Is the most exciting footballing summer upon us

Last Saturday Manchester City thumped Watford 6–0 in the FA Cup final. It was the most one sided FA Cup final in a while and City equaled Burys 116 year record of the largest win a FA Cup final. After the game Manchester City were praised heavily and many think that the FA Cup final victory is just the beginning of Manchester City’s dominance of English football. City are already the most dominate side of the 10’s having won the Premier League four times, the FA Cup twice, the League Cup four times and the community shield twice. Many expect City to dominated the 20’s as they have the 10’s but there are a few issues off the field that may effect this such as the owners may stop pumping as much money as they have, the loss of Pep Guardiola and players like Leroy Sane leaving to get more match time at another club. Then there is of course all the issues surrounding the Champions League ban and issues with Man City’s revenue. This summer will be an interesting summer for City victories like the one on Saturday either began an era or are when eras peek. Can they hold onto their top players they have already lost Vincent Kompany one of the clubs longest serving players will other follow? Will they be in the Champions League and will Pep stay on or may he be tempted to join Juventus all these questions are yet to be answered.

Its not just a big summer for Manchester City but also for there rivals. Liverpool had an excellent season missing out on their first league championship in 30 years by a mere point they will be looking to strengthen in their midfield and add to their already threatening forward line to take the fight to the city. Liverpool could also be starting the season on a high should they win the Champions League next week. Without a doubt next season the rivalry between Liverpool and Man City will be more intense and we will get an early look at how these two teams line up for the season when they engage in there first battle on the 4th of August when they fight it out for the Community Shield. In the 2018/19 season Liverpool and Man City where a class above the rest but that may not be the case next season.

Tottenham who may be Champions League winners before the season starts would have had time to adjust to their new stadium and the manager will be given funds to spend should Pochettino stay on as manager. Should is a very big word in this situation as Pochettino has expressed his desire to move on if Tottenham do win the Champions League, it has become apparent that Pochettino is frustrated with the lack of funds his had available and he has down wonders for the club on a shoe string budget but big European clubs like Juventus are monitoring the situation and will be looking to tempt Pochettino away after the Champions League final. Losing Pochettino will hurt Tottenham in a big way he is without a doubt Tottenham’s biggest asset without him could they even challenge for a top four spot?

Then there are Tottenham’s London rivals Arsenal and Chelsea who have to rebuild in departments of their squad both teams will contest in the Europa League final next week but both will have an eye on next season. Chelsea cant sign players as they are banned from purchasing players during the next two transfer windows and they face a catch 22 situation with their star player Eden Hazard who probably single handely kept Chelsea competitive season. Its no secret Hazard wants to leave and join Real Madrid and with only one year left on his contract Chelsea may have no choice but to sell their star man. Chelsea did sign exciting winger Christian Pulisic and do have Callum Hudson-Oboi as replacements should Hazard leave but playing these players will go against Chelsea philosophy of playing youth over experience. Arsenal had a bit of a topsy-turvy season but many fans feel they have made decent progress under their new manager and Unai Emery has an important transfer window in which he has to improve his defense and find a replacement for Aaron Ramsey in the midfield and Peter Cech in goal if Arsenal are going to challenge for a top four position.

So Manchester City, Liverpool, Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea all have big summers ahead of them. Manchester City and Liverpool need to strengthen as they prepare to gun it out for the Premier League. Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham have to either retain key assets or strengthen their squads to be in with a shout in the title race or to get a spot for the top four. As big as these clubs summers are no club has a bigger summer then Manchester United. The club has been in the wilderness since Sir Alex has left. Manchester United once the dominant force in English football have fallen in a big way. Poor transfer dealings and failure to invest smart in the squad led Manchester United to a 6th place finish and serious under investment in the defense led them to concede over 50 goals and keep only two clean sheets. The summer has already starter with a blow as they have lost a key midfielder in Ander Herrera and other key players like David De Gea and Paul Poba could soon follow suit. Manchester United have to buy a lot of players this summer and they have to buy smart if they want to a chance at challenging for top four. Failure to do this and Manchester United may have to worry about slipping down further in the table as there is a chasing pack who are confident they can challenge for the top 6 spot.

That pack is led by a pack of Wolves who not only got promoted last year but finished as high as seven their stadium Molineux become known as the fortress for the top six who struggled to win at the stadium. Further improvement in the squad will make Wolverhampton a serious contender to break the top six dominance and challenge for at least a 5th or 6th spot. Wolves are not the only member of this pack Watford, Everton, Leicester City and West Ham all feel that they to may have an outside chance of finishing in those spots. The likes of Crystal Palace, Newcastle, Bournemouth and Burnley will all feel that they can better their finishes from the previous season. New eras have began at Brighton and Southampton whose manager will get his first transfer window. Both clubs will be looking to stay clear of the relegation zone as they narrowly missed out on relegation. Then what can the new boys Norwich and Sheffield United do who will be joined by either Aston Villa or Derby.

Its going to be a great summer and I cant wait to see and share with you how things will play out. I hope you guys have had a good read and please share your thoughts with me about what you are excited about next season.

Premier League Round Up 30/12/1988

United keep top 4 hope alive, Chelsea keep gap at 8 points

The Solskjear revolution is in full effect as Manchester United romped to a 4-1 victory over Bournemouth. Pogba picked up two goals meeting Rashfords cross after four minutes and got his second with a stunning header in the 34^th minute. Rashford made it three before half time stretching to poke the ball beyond the Bournemouth keeper. Bournemouth did hit one back before the break with Ake scoring a fine header before the break. Lukaku scored Utds fourth minutes after coming on the pitch. The win makes it three wins out of three as Utd continue to hunt for a top four spot. Bournemouth remain in 12^th place and have only won two of their last ten games.

Chelsea increased the gap with them and Arsenal to five points Kante picked up the only goal of the game in the 51^st minute thanks to an assist from David Luiz. Chelsea did have goals given offside and striker Giroud did pick up an ankle injury during the match. It was a game Chelsea dominated Palace after their heroics at the Etihad failed to register a single shot on target. Chelsea sit fourth in the table only two points behind Tottenham.

City back to winning ways, Burnley pick up a precious victory

Man City come into the game in strange form losing three of the last five games. This was a must win game for them if there were to stay in the title race. Things well when the two Silvas combined to give City the lead. Southampton then struck back with a goal from Hojberg. City may have been thinking this was a case of not again after taking the lead and losing their last two games. City got a slice of luck when Ward-Prowse converted into his own net and Aguero headered in a third before half time. City dominated the game in the 2^nd half but could not find the fourth goal. The result means City move back into 2^nd ahead of Thursdays crunch game with Liverpool. Southampton now are on the edge of the relegation zone.

Its been a tough few weeks for Sean Dyche but I am sure he slept comfortably on Sunday evening after Burnley picked up their second win in five games with a win over inform West Ham. West Ham had lost only one of their previous six games heading into the match and Burnley where on a three match losing streak. Goals from McNeil and Wood where enough to give Burnley a much needed three points that bring them on level with Southampton and three behind Newcastle and Cardiff.

Premier League Round Up 29/12/2018

Liverpool remain on top of the tree, Spurs slip to open door for City to go second

Liverpool thumped Arsenal 5-1 in this weekends big game. Maitland-Niles gave Arsenal the lead after 11 minutes but Liverpool hit back immediately with two goals from Firminio after Arsenals suspect defense went missing. Arsenals misery continued when Mane and Salah from the penalty spot made it 4-1 before half time. Arsenal gave away a second penalty in the 65^th minute which Fiminio happily converted picking up his hat trick. It was another impressive win at Anfield and Liverpools impressive home form continues they have now picked up 28 out of possible 30, scoring 27 and letting 3 in the process. Arsenal after a fantastic run of going 14 points have had their form dipped and will be nervously looking over their shoulder at a rejuvenated Manchester United chasing them for 5^th place.

Tottenham were hoping to continue to put the pressure on Liverpool and further cement second spot. Spurs were coming into the game in hot form winning their last five games on the bounce scoring an impressive 18 goals. Proceedings started perfectly with Harry Kane netting his 13^th goal of the season but as Spurs searched for their second Wolverhampton stuck back from a corner with a header from Boly in the 72^nd minute. Jimenez and Costa added two further goals to pick up the three points. After an impressive run Tottenham have opened the door to allow City to move back in second and lost ground on Liverpool.

Newcastle drop vital points at Watford, Brighton beat Everton

Newcastle have had a hard time recently after picking up three consecutive wins they had only won one of their last six games heading into the match. Watford headed into the match with better form losing two of their last six matches. Newcastle took the lead when Ronde headered into Richie cross in the 29^th minute. Newcastle missed various attempts as they searched for a second goal to kill the game of but this was to no avail and in the 82^nd minute Doucoure got the equalizer and a point for the home side.

Its been strange week for Everton fans they were thrashed 6-2 by Tottenham on Sunday then picked up their first win in six games thrashing Burnley 5-1. Brighton headed into the game with only one point from their last four games. However at home Brighton are a tough team to beat losing only twice in nine games. The good home form continued as it was Brighton’s day with Locadia’s 59^th minute strike. Everton slip to 10^th in the league.

Cardiff and Fulham pick up vital points, Huddersfield rooted to the bottom

Ranieri works a little bit of his magic as Fulham picked up a vital three points by beating fellow relegation candidate Huddersfield 1-0. Huddersfield may have felt they would leave the game with a point after Fulham missed a penalty in the 82^nd minute but it wasn’t meant to be as Mitrovic bagged a goal with Fulham on the break. Huddersfield are now without a point in their last seven matches and are five points from safety. For Fulham the picture is slightly rosier they are unbeaten in their last three and are one point from safety.

Cardiff put a bit more daylight between themselves and the relegation zone with a surprise win over Leicester. Leicester where coming into the match with impressive wins over Chelsea and Man City. Cardiff like Fulham got their goal in stoppage time when Camarasa thumped in a shot from the edge of the box. Leicester slip to 8^th in the table and Cardiff reach 16^th place.

Phatrix on the News-17th November 2009

Hello and welcome football fans, I like to introduce you to my new section called "Phatrix on the News", the format is very simple I look at todays biggest stories and give my 2cents, 2 pence, 2 yen, whatever the currency on the issue. Hope you enjoy feel free to comment.

Foster

It looks like Foster is scouting a new home after playing for England a few days ago, the 26 year old wants to become a regular in the England squad but feels he doesn't get enough chances to prove himself and has slipped to third choice after Van Der Sar and Kuszczak, Foster is not keen on leaving Man Utd but feels he has no choice. While Tottenham are on the hunt for a new goalkeeper after Cudicini had a accident last week and is out for a unknown period of time, they see Foster as a worthy replacement and willing to bid £6m, as Tottenham need a new goalkeeper and Foster wants to play in the World Cup, the best thing in my opinion is if Man Utd loan Foster to Tottenham for the rest of the season.

Van Persie + Arsenal

Van Persie seems desparate to return from his injury in record time, the Arsenal striker damaged ankle ligaments when playing for Holland, he is currently receiving treatment from a medical doctor that uses unusual methods to heal patients such as plecenta fluids to cure injuries and it is belived that she will probably using plecentas from horses,nice. At least the injury to Van Persie will give Eduardo the oppurtunity to play more regularly and their is reportadly interest from Liverpool who want to sign the striker for around £10m and Eduardo isnt the only player, Barcelona have once again shown interest in Fabregas and are willing to exchange players and cash to land him, while Madrid are preparing a bid in the £50m range.

Benetiz I'll Quit Claim, Babel loyalty

Benetiz is in the news again this time threatning to quit Liverpool if they sell star striker Fernando Torres, the Merseyside club are in a reported £250m debt and selling Torres would give them a massive cash boost with clubs reportadly wanting to pay nearly £100m for the player and Benetiz clearly warned that if a deal was done behind his back that he will quit. Some good news or bad news for Liverpool fans depending on how you look at it Babel has shown his loyalty to Liverpool and stated he wants to stay and fight for this place in a struggling Liverpool side but Babel still has much work to do if he is to get rid of his "subersub" tag which he is desparate to change to a regular.

Burley sacking

We all knew this was coming but it was confirmed today as George Burley was sacked today after failing to get Scotland to the World Cup but lets face it, it is a difficult challenge but then final straw come when they were beaten by Wales 3-0 and it was a unanamious desicion when they all voted in favour of sacking Burley, now new candidate has been named but the SFA are in no hurry as they do not play until March and the SFA will take their time to find the right person by the 2012 Euro Qualifying Campaign.

John Terry hopes Chelsea will buy big

Terry hope Chelsea spend big in January as the transfer ban on them has been lifted and belives its time that Abramovic splashed the cash to find suitable replacements for players going to play in the African Nations and also strengthen their squad, and Chelsea do not know if the transfer ban will be implemented again so he thinks its best if they buy them now, Chelsea have stayed relatively quite and in Roman's six years Chelsea have only spent £42.5m which is pennies to their billionaire owner.

Unsettled Toure wants to play in Premiership

It is belived Yaya Toure wants to move to England after falling out of favour with the Barcelona coach, two possible destination are Man Utd and Chelsea. Since the summer English clubs have been keeping an eye on events at the Nou Camp, one club he doesnt want to move to is Man City because he believes that they are not big enough and wants to play for a Champions League club, the top four are all keen to get their hands on the talented midfielder but it seems Man Utd and Chelsea are the favourites, it is also rumoured Barcelona might use him as bait to lure other player like Fabregas.

James kneely wants to pass fitness test

David James is desparate to prove that he will be fit for the World Cup, the 39 year old goalkeeper has been haunted by a knee injury belives he can be ready by Summer. England manager Capello has clearly stated the only the best and fittest players would make it to next years finals, and James wants to be on that plane the goalkeeper is in the twighlight of his career and would love to participate in a final swan song in international football.

Not Ron the money

After the big hype of his £80million to Madrid it seemed like Ronaldo no.9 shirt would be selling like hot cakes but apparantly their not, sport clothing retailers are claiming that shirt sales are nowhere near the figure that Beckham sold and sales are about a quarter of what they were when Beckham arrived, Ronaldo has started his Real Madrid career in fine form scoring an incredible 9 goals in 7 games but injry hit the 24 year old and Real have struggled without their star attraction but hopefully he be back in time for the big match against Barcelona and boy do they need him.

Legends Biographies-Pele

When the word legend is used in football few look further then Pele, during his playing days he become a footballing legend his phenomenal ability to score goals led Brazil to win 3 World Cups as well as bring unprecedented success to Santos the club he played his career for, he has also won a host of personal accolades and he and Maradona shared the FIFA Player of the Century award so how did a kid in poverty become a footballing superstar?

Pele was born on October 23,1940 to his father Dodinho who himself was a talented footballer and his mother was Maria Celeste Arantes, Pele was originally given the name Edson named after the American Inventor Thomas Edison, but as he grew up the family nickname him Dico. Pele was born in Três Corações which but later moved to Baura,Sao Paulo was a poverty stricken area of Brazil and then moved to Bauru,, his family was a poor one and their much needed income come to an abrupt end when his father career ended early due to a fractured leg, but Pele was relentless in his quest to be a football player and his father played a integral role in his development. It was in school where he picked up the name Pele this was because at the time Pele's favourite player was the Vasco da Gama goalkeeper Bilé but he kept mispronouncing and saying Pele so they gave him the nickname which he hated but the name now holds legendary status.

Pele fascination for football grew after seeing his father play, and began practising himself however he was to poor to buy a football so sometimes used a sock tied with string or a grapefruit as substitutes for a football, when not practicing football Pele worked as a servant in Tea Shops or use to shine shoes, while growing up Pele picked up some bad habits such as smoking, he famously recalls in his auto biography the time his father caught him smoking and his dad gave him a few words of advice Listen, if you want to play sport, you have to be in good health.", from then on Pele didn’t smoke.

It didn’t take long for Pele's talent to be recognized and soon joined Ameriquinha the local boys club and it wasn’t look until bigger teams come after him and was soon invited to join Baquinho boys team who were managed by former Brazilian Waldemar de Brito who knew one or two things about spotting talent and knew when he saw Pele that this was no ordinary football talent. After a little while de Brito knew Pele time had arrived and took him to local club Santos FC, when telling the board of directors about Pele he claimed that "he will become the greatest footballer in the world." So at the age of 15, Pele was signed to Santos FC the club he would spend most of his career at.


He made his first appearance for Santos in a friendly with Corinathans and the game ended 7-1 in Santos favour and Pele scored his first goal for the club, and it was not long until the national team calling and just 10 months after beginning his career and at the tender age of 16 he was selected for a match against Argentina and on July 7,1957, player his first international match and he scored despite Brazil losing the game 2-1 he become the youngest player to score in a international match. In the 1957, Pele continued scoring for fun and was soon the league top scorer with an amazing 41 goals in 38 games, but it wasn’t until the 1958 World Cup that he made a big name for himself.

Most of the world was in shock upon hearing that a 17 year old was selected to play in a World Cup at such a young age but Pele lived up to the hype, his first match against the USSR broke records such as youngest player of the tournament and the youngest ever player to play in the World Cup. It took Pele until the quarter finals to get his first goal against Wales, it turned out to be a vital goal as it was the only goal of the game that took Brazil to the semi finals, and if his goal was not impressive enough in the semi finals he scored a hat trick against France becoming the youngest player to do so and making the world to take not of his unique talent. So Brazil advanced to the final where they met hosts Sweden, their was a buzz surrounding Brazil and they were tipped favourites to win but it was Sweden that took the lead after four minutes but Brazil scored two goals thanks to goals from Vava and then Pele scored one of the greatest goals of all time when he lobbed the ball over a defender and volleyed the ball home and then Pele sealed the deal when his header made it 5-2 and become an instant hero to his nation Pele passed out at full time but was revived as Brazil celebrated their victory.

The Brazilian team returned home as heroes Pele was praised all over Brazil and fans from all over Brazil flocked to see him play for his club Santos, and he continued his great goal scoring form, scoring well over 300 goal from the 1958-1962 period and helping Santos win the Campeonato Paulista three times within that period. Pele continued to perform well for his national team and was selected for the 1962 World Cup in Chile however he was not to be as influential as he was in 1958. He was influential against Mexico where he set up the first then ran past four defenders putting Brazil 2-0 up but against Czechoslovakia he suffered an injury while taking a shot the injury resulting in Pele missing the rest of the World Cup it was however another player that stole the show Garrincha that become the talisman who stirred Brazil to their 2nd World Cup and Garrincha and Pele were instrumental in Brazil's success to come.

So Brazil returned home as heroes with their second World Cup and it was around this time the big boys of Europe such as Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus all tried to lure Pele to their club with lucrative contracts but at the age of 21, Pele was such a hero that he was declared as a national treasure preventing the club of signing for clubs outside of Brazil. Pele's iconic status continued to grow and soon lucrative tours were arranged by Santos and people from all over the world came to watch the legend play, and the tours began taking their toll on Pele as he constantly suffered from exhaustion and injuries but his goal scoring record remained brilliant and soon it was time for the 1966 World Cup and in February of that year he got married to Rosemeri dos Reis Cholby .

At the age of just 25, Pele was about to star in the third World Cup but like the last World Cup he picked up an injury early on he did however score in Brazil's opening game and his partner in crime Garrincha picked up the 2nd setting the marker that Brazil were going for their third consecutive World Cup but it wasn’t to be as Pele picked up an injury and Garrincha was out of shape and was struggling with a knee injury and in the next time Garrincha had played his last game for Brazil losing 3-1 their first lose with Garrincha in the team and Brazil didn’t recover from that. Pele did recover for a crucial match against Portugal where Brazil had to win to stay in the tournament, Brazil however still lost 3-1 and it was particularly difficult for Brazil, Portugal didn’t know how to deal with Pele so the resorted to rough tackling almost every time he touched the ball, footage shows Pele missing two fouls and then being violently hit by a third and had to be carried off the pitch and Brazil were eliminated in the 1st Round their worst performance.

Brazil returned home with many questions to be answered about their disorganized team and it ultimately lead to Pele being dropped from the team, their was some good news for Pele as his first daughter was born on 13th January 1967 and was named Kelly Cristina. However his club Santos continued getting their money's worth taking him on tours across the world and he even temporarily stopped war when he visited Nigeria who were involved in a civil war both parties agreed to a ceasefire to watch Pele play and then in 1969, Pele become the first player to score 1000 goals. Pele scored his 999th goal in a away fixture in one of Brazil's poorer states and the whole country was set a buzz waiting to see his 1,000th goal but in the same match Santos goalkeeper is injured and Pele replaced him in goal. So the anticipation continued to the next game where the stadium was jam packed not to see their team play but to see Pele score his 1,000th goal and when a defender clears the ball of his line his own fans boo him, so Pele now moves onto the next game and anticipation is even higher when Santos played in Maracana, but Vasco de Gama did not one to be the victims and at one point the full back scored in his own goal then have Pele get his honour but Pele did get his 1,000th goal from a penalty kick and instantly the whole crowd comes to life as they are eye witnesses to Pele’s 1,000 goal which he dedicates the goal to all the kids growing up in poverty in Brazil.

Pele initially left the national team after 1969, but was invited back upon initially refusing he did make a comeback and helped Brazil qualify for the 1970 World Cup in Mexico. The Brazil team was radically different to that of 1966 but Pele was still their main player, and proved his worth in their 1st match against Czechoslovakia giving them a 2-1 lead and almost scored again when he cheekily tried to lob the goalkeeper from the halfway line but Brazil did go on to win the match 4-1. Then next up was England, Pele had one good chance where he headed but was saved by Banks in the end the only goal was scored by Jairzinho, and in the game against Romania he scored twice including a superb free kick and Brazil went through to the next round on red hot form, and they destroyed Peru 4-2 in the Quarter Finals and Brazil advanced to the semi finals and were now favourites to win and they won 3-1 against Uruguay were Pele almost scored another legendary goal but the ball just went wide of the post but Brazil were into the final for the third time where they come up against Italy. Italy themselves had their own history with the World Cup they were themselves two time champions, but it was Pele who opened the scoring after 18minutes, Italy did however equalise but Brazil attacking might was to much for the Italians and Brazil scored three times making it 4-1 to Brazil and handing them their third World Cup in front of more than 100,000 fans after the game the man who marked Pele said "I told myself before the game, he's made of skin and bones just like everyone else — but I was wrong"

Pele and the other Brazil squad come back with their third success but Pele career was beginning to take its toll and began considering retirement and a few months later his soon was born a few months later and was named Edson, on 18th July 1971 Pele played his last game for Brazil against Yugoslavia, his played 92 times for Brazil and scored a phenomenal 77goals. The following year he called time on his Santos career after 17years for the club he did occasionally play on a part time basis, but in 1975 he came out of retirement to play for the NY Cosmos and help develop the profile of American soccer though out of shape fans still came to see the legendary Pele play and in his last season with the club he helped them win the NASL Championship in his final year.

On October 1 1977, Pele participated in his final game a match between his old club Santos and his new club Cosmos it was to be played at the world famous Giants Stadium and it was televised in the US and all across the world, Pele gave a pre match speech in which he interacted with the crowd in the first half he played for Cosmos but it was Santos who took the lead through Reynaldo but it was Pele who scored the equaliser his last ever goal and was scored from a free kick. At half time Pele presented the Cosmo jersey to his father as he put on the Santos one for the second half and it was his replacement Ramon Mifflin who scored the winner to give Cosmos the victory. After the match Pele was embraced by the Cosmos and after he ran around the pitch with the Brazilian flag in one hand and the American flag in the other before being lifted up by the Cosmo players and at that moment one of the most legendary careers in football come to an end with a recorded of 1280 goals in 1363 games.

A year later his 2nd daughter Jennifer was born but he also divorced his 1st wife Rosemeri dos Reis Cholby after 12 years of marriage. Pele also began a career in acting playing one of the most important characters in "Escape to Victory" alongside Bobby Moore and Sylvester Stallone, he also did a lot of ambassador work and in 1992 he was appointed as a UN ambassador for ecology and the environment and in 1995 was awarded a Gold Medal for his services to sport as well as being appointed a Extraordinary Minister of Sport by the Brazilian President and also become a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, and he also produced legislation called Pele law to help stamp out corruption in Brazilian football and in 1997 he even received an honorary knighthood from the Queen and even helped promote Viagra. Even now Pele name is popular and in 2009 he signed a deal with Ubisoft for a game called "Academy for Champions" in which he plays a coach and also got remarried in 1994 to his second wife Assíria Lemos Seixas who gave birth to twins in 1996 Joshua and Celeste were born on September 28 of that year. No matter who comes along in football no one can ever quite match up to the legendary Pele.

Want to know more about Pele then here are a few things worth checking out:

Premier League Part 1- Origins

The Premier League Part 1: Origins

In the 70 and the 80's English football was going through a boom period as they ruled the European Football clubs such as Liverpool, Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa where a few of the teams that.enjoyed European success,also domestically the game was getting more and more popular,also the rise in TV meant fans can follow their team from their own home and football become a very popular and valuable TV commodity.. However, in the late 80's English football had hit a recession as stadiums began falling apart and facilities were poor, also the rise of hooliganism was another major concern as it caused many fans to stay away which affected match day revenue because of the constant brawls between rival fans which also meant that their was an increased police presence. Also England's dominance of European football come to an end because of the Heysel disaster which saw England banned from Europe for five years and The Football League was far behind the
much more advanced Spanish La Liga and Italy Serie A and most top English players moved to these countries.

However, fortunes began changing in the 1990's as England reached the World Cup and the ban on England clubs in Europe had been lifted also the plans had to been set in motion to create a brand new league to breakaway from the current Football League. This breakaway league was to become known as the "FA Premier League" unlike the Football League revenue mad by the FA Premier League would only be distributed to clubs participating in the competition where as the Football League would only distribute it to all the clubs.

The first signs of a breakaway league came in 1988, when negotiations took place to renew TV rights, 10 clubs threatened to leave and create their own league but were persuaded to stay. After England's success in the 1990 World Cup their was a renewed interest in the sport and the problems of hooliganism were being tackled and a new report name the "Taylor Report" was published in which it stated that all grounds should become all seaters and improve facilities, of course this was going to cost a lot of money and TV was becoming a bigger part of football clubs revenue and clubs were desperate to capitalise as they needed the money to improve stadiums as well as try and compete with clubs across Europe.

In 1990, the first foundations for new league were being put in motion when Greg Dyke the managing director of LWT,met with the nations top 5 clubs which included the like of Tottenham and Liverpool. This is where the concept of breaking away from the Football League and creating your own league was born. In this meet Dyke stated that it would be more beneficial and more lucrative if only the bigger clubs were shown on TV, it also meant that revenue from TV grew as many networks were desperate to get a piece of the footballing pie and were willing to pay substantial amounts of money for it. The five clubs were all in agreement that this was a good idea but knew they needed the FA backing for the project to have any credibility. The task of convincing the F.A was to fall down to the Arsenal chairman David Dean, who presented the concept to the FA who were open to the idea, as they didn't enjoy a very healthy relationship with the Football League so on the 20th February 1992, it was announced that a new league will be formed and come into effect the following season it would consist of 19 clubs that avoid relegation this season as well as the three newly promoted teams.

So the bidding began with ITV and BBC launching huge bids to secure rights, ITV were offering close £200m for the rights but it was eventually won by Sky Sports a brand new sports channel who had struggled to introduce their new pay to watch sports concept for them this was one of their last chances to make it a success. A man who paid a key part was Alan Sugar who sold satellite boxes to Sky was already very familiar with footballs popularity knew that if Sky won the rights then fans had no choice but to by the Sky satellite system in a telephone conversation with Rupert Murdoch he was quoted as saying "blow them out of the water." In reference to winning the football rights, Sky won with a bid of £180million bid to secure the rights and got exclusivity to 60live games for the next five years, which meant Sky paid around £660,000 per game as well as the Sky money, the Premier League also sold highlights to the BBC and other sponsorship brought in £304million for the Premier League which fuelled a summer of huge spending and the revolution in football began. The drama of the season began in the summer when clubs splashed out their newly acquired fortunes examples saw player such as David Rocastle move for £2m to Leeds and Man Utd sign Dion Dublin for £1m and saw Blackburn break the British transfer record signing Alan Shearer for £3.5m.

European League Round Up

Premier League: Chelsea 5-Stat Performance, Spurs Slip Up
Chelsea return on top of the Premier League and they did in style with a thumping 5-0 victory as they bounced back from last weeks 2-1 defeat at Villa Park, the goal scoring opened when Nicolas Anelka's shot was deflected of Givet leg who put the ball in his own net, after 20mins. Just after the start their advantage was doubled as Lampard hit the ball in from close range. Essien then made it three when he curled his shot past the keeper, and a few mins later it was four as Lampard scored a penalty and five minutes later Drogba headed home to make it five and impressive display by Chelsea and plenty of worries for Sam Allordyce to think about. Tottenham missed their chance to draw levels on points with Man Utd as they were beaten by Stoke, Glenn Whelan scored the winner in the 86th minute as he gave Stoke a much needed away from home and puts Stoke in 9th, Tottenham had a whole host of chances but failed to convert them.

Sunderland poor away form continues, Wigan impress
Sunderland poor away form continues as they have only picked up 1 point away from home during the whole season as they were beaten by a Birmingham side who were watched by new owner Carson Young. Birmingham dominated the 1st half and were rewarded when Liam Ridgewell flicked the ball of his chest to give Birmingham after 37mins and after the restart they found their way two up after James McFadden slotted in the second goal, Sunderland found their way back into the game when Scott Dann headed in a own goal but it wasnt enough and Birmingham won taking them to 14th in the league. An impressive Wigan ended Burnley unbeaten run at home, Burnley opened up the scoring in the 4th minute when Fletcher scored after being set up by Blake. Rodegella soon equalised after Burnley keeper Jensen twisted his ankle leaving Rodegella an open net to score. Scotland then set up Rodegella who scored his and Wigans second goal of the game and the final blow was dealt by Boyce when he scored from close range effectively sealing the points and taking Wigan to 9th in the league.

Valuable points?

The Midlands derby between Aston Villa and Wolves finished 1-1, it was a red hot atmosphere as both sides started brightly but no one could find the equliser and the game had to wait until the 79th minute until Agbonlahor as he steered home Heskeys pass it seemed like he got the winner but less then 5 minutes later Wolves were giving a penalty and Ebanks-Blake hit the ball home to give Wolves a much deserved point. Portsmouth and Hull battled out in a goaless draw after a competitive but rather uninspiring match.




La Liga: Real Madrid return to top, Sevilla lose ground

Real Madrid return to the top of La Liga but only on goal difference and Barcelona are still to play and if they win they will go three points clear. It was obvious Real were missing the influence of players like Ronaldo but despite having talent such as Kaka and Xabi Alonso on the pitch they still found it difficult to break down the Sporting defence, it seems the new galacticos have a long way to go to match the past galacticos after a blistering start to the seaosn Real Madrid have only won one of the past four matches in all competitions and it is evident they miss Ronaldo. Sevilla failed to take advantage as the also drew 0-0 with 10men Espanyol after a midweek drumming of Stuggart, Sevilla failed to show the same spirit in this match, the result means they lose further ground and could lose 3rd spot if Deportivo win tomorrow. Athletico Madrid missed their chance to win only their 2nd match of the season they took the lead through Forlan after 51mins but Mallorca managed to equalise late on in the game thanks to a late goal by Borja Valero who scored in the 90th minute and put Mallorca 5th in the table.


Serie A:Sampdoria thrash Bologna, but Inter remain top

Sampdoria produced a good performance as they beat Bologna 4-1 the scoring started in the 8th minute as Pazzini flicked the ball in from 6yards. Ten minutes later they were two up as a unmarked Mannine hit a superb volley, Ziegler then made it three as he fiercely drove the ball in the bottom corner and Bologna were then reduced to 10 men as Di Viao was sent off. Mannine then got his 2nd after headed home Sampdoria fourth their was conoslation for Bologna as Osvaldo scored a free kick in the 63rd minute. Inter Milan beat Catania 2-1 to take them back to the top of the table Muntari opened the scoring after 13minutes after his 30meter pass to Etoo missed Etoo and flew passed the keeper then Sneijder scored a free kick after 30mins to double their advantage, Catania pulled one back in the 84th minute thanks to a Mascara free kick. The result puts Inter two points clear of Sampdoria a seven points clear of Juventus.

Bundeslig:Leverkusen rescue point, Hoffenheim return to winning ways

Leverkusen only managed to salvage a point against Borussia Dortmund took the leade after 8mins when inform striker Barrios headed a Valdez cross but they failed to double their advatage and Leverkusen found a way back into the game when Barnetta cross was met by Friedrich who headed in off the post to make it 1-1. Hoffenheim return to winning ways in style after losing their last two matches goals from Eichner, Ibisevic, Zuculini wrapped up a comfortable 3-0 victory over 17th placed FC Nurnberg and leaves Hoffenheim in 6th just outside Europa League spot.

Bayern Continue winning ways, VfB Stuggart poor week continues.

Bayern continue their rise up the table after a 2-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayern had to do things the hard way as they battled back from being 1-0 down after Meier slotted home to give Frankfurt a shock lead but supersub soon equalised sliding the equaliser past the keeper making it 1-1 and 2 minutes before time Van Batyen headed the winner of the post giving Bayern a 2-1 win after a stuttering start to the season it seems Bayern are finally finding their feet. Stuggart miserable week continues after being beaten 3-0 by Sevilla they were beaten again this time by Hannover the only goal coming from Konan just after the 30minute mark and continues Stuggart 4 match losing streak.

FSV Mainz beat Freiburg as Borussia M'gladbach held at home

FSV Mainz beat Freiburg with a convincing 3-0 win Ivanschitz opened the scoring after 24minutes after chipping the goalkeeper and that was followed by a double from Hoogland to give FSV Mainz a convincing win, in the other match Borussia M'gladbach and KC Koln local rivals played a 0-0 draw which leaves both sides on the brink of the relagation zone.

Lyon humiliated, Bordeaux go top

Lyon lost their second game in a row and surrended top spot as they were humiliated by Nancy, Remy crossed the ball for Bagayoko who headed home to give Nancy the advantage, Toulan saw his shot deflect of Cissohoko and hit the back of the net go give Nancy a 2-0 advantage after the break they were 3-0 up when Hellebuyck lathed on to Mouneir pass and whacked home. Remy then picked up the lose ball and dribbled past the keeper before putting the ball in the net scoring Nancy's fourth their was however consolation for Lyon as Ederson scored against his former club. Lyon defeat mean Bordeuax had the chance to go top and they took the oppurtunity comfortably beating Le Mans 3-0 an own goal from Ovono opened the scoring followed by goal from Chamakh and Bellion sent Bordeaux top of Ligue 1.

Monaco go second, Montpelliar slip up

As Lyon and Montpelliar lost it gave Monaco the chance to go 2nd and they did beating Boulogne C.Y Park strike gave Monaco the lead after 37th minute, Boulogne managed to equalise Blayac getting the goal against the run of play after 66 minutes but a late brace by Nene scoring in the 86 and 90th minute gave Monaco a easy win. Rennes put Montpelliar dreams of topping the league to bed after beating them 3-0, Marveaux drilled home the opener after 34 minutes. Montpelliartried but failed to get back into the game and a goal from Sow 5minutes after the interval killed the game of and Gyan added third in stoppage time taking Rennes to 7th.

Grenoble poor run goes on, Valenciennes Win,Sochaux beat Lorient

Grenoble poor form goes on as they are beaten by Nancy Ljubula put Grenoble infront but a own goal from Jemmali and a penalty from Hadji gave Nancy the win and means Grenoble rock bottom after losing all 10games. Valenciennes won comfortably agianst St.Etienne after goals from Audel and Docourtioux sealed the points that take them 8th and put St.Etienne 16th. Sochaux gained their 3rd win in a row against Lorient the only goal coming from Perquis the result takes them 9th in Ligue 1.