McHugh hungrier than ever for goals in swansong season

When Athlone Town take to the pitch at Finn Park on Friday night they will be well aware of the threat posed by the home side’s veteran striker Kevin McHugh who revealed he is as hungry as ever for goals in what is his final season in League of Ireland football.

McHugh fired in a trademark effort to salvage a draw for Finn Harps against UCD last week, a result which has Ollie Horgan’s men sitting atop the First Division table, one point ahead of Friday night’s visitors to Ballybofey.

The 35-year-old has been terrorising defences across Ireland since making a goal-scoring debut for Harps in a cup match against fellow Donegal side Fanad United in August 1998 while shortly after, he broke his League of Ireland duck against Cork City.

Almost 17 years on, McHugh is still one of the deadliest finishers around and he explained that the secret behind his success in front of goal is simple - hunger.

“I think everything no matter what sport you play comes down to hunger,” he said.

“I don’t care how strong somebody is or how fit they are if you’ve got that hunger mixed with a bit of talent then it can bring you a long, long way.

“I have got the hunger to score goals and that is what keeps me going.

“I like creating and scoring goals and that is what I’ve always done and it’s what I get a buzz from.”

McHugh announced that 2015 will be his final season lacing up the boots and when those laces connected sweetly with the ball at the Belfield Bowl last Friday, they sent it flying into the top corner of the net for the 167^th time in the Killea man’s League of Ireland career.

Twelve of those goals came during a spell in the red and white stripes of Derry City in the mid-2000s while McHugh also spent a season with Irish League side Linfield in 2009.

However, having bagged 106 league goals in 184 appearances during his first spell at Finn Park, McHugh returned to the North West to don the blue and white of Harps for a second spell in 2010.

Since then, the frontman has consistently found the back of the net despite the Donegal outfit’s relative struggles in recent years and he now sits behind only the great Brendan Bradley in the all-time goalscoring charts for Harps with 178 goals.

Despite his status as a club legend, McHugh is not one for getting carried away with plaudits but is instead focussed on ensuring that he enjoys every goal and every game during his final campaign.

“I think there is definitely a different buzz [this season] during every minute I play,” said McHugh, who is ninth on the all-time League of Ireland goalscoring charts while Bradley leads the way with 235 goals.

“Even travelling to different grounds you’re thinking ‘this could be the last time I play here’.

“You’re looking to play every minute the best you can and I know every player should have that mind-set anyway but it doesn’t always happen.

“In terms of [statistics] I’m not one for really keeping up-to-date but people always tell me.

“I like to look at these things when you are finished [playing].

“It’s really nice to be thought of like that [club legend] obviously but it’s hard to think about stuff like that when you are still playing.

“I’m just concentrating on getting on with business at the minute.”

Last season saw McHugh register just twice in the league in what was an injury-hit campaign but just five games into this one he has already matched that tally.

With new French signing Wilfried Tagbo and the returning Sligo Rovers loanee Ruairi Keating also registering two goals apiece in the league to date, McHugh acknowledged that his status as the elder statesman of the Harps strikeforce means that he has to manage his playing time and tailor it to suit the needs of the team.

“There’s no way at 35 that you can play week in week out and expect to be playing at the same level,” he said.

“It will be a case of starting one or two games here and there and just acknowledging my energy levels.

“I am comfortable in that role.

“I think if I wasn’t I would be no good to the team or the management.

“Rarely now do teams play with two up front all the time so I totally understand that the likes of Keating and big Wilfried would be more suitable for that kind of a role.”

“It’s about trying to get the best out of me as well.”

Harps made a similarly promising start to the 2014 campaign but ultimately ended up finishing a disappointing fifth as they finished well off the pace in the hunt for a return to the Premier Division for the first time since 2008.

Despite three wins and two draws from their opening five games of this term, the Harps players and management are not happy with performances so far according to McHugh, who said that the visit of Eddie Wallace’s side on Friday will be the toughest test of the season to date.

“Athlone have come down from the Premier Division and have kept all their experienced players,” added McHugh, ahead of the game which will be the 100^th competitive meeting between the two clubs.

“We are at home so we will be expected to take the game to them.”

Mohan revelling in magic moment as draw for UEFA U17 Championships looms

Tom Mohan has described guiding the Republic of Ireland to qualification for the UEFA U17 Championships as the most satisfying moment of his coaching career ahead of travelling to Bulgaria for Thursday’s draw for the tournament.

The Young Boys in Green secured a first appearance at the Championships since 2008 by finishing runners-up in their Elite Qualifying Round in Poland last week despite going down to a 1-0 defeat to the hosts in their last outing.

However, an opening day draw with Greece followed up by an impressive display against Belarus was enough to see Mohan’s side qualify as one of the best runners-up and join 15 other nations in the draw taking place in Pomorie for the expanded Championships which run from May 6 to 22.

“It definitely was a proud moment,” said Mohan.

“When you’re managing the team there is a lot more onus on you and a lot more pressure so no doubt about it was a magic moment to qualify and get the players through to a European finals where we will be playing against the cream of Europe.

“The likes of Spain, The Netherlands, France and Russia will be there and that’s where the players want to be at this level and testing themselves in that sort of company.”

Two wins over Gibraltar and The Faroe Islands and a draw with Scotland saw the Irish top their Qualifying Round group last September to set up the final six-day tournament in Poland.

Going into the final day, the Young Boys in Green knew that only a heavy defeat would see them eliminated on goal difference but Mohan revealed that nerves were still somewhat frayed as the other game between Belarus and Greece was still being played, eventually finishing 0-0.

“Once we knew that we didn’t suffer a heavy defeat ourselves then we were confident that the other result would not have that big an impact but I suppose you can never be sure until the final whistle goes,” said the 41-year-old from Aughadrumsee in County Fermanagh.

“With seven or eight minutes of injury time in the other game you never know what might happen but we got there.”

Despite having to do without some key players in the form of the injured trio of Jake Doyle-Hayes, Steven Kinsella and Anthony Scully, former League of Ireland stalwart Mohan paid tribute to the application and dedication of the 18 youngsters who travelled to eastern Europe.

Six of the squad were home-based players including Ringmahon Rangers stopper Caoimhin Kelleher who pulled off a string of crucial saves in the final game against the hosts that ensured the Irish side held onto second spot in the group.

Lucan United striker Jamie Aherne bagged a brace in a 3-1 win over Belarus adding to a strike by Josh Barrett two days after the Reading striker had rounded off a superb two-goal comeback against Greece from the penalty spot to salvage a draw against the eventual group winners.

“It’s a dream for them kids to wear an Ireland jersey and to be successful and get to a finals of a major competition is really great for them,” said Mohan, who was part of Sean McCaffrey’s coaching set-up when the Republic of Ireland last competed in the UEFA U17 Championships in Turkey seven years ago.

“It is also testament to the work of everyone involved in the development of football in the country from the grassroots up.”

Mohan spent 11 seasons plying his trade in the League of Ireland with Derry City and Finn Harps before a short spell with Longford Town was curtailed by injury in 2005.

By then the combative midfielder had already begun climbing the coaching ladder completing his Level 1 coaching badge and UEFA ‘B’ Licence before hanging up his boots.

He then went on to do his UEFA ‘A’ Licence while last year he undertook his UEFA Pro Licence.

He took over the reins of the U17 team from John Morling in 2012 having being part of the international underage set-up since 2007.

Mohan is well aware of the task at hand when competition gets underway in Bulgaria in May but says his players will not be overawed when they potentially go up against the likes of reigning champions England as well as past winners France, Spain, Russia, the Netherlands and Germany.

“At the end of the day we have some very good and extremely talented players in our squad too and it will be a great occasion for them to go out and prove how good they are and challenge themselves against top players,” added the former Northern Ireland Schoolboys international.

“We are not just going to be happy to turn up and be there, we want to compete and do our best against the best.

“In terms of expectation, we cannot look beyond our first game and whoever we get we are going to have to do a lot of preparation and work to ensure we are ready for the challenge.”

Martinez mirroring Moyes with dreaded second-season syndrome

Derided by fans and often treated by managers as an irritating sideshow, next week’s Europa League clash with Dynamo Kiev will provide Everton manager Roberto Martinez with much needed shelter from the Premier League storm that is brewing around Goodison Park.

The Toffees will play host to the Ukrainians next Thursday after last week’s emphatic swatting aside of Young Boys of Berne 7-2 on aggregate in the round-of-32.

However, it is Everton’s wretched domestic form that is threatening to define Martinez’s second season on the blue-half of Merseyside.

Wednesday’s 2-0 defeat at a resurgent Stoke was the seventh in their last 12 top-flight matches, a run that includes only one win and none in their last five outings.

That form has left Everton sitting in 14^th place just six points above the relegation zone, with 28 points from 28 games - the club’s lowest points return ever at this stage of a Premier League season.

Martinez said he understood the fans frustration following the defeat to Mark Hughes’ side but called on the fans to pull together and support the club and his players, adding: "We have got 30 points to fight for and we are going to give our lives to get as many as we can.

“With our support and everyone at the club, this is the moment to get together."

The Spaniard complained that his side were “missing energy” due to the demands of playing five games in two weeks and it showed at The Britannia.

With six of their final 10 games at home, the uber-positive Martinez insists that he and his players are “not looking down” despite winning only three games at Goodison Park this campaign.

Roberto Martinez is overseeing a wretched Premier League campaign with Everton

Blues fans of a certain vintage will have vivid memories of a last-gasp final day comeback against Wimbledon in 1994 that preserved Everton’s status as never having being relegated from the top-flight.

Mike Walker’s side looked doomed after conceding two goals in the opening 20 minutes against the Londoners while relegation rivals Ipswich Town were clinging on against Blackburn Rovers for the solitary point needed to avoid the drop.

However, a Graham Stuart penalty and a Barry Horne screamer levelled the match before Stuart etched his name into Everton folklore with a scrappy winner that ensured salvation.

A year on from dicing with the drop, Paul Rideout headed the winner in the 1995 FA Cup final win over Manchester United to bring European football back to Goodison Park for the first time since the ban on English clubs was lifted following the Heysel Stadium disaster in 1985.

Dutch giants Feyenoord ended Joe Royle’s side’s interest in the now defunct Cup Winners Cup at the second round stage and it would be 10 more years before Everton competed in European football again, this time under the guidance of David Moyes.

The Scot had led Everton to the dizzy heights of fourth place in the Premier League in 2005 - his third full season in charge - after taking over a struggling side from compatriot Walter Smith in March 2002.

The Toffees’ European adventure under Moyes was over before it even started though with defeats to Villarreal in the Champions League qualifying round and a first round exit to Dinamo Bucharest in the UEFA Cup.

Despite this continental disappointment, Moyes’ standing with the Goodison faithful remained relatively strong - something which cannot be said of the current manager, who trudged passed the away end of the Britannia Stadium on Wednesday night to a chorus of boos.

Martinez may well feel he has earned some leeway with the fans by delivering post-Christmas European football to Goodison Park for only the third time in three decades.

However, a dreadful run in the Premier League has seen Everton pick up just seven points from a possible 36 while in the same period cross-city rivals Liverpool have amassed 30 points to sit nine places and 23 points clear of The Blues.

League Two’s Bradford City have beaten more Premier League teams than Everton in 2015.

This horrendous league form has led to increasing fears of a repeat of the 2012-13 season which saw Martinez guide Wigan Athletic to a first ever FA Cup triumph but relegation to The Championship.

Two weeks after that famous Latics win at Wembley, Everton chairman Bill Kenwright anointed the 41-year-old Catalan as the man to replace Moyes, who headed off to Old Trafford for an ill-fated spell in charge of Manchester United.

While Moyes floundered in the giant shadow cast by Sir Alex Ferguson, his replacement on Merseyside could do no wrong as a rebranded Everton suddenly became everyone’s favourite ‘other team’, playing an attractive brand of football which secured fifth place last term.

Romelu Lukaku looked like a £28million pound striker while the acquisition of Gareth Barry on loan from Manchester City was hailed as a masterstroke by Martinez whose quick-passing attacking style got the best out of flying fullbacks Leighton Baines and Seamus Coleman while Steven Naismith and Ross Barkley sparkled as central attackers.

Ross Barkley has failed to build on a promising season last year for The Toffees

However, a year on, and it appears - at least on the domestic front - that teams have gotten wise to the Martinez philosophy and so far the Spaniard has failed to come up with an effective antidote.

Rewind just over a decade and the same plaudits were being bestowed on Moyes whose first season in the hotseat saw Everton finish seventh in 2003 and narrowly miss out on European football.

Moyes began the following campaign as the Manager of the Year but ended it fourth-from-bottom overseeing Everton’s worst ever finish in the Premier League era on 39 points.

The Toffees beat the drop by six points in 2004 - the same margin they currently sit outside the bottom three by.

Over the coming weeks Everton face four of the sides below them in the run-in and by the time Tottenham Hotspur visit on the final day of this season in May, Martinez, along with 35,000 Toffees, will be hoping for a less stressful afternoon than that famous day in May 1994.

‘He’s one of our own, he’s one of our own'…The curious case of Jimmy Greaves

Just over a week into his 76^th year, Jimmy Greaves will settle into an armchair somewhere  in Essex on Sunday afternoon to no doubt run a critical eye over the latest in a long line of would-be pretenders to his throne as Tottenham Hotspur’s greatest-ever goalscorer.

Harry Kane will stride out at Wembley carrying the hopes of the Spurs’ fans on his broad shoulders and he will lead the line against a Chelsea side that has already felt the full force of the 21-year-old’s attacking prowess.

Kane began 2015 as he has subsequently carried on, in spectacular fashion, with two goals and an assist to inspire Spurs to a 5-3 win against Chelsea on New Year’s Day.

The young striker has further cemented his status as a fans’ favourite at White Hart Lane by netting a second-half brace to win the North London derby while last weekend he fired home an injury-time equaliser against another of the capital’s Premier League contingent, West Ham United.

At half-time on Sunday, the White Hart Lane stadium announcer called on fans to pay tribute to Greaves to mark the former frontman’s 75^th birthday.

It is on occasions such as these that many fathers and grandfathers become all gooey-eyed and nostalgic as the returning hero is presented to the crowd.

‘What a player he was’ or ‘They don’t make ‘em like that anymore son’, is normally the chatter as minds wander back to the ‘good old days’.

However, the younger generation of fans who hold the cockerel close to their heart would have been looking around forlornly for a glimpse of the great Greaves on Sunday.

The man who has rattled the back of the net more times than anyone else in Spurs’ history - 268 goals in 381 games - has not been back to this particular part of North London since being used as a makeweight in the transfer that saw Martin Peters swap the claret and blue of West Ham for the white of Spurs in 1970.

Jimmy Greaves has never attended a Spurs match since leaving the club in 1970

Greaves, a boyhood Spurs fan, had spent the previous nine seasons terrorising defences across England, Europe and beyond on his way to building a reputation as arguably the most potent and prolific goalscorer to come from these shores.

After spending an unhappy six months at AC Milan - where he registered nine goals - Spurs manager Bill Nicholson brought Greaves back to London for a record fee of £99,999 in December 1961.

Already boasting three hat-tricks on the international stage, the East End wonderkid signed for the Rossinieri following four stellar seasons at Chelsea, for whom he netted 132 times in 169 appearances after making a goal-scoring debut in 1957.

Greaves served notice of his phenomenal appetite for goals the previous season by reportedly hitting the target more than 100 times for the Chelsea Youth side.

The first of Greaves’ 44 England goals came on his debut against Peru in 1959.

He would go on to represent his country 57 times, scoring a record six hat-tricks and remains the most prolific scorer in England’s history in terms of goals-per-games.

Wembley provided Greaves with the most bittersweet moment of his career as he was forced to watch Geoff Hurst gain immortality with a World Cup Final hat-trick in 1966.

Greaves began the tournament as England’s first choice striker but got injured in a group game against France forcing him to miss the quarter-final and semi-finals.

Although declared fit for the final, his replacement Hurst had impressed Sir Alf Ramsey enough to keep his place for the clash with the West Germans and the rest as they say…

Three games and one goal later, Greaves called an end to his international career in August 1967 primarily because his flamboyant persona both on and off the field did not sit well with the regimented style of Ramsey.

Just four years later, at the age of 31, a disillusioned Greaves retired from the game for good after spending one season at Upton Park.

Despite making a brief George Best-esque return, turning out for the likes of Brentwood and Barnet, Greaves admits he spent most of the 1970s battling alcoholism.

However, he claims to have not touched a drink since 1978 and a relatively successful media career followed including weekly columns in both The Sun and The Sunday People.

For a generation of fans he is best remembered as one half of the Saint and Greavsie duo on ITV when he and former Liverpool striker Ian St John hosted a Saturday lunch-time show which ended in1992 when Sky secured rights to the newly formed Premier League.

Harry Kane has impressed in his first season in the Tottenham Hotspur starting line-up

In an ideal world, Sunday’s League Cup Final between the two clubs for whom Greaves plundered a combined total of 400 goals would seem a perfect way to mark the milestone birthday reached by the man who now follows the well-trodden path of many ex-pros on the after-dinner speaking circuit.

Greaves has reportedly declined an invitation to be officially inducted into the Spurs Hall of Fame more than once despite the efforts of many teammates and ex-players at the club to convince him otherwise.

Forty-five years after his departure from White Hart Lane Greaves is evidently still hurt by the way he was forced out of the club.

The Spurs fans will no doubt be bellowing out ‘He’s one of our own, he’s one of our own’ in homage to Kane during Sunday’s final, as the Walthamstow boy will be looking to continue a fine breakthrough season.

It remains a curious and somewhat shameful fact that perhaps the greatest Hotspur of them all will not be among the 90,000 spectators watching on at Wembley.

Swansea comeback shows Van Gaal’s philosophy still not getting through

After claiming in the build-up to today’s match at the Liberty Stadium that his players were finally getting to grips with his philosophy, Louis Van Gaal watched on as his Manchester United side crashed to a 2-1 defeat against a Swansea side who completed a first-ever league double over the visitors from Old Trafford.

Despite taking the lead through a crisp Ander Herrera strike, United’s defensive frailties were once again exposed when Ki-Sung Yueng levelled almost immediately before a second half Jonjo Shelvey shot spun off the head of Bafetimbi Gomis to hand the Swans a famous win.

In truth, Garry Monk’s side barely done enough to merit all three points as United dominated the possession stakes but the Welsh outfit will no doubt point to a solid and steadfast defensive display which was marshalled by the impressive Ashley Williams.

However, the home side were helped by another disjointed display from United, particularly in attack, where the returning Robin Van Persie looked well off the pace while Wayne Rooney, who was restored to his preferred role up front, endured a frustrating afternoon in South Wales.

Herrera was perhaps the brightest of United’s front six in the first half as he scampered into space on a number of occasions, linking up with makeshift right back Paddy McNair, but the youngster’s end product disappointed all too often.

Meanwhile, on the other side, it was a role reversal as Luke Shaw looked threatening time and again as he attacked Swansea right back Kyle Naughton, but it was Angel Di Maria who was sloppy in possession.

The one time that it did click for United resulted in Herrera finding the same corner of the net as he did in Monday’s FA Cup win over Preston North End.

The Spaniard fired beautifully in off Lucas Fabianski’s right-hand post just before the half-hour mark after Di Maria and Rooney linked up following a fine run by Shaw.

That was the sole contribution from Di Maria, who, after a bright start to his career in Manchester following his £60million switch from Real Madrid, has struggled of late to provide any significant attacking thrust.

No doubt Van Gaal will have reddened around the cheeks just two minutes later though as not for the first time this season United switched off at the back to allow Shelvey to fire a low in-swinging cross into the penalty area where Ki - who scored in Swansea’s opening day win at Old Trafford in August - guided the ball passed the despairing David De Gea.

Bafetimbi Gomis inadvertently scored the winning goal as Swansea completed a league double over Manchester United

With Antonio Valencia replacing McNair at the break United continued to dominate possession in the second half but a familiar pattern emerged as the Red Devils huffed and puffed but could not find any rhythm in the final third.

Swans’ stopper Fabianski comfortably gathered a Van Persie effort after he had played a neat one-two with Rooney but the 31-year-old Dutchman’s afternoon was summed up by his final 10 minutes which saw him hobble about with an injured ankle as United had made all their substitutions.

Earlier Van Persie had fired into the side netting while also seeing an effort in the first half graze the top of the crossbar.

At the other end, life without departed top-scorer Wilfried Bony continued at the Liberty Stadium with Gomis now assuming the main striking role for Monk’s men.

The Frenchman looked lively, particularly in the opening 30 minutes, and was a constant thorn in the United defence with his pace and direct running.

Indeed, the former Lyon hitman should have scored twice with two close range headers from corners - the first cleared off the line by Herrera while the second sailed over De Gea’s crossbar.

However, Gomis’ head was to prove the deciding factor in the end as he guided the ball, albeit inadvertently, passed De Gea after Shelvey picked the ball up in oceans of space 25 yards out before letting fly in the 73rd minute.

The final 20 minutes of the game saw United desperately chase an equaliser by reverting to what is becoming an all too familiar Plan B - namely hump it up to Marouane Fellaini and hope to pick up the scraps.

Meat and drink to Williams and co.

Its back to the philosophical drawing board for Van Gaal and United. 

Two-goal Villa provide biggest Cup shock of weekend in troubled season

While Callum Wilson’s injury-time strike was ultimately in vain as Bournemouth exited the FA Cup at Villa Park on Sunday it was the ninth goal scored by the Cherries on two visits to England’s second city this season.

Eddie Howe’s side thrashed Birmingham City 8-0 back in October and came into today’s fourth round tie with Aston Villa having remarkably scored the same number of goals in Birmingham than the Premier League strugglers had managed all season.

In a weekend of shocks, Andreas Weimann “rocketed” to the top of the Villa scoring charts with his fourth goal of the campaign as Paul Lambert’s side registered more than one goal in a game for only the third time this season.

Carles Gil’s beautiful long-range opener saw him join the likes of defenders Ciaran Clark and Alan Hutton as joint-third top scorer on one goal in what was the Spaniard’s full debut.

Bournemouth, who sit top of the Championship, are currently the highest scorers in English football plundering 57 goals in what could potentially be the greatest season in the club’s history.

In contrast, the claret and blue faithful have endured a wretched campaign so far with their side sitting three points outside the relegation zone and boasting the worst games-per-goal-ratio of any side in the top nine tiers of English football.

Before today, Villa had scored eight at home and only 12 in total in 24 matches.

The last time the Holte End cheered the ball hitting the back of the net was Christian Benteke’s late strike to see off Championship strugglers Blackpool in the previous round with today’s 2-1 victory representing Villa’s second win in nine games - both in the FA Cup.

The big Belgian also found the top corner with a superb curling effort to earn his side a 1-1 draw with Manchester United five days before Christmas - the last of Villa’s 11 league goals this season.

Despite enduring his worst run of form since his move from Genk in 2012, Benteke remains Villa’s prize asset.

The frontman has only managed three goals since his return from a long injury lay-off that saw him miss the opening two months of the season but if he manages to find any rhythm in front of goal during the remainder of the campaign it is hard to see how Villa can hold onto him.

Christian Benteke remains Villa's main source of goals

Since that home draw with United Villa have picked up only two points from a possible 15 thanks to 0-0 draws with Sunderland and Crystal Palace while going down to losses against Swansea City, Leicester City and Liverpool.

Before last weekend’s 2-0 defeat to Brendan Rodgers side, a section of the Villa support had called for a protest by boycotting their seats in the Holte End for the first eight minutes of the match to mark each year that American Randy Lerner had owned the club.

However, the protest mirrored the team’s attacking threat on the pitch - non-existent.

Prior to the game, Lambert had urged against the protest saying it would be counter-productive and called on fans to get behind the team in what has been an all too familiar rallying cry from the Scot not only this season but since he was handed the reins by Lerner in 2012.

The lack of a fan walk-out last weekend was not a ringing endorsement of Lambert from the Villa Park faithful however.

The former Norwich City boss does not take his seat in the home dug-out with any tangible backing from the crowd.

Rather, it sums up the apathy and absence of optimism amongst Villa fans who have seen their side post 15^th-place finishes during Lambert’s two seasons in charge.

Ten points from the first four games at the start of the current campaign had emboldened Lerner to hand Lambert a new four-year contract while the feel-good factor in those opening weeks also saw Gabriel Agbonlahor and Alan Hutton commit to long-term deals.

After impressing at the World Cup for The Netherlands, Ron Vlaar’s future in the claret and blue was in doubt but he also remains a Villa player.

As was the case in the summer of 2013 with Benteke, the fact that the best piece of transfer business conducted by Lambert was the retention of one of his main stars highlights Villa’s struggles in attracting the sort of player that will result in the club casting aside the now annual fear of relegation.

Just under £5million was spent on Colombian Carlos Sanchez last summer while Lambert also brought in the likes of Kieran Richardson and Aly Cissokho for next-to-nothing.

Joe Cole and Philippe Senderos were picked up for free while Manchester United misfit Tom Cleverley was signed on a season-long loan.

With the possible exception of Senderos and Sanchez - who have impressed sporadically - the summer acquisitions have been mediocre.

The £7million paid to Genk for Benteke's services remains the largest chunk of the £45million spent by Lambert since becoming Villa manager with the latest tranche going on the £3.25million acquisition of Gil from Valencia.

Paul Lambert is beginning to feel the wrath of Villa fans 

Lambert has been praised for unearthing the odd gem from the lower leagues such as Ashley Westwood who has performed admirably in Villa’s midfield since signing from Crewe Alexandra while Matthew Lowton has not embarrassed himself since making the step-up from Sheffield United in 2012.

The Villa fans have also been heartened by the promotion of academy players into the first team over the past few seasons through the likes of Ciaran Clark, Nathan Baker and Andreas Weimann.

However, that goodwill has been eroded through the increasing drudgery of the team’s play and some costly defensive mistakes over the last 18 months and the mood pervading Villa Park is beginning to turn hostile with Lambert the target of fan discontent.

It is to Lambert’s disadvantage that he is the sole conduit of fan ire as the club’s owner remains an infrequent visitor to Birmingham - September’s 3-0 loss to Arsenal was Lerner’s first home game in almost two years.

Handing his manager a new four-year deal points to the fact that Lerner believes Lambert is the man for the job but it is no secret that the American is looking to sell the club he acquired in 2006 for £63million.

The extent to which the former Cleveland Browns owner has scaled back spending on Aston Villa as he seeks a buyer is revealing.

Prior to walking out on the club in August 2010, Martin O’Neill spent £125 million of the American’s money in four seasons.

Over the last four years that has dropped to £90million with £18million of that being splashed out on Darren Bent - currently on loan at Derby County - by then manager Gerard Houllier in the January 2011 transfer window.

Meanwhile, the big transfer news at Villa Park prior to kick-off against Bournemouth was the extension of Fabian Delph’s contract until 2019…

Breaking news: Harry guaranteed at least one more deadline day appearance

It was with wearisome familiarity that the television in the corner of the room coughed out the words Redknapp, Queens Park Rangers and Tony Fernandes accompanied by the obligatory Sky Sports News yellow ticker informing us of the latest “breaking news” emanating from the West London club.

QPR chairman Fernandes had just released a statement rubbishing suggestions that his manager was about to be handed his P45 declaring that “Harry is the best man to get us out of the position we currently find ourselves in.”

That position is second-from-bottom in the Barclays Premier League with Saturday’s 2-0 defeat to a less than convincing Manchester United, the 13^th loss from 22 games Redknapp has overseen while Marouane Fellaini and James Wilson’s second-half strikes were the 38^th and 39^th occasion that Rob Green has had to pick the ball out of his own net - the worst record in the division.

Afterwards Redknapp blamed an “insider” trying to destabilise the club when he was asked about the rumours of his potential sacking.

The 67-year-old also bemoaned his lack of striking options in the game against United which saw him start with Bobby Zamora and Charlie Austin up front while recent signing Mauro Zarate began from the bench and stayed there.

The Argentinian, who is on-loan from West Ham United, was overlooked in favour of Adel Taarabt to replace Leroy Fer with 20 minutes to go as QPR chased an equaliser on Saturday.

Zarate left Upton Park due to a lack of game-time and trust from Sam Allardyce and one can only imagine his mood when Moroccan Taarabt, who was publicly derided by Redknapp back in October for being “three-stone overweight” and “unfit to play”, was summoned instead to rescue the Rangers cause.

Despite often operating with Dutchman Fer and Chilean striker Eduardo Vargas out of position on the wings, QPR’s return of 23 goals is the highest in the bottom seven.

Aston Villa have scored less than half that amount of goals but sit three points and five places better off than the Loftus Road outfit.

Harry Redknapp has been hailed as the  man to lead QPR to safety by club chairman Tony Fernandes

Redknapp pointed out that his famed ability to wheel-and-deal in the transfer market will be curtailed to loanees in this window insisting that “I need another front man” - a phrase that will send a shudder down the spine of every Portsmouth fan trudging out of Fratton Park on Saturday after watching their side draw 1-1 with Burton Albion to remain ninth in League Two.

Following QPR’s record 10th straight defeat on the road against Burnley last weekend, Redknapp complained of having to rely on “seven or eight players [who played] in the Championship last year”.

Having been at the helm when QPR got relegated in May 2013, Redknapp did guide the club straight back up last season via the play-offs.

However, despite having arguably the biggest budget to play with in the Championship, QPR still finished well off the pace in the second tier last season while Sean Dyche guided Burnley to automatic promotion on a shoestring.

The Lancashire club spent £8million in the summer with £3million of that going on George Boyd from Hull City.

At the same time Redknapp forked out £10million to former club Tottenham Hotspur for the now crocked Brazilian Sandro, £8million to Norwich City to secure Fer while spending nearly £15million on Cardiff City duo Jordan Mutch and Stephen Caulker.

Additional transfer and loan fees brought QPR’s outlay to around £40million.

Jim White and Harry Redknapp look set to renew their transfer deadline day double-act on February 2

Mutch has struggled since moving to London while England international Caulker watched from the bench on Saturday alongside former England captain Rio Ferdinand as “Championship players” Richard Dunne and Clint Hill manned the centre of QPR’s defence.

Hill, Joey Barton and goalkeeper Robert Green were the only players in Saturday’s starting line-up whose signings pre-date Redknapp’s reign.

Since taking over from Mark Hughes in November 2012, he has signed 21 players.

Club owner Fernandes pointed out in yesterday’s statement: "This is Harry's squad of players…and we will do our best to strengthen where we can to give us the best possible chance."

It remains to be seen how much further the Malaysian is willing to stretch finances to back Redknapp from now until February 2 when the window closes.

The man himself joked in Saturday’s post-match press conference “Who will Sky have to interview through a car window if I am not here on transfer deadline day?”.

Over to you Jim White…

Cazorla stands tallest at Etihad in battle of little men

The sound of Mike Dean’s whistle at the Etihad Stadium was the cue for Arsenal players to celebrate their most significant result of the league campaign so far.

The sight of Santi Cazorla hitching a ride on the back of big Per Mertesacker in front of the jubilant away fans  was a fitting image to sum up the midfielder’s contribution over the preceding 95 minutes.

The Spaniard was head and shoulders above the rest as Arsene Wenger’s side remain a point outside the top four in the Barclays Premier League while inflicting a serious blow to the title ambitions of Manchester City.

Often accused of stubbornness and tactical inflexibility, Wenger showed that he can revert to Plan B as his side executed a perfect away performance.

The Gunners stifled City and subdued the home fans, who saw their side briefly threaten to emerge from the lethargy that enveloped the Etihad when they forced David Ospina into two smart stops from Sergio Aguero and Jesus Navas while the City winger also saw a fizzing low cross turned behind by the toenail of Laurent Koscielny in a 15 minute spell after half-time.

But that was as good as it got for the defending champions, who despite having 65 per cent of possession, were a shadow of the side that rampaged and rolled-over Arsenal in a 6-3 demolition in last season’s corresponding fixture.

While City’s intensity and penetration was unquestionably dimmed, not helped by the absence of the marauding power of Yaya Toure, the scars of that thrashing were not sufficient enough to inhibit the Arsenal players.

Instead, Wenger and his coaching staff learned from the harsh lessons of their last visit to the blue half of Manchester - as well as trips to Stamford Bridge and Anfield last year conceding 6 and 5 respectively - by setting out to frustrate and contain while utilising the counter-attacking prowess of Alexis Sanchez and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

That approach did not lend itself to the anticipated feast of free-flowing football but the contest was in no way diminished for it.

On the contrary, it was fascinating to see the transformation of a side built to attack, into one which was compact and resolute and was happy to cede possession to their opponents.

The deployment of the busy Francis Coquelin in front of the much maligned Arsenal back-four provided an extra layer of resistance that has been crushingly missing in many of the North London club’s visits to top-four rivals in recent seasons while the athleticism of Aaron Ramsey saw the Welshman popping up all over the pitch to intercept and disrupt.

As has been the case all season, the turbo-charged Sanchez never stopped running but the Chilean was unable to add to his 18 goals this season despite a stinging right-footed drive that elicited a smart stop from Joe Hart in the second half.

Santi Cazorla was the star man for Arsenal

By then, Arsenal were two goals to the good thanks to Cazorla.

The Spanish international expertly despatched a 24^th minute penalty after a lazy challenge from City captain Vincent Kompany upended Nacho Monreal.

Either side of that opening strike, Cazorla epitomised everything that was good about the visitors’ performance as he hassled and harried the City players while also orchestrating the sporadic Arsenal attacks with delightful simplicity and efficiency from a central position.

On 65 minutes, Cazorla pinpointed the well-groomed head of Olivier Giroud who sealed the deal with a straight forward finish passed the similarly quaffed Hart.

The 30-year-old then slalomed his way through four City challenges after sliding in to win back possession on the edge of his own area.

After making it over the halfway line he was eventually curtailed but his efforts were chorused by the travelling support who were belting out his name.

Coming into the game, the main talking point was who would win the battle between the South American dynamos of Aguero and Sanchez while the silky skills of Spain’s five-foot-nothing star David Silva were also expected to slice open the Arsenal backline.

Silva and Aguero cut frustrated figures at the end, with the latter only making his first start for the home side in six weeks and while Sanchez bubbled and bristled it was the diminutive Cazorla who left the biggest imprint on the Etihad turf.

Toothless United shows much work remains for Van Gaal

As Manchester United toiled unsuccessfully in search of an equalising goal against a resolute Southampton during Sunday’s Barclays Premier League clash, the expression on the face of the flat-capped Sir Alex Ferguson matched the general mood in the ground during what was a frustrating day for the majority of those inside the Theatre of Dreams.

From his now familiar perch in the directors’ box, Ferguson peered out through a malaise as a hapless United succumbed to a Dusan Tadic strike 20 minutes from time that was just reward for the visitors.

Such was the lack of attacking threat from United it would be easy to think that many of the fans had entered a semi-state of consciousness and indeed were dreaming of the not so distant past when the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Scholes and Carlos Tevez were strutting their stuff in the Manchester red.

Instead the blurred red figures chasing Saintly shadows were Angel Di Maria, Daley Blind and Juan Mata, while the only two survivors from the last great side built by Ferguson which peaked in Moscow  in 2008 - Michael Carrick and Wayne Rooney - were similarly stifled by a Southampton side which produced the most effective performance of any visiting team at Old Trafford this season.

Marshalled by the game’s outstanding player Morgan Schneiderlin and ably assisted by Victor Wanyama and Jose Fonte, Southampton outthought and outfought the home side.

With just one shot on target and less than 40 per cent of possession, Ronald Koeman’s men certainly did not outplay United, whose toothlessness was evidenced by failing to register a single shot on goal at Old Trafford for the first time since a dead rubber at the end of the 2008-09 season against Arsenal.

That game against the Gunners was subsumed in an atmosphere of celebration as United claimed the 11th league title of the Ferguson era.

Two more followed before the Scot vacated the Old Trafford hotseat for his compatriot David Moyes who only lasted 10 months into a six-year contract.

Lack lustre performances underscored by dressing room skulduggery put paid to Moyes’ tenure.

The consensus was that the job was too big for the former Preston North End and Everton manager.

United eventually lurched to seventh - their lowest finish in Premier League history - under the guidance of Ryan Giggs, the crown prince of Old Trafford.

But who would take over as the new ruler of the kingdom? Step forward King Louis.

Van Gaal strode into Manchester with an impressive CV in club management and off the back of leading an average Dutch side to a third place finish at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Over £150million pound later and United sit in a Champions League qualifying spot and face a match against the lowest ranked team left in the competition for a place in the fifth round of the FA Cup.

Despite a Capital One Cup exit following a wretched display at MK Dons, the United ship is generally considered to be on course.

Louis Van Gaal saw his United side slip to fourth in the Premier League following defeat to Southampton

However, Van Gaal bristled in the Southampton post-match press conference when it was pointed out that at the same stage of the league campaign under Moyes, United had also amassed 37 points from 21 games scoring 35 goals compared to 34 so far this season.

The fact that Southampton stopper Fraser Forster was not called into action once during the preceding 90 minutes was compounded by the fact that the man who found the net in United’s previous outing at Stoke was kicking his £43million feet in the stands.

Van Gaal offered up that Rademal Falcao needed a rest after five games in succession which seemed a reasonable assumption considering the Colombian’s injury record since his loan move from Monaco.

However, it was hard not to imagine that a poacher of Falcao’s pedigree would not have been a better option to bring on when United were chasing the game after the injured Robin van Persie and ineffective Di Maria were replaced by Marouane Fellaini and Ander Herrera.

The ploy of using Di Maria as a second striker with Rooney playing a deeper role failed.

Despite coming closest to scoring for United with three late efforts, two of which should have at least warmed the palms of an underworked Forster, Mata scurried and shuffled but could not deliver.

Van Gaal asked to be judged after three months of the season as he began working with his new charges and implementing his “philosophy” during the pre-season tour in the United States.

So far this season his players have struggled to adapt to the 3-5-2 system he has employed in the majority of games so far.

United were on an unbeaten 10-game run before the visit of the Saints which included 3-0 wins over Liverpool and Hull City while Newcastle United were despatched 3-1.

Despite the three-goal margin, Van Gaal had the reflexes of David De Gea plus the profligacy of Liverpool’s strikers to thank for victory over Brendan Rodgers side while the Spanish stopper was the pivotal man again in setting the foundations for a smash-and-grab against Arsenal at the Emirates.

De Gea and a last minute Ashley Young clearance saw United scrape passed Stoke in early December while a visit to St Marys saw Van Gaal’s side somehow head north with  all three points despite being second best all over the park.

The Dutchman will rightly point to a crippling injury list that has undoubtedly hindered his time at Old Trafford and with Young the only first team regular unavailable for Southampton’s visit on Sunday, Van Gaal will be hoping that the second half of the season will see a reduction in the walking wounded.

However, somewhere in San Sebastian, a rueful Scot may point to the fact that as well as accruing the same number of points this time last year and spending over £100million less, United were preparing for a Capital One Cup semi-final along with a last-16 clash against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

King Louis it’s time to deliver.