Posts Tagged ‘Manchester City’

The West Ham United Football Club or more known just as West Ham United has been one of the famous football clubs mainly because of the achievements of the club itself.

Initially, the East London club played in the Southern League and Western League before 1919 when the club advanced to full Football League and then enjoyed top flight season promotion. In 1923, many football enthusiasts were surprised how the club competed in the FA Cup Final at Wembley. And the club in the next years continued to surprise a lot of fans with some good performances in some huge football events.

Presently, West Ham United competes in the Premier League. In the 2009–10 season of the popular league, the club was only able to have the 17th position. With how they performed the past league season, some fans were indeed disappointed. But in 1998–99 season, the East London club finished fifth.

The club’s most recent manager was Gianfranco Zola, who replaced Alan Curbishley in 2008. For two seasons, the Italian indeed handled the club just right.

Well, now , the club is still without a manager. And sports betting firms are just trying to provide odds for the next West Ham United manager betting.  

Currently, there are odds for Portsmouth manager as favorite to be the next West Ham United manager. There are also odds for former Hammer, Croatia boss. And there are also odds for ex-Blackburn and Manchester City gaffer.

To be the next manager of West Ham United after Zola, the Portsmouth manager is the favorite. However, this is only when it comes to the betting that is going on. We don’t know who exactly is right to be the next manager of the East London club for the club’s officials. It maybe be someone else.

Mention the Premiership and one immediately thinks of the Big Four – Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool. These four clubs have often been identified as the best of English football since the top 20 teams broke off from the English FA to form the Premiership. Most of the trophies on offer each season in English football often land up in the four clubs’ trophy cabinets and easily make them the giants in the sport in England. But the future may yet be very different in the coming months and years.

Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City have emerged from their shadows to question their authority in English football. They have often flattered to deceive in the past due in no small part to having rich traditions but that may be about to change in the right direction. But they are sleeping no more as rippling new financial muscle is starting to fill the club with deep pockets. These are used to build foundations upon which they can compete on level ground with the Big Four. It could be that Spurs and City may go on to break new records and become bigger than any of the Big Four. No longer are they trapped in a position in which they have had to sell their best players to survive. The roles have reversed and signing other teams’ best players are on their agendas instead during each transfer window so that they can continue to rise to the top.

The revolution in English football is best represented by Manchester City. Since the moment Sheikh Mansour took over the club, City have been in virtually every major transfer rumour making the rounds in European football. The club is determined to not just be a force in English football, but also on the greater stage of Europe. There was a flurry of major transfer activity in the club’s first season under Mansour as City went on to snap up no less than five star players in preseason. Emmanuel Adebayor and Carlos Tevez were some of the famous players that decided to make the switch to Eastlands. These players are not driven solely by the financial rewards of joining the oil rich club, but also the prospect of being part of a new revolution that could see City become English Premier League and European champions in the near future.

Spurs may not be as rich as City, but the North London giants do not shy away from spending on quality talent. Tottenham Hotspur may not have the millions in pounds to attract every top player but they are proving to be a spotter of young talent. They also have a coach in Harry Redknapp who has a proven track record of moulding these young players into top stars on the world stage. Redknapp also relies on such an approach to build a team that shines on team unity and spirit without being threatened by egos. That continues to be their driving force as they emerge as City’s main challengers to a place amongst the Premier League elite.

Fans who watch Premiership live football online would have noted that the Big Four’s hold on the Premier League could cease sooner rather than later from the two clubs’ challenge. It has already started with Liverpool’s place in the Champions League now usurped by Spurs who were pushed all the way by City. If both teams continue to build earnestly in the off season, there is no doubt that their progress will gather pace. They may even surpass the rest eventually. With debt continuing to plague members of the Big Four, it is in contrast to the decidedly better futures that await both Spurs and City.

The stadium in London will be the scene of the highly anticipated North London derby live streaming football match as the two teams will have much on the line where they cannot afford to fail. After unexpectedly falling to Portsmouth in the FA Cup semi final at Wembley, Spurs boss Harry Redknapp called upon his team to show their fans what they are made of by bouncing back with a win against the Gunners. The club are in a tough position, with spirits bound to be low after losing in the FA Cup semi final at Wembley prior to the game and now having to ensure they do not lose their way in the Premier League. At stake is the Champions League spot that they have been yearning for whole season long. Having grabbed that all important position a few weeks ago only to lose it again with the resurgence of Manchester City, Redknapp will hope that his players can recover quickly to force themselves back into the reckoning. Without the FA Cup to play for, Spurs only have the carrot of the elite European tournament left. In terms of their long term future, Redknapp will be hoping that another failure this season will not mean a serious rebuilding of a squad torn apart by unfulfilled aspirations.

The same situation could be said of Arsenal. The past two weeks have seen the Gunners fall from the heights of ecstacy to the depths of despair. Expectations and hopes were raised prior to that when the Gunners were buoyant after restoring their title hopes and could look forward to a Champions League quarterfinal with the trophy holders. But Europe is now again a distant dream after Barcelona left them with nothing except an improbable Premier League title to play for. But if there is one thing to be said about the Gunners this season, it is that this is a team that is full of character and determination. And showing the same character in beating Spurs for the North London bragging rights and a sustained shot at the title will prove to the critics that they truly cannot be written off under any circumstances. The injury crisis that ended their Champions League dreams prematurely will remain a factor in the league but it is something they have to deal with no matter what.

The form book usually gets thrown out the window for any derby in football and this will be no different. Other than the blip in the FA Cup, where they lost to relegated Portsmouth, Spurs have generally played well recently. Arsenal may not have been in exemplary form that their results have suggested yet that is not something that will matter in terms of the end result. If they can beat Spurs again with a last minute winner from one of their players, Arsenal will accept the result with both hands. If nothing, champions from every era have shown that success against adversity is the mark of one. Gunners manager would not refuse doing so using his philosophy but at this crucial stage, a win would be the only thing that matters. To end the season without a place in the Champions League after showing the greatest of promise could be devastating for Spurs’ future as a club that has evergrowing ambition.

The second and third goals were scored by Nani and Darron Gibson respectively. The Portuguese player Nani, who debuted for United in August 2007, scored on a penalty given in the second half of the match whereas, Gibson scored the final goal of the match with one of his nimble shots. Matt Paterson of Saints was shown the red card when he hurled himself into Nemanja Vidic. Left with only 10 players just 36 minutes into the game, Southampton could do nothing but fight a losing game.Manchester’s win over the League Championship club ensured that it avoided joining ranks with the two top notch teams of Manchester City and Stoke who faced unexpected loses from their lower level rivals. Soccer blogs highlighted the fact that Southampton had beaten Manchester United in the finals of the FA Cup held in 1976, which also happened to be their last honor in the FA Cup.Experienced players, Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs, were called back to join the team as the coach wanted to get the right balance with those who had been-there-and-done-it before and the promising newcomers like Welbeck. Manchester United’s boss, Sir Alex, was delighted with his team and showered high praise on Welbeck.Having decided to give a rest to top players Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez, Welbeck found himself starting the match and succeeded in scoring only in the 20th minute of the game. He managed to get a header straight into the goal through the Saints’ goalkeeper, Kelvin Davis. The 19 years old was replaced by Wayne Rooney in the forward position midway during the second half of the match.  Latest soccer results for those who were unable to watch the matches are available online.Manchester United was already leading 2-0 at this point. In the 48th minute of the second half, Saints’ David McGoldrick was ruled against for having behaved harshly during Nani’s free kick.  This gave United’s Nani the chance to kick from the penalty spot and he made no mistakes in getting the ball rolling into the goal.The third goal was scored by Gibson in the 81st minute of the second half thanks to Wayne Rooney’s run and pull back.The four teams that have emerged as the highest point scorers of the third round and will be facing one another in the fourth round of the FA Cup will be pitted against each other in 2 matches: Liverpool vs. Everton and Manchester United vs. Tottenham. For more English soccer scores keep visiting.

As the top clubs return from their European travels, managers, players and spread bettors start to turn their attention to the weekend’s action. There will be plenty for punters to get their teeth into on the spread markets, headed by a mouth-watering Old Trafford Manchester derby at the top of the bill. Since United’s humbling loss to Burnley last month they have come out fighting to stick one to sellers of their outright Championship index spread, currently at 38-41pts (60pts to champions, 40pts to runner-up, 20pts to third place etc). Despite big-spending City’s unbeaten start to the season, the red half of Manchester will be convinced their team can achieve a third successive league win over their local rivals and are favourite to do so according to the Sporting Index football traders.

Buyers of United’s win index spread will be hoping Sir Alex can lead his side to their fifth win of the season and will be pleased that the Red Devils’ home form has been near perfect – they’ve lost just one and drawn two of their last 20 matches at Old Trafford. United also won 13 of these 17 victories to nil, which will be a worry to sellers of the first Manchester City goal, but won’t trouble sellers of Manchester City’s goal minutes, despite a rampant win over Arsenal last weekend. Those looking to sell United’s match supremacy spread will remember back to the 2007/08 season when City did the double over United.

This particular derby has proved profitable for both buyers and sellers of the total bookings spreads in past seasons. While the last game at Old Trafford between these two saw a make-up of just 20 points, the previous encounter produced a hefty 85 points – buyers will remember Cristiano Ronaldo’s dismissal fondly. Spread bettors may elect to wait until after kick-off for an in-play spread bet, once they’ve seen how the officials will handle this potentially explosive derby.

Carlo Ancelotti has adapted to life in England extremely well and still has an impressive 100% record in the league. Those spread bettors to have bought Chelsea’s outright Championship index will have been encouraged by the Blues’ fast start. Their current spread is set at 45-48pts with Sporting Index.

Sunday sees Chelsea take on a Tottenham side who will be looking for a quick return to winning ways after their home defeat to Manchester United. Spread buyers of the supremacy market should note Chelsea’s formidable home record against the Lilywhites and bear in mind that Spurs haven’t won at Stamford Bridge since 1990, although sellers of the spread will remember that Tottenham managed a 1-1 draw last season. Those with an interest in the total goals spread may be aware that the two fixtures last year only produced three goals but jubilant spread buyers and shocked traders will have contrasting memories of the 4-4 classic in 2008. Sellers should also be aware that Tottenham have only managed to net on two occasions at the Bridge in the league during the last four years.

Against the opinion of Lee Dixon, Lambourne’s business partner and a former Arsenal defender that “some people would perhaps rather have a doctor for a neighbour” there are a many advantages to have a famous football player moving to your area. A research from a buying agency specialised in finding homes for sports celebrities revealed that towns and villages in which footballers have bought properties have had bigger price increases than in similar areas.
There are many examples that can sustain this opinion. John Terry, the Chelsea captain owns a home near the club’s training ground in Cobham, Surrey. Since he moved there in 2004 the price of a detached property in the area has risen by 28 per cent. An even more impressive change in the value of the properties in the area they moved was given by David and Victoria Beckham. Since they became residents of Sawbridgeworth in Hertfordshire in 1999 property values have risen by 84 per cent. Five years ago, the Arsenal defender Sol Campbell bought his home in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire. Since that moment prices have gone up by nearly a third. The prices in the area where Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United’s young Portuguese winger, owns a flat have been growing too. Actually not only Alderley Road in Wilmslow, where Ronaldo’s property can be found is more valuable but the entire Cheshire, which is close to Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Everton and Blackburn, particularly in “Gold Trafford”,
the triangle that runs from Wilmslow to Alderley Edge and Hale.
An explanation for the rising prices of the properties in the areas where footballers are buying comes from Jeremy Lambourne, director of Oakhall, the same agency that came out with this finding. Lambourne says that “football players will very often improve an area because they spend money on their homes and bring in investment,” Not far from this opinion is Stuart Flint, who covers the smartest parts of Cheshire for Knight Frank who believes that “footballers are well advised these days and they understand the importance of maintaining their properties”.
But are any disadvantages in having a football celebrity as your neighbour? The same residents that benefited from the increased prices of their properties in Cobham, Surrey had to face the congestion created by the cars parked along the narrow roadside when John Terry held a party for his team-mates at his home. David and Victoria Beckham’s neighbours have had to suffer an invasion of paparazzi and fans since these celebrities became their neighbours. But generally footballers are not worse neighbours than ordinary people.
Another interesting finding about the properties where footballers chose to invest is revealed by by Country Life. Their survey’s results suggest that rather than always going for Dallas-style new-builds, footballers are increasingly buying country houses. The same magazine reveals that 20 prime country homes costing more than £2 million each have been snapped up by premiership footballers over the past three years. As Mark Hedges, editor of Country Life, says: “Like most people who buy these properties, footballers — despite what you may see on TV — are looking for somewhere with character that also has peace and quiet.”

Terry Signed Chelsea Photo: Premiership Winner
Personally signed by John Terry
This photo was personally signed by John Terry in a private signing session on April 3, 2009 in Gateshead. It shows the Chelsea and England captain lifting the Premiership trophy after the Blues successfully defended their title in 2006-07.

Chelsea, under Jose Mourinho, accumulated 91 points and clinched the trophy with a 3-0 victory over fierce rivals Manchester United. Terry was an inspiration all season, leading the side with his never-say-die attitude.

Terry is a Chelsea legend, and has just proved his loyalty to the club by turning down the riches of Manchester City. If ever there was a one-club man it is JT.

The photo, which is 18 inches by 12 inches, is a superb item of memorabilia and would make an incredible gift for any Blues fan. Buy it now
John Terry Signed Chelsea Photo Premiership Winner

John Terry England Shirt Signed On Back

£199.99


This England shirt was personally signed by England captain John Terry in a private signing session onJuly 16, 2009. The centre-half is the heartbeat behind the Three Lions side and will be wearing this style of shirt as he leads England in their pursuit of glory at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.Terry made his debut for England in 2003 and was later made skipper by Steve McClaren. He was outstanding in the 2006 World Cup, being the only English player to be named part of the all-star team... More

Ryan Giggs Signed Reebok Sprintfit Pro: The Champions League Boot

£229.99


 This Reebok Sprintfit Pro is the style of boot that Ryan Giggs wore during the Champions League final victory over Chelsea in May 2008 and was hand signed by Ryan in Manchester on April 29.Just moments after John Terry had missed his penalty Ryan slotted home Man Utd's final spot kick, before Edwin van der Sar saved Nicolas Anelka's effort to make the Red Devils champions of Europe for the third time.This highly collectable piece of sports memorabilia comes with an official... More

Signed England Shirt, John Terry

£199.99


This England shirt was personally signed by England captain John Terry in a private signing session on July 16, 2009. The centre-half is the heartbeat behind the Three Lions side and will be wearing this style of shirt as he leads England in their pursuit of glory at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.Terry made his debut for England in 2003 and was later made skipper by Steve McClaren. He was outstanding in the 2006 World Cup, being the only English player to be named part of the all-star team... More

John Terry Signed England Photo

£74.99


This England photo was personally signed by England captain John Terry in a private signing session on April 3, 2009. It shows JT's joy after he had scored the first goal by a senior England player at Wembley, on June 1, 2007. To make it even sweeter, it put the Three Lions 1-0 up against a strong Brazil side.Terry made his debut for England in 2003 and was later made skipper by Steve McClaren. He was outstanding in the 2006 World Cup, being the only English player to be named part of the... More

Ryan Giggs Signed Man Utd Photo: Champions Of Europe

£64.99


This superb print shows Ryan Giggs lifting the Champions League trophy in May 2008, after Manchester United beat Chelsea 6-5 on penalties on an incredible night in Moscow.Just moments after John Terry had missed his penalty Ryan slotted home Man Utd's final spot kick, before Edwin van der Sar saved Nicolas Anelka's effort to make the Red Devils champions of Europe for the third time.The print is 16 inches by 12 inches in size and is one of only 30 that were hand signed by Giggs in an... More

Edwin Van Der Sar Signed Manchester United Photo: Kissing The European Cup

£64.99


This photo was personally signed by Edwin van der Sar in a private signing session on October 9, 2008 in Manchester. It shows the Dutch goalkeeper lifting the Champions League trophy for Man United in Moscow on May 21, 2008.The tie went to extra time then penalties after goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Chelsea's Frank Lampard had cancelled each other out in normal time. John Terry needed only to score Chelsea's fifth penalty to take the trophy to Stamford Bridge for the first time, but,... More

Manchester United edged closed to another English Premier League title after beating Manchester City 2-0. First-half goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez took them four points from the league title. The soccer game between the two teams was far entertaining.Once again, Ronaldo produced another superb free-kick to put United in front. The distance of around 30 yards was small by the world player of the year’s recent standards. He duly strode up with confidence and fired into the corner, Given wrong-footed by the merest flick off Nigel de Jong.

Manchester City had plenty of possession, but did very little to threaten the home goal. First, it was Wayne Bridge who curled over a shot from the left flank but Nemanja Vidic headed clear, then Robinho fired wide after shrugging Rafael Da Silva off the ball.

Play quickly switched to the other end where a piece of impudence from Patrice Evra offered Tevez the chance to run into space and curl a shot towards the City goal which came crashing back off the angle of post and crossbar. Just before the break, Fletcher’s long ball was controlled by Berbatov. He square the ball to Tevez, whose precision shot bounced in off the post.

Manchester City needed a break and it should have arrived when Elano picked out Robinho with a deft right-wing cross. But Robinho blast his shot wide after he managed to control the ball. The striker again got ahead of Rafael and seemed destined to test Edwin van der Sar, only to inexplicably fire well wide.

On the hour mark, Ji-Sung Park and Ronaldo were substituted with Paul Scholes and Wayne Rooney respectively. Ronaldo look unhappy and not impressed at the decision and was still shaking his head after he had taken his place in the dug-out. Sir Alex Ferguson might have the Champions League Final on his mind and do not want to his squad to be over strech.

Manchester United almost struck their 3rd-goal if not for Richard Dunne, who had made a last-ditch tackle to deny Scholes. Darren Fletcher rose to meet the corner, only for Tevez to strike the post with his header as he dived in and made contact less than half a yard out.