The reported departure from Arsenal of striker, Emanuel Adebayor, to AC Milan now looks a step closer as the Italian club have failed to land a number of their other targets. Adebayor was linked with a big move to Milan only a month or two ago and wouldn’t hesitate at moving because it has been clear that Arsenal are quite far behind other sides at the moment.

In some respects the deal would mirror the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United to Real Madrid, the Arsenal front man was heavily linked to Milan last summer but he decided to stay on for another year. However, in Ronaldo’s case this was down to the manager’s persuasion, in Adebayor’s case it may have just been down to the fact that a deal could not be officially put together in time.

He would be a good signing for Milan who have also just lost Kaka to Real Madrid. For someone so big and tall, Adebayor seems to have a brilliant touch and score beautiful goals from awkward situations and at important times. This is what has made him one of the most sought after strikers in the world when a lot of high profile stars are going between clubs for millions of pounds.

However, Milan should not try and get their hopes up too much because there are rumours flying around in England that it is only a matter of days before Chelsea make an approach for the striker. It was after all Carlo Ancelotti that wanted to take him to Milan in the first place and he clearly admires his skill and technique as a player.

Adebayor may also prefer a move to England as he would not have to settle down again in another country and learn a new language. Chelsea also need to make bigger changes to their squad and someone that could come in and compliment the likes of Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka would definitely be considered.

History has also shown us that loyalty is not such a brilliant thing any more in football. The whole saga of Ashley Cole moving from Arsenal to Chelsea could be copied and it has been clear ever since that move was completed that Cole has won more haters than admirers. However, Adebayor should not be too worried about this and he has to think about what is best for him and his football future.

Either of these clubs would provide him with a better opportunity of success on the European scene but the slower paced football of the Italian league could well help him develop as a player and even extend his career by one or two seasons. Chelsea would probably be the most likely move if bids were put in from both parties but this link is purely just speculation at this moment in time, where as Milan have actually tried to sign him before and if they put in another bid it could be an old link that comes good for a very under rated player.

Just when you probably thought that the future of Manchester United striker, Carlos Tevez, could not take another turn it goes round full circle. His current club are now reportedly ready to pay the £25 million being asked by the player’s agent to make sure that Tevez does not go to Manchester City or Liverpool.

It is more than a sign of just not wanting a player to go to a rival club, Tevez’s performances in the last few United games of the season were really impressive and he looked as though he was a man on a mission.

Tevez is the sort of player that United need to hang onto. His energy and quality mean that he can play at the highest personal level that he possibly can for 90 minutes and not once look as though he is bored, fatigued or fed up. In his short time at United he has become a legend to the fans and has often showed the quality and everything he is about as a player.

It is no wonder that a number of other clubs are sniffing around Tevez like sharks in the hope that Sir Alex Ferguson remains his old stubborn self, having never gone back on his word with regards to the future of a player. However, the interest from other English clubs equipped with the fact that Tevez seems as though he genuinely wants to stay where he is could be enough to prompt United into paying a large sum for him.

United are now faced with a very simple choice. They can either pay the 20 odd million that is being asked for Tevez’s services on a full time basis or they can pass up the exclusivity and let him go to Manchester City who will pay well over what the player is actually worth. This doesn’t seem like the thing that the club or the player wants.

United have until June 10 to try and sign the player as this will be the date that Argentina’s World Cup qualifiers would have been played and this will virtually be the start for the long summer ahead for a number of clubs. It is likely that United officials and Tevez’ agent, Kia Joorabchian, will hold a number of meetings over the next week or so in order to reach an agreement that would satisfy all parties.

The biggest factor in favour of United is the simple reason that their performance in the Champions League final showed they need to keep all of their hustle and bustle players and Tevez is definitely one of these. They also have the advantage that he is settled and liked at the club and doesn’t want to go elsewhere.

Hopefully it will not be a decision that comes down to money because this would be a very sad way to see one of the most under rated United players in history have to ultimately leave the club. They would do well to get this issue out of the way and give in to the fans cries of ‘Fergie, sign him up.’

Manchester United fans are bringing their team’s Gladiator spirit to Rome but will they return victorious or defeated?

That’s the question on everyone’s lips as the Red Devils prepare for their historic showdown against Barcelona in the Stadio Olimpico.

One way or the other, history will be made.Barcelona have already won the Primera Liga title and the Copa del Rey trophy this season and are looking to do the treble. If they succeed, they will lift the cup for the third time in the new history of the Champions League tournament, first scooping the title in 1992.

If Manchester United win, they will become the first team in modern history to retain the trophy two years in a row. No other side has done this since the Champions League was rebranded 17 years ago and it would be another major milestone for Sir Alex Ferguson.

With the police taking a tough stance against any possible crowd trouble and the Mayor banning the sale of alcohol for two days, both sides are showing plenty of respect for each other. And why not indeed. Barcelona have had a fantastic season and have incredible players. Manchester United are on the top of their game and can match the Barcelona squad player for player.




All eyes will be on the key men. Ronaldo and Rooney for Manchester United are more than capable of putting goals away if allowed to break free and fans are predicting a score line of 2-1 or 3-2. Football pundits are not so sure. They believe Manchester United might just have the edge over Barcelona and could nick the title by a single goal, whether in normal time or after an extra 60 minutes.

Messi, Eto, Iniesta and Thierry Henry for Barcelona are a class act and will not be under-estimated by Fergie who is, after all, a master technician. Will they sit back and soak up the pressure or go for it from the start?

Ronaldo at least will have the stage he has been longing for and has the chance to show what a world-class player he is. He appears to have survived a last-minute injury scare after hurting his ankle during training the night before the match but is tipped to make the line-up. Ferdinand, O’Shea and Ji-Sung are also fit again.

Barcelona are indeed a great team and have everything to play for but Manchester United are in such form and have such fighting spirit that they might just win the clash.Barcelona players have been urged to “dare to dream” by their coach but it’s on the pitch that they will need to turn on the style.

On paper, this match has the makings of a great classic and let’s hope it lives up to its billing.

Manchester United won their record-tying, overall 18th championship today (May 16th) at Old Trafford after a 0-0 draw with Arsenal, killing any hopes of a Liverpool miracle comeback. That’s it, it’s all over for this year and it’s really pretty hard to say that it’s not deserved.

Yes, Man United may have dropped quite a few points to the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal during the course of this season, but they beat the teams they’re supposed to beat all season long instead of drawing with them, and this is basically how they earned enough points to take their 11th Premier League title. Liverpool only have themselves to blame after a series of uninspiring 0-0 draws earlier this season with some of the dregs of the league.

While United definitely didn’t look like world beaters today, they did enough against Arsenal to earn the draw and the right to celebrate. The Londoners had quite an edge in possession, but didn’t really create anything out of all the time they had the ball.

Andrei Arshavin came close for the Gunners, while Wayne Rooney almost put the home side in front with a header that just missed the post. Ronaldo saw a free kick curl just wide of the post and Cesc Fabregas slammed a shot off of the upright for Arsenal with a few minutes to go. Robin van Persie shot directly at United keeper Edwin van der Sar about a minute later and that was basically it as far as the offense went. It should also be noted that Arsenal received five yellow cards to none for United.

Though it came as no surprise really that the trophy stays at Old Trafford, it will be interesting to see who’s still around next season to defend it. Will Ronaldo still be there to lead the team in scoring, and will Carlos Tevez be hung on to as a source of energy from the bench? It appears Gary Neville may as well hang up his boots now as he’s fighting injury after injury and his recovery time is taking longer now because of his age. Wes Brown and Owen Hargreaves might as well be shipped out as well as they don’t seem to want to put in the effort to play, injured or not. They strike me as players who are perfectly satisfied in cashing their paycheques instead of working hard on their fitness, and are constantly injured because of it.

For United to improve, they need to cut the dead wood and give more playing time to youngsters such as Fabio, Rafael, Jonathan Evans, Rodrigo Possebon, Federico Macheda, goalkeeper Ben Foster, and perhaps striker Danny Welbeck. Of course, it’s hard to argue with Sir Alex Ferguson’s managerial record, but he can also show some improvement by taking every FA Cup and League Cup game seriously. He needs to at least dress his best players and have them ready on the bench just in case they’re needed, instead of leaving them at home.

With a combination of excellent depth, youth, and experience, there’s no reason United can’t hang onto the title again next year as well.

The EPL is back in action with a full slate of games over the next two days after a weekend off for some teams due to FA Cup games.

Tuesday’s matches feature 15th place Sunderland at home to 10th place Fulham, a first vs worst battle, with league leaders Manchester United travelling to Birmingham to take on cellar dwellers West Brom, 12th place Portsmouth is hosting fourth place Aston Villa, and 16th place Tottenham has a huge clash at White Hart Lane against 19th spot Stoke City.

Spurs vs Stoke
Tottenham will be a new-look squad after several signings in the transfer window, however, midfielder Wilson Palacios is suspended for the match against Stoke. Goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini, who just came over from Chelsea in a free transfer, could possibly start in net as first choice keeper Heurelho Gomes is struggling both in net and with a thigh injury. Former Spur Pascal Chimbonda, who was just reacquired from Sunderland, wasn’t registered in time to play.

On the injury front Jermaine Jenas (calf) and top scorer Darren Bent (groin) are back training, while Alan Hutton (foot), Ledley King (hamstring) and Jamie O’Hara (hip) are still out. However, Aaron Lennon (groin), Jonathan Woodgate (back) and Luka Modric (back/hamstring) will be game-time decisions

For Stoke, leading scorer Ricardo Fuller should be back after serving a three-game suspension for slapping team mate Andy Griffin. Defender Danny Higginbotham (calf) will be a game-time decision, while Salif Diao (calf), Mamady Sidibe (knee) and Andrew Davies (knee) are all out injured.

Spurs played on Saturday, losing 2-1 to Man United in the FA Cup. Both teams were winless in the last five league games.

Sunderland vs Fulham
Teemu Tainio is available for Sunderland after serving a one-match ban and George McCartney returns from a long-term foot injury.

For Fulham, Diomansy Kamara (knee) is still out injured.

Fulham beat non-league side Kettering 4-2 with two late goals in the Cup on Saturday, while Sunderland drew 0-0 with Blackburn. Both teams have one only one of their last five league games and Fulham hasn’t won on the road all season.

West Brom vs Man Utd
West Brom is missing captain and former Man Utd player Jonathan Greening after he injured his knee during Saturday’s FA Cup game with Burnley. The club already has four centre-backs injured with Abdoulaye Meite, Jonas Olsson, Leon Barnett and Neil Clement all on the shelf. Ten players in total are out with injuries.

Man United actually have more players on the sidelines with 12 on the injury list. Fabio (calf) and Danny Welbeck (ankle) were hurt in Saturday’s 2-1 Cup win over Spurs. Nani, Rio Ferdinand, Wes Brown, Rafael, and Patrice Evra are still out with injuries, while Anderson, Wayne Rooney, Jonny Evans and Ji-sung Park were also unavailable for Saturday’s game.

West Brom has won three of their last five, while Utd have won all five.

Portsmouth vs Aston Villa
Both teams could feature new signings as central midfielder Hayden Mullins and defender Pele could play for Portsmouth and striker Emile Heskey might see action for Villa.

Pompey is without injured players Papa Bouba Diop and Richard Hughes, but Younes Kaboul might return after missing five-weeks with a back injury. Moral seems to be pretty low, especially after being knocked out of the FA Cup at home to Swansea on Saturday.

For Aston Villa, defender Luke Young returns after missing Saturday’s 0-0 draw at Doncaster because of a one-game ban for receiving five bookings this season, but winger Ashley Young will miss the match as he serves the second game of a three-match suspension for a red card at Sunderland.

Potsmouth has only a draw to show for their last five league games while Villa has four wins and a draw.

After the weekend’s games in the English Premier League, Manchester has regained first spot with a 1-0 win at Upton Park in London over West Ham. Veteran Ryan Giggs supplied the winner with a marvelous goal in the 62nd minute.

At the other end of the pitch, goalie Edwin van der Sar extended his British shutout streak to 1, 212 minutes. United hasn’t conceded a goal in over 13 league games now and lead second place Liverpool by two points and also have a game in hand over their rivals.

Down south, Portsmouth blew a 2-1 lead over Liverpool with 12 minutes remaining in the game as Dirk Kuyt tied the contest in the 85th minute and Fernando Torres, who came on as a substitute in the 76th minute headed home the winner in injury time to save manger Rafael Benitez from being embarrassed for leaving his top striker on the bench for so long.

Things didn’t work out so well for Portsmouth manager Tony Adams after the game though as he was sacked for failing to win a game during his nine games in charge. I wouldn’t feel too bad for him though as he brought it upon himself by employing negative tactics in most of those games by employing one striker up front on his own. Adams leaves Pompey with 24 points, just one point out of the relegation zone.

Aston Villa jumped over Chelsea by two points in the standings and into third place with a 2-0 road win in Blackburn, who are still in the relegation zone with 23 points.

Chelsea could only manage a scoreless draw at home against hull and were roundly booed off the pitch at Stamford Park for their efforts.

Arsenal continued their mediocre season with a 0-0 draw with Tottenham in the north London derby and sit in fifth place with 44 points, 12 behind Man United.

The other two cellar dwellers, Middlesbrough and West Brom, both with 22 points, also lost. Manchester City squeaked by Middlesbrough 1-0, while west Brom were edged 3-2 at home by Newcastle.

The best individual performance belonged to Everton’s new on-loan signing of Brazilian star Jo, who scored twice in a 3-0 thumping of Bolton at Goodison Park. It was Jo’s first game with the Merseysiders after moving over from Manchester City, who bought him for 19 million pounds last year.

This shows me somebody isn’t doing a good job. You don’t pay 19 million quid for a player and then discard him halfway through the season. Either the scouts overrated him and the club paid way too much for him, or City never gave him a chance by sitting him on the bench. Either way, he’s already made them look foolish after just one game.

The David Beckham soap opera continues over in Italy as the Los Angeles Galaxy has turned down AC Milan’s offer for their star player. The two clubs are now haggling over the price for the talented midfielder.
Beckham could also be a big story this coming Wednesday as well when England travel to Spain for a midweek friendly against the Euro 2008 Champions. The 33 year old will get the chance at his 108th cap for England, which will equal the record set by Bobby Moore for an English outfield player. Goalkeeper Peter Shilton holds the all time England record with 125 caps.

Meanwhile, Carlton Cole of West Ham and Everton’s Phil Jagielka could get their first caps after being named in the squad.