How True Grit Explains The English Premier League

Something occurred to me while I was watching 'True Grit' the other day. It is a brilliantly acted and directed film that rarely puts a foot out of place while telling it's tale of retribution and relentless characters. However, one thing also stood out, the story is also a metaphor for the English Premier League...

Wayne Rooney Wonder Goal Earns Win For Manchester United Over City In Derby

Wayne Rooney ended Manchester City's slim title hopes at Old Trafford today as Manchester United won 2-1 to move within touching distance of the Premiership trophy. The England striker scored an amazing overhead kick that must be considered one of the greatest goals of the season, or any other season for that matter, as United gained the result their ambitious play deserved.

Premier League Sack Race: Odds For Every Manager

Who will be the next manager to get the sack in the English Premier League? Are Avram Grant’s days numbered? Does Wenger have to win a trophy? Can Roy Hodgson turn Liverpool around?
You wait around all season for the first EPL manager to be sacked and then two happen within the space of a week.

Edin Dzeko Transfer to Manchester City May Not Happen if Bayern Munich Become Involved

According to a number of sources, Manchester City seems to be in the driving seat as far as signing Wolfsburg's Edin Dzeko is concerned.

The striker is one of the few top class strikers in the world today not residing in what would be regarded as a top club. However, the deal may not be as simple as a mere £25 million bid and buy.

It is no secret that Wolfsburg is having a poor season. Currently, Die Wölfe are languishing in 13th, a massive 24 points off Borussia Dortmund in first place and are facing a real struggle to stay in the league, never mind qualify for Europe or challenge for the title as many expected.

The signing of ex-England boss Steve McLaren from FC Twente was meant to be the catalyst that propelled the Volkswagen backed team towards becoming perennial title challengers, but the move has not worked as hoped.

Under McLaren, Wolfsburg got off to their worst start to a league campaign in recent memory with three defeats in their opening three games.

The situation improved somewhat after that though as Die Wölfe went unbeaten for four games with three straight wins.

However, things then took a slight turn for the worse and as we head into the winter break, Wolfsburg have gone eight games without recording a win and have suffered an embarrassing defeat to Energie Cottbus in the German Cup.

That shock defeat caused the Club President, Dieter Hoeness, to release a statement backing McLaren but also sending a shot across the bows of players with perceived bad attitudes.

Hoeness told the club's official website: "We have got some cleaning up to do.

"We told the team eight weeks ago after the defeat in Nurnberg that their basic attitude must change.

"We did not get a reaction so now we have got to react. The fans do not deserve to see what they are seeing on the pitch, particularly given the exemplary way in which they supported us against Cottbus.

"We expect the coaches to act consequentially and to punish bad behaviour both on and off the field."

Hoeness intimated that McLaren had much work to do and that January would be an important month for getting the Wolfsburg project back on track.

"Above all, we will push on with our rebuilding of a successful team next summer," explained Hoeness.

"It is difficult to do that in the winter, but we will see what we can do.

"It is going to be a painful time for one or two people around here. With this current team in this current situation, enduring success is no longer possible."

Wolfsburg's sliding down the table has had a huge effect on the team, chiefly its talismanic goal scoring machine Edin Dzeko.

The striker has made no secret of his love for Die Wolfe, but he has also made it clear that he will move if he does not receive regular Champions League action.

At the start of December, Dzeko and McLaren had a heated exchange after the Bosnian striker was substituted with two minutes remaining in the 0-0 draw against Werder Bremen.

It was the first public sign that all was not rosy in the Wolfsburg garden and almost immediately, Europe's top clubs came circling.

Manchester City is believed to have placed a bid of around £25 million (€40m) with the club for Dzeko's services, but thus far the club have remained tight lipped.

The main problem Manchester City face in signing Dzeko is that Wolfsburg are probably the only other club in the world where money is not a major factor in sales.

The club grew out of Volkswagen wanting an outlet for their workers in the newly created city of Wolfsburg and the club have become something of a play thing rather than a business enterprise for the world famous car group.

In short, VFL Wolfsburg does not need to sell players to balance the books and are not run for profit.

It is also worth noting that Volkswagen owns Audi and that Audi own a 10 percent stake in Bayern Munich.
Over the last couple of seasons, there have been persistent rumours that Bayern Munich have first preference on Dzeko and it seems very surprising not to hear their name being mentioned as the bidding war for the Bosnian's services begin.

On top of the Bayern Munich links, you also have to look at Manchester City's bench. Brian Marwood was brought into the club with a view to reducing the club's wage bill with "Financial Fair Play" in mind and it was partially his doing that the club have dramatically reduced their reliance on using players’ agents.

Agents being moved to the periphery of importance at Manchester City were one of the direct causes for the recent Carlos Tevez spat. His agent, Kia Joorabchian, was once one of the most powerful individuals at City, through his recommendations and contacts, and it is no secret that he despises not being a shoulder for the club to cry on anymore.

City also has an abundance of strikers at the club at the moment in Tevez, Balotelli, Jo, Santa Cruz and Adebayor. Obviously, the latter trio are not rated by Mancini, but it seems an antagonistic approach to bring in their replacement now when the summer would make more sense.

Wolfsburg's situation must also be looked at.

Their main problem this term is scoring goals and selling their best player and main onion sack assassin would be nothing short of domestic suicide.

At the moment, they are nine points off the bottom of the table; on the other hand, they are only 12 points off the Champions League and if Steve McLaren can bring in one or two influential signings, there is no reason why Die Wolfe cannot climb the table.

Daniel Agger and Bayern Munich's Mark van Bommel are the latest pair to be linked with the club.

There is little doubt that Edin Dzeko will move on from Wolfsburg one day. Moving in the summer looks a far better bet than January though and Manchester City will not be the only team bidding for his undoubted talents.

Manchester City 0-1 Tottenham Hotspur: Spurs Qualify for the Champions League

Tottenham Hotspur will head into Europe's Premier Cup competition for the first time since 1962 after they beat high spending Manchester City 1-0 at the Eastlands. The match was essentially a playoff for the final English placing in the Champions League next season.

Peter Crouch scored the only goal of the game as the man-of-the-match latched onto Martin Fulop's messy clearance to head the ball home with just eight minutes remaining.

The 1-0 win was thoroughly deserved by Harry Redknapp's adventurous side as they took the game to the home-side right from the off. 'Arry signalled Spurs' intentions with a brave team selection that included the returning Aaron Lennon and the injury prone Ledley King.

Lennon's inclusion meant that Spurs went with two out and out wingers on either side of the pitch, sending the message to everyone that Spurs were there to win the match and not to play out a draw that would have given them the advantage going into the final games this weekend.

City on the other hand were strangely subdued, and one must figure that the Italian fearful mentality of Roberto Mancini dictated the tempo his team were to play at.

While Spurs attacked and probed and got men forward at every opportunity, Manchester City played with two deep defensive midfielders and seemed happy to let the Londoners force the flow of the game.

Ex-Tottenham 'keeper Fulop made a number of brilliant saves to deny Spurs and at one stage the Blues goal was leading a charmed life. Crouch hit the post with a diving header, King had a goal disallowed for pushing, Defoe went close only to see Fulop's finger tips deny him, and Gareth Bale fired inches wide after a deft header from Crouch.

In reply, City barely troubled Heurelho Gomes, and when he was eventually called into the action the Brazilian was equal to anything the Citizens could muster.

In the end, City's game-plan and shape went out the window completely, and the more disciplined Spurs side took over. David Bentley, on for the dog tired Lennon, released Youness Kaboul who was let free by some abysmal defending by Craig Bellamy.

The deputising full back's cross was too hot to handle for Fulop and his parry sat up nicely for Crouch to nod home and send Spurs into Europe.

For Tottenham it is the next chapter in a remarkable story. In October 2008 when Redknapp took over they were rooted to the bottom of the table with an under-performing team. Less than 18 months later and they will be one of three London teams that will play in the Champions League next year.

The Spurs boss has built an exciting team, one of the few sides who use a traditional 4-4-2 with two attacking wide players. They have a goalkeeper who has gone from zero to hero and who is regularly linked with moves to the likes of Bayern Munich and Juventus.

A midfield that combines silk and steel in equal measures with the likes of Wilson Palacios and Tom Huddlestone growing with every game. Luka Modric is a class act who will garner attention from every major club and the two wide "diamonds" of Lennon and Bale are good enough to frighten any defence.

Spurs contain quality all over the pitch and with one or two extra signings could consolidate their stay in the top four.

That very much depends on progressing towards the group stages of the Champions League, and if they do they will have the financial and motivational tools to hold onto their very best players.

As the travelling Spurs fans broke out into Glory Glory Tottenham Hotspur one could not help to feel for Manchester City's fans who had expected so much after their massive spending.

This defeat to Spurs has knocked their plans back, but they will end up in the top four sooner rather than later so it is up to Spurs to take advantage while they can and make hay while the sun shines.

Speaking after the game an obviously happy Harry Redknapp spoke gushingly about his young side, which included eight English players.

"Most people probably thought we'll come here and take a point but I picked the most attacking team you could ever wish to see," he told BBC Sport.

"We came here to a hot atmosphere and got at them and we deserved the win."

Redknapp added: "It's fantastic. It's been a terrific season for us, we've played some great football and we deserve it.

"I thought maybe the goal wasn't going to come and we'd go to Burnley with the extra point in the bag, which would have been a good situation, but this is perfect to finish it here today. It's just perfect for us.
"Crouchy was top class and led the line and he deserved the goal," he added.

"I also think Jermaine Defoe had his best performance away from home for some time.

"Finishing fourth is something that gives me a lot of pleasure. It's great for the club and it is nice to have finally done it after coming so near in the past.

"I think to finish third would be asking a lot but fourth is a great position for us.

"We'll have to have a look in the summer and see where we can improve if we have to, but we've got good players here. I think there might be eight boys in the preliminary squad for England."

Asked about centre-back Ledley King, Redknapp said: "What a player, he's got to go to the World Cup, but Michael Dawson as well—the two of them tonight were just fantastic. You've got to put them in your squad."

Eighteen months ago Spurs were on the verge of relegation, today they sit on the edge of playing in the Champions League and contributing more players to Fabio Capello's England squad than any other team.

Happy days indeed.

Manchester City vs. Tottenham Hotspur: Bigger Than the Champions League Final

Spurs travel to the Eastlands tomorrow to take on the financial might of Manchester City in a match that promises to be one of the highlights of the season, and is almost certainly more important than the Champions League Final for a number of reasons.

When the two teams met last December it was Spurs who triumphed after a brace from Niko Krancjar and a neat finish from Jermaine Defoe gave the White Hart Lane outfit full points. The 3-0 defeat signalled the end of Mark Hughes' time in charge at City, and he was soon replaced by Italian schemer and fashionable scarf wearer Roberto Mancini.

The former Inter boss has continued the early good work set in motion by Hughes and, now, as expected, City stand on the brink of Champions League qualification.

Only Harry Redknapp's over achieving Tottenham team stand in their way of a potential £60 million, European and Premier League domination.

For those of you who think that will hardly be the case think again.

In the space of just 24 months Manchester City have spent something in the region of £200 million and trebled their wage bill. That has guaranteed them a challenge at the top four, should they progress one further then they will consolidate their position and spend again.

This game represents a turning point in many futures, for not only Tottenham or City, but for the other challenging teams in the league.

Victory for Spurs will push City's master plan back a year or two, while the money they could gain should take them further ahead of rivals Everton, Aston Villa, and maybe even Liverpool.

Champions League qualification for Manchester City would almost certainly see them sign better players and it is conceivable that they would surpass Arsenal and become viable title challengers with Chelsea and Manchester United.

It is a game with many destiny's on the line, but back to the match.

Both teams have goalkeeping problems.

Shay Given is out with a dislocated shoulder, which will see the Donegalman return to action next September or October. Huerelho Gomes damaged his groin, with only one minute remaining in the 1-0 win over Bolton at the weekend, and is a major doubt for the clash.

It means that both sides could potentially have reserve team goalkeepers between the posts in the biggest match either club has had in years. City's problems saw them bring in former Spurs 'keeper Martin Fulop on loan from Sunderland after they exploited a loop hole in the FA's rules governing goalkeepers, while Tottenham will probably have to make do with young Ben Alnwick.

The ex-Sunderland shotstopper joined the Lilywhites in January 2007 and has yet to make his first team debut at Spurs.

At the back both teams are likely to be without influential defenders. Jolean Lescott is out with a hamstring injury while Spurs will be without Vedran Corluka, long term absentee Johnathan Woodgate, and most probably Ledley King.

One of the best defenders in the league, King suffers from acute knee problems and can only play every six days. Whether he will take the pain and suffer through the City match remains to be seen, but it would be the ideal calling card to Fabio Capello who is sure to be in attendance.

City are at full strength in midfield where as Spurs will miss their infulential Croatian Kranjcar.

Tottenham will have the advantage as far as defence and midfield is concerned. They are a better unit at the back—Youness Kaboul has come in for Corluka without breaking stride,  Michael Dawson has progressed into a real candidate for South Africa, and Benoit Assou-Ekotto is the only real weak link at left full.

Roberto Mancini's men have lacked a certain creative spark through the middle this year, and it is likely that he will bring Shaun Wright-Phillips in at right midfield in an effort to expose the Cameroonian.

However, that could be tempered by the fact that Gareth Bale is certain to start in left midfield for Spurs, and one would think that Mancini's Italian mentality might take over and go with a defensive player instead of the nippy winger.

The middle of the park is where the battle will be won and lost. Patrick Vieira will almost certainly start with Gareth Barry and possibly Nigel De-Jong.

It will be interesting to see if Redknapp starts with Aaron Lennon or if he'll keep the winger on the bench. It might be a gamble worth taking as there will be no point worrying about the match on Sunday if City win, however if Spurs can keep it tight and take a draw the advantage swings to them.

Harry Redknapp should counter City's midfield by dropping Luka Modric to the bench and starting with the highly combative duo of Tom Huddlestone and Wilson Palacios. If Spurs do go with this midfield pairing then expect City to hit their forward line early and quickly.

At the moment City have one of the most formidable strike-forces in the league with Carlos Tevez in fantastic form. He will be making his 100th Premier League start and needs just one goal to reach the magical 50 milestone. Craig Bellamy is ample backup to the Argentinian and is a handful for any defence, while Emmanuel Adebayor is a brilliant as he is contrary. If all three are on form then City can blow any team away.
Contrast their form with the attacking players of Spurs who seem to have gone off the boil at the most important time for the club.

Peter Crouch has been in and out all year, Roman Pavlyuchenko seems to be playing at a good level, but his finishing boots have deserted him, and Jermaine Defoe looks bereft of confidence.

Add everything together and it makes for a highly intriguing and entertaining match.

Both sides like to play football and the game will boil down to the individual battles all over the pitch.
Both teams will look to exploit each others defences. Bellamy and Pavlyuchenko will drop deep giving problems to the centre halves and centre midfielders causing confusion as to who should pick up who.
If Spurs can push on from the middle with Huddlestone, who can shoot from anywhere, this will make City's defenders follow their counterparts leaving gaps for the lightning quick Defoe to expose. The exact same can be said for City and Tevez, but Dawson is a better defender than Toure and the difference between winning and losing could be a fine line.

The game is almost too tight to call, but Spurs have that little bit extra through their team that could make the difference.

It is worth noting that of Spurs eight trips to the top eight teams in the league they have yet to win. However, Spurs have won 11 of the last 12 fixtures between the two clubs.

Home advantage for such a huge game cannot be underestimated and City will start as slight favourites for a match that will award the winning team more money than the Champions League Final and will shape the league for years to come.

First Arsenal, and Now Chelsea, Super Spurs Go Marching on Towards Fourth in EPL

While volcanic ash from Iceland reduced flights all across Europe, high-flying Tottenham Hotspur picked up their second significant win in a week by easily beating current Premier League leaders Chelsea 2-1 at White Hart Lane.

With Manchester United having beaten Manchester City 1-0 in the lunchtime kickoff, Spurs duly returned the favour and beat the Red Devils' title rivals as they moved back into fourth, two points ahead of City.

Spurs swept the Premier League leaders aside with a performance of sheer brilliance and it was only an 92nd minute Frank Lampard effort that put any kind of gloss on the game for Chelsea.

Goals from Jermain Defoe, his 30th of the season, and the in-form Gareth Bale had given Spurs a two-goal lead before John Terry was sent off for a selfish, arrogant challenge in the corner as Bale threatened to break clear. The English international mouthed the words "that's the second time I touched the ball" to the referee. In truth, Terry could have received three or four yellow cards today, such was his wayward defending.

Defoe and Pavlyuchenko were superb up-front and their partnership bordered on telepathic, as one chose the perfect moment to drop deep while the other occupied the Blues' defence.

With the two forwards dropping off into the inside-right and inside-left channels Chelsea were exposed, as Tottenham always seemed to have a spare man through the middle and their play, both on and off the ball, was simply outstanding.

It left Terry and Alex stranded time and time again as they struggled to follow their opponents. Both players were more than aware of their lack of pace against Spurs' most potent threats.

To say Tottenham dominated the game is an understatement, and the manner of their last two victories will have many pundits reaching for their thesauruses to describe the breath-taking nature of their play.

The energy levels shown from Tottenham were incredible. To a man they ran their hearts out and put Chelsea off their game thanks to a high-tempo, high-level, closing-down game. None more than the phenomenal Gareth Bale, who put in twice the average work rate of a normal player.

It left the Blues rudderless, as they simply did not know what to do with the ball when they eventually did have time on it. Chelsea's lack of creativity from central midfield stifled their play as much as Spurs' good defending.

In a tight game, having leaders and players who can create something from nothing is crucial, and today Chelsea were lacking in both departments. Frank Lampard is a phenomenon at coming on to the ball and there is no one better than him in the English game at arriving late in the box and scoring from nothing. But he is not the man to turn to when the chips are down, his range of passing is average at best while he is by far the best midfielder Chelsea have available to them.

To win any game you have to first win the battle, and central midfield is always the most important part of the field to win. Today, Tom Huddlestone and Luka Modric did everything right, just as they did against Arsenal.
They out-battled, out-fought, and most importantly, out-thought Chelsea's entire midfield time and time again, releasing Gareth Bale, David Bentley, Defoe, and Pavlyuchenko to great effect.

Meanwhile the disinterested Didier Drogba barely received a pass from any of his midfielders.

In defence, Michael Dawson was once again immense, and he shepparded Drogba throughout the match, leaving the Ivorian striker little more than a spectator.

When Chelsea did briefly get into the final third they crashed upon a glass wall of which their was no way through.

While at the opposite end of the pitch, Spurs ran amok.

They really should have wrapped the game up and won by three, four, or even five goals before Frank Lampard's late consolation.

Chelsea were rattled by Spurs, and as their game plan went out the window they resorted to giving away needless free kicks, as Deco picked up a yellow card for himself in a particularly petulant challenge on Huddlestone.

Prime evidence that the hulking youngster was bossing the game over his international peers, Luka Modric's intelligence was there for all to see and the little Croatian's passing was sublime as he picked the ball up in tight situations and spread it wide time and time again.

With players like Huddlestone and Modric willing to take responsibility in tight situations Spurs look like a completely different team. Opponents are never given a rest, because they have to remain vigilant at all times. If they don't then these two can cut a team open with one swift move.

Such was Spurs' dominence even the Chelsea fans acknowledged them somewhat unknowingly when they started singing "Que sera, sera. Whatever will be, will be. We're going to Wembley, que sera, sera." This was after just 20 minutes...

One of Tottenham's biggest criticisms over the years is the lack of a mental aptitude for the game. Today it was Chelsea's players who shirked the responsibility and honesty needed to win the game, while Spurs denied everyone the chance to write the expected headlines by producing their best performance in years.

It has moved them two points clear of Manchester City with both sides having four games left. City travel to the Emirates next week while Spurs make their way into the lion's den that is Old Trafford.

Having dumped Arsenal out of the title race on Wednesday, Spurs allowed their North London rivals a glimmer of hope by beating Chelsea today. Next week they take on Manchester United, and a win either way will have a huge say in the destiny of the title.

Beating Arsenal and Chelsea will mean very little if Spurs do not travel to Manchester and keep their performance levels high.

Victory is not imperative against United, although the three points would be more than welcome. No, Tottenham and Harry Redknapp's main task will be to keep the momentum going, to play well at Old Trafford, and to keep the resounding manner of their recent performances going strong.

There are only four games to go for Spurs this season: away to Manchester United next weekend, home to Bolton a week later, then another trip to Manchester when they take on City in what will be one of the league's most important matches of the season, and finally Burnley at home.

Taking three points from United will be incredibly tough, but so was taking six points from Arsenal and Chelsea.

However, if Spurs can keep the momentum going there is no reason why they cannot take a maximum of points from their remaining fixtures.

Manchester City remain in pole position to finish fourth, but Spurs have only lost once in their last 10 league games, and qualifying for the Champions League is very much in their own hands.

English Premier League Finances 2010, Every Single Clubs Financial Report

Portsmouth are on the verge of becoming the first Premier League club to go into administration, and if many fans fears are to be believed Pompey may not be the first to go.

Manchester United, Arsenal, and Liverpool are all under the heavy weight of massive debt. Such is the level of debt in the Premier League that it makes up 56% of all the debt in European football, some £3.5 billion.

The really shocking indictment of that ludicrous figure is that the traditional top four Chelsea, United, Liverpool, and Arsenal own almost £2 billion of that total figure. Meaning that just four clubs own 36% of all the debt in Europe.

It is something that Michel Platini and UEFA are trying to clamp down upon. There has been one of these English teams in every one of the Champions League Finals since 2004.

Obviously UEFA feel that the EPL teams enjoy far greater freedom to run into debt, and that the EPL as a management body are happy not to police the sector as it brings much more coverage to the league.

Here are the annual accounts for every single Premier League team.

Read them and weep...




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Madin Mohammad; The Best Seven Year Old Footballer On The Planet!

Here is little Algerian kid Madin Mohammad. At seven years of age he possessess unbelievable skill and technique, and if things go well for him, he'll be a very rich boy.

Already clubs like Manchester City, Barcelona, and his own beloved Marseille are tracking him.

Definitely one for the future!

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Watch Wayne Bridge Blank John Terry's Handshake

While the duo used to be friends, that has all gone out the window since John Terry had an affair with Bridge's ex, Vanessa Perroncel.

Here, John Terry tries to take the moral high ground by offering his hand...


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Craig Bellamy Inspired Manchester City Run Riot In 4-2 Win Over Suicidal Chelsea at Stamford Bridge

A Craig Bellamy inspired Manchester City team ran riot against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge today as Roberto Mancini's men hammered the nine men Blues 4-1. Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan had shown that the Blues were beatable midweek, but City ripped them apart.

The Pensioners contributed to their own downfall as much as City's good play, making school boy errors that were beyond belief, as well as two players getting sent off for the most ridiculous of challenges.

The first half was a pretty turgid affair with Chelsea dominating play and Henrique Hilario was little more than a spectator in the error ridden half.

It could be summed up perfectly by Didier Drogba rising to meet a deep cross from the left. He missed the ball but managed to clash heads with Pablo Zabaleta before striking the terrified Micah Richards under the chin with a knee, leaving all three players on the ground in a heap.

Frank Lampard's contribution was negligible before he ran onto Joe Cole's perfectly weighted pass to fire home and give the Blues a deserved lead.

Despite the poor game on show, Chelsea's dominance had to show at some stage. The lack of ambition and deep lying defence of City gave all the impetus to the Blues and the goal came as no surprise.

Mere minutes later and City were unbelievably level. The goal was a real shocker and Carlo Ancellotti will be fuming as to how easy his Chelsea team made it for Tevez to score.

Chelsea were on the attack, Joe Cole's shot was weak and was deflected out to Lampard who was beaten to the ball by Richards who hoofed the ball clear. Under no pressure what-so-ever, Jon Obi-Mikel decided to head the ball back to his 'keeper from the halfway line...

John Terry then made an absolute mess of his clearance as Carlo Tevez raced onto the ball. He then scuffed his shot that seemed to throw Hilario off as the ball bobbled slowly into the net.

It was a terrible sequence of errors culminating in Petr Cech's awful mistake. The great Czech is badly missed and if this is an example of Hilario, the next four weeks could make for dismal viewing for Chelsea fans.

All of a sudden Manchester City were in the game and they almost took the lead on the stroke of halftime after Jolean Lescott's header glided just wide of the far post.

In the space of four minutes the game had flip flopped and Chelsea were now the ones hanging on. Changes had to be made at half time. John Terry was having another nightmare, while Florent Malouda was anonymous.

The second half kicked off without either manager making a change and it was City who took the game to their title challenging hosts.

John Terry receiving a yellow card for tripping Adam Johnson while the ex-Middlesbrough man was in full flight.

The interviews for Fabio Capello's England team were progressing well for Gareth Barry who was beginning to get on top of the poor Lampard and it was his beautiful ball down the left that released Craig Bellamy for City's second goal.

The Welsh flyer flew onto the ball like a bat out of hell while Jon Obi-Mikel strangely chose to run beside him rather than make a challenge. Bellamy made it into the box past the young Nigerian and scored after another dreadful positioning error by the 'keeper.

Chelsea were rattled and had no answers to City's penetration or pace so they decided to try and kick their way back into the game. A flurry of yellow cards followed before Carlo Tevez and John Terry clashed in the corner following a through ball.

It was a sign that teh usually calm Terry was completely off his game and that Tevez had managed to get under his skin.

Every time Terry had the ball the energetic Argentinian was at his heels and when Tevez was in possession, his low centre of gravity was causing the England and Chelsea captain all sorts of problems.

Frustration began to seep into every Chelsea player and they challenged the referee on every decision and made a whole series of niggling tackles.

Sensing that the game was there for the taking, Mancini made a change and brought Shawn Wright-Phillips on to further expose Malouda at left full. Moments later, Michael Ballack picked up his first yellow card of the day after screaming at the referee following his decision to give City a kick out. It was gross unprofessionalism from the German captain who seemed to have let the occasion get to him.

By this stage Ancellotti had managed to see that his team were having a bad day at the office and he made a couple of substitutions in an effort to turn the tide back to his team.

To no avail, a rampant Gareth Barry raced into the box and was upended by Juliano Belletti in a dreadfully mistimed challenge, leaving the referee with no choice but to award the penalty and send the ex-Barcelona player off.

Tevez stepped up and smashed the ball home, leaving Chelsea with an insurmountable mountain to climb at 3-1.

Wayne Bridge then made way for Roque Santa Cruz, the ex-Chelsea player was cheered off by every City fan and a few Chelsea fans and it is somewhat disappointing that so many of the home teams fans chose to boo him as his left the field of play.

Insult was added to injury when Michael Ballack picked up his marching orders after an absolutely ridiculous challenge. Knowing he was on a yellow card, all the German international had to do was jockey the ball, instead he launched himself into a challenge he was never going to win. A deserved red card, and a big let down for his team.

City then added a fourth as Wright-Phillips found the rampant Bellamy unmarked in the box and the Welsh striker stroked the ball home to make it 4-1.

Frank Lampard did manage to find the net through a penalty to reduce the deficit but it was litlle more than a consolation goal.

All talk of Mancini facing a dressing room uprising will be put to bed this week, but the Italian's job still rides on City finishing fourth.

For Chelsea this game is a watershed moment. Carlo Ancellotti will be forced to call a team meeting on Monday and certain players could be forced to face a few home truths.

Since all the affair scandal hit the newspapers John Terry's form has been abysmal, and the Blues captain is one of the worst offenders in this current downward slide.

Yuri Zhirkov needs to be fast tracked off the treatment table and Alex now deserves a chance at centre half more than ever. There is nothing that can be done about Cech's injury so Ancellotti will have to make do with Hilario over the next month. But the odds of winning all three trophies have lengthened considerably.

The invention of Deco and the resistance of Essien are both badly missed, and it is a damning statistic, that only Lampard has really contributed anything from midfield this season.

Luckily for Ancellotti and Chelsea they have no Premier League match next weekend and certain players could be rested or dropped to give them the symbolic kick in the behind they need.

The Blues season is now threatening to implode, and it has very little to do with matters on the pitch.

The first real test of Carlo Ancellotti's Chelsea career.

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Big Four Monopoly To End? English Premier League Clubs To Vote On Proposed Champions League Playoffs in April

The monopoly that Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United, and Chelsea have enjoyed for the last ten years looks set to end. The Premier League are considering the introduction of a playoff for the last Champions League place, meaning a team as low as 7th could play in Europe's foremost trophy.

Premier League sources have confirmed that the play-off system proposal was presented to all at the most recent meeting of EPL clubs, on 4 February. As with his mandate of Chief Executive, Richard Scudamore, now has until the next meeting in April to produce a proposal that would be acceptable to the teams of the EPL.

Under the proposal, a playoff would be played at the end of the season between the teams that finished 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th. The matches would take the form of two semi finals and a final, with the winner progressing towards the Champions League as reward.

One major obstacle that the likes of Liverpool and United will hope to exploit is the lack of fixture time between the end of the league season, the start of May, and the traditional end of the season, the FA Cup Final.

The proposal is still in it's infancy but with 16 teams backing the initial plan, it looks as if a solution should easily be found around the sticky situations of home and away legs, or seeding.

Or even God forbid if England's UEFA co-efficient should drop and only three, not four teams were eligible for Champions League football.

These topics will be picked over by Scudamore over the next month as he readies his proposal.
The move has been met with open arms by the vast majority of clubs plying their trade in England's upper echelon, with only four dissenting voices to be heard, those of Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester United, and Chelsea...The four clubs with the most to lose.

It is not known which chairman raised the issue but it is safe to say that he was not from one of the leagues top four teams. And only needing a majority of 14 it looks as if this proposal could be implemented by as early as next season.

The move was sparked by the aforementioned clubs domination of the the league since the Premier League's inception in 1992.

Since then debt has spiralled out of control in English football, but in the Premier League in particular.

As it stands the 20 teams in the EPL owe around £3 billion in debt, with £2 billion of that total being spread amongst the monopoly on top. Manchester United, famously in debt for £716m recently set up a £500m bond trust to push them further into debt.

Chelsea were smarter and used slight of hand to remove their £700m debt by giving Roman Abrahmovich sole ownership of the club, as owner the debt is now his, and as the Pensioners owed him the money in the first place the slate is wiped clean...

Liverpool came within hours of going under last summer only for RBS (Royal Bank of Scotland) to baulk at the last moment and give them a one year reprieve. The Reds now have until June to find over £100m from a £290m debt.

The Gunners have been more spendthrift than their rivals but are still in debt to the region of £400m with a £25m mortgage to pay on the Emitates stadium for the next 24 years. This despite a recent £150m share issue that saw Bank of Ireland take on shares at the club to quash their debt.

Should other plans by Michel Platini come into fruition then Arsenal could be further plunged into debt as their property company Arsenal Holdings is struggling under the debt they accrued in the development of apartments at Highbury.

Meaning that the other £1billion is spread between the other 16 clubs. When you realise that newly promoted sides like Birmingham and Burnley are reletively debt free it shows that the leagues leading clubs have been allowed to exploit their stature by going further into debt and that the rest are playing an impossible game of catch up.

The fact that these four clubs are the only opposing faction speaks volumes of how this little clique see themselves as being above every other club. Their flat refusal to share the spoils of European football is pure indication that their monopoly is under threat and that the EPL are moving to breakup their strangle hold for the good of the game in England.

Ironically this latest move by the EPL comes as Manchester City enter the fray as the world's richest club and as such are insulated against giant debt. On top of that, Liverpool's traditional placing at the top of the EPL table is under threat from three different sources for the first time in decades.

The top fours opposition to the playoff system is obviously driven by self interest, but their argument that such vast rewards should not be given to a team as low as seventh do not wash as Liverpool themselves won the trophy whilst finishing in fifth place in the league. Add this to the fact that very few champions have actually won the Champion League and finishing seventh is no different than finishing fourth.

The proposal  will of course have massive implications for both the Carling and FA Cups and the relevant teams who have enjoyed their stay at the top of the league.

The two cups have already been devalued by almost every team in English football, attendances show that from the FA Premier League all the way down to League Two that gates have reduced for the cups by almost 20 percent since the 80's.

The new proposed playoff system means a further devaluation to the once great trophies, as EPL teams will now have very little incentive to win the cup as finishing seventh could bring greater glory than winning a cup.
But why introduce a playoff system after almost 20 years of Premier League action?

Is it a reflex reply to the scathing criticism that the 39th game received? In a way one could easily come to this conclusion.

The EPL is the most watched league in the world and the introduction of a "cup" involving four teams with everything to play for at the end of the season would be sure to spark major interest around the world.

At the moment the Championship Playoff Final is labelled as the most lucrative match in world football with an estimated £40m waiting for the winner. How much would the Champions League Playoff be worth?

Currently the top fours budgets earn almost 15 percent of their turnover from the Champions League. Just on television rights alone a trek to the final could be worth almost £40m, and that is before prize money and gate receipts are taken into account.

This season Liverpool were eliminated from the Champions League in the group stages and were dumped into the Europa League. Should Liverpool win every match in Europe's second trophy and lay claim to the trophy, nine matches, they will still pick up less money than they would have earned from playing in the CL Last 16 alone.

In short, the Champions League is huge, and the money earned there is massive. Little wonder that the top four are obsessed with keeping the league in it's current status quo.

If there is one competition that is more drenched in money than the English Premier League, it is the UEFA Champions League.

And now the lower lights in the EPL want their say, will they have the moral courage to break such a powerful monopoly?

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