Brighton boss Gus Poyet has emerged as a potential candidate to fill the vacant Wolves manager’s position, according to Mirror Football.
The Molineux club are looking for a new tactician to keep them in the Premier League after sacking Mick McCarthy, and despite it being believed that they have held a number of interviews, have not replaced the outgoing trainer.
Steve Bruce and Alan Curbishley are two of the favourites for the position, and it is thought that the latter was offered the job last week, but turned it down due to a short-term deal only being in the offing.
Poyet has impressed with Brighton, after leading them to promotion from League One and establishing them as a solid Championship outfit this term.
The Uruguayan has previously admitted that he is keen to manage at the top level, and it is believed that the South American would be interested in a move to the Midlands club.
Brighton would be entitled to considerable compensation should Poyet leave, as he signed a five-year contract extension in September 2011 that expires in 2016.
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Who ever would have thought the floppy haired, 13-year-old, ball juggling maestro from the McDonalds advert would one day end up captaining his country? Well believe it or not that was Scott Parker leading England out at Wembley to face Holland on Wednesday night sporting the much heralded armband. Debate over which player would lead the Three Lions into battle against the Dutch had been ferocious in the weeks leading up to this game after John Terry was stripped of the captaincy and Fabio Capello ousted from the dugout. Ultimately it turned out to be Parker who interim boss Stuart Pearce turned too ahead of the more senior internationals in his squad.
At 31-years-old the Tottenham midfielder became one of the oldest captains in England’s recorded history. His superb debut season at White Hart Lane had turned him into a front runner for the role. Soon enough the media started to champion the cause for Scott (or is it Scotty) Parker to be beamed up to the role of England braveheart and the valiant new hero of our national game.
I’d like to start off by saying that I think Parker is a good player. Not great but good. He offers an anchored, stable presence in midfield and is a master at his craft of breaking up opposition attacks. He does the ugly work in the engine room and doesn’t complain about it. All the hallmarks of a footballer who possess great dignity, professionalism and sets an outstanding example to the countries adolescent population. He also connects well with the working class who see hard graft and perseverance as the embodiment of success. Those are his defining attributes. However they alone shouldn’t be used as a benchmark for how an England captain should be selected. Is Parker really in the mould of David Beckham, Bobby Moore or Alan Shearer?
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Truthfully the role has lost the prestige it used to bear. Wearing the captains armband has become more ambassadorial in the modern era as opposed to being seen as England’s leading light. It’s easy to see why Pearce chose him for Wednesday’s friendly. It’s as if he’s has chosen a player who is a mirror image of himself. Someone who will scrap, fight and pull no punches. Someone who personifies the values shared by the people sitting in the stands and watching at home. Someone who will make the captaincy great again albeit for the wrong reasons. You could hear the nation rejoice simultaneously after he made two courageous blocks at the end of the England penalty area. In truth he had a steady game although for the final 25 minutes he was anonymous as the Dutch took control. Then again he’s still learning the ropes at international level.
And that is what scares me. When Wesley Sneijder started to dictate the game Parker was no where to be seen. As a Newcastle United fan I was severely underwhelmed during the season he spent captaining the side. Little or no vocal presence and a tendency to fade out of games when we needed him most. I said above that Parker is a good player. But in this day and age that just isn’t enough to captain a national team. In terms of relevant experience he’s severely lacking compared to Steven Gerrard; his only serious rival for the captaincy. England are going through a major transitional period at this current time. The managers position has yet to be filled and younger players are making the breakthrough into the squad. A lot has been said of his valiant effort to keep West Ham up last year which led to him being named the Football Writers Player of the Year. However that accolade alone doesn’t automatically make him a viable option to take up the captains armband. What England need right now is a leader who has been there, done that and got the t-shirt.
Must I remind you that Parker has won only 11 England caps stretched out over a nine-year period. Admittedly he should have quadruple that by now. Unfortunately for him the previous managerial regimes became obsessed with trying to marry Gerrard and Frank Lampard together in midfield meant chances were thin on the ground for anyone else. Still he’s has never played in the Champions League or major international tournament and the only major silverware he’s lifted is the Intertoto Cup with Newcastle in 2006. Compare that with Gerrard and you’ll start to see my point. The Liverpool skipper has picked up nine major European and domestic trophies throughout his career, appeared 90 times for his country and played consistently in the Champions League for much of his career. Add to that the two World Cups and European Championship campaign in 2004 and Parker’s career really starts to pale into comparison. And thats what i’m trying to get at. Experience is key. Gerrard has played on the big stage and understands how to influence games for the betterment of his team. He knows what is required when it comes to taking on the best and even the worst sides an international tournament can throw up.
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And thats why he should be the man to wear the armband at Euro 2012 and beyond if he choses to remain an England player after the finals. Parker, on the other hand, lacks the practical knowledge and experience to lead the Three Lions. There is no doubt he’ll play a huge part for his country in the coming years. But as far as the captaincy goes he doesn’t have what it takes just yet.
It just goes from bad to worse for Liverpool at the moment. Last week’s 2-0 defeat hurled even more problems at Kenny Dalglish’s doorstep as he attempts to save a season even a Carling Cup win won’t fix. £35 million striker cut an irate figure after he was hauled off in front of his hometown supporters, peppering Dalglish with volley of expletives before charging down the St James’ Park tunnel followed soon after by Pepe Reina. Villa provided further frustration this afternoon at Anfield, but Kenny will be glad to see the recent rot has stopped.
This week on FFC an Anfield legend blasts the club, where does Andy Carroll go from here, would starting from scratch aid Liverpool and will the Reds’ resident Dutchman be bidding goodbye to Merseyside in the summer?
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Best of FFC
The 11 ‘Conclusions’ To Be Made From The Premier League season
Will a summer cull benefit Liverpool?
The only way is up for Andy Carroll
Caption Competition: Andy Carroll’s Newcastle Catastrophe
Three transfers to take Liverpool to the required level
The Liverpool bandwagon has been dangerously overloaded
Premier League Duo braced for £16.5m Real bid
Arguably the 15 ‘Most Improved’ Players of the 2011/12 season
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Best of WEB
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Could Hamann’s *preposterous* Hendo prediction come true? I doubt it… – Liverpool Kop
Something Must Be Done – But No Knee-Jerk Reactions Please! – Live 4 Liverpool
Andy Carroll – Four key points in support of Liverpool’s number 9 – This is Anfield
Dazed and Confused: A Liverpool Nosedive – The Tomkins Times
History Shows Us These Players Could Be Worth The Wait – Live 4 Liverpool
From Hodgson and Poulsen, through Torres to Dalglish – Putting LFC plight into context – This is Anfield
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Earle urges Dalglish to dump Downing and move for £8m star – Liverpool Kop
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Quote of the Week
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“If someone goes out and gives you the best they can, then that is not a problem. If they are looking for direction or help, they will get all the help they want, as long as they are 100% genuine. If they are not genuine then there is a problem, but it will not be sorted out publicly. We will do it privately.
“We said that would be the case when we came in. We wanted to go back to what the club was before, in its ethos and principles. I won’t condemn a player in public. I never have done and I am not going to start now. Whether that is right or wrong depends on the results, as everything else does. You can only be what you are and what you have been.” Kenny Dalglish defending his managerial methods despite Liverpool’s slump in form
This summer England are taking part in Euro 2012 under the leadership of new manager Roy Hodgson, but you can take part in your own tournament: The FIFA Interactive World Cup 2012.
The FIFA Interactive World Cup 2012 or FIWC12, is taking place this summer and if you have a PS3 and a copy of FIFA 12 then you can get involved.
You don’t have to been disappointed by England’s inevitable failure in Poland and Ukraine, and instead can take England all the way by yourself!
Not only can you achieve online success, but we also have a brand new Sony PlayStation Vita to give away exclusively to FootballFanCast.com readers.
All you have to do is register in-game with FIFA 12 and then email [email protected] with your user ID.
Then, the FootballFanCast.com reader with the most points when the competition closes on May 15th will win the Sony PlayStation Vita!
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Here are the T&Cs:
Entries close at 12.00pm on 15 May 2012Prize is one Sony PlayStation Vita as stated.There is no cash alternative and prizes are non-transferable.In the event of unforeseen circumstances, the Promoters reserve the right to offer alternative prizes of equal or greater value.The promoter reserves the right to amend, alter or terminate this promotion at any time due to circumstances beyond its control.The prize winner will be contacted via email, telephone or Facebook.Winners must respond to notification of their prize within 24 hours otherwise the right to claim the prize will be lost and the promoter reserves the right to re-award the prize.
Cardiff City were, for the most part, awful last week and in the second playoff leg at Upton Park it was always going to be a big ask, but The Bluebirds didn’t even look like scoring!
The lack of heart, spirit and passion by players was mystifying and deeply worrying. The return of ‘super Kev’ into the heart of defence, meant there was optimism amongst the Cardiff supporters, that if the team played with anything near the form they had shown in the Carling Cup final against Liverpool, then they were more than capable of overturning things. Cardiff City supporters however, are realists – the club’s history has taught us to be that way – all we really asked was that The Bluebirds turned up and played with passion, pride, commitment and heart, but it wasn’t to be – we didn’t even get that.
That was the original start of this article written on my iPad on the way home from the Upton Park leg of the playoffs, but, along with many drafts since, have been scrapped because of a week that must be the darkest ever in the history of Cardiff City Football Club.
It started for me as it did for many others soon after I got home and discovered a bombshell – one I hoped was a windup. There was a report that Cardiff were to play in red and be known henceforth as the Red Dragons – As news spread we all thought it was a Swansea fan on a wind up.
However, come Tuesday morning and after the deafening silence from the official sources on Twitter, I feared the worst….Then the news broke and my heart with it! The Malaysian owners; lead by Vincent Tan had announced a million pound package of investment, but it all came at a cost – The rebranding of the club, the nickname The Bluebirds was to be outlawed, the home strip would cease to be blue and become red, the badge would be a dragon and the team would now be known as the Red Dragons! This was a crucial part of the package the official statement said and non-negotiable! CRAZY I thought, along with the majority of Cardiff supporters, we took to the social networks en masse and thanks to Twitter had very quickly spread the news to the media.
The hardest thing was trying to explain to others what the reason for the change was, that it was because Cardiff City’s owners believe a new red strip, coupled with the emblem of the dragon, will bring “fusion of cultures” for the club between the Far East and Wales. Red is seen as a strong colour in the Far East associated with vibrancy, good luck and happiness, blue is considered unlucky. They also pointed to the fact that Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal have been able to crack the Asian market with the sale of replica shirts, but clubs such as Chelsea and Manchester City, who play in blue, have not.
All hell broke loose; the proposal would wipe out 100 years of history of Cardiff City playing in blue – which could be stomached, just maybe, but not the loss of the Bluebird on the chest, the Bluebird on the badge itself arose from the clubs nickname which is used to describe both the team and the supporters alike. It is a nickname that is known the world over. I have worked with football supporters from pretty much every UK based team you could name and practically every time I’ve been asked what team I support – on saying Cardiff City, I have gotten the same response – “You’re a Bluebird!” It’s a phenomenon the world over, when I played a gig in aid of breast cancer in New York a bar tender noticing my interest in a live ‘soccer match’ being shown on the television behind him, asked which team I supported, I muttered you won’t of heard of them, it’s my local team I support – Cardiff City, to my astonishment and embarrassment he hushed the bar up and announced to everyone “Hey we’ve got ourselves a little Bluebird.” The BBC even calls the team The Bluebirds! It is that embedded!
Bewilderment ensue, quickly followed by anger – it seemed like 100 years of proud history was going to be discarded like yesterdays newspaper, for little more than superstitious mumbo jumbo. Another problem is that Wales already have three teams which play in red and wear a dragon crest, two of them are already known by the proposed new nickname – the Red Dragons. The first of these teams, Wrexham are a long time rival of Cardiff City and it’s also akin to the kit and nickname of Newport Rugby club. Then there’s the Welsh national side who of course play in red with a Dragon in the badge, ironically only Cardiff City carry the nickname Bluebirds – We couldn’t see why we were less marketable in blue and with our proud and historic name – one under which we have gotten to the Carling Cup final, won the FA Cup, been finalists on two other occasions and have beaten the likes of Real Madrid, Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United along the way. It also felt like an insult to the memory of every Cardiff City supporter past, everyone’s Dad, Grandad, Uncle, Son, Daughter and Mum who had proudly worn the colours and badge but no longer stood by our sides on match day – All those miners on whose blood sweat and tears the teams very existence is built.
It was and remains a very raw and emotional issue. A football club is not like other business investments, a football club has an identity, a heart, a soul.
Things got ever more compounded by the day. Research showed the Malaysian national team’s home strip is yellow and the away kit is – Bluebird Blue! The fans started to look for other reasons behind the change maybe it wasn’t the colour but the Bluebird itself? However, much research only confirmed many cultures held beliefs and have myths surrounding the Bluebird – all are positive – the Bluebird is a symbol of new life, happiness, positivity, prosperity and hope.
The whole sorry mess quickly went viral and global – messages of support for The Bluebirds and derision of the owners came from supporters of clubs the world over and from unlikely sources too – footballing legend and Match of the Day presenter Gary Linekar, tweeted to ask if it was true! After discovering it was, he added he wasn’t a traditionalist but the idea was crazy, on the upturning of the decision later he said “See Cardiff fans have won their fight to keep their shirts blue. A rare triumph for common sense!”
Kelly Jones of the Stereophonics, a lifelong Leeds United fan but local boy to the Cardiff area, also voiced his strong disapproval of the plan, via a lengthy and eloquent statement issued by the bands official channels. Members of the Welsh National Assembly became involved, outraged at the proposal -stating that it stripped away a huge chunk of proud Welsh culture for the sake of money, some things shouldn’t be sold.
Then came about a turnaround by the Malaysian owners that – “In the light of the vociferous opposition by a number of the fans to the proposals being considered as expressed directly to our local management and through various media and other outlets, we will not proceed with the proposed change of colour and logo and the team will continue to play in blue at home for the next season with the current badge.”
After the initial exhilaration over the news that Cardiff City will continue to play at home in their traditional blue kit with the current badge with the Bluebird flying proudly prominent, had worn off, reality struck, because the open letter swiftly issued by Chan Tien Ghee, Cardiff City Football Club Chairman was interpreted by some fans as the end of Cardiff City Football Club. It doesn’t say that, however, it does elude to that fact that because supporters, media and the National Assembly of Wales had dared to protest at the rebranding of the club – there was a possibility that no new investment would be forthcoming, but moreover there was the need to – “Reassess in conjunction with the board of the club the future strategy and the further ongoing investment necessary to allow the club to continue to trade. This may include looking for new and additional partners and investors.”
As one fan eloquently put it in the immediate aftermath – “That even with victory, it still feels less like ‘my club’ than it did on Monday. The whole sorry affair has caused a deep rift between the supporters, and it’s difficult to have any faith in anyone including Tan and the board right now, for the first time in my life I am questioning my allegiance to my club and the Football Association as a whole.”
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For me I have more questions than ever?
Why there was complete capitulation regarding the ‘essential’ rebranding without an attempt at negotiation or arbitration, I am convinced a compromise could have easily been reached many shirt designs were floated that were both red and blue all retained the Bluebird but had the ‘necessary predominant dragon’ in shadow or silhouette in the shirt fabric its self. Most supporters agreed this was not only palatable but rather stylish! Not to have even attempted a compromise is at best a misreading of the people of Cardiff – at worst, nonsensical business practice!
Why had some of the proposed investment not come earlier in this season? If even a small slice of that investment had been made available in January, when The Bluebirds sat 3rd in the league table and were in dire need of a goal scoring striker and speedy winger, at least some of the draws Cardiff endured would have been victories which would have taken us up automatically, making the team eligible for all the bonuses that come the way of newly promoted sides.
The worse thing of all is how all this has turned fan against supporter – friend against friend, caused rifts amongst families … and now there is bullying of the Blue’s by some of the Red’s who say the colour of the shirt doesn’t matter – Exactly my point in the first place. Whatever did the little Bluebird do… for it cries tonight ashamed and a hunted species.
Wayne Rooney spoke of his horror at what he witnessed at Auschwitz yesterday and vowed that the Holocaust will never be forgotten.
The Manchester United striker was speaking out following the England team’s visit yesterday, where they got shown around the camp and educated about the shocking things what used to take place there on a daily basis.
One image that seem to haunt was the picture of SS doctor Heinz Thilo, who basically used to decide who would live and who would die. Rooney found it hard to comprehend what happened and being a father himself just couldn’t understand his actions:
“There was the guy [Thilo] who made all the decisions, whether they lived or died,”
“He’s probably gone home after that, listened to music, and had dinner with his family as if nothing had happened. It’s crazy. It’s hard to understand.
“I’m a parent and it’s tough to see what happened there. You’ve seen the amount of children who died. You see the children’s clothes and shoes, it’s really sad. You have to see it first hand and it simply puts football into perspective.” (Daily Telegraph)
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Real Madrid’s out of favour midfield enforcer Lassana Diarra could be on his way to join new Spurs boss Andre Villas-Boas at White Hart Lane, reports The Metro.
The 27 year old has been deemed surplus to requirements at the Bernabeu since joining in 2009, and his high wage demands have led to the La Liga champions becoming eager to part company with the Frenchman.
However, Spurs may have some competition in securing Diarra’s signature as QPR, Everton and Newcastle make up a list of 3 other English clubs also reportedly looking to attract Diarra to the Premier League.
Having already proved himself in England’s top flight thanks to spells at Chelsea, Arsenal and Portsmouth, a move back to the Premier League could suit Diarra; provided his new club can meet his wage demands.
There is also interest from abroad in the form of Spartak Moscow and Fenerbache, as Real Madrid are willing to let their enforcer leave for as little as £4 million.
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Whilst Tottenham may have to fight off some stiff competition to bring Diarra to White Hart Lane, it could mark the start of a busy summer as Villas-Boas looks to strengthen his new side.
Ask any football fan what is so special about the 31st August every year, and the vast majority will tell you just to turn on Sky Sports News and watch events unfold. Tune in to see the ‘drama’ that is transfer deadline day. We know what it’s all about, seeing reporters outside football grounds, cars leaving training complexes and Big Ben getting closer and closer to that midnight cut off point when the window closes. In the weeks and months prior to that, we must endure tens of made up transfer stories in rumour mills across a broad range of media outlets.
So why is the transfer window so melodramatic nowadays? One cliché may suggest it is just yet another indication of the way our beautiful game is heading. It is less about football on the pitch, more about capital off it. Who can make the headlines not for winning the most games or scoring the most goals, but for signing the biggest players and spending the most cash? Transfer rumours will get more coverage than some of the football matches that happen every weekend.
It also helps to maintain high readership and viewing figures amongst those footballing outfits when frankly, there’s not a lot else going on in the close season. Players are on holiday and training grounds are temporarily made redundant so people covering matters at such locations have little else to resort to. Transfer stories are reported based on barely a shred of evidence, but people still buy the newspapers, watch the TV Channels and click on the websites in the hope that the latest rumour is true, and in fact Fillipo Inzaghi will be joining Watford or Yann M’Villa has ‘100%’ signed for Arsenal.
It is true though, that football fans love nothing more than to be full of optimism going into a new season, the rumour mills and the drama of the transfer window only fuel this notion. If every story reported was proven to be true, all of the 92 teams in the football league would be considering themselves for success, becoming completely unrealistic over their teams hopes for the upcoming campaign. But the modern football fan is all too used to the speculation and the pre-season buzz.
There are other and more intelligent football stories that could be covered throughout the close season, taking in wider aspects of the game. To look at the impact of goal line technology, the poor financial structure of some the biggest clubs in football or the prospect of certain young talents. Whilst such stories can be seen, the underlying and consistent feature of summer footballing news is always transfer speculation.
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We may all find ourselves avidly following the transfer window in the close season, hoping for each rumour to be true, but the realistic aspect of the situation is that it is all made up, constantly fuelled by half stories just to keep football fans tuned in when there is very little else happening.
Liverpool have agreed terms with Heerenveen for winger Ousmane Assaidi, with the player set to move to Anfield if he passes a medical.
Brendan Rodgers is eager to strengthen his inherited Reds squad this summer, and has already brought Joe Allen and Fabio Borini to the Merseyside club.
A wide attacker has been on the wishlist for the Northern Irish manager all summer long, with moves for players such as Gaston Ramirez touted.
The Morocco international has been speculated with a move to a bigger club this off-season, with Fulham and Ajax reportedly keen to sign the African flyer.
However, the Reds have confirmed on their official website that they have agreed a fee with the Eredivisie side for the winger’s services.
Assaidi has 22 caps for his country and has scored 20 goals in 68 appearances for Heerenveen.
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In an era when football matches are a constant part of life, cup fixtures still bring that little extra sparkle to the minds of players and fans alike. In the Capital One Cup this season, that sparkle has often translated into goal-scoring frenzies, and on the odd, special occasions, it produces a memorable solo performance from a player who may not always be the centre of attention. In this series, FFC takes a look at some stellar one-man displays…
Theo Walcott’s Arsenal career is reaching a crossroads. At 23 years of age, the versatile forward appears to have been disenchanted with life at the Emirates this season thanks to the influx of players in the last two years – Gervinho, Lukas Podolski, Olivier Giroud, Santi Cazorla and the emerging Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – who offer direct competition for his place in the side. After two consecutive seasons of scoring in double figures, Walcott was disappointed to spend the early stages of this season as an infrequent member of the starting eleven.
Walcott has been waiting for a chance to show what he can really offer up front, and he got that chance earlier this season, sharing the front line with Giroud and out-of-favour Moroccan Marouane Chamakh.
I was just arriving at a local pub with some friends when we heard of Reading’s fourth goal, scored by Stephen Hunt, with less than 40 minutes gone. But if we thought that was unbelievable, the story of the rest of the Capital One Cup 4th Round game was something else. And it was Walcott who popped up with three crucial goals at key moments in the game to inspire a famous Arsenal revival.
His first came on the stroke of half-time, sprinting clear of the Royals’ defence to latch onto an Andrei Arshavin through ball and lift his shot over the onrushing Adam Federici. That goal, which gave the travelling fans hope and quieted chants of “We want our Arsenal back”, set up a second half in which Arsenal were scarcely recognisable from their first-half travesty.
The Gunners still trailed as minutes ticked away, but Walcott was everywhere. Laurent Koscielny, who had already scored an own goal, scored from a Walcott corner in stoppage time before Walcott himself drove home even further into the added time to tie the game at 4-4.
The Englishman wasn’t done yet. After Pavel Pogrebnyak had cancelled out Chamakh’s strike early in extra time, it was Walcott who landed the decisive blow, blasting home from eight yards out as time ticked away in extra time to score Arsenal’s sixth. Almost from the restart Chamakh added a seventh, and one of the most memorable games in recent League Cup history drew to a close.
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Many stats will live long in football fandom from this record-breaking night. The two sides had a combined 80 shots, of which 49 were on target; Arsenal’s side featured three debutants; Reading’s first ever defeat from a 4-0 lead was, unbelievably, not the first time the club has recorded a 7-5 defeat (Doncaster Rovers, Third Division, 1982).
One thing should be remembered above all others, though – this was the night that Theo Walcott reminded us all of exactly what he can do on a football pitch. More specifically, in the middle of a football pitch. His goals saved Arsenal and kept them marching on in this year’s Capital One Cup and if he continues to be given the chance up front for the Gunners, who knows how far they can get.