Man City hammer Inter as David Silva pulls the strings. Alan Pardew’s unhappy. Wesley Sneijder fails to write off a move away from Inter and Daniel Sturridge wants to stay at the Bridge thanks to a new-found freedom. Here’s this morning’s Scribbles, folks:
Bolton have been linked with a move for Shaun Wright-Phillips following the sickening leg-break injury to Chung Yong-Lee. The Man City star would fit seamlessly into Owen Coyle’s starting XI, though his wages may prove to be a stumbling block. The Trotters’ new signing Chris Eagles can play on the right flank and comes in at 5.5 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL), though Coyle has been playing Eagles as a support striker in recent games, meaning a possible right wing role for Gretar Steinsson or Tyron Mears if Coyle fails to bring in re-inforcements. With both listed as 4.5 defenders, it’s a situation worth monitoring.
Staying on the subject of Bolton, Coyle has also been linked with another loan move for Daniel Sturridge as he looks to shuffle his pack. Citing his great relationship with Andre Villas-Boas, Coyle then proceeded to lavish praise on Sturridge, with his admiration for the player very much apparent:
Daniel is such an outstanding young talent but I think he has to play week in, week out now. He’s had six months of being a regular starter with us and he will probably know he’s got to start these games now. I played him through the middle and he was sensational for me. I always felt he wanted to play through the middle…
If Sturridge‘s latest comments are anything to go by, however, Coyle’s pursuit of the player may prove to be a fruitless one. Sturridge seems a happy man under Villas-Boas and in light of the club’s sixth straight pre-season win, has been talking of a new-found freedom to his play:
The manager has given me the licence to express myself and I don’t think I have had that before with any manager. He has let me off the leash and said go out and enjoy yourself. I have a lot more freedom than I have ever had and I think I enjoy my football more..
It is not just me either; everyone feels like that. He wants us to attack and not be too defensive. That is refreshing. The tour has been great. The manager has shown faith in me.
Fantasy managers will be crossing their fingers and hoping Sturridge does depart Stamford Bridge, though; at 6.5 in FPL his performances for Bolton last season suggest he’ll be a real bargain. If he stays at Chelsea, squad rotation looks likely to kill off his Fantasy potential.
Javier Hernandez’s Gold Cup exploits for Mexico and the subsequent rest period was always going to mean the striker had some catching up to do in terms of match fitness. With the striker now sidelined with concussion, his pre-season training schedule has been further disrupted and Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted the player may not be available until the end of August, meaning there’s a chance Hernandez may not see any Premier League game time until game week 4, in mid September:
Javier was always going to get a break until he did his proper pre-season. In a two-week period now he’ll do some training but he won’t play. We’ll have him back in three to four weeks.
Arsenal suffered a scare in yesterday’s draw with New York Red Bulls when Jack Wilshere was withdrawn after only seven minutes with an ankle knock. With Abou Diaby already sidelined for ten weeks and Cesc Fabregas looking likely to exit the Emirates, the last thing Arsene Wenger needs is more injuries to central midfielders. The Gunners boss seemed positive on Wilshere after the match, saying:
It is not very serious. They say he might be out for the whole of next week because he has an ankle inflammation. But he has not torn anything. He is a quick healer usually and a tough boy so I hope he will be quicker than the medical predictions.
The England game is on August 10 and I don’t know [whether he will be available]. They told me he might be out next week. If he is out next week, he will not play against Benfica so he will certainly not play for England.
Newcastle boss Alan Pardew was far from pleased with his club’s 3-2 loss at Leeds yesterday. Pardew fielded many first-teamers in the Elland Road defeat and despite his disappointment, was full of praise for a couple of his new summer signings after the match:
Sometimes in a game like that you learn more, and I’ve learnt more about individual players today than I have all pre-season. Cabaye was a positive – he played the holding role and you could see that, although he is a great passer, he also has defensive qualities…Demba Ba was good in all he did without actually getting a goal, and Danny Simpson played well.
Steven Taylor showed his scoring capabilities once again for Newcastle. The big centre-half grabbed his side’s first goal and served a reminder of the form that saw him score in each of his side’s final three games last term. At 4.5 in FPL, he looks a decent punt for a low-price defender.
Roberto Mancini was a happy man after Man City’s 3-0 demolition of Inter Milan. With an outstanding David Silva pulling the strings from the right flank and resultantly picking up the man of the match award, Mancini also saw Mario Malotelli and Edin Dzeko find the net as his strikers start to pick up form ahead of next weekend’s Community Shield showdown with Man United.
Post-match, Mancini praised all three players but his most intriguing comments came when the subject of Carlos Tevez arose, suggesting the striker‘s exit may not be as definite as previously thought:
When Carlos comes back on Thursday we will have four strikers fighting for the shirts. That’s good for us. When you are playing in four competitions, we need that.
Wesley Sneijder was somewhat cryptic in yesterday‘s post-match press conference in Dublin, after Inter‘s loss to Man City. The Dutchman has been linked with a move to Man United all summer and although Sir Alex Ferguson seemed to write off the chances of the transfer last week, Sneijder was not quite so pessimistic. When asked if he was likely to remain an Inter player next summer, Sneijder replied:
“What will happen? We will see. There is always a chance that something will happen, but we will see. There is always speculation. I’ve said before, I’ve played for almost 10 years at the highest level and every year there is speculation.”
Blackburn Rovers look set to finally make some leeway in the transfer market over the next few days. With Phil Jones leaving Ewood Park and talk of Chris Samba’s exit, Steve Kean looks to have a positive addition to the Rovers ranks in the form of Dundee United striker David Goodwillie.
