If you’re a football fan, there’s a lot to look forward to in the remainder of November, as we will see some of the game’s biggest names go head-to-head on multiple fronts over the next week-plus.

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English Premier League: Liverpool v Manchester City

The big match-up of the weekend takes place at Anfield, as Liverpool host Manchester City on Sunday at 4:00 pm BST in a clash that shouldn’t be short on action.

City currently sit top of the English Premier League, whereas Liverpool are sixth, a whopping 12 points behind City. However, Liverpool are coming off of a vital 2-1 win at Chelsea, so their confidence should be very high. That’s not Liverpool first’s noteworthy win of the season, as they won at Arsenal in August, so they’re certainly capable of not only hanging with City but defeating them as well.

Sunday, 27th November 3:30pm on Sky Sports 1, Sky Sports HD 1 and Sky 3D.

Spanish La Liga: Real Madrid v Atletico Madrid

Real Madrid will host local rivals Atletico MAdrid on Saturday at the Santiago Benabeu. Real will hope to maintain the three point lead and Atletico will hope to take a step towards getting out of the middle of the table.

Despite featuring talented players like Fernando Torres, Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan in the past, they have failed to beat their rivals as a vast gap of funds has come between them. If things are ever going to change in this rivalry, this is certainly not the time.

Real Madrid will be and should be able to maintain their three point lead ahead of the mighty Barcelona as the Catalans will lock horns with Getafe later in the same day.

Angel Di Maria is expected to return after he has been out since early November when he suffered an injury in the 7-1 stomping of Osasuna. Brazilian midfielder Diego will have to play a key role if Atletico wants to unsettle the Galacticos.

Saturday, 26th November 7:00pm on Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports HD 1.

Carling Cup: Arsenal v Manchester City

Next week marks the return of the Carling Cup, with the four quarterfinal matches set to take place on 29th and 30th November.

After their tough test at Liverpool, it doesn’t get any easier for Manchester City, as they must visit Arsenal in a Carling Cup quarterfinal, with the match kicking off at 8:00 pm BST. City haven’t won at Arsenal since a 3-2 win in October 1975, but if there’s ever a time and situation to do it, this is it.

But after a slow start, Arsenal have been one of the hottest teams in the Premier League, and they’ve been a strong team at home this season. And after falling agonizingly short of the trophy last season, you can be sure Arsenal won’t let the chance slip by this season, so the Gunners will certainly be gunning for the win at home.

Being that it’s the Carling Cup, we may not see either team put out the strongest starting XI possible, but we should still see quite a few notable names out there, so this should prove to be an exciting encounter.

Tuesday, 29th November 7:30pm on Sky Sports 2, Sky Sports HD 2 and Sky 3D.

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From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Al Ahli had fired their coach Ivan Hašek after a run of poor results in all competition. Losing from Al Shabab in the GCC Champions Cup ended the Czech manager 2nd stay with the Dubai based club who considered one of the top clubs in UAE Football.

In his first stay with Al Ahli from 2007 to 2009, Hašek could lead Al Ahli to the glory by winning the UAE President Cup in his first season and the Etisalat pro league the following season which gave Al Ahli the chance to play in 2009 FIFA Club World Cup. But things didn’t go well this season for Al Ahli’ hopeful management and fans as Hašek couldn’t find a way to improve his massive skilful squad and convert them into winners.

As a result of that, Al Ahli named Flores as their new coach to replace Ivan Hašek. The former Atletico Madrid coach was without a club since his departure from Spain due to his frequent argument with star striker Diego Forlán. The Spanish manager has a great CV. He took control of big clubs like Valencia, Benfica and Atletico Madrid where he won the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Super Cup.

I think Al Ahli made a wise decision in choosing Flores to replace Ivan Hašek. The Spanish manager is well-known of his attacking approach and Al Ahli fans can’t wait to see how their team will perform under the new management.

The club wouldn’t do the same mistake of last season when they kept former Leeds United manager David O’Leary for too long, so Hasek was dismissed after Al Ahli started the new season with just one win from their first five games, even with the recruitment of big-name stars Grafite, Luis Jimenez, Jaja Coelho and Youssef Mohamad. But this time, Al Ahli have trust in Quique to get the best out of the four stars and their Emirate team-mates.

Flores will have some headache in choosing his starting XI as Al Ahli squad is considered as one of the best in term of quality and quantity. Two good goalkeepers in Yousif Abdulla and ex-international Obaid Al Taweela, Experienced defenders like Mohammad Qassim, Lebanese Youssef Mohamad and Obaid Khalefa.

In the middle there are many names which any coach wishes to have in his team such as the flamboyant Ismaeel Al Hamadi, Chilean playmaker Luis Jimenez and promising youngsters Tariq Ahmed and Majed Hassan. The biggest force of Al Ahli can be found up front with Ahmed Khalil, best Asian Young Footballer of 2008, Grafite, 2009 Bundesliga Top Scorer, and Jaja Coelho.

Flores promised in his first press conference to bring Al Ahli back into the winning way. He also asked the fans to give him only one month to see the results of his instructions. He also confirmed that the mentality of the players will make the difference, in addition to the commitment and discipline in the training sessions.

Flores said:
“We will work hard during the coming period and those features will appear within a month from now”.

Can Al Ahli win somthing with Quique Flores?

Check more similar stories at Emirates Football Talk.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Sergio Aguero has been a long-term target for both Manchester City and Real Madrid for the past few months, ever since the Argentine announced his intentions to leave Atletico Madrid back in May. Manchester City see him as an ideal replacement for Carlos Tevez, and someone who is much less of a problem off the pitch.

Real Madrid on the other hand have been on the lookout for a new striker for quite some time, and Aguero’s track record against Barcelona, not to mention his overall technical abilities, would make him the ideal choice for Madrid.

And the hype surrounding the player isn’t undeserved – he has powerful stats to back him up.

AGÜERO’S UNIQUE SCORING RUN

Between March and April 2011, Sergio Agüero scored in seven consecutive league appearances. Stats show that he was the only player across the top five European leagues to achieve such a run.

Longest scoring runs in top five European leagues 2010-11

*At the time of the scoring runs

The 23 year-old Atlético Madrid forward scored consecutively against Villarreal, Almería, Real Madrid, Real Sociedad, Espanyol, Levante and Deportivo La Coruña.

Sergio Agüero’s 2010-11 Liga season

Sergio Agüero scored 20 goals last season in the Spanish league, his most prolific campaign. The highly-coveted striker was also one of Argentina’s rare shining lights at the 2011 Copa América, netting three goals in four appearances at a rate of one every 72 minutes.

Manchester City are reportedly the closest to signing Aguero, having officially begun talks with Atletico Madrid. However, as with the case of Alexis Sanchez, if a bigger club was to show their interest (Real Madrid) and Aguero’s goal was to win, and not just line his pockets (unlike a certain Samir Nasri), City might end up empty handed. Having said that, Madrid’s supposed pursuit of Neymar could allow City to bring Aguero to Manchester and do away with their reliance on Tevez once and for all.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Argentine giants River Plate are enduring the bleakest period in its 110 year existence after succumbing to what seemed nothing more than an improbable assumption, relegation to the second tier of their domestic game. The thought of one of South America’s premier entities falling from grace  would have seemed an absurd thought, yet the old cliché of ‘anything can happen in football’ has certainly echoed its purpose. Bearing that in mind, Los Millonarios are not the first, nor the last, big name club to fall below the trap door.

Soccerlens takes a look back at some of the star studded clubs that have slipped through the cracks from their top tier leagues and into the lower echelons of their domestic game.

River Plate: 2011

Where else to begin other than with South America’s wounded animal. Daniel Passarella was once idolised as a player at the Estadio Monumental Antonio, as well as across the whole of his native Argentina having lead his nation to their inaugural World Cup triumph on home soil in 1978.  Now he is being lambasted with criticism as the River club president is having the finger well and truly pointed at him for the club’s plight.

River failed to overturn a two goal deficit from their first-leg with Belgrano in Sunday’s promotion/relegation play-off, resigning them to National B. Playing at home, the team in red and white could only salvage a 1-1 draw with the game being called off a minute from time as trouble flared in the stands. The home supporters vented their anger, leading to 89 people being injured as trouble spilled onto the streets of Buenos Aires.

River have been Argentine champions a record 33 times. It remains to be seen just how long it will be before they can contemplate claiming another.

Juventus: 2006

The most successful team in calico ended up winning yet another league title in 2006 – only to end up playing in Serie B three months later. The Old Lady’s performances on the pitch did not culminate in their demise, but instead from the overtures of wrong doing by personnel off it.

Calciopoli, the Italian match fixing scandal that tainted the home nation’s World Cup celebrations in the summer of 2006, resulted in Juve being hung out to dry following claims that general manager Luciano Moggi had been in dialogue with referees to influence the outcome of matches – which ultimately proved to be accurate. The club was originally demoted to Serie C1 but following an appeal, were instead relegated to the second-tier of Serie B. They were also stripped off their 2005 and 2006 league titles

Despite a nine point deduction, the club came straight back up in its first attempt having held onto star names such as Pavel Nedved and Alessandro Del Piero – who ended up being top-scorer with 21 goals. However, despite being runners-up in the Scudetto in 2009, the club has failed to reach the dizzy heights it once gravitated, with last season’s failure to qualify for Europe a clear indication.

Leeds United: 2004

Leeds United, a proper football club. Steeped in history and tradition, the Whites were on the verge of ruling Europe in 1975 but just fell short to Franz Beckenbauer’s Bayern Munich. Fast forward 29-years and the proud Yorkshire club were consigned to relegation.

Big money transfers and high wages resulted in Leeds’ demise. Then chairman Peter Ridsdale assumed his benefactor like stance would result in a period of success as he borrowed from banks to fund big money names such as Rio Ferdinand, Robbie Keane and Robbie Fowler – to name a few. Despite getting to the semi-finals of the Champions League and presenting genuine title charges, the results began to flounder and missed out on qualification for Europe’s premier competition in 2002.

That began a real domino effect as manager David O’Leary was axed along with a mass sale of players to try and ease their crippling debts. The failure to make it into the Champions League had proved to be catastrophic and Ridsdale’s reckless spending had been nothing more but suicidal.

They were relegated in 2004, a shadow of the team that had contested on the grandest stage of European football three years prior.  The club were even forced to sell their training ground and Elland Road to pay back loans. They went into administration in 2007 resulting in a 10 point deduction and subjecting them to the third tier of English football for the first time in their history.

Atletico Madrid: 1999

After narrowly avoiding the drop in 1995, Atletico went under a renaissance to lift the La Liga title the following year under the stewardship of Radomir Antic. Not only that, they completed the double by clinching the Cop del Rey thanks to an extra-time winner by Milinko Pantic against Barcelona.

The future looked bright for Los Rojiblanocs as they hoped to dislodge themselves from the shadow of neighbours Real Madrid. However, despite huge investment in a number of players including Christian Vieri, it would prove to be their downfall. An array of changes in the dugout along with uncertainty in the boardroom resulted in one of the marquee names of Spanish football to slip through the cracks in 2000 and into the Segunda Division.

Club president Jesus Gil came under scrutiny as he was suspended for misusing club funds – ultimately leading to his departure after 13 years at the helm. Those series of events more or less hammered the nail in Atleti’s coffin.

Napoli: 1998

Much like Nottingham Forest (to come), Napoli were the equivalent from the peninsula. A small southern Italian club would rise above their northern counterparts and bath in a period of greatness in the late eighties. The acquisition of Diego Maradona in 1984 would culminate in him leading the Neapolitans from the depths of obscurity and into the promise land. The Aquile would end up clinching two Scudetto, the Coppa Italia and a UEFA Cup.

However the club gradually began to fall from grace. The departure of Maradona and host of integral names culminated into a domino effect as Napoli began to languish in mid-table throughout the nineties. Financial constraints saw a lack of investment which resulted in the club being relegated to Serie B in 1998, having only won two games all season. They did gain promotion two years later but ended up going straight back down. This heaped more misery on the club as financial turmoil threatened to diminish its existence. Upon its bankruptcy the FIGC relegated the club to Serie C1 despite achieving safety in Serie B. If that was not bad enough the club was robbed of its history. Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli was seemingly no more.

That was until Aurelio De Laurentiis arrived, a successful businessman and a Neapolitan who funded a new club in Naples under the name of Napoli Soccer. He wanted his beloved city to behold a football club and even under its new name the club still drew in 50,000 fans into the Stadio San Paolo, shattering Serie C1 records. Amazingly the club had the highest average attendance in the whole of Italian football. Just behind the two Milanese clubs in Milan and Inter.

De Laurentiis reacquired Napoli’s history in 2006 as he succeeded in getting the club’s name restored to Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli. The club was well and truly back on track under his ownership and the Azzurri got promoted to Serie B in 2006 before finally returning to the dizzy heights of Serie A in 2007 where they have gradually progressed in the last four years.

Nottingham Forest: 1993

Forest was nothing more than a mediocre club languishing in England’s second-tier prior to the arrival of manager Brian Clough in 1975. ‘Old Big Head’ went on to create what can only be described as a miracle. Within five years the club not only gained promotion to the top flight, they went on to win it at the first attempt – capturing the European Cup the following year – and then succeeded in defending it. To put into context just how big an achievement that was, it would be like Norwich City replicating the exact same feat within the next few years.

Having picked up their second European Cup in Madrid, the club had cemented a legacy. The team that consisted of John Robertson, Garry Birtles, John McGovern and Peter Shilton will go down as one of the greatest in English football – no doubt. However, as magical as Clough’s time had been he was unable to prevent their relegation during the inaugural season of the Premier League in 1993.

It would turn out to be Clough’s final campaign and although the devastation of relegation was bad enough, Reds fans were more stricken over the departure of their manager of 18 years. Had it not been for him, Nottingham Forest would never have achieved those epic feats.

Aston Villa: 1987

The Birmingham club enjoyed its defining era in the early eighties. Ron Saunders guided the club to its first domestic league championship in 71 years and entry into the European Cup. Although the defence of their title did not go according to plan – accompanied with tension between Saunders and the board that reached breaking point – they went on to win club football’s most coveted prize and a place in the history books. Saunders didn’t foresee the European Cup win as he tendered his resignation. His assistant Tony Barton subsequently filled the managerial void.

Despite their success on the field, the club were in the red financially with a debt of £1.6m (astronomical money back in those days). This was down to high wages along with money being borrowed to renovate the North Stand at Villa Park. Chairman Ron Bendall sold his 42% stake to former chairman Doug Ellis prior to the club’s UEFA Super Cup victory over Barcelona but it would end up being that generation’s last hurrah as the likes of Tony Morley and Dennis Mortimer parted company with the club.

Villa’s decline continued through the mid-eighties and subsequently succumbed to relegation in 1987 – five years after being champions of Europe.

Manchester United: 1974

Sir Matt Busby guided The Red Devils to a long overdue European Cup triumph in 1968 and becoming the first English club to win the coveted cup. The great man resigned a year later, marking the end of an era as the likes of Bobby Charlton and George Best entered their twilight years.

United would begin to diminish following Busby’s departure and despite a brief stint back in the dugout it was not enough to overturn the club’s fortunes. Tommy Docherty took over the reins from Frank O’Farrell in 1972 and saved the club from relegation, but failed to do so the following year in 1974.

They were all but mathematically down prior to their relegation as club legend Denis Law, who was then playing for the blue half of the city, sealed his old club’s fate in a 1-0 win. United were down, six years after being European champions.

Follow Ross on Twitter: @RossMackiewicz

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

As the dust settles on Barcelona’s fantastic 3-1 demolition of Manchester United in the Champions League Final, and the national side recently so effortlessly thumped the United States 4-0, one thing is for certain – Spain are the best footballing nation in the world at this moment in time.

Spanish football’s contemporary success is hugely desirable: the national team are the current holders of both the European Championships and the World Cup, after victories in both 2008 and 2010 respectively. Spanish club Barcelona have won the Champions League twice in the last three years, and both Sevilla and Athletico Madrid have triumphed in the Europa League in the last five years.

Spain’s Primera Liga is producing fantastic, world-class players – every single player in Spain’s starting line-up for the World Cup Final belonged to a La Liga club. Eight of Barcelona’s first eleven for the Champions League Final progressed through the Barcelona academy. And for the last two years, the Ballon D’Or has been graced exclusively by players currently playing in Spain: Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernandez, Cristiano Ronaldo, and current holder Lionel Messi. The standard set by the Spanish league can only be envied by their counterparts. Which begs the question – what makes Spain such a fantastic footballing nation?

Anybody who watched any of Spain’s action from the World Cup will know that their ball retention is second to none. The Spaniards made 3597 passes, more than any other team at a World Cup since 1966. In the final, their passing accuracy was 84.2%, Holland’s 69%. Xavi, Spain’s midfield maestro, was simply impeccable – the Barcelona man made 57 attacking-half passes, compared to Wesley Sneijder’s measly 21. Spain retained possession like their lives depended on it, waiting patiently for an opportunity to pierce the Dutch defence. Barcelona replicated this passing accuracy last Saturday, and Xavi again proved to be the master of his art, with 95% accuracy.

This tireless attitude to ball retention is coached in Spain from a very young age. Every Barcelona team, from the academy teams to Messi and co. incorporate a 5v1 possession game known as ‘El Rondo’ into their training sessions. The players on the outside, the Rondistas, must keep possession from the middle player, as he tries to intercept their passes. It breeds quick passing, short-distance sprinting, stamina, intelligence of movement and speed of thought. Xavi said recently that players recognise the ‘shame’ of giving the ball away, even in training games such as this.

In La Liga, 77.1% of players are Spanish, one of the highest percentages of all of the top European leagues. Of all twenty squads in the Premier League, less than 40% of players are English. Spanish teams prefer to nurture players through academies before spending money on foreign players. Teams scour the local area for talent, rather than abroad like many English teams do. These Spanish academies strive to be more than just a football team (hence Barcelona’s motto ‘Mes Que Un Club’), and instead act as a family to these young players, developing their lifestyle and attitudes into those of professional footballers. The importance of education is impressed upon young players by the club until they have completed their studies, and by the age of 17 and 18, many of these prospects are ready to progress into first teams, integrating alongside the more experienced players in the team. Daniel Pacheco, a Barcelona youth team graduate said recently ‘they look after you as a person, not just a footballer’.

Spanish clubs’ scouts search for talented, ball-playing footballers. Those who are bigger, stronger and faster than the rest may be desirable in England, but in Spain they are simply disregarded, unless they are technically able too. Young players develop their skills by playing 5-a-side with friends, where a quality first touch and faultless ball mastery lead to success. Because of the Mediterranean weather, children can play all year long in Spain, whereas their English counterparts are resigned to the indoors, losing opportunity to become better technical footballers. However, Spain share their climate with numerous other countries including Portugal and Italy, yet none of those have found success in the way Spain has done. So is there a difference in the aspirations, dreams and desire between these young Spaniards and all other potential footballers?

Maybe so. Young, talented footballers are often offered lucrative contracts by English clubs in order to be prised away from their Spanish academies, in the way Cesc Fabregas was. Yet Fabregas remains the player who can’t budge the likes of Iniesta and Xavi, the guys who refused to leave Spain, off their perch. In England’s second tier, players earn between £3,000 and £10,000 a week, nearly three times what a player in Spain’s Segunda Division would expect. But the willingness to stick it out, play in B teams in lower leagues in the hope that one day, they may just follow in the footsteps of Ramos, Xavi and Villa, is what makes Spanish players the best in the world. And that is why Spain will continue producing the world’s best players for years to come.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

With the domestic leagues finished and only the Champions League final to play on Saturday, football fans across Europe are probably feeling a little blue this week. Work rumbles on, the newest Icelandic ash cloud threatens to disrupt our holidays and, most importantly, the new season won’t get underway until August!

But fear not! This could be one of the most exciting transfer windows for English clubs transfers in years, with clubs like Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, Manchester City and Liverpool all looking to strengthen their squads considerably for the demands of an increasingly competitive domestic league. Here’s a look at some of the key transfers shaping up – make sure to add your own predictions in the comments!

The big three at this early stage of the summer are Atletico Madrid’s pair David De Gea and Sergio Aguero and Benfica’s left-back Fabio Coentrao.

Manchester United to sign David De Gea

Manchester United are painfully aware of criticism that, although they won their record 19^th Premier League title, it was with what some sections of the media regard as their weakest squad in years. They have rightly prioritised the replacement of retiring goalkeeper Edwin Van Der Sar. While Sir Alex Ferguson had all but confirmed the £18 million signing of De Gea, reports yesterday from De Gea’s representatives have suggested that a deal is far from being done.

United have also been linked with a move for Raphael Varane with the deal expected to be decided one way or the other in the next couple of weeks, and the Red Devils are also in the market for a creative midfielder, with Ashley Young, Samir Nasri and Luka Modric all mentioned. My money is on a younger player, so Nasri might fit the bill unless Fergie pulls a coup and brings in someone like Eden Hazard.

Manchester City, Chelsea and Real Madrid chase Sergio Aguero

Sergio Aguero

The pressure is on Manchester City’s Roberto Mancini to challenge for the Premier League title next season, so big things can be expected of them.

Following Aguero’s statement that he wants to leave Atletico, the smart money is on him moving to the blue half of Manchester, possibly to replace Carlos Tevez, with Sheikh Mansour’s deep pockets capable of meeting the transfer fee and Aguero’s wage demands.

Potential rivals for his signature are Chelsea, with Roman Abramovich seemingly ready to splash the cash in a bid to sit atop the Premier League again; Real Madrid, who have been tipped as a likely destination by those close to the Argentine.

Barcelona and Juventus have also been linked although smart money is on one of these three clubs signing him this summer.

Liverpool to sign Fabio Coentrao?

Fabio Coentrao

Fabio Coentrao, the highly-rated Portuguese, also seems set to seal a big-money move, though his destination is far more difficult to predict. Conflicting reports coming out of Portugal indicate Real Madrid and Liverpool as front-runners for his signature, with both clubs apparently having offers of around £25 million accepted. With Marcelo currently unshakeable in Real’s left-back position, however, the guarantee of first-team football at Liverpool may be the deciding factor.

Who’s the next Chelsea manager?

As well as players moving on, we will also see a couple of managerial vacancies filled. With Antonio Conte taking over at Juventus, there is now only really only one job up for grabs that will be a guaranteed talking point when it’s eventually filled and that’s…West Ham! Actually, it’s not. Sorry West Ham fans. It’s Chelsea, of course, and they do not seem to be short of options.

Guus Hiddink, who made a good impression with his FA Cup-winning six-month stint at Stamford Bridge in 2009 is the bookies’ favourite after admitting that he misses day-to-day club management in his international capacity with Turkey. Other names in the frame are Manuel Pellegrini, who continually crops up as a candidate for big teams needing a manager despite his never having won a major domestic or European trophy; Marco van Basten, same story and, in what would be THE story of the summer, Jose Mourinho, who could be tempted back to his former club after a reported bust-up with Cristiano Ronaldo.

And this is without mentioning Arsenal’s rebuilding efforts and Harry Redknapp’s challenge of injecting fresh blood into a Spurs side that looked increasingly jaded as the season drew to a close. What are your transfer tips this summer? I, for one, can’t wait to see what happens.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Spanish football journalist Guillem Balague broke the news on Revista de la Liga that Manchester United prospect David de Gea will be in the Old Trafford nets next season. The 20 year old goalkeeper should be unveiled in the near future as a United player for around £17 million and will be seen as an immediate replacement to retiring goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar.

There has been a hefty amount of interest from the newly crowned Premier League champions about signing the highly-rated youngster and it seems like these rumours are definite now, according to Balague. Balague said that United wanted to keep the deal under wraps until next Monday, but the story was leaked and now the reports will be out at whether de Gea is too young for United at the moment and whether he can handle the pressure of the Premier League.

The Spaniard is a product of the Atletico Madrid youth system and holds eight caps for his national country. De Gea has represented his country at all four youth levels and has won the under 17 European Championship in 2007. Manchester United will be wary of replacing Van der Sar, after the horrendous time they had once replacing Peter Schmeichel back in 1999. After Schmeichel’s departure, United had goalkeeper trouble until 2006 when they acquired Van der Sar. Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson will hope that de Gea can step into the breach and have a long and successful time at the club and be the next big goalkeeper for the Red Devils.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Player transfer fees and their larger than life wage bills are a common topic of discussion for a football fan of today. From Wayne Rooney threatening to quit to oil-rich owners going on shopping sprees, the footballers have now become spoilt and they now know that their high demands will be met at their current club or the next.

It is especially easy to get a huge wage offer for those who possess skill and/or experience. Yaya Toure moved from Spain to England with a wage demand that even England’s best Rooney was not getting at the time.

For the smaller clubs, it has become far more difficult to move into the top-flight and pose a threat to the top teams in their own country, let alone go on a Euro trip.

We have taken the liberty to skim out the football clubs out of the ESPN’s 200 best-paying teams in the world and present a list to you of 66 best-paying football teams in the world.

If you’re gifted with football, this is who will show you the money:

The Leagues and Countries: Bundesliga (Germany), EPL (English Premier League, England), La Liga (Spain), Serie A (Italy) & SPL (Scottish Premier League, Scotland).

Also see: Best Paid Footballers By Country

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Edwin Van der Sar will walk off into the sunset. Paul Scholes looks set to join him. Gary Neville, that great Scouse-o-phobe, has already departed. Only the indomitable Ryan Giggs may remain from Fergie’s Fledglings. Fittingly, he will outlast his compatriots as he helped usher them in.

There’s no mistaking the air of rebirth that has surrounded Manchester United since their 2008 Champions’ League triumph in Moscow. Sir Alex Ferguson, though still relying heavily on his ageing marshals, has attempted to usher in a new age at Old Trafford behind academy products and “value” signings: the mysterious Bebe, Darron Gibson, Javier Hernandez and the Da Silva twins lead United’s reinforcements. As in war, there are questions if the new meat is ready for the grinder. Hernandez has been an unqualified success in his first year, Chris Smalling has shown signs of becoming a top-class defender while on the flip-side Bebe’s profile apparently remains higher than his talent level.

As this is Van der Sar’s last season and it’s looking increasingly likely that Grand Old Man Scholes will join him, there seem to be many opportunities awaiting the Red Imps. Considering it’s certain Tomasz Kuszczak will leave United at season’s end and others seem set to follow him out the door, if only for the sake of squad depth there will be significant turnover in the red half of Manchester this summer.  Unless Tom Cleverley is the second coming of Ryan Giggs, Ferguson must part with the pounds to make sure he ends his reign as he should: on top of the League.

Sir Alex’s reticence to spend big since the departure of The Varnished One has been attributed often to his failure to find “value” in the market. Even considering this, he spent an alleged 25 million last summer on Chicharito, Bebe and Smalling. By buying young, he couldn’t (or elected not to) take part in either the Mesut Ozil or Rafael Van der Vaart sweepstakes, two cut-price moves which could have helped United immeasurably not just this year, but in future seasons. Both could fill the position in which Man Utd are popularly thought to need the most help: an heir to Scholes (Editor’s Note: To be fair, Ozil is on the record as having preferred a move to Spain / Real Madrid than England. VDV still boggles the mind though).

A similar minimum sum will have to be spent this offseason – if only to replenish what squad depth appears to be exiting Old Trafford, stage right, this summer. Indeed, there’s reason to think that filling the hole between United’s posts will cost that much itself. The Imps will be abetted by the return of Federico Macheda and Tom Cleverley from loan, which should further reinforce reputed problem areas, but question marks still remain over that pair’s ability to consistently impact the Premiership and Champions’ League. The greatest question mark remains now who Ferguson will select to inherit Edwin Van der Sar’s mantle as the Next Great United Keeper – Atletico’s David De Gea, Schalke’s Manuel Neuer (who is more or less certain to go to Bayern Munich) and Ajax’s Maarten Stekelenburg or another, less-touted suspect.

Just as with Arsene Wenger, it would be foolish to assume Ferguson would simply walk away from three years of building for the future. He is nothing if not sure of himself and has been very complimentary of both Smalling and Chicharito. But Sir Alex Ferguson is also nothing if not pragmatic and if he feels that certain players need “moving on”, his recent statements suggest he’s still willing to do so in order to ensure United’s continued strength.

The guess is here that after – probably – winning his nineteenth top-flight title, it would gall the Scot to let the club fall down the standings behind the hated Citizens, Blues, Gunners and Reds. Even guessing United lose only Van der Sar, Scholes and two other squad members – say Owen and Hargreaves – then purchases will have to be made to replenish the squad depth, no matter if the replacement comes from within (Gibson? Cleverley? Lindegaard? Anderson?) or outside (Steven Defour? Douglas Costa? Marek Hamsik?).

Sir Alex Ferguson’s too proud and competitive a man to not go out while at – or very near – the top. And if he wants to lead United to championship number twenty or beyond, then he’ll have to balance development with his chequebook. 2011 promises to be one of the more interesting summer breaks in recent history at Old Trafford.

For more analysis and opinions, shoot across to Matthew Wood‘s blog, Balanced Sports.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Atletico Madrid hosted the game against Valencia at the Vicente Calderon Stadium and the Spanish winger Joaquin led Valencia to three points and the third position on the table. Diego Forlan had a hand to play in it too when he couldn’t make the most of the penalty awarded to Atletico in the 58th minute.

Jose Antonio Reyes opened the scoring in the third minute.

Atletico Madrid 1-2 Valencia Highlights

Reyes, 3′
Joaquin, 41′
Joaquin, 86′

From Soccerlens.com - Football News