Only winning is acceptable at Real: Juande Ramos

For Spaniard Juande Ramos, who managed to win a trophy with Tottenham Hotspurs, was sacked as manager in the middle of the next season, and then returned to top-flight football by taking charge at one of the biggest clubs in the world, it's been quite a year.

Ramos, whose team Real Madrid trail Barcelona by 12 points in the Spanish premier league, faces the daunting task of bringing the club's title ambitions back on track.

In a free-wheeling interview, he opens up on how his stint with the English side ended and the challenges of his new assignment. Excerpts:

Did you ever expect to end the year as Real Madrid coach?
I couldn’t have imagined all that I have already lived. I started the year fully dedicated to a very exciting challenge in the EPL. My goal was to gain back positions within the Championship for Spurs, to try to win a title and qualify for Europe.

Do you regard this challenge as the toughest of your career so far?
Every new project is always a big challenge. The only difference is that Real Madrid are one of the top clubs in the world and their objectives are of the highest level… Their goals are never to avoid relegation or to qualify for tournaments. At Real, historically, only winning is acceptable.

How would you sum up the year?
It’s been an exciting year. I have truly enjoyed every minute of it, even the tough moments that I have had. It’s been a year where I moved to the EPL, managed to win a trophy and then got another opportunity by being a part of Real.

Real have been conceding many goals this season despite having one of the best defence...
I’d rather look at how to solve this issue. The team is already stronger at the back… Sometimes this is simply luck but it is important to strengthen the self confidence.

Diarra agrees to join Real Madrid

Portsmouth midfielder Lassana Diarra has agreed a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid, subject to passing a medical on Monday.

The 23-year-old is set to sign a four-and-a-half-year deal at the Bernabeu.

Pompey had already accepted Real's bid - reported to be £20m - for Diarra but there was still interest from other clubs, including Manchester City.

Diarra will officially become a Real player when the transfer window reopens on 1 January.

The France international started his career with Le Havre before signing for Chelsea in 2005. He moved to the Gunners on the final day of the August 2007 transfer window but left for Pompey five months later.

"We have always said that we would only allow our players to leave if we received an exceptional bid," a Pompey spokesman told the club's website earlier in the week.

"We could not stand in the way of a move such as this for Lassana.

"It shows how far the club has come under the ownership of Alexandre Gayadamak when Real Madrid come in for one of our players.

"Should the deal be completed, we have already identified possible replacements."

Pompey boss Tony Adams said he will have all of the money from Diarra's sale to sign new players.

"It's a substantial offer. Every penny is mine, and I had money before that, so I am delighted," said Adams on Wednesday.

"Every decision at this club will be through me and when Real Madrid offers a lot of money for one of your players I have a decision to make.

"The lad wants to play for Real Madrid and it's a magnificent offer that will get me some recruitments for Portsmouth."

Diarra came on as a substitute in Saturday's 2-1 defeat at Bolton to make his first appearance since 15 November following an ankle injury.

Real are now coached by former Tottenham boss Juande Ramos and want a defensive midfielder because Mali international Mahamadou Diarra is sidelined for the season after undergoing knee surgery.

Bolton 0-2 Chelsea

Nicolas Anelka returned to haunt his former club with the opener as Chelsea returned to winning ways in impressive fashion at the Reebok Stadium.

The Frenchman put Chelsea ahead when he headed home Jose Bosingwa's cross after nine minutes, and Deco wrapped up the points with a superb scissors-kick.

The Blues had chances for a third, but Bolton responded valiantly late on.

Gary Cahill wasted their best chance, though, as Chelsea set a new record of 11 straight top-flight away victories.

It surpassed the record set by Tottenham in 1960 and Chelsea will be encouraged by the omens as Spurs went on to win the league in the 1960-61 season.

And Luiz Felipe Scolari will know that if Chelsea can replicate their away form at Stamford Bridge they will be in with a shout come next May, for this was a fine win that keeps up the pressure on leaders Liverpool, who also won.

The hosts came into the match on the back of four wins in five matches but, with Chelsea unbeaten at Bolton since 1997, the Trotters could have done without Kevin Davies missing a header when unmarked from Gavin McCann's corner.

It was a chance the striker would normally expect to get on target and he was made to pay when, barely a minute later, Chelsea were ahead.

Bosingwa was the creator, the right-back clipping a perfect cross into the area for Anelka to head in off the post to mark his first match against Bolton since his £15m departure with a goal.

Bolton responded but, apart from a Matthew Taylor long-ranger and a series of uncharacteristic flaps at crosses from Petr Cech, rarely threatened.

And on 21 minutes Deco showed the hosts how it is done in emphatic style, the Portuguese playmaker latching on to Michael Ballack's flick with a superb scissors-kick that flew into the corner.

Given the Blues' ruthlessness away from home, the second goal was the last thing Bolton needed. Chelsea were able to soak up pressure and hit the hosts on the break, with Deco guilty of a poor miss when he shot wide when through.

However, Bolton refused to give in and, to their credit, caused the odd moment of panic in the Chelsea box.

Twice the visitors had strong appeals for a penalty waved away, first when John Terry appeared to block Johan Elmander's shot with his arm - though it was by his side - and then when the same player handled Davies's header.

Both would have been harsh, though, and it was Cahill that missed the Trotters' best chance, diving on to Davies's flick-on only for Cech to beat his header away from goal.

It proved the Trotters' final chance and their brave second-half display was, ultimately, to no avail, Chelsea seeing out their first win in three matches.
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Chelsea assistant first-team coach Ray Wilkins:
"It was a great win for us. When we needed to fight, we fought, and when we could we played good football and made some very good chances, so we're delighted.

"We're not too concerned about the record, all we're worried about is silverware so this was all about three points.

"Of course our away form is exceptional but no-one here is worried about our home form. That will come, I'm sure."

Bolton manager Gary Megson:
"You can always take positives out of a game once you sit and analyse it but at this moment in time I'm disappointed - not just with the result, but with the way we played in the first half.

"We always try to push on against teams and take the game to them - get in their face, to use a players' expression - but we just weren't intense enough in the opening half.

"Ultimately, it has cost us because you can't expect to give a team like Chelsea a two-goal lead and get away with it. Yes, we did better in the second half, but by then it was too late."
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Bolton: Jaaskelainen, Steinsson, Cahill, Andrew O'Brien, Samuel (Smolarek 80), Davies, McCann, Nolan, Muamba (Gardner 46), Taylor, Elmander.
Subs Not Used: Al Habsi, Riga, Shittu, Basham, Obadeyi.

Booked: Davies, Andrew O'Brien.

Chelsea: Cech, Bosingwa (Ivanovic 89), Terry, Alex, Ashley Cole, Mikel, Kalou (Ferreira 83), Lampard, Ballack, Deco, Anelka.
Subs Not Used: Cudicini, Sinclair, Mineiro, Stoch, Woods.

Booked: Ballack.

Goals: Anelka 9, Deco 21.

Att: 22,023

Ref: Howard Webb (S Yorkshire).

Premier League talent line from Arsenal to Wigan Athletic

Guide to the Premier League academies

Arsenal

Opened in 1998, the Arsenal Academy is now in its 11th season, having been one of the first tier of English clubs to gain academy status.
Star pupil: David Bentley.

Aston Villa

Established in 1997, it replaced the former Centre of Excellence system in an attempt to introduce a more organised approach to youth development.
Star pupil: Gareth Barry.

Blackburn Rovers

Rovers are reviewing their academy in an attempt to develop a greater number of successful senior squad members at Ewood.
Star pupil: Matt Derbyshire.

Bolton Wanderers

The club replaced the older, more informal youth system in 1998.
Star pupil: Kevin Nolan.

Chelsea

The mission statement is "to produce home-grown professional footballers capable of competing with Europe's elite players with long-term loyalty to the club."
Star pupil: John Terry.

Everton

Academy has more than 20 full-time staff.Players from age six to 16 are coached three times a week.
Star pupil: Wayne Rooney.

Fulham

The Fulham Academy takes on players as young as nine years old.
Star pupil: Sean Davis.

Liverpool

Michael Owen, Steven Gerrard, Robbie Fowler, Steve McManaman and Jamie Carragher all trained at the state-of-the-art Youth Academy, opened in Kirkby in 1998. It has enabled the club to employ new techniques and FA standards.
Star pupil: Steven Gerrard.

Manchester City

The Academy was set up in 1998. By the end of last season no fewer than 26 players had passed through the Platt Lane gates and into the first team.
Star pupil: Micah Richards.

Manchester United

Academy players won the Champions Youth Cup last year. Recent alumni include Frazier Campbell and Johnny Evans.
Star pupil: Ryan Giggs.

Middlesbrough

One of the most productive academies in the country. Since 2003, Boro have produced the most graduates of all the academies to play in at least five first-team games a season. Star pupil: Stewart Downing

Newcastle United

Newly appointed director Richard Money presides over the Newcastle academy.
Star pupil: Stephen Taylor.

Portsmouth

The club were granted academy status at
the beginning of last season. Finished fourth in the Premier League Academy Group A last year.
Star pupil: Darren Anderton.

Stoke City

This academy, which costs £500,000 per year to run, trains more than 150 young players.
Star pupil: Martin Paterson.

Sunderland

The 'Academy of Light' cost over £10 million to build, and was the subject of protests from local residents angered at such a development on a green belt.
Star pupil: Martyn Waghorn.

Tottenham Hotspur

The Spurs academy coaches footballers from age eight to 18. The operation involves approximately 30 full-time and part-time staff.
Star pupil: Ledley King.

West Bromwich Albion

Run by former Manchester United midfielder Michael Appleton, the academy's home games are normally played at Albion's Great Barr Training Ground.

West Ham United
West Ham's academy has been highly successful in producing a number of players who have gone on to play at international level, including Frank Lampard.
Star pupil: Joe Cole.

Premier League clubs without academies:

Hull City (Centre of Excellence status) and Wigan Athletic (Centre of Excellence status).

Tottenham 4-2 Liverpool

Carling Cup holders Tottenham strode into the quarter-finals with a clinical win over Liverpool in a thrilling tie.

Three goals in six first-half minutes put the hosts in control, Roman Pavlyuchenko drilling in the opener.

Fraizer Campbell then got his first goals in a Spurs shirt when he clipped home before heading in from 12 yards.

Damien Plessis and Sami Hyypia headed in replies for Liverpool after Heurelho Gomes errors, but Pavlyuchenko tapped in his second in between to wrap it up.

It was an excellent performance from a home side that have been rejuvenated almost beyond recognition under Harry Redknapp, and only three matches now stand between the north Londoners and a return to Wembley where they won the trophy last season.


Liverpool, with some justification, may point to the fact that their side featured 10 changes to the side that beat West Brom at the weekend - but then Spurs themselves had made seven changes to the team that overcame Manchester City on Sunday.

Still, from the off only one side appeared to be in it.

Spurs were effervescent, closing Liverpool down at every opportunity and stringing passes together with a confidence that was so absent under Juande Ramos's reign this season.

Ryan Babel was a bright spark for Liverpool, epitomised by an excellent run into the home box, dribbling past three players, before the attack petered out.

But that was it, with Fernando Torres ineffective on his return from injury, and Spurs took full advantage in a stunning six-minute spell to end the half.

Lennon had come closest to rewarding Tottenham's dominance in the first half hour when he cut inside and saw his shot blocked well by Daniel Agger - but few expected what was to come.

Pavlyuchenko and Campbell had also gone close early in the match and it was that combination that broke the deadlock, the latter latching onto Gareth Bale's pass, out-muscling Sami Hyypia and laying the ball back for the Russian to hammer home.

Three minutes later and it was 2-0 as Campbell made the most of a collision between Reds keeper Diego Cavalieri and Andrea Dossena to collect Jamie O'Hara's pass and roll home.

When Campbell headed in Lennon's far-post cross on the stroke of half time, Spurs fans were in dreamland, but Liverpool were thrown a lifeline at the start of the second 45 when Plessis caught Spurs keeper Gomes in no man's land and headed in Babel's corner.

Liverpool's renaissance lasted precisely four minutes, though, as Pavlyuchenko tapped into after Didier Zokora's shot had been deflected.

If Tottenham thought they could relax, they reckoned without another woeful spot of keeping from Gomes, Hyypia the one to benefit this time as the defender nodded in Babel's corner with the Brazilian flapping.

And the mood at White Hart Lane was further dampened minutes later when Gomes went down heavily under Phillipp Degen's challenge and had to be stretchered off after over seven minutes of treatment.

Liverpool sensed an opportunity to get back into the match but, despite Nabil El Zhar causing problems, the visitors' best hope appeared to be when Degen went down under Bale's challenge in the box late on - but replays showed the defender clearly got the ball.

As it was, Spurs saw out a deserved win - their second over Rafael Benitez's side in a fortnight - to make it five victories and a draw for the hosts under Redknapp so far.