Monday, September 5, 2011

Sports World

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Fergie mind games brings Chelsea back into the fold Posted: 05 Sep 2011 08:48 AM PDT Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is notoriously picky about what he says to the media. He is very rarely guilty of a loose slip of the tongue. What he does says is usually designed to influence the way his team or opposition sides are portrayed in the media, as well his now infamous mind-games designed to out psyche opponents a la Keegan in 1997. His latest media stirring concerns Chelsea and their new manager Andre Villas-Boas, unofficially and somewhat reluctantly labelled as the next Mourinho. "They [Chelsea] have tremendous experience with the likes of Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka, John Terry – there aren't any young kids in that team. But they don't have 36- or 37-year-olds like Ryan Giggs. Lampard and Drogba are 33, Anelka is 32 – not dissimilar to [Michael] Carrick and Rio Ferdinand, and we wouldn't be saying they are dead and buried, would we? So why should they be? They'll still be a big threat and we expect them to challenge. Villas-Boas is a young man and it's a big step coming into the Premier League from the Portuguese championship, but given time and support anything is possible." At a stroke Ferguson has swing the attention away from his young players – so impressive in the opening live football of the season – while also putting the pressure and microscope on the ages of both Villas-Boas and his senior players. I could be accused of over-analysing what the Scot says but the 67-year-old knows how the media works, how it takes his quotes and what they will pick out when he speaks at a press conference. He wants as much space for his young charges to flourish in as possible; he also wants to put pressure on his rivals in the Premier League betting. By not talking about city – who are desperate for attention after years in the wilderness – he is also winding them up. Talking can only do so much though and when the action returns after the international break we will see whether the actions of his opponents can speak louder than Fergie's words.

Wolves off to a flyer Posted: 05 Sep 2011 03:22 AM PDT Following Wolves' great escape from relegation back into the Championship last season, Mick McCarthy would have been desperate not to find himself in a similar position this year. As a football club, they are really beginning to take shape this year – Molineux was expanded over the summer and the playing squad are now looking as though they believe in their own ability at this level, dispelling the fears shown by current trends in the relegation betting stakes. As a result, perhaps their promising start to the season shouldn't have come as a surprise. Following wins over Blackburn and Fulham as well as a comfortable 4-0 League Cup victory over Northampton in mid-week, McCarthy's side made the perfect start to the season, and going into their Midlands derby with Aston Villa on Saturday, they found themselves third in the table behind just the two Manchester powerhouses – and by the end of it they were top, albeit briefly, following a gutsy 0-0 draw. One man who claimed not to be surprised by their start to the season was their defender Richard Stearman, who not only claims that three wins out of three at the start of their campaign was no more than his team deserved: "It couldn't have gone any better for us and we're all delighted but it's nothing that we didn't expect. I think it took us a couple of months to hit six points last year so to get it in the first couple of games is massive for us." Obviously Mick McCarthy's first objective will still be to get to forty points as soon as possible, and the signings that he has made over the summer will certainly help him on that quest. Already they look more solid at the back following the addition of Roger Johnson – a player that Arsene Wenger could have done worse than to have a long look at following Birmingham's relegation – and the permanent signing of Jamie O'Hara from Spurs has added some bite to their midfield.  Wolves fans who watch live football online are quietly excited about what their team can achieve this season. Much hinges on Wolves' ability to keep hold of star striker Kevin Doyle following reputed interest from Liverpool, but with Steven Fletcher on such a hot run of form, McCarthy will enjoy watching the August transfer window slam shut so he can get them both playing together as much as possible.

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