managed by Neil Warnock, took full advantage of a lacklustre performance by the St Marys’ Stadium-based team to advance to the next round of the competition.
After the game Adkins insisted that he made the right decision to rest his players, shouldering the blame for the loss:
“We didn’t perform anywhere near what’s expected of a Southampton Football Club team,” he told SkySports.
“Forty-eight hours ago we had a high-intensity game and I made the relevant changes.
“I take full responsibility.
“We wanted to play tomorrow, but the powers that be wanted it to be tonight.”
Adkins was positive about the performances of his young players, but criticised the displays of some experienced members of his squad:
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“We gave the players who have not been in the team the chance to show what they could do, and they did not take it.”
Leeds took the lead through a Michael Tonge strike after just over half-an-hour and extended their advantage through El Hadji Diouf on the 88-minute mark.
Luciano Becchio converted a penalty in stoppage time wrap up the 3-0 win after Luke Shaw had been adjudged to have fouled Tonge in the area.