Monaco trouble continues

French club Monaco have been going through a troubled spell over the last few months. After selling a number of important players like James Rodriguez, they have also allowed the likes of Radamel Falcao to leave on a temporary basis.

French club Monaco have been going through a troubled spell over the last few months. After selling a number of important players like James Rodriguez, they have also allowed the likes of Radamel Falcao to leave on a temporary basis.

Even though they came close to winning the title last season under Claudio Ranieri, severe budget cuts are taking place at the club. This has seen them perform poorly in the last few weeks. Manager Leonardo Jardim is struggling to motivate his players to perform well. He has said that the squad must work a lot harder if they are to come close to challenge for the league title.

The prospect of winning the French league looks already out of hands, as they are an incredible 10 points behind table leaders Marseille. Despite this, Jardim is feeling confident that the club can at least reach the top three in the table, which would be enough to see them continue in the Champions League. Monaco recently went through four matches without a defeat but that spell came to an end after a 1-0 defeat against Portuguese outfit Benfica. Ahead of the weekend’s match with Saint Etienne,Jardim has tried to motivate his players by saying that the Champions League qualification places still remain within the grasp but only if the players work harder.

“It was a tough match against Benfica.The difference was on efficiency, this is our current problem.The team needs to work to be more effective. Saint-Etienne are a very strong team that plays with a great atmosphere at home.

My attackers have different qualities that offer me several solutions in every game. Our goal is to make a good game and win,” said Jardim. Monaco have managed only 5 wins in the league out of the 12 matches they have played.

Slovakia come with surprise victory v Spain

Slovakia handed the European Champion Spain a shocking defeat in the qualifier last night.
It’s the first defeat that Spain has suffered versus Slovakia in 5 competitive encounters. Out of the last 4, La Roja had won 3 and the other one was a draw.
Now, Slovakia has overtaken Spain in the Group C points table. They have 6 points from 2 games with a goal differential of plus 2.

Slovakia handed the European Champion Spain a shocking defeat in the qualifier last night.
It’s the first defeat that Spain has suffered versus Slovakia in 5 competitive encounters. Out of the last 4, La Roja had won 3 and the other one was a draw.
Now, Slovakia has overtaken Spain in the Group C points table. They have 6 points from 2 games with a goal differential of plus 2.
Nobody had ever thought that Spain, despite playing in front of a huge Slovakian crowd, would walk out as losers at the end of the game. They had been unbeaten in both World Cup as well as Euro qualifiers for the last 8 years and they were expected to extend this run, but, the home team pulled off the unthinkable.
Iker Casillas will have to take a bit of blame again for Spain’s defeat. If it had not been for his misjudgement in the first half of the game, the free kick taken by Kucka, perhaps, would not have shaken the net.
That advantage was, however, nullified by Spain with Paco Alcacer getting one through to the net from close distance, but, Stoch made the hosts get the lead again as he nailed a header just minutes prior to the end of the game.
As the referee blew the end whistle, the arena erupted. The people out there seemed to be enjoying each and every second of that special night and they deserved every bit of it. The way they were behind their team through those 90 minutes, it was mind-blowing.
Spain would think that their main boys did not do enough. Apart from that Casillas’ error, Diego Costa, the man who is flourishing in English top tier this club season, remained scoreless for the 6th successive time at the international level.

Wenger Signing High Profile Players

Arsenal’s Arsene Wenger has already signing a high profile player after securing the services of Alexis Sanchez from Barcelona as he arrived to the Emirates Stadium with a transfer fee in the region of €35 million. Arsenal is not known or characterized by having an enormous budget to sign their respective targets or at least not so much compared to other top clubs in Europe and the Premier League.

Arsenal’s Arsene Wenger has already signing a high profile player after securing the services of Alexis Sanchez from Barcelona as he arrived to the Emirates Stadium with a transfer fee in the region of €35 million. Arsenal is not known or characterized by having an enormous budget to sign their respective targets or at least not so much compared to other top clubs in Europe and the Premier League.

The Chilean attacker Alexis Sanchez is one of the latest signings of Wenger but the Frenchman has also hinted out that another well-known player could be signed before the end of the summer transfer window.

Mario Balotelli of Ac.Milan was one of the priority players in the watch-list of not only Arsene Wenger but also Brendan Rodgers as the Italian forward has displayed flashes of brilliance and at his young age, Balotelli could be developed into one of the best forwards in the world according to many managers and players.

Brendan Rodgers is known to be an admirer of Balotelli but the manager of Liverpool has made it clear to the media that the Italian forward will not join his squad.

Rodgers said: “I was asked the question about Balotelli and spoke about what a talent he is and excellent player he is,” Rodgers explained to reporters on Sunday. I can categorically tell you that he will not be at Liverpool. He is a wonderful player but an AC Milan player. I just gave my opinion of him but that doesn’t mean I will be signing him.”

The future of Mario Balotelli could be lying in the Premier League or in the Italian League, Serie A as he is still being chased around by Arsenal but if the English club is not able to sign him Balotelli is expected to remain performing with Ac.Milan.

Marek Hamsek Does Not Plan To Move Out Of His League

Marek Hamsek does not have any intention to move out in the summer. For him leaving Serie A giants does not arise. There is no tussle with Rafa Benitez the manager as he stated. His future is in Naples according to him.

Marek Hamsek does not have any intention to move out in the summer. For him leaving Serie A giants does not arise. There is no tussle with Rafa Benitez the manager as he stated. His future is in Naples according to him.

Last season brought mixed reactions for him. He played for 1974 minutes. In the previous to previous season 38 games in all were played by him and for 3271 minutes. His key tactics are not as flawless as it supposed to be. In the term 2012-2013 saw 11 goals scored by him as compared to last season’s 7. What is more striking is that he was able to create 100chances with assist of 14 in 2012-2013 but last year his performance dwindled.

The new boss Benitez is responsible for his form according to some. He himself knows that he could have given a better performance in the last season. His injury has been the cause of concern. So he has rubbished all the reports that he is moving to Manchester United. He is solely committed with the giants of Italy. Since his entry in 2007 he has been a star performer.

He still has a lot to offer to his club and he enjoys working with Benitez and hopes to cooperate with him in the distant future. Form is temporary and that might be the case in the last season for him and a first kind of a serious injury which might also be responsible for his struggling form. However he does not believe in giving excuses. His league needs him and with more practise he aims to be back again with a bang and there is no denying his credibility as star players retain their performance with one bad season which he wishes to forget and move ahead with confidence.

Skrtel Scores More Than Torres

Liverpool legend John Aldridge has claimed that he could not control his laughter after learning that defender Martin Skrtel have scored more goals than former Liverpool striker Fernando Torres this season. Torres has been struggling for form ever since he left Liverpool in 2011. He has managed just 19 league goals for Chelsea in more than 100 appearances. He is widely expected to leave Chelsea at the end of the campaign with the likes of Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid showing a lot of interest. Skrtel has been enjoying his best goal scoring season with Liverpool.

Liverpool legend John Aldridge has claimed that he could not control his laughter after learning that defender Martin Skrtel have scored more goals than former Liverpool striker Fernando Torres this season. Torres has been struggling for form ever since he left Liverpool in 2011. He has managed just 19 league goals for Chelsea in more than 100 appearances. He is widely expected to leave Chelsea at the end of the campaign with the likes of Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid showing a lot of interest. Skrtel has been enjoying his best goal scoring season with Liverpool.

He may have scored just six goals in more than 25 matches this campaign, but this is an extremely good tally for a defender. This has even helped him get past Torres in the goal charts. The blues striker has only four league goals this campaign. Even though Skrtel’s tally is pale in comparison with the return from Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge, it has been extremely crucial for Liverpool as they have secured many important victories because of his goals. Skrtel came extremely close to leaving Liverpool, but decided to stay at Anfield in the summer.

He has been part of a title chasing Liverpool team, which is a new experience to many.

“I laughed my head off when I read that Martin Skrtel has now got more Premier League goals than Fernando Torres this season. Skrtel has really turned it around considering he spent the second half of last season sitting on the bench. He has started backing himself much more in the opposition penalty box and has shown his threat from set-pieces. He showed great anticipation and technique for both his goals against Cardiff,” said Aldridge.

Liverpool are only one point behind table leaders Chelsea with only eight matches remaining in the season.

SKRTEL BECOMES A LEADER

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has revealed that he is extremely happy with the way Slovakian defender Martin Skrtel has become a leader in the team after almost coming close to the exit door in the summer.

Skrtel fell out of favour with Brendan Rodgers last season and he rarely featured for the first-team. He was expected to leave the club in the summer with the likes of Napoli showing interest in him. He moved to Napoli would have reunited him with Rafa Benitez, who was the man who brought into Anfield in the first place.

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has revealed that he is extremely happy with the way Slovakian defender Martin Skrtel has become a leader in the team after almost coming close to the exit door in the summer.

Skrtel fell out of favour with Brendan Rodgers last season and he rarely featured for the first-team. He was expected to leave the club in the summer with the likes of Napoli showing interest in him. He moved to Napoli would have reunited him with Rafa Benitez, who was the man who brought into Anfield in the first place.

However, Rodgers and Skrtel patched up their differences and they were able to make up for lost ground. The defender has been spectacular for Liverpool, as they are close to sealing a spot to qualify for the Champions league next season. This will see the club return to the competition, which they have won five times in their history. They have not been in this competition since 2009. Skrtel reportedly made playing in the Champions league a key priority. He would have definitely left the club if Liverpool did not make it next season.

The former Swansea manager has expressed delight at the way the defender has been able to change himself.

“I wouldn’t be lying if I said that after last season I was thinking about leaving Liverpool. But it is not an easy decision to leave a club like this. I have been here for six years and Liverpool is, for me, one of the biggest in the world. I decided to stay and fight for my place. After games like Arsenal I am just happy I did and proud to be here. There was a lot of talk and rumours that I would go but I was happy to stay,” said Skrtel ahead of the Arsenal match.

HAMSIK RULES OUT TITLE

Slovakia star Marek Hamsik has said that his club Napoli cannot win the Italian Serie A title this season. The midfielder is regarded as one of the transfer targets for Manchester United.

The fact that the player once again set to fail in winning the title may actually result in the transfer of the 26-year-old, who had a great first half of the campaign. Hamsik was one of the reasons behind Napoli’s imperious form under Rafa Benitez at the start of the season. Like many others to the club, his form has also decreased in recent weeks.

Slovakia star Marek Hamsik has said that his club Napoli cannot win the Italian Serie A title this season. The midfielder is regarded as one of the transfer targets for Manchester United.

The fact that the player once again set to fail in winning the title may actually result in the transfer of the 26-year-old, who had a great first half of the campaign. Hamsik was one of the reasons behind Napoli’s imperious form under Rafa Benitez at the start of the season. Like many others to the club, his form has also decreased in recent weeks.

This was allowed Juventus to open a significant advantage in the league table, which Hamsik concedes is the end of the title dreams for his club. Former Manchester city striker Rolando Bianchi scored in the 90th minute to secure a 2-2 draw against Napoli for Bologna. This coupled with Juventus getting a 4-2 win over Sampdoria means that the 12 point advantage will be to hard to recover according to Hamsik. He has said that Napoli should now focus on getting to the second spot in the table, which will be enough to qualify for the Champions League automatically.

The club were also knocked out of the Champions League in the group stages despite securing 12 points from the six matches. They are now taking part in the Europa league.
“Scudetto? Now the gap is pretty big and I think it’s too much. We should look at Roma and taking second place, which would allow us to go directly into the Champions League,” said Hamsik, whose team take on Chievo in the next match.

This will be home encounter, which Hamsik will be hoping to make use of in order to confirm their push for the top two. They have a slender advantage over the chasing pack that includes Inter Milan.

SLOVAKIA MISS OUT

Slovakian midfielder Marek Hamsik, who will not be taking part in the World Cup 2014 after his team failed to qualify for the tournament, has said that Napoli will still be contenders for the title at the end of the season.

After suffering a second defeat of the season, Rafa Benitez’s men have slipped behind Roma and Juventus in the title race. They went into the match against Juventus with a lot of high hopes, but they were unable to come away with even a draw. They were beaten by Antonio Conte’s men with a lot of ease.

Slovakian midfielder Marek Hamsik, who will not be taking part in the World Cup 2014 after his team failed to qualify for the tournament, has said that Napoli will still be contenders for the title at the end of the season.

After suffering a second defeat of the season, Rafa Benitez’s men have slipped behind Roma and Juventus in the title race. They went into the match against Juventus with a lot of high hopes, but they were unable to come away with even a draw. They were beaten by Antonio Conte’s men with a lot of ease.

The 3-0 defeat was inflicted through goals from Fernando Llorente, Andrea Pirlo, and Paul Pogba. This result leaves Napoli into third place after just 10 matches this season. Despite this defeat, Hamsik has said that Napoli still remain in the title race because there are a lot of games remaining. He has stated that they still have to play against the likes of Juventus and Roma at home, which will give them an advantage. Hamsik was not expected to be at the World Cup since his Slovakia team do not have much quality elsewhere apart from him.

“It was an important game at Juventus, but not decisive. We are saddened by the loss, but the championship is long. Fortunately, Roma drew at the weekend so the teams at the top are very close. We are only at Week 12 and everything is still in our own hands, we’ll still have to play Roma and Juventus again in the Spring,” said the midfielder. This was the second defeat in the last five matches for Napoli.

Hamsik has been in great form of Napoli after scoring six goals in just 12 matches for Benitez and his men. After the international break, they play against Parma.

STILL HOPE

Slovakia remain in with a chance to qualify for the World Cup 2014 with only a few matches remaining. After all the teams in the group have played eight matches, Slovakia are only a few points behind Greece in the final qualification spot.

They have given them a great chance to make an appearance at the World Cup after managing to beat table leaders Bosnia-Herzegovina on Friday. Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel was part of the team that managed this significant victory. After the match, he praised his teammates for being part of this huge victory.

Slovakia remain in with a chance to qualify for the World Cup 2014 with only a few matches remaining. After all the teams in the group have played eight matches, Slovakia are only a few points behind Greece in the final qualification spot.

They have given them a great chance to make an appearance at the World Cup after managing to beat table leaders Bosnia-Herzegovina on Friday. Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel was part of the team that managed this significant victory. After the match, he praised his teammates for being part of this huge victory.

Slovakia are four points off the top of the table and they are third in the table. Even though Skrtel said that he believed Slovakia can qualify for the World Cup, he thinks that it will not be easy due to the monumental challenge ahead of them. Slovakia can get close to Bosnia-Herzegovina even further when they take on Bosnia-Herzegovina in a home match. The home support will be an important aspect towards pushing them for three points. Incidentally, this win is the first Slovakia have achieved after a long time of continuous draws.

Before this encounter, they had four consecutive draws. National team manager Kozák is not expected to change the side much for the reverse fixture.

“We played really well against a strong opponent. We wanted to stay calm as long as possible and try to score. We kept a clean sheet which was absolutely pivotal for us. Everyone played well on Friday and we did what the coach wanted us to do. It is a great result which means that nothing is lost yet and even though we face a difficult task in our group we are ready to fight until the last game,” said Skrtel, who now looks set to stay with Liverpool.

HAMSIK BELIEVES

Napoli will certainly be weaker without the presence of Uruguay star Edinson Cavani up front, but midfielder Marek Hamsik believes that they can overcome this deficiency and still challenge for many titles in this season. After many years, Napoli are once again in with a shout to win the title.

They came extremely close last season only to see Juventus win it for a second time in succession. After the departure of Cavani, Slovakia midfielder Hamsik has become one of the important members of the team. The club recently saw the arrivals of players like Gonzalo Higuain and Pepe Reina.

Napoli will certainly be weaker without the presence of Uruguay star Edinson Cavani up front, but midfielder Marek Hamsik believes that they can overcome this deficiency and still challenge for many titles in this season. After many years, Napoli are once again in with a shout to win the title.

They came extremely close last season only to see Juventus win it for a second time in succession. After the departure of Cavani, Slovakia midfielder Hamsik has become one of the important members of the team. The club recently saw the arrivals of players like Gonzalo Higuain and Pepe Reina.

They have reinvested most of the money generated from the sale of Cavani for around £ 55 million to French club PSG. In the last three seasons, Cavani has contributed to majority of the goals for Napoli. Hamsik, though, thinks that Napoli will be able to continue improving because the club can find goals from other areas of the pitch. The 26-year-old midfielder himself was responsible for a number of goals last season, which led to him being linked with a move elsewhere. However, he has professed his love for Napoli once again.

He says that he wants to win the Italian Serie A and Champions League with Napoli this season.

“The Scudetto and the Champions League? We will win both. I arrived at Napoli at age 19. I was unknown back then, but the club have given me a chance to play for them. In my six years here, we grew up together, me and Napoli. Now we can go further – I feel good here and I want to continue to grow with Napoli. I will continue forward and not suffer from loneliness. We can do great things next season, the best is yet to come,” said the midfielder.