Spurs loanee update 14/03/10

In midfield, Taarabt and Hogan Ephraim started out wide, while skipper Mikele Leigertwood and Alejandro Faurlin lined up in the centre.

From the resultant kick, Faurlin played a lovely centre into the path of Taarabt, whose header – although going wide – was cleared away to safety.

Rangers were looking dangerous in the early stages of the match.

This time, after Faurlin touched the ball into the direction of Taarabt, the magical Moroccan beat one man before firing a centre across the face of goal that somehow managed to miss everyone in the box.

Moments later, Simpson and Ephraim combined, and when the latter played Taarabt through on goal, Bunn came rushing out of his net to come and claim the ball.

Taarabt found the ball midway into the United half before he slid Ephraim through on goal. Under pressure from his marker but with only the keeper to beat, the midfielder could only shoot straight at Bunn.

The R’s had an opportunity to level the scores just before the half-time whistle when Taarabt played Simpson through on a goal, though the frontman could only fire straight at Bunn in the Blades net.

After a ball was played from deep, Taarabt stole possession from Marcel Seip as the ball bounced up in the air.

Through on goal with only keeper Bunn standing in his way of the net, Taarabt was coolness personified to slide the ball home for the R’s.

QPR playmaker Taarabt was causing the opposition problems aplenty, and he soon came close to adding his second goal of the match.

After being fouled on the edge of the Blades penalty area, Taarabt dusted himself down before bending an effort at the top left-hand corner that forced a fine save from Blades keeper Bunn.

Moments later, Faurlin’s clever pass up to Simpson ended with the forward touching the ball back to Taarabt, who from the edge of the box fired straight at keeper Bunn.

Attacking midfielder/striker Ryan Mason is to return to parent club Tottenham Hotspur permanently. The 18 year old has gradually drifted out of Yeovil Town’s first team line-up and has not completed 90 minutes of football since the turn of the year, and manager Terry Skiverton admitted in the build-up to this afternoon’s match that Mason was struggling with injuries and the state of various League One pitches.

Skiverton has said in tonight’s post-match interview that Mason will be returning to White Hart Lane, having also missed today’s match. He made 29 appearances for Yeovil Town, scoring six goals along the way. Skiverton told BBC Somerset the circumstances that had led to the move:

“Ryan Mason will be going back to Tottenham now. He’s come to the end of his spell and it’s been quite hard for him because he’s had a few niggles and a few little injuries. I think he’s going back just to get himself fit and flying for next season. He’ll be going on a weights programme. So he’ll be going to the next step in his career. They’ll be taking him out for I think what will be mostly strength training.“

Despite Mason tending to drift out of the side towards the end of his loan spell, Skiverton paid tribute to what the Tottenham player had achieved during the first half of the season:

“He’s been fantastic for us. I can’t speak highly enough of him. The performances that he has put in were like Gavin Williams did for us today. Ryan has done that for us on numerous occasions this year. He’s a fantastic player with a bright future, and who knows, I might go back in for him next year – if I can get him!”

All the best to Ryan for the future and let’s hope this is not the last we have seen of him.

ROBBIE Keane scored his first hat trick for Celtic as the Hoops triumphed to a 3-0 victory against Kilmarnock in the Scottish Cup quarter final.

An inspired substitution just before the hour mark changed the game as Celtic ran riot in a late show at Rugby Park.

The introduction of Georgios Samaras and Marc-Antoine Fortune fired up the away side as they created the goals for Keane to send the Hoops into the semi-final of the cup.

Tony Mowbray made two changes to the side who faced Falkirk last Sunday, with Georgios Samaras on the bench and Artur Boruc having to return to Poland for family reasons. Lukasz Zaluska was handed his chance between the sticks while Scott Brown returned to the first team for a one-off cup appearance in the middle of his three-match league suspension.

And it was the captain who started the match brightly with a good solo show in the middle of the Kilmarnock half. He turned on the ball before moving to the edge of the box and firing in a shot but his effort went just wide of the post.

Kilmarnock had the best opportunity of the half on the 13th minute when Allan Russell collected a deflected pass in the box and cracked a powerful shot off the top of the crossbar.

But Celtic turned up the heat on the 21st minute when a Robbie Keane effort in front of goal was stopped by Cammy Bell’s foot. Scott Brown attempted to make something from the loose ball but it was eventually cleared by the Killie defence.

McGeady’s inch-perfect pass across the field then met Keane but the striker’s deflected shot was easily collected by the Kilmarnock goalkeeper.

Not long after the half-hour mark Liam Kelly chipped a ball over the Celtic defence and onto the feet of the outstretched Craig Bryson, but he couldn’t make contact with the ball in time and Zaluska gathered it with ease.

Darren O’Dea had a good chance on 39 minutes when his header skimmed past the face of goal following a good cross from McGeady.

The home side continued to press but Celtic controlled the pressure until the half time whistle and the sides went into the break level.

McGeady tore apart the Kilmarnock defence right from the start of the second-half with two blistering chances in quick succession.

The first came when he latched onto a superb Keane cross and volleyed first-time straight at Bell in the Kilmarnock goal. He continued to pressure the back line with another shot two minutes later, but his effort skimmed over the top of the crossbar.

Kilmarnock settled back into the game and came agonising close to taking the lead on the 55th minute when Russell’s attempt on the edge of the six-yard box hit off Zaluska’s right-hand post.

Celtic made their two match-changing substitutions just before the hour mark in an attempt to push further forward and test the Kilmarnock back line. Samaras came on for Morten Rasmussen while Marc Crosas made way for Fortune, who returned from injury.

This meant Keane moved into the loan striker role with Fortune, McGeady and Samaras playing just off them in a 4-2-3-1 formation. And the change paid off as Celtic immediately piled more pressure onto the home side.

The Hoops broke the deadlock on 64 minutes when Edson Braafheid hit a long and well-timed cross into the box. Keane managed to create space away from the defence and turned away from Bell, making it easy for him to round the keeper and slot into the back of the net.

Samaras had a great opportunity to put Celtic two up on 69 minutes when Keane slide the ball into the Greek striker’s path. But his shot was too tight and slid across the front of goal, sliding just past the far post for a goal-kick.

The home side failed to break Celtic down as well as they had in the first half and Tony Mowbray’s side doubled their lead on 81 minutes.

Samaras made a fantastic run down the left wing to win the ball and fed it inside to Fortune. He bided his time before slotting the ball across goal and away from Bell, leaving Keane, who was standing at the far post, with the easiest of tasks to tap the ball into the open net.

And it was the Irishman who popped up a minute later to wrap up the cup tie for Celtic and bag his first hat-trick for the club. McGeady sent Fortune clear on the right and he unselfishly crossed to Keane who had found a space on the edge of the box. The striker fired in his third with ease, much to the away fans’ delight.

Keane had another chance to add to his tally three minutes from the end but he couldn’t get his head onto a Mark WIlson cross.