A stunning volley from Alan Shearer has been voted among the best Premier League goals of all time after a poll was put out by Sky Sports to recognise some of the top flight’s best strikes.
The other nominees are as follows; Andros Townsend for Crystal Palace against Manchester City, Paulo Di Canio for West Ham United against AFC Wimbledon, Glen Johnson for Portsmouth against Hull City, Eric Cantona for Manchester United against Sunderland, Pajtim Kasami for Fulham against Crystal Palace, Dietmar Hamann for Liverpool against Portsmouth, Thierry Henry for Arsenal against Manchester United, Matt Le Tissier for Southampton against Newcastle, David Beckham for Manchester United against AFC Wimbledon, Gareth Bale for Tottenham Hotspur against Stoke City, David Luiz for Chelsea against Fulham, Tony Yeboah for Leeds United against AFC Wimbledon, Matthew Lowton for Aston Villa against Stoke City, Robin Van Persie for Arsenal against Charlton Athletic, Juliano Belletti for Chelsea against Middlesbrough and Wayne Rooney for Manchester United against Manchester City.
Shearer’s stunning volley against Everton in the Premier League back in 2002 levelled the score up at St James’ Park before Craig Bellamy scored a late winner after Kevin Campbell had given the Toffees a lead, according to the BBC. Joseph Yobo was also sent off shortly after Campbell struck which encouraged the momentum to shift to the Magpies.
According to the article by Sky Sports, Shearer says that this goal was his best in the top flight, and you can watch it over and over again here.
Members of the Toon Army can also vote for the ‘stunning volley’ via the Sky Sports website.
Shearer’s stunning strike was certainly a worthy inclusion in the list of nominees and it was undoubtedly one of the best goals he netted during his illustrious career.
Having netted a ridiculous 260 g0als in total in the Premier League (Transfermarkt), there were plenty to pick from but it comes as little surprise that it was his hit against the Toffees which made the cut given the technique involved.
Whether it is good enough to beat some of the other strikes on the list remains to be seen.
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Liverpool have arguably been the best team in the country when it comes to recruitment over the last few years, as well as their success on the pitch domestically and on the continent.
Jurgen Klopp has been key to that, with almost all of his signings proving to be the result of long, detailed and well thought out scouting. From Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to Virgil Van Dijk, with the likes of Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah in between, so many of his signings have been so impressive and made a huge impact on the Reds’ growth into Premier League powerhouses.
But it hasn’t always been like this, with previous managers not enjoying the same kind of success on the pitch and in the transfer market. The Reds’ transfer record pre-Klopp was not as consistent, and it’s fair to say Klopp will have been mortified if he’d have suffered the same recruitment woes.
Luckily he hasn’t, but others haven’t been so fortunate. So, here’s a look at Liverpool’s 20 worst signings of the Premier League era…
Sean Dundee
Valencia v Liverpool 3/11/98 UEFA Cup 2nd round 2nd leg Pic : Action Images / Stuart Franklin Liverpool’s Michael Owen & Sean Dundee celebrate Steve McManaman’s goal
Pictured above celebrating with Michael Owen, Sean Dundee was a true waste of money for Liverpool.
£2m may not seem like a lot of dough now at all but back in 1998 it was and all joint-managers at the time Roy Evans and Gerard Houllier would get for that lofty sum would be five appearances (all of them from the bench) and no goals from the centre-forward.
Charlie Adam
Despite that one cracking season in the Premier League for Blackpool, Charlie Adam was never good enough to represent a club like the Reds and he probably knew that as well.
That’s why the creative Scotland international lasted just the one campaign on Merseyside in what was a very strange time for Liverpool Football Club.
Christian Benteke
There are similarities between Adam and the next infamous member of this list, the man known as one of the attacking flops of all time at Anfield – Christian Benteke.
Then gaffer Brendan Rodgers splashed out an eye-watering £32.5m on the striker in the summer of 2015 and like both Adam and Dundee would last just the one term – ironically, Benteke left the North West with a record of ten goals in 42 matches, not too bad at all.
Alberto Aquilani
Mention the name Alberto Aquilani and most Kopites would offer a chuckle, this is certainly not the impression that the Italian would have wanted to leave when he arrived from Roma for £17m plus bonuses prior to the 2009/2010 season.
In truth, Xabi Alonso was always going to be a hard act to follow and that role always had the potential to be a poisoned chalice to whoever had to fulfill it, however, the woeful Aquilani made a special mess of it and it’s no small miracle that he managed to officially remain a Liverpool player for three years.
Milan Jovanovic
Famous for that hilarious video of his Reds best bits on YouTube, Milan Jovanovic turned up in the red half of Merseyside to a different manager to the one that signed him in 2010.
Roy Hodgson was hardly renowned for getting the best out of his players at Anfield and the Serbia midfielder is some example of that.
The balding winger is remembered at the Reds for the wrong reasons and 18 appearances after his signing he was shipped back to the league in which he tricked Rafa Benitez into thinking he was any good – the Belgian first division.
Christian Poulsen
Is that a picture of Dirk Kuyt?
No, if Christian Poulsen was even half as decent for Liverpool as the legendary Dutch frontman he wouldn’t be anywhere near this list.
Putting any ifs and buts aside, Roy Hodgson was probably right to identify the Dane’s quality, after all he is one of the rare few to have played in all five of Europe’s big five divisions, though by 2010 he was fast slowing down and his terrible only campaign in Anfield Road is best forgotten.
Tiago Ilori
All the big teams have done it; signing a youngster dubbed to be the next big thing in European, or even world football, only for them to flop massively.
Well, Tiago Ilori is the Reds’ anti-climactic starlet and they paid a fair amount of money for him in September 2013, a reported £7m for the then 20-year-old who would only ever represent the club three times.
Paul Konchesky
As you may have already noticed, the Reds made some stinkers of signings around the turn of the decade, but none of them quite as terrible as Paul Konchesky.
The left-back was Roy Hodgson’s main man at Fulham so he saw no reason why he couldn’t follow him to play the same role at Anfield, however, his spell was nothing short of a total disaster shrouded by his mum’s Facebook rant in which she branded Liverpool fans “scouse scum.”
Mario Balotelli
Sure Mario Balotelli’s mother never said anything bad about Kopites, but his football in Liverpool could hardly do the talking for him either.
The controversial character was alright at Manchester City and pretty impressive at the 2012 UEFA European Championships, however, Luis Suarez’s were big boots to fill at Anfield plus there was always the weight of his £15m+ price tag – he was set up to fail really and did.
Joe Cole
Liverpool’s decision to sign Joe Cole in the twilight of his career was a strange one and they got what they deserved for what was a poor bit of business.
The former England and Chelsea star may not have cost Roy Hodgson any actual money but his £130k-per-week salary was obscene for what the Reds actually got, a mere 42 matches, five goals and three assists, sub-standard for any attacking midfielder let alone Cole.
ScorecardIt takes plenty of character to return to the scene of a grim defeat and erase its memory by notching a strong victory, and that is precisely what New South Wales achieved by defeating Western Australia in the opening Sheffield Shield match of the season.In February the Blues were routed by an innings and 323 runs inside three days at the WACA ground, but this time it was the visitors claiming outright points with a day to spare, by the handsome margin of eight wickets.Starting out with a deficit of 141, the Warriors’ second innings was never likely to amount to enough once Trent Copeland had nipped out three of the first four wickets with only 68 on the board, Steve O’Keefe claiming the other in what was a strong allround display by the NSW vice-captain.Liam Davis and the wicketkeeper Tom Triffitt held up the Blues for a time by adding 97, and Mitchell Johnson added 48 with Nathan Rimmington down the order, but a target of 108 was never likely to trouble the Blues provided they attacked the target with the right intent.Peter Nevill provided the required aggression with a stroke-filled innings, and he was at the crease to post the winning runs in the company of the captain Michael Clarke, thus completing a highly productive week for the Blues after they also won the limited overs match against WA.After one match, NSW now have as many outright wins as they managed for the whole of last summer, and will be confident entering their second fixture against Tasmania at Bankstown Oval from Wednesday.
Shane Watson is an increasingly doubtful starter for the second Test in Adelaide after the team performance manager Pat Howard stated he would be surplus to Australia’s requirements against South Africa unless he can prove himself fit enough to bowl.In the most blunt declaration yet that Watson needs to retain his allrounder status in order to remain an integral part of Australia’s planning, Howard stated that John Inverarity’s selection panel had placed great store in the ability of batsmen to bowl, particularly when faced with a batting line-up as deep as South Africa’s.The selectors are currently discussing the composition of their squad for the Adelaide Test ahead of a likely announcement on Friday, and Watson cannot be expected to be considered unless he proves himself capable of bowling plenty of overs in the second match of the series.Watson is understood to be thinking conservatively about returning to the bowling crease, making the Perth Test or even the Sri Lanka series that follows the South Africa Tests more likely avenues for his international return.”Shane is progressing, if the Test match was tomorrow he wouldn’t be playing, but he’s progressing and I think when the team goes in on Sunday we’ll have a far better indication of where he’s at,” Howard said in Brisbane.”For different series there are different policies, there’s a position the selection panel take. There are times over the past 12 months where he has been considered in both roles and sometimes as a batsman only, but very much at Adelaide they’re looking to his bowling and his fitness around bowling, to see if he’s capable of doing both.”As you saw during the Test match the other day, a fair few bowlers were called on, and Shane’s value to be able to do both is pretty strong. It would go against him significantly [if he can’t bowl].”In seeking to assess Watson’s fitness, Cricket Australia had considered making him available to play for New South Wales in a domestic limited overs match against Victoria at North Sydney Oval on Sunday, but that possibility now appears remote. Instead Watson will need to show his ability to bowl in the nets, before following up with further training spells in Adelaide.”The value and the balance of the team is what the selection panel talk about, it’s the panel’s call on how they come together on this,” Howard said. “They assess all of that, the value of it, I know John Inverarity looks very much at what is our ability to bowl lots and lots of overs.”We were in a pretty unique position the other day when Rob Quiney bowled for us and doesn’t bowl for Victoria, so the ability for people to take up some bowling slack credibly is important. Without making it a Shane Watson conversation, the ability to take overs up was pretty well demonstrated in the first Test.”Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood can again be expected to be part of the team in Adelaide, even if the selectors choose not to change the bowling line-up that looked far more threatening in the second innings of the Brisbane Test than the first. Starc and Hazlewood are currently bowling for NSW against the Bushrangers in a Sheffield Shield fixture at the SCG.”We had a fair few bowlers around the squad in the lead-up to the Test,” Howard said. “Josh Hazlewood was there as well as Mitchell, so we’re very much making sure guys are ingrained in the squad. We did that all last year, so we want that extra bowler around to get involved in the culture, and to make sure they’re ready to do the job required.”
According to a recent report from The Daily Mail, Idrissa Gueye is indeed hoping to leave Everton for Paris Saint-Germain this month. The 29-year-old made the move to Goodison Park back in the summer of 2016 and has since become a vital member of the squad on Merseyside, to the point that Thomas Tuchel’s French giants have expressed an interest in his services during the January window.
And while a £21.5 million bid has been rejected by the Toffees (as per The Daily Mail), Gueye himself is reportedly (as per The Daily Mail) seeking to leave Everton this month in a bid to join the Ligue 1 champions.
And with manager Marco Silva already under pressure after a poor run of results recently, it could be game over for the Portuguese boss were his side to indeed sanction the 29-year-old’s exit this month.
The Breakdown
Ultimately, the arrival of the 41-year-old during the summer was met with much optimism and anticipation after the testing reign of Sam Allardyce last season, with Silva seen as the progressive, young manager the club needed to set themselves up for future success.
And while things started reasonably well for the ex-Watford and Hull City chief, things have gone downhill fast recently with just two wins and two draws in their last ten Premier League games, while a 3-2 defeat to Millwall in the FA Cup at the weekend has hardly helped his cause.
Thus, Silva appears up against it in terms of turning things around at Goodison Park, defeat tonight at Huddersfield Town is simply unthinkable, and things would be made a whole lot more difficult, perhaps too difficult, were the club to sell Gueye this month.
The 29-year-old has become a mainstay in the Everton first team ever since swapping Villa Park for Goodison Park two-and-a-half years ago, with the midfielder since then appearing 94 times for the Toffees, 86 of which coming in their last 99 Premier League matches.
And were the club to indeed cash in on the Senegal international this month, it would leave a huge void in the heart of the Everton midfield, as there is little doubting that Gueye is the main man in the central midfield department at Goodison Park.
There are few better midfielders in the division than the 29-year-old in terms of off the ball skills in making key tackles, blocks, and interceptions, with his overall reading of the game second-to-none, while he has also greatly improved on the ball this time round to suggest that he is beginning to become the all round Premier League midfielder.
And while Andre Gomes’ arrival on loan from Barcelona has given Silva the ideal man to play alongside Gueye, the latter remains the constant in that area of the pitch – quite simply, the likes of Morgan Schneiderlin, Tom Davies, and James McCarthy haven’t done enough to dislodge Gueye, or prove that they can deputise as effectively were he to leave.
And were the latter eventuality to indeed play out, Silva could be in serious trouble – not only are things not going particularly well at present, but losing the number one choice central midfielder is hardly going to help his cause.
In fact, sanctioning Gueye’s exit this month could prompt the beginning of the end for Silva at Everton.
Manchester City’s 3-2 win over Schalke might seem impressive considering they came back from two down despite being reduced to 10 men – Nicolas Otamendi was shown a second yellow for a cynical foul on Guido Bergstaller – but the Cityzens were far from their sparkling best.
Pep Guardiola’s arrival in the Premier League has gifted us some of the best team goals we’ve ever seen and, on their day, the Etihad Stadium outfit are unstoppable in their link-up play. However, it took something a little different to give City the advantage going into the second leg of their Champions League knock-out stage clash.
Nabil Bentaleb, formerly of Spurs, put his side ahead from the spot – his second of the game – on the stroke of half-time and City went after them after the break, although Otamendi’s dismissal with 22 minutes left to play meant the Premier League champions had to be careful.
S04 were intent on breaking down their opponents’ flow wherever and by however means possible – if they had to kick their man to the floor, they happily would. With referee Carlos del Cerro Grande blowing his whistle for a City free-kick left, right and centre, Leroy Sane stepped up to the plate and smashed home a beauty of a free-kick, but the visitors weren’t content with a draw.
Enter Raheem Sterling. The 47-cap England international has blossomed under Guardiola and his timing is rarely anything but impeccable – whether it be calculating his run in order to arrive on the end of a tap-in in the box, or popping up with goals just when City need them most.
The latter is precisely how he stamped his mark on proceedings on Wednesday night, as he cleverly nudged an off-guard Bastian Ockzipka and latched onto Ederson’s long pass, before slotting the ball past Ralf Fahrmann in the dying moments of the game to give his side the win.
Usually, 90th minute winners are special but, while there is no doubting the importance of Sterling’s midweek strike, the sight of the electric winger wheeling away to celebrate with seconds of injury time to go has become far from a rare occurrence – last gasp winners against Bournemouth and Southampton last season come to mind.
Fortunately for City, they have a plethora of players capable of providing moments of individual brilliance but Sterling, in particular, seems to thrive in clutch situations.
Kevin De Bruyne is widely regarded as the player to make things happen for the Etihad Stadium outfit when they are having an off-day – the Belgian has a unique eye for a pass – closely followed by David Silva and Sergio Aguero. But, if Sterling continues to deliver in the manner he did on Wednesday, the 5-foot-7 ace will take that mantle as City’s resident match-winner.
De Bruyne has been hampered by injuries this season and – although there is no doubting his outstanding quality – has hardly lit the world alight since his return to fitness.
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The luxury Guardiola possesses which few other teams share is that he can afford for his players, including De Bruyne, to have a dip in form, as the likes of Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan can step in more than capably.
The summer acquisition of Riyad Mahrez gave the Spaniard further options on the wings and the Algerian has justified his price tag when given the nod, although his opportunities will surely begin to vanish if Sterling continues to be the difference maker. Move over De Bruyne, there’s a new showstopper in Manchester.
Tottenham Hotspur youngster Marcus Edwards, on loan at Excelsior, has been hailed by team-mate Jeffrey Fortes, who, per Voetbal Primeur, says is the best player he has played alongside.
Edwards moved to the Netherlands in the summer and has made 14 appearances for the club in the Eredivisie, scoring two goals and laying on two assists.
What’s the word?
Edwards has been with Spurs since the age of eight but has made just one senior appearance for the club, playing 15 minutes in a 5-0 League Cup win over Gillingham in 2016.
A loan spell at Norwich City in 2018 was not fruitful but his move to Excelsior, however, appears to be working out and he has been in excellent form in recent weeks.
The 20-year-old scored once and provided one assist in a 2-1 win over FC Emmen last time out and Fortes says he has an unnatural amount of talent.
Indeed, Mauricio Pochettino, speaking in 2016, likened Edwards to Barcelona icon Lionel Messi, saying, per Sky Sports: “The qualities – it’s only looks, his body and the way that he plays – remember a little bit from the beginning of Messi.”
Fortes said: “He is of a bizarre level, what he can do is really not normal, I have not experienced a better player in my career, and Mauricio Pochettino did not make that comparison with Messi for nothing.
“He was referring to his way of moving and there is really something in that.”
Fortes is delighted that Edwards has chosen to move to the Netherlands, with Excelsior currently 14th in Eredivisie.
He added: “He is for many the Tottenham player, not Marcus Edwards, and of course it is also incredible that he is walking around here, let’s face it.”
A chance to prove his worth
Edwards has long been seen as a diamond in the rough.
He has been capped at numerous youth levels by England, playing for every age group between the Under-16s and the Under-20s. He has scored at least one goal for each team.
However, he has yet to make his breakthrough at Spurs, despite Pochettino’s continued insistence that he will trust in youth.
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Edwards’ move to Norwich did not work out at all but he has taken the bold step of moving to a foreign country in an attempt to make his name and prove his worth.
As he continues to thrive, Spurs fans will be hoping that he can come back into the fray at the end of the season and make an impact on the squad.
Pochettino, of all managers, will surely give him the chance.
[ad_pod ]According to the chief football writer for The Guardian/Observer, Daniel Taylor, on his official Twitter account, Nottingham Forest are on the verge of signing Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Leo Bonatini on loan until the end of the season.
What’s the word, then?
Well, Daniel Taylor says that the Championship play-off hopefuls have beaten off competition from a number of other clubs to bring the 24-year-old to The City Ground on a temporary basis for the remainder of the campaign.
Despite playing a key role in Wolves’ promotion to the Premier League last season, the Brazilian has found first-team opportunities hard to come by this term following the arrival of Raul Jimenez at Molineux during the summer transfer window.
As per Transfermarkt, the attacker has only played 128 minutes of Premier League football across seven appearances, with the majority of his game time coming in the Carabao Cup.
Would he be a good signing for Forest?
He certainly could be, yes.
The Reds’ only real striker options right now are Lewis Grabban and Daryl Murphy, and it is no surprise if Martin O’Neill wants some more competition for places in that area if the east Midlands outfit are to secure the top-six finish they undoubtedly want come what May.
The centre-forward netted 12 times in 43 Championship appearances for Nuno Santo’s men during their promotion-winning campaign, as per Transfermarkt, although the last of those actually came in December 2017.
That could be a slight concern, but there is no doubt that he can rebuild his confidence at The City Ground if given regular minutes, and it is yet more proof that owner Evangelos Marinakis isn’t messing about in his bid to take Forest to the Premier League.
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Harry Kane could return for Tottenham Hotspur against Borussia Dortmund, per The Sun.
Kane sustained ankle ligament damage against Manchester United in December but could now make an ahead-of-schedule return.
What’s the word?
Kane was initially ruled out until March when he sustained his injury.
However, the aforementioned report claims that Spurs’ medical staff are confident he could make an early return.
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The England international, who won the Golden Boot at the 2018 World Cup, could return in next week’s crucial Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund, though he is certainly set to miss this weekend’s game against Leicester City.
If Mauricio Pochettino opts against risking the striker versus the German giants, he could instead play against Burnley.
The report will be music to the ears of the Argentine, with Spurs facing games against Chelsea, Arsenal, and Liverpool, as well as the return leg against Dortmund, before the end of March.
Worth the risk?
Pochettino would be well advised to tread carefully surrounding Kane’s injury. Spurs cannot afford to rush the striker back and see him sustain another injury before the end of the season.
He has already played 309 senior games in his club career – 244 of those coming with Spurs – and has also won 35 caps for England. All in, at the age of 25, he has played 344 senior games since making his debut.
He has sustained two ankle injuries already but, nevertheless, was an integral part of England’s World Cup squad.
Since the beginning of last season, quite simply, he has not had a break.
But he has been so important to their season – scoring 20 goals in 31 games in all competitions – that it would not be a surprise if he started against Dortmund next week.
If Kane is fit, he will want to play, and Pochettino will surely not want to say no. However, he may have to take the decision out of the striker’s hands – for the good of Kane’s own career.