Welbeck keen to prove his worth

 

The 20-year-old was picked by Ferguson to lead the line against Basle in the Champions League – ahead of the club’s record signing Dimitar Berbatov – and responded with two goals in an 80-second spell.

Welbeck’s display was one of the few positives for Ferguson in the 3-3 draw which highlighted some defensive frailty for United, and the England striker is desperate for more opportunities to prove his worth.



Welbeck said: “The manager shows time and time again he will give local players a chance and it is then up to the individual to take it. I hope I can.

“I don’t know whether it is harder for local boys up front to make it. I can only look at myself and take my opportunities when they come.

“To score those two goals was a bittersweet moment for me. To get two Champions league goals, I am buzzing about that, but we didn’t get the win we should have done.

“I hope I have done enough to play against Norwich. We have some great strikers at the club and whoever is in there will give it 100 per cent. I just hope I get my chances.”

Welbeck had a successful season on loan at Sunderland last year but believes he is still developing.

“I think I’m a better person than a year ago because I went to Sunderland and got more minutes in the Premier League,” he added.

“It was really good for my career and I’m just really pleased at the moment. Naturally I’ve been growing, I’m still only 20 years old, I’m 21 in a couple of months so I’m just naturally developing into a man.”

 

Preview & Matchday: Liverpool U19s v. Molde FK U19s

By: Ed | September 28th, 2011

nextgen
Kickoff from Anfield at 7:00PM BST/2:00PM EST

Ways to Watch:

Match shown live on LFC.tv for eSeason subscribers and TV 2 Sport in Norway.

MyP2P.bz
StopStream.tv
ATDHEnet.tv
FromSport.com
FirstRowSports.eu
KiwiSportz.com

Liverpool:

Team sheet when it’s available

Bench:

Molde:

Team sheet when it’s available

Bench:

*

With only two matches left in NextGen Series group play, Liverpool find themselves vying for the second qualifying spot with Molde and Wolfsburg in Group 2. Group leaders Sporting are the runaway favorites, with a one-hundred percent record thus far and a plus-nine goal differential; the Portuguese side hung six on Molde their last time out while only conceding one, and while nothing’s settled quite yet (both Sporting and Molde have three left to play), you’d have to say that Liverpool’s best chance at progression is as runners-up.

Molde have struggled mightily since their opening win over Wolfsburg, first conceding four at home to Rodolfo Borrell’s squad before surrendering three in each half en route to a 6-1 defeat at Sporting. With their other fixture against Sporting postponed, though, the Norwegian side have a match in hand and a legitimate possibility of working their way into a qualifying position if they can get a result in at least two of the final three matches.

*

It’s been a somewhat frustrating tournament thus far for Liverpool—they started with the loss at home to Sporting, which, despite the scoreline, contained more than a few encouraging glimpses of potential. When they followed with a generally impressive 4-0 victory in Norway, things looked to be trending positively, but consecutive disappointing results against Wolfsburg—a 1-1 draw at Anfield before a 2-0 loss in Germany—has left their qualification hopes in doubt.

On paper Rodolfo Borrell’s been able to call on nearly all of his most notable names, with Andre Wisdom, Raheem Sterling, Suso, Toni Silva, Michael Ngoo, and Conor Coady starting each of the club’s first four matches, and Adam Morgan and Krisztian Adjoran featuring off the bench regularly. Like the senior squad, though, they’ve struggled to consistently find a final product, with lost chances playing a prominent role in each of the matches in which they’ve dropped points.

The result last week in Germany makes this a must-win for Borrell’s side, particularly with the trip to Portugal on the cards in two and a half weeks. And as much as we say it’s all about development and not the trophy, it’d be nice to get a more extended look at some of the youngsters that are ostensibly on the cusp; those named above have all been part of the discussion at some point in the past year or so, and getting a little more exposure to those that might be breaking through in the next few seasons would be more than welcomed. It’ll take some doing, but if they’re able to find a way to convert some of the chances they’ve created, it’s certainly doable.

Until kickoff, go ahead and catch up on last week’s match, which contains an unfortunately chronological montage of spurned chances by the young Reds and a terrific opener from Andac Güleryüz for the hosts:

Some Related Liverpool Posts:

CategoryCategory: Team News
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Barton hopes for England call

27 September 2011 19:26

Queens Park Rangers midfielder Joey Barton says he still hopes to represent England, despite not playing for his country in over four years.

The outspoken 29-year-old’s sole international cap came in February 2007, during a friendly match against Spain.

“It would be great to play for England again,” Barton told the London Evening Standard.

“I feel really sharp, as I should do having just turned 29 and I’m enjoying my football.”

“I think I’ll play until I’m about 38 or 40 because my game is not based on pace or power, it’s all about knowledge of football and manipulating the ball.”

“So I’m confident I can play for a long time. If I decide to coach or manage in the future, it would be quite prudent to have experienced a different culture or philosophy of football.”

“Or even just experiencing how the approach changes when you manage players from different backgrounds or cultures.”

Barton also revealed he would be open to the possibility of plying his trade abroad should the right chance come up.

“If the opportunity arose to play abroad in the future I’d definitely consider it,” he said.?

A Frank Lampard controversy? Bullshit

By: Jack | September 25th, 2011

Speculation. Those in the media world live off it. We in the real world feed off it. Why wouldn’t we? It, of course, makes for good reading, good watching – good whatever.

The rags’ latest helping of speculation comes courtesy not of Fernando Torres – weird, I know – but of Frank Lampard. Super Frank is steaming mad they tell us. So mad that he’s not hanging around any longer. Well, by not hanging around any longer, they mean not remaining seated on the bench until the final whistle. Future at Chelsea in doubt they say.

I call bullshit.

frank
To the loo

What of this rubbish proposal is actually concrete? All we really know is that Lampard left his seat on the bench near the end of Saturday’s 4-1 win over Swansea City at Stamford Bridge. The Daily Mail say he exited promptly after Josh McEachran entered the match as Andre Villas-Boas’ final substitute, around 83 minutes. I don’t have actually evidence of this being the case, thus I remain skeptical.

What to make of the incident then? Until we have actual video/quotes/statements from Frank Lampard citing displeasure with not being selected or a general lack of playing time, nothing. What’s to say he didn’t have to take a piss? Perhaps he had to make AVB’s post-match latte.

Of course, we’d also like a word or two from Villas-Boas on the subject. Not to worry, people. The manager have already tackled some questions on this.

AVB in the Independent: “We have to make decisions. I can’t go on every week or every three days to discuss the choices I take. Yes, Lampard is still an iconic player and a fantastic player. And, yes, still a key player. For sure, no doubt about it. He’s been doing magnificently well for the team. He has started five games, played 90 minutes in four of them. We count on him like we count on the others.”

Not exactly in line with the media’s point of view, is it?

Could Lampard be upset about being dropped for Swansea? Sure. Actually, I would be disappointed if he wasn’t. Is his position in this team under severe threat? Definitely. Does he want out? Not likely.

So, after answering those insightful queries, I call bullshit on this latest round of speculation. BULLSHIT.

Some Related Chelsea Posts:

CategoryCategory: Chelsea Team News, Opinion
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Barclays name photographic awards winners

 

Barclays announced that Martin Rickett has won the Barclays Photographer of the Season award, honouring the best Barclays Premier League photographer during the 2010/11 season.

Press Association photographer Rickett submitted a portfolio of five images from the 2010/11 Barclays Premier League season, including an iconic shot of Wayne Rooney’s stunning overhead kick in the Manchester derby at Old Trafford last February.




He also included memorable images of Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez taking on five Everton players with the ball at his feet, and Sir Alex Ferguson and his staff celebrating against Chelsea, a victory which all but sealed the Barclays Premier League title for Manchester United.

Rickett said: “It’s a huge honour to be chosen as the Barclays Photographer of the Season. I covered some great moments in the Barclays Premier League last season and hoped that my portfolio would reflect that, so it’s amazing to win. I’m very grateful for the continued support that Barclays shows for sports photographers like myself.”

Meanwhile, Richard Pelham of The Sun has claimed the Barclays Shot of the Season award, honouring the best individual photograph taken during the 2010/11 Barclays Premier League season.

Pelham’s dramatic photograph shows Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes desperately scrambling back to try to stop a Frank Lampard shot from crossing the line at Stamford Bridge in April. The goal was given as Chelsea won the match 2-1.

Pelham said: “I’m delighted to win the Barclays Shot of the Season award – it’s regarded as one of the most important awards you can win as a football photographer. Time seemed to slow down as Gomes lunged back to stop the ball from crossing the line, and I was really pleased to get a shot which captured the moment so well.”

The judging panel included Sky Sports football commentator Martin Tyler, last year’s Barclays Photographer of the Season winner Bradley Ormesher and chairman of the Football Writers’ Association, Steve Bates.

As Barclays Photographer of the Season, Martin Rickett receives an official Barclays award and £10,000 worth of photographic equipment, whilst Pelham receives £5,000 of photographic equipment in addition to his Barclays Shot of the Season award.