Liverpool have a goalkeeper problem and should get Hart in January - Carragher

Liverpoll have a goalkeeper problem and should get Hart in January-Carragher

The former Reds defender believes Jurgen Klopp should be looking to bring in a new number one immediately to keep the club pushing for the Premier League title.

Jamie Carragher says Liverpool have got "a goalkeeping problem" and should be looking to bring in Manchester City outcast Joe Hart if the opportunity presents itself in January.

The Reds have struggled between the sticks for some time now, with Simon Mignolet never truly convincing following a big-money move from Sunderland.

Loris Karius was drafted in from Mainz over the summer to provide competition, and quickly inherited the starting berth in Jurgen Klopp's side.

He too has endured a tough time, with a collection of high-profile errors leading to him slipping back onto the bench.

Mignolet has been steady enough since returning to the fold but fell under the microscope again on Tuesday as he failed to keep out a Jon Walters header in Liverpool's 4-1 win over Stoke City.

Carragher admits Liverpool have serious issues to address in a key area of the field, claiming there is no confidence building in Klopp's defensive unit.

He told Sky Sports: " Liverpool have got a goalkeeping problem - it's not just one individual.

 "The reason Karius was brought in was because Jurgen Klopp didn't think that Simon Mignolet was good enough.

" When a Liverpool goalkeeper gets asked to make a save that he should make, a lot of the time hey are going in.

"You can say it's poor defensively, but at times you want your goalkeeper to bail you out - that's what he's there for. I'm a centre-back myself and you don't play a game without making mistakes, and that's where your keeper comes into it."

Carragher believes the solution to the problem is simple, with Klopp needing to bring Hart back to England from a loan spell at Torino and keep Liverpool in the Premier League title hunt.

He added: "if someone said to me window is open and you can go and get Joe Hart, you'd do it. If was Jurgen Klopp, I'd do it.

" It is a great chance that Liverpool have got at the moment and it might be different next year with European football coming in and the managers that have come into this country now having another year's experience.

"Antonio Conte is flying at the moment, you think of someone like Pep Guardiola and the investment the other teams are going to have.

"Jurgen Klopp, when you're talking net spend, has virtually spent nothing since he has come in. He has done a remarkable job but the position Liverpool are in, if they get a chance to get a goalkeeper who has won Premier League titles, you do it."

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Olivier Giroud close to signing new contract at Arsenal

Olivier Giroud scored on his first Premier League start of the season in Arsenal's win over West Brom on Boxing Day

Olivier Giroud admits he has had a " difficult" season so far but is close to agreeing a new contract at Arsenal.

The France striker has been used sparingly by Arsene Wenger so far in the current campaign, but the celebrated his first Premier League start of the season by scoring the only goal in the Gunners' 1-0 Boxing Day win over West Brom.

Until Monday, Giroud had found himself limited to substitute appearances or starts in other competitions, with the winner against the Baggies only his sixth goal of the season.

After being handed an extended break after the European Championship, his route back into the side was blocked by Alexis Sanchez- who has shone since Wenger moved him into a more central role.

But Giroud, who was labelled a "fighter" by Wenger after the game, said he wants to remain at the Emirates Stadium - even if he has found this season difficult thus far.

Olivier Giroud

"I came back a bit late from the Euros and it was nice for my body because I could rest bu not good for me because the team was doing well and another striker was doing well up front, " he said.

" The season has been difficult because also I was injured for a month and a half so it hasn't been easy.

" I don't want to talk too much about me but it was a big day for me, but a turning point for the team because if we didn't win we would have been in trouble."

Giroud was philosophical when pushed further on the issue -  and also said that, contrary to some reports, he has not penned a new deal at Arsenal.

"It is all bout keeping the focus high," he said when asked about being left out of the side.

"Always keep working hard at training. I was speaking with the boss, we had a couple of discussions together and he explained to me why I hadn't played too much until here.

" But football is an everlasting new beginning, as I used to say, and you always have to keep focused and wait for your time.

"people have been saying I have signed a new contract. It is not true but maybe soon."

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Ronaldo chosen as the Best Player of the Year at the Globe Soccer Awards

Ronaldo is the  Globe Soccer Awards

For the fourth time in his career, Cristiano Ronaldo has been nominated as the ' Best Player of the Year' in the Globe Soccer Awards.

The announcement was made by Florentino Perez, who wasn't surprised that it had gone to his player.

"The winner is... Cristiano Ronaldo - of course," said Real Madrid's president.

After returning to Valdebebas following the Christmas holiday, the Portuguese was therefor unable to attend the awards gala in Dubai.

However, he did thank those who voted for him via a pre-recorded video which was played at the veremony.

It caps an unforgettable 2016 for Ronaldo, who beat Lionel Messi, Gareth Bale, antone Griezmann, Jamie Vardy and Gonzalo Higuain to the gong.

" I hope Santos can win the Best Coach in the World prize"

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Barcelona vs Real Madrid 1-2 - Full Match Highlights - 02/04/2016 HD 1080i

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2016 Ballon d'Or Winner? He is better.

Reading the title, some may ask that is it too early to talk about the Ballon d'Or as the winner will usually be announced in January next year. It is true with FIFA Ballon d'Or, but this year, it will be declared within a calendar year, that is on December 13th as France Football assumed their ownership of this award. Then who will be the winner?

New Ballon d'Or

Either Cristiano Ronaldo or Leo Messi has been awarded FIFA Ballon d'Or in the last 6 years. They have even occupied the second place most of the time with the Portuguese star 3 times and the Argentina captain 2 times.

FIFA Ballon d'Or, however, gave the fans an unfair feeling as the voting  group included national team captains and coaches, as well as the media representatives. Most of  the captains have voted for their national team or clubs teammates, and the coaches also had personal preference in such voting. Both of their choices may also be influenced by the respective football associations.

This is finally changed to a fair one in 2016 after FIFA ended their association with the Ballon d'Or earlier this year And the voting group is of international journalists instead.

Then who will edge out others in this fairest way to decide the winner? We should take a look at the rules first before we can give an answer.

In fact, greater weighting is given to both personal performance and team performance than to player quality, career and characteristic. That means, in 2016, a year of several major competitions, a player's performance and his national tam's honors in EURO 2016 will weigh more. Besides, honors in Champions League and major leagues are also important.

With two trophies of 2015-16 UEFA Champions League and UEFA Euro 2016 in his hand, Cristiano looks undoubtedly the winner. But is it true?

Other Competitors 

The greatest threat is not from Messi, but from Antoine Griezmann. The France forward played against Cristaino in two finals . One is in UEFA Champions League where Atletico de Madrid lost to Real Madrid through penalty shoot-out. what's worse, Griezmann missed the penalty in regular time. The other is in UEFA Euro 2016 where Portugal beat France to win the final with an extra-time goal.

Leonel Messi

Anyway, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner cannot be forgotten.

Considering the goals, when Cristiano Ronaldo was injured at the beginning of 2016-17 season, Messi already scored 3 goals and collected a Spain Super Cup trophy. What's more, the Barcelona No. 10 scored back-to-back hat-trick in 2016-17 Champion League group against Celtic and Manchester City.

Compared by Cristiano, Messi is more of a team plaer. He became player. He became the spiritual  leader during a long period when Iniesta is out injured. The unpretentious Argentinean even directed some angry words at Los Ches' fans when Luis Suarez and Neymar got hit by bottles after his winning penalty against Valencia.

In fact, Messi is an indispensable member of Barcelona's success. During a period when Iniesta is missing and Andre Gomes needs more time to integrate himself into the squad, Nessi usually moved back into the midfield to organize the attack. And he also dovetailed well with Neymar and Luis Suarez up front, which is known as " MSN", one of the greatest frontlines in history.

The 29-year-old not only played an important role in Barcelona, but also in Argentina national team. During a period when he was missing from 3 World Cup qualifier matches due to injury , Argentina drew minows Venezuela and Peru back-to-back,and lost to Paraguay. However, when Messi is healthy, Argentina claimed a 1-0 win over Uruguay through a goal from him.

The Argentinean seems better than Cristiano peronally, but he failed to match him on team honors.

Barcelona suffered a shock Champions League exit in the quarter final last term. Also, Argentina lost the Copa America Centenario final where the Argentina captain missed the first penalty kick on penalties.

Cristiano Ronaldo

The three-time Ballon d'Or winner looks sharp on the eve of 2016 Ballon d'Or as La Liga's top scorer scored 6 goals in his last 3 La Liga games. Actually, he was also brilliant in the first half of 2016, getting two important trophies and scoring 35 goals in 36 league games, 16 goals in 12 Champions League games and 51 goals in 48 games of all events.

He missed the first leg of the first leg of the 2015-16 UEFA Champions League semi-final and was far from impressive in the final though. Cristiano is talisman for Real Madrid.

And his club Real Madrid now sit atop the League after 13 games with 33 points, 6 points ahead of second-placed Barcelona and Sevilla. And the Whites already booked a place in Knock-out stage of 2016-17 UEFA Champions League. Beside, they are participants of 2016 FIFA Club World Cup.

In Euro 2016, the Portugal captain failed to convert his 10 shots into goals in the first 2 group games, though. He scored a brace in the final group game. What's more, he scored a winner and provided 3 assists in the semi-final. Even if he played almost no part in the final, we still remember his touchline show.

What proves he is favorite for this award is that in August, the 31-year-old even claimed the 2015/16 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award. Don't forget that this award is also voted by journalists.

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Jose Mourinho mocks Arsene Wenger ahead of Manchester United vs Arsenal

It's fair to say Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger haven't always seen eye-to-eye throughout their career.
The pair came to blows at Stamford Bridge two years ago during Chelsea 2-0 victory over Arsenal but their war of words stems back a lot further than that.
And the two managers will clash once again in the Saturday lunch-time kick-off as Arsenal travel to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in what is sure to be a pulsating affair.
In 2005, Wenger blasted Mourinho in a rant branding him 'disrespectful' and 'stupid' after the Portuguese boss claimed the Frenchman had an obsession with Chelsea.
Wenger said: “He's out of order, disconnected with realistic and disrespectful. When you give success to stupid people, it makes them more stupid sometimes and not more intelligent."
Nine years later, in February 2014, Mourinho called the Arsenal manager a "specialist in failure" after he had gone several years without a trophy.
Just two examples of the duo bad-mouthing each other in the media.
And one of them was always going to make a comment ahead of the big match this weekend, weren't they?
That man was Mourinho who seemingly mocked Wenger for his lack of a league title in recent years.
The 'Special One' claimed that journalists respected his counterpart more than him, despite his recent Premier League record.
"Mr Wenger has that respect from all of you. I don't think I have it," he claimed
"My last league title was 18 months ago, not 18 years ago."
Of course, Mourinho is fully aware that Arsenal's last league success was 12 years ago, rather than 18 years ago, but he was just emphasising his recent Premier League success compared to Wenger's.
It's understandable that Mourinho is maybe feeling a bit of pressure on his shoulders ahead of the match. United are already eight points off league leaders Liverpool and know they must beat Arsenal to haul themselves back into a title race.
As for Wenger, his Arsenal side are in a fantastic position to end their long top-flight drought.
The Gunners are unbeaten in 10 league matches and are six points ahead of the Red Devils in fourth. A win against their rivals on Saturday will certainly silence Mourinho but Wenger will need to end his Premier League drought if he is to shut him up for good.
 

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Jose Mourinho

Arsene Wenger

EPL

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Arsenal tried to sign Manchester United star Paul Pogba in 2012

PAUL POGBA is expected to feature for Manchester United against Arsenal - but could easily have been plying his trade for the north London side.

Paul Pogba could have joined Arsenal after leaving Manchester United in 2012

Arsene Wenger tried to land the midfielder when he left Old Trafford the first time four years ago.
Instead of opting for north London, the then 19-year-old opted to chance his arm in Serie A with Italian giants Juventus.
"Things happened very quickly. We were interested in him,” Wenger said in 2014.
“We tried to get him to come here. But he very quickly signed for Juventus.”
Wenger wanted to bring Pogba to the Emirates Stadium to numb the pain of losing several stars to both domestic and European rivals.
Cesc Fabregas and Alex Song both left for the lure of La Liga giants Barcelona.
And Samir Nasri jumped ship to Manchester City - following in the footsteps of Emmanuel Adebayor who had made the move the previous year.
Pogba will be aiming to score in consecutive league games for the first time at Old Trafford, having scored the opener in the 3-1 win against Swansea before the international break. 

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Arsenal

Paul Pogba

EPL

 

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FIFA president Gianni Infantino targets 32-team Club World Cup by 2019

FIFA president Gianni Infantino thinks the mostly unloved Club World Cup could expand to a 32-team tournament played in June.
Infantino said in interviews published on Friday in Italian and Spanish newspapers that a revamped club competition could start in 2019.
A 32-team event played in the last three weeks of June would be more balanced and more attractive to broadcasters and sponsors, Infantino said in comments reported by Gazzetta dello Sport and Mundo Deportivo.
The existing seven-team Club World Cup format in December has been seen as vulnerable in a FIFA review of spending and tournament plans since Infantino was elected president in February.
Currently, the Club World Cup is a little-watched event featuring the champions of FIFA's six continental confederations, plus the host nation's league winner.
Typically, it leads to a final between the champions of Europe and South America. But European fans have shown little interest in a competition that also clashes with their domestic leagues.
The 2015 Club World Cup in Japan earned a little over $20 million in commercial revenue, according to FIFA's most recent financial report. The 2014 edition hosted by Morocco earned $40 million.
Japan hosts next month's edition featuring Real Madrid and Atletico Nacional of Colombia.
The latest FIFA tournament expansion plan comes after Infantino promoting a 48-team World Cup to start in 2026. That decision could be taken by FIFA's ruling council at a Jan. 9-10 meeting in Zurich.
Infantino's latest suggestion also follows speculation that China wants to host more international football as part of a wide-ranging plan to invest heavily in the sport. Last year, Chinese retailer Alibaba E-Auto signed as the Club World Cup title sponsor through 2022.

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Gianni Infantino

Club World Cup

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Carlo Ancelotti vs. Thomas Tuchel: the contrasting styles in charge of Germany’s two heavyweights

This Saturday it's once again time for Der Klassiker as Bayern Munich take on Borussia Dortmund at Signal Iduna Park.
Despite being Germany's two biggest clubs, this match actually sees a side that is joint-top take on a team in fifth. Six points separate the two sides and Bayern could be in second place three points behind hotshots Red Bull Leipzig come kick-off.
But no matter the league situation, this is a match between Germany's undisputed heavyweights. All seven of the last Bundesliga wins belong to them and they have played out some tensely fought contests over the years under the guidance of various managers.
Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp, Jupp Heynckes, Louis van Gaal; just some of the stellar names that have managed Bayern and Dortmund recently. But now, it's the turn of young coach Thomas Tuchel, and veteran cup king Carlo Ancelotti. Two managers with vastly different ways of doing things.
Formation
Ancelotti isn't a great tactician when it comes to formation, tending to pick a system to line his teams up in and then running that into the ground. He rarely adjusts things as his time with a club winds on; his only major change at Milan (his longest tenured job) for instance was switching from a 4-1-2-1-2 to a 4-3-2-1 and that decision was enforced on him by injury.
Tuchel, meanwhile, is a coach that believes in fluidity. With Dortmund his side line up in an incredibly fluid 4-1-4-1. When they don't have the ball, Dortmund retreat into a solid defensive shape but with the ball, they expand and become open - central players split wide, wide players drift central, and just Julian Weigl holds a firm position in a central zone. The central axis Tuchel's wheel spins around.
Tactics
Tuchel's tactics revolve around passing and fast movement both on and off the ball. Everyone is encouraged to play, even the centre-backs regularly push up into midfield zones, allowing the team to stay as compact as possible and always have numerical superiority.
Using passing triangles to penetrate the opponent's defensive lines, Dortmund also overload one side of the pitch to not only create a numerical superiority but also open up the switch-of-play to a free man on the opposite flank. It's extremely Guardiola-esque as his side even press-and-harry much as Pep's Barcelona and Bayern did (you can see why the Catalan wanted Tuchel to succeed him in Munich).
Ancelotti is a totally different type of coach. He doesn't tend to change too much from whatever team he has inherited, only to make his players more comfortable with the ball at their feet.
If there is one thing all Ancelotti teams have in common, it's that they want to be protagonists in every game they play. Otherwise he has managed teams that are very direct, whilst some were very patient. At Bayern he is, through the lineups he selects, slowly pulling the Bavarians away from a full-on Guardiola style.
Style
Tuchel is a tactical coach. He's no Andre Villas-Boas, a tactical brain who cannot connect. He seems to be jovial with his players, and none who leave his charge have a bad word to say about him. But tactics and his system come first and foremost.
That is how they have been able to lose so many key players but keep on playing wonderful football. Replacing Ilkay Gundogan with Gonzalo Castro and not losing too much of a step is only possible through system play.
As explained above, Ancelotti doesn't have a system. His management style is pure charm. He was a world-class footballer and became a coach from a young age. Tactics were never his strong suit, instead he chose to be friends with his players (perhaps because when he first started coaching, a lot of the players were his ex-teammates and friends, like Paolo Maldini).
Youth
Finally, what kind of players do they use? With Ancelotti it tends to be whatever he has at his disposal. His trust in youngsters is largely non-existent, with Pato and Marco Verratti being notable exceptions. Carlo's big brother nature of coaching would make it difficult for him to bring through young talent that need teaching things, because really he doesn't teach, he just massages. He's the substitute teacher you had at school who would just put a film on to while away the lesson. You liked him a lot, but you didn't learn anything.
Tuchel, on the other hand, is an avid believer in young talent. Under his watch Borussia Dortmund have been hoovering up youngsters from around Europe.
Ousmane Dembele, Christian Pulisic, Raphael Guerreiro, Emre Mor and Weigl have all joined the club under Tuchel - and the coach has shown no hesitancy in bringing through players like Felix Passlack either. Tuchel's tactical focus makes him the perfect coach for young players - and he will be hoping that youth can carry him by the brilliant Bavarians this weekend.

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Carlo Ancelotti

Thomas Tuchel

Bundesliga

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Competition hots up for prolific £43m-rated striker: Three Prem clubs are in the race

EVERTON have joined the race for Torino sensation Andrea Belotti, according to reports.

Andrea Belotti has been linked with Arsenal, Liverpool and Everton

Italian news outlet TuttoMercatoWeb claim the Toffees have sent scouts to watch the 22-year-old striker.
But Ronald Koeman could face a serious battle for his signature.
According to another Italian publication, Il Messagero, his performances have caught the eye of Liverpool.
It's suggested Arsenal and German giants Borussia Dortmund are also keen.
Belotti has been in prolific form for Torino and has bagged eight goals in 10 top-flight appearances.
He only joined the club last year, arriving in a £7m deal form Palermo.
The gifted attacker still has three-and-a-half years left to run on his contract in Turin.
And potential suitors will need to splash the cash if they want sign the coveted star.
Belotti is reportedly valued at an eye-watering £43m.
Koeman is expected to bolster his squad in January as the Toffees eye a spot in the top four.
The Dutchman has also been linked with a move for Manchester United outcast Memphis Depay.

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