IT’S CAR WARS
club’s big names plumped for iconic Corvettes. However, Sportsmail understands that Ferguson immediately intervened and decreed that no player under the age of 23 — regardless of his standing in the team — should be allowed to order a sporty model. This means that players such as young strikers Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez and defenders like Phil Jones and Chris Smalling will be banned from driving anything that doesn’t meet with Ferguson’s prior approval. The move represents a classic case of master man-manager Ferguson, ensuring his young stars don’t get too big for their boots. Ferguson has always been hot on matters like this. Two years ago, for example, it emerged that the United boss had told players in the club’s youth squads that they were not allowed to wear coloured football boots.
MANCHESTER UNITED manager Sir Alex Ferguson has banned the club’s young stars from driving flashy sports cars from new sponsors Chevrolet. United recently signed a multi-million pound deal with the American car giants, who will become the name on the club’s shirts from the start of the 2014-15 season. As a gesture of goodwill Chevrolet immediately offered United’s first-team stars a choice of luxury cars and understandably, many of the
ARSENE WENGER has seen a few creative players leave in the past year but he has a new jewel in the crown in Santi Cazorla. The Spaniard looks a fantastic talent and his class is there for everyone to see straight away. He is Liam Brady and Cesc Fabregas rolled into one: he has Brady’s shooting ability and Fabregas’s vision. He’s better than Fabregas with the ball too — he moves it so quickly, which is shown by the fact he’s had more touches in the opposition half than any player so far this season. Watching him, it is difficult to tell sometimes if he is right or left-footed, as he is so comfortable with both. Straight away, Cazorla has taken on the role of lieutenant in the Arsenal midfield. He is happy to receive the ball anywhere, he’s taking all the free kicks and his vision is superb. Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podolski will know that if they make the right runs, Cazorla will find them. He is tough to defend against too as if you close him down, he’ll thread a ball through to the strikers and if you back off, he’ll shoot. What is certain is that with him in the team, Arsenal will create a lot of chances. Seeing him give an interview over the weekend was impressive, too. He’s already speaking some English and he looked happy, like he has a natural joy for life. That is infectious. Giroud and Podolski have impressed me, despite not scoring. Podolski is intelligent with excellent movement and Giroud didn’t lose a single header against Ryan Shawcross of Stoke. That is not easy. So the goals will come, especially with Cazorla on board.