Captains, coaches and media make a Messi of it

Lionel Messi is the best player in the world right now. Not many people, Cristiano Ronaldo fan club aside, would argue with that. 60 goals for club and country in 2010 including twelve braces, five hat-tricks and a memorable quadruple against Arsenal in the Champions League quarter-final says more than enough. His control on the ball, pace, passing, movement and all-round ability is second to none. But he should not have won the 2010 FIFA Ballon D'or award.

Why on earth not, you may ask? Well, because the award (slightly rehashed this year to merge the long-running Ballon D'or with FIFA's own World Player of the Year award) is meant to commemorate the footballing year. It is the player of the year 2010 who should have received the accolade. And what are the most important and memorable footballing moments of a calendar year? Each country has their own individual leagues and cups of course, but worldwide it is the UEFA Champions League that is best remembered. And of course, once every four years, 2010 being one of them, there is the small matter of the World Cup. These are the tournaments that stick in the worldwide footballing conscience for years.

Cast your mind back to 2002. The original Ronaldo led Brazil to World Cup triumph and rightfully claimed the personal honour for himself. Zinedine Zidane scored that wonder-volley at Hampden Park to land Real Madrid their ninth European Cup as well. These things stick in the memory. 2006? Fabio Cannavaro led Italy to World Cup glory and claimed the award. 2008? Cristiano Ronaldo had his incredible 42-goal season at Manchester United as they claimed the Champions League title, again he correctly won the award. 2009? Messi was the key figure as Barcelona won no fewer than six trophies, and the Argentine netted in both the Champions League and World Club Cup finals. He rightfully claimed the award.

But this year, where was Messi when Jose Mourinho's Internazionale shut up shop at the Nou Camp to prevent the Blaugrana from going through to the Champions League final? Where was Messi when Argentina were crushed 4-0 by Joachim Lowe's effervescent young Germany team in the World Cup quarter-final? As incredible as he is, the diminutive no.10 didn't quite do the business in the two tournaments that really mattered last year.

So who did deserve to win it? Well, the other two contenders in the final shortlist of three, Messi's clubmates Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta both could have a better claim. Always mentioned together due to their similar playing style and near-telepathic communication on the pitch, the Catalan duo were integral to Spain's first ever World Cup triumph, passing every team in the tournament to death with Iniesta smashing home the winner deep into extra time of the final. They have also contributed to Barcelona's success at league level, and while they play a different role to Messi, their passing, movement and creativity is just as integral to Barca as Messi's goals are. When people think back to 2010 in a few years time, they will remember Xavi and Iniesta's World Cup magnificence more than Messi's failure to score at all in South Africa.

Personally, I feel there are two other candidates even more worthy than any of the Barcelona trio who were in the running. And don't get me wrong. I'm a huge fan of Barcelona, I'm sat in my room with a Xavi Hernandez poster and a diagram/article of Barcelona's formation featuring all three of the players in question on the wall next to me! But both Wesley Sneijder and Diego Milito should have been in the running for the award. The UEFA Champions League is the ultimate tournament in world football today. It takes thirteen games to win it, as opposed to the seven of the World Cup, and on the whole, the quality of football is undoubtedly much higher. Milito scored the goals that won Inter the final at the Bernabeu in May. Not only that but he scored the clinching goals in Serie A and the Coppa Italia as Mourinho's team claimed an unprecedented title. He should surely have been in the running, and at least in FIFA's World XI of the year. But no, not a single international captain, coach or media representative gave the Argentine striker a vote.

The bigger case still rests with Sneijder. The Dutch maestro did get some votes, notably from England captain Rio Ferdinand and Italy coach Cesare Prandelli, but not enough to make the final three. Yet it was he who was the key player, the trequartista that opened up defences across the continent to deliver the Nerazzurri's first European title since 1965. Not only that but he led a Holland team, scarcely fancied at the start of the World Cup, to the final itself, scoring five goals along the way and playing with a real verve and swagger not seen in many other players today. They lost the final, and the team's dirty tactics gave them a bad name, but Sneijder could not be blamed for that. The combination of star player in Inter's treble and leading Holland to their first World Cup final since the 1970s should surely have been enough to make him the player of 2010. Or at least make the final three.

Hats off to Lionel Messi, he is a true footballing genius and will hopefully be around winning trophies for many years to come. But when I think back to 2010 a few years down the line, and I'm sure I won't be alone, it will be the flying Dutchman, Wesley Sneijder, and his star role in both Champions League and World Cup that will stick in my memory.

A night of intrigue, insights and incensed Liverpool fans

It has been a while since I addressed the Premier League title race, relegation battle or any other aspect in blog form, but a night like tonight has made it simply irresistible. Tonight's results have put the jobs of four managers in serious jeopardy and probably not done the bookies much harm.

Firstly, Chelsea's horrendous run of form has continued. Another defeat, this time to bottom-of-the-table (although now up to 17th) Wolves. Just when it looked like Carlo Ancelotti's men couldn't get any worse, they truly have. An own goal from Jose Bosingwa, who hasn't looked like the same player since returning from a year-long injury lay off earlier this season has left Chelsea outside the top four and nine points adrift of league leaders Manchester United despite having played a game more. Bare in mind Chelsea were six points clear of the Red Devils as recently as late October and that truly is an incredible statistic. Ancelotti, who yesterday claimed he felt lucky not to have already been sacked, must now be truly worried as Roman Abramovich hasn't exactly shied away from firing managers and other members of staff in the past. The weakness of their squad was exposed and the confidence appears to have completely left them despite the return of key players.

With the Blues seemingly on the edge of leaving the title race, the two main challengers to United went head to head at the Emirates stadium tonight. Here, two vastly improved sides displayed very different tactics. While Arsenal continued with their sometimes admirable, sometimes frustrating pass-and-move football, Manchester City carried on with their uber-defensive tactics and came away the more satisfied. With three holding midfielders (I don't care what you say, Yaya Toure is not an attacking midfielder) and a solid back four, and only really Carlos Tevez as a serious goal threat, Roberto Mancini's tactics do seem to be getting results. Although whether they have that killer instinct required to claim the Premier League title is doubtful. Somewhat reminiscent of Jose Mourinho's Inter last season, the main complaint would be that Tevez, Milner, Silva and Yaya are not a front four quite as threatening as Milito, Eto'o, Sneijder and Pandev were. Arsenal are certainly looking much more promising with Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas continually improving and Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere and Robin Van Persie also impressing in spells. The main concern for them would be their defence, with Laurent Koscielny, Johan Djourou and Sebastien Squillaci not quite up to the standard of the injured Thomas Vermaelen. Big question marks remain over Lukasz Fabianski, but with Arsene Wenger recluctant to spend in January I doubt their attack can see them all the way through to the finish line. The resulting bans for Bacary Sagna and Pablo Zabaleta's late red cards will not help the two clubs either.

Tottenham Hotspur as well, are still lacking as far as winning the Premier League goes. Gareth Bale, Rafael Van Der Vaart and Aaron Lennon are all in incredible form, but silly dropped points earlier in the season could cost them as they remain eight points behind United, having played one more match. Defeat at Everton tonight is nothing to be embarassed about but defensive solidity is something that Spurs are yet to acquire.

Moving away from the title race, and onto Liverpool (how it must pain their fans to read that sentence). The Reds' away form has been abysmal this season with only one win from ten games and seven defeats after the 3-1 reverse at Ewood Park. The fans have turned on Roy Hodgson, joining in with Rovers fans tonight singing 'You're getting sacked in the morning'. The veteran boss has performed admirably around the continent and with Fulham, but it appears the mess Rafael Benitez left him at Liverpool is too much to turn around and his signings were not of the required quality for the Anfeld outfit to get back into the Champions League. People may laugh, but relegation is still a possibility for the five times European champions.

But relegation is even more of a possibility for West Ham United. The Hammers were battered 5-0 at Newcastle tonight to a side missing their main-man as Andy Carroll was sidelined by injury. This will come as a bitter blow to Avram Grant who thought his side had turned a corner after four games unbeaten. Touted for a long time as likely to be sacked soon, it may finally be the week that owners David Gold and David Sullivan wield the axe. Another team in claret and blue are in the relegation zone with them, and Gerard Houllier's neck is also on the line. Aston Villa have finished in the top six for the last three seasons but find themselves eighteenth with a seemingly disgruntled team, unhappy fans and an unpopular manager. Defeat at home to Sunderland leaves the Villans facing a real uphill struggle.

So where does this leave everybody? I feel Chelsea and Spurs are now battling just to finish the season in the top four. Arsenal and Manchester City almost certainly can challenge Manchester United for the title, but only if the former sign better defenders/ a goalkeeper and the latter add more goal-threat to their play (the signing of Edin Dzeko may help, but not if he is simply a reserve for Tevez). And while as a Manchester United fan, I may be slightly biased, it is certainly looking good for the Old Trafford outfit. Odds on favourites with the bookies, United sit clear atop the table, with games in hand and still unbeaten. With Javier Hernandez, Nani and Dimitar Berbatov in goalscoring form, and Wayne Rooney looking like hitting his form of last season again, it would be a brave man to bet against the Red Devils. Their main concern will be the fixtures list with 2 games against Chelsea and visits to White Hart Lane, the Emirates and Anfield all still to come. But with the form of the other teams, what do they really have to fear? At the other end of the table, it could be any three from ten or twelve to be quite honest. Bolton Wanderers and Sunderland also deserve a mention as they have made themselves real contenders for Europe.

What is for sure, is that this is one of the most exciting Premier League seasons ever, right throughout the table. And I haven't even mentioned Ian Holloway...

Long live the Premier League!

My Highlight of 2010: The Crowning Glory of a Uruguayan Genius

For me, the footballing highlight of 2010 had to be the confirmation of Uruguay and Atletico Madrid striker as Golden Ball winner at the FIFA World Cup. A long time favourite of mine, ever since I saw him score the first time I ever went to a professional football match at Old Trafford back in 2002, he had long been regarded as a bit of a joke by the ignorant amongst us. However, this year saw him finally acknowledged by the masses as the class act that he is.

Signed by Manchester United in 2002 as a 22-year-old striker from Argentine club Independiente, he was labelled 'Diego Birtles' (after United flop of the '80s Garry Birtles) when he failed to score in his first 27 games for the club. These however were largely substitute appearances and it wasn't long before his class began to shine through. A gradual improvement in performances led to some memorable moments, notably his brace at Anfield which gave United their first win over their bitter rivals for over three years, and he won over the majority of the Stretford End faithful. Some great goals including a volley against Chelsea in the last minute to secure a vital victory and a similar screamer against Rangers in the Champions League left few at Old Trafford in doubt of his ability. Unfortunately, with Ruud Van Nistelrooy at the peak of his powers and Louis Saha and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer also in the frame, Forlan could never quite pin down a regular starting berth and the arrival of Wayne Rooney in August 2004 was the end for the Uruguayan at Old Trafford.

A move to Spain seemed to ignite Forlan's potential and he finished his first season with Villarreal as Europe's top scorer, claiming the European Golden Shoe award with 25 goals to his name. He was also involved as the Yellow Submarine made it to the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2006, netting three times along the way. A move to Atletico Madrid followed in 2007 and the goals didn't dry up. The boy from Montevideo bagged his second Golden Shoe award in 2009 with a whopping 32 league goals to his name and secured Atletico's qualification for the Champions League. Los Rojiblancos were knocked out in the group stage but this turned out to be a blessing in disguise as a drop down to the newfangled UEFA Europa League suited them down to the ground. Coming up against old foes Liverpool in the semi-finals, Forlan did what he does best and scored both goals in the tie eliminating the Reds on away goals at Anfield. This caused his old fans at United to chant his song the following weekend at Sunderland (Diego, he came from Uruguay, he made the scousers cry) and that wasn't the last of his recognition in England.

Not content with knocking out Liverpool, Forlan finished the job by netting the winner in the final against the lovable, but eventually hapless Fulham. Victory in the Europa League, Atletico's first major trophy for fourteen years, was a great springboard to go into the World Cup on. In South Africa, the blonde-haired striker finished joint top-scorer and would have won the Golden Boot outright if his last-minute free-kick against Germany in the third-place play off had gone in instead of hitting the bar. But Forlan's all round composure, skill, technique and fair play had already won him a legion of fans (despite team-mate Luis Suarez's perceived foul play losing him many). His love for football is clear for all to see. An amusing incident in his United days springs to mind, when after celebrating a goal against Southampton by removing his shirt, he didn't manage to get it on in time for the restart and was briefly running after the ball bare-torso with his shirt in hand before the referee had to stop play.

The Golden Ball award for best player of the World Cup was certainly deserved. Since then he has scored a decent, if not exhilarating, seven goals in seventeen appearances for Atletico so far this season but is constantly being linked with a return to the Premier League. And how great it would be to see him given a second chance in the most competitive major league in Europe. I for one am sure that this time around he would be far from a disappointment.

Why Man City still have much work to do...

Following on from their last two matches, both goalless draws, it has struck me that Roberto Mancini is going about building a trophy-winning team at Manchester City in completely the wrong way. By playing three defensive midfielders, in the form of Nigel de Jong, Gareth Barry and Yaya Toure, the Italian manager is leaving far too much for his front three to do and it is simply not happening. There was a period during the disappointing Manchester derby last week where de Jong, Barry and Toure indulged in about two minutes of square passing, resulting in absolutely nothing. Have you ever seen a team win trophies with three defensive midfielders? I don’t think so.

Chelsea claimed their Premier League titles of 2005 and 2006 with Claude Makelele doing the defensive job and other players like Frank Lampard, Tiago and Michael Essien attacking around him. Last season Jon Obi Mikel did the job while the evergreen Lampard, Michael Ballack and Essien, when fit, did the attacking. At Manchester United, Darren Fletcher is seen as the defensive midfielder, and has been crucial in their recent successes, but he shares his duties with Paul Scholes or Michael Carrick, both of whom can get forward or sit and cover when Fletcher attacks. With this in mind, it is hard to fathom why Mancini feels playing three midfielders with little attacking ambition will lead to success.

With the money at his disposal, and an already well rounded squad, Mancini should be building a brand of winning football which involves attack as much as defence. Surely a better formation, certainly for the easier home games would be a 4-4-2. Emmanuel Adebayor, Mario Balotelli or Roque Santa Cruz could share Carlos Tevez’s workload up front, while both Adam Johnson and David Silva could start on the wings with James Milner moved into central midfield with just one of the defensive trio alongside him. For away games against tougher opposition, they could certainly revert to the 4-3-3 which has been a proven recipe for success in recent years, but should keep Milner as a central midfielder because there is no situation in modern football where a team would need three defensive midfielders!

Furthermore, City seem to have problems in choosing who to sign. Perhaps it is inevitable with the temptation of the big bucks, but an awful amount of egos and troublemaking players have arrived at Eastlands. Robinho and Craig Bellamy have already been through the door and back out and Emmanuel Adebayor is currently kicking up a fuss being sat on the bench. But the reason he is sat on the bench is because of Mancini’s insistence on playing one centre forward. Captain Carlos Tevez is clearly the in-form player of the past year or so but even he seems to be unhappy at City. Given the captain’s armband this summer to show how much the club value him, Tevez hasn’t stopped talking to the media about how he doesn’t enjoy his football and is contemplating retirement, despite only being 26 and arguably at his peak. There have been reports he is suffering from depression, which he has denied, but he has certainly had several heated disputes with Mancini and his influence on the dressing room is questionable.

As for the third choice striker, Mario Balotelli has talent in abundance but again seems to be an accident waiting to happen. The Italian was at the centre of many controversies when at Inter Milan, not least being caught on camera wearing an AC Milan shirt. Imagine if a City player was caught wearing a Manchester United shirt? The upset that would be caused at the club doesn’t bear thinking about. As Sir Alex Ferguson said today in his press conference, ‘You can buy success, but only if the structure and the spirit is right’. At Manchester City, until they play a more suitable formation and remove several egos from the dressing room, their wait for trophies will go on for a while yet.

Rafa's Lucky Escape

Rafael Benitez has got to be one of the luckiest men in football. Having escaped his sinking Liverpool ship with a hefty multi-million pound pay-off in the summer, he has somehow found himself in the plush position of Internazionale coach. After leaving Liverpool with a disillusioned squad lacking in cover across the entire pitch and without a Champions League place for the first time since 2003, he was given the generally unenviable task of replacing Jose Mourinho at the European Champions. Yet for Rafa, it represented a golden chance to remain at a massive club. Massimo Moratti, the Inter President, went with the opinion of the masses on the continent who remember Rafa’s achievements in winning the Spanish league twice with Valencia and claiming the UEFA Champions League title with Liverpool in 2005. What they tend to ignore is the way Rafa ultimately flopped at Liverpool and had to be shown the door.

Benitez’s case is unusual. Having inherited a squad from Gerard Houllier, a few (mainly short-lived) Spanish additions such as Luis Garcia, Xabi Alonso, Josemi and Antonio Nunez , saw the Reds claim the European Cup for a fifth time in incredulous circumstances. Garcia’s ghost goal against Chelsea in the semi-finals, Steven Gerrard’s late face-saver against Olympiakos in the group and the miracle of Istanbul itself were all remarkable aspects of a season where the Anfield outfit finished in 5^th place in the Premier League, more than 30 points behind Jose Mourinho’s champions Chelsea and level on points with Bolton Wanderers. Benitez continued to live off this glory for the rest of his reign at Anfield, with a win over West Ham in the FA Cup Final the following year proving to be his only other piece of major silverware in six years at the helm.

The Premier League was Liverpool’s real desire, with no league title since 1990, and in that respect Rafa’s reign was an abject failure. After not even coming close in his first four seasons on Merseyside, he finally built a team strong enough to challenge for the 2008/09 title. But in the aftermath of his infamous rant at ‘Mr Ferguson’ his team wavered and dropped points with a series of draws. Eventually the lack of depth in the squad saw Manchester United edge out the Anfield challenge and it was at this point that Liverpool really began to fall apart. With the peeved (due to Rafa’s advances on Gareth Barry the previous year) Xabi Alonso replaced by the injury-plagued Alberto Aquilani, a failure to significantly strengthen the squad proved terminal but at the start of the season nobody could quite have predicted the scouse team’s sudden decline. With the likes of Jamie Carragher, Gerrard, Javier Mascherano and Fernando Torres failing to perform as regularly as before, the frailties of Liverpool’s squad were revealed during a truly dismal campaign. The likes of Emiliano Insua, David Ngog and Maxi Rodriguez failed to cut the mustard while Ryan Babel, Yossi Benayoun and Albert Riera were just three of the many who have fallen foul of Benitez’s poor man management skills. Eliminated from the Champions League group stage, out early in both domestic cups and slipping as low as seventh in the league, Rafa had truly left Liverpool in a mess.

And while the loveable but seemingly hapless Roy Hodgson has so far failed to turn things around, with the ownership-based off-field turmoil not helping , Benitez is living the high life in Milan. Inheriting a outstanding treble-winning squad including World Player of the Year elect Wesley Sneijder, Samuel Eto’o, Diego Milito, Julio Cesar, Maicon and Cristian Chivu all in their peak, surely even Rafa can’t fail to at least win Serie A this season. But he has already dropped key points against Roma and a far from flying Juventus this season. Benitez’s ineptness was blatant for all to see in the Super Cup defeat to Atletico Madrid in Monaco where the same team who had claimed the Champions League trophy under Mourinho looked tactically confused and were deservedly beaten by their Spanish opposition. A 2-2 draw away at Dutch side Twente on the opening day of the Champions League also seemed unconvincing. Yet Rafa’s luck should continue as he has a squad of excellent players at his disposal. The likes of Sneijder, Milito and particularly the on-form Eto’o can all win games on their own. This was clear during the Cameroonian-inspired thrashing of Werder Bremen on matchday two and the same player grabbed the winner at Cagliari this weekend. Surely Benitez’s poor man-management and bizarre manner in public will prove to be his downfall in Italy, a country not known for much patience with managers. But unless Massimiliano Allegri can gel his Brazilian trio of Ronaldinho, Robinho and Pato with ex-Inter star Zlatan Ibrahimovic or Claudio Ranieri gets the best out of veterans Francesco Totti and Adriano at Roma, the man from Madrid may well achieve Serie A success with the brilliant squad that he has undeservedly inherited.

Could Big Kev lead the line for the Three Lions next week?

Kevin Davies is no spring chicken. A key member of the Chesterfield F.C team that reached the 1997 FA Cup semi-final and with nearly 400 Premier League appearances to his name, the Bolton Wanderers captain has certainly been around the block. Yet it is only now, at the age of 33, that the Yorkshireman has made a breakthrough into the England squad. So why has Fabio Capello, or any of his predecessors for that matter, failed to move before?

Davies has a penchant for grabbing goals in big matches. At Bolton he has scored in the 2004 League Cup Final, netted against Bayern Munich in the UEFA Cup and got a winner against Manchester United back in his Southampton days. But he is by no means prolific, having only reached double figures for goals in five of his seventeen senior seasons, and never surpassed the 12-goal mark.

Where he shines however, is in ruffling the opposition’s feathers and creating chances for the other attacking players. The man can hold up the ball better than most other players in the Premier League and has more Premier League assists to his name than the last forward who filled this role for England, the much-maligned Emile Heskey. But I hear many people asking, what can Davies bring to the role that Heskey didn’t? After all, the Villa man, despite some high points, wasn’t exactly an England success.

Well the Bolton number 14 comes across with more confidence than Heskey ever has. He isn’t shy to cross a referee and has committed 200 more fouls than anyone else in Premier League history. While this wouldn’t normally be viewed as a positive, the physical prowess and pro-active attitude of Davies could be just what the England forward line needs, with a lacklustre Wayne Rooney failing to provide his usual energy in recent months. Partnered with a goal-crazy Darren Bent, Davies could be a good short term option for the Three Lions in a 4-4-2 at home to a Montenegro team who, despite having 6 points from 6 in the group, shouldn’t prove too hard a test at Wembley.

Whether Davies even gets a chance to shine is still up in the air though. Capello has called up players and left them uncapped in the past. Just ask a certain Jimmy Bullard. With Peter Crouch’s England record and his good recent form for Tottenham, and Rooney still a Capello favourite despite fitness and form concerns, Big Kev will have his work cut out in training to break past the established order.

Elsewhere in the England team, with Theo Walcott, James Milner and Frank Lampard all unavailable, there are some choices to be made regarding the midfield. Steven Gerrard, despite his Liverpool woes is still a shoo-in along with Gareth Barry who has been playing well for Manchester City. His team-mate Adam Johnson looks a dead-cert for one of the wide berths, but Aaron Lennon, Ashley Young and Joe Cole will all be doing their best to stop Shaun Wright-Phillips from making it a Sky Blues trio in the midfield. Rio Ferdinand looks set to resume his centre-back partnership with John Terry which restores the back four to ‘full-health’ although with Ferdinand’s lack of match practice this is debatable.

With or without Davies, Capello and the England fans will be confident of England taking the three points from their Eastern European opposition. What is for sure is that the consequences of failing to do so do not bare thinking about for the Three Lions.

Will Marseille Ever Reign in Europe Again?

France has had a major impact on the history of football. Jules Rimet, founder of the World Cup, Henri Delaunay, founder of the European Championships and Gabriel Hanot, instigator of the Ballon D’or award and European Cup all hail from the country. Yet only Marseille have ever won the Champions League, defeating Fabio Capello’s AC Milan 1-0 in Munich. Since that monumental victory in 1993, l’OM have failed to even get out of the group stage. Denied the opportunity to defend their trophy in 1994 because of a domestic match-fixing scandal involving then president Bernard Tapie, the club were relegated and stripped of their domestic title. After two years out of Ligue 1, Marseille won promotion under new owner Robert Louis-Dreyfus but struggled to return to their former power.

Louis-Dreyfus oversaw Marseille’s inconsistent challenges over the course of a decade and a half as Lyon became the dominant force in French football. But one of the last things he did at Marseille before passing away in summer 2009 turned out to be the most influential. By giving the go-ahead for Didier Deschamps to manage the club, he ushered in a new era at the Stade Velodrome. Deschamps, who became the youngest ever European Cup-winning captain back in that 1992/93 season, brought in experience in the form of Edouard Cisse and Fernando Morientes which sparked instant success. A first league title since 1992 as well as a first ever league cup triumph saw Deschamps cement his legendary status at the club and there were high hopes for the 2010/11 season in Europe.

Over the summer, Morientes retired and top scorer Mamadou Niang was sold to Turkish club Fenerbahce but in came national team strikers Andre-Pierre Gignac and Loic Remy, who had been coveted by many Premier League clubs. The addition of young Spanish full-back Cesar Azpilicueta, and return from loan of Ghanaian World Cup star Andre Ayew also pointed to a step in the right direction. Added to the solid foundations of Gabriel Heinze , Souleymane Diawara, Cisse, Lucho Gonzalez and Brandao, all the ingredients for further success seemed in place. Yet the south coast giants have faltered again. Languishing in eighth after eight rounds of games in Ligue 1, the team seems to have lost all momentum.

Favourites to progress behind Chelsea in their Champions League group, two defeats in the first two group games have put pressure on the squad to deliver. Unlucky to lose at home to Spartak Moscow who failed to register a single shot on target, and only scored from an Azpilicueta own goal, the French were easily outclassed at Stamford Bridge by a Chelsea side who didn’t get out of second gear. Deschamps will be hoping for a favour from his old London club, as l’OM’s best chance of qualifying now would be if the Blues did the double over the Russian club. It is not over yet for Deschamps’ men but he will need a full six points against group F makeweights MSK Zilina and at least three points from the return game at Spartak and Chelsea’s visit to the Velodrome. Even if they do scrape through, there is a lot of work to do before Marseille, or their compatriots Lyon earn France their second European Cup success.

The Change in Fortunes of Luis Nani

In November 2009, Luís Carlos Almeida da Cunha, aka Manchester United’s Nani looked to be at the end of his Old Trafford career. The Portuguese winger, much maligned for being inconsistent and a show-pony, hit out at Sir Alex Ferguson in an interview with a Portuguese newspaper and was subsequently dropped for around six weeks.

During this period it was largely expected that the ex-Sporting Lisbon player was going to be on his way to either Juventus or AC Milan in the January transfer window. He had been at Old Trafford for two and a half years and despite high points, such as wonder goals against the likes of Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, these were overshadowed by low points such as his sending off against West Ham when he feigned injury when he himself had headbutted Lucas Neill. Berated by his own manager who agreed with Arsene Wenger’s anger when he had incited Arsenal players in an FA Cup tie by playing keepy-uppy in the middle of the pitch, many felt the boy from Cape Verde would never cut it as a Red Devil.

But something changed.

A heart-to-heart chat with Ferguson in January 2010 saw Nani given another chance and this time he grasped it. Impressive performances in a 4-0 league victory over Hull City and the Carling Cup semi-final victory over Manchester City saw the wide-man back in the United fans’ good books and a fixture in the starting XI. In his next match, an outrageous piece of skill on the right wing saw him leave Arsenal’s Gael Clichy, Samir Nasri and Denilson for dead at the Emirates Stadium and force an own goal out of Manuel Almunia.

The tide had turned and Nani was rewarded with a four year contract extension in March, something which seemed unthinkable just three months earlier. Further impressive goals against Bayern Munich, Tottenham and Sunderland saw Nani finish the 2009-10 season on a high, even if United were pipped to the title by Chelsea and knocked out in the Champions League quarter-finals. The winger had finally added consistency to his game and at last was racking up the plaudits. Alas, he was ruled out of the World Cup when, in typical Nani fashion, he injured his collarbone attempting an acrobatic overhead kick in training.

Devastated to miss out, Portugal boss Carlos Queiroz even claimed Nani had threatened suicide if he was left out of the squad as he felt he would recover soon enough to participate. But he put that behind him at the start of the 2010-11 season and along with Dimitar Berbatov has become key to United’s plans. The previously under-performing duo have either assisted or scored three quarters of the Red Devil’s 16 league goals. Nani is the top assist maker in the premier league both in the 2010-11 season and the calendar year 2010, and with Antonio Valencia ruled out for several months, looks to be making United’s right wing position his own.

Finally starting to fill the boots of his friend and Portugal team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo, it wouldn’t be too surprising if the rejuvenated number 17 finds himself in the running for the end of season gongs. Still just 23, it finally looks like he could be a key player for both Portugal and Manchester United for many years to come.

Playing In The Hole Is Where Rooney Shines For England

Two games, seven goals and six points see England sat atop of Group G in the qualifiers for Euro 2012. So what was so different about these two games compared to the debacle of the World Cup? Seven of the players who started the 4-1 defeat to Germany were also present in the line-ups at both Wembley and St Jakob Park but the whole demeanour of the team was different. To get the obvious out of the way, yes Germany are far superior opposition to either Bulgaria or Switzerland, but Algeria certainly weren't superior opposition at the World Cup and the USA are probably on a par with Switzerland. So how did England perform so much better in these games? People say the pressure was much less but if anything it was almost equal as the negative media attention given to the squad since the World Cup failure has been off the scale. The key factor for me was the improved performances from the wings, where two players who missed out on South Africa - Theo Walcott and Adam Johnson - did exceptionally well sharing their time on the right hand side and James Milner was impressive both going forward and back on the left. This allowed Steven Gerrard licence to do what he does best and boss the midfield, his perfectly weighted pass for Johnson's goal last night summing up what his game is all about.

Much has been made of England's formation since the World Cup, where 4-2-3-1 was in vogue and England stuck with a 4-4-2. The difference between the two formations is less than many seem to think as by dropping Wayne Rooney deep in these two qualifiers, it has essentially become a 4-2-3-1 when the wingers push forward (although many newspapers have reported it as a 4-4-1-1). Essentially, 4-3-3, 4-5-1 and 4-2-3-1 all work with 1 striker, 2 wingers and 3 central midfielders and at various times in the game can all look exactly the same. By dropping Rooney off Defoe into the position occupied by Wesley Sneijder, Xavi Hernandez and Mesut Oezil at the World Cup, England have effectively caught up with the rest. Rooney has the vision and passing ability to do the job. But it's not the first time. In Fabio Capello's landmark victory, the 4-1 away to Croatia two years ago, Rooney played in the hole behind Emile Heskey with Joe Cole and Walcott either side of him. The team was in a 4-2-3-1 formation then as it was in several of the other qualifiers with Rooney the only constant while Gerrard, Aaron Lennon, Walcott, Cole, Heskey and Peter Crouch intermittently occupied the other forward positions. Why Capello decided to play Rooney alongside Heskey or Jermain Defoe at the World Cup finals themselves baffles me. Perhaps it is because in the 2009/10 Premier League season Sir Alex Ferguson made a point of insisting Rooney played as Manchester United's furthest man forward. This resulted in Rooney's most prolific season to date with 34 goals in 44 appearances but for England it appears he works better deployed deeper, and by reverting to this role for him, Capello appears to have accepted this fact. With Defoe getting a hat-trick and Darren Bent getting off the mark for his country there are certainly good options for who to play ahead of Rooney. Where all of this leaves Frank Lampard remains to be seen. The midfielder, a real superstar for Chelsea in both the Champions League and Premier League over the past decade, doesn't seem to be able to co-exist with both Rooney and Gerrard in such a formation. With Gerrard excelling as captain in a deep central role, and Gareth Barry required to cover for the skipper's forward-thinking moves, the Premier League's all-time highest scoring midfielder may have to settle for a place on the bench.

Elsewhere in the qualification group, England's main rivals could well turn out to be Montenegro. Overlooked by many largely because they only recently separated from Serbia (who together had previously been a part of Yugoslavia) and therefore are competing in qualifiers for the Euro's for the first time ever. Consecutive 1-0 wins at home to Wales and more impressively away to Bulgaria sees them level on points with England and they are due to visit Wembley on the 12th October. They have achieved this without the injured Stevan Jovetic,the young forward who Liverpool fans may remember for scoring twice against them for Fiorentina in last season's Champions League. Captain Mirko Vucinic, the speedy Roma forward,was present though and the Eastern European side will be more of a match than many would expect from the group's 5th seed. However, this could be balanced out by the fact 3rd and 4th seeds Bulgaria and Wales are well below par. Without Dimitar Berbatov, who despite his form at Manchester United remained prolific(48 goals in 77 games) up until his international retirement, Bulgaria looked toothless at Wembley on Friday night and the resignation of their manager after the Montenegro defeat is unlikely to see an instant improvement. This generation of Bulgarians do not have anyone of Hristo Stoichkov's ilk who galvanized the Bulgaria team that reached the 1994 World Cup semi-finals. They may even finish bottom of the group, although Wales also have to avoid that ignominy. Gareth Bale, James Collins and Craig Bellamy aside, the current crop are distinctly lacking in quality or top level experience. John Toshack's successor will certainly have a job on his hands. As for Switzerland, despite being so solid at the World Cup where they incredibly beat Spain, they have a real problem scoring goals with just 5 scored in their last 11 games in all competitions. With the two Johnsons, Ashley Cole, Rooney and Gerrard all easily opening up their defence last night, it seems Ottmar Hitzfeld's team now have problems at both ends of the pitch. When put like that, it seems like England should have the group for the taking. Now as they say, it's time to "keep calm and carry on."

Capello's New Beginning, But How Much Has Changed?

Last night Fabio Capello announced his 24-man England squad for the upcoming Euro qualifiers with Bulgaria and Switzerland. These are the first competitive matches since England's disastrous World Cup campaign but how much has he really changed? At first glance it seems a lot, eleven of the players who were named in the initial 23-man squad for the World Cup are missing. But on closer inspection, how much has the Italian manager really done differently? With John Terry, Frank Lampard and Rio Ferdinand (who was in the initial World Cup squad for the World Cup before his injury saw Michael Dawson replace him) all injured, Jamie Carragher and Emile Heskey retiring from international football, and David James being 40 years old and in the Championship, those decision's were already made for Capello. In fact he has only really dropped five players. Leaving out keeper Rob Green after his howler in Rustenburg and injury liability Ledley King were again quite straight forward decisions and ditching reserve left-back Stephen Warnock is hardly a shock move. Joe Cole's yet to impact at Liverpool which leaves the overlooking of Spurs winger Aaron Lennon as the only real 'surprise' exclusion.

As for what has come into the squad, who is going to make that much difference? Up front, Carlton Cole has been tested before and had little success. His form for West Ham hasn't exactly been electrifying lately, but Darren Bent is surely deserving of more of a chance at international level after his exploits with Sunderland. With Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe both injury doubts despite inclusion, he may just get that chance. In central defence some much-needed quality alternatives for the increasingly less reliable Terry and Ferdinand have been called up in the form of Dawson, Gary Cahill, Phil Jagielka and Joleon Lescott . The latter two having recovered from their own recent injury set-backs have been impressive for their clubs and it will be interesting to see which two make the starting line-up. In goal, with Joe Hart getting off to an incredible start to the season for Manchester City and Ben Foster doing similarly well as Hart's successor at Birmingham, the recent worries for that position already seem long gone. It is somewhat surprising to see Scott Carson recalled as third-choice keeper given his history with England but he has done well at West Brom and deserves to be given another chance in the squad, if not as first choice keeper. 20-year old Kieran Gibbs is called up as cover for Ashley Cole despite not featuring for Arsenal yet this season, but he impressed in the second half of the recent Hungary friendly and with the other English left-backs vying for the position all distinctly mediocre ( think Warnock, Leighton Baines, Paul Konchesky) Capello is probably right to go with youth in this position.

Leaving Theo Walcott out of the World Cup squad was one of Capello's most controversial calls and it is unsurprising to see him back in the fold after a blistering start to the season with Arsenal, where he has already equalled his goals tally for last season just three games in. With Adam Johnson preferred to £25m David Silva at Manchester City in their last two games, it is refreshing to see England having two wingers in good form, and Ashley Young from Aston Villa is a very good alternative who has been unfortunate to be overlooked by Capello in the past. Shaun Wright-Phillips' return is perhaps the most surprising but he has scored goals for England in the past and could still do a good job for his country. Overall it seems like Capello has a good squad to take on the upcoming qualifiers. Despite calls from some for a complete overhaul, the likes of Wayne Rooney, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard and Gareth Barry all remain, which I believe is the correct thing to do. Creating a successful team is not an overnight process as can be seen by the Spain team who had largely been playing together for many years before their recent Euros and World Cup success. The first test for this post-World Cup team will be stern, Bulgaria and Switzerland are no walkovers, but it will have to be successful for the Three Lions to renew a nation's hope of making an impact in Poland and Ukraine two years from now.