How Arsenal can become more Barcelona-like - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
Arsenal came face-to-face with Barcelona in the final of the 2005-06 Champions League, but despite being beaten by the Spanish giants, they held their own and were good value for their place at Europe's top table.
Samir Nasri of Manchester City (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
Manchester City football development executive Patrick Vieira wants midfielder Samir Nasri to stay with the club next season despite what has been considered within the club a disappointing season.The last silver lining left for City is their FA Cup final against Wigan Athletic, which is a small consolation regardless.
Facing a troubled relegation embattled Wigan Athletic in the table (17th place) , Manchester City have no real chance at the title, nor have they for some time, and they will be looking now to secure second place. This game was scheduled to be played March, but was postponed due to other competitive duties of Manchester City.
It most likely will do nothing more than delay their rivals' title celebration a few more weeks, but Manchester City will surely take great pride in a second straight win at Old Trafford.
The defending Premier League champions defeated first-place United 2-1 on Monday evening, giving the blue side of Manchester back-to-back road derby wins for the first time in 41 years.
Some very interesting comments from Samir Nasri about his transfer to Man City in 2011. Ignoring Nasri's ridiculous claim the deal was not about the money, when we all know that was what is was all about, his comments about it from Arsenal's perspective are interesting.
If you remember Nasri was going into the last year of his contract at Arsenal, and had basically said he was not going to sign a new deal with the Gunners.
Wenger Tells Gervinho to Relax for Greater Accuracy
Arsene Wenger has admitted that Arsenal striker Gervinho is not 'clinical' in front of the goal but believes his finishing would improve if he calmed down a little.
The 25-year-old Ivorian created two goals and scored one in the Gunners' 4-1 win over Reading at Emirates on Saturday.
Samir Nasri was named man of the match in Man City's 4-0 win against Newcastle on Saturday. It was only the third Premier League start of 2013 for a player who has been one of the many wobbly floats in City's parade of disappointment this season and after the match, manager Roberto Mancini expressed his frustration with him.
Samir Nasri of Manchester City (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
According to reports from the Daily Mail, Manchester City star midfielder Samir Nasri is believed to be considering taking his leave from the Etihad Stadium this summer.
Rumors has it that the form Arsenal play maker turned English Premier League champion with the Citizens is looking for a new challenge once again.
Top 5 Premier League underperformers - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini had recentlycriticizedhis midfielder Samir Nasri for not performing to the expected level in the Premier League.
We all know that at this level, every player tries to deliver their best, but sometimes it can well happen that a player fails to meet the expected requirements asked from him.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger talks to Jack Wilshere (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Arsenal FC is currently at a fork in the road; on one hand there is a future with manager Arsene Wenger and giving him the opportunity to rebuild a new roster and see if he can bring the good name back to Arsenal.
5 players Manchester City could sell in the summer - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini feels that his team still has a chance to close the gap with league leaders Manchester United despite trailing by 12 points.
Recently City were linked with Napoli striker Edinson Cavani and their interest seems genuine.
Nasri's days at City could be over soon Where next for him? - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
Samir Nasri was left out of Manchester City's 4-0 win over Leeds United at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday and his future is seriously under huge threat.
Samir Nasri's future at Manchester City in under dark clouds
Manager Roberto Mancini was furious with his side's performance for the 3-1 defeat at the hands of Southampton and said he would drop some of the players in coming matches.
Regardless of whether then retain their Premier League title this year, it appears that this will be a summer of upheaval at the Etihad Stadium.
According to Sunday's Daily Mail, Carlos Tevez, Edin Dzeko, Samir Nasri, Joleon Lescott, Scott Sinclair, Aleksandar Kolarov and Maicon will all be allowed to leave Eastlands this summer.
Walcott signs new Arsenal deal is he the best Arsenal have? - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
Arsenal forward Theo Walcott has finally committed his future at the club by signing a three-and-a-half year contract ending wide speculations about his future.
Walcott ready to sign new deal
The 23-year-old who had less than six months remaining on his contract has put pen to paper today completing all the necessary formalities.
Walcott signs new Arsenal deal is he the best Arsenal can do? - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
Arsenal forward Theo Walcott has finally committed his future at the club by signing a three-and-a-half year contract ending wide speculations about his future.
Walcott ready to sign new deal
The 23-year-old who had less than six months remaining on his contract has put pen to paper today completing all the necessary formalities.
Arsene Wenger believes that Arsenal's Premier League clash with champions Manchester City on Sunday is a make or break fixture for both the clubs involved.
The Gunners need all three points on the offer to stay close to the top four clubs, while the Blues pursuit of league leaders Manchester United means that they cannot afford to have anything less than a victory either.
Norwich City 3-4 Manchester City Premier League 29th December 2012
Manchester City bounced back from that shock defeat at the Stadium of Light by securing all three points at Carrow Road, albeit in a less than comfortable.
Having gone two goals up, both courtesy of Edin Dzeko, City looked to be cruising to a simply away victory.
Newcastle United 1-3 Manchester City Premier League 15th December 2012
Man City bounced back to victory after last week's disappointing defeat to their Manchester rivals, strolling to a 3-1 win against Newcastle at St. James' Park.
Yaya Toure, taking the captain's role in place of Vincent Kompany was outstanding throughout the game, dominating in the centre of the park and scoring his side's third goal.
Newcastle United and St. James's Park played host to league holders Manchester City on Saturday afternoon. The Champions would be looking to get back to their winning ways after suffering a late defeat to their cross-town rivals Manchester United last week. City did just that, coming out of the gates early and scoring through Kun Aguero just ten minutes in.
Newcastle United and St. James's Park played host to league holders Manchester City on Saturday afternoon. The Champions would be looking to get back to their winning ways after suffering a late defeat to their cross-town rivals Manchester United last week. City did just that, coming out of the gates early and scoring through Kun Aguero just ten minutes in.
In my weekly column on SWOL, I take a look back at the weekend's English Premier League action and the talking points that it throws up, as well as any significant news related to English football at large. We welcome your thoughts in the comments section below.
Robin van Persie of Manchester United celebrates (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
The first Manchester derby of the season ended with an entertaining flourish that devolved intosavagery and resulted in Rio Ferdinand bleeding from the eyebrow. Man City snapped out of a funk to come back from two early Wayne Rooney goals and equalize in the 86th minute, but Samir Nasri decided to stick his leg in the path of a Robin van Persie free kick during stoppage time, leading to a 3-2 win for Man United that incited a pitch invading, coin throwing rage in fans at the Etihad.
All eyes were on the Etihad Stadium on Sunday as Manchester City hosted cross-town rivals Manchester United in a hugely anticipated top of the table clash. Both sides put out extremely strong squads, though it was the red side of Manchester that managed to come out on top.
Manchester United jumped out to an early lead through Wayne Rooney but City fought their way back into the game deep into the second half.
Manchester City midfielder Samir Nasri is stirring up some controversy today, saying that Arsenal majority shareholder Stan Kroenke forced Gunners manager Arsene Wenger to sell Nasri to City in 2011.
In an interview with beIN SPORT, Nasri said "Wenger told me that, if Cesc [Fbregas] left, I would stay but Kroenke wanted the money.
Roberto Mancini might want to invest some of his club's money into migraine medicine, after Vincent Kompany's red card in Manchester City's 2-0 win over Arsenal on Sunday earned the defender a three-match ban, according to reports.
The Belgian international joins the likes of regular first-team players Sergio Aguero, Micah Richards, Samir Nasri, and the brothers Toure that are unavailable to play for the Citizens.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger spoke to Arsenal.com about the importance and difficulty of scouting ahead of the London side's FA Cup tie with Swansea City. Traditionally known to have a vast scouting network, Wenger discussed the various markets the world's best players are starting to appear in, and how vital it is for clubs to get in early.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is preparing to make a £10 million move for Liverpool's Stewart Downing, according to reports. Wenger has tried to sign Downing before as a replacement for Samir Nasri but was outbid by Liverpool. Now he believes he can salvage Downing's career after a disappointing time at Anfield.
Playing tiki-taka with the interwebs Uber-pundit Gary Neville knows everything. Here's his guide to assassination [YouTube] Carlos Tevez, Gareth Barry, Edin Dzeko and Samir Nasri could all be sold by Manchester City this summer [Guardian] Young Athletic Bilbao fan not pleased by Fernando Llorente's impending move to Juventus [101GG] Brad Friedel inherits his boundless energy [.
Ahead of this afternoon's Arsenal-Man City clash at the Emirates stadium, Arsene Wenger has made some telling statements about the role of money in football. Of course, he's referring to Man City's cash-over-pedigree approach to the game, which seemingly favours short term success over a longer term outlook.
The fact that we won on Saturday means that the headlines and the drama has to exist somewhere else. There's not much you can do with a 4-1 win if you're looking to create a bit of hysteria.
Still, isn't it nice that our old friend $amir Na£ri has brought us some by speaking about his Arsenal situation on French TV.
With so many mid-priced midfielders out of action due to injury, we set our sights on a potential short-term 5th midfielder FPL candidate as our Funny Feeling Friday selection. First, let's take a look at a few of the mid-priced ... Continue reading →
Last week Roberto Mancini comically claimed that United had been lucky this season, as they had won games they didn't deserve to, whilst City had dropped points in games they deserved to win.
On RoM we addressed this comment, pointing out the difference between United and City wasn't anything to do with luck, but our winning mentality.
What turned out to be a Manchester derby that lived up to the hype ended in disgrace as Robin van Persie's late winner for Man United was followed by an unwanted sampling of ugliness at the end of the match. Man City came back from 2-0 down to delight the home crowd in the 86th minute, but Van Persie's injury-time free kick was deflected by Samir Nasri and curled into the corner of Joe Hart's net (gif here).
