After a couple of months off in the name of sports research Mitch is back to keep you up to date with the latest news in the world of Football.
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Article 9 – March 2009
Across Europe the domestic football season has come to an end. So with the summer approaching, many fans will look forward to a couple of months nervously waiting for the summer transfer activities.
In Germany, Wolfsburg claimed their first Bundesliga crown on a nervy final day showdown with UEFA cup finalists Werder Bremen. The title race was between Wolfsburg & Bayern Munich; however the Wolves kept their cool and won the league in emphatic fashion in front of a sell-out crowd at the Volkswagen Arena. They dispatched Bremen 5-1 with goals from the league’s top scorer Grafite and hotshot striker Edin Dzeko who is now surely on the radar of Europe’s elite clubs after banging in the goals all season. It was a fantastic leaving gift for departing Coach Felix Magath who is joining Schalke next season.
The main transfer gossip from the German league relates to French winger Franck Ribery and which side he will be turning out for next season. Rumours suggest that the Frenchman nick named Scarface has a host of clubs after him, from Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid & Barcelona all after the pacy winger’s signature for a reported €45million fee. Meanwhile some business has already been concluded with Werder Bremen’s talismanic midfielder Diego off to Juventus of Italy for a £20 million transfer.
Italy, and the title had been decided for sometime now with Inter a comfortable 10 points clear from nearest rivals Juventus. Jose Mourinho’s men again were the team to beat this season, with a perfect record in their home games at the San Siro – the catalyst in delivering them their third straight domestic title. Elsewhere in Milan and the red side of the city where saying goodbye to club servant Paulo Maldini who played his last game for the Rossineri after twenty years at the club. The Rossineri also waved goodbye to manager Carlo Anchelotti who promptly was ushered into the Chelsea hot seat by Russian billionaire Roman Abromovich who is keen to claim the Champions League title.
Inter Milan also moved quickly in the transfer market snapping up the services of Diego Milito & Thiago Motta from Genoa. Elsewhere and the transfer gossip rocking Italy is the shock transfer of Kaka to Real Madrid for a world record fee. The midfielder has been a long term target of the Madrista who are looking to create Los Galacticos mark two as former president Florentino Perez has been voted in again at the club.
Over to Spain and Barcelona charged to glory on all fronts winning an unprecedented treble in Pep Guardiola’s first season in charge. The Catalans took home the domestic double in the form of league and cup and also won the Champions League crown in Rome after a fantastic tactical display from the rookie Guardiola. Barca struck early on after a raft of pressure from United, the early goal took the emphasis away from the Red Devils as Barca’s keep ball tactics worked to devastating effect. Andreas Iniesta ran the midfield that doubled their lead with an uncharacteristic Leo Messi header on the 70th minute.
The main transfer gossip in Spain relates to Valencia and striker David Villa who is being courted by a host of teams across Europe. Real and Barca are surely at the front of the queue for David Villa and midfielder David Silva who have indicated a preference to stay at home. However that won’t stop the amorous advances of Manchester United, Manchester City and even Liverpool who are also eager to sign up the Spanish stars.
In England it was a case of the major domestic honours being shared between two of the big four again. This time it was Chelsea and Manchester United who took all the glory and once again the big four retained the top four births in the league for the seventh year running. Manchester United strolled to the title again, even after heavy pressure from Liverpool, confirming champion’s status after a 0-0 draw with Arsenal. Chelsea also romped home to glory in the F.A cup after defeating Everton 2-1 at Wembley. Didier Drogba & Frank Lampard got the goals which ensured Guss Hiddink left Chelsea with a trophy before returning back to his job with the Russian national side.
At the other end of the table Newcastle, Middlesbrough and West Brom all suffered relegation. Major transfer Gossip in England is focused mainly around the oil millions of Manchester City and ‘the richest club in the world’ have been linked with a whole range of players since the takeover last September. Recently the sky blues have been linked with Carlos Tevez, Everton defender Julian Lescott, and David Villa of Valencia.
Finally over to France and five years of Lyon domination are over as Bordeaux won their first title in over a decade. The French title race had been of interest for some time as Lyon threw away a six point lead in February and finished up in third place. Bordeaux on the other hand completed a fantastic run of eleven consecutive victories to claim the title. Laurent Blanc dedicated the title to the fans in only his second season as a professional boss. Favouring the more autocratic English style of management Blanc has moulded a formidable side, with French Midfielder Yoann Gourcuff the star of the side.
European Talent Scout
With hundreds of millions of Euros milling in the Transfer market, have a look at a few hidden gems, a couple of signings that could set Europe on fire soon and may feature in Futera World Football Online Game Cards in the near future!
Michel Bastos
The tricky Brazilian has a hammer of a left foot and has been scoring spectacualar goals for Lille in France. He’s only 25 and has been attracting interest from the likes of Arsenal and Lyon.
Andreas Vasquez
Another South American import this time via Peru & Sweden. He’s a tricky midfielder with bags of pace, he is only 21 and still has plenty of time to develop.
Eljero Elia
Hailing from Holland and currently residing with Steve Mclaren’s F.C Twente side, the winger is a speed machine and isn’t shy in taking on defenders. He’s currently been looked at by PSV of Holland, however it may not be surprising if he moved to Germany with whispers of strong interest from Bayern Munich?
The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Futera or www.futera.com
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