A match for experimentation, a result that came oh so close to going the wrong way.
Downing at left back, a more orthodox 4-3-3 with Shelvey and Gerrard notably ahead of Allen, and
Henderson and Morgan – making his senior debut – on the left and right of the front three.
This was always going to be a busy few days for Tottenham after the sale of Luka Modric on
Monday and it looks as if the first post-Luka deal will bring Fulham's Moussa Dembele to White Hart
Lane. Nothing has been confirmed as yet but with the two clubs agreeing a fee last night it could
only be a matter of time.
It was only a matter of time... and how much they were willing to pay up front to keep their weekly
wage bill low as Adebayor signs with Spurs from Man City for a £6mil fee and his 170K/week salary
sees a cut to keep it in line. With this signing, Spurs finally have the pair up top they want,
quick little Defoe (who finds goal frequently) and big bad Ade (who finds goal frequently).
It has been a very difficult month for Tottenham who have seen there 10 point lead over 4th place
over turned by rivals Arsenal, and fingers of blame are starting to point towards Harry Redknapp
being linked with the England job.
It's easy to put two and two together and look for any old excuse but could there be any truth in
it?
Reports are all over the Spanish media that it is just a matter of time before Alex Song becomes a
Barcelona player, but there are a few elements to be sorted out before the deal is done. Arsene
Wenger surprised everybody today by admitting that both transfers were possible, because our French
manager would not [.
Our summers are nothing if not dramatic. I've been largely ignoring it for the past few weeks
ever since van Persie's original statement I've felt a little jaded by the whole thing, and haven't
had the desire to track it, or write about it, on a daily basis. Kudos to those who manage to blog
without a break goodness knows I needed one.
There was much discussion about what three conditions Nicklas Bendtner put on any club that came in
to buy him from Arsenal, in fact we had a few humourous predictions made on JustArsenal yesterday
in this post. So obviously this got the journalists thinking and it was only a matter of time
before someone tracked [.
After nearly 20 years of service to Athletic Bilbao (he started his youth
career with Los Leones in 1996), modern-day football's answer to "The
Lion King", Fernando Llorente, has decided to leave the club. His contract
expires in June 2013 but he is free to leave San Mames, snap his fingers and yell :
"You must take your place in the Circle of Life!
Malaga gave their midfield star Santi Cazorla permission to miss today's training session and fly
to London for his Arsenal medical, and to wrap up any loose ends before his transfer is announced.
It really is just a matter of time now. Manuel Pellegrini, the manager of Malaga, has abandoned any
hope he may have [.
I cannot fin confirmation of this in the Spanish media, but Skysports is reporting that Santi
Cazorla will soon be coming to London to take his medical with Arsenal. The Spanish press do,
however, see it as just a matter of time before Cazorla becomes a Gunner. We all know that Arsene
Wenger will not [.
Well, the European Championship version 2012 got underway last night and it was a decent night
of football. In some ways it was like watching Arsenal. There were despair, joy and then despair
again. Wojciech Szczesny, Andrey Arshavin and Tomas Rosicky all played to that tune
respectively.
It was only a matter of time before top Premiership managers started looking longingly at the
previously unknown Swansea players who have taken the top division by storm this season, so it is
not so surprising that the Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is interested in one of the best of the
bunch. The Hoffenheim midfielder [.
Arsene Wenger has rubbished suggestions that his side's terrific recent form is aimed at
finishing above Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League standings, insisting that it was only a
matter of time that his players displayed their true potential.
The Gunners have been sensational in the league over the course of the last few weeks, winning
five in a row and outscoring opponents 18 goals to six during that stretch.
It was only a matter of time before Nelson Rivas received a decision from the MLS Disciplinary
Committee on his headbutt of the Philadelphia Union's Antoine Hoppenot, and as expected, the
Montreal Impact defender faced some harsh punishment.
Rivas was suspended for two additional games, on top of the automatic one-game suspension that
accompanies his red card, MLS announced Thursday.
By Cesar Diaz - NEW YORK, NY (Aug 8, 2012) US Soccer Players -- With all the international soccer
friendlies that has taken place over the past few years, it was only a matter of time before the
New York Yankees would get involved. You might remember some years ago when the Yankees partnered
with Manchester United to offer each others merchandise in their respective team stores.
Will DC and Dallas battle to any goals this year? (Getty Images)
Here we are, at the end of the first month of the season already and by the end of the weekend
we'll be in April. Week 4 in Major League Soccer gets started a little early with a game tomorrow
night in DC with United hosting FC Dallas.
I knew it was only a matter of time. After the Portland Timbers, the Seattle Sounders, the
Montreal Impact and the Vancouver Whitecaps left the second division soccer for higher waters in
MLS, you just knew the clubs below them in the bottom tiers wanted to make the same jump.
Orlando is already making that noise, and apparently now so is Carolina.
Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy has confirmed the appointment of Andre Villas-Boas as the
club's new manager on a three-year contract.
Villas-Boas had been linked aggressively with a move to White Hart Lane following the departure
of Harry Redknapp last month and many within English football only considered his appointment to be
a matter of time.
England battled to a 1-1 draw with group favorites France today while Andrei Shevchenko rolled
back the years as his second-half double inspired the Euro 2012 co-hosts to a come from behind
2-1 win over Sweden.
England, playing their first competitive match under new manager Roy Hodgson, set up in their
expected defensive formation, looking to hit the French on the counter attack.
Not according to Di Matteo. The Chelsea boss is still very confident of finishing in a top four
spot despite their loss to City last night. This was the first defeat for Di Matteo and one that
could potentially kill the massive momentum his side has gathered in their past 4 games.
Chelsea now find themselves five points behind 4th place Tottenham Hotspurs who saw Arsenal leap
frog them into third place after their 1-1 draw with Stoke City.
Yesterday's toothless defeat to Sunderland was the worst display Liverpool have put in in a long
time. And to think we had over £100 million of 'talent' on the field during the game. That defeat
is our third in a row and the first time that has happened since October 2003 under Gerard
Houllier.
Midway through the first half, this game turned on its head. The Czechs were impressive early on
– 55% possession, 9 crosses into the box (of their 11 total), 5 corners (of their 6 total), but
no shots on goal. Unfortunately, that advantage didn't last long.
England battled to a 1-1 draw with group favorites France today while Andrei Shevchenko rolled
back the years as his second-half double inspired the Euro 2012 co-hosts to a come from behind 2-1
win over Sweden.
England, playing their first competitive match under new manager Roy Hodgson, set up in their
expected defensive formation, looking to hit the French on the counter attack.
We knew it was only a matter of time before Roberto Di Matteo was made permanent manager. Well,
the club has made that move official today. And, you know, Di Matteo received a two-year deal after
pulling off a miraculous double of the FA Cup and Champions League.
Just as it was expected, Real Madrid, followed Barcelona's path in advancing to the Champions
League quarter final without much problem after trashing CSKA Moskow 4-1 at Santiago Bernabeu.
Portuguese star, Christiano Ronaldo, was again prove decisive for the Los Blancos as he bagged
two goals on the night, showing his strong intention to continue the personal scoring competition
with Lionel Messi.
By signing Eden Hazard, Roman Abramovich has shown his club's desire not to be left trailing
rivals Manchester United and Manchester City next season.
It shows intent and a money-backed desire to regenerate their ageing squad over the summer, a
squad which was creaking at the knees despite FA Cup and Champions League success.
Seven days after Liverpool took the 1985-86 league title by two points over Everton, the two
sides faced off at Wembley in the FA Cup final to close out Kenny Dalglish's first year in charge
after taking over from Joe Fagan. Though they had lately found success at Wembley in the League
Cup, capturing four straight titles from 1981 through 1984, it would mark their first chance to win
the FA Cup since Bob Paisley lost to Manchester United in 1977.
First and foremost, Feliz dia da Independência, Brasil! Indeed, it's
the country's Independence Day today so you get a generous serving of
Brigadeiros (chocolate bonbons) if you're wearing either green, yellow or
blue (maybe not all at once!
Whether footballers should celebrate goals they score against their former clubs has always
seemed like an odd debate that places far too much importance on a relatively insignificant
issue, but Northern Ireland striker David Healy is learning that such an act can serve as the basis
for karmic retribution even years later.
Vivian Schiller is the Chief Digital Officer for NBC News and MSNBC. She was hired for the
position last year so this is her first Olympics in that role with the company.
Her Twitter page is very clear in the bio that "Links and retweets aren't endorsements. Opinions
are my own." That's fine, that's normal and you're allowed to make that disclaimer.
It had become a matter of time. The Boston Red Sox were going to trade away their long-time
third baseman Kevin Youkilis. Today, we got an answer as the Red Sox shipped him to the Chicago
White Sox for two prospects. Youkilis will become the everyday third baseman in Chicago and will
look to prove to Boston that he still has some gas left in the tank.
Following on from the success of the #GrowTheGame pilot which was held in San Diego on April 14
& 15 and saw over 500 people participate in a weekend of soccer related activities, it was only a
matter of time before #GrowTheGame picked up its organizing kit and headed to a new host city to
act as a catalyst for grassroots change and new conversations between tits local soccer
community.
With a road game in Seattle followed by the first of three grudge matches against the Red Bulls,
Saturday's home game against the depleted West Conference leading San Jose Earthquakes should have
been a chance for the Union to jump on their weakened guests and claim their third consecutive
victory.
Let's play a little game, since it's a bye week. Imagine for a moment that it's July and the
Sounders are healthy and their new players have been integrated into the fold. One way of gauging
the strength of a team is to look at its potential for growth and improvement using just the
players it currently has on the roster.
In the wake of Dave's intellectual discussion from yesterday, here are a few mundane business
notes. In an item from last week, the SBJ reported that Comcast Spectator and its Front Row
Marketing subsidiary are promoting the French Trophee des Champions to Red Bull Arena to open the
Ligue 1 2012/2013 season.
Sporting KC announced another signing today, officially agreeing to terms with 1st round
Supplemental draft pick, Shawn Singh to a contract. The UCLA product makes 29 players currently
under contract right now. Although with Eric Kronberg currently on IR, they have 28 open roster
spots at the moment.
