Wednesday, April 25, 2018

All the very latest football news across Europe!



Merseyside Police have arrested two men on suspicion of attempted murder after a man was seriously injured before Liverpool's Champions League game with Roma at Anfield on Tuesday night. A 53-year-old man is in a critical condition following the incident, which occurred outside the Albert Pub - close to Anfield's famous Kop Stand - where fans were gathering before kick-off of the semi-final first-leg match - skysports.com

Chelsea and Manchester United fans are coming together for an emotional tribute to Ray Wilkins, who died earlier this month, when they meet in the FA Cup final on 19th May - Daily Mirror

Arsenal believe they can convince former Barcelona boss Luis Enrique to succeed Arsene Wenger as their manager. The Gunners' head of football relations Raul Sanllehi worked with Enrique at the Nou Camp Daily Mirror

Despite being tipped as a potential successor to Arsene Wenger, it is unlikely that Ralf Rangnick would be tempted back in to full-time coaching. The RB Leipzig sporting director has a contract until 2021 - Bild (German tabloid publication)

Patrick Vieira says he would be "ready" if he got a call from Arsenal, who are searching for a new manager to take over from Arsene Wenger. But the former Arsenal captain stressed his former club have not been in contact and that he still has the 2018 MLS season to complete with New York City FC, having signed a three-year deal in 2016 - skysports.com

Former Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti, another candidate to take over from Wenger at Arsenal, has been offered the Italy job - The Times

Carlo Ancelotti is set to become Italy's next national team manager but only because he has been snubbed by both Arsenal and Chelsea - Daily Star

Germany manager Joachim Low is reluctant to take over from Wenger at Arsenal as he is concerned he would be "burnt out" after his team's World Cup defence in Russia - The Times

Barcelona have sacked Gerard Lopez as coach of their B side. Barca B have lost their last five matches and are 21st place in the Segunda Division, two points from safety with six matches remaining. Lopez has been replaced by Francisco Javier Garcia Pimienta - skysports.com

Manchester United will have to offer £40m plus Luke Shaw if they want to sign Tottenham left-back Danny Rose this summer - The Sun

As well as Rose, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho wants to sign a right-back in the summer - The Guardian

Heung-Min Son wants to play at the Asian Games, according to South Korea's U23 coach, which means the Tottenham forward could miss the start of the Premier League season. The final of the Games, which are being held in Indonesia, is on 1st September with the 2018/19 Premier League season kicking off on 11th August - skysports.com

Real Madrid will target the signing of Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski, 29, in the summer as a stop-gap in their long-term pursuit of Tottenham striker Harry Kane - The Sun

Gareth Bale has added to speculation that he could be leaving Real Madrid by saying it is “an honour” to be linked with Bayern Munich, who face each other in the semi-finals of the Champions League tonight - skysports.com

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's hopes of making England's World Cup squad were dealt a serious blow after the midfielder was stretchered off during Liverpool's Champions League semi-final first-leg win over Roma. The England international suffered what appeared to be a knee injury when tackling Aleksandar Kolarov in the 18th minute and received lengthy treatment on the pitch - skysports.com

Manchester City have no plans to sell defender John Stones, 23, and the England international is still part of manager Pep Guardiola's plans - Daily Telegraph

Guardiola wants to be reunited with Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta at Manchester City. The 33-year-old Spain international has also been linked with Ligue 1 champions Paris St-Germain and a move to China - AS (Spanish daily sports newspaper)

Manchester City have withdrawn their interest in Shakhtar Donetsk playmaker Fred, paving the way for Manchester United to make a move - Daily Star

Leicester are lining up a move for Porto right-back Ricardo Pereira, 24. The Portugal international has a £36m release clause in his contract - Daily Mirror

Hector Bellerin has made the clearest indication yet that he has no plans to leave Arsenal after revealing he has asked to wear the number two shirt next season. Despite signing a new Gunners contract last season which runs until 2023, the Spaniard has been consistently linked with both Manchester United and Juventus in the British and foreign press - skysports.com and The Sun

Chelsea will resist offers for Tiemoue Bakayoko and Alvaro Morata this summer unless either player makes it clear they want to leave - Daily Telegraph

West Ham are poised to offer 19 year-old defender Declan Rice a new long-term contract - skysports.com

Stoke City will stick with manager Paul Lambert even if the club are relegated to the Championship, says chairman Peter Coates - skysports.com

Stoke City have cancelled their end-of-season awards dinner as they believe it would be "inappropriate" because of the team's struggles this season - Daily Telegraph

Championship winners Wolves want to sign Manchester City defender Eliaquim Mangala, 27, and would have no problem meeting the Frenchman's £85,000-a-week wages - The Sun

Tottenham are in talks over a new deal with England youth international full-back Kyle Walker-Peters, 21 - ESPN

RB Leipzig are targeting Tottenham teenager Reo Griffiths, who has scored more than 30 goals for the club's youth teams this season - Daily Mirror

Dylan Levitt has signed a professional contract with Manchester United. The Wales Under-19 international midfielder has impressed for the Under-18 Premier League North champions this season - skysports.com

Argentine top-flight leaders Boca Juniors want to sign Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, 40, whose contract at Juventus expires at the end of the season - Radio Continental via ESPN

Hull goalkeeper Allan McGregor is likely to sign a pre-contract agreement to join Rangers this summer. Nothing has been agreed, but the 36-year-old, who is out of contract this summer, could be set to return to the club he played for between 2001 and 2012 - sksports.com and Daily Mail

Rangers have suffered an Old Firm hammer blow after keeper Wes Foderingham was ruled out of Sunday's potential title decider - Daily Record



Friday, April 13, 2018

Statistically, the ICT index score of the best performing players in the English Premier League so far this season!


The ICT Index (Influence, Creativity, Threat) was a new feature that began at the start of last season's Premier League campaign, and has continued to be used for the current one.

A football statistical index, it has been developed specifically to give a verdict on any player as a Football Premier League asset.

It condenses more than 40 match event statistics for three key areas – Influence, Creativity and Threat, to generate the data into a single score.

This score is what is known as an individual’s ICT Index score, and via this data is able to offer an accurate summary on player performance.


Season 2017/18 - Last update: 13/04/18 at 12:45pm (BST)

pm GMT


For those of you currently playing 'Fantasy Premier League Football' you may want to take note!

Goalkeepers:

1. Jack Butland (Stoke) 85.4 ICT Index 
2. Lukasz Fabianski (Swansea) 85.3
3. Jordan Pickford (Everton) 81.7
4. Jonas Lossl (Huddersfield) 76.1
5. David de Gea (Man Utd) 74.3
6. Nick Pope (Burnley) 74.2
7. Mathew Ryan (Brighton) 72.5 (pictured right)
8. Asmir Begovic (Bournemouth) 70.2
9. Kasper Schmeichel (Leicester) 69.0
10. Petr Cech (Arsenal) 63.8


Defenders:

1. Marcos Alonso (Chelsea) 185.2  ICT Index
2. César Azpilicueta (Chelsea) 145.7
3. Héctor Bellerín (Arsenal) 141.5
4. Harry Maguire (Leicester) 138.9
5. Ben Davies (Tottenham) 138.6 (pictured right)
6. Lewis Dunk (Brighton) 136.0
7. Nicolás Otamendi (Man City) 132.5
8. Shane Duffy (Brighton) 126.0
9. Aaron Cresswell (West Ham) 120.1 *Currently out injured
10. James Milner (Liverpool) 118.5


Midfielders:

1. Mo Salah (Liverpool) 397.7  ICT Index
2. Kevin De Bruyne (Man City) 335.8
3. Christian Eriksen (Tottenham) 301.0
4. Alexis Sanchez (Man Utd) 291.6
5. Raheem Sterling (Man City) 275.9
6. Eden Hazard (Chelsea) 270.1
7. David Silva (Man City) 260.7
8. Mesut Özil (Arsenal) 248.6
9. Dele Alli (Tottenham) 241.6
10. Leroy Sané (Man City) 231.2


Forwards:

1. Harry Kane (Tottenham) 358.0 ICT Index
2. Sergio Agüero (Man City) 302.5
3. Roberto Firmino (Liverpool) 283.3
4. Romelu Lukaku (Man Utd) 253.9
5. Álvaro Morata (Chelsea) 211.4
6. Alexandre Lacazette (Arsenal) 211.0
7. Jamie Vardy (Leicester) 200.4
8. Josh King (Bournemouth) 160.9 (pictured right)
9. Gabriel Jesus (Man City) 154.8
10. Jay Rodriguez (West Brom) 151.82




1. Influence

Influence is the first measurement. This evaluates the degree to which that player has made an impact on a single match or throughout the season.

It takes into account events and actions that could directly or indirectly effect the outcome of the fixture.

At the top level these are decisive actions like goals and assists. But the Influence score also processes significant defensive actions to analyse the effectiveness of defenders and goalkeepers.

2. Creativity

Creativity assesses player performance in terms of producing goalscoring opportunities for others. It can be used as a guide to identify the players most likely to supply assists.

While this analyses frequency of passing and crossing, it also considers pitch location and quality of the final ball.

3. Threat

This is the third measure, producing a value that examines a player's threat on goal. It gauges individuals most likely to score goals.

While attempts are the key action, the Index looks at pitch location, giving greater weight to actions that are regarded as the best chances to score.

All three of these scores are combined to create an overall ICT Index score. That then offers a single figure that presents a view on that player as a Football Premier League asset.



Sunday, April 01, 2018

Babe of the Month - Spanish Golf Belle Belén Mozo


Belén Mozo was born 25th September 1988 in Cadiz, Spain, and is a Spanish professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tour.


























Belén was born on September 25, 1988, in Cadiz, Spain. She is the daughter of Jesus Mozo and Isabel Mozo and has one sibling as Jesús Mozo. She is the residence of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, US. Belen completed her schooling from the Institute Ortega y Gasset. Her aspiration to become a professional golfer arises when she started playing golf at the age of eight. She gives credit to her mother who influences her to pursue her dreams.
She enjoys going to the beach, reading books and playing tennis and says that she is pretty laid back. At the age of 14, she moved to Madrid to go to school and pursue her interest in golf.



Mozo enjoyed a successful amateur career, and in 2006 she won both the 'British Ladies Amateur Championship' at the Royal County Down Golf Club, Northern Ireland and the 'British Girls' Amateur Championship' in Portstewart, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, becoming the first woman to win both titles in the same year since 1972. That same year Belén also represented Spain at the 2006 World Amateur Team Championships.

Also in 2006 Belén won 'The International European Ladies Amateur Championship,' which is an annual amateur golf tournament. It is organized by the European Golf Association and was first played in 1986. It is one of the "elite" tournaments in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.



Belén earned a scholarship to play golf for University of Southern California and later that year she joined the USC Trojans golf team. She went on to become a four-time NCAA/All-American. Whilst at the University of Southern California she majored in international relations and after four years of collegiate golf, she turned professional, and qualified to join the LPGA Tour on her first attempt as a rookie in the 2011 season. Mozo earned more than $90,000 in her rookie season.

Belén Mozo was featured in ESPN The Magazine’s 2011 Body Issue. She credits her parents and family life growing up for her athletic body. Mozo’s parents established her nutrition and diet plans early on, allowing soda only once a week and never bringing candy into their house. She always stays active, running, playing basketball and riding horses.


























In 2014 Mozo was a member of the Spanish team that won the inaugural 'LPGA International Crown'

In 2017 The Spaniard has more than 100,000 followers on Twitter and Instagram where she shares everything from her puppy’s birthday to books she’s reading to workout videos. And while her followers have loved getting a small glimpse into Mozo’s life through social media, they wanted more! So in September 2017, Mozo launched a new blog simply titled, BELÉN.

Her sponsors are: Skechers Performance, Oakley and Beso Del Sol Sangria

Career earnings to date: $902,602



You can follow Belén on:  Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and on her Blog