I’m all about competition and it’s evident already that this season is going to be a two-horse race. Manchester United has only gotten better since they won the league title last year. Their one concern, Cristiano Ronaldo leaving, seems to have subsided and they are again playing great soccer.

As for Chelsea, they seem to be playing with an enormous chip on their shoulder. And they are playing well with it. After coming in second to United last year in the Premier League and losing in penalties in the Champions League final, they seem determined to reclaim those titles and hand United a little payback.

This is the thing, it’s not that United and Chelsea are so good, it’s that the rest of the league is so inconsistent. Arsenal seem to immature and young to ever make a title run for the next five years. It seems as if they are unwilling, or unable, to pay the money United and Chelsea have given out to keep up with the best. Liverpool seemed to be one of this year’s biggest threats but it seems to me that nothing has been done to be classed with Chelsea and Man United. Although they’ve shown hope so far this season, I don’t think it will last.

Listen, I know its early but let’s be frank here. Arsenal sucks, Tottenham is never good but not great, Liverpool just won’t make it and Manchester United has Cristiano Ronaldo. I’m praying that I’m wrong here and we’ll all look back at this post and laugh, but I’m afraid it won’t happen.

In one of the most drawn out signings in recent memory, Ronaldinho has officially signed with AC Milan. It seems like such a long time ago when it was first said that Ronaldinho would be a part of AC Milan, and after several months and several teams getting involved it’s finally over with.

Many things have happened but in the end I have become a Rossonero player. I am happy to find so many Brazilians but also all the champions that wear the Rossoneri colors. I am really happy. After many years I am here. I am delighted to have arrived to AC Milan and I hope to be able to give a lot of joy to everyone.

Ronaldinho on Finally Signing With AC Milan

AC Milan’s new product will be shown off on Thursday as Ronaldinho will be welcomed with welcomed arms at the San Siro Stadium at 9:30 P.M. This tedious transfer hasn’t taken its toll though. Both Inter Milan, and Manchester City were very well involved in looking to pick up the once world’s greatest player. It has also affected other players who have been unsure where to go, with a portion of their decision in the hands of Ronaldinho. Emmanuel Adebayor seemed the likely choice for Milan but suddenly chose Ronaldinho over the Arsenal star. There has also been rumors that Frank Lampard and Ronaldinho wanted to join forces and that a trade could put those two together.

This transfer should open the flood gates for a lot of moves in the next week or two. It seemed like this and the Cristiano Ronaldo transfer seemed to be blocking the door for a lot of teams. Barcelona haven’t looked back on Ronaldinho as they themselves have signed Alexander Hleb to a 4 year deal from Arsenal.

Who are the losers in this move though? It has to be Manchester City. At one point it seemed imminent that Manchester City would in fact steal Ronaldinho from AC Milan and sign the star but even after offering more than the 21 million Euros that AC Milan will pay Ronaldinho, his heart is in Milan. Signing Ronaldinho looked like such a smart and promising move for Manchester City that would have garnered them much attraction and could possibly allow them to compete with Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal, and Manchester United. Now, even after signing Brazilian Jo, things look bleak for Manchester City as they may need to pull out another blockbuster to bring them up the table.

What does moving to Serie A mean for Ronaldinho? Personally I think this is where it ends for the star. The league is way too strong defensively for Ronaldinho to pull out his magic and he will soon become an average player whose impact won’t reflect his paycheck. I think it’s time to bid Ronaldinho farewell as he will become lost in Italy.

With a slap Didier Drogba shattered Chelsea’s dreams of winning the Champion’s League. Today’s game will go down in history as the best game in Champion’s League history and includes the worst mistake in soccer since Zidane’s headbutt in the 2006 World Cup Final.

Before I get into the finer things of the game let me sum up the final penalty kicks that made this game so exciting.

Tied after two overtime periods, penalty kicks were the only solution. At about half past one in Moscow, Russia both teams would have to fight through rain and try and take the cup. Both Chelsea and Manchester United made their first two shots convincingly. Then, Cristiano Ronaldo stepped up for the third shot with the score still tied. Surprisingly, the best player in the world failed to step up and it’s all due to his dumb move that he thinks fools the keepers but in facts gives them a better chance. Ronaldo’s penalty approach has been talked about amongst fans and head officials in Europe as to whether it was legal or not. Either way the star stepped up, stopped, and then had his shot blocked by Petr Cech. This stop and go move could have easily cost Manchester United the title, and he should quickly get rid of it before it ends up costing United a game. The tension built up to the 5th and possibly final shot for the Chelsea Captain, John Terry. With rain pouring down in Russia, the captain had a chance to end the game and give Chelsea the cup. He slipped as he shot and forced the ball right, just glancing the outside of the post. Two feet to the right would have won the game with Van Der Sar diving to the opposite side. The conditions of the field were awful to begin with, and with heavy rain making the field worse, the captain’s left foot gave out just as he struck the ball forcing the shot wide. This mistake by John Terry opened the door for Manchester United. After a goal by Ryan Giggs, Nikolas Anelka who had come on late in the game would step up for Chelsea. Anelka went right, as did dutchman Edwin Van Der Sar and blocked the shot to the right. Anelka’s penalty was poorly taken with little strength and neither high nor low where Van Der Sar couldn’t reach. His approach was predictable, and you could see Van Der Sar begin to smile before the ball hit his hands. With that Manchester United had won the Champion’s League.

If you’re a Chelsea fan though, do not blame Nicolas Anelka for not going right, or John Terry for not being aware of the conditions of the field, blame Didier Drogba. Reminiscent of the 2006 World Cup final between France and Italy where France Superstar Zinedine Zidane head butted Marco Materazzi and was sent off, Didier Drogba lost his head in a confrontation and decided to slap Manchester United player Nemanja Vidic. And the worst part is, it wasn’t even a good slap. If you’re going to slap someone to get sent off in the Champion’s League Final, make sure you get him good. At least Zidane’s headbutt was creative, I mean who headbutts someone in the chest anyway? Instead Drogba barely glanced Vidic’s chin right in front of the Referee, Lubos Michel. Michel immediately sent Drogba off as the game headed into penalty kicks. With the game obviously heading to extra time Drogba made the worst mistake of the game. To play for that long and get kicked out of the biggest game of your career over something so small and dumb is beyond me. Drogba’s character was shown in this game and it should definitely hurt him as trade rumors surround him.

Surely if Drogba was in the game in penalty kicks, Chelsea would have won. His stupid antics cost his team a win and should be looked at as the goat of this game. If Drogba was in the game John Terry would not be taking the 5th and final shot to win the game, but Drogba would be. Instead, John Terry, a defender, stepped up and missed. This will most likely be Drogba’s last game as a Chelsea player and Chelsea fans should be happy.

The drama of Drogba’s slap of Viddic and the final penalty kicks will definitely overshadow an amazing game throughout. The first goal was scored by star Cristiano Ronaldo from a beautiful cross from Wes Brown. Ronaldo lifted high above marker Michael Essien and buried the ball perfectly into the lower left corner. Frank Lampard, overcoming the death of his mother, buried a goal after a deflect fell right to his feet minutes before half time which turned the momentum around for Chelsea in the 2nd half. The 2nd half wasn’t as eventful as the first half until Drogba took a shot outside the 18 yard box that hit off the post. If that shot was two feet to the right it would have ended the game and gave Chelsea the title. And then later in the game with the ball floating around Manchester United’s box, Frank Lampard found the ball at his feet about eight yards from the goal. With his back turned to the goal, Lampard turned and shot and drilled the ball off the crossbar. Again, two feet lower the cup would have been Chelsea’s. So, in total Chelsea came up two feet shy of the cup on three different occasions. Tough luck.

It’s amazing how many players could have ended up being criticized and blamed if the game turned out differently. If Manchester United doesn’t win you could easily blame Ryan Giggs for missing a wide open shot within the six yard box. Giggs recieved a perfect pass with the goal wide open and instead of drilling the ball home with his right, he decided to try and nudge it in with the outside of his left. This gave time for John Terry to get back to the line and push the ball away with his head. And then you could blame Alex Ferguson for taking Scholes out and putting Giggs in. You could easily blame Cristiano Ronaldo for trying to be too fancy and missing a penalty. The stop and go move by Ronaldo was so overt that if it went in the referee would have disallowed it. With Anelka’s miss though, both Giggs and Ronaldo were vindicated, leaving Ronaldo weeping in the middle of the field like a baby after Van Der Sar saved it.

This was the best game I’ve seen since the 2006 World Cup Final, and there are a lot of elements that remind me of it. If you’re a Chelsea fan feel bad for John Terry and maybe Anelka, but make sure you blame Didier Drogba’s slap for losing this game.

Manchester United-2 Chelsea-1

Yeah, that’s my prediction but with the way the Champion’s League has gone this year who knows. Manchester United, after wrapping up the Premier League title over the weekend, go into the final on May 21st with the most momentum. Alex Ferguson had an interesting way of explaining their momentum coming into the final in Moscow,

If we’d lost the title it would have been a great knock but we are bouncing into the Champions League final

Both Chelsea and Manchester United went into the final weekend of the season tied in points, but United’s win over Wigan Athletic, 2-0, and Chelsea’s 1-1 tie to Bolton gave United the cup. Chelsea goes into the final beat up after a long season of injuries and trade rumors that have slowed, but not stopped Chelsea. With questions surrounding Didier Drogba, and John Terry’s fitness coming into the match Chelsea will be coming into the game already down.

Although Drogba and Terry have confirmed that they will without a doubt be ready for the final, they will definitely not be 100%. Terry who dislocated his elbow on Sunday against Bolton and Drogba who hurt his knee assured the Chelsea faithful that they will be on the field when the whistle blows. This is what Drogba had to say about he and his captain,

He (Terry) will play in Moscow. No one wants to miss this gigantic match, the match of our careers.

There is less question about Terry who is arguably the toughest player in the world but more about Drogba. Drogba’s season has been riddled with knee injuries and it seems that he gets injured nearly every game. Drogba and Terry aren’t the only Chelsea stars who will be overcoming injuries for the final, Ricardo Carvhallo is also scheduled to come back after battling a back problem.

As for United, they come into the final relatively injury free and on fire. Cristiano Ronaldo won the English Player of the Year award after his most spectacular season yet. He has had 38 goals and has done nothing this year but prove he is the best in the world. His back to back awards as PFA Player of the year has made him the main target for Chelsea in the final. Ronaldo’s speed, agility, and sheer genius will be too much for Chelsea and their injuries. Chelsea will have to find a way to keep the ball on Frank Lampard’s feet and distribute vertically to Drogba to avoid Ronaldo. Against Barcelona, Ronaldo was given room to roam and just torched the Barcelona defense and midfield. Ronaldo is the key for Manchester United, and the only way Chelsea can prevent a Manchester United double will be to contain him. But, as I predicted before Chelsea will come up a goal shy and expect United to take home a 2-1 victory.

By Sean Connolly

With two games remaining, Chelsea and Manchester United are now tied for the lead in the Premier League. A bad week for United ended with as they lost 2-1 to Chelsea, and now both teams are tied with 81 points in first place.

The week began on Wednesday when Manchester United tied with Barcelona in the Champion’s League. The game could have been won, but Cristiano Ronaldo failed to convert a penalty early in the game. He shot wide right as they keeper dove left and could do nothing but put his head in his hands. The poor performance could have stemmed from the league complaining about Ronaldo’s approach to the penalty spot, calling it questionable. Obviously concerned, Ronaldo choked with an opportunity to steal an away goal in Barcelona.

As for the weekend in England, Chelsea pulled out an important win that left them tied for first. Just weeks ago it seemed as if Manchester United was unstoppable and en route to the title. Surprisingly, Arsenal is still in the mix after a 6-2 thrashing of Derby County. Arsenal sit 4 points behind both Chelsea and Manchester United. Although improbable, Arsenal stealing the title would only prove that this season has been one of the most unpredictable. Cesc Fabregas of Arsenal still has hope for Arsenal and is picturing them taking the title…

Nothing is Impossible. We have to win the next two games and then we’ll see. We are not the favorites, but you never know.

You never know is right. Arsenal were running away with the title coming down the stretch and suddenly gave the title to the streaking United with a string of poor results. Chelsea surprisingly, have been hanging around and now have momentum coming into the final two games of the season. Despite several Chelsea trade rumors, which included its coach, Chelsea has overcome outside talk and have played solid soccer down the stretch. I expect Chelsea to walk away with the title with United falling one point shy of glory.

Silvio Berlusconi, President of AC Milan, has now admitted that the cost of Ronaldinho may be too high. This has led to Manchester City and AC Milan rival, Inter Milan, to get into the mix. With the cost of the 28 year old superstar is too high because there is a lot of doubt surrounding the star. The Ronaldinho trade to AC Milan has caused quite a stir, but now it seems he may be open to more clubs who are willing to spend a great deal of cash. Here’s what SIlvio Berlusconi had to say about the transfer of Ronaldinho…

We still want him and we know he wants to come to Milan. But Barcelona have asked for a price which we feel is excessive.

Ronaldinho has had his worst season yet as he riddled with injuries and his fitness level has not been up to par. The uncertainty of Ronaldinho playing throughout a season is the main concern. He has only played 13 of Barcelona’s 30 games this year and will me the rest of the games. Who would pay so much for only 13 games a season?

I think Manchester City will take the risk of bringing in Ronaldinho. With young Kasper Schmeichel in goal for the next couple of seasons, Manchester City could have a solid young team in their hands. An addition of a superstar like Ronaldinho could bring them up to the top of the premiership table.

If we continue not to win any trophies next year, then I will go somewhere else. I’ve done it all in Spain, I’ve reached the heights here and so if I do leave I will go to another league.

Eto’o, who comes off as a selfish player, proves that he is selfish off the field as well. He joined Barcelona in 2004 and has won trophies with the Spanish powerhouse. His team’s performance ended Barcelona’s dreams of winning the Spanish League as they tied 0-0 Espanyol, leading Eto’o to make remarks of possibly leaving the team. With only the Champion’s League trophy to win, Eto’o has become very anxious about his future with Barcelona.

Barcelona has done fairly well in the Champion’s League despite its poor play in Spain. They had a close call last round with Turkish squad, Fenerbahce, but overcame a first leg loss to win in the second leg and advancing to the next round. Barcelona find themselves in the final four of Europe’s most prestigious league matched up with a surging Manchester United team, who unfortunately for Barcelona fans, are playing their best soccer of the year. A loss for Barcelona could send fans into a deep stage of depression as nothing seems to be going right for Barca at the moment. The Eto’o situation is not helping coming into the first leg of the semi-final round and could hurt team morale.

Barcelona fans might not be able to endure another big name loss as earlier this month they learned that fan favorite, Ronaldinho, is more than likely heading to Italy, possibly a trade to AC Milan. Rumors of French superstar Thierry Henry heading back to England have also swirled. Luckily for Barca fans Vice President, Ferran Soriano, shot down those rumors. When asked if Henry will be headed back to the Premiership he had this to say…

I don’t think so. I spoke with him at length a week ago and he is happy in Barcelona. We were a bit disappointed because the team we have is the team to win all competitions and we are not doing very well in the domestic championship. But apart from that he is fine and I’m sure he is not coming back to the UK.

Henry isn’t the only one who has been rumored to leave Barcelona to go to the Premiership. Coach, Frank Rijkaard, has been rumored to be leaving Barcelona to head to Chelsea. Current Chelsea coach, Avram Grant, has been under fire this season and is likely out of Stamford Bridge soon. Rijkaard would be a perfect fit for Chelsea but all remains to be seen. When asked about Rijkaard’s possibilities of heading to the Premiership, Soriano refused to comment.

Barcelona face Cristiano Ronaldo and Manchester United on Wednesday as heavy underdogs. The 27 year old Eto’o, still has hope though to go to Russia for the Champions League final.

They are a step above us, but let’s see what happens on Wednesday…For me it is a big motivation that they are being classed as the favourites, that makes me even more keen to beat them.

10. Ugo Ehiogu- “I’m as happy as I can be…but I’ve been happier.”

9. David Beckham- “My parents have always been there for me, ever since I was about 7.”

8. Lee Hendrie- “I took a whack on my left ankle, but something told me it was my right.”

7. Mark Viduka- “I wouldn’t be bothered if we lost every game, as long as we won the league.”

6. Les Ferdinand- “I was surprised, but I always say nothing surprises me in football.”

5. Mitchell Thomas- “All that remains is for a few dots and commas to be crossed.”

4. Stan Collymore- “I faxed a transfer request to the club at the beginning of the week, but let me state I don’t want to leave.”

3. Barry Venison- “I always used to put my right boot on first, and then obviously my right sock.”

2. Thierry Henry- “Sometimes in football you have to score goals.”

drum roll please….

1. Ronaldo- “We lost because we didn’t win.”