Tag Archives: month

Arsene Wenger expects Jack Wilshere to become an England centurion

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Bale is the flavour of the month… But Wilshere will be an England centurion, claims Wenger

By
Jim Van Wijk, Press Association

PUBLISHED:

22:50 GMT, 2 March 2013

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UPDATED:

09:40 GMT, 3 March 2013

No pressure: Jack Wilshere is expected to win 100 caps, according to Wenger

No pressure: Jack Wilshere is expected to win 100 caps, according to Wenger

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is in no doubt midfielder Jack Wilshere can outlast the hype and go on to earn a century of caps for England.

Wilshere, 21, returned from more than a year out injured in October, but is already being heralded as an integral part of the future hopes of both club and country.

Arsenal head to Tottenham on Sunday, where they will come up against in-form Welshman Gareth Bale, who has drawn comparisons with Europe's best after his match-winning performances this season.

Wenger believes his own talented midfielder has everything ahead of him.

'Bale is the flavour of the moment. When you look at Wilshere, who will deny that this guy will get 100 caps for England Nobody, if he has no injury,' said Wenger.

'My worry is not to compare Wilshere with anyone else. My only worry when you are a footballer player of that talent is to become as good as you can become.

'That is the only thing that is of interest to me. I leave the comparisons to other people. My job is to get the best out of him.'

Talking a good game: Wenger (left) and Wilshere (right)

Talking a good game: Wenger (left) and Wilshere (right)

Wenger feels it is sometimes overlooked just how much Wilshere has achieved since arriving at the club aged nine.

'You tend to forget how old he is when you see him play. You never come out of a game and think 'this guy is 21 years old'. He's at a stage where the others have not started,' said Wenger.

'You think of Jack (as) an established player in the Premier League and at international level, that is still something special.'

Wenger feels Wilshere will develop into Arsenal's natural leader. He continued: 'Jack breathes football. He doesn't talk too much, but he understands everything.

On the run: Wilshere (right) takes on Bayern Munich's Bastian Schweinsteiger

On the run: Wilshere (right) takes on Bayern Munich's Bastian Schweinsteiger

'What he has exceeded is the speed of his physical fitness in the game. Honestly, I never expected that.'

Wilshere has yet to score in the Premier League this season, but Wenger feels that the goals will soon come.

'I believe it's part of his development to play a bit more advanced,” the Arsenal boss said.

'In some games, he is more comfortable deeper. I believe he has a little dribble that can get him through in the final third and the finishing will come.

'He's a bit in a situation like (Cesc) Fabregas was for a while. He said to me “but I cannot score goals', however you could see that it would come.

'Jack doesn't talk about it, but who doesn't want to score goals He is more a team player than a goalscorer.

'He will never be a goalscorer, but he can be capable to score.'

Arsenal head across north London defending a five-match unbeaten run, with three victories on the bounce, as they look to move back to just one point behind their rivals.

Wenger accepts there are no longer any margins for error if his team at to secure another top-four finish.

'It is still open, but I am realistic and we cannot drop points,' he said.

'One or two of the other teams will always win over the weekend. If we drop points we can fall quickly behind.

'So there are two things we cannot do – drop points and also speculate over the weaknesses of our opponents because that can be deadly as well.'

Lance Armstrong stripped of Tour de France titles

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Armstrong stripped of Tour de France titles and banned for life as UCI ratify sanctions against disgraced rider

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UPDATED:

13:01 GMT, 22 October 2012

Lance Armstrong has been stripped of his seven Tour de France titles after
the sport's world governing body, the UCI, accepted the findings of the
United States Anti-Doping Agency's investigation.

Armstrong refused to co-operate with USADA, who earlier this month published
a 1,000-page report which concluded the Texan and his United States Postal
Service team ran 'the most sophisticated, professionalised and successful doping
programme that sport has ever seen'.

Shamed: Lance Armstrong has been stripped of his titles after the UCI endorsed the USADA sanctions

Shamed: Lance Armstrong has been stripped of his titles after the UCI endorsed the USADA sanctions

In accordance with the World Anti-Doping Code, the UCI had 21 days to
respond, until October 31, and president Pat McQuaid today announced the world
governing body would accept USADA's findings and ratified the sanctions imposed
on Armstrong.

It means the Texan has been stripped of all results since August 1, 1998 and
banned for life.

At a media conference in Geneva, McQuaid said: '(The UCI) will not appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and it will recognise the sanctions that USADA has imposed.

'The UCI will ban Lance Armstrong from cycling and the UCI will strip him of his seven Tour de France titles. Lance Armstrong has no place in cycling.'

Endorsement: UCI chief Pat McQuaid confirmed the governing body accepted the Lance Armstrong sanctions

Endorsement: UCI chief Pat McQuaid confirmed the governing body accepted the Lance Armstrong sanctions

Eleven former team-mates of Armstrong testified against him to USADA, receiving six-month bans.

These suspensions were also ratified by the UCI, which thanked the riders for giving evidence against Armstrong.

McQuaid added: 'The UCI will also recognise the sanctions imposed on the riders who testified against Lance Armstrong; UCI indeed thanks them for telling their stories.'

Banned: Armstrong has been stripped of his seven Tour titles by the USADA, but claims he was the victim of a 'witch hunt'

Banned: Armstrong has been stripped of his seven Tour titles by the USADA, but claims he was the victim of a 'witch hunt'

The UCI, particularly the leadership of McQuaid and honorary president Hein Verbruggen, who was president at the time of Armstrong's record run of Tour success, have met criticism over the USADA investigation.

Allegations have been made against the UCI, which McQuaid dismissed.

'UCI has nothing to hide in responding to the USADA report,' he said. 'The UCI has called a special meeting of the UCI management committee next Friday to discuss this report and the measures which the UCI wishes to put in place in order that we are never faced with such a situation in the future.'

Not so magnificent seven: Armstrong's wins have been erased from the Tour de France record books

Not so magnificent seven: Armstrong's wins have been erased from the Tour de France record books

While addressing the past, McQuaid was steadfast in his belief that cycling has a positive future.

He added: 'This is a landmark day for cycling. Cycling has endured a lot of pain as it has absorbed the impact of the USADA report.

'UCI promised to prioritise our analysis of the report and to provide an early response and we've done that.

'My message to cycling, to our riders, to our sponsors and to our fans today is: cycling has a future.

Support: Cyclists gathered to listen to Armstrong's address at the start of the annual Team Livestrong Challenge in Austin on Sunday

Support: Cyclists gathered to listen to Armstrong's address at the start of the annual Team Livestrong Challenge in Austin on Sunday

'This is not the first time that cycling has reached a crossroads or that it has had to begin anew and to engage in the painful process of confronting its past.

'It will do so again with renewed vigour and purpose and its stakeholders and fans can be assured that it will find a new path forward.

'We're here to answer your questions and to say to the cycling community: UCI is listening and is on your side.

'We've come too far in the fight against doping to return to our past.

'Cycling has a future and something like this must never happen again.'

Armstrong always protested his innocence, but he has lost support from some of his major sponsors since USADA's report was made public.

Nike, Trek and Anheuser-Busch, brewers of Budweiser, all severed their ties with Armstrong, while fashion brand Oakley are reviewing their position in the wake of the doping scandal which has transcended sport.

Armstrong has also stepped down from his position as chairman of his cancer charity, Livestrong.

He made his first public appearance on Friday at the 15th anniversary celebration of the charity. He said to the 1,700-strong gathering: 'I am truly humbled by your support.

'It's been an interesting couple of weeks. It's been a difficult couple of weeks for me and my family, my friends and this foundation.

'I say, “I've been better, but I've also been worse”.'

Bradford Bulls make 16 redundancies

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Head coach and chief executive sacked as crisis-hit Bulls make 16 redundancies

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UPDATED:

12:46 GMT, 2 July 2012

The axe fell on staff at beleaguered Bradford Bulls when Brendan Guilfoyle, the man appointed as administrator, announced 16 redundancies.

Those sacked include head coach Mick Potter and chief executive Ryan Duckett, who is a member of the club's board of directors.

'This is an attempt to reduce our cash requirements,' Guilfoyle said.

Crisis: Sixteen people have been made redundant at Bradford Bulls

Crisis: Sixteen people have been made redundant at Bradford Bulls

Guilfoyle says the club still intend
to fulfil Sunday's Stobart Super League home game against London Broncos
and he was due to meet the Rugby Football League this afternoon to seek
assistance.

The Bulls went into administration
after the club's directors failed to raise the 1.2million they say was
needed to see them through to the end of the season.

Gone: Potter has been sacked

Gone: Potter has been sacked

Bradford owed around 300,000 to the HM Revenue & Customs, who were poised to issue a winding-up petition.

'In the month of July I will need
around a quarter of a million pounds to keep the club going and I've got
20,000 maximum in the bank,' Guilfoyle said.

'I have made 16 redundancies, including Mick Potter and three coaches. I am looking at fulfilling Sunday's fixture.

'The players have been asked to
report back for work at 10 o'clock in the morning and I am going to see
the RFL this afternoon to seek their assistance.'

The news stunned the Bradford
players, with prop Nick Scruton tweeting: 'Awful day today. People lives
are been (sic) ruined with no consequences. Hope things get sorted soon
for everyone's sake.'

Newcastle welcome back Afriab duo

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Two out of three ain't bad… Pardew sees African duo return

Having survived the dreaded month of
January without his African trio, Newcastle manager Alan Pardew looks
forward to welcoming two of them back on Sunday.

Top scorer Demba Ba and his Senegal
team-mate Papa Cisse will be available to face Aston Villa after
returning from their African Nations Cup duties much earlier than
expected.

The strike pair, who had travelled
to the tournament as one of the favourites, trained with Pardew's squad
for the first time on Friday and the Newcastle manager has the dilemma
of whether to throw them in from the start against Villa or put them on
the bench.

Warme welcome on cold day: Papiss Demba Cisse (right) and Demba Ba (left)

Warme welcome on cold day: Papiss Demba Cisse (right) and Demba Ba (left)

It is a welcome problem for Pardew who must have feared his team would lose their way in the absence of the pair, and influential midfielder Cheik Tiote.

Although Newcastle were knocked out of the FA Cup at Brighton last week, they moved into fifth in the Premier League with their win at Blackburn in midweek.

But Pardew said the return of the Senegalese strikers had given his squad a lift as they aim to move level with Chelsea in fourth and maintain their charge for European qualification.

The Newcastle boss said: 'We've got some difficult decisions on Sunday. The team did brilliantly at Blackburn and the two Senegalese guys have come back from a long journey.

Hat-a boy: Pardew

Hoppy to be home: Cisse brought a lift to the atmosphere at Newcastle's training complex

Hat-ta boy: Pardew (left) felt Cisse (right) gave the training session a lift

'On the training ground today you could tell there was a different atmosphere. When you get two really good players back everybody wants to show their quality. It was a nice atmosphere.

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'We had Demba back on the training ground and his personality around the place gave us all a lift. There's been a different flavour on the training ground this morning. It's been really nice. Not all the boys did the full session but a few them stood around to have a nose and see how Cisse got on. I think he impressed one or two.

'He will be direct and he is single minded about goal scoring and in training he has shown that already. He takes shots early, his hold up play is good and his is an all round good player.

'And with Demba also being from Senegal it ticked a lot of boxes.'

Meanwhile Pardew has backed striker Shola Ameobi to brush off the racist abuse which he was subjected to this week.

Northumbria police have launched an investigation after the 30-year-old was attacked via Facebook just months after his younger brother Sammy, who also plays for the Magpies, was targeted on Twitter.

Pardew said: 'It's a two-edged sword. There's one side of that that you don't want to see, and it's insulting and everything that goes with it. But on the other side it highlights the issue, that it needs to be eradicated from our society.

'The publicity around Shola won't affect him, he's far too big and strong to be affected by that.'

Chris Foy: Richard Cockerill is much safer than his French rivals

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Cockerill is much safer than his French rivals

Jean-Pierre Elissalde didn't stand a chance, but Richard Cockerill does.

In the increasingly volatile world of club coaching, Leicester is not the worst place to be – nor is England as a whole, for that matter.

Leicester coach Richard Cockerill

Setback: Leicester coach Richard Cockerill

Elissalde was sacked by Bayonne this week, having been in charge at the Basque club for all of a month-and-a-half.

He was appointed in early December after the dismissal of Christian Gajan and his entire coaching staff, as an influx of overseas stars including Wales scrum-half Mike Phillips had not had the desired effect in producing an immediate assault on the Top 14 title.

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Last Friday, Leicester suffered their worst defeat in 15 seasons of Heineken Cup rugby – going down 41-7 against Ulster at Ravenhill.

Asked afterwards what the 'repercussions' might be, Cockerill's reaction suggested that he interpreted it as a question about his own future. It was not, but his tense mood was understandable following Newcastle's removal of head coach Alan Tait the previous day.

Yet Tait was clearly struggling, whereas Cockerill is not. Prior to the heavy loss in Belfast, the Tigers had won 11 out of 12 games.

This was a stark and alarming setback, but not a reason for upheaval.

This week, Cockerill defended his record, pointing to Leicester reaching four finals during his three years in charge.

Yet, his willingness to take guidance from an experienced figure such as Graham Henry is an indication that he understands the need to learn and develop further.

The Tigers hierarchy are not about to sack him.

As a whole, there is less volatility in the English game than in French rugby, where the arrival of so many super-rich owners has coincided with a more cut-throat approach to hiring and firing, more akin to football in this country.

As yet, there has been nothing here to match the bloodlust and bedlam at Blackburn Rovers FC, where angry, banner-waving, bilespewing protests go on and manager Steve Kean has to go out with a personal security guard.

The notion of Cockerill needing a minder to wander the streets of Leicester is quite amusing. Woe betide anyone who shouts abuse in his direction.

In domestic rugby, disgruntled fans don't protest, they just stop turning up – as Newcastle have found, with attendances dipping below 4,000.

That is a concern, but there is not yet extreme menace from the stands or from the boardroom.

If that is what comes with more money, then maybe tightened belts aren't such a bad thing after all.

A Glasgow Chris

Castre's captain Chris Masoe

Glasgow have taken the unusual step of releasing a statement about their own rejection. The Warriors had been in talks with Castres captain and former All Black Chris Masoe (right) over a move to Scotland. But after a visit to Scotstoun Stadium, the 32-year-old decided that it wasn't for him.

Remarkably, his decision appears to have been taken as a positive development worth sharing, as the statement quoted Masoe as saying: 'Although I'm not going to be joining the Warriors, I'd like to make a point of putting on record how impressed I've been with the club.'

The episode shows that Glasgow need to focus on retaining their own talent, as pedigree overseas players are not being enticed.

Owen faces Gavin 'treatment'

There is an increasingly obvious correlation between the profile of a player and the array of odds offered by bookmakers about their on-field exploits and off-field issues. Take Gavin Henson.

This week, prior to his call-up to Wales's squad for the RBS Six Nations, Ladbrokes were offering 400-1 that the 'part-time celebrity' and full-time Blues back would help his country win the championship and get married this year. In the past, odds have been offered on the exact hue of his fake tan. Saracens are evidently keen for Owen Farrell to avoid such unwanted attention ahead of his impending England debut.

Amid increasing scrutiny of the 20-year-old fly-half-cum-centre, his club's director of rugby, Mark McCall, has asked media to say less, ask less and write less about him. The request came with a smile, but the sentiment was clear. Unfortunately, McCall is fighting a losing battle while Farrell's kicking keeps winning matches.

RFU are ready

A gilt-edged chance to enhance rugby participation will come after the home World Cup in 2015 – and this time the RFU are determined to be ready. The authorities were caught cold after England's triumph in 2003 and as Steve Grainger, RFU development director, said: 'If facilities are not adequate or there's not enough coaching, we've lost the moment.'

The last word

Donal Courtney, the former Irish referee who now acts as ERC's match officials performance manager, has been talking about the language barrier.

Clubs and countries for whom English is not the first language regularly feel aggrieved at the way decisions appear to go against them, partly because – in many cases – they are not receiving instructions which they can fully understand. Courtney remarked that younger referees, such as the RFU's Greg Garner and JP Doyle, speak very good French and that is a positive development.

He revealed that there is a programme in place to assist the learning of key technical phrases in French and Italian, but as yet it is not compulsory for British, Irish or SAN ZAR officials to be able to converse in these languages with any fluency.

That is something the IRB should make an urgent priority. In the professional game, the playing field should be as level as possible, so multi-lingual referees should be regarded as a necessity, not a bonus.

Neymar boost for Chelsea and Manchester City

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Neymar boost for Chelsea and City as Santos president rules out secret Barca deal

Chelsea and Manchester City have been given a boost in their ambitions to sign Brazilian wonderkid Neymar after Santos president Luis Alvaro Ribeiro dismissed rumours an agreement has been reached with Barcelona.

Andre Villas-Boas wants the 45million-rated 19-year-old Brazil international to help reignite the Blues” faltering season.

But the west London club face stiff competition from Manchester City who are also keeping tabs on the situation.

No deal! The Santos president has dismissed reports of Neymar signing with Barca

No deal! The Santos president has dismissed reports of Neymar signing with Barca

It has been reported that a secret agreement had been reached between the Brazilians and Catalans that would see the striker join Barcelona in 2014.

But this was ruled out by Santos president Alvaro, who said: “The issue is so secret that even I don’t know about it! Such an agreement would be made if only if someone forged my signature.

“It”s something that makes no sense. Neymar became the flavour of the month and now (journalists) need to fill up space and waste ink.”

“The Catalans are very creative, and it is no wonder,” said the 69-year-old.

“From there came great artists such as Gaudi, Joan Miro, Salvador Dali. The problem is that in between imagination and reality lies an ocean.”

Neymar has scored eight goals in just 15appearances for Brazil and recently penned a new deal at his Brazilian club, which includes a buy-out clause that Chelsea could match.

Scramble! A number of Europe

Scramble! A number of Europe”s elite are tracking the Brazilian