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Boss Harry Redknapp has dropped a major hint that Tottenham Hotspur will utilise the loan market to try and strengthen their squad before the transfer window shuts.

Spurs continue to be linked with moves to sign Manchester City striker Craig Bellamy and AC Milan's Dutch frontman Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, but Redknapp is unlikely to pay out big money to land any of his targets.

He told the Daily Mirror:"I can see loans happening. I've got three players in mind that would not cost a lot of money.

"If we can pull off the deals you are talking about £8million or £9million for three players. Loans would certainly be a real possibility.

"People are going to loan players from all over the world, there will be loads because clubs are struggling to pay the wages. There will be high earners they have to loan out."

Meanwhile, Redknapp has dismissed recent rumours suggesting that he could be prepared to allow England striker Peter Crouch to leave White Hart Lane.

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He added: "Peter Crouch is going nowhere. He is definitely staying."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

Wojciech Szczesny has stated that Arsenal are not over-reliant on Robin van Persie, and despite his goalscoring prowess are not a one man team.

The Netherlands international has been in red hot form this season, and has scored 31 goals in his last 30 games.

Despite the attacker playing a key part in the North London club’s revival from a slow start this campaign, the Polish stopper feels that the Emirates Stadium team have a lot more to offer than one in-form striker.

“I don’t think we are over-reliant on him,” the keeper told The Sun.

“We’ve got some fantastic players in this team and we work as a team. The whole team stuck together when we went 1-0 down against Fulham, we stuck together well.

“I don’t think we are a one-man team — we are a great all-round team,” he concluded.

Meanwhile, Arsene Wenger has admitted that he will field a number of fringe players against Manchester City in the Carling Cup on Tuesday night, resting the likes of Van Persie.

“I believe that some players are on the fringe of being really limited. I will rest some players, but I still want to play a team that has a chance to win the game,” the French coach told Arsenal Player.

“Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Emmanuel Frimpong will play, but I consider them to be first-team players.

“Park Chu-Young is adapting to the level he is facing here and he has another opportunity against Manchester City to show that he can do it.

“Yossi Benayoun has been absolutely fantastic, but we have so much choice in midfield and we play with three strikers. The chances for the midfielders are not so big and that is why he has not played as much as he deserves.

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“The attitude of all the players that came in has been great, everybody helps focus the team to win and he does that as well,” Wenger concluded.

By Gareth McKnight

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Portugal coach Paulo Bento insists he was satisfied with his side’s 1-1 draw in their international friendly against Chile in Leiria on Saturday.With new Chilean coach Claudio Borghi taking the reins for the first time, the visitors fell behind after 16 minutes when Manchester United winger Nani whipped in a corner that was headed in by Silvestre Varela.

But Matias Fernandez levelled proceedings for Chile four minutes before half-time to ensure honours remained even, and Bento insisted he was content with the commitment of his side, which missed the spark of the injured Cristiano Ronaldo.

“We played quite well but certainly better in the second half than in the first. We were more dangerous and more dominant than our opponents and we also had more desire to win,” Bento told RTP.

“It is understandable at times that the players will be tired but the team responded well and showed the right attitude.”

Bento was also buoyed by Friday’s 1-1 Euro 2012 qualifying draw between Group H rivals Denmark and Norway in Oslo, a result that leaves his side just three points adrift of leaders Norway

“We have to rely on ourselves to get the top spot in the group but we will have time to think about that objective,” he said.

I have always felt that agents were the lowest of the low in football and nothing has made me changed that view after picking up the paper and reading we have been linked with a certain Didier Drogba.

If ever there was a blatant attempt at Manchester City’s name being used to broker a deal elsewhere then this is it and thankfully the words of Thierno Seydi have been dismissed by a spokesman at the football club. Drogba is an exceptional footballer and there is no club in the world that wouldn’t want him, but realistically there is no chance of him leaving Chelsea, or Ancelotti letting him leave, so what was the agenda here apart from alerting the money men of Chelsea? If Drogba wants a new deal then approach Abramovich himself, instead of dragging our name into the equation.

“Today he’s at Chelsea. Maybe there will be surprises before August 31,

“I haven’t spoken to just anybody. The only contact I’ve had directly was with City,

“At his age I can no longer hide the financial aspect. The club that want Didier will have to meet the price.” (Sun)

Unfortunately the use of the name Manchester City has been used far too often for my liking of late and it is getting rather tiresome. From being a contributor to England’s failings this summer (believe it or not), to ruining the make-up of football (even though clubs like Chelsea and United have spent millions upon millions in the last decade), we are now a plaything for agents so they can tout their clients, or in this case attempt to get an improved deal at their respective football clubs.

Written By Don Thomas

Click on image to see a gallery of the BEST BABES at the World Cup this summer

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Liverpool attacker Craig Bellamy has admitted that he is glad to be back at Anfield for a second spell, and has a good feeling about the club under Kenny Dalglish.

The Welshman spent an ill-fated spell at the Merseyside club in 2006-07, and has revealed that he was not comfortable under Rafa Benitez’s guidance.

“Sometimes it’s not quite as romantic as we all like to make it out to be,” Bellamy told The Telegraph.

“I was in the office speaking to Rafa, speaking about certain things and it didn’t feel right. If it was not Liverpool FC, I wouldn’t have signed. I didn’t feel right about the positions I was going to be used in and thought I was being signed because I was the right price at the right time.

“I do go on instinct and my gut feeling, and that was a time when I went against it. I ended up signing just for one reason, because it was Liverpool. I just thought we were on different wavelengths to what I felt I was as a player and how I would be involved at Liverpool. We were two different people on the way Liverpool should go about their business. But he was the manager – he had his own views.

“This now feels right. This is everything I wanted from the first time I was here. I’d never sound negative to Rafa or Gerard Houllier because they were outstanding for the club, but this was what I grew up with.

“I watched Liverpool towards the end of last year, I watched the way they were playing, and this is what I’ve supported, the pass and moving, the free-flowing football. How Liverpool go about their business now feels like how it must have been in the past. To me, this feels like Liverpool again, and the opportunity to be a part of that was just too big of a deal to turn down,” he concluded.

Bellamy played a part in Liverpool’s 2-1 win over Chelsea on Sunday, and will be motivated to take on former club Manchester City this weekend.

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By Gareth McKnight

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Aston Villa boss Gerard Houllier has defended making eight changes to his side before Wednesday’s 3-0 loss at Manchester City in the FA Cup.The French manager opted to leave the likes of Marc Albrighton, Ashley Young, Stewart Downing, Nigel Reo-Coker and Robert Pires warming the bench at City of Manchester Stadium, effectively conceding the fifth-round tie to a near-full strength City.Yaya Toure, Mario Balotelli and David Villa all found the net for the hosts, who advance to face Reading in the quarter-finals.Houllier, who came in for criticism for his team selection after the match, felt his top players would have made little difference against City.”I knew that you would ask that,” Houllier said when quizzed on the thinking behind his eight changes.”We started the team with Emile Heskey and Gaby Agbonlahor and Nathan Delfouneso, who is an Under-21 international, so that attack was practically three internationals.””We have quality and we use it. I don’t think Ashley Young or Stewart Downing would have avoided the first goal, which was very unfortunate.””After being down to 1-0 it was difficult. We have to acknowledge that we were beaten by a team that is better than ours at the moment.””I don’t think we had a bad game. I admit that we didn’t hurt them enough (but) the score is very flattering for them.”City boss Roberto Mancini defended Houllier against criticism, saying he would have done the same if it were not for injuries.”Gerard has experience. He knows it is impossible to play with the same players every three days,” Mancini said.”I don’t have seven or eight players to bring in. If I did, I would do the same.”Mancini was particularly pleased with the efforts of Italian striker Mario Balotelli, who played up front on his own and netted City’s second goal on 25 minutes.”I took a risk to play only Mario up front, but Mario played well and scored a fantastic goal,” Mancini said.”I was very pleased with the overall performance. This game was very important for us.”

Manchester City will do everything they can to stop Real Madrid enticing Carloz Tevez to the Spanish capital.

Argentina international Tevez is believed to be the subject of a £40million bid from Real, just 12 months after City persuaded the striker to move to Eastlands rather than remain at Manchester United.

Real signed Tevez's international team-mate Angel di Maria on Monday and The Sun reports that they have now turned their attention to a player who scored twice in Argentina's 3-1 victory against Mexico in the last-16 stage of the World Cup on Sunday.

However, a club source was quoted in the newspaper as saying: "Carlos is going nowhere. He's happy here and we're looking forward to welcoming him back next month."

City have already snapped up Hamburg star Jerome Boateng this summer and are set to confirm the captures of Barcelona midfielder Yaya Toure and Valencia winger David Silva.

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Tevez found the net 29 times in 43 appearances for City last term.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

Long before Roman Abramovich’s millions bought the subsequent title wins under Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti; a well known Dutchman got the ball rolling at Stamford Bridge by landing Chelsea’s first trophy in 26 years. Ruud Gullit was one of the first foreigners to arrive in the Premier League, when Glenn Hoddle snapped him up from Milan and it didn’t take him long to get immersed by the English game.

Gullit took the reins at Stamford Bridge when the national job came calling for Hoddle and provided the foundations of what has been a successful 15 years in West London.

“It was the beginning of winning things again, so it was great for Chelsea for that reason. I remember also at the beginning it was very difficult to play the way that we wanted. We were trying to keep possession all the time, and the crowd wanted the ball into the box as quickly as possible. We tried to do something different because when you are in possession the opposition can’t do anything. At the start, the fans had difficulty with that but later on they accepted it because we started to win. Therefore it was a great beginning for the club.”

The Dutchman believes that the influx of foreign players has been positive for English football, as both sets of players were able to pick up attributes to benefit their game. A firm balance was struck at Chelsea during his time and was one of the reasons for their success:

“The thing is, we had a good mixture between English and foreign players. The foreign players were learning from the English, who had a different way than they played in Italy or France, so for that reason they had to adapt to the quickness and the physicality of the game, but keeping also the technique and the tactical awareness. So we were learning from the English and the English were learning from us, so it was a good mixture. We also had Mark Hughes, who played a very British style but had experience of playing abroad. Dennis Wise was the best example of a player who grew with the team because he ended up playing for the national team.”

Obviously one topic that has engulfed Chelsea fans in the past week is the proposed decision to move from Stamford Bridge and to a new stadium close by. Gullit believes that it is important that the Blues increase their capacity, but not if it means they move away from the Chelsea area.

“The problem is the capacity at Stamford Bridge – they can’t build more. At the same time, they need to stay in their local area because that is why they are called Chelsea. Where do you have space for a 60,000 capacity stadium in Chelsea? Earls Court is a possibility, but it’s not Chelsea. If you are looking to the future it is a good thing to have a bigger stadium and more income – but if you cannot do it in Chelsea then it’s a problem. It’s a good thing that the fans have a say in the matter (through their ownership of the Stamford Bridge pitch) and I hope ultimately they get to decide what happens.”

For more insight from Ruud Gullit and other leading managers plus exclusive Barclays Premier League highlights go to www.yahoo.co.uk/sport

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Marseille moved to second in Ligue 1 with a 2-1 triumph over Saint-Etienne at the Stade Velodrome on Saturday.The match was poised as a battle between fourth and sixth prior to kick-off, with Marseille leading Saint-Etienne by four points as both sides search for a Champions League berth for next season.After a goalless opening hour, Marseille broke the deadlock in the 68th minute through Lucho Gonzalez, who found the back of the net after Andre-Pierre Gignac had cut the ball back into his path.Striker Loic Remy doubled the hosts’ advantage 11 minutes later when he tapped in a partially-blocked shot, before Christophe Landrin pulled a goal back late for the visitors.Valenciennes produced a late fightback to secure a 2-2 draw away to Caen.Benjamin Nivet and Sambou Yatabare put Caen two up at the Stade Michel d’Ornano, and they were on track for a vital victory to lift them above Valenciennes on the table.But Gregory Pujol set up a dramatic finish with an 80th minute goal, before Steven Langil broke Caen hearts when he equalised in the 88th minute for the visitors.Brest ensured Monaco would remain in the relegation zone with a 2-0 win at the Stade Francis-Le Ble.The home side went ahead in the 14th minute through Jonathan Ayite, and the striker netted his second late on after Monaco’s Adriano Pereira was dismissed in the 89th minute.Sochaux shot back to form with a 3-2 away win over Lens, turning around a run of one win in seven league games.Both sides played more than half the match with 10 men, but it was all Sochaux early as Nicolas Maurice-Belay and Modibo Maiga netted in the opening half-hour.Lens pulled a goal back in the 36th minute via Issam Jemaa, before Sochaux’s Kevin Anin and Lens’ Toifilou Maoulida were sent off in the 42nd minute.Alaeddine Yahia put Lens back on level terms in the 59th minute, as they looked for a point that would have moved them above 18th-placed Monaco.But Ryad Boudebouz produced the winner for Sochaux in the 66th minute.Auxerre and Arles drew 1-1, a result that helps neither side in their respective relegation battles, with Arles still rooted to the bottom of the table 14 points behind 19th-placed Lens.

Portsmouth have confirmed the appointment of Steve Cotterill as their new manager.

Cotterill has agreed a three-year contract at the recently relegated Premier League outfit after deciding to leave former club Notts County last month.

The 45-year-old former Cheltenham Town and Burnley boss helped guide the Magpies to promotion from League Two but left after just four months at the helm.

Portsmouth were on the lookout for a new manager after Avram Grant left at the end of the Premier League season to take the reins at West Ham United.

"Steve is the perfect fit for the rebuilding job we want to do here," Pompey chief executive David Lampitt told the club's official website.

"He's talented, ambitious, energetic and positive, with a very good footballing CV, coming here on the back of a great achievement at Notts County.

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"We've got lots of challenges ahead and like the rest of us here at the club Steve is ready to tackle them head on to bring stability and long-term success to Pompey."

Cotterill's appointment comes just one day after the club moved a step closer to coming out of administration after creditors voted in favour of accepting the terms of a Company Voluntary Agreement.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email