Written By DBSFootball

Take a look at the winning teams from recent Premier League years. Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal. All had reliable, trustworthy, established and confident goalkeepers. United had Schmeichel and now have Van Der Sar, Chelsea had, and still have Petr Cech when they won consecutive Premier League titles in 2005 and 2006, and Arsenal had Jens Lehmann in their “Invincibles” team of 2004. Who was in goal in 1966 when England won the World Cup for the first and so far only (and possibly last) time? Gordon Banks - elected in a poll by the IFFHS (International Federation of Football History Statistics) as the second best goalkeeper of the 20th Century.

Joe Hart is showing all of the qualities to become a top quality goalkeeper – on the same, and with his potential, possibly higher level as the goalkeepers listed above. His confidence brings so much to his game as well as others around him. He has bravery - to come out and put his body on the line for the good of the team. He has a great personality – one which shows his love of playing football – something which is rarely seen in modern football, with pressure often getting to players. And most importantly, he is reliable. His defenders know that he can catch the ball from crosses with conviction, and his reactions are second to none.

This can only mean good things for his team-mates. His defenders know how good he is, which gives them the confidence to push further forward, which, in turn, makes the midfielders push further forward, which helps to pressurise the opposition higher up the pitch. The defenders know that they can trust Hart. He lifts pressure off of his team-mates, which then helps them to play with more freedom.

Before Hart, the players couldn’t do that. David James was known for his great reactions, but unfortunately, his erratic behaviour and often poor decision making too. This meant the players were always cautious and worried that a mistake could happen at any time, and they simply couldn’t trust him.

The good thing is, that not only do the players trust Hart, but the manager, Capello, does as well.

“Roberto Mancini has chosen him for Manchester City and I have chosen him for the England team. He improved a lot last year when he played at Birmingham. That was really important. The two keepers we had who stayed with us [including Ben Foster] are in really good form.”

England have struggled with goalkeepers for a while, with the last consistently good one in David Seaman. Have England found a long term successor? Is he a player who has the confidence and the right amount of arrogance to handle the pressure of being England Number One? Yes. And he’s only 23.

Written by Minal Vachheta

Real Madrid are on the brink of signing Ricardo Carvalho from Chelsea. The 32-year-old centre back joined Chelsea from Porto in 2004 for £19.8m when Mourinho was the manager. Carvalho has had a successful run at Chelsea winning three league titles; the FA cup three times, the League cup twice and the Community Shield twice. He has scored 11 goals and made more than 200 appearances for the Blues in the League, Champions League and all other competitions.

Carvalho who worked with Jose at Porto and Chelsea is now joining him once again at Real Madrid. The Spanish giants have agreed a fee of £6.7m with Chelsea and are now awaiting a medical to go through and for personal terms to be agreed between both club and player.

Ricardo is the fifth player to be leaving Stamford Bridge during the summer break after Joe Cole, Michael Ballack, Juliano Belleti and Deco have all departed. The Portuguese international told a Spanish newspaper that it would be a dream come true to play for Mourinho at Real.

“It would be a dream to be able to play for Madrid, which I consider to be the best club in the world, and follow the orders of the best coach in the history of football.”

“With Mourinho I experienced two marvellous stages at Porto and Chelsea. To have the opportunity to win another Champions League with him at Real Madrid would be tremendous

Are Real Madrid strong contenders to win the Champions League this season? Will competition from Barcelona, Manchester United or Arsenal be too much?

By Ross Mackiewicz.

Liverpool’s new signing Joe Cole has described his new club as “the biggest in the country.” The 28 year olds contract at Chelsea expired at the turn of the month after completing a seven year stint with the Londoners where he won a number of honours including the club’s first ever double. Speculation had mounted for months as to whose team colours the England man would be adorning. However despite no Champions League football at Anfield this season Cole opted to sign for The Reds due to the size and magnitude of the Merseyside club.

He has signed a four year contract with wages at around £90,000 per week. He went onto reveal that he endeared to the club five years ago during Chelsea’s Champions League semi-final against the five time European Cup winners where the atmosphere from the Anfield faithful gave him Goosebumps.

“I tried to take everything out of the equation, take the financial and location side out and just thought in football terms.” Cole said.

“I thought about the semi-final of the Champions League in 2005 when I ran on to the field and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I was thinking about playing in that atmosphere every week and that swung it for me.”

“I know I have made the right decision and I am looking forward to the challenge. I have played in London all my life. I could have stayed at Chelsea because the fans loved me and I won things, but I wanted to challenge myself and when I knew Liverpool were interested it was a no-brainer because they are the biggest club in the country.”

Cole’s remarks may come as a surprise to those at Stamford Bridge as he has more or less branded his transfer as a step up from Chelsea. The Blues were unwilling to meet with Cole’s wage demands which have subsequently opened the door for Liverpool to grab his signature.

Cole has been impressed with manager Roy Hodgson as he outlined the clubs plans. He believes with the calibre of player at the manager’s disposal with the likes of Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres leaves the club are in good stead for the new season.

“The club finished seventh last year, which wasn’t good enough, and the manager explained where the club wants to go.” Cole revealed.

“I jumped on board because with the players we have here and the players we are looking to bring in. it’s definitely going in the right direction.”

Cole went onto to express his excitement of linking up with Fernando Torres as well as how proud he is to be a part of Liverpool Football Club.

“We have talked about positions in the team and types of formations Roy wants to play and I just want to be part of the team.” said Cole.

“I want to go out there and to run and fight for the lads and the fans. That’s what I’ll always do and Roy is the man who can make sure we are a nice unit as a team.”

“I am excited about playing with Fernando and obviously I know Stevie (Gerrard), Carra (Jamie Carragher) and Jonno (Glen Johnson) from the England set-up. Pepe Reina, Alberto Aquilani – there are a lot of big-name players here but I will need time to settle down and relax into the club. I am proud to be playing for this club and will give my all in every training session and every game to help the club be successful and put some pots in the trophy cabinet.”

What do you make of Joe’s comments? Are Liverpool the biggest football club in the country? Has he made the right move? Let us know.

Written by Ryan Kane.

On Tuesday last Sky Sports reported that Manchester City were planning a £20 million bid for Didier Drogba. A Chelsea spokesman has since claimed that the hype surrounding the striker is “irrelevant” after stating that he was “not for sale”. Who knows what to believe.

As yet another transfer tale unfolds we are left to sift through the tittle-tattle, separating what we believe to be genuine news from the plentiful supply of fabricated rubbish. Didier Drogba has been Chelsea’s goal scoring hero for the last six years and for many “Blues” fans keeping him at Stamford Bridge goes down as an absolute must. His outstanding speed, strength and power makes him one of the world’s greatest strikers. With this label comes an understandable interest from Europe’s élite. Real Madrid, Barcelona, Inter Milan and the likes – You can’t blame them, who wouldn’t want Didier Drogba in their side.

Albeit this summer the interest comes from an ostensibly new face at the billionaire transfer checkout, Manchester City. The oodles of cash being pumped into Eastland’s has bolstered City to new heights. Already linked with an audacious move for Inter Milan striker Mario Balotelli, Roberto Mancini will add further names to his transfer market shopping basket before the new season starts. The Italian has already delved into his supposedly infinite transfer kitty following the signings of David Silva and Toure. Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Toure linked up with brother Kolo at City in June following his apparent £28m move from Barcelona, fans will hope the duo can now persuade international teammate Drogba to join them at Eastland’s.

Drogba’s agent, Thierno Seydi, has recently claimed that a move to Manchester City was a possibility. The cash-strapped club will be expected to fork out in the region of £20 million for the 32-year old striker. Bargain if you ask me. Given the choice between Didier and David Villa, who Barcelona paid a staggering £34.2 for in May, I would gladly choose Drogba. Yes, even despite the Spaniards outstanding World Cup campaign! The reason simply being that Drogba’s goal scoring record speaks for itself, a monstrous 131 goals since his move to Stamford Bridge in 2004. The ex-Marseille man has played an instrumental part in the club’s success over the past six years. The three time Premier League winner was crowned Chelsea 2010 Player of the Year in May – No surprises there, even in spite of Drogba’s questionable 2009/10 form.

Didier Drogba is a Premier League prodigy who seemingly City will do anything to get their hands on. However it will clearly take something special to prise him away from Stamford Bridge, after all Chelsea are the best team in the country, aren’t they?

See more Chelsea news here

By Fab4.

Joe Cole has turned his back on London and Champions League football after signing a four-year contract with Liverpool. Both Arsenal and Tottenham have been strongly linked with a move for Cole and it was thought the 28-year-old would opt to stay in London after recently having a baby and wanting to stay close to his roots.

Cole became hot-property after leaving Chelsea last month after failing to agree a new contract extension. Carlo Ancelotti blamed ‘financial reasons’ behind Cole’s departure and the England winger has been linked with big-money moves to some of Europe’s elite over the past few weeks. Arsenal and Spurs became front-runners in the race for Cole’s signature, but he has chosen to move to Merseyside after agreeing a four-year contract worth a reported £90,000pw and will undergo a medical in the next 48 hours.

Some cynics will say he has chosen money ahead of football, after-all the deal he has signed with Liverpool was the most financially lucrative on offer, and he has chosen to go to a club that will be playing in the Europa League next season.

But Cole said last month he would chose the club who could offer him the chance to play in the centre of midfield and wanted a manager who had faith in him. No doubt both Arsene Wenger and Harry Redknapp would have been great managers to work under and both are renowned for being able to bring the best out of players by instilling confidence, but it’s debatable whether Cole would have been able to force his way into either Arsenal or Tottenham’s central midfield starting line-up each week.

Liverpool are no doubt a massive club with a rich history and under the guidance of Roy Hodgson, he must feel this was the right move for him and his family. Whether it’s the best move for his career is another thing though.

By Ross Mackiewicz.

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti believes that Mario Balotelli would be ideal for Manchester United. The 19 year old Inter Milan star has been linked with United’s local rivals Manchester City for the past few weeks after Roberto Mancini publically expressed his admiration for the talented youngster. However it has now emerged that The Red Devils are also in the hunt according to Balotelli’s agent.

Ancelotti who managed AC Milan countless times against The Nerazzurri during his time in Italy is a keen admirer himself of the gifted Italian. He believes that his abilities may excel more so in The Premier League than they currently do in Serie A.

“They (United) are a team with great tradition, which helps that type of player. Here, the environment is different and I think a player with his character could find it better than in Italy.” He told SkySport24.

“It’s difficult to find a player so young with his quality, and England has a lack of players at that level.”

The Chelsea boss was also asked if he would like to coach Balotelli where he responded by saying “Yes.” Surely this will now spark whispers of a potential move to Stamford Bridge.

Known as “Super Mario” by his peers, Balotelli has endured an indifferent rein at the San Siro where his personality seemed to constantly clash with former coach Jose Mourinho. This also sparked unrest within the Inter camp as Captain Javier Zanetti along with Marco Materrazzi publically criticised the Under-21 international for his lack of professionalism.

He has netted 28 goals in 86 appearances for the Italian giant’s as well as contributing with 14 assists.

By Football Talk.

The race for Joe Cole’s signature took another twist today after Metro.co.uk claim the player will reject the advances of Liverpool in favour of a move to either Arsenal or Tottenham. Several of Europe’s elite have been linked with a move for free agent Cole after he was released by Chelsea after being unable to agree a contract extension.

Reports over the past few days have suggested Liverpool were right in the mix and new manager Roy Hodgson was keen to speak with the playmaker in an attempt to persuade him his future lay in Merseyside despite Liverpool being unable to offer him Champions League football next season.

But it seems Cole would prefer to remain in London leaving North London rivals Arsenal and Tottenham to battle it out. The Gunners are understood to be in pole position after offering Cole a £115,000-a-week contract. However, Tottenham have got a package together themselves that would include several bonuses on top of a £60,000-a-week basic wage.

Cole is currently on holiday with his family and has left his agent to deal with all negotiations until he returns next week. He is wanting to take his time over what will be his last major contract but has previously suggested his decision will be based on footballing not financial factors.

By Jason Mathias.

Following the abject displays of England at the World Cup, many have called for a complete overhaul of the squad, integrating younger players and forming the nucleus of the team for the next 10 years. The current squad of apparent failures is the oldest ever picked for a World Cup by an England manager, with an average age of a Zimmer frame-pending 28.7. For the likes of James, Terry, Ferdinand, Lampard and Gerrard, it was surely their last World Cup. And while it would be madness to abolish them from all squads from now on, it is the perfect time to start giving some youth a chance. Coming in with all these experienced players around now can only be beneficial to them.

England’s Under 21 team made the final of the European Championships last summer (before being thrashed by the Germans, of course) with Joe Hart and James Milner the only two to make the World Cup squad. And this year the Under 17s were crowned European champions after defeating Spain. So the talent must be there. But which of these kids can we expect to see making an impact in the coming years?

Jack Wilshere, 18 – Arsenal

Possibly the stand out of England’s youth at the moment, Wilshere was touted for a Walcott-like surprise call-up to the squad earlier in the season after impressing on loan at Bolton and during pre-season with Arsenal. He seems to have something most English footballers don’t – technique. He was name-checked by Fabio Capello this week as someone he is interested in.

Jack Rodwell, 19 – Everton

Rodwell was a regular in the Everton midfield last season and showed maturity beyond his years. Again shows good ability on the ball and has been touted for an eventual move to Manchester United as the successor to Rio Ferdinand.

Adam Johnson, 22 – Manchester City

Made it to the provisional World Cup squad and Capello may look back now and regret his decision to leave the tricky winger at home. His ability to surprise and beat his man may well have made a difference to England’s rigid play. As long as he manages to stay in the Manchester City team, he will surely be involved from now on.

Kieran Gibbs, 20 – Arsenal

The converted winger began to make strides in the Arsenal team last season when Gael Clichy was injured and was a starter in the Under 21s route to the final. He will be secretly hoping for more injuries to Clichy to give him a chance to get in the England squad, especially as quality back-up for Ashley Cole is severely lacking.

Phil Jones, 18 – Blackburn

Still very inexperienced, but Jones has by all accounts been very impressive in his 9 appearances for Blackburn so far, showing qualities that have led many to liken him to John Terry. This season will be big for him in seeing if he really has what it takes at Premier League level.

Chris Smalling, 20 – Manchester United

Signed by United this summer, the centre-back was both impressive and somewhat ropey for Fulham last season. Let’s hope he manages to deal with the pressure of being at United and fulfil the potential he must have for Sir Alex to take the plunge and buy him. Going from Non-League to Old Trafford in 3 years shows there is something there.

Connor Wickham, 17 – Ipswich

The big striker starred for the Under 17s, scoring the winning goal in the final and has already made an impact on the Championship, making him a target for many Premier League sides. Tags of the new Wayne Rooney have been following him around because of his powerful style.

Josh McEachran, 17 – Chelsea

The star of England’s Under 17 win, McEachran showed fantastic technique and passing ability and was also the standout of Chelsea’s Youth Cup victory. Don’t expect to hear much about him for a couple of years, but the early signs are promising.

So in addition to some of the younger members of the current England squad, what could the England team look like come Brazil in 2014? Here’s my guess (I am quite prepared for this to be completely wrong).

GK: Joe Hart

RB: Glen Johnson             CB: Michael Dawson       CB: Chris Smalling             LB: Kieran Gibbs

RM: James Milner            CM: Jack Rodwell             CM: Tom Huddlestone  LM: Adam Johnson

AM: Jack Wilshere

ST: Wayne Rooney (C)

What do you think? Is there anyone else you see as a star of the future? Let us know by leaving your comment below.

By Fab4.

Manchester United have ruled themselves out of the race to sign Joe Cole, leaving Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur to battle it out for his signature, according to Sky Sports News. Press reports this week suggested that United were close to agreeing a deal to take Cole to Old Trafford when his contract expires next week, but now it seems they have ruled themselves out of offering a contract to the England ace.

Arsenal have been strongly linked with Cole in recent weeks, and many have suggested that Cole’s wife Carly wants to remain in London to bring up their new baby near their families, which would leave the Gunners and Tottenham as the favourites. Arsene Wenger has also added wieght to the story as he has publically stated his admiration for Cole.

Spurs boss Harry Redknapp used to manage Cole in his West Ham days, so there is obviously a chance the two will reunite, but wages could be a problem. Redknapp also claimed yesterday that he felt a deal for Cole was already agreed with another club.

So surely the sensible money is on Cole signing for Arsenal? Especially given the stories that circulated last week that Arsenal have already agreed the deal and that as long as Cole passes a medical when he returns from South Africa, he will be Gunner next season.

Of course Manchestery City are also interested and can obviously afford to offer his what he wants, but with no Champions League football next season and the fact Cole would have to move his family to Manchester could rule out any deal there.

By Football Talk.

Joe Cole has told close friends he wants to join Manchester United, according to The Sun newspaper. The midfielder will become a free agent next week when his contract with Chelsea expires, and it seems that Manchester United are now leading the race for his signature.

The news will stun Arsenal fans, as the Gunners were expected to tie up a deal for Cole after the World Cup, while Spurs boss Harry Redknapp and new Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho are both keen on Cole as well.

Until now, it was thought that Cole would stay in London as his wife wants to keep their new born baby near their families. Arsenal and Spurs soon became the front-runners after it emerged that Cole and Chelsea could not agree terms on a new deal. Arsene Wenger was believed to have won the race by offering Cole a three-year £100,000pw deal, something Tottenham couldn’t compete with, and the deal would be completed upon Cole’s arrival home from the World Cup as long as he could pass a strict medical.

But now it seems one of the most high-profile free transfer sagas in recent years may have taken another twist. England fans will be hoping a decision on Cole’s future is delayed for at least another week, as the national squad prepare for their crunch tie against Slovenia on Wednesday.

By Football Talk.

Chelsea and France forward Nicolas Anelka is to be sent home from the World Cup in South Africa after a half-time bust-up with manager Raymond Domenech during their 2-0 defeat to Mexico on Thursday, according to reports.

Domenech apparently criticised the striker for straying out of position during the first half. French sports newspaper L’Equipe claims Anelka responded with an explosive foul-mouthed rant, telling his boss to ‘Go fuck yourself you son of a whore’. Domenech responded by substituting the player and bringing on Andre-Pierre Gignac.

The manager appeared well before his players came out the tunnel following the half-time bust-up at the Peter Mokaba Stadium and looked a distinctly uncomfortable figure in the dug-out through-out the second half. This reported row is the latest in a whole host of rumours of unrest amongst the French dressing room and claims that Domenech has lost the support of the players.

Reports in France now claim a disciplinary hearing is due to take place this afternoon where the France Football Federation are likely to decide on sending Anelka home.

By Guest Writer Danny Ohio.

It seems increasingly likely that, after nearly a decade in England, William Gallas will say au revoir to Arsenal to sign for either Juventus or Roma and begin a new experience in the ruins of the once mighty Italian league.

A complex and at times sulky player, the overriding memory most people will have of him is the dejected and broken player sat in the centre circle at St Andrews in 2007 in what was a dark, dark day in Arsenal Football Club history. Yet with Gallas set to exit these shores, is it time to look past the breakdown at Birmingham and the bizarre comments and recognise that he has been one of the top defenders in Europe for the past ten years?

He arrived in the Premier League in 2001 after establishing himself at Marseille. At 24 he decided that he needed to test himself against better players than those he faced in Ligue 1. Drawn to the passion of English football he signed for Chelsea without much fuss or fanfare but went on to become a rock at the back of their defence, learning alongside the great Marcel Desailly and helping John Terry develop along the way. He went on to enjoy five good years at Chelsea, winning back-to-back Premier League titles and a League Cup under Jose Mourinho.

Yet Gallas was never lauded. Mourinho hogged as much of the glory as he could when the West Londoners sat at the pinnacle of English football, with what was left divided between Terry, Frank Lampard and a handful of others. Despite being an integral part of the team, Gallas was a background character. It didn’t help that he found himself constantly farmed out at left back, something which evidently frustrated him. After all, he had established himself as a top-class centre half, why should he be moved?

Then began the tense contract negotiations with Chelsea in 2005/06 and the mud-slinging from both sides suggested that Gallas’ days at Stamford Bridge were coming to an end. Feeling undervalued in both status and pay, it seemd Mourinho was likely to lose him. That summer the first suggestions that the normally shy and reserved William Gallas may have an odd and brittle temperament came to light when Chelsea issued a statement saying that he’d threatened to score an own goal if he was not allowed to leave the club. At the time it seemed a ridiculous accusation and most of the football world sided with Gallas in the whole sordid affair, although some may be less certain after what followed.

If Gallas was denied the limelight at Chelsea, he certainly got it at Arsenal. First of all, he demanded the number 10 shirt last worn by the great Dennis Bergkamp. After a relatively mundane first season hewas awarded the captain’s armband when Thierry Henry departed for Barcelona. This was his time to shine, the recognition of the player and the man he had become. And then slowly the bizarre side of William Gallas’ temperament began to rear its head.

There was his famously rocky relationship with vice-captain Kolo Toure which deteriorated so badly it came to the point where both men openly spoke of their disdain for one another. But the moment that will define William Gallas’ career in England will be that moment when he stormed towards the halfway line at St Andrews after Gael Clichy’s carelessness had seen Arsenal all but throw away their momentum in the title race. Incensed that Clichy had allowed his concentration to slip, he marched away in disgust as McFadden salvaged a point for Birmingham from the penalty spot. His reaction at the end of the game saw Arsene Wenger have to pick up the pieces from the centre circle and get him back in the dressing room.

The fall out from that and the shock of Eduardo’s awful injury damaged Arsenal and the exposure of Gallas’ frail character saw him stripped of the captaincy. His moment as the main man, the captain, had turned into the darkest period of his otherwise excellent career.

Yet taking the captaincy off Gallas proved a masterstroke by Wenger, both for Arsenal and for Gallas himself. Relieved of the pressure, Gallas regained the form which made him such a solid and dependable defender at Chelsea. Few Arsenal fans would disagree that for large parts of last season, Gallas was exceptional alongside Thomas Vermaelen and had they had a more dependable goalkeeper than the hapless Manuel Almunia behind them, Arsenal’s defensive record would not have been as dire as it was.

It is likely that few will spare much thought for the fact that William Gallas probably won’t be playing in the Premier League next season but he is destined to win admirers in Italy. In Italy, they appreciate accomplished defenders and few are as polished as Gallas. Quick and an exceptional reader of the game, the recognition he so desperately craves will not be long in coming. He will most definitely plug the gap left in the Juventus defence when another great French defender Lilian Thuram left following the Calciopolli scandal.

It’s a shame that he will forever be remembered for that dark day in Birmingham because for the best part of a decade, he was among the best defemders in the world and Arsenal and the Premier League are losing a top player, albeit one who should be handled with care.

What are your thoughts on William Gallas and his time in England?

By Marvin Williams.

For four weeks every four years St George flags across the country leave the attic to be hung from windows and attached to cars. The dust they’ve accumulated gets blown into the air and the English public is transformed. Although it’s not yet scientifically proven it provides the only feasible explanation for why we completely lose all sense of reality during the world cup.  John Barnes thinks he’s a half decent rapper, retailers from TV’s to toothbrushes believe they can sell us anything  by affiliating themselves with anyone connected to England  and a majority of England fans are unable to distinguish the difference between patriotism and sheer arrogance.

Now maybe it’s me being naive but I really don’t know why everyone’s so negative about England’s prospects. Once you get past the quarter final and penalty jokes (which by the way are very boring now) what can you possibly have to be negative about. That was then and this is now! We have some of the best players in the world, a top class manager and as good a chance as anyone. Whether you agree or not with Capello’s decisions is irrelevant, he hasn’t done anything wrong.  Of course he has made questionable decisions and no manager is beyond criticism but you deal with them when they arrive and all Capello’s own have paid off.  The conventional Heskey and Lampard-Gerrad arguments will be highlighted and whilst I have my reservations about them both I also have 100% confidence in the manager so that overshadows that.

England fans like to see the team fail because they’ve become accustomed to it and don’t know how to deal with success.  The constant negativity is a trait they’ve adopted from the English press who are also battling with a change in culture implemented by Capello. He refuses to unveil his starting eleven and instead of him being applauded for keeping his cards close to his chest it’s said that he doesn’t know who they are. The ‘fit and playing’ argument is also used to criticize him when it just seems bizarre to do so. He hasn’t gone back on his word he’s simply applied common sense to his management. It’s been said that Gerrad has had one of his poorest seasons for Liverpool and towards the end of the season Rooney didn’t fit even one of the two criteria’s, so should the manager have dropped them  both? Under previous managers the press have been allowed access to all information and at times dictated the team which Capello has stamped out. The time for the fans intervention is after the world cup and anything before simply undermines the manager. If we draw the first game against USA you can already see a total overreaction when that shouldn’t be the case.  Italy also drew against them during the group stages and still went on to win the tournament.

We never look at our positives. We expect too much. We’re detrimental to England.  We’re so fixated on anticipating were the next negatives will come from that we now predict them. Before the final England friendly all the talk was about the possibility of injuries, the team came through unscathed and it was onto the next negative on the chances of Rooney getting sent off during the finals, and yesterday it was about whether not having a club would affect Joe Cole and how Capello’s reaction to the photographers could be a sign of unease.

When I say England fans it predominately refers to those fans of Top Four sides. Perhaps it’s a case of them being used to success at club level that make the national one secondary.  The argument has arisen several times and when I first heard it I dismissed it being a passionate supporter of both, but after this year it slowly became apparent. I’ve heard Chelsea fans threaten to stop supporting England depending on JT’s treatment (how you can stop supporting a club I will never know) and Man United fans flippantly declaring the fact that they pay Rooney’s wage, seemingly suggesting that entitles him to play until his legs fall off.

I’m not building England as the best team in the world because there are a few ahead of us but the world cup is merely another Cup Competition so they don’t need to be. Portsmouth and Inter weren’t the best but managed to reach the finals in quite unfashionable styles. The players have been branded overrated when that is definitely not the case. When England lose it’s turned into a national debate where we’re forced to re-evaluate our lives and that is tremendous pressure to place on eleven men. We don’t credit our success but are quick to highlight our failures. The games against Croatia were a typical example of this, they kept us out of the Euro’s and Steve Mcclaren became the national villain  with the infamous, ‘Wally with the brolly’  we beat them comprehensively a few month later and it’s not due to our improvement under Capello but the fact that they were no longer good enough.

Whilst I would love to see the World Cup in England I believe hosting the tournament could possibly hinder our chances. At least when it’s abroad the players are some distance from the high level of pessimistic publicity.  You can only win when you have the mentality of winners and it’s partially a supporter’s duty to instill that belief in their side rather than constant needless NEGATIVITY!

Is the English nation too negative? Please leave your comments below…

By Oliver Holland.

Argentine veteran Juan Sebastian Veron has spoke of his regret after leaving Old Trafford in 2003 to join Premier League rivals Chelsea. The 35 year old is currently playing for his boyhood club Estudiantes in Argentina, but has hinted that he could have been happier if he stayed and continued his career in Manchester.

“The decision to move wasn’t easy. If it was today I think I would approach it very differently,” Veron told The Guardian.

“I mean, obviously to a certain extent one makes decisions because one is fairly sure, but I think with hindsight perhaps I wouldn’t have moved because I was really comfortable at Manchester, and even the lads came to see me two or three times to talk me into staying.

I guess Mr Ferguson also has a pretty big say in who stays and who goes, but I think if the whole thing happened today I might handle it differently.”

Veron did not meet the potential that Sir Alex expected, transferring from Lazio for a hefty fee of £28.1m in 2001, and was then sold for almost half of that for £15m to Chelsea two years later. He is currently preparing for his third world cup, after representing Argentina in France 98’ and Japan & South Korea in 2002.

Are United fans unhappy Veron left when he did? What do Chelsea fans make of his comments? Please leave your opinions below…

By Guest Writer Viorel Mesca.

Chelsea’s midfielder, John Obi Mikel has ruled himself out of the World Cup due to fears over his recovery from knee surgery. Mikel had high hopes that surgery on a knee injury would be useful and that he could recover in time for the World Cup. Although he was named for Nigeria’s 23-man squad, it was announced this morning that he won’t play. According to team official Emmanuel Attah:

“We have dropped Mikel from the World Cup squad after he told the team he did not want to put his career at risk as his knee injury has yet to fully heal after a recent surgery”.

Nigeria begin their World Cup campaign against Maradona’s Argentina on the 12^th of June before moving on to face Greece and Korea Republic. One could argue that Chelsea’s players are jinxed as Mikel joins Germany and Ghana internationals Michael Ballack and Michael Essien on the sidelines for this tournament.

Meanwhile, Didier Drogba’s participation in the tournament is in doubt after he fractured his right elbow during Ivory Coast’s friendly win over Japan. L’Equipe reported that both Didier and Kolo Toure allegedly said that he would miss out the tournament. Drogba’s injury is a massive blow for the Ivorians as they face Portugal and Brazil in group of death. Whether Didier recovers in time for the tournaments, it remains to be seen.

By Tom Niblett.

Ex-England boss Sven Goran Eriksson is facing up to his worst possible nightmare. The Ivory Coast head coach watched in horror, as star striker Didier Drogba left a warm up match with Japan with a suspected broken arm.

The Chelsea front man was forced out of the game after just 16 minutes, following a robust challenge from Marcus Tulio Tanaka. Ivory Coast team spokesman Eric Kacou later confirmed that Drogba had fractured his right elbow.

A statement read: “He was taken urgently to a medical centre in Sion, where x-rays revealed a fracture in the player’s right forearm area.

“Didier Drogba’s state of health is the object of all the attention of the Elephants’ medical staff and of distinguished specialists.

“The Ivory Coast Football Federation stress that the striker Didier Drogba has not, for the moment, been ruled out of the 2010 World Cup.”

Whether Drogba will miss the World Cup finals has not yet been established, boss Eriksson will no doubt give the thirty-two year old as much time as possible to recover. Ivory Coast begin their World Cup campaign against Portugal on 15^th June before moving on to face Brazil and North Korea.

The news of Drogba’s injury will not only be a huge blow to the Ivorians but to the competition as a whole. Africa’s other superstar Micheal Essien has already been ruled out of the tournament with a knee injury.

With Drogba’s likely absence has the group of death lost its sting? Have your say…

By Guest Writer Bharath Ram.

Millions of pounds have been spent on three different managers, since Jose Mourinho left Chelsea in September 2007. But not one in Avram Grant, Scolari and Guus Hiddink could replicate Mourinho’s success for various reasons. Just at the time when all of Roman Abramovich’s decisions seem to have gone wrong, Chelsea have struck gold in Carlo Ancelotti. It has taken 7 years for Chelsea fans to realize why he was Roman’s choice to be the manager instead of Mourinho when he took over Chelsea in 2003.

Although regarded highly by the owner, Ancelotti was never seen by English media as a man who can replicate the success of Mourinho in-spite of winning the Champions League 2 times with AC Milan. There were mixed opinions about as to whether he can cope with the language problems and the pace of the Premier League having been used to the slow Seria A. His record of having won only one league title during his 8 year stay with Milan certainly did not help.

He came into a side that had just won the FA cup under Hiddink. But things were not all rosy to start with. There were suggestions of player power within the camp. Scolari did not succeed in identifying and controlling it. His lack of English did not help. Ancelotti managed a Milan side that had several players approaching their 40^th birthdays. So it was a real doubt as to whether he would be willing to change an ageing Chelsea side, but younger in comparison with lot of player already past their 30’s.

There were a lot of questions to answer. And he did so in an emphatic manner. Right from the pre-season tour, his calmness and ability to handle pressure was evident. He has managed to impress everyone with his personality not to mention his ability to raise the left eyebrow. He was a complete opposite to Jose Mourinho where everything used to be about Mourinho.

He managed to get the best out of players who were not previously performing at their best. Drogba and Malouda have to be two examples of his excellent man management skills. His English got better and better as the season progressed. He showed that tactically he was second to none by winning all the games against the top four.

But for all his tactical brilliance he couldn’t beat the ultimate master of tactics, Jose Mourinho, as Chelsea failed to get past the knockout stage of the Champions League. He could have handled the John Terry and Ashley Cole situation with more authority. The Terry situation nearly ended Chelsea’s season but he failed to do anything about it.

But there has to be no doubt that Carlo Ancelotti has done wonders. He has managed to put the club back on track and has managed to do so without spending a penny. But the real objective that he was brought to Chelsea was to bring the Champions League. He has laid more than a foundation for this dream by winning the first double in the club’s history. Next season with some help of some world class players like Torres, Aguero who are rumoured to come to Chelsea, he can take Chelsea to the next level, winning the Champions League.

Thanks to Bharath Ram from Chelsea FC – True Blue

By Football Talk.

After beating Portsmouth 1-0 at Wembley on Saturday, Chelsea completed a historic Premier League and FA Cup double. The team paraded the two trophies on an open-top bus through the streets of West London yesterday and Petr Cech and and Carlo Ancelotti took the opportunity to show off their singing voices.

Check out the videos, stick to the day job lads!

By Football Talk.

John Terry has given both Chelsea and England a major injury scare after he suffered a suspected broken foot in training today. Terry sustained a blow to his foot as Chelsea were training ahead of this weekends FA Cup Final against Portsmouth.

He has been sent to hospital to have scans on the injury but the early fears are the centre back has broken a metatarsal. Such an injury would take at least 6 weeks to heal, so Terry would not only be ruled out of the FA Cup Final, but England’s World Cup campaign as well.

A Chelsea statement confirmed the news:

“John Terry has today taken a knock in training and has gone to hospital for a precautionary scan on his right foot.

“He left Cobham walking freely in a protective boot, and we await the results which are expected on Thursday.”

This would be a devastating blow to Chelsea and England but also Terry himself, who has endured a tough 6 months despite lifting the premier league trophy on Sunday, the 29-year-old has had his private life smeared across the front pages of newspapers amid allegations about his private life. Terry was expected to be a central figure in England’s World Cup campaign, playing alongside Rio Ferdinand at the heart of the defense.

With this fresh injury concern, Capello will be sweating on the scan results as his other centre back options Ferdinand and King have had injury problems of their own in recent months.

By Guest Writer Bharath Ram.

In a 38 game Premier League season, it is really difficult to decide the turning points which ultimately have led to Chelsea being Champions of England. But I’ll try to do my best in putting up a list which I think you will also agree with. It has been yet another season where there have been dramatic late goals, comeback wins and more importantly, Chelsea beating other top four teams.

Chelsea 2 Hull City 1

An opening day draw would have been a disaster but Drogba scores deep into injury time on the opening day of the season.

Stoke City 1 Chelsea 2

A very tough away fixture, but Malouda comes up with the goal with virtually the last kick off the match after 5 minutes into injury time.

Chelsea 2 Liverpool 0

After a run of six victories in seven matches, Liverpool was the first big test for Ancelotti. Goals from Anelka and Malouda sent a strong message to other teams in the league that there was not going to be a repeat of Scolari.

Chelsea 1 Manchester United 0

John Terry’s header mid way through the second half might have gone someway into easing his pain of the Champions League final in Moscow in 2008 but more importantly it opened up a gap between our main rivals.

Burnley 1 Chelsea 2

With the season in danger of a collapse due to revelations of Terry’s private life, Terry himself scores with a powerful header a day after his extra marital affair comes to daylight. Even though his performances deteriorated due to the news stories, this win was very crucial both for Terry’s future and Chelsea.

Chelsea 7 Aston Villa 1

Chelsea might have scored 5 against Portsmouth a few days earlier but this huge thumping win brought the confidence back to the team after exit from the Champions league by Inter Milan and a draw at Blackburn to surrender the lead to United. It also marked the game where Ancelotti realized that his diamond formation was not working and switched to the 4-3-3 to which the players are more comfortable with.

Manchester United 1 Chelsea 2

It was billed as the title decider and Chelsea managed to come victorious thanks to goals from Joe Cole and Drogba. Even though Drogba’s goal was offside, United then quickly scored an illegitimate goal themselves soon after but that counted to nothing as Chelsea held on to take the lead by one point

Liverpool 0 Chelsea 2

It was the last of the match against one of the top four, and it couldn’t have come in a worse time with Chelsea having just a one point lead going into the game. But a Steven Gerrard assisted win meant that the blues had virtually one hand on the title.

What do Chelsea fans think were the key points in the season that saw the title return to Stamford Bridge? Please leave your comments below…lsea,

Thanks to Bharath Ram from Chelsea FC – True Blue

By Ross Mackiewicz.

Chelsea captain John Terry has been revelling in his club’s domestic triumph insisting The Blues fully deserve their acclaim. Chelsea clinched their fourth domestic league championship on Sunday after crushing Wigan Athletic 8-0 at Stamford Bridge. The West London outfit needed a win to guarantee their crown but cruised to a monumental win over Roberto Martinez’s side.

Terry has had his fair share of ups and downs this season with his off field activities dominating the front pages. The former England captain’s form has also been questioned by critics but four years of built up frustration watching Manchester United dominate England’s top flight are finally vanquished.

“This feels magnificent. It’s been three hard years seeing Manchester United lift it. We’ve got it back now and we need to do what United have done and maintain this success for a few years.” Rejoiced Terry

“Seeing them win it has been hard, but it’s ours again today. It’s been an up and down year, really tough, but we deserve it. Nothing could have made me more determined to win the trophy. I’ve been hurting inside for three years seeing United with it, and every one of us was sitting there feeling the same thing. It’s their turn to sit and watch today.”

It’s been a record breaking season for the skipper and his club as they smashed their goals tally for a single season netting an astonishing 140 times with 103 coming in the league. The Pensioners front line have netted seven goals in three home fixtures against Sunderland, Villa, Stoke and another eight coming on Sunday . Their goal difference of +71 is also a new league record.

Dynamic midfielder Frank Lampard also had his say on the clubs success. The former Hammer has endured his best ever season in terms of goals by netting 27 times, with 22 coming in the league. It is a truly astonishing feat for a midfield player. The England man rates this year’s title win as even sweeter than the previous two under Jose Mourinho due to this season’s competition from other rivals.

“This is right up there, the way we’ve finished the season in such style.” He said.

“We deserved to come out on top. The first two titles [2005, 2006] we won relatively easily. They were very special because they were the first ones, but with the difficulties we’ve had this year, that was very, very special.”

By Ross Mackiewicz.

Chelsea captain John Terry has hailed his manager Carlo Ancelotti’s temperament this season insisting that the Italian has been able to settle the players down after a number of disappointments for The Blues this season. Despite them being in touching distance of their first ever league and cup double, Chelsea crashed out of the Champions League in February to Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan and have since bounced back in scintillating fashion domestically which saw them deliver a 7-1 drumming of Champions League hopefuls Aston Villa and a 7-0 demolition of Tony Pulis’s Stoke City.

The centre back believes the 2-0 victory over Liverpool this past Sunday is a key example to his manager’s credentials to keep his players focused on the job in hand as they have now taken a huge stride to capturing their first Premier League title since the Jose Mourinho era. The former England captain also stated that his side should of perhaps had a penalty in the 1^st half after Saloman Kalou tangled with Lucas in the penalty area but had his claim turned down just before the interval, but the Chelsea skipper was impressed with  his manager’s professionalism to keep the team focused despite the refusal.

“It could have been really costly.” Terry said

“Salomon should have had a penalty away to Inter Milan as well, that proved really important, and again on Sunday, Liverpool going down to 10 men and us going 2-0 up could have been really decisive.”

“I think he was really frustrated as well but the manager calmed us down at half-time.In the second half I thought we played a lot better, a lot more controlled. We just needed to keep the ball a little bit more, Liverpool looked tired and were pressing us much less and we needed the experienced players like Lamps (Frank Lampard) and Bally (Michael Ballack) to keep the ball, as they did.”

Terry was also delighted with the performance on Merseyside and was thrilled with the support from the Chelsea fans.

“We really fancied our chances and it is not always you can say that at Anfield. It was just going to be a case of finding our feet. The lads were excited as well as nervous beforehand which is a good mixture.”

“It was a really professional performance with great support from the fans, they were brilliant and it is looking good.”

It has been four years since the 29 year old last got his hands on the treasured Premier League trophy and is desperate to lift it aloft again this Sunday where a victory over Wigan Athletic at Stamford Bridge will see them crowned champions.

“I want to get my hands on that trophy again but the job is not done yet and it is going to be a tough game.” Concluded the Chelsea man.

By Ross Mackiewicz.

Chelsea star Frank Lampard insists that The Blues deserve to be crowned Premier League champions this Sunday. The dynamic midfielder has once again contributed greatly towards Chelsea’s success by scoring an astonishing 21 league goals this season from midfield with one his most pivotal goals coming in the 2-0 victory at Anfield last Sunday. Both Chelsea and Lampard in particular had a rocky start to the campaign and after bowing out of the Champions League to Inter Milan in February it seemed as if their season was falling apart. Ever since former mentor Jose Mourinho came back and haunted his former employers on a miserable night at the Bridge, the West London outfit have been in fantastic form domestically and are on the verge of a league and cup double, a feat they have never achieved.  Despite a number of ups and downs this season Lampard believes that his side deserve to win the Premier League and that it would be as good an achievement compared to the back to back league titles they won under the guidance of Mourinho.

“It’s been a season of peaks and troughs.” said Lampard.

“To win the title under José Mourinho, especially the first year, was an amazing feeling and sensation. But this one, with the ups and downs we’ve experienced, feeling the low points of the season and the togetherness we’ve needed to come through … well, to go and achieve it now would be great. We’re within touching distance now.”

The England man himself admits that there have been some tough times for him and his team mates this season especially the defeat to Inter Milan that saw them eliminated from the round of 16 of the Champions League for the first time in four years. Despite this he thinks the character that the players and staff have shown since is a testament to their spirit.

“We’ve had to dig in. I’ll not lie – it’s been a fairly difficult season at times. There have been moments when we’ve lost points and had a few difficult periods, none more so than when we lost to Inter Milan and then drew at Blackburn. We were in a bit of a rut then, to be honest. That was the moment to dig in. Credit to the staff for that. We’ve always had a great spirit here but we dug a bit deeper this year. We understood what we had to do and the reaction since then is what’s put us in this position with a game to go. If we do go on and win it now, we’ll have deserved to have won it.”

The 31 year old has had a public appraisal from his manager Carlo Ancelotti who is delighted with his players season.

“I am not surprised.  Lampard has scored 26 goals in the season and he has these fantastic skills,” the former Milan boss stated

“He moves into the box at the right time and he always does this.”

The Italian and his Chelsea players are now preparing for Sundays home game against Wigan where a victory will guarantee them their third Premier League crown.

Do you believe that Frank Lampard is right? Do The Blues deserve the Premier League title? Send us your thoughts.

By Thom Watt.

With only two hurdles to negotiate before the destination of the Premiership title will be known, both Manchester United and Chelsea know any slip ups now will likely be fatal to their chances. Although it hasn’t been widely reported, Chelsea could win the league this weekend. If they can dispose of a wounded Liverpool side, and Manchester United fail to beat an in-form Sunderland team at the Stadium of Light, then the title would be all but a formality for the Stamford Bridge side. Anything less than a win for Chelsea and Manchester United would become favourite going into the last day of the season.

Certainly, most would rather be in Chelsea’s position, with a point advantage and a goal difference worthy of, to use a cliche, “an extra point”. However, Anfield has not always been a happy hunting ground for the men in blue, and even a psychologically and physically depleted Liverpool side will want to show they can compete with the Champions Elect. There have been some mischievous suggestions that the Reds will let Chelsea win in a desperate attempt to stop Manchester United overtaking their record of 18 league titles. One only needs to look back to the final day of the 94/95 season, to a game in which John Barnes and Jamie Redknapp goals defeated Blackburn, and handed Manchester United the opportunity to win the title, only to be held 1-1 at West Ham. Chelsea will have to earn this title.

This season, the title race has been a strange one. In recent seasons the Premiership has been won by the side which puts together the best run of form, and dominates their opposition for the longest period. Whichever of the title chasing pair wins the league this season will do so by making fewer mistakes than the other, rather than sweeping all aside. Should United take the title, they will have been defeated seven times this season, the first time the winners have suffered so many losses since Blackburn’s triumph in 1995. Even so, that was in the days of a punishing 42 game season.

Chelsea too have been a little more inconsistent than the recent title winners. Their home form has been magnificent, with only one defeat, and sixty goals scored – the most by any top flight side since free scoring Tottenham team of 1964/65. But away defeats to Wigan, Aston Villa, Man City, Everton and Spurs have hinted that this side is not yet the finished article. Indeed, were Chelsea to take the title, they would likely finish on 86 points, the same as Liverpool managed last season and the lowest points haul in seven years.

Does this suggest that the league is getting tighter, or that the top two are a little less strong than they have been in the past decade? There is definitely an argument for each case. Whilst the likes of doomed Burnley, Hull and Portsmouth have been little more than shooting galleries on occasion, the emergence of Spurs as a competent outfit has certainly made life more difficult at the top. Manchester City have also proved more than capable of spoiling title charges, whilst Aston Villa and Everton have proved that they can (and will) beat anyone who takes them too lightly.

Recent history has shown that the league usually splits into The Title Contenders, The European Contenders and The Relegation Battlers. This season has seen a number of sides – Sunderland, Bolton, Birmingham, Fulham – that do not fit into any of these categories. They haven’t ever really troubled the European places, but they have been far too strong for the teams in danger of demotion. This improvement in the middling Premiership sides has only served to increase the difficulties in winning the top prize in England.

It would seem that neither title contender is a vintage side just yet. They are still very good sides, but shortcoming in Europe and more regular defeats at home suggest that both sides have some growing to do before they reach their full potential. Manchester United are in the process of another Ferguson Evolution, with some players coming to the end of their careers, whilst others are beginning to make a big reputation for themselves. Chelsea too look as if they are a work in progress. Ancelotti may have had his hands tied because of a transfer embargo, but he may have to tinker with his playing staff this summer to fulfil the chairman’s dream of Champions League glory. The spine of the side is not getting any younger, with  Carvalho, Ballack, Lampard, Anelka and Drogba all over thirty, and so the manager will have to use this summer to blood and blend new faces to secure Chelsea’s long term future. With a few tactical signings Ancelotti will not only stamp his name on this Chelsea side, but may take them to another level.

What is certain is that there is still all to do to win the title. The last mile is the longest, as the saying goes. Manchester United must take six points from their last games, and hope Chelsea have at least one off day. Chelsea know that six points gives them their first title in four years. Regardless of the winner, this piece of silverware should be the springboard for even better things in the coming season.

By Ross Mackiewicz.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is under no illusion that bitter adversaries Liverpool are going to go all out to destroy their title hopes by rolling over against title rivals Chelsea this Sunday. Liverpool take on The Blues hours before Sunderland entertain Manchester United at The Stadium of Light on what could prove to be the pivotal weekend in this fascinating climax to the title race. Manchester United trail Chelsea by just a point with two games to go with the Chelsea/Liverpool tie regarded as the penultimate fixture in the race.

The Red Devils are striving to retain their Premier League crown for a fourth successive year which would also see them over take Liverpool’s record of 18 League Championships to 19. The bad blood between United and Liverpool is as strong as it’s ever been but Sir Alex believes that despite the tension between the North West rivals, it will not interfere with Liverpool’s effort to give their maximum this Sunday against Carlo Ancelotti’s side.

“I am confident they will do their maximum. Great clubs don’t throw their history and traditions away for one game. They have been in 11 European finals. They have won 18 titles. That is a fantastic history. You don’t throw that away. The fans know that too.

“Do you think the fans want to go home saying their players capitulated and they didn’t try and thinking it wouldn’t happen again?”

It’s a case of déjà vu for Liverpool who are no strangers to this position. On the final day of the 1994/1995 season a Liverpool victory over United’s title rivals at the time Blackburn Rovers would have seen Ferguson’s men crowned champions if they managed to beat West Ham at Upton Park. Ironically Liverpool beat Rovers that day but United could only salvage a 1-1 draw in East London which saw the Premier League crown make its way to Lancashire. Sir Alex doesn’t question Liverpool’s integrity now compared to the end of season drama 15 years ago.

“In 1995, it was exactly the same, the similarities were there. We depended and hoped on Liverpool producing and we got that. Roy Evans, the Liverpool manager, talked to me and said, ‘You have to earn the right to win the title’ and that stands today.”

“OK, there were a lot of English players in that Liverpool team at the time and they understood the traditions of the club, but I don’t think there has been such a swing that the players don’t understand the history of Liverpool.”

Manchester United have to do their part too of course and defeat a Sunderland side that’s managed by United hero Steve Bruce, who won multiple honours during his time with The Reds. If Chelsea are able to win on Merseyside and United lose, the West London outfit will capture their third Premier League Championship.

Will Liverpool do United a favour and beat Chelsea? Please leave your comments below….

By Guest Writer Bharath Ram.

Roman Abramovich usually gets what he wants. Back in 2003, he wanted Chelsea to win every title that was possible to win, and he was willing to pay any price for it. Apart from winning the Champions League, you have to say he has been pretty successful in that just as he has been in his business through which he has amassed his £11 billion fortune. Fast forward seven years and the scenario has completely changed. Now he wants Chelsea to be self sufficient. He wants players from the youth academy to supplement the players in the first team. Whether Roman is going to be successful in his new dream remains to be seen. But is it the way forward for Chelsea?

Looking from outside it might look as if Roman has suddenly become a sensible man. Or probably the recession has affected him just as it had done everyone else. But once you learn how much he has invested in the youth structure, the new training ground at Cobham, it is pretty obvious that all these were planned from the moment he took over from Ken Bates in 2003. Roman Abramovich has quite literally changed the face of Chelsea Football Club. He has spent some £700 million of his own money for Chelsea knowing probably that he might not get that back.

Chelsea FC is a business organisation making a turnover of nearly £250 million each year and losing nearly £40 million. It is not viable for such a business organisation to lose that kind of money every year. The club has also the highest wage bill of £140 million in the league. That is one of the reasons behind the reluctance to give Joe Cole his reported £120,000 a week wage demands. Gone are the days when players were awarded huge five year contracts. But in his drastic measures to cut costs is he going to sacrifice the growth of the club?

Chelsea has a fantastic youth academy which many people are unaware of. And one of the reasons for that is Frank Arnesen, who is currently the Director of Football. He is widely acclaimed as one of the best in that business. It might seem that he has not done a lot during his 5 years with the club. That is mainly due to the fact that Chelsea could always go out and buy a player for a position instead of developing them because of which young players from the academy didn’t feature in the first team and were constantly sent out on loan to a lower league club. Not anymore. Ancelotti has recently said:

“The only sure thing will be that next season there will be five academy players in the squad. Some players will maybe move on. It’s not because we don’t have the money, it’s because we want to give strength to our academy. We have very good young players and this is the time to put them in the squad for next year.”

The players from the reserves that Ancelotti mentioned are Gael Kakuta, Nemanja Matic, Fabio Borini, Patrick Van AanHolt and Jeffrey Bruma. All these players have already featured in the first team this season and they have not disappointed. They are second to none when it comes to skill on the ball, technicality and pace. The one thing they lack is match experience. Whether they can step up in crunch situations remains to be seen.

The five players tipped to leave could be anyone of Belletti, Ballack, Carvalho, Ferreira, Deco and Joe Cole. It is worth noting that apart from Joe Cole every player is above thirty. A fact that has been mentioned time and time again in the papers is about the squad’s age and finally the clubs hierarchy seems to have heard it. But with age comes experience. All these players have huge experience and will losing them all in one summer affect the squad?

Arsene Wenger has made Arsenal a role model for other clubs trying to be self sufficient. They bring players from the academy. Play football the way it is meant to be played and have a wonderful stadium which seats in 60,000 every home game. As a result they have developed massively as a business organisation, recently going as high as fifth in the Deloitte Rich list, second only to Manchester United in England. All this is well and good on paper but when you look at what they have won in the last five years, it is as full as their player’s experience. They have gone backwards as a football club.

That is the situation Chelsea have to contemplate. Achieving a balance between youth and experience. It is vital that Chelsea get the balance right.

Are Chelsea fans happy to see the club introducing more youth players? Or do you think it will effect their chances of winning silverware? Please leave your comments below…

Thanks to Bharath Ram from Chelsea FC – True blue

France’s World Cup hopes were laced with controversy this week as four of their players are alleged to complicit to an under-age sex scandal with adolescent prostitutes. But this isn’t the first time that sex scandals have hit world famous footballers. It’s arguable that the biggest controversies appear to have struck the English football team, with Chelsea and Manchester United players featuring heavily. Here are the top 5 sex scandals to hit English football over the last ten years:

No.1 – John Terry (Chelsea)

Earlier this year, Chelsea star Terry was caught playing away with underwear model Vanessa Perroncel, close friend of his wife, Toni Poole, and former partner of ex teammate, Wayne Bridge. This infidelity cost Terry his captaincy of the England team and the respect of a lot of fans and fellow footballers. It was also revealed that the Chelsea man had got the underwear model pregnant within months of their affair, and then arranged for her to get an abortion. His choice to use a super-injunction in the hope of preventing scrutiny of his actions intensified the selfish situation. Yet Terry’s wife, Toni, has agreed to give him “one more chance” in the hopes of salvaging their marriage for their children. However, if he strays again then it is believed Toni will restrict his access to his children. According to a friend, Mrs Terry decided to accept her husband’s version of events, believing that the affair with Vanessa Perroncel, the ex-partner of his former Chelsea team-mate Wayne Bridge, was nothing but a ’silly fling’.

No.2 – David Beckham (ex-Manchester United)

David and Victoria Beckham were considered a golden couple by the British public; they were a couple in love with each other and their family and could do no wrong. This was until Rebecca Loos, a sports PR, was hired in 2003 to look after the Beckham’s as they transferred from Manchester United to Real Madrid. In 2004, Rebecca Loos claimed to have had an intimate affair with David Beckham. After allegedly sleeping together for the first time, Rebecca Loos said she and Beckham would text each other as much as 30 times a day.  It was then reported that Loos and Beckham had slept together fewer than six times, with the former rendering England’s Golden Boy as equally proficient in the bedroom, as on the pitch. After the allegations, which David vehemently denied, another woman, Sarah Marbeck, came forward and said she too had an affair with Beckham, starting in July 2001 while he was still a Manchester United player after meeting in Singapore. Victoria stood by her husband throughout the media storm that ensued and David was seemingly absolved from any blame.

No.3 – Ashley Cole (Chelsea)

After cheating on wife Cheryl Cole for the first time in 2008 with hairdresser Aimee Walton, Chelsea full-back Ashley then faced many more allegations. Reservations about Mr. Cole’s infidelity persistently surfaced in the media. In the aftermath of Cole’s first indiscretion, Brooke Healy, a glamour model, claimed she had also slept with him, just five months after he wed Cheryl. The glamour model announced she’d been paid £6000 in cash to remain silent and was told to sign a legal document stating she did not sleep with the star. Over the next two years, another five women admitted to having some form of relationship with the Chelsea footballer, ranging from allegations of raunchy ‘sexting’ or sleeping with the England International. Cheryl called a day on their marriage in February, and it’s thought that Ashley is still trying to get back together with his wife, saying his “life is over” now they’re apart.

No.4 – Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)

At the age of 18, Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney admitted to visiting prostitutes, saying he was “young and very stupid”. As the story progressed, it was suggested that one of the prostitutes Rooney had visited was in fact was a grandmother of 52. His girlfriend at the time, and now wife, Coleen McLoughlin, was then only 16 and claimed the events took place before their relationship became intimate, stating, “at that time in our relationship [when the story came out] I’d never even slept with Wayne”. Even though Coleen said she was, “so upset, my head was all over the place,” regarding the events, the couple stayed together and have been married since 2008 and now have a baby boy called Kai.

No.5 – Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United)

Ferdinand’s five year affair with air hostess Lauren Alcorn began in December 2000, and continued as Ferdinand began dating his now wife, Rebecca Ellison. Alcorn said she was pregnant with the Manchester United stars baby, but had a termination, something which she told Ellison over a phone message about Rio’s “double life”. After receiving the message, both Ellison and Ferdinand changed their numbers, apparently ignoring Lauren’s claims. The air hostess was devastated when her affair with Ferdinand concluded but Alcorn is alleged to have continued to pursue the romance with a barrage of texts and calls.  This promiscuous debacle came to a head in 2006 the pair met up at the Lowry Hotel in Manchester. Friends of Rio contend that it was purely for him to “sort out his tangled love life once and for all.

Another slur made against Ferdinand involved his Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson’s daughter-in-law, Nadine. The rumours that occurred in 2005 stated that Ferdinand had been having a fling with Nadine Ferguson, wife of Fergie’s son Darren. Nadine admitted that Rio was a friend but strongly denied having an affair with him. She said, “It’s absolute rubbish. I have never been unfaithful to my husband.”
The rumours didn’t stop there though; Rio has allegedly cheated with page 3 girl Holly McGuire and Australian model Coralie Robinson. The latest scandal to rock Camp Ferdinand was an allegation made by 22-year-old Tslil Sela, an Israeli model. She claimed that she too had bedded Ferdinand, whilst the centre back was on his stag weekend in Tel Aviv last June. Sela told friends that she was with Ferdinand whilst Rebecca Ellison was at home in Britain with their baby son and two-year-old boy just two weeks before their wedding.

The above stories represent a mere cross section of the scandals caused as a result of the infidelities of professional footballers, causing the public’s perceptions of players and the football industry as a whole to change. Where once footballers were the pinnacle of wonderment and appreciation, some are now considered to be careless and selfish in their actions off the pitch. Are these actions just accepted as the status quo and taken as an unfortunate consequence of combining fame and fortune from such a young age? Does a nation’s thirst for a World Cup victory vindicate such conduct and override the basic tenants of the sanctity of marriage and respecting women?

Whilst a definitive answer remains elusive, it is nevertheless clear that such incidents have a far reaching and detrimental impact upon the football industry as a whole, invariably resulting in disenchantment amongst those who idolise the football stars of today.

How do you think footballers sex scandals are affecting the image of English football? Please leave your comments below….

The premier league team of the year has been announced and is predictably dominated by Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal players. Wayne Rooney, Patrice Evra, Darren Fletcher and Antonio Valencia make it from Manchester United, Branislav Ivanovic and Didier Drogba from Chelsea and Thomas Vermaelen and Cesc Fabregas from Arsenal.

The official team of the year:

Hart

Ivanovic                 Dunne                      Vermaelen                   Evra

Valencia                    Fabregas                    Fletcher                   Milner

Rooney                   Drogba

Now I’m not normally one to argue with the experts but for me, Fletcher, Ivanovic and Valencia haven’t done enough to warrant being included in the team of the year. Richard Dunne has been inspirational at Aston Villa, but again i think we could do better.

Valencia took a long time to settle at Manchester United and only really started to find him feet in recent months. He is far from a guaranteed starter either. Darren Fletcher is a much under-rated performer from the heart of Manchester United’s midfield, but again i don’t think he’s done quite enough. Ivanovic’s included because he plays for Chelsea, he has been steady but nothing special. The rest of the team is fine, but i will look at alternatives for these four players.

Firstly, i think the team of the year should be a 4-3-3 formation as there have been so many stand out performers up front this season.

Right Back:

Right back is a weak area in general in the premier league, there have not been that many stand out performers and many of the larger sides have been disrupted in this position throughout the season. Bacary Sagna at Arsenal had a great season last year but has been less consistent this term. Chelsea’s first choice Jose Bosingwa has been out injured for the majority of the season as has Glen Johnson at Liverpool, while Manchester United have had  to play several right backs during the course of the campaign. Vedran Corluka has played well for Tottenham, but i think you can’t look any further than Aston Villa’s Carlos Cuellar. Predominantly a centre back, Cuellar has adapted well to the full back position and has played 34 of Aston Villa’s 35 league games this season.

Centre Back:

Again, many of the usual suspects have either been injured or out of forms this year. John Terry has not been his usual self in the second half of the season, Rio Ferdinand and Namanja Vidic have both missed large periods through injury, while Jamie Carragher has been part of a very inconsistent Liverpool side. Richard Dunne is not a terrible shout, but i think Michael Dawson of Tottenham deserves a place in the team. He has been in superb form during the second half of the season and helped push Spurs towards a champions league place, surely Capello can’t overlook him for the World Cup?

Midfield:

Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas and Aston Villa’s James Milner deserve their places, so in my 4-3-3 formation that leaves only one place open and i can’t see how Frank Lampard didn’t make the official line-up. He has scored an amazing 20 league goals from the heart of Chelsea’s midfield, and is one of the most consistent performers around.

Striker:

Arsenal’s Robin Van Persie began the season in fine form and would no doubt have been pushing for a place had he stayed fit. Darren Bent has scored an impressive 25 goals for an average Sunderland side and Fernando Torres has been a constant goal threat but missed large parts of the season through injury. But my third striker would be Carlos Tevez of Manchester City. He has done all he could so show Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson exactly what he’s missing and scored 22 goals in 30 premier league games, Tevez has also chipped in with 8 assists and been a focal point in City’s push for fourth this year.

My team of the year:

Hart

Cuellar                    Dawson                       Vermaelen                    Evra

Lampard                Fabregas                   Milner

Rooney                   Drogba                Tevez

What would your team of the year be? Please leave your teams in the comment section below…

By Guest Writer Ross Mackiewicz.

Chelsea striker Didier Drogba’s fitness has come into serious doubt following the damaging defeat to Tottenham Hotspur last Saturday at White Hart Lane.

Drogba, who has once again been in scintillating form this term for Chelsea, tweaked his groin just before the start of the second half. His discomfort was evident for all to see but as Carlo Ancelotti had already made his three substitutions, the Ivorian had to play through the pain barrier for the remainder of the game.

This is a big dilemma not only for The Blues but also for the player. With the World Cup looming Drogba will not want to jeopardise his chances of playing in a consecutive FIFA World Cup with the Ivory Coast. He is almost certain to have surgery in the coming weeks, but whether it will be sooner rather than later is a dilemma he and his club face. However with the Premier League title hanging in the balance with three games to go, Carlo Ancelotti faces a huge decision whether or not to risk one of his prized assets who has netted 32 goals this season.

“It’s his decision,” said Ancelotti. “He doesn’t have a big problem. It’s more about controlling the situation. He’ll take a decision at the end of the season, whether he has surgery or not. But it’s not sure he’ll have surgery.”

Nicolas Anelka and Drogba’s country man Saloman Kalou are waiting in the wings if called upon by the Italian tactician. Anelka, who has only netted nine times this term, lacks the pure presence which Drogba possesses and hasn’t really shown his early season form in the last few months.

With a determined Stoke City coming to the Bridge this Sunday and captain John Terry suspended following his dismissal at Spurs, the Blues will be hoping their talisman Drogba will be spearheading their attack on the Premier League title this coming week.

By Guest Writer Steven Georgiou.

Many may argue that Chelsea have already won the title with Arsenal and Manchester United both slipping up respectively in the last week. It could not be more inaccurate.

In fact, if the Blues don’t get a point tomorrow against Spurs and Manchester United do what I believe they WILL do, which is win at Man City, then things may be getting a little messy. Chelsea still have to play slight bogey team Stoke and then Liverpool away. Very tough fixtures in a season more competitive then ever before.

Chelsea are riding on momentum, and can hope the possible returns of Essien and Ashley Cole for the final games of the season will help them soldier through. This is what champions are made of. Four wins and the title is all wrapped up and sent to Kings Road. There is no room for complacency and sometimes other results can motivate the squad to win their first double in the clubs history.

Spurs away is now a tough fixture, but with the fatigue of the cup semi final and the victory over their rivals in midweek could give Chelsea a slight edge. But I still don’t believe the Blues can do it.

Despite a phenomenal record against the top four this season, Ancelotti seems to get these fixtures slightly wrong. That is why realistically I believe the fixtures will pan out like this;

Man City vs Manchester United – Man Utd to win

Spurs vs Chelsea – Draw

Wigan vs Arsenal – Arsenal to win.

]]> http://football-talk.co.uk/3275/chelsea-have-to-prove-their-worth/feed/ 1 http://football-talk.co.uk/3236/fabregas-rooney-drogba-nominated-for-pfa-player-of-the-year-award/ http://football-talk.co.uk/3236/fabregas-rooney-drogba-nominated-for-pfa-player-of-the-year-award/#comments Thu, 15 Apr 2010 11:17:29 +0000 Football Talk http://football-talk.co.uk/?p=3236 More >]]> By Football Talk.

The PFA Player of the Year nominations have been announced and Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United have all got players in the running for the award.

Arsenal’s influential captain Cesc Fabregas has been nominated for both Player and Young Player of the year after a superb season for the Gunners contributing 15 goals and 15 assists from midfield.

Chelsea striker Dider Drogba has also been nominated after another impressive season for The Blues. Despite missing a month while away at the African Cup of Nations, Drogba has scored 25 league goals and 11 assists.

The hot favourite for the award is Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney who has been in sensational form taking over from the departed Ronaldo as United’s goal threat with 26 league goals as well as 5 assists. Rooney is also nominated for the Young Player of the Year award.

PFA Player of the Year nominees:

Cesc Fabreags (Arsenal)

Carloa Tevez (Man City)

Wayne Rooney (Man Utd)

Didier Drogba (Chelsea)

PFA Young Player of the Year Nominees:

Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal)

James Milner (Aston Villa)

Joe Hart (Man City on loan at Birmingham)

Wayne Rooney (Man Utd)

By Football Talk.

Do Arsenal really have the ‘easy’ run-in that everyone keeps talking about? For weeks, ever since Arsenal managed to claw their way back into the title race, we have heard how The Gunners have an easy run-in and by far the easiest compared to Manchester United or Chelsea. Whilst this may have been true with 8-9 games remaining, as Manchester United and Chelsea had to play each other, can the same be said now with only 4-5 fixtures left?

Lets take a look at the remaining fixtures for the three teams chasing the title.

Arsenal

Spurs (A)

Wigan (A)

Man City (H)

Blackburn (A)

Fulham (H)

Chelsea

Bolton (H)

Spurs (A)

Stoke (H)

Liverpool (A)

Wigan (H)

Man Utd

Man City (A)

Spurs (H)

Sunderland (A)

Stoke (H)

Most people will say with Chelsea having to play both Tottenham and Liverpool away that they have the toughest fixtures. But they have 3 relatively ‘easy’ home games in which they should pick up maximum points. Whereas Arsenal and Man Utd only have 2 homes games each remaining, with only 1 that can be described as ‘easy’.

All three teams have to play Tottenham, and Manchester United and Arsenal’s games against the in-form Man City will be just as though as Chelsea’s trip to Anfield. By then, Liverpool may already be out of contention for 4th place and concentrating on their Europa League exploits and they are not currently 6th by accident, they are a poor side this year.

Manchester United have only 4 games left after yesterdays draw against Blackburn. A fixture that Arsenal are yet to navigate. Before the weekend, Arsenal and United both had to play Blackburn, Spurs and Man City in their remaining 5 games. They both had ‘easy’ homes games against Fulham and Stoke, so the only difference between the two sides was Arsenal travelling to play Wigan and United travelling to play Sunderland. Not a lot between those games in my opinion. Sunderland have very little to play for now, while Wigan are in a relegation fight and their pitch is terrible, certainly not suited to Arsenal’s passing game. So it could be argued that United had in fact the easiest run-in compared to Arsenal.

There is a case that Arsenal now have the toughest games left with only 1 relatively easy home game, a very difficult home game against an in-form Man City side, an away North London derby against Spurs, a trip to play Wigan who have already taken points at home against other top clubs and a trip to play Blackburn who just held Manchester United and have a great home record.

In fact, i think Chelsea will be the most confident with their remaining fixtures. The three home games against Bolton, Stoke and Wigan are a massive advantage.

Everybody knows there is no easy game in the premier league, that’s why its the best league in the world. So no result should be taken for granted. But i can see Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United all dropping more points during the coming weeks.

I think there is very little between the three teams remaining fixtures and this ‘Arsenal have the easiest run-in’ thing is a complete myth. The decisive factor in who is crowned champions could be that United and Arsenal have only 1 ‘gimmy’ home game left each, while Chelsea play 3 home games that should see them take maximum points.

After Man Utd’s draw yesterday, Chelsea are now hot favourites to win their first title in 3 seasons, but if Arsenal can beat Spurs on Wednesday they will be right on their heels.

Only time will tell, but i can see a few more twists and turns before any blue or red ribbons are tied on the premier league trophy.

What do you think, who has the easiest run-in? Please leave your comments below….

By Thomas Watt.

Liverpool and Fulham put in fine displays to see off first rate opposition in the Europa League, and should be given due praise for their efforts, but it has been the performances of the Champions League representatives that have hijacked most of the headlines this week.

For the first time in seven years, there will be no English representatives in the semi finals of the Champions League. This alarming statistic has been the cause of no small amount of soul searching in the media this week, as Manchester United were knocked out by Bayern Munich and Arsenal were defeated by Barcelona. Is this really a sign that the Premiership is not as strong a league as it has been in the past?

The short answer is no. The Premiership is as strong a league as it has ever been. One only needs to look at the way in which a combative upper-mid-table side such as Fulham have swept aside some of the biggest names in European Football to see that the Premiership is still has a rich depth of quality. The problem does not lie in the strength of the Top Four English sides, but in the perceived weaknesses in other European leagues.

With the consistent successes of English clubs in the Champions League (there has been an English side in every final since 2003/04), there comes the (not unreasonable) expectation that at least one of the Premiership’s biggest guns will contest the final. Given the relative ease with which the top English sides have navigated European Cup Quarter finals in recent memory, one could be forgiven for  expecting them to dispatch almost all who oppose them. The difference this season was a combination of misfortune and underestimation.

Arsenal should feel no shame at all in being so ruthlessly put to the sword by Barcelona. This is, after all, probably the finest club side that the continent has seen since Arrigo Sacci’s great AC Milan side of the late 1980’s. There will be many sides who are even more efficiently picked apart than Arsenal were at the Nou Camp. Even so, would this Barcelona side have been as devastating were they shorn of their most influential midfielder, their playmaker and their main goal threat? Would the football have been quite so poetic with no Xavi or Messi, the way Arsenal were forced into playing without Fabregas, Arshavin and Van Persie? Take nothing from Barca – they are an incredible force, and it will take something (or someone?) very special to stop them becoming the first side to retain the Champions League – but suggestions of a chasm in class are difficult to accept with such key players out. There is clearly no disgrace in losing to a side of Barcelona’s calibre, and Arsenal’s Champions League post-mortem should not concentrate too much on the manner or scoreline of their defeat. Everyone knew that Barcelona were an exceptional side, but few realised just how exceptional they (and in particular, Lionel Messi) were.

Manchester United seemed to have a favourable draw when they were paired with Bayern Munich, a side who have struggled for form domestically, and who have blown hot and cold in Europe. United’s defeat was a surprise, especially considering the relative ease with which they stamped their authority in the opening exchanges, but it shouldn’t really have been. Bayern had finally put results together in the Bundesliga, and had scored ten goals in their previous four away days in the Champions League. Even still, United were the better side over the two legs, and had enough chances, possession and initiative to win the tie comfortably.

For the first fifteen minutes of the game at Old Trafford, Bayern couldn’t get near them, and Manchester United could well have been four or five up by half time. The crucial difference was in experience; while the Bayern side was composed of veterans who knew they were still in the tie – even at 3-0 down – the likes of Valencia, Gibson and the unfortunate Rafael were relatively inexperienced at putting a tie to bed at this stage. In many ways Bayern did to Manchester United what United do to so many other sides. Even when they were short of their best their obvious quality carried them, and little by little they worked their way back into the contest.

Make no mistake, financial constraints aside, this Manchester United side will be back stronger than ever next season, and if the likes of Valencia and Rafael can learn from their experiences this week they will be considerably better players for it. It’s been all too easy at times, especially since Christmas, to forget that this is a Manchester United side who are adapting to a new formation and are still learning to cope without Cristiano Ronaldo.

Part of the reason behind the relatively stable transition has been the form of Wayne Rooney, who’s inclusion was a gamble which didn’t pay off. The more pragmatic United fan would see that Rafael, naive as he was for the red card, has the makings of an excellent marauding right back who’s pace and footwork fits the Alex Ferguson ideal perfectly. Whisper it, but Nani has started to finally look like he might yet fulfil his undoubted potential, while Antonio Valencia has lost the apprehension that he appeared to have when he first moved to United. At the start of the season he was a player for Manchester United, he is now a Manchester United Player.

In many ways, Chelsea’s demise was similar to that of Manchester United. Inter Milan are a very good side, but are a far cry from the all conquering Italian teams of the 1990’s. Ancelotti’s Chelsea are an entirely different prospect from Mourinho’s version, and while The Special One was confident about a result, Inter’s recent record against English opposition didn’t make for encouraging reading. Part of the reason Ancelotti was brought to Stamford Bridge was to play a more expansive, entertaining game, while Mourinho had been criticised by some quarters for his rigid, defensive style. The Italian manager’s style may win favour with purists, but Jose Mourinho’s pragmatic approach has been perfectly suited to the European game for the last seven years. Mourinho also held a distinct tactical advantage, as he knew exactly what almost all of the Chelsea squad were capable of through first hand experience. To some extent, for better or worse, this is still “his” squad.  “The Special One” has never made waves in Europe with free flowing football, or sides that totally outplay the opposition, but he has been remarkably successful with a minimalist, tactical, thorough game, which may yet prove a tricky obstacle for even Barcelona.

It will be difficult for supporters of the Premiership’s top three to watch the Champions League’s closing stages without thinking about what might have been. But the trio have more important things at hand, with Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United having a more than realistic chance of Premiership glory. By the time 2010/11 season starts, you can bet that these three sides (plus Manchester City, Spurs or Liverpool?) will be amongst the frontrunners again. In the meantime, Liverpool and Fulham could yet meet in an all English final in the Europa League. Reports of the demise of the Premiership as a force seem greatly over-stated.

By Football Talk.

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed striker Didier Drogba if fit to start against Manchester United on Saturday.

The announcement comes after speculation in the press had suggested the Ivorian hit-man would miss the top of the table clash through injury. Drogba missed Chelsea’s 7-1 demolition of Aston Villa last week and there were fears a kick to the knee in training would rule him out after he missed two days training.

But he took part in a full training session today and Ancelotti has now eased concerns and confirmed in his pre-match press conference that Drogba would play for Chelsea this weekend.

By Partick Mather.

Following Chelsea’s dismal performance, particularly in the second half, at Ewood Park last weekend, the media toed the usual line that southern teams didn’t fare well in their travels to the north. This led me to question that particular theory. Although usually aimed at Arsenal, this jibe has recently been attached more commonly to Chelsea, given their losses to Wigan and Manchester City. However, those games are anomalies in this particular debate for two different reasons. Firstly, Wigan’s victory was their first ever against one of the so-called ‘Big Four’, plus the DW Stadium can hardly lay claim to possessing a volatile atmosphere – to have that you’d actually need to fill more than half of the stadium.

As for Manchester City, they are the most expensively assembled side in the league and are hardly renowned for kicking their opponents off the park. Therefore I came to the conclusion that the only two teams which can be considered as potential Northern Nightmares are Blackburn Rovers and Bolton Wanderers.

Ewood Park and the Reebok Stadium have both been home to tough-tackling, determined footballers for a number of seasons, and no team in the league looks forward to those two trips, supposedly Arsenal more than most. The main criticism of Arsenal over the past few trophy-less has been their propensity to be kicked out of games by the league’s lesser clubs. However, their record in Lancashire stands up against the best in the past three seasons having dropped only two points out of a possible fifteen. Since the days of Sam Allardyce at Bolton, Arsenal have significantly improved their record at the Reebok and have won their last three at that particular ground. So, perhaps it is now Arsenal’s failures against the bigger teams that has become their biggest weakness.

Carlo Ancelotti’s Chelsea were widely chastised for not being up for the fight last Sunday afternoon. However that result was purely a blip, probably brought about by the hangover from their European exit at the hands of their former hero José Mourinho. The statistics back this up as in their previous five visits to Ewood and the Reebok they had garnered the maximum points available with five wins in five.

So the ‘Southern Softy’ tag can be dropped from the two title-chasing London sides. What then of the Premier League leaders Manchester United. Continuously praised for being able to achieve success in difficult conditions and historically having good records against both of their Lancashire neighbours, it was expected that their record would eclipse that of both of their rivals.

However of the three potential champions, it is the Old Trafford outfit that have the worst record in this particular test of strength. In the past two title-winning seasons they have had a mixed record. Last season saw two clean sheets and two victories in tight encounters, especially at the Reebok where it took until second half stoppage time for Dimitar Berbatov to win the game for United. Whilst this followed the expected trend, the 2007/2008 season was an extremely different affair. A poor performance following an international break saw United lose 1-0 to Bolton thanks to a Nicolas Anelka goal.

Then at the business end of the season, an inspired Brad Friedel couldn’t be beaten until stoppage time at the end of the match when a close-range header from Carlos Tevez spared their blushes and gained them a point. The sum total of their previous four visits is seven points from a possible twelve and some very tricky ties.

Blackburn Rovers have already played their part in the title race by taking points off Chelsea and still have a role as they are yet to host Arsenal or Manchester United. However, from my research it appears that it isn’t specifically the Southerners who find it tough at both Ewood Park and the Reebok.

Perhaps that’s why Sir Alex Ferguson is so wary of this run-in, not because of the glamour ties against Chelsea, Tottenham or City, but due to Manchester United’s difficult trip north to Lancashire. If they can overcome the hurdle at Blackburn on April 11th, they will go a long way to achieving an historic fourth consecutive title.

By Football Talk.

Chelsea have been dealt a blow with manager Carlo Ancelotti confirming during his pre-match press conference today that defender Ricardo Carvalho will be out for 4 weeks with an ankle injury. However, the good news is that scans have shown he will not require surgery, but it will take 4 weeks to fully recover.

Carvalho picked up the injury during Chelsea’s 5-0 victory over Portsmouth on Wednesday and is now set to miss some crucial matches for Chelsea during their premier league run-in starting with tomorrow’s game against Aston Villa.

Boss Ancelotti will now only have Alex and captain John Terry to rely on at centre back.

Blackburn 1-1 Chelsea

By Nikhil Parchure.

Disappointed, no other word can describe what Chelsea fans are feeling right now. After a bright start to season, after not losing a single game when the African cup of nations was on but now dropping important points which will see Chelsea’s Title Hopes damaged.

Even Carlo Ancellotti will not be able to tell what exactly went wrong in the Blackburn game, did Chelsea create enough chances? Have we scored early? Have we defended well? Have we taken the game to the opposition? The answer to most of these questions is YES. Apart from the incident where Ferreira was caught napping the rest defence was ok considering early the exit of Ivanovic.

Injuries are taking there toll on Chelsea, despite having a very strong squad more than 6 injuries can hamper the performance of any team. When Influential players like Ashley Cole, Essien, Cech, Ballack, Carvahlo, Bosingwa are missing then your team will always be vulnerable. It’s like taking out Rooney, Ferdenand or Vidic out of Man Utd or take out Torres, Gerrad from Liverpool or take out Fabregas and Arshavin from Arsenal. Loss of big players always makes an impact and that is what is happening with Chelsea. The media as usual is blaming the players, manager and owner for the poor run but they are ignoring the real problems.

One big reason is that Chelsea again failed to use its full backs, this is one reason coming into the picture again and again. After fantastic performance’s week in week out from Ivanovic, now he is not able to create quality balls in the six yard box. Chelsea scored many goals this season from such crosses and explosive runs of Ashley Cole. In the game against Inter as well Chelsea failed to use their full backs and this point is now exploited by all teams.

Carlo Ancellotti has to devise a way to involve the full backs, the current 4-3-3 is not allowing RB and LB to go full throttle ahead as there is one player less to cover in case of counter attacks. With the players available (Many key players injured), Ancelotti should use 4-2-3-1 with Anelka on top. This may sound crazy but this will work as Drogba can create moments of brilliance, use his physic to win long balls and Anelka can use his pace up front to get behind the opposition defense. With Lampard and Malouda on both Sides and Mikel and Ballack holding This will give a lot of confidence to Ferreira and Zhirkov to go ahead and try to create scoring opportunities.

Cech

Ferreira                 Alex             Terry                   Zhirkov

Mikel             Ballack

Lampard                      Drogba                     Malouda

Anelka

We all know what Anelka did when Drogba was not there, how Malouda has suited well in the winger position and Lampard will have lot of room to roam around the box and have strikes at goal.

Chelsea need to be calm and look at what they can achieve this season rather than what they can not achieve. They have to concentrate on next few games, get a couple of good results and suddenly they will have confidence to believe they can win the title again for sure. Big matches like Chelsea Vs Man Utd will be massive as this could decide who is going to lift the cup this year. If it’s a Draw then Arsenal will be hot favourite’s.

I know this is not the right time to draw conclusions as football is a game that is full of surprises.

By Justin Cheung.

Joe Cole leaving Chelsea on a free transfer is looking more and more likely this summer as contract talks between Chelsea and the midfielder have broken down even though he wants to stay. The England winger has played a very minimal role in the Chelsea squad since his return from a serious cruciate ligament injury further putting his place in the world cup squad in jeopardy.

Joe Cole missing from an England squad in a major international tournament could not be envisaged before his injury problems and the continuing contract stalemate maybe having an impact on Cole’s performances for Chelsea.

Carlo Ancellotti has continued to express his opinion that he wants Cole to remain at Chelsea and believes 100% that Cole will be at the club next season, but with Cole’s fringe role in the current Chelsea team he may look elsewhere as the possibility of being included in the England squad looks more unlikely for this summer’s World Cup and future international tournaments.

Chelsea’s current crop of aging players are struggling against Manchester United and Arsenal in a title race in which the blues have gone from first to third in a matter of weeks. There is also continuing speculation that there will also be a massive revamp of the Chelsea squad in the summer with a number of big names including Cole along with Deco, Hilario, Ferreira and even the part-time success Nicolas Anelka being linked with possible exits as Chelsea target a summer of big spending.

The list of players is not surprising with only Cole and Anelka really winning the hearts of the Blue’s fans over as the other players have seriously underperformed after big money transfers.

Joe Cole has in the past been praised as England’s most talented player, but since his injury and Ancellotti’s appointment he has struggled to make an impact. It will be interesting to see over the coming weeks whether Cole will play a key role in the Chelsea challenge to stop Manchester United from winning a fourth domestic league title in a row and whether he can reclaim that England left wing position in which many players such as Stewart Downing, Kieran Richardson, Gareth Barry and even Steven Gerrard have struggled to consolidate.

Many sports commentators have focused on Wayne Rooney as being England’s best chance of winning the World Cup in South Africa, but the prospect of a fit again Joe Cole performing to his past high standards could greatly increase England’s chances. Is this a likely possibility or just a utopian fairy tale ending for Cole? Only Fabio Capello and Ancellotti will know.

The fundamental question is whether Joe Cole can sort his future out at Chelsea and be the player he used to be or will he be another forgotten England man just like Kieron Dyer not so long ago?

Will Joe Cole be at Chelsea next season? Will he go to the World Cup with England? Please leave your comments below…..

]]> http://football-talk.co.uk/2377/secret-weapon-for-chelsea-and-england-or-the-forgotten-man/feed/ 1 http://football-talk.co.uk/2318/threes-a-crowd/ http://football-talk.co.uk/2318/threes-a-crowd/#comments Wed, 24 Mar 2010 09:11:37 +0000 Andy Taylor http://football-talk.co.uk/?p=2318 More >]]>

By Andy Taylor.

So, the weekend has finished and the big four – Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United – have all been in action, but, the big four became the big three a few months ago. Arsenal, Chelsea and Man Utd are now a big-three, Liverpool dropped off the pace long ago, and like the Spanish Armada, they are starting to sink without trace.

Rafa has brought a large Spanish contingent into the Merseyside club but only a small minority have made the grade. They sold Xabi Alonso to Real in the summer which was one of the biggest mistakes they could have made. Now the entire club revolves around two players, Gerrard and Torres, take either out of the equation and they are a very, very ordinary side. Aqulani has not had a chance to fully prove himself in the Premier League yet, and gets mysteriously left on the bench while the likes of Lucas starts. I heard a summariser on the radio the other day stating that Lucas had had his best match in a Liverpool shirt in the previous match. A caller rang in and told the presenter that Lucas hadn’t been playing in the game; ‘Exactly’ came the response. Lucas is not Liverpool standard, he never has been and I very much doubt he ever will.

Although Liverpool started well against Manchester United with an incisive early goal, like so many times this season they fell away while United never seemed to get out of second gear, slicing through Liverpool at will. If Rafa does stay at Liverpool in the summer there will need to be wholesale changes made to put themselves back on the right track. That is if they still have Torres and Gerrard, now that  fourth place is looking like a distant dream. Man City, Tottenham and Villa, all have games in hand on them and superior points. At they end of the season Liverpool could easily find themselves in seventh or eighth position and losing players who only want to play on the biggest stages. Mourinho has been touted as a possible replacement for Benitez in the summer, but surely there is too much to do at Anfield even for the “Special One”.

While Chelsea slipped up at Blackburn, Manchester United calmly and quietly went about their usual business, dispatching the opposition with what seemed like ease. Season after season United always seem to come good on the home stretch: they get into their groove and are clinical with their dispatching of the opposition. Rooney, Park, Fletcher, Nani and Valencia are all moving to the top of their game, and like the Manchester United of old the free-flowing, incisive football is making them the clear favourites for a record breaking 19th League Title.  All Arsenal and Chelsea can do now is wait and hope for United to slip up, something that few can see happening. As for Chelsea, the game at Old Trafford on the 3rd April will probably make or break their season – win and they’re still in with a shout of the glory; lose and Ancellotti may find himself looking for another job come the end of the season.

Chelsea’s problem at the minute may be the off field antics of Cole and Terry that seem to be distracting the other players, and grabbing the headlines that should be reserved for the way they they play on the field instead of off it. The age of their squad is also a concern for Chelsea fans; Lampard, Ballack, Terry Cole etc are all the wrong side of thirty or coming very close to the big three 0. They don’t seem to have the same sort of youth set up that Arsenal and Manchester United. There are very few these days coming up through the ranks, which gives the players the same sort of drive and passion for the club that John Terry has. The answer seems to have been to throw money at players who come for the big wages but have no connection with the club or the fans. Liverpool has Carragher and Gerrard and United still have Giggs, Scholes, Evans, O’Shea, Fletcher, Neville, Brown, Wellbeck, Gibson, who have all come through the youth system. United is in their blood, it’s a way of life for them. Thats what Chelsea are missing now and after their recent stumble I think they may have to settle for third spot.

Arsenal have now got their youth and experience to mix together well, after many wrote them off midway through the season. They play good (sometimes great), quick-passing football that can see them from one end of the field to the other before the opposition can blink. Yes they still have one eye on the Champions League as do Manchester United, but while United have the experience in all competitions, Arsenal’s hunger for success will push them to finish second in the league. It’s been too long without silverware for Arsenal and Wenger.

So while Liverpool try and stop the rot, the undisputed big four have become the big three. Chelsea and Liverpool will have big rebuilding jobs in the summer with too many players, content to just turn up for their mega wages. This time next season it may be the big two but I doubt it. This will be one of the most exciting run-ins for years - how Liverpool fans will be kicking themselves for not being a part of it. Just for the record though, I think Tottenham will snatch the coveted fourth spot and Harry Redknapp deserves it. The season is coming to a head. This is why we love football, and the big three.

Have the ‘big-four’ now become the ‘big-three’? Please leave your comments below……

By Fab4.

So another weekend has passed and we are one game closer to finding out who will be premier league champions this season. With Arsenal and Manchester United both recording home victories and Chelsea only managing an away draw, what have we learned? Where do we now stand in the title race?

Arsenal

Arsene Wenger’s men managed to overcome the harsh sending off of Thomas Verlmaelen and secure a vital three points over West Ham. Much of the credit must go to Manuel Almunia who pulled off a superb penalty save to keep the score at 1-0. If West Ham had got back to 1-1 who knows how the second half may have panned out. But with a lead to protect and hitting the Hammers on the counter attack, Arsenal ran out 2-0 winners and hit top-spot for 24hrs and keep themselves right in the title race.

Anything but a victory would have been a severe blow to Arsenal’s title aspirations. Three home wins against Wolves, Man City and Fulham are a must, and realistically victories away to Birmingham, Wigan and Blackbun will be needed if the Gunners are to triumph in May.

The away game against Tottenham is going to one of the most important North London derby’s in recent memory for both sides with Arsenal chasing the title and Spurs fighting for fourth, it promises to be some match. A win would see Arsenal go a huge step towards winning their first trophy in five years, a draw may prove to be enough, a defeat would not only hurt our title bid but could result in the Spuds clinching a champions league spot….doesn’t bare thinking about does it!

Manchester United

Manchester United’s victory over Liverpool was a disappointment, this was one of the fixtures Gooner’s would have hoped for them to drop points in. But United deserved their win and went back to the top of the table without playing amazinly, not that you need to play especially well to beat Liverpool these days.

But there are plenty of difficuly games to come for Man Utd starting with an away game to Bolton next week, followed by Chelsea at home. Further tough fixtures include Blackburn and Man City away, Tottenham at home and Sunderland away so there are several opportunities for Man Utd to drop points in the run-in. But at this point they have to be considered favourites. Arsenal are relying on them dropping points somewhere.

Chelsea

Chelsea seem to be in trouble. They are not playing well, have been dumped out of the champions league which will has severaly dented their confidence and with only a point to show from their game yesterday against Blackburn they have now thrown away their game in hand.

A draw at Ewood Park is not an especially bad result, but when your at the business end of the season and fighting for the title these are the places champions would be able to grid out a win. Chelsea don’t look like champions right now. 7 points from the last 15 is not the form of champions.

Obviously they haven’t become a bad team overnight and they have lots of experience to call upon, but with games against Man Utd, Tottenham, Aston Villa and Liverpool to come, Chelsea have a lot to do if they are to be crowned champions this year. Regaining their confidence may be step number one though.

There is no doubt that this is one hell of a chance for Arsenal to win the league, that much is obvious. The Gunner’s have the best fixtures on paper, but of course that means little in the premier league, but as Man Utd and Chelsea have to play each other…points will be dropped by at least one of our rivals. United are favourites still and the win over Liverpool was a massive hurdle cleared by Sir Alex Ferguson’s men.

But if this weekend has shown us anything, it is that at this moment it’s Arsenal and Manchester United that are showing the kind of fighting spirit needed to win titles by grinding out results.

Will Chelsea be able to come back from this set-back? Or are Arsenal and Manchester United now n the driving seat?

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