Louis van Gaal has told Manchester United he wants to make fellow Dutchman Arjen Robben his first signing if he takes over at Old Trafford, for a fee of around £25m.
The Metro has suggested that the Holland boss is expected to sign a three-year-deal to replace David Moyes in Manchester within the next week and has already planned his future aquuisitions at the club.
Van Gaal has reportedly handed a list of transfer targets to United’s executive chairman Ed Woodward, including big names such as Bayern Munich star Arjen Robben at the top of his wishlist.
Following Bayern Munich's calamitous Champions League exit to Real Madrid last month, the Bundesliga champions may look to offload Robben in a bid to strengthen their side.
The potential Manchester United manager has had previous experience managing Robben in the Dutch national side and believes he can persuade the German champions to part with the former Chelsea and Real Madrid star for a fee around the £25m mark.
Robben's current wage package at Bayern is £160k per week, which is significantly lower than Rooney and Van Persie's current wage at Old Trafford, but the 30-year-old would expect an increase in salary if he were to miss out on Champions League football next season.
Germany's World Cup-winning goalkeeper Manuel Neuer flies through the air, not for the first time. Photograph: Jens Meyer/AP
There is often much talk in football about the 12th man. Whether that is the fans singing their hearts out in the stands, the referee who appears to be giving everything to the opposition or a rogue beach ball that has bounced on to the pitch and has yet to be removed, it is said, this 12th man gives you the advantage. But it's a strange term to use when the teams are not even utilising the 11they have on the pitch.
When Germany faced Algeria earlier in the World Cup, many were quick to condemn their high defensive line and over-reliance on Manuel Neuer. The pundits were also critical when Germany played France in the next round. Alan Shearer seemed especially shocked and appalled, voicing his dismay that one ball over the top was all France needed to create a goalscoring opportunity. However, France did not exploit this apparent weakness and Germany progressed.
Die Mannschaft seem to have taken over Spain’s mantle. Their team is youthful and energetic, they often play with no out-and-out striker and they have a wealth of technically gifted players. The Spanish model has not just been replicated though, it has been improved.
The improvement has come through using the 11th man. The man that is almost always overlooked as a footballer, the one position on the pitch where, as a kid, you did not need any skill or ability, you simply needed to be big. This 11th man is, of course, the goalkeeper.
On a football pitch you are looking to gain any advantage you can. Like the opposition, you only have access to 11 players so you must use these players as efficiently as possible. If one of them has no role other than babysitting the net, then you’re already at a disadvantage.
Football is a lot like chess. You have the same number of pieces as your opponent, you face-off on the same playing surface and you both have the same aim. The great chess players know they need to get the most out of each of their pieces to win. This gives rise to the maxim: "The King is a fighting piece – use it."
With the king being the weakest and most important piece on the board, it would seem logical to ignore the maxim and do nothing but protect him at all times. But if you are to do that and your opponent uses their king as an attacking piece, essentially your opponent has one more piece than you. In tight games, against similar opposition, this small advantages can be the difference between victory and defeat.
By using your goalkeeper not just to protect your own goals but to actually participate in defending, building attacks and keeping the ball, you are utilising your 11th man. If your opposition are not doing this, you immediately have a man advantage.
There are teams that utilise the 11th man; in fact almost every team does, but you only see it for a very brief period of time. When a team is desperately hunting for a goal and the clock is ticking down to full-time the goalkeeper will become more involved in the game.
He leaves the safety of his six-yard box and lingers on the edge of his area; he sweeps behind his defenders who are camped on the halfway line; and he plays long, raking, diagonal balls to those further upfield. If he is able to play the role at this point in the match, why is he not able to do it earlier?
The conservative traditionalists within football see the reliance on a sweeper-keeper as a sign of weakness. The high defensive line and the involvement of the goalkeeper appear to be the last move of a desperate manager with nothing left to throw at the opposition. Perhaps the tactic has this reputation as it is only used in the dying moments of matches.
If anything, the use of the goalkeeper in the sweeper-keeper role is the opposite of desperation. Utilising the 11th man is a tactically intelligent innovation that is going to become more and more popular in the coming years.
Manuel Neuer's heat map in Germany's match against Algeria shows the extent to which he was involved. Covering almost the entire final third of the pitch, he was anything but a bystander.
Neuer is not only a world-class goalkeeper, but he is a footballer as well. In the sweeper-keeper role he is more than just a net guard. His defensive skills, covering any through balls and sweeping up behind his back line, allow the defenders to push forward. This in turn restricts the space the opposition have in the middle of the pitch and forces the game into the opposition's half.
The tactic might not work for every team but Germany and Bayern Munich have a goalkeeper to revolutionise what it means to play between the sticks. Joachim Löw says Neuer could “play in midfield” and Toni Kroos, who occupies one of those midfield positions, calls him the team’s "11th outfield player".
Credit should not only be given Neuer, but also to the most progressive and revolutionary manager in the game today, Pep Guardiola. Six months ago Andy James wrote about the evolution of Neuer and how Guardiola was turning him into a footballer, rather than a goalkeeper. I bet even James is surprised at the extent and speed of the evolution.
The tactic is both dangerous and brilliant. Guardiola has a philosophy, and every player, position and move has to fit into that philosophy and compliment it as a whole. It is a grand design, with each individual cog aiding the movement and progression of the other pieces around it. You could not remove this sweeper-keeper tactic and simply install it at say Chelsea, for example, because it would not work. The team needs to be geared towards an aim, and each position allows the team to function.
After inheriting a treble-winning team it was hard to imagine what Guardiola could possibly do. His former club, Barcelona, revolutionised club football, so expectations were high. Guardiola is not content with stability and continuity. As a manager he looks to push the boundaries, radicalise and perfect. Morphing Lahm into a defensive midfielder and having Neuer play as a sweeper-keeper are just two examples of how he is constantly looking to develop new tactics.
What we saw against Algeria was the future of goalkeeping. A player whose main task is to keep a clean sheet must also now hold other responsibilities. The future of football is a future where each position has a variety of functions. Defensive midfielders will not only break up attacks, strikers will not just score goals and goalkeepers will not just prevent the opposition from scoring. Neuer may be the first modern, complete sweeper-keeper, but he will not be the last.
Joachim Low wants Germany to make history in the Maracana on Sunday and then dominate world football for many years to come. After their 7-1 victory against Brazil in the semi-final, Germany are favourites to beat Argentina and win the FIFA World Cup™ in Rio de Janeiro.
If Germany are successful, it will be the fourth time they have won the famous trophy, but it will be the only occasion they have triumphed on South American soil.
No European nation has won the tournament on this continent in four attempts. Czechoslovakia and Holland reached the final in 1962 and 1978 respectively, but Low hopes his team can go one better in Brazil this weekend.
"In the past we never had this, so we know we can write history," the Germany coach told a press conference on the eve of the final.
"Latin Americans, on this continent, have dominated all the time. So why can we not be the first? This could be considered an additional joy for us if we were to win as Europeans on Latin American soil."
After two seasons in Munich, Croatia striker Mario Mandzukic is poised to leave FC Bayern and join Spanish champions and Champions League finalists Atletico Madrid. “Nothing’s signed yet, but there are verbal agreements between FC Bayern and Atletico Madrid and between Mario and Atletico,” reported FCB board director for sport Matthias Sammer at the start of the club’s pre-season training programme on Wednesday.
“I think we can all rely on each other's word and we’ll soon announce closure,” continued Sammer, who said Mandzukic had “always behaved correctly and in an exemplary fashion” during his time at the club: “I have only positive things to say about him.” After joining Bayern from Wolfsburg, the 28-year-old marksman scored 33 goals in 54 Bundesliga appearances for the Reds.
Mandzukic bundled home the crucial opening goal against Borussia Dortmund in the 2013 Champions League final at Wembley in London and made a vital overall contribution to FCB's historic treble triumph. “We want to thank Mario Mandzukic for his efforts and wish him all the best for the future,” said Sammer. Atletico need Mandzukic to replace Spain World Cup player Diego Costa, who is joining English Premier League club Chelsea.
Munich, 7 July, 2014: FC Bayern Munich have today completed the signing of 21-year-old Spain U-21 international Juan Bernat (21) from FC Valencia. The 1.72m tall defender underwent a medical in Munich and subsequently signed a five-year contract keeping him at Germany's most successful club until 30 June 2019. The player moves for an undisclosed fee.
Juan Bernat will train with his new club for the first time on Thursday 10 July. He has been assigned the squad number 18.
“We're very pleased about reaching a good and quick solution both with the player and FC Valencia,” commented FC Bayern München AG deputy chairman Jan-Christian Dreesen. “Juan Bernat will say farewell to his current club on Tuesday evening in Valencia and will be in Munich from Thursday.”
FC Bayern board director for sport Matthias Sammer commented: “Juan Bernat is an exceptional young player who we've been watching for a long time. He is quick, a good tackler, and has an incredible nose for goal. We're certain we've made a very good investment for the future of our team by signing Juan Bernat. We welcome him warmly to FC Bayern!”
“I'm delighted at the opportunity to play for this huge club in the future,” Juan Bernat said after signing his new contract. “FC Bayern are one of the biggest clubs in Europe and the world. I'm really looking forward to appearing in a team with players like Lahm, Neuer, Schweinsteiger, Robben and Ribéry and having Pep Guardiola as coach. I'll give everything I have for this club to succeed.”
Manuel Neuer has been dubbed “the best goalkeeper in the world” by Oliver Kahn as he prepares for Tuesday’s FIFA World Cup semi-final against Brazil. The 28-year-old has played a key part in Germany’s run to the last four by dominating his penalty area and pulling off a string of key saves.
Neuer has shown great timing and judgement by frequently cutting out long passes or crosses with runs out of his own area, often acting more like an extra defender.
He has conceded only three goals in five games and was outstanding in the Germans’ nervy 2-1 last 16 win to shut Algeria out until the 121st-minute of extra time.
Neuer then nullified France’s potent attack in Friday’s 1-0 quarter-final win at the Maracana to set up the Selecao clash in Belo Horizonte on Tuesday for a place in the July 13 final. He frequently denied France’s Karim Benzema, including a crucial save just before the final whistle to palm away the Real Madrid star’s goal-bound shot.
Wonderful footballer Former Germany midfielder and TV pundit Mehmet Scholl has dubbed him ‘Icecube Neuer’ for his composure while ex-national team captain Kahn says he is the world’s best. “He has proven at this World Cup that he is currently the world’s best goalkeeper,” said Kahn, who captained Germany to their 2002 World Cup final defeat against Brazil.
“Everyone knows that he is a wonderful footballer who can play really well. But what is crucial is that in important situations he can rescue the victory. That is ultimately what he will be measured by.”
Kahn was voted best player and goalkeeper at the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, but Neuer said he would rather finish his stay in Brazil with a different trophy. “I’d rather have the World Cup,” he said with a grin.
His Maracana heroics earned some teasing from team-mates Thomas Mueller and Lukas Podolski, who chanted ‘world’s best keeper!’ as Neuer took questions in the mixed zone.
With the Selecao up next, albeit minus injured superstar Neymar, Neuer lived up to his ice-cool nickname. “We’ll have to see what sort of a spectacle the semi-final is,” he said.
“A lot of my saves are automatic, the team defends the middle of the goal, so I just have to close down the short corner. I’m proud of the performances and results, I hope the fans are behind us now.”
As captain, Lothar Matthaus lifted the most precious trophy in world football in 1990. No other German skipper has achieved that since, although Matthaus’ successors have come close on several occasions. At the 2014 FIFA World Cup™ in Brazil, Germany have reached the semi-finals for the fourth time in succession and are now keen to go all the way.
The former player, who holds the record for the number of World Cup appearances with 25, has followed the thrilling tournament with great interest and believes the long-awaited success is just around the corner.
In conversation with FIFA, Matthaus analysed the three-time World Cup winners' games so far, discussing the forthcoming clash with the hosts and revealing the reasons for his confidence.
FIFA: How do you rate Germany at the 2014 World Cup to date? Lothar Matthaus: Germany aren't playing the same attractive football they did at the previous two World Cup finals. But Joachim Low has learned a thing or two. You don't win titles playing pretty football. And the target for this German team is to win the World Cup in Brazil. That's why we're seeing a somewhat reserved approach. You only have to think about the four central defenders playing in the back four, with Philipp Lahm in the holding role. Germany had a few problems in the run-in. Important players were injured - like Bastian Schweinsteiger, Sami Khedira and Miroslav Klose too. So Low probably felt he had to try something else and when you look at the results, it's worked really well so far.
There’s been a lot of criticism back home about the way Germany have played, particularly after the game against Algeria. Why is that when the results have been right? The fans are a bit spoiled as the team has produced very good football over the past few years and there’s great quality in the squad. All the games up to now have been pretty tight and of course the players are also thinking: 'Do we want to play attractive football and go home early or do we want to lift the trophy after seven games?' The answer's clear. Bring the title home and value success above just playing pretty football.
What do you think about Low playing Lahm at full-back against France and why did he go against his previous opinions and tactics? Low is intelligent. Obviously, it also depends on circumstances. He saw Schweinsteiger and Khedira are fit again and were gradually recapturing their form. He must have been convinced enough to play Lahm in defence.
What do Germany have to change to get through to the Final? They've just got to beat Brazil. It doesn't matter how. Some players don't play in the same positions they do for their clubs. That's particularly true on the left. You can see that clearly with Mesut Ozil. He normally plays in the centre of the park and now he's on the left. His body language isn't right and he doesn't seem as happy as usual. But he has to play there to get a game and he's giving his all. Benedikt Howedes isn't actually a left-back but rather a central defender back home. I think Germany have got a problem in that position. Otherwise, I think the team functions as a compact unit. The players are in good condition physically and they can play at high tempo for 90 minutes. And that could be decisive in terms of winning.
The hosts are the opponents in the semi-finals. The fans created a brilliant atmosphere at the other Seleção games. Do you think that can intimidate Germany? The players are used to playing big games, particularly the Bayern players. They play in front of capacity crowds nearly every week in the Bundesliga and the crowds are nearly as big as they are in Brazil. They feel the pressure and the crowd against them at every away game. The same will happen again now. But that could also put pressure on the hosts and be good for Germany. You can see Brazil are very sensitive and they've cried a lot at the World Cup. Not just because they're sad but also out of joy. They show their emotions. You can see a certain sensitivity in the team. We'll have to see how we cope with this pressure. Brazil are at home but Germany are a strong side.
What advantage is it for Low to have players in their second, third or, in Klose's case, fourth semi-final? Experience was definitely a key factor against France. The French have a young side with hardly any experience of tournaments while Germany have players with 80, 90, 100 or even more caps and with several tournaments under their belts. So it could be an advantage. Previous experience of this stage of the tournament could give Germany an edge over Brazil.
You've been in that position a lot. How do players prepare for a semi-final? There's no single answer to that question. It's important to do something else rather than focus on the game. But that's clearly a mental thing, perhaps more so than in the game against France for example, as we now know we're up against the supposed favourites, who are also the hosts. There's a lot of pressure from outside the group, but the players need to ignore that.
What's your prediction for the game against Brazil? I'm patriotic and I don't think anyone will hold that against me. We know it will be a difficult game and we're not the favourites. But we'll win 2-1 – and when I say we, I mean Germany.
What makes you confident Germany can win the World Cup? I think you have to look at it in a different light. We don't have to win the World Cup, but we want to and we can. The team has performed really well so far. They're in the last four and now it comes down to tiny differences. For me, the team has looked solid and assured. The players are confident. Their body language shows what they're thinking: ‘The only way we can lose is to a better team.' They're full of confidence. There’s room for improvement up front but they all want the same thing, and that's the title.
The first new signing has started his pre-season at FC Bayern. Sebastian Rode joined Tom Starke and Holger Badstuber on Tuesday in the first training session after the summer break. Afterwards he spoke tofcbayern.de about his first impressions of Säbener Strasse, his targets and a phone call from Matthias Sammer.
Interview: Sebastian Rode
fcbayern.de: Welcome to FC Bayern, Sebastian. What are your first impressions? Sebastian Rode: It’s brilliant. The training session was good, I’ve met Holger Badstuber and Tom Starke and the weather was just right. It was a good start.
Pre-season training starts officially next week. Have you had enough of being at home? Holger, Tom and me have all been out injured for quite a while. Starting early is good for making up lost ground and putting me in a better position to start the pre-season.
First there was the knee injury and then you broke your hand a couple of weeks ago. How are you now? The knee’s ok again and I’ve no problems at all with my hand. I play football rather than handball. I’m not a goalkeeper either. I’m looking to get fully fit in the pre-season.
How much are you looking forward to the start of pre-season training with the full squad next week? I’m looking forward to working with Pep Guardiola and getting to know the other lads very much. Of course, I’m quite excited at the prospect. Playing for FC Bayern is something else. Everything’s a level higher here. But I feel more anticipation than excitement.
Have you had the chance to speak to Pep Guardiola? Yes, we had a brief chat. But I think there will be an even more intensive exchange when we all meet up on 9 July.
What are your targets at FC Bayern? I want to play as many games and win as many titles as possible. I hope to be standing on the Town Hall balcony next year.
What position do you think is your best? I always played in holding midfield at Frankfurt. But I’ve also played in several other positions. I’m very flexible and I just want to contribute my strengths to the cause: that includes my pace enabling me to get forward quickly and the ability to win possession at the back. I’ll give my all on the pitch. We’ll have to wait and see where Pep Guardiola wants to play me.
You met up with Holger and Tom today. Have you had much contact with other FCB pros? With Manuel Neuer as we’ve got the same agent. I know Toni Kroos from playing with Germany youth teams. I played against Diego Contento and David Alaba at U-19 level. So I’ve had contact with one or two of the lads.
Can you tell us what it was like when FC Bayern contacted you? My agent told me Matthias Sammer was going to call me. That was quite exciting. Matthias Sammer spoke to me on the phone and more or less convinced me to make the move. I didn’t need long to think about it.
There is always a lot of competition for places at FC Bayern. How will you handle it? Matthias Sammer told me straight away that I’d have to accept there would be competition. That’s fine by me. I know it won’t be easy. But challenges make you stronger. That’s the way forward for me.
You’ve already got the new training kit and you’ve completed your first training session. Have you found somewhere to live yet? Yes, I’ve done that. I’ll be staying at the hotel for another week. I’ll be able to move into my new flat next week. I’m already looking forward to that.
