Torres isn't working but there's a bigger problem at Chelsea

What on earth has happened to Chelsea F.C over the past few months? Last night in the Champions League quarter-final with Manchester United, they seemed a shadow of the side that emphatically won the double last season and were coasting at the top of the Premier League up until November 2010. Devoid of the attacking threat which saw them break goal-scoring records last season at a canter, the Blues seem to be lacking something, despite having largely the same personnel.

Clearly, the one major difference in personnel is Fernando Torres, more on his arrival later, but Chelsea's dramatic change in fortunes happened a fair while before El Nino turned up at Stamford Bridge. Ironically it was Torres himself, while a Liverpool player, that kicked off the Blues' horrendous run of form when his brace at Anfield consigned Chelsea to a 2-0 defeat. They edged out Fulham 1-0 at home in the next fixture but could then only manage one win in the next ten, in a run which included losing 3-0 at home to Sunderland and going down 1-0 to Wolves at Molineux. So what exactly went so wrong?

Firstly, there were a few injuries to contend with. With John Terry and Alex not ever present, a weakness in Chelsea's squad was exposed. Last summer Ricardo Carvalho and Juliano Belletti were sold and not replaced. With Frank Lampard missing, the decisions to offload Michael Ballack, Deco and Joe Cole and only bring in Ramires and the now-injured Yossi Benayoun perhaps didn't look like completely sound squad management. But this aside, the Chelsea players should have had more than enough firepower to win many of the games they were floundering in.

At St Andrews in late November, Didier Drogba and Florent Malouda laboured hard all game long but lacked the killer instinct of last season as Chelsea went down 1-0 to a side battling relegation. Terry was back soon enough, Branislav Ivanovic has stepped up to the plate and David Luiz has since been brought in to strengthen the defence but that doesn't really seem to be the problem. After all, Carlo Ancelotti's team boast the best defensive record in the division having let in just 25 goals in 30 matches. It is the ability to score match-winning goals that appears to have eluded Chesea.

Last season's Golden Boot winner Drogba only has eleven league goals to his name this year, that's one less than Newcastle midfielder Kevin Nolan, yet he remains the Blues' top scorer. Lampard's lengthy injury absence certainly deprived the team of goals, and the likes of Nicolas Anelka, Ramires, Michael Essien and Yuri Zhirkov haven't been weighing in with as many goals as players in their respective positions could do. Ancelotti proved last season that he has what it takes to manage in England, with a great double success, but his track record in Italy was inconsistent to say the least. Two Champions League successes with Milan were coupled with only one Serie A title across eight seasons at the San Siro. Is it down to the manager that the club are struggling? Potentially.

In late January, just when it seemed like Chelsea were finding goalscoring form again, with 4-0 and 4-2 successes at Bolton and Sunderland respectively, the £50m signing of Torres threw a spanner into the works. Whether it was Ancelotti's choice of signing, or as widely believed, the choice of owner Roman Abramovich is somewhat irrelevant as either way, there was another striker to incorporate into the team. And so far it hasn't worked at all. On Torres' debut, as fate would have it, against Liverpool, he was deployed alongside Drogba, with Anelka playing as a trequartista ahead of a midfield three. This hasn't been seen since, as Ancelotti has toyed with various combinations of a front two, including leaving both Drogba and Anelka on the bench and starting Torres with Salomon Kalou. But no matter what he seems to do, it isn't quite working with Torres. Chelsea's most convincing recent result was the 2-0 victory over Manchester City, but they laboured until Torres and Kalou were replaced by Drogba and Anelka. Chelsea have played a 4-3-3 for most of their recent successes, and Anelka is adaptable enough to play in a wide role. With Torres involved, Ancelotti has been forced to play with two up front each game and it simply isn't working for a team content playing a different formation.

But as I've explained, Chelsea were struggling before Torres joined the club, and my view is that it is down to a major imbalance in the squad. Chelsea seem to have too many experienced players in their starting line-up and not enough youthful energy to learn from and complement the older players. Terry, Ashley Cole, Lampard, Drogba, Anelka, Cech, Essien and Malouda have all been on the scene for a number of years and are very much of the same generation. If you look at the fantastic team that won the Premier League for the first time under Jose Mourinho there was some experience in the shape of Claude Makelele but the likes of Lampard, Terry, Damien Duff, Joe Cole, Drogba and Carvalho were all in their mid-twenties. A few youngsters like Arjen Robben and Glen Johnson complemented this. If you look at Arsenal's 'invincibles' side of 2003/04 they had a similar age spread from the older players (Dennis Bergkamp, Robert Pires), the mid-range (Thierry Henry, Freddie Ljungberg) and a couple of youngsters (Kolo Toure, Jose Reyes). To keep a squad competitive and fresh, there should be this spread of ages, and it is something that the current Chelsea squad doesn't quite have right. Unless a heroic performance at Old Trafford next week can salvage their season, then there will need to be a major overhaul at Stamford Bridge this summer to usher in a new era of success. Whether Ancelotti will still be there to oversee things remains to be seen...

The Super Six: Who should win Player of the Year?

For those of you who may have missed it in all the Champions League and Wayne Rooney swearing furore, the shortlist for the PFA Player of the Year awards was leaked yesterday. The six men nominated are Charlie Adam, Gareth Bale, Samir Nasri, Scott Parker, Carlos Tevez and Nemanja Vidic. Nani, Rafael Van Der Vaart and Dimitar Berbatov may all feel aggrieved to be omitted from this list, but the six who have been included are certainly worthy candidates. Here is my verdict on the men in contention:

Charlie Adam

The Scotsman has been a revelation for Blackpool in his first Premier League season. Incredible technique and creativity is his forte and he has been racking up both goals and assists all year long. He scored a free-kick in the play-off Final which sealed the Tangerines' promotion to the top flight and never looked back from there. A class act, the 25-year-old may be late on the Premier League scene but he is certainly here to stay.

Why could he win it?

He has been the talisman of Ian Holloway's lovable side who have confounded the critics for much of the season. Adam played a key role in the victory at Anfield in the Autumn which has been one of the memorable moments of this Premier League campaign. He has bought something different to the Premier League, a creative attacking midfielder of a different ilk to most of his contemporaries.

What might count against him?

Blackpool have been struggling of late, and may well still be heading back to the Championship. He also put in a transfer request in the January transfer window, in a bid to secure a move to Liverpool. The move fell through, but a mid-season transfer request always taints a player's image to some extent.

Gareth Bale

The Spurs winger finished last season on top form and carried that forward into his club's debut season in the Champions League. Launching his season with a stunning volley at the Britannia Stadium, Bale's crowning glory were his twin performances against Internazionale in the Champions League group stage. A hat-trick of the highest quality (recreated incredibly here http://www.runofplay.com/s/17571/) at the San Siro, followed up by a top showing in the return at White Hart Lane had the whole of Europe waxing lyrical about the Welshman. The no.3 has started to improve his goal output as well and has been linked with a mega-bucks move away from Tottenham.

Why could he win it?

Everyone has been talking about him all season long. His pace and athleticism, coupled with a new found killer instinct seem to have set him well on his way to global stardom. Two top performances against the European Champions certainly put him in good stead.

What might count against him?

He has suffered with injury problems since the turn of the year which have ruled him out of several big matches. Also, his biggest showings were in Europe and not the Premier League, which is what the Player of the Year award is really based on. Perhaps not his year but the 21-year-old certainly has time on his hands.

Samir Nasri

The Frenchman has developed into Arsenal's best player this season, after a couple of years adapting to English football. A player blessed with incredible technique, speed and a powerful shot, Nasri terrorised defences throughout the Autumn and Winter. The snood-wearing winger was largely responsible for keeping Arsenal in title contention during the injury-enforced absences of Cesc Fabregas and Robin Van Persie and after being left out of France's World Cup squad is now seen as a key player for Les Bleus.

Why could he win it?

Arguably the most skillful of all the players on the list, Nasri has performed for a team near the very top of the table. His development in his three years at the Emirates Stadium has been impressive and Arsene Wenger's faith in him has paid off this year.

What might count against him?

Arsenal have been knocked out of all three cup competitions and are faltering badly in the league. Nasri's form does seem to have tailed off since February and he may not have done quite enough to warrant beating some of his more consistent competitors.

Scott Parker

The West Ham United captain has come into his own this season and if the Hammers manage to stay up it will be largely down to him. He originally burst onto the scene as a talented youngster at Charlton before an ill-fated stint at Chelsea and a mixed spell at Newcastle meant that his career to date has been strangely unfulfilled. The 30-year-old has become the heartbeat of his club side though, and reportedly bought his team-mates to tears with a rousing team-talk at half-time when 3-0 down to West Brom in February. His team turned the game round to claim a 3-3 draw and the box-to-box midfielder raked in the plaudits.

Why could he win it?

Parker's energetic and passionate style of play has seen him win over much of the media and fans have been singing his praises all season. A recent England call-up and decent performance against Wales also stand him in good stead in the run-up to the awards.

What might count against him?

He is playing for a team very much at the wrong end of the table, and has only really kicked on since the halfway mark of the season. In the first half of the campaign West Ham looked to be almost relegation certainties when Parker wasn't firing on all cylinders and he hasn't quite got the superstar qualities of some of his competitors.

Carlos Tevez

The Argentine striker has literally carried Manchester City this season. His energetic running and tireless appetite for goals has seen him become without a doubt City's key player and he is currently the bookies' favourite to end the season as Premier League top scorer (he has one less than Dimitar Berbatov but is likely to play more games). Tevez brings a rare combination of energy, strength, skill and shooting ability which make him the sort of player every team appreciates.

Why could he win it?

The diminutive forward has been exceptional this season, and without him, Manchester City would likely be much lower than third in the table. He brings goals and a cutting edge that the Sky Blues seem to lack when he is absent (Exhibit A being the Chelsea away game a few weeks ago). Undoubtedly a heroic player.

What might count against him?

Like Charlie Adam, a mid-season transfer request did him no favours in terms of winning over fans. Has been involved in controversies in the past, both with his transfer to West Ham and his departure from Manchester United to join their city rivals. Perhaps not the most likable personality in the world but will be a strong contender.

Nemanja Vidic

Appointed captain at the start of the season by Sir Alex Ferguson, the United centre-back has been back to his best for most of this season, following a slight lapse in the last campaign. A few important headed goals early in the season helped, but his main contribution has been marshalling a defence which has missed the continually injured Rio Ferdinand. The Serbian brings a never-say-die attitude, fantastic aerial ability and great positional awareness to his team and has become undoubtedly United's most important defensive asset.

Why could he win it?

With his club looking very comfortable in the title race, and still in contention on two other fronts, Vidic could prove to be the Red Devils' most inspired captain since Roy Keane. Vidic has won high praise over the last few years and featured on this shortlist back in 2008/09 as well. Certainly in with a chance.

What might count against him?

It is always harder being a defender as the strikers tend to get more of the limelight and pick up these accolades. Also Vidic's temperament has been suspect, getting needlessly sent off at Stamford Bridge last month and conceding a silly penalty against West Ham last weekend.

My choice:

For me, it has to be Carlos Tevez. The Man City striker has been the driving force behind his club's rise up the table, despite all the other multi-million pound signings. He has scored goals and put in man of the match performances consistently and probably deserves the recognition for this. Charlie Adam would be a close second as he has taken to the Premier League like a duck to water and brings a different quality rarely seen in British midfielders. Bale, Parker and Nasri haven't performed across the whole season and Vidic hasn't quite been at the highest level in some crucial games. Personally I am very surprised that Nani wasn't included as he has been astonishing for Manchester United this season, with 16 assists (5 more than anyone else) and 9 goals (the same as Adam and Nasri). But even if he was, 'Carlitos' would probably deserve the accolade due to his incredible work ethic, raw talent and number of goals. There hasn't been a clear-cut winner like in previous years (think Cristiano Ronaldo and Thierry Henry in the past) but the Premier League certainly still has some top class players and remains the most exciting league in the world.

Rooney is a troubled man, but we need to get off his back

Since bursting onto the scene as a lively sixteen-year-old and curling a fantastic winning goal past the Arsenal goalkeeper David Seaman at Goodison Park in 2002, Wayne Mark Rooney has seldom been out of the spotlight. But recently it has been more and more for all the wrong reasons. Blessed with a natural talent that saw him (somewhat stupidly) dubbed the 'White Pele' at a young age, the then-Everton youngster first courted controversy when it transpired he had been visiting prostitutes in Liverpool, one of whom was in fact a grandmother.

Securing a big-money move to Manchester United in 2004, the young striker seemed to curb his temper over the following years, and a few flash-points aside (red cards at World Cup 2006 and against Villarreal in the Champions League) seemed to have grown into a focussed professional footballer. Come early 2010 and Rooney was being touted as arguably the world's best player as he had finally began to score goals for fun and was on course to land the PFA Player of the Year award. But since then it has all gone wrong.

As has been well documented, an ankle injury picked up in the Champions League tie against Bayern Munich saw him embark on a run where he failed to score a goal for Manchester United in open play for eight long months. But that's only the half of it. Firstly, he flopped badly at the World Cup, and vented his anger at the fans into the TV camera (sound familiar?). Then it was discovered he had cheated on his wife while she was pregnant, with a prostitute (familiar again?). Then, arguably worst of all, there was the 'transfer request' saga. In October, seemingly out of the blue, Rooney released a statement expressing his desire to leave Manchester United citing the club’s 'lack of ambition' as his reason.

For a United player to do such a thing, and seemingly risk the wrath of Sir Alex Ferguson, was unprecedented and seemed unbelievable. OK, Cristiano Ronaldo had said he would like to play for Real Madrid long before he left, but that was different, he wasn't questioning the club. To say that about the Red Devils, champions in three of the previous four seasons, European champions as recently as 2008, and still firmly in the title race at the time (now firmly in the lead) was bizarre to say the least. Regardless, Ferguson and Chief Executive David Gill successfully convinced the forward to stay and sign a new deal, but he had alienated himself from the fans and was clearly unhappy off the field.

In the few months since, Rooney has gradually clawed his way back to top form, with a wonder goal against Manchester City and most recently a hat-trick at West Ham confirming this. And it was after this hat-trick that his latest controversial moment hit the headlines. The Scouse striker 'celebrated' his third goal by shouting into the television camera and a couple of swear words were picked up by the microphone. He is now facing a two-match ban, at a crucial time of the season, from the FA.

Now, let's look at this objectively. Rooney has sworn into a TV camera. The real issue here is the TV camera part. Swearing is done on the football pitch, in the stands, in the pubs, in offices, at home, almost anywhere in the world these days, and it is certainly not seen as a punishable offence. Tasteless? Perhaps. 'Uncouth'? Yes. But worthy of a serious punishment? Certainly not. So what is the difference between simply swearing at someone and swearing into the TV camera? Not a lot, I would argue. Others may believe that it is wrong because he is swearing directly at the audience of the game, but whether Rooney meant that is hard to tell. He came out and apologised afterwards, insisting it 'wasn't aimed at anyone in particular'.

It is clear by now that Rooney is a very angry, frustrated man. He has received much abuse and aggravation from both the fans and the media in recent times, in my opinion rightfully so. But on Saturday, he had pulled off a top class performance in a vital Premier League game, and his outburst was simply a natural release in the heat of a very emotional moment. Football is all about passion. There is a reason it is the most popular sport in the world, there is a reason that more newspapers, websites and forums are devoted to it than any other sport. People care about football, and when people care about things, they often swear in excitement, or frustration. For a star player to face a ban for swearing at a camera, when it is the first time he has done so (yes he shouted at the camera in the World Cup, but he didn't swear then) seems a disproportionate punishment. A stern warning, with the knowledge that any repeat offence could bring a ban, would be more than enough.

The FA need to get their priorities right, Rooney would have been much more deserving of a ban a few weeks ago when he elbowed a Wigan Athletic player in the face. Physical violence is far more of a crime than uttering a few swear words into a camera which, let's face it, we've all heard before. The proximity of the camera to Rooney also didn't help, and perhaps that is something that the FA and TV broadcasters should consider. Football is a passionate game, and that goes hand-in-hand with swearing. OK, Rooney undoubtedly has a bad attitude, and he certainly needs to look at himself and try to manage his public image better. But the man had scored a hat-trick in a key game against a background of abuse, intense criticism and pressure. Rooney is a wonderful talent and I fear that if he isn't cut some slack soon, then his mental health, and career, may be damaged beyond repair.

A Humble Proposal

The international friendly has surely become the least exciting type of match in world football. With nothing on the line, players pulling out with dubious injuries and little credit given to teams even if they win big, what is the point in continuing with them? It can be argued that it is necessary to play these games for managers to experiment and work with their squads, who only compete in about six or seven competitive games a year. But I propose a solution.

Between the last two major international tournaments (Euro 2008 and World Cup 2010), England played in twenty matches. Exactly half of these were friendlies. Now imagine if pre-season for clubs contained as many games as the competitive season. It would be seen as ludicrous and fans would show very little interest in the number of uncompetitive games. But what can we do about it? Well, it could be quite simple. Expand the qualification groups for the major tournaments and play more competitive games!

UEFA has 53 member nations. This could split quite easily into five groups of nine and one group of eight. That would leave 16 (or 14) competitive fixtures between tournaments and, maintaining the current number of international match days (which is always subject to change anyway), would be perfectly feasible. Depending on qualification places available (currently 14 or 15 for Euros depending on number of hosts and 13 for the World Cup), the top two could qualify with third place teams going into a play-off tournament, or qualifying based on the best group records. This would also have the effect of ensuring more top teams meet each other in competitive matches outside of just the major tournaments. Furthermore, the matches against the smaller nations would still give managers the opportunity to experiment with their line-ups, while still having the healthy pressure of three points being at stake.

With at least four match days to spare, friendlies could still survive, and would in fact become a more worthwhile start/end of qualification test against teams from different confederations. The friendlies against the likes of Brazil and Argentina, and even teams like Australia or Ghana are always more likely to capture the imagination than the likes of last week’s Denmark vs England match-up.

With the common consensus that top flight club football is of as good, if not better standard than international football, the idea of ‘blooding’ new players in friendlies is rendered useless. If a player is in their national squad, specifically the England squad, they should be prepared to compete for qualification and tournaments. Competing in more vital qualification games would do well to instil the competitive spirit that is so vital to succeed in the big tournaments. Playing so many low intensity friendlies, it is no surprise that teams such as England often flop when the pressure is on. I don’t think it is a coincidence that all five South American teams negotiated the group stage in South Africa, considering they played eighteen (in Uruguay’s case twenty) competitive matches in qualification. Friendlies have become an unnecessary hindrance for most fans of football, and it is high time the authorities did something about it. In the now infamous words of Ian Holloway, ‘FIFA, UEFA, you’re wrong!’

Arsene Wenger: Admirable, foolish or both?

Arsene Wenger is a man that divides opinion. Revered in some quarters and despised in others, he has the ability to cause conflict between football fans like few others. ‘Le Professeur’ has certainly achieved a lot in his decade and a half at Arsenal, but with no silverware to show since May 2005, is the Frenchman still the right man to take the Gunners forward?

Winning the Premier League title in his first full season in charge was a great achievement, and he repeated the trick in 2001/02, but his crowning glory had to be the ‘Invincibles’ season of 2003/04. By becoming the first team since the 1800s to go a whole league season unbeaten, Wenger had arguably created the ultimate footballing team. So how come they failed to win anything else apart from a rather fortunate FA Cup victory on penalties the following year? What the former Monaco boss did wrong was to dismantle the team so quickly.

With key men Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Robert Pires, Sol Campbell, Ashley Cole and Freddie Ljungberg all leaving within three years, the team effectively went backwards. Reaching the Champions League final in 2006 was again impressive but it was already a team (if not in decline) in transition. Beaten by Barcelona in Paris, few would have predicted that the Gunners would still be trophyless five years down the line. While they may well end that run with victory in the Carling Cup later this month, the big two trophies of Premier League and Champions League look likely to elude them once again.

Wenger has orchestrated a change in playing style in his time in North London. From a team of talented, but forceful players such as Tony Adams and Martin Keown, he added flair (through the likes of Dennis Bergkamp and Henry) while maintaining the strength (players such as Vieira and Gilberto Silva) for his first decade at the helm. Yet post-invincibles era, he seems to overly rely on creative players with fantastic skill yet little strength. While Andrey Arshavin, Samir Nasri, Cesc Fabregas and co are all undoubtedly fantastic players, the failure to ally this with strength over the past few years has seen a succession of 4^th and 3^rd place finishes and failure to progress in the Champions League once they face the strongest opponents. While the emergence of Alex Song and addition of Marouane Chamakh seems to be giving the Gunners some much-needed steel this season, a failure to address other weaknesses has proved, and is likely to continue to prove, costly.

The manager’s transfer policy may well be keeping the club living within its means, but with such obvious weaknesses in the goalkeeping and central defensive positions, is Wenger fighting a lost cause? Sebastien Squillaci and Laurent Koscielny have both failed to fill the void in central defence left by the departed William Gallas and injured Thomas Vermaelen. Looking further back, no defenders have really lived up to the 03-04 backline of Lauren, Campbell, Kolo Toure and Cole. The lack of organisation in defence has proved costly time and again and it simply doesn’t seem possible for Arsenal to win the Premier League title until this problem is solved.

Another trait of Wenger is his refusal to play defensive football, even in the biggest games. While some see this as admirable, it is surely foolish when time and again his team have been beaten in the biggest games by the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea, who changed their tactics to stop the Gunners’ passing game. The Frenchman is renowned for complaining about the style of play opponents use against his team, but they play within the rules and he should really have wizened up to it by now. Their recent victory over Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium was certainly due more to the Blues’ horrendous run of winter form than a major tactical triumph for Arsenal.

With Barcelona looming in the Champions League second round, things don’t look great on the European front for the Gunners. Mauled at the Nou Camp last season, Wenger’s attempt to match the Blaugrana like-for-like failed miserably. As Manchester United showed in the 2008 semi-final and Internazionale in the same round in 2010, the only way to beat the Catalan giants is to set up defensively and foil their passing game. This is something that Wenger is almost certainly never going to do. While he has arguably got the best midfield and attack since the Invincibles season, with Robin Van Persie fit and firing and Nasri and Fabregas growing every week, it would still be very surprising if Arsenal were to lift the Premier League this season. Wenger has proved in the past he knows how to win titles, but if he continues refusing to improve his defence or change his tactics, he may well have won his last.

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.