Category Uncategorized

يبدو أن المنافسة على مقعد عضوية الاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم “فيفا” ستكون شرسة للغاية هذه المرة، خاصة بعد عزم عدة أسماء كبيرة داخل القارة الإفريقية، الترشح لنيل المنصب المهم.

وأعلن كل من هاني أبو ريدة رئيس الاتحاد المصري لكرة القدم السابق، وعضو اللجنة التنفيذية بالاتحاد الدولي، ترشحه لفترة أخرى، وأيضا فوزي لقجع رئيس الاتحاد المغربي، والغيني الاستوائي غوستافو ندونغ.

وعلى الجانب الآخر، بدأ رئيس الاتحاد الجزائري لكرة القدم، خير الدين زطشي، رفقة مسؤولين آخرين، تنفيذ الخطة التي رسمها في إطار الترويج لملف ترشحه لنيل عضوية الاتحاد الدولي، خلال انتخابات الاتحاد الأفريقي “كاف” المقرر إجراؤها في عاصمة المملكة المغربية، الرباط، يوم 12 من مارس المقبل.

وكشف موقع “البطولة” المغربي، عن تفاصيل خطة الجزائري زطشي، حيث أكد أنه سافر إلى الكاميرون قبل انطلاق كأس أمم أفريقيا للاعبين المحليين 2020، بغية الترويج لملف ترشحه في سباق نيل عضوية الفيفا، ومنافسة المغربي فوزي لقجع، والمصري هاني أبو ريدة والغيني الاستوائي غوستافو ندونغ.

وأكد الموقع في تقريره، أن رئيس الاتحاد الجزائري عمل على لقاء رؤساء الاتحادات الوطنية خلال تواجده في الكاميرون لحضور مسابقة “الشان” التي يغيب عنها منتخب بلاده، وكان له لقاء خاص مع باتريس موتسيبي، المرشح الجنوب أفريقي لرئاسة الـ”كاف”، في محاولة منه للبحث عن تحالف إقليمي يقوده لنيل أكبر عدد من الأصوات في سباق نيل عضوية المكتب التنفيذي للاتحاد الدولي.

وأوضح أن زطشي لم يحصل على ضمانات من موتسيبي، ثم حاول التقرب إلى منافسين آخرين على رئاسة الـ”كاف”، فكانت له لقاءات أخرى بالإيفواري جاك أنوما، والسنغالي أوغستين سنغور، بالإضافة إلى الكاميروني عيسى حياتو، والذي تم تنصيبه قبل بداية “الشان” كرئيس فخري للاتحاد الأفريقي.

طالع أيضا.. كاف يفتح باب الترشح لاستضافة نهائي دوري أبطال إفريقيا والكونفدرالية 2021

وأكد الإعلام الجزائري إن حديث زطشي وعيسى حياتو كان مطولاً لأكثر من ساعة، في إشارة إلى محاولة الجزائري الاستعانة بـ النظام القديم في الـ”كاف” من أجل تعزيز فرصه في انتخابات 12 مارس.

وأشار التقرير، إلى أن زطشي أجرى مقابلة أخرى مع رئيس الاتحاد الدولي، جياني إنفانتينو، حيث اكتفى الأخير بدعوته للمشاركة في الاجتماع الذي يأتي على هامش مسابقة كأس العالم للأندية 2020، والتي ستقام في قطر خلال الفترة ما بين 1 و11 فبراير 2021 .

ويرى زطشي -حسب التقارير الإعلامية الجزائرية- أن الخطوة المقبلة (عند تواجده في قطر) هي إيجاد الدعم الإقليمي والدولي وموطئ قدم لبلده داخل دواليب الـ”فيفا”، بينما يواصل منافسوه، ومن بينهم رئيس الجامعة الملكية المغربية لكرة القدم، فوزي لقجع، العمل لكسب الأصوات وتمثيل الكرة الأفريقية داخل الجهاز الوصي على اللعبة في العالم.

[ad_pod ]

Lots of Everton fans have taken to Twitter to react after it was confirmed by the Toffees’ official account that Leighton Baines had signed a new 12-month contract with the club.

The England international’s deal at Goodison Park was set to expire at the end of the month, but the Merseysiders have moved to tie down their club icon for another 12 months in a move that has delighted a lot of fans on the popular social media platform.

Check out a fan’s outrageous call for England to take a leaf of out cricket and rugby’s book after a limp Nations League performance in the video below…

Baines only managed to make eight appearances last term following the £18m arrival of Lucas Digne – who won the club’s Player of the Season award – but he can still offer experienced, reliable backup to the French international.

As the Toffees’ official tweet below states, the 34-year-old will be embarking on his 13th season as an Everton player, which is a remarkable achievement and proves that the left-back really is part of the furniture at Goodison Park.

Watch Everton Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Judging by the tweets below, he is a legend at Everton and a lot of the Toffees fans are over the moon with the news of his contract extension…

[ad_pod ]

So, it’s the big one this weekend. The domestic season-ender. The FA Cup final, no less.

Manchester City (unsurprisingly) are involved and will be looking to record a treble of trophies having already secured the Carabao Cup and the Premier League title.

In Watford’s case, Javi Gracia’s men will be looking to round off an encouraging campaign by lifting the FA Cup for the first time. If they do manage to pull off the unthinkable, then a place in the Europa League awaits them.

You may think this tie is a foregone conclusion given the Citizens’ immeasurable might compared to the Hornets’ inconsistencies – they ended their league season with a 4-1 defeat at home to West Ham.

Wolves Fan TV place the blame for Wolves’ FA Cup semi-final collapse on John Ruddy in the video below…

However, Gracia’s men have shown what they’re capable of this term, and they most certainly shouldn’t be written off, especially not in a cup final.

Ahead of the game we’ve taken a look at the factors which could shape the result, including the head-to-head record, a key midfield battle and predicted starting line-ups…

What History Tells Us

The head-to-head record between the two teams doesn’t make great reading for Watford supporters.

City can boast an impressive 17 wins to the Hornets’ six, whilst they have also scored considerably more goals with 54 in comparison to Watford’s 25.

Perhaps the most worrying statistics of them all for fans of Gracia’s side are the ones showing City’s vastly superior record in the FA Cup; the Citizens have been involved in 10 finals, winning five of them, in comparison to Watford’s single final, which they lost.

Key Battle

Raheem Sterling and Gerard Deulofeu are both players who can make the difference for their sides at Wembley this weekend, and the stats prove that.

The England international hit 17 goals and recorded 10 assists in the league this season, form that saw him named as the Football Writers’ Player of the Year, and he has finally started to step up for the national team. His comfort levels playing at Wembley could be a key factor.

In Deulofeu’s case, however, the Spaniard is finally starting to step up his end product and has been in blistering form in the second half of the campaign. The former Barcelona forward has 10 goals and 5 assists in the league, whilst it was his excellent double against Wolves in the semi-final that got his team into the final.

Both teams should try their hardest to get the ball to their respective danger-men if they want to have the best chance of winning this tie.

Ref in Focus

Kevin Friend will be the man making the decisions at Wembley this weekend, and he won’t take too much nonsense.

The 47-year-old has taken charge of the joint 5th most Premier League games this season with 27, handing out three red cards and 92 yellows in the process.

He ranks sixth out of all 18 Premier League refs in the yellow and red card rankings, whilst he is at the same position on the list for fouls per tackle.

In the grand scheme of things, Friend seems to be a measured official judging by the stats and one who should let the game flow, although he won’t be scared to dish out the cards if emotions spill overboard and tackles turn nasty.

Team News

Watford will be going into the FA Cup final with a lot of luck on their side regarding injuries.

No key first-team players will miss the tie, with only Sebastian Prodl and Domingos Quina absent for Gracia.

Fortunately for the Hornets, Jose Holebas saw the red card he picked up against West Ham rescinded, meaning he is free to play against City.

Gracia’s 4-2-2-2 system, which has proven to be very effective this season, will be at full strength and raring to go against Pep Guardiola’s back-to-back champions.

For City, they will be without the crocked Benjamin Mendy, meaning the ever dependable Oleksandr Zinchenko should keep his place at Wembley.

Crucially for Guardiola, Fernandinho is a doubt for the fixture. The Brazilian has been struggling with a knee injury but was able to train this week, so it remains to be seen whether he will start the game from the first whistle.

Aymeric Laporte and Kyle Walker will especially enjoy the wide Wembley turf on Saturday, where the latter will be tearing up and down the pitch all evening, whilst the Frenchman’s excellent long-range passing could prove pivotal.

If City win, they will become the first team to ever win the domestic treble in England.

Are Watford the most likely club to break the top 6 next season? The fans in the video below certainly agree the ‘W’ part of that statement is correct…

[ad_pod ]

Rangers fans couldn’t contain their delight on Sunday afternoon as they romped to a convincing 2-0 win in the Old Firm derby at Ibrox.

Towards the end of a maiden campaign which has been incredibly tempestuous for Steven Gerrard at times, the victory provided a moment of euphoria to install optimism into the club ahead of next season.

Plenty of individual players received gushing praise in the aftermath of proceedings, but it’s fair to say the admiration for Glen Kamara was unrivalled.

Indeed, the 23-year-old was a rock in the heart of midfield, pocketing Scott Brown in a complete performance.

The recent recruit has made a seamless transition to life at Rangers and his rapidly rising reputation culminated on Sunday, leaving supporters in meltdown on Twitter.

Plenty of fans were eager to underline the fact that he got the better of Celtic legend Brown in midfield, while others are simply struggling to fathom how the club managed to sign him for just £50k.

Bargains of this magnitude are rare in the modern game but it appears that Gerrard has managed to steal a rare gem.

That the midfielder has already started 14 SPFL matches since joining the club from Dundee suggests the manager is a huge admirer of his talents, and this could well be the start of a special relationship between player and club.

Here’s what the Gers faithful had to say about his performance…

[ad_pod ]

West Ham United manager Manuel Pellegrini has been set the target of qualifying for the Europa League next season, per ClaretandHugh.

What’s the word?

The former Manchester City boss guided the Hammers to a 10th-placed finish in 2018-19 and enjoyed an excellent conclusion to the campaign as the club won all of their final three matches, including a 1-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur.

The club briefly flirted with a seventh-placed finish, which could – if City beat Watford in the FA Cup final – ensure qualification for the Europa League; Wolves will be the beneficiaries if Pep Guardiola’s side win at Wembley.

Pellegrini has now been told that the club need to kick on in 2019-20, though he may not be helped by the club’s transfer budget.

The report claims that the Chilean will be given a basic budget of £30million to spend, though that can be topped up by the sales of players.

Put up or shut up

It’s time for David Gold and David Sullivan to dig deep and back their manager.

West Ham spent £99m last summer and that kind of investment is needed again if the Irons are to challenge the likes of Wolves and Leicester City to become the ‘best of the rest’.

There are very few clubs who will turn down the opportunity to enter the transfer market this summer and a budget of £30m is paltry.

Javier Hernandez, Lucas Perez and Andy Carroll could all leave the club but the only true saleable asset that West Ham have is Marko Arnautovic, who has a £45m release clause in his contract. Unsurprisingly, they want him to stay.

Pellegrini, then, will be asked to perform miracles next season if the right players aren’t brought in. If they fail to qualify for Europe, it will not be down to him; it will be down to the tight-fistedness of the club’s owners.

[ad_pod ]

Watford progressed to the FA Cup final with a sensational 3-2 win over Wolves last weekend having come back from a two-goal deficit to equalise in the dying seconds and then take a decisive lead in extra time.

The Hornets looked down and out when Raul Jimenez acrobatically fired home his side’s second in the 62nd minute and even he must have thought that his strike would see Nuno Espirito Santo’s side through, as he pulled on a customised luchador mask.

Gerard Deulofeu had a point to prove though after coming off the bench and quickly brought his side back into the game with a special goal, before Troy Deeney cast fans’ minds back to 2013 with a 94th minute penalty to ensure the game went to the two-hour mark.

The Watford skipper is no stranger to producing semi-final heroics having been crucial in the Hornets’ incredible Championship play-off victory over Leicester in the 2012/13 season.

The Foxes led 1-0 on aggregate prior to the crunch clash on 12th May 2013 but Matej Vydra levelled 15 minutes in with a stunning, left-footed volley against the run of play, before Leicester’s David Nugent put the visitors ahead once again just four minutes later.

Watford might have scored a stunning opener but they were far from their best in the first half and Gianfranco Zola was desperate for a response after the break – the Italian got exactly that.

The Hornets were able to string some passes and moves together and looked threatening when they got forward, with Cristian Battocchio and Almen Abdi both going agonisingly close to an equaliser. Fortunately, the pair’s blushes were saved by EFL Player of the Year Vydra.

The now-Burnley man combined well with Deeney before slotting clinically into the bottom corner. From that point on, it looked like only one team was going to win it, as Zola’s men probed and probed, although disaster struck in injury time.

Defender Marco Cassetti, who had teed up Vydra for his wonder-volley, was controversially adjudged to have fouled Anthony Knockaert, who picked himself back up to take the resulting spot-kick.

The Frenchman took a number of deep, heavy breaths before running up to hit the ball… straight at Watford custodian Manuel Almunia, who then recovered to block Knockaert’s rebound before hoofing away from danger and so began the famous Hornets counter attack.

Wolves Fan TV place the blame for Wolves’ FA Cup semi-final collapse on John Ruddy in the video below…

Fernando Forestieri was fed through down the wing and crossed towards Jonathan Hogg at the back post who, instead of going for goal himself, intelligently nodded down to an onrushing Deeney. He nearly took the net off with his half-volley, thus putting Watford in the play-off final and that jaw-dropping game into the history books.

The Hornets would go on to lose to Crystal Palace in the final but have been able to battle their way into the Premier League, where they have established themselves as one of the best of the rest, since. Will Javi Gracia’s men do the impossible against Manchester City on 18th May?

[ad_pod ]

Unai Emery has been praised for his ability to prepare tactically for the opposition, for adapting in games to poor performances and for being flexible in the way his Arsenal side have played. However, constant change isn’t what Emery will be striving for, and there’s a reason for his relentless switch-up of formations in games.

The Chalkboard

Emery started the season at home to Manchester City with his side playing a back four (4-2-3-1 formation) and insisted in that game that his side play out from the back with goal-kicks.

In this game, his first ever in the Premier League, he immediately forced his philosophy on the players, and what’s telling is that he adopted the back four in doing so. In his first ‘big test’ since August, against Liverpool, he once again lined up with a back four.

The use of the three-at-the-back system didn’t actually become an option till the end of November, but now fans and pundits will do well to remember a time when Arsenal didn’t line up with some sort of variation of a 3-4-3 or 3-5-2 formation.

Arsenal reverted back to a 4-2-3-1 formation for the midweek game against Wolves, but found themselves battered by half-time. So the question is, what is Emery’s preferred formation and what’s he trying to achieve?

All about width

The only consistency in Emery’s approach to games is in his desire to attack the flanks, whoever he faces. He’s often deployed the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Henrick Mkhitaryan and Alex Iwobi out on the wing in an attempt to make the pitch as big as possible and have his most dangerous players in acres of space when attacking.

This was even more evident by the advanced positions players like Hector Bellerin and Sead Kolasinac would find themselves in to provide the overlapping option. Full-backs being used in this way isn’t particularly innovative, but the Arsenal right and left-backs were getting into very dangerous positions on a far more regular basis than we’d become used to seeing.

Emery’s clearly proving he wants to focus his football down the right and left, but what’s more telling than just his choices of formation and system is his desperate desire to sign a winger in the summer and winter transfer window. In January, Arsenal reportedly missed out on signing several wingers, and Emery continued with 3-4-3.

This formation along with 3-5-2 has allowed Emery to get the best out of his biggest threats from wide areas, surprisingly Sead Kolasinac and Ainsley Maitland-Niles. Hector Bellerin was also brilliant before his injury.

The issue for Emery is that the wide options he’s inherited at the club simply aren’t good enough to have the desired effect, and so he’s adapting by fielding an extra centre-back and allowing the far more dangerous wing-backs to get further forward. Alex Iwobi and Henrikh Mhkitaryan’s lack of end product from these areas are forcing Emery into changes to his system he doesn’t feel comfortable making.

Long-term, fans should be confident that Emery will take a more consistent approach, though that won’t come until he’s found out which players he can and can’t trust. His persistence with Iwobi suggests he is desperately trying to find a player of real quality within him, but it simply isn’t coming as the Nigerian’s form continues to be patchy and uninspiring.

Emery is having to sacrifice some of his own principles just to get the wing-backs higher up the pitch and without leaving his defence exposed. Whilst the formation is challenged by many fans, the three-at-the-back system he deploys will one day be looked back on as a teething problem that Arsenal had to come through under the Spaniard before he found the players he needed to embrace the use of traditional wingers once again.

[ad_pod ]

Matt Murray has sung the praises of Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish, a player who only seems to be getting better as the weeks go by, while speaking on The Debate podcast this week.

What’s he said?

Grealish has been a hot topic in recent months with the attacking midfielder turning in some excellent displays in the Championship.

This season, the Villa man has five goals and five assists in 28 league outings, demonstrating his importance to Dean Smith’s team.

He’s been one of the driving forces behind the Midlands clubs’ strong hopes of promotion and, as a result, has attracted reported interest from the likes of Tottenham.

The 23-year-old has earned rave reviews and he’s now received praise from Sky Sports pundit, Murray. While speaking on The Debate at 37:10, he said:

“Jack Grealish for me is an absolutely fantastic footballer. I think he’s brilliant.”

Plenty more to come

Grealish is a fascinating footballer. When he first burst onto the scene with Villa in the Premier League there seemed to be a lot of hype around him. However, after failing to get a move when they went down it seemed as though his stock had fallen.

But what’s been pivotal to his turnaround and improved form this season is the Villans’ manager, Smith. Murray’s comments on the Debate are symptomatic of this, with the midfielder adding more goals and assists to his game under the former Brentford boss.

In terms of the number of goals he’s been involved in, the 2018/19 season represents his best to date so it’s no surprise to see him attracting the interest of one of England’s top clubs.

However, it isn’t just his goals and assists that have stood out but his leadership credentials have come to the forefront under Smith too. He has given him extra responsibility and the player seems to be relishing it.

His attitude has definitely improved and you sense there is plenty more to come from Grealish. Whether that’s at Villa or another club is a different matter, though.

[ad_pod ]

With the FA Cup returning this weekend, the Fixture In Focus Podcast team have decided to take up the opportunity to momentarily break away from all matters on-pitch.

Indeed, this week’s episode is a special edition honing in on the world of goalkeeping, perhaps the most under-discussed, under-represented and misconceived position in modern football.

Host James Jones and #FIFpod regular Christy Malyan would only be adding to the problem by pretending to be knowledgeable masters of the trade, so they’ve drafted in the help of former Watford and Brentford goalkeeper Richard Lee for an exclusive chat.

In a wide-ranging interview, the agenda included the mental battle goalkeepers constantly face, how poor punditry has lead to wrongful criticism of Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa, Ben Foster’s incredible form this season and the debate over which shot-stoppers should be included in the next England squad.

If you love what we do and don’t want to miss another episode, don’t forget to subscribe on your preferred podcast platform by clicking here.

//fixtureinfocus.podiant.co/e/3711b27d732d58/embed/

أعلن طلعت يوسف المدير الفني لفريق الكرة الأول بنادي الاتحاد السكندري تجميد لاعب خط الوسط نور السيد.

وكان نور السيد قد غاب عن مباراة الأهلي والاتحاد السكندري في الجولة 27 من عمر الدوري المصري الممتاز، بعدما استبعده يوسف لأسباب رفض الكشف عنها.

طالع | نور السيد يرد عبر بطولات على أنباء تحريضه للاعبي الاتحاد قبل مواجهة الأهلي

وقال طلعت يوسف في تصريحات تلفزيونية عبر فضائية “أون تايم سبورتس”: “نور السيد ارتكب خطأ لا يغتفر، وتم إيقافه لنهاية الموسم، وخصم جزءً من عقده”.

وأضاف: “لم يحدث منه هذا الأمر مرة واحدة ولكن 3 مرات، وعوقب عقوبة شديدة واعتذر أمام الكل، ولكن الموضوع أصبح ثقيلا ولا يليق”.

وأتم: “الحديث عن التجديد في الموسم المقبل يحتاج إلى التروي بعض الشىء، وبعد ذلك نأخذ القرار المناسب الذي فيه مصلحة لي وللنادي”.

وأتم متحدثًا عن إهدار ركلة جزاء أمام الأهلي: “أحمد رفعت هو رقم واحد في تسديد ركلات الجزاء، لكن ثقة محمد الشناوي في التصدي كانت أقوى”.

ويحتل فريق الاتحاد بعد تعادله سلبيًا مع الأهلي على ملعب برج العرب، المركز الخامس في سلم ترتيب الدوري المصري الممتاز برصيد 37 نقطة.