Welsh Transfer Window Rumours 2nd January Part 3

Gareth Bale to Birmingham or Burnley or Fulham or West Ham or Nottingham Forest or various Inter Milan or just about everyone really
It seems like every team in the world wants Gareth Bale. Or every club except the one he’s at. Gareth has had a lot of injury problems, there is an unfortunate coincidence with regard to his win ratio and there is the small matter of his hair’s occasionally taking precedence over the football match. But most clubs can look past all that and see someone with the potential to be the greatest left back in the world. Yes, maybe even greater than Gael Clichy.
In some ways, I would love him to get away from Tottenham but the injury which has prevented Benoit Assou-Ekotto from going to the African Cup of Nations means that Gareth should get a run in the team. And if Harry Redknapp is to be believed (which admittedly isn’t always the case) Gareth should do very well in Assou-Ekotto’s absence.
But what about when Assou-Ekotto returns? Although many of the above teams he’s been linked with are doing very well, Gareth should walk straight into the team and stay there until the end of the season. With Tottenham, it hasn’t happened for Gareth over the last three years for one reason or another. So we don’t know for sure that this time will be any different. Sometimes there’s nothing wrong with the player, it’s just the club’s wrong. Then again, there’s no guarantee that any of the other teams will be right. Birmingham are very physical which doesn’t suit Gareth’s style of play, West Ham probably won’t give him many opportunities to improve his win ratio and Italy is a long way to go for a twenty year old who’s not overly confident at the moment. He’s also too good for the Championship. Fulham though? Now there’s a thought.

Craig Bellamy to Arsenal or Tottenham
After Craig Bellamy protested at the sacking of Mark Hughes, it was thought his time at Eastlands was coming to an end. Since then Roberto Mancini has said he and Craig are friends and that Craig is staying – and Craig has said he’s happy to stay. However Manchester City have also said that Craig is more likely to believe than rubbish Robinho. And as Robinho’s departure does look rather likely at the moment, maybe Craig will be moving on.
Arsenal and Tottenham have both expressed an interest but Arsene Wenger doesn’t think Arsenal will be able to afford either him or any of his Manchester City team-mates. A move to Tottenham will only happen if they can raise the money by selling players. Roman Pavlyuchenko is desperate to leave and there has been a lot of interest in Robbie Keane but it would probably be better to replace them with two good but cheap players than one brilliant but expensive one.

Darcy Blake to Plymouth Argyle (loan)
Darcy Blake is, of course, already on loan to Plymouth from Cardiff City. But his loan is coming to an end and Plymouth are hoping to extend it, despite the fact he’s mostly kept on the bench. Cardiff have so far refused Plymouth permission to cup-tie Darcy so they probably have some sort of plan for him this season, even if he’s only a last resort. But the way things are at Cardiff at the moment, he might be worth a try.

Jason Brown to ?
The rumour is that Jason Brown might not stay at Blackburn Rovers as he wants first team football. And I expect he does want first team football, who wouldn’t? But that doesn’t mean this is true.

Troy Brown to ? (loan)
Roy Keane has said he might sent Troy Brown out on loan to get some first team football. He has been on the bench a few times this season but he’s always stayed there and given his young age, there’s not much chance he’ll become a regular at Ipswich. His best chance of getting games for Ipswich is by getting some first team football elsewhere.

Jack Collison to Arsenal
West Ham United are not in the best financial situation at the moment and might need to sell some of their best players if there’s interest from other clubs. Jack Collison has undoubtedly been one of their best players this season and Arsenal are allegedly interested. Well why not? He’s around the same age as a large percentage of the squad, yet he’s good enough to play for the first team. He can play in the holding role, arguably better than anyone currently at Arsenal with the exception of Alex Song who’s gone to the African Cup of Nations.

David Cotterill to Swansea City
The transfer of David Cotterill from Sheffield United to Swansea has apparently already been agreed but due to the transfer window’s being closed at the time, he went there initially on loan. Now the transfer window is open, the transaction can be completed – but considering that Sheff Utd usually leave him on the bench, if he’s in the squad at all, the question does arrive about whether Swansea still want him. As far as I can see, David has done a good job for them.

Arron Davies to ?
Arron Davies hasn’t had the best time of it recently. He had trouble getting into the team with Nottingham Forest so they sent him on loan to Brighton & Hove Albion, only for new manager Gus Poyet eventually terminated his loan early. So Arron went back to Forest, only to find they didn’t want him either and he’d be released in January. Well it’s January now (although some sources say he was released on 10th December) and I haven’t heard of his going anyway but hopefully that’s about to change and soon he’ll have a lovely new club to play for where everyone loves him and wants him to play every week.

Andy Dorman to ?
Andy Dorman hopes to boost his chances of playing for Wales by leaving St Mirren for a team in the English leagues. He has a hamstring injury at the moment so he probably doesn’t look like the most attractive proposition just at present.

Lewis Haldane to Port Vale
Lewis Haldane’s loan move to Port Vale was a great success, despite a low number of goals, and Port Vale made it clear they wanted to keep him. So an agreement was made that they would buy him from Bristol City in January and Lewis meanwhile continued to train with Vale. However when the transfer window was due to open, Bristol Rovers still hadn’t sorted things out with Lewis but they agreed to a second loan to Port Vale that would enable him to play for them as negotiations continued.

Wayne Hennessey to ?
The rumour that Wayne Hennessey has refused to sign a new contract have been refuted by the club. But he is a very good goalkeeper who’s not getting first team football at the moment.

Jason Koumas to ?
Wigan Athletic manager Roberto Martinez doesn’t seem overly impressed with Jason Koumas and the sad truth is Steve Bruce didn’t seem to think much of him either. So Jason could move on, although probably not to Sunderland.

Andy King to Premiership clubs
Andy King has become one of Leicester City’s key players this season, recently also becoming a regular goalscorer. As a result he has been linked with Premiership clubs. I hope he stays where he is. He’s getting regular football with Leicester and if he keeps going the way he is, Leicester could be in the Premiership in a few months time. I hope he gives it to the end of the season anyway.

Joe Ledley to a Premiership Club
Joe Ledley wants to leave Cardiff City and much as I’d like to I can’t quite blame him after the way they’re making him play through a hip injury and risk making it worse.

League Two Fixture Postponed

Darlington OFF Port Vale
Lewis Haldane, who is technically still a Bristol Rovers player, has signed another loan deal with Port Vale and will be available for the next game – but the next game won’t be this game because it’s been postponed. Vale still want to buy Lewis but Bristol Rovers won’t get off their arses and pull their fingers out.

FA Cup Third Round Fixtures 2nd January Part 5

Sunderland v Barrow
Another possibility for romance, this time starring Barrow’s fantastically-named Gareth Jelleyman. Just don’t get sent off, Gareth. The Soccer Saturday team might find it amusing but most people with a bit of romance in their soul will be very disappointed. Two more Welshman could feature for Barrow - Simon Spender, who is said to be the most annoying person in the world (but only by someone who hasn’t met me) and Mike Pearson. A year ago this weekend, Mike played against Middlesbrough in the FA Cup but was carried off with a double fracture of his right leg. He thought he might never play again so naturally he’s going to be relishing every moment of playing Sunderland.

Torquay v Brighton & Hove Albion
Andrew Crofts should play for Brighton after serving his suspension. But manager Gus Poyet said he’d make his final decision on the captaincy in the New Year and Andrew’s getting himself sent off probably didn’t help a great deal. There might also be a place in the squad for Craig Davies.

Tottenham Hotspur v Peterborough United
Apparently, Benoit Assou-Ekotto is not going to the African Cup of Nations after all but he’s going to have an operation instead so Gareth Bale is still likely to get his promised run in the team. And where better to start than Peterborough? As well as showing all the fans that he’s not a useless jinx, Gareth also has the chance of taking revenge on them for scoring four goals against Cardiff City last weekend.
Craig Morgan might be suspended or he might not. Sky Sports said he would be suspended for the match against Cardiff but he played so maybe it was a suspended suspension (if that makes sense). He got another yellow card against Cardiff but Peterborough Today says it’s only his fourth. So I don’t know what’s going on except that he might not even be a Peterborough player because Notts County are after him.

Wigan Athletic v Hull City
After a series of disappointing displays by Wigan, wouldn’t it be only sensible to put Jason Koumas back in the team? I’m not sure if he’ll actually score any goals though. He will be up against Hull goalkeeper Boaz Myhill.

FA Cup Third Round Fixtures 2nd January Part 4

Portsmouth v Coventry City
Portsmouth might be floundering at the foot of the Premier League table but then Coventry aren’t that far from the foot of their own league. But on the other hand. Freddy Eastwood – despite being ill at the moment - is on great form for Coventry so if a giant-killing is going to happen anywhere, it could well be in Portsmouth.

Preston North End v Colchester United
After a 5-0 victory over Norwich at the start of the season, Norwich stole Colchester’s manager. But while Norwich are now above Colchester, it’s not by much and Colchester are still pushing for the play-offs. And without Lee Beevers too.
Preston could be without Paul Parry who didn’t train today and will have a fitness test before the match.
Colchester might not want the distraction of a Cup run. But beating the off-form Preston would be proof that they’re in the Championship hunt for real.

Reading v Liverpool
Earlier this week, Simon Church completed his first ninety minutes for Reading for quite a while. He didn’t actually score a goal but maybe he’ll be all warmed up in time for Liverpool’s game and ready to show the former top 4 side that Reading mean business. But I still think Liverpool will win.

Southampton v Luton Town
Southampton are obviously much better than their league form suggests. But then, Luton are at least a whole division better than their league form suggests.
Southampton have been going well lately with young Lloyd James one of their star players. But let’s not forget, Luton beat Scunthorpe United to win the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy Final last season. And Scunthorpe went on to win promotion to the Championship.

Stoke City v York City
This is probably the match with the biggest potential for romance. Stoke are off-form and Ryan Shawcross suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card, leaving only Danny Collins (okay and their other great players) between them and embarrassment - but a win for York would be pretty amazing. But then again, York could have star player Alex Lawless, their captain Danny Parslow, Kevin Gall (who featured in at least three of Yeovil Town’s Magic Moments from 200-2009 – I refuse to say ‘noughties’), loan star Luke Graham from Mansfield and anchorman Levi Mackin in the team.

FA Cup Third Round Fixtures 2nd January Part 3

Middlesbrough v Manchester City
It would be lovely to see Middlesbrough get back to winning ways against Manchester City, who are one of those teams I really don’t like very much. But good as Boro’s Danny Coyne and Rhys Williams are, they will struggle to stop City’s Craig Bellamy.

Millwall v Derby County
Will the lions lie down for the lambs? Possibly not. Derby’s Robbie Savage will miss the match through suspension and he’s their best player (and no he didn't get his yellow card on purpose because he's scared of Millwall). Jason Price might well not start for Millwall as starting matches doesn’t always seem to work for him.

Milton Keynes Dons v Burnley
Jermaine Easter is a great goalscorer but it has to be said, Burnley has knocked better teams than MK Dons out of Cups.

Nottingham Forest v Birmingham City
Birmingham haven’t lost for months but neither have Nottingham Forest. And as it’s a Cp game, only one team will finish the match with their unbeaten run intact (unless it goes to a replay of course). Chris Gunter has been in fine form in Forest’s defence, also managing to drop that yellow card I mentioned a while back. And Robert Earnshaw will always score if you give him a chance. Okay some of his goals might be disallowed but at least he knows where the goal is.

Plymouth Argyle v Newcastle United
Considering Newcastle are top of the Championship and Plymouth are in the relegation places, you wouldn’t exactly expect Plymouth captain Carl Fletcher to be on the winning side. Cardiff City have refused Darcy Blake permission to represent his loan side in the Cup (although if they agree to extend Darcy’s loan they might let Plymouth play him after all). So everything points to an away win. Except that this is the FA Cup and anything could happen.
Kyle Letheren has left Plymouth Argyle after his contract came to an end and was not renewed. I hope he finds a new club soon and that he’s very happy there and makes loads of saves. I bet loads of clubs would love a new Welsh goalkeeper.

FA Cup Third Round Fixtures 2nd January Part 2

Bristol City v Cardiff City
These two teams might play their home games in different countries but they’re still pretty close together. Lewin Nyatanga won’t play for Bristol City after his ‘unprofessional’ yellow cards - his manager’s words, not mine. I can’t be bothered to look through the Football League Show to see the incident again but far from its being unprofessional, I think it could be classed as a professional foul, though technically he received a second yellow rather than a straight red. If Gavin Williams has recovered from his concussion, he should play (and I think he deserved to as he was excellent in his first start a few days ago).
Bristol City have recalled Christian Ribeiro from his loan spell at Stockport (I doubt Bristol C need him as much as Stockport do but he’s still their player) so he must be in with a chance of a place in the bench at least. Otherwise, why bother recalling him? James Wilson has returned from his loan to Brentford on New Year’s Day but he’s injured.
Cardiff will be looking to bounce back from letting a 4-0 lead slip against Peterborough United (although to be fair in many ways drawing a game under those circumstances must be more of an achievement than winning it). Joe Ledley scored Cardiff’s first two goals but should only play if his hip is up to it – and if he hasn’t signed a contract with another club: Cardiff have admitted that Joe wants to leave. Adam Matthews did well for Cardiff against Peterborough (well he did in the first half) so I’m hoping he’ll play.

Fulham v Swindon Town
This match will come too soon for Simon Davies, who is still having trouble with his ankle.

Leicester City v Swansea City
Andy King has become one of Leicester’s best players and after a fantastic 2009 he still wants to improve. Nicky Adams is managing to get on the bench every week but I can’t remember when he actually came off it. Isn’t he due a game, Leicester?
Ashley Williams is likely to start for Swansea and while Joe Allen was removed early this week it was only because they’d gone down to ten players and needed another defender. As long as Swansea start with eleven players, he’s in with a chance. And I certainly hope David Cotterill will be somewhere about. Manager Paolo Sousa says he might give fringe players a run-out against Leicester – it sounds a bit of a gamble to me – but there’s no denying Swansea have some excellent fringe players who deserve to be in the team.

FA Cup Third Round Fixtures 2nd January Part 1

Aston Villa v Blackburn Rovers
Aston Villa’s third match in a week offers the opportunity for them to play James Collins. Particularly as Villa lost their last two games without him. Blackburn sometimes allow reserve goalkeeper Jason Brown to play in Cup matches but not usually against the good teams.

Blackpool v Ipswich Town
Blackpool aren’t exactly short of Welsh players and with David Vaughan returning from suspension they will be even better. Daniel Nardiello has returned from his loan spell to Bury, where he did very well, and Neal Eardley and Rob Edwards are also options.
Ipswich might put Troy Brown on the bench again but Roy Keane is considering sending him out on loan.

Bolton Wanderers v Lincoln City
If Sam Ricketts is ever going to play for Bolton again, you’d expect him to play against struggling League Two’s Lincoln. Anthony Pulis plays for Lincoln on loan from Southampton. It was reported on Christmas Day that he’d recovered from an ankle injury (nice present for him) and that he had a chance of playing on Boxing Day. He didn’t play – but he might do at the weekend. His next match isn’t until next year…

Brentford v Doncaster Rovers
Brentford have been doing well since their Derby loanee goalkeeper, Lewis Price, was restored from the starting line-up. James Wilson has returned to Bristol City and he’s injured so there’s no way he’s going to play for Brentford.
Brian Stock was on the bench for Doncaster’s last game in his first outing for three months. But the good news is, he will probably be fit enough to start but he might not be risked in a Cup game. Or who knows, maybe he’ll be playing for Cardiff instead – they are rumoured to have expressed an interest.
Gareth Roberts and John Oster should also start but I hope they’ll forgive me for not being quite as excited about them as I am about Brian. But I do love them too of course.