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  • FERGIE FEARS EVERTON

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    Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has said that he is extremely afraid that Everton will be up against it when the two teams face each other on Sunday.

    United will be looking to go into the match against Manchester City on April 30 with their five point lead at the top of the table intact.

    However, Everton can disrupt the plans made by Ferguson ahead of this crucial encounter, as they will be coming on the back of a FA Cup semi-final exit at the hands of arch rivals Liverpool.

    This has warned Sir Alex Ferguson that Everton will be looking to make some amends by performing well at Old Trafford in order to please their fans.

    Ferguson has always been a big admirer of Everton manager David Moyes and has said that Moyes will be looking to celebrate his 10th anniversary at Goodison Park by beating Manchester United. It was initially thought that Moyes was looking to the FA cup as a competition to celebrate this decade at Everton, but such hopes were brought to an end following the 2-1 defeat suffered at the hands of Liverpool last weekend.

    Even though Everton have not been having the best record at Old Trafford since the arrival of David Moyes, Ferguson believes that his side should be braced for the worst. fergie pointed to the form of Marouane Fellaini, whose performances recently have seen Belgium’s euro 2012 betting odds shorten by the week.

    “It was a bad one for Everton, they went into that game with good form. It was a disappointment for them, losing a semi-final in a derby. It’s always a blow to you and I’m sure David and the rest of them will have suffered from that. I think no matter whatever the circumstances of last week it was always going to be a hard game anyway,” said Ferguson ahead of the Everton match on Sunday night.

  • MOYES PRAISES PLAYERS

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    Everton manager David Moyes has praised his players by saying that they look like men in the match against Sunderland recently.

    Everton were up against Sunderland in the FA Cup replay at the Stadium of light. David Moyes was looking to celebrate his 10 years in charge of Everton by winning a trophy this season, and he has targeted the FA Cup.

    However, Everton could not make use of their home advantage in the match against Sunderland at Goodison Park, which let them into the replay at the Stadium of light. Following the quarterfinal replay dismantling of Sunderland, David Moyes praised his players.

    Everton will be facing Liverpool in the semi-final on April 14. The other semi-final will be against Chelsea and Tottenham. Tim Cahill was one of the impressive players for Everton, as he helped them to one match within appearing in the final of the FA Cup. Everton have already lost 3-0 at the hands of Liverpool just a few weeks ago, but that is unlikely to play in their minds ahead of this match. This will also be the third FA Cup semi-final appearance for Tim Cahill in his career. He has previously achieved this feat with Everton five years ago, while he also managed to do it with Millwall in 2004.

    “These are the sort of stages where you need the big game players and the experience, and we have got that. We just need to believe and take that on to the pitch. We showed that at Sunderland. This is the third time I’ve got to an FA Cup semi-final now, and I said to a few of the lads in the dressing room after the game to remember what this feels like,” said Tim Cahill after the victory over Sunderland.

  • HOWARD SIGNS TO 2016

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    Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard has signed a new contract with the club that will keep him at Goodison Park till 2016.

    Tim Howard has been one of the prudent signings Everton manager David Moyes has made since taking over at Everton for a decade ago.

    Even though Tim Howard was not regarded to be one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier league during his time at Manchester United, David Moyes has transformed him into exactly that in the last few seasons. As a result, Tim Howard has now signed a new contract with the club. This comes as a major boost for Everton, who have been struggling to keep hold of their better players like Mikel Arteta.

    The 33-year-old Tim Howard joined Everton back in 2006 and has made more than 250 appearances for Everton. He is regarded as one of the consistent players in the Premier league. David Moyes has had to deal with a number of problems in terms of the transfers in other areas of the pitch, but thanks to the performances of Tim Howard, he has been able to concentrate less on the goalkeeping department. Speaking on the occasion after signing his new contract, Tim Howard has said that he believes he can play into the 40s.

    “It’s a place that is home for me. When you have a really good relationship in life and both sides are eager to continue and keep that going, it’s a no-brainer. This hasn’t been a knockdown, drawn-out type of negotiation with meetings or anything like that. They were very happy to keep me here and I was very, very happy to stay,” Howard said on the occasion of his new contract. A number of goalkeepers from the United States have been extremely successful in the Premier league and Tim Howard is one of them.

  • NEVIN WANTS MOYES AT CHELSEA

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    Former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin has said that he would like to see Everton manager David Moyes in charge of Chelsea in the future.

    Chelsea recently sacked their manager Andre Villas-Boas after a string of poor results, which has left the club with a major doubt of being able to qualify for the Champions League next season.

    Winning the Champions League has been one of the major aims of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, and the prospect of not being able to qualify for this elite competition in the first place has resulted in the sacking of manager Andre Villas-Boas after just 257 days.

    Former winger Pat Nevin has represented Chelsea in more than 150 appearances over the years. He left for Everton for close to £ 1 million during the late 1980s after Chelsea were relegated down to the second division. He is of the opinion that current Everton manager David Moyes would be a suitable option for Chelsea, who are looking to replace Andre Villas-Boas in the summer. There will be no announcement made now because of the fact that assistant manager Roberto di Matteo has been put in place till the end of the season.

    “From a Chelsea point of view, it would be lovely if Jose Mourinho would come back, and we know he was in England last week. It’s such a long shot, although nothing surprises me in football any more. If it was me making the decision, I would grab Everton’s David Moyes immediately and tell him to start a new dynasty,” former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin said when asked about the potential candidates for the Chelsea managerial role by BBC sport.

    Amongst fans placing football bets, Barcelona manager Guardiola and Real Madrid manager José Mourinho are the favourites to take over, while former Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez remains an outside option.

  • MOYES IS ONLY JUST STARTING

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    Everton manager David Moyes has said that he is only beginning his work at Everton football club. David Moyes is now close to completing 10 years at the helm of Everton.

    In order to recognise this incredible achievement, Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish has said that David Moyes should be presented with the watch that commemorates his 10 years at the club.

    Kenny Dalglish has said that David Moyes’ achievement in this era when managers do not last more than a year is simply outstanding. Even better is the fact that David Moyes is only 48 years old. Hence, the Scotsman has said that David Moyes has only begun his work at Everton football club.

    During the same period, Liverpool have gone through many managers. They are currently back to Kenny Dalglish. Even though Everton were initially struggling under David Moyes, the Scotsman has settled the club in such a way that they are regularly competing for the European places, despite not having a huge transfer kitty.

    Only two managers in the Premier league can boast of a better history than David Moyes – Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger. Sir Alex Ferguson has been in charge of Manchester United for 25 years, while Arsene Wenger has been in charge for 15 years.

    “In modern management it’s rare for someone to get 10 years at one club. I’ve been lucky to have a good board behind me and good fans. I had to rebuild again after Walter had initially cleared out a lot of the mess. I’ve managed to do that and bring the club back to life again,” David Moyes said in a recent interview.

    Everton were qualifying for the European places regularly up until last season, when the arrival of clubs like Manchester City and Tottenham with huge transfer budgets stopped their progress.

  • ENGLAND HAVE SAME CHANCE

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    Everton captain Phil Neville is of the opinion that former England manager Fabio Capello is one of the best managers around.

    However, he refused to accept the fact that the departure of the Italian will seriously hurt the chances of England performing well in the Euro 2012 tournament, which will be held in Poland and Ukraine during the summer.

    England have not performed well in the major tournaments since the Euro 96 and pressure will be on the replacement for Fabio Capello. Fabio Capello himself failed to deliver the goals for England during the previous 2010 FIFA World Cup, but agreed to stay until the Euro’s.

    Even though his departure may come as a shock to many, FIFA would have been preparing replacements already given that Capello had earlier announced his retirement from management after this major tournament.

    Everton captain Phil Neville used to play for England under various managers. Now retired internationally, the Everton captain is off the opinion that England can still perform at the Euro 2012 despite the absence of the Italian.

    Phil Neville has been experiencing an up-and-down season with Everton this time around. Lack of significant transfer funds during the summer has certainly cost the team in the first half of the campaign, but significant arrivals in the January transfer window now mean that the club will be competitive during the second half of this season.

    Speaking after the draw with Chelsea (which was the first time I’ve ever won an in-play Premier League bet!), Phil believes that England still have a great chance at Euro 2012.

    “I still believe Capello is a great manager though his record backs that – just didn’t quite work out with England for many reasons not all his. In a funny way I’ve started to feel more positive about the Euros in the summer. Clean slate,” Phil Neville said after the announcement regarding the England manager came as a shock to many in the world football.

  • WHERE DID THE MONEY GO

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    It doesn’t look as though Everton will be making any transfers in the January transfer window.

    Even though Everton boss David Moyes has managed to get 10 million pounds for Mikel Arteta on transfer deadline day, he won’t be able to use any of the money, with very little of the cash being made available to the transfer fund.

    Although the top club officials are still not admitting to the fact that the club wants to pay down their debt with the Arteta cash rather than bring in new players, it looks like they are doing just that.

    Fans are eager to know why there are no transfers taking place for defenders, midfielders and strikers as Everton should be making the most of whatever cash they can get together, especially given that the squad was thread-bare to begin with.

    There is particularly demand for a new defender (or two) as Phil Jagielka, one of the stalwart defenders, is injured with ligament damage that will sideline him for the next six weeks. This has a huge impact on the solidity of the team – as soon as it was found out that Jagielka was injured and had to come off against QPR, the in-play football bet market made Everton favourites to lose the match.

    By the looks of it, the only way Everton will be getting a new defender is if they manage to find a good enough player to come in on loan.

  • EVERTON GET DONOVAN ON LOAN

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    Everton will be extremely delighted at the presence of Landon Donovan after the American International has returned to Goodison Park on a loan deal.

    Landon Donovan impressed hugely during his loan spell a few seasons ago, which was similar in terms to the current one. The American will be spending only a few months at Goodison Park, but it is going to be extremely crucial for David Moyes. Everton have not been performing well in recent seasons and it is a sharp reflection of the financial troubles that they have been facing recently.

    David Moyes cannot expect significant transfer funds to be available in the January transfer window and he will be more skewed towards looking at loan deals and free transfers. Landon Donovan, in this situation, becomes an extremely important player.

    A few good results of late has enabled Everton to claim to 10th position in the table, but the threat of relegation still remains with the Merseyside club given that they are just seven points ahead of Wigan athletic in the 18th place. They will be hoping that the presence of Landon Donovan will help them make a push up the table.

    “I know exactly what I am getting into and exactly what is expected of me and hopefully I can fit in. Sometimes I think life is about expectations. Last time there was zero expectations so I can only make up from that. I understand there is some level of pressure and expectation but all footballers deal with that,” said LA Galaxy star Landon Donovan after confirming his move to Everton. During his previous loan spell with Everton, Landon Donovan made 13 appearances for Everton and scored two goals. He will be turning 30 years of age in March, but is confident that he can deliver for Everton.

  • Moyes not worried by lack of goals

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    Everton boss David Moyes has refused to criticise his Everton team despite critics pillorying them for a lack of attacking threat.

    According to the manager people have been informing him that for a couple of matches his side did not manage a single shot on target, and although he admitted the side could do with more goals, he refused to buy into any suggest that the team is in crisis.

    “The minute we don’t get a few shots on goal everybody jumps on it but we’ve actually been doing okay, playing okay, just not scoring the goals which obviously makes a difference,” he said.

    After the weekend’s game against Norwich, only West Bromwich Albion and Queen’s Park Rangers had scored fewer home goals than the Blues, but Moyes is confident that things will change soon, especially with Landon Donavon set to rejoin the club on loan in the new year. People placing a Premier League bet will know he has the ability to boost the club’s fortunes.

    “We are really looking forward to getting Landon back. He did great for us before. We have been watching him closely and we would have had him back last year but after the World Cup and all the football he has played it was just too much,” he added.

    Moyes also explained that as the club had been keeping a close eye on Donovan in his absence, they had a good idea as to where he could slot in and would be looking to employ him in a number of different roles.

  • VELLIOS INSPIRED BY BIG DUNC

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    Everton’s new summer signing Apostolos Vellios has said that he is very much inspired by the legend at Everton – Duncan Ferguson. Duncan Ferguson was one of the important players for Everton during his time and it seems that striker Apostolos Vellios is also becoming one given the number of goals he has scored and created after coming on as a substitute.

    In fact, many would regard Apostolos Vellios as the best super sub in the Premier League today. Apostolos Vellios was one of the cheapest signings of the summer, but he has managed to stamp out a reputation for himself in the Premier League since scoring against Chelsea. He scored his third goal of the season against Bolton recently.

    It has prompted suggestions that he could well become an important player for Everton in the future, like Big Dunc was.

    Duncan Ferguson is now involved at with Everton as part of the coaching setup. He is thought to be one of the influential figures for Apostolos Vellios, and has taught him a few striking tips.

    Speaking after the win over Bolton, Apostolos Vellios said “On Friday I was training at Bellefield with Duncan Ferguson and this gave me even more confidence. I know of him and I know he’s a big star at this club. He’s a big centre forward, and a legend, and I know what I’m doing with him. He has taught me a great deal about the physical nature of the Premier League, and really helps me to focus on my game.”

    The most important thing for Vellios is that he manages to maintain the form into the forthcoming matches – of which three of the four matches will be at home.

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