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After failing to take the optimism generated by the win over Hartlepool down to the south coast where Crewe saw a heartless surrender to Portsmouth by way of another 2 early goals, a commodity that had marred defeat to MK Dons, even the Hartlepool win before it occurred again at Walsall to suggest quick-fire lapses were endemic in the Alex’s slide down to a precarious hover above the relegation spots.

However, this team is made of sterner stuff, the 2 goal Hartlepool comeback being repeated on Saturday at the Bescot Stadium not to win, but to earn a vital point which suggested the back-bone instilled in the side that earned late points at Morecambe, Oxford, Torquay and Hereford last year is still forged on the fiercest of steel.

Some more of that resilience was required on Tuesday against Swindon Town, last years League Two champions and relentlessly keeping up that momentum this year in League One where they sat in 6th position before they travelled up to south Cheshire, as Steve Davis saw his team slip behind first again, on 25 minutes this time, and it looked like Paolo Di Canio’s band of experienced, talented power-houses would go on to seize the initiative against a flat-looking home side.

Di Canio would have been around long enough to know that football is a funny game however and with Crewe’s creative flair back in the side through the influential Byron Moore, 2 goals were summoned from the depths of low expectation to cancel out Rafaelle De Vita’s headed opener and give the Railwaymen a confidence that, if it weren’t for the brilliance of Swindon goalkeeper Wes Foderingham twice denying Chuks Aneke, the home team may have been unthinkably out of sight by the interval.  As it was, 2-1 was the half-time score, as surprising as that was considering the stagnation and deflation that had seemed to slip in following going behind yet again.

Part of the turnaround was, like at Walsall, owing to the impact Michael West has had on the side after recovering from his early injury following his summer move from Ebbsfleet. His ability to play wide, merged with Moore’s much-needed re-introduction to the team, has injected natural width to a side that had looked rather narrow in previous games.

No longer is Davis charged with shoe-horning the likes of Max Clayton, Chuks Aneke and Mathias Pogba, all central players by trade, out to the flanks and against Walsall, with his side 2-1 down, West came on to open up the left-flank, dragging more defenders around allowing for the Midlander’s resistance to finally cave in as Pogba crossed for Aneke to head home for an important point. It was barely deserved as Walsall could have been over the horizon owing to a destitute first half performance from the Alex, but Mark Ellis’s goal gave Crewe hope and when Crewe have hope, they now invariably turn it into something more tangible.

Swindon stretched and tested that resilience to, what was for the supporter, near-unbearable limits in the second half. Last season’s superb winger Matt Ritchie was introduced, and hit the cross-bar, as a predictably animated Di Canio grew more and more agitated on the touch line, but it was indication of the quality the visitors had in mere reserve. Crewe meanwhile had to throw on Ollie Turton, with only seven first-team appearances to his name in place of the impressive Abdul Osman who limped off with a recurrence of his ankle injury while John Guthrie, only recently an academy graduate, made his league debut.

The away side saw more chances come and go, Gary Roberts drew a fantastic one handed stop from Alan Martin before a tame effort saw him denied again, Jay McEveley also hit a weak shot at Martin while Mark Ellis and Harry Davis were putting bodies on e line for the Crewe cause at times, departing off the pitch for a short period, bloodied, following a challenge with Troy Archibald-Henville which saw the big defender booked. Adam Dugdale was thrown on as to provide another barrier as waves and waves of Swindon pressure flowed, but ultimately, saw no return and more chances, Kelvin Mellor desperately clearing off the line as the ball pinged around the box, dimmed into irrelevance. The final-whistle sounded desperately and Crewe, after yet another hard-fought comeback, had won.

The journey home was littered with optimism for Saturday’s game with Yeovil and identifying players that had performed badly on a night where team-spirit shone through, suffice to say there wasn’t much success. There was a slight contempt of the man of the match award being handed to goalkeeper Alan Martin instead of skipper Luke Murphy who was immense at the centre of midfield, but it was a mere footnote to a great evening that, following Ashley Westwood’s departure to Aston Villa, saw the arrival of the new Westy. Step forward, Michael West.

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You can follow me on Twitter @AdamGray1250

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Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney has made a shock early return to training, according to The Sun.

The England international forward suffered a deep gash on his leg in the Red Devils’ 3-2 win over Fulham in the Premier League, and was expected to be sidelined for two months whilst the cut healed.

However, it is believed that the talented attacker has been back in light training with the Old Trafford side for the last five days, which has involved outdoor sessions and gym work.

Rooney has been wearing a protective cover over the cut to avoid infection, and is said to be making stellar progress ahead of time.

It is believed that there is an outside chance that Rooney could be on the bench for United’s Champions League clash with Galatasaray on Wednesday night, and that he could well be ready to return to action against Liverpool domestically on Sunday.

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By Gareth McKnight

Stoke City striker Michael Owen is the main January transfer target of Spanish club Espanyol, according to the Metro.

The former England striker has made just one league appearance since his summer move to the Potteries and despite now being fully fit; he cannot get into the overachieving side.

Spanish newspaper Marca claim that the former Real Madrid striker could be tempted with a move to the Catalan club as he massively enjoyed his previous experience in La Liga before a failed move to Newcastle United.

The centre forward has admitted on one of his many football related television appearances that he may not have too many years left in him and so a nice retirement home in Barcelona could be an option.

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Stoke may be happy to let Owen go as his high wages will be better off spent somewhere else but it is yet to be seen if the player is interested.

Manchester United are the latest club to have been linked with a move for young Crystal Palace starlet Wilfried Zaha recently, but given the team’s obvious deficiencies elsewhere, would Sir Alex Ferguson be best served prioritising where he spends his money, if the club does any business at all in January?

The 3-2 win in the Manchester derby away at the Etihad Stadium was just about the deserved result for United at the weekend, having made all of the running in the first half before being pegged back in the second. Nevertheless, it just served to highlight the lack of control that the team has in the middle of the park, especially when put under pressure by top class opposition, and their team average of 88% pass accuracy which has seen them achieve 55% possession from their 16 matches so far dropped noticeably to an extremely poor 73% accuracy and just 47% of possession against their local rivals. It’s clear that the battle for progress is not being lost out wide.

Ferguson lined up his side in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Wayne Rooney supporting Robin van Persie through the middle along with Antonio Valencia and Ashley Young on the left and right, leaving Tom Cleverley and Michael Carrick in midfield, where they were routinely outnumbered and played around. Carrick, like his team’s average, made just 73% of his 60 attempted passes during the match and it’s clear that they’ve forsaken any form of a possession-based game over the past year or so in favour of strengthening where the team does do well already; on the wings and up front.

The 20-year-old Crystal Palace winger has been in exceptional form for high-flying Palace this season, having made his full England debut last month and his direct approach, pace and versatility would seem to make him tailor-made for Old Trafford, but in every other sense, the move doesn’t quite add up.

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It seems that the only reason that United have been linked with a move for Zaha is because Arsenal have in the past and Wenger refused to rule out a move for him in January (also refusing to rule him in, it’s worth noting), and this all fits in rather neatly with the newspaper narrative of a ‘bidding war’, something which seems to have been completely fabricated. Chelsea will be the next club to be ‘chasing his signature’, then Liverpool will get another go, then possibly Tottenham. That’s just how it works, particularly with young English players who ply their trade in the Championship and play in a forward position.

It’s hardly as if Ferguson isn’t blessed with options up top and out wide as it is and he’s struggling to find a system which allows him to balance out his top-heavy squad. Nani has been linked with the exit door recently, with the somewhat laughable explanation behind this being that he was left off the club’s official calendar for next year, the same as Anderson, Darren Fletcher and Rio Ferdinand, but nobody is talking about them moving because of it and the club rarely lets players leave in January, especially one so useful.

That’s not to mention first-choice winger Valencia, who was rushed back from injury for the derby game and England international Young, who while a divisive figure amongst the club’s fans, is capable of playing in a number of roles and appears to be a firm Ferguson favourite just as he hits a rich vein of form. Whenever Kagawa returns from his spell on the sidelines too, he’ll most certainly be made room for, whether that means pushing him or Rooney out wide as a result remains unclear, but that’s one less space for a winger yet again, with van Persie tantamount to undroppable now.

The idea behind the move is that the two clubs apparently ‘enjoy good relations’ simply because United were interested in former Palace product and now Southampton right-back Nathaniel Clyne for a bit last season. There’s no real substance to the move at all, even by flimsy rumour mill standards.

The story has concocted this unlikely scenario whereby United will purchase Zaha for roughly £15m then immediately loan him back to Palace to aid their promotion push. Aside from deals like this rarely ever being struck, much like the famed ‘swap deals’ that practically never happen but are a weekly occurrence according to the press, just why would Palace agree to such a raw deal in the first place? They have no real pressing need to sell and they could fetch a higher price should they go up in the summer, if they want to sell at all in the summer.

No, it’s at centre-midfield and perhaps even at centre-back where Ferguson could do with a bit of tweaking and for all intents and purposes, a team that has scored 40 goals in 16 league games this season does not need yet another attacker to try and integrate.

Any central midfielder that has enjoyed a spell of good form across Europe in the past three or four years has been hailed as ‘the solution to the team’s problems’, like the proverbial missing link, which just goes to show you how clear the weakness in the side is and how continually baffled everyone else is that Ferguson hasn’t bothered to try and patch it up. This partly explains the shifting of emphasis on to a new figure every other month, with PSV’s Kevin Strootman the latest answer to an ever-evolving question.

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Shipping 23 goals in those same 16 league games and going behind in 14 fixtures this term across all competitions points to three things – a soft underbelly, a porous defence and a fantastic forward line that’s covered up the main issue plenty of times.

The weaknesses of this United side are clear, and they remain a deeply flawed side, however, given the relative lack of depth and talent in terms of the competitiveness of the league this term, that might just be enough to see them over the line.

The club haven’t been afraid to dip into the transfer market in January to good effect in the past with both Evra and Vidic shining examples that you can do smart, sensible, long-term business during the window, but with concerns to Zaha, while in some ways he looks a good fit for their style of play, the club simply has far more pressing issues to address elsewhere first.

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Having clinched the signing of Emmanuel Adebayor from Manchester City for a deal believed to be in the region of £5m, Tottenham clinched their most important piece of business of the entire summer, so with that in mind, is it all starting to come together at White Hart Lane?

The short answer is ‘maybe’, and while I’m not trying to be facetious (it just comes naturally), there are still a lot of incomings and outgoings to contend with as Daniel Levy seeks to get the best bang for his buck, while new boss Andre Villas-Boas attempts to make his mark on the side he inherited from predecessor Harry Redknapp.

Michael Dawson, somewhat surprisingly, looks as if he’s heading towards the exit door after being deemed surplus to requirements by the Portuguese boss for being too slow and cumbersome. While these are of course legitimate criticisms of Dawson, given the Ledley King had retired before the start of pre-season, he was the club captain elect and while Jan Vertonghen and Younes Kaboul looked the first-choice pairing, it’s a shock that both Steven Caulker and William Gallas are preferred at the moment.

QPR and Stoke are the teams in for him and the £8m mentioned seems a fair fee for a 28 year-old with past injury problems, but it’s still an extremely bold move from Villas-Boas and a great show of faith in Caulker, who spent last year on loan to huge success at Swansea.

Elsewhere, Danny Rose looks as if he’s edging towards a loan move to Sunderland as Kieran Richardson seeks a move further south, while Tom Huddlestone has been made available for loan, with Stoke again interested, not to mention the fact that David Bentley, Jermaine Jenas and Giovani Dos Santos are thought to be available for transfer. That’s a hell of a lot of activity left to potentially go through in just over a week, particularly when you bear in mind that Tottenham did come fourth last season, after spending most of it in third place.

There’s also the giant elephant in the room that is this summer’s most repetitive transfer saga involving Luka Modric’s move to Real Madrid, which looks set to be completed later this week. Replacing the Croatian playmaker will be of paramount importance and the fees mentioned range from £24.5m to £39.5m, which more than anything, just highlights that while nobody really has a clue, that the level of negotiation taking place is of a reasonably high risk level as we edge closer to the end of the transfer window.

Nevertheless, the arrival of Adebayor was a much-needed signing and even with Villas-Boas tinkering the the club’s style and how they press off the ball and higher up the pitch, he is certainly more suited to the lone striker role than Jermain Defoe is, despite a decent goalscoring display in their opening day defeat away at Newcastle. The Togolese forward finished last campaign with 17 goals and 11 assists in the league and he neatly threads the play together well, while simultaneously acting as a focal point for their attacks and his return is a welcome one.

While I don’t buy into the criticisms of chairman Daniel Levy, for the way the club is run is extremely responsible and prudent,Tottenham have been left in a position where they are conducting most of their business after the start of the season, which is far from ideal. Adebayor, much in the same way that Robin van Persie at Arsenal, hasn’t had much of a pre-season to speak of and the deal has taken, partly due to Adebayor’s outlandish request that the transfer fee be paid to him directly, a full two months later than everyone initially though and their progress, in the short-term at least, may still be hindered.

Porto midfield Joao Moutinho has been heavily linked with the club when Modric departs, but given their stance over Chelsea’s pursuit of Hulk, the club are known to be tough negotiators and Portuguese international could cost as much as £30m, but at 25 years-old, he would represent a sound long-term purchase for the future.

There had been rumours that the club had targeted Roma midfielder, the hugely talented Miralem Pjanic as a cheaper alternative, but the player’s agent Michele Gerbino had this to say on the proposed £12m deal, telling reporters: “Tottenham made a move for him, but both Roma and Pjanic thanked them for their interest and politely declined the offer. This is not the time to move or consider any other offers. The lad has tied himself to this project and first of all wants to do well at Roma. Besides, the club locked him down. Basically, he will not be moving. Pjanic had a very positive year, adapting easily to Serie A and you can see that from how quickly he learnt to speak Italian. He’s very happy at Roma.”

With Huddlestone and Jenas both looking to be moved on and with Scott Parker still injured, the club need to get somebody in to replace Modric and Gylfi Sigurdsson, as some may think, was never bought as his replacement as he plays a lot higher up the pitch, merely to supplement the existing options within the squad.

Some strength in depth could also be needed out wide to compliment the existing duo of Aaron Lennon and Gareth Bale. Both are key to the shape of the side and whenever one is injured, the entire balance is affected, with Adam Johnson and Willian targeted. The fact that Johnson is available now for a much more reasonable fee of around £10m, as opposed to the ridiculous £15m mooted earlier in the summer, and that he’s already adjusted to the Premier League could see him preferred.

So where else do the club need to strengthen? Up front, with youngster Harry Kane still third-choice, they could still do with another striker, but Leandro Damiao’s price in negotiations with Internacional has fluctuated wildly and it seems as if the club are trying to nail jelly to a wall with that one.

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They also require a new goalkeeper eventually too, although it looks as if they are going to persists with 41 year-old Brad Friedel surely in his final year at the club, maybe even his career, but they’ve so far buckled at Lyon’s £15m valuation on Huge Lloris – it’s not a top priority as a replacement for Modric and another striker perhaps are, but it’ll need addressing sooner rather than later, with neither Gomes or Carlo Cudicini anything more than back-up now.

It’s strange that so close to the end of the transfer window, that the club is still in such a state of flux with concerns to their transfer activity. The next nine days represent a pivotal point in their season both on and off the pitch and if they manage to conclude all of their business in that time, I see no reason why they can’t finish in the top four again this season, but at the moment it’s a big ‘if’, even if the Adebayor deal is a step in the right direction. The current top eight, the majority of teams are in a period of transition, with Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea the main example, and while Tottenham certainly are themselves, they appear to have more potential at the moment for future deals, which could change where they ultimately finish up by the end of the campaign.

You can follow me on Twitter @JamesMcManus1

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It really shouldn’t have been that surprising when Wayne Rooney netted twice and assisted in another (forgetting completely the early own goal) in Manchester United’s home win against Stoke. After all, were we really expecting the player to carry on in the same manner as the abject display for England against Poland? The attacking support cast is arguably of better quality at United, while the burden to get the goals certainly doesn’t weigh as heavy at Old Trafford as it does on international duty.

Rooney’s display on the weekend should be an indictment of the state of England’s national team: the short of it is that England aren’t as good as FIFA say they are. We’ve been over how good or poor Rooney has been in recent months for his club; the presence of Robin van Persie was sure to spark some sort of reaction, whether negative or positive. But we should also look to the argument again as to why England’s players can’t raise the game for their national team in the same way they do for their clubs.

It should be easy to come to a conclusion: England’s players are not all that great, but when paired with the players of other nations at club level, their very best qualities shine through. We can’t simply blame things such as ProPlus or the lack of a real high quality striker, or even that old argument of whether Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard can play centrally together. However, the whole issue starts to complicate itself when you look at how players such as Gerrard, Rooney, Ashley Cole etc are admired as some of the very best in Europe. Joe Hart is apparently the best goalkeeper in the world, although I’m extremely confident that the majority of those sending out such high praise have never watched a club from the continent with any real interest beyond a Champions League game.

So what’s the problem? England do have good players, but apparently they can’t all play together effectively and to the level that we often see in the Premier League. Maybe the England manager and his predecessors are not all that great. No, that would be too easy. And the idea of dismissing such a decorated manager as Fabio Capello is nonsensical.

Maybe they just don’t care. Maybe England’s players are so beyond any belief of victory on the international stage that they’ve just given up and thus display it through their performances. What about pride and the line we always hear about the joy of representing your country? We hardly see it. There’s nothing to be proud of from the way England’s inflated egos couldn’t muster an attack of any threatening nature against Poland.

And it’s not just limited to the delayed game in Poland, either. The 2010 World Cup was disastrous, the qualifying campaign for the last European Championship saw the national side playing with fire, and will England ever win a penalty shootout? The win against San Marino was a throwaway match that never should have happened anyway.

But these are English players who have won Premier League titles in impressive fashion, as well as Champions League medals, domestic cups and so on. We can’t really deflect the praise away from them and solely onto their team mates. John Terry is so often talked up as one of England’s finest defenders and leaders, and how central were his and Frank Lampard’s roles in the winning days of Jose Mourinho?

Joleon Lescott has been largely excellent for Manchester City over the past 12 months, while Phil Jagielka was heroic in that Everton win against United at Goodison Park at the start of the season.

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Rooney’s performance for United against Stoke was symbolic of what it means to play for England and equally the quality England have in their ranks. These are veterans of the game; Rooney has just celebrated 10 years in the Premier League and is still not really in his prime. If England’s senior players have such a problem with the system that has been used by England managers over the years then why not speak up and make useful suggestions that would benefit and suit all the players? Although, you then go full circle and come to the realisation that a whole hat full of managers can’t be wrong.

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The concept of the ‘European hangover’ is a modern phenomenon that seems to decorate tabloid newspapers every other week. It’s the default expression used to justify why the domestic performance of a top six club has suffered after a recent gruelling night across the continent. However, despite establishing itself as a contemporary cliché, is there any evidence for its existence this season?

On last weekend’s edition of Sunday Supplement, Henry Winter made an interesting remark about the unique mentality needed to succeed in Europe. Managers can rarely enforce the same tactics employed in the Premier League, especially when up against the technically superior European powerhouses. Therefore, they must resort to a physically more demanding pressing strategy, in the hope of hitting teams on the counter attack.

The unfamiliar playing style, coupled with the intimidating environments and the increased pressure – especially in the Champions League – mean matches in Europe push physical and mental demands to an unprecedented level. It’s very easy to criticise players for not being ‘capable of playing two games in a week’, but in reality these European excursions are as taxing as they are rewarding.

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Winter proceeded to explain that it takes a number of years to develop such an intrinsic mindset, which is perhaps why Manchester United, as the countries most experienced and successful side in Europe in recent years, are the only team to have won every league game after a midweek fixture in the Champions League this season.

Neither Arsenal or Manchester City have gone on to lose after a night out in Europe, with Chelsea’s only defeat coming at the hands of United. However, there are signs that clubs are beginning to suffer as we enter the notoriously difficult winter period.

In the latest batch of Champions League fixtures Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea all endured surprising defeats and while the Blues were controversially beaten by United on Sunday, both Arsenal and City struggled to secure 1-0 wins over QPR and Swansea respectively. A sign then that the Champions League campaign is beginning to make the typically ‘routine’ victories much more difficult.

It’s slightly harder to judge the effects of the Europa League on English clubs; especially considering the supposedly inferior level of competition and the fact managers will often rest their first-team regulars. However, the Thursday-Sunday schedule is hardly ideal and serves only to throw teams out of their natural sync.

Tottenham Hotspur may have won every single post Europa League fixture but their level of commitment in the tournament has to be questioned, bearing in mind their failure to pick up a victory so far. Newcastle, a team expected to struggle thanks to their inclusion this year, have won two of three resulting games, with their only defeat coming against – you guessed it – Manchester United. Liverpool on the hand have failed to pick up a single victory after a Thursday night fixture but this is perhaps down to the fact they’ve played the formidable trio of Stoke, Manchester United and Everton.

With the next set of European fixtures on the horizon we could well see the ‘European hangover’ tag claim a few more victims. In usual circumstances you would expect Arsenal and Manchester United to secure all three points against Fulham and Aston Villa, but both sides will go into their respective games after tough away trips to Germany and Portugal.

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Chelsea and Manchester City on the other hand both find themselves on home soil in Europe but face distinctly more challenging opponents the following Sunday in the form of Tottenham and Liverpool. The pressure will be on for these clubs to maintain their impressive domestic form, but as both Manchester clubs proved last season, crashing out of Europe could be the perfect catalyst for a title-winning charge.

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Robin Van Persie faces the prospect of being benched for Holland despite his spectacular start to life at Old Trafford.

The 29-year-old was left on the sidelines by new manager Louis van Gaal who instead opted for Klass-Jan Huntelaar to lead the line in a friendly against Belgium last month.

Van Persie shows his class week in and week out in the Premier League but choked badly during Holland’s dismal Euro 2012 performance and may not get a chance at redemption in upcoming internationals.

The Oranje host Turkey on Friday before a Tuesday night trip to Hungary in World Cup qualifying.

The £24 million man has netted 28 times for his country in 68 internationals, but rival Huntelaar has scored 32 goals in fewer appearances.

Speaking to The Sun, the frontman said: “I’m available for any position. I still find it an honour to be here. That will not really change – even if I do not play the next matches.”

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With a large squad and a lot of talented youngsters, it is important that Manchester United send players out on loan to continue their progress and gain valuable first team experience. Below is a list of several players who have been sent out on loan by United and how they are getting on.

Manchester United’s Chilean forward Angelo Henriquez was sent out on loan to Wigan Athletic at the start of the January transfer window. Roberto Martinez brought Henriquez to the DW Stadium as back up to Arouna Kone and for cover when Kone went to the African Cup of Nations. Henriquez has only made two appearances for Wigan, one was a half time substitute in the FA Cup against Bournemouth, the other was against Sunderland. Henriquez scored in the 3-2 defeat to Sunderland, and his involvement in Wigan’s first team will help the 18-year-old’s development.

Fabio Da Silva, Rafael’s twin brother is on loan at Premier League side Queens Park Rangers. With first team appearances hard to come by with Patrice Evra and Alexander Buttner in the squad, Sir Alex Ferguson believed a loan spell would help Fabio. During his time at Loftus Road, Fabio has made 20 appearances for the relegation-threatened club and scored in their 4-2 FA Cup defeat to MK Dons. But his time with QPR has been slightly overshadowed by injuries.

Federico Macheda, famed for his last minute winner against Aston Villa in 2009, has struggled to force himself into United’s first team. Towards the end of January, Macheda was sent out on loan for the rest of the season to VFB Stuttgart. Macheda has made nine appearances for the German side and is yet to register a goal. Stuttgart’s sporting director Fredi Bobic claimed that Manchester United had promised the German side the option to buy the striker at the end of the season, but Macheda has made it clear that he will return to Old Trafford.

United’s Portuguese star Bebe is currently out on loan at Rio Ave in Portugal. After returning from injury after damaging his cruciate ligament, Bebe was sent on loan to the Portuguese side to continue to develop. Sir Alex Ferguson signed Bebe even though he had never seen him play and he has not featured much at Old Trafford. During his loan spell, Bebe scored on his debut in a 1-0 win over Maritimo. He has added another goal in his other seven outings for the side.

Michael Keane has been on loan at Leicester City since early November. The young centre back has featured heavily for the Foxes since he arrived on loan and has been impressing with strong displays and even earned a call up to Stuart Pearce’s England under-21 squad. Keane has appeared for Leicester 20 times and chipped in with a few goals. Most importantly, Keane scored a last minute equaliser against United’s bitter rivals Leeds.

Sam Johnstone is currently on loan at League One side Walsall. The young goalkeeper was England’s under-17 goalkeeper when they won the European Championship in 2010. During his time at Walsall he kept a clean sheet in his first three games, only to concede in Walsall’s last game against Sheffield United.

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Young Italian playmaker Davide Petrucci is on loan at Peterborough United. The young midfielder has been hampered with injuries through his early days as a Manchester United player, but now this seems to be behind him. The Italian has incredible talent and is eager to impress while playing for Darren Ferguson. Petrucci has made three appearances for the Posh and he scored a screamer as they came from behind to beat Leicester 2-1.

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The Premier League is a natural stomping ground for the world’s elite, the players that dazzle and delight before picking up a colossal pay packet at the end of the week.

But what about those individuals that are simply there to ‘do a job’?

You know the ones, the defenders who will launch the ball into the stands at the first sign of danger, or the strikers who are only useful when placed inside the 6-yard box. The manager’s favourites, the cult heroes in the heart of the supporters and those who give us all hope that we could still make it as a professional.

With this in mind, I have decided to collate the top 15 ‘limited’ performers still grazing on the grass of the Premier League.

Click on Shola Ameobi to see the full list

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