Steve Bruce has been announced as new Sunderland manager after the North East club finally agreed a compensation package with Wigan and personal terms with Bruce himself.

The delay in concluding the deal was attributable to Bruce’s demand for a profitable ‘Image Rights’ package, it is rumoured. Bruce’s resemblance to former Robot Wars hero Shunt has proven very profitable during and since the BBC 2 shows run, with spin off t-shirts and lunch boxes selling well to petrolheads the world over.

Bruce will replace former manager Ricky Sbragia who resigned shortly after he had managed to keep the Wearsiders out of the drop zone (a Robot Wars hazard), despite losing four of the last five games.

As he passes a tearful Roberto Mancini, who apparently thought just ‘showing up’ would have bagged him the job, and enters his new office, there will be a briefcase crammed with around £60m of Ellis Short’s money, money which has been earmarked for summer transfers and money which is undoubtedly the most contributing factor in his decision to swap the North West for the North East. Wigan will never have that sort of cash available, not until they are taken over by their very own oil rich, PhD wielding Arabian gentleman at least.

Bruce, who has signed a 3 year contract, described his new role as “the perfect job at the perfect time” adding “this is what I’ve always wanted, a big club”. Sunderland, while clearly have a bigger fan base and stadium, did finish five places below Wigan last season, indicating Bruce believes his new clubs financial muscle will allow him to go out and make serious improvements to the current playing staff.

Indeed he may be tempted to return to the JJB and take the likes of Antonio Valencia, Maynor Figueroa and Paul Scharner back with him to The Stadium of Light. Maybe even Titus Bramble. Or maybe not.

Bruce, a (former) Newcastle fan, will find his first challenge and arguably most difficult will be to win over the Sunderland fans, who wont be thrilled their new manager is a Geordie. He quickly made light of the issue, wryly stating “I hope I can do as well as Bob Stokoe” as he was unveiled by Niall Quinn. Stokoe, a Sunderland legend, led the Black Cats to FA Cup glory in 1973, having previously given 10 years playing service to Newcastle.

Of course, this appointment leaves the Wigan hotseat vacant. It only took the name ‘Roberto’ to be mentioned in the gossip columns for Mancini to speed off in his Ferrari in the vague direction of Dave Whelan’s house, intent on offering his managerial services to the Latics chairman. Imagine his horror when he is informed it is Swansea City boss Roberto Martinez that is wanted. The spaniard, who played for Wigan for 6 years, is the bookmakers favourite to get the job.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Everton and Louis Saha broke the long-standing ‘Fastest Cup Final Goal’ record at Wembley today, but ultimately left the famous stadium with broken hearts and no silverware.

Alas it was FA Cup joy for Chelsea’s Guus Hiddink as he signed off from his role as ‘Temporary Manager’ (an increasingly popular role in football) by winning the oldest cup competition in football. As he promised on his arrival in West London, he will now “go back East”.

As ways of leaving a football club go, this must be close to perfection, and much more elegant than the cloak and dagger removal of Jose Mourinho early last season. Claude Makelele had lifted the lid on the reasons for Mourinho’s Chelsea departure on the eve of this final with all the timing of a Rodney Marsh Tsunami gag, suggesting he was forced out by club captain John Terry. Mourinho not Marsh. Marsh was forced out by Stelling.

These revelations were angrily refuted by Terry and indeed Chelsea, but if that had somewhat soured the start of John Terry’s day, it will have only made lifting the famous old cup that bit sweeter later on.

As with most things, it could have been different. ITV’s Clive Tyldsley hadn’t had a chance to mispronounce a player’s name when Louis Saha lashed in a ferocious volley with just 25 seconds on the clock, writing his name into the history books in the process. The Everton fans, who seemed much louder pre-match, blew the roof off Wembley and started to believe maybe this was their year.

Saha hadn’t been a certainty to start, but Everton boss David Moyes had decided to give the 30 year old Frenchman the task of leading the line, remarking to the TV cameras it was the “right decision”. What a way to be proved right. He gave Petr Cech no chance after Marouane Fellaini jostled well to keep the attack alive.

Chelsea, like Man Utd in midweek, looked visibly shaken by the early setback, they were rushed in possession and their passing was erratic. Everton had their tail up, and were hunting down the ball in a similar fashion to Mark Viduka hunting out a burger van.

However, it was very hot, and Chelsea are a very good team, it looked unlikely that Everton would be able to keep up with their own level of effort. Chelsea began to dominate possession and carved out a few openings, particularly down the left hand side, where Ashley Cole was on his way to making a Man of the Match contribution.

Florent Malouda too, was becoming a menace to the Everton back line and was tripped by the increasingly hapless Tony Hibbert, earning the Liverpudlian a booking.

It was from another left sided raid that the Chelsea equaliser eventually came from. Malouda crossed invitingly into the Everton box for Didier Drogba to leap majestically and butt the ball venomously past Tim Howard, scoring another Cup Final goal. Joleon Lescott briefly looked around for someone to blame, but in truth it was his sloppy marking and failure to make a good enough challenge that made Drogba’s finish that much easier.

From then on Chelsea were pretty much in control of proceedings and had a decent chance to take the lead when Ashley Cole got in behind Hibbert (again), but pulled his effort wide.

Half time came and went, and with it went Tony Hibbert. He is known for his consistent performances for The Toffees, but in the first half he had clearly struggled and been consistently caught out by Chelsea (Malouda in particular). Moyes chose to replace his right back with Lars Jacobsen, who had been almost completely forgotten at Everton until very recently, a shoulder injury hampering much of his debut season in England.

Despite the half time reshuffle, the second half started in the same way the first had ended, with Chelsea keeping hold of the ball with ease. John Obi Mikel was selected in favour of the mega rich Michael Ballack, and was excelling in his role, operating in the space between defence and midfield, winning the ball back and setting up attacks.

Despite Chelsea’s dominance, Everton did not give up the fight and came with inches of re-taking the lead. Again the threat came through Saha, who got his head to a whipped Leighton Baines cross but was unable to keep it down, the ball flying over Cech’s bar. Saha along with thousands of Evertonians looked to the heavens in dismay, recognising both the quality of the chance and fearing the consequences of the miss.

A few minutes later, Chelsea did make them pay. Frank Lampard, collected a pass from sub Ballack, turned inside Phil Neville, lost his footing, regained it again, and let fly with a 20 yard, left foot shot which arrowed into the top corner. Hitting across the ball helped it away from Howard, but the American keeper might feel he should have done better as the shot wasn’t particularly powerful.

In any event the goal seemed to snuff out Everton’s challenge for the Cup, a challenge that has seen them beat Liverpool, Villa, ‘Boro and, of course, Man Utd en route to the final. Everton didn’t manage another meaningful effort, as Chelsea made them chase the ball and had several attempts to extend their lead.

Malouda was denied a Cup Final goal when referee Howard Webb failed to spot his terrific long range effort had actually crossed the line after coming down off the crossbar. In fairness to Webb, it would have been some spot. More ridiculously Webb booked Lampard for a dive in the area, when in reality, he had been kicked over. Fortunately for Chelsea these mistakes did not cost them and they went on the see the game out and claim their second FA Cup in three years.

Moyes has previously been mentioned as a potential successor to Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United. Maybe it will be in how his ever improving Everton side responds to this disappointment next season which will determine whether he will be considered a serious candidate for the Old Trafford post when Fergie eventually retires.

As for Guus, he will go back east with a FA Cup winners medal to show for his short time in England. After the game Larry David look-alike and Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck suggested a ‘Permanent’ manager will be appointed “sooner rather than later”, with AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti widely tipped as the next man to try his luck at Stamford Bridge.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Rafa Benitez responded to Liverpool’s midweek defeat by making four changes. His side responded by scoring four goals past Blackburn, without a hint of a reply from Sam Allardyce’s team.

It was a case of starting badly, and getting worse for Blackburn, as Fernando Torres scored a sublime goal after just 5 minutes. Back to goal, he chested the ball into his path, and unleashed an unstoppable volley into the far corner of Paul Robinson’s goal.

By the time Torres added to his tally with a bullet header on the half hour mark, it was painfully evident that Blackburn’s meek resistance would not stop Liverpool banking another 3 points as they desperately try to hunt down Man Utd.

As expected, Liverpool’s Captain Marvel, Steven Gerrard, was dropped to the bench with his groin injury deemed bad enough to miss out on starting line up. He wasn’t used at all in this one sided contest, and is likely to be back in the side that will travel to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday looking to turn around a Champions League tie that looks all but dead.

Christopher Samba was the man who typified Blackburn’s disorganised challenge. The centre half was used by Allardyce as a lone centre forward. And he did look lonely, as Liverpool’s dominance of possession grew, he saw little of the ball and his teamates offered even less support when he did.

Ironically, with Blackburn defending a freekick, it was Samba who was out jumped by Torres for his and Liverpool’s second goal. At half time Allardyce swapped his Aaron’s, with the more attacking youngster Doran replacing the more defensive Mokoena, but it had no telling effect on the games course. Liverpool were guilty of slacking off a little as the second half wore on, attacks broke down due to lazy passes as well as Riera and Benayoun trying to be too intricate around the box.

With Chelsea on the horizon, Torres was withdrawn on 73 mintues and replaced by the diminutive El Zhar. He was applauded off, but understandably looked disappointed to have missed out on a potential hattrick. In a rare Blackburn attack, the ball fell to Samba but he lost his footing and his shot lacked the power to trouble Pepe Reina. That was the last, and only real chance Blackburn had to get back into the game.

By the end it had turned it into a rout. Daniel Agger, starting in favour of Skrtl, had already had threatened the Kop End net by drilling long range shot wide, and made no mistake second time round. The Danish defender strode into the Blackburn half unchallenged, took aim, and cannon footed a 25 yard shot past the helpless and hapless Paul Robinson.

The former Brøndby man has struggled for a regular place this season and a possible January transfer was speculated on, but Benitez has publicly stated he hopes to tie the 24 year old to Liverpool on a long term contract.

David N’gog helped himself to a last minute goal, completing a well worked move from a corner and completing a simple 4-0 victory for Benitez’s men.

Blackburn will need to up their game on the evidence of this dreadful showing, or they could easily slip further into the relegation mire.

As for Liverpool, they will now travel to Chelsea with the daunting challenge of needing at least three goals to have any chance of progression in the Champions League. They got four today, but it wont be as easy for them on Tuesay as it was today.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Manager WANTED — Chelsea FC (Competitive Salary / Start Date: June 2009)

OK, Guus, we get the message. You won’t be Chelsea manager next season. After a seemingly infinite amount of questions about his future, interim Chelsea manager, Guus Hiddink, has remained unwavering in his decision that he will only stay on at the club until the end of the current season. Therefore we now get to play the annual game that the nation has taken to its heart that I like to call — ‘Guess the next Chelsea boss’.

Chelsea have been playing this game for a while, and chances are pretty good that this won’t be the last time Roman Abramovich picks a new successor to the Chelsea thrown. But for argument’s sake, let’s take a look at some of the names that will most likely top the Chelsea wishlist.

Top Candidates

Frank Rijkaard

The possibility of having Rijkaard’s coaching services has, apparently, interested Chelsea for a while. There were plenty of stories linking the Dutchman to the vacant Stamford Bridge post after he had parted from Barcelona last summer. However, with the appointment Luiz Felipe Scolari, he didn’t get the gig and has been unemployed since. His potential appointment would therefore be a cheaper option, but that’s never really been an issue for Roman Abramovich. He also has a pretty good CV. He guided Barca to La Liga glory twice during his time at Camp Nou, with his side, that included superstars like, Ronaldinho, Eto’o, Deco and Xavi, playing football that had fans and pundits in awe. His finest hour came when he led the Catalan giants to the Champions League crown (for only the second time) in 2006, winning 2-1 against Arsenal, thanks to a Henrik Larsson inspired comeback. Things turned slightly sour in his last two seasons in charge, and after high profile dressing room bust ups, fan protests and no further trophies, club president Joan Laporta announced Rijkaard would leave at the end of 07/08 season.

Carlo Ancelotti

AC Milan boss, Ancelotti, is the longest serving manager in Serie A and has not one, but two Champions League successes under his rather large belt. An obvious black mark on his CV is Liverpool’s Champions League final defeat of Milan in 2005, having been 3 goals behind at half time. Whilst it was a Roy of the Rovers final, the fact is, he was making the decisions as his side unthinkably surrendered their lead, and ultimately the game. Having said that, Ancelotti made amends two years later when Milan gained revenge over Liverpool in Athens. Like Rijkaard, he has interested Chelsea before, recently claiming “In the summer I met Roman Abramovich but didn’t want to leave AC Milan”. Ancelotti clearly has pedigree, but has arguably led Milan backwards rather than forwards of late. Milan won’t win the Scudetto this season, and didn’t even make the Champions League places last season.

Roberto Mancini

Despite winning the Scudetto last season with Inter, Mancini was given the bullet by the oil rich owner, Massimo Moratti. That ordeal may prove an invaluable learning experience where he to be appointed by Chelsea. Mancini probably brought about his own departure. He declared he would stand down at the end of last season, this coming after Inter were knocked out of the Champions League by Liverpool, only to withdraw his comments later. His failure to guide Nerazzurri anywhere close to a Champions League triumph ultimately cost him his job, and with European domination at the top of Abramovich’s wish list, that would surely count against him on his application.

Jose Mourinho

Jose Mourinho back at Chelsea. This would be the most outrageous comeback since Bobby Ewing defied death and strode proudly out of the shower, back into Dallas. It wouldn’t happen, would it? Well no, I don’t think so. A West London second coming would involve either, a huge climb-down from Roman Abramovich, or a huge contract from Fulham chairman Mohamed al-Fayed, neither of which is likely. The Portuguese also has a lucrative 3 year deal with Mancini’s old club Inter, looking set to guide them to another Serie A crown. The fact remains however, Mourinho is the most successful Chelsea manager ever, and has never ruled out a return.

Gianfranco Zola and/or Roberto Di Matteo

As Chelsea played out there final match under the stewardship of LF Scolari, a drab 0-0 home draw against Hull, a home-made banner was unfurled by one Blues fan. It read – “Scolari out – Zola/Di Matteo, Chelsea legends“. This kind of appointment would clearly be more about sentiment than managerial achievement. Zola has done OK at West Ham, and Di Matteo is at the helm of (cough) the MK Dons. I’m sure for a lot of Chelsea fans, Zola as manager would be a great fantasy, as the tiny Italian is held in such high esteem. Would that be heart ruling head? They may well be Chelsea legends, but I doubt either have the experience to take over the machine installed at Chelsea…yet.

Joachim Löw

I had to throw in a curveball. Smart dresser Löw, or Jogi as his friends enjoy calling him, is the head coach of Germany, and is credited as the tactical brains behind their attractive brand of football showcased at World Cup 06 and Euro 08. He would certainly be a surprise choice, but not necessarily a bad one. At World Cup 06, Germany were knocked out by eventual winners Italy at the semi-final stage, but had wowed crowds with some thrilling performances, albeit on home soil. Whilst it was actually Jürgen Klinsmann in charge and Löw as assistant for that tournament, many sources close to the German camp suggested it was indeed Löw who was the tactical driving force. After his promotion to head coach, he steered Germany to the Euro 08 final in Austria, losing out to Spain.

Best of Rest

Sven Goran Eriksson — Was once caught in a hotel with Peter Keyon (he’ll shag anything), but his managerial stock has seriously declined since then. He certainly doesn’t need the money.

Fabio Capello — Great CV, but surely he will be take all the FA’s cash until at least South Africa 2010.

Avram Grant — Lets be honest, he didn’t do bad for Chelsea. But his boring, monotone style isn’t what Chelsea want.

Arsene Wenger — Arsenal is pretty much his club and he will probably finish his career with them. He also seems to hate spending money, which is not ideal for a prospective Chelsea boss

Martin O’Neill — O’Neill is a good manager, but no more.

David Moyes — See above

Pep Guardiola — He’s presiding over a Messi inspired Barcelona side that is playing football from out of this world. Therefore they wont let him go, and why would he want to?

There you have it, the next Chelsea manager is one of these candidates. Or he might not be. To be honest, I reckon it’ll be Hiddink. What?

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Following on from Neil Jones’s article about Newcastle’s current plight, I wondered about the plight of a man once dubbed ‘The Boy Wonder’ by Liverpool fans. Michael Owen.

We are now into the final stages of the Premier League campaign, with a title race back on, and all four English clubs are into the last eight of the Champions League. This is where its at for any self respecting professional footballer. Imagine being Steven Gerrard last Sunday, he scores a hattrick that helps keep the team he captains hot on the league leaders heels, drives home with plaudits ringing in his ears, reads the text off The FA reminding him he is in the England squad, rolls into bed next to Alex Curran and nods off, dreaming of winning the double for his club.

Now imagine being Michael Owen last Saturday. His team slip to another defeat after being well beaten at home by Arsenal. He knows he is not in the England squad, with the likes of Carlton Cole and Gabriel Agbonlahor being preferred last time. On top of that, he’s at Newcastle. If he manages to stay fit, for him, the final stages of this season offer only a relegation dogfight, rather than a chase for silverware. He must have been thinking, ‘where did it all go wrong?’

It really should be different for Owen. He was a truly great player at Liverpool. He was a teenage sensation, scoring on his debut and never looking back. On the odd occasion he went through a lean spell he would invariably stick it to the critics by going goal crazy soon after. In 2001 he helped Liverpool to an unprecedented cup treble, famously turning that FA Cup final against Arsenal on its head. He was the first Liverpool man to be crowned European player of the year, averaging better than a goal every other game during his time at the club. In fact, towards the end of Anfield service it was embarrassingly obvious how much Liverpool relied on him.

He had also become a firm ‘England man’, something fellow red Robbie Fowler had never quite managed. He scored important, memorable World Cup goals (that one against Argentina 98) for England and rammed a famous hattrick past Oliver Khan during that thumping 5-1 victory over Germany in Munich. It is fair to say Owen was a world beater. The question is…can he be again?

Most people will probably say ‘no, he’s finished now’. It would be hard to argue that he could cut it at the very top again. His list of injuries is phenomenal. He should be on those adverts ‘Have you been injured at work?’, ‘Have you slipped, tripped or fell over weirdly and snapped your knee?’ etc. This season he missed most of Newcastle’s warm up games with Mumps. Mumps? What next nappy rash?!

However, Owen is surely too good to be playing for a team scrapping for Premier League survival. He is still the right side of 30 and when he actually plays, he still scores at a good rate. With his contract is up in the summer he will have a choice to make. He may stay on at Newcastle, if he feels he ‘owes something to them’, but probably not if they go down. He may get another huge pay day at another struggling club. Or maybe, just maybe, one of the big four will take a risk on him, and he will get a chance to become that player again.

Personally, I would like to see the latter happen. The alternative is that he is left on the football scrap heap, with his astonishing early career being slowly forgotten.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News