Chelsea 1 – 0 Porto Hilight UEFA Champion 2009

Chelsea 1 – 0 Porto Hilight UEFA Champion 2009

Besiktas 0 – 1 Manchester United (UEFA Champion League)

Hilight Clip Video for Besiktas 0 – 1 Manchester United

Fergie has money to spend. Should he spend it?

A couple of weeks ago Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said that he didn’t expect to make any more signings during the summer. After the sale of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid for £80 million, it was expected that some big names might be on their way to Old Trafford.

As it stands, United have only bought striker Michael Owen for free as well as winger Antonio Valencia, midfielder Gabriel Obertan and forward Mame Biram Diouf, to replace Ronaldo and the departing Carlos Tevez who’s loan spell came to an end.

Debt

The fact that United have not ’spent big’ has led some people to suggest that the funds from the Ronaldo transfer were being used to pay off some of the club’s enormous debt rather than being given to Ferguson to add to his squad.

Throughout the summer United have been linked to just about every top player, including the likes of French striker Karim Benzema, Brazilian forward Douglas Costa, French playmaker Franck Ribery and Spain striker David Villa. Benzema chose to go to Real Madrid and it seems that United’s interest in the other three has all but gone.

Funds

Yesterday a spokesman for the Glazer family who own the Old Trafford club made it clear that funds are available to Sir Alex if he finds the right sort of players.

“The manager has a significant amount of money to invest. We are talking about a net amount of about £60 million. That cash can be reinvested in the squad. The manager has not been able to locate players that fit the Manchester United mindset. You don’t want to pay for unmotivated players not willing to give their all.”

Emergence

The signings of young players such as Tosic and Obertan, together with the emergence of the likes of the Rafael twins, Gibson and Macheda and the slow blooding of Ben Foster to replace Van der Sar, may just be pointers to the fact that the pundit I heard talking may just have a point.

Do you think Sir Alex would be right to start rebuilding now or should he spend that £60 million on established big name players

Roma wants to keep Totti and De Rossi

Roma coach Luciano Spalletti has admitted that he is awaiting bids for several of their players in the coming weeks.

But Spalletti insists both Francesco Totti and Daniele De Rossi will remain at the club.

“I think it’s only a matter of time before someone comes knocking to ask about some of our players,” Spalletti declared to Corriere dello Sport.

“We will invest in any replacements once we know what areas need reinforcing following the departure of one of our own. [Philippe] Mexes and Juan are staying put, I have worked hard to develop them and they give the side an added stability. We want to keep [Francesco] Totti, whilst [Daniele] De Rossi is a player that simply cannot be released.”

from www.soccernews.com

Inter cancel Adriano's contract

Inter Milan have cancelled the contract of their unsettled Brazilian striker Adriano.

The 27-year-old announced earlier this month that he was taking a break from the game and would stay in Brazil to rethink his career.

In a statement, Inter thanked the player for "his 74 goals and the eight years we spent together."

The move was widely expected with his contract with the club due to run out at the end of next season.

Adriano did not return to Italy after Brazil's World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and Peru, in which he was an unused substitute.

He said at the time: "I've lost the happiness of playing. I wouldn't like to go back to Italy, I want to live in peace here in Brazil.

Adriano joined Inter in 2001 but had loan spells with Fiorentina for the first half of 2002, then Parma (late 2002 to January 2004) and finally Sao Paulo (in the first half of 2008).

He played 177 times for Inter, scoring 48 goals in 123 league appearances and 18 in 35 European matches and won the Serie A title in 2006, 2007 and 2008 as well as two Italian Cups.

Source: bbc.co.uk/sports

English Angle: England Don't Need A No. 9 To Win In 2010

Fabio Capello's squad, as ever, looks a little short up front, but Goal.com's Alan Dawson believes this needn't hold back the Three Lions on their quest to re-establish themselves as one of the international scene's top teams...

Italy proved just as much with their 2006 World Cup squad as the awkward Luca Toni managed to record just two goals during that competition. The goal-scoring burden fell on the shoulders of the supporting Azzurri cast, with players such as Andrea Pirlo, Francesco Totti, Gianluca Zambrotta, Alessandro Del Piero, Fabio Grosso and Marco Materazzi lending their weight towards the goal-getting effort.

England manager Fabio Capello does not have the luxury of calling up a relentlessly net-bulging No. 9 like the Alan Shearers, Jimmy Greaves and the Bobby Charltons of the past, so, bar Michael Owen - should the northern crock ever return to a sustained run of full match fitness - the Italian tactician should arguably focus more on where the Three Lions are blessed with quality in abundance: the midfield.

By skirting clear of England's favoured 4-4-2 formation - a system that has not borne fruit for an unwanted number of years now - and opting for the more continental and flexible 4-2-3-1, Capello can suitably answer the question of whether Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard can play in the same team together. All too often they were slotted into the centre of the 4-4-2 and, consequently, England fans were left underwhelmed as they failed to dovetail.

Under Rafael Benitez at Liverpool, Gerrard is flourishing more than ever and calls from esteemed figureheads such as Zinedine Zidane have declared that the Scouse skipper is the best in the world. The influence he has at club-level certainly seems to be unrivalled and so Capello's primary task must be replicating that on the international arena, by, presumably, continuing to deploy him in the No. 10's role.

How can you accommodate the pair?

A 4-4-2 can often be too rigid and concrete, with set roles too defined, whereas the 4-2-3-1 has room for negotiation, meaning that Gerrard could even be positioned further up-field. It is possible that he could perform the same duties as his club's local rival Tim Cahill has recently been doing with Everton while they suffered from a striking crisis.

Both Gerrard and Rooney can effectively share the role of the spearheading trequartista. They would then have to rely on an incoming midfield or two - from Frank Lampard; Theo Walcott; Ashley Young; Shaun Wright-Phillips; the resurgent Aaron Lennon; and Joe Cole (when he returns) - to take advantage of the second ball.

Comparisons between Gerrard and Lampard are futile and ultimately pointless. They play different roles. Gerrard now supports Fernando Torres while Lampard is effectively an attack-minded box-to-box midfielder. His defensive work is often understated. He is strong in the tackle and his positional sense in the deeper areas of the midfield is nothing short of wise.

Source: goal.com

Evra says France's fans lack football culture

France defender Patrice Evra has slammed French fans, claiming their lack of support for the national team shows a lack of football culture and that their support paled in comparison to that he receives at Manchester United.

A disastrous Euro 2008 saw them eliminated at the group stage after failing to win a match and French players were jeered by their own fans at the Stade Velodrome during a friendly defeat by Argentina last month and Evra, who was sidelined for the match, has hit out at the boo boys.

"I was disappointed to see the fans shouting 'ola' when the Argentinians were doing their tricks," he told France sports daily L'Equipe.

"(Manchester United team-mate and Argentina striker Carlos) Tevez, when he came back from international duty, told me he felt as if he was playing in Buenos Aires.

"There were (Diego) Maradona and Argentina flags in the stands. I still haven't seen a (Thierry) Henry flag or a (Franck) Ribery one at the Stade de France.

"The supporters need to be behind us. If they want us to get to the World Cup they will need to do something different."

Evra added: "We don't have the sporting culture of Brazilian, Argentinian, Italian or English fans.

"When I arrived in England, I had the impression that I was doing a new job. Because of the impact of the stadiums and the supporters...there it's a religion.

"We don't lose on purpose, nobody does that, we all go out there to win.

"In three years at United I have just lost two games on the trot for the first time, I understand that we have to win the next game. But even when we've lost, they've still applauded us, not booed."

Evra admits the players have been affected by the jeers and has urged the fans to get behind every single member of the France camp ahead of the crucial double header against Group Seven rivals Lithuania.

"It certainly affects us," he continued. "We talk about it between ourselves.

"I'm at a great club. When you have 76,000 people behind you, it gives you a massive boost, but if you hear boos from the fifth minute, you can't feel the same thing.