England under 21s lose in final

England’s old adversaries Germany had the last laugh as they handed out a comprehensive thrashing in the under-21s European Championship finals. The team had done us proud to get this far under coach Stuart Pearce but put in a lack-lustre performance.

Fans had been hoping for a better display and, for the first time in years, there was actually as much interest in the UEFA European Under-21 Football as for the full squad or World Cup. It’s just a pity that the rights to show the match fell to Sky which meant millions of would-be viewers missed out. Good job too, some will be saying, considering Germany put away four goals and England just failed to fire. But let’s share the attitude of Pearce who revealed after the match that he has signed another two year contract to continue his great work as the England under-21 manager.

Some might have expected passionate Pearce to blast his young players but he was more philosophic. “Hats off to Germany,” he commented. “You have to be humble but it hurts. But we have to learn from this. It’s a learning curve for the players. They must stick together and be humble and support each other.” It’s difficult to inspire your team for the future with the memory of a crushing 4-0 score line very much on their minds. But we must all remember this was the first time in 25 years that England have reached a major tournament final and the under-21s should be commended, not criticised, for their achievement.

The team was, of course, without some key players due to injury and suspensions, including keeper Joe Hart and Gabriel Agbonlaher. However, Pearce is very much a 23-squad man and believes all-round strength is what it takes to win silverware. Some of the young players will certainly be wondering what the future holds for them, not least after hearing this comment from the manager: “Half of this group can go on again.” So which half has a future with England and which half doesn’t? There are certainly question marks over Theo Walcott who has failed to sparkle so far. He’s got the talent, the pace and the ability so Pearce will need to find his key.

Germany put on a really slick display and Scott Loach in goal tried his best but would Hart have kept the deficit down a bit? England went 1-0 down in 23 minutes but at least kept the half-time score line to a respectable level. But three goals in the second half from Mesot Ozil and Sandro Wagner (2) showed the German under-21 side are a force to be reckoned with and could eventually revitalise the senior squad. England’s Lee Cattermole nearly made his mark by hitting the bar but there was to be no consolation goal. Pearce, 47, who joined England in 2007, confessed that losing did chew him up but also inspired him to become a better coach and manager. Let’s hope players adopt the same ethos.

Certainly, Pearce has absolutely no intention of walking away. He loves the job and is optimistic for the future. So let’s share his ethos and applaud the under-21s for a great all-round performance in the 2009 European Championships. It might not have the happy ending we had all hoped for but there’s always next time.

England make the finals

At last, England are in the finals! It might not be the senior squad but the under-21s have done us proud in the European Under-21 Championships. And who are they to meet on Monday, June 29? None other than their old adversaries, Germany.

Is is going to be repeat of the 1966 World Cup finals with England coming out victorious? Let’s hope so. England at least have one secret weapon. Manager Stuart Pearce. Just who would want to mess with him as the boss? England certainly did it the hard way when they squared up to Sweden in the semi-finals. At half-time, they were 3-0 up and it looked as though they were coasting to victory. But do England ever do it the easy way?

England opened the scoring within the first minute when Martin Cranie volleyed home from just inside the box. Then, on 27 minutes, a corner from rising star James Milner set up Nedumonuoha to fire home England’s second and a mistake by Sweden’s Mattias Bjarsmyr saw him slice Lee Cattermole’s centre into his own net. The second half saw Sweden stage a miraculous comeback, with goals on 68 minutes from Marcus Berg and a great free kick on 75 by Olan Tolvonen. Six minutes later, Berg volleyed home the third to force extra time and another heart-stopping conclusion for England who really believe in doing it the hard way.

Berg very nearly sealed the match just one minute from the end of extra time but his shot hit the crossbar. Not surprisingly, Pearce was absolutely furious but only the day before had revealed that he had made the players practise their penalty kicks. There was no way England would go out this way, he promised. What foresight!

However, it started badly for England when Milner hit his penalty wide. Was history going to repeat itself yet again for England? No, luck finally proved on our side, with England finally winning 5-4 on penalties to set up the mouth-watering final against Germany who beat Italy 1-0.

England players won’t be taking any chances to infuriate their manager, that’s for sure. He blasted the youngsters for resting on their laurels and letting others do the work whilst having one eye on the final. “I was disappointed at how we chucked away the lead,” said Pearce afterwards.However, to his credit, he praised the players’ character for fighting back. Life would just not have been worth living had they not succeeded. Pearce is hungry for success and only the very best of efforts will do.

Keeper Joe Hart sadly misses the historic final after picking up his second yellow card of the tournament. An appeal is unlikely to succeed unless England prove mistaken identity! Gabriel Agbonlaher is also banned for his second yellow and Frazier Campbell was sent off in extra-time.

Neverthless, England can put out a strong team full of confidence after a great run of games and will be full of determination to beat Germany. With Stuart Pearce jumping up and down on the touchline, dare they lose!

Rich in history, rich in fortunes

How fortunes have changed for Manchester City, now considered the richest club in the world. Today, under the ownership of members of the Abu Dhabi ruling family, dreams are becoming a reality. Manager Mark Hughes is slowly building a squad with the aim of bringing in silverware for the first time in more than three decades. Seldom a day goes past without Manchester City hitting the headlines, either being linked to a new star purchase or snapping up players like Roque Santa Cruz or Robinho.

Manchester City intends going places and has the money to make ambitions come true. It’s all a very far cry from humble beginnings in the 19th century when a former player put in his own cash to stop the club from going bust and postponing his wedding for three years as a result! Like many of our modern day clubs, Manchester City can trace its roots back to church days and cricket. The club used to be called St Mark’s West Gorton, a district in east Manchester, and was formed by three stalwarts, including two church wardens. The team evolved from an avid group of cricketers and the first known competitive football match was played in November of 1880. The youngest player was 15, the oldest 20.

St Mark’s became Ardwick AFC in 1887 and then Manchester City FC in 1894 in a bid to create a club which represented the whole of Manchester. Manchester City have won the League Championship twice, the FA Cup four times, the League Cup twice and the European Cup Winners’ Cup once. It has had periods of success and times of failure and notched up many a record, some of them held with pride, the others not so.

The club’s most successful period was in the late 1960s and early 1970s when it won several major trophies under Joe Mercer and his assistant Malcolm Allison but there have been no glittering honours for 33 years. Under the new ownership, the intention is for all that to change and the future is looking bright. Manchester City have spent most of their history in the top flight but, in the 1990s, had to endure relegation twice in three years and also spent a year in the third tier. Today, failure is not considered an option.

There are fans throughout the UK – the latest statistics suggest some 886,000 – and in excess of two million throughout the world. That’s a large fan base considering the lack of competitive success. Manchester City first won the FA Cup in 1904 but was later dogged by financial irregularities which, in 1906, culminated in the suspension of 17 players. In 1920, fire destroyed the Hyde Road main stand and the club moved to Maine Road in 1923.

The highlight of the 1930s was two consecutive FA Cup finals, one lost to Everton in 1933 and then a victory against Portsmouth in 1934. City won the First Division title for the first time in 1937 but could not avoid relegation the next season. The club was to reach the FA Cup finals again in 1955 and 1956, repeating the pattern of before – losing the first, winning the second. The 1956 final against Birmingham was a memorable affair, not least because City goalie Bert Trautmann continued to play, oblivious of the fact that he had a broken neck. In 1963, City were relegated to the Second Division but fortunes began to turn in 1965 with the appointment of Mercer and Allinson. In their first season, they won the league title, promotion, then the League Cup in 1967-68, the FA Cup in 1969 and the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1970, as well as the League Cup.

Manchester City became only the second European team to win a European trophy and a domestic trophy in one season but notched up another record too. They were the only club to have won the European Cup Winners’ Cup and to be relegated to the Third Division. The club was relegated in 1983 and 1987, bouncing back each time, and then became founder members of the Premier League in 1992. However, they were relegated again in 1996 and then to the Third Division two seasons later.

More upheavals were to follow, with promotions and relegations until the Kevin Keegan era when they became Division One champions in 2001-2002, breaking the record for the number of points gained and goals scored in one season. The season of 2002-2003 proved the last at Maine Road with the move to the City of Manchester Stadium. Stuart Pearce took over in 2005 but there was a disappointing 15th place finish in 2005-2006 and another record – just ten home goals, the fewest ever scored by a club.

Many a top manager has been at the helm, including Sven-Goran Erikssohn in July 2007. His reign started well but he was sacked in June 2008 amid a public outcry from the fans. Nothing could save him and Mark Hughes became manager in June 2008. The last season saw the club finishing tenth in the Premiership and reaching the quarter finals of the UEFA Cup. On the way, another record was notched up with the signing of Real Madrid star Robinho for a then British record-breaking fee of 32.5 million pounds. It was seen as a massive coup and just one of many to come.

Playing in sky blue and white, Manchester City has the most loyal of fans and was once voted in third in a loyalty poll to Liverpool and Portsmouth. It’s reported that the buy-out by the Abu Dhabi United Group was worth around 200 million pounds, money which could help to build a team Manchester City has always aspired to be. Manchester, and the rest of the world, awaits action and success on the field with huge anticipation as would their ancestors of over a century ago.

Pearce shrugs off talk over future position.

England Under 21 manager, Stuart Pearce, has shrugged off suggestions that he could follow Fabio Capello as boss of the senior side, when the Italian decides he has had enough. Pearce’s Under 21 side sit on the verge of greatness after securing a semi-final spot in the European Under 21 Championships.

However, Pearce insists that he is not even close to the calibre and experience that Capello currently possesses and wants to focus on his current role for now. This is fair enough when you consider that his time at Manchester City did not go perfectly and his international career is still in its infancy.

It is a typically English trait to get carried away whenever something goes right at the highest level of sport for the national side. Pearce is a very simple and realistic man and although he may enjoy the limelight in a smug kind of way, he knows that he needs to get a lot more experience from sitting next to Capello during matches than he currently has right now.

Pearce said: “I'm a manager that has been in control of a team for maybe 150 matches over a four-year period. That is ridiculously lightly raced as a manager. Very lightly experienced. I've got a long-term plan that I keep to myself. The one thing I can tell you is that today I haven't got enough experience by any means. The England manager's job is the pinnacle of anyone's career. When I look at Fabio every day and watch him work, I realise how inept I am as a manager.”

“It's how fickle we are in football, that maybe two years ago as Manchester City manager I was written off. Two years down the line I'm written back on again. If I lose the semi-final I'll be written back off again.”

It is actually quite refreshing to see someone who could be so temperamental as a player adopting such a black and white outlook to the current situation that he finds himself in. Pearce knows all of his limitations and he knows the things that he can do very well. He seems as though he wants to learn all of the time and get better with every day that passes.

It is quite a nice potential story being laid out before us. Pearce was an England legend who was not afraid to kick a player up in the air and take a booking if the match justified doing so. He suffered heartbreak and glory in the natioanl side and even though he never won a mjaor competition with his country, he knows all of the positives and negatives that can come with every day life in international football.

We would also like to see an Englishman follow Capello at the top because it would mean an end to foreign managers having a go on the England machine. How successful Capello turns out to be remains to be seen and we all hope he can carry us to success in South Africa next year but regardless of the progress Capello has made, there are still people that want someone English to be in charge.

Hull could offer Owen a last Premier League chance.

Hull City could be set to offer Michael Owen his only chance to make a Premier League switch from Newcastle United. Owen was Newcastle’s highest paid player and was said to be growing increasingly frustrated by his failure to secure a move away from St James’ Park.

Well the 34-page document that was released about himself seems to not have been a bad move as Phil Brown is interested in signing him. Hull will be looking to add both experience and calibre to their squad as the narrowly avoided relegation last season at the expense of Owen’s current employers.

They will want to do everything they possibly can to eradicate the chance of this happening again and a fit and healthy Michael Owen would be a fantastic signing for one of the smaller Premier League sides. This is the key though as Owen so often gets injured or picks up little niggles that mean he misses a set of games.

The financial side of any deal could be the thing that stops the move altogether. Owen will want a large chunk of the plus £100,000 per week that he was on at Newcastle. He surely understands now that he needs to take a pay cut to get back to the Premier League but it is highly unlikely that Hull can get any where near these sort of wages demands. It could mean that Owen goes elsewhere or chooses to stay at Newcastle for the financial benefits.

Phil Brown said: “He has a proven track record as a goal scorer and that’s an area that we are keen to strengthen. It would have to be on the right terms. It’s been sounded out as a possibility but there has been no offer put to him.”

As already mentioned in a number of stories over the last couple of weeks, Owen will want to try and get back into the England side under Fabio Capello. Capello was the manager when Owen was playing at Real Madrid and he did not impress the Italian then and will want another chance. There is no way he will get this chance if he stays at Newcastle and cannot get himself fit on a regular basis.

Owen does not appear to be an egotistic sort of individual and never has done during any point in his career. Therefore he could fit in well with what Hull City are all about. A small community run club that likes hard working and honest players who will sweat blood for the side every time they run out onto the pitch. It could be the perfect chance for Owen to revitalise his career and make sure people remember him for all the right reasons instead of staying at Newcastle just for the money and having no ambition.

He is one of the very few players that is accessible to Hull who could make a real difference in the current side and take the club forward. They will not break the bank for him and a sensible move for all parties concerned needs to be worked out before he decides something else.

Valencia do a u-turn on their best player.

Valencia have performed a u-turn over the decision to sell their best player, David Villa. The Spanish Football club now look like they have taken down the ‘for sale’ sign that had attracted the interest of Real Madrid, Barcelona, Chelsea and Liverpool. It seems that Valencia want to try and keep their most dangerous weapon regardless of the financial problems that have forced the club to sell off a number of main assets.

Villa was on the verge of going to Real Madrid for roughly £45 million however Valencia have pulled out of the deal at the last minute, which will come as a welcome relief to a number of the club’s fans. Villa would have probably not wanted a move but accepted it as an eventuality so the news could well please him.

It will also mean some revitalised hope for Liverpool, the only English club that Villa has said he would join, who were not able to match the financial power of any of the clubs that were set to be interested in Villa. The Merseyside club can now sit back and reassess the situation before deciding if they want to be the first club that goes back to Valencia and asks if they want to have a change of mind again.

Villa’s agent said: “Valencia have changed their minds and they are telling us they don't want to sell the player after, as everyone knows, having talks with three of the four top clubs. They have put us through a situation that is, sadly, very unpleasant because this is no good for anyone.”

Villa is one of the most highly rated strikers in Europe and forms Spain’s strike force with Fernando Torres, which basically propelled the country to European glory last summer. If Valencia want to have any hope of being able to get through their current problems and push out on the other side then this is the precise player that they need to keep.

Villa seems to love Valencia as a club and it is where he made his name as one of the best attacking players in the world. There is nothing the other clubs can do if Valencia want to box him back up again and you would have thought that if all parties were happy with the way things were going then a deal would have already been struck by now.

The failure to secure this deal may be down to the player’s own dissatisfaction. He may have a specific club in mind that he wants to join and it may not necessairly be Real Madrid or Barcelona. This makes things very difficult when the clubs that are trying to sign someone are not the actual clubs that the player may want to join. Therefore it is pointless trying to do a deal over a player who will turn out unhappy and will not justify the millions that would ultimate changes hands on his sale.

No doubt the clubs will keep nagging away to try and sign him but the decision to keep him now looks set in stone and unless the player throws his weight around to get a move it seems that him and Valencia are both happy.

Support our England under-21s

You may not realise it but English Football really has something to shout about. Our England under-21 squad have reached the semi finals of the UEFA European U21 Championships. What an achievement for the team and for manager Stuart Pearce. But is the whole country applauding them? Well, they would if the good news was being shared a bit more.

If England’s first team had reached the semi finals of such a big tournament, it would be splashed all over the newspapers and the bunting would already be out. Union Jack sales would have soared through the roof and we would all be pouring over our diaries to make sure we were free for both the semi final clash and the finals. There are, of course, die-hard fans who have been supporting the under-21s in their quest to lift the European U21 crown, a prospect which is looking more and more likely.

But this is our England side of the future we are talking about. Stars like Theo Walcott and James Milner. There should be more publicity and more support. All football fans should be behind them and wishing them well. Moreover, the matches should be on terrestrial TV. Let’s face it, until Fabio Capello took over as England manager, watching the under 21 squad was often more entertaining than watching their elders. They certainly put in a scintillating performance against Spain to reach the semi finals with a convincing 2-0 win in Gothenburg.

A huge surprise was Pearce’s decision to leave out Theo Walcott from the starting line up. Reading between the lines, he obviously wanted to give Walcott a test of character and it must have been quite a shock when his name went down as a sub on the board.
But as Pearce later explained, he treats every player the same and gives no one special treatment, no matter what their ability. His tactic seemed to work. Pearce was delighted with Walcott’s reaction. He wanted him to come out and fight for his place and he did. “I saw what he was about as a man and a player,” said Pearce.

Walcott came on in the second half as part of a double substitution with Frazer Campbell. England had played well in the first half but Spain could have taken the lead but for Neduon Onuoha over-hitting a back pass which had to be cleared off the line by Joe Hart. Milner then opted to take his own penalty after being fouled in the box but goalkeeper Sergie Aseyo went the right way.

The Newcastle merry go round continues to spin.

If Newcastle United fans were waking up in the hope that their club may finally announce a little bit of good news then they will be disappointed today. The take over at the club from current owner, Mike Ashley, will not be completed until the end of this month, meaning the search for a manager goes on and there will be less time for the club to restructure playing staff ahead of the new season.

As soon as the club were relegated from the Premier League, Ashley put the for sale sign up again after failing to find a buyer for the broken machine earlier in the season. The identity of the people buying the club is at the moment unknown and for some reason being kept a secret.

So the fans do not know what their club is heading for and they do not know who will be in charge. Someone at Newcastle better act pretty quickly as there are links appearing on a daily basis that say Alan Shearer is going elsewhere due to the joke way that his appointment at Newcastle has been handled.

It is senseless why he has not been allowed into the club to talk to the very few players that the side may actually be able to keep. He has no control over the players that are talking to various agents and the further delays in this take over deal mean he will have to wait a bit longer to find out if he still has a job.

You have to admire his passion and love for once club because a lot of people would have become tired and fed up by now and just moved on from the whole scenario altogether. You would have thought that being relegated from the top-flight of English football would have been the kick up the backside the club needs in order to start making decisions more efficiently but this is Newcastle United we are talking about.

There are a core group of maybe three or four players that Shearer wanted to keep if he was going to stay on as boss but two of this group are already in negotiations with other Premier League sides and it could mean that Shearer has to create a team from scratch within a month if the take over is completed on schedule and every thing else goes to plan.

If there are any more delays and Shearer has even less time to get things right then it could mean the immediate future of the club is dented for the next few years. Some pundits have already written off the club and are saying that they won’t get back into the Premier League within the next decade.

The fans will be hoping that this new owner is some form of Arabian oil billionaire who will come in and save the blushes. However, for the low people who are actually enjoying Newcastle’s demise, it would pain them to see the club propelled back to greatness when they have provided us all with laughs on a regular basis for a long time.

Huge costs up at City so far.

Manchester City have added almost £160 million in bills since Mark Hughes has been working under the financial backing of new owners. It is a staggering amount when you consider that the only real high profile star that City have drafted in is Robinho.

The wage bill has almost doubled and the news may very well come as a shock to many as it proves just how easily a massive football club can spend cash if there are not strict regulations in place to stem the amount of expenditure.

This figure will rockets City are bound to make a number of summer signings and have already added Gareth Barry to the squad for a £12 million fee. No player at the club in the first team earns less than £44,000 per week, which may seem small in comparison to other clubs, but when bigger signings are likely to arrive, the number of contract upgrades that will be demanded is slightly worrying.

However, City insist that they are a well run business like club that likes to boast value for money on all fronts. Chief Executive, Gary Cook said: “The story is completely without foundation. Robinho has always been a highly valued member of our team and that continues to be the case. Reports suggesting that he will leave the football club, either on loan or on a permanent deal, are absolutely untrue.”

Robinho himself earns ten per cent of the entire City wage bill each year and many pundits criticised him for joining City because they saw it as a purely financially motivated move. They believe that now City have proven to not be as good as the Brazilian would have hoped, that he is trying to jump ship in order to save his own career and maintain his international chances of becoming a Brazilian legend.

The point is that City’s figures are already quite high, especially for a club that is not in the top six. How much they are likely to increase again depends a lot on the manager and the freedom that the chairman and owners will give him to make better signings. However, it will increase to heights that the club would have never thought were possible.

The job for City is trying to make sure that the club can still offer value for money to its players and its fans. The only reason Robinho is on such high wages is because it was probably the only thing that would have got him to switch to City from a move to Chelsea. So long as the club is run efficiently, there is no reason why the finances of the side and everything else to do with the club cannot be managed in a productive way.

They also need to echo the chairman’s comments from earlier in the week and make sure that they are not taken advantage of as a club. If they allow this to happen then it is likely that the number of subclauses in player contracts will see wages and bonuses rocketing to epic proportions, which could be the downfall of the club.

Drogba to face a whopping five-match ban.

Chelsea will lose the services of striker Didier Drogba, after it is likely to be confirmed that he will be banned for five matches when the Champions League starts next season. Drogba came under a UEFA investigation following his antics after the semi-final loss to Barcelona last season.

Drogba, quite literally, went mad and started swearing and screaming at television cameras as well as the referee for that game, Tom Henning Ovrebo. Drogba had been upset that during the important match against Barca, the referee quite blatantly refused to give the London side a penalty on more than one occasion.

His frustration was shared because some of the appeals were quite obviously justified but the way he dealt with the proceeding situation was not admirable and now means that Chelsea will be without one of their best players when the biggest competition in European football starts up again in a few months time.

There will be a further meeting today to see whether or not a number of other Chelsea players should be fined or banned. Defender, Jose Bosingwa, could also be out for a couple of matches after the referee reported that he had been called a ‘thief’ by the Portuguese star.

Chelsea could also pick up a rather substantial fine for not being able to control their players during a match and even though the frustration was widespread and justified on the part of the players, they still had responsibilities and had they seen out the match it would not have been a problem. However, any financial punishment dealt out to the club is unlikely to be that great and they would be able to pay a fine with little difficulty.

Chelsea will just want the whole matter to be over. It clearly is not something they were proud of and it would have embarrassed a lot of their playing staff and coaches. Furthermore, Carlo Ancelotti will want to start a fresh and create a new regime of discipline and strictness that means Chelsea would be the last side you would associate with such goings on if there was ever a repeat incident in the future.

Drogba did not cover himself in glory on that occasion and should be looking to make amends for his actions when his ban is over or lifted. Chelsea could appeal against the likely decision but it would be pointless. One of the biggest principles that UEFA hold their guidelines on is the respect that is shown to fellow players and referees. On this occasion it was breached in epic proportions and the club should not risk annoying the officials who have the power to make the situation a lot worse than it already is.

That evening was a very strange occasion when the football ended up not being the main talking point. Chelsea have learnt their lesson and everyone should move on from the whole affair. If Drogba wants to eradicate the embarrassment then he should keep his head down and under the radar although this is not in his nature.

Fernando Torres says something that we have all heard before.

Fernando Torres has come out with an ‘I will never join them statement’ in the light of the news that Sir Alex Ferguson has been preparing a mega bid for the Liverpool star. It may be just a rumour but it is a strong one and it has been said that United will be willing to risk up to £60 million of the Cristiano Ronaldo money in order to get the Spanish international.

It is also further evidence that Carlos Tevez is on his way out of the club but Torres seems to insist that he would never join one of Liverpool’s main rivals. It would be one of the biggest coups in football if the move came off but it will be difficult to achieve as Liverpool probably won’t listen and the player doesn’t seem to have any intention of going anywhere.

Torres said: “I don't know anything about United, just that it has been in the newspapers. Listen, my team is Liverpool and this is very clear to me. This club has it all - the history, the prestige, the organisation. Liverpool Football Club is a phenomenon, with millions of fans who totally identify with everything the club stands for.”

“It's a big responsibility to give the fans here the success they desire, but the challenge is always exhilarating and this is why I was delighted to sign a new contract. We need to win the big trophies and we can trust Rafa Benitez to keep the momentum going for us. [He] makes the signings and I’m sure those who coming will improve us - if it were me I would bring David Villa but that may not be possible.”

There is also the added point of this very contract that Torres talks about. It would seem senseless for Liverpool to waste so much money on the contract if the player was suceptible to a move away from the club. They clearly don’t want to sell him and he clearly doesn’t want to go anywhere.

However, Cristiano Ronaldo said before the Champions League final that he would be a Manchester United player next season and he is on the verge of completing a move to Real Madrid. Sol Campbell said he would never move to Arsenal and he did and Wayne Rooney said he would always bea n Everton player and now he is at United.

The point is that for all of the loyalty and words that are spoken in football, money can so often talk in much greater volumes. United would not get an idea of how stubborn both parties were likely to be until they made some form of offer for the striker. It would also be likely that the club could raise a large sum of money at short notice which could substantiate any advantage taking that Liverpool may deploy.

For example, they may have a silly idea in mind that United may just be willing to pay. They need someone who is going to come in and make good the influence of the player they have just let walk through the exit door and Torres is clearly one of those people. He has taken to the Premier League like a duck to water and in the right side he could quite clearly become the league’s best scorer on a season after season basis.

Ronaldo offered the highest wages of all time.

New Real Madrid signing, Cristiano Ronaldo, has been offered the highest wages in history for any single player. Ronaldo is set to earn roughly £106 million over a six year period with wages of over half a million pounds per week at the peak of the deal.

He actually starts on the staggering sum of £183,000 per week, which easily surpasses the £160,000 that Robinho is currently on at Manchester City. The news simply acts as further proof that Real Madrid are looking to invest their way back to the top.

No doubt the news will anger thousands owing to the fact that Ronaldo will be earning £50 minute and over £3,000 per hour. These are stupid sums of money and will not win the Portuguese star any admirers. It would be difficult to find any other club in the world that would be willing to pour so much money into one player. It also creates a huge pressure and risk and maybe actually does justify the calls from some Manchester United fans that he is not worth that level of investment.

It is difficult when you listen to Ronaldo talking about Madrid to understand how he feels it is a better proposition than playing at Manchester United, the club where he made his name and the club where he has had all of his success. It is very easy for people that do not admire him too much to say that he has simply moved to Spain in order to increase his already substantial wealth and fortune.

If the latter is the case then football is declining as a game and it just goes to show that even the best players can be swayed from venture to venture via the nature of their bank balance. However, none of us would blame him. If anyone else were offered such huge sums of money to go and play football in an appealing part of the world it would take a dishonest man to say he wouldn’t be interested.

The whole affair puts to the back of the line the criticism that David Beckham received when he joined LA Galaxy for roughly half of what Ronaldo will be earning. The news of the wages should also act as an incentive UEFA and FIFA to work quickly in proposing a type of budget system in football that would mute these massive financial influences. What Ronaldo will earn in a week could buy a brand new squad for a League One or League Two side in this country.

The mind boggles at how Madrid can keep this financial push going as they seem to have more money at the moment than sense or the government of a small country. Kaka will be on a good deal, as will David Villa if he completes his move from Valencia. Madrid should be very wary, these amounts of money could make an ego that is already quite large, one of epic proportions and there could come a case where Ronaldo feels he is the main man at the club and the person who should run the show.

For once Platini says something we can all agree on.

For once UEFA president, Michel Platini has come out with a statement that we can all agree on as opposed to an unrealistic erratic view of something in the game. Platini is not happy about the amount of money that Real Madrid are spending and is prompting the suggestion that something should be done about it.

Madrid have spent over £130 million on two players in the past week, which has led to outcry from all sections of the football community. It has also been taken as insult by a number of world charities that are working tirelessly day after day to eradicate the real problems in the world.

The worry is that these excessive amounts of money floating around in the game will virtually buy top clubs a place in the top divisions forever. The gap between the best and the rest is already wide enough and the recent transfer activity has sparked suggestions that a budget system should be introduced to stop this gap between first and second tier clubs from getting any bigger.

Platini said: “These excessive transfers are happening almost every day. They represent a serious challenge to the idea of fair play and the concept of financial balance in our competitions. UEFA is working hard with clubs to establish a new set of rules as soon as is possible to clean up the system and give it a more solid and more transparent base. That is our top priority.”

Platini created a lot of controversy in this country when it emerged earlier in the year that he wanted to change the Champions League system in order to stop so many English sides doing well. Some people may not have been expecting the common sense that he has just come out with and it creates hope that something can be seriously done to stop Madrid in their tracks.

Until a capping system is introduced into the top of the game all over Europe and the world then the clubs can go about doing as they please, tapping up whoever they like until they ultimately get the transfer that they desire. How a football club, especially, in this day and age can fork out £80 million for one player is a joke.

That amount of money could probably pay for one or two more new wings in a hospital somewhere but instead it is being used to trade someone whose ego gets in the way of him actually seeing reality for what it is. It’s fair to say right now that the world record fee for Ronaldo will exist forever because now that Platini has got his teeth into the whole affair it is unlikely to be broken ever again.

So the advice to football clubs at the moment would be get your spending in before the official rules are put in place, because if they aren’t then football will descend into anarchy, run by a small number of clubs that make it impossible for anyone else to break their position at the summit.

The mickey takers continue to target Newcastle

Those having a good giggle at the expense of Newcastle United can carry on laughing as it has emerged a £150 million deal to takeover the club was nothing more than a joke. A deal that was meant to buy the club for £90 million, install Alan Shearer as manager and allow £30 million for transfers appears to be a hoax as the merry go round on Tyneside continues to spin.

Newcastle’s current owner, Mike Ashley, has put the club up for sale with a price tag of £100 million. After inviting even more criticism for attracting abusive e-mails from Sunderland fans to club officials, as well as snubbing Alan Shearer in any decisions being made, Ashley continues to make a mockery out of the club.

The mystery group citied an investment banking group as the people who would fund the project and although this group is in negotiations over a possible bid, nothing has been made concrete. Therefore it appears that the press release relating to the deal was nothing more than a wind up and Newcastle fans may as well get back under the duvet as they may well have to hide for a little bit longer while things blow over.

It is blatantly obvious that Newcastle United need stability. This is why reported negotiations over a deal for the club is good news. However, they seem to be the subject of everyone’s jokes at present and this news is no different. It couldn’t really happen to any other club than Newcastle and things seem to be going from bad to worse.

How the most important officials at the club have not just handed in their notice and left is remarkable. After anyone was just invited to e-mail the club about players and buying the side itself, no one would have blamed an employee for walking away after receiving abuse and threats in their personal inbox form some Sunderland fans.

It makes you scratch your head and wonder what is actually going on at the club on a daily basis. There must be someone in an office somewhere at St James’ Park that has the ability to use a bit of logic and common sense in order to stop things from spiralling out of control.

The next moves are quite simple. Get the takeover and ownership of the club sorted as quickly as possible, done in a way that will make employees want to stay not jump ship. This will allow the club to appoint a permanent manager a lot more quickly and hence he can get to work on building a side for next season and keeping some of the club’s best players.

It will be a hard campaign for Newcastle when the Championship starts. They are likely to get a lot of abuse at every ground they go to and it needs a hard line management and playing staff to be able to take it all on the chin. However, if things do not improve quickly then they will be stuck visiting these grounds and not playing back in the big time.

Manchester City boss is expecting a busy summer.

Manchester City manager, Mark Hughes, is expecting a lot of transfer activity this summer as the big clubs have already started to flex their financial muscles. Real Madrid have already spent just under £140 million on two players and City themselves spend over £10 million on Aston Villa’s Gareth Barry.

Chelsea are also reported to be lining up a couple of big deals with Barcelona’s Samuel Eto’o the top of Carlo Ancelotti’s shopping list over the next three months. Hughes for one sees all the activity as healthy competition and thinks it will all make for an interesting transfer market.

He said: “There is a lot of money out there now, with some big clubs eager to spend it. It should make for an interesting market.”

City themselves have by far and away the biggest financial purse in the game but the problem for Hughes is that he may not be able to attract the high calibre players that he wants to. When there are other clubs with a lot of cash publicly looking for players then it will mean that agents are not able to direct traffic in City’s direction.

For example Manchester United will obviously be looking to make good the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo and if City approach the same players as their city counterparts then they will be more likely to miss out. Fair enough they did manage to poach Aston Villa’s best player from underneath the nose of Liverpool but this is unlikely to happen again during the transfer window.

It is probably more exciting for the fans that get to watch all of the drama at clubs unfolding. The fact that players can be traded so easily makes for interesting topics on rumours and speculation. It is even better if your club is involved and going for one of the best players in the country or in Europe.

However, there is a point that all of the money is bad for the game and there is good reason for people that hold this view to speak up in this particular area. The amount of cash that Real Madrid can spend on two people will quite frankly sicken certain people. Especially so when you consider the economic climate we are currently in and the growing number of health concerns across the world.

A big summer spending spree across a range of clubs could prompt FIFA into some sort of action whereby they impose a budget cap next season. This would stop so much money floating around and would enable smaller clubs to make good on the gap, which is currently developing between the top and everyone else.

So there are good and bad sides to big summer spending. Hughes is clearly of the camp that likes it, which is fair enough when he has the money to spend himself. However, there is a clear case for those that despise it, this group of people may eventually get their way and the £80 million fee for one player could remain as the world record for a very long time.

Robinho ruffles Manchester City feathers.

Manchester City star, Robinho, has ruffled a few feathers by hinting at his dream transfer to Spanish champions, Barcelona. The commitment of the Brazilian has constantly been in question ever since he joined City last summer in a massive financial deal.

This led to calls from all sections of the game that Robinho had only joined City as a stepping stone between big clubs as they were willing to offer him more money than he had ever had to sign a big contract. The same day that he joined City he created controversy by saying he was happy to be joining Chelsea in the middle of an interview.

This news is likely to annoy many City fans and even manager, Mark Hughes, who was hoping that the services of the player would be enough to attract more high calibre stars to the club. If they let him leave then it could be a lot harder for City to attract players of a similar calibre and it could be a long time before the stars start walking through the gates at Eastlands.

Robinho said: “So far, there have only been speculations. There is nothing concrete and I haven't received any offers. The only thing I can say is that Barcelona are a great team and everybody would love to play for them.”

Many football fans will scratch their head at Robinho’s career as he possesses everything necessary to turn himself into one of the greatest players to have ever played the game. His temperament and nature prevented him from making a big impression at Real Madrid, which ultimately led to his sale last year.

Ever since he moved to City a lot of people have been saying that he does not look like he truly wants to be wearing the Manchester City colours and despite a fairly good first season in English football a lot of fans have come to question his desire and attitude.

The next move for City is quite simple, make sure the player is happy where he is and do everything possible to make sure he stays at the club. The big financial backers that have just taken over the club clearly have big ambitions but these cannot be fulfilled unless the best players stay at City.

With a lot of speculation already floating around City’s best defender, Richard Dunne, then it is vitally important that they quash the rumours surrounding their best attacking force. Mark Hughes is a smart enough manager to know how to handle the situation and Robinho would be well advised to keep his head down for a while as the sags unfolds.

If and only if Barca eventually do make bid for him can colour start being put on the picture, however the fact is that you would question why they would want him when they clearly have the best side in Europe. There are other areas of the Barcelona squad that could do with a lot more work as the attacking flair they already have is more than adequate.

Ronaldo saga finally ends.

The Cristiano Ronaldo saga is finally over as it has emerged Manchester United have accepted an £80 million bid from Real Madrid for his services. The news comes after Real had pursued Ronaldo for well over a year and United have granted the two parties permission to talk in a deal that looks all but done.

It seems that United probably got a bit tired of the whole affair and once again Sir Alex Ferguson has proved that no one player is bigger than his football club. The amount United will get also breaks the new world record fee that Real created only days ago.

They will be able to use that vast sum of money to bring in maybe two or three high quality players to replace the Portuguese ace. Many will be glad to see the back of him but there will be United fans who will be upset after Ferguson stated he would rather let Ronaldo rot in the stands than sell him to the vultures at Madrid.

A statement from United read: “Manchester United have received a world-record, unconditional offer of £80 million for Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid. At Cristiano's request - who has again expressed his desire to leave - and after discussion with the player's representatives, United have agreed to give Real Madrid permission to talk to the player. Matters are expected to be concluded by 30 June. The club will not comment until further notice.”

The news is sure to anger many that will hate the fact that a football club such as Real Madrid can spend up to £140 million on two players considering the current economic crisis in the world. However, as it has always been seen, money matters little in football and it was only a matter of time before Real managed to get their foot through the door.

This news should also prompt the people at Fifa to work a bit harder to think up some sort of budget cap system to be introduced into the game. £80 million for one player is a stupid amount of money and personifies everything that is becoming wrong with football.

Needless to say Ronaldo will probably be offered a silly amount of money to play each week for Madrid, which could make the deal even more lucrative than it already is. How much money Real have left to spend is unknown but it had been thought that Kaka was the early replacement for Ronaldo, however this was not the case.

Madrid’s president, Florentino Perez, seems as though he is making good on all the promises he made in the run up to his election but there will be many hard feelings created towards him with this news.

United should not be down that they have let their best player go. Ferguson attracted a lot of criticism when he let the likes of David Beckham and Ruud Van Nistelrooy leave, both of whom also went to Real Madrid. The Scot is likely to use the cash to rebuild key areas and United will probably feel relieved that Ronaldo has finally gone.

Croatian would be a brilliant coup for Portsmouth.

If Portsmouth can persuade Slaven Bilic to become their next manager then it would be a fantastic arrival to the club that could propel it to new heights. Pompey have only just under gone a financial transition between owners and are now looking for someone to come in and guide the team into the top six of the Premier League.

For the first time in the club’s history, Pompey now have a bit of financial muscle to flex as they are owned by the same person that spear headed the take over of Manchester City. The financial benefits of that take over have been fully seen and a similar effect could be had down on the South coast if Bilic is appointed as boss.

Bilic’s agent said today: “Slaven is open to offers and there is interest from Portsmouth. There are different clubs who want him but he is very interested. Portsmouth have tried to get in touch, but there is no concrete offer at this stage. But the idea of working with and building the club would excite him.”

“There are a lot of different clubs who want him and he is considering those options. There are big teams in Germany interested and other teams in England have shown an interest, as well as Celtic.”

To begin with Bilic does not currently earn anything like the amount of money that Premier League managers are on and hence he would happily listen to a lucrative contract if it were put in front of him. Although money isn’t every thing in the modern game it would mean that Bilic would possibly have no qualms in dropping the current commitments he has in order to move on.

He clearly has some managerial ability as his tenure in charge of Croatia saw them qualify for last summer’s European Championships at the expense of a poor England side. So if Pompey want someone who knows what he is doing and has the ability to tactically change a game very quickly then Bilic could be there man.

Furthermore Croatia’s current World Cup qualifying campaign has not gone exactly according to plan it may have been a matter of time before the powers that be in Croatia would have looked for an alternative option anyway.

A lot of people also know a lot about him in this country. He spent a large part of his playing career with the West Ham United shirt on and earned a reputation as a no nonsense type of player who demanded the best from himself and everyone else. These could be virtues that work very well for Pompey as they will need a strict regime to stop players getting carried away with the new financial luxury that has just hit the club.

It is not possible to be able to read Bilic’s next move but it would be hard for him to turn down the chance to work in the Premier League. He also knows the country and the language so it would be easier for him to settle down in Portsmouth than it would be in a part of another country.

Liverpool boss is satisfied with summer budget.

Liverpool manager, Rafael Benitez, says he is happy with the budget he has been given for this summer as Liverpool look to close the gap on current champions, Manchester United.

Liverpool have already missed out on signing Gareth Barry, a player who they had been tracking for well over a year. However, the boss insists that Liverpool’s failure to capture Barry was not down to not having enough money. Liverpool have spent a large sum in making sure that important players stay at the club this summer and are ready to play for next season.

Fernando Torres for example is the club’s best striker and was offered a lucrative new deal that will keep him in the side until roughly 2012/2013. It is important that Liverpool keep the spine of their side in place as one or two key players have been linked with moves away from the club e.g. Xabi Alonso’s possible move to Real Madrid.

Speaking today, Benitez said: “We spent some money to guarantee the extension of those contracts. Now we need to improve a little bit because we are in a very good position. We knew it would be difficult, especially as there is a [financial] crisis all around the world.”

“But when I decided to sign a five-year extension to my contract, I knew in my own mind that Liverpool is more than just a club, it is the heart of the city. It means so much to a lot of people. We want to keep our best players and Xabi has done really well for us. He has three years left on his contract so he is not for sale.”

This is all positive news for Liverpool fans who may have been wondering why the club had not put up a better fight in order to make sure that Barry was wearing the red shirt next season on not the light blue one. However, it is clear that Liverpool were not willing to pay over the odds for a player in the same way that City were and they seem content to work hard this summer to make sure that all arrivals are correct.

The worry is that with a reported limited budget, Benitez will have to focus on one or two players when he would have liked to have bought three or four. Top of the list si sure to be David Villa of Valencia, who no doubt will want the chance to play in th Premier League under a manager he already knows and with a striker than he is best friends with. There is also the added benefit that quite a few people at Liverpool speak Spanish.

Benitez seems smart enough to make sure Liverpool get things right in the transfer window and he is probably still hurting from being shown up by United in the latter part of the season that has just finished. There will be names on a list that he is but the selection of the correct ones will determine how close Liverpool can get next year.

TV giant about to fall down quickly.

TV giant, Setanta, is about to fall flat on its face as the company faces administration. Setanta owes the Premier League roughly £30 million and will plummet from business unless financial backers can stump up the cash to save the station.

Setanta has come in for a lot of criticism for its handling of certain TV rights and the fact that it deprives a mainstream audience from being able to watch a lot of big games, which are only viewable to a small number that have subscribed to the station.

The broadcaster also owes money to the Scottish Premier League, which is roughly ten times less than it owes to the English version. Therefore it seems highly unlikely that unless something is drastically done Setanta will drop like a fly from providing us with top-flight entertainment.

Setanta also has rights to show live cricket matches and golf tournaments but the revenue generated from 1.2 million subscribers is clearly not enough to stamp out the growing debts that it is building up on a daily basis.

No doubt the news will be a welcome relief to Setanta’s competitors. In the recent battle for rights to show live sports next season Sky virtually swept the board. This will please a lot of people that never really saw the point in a small broadcaster showing high quality matches that only a small number actually paid to watch.

It will also be good news for many in the current economic climate as a lot of people may already have Sky and for this reason they will not have to renew or sign up for a Setanta subscription in order to prevent them from missing out on a lot of entertainment in the months to come.

The news just acts as proof that the lucrative world of global sport is expensive and requires a lot of funds, time and attention in order to provide a high quality service. This is something Sky have consistently done since the Premier League was formed in 1993 and is something they now look like they will be unrivalled in doing.

TV rights to show Premier League football are getting more expensive as each season passes. Due to this Setanta now looks like it will go the same way as ITV Digital did in 2003 after it was reported that they were unable to pay the full amount of £105 million for the rights they had acquired to show Premier League football and highlights.

So for now the broadcaster has a lot of work to do but the whole scenario just goes to show that you should never try and punch your weight against a competitor that has everything. Sky have the reputation and the reliability of service to be able to consistently deliver and what many people thought would happen is finally unfolding.

Deloitte will step in and run the company should administration finally kick in however, fortunately for Setanta they won’t be facing any ten-point penalties that could dent their future for a long time to come.

Friendship a dangerous game

Managers in top flight football have a very clear choice. Their managership style.

Some choose to be pals with the players, others prefer to keep their distance. Fabio Capello has obviously chosen the latter. So what does he get? Criticism about being dour and not having a relationship with his squad.Fortunately, the rather acid attack has come not from the England team but from new Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti who claims the Italian was surly when in charge of AC Milan in the early 1990s.

In his biography, Ancelotti alleges that Capello had no dialogue with his players, an allegation that has totally baffled the England manager. In fact, he says he doesn’t recognise himself from the description.

Neither will England fans. Since arriving, Fabio Capello might not have been a bundle of laughs or a man who jokes, eats and plays with his team. Unfortunately, other England managers have done just that over the years and looked where that got them and the side? Capello might not dance up and down the touchlines or slap his squad on the back every time they secure a win. But it’s obvious to all that he is the thinking man’s manager who demands respect and gets it.

Managers who become close to their players are dicing with a dangerous game. It’s always said there is no room for sentiment in business and the same applies to football. Managers are there to make tough decisions and the old pals act with the squad just won’t wash. Friendships between managers and players can only lead to trouble, jealously, recriminations and back-stabbing.

So far, Capello has managed to avoid all of this and conducted himself in the most upright of manners.Okay, he didn’t go out to dinner with the players at AC Milan or, perhaps even more crucially, with the journalists either. No leaks, no sneaky headlines in the press, no public arguments. If Ancelotti wants to regard this as being dour, that’s his perogative. Let’s see what sort of relationship he strikes up with Chelsea and where that will lead him if and when the going gets tough.

Capello is doing a great job for England and has lifted spirits. He also has a record second to none. A former professional footballer, he won the domestic league title with every club he has managed, namely Milan, Juventus, Real Madrid and Roma.

During his managerial career, Capello has become known as a disciplinarian and has no hesitation in clamping down on even his star players if he feels they are not pulling their weight. Given headlines in the past about England teams – from eating unhealthy breakfasts to playing cards and falling out of nightclubs at the crack of dawn – it’s just what we needed.

Capello gets a lot of money to do his job and he is earning it. He’s no stranger to public fallings-out as David Beckham found to his cost when at Real Madrid and that too sounds a warning to the England team. No player is too big to be brought down to size. Capello isn’t afraid to admit when he is wrong too and to bring players back into the team when he feels the time is right. Did Beckham ever believe he would get back into the Real Madrid team or even captain England again?

Capello may well have been touched with controversy during his career and made some ill-advised public comments but he remains unblemished and a family man. He deserves our respect alone for mastering the English language so quickly. Oh but for us Brits to speak Italian fluently!

Fabio Capello has already indicated that managership of England will be his last role and he intends to go out on a high. There would be few who would bet against it.

England vs Kazakhstan

Can England expect?

This is it folks! England are one step nearer to the 2010 World Cup finals and dare we think about searching out our St George’s flags and dusting down our car banners?

If there’s one thing guaranteed to lift the nation, it’s success in football and moods would certainly be lifted once we know our team is guaranteed a place in next year’s tournament.

It’s certainly looking good. England have now won six straight victories in six successive World Cup qualifiers. Just who would have thought it? Just a year ago, fans were turning off the television in droves because of the dire state of English football. Why put ourselves through such torture, we were asking ourselves.

Then along came a magic wand, courtesy of Fabio Capello. Seems the Italian maestro can do no wrong and England are once again flying high. Talk is even turning to England actually winning the 2010 World Cup. Now that is ambitious!

As usual, England put us through the grinder as they got off to a shaky start against Kazakhstan in Almaty. Striker Sergey Ostapenko nearly gave supporters a heart attack as he missed a clear chance on 19 seconds and then had a goal ruled off-side.

But Gareth Barry answered his critics after a week of controversy over his move from Aston Villa to Manchester City. Ironically, his opening goal on 41 minutes followed a link-up with Steven Gerrard, the man he might well have partnered if he had gone to Liverpool last year.

Stalwart Emile Heskey showed that his resurgence in the squad was no fluke when he made it 2-0 on 45 minutes, giving England fans the chance to get out their 2010 diaries and book their holidays from work.

Rooney got on the score sheet again on 73 minutes with a spectacular overhead kick after a rebound. This was his eighth goal in six internationals, surely one of the keys to Capello’s success. Frank Lampard then slotted home goal number four with a penalty on 78 minutes to secure a convincing win for England and a competent second half performance.

England now top the Group 6 table with a straight 18 points from six matches and an impressive 20 goals scored and just four away. One of their biggest rivals, Spain also top their Group 5 table, having netted 13 goals and conceded just two.
England are playing down qualification hopes by saying they are taking it a game at a time and Capello refuses to get carried away. Obtaining 21 points by mid-week would, he says, be good but not conclusive.

Captain John Terry shares the view and believes there is still plenty of improvement to come. He is concerned about hitting form a year too early but surely England need to send out a clear signal to their competitors ie watch out for us, we are a force to be reckoned with. Certainly, Terry believes England can match Spain for performance and few would disagree, provided we can get over our wobbly starts and not concede any silly early goals.

In any event, a 100 per cent World Cup qualification record is something to be proud of and to shout about. It’s a long time since England could boast such a feat and the achievement shouldn’t be under-estimated or played down. For once, it’s a great feeling to be able to put on an England shirt and wear it with pride rather than out of duty.

Splashing the cash for Barry

Money really does talk when it comes to football.

Manchester City have become the latest high-fliers, splashing out 12 million pounds on Aston Villa midfielder Gareth Barry. The 28-year-old has reportedly signed a five year deal which will bring him in around 80,000 pounds a week. Not a bad pay cheque which obviously had to be a huge attraction for Barry.

Villa fans are obviously bitterly disappointed that he will not be part of their campaign next season and are blaming cash as the incentive. Aston Villa are going great guns, having finished a very creditable fifth under Martin O’Neill to Arsenal and very nearly pipping them for fourth place. But a place in the Europa League and the prospect of challenging the big four in the Premiership – Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal – obviously wasn’t enough to keep Barry at Villa Park, if indeed he had any choice in the matter.

Manchester City supporters are, of course, thrilled and they believe they are the team to watch next season. Other big signings are expected as Mark Hughes bids to strengthen his squad now money appears to be little object. He has praised Barry’s flexibility in being able to play according to tactics and believes his experience and determination will count for everything. Barry is certainly one of the best midfielders in the country today. He played more than 400 games for Villa, scoring 52 goals and has won 29 caps for England, a number which arguably should already have been substantially more. Capello might well be putting that right in due course.

Barry says he feels real potential with Manchester City, said to have been the only club to put forward a bid. Liverpool obviously took the huff following last year’s debacle when protracted negotiations to buy Barry failed. The price tag of 18 million pounds was considered just too high. Liverpool won’t be wasting any time crying over spilled milk, that’s for sure.

Barry had been offered a lucrative deal to stay on at Villa after his contract ended next season but at least his departure should open the way for new arrivals and Liverppol have their sights set elsewhere too. Manchester City finished the season tenth but only 12 points behind Aston Villa, not a huge margin and one Barry will obviously be helping to bridge. Let’s see if money really can build a team. It worked originally for Chelsea and if Manchester City can splash the cash, why not go for it.

In any event, Barry’s signing fee pales into insignificance with all the talk about where Kaka is going to land up – Chelsea or Real Madrid. Real are said to be negotiating a deal which would cost them a staggering 65 million euros though AC Milan have denied the reports and both the club and Kaka say he is staying put. Now that really would be a huge purchase on your credit card bill!

Can Ancelotti build the dream?

Is money already talking under the new regime of Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti? The former AC Milan manager is making no secret of the fact that European glory is his main aim. He pledges that Chelsea will lift the Champions League crown within the next three years and who would bet against them doing it in his first season in charge?

Ancelotti knows European football inside and out and has a pedigree of success. He guided AC Milan to victory in 2003 and then again in 2007 and won the trophy twice as a player. He describes success in the tournament as “beautiful” and the pay cheque isn’t too bad either. Might that have something to do with his ambition?

Certainly, Chelsea fans will be hungry for success after reaching five semi-finals in six years. The taste of being beaten by Manchester United on penalties in the 2008 final is still bitter and players will relish the challenge. Ancelotti also promises to retain the feel-good factor at Stamford Bridge following the club’s victory in the FA Cup. The team and supporters are relishing their first bit of silverware in two years, thanks to outgoing boss Guus Hiddink who delivered the perfect leaving present.

But club faithfuls are already asking whether European glory should be Ancelotti’s main target. What about the Premiership or is this going to take second fiddle to the Champions League? If so, it will spell great news for both Manchester United and Liverpool who will be battling it out for top spot. Perhaps it might have been more diplomatic for Ancelotti to target as much success as possible, including the Champions League. Building a dream on the continent is commendable but performing on the stage at home in front of a crowd who pay good money to see their club has to be a top priority as well.

Chelsea fans will also be interested to see what type of play Ancelotti will favour. Will he encourage the free-flowing style the Blues are used to or adopt the AC Milan more stifled approach? One player who insists he won’t be following his former boss to Stamford Bridge is ace forward Kaka. Both Real Madrid and Chelsea are rumoured to be interested in signing him but Kaka says he has no intentions whatsoever of leaving Milan, full spot. That means he will be signing for Chelsea before the end of June then.

Though Chelsea fans will be relishing Ancelotti’s obvious ambition, he’s got a hard act to follow in the footsteps of Jose Mounrinho and Hiddink who became firm favourites. Ancelotti does have a good track record and says he is very much a people’s person, likes to work together and be close to the players. He also speaks very highly of Chelsea and their teamwork. Ancelotti certainly talks the talk, now let’s see what he can deliver on the field, whether for home tournaments, the Premier League or Europe. He wants to build a dream and Chelsea will want him to deliver.

Liverpool secure future of their best player.

Liverpool have secured the future of their best player with the news that Fernando Torres has signed a new contract. Torres is now contracted to the Anfield club until 2013 with the option of an extra year if desired.

It will be welcome news to Rafael Benitez who will want to create a team that will win the Premier League next year. The length and depth of his feud with Sir Alex Ferguson has been shown on many occasions this season with the odd rant or two but Rafa will know that this is the first building block to success.

Torres joined Liverpool from Athletico Madrid for £20 million in July 2007. Since this point he has become one of the best strikers in Europe and probably doubled in value making him one of Liverpool’s most potent attacking threats and one of the most feared strikers in Europe.

The combination of Torres and Steven Gerrard has been more than enough to break through the defences of many teams and the news of a lengthened contract shows the ambition that is building inside Liverpool’s Spanish gaffer.

Benitez said: “We’ve made huge progress this season and now we need to take the next step. We are building something special here and securing such important players as Fernando on long-term deals means we can move forward with confidence. He has shown how much he wants to achieve success at Liverpool by committing his future to the club. He’s a special talent, but still has the hunger to improve his game.”

Liverpool have just hard arguably their best season since the Premier League started in 1993. Benitez puts a lot of the fact they didn’t push Manchester United closer down to the fact that for a lot of games Torres was not fully fit and could not play a part.

Well with his future secured and with his fitness now properly sorted it out it is likely that Torres could well end up as the best striker in the Premier League next season. A lot depends on the work that Benitez does in the transfer window as he will need to bring in some big names as well as improving the fringes of the squad.

It was the depth of Liverpool’s squad that cost them at crucial times last season. Most notably was the 4-4 draw the developed against Arsenal at Anfield, a match that Liverpool should probably have won at a canter.

However, the spine of the side is very good. The keeper and the defence have played together for a long time and Liverpool have one of the best midfield players in the world making things tick in the middle of the pitch. Rafa would do well to mould the rest of the team around Gerrard and Torres and now he has no excuses for not propelling Liverpool to success.

Torres really needs a high class player beside him in the attack and if Liverpool make reality of the David Villa from Valencia rumours then they could give anyone a run for their money next season.