SBNation.com: All Posts by Kirsten Schlewitz

Aston Villa trio will not have contracts renewed

2013-05-22T22:32:26Z

Aston Villa showed a new side of themselves in the final weeks of the season, and now the club is determined to show their commitment to Paul Lambert's project. Part of that project means getting rid of dead weight, whether it's wages or bodies simply taking up space on the bench. On Monday, we learned Richard Dunne's time was up. We also know the club has given permission for Darren Bent to seek greener pastures.

Now we're saying goodbye to three more Villans:

Simon Dawkins

Possibly the best thing involving Simon Dawkins and Aston Villa was Andy Marshall sending a tweet that DORKINS had signed for the club. And then claiming it was autocorrect. Dawkins came to Villa in January from San Jose Earthquakes, where he was on loan from Tottenham Hotspur. Considering he had just four appearances in claret and blue, it's likely Spurs won't be clamoring to take him back.

Andy Marshall

In addition to Andy giving us some of the greatest tweets in the history of the universe, the goalkeeper also must hold some sort of record for having been with Villa since 2009, yet having made no competitive appearances for the club. I only hope he tells us why his phone has "Dorkins" on autocorrect before he goes.

Eric Lichaj

The American signed with Aston Villa in 2008 but, despite showing promise with the reserves, never became a true regular in the first team. Lichaj spent time on loan at Lincon City, Leyton Orient and Leeds United (perhaps a team starting with "L" will sign him on permanently?). He was involved in 14 matches in his final season at Villa, although he came on as a substitute in 9 of those, mostly because one defender or another had split his head open.

Darren Bent will be allowed to leave Aston Villa

2013-05-22T22:05:21Z

Aston Villa met with Darren Bent and, as expected, determined that the striker will be allowed to leave the club this summer. The suspension of Christian Benteke for the last match of the season allowed Bent his first start since the loss at Newcastle in January, and the forward responded by scoring the first goal of the match. Still, it's highly unlikely that Villa will be able to recover anywhere near the record £24m fee they paid to secure Bent from Sunderland.

When Bent arrived at Villa Park in January 2011, he got to be a hero, saving the club from relegation and helping secure a ninth-placed finish. But this season, a new hero, one with a few more letters added to his name, burst on to the scene. Christian Benteke's 19 league goals puts Bent's 9 scored in 2011-2012 to shame. The fact that he's seven years younger than Bent certainly doesn't hurt, either.

So it's no surprise that Bent will be out the door this summer. The question is, what will Villa get in exchange, and who will be willing to pay it?

Gonzalo Higuaín close to a Juventus move

2013-05-22T19:52:18Z

Sources in Italy are reporting that Juventus have agreed terms with Real Madrid forward Gonzalo Higuaín. Reports state that representatives of the club were in Madrid on Wednesday to work out a deal, but as of yet, no fee has been agreed.

Despite winning the scudetto and making it to the quarter-finals of the Champions League, the Old Lady had no dominant center forward this season, with midfielder Arturo Vidal equaling the number of goals scored by the most prolific striker, Mirko Vucinic. Each had ten goals this season, a number that might seem paltry for most title winning sides.

With Juve keen to keep a hold of the title while also progressing further into the Champions League next season, Antonio Conte, Beppe Marotta and the rest are anxious to add reinforcements this summer. They locked down Athletic Bilbao striker Fernando Llorente back in January, but are also eyeing up Carlos Tevez and Stevan Jovetic in addition to Higuaín.

This is a post from our transfer rumors section. For news and analysis, visit SB Nation Soccer's homepage.

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Max Allegri: In or out at Milan?

2013-05-22T13:43:05Z

AC Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri met with vice-president Adriano Galliani on Wednesday morning, but did not speak to the media afterward. It is thought that the meeting signaled the end of Allegri's time with the rossoneri, with Clarence Seedorf the favorite to step in and take his place.

Allegri joined Milan from Cagliari in the summer of 2010. In his first season in charge, Milan won the scudetto, They finished runners-up in Allegri's second campaign while being eliminated by Barcelona in the quarterfinals of the Champions League. This past season, the rossoneri were unable to kick their game into gear until late 2012, but made up for it by going unbeaten in 2013, thanks to a little help from new forward Mario Balotelli.

Despite their success at the end of the season, Milan very nearly missed out on Champions League play for next season, needing a late penalty and goal to edge out Fiorentina for third place. Add to that another Champions League elimination at the hands of Barcelona -- this time in the first round of the knockout stages -- and club president Silvio Berlusconi is not a happy man.

Various reports suggest that, should Allegri really be out at Milan, his next stop will be Roma.

Richard Dunne's time with Aston Villa comes to an end

2013-05-20T22:20:03Z

Richard Dunne hasn't played a competitive match for Aston Villa since last season's closing match against Norwich. He hurt his groin against Italy at the Euros, and despite surgery and various appointments with specialists, Dunne's never been able to return to full fitness. Now, it turns out that the two matches he played while Villa were on their preseason tour in the U.S. will be the last matches he ever played in the claret and blue.

Dunne, now 33 years old, signed with Villa from Manchester City way back in 2009. Since that time, he's notched 95 appearances with Villa, scoring four goals and picking up 19 yellow cards -- but, surprisingly considering Villa's current defensive woes -- was never sent off while with the club. However, there's no record of exactly how many own goals the defender has managed to gift the other side.

As hard as it is for this Dunne fan to admit, it's best for the club for him to leave. 33 is pretty old, even for a defender. But even more significantly, Dunne's exit means his wages -- some fairly hefty ones at that -- will now be off the books. The end of the season proved that Paul Lambert's approach to football can work at Aston Villa. Now it's time to finish offloading the heavy earners and get this club in order again.

Best of luck to you, Richard Dunne.

Pescara vs. Fiorentina, final score 1-5: A win, but not enough for la Viola

2013-05-19T20:49:02Z

It was a win for Fiorentina, but in the end, the win wasn't enough. Despite the 5-1 victory for la Viola, the last minute goal from Philippe Mexes, putting Milan ahead of Siena, meant that the rossoneri are the ones that (might) be playing Champions League football next season.

Adem Ljajic started off the scoring in the 16th minute. It was nothing dramatic, a simple tap in off a ball from Juan Cuadrado. But it was exactly, exactly what Fiorentina needed.

And then it just got better, when Ljaja scored his second. This time it was with the help of Matias Fernandez, with Ljajic latching on the end of his ball and easily bypassing an onrushing Mattia Perin. But even more crucially, just after the little devil scored, Claudio Terzi headed on a cross from Alessandro Rosi to put Siena ahead of AC Milan.

But the Viola weren't content to leave things in the hands of fate. Before the break, Mati Fernandez put in a third. Less than four minutes after Ljajic's second, Fernandez gave a lovely little turn and then flicked it on past Perin, who at that point, decided his vacation had already started.

After play resumed, the Viola were determined to pay back Pescara for defeating them in Florence. First up was Stevan Jovetic, again helped out by Fernandez. Was it JoJo trying to up his price for a summer transfer, or was he being a loyal Fiorentina player? Only time will tell.

One thing is certain, though: Fiorentina need to lock down Ljajic. The attacker locked down his hat-trick just as the clock ticked over to the hour mark. His good buddy Jovetic set him up, but by this point, no Fiorentina supporter was even paying attention. All eyes were on Siena, where the robur were still leading Milan.

So no one noticed when Pescara actually managed to score. The consolation goal came from Marco Vittiglio, with his first appearance in Serie A. And probably last, quite frankly.

In the end, though, it was all heartbreak for Viola fans. Milan were awarded a penalty, which Mario Balotelli duly converted. With both teams down to ten men, it was almost too easy for the rossoneri to find the goal ahead goal. It was Philippe Mexes that pricked the balloon of Fiorentina's Champions League dream.

Pescara: Mattia Perin; Luciano Zauri, Uros Cosic, Marco Capuano, Antonio Bocchetti; Giuseppe Rizzo, Eugênio Rômulo, Togni, Federico Di Francesco, Birkir Bjarnason, Mervan Celik; Ferdinando Sforzini

Fiorentina: Emiliano Viviano, Nenad Tomovic, Gonzalo Rodriguez, Marvin Compper; Matias Fernandez, David Pizarro, Borja Valero, Manuel Pasqual, Juan Cuadrado, Stevan Jovetic, Adem Ljajic

Goals: Ljajic 16 (F); Ljajic 24 (F), Fernandez 28 (F); Jovetic 54 (F); Ljajic 59 (F); Vittiglio 76 (P)

Pescara vs Fiorentina, preview: All or nothing for la Viola

2013-05-18T21:15:34Z

Last time they faced the now-relegated Dolphins, Fiorentina somehow managed to lose 2-0. Now, the Viola are kicking themselves -- had they managed to beat Pescara, like every other team in the league, they'd hold a one-point lead over AC Milan. Instead, they're two points behind the third-placed rossoneri and are forced to cheer on rivals Siena.

Not only must the viola win on Sunday, Milan must also fail to win. Should Fiorentina grab all three points, and Milan get just one, it'll be Fior playing Champions League football next season -- if they get through the qualifiers, of course. Thanks to a 3-1 victory at the San Siro in November, and a come from behind draw in Florence last month, Fiorentina will go through if the sides wind up equal on points.

But that won't happen. Yes, the viola will beat Pescara. The reverse fixture was a fluke and, at this point, the dolphins don't even have pride to play for. In fact, that match against Fiorentina back on January 6 was the last time Pescara won a match. They finished the season on just 22 points, eight behind 19th placed Siena, and have an impressive -53 goal difference.

Yet there's no reason Milan won't beat Siena. The robur, too, are relegated. They've failed to pick up points since beating Pescara six rounds ago, and they've scored just one goal during those matches. Add to that the fact that Fiorentina and Siena are rivals, and there's not even a reason to show up.

Even if Fiorentina can't manage to clinch the final Champions League spot, at least Adem Ljajic is back from suspension. Right? Oh, just me then? Too bad.

Pescara Injuries and Suspensions

Everyone? No one? Does it really matter, at this point?

Fiorentina Injuries and Suspensions

Alberto Aquilani and Matias Fernandez are slight doubts.

Match Date / Time

Sunday, May 18 at 8:45 p.m. local, 2:45 p.m. ET

Venue

Stadio Adriatico, Pescara

Sky Calcio 3; beIN Sport Play (free stream)

Partizan vs. Red Star, final score 1-0: Partizan leave it until late to grab all three points in the derby

2013-05-18T20:57:05Z

It took until the 90th minute, but in the end, a header from Milos Jojic was sufficient for Partizan to grab a 1-0 win over rivals and title challengers Red Star. Unfortunately, the majority of the Eternal Derby was dull, dull, dull.

With a win, Red Star could have overtaken Partizan in the standings and managed to keep their hopes of a title alive. As such, with a two point lead over their rivals, Partizan were able to sit back, be patient and wait for the chance to counter. And with no ability to get through the Partizan defense, Red Star looked dull and out of ideas for much of the match. It didn't help that Red Star's best player, Darko Lazovic, had to come off after just twelve minutes, tears running down his cheeks.

Red Star's best chance in the first half came from Filip Kasalica, who took a chance on a strike from 35 yards out and managed to hit the bar. When the Partizan attacks came, it was Aleksander Mitrovic and Lazar Markovic that provided the danger. Mitrovic managed to get his head on the end of quite a few crosses from Markovic -- certainly the best player on the pitch -- but kept placing the ball just wide. Just before the break, Mitrovic got one on target, but Bojan Bajkovic managed to pull off a great save.

Markovic kept showing off his skills in the second half, possibly hoping to impress Chelsea. Again and again, he did well to get through the Red Star defense, but again and again, Mitrovic couldn't manage to finish the chances.

In the end, the glory fell to Jojic, on for Predrag Luka with about 30 minutes to play. Jojic came up with a fantastic free kick from about 20 yards out. The ball hit the crossbar but, as Bajkovic attempted to rescue a point for Red Star, he managed to push the ball back into his own net.

Partizan may not have clinched the Serbian title with this derby win, but it's nearly a done deal. With just two matches remaining, Red Star would have to beat both Sloboda and Vojvodina, not the easiest of tasks, and Partizan would have to lose both their remaining matches.

Partizan: Stojkovic, Miljkovic, Pajović, Ivanov, Volkov, Smiljanic, Sasa Markovic, Sasa Ilic, Luka, Lazar Markovic, Mitrovic.

Red Star: Bajković, Vešović, Mikic, Spajić, Petkovic, Garrido, Milivojevic, Milijas, Kadu, Lazovic, Kasalica