Transfer Deadline Day – Premier League Ins And Outs

Transfer deadline day is one of the busiest days in the Premier League football calender and IntoTheTopCorner will keep you updated with all the latest Ins and Outs.

Here is a list of all the confirmed transfers involving the twenty Premier League teams. Note – Transfer Window Slams Shut. This doesnt mean the deals won’t come through.

ARSENAL

• Nicklas Bendtner – Arsenal to Juventus (Loan)
• Park Chu-Young – Arsenal to Celta Vigo (Loan)
• Geroge Brislen-Hall – Arsenal to Inverness (Free)

ASTON VILLA

• Jordan Bowery – Chesterfield to Aston Villa (£500,000)
• Ashley Westwood – Crewe Alexandra to Aston Villa (£2m)
• Nathan Delfouneso – Aston Villa to Blackpool (Loan)
• Christian Benteke – Genk to Aston Villa (£7m)

CHELSEA

• Amind Affane – Chelsea to Roda JC (Loan)
• Thorgan Hazard – Chelsea to SV Zulte Waregem (Loan)
• Gael Kakuta – Chelsea to Vitesse (Loan)
• Yossi Benayoun – Chelsea to West Ham United (Loan)
• Michael Essien – Chelsea to Real Madrid (Loan)
• Raul Meireles – Chelsea to Fenerbahce (£8m)

EVERTON

• Bryan Oviedo – FC Copenhagen to Everton (£5m)
• Matthew Kennedy – Kilmarnock to Everton (Nominal)
• Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe – Club Brugge to Everton (Loan)

FULHAM

• Kieran Richardson – Sunderland to Fulham (Undisc)
• Corey Gameiro – Fulham to FC Eindhoven (Loan)
• Dimitar Berbatov – Manchester United to Fulham (£4m)
• Ashkan Dejagah – Wolfsburg to Fulham (£2m)
• Clint Dempsey – Fulham to Tottenham Hotspur (£6m)

LIVERPOOL

• Jay Spearing – Liverpool to Bolton Wanderers (Loan)
• Charlie Adam – Liverpool to Stoke City (£5m)
• Nathan Ecclestone – Liverpool to Blackpool (Free)
• Dani Pacheco – Liverpool to Real Valladolid (Loan)

MANCHESTER CITY

• Nigel de Jong – Manchester City to AC Milan (£3.5m)
• Scott Sinclair – Swansea City to Manchester City (£6.2m)
• Maicon – Inter Milan to Manchester City (£3m)
• Roque Santa Cruz – Manchester City to Malaga (Loan)
• Richard Wright – Free to Manchester City
• Matija Nastasic – Fiorentina to Manchester City (£13m)
• Stefan Savic – Manchester City to Fiorentina (Free)
• Ryan McGivern – Manchester City to Hibernian (Loan)
• Dedryck Boyata – Mahcester City to FC Twente (Loan)
• Javi Garcia – Benfica to Manchester City (£15.8m)

MANCHESTER UNITED

• Dimitar Berbatov – Manchester United to Fulham (£4m)

NEWCASTLE UNITED

• Paul Dummett – Newcastle United to St. Mirren (Loan)

NORWICH CITY

• George Francomb – Norwich City to AFC Wimbledon (Loan)
• Harry Kane – Tottenham to Norwich City (Loan)

QUEENS PARK RANGERS

• Jay Bothroyd – Queens Park Rangers to Sheffield Wednesday (Loan)
• Sam Magri – Portsmouth to Queens Park Rangers (Undisc)
• Joey Barton – Queens Park Rangers to Marseille (Loan)
• Stefane Mbia – Marseille to Queens Park Rangers (Undisc)
• Patrick Agyemang – Queens Park Rangers to Stevenage (Free)

READING

• None

SOUTHAMPTON

• Gaston Ramirez – Bologna to Southampton (£11.8m)
• Cody Cooper – Free to Southampton
• Billy Sharp – Southampton to Nottingham Forest (Loan)
• Dean Hammod – Southampton to Brighton and Hove Albion (Loan)

STOKE CITY

• Charlie Adam – Liverpool to Stoke City (£4m)
• Maurice Edu – Rangers to Stoke City (Free)
• Steven N’Zonzi – Blackburn Rovers to Stoke City (£3.5m)

SUNDERLAND

• Kieran Richardson – Sunderland to Fulham (Undisc)
• Danny Rose – Tottenham Hotspur to Sunderland (Loan)

SWANSEA CITY

• Pablo Hernandez – Valencia to Swansea City (£5.5m)
• Andrea Orlandi – Swansea City to Brighton & Hove (Undisc)
• Scott Sinclair – Swansea City to Manchester City (£6.2m)
• Federic Bessone – Swansea City to Swindon Town (Free)
• Stephen Dobbie – Swansea City to Brighton and Hove Albion (Undisc)

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

• Danny Rose – Tottenham Hotspur to Sunderland (Loan)
• Giovani Dos Santos – Tottenham Hotspur to RCD Mallorca (Undisc)
• Rafael van der Vaart – Tottenham Hotspur to Hamburg (£10m)
• Hugo Lloris – Lyon to Tottenham Hotspur (£8m)
• Clint Dempsey – Fulham to Tottenham Hotspur (£6m)
• Harry Kane – Tottenham to Norwich City (Loan)

WEST BROM ALBION

• Goran Popov – Dynamo Kive to West Brom Albion (Loan)

WEST HAM UNITED

• Yossi Benayoun – Chelsea to West Ham United (Loan)
• Nicky Maynard – West Ham United to Cardiff City (Undisc)

WIGAN ATHLETIC

• Roman Golobart – Wigan Athletic to Tranmere Rovers (Loan)

10 Things You Should Know About Liverpool’s Latest Signing – Samed Yesil

Liverpool confirmed yesterday that they have completed the signing of Samed Yesil from German side Bayer Leverkusen for an undisclosed fee.

The young German striker, who had gathered interest from all round Europe, passed his medical on Thursday, agreed personal terms and a long-term contract with the Anfield club.

The 18-year-old, who will directly go into the club’s youth side told the Liverpoolfc.com:

“The first thing is that I have to train and then in one or two years I hope, step by step, to be in the first team. It is my dream to play for Liverpool and I will give my all.

“I have spoken with the manager. The first thing is that I have to train and then in one or two years I hope, step by step, to be in the first team. I have to take my chances in training.

“I will work hard here. I have read how the manager here will make a team that is young and that makes many passes, and I think I can be the right player for this. I am a goal getter, but it is important that I improve physically on my body because the Premier League is a hard league.”

With the move now officially completed and announced by the 18 times English champions, here are the ten things you should know about Samed Yesil.

• Samed was born in Desseldorf, Germany and holds dual nationality for Germany and Turkey – as his family are from Trabzon in Turkey. Unlike Nuri Sahin, who also holds a dual nationality of the same countries, Samed has opted to represent Germany at the international level.
• After impressing with local side BV 04 Dusseldorf, Samed joined the famous youth academy of Bayer Levekusen in 2005.
• Samed first became known during the 2011 FIFA U17 World Cup in Mexico, where he won the silver shoe award, as he ended as the second top scorer in the tournament scoring six time in seven matches as Germany finished third.
• Two of those goals came in the quarter-final win over England, who had his new Liverpool team-mate Raheem Sterling in the line-up.
• Although Samed is a true poacher, he is equally capable of creating goals for his team-mates, as he assisted five times during the U17 World Cup last year.
• Samed has a phenomenon goal scoring record at the youth levels for his country, with 22 goals in 26 appearances at the U16, U17 and U18 level.
• The right-footed striker has been gathering interest from all around Europe after dazzling in the U17 World Cup & the U17 European Championships and scoring so many goals.
• He scored an impressive 21 goals in 31 matches for Leverkusen’s U19s, before making four appearances for the second team in 2011/12.
• Samed made his Bundesliga debut in April this year, coming on as a late substitute with Bayer Leverkusen trailing 3-2 to Hertha Berlin, having thrown away a two-goal lead. They went on drew 3-3.
• In joining Liverpool, Samed becomes the fifth German player to sign for the Reds. His predecessors were Markus Babbel, Dietmar Hamann, Karl-Heinz Riedle and Christian Ziege.

A Complete Guide To The UEFA Champions League Group Stage Draw

The draw for the UEFA Champions League 2012/13 group stage takes place today in Monaco, with 32 teams set to discover their fate in the world’s elite club competition.

Last season’s winners Chelsea will be hoping to become the first team to defend their European crown this season in London, since AC Milan in 1989 and 1990, back in the old format of the European Cup. Standing in their way are the usual pre-tournament favourites Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Bayern Munich, while big-spending Paris Saint-Germain and the reigning Premier League champions Manchester City are being tipped by many as serious contenders.

The draw will start at 16:45 BST and you can follow it LIVE on Sky Sports and BBC. In the meantime, here is a complete guide which will help you know everything you need to know.

WHERE WILL THE DRAW TAKE PLACE?

The UEFA Champions League group stage draw will take place at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. It will also host the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year award ceremony, along with the UEFA Europa League group stage draw which will take place tomorrow.

Champions League winners Chelsea and Europa League winners Atletico Madrid are already in town for their UEFA Super Cup match tomorrow night at the Stade Louis II, and both will give a pre-match press conferences today at the venue before the draw.

The draw will begin at 17:45 local time, which translates to 11:45 Eastern time and 21:15 Indian time.

UEFA president Michel Platini is sure to be present along with General Secretary Gianni Infantino (who will do the draw), the usual array of esteemed former players, an ambassador for the 2013 Wembley final and the representatives from all the 32 clubs in the draw.

WHAT ARE THE SEEDINGS?

The lineup and seedings are complete for today’s UEFA Champions League group stage draw. The 32 qualifiers have been divided into four pots based on the UEFA coefficients, which are in turn determined by a mixture of the team’s own performance in Europe over the past five seasons, as well as the strength of their country’s league. Here are the seeding for all the 32 teams:

POT 1
Chelsea, Barcelona, Manchester United, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Arsenal, Porto, AC Milan

POT 2
Valencia, Benfica, Shakhtar Donetsk, Zenit St. Petersburg, Schalke, Manchester City, Braga, Dynamo Kiev

POT 3
Olympiacos, Anderlecht, Ajax, Juventus, Spartak Moscow, Paris Saint-Germain, Galatasaray, Lille

POT 4
Celtic, Borussia Dortmund, BATE Borisov, Dinamo Zagreb, CFR Cluj, Montpellier, Malaga, Nordsjaelland

HOW DOES THE DRAW WORK?

The Champions League group stage comprises eight groups of four teams. A team from each pot is drawn and placed into one of the eight groups available. This is done by pot and not “one at a time”. That is to say, all the teams from pot one will be placed into a group, and then pot two, and so on down to the fourth and final pot.

There are some restrictions, though. Teams from the same country cannot be drawn together, and even prior to that there will be two ‘sets’ of groups decided for the purpose of television rights. For example, the four teams from England cannot all be drawn in the same set.

Potential Group of Death – The champions of Spain, England, Italy and Germany could all be drawn in the same group. That means, Real Madrid, Manchester City, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund could all end up in the same group.

WHAT IS THE FORMAT AND THE SCHEDULE?

The four teams in each group will face each other home and away. This means there will be a total of six “matchdays” in each group spread across a Tuesday and Wednesday. The top two teams from each group advance to the first knockout round (Round of 16). The third-place finishers in each group enter the UEFA Europa League round of 32.

From the last 16 untill the semi-finals, clubs play two matches against each other on a home-and-away basis with the club scoring the greater aggregate of goals qualifing for the next round. Away goals and then penalties will be used to determine the winner if there is a draw. In the last 16, group winners play runners-up other than teams from their own group or country, while from the quarter-finals on the draw is free.

The final is decided by a single match, which this season will be played at the Wembley Stadium on Saturday, 25th May 2013.

Group Stage, Matchday 1 – 18/19 Sep
Group Stage, Matchday 2 – 02/03 Oct
Group Stage, Matchday 3 – 23/24 Oct
Group Stage, Matchday 4 – 06/07 Nov
Group Stage, Matchday 5 – 20/21 Nov
Group Stage, Matchday 6 – 04/05 Dec

Round of 16, 1st Leg – 12/13 Feb & 19/20 Feb
Round of 16, 2nd Leg – 05/06 Mar & 12/13 Mar
Quarter-Finals, 1st Leg – 02/03 Apr
Quarter-Finals, 2nd Leg – 09/10 Apr
Semi-Finals, 1st Leg – 23/24 Apr
Semi-Finals, 2nd Leg – 01/02 May

Final (Wembley Stadium) – 25 May

WHO ARE THE FAVOURITES?

Barcelone finished trophyless last season as they lost their League title to Real Madrid and were knocked out in the semi-finals of the Champions League by eventual winners Chelsea. But as always, they are the favourites with most bookmakers to win the Champions League this season under new boss Tito Vilanova.

Real Madrid are a close second, with Jose Mourinho hoping to win his first Champions League title with the Whites, while Manchester United and Manchester City are next in the line. Holders Chelsea are placed at 14/1 odds to defend their crown along with runners-up Bayern Munich.

Moneybags Paris Saint-Germain and Italian champions Juventus are priced as high as 18/1 by the bookies, while Arsenal, AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund are in the next group back.

Ten Famous Transfer Deadline Day Deals

The transfer window was made a compulsory part of the Premier League from the 2002-03 season, and the summer (Aug 31) and winter (Jan 31) transfer deadline days have witnessed alot of frantic activities in the last few years.

In our first ever Picture Special, we look back at the ten famous last-minute deals that took place in the Premier League.

Wayne Rooney (Everton to Manchester United – £25.6m) August 31, 2004

Ashley Cole (Arsenal to Chelsea – £5m plus William Gallas) August 31, 2006

Carlos Tevez & Javier Mascherano (Corinthians to West Ham United) August 31, 2006

Marouane Felliani (Standard Liege to Everton – £15m) August 31, 2008

Robinho (Real Madrid to Manchester City – £32.5m) September 1, 2008

Dimitar Berbatov (Tottenham Hotspur to Manchester United – £30.75m) Septemer 1, 2008

Andrey Arshavin (Zenit St. Petersburg to Arsenal – £15m) January 31, 2009

Rafael Van der Vaart (Real Madrid to Tottenham Hotspur – £8m) August 31, 2010

Andy Carroll (Newcastle United to Liverpool – £35m) January 31, 2011

Fernando Torres (Liverpool to Chelsea – £50m) January 31, 2011

KONAMI Announce Brazilian Licenses And Release New Champions League Screens

KONAMI have announced that they have secured licenses of all 20 Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A clubs and another new stadium for the upcoming Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 (PES 2013).

Here is the list of teams:

• Atlético Mineiro
• Fluminense
• Vasco da Gama
• Gremio
• SC Internacional
• Botafogo
• Cruzeiro
• Sao Paulo
• Corinthians
• Náutico
• Flamengo
• Portuguesa
• Ponte Preta
• Santos
• Palmeiras
• Coritiba
• Bahia
• Sport
• Atletico Goianense
• Figueirense

The above teams will be licensed along with updated rosters and actual kits. There will also be correct stadiums of Sao Paulo and Santos.

KONAMI have also released three new screenshots of PES 2013’s Champions League mode. Have a look at them below..

Premier League Team Of The Week – Gameweek 2

See who have made our Team of the Week from a thrilling second weekend in the Premier League. Chelsea and Everton have provided two players each, while three Manchester United players make the team.

Ali Al Habsi (Wigan Athletic)
The Wigan keeper had to be at his very best on a number of occasions in the 2-0 win over Southampton on Saturday. The Oman international made a total of six saves and most importantly from Adam Lallana and provided the platform for the Latics to go on and win.

Rafael (Manchester United)
The young Brazilian full-back put in one of the most impressive displays of his career against Fulham. He scored his first league goal since December 2009 and was always a threat for the Fulham defence when going forward. Defending wise he still needs to improve.

Ashley Williams (Swansea City)
The Swansea City centre-back was very impressive in his side’s 3-0 home win over West Ham. He was rock solid in the defence, winning all of the tackles he attempted in the game and also helped his side in keeping a second consecutive clean-sheet.

Martin Skrtel (Liverpool)
The Liverpool centre-back went from hero to zero in the space of sixty minutes. His bullet header gave the Reds the lead and set up an excellent Liverpool performance, but his backpass gifted Manchester City the equaliser. Well we all make mistakes but his performance on the day was just too good.

Leighton Baines (Everton)
The Everton left-back was a major threat going forward and was also solid as a rock while defending in his side’s 3-1 win at Aston Villa. He created the second goal for Steven Pienaar and seven more chances – most by a player in single game this season – for his side.

Eden Hazard (Chelsea)
The Belgium star was again very impressive for the Blues as he was last week and makes the team of the week for the second cosecutive time. He scored his first goal for the club from the spot and set up Torres for Chelsea’s second with a clever backheel.

Moussa Dembele (Fulham)
The tricky Belgium was probably Fulham’s most impressive player and was a constant threat to United back-four with his trickery and quick feet. He created a lot of opportunites for his side and had a chance himself late in the second half to equalise, but his shot was saved by David De Gea.

Steven Pienaar (Everton)
The South African international didn’t get many opportunities to prove himself at White Hart Lane, but back at Goodison Park and under David Moyes, he is the star of the team. Pienaar score his side’s second against Aston Villa and was a constant threat to the defence.

Shinji Kagawa (Manchester United)
The Japanese international was very good against Everton last week, and this weekend he was even better. He played brilliantly in the hole behind the striker, worked very hard throughout the game and his efforts were rewarded with a goal on his home debut.

Fernando Torres (Chelsea)
Looks like the Spanish international is getting back to his best. He won his team a penalty with an excellent dibble which was scored by Eden Hazard, and then his finish for his side’s second goal from a Hazard backheel was just vintage Torres.

Robin van Persie (Manchester United)
Much was made about Wayne Rooney being benched before the match, but it was Robin van Persie and his fantastic goal which took all the headlines after the match. He announced himself to the Old Trafford faithful with a stunning half-volley and was also involved in the other two United goals.

FIFA 13 – Saudi Premier League And First Full Match Video

EA Sports have just announced that the Saudi Premier League will feature on the eagerly-anticipated video game EA Sports FIFA 13. The league was founded in 1976 and consist of some famous clubs like Al-Hilal, Al-Ahli, Al-Ittihad etc.

Here are some screenshots of the Saudi Premier League in the game..

The FIFA 13 demo is due on 11th September and here we have the first full match video thanks to EA Sports TV and Fifasoccerblog.com. The match is between Arsenal and Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund and properly captured. The match starts from 1:00. Have a look at the video below..

We will bring more FIFA 13 news as soon as we get them. Till then cheers.

Premier League Team Of The Week – Gameweek 1

Have a look who made our Team of the Week from the a thrilling opening round of Premier League matches. Five debutants are included in the team as Cuellar, Cazorla, Michu, Hazard and Petric all impress.

David De Gea (Manchester United)
The young Spanish shot-stopper produced some stunning saves to keep his side in the game during the first half – especially from a Leighton Baines freekick – but couldn’t do nothing about Fellaini header.

Branislav Ivanovic (Chelsea)
The Serbian is not a regular goal scorer for the Blues, but he scored the opener against Wigan and the finished off the scoring against Reading in the midweek. Defensively he was very good, showing good awareness to clear danger and also making well time tackles to stop the opposition getting in on goal.

Phil Jagielka (Everton)
The Englishman put in a performance of real quality. He was brilliant throughout the game and showed brilliant anticipation against an unpredictable and strong United forward line. At the same time he was dominant in the air and also made a couple of brilliant last-dich tackles.

Carlos Cuellar (Sunderland)
The Spaniard settled in well in the heart of the Sunderland defence straightaway and kept Lukas Podolski at bay for the whole game with the help of his stylish brand of defending.

Liam Ridgewell (West Brom)
The former Birmingham City and Aston Villa man put in an impressive display against the Reds. Gave Downing a hard time by showing him onto his weaker right foot and encouraging him to cross. Assisted in his team’s third goal by setting up for Romelu Lukaku.

Nathan Dyer (Swansea)
The Englishman put in a great performance against a weak QPR defence by bagging a brace for himself. First one being a cool finish after being put through one-on-one by Routledge and then an a great piece of technique to bring down Agustien’s floated pass before slotting home his second.

Marouane Fellaini (Everton)
The Belgium international played just behind the striker and made his physical presence felt by winning almost everything in the air and showing great feet to bamboozle United’s defence. Scored the winner with a towering header.

Santi Cazorla (Arsenal)
The Spanish international, who traveled from Puerto Rico, was the only spark for the Gunners in their opening game. The former Malaga man constantly got himself into probbing positions and also had couple of efforts on target but couldn’t break the deadlock.

Michu (Swansea)
The Spaniard signed for just £2m in the summer from Rayo Vallecano made a dream debut for the Swans. It looks like he can carry his form of last season into the new season and in a new league. His first goal may have been because of a goalkeeping error, his second was a stunner. Unlucky not to get his hat-trick, but certainly would be more than please with his display.

Eden Hazard (Chelsea)
The Belgium whizard has settled into life in the Premier League with ease by putting two consecutive Man of the Match displays. The former Lille man has five assist – including two penalties – to his name in two matches and has been a constant threat to the opposition with his pace and trickery. Surely a star in the making if he can do this on a regular basis.

Mladen Petric (Fulham)
The Croatian international made a very good impression in his first 45 minutes in the Premier League for his new club, by gabbing a brace. Scored a debut goal as his header did cross the line before it was cleared and scored the second with a screamer from 30 yards. Also set up the fourth goal for Kacaniklic with his last touch of the game.

FIFA 13 Predicts Manchester City To Defend Title By Six Points

EA SPORTS™ FIFA 13 has predicted that Manchester City will win the Premier League title and they won’t require the injury-time dramatics of last season to do so this campaign.

With the help of the highly-acclaimed football engine that will drive FIFA 13 on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC, EA SPORTS simulated the entire 2012/13 Barclays Premier League season, testing all 20 clubs under the same conditions they will face in the months ahead. It determined that City will clinch the title with 93 points, six points ahead of last season’s runners-up, Manchester United.

In winning a second Barclays Premier League title, it was predicted that City would equal Chelsea’s record of 29 wins in a season that they set in claiming the title in 2004/05 and 2005/06. It was predicted that United will finish in second place with 27 wins and 87 points, while Chelsea will return to the top four, ending the season in third place with 26 wins and 85 points. Striker Robin van Persie, who recently joined Manchester United from Arsenal, will have an immediate impact for his new team. The EA SPORTS football engine predicts that Van Persie will score 21 goals for the Red Devils and will combine with new striker partner Wayne Rooney for a total of 38 goals.

10 Things You Should Know About Manchester United’s Latest Signing – Alexander Buttner

Manchester United confirmed yesterday that they have completed the signing of Alexander Buttner from Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem for an undisclossed fee.

The Dutch defender, who was linked with a move to Southampton early in the summer, passed his medical on Tuesday, agreed personal terms and signed a five-year contract at Old Trafford until 2017.

His new manager Sir Alex Ferguson told the club’s official site:

“Alexander is one of the best young left backs in Europe and we’re delighted to sign him. He’s someone we’ve been watching for a while now. He gives us some really exciting options in that position.”

The 23-year-old couldn’t hide his excitement about the move, he told manutd.com:

“Joining Manchester United is one of the best days of my life. It’s a team I have admired for many years now and I can’t wait to join my teammates and play my part in helping the club be successful.”

Buttner, who can also play as a left winger, a defensive midfielder, an attacking midfielder and as a right-back, will add much needed depth to the defence and will be a pretty good cover for Patrice Evra. If the £3.9m fee on this move is to be believed, then Manchester United have got themselves a pretty solid bargain here.

With the move now officially completed and announced by the 19 times English champions, here are the ten things you should know about Alexander Buttner.

• Alexander was born on 11th Feb, 1989 in Doetinchem, other footballers to hail from the Dutch town include former Cardiff and Celtic defender Glenn Loovens and ex Dutch international and Man City midfielder Paul Bosvelt.
• After impressing with local side VV Doetinchem, Alexander joined the famous youth academy of Ajax.
• After leaving the Dutch giants aged 16 he moved back to Gelderland, and despite being from Doetinchem, home of De Graafschap he signed instead for rivals Vitesse Arnhem.
• After making his debut in 2008 he went on to score his first goal for the club against FC Volendam in a 3-1 victory.
• He has since gone on to make 107 league appearances for Vitesse scoring 10 goals.
• Alexander is a versatile player who has operated on the wing, holding midfield, attacking midfield and a right back but has more recently established himself as a left back.
• He was included in the 36 man preliminary squad for The Netherlands disastrous Euro 2012 campaign but was not taken to the tournament itself.
• He has therefore yet to make his full Dutch debut but has represented the Netherlands at youth team levels.
• In July it seemed certain Alexander would sign for Southampton with a fee agreed between both sides and a medical being, seemingly, the only obstacle. However an unnamed third party requested a portion of the transfer fee and the deal collapsed.
• After failing in their attempts to sign Leighton Baines, The Red Devils have moved to take the 23 year old to Old Trafford to provide backup, and competition, for Patrice Evra.