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Manchester United’s Luis Nani added two more assists at the weekend, to bring his total to 18 for the season; despite leading the Premier League’s assist charts this season, Nani was a controversial omission from the PFA Player of the Year shortlist. Why is Nani not getting the recognition his stats deserve?

During Nani’s early days he created more enemies than friends, with his tendency to fall over from the slightest of touches from an opponent; this is something the patriotic fans of the beautiful game resent. This stigma of Nani’s earlier performances is starting to subside but is still a trait in his game which isn’t totally eradicated. Nani is starting to mature and develop as a player and next season could be the young Portuguese international’s time to showcase his development.

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Playing for Manchester United, arguably the world’s biggest club, does create its fair share of headlines. Javier Hernandez has been lauded by pundits and fans alike; the agile Mexican has been a revelation at Old Trafford in his first season. Combine this with Ryan Giggs’ age-defying performances, Wayne Rooney’s continual ‘antics’ and Sir Alex Ferguson’s war of words with the FA and referees, which have overshadowed the winger’s influential appearances on the pitch, leaving not much room on the backpages.

In recent times, Manchester United have been blessed with very gifted wide players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham and Ryan Giggs. Although Nani’s performances have been impressive when you consider his predecessors, who produced (and are still producing) sublime performances, does Nani really warrant such high plaudits? Noting the obvious similarities in Ronaldo and Nani’s play, both being Portuguese, skilful, pacey and good on the ball, it was inevitable that comparisons would be drawn at the beginning despite the fact that Ronaldo set an almost unattainable benchmark.

Overall, Nani without doubt is a class act and next season he could well be at the forefront of Ferguson’s reported rebuilding process.

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Bet on Nani to score and Manchester United to win against Chelsea tonight…

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Mirror Football is reporting that Sunderland manager Steve Bruce looks keen to add Cardiff City striker Jay Bothroyd to his Premier League squad for next season. The 28 year old former Gunner is likely to be available on a free transfer in the summer due to his Cardiff contract coming to an end.

Bothroyd has been in good form this season contributing 18 goals and 8 assists in the nPower Championship. This sort of form even saw the Cardiff striker win a cap for England this season.

The report goes on to suggest that Sunderland are prepared to push the boat out to get their man and offer higher wages than any other interested party. Sunderland could be prepared to offer Bothroyd wages of up to £30,000 per week and want to have the deal secured quickly.

Steve Bruce needs to find more firepower to replace the goals that have been missed – since Darren Bent left the club in January. Danny Welbeck is due to return to Manchester United at the end of the season. But Michael Owen is another target on a free transfer; Bothroyd though is set to be Steve Bruce’s first summer capture.

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The battle for a Europa League spot for next season takes shape at Anfield on Sunday when Liverpool host Tottenham.Fifth place is the only spot on the English Premier League table on offer for the European second-tier competition, after Birmingham and Stoke wrapped up their ticket with a Carling Cup win and an FA Cup final appearance respectively.

Liverpool, fifth on 58 points, are warm favourites for the final European spot, ahead of Spurs in sixth on 56 points.

“I don’t know. We’ll just wait and see,” Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish said when quizzed on his side’s continental hopes earlier in the week.

“Nobody would ever have anticipated the run that the boys have been on since January, would they? It’s been unbelievable. Even if we don’t get fifth, they’ve been absolutely fantastic. For us, the position hasn’t been as important as the response of the players.”

“We’ll play every game to win it and, at the end, we’ll add up the points and see where we finish.”

But an away victory for Harry Redknapp’s men would significantly alter the equation to determine which side progresses to Europe, with Spurs to take a one-point lead on Dalglish’s side heading into the season’s final day.

In Liverpool’s favour is the fact the match is at Anfield, in addition to the fact that Dalglish signed for three years during the week – and a boost to their performance accordingly would not surprise, given the esteem the Reds legend is held in on Merseyside.

Liverpool have been in terrific form recently, having lost just two of their last 15 Premier League fixtures, winning four of their last five, in which they have scored 17 goals at an average of more than three per match.

On the other hand, Tottenham have been the polar opposite as they are clearly feeling the pinch after a long season.

Spurs have won just one of their last 13 matches in all competitions and have been limping towards the end of season for some time, with injuries to many of their first-team players not helping.

The likes of Jermaine Jenas, Gareth Bale, Tom Huddlestone, Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Alan Hutton, Ledley King, Jonathan Woodgate and Wilson Palacios have all been sidelined at some period of time while Liverpool have also had their own injury concerns in recent times.

Steven Gerrard, Daniel Agger, Fabio Aurelio, Martin Kelly and Milan Jovanovic are all on the Reds injury list at the current point in time, but Dalglish has turned the situation into a positive, using it as a chance to blood young players with future seasons in mind.

The reverse fixture between the two sides saw Tottenham win 2-1 thanks to Aaron Lennon’s stoppage-time winner, but any chance of a repeat is unlikely against a Liverpool side who have found form lately.

Barcelona’s Xavi insists his side will stay true to their attacking style when they take on Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday.The Catalans head into the semi-final second-leg clash with a 2-0 lead courtesy of a brace from the inspirational Lionel Messi, but Xavi said as far as his side is concerned, the best form of defence will always be attack.

“They will need to go out and look for the game more,” the Spanish playmaker said.

“They’ve lived on a counter-attacking game and been ultra defensive, but we have to be prepared for them to play higher up the pitch tomorrow.”

“Whatever happens though, Barca will stay true to their own way of playing. Our game won’t change at all.”

“We always attack and never try and sit back and defend a lead – we don’t know any other way to play and our fans would never let us.”

Xavi said he was disappointed about the furore surrounding the first-leg meeting between the two sides, which resulted in Real defender Pepe being dismissed and their manager Jose Mourinho being sent to the stands for his protests.

Barcelona substitute goalkeeper Jose Pinto was also shown red for his involvement in a half-time fracas, but Xavi insists these incidents are water under the bridge and his sights are set firmly on Tuesday’s match.

“I’m not one to judge the behaviour of the Real Madrid manager,” Xavi said. “We try to talk about football, and it feels as if it isn’t talked about much.”

“There is a bit about Madrid’s strategy and Barcelona’s strategy, but we focus on things that don’t have any importance in football.”

“It makes me a little sad to talk about things that are outside of the game of football that we love so much. We try to do our best on the pitch and respect our opponents, and then play our game.”

“Madrid have their weapons and their manager, who is a controversial figure – not just now, but always.”

“We try to stay away from this. We would prefer that we all talk a bit more about football and not outside factors that reflect badly on the sport.”

Brazilian midfielder Denilson wants to leave Arsenal in the summer after what he says is the ‘worst season of my life’.The 23-year-old admits the lack of success at the Gunners is a major reason behind his decision.

“A footballer’s career is over very quickly so it is time for me to move on. This has been the worst season of my life,” Denilson told The Sun.

“I made up my mind eight months ago. But I haven’t said anything because I did not want to disrupt the team during the season.”

“I’ve been to see Arsene Wenger and told him how I felt and he agreed to let me go. I know some people will think I’m crazy. They are right. It is a great club, with a great organisation, a great manager and so many talented players. I need a fresh challenge and although I’m taking a big gamble, I’m ready to take that risk.”

“I am a footballer and I want to play every week because I want the chance to play for Brazil. Look at Lucas (Leiva) at Liverpool. He’s been playing regularly and he’s in the Brazil team. That’s where I want to be.”

“I would love to be able to do that at Arsenal but based on how things have gone this season, I think it’s time for a change. So I am flying home to Brazil on Sunday and I’m hoping I can make a fresh start in Spain or maybe Italy.”

Denilson arrived at Arsenal in 2006 from Sao Paulo but failed to win a trophy with the club, who lost the Carling Cup final to Birmingham before falling to finalists Barcelona in the quarter-finals of the Champions League this year.

“I am so upset. I am a winner and I came here to win trophies but I’ve been here for five years and won nothing,” he said.

“There’s something missing at Arsenal but no-one knows what it is. Not the manager, not the players – nobody. Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool spend millions and millions on players.”

“But we are still the best footballing side in Britain, we play beautiful football. Only Barcelona do it better. But we don’t win trophies. That’s so frustrating, you can’t imagine how frustrating. Some people say we don’t succeed because we are too young and naive – but that’s no excuse.”

“That (losing the Carling Cup final) was the moment our season was ruined, it started a domino effect and no-one could stop it. I knew it was a massive moment, the point where it all started to go badly wrong and I think we all knew. I went home afterwards and just cried. I was very upset, very sad and I was ashamed.”

If recent news and rumours are to be believed, big spending, billionaires Manchester City have joined their bitter rivals Manchester United and their Premier league competitors Chelsea in pursuit of Tottenham ’s Croatian star, Luka Modric.

Chairman Daniel Levy and Manager Harry Redknapp have made it quite clear to these clubs that neither Modric or PFA player of the year, Gareth Bale will be sold this summer. Welsh winger Bale has pledged his immediate future to the club, however, Modric has been reportedly quoted by the Daily Star saying, ‘I’m a Tottenham player and will be in London on July 7 to begin preparing for the season,’ he added, ‘But I want to say that transfers could occur later.’

This news will have surely unnerved a few in N17, although Levy has been a top negotiator with United especially in the past few seasons and if he were able to achieve an offer in the region of £40 million, would it be such a bad thing to see him go?

Understandably, the majority of Spurs fans are against the sale of yet another of their star players, especially as United have managed to lure both Carrick (£18 million) and Berbatov (£30.75 million) away from White Hart Lane in recent years. But were both those deals not great pieces of business by Spurs? Yes, they lost a ‘big’ player, but they also received ‘big’ money, money that financed the transfers of multiple players such as Palacios, Pavlyuchenko and even Modric himself.

What Spurs do have in their favour is that the ball lies firmly in their court; they only have to sell, if and when they want to. They can afford to hold out for a giant sum and if the aforementioned interested clubs really want Modric that badly, they will offer it. He only recently signed a 6 year contract and isn’t the type of guy to throw a tantrum and make a fuss to force through a deal. Therefore, Spurs seem to be in the ideal position, they can keep their star midfielder unless a ‘crazy’ money deal is offered, allowing Levy to re-invest across maybe 4 positions, no doubt strengthening the team as a whole.

Another large bonus for Spurs is that they are not exactly short of options in midfield. Although Redknapp himself has described Modric as ‘irreplaceable,’ it is important to remember that he was injured for fair length of time earlier in the season. In that time, his Croatian team-mate Niko Kranjcar was given a chance and scored brilliant winning goals in two games. They also have other international players such as Palacios, Sandro and Tom Huddlestone, all capable of playing in a top side and this is before any ‘replacements’ have been brought using the vast sums of money Modric’s sale would generate.

I know that too many fans, the sale of one the clubs best talents would be seen as a ‘backwards’ step but just look at Liverpool, they sold their ‘talismanic’ player in Torres and are undoubtedly now a stronger side after the additions of Suarez, Carroll and now Henderson.

For most fans it is a matter of pride, a matter of not letting their club be bullied into selling, resisting the advances of Europe’s giants but if the offer of ‘crazy’ money similar to the Torres transfer was put on the table, with Levy’s promise of signing a ’20 goal a season forward’ and more than adequate replacements or keeping hold of Modric, which would you really choose?

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Read more of Richard Baker’s articles at This is Futbol

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You can forgive most Arsenal fans for being somewhat underwhelmed with their activity in the transfer market thus far. Their sole signing thus far has been Charlton defender and Finland Under-21 star Carl Jenkinson who they plucked up on the cheap. Whilst they’ve been heavily linked with Velez’s Ricky Alvarez, they’ve yet to take action and even if they did, it’s unlikely that his signing would do too much to placate fans.

The constant linking to players such as Gary Cahill and Christopher Samba , as well as the likes of Charles N’Zogbia and Jose Enrique will do little to excite fans.

To that extent, I’m sure it’s something of a relief to be linked to a player of real, unquestionable quality; a player who can rouse a real sense of enthusiasm and optimism for the future. Reports in the Daily Mail claim that Arsenal are preparing to make an £18m bid for Valencia ’s Juan Mata .

As with all these stories it’s important not to get carried away and to treat them with a degree of scepticism, but it’s still difficult not to get excited about the prospect of seeing Mata in an Arsenal shirt.

Whilst it’s fair to say that Arsenal have bigger priorities in the transfer marker (finding a decent centre-back to partner Thomas Vermaelen next year, for example) a quality player always makes for a good signing, even if it is in an area of the park where the Gunners are already strong. Mata would face competition on the wings from Andrey Arshavin, Samir Nasri (if he stays), Theo Walcott, Thomas Rosicky and Carlos Vela.

There’s no doubting however, that he has the quality and ability to make his mark in the Arsenal first team in his first season at the club.

With Nasri an unknown quantity, Andrey Arshavin growing in years (and dare I say pounds?), Thomas Rosicky much too goal shy and Carlos Vela too inexperienced, perhaps it’s an area of the pitch that Arsenal need to bolster more than fans might initially think. If Arsene Wenger has made him a transfer target, he’ll have done so with good reason.

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If Arsenal are to seriously pursue Mata, they’ll face tough competition from both Liverpool and Manchester City, who have been linked to him in the recent past. Manchester City in particular have the financial power to price the Gunners out of the market. So it’ll be Wenger’s job to prove to Mata that despite not winning any silverware in six years, Arsenal are a club that’s going places.

Finally, I’ll leave you with this evidence that Mata is something of a tricky and talented individual.

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Read more of Harry’s articles at This is Futbol

The Daily Mail are reporting that Arsene Wenger is considering a bid for Wigan star James McCarthy.

With the potential departures of captain Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, Wenger has again turned his attentions to the 20-year-old.

The Frenchman is preparing to lose his two key midfielders despite continually insisting they are going nowhere.

However the move for McCarthy clearly signifies that one or both of them will definitely be leaving the Emirates Stadium.

An enquiry was made earlier in the summer after the Republic of Ireland international’s impressive form last season at the DW Stadium.

Latics boss Roberto Martinez rebuffed that approach insisting the former Hamilton Academical midfielder was going nowhere.

He said: “The players are under contract.

“We’ve got a lot of good players and it is understandable people are looking at them.

“There’s been a lot of media speculation – that is part of being in the transfer window – but I am more focused on trying to reach the targets we set, get as fit as we can and enjoy every player we have in the squad.”

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Liverpool have also been linked with a move for the player although it seems that Wenger want’s to beat the Merseyside’s to his signature.

Wigan will want to hold onto him after selling Charles N’Zogbia to Aston Villa and it will take some serious money for them to even consider letting McCarthy leave.

LA Galaxy midfielder David Beckham is looking forward to taking on Roberto Mancini’s big-spending Manchester City on Saturday.But Beckham – who made his name in the midfield of City’s bitter rivals Manchester United – wants his side to first focus on their MLS match against Columbus Crew on Wednesday.

“We’re concentrating on tomorrow’s game first. Once that game’s out of the way, then we’ll look forward to the game on Sunday at our own stadium with a world-class team with a lot of great players in it,” Beckham said.

“We’re looking forward to it. It’s going to be one of those games that fans are going to enjoy, I’m sure. (But) we’ll concentrate on tomorrow night first.”

The Galaxy were comprehensively beaten in another high-profile friendly against another of Beckham’s former clubs, Real Madrid, on Saturday.

Despite going down 4-1 and being outclassed, former England captain Beckham believes Galaxy’s players should improve by playing Real and City.

“I think it’s always great for any player to play against world-class opponents because it makes you a better player, it improves you, you learn from it,” he said.

“As difficult a game as it was, you learn and you watch these players. It’s what I used to do as a young kid and it’s what all the young kids on our team do. You watch the likes of Kaka, Ronaldo … these players that you can learn from.”

I never thought I would come away from Hawthorns disappointed at our failure to get a point against the Champions, but I guess it shows how far the football club has come under Roy Hodgson. We suddenly look a competitive Premier League outfit on the pitch, something I never felt when Bryan Robson and Tony Mowbray were at the helm. We did have to survive an early onslaught I grant you, but I felt we more than found our feet and were more than a match in the last hour.

The new boys fitted in well and Shane Long in particular looked the real deal and should Odemwingie move onto Spurs, as reported today, then we certainly have the ideal man to lead the frontline this season. It would be great to see them paired together, although whether it happens remains to be seen. Ben Foster also looked assured between the sticks and it is nice to have a keeper who commands his area, given our past record of goalies. I know it is early days, but my blood pressure will seemingly remain at a safe level this season, especially when a cross or set-piece comes in. I would still like Roy Hodgson to bring in one or two new faces and utilise the Bodog money now to ensure that we banish the perennial relegation fears every season.

Talking of the sponsors did anyone else notice the blackout on the boards at the Hawthorns yesterday – embarrassing or what? I don’t know what it is at our football club, maybe we are cursed with sponsors, given our inability to attract them from time to time (No Smoking Campaign anyone?), but one thing is for sure is that the likes of Bodog aren’t going to be happy if their names aren’t being seen on the perimeter boards, especially on a LIVE game against Manchester United. It is pretty amateurish and given that these deals gives us the money to enable us to break transfer records, like we did with Shane Long, then we need to ensure we get these matters resolved before the sponsors start looking elsewhere. I mean I was at Loftus Rd on Saturday and if a newly promoted Premier League team like QPR can have it sorted, then why can’t we? It don’t look very good on our part and needs to be addressed sooner rather than later.

So anyway onwards and upwards from here and although the result wasn’t the ideal way to start a season, the performance showed we will certainly be no walkovers this season and we will be holding our own in the Premier League this year. Outside bet for the Europa League spot? We can all dream I suppose.

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