Transfer Round Up #6

I'm back with more opinions on the transfers in this window. Today I look at Brendan Rodgers' new attacker as well as looking in Italy for the latest deals.

Christian Benteke – Aston Villa to Liverpool - £32m

The purchase of Christian Benteke by Brendan Rodgers may signal the end of the failed experiment with Mario Balotelli. At £32m Benteke didn’t come cheap, but he will offer a lot more than Balotelli. It may also suggest a change in tactics with this signing, particularly as the Belgian international won more headed duels than any other player last season with 187, despite missing 9 league games. On the other hand, he did have the worse pass accuracy of any other Villa player last season with 67%. Benteke will be a hit on Merseyside one way or another and will be sure to be more consistent than last season’s attackers.

Arda Turan – Atletico Madrid to FC Barcelona - £23m

Under more of a ‘registration ban’ than a transfer ban, Luis Enrique has once again dipped into the transfer market in order to strengthen his already top quality Catalan side. Turan is a great signing and his consistency is probably his biggest asset. He is equally adept in defence and attack, completing 2.01 successful tackles per match as well as creating 1.31 chances per match. While he is not known for his goal scoring abilities, his expert dribbling ability can unbalance any defence given any space behind the defence. It’s a great signing but he is unfortunate to spend the first half of the season on the sidelines.

Geoffrey Kondogbia – AS Monaco to Inter Milan - £21

Not a lot was mentioned about this transfer in the media, partially because it doesn’t involve any British team. It is a very good acquisition from Roberto Mancini and I am really surprised any English side did not try and get him. The energetic box to box player will bring various skills to Milan. With Mancini often opting for a slow possession based game, Kondogbia will regularly be used to initiate attacks from the back. His combative style is further emphasised with the amount of interceptions he averaged last season, 2.48 per game. He is an excellent young player that a few Premier League sides really could have benefitted from having in their team.

Paulo Dybala – Palermo to Juventus - £22m

The partnership Paulo Dybala formed Franco Vazquez last season was unbelievable. The little Argentine netted 13 goals in 35 appearances last season on his way to becoming one of Palermo's hottest properties. Creating 61 chances only Vazquez created more for the Scillians this season with 68. Dybala will replace Carlos Tevez who moved to Boca Juniors earlier in the transfer window and he can certainly replace his goals. Like Tevez, Dybala will drop into the holes allowing his strike partners Alvaro Morata or Mario Mandzukic to move into the space created. Billed as another Sergio Aguero, this has the makings of another cracking signing from Max Allegri.

Jordy Clasie – Feyenoord to Southampton - £8m

In order to replace the departed Morgan Schneiderlin, Ronald Koeman has looked to his native lands and found Jordy Clasie. Football Manager enthusiasts will know all about the young Dutch international whose playing style has seen him labelled the ‘Dutch Xavi’. At only 24 years of age, he made 111 league appearances for Feyenoord and is already a fan favourite in the Netherlands. He won more tackles than any other Feyenoord player last season and also played more passes than his teammates, even while maintaining an 83% completion rate. He isn’t Morgan Schneiderlin, but I’m still looking forward to seeing how the player fares in the Premier League and he definitely is the player to replace the Frenchman.

Southampton may not receive an instant impact from Jordy Clasie but he is one to take over from Schneiderlin in the long term. Christian Benteke is a very good signing for Liverpool and he showed what he can do against Bournemouth on Monday night. Kondogbia is terrific signing and it amazes me why Arsenal did not try and purchase him. As for Dybala, he is a perfect replacement for Carlos Tevez at Juventus.

Christian Benteke sees off plucky Bournemouth

With adjustments made to the offside rule at the start of every season, it's hardly rocket science to predict that there would be at least one occasion in which the officials get it wrong. Christian Benteke put in a tremendous shift as his side collect all three points at Anfield. 

Bournemouth thought they had made a magical start when Tommy Elphick had headed them in front only for the referee to blow for a foul on Dejan Lovren. The south coast side had made the brighter start and looked as if they wanted to take the game to Liverpool. Callum Wilson had the beating of Lovren on several occasions but this tailed off towards the end of the half.

Front men Wilson and King persisted all night and were keen to stamp their mark on the game as where Gradel and Ritchie down the flanks. Bournemouth were getting men down the flanks to great effect and this seemed their most likely way to scoring a goal. 

Eventually Liverpool began to get a foothold in the game Phillipe Coutinho starting to get on the ball and dictate the play. Dropping into pockets of space, Bournemouth found it hard to get close to the Brazilian and he started to create chances. Liverpool were using their alternative route to Benteke well with the Belgian winning 7 out of his 9 aerial duels in the first half.

The deadlock was broken through the new man who pounced on a cross from Jordan Henderson to score his first goal for Liverpool. While the goal may have been awarded under controversial circumstances, it will be a great weight lifted from the Belgian's shoulders. Henderson went close minutes later, with a dipping shot from 30 yards that grazed the cross bar. As the first half progressed, Liverpool began to dominate more and more as Bournemouth dropped deeper and invite more pressure and were in need of a lucky break to boost their confidence. Coutinho had a glorious chance to double the home sides lead but he scuffed his shot wide. Bournemouth were unfortunate to be a goal down. 

At the start of the second half, Bournemouth had to be the first side to strike and, similar to the first half, they started the most lively. Not getting many shots on target in the first half, Howe had instructed his side to shoot more in an attempt to test Simon Mignolet in nets who had very little to do. Bournemouth continued to push for an equaliser and Matt Richie's half chance on the hour mark smashed the upright. A goal would give the visitors the confidence and switch the momentum. Bournemouth were creating chances through the middle with the midfielders overlapping.

70 minutes saw the introduction of Roberto Firmino to raucous applause as he made his Anfield debut. While Liverpool were somewhat comfortable, a second goal was required to drain Howe's men mentally. They had an excellent chance to do so on the counter when Benteke broke the line and found Coutinho but his poor first touch enabled Charlie Daniels to get the block in. 

Benteke caused problems for the Bournemouth centre back pairing all night long and nearly doubled his tally in the dying embers with his close range shot cannoning off bar. The Belgian's hold up play was exemplary and he could hardly have started his home debut in better fashion.

Eddie Howe can take many positives from tonight and look to build on them as they look to secure their Premier League status for next season. It was a professional, but not flashy performance from The Reds. Christian Benteke's performance is a major plus, but there are improvements needed to be made in defence.

FA Cup Final 2015

Fans will flock down to the home of English football on Saturday, for the conclusion of the FA Cup. The match sees Arsenal aim for their second title in a row, while Aston Villa compete in their first final since 2000 and aim to cap off a rollercoaster of a season with a victory against the holders.

Their journey

For both sides, they received a mixture of comfortable victories as well as near scares. Aston Villa's 3rd round tie started away back on the 4th January with a very late strike squeezing the Birmingham side past the Championship's bottom side, Blackpool. In times of trouble, debutant Carles Gil ended Villa's sequence of 5 scoreless games, before Andreas Weimann doubled their lead and see them through despite a late Bournemouth fight-back. The fifth round tie saw Villa leave it late to secure a passage into the quarter finals against Leicester. The deadlock was broken just before the 70 minute mark. Scott Sinclair doubled their lead just before the end, but there was time for Andrej Kramaric to score a consolation for the visitors.

The elation at the end of the quarter final game was clear to see as they overcome, their fierce rivals, West Brom. Fabian Delph and Sinclair netted to send Villa through to their first final since 2010. Although going a goal up, Liverpool were disappointing and quickly sacrificed the lead 6 minutes later through a Christian Benteke strike. Fabian Delph scored the conclusive goal just before the hour mark and sent Sherwood's Villa through to the final in only his 10th game in charge.

Arsenal's defence of the prestigious trophy started with a rematch of last years final against Hull. Per Mertesacker and Alexis Sanchez disposed of the injury stricken side. A match against Brighton beckoned, and the game probably should have been more comfortable than the score line suggests. Goals from Theo Walcott and Mesut Ozil helped Arsenal race into a comfortable 2 goal lead before Tomas Rosicky added the third after Brighton pulled one back. Sam Baldock scored Brighton's second to leave an interesting remaining 15 minutes.

A quickfire double from Olivier Giroud sent Middlesborough out of the cup and Arsenal marched on to a quarter final match against Manchester United. Nacho Monreal opened the scoring against the Manchester side, but their lead was short lived as Wayne Rooney's flying header found a way passed Szczesny in nets. Danny Welbeck pounced on a loose Antonio Valencia back pass to round David de Gea and roll it into the empty net. Reading stood in the Gunners way to another final. The semi final saw Arsenal ride their luck as an extra time Alexis shot squirmed under the body of keeper Adam Federici to send Arsenal through. Reading put up a brave battle, with Federici at the heart of it, but Garath McCleary's equaliser was not enough to cancel out the earlier strike from Sanchez. Another final and a chance to defend their title for Arsenal.

Can Villa Win?

Of course they can! Before Sherwood, under Lambert the Villains looked dead and buried. Survival looked implausible never mind a cup run to the final. Under Sherwood, the pace and strength in Christian Benteke and Andreas Weimann has been heavily utilised, bringing great success. Fabian Delph has been a stalwart throughout the cup run, and Benteke's goals have been vital. It is almost as if Sherwood has breathed life and rejuvenated a side that was on the cusp of collapse.

A counter attacking approach will be beneficial as Villa will have to be aware of the pace of Sanchez and the guile of Mesut Ozil. On the break Sinclair is lethal and this was amply demonstrated with the deciding goal against West Brom. Jack Grealish also delivered a performance of the highest quality in the semi final. Benteke can torment any defence on his day. With Szczesny in nets, the Polish international is prone to the odd calamitous error so they will always have a chance with the goal scoring prowess of the Belgian up front. They can only take inspiration from Wigan's cup exploits two seasons ago.

It's in Arsenal's hands...
The holders will be favourites and they will probably deserve this title. Having throttled Villa earlier in the season by five goals, which will give them confidence. This season, Alexis Sanchez has been a terrific purchase, netting 24 goals for the North London side. It's certain that Arsenal will have the majority of the possession on Saturday. Defensively, Arsenal don't need to take risks early on in the game, and if they do, can draw from experiences of last years final, where they sacrificed two early goals to Hull City, but where able to clinch the victory in extra time. On the other hand, the title of 'favourites' can do more harm than good. 'Favourites' means pressure, and we've seen plenty of cup upsets this year.

Who has the most to lose?
Neither team has a lot to lose, but Arsenal will be the team deemed favourites so will be hoping to deliver in this name. Aston Villa have had a very inconsistent season, starting desperately poor and culminating in a 17th placed finish. Having survived relegation, a cup victory for Villa would help make the season a little more positive and give Tim Sherwood the undoubted backing from the supporters. For Arsenal, they have broke their duck of failing to get into the top 3, and a trophy would help them kick on and attract bigger and better names to the Emirates and help them compete for more silverware. It would also allow Arsene Wenger to bow out on a high note, for the second season running, however I think he will stick around for another season yet.

Saturday will be an interesting affair. It will be intriguing to see how Villa will be able to deal with the attacking threat posed by Alexis Sanchez and co, and how they will line up. For me, Arsenal to win 2-1 after extra time. Aston Villa will put up a valiant fight, but Arsene's strike force will have too much for the Sherwood's side.