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Bolton defender Gary Cahill has revealed that the transfer saga regarding his future was mentally tiring, and that he is looking forward to concentrating on playing football.

The central defender was subject of bids from both Arsenal and Tottenham, with a move to White Hart Lane almost coming to fruition on deadline day.

“I’m not going to lie – it affected me a little bit,” the centre back told reporters in a press conference.

“I’ve not experienced that on a deadline day before. It was just a matter of me thinking of what was happening, wondering if they [Bolton] were going to accept a bid or not. It was a bit mentally tiring. Then when the window was shut, it was a question of focusing on the job in hand,” he continued.

Despite this, Cahill put the uncertainty behind him to start his first competitive fixture for England against Bulgaria on Friday, and scored a crucial goal for his country.

“I want to stay in the side. At the minute there is a nice freshness about the side, with new players coming in and players that are desperate to impress. There just seems a new freshness about the whole thing,” he stated.

With Cahill in the last year of his contract at the Reebok Stadium, he expects the rumours over his club future to continue, but he is focussed on playing well for Bolton and England.

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“No doubt the speculation will go on but I’ve had speculation for probably a year and a half. All I can do at the moment is put my performances in for Bolton. You see the [England] manager coming and watching the games and, if he is not impressed, he won’t carry on picking me. So it’s down to me really.”

Cahill is in line to start for his country against Wales at Wembley on Tuesday night.

Inter Milan coach Leonardo admitted Udinese played the better football during the reigning champions’ 3-1 away defeat.

Goals by Cristian Zapata, Antonio Di Natale and Maurizio Domizzi gave Udinese the deserved win on Sunday, as well as Leonardo’s first defeat since replacing Rafa Benitez.

“They did very well,” Leonardo conceded.

“The first half of the match was very even but the most difficult thing is to play against a team with quick forwards and two wingers who put pressure on us.”

“We scored the first goal, but they turned it around before the break. I believe that we suffered in the second half of the match.”

“The first half was more balanced, but we suffered more in the second half and it was even more difficult after their third goal.”

Leonardo praised his team’s attacking style in the first 45 minutes.

“Well, I think that we were missing nothing at the beginning,” he said.

“We approached the match in the best possible way and we could have gone 2-0 up after the way we started, but it wasn’t to be.”

“We conceded two goals in the first half and in the second we found it difficult to keep the ball up front against a quick, counter-attacking side.”

Leonardo said the three goals that Udinese scored came from bad defensive errors.

“Well, their three goals came from dead balls and bounces,” he said.

“The third goal especially was quite strange: the ball came in and Domizzi just got ahead of the goalkeeper and scored.”

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“If we analyse the goals, of course they could have been avoided.”

“It’s not a case of being surprised by the opposing team’s dead ball tactics. It’s just bounces and it’s a matter of seconds: a kick from outside the area, a free kick by Di Natale and the strange goal by Domizzi.”

“The goals happened in this way. In any case they could have also happened in open play, since Udinese were able to create many chances.”

Manchester Untied and Arsenal are interested in securing the signing of Victor Wanyama from Celtic, according to The Daily Mail.

Scouts from the pair watched the Kenyan in the Hoops’ 1-0 friendly defeat to Norwich City on Tuesday and could step up their interest in the player in the coming weeks.

However, the 21-year-old has allegedly also attracted the attention of Queens Park Rangers and Stoke City who may be able to offer him a greater chance of first team football.

Wanyama is reportedly unsettled at Celtic Park having grown frustrated at having to play in defence rather than his favoured position of defensive-midfield.

The Scottish side have slapped a £7m price-tag on the youngster in an attempt to ward off interest from south of the border, but with four Premier League teams showing an interest it could be difficult for Celtic to hold onto their man.

Sir Alex Ferguson has refused to consider adding a defensive-midfielder to his side so it remains a mystery where the Kenyan would fit into the side.

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Arsenal are believed to be close to the capture of Spanish midfielder Santi Cazorla but Wanyama would represent a very different option in midfield.

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Reigning champions Genk kicked off their defence of the Belgian First Division title with a 3-1 win over Beerschot on Saturday.An own-goal from Beerschot’s Croatian defender Tomislav Mikulic gifted hosts Genk a 1-0 lead 20 minutes into the match at the Cristal Arena.

Israel forward Elyaniv Barda then doubled the lead on 32 minutes, and just three minutes later David Hubert netted to make it 3-0, effectively ending the match as a contest with 55 minutes still remaining.

Uruguayan Gary Kagelmacher pulled one back for the visitors from the penalty spot with 15 minutes to go, but it proved no more than a consolation.

Also on Saturday, Mechelen joined Genk on three points following a 2-1 win at home to Sint-Truiden.

French midfielder Julien Gorius struck the winner for Mechelen with five minutes remaining after Sint-Truden’s Gregory Dufer had cancelled out Boris Pandza’s opener.

In other matches, Jelle Van Damme’s second-half equaliser secured a point for Standard Liege as they drew 1-1 away to Mons.

Gambian Ebrahima Savaneh had put the home side ahead three minutes before half-time.

Kortrijk also drew 1-1 in their match at home to Lierse.

The visitors led from the 17th minute courtesy of Milos Maric’s opener.

Kortrijk went a man down when Cameroonian Ernest Webnje Nfor was shown a red card just five minutes into the second half.

But the 10-man hosts still managed to produce an equaliser through Brecht Capon’s penalty on 54 minutes.

Cercle Brugge struck late to take all three points in their match away to Gent.

Ukrainian Oleg Iachtchouk hit the winner for Cercle in the 80th minute of the match, just two minutes after Gent were reduced to 10 men.

Defender Valery Nahayo, who joined from South African outfit Kaizer Chiefs earlier this month, was the man to go, shown a second yellow card on his league debut for the club.

Elsewhere, Lokeren were held 0-0 at home by Zulte-Waregem.

As you read this, some club somewhere is preparing to announce their interest in Spurs striker Robbie Keane. Most of the bottom half of the Premier League have already made it clear that the 30-year-old striker is at the top of their wish-lists.

There’s good reason for all the hoo-ha – Robbie Keane is a proven goalscorer. Check his record. Wherever he has been, he has brought goals with him. During his original stay at Spurs he scored 80 goals in 197 appearances. He has 104 caps for the Irish national team and 45 goals, making him Ireland’s all-time record goalscorer. With his tally of 121 Premier League goals he is the League’s eleventh highest goalscorer of all time.

This is a man with credentials.

It’s clear that there’s no space for him in the Tottenham squad and that it’s time for him to move on. It’s highly unlikely that Robbie will remain a Spurs player by the end of the January transfer window. Why is it then that only teams struggling to avoid relegation seem to be interested in Robbie? Why are the likes of Birmingham and Wolves the forerunners for his signature?

Harry Redknapp has confirmed that City have made a £7 million bid for the striker, but any such deal remains far from complete.

I understand that teams fighting at the bottom need goals in order to beat the drop. Robbie Keane may seem like the perfect solution. But goals are equally important at the top of the League. Aren’t Liverpool, Manchester City (although with Dzeko on the way, perhaps not) and dare I say it, Chelsea in dire need of a proven striker?

Is there a perception that Keane can’t cut it at the highest level anymore? I can’t help but feel that if Spurs gave Robbie a decent chance he’d prove that he’s still got what it takes. He’s certainly a better footballer than, say, Peter Crouch. He may be older, but he’s still got a few years left at the top of his game.

Robbie Keane would be an excellent purchase for the likes of Birmingham City. In fact, I’m sure his acquisition alone will be enough to keep them in the Premier League. But Robbie Keane must prove that he’s still ambitious by seeking a move to as big a club as possible.

Aston Villa boss Gerard Houllier confessed that the club were interested in signing the striker some time back. You can’t help but feel that Keane would be a perfect fit at a club like Villa. They remain an ambitious side who need a decent striker. With Keane in tow, I wouldn’t be surprised if Aston Villa finished the season on a high note.

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What’s your take? Can Keane still compete at the top of the game?

For more footballing debate and discussion please feel free to follow @ThePerfectPass on Twitter.

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Tottenham Hotspur boss Andre Villas-Boas is resigned to losing playmaker Luka Modric to Real Madrid, and is interested in buying Joao Moutinho from Portoas a replacement, reports Talk Sport.

Villas-Boas has been a long term admirer of Moutinho, who he worked with at Porto, and was impressed with the 25 year olds performances at Euro 2012.

The departure of Modric to the Bernabeu alongside Rafael Van Der Vaart’s rumoured return to Hamburg could see the Spurs midfield overhauled, as the signing of Moutinho would see him join Gylfi Sigurdsson at White Hart Lane.

However, the new Spurs boss was quick to state; ‘Those sort of players will always be interesting to us. It doesn’t mean it’s the only target we are looking at’. It would seem Villas-Boas is eager to fill Modric’s boots with an equally capable player, but Moutinho is not necessarily the only candidate.

Porto are currently suffering from financial instability are set to be aware of Spurs’ interest in Moutinho, but have slapped a £31.5 million price tag on their number 8. This will mean that the funds Spurs generate from Luka Modric’s transfer would be key to the deal going through.

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I was never really sure why Harry Redknapp was professed to be so interested in West Ham ’s midfield-general Scott Parker . It strikes me that despite his quality, Tottenham just don’t need another body in that area of the park. Thus, I was relieved to hear Harry’s recent quotes that suggested Tottenham ’s interest in Parker had bottomed out.

Parker isn’t expected to be a West Ham player for much longer, following the Hammer’s descent down into the Championship and is thought to be seeking further Premier League action. Aston Villa are rumoured to have made a £7m bid for Parker, whilst Chelsea are thought to be interested in bringing the English International back to Stamford Bridge.

Parker’s name had also appeared in regular conjunction with Tottenham and Redknapp has made no secret of his desire to bring him to White Hart Lane. Thanks to the finances, however, Redknapp appears to have admitted that such a move would not be financially viable. He told the Sunday Mirror:

“If you take into account the fee of around £8m, signing on fees and wages you’re talking about a £30m deal. There is no way the club would sanction a deal for a 30-year-old who would have no resale value at the end of his contract.”

There has been talks of a potential loan move but I hope that there’s no reality behind them. Even with Sandro ’s injury Spurs have plenty of options in that area of the park. Rafael van der Vaart can be pulled back into the centre of the park to play alongside Luka Modric . Then there’s Tom Huddlestone who deserves more game time.

When Sandro returns from injury there’ll be plenty of competition for places in the centre of midfield without having Scott Parker in the squad. Let’s not forget that a loan move also wouldn’t be cheap for Tottenham. Parker’s wages are pretty substantial and West Ham have hinted that a loan move could come with a potential fee.

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At the moment, Tottenham just don’t have a need for another central-midfielder. I don’t doubt that he’s talented and plays with passion and grit, but Tottenham already have players on their books with these qualities and more. That’s why, I, for one am glad that Harry has hinted that Tottenham won’t be making a move for Parker.

Read more of Harry’s articles at This is Futbol

Having reportedly given Avram Grant 3 games to save his job at West Ham (although he is apparently none the wiser) David Gold and David Sullivan, have finally set out a time table for the Israeli based on performances and not on an inexplicable, unwavering loyalty to the 55 year-old. I have always advocated that Grant should retain his job on merit and not on a 5-year plan that the Davids had set out, and having seen West Ham through their worst start to a Premier League season, currently sitting rock bottom of the Premier League having played one more game than all their nearest rivals, Grant has got to go.

The appointment of Grant turned heads in the summer, and logic would tend to dictate, when you have a side that avoided relegation by the skin of their teeth last year, appointing a man whose most recent appointment ended in relegation is not really conducive to bettering a side’s fortunes. Add to that some fairly ill-advised and unlucky signings in the summer and overall you have a recipe for a club, that, if put in the Premier League oven for a season, will come out a mid-table Championship side. Nevertheless, it was only fair to give the Israeli some time to prove himself.

However, enough is enough, forget three games, Grant needs to go now, and a new appointment made so that they can bring their own players and style of play to the club over January, ready to launch mission impossible over the dying months of the season.

West Ham appear to be a mess on all levels, from the circus at the top, to the performances on the pitch, and, unfortunately Avram adds to this mess instead of offsetting it. This may have been Avram’s fresh start after inheriting success with Chelsea and failure with Portsmouth, but the experiment is surely over for him, and it is back to the drawing board for each party.

An uphill struggle is a gross understatement when applied to West Ham’s season to come, but if they are going to achieve the highly unlikely and stay in the top flight, then Grant has got to go, sooner, rather than later, and he needs to be astutely replaced, otherwise the Davids can put their long-term plans for the club in the bin, as they will be devastated by short-term disaster.

If you liked this and woul dlike to read more, then why not check out my blogs, or follow me on Twitter.

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Use your FREE £20 to bet on Avram’s successor!

AC Milan’s decision to release Mathieu Flamini back into the footballing wilderness yesterday may spark up some interest from fans of his former club Arsenal. Many will be using him to illustrate the point that leaving the red of half of North London for pastures greener does not always work out (Mr Van Persie take note). Others may well see it as an opportunity for the 28 year old to put a red and white shirt on again.

But is it worth Arsenal’s trouble? He became a highly regarded defensive midfielder during his original spell, but after turning his back on the Gunners for higher wages at the San Siro, his commitment to the North London club can be brought into question.

It is no secret to many that holding midfield is an area Arsenal could do well to strengthen. The inconsistency of Alex Song last season was originally met with speculation regarding the signing of Rennes’ Yann M’Villa as a replacement, and now Mathieu Flamini could be in the picture as a free transfer to M’Villa’s £17 million price tag.

A problem for Arsenal could be Flamini’s wage demands. One of the reasons why he left the Emirates in the first place, talks with Milan in renewing a contract broke down as they wanted him to take a wage cut. Something Arsenal are also keen for their players to do, their reduction of the Emirates wage bill may not be in keeping with offering the 28 year old a salary big enough to entice him. Another issues lies in the Frenchman’s fitness levels. Having missed the whole of last season suffering from a knee injury, Arsenal will be taking a huge risk if they were to invest big wages on a player who could just find himself making up the numbers in the treatment room.

There is however, reason to suggest it would be a sensible move for both parties. Flamini’s form in his final season for the Gunners was impressive, putting him on the Rossoneri’s radar. For many, he was the gritty defensive midfielder Arsenal so badly craved and arguably, never replaced. His knowledge of the English game as well as his well suited physicality have already been proven, and he would not need the time to adjust the Premier League that a player such as M’Villa may find himself requiring.

There is no denying Flamini’s talent. Having already proved himself in the Premier League, he was then at times, a first team regular in AC Milan’s Serie A team. Should injuries not take their toll, the recapturing of the 28 year old may prove to be a controversial but shrewd piece of business for the Gunners.

Whether or not Arsenal fans would be happy too see Mathieu Flamini back in their side would all depend on whether or not the gamble would pay off. After leaving North London in 2008, Flamini claimed Arsenal had ‘missed their chance’; well they just might get another chance with the Frenchman.

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Former Manchester United captain, Gary Neville, will begin his new career at the start of next season, replacing Andy Gray as Sky Sports’ chief pundit. One half of England’s infamous sibling duo, Gary has proclaimed that, “now I have retired this feels like the perfect way for me to stay involved in football and I am looking forward to bringing my 19 years of match experience into television.”

Neville has appeared sporadically as a pundit for Sky during lengthy injury spells and, based on his playing style, will probably look to cause controversy and provoke debate as an analyst. Before he starts his new job, Neville should take a look at some famous former players who have made the move from dressing-room bench to studio sofa with varying results. Here is a list of the ten most inept pundits who made the same career shift as Neville and failed to utilise their playing experience for imparting knowledge of the game…

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Click on Lawro below to see the Top TEN

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List compiled by Josh Sheridan