Transfer Round Up For January 25th 2016

Done deals:

– Steve Sidwell has joined Brighton on loan from Stoke City until the end of the season.

– Mainz have completed the signing of defender Guilio Donati from Bayer Leverkusen.

– Atalanta have confirmed the loan signing of striker Serge Gakpe from Genoa until the end of the season.

– Porto have announced the signing of forward Moussa Marega and goalkeeper Jose Sa from Maritimo.

– Chelsea winger Christian Atsu has signed on loan for Malaga until the end of the season.

Today’s reports and rumours:

– A decision over Fenerbahce striker and West Ham target, Emmanuel Emenike’s future is expected in the next 48 hours, according to reports.

– Antoine Griezmann has responded to speculation linking him with a move away from Atletico Madrid by insisting he is very happy at the club.

– Watford and Newcastle are still interested in Tottenham winger Andros Townsend, according to reports.

– According to L’Équipe, Stade de Reims have made an enquiry concerning the availability of St Étienne striker Nolan Roux.

– Leicester City have submitted a £10million bid for Sampdoria striker Eder, according to SkySports Italia.

– Watford are finalising a deal with Fiorentina for Mario Suarez that would see him join the Premier League side on a permanent four-year deal, according to reports.

Mesut Ozil
photo credit: Brian Sikorski
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– Real Madrid have a buy-back clause in their transfer agreement with Arsenal for Mesut Ozil, according to leaked transfer documents.

– Sampdoria sporting director Carlo Osti confirms Inter “asked for” Roberto Soriano and Eder.

– Bordeaux are reportedly interested in Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu.

– Chelsea midfielder Ramires is close to joining Chinese Super League club Jiangsu Suning, according to Sky Sports sources.

– Southampton are in no rush to commence new contract talks with Graziano Pelle despite speculation surrounding the striker’s future,according to ESPN Soccernet.

Mario Balotelli, photo credit liverpoolfc.com

– West Brom are reportedly interested in signing Liverpool striker Mario Ballotelli.

– Stephan El Shaarawy describes Roma as “a great opportunity” as he prepares to move on loan from Milan.

– St Étienne’s defensive midfielder Ismaël Diomandé is set to join Caen on loan until the end of the season tomorrow, according to L’Équipe.

– Chelsea striker Loïc Rémy still has a desire to leave the club this month, according to reports.

– Scouts from several English clubs including West Ham, Manchester United and Liverpool attended Marseille’s’s 1-1
draw with Lyon on Sunday night to watch 20-year-old winger Georges-Kévin N’Koudou.

– According to reports in Spain, Arsenal are stepping up their efforts to sign Real Madrid midfielder Isco.

– Tottenham have enquired about Juventus striker Alvaro Morata’s availability for a January move, according to reports.

Alexandre Pato
photo credit: .lemeilleurdupsg.com

– Chelsea are set to sign Alexandre Pato on loan, according to reports.

– Gregory van der Wiel has stalled on signing a new contract with Paris Saint-Germain, according to talksport.

– Hull City are interested in signing Manchester United midfielder Nick Powell on loan, according to reports.

– According to L’Equipe, Arsenal scout Giles Grimandi has been sent to Monaco to scout 17-year-old Kylian Mbappe.

– La Liga has extended the transfer deadline to February 1st.

Football tit bits:

– Italy & Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon says he plans on retiring from football after the 2018 World Cup.

– Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo’s apparent kick at Francisco Molinero on Sunday has been labelled an “ugly gesture” by the Real Betis defender.

– Crystal Palace striker Connor Wickham faces a three-match ban after being charged by the FA with violent conduct over an incident involving Tottenham’s Jan Vertonghen.

– Stoke City defender Ryan Shawcross is set to be out of action for up to a month with a back injury.

– West Ham do not have the power to veto a groundshare at the Olympic Stadium and such an agreement is still possible, according to the London Legacy Development Corporation.

– Manchester United chief executive Ed Woodward has reportedly spoken to a number of players and senior figures at
Old Trafford about Louis van Gaal, following their defeat to Southampton.

Paul Ayorinde

Jose Mourinho and The 3 Year Curse!

This Writer has observed that Jose Mourinho has never exceeded The 3 year Barrier throughout his managerial Career: below is a list of clubs previously managed by the Portuguese Gaffer and this supports the line of reasoning that Jose Mourinho has got a 3 year “Shelf Life” as manager.

2000 Benfica
2001–2002 União de Leiria
2002–2004 Porto
2004–2007 Chelsea
2008–2010 Inter Milan
2010–2013 Real Madrid
2013–2015 Chelsea

Mourinho’s second coming to Stamford Bridge was supposed to be for a very long time according to Jose Mourinho himself when he penned an initial four-year deal, he was quoted as saying he would like to be at Chelsea for a very long time.

But unlike other Illustrious Coaches who have achieved the same kind of success like Mourinho, the “Special one” just can’t exceed the “3 year Curse” no matter what he does.

This Writer Also Believes that Jose’s Style of Management is largely to blame for this “three-year Curse”. Mourinho is not afraid to take on anyone from fellow managers to the media and in some cases administrators, and yes some of his utterances might come across as brash sometimes but Jose Mourinho was a delight to the media who would latch-on to every word he spoke.

He would at times adopt a “take no prisoners” approach during his Post match comments and even pre match interviews would sometimes come across as controversial.

Jose Mourinho
photo credit: In Mou We Trust
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Mourinho would also take on his players publicly in what some would consider as bizarre, yes Mourinho was truly outspoken

This as also put him on the wrong side of the FA a couple of times, but love him or hate him, Jose Mourinho his a coached that has achieved so much success in a very short time, and he still has so much to offer.

Ironically the longest-serving coach in the history of the English Premier League Sir Alex Ferguson only last week advised that the Chelsea Management allow Mourinho to turn things around.

This advise must have fallen on “deaf ears” though, has the Club today put out a statement on its website stating that “Chelsea Football Club and Jose Mourinho have today parted company by mutual consent”

The Club Thanked him for his contribution to the Club ” All at Chelsea thank Jose for his immense contribution since he returned as manager in the summer of 2013.

The statement also listed as his achievement with the club “His three league titles, FA Cup, Community Shield and three League Cup wins over two spells make him the most successful manager in our 110-year history”

The Blues have had a torrid time in the league this season which as seen them loose 9 games from 16 games played with 4 of those defeats coming at home.

The English Champions have gone from Top to bottom in an almost inexplicable manner which had led the self-styled “Special One” to confess that he was astonished at the teams current situation.

Mourinho had even gone as far as condemning his players on more than one occasion, and this did not in any way improve the fortunes of the team.

Back to back loses against teams that Chelsea would have crushed on the pitch normally i.e Bournemouth and Leicester definitely proved that this were not normal times, the last defeat by Table Toppers Leicester changed the question from if Mourinho will get the sack to when he would be sacked.

While the Sword had been dangling over Jose Mourinho’s head for months now, its however some sort of poetic justice that his chelsea team lost to the man who Mourinho Replaced after he got sacked by Chelsea that’s talking about current Leicester coach Claudio Ranieri in 2004.

José Mourinho
photo credit: Aleksandr Osipov
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Mourinho’s Bust up and eventual falling out with Club Physio Eva Canero had many tongues wagging and His failure to beef up his team are some of the factors that may have played a part in how Chelsea Season turned out.

But while the Champions Of England Struggled in the domestic league the reverse was the case on the continent as they made it into the round of sixteen.

In Conclusion Jose Mourinho is yet to exceed 3 years as the manager of any club, but that has not in any way taken away the fact that he has won so many laurels in his seeming short spells at some of the biggest clubs in some of the top leagues in Europe this however falls short of his own target of staying long at a club.

Nigeria’s Quadri Inspires GD Toledos To Lift Portuguese Cup

Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri helped GD Toledos to retain this year’s Portuguese table tennis Cup concluded at the weekend in Porto.

Quadri, who was bundled out in the quarterfinal of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Africa Senior Championship in Cairo, Egypt last month was in superb form at the two-day tournament without dropping a match.

Playing from the preliminary stage to the semifinal, Quadri supported by his Portuguese teammates showed class and this was reflected in their semifinal tie against Juncal, a match which they won 3-0.

However, they were faced with a Herculean task in the final as they were pitched against fans’ favourite, Sporting Lisbon.

Aruna Quadri with GD Toledos teammates after the Portuguese Cup title

As the biggest of their campaign in the tournament, Quadri team once again rose to the occasion despite dropping a game, they ensured that the cup remained with GD Toledos, as they won 3-1 to win the title for the third consecutive times.

An excited Quadri believes the success would surely spur him on for this week’s Kuwait Open.

“I feel so great winning the title again and team work materialized in delivering the Portuguese Cup once again. I have won the title thrice in a row and retaining the title again has increased my confidence for Qatar and Kuwait Opens.

I think this weekend matches in the Portuguese Cup has prepared for the next coming pro tours due to the fact that I played some tough matches,” he enthused.

Meanwhile, the defeat suffered in the men’s singles at the ITTF Africa Senior Championship held in Egypt has adversely affected the fortune of the ITTF Star Player in the February world rating released by the world table tennis ruling body at the weekend.

Aruna Quadri with GD Toledos teammates after the Portuguese Cup title

For bowing to Egypt’s Mohamed El-Beiali, Quadri dropped from 30 to 32 in the latest ranking while his conqueror improved in his rating from 195 to 179 in the world.

Also, for emerging as winner of the ITTF Africa Senior Championship, Egypt’s Omar Assar is ranked 43; a position which exceeds his previous best of 57 in July 2013.

The Oyo State-born athlete admitted that the slide in his world rating would help him to continue to work hard.

“My ranking going down is a wake-up call although I felt disappointed and at the same time I am happy that I gained more additional point to my ranking bonus points. It is a sign that I must work harder than before and I am finally happy that African is having two players in top 50 with Egypt’s Omar Assar now rated 43,” he said.

Aruna Quadri with GD Toledos teammates after the Portuguese Cup title

As the Kuwait Open, one of major series in the ITTF World Tours serves off on Wednesday February 11; Quadri will be campaigning from the qualifiers as the world’s top 16 will be competing from the main draw having been seeded by the organizers of the championship.

However, the 26-year-old Nigerian says he would be happy to exceed his previous outing at the tournament in Kuwait.

“I will be very happy if I can surpass my last year’s performance in the pro tour. I never qualified to the main draw in any major series of the ITTF World Tour and I will be glad if I can break that record in Kuwait and Germany Opens this year,” he added.

Quadri Leads GD Toledos To Lift Portuguese Super Cup

Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri was the star attraction after the world number 73rd rated player inspired GD Toledos in their 3-1 victory over Sporting Lisbon in the final of the Portuguese table tennis league Super Cup.

A large number of fans watched the match played at Porto at the weekend but it was Quadri that lifted the trophy ahead of his compatriot, Bode Abiodun who could not feature in the encounter for Sporting.

Since moving to Portugal in 2010, Quadri has clinched two league titles, two Portuguese Cups and two Super Cups.

Quadri with teammates and club officials after winning the Portuguese Super Cup at the weekend in Porto.

Explaining how difficult it was for his team to overcome the Sporting side, Quadri said: “I must say the truth that beating Sporting to the title was not easy at all as they now have new faces in their line up. They have Portuguese international, Diogo Cavalho and Chinese-born Meng Xuan and this made them a bit stronger than last season. Although my compatriot, Bode Abiodun was in the team but he did not feature in the match.”

He added: “I am really happy and this is one of the finest moments for me so far in Portugal. I felt so great for doing it again for my club. It is the beginning of the season and I am so happy for the good start especially with the fact that I was able to win two matches in the encounter.”

The Nigeria Civil Defence Corps officer, however, plans to move to another European league next season.

“I must move to more stronger league by next year and it’s the best thing so far at this moment but I must concentrate on this present season before thinking of next season. I am presently ranked 73 in the world and I think with this ranking and God on my side, I stand a good chance of getting offers in top European leagues and I will be very happy if offers can come from Germany or France. I also know that for me to get good offer next season I really need to step up my game and keep the level going. I must continue playing Pro Tours so that clubs will continue to monitor my progress and from there better offers might come my way.

Namibia U19 Beach Teams Jet To World Championship In Portugal

Namibia’s U/19 Beach Volleyball Boys and Girls Teams are on their way to Portugal to take part in the FIVB U/19 Beach Volleyball World Championships to be held from 29 July to 03 August 2014. The team consists of Kim Seebach/Stephanie Palmhert and Jan Eric Sack/Roman von Ludwiger as well as their coach James Verrinder.

Kim & Stephanie have been playing Beach Volleyball now for 3 years and have shown some great skills. They biggest achievement was winning a Silver medal earlier this year in Ghana at the African Qualification tournament towards the Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing. The second place among all African countries gained them a spot at the Youth Games in Nanjing in August, where they will be part of the Namibian Youth Olympic Team, the junior version of the Olympic Games.

Kim & Stephanie recently managed to claim a third place in the Namibian Senior Beach Volleyball Tournament. They qualified for the World Championships in Entebbe/Uganda as one of the top 4 teams in Africa.

The World Championships in Porto will be the first World Championships for Jan & Roman. Since last year, these two have managed to take their skills to a new level and have developed into one of the best teams on the Namibia National Beach Volleyball Tour reaching 2nd place in the recent Interpack/DTS Beach Volleyball Tournament.

Jan & Roman qualified for the World Champs by winning the Zonal Qualification tournament earlier this year and finishing 4th at the African U19 Beach Volleyball Cup held in Entebbe, Uganda on the shores of Lake Victoria in May this year.

Namibia U19 Beach Teams Jet To World Championship In Portugal

James Verrinder has been coaching the Namibian National teams since last year December. Coming from England, where he has spent most of his life with sports, especially Volleyball, he is a professional coach for the DTS Soccer & Beach Volleyball division. He is himself a player with great international experience. James will be travelling with the team to Portugal as head of delegation and acting as manager and coach for both teams.

The event will consist of a main draw of 36 teams (six pools of six teams with the top four teams advancing to the single elimination final phase), comprising six teams per gender per FIVB Confederation (with a maximum of one team per gender per country) and two teams per gender for the host country.

“We do not expect the teams to win any medals as Africa is still lacking 20 years of experience compared to the rest of the world, but maybe we can win a match or two and finish as best African country”, said Heiko Kesselmann, Director for Beach Volleyball Namibia. “It is however only with the financial support of Namibian companies, such as Benthin, G-Rail, Pennypinchers, Forklift & Allied, Cymot & Danric as well as private sponsors like BROWN, Dorle Verrinder Dietitian and the DTS Sports Club, that our teams can grow and develop into one of the top teams in world” he added.

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