The clock is ticking down to the start of the most talked about Manchester derby in years.

A resurgent city have emerged like a phoenix from the flames when compared to the club of five years ago that looked as if fate would retire the blue half of Manchester to a Leeds like spiralling demise into the lower divisions. Then Sven arrived under new ownership with a pocket full of cash and City have never looked back.

Now with yet another owner armed with even deeper pockets, Mark Hughes has built a squad that reads like a fantasy football team and so far any doubts over his ability to gel the players into a winning unit have been brushed aside with a blemishless record in the league so far this season.

On the red side of the equation, United are a team in transition after the departure of the Ballon d’Or winner and one Carlos Tevez. But despite this the red machine rolls on as Fergusons drive for success still burns as brightly as ever. Ferguson has had a lot to say about City in recent times and appears to be relishing in the prospect of a more legitimate competition coming from the other side of town. He knows that the United fans would love nothing more their side to be the first to knock City off their new found pedestal.

Recent events have conspired to see City’s in form striker Emmanuel Adebayor suspended from the game after his antics against Arsenal last time out. Robinho and Santa Cruz will also miss out through injury with Tevez rated as ‘severely doubtful’ to recover in time to play (which is manager speak for expect to see him on the bench at least). This means City are certainly not the same prospect they could be going forward, but none the less still possess significant talent in the squad and coupled with the fact that they did not appear in European competition this week, will be very well prepared both physically and tactically for the fixture on Sunday.

United are largely injury free going into the match, with Rio Ferdinand the only lingering doubt. He was rested for the recent Champions League match in Turkey and baring any more setbacks in training today, the smart money will be on him taking his place in the defence next to Vidic come the first whistle. Both teams go into the game with a point to prove, tensions will be high and both sets of supporters will be desperate to take home the bragging rights at least until the next time the teams meet.

With home advantage and a clear bill of health you have to fancy United to prevail in this one. Arsenal can however testify to the Blues new found resilience even if this time around City aren’t quite the same force on paper as they were that day.

United suffered an early season shock with defeat to Burnley, certainly three points dropped in their view and something Ferguson will be very acutely aware of. United can’t afford too many more slip ups as they chase their fourth league title in a row and City will be only too happy to put another dent in that challenge. Ferguson’s recent comments about City provide further proof if any were needed that they are to be taken very seriously from now on. The Scotsman known to only engage in his fabled ‘mind games’ with those he deems as worthy.

A great match in prospect then come 13:30 (GMT) on Sunday, I for one will be glued to proceedings eager to see which side can set down the first marker in a war that looks set to rage for many more seasons yet. It can’t come fast enough..

Here comes the second ‘Blue Revolution’. Manchester City’s new found riches have seen them overtake the rest of the Premier League in terms of financial clout, with a few optimistic punters also believing they may overtake the rest on the pitch come next season.

While the thinking may be premature at best, City have certainly given the traditional ‘Big Four’ something else to think about, given the £80 million outlay by Mark Hughes already this summer which includes buying Aston Villa’s Gareth Barry and nabbing Carlos Tevez from the other half of Manchester.

The common consensus points towards Arsenal being the victims of City’s new wealth, with fans, pundits and players alike suggesting that City now have the potential to break the stranglehold of the established quartet in the Premier League.

Key to the belief in a possible ‘changing of the guard’ lies with City’s signing of Emmanuel Adebayor from the Gunners last Saturday, a move which may please Arsenal fans tired of the striker’s constant ‘come and get me’ pleas from any interested club, but a move which also deprives them of their top scorer since the departure of Thierry Henry to Barcelona in the summer of 2007.

With Arsene Wenger also failing to reinforce up front (or for that matter anywhere barring centre-back) at the time of writing, some fans are beginning to become jittery about the ability of the club to maintain their grip on a top 4 spot in the Premiership, a position already challenged in recent years by a Spurs side who played lights out for 37 games of the 2005/06 season, and a talented but ultimately thin Aston Villa squad who ran out of steam from February onwards in the last campaign.

Thanks to Sheikh Mansoor’s money, City will not have the same issues about ability or squad depth (It remains to be seen if Arabian oil money has found a cure for lasagne-inspired sickness) which ultimately denied both Spurs and Villa in their bids to break up the ‘Big Four’.

All seemingly doom and gloom for Arsenal fans then. However, writing any Arsenal side off at any point is a dangerous game. We are probably not talking about a side capable of taking the title in the upcoming season, because last season the top three pushed further away from the Gunners, while the summer has seen a relative lack of action in the transfer market from all of the top four clubs.

However, this remains an Arsenal side who, across the entire squad, are stronger than Manchester City or any other potential rivals for that illustrious 4th place. Up front, City now have the strongest compliment of strikers in the league, but this cannot compensate for a questionable defence and a capable but inferior midfield when compared with the ‘Big Four’, including Wenger’s Gunners.

Away from a direct comparison with the Eastlands outfit, a look through the players on the books at Arsenal still provides a list of names which would fit into any Premier League side, and a squad which, while weaker than those of previous Wenger sides who became used to trophies and titles, still has more than enough potential within it to maintain their hold on a Top 4 spot in the coming season.

Any side who can boast players such as Cesc Fabregas, Andriy Arshavin and Robin Van Persie in their ranks should deserve respect from any opponents, and even then the players of a slightly lesser standard would still merit a place in most top European clubs.

The likes of Manuel Almunia, Kolo Toure, William Gallas, Gael Clichy, Bacari Sagna, Abou Diaby, Tomas Rosicky and Eduardo are all classy individuals, supported ably by young talents such as Kieran Gibbs, Armand Traore, Abou Diaby, Aaron Ramsay, Samir Nasri (Although as of this morning out of action for the forseeable future), Jack Wilshere, Theo Walcott and Carlos Vela. It still remains a fairly formiddable list of talent running through the Arsenal squad, perhaps not of the same standard of the three clubs above them last season, but still more than a match for any of the 16 clubs below them, significant investment or otherwise.

Wenger’s transfer policy may have irritated plenty of Arsenal fans in recent seasons, with the failure to attract star names like the other top clubs in England, but January’s signing of Arshavin represented a step in the right direction, proving the London club can still attract players of worldwide repute who can make a significant impact upon the standard of football. Arshavin’s arrival at the start of the year inspired the Gunners to an improved standard on the pitch which eventually saw them catch the previously surging Villa and eventually secure 4th place with ease from the other challengers. The capture of Thomas Vermaelen from Ajax should also help to improve the team, giving Wenger another option at centre-back to compliment the very talented, although recently questionable pairing of Toure and Gallas.

If is always the operative word when it comes to Arsenal’s summer dealing, but if Wenger can land some of his rumoured targets before the start of the season, then it won’t take much for Arsenal to build a team potentially capable of at least chasing down a Chelsea side thus far more concerned with holding onto their biggest names rather than adding to them, as we have becomed used to from the Stamford Bridge club in recent years.

Signing one or more of Marouane Chamakh, joint top scorer in a Bordeaux side who claimed Ligue 1 last season, Sebastian Bassong, one of very few players to come out of Newcastle’s dismal season with credit, or Miguel Veloso, one of the catalysts for Sporting Lisbon’s run to the Last 16 of the Champions’ League last season would provide Wenger with even more talented individuals to choose from in picking a starting XI. Although at the moment Arsenal are dormant, there is still plenty of time for Wenger to woo one or more of his targets to the Emirates before the season begins.

Finally, no study of Arsenal’s strengths would be complete without a mention of the young players rising through the ranks at the academy. The likes of Clichy, Fabregas and Van Persie all honed their skills in some part at the club before becoming first team fixtures, with plenty of others, especially Ramsay, Wilshere and Vela also seemingly on the cusp of big things.

Add to this a youth squad who last season won the Under 18 League and Cup double (Defeating Manchester City in the semi-finals of both competitions) and you have the makings of future Premier League stars at the Emirates. For all City’s riches, they are probably unable to recreate the same structure within the club which has seen Arsenal develop talents such as Vieira, Henry and Cole under the tutelage of Wenger and the youth staff.

Manchester City represent the greatest threat to Arsenal’s long-term hold on a top 4 spot in the Premier League. We are talking about a City side dealing in unlimited reserves of money, prising away quality players from top clubs, notwithstanding Adebayor from Arsenal. In turn, Arsenal are a shadow of the club who became only the second side ever to go through an English league campaign unbeaten five years ago, with a squad ravaged by injury now also hurt by defection.

The facts about both clubs are undeniable, however Arsenal still remain the favourites amongst many fans, pundits and bookies to maintain their position in the Top 4 for next season. The struggle will undoubtedly become greater as the impact of City’s riches becomes greater if the funding continues for seasons to come, but for now, there is still plenty of ability throughout this Arsenal side which should allow them to at least compete with, and better Manchester City in the upcoming season. The ‘Blue Revolution’ may have to wait for a while yet

It’s not often you feel sorry for footballers. After all, their heartache is pretty minimal when you hold it up against the light of the real world.

Three weeks till payday and not a penny in the bank account? Well Carlos here never got a single text off Sir Alex in all the time he played for Manchester United! Girlfriend coming in from work later and later, smelling of aftershave? Think about poor Andrey and the tax situation for a second, he only earns £2m a year now! Phone bill come in and is more than your monthly salary? You wanna see the shoddy pay rise Ashley has been offered!

See? It’s a different set of parameters. Footballers enter into a career knowing that almost any access to the moral high ground, or any sense of injustice, is pretty much forbidden. How dare you feel hard done to when you are earning fortunes?

But seeing the events at Manchester City recently, it got me thinking. A couple of weeks ago the story broke that Gelson Fernandes, City’s 22 year old Swiss international midfielder, had been swiftly offloaded to French side Saint-Étienne. Not a massive story in the grand scheme of things, but it struck a chord with me. I admit it, I felt sorry for the lad.

Fernandes was signed by Sven-Göran Eriksson (of Notts County fame) in the summer of 2007, as the Swede hastily revamped a squad that had been allowed to drift towards nothingness under first Kevin Keegan, and later Stuart Pearce (how else do you explain the presence of both Darius Vassell AND Danny Mills?). The then 20 year-old Fernandes was described by Eriksson as “the best young player in Switzerland”, and made a promising start to his City career, with thirty two appearances in his debut season securing a place in Switzerland’s squad for Euro 2008. He may have lacked the elegant class of his peer, Michael Johnson, or the wily know-how of his senior, Dietmar Hamann, but he added plenty of energy and no little ability.

But with Eriksson’s departure, and the arrival of Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan at Eastlands, the goalposts were suddenly moved. All of a sudden City were aiming high. Higher than the likes of Gelson anyway. Vincent Kompany’s arrival in August was followed by that of Nigel De Jong in January, and since then Gareth Barry has been added to the ever-swelling ranks. Gelson found himself marginalised last season, making only 27 appearances, mainly as substitute. It was no surprise to anyone that he moved on this summer.

And it got me thinking further. City signed pretty much a whole team under Eriksson that summer, and of that lot, how many are still considered useful at the club? Rolando Bianchi never even completed a full season on Manchester before he was sent back to Italy, Valeri Bojinov has endured two horrendously injury-blighted seasons and is now way down the pecking order of forwards, and Javier Garrido started promisingly but now sits firmly behind Wayne Bridge in the left back stakes, likewise Martin Petrov with Robinho. Vedran Ćorluka lasted just a season at the club before being lured away by Tottenham, whilst Elano shone brighter than anyone for six months but now has been reduced to a bit-part role, and today was linked with a loan move to German side Köln.

Then there were the January signings. Benjani’s move from Portsmouth was a long drawn out affair that was only completed at the thirteenth hour (it would have been the eleventh but he missed his flight), whilst Felipe Caicedo arrived from Swiss side FC Basel for a not-unsubstantial £5.2m fee.

All of these players were signed to do a job by City. Most featured prominently in Eriksson’s first season in charge, with Elano, Petrov & Ćorluka particularly impressive. But with new owners came increased expectations, expectations that could only, it seems, be achieved by buying better players. And fast. Mark Hughes has, understandably, been like a kid in a sweet shop with City’s cash, and suddenly good players are simply not good enough. They have to be better than good. Martin Petrov, good, but Robinho? Better. Benjani? Good, but Emmanuel Adebayor is better?

Even relatively recent signings such as Shaun Wright-Phillips, Craig Bellamy and, preposterously, Roque Santa Cruz, must be glancing across the dressing room at Adebayor, Robinho & Carlos Tévez and wondering how they are going to fit in. What seemed like a dream move to an exciting new project could quickly turn sour for players like that. Just ask Jô, currently rebuilding his career with the more steadily progressive Everton, having been given a full six months to adapt and set the Premier League alight.

Or, just ask those who fell into a similar trap at Chelsea. The first summer under Roman Abramovich was frightening, players signed left right and centre. Expectations were not especially high, Chelsea fans were excited about their club’s new prospects, but equally happy just to see the likes of Joe Cole, Hernán Crespo & Damien Duff at their club.

A season later and José Mourinho was installed as manager. Expectations now shifted towards silverware, and lots of it. Glen Johnson? Good player, but Paulo Ferreira was a European Cup winner, therefore better. Robert Huth? Useful, but no Ricardo Carvalho. And so forth. The likes of Scott Parker found themselves heading for the exit door quicker than you could say “Michael Essien”, and with his chances of playing in a World Cup all but ruined. And we won’t even mention Steve Sidwell. It’s the price you pay for joining a club on the up, unless you are a special player, sooner or later someone will become available who is better than you- Stephen Ireland was superb for City last season, but would he be keeping Kaká out of the team?

It’s a conundrum for any player to consider before committing themselves to City’s “project”, how long before I am a question rather than an answer. In Gelson’s case it was about twelve months, in the case of Bellamy or Santa Cruz it could be even less.

Another week, another set of additions to the Manchester City strikeforce. This week it was Carlos Tévez & Emmanuel Adebayor who made the move to Eastlands, swapping Big Four unhappiness for Big Four hopefulness for a combined fee of around £50m.

Tévez has a knack of endearing himself to fans of just about every club he plays for (and he is onto his fifth now, at the age of 25), and he wasted no time in firing a broadside at his former manager Sir Alex Ferguson, rubbishing the Manchester United manager’s claims that he had done his utmost to keep the Argentinean at Old Trafford, and criticising his communication methods. Sensible PR move on the part of Carlitos it would seem, get the City fans onside without even having to buzz around the pitch like a hyperactive wasp. Clever boy.

Adebayor does not, it is fair to say, buzz around much. His is a more languid, pedestrian style- in truth it approached comatose status last season at times- but after a few days to mull over the contract on the (reinforced) table from City, the Togolese striker put pen to paper on a five-year contract, ending a three year stay at Arsenal that brought about 62 goals.

It makes it hard to predict City’s line up next season. Mark Hughes has already spent around £18m on Blackburn’s Roque Santa Cruz this summer, and shelled out around £14m on Craig Bellamy from West Ham in January. Throw in club record signing Robinho, last season’s star performer Stephen Ireland, and crowd favourite Shaun Wright-Phillips and you have a fair few options for Mark Hughes to consider.

And that is before we even mention Elano, Martin Petrov or Valeri Bojinov. And Ched Evans. It will be mightily interesting to see which of these players gets the nod when they run out at, ironically, Ewood Park on August 15th, with Hughes and Santa Cruz (and probably Bellamy too) set for a hostile reception no doubt.

Manchester City after Everton and Chelsea defenders

And Sparky is not finished there either, by the way. Having bumped his attacking options significantly, it seems now is the time to add a bit of steel further back. Gareth Barry, Vincent Kompany & Nigel De Jong should, theoretically, shore up the defensive side of midfield, but with Richard Dunne’s form dipping at an alarming rate, and Micah Richards’ development having slowed, Hughes is keen to add to England defenders to his ranks.

Joleon Lescott would seem the most likely, Everton have been immovable in their insistence that the former Wolves man will not be sold at any price, but when that price edges towards the £20m mark, for a player who cost a quarter of that two seasons ago, Bill Kenwright & David Moyes may just decide that it is a move worth taking. City’s decision to allow £18m striker Jô move to Goodison Park on a free loan deal may well come into play as negotiations for Lescott advance.

But if Lescott is a reasonable target, the second centre half targeted by Hughes would appear- at first glance anyway- to be ludicrous. England captain John Terry is known, annoyingly, in the press as “Mr Chelsea” due to his unwavering affection for the club, but reports are increasingly suggesting that even he could be tempted by the package on offer up north.

The unlikely duo of Hughes and keeper Shay Given have made a two pronged appeal to Terry to seek a “fresh challenge” (easily the most annoyingly banal transfer phrase on offer these days, replacing “undisclosed fee”), and sources close to Chelsea and Terry have mischievously claimed that the 29 year old is keen to swap royal blue for sky blue, and Champions League for Europa League. Expect fresh developments on this one in the coming fortnight or so.

Can Liverpool find a replacement for Alonso?

Down the M62 at Liverpool however, things are a little less exciting. Glen Johnson may have impressed on debut against St Gallen in midweek (an colourless, scoreless draw if you were interested), but there are more pressing issues for manager Rafael Benítez to worry about, namely midfielder Xabi Alonso and his apparent desire to leave for Real Madrid.

Sources reliable (Liverpool Echo) and unreliable (most tabloids) claim the Spanish star informed the club of his wish to move back to Spain this week, and Liverpool are believed to be bracing themselves for a bid of £30m+ for the 27 year old any day soon. Should he leave, it would leave a gaping hole in Benitez’s midfield, as well as having a major impact on the club’s style of play. Roma’s Alberto Aquilani was immediately touted as Alonso’s replacement, although that claim was swiftly rubbished by pretty much all involved. Athletic Bilbao’s Javi Martínez would appear a more likely, and frugal, candidate.

And let’s not forget of course that Real Madrid are currently in the midst of an end-of-season clearout matched only by Next, with Dutch internationals up for sale left right and mainly centre. Wesley Sneijder has been mooted as a potential makeweight in a deal for Alonso, though Liverpool could well be wise to look at Ruud Van Nistelrooy as a cheap and cheerful goalscoring backup, Arjen Robben as a wide player of genuine class, or even the talented but wayward Royston Drenthe as a left sided option. Or failing that they could get the £30m in the bank and then wait outside Gareth Barry’s hotel with a bouquet of petrol station flowers…

What are Manchester United, Tottenham, Aston Villa and Everton up to?

Elsewhere in the Premier League’s top half the transfer window is rather heating up now, Sir Alex Ferguson has done his usual trick of lying, I mean, claiming, that his summer spending is done (even though United are locked in discussions with Gremio for Douglas Costa and have just signed Mame Biram Diouf from Molde), but all around the league signings are arriving at an ever-increasing rate.

Aston Villa have finally made their first acquisition of the summer, spending most of their Barry money on Middlesbrough’s Stewart Downing. Downing, an out and out winger to join out and out wingers James Milner & Ashley Young (2 into 3 never seems to work, so expect one of those to leave or be shifted awkwardly infield), cannot play until October at the earliest according to manager Martin O’Neill, courtesy of a broken foot, but at £10m represents a typical Villa signing- English, young enough to develop, a little bit over-rated.

Everton meanwhile, have paid for manager David Moyes’ reputation for spotting talent in the lower leagues. No sooner had they secured a fee for Sheffield United’s exciting young full back Kyle Naughton, than half the league were hotfooting it down to Bramall Lane armed with chocolates and Xbox games. Spurs are said to be leading the chase now, and have even promised to snap up Naughton’s fellow Kyle, Walker, as part of the same deal.

Harry Redknapp has never been shy in stockpiling players, and that seems set to continue as he is linked with a bid for Portsmouth’s Peter Crouch. Crouch has already held talks with Steve Bruce over a move to Sunderland, but Redknapp it would appear holds both trump cards with the fact that he is: a) based in London, and b) the only man to sign Crouch on more than twenty occasions. Sunderland’s purchase of Manchester United youngster Frazier Campbell hints that a deal for Crouch now looks unlikely.

Also see: The latest English Premier League Transfers.

Mark Hughes was talking again this morning. Talking big as well. According to Hughes, Manchester City’s financial muscle is starting to cause ripples amongst the previously-complacent “Big Four”, and his side are in a position to upset the proverbial apple cart.

“United are taking our situation more seriously in terms of what we can do – and it’s not just them realising that,” said Hughes, “Bizarrely, what is happening here can help United through us being capable of taking points off other top-four clubs – but we want to take points off United, too.”

You can’t blame the Welshman for his confidence. After all, it is at City where the most ostentatious transfer dealings are taking place this summer, with Gareth Barry & Roque Santa Cruz already added to an ever-improving squad of players, and both Samuel Eto’o & Carlos Tévez mulling over even more significant switches to Eastlands.

But perhaps the biggest reason to be cheerful for City fans comes with the stories emanating from Stamford Bridge today surrounding the future of John Terry. The Chelsea skipper, we know, was the subject of a circa £30m bid from ambitious City earlier this month, prompting Chelsea to rather vociferously state that their captain was not for sale, and that any such bid would be “completely rejected”.

Yet there is growing belief within the sides’ respective camps that the England captain would seriously consider swapping royal for sky blue, especially in light of reports suggesting his annual salary would be doubled should he move up north. Indeed the Guardian today reports that sources close to Terry, including international colleagues based at City (basically, Wayne Bridge or Shaun Wright-Phillips then, unless Gareth Barry really has his feet under the table!) are encouraged by the noises coming out of Stamford Bridge.

City and Chelsea are due in a tribunal court this month to settle up on a fee for striker Daniel Sturridge, who was confirmed as a Blues player earlier this week after rejecting a number of new contracts from City, and sources close to the club suggest that City would be willing to waive their rights to Sturridge’s “development fee” from Chelsea in exchange for a chance to negotiate with their captain.

Either way, such a deal looks a long way off at this point, Terry is known to revel in the “Mr Chelsea” image he has developed, and is very much a London boy on a social level, whilst a transfer to a club outside the elite of the Champions League, and in World Cup year too, may be a blow to his prestige that would be too great to contemplate.

Chelsea meanwhile would be loath to offload their captain, and talismanic figure, with few players considered adequate replacements for him. With Ricardo Carvalho expected to depart the club this summer- probably to join José Mourinho at Internazionale- it would not make much footballing sense to dispose of two fine central defenders in the same summer.

Yet since when did football ever make sense?

In life there are only a handful of things that are certain. You will watch Big Brother. It will irritate you. MPs will lie through their back teeth (and their front ones). Summer does make girls more attractive. And makes you feel less so. People who ring in radio stations with traffic updates are idiots.

And then there is the transfer window. That beautifully annoying invention that basically restricts trade in what should, theoretically, be a free market. That rumour-filled bearpit where the slightest whisper can suddenly become the dominant story, not just in football, but in society it would seem. MPs expenses or Ronaldo to Real? You decide? New series of Big Brother or David Villa’s future? Your choice.

The silly season is officially here, and if you listen to what you read and hear, there are more futures up in the air this summer than at an EasyJet recruitment convention.

Starting with the managers. Guus Hiddink had barely vacated his makeshift office at Chelsea by the time Carlo Ancelotti had arrived, laden with Versace luggage. The Italian will take command at Stamford Bridge officially from July 1st, but talk, incredibly, is already beginning to edge towards potential successors to his throne should he fail to deliver the kind of success Roman Abramovich apparently demands with such passion.

Elsewhere in the Premier League, Sunderland have moved swiftly to replace Ricky Sbragia- who departed tearfully minutes after his side had avoided relegation on the final day of the season- with Wigan’s Steve Bruce. Bruce’s Newcastle connections have been played up neatly by the media, but ignoring such playground mentality will enable Black Cats fans to see they have made what looks a very shrewd appointment. The fact that Bruce’s Wigan finished five places above Sunderland last season would confirm this. Certainly his appointment makes a lot more sense than the one touted by Roberto Mancini prior to Bruce’s appointment. One wonders if the former Inter Milan chief had received some sort of prank call as he gleefully announced that he was all set to arrive at the Stadium of Light, before being forced into an embarrassed climb-down only days later.

And for every departure, there must be an arrival of course. The Bruce-shaped hole at Wigan will be filled- metaphorically speaking- by Swansea’s Roberto Martinez, subject to the agreement of a compensation package. Martinez has made steady progress at the Liberty Stadium, but as a former Wigan favourite, and with his reputation significantly enhanced by the aesthetic qualities of his Championship outfit, the time seems perfect for a step up into the top-flight.

Even outside of the Premier League, things are looking strange. Steve Coppell’s vacation of the Reading hotseat in the wake of their Play-Off semi final defeat to Premiership newboys Burnley meant that chairman John Madejski had to act quickly. An approach for Peterborough’s Darren Ferguson was rebuked, so in sauntered Watford boss Brendan Rogers. Rogers had only just taken delivery of a personalised name-plate for his office at Vicarage Road before he was digging out his suitcase and zooming from Hertfordshire to Berkshire, having spent just five months at Watford.

And the Championship’s most illustrious disastrous club, Newcastle, should not be forgotten. Alan Shearer has already made the least surprising U-Turn since Sven-Goran Eriksson tried to walk past Ulrika Jonsson’s hotel room by announcing his intention to stay on as manager at St James’ Park, but the ownership situation on Tyneside has meant that such an appointment has been forced to stay on ice. Good news for Joe Kinnear then, who was set to sign a two-year contract this summer before the arrival of a sharp dressed messiah put him firmly in the shade.

And then there is Celtic. Wee Gordon Strachan, patronising nickname notwithstanding, decided the time was right to bring an end to his four year stay in Glasgow in the wake of a disappointing end to the SPL season, and will not be particularly missed by certain sections of Parkhead. But Hoops fans who have long questioned the credentials of a flame haired former Aberdeen man would be wise to remember the old adage “Be careful what you wish for” as former Wycombe & Portsmouth failure Tony Adams throws his hat into the ring for the role of Strachan’s replacement. Unless Adams has been receiving the same kind of calls as Mr Mancini- unlikely considering the pair’s background differences- it is a worrying situation for Celtic, especially with more suitable candidates in David Moyes & Owen Coyle distancing themselves from the inevitable speculation, and Tony Mowbray keeping an equally low profile.

So what about the players? Well the football world has been riddled skulduggery in the past twenty years anyway, but this summer things look set to escalate. If it isn’t nailed down it is unsafe, so it would seem. Cristiano Ronaldo’s will-he-won’t he move to Real Madrid this year may well be the most tiresome saga since, erm, last years saga of the same name, but with Florentino Perez targeting players like Big Brother contestants target fame, it is likely to rumble on long into the summer.

Real are not looking to stop at Ronaldo either, they have already secured Villarreal coach Manuel Pellegrini to lead the revolution, a notoriously ego-free coach in a notoriously egotistical club is a dangerous thought. Spanish football writer Sid Lowe was asked this week to predict Real’s starting eleven for next season, and incredibly went for this- Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Bruno Alves, Gael Clichy, Ronaldo, Xabi Alonso, Lassana Diarra, Franck Ribery, Kaka, Diego Forlan/David Villa. Impressive to say the least, and such transfers would set in motion an incredible snowballing effect surely, with ripples felt as far north as….well, Manchester I suppose.

Of those signings, Alonso looks unlikely. Liverpool’s owners may well be losing more money than Steve Claridge in Cheltenham week, but with Gareth Barry having swapped sixth placed Aston Villa for tenth placed Manchester City in a bid to secure Champions League football, Alonso is expected to stay on Merseyside. One man who resisted overtures from City, Kaka, is high on Madrid’s wishlist, and sources close to the club and the player claim a world-record deal is close to completion, despite rumoured interest from Chelsea.

Should Kaka leave Milan then it will give Silvio Berlusconi & Adriano Galliani license to spend some of their lucre in a more flamboyant manner, although the likelihood is that they will offer the lot to LA Galaxy for three more weeks of David Beckham. Emmanuel Adebayor has long been on their list, although English media reports suggest that Chelsea may make a bid to gazump them in that respect, providing they can wake the Togolese striker up from his twelve month slumber in the meantime.

Chelsea are supposed to be spending big this summer. After all, they only paid £14m for a right back to replace their £13.2m one last summer, along with £9m for a luxury midfielder, following a £25m splurge in the January 08 window. Small fry. Kaka & Adebayor aside, rumours abound that David Villa, Franck Ribery and….erm…Daniel Sturridge will be arriving at Stamford Bridge, though no concrete bid has been reported as of yet.

And what of Manchester United. Ronaldo and Tevez are looking able to leave, whilst Berbatov looks barely able to run, but Ferguson is a wily old fox. Having already added two Serbian stars in Zoran Tosic & Adam Ljajic in January, the man from Govan is likely to be looking bigger this summer, with Ribery, Lyon’s Karim Benzema, and even Arjen Robben spotted apparently. Should Ronaldo leave, the funds freed up would arguably cover two of those players, though little has been said by the man himself. He has left that to rent-a-quote Ronaldo.

Liverpool meanwhile are looking a little bit less adventurous in the wake of their owners’ confirmed £42m losses last year, a £2m bid for Portsmouth’s Sylvain Distin is unlikely to get pulses racing, and there are fears that they may be priced out of a move for Tevez, Valencia duo Villa & Silva, or even another Portsmouth defender in Glen Johnson. Still, Andriy Voronin is back from a loan spell in Germany, and Jermaine Pennant will return from Portsmouth too. Like having two new signings that.

At Arsenal, Arsene Wenger is scouring Football Manager searching for young talent. The signing of Andrey Arshavin in January may have bucked the transfer trend at the Emirates, but Wenger will be more concerned about rumoured interest in Robin Van Persie & Cesc Fabregas from Barcelona at the moment, with Thierry Henry & Aliaksandr Hleb doubtless whispering sweet nothings in their ears. Barcelona are looking to add a left back to their European Cup winning squad, so don’t be surprised to see Gael Clichy appear on their radar at some point also.

And what of Manchester City of course. Barry’s arrival, said Mark Hughes, will not be the last. They have already been linked with 4562 players, including Samuel Eto’o (unlikely), Xabi Alonso (very unlikely) and Carlos Tevez (ridiculous). Armed with cash, expect City to get hold of some eye-catching signings before August is out. And then expect them to still be inconsistent and self-destuctive.

Elsewhere there have already been some big moves, Bayern Munich’s response to missing out on the Bundesliga title was a big money splurge on VfB Stuttgart’s goal-machine Mario Gomez, to add to Zenit St Petersburg skipper Anatoliy Tymoschuk, moves which could well pave the way for Ribery to depart for Real, Barca, Manchester United or Chelsea. Two of their rivals have already been weakened then, Diego swapping the green of Bremen for the stripes of Juventus, who have also recaptured (and it isn’t hard considering how slow he moves these days) Fabio Cannavaro from Real Madrid.

Serie A champions Inter have already made moves to strengthen also, swapping Ricardo Quaresma & Hernan Crespo for Genoa duo Diego Milito & Thiago Motta, with doubts lingering over the future of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, although his wage demands and apparent lack of success in Europe may see him remain at the San Siro.

So with Ronaldo going to Real, meaning Ribery goes to United, meaning Hleb goes to Bayern, and Fabregas goes to Barca, so Kalou goes to Arsenal, so Villa goes to Chelsea, so Drogba goes to Milan, so Kaka goes to Real, so Van der Vaart goes to Arsenal, so Van Persie goes to Barca, so Eto’o goes to City, and so forth until we all experience an aneurism, expect the spectacular, expect the astonishing, expect the unexpected. Expect to get slightly bored by it all and start watching the Ashes. I know I will.

Mark Hughes has today defended his decision to rest Robinho for the home game against Fulham yesterday. Sparky claims that the Brazilian star needed a break as he is one of those players who “carry the vast majority of the workload.”

Is this really the case however and considering the astronomical amount of money that the Man City millionaires are getting paid should we as fans expect more?

Robinho has so far appeared in 26 of City’s 32 league matches bagging 11 goals, not a bad ratio of goals per game by any means.

It’s nearly as good as Fernando Torres’s 11 in 19. However could you really argue that the former Madrid star has the same impact as the Liverpool hit man? Does he strike the same fear into defenders? I think not.

The idea of resting the fatigued Robinho makes me even more sceptical when he only played 70 minutes of Brazils recent 3-0 victory over Peru. Was it more a case of the City boss thinking his side were good enough to beat Fulham without their talisman?

Man City boast an impressive record at home having won 10 of the games hosted by their illustrious stadium so far and Fulham only winning two on their travels at this stage in the campaign. If this is the case then Sparky failed to do his homework; this is a Fulham side that not long ago stunned Manchester United and very nearly nicked a point off of Liverpool.

Furthermore Roy Hodgson’s boys are pushing for a place in Europe – they cut a fine figure at the City of Manchester Stadium yesterday and look set to grab a place in next season’s EUROPA League.

With City trailing 3-1 to Hamburg in the UEFA Cup lets hope Hughes does his homework before the return leg, or else he’ll be the next manager to be sacrificed at the altar of unrealistic expectations in football.

June kicked off with a bang, literally – Jose Mourinho signed on as Inter Milan manager and Ronaldo, fresh from doing the league and european double with Manchester United, publicly admitted in an interview that he wanted to play for Real Madrid.

The Ronaldo saga kicked into full force in June, with Manchester United fans turning on their own star player once he’d made known his desire to move. Real Madrid were eager to throw Robinho in the mix but with United refusing to comment on the issue (apart from what they’d already said in May – i.e. they’d rather bench him than sell him), the press and Real Madrid ran riot with Ronaldo single-handedly threatening to overshadow the Euros as the biggest story of June 2008.

In England and Spain (before we move to the Euros) changes were rung – Manchester City dumped Sven and called in Mark Hughes, Blackburn chose to go with Paul Ince and Chelsea dismissed one manager for lacking Premier League experience before bringing in another manager lacking Premier League experience, albeit with a much more impressive coach record. Phil Scolari was heralded as the manager to ‘fix’ Chelsea’s problems and take them to the next level (i.e. win the league and the Champions League). Barcelona would promote Guardiola from within their ranks and say goodbye to Rijkaard, a move that would be questioned at the time but in retrospect worked out quite well for the Spanish giants.

Euro 2008 started with a furious debate on whether tournament hosts should be allowed automatic qualification, especially since the hosts seemed incapable of winning games (let alone qualifying for a major tournament) in the buildup to and in the early stages of the tournament. Frankly we’re going to hear this every time a ‘weak’ country hosts a big tournament (South Africa in 2010, eh?).

Former winners (and possibly the most despised team at the event) Greece were summarily dismissed as were pre-tournament favourites France, but the real surprises of the tournament were to be found in the knock-out rounds. Some point to the drama of the Euros as proof that this was a ‘great’ tournament and I’m inclined to agree, but I do remember thinking during the tournament that a certain ‘oomph’ was missing throughout. There were no heated battles, no great blitzes, no individual heroes (although if there was ever a team to claim the title of heroes, it has to be Turkey for their astonishing comebacks).

It came down to perseverance, tactics and team-play and in the end, after heart-stopping performances by Turkey and Russia’s sublime displays, there could be only one winner, the team that persevered the most, valued teamwork over everything else and got their tactics spot on. Spain were worthy champions, long overdue by many accounts, and quickly hailed as the ‘best team of 2008′.

Also Read:

Euro 2008 Review
Euro 2008 Babes
Football Debt, Spiraling Wages and The Future of European Football
SPL Signs TV Deal With Setanta

Back to Soccerlens’ 2008 Review.

According to the Guardian, Blackburn striker Roque Santa Cruz wants to leave the club and join former manager Mark Hughes at Manchester City.

The report says that Santa Cruz has become restless at Blackburn, thanks to the club’s early-season struggles under new manager Paul Ince, and that City could pay well over 15m to snag him in January.

Blackburn rejected City’s bid for Santa Cruz in the summer, and even though the Paraguayan has scored only three times this season, they might think it’s better to keep him for the long haul rather than to let him go in the winter window.

On the other hand, the hefty fee Blackburn would receive would allow them to shore up some holes in the squad, so there could be a lot more benefit from selling him than keeping him.

Manchester City, as I said a couple of days ago, do need to add a goal-getter to their front line. Santa Cruz may not be scoring like a 15-20m striker right now, but having Robinho, Shaun Wright-Phillips, and Stephen Ireland provide him with chances would benefit him, and it’d also help take the scoring load off of that trio.

Should Santa Cruz leave Blackburn for Manchester City, or should he stick it out? Is he worth the price that City want to pay for him?

It doesn’t matter if Mark Hughes isn’t interested in bringing the original Ronaldo to Manchester City, because the rumors just won’t go away. The Daily Mirror says the pudgy one is getting in playing shape again and that he is focused on his recovery in order to explore interest from Manchester City.

The chances of City going for a striker in January would seem to be pretty high. Despite having scored the second-most goals in the Premier League (26) behind Chelsea (32), 18 have come from the quartet of Robinho, Stephen Ireland (a midfielder), Shaun Wright-Phillips (right winger), and Elano (not playing). Hughes can’t overrely on Robinho or wait around all season for Jo to start scoring, and while Ched Evans and Daniel Sturridge have loads of potential, they’re still developing.

Ronaldo would be available for free, but he would undoubtedly command a hefty salary. If it was even 2006 or early 2007 Ronaldo, it’d be a no-brainer, but his injury and fitness history make him a big question mark right now.

Either way, his name would be a big draw. But more importantly, if he’s in playing shape, I’m sure he can still score a few, which is something City could use (that and some defense).

Could City benefit from a move for Ronaldo, or is he too much of a risk now?