All the latest transfer gossip across Europe!

Here is a round up of all the latest transfer gossip across Europe today!

Is your club involved?

Manchester United, Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal, Liverpool, Barcelona, Juventus, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Monaco, PSG, Brighton, Hull City, Sunderland, Napoli, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Benfica, Crystal Palace, Atlético Madrid, Everton, Manchester City, Arsenal, Lyon, Tottenham, Schalke, Roma, Fulham, West Ham, Al Ain, Stoke City, Morecambe, Kuban Krasnodar and Bastia..............are all caught up in the latest transfer news/rumours across Europe, as we speak.

Manchester United have been told by Borussia Dortmund that they will have to pay up to £40m to sign 24 year-old Germany midfielder Marco Reus - Daily Mail

Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal in January will start to ask information about the stiker of Barcelona, Pedro (right), who is not able to find a place in Gerardo Martino's line-up - Marca (Spanish newspaper)

The relationship between Leo Messi and Barcelona is not so good as it might appear at present, and should the Argentinian decide to leave Paris St Germain is one the few clubs which can afford to sign the striker - Le Parisien (French daily newspaper)

Sunderland are expected to face stern competition from their Premier League rivals, if they make a move for Brighton midfielder Liam Bridcutt - Sunderland Echo

Reported Manchester United target Everton Ribeiro has insisted that talk of him moving in January is just 'speculation.' Ribeiro, 24, who claimed the award for best player in the Brazilian top flight last season, has attracted plenty of attention across Europe after his impressive performances for Cruzeiro - Globe Esporte (Brazilian TV Sports News)

In June, Juventus are ready to invest a lot of money in the transfer market. For the forward line they continue to observe the situation of Mario Mandzukic (right), who with the arrival of Robert Lewandowski will quit Bayern Munich - Tuttosport - (Italian sports newspaper)

Juventus are also eyeing Angel Di Maria, who can leave in the end of the season. The Real Madrid player, worth about 25-30 million euros and also Chelsea, Monaco and PSG are interested in him - Tuttosport (Italian sports newspaper)

Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna has revealed that he has opened talks with the club over a new deal. Sagna's contract at the Emirates Stadium expires at the end of the season, but the 30 year-old France international has indicated that he would like to extend his stay in North London - beIN SPORT (affiliate of Al Jazeera Media Networks)

Hull City are targeting Sunderland striker Steven Fletcher in a £6m transfer. The Scotland international, 26, has not scored for the Black Cats since the 27th October, and has recently been struggling with an ankle injury - Daily Mirror and transfermarketweb.com

According to latest rumours coming from Spain, Real Madrid's management have reached a pre-agreement with Borussia Dortmund in order to sign German international playmaking midfielder Ilkay Gündogan (right) aged 23 from Borussia Dortmund.
The former FC Nürnberg star, currently on a deal with the Bundesliga giants until June 2015 was also being tracked by Arsenal and Barcelona, along with both Inter and AC Milan.
Gündogan is expected to join Real after the end of the ongoing season - Marca (Spanish newspaper)

Napoli are close to signing Daniel Agger. The player has reportedly already spoken with his former coach Rafa Benitez. Liverpool have reduced the request for the player: he can be signed on loan for 600,000 euros - Il Mattino (Italian daily newspaper)

Chelsea are willing to offer Senegal striker Demba Ba to Inter Milan as a makeweight in their efforts to sign the Italian club's 27 year-old Colombian midfielder Fredy Guarin - Talksport

There has been plenty of speculation about the future of Erik Lamela, just a few months after he arrived at Tottenham for a club-record fee. Reports in Italy suggest he could soon be heading back to Serie A, with Inter Milan have set their sights on the Argentine winger - Gazzetta dello Sport (Italian newspaper)

Bayern Munich have loaned central defender Jan Kirchhoff to Bundesliga rivals Schalke for the next 18 months - sportinglife.com

Benfica trio Ezequiel Garay, Nicolas Gaitan and Nemanja Matic are all being lined up for moves to Manchester United - Manchester Evening News

Jose Iribarren, the agent of Benfica forward Nicolas Gaitan (right), says that he is unaware of any offers for his client – with Manchester United and Paris St Germain again being linked with the Argentina international - ABOLA (Portuguese newspaper)and sportsmole.co.uk

Fulham have been linked with a January move for Roma midfielder Michael Bradley, according to sources in Italy. The US international is said to be interesting the London club, though it is thought that Roma are only willing to let the 26-year-old go should they sign a replacement

Crystal Palace are keen to open talks regarding a new contract. The midfielder, 20, signed a five-year contract in May last year, but will apparently be in line for a pay rise with the new deal. A club source was quotes as saying that "protection" is the driving force behind the idea as Williams has attracted interest from Arsenal, Manchester City and Everton - Daily Mirror and sportsmole.co.uk

Bayern Munich continue to be interested in Atlético Madrid midfielder Koke. The German club would like a swap deal with the Swiss international midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri - El Mundo Deportivo (Spanish daily newspaper)

Lyon striker Bafetimbi Gomis (right), 28, is a target for new Tottenham manager Tim Sherwood for a fee of around £5m when the January transfer window opens - Metro

West Ham have made tentative enquiries into the possibility of signing striker Ghana international Asamoah Gyan on loan in the January transfer window.
Gyan left Sunderland in 2012 to join Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates - skysports.com

Spurs midfielder Sandro has told Italian giants Inter Milan and Roma he does not want to quit North London for Serie A - Daily Mirror

Reports from Serbia are suggesting that Stoke City are ready to sign Vladimir Stojkovic on a short-term contract after Asmir Begovic was ruled out for six weeks with a broken finger. Stojkovic is a free agent - skysports.com

Morecambe forward Kevin Ellison has extended his contract with the club and will remain at the Globe Arena for another 18 months.

Former Liverpool and QPR striker Djibril Cisse has agreed terms which will see him return to his native France in the New Year. Cisse is currently on the books of Russian outfit Kuban Krasnodar, but is closing on a switch to Bastia - L'Equipe (French daily newspaper)

The Ten Dirtiest Teams/Players in the Premier League so far this season!

Here are the the Top 10 ranked dirtiest Premier League teams by order of ill discipline so far this season, and the major culprits.

As at 16th December 2013:


Top 10 Dirtiest Teams:

1/     Stoke City  36 Yellow cards / 0 Reds cards /13.4 = Ave  Fouls Committed Per Game / League Pos 13th

2/     Aston Villa  33 Yellows / 0 Reds / 13.3 = Ave  Fouls Committed Per Game / League Pos  11th

3/     Manchester Utd  33 Yellows / 0 Reds / 11.3  = Ave  Fouls Committed Per Game / League Pos 8th

4/     Swansea City  31 Yellows / 1 Red / 9.9  = Ave  Fouls Committed Per Game / League  Pos 10th

5/     Tottenham  30 Yellows / 1 Red, 10.4  = Ave  Fouls Committed Per Game / League  Pos  7th

6/     Everton  28 Yellows / 0 Reds / 10.2  = Ave  Fouls Committed Per Game / League  Pos 5th

7/     Hull City  26 Yellows / 1 Red / 11.2  = Ave  Fouls Committed Per Game / League  Pos 12th

8/     Sunderland  20 Yellows / 4 Reds / 11.1  = Ave  Fouls Committed Per Game / League  Pos 20th

9/     West Ham  24 Yellows / 2 Reds / 11.3  = Ave  Fouls Committed Per Game / League  Pos 17th

10/   Newcastle  24 Yellows / 2 Reds / 11.8  = Ave  Fouls Committed Per Game / League  Pos 6th

     

Top 10 Dirtiest Players:

1/ Paulinho - Tottenham: 4 Yellow cards, 1 Red card, Fouls Committed 16

2/ Lucas Leiva - Liverpool: 5 Yellows, FC 31

3/ Branislav Ivanovic - Chelsea: 5 Yellows, FC 26

4/ Youssouf Mulumbu - West Brom: 5 Yellows, FC 25

5/ Mathieu Debuchy - Newcastle United: 5 Yellows, FC 22

6/ Wayne Rooney - Manchester United: 5 Yellows, FC 21

7= Chico Flores - Swansea City: 5 Yellows, FC 20

7= Jonathan Walters - Stoke City: 5 yellows, FC 20

8= Gabriel Agbonlahor - Aston Villa: 5 Yellows, FC 19

8= Ángel Rangel - Swansea City: 5 Yellows, FC 19



* Information gathered and compiled courtesy of the following websites: http://www.whoscored.com http://www.premierleague.com/ http://msn.foxsports.com/ and http://guardian.touch-line.com/

Current English Premier League Form Guide

Current Form Guide based on last 5 Premier League results as at Midnight Monday 9th Dec 2013

Pos  #                                 Last 5 Results       Points      
                     

  1 (7)    Newcastle Utd         WWWLW            12
  2 (1)    Arsenal                    LWWWD            10               

  2 (3)    Chelsea                   DWWWL             10
  2 (19)  Crystal Palace          DWLWW            10
  2 (2)    Liverpool                WDLWW             10
  2 (4)    Manchester City      LWWWD             10
  7 (5)    Everton                   DDWWD              9
  7 (14)  Norwich                  WLWLW              9
  8 (11)  Aston Villa              WDDWL               8
  8 (13)  Stoke City               DWLDW               8
  8 (10)  Swansea City           DWLWD              8
11 (9)    Manchester Utd      WDDLL                5
11 (6)   Tottenham               DLLDW                5
13 (12)  Hull City                  LWLLD               4
13 (8)    Southampton          WLLLD                4
13 (20)  Sunderland             LWLDL                4
16 (18)  Fulham                   LLLLW                3
16 (17)  West Ham Utd        LLWLL                 3
17 (15)  West Brom              DDLLL                 2

17 (16)  Cardiff City             LDLDL                 2

# (Current League Position)

Babe Of The Month - Merry Christmas/Fröhe Weihnachten/Joyeux Noël/Feliz Navidad/Buon Natale/Feliz Natal/Wesołych Świąt Bożego Narodzenia

Jennifer Lamiraqui is a 5'9" lingerie model, born on the 25th March 1980 in Paris. She made her modelling debut in Japan and became best known for her bikini shoots. Jennifer then returned to Paris to pursue her career in modelling. She currently lives in New York.

Jennifer has graced the covers of magazines such as '20 Ans' and 'Maxim.' She has represented brands such as Bare Necessities, Calida, Custo Barcelona, Gemma, Gianni Bini, Intimissimi, JC Penney, Lazaro, Pantene, Revlon Eyewear, S.Oliver, Valisère and Volvic.

Her agencies are: Elite New York, Karin Paris, Modelwerk, Riccardo Gay Model Management – Milan, Select Model Management – London and Wilhelmina Nova Models - Munich.

The Best Footballers NOT going to the 2014 World Cup!

On Wednesday night the thirty-second and final remaining place for the 2014 World Cup finals in Rio was secured by Uruguay. Earlier in the day Mexico completed the formalities of defeating New Zealand and so the teams heading to Brazil were confirmed.

However some high profile teams will be missing next summer at one of the biggest sporting events in the world including the likes of Sweden, Ukraine, Poland, Czech Republic, Serbia and Denmark. Along with these missing teams there are some tremendously talented players who will also absent from footballs greatest global stage.


GK: Petr Cech - (Czech Republic)
Chelsea’s stalwart will not be adding to his 105 caps for Czech Republic this summer as Cech misses out on his second World Cup in succession. Cech played in every minute of his nation's group stage qualifying campaign but was unable to secure their place in Brazil. The Chelsea shot-stopper conceded nine goals in ten matches as his side finished third in the group. However at 31 Cech should not give up hope of featuring in Russia 2018. The giant goalkeeper remains a vital player for club and country.

RB: Lukasz Piszczek - (Poland)
Borussia Dortmund's marauding full-back (right) misses out. The Pole loves to gallop forward and is great in doing so. It's a shame we will not see this mans bursting runs forward in Brazil. Piszczek scored twice in qualifying but could not help Poland out of England’s group.

CB: Daniel Agger - (Denmark)
Denmark's leading scorer during World Cup qualifying, Agger (extreme right) was incredibly unlucky not to make the World Cup, with his side the only country to finish second in their qualifying group and miss out on a play-off spot.

CB: Branislav Ivanovic - (Serbia)
The Chelsea defender was one of only two players to take the field in every one of Serbia's matches during qualifying but his side performed poorly, missing out on a play-off place to rivals Croatia

LB: David Alaba - (Austria)
Placed in a qualifying group alongside Germany and Sweden, the Bayern Munich full-back was unable to guide Austria to their first World Cup since 1998 - although he contributed more than most, leading the goalscoring ranks with six strikes.

DM: Nemanja Matic - (Serbia)
The Benfica midfielder only returned to the international fold in September after a lengthy absence but will be missed in Brazil. Last season's Primera Liga 'Player of the Year' has established himself as one of Europe’s most impressive combative midfielders.

LM: Gareth Bale - (Wales)
Ryan Giggs, Mark Hughes and Ian Rush never managed to play in a major international tournament and the world's most expensive footballer will not feature in Rio, but the 24 year-old has time on his side. He will be focusing on helping Wales qualify for The 2016 UEFA European Championships, which will be held in France.

RM: Arda Turan - (Turkey)
Turan is one of Atletico Madrid’s prized assets, having made his move to Spain from Galatasaray in 2011. The 26-year-old is also a very influential member of the Turkey squad, creating 29 chances for his Turkish teammates in qualifying. Turan also has 13 goals in his international career to date.

AM: Marek Hamsik - (Slovakia)
Napoli midfielder Hamsik is most definitely the name that catches the eye when scanning the Slovakia squad. Hamsik has attracted a lot of attention across Europe and is another key name that will be missing out on the World Cup in 2014, after Slovakia finished well behind Bosnia-Herzegovina and Greece in qualifying.

ST: Robert Lewandowski (Poland)
Currently leading the Bundesliga goalscoring charts with nine goals in 12 games, Lewandowski (right) could only help his nation finish fourth in England's qualifying group.

ST: Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden)
The mercurial Swede, famed for his spectacular goals as well as his outrageous comments, did his bit in the play-off against Portugal, scoring twice but he could not haul a below par Swedish side to the finals.


Other noticeable absentees:

Gylfi Sigurdsson - (Iceland) Iceland's fairytale came to an end with a 2-0 play-off defeat against Croatia, which means the Tottenham midfielder will not make his debut at a World Cup finals.

Aaron Ramsey - (Wales) The Arsenal star has improved beyond recognition this season and now boast statistics to rival any midfielder in Europe. It would have been fascinating to see if Ramsey could replicate his stunning club form on the world stage in Brazil.

Christian Eriksen - (Denmark) The Denmark midfielder (right) is yet to make his mark in the Premier League this season, but he created more goalscoring chances than any other player in the Eredivisie (Dutch League) with Ajax last season.

Andriy Yarmalenko - (Ukraine) Yarmolenko can play as a winger or as a centre-forward. The 24 year-old plays his club football for Dynamo Kiev and has an excellent goal scoring record for both club and country.

Henrik Mkhitaryan - (Armenia) The Borussia Dortmund maestro has impressed in the Bundesliga this season but remains hampered at the international level by one of Europe's weaker teams. Mkhitaryan played every minute of qualifying and inspired impressive results like the 2-2 draw against Italy in Naples, but it wasn't enough.

Neven Subotić - (Serbia) Subotić has dazzled for Borussia Dortmund, but his national team didn't cut the mustard. To add to his woes it was recently confirmed he will miss the rest of the season with a serious knee injury.

Stevan Jovetic - (Montenegro)
Montenegro have risen rapidly since they gained independence in 2008 and Manchester City's £22million forward has been a key player during that time.

Matija Nastasic - (Serbia)
The third Serbian defender on this list, it is a wonder how they do not have a better defensive record, but at 20 years of age Nastasic still has plenty of time ahead of him to make it to a World Cup.

All the latest transfer gossip across Europe!

Here is a round up of all the latest transfer gossip across Europe today!

Is your club involved?

Chelsea, Sporting Lisbon, Arsenal, Tottenham, Juventus, Inter Milan, Corinthians, Napoli, Liverpool, Hamburg, Aston Villa, West Ham, Everton, Hull, Crystal Palace, Newcastle, Manchester City, Malaga, Manchester United, Sevilla, Real Sociedad, Lyon, Stuttgart, Borussia Dortmund, Schalke 04, FC Groningen, Valencia, Arsenal, Southampton Watford, West Brom, Barnsley and Tranmere Rovers.........are all caught up in the latest transfer news/rumours across Europe, as we speak.

Sporting Lisbon have placed a £6m price-tag on winger Diego Capel (right), 25, a target for Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham - Daily Express, The Sun and sportsmole.co.uk

Inter Milan are weighing up the chance to try signing 24 year-old Brazilian international Alexandre Pato from Corinthians next January, but face opposition from both Arsenal and Tottenham for the forward - transfermarketweb.com


Juventus' general director Giuseppe Marotta has responded to fresh rumours by reiterating that Fernando Llorente (right) is not for sale. Reports in Italy continue to suggest that Arsenal hold an interest in the 28 yer-old Spain international and are plotting a January raid - sportinglife.com, transfermarketweb.com and skysports.com 

Babe of the Month - Reading Minsk

Anton Zingarevich is a Russian businessman best known for being the owner of Reading Football Club, who play in the English Championship. Zingarevich's bid to take over the club was announced in January 2012, and he formally purchased the club on 29 May 2012.

In 2008, Zingarevich met his future wife, a Belarusian Victoria's Secret super-model called Yekaterina Domankova, commonly called Katsia. The couple married in late 2009.

Katsia was born in Minsk, Belarus in 1990 and she earned the title of Ford’s Supermodel of the World in 2006 which truly launched her modelling career. But that wasn't her first brush with the modeling industry. While completing homework in a café one day, she was approached by an agent from Select in London and officially began her path as a model.

But more recently, she gained notoriety by appearing in the Victoria’s Secret "What Is Sexy?" commercial alongside Erin Heatherton, Adriana Lima, Lily Aldridge, and Candice Swanepoel.

You can follow Katsia on Facebook or see more of her by visiting her website

Crystal Palace - A Football Club in Crisis? Betting News on the next Palace Manager

Have the wheels well and truly come off at Selhurst Park or are current events part of a bizarre plan to give the other 19 teams in the Premier League a head start before 'The Eagles' go on a six month unbeaten run and challenge the big boys at the top of the league!

Sadly I and almost every Palace fan knows this season was almost over before it began. From the euphoria of a play-off final win at Wembley on 27th May, a chaotic summer took its toll on the South London club as they huffed and puffed, wheeled and dealed and ultimately failed to build a solid foundation for this forthcoming season.

Palace brought in players in abundance but mostly very average players and tried to knit a rather complicated pattern and following promotion to the 'top flight' in its current guise prove the critics wrong and stay there for more than a token one season for the first time in the Club's history.

To add into the equation the 25 man squad rule (youngsters aside) some somewhat mystifying questions were left unanswered and disharmony began to set in among the players. The squad that basically got us to the Premier League was to a certain degree broken up! The likes of Ramage, Garvan and Dobbie, instrumental in our promotion were left out, Moritz just left and Zaha is now bench warming at Old Trafford. Palace hitman Glenn Murray is still a long way off first-team action following knee surgery in May and no target man of his stature was brought in to replace him. Club captain Paddy McCarthy was included in the squad although he hasn't kicked a ball in anger for around 18 months. In addition no defensive coach was appointed.

As a result what palace fans feared has become reality. Eight games in and three points from a possible 24 has left the club second from bottom of the league table. A squad that has been chopped and changed far too regularly has mustered a paltry two goals conceded 13 in a run of five straight defeats, culminating in Monday's 4-1 home defeat by Fulham.

Desire, total commitment and enthusiasm are what you always get from Ian Holloway and he did a great job in leading Palace up in his first season but was he really up to the job?

After the opening day defeat to Spurs care of a dubious penalty decision, Holloway nearly blew a gasket and was ultimately fined and given a touchline ban for his reaction. I expected Holloway to galvanise the troops following the Spurs game, and that he and the players would come out with all guns blazing as they visited Stoke in the league and then Bristol City in the League Cup.
However a rather uncharacteristic spineless and soulless couple of performances (bar the first 45mins at the Britannia Stadium) were the tip of the iceberg as Palace stumbled like a naive bunch of newborns to adapt to the league and each other. Sure the guns were blazing but heads were all over the place and Palace were firing blanks! Also the usual effervescence wasn't there from the 'gaffer.' Perhaps it was all getting too much for the Bristolian. He looked like a man who'd worked himself to the bone all summer, was mentally fatigued, stressed and fresh out of new ideas.

The outcome was somewhat inevitable although it has left opinions divided amongst the fans. Holloway and Palace parted company this week and now Crystal Palace face league leaders Arsenal tomorrow lunchtime, both managerless and rudderless.

So who are the available targets to take up the managerial role, which to be fair is by any standards one of epic proportions! Palace need a man with experience, who commands respect, who can take charge of a dressing room that already seems fractured, who can get the best out of some pretty average players, play a system that suits the squad, someone that will help shore up the defence and be creative going forward, even if it is not pretty to watch and ultimately grind out results.
Crystal Palace FC at the moment is not a place for the feint hearted, so I suggest the new gaffer is mentally strong, someone who is prepared to role up his sleeves, be proactive and who can motivate a group of players who currently come across as disillusioned and lost in the headlights and he needs to do it fast.........no easy job by any means with Palace already 1/10 shots to be relegated!

According to the bookmakers the front running candidates are as follows:


Tony Pulis:
The 55 year-old Welshman took his first steps into management at Bournemouth in 1992, where he was a player/coach and then Harry Redknapp's assistant. He then took control when Redknapp left the club. He then went on to Gillingham before leaving in 1999 after a dispute with chairman Paul Scally. Pulis then had unsuccessful spells at Bristol City and Portsmouth before being appointed manager of Stoke City in 2002. He was sacked by Stoke in 2005 only to return a year later. His left Stoke in May 2013 following a falling out with chairman Peter Coates.

Management Style: Pulis has a reputation within the game for achieving solid results on small budgets and also maintains the proud record of never being relegated as a manager. Throughout his managerial career Pulis has used the long ball style of play.

Betting News: Pulis can be backed at 10/11 with Bet365 and most firms but 11/10 with Coral to be the next Palace boss.


Avram Grant:
Grant has spent the majority of his career coaching and managing in Israel, and also managing the Israeli national team for four years.
Grant moved to England in 2006 to become Technical Director of Portsmouth before being appointed Director of football at Chelsea in July 2007. Two months later, in September 2007, following the departure of José Mourinho, Grant was appointed manager of Chelsea. Despite steering the team into the Champions League final, the League Cup final and contesting the Premier League title to the last day, his contract was terminated at the end of the season. Grant returned to Portsmouth as Director of football in October 2009, and was made manager the following month. After the club's relegation to the Championship Grant resigned and, on 3rd June 2010, was appointed as manager of West Ham United, a role he held up until 15th May 2011, when he was sacked after the club was relegated to the Football League Championship. On 13th January 2012, Avram Grant was named the new manager of Partizan Belgrade. After guiding Partizan to their fifth consecutive Serbian championship, Grant resigned on 14th May 2012.

Management Style: Grant is known in Israel for giving a chance to young players in almost every club he coached. Grant is considered one of the most successful Israeli coaches. He has a reputation of a lucky winner in Israel, which caused the invention of the frequently used humorous term 'Hatachat shel Avram'. This means 'Avram's Ass,' a reference to the allegedly large amount of luck Grant enjoyed during the 2006 World Cup campaign

Betting News: William Hill go 4/1 for Grant to become the next Palace manager. Bet365 are as big as 10/1 on 'Avarm's Ass' to be next in the Palace hot seat!


Gianfranco Zola:
The 47 year-old Italian had a decorated playing career both in Italy and in England with Chelsea. He also won 35 caps for the Italian national team. He began his managerial career with the Italian U-21s before taking over at West Ham United in the Premier League in September 2008. On 11th May 2010, two days after the end of the 2009–10 season, West Ham announced the termination of Zola's contract with immediate effect. Avram Grant was announced as his successor on 3rd June 2010. He has been in charge of Watford since July 2012. In his first season, Zola led Watford to 3rd place and a play-off position, which then saw them progress to the final at Wembley. There, they lost 1-0 ironically to Crystal Palace.

Management Style: Zola likes his sides to play with a flair and has also received praise for integrating more youth products when manager of West Ham's first team.

Betting News: Zola is 9/1 with Paddy Power to take over at Selhurst Park, although Betfred go 25/1 on the same outcome.


Martin O'Neill:
The 61 year-old Northern Irishman began his managerial career in 1987 with Grantham Town. He went onto manage Wycombe Wanderers, Norwich City, Leicester City, Celtic, Aston Villa and Sunderland. He guided Leicester City to the Football League Cup final three times, in which he was twice victorious, in 1997 and 2000. In his time as Celtic manager between 2000 and 2005, he led the club to three Scottish Premier League titles and the 2003 UEFA Cup Final in Seville. O'Neill was sacked by Sunderland on 30th March 2013 after an eight-game run of five losses and three draws, leaving the team one point above the Premier League relegation zone with seven games left to play in the season. Overall Martin O'Neill has a 51% win ratio over his whole managerial career.

Management Style: O’Neill’s public image, though, is that of a nice guy and his management style has been built on inspiring his players, especially in the early days when, with his energy and enthusiasm. He worked wonders, often with decidedly ordinary individuals and teams. He is not one to doubt his own abilities.

Betting News: O'Neill is as short as 2/1 with Coral and as big as 4/1 with Boylesports to become Palace's next manager.


Chris Coleman, Neil Warnock, Alan Curbishly and Tony Popovic are also fancied candidates for the vacancy.

# Prices correct at time of going to press.

Where are they now? - England's Under-17 Euro Winning Squad of 2010

We are currently in the middle of a break in the world of top flight club football as the senior England international team try to cement a place in the World Cup Finals being held in Brazil next Summer.

Back on the 30th May 2010 England (below) were victorious in the European Under-17 Championships in Liechtenstein. This eight team tournament included some European powerhouses including the likes of France, Portugal, Czech Republic and Spain, who England defeated 2-1 in the final. That sought-after Euro Championship title win was England's first age-group title since 1993.

                         England celebrate winning the Under-17s Euro Championships in 2010





That 1993 triumph, at the European Under-18 Championship hosted in England, was earned by a team that included Paul Scholes, Gary Neville, Nicky Butt, Robbie Fowler and Sol Campbell who all went on to play for the senior team.

Three years after becoming the '2010 Young Kings of Europe,' only one of England's brilliant Under-17 team, Everton's Ross Barkley, is playing regularly in the English Premier League. So, where did it all go wrong for the golden generation?

The pressure for success at the top level of English club football is part of the problem. Managers may want to give younger players a chance but fear the consequences of failure.

There is a lot to play for in the Premier League. The clubs think about what happens when young players make mistakes. But if you instill confidence into players, they can show their abilities.

The influx of foreign players is something we have to look at but with some young players maybe things have become quite easy for them financially. They should leave the money aside and just concentrate on getting into the first team. All the rest will come.

Years ago, young players used to get more opportunities and statistics show the number of English players plying their trade for their respective clubs first team is sadly dropping. A lot are still in the academies when they should have been pushed on by now.

On the subject of ability Ray Wilkins who made his Chelsea debut at 17 and became club captain a year later said: "Technically, some of the young men in the academies are as good as it gets. But something goes slightly wrong when they get to a certain age. Is it that burning desire? Or is that situation where they feel they're not getting a chance so they don't work as hard? If you're not getting a chance, work doubly hard."


England Under-17 2010 Euro Winning squad:

GK:  Jack Butland 20 years-old, plays for Barnsley, on loan from Stoke City.

GK:  Sam Johnstone 20, plays for Yeovil Town on loan from Manchester United.

DF:  Bruno Pilatos 20, former Middlesborough player, now plays for Darlington in the Evo-Stik First Division North.

DF:  Luke Garbutt 20, plays for Colchester United, on loan from Everton.

DF:  Nathaniel Chalobah 18, plays for Nottingham Forest on loan from Chelsea.

DF:  Andre Wisdom 20, eighteen league and cup appearances for Liverpool's first team since Sept 2012.

DF:  Ben Gibson 20, made his first Middlesborough start on 6th Aug 2013. Previous loan spells at Plymouth, York and Tranmere.

DF:  Tom Thorpe 20, plys his trade in the Manchester United reserve team.

MF:  Conor Coady 20, plays for Sheffield United, on loan from Liverpool.

MF:  William Keane 20, One first-team appearance for Manchester Utd since 31st Dec 2011.

MF:  Joshua McEachran 20, plays for Watford, on loan from Chelsea.

MF:  Ross Barkley 19, Establishing himself as a first-team regular at Everton and made his England senior debut on 6th Sept 2013.

MF:  George Thorne 20, signed professional contract with West Brom in Jan 2010. Currently recovering from a serious knee injury following loan spells at Peterborough and Portsmouth.

MF:  Luke Williams 20, made his Middlesborough debut at just 16 back in Dec 2009. Has made a total of 22 starts for the North-East club.

FW:  Benik Afobe 20, signed a pro contract with Arsenal in Feb 2010. Yet to make a first team appearance for the Gunners. Suffered a serious knee injury last March following loan spells at Huddersfield, Reading, Bolton and Millwall.

FW:  Connor Wickham 20, After impressing at Ipswich Wickham at just 18 made a big money move to Sunderland in June 2011. Joined Sheff Wed on loan in Feb 2013 but now back with 'The Black Cats.'

FW:  Robert Hall 19, plays for Bolton Wanderers. Previous loan spells at Oxford Utd, MK Dons, Birmingham and Bolton, before finally signing for Bolton on a permanent basis on 1st July 2013.

FW:  Saido Berahino 20, Born in Burundi (East Africa) Berahino plays for West Brom. Previous loan spells at Northampton, Brentford and Peterborough.

Babes of the Month - Too hot to handle!