..::Football III::..

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Wolverine GTR

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    Clubs have expressed an interest in De Bruyne, reveals agent

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    Kevin De Bruyne's agent, Patrick De Koster, has revealed that a number of teams have expressed an interest in his client.

    The Belgium international has been in sublime form for Wolfsburg this season, netting nine times in 26 Bundesliga appearances, as well as creating 16 goals.
    De Bruyne's superb performances have reportedly attracted the interest of clubs such as Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City, while it has been claimed he has already been approached by Bayern Munich.

    The creative midfielder's representative has dismissed suggestions that De Bruyne is bound for Bavaria, but acknowledges there is some interest in the former Chelsea man."There are always interested teams and there has been some informal contact," De Koster told FOCUS Online.

    "People have asked me how Kevin is doing, how he has been developing superbly and putting in good performances. That is only normal in situations like this. There have not been any concrete offers, though.

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    "I can assure you there have not been any talks with Bayern Munich. When you want to know whether Bayern are interested in signing Kevin, you should ask [sporting director] Matthias Sammer or [technical director] Michael Reschke. It is true that I have worked with Reschke before, but that does not mean anything now."

    De Koster is keen to do right by Wolfsburg, who paid €21.5 million to bring him to the Bundesliga in January 2014 when he had struggled to break into the first-team at Stamford Bridge.

    He said: "We will sit down with Wolfsburg first, that is a matter of respect. They supported Kevin during a difficult period, when he was unhappy at Chelsea."
    The 23-year-old, who previously had a loan spell with Werder Bremen, is under contract at the Volkswagen Arena until June 2019.
     

    Wolverine GTR

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    Manchester United gathering pace under slow-starter Van Gaal

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    A 90-minute documentary about Louis van Gaal was aired on MUTV this week in which the Manchester United manager spoke passionately about his fabled philosophy.



    Philosophy. It is a word we have heard from Van Gaal almost every time he has opened his mouth since he started the job last July, but finally it is starting to produce results at Old Trafford.



    The Dutchman began the season asking for three months to get United back into shape. It took twice as long as predicted, but the manner of United’s back-to-back victories over Tottenham and Liverpool suggests the players are now implementing the message.



    "I attack in four phases and I defend in four phases. I think the players here know everything about the philosophy now but now they have to perform it," he said in Louis van Gaal: My life, my philosophy on Tuesday night.

    

United have certainly delivered in the last two matches as Van Gaal has stumbled across a winning formula that leaves the club fourth in the Premier League table, five points clear of fifth-placed Liverpool as they seek a place in next season’s Champions League.



    It has been a rocky campaign. After 10 matches, United had just 13 league points and had suffered a humiliating League Cup exit to MK Dons.

    Results improved gradually but performances remained dour and predictable into the start of March when they were dumped out of the FA Cup by Arsenal.

    

Big-money summer signings - particularly Angel Di Maria and Radamel Falcao - failed to make an impact, Wayne Rooney spent three months as a central midfielder and United played with a caution that had the Stretford End screaming for more attacking football.



    Whether he meant it or not, though, Van Gaal then discovered the winning formula that brought United’s best performances since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement with a 3-0 victory against Tottenham and an even more impressive 2-1 win away at bitter rivals Liverpool.

    

Injuries to Robin van Persie and Luke Shaw, a suspension for Di Maria and the return of Michael Carrick coincided with Van Gaal’s decision to stop tinkering with his formation and return to the 4-3-3 system that won him titles at Ajax, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and AZ Alkmaar.

    

Rooney was deployed in his favoured striker role, supported by a Marouane Fellaini freed to employ the strength and movement opposition defenders found so hard to handle in his time at Everton. Carrick's return restored a calmness to United's midfield, while Van Gaal's aversion to out-and-out wingers finally found its reflection in a compact central unit that was able to shut down opponents whilst interchanging to great effect with a fluid front three.

    The result? Cohesive performances, with players in their best positions and using their quality to control matches and score goals. With a star-studded squad that has been boosted by more than £220 million spent on new signings over the last two seasons, it should be the minimum requirement.



    The revival, and the likelihood of United finishing in the top four, means questions over whether Van Gaal will be in charge next season have faded away. Their season has turned around in just two games and former United defender Phil Neville believes Premier League rivals will now take notice.

    "The unbelievable thing was things like the performances against Tottenham and Liverpool," Neville told Goal. "The first half against Liverpool was probably the best Manchester United performance I’ve seen in three years and that includes some of the Sir Alex Ferguson era as well, including the year they won the title. It was that good, it was a special performance.

    "I think really in that performance the rest of the league would have gone 'wow'. You can see that it’s been building up to that type of performance and it’s been good that they can start moving forward and playing like a Manchester United team with the players looking like they’re enjoying it."

    Van Gaal is no stranger to slow starts, in fact they are a surprising feature of his career.

    In his first season with Bayern Munich, for example, his side won just five of their first 13 Bundesliga matches and were seventh in the table towards the end of November.

    By May, however, Bayern were German champions and domestic cup winners, as well as Champions League finalists where Van Gaal was only denied a treble by Jose Mourinho’s Inter.

    Likewise, when Van Gaal led AZ to a surprise Dutch title in 2008-09, he lost the first two matches to NAC Breda and ADO Den Haag and the team sat fourth in the Eredivisie after 13 matches.

    At Barcelona, the 1998-99 season was heading for disaster with the Catalan giants 10th in La Liga after 14 games having won just five matches. A run of 19 wins in their remaining 24 matches clinched the title.

    It is too late for United to win the title this season, of course, but the scene is set for a title challenge next term, especially with another £150m available for Van Gaal to spend this summer.

    "I think they can [challenge for the title]," Neville added. "I think you’ve seen this year that there’s very little to choose between second and seventh place. If United improve in the summer, bring in some quality, a couple of quality players, not too many, I think they can kick on. I think they’ll keep improving. You’ve seen it this season, the improvement has been gradual.

    "I think if they finish in the Champions League spots, that’s the key for United. That’ll give them the confidence and when you get into the Champions League the levels will obviously need to go up, this young team will become a year older and they’ll be ready to mount a challenge."

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    Once Van Gaal realised the size of the task ahead of him, the 63-year-old claimed in November that he would need all three years of his contract to return United to greatness.

    The comforting news for United supporters is that Van Gaal did not win his first title with his much-acclaimed and dominant Ajax team of the 1990s until his third season as manager.

    His complex tactical instructions and scrupulous demands from his players have taken time to get through, with Van Gaal likening their learning experience to his attempts to drive on the left side of the road when he first moved to England.

    Van Gaal has a roadmap, a blueprint. It has brought titles at every club he has managed. Now, perhaps, we are finally starting to see his philosophy in action for Manchester United.
     

    Wolverine GTR

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    Bayern will struggle without Robben & Ribery, says Beckenbauer

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    Franz Beckenbauer believes Bayern Munich could struggle in Saturday's match against Borussia Dortmund without Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery.

    The Netherlands international is unavailable after picking up an abdominal injury in his side's defeat at the hands of Borussia Monchengladbach before the international break, while the Frenchman is still recovering from his ankle injury.Beckenbauer feels the absence of both wingers forces Bayern to change their style of play slightly and he is not convinced Thomas Muller and Mario Gotze offer a similar threat.

    "Bayern's biggest problem against Dortmund is the absence of Robben and Ribery. You cannot replace them," the Bavarian club's honorary president told Bild.
    "Of course Gotze and Muller are great players, too."But Ribery and Robben are without a doubt the most dangerous wingers around. Their absence will be a huge blow for Bayern and an advantage to Dortmund."

    Bayern recorded a 3-0 win over Dortmund at the Allianz Arena earlier this season, with Gotze, Robben and Muller finding the net for the German titleholders.
     

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    Koeman expecting more Southampton departures

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    Ronald Koeman expects some members of his Southampton squad to leave the club at the end of the season after impressing in the Premier League.

    The Dutch head coach inherited a squad shorn of many of its leading stars but has reinvented Southampton to challenge for a European place.
    Goal understands Manchester United are set to step up their interest in Nathaniel Clyne, while Morgan Schneiderlin has repeatedly been linked with Arsenal and Tottenham.

    And Koeman thinks it is inevitable more players will leave, but he insists he is ready to deal with any departures.

    "We will do everything to keep all the players in the club," he said. "It won't be like last season, well I hope not.

    "We will lose some, that's normal, we just have to be prepared."

    One player Koeman appears likely to lose is on-loan defender Toby Alderweireld after Atletico Madrid sporting director Jose Luis Caminero said he would return to the Spanish capital next season.

    A new goalkeeper could be top of Koeman's list, meanwhile, with Fraser Forster facing a lengthy lay-off after sustaining a serious knee injury.

    "It depends on what will be the final decision [on Forster's return]," Koeman added.

    "If Fraser is out for a longer period of time than expected then maybe yes [we will buy a new goalkeeper]."
     

    Wolverine GTR

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    Barclays Premier League 2015.04.04 fixtures

    Barclays Premier League 2015.04.04 fixtures

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    Arsenal Vs Liverpool
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    Everton Vs Southampton
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    Leicester City Vs West Ham
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    Manchester United Vs Aston Villa
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    Swansea Vs Hull City
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    WBA Vs QPR
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    Chelsea Vs Stoke City
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    Wolverine GTR

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    Manchester United Vs Aston Villa
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    Manchester United Starting Line-up

    David De Gea
    Phil Jones
    Marcos Rojo
    Daley Blind
    Antonio Valencia
    Juan Mata
    Michael Carrick
    Ashley Young
    Ander Herrera
    Marouane Fellaini
    Wayne Rooney


    &

    Aston Villa Starting Line-up

    Brad Guzan
    Jores Okore
    Ciaran Clark
    Alan Hutton
    Matthew Lowton
    Andreas Weimann
    Fabian Delph
    Carlos Sánchez
    Charles N'Zogbia
    Gabriel Agbonlahor
    Christian Benteke

     
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