Tag Archives: Manchester City

Given ready to fight for number one jersey

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Out-of-favour goalkeeper Shay Given is determined to win back the Manchester City number one jersey from Joe Hart.

The experienced Republic of Ireland international has started the new season behind his younger rival in the Eastlands pecking order.

Given was strongly linked with moves to Arsenal and Fulham before the transfer window closed on Tuesday with him still a City player.

But rather than feel sorry for himself, the 34-year-old former Newcastle United shot-stopper is determined to win back his starting place from Hart.

“For me, now the window has closed, that (the possibility of a transfer) has gone,” said Given.

“I have got to put my head down and work hard and try to get back in the team.

“I don’t feel I have done a lot wrong since I have been at the club, so I suppose it’s about proving the manager wrong and trying to work hard to get back in the team and if I get a chance, taking that and seeing how it goes.

“It is frustrating, but this is life at a big club which can buy as many players as it wants. You have got to be patient.”

Given joined City from the Magpies in February 2009 and has made 60 appearances for the Eastlands club.

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Premier league stars worth every penny?

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Stephen Ireland instantly became the biggest earning star in the Aston Villa dressing room when he signed  earlier this week, but he has no qualms in insisting the likes of Robbie Keane, Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney are worthy of their lavish earnings.

“It’s not up to me to argue what any footballer should be paid and I don’t have any problem in saying I’m worth the money I’m getting now,” insists Ireland, who has just been handed a multi-million pound severance payment to leave Manchester City and join Aston Villa.

“I was City’s Player of the Year last season and things went well for me, so I earned the right to be paid the same as most of the other players who were in the team around me every week.

“A lot of my team-mates were on much bigger money than me at City for a long time and I’d say I have only been on what I would call decent money in the last year or so. People like Micah Richards and Michael Johnson earned more than me at times when they were not even in the first eleven.

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Top-four rivals meet at Eastlands

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Arguably the stand-out game in the second round of Premier League fixtures sees Manchester City take on Liverpool at Eastlands.

Although both teams are competing in the Europa League this season, they will be eyeing top-four finishes this term so that they can participate in the 2011-12 Champions League.

However, it will not be easy for either side to force their way in to the top four although Monday’s match should give some clues as to who is more likely to push Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal at the head of the field.

Both sides secured a point from last weekend’s games although the respective goalkeepers enjoyed vastly differing fortunes.

City’s Joe Hart was outstanding after being preferred by Roberto Mancini to Shay Given, making a string of great stops in the 0-0 draw at Tottenham.

Perhaps understandably following their raft of big-name summer signings, City took a while to get in to the game at White Hart Lane and were fortunate to come away from the match with a point.

Meanwhile, Liverpool seemed to have done enough to beat Arsenal 1-0 last Sunday until Pepe Reina contrived to push the ball in to his own net in stoppage time to ensure the Anfield clash ended all-square.

The Reds had debutant Joe Cole sent off in the 1-1 draw so the former West Ham United and Chelsea star will be suspended for the trip to Manchester while Fernando Torres may start on the substitute’s bench as the Spaniard continues his battle to regain full fitness.

Mancini has a wealth of talent to choose from and it is more a case of who he will leave out of his side as he has no injury or suspension worries to trouble him.

Last season, the two teams showed how evenly they were matched when both games ended in draws.

In November at Anfield, the two teams shared four goals with Martin Skrtel, who signed a new contract with the club this week, opening the scoring before goals by Emmanuel Adebayor and Stephen Ireland made it 2-1 to City.

Yossi Benayoun rescued a point for the Reds with a late equaliser while, at Eastlands in February, the match ended in a grim goalless draw.

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It’s time to say goodbye to Gareth Barry

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Posted by Sport.co.uk on: 17 August 2010 – 14:22
Author: Liam Apicella

After yet another mediocre performance, and that is being kind, from Gareth Barry during last Wednesday evening’s international friendly with Hungary, surely it is time Fabio Capello called time on the midfielder’s career as an England player.

The sheer amount of passes that went astray from the Manchester City man, particularly during the first half of England’s 2-1 victory, was simply not up to the standard of international football.

And before people start to suggest that this was only one match and you cannot pass judgement over a single 90 minutes, England fans had to endure the 29-year-old’s wayward accuracy throughout the whole of this summer’s World Cup.

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Joe Hart Makes the Save of the Season. After 10 minutes.

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August 14th, 2010

So, The Premier League kicked off again today, and started with a game between last years 4th placed Spurs and last years 5th placed, highly spending Manchester City. I predicted, yesterday after considering City’s new signings and Spurs having half an eye on the Champions League, a City win, but I got wrong.

Spurs were the dominating side, and should have won the game, and would have were it not for England No1, Joe Hart who took just ten minutes to prove that he’s the right choice ahead of an unhappy Shay Given, a superb reaction save that gets better with each viewing. And then he continued like that for the rest of the game to prove it over and over again. He made three or four quality saves before City even had a decent chance on goal (although, they had a great chance in the second half that Shaun Wright-Phillips

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