Euro2004

Papastathopoulos' move to Milan hasn't gone according to plan and it has been widely reported that he'll be leaving in the summer. Zenit wanted him but he's supposedly said he doesn't want to move to Russia. Hamburg who are currently 7th and 2 points off of a Europa League spot are the favourites to sign him. http://www.goal.com/en-us/news/1956/europe...n-hamburg-radar

You misunderstood me, i certainly don't think he's a mercenary. I think he loves Celtic. I also think he's very lazy though and i'm not the only one. Regardless of where he plays/has played. Whether it's up front, as a left forward or as a number 10 type player he has games where he's great but also when he's poor and his form seems to depend on his level of effort. So when he has something to prove and is playing to secure a contract he tries hard and performs well because he has the talent, but once the contract is secure and he knows he'll have a place in the squad he gets complacent. If we both agree that he's talented why was he on the verge of leaving then? Why is he so unpopular with large segments of the Celtic faithful? Surely we agree he's more talented than Stokes and Hooper. So why are they loved more than he is?

Vellios has been doing well in the Everton reserves. In his last 5 games he's got 3 goals and 2 assists. The 2 assists came in his latest game which was against Liverpool in the reserve derby. Everton reserves manager Alan Stubbs said: "For me it was the best he’s been since he’s come to the club. He looked more of an all-round player. "In the past he’s done some good individual stuff but then done something a little bit sloppy. "He was more complete tonight, he did the difficult things well and he was starting to do the simple things better. "That was very pleasing, probably the biggest plus of the night for me. "He’s a big lad, he’s about 6ft 3ins but he’s got a good touch, he’s good feet for a big fella and he’s been scoring a few goals which is good for his confidence." So that's good news for him, Everton and the future of the national team. http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/everto...534-28407978/2/

I live in the UK and have been following the situation closely. Samaras wanted a long term deal but because of his inconsistency Celtic would only offer him a one-year extension. Samaras refused to sign a short term deal and Celtic were saying he was likely to leave and wasn't needed. Then he put in a series of excellent performances and secured his contract. Here's also an article regarding his contract extension which explains how people view him at Celtic. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/...r-long-run.html "new deal for 'enigma' Georgios Samaras hints that Neil Lennon will stay for long run He is by no means the most popular Celtic player with the club’s support but the news that Georgios Samaras has signed a three-year extension to his contract could be seen as confirmation that Neil Lennon will stay at Parkhead to consolidate the team he has built in his first year in charge. Samaras, who is capable of maddening the Hoops faithful with his inconsistency, has nevertheless become a consistent irritant to Rangers of late, " So am I, along with all Celtic's fans and this reporter, anti-Samaras? I'm merely stating the facts. He was considered a liability and wasn't offered a new contract. He then played excellently for a few games and got his 3 year deal. What's worrying though is that he has absolutely tormented Rangers of late (in their 3 matches before today) and then today he was quiet in the CIS Cup Final where Rangers beat Celtic 2-1. Why am I, and countless other Celtic fans, not surprised? It's the same old Samaras. An abundance of talent, but limited passion = inconsistency, which is why he's scored 2 goals in 18 appearances this year. That's 1 every 9 games despite being up against the likes of St Mirren. We obviously disagree on Samaras but to be honest i'm a bit confused as to what we disagree about exactly. We agree that he's talented. So do we disagree on his consistency? Do you think those stats are acceptable? Please tell me where we disagree exactly

Is that first photo a push or a punch? Tough to tell from the angle. I saw Frankfurt's 2-1 win over St Pauli in the vital relegation crunch match and both he and Gekas were excellent. Gekas scored both goals, one was a penalty. Tzavellas' delivery from set pieces really is top draw, shame he isn't a bit quicker because he'd be a very, very good left back.

http://tribalfootball.com/articles/apostol...n-debut-1470651 Vellios scored on his debut for Everton reserves in a 5-1 defeat at Blackburn

Samaras played really well again for Celtic against Rangers as they beat Rangers 1-0 in the Cup tonight. Samaras hit the post and had a goal-bound header blocked by a defender. He's looked really good of late

He is better but hasn't just hasn't featured for Schalke's first team, which suggests he isn't the same player he was pre-injury. Such a shame, he looked like the real deal against the Ukraine and the ethniki could certainly do with that Pliatsikas now. I think he should go on loan to a Greek team for 6 months to get some regular football and try to find himself again.

He came on as a sub in Celtic's 2-2 draw at Rangers in the Cup. He was brilliant. Looked lively, his passing was excellent, he looked threatening and really should have scored having been denied by a super save. Hopefully he maintains this form.

oh dear that's not good. He needs to sort his attitude out and realise that his constant nights out are going to ruin his career. He needs to work particularly hard because although he has all the physical attributes, from a technical perspective he needs work, and he's picked a league that is based on technique. Personally i think the Premiership is better suited to the kid.

No move materialised for Samaras which reflects badly on him in my opinion. He'd rather sit on the bench than take a pay cut and leave. The Juventus rumour appeared to be nothing more while more rumours emerged that Sunderland were interested in Samaras. Either way, he's opted to stay despite being told he's surplus to requirements

http://www.imscouting.com/global-news-arti...-Samaras/13053/ Rumours in Scotland are that Sampdoria and Juventus are interested in Samaras

I disagree, youth is always given a chance in the Prem. Arsenal are the best example followed by Man Utd. But even teams like Everton give youth a chance. They frequently play (and have been for a couple of years now) Jack Rodwell, Seamus Coleman and Anichebe. If he's good enough he'll play, unfortunately i dont think he's good enough. He'll still benefit from Premier League youth development though so in 3 years he should be better off than if he stayed in Greece

http://followeverton.com/2011/01/28/everto...stolos-vellios/ 19 year old striker, Apostolos Vellios, has signed for Everton FC in a deal reported to be around

http://www.goal.com/en/match/50516/milan-v.../player-ratingsI didn't see the game, but goal.com are in agreement, saying he had a good game: Rating 7... replaced Alessandro Nesta in the 23rd minute and did not disappoint tonight. Made a wonderful clearance just ahead of Erjon Bogdani in the 77th minute. Hopefully he gets a few back to back games now and keeps up the good work. I certainly have faith in him. He could be class, but he needs game time.

http://www.givemefootball.com/premier-leag...bid-after-germa Reports from Germany claim that K.Papadopoulos is being linked with a move to Liverpool. Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea are also tracking him but Liverpool are apparently preparing a bid

I don't have an English link for this but Papastathopoulos has been linked with a move to Napoli. He's failed to impress at Milan and Naples seems the most likely destination

Samaras appears to be on his way out of Celtic after only being offered a one year extension on his contract. I think this was a very shrewd move by the Celtic board. Samaras can either be great or terrible and if you speak to 90% of Celtic fans and ask them to use one word to describe him they'll say "frustrating". (If you guys know any Celtic fans, try it! Or go to their message boards. They all say the same thing). Most of them also agree that he's lazy and just not committed enough. However, whenever he's been up for contract renewal he seems to have put in great performances just before that. So by offering him a short term contract with the option of renewal it will always keep him motivated. Unfortunately, the nature of modern day football gives players an awful lot of power and Samaras would rather have contract security. I can understand that though because there's always a concern of picking up a long term injury and being left out of contract without financial support. Not that he needs it of course! :rolleyes: Nonetheless it appears that both parties are looking at the situation in a different manner and they'll probably be parting ways as a result. I've posted the article from the Daily Record below, but before I do i think a post that a Celtic fans was really interesting and one I agree with to be honest. He wrote: I think this is a shrewd move by Celtic and will show Samara's commitment to the club and also his beliefe in his own ability, I think more clubs should treat inconsistency like this, if Samaras thinks he's good enough there shouldn't be a problem, if he wants to play for Celtic then he should grab the contract with both hands... however I don't think either applies and he'll go... I'll thank him for the Rangers perfomance and wish him well but I won't be overly concerened we can't find a better replacement. When you consider his talent compared to those of his counterparts, one can only blame him for his current situation. Here's the article: Gutted Georgios Samaras set to snub new one-year deal at Celtic Jan 11 2011 By Craig Swan GEORGIOS SAMARAS will quit Celtic after the club put a 12-month contract extension on to the table. The Greek, left, will move from Glasgow having had his dreams of a longer stay crushed by Parkhead bosses. Samaras' term at Celtic looked to be ending when negotiations over a new contract stalled at the end of last year and his current deal set to expire at the end this season. But his heroic Old Firm performance at Ibrox last week - when he scored both goals in a 2-0 victory - brought him rocketing back into the affections of the fans and boss Neil Lennon. Lennon immediately insisted he wanted the striker to remain part of the set-up and sources close to the player have revealed Samaras would be happy to stay at Celtic for the rest of his career. However, the short-term offer put on the table by the Parkhead powerbrokers has convinced Samaras his future lies elsewhere. Lazio head a clutch of clubs across Europe willing to fork out for the World Cup star and take him before the close of this month's transfer window. But even if this does not happen the 25-year-old attacker will go at the end of his current deal if Celtic do not reassess their offer. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/football/spl/...86908-22841146/

Celtic won the Old Firm Derby at Ibrox (Rangers' ground) by 0-2 with Samaras scoring both! :gr: They were his first two goals of the season but he has received wide-spread praise for his showing. His manager Neil Lennon threw huge praise on him saying: “Samaras was the big difference today, when he plays like that he is virtually unplayable,” the manager told Sky Sports. "He has fantastic attributes, he just needs to get into his head he can do this. "His attributes are not just top class but world class." http://sport.stv.tv/football/scottish-prem...-class-samaras/ Here are the highlights.

Samaras has been linked to a variety of teams since it was announced that he'd leave Celtic Park this season, probably in January. So far he's been linked with, Deportivo, West Brom, Lazio, and West Ham. Most recently though, and the most likely destination is, Sporting Lisbon. They lack a target man and he could make an impact in Portugal but I can't see him improving too much there. Personally i'd rather see him go to La Liga but Sporting would be a great destination for him personally i think

Papastathopoulos hasn't had a great start to his Milan career and there have already been rumours about him leaving. In a recent interview he said he wants to stay and fight for his place though and won't be leaving in January as a result. Sorry i don't have a link to the interview

Looks great and it's intimate too so could be a real cauldron

Ah ok, i misunderstood you. Sorry. You're talking about "pro level" i'm talking about "top class level". I know they've played pro football, but none have played at the very top level. PSV's glory years started in the mid-to-late 1970s after Hiddink had already left. They weren't a force when he was playing. De Graafschaap are hardly top level. Fergusen did well at Rangers but by and large it's known that he was a mediocre player. All i'm saying is that these guys, plus Wenger & Mourinho did not play top level football. On the other hand people like Andy Townsend, Jamie Redknapp, Souness, etc, did play top level football but listening to them talk about tactics is like listening to Nikos Alefantos talk about "etiquette". Goal.com reporters usually seem to have quite a good grasp of football. I'm a regular reader so appreciate the content. Perhaps you're right and they are being too harsh on Sokrati, but the Milan team press seems to be equally critical. Goal.com's criticism of him has continued following Milan's 1-2 home defeat to Juve. He was given a 5.5 and the horrible award of "flop of the match" with the comment Missed two free headers in either half and showed once again he lacks the big-game acumen to make a difference for Milan. http://www.goal.com/en/match/48729/milan-v.../player-ratings

I beg to differ. Most of the top managers played a very low level in professional football (Fergusen, Wenger, Mourinho, Hiddink). While many top players like Gullit, Maradona, Keegan, Souness, have been unsuccessful managers. The ability to understand football does not go hand in hand with playing football at the top level. Can Papasta make it Milan? Yes. Will he? It's 50-50

Neither has Jose Mourinho though. Don't get me wrong, i'm not arguing with you because I didn't see the game but the general consensus does appear to point to the fact that he's been poor since going there. Let's hope it's just a question of him needing time to adapt