Matthew Le Tissier - A Shot At Management

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I'm delighted to have a home tie as it gives us a better chance of getting through.

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After the draw was made, the chairman Ralph Krueger called me into his office.

"Have a seat Matt."

I parked myself in one of Ralph's many glorious spinning leather chairs.

"I wanted to speak to you about our target for the FA Cup this season. As you know we've just been drawn against West Bromwich Albion in the 3rd round, and in my opinion that is a tie we should easily win."

"We can beat West Brom, but it's not a forgone conclusion Ralph. Any team ca-" he stopped me in my tracks.

"Matt... call me Mr. Krueger please."

"Sorry... Mr. Krueger... what I was saying was - any team can beat anyone. That's the FA Cup magic."

"I'm aware of that, but we want to reach the Quarter Finals, at least. Due to you not reaching the target in the Capital One Cup, we're adamant that you fulfil this aim. Don't get knocked out."

I left his office. I get on well with Ra-... Mr. Krueger most of the time, but today? Jeez.. what a ******!"

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Fraser Forster made his debut for the club in this exciting 2-2 draw. Gardos made an error allowing Joselu to equalise, and though I can't know this for sure, if Stoke hadn't equalised then, we could have ran away with the game. It's unlucky in the end that we drew, but the Britannia is a difficult place to come, so to get a point isn't really too bad.



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Our attack causes every team in the league havoc and today was no exception. It's just shame that we didn't really defend as solidly as usual. On a few occasions we lost concentration and allowed an Everton play an extra yard or a free shot, and in the end it cost us the win.
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Pull open the top drawer, and place this performance right in there. Utterly fantastic! Every thing we did was done perfectly and we 100% deserved to win!

Long has 5 goals in 7 league games now, and has been playing tremendously recently! Canales bagged his first goal for the club and it turned out to be the winner 20 minutes from time. I'm speechless but so proud of the boys!



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The lads worked off all the Christmas alcohol and food to battle back and take all three points from Selhurst Park! I'm delighted as it puts us level on points with Liverpool who are in 4th.
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I'm honestly made up for the boy. Although I'm surprised that he's won this award, I do feel he does deserve the recognition. Not only for his performances (which have been top quality), but for his professionalism at such a young age! He's going to the very top this boy, and I hope it's with this club.​
 
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January Transfer Window Opens

Premier League clubs up and down the country will be looking to capitalise on the transfer window being open by improving their squads for the second half of the season.

Rumours have already begun to spread about who is going where and for what transfer fee. With total spending in the January transfer window increasing year by year, it is highly likely that we will see another expensive window this time around.

Top Transfer Rumours

Manchester United - An unnamed source from the club's hierarchy has suggested that the club are chasing after Roma midfielder Kevin Strootman, who is valued at around £25M by the Italian side.

West Bromwich Albion - Albion are thought to be looking to agree a fee with Bournemouth for midfielder Dan Gosling. The newly promoted side are said to be holding out for £6M.

Liverpool - Leonardo Bonucci is subject of continued interest from Liverpool who are ready to launch a £13M bid.

Chelsea - Andy Carroll of West Ham is a shock target for the Blues who are willing to present the Hammers with a £17M offer.

Arsenal - The Gunners have confirmed their interest in Southampton midfielder Victor Wanyama. The Saints have set an asking price of £27M.

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Who should your club look to sign? Have your say on Twitter with the hashtag "#DreamSigning".


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Once all the hype of the 5-0 demolition over West Brom had died down, I was asked to attend a meeting with the chairman and transfer committee of the club. I picked up my notepad and pen and headed for the meeting room.

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After an exchange of greetings between everybody there, we got straight down to business - transfer targets.

"Who have you found for me then guys?" I asked around.

My chief scout, and trusty friend Bill Green handed me a sheet of paper with a list of potential targets, including a report and analysis of each. I was impressed at how much detail was put into the reports.

After reading through the entire list I created my own list of three players that I definitely want to try and bring in.

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1. Rio Mavuba - Lille

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From the report I could see that Rio has vast experience of playing at a high standard for Lille in France and would be available for a cut price due to his contract expiring in the summer. His experience, leadership and all round quality has put him high on my priorities for the transfer window. According to all my scouts who have travelled to France to watch him play, he would be a worthwhile addition to the squad.

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Potential transfer fee: £800K - £1.3M
Potential wages: £30K p/w - £36k p/w

2. Nacho

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The Spaniard is blessed with solid ball control and well rounded physical attributes. He is still young so can still improve a lot and could potentially be used all across the back four or as a ball playing defender to link defence and attack. He's fallen down the pecking order at Real Madrid since he broke into the first team so may well be interested in a move to the Premier League.

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Potential transfer fee: £1.4M - £1.8M
Potential wages: £27K p/w - £45K p/w

3. Jack Butland

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The young English keeper has been touted to become a top keeper but hasn't featured as much at Stoke as he may have liked. With Stekelenburg failing to impress and returning to Fulham at the end of the season and Forster only just returning to full fitness, Butland could fill the role nicely. He could become a brilliant keeper if he gets the required game time.

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Potential transfer fee: £3.4M - £6M
Potential wages: £15K p/w - £30K p/w

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These are the players I am interested in signing over January.

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Moments after I left the meeting, my phone buzzed. It was Victor Wanyama's agent.

"Mr. Le Tissier! Fantastic news! Liverpool have just met your asking price for Victor of £27 million pounds!"

"How on Earth is that fantastic? I want Victor to stay! We can achieve so much this year! How did this all go through without me knowing anyway?" I was furious.

"You set the asking price my friend, Liverpool met it. That's all there is to it. Victor wants to move, unfortunately for you. We're already discussing contract details. All the best."

*BLEEP*

I was stunned. I didn't think he'd actually want to leave. Hopefully they won't be able to sort the contract out...
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However, I wasn't able to mope about for too long that night as my phone rang yet again, this time it was 'Mr. Krueger'.

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It's amazing news! I actually jumped around the house for a while with my kids and wife. I'm signing this contact ASAP!

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Not a bad little pay increase too! But it's not about that. I'm committed to the club for the next three years, and I'm delighted. ​
 
Just read though all of this story, I don't like it ..... I Love it, Great story keep up the great work :)
 
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