Has reality caught up with the January transfer window?

By Laurie Fitzgerald

Today marks the end of the January transfer window, and so far it has been a quiet one as we approach what could be a frantic 24 hours.

The biggest deal so far has been Newcastle’s capture of Senegalese striker Papiss Demba Cisse for a reported fee of £8 million, but that signing has been one of only a few big-money deals.

Around £30 million has been spent by Premier League clubs this month, which is a big difference in comparison to what was splashed out 12 months ago.

A total of £217 million was paid out by England’s elite in the last January transfer window, and its lavish overspending was summed up on the final day when Andy Carroll and Fernando Torres became part of transfer history.

Can Wenger win back the Arsenal boo boys?

By Tony Alvarez

More increasingly recently there has been a section of Arsenal fans calling for the sacking of Arsene Wenger, and it seems the number of people supporting a Wenger out campaign are growing.

At half time in Arsenal’s 3-2 FA Cup win over Villa, while the side were 2-0 down phone in shows, social networks and even inside the ground itself were inundated with people who believed Arsenal were better off without Wenger.

Needless to say that number was greatly reduced upon the final whistle. However, there are still a large number of Arsenal fans who no longer want to see Wenger in the dugout at the Emirates.

For those who don’t know, I am an Arsenal season ticket holder and have passionately followed the club for as long as I remember.

What now for Accrington post-Coleman?

By Laurie Fitzgerald

One of the longest serving managers in English football ended an era this week when John Coleman left his role at Accrington Stanley to take the vacant job at League One side Rochdale.

Coleman had been in charge at Accrington since 1999, with only Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger currently having a longer reign with a league club in the country.

For Coleman and Stanley, it has been a partnership that has taken the club on an incredible journey since his arrival way back in 1999.

FA Cup 4th round preview: Leicester City vs Swindon Town

By Tony Alvarez.

This weekend sees the FA Cup 4th round fixtures take place with sides hoping to cause upsets up and down the country.

As regular visitors to the website will know both myself and Laurie chose a side to follow in round one of the competition, should that side lose we follow the side that beat them.

Yesterday, Laurie published his preview of the tie between Blackpool and Sheffield Wednesday, whilst I will be focusing on Swindon and their trip to Championship big spenders Leicester City.

Paolo Di Canio‘s Swindon side have reached this stage thanks to a series of victories over higher placed sides; they beat League One high flyers Huddersfield Town in round one before seeing off Colchester in round two.

In one of the shocks of the tournament so far, Di Canio’s side beat Premier League Wigan 2-1 in round three thanks to a fortuitous winner from Paul Benson, although you would be hard pressed to say the victory wasn’t deserved.

FA Cup Fourth Round Preview: Blackpool v Sheffield Wednesday

By Laurie Fitzgerald

This weekend sees the Fourth Round of this season’s FA Cup take place, with some mouth-watering ties lined up.

QPR take on Chelsea in what is sure to be a full-blooded West London derby, while Liverpool face Manchester United in what is the pick of the round.

However, with six all-Premier League affairs in the next couple of days, it gives clubs outside the top-flight a chance to progress far in the competition.

Two sides that should be thinking in such a positive sense are Blackpool and Sheffield Wednesday, who face each other tomorrow afternoon at Bloomfield Road.

Why do the FA not promote consistency from the top?

By Tony Alvarez

Many footballers, managers and fans alike are often calling for consistency to be shown from referee’s regarding fouls, cards and pretty much any decision that can influence a game.

However events of the past week has shown that consistency is not something that is promoted by the FA big wigs, if their superiors are not being consistent then what type of model is that giving the referee’s to follow.

I have brought this issue up following the lack of consistency the FA have shown this week in giving retrospective bans; Mario Balotelli was rightly or wrongly given a four match ban for an alleged stamp on Scott Parker that the referee missed so the FA were able to take action.

Is the salary cap the reason for English side’s European struggles?

By Laurie Fitzgerald

It has been a hugely disappointing Heineken Cup campaign for the Aviva Premiership sides as the pool stages concluded last weekend.

From the seven representatives from England, only Saracens reached the quarter-finals of Europe‘s elite competition, the same number as Scotland and Wales, who only had two and four entrants into the tournament respectively.

While Sarries secured top spot in Pool five and gained home advantage in the knockout stages, the rest of England’s top teams had campaigns to forget.

Carling Cup Semi-Final 2nd Leg Preview: Cardiff v Crystal Palace

By Laurie Fitzgerald

Tomorrow night we find out which Championship side has made it into this year’s Carling Cup final, as Cardiff City and Crystal Palace battle it out for a place at Wembley.

Both sides played out a tense affair in the first leg, with Anthony Gardner‘s header giving Palace a slender advantage going into the game at the Cardiff City stadium.

Is it wrong for players to speak out against former managers?

By Tony Alvarez
This week the papers have been filled with Mark Hughes appointment at QPR following last weeks sacking of Neil Warnock and more in the media has been Joey Barton‘s comments via social media site Twitter about the outgoing manager.
The whole situation started when the departing Warnock blamed Twitter for his dismissal as he had claimed that people inside and outside the club had poisoned chairman Tony Fernandes opinion of him via Twitter.
Joey Barton took exception to Warnock’s comments although there was no suggestion from Warnock that Barton was a culprit.

Can Westley ensure North End stop heading South?

By Laurie Fitzgerald

Graham Westley takes charge of Preston North End for the first time this afternoon when they face Leyton Orient at Deepdale.

The 43 year-old takes the reins as the permanent replacement of Phil Brown, who lost his job back in December after a poor run of results.

Having started with seven wins and a draw from their opening nine games, the Lilywhites went on a run of seven defeats in eight games that saw them plummet down the League One table.