Poetic Football

Media twist footballers words again

2008-11-20T23:18:00.002Z

Early this month I had a rant about Arsenal and their lack of leadership. So imagine my glee when hearing on the radio on my drive home the headline that Gallas believes that the Gunners' young stars that they are "not brave enough" to challenge for the Premier League title.

However after I got home I actually read his interview in full and it read to me that is was a true rallying call by a man out to prove a point.

"We are not brave enough in battle.

"I think we need to be soldiers. To be champions, you have to play big matches every weekend and fight."

Speaking to the Associated Press, he added: "We are coming up against teams who are not scared to play football against us, who are not scared to take us on at our place, and this is becoming dangerous for Arsenal.

"We have to be warriors. That is how the team will forge their character and experience."

Enough said.......

The friendly arguement

2008-11-18T23:46:00.002Z

Germany v England

That alone looks impressive

Germany v Endland (friendly)
not so?

In my opinion I don't think it matters. It is the old rivals. Also I believe that friendlies are a good thing. We need to test players and formations out so we can be prepared for the next world cup. The nation needs to win a trophy, we need some passion and pride back in the national squad.

If you don't belive me then belive the England captain-

"I can assure you the game certainly means a lot to us as players. I know there are a couple of injuries and a few people have pulled out, but the squad is coming here to win and the manager has stressed that from day one."

Terry added that matches against Germany will always carry extra significance given the history between the two sides.

"You go back to the World Cup final of 1966 but in my time, the 5-1 win over Germany in Munich really sticks out," said the Chelsea defender. "That was a fantastic night for English football.

"Everyone involved here this week is coming here to win the game and we know the relevance of the game for everyone.

"There is no such thing as a Germany-England friendly given the history of the fixture."

Another weekend of football goes by...

2008-11-17T23:38:00.003Z

So Chelsea, Man Utd and Liverpool provided no shocks with their victories over the weekend, however Arsenal's inability to put together any kind of run is really starting to effect even the most ardent Gooners faith that they can win anything this year.

So what is the problem?

They have the world class players, they have the world class amateurs and they have certainly the worlds best youth players. Personally I believe they don't have a Tony Adams or Martin Keown to lead, true they do have experienced players such as Galas and Fabregas but they are not heroes amongst the team. This January Arsenal need to buy a potential captain..... does anyone know John Terry's number?

Sunday, 16 November 2008

2008-11-16T21:34:00.003Z

Everton	1-1 (HT 0-1)	Middlesbrough
Yakubu 65		O'Neil 8
		Bookings: Digard 65 Pogatetz 69

Hull	2-2 (HT 1-2)	Man City
Cousin 14 Geovanni 60		Ireland 37 Ireland 45
Bookings: McShane 25 Marney 88		Bookings: Ben-Haim 11 Wright-Phillips 83 Ireland 84

Saturday, 15 November 2008

2008-11-16T21:25:00.003Z

Arsenal	0-2 (HT 0-0)	Aston Villa
		Clichy o.g. 70 Agbonlahor 80
Bookings: Denilson 10 Fabregas 19		Bookings: Friedel 44 Barry 55 Agbonlahor 81 Sidwell 90

Blackburn	1-2 (HT 1-0)	Sunderland
Samba 45+2		Jones 49 Cisse 71
Bookings: Warnock 33 Khizanishvili 54 Mokoena 70		Bookings: Tainio 25 Ferdinand 29 Collins 39 Jones 54

Bolton	0-2 (HT 0-1)	Liverpool
		Kuyt 28 Gerrard 73
Bookings: Nolan 63		Bookings: Carragher 86

Fulham	2-1 (HT 1-0)	Tottenham
Davies 33 Johnson 70		Campbell 81
Bookings: Zamora 16

Man Utd	5-0 (HT 2-0)	Stoke
Ronaldo 3 Carrick 45+1 Berbatov 49 Welbeck 84 Ronaldo 89
Bookings: Evra 63		Bookings: Fuller 43 Delap 47

Newcastle	2-2 (HT 0-1)	Wigan
Owen 80 Martins 87		Taylor 3 Bramble 89
Bookings: Beye 49		Bookings: Boyce 16 Bramble 50 Palacios 57
		Sent off: Boyce 54

West Brom	0-3 (HT 0-3)	Chelsea
		Bosingwa 34 Anelka 38 Anelka 45+1
		Bookings: Terry 52 Bosingwa 57 Ivanovic 78

West Ham	0-0 (HT 0-0)	Portsmouth
		Bookings: Pamarot 39

Andorra 0-2 England

2008-09-06T22:36:00.003+01:00

When McClaren's England won 3-0 against Andorra many fans and pundits attacked the manager and team for not winning against a poorer opposition, tonight Cappello's England only managed a 2-0 victory.

So does this mean that once again that England will struggle and even fail to qualify for a major tournament? Not according to Capello, in a post match interview he said he was satisfied with his teams performance.

England started well. Walcott certainly was a good choice to begin the match as he had two chances in the first three minutes. However Andorra defending with nine men sat behind the ball began to frustrate England. Downing's crossing was poor and Defoe was muscled off of every ball he had by strength and numbers. England struggled to find space and the travelling English fans to voice their frustration with the manager and team at the 0-0 score at half time.

At half time Capello showed his tactical know how by completely changing the style of his team by bringing on Hesky (who played well) and Cole whose attacking prowess achieved two goals for England. England where a different team in the second half and found it alot easier to find space against the tight and dogged nine man defence of Andorra.

It was also good to see Capello try different things such as Beckham in middle and constantly telling Cole to stay forward and stop chasing every ball like a six year old. So all in all I believe it was a good performance because Capello was man enough to realise his tactics where so wrong in the first half that he made drastic changes to win the match.

Capello at the end of his post match interview stated that he was confident of the upcoming match against Croatia. Certainly England's next match is the match that will test Capello's skills to the limit, personally I am begging to the football gods for an emphatic victory!

McClown forgets everything about England, even his accent

2008-08-15T19:54:00.004+01:00

Just when I thought my respect for Steve McClaren couldn't get any lower he goes and gives the most bizarre interview ever to a Dutch TV channel.... For some reason he decided to speak to the commentator in a broken English accent! I can only think two things have happened here; either McClaren has started to lose his grasp of English after only being in Holland for 8 weeks or he believed the interviewer so stupid that he decided to mimic their broken English accent.

Certainly the second option is more likely even though the first one is funnier. However this has led me to believe that McClaren is more ignorant and stupid than I could of imagined. Ignorant because of the way he conversed with the commentator and stupid because he forgot to realise that the Dutch TV channel would put subtitles up on the screen, so he really didn't need to put on that teribble accent.

Here is the interview, so make your own opinions on it- click here

The Premier League and its proud history

2008-08-12T22:56:00.003+01:00

Thank God the Premier League starts again this weekend, so Man U are creeping closer to Liverpool's crown of most successful English club ever but will any other records be broken?

Take a look at the records below, thanks to Wikipedia (I love you guys!)

Records in this section refer to The Football League from its founding in 1888 through to 1992, and to both the Premier League and The Football League from 1992 to the present.

Titles

Most League titles: 18, Liverpool (1900-01, 1905-06, 1921-22, 1922-23, 1946-47, 1963-64, 1965-66, 1972-73, 1975-76, 1976-77, 1978-79, 1979-80, 1981-82, 1982-83, 1983-84, 1985-86, 1987-88, 1989-90)

Most consecutive League titles: 3, joint record:
- Huddersfield Town (1923-24, 1924-25, 1925-26)
- Arsenal FC (1931-32, 1932-33, 1933-34)
- Liverpool FC (1981-82, 1982-83, 1983-84)
- Manchester United (1998-99, 1999-2000, 2000-01) (only time this has been achieved with the same manager)

Top Flight Appearances

Most Appearances: 107, Everton (1888-1930), (1931-1951), (1954-current)
Most Appearances before playing outside the top flight for the first time. (i.e. the last team never to have played outside the top flight): 68, Sunderland A.F.C (1890-1958)

Wins

Most wins in the top flight overall: 1710, Everton
Most consecutive wins without conceding a goal: 9, Stockport County (League Two, 2006-07)
Most wins in a season: 33, Doncaster Rovers (Third Division North, 1946-47; final record P42 W33 D6 L3)
Most consecutive wins: 14, joint record:
- Arsenal (Premier League between February 10, 2002 and August 24, 2002)
- Bristol City (Second Division, 1905-06)
- Preston North End (Second Division, 1950-51)
- Manchester United (Second Division, 1904-05)

Most consecutive wins from the start of a season: 13, Reading (Third Division, 1985-86)
Most consecutive wins from the start of a season in the top flight: 11, Tottenham Hotspur (First Division, 1960-61)
Most consecutive home wins: 25, Bradford Park Avenue (Third Division North, 1926-27)
Most consecutive away wins: 10, Tottenham Hotspur (First Division, 1959-60)
Fewest wins in a season: 1, joint record
- Derby County (Premier League, 2007-08); final record P38 W1 D8 L29)
- Loughborough (Second Division, 1899-1900; final record P34 W1 D6 L27)
100% home win record in a season:
- Liverpool (14 games; First Division, 1893-94)
- Sheffield Wednesday (17 games; Second Division, 1899-00)
- Brentford (21 games; Third Division South, 1929-30

Draws

Most draws overall in the top flight: 947, Everton
Most draws in a season: 23, joint record:
- Norwich City (from 42 games, First Division, 1978-79)
- Fulham FC (from 46 games, Fourth Division, 1986-87)
- Hartlepool United (from 46 games, Third Division, 1997-98)
- Cardiff City (from 46 games, Third Division, 1997-98)
Most consecutive draws: 9:
- Southampton (Championship, 2005-06)

Losses

Most losses overall in the top flight: 1320, Everton
Most losses in a season: 34, Doncaster Rovers, (Third Division, 1997-98; final record P46 W4 D8 L34)
Fewest losses, season: 0, joint record:
- Preston North End (First Division, 1888-89; final record P22 W18 D4 L0) Preston were also unbeaten in the FA Cup
- Liverpool (Second Division, 1893-94; final record P28 W22 D6 L0)
- Arsenal (Premier League, 2003-04; final record P38 W26 D12 L0)

Points

Most points overall in the top flight: 4911, Liverpool
Most points in a season (2 points for a win): 74, Lincoln City, (Fourth Division, 1975-76)
Most points in a season (3 points for a win): 106, Reading, (Championship, 2005-06)
Most points in a season for a top-flight-team (2 points for a win): 68 (30 wins 8 draws), Liverpool, (First Division, 1978-79)
Most points in a season for a top-flight-team (3 points for a win): 95, Chelsea, (Premiership, 2004-05)
Fewest points in a season (2 points for a win): 8, joint record:
- Loughborough (Second Division, 1899-00)
- Doncaster Rovers (Second Division, 1904-05)
Fewest points in a season (3 points for a win): 11, Derby County (Premier League, 2007-08)

Unbeaten runs

Longest unbeaten League run: 49, Arsenal (Premier League between May 7, 2003 and October 24, 2004)
Longest unbeaten League run at Home: 82, Chelsea (Premier League 2004 to Present)
Longest unbeaten run at Home: 85, Liverpool (all competitions between January 21, 1978 and January 31, 1981

Appearances

Most career league appearances: 1,005, Peter Shilton (1966 to 1997)^[1]
Most career league appearances by an outfield player: 931, Tony Ford (1975 to 2002)
Most career league appearances at one club: 770, John Trollope (Swindon Town, 1960 to 1980)
Most career league appearances for consecutive games: 401, Harold Bell (Tranmere Rovers, 1946 to 1955, including 26 FA Cup Appearances)
Oldest player: Neil McBain, 51 years and 120 days (for New Brighton v. Hartlepool United, March 15, 1947)^[2]
Youngest player: joint record, 15 years and 158 days:
- Albert Geldard (for Bradford Park Avenue v. Millwall, September 16, 1929)
- Ken Roberts (for Wrexham v. Bradford Park Avenue, September 1, 1951)

Goals

Individual

Most career league goals: 433, Arthur Rowley (619 matches, for West Bromwich Albion, Fulham, Leicester City and Shrewsbury Town, 1946 to 1965)
Most career top-flight goals: 357, Jimmy Greaves (516 matches, for Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United, 1957 to 1971)
Most goals in a season: 60, Dixie Dean (Everton 1927-28)
Most goals in a game: 10, Joe Payne (for Luton Town v. Bristol Rovers, 13 April 1936)
Fastest goal: 4 seconds, Jim Fryatt (for Bradford Park Avenue v. Tranmere Rovers, 25 April 1964)
Fastest goal on a League debut: 7 seconds, Freddy Eastwood (for Southend United v. Swansea City, 16 October 2004)
Fastest hat-trick (time between first and third goals): 2 minutes 20 seconds, James Hayter (for AFC Bournemouth v. Wrexham, 23 February 2004)
Fastest goal by a substitute: 1.8 seconds, Nicklas Bendtner (for Arsenal v. Tottenham Hotspur, 22 December 2007)
Most own goals in one season: 5, Robert Stuart (Middlesbrough, 1934-35)
Most hat-tricks in one season: 9, George Camsell (Middlesbrough, 1926-27)
Longest goalkeeping run without conceding a goal: 1103 minutes, Steve Death (Reading, 1978-79)
Chris Nicholl of Aston Villa once scored all four goals in a 2-2 draw, against Leicester City in 1976.

Team

Most league goals scored in a season: 134, Peterborough United (Fourth Division, 1960-61)
Most top-flight goals scored in a season: 128, Aston Villa (First Division, 1930-31)
Fewest league goals scored in a season: 18, Loughborough, (Second Division, 1899-1900)
Fewest home league goals scored in a season: 10, Manchester City, (Premier League, 2006-07) They did not score a home goal after January 1, encompassing their final 8 home league matches.
Most league goals conceded in a season: 141, Darwen (Second Division, 1898-99)
Most goals conceded by a single goalkeeper: 85, Paul Robinson, (Leeds United, 2003-04)
Fewest league goals conceded in a season: 15, Chelsea (Premier League, 2004-05)
Most consecutive games without scoring: 13, Hartlepool United (11 league, 1 FA Cup and 1 Autoglass Trophy, 1992-93)
Most goals on one day: 209 goals in 44 games, Saturday 1 February 1936
- This included 9 hat-tricks, 3 players grabbing 4 goals, and some interesting scorelines of Chester City 12-0 York City and Crewe Alexandra 5-6 Chesterfield. There was only one nil-nil draw: Aldershot 0-0 Bristol City

Scorelines

Record win: 13-0, joint record:
- Stockport County 13-0 Halifax Town (Third Division North, January 6, 1934)
- Newcastle United 13-0 Newport County (Second Division, October 5, 1946)
Record away win: Port Vale 0-10 Sheffield United (Second Division, December 10, 1892)
Record away win in English top division: Newcastle United 1-9 Sunderland A.F.C. (First Division, December 5, 1908)
Most goals in a game: 17, Tranmere Rovers 13-4 Oldham Athletic (Third Division North, December 26, 1935)
Highest scoring draw: 6-6, joint record:
- Leicester City 6-6 Arsenal (First Division, April 21, 1930)
- Charlton Athletic 6-6 Middlesbrough (First Division, October 22, 1960)
- On October 1, 1991, the Zenith Data Systems Cup First Round tie between Tranmere Rovers and Newcastle United ended 3–3. A further six goals were scored in the 30 minutes of extra time, resulting in a 6–6 draw, before Tranmere eventually won 3–2 on penalties
Most double figure league wins by a team: 5, Birmingham City (12-0 v Walsall, 17 December 1892; 10-2 v Manchester City, 17 March 1894; 10-1 v Blackpool, 2 March 1901; 12-0 v Doncaster Rovers, 11 April 1903; 11-1 v Glossop, 6 January 1915) (all Second Division)

Attendances

See also: Record attendances of English football clubs

Highest attendance, single game: 83,260 Manchester United v. Arsenal (at Maine Road, First Division, 17 January 1948)
Lowest attendance, single game: 469, Thames v. Luton Town (at West Ham Stadium, Third Division South, 6 December 1930)
Lowest number of paying spectators: 13, Stockport County v. Leicester City (at Old Trafford, May 7, 1921)^[3]

Disciplinary

Most red cards in a single match: 5, joint record:
- Chesterfield (2) v. Plymouth Argyle (3) (February 22, 1997)
- Wigan Athletic (1) v. Bristol Rovers (4) (December 2, 1997)
- Exeter City (3) v. Cambridge United (2) (November 23, 2002)
Most red cards in a career (individual): 13, joint record:
- Roy McDonough (Walsall, Colchester United, Exeter City, Southend United),^[4]^[5]
- Steve Walsh (Wigan Athletic and Leicester City)^[5]^[4]
Fastest red card: 13 seconds, Kevin Pressman (for Sheffield Wednesday, 13 August 2000)
Fastest red card for a substitute: 0 seconds, joint record:
- Walter Boyd (Swansea City, 12 March 2000),
- Keith Gillespie (Sheffield United, 20 January 2007)

Both players came on as a substitute and elbowed/pushed an opponent before the game had been restarted.

Transfers

See also: British football transfer record

Highest transfer fee: £32 million, record:
- Andriy Shevchenko, from A.C. Milan to Chelsea (May 2006) (estimated)

Charity Community Shield: History, past winners and runners up

2008-08-12T00:29:00.003+01:00

1908	Manchester United	Queens Park Rangers	1-1
replay	Manchester United	Queens Park Rangers	4-0
1909	Newcastle United	Northampton Town	2-0
1910	Brighton and Hove Albion	Aston Villa	1-0
1911	Manchester United	Swindon Town	8-4
1912	Blackburn Rovers	Queens Park Rangers	2-1
1913	Professionals	Amateurs	7-2
1914-	1918 Not Played
1920	West Bromwich Albion	Tottenham Hotspur	2-0
1921	Tottenham Hotspur	Burnley	2-0
1922	Huddersfield Town	Liverpool	1-0
1923	Professionals	Amateurs	2-0
1924	Professionals	Amateurs	3-1
1925	Amateurs	Professionals	6-1
1926	Amateurs	Professionals	6-3
1927	Cardiff City	Corinthians	2-1
1928	Everton	Blackburn Rovers	2-1
1929	Professionals	Amateurs	3-0
1930	Arsenal	Sheffield Wednesday	2-1
1931	Arsenal	West Bromwich Albion	1-0
1932	Everton	Newcastle United	5-3
1933	Arsenal	Everton	3-0
1934	Arsenal	Manchester City	4-0
1935	Sheffield Wednesday	Arsenal	1-0
1936	Sunderland	Arsenal	2-1
1937	Manchester City	Sunderland	2-0
1938	Arsenal	Preston North End	2-1

1940 -	1945 Not Played


1948	Arsenal	Manchester United	4-3
1949	Portsmouth	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1-1*
1950	World Cup Team	Canadian Touring Team	4-2
1951	Tottenham Hotspur	Newcastle United	2-1
1952	Manchester United	Newcastle United	4-2
1953	Arsenal	Blackpool	3-1
1954	Wolverhamton Wanderers	West Bromwich Albion	4-4*
1955	Chelsea	Newcastle United	3-0
1956	Manchester United	Manchester City	1-0
1957	Manchester United	Aston Villa	4-0
1958	Bolton Wanderers	Wolverhampton Wanderers	4-1
1959	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Nottingham Forest	3-1
1960	Burnley	Wolverhampton Wanderers	2-2*
1961	Tottenham Hotspur	F.A. XI	3-2
1962	Tottenham Hotspur	Ipswich Town	5-1
1963	Everton	Manchester United	4-0
1964	Liverpool	West Ham United	2-2*
1965	Manchester United	Liverpool	2-2*
1966	Liverpool	Everton	1-0
1967	Manchester United	Tottenham Hotspur	3-3*
1968	Manchester City	West Bromwich Albion	6-1
1969	Leeds United	Manchester City	2-1
1970	Everton	Chelsea	2-1
1971	Leicester City	Liverpool	1-0
1972	Manchester City	Aston Villa	1-0
1973	Burnley	Manchester City	1-0
1974	Liverpool	Leeds United	1-1**
1975	Derby County	West Ham United	2-0
1976	Liverpool	Southampton	1-0
1977	Liverpool	Manchester United	0-0*
1978	Nottingham Forest	Ipswich Town	5-0
1979	Liverpool	Arsenal	3-1
1980	Liverpool	West Ham United	1-0
1981	Aston Villa	Tottenham Hotspur	2-2*
1982	Liverpool	Tottenham Hotspur	1-0
1983	Manchester United	Liverpool	2-0
1984	Everton	Liverpool	1-0
1985	Everton	Manchester United	2-0
1986	Everton	Liverpool	1-1*
1987	Everton	Coventry City	1-0
1988	Liverpool	Wimbledon	2-1
1989	Liverpool	Arsenal	1-0
1990	Liverpool	Manchester United	1-1*
1991	Arsenal	Tottenham Hotspur	0-0*
1992	Leeds United	Liverpool	4-3
1993	Manchester United	Arsenal	1-1**
1994	Manchester United	Blackburn Rovers	2-0
1995	Everton	Blackburn Rovers	1-0
1996	Manchester United	Newcastle United	4-0
1997	Manchester United	Chelsea	1-1**
1998	Arsenal	Manchester United	3-0
1999	Arsenal	Manchester United	2-1
2000	Chelsea	Manchester United	2-0
2001	Liverpool	Manchester United	2-1
2002	Arsenal	Liverpool	1-0
2003	Manchester United	Arsenal	1-1**
2004	Arsenal	Manchester United	3-1
2005	Chelsea	Arsenal	2-1
2006	Liverpool	Chelsea	2-1
2007	Manchester United	Chelsea	1-1**
2008	Manchester United	Portsmouth	0-0**

* Each team retained Shield for six months
** Won on penalty kicks

From 1974-2000, the then FA Charity Shield was played at Wembley.
Between 2001-2006 (inclusive) the match was been held at The Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
In 2007 The FA Community Shield match returned to the new Wembley Stadium.

Villa agree £7.8m fee for Cuellar

2008-08-12T00:19:00.002+01:00

Aston Villa have agreed a £7.8m fee with Rangers for their highly-rated Spanish defender Carlos Cuellar. Villa invoked an exit clause in the player's contract for that amount after Cuellar, 26, made it known he wanted to play in the English Premier League. "My ambition has always been to play for Spain and I believe that playing in the biggest league in the world will help me realise that," he said.

Cuellar began his career at Spanish Tercera División side Calahorra before moving on to Segunda side Numancia. He spent two seasons in Numancia, making over sixty appearances, and then got his big move to La Liga side Osasuna. He became an important part of the Javier Aguirre side that finished fourth in the league in season 2004-05 and reached the final of the Copa del Rey. A few seasons later they reached the UEFA Cup semi-final in 2007, knocking Rangers out en route. During that same UEFA Cup 2006-07 campaign Cuéllar scored a first minute goal in the quarter finals at the BayArena against Bayer 04 Leverkusen in April, that was the fastest goal of the tournament that season.

Cuellar moved to Ibrox from Spanish side Osasuna last summer and enjoyed a superb debut season for the club, helping them to the Uefa Cup final and winning both the Clydesdale Bank SPL and Scottish Football Writers' Association player of the year awards.Cuellar is set to become Villa's sixth signing of the summer following manager Martin O'Neill's capture of Curtis Davies, Steve Sidwell, Luke Young, Nicky Shorey and Brad Friedel.

Chelsea make Robinho bid

2008-08-08T02:09:00.002+01:00

Chelsea have made a £19.7m bid for Real Madrid's Brazilian striker Robinho, BBC Sport understands. In a statement on their website, Chelsea confirmed they have made an offer for Robinho, although they did not reveal the size of their bid. The 24-year-old former Santos star played a key role in helping Real secure the Spanish title last season. But he is believed to be keen to join fellow countryman Luiz Felipe Scolari at Stamford Bridge.

Robinho was born in Parque Bitaru, a poor neighborhood of São Vicente in Santos, where he began playing football at an early age. When he was six years old, he was signed to the Beira-Mar, a local footballing academy; his team won the championship in his first year. One of his teammates at the time was Marcelo, currently Robinho's teammate at Real Madrid. In 1993, at the age of just nine, Robinho scored 73 goals for the Portuários futsal team. He later joined Santos' youth program, which at the time was overseen by Brazilian football legend Pelé.

Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon said on Saturday that, although talks with Real had stalled, he remains hopeful that a deal for Robinho would go through. Kenyon believes Madrid's eagerness to secure a replacement is the only factor preventing him from moving to Stamford Bridge.

This weeks Premier League transfers 28th July to 3rd August

2008-08-04T23:16:00.003+01:00

3 August
Omar Alieu Koroma [Banjul Hawks - Portsmouth] Undisclosed
Jan Lastuvka [Shakhtar Donetsk - West Ham] Loan
Danny Simpson [Manchester United - Blackburn] Loan

2 August
Carlos Villaneuva [Audax Italiano - Blackburn] Season-long loan

30 July 2008
Tal Ben Haim [Chelsea - Man City] Undisclosed
David Bentley [Blackburn - Tottenham] Undisclosed
Amaury Bischoff [Werder Bremen - Arsenal] Undisclosed
Steed Malbranque [Tottenham - Sunderland] Undisclosed 29 July 2008
Lee Cattermole [Middlesbrough - Wigan] Undisclosed

28 July 2008
El-Hadji Diouf [Bolton - Sunderland] Undisclosed
Anthony Gardner [Tottenham - Hull] Loan
Robbie Keane [Tottenham - Liverpool] £20.3m
Mustapha Riga [Levante - Bolton] Undisclosed

So the cheque books are now open, Sunderland sign another Spurs player and take another step towards becoming the Tottenham 'B' team. Liverpool capture the hard working Robbie Keane. A few hard up teams invest wisely in some loan players and the dirtiest player in the game decides to move the the team ran by the ex dirtiest player in the game. Nice... lets hope Man U and Chelsea follow suit soon.

Barry staying, Bein Haim to Man City and Bentley to Spurs?

2008-07-30T22:16:00.003+01:00

Aston Villa say that Gareth Barry will be staying at the club and not moving to Premier League rivals Liverpool. Villa claim the Reds failed to meet a deadline to sign the midfielder, who stated he wanted to move to Anfield, and now any switch is off.

"During talks in the past few days, a final deadline to conclude this episode was set that all parties were aware of and agreed to," said a Villa statement.

"This deadline has now passed and so Gareth will remain with Villa."

However there is movement to the City Ground

Manchester City have completed the signing of centre-back Tal Ben Haim from Chelsea for an undisclosed fee. The Israeli joined Chelsea on a free transfer from Bolton in June 2007 but has left after failing to establish himself in the first-team set-up. He has been allowed to leave by new Blues boss Luiz Felipe Scolari and has signed a four-year deal with City. The 26-year-old's transfer is subject to him gaining a work permit, which should prove a formality.

And lastly Spurs already start to spend their Keane kitty

Blackburn's David Bentley looks set to become a Tottenham player after having a medical with the club on Wednesday. Rovers chairman John Williams told BBC Radio Lancashire that a deal - believed to be close to £18m - has been agreed "in principal" between the two clubs. Bentley, 23, joined Rovers in 2006 and extended his contract last year but has made it clear he wants to move on.

Former club Arsenal are expected to receive a portion of the fee as part of the deal which took him to Ewood Park. Spurs, who made another bid closer to Rovers' valuation of the England winger after previous offers were rejected, have scheduled a 1000 BST news conference on Thursday at their Chigwell training ground with Bentley expected to attend.

Liverpool sign Robbie Keane

2008-07-28T22:32:00.002+01:00

Well I am willing to eat my own words. Only a day after I stated that there would be no big transfers Liverpool go and and make me look by a fool by signing Robbie Keane for a fee that could rise to £20.3 million.

Keane, 28, underwent a medical on Monday after agreeing personal terms on a four-year contract worth around £80,000 a week over the weekend. Spurs said they agreed an initial fee of £19m plus a potential further £1.3m.

Tottenham have also agreed to drop their official complaint to the Premier League after Liverpool apologised for their conduct in pursuing the Irishman. Relations between the clubs became strained after Spurs chairman Daniel Levy accused the Reds of breaking Premier League rules in making their interest in Keane known despite being told by the Londoners he was not for sale.

Liverpool fans seem chuffed with the signing believing that Keane will be the perfect partner for Torres while bitter Spurs fans think he will only frustrate Torres with his different style of play.

I say suck and see

This weeks transfers

2008-07-27T17:27:00.002+01:00

26 July 2008
Brad Friedel [Blackburn - Aston Villa] Undisclosed
Seyi Olofinjana [Wolves - Stoke City] £3m

25 July 2008
David Meyler [Cork City - Sunderland] Undisclosed

24 July 2008
Nick Colgan [unattached - Sunderland]
David Ngog [Paris Saint Germain - Liverpool] Undisclosed

23 July 2008 Valon Behrami [Lazio - West Ham] £5m
Emmanuel Mendy [Murcia Deportivo - Liverpool] Free

22 July 2008
Amr Zaki [Zamalek - Wigan] Season-long loan

So no more big transfers, talk seems to be cheap. The chances of a big move are coming less and less likely as we approach the start of the season. Are transfer fees becoming too high that no club is willing to risk millions on any player? Maybe football clubs are worried about the credit crunch?!?!?

Chelsea not too old, says Ballack

2008-07-26T22:24:00.002+01:00

Ferguson said that he did not expect to see "outstanding progress coming from a team in their 30s". But Blues midfielder Ballack, 31, said: "Our team can still improve. If you are 30 or 31 you are not old.

"Claude Makelele was 34 and played well last season. This sort of banter occurs between people during the summer." Makelele, now 35, switched to Paris St Germain on Monday, while Ballack has recently joined up with the Chelsea squad on tour in the Far East after helping Germany reach the final of Euro 2008.

So 35 is too old then?

The mind games begin

2008-07-24T20:59:00.002+01:00

Alex Ferguson the Manchester United manager doubts Chelsea's ability to challenge for the Premiership and Champions League. He believes Chelsea's ageing squad may struggle to challenge his side for major honours next season.

He said "Chelsea are an experienced side and I don't see outstanding progress coming from a team in their 30s," he said.

So Luiz Felipe Scolari hasn't even had time to make himself a cup of tea yet and already the don of the Premier League has thrown down the mind game gauntlet. However unlike the brash José Mourinho and the inexperienced Avram Grant, Scolari has probably heard this all before.

I think Ferguson feels threatened by Scolari and is testing the water to see how his new rival reacts.

Personally I think Scolari will do nothing he is too experienced a manager and probably because he can't understand Ferguson yet

The transfer saga continues

2008-07-24T20:45:00.004+01:00

What a bloody joke. The Ronaldo transfer rolls on, Ferguson says he would be stupid to move to Real Madrid, Tevez says he should go. But the funniest thing in this whole affair is that Man Utd cannot practice what they preach. After complaining to FIFA that Real Madrid where putting undue media pressure on Ronaldo moving to them, they go and do exactly the same thing as Real did to them and circulate a story in the press that Berbatov is coming to them from Spurs.

Tottenham have submitted a year's worth of evidence to the Premier League to support their complaint over Manchester United's pursuit of Dimitar Berbatov. A newspaper report quoting United boss Sir Alex Ferguson as saying he expected to sign the striker is understood to be only one of Spurs' concerns. Ferguson denies making the comments, but the Londoners believe United have broken Premier League rules. Spurs have also reported Liverpool for their public courting of Robbie Keane.

Ferguson denied the reports, saying: "I don't know where they got those quotes from, it wasn't from me. "It's going to be very embarrassing for Spurs because the complaint appears to be on the basis of a story in a paper."

Personally if Man U are interested and Berbatov wants to leave I say let him. The guy was half the player he was in his first season and certainly if he is forced to stay another season he will be equally ineffective. Why not sell him now and get more than his market value for him?

Does anyone else have any to say about Ronaldo's transfer saga?

2008-07-12T22:37:00.002+01:00

The possible transfer of Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United to Real Madrid has caused so much controversy that it has sparked statements from some of the most powerful and famous men in football.

This potential epic transfer started all the way back to May 16th; when Ronaldo being interviewed by a Spanish TV channel hinted that he would wait until after the Champions League final before deciding his future. This off hand comment set tongues wagging that a move to Real Madrid might be on the cards. Real had already shown interest in the player earlier that year when Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster described Ronaldo as "the best player in the world. However this all seem too extreme a rumour as the Portugal international signed a contract extension last year to keep him at Old Trafford until 2012.

After then the Real Madrid hierarchy continued the pressure of rumours and statements, so much so that Man Utd actually complained to FIFA about the vicious onslaught. At every turn Man Utd big wigs Ferguson and Gill vehemently denied that Ronaldo was for sale.

Then it went quiet and when stuff carms down in football can only expect one thing... Sepp Blatter. Blatter about the Ronaldo transfer insisted that players should be free to play where they choose. He also said that Football was the modern day version of slavery............. I know, but what else did you expect that plonker to say? Then Ronaldo goes and bloody agrees with him?!?!?!?!

Well that annoyed a lot of people, actually it annoyed to of the most prestigious footballers ever, Pele and Gordon Banks. In an interview Pele mocked Ronaldo by suggesting that he wasn't a slave because he willingly signed the extension to his contract and as a gentleman should honor the rest of it. Banks as well waded in by saying he couldn't understand why Ronaldo would want to move from the double winners Manchester United. Both Pele and Banks laughed at the fact that a slave could earn £100,000 plus a week.

Personally I think the whole situation is hilarious and what ever happens someone will end up with a massive egg on their face!

Transfer signings and rumours

2008-07-10T13:14:00.002+01:00

Sidwell to Villa-

This looks like a good move for Martin O'Neill who sees Steven Sidwell as a good replacement to Gareth Barry if he moves to Liverpool. Also Villa will look to make a tidy profit if Sidwell moves for the reported £5 million and Barry goes for £15 million.

Sidwell always didn't look like he would make it into the Chelsea 1st team and will be chomping a the bit to get some 1st team action at Villa.

Bostock to Spurs-

£700,000 for 16 year old John Bostock. Good business or a lemon? According to outspoken Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan the signing is a lemon. Speaking to BBC Sport he said: "...while I wouldn't want to waste my breath giving advice to John, look at Wayne Routledge. He took the chance to join Spurs, but where is he now?"

But this just sounds like sour grapes to me I hope Bostock goes on to bigger and better things and think if he applies himself he will very well at Tottenham who historically have always looked after their youg players to help them develop.

Crouch to Portsmouth-

I really hope this one goes ahead just so that I can see the celebrations of Peter Crouch and Jemaine Defoe the new little and large of the premiership.

It is believed the 27-year-old England international striker will cost Portsmouth about £11m.
Crouch is set to link up with Pompey again six years after leaving, and will work with boss Harry Redknapp for the third time in his career.

Liverpool striker Peter Crouch has agreed personal terms with Portsmouth and will complete his move upon passing a medical within the next 48 hours.

Zamora and Pantsil to Fulham-

West Ham have granted Fulham permission to speak with striker Bobby Zamora and defender John Pantsil.

Zamora was restricted to 14 games last season, scoring one goal, while Pantsil has started just seven Premier League games since joining the club in 2006.

Both will be hoping for alot more 1st team football next year!

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Arsenal midfielder Alex Hleb has agreed a four-year-deal with Barcelona and is set to sign for £15m. (The Sun)
The Gunners are also poised to lose Brazil midfielder Gilberto Silva to Greek side Panathinaikos. (Various)
But Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will use the cash to complete a £11.5m deal for Marseille's Samir Nasri. (The Sun)
Arsenal are thought to have bid £19m for Andrei Arshavin but his club Zenit St Petersburg want £24m. But his agent hopes a deal can be struck. (Star)

The Gunners are also interested in 22-year-old Colombian striker Radamel Falcao, who is rated at £8m by his club River Plate. (The Sun)
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has personally blocked Inter Milan's attempts to buy midfielder Frank Lampard. (Various)
But Inter president Massimo Moratti will seek personal talks with Abramovich in the hope of ending the stalemate. (The Sun)
Lampard himself has told friends he is determined to leave Chelsea and says it is time for him to go. (Daily Express)
The Blues may need a replacement Didier Drogba, who insists he still wants to leave Stamford Bridge. (Daily Star)
But Chelsea have been told by Real Madrid that it will cost £30m to sign Brazil forward Robinho. (Daily Star)
Cameroon goalkeeper Carlos Kameni has rejected a £4.5m move to Tottenham because the London club wanted a clause in his contract preventing him playing in the Africa Cup of Nations. (Daily Express)
Liverpool are interested in signing Valencia's Spanish international winger David Silva. (The Sun) Reds manager Rafael Benitez has turned his attention to Silva after baulking at Valencia's £32m valuation of striker David Villa. (The Sun)
Benitez's transfer plans have taken a further knock after Juventus hinted they will not pay £15m for midfielder Xabi Alonso. That could affect Liverpool's chances of raising the cash to sign Aston Villa's Gareth Barry. (The Sun)
West Ham are set to miss out on Lazio's Switzerland international midfielder Valon Behrami, who instead wants to join Werder Bremen. (The Sun)
Tottenham manager Juande Ramos is ready to offload a whole team of players - plus five substitutes. Sixteen players, including Robbie Keane and Pascal Chimbonda, could be sold as Spurs look to raise £15m to sign Blackburn's David Bentley. (The Sun)
Sunderland have failed with a £4.5m bid for West Ham left-back George McCartney bur are set to return with an improved offer for their former player. (Star)
Andy Johnson is ready to tell Everton he wants to quit. Wigan's £10m bid for the striker will lead to a transfer scramble. (Daily Mirror)
Newcastle are closing in on Udinese's Swiss midfielder Gokham Inler after reaching the £5m buy-out clause in his contract. (Daily Mirror)
Blackburn are interested in signing £6m-rated Ecuadorian midfielder Segundo Castillo. (Daily Mirror)
Ex-Chelsea full-back Celestine Babayaro is training with Portsmouth. (Various)
Fulham are poised to complete a £6m deal for West Ham striker Bobby Zamora on Thursday. (Various)
The Cottagers also want Birmingham full-back Stephen Kelly. (The Sun)
Ipswich are poised to sign Southampton midfielder Rudi Skacel for £1m. But they have ended their interest in Preston keeper Andy Lonergan. (Star)
Cardiff are closing in on a £1.5m deal for unsettled Charlton striker Marcus Bent. (The Sun)
The Bluebirds are chasing Crystal Palace winger Mark Kennedy. (Daily Mirror)
Burnley are lining up a club record bid for Manchester United winger Chris Eagles. (Daily Star)
Swindon have opened talks with defender Sol Davis about a possible return six years after he left for Luton. (Daily Star)
Hamburg left-back Tomothee Atouba's mooted move to Celtic hinges on Gordon Strachan's willingness to pay £2m for the Cameroon international plus wages of around £30,000-a-week. (Scottish Daily Express)
Algerian international Nadir Belhadj has sent a 'sign me' plea to Celtic boss Gordon Strachan after his countryman, Rangers midfielder Brahim Hemdani, sold the Lens wing-back on Parkhead. (Scottish Daily Mirror)

Transfer Gossip

2008-07-06T22:53:00.002+01:00

David Bentley
There could be an almighty scrap on the cards for David Bentley, if the tabs are to be believed.

The Mail on Sunday claims Spurs are preparing a £15million bid, but they may face competition from Everton, who are rather scared there may be some truth in those Mikel Arteta to Atletico Madrid rumours.

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
Manchester United and Arsenal are reportedly both interested in signing Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, if you believe the tabloids this Sunday.

The News of the World claims Arsenal are preparing an £18million bid for the Ajax striker only if Emmanuel Adebayor leaves.

Gareth Barry

After Martin O'Neill scoffed at Liverpool's initial 'mishmash' player exchange bid for Gareth Barry, The News of the World now reports that Liverpool are going to add Steve Finnan into the mix.

AND THE REST...
Alan Shearer will be offered the manager's job at Southampton...New Blackburn boss Paul Ince has made a £5.5m bid for Birmingham's James McFadden...Barcelona are considering a shock loan bid for Chelsea misfit Andriy Shevchenko...Jose Mourinho wants to build his new-look Inter Milan side around Spain's Xavi...Wigan will step up their pursuit of Birmingham's Olivier Kapo...Newcastle face competition from Spurs, Portsmouth and Fulham for Rosenborg's Ciljan Skjelbred...Spurs will fight to keep Robbie Keane from the clutches of Liverpool...Spurs plan a £9.7m bid for Espanyol strker Luis Garcia Fernandez...Liverpool are considering a bid for Lyon's Juninho...West Ham's Lucas Neill is wanted by Galatasaray...West Ham are set to make a double swoop for Valon Behrami and Ivan Klasnic...Newcastle head a four-club chase for Reading's Leroy Lita.

West Brom have launched a £3m swoop for Bolton's Abdoulaye Meite...Celtic hope to rescue Shaun Maloney from his Aston Villa nightmare...PSG refuse to give up their pursuit of Chelsea's Claude Makelele...Liverpool have been linked with Stuttgart's Fernando Meira...Man City boss Mark Hughes will launch a bid to bring in veteran goalkeeper Brad Friedel from Blackburn...Martin O'Neill will have to cough up £4m for Frankie Simek from Sheff Weds...Portsmouth are lining up a £4m move for Hibs' Steven Fletcher...Newcastle are making a shock move for Steve Sidwell...Premier League new boys Stoke have made an ambitious bid for Liverpool and England keeper Scott Carson.

Highest Transfer Fees 2008

2008-07-03T01:34:00.004+01:00

So this is the table so far at the end of the year I will post the final table so you can compare, not many English Premier League teams in it so far!

No. Player's Name Pos From To Fee
1. Daniel Alves (Bra) RB Sevilla (Spa) Barcelona (Spa) £25.33m
2. Jo (Bra) ST CSKA Moscow (Rus) Manchester City (Eng) £19m
3. Amauri (Bra) ST Palermo (Ita) Juventus (Ita) £17.97m
4. Luka Modric (Cro) MF Dinamo (Cro) Tottenham Hotspur (Eng) £16.53m
5. Nicolas Anelka (Fra) ST Bolton Wanderers (Eng) Chelsea (Eng) £15m
6. Martin Caceres (Uru) CD Villarreal (Spa) Barcelona (Spa) £13.03m
7. Alberto Gilardino (Ita) ST AC Milan (Ita) Fiorentina (Ita) £11.15m
8. Jefferson Farfan (Peru) ST PSV (Ned) Schalke 04 (Ger) £11.09m
9. Ederson (Bra) AM Nice (Fra) Lyon (Fra) £10.79m
10. Johan Elmander (Swe) ST Toulouse (Fra) Bolton Wanderers (Eng) £10m
11. Andrea Barzagli (Ita) CD Palermo (Ita) VfL Wolfsburg (Ger) £9.49m
12. Hatem Ben Arfa (Fra) WG Lyon (Fra) Marseille (Fra) £8.7m
13. Breno (Bra) DF Sao Paulo (Bra) Bayern Munchen (Ger) £8.6m
14. Johnny Heitinga (Ned) CD Ajax Amsterdam (Ned) Atletico Madrid (Spa) £8.06m
15. Deco (Por) AM Barcelona (Spa) Chelsea (Eng) £8m
16. Ricardo Oliveira (Bra) ST AC Milan (Ita) Real Zaragoza (Spa) £7.96m
17. Ezequiel Garay (Arg) CD Racing Santander (Spa) Real Madrid (Spa) £7.96m
18. Stevan Jovetic (Mnt) ST Partizan Belgrade (Srb) Fiorentina (Ita) £7.94m
19. Cesar Delgado (Arg) ST Cruz Azul (Mex) Lyon (Fra) £7.5m
20. Marcelo Moreno (Bol) ST Cruzeiro (Bra) Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukr) £7.16m
21. Abdoulay Konko (Fra) DF Genoa (Ita) Sevilla (Spa) £7.1m
22. Gianluca Zambrotta (Ita) MF Barcelona (Spa) AC Milan (Ita) £6.68m
23. Ognjen Vukojevic (Cro) LM Dinamo (Cro) Dynamo Kyiv (Ukr) £6.37m
24. Christian Maggio (Ita) DF Sampdoria (Ita) Napoli (Ita) £6.32m
25. Romaric (IvC) ST Le Mans (Fra) Sevilla (Spa) £6.32m

Premier League History

2008-07-01T23:12:00.004+01:00

I can't bloody wait, the best league in the world is starting up again on August 16th. Take a look at the history of the Premier League.

It will also intereating to see how the mighty Hull fare this season, lets hope they don't lie down and give up like Derby did last season.

My bet for the title this season is Chelsea.

Season 2007/08

Champions: Manchester United
Runners up: Chelsea
Champions League places: Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal

Relegated: Reading, Birmingham City, Derby County
Leading Scorer: Ronaldo (Manchester United) 31 goals

Season 2006/07

Champions: Manchester United
Runners up: Chelsea
Champions League places: Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal
UEFA Cup places: Tottenham Hotspur, Everton, Bolton Wanderers, Blackburn Rovers (Intertoto Cup)
Promoted (from 2005/06): Reading, Sheffield United, Watford
Relegated: Watford, Charlton Athletic, Sheffield United
Leading Scorer: Didier Drogba (Chelsea) 21 goals

Season 2005/06

Champions - Chelsea
Runners up - Manchester United
Champions League places - Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal
UEFA Cup places - Tottenham Hotspur, Blackburn Rovers, West Ham United (FA Cup finalists)
Promoted (from 2004-05) - Sunderland, Wigan Athletic, West Ham United
Relegated - Sunderland, West Bromwich Albion, Birmingham City
Leading scorer - Thierry Henry (Arsenal) 27 goals

Season 2004/05

Champions: Chelsea
Runners up: Arsenal
Champions League places: Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, Everton, Liverpool
UEFA Cup places: Bolton Wanderers, Middlesbrough (League Cup)
Promoted (from 2003/04): Norwich City, West Bromwich Albion, Crystal Palace
Relegated: Southampton, Norwich City, Crystal Palace
Leading Scorer: Thierry Henry (Arsenal) 25 goals

Season 2003/04

Champions: Arsenal
Runners up: Chelsea
Champions League places: Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool
UEFA Cup places: Newcastle, Middlesbrough (League Cup), Millwall (FA Cup finalists)
Promoted (from 2002/03): Portsmouth, Leicester City, Wolverhampton Wanderers
Relegated: Wolverhampton Wanderers, Leeds United, Leicester City
Leading Scorer: Thierry Henry (Arsenal) 30 goals

Season 2002/03

Champions: Manchester United
Runners up: Arsenal
Champions League places: Manchester United, Arsenal, Newcastle United, Chelsea
UEFA Cup places: Liverpool (League Cup), Blackburn Rovers, Southampton (FA Cup finalists), Manchester City (Fair Play Draw)
Promoted (from 2001/02): Manchester City, West Bromwich Albion, Birmingham City
Relegated: Sunderland, West Bromwich Albion, West Ham United
Leading Scorer: Ruud van Nistelrooy (Manchester United) 25 goals

Season 2001/02

Champions: Arsenal
Runners up: Liverpool
Champions League places: Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United, Newcastle United
UEFA Cup places: Leeds United, Chelsea, Blackburn Rovers (League Cup), Fulham (Intertoto Cup), Ipswich Town (Fair Play Draw)
Promoted (from 2000/01): Fulham, Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers
Relegated: Leicester City, Derby County, Ipswich Town
Leading Scorer: Thierry Henry (Arsenal) 24 goals

Season 2000/01

Champions: Manchester United
Runners up: Arsenal
Champions League places: Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool
UEFA Cup places: Leeds United, Chelsea, Ipswich Town, Aston Villa (Intertoto Cup)
Promoted (from 1999/00): Charlton Athletic, Manchester City, Ipswich Town
Relegated: Bradford City, Coventry City, Manchester City
Leading Scorer: Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (Chelsea) 23 goals

Season 1999/2000

Champions: Manchester United
Runners up: Arsenal
Champions League places: Manchester United, Arsenal, Leeds United
UEFA Cup places: Liverpool, Chelsea (FA Cup), Leicester City (League Cup)
Promoted (from 1998/99): Sunderland, Bradford City, Watford
Relegated: Watford, Sheffield Wednesday, Wimbledon
Leading Scorer: Kevin Phillips (Sunderland) 18 goals

Season 1998/99

Champions: Manchester United
Runners up: Arsenal
Champions League places: Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea
UEFA Cup places: Leeds United, West Ham United (Intertoto cup), Newcastle United (FA Cup finalists), Tottenham Hotspur (League Cup)
Promoted (from 1997/98): Nottingham Forest, Middlesbrough, Charlton Athletic
Relegated: Nottingham Forest, Blackburn Rovers, Charlton Athletic
Leading Scorer: Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (Leeds United), Michael Owen (Liverpool), Dwight Yorke (Manchester United) 18 goals

Season 1997/98

Champions: Arsenal
Runners up: Manchester United
Champions League places: Arsenal, Manchester United
UEFA Cup places: Liverpool, Leeds United, Blackburn, Aston Villa
Cup Winners Cup places: Chelsea (defending champions), Newcastle (FA Cup finalists)
Promoted (from 1996/97): Crystal Palace, Barnsley, Bolton Wanderers
Relegated: Crystal Palace, Barnsley, Bolton Wanderers
Leading Scorer: Dion Dublin (Coventry City) Michael Owen (Liverpool) Chris Sutton (Blackburn Rovers) 18 goals

Season 1996/97

Champions: Manchester United
Runners up: Newcastle United
Champions League places: Manchester United, Newcastle United
UEFA Cup places: Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Leicester City (League Cup)
Cup Winners Cup places: Chelsea
Promoted (from 1995/96): Sunderland, Derby County, Leicester City
Relegated: Sunderland, Middlesbrough, Nottingham Forest
Leading Scorer: Alan Shearer (Newcastle United) 25 goals

Season 1995/96

Champions: Manchester United
Runners up: Newcastle United
Champions League places: Manchester United
UEFA Cup places: Newcastle, Aston Villa (League Cup), Arsenal
Cup Winners Cup places: Liverpool
Promoted (from 1994/95): Middlesbrough, Bolton Wanderers
Relegated: Bolton Wanderers, Queens Park Rangers, Manchester City
Leading Scorer: Alan Shearer (Blackburn Rovers) 31 goals

Season 1994/95

Champions: Blackburn Rovers
Runners up: Manchester United
Champions League places: Blackburn Rovers
UEFA Cup places: Manchester United, Nottingham Forest, Liverpool (League Cup), Leeds United
Cup Winners Cup places: Everton
Promoted (from 1993/94): Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest, Leicester City
Relegated: Ipswich Town, Leicester City, Norwich City, Crystal Palace
Leading Scorer: Alan Shearer (Blackburn Rovers) 34 goals

Season 1993/94

Champions: Manchester United
Runners up: Blackburn Rovers
Champions League places: Manchester United
UEFA Cup places: Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United, Aston Villa (League Cup)
Cup Winners Cup places: Arsenal (as winners), Chelsea
Promoted (from 1992/93): Newcastle United, West Ham United, Swindon Town
Relegated: Swindon Town, Oldham Athletic, Sheffield United
Leading scorer: Andy Cole (Newcastle United) 34 goals

Season 1992/93

Champions: Manchester United
Runners up: Aston Villa
Champions League places: Manchester United
UEFA Cup places: Aston Villa, Norwich City, Sheffield Wednesday (FA Cup finalists)
Cup Winners Cup places: Arsenal
Promoted (from 1991/92): Ipswich Town, Middlesbrough, Blackburn Rovers
Relegated: Nottingham Forest, Middlesbrough, Crystal Palace
Leading Scorer: Teddy Sheringham (Tottenham Hotspur) 22 goals

Germany 0-1 Spain

2008-06-30T22:56:00.001+01:00

Spain claimed their first major title for 44 years after winning Euro 2008 with a deserved victory over Germany. Liverpool striker Fernando Torres was Spain's goal hero, striking after 33 minutes when he cleverly lifted Xavi's pass over Germany keeper Jens Lehmann.

Spain dominated the final throughout, with Torres heading against the post and Marcos Senna almost adding a second from close range after 80 minutes. Michael Ballack came close for Germany, shooting narrowly wide after the break.

Spain have long had a reputation as under-achievers on the big occasions, but this was a richly-merited victory for veteran coach Luis Aragones and a team that played outstanding football throughout the tournament.

Germany were outclassed, and for captain Ballack his catalogue of misery in major finals continues having lost two Champions League finals and also been suspended for the 2002 World Cup final when they lost to Brazil.

Match-winner Torres enhanced the reputation he forged at Liverpool last season, but this was an all-round effort for a side that is young enough to already be marked down among the favourites for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Ballack to miss final?

2008-06-29T01:27:00.002+01:00

Something tells me come hell or high water Ballack wont miss the final however if worst does happen it would be a great shame to lose a decent player from one of the largest finals in the world.

If he does play it will add to the list of potential Premier League stars in this Sunday's final. So far Ballack has had sparks of brilliance however has lacked consistency.

Other premiership players that might play in the final-

Fabregas: Has have had an excellent tournament even though he hasn't started most games he would love to add to his single goal tally in this tournament.

Lehmann: Has showed that Wegner made the right decision benching him this season, he has been poor this tournament and is showing his age. Jens Lehmann can become the oldest player ever to appear in a European Championship final. If he plays, Lehmann's record setting age will be 38 years and 232 days, breaking the record set by Arnold Muhren, who was 37 years and 23 days old when he played for the Netherlands in the 1988 final against the Soviet Union.

Torres: Has only scored one goal this tournament and has looked increasingly frustrated being in the shadow of David Villa. He needs a game otherwise any victory would seem slightly hollow.

Alonso: Has done ok when brought on, maybe a good shout for an assist or even a goal towards the end of the game.

I do hope this is a good final and if you asked me who I want to win I would have to go with most and say Spain.

Turkeys Lights go out in Basel

2008-06-25T23:39:00.002+01:00

So you might have missed some of the game however you must admit that Turkey where unlucky tonight against a mostly poor German side.

Turkey took the lead in this game. It controlled much of the play. They then fell behind but, once again struck back in the closing minutes. This time maybe the Turks scored their late goal too early. After Semih Semturk scored in the 86th minute, Philipp Lahm hit the winner for Germany in the 90th minute.

Turkey had certainly cemented their place in European and International football and have every right to feel very proud of their performance. Germany however will have to pull a performance out of the bag in the final because if the team that showed up tonight plays that badly in Vienna on June 29th they will have their pants pulled down to their ankles.

The 3-2 result certainly showed that the Germans can play when they want to and maybe that will spur them to play some seriously good football and make this final one worthy of a great tournament.

This competition keeps getting better and better

2008-06-22T15:56:00.002+01:00

Who would have thought it Croatia, Portugal and Holland all crashing out of the quarter final stages. I take my hat off to the underdogs who have all made it through the the semi finals.

The Spain versus Italy quarter final has extra importance now as the winner of that game would go into the semi final as favourites to win the tournament. Spain go into this game as favourites but can their lethal strike force break down the dogged Italian defence?

Spain coach Luis Aragones is likely to revert to his first-choice XI having fielded his reserves in the 2-1 win over Greece while Italy midfielders Gennaro Gattuso and Andrea Pirlo are suspended this may prove to be key on the night.

Head-to-heads

Spain and Italy have played each other on 27 previous occasions. Spain have won eight, Italy nine and there have been 10 draws.

In competitive matches, Spain have been less successful winning just one out of nine. Italy have won five times and there have been three draws. Spain's sole competitive victory was in the very first match between the two, a 2-0 win at the 1920 Olympic Games.

The two teams have played each other twice at European Championships, drawing 0-0 in a group phase match in 1980 and Italy winning another group match 1-0 in 1988. Italy head coach Roberto Donadoni played in the latter of those games.

Spain have not lost to Italy in their last four encounters since a 2-1 defeat in the 1994 World Cup quarter-finals. Donadoni also played in that match.

Form isn't everything.

2008-06-20T23:31:00.002+01:00

It certainly was very interesting to see both the teams that where seen as the underdogs in their respective matches win through.

Germany simply took apart a poor Portuguese defence while Turkey simply are the come back kings of this tournament so far. Holland and Croatia who went into their games as slight favourites couldn't find the magic that had propelled them to win their groups.

Normally I am not one to applaud a German victory however the one on Thursday night was a very good performance which has shown that Germany have the potential to go on and win the tournament.

Turkey could very well do a Greece this year, however this believes most a step too far. They have shown some serious weaknesses in their team in their team in the group stages and passion sometimes can only carry a team so far, class will out.

So will Netherlands and Spain fall also over the next few days?

Both Russia and Italy can be very hard to break down and could easily cause the same upset that both Portugal and Croatia have suffered. While Luiz Felipe Scolari's pain might ease because of his juicy new position your heart must go out to Slaven Bilic.

Please have a look at this fantastic piece written on him (click)

Certainly it has been worth listening or watching most of this tournament and I for one am eagerly awaiting the rest of the matches.

Who did that?

2008-06-18T23:27:00.004+01:00

It is nice to see the Dutch bench enjoying themselves and to be honest they have every right to. Having defeated France and Italy with relative ease they are going into the quarter finals the favourites with most bookies giving them odds of 7/2. And so they should be favourites having scored on average 3 goals a game while only conceeding 1 goal. No team in this Championship has a better goal difference.

However they are not the only team to be going into the quarter finals with some confidence. Spain definately have the most lethal strike force in the world at the moment. David Villa and Fernado Torres have lived up so far to all expectations and I would not want to be in the Italy defence on Sunday, they will certainly have their work cut out for them.

So far I have been plesently suprised by this tournment. I was very happy to see both Russia and Croatia get through to the QF (maybe the FA sacked McClaren too soon???? yeah right!)But at least if anything it helps me hold unto the fact that England aren't completely useless (yeah right I hear you cry again).

So I advise you to kick back, enjoy the rest of the tournament and watch Italy win it with a bunch of boring 1-0 results.

Crazy bid for Ronaldo?

2008-06-16T23:11:00.002+01:00

Real Madrid are ready to make their opening bid for Ronaldo - £40m plus Robinho, according to Marca.

Madrid chief Pedja Mijatovic will apparently travel to Manchester to begin formal negotiations with United.

This opening gambit is likely to be given short shrift by United, who have made it clear that Ronaldo is not for sale - but could be forced to listen if Madrid up their offer.

Meanwhile, reports in the Daily Express have suggested that Sir Alex Ferguson will step down as United manager if Ronaldo is sold without his consent.

But a United spokesperson said: "It is absolute nonsense. It is simply tiresome. We are not selling Cristiano Ronaldo."

Desperate to hold Villa

2008-06-15T23:22:00.002+01:00

Valencia insist they have received no offers for star striker David Villa, who is currently setting Euro 2008 alight with Spain.

The 26-year-old has netted four times in two games so far to help his country book their place in the quarter-finals.

The Spaniard's stunning form in La Liga last season, where he scored 18 goals in a campaign to forget for Los Che, had already reportedly attracted the attention of Real Madrid, Barcelona, Liverpool and Chelsea among others.

But Valencia technical secretary Juan Sanchez told Spanish newspaper Marca: "He's our player, he's under contract, and the coach is counting on him. We're very calm and we've received no offer for him."

My opinion sell him now and get more than his market value!

Robben and Ronaldo

2008-06-14T23:07:00.002+01:00

Arjen Robben would welcome the competition provided by Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid should the Manchester United winger complete a move to the Spanish champions later this summer.

Ronaldo was reported last week as saying he would like to play for Real but the Portugal star has vowed not to discuss the subject further until after Euro 2008 finishes.

If he was to make the switch to the Bernabeu, Ronaldo would be a direct threat to fellow winger Robben.

But the former Chelsea man claims he would be happy to see the Portuguese join him at Real.

"It's only good for me and good for the team," said the 24-year-old. "And it's not that if he plays, I can't play. We can play together."

Ronaldo will currently be weighing up the pros and cons regarding a move to Real, and Robben added: "It's totally up to him - I think he is enjoying himself over there (at United).

"I don't think you can say football is at a higher level (in Spain) because we weren't in the last final of the Champions League like them.

"But, for me, I think Madrid is the biggest club in the world and I can understand if he wants to join them.

"It's a great league - I think you play a bit more football in Spain and I am enjoying myself there."

I am sure that Real Madrid are really pleased Robben opened his gob considering Man Utd complained to Fifa only last week about this whole situation

So England aren't really that bad

2008-06-13T00:14:00.001+01:00

Croatia assumed pole position in Group B on Thursday evening with a 2-1 triumph over Euro 2008 favourites Germany in Klagenfurt.

A goal in each half from Darijo Srna and Ivica Olic punished a disappointing German outfit, who were second best for much of the 90 minutes.

Lukas Podolski did pull a goal back for Germany on 78 minutes with a powerful shot from close range, but Croatia hung on as the Germans finished with 10 men.

Midway through the first half the ball found its way into the back of the net in the 22nd minute when Germany striker Mario Gomez slotted home past Stipe Pletikosa but the offside flag had already gone up against the Stuttgart man well beforehand.

The deadlock was broken for real just two minutes after that incident though, when Croatia went ahead through Srna after neat build-up play on the left. Eventually Daniel Pranjic flung over a superb cross and Srna got ahead of Marcell Jansen at the far post to poke the ball home from six yards.

Germany responded well and Jansen's cross from the left was headed over by Gomez, before Niko Kranjcar wasted a golden chance to double Croatia's lead.

Olic managed to head down into the path of the Portsmouth man, but Kranjcar blasted the ball over.

Michael Ballack's free-kick from 25 yards tested Pletikosa, but the Croatian stopper blocked the effort with both hands as Germany attempted to up the tempo.

German centre-back Christophe Metzelder then headed over from a corner, before Olic layed on another chance for Kranjcar, but the midfielder could only rifle his shot straight at Jens Lehmann from 12 yards.

Germany started brightly in the second half without carving through the Croatian defence and they were made to pay when Croatia, albeit slighty fortuitously, made it 2-0 on 62 minutes.

Ivan Rakitic swung over a cross from the right, which was deflected by a German defender on to the near post, leaving Olic with a simple tap in with Lehmann stranded.

Germany kept throwing bodies forward though and when Ballack headed down a hopeful ball into the box, Podolski was on hand to smash it beyond Pletikosa.

And in stoppage time Sub Bastian Schweinsteiger was sent-off after pushing Jerko Leko - an angry reaction after a challenge from the Croatian.

Germany coach Joachim Low insists his side deserved to lose.

"It's clear looking back on the match that we deserved to lose," said Low.

"As a team we were unable to be precise enough and fast enough to really cause Croatia problems.

"We were unable to play our combinations or a fluid game. The Croatians sat back after they scored their first goal and we were unable to penetrate their defence, so we have to accept defeat."

Croatia counterpart Slaven Bilic was delighted by his team's performance.

"I want to congratulate both teams for a great game of football," said Bilic, whose side will now reach the quarter-finals if Poland fail to defeat Austria in Thursday's late kick-off.

"I think we played some outstanding football and nothing less is required to beat Germany.

"I want to especially congratulate my players, not only for the fight they showed but for playing an excellent match.

"There is no other way to beat the Germans. They're still a great team, though, and still one of the favourites for the title.

"We kept going forward throughout and always looked threatening, while our back four held firm when they put us under pressure

McClown gets to go to Euros

2008-06-11T23:21:00.003+01:00

I couldn't believe my ears I tuned in to 5 Live commentary of the Euros and I heard the dulcet tones of Steve McClaren.

How can BBC offer a job to that man? Hasn't he had enough money without us paying his fee as well?

5 Live have previously offered roles to other ex England managers, most notably Grahame Taylor. this I believe was actually a good move of theirs, GT has I believe been forgiven because of his open nature.

However McClown has no personality and I for one am not going to listen a single second more to his dull ignorant commentary.

New Favourites

2008-06-09T22:41:00.002+01:00

Netherlands took a firm grip on Euro 2008's so-called "Group of Death" by winning a classic encounter with Italy.

Ruud van Nistelrooy put the Dutch ahead in controversial circumstances after 26 minutes when he scored from close range - but looked suspiciously offside.

Wesley Sneijder swept in a second from Dirk Kuyt's header five minutes later.

Edwin van der Sar then denied Italy with stunning saves from Fabio Grosso and Andrea Pirlo before Giovanni van Bronckhorst headed in after 80 minutes.

For the Full report bbc 09/06/08

Meanwhile France drew with Romania.... yawn.

Austria unlucky and Germany emphatic

2008-06-08T23:32:00.002+01:00

Croatia were forced to hang on against tournament co-hosts Austria to begin their Euro 2008 campaign with a win.

They were gifted what proved to be a fourth-minute winner when Luca Modric drilled home a penalty after Rene Aufhauser clumsily felled Ivica Olic.

Austria's Joachim Standfest headed their best chance wide as they finished the first half in better form.

And after the break Austria's Umit Korkmaz had a stinging shot well saved and Roman Kienast headed narrowly wide.

An equaliser would not have flattered a plucky Austria side who had to dig deep to recover from a terrible opening spell.

Austria went into the game knowing that if they were to rip up the form book and keep the pre-match party going, it was imperative that they got off to a good start.

For the full report bbc sport 08/06/08

Germany v Poland

Lukas Podolski's double ensured Germany made a winning start to their Euro 2008 campaign against Poland in Klagenfurt.

Polish-born Podolski put Germany on the path to a deserved victory when he slid home Miroslav Klose's pass from close range after 20 minutes.

Germany were dominant, with Poland keeper Artur Boruc saving brilliantly from Germany captain Michael Ballack.

And Podolski added his second with a powerful rising volley that left Boruc helpless with 18 minutes left.

It was Germany's first victory in the tournament since they beat the Czech Republic to win Euro 96 at Wembley.

And their performance at the Worthersee Stadion, in the first 45 minutes in particular, suggested that Joachim Low's side are in the mood to make amends for previous disappointments this time around.

For the full report BBC sport 08/06/08

Unsuprisingly Pleased

2008-06-08T00:10:00.002+01:00

Predictable but good start to the Euro's

Portugal's Euro 2008 campaign opened in impressive fashion with a 2-0 victory over Turkey in Geneva.

Pepe opened the scoring after 61 minutes, surging from defence to beat Turkey keeper Volkan Demirel after a slick exchange with Nuno Gomes.

Portugal deserved their win, with Cristiano Ronaldo hitting the post from a first-half free-kick and Gomes twice denied by the woodwork after the break.

And Raul Meireles slid home the second in injury time after a flowing move.

Portugal were runners-up in their own country to Greece four years ago, but this vibrant performance was a clear statement that they intend to go one better this time around.

Full story bbc 07/06/08

Czech Republic v Switzerland

Substitute Vaclav Sverkos gave the Czech Republic a winning start to Euro 2008 with a second-half strike that broke Switzerland's resistance.

Alexander Frei was twice denied by Petr Cech before the Swiss captain was forced off injured and Hakan Yakin headed a chance wide after the break.

On 70 minutes Sverkos slotted in a low volley from 12 yards after latching on to a ball over the top of the defence.

The Swiss were denied an equaliser when Johan Vonlanthen's volley hit the bar.

And it might prove that the width of the woodwork could be the end of the Swiss, with tough matches against Portugal and Turkey to come in Group A.

For full report bbc 07/06/08

European Championships past winners

2008-06-04T21:58:00.002+01:00

1960 -- France

The first final was between two nations that no longer exist, with the Soviet Union defeating Yugoslavia 2-1 at the Parc des Princes. However, the real drama though came in the semifinals, where the host nation lost 5-4 to the Yugoslavs, despite being 4-2 up with 15 minutes remaining, in one of the greatest matches in Euro history.

1964 -- Spain

The host nation prevailed when they defeated holders the Soviet Union 2-1 in the final at Real Madrid's Bernabeu Stadium. Midfielder Jesus Pereda's sixth-minute strike for Spain remains the quickest-ever goal scored in a Euro final.

1968 -- Italy

Again the host nation proved victorious as Italy saw off Yugoslavia 2-0 at Rome's Olympic Stadium. This was the only major European final to ever go to a replay, after the first match, two days earlier, ended in a 1-1 draw.

1972 -- Belgium

Two goals from the great Gerd Muller helped West Germany overpower the Soviet Union 3-0 in the final in Brussels. It was the Soviet Union's third final in four tournaments, but they were outclassed against a German side that went on to lift the World Cup on home soil just two years later.

PAST WINNERS

1960: Soviet Union
1964: Spain
1968: Italy
1972: West Germany
1976: Czechoslovakia
1980: West Germany
1984: France
1988: Netherlands
1992: Denmark
1996: Germany
2000: France
2004: Greece

1976 -- Yugoslavia

Czechoslovakia became the first, and so far only team, to win the title on penalties as they deprived West Germany of a third successive major victory. The holders had fought back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 in Belgrade, but the Czechs held their nerve to win the shoot-out 5-3, sealed with Antonin Panenka's cheekily chipped penalty.

1980 -- Italy

The finals returned to Italy after just a 12-year absence, but there was a touch of familiarity about the winners as West Germany, in their third successive final, defeated surprise finalists Belgium 2-1 to regain the title they had lost to Czechoslovakia.

1984 -- France

A Michel Platini-inspired France side thrilled the nation by claiming their first major success with a 2-0 final victory over Spain, 24 years after they had hosted the inaugural tournament. Platini scored a remarkable nine goals in five matches, a finals record, including one in the classic 3-2 semifinal victory over Portugal.

1988 -- West Germany

The host nation were expected to reach their fourth final in five years, but lost out to a thrilling Netherlands side 2-1 in the semis. The Dutch, led by striking sensation Marco van Basten, then went on to defeat the Soviet Union 2-0 in Munich to take the title and ensure the Soviets are the only nation to have lost three Euro finals.

1992 -- Sweden

A fairy tale tournament in which substitutes Denmark -- only called into the tournament at the last minute because of civil war in Yugoslavia -- beat the might of Germany 2-0 in the final in Gothenburg. The Danes -- who had a week to prepare before their first match against England -- saw off the two previous tournament winners, France and the Dutch, en route to their surprise success.

1996 -- England

The hosts had raised the hopes of a nation by thumping the Netherlands in the group stages, but yet again came up short in a semifinal penalty shoot-out, beaten by Germany -- as they had been six years earlier at the 1990 World Cup. The Germans then claimed their third European title by defeating the Czech Republic 2-1, courtesy of an extra time golden goal by Oliver Bierhoff.

2000 -- Belgium/Netherlands

Again a host nation was to bow out on penalties in the semifinals, with the Dutch totally capitulating to Italy. However, the Italians' luck ran out in the final in Amsterdam when Sylvain Wiltord equalized for France in the final minute before David Trezeguet scored the golden goal to give Les Bleus an unlikely 2-1 victory that added European Championship honors to their World Cup crown won just two years earlier.

2004 -- Portugal

A story to rival Denmark's 1992 victory as Greece, with no pedigree of ever achieving anything of note in major tournaments, stunned host nation Portugal 1-0 in the final in Lisbon. But the win was totally deserved, with the well organized Greeks also beating France and the strongly-fancied Czech Republic along the way, as well as scoring a win over the hosts in the opening game.

The "chosen one" is back..... unfortunately not for Chelsea

2008-06-03T00:00:00.003+01:00

Inter Milan have confirmed the appointment of former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho as Roberto Mancini's successor.

Mourinho, who was sacked by Chelsea in September, has been out of the game since then, biding his time until finding a suitable role to take.

The Serie A champions finally parted company with Mancini last week after months of speculation and the Portuguese boss, a Champions League winner with Porto in 2004, has signed a three-year deal at the San Siro.

Mourinho will be unveiled on Tuesady at a press conference at 11.30am local time. A statement on Inter's website, www.inter.it, confirmed: "Internazionale announce the arrival of Jose Mourinho.

"The Portuguese coach has signed a three-year contract and will work alongside Rui Farias, Silvino and Andrei Villas Boas.

"The assistant coach will be Giuseppe Baresi."

It continued: "Thanking Roberto Mancini and his staff for the success obtained in four seasons as the leader of the team, all of Internazionale has the great pleasure to welcome Jose Mourinho and his coaches."

Mourinho has big shoes to fill as Mancini led Inter to the Serie A title in each of the last three seasons.

Becks captain again!

2008-05-31T23:57:00.002+01:00

THREE days after receiving a golden cap to mark his century of appearances for England, David Beckham was reappointed captain for the friendly against Trinidad and Tobago in Port of Spain tonight. Beckham takes over from John Terry, captain for last Wednesday’s 2-0 victory over the United States, who was excused the trip to the Caribbean, along with six others who played in the European Cup Final. Manager Fabio Capello said it would be wrong to read too much into his latest choice of captain, which would probably be a one-off.

He will not make a permanent appointment until the World Cup qualifying campaign begins in September. Beckham, however, was delighted and spoke like a captain when he said of Capello’s effect on the players: “He’s a very serious person. When you’re working, you’re working. When you train, you train hard, and when you play, you play hard. That’s the way it is with him, and if you don’t perform, he’ll let you know and you’ll be out. It’s just what we needed.

“We needed that seriousness and that passion back after not qualifying for the European Championship. That’s still hurting a lot of the players and the country as a whole, especially when you see adverts for it on the TV day after day and watch other countries warming up for it. We need to prove to the fans that we’re worthy of playing in the World Cup.”

Would-be successors to Beckham on the right of England’s midfield such as Aaron Lennon and Shaun Wright-Phillips have fallen by the wayside and the latest heir apparent, David Bentley, seems to be trying too hard. Smiling at the mention of his longevity, Beckham said: “I’m 33 now but as long as I look after my body there’s no reason I can’t go on for a few more years.”

Avram Grant and Chelsea

2008-05-26T13:51:00.000+01:00

So Chelsea walk away from this season winning nothing. This is not really surprising if you look at the season that they have had.

Firstly the departure of Mourinho the the 20th September 2008 caused huge unrest at the club, key players such as Drogba, Terry and Lampard who where are "Mourinho's men" where bound to be affected. And then the appointment of Avram Grant the virtual unknown.

"Avram who?" was the phrase on every ones lips. The public, the media and even the Chelsea fans where very unsure of this seemingly uncharismatic, unqualified man chosen to manage one of the richest and biggest club's in the world. I certainly think this unease transferred to the players as discontent grew behind closed doors at Chelsea.

From then on you could see that they weren't anywhere close to having the same teamwork mentality of Man Utd, they seemed more like a team of individuals trying to gain personal glory. Obviously there where exceptions such as Joe Cole and Micheal Essian however the little team spirit they tried to create was overshadowed by the others around them. However they battled on and surprisingly stayed in the hunt for the premiership, champions league and league cup competitions.

This was no small part down to Avram Grant, the man who no one knew surprises many with his tactical know how and managed to gain support from those who doubted him in the first place.

So the Premiership went down to the last day and the champions League went to penalties and if truth be told Chelsea could have easily won both. However I do believe that it was Man Utd's belief to win as a team which helped them prevail to win the double.

Both teams have the quality, the managers are equal in tactical knowledge, the difference maker between the two teams is that Alex Ferguson is the personality at his club and Grant was not. Overall it was a mistake to appoint Grant in the first place and in a recent interview Glenn Hoddle said it best.

However who will take up the mantle of being the Chelsea boss? Whoever it is will have to overcome adversities such as an interfering Chairman and a team who at the moment don't play for each other...... sounds like a very tough job to me.

Pompey win the FA Cup thanks to Judas

2008-05-18T21:47:00.000+01:00

Cardiff asked a lot of questions of Portsmouth in the first half but Portsmouth did what they needed to do; they got the goal, sat on it and defended well.

Kanu had missed an absolute sitter before he scored the winning goal but he made up for that.

Portsmouth did not have to attack on too many occasions, they said "come at us".

When you are the underdog you will get your chances but you have to take them and Cardiff didn't.

If you look at the players Harry Redknapp has brought in to the club, the likes of Kanu, Sol Campbell and David James, you have to say that he has a knack of getting the best out of his players.

Portsmouth only conceded one goal during the FA Cup run and any team that does that deserves to win the trophy.

Off the pitch it's not been a great season for Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp but on it, he's had an outstanding campaign.

He's pulled Portsmouth back into being a big club - now they've won the FA Cup and are in Europe.

Redknapp has a collection of experienced players and that told, particularly in the second half.

Cardiff will wake up disappointed but they can look back on a good FA Cup run. They played their part in the final but ultimately it was Portsmouth's day.

Harry Redknapp interview

Glasgow Rangers don't show the same fight as their fans.

2008-05-15T23:06:00.000+01:00

Zenit St Petersburg playmaker Andrei Arshavin has claimed Rangers were the weakest opponents the Russian side faced on their march to UEFA Cup glory.

Arshavin was man of the match at the City of Manchester Stadium on Wednesday night as Zenit claimed their first European trophy with a 2-0 win over the Light Blues.

But despite conceding that Walter Smith's men gave them a tough time before Zenit's late goals, Arshavin does not believe they compare favourably to the likes of Bayern Munich, Villarreal, Everton or even Greek minnows Larissa, who they faced earlier in the competition.

Arshavian made this statement after the match.

"I think Rangers were the weakest of all our opponents in our UEFA Cup campaign, but the Scots managed to cause us problems with their dedication and good defensive play and also by not allowing us to undo them."

Champions League

2008-05-09T20:45:00.000+01:00

Round 2, ding ding.

So Man Utd and Chelsea get to face each other to decide their seasons fate. Man Utd having already secured the Premiership ahead of Chelsea will look to get another one over their rivals. However Chelsea still hurting from the questionable non sending off of Paul Scholes and controversial penalty decision at the JJB will gunning for a convincing win to help them lift the Champions League trophy for the first time in their history.

This being the first time there has been two english teams in the Champions League and coupled with the fact that niether team has dominated this competition means that this is the greatest final this tournament has ever seen for a long time.

Just take a look at the past winners and runners up & try and pick a more appealing game-

2007	AC Milan	2-1	Liverpool
2006	FC Barcelona	2-1	Arsenal
2005	Liverpool	3-2 penalties 3-3 after extra time	AC Milan
2004	FC Porto	3-0	AS Monaco FC
2003	AC Milan	3-2 penalties 0-0 after extra time	Juventus FC
2002	Real Madrid CF	2-1	Bayer Leverkusen
2001	FC Bayern München	5-4 penalties 1-1 after extra time	Valencia CF
2000	Real Madrid CF	3-0	Valencia CF
1999	Manchester United FC	2-1	FC Bayern München
1998	Real Madrid CF	1-0	Juventus FC
1997	Borussia Dortmund	3-1	Juventus FC
1996	Juventus FC	4-2 penalties 1-1 after extra time	AFC Ajax
1995	AFC Ajax	1-0	AC Milan
1994	AC Milan	4-0	FC Barcelona
1993	Olympique de Marseille	1-0	AC Milan
1992	FC Barcelona	1-0 after extra time	Sampdoria UC
1991	Red Star Belgrade	5-3 penalties 0-0 after extra time	Marseille
1990	AC Milan	1-0	Benfica

thanks to

The teams are evenly matched Man Utd need not to be complacent and Chelsea needs to let their experience work for them not against them. To be honest this is a tough one to call.

Check out my Champions League Pikum

The race for 5th

2008-05-06T23:07:00.000+01:00

The battle for the title might have come down to the last day however don't forget about the other last day clash for 5th place.

Both Everton and Aston Villa have surprised many with their strong defending and clinical finishing however neither cat has yet got the cream. Newcastle, Spurs, Portsmouth and Man City have all dropped away like tired runners in a marathon, but who will have the legs out of the final two to cross the finish line and cap an amazing season.

Martin O'Neil and David Moyes are probably the two most exciting young managers in the world and this final battle will be a defining moment in ether's career.

Have an opinion? Then have a bet... it means more!

Keegan the Messiah cannot turn water into wine

2008-05-05T23:01:00.000+01:00

Kevin Keegan today admitted after Newcastle's defeat against Chelsea that he can do nothing to turn Newcastle into a club that can challenge for the Premier League title.

Keegan ever optimist of football said to the BBC that:

"I thought. 'what can I do next year to get near them' and the truth is there's nothing I can do at all," he said.

"Maybe the owner thinks we can bridge that gap - but we can't. This league is in danger of becoming one of the most boring but great leagues in the world."

Personaly this shows me that Keegan is alot wiser than he was last time round as Newcastle manager. He is playing down Newcastle's chances of winning anything so that if he fails he wont crush the hearts of his dearly beloved Newcastle fan's. However if he succeds to win anything (yes even the league cup..... put a £10 bet on them to win it next season) he will be even more of a Messiah than he is at present.

Keegan has matured and so will Newcastle under his managerial guide, never again will you see the rash reactionary behaviour that spawned the famous "I love it" rant. Unfortunately for some Keegan himself is in danger of becoming one of the most boring but great managers in the world.... lets hope he keeps it up for Newcastle's sake.