Chelsea met Wigan , at home , in a crucial Premiership fixture on Monday night. It was a must win clash for the Blues as Manchester United had already beaten Arsenal a day earlier and needed the 3 points to stay in touch at the top. With Chelsea's impeccable record at Stamford Bridge, you could not blame anyone for not giving the Lactics a chance . But Steve Bruce, the former Manchester United captain, had other ideas and master-minded a draw for his club.


Avram Grant rested several of his key players, a decision which has to be said backfired at him. However, the players on the pitch were full-internationals and were certainly good enough to beat a Wigan side which has flirted with relegation all season. Therefore, there should be no excuse for the way Chelsea played . In the first-half ; the pace of the match was more suited to a training match, rather than an important fixture in the title run-in and Chelsea managed to carve only 2 or 3 openings. After the break Joe Cole was introduced and he played with more flair than the rest of the team put together. And it was Essien who made the pressure tell when he struck from edge of the box. After that, Chelsea carried out their boring routine again, trying to shut out Wigan for a 1-0 win. But this time, this did not work as in stoppage time, Jason Koumas floated in a delightful cross into the Chelsea box and Emile Heskey volleyed home to silence the Chelsea faithful. Grant was dumbfounded, and you can see the pressure building on him when the final whistle was met by a chorus of boos.

So this result puts Chelsea in a precarious position, 5 points behind of Manchester United and 4 points ahead of Arsenal. Although United now have one hand on the coveted Premiership trophy, Chelsea are not out of it yet as manypeople have suggested. A win for Chelsea at Everton and a loss for United at Blackburn can make the title race a close affair again.So United must not think that its done and dusted and keep concentrating on the upcoming clashes, one by one United can win the title at Stamford Bridge in 2 weeks time and judging by Chelsea's run of pertformances, you can't discount United from ending their unbeaten home record that stretches back for more than 4 years.

Here are my predictions for his wekeend's round of Premier League matches.


Fulham v Manchester United
Fulham need to get better soon or they will get relegated. And there is no way to rejuvenate the team and fans than a win against Manchester United. In the past, Fulham have troubled "United but they don't have the quality anymore to do so. It may not be a stroll in the park for "United, but I expect them to win by at least a couple of goals . Fergie will surely rest some of his players, and this will give others a decent run-out ahead of the business end of the season.

Prediction: 4-1


Arsenal v Aston Villa

Aston Villa are really playing really well and they do have a realistic of qualifying for the next seasons UEFA Champions' league. They gave the Gunners a tough time at Villa Park back in December, and I expect them to cause Gallas and co. problems again. Arsenal will be smarting from the draw at Birmingham and the loss of Eduardo, but I think their home form will rescue them this time arounf and they will get the 3 points they need in a tight match to stay top of the table.

Prediction:2-1


Chelsea v West Ham

West Ham have enjoyed quite a successful season, and they still have an outside chance of qualifying for Europe. Their home form has improved from last season, even beating the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool at Upton Park. But they must be fearing a Chelsea backlash after the Blues' defeat in the Carling Cup. Since then, various news items have been published about them in the media. I feel Chelsea will be keen to prove their critics round and be up for this match. Therefore, I expect them to register another5 win over their London rivals.

Prediction:2-1


Bolton v Liverpool

Gary Megson has made his Bolton side difficult to beat, especially at home. But their main problem is their lack of goals. Liverpool are going through an uncertain period, and Rafael Benitez could get the sack if they lose against Inter Milan on Wednesday. Benitez will have more than one eye on that clash, and he is likely to rotate squad yet again. Therefore, I think Bolton will be able to hold them to draw.

Prediction:1-1


Birmingham v Tottenham

Both sides will feel they can win this clash. Birmingham will be high on confidence as they got a draw against Arsenal, and so will be Spurs after their fantastic Carling Cup final victory. Apart from Mcfadden, no one seem to score for Bimingham and this could be their sole cause of relegation. Spurs are playing so well, I can't see them dropping points here.

Prediction:1-2



Other Predictions:

Everton v Portsmouth 2-1

Derby v Sunderland 1-1

Newcastle v Blackburn 1-2

M'Boro v Reading 2-0

Man City v Wigan 1-1

This weekend there was another twist in the title race. Arsenal slipped-up against Birmingham, and now Manchester United and Chelsea have a real chance of catching up with them.


Arsenal's day got off to a bad start at St.Andrews. Eduardo was stretchered off as early as 3rd minute due a terrible tackle by Birmingham skipper Martin Taylor. Taylor was deservedly sent off, leading many to believe that Arsenal will win comfortably. But Birmingham refused to be lied down, and Mcfadden gave them the lead with a great free-kick. After that, it was all one-way traffic in favour of the Gunners and Walcott scored two goals in quick succession to put them in the driving seat. But they were unable to put the game to bed, largely due to the fact that Adebayor and Bentdner refused to pass the ball to each other, and they were made to pay in the dying minutes when Clichy's clumsy play conceded a penalty which Mcfadden duly converted. All this meant that Gunners only got a point in game which they should have won.

On the other hand, Manchester United seem to be returning to their top form, as they thrashed Newcastle again, this time at St. James Park, Superb goals by Rooney and Ronaldo sent United on this way in the first-half, and Ronaldo got another to seal the victory early after the break. Newcastle did got a consolation goal, when Faye managed to score, but it only revitalised United and Rooney and Saha scored towards the end to rub salt in the Geordies' wounds. Keegan's problems on Newcastle show no signs of disappearing soon, and they can be sucked into the relegation battle if they don't get their act together.

Over at Anfield, Fernando Torres bailed Liverpool out yet again as he single-handedly handed them 3 points against Middlesborough. A Tuncay header gave Liverpool an early scare, but Torres, outstanding hattrick seemed to end the game as a contest. But Downing scored in the 83rd minute to give Boro hope. Aliadiere then got sent off to finish any chances of a Boro revival.

Now a brief round-up of other matches. Solano's late controversial winner robbed Fulham off a point at Craven Cottage. underland continued their wretched away record as they went down at Fratton Park, Wigan defeated Derby comfortably at the JJB, Villa continued their push for Europe with great result at Reading, Blackburn turned up a good performance to thump Bolton and Everton got the result of their weekend as they defeated Manchester City quite easily at Eastlands.

Everyone can see that Arsenal are wobbling. Pressure is catching up with them and the injuries have exposed their lack of depth. Only time will tell if they can save their season now. As far as the Premiership is concerned, most fans think that United are the favourites to win it now. They have got the squad and experience to cross the finishing line.

After a 2-week hiatus, Premiership is back this weekend and as always, there are some exciting matches to look forward to:

Manchester United v Newcastle

Although Manchester United thrashed Newcastle 6-0 only a few weeks ago, I am not sure what to say about this match. On paper, it looks a comfortable win for United. But sometimes sides raise their game when one of the 'Big Four' come to town. Moreover, United have had trouble in few of the away games. However, due to Newcastle's current awful form, you can't back them to win any game and I feel United's attacking threat will too much for the Magpies defence to handle again.

Prediction: 1-3


Birmingham v Arsenal

This is going to be a tough fixture for Arsenal. Birmingham managed to get a point at Emirates. They will be refreshed after a good 15-day rest and up for this match. On the other hand, Arsenal squad has some injuries and they will be tired after their European exertion. But Birmingham don't score enough goals and I think this will be the reason for their downfall yet again.

Prediction: 1-2


Liverpool v Middlesborough

Liverpool are so inconsistent, you just don't know which of their side will turn up. If you are a good side, you can't get beaten by Barnsley and then win again Inter Milan. In contrast, Middlesborough have had a run of decent results and they are unbeaten since the New Year's day. By Liverpool's expectations, this has been a disastrous season. Pressure is growing on Benitez but 3 points in this game will be quite useful for Liverpool in their quest for the 4th spot.

Prediction: 2-0


Fulham v West Ham

Fulham managed to beat Aston Villa but were well-beaten at the Riverside. They desperately need to find consistency in order to have chance of surviving and manager Hodgson needs to make the squad to gel as soon as possible. The main problem for Fulham this season has been their habit of conceding second-half goals, and there is a good chance this will be their undoing yet again.

Prediction: 1-1


Portsmouth v Sunderland

Portsmouth's home form has been nothing to rave about, and they struggled to find the back of the net at Fratton Park all season. But Sunderland's away form has has been absolutely pathetic (they have only managed to get 2 points on the roal all season) and I can't see it getting better anytime soon.

Prediction:2-0


Wigan v Derby

This is going to be an emotional return to his former club for Paul Jewell. But there is little at stake as Derby are already confined to Championship football next season. Steve Bruce has got his team playing some good football and they will be able to beat Derby quite comfortably.

Prediction:3-1


Reading v Aston Villa

Reading's home form was quite good early on in the season but now it has all gone pear-shaped for Steve Coppel's side with & defeats on the trot. Aston Villa has been good all season, reaping the benefits of a settled squad and I expect them to get draw at the Madejski, if not a win.

Prediction:1-1



Blackburn v Bolton

This is going to be an old-fashioned footy match, with lots of passion, flying tackles and yellow, and possibly red cards being dished out. Manager Gary Megson has made his Bolton side very hard to beat and they will be on a high after taking care of Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Cup. But I feel Blackburn will come up with the goods in this match.

Prediction:2-1


Manchester City v Everton

Everton have had an excellent season. They are still in the UEFA Cup and have realistic chance of qualifying for Champions' League this season. Manchester City have not been as good as they were at the start of the season and I think they will only get a draw.

Prediction: 1-1

With the huge FA cup weekend coming up, you would have thought that the tabloid headlines would revolve around the Manchester United-Arsenal match. But instead it has been the Premier Laegue greatest act that has been the centre of attention lately ; for those of you who don't know yet, Premier League's all 20 clubs have agreed to explore the possibility of playing mathes abroad by extending the season to 39 games. The extra 10 matches will be played in 5 venues over a weekend, with cities bidding to host 2 matches each. the matches will be decided by a draw, with the top 5 sides seeded so that they will not play each other. Most importantly, the points from these matches will count towards the final Premier League table. This proposal has faced criticism from all quarters and many "no to game 39" petitions have been set up.

I feel the clubs are considering playing games overseas only for the money. Each club will earn around 5 million pounds by playing just one game abroad. The Premier League claims the extra-income will be invested in the grass-roots thus benefiting the English football in general. In addition, overseas fans will be able to see their footballing idols in some 'real'action and clubs will have the oppurtunity to increase their fan-base. However' the proposal has so many drawbacks that I don't see it being implemented any time soon.

Firstly, player burn-out and fixture congestion has always been an issue with the managers. The lack of success of English clubs at European level and the English national team has been attributed to the fact that the Premier League has no winter break to allow players to rest. A mid-season trip round the world will only increase the players' chances of getting fatigued and being off the pace for the rest of the season.

Secondly, many countries will not welcome Premier Laegue's matches. Why would they want to lose their advertisers and sponsors to their foreign rivals? They will want to protect their own clubs and leagues. The football cheifs of Japan and America nhave already stated that they will not be interested in hosting any Premier League matches. With the AFC president also saying that Asia should give protection to its own Leagues.

The biggest flaw in the proposal is the draw that will determine all 10 of the extra matches. Consider this scenario; two teams are fighting to avoid relegation. One team gets relegated because it draws Manchester United in the 39th game but the other survives because it draws Derby. This should be totally unacceptable. If this happens, the League will lose its current position as a fair competition.

Majority of the fans have been criticising the proposal from day one. The "No To Game 39" petitions have received enormous suppport. Many feel that the English football will lose its football and culture, if the games are played overseas, others fear that more and more matches will be staged outside England with time. The League managers have had a mix response to the proposal. Many think its a farce, on the other hand some think that change is not always bad.

Here is what some of the managers had to say.

"What disappoints me is (United chief executive) David Gill phoned me and said 'keep this quiet, we are going to discuss it' and then it's all over the papers this morning. They can't keep their mouth shut down there.

"I think if they are going to do these things, they should have been enquiring and having discussions with managers and players before they come out with all this stuff and make an issue of it."
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson

"I'm not against an innovative attitude if it respects the competitive side of our league, if it respects the fans and promotes the quality of our Premier League."
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger

"I don't necessarily think it is a bad thing. From what I understand, it has been well thought out. The trouble with a lot of people is when something new comes into the arena, they want to find reasons to knock it. I am not against change."
Newcastle manager Kevin Keegan

"Clubs could become like the Harlem Globetrotters. It will start with one game and then next year or the year after until eventually I can see us playing quite a few games in different parts of the world."
Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp

"It's bad enough with international friendlies, let alone going overseas. I read the other day that games are going out to 22 or 23 countries. It's quite unbelievable, it gets everywhere, so I wouldn't be surprised, although there will be a few irate people. Can you imagine going to Fergie (Sir Alex Ferguson) and telling him 'by the way, you're not playing at home this week, you are playing in Japan'? I'd like to see it!"
Wigan manager Steve Bruce

"Is it April 1? I find it highly unlikely it would happen. I wouldn't think it would be a realistic proposition."
Middlesbrough manager Gareth Southgate

In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with playing matches overseas. But either they should be friendlies or cup games. The proposal to play Premier League matches abroad should be dropped immediately, simply because of the criticism it has received. If the proposal is implemented, I fear Premier League will turn into a joke and many fans will not bother with it anymore.

Derby curse struck Manchester United again as Manchester City beat them 2-1, completing a historic double over their more prestigious rivals. Before the match, their was speculation that City fans might ruin the day for the Red Devils by not observing silence to the Munich Air Disaster, but it was the City players who turned out to be the spoilers-in-chief. United played poorly from the start, and City duly punished them when Darius Vassell scored from a slick counter-attack. Benjani then compounded United's misery, as he diverted Petrov's great cross into the net. United improved in the second-half, but City defence stood strong until Carrick managed to score at the depth, but the goal proved to be mere consolation.

This match showed that United are a man short up-front and Sir Alex Ferguson's decision of not signing another striker in January might continue to haunt him for the rest of the season. Moreover, Giggs and Scholes are no longer fit to be first-team regulars. Against tough opposition, Sir Alex must play Anderson and Hargreaves in midfield.

In the second high-profile match, Liverpool managed to hold Chelsea to a draw at Stamford Bridge. It was a fairly tight game as both teams looked fairly matched. Cropuch did get three oppurtunities to score, but failed to make anything of them. Chelsea's best chance went to Ballack, but his volley missed the post by inches. At the end of the day, Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez was quite happy with a point, with Chelsea manager left to rue the fact they failed to close the gap on Manchester United.

This weekend's big winners were Arsenal, who beat Blackburn rovers 2-0 in the Monday night encounter to increase their lead at the top of the table to an impressive 5 points. Senderos opened the scoring for the Gunners with a well-placed header from an Eduardo corner. Arsenal were far from their best, and Blackburn threatened to equalise for most of the game but they wrer unable to breach Arsenal's solid back-line. Finally, Adebayor scored in injury-time to make the game safe.

Meanwhile, Aston Villa underlined the fact that they are serious about snatching the fourth-spot away from Liverpool as they thrashed sorry Newcastle 4-1. Th Magpies were quite good in the first-half and deservedly took the lead when Owen scored from a Milner cross. But Villa turned on the style after rthe break as Bouma and Carew scored to put them in the driving seat. Carew went on to score two more to heap more pressure on Kevin Keegan and send most of Villa Park into jubilation.

In other matches, portsmouth performed a smash-and-grab at the Reebok to beat Bolton, Tottenham continued thier revival to earn only their second away win of the season at Pride Park, Aliadiere scored for Middlesborough to hand them all 3 points against Fulham at the Riverside to push them further away from the relegation zone, Sunderland won yet again on their home soil against Wigan, Birmingham gained a valuable point at Upton Park in a match they were unlucky not to win and Reading's woes increased as they went down at Goodison Park

Here are all the results from the weekend:


Manchester United 0-2 Manchester City
Chelsea 0-0 Liverpool
Arsenal 2-0 Blackburn
Aston Villa 4-1 Newcastle United
Bolton 0-1 Portsmouth
Derby 0-3 Tottenham
Middlesborough 1-0 Fulham
Sunderland 2-0 Wigan
West Ham 1-1 Birmingham
Everton 1-0 Reading

Although Arsenal are 5 points ahead of their rivals, the season is far from over with 12 games and 36 points left to play for. Many people are suggesting it's Arsenal's title to lose now, but they have to still visit Old Trafford and Stamford Bridge and you can never write off Manchester United and Chelsea. Whatever happens, this season's title race promises to be one of the best ever.

Derby County has become the latest club to be taken over by American Investors. Sports Investment Company GSE is the club's new owner, buying the club for around 50 million pounds. Andy Appleby, being the head of GSE, is the main man behind the takeover, taking over a place on the Derby board. Adam Pearson retains his position of the club Chairman while Tom Glick, an ex-chief marketing officer for the New Jersey Nets NBA team, takes over the role of President and Chief Executive.

The deal has good value for both sides involved. As the GSE has not incurred any debts taking over Derby and any previous debts have been wiped off, the club's financial future has been secured. The club will also have money to bring in new players , in infrastructure facilities and upgrade the stadium. As for GSE, they have bought a premiership club at the lowest possible price. Although Derby will go down this season, they have got every chance of bouncing straight back-up and stay in the premiership for a long time. If this happens, it will ensure profits and huge returns on investment for the GSE.

However,many fans are apprehensive of American ownership of Football clubs. They think that the Americans don't understand the game and they are getting involved in the game only for the money. It is true that investors want profit in return of their investment, but most Americans so have the best interests of their respective clubs at heart. You have to only look as far as Aston Villa and Manchester United to comprehend the benefits that come with American ownership. Every investor is not like Messrs Hicks and Gillet (who have destablished Liverpool to a great degree). Therefore, all fans should give American owners a chance and not slate them without any reason whatsoever.

In contrast, other fans get over-excited when their clubs get new owners, thinking their club will now be successful for sure. This has happened to a great proportion of Derby fans too. Many are already dreaming of becoming a established Premier League club, with some even going as far as to hope for a top-ten finish.Even Paul Jewell,the manager,has said "The people who have come in have the same ambition and excitement as I have to build Derby into a top 10 Premier League team." This is a very unrealistic aim, and it would be better for Derby officials and players to focus on more reasonable,short-term goals.

The fact is, with so many clubs getting new rich owners, spending lots of money will not guarantee success. So, Derby fans must lower their expectations. However, whatever happens at the club now, interesting times lie for Derby County ahead.

Today, Manchester United meet Manchester City for the second Manchester derby of the season. Being the first match that Manchester United will play since the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster, it is going to be highly emotional affair. There will be a minute's silence before the match, and all United fans will be hoping that no City fool will disturb the mark of respect.

United are not firing all cylinders at the moment. They slipped up against Spurs last time around at White Hart Lane, managing only a draw. But Sir Alex has argued that the lost can be seen as a point gained rather than two lost. From Ronaldo and Tevez, nobody seems to score and the return of Scholes has given Sir Alex a midfield selection dilemma.

Manchester City have also experienced a drastic drop in their fortunes. their away form has never been great and now they have started to struggle at home too. Their defence has started to leak goals and their strikers don't seem to score enough goals. Now Benjani has cmpleted his move to City he will surely help them in the scoring department.

Rooney and Evra are suspended for today's game, which is quite a blow for United.. This puts an extra responsibility on Ronaldo and Tevez to score today. There is speculation that teenage-striker might be included in the starting line-up, but think he will be on the bench. motivated by the Munich disaster anniversary and the legend of Busby Babes,I expect United to go out all guns blazing. Given City's recent poor form and pathetic away record,able to cope with United's attack. Derbies are always close affairs,bu I expect United to be just too strong for City today.

Prediction: 3-1

Today's second match is a 'Big-Four' clash between Chelsea and Liverpool at Stamford Bridge. No one can deny that Chelsea are on a run of real good form. prior to thier draw against Portsmouth, they had chalked up nine straight victories in all competitions,even without thir African stars,JT and Lampard. Signing Anelka has been a huge plus for them and strangely, the injuries have helped their cause, allowing Grant to pick a settled side on a consistent basis.

In contrast, no one can deny that Liverpool are in a sort of a mini-crisis. Board-room problems have coincided with poor on-the-field results. Already out of the title race, now they face a tough battle to for the fouth-place and Benitez seems on the bring of the sack.

The return of Mikel and Lampard will further boost Chelsea. on the other hand Torres is out for Liverpool which makes thier chances of getting a win at Stamford Bridge almost non-existent. I expect Chelsea to have lots of possessin and play thier usual brand of football. Like their recent matches, they will convert their possession into goals,making it very difficult for Liverpool. In the end, I expect the Blues to run out quite comfortable winners tonight.

Pediction: 2-0

When Kevin Keegan took over at Newcastle United about 3 weeks ago, he was labelled a Messiah by the Geordie fans, thinking that he will bring instant success to the club. But since then events suggest that Keegan's time at St. James Park may already be ticking down.

The first blow to Kevin Keegan's second reign came when Alan Shearer, the Geordie hero, refused a accept a role at Newcastle. Most fans wanted Shearer to become Keegan's assisstant, or take any role in the back-room staff or the board. But Keegan was unable to do so. Many fans suspect this happened because of some animosity between Shearer and Keegan. to compound the fans' misery, Shearer said that Newcastle is not the only club he would like to manage.

The second blow was Jonathan Woodgate's refusal to come to Newcastle. Keegan needed sound central defender badly, and Woodgate was the likely signing. And Newcastle even had their bid accepted by Middlesborough. But Woodgate snubbed Newcastle, signing instead for rivals Tottenham. Moreover, Keegan failed to make any notable signings too.

The single-most incident that undermined Keegan was the board's appointment of Dennis Wise as director of football, without Keegan's approval. Signals coming from Newcastle suggested they wanted to appoint a director of football, and chairman Mike Ashley and Chief Executive Chris Mort duly did so when they appointed Wise to take up the post. The board said that Wise's job is to look after the transfers, not to interfere in the first team affairs. This move led Keegan declaring he is still incharge of the first-team too and insist Wise will appoint to him. But past evidence incidents Chelsea and Tottenham suggest that the appointment of director of football leads to friction between him and the manager as each one tries to interfere in each other's job. This unsettles the team and ultimately leads to the manager being sacked. This can happen to Keegan too.

To add to these events, Newcastle's on-the-field performance has remained woeful. Thay are winless under Keegan, drawing one and losing three of the four games they have played. Owen's goal in the last Newcastle match was the first the Magpies have scored in about 700 minutes. The defence remains as poor as always with the strikers seeming totally incapable of regaining their scoring touch. If their form does not pick up quickly, they could find themselves fighting relegation.

These incidents suggest that Keegan's second tenure as magpies manger may well be short-lived. I can see him not being in-charge come next season. Although in my opinion, Mike Ashley should stick with Keegan, allowing him to start the next season as manager. Until then Keegan will be able to assemble a squad that he likes and prepare them thoroughly. If Keegan till well into next season, only then he will be able to know the correct answer of the question; 'Has Keegan still got what it takes to lead Newcastle to glory?'

January transfer window is a time when nearly all of the teams try to bring in aa few players to achieve their goals, be it fighting off relegation , qualifying for Europe or winning a trophy. This year 's January Transfer window saw a record 150 million pounds (more than double of the previous record) splashed by the clubs, and some wierd transfers taking place.

There was relatively little transfer activity at the top. SAF and Arsene Wenger are not big fans of bringing in players in January, and therefore, they made one signings each this time around. Manchester United signed Manucho , a 24-year old Angolan striker, with Arsenal signing a Gillingham prospect Luke Freeman. At Liverpool, Rafael Benitez got his wishes as they signed Skrtel, which will give him cover for centre-back that he craved. Moreover, the 17 million pounds transfer of Mascherano is expected to go through in the next few days.

Unsurprisingly, Chelsea were the biggest spenders, manging to sign Serbian defender Ivanovic and a young Argentine prospect. But Chelsea's biggest signing was Nicolas Anelka from Bolton for 15million pounds. As I have said before, he is a quality player and a natural goalscorer, and eventually, can go on to replace Drogba at Stamford Bridge.

There was a lot of activity in mid-table,with quite a few of the clubs spending big. Tottenham manager Juande Ramos shored up his defense by signing Woodgate and the brazilian Gilberto from Middlesborough and Hertha Berlin respectfully. They even managed to snap-up Scottish international right-back Alan Hutton on the last day, and many people are of the view that he could be a huge signing for them.

Harry Redknapp has an uncanny naec of attracting quality players to the south coast, and he managed to do it yet again. Milan Baros arrived from Lyon on loan, whereas Diarra came in from Arsenal to strengthen the midfield. On the last day, Pompey managed to wrap up the signing of the unpredictable Jermain Defoe from Tottenham. Surprisingly, Redknapp decided to sell Benjani to Manchester City. Due to Benjani's late arrival in Manchester, the move hit a snag but has now been completed. I don't understand this transfer at all, as Benjani was playing so well at Fratton Park. Redknapp may rue the day he decided to let him go.

Generally, Manchester City find it difficult to sign players in January as Thaksin did not live up to his promises of spending miilions on big players. Apart from Benjani, their only major transfer activity was the loan signing of Nery Castillo from Shakhtar Donetsk. The same happened to Kevin Keegan at Newcastle, as they failed to bring in fresh blood that was so desperately needed.The fact is, when your team is struggling so badly, you can't persuade players to sign for you.


A lot of teams fighting relegation managed to make good signings, and some of them will be clearly responsible for keeping their team in the Premiership come end of the season. Top of the list were Middlesborough, who broke their transfer-record to lure Afonso Alves to the Teeside. The capture of the "Ugly Duckling" could prove to be huge coup to Southgate's team as he was linked with many European Giants. Birmingham manger Alex Mcleish was able to convincw his compatriot James Mcfadden to come to St. Andrews and Wigan snatched Marlon King of Watford from right under Fulham's noses for 5 million pounds. Speaking of Fulham, they made a number of signings including Norwegian giant defender Hangeland and veteran Lietmanen, but there are doubts wether they will be able to save the West London club from dropping down the Championship. Roy Keane was also able to bring new players which included ex-teammates Phil Bardsley and Andy Reid. Finally, even Derby managed to conclude many deals. Savage, Stubbs, Caroll and Ghaly have all arrived at Pride Park but I fear its a cause of too little, too late for them.

Many of the clubs have spent loads of money, but making expensive signings is no guarantee for success. Only time will tell which players are able to pull it off at their new clubs, and which players are labelled "big-money flops".

Something is different about Arsenal this season. Just when you think they are going to stutter, they grind out another fantastic result. This time it was a 3-1 victory over Manchester City, ending the citizens unbeaten run at the eastlands. Adebayor (twice) and Eduardo came up with the goals for the Gunners with Gelson netting for City. Arsenal have added resilience to their already brilliant game this season, and have shown that they have got what it takes to push United all the way.

And just when you think that Manchester United are going to go on a long winning run, they slip up at an away game. Thay did it again, this time against Tottenham. Berbatov gave Spurs the lead, and they outplayed United for the best part of the match, only to be denied victory by a late late Tevaz goal from a corner.The thing to note is United played much better after substitutions, and therefore Sir Alex should look to start with Anderson much more.

Chelsea played out a highly entertaining draw at Fratton Park. Anelka got his first Premiership goal for the Blues, but Chelsea's advantage was cancelled out by Pompey debutant Jermain Defoe. He also had a lot of chances to score the winner, but missed each one of them. In the end, Chelsea should be happy with a point.

As expected, Liverpool got their first win since Boxing Day, as they defeated Roy Keane's Sunderland 3-0. Peter Crouch netted his first Premier League for months, justifying the fans, who think he should be included in the starting line-up.

At St. James Park, Newcastle fans were left disappointed , as Kevin Keegan's men failed to earn 3 points yet again. Owen found his way to the back of the net again, but Middlesborough were playing very well and they duly equalised through Rob Huth.

In other matches, Everton were denied a win at Blackburn by controversial offside decision, Roy Hodgson got his first win as Fulham manger as his side beat Aston Villa 2-1, thanks to returning Bullard. Birmingham were held at home by an improving Derby, Bolton got their first away win of the season at the Madejski stadium and Wigan saw off West Ham's challenge at the JJB, courtesy of a Kevin Kilbane header.

After months of speculation, Nicolas Anelka(real name Abdul-salaam Bilal) has finally left Bolton. Although he was linked with many clubs,including Manchester United,it is Chelsea who have signed him Manager Avram Grant is delighted that Chelsea have been able to sign their main transfer ,and many think they have pulled off a real coup. The $30 million that Chelsea paid Bolton to secure Anelka's services have made him the most expensive player in history of football.

Anelka's footballing abilities have never been in doubt . He is probably one of the best strikers in the world at the moment, possessing terrific pace and brilliant finishing ability. He is one of those few players that will score 9 times out of 10 in one-on-one situation with the Goal-keeper. He is at equal ease when he plays with a partner or alone upfront. Not only does he score goals ,but he chips in with quite a few assists as well. He had already scored 11 goals for Bolton this season,which is an outstanding achievement considering the fact that Bolton are fighting relegation.

It is Anelka's off-the-pitch antics that have blighted his football career and tarnished his image. He even got the title of 'Le Sulk' when he demanded a move to Real Madrid during his time at Arsenal. But I think Anelka greatly improved at Bolton and he is past his bad-boy days now.

Anelka has said that Chelsea will be his last club. I doubt this statement very much, but there is a great chance that this WILL be Anelka's last shot at the big time. This would be a huge motivating factor for him to do well. It will be interesting to see whether Anelka plays with Drogba. Although they may play together this season, the general feeling is that Drogba will leave Chelsea in the summer and Anelka has been bought to replace him. Regardless of the fact Drogba stays or not'Anelka has the potential to be a hit and other teams should fear his presence at Stamford bridge. He has a crucial role in this season's title race too. if Anelka fires,You can expect Chelsea to push manchester United and Arsenal all the way or the premiership crown.

Chelsea have also completed the signing of 23-year old Serbian defender,Branislav Ivanovic, from Russian outfit Locomotiv Moscow. He ahas already earned 9 international caps and partners Manchester united's Nemanja Vidic in the heart of Serbia's defence. Understandably, Old Trafford was thought to be his next destination. He was even linked with Juventus,Inter Milan and AC Milan,but Chelsea managed to land him in the end.Being a versatile player,He can play all across the defence and in a holding midfield role. In my view, has been bought for the future,with his current role being to provide cover for the first-choice players.This is partly due to the fact that foreign players take at least 6 months to adjust to the premiership. If he turns out to be anything as good as Vidic, Chelsea will have gem on their hands. His arrival will also signal the end of Tal Ben haim's time on Stamford Bridge,and I think the Israeli defender will be off to a mid-table club soon.

Chelsea have shown they are not afraid to keep spending big. Let's see if they take another dip in the transfer market this January.

Last night, Reading gave Manchester United a good contest and managed to keep United at bay for 75 minutes. But then, the inevitable happened and United went ahead. Ronaldo also scored in the stoppage time, ensuring another victory for the Red Devils and maintaining their top spot.

There were two major changes for United in their starting line-up.Hargreaves returned in midfield in place of Anderson, while park replaced Giggs on the left wing. Steve Coppell opted to have a go at United, and Reading had all three of their main strikers, Doyle,Kitson and Lita, in the team.

Coppell's strategy appeared to have succeeded when the first real goal scoring chance went to Kitson but Vidic kept him from scoring.United dominated the next 30 minutes but their finishing let them down and Hahnemann made a stunning save from a Hargreaves free-kick which looked destined for the top-corner. After that, Reading came back into the game and Kitson again had an excellent oppurtunity to score. With Van Der Sar off his line, he unleashed a great shot from range but the back-tracking Ferdinand cleared the danger to save his keeper's blushes.

In the second half, United re-discovered their rhythm, and Reading were forced to play a counter-attacking game. But the Reading defence stood strong and it seemed only a moment of brilliance will break the dead-lock. That moment duly arrived 15 minutes from time. Tevez chipped in an excellent ball into the penalty area which Rooney guided into the net through a deft touch. But there was a nervous finish for United as reading chased an equaliser. James Harper came agonisingly close to scoring, but it proved to be the last chance for Reading to rescue something from the game as Ronaldo scored in the stoppage time to finish a swift counter-attack to ensure 3 points for United.

In my view, most of the credit for the victory should go to the United defence. They managed to thwart all of the Reading's attacks, keeping yet another clean-sheet. Carrick and Hargreaves were quite good but Park looked distinctly average. Rooney managed to score at last, and hopefully, he will go on a scoring run again. Ronaldo looked off-colour as all of his 7 shots were prior to the goal were off-target. But he has taken his seasons tally to 23 goals already and no-one can blame him. United's finishing was poor too, which might persuade Sir Alex to buy another striker in January or in the summer.

After the match Sir Alex said:
"We had a number of chances in last third but we started to worry that we weren't going to get the goal."
"Credit to Reading who never stopped working and really made us work."
"It was a really open match. Our own attacking play wasn't at its best and more care was needed up front. We scored at the right time and held on."

To sum it up, it was a great win for United as Reading are a bit of a bogey team for them and they appear to be on course to retain the title. Now the team heads to Saudi Arabia to play a friendly. The wisdom of such a trip is disputed, and I do hope that there are no injuries to any of our key players during the tour.

Another premiership weekend is nearly upon us. This time, Manchester United travel to the Madejski stadium to face Reading. At this time of the year, all is looking good for United. Top of the table, with no major injury worries, and clashes to look forward to in the Champions League and the FA Cup. United's players have had a week's rest, and they should really up for this game. Although Reading's home form has been quite good, I don't see them getting anything out of this game.

Arsenal face Fulham in a London derby. The Gunners are suffering a little blip right now. They drew with Birmingham last week, and they should have been beaten by Tottenham in the Carling Cup. They are also missing Toure. Not only he is as solid as a rock in defence, he also started quite a lot of their attacks by virtue of his excellent distribution. Therefore I think this match is going to be a lot closer than most people think,but Arsenal will be able to grind out a result in the end.

Chelsea are away to Birmingham, and I see birmingham making it difficult for Avram Grant's side. They got a good result at The Emirates last time around,and this would give them a big boost. But I think Chelsea's superior quality will tell and they will get the 3 points they need from this game. Anelka will make his full debut, and he has a good chance of scoring his first goal for the Blues.

The Monday Night fixture sees Liverpool hosting Aston Villa . This season , Martin O'Neil and his side are realistically chasing the fourth place and they will be extra-motivated for this game. Liverpool are not playing well these days, and it seems doubts sorrounding over Rafael Benitez's future and all the boardroom uncertainity is finally affecting the players. I think this will be a really interesting match, and Liverpool will be victorious in the end, securing Rafael Benitez's future-for now.

This is what I think will happen in all the matches of this weekend.

Birmingham v Chelsea 1-2
Blackburn v Middlesborough 2-0
Fulham v Arsenal 1-2
Portsmouth v Derby 2-0
Reading v Manchester United 1-2
Tottenham v Sunderland 3-0
Newcastle v Bolton 3-1
Wigan v Everton 1-1
Manchester City v West Ham 1-0
Liverpool v Aston Villa 2-1

This is how I did with my predictions last week. Predictions are in the brackets.
Arsenal 1-1 Birmingham (3-0)
Aston Villa 3-1 Reading (2-1)
Bolton 1-2 Blackburn (1-1)
Chelsea 2-0 Tottenham (1-1)
Derby 0-1 Wigan (1-1)
Everton 1-0 Man City (1-1)
Man Utd 6-0 Newcastle (4-0)
Middlesbrough 1-1 Liverpool (1-1)
Sunderland 2-0 Portsmouth (1-2)
West Ham 2-1 Fulham (2-0)
I got FOUR results right and ONE perfect score

Newcastle have announced that Kevin Keegan will be their new manager,who is making a dramatic return to management after leaving manchester city in 2005.He is already being regarded as a messiah by the geordie fans. Personally,I think his appointment is a good move by the club as they could not have found any better candidates for the job other than keegan.Also,I think keegan will be able bring some stability to the club and rujuvenate the side. Now I can see Newcastle making a decent finish to the season.Reaction to this remarkable news is certain to follow over the next few days.

Tom Hicks has publicly revealed what many of Football fans have suspected,that he had a meeting with Jurgen Klinsmann in Amearica back in November and offered him the Liverpool manager's job. Klinsmann turned him down,and since then Bayern Munich have announced that he will be their new manager come June.Hicks said that the purpose of thr meeting was to have 'insurance' in case Rafael Benitez left to join Real Madrid or any other club.This meeting is what led to Rafa's infamous outburst against the owners in a pre-match conference in November.This is what Hicks exactly said:

"We attempted to negotiate an option as an insurance policy... if Rafa left for Real Madrid or other clubs rumoured, " Hicks told the Liverpool Echo.

He added: "Or in case our communication spiralled out of control."

"After George and I had our long and productive meeting with Rafa following the Manchester United match, we put all of our issues behind us and received Rafa's commitment that he wanted to stay with Liverpool," said Hicks.

"We never reached agreement on an option with Jurgen, and we are both pleased for him that he has a great opportunity to return to Germany and coach a great club team.
"Rafa has both of our support, and our communication has greatly improved." (source:BBC)

I have no clue whatsoever as to why Hicks chose to inform the press about this meeting.As Alan Hansen has said,maybe he thought the tabloids will get hold of the story soon enough and it would be better to tell the world about the meeting himself. If truth is to be told The Sun did carry a story about the meeting back in november or december. This revelation has seriously undermined Rafa. When an owner offers the manager's job to somebody, it clearly shows he is not confident in the current manager,. I don't care what excuses Hicks mentions,I think what he has done is unethical,outrageous and disrespectful towards Rafael Benitez. I believe he has always intended to,and still plans to, get rid of Benitez. And now this revelation has effectively turned Benitez into a dead man walking. If I was Benitez,I would have left Liverpool now. In any case,I expect Benitez to get the sack by the summer.(I think Benitez and Liverpool should part company also because Liverpool are not playing well and have failed to mount a serious title challenge in the Premier League,but that's another story.)
This season,Premiership clubs' owners and chairmen have shown an alarming degree of impatience withe thier managers. Nine managers have already left thier clubs this season snd I think Benitez is the favourite to be the next one to go.

On Saturday, Manchester United faced managerless Newcastle at Old Trafford. Before the match, I had a feeling that United were playing against the Magpies at just the right time. This is exactly what happened as United notched up an incredible 6 goals a woeful Newcastle defence.

Sir Alex fielded his best available eleven players. Rooney and Tevez started upfront, Giggs and Ronaldo took their positions at either wing and Carrick partnered Anderson in midfield. in defence, O'Shea replaced the suspended Wes Brown.

The Manchester United players took a while to get going which resulted in a goalless first-half. Despite dominating possession, they failed to create many clear-cut chances, making the Newcastle defence look unusually good. United had two good penalty shouts, but I can't blame Rob Styles for not giving them. It was Newcastle who were most hard-done by, as Owen's strike was ruled out due a wrong offside flag.

And Newcastle were made to rue the mistake by the assisstant referee as United turned on the style in the second-half. The Magpies defence was ripped apart countless times, and they had no answer to Man utd's passing and movement. Ronaldo scored from the free-kick to open up the flood-gates.Soon after this,calamitous defending by Jose Enrique and Shay Given allowed Tevez to score an easy goal.A simply sublime foer-man move led to united's third,with Ronaldo showing excellent skill and composure to control Tevez's pass and bury it into the net.Ferdinand volleyed in the fourth,scoring a goal any striker in the world would be proud of.Even after this,United kept up the pressure and Ronaldo got his first-ever hat-trick for the red devils as a deflection carried his shot past Given. Tevez rounded the scoring,when the linesman correctly judged that his shot crossed the line.Alan Smith did not agree,and the ref gave him a straight red when he foolishly confronted the referee.

Man Utd scored six when they could easily have scored beyond ten.Newcastle cleared the ball off the line four times and I lost count of united'ds total Goal scoring oppurtunities. Towards the end of the match,it was like men against boys,professionals against amateurs and a Premiership club against a pub team. Such one-sided matches are rare,and you really enjoy if the dominating team is the team you support.

Needless to say,Ronaldo was absolutely brilliant in the match,taking his tally of goals to 22 for the season.Also,it is good to see that Tevez's finishing is up to the mark.It is interesting to note that Roonry failed to score,but I think he will go on a scoring run soon enough.All in all,it was an awesome,breath-taking display of beautiful football by man utd.(That which othe football owners and managers crave for,most notably, Roman Abramovich).

As far as Newcastle is concerned,they need to appoint a manager as soon as possible and bring in a few players in the transfer window. If they don't improve their game, I think they have an outside chance of being relegated.

To cap off a wonderful weekend for United, Arsenal vould only manage a draw against Birmingham. (I think that the Gunners took Birmingham lightly, and missed their defensive stalwart Toure, who has gone for AFCON). After this performance, United should be able to hold on the first spot for some time, if not until the end of the season.

Premiership is back again this weekend and the most high-profile match sees Tottenham visiting Chelsea.I think Spurs have a real chance of causing an upset this time around, and a draw looks the most likely result to me.But I would not not bet against Anelka scoring the winner for the blues.Manchester United face Newcastle at Old Trafford when the Magpies are in all sorts of trouble.I fancy United to dish out a bashing to a very poor Newcastle side.Arsenal have an easy game against Birmingham City and whatever side the Gunners put out,it will be just too strong for Birmingham.Liverpool have a tricky trip in prospect to the Riverside to play Middlesborough,who always seem to raise their game against the 'Big Four'.Liverpool are not in any sort of great rhythm and I feel Boro have a real chance of getting a draw.This is what i think will happen in all the 10 games of the premier league being played this weekend.

Arsenal v Birmingham 3-0
Aston Villa v Reading 2-1
Chelsea v Tottenham 1-1
Derby v Wigan 1-1
Everton v Manchester City 1-1
Boro v Liverpool 1-1
West Ham v Fulham 2-0
Manchester United v Newcastle 4-0
Sunderland v Portsmouth 1-2
Bolton v Blackburn 1-1

Here's how I did with my predictions last week. Predictions are in brackets.

Birmingham 1-1 Reading (2-1)

Derby 0-1 Middlesborough (1-1)

Manchester City 4-2 Bolton (1-0)

Portsmouth 0-1 Tottenham (2-1)

Sunderland 1-1 Aston Villa (1-2)

West Ham 0-2 Everton (1-1)

Wigan 5-3 Blackburn (1-1)

Fulham 0-1 Newcastle (2-2)


Liverpool 0-1 Manchester United (0-1)

Arsenal 1-0 Chelsea (1-1)


Coming to this weekend, the north-London derby is the biggest fixture. Under Juande Ramos, Tottenham have a real chance of upsetting Arsenal. Manchester United face Everton on Sunday and despite Everton's excellent recent form, I feel United will be too strong for them. Chelsea face a tough to Ewood Park to meet Blackburn Rovers, and I think Chelsea can struggle against them. Portsmouth have the best away record in the league, and they now come
against Liverpool at Anfield. Although Liverpool can easily beat them, I am going for a draw in this match. Here are all of my predictions for this weekend's round of matches.


Arsenal v Tottenham 3-1

Aston Villa v Mancheste City 2-1

Bolton v Birmingham 1-0

Fulham v Wigan 2-2

Liverpool v Portsmouth 1-1

Middlesborough v West Ham 2-1

Reading v Sunderland 2-1

Manchester United v Everton 3-0

Newcastle v Derby 4-1

Blackburn v Chelsea 1-1

'Grand slam' Sunday failed to be a spectacle in terms of quality, but it did provide us with a couple of intriguing and intense matches. In the first match, Manchester United pulled off a smash-and-grab single-goal victory at Anfield over Liverpool. In the following match, Arsenal beat Chelsea comprehensively, also by a 1-0 scoreline.

The first match, in the words of SAF, was a typical United-Liverpool clash. In these kind of matches, passion and emotion takes precedence over other things. This often results in a dull, scrappy affair and this is what happened this time as well. There were no openings and clear-cut chances in the first-half, except when Edwin van der Sar inexplicably decided to come off his line two times, both times colliding with his own defenders. On the first occassion, Anderson cleared off the line and Evra's exceptional last ditch defending kept Liverpool from scoring the second time. The first half was poised to end goalless when Liverpool's defence switched off from a corner, allowing Tevez to expertly turn in a Rooney shot.

In the second half, United seemed content to soak up the pressure and play a counter-attacking game. Again, Liverpool failed to make any decent chances. Their main threat was Ryan Babel who came on for Harry Kewell. He gave Evra something to think about and his long-range shot, which was inches wide of the post, was as good as it got for Liverpool. Wayne Rooney got a chance to kill the game once and for all from a brilliant Ronaldo cross but he miss with only the goalkeeper to beat. But United did not pay for this miss, hanging on for another memorable win at Anfield.

This match prooves that United not only have attacking flair in their team, but also a great defensive line-up which could be relied upon in big matches. It also shows Liverpool don't have enough creativity to open up resolute defences. Kuyt, despite his high work-rate, is not the ideal partner for Torres up-front and Benitez should start with Crouch instead of Kuyt as much as possible.

The second game between Arsenal and Chelsea was also a highly passionate affair. Ashley Cole's return to his old club was the highlight of the match. He was jeered everytime he touched the ball and suffered great abuse at the hands of the Gunners faithful.
The first half was devoid of any quality and tackles were flying everywhere. First Terry went in hard at Fabregas ,then Eboue caught Terry late with his foot. Terry was unable to continue playing and subsequent scans have revealed a broken metatarsal. Eboue got injured himself,leaving the field on a stretcher.Coming back to the match, Arsenal took the lead at the stroke of half-time. Surprisingly,Cech failed to deal with a routine corner,allowing Gallas to head home gleefully.

The second half was much more open and free-flowing. Shaun Wright-Phillips got an excellent oppurtunity but missed, summing up his poor display. Overall, Arsenal dominated the game and had many great chances to score a second goal to put the game beyond Chelsea's reach, but each time they failed to convert spectacularly. In stark contrast, Chelsea did not trouble Almunia a great deal. Therefore, Arsenal truly deserved the win.

This win is a huge boost for Arsenal.It has prooven the maturity and resilience of Arsene Wenger's young team.At the same time,the loss is a huge blow to Chelsea's title aspirations. Chelsea extended Avram Grant's contract just before the match, but the results against the top teams so far have shown he is not the right man for the job. John Terry will be out for at least six weeks following his injury which has further compounded Chelsea's misery. I would also have to say that both teams did not show any genuine quality throughout the match. It was Cech's mistake that handed the game to Arsenal.

So,what conclusions can be drawn about the title race from 'Grand Slam' Sunday? Firstly,Liverpool (now 10 points behind Arsenal and 9 points behind United),even at this early stage,can be ruled out of the race because of their lack of consistency. In my view,United are the firm favourites.They have too much quality and are looking unstoppable.
Both Arsenal and Chelsea, on Sunday's evidence, would have to greatly improve their game if they are to seriously challenge United. If this does not happen, I can see United picking up their 10th premiership crown come next May.