At just 34 years young and with a whopping price tag of £13 million, Andre Villas-Boas’ vital statistics suggest he was never meant to be a short-term fix at Chelsea. The Portuguese arrived from Porto with a glowing reputation as Europe’s most talented young manager; his appointment suggested owner Roman Abramovich was looking to the future.

“Club” signings of young talent like Romeu, Lukaku, de Bruyne and Courtois further demonstrate that Abramovich has set his sights on a new dynasty at Stamford Bridge under AVB. The Russian must now hold his nerve and persist with his manager in the face of Champions League elimination and squad unrest.

Dynasties come and go in football and, like Arsenal and arguably Manchester United, Chelsea are not the force they once were. The great team built by Mourinho, and kept warm by a string of successors, is entering its final chapter. Sir Alex Ferguson is the master of seamlessly rebuilding, merging old into new whilst papering over the cracks with continued success; but as Arsene Wenger is finding, building successive great teams is no mean feat.

Chelsea’s lack of recent managerial consistency meant anyone taking the Stamford Bridge hot seat faced the unenviable job of clearing out the ageing egos – still pining for the “Special One” – and starting afresh with new talent. AVB has not shirked the task thus far.

He is actively trying to rid Chelsea of player-power and produce results with attractive football. Both will take time and Abramovich would be foolish not to give it to his young general. The signings of Cahill and Mata plus the pursuit of Modric suggest the owner is behind AVB’s project. To lose face now, as pressure mounts, would be a jump backwards. Further, AVB has shown glimpses of his talent in his time in West London, while his record at Porto speaks for itself.

Lampard, Drogba, Terry, A. Cole and to a lesser extent Essien have been tremendous servants for the Club but they are yesterday’s men. The future lies in players like Mata, Cahill, Ramires and, if they can ever regain form, Torres and Luiz. AVB’s “suicidal” team selections reflect this; he is taking bold steps towards a bright future.

Looking forward is all very well but the present, of course, remains important; results have to keep ticking over. Appearances (and revenue) must be kept up. With just 10 points from 12 games, Chelsea are now in danger of missing out on next season’s Champions League, a failing that could cost AVB his job.

Sacking him now and appointing a quick fix – like Hiddink, Benitez or Capello – may rejuvenate the squad enough to secure fourth place but the new man would be left with all the same old problems.

Abramovich has discarded managers as Henry VIII did wives, with his Holy Grail the Champions League crown rather than a male heir. But the Russian would do well to remember why he appointed AVB in the first place: to build a new kingdom at Chelsea for the future, not the present.

Tottenham Hotspur’s efforts of hanging on to midfield star Luka Modric may all end in vain this summer, as the Croatian is reportedly glad at snubbing the chance to go to Chelsea, and in turn wants a move to Manchester United.

Chelsea have been long term admirers of the midfield maestro, and the Blues lodged as many as three bids last summer, in a spectacular attempt to lure the club into selling him. On the other hand, Spurs manager Harry Redknapp reminded the importance of Modric in the side, and put pressure on club chairman Daniel Levy to reject all offers.

The chairman kept his word and rejected an audacious bid for Modric last summer; however, the 26-year old has expressed his desire to win trophies in the past, and could cost Spurs, who are attempting to build a top four side, dearly.

According to sources close to Modric, the player looks at the denied Chelsea move as a blessing in disguise, but reaffirmed his desire to win silverware.

Be sure to check out other great articles at SoccerPlay.net.

Pep Guardiola’s contract extension with Barcelona is becoming more and more complex now. The situation is reaching crisis point.

Barcelona have always been ready to renew his contract but Guardiola is still keeping his silence towards that matter.

It is being reported by Spanish newspaper El Economista where Barcelona is ready to list out a few candidate if Guardiola does not come up with an agreement with the club.

FOOTBALL BETTING

According to the reports, Ernesto Valverde – Olympiacos, Luis Enrique – AS Roma, Oscar Garcia – Barca junior coach and Joachim Loew – German national team are part of the short list candidate being suggested.

Speculation continues to grow, that the talented Barca coach is heading to Arsenal, will this actually happen, or is it just another rumour?

Chinese authorities aren’t fooling around when it comes to punishing those who fix soccer games. While some countries give out shorter sentences for murder, China sentenced a former member of its soccer association on Feb. 18 to 12 years behind bars for taking bribes and fixing the outcome of games.

Yang Yimin, who is a former deputy chief in the CFA (Chinese Football Association), was found guilty of taking bribes of 1.25 million yuan, which works out to about US $200,000, and was handed a 10-and-a-half-year sentence. Zhang Jianqiang, who is a former director of referees, received a dozen years for taking bribes of US $433,000. Jianqiang was found guilty of taking bribes on 24 different occasions. In all, 39 former employees, team managers and officials were sentenced for their deeds.

Yimin took bribes from 20 teams and individuals at least 40 times including $10,000 from one club for fixing players’ fitness test results. He was also fined about US $31,700 to go along with his 10-year sentence and said he doesn’t intend to appeal the verdict. It’s not really surprising that Yimin is satisfied with his sentence since his lawyer said he could have received the death penalty for taking bribes while working as a public servant in China.

Jianqiang admitted he took money from teams in the Chinese Super League and helped one of them win the title in 2003. He was fined $40,000 and also said he wasn’t going to launch an appeal. After all of the sentences were handed out soccer fans celebrated by setting off a fireworks display outside of the court building. However, the court has only finished with about half of the sentencing as 18 people were still waiting to learn their fate.

Sentences were also handed down on Feb. 16 in Liaoning Province as nine people were found guilty of various offences, including referee Lu Jun, who received five-and-a-half years. Jun refereed in the 2000 Olympic Games and the 2002 World Cup and was found guilty of fixing seven Chinese league games and taking US $128,000 in bribes. He was also named the referee of the year by the Asian Football Confederation on two occasions.

Huang Junjie, another former referee, received a seven-year sentence for fixing games between 2005 and 2009. These included two matches between Chinese clubs and Manchester United of England and Australian club Sydney FC.

Game fixing isn’t anything new in China and the government started cracking down on it in 2009. Soccer has seen many match-fixing and gambling scandals over the years as well as cases of corruption and sporadic violence. Some Chinese fans have stopped attending domestic games and have taken to watching European soccer leagues on television as an alternative. It was reported that more soccer officials and former players will be facing trial in March.

I honestly thought I’d never again hear monkey chants directed at a black player during a football match outside of backwards Eastern European nations.

But at Porto’s ground last night, I heard, loud and clear, Porto fans making monkey noises whenever Manchester City’s Mario Balotelli was involved in the action.

What kind of morons are these people? Did they not realise that the most famous player in Portuguese football history, Eusebio, was black? Did they not realise that their golascorer last night, Varela, was black? That at least five of their players were black? Are they really that stupid? Unfortunately I suspect they are. My brother-in-law is Portuguese and is one of the most racist people I have had the misfortune to meet. It’s something about the Iberian mentality.

Football fans have had a bad press recentlty. Last night’s events have only made it worse. It’s time to take a stand against this filth – ban Porto from European competition for the next 5 years. Hit them quickly and hit them hard. They must not be allowed to get away with this.

Well that was embarrassing.

A lot of Arsenal fans will be understandably angry at a team that appears to be doing their best Jekyll and Hyde impersonation.

I don’t think Wenger could have expected such an anaemic performance from his players. In a European tie you expect it to be a close and even if the team is significantly better it’s not always reflected in the scoreline. Arsenal surrendered meekly on the kind of occasion that’s supposed to show them at their best. After several wake-up calls this was by far the loudest – even bigger that the 8-2 thrashing at United. These players are either not good enough or they don’t have enough confidence in themselves.

And that was really the most disappointing aspect: they didn’t impose themselves at the San Siro. Walcott was terrifyingly bad, his lack of nous and skill exposed when he doesn’t have any space to run into beyond the full-back. Rosicky – after a promising start – faded and his shooting became worse as the night went on. (He wasn’t particularly close with his first shot.) Alex Song lacked the tenacity (as did the rest of the team) and the verve of his better displays; standoffish in the extreme and giving away some of those needless fouls he specialises in. Ramsey I thought had been taken off at half-time only to realise he was still on the pitch at the sixty-fifth minute mark. Sagna and Vermaelen were both dour, the former seemed to be sleep-walking when it came to his defensive duties and the latter was off-colour. I don’t think I’ve seen such an ineffective performance from an Arsenal team in Europe since Manchester United beat them in the semi-finals in 2009.

At worst it looked like they couldn’t be bothered. At best it looked as if they didn’t know how to retrieve the situation (or minimise it). AC Milan are a good side but Arsenal made them look so much better by allowing them the freedom to play and offering far too much respect. Abbiatti is a keeper capable of producing some howlers; their defence – while good – are also capable of making mistakes. You wouldn’t have thought so with Arsenal slowing the ball down and not playing at the quick, intense pace that can draw the opposition into making errors.

I’m certain fans will ask for Wenger’s head, the board’s or the need for more leaders on the pitch in the next few days but as a collective the buck stops with the players. They are all capable of playing better. They’re all capable of taking on more responsibility. Arsenal used to have an arrogance about them; now they just have a naivety to them.

It seems that Footballs pantomime villain has returned to centre stage.

Carlos Tevez has always made a name for himself in the media eye, be it from switching his allegiance from the red to blue side of Manchester, or deciding to go on a three month hiatus because he felt “mistreated” at Manchester City.

Well, at least for now anyway, Carlos has turned over a new leaf…

With the title race heating up for what Is promising to be the closest yet, the Argentinian forward has decided to bury the hatchet with manager Mancini and take his place alongside fellow Argentine Aguero up top in order to bolster their chances of clinching their first ever Premier League Title. He told an Argentinian reporter on Monday, “I am ready to return, to win and do the best for the club.”

However, is it a formality that Tevez is the man to bring the coveted Premier League title to the Etihad?  Well let’s look at the facts.

Although the striker boasts an impressive 52 goals in a mere 84 appearances in the Sky Blue’s shirt, it has not been without the help of the teammates around him.

Take David Silva, the tricky playmaker has been the epitome of the attacking midfielder this season, setting up an impressive 14 goals this season, the highest in the Premier League.

Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko have also been a formidable strike force this year, scoring a combined total of 34 between them.

These stats alone are enough to give any manager a headache of selection, saying this, Tevez could even struggle to play, never mind win the team their first title!

Coming away from Man City for a moment, who’s to say it isn’t already too late to revitalise this team? As a keen believer in late form, as history has shown, Manchester United are never a team to write off. Regardless of how Carlos Tevez plays, the Red Devils ALWAYS make a late push for the title, and more times than not, this push is of seismic proportion.

For years now teams have gone into the last months of the season with every chance of winning the title, however, Man Utd have overcome on more than one occasion. The biggest example of this are Arsenal, for years they have seemed unstoppable, but it was often the inexperience of the last months pressure that has cost them, and with a team that has few/ no Premier league winners in it, Man City may be a bit desperate to think that relying on Carlos Tevez single-handedly getting them over the line.

All this being said, I think I speak for all football lovers when I say this…Carlos Tevez, former Manchester United fan favourite, makes a dramatic comeback to make their local rivals League champions for the first time in over 30 years.

Sometimes these scripts just write themselves

How could you sack those puppy dog eyes? (Source: http://www.bettor.com)

I’ve never been skeptical or wary of Mick McCarthy. Maybe it was because anybody would do a better job than Glenn Hoddle did, maybe it was because I enjoyed what he did with Ireland in the 2002 World Cup, or maybe I just had a good feeling about him.  But never mind, he’s gone now, and he’s probably never coming back. Am I Happy? No. Satisfied? No. Did I want to cry when I heard? Oh my yes.

When he came to the club in 2006, all he had was a club with an uncertain future, half a squad and the floater Glenn Hoddle left in the toilet. Despite all this, he promised us Premier League football, but reminded us that ‘MM’ stands for Mick McCarthy, not ‘Merlin the Magician’.

After a few lower-league signings and a couple of youth players, Mick took us to the 2006 Championship playoffs, painfully losing out to West Bromwich. The year after that, we missed out on the playoffs by two goals after a highly successful campaign, little did we know, this was just the beginning for Wolves. After being in pole position for 42 of Wolves’ 46 Championship games in 2008, we were Premier League once again. And thanks to a few choice signings (and a few shockers), Merlin the Mickgigican has given us three sweet seasons in the Premier League.

But this season, results have been shockingly bad, including a 5-1 thumping from Tesco Town, and the Wolves were at Mick’s door. He was given the sack, and a fanbase weeped. In one foul swoop, Wolves lost the greatest manager since the Stan Cullis days, and the fans lost an idol.

At the end of the day though, he wasn’t getting the results. Admittedly, it’s largely the teams fault for being crap, but remember, it’s Mick who picks the team, and tells them what to do. A lot of it is the team not pulling their fingers out and standing in the right place at the right time, but Mick is the manager. He manages his staff at the end of the day, and if the staff play up, it’s usually because the manager isn’t doing his job properly.

I’ll never call Mick a bad manager though. He had a bad turn yes, a bad run of form, but he still kept his promise and gave us Premier League football. And kept us there, admittedly by the seat of our pants, but he’s kept us there. I’ll never forget the good times, the euphoria of winning the Championship, the golden soundbites and the nail-biting finishes to the season.

Mick, thank you for everything, you put a reet shift in ah lad.

And I’ll have a fiver on Curbishley please.

If you ever forget how good Mick was/is, watch now!
Wolves 08/09 Season Finale

We are getting prepared to say goodbye to Premiership legend Thierry Henry once again. His short loan spell has reinforced Arsene Wenger’s credentials as king of the dealing as in the last two months Henry has scored more goals than 85million pound combo Fernando Torres and Andy Carroll put together.

Yes there is no denying that the pace has gone, and even the technique is not what it use to be, however his class and commitment has been integral for Arsenal moving in to the FA Cup fourth round and despite all this years criticism and supposed ‘doom and gloom’ the Gunners are now in the coveted final Champion’s League spot because of his last minute winner against the in form Sunderland.

When Henry was bought in the press jumped on the desperation bandwagon and felt that this showed Arsenal were sinking faster than Adriano’s attempted diet by bringing in a 34 year old ‘has been’. However it has worked out quite the opposite and now Carroll and Torres’ employers are looking up at a team in resurgence.

Yet despite all these positives the Premiership has to wave Thierry off back to America with a strong possibility that he may never kick a ball in this league again; with half of North London wishing that another former Premiership player who picks up his pay packet in the USA was getting on that flight instead.

A spell of uncertainty is set to spread over the Emirates when that plane heads back to America as the experience and lift that the all time great gave the Gunners is surely going to be missed and with the verdict still out on the returning Moroccan Chamakh, can Arsenal continue their target of getting fourth place? Or has the return of the greatest player to grace the Premiership been enough to lift Arsenal to a new confidence where they can even dream of Champions League glory and catching rival Spurs?

Goodbye Thierry for the near future, don’t hesitate in coming back; fellow comeback king Scholes has hinted he has another year in him, and so can you.

Eden Hazard has the chance to make a brave choice. If the Lille forward joins Tottenham Hotspur, it will be a rare triumph for attractive football and sound principles over great big wads of cash.

The Belgian could have his pick from England’s top clubs, not to mention the big two in La Liga.

Chelsea, ageing and toothless, would dearly love a player capable of unlocking defences in an instant; Liverpool also; Arsenal, one injury to Robin van Persie away from midtable mediocrity, need some genuine quality next to the Dutchman; Manchester City would relish another trophy player for the collection; Sir Alex needs a stylish creator to fill the void that will (eventually) be left by Scholes and Giggs.

All of the above have the financial muscle to blow Spurs – fiscally restricted by a smaller stadium and soundly run by Daniel Levy – out of the water.

But football reasons alone make Spurs Hazard’s best bet.

The Premier League table doesn’t lie, of course, and it reveals, fair and square, that there are currently two sides better than Tottenham in England.

There is a compelling argument, however, that Spurs have been the most impressive side in the Premier League this season.

Harry Redknapp has assembled a team full of verve and dash and Hazard, a stylish attacker who can play on the flanks or centrally, would complement it perfectly.

Their first half demolition of Newcastle was as scintillating a display as you will see this season. Afterwards, a breathless Louis Saha, said, ‘As a kid, you always dream of playing fantasy, attacking football and you’ve seen that here. In the first 15 minutes, it was the quickest football that I’ve ever played.’

Quite simply, Spurs play the finest football in the League – even Sir Alex admits it.

Even with the Will he? Won’t he? Redknapp saga hanging over the club, there are great vibes emanating from White Hart Lane and Hazard appears to have noticed. He can live Saha’s dream at Spurs.

They are comfortably the best side in London and unlike Chelsea and Arsenal, Champions League football next term is all but assured. At Liverpool recently and Fulham in November, they showed a defensive resilience that Arsene Wenger’s one-man-team can only dream of, while they are now better across the park than Chelsea.

Manchester, Madrid or Barcelona may yet be alternative destinations for Hazard but competition for places make them all less attractive than Spurs, a club on the up who have proved willing to trust young players like Bale, Walker and Sandro with extended runs in the team.

Redknapp has just two natural wingers at his disposal, while Utd boast Young, Nani and Valencia, plus Giggs and Welbeck.

City are so inundated with attacking options they have exiled one in Argentina and loaned another to Spurs and there is a soulless feel about the club that comes with buying success.

Hazard may not stay at Spurs forever but he can develop at White Hart Lane, whilst challenging for trophies with world-class teammates.

But money talks in football. Redknapp himself has candidly admitted it is hard for any player to turn down huge wages. Hazard will surely be tempted by the sums City or Chelsea in particular are able to offer, but he has the chance to make a bold decision based on football not finance.

Since 2008 AC Milan are facing an English team in the second round of Uefa Champions League, (Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham) they have never managed to pass to the quarter finals of the most important European torunament for clubs.

Beating Arsene Wenger’s team won’t be easy as the Gunners have improved since the 8-2 humiliation at Old Trafford, in one of the most embarassing matches of  Wenger’s era. The north-London club are now more organized and in Robin Van Persie can count on one of the most in form players in Europe.

From the phisycal point of view Arsenal should prove tough opposition for Milan. Massimiliano Allegri, in fact, has a lot of injured players , while Christian Abbiati, Alessandro Nesta, Alexandre Pato and Kevin Prince Boateng may come back after having missed last Milan appearences.

On the other hand the Gunners’ defence could suffer the speed of  Stephan El Shaarawy or Robinho (or Alexandre Pato Pato, if he will play from the first minute), more than the physical strenght of  Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who, in 2009, scored twice against Arsenal at the Emirates when he was playing for Barcelona. Defenders such as Thomas Vermaelen, Laurent Koscielny or Per Mertesaker are more able to stop players like “Ibra”, the only one who’s sure to play in AC Milan’s attack.

Pato, in fact, is coming back from an injury, Robinho is not on his best form and Stephan El Shaarawy could replace them next to the Swedish forward. El Shaarawy is a new player in the European panorama but in his last appearences he has been the best players for the “Rossoneri” and he had even scored his second goal in Serie A last saturday against Udinese. He’s just 18, but for sure Arsen Wenger told his defenders to put extra care on the young Italian forward.

It’s difficult to make a prediction on who’s going to win tomorrow night. Playing at San Siro I think that AC Milan is a tiny bit favourite on the Gunners. Arsenal may play a match based on an organized defence and counterattack (as Massimiliano Allegri during the pre-match press conference). In any case we’ll have to wait untill the 6th of March, the date of return match at the Emirates, to know if  Arsenal and English football are still a phantom for AC Milan or if, eventually, the Rossoneri have become ghostbusters.

Arsenal will be spluttering. Chelsea will be in disbelief. Real Madrid will be shocked.

Young Belgium playmaker Eden Hazard announced his intention to join the renaissance at Spurs under Harry Redknapp and, in my opinion, there’s no place better for him.

He told Belgium TV station RTBF: “I will go to England to play my football. It could well be Tottenham; they are a great English club.”

Spurs’ attacking and free flowing football will suit the Belgium’s style of play and he will get first-team football at White Hart Lane. Other possible avenues won’t guarantee him a place on the starting line-up. Harry Redknapp has bought succinctly in the last 4 years, and I expect Hazard to be the best of a good bunch so far.

Such clear ‘come and get me’ public pleas will no doubt delight Tottenham fans who have been building steadily since Redknapp took over in 2008. The signing of Emmanuel Adebayor has cemented their superiority over Arsenal in the league table, and I believe they will keep clear of their North London rivals for years to come.

Hazard is a special talent. He hails from the same side who have given the Premier League Yohan Cabaye (plus currently less favoured Gervinho) and displays extraordinary control, vision and touch.

Despite only scoring 25 goals in 131 appearances for Lille, it is his pace and explosive power which makes him such a nightmare for opposition defences. Comparisons to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are not far off the mark.

Rafael Van Der Vaart can lack a bit of pace for Tottenham in the midfield and I feel Hazard can give them exactly what they need going forwards.

Chelsea and Arsenal had better dip into their cheque books in the summer; otherwise they are going to fall by the wayside…