France Cheats Its Way Past Heroic Ireland To South Africa

France cheated their way to South Africa tonight after Ireland succumbed to a travesty of justice as Thierry Henry handled the ball twice in the build up to William Gallas' winning goal.

It was an outrageous way to win the match after Ireland had taken the game to their "mighty" opponents and put in the kind of performance that the players will remember for years.

Ireland 0-1 France: Advantage Les Bleus After Priceless Anelka Away Goal

France took one giant step towards the World Cup finals in South Africa this evening after they beat Ireland 1-0 at Croke Park in the first leg of the UEFA Playoffs. Nicolas Anelka's deflected strike was enough to secure a deserved advantage for Les Bleus ahead of the return leg in Paris on Wednesday.

Arsenal Slaughter Spurs 3-0 as Harry and Robbie Eat Their Words...

Arsenal gave Spurs a taste of what is expected of a title-chasing team by ripping them to shreds at the Emirates today.

Two first-half goals in the space of 50 seconds put the Gunners firmly in the driving seat before Robin van Persie added his second and Arsenal's third to kill the game off.

Spurs 5-0 Burnley: Four-midable Keane as Tottenham Stroll to Win Over Clarets

Robbie Keane scored four goals in five as Spurs returned to their winning ways against hapless Burnley at White Hart Lane. The Irish striker continued his impressive partnership with Jermain Defoe as Spurs ripped the Clarets to pieces in front of their home crowd.

Xabi Alonso Transfer Piles Pressure on Rafael Benitez to Produce, or Else...

The worst kept secret in football finally came to a close last night as Xabi Alonso completed his protracted transfer from Liverpool to Real Madrid.

In reality, the deal was not as long-winded as most would have you believe. The two clubs amazingly agreed upon the £30 million transfer fee less than 24 hours after the 25 percent sell on clause, which would have seen Real Sociadad claim up to £7.5 million, had lapsed...

Robbie Keane Escapes Rafael Benitez and His Liverpool Nightmare To Rejoin Spurs

Robbie Keane's six month sojourn at Liverpool ended in dramatic fashion today as he braved the winter weather and dashed to White Hart Lane for a medical despite the two clubs having failed to reach an agreement.

But the i's were dotted and the t's crossed later as Spurs agreed to cancel their debt with Liverpool, some £10m and pay the Anfield club another £5m depending on appearances.

Effectively making the transfer fee £15m, or a six month loan deal that cost Liverpool £5m, depending on which way you look at the deal...

Robbie Keane: Caught Between a Rafa Sized Rock and a Parry Place

There has been much speculation about Robbie Keane's future at Liverpool since his surprise omission from the squad that faced Everton in the FA Cup on Sunday. More so after Rafael Benitez admitted he had left the Irishman out of the squad for David Ngog, who had impressed in the reserves during the week.

Newspapers went into overdrive with rumours that Keane was about to follow Jermain Defoe and Pascal Chimbonda back to White Hart Lane and Tottenham Hotspur. Since his £20m dream move to Liverpool, I think it would be fair to say that Keane has not set the world alight, and that there seems to be some kind of mistrust on the part of Benitez...

They Think It's All Over...EPL GameDay 17: Owen, Keane, Gomes, Gabby & Ince....

Gameday 17 of the English Premier League was all about managers and strikers, on and off the pitch. Michael Owen continued his return to form with a goal that set up Newcastle's 3-0 win over Portsmouth.

Gabriel Agbonlahor scored a couple for Aston Villa to enhance his already growing reputation, Didier Drogba came off the bench to change the complexion of the tie against West Ham, and Robbie Keane was firmly rooted to the bench as Rafael Benitez defied all known logic in leaving a £20M striker on the sidelines getting splinters while he made three baffling substitutions.

All good talking points, so let's move on...

Ireland vs. Georgia : Game Preview For Trappatoni's Debut

After seven months and three friendlies the Giovanni Trappatoni regime finally get to savour a competitive match.

Ireland take on Georgia tonight in FSV Mainz's stadium in Germany tonight. The match originally due to take place in Georgia was moved after the Football Association of Ireland and FIFA had reservations about the Ireland side travelling to the war torn region.

The Future Looks Bright Under Trappatoni. Republic of Ireland To Qualify For South Africa 2010?

Life under Giovani Trappatoni has finally gotten under way. On a rain soaked pitch in on a miserable Wednesday night the Republic of Ireland came away from Norway with a credible 1-1 draw.

What makes this friendly so different than Ireland's other friendlies under the trio of Trappatoni, Brady and Tardelli, is that this was with the strongest available side.