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A year ago Manchester United’s Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez was taking the Premier League by storm, forging a burgeoning reputation as a clinical finisher, a bargain buy and a talent; probably one of the biggest from the America’s and the CONCACAF region in particularly since Dwight Yorke and further back Mexican hero himself Hugo Sanchez. Fast forward the story and ‘Little Pea’ as he is fondly regarded struggles to get a start nowadays with Sir Alex Ferguson plumping for the precocious Danny Welbeck as Wayne Rooney’s rightful strike partner. It is hard to put your finger upon exactly just where Hernandez has underwhelmed in the eyes of the manager with Welbeck’s succession sticking out as the only reason for his relative backward step in Europe.

Hernandez has started 17 times in the league this term; five times less than Welbeck and although this doesn’t seem such a difference upon first glance, Ferguson has continued to favour the partnership the England internationals together more often than not across the cup competitions also. Whilst Manchester United purists will maintain Hernandez is still learning the English game, the Mexican would surely look back on his first season with more fondness than that of the present. Having still struck ten goals in 26 appearances in total this term, Hernandez clearly hasn’t lost his clinical finishing abilities but his in and out nature in the team has meant he hasn’t been able to build on the initial haul of 19 he got last term and more importantly the outstanding reputation he earned in the eyes of the media and onlookers and neutrals alike.

Calls of ‘second season syndrome’ have been employed to describe the Mexican’s second wave in the Premier League with the phrase usually applied in describing a downturn in fortunes for a football club but moreover for a players merits also. Every player must accept he is part of a team with squad changes, injury and personal preferences altering across the longevity of a campaign, but whilst the striker’s downturn hasn’t been as dramatic as say Marouane Chamakh’s, the fact Javier Hernandez hasn’t been able to dislodge Welbeck from the squad might be weighing heavy on his mind.

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Hernandez was lauded by many a punditry panel last term for his link up with Rooney and the fact it looked like they had been playing together for years in a so-called dream partnership. Whilst Rooney would and still drops deep to collect the ball, it was a mark of Chicharito’s 2010/11 campaign that he made perfectly timed runs, beating the offside trap to receive a Rooney assist and score. Twinned with this was an impressive climb in the air for a player who only stands at 5ft9, with the memorable ‘seal flick’ header at Stoke City representing his most wondrous of leaps.

Wayne Rooney stated in the press and of Hernandez and the partnership

‘I’m sure people will know a bit more about him this year but his movement is so good it’s difficult to defend against. It won’t be easy for players to defend against him whether they know about him or not’

We live in a society of immediacy as Arsene Wenger pointed out earlier this campaign, and expectancy levels have had the potential to be damaging in the cases of Theo Walcott, Fernando Torres and Andy Carroll. Partly because of the fast-paced and direct implications of modern day living and impatience radiating as a result, reputations are that much more short-lived than ever before, with hero to zero statuses occurring within a blinking of the eye. Maybe because specific teams, personnel and rare breeds such as Barcelona and Lionel Messi continue to deliver greatness consistently, many fans may subconsciously find it hard to take or fail to understand why some of their pros may lose their way or suffer a dip in form.

Hernandez may well be suffering from second season syndrome in that he hasn’t had as much influence as he did in his maiden campaign, but a lack of a consistent run in the first team has directly been comparable with his down turning fortunes. Only time will tell whether the Mexican can successfully break back into the first eleven, or suffer further as a result of English eyes wanting Danny Welbeck to do well in his fast-tracked development with the Red Devils.

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Is Javier Hernandez the real deal? Have his performances this season disappointed? Will he go on to taste a long and successful career at United? Follow me @ http://twitter.com/Taylor_Will1989

A 10-man Sporting Kansas City recorded a 4-1 away win at FC Dallas in Sunday’s Major League Soccer action.Sporting headed into the match at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, while Dallas were flying high in second position in the Western Conference.

A routine home win was expected but Graham Zusi’s 27th minute opener gave Sporting hope.

Brek Shea quickly equalised for Dallas to level proceedings heading into half-time before a crazy 11-minute period after the break.

French defender Aurelien Collin restored the lead for Sporting, before Zusi scored his second, and to cap off a fast-paced start to the second half, the visitors had Montenegrin Milos Stojcev sent off for a second red card.

But despite having an extra man, Dallas could not make the most of the numerical advantage and Sporting put the result beyond doubt when Luke Sassano scored with 12 minutes remaining.

In the day’s other match, Colombian Cristian Nazarith netted an injury time winner as the Chicago Fire beat the Columbus Crew 1-0.

Wigan Athletic manager Roberto Martinez is confident that midfielder James McCarthy will make a full recovery from surgery on a serious ankle injury.

The 19-year-old damaged ankle ligaments during last month's 1-1 home draw with Bolton Wanderers and will be out of action for several months.

However, Martinez expects the former Hamilton Academical starlet to come back stronger after his operation and rehabilitation.

He told the Evening Post:"It was done to make sure the joint remains stable, which will allow his ankle to heal properly .

"The main thing was to make sure it didn't become a chronic problem for him in the future.

"Ankles are joints that it's easy to not look after properly as you can get through matches.

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"But he's such a young man that, whatever happens in the next two or three months, we need to ensure he comes back stronger and better for the good of the rest of his career."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

Jermain Defoe might rarely be at the tops of the goals charts these days, but today we’re looking at an all new type of table; the WAG table. And in this League Defoe is the man to beat. Expending more energy in China White’s and subsequent bedrooms (or cabs, alleyways, etc) than on the pitch. Defoe is our Champion Ladies man. Lets review some of his highlights in a long and illustrious career.

 Danielle Lloyd

WAG is clearly not a viable career choice, but Miss Lloyd doesn’t believe that, being dubbed ‘Career WAG’. Having seen more footballers undies than the kit man, Danielle is the Queen WAG (a competitive title). Surely a perfect match. But it appears neither could keep it in their pants. I doubt either left heart-broken.

 Charlotte Mears

So nearly the one. The struggling model/actress/club rep/whatever and Jermaine were engaged briefly, and even made this heart-warming appearance together on mediocre daytime TV. What a fairy tale! But they were constantly plagued by rumours Defoe was cheating, mostly because he was, and the fairy tale proved to be more Jeremy Kyle.

CLICK BELOW FOR GALLERY

CLICK ABOVE FOR GALLERY

 Chantelle Houghton

Reality TV stars fade fast, but back in the day Chantelle was a big name as one half of Chantelle and Preston (ask your dad). No one would dare claim Chantelle was just desperately trying to cling to her BB fame when she hooked up with Defoe in 09. It may come as a shock to find the pair unfortunately didn’t last the distance.

 Imogen Thomas

Jermaine must have sat watching BB with a pad and pen, and made a list. Imogen apparently thought she might ‘settle down’ with Jermaine. Great idea girl, not sure what could have wrong. A marginally smarter girl than Defoe’s usual.

 Roxy Townsend

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After a few years away from the WAG scene, Defoe return with this very blond, very Essex, bombshell. ‘Aspiring singer’ (ha) Roxy almost moved in with Jermaine until also accusing him of cheating. Champagne in hand, Our hero once again ventured out into the sticky dance floors of Essex, to continue his epic quest for love.

 Alexandra Burke

You may be thinking but all this is old news. And you’d be right. But the years have passed and surely Jermaine is now an older, wiser guy. Enter former reality TV star, with her fame now declining. Burke has followed the time tested career advice, ‘can’t get on TV, bed Jermaine Defoe’ (JobCenter should start promoting this tactic).  We wait with baited breath to see Alexandra can be ‘the one’.

Udinese will be looking to seal a place in next season’s UEFA Champions League when they host champions AC Milan in the Serie A on Sunday.Francesco Guidolin’s team can guarantee their fourth spot with a point against Milan, who are unbeaten in seven league outings, at the Stadio Friuli on the last day of the season.

Udinese would book their spot in the Champions League for the first time since 2005/06 if they can achieve the result and Guidolin said they would need to be clinical in the attacking third.

“AC Milan are not just any team but the Serie A champion,” Guidolin said.

“We need one more point but it will be very difficult. We need to be focused and ready for the task that awaits us.”

“We have to make the most of our chances in order to obtain the result that would take us to paradise.”

Lazio, who are two points adrift in fifth, will need to collect three points at Lecce if they are to have any chance of stealing Udinese’s spot.

Juventus are also relying on other results if they are to sneak a European spot for next season.

They host third-placed Napoli and need to win, as well as hoping Roma lose at home to the relegated Sampdoria, to clinch sixth spot.

Second-placed Inter Milan head into their meeting with Catania with the runners-up position already confirmed.

Coach Leonardo will want to go into the Coppa Italia final against Palermo on May 29 with a full strength squad, meaning he will not be taking any risks, while Catania can finish no higher than 10th.

Palermo manager Delio Rossi may do likewise when his team welcomes Chievo with a European spot out of their grasp.

Struggling Bologna, who have survived the drop, will be looking for their first win since March 13 when the relegated Bari visit.

Cagliari will be out to break a four-game losing run when they host Parma, who are unbeaten in their last five outings.

Elsewhere, Genoa and Cesena will do battle and the relegated Brescia will host Fiorentina.

Federico Macheda's agent has played down talk linking the Manchester United teenager with a move to Juventus.

The 19-year-old striker joined United from Lazio in 2008 and has gone on to score three times in 20 appearances for Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

Macheda has been linked with a return to his homeland recently, but his representative, Giovanni Bia, was quoted on calciomercato.it as saying:"Interest from Juventus? These rumours are pleasant, but I do not think Macheda is for sale.

"This is not the time to talk about the market. Federico is only thinking about the Under 21s and Manchester United.

"He plays in a great team and he would think two thousand times before leaving, even if the club ever thought about selling him.

"Sir Alex Ferguson always speaks well about him and declares him non-transferable.

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"It is normal that clubs take an interest in him also because he is very young. But he is happy in Manchester."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

Liverpool will assess the fitness of captain Steven Gerrard ahead of Saturday’s clash with Arsenal, after the midfielder picked up a knock playing for England against Netherlands on Wednesday.

The Anfield talisman was substituted after 32 minutes of the Three Lions’ 3-2 defeat to Bert van Marwijk’s team, and is now a doubt to face the Gunners.

Kenny Dalglish has stated that at present he is unsure of Gerrard’s likelihood of featuring at the weekend, but has refused to blame Stuart Pearce or the England setup for the player’s injury.

“The players will be arriving shortly, so we’ll get an assessment when we speak to the medical people and look at it from there,” the Scottish manager told Sky Sports.

“If I don’t know what it is, I can’t tell you whether there is every chance or no chance (of Gerrard facing Arsenal), so rather than speculate it’s best for us to just wait and see what the medical people have to say once they’ve seen him.

“I have fantastic respect for ‘Pearcey’ – he played for us (under Dalglish at Newcastle). He is a really straight, honest guy so I don’t think he would do anything harmful to the football club,” he stated.

Meanwhile Daniel Agger cracked a rib in the Carling Cup victory over Cardiff last Sunday, and Dalglish feels that the Danish defender’s absence will be felt.

“He’s got a fractured rib, so maybe it will be a few weeks.

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“Anybody that is injured is a miss. Daniel has been playing fantastically well this year, but we’ll miss anybody that is not fit and available,” he concluded.

By Gareth McKnight

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The Premier League is littered with examples of strikers that work hard – but offer little in terms of goals. The classic examples are Emile Heskey, Dirk Kuyt and Kevin Davies, it’s probably fair to say that all of those players have shown glimpses of class and ability at times that has led to the suggestion they are half-decent strikers. But none of them have proved to be able to score more than 14 goals in a single Premier League season. Yet, they have all played in the Premier League for years and are highly respected.

Now call me old fashioned but I believe a striker should hit the back of the net on a regular basis or they are simply not doing their job. Two players that have done that on a regular basis throughout their respected careers are Darren Bent and Dimitar Berbatov, but both these players have their critics and they are often considered lazy. However, surely the goals they score tell their own story and should be more than enough to answer any critics?

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Whenever Heskey, Kuyt or Davies is criticised we hear about the amount of ground they cover or the overall work they do for the team. It was this sort of thinking that resulted in Emile Heskey going to the World Cup with England. Isn’t it time we started to praise the strikers that score the goals and do the job and criticise the ones that don’t?

Managers must see something in training that I don’t – because I would never pick a forward with a high work rate but poor goal return and leave my prolific marksman on the bench. It makes no sense to me when football is all about scoring goals to win games. But maybe I am missing the point and the value of the likes of Kuyt, Heskey and Davies.

Join the conversation on Twitter and tell me the value of Kuyt, Heskey and Davies

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FootballFanCast.com WORLD Exclusive: Robbie Savage’s Face in a Baby Scan…

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Arsenal’s home defeat to West Brom on Saturday only served to highlight the extent of Arsenal’s goalkeeping problems. First-choice goalkeeper Manuel Almunia has come in for some strong criticism following a number of high-profile mistakes and on Saturday it was no different.

Manuel Almunia started the game and was at fault for two of West Brom’s goals. He let Gonzalo Jara’s tame shot past him and was caught in no-man’s land for the Baggies’ third.

With all of Arsenal’s goalkeeping woes, it was a surprise that Arsene Wenger didn’t choose to add a goalkeeper to his squad in this summer’s transfer window. This comes as even more of a surprise when it became clear that Arsenal had posted record pre-tax profits of £56 million for last year but were unwilling to spend money on a new goalkeeper. They failed to match Fulham’s valuation for Mark Schwarzer and declined to make a move for Shay Given who has lost his spot in the Manchester City side to Joe Hart.

The decision to not bring in a new goalkeeper will mean Wenger has to look to his current squad to cure his goalkeeping woes and in Wojciech Szczesny, he has a hugely talented young goalkeeper that could solve all of his problems.

Consistency has been a key problem for Almunia and Fabianski with the pair seemingly unable to string together a sequence of good performances for the Gunners. However, while on loan at Brentford, Szczesny was a model of consistency as he earned rave reviews for his performances in the Griffin Park goal.

The young Pole was a revelation at Brentford, playing 28 times for the Bees and making a host of wonderful saves. Here’s a video of Szczesny in action:

As you can see from the video, Szczesny has lightning-quick reflexes and is an outstanding shot-stopper. His instincts are first-class and he has huge confidence in his own ability.

Szczesny has returned to Arsenal eager to prove himself worthy of starting for the Gunners but has so far cut a frustrated figure at the Emirates. Indeed, Szczesny has expressed his disappointment at being left out of the Carling Cup tie against Tottenham last week and is apparently losing patience with his manager due to a lack of first-team opportunities.

Speaking to Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza, Szczesny said that Wenger “seems to forget” him and that the Frenchman is “avoiding me at every occasion”.

And Wenger may have good reason to.

The last young goalkeeper that Wenger attempted to blood was Richard Wright and he proved to be an unmitigated disaster.

Wenger has had a good track record of buying outfield players but his goalkeeping purchases leave much to be desired. During his 14 years at Arsenal, the only real goalkeeper that he has signed which has done well for the Gunners is Jens Lehmann.

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Other than that, Wenger has brought in some less than impressive keepers including Rami Shaaban, Guillaume Warmuz and Mart Poom.

With his track-record of unspectacular goalkeepers, it is no wonder that Wenger is apprehensive when it comes to starting Szczesny.

While Szczesny’s confidence could be construed as arrogance, it is a quality you would like to see in a young goalkeeper. He is hungry and eager to prove himself at the highest level and with Arsenal’s current goalkeeping predicament, he should be given a chance.

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Football fans’ willingness to show their dedication comes in all shapes and sizes. One such way is to splay their dedication over their body in the form of a tattoo. I can understand why somebody might choose to tattoo their footballing allegiance onto their body. Whilst women come and go, a football team is for life. It’s the manly man’s equivalent of getting “I love mom’ yet a tattoo is a big commitment, so it’s important to get it right. As you can imagine, this process isn’t always a success.

Below are the top 10 West Ham tattoo’s to be found on the net – the good, the bad and the plain ugly – click on image below to unveil gallery:

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Have you got a better West Ham tattoo? Football FanCast would like to invite the readers to submit their own entry via our Facebook Page. The winning entries will go forward to our grand competition to find the best tattoo in the Premier League.

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