Soccer Word: Richardson issues fans apology

Sunderland star Kieran Richardson has made an apology to the club's fans following their defeat to newly promoted Norwich City on Monday night in the Premier League.

The Black Cats have made a poor start to the season with just one win coming from their first six games, despite the club splashing the cash in the summer. The football betting suggests they could struggle.

Manager Steve Bruce was forced to bring in a number of new players after last season, with a handful of loan personnel who featured last term leaving the Stadium of Light.

It is taking time for the current crop of Sunderland players to gel and that has manifested itself with results on the pitch not going as planned and the pressure mounting on the manager, who is ultimately paying the price for a quick turnover in the squad.

The slow start was compounded on Monday at Carrow Road as Sunderland went down 2-1 to a spirited Canaries side, who were buoyed on by their home support. It was something of a football odds upset.

Richardson managed to get on the scoresheet for the visitors, however the former Manchester United star has felt it necessary to apologies to the Sunderland faithful for the team's performance against Norwich, after an uplifting win over Stoke City in their previous outing.

He told the club's website: "I was pleased to score but the result overall is very disappointing.

"We were on a high after the Stoke game, but we didn't play well tonight. We had possession in the first half, but it wasn't effective.

"It's a shame because we have let the fans down and I am sorry for that."

Can anyone stop Bayern Munich?

Bayern Munich are a legendary team for the supporters of the notorious club, and football fans around the world. In recent times the German side have been very successful. They've won the Bundesliga title a total of 22 times, the DFB-Pokal 15 times, the DFB Liga-Pokal 6 times, they've been the UEFA Champions League winners on 4 occasions, the runners up in the European Cup on 4 occasions, and managed to claim the Europa League once back in 1996.

The summer transfer window of 2011 was a busy period for Bayern Munich. The current manager – Jupp Heynckes – had much maneuverability in the aforementioned transfer window, acquiring the signatures of several players including Dale Jennings from Tranmere Rovers for an undisclosed fee, defender Jermome Boateng from Manchester City for a fee thought to be in the region of £13.5 million, Japanese international Usami on loan from Gamba Osaka, the talented goalkeeper Manuel Neuer from fellow Bundesliga side Schalke 04 for a astronomical figure of £18 million,  Brazilian international Rafinha from Italian outfit Genoa for a transfer sum of £7 million, and striker Nils Peterson from Energie Cottbus for a fee of £2.8 million. The manager hasn't just been sitting around watching a Betfair Manchester United Bowling Video.


These deals made Bayern Munich the biggest spending club in the Bundesliga, with the transfer fees rising over the £41 million mark. So, it's time for the question in the title. Can Bayern Munich win the Bundesliga in the 2011/12 season? In my eyes they certainly can. With an impressive manager and some highly talented players to boot, Bayern Munich are sure to cause problems for any up-and-coming opposition in the Bundesliga, and any other competition for that matter.  The German football betting reflects this.

The Bavarians – or Die Bayern – are the present favourites for the Bundesliga title. Their best odds stand at 2/9, which is an incredibly short price regarding the fact that the Bundesliga's 2011/12 season has only just begun. 

Mourinho prepares for Ajax tie

Jose Mourinho prepares his side for a home tie Ajax on Wednesday night following a debate amongst Real Madrid's general assembly about the Portuguese manager. Some of the members were unhappy with the outspoken coach, and felt he has damaged the reputation of the club since his arrival.

Despite the heated debate, club president Florentino Perez did defend the 48-year old who moved to the Bernabeu in May 2010 from Italian side Inter Milan.

Real were back to winning ways on Saturday with a 6-2 victory over Real Vallecano, following a 1-0 defeat to Levante, and a 0-0 draw with Racing Santander.






Man United Bowling


They did start with a win in their opening Champions League game two weeks ago in Dinamo Zagreb, coming out on top with a 1-0 victory. However, the nine-time winners of the competition have not won the leading club trophy in Europe since 2002. Users of online betting sites will know all about this.

Mourinho has already won the tournament twice as a manager, once in 2004 with Porto, and more recently in 2010 with Inter Milan. He will be hoping to become the first man to win the competition three times with three different clubs as manager. However, you can certainly see Manchester United Bowling over this current Real squad.

The 'special one' will conclude the last game of his three match ban by UEFA on Wednesday. He was handed the punishment following last season's semi-final defeat to Barcelona, when the Portuguese coach made an outburst about the officiating in the match.

Despite the reports of disagreements in the board room, Real assistant coach Aitor Karanka has confirmed that everyone is together inside the dressing room.
He said: "Everyone at the club is united, not just yesterday but they have been for a long time."

Nani aiming high

Manchester United star Nani has insisted he wants to be likened to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi as one of the best players in world football.

The 24-year-old has bloomed at Old Trafford following his move from Portuguese outfit Sporting CP back in 2007, even though it took the winger a while to settle to the style of football in the Premier League.

Now the trickster is considered as one of the top players at United and showed why he is so highly valued when he scored a fabulous goal in the 3-1 victory over Chelsea, in arguably the biggest game of the season so far. Those looking at the Premier League best odds will know he seems to be getting better and better.

Nani played alongside Ronaldo for a short time at Old Trafford and you can see elements of the Real Madrid superstar in his protégé, who is making a name for himself in Europe, with some impressive performances in the Champions League last term. People who bet on Premier League games should bear this in mind.

After a strong start to the Premier League campaign, Nani has revealed some of his high aspirations for the future as he wants to go down as one of the game’s best.

He told Inside United: "That's one dream I've got: to be the best in the world.

"But I don't let it frustrate me. I have other priorities like winning trophies with the team.

"Hopefully, when I have finished playing football, people will say 'Nani was a fantastic player who won a lot of titles and beat records at the club'.

"I know I have the condition to be among the select best players in the world but I have to work hard and show that."

Soccer World: Hargreaves hoping to get career back on track

Owen Hargreaves must have the patience of a saint, given he has spent the best part of three years on the treatment table.

The 30-year-old last started a game for United in September 2008 after suffering from tendinitis in both knees.

Several aborted comeback attempts have been made since, including a start against Wolves last November that barely lasted five minutes before a hamstring injury forced him from the field. Regular Live Football  has eluded Hargreaves for too long.

He was released at the end of last season, sparking rumours that he was set to retire. However, the Canada born midfielder was determined to get back onto the field and went as far as releasing a YouTube video of himself, to prove his fitness to potential clubs.

In the end I doubt even Hargreaves would have expected United’s bitter rivals Manchester City to be the club who came in for him. But that was the reality in late August and in one of the more surprising moves of the window, Hargreaves signed for moneybags City.

He is set to make his first-team debut in the Carling Cup against Birmingham on Wednesday, though Mancini will leave it until the last minute to decide. Even if Hargreaves’ knees have recovered, three years without playing a full competitive 90 minutes will have taken its toll on the rest of his body.

It also remains to be seen whether his arrival will make any impact on City’s premier league odds. However, after all the pain and heartache of operations, rehabilitations, aborted comebacks and injury setbacks, Hargreaves will be grateful of any time spent across the white line and on the lush green turf of a football field.

Third Round 2011-12 Football League Cup: Leeds United Will Defeat Manchester United

Manchester United, bulldozing through the 2011-12 football campaigns, will lose to Leeds United in Third Round Carling Cup action. Here's four reasons why.

1. Ross McCormack: The 25-year-old Scottish attacker is en fuego right now with four goals in his last three matches for Leeds. The forward netted six already this year and will look to add to his tally against United.



2. It's at Elland Road: If this match was at United's pitch than Nani, Rooney and Co. would be walking away winners; feeding off the crowd will push Leeds to victory.

3. Ramón Núñez: El Principito finally is settled in at Leeds and the playmaker is beginning to showcase his talent for the English side. The former MLS (FC Dallas, Chivas) right-footed midfielder will make Hondurans the world over proud with his performance against Manchester United.



4. The Letdown: Manchester United has to lose sometime, right?

Back to Soccer City

Time to crank up the post machine. Soccer Beckhams.

Football World: Fans demand to be heard

Protest seems to be the words on the lips of two sets of fans in the Premier League this week as they have grown tired of their club’s plight.

Everton and Blackburn supporters are not known for their militancy, in fact protest goes against Blackburn’s sleepy Lancashire town image. Evertonians meanwhile usually see protests as ‘something Liverpool fans do’.

However, both sets of fans have been driven to despair by their current owners, who could not be more different.

Everton supporters are angry with the club’s apparent stagnation under Bill Kenwright, the theatre impresario whose love for the club is clear, but does not possess the wealth or ability to attract the fund require to support the club in the transfer market.

Toffees boss David Moyes has not had a net spend on players in three years and this summer raked in more than £20million in sales while only bringing in two loan players.

Supporters clubs are planning a protest on before Saturday’s game with Aston Villa to voice their demands for change.

A quick look into nearby Lancashire though spells a warning about what might happen if the club gets sold. Indian poultry farmers Venkys took control over Rovers almost 12 months ago. In a controversial early move they sacked Sam Allardyce and replaced him with the inexperienced Steve Kean. Lavish statements about signing Ronaldinho and Raul have been made since, but  the owners have largely failed to live up to their promises, and three defeats in a row this season has left the club bottom of the table and top of the relegation betting stakes.

Rovers supporters – like their Everton counterparts – now plan to protest ahead of their next home game.

But the questions is – what will it achieve? After all football fans being football fans, they will voice their discontent before paying their money and heading into the ground to support the team or pay their subscriptions to watch live football online. This fierce loyalty despite of anything is why boards have taken advantage of fans for decades.

The only benefit protest may bring is pressure courtesy of increased media coverage. That coverage though could portray the team as a side in crisis, lower confidence and actually make things worse.

Blackburn and Everton fans are probably aware of this, but they have been pushed to a point where they feel doing nothing would be just as dangerous.

Soccer World: Smaller teams should go for Carling Cup

The Carling Cup is not the most glamorous cup competition in the world but it is a great opportunity for some so called 'smaller' Premier League teams to have success and get into Europe.

For years there has been some discussion about the merits of the Carling Cup, with some managers putting out under strength sides, as they see the competition as a burden, have disrespected it to a fair degree. Those looking at the Carling Cup betting will be aware of this.

The competition remains important however and can provide a side with the chance to get into the Europa League, while it can also capture the imagination of fans with a trip to Wembley and increase overall optimism around the club.

Aston Villa could be dark horses to win the Carling Cup this season, especially considering their boss Alex McLeish led Birmingham to victory at Wembley in the competition last season. Anyone placing a Carling Cup bet should remember how upsets often occur.

They have a strong squad and the boss has shown in the past he is willing to give the Carling Cup a fair crack of the whip. Villa fans have been starved of any real success for years and a Wembley date, coupled with a trophy win, would well and truly win over any fans still questioning McLeish's appointment.

While the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City remain in the draw they will be the big scalps, but tradition usually shows the majority of these top teams drop out of the Carling Cup before the latter stages.

The top four sides also tend to put out reserve and youth team players for the competition which, while it gives fans a chance to see these new faces, it does undervalue the competition.

It would be better for football for a smaller side to win the Carling Cup rather that see a youth team make the final, only for the big guns to be rolled out at Wembley.

Liverpool finally in with a shout

This summer, Liverpool have again made crucial signings aimed at addressing key failures from last season – but there’s no massive change there.

Every close season since Roy Evan’s reign, Liverpool have signed “the last piece of the jigsaw puzzle”, be it Harry Kewell, Fernando Morientes, Fernando Torres, or most recently Joe Cole. 
 

Getting the Kop on his side was always going to be easy for a Liverpool legend like Dalglish, but this has been made so much easier by the carefully chosen criteria of his purchases. Buying young British talent is a quick-fire way to win over even the most sceptical of fans – especially after nine years of foreign managers bringing in unproven players, only to witness them fade into obscurity before disappearing back to their homeland at a fraction of the price for which they were brought in.

In Downing, Adam and Henderson, Dalglish has recruited three of the top performing midfielders from last season, and with their reputations already assured, a re-sale price can be competitively negotiated should they feel the need to move on in the future.

But in the short term – and that’s all modern-day managers can really bring themselves to think about – he has also brought in Jose Enrique to solve their long-standing problem at left-back and Craig Bellamy as a back-up striker. Already Enrique looks like a well-established member of their back four, and with 20-year-old Sebastian Coates lined up to replace the recently-departed Sotirios Kyrgiakos, they now look like they possess a squad that won’t need major investment to compete year-on-year and whose Premier League odds look favourable.

At right-back they have the impressive John Flanagan and Martin Kelly pushing Glen Johnson hard for a starting place, and up front both Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll will have benefited from a full pre-season under their belts. Already their bench looks infinitely stronger than it did for the majority of last term – against Arsenal last weekend it boasted no fewer than five full internationals.

They may not deliver their long-suffering fans the title this year, or even next – but the football betting suggests they are on an upward curve, and that change was all that was required after the recent stagnation that had set in around Anfield.