Sports Category
Sports news, commentary and scores with wit and added value. We compare and contrast the best and worst sports reporting in the mainstream press, blogs, TV and online. We love the English Premier League (Arsenal, Liverpool, Spurs, Manchester United and Manchester City) and all things football but we cover cricket, rugby, the Olympics, tennis, golf, F1 and highlights of the sporting year.
Transfer balls: Manchester United target Fabregas teams up with Higuain at Arsenal
TRANSFER Balls: Is Barcelona’s Cesc Fabregas heading back to the Premier League with Manchester United or Arsenal? Lets’ see what the media experts are saying:
The Sun leads with “CESC BOOST FOR UNITED”. This “EXCLUSIVE” tells reader that Fabregas “is reportedly becoming worried as he is still waiting for assurances about his Nou Camp future”.
How can it be an exclusive if it’s been reported already? The Sun, of course, is the paper that told readers Gonzalo Higuain had signed for Arsenal. He didn’t. He now plays for Napoli.
Maybe Fabregas will team up with Higuain at Arsenal? Look out for that in the trusty Sun.
Read the rest of this entry »
Transfer balls: Everton sell Fellaini to Arsenal or Manchester United (after that moving deadline)
TRANSFER Balls: A look at a Everton’s Marouane Fellaini’s move to Manchester united or Arsenal:
DAVID MOYES has a week to decide whether to sign Marouane Fellaini. The Everton star has a buyout clause of £22million — but that only stands until July 31. Then Moyes’ old club will be able to name their price and it will undoubtedly go up.
So. He doesn’t have a week. And why will any fee go up? If the player wants to leave and buyers are prepared to take it to transfer deadline day, the price could well drop.
Overlooking how the Press know the contents of Fellaini’s contract, we hark back to old news:
The Mirror added on July 13:
The Belgian’s £23.5million buy-out clause expires on August 14 with the Toffees set to demand more than £30million for him after
Not ask. Demand. To which the answer will be, ‘No thanks. and you can’t make me. Keep your unhappy player.’
On July 15, the Daily Express had more:
Fellaini’s future has been the subject of much conjecture, and he has been linked with a move to Arsenal, even though they are reportedly unwilling to meet his £23m buyout clause
Reports in France suggest that Arsenal and United have been told that if they don’t complete a deal for Fellaini by August 14, then his buyout clause will rise.
On July 22, the Liverpool Post told us:
Arsenal to launch £24m bid for Everton FC star Marouane Fellaini
Liverpool Daily Post Arsenal to launch £24m bid for Everton FC star Marouane Fellaini
On the same days, on MyEvertonNews we read:
Arsenal to finally launch Fellaini bid within the next 24 hour
On July 6, this site said:
Arsenal Make Stunning £22m Bid to Activate Marouane Fellaini Relause Clause: Everton Midfielder Subject Of Club Record BidSo. The buyout clause exists whatever and whenever. Can we all agree on that?
More transfer balls every day…
Transfer balls: Liverpool slash Luis Suarez asking price to entice Arsenal
TRANSFER Balls: Is Liverpool’s Luis Suarez for sale or not?
The Times: “Ball back in Luis Suárez’s court after Liverpool call bluff over contract”
“There’s nothing new to report,” Rodgers said after Suárez featured in the last 20 minutes of Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Melbourne Victory in front of 95,000 fans at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. “[Suárez] is very much a Liverpool player and over the course of the next couple of weeks we’ve got to get him up to speed. The support he has received from the supporters and the people of the city of Liverpool has been unrivalled. In this period of time he’s missed a lot of games for various reasons. The people have stood by him like a son and really looked after him.”
To judge by Suárez’s demeanour during his cameo, though, that support is not at the forefront of his mind. If the 26-year-old appearing sullen as he warmed up is not exactly damning proof, his failure to celebrate with his team-mates after he teed up Iago Aspas’s goal to seal the win was moderately instructive.
Here’s Suarez being not exactly elated at setting up a goal in a friendly match in Australia. Yep, no lap of honour and tossing his shirt to the crowd. The Mirror calls him “gloomy“.
The Guardian has lots to say:
What would a body language expert have made of Luis Suárez at the MCG on Wednesday?
That he fancies Coutinho?
To the untrained eye he looked as lugubrious as Graham Gooch on a long, bat-dragging walk back to the pavilion after a golden duck. Our first sight of him was getting off the bus and his countenance was indeed mournful, like he’d been sat next to Steven Gerrard and forced to listen to his captain’s iPod (to be fair, Sussudio will do that to you). He then appeared on the big screen, sitting on the bench, and he still looked downcast. Seeing that we wondered how anyone could be so miserable sitting alongside the Brazilian Botticelli, Philippe Coutinho, who, even with his Renaissance curls shorn off, looks like someone you just want to throw an arm around and protect from the world’s ills.
Who needs a body language expert with a tribute like that from Paul Connolly (GSOH, nice teeth, call me)?
And as the crowd roared when Suárez’s mug came up on the big screen the Uruguayan couldn’t even fashion a wan smile. It made you think of a parent trying to cheer up a grumpy child with buffoonery and exaggerated bonhomie, but Suárez seemed determined that nobody among the 95,000 crowd was going to spoil his bad mood. Finally he made the field, and he grouched into the match not acknowledging the warm reception. Not even a cursory golf wave. He still competed for the ball, mind, but that’s in his DNA. Overall, however, Suárez just looked like someone who didn’t want to be there. Not just Melbourne. Liverpool too. Then again, who knows, maybe it was just Sussudio.
Warm reception? The Cyprus Mail says:
Yet his appearance in the 72nd minute among a raft of substitutions sparked a deafening roar from the terraces, and fans left the hulking coliseum happy after watching the 26-year-old set up the second goal with typical trickery.
Having heard Brendan Rodger says that Suarez is worth £55m and not for sale, the Mirror reports:
Liverpool admit Luis Suarez is for sale but Arsenal hopes hit by £50million price tag
Rodgers puts £50m price tag on wantaway striker’s head after clause means Uruguayan can talk to Arsenal following Gunners’ rejected £40m offer
Suarez is getting cheaper. How’s that for negotiating tactics. The more Rodgers talks the more Arsenal must believe they are going to get their man.
And the Indy has other news to buoy the Gunners:
Striker wants to play in Champions League and believes £40m plus £1 offer obliges Merseysiders to sell
He wants out, then. And Rodgers, having put a price on the player’s head who was not, er, for sale, continues to talk and talk:
“I think the support that he’s received from the supporters and the people of the city of Liverpool has been unrivalled.
“In the period of time, he’s missed a lot of games for the club through various reasons. And the people have stood by him like a son and really looked after him.
“So I’m sure whatever happens in the coming weeks, that will be in his mind because it’s certainly something you can never forget.”
If you had a 26-year-old son who had grown up in poverty, spent years working and living overseas and now wants to leave home to improve himself, the best advice would be to make him stay by using emotional blackmail, Brendan. That way can only lead to success. Or his murdering you in the shower. But that’s kids for you.
And let’s not forget, Brendan, Suarez was hired for his loyalty not his goals…
Transfer balls: Liverpool allow Luis Suarez to talk to Arsenal (and his tribunal lawyer)
TRANSFER Balls: Is Luis Suarez leaving Liverpool for Arsenal? Today we learnt:
Arsenal tabled a £40,000,001 offer for Luis Suarez last night with the extraneous penny thought to be designed to trigger a clause in the Uruguayan’s Liverpool contract that meant the club had to inform the striker of the bid.
However, the clause didn’t/doesn’t state that Liverpool have to accept the offer, and they jolly well didn’t either – with owner John W Henry tweeing “what do you think they’re smoking over there at Emirates?” after announcing he’d rejected the bid on Twitter.
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Posted: 24th, July 2013 | In: Sports | Comments (6)
The decline of man: the steady emasculation of our role models
THE decline of Man: modern man is in a state of crisis, reared on a diet of creams, depilated, patent skin and self-tanning unguents. Here, Anorak looks at the fall of manhood.
“I never fixed my eyes, but I spent more money to stretch the skin of my testicles. I did not like the wrinkles. It’s a new technique, many people in Hollywood have done it. It’s called ‘ball ironing’.”
It is generally assumed that George Clooney was joking when he delivered the above quote. One thing is true, though: ‘ball ironing’ (or ‘male laser lift’) is available at the Beauty Park in Santa Monica for just under $600, and it is proving very popular.
Clooney may not have had the treatment himself, but his familiarity with it is cause for concern. It’s just the latest in a series of milestones in the steady emasculation of our role models. And the rot set in, as it so often did, in the 1950s.
Dennis Compton
Compton (second left, with Burt Lancaster and Frankie Vaughan) was a brilliant batsman with a Test average of 50 (including over 200 runs in one match against South Africa using an antique bat borrowed from the cricket museum). He also found time to play football for Arsenal, with whom he won both the league championship and the FA Cup. Unfortunately, he also became the face of Brylcreem, and set the tone for future generations of sportsmen to dabble in the darker corners of male grooming.
Elvis Presley
Presley offended people in numerous ways –not least with his habit of wearing eye makeup. None of which stopped him from being drafted into the US Army. Here the prospective GI sits his written military exam, in slightly more discreet slap.
Henry Cooper
As deodorant manufacturers attempted to broaden their appeal to the male half of the population, they recruited macho sporty types like Our ’Enery (’ere wiv’ ’Arvey Smiff) who here advertises Brut with the immortal slogan ‘Splash it all over’.
Ron Atkinson
Big Ron: The Sunbed Years.
Graham Gooch
In his playing days as opening bat for England, ‘Goochy’ sported an imperial moustache and resembled an officer at Rourk’s Drift. His subsequent hair transplant came as something of a shock – and led to a series of rather defensive gestures. Defensive, not about the fact of the transplant, but the quality of the weave itself.
Here Gooch, as the official caption puts it, ‘test[s] his hair replacement treatment in a Central London health Gym, to disprove claims that the treatment does not work. The former England captain is at the centre of an disgreement, after a client of AHS (Advanced Hair Studio) along with the Advertising Standards Authority claimed that adverts claiming that Gooch could swim, shower, and play sport with his hair treatment were wrong and misleading.’
David Beckham
The signs were there as a young boy, when he enjoyed wearing knickerbockers and ballet shoes. Later we had his own take on Brylcreem advertising (above) and experiments with sarongs. His nomination here, however, is for his championing of the ‘back. sack and crack’ – the logical conclusion of the waxing mania that overtook British manhood in the twenty-first century.
Luis Figo
Deserves his place here for his role in the general poncification of older men, with his truly terrible Just For Men advertisement – a product for disguising grey hair and beards and allowing old men to kid themselves that they are attractive to women half their age.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Rio Ferdinand
AKA: Ronaldo and Rio in hotpants hell. What were they thinking? Seriously?
Shane Warne
He held his hands up to the hair transplant, and fair play to him for that, but Shane’s explanation for his subsequent transformation into a taught-faced waxwork is altogether less convincing: he attributed it to ‘good moisturiser’. Others spoke of botox, facelifts and teeth whitening. Wherefore art thou, Warney-o?
Leinster Rugby
The citadel falls. Once upon a time the best you could hope for in a rugby union changing room was a bar of coal tar soap and a turd in your kit bag. Now you are more likely to find a range of hair and skin care products. Leinster Rugby are now sponsored by Nivea for Men. Or should that be ‘Men’?
O tempora, o mores!
ENDS
Posted: 24th, July 2013 | In: Celebrities, Fashion, Key Posts, Sports | Comments (2)
Transfer balls: Arsenal beat Spurs and Liverpool to Brazil winger and defender Bernard
TRANSFER Balls: Are Arsenal signing Bernard from Atlético Mineiro, pipping Spurs and Liverpool in the chase? After his national teammate Fred, meet Bernard. No news of Norman, Harry and Stan. But what do we know about this Bernard bloke?
July 24:
The Times:
The Brazilian club admitted last night that the winger will leave for up to £21.5 million after he tries to help them to overturn a 2-0 deficit against Olimpia in the second leg of the Copa Libertadores final.
Or as the Mirror reports:
Bernard, the 20 year old defender subject to interest from Arsenal this summer, seems keen to focus on winning silverware with his current club before discussing his potential move to the Emerates.
“I do not want to be rude or ignorant to anyone. I want to talk about the game. What will happen after Wednesday, I do not know,” he said.
How tall is he?
Arsenal are closing on a deal for Atletico Mineiro midfielder Bernard. … just under 5ft 6ins tall, is left-footed but can play across the midfield.
Standing just 5 feet 4 inches, Bernard is a very quick and skillful player on the ball. Bernard had faced setbacks in his career due his small stature as he was released twice by Atlético Mineiro’s youth system due to his short height.
Any other facts?
L’Equipe are reporting that Brazilian winger, Bernard, will travel to London on Friday to complete a move to Arsenal.
The midfielder was reported to heading to London on Friday to undergo a Gunners’ medical, but Wenger insists ‘the report isn’t true’.
Such are the facts…
Transfer balls: Higuain wants ‘dream’ move to Arsenal as he signs for Napoli
TRANSFER Balls: How are Arsenal getting along in their pursuit of Gonzalo Higuain, the player the Sun says they bought for £23m? (That transfer is still up on the Sun’s site as a fact.)
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Transfer balls: Real Madrid sign Spurs star Gareth Bale on six-year contract for no money
TRANSFER Balls with the Daily Bale: more non-news on the spurs star form the experts:
TalkSport thunders: “Reports – Gareth Bale agrees personal terms with Real Madrid”
Reports?
Tottenham star Gareth Bale has agreed personal terms with Real Madrid, according to reports from Spain.
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Transfer balls: Manchester United buy Barcelona’s Cesc Fabregas for three David Moyes
TRANSFER Balls: Will Manchester United buy Cesc Fabregas from Barcelona? Will Arsenal step in to scupper any bid for their former captain? Will David Moyes turn into Brendan Rodgers? Says Moyes:
“I needed it to be the David Moyes era now and I had to take David Moyes’ era and David Moyes’ time so that meant me taking some of my own people.”
How do you replace Alex Ferguson? With three David Moyes…
In other news, Sky Sports News says a “source close to Fabregas has told Sky Sports News that the player is considering his position having been given no assurances that he will be a regular starter next season”.
Another of the same unnamed source tells the BBC “Fabregas is not for sale. The president (Sandro Rosell) has been very clear with Man United.”
Or as the Belfast Telegraph says:
Barca DO want to sell Fabregas to Manchester United – the Old Trafford club wouldn’t have upped their bid to £30m without a little encouragement from Catalunya – but they want the player to jump rather than be pushed.
Such are the facts…
Andy Murray Royal Mail stamps are just product placement for his watch
THESE Andy Murray stamps to mark his status as Wimbledon Champion are a move away for celebration to product placement. Her Majesty the Queen has yet to post for a head-licker with a can of Cola or sweetshop treat on her lips. But two of Murray’s four stamps feature him wearing a watch. It’s the watch he doesn’t wear to play tennis; only to collect cups and pose for photos.
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Posted: 23rd, July 2013 | In: Sports, The Consumer | Comment
Transfer Balls: Brendan Rodgers leaves Liverpool’s Luis Suarez confused
TRANSFER Balls: Anorak looks at Liverpool’s Luis Suarez. Today we focus on Brendan Rodgers, a man whose learnt his negotiating skills from Neville Chamberlain, and the Daily Mirror, which seems to make t up as it goes along:
On July 19, he said that the Suarez saga would not go to the final day of the transfer season:
“It is not going to run that far. I don’t want to put a deadline on it or set a date but it’s not something which will run too long. We are totally in control of the situation.”
No deadline. But it will not run for that long. Confused? The Mirror told us on July 4:
Luis Suarez has three weeks to sort out his future.
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Posted: 22nd, July 2013 | In: Sports | Comment (1)
Transfer balls: Arsenal buy Higuain for £9m less than Napoli bid for the Real Madrid striker
TRANSFER Balls: On July 6, the Sun said Arsenal had bought Gonzalo Higuian from Real Madrid for £23m. That wrong news still sits on the Sun’s website. Now read on to see what other experts in the media are saying on July 21…
The Metro: “Arsenal thwarted as Napoli agree £30m fee for Real Madrid’s Gonzalo Higuain”
EuroSport says Higuain’s going to Napoli for £32m.
Daily Mirror: “Gonzalo Higuain stalls on completing Napoli move to give Arsenal chance to bid again”
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Posted: 21st, July 2013 | In: Sports | Comment (1)
Transfer balls: Barcelona’s ‘non-transferable’ Fabregas snubs Manchester United for Arsenal
TRANSFER Balls: Is Barcelona’s Cesc Fabregas on his way to Manchester United, Arsenal or…well, anyone else? Let’s see what the media experts are saying:
On July 19, the Daily Mirror told its readers:
David Moyes is hopeful of a breakthrough in Manchester United’s bid for Cesc Fabregas within the next 48 hours.
United have bid £26million for the Barcelona midfielder, with executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward having flown back from the club’s pre-season tour to accelerate the deal.
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Posted: 21st, July 2013 | In: Sports | Comments (2)
Transfer balls: Luis Suarez leaves Liverpool to team up with Higuain at Arsenal
TRANSFER Balls: Liverpool’s Luis Suarez…again:
The Sun says “ARSENAL are facing a double whammy from Real Madrid.”
Spanish giants Real are prepared to offer Liverpool £20million plus Argie striker Gonzalo Higuain for Luis Suarez.
That would be the Higuain Real value at £35m (source: the Sun, July 19), the Saurez worth £40m (source: the Sun) and the Suarez Liverpool value at £55m (source: the Sun). Only, Higuain was on his way to Arsenal for a done-and dusted £23m (source: the Sun)?
(On July 6, the Sun yelled: “ARSENAL last night smashed their transfer record when they agreed a £23million fee for Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain.)
It is.
The Sun’s news today adds:
The Londoners, though, are ready to top the £120,000-a-week deal the Uruguayan is on at Anfield, which makes him the Reds’ highest-paid player.
Or as the Mirror told us in May 2013:
Suarez is on £80,000 a week basic but, because the striker has hit his goals target – he’s scored an amazing 28 goals in 38 appearances this season – his salary is boosted to £100,000 a week under the new terms of his deal.
The Sun told readers:
Suarez, 26, only signed a new deal last summer which doubled his basic wages from £40,000 to £80,000 a week.
The Sun adds:
Suarez, though, would prefer a move to Real.
Or as the Mirror told us yesterday:
Luis Suarez ready to tell Liverpool that he wants to join Arsenal
Such are the facts.
More balls every day….
Posted: 21st, July 2013 | In: Sports | Comments (2)
Transfer Balls: Manchester United target Gareth Bale and Andre Villas-Boas head to Barcelona (so they say)
THE Daily Bale – a look at the Tottenham Hotspur star in the news media. We last featured Bale on July 14, when the Sun said Gareth Bale was off to Manchester united for a fee in excess of £75 million. This followed news that any move to Real Madrid this season was dead.
Now read on…
July 20
Marca leads with news that Los Blancos are in the process of raising funds to buy Bale. But there’s no need to bother. The Daily Star has news:
“EXCLUSIVE: Gareth Bale wants to join Manchester United”
Will they get him?
United are ready to offer £60m in an attempt to take him to Old Trafford, and Tottenham last night refused to comment on whether an official bid had been made.
The Daily Mirror says the bid has been made.
We have been told that United have an “unlimited budget” for players.
Of course, new Spurs singing Paulinho has told us Bale is going nowhere. That’s Bale, the star whose worth this summer has been pitched at £100m, £85m, £80m, £70m, and £50m. Indeed, one paper told us that £100m was not enough to buy Bale.
But United have unlimited money, so here’s the bid for, erm, £60m.
Also telling us that Bale was a Spurs player for the season ahead was Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas. He said:
“The chairman said that we are not open to offers, whatever they are, and that the player will stay.”
But then he added:
“In football anything can happen, but these are the guarantees given to me.”
The Express says Daniel Levy, the Spurs chairman, ” is reported ready to double Bale’s wages to £150,000-a-week in a bid to keep him happy at White Hart Lane”.
And AVB has just told reporters:
“He’s not for sale at any price. No we haven’t had any conversations. It’s not irritating, I think it’s part of when the market opens. It’s normal that there is speculation everywhere.”
Such as this speculation in the Daily Mail:
Villas-Boas refused to comment on speculation linking him with the Barcelona job, instead sending his best wishes to departing coach Tito Vilanova.
No comment is still a comment:
“It’s a very difficult situation and all of my wishes are with Tito. If he has to resign for a situation of illness it’s not the moment to speak about any speculation whatsoever. It’s not even a question, we are speaking about a person’s health.”
So. AVB hasn’t ruled it out. And, as he told us, there are no guarantees in football – anything can happen. AVB is no fool. He never did get Spurs into the Champions’ League. One more failure and his stock will fall.
But AVB is highly rated by Bale who tells the Evening Standard:
“We [Bale and Villas-Boas] have a great relationship. Last season we had a great campaign and obviously we came up short but we had a great working relationship on and off the field.
“We chatted quite a lot about tactics and stuff like that. He definitely got the best out of me last season and hopefully can again.”
Bale and AVB’s careers seem to be linked.
Look out for news telling us Bale and AVB are off to is Barcelona very soon…
Transfer Balls: Liverpool invite Arsenal to come and get Luis Suarez
TRANSFER Balls: A few days in the life of Liverpool’s Luis Suarez:
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers says Suarez will only join Arsenal, Chelsea or Real Madrid this summer if “something drastic happens”.
The Express says “drastic” might be Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata heading to Liverpool as part of a Suarez-swap deal.
The Hartlepool Mail says “drastic” might be as bid of £55m, the ridiculous sum Rogers says Suarez is worth:
“It was an offer for what they (Arsenal) considered his value and worth. Obviously for a player of his quality, when you consider that Cavani has gone for £55million you know… Luis is up there in that bracket of top talent. Obviously it was an offer we didn’t deem worthy of the talent and even if they came back with that kind of amount (£55million) there’s no guarantee he would be sold even for that because we are trying to build something here.”
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Posted: 19th, July 2013 | In: Sports | Comments (12)
Carly Rae Jepsen throws worst baseball pitch, like, EVER
REGULARLY, people unfairly chide women for their inability to throw, however, popstar Carly Rae Jepsen have gone and thrown a ball so badly that it might keep bozos in jokes for the rest of their lives.
Jepsen was left amused and embarrassed by her lame attempt at throwing the first pitch at a baseball game.
She was invited to throw the traditional first pitch at the Tampa Bay Rays game against the Houston Astros, however, what transpired was worse than Diana Ross’ penalty during the opening ceremony for the ’94 World Cup.
Fox Sports commentators noted that Jepsen had actually thrown several impressive strikes during practice, which is no use to anyone, especially Jepsen.
Jepsen laughed off the pitch on Twitter later, describing it as a “fail”.
“So apparently I made ESPN with my fail of a pitch. Lol- Daddy must be so proud.”
Posted: 18th, July 2013 | In: Celebrities, Sports | Comment
Wati Holmwood: photos of the hated State of Origin streaker
STREAKER of the year is Wati Holmwood, who invaded the St of Origin ruby match, very possibly ruining it. He says: “It all happened so quickly, I don’t know what was going through my head. I just wanted to make it interesting but I stuffed up Origin. A lot of people hate me now.” Probably the same stuff when in 2011 he jumped a fence at the Sydney Football Stadium and interrupted a match between the Wests Tigers and the New Zealand Warriors.
The Ashes Balls: Brad Hiddin ‘waited’ but Stuart Broad ‘cheated’
COMPARE and contrast: Stuart Broad refuses to walk until the Ashes umpire gives him out – which he doesn’t.
Broad is called a cheat. The tabloids lead with calls for him to banned from cricket.
Brad Haddin knew he was out. But the Australian never walked, waiting for the umpire to use technology. The crowd waited. Australia were close to an unlikely victory in the First Test. If he’s given not out, they might yet have won. Says Haddin:
“Yeah I hit it. I knew it was out. I hit the ball, it was obvious.”
Calls for his head: none. Back page coverage: nil.
Transfer balls: Arsenal and Real Madrid swap £50m in chase for Liverpool’s Luis Suarez
TRANSFER Balls: A look at Liverpool’s Luis Suarez – the most despicable / foreign man in Great British sport:
Daily Star: “Luis Suarez is top of the rude league”
FOOTBALLERS have been named the rudest people in Britain.
So. Not Suarez, then. The headline might just as easily declare that David Beckham is top of this PR-company created rude league.
Daily Mirror: “Arsenal lead Luis Suarez transfer race as Liverpool star is valued at just £25m by Real Madrid”
Just £25m?
Liverpool have already rebuffed Arsenal’s opening gambit of £30m plus £5m in add-ons with a strong message that the 26-year-old Uruguayan is not for sale at any price.
But it is understood Suarez’s representatives are making encouraging noises to Arsenal, and other potential suitors, suggesting that if a bid of £40m is made then Liverpool will have to sell…
Which they don’t.
There is a growing feeling at Arsenal that they have a genuine chance of signing Suarez, who is now their No1 transfer priority.
This leads to the Sun’s tortuous headline:
Suarsenal
And the news that Suarez’s is on his knees:
Suarez prays for £40m bid..
The player has three years left on his deal and faces the prospect of being held to that if the Kop stick to their guns.
The only prospect of that situation altering is if he puts in a transfer request — something Guardiola and Suarez insist is not on the cards.
This is what Arsene Wenger, the Arsenal manager, says:
“It happened to us (with van Persie). It can happen to them (United). But anyway, Rooney is under contract. He has two years to go. It’s Man United who make a decision.”
Wenger has not said a word in public on Suarez.
Suarez has three seasons left on his contract. Van Persie has only one when he agitated to leave Arsenal.
“We push every week. We work on it (transfers) but the competition in Europe is very hard at the moment. There’s a lot of money and not many players. We are, at the moment, not specifically after one name. We have not the problem of the wages of Wayne Rooney but it’s very difficult for us to talk about any specific case. I admire everybody who is a top striker, but at the moment we work well but we are not close to sign anybody. As soon as we will be, we’ll let you know.”
Given that Arsenal’s £18.5m bid for Bayer Leverkusen’s Lars Bender was predicted by no-one in the media, Wenger might yet pull out a surprise.
Elsewhere in the Mirror, we’re told:
Sources close to Real are hinting the Bernabeu outfit are ready to offer striker Gonzalo Higuain – who, not co-incidentally is a long-term target for Arsenal, who are also being linked with Suarez – plus around £10million in cash.
We’re told that Madrid value Higuain at £30m. How does that tally with Madrid valuing Suarez at £25m?
The Examiner ups that to:
Now that the London club continues to drag out their potential transfers, news has broken that Real Madrid has entered the race for Suarez and are willing to potentially offer the Reds Gonzalo Higuain plus a cash deal of £25m to take the unsettled Uruguayan to the Santiago Bernabeu.
That would valuing Suarez at over £50m. And is “willing to potentially” do something a fact worth reporting?
This site says:
CaughtOffside understands that Wenger is willing to let the Merseyside club take their pick of Thomas Vermaelen, Gervinho or Aaron Ramsey plus £28 million in cash.
So. Arsenal will get Suarez for less money and get rid of “flop player” Gervinho and the troublesome Belgian. Liverpool won’t be able to resist. As for fans’ favourite Aaron Ramsey leaving Arsenal, he won’t be. But the Gunners will get Suarez. Won’t they?
Fanatix.com: “Arsenal favourites to land Liverpool’s Luis Suarez”
Goal.com: “Real Madrid favourites for Luis Suarez’s signature”
More transfer balls every day….
Transfer Balls: Negredo’s brain took six days to pick Manchester City
TRANSFER Balls: Are Manchester City going to sign Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo? Lets see what the experts in the news media are saying:
Alvaro Negredo unsure over Manchester City move – MANCHESTER CITY are chasing Spain international Alvaro Negredo – but he’s yet to decide if he wants to move to the Etihad. – Daily Star, July 11
He was thinking about it. Or as Marca reports on July 17:
Negredo: “City is a huge club; it was a no-brainer”
It took Negredo six days to discover it wasn’t worth thinking about…
More transfer balls every day…
Transfer balls: Everton’s Marouane Fellaini hopes Manchester United save him from his Arsenal dreams
TRANSFER Balls: Everton star Marouane Fellaini has been filling acres of ink this summer. Is he off to Arsenal?
Everton midfielder Fellaini fears his dream switch to Arsenal will not happen. Fellaini has a £23.5m release clause in his contract that expires on August 15.
July 17 – Evening Standard
Marouane Fellaini will choose Manchester United over Arsenal should both clubs make a bid for the Everton midfielder this summer.
It is believed Fellaini has made moving to Old Trafford his first choice and is hopeful that United will try to sign him.
Dreams give way to hope. Such is life.
More balls every day from the nation’s experts….
Transfer Balls: Chelsea ‘offer’ £80m for Manchester United understudy Wayne Rooney
TRANSFER Balls: A round-up of Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney:
Daily Mirror (front page): “Roo: My fury at united”
£250,000 -a-week, Rooney is upset by his employers telling him to work hard and do it for the team. Manager David Moyes says he sees him an important part of the team. But he is not first choice. Robin Van Persie is.
What Moyes said was:
“Overall, my thought on Wayne is that if for any reason we had an injury to Robin van Persie we are going to need him and I want as many options as possible.”
To say nothing of a dip in RVP’s form, which Moyes didn’t.
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Man catches baseball thrown from helicopter flying 1,050ft above him
CATCHING a ball? How hard is that? Well, if it is a ball thrown from a helicopter, then it is stupidly hard. However, one plucky fella has done exactly that!
Zack Hample has set a world record by holding on to a baseball that was lobbed out of a helicopter flying 1,050ft above him, with the ball reaching speeds of 95mph!
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Posted: 16th, July 2013 | In: Sports | Comment (1)
